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duuhrayliegh · 3 years

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Fuck Misogyny

request: Bucky uses his newly gained knowledge of feminism to squash misogynistic interview questions. @ptrs-prkrs

warnings: language, creepy men, feminist!bucky

a/n: hey babes!! i hope this lived up to what you wanted! i couldn’t find the exact video you were referencing but i know what you’re talking about, so i drew inspiration from a few others.

p.s.: my requests and tag lists are open!!

xoxo ray

full m.list

The set up was simple. A long row of fold out tables covered in black fabric, microphones in front of each seat. Black papers were taped to the backs of the microphones with each team member's name. Bucky had told Evie that he wasn’t going to be able to work out with her today because of this so it better be worth it. The PR manager for the team, Amanda, had set everything up. Hired the mediator, notified the press, everything. Ever since they announced that they were going to be hosting an Avenger’s Q&A Panel, the internet quite literally broke.

Of course Bucky had been doing lives on TikTok with the group of five for the past couple of weeks now, so he was becoming quite comfortable in this format. He’s become increasingly active on his social media accounts, gaining more and more followers everyday. Granted, there were still haters, as Freddie called them, but Bucky ignored them for the most part.

Bucky was actually excited for this press meeting. He was finally gaining traction in the media and he knew how to correctly answer their questions. As Amanda had explained, there was going to be several questions from the mediator, tons from the press that they had invited, and then some fan questions as well. They apparently were going to be live streaming the conference on YouTube allowing them to read the comments and questions as it went on.

“Okay, everyone. You have two minutes until we start.” The team was in an empty board room in the Hilton hotel. Tony didn’t want everyone on the compound’s grass because he just had it fixed. Bucky scanned his fellow teammates. It was impossible for everyone to dress for the same event. Steve was wearing a shirt that was almost bursting at the seams with a pair of jeans and sneakers.

Tony was wearing a lovely Tom Ford, three piece, two-button, of course. Natasha and Wanda were wearing ripped jeans and casual tops. Vision was wearing a sweater vest and slacks, Bruce was clad in slacks as well a jacket covering his shoulders. Sam was wearing a button-up shirt and pressed jeans and he couldn’t find Clint anywhere, probably hiding in the rafters again.

Bucky had his iconic leather jacket donning his shoulders, a pair of slightly ripped jeans. His outfit was picked out by Cassie and Penny. “You need to look like you care but like you don’t at the same time.” Is what they said, the phrase made Bucky shake his head. His hair had finally started growing back and he wasn’t quite sure how he felt about it.

He had gotten help from Evie before he left Cassie’s apartment. She had pulled back the top half, braiding back two sections into the bun at the back of his head. There were pieces dangling in front of his eyes, “to accentuate the facial features, trust me they’ll love it.” Was Evie’s explanation as they pushed him out of the apartment, so he wouldn’t be late.

“Alright guys! They’re calling your names!” The team filed out of the board room and into a large ballroom. Bottles of water were placed beside each placemat. Tony went out first, followed by Steve, then Bruce, Natasha, Clint, Wanda, Vision, Sam and ending with Bucky. They all settled into their seats, Bucky peeled his jacket off himself, placing it on the back of his chair. His black short sleeved shirt highlighted the gold inlays of his vibranium arm.

“Oh, I see we’re showing some muscle today huh, Buck?” Sam teased as Bucky took his seat next to him. Bucky groaned in realization, covering his microphone so it didn’t pick up what he planned to say.

“Good God, is this what it’s going to be like the entire panel? You just bugging the shit outta me?” They shared a laugh making the rest of the members look at the pair. The audience clapped as they were introduced and continued clapping as they assembled before them.

“Thank you. We would like to welcome everyone to the first, of hopefully many, Avenger’s Q&A Panel.” The female mediator, Stacey, read the assigned lines off the sheet on her podium. “We are going to start with questions we curated for the team and then open it up to the members of the press. After that we will turn to our live stream and answer some viewer questions.” The press rustled in their seats, pulling out pens and journals as well as their phones to record. “Okay, starting off with a question directed at the Avengers in general. How are you feeling about coming before the media in this type of format?” Glances were exchanged between the members, not sure on who was going to start.

“I feel that this is a great way for the general public to learn a little bit more about each individual team member.” Vision was the first to respond and Steve added on.

“Yeah, I definitely think that there’s a common misconception that we don’t want to engage with the media or the general public. We do, unfortunately due to the amount of research and training that we are doing behind the scenes, it just goes to the back of our minds.”

“Right. So Tony and Bruce, we all know that you two are geniuses. What are your feelings on expanding the teachings of STEM courses to not only high school, but as far back as elementary school or even kindergarten?” The pair thought about the question before answering.

“Well, I definitely think that offering STEM-based classes at a younger age would be beneficial, especially if we were to allow the kids to continue to switch what they want to focus on.” Bruce started. “It’s incredibly anxiety-inducing for teenagers to have to decide what they’re going to do with their life right before they are thrust into an unforgiving world.”

“Yeah, I’ll never understand why we do that to our future leaders, it’s honestly baffling. Why do American schools wait until high school to require our children to learn foriegn languages, they aren’t going to retain that information. The same applies for such comprehensive courses like STEM-based ones. If you wait until their brains are already developed so far, then they’ve already decided what they think is interesting and if they don’t find those courses interesting then they aren’t going to pay attention.” Tony finished Bruce's thought before nodding to each other smugly, obviously proud of themselves for answering the question so well.

“Interesting that you see it that way. This last one goes out to everyone and then we’ll open it up to the reporters. How do you deal with the stress and anxiety that comes with being an Avenger? Do you feel a certain amount of pressure to always do the right thing?” Stacey shuffled her papers, tapping them twice on the podium.

“We all have our own routines and ways that we decompress after missions so that really just depends on the person. Like I think that Bruce listens to opera music, and Wanda mediatates, Tony tinkers. It depends on the person.” Natasha answered concisely, making Bucky nod his head. He could recall all of those things to be true.

“Oh definitely, and it doesn’t hurt that we have a former VA Trauma Counselor on board to help us work through the harder stuff.” Steve added a gesture of his head to Sam.

“Speaking of that Sam, just a quick question before we open it up. How difficult was it for you to transition from regular Air Force missions to Avenger level missions?” Sam made a face at Stacey before answering.

“Um, I mean, it’s not that different. You’re always fighting one of the Big Three-- aliens, androids, or wizards, no matter what department you’re working with. The only transition I had to deal with was the Tony Stark-erized suits. Now that I think of it, Tony, can we make it tighter?” Sam quipped making the room laugh with ease.

“Alright, well now we’re going to open it up to the reporters. Starting with this gentleman in the front and then if we could also give a microphone to someone on that side of the room. Okay, thank you.” The first reporter stood up, holding the microphone in one hand and his phone in the other.

“Hello. John from Huffington Post. The Avengers inspire almost everyone around the world, so we would like to know who inspires you? Who do you look up to in terms of your idols?” He sat back down as the team contemplated their answers.

“Gandhi.” Bruce said, Tony snapped his fingers and pointed at him then added. “Pepper, she’s so amazing.” Steve looked down to Bucky, who shrugged.

“I would probably have to say that my sister, Sarah, inspires me. She raised her two sons, Cas and AJ, by herself after the Blip and was able to keep the family business going.” Sam’s answer made Bucky smile. Sam had brought him to their house in Delacroix, he remembered waking up to Cas and AJ playing in the kitchen, happy giggles filtering through reminding him of his time in Wakanda. By the time that Bucky had refocused on the conversation they had moved on without his answer. Several different questions went by, all directed to the team at large, until Chad.

“Hi, I’m Chad for the Daily Mail. My question is for Wanda and Natasha.” The pair of women perked up, excited to have a specific question. “Do you find that your equipment hinders you in doing your job as well as your male counterparts?” Stunned expressions settled over the womens faces, then annoyance. Bucky’s brows shot up to his hairline, appalled that someone had the balls to ask that. Wanda and Natasha handled the question with grace and much more restraint than Bucky would have.

“Well for me, I am able to move things with my mind so I can throw things randomly at people even if I’m not in the room. I’ve been very fortunate to work with Natasha who has Widow training, so my hand to hand combat is improving immensely. And being able to work with Princess Shuri in Wakanda to learn how to fully control my powers. It’s an ever evolving process that I’m always excited to take on.” Bucky nodded and turned his attention to Natasha.

“My favorite thing is training with either Steve or Bucky because they push me to do my best. We all have our specialties here and it’s nice to learn new skills or improve old ones with people who support you.” Natasha sat back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest, throwing daggers with her eyes at Chad in the audience, waiting for him to say something else. Chad stood again, yelling so he could be heard over the crowd’s commotion.

“That’s great, ladies, but forgive me, you didn’t answer the question I asked.” Bucky pushed forward in his seat, leaning into his microphone.

“I’m sorry, I think I misunderstood what you asked them then. I would like for you to clarify what you mean by equipment.” Chad balked, not expecting a male’s voice to respond.

“You know what’s implied by equipment, sir.” Bucky’s jaw clenched at the man.

“Did you just ask two of the most capable women that I’ve ever known, if their equipment, which I’m assuming you’re referring their breasts, made it to where they couldn’t do their job as good as the rest of their male counterparts. Just to be clear, that’s what you’re asking?” Chad stuttered as he answered yes.

“Right, well first off that’s disgusting. Just a bit of background for you, Wanda is the strongest Avenger here, plain and simple. As for Natasha, she’s the smartest woman I’ve ever met and she can take down every single male here.” Bucky took a breath before continuing. “So, what I think you really want to know is how they encourage their teammates to keep up with them.” He dropped his head to look at the two women down the line.

“Don’t worry Chad, I’ll ask them the right question, since you can’t quite seem to understand how to respect women.” The team was holding back snickers at Chad’s reaction. “Wanda, Natasha. Chad wants to know how the hell you push your male teammates to be just as good as you are. What are your strategies to keep us on our toes while training?” Claps sounded from the women press members and Bucky awaited the pair's response. The next press member stood and asked a question.

“Hi, I’m Chloe from Vanity Fair. This question goes to everyone on the panel.” Bucky settled in for another question that didn’t matter. “How do you continue to be aware of things happening in our society today? Do you keep up-to-date through new channels, or social media?” The answers were rather generic from the team, all of them rather uncomfortable from the tension that Bucky and Chad had created. Stacey interrupted after Chloe’s question.

“Okay, we’re going to open it up to viewer questions from our live stream.” An iPad was placed on the podium in front of Stacey and her eyebrows rose. “Okay, there’s quite a variety here. Here’s one for Steve and Bucky.” Bucky perked up, nervous to answer because his adrenaline had worn off.

“One viewer asks, ‘Steve and Bucky, being from the 40’s, women were treated like second thoughts and were talked about like objects. Now, you’re in the 21st century, not much has changed. What have you been doing to support feminist causes?’”

“I just want to say that everyone should be answering this. It’s true that during the 40’s women were not treated the right way, and they still aren’t today. An 18 year old can’t walk down the street at nine o’clock at night without being catcalled. I am a proud feminist, as everyone should be. I think that as a team we are doing pretty well in that department. As far as what I’m doing to support feminist causes, I’m doing as much as I can. I actually recently enrolled in online classes to expand my knowledge on many subjects, seeing as how I am from the 40’s and all.” The crowd laughed along with Bucky.

“Almost all of my classes have to do with either psychology or gender studies, it’s a fascinatingly haunting subject. One book that I’m reading right now was suggested to me by my friend Cassie, it’s called Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women that a Movement Forgot. The author doesn’t let up and I’m only halfway through it. Look, I’m still educating myself, but I’m a strong believer in doing what is right for everyone, so I’m trying. Thankfully I have a few people keeping me in check as far as my actions.” Bucky thought his response was well thought out for being an on the fly question. He was new to the concept of feminism but that didn’t change the fact that it made total sense.

“I’m with Bucky on this. The 40’s were a rough time. I remember the first time I met Peggy Carter, I was astonished that a woman could be in such a powerful position. One of the first things she did after I met her was punch out someone who made a sexual comment to her. I’ve been supporting feminist causes ever since working with Peggy.” Steve added, a sad smile spreading on his face reminiscing Peggy.

“This one says, ‘As a total fan of all of you, I love seeing what you post on your social media accounts. When are the rest of the Avengers going to follow Bucky’s lead and download TikTok?’” Bucky’s head flew back into a full body laugh. Tony shifted forward in his seat, pointing his finger at the laughing man down the table.

“I would just like to say he didn’t get that approved before doing it. However, it did go over really well, so we’ll consider it.” Wanda’s mouth rolled inwards, stifling her laughter.

“We’ll consider it, you’re such an old man. Most of us have TikTok already, we just don’t make content on it like Barnes over here.” Sam said, tossing his head in Bucky’s direction.

“I’ve got like three videos on there!” Bucky and Sam began bantering back and forth.

“Yeah and one of them is dancing to a Cardi B song! Who even showed you that? I thought you only like 40’s music?” Bucky made a face at the man.

“Uh, just because I didn’t like your suggestions for music doesn’t mean I don’t have taste. My Spotify playlist is filling out quite nicely, Wilson.” Bucky and Sam didn’t quit fighting from then on, just little jabs at each other under the table.

“Here’s a good one,” Stacey had a smile on her face, “Are you allies of the LGBTQ+ community?” Bucky responded quickly with no hesitation.

“Yes, many of my friends are members of the Alphabet Mafia. Why wouldn’t we be?” Wanda nodded at his question, laughing at his use of the phrase Alphabet Mafia.

“Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I’m dating a fucking android, I’d be pretty hypocrictal if I wasn’t an ally. Nat, Clint what about you?” Clint bobbed his head in response.

“Oh yeah. We all are, even the Star Spangled Man with a Plan.” Steve’s shoulders shook with laughter at Clint’s nickname for him. The team broke out into laughter, joining Steve. Stacey cleared her throat, commanding the attention of the room again.

“Alright, everybody! That’s it for today.” She glanced down at her papers. “We would like to thank everyone for coming out today and joining the Avengers Q&A Panel. At this time we are unaware, if we will be conducting another one of these, but the odds look good based on the response.” The team filed out of the ballroom and into the empty boardroom. Bucky was the last to get into the room and he was approached by Natasha and Wanda immediately. Wanda wrapped her arms around him in a bear hug.

“That was so sick, Bucky!” She stepped back and Natasha offered him a side hug as well. “Where’d you learn all that? And since when are you taking online classes?”

“That guy was being an asshole, he needed to be put in his place. I hope you guys didn’t feel like I overstepped or anything.” Bucky hung his arm over Wanda’s shoulder, leaning his weight on her. “And I started about two months ago. They’re going really well, I’m learning a lot and enjoying it surprisingly. It’s a good thing to do in my free time since I’m not always on missions.”

“I’m proud of you James, that was impressive.” Natasha complimented him, she wasn’t usually a woman of many words so that was a lot. Bucky smiled at her, nodding his head. His phone began buzzing in his back pocket, so he excused himself from their conversation. His screen displayed one of Evie’s senior pictures, signalling that she was calling him. He pushed the green button and brought the phone to his ear to answer her call.

“Hello?” She ignored his greeting with a squeal.

“Check your Twitter! Bucky, you’re trending! Here I’m putting you on speaker, we’re all here Buck!” Shuffling noises were heard through the speaker as Evie began reading the tweets to Bucky. Laughs from Cassie, Freddie and Penny could be heard behind Evie’s voice.

“Oh my gosh Eve! Just let the man get back to what he was doing!” Freddie yelled at an excited Evie, who retaliated with a scoff.

“Okay, okay! Just remember we have a movie night tomorrow! It’s Penny’s turn to pick so we don’t know what to expect.” Evie mumbled the last part into her phone speaker. Bucky heard the impact of a pillow hit Evie, causing her to grunt in pain. “Okay! We’ll talk to you later, Buck! See you soon!” She hung up the phone before he could get a word in edgewise. Bucky shook his head as he shoved his phone back into his pocket. Amanda approached Bucky asking to speak with him privately.

“So we’re getting a flood of interview requests from networks and papers. We would like to start running with this. We’ll have to go over everything with our PR guy, Ryan, but it should work out. As long as you’re comfortable with all of this.” Bucky smiled and nodded, following after Amanda as she continued explaining what would happen going forward.

He was nervous, of course, but he could tell these nerves were coming from a place of excitement instead of fear, which was a new sensation for the man. It wasn’t unwelcome, it was the same as when he first started hanging out with Cassie, Penny, Freddie and Evie. It was the same when he went on his first mission with the team. Bucky was ready to tackle this next adventure, whatever it would entail.

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stardew-vxlley · 4 years

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now or never

summary: Shane’s crush on the farmer isn’t much of a secret around Pelican Town--even the farmer knows. What is a secret, is that the farmer feels very much the same for him. In a fleeting moment of courage, the farmer decides to ask him out.

pairing: shane x reader

word count: 2.1k

warnings: mentions of food/alcohol

a/n: requested by @dontletyourchildrenwatchthis !! full of fluffy adorable love and shy, nervous shane. enjoy!

―

The chilly morning autumn air blew the orange and brown leaves in a flurry around Pelican Town Square. The village was just waking up--Pierre was posting the daily Help Wanted sign in front of his shop, Evelyn was pushing George in his wheelchair across the cobblestones to his monthly check-up at Harvey’s clinic, and Mayor Lewis was walking briskly back to his house, coming from the suspicious direction of Marnie’s ranch.

These mornings were always your favorite. You waved to Mayor Lewis as you made your way to Pierre’s--and the mayor hastily returned the wave and disappeared into his home with a flustered expression. You chuckled to yourself as you recalled fetching his purple shorts from Marnie’s room not too long ago.

“Good morning, farmer [Y/N]!” Pierre greeted you warmly as you entered the general store. Sliding the scarf from around your neck, you grinned at him.

“A good morning indeed,” you replied, eyes traveling over the colorful boxes and jars of various assortments. “I’m all out of wheat flour--trying to make a batch of cookies for everyone.”

“Oh, that’s wonderful!” he exclaimed, pointing to the aisle closest to you. “Up there on the top.”

“Perfect, thank you!”

You studied each of the boxes of flour, trying to decide how many you should buy. You were so deep in thought that you didn’t hear the jingle above the door chime cheerfully, but you registered Pierre’s greeting to who walked in.

“Shane! You’re up early today,” he remarked.

You nearly dropped the boxes in your hands, a red tinge creeping into your cheeks. Peeking through the merchandise stocked on the shelves, you saw Shane heading towards the snack aisle. His usual tired expression was as clear as ever, scowling at the rows of chips on the shelf. Biting your lip, you tried to be as discreet as possible as you hurriedly decided that one box of flour was enough for your cookies--and headed directly towards Pierre to pay for it.

“Just one box today?” Pierre asked, punching a few buttons on his register. “Will it be enough?”

“Oh, um, yeah--yeah, one box should be plenty,” you rushed out, keeping your eyes trained on the old counter top. Out of your peripheral vision, you noticed Shane was looking in your direction--earning an even deeper blush in your face.

“Just the usual price, then,” Pierre said, and you handed him the bag of coins. “Can I get you anything else?”

“Nope, nope, thank you!” you said hastily as you quickly gathered the flour in your arms, turning on your heel to make a beeline for the exit. Unfortunately, you hadn’t been paying close enough attention to see that Shane had gotten in line behind you, holding a bag of chips and a jar of sugar. You collided into him, sending everything flying in every direction.

“Oh, Jesus, I’m so sorry!” you cried out as you scrambled to clean the mess up.

“N-no, it’s okay,” Shane said, his cheeks flushed with matching embarrassment. “I shouldn’t have snuck up on you like that.”

“I shouldn’t have been moving so fast,” you sheepishly admitted, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear.

Luckily nothing had been harmed. You reached down and retrieved his bag of chips, holding it out to him. He took it from you, and there was a beat of awkward silence.

“Well,” you uncomfortably cleared your throat. “I’m--I’m gonna go now.”

“Sorry again,” he offered, passing by you to place his things up on the counter, where an impatient Pierre had been waiting.

“N-no problem!” You nearly tripped over your own two feet as you walked out of the general store. Once you were outside, you took a deep breath of autumn air and fanned your flushed cheeks.

Truth be told, you knew Shane had feelings for you. He wasn’t the greatest at keeping secrets--but it’s not like he had to try very hard to keep his mouth shut. It was his actions that gave everything away--you caught him gazing at you from across the saloon on more than one occasion, he sent you heartfelt notes in the mail (along with a smushed frozen pizza), and every time you were near him, he became a blubbering, flustered mess. It was adorable.

