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anonymousfiction211 · 3 years

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Handcuffed together: 8 The party

The party

Today was the day that Steve finally woke up. When you heard the news your ran to the medbay, you had to see for yourself. Steve smiled brightly when he saw you and you engulfed him in a big hug. He grunted, still in pain and you loosened your grip.

‘Sorry’ you apologised. ‘How are you feeling?’

‘Like I have a hang-over, something I haven’t had in a very long time’ he smiled to himself. ‘I will be ok, (Y/N)’ he said. ‘Thanks for saving me’

‘Ehm.. actually, Loki did most of the work’ you admitted.

Steve frowned ‘Loki can do that?’

‘Yep, he’s teaching me currently’ you said.

Steve just laughed. ‘What’s so funny?’ you asked a bit wary.

‘To think a few weeks back we had to handcuff the two of you together, and now you are constantly with each other and he is even teaching you. It’s funny’ he said. ‘Are you sure there is nothing more to it?’

You hoped your face didn’t look as red as you think it looked. ‘Yes, just friends’ you replied a bit nervously.

‘I heard something else from Natasha’ he said.

‘What did you hear from her?’ you asked.

‘Apparently, Loki was quite cross with his brother the last mission. Hate to have missed that, I never knew Loki could be boyfriend material’ he answered.

Right before you could reply, the devil himself walked in. ‘Captain’ he nodded curtly.

‘Loki’ Steve said back as curtly as Loki.

‘How are you?’ Loki asked.

‘Great, thanks for helping me’ he said.

You saw for a quick second the surprise on Loki’s face. He wasn’t used to being thanked.

‘You’re welcome’ he replied hesitantly. Then he turned his attention to you. ‘You’re late’ he said.

‘Well, Steve was waking up. So, I think that is a good excuse’ you replied.

Before Loki could reply, Steve intervened. ‘Oh, don’t let me keep her from you. Go, (Y/N). I will see you tonight, Tony is already planning a big party’ he said while rolling his eyes. Loki looked very pleased, you rolled your eyes but followed the God to the training room.

Later that night

To say that Tony was throwing a big party, was quite the understatement. There were more people in the tower than you ever saw. The music was barely audible over the loud conversations, and alcohol was flowing freely. You had a blast, partying, and dancing with the rest of the team. Even Loki seemed to have a good time, mostly talking to people. He did scare a few of them, but that was to be expected from the God of Mischief. Halfway through the night, the party finally seemed to come to an end. Most of the team was sitting on the couch. Bruce went to bead early and Clint didn’t attend the party. You and Tony were quite intoxicated. You noticed Loki watching you like a hawk. You actually wanted to sit on his lap, but you didn’t know if you were ready for everyone to know. Whatever you could call what you and he were doing. Even tough, most of the team knew that something was up already, thanks to Loki.

The sound of the alarm and the red warning lights had everybody on high alert in an instance.

‘J.A.R.V.I.S., what is going on?’ Tony yelled to the AI.

‘There are some unknown individuals down in the lab, sire’ the AI replied.

‘Shit, that can’t be good. Right, ehm.. everyone who can still function properly, split up. We will cover every entrance to the lab and trap them there’ Tony yelled.

Even tough Tony gave the command, he was clearly to drunk to actually put on his suit. The only people who were capable were Thor, Loki, Steve, and Natasha. Steve had ordered the rest to stay put and the four of them went downstairs to the lab. So, you were left on the couch with Tony. The alarm didn’t stop and you heard explosions. After a while, the doors of the room you were sitting in burst open. Loki was quickly advancing at you, and you immediately noticed that something was off. Before you could react he grabbed you by the throat and lifted you into the air. You panicked, you couldn’t breathe anymore and no matter how much you struggled against his grip, he was too strong for you.

It took a moment for Tony to react. He sprinted towards Loki, in an attempt to tackle him. But Loki just slapped Tony out of the way and he went flying across the room. You tried to plead but didn’t have a voice anymore. Thor finally burst through the doors and flew at Loki. You fell down on the ground hard but didn’t care. You were gasping for air and tried to stay conscious. Natasha was by your side in a second and Steve went to help Thor.

‘Are you okay?’ Natasha asked

‘Y- yeah, but what?’ you barely could make audible.

Before she could answer you saw Loki in your eyeline again. He advanced towards you. You saw Steve and Thor both on the ground grunting. Natasha stood up, putting her body between you and Loki, but he pushed her away hard. The only thing you could do, was cower in fear. Suddenly Thor’s hammer slammed into Loki’s head and he fell down. To your relief he was unconscious. It took a moment for the whole team to get up and walk towards you and Loki. Thor extended his hand and helped you to your feet. He pulled you close and you hold onto him for dear life. You couldn’t help but starting to cry.

‘It’s okay. When he wakes up he will be normal again’ Thor whispered while stroking your hair.

‘WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?’ Tony yelled to Thor.

‘We don’t exactly know. But they got to him, it wasn’t his fault’ Steve said quickly.

‘What do you mean they got to him?’ Tony wanted to know.

‘I don’t exactly know. But when we split up, Loki found the creatures first. They talked to him, there was some weird energy surrounding him. Then he stormed of to here and the creatures just disappeared’ Thor explained. You could feel his voice vibrating through his body.

‘Did you recognize them or heard anything?’ Steve asked.

Thor just shook his head. Everybody’s attention switched when Loki started to groan and grab his head. He slowly sat up right, while everybody watched him intently. He blinked a few time and scanned his surroundings. He looked a bit disoriented. Suddenly, he looked at you with horror. You looked away and tightened your grip on Thor, to your relief he did the same.

‘I think you have some explaining to do’ Natasha said.

‘You’re not going to attack again?’ Tony asked.

‘No’ Loki replied, you could tell he was struggling. ‘I- I’m so sorry. I don’t know where to start’ he said. ‘I need to leave’

He quickly got to his feet, but swayed a little. Getting hit in the head with Mjölnir had his effect on him. Thor grabbed your arms and guided you towards Steve. You put your arms around him and Steve let you. Thor walked towards Loki. ‘You’re not leaving, sit down’ he sat strictly. He pushed Loki backwards and he fell onto the couch.

‘I need to leave’ Loki said desperately. He got up right, but Thor pushed him back down. You could tell he was exhausted and didn’t have much strength at the moment.

‘Tell us what happened if you need to leave afterwards you can’ Natasha said.

‘That’s a lie’ Loki replied.

It was silent for a long time. Everybody was looking at Loki, wating for him to speak. Loki was visibly struggling to find the words, that was rare. ‘Alright. It’s quite a long story’ he said.

‘We have all the time we need’ Tony replied.

‘You actually don’t, but anyway.. there is someone out there who is collecting all the infinity stones. And his minions were looking for the sceptre’ he said.

When he didn’t continue Thor asked ‘Who?’

‘He is named Thanos’ Loki replied.

‘What happened down there between you and them?’ Natasha asked.

Loki gritted his teeth. ‘They.. they put me in a trance’ he said.

‘Why did you attack, (Y/N)?’ she went on.

‘It’s complicated’ he replied.

‘Try me’ she quipped back.

Loki looked away, ashamed. ‘My first intention wasn’t to come here and play the hero’ he said.

‘I KNEW IT!’ Tony exclaimed! ‘I knew we shouldn’t trust you’

‘Shut up, Stark’ Thor boomed. ‘Loki?’ he asked.

‘Look, I convinced Odin to let me come here to ‘redeem’ myself for my actions. I was planning on escaping and starting over elsewhere… but Thanos contacted me and gave me another chance. So, I was stuck here’ he explained.

‘Another chance? At what?’ Natasha asked.

‘Collecting the mindstone, after that the Tesseract from Asgard’ he said.

‘I’m not buying it. How could they manipulate you so easily?’ Tony asked sceptically.

‘Once you’ve been under mindcontrol for a while, it’s easier to control the same person again’ Loki said.

‘When were YOU under mindcontrol?’ Tony snorted.

‘New York’ Loki said, still gritting his teeth.

‘Bullshit, we won’ Tony said.

‘I intentionally lost, there is a difference’ Loki said angrily.

‘Alright, why do you need to leave then?’ Natasha asked. ‘And don’t you dare lie to us’ she added.

‘To speak the truth, my first intention was to grab the stones and kill you in the process. Thor would grief too much to notice the attack on Asgard and after that I would be free’ he said, still not being able to look at the team. After a pause he continued. ‘But.. I didn’t expect.. I mean, I hadn’t planned on. You know, not wanting to kill you all.. so, I thought my best chance was to help you and if Thanos came defeat him’ he said.

‘We will circle back to the killing us part, but the latter sounds like reasonable? What changed?’ Natasha inquired further.

‘I’m okay with Thanos killing me. But today they told me they wouldn’t. They would use me to kill her and then keep me alive until I die naturally, should I fail’ he said while fumbling his hands.

You just stared in shock at Loki, but he wouldn’t meet anyone’s gaze. ‘So, I need to leave’ he said then. Everyone stayed silent.

‘No’ you whispered, breaking the silence. You felt everyone’s eyes on you but couldn’t care less. The only eyes you stared into were Loki’s. A mix of horror, pain, hurt, hope and love danced over his face. He was trying hard to hold back tears, it shocked you to see the always so dominant and in control man reduced to this. You slowly walked towards him and to your surprise he backed away on the couch.

‘Don’t’ he whispered, his voice croaking a little.

You ignored him. You sat beside him on the couch and put your arms around him. He didn’t react for a minute. But then he put his arms around you, pulled you close and hang onto you for dear life.

The moment was ruined when Steve started to speak ‘All right, ehm. This is a lot. And still a bit vague. Maybe, we should go to bed and Loki, tomorrow you tell us everything. Every detail, only the truth. After that we will come up with a plan’

Loki let go of you and looked at Steve ‘The truth is, it would be easier for me to leave. That would fix all your problems’ he said.

‘You’re part of the team, and we look out for each other. So, the answer is no. And if you even think about leaving I will personally track you down and put you behind bars again, just to keep you here’ Natasha replied.

Loki cocked an eyebrow, surprised by this reaction. Most of the team just nodded, Tony however looked at the ground. ‘When you decided not to kill us anymore, your highness’ Natasha answered his silent question when he kept looking at her. Adding a bit of humour to lighten the mood.

Tags: @delightfulheartdream @the-best-phineas @theaudacitytowrite @l0nelyasian @ragweed98

#loki #loki laufeyson #loki odinson #loki of asgard #loki marvel #loki mcu #loki x reader #loki x you #loki x ofc #loki x original female character #marvel x reader #marvel x you #mcu x reader #mcu x you #loki god of mischief #loki god of lies

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instasiswetrust · 3 years

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Steve's not quite drunk but there's a pleasant buzz under his skin that leaves him feeling pliant and loose, enough to keep any unsavory thoughts at bay for the time being.

The scent of chlorine and bleach that envelops him once he opens the pool doors, familiar comforts by now, help clear some of the haze of alcohol that has befallen him from his last drink taken at the Auris that night. Or morning. He's not entirely sure.

It brings back the memories that he had been trying so hard to forget. A lavender envelope had been in his mail that day, inside of it an invitation trimmed with delicate filigree. For Nancy's and Jonathan's wedding.

A fall wedding.

The type which he and Nancy had joked about back when they were together, not long before Jonathan had joined them.

He had gone through his work with the kind of detachment that usually meant nothing was truly registering. Adam might have noticed at one point, too attuned already to the tells under the porcelain of Steve's mask, but the memory is fuzzy and he can't remember if he ever gave a proper answer to his manager's concerned query.

As soon as work was done, he had made his way to the Auris in search of something to get his mind off the pain that clutched the shards of his heart like a vice. Or rather, someone. It had been his favorite dancer's day off or something though, leaving him to spend the rest of his night watching the dancers on stage and sipping on the ocassional drink.

Something had made him want to climb the stairs to the gym's pool, though. And that's why he was here now.

"Are you drunk?" The voice that speaks has become familiar in the same way the scent and sounds of the pool has and when he looks up to meet the eyes of its owner, he finds them startled if slightly amused.

"Only a little bit." He shrugs, plopping down by the edge of the pool with his legs crossed under him. The bleach might leave stains on his Levi's but he can't really muster enough energy to give a fuck right now. "'s not that bad."

"You kind of reek of cigarette smoke and whiskey."

Yep. Definitely amused.

"Spilled some scotch on my shirt. The smoke is probably from the cab driver." Another shrug but this time he levels Billy with apologetic doe eyes. "I can leave if it bothers you."

"You're fine, I was just curious." The blonde swims closer, crossing his arms over the edge next to where Steve sits once he's close enough. "First time I've seen you up here wearing something other than your ridiculous pajamas."

"They are not ridiculous!" Steve protests at once, pouting. "And you have seen me in swimwear too!"

"Last week you were wearing bright red shorts that said Bite Me across the ass, and a t-shirt that said Friends don't lie in big bold letters with a heart-shaped waffle at the center." Billy deadpans, raising a single eyebrow. "The shirt was at least two sizes too big for you."

"They were gifts." Brown eyes narrow into a glare but the petulant pout kind of offsets the vibe.

"I thought models were supposed to have taste in clothes."

"We're supposed to look pretty while others dress us. It's not in the job description to have taste."

"So you admit you have no taste then." Billy was giving him that smirk, the one Steve called insufferable but discretly considered hot as fuck. How dare he be so sinfully handsome.

"I said no such thing!" Steve crosses his arms over his chest, tipping his chin up in the perfect picture of snotty petulance. He could already feel the laughs bubbling in his chest, wanting to break the mock facade.

It takes only a second or two of Billy giving him an skeptical look before they are both laughing.

He had missed this kind of easy-going banter. Most of his friends he only saw around the holidays, and the environment at work was more prone to talks about weight loss and botox than anything else.

New York never slept but that only made it all the more lonely.

His sullen mood must've reflected on his face because he feels something poke at his thigh, meeting Billy's eyes when he turns to look at him.

"You didn't just come here so I could make fun of your taste in clothes, did you?"

"I-"

It's only then that Steve realizes Billy is right.

The reason his alcohol fogged brain has preferred to come up here rather than crash into his bed wasn't just some way of punishing himself even further. Not entirely at least. He had come here because it was a place of comfort for him.

And because he had a friend here, too.

"No. Not just that." Steve sighs, letting his eyes focus on the slow movement of the pool water instead of Billy's face.

"Do you..." A moment of hesitation, as if he's not sure about his words. "want to talk about it?"

Brown eyes close, keeping his focus on the in and out of air through his lungs for a few moments until he feels less like he's going to burst out crying the moment he sets these awful thoughts into words.

Makes them all the more real.

"My... exes. They are getting married. To each other." He doesn't open his eyes, doesn't do anything more than try to keep his voice steady even as the aching pain of heartbreak weighs down on his chest. "I received the invitation this morning."

There's a low whistle. It sounds like sympathy. It sounds real.

"That bites," Billy says, and his voice has a dulled edge to it. Commiseration with flavor, or something like that, but it's three am and there's nothing but cold tile and the soft wake of lit water. "Is this ... like a sudden spur of the moment thing?"

When Steve turns doe eyes to him, Billy raises up his hands, only moderately pruned, in an easing gesture.

"You don't have to answer. Just..." A pause. A beat as the swimmer looks for the right string of words. "Just trying to gauge how much of a dick move this is."

There's a laugh, dull and mirthless. A sad little sound.

“We have been friends since high school. All three of us dated for a bit longer after that. We went through some hard stuff together back in Indiana.” He shrugs, keeping his eyes closed. Tears at bay. “Was supposed to be the kind of friendship that lasted even after we broke up.”

It’s all my fault. He doesn't say.

My stupid heart and I. We ruined it all.

It takes a split second of contemplation, because, after all, they're total strangers. But once upon a time, someone gave Billy this sideways kindness and it helped. Maybe Steve and his overly fancy hair won't mind it too much.

So Billy acts on the impulse.

It's a tiny splash. Really very minuscule. Aimed and precise for the minimum impact upon the sitting duck target. But water is water. Nobody can tell tears from pool water.

"You were thinking too hard." He places the excuse on the table, sinking lower into the water, comfortable in this strange company. Even if the guy seems to be at the end of his rope. There's something about him. Like a dream you don't want to forget. "I could see the smoke. Had to cool you down."

The water is warm and yet is still enough of a shock to force Steve's eyes to open.

His first instinct is to protest, say something about the action being rude and uncalled for. Stand up and leave, most likely.

But what he sees in Billy's face — hears in his voice — is enough to give him a moment's pause. To truly appreciate the action for the small kindness it is.

This time when the tears dribble down his cheeks in quiet drops, he has something to hide them behind.

“You really think you're funny, huh?”

And if his voice is a little too wet to be considered normal, they don't have to talk about it.

"I'm hilarious," Billy says as he sinks a little lower into the water, mostly to hide his smug grin, but in part to hide away. "The girl gang that lets me tag along sometimes says so."

“Of course you are.” Steve rolls his eyes, using his fingers to brush back his mostly dry hair. He should probably wash the chlorine out of his hair before going to bed or it would be stiff come morning.

“Is that why you're trying to become a prune? For maximum fun effect?”

“Nah,” Billy waves off the prune comment. He’s hardly started his routine. Pool time ain’t over until everything has that post-workout burn and his stomach begs for food. Makes time easier to keep that way. “I just like to swim.”

Just like Tony Hawk likes to skateboard, he supposes, but understating his profession like this is one of the best parts of the job. Gotta get your kicks when you find them.

“Why? Got something against prunes?” He laughs, “They just want to help you. Healthy stomach, and all.”

“Not particularly, but they do remind me of my Nonna. She likes her prunes.” Another shrug, this time easier. Easy banter is much better than worrying about that little envelope sitting on his coffee table.

The tears have stopped too, the contacts itching slightly against his eyes. Probably from the mix of salt and chlorine. Thankfully, his cardigan is mostly dry and he takes it off to use it as a makeshift towel.

“Is that why you're always here at weird hours? You some sort of pool cryptid or something?”

