#what do they have ? will they even listen ? where does Thor even BEGIN

[rebeliz7]

We have to stop meeting like this

Natasha Romanoff x Doctor Reader 

Request: Can you do Natasha x non avenger/reader where reader is very possessive and protective over her wife “Listen pal. There are two things I need from you. Number 1 is get away from my wife and number 2 is stay the hell away from my wife.” Natasha finds her wife’s treats very amusing, considering she’s the black widow and can more than well take care of herself.

Word Count: 2255

…

You’re about to leave the hospital, your shift having just ended, when your phone rings. 

You see Steve’s name on the screen, and your heart stops for a second before you slide a trembling finger across the screen to answer. 

“You need to come in.” He says after murmuring a soft greeting, and you immediately become terrified. 

“Steve, is she - ”

“She’s okay.” He hurries to explain, probably realizing his mistake. “She’s fine, she’s a little beaten up, but she’s fine.”

“She’s alive.” You assure yourself, before taking a deep breath, and gathering your things. “Give me fifteen minutes.”

…

The moment you get to the Compound you know that Steve was more than vague in his explanation, because you walk into the most chaotic state you’ve ever seen the Avengers in. 

Thor is speaking loudly, his voice booming and making the windows shake lightly while Tony rubs his temples, trying to soothe a certain headache. Sam is nursing a bleeding arm on the couch, and he looks pissed as he raises his voice at Tony too. 

Steve, on the other hand, seems to be trying to keep everyone in check while Wanda and Carol sit on the nearest couch looking exhausted. No one notices you at first.

“Good evening, Doctor.” Scratch that, Friday notices you, and suddenly everyone else does too. They all fall silent the moment they see you, and when no one opens their mouth you rush down the hallway to the med-bay, terrified all over again. 

“Wait up.” Someone calls behind you.

“What the hell happened out there?” You ask over your shoulder, and you realize that everyone is coming with you. 

“You know we can’t tell you what happened.” Steve says calmly, and you turn around abruptly causing him to  stumble trying to catch himself before running into you.

You notice that his brow is bleeding from a small cut, and his suit has a tear on its chest, and he looks exhausted. 

“I don’t want the details of the mission, Steve. I meant what happened to my wife.” You clarify, and he looks to his left as he swallows, and then nods. 

“Bullet wound.” He says, and you close your eyes as you take a deep breath. Then you turn around, and resume walking.

You know how secretive Natasha’s work is, and you understand the risks. She’s an Avenger, and protecting the world is her job. Injuries are, at this point, just a professional hazard for her. 

Still, she’s your wife, and over the years you’ve only become more protective of her instead of more accustomed to the inevitability of these kinds of calls. 

“She should have waited.” You hear Tony say, as you round a corner. 

“Yeah, and you were a load of help.” Sam says sarcastically, and you begin to pay closer attention to their conversation. 

“More help than you, that’s for sure. Getting yourself shot the second you showed up.” Tony snarks back, getting angrier by the second.

“You put us all in danger by going for that computer, Stark.” Thor says, and the steel in his voice is terrifying to hear. “You are not a team player.”

“Newsflash, beach boy.” Tony starts, just as you reach the med-bay. “We need that computer if we want to put an end to this nightmare.”

“That’s enough.” Carol says, and even you straighten up at hearing her command. “Not now.”

The second you spot your wife you rush to her side, while simultaneously assessing the situation with a critical eye. Her waist is patched up, and you breathe a little easier when you realize that the bullet must have not hit anything vital. She’s being hydrated intravenously, and they’ve administered an antibiotic. Other than that, she just seems to be sleeping. 

You know she heals faster than a regular person, but you can’t help but feel as scared as you do every time that she comes home with a bruise, let alone a bullet wound. She’s not invincible, despite the world’s beliefs. 

You take a moment to look at her before you press your lips softly to her temple, and pull up the sheets to cover up to her chin. You pick up her chart next. 

The bullet went through and through just like you thought. They just had to patch her up, the wound was already healing when they brought her in. 

“She should have waited.” Tony says again, and you pick up on the fear lacing his tone. Natasha and Tony go way back, you know he’s her oldest friend among the Avengers, and he wouldn’t put her in danger deliberately.

So whatever’s happened, you rest easy at knowing that he had her back. He always does.  

“That’s enough, Stark.” Carol speaks again, her voice is steel  now, and it scares you slightly. “You can try to justify what happened out there all you want, but we all know the truth. We all heard what you said. We all know that it was you who gave Natasha the go-ahead. So stop. Nat is on this bed because of you. Own it.”

The silence that falls upon the room is deafening, and your confusion only increases the moment Natasha opens her eyes. 

“Jesus, Danvers! You’re being way too harsh.” Your wife rasps with humor in her tone. You know she’s okay, but that still doesn’t stop you from leaning down to kiss her lips the moment she’s done speaking. “Who called my wife?” She asks, her hand cupping your face as you comb her hair back with your fingers before kissing her again. 

“We gotta stop meeting like this.” You joke, and she scrunches up her nose. 

“You think you’re funny.” She says, her thumb caressing your cheek.

“Yeah, well. You married me.” You shrug, and she smiles up at you. 

However, your joy at having your wife in one piece is quickly snatched away when you can feel the rising tension among her team again. 

“We can talk about this later.” Steve says, as you sit down on the edge of the mattress, your wife’s hand in yours as you both turn your attention to her friends. 

“Of course.” Tony says, but you can hear the sarcasm in his voice, and so can everyone else. 

“Tony, come on. We’ll talk about it later.” Wanda insists, her hand on his forearm, but he’s quick to shake her hand off, and step closer to the bed, his eyes firmly locked on your wife. 

“You were an idiot!” He points a finger at Nat, and it’s your turn to frown. 

“Tony.” Sam, and Carol try to stop him but he continues to advance on your wife anyway. 

“What the hell are you talking about?” You wife asks as you slowly stand up. 

“That’s enough, Tony. Come on, man.” Steve intervenes, but Tony ignores him, his eyes still trained on your wife.

“Aren’t you supposed to be the master spy? The brains of this bunch, besides me?” He shouts, his anger sparking your own, and you find yourself pushing him back before he can take another step closer to Natasha. 