However, what Shane didn’t know, is that you had feelings for him too. Strong ones, at that. You found yourself taking the long way to town, past Marnie’s ranch, in hopes of maybe catching him while he was on his way to work at the Joja Mart. You also would steal glances at him on Friday nights in the saloon, brooding and mysterious in the corner.

But you could never bring yourself to say anything to him. You had tried, but each time you handed him a plate of pepper poppers as a token of love, you always chickened out and ended up running away. Like--literally running away. At full speed. There was just something about him that made you nervous, but in a good way--with butterflies and giddiness.

Later that evening, you were pulling the last batch of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies out of the oven. The warm and inviting smell wafted through your farmhouse, reminding you of the ones that your father used to bake for you as a child. Evelyn had been so kind and generous as to share her secret recipe with you, but you remained convinced yours would never come out as delicious as hers.

You packed them up tight in a container and set off to the saloon to deliver them. An enormous harvest moon was high up in the sky, illuminating Pelican Town with its celestial radiance. The stars twinkled cheerfully around it as you walked across the square.

You pushed the heavy wooden door open, the warm glow of the saloon washing over the steps of the stoop. The sound of the jukebox echoed across the town, the sound of silverware and drinks joining it in a pleasant symphony.

“Those look like cookies,” Gus called out from behind the bar, a twinkle in his eyes. “Freshly baked?”

“I literally just took them out of the oven an hour ago,” you laughed, stepping up to the bar and placing the container down. “You’ll keep them safe and make sure everyone gets one, right?”

“I’ll guard them with my life,” Gus promised, taking the container and lifting the lid. He inhaled deeply with a satisfied grin. “Smells like Evelyn’s recipe.”

“You have an incredible nose,” you chuckled, and turned to leave the bar. Your eyes couldn’t help but search for Shane, quickly darting to his usual spot by the fireplace. And...he was there. You locked gazes, that old familiar blush creeping back into your cheeks.

He awkwardly lifted the beer he was drinking in acknowledgement to you, to which you responded with a little wave.

“Won’t you have a bite to eat, [Y/N]?” Gus’ voice pulled your attention back to the bar. “I just made some of my classic spaghetti, hot off the pot.”

You opened your mouth to decline, it was getting late and you needed to get some rest. But on a whim, you smiled and nodded. “Sure, I’ll take a plate.”

“Wonderful,” he grinned, and disappeared to fetch it. You nervously tapped your fingers against the wooden bar, feeling Shane’s eyes boring a hole in the side of your head. You suppressed the urge to look at him again, focusing on the various bottles and dishes stacked along the wall.

Gus returned with a steaming plate of spaghetti, and your worries were placed on a temporary hold as you drew in the mouth-watering scent of homemade tomato sauce and pasta.

“Thank you so much, it smells divine,” you said graciously, looking up at Gus. “How much do I owe you?”

“On the house tonight,” he replied, picking up a glass and cleaning it with a dish rag. “For that little favor with the lobster.”

You beamed at him, and began eating your dinner heartily. It was as delicious as it smelled, and pretty soon you were fighting the urge to lick the sauce off the plate. Emily came by and took the dirty dish away, exchanging pleasantries with you while she did.

A moment passed where you were alone at the bar, full of pasta. A bolt of courage surged through you and you lifted your eyes to where Shane stood, watching him stare at the floor and drink his beer. His mop of hair fell into his eyes, making him look young and vulnerable. The hand that wasn’t holding the beer was shoved into the pocket of his jeans, sleeves of his sweatshirt pushed up.

You bit your lip in anticipation. Now was your chance--Gus and Emily were tending to other patrons, no one was in your way--all you had to do was get up and move.

Forcefully exhaling a breath, you pushed away from the bar and started walking over to where he stood. His focus turned to you, locking on your eyes as you neared him. You almost tucked tail and ran away--again--but something in you told you to just suck it up and get on with it this time.

You came to a stop just a few feet in front of him. Your mind raced to figure out just what exactly to say, mouth falling open with no words coming out. He stared at you, beer paused just halfway to his lips.

“Uh,” Shane said, “hi.”

“H-hi,” you stumbled over the word. You anxiously fiddled with your hands, blushing furiously.

His eyebrows raised in question. “C-can I help you?”

You laughed nervously, trying to refrain from tugging on your ear--something you did in any nervous situation. “I--I have something to ask you.”

You had his full attention now. He set down his beer on the counter before turning back to you and crossing his arms, the muscles in his forearms flexing.

“What is it?”

This was it. Now or never.

“Do you want to go out sometime?” you rushed out, squeezing your eyes shut in humiliation.

When he didn’t answer right away, you slowly cracked one eye open to peek at him. He was in shock--his whole face was red and his mouth was hanging open in surprise.

“You don’t have to say yes!” you reassured him, holding your hands up in defense. “I just--I really like you, and I want to--uh--ya know, get to know you better.”

Shane looked around, as if trying to find someone. His gaze landed back on you, brow furrowed in confusion. “I d-don’t get it.”

Now it was your turn to look confused. “What--what don’t you get?”

“You’re asking me out?”

“Ye-e-es?” you replied slowly, not liking where this conversation was going.

“And it’s--it’s not a prank? Sam didn’t put you up to this, did he?”

“No!” you exclaimed as you waved your hands. “It’s not a prank--that would be a horrible thing to do. No, I...I just really want to spend more time with you.”

Shane stared at you, until his adorable cheeks split into a grin. “Alright. Yeah--actually, I got two tickets to the Tunnelers game this weekend, do you want to go with me?”

“I would love to!” you said, all-too excitedly, and winced at your enthusiasm. “Sorry--I’m, ah, really nervous.”

“I know the feeling,” he replied, picking up his beer again. “So--gridball game, this weekend. I’ll meet you by the bus stop.”

“It’s a date,” you said cheerfully, and immediately blushed again. “I’ll see you then.”

“See you then,” he said.

Your heart was so full in that moment, that you didn’t realize you were staring at him in silence again, until he cleared his throat.

“Sorry! I’m gonna--” you gestured to the door with your thumbs, “--gonna get home now. To the farm. That I live on.” Smooth.

“It’s getting late,” Shane remarked as he glanced at the clock. “Can I--can I walk you home?”

“That would be really nice of you,” you replied shyly, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear. “Thank you.”

He led you out of the saloon and into the autumn night, and the two of you talked the entire walk home about anything and everything. And long after he had given you a sweet, nervous goodnight kiss on the cheek while the two of you stood on the porch, you lay awake in your bed and wished with all your might that this next week went by quickly, so you could steel your nerves and kiss Shane for real.

#shane #shane stardew valley #shane stardew #shane x farmer #sdv #shane sdv fanfic #shane x reader #stardew valley #stardew valley fanfiction #stardew valley fanfic

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artificialqueens · 4 years

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Papillionlisse 3/6 (Gigi x Nicky / Jan x Jackie] - Pinkgrapefruit

[ chapter three ]

She slams herself against the back of the dorm doors, pushing it closed and humming to herself in happiness. She walked past Jan and Jackie studying at the coffee table in front of the warm fire, so they’re not in the room, but Crystal is - hunched and wrapped in her duvet, whispering charms to herself as she does wand movements with her fingers.

“If you two fuck tonight you better silence yourselves or so help me,” The brunette mutters, not breaking focus from the piece of parchment she’s wandlessly setting on fire, dousing, flying up and down and rolling up.

Gigi giggles in response. She’s the only one of them that’s vaguely relaxed and god help her, she’s going to enjoy it for as long as she can.

[harry potter hogwarts/beauxbaton au]

A/N - i love these babies so much!!! dedicated to molly for her adorable support and frey for being the greatest beta the world’s ever seen. Enjoy!

“I cannot believe I’m sharing a dorm room with two couples,” Crystal groans, her chin slipping off her hand and face falling onto the down duvet cover. She’s sprawled across her own double bed, Gigi and Nicky lounging on Gigi’s bed and Jackie and Jan on their end bed. It’s a Sunday, so none of them have any commitments although exams are coming up, and if Jackie hadn’t been pulled away from her textbooks, she would have been swallowed whole.

“I cannot believe I have to take your bloody exams,” Nicky raises her head off Gigi to whine before flopping back down. Gigi gently strokes her hand up and down the girls exposed forearm in a soothing motion as Crystal guffaws.

“Yeah, and you’ll beat us all,” Jan responds. She’s flicking flashcards above her head, using a floating charm and a lot of faith despite the room choosing this as a no-study time.

“Jan, chill.”

“Can’t. Care of Magical Creatures is a practical exam and I can only do it once.”

Most of the exams are just mocks - precursors to the actual exams that will be faced at the end of seventh year, but few, such as astronomy and care of magical creatures, go straight towards the end grade, which only stand to terrify the sixth years into actually studying. Some professions such as healer also require a proficiency test taken in the Summer, so Crystal frets quietly while Gigi teaches her the charms that never quite stuck (including a non-permanent sticking charm).

“Jan, you won’t fail, baby. You’re so good at it. And you talk about kneazles and nifflers in your sleep,” Jackie tries to soothe, forcing a sherbet lemon into the girl’s mouth, which breaks her focus and leaves the cards to fall on top of the two of them.

“Two weeks!” Crystal announces sarcastically.

“Two weeks. We’ve got this,” Nicky says staunchly. “Ou que dieu m'aide.”

“Want to go on a final Hogsmeade date before exams?” Gigi asks as she leans over the back of Nicky’s chair. She places the sharp point of her chin on Nicky’s shoulder and breathes in her coconut shampoo. Nicky turns as far as she can in the solid wooden chair, placing a chaste kiss on her cheek.

“Of course, chérie.” Gigi flushes at the pet name - taken back to that night in the library as she looks over the table of scrolls and tomes of transfiguration and the tiny little pin cushions she’s using as practice.

“I’ll pick you up?” She likes the intrigue - they might share a bed, but she was raised on good old fashioned American rom coms - ‘You’ve Got Mail’ and ‘Sleepless in Seattle’. She refuses to give all that up. She’s going to take her lady on a good date if it kills her.

“I’d like that,” Nicky says, her voice low and more seductive than Gigi can handle.

“Come to bed soon,” Gigi whispers, lips pressed under Nicky’s ear. Nicky hums in agreement and Gigi feels it vibrate under her lips. She pulls herself away, making sure to walk away nicely just in case, before she slinks back down to the Hufflepuff dorms.

Gigi giggles in response. She’s the only one of them that’s vaguely relaxed and god help her, she’s going to enjoy it for as long as she can.

Nicky rolls into bed much later than she’s promised. Her fingers smell like new paper and her hair is loosely braided down her back, and Gigi pulls her against her chest immediately. Crystal (out of prior experience) has her curtains pulled around her, as do Jan and Jackie (although that’s entirely for their benefit), so they pull theirs too, so they can silence the area.

The second it’s secure, Nicky’s lips latch on to Gigi’s pulse point, the blonde straddling the girl’s hips without saying a word. She slips her cold fingers under her shirt, feeling the warm, taut skin of Gigi’s navel under her fingertips. Gigi shivers and giggles, leaning forward to capture Nicky in a searing kiss, hands moving down to hold the blonde’s behind, pulling her further on top.

Nicky lets out a slew of French curses as Gigi runs a finger down the curve of her spine.

“YOU’RE NOT FUCKING SILENCED,” Crystal yells across the room, and Nicky collapses on top of Gigi. She’s not embarrassed - not in the same way that Gigi immediately flushes red - clear even in the dark. Nicky slinks down the brunette’s body pressing a finger to her lips as she hooks her other hand into Gigi’s shorts.

She peppers kisses on Gigi’s now exposed stomach, pushing her nails into the girl’s thigh when she’s struggling to keep quiet and hoping - really hoping, Crystal will forget it tomorrow.

Gigi wakes up at the crack of dawn, grateful that Nicky seems to have tuckered herself out studying last night and isn’t yet rousing.

She somehow manages to roll out from under the French woman (she’s not quite sure how, but she’s glad) and pads to the bathroom to try and get ready. She’s practically vibrating with excitement, as she brushes her teeth and pulls her hair back into a low ponytail. She pulls on a Slytherin green tank top, a pair of shorts, and a black flannel, because it’s getting unsettlingly warm even for late May, and sets her black combat boots quietly by the door - making sure to shove her purse and her wand into her rucksack before she moves to wake her still sleeping partner.

She pauses before waking the blonde gently, picking Quaffle up from where he’d slunk in to fill the warm spot Gigi had left. She snaps a picture of them asleep together first, though, animating it, so it moves like all wizarding photos and she can watch her two loves snooze together. It’s stupidly cute.

Nicky manages to look pristine on a morning, so they exchange a chaste kiss and the French girl heads into the bathroom for a quick change and to brush her teeth. She comes out with her hair out of the braids, curly down her back, and a pale blue gingham dress that ends mid thigh. She pairs it with a pair of Gigi’s white converse that she’s basically stolen, and they leave a note, so the rest of the girls won’t worry. The gates from the boundary of Hogwarts to Hogsmeade open at eight a.m. on a Saturday, so they head out of the castle immediately. The walk is a leisurely forty-five minute stroll over fields and gently rolling paths or a twenty minute thestral carriage ride, but considering the fact it’s only half past seven, they take the time to walk hand in hand. It’s already warm and sunny outside, and the light licks the soft spattering of freckles on Nicky’s shoulders.

Their first stop is breakfast pastries and coffee at Madam Puddifoot’s Tea Room, and they get to sit at a cute little window table with armchairs that gives them a perfect view of the rest of the students as they trickle into the small station town. Nicky sips her latte as Gigi rather messily eats a danish pastry, letting the crumbs fall down onto her lap. Nicky leans forward to kiss the icing off her bottom lip, and the brunette flushes scarlet as once again her girlfriend has zero public shame.

They take ice cold smoothies to go as the sun seemingly refuses to feel remorse today, and walk hand in hand over to the shrieking shack, where Gigi educated the blonde on the history of Remus Lupin. They learn about him now in defense as one of the greats and his memorial is outside the shack. It’s one of those things Gigi finds fascinating, so she dives into every detail she knows, and by the end of the story they’re both warm and maybe a little more tanned and laughing at old stories of The Marauders her uncle told her.

They wander back to the town with sweaty hands intertwined, aiming to visit a few shops before lunch, and then sunbathe for the rest of the afternoon - maybe meeting up with Jan and Jackie if they venture out.

They head into Honeydukes first, stocking up on a few goodie bags for Crystal (one as an apology, one as exam treats, and one just because), sugar quills enough to carry them through the coming month, and some sweet treats for an end of exam slumber party.

Next, they head into Scrivenshaft’s stationary shop where Nicky picks up enough supplies to write a couple of letters. They sit on the benches outside with cold sodas Gigi collects from The Three Broomsticks as Nicky writes her letters. If she finishes them here, she can send them from the town post office instead of carrying them back up to the owelry. Nicky makes her girlfriend slather thick suncream on her exposed shoulders and back with the claims that her delicate french skin will burn without it. Gigi just chuckles. Nicky may have gorgeous freckles, but she’s also a golden tan colour that makes Gigi envious.

They end up in Zonkos just before lunch, so that Gigi can buy a new shade button - the last unfortunately murdered in the Shower Incident of ‘09. She can neither confirm nor deny her involvement, but she feels guilty, so she shells out a few knuts and even gets it gift wrapped in a cute paper covered in tiny snitches.

They end up meeting Jackie and Jan for lunch at The Three Broomsticks - the girls relaxing on a bench outside as they eat onion rings and burgers while sipping butterbeer. It feels like the perfect Summer day, and it makes Gigi feel like she could float away even though they all complain about feeling full.

They don’t have to walk far to find a quiet field to lie down in, and they end up just relaxing on the grass for hours, tanning and chatting and falling in love.

Crystal and the Gryffindor she’s been seeing for a few weeks stop by, and she looks so happy that they just let her carry on her way.

They only really start to contemplate leaving as the 4 p.m. breeze carries the straggling humidity across the open fields. They manage to catch a thestral carriage and cuddle up in the seats, folded into each other as Nicky falls asleep on Gigi’s outstretched arm. She presses a kiss to her forehead and the blond mewls, burying her face into the crook of Gigi’s neck.

A perfect day.

Their breakfast on Monday morning is both sluggish and high strung. Jan looks like she’s about to start crying any second - her care of magical creatures practical assessment happening in only an hour or so. Crystal is still mumbling wandless charms under her breath as she stirs her tea just by staring at it and butters her toast. Nicky is practically asleep on Gigi’s shoulder, having pulled almost an all-nighter for the potions exam on Wednesday. She’d clearly outlined her exam rules a few weeks ago in which she fully condoned all-nighters, as long as they weren’t the night before an actual exam.

She’d decided, since the charms exam was scheduled for four p.m., she could nap before it and all would be well. Gigi just blindly trusted her, knowing she would spend the rest of the day convincing Crystal nothing would explode.

Jackie stirs her coffee methodically, twice forward and once backwards, as she stares at astronomy charts she’s copied onto flashcards. She wordlessly feeds Jan a toast crust, and the blonde chews it robotically before going back to staring at the table.

“We can do this,” Jackie mumbles under her breath, looking at them like she’s making sure they’re all still alive.

Jan still looks close to vomiting, but she smiles weakly and nods, holding Crystal’s hand and giving it a squeeze.

“Team dumb with no talent, let’s go,” Crystal jokes, and the table just chuckles.

The rest of the hall is the same. The whole of sixth year looks like they want to drop dead over their porridge, Vanessa silent for the first time since OWLS, and Violet only hitting on the people closest to her, instead of flirting across the whole hall.

The bell for the first period goes off, and they all sit up straight.

“Into battle,” quips Nicky, and Gigi squeezes her arm. They’re all going to be just fine.

Fine might be an overstatement, Gigi realises as they come into the second week of exams.

They trade note cards and words of encouragement in between practical assessments, written work, and careers guidance meetings as if this fortnight isn’t already hellish. They may fall into bed together and wake up around the same time, but it actually takes more effort to see each other than it would usually with specialised study sessions running at all places at all times of the night. Astronomy study lasts from midnight to 2 a.m. every few days, so Jackie and Nicky crawl out of bed some days looking like zombies.

Crystal jokes one day that this has finally affirmed that Nicky is in fact human, and as much as Gigi wants to laugh, her girlfriend has never looked so exhausted, so instead she just pulls her close and turns her old notes into paper butterflies as a transfiguration practice. They all have to pick an origami shape to perfect and show, and since Gigi picked butterflies, the dorm is filling up with them. Nicky chose little birds, which she releases out the window, and Crystal decided scorpions would be fun, which she tosses into the fire as kindling.

Jackie perfected a phoenix, despite only taking the class part time, because she’s insane.

They tell her as much.

Jan just stretches and curls up into a ball around Quaffle. Neither of them have ever cared for transfiguration.

Gigi sits with Nicky outside the practical for potions when the stress finally hits her. She feels like she’s been boiled alive in a pressure cooker and someone’s just cracked open the lid, so the steam is finally being released as she sobs into the French girl’s waiting arms. Nicky chuckles softly to herself as she gently strokes her girlfriend’s back, the black robes a little bobbled and very soft after years of wear.

Gigi cries quietly until the bell for the exam goes off. The second it does, it’s like a switch is hit and she stands up - like a robot when you’ve pressed the activation. She brushes down her (still perfectly smooth) skirt and holds out her hand to pull Nicky up from where they were both sitting on the floor. Nicky squeezes the hand in support and Gigi nods.

“Slughorn won’t kill you if you’re a few minutes late, mon chérie,” Nicky whispers, chin pressed against Gigi’s shoulder blade as she stands behind her slightly taller partner.

“It’s just potions,” Gigi replies, staring straight at the large oak doors that stand between her and her second to last exam. “I can do potions.” She’s not convincing Nicky, but if she’s convincing herself, the blonde supposes it’s okay.

She gets an O for Outstanding in her final grades. None of them are surprised.

They’ve somehow all managed to fit onto Gigi’s bed - the green covers bunched under five seventeen-year-olds lounging around. Crystal has her feet on Nicky’s lap and her head on Jan’s, having claimed she’s being neglected. She has Quaffle sat like a loaf on her stomach, Gigi sat next to her, stroking him, so he kneads his claws into the soft, ribbed fabric of her tank top.

Jackie tries to toss a Bertie Bott’s Every Flavoured Bean into Jan’s mouth, but it falls and hits Crystal in the eye, so they start playing a game of ricocheting them off Jan’s face and trying to get them into Crystal’s open mouth. She mostly just ends up laying there, gaping like a fish out of water until Nicky tickles her foot and she squirms in a way that causes the cat to freak out and dig every claw into the pale flesh of her stomach. She yells a profanity, and the whole room bursts out laughing before they all remember the time and wince.