“That’s only step one of my master plan.”

Billy likes the sound of pool cryptid. Sounds a lot more mysterious and fun than what he’s actually doing, which is training until he drops so the nightmares won’t kick up.

A snort, loud and sudden leaves Steve at that, straining a little in his throat. Mom would say it's undignified. Dad would say it's ugly. He doesn't particularly care either way.

“And pray tell, what would step two entail? Flooding the city?”

Cute laugh, Billy thinks briefly surprised. Much better than seeing the guy choke back tears. Let's see if he can't instigate a bit more of that amusement. It's bound to taste better than the misery the brunette wanted to wallow in.

"What kind of water-based supervillain do you take me for?" Billy, mock-miffed, places a hand over his heart and huffs. "That's so silver-age comics. And you're not even my henchman. Why should I tell you anything about my master plan?"

A finger taps at his chin, seemingly thinking hard about his answer. Steve's not particularly well versed in comics but Dustin’s done his best to keep him on the smallest of loops.

He no longer mixes Superman with Captain America, at least.

“Fair point. You don't have the looks to pass off as Aquaman.” Steve purses his lips, offering his best apologetic doe-eyed look. Although he's definitely bluffing because if there's anybody out there who could give Aquaman a run for his money it would be Billy. “And who says I couldn't be your henchman?”

"Did you fill out the paperwork?"

Everyone knows bureaucracy is the lungs of evil. Or something like that. Sue him, he was never great with metaphors on the fly.

“Honey, if I wanted to fill paperwork I wouldn't have taken modeling as a career.”

It's an exaggeration for the most part. Steve's too used to poking fun about himself these days that it doesn't sting as bad as it used. Not too much.

Billy cocks his head and lets the loaded sentence drop and drift away.

"Then guess you can't be a henchman."

“I can make killer margaritas, though.”

“I don’t really drink too much.” The nightmares get worse when he’s anything but sober. It’s better to be exhausted. It’s the easiest way. “Medication reasons.”

A little white lie that’s hardly a lie, he really shouldn’t drink with his ADHD meds, but who ever listens to that rule? Nah. Only when it suits him.

“Model thing explains your hair though. Glad we solved that mystery.”

“Fair.” Steve offers a smile, crooked and a little pinched at the edges but a smile nonetheless. “I’m not supposed to either. Nutritionist's orders.”

To be fair, he's not supposed to be drinking at all. Smoking too. It's a little hard not to indulge every once in a while, though.

The model comment surprises him. There's a billboard with his face just a few blocks down from this apartment complex. He can see it from his room. How has this guy not recognized him?

It's surprisingly refreshing.

“Hm? Oh no, the model thing has nothing to do with my hair. That's just personal taste.”

Now that Billy cares to look, Steve’s face is achingly familiar. Oh, the trials and tribulations of having attention issues. At least there’s a better reason for the weird familiarity than must just have one of those faces.

“Can’t relate.” He’s not particularly attached to any bodily feature of his. It’s a side effect, he’s told. Reassured. It's just a consequence, and nothing more. “Doing things with hair? Nah. Sounds too complicated.”

“Sounds like the kind of thing a pool cryptid would say.” There’s a story behind Billy's words. Something missing, hidden skin deep. Steve hopes the light jab helps diffuse that somewhat.

“What are you, a cop?” Billy smirks, and because he is the pinnacle of maturity, he dips under the water with an obnoxious splash.

“Asshole” Steve hisses, droplets dribbling down his bangs and into the cardigan bunched up in his lap.

With a sigh, he forces himself to get up. Might as well take that shower now.

Billy surfaces, still grinning, because even if the guy looks pissed at him, that means he’s not stewing in the past with his soon-to-be-married exes and the Hercules-class weight of baggage that relationship caused.

“Guys by the pool get splashed. No matter what time it is or how cute they are. Cryptid rules.” His smirk it's wide, tip of his tongue between his teeth. "If you weren’t prepared to get wet, then why’d you come?”

Steve shrugs, doing his best to ignore that peek of a pink tongue. “The local cryptid makes for good conversation.”

“So you’ve been watching me?” Billy makes a little show of floating back, caught in thought. “I don’t know how I feel about spectators.”

“I can stop.” Painfully honest. If Billy really wants him to, Steve would stop. He would prefer not to, though.

“Nah. I’m only pulling your leg.” Billy returns to the pool’s edge. Rests his cheek on the edge, looking up at pretty boy model Steve.

“Things get too quiet sometimes.”

Steve hums softly in agreement, feeling relief ease itself back into his bones. He would have stopped, yes, but he wouldn't have particularly liked the prospect of it.

“You come here every day? Or have I just happened to stumble in on the days you're around?”

"Almost every day. Sometimes I take this side-show to other pools." Billy cracks his best Han Solo roguish smile, levies it against Steve's still too flat smile. "Gotta keep the government guessing sometimes, you know."

“Of course, wouldn't want to get caught and all that.” A yawn gets past Steve's lips, startling him. He hadn't registered how tired he was. “I’ll keep that in mind, for next time.”

“Thank you.” Quieter. Softer. Barely above a whisper but loud enough in the gentle silence of the pool.

It comes just as soft. It's almost tender, really, as the word casts across the water and tile and the near-lonely pool.

"Anytime."

---

The next time Steve visits, it's once again 3 AM but he makes the mistake (is it really a mistake?) to bring a tin of sugar cookies with him.

"Oh shit, are you sharing, or is this all to tease me?"

Steve is sitting by one of the benches, already halfway through a cookie. “Come out here and find out.”

Billy narrows his eyes, lips pulled into a thin frown.

"Fool me once." He waggles a single warning finger and doesn't even really bother to dry off as he drags himself out of the pool to plop down on the floor next to Steve and steal into the snacks.

There are enough cookies for both of them stuffed neatly in a tin container. It's awfully pretentious according to Dustin, but then again Steve's Nonna always said cookies tasted better stored that way.

“I'm not mean enough to just eat while you watch. Yet, at least.”

"Oh just wait until you know me better." Billy chirps, shoving two into his mouth, wholesale and choking a bit.

"Robin and Carol would do that in a heartbeat."

“They probably would have a good reason too.” Steve teases, watching with amused eyes as Billy almost chokes. They are just sugar cookies he managed to scrounge up with whatever was in his kitchen. Nothing that good.

“Easy there tiger, cookies ain't going anywhere.”

"You have no idea how hungry I always am."

Steve blinks, surprised. The words come out before he has a chance to truly think them over. “I’m a good cook.”

"Prove it." It's out of Billy's mouth before he can take it back, but on second thought, he doesn't really want to. Steve's good company, or at least he has been so far.

And he hasn't had a nightmare since.

Good omens.

“You're kind of choking on the proof right now.” Maybe it comes out a little lighter, a little too surprised.

That's fine. Whatever this thing is, it doesn't seem like too bad of a chance to take.

“But if you need some more convincing, I can offer dinner too.”

Wheezing, but recovering, Billy grins up at Steve but there's a hopeful spark in his blue eyes that wasn't there before. "Fuck yeah, gotta make sure it's not a fluke."

Steve offers him the thermos of coffee he had brought with him, suddenly too distracted by watching Billy drink to remember what he wanted to ask. “Uh... When are you free?”

"This Sunday, I think. Getting back from a rapids trip that I shouldn't keep doing but like fuck am I gonna listen to other people for something dumb like my health."

“Is it like, you could die type of thing or just one of those things doctors say we should stop doing and everyone ignores? Because dead people don't particularly eat.”

"I do dumb shit because regular training gets boring and people who actually like me have to put up with it." Billy waves a dismissive hand. "But that's what it takes to get me moving on schedule so. Yeah."

It drives his coach insane because doing his reps in real rivers with real currents isn't exactly... well. It's not what everyone else does for training and given that he has passed out mid-stroke before, he can't even say the risk is just the current. But he knows that upstate rivers like the back of his hand.

Yeah, life would be way easier if he didn't have ADHD, less doctor's notes for the cause of amphs in his piss, but it would also be super boring and he'd be even more traumatized, probably. And that would suck.

Steve thinks of Indiana, and a bat full of nails. Of cliff diving at the quarry, drunk on stolen bourbon and tasting cheap cigarettes. Of the Auris with his slew of dancers most of who he's shared a bed with more than once.

He thinks he has some experience with the whole doing dumb shit just to get his schedule moving.

"I will take your word for it then." Hums, thinking back to his schedule and what he has paged in for Sunday. There was that casting thing Adam wanted him to do but it was morning. "I should be free on Sunday. Any allergies I should account for?"

“None that I know of.” Spoken cheerfully

“Great. Gives me more to work with.” And this time when he smiles, it's the most honest he's offered since they met.

---

When he finds it again, it is entirely on accident.

Adam had scheduled a trip to California for a gig, something about a new summer line of wetsuits and surfboards this company wanted him to advertise. It was a big opportunity and it was good cash too, of course so Steve wasn't going to question why they thought it a good idea to present a summer line in the middle of august. But as usual, he had forgotten to pack his suitcases until the night before, and now he was left to scramble around his apartment searching for his stuff.

So when he finds the lavender envelope buried under a few recipe books and a hoodie, still unopened, he doesn't think much about it and opens it. It's only when he's staring at the date stenciled in black calligraphy under Nancy's and Jonathan's name that he realizes what he's looking at.

Oh right. Those two were getting married.

The familiar ache in his chest is still there, but it's muted enough that he's surprised. Between canceling his exclusive membership at the Auris, and his relationship with Billy coming out to the media, he had sort of forgotten all about the wedding.

Maybe...

Grabbing his phone from the bed, he shoots his boyfriend a quick text.

How do you feel about being my plus one to my exes' wedding?

#WIPs #stranger things #model au #steve harrington #billy hargrove #harringrove

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janeykath318 · 3 years

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The Avengers Zoo

“Since when did the Avengers compound become a zoo?” Darcy asked, flabbergasted to see a frog and a porcupine just chilling out while a hairless cat sat in a sunny corner relaxing. Jane had been summoned down to headquarters and she’d begged Darcy to come too.

“Since Loki showed up and decided to cause havoc, as he is wont to do,” Jane sighed. “Everyone is….not human right now.”

“Oh, dear,” Darcy sighed. “Have you figured out who’s who?”

“Getting there. Hawkeye and Falcon are obvious, The bald eagle has to be Steve, and Thor is a golden retriever, which I have to admit, is kind of fitting.”

A big yellow dog trotted over to Jane and sat at her feet, tail wagging and tongue lolling.

“Hey there, big guy!” Darcy greeted. Thor barked and doggy grinned at her.

“Yeah, it’s good to see you too, pal,” she returned, smiling at him. “Hopefully, we can convince your Bro to undo whatever he did.”

“We think they still have their human minds, but Leo and Jemma are running some tests to verify that,” Jane informed her, leading Darcy to another room, which contained a dozing black bear, a striking panther, an adorable floppy-eared bunny, and three large birds of prey.

Darcy’s jaw dropped and she saluted the bald eagle.

“Wow, Cap. It’s a good look on you,” she said with a twinkle in her eyes. The eagle-Cap’s eyes narrowed, but he didn’t move a muscle.

Talk about majestic.

The sleek Falcon next to him let out a sound that Darcy took to be a birdish laugh and preened his feathers.

“Yeah, I see you, Wilson. You’re looking good, too,” she assured him.

Clint-Hawk flapped over to her and squawked a greeting.

“Hey, Clint. How’s the bird life treating you?” She asked, trying not to laugh. “If this wasn’t top secret, I’d have so much good blackmail material on you.”

Hawkeye gave her a birdie glare and shook his brown feathery head.

Darcy had to stifle a shriek when two large spiders suddenly dropped down in front of her. Of course, they were much bigger than any natural spider, but Loki had probably done that on purpose.

“Natasha?” She asked nervously, looking at the one with the red hourglass symbol on its body and thanking her stars she wasn’t arachnophobic.

The spider blinked at her and waved one of its legs, as if affirming her guess. The other spider was a solid black and much more wiggly than Natasha.

“Let me guess: Peter?” She queried, laughing at the younger spider’s antics as he shot around webbing everything in sight.

“Yep,” Jane sighed. “He makes such a mess.”

“King T’Challa looks every bit as regal in panther form as human form,” Darcy commented, watching the panther walking alongside one of the scientists, not making the slightest noise.

“He’s trying his best to help us figure this out,” Jane said affectionately. “He’s quite brilliant even in large cat form.”

The bunny rabbit hopped over to them and looked up at Darcy intensely. In a flash, she was given a mental image of the transformation moment and all the human identities of the animals.

“That’s definitely Wanda,” She informed Jane.

“She showed me who everyone is.”

One of the other scientists ran over eagerly.

“Ooh. Do tell,” he begged, looking like an excited puppy.

Jane rolled her eyes.

“Darcy, this is Leo Fitz. He’s helping figure this thing out. Fitz, this is Darcy.”

“Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise,” Fitz said.

“Other than the ones we already know, the cat is Dr. Strange, the frog is Bruce Banner, the porcupine is Tony Stark…” She cut off with a giggle and Fitz and Jane grinned at the hilarity of Tony the Porcupine.

“Anyway, Wanda is the rabbit, and the bear is Bucky Barnes, bless his heart.”

Darcy looked over to the bear, who was now awake and watching her with quizzical eyes.

“I’d stay away from that one,” Fitz advised. “He growls if anyone gets within three meters of him.”

“Poor Bucky really doesn’t like scientists,” Darcy told him. “He knows me. I’ll be okay.”

She walked over and sat down beside Bucky the Bear. He lifted his head, but didn’t growl or lunge at her.

“Hey, there, Bucky.” She told him. “Can you understand me?”

The big bear head nodded clumsily.

“Excellent,” Darcy beamed, then sighed, remembering their last very awkward encounter. “Now I can finally clear the air about us without you running off or interrupting me with self-flagellation.”

Bucky bear made a mournful sound, but Darcy kept on track.

“I thought we had a good thing going, Bucky. The flirting was top-notch and you had me completely wrapped around your little finger. Then we kissed and suddenly, you freaked out and avoided me like I had the plague. It’s okay if you aren’t ready, but I want you to know I’m not scared of you in bear form and I’m not scared of you in human form, either.

You’re a good man, Bucky Barnes. Believe it or not, you do deserve to be happy. Just think about that, okay?”

She could see Steve’s eagle eye watching them, and The Falcon and The Hawk were also gazing with interest.

The bear snuffled and looked up at her with soulful eyes that were ridiculously cute in a large beast like him.

Darcy had a strong urge to give him a pet, but figured it would be best to ask first.

“Do you mind if I touch you? That fur is really something.”

The bear didn’t seem to mind and Darcy slowly sank her fingers into his side and marveled at the feel. She gently ran her hand over his soft black fur, noting that Bucky bear had closed his eyes in bliss.

“Oh, you like that, do you?” She teased. “I bet your human self would too.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a commotion and Jane Foster giving a familiar mischievous figure a thorough chewing out. Loki was trying to be a smartass, but Jane was having none of it. Finally, he gave an exasperated huff.

“Fine! I have modified the spell to wear off in three days. There is no need for more threats. I am well aware of your expertise. You mortals have no sense of humor.”

With a poof, Loki turned himself into a snake and slithered away.

Jane sighed.

“Hear that everyone? You’ll be human again in three days. I have no idea what we’re going to do in the meantime.”

Turned out, Darcy added Avengers zookeeper to her resume during the next few days. She chatted to them, made terrible bird jokes, and helped make sure they ate. She got to watch Steve, Sam, and Hawkeye soaring regally in the air, which was a pretty incredible sight. Bunny Wanda liked to sit on her lap and nibble at lettuce while Porcupine Tony made ridiculous faces at Darcy and pretended he was going to poke Bucky with his quills. Bucky mostly snoozed at Darcy’s feet or watched the Birdy Trio flying around.

Kitty Strange slept most of the time and looked disdainfully at the others when he was awake, goblin like eyes eerily watchful. Thor of course, followed Jane around with his undying loyalty, and the spiders chilled out in their webs, amusing themselves by building more and more elaborate designs. Bruce was given his own private enclosure away from the chaos and he hopped about contentedly.

When day three arrived, they made sure everyone was in a safe location for a safe transition back to human form and waited it out.

Darcy got a text from Jane while on a coffee run that simply said, “I forgot how annoying human Tony is. I think I liked him better as a porcupine.”

The avengers were chattering and joking around about their antics as animals when Darcy got back.

“Lewis! I hear you’re switching careers to zookeeper!” Tony yelled. She flipped him off and ignored him. (She’d learned long ago this was the most effective method of dealing with him if Pepper wasn’t around to tattle to.)

“I have now dubbed you three the Birdy Trio and nothing is gonna change it, so get used to it,” she informed Steve, Clint, and Sam.

They all groaned and Darcy grinned in satisfaction.

Behind her there came a rusty bark of laughter and she turned to see Bucky grinning from ear to ear. His smiles were rare, but they were so adorable, Darcy’s heart skipped a beat.

“Don’t be smug, Barnes,” she playfully chastened him. “You’re gonna be Bucky Bear to me for the rest of your life.”

The smile did not diminish one bit.

“I hope that’s not the only thing I am to you, doll,” he said softly, making her blush.

Steve, observing their interaction, dragged Clint and Sam away to give them privacy and Darcy vowed to thank him later. Steve really was a good bro.

“You were right. I shouldn’t have run away like that,” he admitted, taking a tentative step toward her. “I’ve been kicking myself ever since. I’ve got more issues than National Geographic magazine, but if you’re willing to give me another chance, I’d definitely like to take it.”

Darcy smiled and grabbed his hands in hers: both of them. He looked surprised when he saw her grasping his metal hand, but he gently squeezed back.

“Bucky Bear, I’d love to. How about we start by catching up over dinner?”

“Sounds great, doll,” he said, beaming at her.

#the avengers #crack fic #wintershock #darcy lewis #bucky barnes

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bespokeredmayne · 3 years

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Celebrating Mum

On this Mother’s Day in the UK, a look at Eddie Redmayne and Patricia Burke Redmayne, his lookalike mum (even he admits it) through photos, quotes and vignettes. A very happy day to our followers celebrating today!

