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thedamageofherdays · 3 years

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This week's [23-08-2021 - 29-08-2021] reading log is here! I read a lot again this week and I feel like it's a lovely variety of fics. Most fics are Stucky like usual, but there's at least one other ship. I am constantly amazed by the talent people have in this fandom! There was one fic I read on Tumblr that I can't seem to find unfortunately, but when I do I'll make sure to reblog and rec it 💕

Favourites are marked with a 🌻

When life gives you lemons by moonthejedi394 @moonythejedi394 [Stucky, 40k words, Mature] (12/15 chapters available)

Or 13 Terrible Things to Do With Lemons Other Than Making Lemonade

Steve Rogers is a home health nurse. He works for an agency, which assigned him to the aging Winifred Barnes, the one and only Silent Era Hollywood darling. As her needs increased, she requested the agency assign Steve to her full-time. She could pay for it, so she got it. Steve then moved in with her, becoming her caregiver; he cooked, he cleaned, he managed her medications, he made sure she was comfortable.

Winifred's children treated him less than ideally. He was the help, after all. And then Steve had the audacity to go and turn out to be eldest son James Barnes's soulmate. No one saw that coming.

The Masseur and the Assassin by buckybarnesdeservestobehappy @buckybarnesdeservestobehappy [Stucky, 17k words, Explicit]

Bucky Barnes needed a vacation from his job. What he found was a happy ending.

The Words Breathe by buckbarnesdeservestobehappy [Stucky, 1k words, Mature]

All Steve has to do is keep his promise. When he doesn’t, Bucky gets mouthy.

Soft by this_wayward_life @wayward-lives [Stucky, 2k words, Explicit]

The last time he'd seen Bucky he'd looked unhealthy, with pallid skin and greasy, lanky hair. Now, Bucky shone; his hair was thick and silky, his skin a deep bronze from spending so much time outside. He was softer, too; the hard muscle that used to cover him was now replaced by soft fat, his body still strong, but in a more mundane way. His thighs were thicker, his ass plumper, and when he'd pulled Steve into the river Steve had noticed the pudge on his stomach.

Seeing Bucky so happy, well-fed and shining, was a bit of a kick in the face. For all the years they'd known each other, he'd never seen Bucky so... care-free. Now that Bucky was putting on weight, his middle soft and his body malleable, it sent a bolt of arousal through Steve every time he noticed the curves of Bucky's body.

Or: Bucky put on a bit of weight in Wakanda, and Steve is Not Coping.

🌻 Revive Another Side of Me by dontcallmebree @iamthe-wo-manwhocan [Stucky, 1k words, Mature]

Steve’s never lived in a world without Bucky, and he’s not living now. It takes them a while, much too long, to get that awaited rest, a little slice of peace after the dust has settled.Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes are inseparable, history remembers. But they’re not men of the past quite yet.

🌻 imagine being loved by me by spacebuck @spacebuck [Stucky, 20k words, Explicit]

Just after 1am - a few hours after he posted today’s photo - he hears the tell-tale sound of a twitter message. Bucky grabs his phone, not checking who it’s from as he opens it because it’s probably one of his mutuals yelling at him as per usual. When he actually looks at his phone, though, it’s not Natasha

The ‘verified’ check stares back at him for a long moment before he can even bring himself to process the name on his screen. Steve Rogers is messaging him. Or, he reasons, a very good fake. The handle looks right though, not that Bucky knows. Not that Bucky has Captain’s America’s tweets set up as notifications, or that Bucky’s own display name is set to captain america’s bitch. Not at all.

Hey, the first message says. It’s Steve.

🌻 JB’s Complete Lube Services by dixons_mama @dixons-mama [Stucky, 3k words, Explicit]

People just didn’t approach Captain America and proposition him. Although, sometimes Steve wished they would; even the pinnacle of virtue and justice needed to get dicked down from time to time.

Or, the one where Steve has the hots for a mechanic and decides to be proactive in getting that dick.

If it had to be someone by rainbow_nerds [Stucky, 1k words, Mature]

Bucky had known since he was a child that he didn’t have a choice in who he married, but he’d thought he had more time before the day arrived.

Miscalculations by christywantspizza @christywantspizza [Ransom Drysdale/Reader, 6k words, Explicit]

Ransom tries to get you to sleep with him by less than honorable means. You give him what he wants, just not how he wants it.

How to Seduce a Writer by obsessivereader [Stucky, 2k words, Teen]

What's a determined master strategist going to do when the oblivious writer he's trying to woo keeps missing all the clues?

He doesn’t think it’s because he hadn’t signaled his own interest to Bucky. He’s pretty much done everything short of hitting Bucky over the head with semaphore flags by this point. There’s no way Bucky could’ve missed them. Unless… There’d been that one link he’d stumbled upon when he’d googled ‘how to talk to a writer’. It’d been written by a writer, who’d been candid about how oblivious writers could be, and how someone could go about seducing one. An idea starts to form. It’s ridiculous, but at this point, he’s willing to go with ridiculous, since subtle wasn’t getting him anywhere.

🌻 Pod Bless America by Deisderium @deisderium [Stucky, 6k words, Teen]

Bucky can't believe his favorite podficcer recorded his newest fanfic AU of the show Commandos. He's even more surprised when the customer who busts him listening to fic while he's working in the office supply store turns out to be that podficcer.

* The guy—maybe bi_shield?—took his phone, looked down at the screen, and smiled. "Yeah, that one's mine," he said with no evidence of embarrassment. "It was a good one." He handed the phone back to Bucky.

"I wrote it," Bucky croaked.

take a bite by wearing_tearing [Stucky, 7k words, Mature]

"I’d never let anyone freeze to death.” Steve gives a big sigh and flutters his lashes. “All that blood gone to waste.”

Bucky’s lips turn down and his nose scrunches up a little. “I want to be grossed out, but…”

“But you get it.” Steve gives him a pointed look. “Vampires aren’t the only ones who can appreciate how juicy blood is.”

Or: Vampire Steve saves newly-turned werewolf Bucky from a snowstorm.

Leaving the Shield Behind by BuckyAboveEverything [Stucky, 6k words, Teen]

“So, on one hand, we have Steve Rogers - hunk, genius, animal lover. Buys you waffles and overpriced coffee. 100% wholesome all-American boy.”

“And, on the other hand, we have Capsicle – twink, smart-ass, fanboy. Reads your stories and sends you fanart. Possibly a pervert or a serial killer.”

Bucky groaned.

“I am 100% certain I am 0% sure of what to do."

Bucky Barnes, full-time copywriter and free-time fanfic writer, struggles to choose between two equally-attractive suitors, only to find that he doesn’t have to after all.

* Based on a true story *

Cap's Book Corner by Neche [Stucky, 2k words, Teen]

Recluse Author Bucky Barns stumbles into fanboy Steve Rogers bookstore one day...

Cat Nap by galwednesday @galwednesday [Stucky, 8k words, Teen]

Objectively, losing the Bucharest safehouse and its contents was the least of Bucky’s problems. The balding agent he’d seen directing the raid was apparently affiliated with SHIELD, which was a shadowy government agency that made representatives from other shadowy government agencies suddenly remember urgent appointments when Bucky tried to bribe, threaten, and otherwise shake them down for information on what the hell SHIELD might want with a former brainwashed assassin. Dodging SHIELD should be his number one priority.

Subjectively, he wanted his fucking cat back.

at any given moment by honeypuffed [Stucky, 1k words, Teen]

Steve and Bucky find out that everyone thinks they're sleeping together.

Brought to Brightness by eyres [Stucky, 10k words, Teen]

Army veteran Bucky Barnes has fallen in love with Steve, a guy he met online a few months after he returned from Afghanistan. Only problem is, he doesn't know Steve's last name or even what he looks like.

When his sister helps him send his story into MTV's Catfish, he's hoping they can help him meet Steve or, at least, let him move on with his life if Steve isn't real. Little does he know, Steve and Captain America have more in common than just a first name.

🌻 Nokken Wood by leveragehunters @leveragehunters [Stucky, 10k words, Teen]

When Sam's friend needs a house-sitter for his place in the country, Steve jumps at the chance. Six months rent-free to do nothing but draw and paint and wander the countryside, looking for inspiration? It was like a dream. But when he gets lost in a storm and nearly falls into a pond he starts to rethink the whole like a dream aspect of life in the country. And when a red-eyed, sharp-clawed, silver-fanged creature rises out of the darkness, Steve is one hundred percent certain the dream's morphed into a nightmare.

...until it gives him a cup of tea.

(Inspired partly by this prompt a supernatural creature is supposed to scare you but instead it gives you a cup of tea and a blanket because you're having a bad day and you keep coming back and partly by this painting.)

Professional Pride by galwednesday [Stucky, 700 words, Teen]

Bucky is having a very good day, until he turns around and finds himself face-to-face with Captain America.

“Oh shit,” he blurts before he can stop himself, and Captain America blinks at him. “Hey, hi, I didn’t expect to see you here.” Here, at New York’s Pride parade, surrounded by thousands of happy screaming people wearing rainbows and sometimes not much else. What is he doing here? Is he on guard duty or something? Was he just on a mission and happened to be passing by on his way back?

He’s in uniform but with the cowl loose around his neck, so when he rubs the back of his head it fluffs up his matted hair. “I, uh. I saw one of your–temporary tattoos?” Captain fucking America says, like it’s a question.

The A-bridged Guide to Trolling by galwednesday [Stucky, 1k words, Teen]

“I don’t have any money.”

Oh no, now the girl looked upset. Her eyes were huge and her lip was wobbling. Bucky tried to think fast despite the oh shit oh shit oh shit looping through his head.

“That’s okay,” Bucky said gently. “I don’t need money. We can figure out another kind of toll.”

The girl frowned at him. “Like what?”

Bucky scratched his head, trying to think of something a kid was certain to have on hand. “Do you know any jokes?”

(Fantasy AU in which Steve is a hedge witch with a green thumb, Bucky is a bridge troll who's new in town, and knock-knock jokes are a viable form of currency.)

It's a bittersweet ending (if you know what I mean) by relenafanel [Stucky, 1k words, Teen]

“I’ll see you around, Steve,” Bucky answers with a smirk, moving away from the counter with a wink.

Steve watches him go. Bucky’s wearing a pair of skinny jeans coated in something to give the appearance of leather. It’s impossible to not watch him go.

stuck on you by wearing_tearing [Stucky, 5k words, Teen]

“Bucky? You don’t look so hot.”

Bucky makes a tiny little sound in the back of his throat, only to start coughing. Of course he doesn’t look hot. He’s sick and he’s dying and Steve obviously isn’t attracted to him.

Decision-Making in Relationships (Paid Research Opportunity!) by castiowl [Stucky, 8k words, Teen]

Clint looked thoughtfully at the flyer. “I guess your actual roommate wouldn’t be down with it?”

Bucky frowned. “Have you met Steve Rogers?”

no way out but through by hollimichele [Stucky, 9k words, Teen]

Steve never sees it coming.

you got blood on your hands (and i know it's mine) by nighimpossible [Stucky, 3k words, Teen]

Bucky refuses to see Steve after his deprogramming.

Like What You See by daisymondays [Stucky, 8k words, Teen]

For all the time Bucky’s spent fantasizing about meeting Captain America, he’d never imagined it would be while posing nude in front of a drawing class.

🌻 A Real Boy by itsnotbleak [Stucky, 5k words, Teen]

It took the Winter Soldier three weeks to remember that human beings needed to sleep and eat.

It took Steve far too long to realise the Winter Soldier was sleeping in his bed.

Amapola by chaya [Stucky, 830 words, Teen]

Total fluff. Bucky's recovering nicely. Steve's oblivious. Sometimes it's best to set aside subtlety for action.

Knocking Boots With Sugar by buckybarnesdeservestobehappy [Stucky, 4k words, Explicit]

In between summers at college, Steve Rogers wants a new adventure beyond his lonely life in Brooklyn. He ends up in West Texas working on a dude ranch where Bucky Barnes is a long-time employee. When Bucky offers to buy Steve a drink, they end up drunk on tequila and making out in public. For the rest of the summer, they're inseparable. As the summer draws to a close, Steve realizes he doesn't want to leave.

Rogers and Associate by roe87 @jro616 [Stucky, 7k words, Teen]

When they first meet, Bucky is a hooker and Steve is a cop. She's been arrested, but Steve lets her off.

Years pass and they maintain a casual friendship, seeing each other out on the streets most nights.

Though he later makes detective, Steve loses faith in the system and quits his job.

He wants to set up as a private investigator, and he asks Bucky if she'd be his assistant.

Just in time by rainbow_nerds [Stucky, 1k words, Mature]

Bucky knew the apartment he was renting was old fashioned, but walking in the front door and finding himself transported back to 1938 was not on the list of things he had prepared himself for.

🌻 You Like What's in My Head by dontcallmebree [Stucky, 15k words, Explicit] (with art by @kocuria)

Bucky can’t decide if Steve’s a tough nut to crack or incredibly easy. The timbre of his voice, a low and almost amused, “Sure, kid,” when Bucky asks for a drink feels like something gripping him on the back of his neck.

He thinks this might be one of those moments in life he’ll pinpoint in the future and either curse at for dooming himself, or remember fondly with pride.

He’s right. Bucky Barnes blunders through falling in love with Commander Rogers and tries to find a deeper meaning behind the expensive gifts and thorough fucking.

Can I Sit Here? by BuckyFrickenBarnes [Stucky, 962 words, General]

Bucky has unusual methods for getting rid of his writer's block.

Or, Bucky needs that table.

Workplace Romance by BuckyFricken Barnes [Stucky, 1k words, General]

Bucky is under the impression that his boss hates him.

Or,

Steve needs to get better at dealing with his feelings.

🌻 1-800-MAYTAG by Miss Plum @misspluckyplum [Stucky, 1k words, Explicit]

Bucky just wants to get some housework done. It gets out of hand fast. Silly little fluff and smut romp with snarky stucky boys.

Eyes of the Forest by Lordelannette [Stucky, 7k words, Explicit] (2/8 chapters available)

When Omega Bucky Barnes comes to Eagle Lake, it was in search of wolves, a creature that had not been seen in the area for decades.

What he finds instead is Steve Rogers, a handsome, though quiet Alpha who seems to be everywhere in the forest.

#r's reading log #my reading log #fic rec #stucky #stucky fic rec #fic recs #stevebucky #long post

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homieswithhades · 3 years

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why steve rogers returning to the past was wrong

disclaimer: im clearly a stucky enthusiast, but please, do not be thrown off by that. i admit, there may be undertones of bias because of that in the following, but i did my best with trying to lay out the facts and draw logical conclusions, so do please give me a chance. also, i may have accidentaly omitted some moments and some quotes may not be 100% word for word, as my memory lowkey sucks. ALSO this is NOT a peggy hate post!! i think shes a dope and underrated character and quite frankly she was done dirty. but i also definitely h8 the trope of badass woman falls for the hero.

first and foremost, every sane person knows endgame was complete and utter bullshit when dealing with steves character, so this post will be more for you to maybe show (and hopefully convince) some stubborn friend or family member. nice, concise (not) and including proof from the movies (+a few tweets and stucky undertones, if u dont fw that i respect it but bucky is an integral part to steves character regardless of how u interpret their relationship) here is why steves character development was thrown away at the end of endgame.

let us begin at looking at the cap trilogy.

in ca:tfa it should be noted that steve had no one to return to in the 40s, except bucky. i believe steves relationship with peggy was no where near as developed as it should have been to elicit him returning exclusively for her. as we are aware, steves driving force has absolutely always been bucky. bucky was there for steve after his parents died, when he was sick, and always protected him from whatever trouble he got himself into. "until the end of the line" right? steves relationship with peggy was forced and short lived, literally, we're talking a matter of months here. i need to keep emphasising the important disparity between bucky and peggy, as it is absolutely key in this whole argument. steve dropped everything and went against every order just to even attempt to save bucky. even the slightest chance of him surviving being captured was enough for steve to break into a hydra camp and free the 107th division. steve even had the chance to capture zola, one of the main villains and masterminds of the war, but again, steve prioritised bucky. when theyre trying to escape the exploding hydra camp, the exchange between steve and bucky is critical. steve says "go! get out of here!" as all he wanted was bucky escaping safely. he put bucky's life over his own (this wasnt the first time he did this, nor the last) but bucky rooted himself to the spot, and yelled back "no, not without you!". they both escaped safely as we know, and then steve gathers the howling commandos to take down the red skull. bucky then falls off the train, nd steve blames himself for his death, even visibly crying over it twice. steves morals went from "i dont wanna kill anyone. i dont like bullies, i dont care where theyre from" before buckys death, to "i wont stop until all of hydra are dead or captured" after. stuff happens and steve defeats the red skull and is now in control of the flying ship with the bombs. he connects the comms with peggy and she tries to convince him theres another way to disarm the ship. steve was so dedicated at that point he didnt even want to hear it. he didnt even attempt to do anything to ensure his survival. this alone proves, peggy was not important enough to him to return to.

next is ca:tws. The stevebucky movie. in the museum, peggy confirms that steve saved the man from the 107th division who eventually became her husband (steve was never in the 107th, just to clarify) i believe her husbands name was daniel sousa (as revealed in the marvels agents of shield show) steve then finds out peggy is alive and talks to her. she, in short, tells him she's lived her life, and it was his turn to live his in the time hes in. the "my best girl" line was unnecessary and out of place; again, steve barely knew her. again, shit goes down, and steve finds out the winter soldier is bucky and immediately drops everything, and becomes dead set on saving him. not killing, not imprisoning, but saving him. no matter the cost. "he saw me, and he didnt even know me" "hes not the kind you save, hes the kind you stop. he won't recognise you" "he will." god, steve KNEW bucky would recognise him. regardless of the brainwashing, steve managed to break through the barrier hydra fought so hard to drill into buckys mind. nothing ever broke him out of that state exept for steve. "im not gonna fight you, youre my friend." "youre my mission" "then finish it. cos im with you till the end of the line." [[good fucking lord let me break out of my essay-esque semi professional format here and just say how fucking heartbreaking those lines are. oh my god. read them, over and over until it hits you.]] steve shows us again, that he is willing to not only die for bucky, but literally die by his hand. he would let bucky kill him. he'd dropped his shield. he didnt fight back. steve always, always, ALWAYS got up and fought back. always. exept that time. the time bucky could have killed him. that scene is the essence of "im with you till the end of the line" because then, it was true. it was true because steve was okay with dying at buckys mercy. theres a difference between sacrificing yourself for the greater good (steve going into the ice), willing to die for someone (steve risking his life multiple times in attempts to save bucky) and finally, being willing to let someone kill you, because you love and trust them so much (hellicarier scene). the difference between peggy and bucky's relationship to steve is that steve may be willing to die for either, but only willing to be killed by one. not to mention, bucky pulled steve from the river. he recognised him. steve broke through 70 years of brainwashing with such impact it literally drove bucky away from hydra out of his own free will.

in between ca:tws and ca:cw its confirmed (im p sure sam says it) that him and steve looked for bucky for two. years. even off screen, bucky was steves priority.

im going to squeeze in 2 points from from age of ultron here, for chronology's sake:

steves worst nightmare, as portayed in the movie, is LITERALLY going back to the 40s and being stuck there (with peggy too??lmfao) and also the quote "family, stability, the man who wanted all that went in the ice 75 years ago. i think another one came out." objectively confirms that steve isn't the man he used to be, and doesnt want to return to the past. aou may have sucked, but that doesn't mean the character development should be thrown away.

ca:cw. hoo boy. steve went against 117 countries and half of his closest friends and colleagues because he believed bucky was innocent of the bombing of the un conference. god, steve quite literally, did everything to defend and protect bucky. though i shall acknowledge that steve did attend peggy's funeral, however, there was no real connotations there other than the fact he was mourning her death (understabdibly so). steve then proceeds to protect bucky for 2 hours 27 mins and 41 seconds to the point where they escape together to siberia after the airport fight. "i dont know if im worth all this steve" "what you did all those years... it wasnt you. you didnt have a choice." "i know. but i did it" again, absolutely heartbreaking quotes if you read it a couple of times and truly understand the meaning of them. steve somewhat indirectly tells bucky yes, yes he is worth all of this. otherwise, he wouldn't be doing it. a quote to support that would be "for the longest time, i always did what i thought was right." (disclaimer this is not a direct quote i deadass couldnt find it to save my life, i belive steve said it at some point during civil war or tws, but the point is, bucky is the only thing that could have shaken steves morals so intensely.) and finally, the most important part of cw, the fight at the end with tony. bucky and steve constantly protected each other. steve kept fighting because he was fighting for bucky. to keep him safe from tony and the world. he got up, time and time again. "i can do this all day." the fact that he said that to tony, some people consider them the closest of friends, proves again, a million times over, bucky is more important to steve than literally anything else, INCLUDING his shield. his mantle. he dropped it and left it like it was nothing, because his priority was bucky. as always.

theres not much to discuss for infinity war other than their hug whicg was honestly just adorable.

mmmmm endgame. i will not go into how much i hate that movie because it would be a rant quintuple the length of this one. in the support group, steve dead ass fucking says "you gotta move on. you gotta move on" and that sentiment was literally forgotten at the end. my main point for endgame is this. people tend to tell me, the reason steve abandoned bucky and went back to be with peggy is because he knew that he was finally safe. :/. if you had half a braincell youd know that's not true. the steve we know, never would have left bucky for good, ESPECIALLY after the "dont do anything stupid until i get back" exchange [[god i want to beat the shit out of the r*ssos]] mostly because, bucky had fucking no one in the time he was living in!!! no family, no friends and most heartbreakingly, no one he could trust. (yes sam was there but were just seeing their friendship develop now in tfatws, all that wasnt there in endgame) and secondly, what made steve think bucky was entirely safe??? half of the worlds population just suddenly reappeared, which as we see now, there were massive consequences for that. i simply believe steve is not that stupid. steve going back was disrespectful not only to his character, but to bucky AND peggy. most importantly, the steve we've been watching since 2011 would NEVER abandon bucky, no matter how safe he thought he was (he visited him frequently in wakanda, the safest place on the planet arguably ffs) especially for such a dumbass and quite frankly, nonsensical reason as going back to be with peggy, who clearly stated to him she moved on, and so should he (which he did. idk endgame writers prolly didnt watch the previous movies :/) its not even debatable. bucky is more important to steve than peggy. even in terms of screentime.

now allow some tweets to speak for me, this one being the absolute most important one:

ladies and gentlefolk, all of the stuff ive said can be summarised in that last line. "it would be contrary to who he is."

heres some more:

and now finally, id like to briefly mention steve and tfatws, so beware of spoilers (writing this as of ep 4 coming out; praying it doesn't age badly)

bucky mentions steve, unprompted, fucking constantly. he clearly isnt over steve leaving, and im hoping that gets acknowledged and talked out in the show.

in conclusion, tl:dr, steve shouldn't have returned to the past and stayed there, it is contrary to who he is, as shown to us through his trilogy and other appearances in the mcu. not to mention the timeline bullshit in endgame makes zero sense in the first place.