“Listen  here, pal.” You growl, as he stumbles back a couple of steps. “There are two things I need from you right now. One: Stop yelling at my wife, and Two: Stay the hell away from her. Got it?”

“Seriously?” He raises an eyebrow at you, and you step closer, daring him to try you. He may be Iron Man, and a dear friend, but you’re Natasha’s wife, and he’ll have to respect that. 

You glare until he takes a step back in response, still frowning. He looks at Nat over your shoulder, and you hear her snicker. 

“I’d listen to her, Tony.” She tells him, and you can hear the amusement in her voice. She’s not angry, or hurt, despite Tony’s frustrations. 

“Is anyone seeing this?” He asks, his index finger pointing at your chest, as he looks at everyone else in this room. 

“Come on, man.” Steve sighs again, and you catch Carol smirking, as Wanda rounds the bed to get closer to Natasha. 

When Tony looks at you again you can see the regret in his eyes as clear as day. You don’t know what happened out there, but you don’t blame him for your wife being on this bed. Natasha doesn’t take uncalculated risks, at least not since you two got married. Whatever decision she made during their mission was her own, you’re certain of that. 

“How about a shower, and a nap?” You tell him, your hand on his arm now, and he lets out a deep breath. He looks exhausted, and he’s a dear friend of yours too. You need him rested, and taken care of before he attempts to speak to Natasha again. “Come back later, we’ll be here all night.”

“Yeah.” He nods, and he leaves quickly, leaving you surrounded by equally exhausted superheros. 

“How do you do that?” Sam asks you, as Carol and Steve walk closer to the bed too. 

“Do what?” You ask him, feigning ignorance.

“You know what.” He says, and Carol is laughing when you turn around. 

“What’s so funny?” You wife asks her as you sit on the mattress, and begin running your fingers through her hair again. You smile to yourself as the Avengers gather around your wife’s bed. 

“Nothing, really.” Carol shakes her head, and your wife frowns, fixes Carol with a glare that only makes the Captain laugh harder as she turns around, and makes for the door. 

“Don’t say it.” Sam shakes his head, also amused and you’re tempted to laugh at the look on their faces but you limit yourself to watching the interaction. 

“What?!” Your wife insists. 

“Well, your wife is a lot scarier than you these days.” Carol shrugs, one foot in the hallway already, and Sam hides his laughter behind a very fake coughing fit. 

“And that’s funny why?” Your wife asks, and Steve shakes his head, finally smiling. 

“You’re the Black Widow.” Carol deadpans, and your wife glares harder. 

“It is kinda true.” Wanda says, nodding her head, and your wife huffs in disbelief this time. 

“Children, the bunch of you.” You call them, as you stand up again to put an end to their teasing. Natasha really does need to rest, as do all of them. “Go, take showers please. And eat something.” 

“Yes, ma’am.” Steve says with humor in his voice, and you roll your eyes as you practically push him out of the room.

When they’re gone, you close the door before taking off your jacket, and heels.

“What are you doing?” Your wife asks with a smile, even while she scoots over on the mattress, already making room for you. 

You get in bed with her, your arms wrapping around her middle as she presses her lips to your temple, and hugs you tight. 

“You need a shower too.” You tell her after a little while, and she pinches your arm as she laughs.

“Rude.” She says, but you’re quick to kiss her lips. 

“Babe, I love you. But you’re all sweaty and gross right now.” 

“I was shot!” She reminds you, and you hum in response. 

“No need to remind me.” 

“I’m sorry.” She apologizes. “I got distracted for just one second.”

“What happened?” You ask her.

“There was this really cute tabby-cat, and he was right in the middle of - ”

“Hold on.” You interrupt her, your hand in the air. “Please tell me that you didn’t get shot because of a cat, Natasha.”

The silence that you’re met with is answer enough, but she looks absolutely adorable as she grimaces, and pulls back a few inches from you. But that’s exactly who she is, isn’t it? She’s the kind of person that would get shot because she was trying to protect someone… or in this case a cat. 

“You really are scary.” She tells you, and you roll your eyes again. You know she likes cats but this is just ridiculous. 

“I swear!” You huff, and she hugs you closer, her lips pressing sweet kisses on your shoulder again. “Do they know why you got shot?”

“Wanda does.” She says with a smile. 

“That girl is always helping you when you’re reckless.”

“That’s why I love her.” Natasha smiles wider this time, and her wandering lips continue to press kisses along your neck, your jaw. 

“If you think you’re getting lucky while you’re lying on a bed after getting shot because you saved a cat, think again.” You tell her with a pointed look and she lets out a disappointed breath, a smile on her face as she presses one last kiss on the corner of your lips.

“You need to tell Tony that. He thinks you got shot because of him.” You tell her quietly.

“I know.” She sighs, and you can see how tired she feels. 

“Thanks for defending me.” She says after a few minutes of lying in silence. 

“Anytime.” You grin cheekily at her, and she presses one last kiss on your cheek before getting more comfortable. 

You both know that she doesn’t need you standing up for her. She could have handled Tony on her own, and she can take her teammates teasing. They all know how far to push after all. She is the Black Widow. 

But ‘Black Widow’, ‘ex-assassin’, ‘deadliest woman alive’ or not she’s still your wife, and the love of your life and you will always, always stand up for her. 

… 

#natasha romanoff x you #natasha romanoff imagine #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff #black widow imagine #black widow x reader

[beheworthy]

Jane, listen to me. You must not give up. You must finish what you've started. Why? Because you're right.

Chris Hemsworth and Natalie Portman's chemistry in Thor4 is unanimously hailed as the best thing about the film. While I absolutely agree with the consensus, for me, it started here with this scene 11 years ago.

This is the big romantic scene where the couple falls in love as they connect with each other. For example, Tony and Pep's dance in IronMan1: Pep is in a backless gown which she makes a point to mention and they almost kiss. Diana and Steve dance in the snow in Wonder Woman: they are also dancing close to each other, she even says so and it directly leads to them sleeping together. Arthur and Mera roam about in Italy in Aquaman: he catches her fall and they almost kiss as well.

These are all scenes I love from movies I love. I'm just using them as a reference to point out what director Kenneth Branagh does differently here. This scene is where his brilliance shines. He gives us romance without anything sexual or even sensual. It's just heartfelt sincere emotion between the two characters that elevates it to something more than just attraction.