It’s three a.m.

Professor Longbottom is anything but lovely at three in the morning. Thankfully for the still silently giggling girls, they appear to have kept quiet enough not to have woken anyone, but it does spark something in Gigi.

She smirks to herself, prompting Nicky to poke her gently in the ribs.

“I know that look,” she says, eyebrows raised in amusement, and Gigi just raises an eyebrow back.

“Fuck,” Jackie says, looking between them. “This won’t end well, will it?”

“Who wants to play Quidditch?”

There’s a lull as everyone silently hopes she’s joking. To be fair - she’s the captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team and she’s damn good. Jackie is a Chaser for Ravenclaw, and Crystal and Jan are beaters for Hufflepuff. They’re all pretty fucking good.

Nicky on the other hand…

“Baby,” she whispers worriedly as the others pull on sweatshirts and grab their brooms. “You do remember I can’t fly.”

Gigi does remember. She remembers very well how she’d planned a romantic flight only to have Nicky turn white as a ghost the second they entered the Quidditch pitch. She remembers how the French girl had squeezed her tight and cursed under her breath muttering words Gigi couldn’t understand, and yet understood perfectly.

“It’ll be fine,” she assuages. “Just hold on tight honey, it’ll be fun.”

It is fun. It’s very fun. Once they sneak out and get over the whole not having balls thing, they have a whale of a time, swooping and diving around each other like they used to when they were thirteen and cared less. Or maybe cared more - Gigi forgets as the air whistles past her ears. She feels Nicky’s face pressed against her back and she takes one hand off the broom to squeeze one of the hands wrapped tightly around her waist, fingers clawing the fabric for anything to grab onto.

“You remind me of Quaffle,” she muses, which is the absolute wrong thing to say to your volatile French girlfriend when she is scared and tired.

“I better not remind you of your putain de cat,” she curses, fingernails digging in even through Gigi’s thick Slytherin team sweatshirt.

Nicky had previously commented that she thought they were all adorable in their matching Quidditch sweatshirts, so they’d gone to the house elves and gotten her one made. They’d had such an argument over the house she was in they’d ended up just getting Hogwarts and its crest sewn onto the front, and the light grey just made it look soft and warm. Nicky always looks soft and warm. This is a thought Gigi often has as she watches her girlfriend sit in bed, rereading Kurt Vonnegut with Gigi’s glasses on.

She’s really not ready to let her go.

They have to say goodbye at the gates, but, really, the whole day is one long goodbye.

Nicky says goodbye to Quaffle as she packs her stuff away neatly into her trunk, sneaking in Gigi’s white converse, but having to remove Gig’s cat multiple times, because he is a nuisance. He’ll come to France in September, but he seems really keen on getting a head start.

She says goodbye to her bedding, although she barely slept in it, and to the way Jan doesn’t wake up, and to morning yoga, and Crystal throwing things, and to Jackie reading softly in the evenings.

She says goodbye to breakfast (it’s waffles, and Jan is wide awake), and to the ceiling, which is a bright blue, and fills you with warmth just looking at it.

She says goodbye to Professor McGonagall, who might be one of her all-time favourite people, and she turns a napkin into a silver butterfly for her, making the woman crack a smile.

She says goodbye to Jan and Jackie being a disgusting couple at the same dining table, but makes them promise to write. Jan just scoffs and pretends she’s not crying, and reminds her they’ll see her at Christmas when they’ll all be smoking hot. Jackie doesn’t pretend she’s not crying. She just gives her her favourite astronomy book and tells her she’ll be missed.

Crystal gives a long-winded speech about how Nicky was like a family pet or something she’s pretty sure was just an odd English saying, and Jackie punches her, but she knows enough not to ask, and just lets the brunette hug her tightly, fixing the girl’s hair with a charm before she leaves.

She says goodbye to Gigi at the gate.

She’s not ready to, not really, but she gives it a go.

“I love you,” she says, earnest and raw.

“Je t'aime davantage,” Gigi replies and her eyes are whirlpools Nicky could fall right into. She’s pretty sure she already has.

“Impossible,” she whispers.

And then she lets go.

Genevieve,

I miss you so much! I am counting down the days until September arrives, I just can’t wait. I hope your summer is fun, I know you are spending it with your uncle, he seems wonderful - tell me more about him.

How are Janet and Jaqueline? You must tell them to write about Jackie’s time away from home (it’s a good thing they’re lesbians and cannot get pregnant). Does Crystal write over the summer? She told me she would get a butterfly tattoo for me and I do not know if she was joking. It sounds like her. How unfortunate.

I miss you and your stupid cat. I love you. I cannot wait to see you.

Write soon!

La tienne,

Nicoletta.

Ps: If you dare call me Nicoletta you will be dead before you can apologise. <3

#rpdr fanfiction #gigi goode #nicky doll #gigi x nicky #jankie #jan sport #jackie cox #crystal methyd #harry potter au #fluff #almost smut #terrible french #fucking adorable #papillionlisse #pinkgrapefruit #s12

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lustfulholland · 4 years

Text

Test Me (Prologue)

Bucky Barnes x avenger!rogers!Reader

warnings: language, violence, my shit writing, stinky aliens

summary: in which she's on her own team

A/N: this is the second part of Trust Me, so if you haven’t read that series you should go do that first !! ++ this series is going to be longggggg considering most will be spent w/o Bucky (I’m sure the time period can help you put that together) but the many chapters w/o Bucky will (hopefully) be worth it ++ I SCHEDULED THIS POST FOR THE WRONG DAY AHAHAH IM SORRY ITS LATE ANGELS

“We need your help. Look, it’s not overselling it to say that the fate of the universe is at stake here.”

“And who’s we?”

“Hey Tony.”

Y/N watches angrily — Strange promised he wouldn’t go to Tony. To be fair she’s only met him five minutes previous.

Y/N studies the camera footage — Stark jogging with Pepper’s hand in his own. She scoffs and slams the laptop shut, looking at the other computer showing a still of Steve. She clicks play and he tugs his hat down, glancing up at the camera before looking back at his feet.

“Whoever is behind me,” Y/N says, “You better get out or I’ll take you out.”

“Mrs. Barnes—”

Y/N whips around and holds the knife to the stranger’s neck, “What the hell did you just call me?”

“I’m Dr. Stephen Strange,” the man says calmly, “I wouldn’t have come to you if it wasn’t urgent. I think it’s safe to say th—”

“How the hell did you know where I was?” she asks.

“The fate of the universe is at stake,” he continues, unfazed by the blade pressed to his throat.

“And what’s in it for me?”

“I help you find them.”

“Barnes is in Wakanda, my brother is on the run, Stark is being lovey-dovey with Ms. Potts. I don’t need you.”

“Well then why haven’t you killed them? You promised them, didn’t you?” he asks. She presses the knife closer to his throat.

“I will murder you,” she says through grit teeth.

“No you won’t,” he says, with a slight smile. She scoffs and he shakes his head. “Prove me wrong.”

She stares challengingly and Strange lifts an eyebrow. She sighs and drops the knife, turning her back to them and opening the laptop.

“Alright doctor, tell me about the fate of the universe,” she says. Strange rattles off details to Y/N as she scrolls through various websites. She hums every once in a while to acknowledge the man. As he continues she cuts him off. “Doctor Stephen Strange, world renowned neurosurgeon. As a result of a horrifying accident the surgeon lost his ability to use his hands and other injuries. After many costly surgeries and therapies--”

“Enough,” Strange says. Y/N stands up straight and turns back to Strange with a smirk on her face.

“So how are you doing…” she makes a circular motion at him, “Life?”

He sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose, “That’s not important right now. What is important is--”

“As far as I’m concerned I don’t need to help you,” she says, “I have holed myself away for nearly two years--”

“Mrs. Ba--”

“It’s Y/N,” she corrects, “And if you try Ms. Rogers I will kick your ass into yesteryear, so call me by my name.”

“Y/N,” Strange says reluctantly, “I know that you’re seeking vengeance against the three men, but if you don’t come with me right now I’ll have to seek out Mr. Stark.”

Y/N tenses up, “So?”

“You wouldn’t want Stark to be doing your job for you,” Strange says, “I know you. I know what’s going on in your brain. You don’t want Tony Stark to do what you know you could do ten times better.”

“Reverse psychology won’t work on me,” Y/N says, crossing her arms over her chest. Strange quirks an eyebrow at her as if to challenge her words. He opens his mouth and her resolve breaks before he can try again. “What is it that you need me to do?”

Strange lets a barely-there smile appear on his face, “Have you heard of a man-- alien named Thanos?”

Y/N clenches her jaw and stiffens once again, “He’s been mentioned once or twice. What does this have to do with me?”

“If you would let me finish--”

“Thanos is Tony’s guy,” Y/N says, “And you probably know that, don’t you? There’s no way I’m helping you! You’re just gonna ask Tony to join and--”

“I won’t go to Stark,” Strange says, “Let me tell you why I need you and I won’t go to him.”

Y/N is reluctant, but nods. She motions for him to continue. As the explanation goes on she feels more compelled to help the stranger. He’s hiding something, she can feel it. She knows he isn’t telling the entire truth, but it doesn’t make her want to abandon the mission.

“And you promise not to go to Tony?” Y/N says.

Strange sighs, “I promise.”

Y/N’s eyes skim the three men walking closer. Tony glances over to her, a shocked expression flooding his face. She lunges forward but Bruce is quick to wrap his arms around her.

“Be nice,” Bruce says. Y/N rolls her eyes and sits on the stairs, glaring at Tony as the situation is explained.

“We swore an oath to protect the Time Stone with our lives,” Wong says.

“And I swore off dairy, but then, Ben & Jerry's named a flavor after me, so…” Tony retorts.

“Stark Raving Hazelnuts,” Strange says.

“It's not bad,” Tony says.

Strange adds, “A bit chalky.”

“A Hunka-Hulka Burning Fudge is our favorite,” Wong says.

“That's a thing?” Bruce asks.

“Whatever. Point is: things change,” Tony says.

“Our oath to protect the Time Stone cannot change,” Strange says, “This Stone may be the best chance we have against Thanos.”

“And still conversely, it may also be his best chance against us,” Tony argues.

“Well, if we don't do our jobs—”

“What is your job exactly, besides making balloon animals?” Tony asks

“Protecting your reality, douchebag,” Strange replies calmly. Y/N can’t help the laugh that escapes her lips and she slaps a hand over her mouth.

“I’m sorry,” she says, muffled by her hand.

“Okay, guys, could we table this discussion right now?” Bruce asks, “The fact is that we have this Stone. We know where it is. Vision is out there somewhere with the Mind Stone, and we have to find him now.”

“Yeah, that's the... thing,” Tony says awkwardly.

“What do you mean?” Bruce asks.

“Two weeks ago, Vision turned off his transponder. He's offline,” Tony says.

“What? Tony, you lost another super bot?” Bruce asks incredulously.

“I didn't lose him. He's more than that. He's evolving.”

“Who could find Vision, then?” Strange asks.

“I know where he is,” Y/N says, “But too bad I don’t like you.”

“You’re kidding,” Tony says.

“Am I?” Y/N asks, furrowing her brows.

Bruce sighs, “Y/N, the fate—”

“The fate of the universe is in danger,” Y/N mocks, “Blah, blah, blah. I know. I’m sure somebody else knows where Vision is. Any ideas, Stark?”

Y/N stares at Tony, as if to challenge him. He sighs, muttering a curse and then looking back to the others.

“Probably Steve Rogers,” Tony reluctantly suggests. Y/N smiles triumphantly, clapping lightly at his answer.

Strange sighs, “Oh great.”

“Maybe,” Tony says, “But…”

“Call him,” Bruce says. Y/N throws her head back with laughter, looking over to Bruce as she calms.

“Oh you don’t know!” she exclaims, “Of course not!”

“What don’t I know?” Bruce chuckles nervously.

“Tell him,” Y/N says, “Come on Tony! Tell him!”

“The Avengers broke up,” Tony says, “We’re toast.”

“Broke up? Like a band? Like The Beatles?” Bruce asks.

“Cap and I fell out hard,” Tony says, “We're not on speaking terms.”

“That’s an understatement,” Y/N snorts.

Bruce shakes his head, “Tony, listen to me. Thor's gone. Thanos is coming. It doesn't matter who you're talking to or not.”

Tony hesitates, then pulls out the phone Steve mailed him. Tony makes a quiet comment about the old device, and flips it open. He hovers his finger over the call button, but stops when an unusual rumbling begins.

“Say, Doc, you wouldn't happen to be moving your hair, would you?” Tony asks. Strange glances up at a lock of his hair standing on its own.

“Not at the moment, no.”

Tony looks up at the Hulk-shaped hole in the ceiling and sees debris flying by outside. He exits the Sanctum through the front door and scans the outdoors. The group follows behind him to watch the chaos unfold. People run and scream, traffic piles up, litter flies in the wind. A woman falls down and Tony helps her up.

“You okay?” Tony asks. The woman ignores him, running off and bumping into Y/N. A car crashes in on a pole behind Tony. “Help him! Wong, look alive!”

“Go! Got it!” Bruce exclaims.

Tony slips on his sunglasses, “FRIDAY, what am I looking at?”

“Not sure, I’m working on it,” the AI replies.

“Hey! You might wanna put that Time Stone in your back pocket, Doc!” Tony says.

“Might wanna use it,” Strange replies, magical bands forming around his forearms. A distant humming grows louder as Tony and Y/N round the corner near an intersection. Above Bleecker Street a giant circular ship floats in the air.

“What the shit?” Y/N whispers.

“FRIDAY, evac anyone south of 43rd Street, notify first responders,” Tony says.

“Will do.”

Doctor Strange throws the Winds of Watoomb over Bleecker Street and winks at Tony. As the dust clears a look of amusement appears on Tony’s face for only a moment. Two other-worldly creatures exit the ship by transmat.

“Once again,” Y/N says, “What the shit?”

“Hear me, and rejoice. You are about to die at the hands of the Children of Thanos. Be thankful, that your meaningless lives are now contributing to—” Maw begins.

“I'm sorry, Earth is closed today,” Tony interrupts, “You better pack it up and get outta here.”

“Stonekeeper,” Maw looks at Strange and motions to Tony, “Does this chattering animal speak for you?”

“Certainly not. I speak for myself,” Strange says. He readily forms magic shields at his fists. Strange steps forward as an act of intimidation. “But you’re trespassing in this city and on this planet.”

“It means get lost, Squidward!” Tony taunts.

“He exhausts me,” Maw sighs. Cull speaks in a foreign language, untranslatable by the group. Maw nods, “Bring me the Stone.”

Cull speaks in the foreign language once again before dropping his giant hammer, dragging it towards the heroes.

“Banner,” Tony calls, “You want a piece?”

“No, not really, but when do I ever get what I want?” Bruce says.

“That’s right,” Tony says. Bruce attempts to bring out the Hulk, but he barely turns his neck green. Y/N and Tony share a look, then turn back to Banner. “Been a while. Good to have you, buddy.”

“You got this,” Y/N says, clapping her hands a couple times to encourage him.

“I just... I need to concentrate here for one second,” Bruce says, “Come on, come on, man.”

“Where’s your guy?” Tony asks.

“I don't know. We've sorta been having a thing,” Bruce says.

“There’s no time for a thing!” Y/N scolds.

“I know,” Bruce says.

Tony motions to Cull approaching, “That’s the thing right there. Let’s go.”

Bruce grunts, but can’t pull out the Hulk. Strange looks at Tony and Y/N, then Bruce.

Tony glances at strange, “Dude, you're embarrassing me in front of the wizards.”

“Tony, I'm sorry,” Bruce says, “Either I can't or he won't—”

“It's okay. Hey, stand down,” Tony says.

“Watch him,” Y/N says to Wong.

“I have him,” Wong nods.

Bruce sighs, “Damn it.”

Cull approaches the team, Tony’s nanotech suit forming around his body. A shield grows on one arm grows and a set of blasters. He blasts the alien back, Maw deflecting him and blasting him into cars.

“Where'd that come from?” Bruce asks.

“It's nano-tech,” Tony says, “You like it? A little someth—”

“There’s no time for this,” Y/N says. Maw creates a spike of earth that throws Tony into the air, and flies treesar the rest of the team. Wong summons the Shield of the Seraphim and Y/N stops those that are about to hit her.

“Dr. Banner, if the rest of your green friend won't be joining us…” Strange says. Strange teleports Bruce away from the fight. Tony rejoins the fight by pushing a car that Maw threw, Maw cuts it in half and remains untouched by the pieces that flew by.

“Get that stone out of here now,” Y/N demands. She lifts a finger and a car launches at Maw, who cuts it in half and sighs with boredom.

“It stays with me,” Strange says.

“Exactly. Bye,” Tony says. He flies through the objects Maw lifted in the air, Y/N trying her best to fly them out of the way as he goes. Cull’s hammer knocks Tony through a building and into the park. Y/N grunts and runs towards the alien who hits her with the hammer as well. She uses her powers to keep herself from slamming into the ground as Bruce runs over to Tony.

“Tony, you okay? How we doing? Good? Bad?” he questions worriedly.

“Really, really good. Really good. Do you plan on helping out?” Tony replies.

“I'm trying,” Bruce says, “He won't come out.”

Cull throws his hammer towards the two. Tony quickly shoves Bruce out of the way, but Y/N raises her arms to slam it into the ground before it could near them. Tony looks at her with a start and she sends him a wink in response. Tony shoots an energy beam that deflects off Cull’s shield, slicing down trees. Bruce gets close to being crushed, but moves out of the way in time. Tony is knocked down by Cull. The alien raises his hammer to hit Tony in the head, but is instead caught by Peter Parker.

“Hey, man,” Peter chirps, “What's up, Mr. Stark?”

“Kid, where'd you come from?” Tony asks.

“Field trip to MoMA,” Peter says. Cull grabs Peter and throws him out of the way. “What is this guy's problem, Mr. Stark?”

“He's from space. He came here to steal a necklace from a wizard,” Tony explains.

“Strange is getting his ass handed to him,” Y/N announces, lifting Cull into the air and slamming him back down. She reaches a hand out to Peter as the alien falls over and over.

“Hey Mrs. Barnes!” Peter says.

“Why does everyone call me that?” Y/N growls, running back towards Cull once Peter is on his feet.

“Kid, that's the wizard. Get on it,” Tony says as Strange flies above their heads.

“On it!” Peter says. Peter chases after Maw who’s following behind Strange.

“I can handle this,” Tony says, “Go watch the kid.”

Y/N nods and lifts off the ground, following behind the chasers. Maw retaliates by throwing a billboard at Peter.

“Not cool man!” Peter exclaims, untangling himself and continuing his pursuit. Maw bends poles to snag the cloak from Strange. Y/N gasps and falls down, using her powers to hold up Strange rather than herself. Peter scoops up Strange, but Y/N doesn’t catch herself in time. Her back hits the pavement and she groans, rolling onto her stomach.

Before Peter can escape with the unconscious Strange a blue light pulls ‘the wizard’ up. Peter grips a light pole to keep himself on Earth, but Maw pulls it out of the ground.

“Peter!” Y/N yells, lifting off the ground for the second time. She launches herself into the beam.

“Uh, Mr. Stark?” Peter says, “We’re being beamed up!”

taglist: @marcelaverzani @petersunderoos96 @sxdieeuwu @trash1ty @just-a-littlebit-of-everything @gabealien12 @heathens-takeitsl0w @moonstarsandsongs @hailmary-yramliah @for-the-love-of-the-fandom @bitch4bagels @marv-ells :)

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silentsunplays · 4 years

Text

Blinding Lights Ch. 2

Part One: Here AFO3: Here

Tony sits at his desk in his office at SI. He had found an easy way to get Peter Parker to him. Offer him an internship here. Pepper had it all set up. Have Peter's school come in for a tour, watch the class, and offer the internship.

The doors opening makes him look up to find Natasha there. Her soft nod has him standing and following her down to the main floor. The shocked gasps that fill the room makes him chuckle.

"I take it nobody told you I am giving the tour?" Tony says, his eyes sweeping the crowd of students. The bright soft caramel-colored eyes stand out among the black and white. Awestruck and amazement fills those eyes.

"No. We didn't think you did this kind of thing." A voice responds. Tony looks at the male. Flash Thompson. A good student, but a bully to Peter.

"I'm showing you all around. However, one of you will be leaving here with an internship. Don't bother lying, I already looked up all your files. Before we start, any questions?" Tony says, clapping his hands. Peter's reaction is the best. His eyes widen before his hand flies up.