His earliest recollection of his mother:

Being pushed in my pram by my mum across Albert Bridge when I was three. It was pouring with rain but I was so cosy and I remember looking up and seeing my mum’s face drenched with rain.”

On being called ‘Eddie’:

I’ve never been ‘Edward’—except occasionally when I was younger and mum would get pissed off with me.

Eddie took his mother as his date to the Tony Awards in NY in 2010 when he won as Best Featured Actor for “Red.” He forgot to thank her in his acceptance speech but more than made up for the omission in his post-awards interviews:

“Any opportunity to thank my mum...and it is my mom’s birthday today. And she’s staying in a hotel in the Bowery and all, and she had a dress fitting, trying on all her dresses, and she’s wearing a dress she bought 25 years ago, which I think is pretty damned good going. She looks amazing.”

Her concerns about his career:

“...when I was younger and I was showing interest, that perhaps if you get knocked by bad reviews and stuff she would see that it would hurt a bit. And she’s like, “Darling, have you thought about becoming a lawyer? I mean, lawyers are basically actors. It’s the same thing.” And she would occasionally repeat this. And I’ll be like, “Mom, have you ever seen me win an argument?” And she’d be like, “No.” I’m like, “So…?”

On shooting ‘Theory of Everything’ at his alma mater, Cambridge University

“I was in such a myopic bubble,” he said. “About three days into filming in Cambridge, I got a text message from my mum, to the effect of how amazing that, ten years on, you’re back where you were lucky enough to go to university.”

Her excitement at ‘The Theory of Everything” and his Oscar nomination:

"I think it was an extraordinary film and after a time watching it I forgot it was Eddie. I just thought it was Stephen Hawking. He's a performer and has been ever since he was five and he first started singing at school. I remember at his 21st birthday one of his friends gave a speech saying they were looking forward to seeing him at the Oscars...We're absolutely delighted and over the moon with the news. I found out this afternoon and I had some champagne with some friends to celebrate. I think there are so many great actors out there at the moment, I think he has done so well to be nominated."

#eddie redmayne #patricia redmayne #mother’s day #mothering sunday

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fanfoolishness · 3 years

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Interview with a Fic Writer

Tagged by @novantinuum, thank you!

How many works do you have on AO3?

242 works. The actual fuck??? Wow, me. Of course, this does span about 9 years, so I guess that's not that insane?

What’s your total word count on AO3

549,737! But that averages out to only 2271 words per story, haha. You got me! I think I have less than 10 fics that have more than 1 chapter. I love one-shots, what can I say?

How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

Oh, you want to get into this? All right. We'll get into this:

The X-Files, proto-fandom, ur-fandom, first OTP ever... yeah, 15-year-old me went. WILD. Many horrible Mulder/Scully stories, and some Doggett/Scully and character study stories as well. Mostly not very good, but with occasional flashes of decent writing. Really had a difficult time writing romantic feelings between 30+ year-olds given a) I did not date in high school and b) was 17 and not an emotionally stunted FBI agent.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer - not a huge volume of stories, but definitely some very angsty Spuffy and Spike tales.

Harry Potter - just one published fic (Lupin grieving Sirius), and one with Snape and Harry having a heart to heart I could never quite get right.

Then came the dark times (vet school) where I was exhausted and hard at work for a few years and I thought, horribly, I might have outgrown fandom. Thank god for...

X-Men First Class and the undying love of Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr! I'd never fallen for a slash ship before but my god I fell hard for this one and wrote my first fandom smut and my first real AU (mutants with zombies) that I never finished.

Then.... let's see...

Quantum Leap drabbles!

Two Avatar the Last Airbender fics!

Agents of SHIELD fics, mostly focused on Coulson and FitzSimmons, and super angsty.

Bioshock Infinite sads (god I love writing the sad bad dad)!

And then the juggernauts of Mass Effect (my longest fic to date with 30 chapters!) and Dragon Age, which were endlessly productive and are still productive given the variety of different protagonists you can create, different choices, and different relationships to canon characters. I'm still working on a Hawke/Varric fic in the back of my mind here.

There's one random Gravity Falls fic (wish I could have got a little more obsessed with it, or gotten into it while it aired) of Stan sads, and one tiny Avengers ficlet of a sad Tony and Peter.

There's one Wheel of Time fic! Dammit I wanted Rand and Tam to reunite so much sooner than they did.

40-odd Steven Universe fics! So many SU fics!

One random Schitt's Creek fic of David and Patrick!

And finally, The Mandalorian, with 47 fics. Phew!!!

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

1. The Invitation, The Mandalorian. Din Djarin finds himself in dreams that seem realer than real, reminding him of his loss, but he begins to find a sense of hope again. A promise is kept.

2. The Outstretched Hand, The Mandalorian. Din Djarin is a man of action, but sometimes, the quiet finds its way in. Din reckons with the aftermath of the events of Chapter 14, the Tragedy. (My very first Mando fic!)

3. Not the Sentimental Type, Steven Universe. Priyanka Maheswaran has long prided herself on keeping her emotions in check. But a mother's love can only grow, and sometimes it expands to people she never anticipated. Like the Universe boy.

4. Translation, The Mandalorian. Din Djarin was a man of few words, but many languages. Some might have thought the Child had no language at all. Din Djarin and the Child grow to understand each other.

5. Full Disclosure, Steven Universe. Just as the world begins to recover from Spinel's attack, Steven starts having nightmares. The more he ignores his fears, the worse they become, until he's left with no other choice but to ask for help. (My thoughts on what would drive Steven Universe Future, and I wasn't far off.)

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I really try to! Even sometimes years later if I realize I've missed some. I appreciate each and every one, and have definitely made friendships through comments <3

What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

Oh, hell... I'm too lazy to link these but if anyone wants to read them let me know or find them on my AO3!

A Stopped Clock from Bioshock Infinite has Booker DeWitt ravaged by Korsakoff's amnesia from his long-standing alcoholism. Is Columbia real or imagined? Hard to say.

The Viscount's Way shows Varric Tethras having become his parent, and a cruel, hard viscount of Kirkwall.

Songs in the Key of Red shows how Cullen fared under the dark future in Redcliffe in DAI, and they write happy endings, don't they? shows what happened to Varric. Both horribly depressing in different ways!

Two by Two, Hands of Blue shows a not unexpected end to lyrium addiction :( Poor Cullen, he got a lot of angsty developments, didn't he?

Do you write crossovers? If so, what’s the craziest thing you’ve ever written?

Never really got into crossovers or AUs. Just... meh for me!

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

No, I don't think so.

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Charles/Erik, Shepard/Garrus, Shepard/Liara, Shepard/Tali, a mess of different f/f femShep drabbles, and most of my Dragon Age pairings have gotten sexytimes. On the other hand I helped start the NoRomo Mando tag for the Mandalorian to help find non-pairing Mandalorian content. Depends on the pairing and the fandom, for sure.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Nope, thank goodness!

Have you ever had a fic translated?

I think so! There used to be a Spanish-language wiki linking to some of my old X-Files stories XD

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No, but friends and I definitely will beta each others' things to help with sticky points.

What’s your all-time favorite ship?

ALL-TIME? Just, why? So many ships I loved in years past turned out to have pretty damn problematic elements I didn't see at the time, so it's hard to say... Mulder/Scully actually has a ton of issues, Buffy/Spike obviously has issues... so maybe Hawke/Varric (except not canon!) or Garrus/Shepard or Brosca/Alistair.

What’s a WIP you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

Still need to finish my Hawke/Varric fic for after Adamant! I have 3 chapters written that I haven't posted. Maybe posting them will help inspire me....

What are your writing strengths?

Dialogue and POV writing from different characters; I feel fantastic writing Steven and Greg, though totally at sea trying to write from Connie's POV, randomly. But I think my dialogue and emotional beats are what people tend to tune in for. When I do write romance, it's usually very sweet and silly and pulled from life. I also love writing nature scenes and settings to help establish mood. Mood and emotion and catharsis are my bread and butter, and I like my poetic prose.

What are your writing weaknesses?

What the hell is a long, well-thought-out plot? Like what even is that???? My longest fic with 30 chapters is basically "Shepard has PTSD and hangs out with her crew. They have some funerals." THAT'S IT. How the heck people actually come up with plot that ties into the lore of a fandom I genuinely have no idea and it's the biggest thing that's held me back from finishing original work. I can come up with a setting and characters and then trying to make them do stuff that's more than just talking to other characters and deepening their relationships with them... how the fuck???

I also definitely have 10-20 words that I am in constant danger of reusing like every other paragraph, LOL!

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I don't speak any other languages so I always avoid it as much as possible. I've seen people describe sign differently in fics and picked one way to depict it that made sense to me for Grogu, but that's about it.

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

The X-Files, of course!

What’s your favorite fic you’ve ever written?

Towards Another Day, the tale of how Cullen went from being a templar in Kirkwall to commander of the Inquisition, is definitely up there.

Reverberations is one of my rare multi-chaptered fics and one of my favorite for the catharsis at the end. It makes me tear up every time. 5 times Din and Grogu encounter the Dark Side, and one time they find the Light.

Either a world for the birds (Steven develops a closer relationship with his Uncle Andy, learning birdwatching along the way) or on the subject of rocks (Steven and Jasper finally reach a peace) might take the prize for favorite SU fic.

Tagging (if you’re super bored and would like a fun thing to do) fellow writers:

@lastwordbeforetheend, @runrundoyourstuff, @honestlyhufflepuff, @art3mys, and @fake-starwars-fan if you would like to play!

#fandom #writing #on writing #fanfiction #damn look at me go #memes

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werfrgy · 3 years

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And perhaps they partly right, since what people can name and claim their own leaders when they don have their own nation state? And maybe in a virtual America like the one we inhabit today, the only Black culture that matters is the one that can be downloaded and perhaps needs only business leaders at that. Certainly it easier to nike air max 102 essential white speak of hiphop hoop dreams than of structural nike black tn 001 racism and poverty, because for hiphop America to not just desire wealth but demand power with a capital P would require thinking way outside the idiot box.. Fashion savvy guests who had raided their closets for their favorite pieces to wear to this round robin of events. The 900 Shops had a line a mile long of people anxious to get nike sb prod x into the VIP Party to see gorgeous actress Ali Larter, who arrived with her hunky actor husband, Hayes MacArthur. (His. "Normally in New York, I would not do a Mark Zuckerberg jeans and a hoodie," she said. 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baeklination · 4 years

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bartender love pt.2

Date:200823

Warnings/Contains: SMUT 🔞, general crude language.

Pairing: Kyungsoo x F.Reader

WC:2,3k

pt.1 pt.3

¤¤

You smiled to yourself as you re-read the text from Kyungsoo "Told you it would take too long. What are we doing tmrw?"

Tomorrow was today and you were on your way to the skate park to meet Loey:

"They're having a competition."

"Really, what's the prize?"

"Nah, it's nothing like that, just the guys who hang out there alot. I don't think there's a chance he's gonna win."

"No, I don't wanna see it if he sucks, then I'll-"

"He doesn't suck", Kyungsoo assured you "but I think one of 'em does those X Games or Red Bull ones. Like a pro. I wasn't really paying attention when he told me."

"Busy jerking off?"

"You know it", he smiled. "Couldn't stop thinking about you so I had to pull one real quick."

You glared at him.

"Not cool, TMI?"

"No, it's cool. I mean, I did the same with you when I woke up", you said in a casual but obviously joking manner.

"The fuck, Y/N!"

"Oh, you get to be crude but I don't?"

"Yeah! Cus when you say it sounds...fuckin' hot!"

¤¤

The park wasn’t in the middle of nowhere, but definitely off the beaten track. It wasn’t even really a park, more a paved stretch of concrete with obstacles like rails, pipes and banks, seemingly gathered from in and around the neighbourhood.

“It’s weird, the things you don’t know about your own town”, you said.

“Yeah, since the train stopped going here no one comes around. Except these guys. I wouldn’t have known either if it weren’t for Lo.”

“Kyungsoo-ya..!” Loey had spotted the two of you and did a thumbs up with a big grin on his face.

“But you don’t skate?”

“No, I…”, he laughed. “Lo tried to teach me how to do an ollie a couple of years ago and I ended up with a shattered elbow. Now I’m just an enthused spectator”, he said sitting down, guiding you to sit between his legs. “Very enthused”, he said, pulling you back.

“Hey, Romeo, no hanky panky here.”

“Where do you get your expressions from..!? Takesies backsies and now frickin’ hanky panky”, Kyungsoo laughed.

Turning around to say something clever your mind went blank (honestly you were a bit stunned at how endearing he looked when he laughed) so you faced forward without a word. He placed his hand on the back of your thigh and moved it upward slowly.

“Don’t worry, Y/N. There will be no hanky…” he whispered in your right ear “...or panky...” he continued in the other “...until you want me to.”

When he moved his hand inward you couldn’t keep your cool anymore. You grabbed it and held it between your hands.

“Mm-hmm. Great,” you nodded, making the both of you burst out laughing.

As Kyungsoo had foreseen Loey didn’t win, but it was all the same to him; he still had the same jovial attitude as when you’d first met him last night. You’d stayed back chatting for a while, but when it got darker, and subsequently colder, you decided to meet up at Henki later; Loey and co going their way and you and Kyungsoo stopping by his apartment to get you a hoodie and a quick bite to eat, with Kyungsoo promising to amaze you with his cooking skills.

¤¤

He opened the clasp of your bra but didn’t bother removing it since he now had access to your breasts. It didn’t take long for your nipples to become stiff, which had Kyungsoo moaning.

“Your nipples…”

“M-hm, they do that sometimes.”

He pulled away and smiled:

“You’re so fucking cheeky...”

Taking off your top and bra you leaned in again to catch his lips, his hot breath. Rocking back and forth you could feel your panties sliding around. You wanted something in you now, so taking his hand you guided it to the hem of your shorts - he didn’t miss a beat getting his hand in, tracing big circles, feeling you out. When you bit his lip in excitement he winced, but moaned and pushed his tongue in even deeper, as well as his middle finger into you.

“Ah, sh!” he groaned and looked down. “Fuck...”

“M-hmm”, you agreed.

“Let’s go to the bed.”

You lay down while Kyungsoo rummaged around in his nightstand. He took out a condom and put it between his teeth while he undid his pants with eager fingers. Having sex with someone the first time you always had that fleeting thought of “what if his dick is too this or too that?”, but there was nothing too about him; he was average, normal. A bit thicker. When he got in bed and pulled off his t-shirt was the first time you saw his body in full. Like his arms, his torso was almost fully covered with tattoos, continuing down his thighs. He was a fucking masterpiece. He bent over you, kissing your neck, your breasts, your lips. You grabbed his waist to pull him closer.

“You’re sure?”, he asked.

“Kyung, I’m not a virgin…”

He laughed into the pillow next to you.

When he aligned himself and carefully pushed in there was barely any resistance; he slid all the way in on the second go, and had decided pace on his fifth. It was excruciatingly slow. Deliciously slow. The way he alternated between deep kisses and heavy breathing and dragged out “fuck”s in your ear pushed you over the edge.

“Faster. You’re killing me”, you moaned digging your fingers into his backside and lifting your leg up so he could reach deeper.

The rolling of his hips sped up as he placed his hand on your leg for support. You could feel the whole length of him stroking you inside, his balls repeatedly pressing just below your entrance, his legs brushing yours. It smelled of sex.

“Shit, I wanna go faster”, he groaned.

“Go faster.”

“I can’t...”, he said with a smile and kissed you”...I’ll come.”

“We’ll do it again.”

When you put your legs around him he immediately buried his head next to you, pinned your pelvis to the mattress and rammed into you. Going that deep you almost thought you were gonna come before he did, but he beat you to it, threatening to break you with how hard he thrusted when he came. His whiney growl became bursts of chuckles mixed in with hard exhalations.

“I don’t know if laughing at someone after sex is a compliment...”

“It is”, he said and started with those slow kisses again.

He let you buck your hips a few times while you kissed, but eventually pulled away.

“Y/N, you know I have to pull out...”

“I know”, you said, rolling your eyes demonstratively.

When he’d thrown away the condom he opened a window to let some welcomed fresh air in before getting back in bed.

“Spooning kinda defeats the purpose of opening the window, you know.”

“You said we’d do it again”, Kyungsoo whispered, kissing your neck.

“No way you’re ready again...Right?”

“No, but you are,” he said, touching your leg for you to open them.

¤¤

“Now let me wow you”, Kyungsoo said, taking out a packet of spaghetti and a box of meatballs.

“Do you know I was really up in here thinking “finally, a man that cooks..!””, you said, clapping your hands together. “Sauce..?”

“You already had it, baby…”

You closed your eyes, pretending to be in pain.

“Take that back right now or I’m out.”

“That was even too much for me, shit”; he laughed. “No, I always eat it with ketchup. Sauce takes more than seven minutes to make so…”

“Eh, it’s a free meal. Who am I to complain? Besides, if this is that one annoying thing about you it’s tolerable.”

“What’s your thing?”

“I’d be stupid to call attention to it, wouldn’t I?”

He came round to the chair you were sitting on and rested his arms around your shoulders. Even though you were both still naked there was nothing sexual to his touch; it was soft and comforting. Kissing his arm left a faint taste of salt on your lips.

“I’m gonna watch you like a hawk now, to find out what it is. But...on a more serious note. It’s only our second date and we’ve already had sex, so I have to ask...you don’t think I’m slut, do you?”

“You’re an absolute raging whore, Kyungsoo”, you said, turning around to face him. “Just the way I like ‘em.”

That smile. If he kept on smiling you’d keep on dying. He cupped your face and gave you a quick kiss. And another one. Then a slow one, sliding his tongue in your mouth. Picking you up, setting you down on the counter, he moved down and enveloped his mouth around your nipple, caressing your inner thighs at the same time. The water boiled over on the stove, but he just pushed the pot off the heat, still focusing on you. Kissing a trail down your stomach there was a buzz, followed by a:

“Kyungsoo-ya..!”