It begins with Jane talking about the significance of the place she's brought Thor to, Thor thanking her for helping him, and her making a joke about hitting him twice in their aggressive meet cute, which he so graciously takes (post-Ragnarok Thor would never). He then gives her her notebook so she can continue her research. It's a humbling moment for the cocky Crown Prince as he'd so casually promised to bring everything back but all he could really bring was a notebook.

This is more than anyone has done for her because no one even believes in her research, let alone help her continue it. She understandably gets upset about having to start over with no support + with a hostile organization on her back now. And then comes the most important bit, he encourages her to keep going BECAUSE she is right. Not a cheesy 'I believe in you' or a fake deep 'believe in yourself' or even a superficial 'don't give up'. But keep going because you are right. Plain and simple. It gets through to her because it's straightforward and honest.

He then elaborates on it by explaining to her about the cosmos which directly furthers her research. He actively helps her research and supports her in the true sense, something she really needed and rarely got. And that becomes the foundation of their connection. The lighting is perfect, the ambiance is perfect. The actors do an admirable job. They don't touch at all, mind you. They're sitting with some distance between them. They don't even look into each other's eyes. Nothing romantic is said or done here. Yet, it’s romantic.

This scene is quite literally the reward of Thor’s hero’s journey: her. He learns kindness, sincerity, and humility from her and tries to emulate it going forward. She is his reward.

We get the emotional scene later when he dies for this town of 30 people. We get the big damn kiss. He literally gets her her research back. We get everything. Later. This scene was solely about the connection that sets the base for their relationship. It's the why of their love story. Both Thor and Jane are instrumental in each other's growth and make each other better people. She made him worthy and he made her believe in herself. I love the idea that love should be something that empowers and inspires you.

+

#thor #thor odinson #jane foster #thor x jane #chris hemsworth #natalie portman #kenneth branagh #marvel #marveledit #thoredit #chemsedit #nportmanedit #dailyavengers #dailymarvelstudios #marveladdicts #fyeahavengers #fyeahmovies #moviegifs #write up #meta #analysis #text #hey feige you already have chris and nat #get m&m and sir kenneth branagh and we're golden

[avengersgf]

early morning training // shower time with bruce

pairing: bruce banner x fem!reader

word count: 2.7k

summary: you have been dating bruce for a few months, yet he still has his shy moments. until he gets you alone in the shower…

tags: fluff, smvt, avengers tower, soft bruce banner, shower sx, p in v, quickie, male edging (no release), established relationship

a/n: i wish bruce banner was real so bad

You struggle to stifle a yawn as you stretch your arms high above your head and flex your fingers. You’re not quite listening to Steve, who stands at the front of the room and gives a run-down of the morning training session. He has been waking you all up before the sun even begins to blink in the morning sky, and the exhausted tension between the team is building as you all try to push through the grumpiness and focus on the day ahead.

As instructed by the Captain, you head to the back of the room and start to give the practice dummies some half-hearted kicks to the crotch. Are you pretending that it is Steve you’re kicking? Perhaps. Would you tell anyone the truth if they ask? Absolutely not. As far as they have to know, you’re just determined to make sure that the pretend HYDRA agents in front of you can no longer have children.

Nat and Clint wrestle in one corner. Clint loses every single round, but at least he doesn’t have to listen to Nat bragging about it since he left his hearing aids in his room this morning. Thor is half-asleep as he chucks Mjolnir at the concrete wall, calls her back, and repeats the action over again. Tony isn’t even there. You almost seethe with jealousy that he managed to get out of this. He has a talent for escaping the morning training sessions. Steve does jumping jacks in the middle of the room, seeming to be the only person actually happy to be there. He’s like an excited dog getting the zoomies.

Bruce is outside the boundaries of the training area as usual, leafing through some medical journals on gamma radiation. He isn’t required to join in with the training, since it is safer for everyone if he isn’t put in a situation where the ‘other guy’ might make an unwelcome appearance. Every so often you can feel his eyes on you, but each time you glance up from the practice dummy and look in his direction, he quickly drops his eyes back to the journals. It makes you chuckle to yourself. He can still be so shy sometimes, despite having been dating you for a few months. It’s kind of adorable.

All you want is to go and sit beside him, to listen to him rambling about the journal he is working through — even if you don’t understand what he’s talking about half the time. But you can practically feel Steve’s warning glare burning into you, so with a reluctant sigh, you start putting some actual effort into beating up the dummy.

Each kick is thought through and placed with the intention to disarm, every punch landing in a precise manner. All you have to do is picture the people you have fought for real in the past, how they made you feel and the taunts they threw at you. It becomes easy when you imagine their faces in front of you, less of a tedious activity. In the middle of the session you team up with Thor and mess around with him for a while to pass the time. He swings his hammer at you, and you quickly duck out of the way each time. You have to remind yourself a couple of times not to try and kick the hammer away from you. You don’t feel like ending up with a broken leg. Again.

After a couple of hours, you are left drenched in sweat, your bones singing with pain. Steve finally calls an end to the training session and you feel like throwing your arms up with joy. The Avengers disperse, heading out of the training room to other spots in the tower. Clint goes to grab his hearing aids and sit on the roof for a while, Nat and Steve go upstairs for some breakfast and Thor just flops down on his back in the training room, snoring within seconds of shutting his eyes. You snort in amusement and give him a nudge with your foot, but he doesn’t budge.

Wiping the sweat from your forehead, you step out of the training area and make a beeline for where Bruce is sitting on his usual bench. “Hey, you.”

“Hey, yourself,” Bruce immediately closes over the file, not even bothering to mark his page. He takes the glasses from the bridge of his nose and folds them up, tucking them into the pocket of his shirt. “Good session?”

“Mhmm. But I’m so goddamn tired,” You complain with a playful pout. Nodding your head at his files, you ask, “Find anything useful in there?”

“Not yet,” He shakes his head, getting to his feet and tucking the file under his arm. “You must be sore… Want me to give you a massage?”