#long post #stucky #captain america #steve rogers #mcu #marvel #tfatws #bucky barnes #peggy carter #hwh's marvel thoughts #please dont bullshit me in the comments also i dont have the strength #imma hide this in the tags praying no 1 will b bothered to look but steve and bucky gay #everytime some1 calls their relationship brotherly it takes 10 years off my life nd makes me wanna impale myself ❤#also no beta we die like men #my meta

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reidecorating · 4 years

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the bau team and their star signs based on science

hotch: clearly an aries. this is not up for debate and i don't take criticism. natural born and excellent leader? maybe. but bossy boots because he is just a bossy boss man who probably sleeps in a suit or those pyjamas that have suit graphics on them? most definitely. when he speaks, his voice sounds like it’s coming out in all lower case, when he yells, it’s all caps. angery. down to throw hands at anything in his immediate line of vision probably. will exterminate you like a roach if you mess with someone he cares about. don't break the rules or my boss will kill me 😡 to you're breaking the rules under MY supervision, that way my boss will kill US 🥰. probably microwaves food a lot. type of dad to say no to getting a dog, then two months later get matching christmas costumes with said dog. never stops working because he is an absolute UNIT built like the circuit of one of those infinity pools in bali. could use another sabbatical.

rossi: i saw his birth certificate and the rumours are true, he’s a november sagittarius. two wives away from being a modern day king henry the eighth. it’s rossi’s world and we’re all just living in it. he is a prophet. his third eye has been opened and he ascended to the seventh dimension at the age of 24. when he takes leave, the only way to contact him is through a ouija board in latin or maybe greek depending on the position of the sun. he will only die when he chooses to die but will dissolve at the words ‘what are we?’. the major arteries in his body are just long pieces of macaroni. definitely has hooked up with one person from every state the jet has landed in. no filter between his brain and mouth, will destroy your self confidence intentionally. uses abbreviations when texting. liberal - because of the experimenting back in college. probably friends with your mum on facebook.

prentiss: imagine her being anything but an air sign. you can't because she's clearly an aquarius?? work comes first (first equal with her girlfriend). if you tell her to do something she simply won't do it, especially if it was something she was just about to do. she once came home from a run with her mother in the summer and her mother politely suggested that she should drink some water. emily, an anarchist, did not drink water and was hospitalised for heatstroke in due course of proving her point of nonconformity. has been to jail. sucks on candy canes and makes them pointy because christmas is one of her least favourite days. on probation. no, i really like him *deletes his number*. maybe moves to iceland to become a sheep herder to avoid having to ever see anyone she has romantically affiliated with ever again. actually quite the jester, joke levels exceed 4000, but can make you laugh and cry in the span of approximately the length of a short youtube ad. the antichrist.

morgan: has at some point caused someone to question their sexuality. am i really a straight man? do i really only like women? - direct quotes from anyone who has seen him. if that doesn't scream libra i don't know what does. i’m trying to refrain from using the words ‘hot’, ‘sex god’, ‘rail me’. the kinda guy who will hold open a door for you, but also have no problem kicking one down for you. has never ditched class before. momma’s boy. tries to make his pecs move in the mirror. he KNOWS he’s hot okay??? but THEN its not just that because people are like ‘oh he's attractive’ but then they find out he’s RESPECTFUL, and INTELLIGENT and COMPASSIONATE and then that awkward moment when you just DIE because he is not flawed??? it’s like he’s a lucid dream??? probably secretly is really good at baking some obscure european good. uses colognes that have really manly man sounding names for instance, ‘Man Musk’, ‘Mystical Muscles’, ‘Beards and Buttercream’.

garcia: the epitome of a female pisces. a baddie™. definitely owns a pair of those really skinny sunglasses that influencers wear and looks like god herself while in them. spirals from being the momma bear to the wine-aunt. she will care about you so hard but if that's not reciprocated, will hack into your my eyes only and fax those pictures to every machine she can connect to. accidentally has flirted her way into at least 19 relationships. really good at writing fan fiction??? like - seriously good. knows 4 different synonyms for the word “member” iykyk. researches things the people she loves most enjoy, so when she talks to them she can have more detailed conversations. catches feelings for people who are definitely not good for her. sometimes just takes off her glasses because she's tired of, well... seeing. hand makes cute lil earrings for her friends. a master at fireboy and watergirl and will never play with anyone else because ‘another player just slows you down, i can do it myself in half the time’. THAT FRIEND WHO WILL WAIT FOR YOU TO TIE YOUR LACES.

jj: virgo. she was definitely that girl who had notes with pretty titles and colour coded highlighters in school. also did extracurriculars in the weekends so she’d have to be picked up from sleepovers early to go to soccer games. when she takes the time to learn something she learns it well and perfects any craft handed to her because anything less than 100% is failure in her eyes. gets annoyed when other people cry for too long probably. will judge you. so much. silently. especially if you cry. don't make her mad because she has caused civil unrest in 13 continents. live, laugh, love signs in her kitchen. security footage surfaced in 2007 of her roundhouse kicking a middle aged man, in the junk food aisle of a trader joe’s, after he took the last re-stocked bag of cheetos. has a ‘mom first, agent second’ mug that garcia got her. likes family walks which will most likely be planned out meticulously, involving a detailed itinerary of the day i.e. Henry’s toilet break, 10AM

reid: he despises star signs and anyone who gives them any thought because “where is the SCIENCE?” this bitch is a scorpio. definitely only knows his sun sign. so intense! have you seen the way he looks at things?? the way he stares??? the way he analyses dead bodies??? the way he loves??? ridiculously put together to everyone around him but emotionally life is soup and he is fork. kinky. breaks off bananas little by little with his hands before eating each piece individually because eating them normally is too sensual and he’s paranoid morgan might see him doing it and take a picture. wants the kind of love he reads about. has a superiority complex about having a superiority complex. keeps a straight face while saying literally anything so you cannot tell if he’s being serious or not like one day he’ll just be like “yeah i killed a man with an axe once to enable myself to more easily empathise with future unsubs who potentially work as lumberjacks or have a history of logging. it’s called method axing,” and then leave the room to draw circles on maps or something. believes that parallel parking should work, in theory, but never seems to work for him in practice.

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sunflowerdigs · 3 years

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So, I did a little sarcastic-y review from the salt mines for RNM 3x09. Warnings for excessive sodium content, Maribel mourning, a desire to recycle cardboard, and, of course, Malex opinions. Without further ado:

- Every time Michael smiles I forget for like 5 whole seconds how much I hate that Malex keeps me shackled to this show. Too cute that he brought Alex lunch (and probably hoped he could sneak a glimpse of him) and they're going on their first date (omg omg omg).❤❤❤❤❤

- Kyle should yell at people more. Starting with his garbage friends who left him in a barn without proper triage or jello cups while he was in a coma (why didn't they just keep him at DS if he's having appointments there anyway? Nevermind... ). Alas, he's starting his understandable rage tour with Uncle Edgelord, who, naturally, makes a dramatic statement and tries to leave. I am so glad Kyle called him on that.

- Delmanes would be cute if Greg didn't have the personality of cardboard. They've created a character who is actually only here to remind us of how special and amazing Maria is. Turns out that's not super interesting. And it's so painfully obvious that it's a pair-your-spares situation. I really wish they'd just give her Kyle, he has the patience of a saint. Anyway, Isobel's pigtails are cute af (rip my Isobel/Maria/Kyle heart - I would have taken Isobel interrupting Delmanes and Heather's post with pigtails today as signs if not for genetics).

- Anatsa and Isobel's development seems to have taken place completely off-screen, like everything else gay on this show, so I'm guessing it's gonna stick. Honestly...I guess this is controversial but Isobel and Maria have really good chemistry and a history. I know their bond is supposed to read "sibling" but it doesn't for me. And rather than waste time watching them flirt with these one-note (ah, Greg chimes in right on time with a convenient line any rando could have delivered) LIs, I'd much rather see them get closer. The whole related thing has thrown a wrench into it for me. That said, it's nice to watch a woman be encouraged to go after another woman. 🎉

- Alex the sci-fi/fantasy nerd figuring out immediately that the hallucination is his own subconscious is 100% legit. Much like Kyle not letting his uncle pull a classic tall-dark-and-broody exit, I appreciate Alex's 4th-wall break moment.

- Not Max and Liz proving that discussions about s2 drama can occur on Roswell New Mexico?! What? Must be a straight thing. Lucky them.

- Isobel is actually acting a lot like Sherlock Holmes when he's on a case, from the wardrobe to the focus, and it's hot. Also, totally believable that Isobel would be able to pull up that pod from under the ice because we know she's been training even if it didn't happen onscreen. Because she told us. Just a suggestion.

- I love the idea of Jim Valenti as a double-agent, but I don't see how Eduardo thought he could keep Kyle safe by never knowing him. It feels like there's a lot more here Eduardo isn't saying.

- It wasn't a sister-fight that Maria and Isobel had, but whatever (no one got physically shoved or brought up a horrifying memory from 100000 years ago to shove in someone's face in public - doesn't count).

- Also, why would you waste a glass by throwing it into the fireplace? Wouldn't it just explode back in your face? Man, the show is trying so hard with Maria and Greg, I want to give them some kind of romance-novel award for effort (but not success).

- Not Liz and Max showing us that it's possible to move forward by discussing your past mistakes like adults instead of pretending they didn't happen!? What? Must be a straight thing. Lucky them.

- Draw a line on the bottle? No way, Valenti, he obviously wants you to chuck that whole thing straight into the fire in a fit of passion to prove that his words had an emotional impact.

- Also, Kyle wins the prize for this episode for that speech to Uncle Edgelord. Everyone go home. When do I get a Kyle and Alex spin-off where they travel the world, defying sci-fi tropes and seducing beautiful men and women?

- Not Liz and Max talking loudly about aliens while breaking and entering! This one is actually very believable, I take it back.

- It was idiotic of Liz to trust Heath. And Echo keep having this same fight because MAX IS RIGHT BUT THE SHOW WON'T LET HIM BE. Which is so obnoxious. I would forgive Liz for almost any sin (like, idk, getting a better romantic storyline because she's straight) because she's gorgeous and smart and tough and I wanna go live with her and her mad scientist energy on a deserted island somewhere. But she's being real dumb rn.

- I love the t-shirt and if Vlambase doesn't sell one I will. But he couldn't have held up a radio and blasted some Barry White? I feel like that would have cleared everyone but Alex put of the building real fast. Also, what is time on Roswell NM? Was Alex just setting the alarm every so often for kicks? Does Eduardo really not check in on staff who are working with dangerous technology for days on end? Also, why is this entire plot happening over a single goddamn episode instead of two or more so that we can really feel Alex wasting away under the machine's influence? The reason this twist is at all surprising is also the entire plot's undoing - Alex's demeanor wasn't exactly one of a man obsessed (or an addict, tbh) in his last scene.

- Anyway, back to Rizzoli and Isles. I definitely am always super excited to hear the details of my sister's sex life. All the time. That is totally a sister thing except where it's really not. Do any of these writers actually have a sister? I feel like they must because the Michael/Max/Isobel sibling chemistry is always bang on but Maribel is just...flirty lady city. Oh, and look, the beard just showed up with coffee to cockblock - it really is R&I!

- Back to Alex's plot line, which, much like Isobel's coffee, is Express To-Go. He's become haggard and worn in the time it's taken Michael's mom to find a cute sweater in the void. Seriously, we wasted like 3 whole episodes where Alex was presumably sitting in DS twiddling his thumbs and now he's being worn down by the machine in a single episode? Why didn't this plot start back in episode 3 or 4? Like...look, I don't come on here to be an asshole. But I just really hope they're taking note of what worked this season and what didn't because HOLY PACING FIASCO BATMAN. Just because you're giving us Malex doesn't mean everything else can just be hot garbage (not the acting, Taylor's doing his best to sell this). Also, when did Alex put his leg back on? I have so many questions but they aren't the good kind, so Michael better ride in soon and save this mess.

- Regarding what Nora is saying, it's fine, it makes sense but the zero build up makes it completely ineffective. Alex is afraid he doesn't love enough - it would have been nice to see that over several episodes instead of just being told in a burst of sudden exposition but, you know. Nice straight things we can't have, I guess.

- If Michael and Alex want their relationship to "purr" they could, idk, talk through their past misunderstandings like people in relationships do. Or the show could keep throwing exposition bombs at them, idek.

- Are those empty toilet paper rolls inside the machine? I knew the CW was budget but come on...

- And we finally get the Heath connection and it's to our brand new trope-y character, Wise Old Black Man Dallas. It's surprising but only because the 4th alien didn't exist before this episode. So, good job.

Overall, not the worst episode of RNM ever. I only wondered why I watch this show maybe 3 times this episode. And Michael's enthusiasm for Alex was adorable.

#malex #roswell new mexico #review #rnm spoilers #3x09

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winters-void · 3 years

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100

a/n: this is based off of episode 9 of season 5 “100″ of criminal minds. -Requests are open.

warning: death, blood, violence, angst, George foyet, murder

relationship: dad! Hotchner x daughter! reader, Spencer Reid x reader (light)

____

Y/n felt her heart in her chest. She couldn't hear, over her heartbeat and her vision was blurred due to the immense amount of tears in her eyes. She felt Spencer's hand on her shoulder and that was all it took to break down. She fell to her knee's being caught along the way by Spencer and began to bawl into his shoulder. His cane fell to the side as he held her close as she broke down into his body.

— previously —

Y/n was exhausted. She graciously took a cup of coffee from Spencer as they made their way up to the bullpen. Finally, there had been a break in the Foyet case. She was so tired of this devil. It seemed like he was everywhere she looked. Even if he wasn't there physically.

She could feel him in her dreams, plaguing her with nightmares. Every time she looked at the family photo on her desk, and a picture of her and Jack from her little brother's 3rd birthday she was reminded of the torment he had caused her family. From stabbing her father and leaving him at the hospital, and now threatening Jack and her mother. She was so tired of it.

They were working on a geographical profile now, focusing on the two different addresses from the letters he had sent. Garcia and Kevin where cross referencing a list of Foyet's medications, trying to find something that he couldn't get over the counter or on the streets.

"Okay so what are we going to do about the two cities?" J.J. asked. "Usually we need 3 different points to get an accurate geographic profile."

"That's all we got right now." Derek speaks from beside her.

"Gaithersburg, Rockville, D.C., Alexandria, Bowie, Annapolis." Prentiss begins listing off nearby cities.

"Where the hell are you Foyet?"

Wasn't that the question of the hour? Of the year actually. All Y/n wanted was to have her family under one roof again. Even if her parents were divorced, she just wanted the ability to call her mom after a long case and play with her little brother. Instead, they were placed into protective custody. She knew they were safe, at least she hoped they were.

The team wasn't told where they were going whatsoever, it was safer that way. No way of knowing where your mom and brother were, and not knowing how to contact them. There was a small amount of people who knew where they were located.

"Okay, me and the boy found a thyroid medication that has no substitute over the counter. You gotta get it from a pharmacist, but a lot of people are on it." Garcia said bursting into the bullpen with a laptop in her hand.

"Find the midpoint between the 2 cities." Rossi told her. "And isolate names in a 25-mile radius."

"153 names." Garcia told him.

"He's smart enough to use a different name." Y/n spoke up. "This guy lived off of the grid for years."

"What kind of names should we be looking for." Derek asks.

"He could've easily stolen someones identity." Prentiss speaks up pointing toward Derek, reminding Y/n of the night her father got stabbed and Foyet checked him into the hospital using Derek's credentials.

"No, he's a narcissist in love with his own mythology." her dad speaks up, flipping through a file. "He'd use a name connected with the case."

"A victim maybe, a cop." Rossi adds.

"Okay, let's check the Foyet files for a list of names, and... nothing." Garcia says shaking her head.

"Wait a minute guys." Her boyfriend speaks up. "Foyet likes things to have meaning to him. The eye of providence, the addresses he wrote on the bus that led us back to him."

Spencer stands up, walking to the bored and writing "George Foyet" on it. "Maybe he's doing the same thing with the alias."

"Like an anagram or something." Prentiss says catching on.

Spencer begins crossing letters out and drawing arrows. Y/n wonders what's going on in his mind. He's always been brilliant and she's not sure she'll understand how he does it all.

"You see something Spence?" She asks him.

"Not yet."

"Reid, he named himself the reaper." Her dad tells him and suddenly 'the reaper' appears on the board as well and Spencer repeats his process of crossing out letters and making arrows.

All of a sudden he turns around, with a name. "Peter Rhea." He speaks.

"There's a Peter Rhea in Arlington." Garcia says looking down at her laptop.

"We found him." Rossi says.

___

The team begins to suit up. Y/n pulling on her vest as calm as possible. Her hands are shaking and everyone notices. This isn't the normal Y/n whatsoever. She just wants her life to go back to normal. With a case hitting this close to home, she can't help but feel like her nerves are racking up against her.

"Hey." Spencer says placing a hand on her waist gently. The rest of the team looks away giving them a moment. "You're okay. We're going to get him."

"Are we?" She asks, voice cracking.

___

Y/n, Spencer, J.J. Derek and Rossi were in an empty building across the street from Foyet's apartment. They had a swat team behind them and Y/n was sitting next to Rossi, her back to Spencer who was leaning on his cane.

"SWAT's getting antsy." Jennifer told Morgan. She didn't really listen to what else they had to say. She just focused on the building ahead of them.

Less than 15 minutes later, the decision to move was made. Derek sent in someone with a camera to look under the door of Foyet's apartment.

"What's that on the floor?" Her dad asked from beside her.

"That's his mail." Derek said and the decision to move out was made. They ran across the street, guns drawn, followed by the SWAT team and undercover units.

They busted into the apartment quickly, discovering Foyet wasn't there.

"He's not coming back here, he left an untouched meal." Her father declared.

"You drop your mail like this when you're startled, when you need to get out of dodge quick." Rossi tells him.

"Something tipped him off, he knew we were coming."

"Suitcases are open there's some clothes missing, there's a safe with a stash of guns in it." Derek says coming back into the kitchen with J.J.

"He didn't even bother to lock them up again." J.J. adds.

"If he's in a hurry, he'll make a mistake." Rossi says.

"Yeah but when Foyet gets cornered he starts killing." Hotch says leaving the room.

"We're not gonna let that happen."

"We need Garcia to get on this." Y/n whisper watching Foyet's screen. It's continuously deleting files from its system. As Garcia reworks the files, you notice something in a picture. "Wait, stop, stop! Is that-"

"The US Marshall assigned to my family." Her dad says looking right at her. He leaves a message on Kassmeyers cell before locking eyes with Y/n. "Let's go."

____

The black SUV's halt to a stop outside of the U.S. Marshals house. When walking inside, they find Kassmeyer on the ground, slowly dying. Rossi gets an ambulance as your father tries to communicate with him.

Y/n could hear the sirens of the ambulance now as medics came in. "Gunshot wounds to each leg he's missing several fingers and he's badly beaten." Spencer said from beside her.

"Clear out of the way" the medics ordered her father before getting to work. As they got into the ambulance Hotch followed him into the vehicle leaving Y/n with the rest of the team breathing heavily. She felt Spencer grab a shaking hand and squeeze it tight.

Later on the team received a phone call from Hotchner, telling them that Foyet called Y/n's mother from Sam's phone.

"We'll get Garcia to trace it. J.J." Morgan said nodding at J.J. to start working on that.

"He told her she was compromised and I was dead, and that Y/n was in critical condition." Her dad told them.

"Well have you called her?" Prentiss ask him.

"No. He said to throw her phone away and to buy a disposable." Y/n heard her dad say. She wanted to vomit. There was too much happening at once. She wanted to be calm and collected but there was too much on the line. This case was targeting her home, her family.

"Hotch we're gonna come get you right now." Morgan told him.

"No, Anderson's bringing me a car."

"You want us to meet you back at the office?"

"I'm hoping that she's just going to call me, at least, to check. Maybe even Y/n."

"Foyet posed as a Marshal, called from a number that she recognized." Derek told him.

"And then he did what gets him off. He scared her." Rossi added.

"No, He paralyzed her. He overwhelmed her." Prentiss told the team.

"And now, she trusts him. Where do you think he would take her?" Spencer asked him.

"Witness protection had her living in New Jersey." Prentiss told Spencer.

"He has a head start. He could be there now."

"Garcia's got a trace." J.J. told the team a form of somewhat good news.

"He's bouncing between a few towers." Garcia spoke being added to the call.

"Where?" Y/n's dad asked panicked.

"Fairfax County." Garcia told him.

"He's still local?" Y/n asked confused. "He wants to be close."

"Send the coordinates to my phone." Hotch told her.

Hotchner hung up from the phone call, and the team watched as he called another number.

"Wait that phone's on?" Prentiss asked.

"Hotch is calling Foyet."

"Garcia get us connected to that call." Y/n spoke grabbing the phone.

"Agent Hotchner." Y/n heard Foyet's voice on the phone and her blood ran cold.

"If you touch her.." She heard her father tell him.

"Be gentle, like I was with you?" Foyet asks and Y/n is reminded of walking into her fathers empty apartment find his blood on the floor. "What the hell took you so long? I was beginning to think this phone was dead or something. Why so quiet? You usually lash out when you're frustrated."

"I'm not frustrated. You're more predictable than you think." Her father spoke lowly.

"Am I?" Foyet asked.

"You didn't know where Haley was so you made her come to you."

"You make me sound lazy."

"Just another way for you to show control." Hotch told him. "Your mother tried to protect you from your father but she wasn't strong enough and you hated her for that didn't you? You decided that all women were weak."

"Those are your words, not mine."

"What were you 9 when you killed them?"

"It was a car accident."

"That you couldn't take credit for. That had to be hard for you. But poor George got another chance, the little orphan was saved. By the wealthy, sterile Eastside couple, the Foyets and the story should've ended there." Hotchner spoke, analyzing the Reaper.

"I don't believe in fairy tales, do you?" Foyet asked him.

"That's the thing, George. This isn't a fairy tale." Hotch told him. "You don't have to write this story, you don't have to do any of this. I know you're exhausted, always looking over your shoulder." Her father was pleading with the man now. "Always wondering when the other shoe is gonna drop. Haven't you gotten what you wanted? You've set yourself apart from anybody we've ever dealt with. You're not just a famous serial killer, you're the reaper. We're gonna study you and your methods for years and years."

Foyet took a moment to respond. "You know what I've been thinking? Haley looks pretty good with dark hair. She's lost some weight, must be all the stress you've caused her. Where's the little man? Oh. There he is. Does he like Captain America because of you?"

Another phone rang in the background. Y/n's eyes began to swell with tears. This sick bastard was watching her family. He was playing them like a fiddle.

"That's your wife. Hold please." She listened closely as Foyet answered the other phone. "Mrs. Hotchner."

"I'm here." Y/n heard her mothers voice and she closed her eyes to hold back the tears. It was the first time she'd heard it in months. Never in a million years did she think this would be the circumstance.

"Open the gate and I'll drive in." Foyet told her, and not knowing any better her mother agreed. "Aaron? I really got to go."

Her mind wasn't there while the team was talking. She was just trying to think of where they could be. It clicked once Reid recited Foyet's end of the conversation.

"The gate. The fucking gate. He's going to my house." She blurted. "The one I grew up in."

Immediately she grabbed a pair of keys to one of the SUV's and began heading out the door.

"No, give me the key's you're in no condition to drive." Derek said. "I'll call Hotch."

"Foyet's going to your house Hotch." Derek told him.

"I know." Her father spoke.

"We're sending a full tactical unit. We're on our way."

With that the phone was hung up and Garcia's voice came through to the line they were all connected with. "Foyet's calling Hotch."

"Garcia can you get us on?" Derek asked her.

"Foyet."

"Aaron?" Her mothers shocked voice said. "You're okay? What about Y/n?"

"I'm fine." Hotch said and y/n could tell her father was swallowing his tears. Attempting to make it seem like he was okay. "Y/n's fine as well. She's with the team."

"But.. he said that-" Haley cut herself off. "Oh Aaron."

"He can hear us right?"

"Yes. I am so sorry." her mother apologized and Y/n bit her lip. She felt Spencer place a hand on her back.

"Haley, show him no weakness." Her father told him. "No fear."

"I know, Same told me about him. Is he uh-"

"No Sam is fine." Hotch lied. Sam was indeed very not fine.

"Aaron, Aaron, Aaron." Foyet spoke up. The reality of this situation becoming a lot clearer to Y/n ever second that passed. "Is that why your marriage broke up? Because you're a liar?"

"Don't listen to him Haley."

"I have Sam's service phone right here. They sent out a mass text about his death. You can take a look if you want."

"He's trying to scare you." Her father told her. "Did you even tell her what this was about? About the deal?"

"He's just trying to make you angry."

"Well she should be, she's gonna d-i-e." Foyet spoke up, taunting the family. "Your kids are going to be motherless because of your inflated ego."

"Ignore him Haley." Hotch spoke.

" I'm sure you don't want her to know about this part either." Foyet added. "You know, all he had to do was stop looking for me and you wouldn't be in this mess."

"Don't react."

"What is he talking about?" Haley asked.

"Tell Jack I need him working the case." Y/n knew what that meant. Jack needed to hide. She prayed that he would remember and listen to their father.

"What?" Haley asked confused.

"Tell Jack I need him working the case."

"Did you hear that?" Haley asked her younger brother.

"Hi daddy." Jack spoke into the phone causing Y/n to lurch forward. Her heart ached for her younger brother. His whole world was about to change and he was too innocent for that.

"Hi Buddy." Her dad said voice cracking.

"Is George a bad guy?"

"Yes he is." Hotchner said clearing his throat. "Jack, I need you on this case with me and your sister. Do you understand? We need you to work the case with me."

"Ok daddy." Jack said and Y/n hoped he knew what to do. He was a smart kid, and it was one of his favorite spots to be in when Y/n and Aaron worked on a case at home together.