Loey banging on the door. You snapped out of it and rolled your eyes.

“What the fuck - does he have a fucking sex radar..!?”

Kyungsoo opened his eyes wide:

“Keys! He has keys. Go!”, he chuckled, lifting you off the counter so you could scurry to the bedroom.

¤¤

You’d spent the whole Saturday and early Sunday with Kyungsoo, but in the evening you went over to Iseul and Tony’s for dinner before heading off to work.

“Well, if that’s not the face of someone who’s just got a good jackhammering..!”, Iseul proclaimed when she saw you.

“A good? Try several great”, you sighed. “You know how he’s gorgeous and all..?”

“M-hm?”, she nodded.

“Equal.”

Iseul didn’t say anything. She just leaned forward with big eyes and gestured for you to give her the rough draft.

“I wasn’t planning on it when I followed him home, but really...I have to have been, right? In the back of my mind.”

“Of course.”

“Two things I can tell you for sure. It wasn’t his first time at the rodeo…”

“Given”, Iseul interjected.

“...and he did not learn by watching porn.”

“You mean..?” Iseul was almost holding her breath out of excitement.

“I do mean. His touching, his kissing…”, you gestured with your hands. “The bed, the kitchen, the floor, the shower… Sweet Mother Mary he’s good!”

Iseul stared blankly for a moment, then slid off her chair for comical effect.

“I’m happy for you”, she said in a monotonous voice before she cracked up. “Seriously though, that’s some prime beef. Most guys don’t know how to fuck. Like know.”

“No, you’re right, Is. I got myself some prime pork”, you giggled, acutely aware of the cringey metaphor.

The bathroom door opened; it was Tony coming out of the shower.

“I thought I heard cackling from the hens. ‘Zup, Y/N?”

“When Y/N leaves we’re having sex on the floor,” Iseul informed him.

He raised his eyebrows, then laughed:

“Does this have anything to do with Mr. Romance..?”

“Damn right it does..! My girl’s telling me she’s been cirque du soleiled all weekend while we’ve been watching reruns of “Survivor”..!”

“Did you hit your head or summin’ - we had sex this morning”, Tony reminded her, putting his palms up.

“Yeah, but not in a sixty-nine formation while juggling squirrels and solving relativity equations..!”

She had the both of you roaring with her descriptive monologue of what she felt was lacking in the bedroom.

“Ey, Tony. I didn’t say anything like that,”, you defended yourself. “She already had that shit in her head…”

“Believe me, I know. But you do seem to have a special way to unlock them…”

¤¤

Your time spent with Kyungsoo seemed far longer than just a weekend, which made going to work feel extra drab. Luckily, you worked nights which allowed you to have more free time than the regular nine to five, and with him working evenings and nights your schedules weren’t a bad match at all. You’d managed to see each other two times during the week, and the other days you’d talk on the phone or send text messages to one another. But nothing beat the feeling of being off work completely, and when you saw him waiting to pick you up on Friday morning your stomach made such cartwheels it almost scared you. Wasn’t it too soon?

You hadn’t wasted a minute when you got back to his flat; it was clothes off, straight to bed. You didn’t fall asleep right after as the sun was coming up and you were still excited about seeing each other.

“I love the way your nipples feel against my chest, you know when they’re barely touching it”, he said stroking one of them with his thumb “And like this. When they go hard in my hand.” He wasn’t trying to work you up, he was just telling you how he felt.“Have you been like this with someone this fast?”

“Every weekend...”

“Every weekend?”, he said and got on top of you, kissing you all over while laughing.”Then I better get my fill now, since I’m about to be traded in.”

He stopped and hovered, looking you straight in the eyes. The mood changed.

“Here, sit up”, he said and put your legs around him.

The way he looked at you made you feel awkward. Not uncomfortable, just awkward, so you looked everywhere else but at him.

“No, let me”, he said, lifting your head.

You knew what he was doing, so you tried to hold his gaze.

“You’re beautiful.”

You couldn’t help but to go from a silly smile into a giggle and Kyungsoo harmonized with his deep rumbling laughter.

“You’re so beautiful” he reiterated, giving you shallow, juicy kisses.

#kyungsoo #kyungsoo fluff #kyungsoo smut #kyungsoo imagines

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diligentgoose · 4 years

Photo

My D&D parties characters! I drew this when we were intending to make a Spotify podcast, but it was already pretty late in the campaign so we decided not to.

Left to right: My Shifter Druid, Ilseyon (Ilsey) Rylet. He led tens-of-thousands of citizens to safety as a Giant Hawk one time when our Bloodhunter accidentally summoned a god that destroyed the city. He also helped find trapped people and corpses. He’s the symbol of Rescue Organisations now and has a giant statue in the centre of the (re-made) city dedicated to the anonymous Druid. He also married his childhood sweetheart, Matyuldi (AKA Matty), a Tiefling musician, not long ago and has been going Agate hunting to awaken a bunch of animals and together they run a non-profit conservation effort for the city. He’s one of two characters who *gasp* have an ACTUAL good, supportive and loving family. Inflarema Silberstern, our Half-Elf Bloodhunter. She introduced the rest of our party to the concept of found family (via her gay adoptive fathers), and has been so so so integral to character growth and party dynamics. She’s a flaming lesbian and we all love her and her sassy Aarakocra Arcane Ranger GF to the Sun and back. Our Wizard knocked out her asshole blood-brother in a bathroom one time and stole his phone for our Cleric who’d lost hers in the BBEG fight. It was great. We would die for her. Delphine Vontaine, our Wood Elf Monk. We couldn’t beat anything without her tbh. She’s grown up so much from our first session, and I absolutely have to praise her player, who portrays her SO DAMN WELL. She’s easily the best of the players at the table when it comes to RP. She’s our token Mean Girl Rich Kid Barbie, and it’s been a real journey to get her to question Daddy Dearest, but we’re so proud of her for starting to think for herself and defy the bastard. She also has a literal video game GF now (after breaking up with the Wizard, far right), after the party got sucked into a video game demi-plane to rescue Ilsey’s little brother. Sammi is SOOOOO badass. A mechanically Goliath Sniper. Wonderful GM @puwumats went along with this absolute mischief and invented a way for it to be possible in-world for Sammi to live on the Material Plane. Also GM got me into Tumblr and I blame her for me being up until 5am last night building my blog/s. Liliana Leijon. Aboslute cinnamon role. Too good for this world. Too pure. She’s our Cleric, guess which domain? LMAO. She’s a lynchpin for the party, and is the other party member who *gasp* has a nice family. Our GM got so creative with her backstory and it was amazing. Too much to explain, but HOT DAMN was that a fun arc. So much has happened since our accidentally summoned BBEG God of Destruction. Long story short, she was an Aasimar. Our Blood Hunter died. Three of us gave up all our GM Inspirations to help try plead with the Raven Queen to bring her back (Divine Intervention). We got it on the last time, and Lil’s had to make a deal to give up her divine ancestry link to Her. She’s now mechanically a half-elf and has blonde hair and a healthy pallor. She was dying slowly from a necrotic curse/disease at the time though, so it effectively removed it from her because it was related to her Aasimar-ness. That’s a plus. Previously J’son Dane (yes, it is the reference you’re thinking of), a Warlock of the God of Destruction, now our SmortBoi Wizard (almost Paladin tbh) to Ioun. A lot happened thanks to epic backstory thought up by our GM, and his name is now Elias Wildvale. He was THE EDGIEST LITTLE SHIT. Passed around from foster home to foster home, emancipated at 14 (literally always carried around his Legal Adult certificate), joined the Mob...Once left a small shoe-store Clerk in the staff room of his store with broken knee caps and pants filled with shit (literally intimidated him into shitting himself with a Nat 20 +, like, 8 at level 2) after he failed for the last time to repay a loan from the Boss. He cried in the shower afterwards and was physically sick. He hated working for the Mob. After Ioun spoke to him, seeing his potential for good, to save him from losing his soul to the BBEG, a huge weight has been taken off his shoulders and he’s been doing so much community work to help disadvantaged kids with his reward for saving the city. Which he did btw. The BBEG dropped a Wish pearl, which he used to undo the destruction of his now former deity. I also wrote this quote down from him because it was a fucking great line: “I’ve committed as many felonies as I have pubes.”

Btw the mob boss was a Halfling named Big Tony who had a Goliath wife. ICONIC. Not in the picture because he’s been added to the party since, our red skinned emo Tiefling Fighter (samurai aesthetically), Nikolae Adreni, but we all refer to him as Pollux. He was originally an NPC that was a long-time friend of Liliana (whom he calls Castor) and briefly, her BF. We got a new player who’d never played D&D before and was happy to bring Pollux to life while they learned the game. They’re a natural with RP. We still have backstory to explore with Pollux, which I look forward to our characters and us discovering, sometime. Did I mention Pollux is absolute bae and fashion icon? ‘Cause he is. But yeah, I love my Party and I’m gonna miss this campaign when it ends by early 2021. We’ve been playing since January this year, at least twice a month. Our sessions go for between 8-15 hours. We hardcore love the world and our characters.

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bladekindeyewear · 4 years

Text

HS^2 bloggin’ mainline 2020-08-06

♪ HS2 HS2 is baaaaack ♪

♪ HS2bloggin here we gooooo ♪

♪ Structural changes on their team but I don’t caaaaare ♪

♪ Already resooolved myself that its NOOOT gonna beee as good ♪ with inattentiveness to details characters like Terezi forgetting-what-they-used-to-know and an obsession with dwelling on traaageeeDEEE without relief-or-considering how weee’d feeeeeeel~ ♪♪♪ --so just gonna enjoy-what-i-caaaaaan about iiit~ ♪♪♪

Okay time for bankruptcy

> CHAPTER 11. History's Most Notorious Haters

Let’s see how effectively my perky new lowered-expectations attitude lets me enjoy this comic *click*

wut

Oh. so is this Dave drawing comics about current events or Regular Calliope doing so for our very first lanky look at her presumably-grown-up-more cherub form

> Knight: Keep it real.

HOLY SHIT IT’S DAVEBOT AND ARADIA

so we just get to SEE them?! just like that??? no buildup or anything? :D

Okay I’m marking out a little that’s a good sign. Also what a nerdy cop-out to turn the roboteyes into glasses that’s barely passable which is perfect, the rest of his outfit looks pretty cool tho

DAVEBOT: and thats reason four hundred nineteen why despite my mans many accomplishments i will never acknowledge big skateboardings contrived message that tony hawk is the quintessential skater of our generation ARADIA: o_o DAVEBOT: not in these trying times

Good to see Ultimate Dave is being true to form with regards to the core of his personality

DAVEBOT: beep boop ARADIA: i have told you several times that i was a robot before and i know for a fact you dont have to say beep boop DAVEBOT: hm that sounds fake does not compute ARADIA: david DAVEBOT: mom

I was with this conversation until the last two lines what the fuck

(I’m reading into it aren’t I, Aradia was trying to be atypically proper -- even though she wouldn’t have the frame of reference to know without being specifically told that “Dave” was considered nickname shorthand for the human name David, and thus if she DID know there’s no reason she’d use it except to troll him -- and Dave’s just mocking her response. Without any shame about his continued weirdness of calling people Mom, and by without any shame I mean he made the choice EXPLICITLY to intentionally evoke the awkwardness. Wow I got a lot out of two lines.)

(Oh, also alt!Callie’s true Jade-body incarnation here probably prompted her to start using “David” by example. There, various mysteries solved via a pile of assumptions probably to be disproven in the next couple lines I read.)

The Knight and the Maid stare at each other briefly, having exchanged enough meaningful glances over their time together to know when to drop it.

Would Time players have an easier time gelling this way, like this particular smoothness? Dropping it just before it gets weird or excessively irritating?

(Overclasspecting)

ARADIA: i think we have exchanged enough meaningful glances over our time together to know when to drop this DAVEBOT: what i enjoy about our conversations is that you just say things like that

OKAY I SNRK’D AT THAT. That was funny.

Initially. And now I’m concerned whether Aradia is being controlled by the narrative-speak, or whether they’re both just humorously referencing the meta-text they can both see, or--

ARADIA: oh is that what you enjoy ARADIA: well we are both an infinite number of years old living countless lifetimes at once but thats no reason to waste any of our...

WHAT??!? She’s an Ultimate Self too?!?

Um, okay! Yeah! So they’re BOTH just riffing on the narrative then. But... why would Dave need a robot body to accommodate his Ultimate Psyche without getting sick but Rose not need it? I can understand Dirk not needing it because the merging of the full breadth of his multiversal individuality gels well with him being a God of the aspect governing the power of his multiversal individuality, but Aradia?

Were the robot bodies not necessary after all, and the sickness Rose suffered and Obama thought Dave would have suffered some sort of ruse? Are there shenanigans afoot? (Or are we going with the “troll biology is better” cop-out?)

She knows how this will play out, having undoubtedly tried this joke on her friend in some timeline or another. Their rapport reflects a unique combination of their matching aspects but greatly differing classes. One a passive but powerful servant to time, the other wielding the aspect like a honed blade.

WHAT????

PASSIVE SERVANT OF THE ASPECT?!? WHAT THE FUCK

Okay if that means anything like it sounds like I guess my class chart is finally blown up, sure, they only waited (*checks last edit date*) SEVEN AND A HALF YEARS TO BLOW THAT GUESS UP, SURE

Wow. Okay, I feel some obligation to jump to conclusions and say the whole class chart is wrong, but let me stay strapped in to see if “passive” is as literal as one would expect alt!Callie to mean, or it just means “an active class passive compared to other classes”. And, serving the aspect? Oh dammit, now people are gonna come at me advocating a Maid / Page dichotomy about actively serving the aspect versus allowing the aspect to be served... or Page / Maid even, jesus

I wish I had enough energy to have those chats anymore. I’d rather hold on and see the whole ridiculous chart scheme they have in mind... which is definitely (and hopefully) the one Andrew really drew up at the time and not made up by the staff, even if it throws away plenty of my old work... I’ll just stop thinking about it and keep reading.

...

--no, I don’t think I can just stop thinking about it yet. Dammit, brain.

So um. Maids serving their aspect. There was a whole “Maids serve” thing going on throughout the whole plot of Homestuck, but despite how prevalent it was, I wrote it off as the story riffing on the classical definition of Maid when the actual stuff Maids accomplished was something different and more specific, just like Knights constantly got riffed on for chivalry and the like. Furthermore, service seemed like a really shitty class definition, when class definitions are the verbs one uses to interact with reality through Aspects to change the way reality unfolds, and “serving” isn’t really an action that results in change, implying a distinct deficit of agency that I wouldn’t have viewed as fair. (Especially since you originally think “meant to serve others” and not “meant to serve the aspect”, implying even LESS agency.) Furthermore, MOST passive classes from their descriptions seem to have a propensity to act “as if by the will of the aspect”, so even with the nuance of “serving the aspect”, devoting an entire class verb to service would just step on the territory of other active/passive class pairs’ passive sides, right?

But... IF we were to take this for granted as what it SEEMS... then concentrating on that angle of “serving the aspect” implies a whole lot more agency than a service class might sound on its surface. The definition fits with the story better once you contextualize all the Maid-y references to service around Jane, for instance, with the additional idea of “serving Life” by baking prolifically and creating more of its symbols in food and--

--fuck. “Serving”, like serving to others. Serving the aspect as its attendant AND serving it out to others that need it. Maybe this still IS part of the Additive class pair! Whoa. :O

Okay okay so, what I/we thought before was:

Create/Add - Maid / Sylph

Destroy/Reduce - Prince / Bard

But “additive” really isn’t an elegant verb compared to the “Destroyer” classes, so... could it be the “Servants” and the “Destroyers”? Like Maids cleaning up and healing the broken wreckage strewn through the halls by a bratty Prince’s tantrum???

It’d certainly be weird... and it’d CERTAINLY be a wild twist where I was partially wrong in some fascinating ways but not entirely off base?

One a passive but powerful servant to time, the other wielding the aspect like a honed blade.

And yet, I can’t bet on this being the situation yet; not at all. First, it relies on the idea that alt!Callie’s explicit narrative here is slightly misleading, which would be a pretty extreme thing to commit to, even for a technical truth like “she was saying it was passive relative to other classes even though it’s technically “active””. Second... it would mean that Muses are even more wildly defined than the previous insinuation of hers, that the Sylph -- what we thought was the passive additive class -- was not enough like a Muse compared to a Witch. Muses not being that Additive? I could grudgingly understand that, but Muses not being anything like passive Servants?! That would be EXTREMELY weird!

So... there’s not a whole lot of chance that I’m not dramatically wrong somewhere about these classes! In a way that throws the entire chart into disarray!

I’m... oddly excited? Huh.

That’s a pretty nice surprise that I actually feel that way.

(Don’t hit me up all at once to discuss this Classpect development over Discord, I’ll still need a few days without talking about Homestuck to recharge as usual. Like... maybe wait and come at me as a group chat? So I’m not talking about the latest developments separately with everyone? No that wouldn’t work, how about... guh I dunno, look my outlook’s a little more positive right now but dealing with Homestuck still takes emotional energy okay?)

Okay the rest of this page...

ARADIA: ... DAVEBOT: time then make a weird face ARADIA: ........ DAVEBOT: waste time DAVEBOT: time ARADIA:............. DAVEBOT: i experience all points of time simultaneously please just say time and make a weird face

This is true.

ARADIA: .................. DAVEBOT: cmon megido youre killing me clocks ticking ARADIA: ... ARADIA: time o_o

The Maid casts a furtive glance around the empty crew quarters, as though to search for someone more sympathetic to her bit.

ARADIA: tough crowd

Dorks.

> ==>

(Lazy fruit-throwing sword-training I won’t bother to screenshot but looks fun)

(I mean, really lazy looking, these people really don’t have Andrew’s knack for action composition that would make the same amount of gif-creation effort feel like a microcosm of the event they’re depicting, unfortunately. Again, I don’t blame them; Andrew was just too good at it.)