You can’t help but snort at that. The one time Bruce has given you a massage after training, it ended with you on top of him and his hand over your mouth to try and muffle your rising sounds. There is a sneaking feeling in your mind that it might end the same way this time, and while you wouldn’t exactly object to that, you’re just so tired. “Thanks, but I think I’m just gonna take a shower and then nap. You’re more than welcome to join me, if you want.”

A bashful smile curves at his lips and he looks down at his feet like a shy school boy. “I think I’ll take you up on that offer. Here, before I forget.” Bruce reaches down and grabs a bottle of ice cold water from the bench, handing it to you.

“Oh, my god. You’re the best partner ever,” You groan in appreciation, give him a quick kiss on the cheek and flip the cap of the bottle before downing the contents. The freezing water is a shock to your throat, but it feels so good after a long training session.

The two of you leave a sleeping Thor in the training room and head upstairs to your bedroom in the tower. While you grab some fresh clothes to change into, Bruce enters the bathroom and gets the shower going for you, making sure the water is warm enough. He hums a Vivaldi tune to himself, just barely audible over the running water and the sound of his clothes hitting the floor.

You slip into the bathroom behind him and close the door to keep the steam from drifting into the bedroom. He turns to face you, dipping his head to kiss below your jaw as he pulls your shirt up over your head. His large hands begin to wander immediately, squeezing at your breasts and gliding over your soft skin. You can’t hold back your surprised laugh — has he been waiting all morning to do this? He does tend to get extra handsy when he’s tired.

“Impatient?” You tease, tipping your head back to give him more of a canvas to leave his kisses and gentle bites.

“For you?” He whispers against your neck and slips his hand into your pants, his fingertips teasing at your folds. “Always.”

You don’t know if it’s the heat from the steam seeping into your bones, the tiredness thick in your skull or a mix of both, but the slightest touch from him makes you moan and press your hips closer against him. He slips a finger inside you, sliding it slowly deeper and curling before he pulls it out. When you respond to the action with a disappointed sound, he looks into your eyes, lifts his finger to his lips and sucks the juices from it. He closes his eyes and groans in delight, as though tasting pure nectar. Impatient, you wriggle out of your shorts and toss them to the side along with your shoes, then step into the shower.

The hot water splashes against your skin and startles you at first, but you can’t find it in yourself to be bothered by it as you all but drag Bruce in with you.

So much for being too tired.

“Hi,” Bruce chuckles as he is pulled against you. He places his hands on your waist and pushes you up against the cool tile wall, which makes you shiver as it makes contact with your skin.

“Hi,” You whisper back, looping your arms around his shoulders and pulling him flush against you as your lips crash together. He is hesitant at first. He is always afraid that he gets over-excited and ‘the other guy’ comes out. The last thing he wants in this world is to hurt you. “It’s okay,” You assure him quietly when you pull back from his mouth and kiss his jaw instead, the stubble there scratching pleasantly against your lips. “I promise. It’s okay. You’re okay.”

“I don’t want to hurt you,” He sighs, nudging your noses together.

“Then don’t,” You raise a leg and pin it to his waist. Dragging him closer.

Bruce groans and seems to battle it out in his mind for another moment or two before giving in. His lips are back on your neck in an instant, his tongue gliding along the skin of your throat as he kisses at your throat languidly. Your hand slides up into his salt-and-pepper curls, tugging carefully at them as you close your eyes and melt into his kisses.

He likes to take his time with you, and you know that. He gets a kick out of seeing how desperate he can make you, how long it takes before you start asking for more.

This time, it takes no more than a minute.

“Bruce,” You complain and press closer to him, rubbing yourself against his erection.

“What is it, love?” Brue whispers and sucks at your throat.

“Please. I need you, please.”

Usually, he would hold off until you were begging. But he’s been waiting for you all morning, watching your every move in the training room and wishing that you were on his lap instead, warming his cock while he flicked through those medical journals. Not keen to make himself — or you — wait any longer, he spreads your legs a little more and guides his member to your pussy. He teases the tip between your folds for a moment, then rubs it against your clit until you whine.

The sound makes him chuckle to himself before he finally slips inside you.

You both let out a soft moan in unison, and hold onto each other that bit tighter. As though you can’t bear to be even a few inches apart right now.

Bruce rests a hand on your stomach, keeping you pinned to the wall as he moves slowly in and out of you, rolling his hips at a lazy pace. You move with him, trying to get him to move faster, but that only makes him slow down more.

“You’re being greedy,” He scolds playfully and licks a long stripe up the side of your throat.

“You like it when I’m greedy,” You mumble, squeezing your thighs together to tighten your walls around him.

“True,” He responds. His nails dig into your skin and a low moan fills the bathroom as he sheathes himself inside you fully, staying there even with you squirming around. “I missed you so much.”

“We were in the same room.”

“But you were so far away.”

Bruce lifts his head and leans in to press a feather soft kiss to your lips. Then, without warning, he pulls out and thrusts hard back into you. It knocks a groan out of you, and you hold on tight to him as he fucks into your cunt like he’s been desperate for it for weeks.

“God, you’re so fucking warm,” Bruce moans against your jaw, nipping playfully at it, “feel so perfect…”

You jolt up the wall with each plunge into your pussy, your pleased sounds echoing in the small bathroom. You know how thin the walls are in the tower. You know that the others can probably hear you. But that’s the last thing you care about right now. All you care about is the heat coiling in your stomach, the warmth of the man pressed against you and the smell of his cologne filling your nose.

“Bruce,” You pant, resting your forehead against his shoulder, “Bruce, please. I’m close.”

“Already?” He teases with a wide grin, as though he isn’t in the exact same situation. “Fuck…”

He slows himself down to the pace he started off with, sending every nerve in your body alight as he slips his hand between the two of you and starts rubbing your clit with his index and middle finger. You throb under his touch and whimper, your nails scratching into his shoulders and leaving red lines behind on his tanned skin.

“You’re so beautiful,” Bruce whispers around barely audible grunts, pinching lightly at your clit. “My pretty girl. Let me feel you come, hmm? Want to feel you squeezing around me.”

The words alone are more than enough to send you over the edge, even if he hadn’t been giving your pearl so much attention. You rock your hips against him as your orgasm rushes through you, your cunt squeezing around him as predicted. Whimpers and moans fill the bathroom as he stills altogether and his fingers circle you.