"Jack, hug your mom for me and sissy okay?" Her dad knew she was listening in. She heard some shuffling and knew Jack was giving Haley a hug for the last time.

"Mommy hug me too tight." Jack said unknowing of the situation at hand.

"I'm sorry." Haley's voice said gently.

"Why are you sad?" Jack asked.

"Oh, I just love you so much." Haley said. "You and your sister are the light of my life."

"Mommy, I gotta go. I'm working the case." Jack told her. Y/n heard Jack's footsteps retreat from the room. She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. They were still too far away.

"He's so cute." Foyet said. "He's like a little Junior G-Man. I'll be right up, Jackie boy!"

"Is he gone?" Hotch asked her.

"Yes." Haley responded wiping away her tears and sniffling.

"You're so strong, Haley. You're stronger than I ever was." Aaron told her.

"You'll hurry right?" She asked. Y/n looked at Derek almost as if urging the car to go faster and she felt Spencer grab her hand. She'd be squeezing her fist so tight there were imprints left from her nails.

"I know you didn't sign on for this." Her father told her.

"Neither did you."

"I'm sorry for everything." Her father admitted.

"Promise me that you will tell him how we met and how you used to make me laugh." This was her goodbye.

"Haley-"

"He needs to know that you weren't always so serious Aaron. I want him to believe in love because it is the most important thing. But you need to show him. Promise me."

"I promise." Her fathers voice was a whisper. Tears were quietly streaming down her face at this point.

A moment of silence thickened the air, before the sharp sound of 3 gunshots rang out. Y/n broke down in the back of the van letting out a steady stream of quiet tears and flinching at the sound. Derek and Rossi looked back at the girl as Spencer pulled her close letting the girl sob into his shoulder.

"Mom-" She croaked out in barely a whisper. She knew Haley was dead. She knew Foyet would make sure of that. She was in shock at the moment. She didn't want to believe her mother was dead, but she knew that was the case.

The line went dead after the sound of her father throwing the phone and she knew they needed to get to the house as fast as possible. Morgan sped down the street of her old home, skidding to a stop in front of the house. They found her father relentlessly beating Foyet to death before Morgan wrapped his arms around him and pulled him away.

"Hotch! Hotch!" He yelled. "He's dead. Hotch stop, come on, stop it. It's over, It's over." She watched as her father broke down in Morgans arms. "It's okay it's over man."

"Jack-" Y/n said before bolting from the room and into her fathers office. She heard his footsteps behind her. She went to the ottoman that served as a storage unit and opened the lid, not quite knowing what to expect. Her father appeared behind her, a breath of relief escaping both of them to see Jack's face.

"I work the case, just like Daddy said." Jack spoke innocently.

More tears rolled down Y/n's face as she reached into the box to pull her brother out. "Good job Bub" She whispered pulling him into her arms and falling into her dad's embrace.

"What happened to you daddy?"

"I'm okay. I want you to go outside with Ms. Jareau okay?" Hotch told his youngest.

"Come here, sweetheart." J.J. said picking her little brother up and taking her down the stairs.

"Where is she dad?" Y/n asked and slowly they walked into the bedroom where Derek was checking her mothers pulse. She was laying there lifeless, and stained with her own blood.

"I'm so sorry Hotch." Derek whispered and slowly she dropped to her knees next to her mother letting out a sob.Grabbing her hand and falling on top of her not caring. about the blood seeping onto her.

"Mom." She sobbed. "Please, no-"

She knew there was no coming back from this. Still, her mind didn't want to process that the woman who raised her was really gone. It wasn't supposed to happen like this. Her mom was supposed to be there while Jack grew up, and to watch them both get married and become a grandmother.

"Y/n." Hotchner spoke laying a hand on his daughters back.

She let out a flood of tears screaming into her mothers body as her body racked with sobs shaking violently. She let go and fell back into her fathers embrace staring at her mother's lifeless eyes as he hugged her tightly.

"Get out of here." She faintly heard Derek say. "Go see if they need any help downstairs."

___

"She was already gone." Y/n told Strauss looking blankly at the table. "My dad could do nothing for her, but there's not a doubt in my mind that he saved my brother from what Foyet would've done to him. He would be dead as well."

"She died rather quickly." Strauss told her. Y/n flinched at the word. It was still hard to process that her mother was really gone. "She didn't suffer much."

"That doesn't make it right." Y/n snapped before biting her tongue. "I'm sorry-"

"I'm sorry for your loss." Strauss told her. "If there's anything your family needs-"

"Thank you."

Y/n stood up and nodded at the director before walking to the bullpen to be with Jack and the rest of the team again. She sat down next to Spencer as Jack ran to his sister.

"Hi Bub." She said pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"Hi sissy." It wasn't long after that when her father joined and Jack got down from her lap to greet their father in a hug. Reid placed a loving hand on her back and she felt herself relax for the first time in that day into his embrace.

She grabbed his hand subtly and squeezed it tight. I Love you.

He squeezed it back in response and she nodded. I love you too.

#criminal minds #spencer reid x reader #dad hotch #Hotchner x daughter reader #dad! Hotchner x reader #criminal minds oneshot #Spencer reid oneshot #Hotchner x reader #Aaron hotchner #Spencer reid

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not-close-to-straight · 4 years

Text

Lost and Found (Sixteen)

Ughhhh Tissues Needed

Also Generic WS-typical warning for mentions of slightly torture-y things

MASTERLIST HERE

*****************

“Sir, could I remind you that use of this particular suit results in more wear on the arc reactor? With numbers pushing 70%, surely you don’t want to risk it?”

Tony called James from the suit as it blasted towards Washington D.C., ignoring the warning numbers on the screen as the arc reactor surged to maintain the suits demand for power and the projected poison levels in his blood climbed higher.

“Tony?”

Just hearing James’s voice made Tony’s resolve falter, and he was glad he’d programmed in the auto pilot for D.C. as the need to turn around and forget what he’d learned, forget about Project Resurrection and the Ghost Protocol climbed strangling up his throat.

“Hey.” he tried for bright, but was afraid it only came out miserable. “Why don’t you fly out to DC tonight? Have Pepper come with you in the jet. I have to get to a meeting that’s taken about three years to arrange, so I took a suit.”

“I can just wait till you get home again, sugar.” Happy called something in the background and James laughed and the sound almost killed Tony. “What sorta meeting was so important it took three years to set up?”

“Nothing you should worry about.” Tony lied. “But it would be fun to have dinner in D.C. or something, right? I’d like to see you tonight.”

James’s voice got soft, “Dunno how I feel about getting back into D.C. but I’d like to see you tonight too. You feeling better? Last night you were real tired.”

“I’m feeling better.” Tony promised and he’d never lied so much in his life. “Let me know when you guys land and I’ll send a car for you. See you soon?”

“See you real soon, sweet thing.”

********

From Rhodey: Pep says you’re in D.C.? If you aren’t sucking face with soldier boy, let’s get dinner.

From Tony: Only if it’s one of those giant steak eating places.

From Rhodey: Tones, last time we ate at one of those I threw up for three days.

From Tony: And you were gorgeous the entire time.

From Rhodey: I hate you

From Tony: Smooches!

It was so damn easy to lie over text message, maybe that was how Tony should handle every conversation from now until 100%.

It was warm out, but Tony still wore a long sleeve to hide the handcuff on his wrist that attached to the briefcase at his side. Eventually--if he had time-- he was going to tap the tech into a watch that would form into a gauntlet and then a suit from there but for now he had to carry the admittedly stylishly packaged armor at his side.

JARVIS was right, using the suit took more energy than the other ones simply because it assembled in place instead of using robotics to piece together around him, but it had been worth it to get to D.C. so quickly...

...and it would be worth it tonight if everything went right and he needed to leave. If everything fell into place the way it should, but the way Tony kept secretly hoping it wouldn’t, he would leave and not take anyone with him so the suit was perfect.

Perfectly like a prison he kept willingly locking himself into and wasn’t that a piece of poetry worthy of writing down or at the very least making into a tragic movie or maybe he could request it got put in his biography because there should be at least one true thing amidst all the crap they were going to write about Tony Stark.

At least one line should be truth, even if everything else was written by people who had never known him at all.

But he shouldn’t think about that. Not yet. Not at only seventy percent, he had another ten maybe fifteen percent before he had to think about a biography, right?

Right?

Christ, it was getting hard to think.

The SHIELD headquarters were ostentatious and ugly, an eyesore at the banks of the river and a clear warning to anyone who thought to look twice at the city and dare to take a shot. The Pentagon might house the dressed up generals who gave out orders, but SHIELD was the real power behind the United States Government right now.

The ugly building housed all the best minds, all the best weaponry, and spoke of a clearly visible statement Director Fury and Secretary Pierce had been less and less subtle about in the past few years-- Fuck. Off. America is done playing nice.

Not that Tony blamed them for being so blatantly bold. There was no need to be subtle when there was an actual legendary super soldier leading the charge to protect America’s interests both at home and abroad, right?

Tony and Fury met in a little cafe along the river, the eatery quiet and unobtrusive in a way that was meant to be as visibly invisible as possible. There was nothing particularly interesting about the staff or their uniforms, the menu didn’t boast anything that would garner extra attention, there was never a chalkboard out front with a gimmick or sale to draw pedestrians in to try a daily special.

It was the sort of cafe someone either went to as a habit, or never even noticed on their commute and it was exactly the sort of cafe where Nick Fury preferred to get his tuna melt sandwich.

“Well this is quaint and terrible.” Tony sat down across from Fury with suitcase settled between his feet and sunglasses firmly on his face. “What happened to high profile business meetings at steakhouses, or at the very least good greasy pizza? And are you eating a tuna melt? With a fork?”

“Contrary to what you might believe, my Ma didn’t raise a heathen.” Fury was a sight to behold in his trademark trench coat, intimidating eye patch and somehow more intimidating single eye, a napkin tucked neatly at his collar and a knife and fork held daintily to cut his sandwich into bite sized pieces. “And this isn’t as good as hers used to be, but it does just fine for our conversation today.”

“Alright then.” Tony motioned to the waiter, and pointed towards Fury’s plate. “Could I have the same thing please? Make mine with pickles.”

“You’re pushing it.” Fury warned. “You don’t disrespect a sandwich by putting pickles on it.”

“Ma’am, would you make that extra pickles please?”

“Damn you, Stark.”

“Don’t tell me how to eat a sandwich and I won’t tell you to not do all of--” Tony made a vague motion to encompass all of Fury’s look. “--all of this. You look like the Grim Reaper.”

“And you look like a man the Grim Reaper isn’t too far from visiting.” Fury stabbed his fork at Tony bluntly. “Lookin’ like chicken shit these days, Stark. What’s going on?”

“Nothing that matters.” Tony waved off the Director’s sarcastic concern. “I need to talk to you about two things and then we can move on.”

The Director made a ‘go ahead’ motion and went back to eating. Tony watched the knife and fork dissection of a perfectly respectable tuna melt for a moment and then stated, “I don’t trust Pierce. I went to his party a few weeks ago and got a real sketchy vibe from him.”

“Uh-huh.” Fury nodded. “And?”

“And since you have the whole all seeing eye thing going on, I thought you’d want to know.” Tony smiled up at the waitress when she brought him the sandwich, and with eyes firmly on Fury, took a huge bite and crunched deliberately through the pickles. “How do you feel about him lately?”

“I feel like the world’s most reckless billionaire should be more concerned about the effects all that poisoning is having on your complexion and less about what those of us in trench coats are doing.” Fury wiped his mouth and pointed over his shoulder to someone Tony couldn’t see. “Brace yourself, Stark.”

“Brace myself for wha---OW!” Tony jumped when a needle jammed into his neck, delivered courtesy of one rather spandexy clad Natalie Rushman. “Christ! Natalie, what the fuck!?”

“I forgot you still think her name is Natalie.” Fury pushed his plate away and then dragged a chair over for the redhead. “Tony Stark, meet Natasha Romanov. Former KGB agent, former Russian Foreign Intelligence Service, former traitor to that particular country and defector to this one, and currently my favorite agent at SHIELD.”

Tony rubbed at his neck a few times and scowled at Fury, then over at Natalie/Natasha. “Former KGB? That was dismantled in ‘91, and you’re only twenty four. Nice try.”

“You do pass for a very convincing twenty four, Tasha.” Fury took a sip of his water. “In fact Mr. Stark, Natasha here is an absolute beauty at the ripe old age of--”

“--you tell him I’m a day over thirty and I’ll cut your tongue out.” Natasha said coolly, and Tony blanched but Fury didn’t so much as blink. “Tony, I just gave you a shot of lithium dioxide. It’s not going to solve anything with the palladium, but it’s going to temporarily slow down the effects so you can focus. I know you’ve been struggling with it for a while, there’s no other way to explain how scattered you’ve been.”

“First you stab me, then you insult me? You are fired.” Tony breathed in slow and purposeful, then out again when his headache started to ease thanks to the hypodermic hit to the neck. “Warn a fella before you shank him, is this foreplay to you scary spandex types?”

Natasha gave him one of those always consistently enigmatic smirks and Tony accused, “How’d you get here so fast? Pretty sure Pepper told me you two were shopping today. In fact, I’m pretty sure she took the jet to Vegas just to spend a gross amount of money.”

“The moment you hung up with Director Fury I excused myself from Ms. Potts and headed towards D.C from Vegas.” Natasha held up her hand to stop the next words from Tony. “And yes, I know there’s no civilian aircraft that could possibly get me to D.C. faster than your suit would, but you left an hour or so after me and also, as everyone is now aware, I am not a civilian.”

Still literally and figuratively wounded from the jab to the neck, Tony only huffed at the redhead and went back to eating because honestly, a new secretary turning out to be a secret spy wasn’t the worst thing that had ever happened. At least she was on their side, right? Later Tony could get a little hysterical about having a former KGB agent helping him pick out ties, but for right now, he had other things on his mind.

“Alright then. Ms. Romanov. How do you feel about Secretary Pierce?”

“I don’t think that’s the question you’ve come to ask.” Natasha deflected, green eyes glittering curiously. “So ask the other one.”

“Okay I will.” Tony put his sandwich down and pleated the napkin between his fingers until it tore. “How long have the two of you known the hundred year old prisoner of war Sergeant James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes was camping out in my house in Malibu?”

“If it makes you feel any better?” Director Fury shrugged. “We just thought he was the Winter Soldier. Wasn’t one hundred percent on the Barnes angle until recently.”

“The Winter Soldier.” Tony repeated, and this time his mind snapped into place with out the stuttered click click click of trying to process. It was almost like being him again and even though Tony knew the lithium oxide was a poison all in itself, he was already wondering how many shots of it he could take to remain lucid up until the end. “Ghost assassin from the sixties and seventies, silver arm, once thought to be Steve Rogers risen from the ice and back to seek revenge. It was James, instead. Product of Hydra experimentation, amiright?”

“And then some.” Fury nodded. “When Project Resurrection came to be and the Captain woke up, he asked for his best pal Bucky and then his best gal Peggy in exactly that order. SHIELD had been aware of the Winter Soldier for decades, but we couldn’t have imagined the connection to the missing Sergeant Barnes. The Captain saw a surveillance photo, said he’d recognize that scowl anywhere, and went off half feral trying to track him down.”

“Half-feral.” Tony glanced between the two of them. “Captain America. Are you serious?”

“I spent almost two years at his side.” Natasha spoke up. “Half feral is an understatement. I’ve never seen a man so determined to burn the world down if it meant finding his friend.”

“Two years.” Fury echoed. “And then just over a year ago, a few months before Stane engineered your trip to Afghanistan, the Winter Soldier dropped off the map. Guess Hydra got tired of having their spots blown to shit or something like that, decided to cut their losses and run.”

Tony only blinked and Fury explained, “Turns out the Captain isn’t exactly the aw shucks good ol boy those posters made him out to be. Anything that stood in the way of finding his Bucky went up in flames, and the man didn’t care if anyone was left inside. On more than one occassion, Romanov went into the rubble herself because the Captain wouldn’t do it. It was a wasted effort though, there were never any survivors.”

Tony looked around and then lowered his voice. “Captain America let people die like that?”

“Not the aw shucks good ol boy we all thought.” The Director repeated. “Never seen a man so angry in my life when we lost the Soldier. Definitely never could have predicted you’d show up with him as your date at a few high profile event. I see a lot.” Fury pointed to his one good eye. “But even I didn’t see that coming.”

“Does the Captain know about James?”

“We thought it was best to feel out the situation and see if we were dealing with the Winter Soldier or if we were actually seeing Sergeant Barnes.” Fury hedged. “Wanted to be sure we weren’t going to walk into a situation with a still activated super assassin when from all appearances, he’s just a nice kid with some memory loss situations. Captain Rogers isn’t the sort to knock and ask to come in, he would have brought that fancy Malibu house of yours down into the ocean trying to get his friend.”

“That seems a little over the top, but--”

“--but you’ve never been seventy years out of your own time looking for the one person in the world who can understand what you’ve been through.” Natasha interrupted. “I’m telling you, there isn’t anything that would stop the Captain from trying to get to his Bucky.”

“His Bucky.” Tony echoed faintly. “Is that so?”

“I’ve been watching James for several weeks now.” Natasha’s voice dipped in sympathy when Tony’s face flickered with misery. I don’t think he remembers anything about his time as the Winter Soldier, but you’re closer to him. What do you think? Do you think he knows who he was?”

“No way.” Tony denied tiredly. “James doesn’t know anything. Not his last name, nothing about technology or recent history. He panicked about using too many eggs the other day and now that I know what I still can’t fucking believe I know... it makes sense. In some weird way, everything I know about James makes perfect sense now.”

“So Sergeant Barnes doesn’t remember anything before he showed up in D.C.?”

“Nothing at all.” Tony said adamantly. “He remembers waking up beneath a bridge and then everything’s a blur for a while and he’s not sure how much time passed. He thinks he lived a year in D.C. before meeting me, but he doesn’t know anything beyond that.”

“That could be for the best.” Natasha muttered, and Fury nodded.

“Well you can be sure we will be keeping an eye on the situation.” the waitress came by for the plates and Fury waited until she was gone before mentioning oh so casually, “I have something that belongs to you, by the way. Your dad left it in storage along with instructions to give it to you when you were ready.”

“I have everything I want of Howard’s and none of it’s worth anything at all.” Tony shook his head. “Forget about it, I want to meet the Captain.”

“You’re going to want this.” Fury countered, and pulled up a photo on his phone. “The real thing is about ten times heavier than anything I’d ever want to life, but take a look at it anyway.”

“I’ve seen this.” Tony barely glanced at the picture. “It’s Dad’s diorama model of the Stark Expo. I used to race my cars up and down the roads until he screamed at me to stop. Why would I want a giant piece of cardboard that holds so many shitty memories for me?”

“I don’t know why you want it.” Fury put his phone away again. “And I don’t know why Howard wanted you to have it. Something about how you’d see the design when no one else could, and how he wouldn’t ever have access to the tools necessary to make it a reality, but you’d probably be the one to invent the technology to make it happen.”

“That’s nice.” Tony pulled out a couple twenties and dropped them on the table to cover the bill. “Put it in the mail and I’ll open it when I get back to Malibu. I’m feeling normal for the first time since Afghanistan and I’m not going to waste it on some homework from beyond the grave. Take me to see the Captain.”

“He’s going to be cranky.” Fury tried one last time to stall the stubborn billionaire. “He doesn’t really sleep much, and since losing track of the Soldier, I don’t think he sleeps more than a few hours a week. Maybe you don’t show up as your patented brand of asshole, huh?”

“I do what I want.” Tony stood up and patted the Director on the shoulder. “I’ll see you and Mrs. Super Spy later on. We should talk about Pierce.”

“I know what you’re doing Stark.” Fury said then, and Tony paused. “You’re getting everything set up so when that poison kills you off, your boytoy is set with someone he knows and loves.”

“Oh, you think so?”

“I’d say it’s admirable, but really I think it’s cowardly.” Fury shrugged. “You’re doing all this without even trying to fight, without figuring out a way to beat it. Gonna sign ye olde master assassin over to the Man with a Plan and then jet off somewhere dramatic to die. Cowardly way out.”

“I’ve exhausted all my options.” Tony said flatly. “I’ve tried everything over and over and nothing works. Now my option is to make sure the people I care about can keep on going with out me. How is that cowardly?”

“This might shock you, but the world will keep turning without Tony Stark in it.” the Director retorted, and Tony shot back, “Yeah well, at least this way it keeps turning with my loved ones well taken care of. Send the address to my phone please, I’ve got a star spangled super soldier to meet.”

Natasha sent a text with directions to Tony’s phone, and after Tony had stalked out and hailed a cab, she turned to ask Fury, “Why does he want to talk about Pierce?”

“Don’t you worry about Pierce.”

“Director--”

“Ms. Romanoff, I am already dealing with Secretary Pierce. Don’t you worry.”

“Do you really think he’s being cowardly?”

“I think if Tony Stark wasn’t so tired of living in pain, he’d realize he could just invent something new to cure himself.” Fury stated. “I watched his dad create scientific miracles out of every day things. Watched his Auntie Peggy create unbreakable codes based on her knitting patterns. He’s been so obsessed with being Iron Man that he’s forgotten he’s Tony Stark. If anyone can fix what is literally killing them, its a Stark. Hell, he did it once in a cave with a box of scraps. He should damn well be able to do it in a state of the art lab.”

Natasha’s lips tipped up at the corner. “You like him.”

“I think he’s a spoiled brat with a small man complex.” Fury picked up the dessert menu. “But I think our world is a lot better off with him in it, so yeah. I’d appreciate if he didn't keel over and die.”

“You like him.”

“You’re pushing it, Romanov.”

*************

It was fifteen minutes to a low rise apartment building, three flights up stairs and then down a long hallway until Tony could raise his hand and knock at the door of a piece of American history

Two knocks and then three more just because Tony was impatient even on his best days and today was not one of his best days.

Besides, when else would he have the chance annoy an actual living Smithsonian relic by knocking too many times at their--

“Can I help you?” The door swung open to Big and Blond and Patriotic, deep blue eyes and a square jaw, ruggedly handsome in a way that the old posters and pictures had never come close to capturing, and the sort of bulging All American Muscles that belonged on a Lumberjack’s Weekly pin up calendar.

Holy Spangles, Batman. Tony thought, and then grinned internally because that hit to the neck might have hurt but at least it had given him back Grade-A witty one liners. Thank you, Ms. Rushman-Romanov.

“Captain Steven Rogers.” he finally dragged his eyes away from the muscles and up to the piercing gaze. “It's nice to officially meet you. Name’s Tony Stark, long time fan, first time fanboy. How are you?”

“Tony Stark.” Captain Rogers extended a hand big enough to cover Tony’s entire face. “Howard’s boy, isn’t that right? Director Fury has mentioned you a few times. Figures you’d know about me being awake, though I’m a little surprised it took you this long to track me down. Howard wasn’t exactly the patient, subtle type and Fury made it seem like you inherited all those qualities as well.”

Tony blinked, and Captain Rogers grimaced. “Ah. Sorry. That came out worse than I intended. I’ve never been quite as charming as those old movies like to pretend I was.”

“No that’s--” Tony blinked again. “It’s fine. It’s actually a little hilarious-- um--”

“I was real sorry to hear about your parents passing.” The Captain’s blue eyes dimmed in sympathy. “I didn’t know your Ma, but despite me and Howard’s differences, we worked together for several years. He was a good man.”

“He was an asshole even on his best days.” Tony finally found his words, and offered a smile to his childhood nemesis hero. “But that doesn’t change the good work he did, so thanks. And yes, I inherited all of his less than charming traits and created a few more of my own which is why I’ve known about you and Project Resurrection for a few years now but just couldn't muster the interest to give a damn.”

“Any by the way, if you were a brunette, I’d be charming your pants off.” Tony winked because he couldn’t stop himself from flirting with an American icon. “But you’re blond, so consider yourself safe from my efforts. That and it’s hard to think sexy thoughts about the literal embodiment of the American flag.”

Good God, even the Captain’s laugh was patriotic, head thrown back and a hand over his heart like he was pledging allegiance to hilarity and Tony looked away to hide an answering grin. Shit, he didn’t want to like Steve Rogers, he had spent his entire life trying to measure up to the bastard, he didn’t want to be making friends when they had more important things to talk about.

“If it makes you feel any better?” Captain Rogers was still cheesing a grin. “Under all that patriotism I’m just a loudmouth Brooklyn kid with a big mouth and not a single shred of self preservation.”