"Yes, Mr. Parker?" Pepper says.

"What made you come back to New York suddenly?" Peter asks, his voice soft. Tony decides then, he's willing to kill for Peter.

"I saw a YouTube video about your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man," Tony responds. Watching Peter flush makes pride swell in his chest. He waves the class through to the back, starting the tour.

The longer the tour goes on, the closer Peter moves. The amazement that shines in his eyes makes Tony's world a little brighter. Pepper followed with Natasha, the couple helping with questions. At the end of the tour, Peter was close enough to touch.

"That's the tour! Any final questions before I reveal who gets the internship?" Tony asks, looking out over to class. Everyone looks excited, but Peter looked ready to jump off of the walls.

"What made you decide to do the internship?" Michelle Jones asks, raising an eyebrow. She's one of Peter's friends.

"It was actually my idea. I like the idea of having new minds joining our team." Pepper says, smiling.

"Who gets the internship?" A new voice asks. Ned Leeds, Peter's other friend. Tony smiles.

"As I said before this tour started, I looked at all of your records. I have to say, all of you are very bright. Sadly, only one internship spot is open. I spent long hours with Pepper over this." Tony says.

"How many did you spend yelling?" Natasha jokes.

"Enough that I don't want to do it again." Pepper states.

"You're stuck with me, Pep. We're friends. Anyways, congratulations to Peter Parker. Welcome to Stark Industries." Tony reveals. Peter gasps softly before his classmates, besides Flash, cheer for him. Peter grins, his eyes lighting up.

“Thank you! Truly. When do I start?” Peter asks, his eyes locking with Tony’s. He can hear the kid’s heartbeat pick up, the sharp intake of breath, and the rush of blood. Step one of the Mate link is in place. The next step is to touch in some way, then the drinking of blood, and finally, the Mating Process.

“You can stay today to learn everything you need, or you can come in tomorrow. You’re choice.” Tony says, shrugging.

Tony wasn’t surprised when Peter stayed behind when his bus left. He had called his aunt to let her know. Watching Peter walk around his office as he talked to his aunt sparked a good feeling in Tony’s chest.

“I’ll see you when I get home, Aunt May. I’ll be good. I know. Love you too.” Peter says before hanging up. He sits in the seat across from Tony.

“Sounds like your aunt cares about you a lot, kid,” Tony says, making Peter smile.

“She does. I’m all she has left…” Peter responds.

“Does she know that you’re Spider-Man?” Tony asks.

“No. She’d freak out. Wait! How’d you know?” Peter cries out. Tony chuckles, leaning forward in his chair, resting his arms on his desk.

“Peter, you do realize that I’m a genius, right? Plus, you reacted when I said you brought me here. No lying by the way. You did bring me here. I want to help you create a new suit.” Tony states. The flush that erupts on Peter’s face makes Tony want to kiss him. He can’t. Not yet at least.

“Mr. Stark, you don’t have to,” Peter says.

“Peter, you’re a good hero. I think giving you a new suit is the least of my worries.” Tony comments. Peter smiles softly, his flush growing darker. At his nod, Tony has FRIDAY open up blueprint ideas, most of them, ones he drew up while waiting for the tour to start. They talk about all the possibilities the suit could have before Peter finally settles on the first design Tony made up, the first night he was back in the state. Tony wasn’t tired after drinking blood. Honestly, now that he really thinks about it, he feels stronger and more powerful since he started back up with his regular drinking. He knew his clan could feel it as well, he saw how fast they were getting. Tony was even getting mail from Vampires all over, thanking their King for the boosts in power and congratulating him on finding his Mate.

When Peter leaves, the sun has set. Tony has Happy drive Peter home before he disappears into his lab. He works in silence for a while, FRIDAY speaking up to let him know when Peter reaches home safely and when Happy returns. Tony creates a new suit for Peter, taking a break to eat food and drink blood. He doesn’t look up when he hears the lab doors open.

“You’re actually drinking blood. I thought you were lying to FRIDAY.” Pepper says, making Tony look up from his work.

“I wasn’t lying. I need to be in the best condition if we end up going to war with Shield.” Tony responds, standing up.

“It explains the letter I just grabbed from the mail. Tony, it’s from the Vampiric Council.” Pepper states, holding up the envelope with the crest of the Council on it. Tony grabs it, ripping it open.

‘King Stark,

We have felt the increase of power throughout all Vampires. We are writing to thank you, and congratulations on finding your Mate. We know of the things you do in America, but do know that we are offering our services if we are needed. We are willing to serve you, our King.

Sincerely, The Vampiric Council’

Tony blinks before handing the letter to Pepper. He picks up his bottle, downing the rest of the blood in it. The look on Pepper’s face is slightly shocked. Perks of being a King, he had a lot of people willing to fight for him and his Mate.

“Tony, you do realize that all of the Vampires know, right? When you get stronger, so do we. You have all of the Vampires behind you, everyone is willing to help protect your Mate. Tony, with what you have stored away, plus the Avengers that will stick with us, and not to mention the Vampires, Shield is not going to win this war.” Pepper states. Tony smirks as he throws the empty bottle in the trash.

“The best part is I have a secret weapon in the making. They won’t know what hits them until it’s too late.” Tony says, chuckling. He has been working on this secret project for a year now, and so far, it’s coming along great.

“What do you have planned?” Pepper questions, curious about Tony was creating.

“I know this is going to sound crazy, but I found some liquid smart metal, and I have ties in places I really shouldn’t but I do. It’s going to be a symbiote infused suit.” Tony says, pointing to the plans laying on the desk. Pepper bites her bottom lip as she looks at it.

“Are you sure that this is a good idea? I understand wanting to protect people, Tony, but this seems extreme.” Pepper says, turning to face her friend. Tony chuckles, running a hand through his hair. The flash of blue in his eyes tells her everything. His darker side was pushing forward, and when it does get out, Shield isn’t going to be left standing.

“Do you trust me, Pep?” Tony questions.

“With my life and the life of my Mate,” Pepper responds, hugging her friend. Tony hugs back, a soft smile on his face.

Tony that his Mate felt the connection between them grow. That day, Tony explained to Peter what he was, and what Peter is for him.

“Oh yeah? What would that be?” Tony asks, pulling Peter close to him. The large bambi eyes lock with his dark brown eyes. He loves the soft caramel color of his eyes.

“When will you finish the mating process?” Peter whispers, wrapping his arms around Tony’s neck.

“Bambino, by human laws we have to wait until you’re eighteen. I know you don’t care what others think, but I am working hard to keep you safe. You are my world, Amore Mio.” Tony responds, kissing Peter’s forehead. Peter hums softly, laying his head on Tony’s chest.

“Human laws suck. I would much rather stay in your arms all day.” Peter sighs, closing his eyes. Tony chuckles, enjoying the warmth from Peter.

“Nobody said that they didn’t” He replies, rubbing small circles on Peter’s back.

“Tony! We have a problem! Shield is in the lobby.” Pepper states, appearing in the room. She used her speed to reach him. Tony's eyes turn black, rage coursing through him.

"Distract them. Use the Vampires, do whatever you can to give me time." Tony orders. Pepper's eyes turn violet, nodding.

"What do you have planned?" She questions.

"I'm taking the next step in the Mating Process. I'm drinking some of his blood." Tony states, making Peter gasp softly.

"You know after the bite you have a month to finish the Mating Process before he gets sick, right?" Pepper points out. Black eyes bleed back to dark brown.

"I know, Pep. Now go, nobody can see this. Do as I said." Tony retorts. Pepper nods and disappears, letting Tony look back at Peter.

"Not what you had planned," Peter whispers.

"I know. But if they take you, it's the easiest way for me to find you. When we mate, you will have to drink from me." Tony explains. Peter smiles and tilts his head to the side. He doesn’t say anything, but Tony knows what Peter wants. Letting his eyes turn black once more, his fangs sharpening. A soft kiss is placed on Peter’s neck before fangs sink into the soft pale skin.

The taste that explodes on Tony’s tongue is sweet and rich. He could feel the bond between them grow stronger. Hands grip at Tony’s shirt, soft gasps sound in his ear. Drinking slowly, Tony holds onto Peter’s waist, keeping his Mate upright. Feeling the Mate Bond lock into place, Tony pulls his fangs out and licks the bite mark closed, revealing the Mate Mark. Tony looks at Peter, who appears to be in a daze.

“Peter?” Tony whispers, picking his Mate up and moving them to his couch. Peter’s eyes flutter, the dazed look leaving his eyes. He smiles softly up at Tony.

“I’m okay. I feel closer to you, though.” Peter says, cuddling close to Tony’s chest. Carding a hand through Peter’s hair, Tony places a kiss on Peter’s forehead.

“I need to go. Tell FRIDAY when you’re ready to leave. She’ll take you through a safe route.” Tony states, gaining a nod from Peter. One more kiss on Peter’s forehead, Tony lays his Mate on the couch before racing down to the lobby.

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littlemsstark3000 · 4 years

Note

After a while conflicted and jealous Pepper gives Tony and Nat her blessing after she saw them in different situations loving and taking care of each other

Sorry, this one took a looong while.

*****

Timeline: Post-Avengers: Age of Ultron

“Nat! Natasha!”

Pepper turned from reading a book to Tony who suddenly stirred and screamed beside her on the bed.

“Tony,” she started shaking his arm. “Hey, wake up…”

His eyes opened then looked at her; his breathing was heavy.

She lightly wiped her hand over on his forehead then brushed his hair with her fingers. She noticed that he was also sweating cold. “Calm down, it was just a nightmare. You’re okay,” she tried to pacify him.

Her boyfriend sat up, both arms almost hugging his knees to his chest.

“What is it?” she closed the book and placed it on the bedside table, focusing her attention to him.

Tony’s eyes were now staring forward blankly. “I saw them. Dead.”

“Who?”

“The team… They’re all dead, because of me…” he dropped his head to his knees, hiding his face from her. “I couldn’t do anything about it.”

“Hey, no, your team’s fine.” Pepper ran her hand on his back, rubbing gently. “It was just a dream.”

It took a while before he looked up to her again.

“I… I’m sorry, Pep. You should go back to sleep.”

She did not say anymore that she hasn’t slept yet; it was one of the rare nights that he went to bed ahead of her.

“You should, too.”

Tony sighed and forced a smile. “I’ll stay up for a while.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah.” He kissed her forehead. “Thanks.”

She curled up on her side of the bed, but could not sleep too, even when she felt Tony lied down beside her. After almost half an hour, she felt him got up again. She peeked to see where he was heading, thinking that he might go back to the workshop and spend the night there again with his projects.

He did not though. Instead, he just walked to the glass door overlooking the city with his phone on hand. A few minutes later, he was already on the phone talking with the woman whose name he was screaming earlier in his sleep.

“Nat? Hey… Hi. I was just checking if…”

Pepper barely heard anything more as he walked out of the room to the balcony. She opted to think that Tony would check up with the rest of the team, too.

>>>>>

“JARVIS, where's Tony?” Pepper inquired from Tony’s virtual butler as she entered his penthouse, coming from SI.

“Sir is on the way to the kitchen from the workshop. He is with Ms. Romanoff.” Jarvis promptly responded.

Her eyebrows furrowed. She was not informed that he accepted a work-related meeting at home or that he was seeing the woman this day. “Natasha is here?”

“Yes, Ms. Potts. Ms. Romanoff was called by Sir to come over and she arrived approximately 30 minutes ago.”

She proceeded to their area as informed by JARVIS and before she could get to the kitchen, she stopped as she overheard the on-going conversation.

“It's my second update in three months. You spoil me.”

Pepper recognized Natasha’s voice.

“One step ahead of the rest, so please don't brag yet.” Tony replied. It sounded like he was moving around, preparing food or something.

“Seriously... thanks, Tony.”

“No biggie. Coffee? If you aren't in a hurry.”

“I can stay for a cup.”

“Again, you're getting ahead of everyone else. Nobody in the team has tasted this special brew by yours truly.”

Pepper could almost hear smile from her boyfriend’s tone.

“You flatter me so much for a day.”

“Why not? You're my favourite Russian.”

“Oh, we both know I am not. The actual ones are bottled, lined up at your bar.” Natasha chuckled.

A mug clinked against the marble counter. “Here you go, darling.”

And Pepper knew, Tony was not joking at all. The redhead spy was his favourite Russian… probably favourite Avenger, too.

>>>>>

“You are -” Pepper started when Tony appeared by the door of the VIP area.

“Late for the call time,” the genius billionaire continued. “Of course. It’s not me if I’m not late.”

She just smirked with pure sarcasm.

“I made it! I’m here, Pep. That’s what matters.” He approached her and gave her a kiss on both cheeks.

She crossed her arms to her chest and tried her CEO tone that worked for him sometimes. “Tony, may I just remind you that these are Stark Industries apprentices. Everything we do from this day onward that will be visible to those 50, top-of-their-class, students will either make or break their belief of the organization. For a hundredth time, I am telling you: please don’t screw this up.”

“Agreed. So, let’s go and get this significant activity started.” He smiled his most Tony Stark smile, closed lip, eyes covered with dark glasses, as he offered his arm to her.

Pepper just shook her head while they walked out to the corridor which will lead to the conference hall. Technically, they were still on-time for the start of the program; she was just worried that Tony would not make it to this event. Lately, especially after their break-up, he has been very much occupied with either saving the world being Iron Man or developing his suits plus his teammates' weapons.

She was missing him, yes, but the decision to separate - permanently this time - was theirs both. It was for the best. It was to make sure that their priorities will be attended to. It was to keep their sanity. It was to avoid hurting each other all the more.

Her random musing was interrupted when Tony's secure line rang.

"Cap. Where? Send me the coordinates. I’m going."

Those were the only things she heard as his face spelled instant worry.

"Tony…"

"Pep, I’m really, really sorry. I have to go."

Pepper felt her heart sunk in her chest. "What is it this time? And where are you going?"

"Natasha’s been compromised. I… we need to send her back up."

Her expression probably turned grimmer upon hearing the woman's name. But as she stared at her ex-boyfriend's face, anxiety was etched on it, like he could literally fly out of there in seconds even if she did not respond.

"Go." That was all she managed to say. She knew nothing, and no one, can stop him at this point.

"I’ll make it up -"

"Don't promise anything. Just go now, Tony."

True enough, he was gone in seconds.

>>>>>

“Mr. Stark?”

Pepper saw how Tony’s face lit up when he recognized the two people by his hospital suite’s door.

“Hey, Pete.” He greeted as Peter approached him, followed by Natasha. “Tash.”

“Hi, Ms. Potts.” The young man politely acknowledged her presence beside his mentor.

“Hello, Peter, Nat,” she greeted back, too.

Natasha smiled at her.

“I should leave you for now. Also need to respond to some work mails.” Pepper turned to their patient to say goodbye. “Tony.”

“Go ahead, Pep. I already kept you long enough here.” He reached out to grip her hand lightly. “Thanks.”

She stepped to the other side of the suite to gather her things on the couch and table then stuff them in her tote bag. Against the thin wall which divided the area into two, she could still hear their interaction.

“Good to see you, buddy.”

“Ms. Romanoff fetched me after class.”

“I knew he would want to see you so, instead of calling to let him know what happened, I went to pick him up instead.”

“How are you feeling?” Peter checked up.

“Nothing serious. I should be out of here since yesterday if not for some overreacting Avengers.”

“Shut up, Stark.”

Tony chuckled. “See? That's exactly what I mean. They don’t even listen to me!”

“Oh please.”

Pepper could just imagine Natasha rolling her eyes.

“You hungry? I can have food delivered here. Name what you want.” Tony offered.

“We already stopped by somewhere.”

“Yep! Burger King!” Peter exclaimed.

“Come on... That's not fair.”

Of course, the billionaire had to overreact. She just shook her head.

“Hold it! We got you a cheeseburger, too!”

Natasha made a sound of disapproval. “Peter, I told you we need to check with the doctor first if he can eat greasy food before you take that out.”

“Oh... Yeah. Sorry, I got excited.”

“There's no turning back now, Spiderling. Hand that over to me.”

“Tony.” The spy rebutted again. “You are under medication.”

“Nobody will know. Right?”

Pepper managed to peek at them as she made her way to exit, seeing Tony bit stubbornly on the cheeseburger.

“Seriously, I’m feeling way much better now having this and seeing my favourite spiders – ouch!”

She closed the door as Natasha hit Tony with a throw pillow.

In her head, she could not deny how the three looked much like a family.

>>>>>

It was Tony’s birthday and he opted to hold a charity gala instead of his usual extravagant party.

As Pepper watched him interact with the other Avengers, she realized how much this man has changed from being a self-centred bastard to a selfless hero, and she was more than glad to see that transformation.

Except that she also noticed how his eyes longingly glanced towards Natasha’s way from time to time…

The female Avenger seemed to be avoiding Tony. From afar, she sensed how the two naturally gravitated to each other, but for some reason, Natasha would suddenly move away.

She decided that it was time to ask, and she opted to go to Tony as she still has not developed a closer relationship with the Russian throughout the years.

“Tony, are you okay?” She asked after discreetly pulling him to a corner with less people.

“Yeah, of course. Why would I not be okay?”

Pepper noted how he just forced a smile before drinking from his glass of whisky.

“Because of Nat.”

There was a pause before he attempted to deny her observation. “Pep –“

“I’ve been watching you two.”

He sighed heavily and looked down on the remaining ice in his glass.

“She… she turned me down.”

Did she mishear him?

“She… what?”

“Yeah.” Tony nodded still avoiding her eyes. “Just this week. She said she cannot do it.”

“W-why?”

“She cannot do it to you.”

“Are you serious?”

Why, she never expected that!

“Yep. Cannot joke about this.” He forced a smile again and exchanged his empty glass with another from the server who passed by.

The thought rendered Pepper quiet for a few moments. Tony then realized that he made a mistake of telling the matter to her upfront.

“No. Sorry, Pep. I shouldn’t have –”

“I… It’s been months… We’re fine.” She verbalized.

“But, you know, I can’t force it to her if she’s not comfortable. I get it.”

“Tony, no. It should not be the case. We’re long over us, and you deserve to move on.” She emphasized. “I see how much you have always cared for each other. You love her, and I believe she feels the same.”

He shook his head and smiled bitterly. Typical Anthony Edward Stark who did not believe that he deserved to be happy, too…

And she needed to do something about it.

#iron man #black widow #tony stark #natasha romanoff #tonynat #tonynatasha #iron widow #avengers #otp #mcu #marvel #au #fic #ask #prompt #ironwidow #tony stark/natasha romanoff

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youvebeenlivingfictional · 5 years

Text

An Unspoken Rule Part Nineteen

Previous Part | Next Part | Masterlist

Notes: Sorry this is late! Just got two kittens and they’re running me ragged.

Warnings: There is smut in this chapter, under the cut. You’ve been warned.

(also wow i haven’t written a sex scene in a while wow)

Summary: “Would you say we’ve been taking it slow?” He asked. I leaned back to get a good look at him. “I’d say we’ve been going at a glacial pace.”

“Hey there. Saw that you called.”

I smiled, tucking the phone between my shoulder and my ear as I opened my apartment door. “Hi,” I said, “You caught me in the middle of leaving the 112th voicemail.” I heard William laugh on his end. “Now who’s keeping track of everything?” “Not everything, just those. How’d the talk go?” I listened as Will told me about the talks he’d given most recently, and some of the recruits that had asked to speak with him separately. I told him that little Tommy Benson threw up on Becca’s shoes, and had started to tell him about the plans for Jake’s birthday party, but the words died in my mouth.

“…Hey, you still there? Can you hear me?” Will asked on the other end.

“I— Yes, sorry I was checking my mail, just uh. Got distracted.” “Everything okay?” “Yeah, fine,” I said. I tossed the mail onto the table, with an invite to Layla’s wedding at the top of the pile. “When are you coming home?” I asked.

“In a week.” I didn’t bother covering the annoyed whine that I made in response as I plopped onto my couch.

“Come on, it’s not that long,” he added, “You used to go way longer than that without seeing me.”

“That was different,” I pointed out.

“I’ll be back in time for Jake’s birthday party,” Will promised.

“Good,” I smiled, “because he is very excited to show his big brothers off to all of his friends.”

——-

“Well she’s not being subtle, is she,” LeeAnn sniffed as she came to stand beside me. I frowned, turning away from the plate John was loading with hot dogs and burgers.

“Who’s not?” I asked. LeeAnn nodded into the yard. I followed her gaze and grimaced before looking down at the plate.