“That’s it, gorgeous… Just let me take care of you.” His mouth finds your pebbled nipple, licking and sucking at it as you fall into a state of pure bliss.

His cock is drenched with your juices by the time he pulls out, still rock hard. He curses as he gives himself a squeeze at the base, pulls you into a tight embrace and kisses your cheek.

“Perfect, my love. Just perfect.” Bruce praises and nuzzles his nose against your cheek.

You feel yourself wanting to melt into the attention, but his hard member brushing against your thigh stirs you from your thoughts — or lack thereof. “You haven’t finished.”

“I don’t want to yet,” Bruce murmurs and manoeuvres you until you are standing under the steaming water. “I just wanted to make you feel good.” His hands slip into your hair and make sure every strand is soaked through before he grabs the shampoo and squirts some into his palm.

“I want to make you feel good, too,” You say, squeezing your eyes shut when the shampoo being rubbed into your scalp starts to drip down your forehead.

“I feel good. I just like waiting sometimes,” He assures you and shushes you before you can speak again. You don’t argue with him and just relax into the feeling of him washing your hair, taking such care with you as though you’re some delicate doll and he’s afraid to break you. You lean against his chest, wrapping your arms around his waist and letting any remaining tension drip from your body with the suds that trail down your skin.

“I think maybe I won’t mind training in the morning so much anymore. If this is what happens after,” You joke.

A deep chuckle rumbles in Bruce’s throat at that and he nods in agreement. “Then I guess this is part of our daily routine from now on.”

“I guess it is…”

Bruce keeps a tight hold on you as he finishes washing your hair, making sure the water runs clear when the suds are all cleaned out. He washes the remaining layer of sweat from your body, giving a few appreciative squeezes along the way and kissing you wherever he can. You return the favour, washing his dark curls — good thing he doesn’t mind smelling like your shampoo — and feeling him up while cleaning his body. With both of you squeaky clean, he turns off the water and lifts you out of the shower, making you giggle and writhe out of his hold.

He takes the time to dry you, his hands being so delicate as they touch you. He runs the towel quickly over himself when he’s done, then helps you into your clean clothes before carrying you into the bedroom. He doesn’t even seem to care that he’s still stark naked.

Setting you down on your front, he crawls across the bed towards you and straddles the back of your thighs with a mischievous look on his face. “Now… How about that massage?”

Oh, how you adore that complete dork.

#bruce banner x you #bruce banner x reader #mcu x reader #x reader fanfiction #x reader fluff #x reader smut #mcu x you #mcu x y/n

[theunkown-yachirusan]

Chapter 4

The Crimson Moon

Umeki's P.o.v :

'I see they're still not doing it huh?' Using my Byakugan, just seeing the demons joining at the humanities and Gods stands.

'what is it they were waiting for?'

The Battle Ended

Thor wins

Here I am walking around and just like that I lost my way. 'I guess I have to use my Byakugan' but before I can turn left, I crashed to a hard wall....or is it....

"YOU STUPID HUMAN DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHERE YOU ARE GOING!!??"

"IDIOT SHUT UP THATS UMEKI"

I looked up and it was Lord Odin I bumped into and the two ravens started bickering to each other. But then Lord Odin suddenly lower down and puts his hand out.

. . . *internal screaming* he is helping me to get up. . .

I accepted his offer and composed myself.

"I apologize my Lord, I'm not looking to where I was going." I bowed

"Oh do not worry Ume-chan we are sorry we did not recognize you immediately" The white raven said in a sheepish tone.

"I apologize for bumping onto you, Umeki" Odin spoke. Looking straight to my eyes.

*internally screaming*BUT IM THE ONE WHO BUMP ONTO HIM⁄⁠(⁠⁄⁠ ⁠⁄⁠•⁠⁄⁠-⁠⁄⁠•⁠⁄⁠ ⁠⁄⁠)

"I-its alright Lord Odin, Im sorry too, I just lost my way" I stuttered.

'AHHH Y/N WHY DO YOU HAVE TO BRING DEATH TO ME'

Let me explain first why....

Umeki is assigned to keep an eye on Odin, since Y/n has discovered that Umeki became the Apple of Odin's Eye the time they became companions, maybe you could say friends, throughout the time they spend with each other. Not to mention the reason why Y/n chooses her is that with one of umeki's special ability other than their clans dōjutsu(Eye technique) that one ability she learned all by herself. Upon training in Valhalla for over 10years she has come to find out that with chakra and magic and the light points that flows through everyone is not at all different and that she can press any of it whenever she wants and she too finds out the true color of her chakra and with the chakra they were both called the twins that created the 'Twin Dragon's Gentle Fist'. So with that ability she can press any points on Odin when he found out or whenever he must decide on taking on Y/n if he ever finds out her true identity. Though it would be impossible since, Itachi and Y/n casted Genjutsu on him many times that Nyx said "it was effective,that he nor anyone can know". Though the hard part right now is, even if Odin finds out, Umeki will be hesitant since... She has caught feelings.

And that makes her go through this situation

Finally calm, I took a deep breath and look at him and smile

"If you may excuse me my Lord, I have to get back to my seat and I'm sure my brother might be worried about my well being right now"

And with that I walked pass Lord Odin. Not even looking back. I was too nervous to talk to him.

Odin's P.o.v

I just stand here and watched her left me here. I just can't bring myself to talk to her because if I do I might not hold myself back. I just listened to Muninn's and Huginn's bickerings while I cannot stop staring to where she goes. I want humanity gone but not her. I want her to be with me. But if she does not feel what I feel then I must let her go. But letting her go would be one to kill me inside. I do not wish for her to feel pain but to feel Joy. But how can I when I'm the one she must fear? I do not deserve her,not at all. Not when this is happening.

3rd person's P.o.v

And now the Second round is about to begin.... where behind the closed doors a chaos erupts in the humanities side.

"WHAT?!?!?" basically everyone yelled.

Akira, standing, arms crossed and wearing a very serious face. He is currently facing the two leaders of the Association,Y/n was infront of him eyes wide from his request.

"Then so must be it" y/n answered.

Brunhilde looks at her "Then you are not worried at all? His and your world you came from is far different after all, you are not worried that it will reveal atleast minor part of your past?"