“Eh.” Tony made a show of shrugging. “You’re still blond. I tend to prefer them brunette--”

--he hesitated, then pulled out the picture of he and James together at the redwoods. “--And smolderingly intense in a scary ex soldier sort of way. You know the type?”

All laughter fell away in an instant, the surprisingly easy conversation Tony hadn’t expected to find with Captain Rogers ground to a halt, the smile on the big blond’s face wiped away as quickly as it had appeared.

“I took that in the redwoods last week.” Tony actually took a step backwards when powerful shoulders squared up and one of those massive hands closed into a fist. “Me and James-- we’ve been living together the last couple months. Figured it’s high time you and he got together again, you know?”

“James.” The Captain’s throat jerked when he swallowed. “Not Bucky. He goes by James now?”

“James is the only name he knows.” Tony watched him carefully for any sign of what might be rage, but there was only heartbreak on the rugged features. “We’ve been looking for answers into his past, but it wasn’t until early this morning I came across a family link and traced it backwards. You can bet I was surprised as hell to find myself looking at a picture of you two when the facial recognition software finally pinged him.”

“I see.” The picture shook in the Captain’s fingers and nearly tore between his grip. “Mr. Stark--”

“Call me Tony.”

“Tony. I think you’d better come inside.”

****************

The apartment housing the Greatest American Soldier was sparse to the point of being bare, clean to the point of being sterile, and warm enough that Tony broke into a sweat just walking through the door.

“Sheesh, Captain.” Tony undid a few buttons at his collar. “Tropical, much?”

“Sorry, I’ll turn it down.” The Captain really was massive, had to turn sideways to get down the narrow hall and to the thermometer. “I uh-- I’m always cold, you know?”

Tony waited with a raised eyebrow and Captain Rogers pursed his lips, shoved both hands into his pockets self consciously. “I did seventy years in the ice, Tony. That’s the sort of chill that gets into your bones. Into your soul. I’m always cold. Can’t seem to shake it.”

“I can fix that.” Tony spoke before thinking, the words eerily similar to his very first thought about James. Was it the super soldier thing that drove him to offer help? Or just the countdown and toxicity monitor and desperately tallying marks on the good karma side so maybe it would get him into heaven?

“I can fix that.” he said again. “I’d think a super soldier would run hot because of your metabolism, so the cold is probably psychosomatic and a weighted blanket or even a sweater with heavier threads might take care of it. People equate weight with warmth, and being covered with being safe so if you let me get some sizes I could have my AI run some programs and figure out a material that could--”

He stopped when the big blond just looked at him. “Sorry, Captain. I tend to ramble. Alot.”

“Call me Steve.” the Captain went for some water and handed a bottle to Tony, then sat down in a nearby chair and clasped his hands between his knees. “And you know, your Dad did that too? He’d get an idea and talk for an hour and you’d start the conversation not even knowing you needed the thing he ended up handing you when he was finished.”

“Sounds like Dad.” Tony agreed. “Guess I did inherit all his annoying habits.”

“You must get your looks from your Ma, then.” Steve said casually, and when Tony about fell out of his chair in surprise, he grinned. “Oh no, not for me. I mean sure, I can appreciate a good lookin’ fella just as much as the next guy, but I used to tell Buck if he got together with Howard--”

“I might actually throw up if you finish that sentence.”

“--then we could double date, but he said he’d sooner kiss Dugan.” he finished and Tony breathed out noisily in relief. “If he likes you, you must look like your Ma. Buck couldn’t hardly stand to be in the same room as Howard.”

And then almost awkwardly, “No offense meant.”

“None taken, most days I couldn’t handle it either.” Tony rolled the water bottle between his palms. “So um, how are you adjusting to life in the twenty first--”

“Tell me about Bucky.” Steve interrupted and Tony’s mouth clicked shut. “I wanna know everything. Where did you find him? How did you find him? Does he know who he is? Who I am? Does he know about--”

He clenched his jaw. “--does he remember being the Winter Soldier?”

“Captain.” Tony began slowly, but Steve cut him off again, “It’s just Steve, Tony. Captain Rogers, Captain America, that’s not who I am. I’m Steve. Call me Steve.”

“Steve.” he started again. “James--er, Bucky-- and I met a few months ago in a diner right here in D.C. I don’t know if you watch the news at all, but I was mid Senate meeting and mid nervous break down, apparently he was just there having breakfast. I saw he was missing an arm--”

“--his left arm?”

“--his left arm.” Tony nodded. “And since I have a weird assortment of various robotic arm pieces laying around the house, I told him I could build him a new one. I gave him a whole spiel about wanting to do some good and that he didn’t have to take me up on the offer but he told me--”

“--that you got a pretty smile.” Steve interjected. “Yeah, you’re just his type. Dark hair, pretty eyes, big smile. Just his type.”

The simple statement from the soldier warmed Tony clear down to his heart, and he ducked his head to hide a barely there flush. “Uh, anyway. He came home to Malibu with me and we’ve been there ever since. He’s getting better. No more panic attacks and his Brooklyn accent comes out more every day and um--”

It felt awkward talking to a total stranger about his boyfriend--partner? He was too old to call someone a boyfriend, right?

It felt more awkward talking to a total stranger that wasn’t really a total stranger considering how Tony knew everything everything about Steve Rogers and Howard had literally helped create the soldier. More awkward talking to a not-total stranger who actually knew James Bucky better than Tony could ever hope to. More awkward talking to a not-total stranger who knew Bucky better than Tony did and would be around at Bucky’s side after Tony--

--after Tony--

“--sometimes I think he’s remembering things, but then I don’t really know.” he finished lamely. “Captain, er Steve. I’ll be honest, it seems weird to tell you about your best friend. I can tell you that he doesn’t have nightmares anymore and that he hasn’t had a panic attack in weeks. He likes Rocky Road ice cream and looks great in the color red and when he calls me sweet thing I actually melt a little bit inside. What else do you want to know?”

“I just want to know if he’s okay.” Steve said softly, softly, spread his hands helplessly and made those All American baby blues as heartbreakingly earnest as possible. “Tony, I woke up from the ice and found a picture of the Winter Soldier and spent the next two years trying to figure out what the hell had happened to my best pal. How did he survive the fall? Who captured him? What have they been doing with him? To him?”

The Captain’s throat jerked when he swallowed. “Does he-- does he smile? Do you make him smile? Or is he real quiet now? Did they ruin him? Break him?”

Steve got to his feet to pace, rubbing his hands down his thighs in agitation. “I’ve read all the Winter Soldier files, Tony. I know what they did to him. You know they-- they didn’t do that stuff to me. Howard juiced me up and sent me out the door but Bucky? He was always a good soldier but there’s a lot of steps between a good soldier and a master assassin. What they did to him to make him into the Soldier…”

His steps stuttered, faltered, and when Steve turned around to pin Tony with a look, his jaw was set stubbornly. “Tell me how he really is. Did they break him? Is he even Bucky anymore?”

“I don’t know if he’s Bucky anymore.” Tony said slowly, honestly. “But I know he’s James, and he’s a good man. Not broken. Definitely hurt, but not broken. He’s-- I think he’s okay, Captain. Or at least he’s getting better.”

“Okay.” Steve dropped back down onto the chair and the springs groaned under his weight. “Okay okay okay. Have you done any research on the Winter Soldier? About what he did?”

“No.”

“Don’t.” That super soldier strength showed up when the arms of the chair splintered beneath Steve’s fingers. “Tony, for your own sake. Don’t. I haven’t read the mission files because it makes me sick to my stomach but I saw enough of what they did to him to know there can’t be anything good in the other ones.”

Tony’s whole body went cold, horror stricken and wanting to scream thinking about his soldier, his Brooklyn being hurt for however long he’d been captive as the Winter Soldier. “What they did to him?”

“Experiments.” Steve muttered hoarsely. “Testing his strength, his healing factor. Whatever super juice they gave him, they had to make sure it worked so they experimented. Broke major bones to time how long it took to heal up again. Put bullets close to major arteries wondering if he’d bleed out. Made him run until he was vomiting and couldn’t take another step to check his endurance.”

“Shit.”

“They wiped his mind after every mission.” the Captain continued miserably. “Got him to the point where all he could do was carry out orders. That’s not even human, they took his soul Tony. My best friend and they took his soul. Wiped it away every time they hooked him up to that damn chair--”

“Chair?”

“--it had straps.” Steve made a motion and Tony’s heart sank, then sank further still when he added, “I crashed a set up once and it was this monstrous chair. Straps and hooks and this helmet thing that went down over his head to fry his brain.”

“What--” Tony wet his lips, flashes of that first awful panic attack hitting him like a punch to the stomach. “-- What did you do to the chair?”

“Broke it apart with my bare hands and then snapped some bad guy’s femur just because I wasn’t done breaking things.” Steve said coldly, calmly. “I can’t read the mission files, not after seeing that. I don’t think you should read them either. Buck deserves to have people who look at him and don’t see everything he did as the Soldier. He deserves to be loved by people who just see him.”

“Yeah, I--” Tony dug his fingers into his knees and bit back a heartbroken noise. “Yeah, he does. So what did you do with the data? It can’t just be out there, that’s not--”

Even now, his brain was shifting into gear, trying to figure out the next step, trying to figure out what he could do to fix what had happened with James or how he could make sure it never came back to ruin his soldier’s new life. “--it can’t be out there for someone else to find. What did you do with it?”

“Natasha dumped it all.” The Captain informed him. “Burned it, erased it, whatever she does. I’m not really up on all the tech of this century yet. But she swore it was gone, and that’s all I care about.”

“You trust her?”

“...I do.” Steve’s smile was almost… melancholy. Almost lonely. “Most people wouldn’t, but she hasn’t lied to me once so I have no reason to think she would about this.”

“Alright.” It was a relief to know the Winter Soldier’s actions weren’t out there for anyone to find, a relief to know someone else was looking out for James the same way Tony wanted to. “That’s-- that’s good. If Captain America can trust her with that, I can trust her too.”

“Yeah.” Steve screwed his eyes shut tight and pushed out a long breath. “Tony um-- can I see him? Feels weird to ask permission to see my own best friend, but I think you know him better than I do at this point. Can I see him? Will you bring him back to D.C., or could I come with you to Malibu? I searched for him for so long, Tony. The canyon below the train-- I spent days there. Days in the snow trying to find him, and I spent the first years waking up trying to find him… can I see him?”

Quieter, almost afraid, “Do you think he’ll know me?”

“I don’t know.” Tony said honestly, and Steve’s shoulders hunched in like the words physically hurt. “But they should be landing here in D.C. in a few hours and I already sent him this address.”

“Seriously?” Steve’s head snapped up. “You would-- you didn’t even know me. You told him to come here when you hadn’t met me yet?”

“You’re Captain America.” Tony shrugged carelessly, shrugged like his heart wasn’t tearing in two right there in his chest as everything he’d feared started falling into place. This was the right decision but it hurt and his heart could have collapsed under the strain. “And he’s Sergeant Barnes. There’s no question you two should be spending time together, in fact, I’m probably just in the way. I’ll bring him in and as soon as I know James is okay, I’ll leave you in peace and let you get reacquainted.

“That’s amazing.” Steve lit up with a mega watt grin. “Tony, thank you. Thank you. You’re giving me a piece of my life back, I swear. I don’t even know where to begin to thank you.”

“Just...take care of him.”

“I promise I will.” the Captain swore. “I promise. I’ll help him readjust to life and we’ll figure out… I dunno. Netflix together? I’ll help him Tony, I will.”

“I don’t doubt it.” Tony tried for a smile that didn’t feel like it was crumbling at the edges. “Now. Are you a enough of a rebel to have a beer in this place while we wait? Or still too good ol’ boy for that?”

“Are you kidding?” Steve laughed again, and yep, Tony would have been seeing stars and stripes if he hadn’t been blinking back tears. “Good beer is the best part of this century! And I don’t get drunk, so I’ve been trying them all! Come on and pick one out!”

“Picking out a beer with Captain America.” Tony struggled to his feet with a hand over his chest and followed the blond to the tiny kitchen. “How could anyone pass that up?”

“Tony!” Steve sounded immeasurably lighter, the smile on his face evident in his voice as he called, “Does Bucky ever listen to music anymore? Have you ever heard of the Andrews Sisters? We heard them sing the night he shipped out for the war, this was his favorite song!”

Before Tony could object or protest or fall to his knees and beg for mercy because he didn’t think he could take another second of this self inflicted torture, the all too familiar beginning notes of ‘Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy’ floated through the apartment and everything got worse.

“Me and Pegs used to dance to this.” Steve tossed Tony a beer he could only barely catch. “She made Buck dance too even though he didn’t have any interest in the other dames. She always said one day he’d find a fella to dance with too, have you guys danced together yet?”

“Once.” Tony said faintly. “Just uh-- just the once.”

He closed his eyes when the song got to the chorus, when the beat changed and he could almost feel James pulling him in closer like he’d done that night in the lab when everything changed between them.

“...just the once.”

**************

“Hey babydoll.” James was confused when he finally made it up to the apartment door, confused and stiff when he bent to give Tony a kiss hello. “This is uh--” he cleared his throat. “Don’t like being back here, Tony. D.C. doesn’t have any good memories for me. I didn’t want to come.”

“I know.” Tony stood on his toes to chase one more kiss, gratified when James automatically wound an arm at his waist to hold him. “And I’m sorry but this is important, alright? What we’re doing here is important.”

“Important like the way Pepper’s fancy parties are important?” James teased halfheartedly, and tugged at Tony’s shirt sleeve. “Let’s get out of here. I’m a real big fan of the way you’ve blown off work the last few weeks to spend time with me, we should keep doing that.”

“James.” Tony tried for words and failed, squeezed at James’s fingers and tried again, “I’ve got someone you should meet. Re-meet. Someone you used to know and I think it’s important you see him again. I think he can fill in a lot more blanks, help you out a lot more than I can, alright?”

“I don’t want anyone helping me but you.” James glanced around the hallway, glanced at the door and out the far window, then back down at Tony, shoulders set uncomfortably tense and jaw clenched. “Tony, can we go? Something feels weird here, I don’t like it.”

“It will feel better in a few minutes.” Tony promised. “Just um-- be brave, Brooklyn. Okay?”

“Brave? Tony, I’m telling you this don’t feel right, I don’t want to be--”

Tony turned the knob and shoved the door open before James could finish the sentence, pushed the soldier through into the living room and then hung back to just watch.

Be brave, Brooklyn.

“Bucky.” Steve stood in the middle of the room, hands in his pockets and chin ducked like he was trying to look small, the unmistakable shield sat prominently on one of the chairs, that old picture of he and James from the Smithsonian propped up on the table.

“Holy shit.” The Captain choked out a strangled sort of laugh and freed his hands to run them both through his hair, tugging at the strands and then rubbing at his eyes as they filled with tears. “Bucky. It’s really you.”

James narrowed his eyes at the big blond, at the picture and at the shield, then looked back at Tony in confusion.

“Bucky? Who the hell is--”

Click click click.

“I had ‘em on the ropes.”

“Yeah Stevie, sure you did.”

Click click click.

“Don’t do anything stupid while I’m gone.”

“How can I? You’re taking all the stupid with you.”

Click click click.

“You’re keeping the suit, right?

Click Click Click

“I’m with you to the end of the line.”

Click click click.

I know him.

Stevie.

“...Stevie?”

The Captain covered the room in two big steps and James met him in the middle for a bone crushing, desperate hug. James’s legs crumpled and Steve caught him halfway down, Captain America crying unashamed tears and swearing under his breath as he smoothed Jame’s hair back from his face to get a good look at him.

“Stevie?”

“Christ, Bucky I can’t believe I finally found you. I finally found you and I’m never gonna let anything happen to you again, I swear it. I swear it.” ----

--- Tony closed the door to the apartment and walked alone down the hallway, took the stairs up to the roof and stood for a long time looking over the city, over the monuments in the distance and the barest glimmer of blue from the river.

His phone rang and it was James but Tony ignored it so he could undo the latches on the briefcase suit and step into the boots, shivering as the armor climbed his body and encased him in cold metal before it warmed to his temperature.

His phone rang and it was James, and the picture on the screen was of them at the redwoods, the name beneath “Sergeant Barnes” because already James wasn’t James anymore, he was Sergeant Barnes, he was Bucky.

His phone rang and it was James and JARVIS intoned, “Sir, it’s Sergeant Barnes calling.”

“Send it to voicemail.” Tony whispered and the call shut down as the suit powered up.

“May I remind you sir that extended use of this suit specifically strains--”

“I remember.” Tony closed his eyes for a minute. “Send a message to Rhodey? Tell him I won’t make dinner tonight. He won’t be surprised, I’ve missed at least a hundred dinners. Call Pep and remind her that I owe her something expensive and sparkly and to pick out whatever she’d like.”

“...Yes sir.”

“JARVIS.” Tony’s chest tightened until he couldn’t breathe. “Enable Ghost Protocol.”

“Are you sure?”

“Just like we talked about.” Tony was shaking inside the suit, grateful for the exoskeleton that kept him on his feet. “I won’t let this be catastrophic and I-- I can’t watch while James realizes he doesn’t need me anymore. Start the process now.”

In the lab in Malibu, lights in the lab started to dim and the myriad of suits Tony had worked on for months drew back into the walls. The lock codes blinking on each panel changed from Tony’s preferences to ones coded to Honeybear, to Rhodey, to Sourpatch and Platypus, on and on the list went.

Computer screens flickered as dozens of letters went out to various charities and foundations, notifications of soon-to-be-arriving checks meant for specific projects that desperately needed funded. Signed paperwork irrevocably keeping Pepper as CEO and turning over any stock held by Tony Stark to her after a death certificate was produced was sent off to the proper compliance departments to make sure everything was legal.

A program was uploaded into Dum-E’s limited software that would allow the robot to function a bit safer and up it’s interaction levels to ones that would make the kiddos in the Children’s Wing at the Cancer Center smile and laugh whenever it rolled through the halls.

Back in Washington, JARVIS’s comforting monotone listed off each point of Ghost Protocol as it was engaged and completed, and the phone rang as Sergeant Barnes tried again and again and again.

“Send it to voicemail.” Tony whispered through a sheen of tears, and the call went silent as the Iron Man armor took off from the roof and soared into the darkening sky, punching through the atmosphere and heading for the stars.

This was the right decision.

Send it to voicemail.

73%

***************

Chapter Notes:

Did you cry? I cried.

I love Steve in this verse. The “First Winteriron, then Steve comes Along” dynamic is something I’ve never written, and I’ve also never written Fresh from the Freezer Steve and I sort of love him??

SAY SOMETHING ABOUT THE CHAPTER!

***************

@ships-galore @ceealaina @izziebladez @cwar1864 @hausoffro @tonystarkisanangel @multishippinglife @girlnic @iam93percentstardust @paranormalmoonlight5 @igotloki @moosette05 @wayward-student-philosopher @kaz-brekkers-gloves @atomicfandombomb @1fuckingshitup69 @agentlokii @livewire28 @tulipsnbigcats @kimstark @alex-stark-rogers @bibbarnes @heeeyitskay @goindownshipping @justaniche @actual-demon-belial

@quietgayguy @bluedreamdino @akimi-youngblood @blackstar1602 @dixiehellcat @travellover1245 @capnstarkey @the-awkward-teenaged-one @thanossucks @peteryoulittleshit @tony-and-steeeb @striving-artist @roe-sesandthorns @coolsidedpillow @i-am-worth-it-25 @firelightmystic @maligatorthealigator @simsccsol @a-tardis-in-221b @happyendingrequired @everygoodoneistaken11 @pootie-and-the-snoots @megahuffledor @xkissmeimirishx @crystalskrull @hazelbeatsturtle @wecollectnightmares @endrega23 @saganarojanaolt @the-crazy-house @ravynfyre @yomama-umbridge @lovely--tony @gayspacesprinkles @elliotkaingrey @warmachinesocks @glitternotgold73

#ncts fics #winteriron #tony stark #bucky barnes #steve rogers #natasha romanov #nick fury

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duskbornbaker · 3 years

Text

Torchwood!Tommy Character Profile

Essentials:

1) What name did they go by as a Kine, and what name do they go by now? Why and how did they choose this name, if it’s different?

Born Tomàs Baker, they were primarily called "Tommy" in life and that continues. As it's been 80 years since they were registered legally dead, they have decided to take on a false surname, as well as to keep Torchwood from knowing too much about them. They borrowed "McDonnell" from their crush from when they were alive. Though, this is moot, as due to a backfire of a ritual, Torchwood 2 now knows their real name.

2) What year were they born (or how old would they be in life), and what age do they appear? What age do they feel?

They were born in 1907 and died in 1925, so they look like an 18 year old, though with the infirmity they experienced and just life being what it was at the start of the 20th century, their "18" looks a little older. They can often pass as early-mid 20s without too much difficulty. In truth, they are 101 years old. The year is 2008, the pyramid has just fallen and to some degree they feel so young and vulnerable. Old World Kindred tend to be older. Princes have held these positions since, some of them, the establishment of the Camarilla nearly a millennium ago. But then, among the Kine they work with, they feel ancient. People reference pop culture from any of the time while they were in the Pyramid and it just flies over their head. They feel out of place among these oh so young and fragile humans. Thankfully, Seòras helps them feel a little more okay with it. Agent Lennox, being nearly 50 years old, also doesn't get the references. They sometimes sit there while Cami and Ash talk about some movie or internet trend and just let the conversations wash over the two of them, absorbing nothing.

3) Which Clan do they belong to? How do they feel about their Clan?

They were Embraced into Clan Tremere and House Tremere. Though, lately, people have started questioning the truth of their affiliation. They're a Thinblood, after all, do they really deserve the title of "Tremere"? This all is compounded by the fall of the Pyramid. The House is in chaos and the childer are unreigned. Kindred openly rebel against their sires and the new House Ipsissimi has been formed. Generally, the Anarchs accept both their status as Thinblood, some among the 14th Generation even going so far as to call the term a slur. They are the Duskborn. Duskborn are burgeoning into a new Clan within the Anarch movement and while Tommy is yet to be forced to choose between the two, they know the time is coming. They are yet to make a decision.

4) Which Predator type do they most align with and why?

Currently: Bagger. It's part of the conditions of their employment. No feeding off living humans. Tommy has given a taste for the blood of corpses, its disgusting but, occasionally a welcome change, as well as animals, honestly somehow more unpleasant than the former and coming with the added issue of needing multiple vessels to even lend themself a somewhat satisfying meal. No, bagged blood is the best of the options available. Further, they don't have to steal it. Torchwood buys the bags at the same rate a hospital would pay and it simply comes out of the food budget. Yvonne *does* question why their food budget is so high, but as of yet hasn't pursued the issue too closely. Thankfully, Lukas covers for Tommy. It's a precarious situation, but one that balances for now.

5) Who Sired them, and into what Generation were they Sired? What’s their relationship with their Sire like, and what were the circumstances of their Embrace?

They were sired by their sister: Somhairlín Baker into the 14th Generation. They were scheduled to be Embraced anyway, by Sam's sire, but before the date was supposed to come, they were struck in a motor vehicle accident while in Galway seeking medical treatment for their chronic anemia. Anemia caused by Sam's clandestine use of Tommy as a Cloven Blood Doll. Somhairlín, feeling guilt, Embraced Tommy. Their parents died. The two bonded closer than in life. This would eventually be a source of great pain in Tommy's life as, in early 2008 following the F1rstlight attack on the Vienna Chantry and the Head of the Tremere Pyramid, Tommy felt need to murder their sister.

6) What level of Humanity are they? Has this changed over the years they’ve been dead?

Tommy's Humanity is very low. Due to the practices of the London Chantry and a development of growing Noddist and Cainite practices, Tommy ended up on the Path of Caine during their time in London. They moved to London to escape Thinblood persecution in the post-War era and it was for naught. In London, Tommy hid themself as Sam's ghoul, and Sam, in turn, entered them into a Blood Wedding, a situation where two Vampires bond themselves to the other threw drinking each other's Vitae. This created a feedback loop where both of them sunk to deeper levels of depravity match for match. And, under Hal Grove, Regent of their Chantry, they began doing research into the Thinblood condition.

The research consisted mostly of Embracing new Thinbloods and finding the limits of the condition: could they use disciplines, could they bond, could they be tapped as a source of Vitae... all of these answers proved to be "sometimes" and the Baker siblings lost grip on their humanity with extreme speed. Since the Fall of the Pyramid, they have been slowly clawing their way back; first: onto the Path of Humanty, a dangerous feat to attempt without personal guidance, and then slowly up the ladder of morality. Now, they sit at humanity 5 -- 6 through 8 being the usual extremes of the average human being.