DAVEBOT: ok heres one DAVEBOT: how old do you think you are ARADIA: emotionally? ARADIA: that is a pretty heavy topic DAVEBOT: you know damn well thats not what i meant ARADIA: you know I have been through a lot dave DAVEBOT: ok ARADIA: its just so kind of someone DAVEBOT: ok i get it ARADIA: to finally ask how i feel ARADIA: i am beside myself with emotions ARADIA: i want to open up DAVEBOT: jesus christ ARADIA: shall i open up about my past traumas to you ARADIA: would you enjoy that ARADIA: to think even a frog like me can work through their pain with a dear friend ARADIA: you have truly blessed me on this day dave strider

Is Aradia JUST trolling here or is her Ultimate Self grappling with a ton of real unresolved trauma too that she’s bullshitting around Dave-style?

DAVEBOT: times fun when youre having flies

Okay that’s a damned good frog pun.

Alright now Davebot’s rapping

DAVEBOT: lacking tact i stay stacked while i breach contract DAVEBOT: sacred vows disavowed got divorce fever DAVEBOT: i leave her DAVEBOT: dont look back dont perceive her ARADIA: do you want to talk about it :( DAVEBOT: about what ARADIA: would you say you are hung up on leaving your wife and friends behind

Goddamnit is DAVE’S ton of real unresolved trauma leaking into his raps unintentionally Dave-style?? I knew we had to address it when we cut to Davebot but how about LESS TRAGEDY IN THIS COMIC MAYBE

DAVEBOT: arent you even a little guilty about ditching your boyfriend ARADIA: what ARADIA: oh fuck

But she knew what she was doing when she did it she explicitly did it didn’t she? Epilogues quote:

DAVEBOT: what about your boy DAVEBOT: eyepatches ARADIA: oh sollux is in one of his moods ARADIA: this was all getting to be a bit much for him ARADIA: if i go ill probably just cut him loose DAVEBOT: good move

And then they stepped through the sky hole more or less. Did like, distracted Ultimate Aradia not realize exactly how long she was leaving Sollux for, ie forever? Or did she “ascend” to Ultimate status later and hadn’t thought back to the full consequences of her actions within this timeline? Or both? From the looks of the link we’ll probably find out on the next pa--

--Wait. Something else I just thought of, unrelated.

If Aradia is an Ultimate Self, that’s another coincidentally Ultimate version of someone hanging around that happens to be on the prospective list of Soul-Powered Jujus that might have their creation loops closed in the coming story. Could those two things play into each other somehow? Like instead of their souls getting stuffed into the items, their “Ultimateness” is? Or as if that’s a necessary component, or... no, I’m probably overthinking things.

> (Months in the past, but not many...)

Uh huh. Is that flashing because he’s “watching” Aradia leave? But I thought Aradia SAID she was leaving--

> (==>)

--and that black hole portal doesn’t look as cool as it sounded in the Epilogues. But why was Aradia acting surprised, she said “I’ll probably just cut him loose” mere MOMENTS before entering the portal, did she mean “cut him loose” as in “I’m going to talk to him before leaving” and then just IMMEDIATELY forget that she didn’t say anything to him because she cared so little???

Wait. Waaaait wait wait. I think. I think maybe I missed some subtext. Lemme do some fuller quotes here:

ARADIA: oh sollux is in one of his moods ARADIA: this was all getting to be a bit much for him ARADIA: if i go ill probably just cut him loose DAVEBOT: good move

His gaze remains fixed on her. She blinks and looks away, unsure what to say next. He’s standing perfectly still, presumably waiting for her to say something. She met him... what was it? Once, twice before? She can’t remember. But she knows this is a very different Dave. Aside from the metal skin, he seems implacably confident. But then, people go through changes. She’s been through more than her share. She cocks an eyebrow, recalling her own stint with a metal body.

DAVEBOT: hey earth to whats your face ARADIA: oh ARADIA: its aradia

[...]

DAVEBOT: youre coming DAVEBOT: better decide quick i doubt that dank fuckin hell funnel is staying open for much longer ARADIA: yes i suppose so ARADIA: thats where all the action is right? DAVEBOT: all the action that matters yeah ARADIA: off we go then :) DAVEBOT: word

He holds out his hand. She looks around, and assumes he means for her to take it, so she does. She didn’t know someone could fly this fast. He nearly yanks her arm out of its socket. She considers reminding him that maybe this isn’t necessary, since she can fly too. But she doesn’t want to risk saying more embarrassing stuff around this outrageously cool dude. Besides, they’re through the wormhole before she can even finish the thought. It vanishes the moment they’ve crossed.

...this was a SHIPPING thing wasn’t it. She’s impressed as hell with Striderbot, she SAID she’d cut things off with Sollux, and then she was so busy being swooped off her feet and into the portal that she forgot to actually say anything to him. Is that what happened????

Ultimate Self Davebot x Ultimate Self Aradia. Huh. Didn’t see that coming. (Though, again... they could make it SLIGHTLY clearer that this wasn’t just a blatant continuity error.)

Anyway, a rare-don’t-get-used-to-it [S] page...

> [S] (Gaze.)

...Okay that was kinda funny.

> (==>)

SOLLUX: h0w the fuck am i g0ing t0 get d0wn fr0m here.

HAH! Okay, he’s taking it pretty well. :) --and THAT’s what she realized she forgot, giving him a flight down from the tower before leaving.

GOOD. KEEP THINGS HUMOROUS EVEN WHEN LITERAL ABANDONMENT IS HAPPENING. THAT’S the Homestuck I was missing. :) :) :)

> Back to reality.

(Since the black hole is outside “canon” reality.)

Those are some cool poses-AHAH JESUS CHRIST ALT!JADE YOU LOOK ABSOLUTELY TERRIFYING XD

COULD YOU MAYBE HAVE CLEANED UP THE DRIED BLOOD AT SOME POINT OR IS SOME OF THAT FRESH FROM EATING MORE RAW MEAT

(Lord English’s blood leaving permanent timeless bloodstains would be a cool new thing to squeeze into canon i admit, i wouldn’t blame them for taking the excuse even if you could find small canon counterexamples I’m not sure of but dimly think might exist)

((ALSO SHE’S GONNA BE TINY NEXT TO THEM I DUNNO IF THAT MAKES IT MORE TERRIFYING OR LESS, PROBABLY MORE))

DAVEBOT: so youre telling me you dont even feel a little bad that you ditched him to be a weird death acolyte ARADIA: no i think he found my wiles both charming and irresistible DAVEBOT: not even an ounce of guilt or self doubt huh DAVEBOT: just like that DAVEBOT: no conversations about the greater good DAVEBOT: no revelations about your feelings

Is Aradia a jerk or weird? Can’t decide.

ARADIA: do you often find your faith in yourself shaken like this or is it a new experience now that your mortal coil has been left behind DAVEBOT: what ARADIA: do you think now that all that is left of you is a literal ghost inside of a machine you are more or less likely to embrace finality DAVEBOT: oh dope more cult of one shit DAVEBOT: immortality changed you ARADIA: could it be that you are projecting your feelings onto my situation DAVEBOT: does not compute rose jr ARADIA: ... ARADIA: we dont have to talk about it DAVEBOT: thanks

Wow, I actually can’t follow this conversation at all. Let me stare at it for a sec...

...okay, the first part she’s talking about DAVE’s faith in HIMself being shaken, not her own. She’s not asking if he relates to HER experience, she’s contrasting it.

Then, asking if he’d be more likely to embrace death, or... Time? Death. Whether his self-worth has changed because he might view himself as “less real”, something Aradia doubtless struggled with when she was a robot who already had so many excuses to devalue herself at the time? And then Dave talks about “cult of one” shit what does that even mean-...

OH. Like she’s a death cult. Gooot it. Because Aradia’s of the position that death and ending should be celebrated, and Davebot understandably isn’t entirely bought in. This is as hard to parse down as one would EXPECT conversations between two Ultimate Selves to be hard to parse down, unlike Rose and Dirk where their insane missions and glaring flaws shine bright enough through it all that you can follow their conversation flow easily.

JADE: They sit in each other's presence, the silence between them as meaningful as any words they could exchange. DAVEBOT: its always really cool to hear how meaningful my silences are DAVEBOT: especially while DAVEBOT: CALCULATING DAVEBOT: CALCULATING DAVEBOT: especially while i am attempting to experience them

Alt!Callie pulling a narrative-text AFTER a talk-identifier like “JADE:” is really hilarious in my opinion.

JADE: i do not need your approval. the story will continue how it must. DAVEBOT: beep boop hater detected ARADIA: wow is that true JADE: i am not a hater. DAVEBOT: classic hater line DAVEBOT: i know this because i am pouring through genuine actual quadrabytes of information on historys most notorious haters JADE: no, you aren’t.

Pffffff. This is pretty fun.

DAVEBOT: you are the exact opposite of a hater ARADIA: a liker DAVEBOT: ok DAVEBOT: perfect example your tolerance for whatever is going on with DAVEBOT: all this ARADIA: i think she looks quite lovely covered in the viscera of the all-powerful enemy she consumed ARADIA: floating lifelessly in our periphery ARADIA: observing our every action and noting its relevance :) DAVEBOT: uh huh thats what i mean

I was gonna note “liker” as additive for pointless classpect purposes, but really more quoting it just because I really enjoy this conversation. I’m starting to get sold on the chemistry of these two a lot faster than I expected.

JADE: even though I understand that it must happen, i am growing frustrated with the direction of this conversation. DAVEBOT: do you want to talk about something else stinky JADE: what would you suggest?

How long has that dried fucking blood been on her

DAVEBOT: ok hear me out DAVEBOT: kanaya DAVEBOT: but like DAVEBOT: wearing huge jorts

That explains Homestuck’s twitter earlier

> Weeks in the future, relative to the original point of interest...

Wait wait which point of interest? This time we were just viewing? *click*

I love what must be this shitty imagination-ship they’re using to cross the substrate of reality

> ==>

Whoaaaa. So they DIDN’T stay in those outfits for long? It showed them in a bunk bed earlier, it showed CallieJade still going around blood-covered afterward-- dammit, I’m having a hard time gauging exactly how much time is supposed to have passed between their entry into the black portal, their earlier conversation, and this moment. And as likely as some are to call this poor scene composition, I can’t think it’s anything but intentional, given we’re dealing with a couple of Ultimate Time players bullshitting with each other.

Moments like these are not rare, and serve a valuable function to the story. They are able to show a passage of time with the bulk of the emotional labor of a lengthy bonding process happening off screen. How did we get here? What have they been through? These questions are often better left open to individual interpretation and can give the one interpreting a sense of ownership of the story.

See? We’re being trolled is why. (Even if the authors are pulling the trick Alt!Callie describes maybe a little too damn often, because a cut like this where we’re supposed to fill in the emotional gaps and intervening events ourselves as readers depends on readers’ faith that sensible events and decisions for these characters would OCCUPY the gaps, as if readers don’t have faith that what intervenes WOULD make sense to their understanding of the characters the way the authors are writing them... it just seems like an excuse to do whatever you want without adequately explaining yourself, when in reality if you’d spelled out the events that led to it we’d all cry foul at the mischaracterization.)

...okay, maybe I’m a BIT bitter. Sorry. Where were we?

JADE: As a point of curiosity- ARADIA: oh shit!!!!

The dead Cherub possessing the body of an equally deceased Goddess of Space pauses at the interruption.

She doesn’t talk much, then? Too busy doing whatever talking you’d do as your other possessed Jade body? Just how temporally related is you controlling THIS Jade compared to when you were controlling the other? When that Jade pegged you as enjoying contact with friends, are these two just not enough for you, or did you “experience” the trips entirely separately? I don’t THINK the alt!Callie possessing either Jade is a separate entity from the other, but...

Were she to voice her opinion, it would be that --actually-- it is not unusual for those whose primary concern is The Grander Scheme to have a passing curiosity about the insignificant. So when one really thinks about it, any annoyance with the attendant’s small mindedness is both understandable and warranted.

She pissed

...also, “the attendant”. Even if “serve” is really the verb here, that phrasing really irks me as if she’s talking down to her. Which, I mean, makes sense for alt!Callie’s character, but doesn’t make me feel better about this new definition being foisted on us.

ARADIA: :( JADE: as a point of order, you never answered dave’s question. ARADIA: which one he is very chatty JADE: you experience time in a way that is woefully unfamiliar to me and it has... piqued my curiosity enough to learn more. ARADIA: ?_? DAVEBOT: shes asking how old you are

Wait a minute, is Alt!Callie asking a question about a dropped topic from WEEKS ago?! And is Davebot so in touch with Time and the meta ordering of topics that he actually CAUGHT ON that fast to what she was actually wondering about?????

This is getting more disorienting by the minute.

ARADIA: in this form our bodies stop aging once we reach maturity i think ARADIA: the god tier keeps our physical form locked in a state of undying ARADIA: even in death the bodies do not decay ARADIA: only lay dormant

THAT LAST PART IS FUCKING IMPORTANT. It’s being brought up intentionally to tell us that JOHN’S DEAD BODY can still be in the wallet Terezi’s carrying around RIGHT NOW without having decayed over the past years. I remember remarking in SOME previous HS^2 liveblog post of mine that I was alarmed by the decay that would have happened there (can’t find my remark on short notice and don’t really care to), so this explicitly dismisses it so we won’t be surprised by the fact that she could keep it in just-dead condition.

DAVEBOT: like how long have you been alive JADE: yes, that one.

[...]

ARADIA: oh maybe a few hundred years or so DAVEBOT: what JADE: what? ARADIA: well if i had known you were going to be so judgy about it DAVEBOT: when did this happen ARADIA: oh i spent some time in other doomed realities and timelines and came back before anybody could tell i was gone

Hm!

We knew she spent a LONG time in the dream bubbles, enough to talk to “pretty much all of the Nepetas”, but she was actually able to access a universe or universes and hop between them? That’s not something any time traveller we’ve seen has been explicitly able to do intentionally before, quite like she’s describing.

DAVEBOT: oh just out for a bit of fun then DAVEBOT: just hopped on over to a different reality DAVEBOT: real casual like DAVEBOT: oh hello dont mind me just popping in to see if it really is as doomed as they say it is DAVEBOT: did not disappoint ARADIA: yes almost exactly like that :) DAVEBOT: who did you hang out with are they cooler than me ARADIA: it is complicated to explain DAVEBOT: oh ok nevermind then DAVEBOT: all clear

Yep, he’s kinda bewildered. Is this Pesterquest stuff she’s referring to? Did she stop by Pesterquest?

DAVEBOT: a whole alternate universe ripe with the coolest motherfuckers imaginable ARADIA: you were there too i threw your air conditioner into the sun DAVEBOT: wow thats fucked up DAVEBOT: thats not where that goes at all JADE: these events are not-canonical. ARADIA: rude

Ah! Yeah, almost certainly Pesterquest. (Still haven’t played that and have little inclination to now that I’m more sure we aren’t being gaslit with intentional continuity errors, just disappointed by actual continuity errors.) Oh! And that makes a bit more sense because I imagine that’s Black Hole territory, and that territory outside of Canon seems pretty rich and easy for time-travellers to hop between stories and timelines willy-nilly. As they’re apt to in fanfics, which is the most appropriate way for things to be in that realm!

DAVEBOT: is that the trope of being hundreds of years old but looking young forever patently sucks ass DAVEBOT: a plot device an asshole would write ARADIA: :( JADE: that is not what i am trying to say at all. DAVEBOT: hmm wow yeah thatd really be a sort of pot/kettle situation i guess DAVEBOT: i cant believe im the only woke one here DAVEBOT: its hard being such a visionary AND such a fine metallic specimen DAVEBOT: but im an altruist first and fucking foremost ARADIA: so selfless JADE: yes, the greater narrative is truly blessed by your beneficent presence. DAVEBOT: oh so you got jokes now huh JADE: i have always had the ‘jokes’ of which you speak, but i have heretofore exercised restraint in laying you low. JADE: i possess knowledge of many of your iterations, as the scope of my powers allows me to exist in several narrative structures at once. DAVEBOT: but can she see why kids love the sweet cinnamon taste of cinnamon toast crunch JADE: i do not know, or care, what that means. ARADIA: neither do i :)

I’m actually really enjoying this conversation

JADE: its cultural significance to you as an earthling is wasted on the two of us entirely, as we have not conflated the misguided notion of clinging to nostalgic cereal advertisement trivia with socially relevant conversation.

Pff she literally checked her meta notes just now to learn what the cereal ads were after admitting she didn’t know what it meant and pretending not to care

> ==>

Oh, closer look at Davebot. Are those actual SHAPED shades over his robotic eye bulges? Weird, I thought it was just a lazy line drawn between them with red sharpie at first, Sans style. That would’ve been funny.

> ==>

Ohh, I get it. I was gonna say that was an unwarranted reaction... but he just realized that the Time-wait puns will be coming from BOTH his shipmates from now on. That’s gotta be a downer. :)

> ==>

HOLY

FUCKING

SHIT

IS ALT-CALLIE LAUGHING!??!?!?!??

That’s REALLY, REALLY GOOD!!! SHE’S ALREADY LAUGHING OCCASIONALLY THAT MAKES ME SO HAPPY

“BEST NARRATOR” COFFEE CUP

SHE’S ADORABLE

> ==>

Ah, was that Jade kicking you out? Or just the multiverse punishing you for being briefly happy :(

--oh, end of the update. Guess that’s it for now!

...

Alright I know I’m A BIT BEHIND on covering the HS2 commentary,

But

I really would rather wait on that a bit longer if that’s alright. Real busy and stressful week or two. (Found out my hair is starting to thin noticeably at age 31! Quite suddenly, too. Blood test looks fine so it’s nothing serious... gonna see a doctor to check if anything can be safely done about that, it’s really hurting my self-esteem more than I thought it would. Didn’t think it would hit my emotions that hard when it eventually happened, knew it was likely but not so SOON... really messing with my anxiety every time I accidentally touch my hair, now. I’ll deal with it.)