Y/n just shrugged while looking at and replied "There's something happened and I've seen a glimpse of what the fates saw in the future, and Akira's statement to us right now is the actual sign that an inevitable future is about to happen."

....

AND THAT WAS 30min AGO AND RIGHT NOW.....

A change of fighter was requested on both sides.

Since the Gods first planned, Zeus thought 'Why not see what the humans are up to'. Adam who was just leaving the room, remembered what happened during the talk with him.

'Flashback'

Adam encountered Akira when he was about to meet up with Brunhilde and his völund.

Adam looked at him sternly "Why do you wish to stop me? I shall not let you sacrifice yourself my child."

Akira then sighed but looked at him "I don't want the most special man disappear in my life, thats why I shall protect you and everyone , so please let me fight this one father".

Adam could see the determination in him, but he was hesitating on letting his children.......

It didnt take long and Akira became the second fighter for the humanities side. While everyone is preparing for the second round, the news has immediately spread to the Association to which everyone began to cheer in silence. Some of them is somehow happy, contented that someone on the association is going to show the true Assassin's nature. Yet some of them was somehow disappointed that they werent chosen and the others has other thoughts about the news.

Now let's go back to what is currently happening. . . . .

" Now...... ARE YOU READY!?" Heimdall shouted

Everyone Gods and Humans yell, cheering with anticipation. Now all curious who might be the next contestants are going to fight.

"Next for the Humans, Representing the Hope of Mankind..." Heimdall then stretches his arm to the Humanity side entrance.

Heimdall was actually nervous, with Brunhilde giving him many information about the new guy that exchange for Adam. The man with enough ability to defeat a God. It sounds unbelievable, but not when you see it with your own eyes. Heimdall is another one who witnesses how some Ninja's and Slayers beat up 2 Gods and hold them down just to make them forget about what they saw. But why would they not do it to Heimdall too? Simple. The Alpha knows something he doesn't know.

"He is the man who along side with his twin, shown their true power through many years of training and fighting for the survival during the war....." Heimdall stopped when he notices no one is coming out the entrance.

"Huh?" He asked dumb-founded. Even the Gods.

But instead a strong gust of wind overtook. And just right outside the boundaries of Valhalla someone hops up the sky.

That someone then landed on the middle of the ring.

Heimdall then composed himself.." Together with his twin, he participated in the 3rd and 4th Great Ninja War where they called them the "Dragon Twins". He too represented the Hyuga clan that serves a special role in order to stop the war in their world. With so much war and crimes are going on someone must take action!"

"It is said that the twins has a unique color of chakra flowing through them, that Black chakra are flowing in him. With the eyes that can see through everything, the eyes that can see through any attacks and combined with the strength and power they hold through their fist..."

Akira then slowly composes himself from kneeling, standing slowly. Covering his hands, wrist, arms with a ripped cloth. Clenching his fists.

"Now you may think that he is blind, but NO he isn't! He alone can take a group or more enemies and kill them without experiencing pain. The man who will defend the weak, the man who will do anything to protect his allies..... Introducing...."

Akira then looked up to the Gods with a very cold look, a look that was as if looking at a peasant who comes from a branch family. The look his brothers gave to those who comes from the branch family.

Odin who just came back to his seat but heard what Heimdall said was shocked too. Those Gods who met the Hyuga twins are shocked to this revelation.

Akira's hands on his side, clenched with those cold eyes.

"The Black dragon of Konohagakure... Akira Hyuga!!!"

A roar of cheers are encased throughout the Valhalla.

Umeki ran through the front seat where Haku, Neji and konan who are blending with the crowd. Then Umeki saw him, Odin who are sitting on his seat and his crows seems shocked and now began to ramble something.

Umeki didn't keep her eyes longer to Odin who began to look at her too. She knew she fucked up. She lied to Odin and now she just want to leave quickly.

#record of ragnarok #ror x reader #ror odin #ror thor #ror loki #shuumatsu no valkyrie #ror adam #ror jack the ripper #ror kojiro sasaki #ror poseidon #naruto shippuden #itachi uchiha #akatsuki #demon slayer #kny tanjiro kamado #rengoku kyojuro

[mischief-lies-and-stories]

Reviewing non-Marvel Loki Things (That I've Been Exposed to)

I am certain there's more, but these are all the non-Marvel Loki-related media I could think of that I've consumed. Maybe I'll do a part 2 if I think of some other things I've read/seen. These aren't really full reviews, just basic reactions of what I remember of these pieces of media.

The Gospel of Loki, by Joanne M. Harris

I...did not finish this. It was kind of interesting, I remember. But I'll be honest, one of the lines I remember most clearly is from the beginning where Loki says something like "For some reason on Asgard, I'm not allowed to fuck beasts or men and no one can tell me why." And then he just kind of, goes with it? Like first of all, why, if you can live forever, would you not only limit yourself to one gender (I'm okay with leaving the bestiality alone, but you could probably make a case for this, too, if they can consent), but force everyone else to, also? And anyway, even if Odin is a Puritan prick for some reason, the least believable thing about all this is that Loki stands for it???!!! Why is this the one thing about which he's like 'Welp, guess Odin knows best'? Frankly, it broke my suspension of disbelief for the whole thing. (You know how I was like Kid Loki saying "I killed Thor" made me go 'Oh, okay, the Loki writers don't have a clue who Loki is fundamentally'? Yeah, this is the line that made me do that with Harris.) I didn't even get far enough to maybe (probably) read my favorite myth (Sigyn catching the venom in her bowl).

Norse Mythology, by Neil Gaiman

So much better, holy shit! Leaps and bounds better!!! This is one of my favorite books. I've talked about it a little on here, but he's such a great writer, and I laughed out loud so many times for the way he portrays Thor and Loki especially (it helped that I first read this listening to him read the audiobook). I just love how he portrays Loki as only smart in comparison to the other gods, who are truly dumb as bricks, with Loki only slightly more clever by comparison. But I was still so attached to Loki that when he causes his own downfall in the end (like he does in the myths) I think I genuinely cried. This is one of those books I read at least once a year.