Will had always been popular in high school. He was cute, he was smart and he was genuinely nice. When he’d come back engaged to Layla, his fellow alumni started putting money on whether or not they’d break up, and who would get their claws in him first if they did.

Jane Harris had been in my year. She’d never been my favorite person, but my opinion of her was dropping by the second as she rubbed her hand up and down William’s arm. I could just barely hear the words, “So strong.”

“It’s shameless,” LeeAnn hissed, “You can’t bring your nephew and then spend the entire time flirting with someone.”

“Apparently she can,” I said simply. I could hear LeeAnn going on, but I stopped listening. I wasn’t there to make a scene. I smiled at John before I stepped around him to set the food down on the table. I reached into the cooler, pulling out a beer and drying it off before I opened it and took a sip.

“Oh my god I haven’t seen you forever!”

I startled, nearly spitting my beer out as my hip was bumped, and I turned to see Jane standing beside me with a smile on her face. I smiled in turn, nodding.

“Yep, been a while.”

“Which is ridiculous, I mean, we live so close by—“

“Uh huh.”

“So I have a questiooooon,” she dragged the word out like I hadn’t seen this coming, “Do you know if Will’s seeing anyone?” I paused, weighing my options as to how to respond. Before I could say anything, she added,

“Because he keeps looking over here, and I think we both know who he’s looking at.”

“I don’t know if we both know that,” I said. Jane glanced casually around the yard before she let out a little gasp, turning back to me.

“He’s coming over, play cool,” She hissed, as though I was the one having trouble being ‘cool’. I heard the cooler lid flip open, some rummaging around, and then the dull ‘thud’ of it closing.

I watched Jane’s grin widen, then fall when a hand rested on my lower back.

“There any more Heinekens, baby?” I looked down at the beer in my hand.

“Think I snagged the last one. Here,” I said, offering it him.

“You sure?” He asked. I hummed, nodding. He smiled, leaning in and kissing me before he took the beer and headed back to help John.

Jane looked stunned, and I should not have liked that feeling so much.

“Come to think of it, I do believe he’s seeing someone,” I said thoughtfully before I turned back to the cooler to find another beer.

——-

“All done back here?” I asked, stepping onto the back porch. Will looked up from where he’d been taking down the last table and nodded.

“All set,” he said, straightening. I couldn’t help the way my smile widened as he came closer. It had been nearly four months since we’d started seeing one another, but I still found myself stunned that it had happened at all.

Will stopped a step below mine and wrapping his arms around me, pressing his face into my shoulder. I reached down, running my fingers through his hair.

“Tired?” I asked. He hummed, mumbling,

“Long day.” I turned my head, pressing a kiss to his hair. I felt him smile against my skin before he tipped his chin up for a proper kiss.

“Wanna go home?” He asked. He’d started that a few weeks before, calling my place ‘home’. I never questioned it; it didn’t bother me one bit.

(If you skipped the note at the top of this part, please be warned: It gets very smutty beyond this point. If you don’t like, please do not read on! Thank you)

——-

We couldn't stop giggling, either of us. I was fumbling with my keys, trying to find the right one and cursing the fact that I had five different membership key tags and eight different keys. Let's not even get started on my keychain charms.

Will pressed close to me, hands hot on my hips, lips skimming over the back of my neck, the shell of my ear.

"What's taking you so long, huh?" He teased, thumbs dipping into the waistband of my jeans. I nearly dropped my keys after he brushed his thumb over the waistband of my underwear.

"You're kidding, right?" I huffed. I finally nudged him back, ignoring his displeased grunt as I got the door open. The two of us stumbled in, one right after the other. I stepped back to shut the door behind us. Will didn't turn to look around my apartment, only took a couple of steps back, watching me expectantly. I locked the door, tossing the keys into the bowl beside my door before I walked closer to him. I smiled as he drew me in, sliding my hands up his arms. “Oh, Will, you’re so strong,” I teased, giving his biceps a squeeze. He grunted, dipping his head and kissing the corner of my mouth. “You heard that, huh?” He murmured. I snorted. “It was brought to my attention, yeah.” “You know I only got eyes for you.” He lips wandered lower, mouthing at my collarbone. “Would you say we’ve been taking it slow?” He asked. I leaned back to get a good look at him. “I’d say we’ve been going at a glacial pace.” Will tipped his head up, kissing me so thoroughly that my toes curled. “How would you feel about speeding things up a bit?” He asked.

The trip back to my room took nearly as long as it had taken me to open the front door. By the time we made it, WIll’s shirt had long since been discarded, along with my shirt and his belt.

I nudged Will back toward my bed, grinning as he tumbled back onto it. I knelt, straddling his thighs as he sat back up.

Will’s lips wandered my neck and shoulders as I worked at his button and zip. He reached around, and I couldn’t help but snort as he fumbled with my bra. “Gimme a break, it’s been a while,” He mumbled, and I could hear the embarrassment in his voice. I reached back, unhooking my bra and shrugging it off. “You do that way too easily,” He grumbled. “I mean, I wear one, like, every day. I’ve had plenty of practice,” I said simply. Will didn’t answer, instead leaning up and taking one of my nipples into his mouth. I sighed, running my fingers through his hair as he kissed across my chest to the other. I couldn’t help but grind down where I felt him hardening in his jeans. “Will—“ I whined, but he leaned back, shushing me. “I wanna take my time.” “I thought the whole part of this was to pick up the pace,” I argued. He gave my waist a squeeze before one of his hands dipped into the back of my jeans to grip my ass. “You don’t think this is picking up the pace?” He pointed out. I huffed as I pressed back into his hands. “You know what I mean.” “Have a little patience, baby. I just wanna take care of you,” He murmured. He leaned up, brushing his lips over mine sweetly. I leaned in to the kiss. At least, I tried to. Before I could kiss him properly, he leaned away, a mischievous smile on his lips. I narrowed my eyes, leaning in for another kiss. Before I could get one, he leaned away. I pouted down at him, and he chuckled before he leaned up, giving me a teasing touch at first before he slipped his tongue between my lips. I groaned, satisfied. Will’s hands slid firmly under thighs, lifting me as he stood before turning and setting me down on my bed. His hands made short work of jeans, dropping them over the side of my bed.

Will crawled up the bed, covering my body with his own as he began to pepper me with kisses. His hands, though calloused, were gentle as they slid over me. I’d never had anyone take their time with me, or so soft. It made me feel almost embarrassed: how sweetly he was kissing me, how gentle his touches were. But try as I might, I couldn’t take my eyes off of him. I sucked in a quiet breath as his lips brushed the top of my panties. He gazed up at me through his lashes, a mysterious smile overtaking his lips they parted. “Oh— okay, there’s no way you’re going to be able to—“ Will cut me off with a grunt as he clasped the elastic with his teeth and pulled down. I shifted my hips to help him a bit, shaking my head and laughing in disbelief as Will leaned back with my panties between his teeth. He dropped them over the bed the way he had my jeans before he settled back down between my legs. “Wanna rethink that statement?” He teased. I rolled my eyes, lightly swatting at his head. “You’re such a show-off.” He didn’t bother with a response, instead turning his head and brushing his lips along my inner thigh. He froze when I tensed, eyes darting back to my face. “You okay?” He asked softly. I nodded hurriedly. “Yeah! Yeah, I’m uh… I’ve never had a great experience. With… That.” “What do you mean?” Will looked concerned, and my hands flew up to my face. “Can we not do this when we’re getting… You know?” I requested. There was a pause before I felt William kissing my neck again. “Sure,” He agreed. I lowered my hands from my face, drawing him into a lingering kiss. “Can you take your pants off now, please?” I requested as sweetly as I could, batting my eye lashes at him. He chuckled. “Anything you want,” He agreed, pecking my lips one more time before he leaned away again. I watched, not bothering to hide my lust as he slid off of the bed and undid his pants. “Those, too,” I ordered, waving my hand in the direction of his underwear. He chuckled, pushing them down as requested before he stepped back to the bed. I rolled onto my stomach and reached out before he could lay back down. I took hold of his dick, rubbing my thumb over the top and smearing some precum. “This alright?” I asked, glancing up at him. I didn’t get a verbal response, and I grinned at his stunned expression and hasty nod. I tipped my head up, tonguing along the vein on the underside of his cock before I took him into my mouth. Will groaned, and I echoed him as his fingers weaved through my hair. I pushed myself up on my free hand, bobbing my head as I took him in further. I felt him gather my hair, pushing it all to one side so that he could get a better look at me. “Fuck, baby,” He murmured, and I preened at the cursed praise. I couldn’t help but squeeze my thighs together, clit neglected and throbbing as I worked his penis. I took my hand off of him, bringing it down to my clit and moaning as I circled it. “Are you getting off on this?” Will asked in disbelief. I swirled my tongue around the head of his cock in lieu of an answer. Will gently tugged my hair, pulling me off of his dick. He kept the pressure up until I was upright, kneeling on the bed. “You felt so good, baby,” He murmured. I was quiet as he pushed my fingers away from my clit, replacing them with his own.

“Will you let me make you feel good now?” He asked. I nodded, smiling as he wrapped his arms around me and settled me back down. “I know we were kidding before, but you are very strong and it is… Really nice. I’m enjoying it,” I said simply. He chuckled, circling my clit as I had before. “I can see that,” He teased. I leaned back against the pillows, less hesitant as I spread my legs for him. Will kissed my thighs again before he gently slipped a finger inside me. I pushed up into him as he began to pump it in and out, his thumb smoothing over my clit as he did. “Good?” He asked. I hummed in affirmation. “Think you can take another?” “Yes,” I breathed. He took his time with me, opening me up with almost methodical slowness. By the time he gotten the condom on, I was a whining mess. I couldn’t bring myself to relax, wrapping my arms around him and pulling him closer. “I’ve got you,” He murmured. I moaned as he eased into me, head dropping back into the pillow. “Fuck, look at you,” He breathed, reverent, and I squeezed my eyes shut, focusing on the way our bodies fit together. Will stilled for a moment as he bottomed out, pressing his face into my neck and mouthing over my skin. “You alright?” I asked quietly. He nodded, mumbling, “Need a minute.” I ran my fingers through his hair, doing my best to hold still. I couldn’t help but squeeze around him, and he groaned, hips rolling. “You’re gonna kill me,” He laughed, leaning back to look down at me. “Least you’d be going with a bang, right?” I teased, smiling as he laughed. I surged up for a kiss, the both of us laughing still. The sound broke off into moans as he shifted his hips, pulling out most of the way before pressing back in. I met him thrust-for-painfully-slow thrust, unable to help my impatience as I ached.

“Will,” I groaned, sliding my hand down to his ass and giving it a squeeze, “Harder, please?” Will leaned back, wrapping his arms around my middle and pulling me up. I gasped at the change of position, sinking down onto him and tipping my head back. “Fuck,” I breathed as I fucked myself onto his cock, wrapping my arms around his shoulders and holding tightly to him. Will cupped my cheek, pulling me down into a hot kiss. His free hand snaked between his, fingers rubbing my clit relentlessly. I moaned, feeling warmth curl in the pit of my stomach.

“If you keep that up, I’m going to cum,” I warned. Will didn’t miss a beat, wrapping an arm around my waist to steady me before he began to fuck into me in earnest. My jaw dropped as I watched him. “Will,” I moaned, “Fuck, right there, right— Oh!” My head fell back as my orgasm washed over me. He moaned, pressing his face into my neck. I barely felt him say my name before he came apart beneath me. He was careful as he laid me back down before he slipped out of me. I peered my eyes open, watching him disappear into the bathroom. I opened them again as I felt the bed dip, and smiled at the sight of Will laying down beside me. He pulled me into his chest, and I curled up against him. “You good?” Will asked me quietly. I hummed in affirmation, sliding my hand down to his and intertwining our fingers. “You?” I asked, tipping my head up to look at him. He smiled down at me, brushing his lips over my forehead. “Never better, baby.” Tag list: @playbucky @calirindo

#an unspoken rule #william miller #Will Miller #william miller imagine #will miller x reader #william miller x reader #triple frontier fic

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p3pp3r-0ni-164 · 3 years

Note

Your art style is amazing and soooo cool!

Hey hey, thanks a lot I appreciate it !! 🥺💖💖

#pepper-responds-to-late-late-mails-yeah

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thecleverdame · 5 years

Text

Control and Release

TEDTalk!Sam x Reader

Series Masterlist

Summary: With the rest of the staff caught in a snowstorm, you find yourself acting as a personal assistant to the notorious Sam Winchester.

Warnings: Humiliation, embarrassment, sexual objectification, dub-con.

Words: 1800+

Beta: @ilikaicalie

“No way!” You close your eyes. This has to be a nightmare.

“You’re the only person who made it to the hotel. We’re all snowed in until morning, no one can get a flight out. You’re going to have to staff him until I get there. His schedule is pretty light compared to what it usually looks like. Half his meetings were canceled because of the storm.” Pepper rattles into the phone. She’s only a year or two older than you but she’s your boss’s boss. She’s Sam’s executive assistant, in charge of the entire assistant staff and she’s had it out for you since you started four months ago.

“I don’t think I can do this.” You gulp, shrugging your jacket off. You deliver mail and push the coffee cart around the building, the lowest rung on the corporate ladder.

“You don’t have a choice.” She snips. “You think this is what I want? I’m going to end up paying for this, even though it’s not even remotely my fault. I can’t control the weather...look I’m going to send you his schedule. Just make sure he’s on time. He’ll let you know if you’re doing something wrong, believe me. Just keep your mouth shut and do what he tells you to do. Whatever you do, don’t cry. He hates it when people cry.”

“Why would I cry?” You regret answering the phone and you already know the answer to your question.

Sam Winchester is a real son-of-a-bitch and everyone knows it.

To say his reputation proceeds him would be a gross understatement. He’s smart, successful, ruthless and above all, focused. You’ve worked for Winchester and Singer for six months and have yet to encounter him.

You’ve never even directly spoken to him, never seen him in person other than the monthly reviews he conducts with the entire company in attendance. Even then he’s just a man on a stage.

“I’m emailing you right now. Keep a copy of the schedule on you at all times.” She pauses to take a breath. “Are you listening to me?”

“Yeah, I’m listening. Have the schedule on hand, keep my mouth shut, and try not to burst into tears.”

“Just don’t fuck this up.” Pepper is as over-worked as everyone on the executive level. You can’t really blame her. This job is her life. “You need to check in with him tonight. Just knock on his door and ask if he needs anything. He’ll send you away, but he expects a check in just to be sure.”

“Okay.” You nod to yourself in a windowless hotel room. “I can do this.”

The elevator rises slowly to the penthouse floor of the Ambassador Hotel. It’s nearly midnight and his flight arrived only an hour ago. He was in Tokyo last week and was rerouted during the storms in Boston.

You knock twice on his door, waiting with bated breath and hoping he won’t answer. You’re about to leave when the deadbolt turns and the door opens to reveal Sam Winchester with a cell phone up to his ear. He pauses for a moment, looking you over head to toe before opening the door the rest of the way and walking away chattering to whoever is on the other line.

You stand in the hallway, unsure if the open door is an invitation. On cue he turns around, eyes narrowing as his nods his head.

Already off to a rough start.

Shutting the door behind you, you follow him into the living room, standing awkwardly, waiting for his call to end. When he finally hangs up, he presses his phone against his chest, staring at you like a zoo animal. “Pepper said you’re the only employee here?”

“Y-yes.” You choke out. “I was visiting family in New Mexico, so I flew in from-”

“We’ll have to make due I guess.” He cuts you off. “You have tomorrow’s schedule?”

“Ahuh.” You hold up your phone, forcing a smile.

“Ahuh?” He tilts his head. “I prefer actual words. Yes or no.”

Your cheeks flush hot, embarrassment settling in.

“Yes, Mr. Winchester.” You correct. “I have your schedule. Pepper asked me to check in and see if you need anything tonight.”

“No. I don’t need anything.” His stare is unrelenting. “Do you have something more appropriate to wear tomorrow?”

His question takes you off guard as you look down at the sweatshirt and jeans you’re currently wearing. “I, um, yes sir.”

There’s a nauseating combination of shame and anger settling into your gut. He really does live up to his reputation.

“Good. You better go. We have an early start tomorrow. I won’t need you until after the gym. I’ll be done by 6:15 and I expect you to be here.”

“Yes, sir.” You nod, looking at anything but his face. You’re an ant under a microscope, already feeling the heat.

“Good. You can go now.” He pulls out his phone, hits a number and begins speaking to someone in Japanese as you high tail it out of the room.

You don’t cry until you’re in the elevator. The doors shut as you fight back the urge to turn into a sobbing mess, instead of wiping away a few tears and composing yourself.

Three hours of sleep is all you manage. Between your nerves and being afraid you’ll sleep through the alarm, you’re up and showered at four and dressed by five.

Clutching a portfolio in your arms you step off the elevator. There’s a full-length mirror at the end of the hallway and you stop to make sure you’re presentable. You thought you’d be manning a promotional table during the conference, planned on wearing khakis and a pullover. You brought exactly one business professional outfit that you haven’t tried on in a year or two. It’s a plum-colored sleeveless sheath dress that’s tighter than you would prefer. It looks good but perhaps a little much for this trial by fire.

“This is as good as it gets.” You whisper, giving yourself a final look before finding Sam’s room.

You knock and he answers immediately, holding his glasses in hand.

“You’re late.” He quips, turning around to gather his suit jacket and briefcase.

“I,” You stop, checking your phone. “It’s 6:15.”

“In my world on time is late and early is expected.”

“I’m sorry.” You’re horrified. “I didn’t - I’m sorry.”

“I don’t want an apology. I want you to do better next time.” He eyes settle on your bare shoulders, then tick down to rest of your body. It’s a quick glance but you catch him. “I have files in the living room. Please make sure everything is in order and ready to go. Pack it all up, we don’t want to leave anything to chance.”

You wordlessly scamper around the room, carefully collecting half used notepads and countless pages of legal discourse that you couldn’t understand if your life depended on it. When you turn back around, clutching his files in your arms, he’s leaning against the doorframe between the entryway way and the living area, watching you intently.

Your cheeks burn hot. Sam is handsome, there’s no arguing that fact, but he’s also notoriously difficult to work for. You’ve never once heard even a whisper that he mixes business with pleasure. If anything he’s known for being controlled. Everyone’s heard of his type, high-level business execs that are uptight beyond belief.

But the way he’s looking at you...no. It’s in your head.

“I’ve got everything.” You nod, shoving the files into your leather bag.

“Good, I want to get down there early.” He checks his watch and strides out of the room without another word and you’re left scrambling after him. Instead of heading to the public elevator you took earlier, he turns in the opposite direction to head toward the private lift his penthouse room offers as a perk. You stand beside him as the doors close and he pushes the button for the ground level.

He turns toward you, looking concerned. “I asked you to wear something business professional.”

“I-” The humiliation continues. “I am. This is all I brought with me.”

“I see.” His eyes narrow.

“Would you like me to go grab a sweater to wear over it?” You ask softly.

“No.” He purses his lips, head tilting ever so slightly. “I wouldn’t be able to tell how tight your dress is if I couldn't see your panty line.”

You nearly choke on your own spit. Letting out a nervous cough as your breath speeds up. You force yourself to look at him, trying your damnedest to determine what this is. Is he coming on to you? Just a perfectionist who’s so caught up in the details that the outline of your lace underwear crosses some sort of invisible line?

“I didn’t realize you could see. I’m sorry.” You stare at the floor, praying to God this day ends quickly.

“Don’t be sorry.” He commands tone calm and even. “Take them off.”

The world stops. All the oxygen evaporates out of the room.

Your eyes go wide, shooting up to meet him and his expression is unreadable. In a split second, your body reacts against your will, heat blooming between your legs, shame tightening in your chest.

You wonder if he’s like a predator able to smell fear. Does he somehow know what kind of effect this will have on you? Is it the way you called him sir, or how quickly you responded to his commands?

“You want me to…” You can’t finish the sentence but he doesn’t need you to.

“Take them off.” He repeats.

“Right now...here?” You whisper.

“Yes.” He confirms, reaching out to take the bag from you.

You hesitate, but only for a second before reaching under your dress and hooking both hands in your panties. The elevator is nearly at the first floor, and sweat breaks out over your entire body at the idea of being caught.

Stepping out of your panties you hold them up, looking at him like a deer in the headlights. There’s nowhere to put them, you didn’t bring a purse, the conference is in the hotel so you left it the room. But Sam casually plucks them from your hand and stuffs them into the pocket of his suit pants as the elevator reaches the lobby and the doors slide open with a ding.

“Try to keep up.” He hands you back his briefcase, your messenger bag of files, and steps out into the general population as you follow.