If I sound really aimless in this post, I think it’s cause I am? My mental and emotional energy’s REALLY drained. I’m glad that June/July break in HS^2 happened when it did, and I’m definitely glad there’s apparently plenty in HS^2 I can really enjoy, if this update is anything to go by. Maybe this comic can help lift me up instead of knocking me down. :)

See y’all later! More Patreon commentary blogging catchup after some other upd8.

#Homestuck #hs2 #Homestuck Liveblog #upd8 #Homestuck^2 #Homestuck Theories #Homestuck Theory #spoiler #spoilers #Classes and Aspects #Space and Time #Aradia

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xxgoblin-dumplingxx · 4 years

Text

Sick Little Games: Seven

B.C.

“Y/N I swear. If you ever do anything that blatantly stupid ever again,” Steve threatened as you sipped a cup of water.

“Yes, dad,” you sigh rolling your eyes.

Steve glared at you as Natasha muttered angry Russian expletives and you smile a little, “Look, I knew that it was incredibly unlikely I was going to die. It was just going to hurt. A lot. Still hurts actually.”

Natasha scowled as she tucked the blankets around you, “It was still stupid.”

“Oh,” you snort, wincing, “There’s no doubt about that. But It was effective and I had to act fast... That hell-hound had only been topside about 12 hours. And I almost couldn’t stop it... If I’d waited we would have been fucked. And it takes centuries for demons to marshal enough energy to build one up here... So. I’ll take the win.”

Thor was quiet, arms folded where he leaned on the wall. He was glad you were safe. That you were going to make a full recovery. But the image of you in a pool of black blood, bloodied and twitching still made his chest ache. “How did you know I wouldn’t kill you?” he asked softly.

“Your less well-documented powers don’t exist in a vacuum, Thor,” you answer, “Terrified Christian monks who wrote down stories had to hear them from somewhere... I needed consecrated ground. Quickly. And to do that I needed to be able to conduct the energy and... I needed to be holding on to direct it where I needed it to go.” Thor moved closer to the bed and pats your cheek, “We thought we lost you for a second, witchling.”

“Nah,” you say, giving him a brave smile. It still felt like you might be dying. It certainly hurt that much. “I’m like a bad habit.”

“Thor isn’t Christian,” Steve said abruptly.

You shrug, “The Christians don’t hold a monopoly on Holy... The definition is fairly flexible. Thor still has followers, thus where he works a miracle... and this fucking counts because I didn’t know if this was gonna work, there is holy ground.”

Steve frowned but nodded, taking a second to kiss the side of your head, “Still. If you ever do something that stupid ever again I’m gonna make Bucky do your training rounds with you.”

Thor chanced to glance at you and your face betrayed nothing. Only the same mild amusement it had a moment ago. And as for year heartbeat... well. It was still irregular and too fast. Your body on high alert after your Jolt. But a muscle in your throat pulsed just slightly. Just enough to tell him your prey instincts had kicked in, and if you could have done it, you’d be ready to bolt.

The Three of them left shortly after to give you some time to rest and Clint slipped in quietly.

“Hey, Cupcake,” he said, breathing a sigh of relief. Now that your eyes were open and you were sitting up he felt like it was okay. Before “okay” was a horribly abstract concept.

“Hey, Hawk,” you say, smiling a little. “You okay?” Clint takes a second to look at you. Big luminous eyes and tangled chaotic hair. You look frail and pale... Nat had told him like a sick Victorian Child who wouldn’t make it to Spring. But fuck if you aren’t the prettiest thing he had ever seen.

“Now that I’m seeing you alive?” he said giving you a crooked smile and tucking himself sitting next to you, “I’m great. This might be the best day of my life... I thought you were a goner, babe.”

You rest your head on his shoulder, “There’ll be better days, Clint,” you tell him fondly.

“Yeah,” he said, “The day they let you out of medical and you meet my dog.”

“YOU GOT A DOG?” you yelp, “Gimme, lemme see the puppy.” You make a sort of vague grabby hands gesture.

“He’s not a puppy. He’s a grumpy mutt I pulled out of an Alley... who then proceeded to steal my pizza and get shot.” he said, “And they told me he can’t be in here.”

“But witches need to commune with nature,” you pout, “And that,” you say pointing at the sad little potted plant in your window sill, “Is NOT nature. It’s plastic!”

Clint chuckles and rests his cheek on your head, “If I get in trouble I’m blaming you.”

“Don’t you usually?” you ask.

“Touche,” Clint conceded getting off the bed. He knew from the jump he couldn’t tell you no. He’d already told Lucky all about you. And as he padded his way into the room and made his way up to the bed, Clint had no regrets.

Lucky wiggled his way into your arms and accepted all the kisses and cuddles and effusive compliments about what a pretty boy he was. And Clint watched, smiling a little. You glowed. Warmth and light. Compassion. You took in everyone’s flaws and loved them anyway. The way you didn’t think you deserved. And Clint knew. He knew. That he’d never be able to tell you “no” ever again. He also, when he had to half drag Lucky off your bed, was vaguely aware that his dog probably loved you more than him. And Clint had to admit that that was fair. You were definitely nicer to look at.

____________________

A.C.

“Where’s Lucky,” you ask in the quiet on your porch.

“With Nat,” Clint answers smiling a little, “Plane rides freak him out.”

Clint watched the sun sink lower, burning up the atmosphere and turning the sky a flamingo pink. Stars were starting to sparkle on the horizon and the air was getting cooler. Crickets were singing and birds were calling out. It felt nice. Rocking you on the porch swing in the quiet.

“So,” he asked teasing, “If you don’t have T.V. what do you do out here?”

“This,” you answer, gesturing vaguely. “There’s a pond out back for swimming and my closest neighbor is four miles away... I just. I mean I’m not a total animal. I do have Wifi. But sometimes I just... I can’t take being trapped in anymore.”

Clint makes a soft sound and pulls you closer, “So you wanted freedom.”

“And some time. Time to figure out my next move.”

“Are you coming back?” he asked, his voice so soft that you can hardly hear him.

“I don’t- I’m not- I shouldn’t.” you settle on finally, “We just got the team back in working order... and this. This is the only family I have. I really don’t want to be the one responsible for tearing it apart.”

Clint stops and looks down at you, tilting your chin up carefully, “Babe,” he murmurs, “You did nothing wrong. Not one thing. Barnes did all of this. You were quietly nursing a harmless little crush. And he exploited it. Exploited you.” When you look away, uncertain he sighs, “Look. If it were Nat what would you tell her?”

“Nat would have already killed him,” you point out.

Clint makes a soft exasperated sound, “Fine. Any other woman. Would this be their fault?”

“No but-” you trail off and Clint stops, stroking his thumb against your jaw.

“But what?” he presses.

“They aren’t me,” you say exhaling slowly.

“What does that mean, baby girl,” he asks.

“I mean I could have influenced him. I could have cast a charm unintentionally and he could have reacted poorly and-”

Clint tries. He wants to hear how you’ve twisted this around in your head to make it all your fault. He wants to know so he can tear it apart. But he can’t. He can’t listen to you justify that level of manipulation. So he kisses you. It’s a soft kiss. The gentlest way he knows to stop you talking. To distract whatever anxious death spiral you’re about to go down to tell yourself that you did this and you deserve it all.

It’s over before it really starts and Clint is pulling away about to apologize when you sit there blinking at him in shock. “Stop,” he says instead of apologizing. “I know you. You never do anything like that unintentionally. Hell. You never do anything unintentionally. You agonize about people’s feelings for hours before you send a risky text sometimes... Even if you did cast some spell on him, baby it’s the same one you cast on everyone. Just by being you. And being you doesn’t mean that that grumpy fuck gets to abuse you.”

When you start to cry, Clint pulls you into his lap wordlessly and just rocks you. “No one,” he murmurs, “deserves what people have done to you, babe. Not one person.” He doesn’t try to stop it. He just lets you sob, even though every racked stuttering breath makes his chest hurt. He’s seen you a mess before, but not like this. Not this shattered and jagged. This tortured.

And for once, he doesn’t think a stupid joke and a cupcake is going to make it better. For once, he’s going to have to ride out the storm.

____________

B.C.

Girls' night in the compound meant a lot of things. Mostly, it meant that Tony was working Pepper’s last nerve and had enlisted every last woman she could find to throw a night out on his dime because he’d irritated her.

But it also meant, of course, that the men in the compound had unexpected free time. Which was both a blessing and a curse as they all sat in the commons trying to decide what movies to watch and what pizza toppings to order.

They were mid-argument when you came downstairs kitted out for the night. Complete with a corset, black leather skirt, fishnets, and combat boots. You look feral and sexy. Sleek. All smoke and sultry. And that skirt is riding temptingly high on your thigh. For just a half a second, Bucky can’t not stare.

Until he realizes who you are.

“You look-” Steve stops. Not sure what to say, looking flustered. You never show that amount of skin if you can help it.

“Otherworldly and vaguely threatening?” Bruce supplies, as Thor nods in agreement.

Sam whistles, “Damn,” he says, “Girl where’d you hide that outfit?”

Clint, standing next to Thor makes a sound that reminds the god irresistibly of a mouse being stepped on. The god is pretty sure the Archer stopped breathing when you stepped off the elevator.

“Nice “Come fuck me boots,” Tony observed drily.

“They were on sale,” you say, tossing a wild mane of curls over your shoulder.

When you drift out, Clint falls forward, face planting into the sofa, “Please. Please tell me that was real.”

“Oh yeah,” Sam chuckled, “That was real.”

“Fuck me.” he groaned, “That’s just rude.”

“Or not,” Bucky muttered, picking up his phone.

___________

When you hadn’t so much as looked at him, Bucky was irritated. Who the fuck were you to not pay attention to him. Well. He had a way to fix you. He had a way to remind you that he could destroy you. And he wanted to.

How dare you act like he didn’t matter to you when he knew it wasn’t true. He knew it wasn’t from the quiet way you still just... did things. The way he could hear your heart race in a quiet room. The way your eyes light up when he was even passingly civil. The innocence rankled. The sweetness. The fact that you got to stay the same while he was beaten into submission.

It didn’t take long. Not for the next phase of his plan to take place. Models were in easy supply. Everyone wanted to fuck a hero. And when he started looking, women crawled out of the woodwork. Perfect. The perfect thing to trot out.

The first one had almost been accidental but after that... well after that, it was fun. The shock. The blushing. The scampering up the hall. The next morning knowing you’d skip breakfast to get your work out in. It felt right, ripping those pieces of innocence out from under you. Forcing you to stop in your tracks and deal with this reality instead of sprinkling glitter on it.

He loved every minute of snatching that out of your hands. But, he reflected, it felt like it was time for something... new. Of course, he came to this conclusion when you walked in on him fucking some blonde off of Tinder in the motor pool when you were going to get your jeep and you’d not looked nearly... startled, enough. He needed more, he decided. He just needed to figure out how to get it.

Tags: @lancsnerd, @thorfanficwriter @blameitonthecauseway @etherealwaifgoddess, @stevieang, @beautybyfire, @sunmoonandbucky @mrsfox79, @bbmommy0902, @mendes-fan, @iheartsebastianstan, @wtfcas @pinknerdpanda, @process-pending, @ladifreakingda, @leasly, @coldbookworm, @hv-chw3, @past-perfect-future-tense, @starkrobb @beardburnsupersoldiers, @petlaufeyson, @queenoftheunderdark, @potatoheadthewise, @thehyperactiveteen, @thefridgeismybestie, @boyett514, @an-awkward-human-1, @sunshine-and-riverwater

#Bucky Barnes #Bucky Barnes X reader #Clint Barton #Clint Barton x reader #fluff #Lucky #Thor #natasha romanoff #Steve Rogers #Sam Wilson #Tony Stark #manipulation #voyerurism #asshole!Bucky

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the-omni-princess · 5 years

Text

Silver and Gold

Author: @the-omni-princess

Summary: Soulmate!AU, The first words spoken to you by your soulmate are written on your wrist. What happens when two super soldiers say the same thing at the same time?

Word Count: 2.4K

Pairing: Bucky x Reader

Warnings: Injuries, blood, a bit of angst, bit of fluff

A/N:

A request by @darknessdaughterr for some soulmate confusion between Steve and Bucky and a “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

[Masterlist]

----

Soulmarks. That's what they called the words etched onto your wrists. They first appeared when you officially hit puberty, and they were the lifeline to your soulmate. Your other half, your perfect half. The first words your soulmate would say to you (once you had your mark) would be the words etched onto your skin forever. They would change colors, from the brown-grey they started off as, an ugly dull color, to a beautiful rainbow and array of colors.

Some people found their soulmates right away, your best friend in middle school let out a small gasp when the heartthrob of the school asked her for a pen. Her wrist busted into beautiful shades of green like a forest etched into the writing. Some people got lucky with their marks, and their colors always meant something to their other half.

When your mark first etched into your skin, you were thirteen. Womanhood gave you cramps and a soulmark. Despite how elated your family was that your mark appeared, they always teased you about your soulmate's choice of first words. "What the hell are you doing?" Etched in cursive, dull, brown ink. You used to get excited whenever someone spoke to you for the first time. Now, much older than your friends, you felt left out. You were one of the few people with a boring, lifeless, and haven’t-met-my-soulmate-yet-grey mark. You've been pointedly ignoring it for years.

You became a practiced surgeon. The long shifts at the ER helped ease your mind that you were one of the few people without your soulmate yet. Your family worried about it constantly. Maybe your other half was dead, maybe they aren't even from the same country as you.

Pushing all those thoughts aside, and begging to get away from your overbearing family, you moved to New York, and were approached by a Stark representative to work as the Avengers' personal surgeon. It took months of preparation under Helen Cho and Bruce Banner, learning exactly what ailments and enhancements every Avenger had. Super soldiers, gamma radiation, a telekinetic witch, it was a lot to learn, but you took it in stride.

Now three months into the position came the first challenge, a mission gone sideways. You grabbed your stethoscope, wrapping it around your neck as FRIDAY's voice appeared. "Your presence is requested in OR 2, Agent Barton has deep lacerations and multiple bullet wounds."

"On it!" You called out to the AI, already heading in that direction. You rushed in, noticing Dr. Banner already attempting to take a bullet out of the still awake Hawkeye. "Jeez, ever heard of anesthesia Bruce? And stop pulling on that bullet in his leg, it could be lodged in his femoral artery and he'll bleed out before you can toss the bullet into waste." You gloved up, shooing the doctor away who held his hands up in surrender. "Hello, I'm Dr. Y/n L/n, and excuse my forgoing of formalities, Agent Barton, but the bullet in your shoulder looks to have nicked something major and I'd rather make sure you live than introduce myself." He responded with a groan, nodding. You now noticed the redhead he was gripping hands with, who you recognized as Natasha Romanoff before you rushed to help him.

You quickly went to work, asking Bruce for gauze when needed and taking out bullets, green eyes watching you like a hawk, which you found ironic. Four bullets later you sutured the bullet wounds, then the laceration, effectively cleaning up the blood and bandaging him up. You clapped your hands faintly, smiling. "Done!" You grinned up at the two. Clint was out of it, staring up at Natasha who was staring at you. "Make sure he rests, and he should be up and running in a few weeks."

"You're new," Natasha stated, still eyeing you warily.

You nodded, "Still getting the hang of it, but I know what I'm doing, usually at least. But what's a little adventure into the unknown?" You smiled warmly, noticing she loosened up a bit.

"Thanks for patching Clint here up," she sighed softly, still holding onto the Archer.

"Of course, kind of my job to make sure you are all patched up. Tell him to try not to hit anything too major next time though," you teased.

She chuckled, "Will do, till next time."

"Hopefully you guys stay safe enough there aren't too many next times, besides, I have to take Robin Hood here to a room to rest," you cleaned up the station, before transferring Clint to his own room to rest. Natasha and you kept talking, and by the time you had to leave, she had started warming up to you.

You had found out she was so wary since the two were soulmates. Her soulmark was shades of purple, and Clint's was in shades of black and red, you noticed as you worked on him, but you knew not to ask what the words said. She had found out more about you and had seen that you haven't met your soulmate yet.

About a month later you had met or patched up most of the Avengers, and Natasha and Clint were the closest to you, as well as Bruce since you saw the most of them. FRIDAY had alerted you that the Avengers were back from another mission gone bad, this time it was Sam Wilson who was hurt, he was unconscious, and his vitals were dropping fast. Steve and Bucky were running in after him, just as you got to work. You patted your scrubs down, the bright orange and pink Ombre was a bold choice but you wanted a splash of color against the white sterile walls of your lab and operating room, as the Avengers tended to let you do what you wanted.

You silently went to work, washing hands, pulling on gloves, and wordlessly grabbing what you need to save his life. You groaned aloud, grabbing the bandages and cauterizing tool, but you weren't able to do your job due to the two towering super-soldiers blocking your way. Unable to push them away from you instead opted to jump on top of the patient. Terrible procedure? Definitely. But you had two super soldiers that wouldn't move, and you had a patient dying.

Both men simultaneously cried out, "What the hell are you doing?"

You were already starting your cauterizing tool, cauterizing the artery that was the cause of the blood loss. "My job, if you don't let me do it, he'll die from blood loss. So, get out of my way!" You pushed one of the soldiers out of the way, Steve you think, grabbing the gauze and patching up Sam. Once you were finally done, you jumped off of him, he stabilized halfway through your work, so you hooked him up to an IV and stood back at your handiwork. You ripped your gloves off, tossing them away as you washed your hands. You froze, your mark was now a splash of color. Navy blue ink etched in silver and gold. That only meant one thing, one of the super-soldiers behind you was your soulmate. But they both said it at the same time, which one was your other half? Could you survive having an Avenger soulmate? You had patched them up enough to know how many close calls they tended to have.

"Are you alright, ma'am?" Of course, one of the very same men you were thinking about was concerned about your sudden shyness.