The Bifrost Incident, by The Mechanisms

I'll be real with you, I mostly only listened to the tracks I knew Loki (and Sigyn) were on. But I did also read the synopsis on the wiki, so I know the gist of the musical. And what I'll say of it is this: I discovered the album four days prior to writing this, and I've listened to at least the Loki track at least twice a day since. I'm a little grateful it's just (as far as I know) an album, because if there was a recorded performance somewhere, I could not watch it (even though I obviously would because I like to let myself suffer). Loki's arc is just too fucking painful (which is honestly saying something, given some of the shit he gets put through in other media).

Ragnarok, Netflix

I watched the first episode. I felt like it ended stupidly and way too dramatically for even the pilot. I know it's called Ragnarok, but it's a modern retelling, and Thor and Loki are kids, so it doesn't have to go so hard from the word Go. And Laurits did not make a good first impression on me either. Can't remember exact reasons why, though. I watched this a long time ago.

#loki #norse mythology #norse myth retellings #non-marvel loki media #the gospel of loki #the bifrost incident

[lokislastlove]

An Asgardian Wedding! You’ve never left your world before, but your betrothed is eager to show you his. You’d never even expected to meet the God of thunder, let alone be his. Your husband-to-be whisks you away to the planet of his birth just before your nuptials for a special surprise.

😈

Guessing Game

Warnings: implied Noncon, groping, blindfolds, implied cuckolding, multiple men…

Notes: sooooo I don’t know how I feel about this one, it was fun to imagine, hard to write. But it’s all I got! 😭 at least you had some great submissions from other people! also Congrats @boxofbonesfic love! You deserve every follower! 💕

“Surely he explained all of our traditions?” Loki inquires, standing before a set of grand golden doors in a quiet wing of the palace.

“He said it would be nothing I couldn’t handle…”

With a flourish and a flash of green, Loki summons a silky black blindfold. His dark chuckle makes you tense as he takes a cool step behind you and secures it tightly over your eyes, holding your shoulders as he whispers in your ear.

“The task is simple, darling, identify your betrothed caress and see your union prosper…but should you fall prey to false hands be prepared to suffer your shame.”

“What does that mean?” You object as he laughs and urges you over the threshold, your tentative steps the only sound reverberating through the cavernous room.

“Good luck,” Lokis voice slithers from behind you before the door shuts.

The echo of the slam fills your ears. Your shuddering breath hitches in the following silence, vulnerability settling in as you strain to listen for signs of life.

“Let’s begin,” the familiar thunderous voice of your fiancé sounds from somewhere to your right. “Loki, use your magic.”

Your remain still and silent, awaiting further instruction.

“Done,” Thors voice sounds again, though this time from behind you where Loki had been seconds ago.

“Oh, neat party trick, Loki. How have we never tried this before, I could think of so many things –“

“Focus, Fandral.”

Your head whips around in a panic as you follow their discussion, but… they all have that same honey sweet, sonorous voice of Thor. Realization dawns on you, you are going to have to pick the real one among however many decoys.

“Thor, I don’t know about this,” you quiver as you hear each of their footsteps slowly circling you, making it impossible to guess where your fiancé is.

You spin in place, an innocent doe guarding against an unseen pack of wolves. Thor would never hurt you, right? It’s just your nerves.

You flinch and squeak as you hear the first of them approach you, a warm hand grazing down your arm making you leap back and into the chest of another. Familiarly large arms catch each elbow and hold you still.

“Let me touch you, pet,” his voice soothes as you feel the tickle of his fingertips dance across your chest, tracing your collarbone.

“Thor?” You whimper and his rumbling laughter vibrates your back, a sound that used to calm you.

Another grabs your chin, rough thumb gently tugging at your bottom lip, “beautiful.”

Their touch is overwhelming, caressing your arms, kissing your hands, gripping your hips, tickling your neck. You manage to count five of them before you get dizzy with attention, sweeping you away from what the goal here is.

“You can do this,” Thors voice grounds you.

“Maybe try to narrow your options…” another coos before his lips suckle tenderly on your shoulder.

“I think she likes it,” adds the one at your back.

“Do you, pet? Do you enjoy the idea of being taken by many?”

You gasp as a hand snakes under your skirts, finger presses along the damp fabric covering your slit. Your knees buckle but Thors many hands barely let you sag in their hold.

“Yes,” you breathe softly.

“Oh how delightful,” Thor groans as the hand at your cunt presses harder.

The other touches grow more eager, feeding off your tiny whimpers and moans. Teeth scratch and nip at your skin as your hips begin to roll against his thick fingers, a feeling you know well by now.

A harsh slap to your ass reminds you where you are and you sputter out, “w-wait.”

“Do you have your answer?” He asks.

You pull your hand free and grip the hand holding your hip, “not you.”

Thors booming laughter shifts into another’s gruffer voice, “Aye, you caught me my lady.”

You recognize Volstagg’s amused tone then the soft pad of his leather boots as he walks away followed shortly by the scuff of a heavy chair across the floor.

“One down,” the Thor at your back muses as he licks up your neck.

“You, aren’t Thor,” you assert, pointing to the man at your back.

“Dammit,” Fandral whines as the magic drops and he joins Volstagg.

“Clever girl,” one of the remaining Thors praise, his hand drifting down your thigh and curving around to cup your cheek.

The touch feels familiar, Thor loves to fondle your ass. You are about to declare him the real one when he lets out a breathy groan, it’s enough to give you pause. Thor knows you, and that was the sound of someone newly enamored with your body.

“No,” you look toward the man giving your cheek a firm squeeze.

“Ah,” Hogan sighs in disappointment before disappearing.

“Very good,” says one of the final two, tugging your arm so that you slam into his chest. His mouth covers yours in a heated kiss, his tongue dipping into your mouth as you gasp.

The other Thor is at your back, pulling your hips back to grind against his hard cock. “Easy,” he warns, though your unsure if it’s meant for you or the man stealing your breath. “Are you stalling, little girl?“ he whispers into your ear.

The man at your front releases your lip with a pop and slaps your face lightly. “You should know your answer by now,” he agrees. “Choose.”

“I – I…” you reach out blindly, turning so that you can touch each of their identical chests. You try to focus on the way they react as you feel them, before making your final decision.

“Only my Thor could kiss me like that,” you announce, turning toward your fiancé and pulling the blindfold off.