7) Which Disciplines do they possess, and which do they favor using?

They have the traditional disciplines of Clan Tremere: Thaumaturgy, Dominate, Auspex, but they favor Thaumaturgy. In their role as offensive specialist they favor the paths of Flames and Nebulism. The former as a means of attack and the latter to disable enemies or clear a building of civilians.

8) Who are their Touchstones, if any? / 9) What are their Convictions (moral opinions and standings they hold fast to)?

Cami. A fellow Agent of Torchwood who vouched for them to become member of the team. She represents a value of trusting others judgements. As they say "I take pride in the goodness and strength of my friends and that they, being as such, should care for me."

Lukas. Their boss, the head of Torchwood 2. They keep Tommy in line and enforce the value of the preservation of human life. As much as Tommy is frustrated that Engstrom is blackmailing them to keep them in line, to some degree they are thankful.

10) Do they belong to any sect or are they independent?

They belong to the Anarchs. Hard to be a Camarilla Tremere when you collapsed your old Chantry and murdered your sire. No Camarilla Tremere will touch them. They wouldn't bleed on Tommy if they were on fire.

Life

1) What did they do (as a career or in general) before they were Embraced?

They were a Seminarian, studying to be a Priest. Now, that is just completely out of the realm of possibility.

2) Do they still have mortal family or friends, or descendants of those people? Who were they closest to during life, and is there anyone they’ve contacted after their Embrace?

Still, no. Again? Yes. The people they knew are dead and tracking them down would be dangerous. Once, they tried to find their namesake McDonnell's descendants, but lost track of them when they moved to the New World. Thus is unlife. A series of disappointments. And what would they have said anyway? 100 years ago I wanted to kiss your grandfather? That's not going over well. It's as good a reason as any not to keep pursuing.

3) What were their hobbies, skills, and interests?

They knit. They were rarely able to make the trek to the school at the other end of the island in their youth and so they took up crafts. One of the neighbors had sheep and often sold clothes. With Tommy's health the way it was, they sometimes couldn't get out of the chair for days and spinning wool into yarn by hand and kniting the yarn into fabrics. It was nice. They were always cold so now they had sweaters and blankets to keep themself warm. They also sold some of their wares in town, or, the neighbor sold them and split the profits. A necessary source of income when their father was out at sea so long and money became scarce.

4) Did they have any vices, addictions, or mental illnesses? Which carried over into death?

They smoked. The doctors suggested it as means of strengthening the lungs with hopes of helping them build up the energy to walk. Obviously, this was counter intuitive. When they did feel up to it, and the night air was fresh and cool, Tommy and their friend Larry McDonnell would sneak into the chapel and "borrow" a bottle of communion wine. Red-faced and dizzy, they would fall in love with him over and over again, afraid of what it meant, but craving the times when they felt brave enough to reach out for him. Sometimes Tommy felt like maybe Larry felt something in return. It was hard to peel the alcohol from the desires from the truth, and so they never truly acted on it.

5) What were they most afraid of in life? How has this changed?

They were most afraid of their homosexuality. Did this mean they were going to Hell. Did they have to worry about dragging someone else down with them... This has changed in that they have largely given up on the Catholic faith. Perhaps they'll come back to it, they feel a draw to spirituality to fill the hole left by their lapsed Noddism and worship of their Domitor-and-Thrall. They've attended services a few times lately and it seems like some of the opinions within the flock are shifting. They don't want to get too attached but reattajing to their human faith is helping them feel just that much more Human, an addicting feeling.

6) What were their goals and ambitions in life? How has this changed?

Their goal at the time had been to squash their sexuality with faith. Now, they have embraced their queerness. It's a struggle many days to treat themself with kindness in that front. Hell, it's a struggle most days to treat anyone with kindness. But they're getting better.

7) Did they follow any religion or spiritual paths in life? How did that change when they died, if at all?

They were a Catholic in life, hoping to become a Priest and then in Unlife first abandoned religion but then got drawn in by the lures of Cainite Noddism. Now, with the Fall of the Pyramid, they feel a call to that old religion once again. Who knows where it will take them.

8) When they were Embraced, what was the aftermath like? Did they fake their death, do their loved ones think they went missing, etc.?

Their family died along with them so they faked that they died, too. At least they don't have to worry about their parents thinking they're missing.

Death

1) What have they spent most of their years as a Kindred doing?

Most of it has been spent researching their condition. Now, they are one of the most knowledgeable , probably in the world, on what it means to be a Thinblood.

2) What’s the entire lineage of their bloodline, from them all the way back to their Clan’s Antediluvian? Is there anything in particular that they and their grandsires all had in common?

They were primarily raised by their grandsire. Sam's sire took them on as a second childe, even though they had planned to wait maybe 10 years. So, Tommy got the same education as their sister. His sire, however, I haven't thought as much about.

3) How do they adapt to the changing times around them? Do they still uphold values, styles, or other things from the past?

They definitely dress a little bit out of time. And what's not anachronistic is absolutely horrible. They dont, however, adapt very well. They haven't gone through the back catalogue of media Cami gave them, cultural milestones and things that have happened... Just a few months ago, Tommy found out man had touched foot on the moon. They are more than a little behind the times.

4) Do they have a coterie? What position do they take in that group, if so? Otherwise, do they have any notable Kindred (or other creatures) friends?

Their "coterie" is probably the Torchwood 2 team, deapite being Kine. They serve as a blaster with magic on call they can destroy threats and protect their lives -- especially Lukas Engstrom, who, if he dies, will release a catalogue of all the information he has gathered on Kindred to every intelligence agency in the world, a threat Tommy doesn't take lightly.

They are also connected to Alastríona "Cass" Balach. She is Tommy's sponsor in House Ipsissimi and, by human standards, their Sponsor in Alcoholics Anonymous. The disguise is simple wordplay, but the Ipsissimi hide themselves within the Crowleian "Astrum Argenteum" which they in turn have using Alcoholics Anonymous as a front. This also serves as an out for Tommy. They couch their cravings for human blood in terminology based around Alcoholism and thus they are given a space to discuss their emotions. At meetings is also where a Ghouls of Balach's will give them study materials if need be. New rituals and information about the next step on one of their Paths. It's a pretty nice arrangement.

5) Which of their Clan’s stereotypes apply to them? Which do they act against, or embody the opposite of?

They are a neurotic mess. A perfectionist to their core, and sometimes they apply that perfectionism outward becoming a domineering person. They are secretive and dangerous. They have spent decades engaging in unethical magical experiments. Truly, they are quintessential Tremere.

However, they fight to change that. They want to be a better person and a better Kindred. They want to look at a person and not feel a desire to take them apart and find out how they tick. Thankfully, Engstrom keeps them in line on that front, with the actually follow8ng through of it anyway.

6) How do they feel about the Antitribu of their Clan?

Having very nearly been one, they understand the allure. The draw of Vampiric Supremacy and the willingness to bring human kind to their knees, however, they also pulled away. Once their eyes were clear they put their very existence on the line, revealed to the Prince that they had been a Thinblood illegally living in her domain and turned on the Cainites to bring the White Hall Chantry down. They fear the Tremere Antitribu. Their sponsor was also former Goratrix and, bearing the Mark of the Traitor, she was a fullfledged member who partook of the Vaulderie. Whatever brought her out remains to be seen, but Tommy wouldn't have an in at continuing Thaumaturgical Studies without her, and for that, he's grateful.

7) Have they Embraced anyone? Ghouled anyone?

They have, but not to keep around. And having lived in the Blood Bond for decades, they never want to do that to anyone else again.

8) Do they prowl, or is there a city they permanently reside in?

They seem to have settled in Glasgow, as much to be close to their new Sponsor as anything else. And, with their membership in Torchwood 2, they hope to stick around for a long time.

9) What’s their haven like?

They live at the Glasgow Hub: the basement of a nondescript Warehouse in a district of Warehouses, itself hidden by Vampiric magics. They have a private room to live and sleep in near the entrance. When they sleep, they are the first line of defense if something should come in. They protect the themself and their partners with another spell that will wake them immediately if a danger disturbs their residence.

The Hole itself is cozy. Not very big, about the size of a studio apartment. A single room with a bed, a bookshelf, and a fridge to hold Blood Bags. Not too much going on otherwise.

10) Do they believe they are descended from Caine, or do they follow a different path?

They do not believe they are descended from Caine. They have looked at the information Ash has managed to draw from them and it appears that Vampirism may be of extraterrestrial origin. Its exact origin is unknown, but alien stock seems to rule out the concepts purported by Noddism. And, after a period of time otherwise, they are back on the Path of Humanity.

11) How do they feel about Diablerie?

They wonder often. They wonder if they should have Diablerized Sam. Sure, it's a crime in the Camarilla, but they are no longer Camarilla, and they wouldn't be a Thinblood anymore. They would be a stronger force to reckon with, more able to protect their team... But it's a dangerous line of thought. And there's nothing doing, now.

12) Regardless of whether or not they adhere to Camarilla rule, have they ever broken any of the Traditions?

13) Do they believe in Gehenna? How do they feel about Thin-bloods, and do they believe they’re a sign of the end times?

Absolutely. Most of them. Respect of Domain and Hospitality. Their existence is a violation first of all. And they killed their sire. Even with permission, that's still a violation of the Traditions.

14) Have they ever Frenzied? What happened?

Not anymore. Its been a long unlife, and it was even longer thinking their own existence would draw the death of their people closer. But, they have learned to shrug off these kind of Noddist teachings. And they don't think the world is going anywhere any time soon.

The moment the Blood Bond broke, they frenzied and drank someone to death out of rage. An innocent person dead because they couldn't keep their cool. Other than that, no. They have kept themself well fed these years. And tht hope to keep it that way.

#tw!verse #ooc

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luke-o-lophus · 4 years

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Coming Back to Life

Sam Wilson & Indian/Desi Reader friendship

Warning: Mention of canon typical violence.

Sam's sleep is finally back on schedule. His last mission had been three weeks ago. Three weeks without a pair of confused, highly energetic and lovestruck supersoldiers in constant vicinity. Apparently that did wonders for your health.

So of course he isn't particularly thrilled when his doorbell rings. At a particularly sweet spot in his dream too. He taps the phone screen; it's four in the fucking morning. Swear to god, if Steve tries to coax him into another early morning race, he is gonna go rogue.

You blink a few times, jarred by the volume of the bell. Your fingers draw back from the switch, and you awkwardly look on either side of the small corridor. A single lamp shone in the middle, too bright for your burning eyes. That's weird, you feel numb everywhere else. Your head feels like fluffed up cotton candy. And you sure as hell don't have any smart quips when Sam opens the door. His face goes through all shades of annoyance, then shock, finally concern, all too fast for you to register.

"Oh man you look like shit", he mutters, grabbing you by the arm and pulling you in. Your legs obey him, though you jump slightly at the door slamming.

"Hey", you greet, heavily sitting on the chair he pulls out for you. "I...Uh...", swallow a few times trying to clear up your head and say something intelligent or at least relevant. "Water?", is all you manage, and Sam's holding out a glass before you can blink. He regards you cautiously from a little distance; the mud caked on your shoes and knees, the bloody patches on your dull cheek, a side of your lip swollen to an uncomfortable degree.

"You didn't tell me you had a mission", he deadpans.

"A stealth mission. Kind of defeats the 'stealth' if I yap", you reply with venom, and Sam glares.

"So it's yapping now? Can I ask how the mission went or is that way too much information to share with me" Ah, he was trying so hard to not slip into his Captain voice.

You put down the glass suddenly, jaws clenched and hands gripping knees. "Mission successful", you rattle off. "Target eliminated, encountered additional three hostiles; two eliminated. Intel download status 100%. Agent status, no serious injury, not in need of hospitalization." Your eyes flicker to his for a moment, then scurry back down.

Sam cocks a brow, swallows in a swear and sits on a chair before you. "What happened? What's wrong?", he asks. "You're not being yourself right now."

You look up at that, eye blazing with fury. "What?", you seethe. "I just reported. What do you want me to say? What's that even supposed to mean? That I'm fucking out of my mind?"

"Whoa whoa tiger hold it...I just want you to tell me what.... What you need, kay?"

Your eyes sink into uncertainty at that question, legs shifting uncomfortably. "May-maybe I should go", you mumble. But Sam's hand is immediately on your shoulder to keep you seated, his gaze hard and warning.

"What.... I can't even go home now?", You mutter tiredly. Sam pursed his lips staring into your sunken eyes and shook his head. "No you can't", he confirms, adding for the mirth,"Cap's order."

The grip of your fingers is weak when you reach up to hold his wrist. "Can I...can I have Sammy instead?" Sam's look blanched and he's immediately touching your chin to tilt your face up. "Anytime", he soothes, running a thumb on your cheek."I got you, kid. You're home, gonna be fine."

A shiver passes through your body, still sitting ramrod straight. The trembling of your lips makes you wince slightly. How longer would the adrenaline high hold up? The crash was coming soon, and hard. You were so fucking scared. Still hyper aware of your surrounds. Every flicker of a shadow, every sound of wheels on the adjacent road. Your eyes wandering to the door every few moments to verify it was indeed bolted. "I... don't think I can....", you whisper.

"It's okay to come down, mission's over. I want my tiger back too, can you do that for me?"

Your nod is feeble but earnest, and he's then moving closer, slowly, long dark arms wrapping your smaller frame in a hug. You flinch only a little at first, but he holds on, as do you. You try to complain once that you were getting his clothes dirty, but he shuts you up with a "I cleaned brain goop from this last month." That gets you to release a snort of laughter and sink your head down to his shoulder. His fingers gently reach for your head and he quietly asks for permission and when you nod, pulls off your hair tie. Then his fingers are carding through your black locks, combing the strands, working out knots, fingernails gently scraping against your scalp. Your eyes grow heavier and your heart, lighter. He notices your wavering strength, of course he does. "You need a bath", he states.

"Just five more minutes", you moan, looking way too adorable for someone with blood of at least three strangers and yourself splattered on your skin. But it's that cuteness that's going to be Sam's death someday.

"Fine, three", he grunts.

"Ten", you shoot back.

"God dammit"

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writtingsofspn · 5 years

Text

I’ve got your back

Request: could you do an x reader where the reader is a young teenage girl who’s a bad ass solo hunter. In the hunters world there’s been talk about a solo hunter who is one of the best hunters of the century and sam and dean put two and two together and she saves their ass.

Pairings: Platonic all around

Warnings: Swearing probably but nothing more

A/N: As always feedback is very much appreciated. Also running low on requests so if you have any send ‘em my way!

You took a step out of the bathroom, breathing icy cold air for the first time in what felt like hours after having steamed up the bathroom with a shower that you had hoped would clear your head from the case. But of course it didn’t, you have been doing this long enough to not be surprised by that. Nothing quite took the edge off of a case for a few hours like being unconscious, if only it were easier to get to that state.

You threw your towel onto a nearby chair and put on some pajamas, grabbing a gun and checking through the blinds one last time, an unfortunate habit that had saved your life on more than one occasion.

You hadn’t expected to see anyone out there, you haven’t been on this case long enough to draw attention to yourself. But instead you were greeted with the sight of a grown man admiring your car parked just outside the window. Normally you wouldn’t have done anything about it but given that it was nearly midnight you felt you had reason to be suspicious.

Cautiously, you tucked your gun into the waistband of your pants and walked outside, clearing your throat loudly to catch the attention of the man “Can I help you with something?”

“Do you know who’s car this is” The man asked, tossing a quick glance in your direction before directing his gaze back to your car. A car you were rather proud and protective of.

“Mine” You answered simply, crossing your arms over your chest.

At this the man turned towards you with furrowed brows “Are you even old enough to drive that thing?”

You felt your jaw clench and your hands ball up into fists, beyond sick of jokes about your age. You hear enough of them in the hunting community you did not need it from some rando standing outside your hotel room. “That thing is a souped-up off road volvo and I recommend you show it, as well as it’s owner, some respect.”

“Get your Dad out here and I will”

“bold of you to assume it’s a man’s car” You could feel yourself smirk at him “not only do you blatantly ignore me when I tell you it’s my car but you automatically assume it’s a man’s car”

“No-I-uh-that’s not” You already had his stuttering, you fought off a smile as you tried to keep a straight face.

“Let me guess it’s cause women can’t be interested in cars” You prodded him further “no that’s a man’s job of course”

“Shut up”

“How eloquent”

The two of you sat in silence for a few moments, you weren’t about to give him the satisfaction of breaking the tension, knowing he had nothing else to say.

“Just tell your parents I like their car” He muttered before turning around and heading for the door right next to your own.

“Just me here asshole” You muttered before walking into your own room, slamming the door a bit harder than you probably should have.

“You got into a fight…with a little girl”

“Well I wouldn’t call her a little girl…”

Sam stared at his brother with raised eyebrows, silently waiting for him to continue the story, he desperately needed to defend himself better than this.

“She had to have been at least old enough to drive a car”

“That still doesn’t explain why you decided to pick a fight with her… in a motel parking lot… at midnight”

“Well if you say it like that it sounds ridiculous” Dean mumbled as he aggressively shoved hash browns into his mouth.

“Ok then how would you describe it?”

“…can we just focus on the case”

Sam couldn’t help but laugh at his brother. Enjoying the picture of him getting his ass handed to him by a teenage girl in his mind.

“Police found a twelve year old boy ripped to shreds. They’re thinking it’s some animal in the woods.”

“Werewolf?” Dean asked.

“That’s what I’m thinking” Sam nodded as he pulled out his phone scrolling through the articles he had saved on it “but he’s not the first victim. My guts saying there are more than one of them”

“Great” Dean grunted, silently flagging down the waitress for another cup of coffee.

“We could always ask for help” Sam mused, putting his phone back into his pocket.

“From who?”

“Rumer has it that the nightingale is around here” Sam shrugged “We could give her a call”

“We’re not asking help from a hunter who doesn’t exist.”

“What makes you think she doesn’t exist?”

“Have you heard the stories?” Dean all but laughed “They’re ridiculous, there’s no way anyone is that good let alone some teenage girl”

“Considering you just got your ass kicked by one I wouldn’t be putting them down like that” Sam muttered, ignoring the glare Dean shot him. “Besides legends have to start somewhere. Maybe the stories aren’t 100% true but that doesn’t mean she’s not an amazing hunter”

“Regardless we can handle this we don’t need someone tacky enough to have the tagline ‘greatest hunter in a century’”

“you’re just jealous you don’t have it”

You hated research enough as it was, but being unable to gather it directly from the source made it so much worse. No matter how much makeup and pantsuits you put on you could never convince anyone you were someone of enough authority to give information to. Most assumed you were a kid playing dress up.

That didn’t mean you were through trying though. You were fixing bright red lipstick in the rearview mirror of your car parked outside of the police station. FBI badge ready in your pocket and lock picking kit in another one, you were prepared for any situation.

You kicked open your door and slid into heels that had no business being as high as they were when you stopped dead in your tracks, recognizing a certain light brown-haired man walking into the station in a cheap suit. Immediately you were running up behind him, heels in hand slipping them on just before you came into the building and planting yourself on a bench before anyone could notice you.

“Hi I’m agent Smith and this is agent Smith” The man introduced him and the tall man standing next to him, each flipping out FBI badges that looked remarkably like your own. “We’d like to talk to someone about the recent death of a twelve-year-old boy”

Immediately you put your head in your hands, doing your best to disguise yourself as a kid who got in trouble as the two men were led down a hallway to the chief. So they were here on the same case as you were. Your gut said they were hunters too, there wasn’t really a reason for the FBI to be here, but you sure as hell weren’t ready to take that risk.

You made quick glances around the lobby, careful to make sure the secretary wasn’t paying attention to you before you slipped down the hallway after the two agents, stopping in front of the chief’s door and pressing your ear to the wall, glad to know you could hear all that was going on within the room.

Eagerly you began taking notes, scribbling answers to all of the agents questions quickly before having to run off down the hallway at the sound of footsteps being taken in your direction from the room. Planting yourself back on the bench just in time for the three men to exit the chief’s office.

“I assure you gentleman your help is not needed, we have this all under control” The chief said as politely as possible, obviously having no clue how untrue that sentence really was.

“we just go where the burro tells us to, this is more a formality than anything” The man you had fought with tried to calm the chief, assuring him he was still top dog in his town before he made a move for the door, stopping as soon as he made eye contact with you, “What are you doing here?”

“It’s nice to see you too” You grunted, happy to see a smirk appear on the taller man’s face. “I’m Y/N”, you introduced yourself to him, already deciding you liked him better.

“Sam” The man shook your hand with smile much to his partners displeasure.

“Is there anything I can help you with little lady?” You fought the urge to roll your eyes at the chief’s nickname, putting on your best fake smile.

“No actually I already got what I needed. Thank you though”

“Well can we give you a ride back to the motel” Sam offered

“No thanks I have my car here” You smirked at his partner.

“Alright well if you need anything” Sam continued hesitantly “I hear we’re neighbors so don’t hesitate to come over”

“Thanks” You smiled at him before following the two of them outside. Feeling Sam’s partners eyes on you as you got into your car and pulled out of the lot.

The agents conversation had been a gold mine, so paired with the statements you got from the victims families, who thank god did actually talk with you, you had a good idea where the werewolves were hiding out.

You figured you could take care of them tonight and head out in the morning, word was there were some hunters who could be in need of some help just a few hours north of here.

A knock at your door startled you but you didn’t think twice before answering, almost figuring it was a pizza you had forgotten you’d ordered. Instead you found standing the two agent smiths standing there.

“Oh-uh-hey” You greeted them opening the door wide enough to show the rest of your body, not even thinking about the gun exposed in your holster on your thigh.

Sam’s partner, however, didn’t miss it, immediately drawing one of his own and pointing it right at you sending your hand to the handle of your own gun.

“Dude” Sam hissed, grabbing his partner by the elbow and pulling him into your room and shutting the door quickly.

“Why do you have a gun?” His partner demanded, dropping the aim slightly as he saw you weren’t going to point yours back at him.

“I’m a teenage girl alone in a motel room. I’d like a litter security” You lied easily, Afterall it was practically in your job description,

“What about all of this?” Sam asked pointing at a table covered in your research, god you were getting sloppy.

You paused for a moment, less prepared for this question “The latest victim, Trevor, he was a friend of mine”

You could tell neither of these answers flew well with the agents as Sam’s partner kept his gun trained on you.

“Look-“ You started to explain, ready to tell them you didn’t want any trouble and ask them to leave when Sam interrupted you.

“nightingale” He all but whispered, as if he were more explaining the situation to himself than you.

“Your hunters” It clicked as you dropped your hand from your gun.

“No way you’re the nightingale” Sam’s partner shook his head.

“In the flesh” You assured him with a slight smirk “and if you’re Sam then you’re Dean? Winchesters?”

“You know who we are?” Dean asked, finally dropping his gun to the floor and tucking it away.

“Everyone knows about the two responsible for nearly destroying the world god knows how many times” You chuckled.

“Oh, that” Dean muttered.

“Never mind it tho” You brushed the topic off tuning back to business “I think I know where the wolves are hiding out, I was just heading there now”

“Alright just go let us grab out stuff and we’ll be ready” Sam shrugged making eye contact with his brother checking with him silenetly

“Oh no” You quickly interjected before they could move anywhere “I usually work alone, usually safer that way”

“It’s our case too” Dean objected “plus we think there’s quite a few of them out there you can’t take them all out yourself”

“Sure I can” You shrugged “not something I haven’t done before”

“But now you don’t have to” Sam jumped in “we’ll have your back”

You bit your lip, partners have never really gone well for you but these guys were Winchesters, apocalypses aside they were known to be good hunters, surely it couldn’t hurt.

“Alright but we’re taking my car”

“Fat chance” Dean laughed before walking out of your room before you could argue any further.

You hoped out of the impala as soon as it parked, you had to admit it was a nice car, had a good classic feel but pride wouldn’t allow you to ever say that out loud.

“How many silver bullets you got?” You asked, checking your own clip.

“Bout a clip each” Sam answered, checking his own quickly.

“Me too but I’ve got about a dozen knives as well”

“Knives?” Dean questioned looking at you skeptically.

“They’re easy to throw and silent” You shrugged, “going in guns blazing definitely isn’t the best move here”

Sam just nodded in response, looking up at the abandoned building. “front or back you think?”