"I'm not quite sure, Captain Rogers," you turned back around. "Your friend will be alright, just needs to rest and heal, but he'll be fine." You smiled brightly at the two super soldiers looking at you warily.

Captain Roger's mark was already colored in, you could see the peaks of bright red just peeking out of his uniform. Sargent Barnes, however, didn't have any color peeking out of his right hand, and that's when you realized his mark might have been on his left wrist before it was torn off. That meant you had to outright ask the two intimidating men about their marks, something only children did.

"Are you sure you're okay, doll?" Barnes was the one that spoke up this time, both men weren't quite sure what to make of you. You were pushing them out of the way to do your job minutes ago but now seemed shy.

You took a deep breath, "There’s no easy way to say this, so I'll just say it, I think one of you two is my soulmate." You said it quickly, looking absolutely anywhere but them.

"What do you mean?" That time it was the Captain.

You exposed your wrist, the brilliant shades of Navy lined in gold and silver. The silver and gold seemed to shimmer, and even without their enhancements, both men could make out the writing. Both men shared a look, and you noticed you had gained an audience. Natasha, Clint, Bruce, and Tony were now standing at the room, you were too preoccupied panicking to even notice their entrance to check in on the now waking up Falcon beside you.

"You two said those words and my mark gained color, one of you is my soulmate," a groan from beside you diverted your attention. You went to work, making sure Sam was comfortable as he started to become aware of his surroundings.

"I wake up and one of the fossils gets a soulmate? I should get injured more often, maybe they'll both get lives before I die," he joked in a weak voice.

"I have limited patience with someone who tried to get shot, Wilson," you rolled your eyes, checking to make sure he didn't rip his stitches as he sat up. "And you shouldn't be sitting up, you've lost a lot of blood," you tried reasoning, but he just waved you off.

"Na, I've got to see this. Aren't you the new doctor Tony hired? You're cute, too bad I'm not your soulmate, smart and pretty," he rambled on, the medication starting to kick in.

"I've been here for four months, you just manage not to get as many bullets in you like the others," you made sure his IV drip was working before turning to your audience.

Steve spoke up first, "It’s not me," he exposed his mark. "My soulmate was Peggy Carter," his mark was bright red, the color of bright lipstick. He had left his soulmate back in the forties, that had to suck.

His eyes went to Bucky, as did yours. He looked a little stunned. "Repeat what you first said to me," he said it softly, almost hesitant.

"Well, I can't remember! I was trying to make sure Birds of Justice here didn't die!" You gave him a pointed look, Sam laughed at that, and you shot him a glare, "No laughing, you'll rip your stitches and if you do something stupid I'll kick your ass myself."

"Oh, feisty, I like her," a loopy Sam Wilson giggled like a school girl beside you.

"FRIDAY, please repeat the audio of what Dr. Y/l/n said when Sam first came in," Natasha stated, making you roll your eyes.

"Nat, I'm just Y/n to you," you mumbled, but otherwise kept quiet, needing to know the answer to the riddle written in ink around your wrist.

"Certainly, Agent Romanoff," the AI replied before the audio played.

The two super soldiers’ voices rung out first, "What the hell are you doing?"

Before your voice replied in the audio, "My job, if you don't let me do it, he'll die from blood loss. So, get out of my way!"

You looked towards the former Winter Soldier. "Does Navy Blue, Silver and Gold mean anything to you, Sargent Barnes?" You held up your wrist, and he gently grabbed it with his right hand. His thumb brushed across the ink etched deep into your skin.

"Navy Blue was my uniform color when I was a Howling Commando, silver was the color of my first metal arm, and gold is currently in my metal arm. And call me Bucky," he held up the black and gold vibranium arm for you to inspect. "I always thought my soulmate would be a nurse during the war, one I flirted to at the wrong time, or got in the way one too many times. I guess I was partially right," he kept his voice soft, the two of you locking eyes.

"You're my soulmate? I never thought I'd find you," you mumbled softly, getting lost in his blue eyes.

"My left wrist had those words, and I lost it in the fall of the train, and I'm actually glad I did because Hydra couldn't find you that way, and I'm sorry you have me as a soulmate, and I'm sorry you can't even get to see the colors my mark would have, and-" he rambled on, making you smile, gently taking his hand and interlacing your hands together, promptly shutting him up.

"I'm not sad you’re my soulmate, Bucky. I was just confused is all. I had basically accepted I'd never find mine, I've had dull brown ink on me since I was thirteen. But it's you. I found you," you couldn't stop smiling up at him.

He gave you a bashful smile, "I'd like to think my mark would be the colors of your scrubs. Orange and pinks like a sunset," he explained.

"Or a sunrise," you spoke up, "New beginnings and all."

Natasha made a retching sound behind the two of you. "Absolutely adorable and disgusting. We'll watch over him, y/n, he's already falling asleep, and we'll have FRIDAY update you if needed. Go on break," she shooed you out of the room, Steve already tossing Bucky out with you, Sam making cooing noises behind you as he fell asleep. They shut the door, effectively giving you not much choice.

"Well, I guess that settles it," you turned to Bucky, who looked towards you a little skeptical. "Let me formally introduce myself, soulmate. I'm Dr. Y/n y/m/n y/l/n, but you can call me y/n/n." You put your hand out, your mark on full display.

He gave you a goofy smile in response, taking your hand and kissing your knuckles before kissing your wrist right over your mark. "Why hello, soulmate. I'm Sargent James Buchanan Barnes, but you can call me Bucky."

Bucky Tags:

@cassandras-musings

For a tag, just reply/comment, if I don’t see it, just message me. Tell me what you think! Literally, any comment makes me happy! Like, comment, reblog, interact <3

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky x reader #My writing #soulmate!au

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mostfacinorous · 4 years

Text

Stoki Whumptober Day 15: Into The Unknown [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14]

When he was removed from the cell the next day-- or let out, depending on how you looked at it, he had managed to get himself back to a state of being reasonably well put together.

“So I uh-- heard you didn’t sleep so great. Sorry about that. I had forgotten that Jarvis has problems when I ask him to monitor Thor’s vitals, too.”

Loki flapped his hand dismissively at Stark’s apology; he didn’t feel like going into the fact that his baseline would be wildly different from even Thor’s. It didn’t matter much.

“How is the Captain?” He asked instead.

Stark hummed.

“Seems fine now-- that was a pretty wild treatment, though, so I think it’d be good to keep an eye on him.”

He held the door open to allow Loki to board the elevator.

“We got breakfast delivered, so I imagine he’ll be there-- and Barnes, too.” Stark looked wary, and Loki wondered what part of the gathering caused that.

He found it odd that Stark seemed suddenly at ease around him, but perhaps his performance with Rogers the night before, and his relative lack of ill-will after being nearly roasted by his machine had given him some sense of confidence in Loki’s intentions.

Bold of him to assume that Loki’s goodwill extended to him. But then again, all of his windows were thus far intact, so perhaps there was some small basis for it. It wasn’t a high bar to clear.

“You seem… somewhat less than enthused about breakfast.” Loki offered it as an observation, but it was a question, ever so delicate, probing gently to learn more about these people he’d fought so often. He’d certainly never been allowed this close before, into their home. Or, home-base, at least. He knew Rogers had a place of his own, outside of the tower.

Stark lifted one shoulder listlessly. But before he had a chance to elaborate, the elevator announced their arrival with a cheerful ping and the doors slid open onto a scene of surprising domesticity.

The Avengers were gathered around the table, shy only Stark and alongside Barnes and a woman that Loki only knew peripherally as Pepper Potts, Stark’s good half.

“So, now we’re all here-- good morning everyone--” Stark began, but was interrupted by Barnes snorting.

“It’s after noon.” Banner pointed out, clearly amused, and Loki blinked. He must have slept longer than he’d thought, to compensate for the heat and his efforts the day prior.

“Well, yeah, okay. After noon. Happy brunch. Point is-- Loki. Steve. James Barnes-- what are we calling you these days? Bucky?”

Stark’s edgy energy was back, and Loki realized it was centered around the Soldier. Fascinating, that Stark was literally more at ease with Loki at his back than with Barnes at his table.

“James is probably fine.” He said mildly, buttering some toast and casually avoiding eye contact.

Rogers, too, seemed unsurprised but on guard.

Interesting. And charming. A crack in their united front, and Loki wasn’t even the cause. He ought to be offended, he supposed. Instead, he was merely amused.

“Right. So. James… after you stopped in on Loki last night, did you notice anything… weird?”

Rogers looked thoroughly confused-- Loki wondered at that. Had Barnes not told him about his stepping in? Loki would think he would-- to curry favor, prove himself as a good person, if nothing else.

Barnes sat his toast down, only a single bite taken from it.

“Define weird.” He said slowly, almost like the words were a threat.

“Your arm.” Stark said, clearly trying not to sound eager and coming off as smug instead. “I got your message after you were asleep, and asked Jarvis to run a scan, make sure Loki didn’t do anything to you.”

Loki felt his mouth falling open to protest, and, without looking, Stark held up his hand to stop him speaking.

“Your arm has some weird stuff going on with it, but it doesn’t match Loki’s power signature. And last night, it started flaring up. So, did you notice anything weird?”

“You’re asking if I noticed anything weird with my arm while I was asleep?” Barnes reiterated, speaking slowly, as if he was becoming more and more convinced that Stark was an idiot. “No. Because I was asleep.”

“Hang on, why were you scanning him in his sleep?” Rogers demanded. “And why would you visit Loki?”

“To have a chat, Steve, why else do people go see one another?” Barnes snapped back. “Anyway, it didn’t matter, because when I got there, Stark’s robot was in the process of frying the guy’s brain, so…” Barnes trailed off with a sharp glance in Stark’s direction.

Rogers whipped his head around, glaring at Stark who raised his hands defensively. “Loki?” He asked firmly, turning his eyes on him next. “Are you alright?”

“I should be asking the same of you, though your voice is much improved. In fairness, Stark’s machine was concerned because my vital readings did not match that of humans. No harm was intended.” Loki spoke mildly and strode forward to take a seat directly across from Barnes. “But tell me more about this ‘weirdness’. Do you suppose it’s related to the time stone?”

He helped himself to some bread and jam, and began to paint the latter across the former, performatively, of course-- a show of unconcern.

When he glanced up, though, it was his turn to receive the full weight of Barnes’ glare.

“Time stone?” The widow asked sharply.

“Oh. I’m sorry-- did they not know?” Loki asked, pretending at surprise.

“Is there a magical artifact in my house, and you didn’t tell me?” Stark demanded.

Banner stood.

“I’m sorry, I’m gonna excuse myself. Ah-- Pepper, can you update me or give me a call if I’m needed?”

“Of course.” She said smoothly, watching him go then turning her eyes back to Rogers and Barnes, who looked both cornered and uncomfortable.

Loki took a bite of his toast.

“Look, as much as I’m not excited about having the time stone here, I think we’re burying the lede. What weird stuff did Jarvis pick up, Tony?” the Hawk spoke up, having held his peace and just made faces for a bit, but, as ever, keeping his eye on the big picture. Loki shot him an appreciative glance.

“Like I said, it started flaring up-- and with the time stone present-- I assume you have it stored in the arm?” Stark asked pointedly, his gaze dropping to Barnes’ shirt sleeve covered prosthetic.

He pushed the sleeve up and opened a compartment, revealing the time stone, glowing a soft green.

To Loki’s eyes, it was pulsing, however faintly, but that wasn’t the real concern.

“It’s corrupting the metal. Or-- the metal is absorbing it?” He murmured, surprised and enthralled. “I’ve never seen something like that happen before.”

“What do you mean?” Steve asked, at the same time as Barnes snapped “It’s what?”

“Jarvis?” The Widow asked, standing to come closer.

“The stone is emitting a low level of power. I can confirm that the metal of Sergaent Barnes’s arm is absorbing it. It is, however, also releasing it back and amplifying the power in the stone’s direction at a .20 percent increase from the original radiation.”

Loki nodded.

“The pulsing-- the arm is absorbing the power, storing it, and then releasing it back stronger. This, in turn, overflows the limits of the stone-- causing it to release more.”

Barnes immediately plucked the stone from the compartment with his flesh hand.

“That’s all well and good,” Loki said, “but that leaves us with one problem: we’ll need to draw the power out of your arm.”

Rogers looked to him. “Can you do that?”

“I can.” Loki said. “I cannot guarantee there will not be lingering effects, but the excess we can draw out. Only, I will need to do something with it.”

Loki turned to look at Stark.

“Are you capable of building some sort of containment for it?”

“I don’t even know what ‘it’ is, that’s a power source unlike any we’ve seen before.”

“And the longer it stays within the cavity of Barnes’s arm, the more it grows.” Loki said calmly, then sighed.

“I can… try to ground it, or disperse it, but until I try, until I have it in my hands, I will have little idea as to the best way. Is there a safe place that Barnes and I may go to try and mitigate any damage we may cause?”

Loki saw Barnes narrow his eyes, and it did not escape him the way his flesh fist clenched all the tighter around the stone.

“I have the space upstate-- pretty isolated, big plot of land. That should be safest. I’m going with you, of course-- I gotta see this. And I doubt Steve’s gonna want to stay behind.”

“Nope.” Rogers responded quickly.

“We’ll hold down the fort here.” The widow responded, clearly not needing to ask the hawk how he felt about such exercises. Loki nodded in acknowledgement.

“To upstate, then.”

---

The upstate facility seemed to be somewhat more like a hangar than a tower, which Loki was grateful for. Less to fall on them, should something go wrong. And Stark insisted it was well built, launching into specifications and logistics than Loki had no interest in and didn’t understand.

Instead, upon arrival, he’d begun arranging a table with chairs for himself and Barnes-- opposite sides, to keep the surface between them. For Barnes’ peace of mind, more than anything else.

Loki settled down and gestured at the table.

“If you’re ready.” He said.

Barnes took his seat, and lay the limb out. Loki had been, admittedly, curious about it, and was finally being allowed his first close up examination of the thing.

“The workmanship is beautiful. Utilitarian, yes, but intricate and graceful all the same.” Loki ran his fingers gently up the edges where he knew the hollow was, able to feel the energy humming beneath his fingertips.

“I don’t need a narration.” Barnes said, sounding uncomfortable and cross, which Loki decided likely translated to scared and trying to hide it.

“Of course.” He answered smoothly.

The panel folded back and away, and he dipped his fingertips into the glowing green pool that had formed in the absence of the time stone.

“Ah.” He said, brow furrowing as he tried to make sense of what it was.

It was cold and hummed, the sensation not unlike being buffeted by a river. But it climbed his arm, and he felt it pulling at him, trying to toss him to or fro, back into the past and forward into the future simultaneously.

He put out a few tendrils of his own power, anchoring himself to the here and now, and urged the energy of the stone up over his fingers, across the back of his hand, and then, as he rolled his wrist, into his palm to pool.

Once he held it and was certain it would not leap forth nor spill through the cracks, he flicked his eyes back to Barnes.

There was no further trace of it there, though the metal sang with the empty echoes of a newly hollow vessel.

“I think you must take care to keep it separate from that metal, going forward. It is… It reacts oddly.”

Indeed, it was vibrating with a movement he was not used to feeling from time related magics. It had become agitated with its constant duplication, and it wanted now to burst free.

He frowned.

He could not put it to ground in such a state; it would merely spread itself out, affecting all it touched.

He could attempt to contain it with his own magics, however, and with any luck they might be able to lock that away in more conventional metals, for study or future use.

This course of action decided upon, Loki called his magics up and through him, pulling from the soles of his feet, though the core of him and down his arm to wrap around the power in his palm.

But in doing so, he made one critical error.

Before the power was contained, Loki became unmoored. And the power was interested only in spreading, now. He felt as it latched on to his power and tried to pull back, but it was no good, and too late.

The power of the stone slid within him, and he felt as time within him lurched, shifted, and changed.

#Stoki Whumptober2020 #Stoki #Frostshield #Capfrost #Steve Rogers #Loki #MCU Fanfic #Whumptober #That Writing Thing I do #I am so excited for tomorrow's installation you guys

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queenxxxsupreme · 4 years

Note

Request: Tony Stark x fem!Reader with the song Everytime We Touch by Cascada (yay romantic stuff)!

A/N: I’m sorry did you say angst? I did my best to balance the angst with fluff. I’m so sorry this took so long!! I have been fighting some sort of sickness this past week and I don’t usually get sick so it’s taken a lot out of me😞 I really hope you like this💕 (I did take out some lyrics because they either didn’t fit or I felt like they weren’t beneficial to the little story) I think I fixed all the mistakes but my eyes like to play tricks on me so I apologize if I missed anything

Also side note: I don’t know why but every time I try to do one of these things and I put the lyrics in italics it goes away when I publish it or some of the lyrics get italicized and others don’t. I’m not sure if it’s because I do the keep reading cut or what but I apologize for it. I find it so annoying.

***

Tony let out a sigh, scrolling absentmindedly through his phone. He was waiting for you to put on one of the dresses you’d bought today and show it to him.

A flash of lightning danced across the sky and a deep rumble of thunder followed, vibrating the Tower. The Iron Man looked to the large wall of windows in the bedroom and watched the rain fall from the dark clouds.

A shooting star fell down to earthLightning cracked across the sky

This had been an all day event. A charity gala for the city of New York was taking place later on this week and you had yet to find a dress. Being that Natasha was out running errands with Steve and Bucky, you asked Tony-your next closest friend on the team-to give his opinion of each dress you’d bought.

Tony was more than willing to give his opinion. That was one of the things he knew how to do best. He also loved seeing the little blush that rose to your cheeks when he gave you a flirty compliment.

“How much longer are you gonna be, Y/N?”

“This dress is tight, Tony. Don’t rush me.” You muttered from the inside of your walk-in closet. The door was left open just a little bit. He could see you moving around inside. The royal blue material of the last dress you had to try on could be seen for a brief moment through the crack of the door.

Something weird is happeningSomething I can’t deny

The door opened and you stepped out into the room, fixing a strap and moving the material just a little.