Tags: @smallgirlbigpersonality @mereka18 @gryffindorable713 @trainlikeawinchester @winchesterprincessbride @bamby0304

@kittenofdoomage @notyourtypicalrose @mariekoukie6661 @little-big-mac2 @emoryhemsworth @mystriee @atc74 @holyfuckloueh @bunnybaby121115 @mogaruke @darkmystress00 @jaspesangriento @kazuha159 @mirandaaustin93 @crispychrissy @schilj79 @wilde-abandon @hennessy0274-blog @bojabee @miss-samantha-winchester @impalaimagining-mainblog @andkatiethings @astephez @ladycynthia @mrswhozeewhatsis @lenawiinchester @feelmyroarrrr @mrs-meghan-winchester @har-rystyles @mistressofallthingsgeeky @theamuz @maui137 @stars-and-seas @vale0413 @impala67trenchcoat @curly-haired-disaster @ericaprice2008 @livelikeawinchester @althehufflepuff @itsthesamegametoday @bohowitch @spnwoman @just-a-normal-eccentric @gallifreyansass @StoneyGGirl @lonely-skys @81mysteriouslyme @missrandomista @soupornatural @stars-and-seas @natura1phenomenon @jarpadandjensenaremyheroes @81mysteriouslyme @likhelbentin @mrooks0205 @zombiewerewolfqueen @winchesterprincessbride @squirrel-moose-winchester @fortisetgloriosusinarduis @closetspngirl @dominodoll @rainflowermoon @cleighwrites @camelotandastronauts @imarockstar45 @thebeastinside19 @courtney-padalecki @itsthesamegametoday @virtualgirlfriendsan @daisymoder72 @fandom-is-my-middle-name @mysticmcu @luciferseclipse @malinda1997

#sam winchester x reader #sam winchester smut #sam winchester fanfic #Kale!Sam #tedtalk!sam

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plane-lord · 5 years

Text

32 Days Since Titan

So, here’s the finished fic I was working on before I saw Endgame. I’ve done a little tweaking, but it’s canon compliant. Still working through my feelings, this helped a little...

https://archiveofourown.org/works/18601774

Thirty Two Days...

It’s been thirty-two days since Titan. Nine since Tony Stark returned to Earth, and the Avengers compound, half dead, starving, and dangerously dehydrated. Three days since he was released from medical. He isn’t up to full strength yet, and tires easily; which is how he’s found himself waking up from yet another nightmare, this time on his sofa. Part of him wants to blame Pepper, for being so blunt and telling him he needs to face his feelings, honor Peter, not hide the memory of him away.

Leave it to Pepper, to hit him with the hard truth — Lord knows she’s the only one he will listen to, even though he won’t always admit it. Ever since he’s returned to some semblance of health, he’s been trying to “forget” the kid, well avoid really, he doesn’t think he can ever forget. He hasn’t returned to his lab, because he knows he’d see the last thing he and Peter were working on — the kid’s unfinished project spread across his designated table.

Tony is desperately trying to hold on to what he does have left — Pepper, Rhodey, the remaining Avengers — though he’s kept the latter at a safe distance, not interacting with them much after their brief reunion. He thinks maybe if he focuses on the things he does have, he’ll be able to have a life, make things better for the people who are left.

Tonight though... well, Pepper, aided by a couple glasses of wine, managed to get Tony to talk. He told her every horrid detail. Fessed up to his feelings of total inadequacy, how he was so desperate to hold on to what he did have left — her, Rhodey, Happy — that he didn’t dare think about how he might fix things, bring them all back. He didn’t think he had it in him to face another loss, another failure — because losing again might mean losing Pepper and he couldn’t do that. Ever.

Tony pushes himself into a seated position, elbows on his knees, head in hands, and tries to catch his breath. God he was getting sick of this — Peter (and Thanos) haunting his dreams. He must have fallen asleep soon after Pepper left him to stew in his thoughts.

It was a variation of the same nightmare that has been haunting him since he left that god forsaken, hell hole of a planet, with Nebula. This time they were at Peter’s graduation party. They were all having a good time, Pepper with their future baby. May, Happy, everyone there bursting with pride for Peter and celebrating the momentous occasion. And then like every nightmare since that day on Titan Tony hears a quiet, “Mr. Stark…” When he turns to find Peter, he watches helplessly as every single person disintegrates, turning to dust. The plates of food and drinks fall, the sounds of shattering porcelain and glass echoing as they hit the floor, mixing with the dust — leaving Tony alone and screaming in horror.

Tony squeezes his eyes shut, “It’s just a dream. Just a dream.” He says it out loud to reassure himself, trying to get his breathing under control, trying to stave off a panic attack. He hates this. With a trembling hand, he wipes the sweat from his forehead and stands up. He needs a drink.

The wine glasses and bottle from earlier are on the counter, where Pepper left them. It’s not quite the potency he needs, but there’s still some Malbec left in the bottle. He pours himself half a glass and downs it quickly.

After a few minutes, when the tremors in his hands lessen — he decides to start cleaning up the kitchen, to give himself something else to think about. Tony’s focus on the mundane task slowly work to calm him. He takes his time washing the stemware and cheese plates. He is careful and precise as he dries each dish, before putting them away. He throws away the empty wine bottle and wipes down the counter, just like he'd seen Pepper do. Satisfied with the now spotless kitchen he notices the wine opener still sitting out. He opens several drawers, trying to remember where it’s supposed to go. He really wishes Pepper would stop rearranging the kitchen, he can never find anything.

Opening the third drawer, which he quickly realizes is a junk/mail drawer he spots a rectangular object. He pulls out a black 5x7 picture frame and flips it over. His grip tightens and his eyes get a little cloudy when he sees the photo of him and Peter, each throwing up bunny ears behind the other’s head.

Tony remembers the day clearly, nearly eight months ago...

———

Sometime in early August 2017

Tony’s phone dings several times in a row, notifying him of incoming text messages. He picks it up with a scowl, there is only one person that would blow up his phone this early in the morning. “I’m beginning to regret giving the kid my number.” He grumbles to Pepper, who's sitting in the stool next to him at their kitchen island. “I haven’t even finished my first cup of coffee.”

Pepper rolls her eyes, as she finishes her last bite of yogurt, “Oh please, you love the attention.”

“I do not,” He scoffs. Opening the phone he scrolls through the texts. “Pepper, this kid — he wants to know what I’m wearing!”

Pepper laughs and stands up, picking up her bowl. She pauses on the way to the sink to kiss him on the cheek, “So, tell him. He’s just excited, Tony. Today is a big deal for our interns. I thought you were all about encouraging young minds.”

“Uh, yeah, in the abstract, hands off, pat on the back, move along sense. Not this, teenage — tell me what you’re wearing to the dance — nonsense.”

“Oh stop being such a grump and just tell him. He adores you, Tony. Peter’s just nervous and wants to make a good impression.”

And God did that statement terrify him. Tony Stark was not meant to be a role-model or adored — especially by young, impressionable teenage minds. He was a fuck-up of monumental proportions and he was certainly not cut out for this. He was fumbling through this mentorship and terrified of messing up.

“Fine. I’ll tell him, but know that I am doing so under extreme duress.”

Pepper poured herself another cup off coffee, ignoring his dramatics, she says sweetly, “Yes, dear, whatever you say.”

Tony shoots her a disapproving glare, letting her know he does not appreciate her sass. He types out a quick text.

A black cotton t-shirt and gray sweat pants. You?

A few seconds pass, before Peter’s reply comes through. Hahaha… I MEAN for the luncheon today!

Tony taps out a reply, a mischievous smile on his face. God, he loves teasing this kid. Oooh…dress is formal. I’m wearing a tux.

Uhh, would you believe my tux is still at the cleaners? ? 😳😳😳

Oh well, guess you’ll have to skip it then. Very strict dress code. NO EXCEPTIONS.

The reply from Peter is immediate, Dang, guess I’ll let Aunt May know… she’s going to be so disappointed. 😿

Oh? Don’t want to disappoint Aunt Hottie. Guess we can make an exception, this once... Dress is business casual. I’m wearing jeans, T-shirt, blazer.

Haha, thanks Mr. Stark! I think I can pull something like that together. Happy is picking us up? 10:30?

Yup. See you soon. Tony replies.

Clicking the screen off he sets the phone on the counter and looks to Pepper, who is putting the dishes in the washer. “How long does this thing last, again?”

“I think a couple hours. I usually only stay to finish lunch, which is longer than your usual 30 minute drop-in, slash meet and greet.”

“Okay. Maybe I’ll stay for lunch, too. You know, inspire and encourage those bright young minds.”

“They’ll love that, Tony. Everyone is always so excited when you make an appearance. And it's a really good group of kids.”

Pepper walks around the counter and wraps her arms around his shoulders, pressing a soft kiss to his right temple, she says, “I’ll see you in a couple hours. Don’t be late.”

“Uhh, I’m never late!”

“Hmm, I literally have documented hundreds of missed appointments, engagements, and appearances over the last twenty years that say otherwise, but sure, Hon, you’re never late.” Pepper pats him fondly on the back and leans over to pick up her purse sitting on an empty barstool. As she makes her way to the door, she says, “FRIDAY, remind Mr. Stark to be out the door by eleven. Luncheon starts at noon.”

The AI responds with an obedient, “Yes, Miss Potts, I’ll make sure boss doesn’t forget.”

“That’s so not necessary — I can tell time!” Tony yells in protest, to her retreating back.

“See you in a few hours.” Pepper replies, as the doors to the penthouse elevator doors close.

“FRIDAY, remind me to get ready at 9:45.”

"Yes, boss."

The luncheon is held at Stark Industries offices in Mid-town Manhattan. For once, Tony is ten minutes early. When he saunters into Pepper's office, to escort her downstairs — he makes sure to point this fact out to her.

High School and College-age interns from every applicable department, and two of their guests, are treated to a catered lunch, presented with certificates of participation. The more outstanding interns of each department are recognized with their own official Stark Internship plaques. The afternoon also includes a quick meet and greet with CTO Tony Stark and CEO Pepper Potts, both of whom give a short speech to the attendees and present the awards.

Tony is just a little pleased to see Peter is given special recognition by the Science and Technologies Department. He had decided that Peter should officially join the high school summer internship program, get the kid some real world experience to add to his college applications. Somewhat to his surprise, the kid had jumped at the chance, offering little protest to the proposal, even though it might take away some time from his patrols. Maybe it was because Peter knew that Spider-man is never going to pay the bills, and perhaps, he really did take Tony’s advice to heart.

Tony tried his best not to show favoritism and mostly left Peter under the tutelage of the department’s internship program head. He would never admit to anyone, that he may have, discreetly, checked up on him multiple times a month. And he can’t say he didn’t, occasionally, pull him away for some ‘special assignments’ in his private lab — days spent working on their own projects and consuming copious amounts of pizza. And maybe, just maybe, he brags a little to Pepper when he reads a glowing review from Peter’s supervisor. Yeah, he’s man enough to admit — the kid is doing him proud.

The luncheon passes without a hitch. The awards are handed out, photos are snapped, and Tony gives his off the cuff speech, a mixture of humor and inspiration for the future. Pepper gives her brief introduction and a message about how important Stark Industries views the Internship programs and all their young bright minds. Most years Tony ducks out after the speech and certificate presentations, but this time he stays for lunch, while Pepper takes the opportunity to get back to her office.

Tony assembles a plate of food and makes his way to where he sees Peter sitting with his Aunt, and to his surprise, Happy, plus a couple interns and their parents. He tries to ignore the shocked faces of the other interns when he approaches the table, “This seat taken?”

Peter raises his eyebrows in surprise, “Uh, yeah. I mean, no, all yours, Mr. Stark. I mean, of course it is because you own them—”

Peter stops his nervous rambling at the pointed look Tony sends him. He wonders if the kid will ever not be nervous around him. He sets down his plate and sits in the empty chair next to Peter. He is mildly amused to see Peter wearing a corduroy sport coat, jeans, and a black t-shirt, nearly matching Tony’s own sartorial choices. He says a quick hello to everyone at the table and tries to give them his attention. He’ll never admit he relishes just sitting next to the kid and spending a little more time with him, sharing this day, celebrating his accomplishment.

The longer he sits the more relaxed Peter gets, even cracking a few jokes at Tony’s expense. Something he never would have done a few months ago. He doesn’t miss the way some of the parents, and teens, at the table look between the two of them, surprised by their easy banter and familiarity.

Lunch soon finished, Tony lingers for a little longer — taking more pictures with the interns and their familes. It’s well into mid-afternoon, when he tries to make his exit. He and Pepper have dinner reservations and he needs to get some work done before then.

Before he goes, May Parker pulls him aside. “Tony, would you mind me getting a picture of you and Peter, before you go?”

“Anything, for you Mrs. Parker.” Tony replies, giving her his most charming smile.

Handing his own phone to Happy, who for some reason, which he’ll have to investigate later, is still hanging around, he says, “Take a couple for me too, Hap.”

Tony throws an arm around Peter, who has his award in hand -- at May's insistence -- and pulls him in close. They smile and take multiple pictures with the award, both getting increasingly irreverent, much to May’s amused frustration. Peter even tries to sneak bunny ears — “Bunny ears? Wow, you are a nerd!” Tony teases, while throwing up two fingers behind Peter.

When Tony does finally leave, he is all smiles, with an extra swagger in his step. He’s not sure when spending time with the kid became so important to him and he’s a little frightened by the implications.

The sound of bare feet on the hardwood floor, pulls him out of his memories. He looks up to see Pepper wrapped in her robe, her hair askew from sleep — it’s nearly one in the morning, way past her usual bedtime.

“Tony? Are you coming to bed?“ Pepper asks worriedly from the threshold of the living room. She hesitates when she sees him and steps forward cautiously, into the kitchen. “Hey, you okay?”

He watches her walk toward him, feeling lost and overwhelmed with sadness. He thought he could move on, he told himself he could, but he knows now that he was lying to himself. This isn’t something he can just shove in a drawer, like the picture. He loved that kid and no amount of denial will lessen the pain he feels over his loss.

“Hey…” Pepper’s hand is on his cheek, wiping something wet from under his eye. She takes the picture from his hands and wraps one arm around his waist, holding it for both of them to see. “I forgot about this… It arrived the day you left. There was a card…”

She reaches into the drawer and pulls out a bright red envelope addressed to “Mr. Tony Stark”. She hands it to him, the envelope already open.

He opens the card and sees Peter’s sloppy scrawl:

Dear Mr. Stark, Thank you for everything you do for me. The Stark Internship made my summer and I cannot express how grateful I am for the opportunity. I know how "excited" you were to come to the luncheon and I thought you should have something to remember it by. Sincerely your biggest fan, Peter

The card blurs and Tony tries to blink away the threatening tears. He drops the card beside the photo and pulls Pepper into a tight hug, burying his face into her shoulder. “I miss him,” he whispers. “He was such a good kid... and I didn't, couldn't —“

Pepper runs a soothing hand down his back, feeling the outline of his ribs, he's still so skinny. “I know. You did everything you could, Tony. I know that, he knew it… and he knew how much you cared for him. Believe me, he did.”

And Tony does know it. He could see it in the way the kid looked at him, the glint of awe in his eyes, that always made him a little uncomfortable because he didn’t know what to do with that kind of admiration. It kills him a little more to know he may never see that look again. He lets the tears fall freely this time, wrapping both arms around Pepper, holding her closer, clinging to one person he still has left…

Epilogue

The next morning he wakes up to find Pepper already gone from their bed. After his momentary panic, he remembers she had several meetings planned for the first half of the day. He stumbles groggily into the kitchen, seeking espresso and a bite to eat — he’s still feeling as tired and worn as he did the night before.

He’s well into his first cup of espresso, and the breakfast smoothie Pepper left in the refrigerator, when he sees it. The picture of him and Peter is propped up on the counter, next to one of him and Pepper. He’s tempted to put back in the drawer, but he tries to recall what Pepper said, about remembering and honoring. Moving on, but not forgetting because Peter Parker is not to be forgotten. Peter Park is loved.

THE END

#tony stark #pepper potts #pepperony #spider son #fanfic #avengers: endgame #Endgame spoilers #avengers 4 spoilers #peter parker

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slapshot-to-the-heart · 5 years

Text

For the Love of Queens

Totally random one-off idea I’ve had floating around for a few months, so bear with me, haha! Only planning for it to be a one-part, but please tell me what y’all thing!

For the Love of Queens

Late August, 2018

After the snap, the last thing Peter wanted to do was to get himself in trouble again. He had had his fun already, been to more planets than 99.9998% of the population— if you rounded to the fourth decimal, he did the math— and had seen more tragedy than anyone should ever have to experience. But he wasn’t willing to hang up the suit. He couldn’t. His city still needed him, his people still needed him, and as much as he sometimes wanted to throw in the towel, he couldn’t. He had an obligation to help wherever and whenever he could, and that commitment was one he didn’t take lightly. If he wasn’t going to protect Delmar’s bodega, and that kid who had his bike stolen, and that nice Dominican lady who bought him a churro, who would? Spider-Man wasn’t gone, but he needed to go back to his roots, back to where he came from. Back to being a friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Back to Queens.

So, almost like someone had spun a Time-Turner back to 2017, Peter was sitting on the edge of a ten-story building a few blocks from his apartment, a #5 in one hand and his phone in the other. But the difference was, this time, he wasn’t constantly texting Happy, itching for an assignment, for a chance to prove himself. He was scrolling through a Buzzfeed article entitled “46 Memes Guaranteed to Butter Your Eggroll.” He needed new material for the Midtown High Instagram page that he, Ned, and MJ ran. Now that his weekends weren’t packed full of a potentially universe-ending sojourn to Titan, he had a little more spare time to actually, you know, be a kid for once. He bookmarked the page, finished off the churro, and zipped his phone into one of his suit pockets. Telling Tony he wanted to take a step back from the Avengers, having that conversation with him, was one of the hardest things Peter had ever had to do. There was nothing he hated more than disappointing people. Compounding that with the fact that Tony was probably the closest thing he had to a dad since Ben died, and Peter was practically shaking when he told him he wanted to ease up on missions. Tony was strangely understanding about the whole thing, even though Peter wasn’t too sure why he expected otherwise, and pulled him into a hug, telling him to “do what you need to do, kid.” And as soon as Petter reassured him that he did want to keep working with him, just maybe make the “Stark internship” less Avenging and more STEM-y, he nodded, made a thirty-second phone call to Pepper, and told him to show up Monday after school.

So Peter wasn't less busy than normal, not by a long shot. Between school, homework, his actual internship, and the patrols— decathalon season hadn’t started yet, thank God— his schedule was more packed than ever. But he was also happier than he’d ever been, and more fulfilled than he could ever remember.

As Peter swung down from the ledge, dropping down to the street below, he noticed something odd. Not concerning, just out of the norm. Three people, young people, in T-shirts with clipboards, pens, and stacks of what was either flyers or restaurant menus, Peter couldn’t really tell. They weren’t with Greenpeace, or Amnesty, or the ASPCA, judging from the lack of logos on their clothing, so he was more than a little confused. Keeping a curious eye on them from his hiding place behind a lamppost, he waited a few minutes for the group to reach the next block. They had tucked some kind of a pamphlet-postcard-type-thing into the frame of Glen’s Barber Shop, and after a moment to make sure the coast was clear, Peter looked for a moment, grabbed it, and slid it into a pocket.

At about half past eleven, Peter was back on the fire escape outside of his Queens bedroom. After May had discovered his, er, “extracurricular” activities, she left his windows open at night, contingent on his promise that he’d be back by midnight and kept his GPS location on in case anything went amiss. She knew that he was a good kid, that his heart was in the right place, and at his core, he just wanted to help people. And what kind of person would she be if she told Peter, who for all intents and purposes was her kid by this point, that he couldn’t be a good person?

He threw his backpack on the floor, wincing when he heard the telltale “clang” of his water bottle, and unzipped his suit, folding it haphazardly and placing it back into its designated box. The pamphlet fluttered out of his pocket,and Peter leaned down to pick it up, one arm still wrestling to pull his favorite sleep shirt over his head. He originally tried to smooth out the creases, quickly abandoning his efforts, and sat on his bed. Peter knew that there was an election in a few months, he knew he absolutely detested Donald Trump, and he knew that he was mad as hell that he couldn’t vote. But that had caused some amount of complacency with him; if he couldn’t actually cast a ballot for anyone, what use was it knowing who was running or what was on the news if all it seemed was ever on was old people yelling at each other? It wasn’t like Peter didn’t care about the issues; that couldn’t be further from the truth. If he didn’t end up going into crime-fighting full-time after high school, what he really wanted to do was go into environmental engineering and sustainable development. He’d seen all of the heartache and pain that gun violence had brought the city and people he loved, so he knew how important reasonable gun control policy was. And despite all of New York City’s espoused progressive values, Peter’s AP Spanish teacher had come to school with red-rimmed eyes one day, telling the class that him and his husband had just been turned down by another adoption agency for being gay. And college. College was a big one. Tony had repeatedly offered to set him up at MIT— “Think of it like a scholarship,” he had said,— but Peter didn’t want to feel like he was getting anything handed to him that he hadn’t earned. May didn’t make too much either, and while they could certainly live off of her salary from the hospital and Uncle Ben’s life insurance for a while, hundreds of thousands of dollars in student loans were a different story.