“We’ve got the man power for both” You followed his gaze “As long as we’re quiet and pick them off one by one we should be fine”

Dean nodded at you and cocked his gun. Accepting a few knives from you as you passed them around.

“Hey” he started awkwardly as Sam began walking towards the building “I’m Dean by the way”

“Yeah…I know” you furrowed your brow.

“Yeah I just figured, you’re gonna have to trust me tonight, I should really introduce myself at least”

You couldn’t help but smile at the thought, extending your hand “It’s nice to meet you Dean, I’m Y/N”

Dean gladly shook your hand with a small smile “We’ve got your back tonight Y/N”

“I know, I’ve got yours too”

Dean nodded with a grin before turning on his heels and heading with his brother to the back of the building. You took up position in the front, giving the brothers ten seconds before you slipped into the building.

Immediately you ducked behind a chest of sorts, throwing a knife at the first thing that turned the corner, hitting one between the eyes knocking it to the ground. You ran towards the body and pulled the knife out of its forehead and turning the corner, throwing knives quickly and easily.

Everything was going perfectly, you had to have gone through a handful of werewolves at least, when a loud gunshot startled you. Immediately howls and long toenails scratching on hardwood echoed through the house.

You swore under your breath and ran towards the gunshot, knowing that wasn’t a good a sign. You arrived in the back of the house to see Sam on the ground with a wolf snarling and gnashing its teeth above him, gun kicked somewhere across the room. With no hesitation you fired at the wolf, the beast slumping over immediately allowing Sam to simply throw him off.

“Where’s Dean?’

“Upstairs” Sam panted, pushing himself to his feet.

“This floor’s clear lets go” You said making your way to the stairs, Sam right on your heels.

You quickly made your way down the hallway, clearing each room as you walked by it. Stopping as soon as you saw Dean stuck in the same position you found Sam in earlier. Again you fired easily at the wolf, helping Dean to his feet as he pushed the body off of him.

“Are there any more?” You asked him as he caught his breath.

Dean shook his head “Not that I saw”

“Alright cool” You laughed “That was easy”

The brothers looked at you, their chests rising and falling rapidly as they struggled to recover from nearly dying “right, easy”

“Alright well…” You began, dusting off your hands “didn’t think I’d ever say this but I’m glad we teamed up.”

“Believe me we are too” Dean chuckled as he led you back down the stairs.

“Well…” Sam mumbled, running a hand through his hair “what if we made it a usual thing”

“What do you mean?” You asked, not wanting to jump to any conclusions.

‘We’ve got a place” Dean jumped in “A permanent place, no more motel rooms”

“You could even go back to school if you wanted” Sam finished giving you what you could only call puppy dog eyes.

“I don’t know” You answered honestly, playing awkwardly with your hands “I’ve been alone for so long you know, it’s what I’m used to”

“We’re just saying we make a good team” Dean tried to explain, putting a comforting hand on your shoulder “so just think about it alright”

“Alright” You nodded, getting into the back seat of the impala, your gut already telling you what you should do.

#supernatural #supernatural oneshot #supernatural one shot #supernatural imagine #SPN #spn fanfic #spn fan fiction #spn oneshot #spn imagine #Sam Winchester #sam imagine #sam one shot #Sam Oneshot #sam x reader #dean winchester #Dean Winchster #dean fic

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criesblood · 4 years

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; I’ve been working on some sub-verses and some AU verses for Mary, you can find them HERE ! Anyone is free to request them when you like a starter call or send me a meme, or plot with me! ooor honestly just toss them at me if you write me a starter! They include verses for Harry Potter, historical/legendary/epic settings, The Vampire Diaries/The Originals, The Hundred, Bates Motel, a college verse, The Following and a Heroes/Marvel/DC/etc verse. She is still Bloody Mary, the spirit, in all of them, but there are twists. I still want to have an OUAT verse, maybe a pirate verse and a few others, but these will come later.

The verses are under the cut for my own reference but if you wanna check them out you should go HERE because I have more pretty icons there and you should appreciate them haha!

v; slithering through mirrors (Hogwarts)

Mary Worthington was a 5th year Slytherin student at Hogwarts, but something had changed by the time 6th year started. Her friends and other students could tell something was off-- Mary was skipping a lot of classes and sometimes her eyes would spontaneously bleed. The professors didn’t acknowledge it or brushed it off, but they added a mysterious mirror to the Slytherin girls’ dormitory; they knew what happened. Mary kept it a secret from everybody else but the truth was she was dead now. Murdered during the summer between 5th and 6th year, her restless, vengeful spirit attached itself to a mirror. The magical energy surrounding Hogwarts helps her stay corporeal and out of the mirror (though she can still be summoned too), and the legend of Bloody Mary has yet to spread. Who killed her, how she died and the mythology behind the mirror, the summoning, the killing etc are exactly like in Mary’s main verse, but she is a born witch here; no demonic deals needed. Also note she is eternally sixteen in this verse, the only verse where she is underage.

v; the legend of the dead witch (historical)

Not a fandom-specific verse but geared toward anything that as a mythological, legendary, epic, historical or fairytale vibe. Mary Worthington was a well known powerful witch, who traveled between kingdoms and used her abilities to help others, often staying in kingly courts or powerful covens. She gained her magic not through a demonic deal but through a deal with one of the Fae, a member of the Seelie Court (the fae’s identity is thread-dependent!), who favored Mary due to her open heart and closeness with nature. Her powers are mostly relating to working with the elements, healing, glamours and of course using herbs, but can wander into darker territories if necessary. Her fame granted her many admirers but not all were convinced; some feared and were threatened by anyone who possessed magic. It was one such man who wounded her with iron (a weakness inherited from her Fae patron) and murdered her while her magic was bound. He gouged out her eyes and she tried to write a blood spell on the mirror, but couldn’t finish it before succumbing to her injuries. Perhaps it was a combination of the Fae folk watching over her, her half-done ritual on the mirror and the anger and trauma of the murder that brought her back to life, as the vengeful ghost of Bloody Mary (the summoning/killing rules are the same as in her main verse!). But instead of fading into being thought of as a myth, she made sure everyone knew she was still around, murdering those that kept murderous secrets and even innocents if they didn’t summon her correctly. She maintained her presence on the courts and covens, still trying to use her powers for good whenever she could, and her fame only grew.

v; blood sacrifices (TVD/TO)

When a witch dies with vampire blood in her system, she loses her magic and ceases being a witch; everyone knows that. But what happens if a soul that is to become a restless, vengeful spirit has vampire blood inside her upon her death? Something weird, and Bloody Mary is proof of it. Her backstory in this verse is the same as her main verse, up until the murder and attempt to write the killer’s name on a mirror. She died and was brought back to life because of the vampire blood in her system, given to her by a friend who knew a killer was after her. Mary didn’t want to live like that, so she refused to feed and died again, peacefully. That should’ve been the end, but the anger and trauma of the murder and the injustice that the murderer was never caught brought her back as the vengeful spirit known as Bloody Mary, same as the main verse. The difference is, something of the vampiric blood still affected her: she grew fangs and could sustain herself by drinking blood. Unlike a vampire, she doesn’t need to feed (she is still a ghost, after all), but whenever she’s out of the mirror, in corporeal form, she can increase the length of time she’s free by consuming the vital life energy contained in blood. Hearing that Mystic Falls and New Orleans are hotbeds of supernatural activity, she traveled to those locations in search of something that could free her from mirrors and end the curse of the bloody Mary once and for all. [Please note that her strengths and weaknesses remain that of a ghost, not a vampire. Her eyes flash red and fangs grow when she feeds and that’s about all the vampiric you get from her!]

v; space pocket mirror (The 100)

Mary Worthington was 21 when she lived on the Ark. There was a little girl she cared for like she was her own sister, and the girl got sick. Instead of a demonic deal for witchy powers like on her main verse, in this verse Mary’s solution was much more mundane. She stole antibiotics and saved the girl, but she got caught. Arrested, and floated. Her mother watched, and cried, clutching a pocket mirror Mary had given her as a way to remain close to her family in the afterlife. The last thing Mary saw as she drifted into space was this blinding light that hurt her eyes, and then she was dead. And then she was back--- kind of, thanks to the anger over her death sentence being unfair, and seeing her mother’s grief. Mary’s spirit was stuck inside the mirror now, bloody tears coming from her eyes, the only way to free her was with a surge of energy...which she didn’t know about. When The 100 were sent down to Earth, someone took the mirror too, unknowingly bringing Bloody Mary along for the ride and separating her from her family again. The violence freed her from her prison (the mirror/summoning rules are the same as her main verse) and a girl that lived her whole life in space has to learn to adapt to living on a nearly empty Earth, among nature and enemies.

v; the eyes are the windows to the soul (The Following)

I’ve yet to come across any muses from TF, but a girl can hope (this verse works well with any police investigation type of universe, anyway!) With Mary’s canon death involving her eyes being gouged out, and Joe Carroll’s canon MO being exactly that, the verse kind of wrote itself. Mary was a modern day witch, pursuing an English degree at Winslow University, Virginia, right around the time the Virginia Campus Murders started . Nobody suspected the rather well-liked (and Edgar Allan Poe obsessed, thus equating beauty with death) literature professor, Joe Carroll, of being a serial killer. Unfortunately for Mary, she fit his victim profile to a T, and he killed her. Drawing her last breaths, she wrote the letter J on a mirror, attempting to write the name of the killer, but she died before finishing. Several other female students would still be murdered before FBI agent Ryan Hardy apprehended Joe. The traumatic death and the anger at the injustice kept Mary’s spirit trapped in mirrors, and from that point on everything is the same as her main verse, with one addition: when the cult of Joe emerged she did her best to work with the police to find them, but only very few people within the task force knew one of Joe’s victims had returned as a ghost.

v; peering through a broken mirror (Bates Motel)

A sub-verse that is part of her main verse, started as a thing between me and ofwrittenschemes’ Norman but open to anyone that wants to interact within this setting! Everything is the same as the main verse up until two girls who are staying at the Bates Motel decide to play the Bloody Mary game, summoning Mary who has no choice but to kill them. Just as the now-corporeal ghost stepped out of the mirror, motel manager Norman came into the room and Mary had to quickly pretend that she was a victim too, the only survivor of a paranormal attack. Little does she know that Norman is hiding something too. Now Mary is staying in White Pine Bay, a small town with a history of crime, conspiracies and mob wars, and the pair have some crimes to cover up, some crimes to try and solve, and they have to decide whether to trust each other with their secrets or not. At least until Mary’s time is up and she’s swept back into the mirror.

v; haunted sorority house (college)

Also a sub-verse that is part of her main verse, meaning everything is the same up until she is summoned by some college boys playing the Bloody Mary game. They die, the energy lets her loose on campus, where curiosity and a desire to live a normal life make her decide to stay and blend in, pretending to be a student with an undeclared major. She even manages to rush a sorority, all while keeping her ghostly identity a secret from most.

v; vengeful vigilante (Heroes/DC/Marvel)

Also a sub-verse that is part of her main verse, meaning everything is the same up until the rise of superheroes and supervillains. The wave of vigilante crime fighting resonates with Mary, who decides to put her supernatural skills to good use whenever she’s out of the mirror and learns how to physically fight too. She finds those guilty of murder and gets them arrested or, sometimes, killed. Whenever she’s out crime fighting she wears black, ties her hair up and often times she’s crying blood; Mary doesn’t bother with a mask because she can’t be caught or found anyway--- she lives in mirrors and is a spirit that died centuries ago. She goes by Blood Tears, but many people refer to her as Bloody Mary because she ‘reminds them of the urban legend’, not realizing she is, in fact, the urban legend. They usually assume she’s some kind of metahuman/evo/mutant that can travel through mirrors and/or control blood. She’s not a hero, she’s an antihero who is not above murder and petty crimes if they help her stop other killers.

#tag drop #v; slithering through mirrors (Hogwarts)#v; the legend of the dead witch (historical)#v; peering through a broken mirror (Bates Motel)#v; haunted sorority house (college)#v; blood sacrifices (TVD/TO)#v; vengeful vigilante (Heroes/DC/Marvel)#v; the eyes are the windows to the soul (The Following)#v; space pocket mirror (The 100)

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susansbcnes · 5 years

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SAM’S WANTED CONNECTIONS FOR IIDY ( 01 / ?? )

↳ SUSAN BONES’ (AND LEE JORDAN’S) SECOND YOUNGEST CHILD

Pictured above, possible faceclaims for this connection. Open to more faceclaim ideas, but the fc must be at least half Black.

QUICK LIL SUMMARY: This would be Susan’s third child, and the second youngest member of the family, but also the youngest playable one as their only younger sibling is fourteen years old. They would have to be in sixth or seventh year, and therefore be from sixteen to eighteen years old. Susan and Lee started having kids when they were quite young, though they used a surrogate and an egg donor (along with Lee’s sperm), since Susan was unable to conceive due to various health issues. Whether or not Lee and Susan are still together will be up to whoever ends up playing Lee, but what’s for sure is that they’re a close-knit family. Susan adores all her kids, and always, always puts them first. If you want more info about Susan herself, you can check out her intro right here.

For some character ideas (that you absolutely don’t have to follow, but that I created for fun(tm), check under the “read more”!

01. THE ACTIVIST.

I would love to see one of Susan and Lee’s kids follow in their parents’ footsteps. The seventh book may not have happened, but I’m sure in the same situation, Lee would still have created PotterWatch, and therefore, I feel like this spark for justice and rebellion from the establishment could have come from both parents? Although, if that doesn’t work with whoever ends up playing Lee, it can just come from Susan, of course. Basically, I’m picturing a kid of Susan’s who’s either really hot-tempered or really mellow, but who, either way, is always fighting for justice. With activist, hot-tempered and brash often comes to mind, and that’d be amazing, but I’d also LOVE to see a more mellow activist who no one suspects of fighting back even though they are. I picture this character either being in Gryffindor or Hufflepuff, though it could be super interesting if you could make them work in Slytherin or Ravenclaw, too. Also, I definitely think they’d be part of McGonagall’s Army and S.P.E.W. Club, and I’m sure they’re always trying to convince their mother to let them into the Order even though they’re much too young. I could see Susan really worrying for this child, whilst also being immensely proud to see them fight for what is right. To be fair, Susan’s proud of all her kids, but... Yes.

02. THE ARTIST.

Oh, man. Susan adores art, but she sucks(tm) at making it, so it’d be so interesting to see one (or more) of her children being a talented artist. Any kind of art, really. From painting to piano, or from drawing to drums, I honestly don’t have a preference. Ways you could go with this is maybe a really politically involved artist? Maybe one who does graffiti to oppose the new regime at Hogwarts? Or who draws caricatures and other drawings denouncing what’s going on at Hogwarts? Oooooh, or maybe they create catchy beats with lyrics about how wrong everything is that they try to get as many people to sing as possible. Or MAYBE they’re super mellow, and chill, and hate what’s going on, yes, but have the mentality that, as a sixteen to eighteen years old, there’s nothing they can do yet, and they should keep their head down and wait until they’re better trained to oppose the bad guys. OR they’ve got their head in the clouds and are just... Not unaware of what’s going on, per se, but kind of lost about what to do. Anyway, Susan adores them, just like she adores all of her kids.

03. THE ATHLETE.

A quidditch player, first and foremost. They feel more at ease in the air than on the ground, and dream of becoming a professional quidditch player. I think it’d also be super interesting if they were fascinated by muggle sports and training, and tried to include some muggle aspects of athleticism when it comes to quidditch. Like maybe training more than just with a broom by doing yoga to practice their breathing, running around the pitch to keep in form, drinking Gatorade during games, etc. I’d love to see someone who’s head is 100% in the game, so much so that they may be unaware of what’s going on around them? That doesn’t have to be the case at all, but I think it could make for a very interesting character! Then again, a character with multiple interests is always fun, so that’s completely up to you! Susan’s not the best quidditch player and not the sport’s biggest fan, but she does like flying, and I feel like she’s always encouraged her kids with their passions, and therefore was probably at all of this character’s Junior Quidditch League game, cheering them on and bringing juice boxes for all the kids (from both teams) after the game.

04. MORE.

A double agent! And whether they’re truly sided with McGonagall’s Army or the Death Eaters is completely up to you, though if they’re sided with the Death Eaters, I feel like it would be because they’re forced to? Maybe being blackmailed into it, or their family being threatened?

A wanderer! Susan used to travel a lot, and I feel like she’d still try to travel with her kids as much as possible, and therefore she might have given that love of traveling and exploring to one or more of her kids? An adventurer, mayhaps? Or just someone who really, really loves to travel.

A class clown! Susan laughs easily, but it’d be cute if one of her kids managed to make her laugh harder than anyone else in the world. Maybe someone who’s always trying to find the light in a situation, and wants everyone to be happy? I don’t know; I think it could be really cute!

#hp rp #oc rp #next gen rp #semi appless rp #harry potter rp #( wanted connections. )

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reformedkingsmanagent · 5 years

Note

Holiday secret Santa with the prompts "You have no idea what you do to me." And "you have to leave"

(I really really really really really really hope this is okay! Feel free to send more holiday suggestions! Think of this as taking place if they just kept the beautiful golden trio as agents and V-Day never happened because let’s be real - they would’ve been able to prevent it all.)

“Did you pick a name yet?” Eggsy asked, bumping shoulders with you. You glanced over at him with a smile, trying to balance the stack of papers in your hands.

“For Secret Santa? No,” you answered, turning towards the archive room. “Why, who’d you get?”

“I’m not telling,” he grinned.

“So I take it it’s not Charlie, then?”

He laughed, holding the door open for you. “Oh, I’d love to have gotten him. A whole box of glitter, with a note not to open it until he was home. I’d pay good money to see the look on his face when he realizes he’ll be coming to work with glitter stuck everywhere for years.”

“Don’t you think that’s a tad bit excessive?”

Eggsy stuck his hands in his pockets as he followed you around between the file cabinets.

“Nah. He’s excessive, I’d say it’s a fair trade for all the shit—”

“You busy for lunch today?”

You looked up at the interruption, recognizing the voice immediately. “Hi, Charlie,” you greeted. He stood half in the doorway and half out, clearly on his way somewhere else. Unlike Eggsy, you didn’t harbor the same level of disdain for his fellow agent. In fact, you’d even say you admired the man. It wasn’t hard to see why, as he cut a fine figure in the Kingsman suit, but today he’d gone without, instead opting for a simple dress shirt with rolled up sleeves to pair with some plain trousers. Maybe he had some work to do with Merlin.

He caught sight of Eggsy standing off to the side in the archive room, almost hiding behind you. “Lunch?” he repeated.

“Uh, sure, yeah, I’ll be done here in a minute,” you finally answered.

He smiled as he looked down at his feet. “Alright, I’ll wait for you out front.”

You offered a small nervous smile back as he turned around to leave.

“Don’t let him fool you, he’s probably after something.” You understood Eggsy didn’t like him, but it made you feel like he thought Charlie couldn’t possibly like you. It had to be something else.

“I think I’ll be alright, Eggsy, thank you.”

***

“So, how’s it been?” Charlie picked up his chopsticks, glancing up at you as he arranged them in his hand.

The restaurant had incredibly dim lighting, and the two of you had taken a booth in the corner, though still in view of the proper sushi bar that seemed a bit more popular with people alone on their breaks.

“It’s been…the same,” you shrugged. “Work is the same, outside of work is the same…”

“What, you don’t go out?”

“Not really, it’s not like I’ve got anyone inviting me unless it’s with a group of you guys.”

He nodded to himself.

“Not that I really want to go anywhere, I’ve got enough to do at home, but…”

“I can take you out, if you wanted,” he shrugged, like it was nothing.

You almost choked. After taking a sip of your tea, you glanced up at him to see he was very much watching your reaction. Fantastic. “O-okay, that could be…fun.”

“So who’d you draw for Secret Santa?”

Why did everyone care so much?

“I don’t know, I haven’t picked yet.”

“Maybe you’ll get me.”

You felt your face heat up a bit as you contemplated your next bite of food. “Maybe. What would you want, if I did?”

He waited a bit before answering. “Just a comfortable night off, really,” he admitted. “Though you’d probably have to work some magic to get that sort of thing out of Merlin.”

“Yeah, somehow I don’t think he’d go for it,” you laughed.

He joined in. “No, he wouldn’t. But I can dream, right?”

“I think we all dream of that.”

Some time passed before he spoke up again.

“And if I drew your name?”

“Why’s everyone so up in arms over this Secret Santa business? It’s all anyone’s talking about lately.”

“Well perhaps it’s because there’s probably quite a few of us who…don’t have anything better to do than to watch for the upcoming mess that will be the Kingsman holiday party. Depending on how this plays out, it’ll be either highly entertaining or entirely tame and predictable.” He shrugged as he ate his last piece of sushi. A sip of water followed before he spoke again. “It’s just something to gossip over, I suppose.”

“Eggsy said he’d gift you a box full of glitter,” you grinned, glancing up at him. “Tame and predictable, or highly entertaining?”

Charlie tried to keep his smile toned down, his lips pressing together firmly.

“And what if I got you and me both a night off, tame or…highly entertaining?”

Before you could attempt to string a sentence together in response, the waiter approached with the check. You were incredibly grateful for his timing. Though you offered to pay, Charlie didn’t hear any of it, just shooting you a smile as he took care of it.

You thought he might not have needed an answer to his question. It was probably written all over your face.

“Should we head back?” he suggested, getting to his feet.

“Before they wonder where we’ve gone, yeah,” you agreed.

“Oh, they always wonder where we’ve gone,” he grinned. He slung his coat over his shoulders before helping you with yours. As the two of you left the table, you didn’t miss his hand at the small of your back as he led you outside and back towards Savile Row.

***

You glanced down at the dish on Merlin’s desk before reaching in, something telling you that as much as you wanted to give Charlie that requested night off, you didn’t think you’d be lucky enough to draw his name.

“Go ahead, it’s nothing major,” Merlin joked, typing away on his computer.

“Who did you pick?”

“Oh, I always pick myself,” he answered, grinning. “No fuss. I know exactly what I like, and I just treat myself to a nice bottle of something and some rest.”

“Smart,” you replied, finally pulling out a small slip of paper.

“Don’t go crazy with it, sometimes you all forget there’s a set budget for this.”

“Right, sure thing, thanks Merlin.” You turned around and headed for the door, still not opening the paper. It shouldn’t matter, why did it matter? You walked down the dark wood paneled walls with it tucked safely in your hand.

Once you turned a corner, you finally let yourself look.

Agent Lancelot

Roxy. You weren’t upset, you got along well enough with Roxy… Oh, who are you fooling, your tentative plans and plots were tossed aside in an instant, you’re allowed to feel disappointed—

“Roxy?”

Your head shot up and you closed your hand.

“Oh, man. Tough, she is.”

You turned around and recognized the figure standing there as Tim, one of Merlin’s other technical staff. You worked in the same office as him, but you never went out of your way to start a conversation with him…and you weren’t too keen on starting one now.

“I was hoping you’d end up picking me—”

“Why would you want me to do that?”

He took a couple of steps closer, his smile turning into something slightly more predatory.

“Come on, you’re the best person to get. You’re so thoughtful…and quite pretty too, though you’ve been wasting it all on that Hesketh—”

“You need to leave. Now,” you warned.

“Just spend some time around a real man for once—”

“What did she say?” You let out a small sigh of relief. “Or do you need her to tell you again?”

Tim looked up, more than a little alarmed. “No harm done, mate, relax, we’re just having a private conversation, not everything requires your presence, man,” he said, waving Charlie off.

Before Tim could return to the much-too close conversation he thought he was having with you, a hand closed around his throat and Charlie forced him back against the wood paneling. There was a decidedly more frightened expression on his face now.

“Just ‘cause I pissed off your girl—” Charlie’s grip tightened.

“You will not make anyone uncomfortable with your slimy presence. Or you’ll answer to me, understand?”

Instead of coming up with another jab, Tim simply nodded. He was roughly dropped back down on his feet and he took a moment to rub at his neck where Charlie had held him. “Next time you need some gadget or another, go to someone else.”

“The contempt is mutual,” Charlie replied, watching him as he turned the corner and headed back toward the offices. Once he was out of sight and earshot, he turned back to you. “Are you alright? He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

“No, he’s just…” you made a face that said it all. Charlie grinned, shoving his hands in his pockets.

“What were you doing on this side of…did you come from Merlin’s?” His eyes lit up as he mentally traced your path. “Who did you get, did you—”

“Not you,” you interrupted, sighing.