The royal blue silk material cling to your curves all the way down to your knees and then the bottom had a mermaid tail effect. The straps were thin but sturdy enough to hold your bust in place. The deep V in the neckline was what concerned you. You didn’t usually wear such revealing clothing but you did like the dress.

The second Tony saw you, he sat up on your bed and leaned forward. His chocolate eyes seemed to study you like you were some sort of artwork.

You nervously glanced up at him through your lashes, brushing your hair out of your eyes.

When he offered no immediate comments, you figured the dress looked worse than you thought. You turned to look in the huge mirror that clung to the door of your walk-in closet. You shifted your weight from one foot to the other and turned to the side to observe the dress from a new angle.

“Be honest, Tony. What do you think?” You smoothed your hands over your stomach, thankful for the good pair of spanx you wore underneath the dress.

Still, he said nothing. You frowned and turned back to face him. His lips were parted and his eyes were glued to you.

“Okay, Stark.” You sighed. “You don’t have to look at me like that. Just tell me how you feel about it.”

He couldn’t find the words to describe you. In the dress with your hair done the way you normal had it and not much makeup on your face, you looked like some sort of goddess. The dress hugged your curves and showed you off in just the right way.

Hearing the uneasiness in your voice, he cleared his throat and shook his head, glancing down at the phone in his hand briefly. He rubbed his eyes and then looked back to you. A smile crossed his lips.

A strange kind of magicRunning through my brain

“You look amazing, Y/N.” His voice was quiet and soft. “Amazing doesn’t even cut it. Stunning, maybe. But even then…. the word doesn’t do you any justice.”

Heat rose to your cheeks and you smiled shyly, turning to look back into the mirror.

“Are you sure it’s not too tight for a charity event?”

“Of course not.” He shook his head. He chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment. Anxiety swarmed in his stomach and doubts swirled in his head. But he had to do this. He’d regret it later if he didn’t, just like how he regretted many things he never told you sooner. “Y/N, be my date to the gala.”

You furrowed your brows together, meeting his gaze in the mirror. Your hands slowly fell from your hips to your sides. You held his gaze until you turned around to face him.

“What?”

“I think you should go with me to the gala…. as my date.”

You stared at him for a while longer, unsure that you heard what you did.

“I-I don’t…. Tony, I don’t know.”

“Ouch.” He grinned just a little to hide the ache of rejection he felt forming inside. “Are you turning me down, buttercup?”

You blushed again at the nickname, one he used only when you two were alone. You were never sure why, but it always felt right that he kept the tender nickname reserved for just you two. It had started off as a teasing nickname, one he used when he was poking fun at you for being so shy and bashful. But it had become something you loved hearing.

“I’ll go with you.” You nodded your head, biting your bottom lip in an attempt to hide just how happy and ecstatic you were.

You’d been secretly crushing on the Iron Man for years now. Since you met him, you’d fallen for the man he truly was, for the hero he didn’t see himself as.

You’d shared a handful of intimate nights that you were sure he never allowed anyone else to witness. Intimate meaning you’d helped him during one of his episodes where he became so overwhelmed with his problems, with every crisis that showed itself just as things were getting better.

You’d rescued him from a handful of panic attacks. You knew the signs, knew how he’d get right before he’d shut himself off and hide away in his room or his lab with a bottle of whatever alcohol he could find the quickest.

You were the one he wanted to be around when dark thoughts and horrible memories swarmed his mind.

Having him ask you to be his date meant the world to you. You weren’t sure if he did it simply because you looked, to be blunt, hot in your dress or if maybe, just maybe, there were mutual feelings he shared for you.

Feel I’m in heavenOr going insane’

In the days following you finding your dress and a date all in one day, you’d noticed little things changed with Tony. He was a little more quiet around you, a little more shy. He wasn’t his usual flirty self, which admittedly you missed. You liked how he flirted casually with nearly everyone. You liked how when he and Steve got into one of their little bickering sessions, Tony would throw the Captain off by giving him a compliment. The Iron Man also had the ability to give backhanded compliments. He did this not so often with his teammates, but more with those he couldn’t tolerate and didn’t care for.

It was just two days before the gala and you were sitting at the bar with Wanda, Natasha, Vision, and Thor. Tony sat across the room on one of the sofas. Peter was next to him, playing a videogame with Clint, Bucky, and Bruce. Rhodey and Sam were in chairs talking idly about their experiences in the military.

Tony was watching you like a hawk. You were next to Thor, carrying on a conversation with him about something Tony didn’t care to listen to. All he cared about was the way you smiled at something Thor said and then you threw your head back and put your hand on his arm as you laughed.

“You sure you’re holding that cup tight enough, Tony?” Rhodey nodded to the glass Tony held in his vice-like grip.

Tony blinked as he looked to his friend and realized he was close to breaking the cup.

“You good, man?” Sam asked him. Tony muttered a ‘yeah’ and put the glass down on the coffee table.

“Why don’t you tell her?” Steve’s voice was low as he spoke. Tony looked over to the Super Solider, who saw in a chair to his left.

“Tell her what?”

“That you like her.”

Tony rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair.

“I don’t like her any more than a friend, Capsicle.”

“Sure.” Steve nodded his head, a grin crossing his lips. He looked to you and Thor as he moved to sit on the edge of his seat. “Take it from someone who waited too long. Don’t. You never know when you’re not gonna see her again.”

The pain and regret in his voice made Tony’s stomach churn.

“I’ll keep that in mind.” The Iron Man mumbled.

Steve stood up and as he passed Tony, he patted his shoulder.

“I think Ms. Y/F/N likes you too, Mr. Stark.” Peter didn’t take his eyes away from the television screen.

“What are you talking about, kid?”

“The way she looks at you and you look at her. It’s how all those couples in those Hallmark movies look at each other.”

“It’s nauseating.” Bucky commented. Tony’s eyes widened just slightly. He wasn’t aware that everyone within a ten foot radius of him had heard what Steve said.

“Thanks, Sarge.”

“No problem.”

Tony rolled his eyes. He sighed out and put his hand over his eyes for a moment. His heart was racing his chest as he thought about what to do. What if Thor stole you from him? Was that even possible? Could something be stolen from him that wasn’t technically his to begin with?

Tony stood up suddenly and moved swiftly across the room to the bar.

Cause everytime we touchI get this feeling

Tony put his hand on your arm, his fingers lingering just a little longer than necessary.

You turned to him, a warm and soft smile crossing your lips at the sight of him.

“Hi, Tony.”

“Uh, hi. Can I talk to you for a moment?” Tony was surprised with how even he was able to keep his voice.

“Of course.” You nodded your head and slipped from the barstool.

You followed him across the room to the elevator. You didn’t notice that everyone in the room was watching you two. You also didn’t notice the huge grin plastered across Peter’s face like he knew what was about to happen.

The youngest Avenger looked over to Rhodey and Sam as the elevator doors closed.

“He’s gonna do it, isn’t he? Like in the movies? He’s gonna kiss her, isn’t he?”

“Don’t ruin the moment, Bug Boy.” Sam told him.

The doors to the elevator slid shut with a hiss behind you. You didn’t have time to register what was happening. Tony’s hands were on your face, holding you with a tenderness you had never experienced. You were tense, unsure of what he was doing. For a split second, his chocolate orbs gazed at you and then he pressed his lips to yours in a soft kiss.

And every time we kissI swear I could fly

Your eyes slid shut and you loosened up, your hands coming up to hold one of his that still cradled your face. Your other hand went to hold the side of his neck.

Your senses were overwhelmed by him. His gentle touch was so soft like he thought you were something as delicate as a flower petal. He tasted of the mint gum he so often chewed, doing so to keep himself busy in even the slightest way. His scent filled your nose, reminding you that he wore only the best and most expensive of cologne.

As he pulled away, you were left breathless and with your lips still parted. Your eyes opened, dazed and disoriented from the rush of the kiss. You met his gaze, a small smile coming to your lips.

“I-I don’t want to end up like Rogers.” He admitted, his voice quiet and timid. “I don’t want to look back ten, twenty years from now and regret not saying anything. I don’t want to lose you and never have told you what I feel.”

“What…. What do you feel?” You asked softly.

He ran a hand through his salt-pepper hair and shook his head, taking a step towards the wall. He leaned against the corner, crossing his arms and looking down at the floor. He was silent for a while, for almost too long. And you thought that maybe he regretted kissing you, he regretted even thinking about it.

He lifted his head and finally met your gaze. His eyes were glossy but he did a good job at fighting back the tears.

“I feel everything, buttercup.” He whispered. “You-You are like this magical thing that can make me feel everything. I-I’ve felt highs I never thought possible. Like when you watched the Matrix with me at four in the morning because I couldn’t sleep and you wanted me to at least try.”

You giggled a little at the memory. That had happened a year ago and to know that he still thought about that made your heart race.

“But I’ve-Y/N, I’ve had lows too.” His voice was a weak murmur. “When you dated that dick from high school…. I saw the way he broke your heart, Y/N. You didn’t deserve any of that.”

Your eyes fell to the floor. The ache and pain you’d felt during your last relationship was still fresh. It had happened a few months ago, yes, but the feelings would always be there.

“He cheated on you and told you that you weren’t good enough for him.” Tony’s hands curled into tight fists. He was so angry that anyone would say that to another person, let alone you. He firmly shook his head. “I was there to pick up the pieces though, wasn’t I? I helped you through that.”

“You did.” You nodded, confirming his words. “I wouldn’t be where I am today if you hadn’t helped me.”

Silence fell between you two. He pushed himself away from the corner and crossed the short space to get to you. He held his hand out for you and when you accepted, placing your hand in his, he thought he’d burst from happiness.

Can’t you feel my heart beat fastI want this to last

You put the curling iron down just as the door to your room opened. It was Natasha.

“Looking good, Y/L/N.” She complimented. “Tony’s asking for you.”

“Can it wait?”

“I think it’s kind of important. He seemed a little…. flustered.”

You nodded your head and stood to your feet.

***

Your heels clicked against the floor as you made your way out of the elevator and down the hall to Tony’s room.

You stopped at his door and knocked a couple times.

“Tony? It’s me.”

A few moments passed before the door opened.

Tony was in his suit pants, a dark blue that matched yours, and his button down.

“Hey, Y/N.” He opened the door for you to come into his room. “You look good.”

You looked down at your outfit. You were in a pair of black sweatpants, a white tank top, and the black stilettos you’d be wearing to the gala. Your hair and makeup were already done. You just needed to put on your dress.

“I really don’t, but thanks. What’s up?”

He sat down on the edge of his bed, his hand brushing over his face.

“What if this is a mistake?”

Your heart dropped as you automatically thought that he was talking about you two.

“I-I don’t…. I don’t understand. I thought we were doing good. I mean-I mean sure it’s only been a few days but–,”

“No, no. Not us.” Tony shook his head. “Going to this gala. Letting everyone know what…. what you mean to me.”

You moved to sit on the bed next to him. You took his hand and held it in yours.

Need you by my side’Cause everytime we touchI feel this static

It was only then that you felt how he was trembling. His nerves were getting the best of him.

“The media can be brutal, Y/N.” He murmured gently. “What if they get to be too much? There’s going to be reporters there and they’re going to be taking pictures–,”

“Then let them.” You cut him off, giving his hand a firm squeeze. “They’ve taken pictures of me before. I’m an Avenger, remember? I’m use to that sort of thing.”

“Yes, but it’s different with me.” He shook his head softly. “I-I’m Tony Stark. Every now and then they like to rub it in my face that I’ve made mistakes.”

“Because a lot of people view you as a god, Tony.” You told him. “They bring up your mistakes in order to remember that you’re only human. You aren’t perfect, and that’s okay. Making mistakes is a part of living and growing.”

He nodded a little, his eyes flickering over to meet yours. A small smile found its way to his lips.

“Thank you.”

“That is what I’m here for, honey.” You leaned over to kiss his cheek. “I’ll see you in ten down in the garage, right?”

“Ten?” He repeated, following you as you moved towards the door.

“Ten minutes. I’ve got to get into my dress.”

“Is it gonna take you that long?” He teased. You rolled your eyes but laughed.

Before you could completely slip out of his room, he grabbed your hand and pulled you back to him. He kissed you softly.

And everytime we kissI reach for the sky

Tony held his hand out for you as you moved to get out of his car. The lights were already so bright. There were so many there taking pictures. You squeezed Tony’s hand just to make sure he was there and you weren’t imagining it. He squeezed back and you smiled.

“You look absolutely stunning.” He murmured to you as he slipped an arm around your waist and held you close.

“You’ve said that at least nine times already.”

“Just want to make sure you know.” He grinned.

As you two followed behind Bruce and Natasha, you smiled for pictures and waved to a few who shouted your name.

Once inside, you were pulled from Tony by Wanda. Apparently there was some big news resource here to do some sort of segment on the ladies of the Avengers.

You unwillingly let Tony’s hand go, casting one more glance his way before you followed the Scarlet Witch.

Can’t you hear my heart beat soI can’t let you goWant you in my life

As Tony watched you leave his side, he couldn’t help the anxiety that rose in his stomach. You were his comfort, the one person who he felt like could keep him sane and sober enough to get through the night.

“Come on, Tony.” Steve put his hand on Tony’s shoulder. “She’ll be back shortly.”

Tony nodded, knowing the Captain was right, and followed the rest of his team through the unusually packed room.

***

After you, Natasha, and Wanda managed to break away from the reporters, you looked around in search of Tony. You expected to find him sitting with the rest of the team at their designated table but the billionaire wasn’t there.

You frowned but went to the table anyways, hoping he’d show up soon.

“Do you guys know where Tony went?” You asked, standing between Rhodey’s and Bruce’s chairs.

“There was a reporter who snagged him.” Bruce answered you. “They went towards the front doors.”

“Thanks, Bruce.” You smiled at him and gave him a nod before making your way in that direction.

The wind was like a hurricaneStorm clouds filled the sky

You pushed the doors to the gala open and stepped outside. The wind was rough and relentless as it whipped around. You didn’t remember it being this chilly when you arrived at the gala.

You looked around in search of Tony and at first you didn’t see him. There were reporters talking to a few familiar faces you recognized but none that you wanted.

Then you spotted him. He stood near the road on the sidewalk. The woman he was talking to, a pretty blonde, had her hand on his arm. She was being flirtatious. The smile on her lips bigger than what it needed to be. Her dress was a deep ruby red and the V in the chest was much deeper than yours.

Your breath hitched in your throat when you saw her lean in like she was going to kiss him. A sudden crack of thunder made you jump and your hand came up to cover your mouth.

I heard a crash of thunderThe earth shook in reply

Not wanting to see what you were sure was about to take place, you turned and hastily made your way back into the ballroom and to your table of friends.

You took your seat next to Steve, shaking your head when he asked you what was wrong. You picked up a flute of champagne and drank it a little quicker than what you should’ve.

“Y/N, are you okay?” Wanda could sense your sudden rush of negative emotions. It was bitter and nauseating.

“I’m-I’m fine.” You nodded, offering her a forced smile. She didn’t believe you but she let the topic drop.

Your foot began to bounce, tapping against the floor with the anxiety and fear that coursed through your body.

You heard a few of your teammates greet Tony but you kept your head turned the opposite way, pretending to be interested in a story Sam was sharing. You could hear Tony take his seat next to you and underneath the table, he placed his hand on your knee. He wasn’t sure if you had noticed his presence and he wanted to make sure you knew he was there for you.

You took his hand off of your knee and moved just a little bit away from him. This went unseen by the team. Tony became instantly concerned, unsure of what had happened.

“What’s wrong, buttercup?” He leaned over to whisper to you.

“Nothing.” You spoke through your teeth. You didn’t mean to sound so harsh but you couldn’t help it.

“Clearly it’s not nothing. What’s got you upset?” He kept his voice low enough so no one else could hear.

You turned your head to look at him, uncontrollable tears filling your eyes.

“Did you kiss her?”

His brows were furrowed together as he watched you. But when it sunk in that you had seen him outside with the journalist, his features softened.

“Come with me, Y/N.” He spoke normally, wanting everyone to hear his request. He knew you wouldn’t cause a scene, not in this setting. Maybe at the Tower, but not in public.

Reluctantly, you stood up, ignored his hand that he held out for you, and started moving towards the door to the bathrooms.

The two of you stepped out into a hallway. You eyed a few individuals standing outside of the women’s bathroom.

“Y/N, I didn’t kiss her.” He put his hand on your arm. You turned to face him, your jaw locked tightly.

“It looked like it.”

“But I didn’t.” He firmly shook his head. “I stopped her and told her that I was in the best relationship I had ever been in.”

“We’ve only been doing this for less than a week.” You muttered, sniffling.

“But I already know what we have is stronger than anything I’ve ever had before.” He took your hands, lacing his fingers between yours. “Buttercup, I’m a lot of things, but I’m not a cheater. You know that.”

You nodded stiffly, still feeling upset from what could’ve been. He let one of your hands go so he could cup your cheek.

A strange kind of magicRunning through my brain

“You mean the entire world to me, Y/N.”

“Okay, Tony.” You mumbled.

“No, it’s not okay. You do.” He leaned in to kiss your nose and then your lips. “I wouldn’t chance losing you for anything.”

Hearing those words made your heart soar. A happiness rushed through your veins, giving you a dopamine high you never wanted to come down from.

Feel like I’m in heavenOr going insane’

He kissed you once more. His hand fell from your face to slip around your waist. He pulled your body flush against his and started to move side to side with the gentle music coming from the ballroom.

You rested your cheek against his chest, your eyes closing.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. You have every right to get upset over something like that.” He kissed the top of your head with such a gentleness that you cherished. “You’re my world, buttercup.”

In his arms, you were happiest. You could stay there for the rest of your life and you’d be perfectly content. He had that way of making you feel complete just by holding you, whether it was after rough nights or when you were just feeling not like yourself. You felt complete with him, and that was something that had taken you way too long to realize.

Cause every time we touchI get this feeling

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