Peter flipped the pamphlet around, scanning the front cover. Dignified healthcare. He liked that. Tuition-free higher education. He really liked that. Quality employment. A $15 minimum wage in New York City was great, but still didn’t make ends meet for some people. Justice for all. Sounds about right, Peter thought. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Democrat for Congress NY-14. He’d have to look her up.

Half an hour later, Peter yawned as he finally closed his laptop from her campaign website, remarkably tired and also pretty sure he had signed up for a mailing list at some point. It was almost one, and he needed to get to bed. Research could wait until morning.

It was a block day, so after his calculus class had let out, Peter grabbed his lunch from the locker and walked over to the cafeteria, meeting Ned and MJ at their usual table.

“Sup,” Ned said, in between waffle fries.

Peter looked at him quizcally. “Since when do you say ‘sup?’”

He shrugged. “It’s a new thing I’m trying out. Doesn’t work?”

“Not by a long shot.”

MJ snorted. “You guys are a couple of losers, you know that?”

“And you’re not?” Ned asked.

She tilted her head. “The thing is,” she said, pausing, “I already knew that, and I’ve accepted it. It’s only when you really come to terms with yourself and who you are that you’re able to move on and develop. So what if I’m a little bit of loser?”

Peter shook his head, trying to hold back a snort. “Hey guys, want to hear something weird that happened to me yesterday?”

“I’m always up for weird,” Ned responded.

“So, I was on patrol, and these people were walking around. And at first I thought they were like from the ASPCA or something, you know how they’re always around here?” They nodded. “But anyways, they weren’t, and I picked up one of the flyers they left by Glen’s, the barber shop, and I got to reading, and—”

“Oh, God, Peter joined a cult,” Ned said, panicking.

Peter shook his head, reaching down into his backpack to retrieve the pamphlet. “No, no, I promise it’s not a cult. I guess it was people campaigning for the election, what’s it called, canvassing? Well, it’s people canvassing for this woman running for Congress—”

“AOC?” MJ asked, interrupting.

“Huh?”

“AOC. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. That who you’re talking about?”

His eyebrows furrowed. “Yeah, how did you know?”

The side of her mouth twitched. “I’ve been walking for her since the summer. You know how I’ve been busy on my weekends now?” Peter and Ned nodded. “I’m heading up her youth volunteering. Outreach mostly, getting high schoolers to understand that they deserve to have a say in who’s elected to represent us. Getting them to campaign for someone who actually believes that we all deserve a fair chance. To campaign for someone like them. A young person who’s a woman of color, who didn’t come from money, who cares.”

“Geez, MJ, why don’t you run yourself?” Peter asked, only half-joking.

“I mean,” she started, grabbing the spare hairband from her wrist and pulling her hair into a ponytail, “obviously I’m too young, but I’m not even sure if I’d want to be the kind of public face that elected officials are. I’d rather be the one calling the shots from behind the scenes, the guy in the chair, if you will,” MJ added, nodding towards Ned.

“Wait, I’m still confused. So who’s she?” Ned asked, looking in between Peter and MJ.

Peter slid the pamphlet over to his side of the table while MJ grinned. “Now, let me tell you.”

Ten minutes and two online forms later, MJ had signed both Peter and Ned up for canvassing on Saturday. “I know you’ve got your ‘Stark thing,’” she had said, using air quotes, “and your actual Stark thing, so I put you down for the morning. You said you’re free then, right?”

Peter nodded. “I don’t have to be at Tony’s until what, like 2 or something? Plenty of time.”

“Great, and Ned?”

Ned tilted his head, in that low-key, laidback way of his. “Hey, you just tell me what you need and I’m there, MJ. I trust your judgement. You say she’s the real deal?”

MJ nodded. “She is. I’ve met her, and I like to pride myself on having what’s probably the best bullshit detector of anyone I’ve ever met.”

“Then I’m in.”

So Saturday afternoon found Ned, Peter, and MJ crammed into a small and packed but bright office in the north side of Queens, listening to someone who Peter’s pretty sure introduced themself as AOC’s campaign manager. Maybe deputy campaign manager? Peter wasn’t too sure, he didn’t know how these things usually went. But she was standing on a desk, which was cool.

“You need to make sure you’re able to ask for their support, see who they’re supporting, and tell them why you support Alexandria. This campaign is going to be won by people making connections and ensuring that everyone’s voice is heard and everyone feels like they are listened to. Because she’s running to represent the entire New York 14th, not only the ones who will vote for her. And I know it might seem tempting, but please, please make sure that you remain cordial to everyone, even if they say they’re voting for the other guy or they think her policies are crap. Stay calm, thank them for their time, and move on. This campaign is already an uphill battle, and we don’t need anything else stacked against us.” She finished her speech with a slight nod of her head. “Can I have all of our regular volunteers or field staff raise their hands?” About fifteen people in the group of thirty-five or so raised their hands. “Alright, anyone who’s new or more comfortable with someone more experienced, grab a partner or two and get into groups of two or three. Javier over there,” she pointed to a young man by the door, who was precariously holding stacks of folders in one hand, “has the district maps and lists of all the houses everyone will be going to, so go see him for that. One per group.” She was about to step down, but wheeled around and raised her voice again. “Oh, and one more thing—” she added, “Alexandria will be stopping in the office around noonish after a town hall she’s hosting, so be sure to swing back by if you haven’t met her. Fair warning, she’s a hugger.”

MJ nudged Peter with her shoulder. “You ready?”

He grinned. “Oh, hell yeah I am.”

#peter parker #peter parker imagine #marvel #mcu #marvel imagine #marvel writing #peter parker imagines #marvel imagines

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siriuslyem · 5 years

Text

Goodbye

An Original Random Element Short Story

Elements: A girl with lilac hair, a boy with a bicycle carriage business, an abandoned beach pier, and a temporary tattoo.

Flora Kennedy kicked at the gravel on the sidewalk with one of the toes of her worn-out floral vans. She had just finished her last shift of the week at Whisker Pete's, the town's local music store. As she waited, she scanned the street, looking for her friend Carter who was coming to pick her up for their last weekend together for a while. He would be heading to college on Tuesday, and she would be heading back to Reynold's High to start her senior year.

Without him, she thought, before shaking the thought from her head. Around her, the droopy eyed town was winding down from the hectic tourist season. As the tired shop keepers started to pack up to spend the fall and winter somewhere warmer, Flora frowned. No one ever seemed to want to stay in Sunset Harbor for long.

From a distance, she heard a ringing sound that could only come from one place, and sure enough, moments later, Carter Jones turned the street corner. Even before he pulled up to the curb, Flora caught the friendly smile forming on his face. She raised her eyebrows in question as he came to a stop, and the smile transformed into his trademark smirk.

"Yes?" He asked amused and chuckled as Flora responded by rolling her eyes.

"Seriously? Why would you bring this? Actually, why do you even still have this?"

"Some of us are entrepreneurs."

"You ride people around on your bicycle."

"I offer charming and unique carriage tours of one of the most beautiful coastal towns on the west coast." He insisted.

Flora raised an eyebrow. “It’s a pedicab.”

“Car-ri-age, and as usual, you’re raising both of your eyebrows, not one. Besides, this pedicab paid for three out of the four years I will be seeking an education.” Carter teased but changed the subject anyway, he knew how difficult she was taking his leaving. “Can I interest you in one last bicycle drawn carriage ride through our fair town?”

“I guess it beats walking.”

“Or boarding.” He said noticing the skateboard she was holding.

“It gets me places.”

“It’s going to get you hurt.”

“Says the guy biking without a helmet.” She said sarcastically, slouching in the seat, and smiling a little when she heard his low laugh.

“Florabelle… this is basically a tricycle for adults. If I turn this over, I probably need to evaluate more important things than my lack of helmet. Now, if you will kindly direct your eyes to the right, you will see that we have arrived at stop one on Carter and Flora’s epic weekend.”

“Are you serious?!”

“What?” Carter asked innocently, dismounting his bike.

“We literally didn’t even move.”

“I can’t help that you work so close to the ice cream shop, besides, this is only a pit stop. I have a lot that I want to do today.”

“We have all weekend you know.” She reminded him, as he held the door open for her.

“Time moves faster than you think.” His voice was low, almost sad Flora noted, but he bounced back quickly when he noticed her watching him and ushered her inside with a side nod.

True to his word, she was soon climbing back into the carriage and Carter began to pedal off toward their next mysterious destination. Flora smiled, enjoying the rocky road waffle cone he insisted on paying for, as he gave her a true tourist’s tour of Sunset Harbor. He took care to point out each point of interest and made her laugh as he told her stories she already knew by heart. By the end, the sun was barely poking up over the small-town skyline, and Carter looped back around onto main street where the tour had begun.

“Are you not even going to drop me off at home?” she asked puzzled. She started to pull her board from the storage compartment as he stopped in front of his family’s grocery store.

“We’re not finished,” he said with a wink, as he hopped off the bike. “Wait here, I need to get one thing.”

Minutes later, Carter returned with a cooler and a backpack and placed it in the seat next to her. “We only have one more stop.” He explained. “Hold onto this until we get there please.”

It was a short trip to their destination, a left at the end of Main Street onto Beach Drive instead of a right, and she knew where the last stop would be. After a couple more minutes, and some terrible jokes from Carter, they had arrived at the pier. It was abandoned this late in the day, the restaurants closed around sunset, and most kids from town were at an end of summer bonfire at the McCreed’s, a mile up the beach.

“They’re real loud tonight, aren’t they?” Carter mused as he pulled a blanked from his backpack and spread it on the ground at the end of the pier.

“As opposed to all of their silent parties?”

“I guess.” He said with a laugh, as he sat down and pulled out a couple of Dr. Peppers and sandwiches.

“Dinner?”

“Well I couldn’t very well keep you out all hours of the night and not feed you. I am a gentleman after all.”

“That much about you is true. You are a gentleman.”

“Oh, before I forget, I got you something and it came in the mail today.” Carter said as he rummaged through his backpack and pulled out an envelope. Flora raised both of her brows, purposely this time as she opened the envelope.

“You got me a temporary tattoo?”

“Yeah, but this one is really cool, it lasts for two weeks.”

“Really? Why’d you get this for me? Like I love it, but…”

“I know you wanted a real one, but your dad won’t let you until you’re eighteen. This is the next best thing.” He explained as she looked over the instructions.

“Can we do it now?”

“Yeah, where do you want it?”

“My shoulder of course.”

“Of course. The most obvious of places.” He teased but helped her apply the tattoo to her sun-tanned skin. In the moonlight, her lilac hair reminded him of one of the characters in an anime he used to watch as a kid, but it suited her. It reminded him of a flower, though with Flora, most things about her did. That’s why he picked the tattoo with large peony flowers. He knew she’d want to put it on her shoulder and have it stretch down onto her arm. She had only reminded him a couple hundred times over the years. Twenty minutes later, he removed the paper, and frowned.

“It didn’t really take.” He said.

“It says it takes a day to develop.”

“Oh, you’ll have to send me a picture when it’s ready.”

“Or you could see it yourself tomorrow night.” Her tone was matter of fact, as the fact was one that should have been common knowledge.

“Well.”

“Well what?”

“I’m actually leaving in the morning. I just found out there is a mandatory meeting Monday in my dorm, it’s some get to know you outing or something.” Flora turned away from him, her gaze falling out over the waves highlighted in moonbeams. There was a new feeling in her heart, one that she hadn’t felt in a very long time. Betrayal.

“When were you going to tell me?”

“I’ve tried for the last week. It never seemed like the right time.”

“Well, you should have told me sooner.” She said, snapping her head to meet his gaze, before looking down and picking the fuzz off the blanket.

“I’m sorry. I wish that we had more time.”

“Well, it was your idea to take me all around the town.” Flora said, and she looked up at him just in time to catch the faintest glimpse of the same sad smile he wore at the ice cream shop.

“I wanted you to be my last tour.”

“Last?”

“Yeah, Tommy Broadman’s son, Trevor, is coming by in the morning to pick it up. He seemed like a good fit. Responsible and charming like myself.

“And he actually knows all the facts and stories.”

“Yeah that’s a plus.”

“He’ll do good. Trev’s a good kid.”

“I know. It’s a little bittersweet. I’ve spent every summer on that bike since I was nine doing everything from grocery deliveries to tours.”

“Well, it’s a stepping stone. I’m sure by next summer you’ll have a new job in the city.”

“Yeah?” He laughed. “What can you see me doing?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Working in a coffee shop probably.”

“A coffee shop?”

“Yeah, you’ve got a barista vibe, and the girls will flock from all over of course.”

“Oh? What makes you think that?”

“Well, you’re a total babe of course.”

Flora’s eyes widened to the size of tea saucers as the reality of what had left her mouth dawned on her, and when her hand flew to cover her mouth, it's meaning confirmed itself. She was smitten with him, of course, all girls were with his dark eyes and perfect olive skin. Flora had crushed on him since she was ten years old, but Carter always called her his sister, which deterred more guys from dating her than it attracted. She didn’t much mind though, because most guys weren’t like Carter anyway.

“I see.” He said quietly, looking over at her a little more softly than he had in the past. “How long have you felt this way?”

“Seven years.” It was his turn to wear a look of surprise.

“Why didn’t you ever say anything?”

“You called me your sister.” He shook his head a little, laughing under his breath.

“I didn’t know. If I had known…” He didn’t finish his sentence.

There was a soft silence between them, as the waves rippled below. There was an uncertainty in the air, a choice Carter had to make. He had convinced himself that she wasn’t into him. That after all these years, she still saw him as the boy with braces and glasses with lenses that seemed to be a solid inch thick; that she saw him as a brother. He thought that she had told him that once.

“Do you know how many times I’ve wanted to kiss you?” He asked her quietly. He didn’t prefer to be so vulnerable, but he was afraid if he masked it and pushed it away, he would end up hurting her more.

“No.” He chuckled sadly.

“Every single time I said goodbye.”

“But you never did.”

“No”

“Do you still want to?” Flora asked, looking up through her lashes, preparing herself for the disappointment she assumed would come.

“Florabelle, I’m going to school 2,000 miles away.”

“Yeah.” She agreed, tears slipping out of the corners of her eyes.

“It’s not fair to you. I shouldn’t have said anything. I told myself I wouldn’t.”

“Yeah.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. I’m, um, I’m going to head home okay?”

“Let me pack up and I’ll take you.”

“No, that’s okay, it’s late, and you probably need to pack.”

“Flora.”

“I’ll see you Thanksgiving them I guess.” She said walking backwards.

“Christmas, actually.”

“Yeah, well, be safe.”

“Flora.”

She grabbed her board from the storage compartment of Carter’s stupid carriage, and wiped the tears still falling down her face. Stupid tear glands, she thought as she set off down the road towards her house. This shouldn’t be a surprise. Flora knew this was exactly how it would end up going, but it seemed especially cruel to have told her how he felt, only to leave her disappointed in the end. He had no right, she decided as she climbed the stairs leading to her front door.

“Night peanut.” Flora’s father called from the front porch as she stormed by.

“Night.”

She continued her angry internal tirade all the way up the stairs to her bedroom. How dare he in fact. When he knew he was leaving to go to his fancy school, how dare he tell her. Why didn’t he tell her sooner? Why didn’t he kiss her sooner? She changed into pajamas and left her clothes in the floor on her way to her bed. No sooner than her head hit the pillow, the tears came like a dam bursting inside her. Betrayal.

The next morning, she ignored the texts, missed calls, and several voicemails from Carter, and went out into the backyard to garden. After a few minutes, her dad joined her. He didn’t say anything, which she was thankful for, she was happy to be in his company. He hummed as he worked, and it distracted her from thinking about Carter.

“He called again, right before I came out you know.”

“Hmph.”

“This might be hard for him too peanut, everyone knows that you all have been in love since middle school.”

“Yeah well. You haven’t said anything about my tattoo.”

“I know it’s not real. It wasn’t that dark when you came in.”

“Yeah well.”

“Peanut.” He started, never pausing his weeding. “Maybe you should give him another chance. I think he was trying to protect you?”

“Protect me, or stay single to sleep with every girl on the east coast?”

“Peanut.”

“I am not a child anymore. I don’t need to protection.” Her voice broke a little at the end, and her dad hugged her.

“You know, when we lost your mama, I felt betrayed too. It wasn’t her fault though, and I had to come to terms with that peanut. You should always give the people who love you a second chance. You never know how long they’ll be around you know. In the end, it’s your choice. Do what’s best for you.”

“Flora?” Carter’s voice was soft as he crossed the backyard. Her dad let go and patted her shoulder before turning back towards the house. Flora stood slowly and wiped the tears from her cheeks before she turned to face him.

“I have to leave in a minute. We’re actually late, but I didn’t want to leave without making things right.”

“It’s okay Carter. I understand. Be safe.” She hugged him tight, which took him by surprise, and he wrapped his arms around her. “I’ll miss you.”

“Flora?” She looked up, meeting his eyes for the first time since their fight last night.

Carter kissed her, leaning in slowly, making sure she had time to register what was happening, but she was still surprised by the action. “I didn’t want to make the mistake of leaving again without kissing you. Because, Florabelle, I love you, and I would like to figure out how to make this work.” Flora looked back towards the house and saw her father as he peeked curiously out of the kitchen window.

“We’ll figure this out then.” She said before kissing him goodbye. For now, at least.