He looked you over, taking in your disappointment. “Don’t tell me you got him—”

“No, thank god. I’d have shredded it by now.”

He chuckled as he watched you, his attention 100% focused on you. It was mildly unnerving but you’d be lying if you said you didn’t enjoy it.

“So…?”

“I got Lancelot,” you finally said.

“Roxy?”

You caught him grinning.

“What?” He didn’t answer, though there was a cautious amusement in his eyes like he was waiting to see how you felt about it. “I’m sure she’ll be easy enough,” you added.

“Watch out, she’s like a shark. She’ll sniff out that you’re hunting for gift ideas from a mile away.” Well that wouldn’t help things. “Just get her a giant bag of jellybeans, it’s her only vice.”

“Wait, jellybeans?”

Charlie nodded. “Mmhmm, keeps a handful tucked away while on missions. Says it’s a substitute for gum or something, keeps her focused, but really she just loves the things and can’t reasonably admit it.”

“I’ll definitely keep that in mind,” you grinned. If this was true you knew just where to go.

“I’ve still got some investigating to do myself.”

“Well, you’re really good at that.”

“I suppose. Well, I’ve got to disappear for a bit, let me know how your search for connoisseur jelly beans goes,” he announced, taking a few steps backwards before turning around completely and ducking into Merlin’s office. The door shut not long after.

Why was it that every time you saw him you were left feeling completely disarmed? You pocketed the slip of paper and headed back to your desk, hoping not to encounter Tim along the way.

***

“Um, what do you think?” you glanced up at Charlie to get a read on what he thought of the flavors on offer.

“Champagne is a must, I think. I’d say a little of everything, to be safe. I think it’s the thought that counts with her,” he shrugged. “They’ve got a nice big set over here,” he pointed.

“Yeah, okay, maybe I’ll just do that then—”

“What brings you two here?”

Oh no. Caught.

Roxy stood there, looking perfect as usual in her Kingsman suit, a bag over her arm, and an open cellophane bag of loose jellybeans in her hand, just like Charlie said.

“Hey, Rox. Just finishing up my list, picking out a few sweets for my niece—”

“Nice cover. See you two tomorrow?” After she got no immediate response, she clarified. “At the party?”

You were finally able to speak again. “Oh, yeah, definitely, wouldn’t miss it.”

Roxy smiled at the two of you, glancing between you both. “Are you—”

“Can it, Rox,” Charlie warned. You quickly averted your eyes, hoping your face didn’t betray your thoughts.

“Chill, Hesketh, no need for the hostility,” Roxy teased, a smile spreading across her face. “Enjoy the rest of your…shopping trip.”

Charlie rolled his eyes at Roxy’s extremely amused expression. She turned around and walked out of the store, risking a glance back at you two over her shoulder before she was out of sight.

“She’s so intense,” you finally spoke up, hoping to distract him from whatever he was thinking about as he stared at the display case.

“Intense is one way of putting it.” He seemed a bit dismissive, and you wondered what on earth could’ve bothered him so much in the span of a few seconds. You weren’t about to ask, though.

“So who did you get?”

He shook his head, turning away from the case. “You’ll not get that out of me,” he replied, smiling again.

“You know I’ve got Roxy,” you argued. “Come on, is it me?” He tried to walk past you, but you pressed your hands against his chest. “Tell me,” you pleaded.

He covered your hands with his as if he were intending on removing them, but he didn’t. He kept his eyes on you as the silence between you grew.

“I’ll only tell you if…”

You were suddenly forced into Charlie’s chest as someone backed into you. His arms wrapped around you so you didn’t fall, and as you looked up at him you wondered just how soft his lips were—

“Watch where you’re going,” Charlie sighed.

“I‘m so sorry!”

The person quickly moved away but Charlie was still watching them. You reached up and pulled his face down so he’d look at you instead.

“Charlie, it’s really not a big deal, I swear I won’t tell—”

“You’ve got no idea what you do to me…”

Oh?

“What?”

A small vibration coming from his watch forced him to look away, his hands dropping to investigate whatever message had been sent his way.

“Shit,” he mumbled. He looked up with an apologetic frown. “I’ve got to go. Will you be fine here on your own? Merlin’s calling me in and I’m not sure—”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll be fine.”

He smiled, looking down at you, watch still flashing a faint green tone. “I’ll see you tomorrow, at the party.” He leaned in, pressing a soft kiss to your cheek. At least he couldn’t detect how your pulse skyrocketed.

“Bye!” he called out as he speed-walked towards the exit.

“Bye,” you returned, though you doubted he heard you.

You couldn’t help but imagine just how couple-y that looked from the outside. If only.

You looked down at the bags you were carrying and sighed. You could shop for everyone else on a different day.

***

“Excited for the party?” You moved around the long table off to the side of the cleared-out meeting room, beginning to lay out decorations at Merlin’s request. He seemed content to sit back and focus on preparing debriefs and compiling reports as opposed to setting up for the holiday party.

You glanced over at Emma, another of Merlin’s technical staff. You hadn’t spent much time around her to know what she was like, but like you, she’d been roped into setting things up by Merlin. She was currently handling the logistics of the various snacks and things arriving. You were content with the decorating.

“Yeah, I guess so,” you commented, smoothing out the tablecloth.

“I would’ve thought you’d be more excited, what with two boys fighting over you?”

“Where on earth did you hear that?”

“I didn’t have to hear it, I saw it. It’s why Tim wasn’t in today.”

Your stomach dropped. “What are you talking about?”

Emma settled in, leaning back against the table as you worked, ready to spill a lovely bit of gossip. “Tim went to Merlin after some sort of altercation with Charlie yesterday, and I suppose this morning he made the mistake of making some idiotic comment to Charlie on their way in the shop.” You sighed and rested your hands on the edge of the table. “Something stupid enough to get himself beat up over. Who’s dumb enough to provoke one of the agents?”

“Sounds like him,” you answered, even though you knew the question was rhetorical.

“So, Charlie, eh? He’s got that soft look about him but there’s an edge to him too. I’m sure there’s some aggression waiting under there for just the right moment—”

“Hello, ladies,” Merlin greeted, probably choosing the best possible moment to interrupt the conversation. You shot a look his way that you hoped conveyed just how grateful you were. “Just wanted to remind you two that the party starts promptly at seven as I’ll need everyone out by eleven at the latest. As it stands, I’ll end up letting you go around five to get ready so,” he clapped his hands together, “let’s get a move on, eh?”

The two of you nodded, and you turned and began hanging garland as if your life depended on it.

***

“Need a drink?” You looked up, a smile already on your face after watching Eggsy tell a thrilling story about his latest brush with danger.

“Hi Charlie,” you greeted. He looked good. Really good. You held up your glass, still half-full. “I’m okay for now, thanks.” You tried not to focus on him, but that was next to impossible. You took a large sip of your drink as a temporary distraction. “On second thought…”

He laughed. “Right, how about you finish that off and I’ll exchange it for another of the same?”

You nodded, sipping on it until it was only ice. He reached for it, but you pulled it away. “No, I’ll go with you.”

He paused, but his smile grew. “Alright then, miss. Let’s go.” He took your arm and looped it through his, glancing down at you every so often as the pair of you walked through other gathered Kingsman employees to the bar.

“You did a good job decorating,” he commented.

“How did you know?”

He shrugged. “It just looked like…you.”

“Well that’s great because I haven’t done a single thing at home,” you laughed.

“You can come decorate mine, if you want.”

“Charlie Hesketh, what are you implying?” You poked at his shoulder.

“Not a thing,” he grinned, his cheeks a bit pink, or was it the light?

You let go of his arm as you reached the bar, choosing to lean on it beside him instead. “So I heard about our friend Tim courtesy of my decorating buddy today. What happened?”

“What a waste of space,” he sighed. “He said something, and I just had to…” He trailed off as the drinks arrived. Charlie poked at his before taking a sip. You watched for him to continue, but he didn’t.

“What did he say?”

Charlie just shook his head. That only made you more concerned.

“What is it?”

“It doesn’t merit repeating,” he insisted. He glanced over at you and forced a smile. “He got his just rewards.”

“I never thought you’d punch someone on account of me,” you joked, leaning against his shoulder. “How’s your hand?”

He held it out, flexing it. You grabbed it, realizing (not for the first time) just how large his hands were. There was some slight color around his first and second knuckles but otherwise he was alright.

“It’s fine, but if you want to kiss my knuckles better I won’t stop you.”

“What’s gotten into you?” you asked, still holding his hand.

He shrugged, cheeks definitely flushed. “Not sure.”

“Alright then, for…defending my honor, I can do that.” You pulled his arm up a little and leaned down to gently press your lips to his knuckles. You heard a nervous laugh leave his throat. The idea that you could possibly make him feel anything close to how he made you feel on a regular basis caused you to smile widely as you let go of his hand. He looked almost bashful. You felt that hopeful feeling you kept at the back of your mind grow a little.

“Okay there, Charlie?”

He quickly straightened up as Roxy walked over and squeezed in between the two of you. “Hey Rox. Having a good time?”

“No, this is maddening. I can’t wait to get out of here.”

“Already?” Charlie joked. You smiled at them and looked down at your drink.

“Listen, here’s your thing, I really don’t want to get up and do it in front of everyone and all that, so…here.”

Charlie took the small box and looked up at Roxy with a smile. “Thanks so much, Rox.” He tugged the ribbon loose and pulled off the perfectly folded wrapping paper carefully, setting it on the bar. He opened the leather box and frowned. “Rox, this is…this is way too much, you shouldn’t have—”

“It’s too late, I did. Just…wear it out sometime? And don’t worry, I had Merlin take a look at it before all this, so…it should work just the same.”

“Roxy…thank you.” Charlie pulled Roxy in for a hug, though she was pushing back against him after only a few seconds.

“Alright, that’s enough from me, I’ll leave you to it.” She smiled over at you and narrowed her eyes. “And I’ll take my jellybeans now, but you have to swear not to tell a single soul about this.” You gave her the number you wrote on the label so she could go collect the assortment of flavors from the gift pile under the tree. “Thank you.” She pulled you in for a brief hug. “Make sure he follows up on his end of the bargain,” she whispered before leaving you and Charlie at the bar.

You turned back to Charlie and watched him pull out the very expensive watch, swapping it with the one he already had on. “It’s nice,” you commented, still a bit puzzled about what Roxy meant.

“It’s…stunning, I really wasn’t expecting that.”

“It looks nice on you.”

He looked down at you, his smile fading a little. “Want to go hunt down your gift?”

You glanced back down at your drink. “I don’t know. I’m kind of okay right here.”

“You sure?” He handed over a slip of paper, though it was quite worn at this point. You opened it up to see your name.

“Charlie, what—?”

He pulled a long, thin box out of his pocket and set it on the bar, his smile growing as he watched your reaction.

“Charlie, there was a limit,” you frowned, knowing at a glance what the box likely contained. Why he got something like that for you, you had no idea. Well, you had an inkling of a suspicion, but you couldn’t exactly verify it.

“Yes, because I’m such a stickler for the rules.” He sent a sly smile your way as he took a sip of his drink, waiting expectantly for you to open the gift.

“I was starting to wonder who would pick me,” you confessed. “Kind of glad it was you, if I’m being honest.”

“Well, it wasn’t, not at first. I did a little digging to find out who got your name, granted a few favors for a trade…”

“Why would you do all that?”

“Don’t be naive.”

You looked up at him in surprise.

“You have to have noticed by now that I don’t take everyone out, for lunch or…whatever.”

“Yeah, but how do I know that it’s not just you being friendly?”

“Have you ever seen me being ‘friendly’? I’m deadly serious. About everything.” He didn’t even crack a smile to put you more at ease. You glanced down at the slender box in your hands, feeling a lot of things falling into place. What Roxy said to you started to make a bit more sense.

“Charlie, I’m not sure what—”

“Open it.”

You looked down again at the box in your hands, hoping to hide your nervous shaking by tightening your grip. “You really shouldn’t have,” you mumbled as you pushed up the lid.

It was a necklace, one he’d caught you staring at in the window yesterday. You fought to keep your thoughts reined in, but it was incredibly difficult not to consider what all this meant.

“Charlie…”

“You’ve got no idea how long I’ve waited for you to make that first move. I always expected I’d scare you away—and I didn’t want to. But you had no idea, or perhaps…” His hands found yours and he took the box from you, setting it down on the bar. “…you didn’t want to let yourself consider it. So I’m just trying to tell you that I’m tired of waiting.”

“It’s against the rules—”

“Fuck the rules. Who cares about some archaic rule drafted by someone who didn’t understand a single thing about love, how it defies all of these things—”

“Hesketh, can I speak with you?” You felt a pit form in your stomach as Charlie turned around to reveal Merlin standing there.

You were left holding the gift as Charlie stormed off after Merlin.

You finished your drink and collected your gift, picking up Charlie’s box while you were at it so it didn’t get left behind as you abandoned the holiday party. Surely you’d just gotten him in a load of trouble. All your fault.

What did he mean? There wasn’t any hiding things from Merlin. He would’ve found out anyway. But you couldn’t wipe the grim smile off your face as you went through a whole mixture of emotions, standing outside in the cold.

About ten minutes passed as you wondered where you should go before the door opened behind you. “Leaving me?”

You didn’t turn to look, you knew who it was.

“No.”

He stopped beside you in the cold wind. “I’m sorry if I went too far there, I just had to say something…”

“You didn’t, but it got you in trouble. Maybe it’s best if we…don’t.”

“You really feel that way?”

As you stood there, coat pulled tightly around yourself, you knew exactly what you wanted…but you also knew you wouldn’t get to have it.

“If we can’t, what’s the point in torturing ourselves, Charlie?” You turned and looked up at him. “I mean, if this rule is actually enforced, you know Merlin knows already, I’m sure he told you to drop it, or something, it won’t be long before transfers me—”

“He won’t, we’ve discussed it.”

“But back there, when he pulled you away, I thought…”

“It was for something else,” he clarified. “Though he definitely didn’t appreciate my language—”

“You mean you let me worry for nothing? Charlie—”

Before you could continue to argue your point, you were pulled in close, his hands holding your face up towards him as he leaned down and finally kissed you properly. Your eyes fell closed as your hands pulled at his coat. His mouth, his breath, was so warm in comparison to everything else. You needed it everywhere, all at once—

“You couldn’t wait until you were home?”

You jumped away from Charlie at the sound of Eggsy’s voice. “Could you go be a pest somewhere else?” Charlie asked, his hands still on your face.

“Do I need to remind you it’s thanks to me you were able to get all this sorted—”

“No,” Charlie interrupted, his frown growing by the second.

“I’ll expect my coffee hot for the next month, and it better be made correctly—”

Charlie moved to charge towards Eggsy but he darted back inside the tailor shop. You reached up to pull at Charlie’s coat.

“You’re serious? Merlin…knows?”

“What, you think he doesn’t have anyone?” Charlie took the long box from your pocket and opened it, pulling the chain free. “We’ve all got to keep sane somehow.”

You stayed still as he circled behind you, looping the chain around your neck and fastening it. You turned around to face him, pulling at the pendant to straighten it out.

“What do you think?”

Instead of providing his opinion, he reached for your face again, walking you back until you were up against the stone surrounding the door to the dimly lit shop. “Charlie—!”

He silenced you with another kiss, only this time he wasn’t interrupted.

#charlie hesketh #charlie hesketh x reader #writing #kingsman #HOLIDAY PROMPT/SUGGESTION #secret santa #with Kingsman #featuring #merlin #eggsy #and roxy

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shitfics · 6 years

Note

"My date stood me up, can you come pick me up?" Jinkibum;; i'm glad you're back! 💚 And i hope you're better rn. I'm another one that have the notifs on because I really like your fics/prompts. Thank you for sharing what you write again ;;;;

Thank you so much bb!! That really warms my heart. ;-; And sorry this one is coming a bit late, it ended up longer than I thought it would and I’ve been real unfocused lately. Things are definitely better than they were, but they’re still a bit rougher than I realized. ^^;

I hope you enjoy this!! (If you can’t tell, this is 100% inspired by the incredibles because I saw it the other weekend.)

-------

It takes a few dozen rings to get through.

“This is Kibum speaking.”

“My date stood me up. Can you come pick me up?”

The other end of the line crackles. “...Jinki? Is that you?”

“Yeah.” Jinki runs a looped finger around the ribbed wire of the payphone. “I’m at that breakfast dinner near the highway.”

“The one with the shitty coffee?”

He laughs. “That’s the one.”

“I’ll be there in a bit.”

The line goes dead with a click. Jinki sets the phone back on the receiver and sighs. He knows Kibum will come for him, but he wishes hadn’t gotten into this situation. He should have given up on his date and taken the last bus.

But the stupid part of him -- the desperate part of him, if he’s honest with himself -- had to hope that maybe the other man was just late. So he’d stayed. And now he’s stuck on the opposite end of the city from his apartment.

He takes a seat against the side of the now-closed diner and lights a cigarette to pass the time.

The researchers that’d run tests on him back when heroes were above-ground had never told him if his freakish strength and sturdiness came with an immunity to the shit in them, but it’s not like he would’ve quit anyway. The habit is one of the few things about himself he can consider normal, and it’s hard not to be attached to that. Especially in recent years.

When he sees the dual headlights of Kibum’s bright blue car pulling into the parking, he stomps out the light and tosses the butt in a nearby trash can.

“Thanks for coming to get me. I know it’s late.”

“Don’t worry about it -- anything for an old friend.” Kibum smiles at him widely. When Jinki settles into his seat, he can see that Kibum isn’t clothed in his daring fashion -- instead of a tight-fitting dress-shirt, he’s clothed in a plain pink house robe, over a set of loose cotton pajama pants.

He feels a pang of guilt. “I didn’t wake you up, did I?”

“Of course not. You know I always draw at night.”

Jinki laughs. “Yeah.”

Kibum rolls out onto the street and enters the highway for the direction of Jinki’s apartment, already knowing where to go. The engine revs sharply as they gain speed -- Kibum’s flashy sports car really was something else -- but quickly settles into a steady rumble. It’s then that Kibum decides to speak again.

“Do you know why they stood you up?”

“I have a guess, since we met through a friend of a friend. He probably heard along the grapevine that I had powers.” Jinki sighs. “I swear, everyone gay in this city already knows...”

“It’s a small community. Things travel like that.”

“You’d still think at least one person wouldn’t care. It’s not like we’d have to worry about having children.”

Kibum snorts. “Don’t worry about it so much. You’re young and handsome; you’ll find someone.”

He turns to look at Kibum, expecting a follow-up joke. The lights over the highway give him only an intermittent and dim view of Kibum’s face, but Jinki can see his words were genuine.

He smiles slowly. “You think I’m handsome?”

“I’m just stating facts,” he says, hand tightening on the wheel. He glances at Jinki sidelong, then looks away quickly, back at the road. “...But I do, yeah.”

Jinki shifts in his seat, suddenly unsure what to say. He’d known Kibum liked men from the moment they met, and at first he’d been interested -- but he pushed that down when Kibum treated him with nothing more than professional distance.

Things had changed, though. Kibum knew his alterego -- had to, since it was the only legal identity he had anymore -- and they’d become friends. Why couldn’t that change again into something else?

The old warmth in his chest that would bloom when Kibum’s hands traveled over him to take measurements feels just in reach. He wants more of it again, and not just for nostalgia.

“Would you want to come up for a drink, once we’re back at my place? I splurged on some good whiskey recently.”

“I’m not stupid, Jinki. I know what you’re really asking.”

“I’m not good at being subtle, I know,” he says. “...But what do you say?”

Kibum finger taps rapidly against the leather cover of the wheel for a moment before he answers. “Look, if you’re just lonely--”

“I’m not,” Jinki says. “I was interested in you before.”

“You never seemed like it.”

“We met through a government program. You think I was going to make a move on you when there were agents there every time I tried on a new supersuit you made?”

“You have a point,” Kibum admits, lips pursed.

He brings his car to a stop in the lot of Jinki’s dingy apartment complex, and after shifting into park, stares at Jinki appraisingly. The light of a passing van travels over his face, and again, Jinki gets a brief insight into Kibum’s feelings -- there’s hope and want in his eyes, but his jaw is set with tension.

“If we do this, and it doesn’t work, I’m not sure how easy it’ll be for me to go back to being friends.” He licks his lips, clearly nervous. “I want to make sure you’re aware of that.”

“I’m willing to take that risk, if you are.”

Kibum’s mouth quirks, a bit of vulnerability falling away to be replaced with his usual confidence. “I drove across the city at two in the morning to just give you a ride home. How much more obvious can I make it that I’m willing to do stupid things for you?”

Jinki grins. He reaches a hand across the car and places it on Kibum’s thigh. “I can think of a few ways, maybe.”

Kibum peels it away, brow raised in amusement. He leans in towards Jinki, who closes his eyes, heart fluttering in anticipation for their first kiss -- only to feel breath against his lips as Kibum does nothing more than speak.

“You owe me that drink first.”

#onkey #prompt #drabble #yes key is basically edna and jinki basically has the super strength like mr incredible #i just think super strength works well for him considering him like...punching holes in boxes with his fingers and stuff #u kno?#majingki-boy

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valkyrie-echo · 6 years

Text

Project Echo, Part 1: Chapter 1 (Seven Years Later)

Part 1 Summary: A long-buried Hydra disaster, a monster in the shadows, a missing child. Eight months after the events of “The Winter Soldier”, Bucky turns himself in to the Avengers on one condition: They must help him find a girl snatched off the streets by Hydra seven years ago. In their quest, the Avengers accidentally unleash a horrifying creature of darkness and shadow, intent on making their quarry its prey.

**This story only draws on “Avengers” movie canon through “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”.

[Edited 11/10/18]

Chapter 1: Seven Years Later

Gastineau Channel, Juneau, Alaska

It was a clear night- very rare for the normally rain-drenched Alaskan rainforest.

The stars above twinkled in between ribbons of red auroras that snaked from horizon to horizon and cast an eerie glow over the world. To the left the small city of Juneau lay nestled between the ocean and mountains. On the right was Douglas Island, a space almost as large as Juneau and covered in enough trees to hide most signs of life.

Standing on the bridge, looking out over the sleepy bay with the Northern Lights bright above them, Steve Rogers and his friend Sam Wilson took in the sight without anything resembling an appreciative eye.

The channel’s beauty was making their job infinitely harder.

"We can't go in by air, not with these lights. I'll be spotted before you're in range,” Sam said. His wings weren’t designed for swimming- not that he wanted to take on those frigid Alaska waters or the currents that raged beneath the surface. “We should wait and intercept the barge at another stop. Wait the solar activity will die down or the weather to turn and we'll have better cover. We don't have to rush it and do the job tonight." Thanks to the mountains rain was more common than clear skies.

"We've been through this already," Steve snapped. He immediately held up a hand and rubbed his eyes, "I'm sorry." They'd been running on minimum sleep and hard travels for months; fights were becoming all too common. He took a deep breath and tried again, "Just fly low and dump me near the ship, the lower you fly the more the ocean will camouflage you. I'll subdue the base and you come back when the screaming stops.”

They needed the new moon in six days for their next stop, and Steve wasn’t willing to wait another month if they missed it. He and Sam had to travel under the radar, meaning it would take every minute of those six days to get to San Francisco and the old Hydra base beneath Alcatraz.

In the channel, ready and waiting for them, was an old barge that ran wares to the coastal cities. According to the KGB file Natasha gave them on the Winter Soldier, ten of the containers on the barge formed a top-secret emergency medical facility that boasted a skeleton crew of three- four maximum.

The facility was small, little more than a waystation, but Steve thought the chances were good they’d have a more up-to-date file than Natasha’s (which only covered Bucky’s movements up through the 1990s). Most of the locations in the KGB file were shut down when the USSR collapsed.

If they still had Bucky’s file, it could very well help end the eight-month search.

Sam sighed and double-checked the straps on his wing unit, "You really think he went back to Hydra?"

Steve wasn't sure 'thought' was the driving force. More like 'hope'.

Eight months they’d been chasing that ghost story. They followed every lead to every base, safe house, and bank vault Bucky was in between 1964 and 1990, but it was only half the story. The KGB handled the science side of things while Hydra controlled the missions, so without a Hydra file there was no way to know where Bucky spent spent those months between checkups.

With the Avengers help- even just a Quin-jet- they could have covered twice as much land in half the time. But the Avengers might be as big of a threat to Bucky as Hydra.