#short story #writing #flash fiction #love #college #writers on tumblr

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tjb1619 · 5 years

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~Chapter 5~ I walk inside as soon as I get home and set my bag down on the floor, to which Ayethusa scampers out and lies near the fireplace. I take my shoes of near the door as I hear shuffling in my uncle's room. "Uncle Matt?" I call out, leaning against the table. "Uncle Matt, are you here?" "Amberle," he says, grunting as he is pulling an old trunk out of his room. "Welcome home. How is Maria?" "She is getting better everyday." I eyeball the trunk as he stands up, stretching. "What's in the chest?" "Oh, just some old clothes I have been meaning to get rid of." he says, waving away the question. He kneels down and pops it open, pulling out the piece of clothing sitting on top. It's a white long sleeve shirt with ruffles at the ends of each of the sleeves. It is also so worn that there are holes in various places. I pick up the next piece of clothing to find a pair of dark brown pants with....holes in the knees. I laugh. "Geeze, how many articles of clothing do you have with holes?" I ask with a laugh, only being half-serious. "Most likely," he answers, seemingly a little embarrassed, "this entire trunk is nothing BUT holey clothes. So, what happened a Maria's?" Yep, he was embarrassed. "Nothing, really. I watched Bonnie for a few hours while Maria went shopping." I sit down and cross my legs on the floor and, as soon as I do, Ayethusa gets up from where she's curled up by the fireplace and curls up in my lap. 'That reminds me...' "By the way, Maria knows." He looks at me and raises an eyebrow. "Maria knows....what?" he asks. I explain what happened as I was leaving Maria's. After I finish, he is quiet for a minute. "And she is okay with Ayethusa?" he asks, trying to understand. "Perfectly." I answer. "Does she know about Bart?" he asks. "Yeah," I answer, "because she asked me if you knew about Ayethusa. So, yes, I told her about Bartholomew. She actually seemed to like Ayethusa, so maybe if you brought Bartholomew over there at some point she will get a chance to meet him." "I will give it some thought." he says, seemingly interested. "So, have you made any progress on your magic yet?" he adds, changing the subject. "No," I answer, "but I was thinking of trying meditation, to clear my mind." "Are you getting distracted?" he asks. "Well," I say, furrowing my eyebrows, "it's more like my mind wanders and I can't focus." "So you are getting distracted." he confirms, crossing his arms. "I guess, in a way." I glance down at the floor. "Hey, can I ask you something?" "Go ahead." "If you were in my position, what would you do?" I look up at him as I ask. "If it were me," he says slowly, thinking of what to say, "I would think about what I have tried versus what I haven't tried and figure out what to do from there." I am quiet for a minute, thinking. "I am to going to do some meditating in my room for a while." I finally say, getting up. "All right." I head to my room and shut the door. After opening my bedroom window, I sit down on my bed, crossing my legs. I set my hands on my knees and close my eyes, trying to clear my mind. I focus on listening to the sounds of nature. I listen to the birds chirping and the leaves rustling in the trees. Soon, I feel more relaxed. The more I listen, the more I come to notice how each sound that is made is different, unique. I start to realize that everything I hear is sounding familiar, like, if I listen long enough, I would be able to understand it. "...erle. Amberle." Slowly, I open my eyes and realize my uncle was standing in the doorway of my room, grinning. "Uncle Matt?" I ask, curious. "What is it? Is something wrong?" "You have been in here for a while and I wanted to see if you were hungry, or if you wanted to stretch." he answers. "A while?" I repeat. "How long is a while?" "Oh," he says, slowly, "about three days." "Three days?!" I exclaim, eyes wide. "How is that even possible?!" "I am not sure." He furrows his eyebrows. "All I know is you came in here to meditate because you couldn't focus. And you have been in here since." I stare at my bed for a minute in silence. "Do you want to talk about what happened?" he asks, breaking the silence. I explain to him everything I experienced during my meditation; every sound, every feeling. After I finish, he is quiet for a few moments. "Do you think you would have been able to understand any of what you were hearing if I hadn't have interrupted?" he finally asks. "That's just it." I answer. "I am not sure. I mean, maybe. In time. Problem is I don't know HOW MUCH time. It could be days, weeks, months. Or, worse case senario, even years. If I were to meditate consistantly, with very little breaks, I might be able to get the hang of it eventually. But, as to the exact time it will take me...I don't know." I sigh. "Hey," he says, walking up and sitting down on my bed next to me, "don't worry about it. I know you will figure it out. Just don't go wearing yourrself out trying to understand everything, okay?" "Okay," I promise. "Deal." "That's my girl." he says, pulling me into a hug. "Do you feel a little better?" he asks after a minute. "Yeah," I answer, "I do." We pull away. "You hungry?" he asks, standing up and walking towards the door. My stomach growls so loud that I can feel it as well as hear it. My uncle laughs. "I will take that as a yes. When you're ready, come down and I will have something made for you." He leaves the room, closing the door softly behind him. After he leaves, I wash up and change my clothes into a long sleeved white shirt, brown corset and black pants with my dark brown boots. I brush my mess of hair and try to pull it back into a ponytail, but the rubber bands keep snapping, so I decide to just leave my hair down. 'Fine. Be wild, then.' I set down my brush and head down stairs. After I finish eating eggs and toast, I tell my uncle I am going over to Maria's to see how she and Bonnie are doing. I grab my bag, letting Ayethusa get settled inside and head over. Over the course of a couple of months, I meditate about five times. Each time, the meditation lasts about a week. During each session, get closer and closer to understanding each of the sounds of nature. In between sessions, I go over to Maria's to help out. "Hey, Amberle!" I am in the middle of washing laundry when I faintly hear my uncle calling from inside the house. "I am outside, uncle Matt!" I call back. After a minute or two, I hear the door close and I glance behind me to see my uncle walking up. "What's up, uncle Matt?" I ask, when he's close enough that I don't have to yell. "How long until you will be done with that?" he asks, hands on his hips. "I just started this about twenty minutes ago. Why?" I respond, questioning his sudden interest. "I have stuff I need you to do for me in town." he says, holding up a piece of paper. "Like?" I inquire. "Will you go into town for me?" he fires. "That depends." I fire back. "Will you finish the laundry if I do?" "Only if you go." he says, confidently. I glare at him for a minute. "Fine." I huff. I drop the article of clothing I was scrubbing on the washboard and stand up. He holds out the piece of paper he had been holding and, before I take it, I rub my wet hands all over his face, making him wince. Once my hands are dry, I snatch the paper out of my uncle's hand and go into the house to get ready to go into town. "Thanks for that, by the way!" my uncle calls as I leave. "Welcome!" I call back, grinning. As I head into town, I check the list of things my uncle wanted me to do for him. 'See if there is any mail, get bread, pick up some eggs, pick up some more white candles, paint (black, brown and blue), water pouch, saddle, and a blanket (for underneath the saddle).' My eyes narrow at this list. 'Is something wrong, Amberle?' Ayethusa asks. I read the list to her in my head. 'Okay?' she asks. 'What's so wrong with that?' 'What's my unlce need paint for?' 'Maybe he has a secret project he is working on?' she suggests. 'I mean, you have been meditating a lot lately.' 'True.' I agree. 'And that would give him plenty of time to get a project done.' 'Mhmm.' 'Hey, while I have been meditating, have you noticed anything weird that my uncle was doing?' I ask. 'No,' she answers, 'not that I am aware of. Although,' she adds, 'I have noticed he seems to be spending a lot of time in the forest behind your house, usually while you're meditating.' 'Really?' I ask. 'That's interesting. Hey, you'll need to wait on the edge of town. There's too much on this list, and you won't be able to fit with everything else.' 'Okay,' she says. 'I can hang out in the forest while you take care of all of that.' When I get near the outside edge of town, I open my bag and let Ayethusa scamper off into the forest. I watch her run around for a minute, chasing squirrels up trees, scaring nearby birds. Once I get into town, I first pick up the paint, then I get three more candles. After I get a decent enough saddle blanket, I see if there is any mail. I find a letter for my uncle from someone I don't recognize, so I just put the letter in my bag. I pick up a loaf of bread, then a few eggs. As soon as I walk into the shop with all the water pouches, I immediately notice no one is around. "Hello?" I call, looking around. "Is anyone in here?" 'Maybe I should come back later...?' I thought, looking behind the counter. "Can I help you, dear?" I look up to see an older lady with long, salt and pepper hair and more that a few creases on her skin, showing her age and wisdom. I notice she is holding a book and cup in her hands. "Oh, I am sorry," I apologize, "I didn't see anyone when I first walked in, so I wasn't sure if there was anyone in here." "No worries," she says, with a laugh. "I was just reading to pass the time. Don't usually get very many customers. What can I do for you?" "Well," I start, holding my uncle's shopping list, "my uncle wants a water pouch, but I am not sure which one he wants. He didn't really specify." "Well, I have an assortment of wineskins," she says, setting her cup and book down on the counter. "Why don't you walk around and see if there is one you think your uncle might like the best?" I walk around and look at all of the different water skins, picking up each one to inspect it. They all look the same except for the size; some are bigger than others. One of the skins I pick up is a medium sized skin with no designs or markings of any kind. However, it feels just as heavy, or even heavier than the larger skins. Curious, I shake it a little to discover it has liquid already in it. "This skin," I say, holding it up so she can see it, "already has liquid in it. None of the other skins have been filled up." "Does it?" she asks. I bring it to her. "So it does." she says, after shaking it next to her ear. She hands it back to me. "Have you decided on which one you want?" "I think I will take this one." I say, holding the filled water skin. "All right, then," she says. "That will be two silver." I place the coins on the counter in front of her. "Thank you. You have a nice day." After leaving the shop with the water skins, I pick up a saddle and carry it over my shoulder on my way home. On my way home, though, I have to stop several times. 'Man,' I thought, sitting on a rock, 'I forgot how heavy a saddle is!' I pull out the water skin I bought and chug down some water. I become surprised when I discover the water to be fairly cool. I sigh with relief. 'Uh-oh!' Ayethusa says, running for the trees. 'Someone's coming.' As if on cue, I hear horses and the creak of a wooden wagon. I also notice the sound seems as if it was coming from town. I turn around to see a guy about my age, maybe a little older with medium brown hair a little past his ears, a wide brimmed straw hat on, wearing a white short sleeved shirt and dark brown pants. "Is everything all right, miss?" he asks, when he's come closer and pulled the horses to a stop. He glances over to the horse saddle sitting on the rock next to me and sits straighter. "You're not carrying that saddle by yourself, are you?" "Uh," I stammer, not sure if I should trust him, "y-yeah, but my uncle's house isn't too much farther, I think I will be fine." "How much farther?" he asks. "About a mile or so." I answer. "Really, I will be fine." "No," he says, climbing down off his wagon, "let me give you a ride." He starts walking towards me and my saddle. "No," I say, getting up, "really, I will be fine." He lifts my saddle and walks back over to his wagon, placing it in the back. 'Ayethusa, can you make it back to my uncle's on your own?' I ask my companion. 'Yeah,' she says. 'Good,' I say, 'cause it looks like this guy is not taking no for an answer. Stay hidden, wait until we are out of sight, and get back as fast as you can, while remaining out of sight. Got it?' 'Yep,' she answers back. "Ready?" he asks, standing next to the front of his wagon. "Well," I answer him, "since you are not going to take no for an answer, then yeah." I walk over and climb into his wagon. He climbs on and sits next to me and gets the horses moving. "So, where are you headed, if I may ask?" I ask, after a minute. "To visit my godfather." he answers. "My name is Brian, by the way. Brian McCallum." He holds his hand out. "Amberle." I say, shaking his hand. "Amberle Thomas." "So," he says, watching the road, "why were you out there by yourself when I showed up?" "Oh," I answer, folding my hands in my lap, "it's just my uncle and me out here, so he has me go out and do all the shopping in town, while he does most of the harder chores around the house." "If it's just you and your uncle, where are your parents?" he asks, glancing at me. "Dead." I respond. "My mother died when I was a girl, and my father died from a work accident less than a year later. I am an only child. My uncle is all the family I have left." "I'm sorry." He gets a look of sympathy on his face. "It's all right." I give him a smile. "You didn't know." "Still," he says, watching the road, "that's not something a pretty girl like you needs to go throough at that young an age." We are both quiet for a while, each of us not knowing what to say. Then, I start seeing part of my uncle's land. "My uncle's house is just ahead." I tell him. As we pull up to the house, I start yelling for my uncle. "Uncle Matt! I'm home!" Brian pulls the horses to a stop in front of the house and we climb down. "I didn't know you were bringing company." I hear my uncle as he steps outside. "Not at first," I say, as Brian grabs the saddle out of the wagon. "But, trying to carry that saddle by mysef was difficult." "Oh, that's right!" Matt lowers his head for a second before looking at me. "I'm sorry, dear, I forgot I wrote that down." He pulls me into a hug. "It's all right," I say, laughing. "I'm just glad I had help." Brian sets the saddle down next to the house. "Thank you," my uncle says, pulling away from me and turning to Brian, "for helping my-" "Uncle Matt, this is-" "Dear God," my uncle says, "Brian? Is that you?"

#writer #writers on tumblr #i am an author #novel #novelist #book #booklover #story #fantasy #dragons

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brutashaswin · 6 years

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Could we have a fanfic with Bruce talking about his father ? 🙄 (P.S I love your fanfictions)

Thankyou so much!!! I’m so glad you’re enjoying myfics, they’re a ton of fun to write! Hope you like this one :) (Fair warning,it’s my longest yet and it takes a hot second to get into the part on Bruce’sfather. I think the build-up is worth it, though!)

Disclaimers:I haven’t seen either Hulk movies, so I’m not entirely surehow they’ve handled Bruce’s father in the MCU. I loosely based this off of theBrian Banner’s Wikipedia page, which I thought had the most potential for myfic. It gets pretty dark, and has mentions of child abuse and the death/murderof Bruce’s mother. Please read with caution if any of these topics make youuncomfortable!

Source: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Banner

Chapter One: (NYC, presentday)

Natashaleaned over the edge of the sink, her throat burning. Her mind was racing,trying to figure out what was making her sick. As a spy, she had naturallydealt with all kinds of poisons, but the effect she was experiencing now wasunlike anything she’d ever felt. She didn’t eatanything unusual, she wasn’t particularly nervous, she wasn’t on her period….

Atthat, her entire body froze in shock.

Ohmy god. She thought. I’m late.

Sherummaged through the medicine cabinet to find the pregnancy test that shealways kept in the back. (Just in case of emergencies, like this.) As shewaited for the results to show, her legs felt like jelly and her palms weredamp with sweat. Finally, the screen revealed a little pink plus sign.

Shewas pregnant.

“Bruce!” She called,tears welling in her eyes. She ran out of the bathroom and into the masterbedroom, where Bruce was curled up under a pile of blankets.

“Bruce! Honey, wakeup!”

“What is it?” Hegroaned, rolling over to face her.

She kneeled againstthe side of the bed and gently ran her hand down his arm, keeping her eyestrained on his face.

“I’m pregnant.”

Bruce’s eyes widenedand his jaw slackened. He was barely able to stutter, “P-p-pregnant?”

Nat’s grin got evenwider, her voice nearly reaching a squeal. “Yeah, I took a test andeverything!”

“Oh my god!” Hecried, his face lighting up as he pulled Natasha into his arms. He stood up andkissed her forehead as she wrapped her arms around his neck. Hot tears of joystreamed down their faces as they held each other closer, savoring this perfectmoment and wishing it could last forever until….

Natashajerked awake, and opened her eyes to a concerned looking Bruce. He had one handon her cheek and another on her shoulder.

“Hey, you okay?” Hemurmured, pushing a lock of hair behind her ear.

“Yeah, I’m okay. Itwas…just a dream. A really good dream.”

“Good.” He said,kissing her on the forehead. He outstretched his arms lazily, and she snuggledagainst his chest. They laid there together in comfortable silence, until theirheartbeats became synced.

“Hey Bruce?”

“Mm?”

“I think I’m ready to adopt. What do you say?”

Brucegently pulled away so that he could look deep into Natasha’s eyes. His face lit up with a warm smile as he leaned back into give her a passionate kiss.

Whenthey broke apart, she giggled and said, “I’ll take that as ayes?”

“Absolutely, 100%yes.” He said, the cheesy grin never leaving his face.

“I love you so much,Nat.”

“I love you too,Bruce.”

Chapter Two:

Thescent of coffee and cinnamon spread through the Banner-Romanoff kitchen. Duringlazy weekends like this, French toast at 1:00 in the afternoon was typical.Bruce had just finished flipping the last pieces of bread as Natasha walked inwith the mail.

“Anything good?” Hecalled, as she took her slippers near the front door.

“Ah, let’ssee…water bill, honeymoon postcard from Pepper and Tony, and…” she paused,eyeing an ordinary white envelope. “Something from…Hennessy Funeral Home?It’s for you.”

“Huh. Wonder whatthis is all about?” He said, taking the letter from her and ripping into it. He skimmed it, and his facefell. He sat down at the kitchen table and said nothing.

“What is it?” Natasked, sitting next to him and resting her hand on his arm, which was clenchingthe letter.

“They…they want meto pay for my Dad’s burial.”

“Your dad? I thoughthe died years ago.”

“To me, he did. Buthe…he’s been staying in a mental institution since my Mom died. His sisterpaid for it, but then she died too and then…” his voice trailed off, nottaking his eyes from the letter.

“You started paying for it?”She added gently, placing her free hand on the small of his back.

“I couldn’t let himgo, Nat. All I could think of was him hurting some other woman like my Mom. Ithought, at least this way, he’s out of my life and away from other people.”

“I understand, hon.You did the right thing.”

“I’m not sure. GuessI’ll be spending the rest of my life figuring that out. It’s just…if we’regoing to be parents, I want to make sure I never repeat his mistakes.”

“You won’t. You’re agood person, Bruce, and you’re going to be an awesome dad. But we don’t have to rushinto anything if you aren’t ready. We’ll tackle the world together, just likewe’ve always done. Right?”

A smile finallycreeped on Bruce’s face as his body relaxed under Natasha’s touch.

“Right.”

Chapter Three: (Ohio, 1974)

“Hey, you okaybaby?”

“Yes, mama.”

Rebeccawalked into her son’s room and carefully shut thedoor. Bruce was curled up on his bed, his body shaking and his eyes stained redwith tears.

“Good.” She mumbled,kissing his forehead before sitting down on the foot of his bed.

Shegently pulled the covers off him and brushed his curly hair off of hisforehead. “Come here, sweetheart.”

Brucegot on all fours and crawled into his mother’sarms.

“Why don’t you leavehim, Mama?”

“Oh Bruce, it’s notthat easy. I love him.”

“But I don’t love him. And he doesn’t love you.”

Rebecca paused inhurt, hesitating before speaking again. “Well…sometimes the people that don’tlove us are the people that need our love the most.”

“But he hurts us. Wewouldn’t get hurt ever again if you just left him.”

“Honey, we can’tleave. I’m sorry. I wish we could, but we can’t.”

“It’s not fair.”

“I know, baby.”Rebecca kissed her son’s forehead and rocked him in her arms. “I know.”

Chapter Four (Hennessy MentalInstitution, 1989)

Themetal cell door slammed behind Bruce as he turned to face his father.

BrianBanner sat huddled in the corner of his cell, tall and scruffy and shrunken. Thestraightjacket he was wearing made him look all the more menacing, and at thesame time, pathetic.

BettyRoss gave Bruce a reassuring nod from behind the bars of the door. He becamepainfully aware of skipping a shave that morning, and how similar his browneyes looked to the broken man that lay at his feet.

“Hi,dad.”

Brian’sface contorted into a sinister sneer.

“Brucie.Come to pay your old man some respect?”

“AuntSarah asked me to check in on you.”

“Shetold me you were graduating, Brucie. Top of your class.”

“Yes.I’ll be starting my doctorate next fall.”

“Hmmph.Figures you’d be a doctor. Good for nothing, freeloading know-it-alls trying tomake themselves important. You’ll fit right in.”

Bruce’sglare, tinged with the slightest hints of green, replied for him.

“Yourmother though, she’d be disappointed.”

“Don’t.”He warned, clenching his fists to prevent them from swelling with rage.

“Shethought of you as some kind of angel vigilante. Wanted you to be a lawyer. Ofcourse, you know how I feel about lawyers, they’re the reason I’m in this messin the first place!”

Brianlaughed a sickening laugh that chilled Bruce to the bone and made his bloodboil.

“Youknow why you’re here.” Bruce growled.

“Andwhy is that, Brucie?”

“Becauseyou’re a LUNATIC.”

“Andwhat makes me a lunatic, exactly?”

“Becauseyou KILLED MY MOTHER!” Bruce yelled into his father’s face, getting dangerouslyclose to slipping out of his mind and into the monster’s.

“Bruce.”

“WHAT?!”Bruce turned to the source of the second voice, only to see Betty’s expressionchange from concern to utter terror.

“We…weshould go.” She stammered, her eyes darting from father to son. He wasn’t surewho she looked more afraid of.

Adeep wave of shame washed over him, and he felt every last bit of the Hulkleave his body.

“You’reright.” He said, giving her an apologetic look.

“Bye-bye,kiddo.” Brian jeered as his son turned his back to him. When Bruce didn’trespond, he cocked his head and waved to Betty. “Bye, sweet-cheeks.”

“Goto hell.” Bruce replied, not bothering to look over his shoulder at him.

Bruceslammed the metal door for the final time, vowing then and there that thiswould be the last time he saw his father.

Chapter Five (Present Day)

“Hewas a bastard.” Bruce muttered, kicking a pebble at his father’s tiny tombstone.

“We’renot here for him.” Natasha said softly, taking his arm and leading him severalrows down, to a grave marked with several vases of pretty flowers and the nameRebecca Banner.

Brucekneeled down and placed a bouquet of flowers in one of the vases.

“Petuniaswere her favorite…I got them for her for Mother’s Day the year she…” he lookeddown at his feet and took a deep breath. Natasha never let go of his hand.

“Shewould have loved you.” He continued with a small smile.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,she loved ballet. And she took her coffee the same way you do.”

“Twosugars, six creams?”

“Exactly.”

Along moment of peace passed over them. The wind caused the flower petals toflutter like a butterfly’s wings, and the sun felt warm and comforting againsttheir skin. Bruce gradually lightened his grip on Natasha’s hand.

“Ithink I’m ready.” He said finally, looking at her with complete adoration.

“Okay.Let’s go home.”

Asthey got into the car, Natasha’s cellphone began to ring with an unfamiliarnumber. She answered it and put it on speaker.

“Hello?”

“Hi,is this Mrs. Romanoff?”

“Yes,it is.”

“Goodafternoon, Mrs. Romanoff! This is Angie with the Adoption Agency. I was callingto inform you that we’ve found a child that was an excellent match with yourfamily’s profile, and they would be delighted for you to come and meet them.”

#brutasha #brucenat #hulkwidow #bruce banner #natasha romanoff #brucenat fanfiction #bruce x nat #bruce x natasha #bruce x natasha fanfiction #bw fanfic #bw asks

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