Steve was hoping once he found a lead, scrap of paper, whisper, anything- it would be possible to convince the rest of the Avengers to help in his search. Bucky killed Howard and Maria Stark- before he risked calling the Avengers for help, he needed to know how Hydra kept him in line. How they controlled his mind and erased the man Steve had known.

Until then, Tony had to be kept at arm’s length. Steve didn’t think he knew about Howard and Maria, but if he found out things would get ugly fast. All it would take was a letter- perhaps one dropped off by a Hydra agent trying to sow chaos among the Avengers themselves- and Tony would be on the warpath.

"He had kill orders on me, I was dead to rights. He saved my life in the Potomac, I think he was starting to break whatever hold they had. Maybe he doesn't remember who he was, maybe he does. Either way he'll go back to places that are familiar. Even the bad ones." Steve had said as much to Sam dozens of times- but really he was the one who needed to hear it.

"‘Reprogramming Facility Alpha’ doesn't sound like a place anyone would want to remember."

"Yeah, well, that's why we didn't come here sooner."

Steve rubbed a spot on his jaw just beneath his ear. It was three months since Tony embedded the new comm unit there, but he swore he still felt it itching. The other Avengers couldn’t be trusted in this mission, but he had faith in JARVIS at least.

Steve tapped at the comms impatiently, "It's gotta be time to go, is this thing even working?"

A soft click sounded in his ear, "Tech Support. What the fuck can I help you with at SIX THIRTY IN THE FUCKING MORNING?!" Tony shouted through the comms.

"I was just trying to see if the alarm was working. Sorry."

"Rogers, I've told you a hundred times, IT WORKS! Now STOP FUCKING WITH IT!" There was another click indicating the line was closed.

Tony's new comms were supposed to be an improvement on the old earpiece unit. Tap one of a dozen sequences over the injection scar for the device and be instantly connected with one of the Avengers or JARVIS. Steve was the only one who’d discovered the Tap-Spastically-For-Tony option.

"Wake Stark up again?" Sam refrained from using more than JARVIS' code and just let him operate the comm.

"Yeah, and I'm not even sorry. Six thirty his time, that means two thirty for us."

Sam sat down on the sidewalk of the bridge and leaned against the guard rail. He tapped his own comm just once, "JARVIS, wake me in 25, please."

Three AM. The intel they'd been able to gather over the last two weeks suggested a shift change took place then, if Hydra followed the same schedule noted in the KGB’s file.

At three in the morning the new shift would start and the barge would break port for the next city in the chain. Anyone hiding in the containers wouldn’t be able to hear Sam and Steve walking around- not over the din of the engines. It would be easy to subdue the doctors in the shipping containers without alerting whoever operated the vessel- Hydra goons more likely than not.

A soft chime came through the comms precisely at 2:55. Sam groaned and got up off the hard ground. Steve was still watching the ship, studying every last shadow.

"Figure out where our target is yet?" Sam said.

"Not yet."

They knew the base was on the ship, just not where.

"Anything new?"

Steve shrugged, "Not really. Someone went into the bridge, but no one’s come out yet. We're good to get going, once the engines kick on."

Both men were ready to launch their attack- even though their intel was incomplete. The Hydra pit-stop was kept mobile, even on the barge itself. Containers were shuffled every other time it docked, so even if he managed to catch sight of it at one port it was somewhere else entirely at the next. His entire plan hinged on the crates of the base either having visible ventilation or an open door.

"It's been five minutes… right?" Sam tapped on the small scar by his ear that marked the comm, "JARVIS, what time you got?" He waited for an answer and frowned, "Three o'four.”

"Maybe the guy from before is distraction the captain, we'll wait 10 more-" a scream, faint and distant, shattered the calm of the evening. Two quick pops followed it- gunfire.

"GO!" Steve jumped over the guardrail into a freefall. Sam launched into the air and spiraled down after the Captain. He caught him just above the chilly ocean water and angled towards the barge. As discussed, the dark waters would be their camouflage.

The barge was roughly 100 yards off when Steve let go of Sam's arm and dropped into the water. He breathed deeply before hitting and once he was submerged it was willpower that forced his muscles to move against the sudden chill of the ocean. Momentum carried him under the barge and placed him next to the rear anchor when he surfaced.

He listened carefully before climbing up to the ship- the barge was unnaturally silent.

Once Steve was on deck he began to run through the maze of corridors, looking for any clues as to the source of the scream and weapons fire. Did someone beat them here? The man on the bridge? Natasha found evidence Hydra partnered with powerful crime lords, would one dare an attack?

Far to his right there was another horrific scream. Steve slowed and crept towards the source as quietly as his boots would allow. He jumped as something crashed into the container on his right from the inside.

He found the base, but he wasn’t the first one there.

Steve ran around the crate as quickly as possible. He saw the long side of two containers pressed together, then a thin alley at the far end- he’d come around the back of the base. He gave up any pretense of quiet as he hurried to the next corner and rounded on the entrance.

A streak of motion to the right caused him to switch focus before he could make out more than the open hatch and a soft glow.

There was a man running towards the edge of the barge.

"Freeze!" Steve knew the shout wouldn't stop him, but he was hoping at least for a glance back. He pulled his shield off and threw it, aiming the impact for the middle of the man’s back.

The intruder half-turned and knocked the shield aside in a spray of sparks- a move he’d only seen once before.

"BUCKY!"

Bucky dove from the edge of the ship into the icy waters and vanished. Steve didn’t break stride. Abandoning his shield, he dove right into the water after him.

Sam swooped low to the surface and activated the life signs detector on his goggles. It was useless on a boat of large metal boxes, but at least here he could get readings.

Steve surfaced and began to swim as hard as he could in the direction he'd last seen Bucky going, "Sam, do a scan!"

"I'm trying," out on the ocean he could certainly see more, but there was a massive amount of information to sift through.

Steve was still swimming towards the shore he thought Bucky was aiming for, "Any day now!"

"You've got whales, seals, and a zillion fish around you, it takes a bit to find a single human signal in all that noise."

"FIND A WAY!"

"I'm trying but it's like dumping a mountain of nickles in front of me and giving me three seconds to find the damn dime!” Sam snarled. Each time he thought he saw the outline of a human beneath the water it shifted and merged with other shapes only to break up again. If one of those spots of light was Bucky, he was familiar with dodging life-signs readers.

"Run a metal scan! Fish aren't metal!" Steve was panting as he tried both to keep up his speed in the icy water and argue with Sam.

"Do I seriously have to remind you that Vibranium doesn't show up on a basic metal scan?!" Sam said. "I'll do passes up and down the shore on both sides-"

"It’ll take ten minutes to complete a pass that way! He could get out and take a shower and you wouldn't catch him!"

"What do you want me to do then?!" Steve was nearing the shore and Sam was at the limits of his patience. He scanned the area around them- nothing he could confidently identify as human in any direction.

"Just go back and search the fucking base," Steve snapped, "I'll head him off at the ferry."

Sam didn't confirm the order. He didn’t even want to see Steve for at least an hour, let alone speak to him.

Eight months.

With the exception of two quick forays into Avengers Tower- once to repair his wings and again for the new comm unit- this was what their lives had been like. Tense incursions, failure, bad tempers, and then off to the next place on the list. Sam couldn’t help but think this time things would be worse- since Steve caught sight of his quarry.

Maybe we’ll get lucky, Sam thought. There were only two ways out of Juneau- by ferry or plane, and Bucky wasn’t stupid enough to fly.

Sam landed first at the bridge of the ship, where Steve saw his mystery man wandering around- most likely Bucky. The door was still open and so he entered with his weapon drawn.

At the banks of computers and controls were three men- all dead. One had a broken neck and the other two had been stabbed in the side of the head.Knowing the Winter Soldier's style they were probably all dead before anyone knew what was going on.

Sam lowered his guard as he left the bridge for the Hydra base below. By the time Steve was on board everything was quieting down- Sam doubted Bucky left anyone alive. Still, his first step was to retrieve Steve's shield.

Just in case.

Before they set out on their quest, Fury had given Steve and Sam a bag of transmitters to call on what was left of SHIELD. Up to now they’d activated one only as they left a facility so that Fury’s people could clean out whatever was left behind. Even an unused base or safehouse tended to hold a few filing cabinets.

Steve wanted nothing to do with this new SHIELD, or whoever they called Director now that Fury appeared to be retired. All they would bring the Avengers was more secrets and more lies.

Steve and Sam always left long before the jet arrived.

Out of spite, Sam pulled a beacon from the pocket of his tactical vest and activated it. Steve would insist on a full search, so the meeting between him and the new SHIELD was now inevitable.

Serves him right for being a dick.

Passive-aggressive as his decision was, the second Sam was in sight of the Hydra containers he was glad for the beacon.

A guard hung half out of the open container door missing most of the front of his skull. Sam worked special ops, he'd seen a few gruesome sights, but the guard turned even his stomach. Judging by the wad of flesh and bone next to the person's face, Bucky had grabbed the front of the guard's head and squeezed until he'd torn away the forehead, eyes, nose, and upper cheeks of his victim.

Sam shuddered as he passed the body. The second guard was just inside the door with a knife sticking out of his throat. Much easier to stomach.

The Hydra base was made to be shuffled around so that no one would be too familiar with the ten crates that never left the ship (if anyone cared enough to look). Each container had a purpose, and that purpose was instantly clear to Sam as he stared across the narrow rooms.

The separate pods were automatically sealed off and separated during the shuffle, but when they were connected- as they were now- the metal walls along the sides retracted, exposing the entire lower level. Only crates marked "Operating Room" and "Mechanics" were closed off from the spread of examination tables, computers, and an entire wall of neatly labeled drawers of supplies ranging from “Antiseptic Wipes” to “Zip-ties”.

Sam found one of the doctors in an equipment storage area with a broken neck. The man's tears were still visible on his cheeks, like he’d sobbed as death came for him.

He almost felt bad for the guy, until he reminded himself the man was Hydra. What evils had this doctor facilitated? How many Hydra operatives did he patch up so they could go on killing innocents?

Every computer screen Sam could see was shattered, even the spare ones in storage. Bucky unleashed hell on this place, and it almost made Sam hope that Steve didn't catch him. There was a lot of rage in the destruction of the base and its inhabitants, maybe more than Cap could handle on his own.

An electric hum was coming from the closed off container marked "Mechanics" as Sam slowly advanced into the base. He could smell the rancid stench of human flesh burning- a cross between burned pork and chicken that made his stomach twist. He covered his mouth and nose as he approached the cracked door. The hatch was open slightly, and Sam pulled the container open.

In the corner of the small room was a chair.

At first glance it wasn’t much different than what you’d find in a dentist’s office- it reclined slightly, had foot, arm, and head rests- but no dentist he’d been to used metal restraints to subdue their patients.

A woman's body was strewn across the chair, as if she'd been fighting when the restraints closed. One hand was locked in normally, but the metal cuff went through the palm of the other hand in an explosion of bone and tissue. Her left leg was broken- it had been forced into the ankle cuff on the right side of the chair. Behind her left shoulder was a metal plate, and judging by the pen clinging to it the panel was magnetic. A good way to trap a man with a metal arm.

Two black panels covered the doctor's face with a one-inch seam between them. An electric hum and thin wisps of smoke curled from within.

Sam looked for a power source to the chair and, once he identified it, severed the cable with the edge of Cap's shield. The pen fell and the panels quieted, but Sam suppressed the urge to pull them back. He only glanced at the charred, black face visible through the seam and shivered- translucent goo was dripping down towards the victim’s neck. Sam had only seen it on late-night crime dramas- her eyes had burst under the assault of electricity.

There was a tag on the side of the machine. Sam skimmed it, but he’d figured out already why Bucky killed the doctor with such savagery, "PROJECT: WINTER SOLDIER".

Steve’s riddle was solved. He’d been wondering what kept Bucky loyal to Hydra- apparently the answer to that question was electroshock.

Painful, brutal, and effective.

"Cap?" Sam activated his comms, "You there?" all animosity was gone from his voice.

"Yeah, what's wrong? I'm trying to hot-wire a car, I need to concentrate."

"I know how they reprogrammed him. There's an electroshock machine here, a big one. They've been zapping him god knows how long. That kind of damage is significant, and permanent."

"He recognized me on the carrier-"

"He probably didn't. He might have just known something wasn't right. There's got to be a dozen points of failure when you try to make a guy into a weapon, but memory isn't something he'd be able to recover after they used this thing. If you get in his way again just knock him out and we'll figure out what to do from there."

"Fine. Thanks." Steve snapped. He'd been banking (more than he realized) on a the hope that, given time, they could heal Bucky’s mind and bring back the man Steve knew.

Sam waited for more of a reply, but he didn't push it. There was no computer, no dial to set the power on the machine- suggesting face-frying was standard. At that voltage there was no question- Bucky Barnes was long dead. All that could be left now was a cold, empty shell filled with Hydra’s poison and hatred.

So that machine was what created the Winter Soldier. No wonder he's ripping faces off.

But as it turned out, Bucky didn't just come back to the base for revenge.

When Sam finally left the container he caught sight of a ladder in the far corner- every rung on the left hand side was crushed. Nothing in their intel suggested a staff of more than four people, so what drew him upstairs?

Sam hurried up the ladder, wary of the damage Bucky had done to it. The second floor held three shipping containers marked “Living Quarters”. The two crates directly over the "Mechanics" and "Operating Room" facilities had plaques declaring them "Labs” and "Water Treatment".

What drew him from the ladder- what brought Bucky to Alaska in the first place- was a section densely filled with filing cabinets. Sam walked along the borders of the shipping container, stopping only at a drawer with a knife sticking out of the lock and a bloody, crushed handle.

That seems like a good place to start.

Every file hung neatly in its own little folder, no matter how thin. Sam combed through them all. If Bucky took something then it was thin- there was hardly enough space to open the folders. He flicked through them impatiently and stopped only when he found an empty one near the back.

"PROJECT ECHO 2008-2010".

Sam pulled out the empty folder and set it aside, then continued through the cabinet- there was nothing else missing that he could see. He frowned and picked up the hanging folder again.

Bucky attacked a Hydra base- and killed seven people- for a 5 year old Hydra project folder? Sam thought of the scene downstairs- every computer screen smashed. He thought it was rage, but Bucky had made a point of going after every screen, not just the ones in his path.

Was he trying to make sure no one could access the digital records?

I must have missed something, Sam looked through every file carefully this time and found just as much nothing. It didn't add up- why that folder? What was so special about it?

More importantly- the folder left behind was labeled ‘Echo’ with no sign of ‘Alpha’, ‘Beta’, ‘Charlie’, or ‘Delta’? Was Echo part of Bucky's programming process? Was that why he went after the file?

Sam clicked on his comms, "Steve, do you need any help casing the ferry?"

"No, I've got it covered. This area's too heavily wooded. Your wings are useless."

"Good," Sam only called to make sure that was the case, "Bucky came here for a reason. He took an old project file. I'm going to try and figure out why."

"You should signal the SHIELD teams," Steve heaved a sigh of defeat, "as soon as someone notices that barge isn't moving they'll send someone out to check on the crew. SHIELD should be here to secure the scene."

"Way ahead of you. We're going to miss our window in San Francisco, aren't we?"

"Probably… But that might not be such a bad thing. If you can figure out what file he took then maybe we'll know where to look next."

"Sounds like a plan," Sam eyeballed the cabinets all around him- there were probably thousands of files to search. "This is going to take a while…"

Chapter 2: SHIELD

#my writing #marvel #avengers

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donaldresslerfanfic · 7 years

Text

Down.

Rating: M

Warnings: Strong Language, Sexual Content.

Word Count: 2142

Donald Ressler X OC Maggie Waters.

Chapter: Thirty

Chapter Index

Story on Wattpad

Ressler.

A month, a crazy scientist and a con artist later, we were still okay. Maggie and I, the task force and Reddington. Liz and Reddington not so much.

They had been quiet after Vanessa Cruz, they hadn't contacted me to go to the Post Office to take another case, and if they did, I had plans on my own.

I wanted to get out of the city for a while, just Mags and I, the car, the road, go anywhere.

I was about to present this plan to her over an early breakfast when her phone rang.

She looked at it with a frown and answered.

"Kate" she said shortly. The other person began talking on the other line, and I turned the TV down.

Maggie cursed under her breath and stood up.

I heard her say something else on the phone. I really didn't wanted to get into her business, I knew I wasn't going to like whatever she was doing, because I knew it was related to him.

Still, I stood up and jogged upstairs, she was kneeling down next to a box and shuffling through some files.

"Okay I got one. Mass Avenue 5312."

She listened attentively, then hung up

"What's wrong?"

She took one file and stood up to me.

"Donnie listen" she placed her hands on my chest and up to my shoulders. "Raymond is down" I frowned, leading my hand to my pocket to pick my phone

"Where is he?"

"Everything" she said stopping me from taking my phone up to my ear "is being handled, and I'm unfortunately part of this so... You have to let me go my way and you do you"

"Part of this how?" She glanced quickly at her watch and fidgeted in her spot.

"We don't have time for this Donald I have to leave, ok? And after this I promise to not give you much slack about the force and you and Raymond got it? But I have to leave"

She gave me one quick kiss, then jogged downstairs.

"I'm coming with you" I said, jogging behind her, she looked back at me from over her shoulder as she kept walking.

"No you're not actually. Can't have the feds anywhere near the places I'm going"

She was about to open the front door, but I placed my hand over it to stop her.

"Donald please" she complained.

"The 'fed' it's also a person who cares about your well being" I stressed the word 'fed'. I never liked it when people said it despectively, and specially if one of those people was my own girlfriend.

"If you care then it's better I go alone, you're FBI, you think people don't know you?"

My phone rang, I quickly fished it, still holding the door to keep Maggie in

"Ressler" I answered. I was told to head to the Post office, and was briefed on what I already knew, there was an assasination attempt on Reddington's life and he was injured. I said I was on my way and hung up.

I walked a short step to Maggie and placed my other hand on her neck.

"Maggie if you get spotted with Reddington, you are instantly placed and every kind of list there is. Do what you have to and stay as far away as you can. Someone tried to kill him, and I don't want anything to happen to you"

She looked at me and nodded, I pulled her to me and gave her one more kiss before we both got into out cars and drove away.

I would've given anything to go with Maggie and see what she did, how she worked behind the scenes, the secrets Reddington has.

I also would've killed for Maggie and I to be on our way to a little escaped away from everything. Another day.

Maggie.

I pulled in front of house, turning the engine off and getting out of the car.

I had a bag with files and other items I knew I would need.

In cases like these Raymond insisted to have money on standby, just in case. The money was held in different decrepit houses like the one I was in right now. He bought them cheap and installed money safes, sometimes he used them to another deals I couldn't care less.

I walked in and quickly located the vault, hidden behind a fake panel in one of the rooms. I opened it and quickly began to draw the money and put it into the silver case I had brought.

Another thing that usually happens in cases like this is that the other houses with the vaults have to be checked, and the combinations of the locks changed. I was meant to take care of that.

I finished with the money and closed the vault.

I got out of the house and sat in my car, I had several burner phones to use to deal with Raymond's business. I took one out of the box and left the file in the passenger seat.

I dialed a number and turned on the engine. While heading to Kate the adress I had given Kate I called Susan. She helped me with getting the houses and the usual paperwork for construction and such.

"Susan this is Maggie" I said, turning the corner "listen, I'm sorry I'm calling on such short notice, but the house in Georgetown? I'm finally approved to start building in it, how fast can you get me the demolition team?"

"For you Mags, tomorrow they can be there"

"Thank you so much Su" I said relieved. Raymond was going to be pleased with the house gone quickly.

I said my goodbyes and hung up. I called one of Raymond's contacts to get the vault out of the house before tomorrow. The vault was to be shredded to make sure it was untraceable.

And just like that, I had a file to burn as soon as I could.

I parked in the warehouse and walked inside, holding the case. I found Kate waiting for me at the first entrance. I handed the case to her and looked inside.

The paramedic tent was up, and I could see the shadows of people inside it. I saw Liz on the other side, also looking in.

"How is he?" I asked.

"Too soon to tell, they're working on stabilizing him"

I nodded, still worried.

"I'll handle what I have to. Please keep me informed" I asked Kate. She gave me a little nod and turned back into the warehouse.

I got into the car again and started it. Then began my trip to all the properties in DC, changing locks and safe numbers.

By the time I got home it was past 4 in the afternoon, and I hadn't eaten anything. I headed to my studio and grabbed the box with files I had let out in the open.

I secured it and headed down with the house I had to demolish to burn the file I had, making sure no one could link me to the house, and the house couldn't be linked to Raymond.

I placed the file in the barbecue rack and set it on fire, thinking hard if I was missing something or letting out any lose ends. Hopefully I didn't.

Ressler

I was getting ready to head out, staying in the Post office waiting for news about Reddington instead of being out of the city was really getting to me. The more I though that I could be doing something else besides being in my tiptoes for his every move, the more I wished to be done with this deal and have him behind bars.

Maybe I was starting to change, maybe this cat and mousse thing with Reddington can die down and I can be free.

While I was in the office, I made reservations in a little cabin outside the city. My plan was take Maggie out there and spend a few days out of reach from anyone.

Just us, a cabin, a creek to fish in, a fire. Just Mags and I.

Before leaving I was informed Reddington was admitted and had a 4 day post surgery recovery, and in that moment I contacted Cooper to let him know I was going to take those 4 days away.

He was happy for me, happy to know I had some other things to do, and so was I.

I drove to Mags' place, parked my car in her garage and before I could undo my tie and walk across the living room, she walked quickly to me from the kitchen.

"Hey" she saluted, I gave her a little smile and finished with the tie.

"Hey, how was your day?" I said, she looked up at me worried

"Do you know anything about Raymond? Is he ok?"

"Yeah, he's in post op"

She sighed and her shoulders untensed.

"I know that you couldn't care less or have any kind of sympathy for Raymond but he's actually worthy of my concern"

I nodded, knowing well that he hadn't done anything to Mags to make her hate him or dislike him. He took care of her as much as he took care of all the people that worked for him.

My hand took my phone and after I few taps I positioned the screen to her, showing her the picture of the cabin, surrounded by trees, and camp fire, a wooden area.

She looked at it with a frown and then looked back at me.

"What's that?"

"That is where we're going tomorrow" she frowned and looked at me with a little smirk.

"What? You are taking a vacation?"

"We" I set the phone down and grabbed her by the waist, pulling her chest to mine.

"What?" She asked again wrapping her arms around my neck "are you serious Agent Ressler?"

"100%. We leave in the morning" she smiled and pressed her lips to mine. "next time it'll be the beach, I promise"

"You know I don't like promises" she shook her head, my nose tapped with hers back and forth, I smiled and gave her another quick kiss.

"That's one I can keep"

She looked at me complicit, I reached down to pat her in the butt cheek and motioned at her to go upstairs.

She jogged up and by dinner time she had her bags ready, I readied mine after we ate.

It was in that moment when it hit me, and I couldn't help myself to ask Maggie while she pulled the covers off the bed.

"Are we living together?"

She looked at me and finished with the covers, then took her hair and began to braid it.

"It sure feels like we are"

"I was wondering because" I motioned at the closet that had half of my things mixed with hers "I've been filling this thing without asking and, you know, I've got underwear here, my toothbrush, my laptop, my shoes. And I don't really remember the last time I was at my place"

She gave me a smirk and finished with her braid.

"You want more room is that what you're saying?" She joked. I snorted a laugh and folded a shirt into my bag.

"No" I bent over to grab another shirt and stutter "I mean, I've been living here, I should at least help with the services"

"Those are paid bimonthly and not by me. Donald" she crawled over the bed and stood on her knees next to me "I love the fact that you're here, this" she motioned at the room "when we go to bed together and I get to look at you relax, then you turn and pull me to you and spoon me, that's easily the best part of my day. And I don't think we're going to fast. We're over thirty and we've known each other for almost three years now. Are you uncomfortable here? Do you want to move back and take your things? I won't feel offended."

"No" I said in a sigh and pulled her close by the waist "I was just... Confirming it?"

"That doesn't sound like a confirmation" she said with a smile, I looked at her, looked into her eyes, the ones I could look all day long.

"Coming back here, opening the door and knowing you'll be on the other side, that's the best part of my day" she smiled, leaning in and kissing me. I loved her kisses, I loved her lips, I loved the way her body felt when I hugged her. I was so stupidly in love with this woman.

I was really, really glad in enjoyed every second of our vacations, because what happened the second I stepped into the Post Office changed everything for the worst.

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