You run your hands up his torso, feeling the firm hot muscles beneath his tunic and smile up at him. His blue eyes glow a bit too brightly, his smile a smidge too wide and in an instant you realize your mistake. Blue shifts to green, blond to black, full lips thinning as his golden skin pales to reveal the victorious visage of Loki.

“I guess you don’t know him as well as you thought,” Loki smirks cruelly.

You turn with a start to find Thor glowering down at you, anger and disappointment radiating from every inch of him. A flicker of lightning sparks in his dark eyes as they snap to his brother behind you.

“Loki,” he growls in warning, puffing out his chest as the sound of thunder cracks beyond the closed doors.

“You should have been honest with her, brother,” Loki chuckles. “Your confidence proves undeserved just as I expected. But you always were too arrogant for your own good.”

“Loki,” Thor growls deeper as Loki tugs your wrist and wraps his arm around your waist.

“Never fear, brother,” Loki coos, brushing his nose up your neck as he stares down your fiancé. “I won’t make you watch. And I shall return her to you in the morning if you still want her.”

“Thor…” you whimper, reaching out as the world is enveloped in a flash of green.

Your head spins like you just spent an hour on a rollercoaster, but you know it been barely a second. Loki spins you around, gripping your arms harshly as you try to blink away your blurred vision. Your hands shove at his firm chest but he doesn’t budge, only pulling you closer as he leans down to place kisses along your jaw.

“Come now, pet. We only have a few hours left before sunrise. Let’s make the most of it.”

#monkey’s paw challenge #boxofbonesfic #dark fic

[mostlymarvelsstuff]

Flufftober Day 25

First dance- WandaNat

Word count: 766    WandaNat Masterlist   Marvel Masterlist   Flufftober

   The warm lighting of the party creates a cozy atmosphere, and it's a vast difference to the parties Tony would normally throw. For one thing it was a small gathering. Only the team members, their families and a few SHIELD Agents that worked closely with the heroes were in attendance. And secondly, the music wasn’t obscene. It was a softer, calmer playlist to fit the mood better, and it wasn’t blasting through the entire room. It was playing closer to the bar area instead, letting there be two separate areas for the functions.

   Most of the team is already there by the time you arrive. They’re gathered by one of the fireplaces, which you doubt has ever even been used before today. The crackling of the wood and smell of smoke only further adds to the party's atmosphere, which is already filled by the smell of apples and pumpkins as mixed drinks and various pastries are passed about. 

   You had to hand it to Tony, even though a Fall Harvest themed gathering was a new occurrence, it did look like everyone was enjoying themselves. And the smiles that adorned the faces of the two women you recently had the pleasure to call your girlfriends made showing up worth it.

  Thor is the first to greet you. He smiles wide and hands you a drink of some kind that smells like fresh apple pie, “Lady Y/l/n!! It is good to see you!”

   “Good to see you too Thor.” you greet, before your gaze moves to the Sokovian that's giving you outstretched grabby hands

  You move around the God and over to the sofa where your girls are and you take a seat between them.

   “Hi detka(baby)” Natasha greets as Wanda's arms wrap around your waist

   You smile, pulling them both closer, “Hi Tasha, Wans.”

   The three of you continue to sit there for about another hour, listening to the conversations around you as you share your drinks and fall time treats with one another. Wanda had made some Tikvenik, an Eastern European treat made up of dough, ground walnuts, grated pumpkin and cinnamon. You and Natasha had been highly enjoying it while the others had stuck with more of the American treats that Steve and Bucky had been eating like it was the last time they'd have the pleasure of doing so.

    Next to you, Natasha sit up slightly and stretches, “I’m going to get another drink, do either of you need anything?”

   You shake your head no but Wanda stirs next to you, “I do, but unfortunately you can’t use the bathroom for me. So I’ll go with you.”

   They intertwine their hands and head off towards the other side of the room, you watch them with a smile on your face for a few seconds more before turning your attention back to the others around you.

   After a few minutes pass your attention is stolen away from the gathering as the quick patter of footsteps near you. You turn in time to see Wanda quickly approaching you, and had it not been for the smile on her face as she reaches out for your hand, you would have been worried something had happened.

   “Malysh(baby)!” she exclaims, “Please come with me over to Tasha.”

   You chuckle and nod, letting her enthusiastically pull you onto your feet. She leads you towards your other girlfriend and you can’t help but smile as you watch the Russian softly sway in place as she waits for you both.

   Once you reach her, she smiles just as widely as Wanda had and she gets even closer. She loops an ar, around each of your waists and the Sokovian does the same. Though you're slightly confused by what had prompted this, you certainly aren’t complaining. You treasure moments spent with them, and this one would certainly be one to remember.

   You sway with them for a bit, and listen when Wanda begins to hum along to the tune. The song must be a favorite of hers. You wonder if dancing to it had been her idea or Nats, who is now pulling back to be able to look at your face.

   “This song” Natasha says, breaking the peaceful silence, “Was playing when I first asked Wanda to dance with me after she agreed to be my girlfriend. It only felt right that it should be the one we danced to with you for the first time too.”

   You smile, now understanding why it's a favorite song of Wandas, it's sure to be a favorite of yours now too.

Taglist: @wandaromamoff69​​ @when-wolves-howl​​ @danveration​​ @sheneonromanoff​​ @sayah13​​ @likefirenrain​​ @nighttime-dreaming​​ @just-a-torn-up-masterpiece​​ @chaoticevilbakugo​​ @crystalstark02​​ @wackymcstupid​​ @lovelyy-moonlight​​ @blackwidow-3​​ @mistressofinsomnia​​ @that-one-gay-mosquito​​ @yomamagf​​ @yourfavdummy​​ @justarandomreaderxoxo​​ @scoutlp23-blog​​ @whoischanelle15 @lissaaaa145​​ @eline03 @wizardofstories​​@imthenatynat @marvelonmymind​​

#wandanat #natasha romanoff #wanda maximoff #marvel fanfiction #fanfic #marvel #flufftober2022 #wanda x reader #wanda maximoff x reader #wanda x y/n #natasha x y/n #natasha x reader #natasha romanoff x reader #wandanat x reader #wanda x natasha #wandanat x y/n #wanda maximoff x natasha romanoff

[softforloki]

I was wondering if you could do one where reader is always taking care of other people. That she has had barely any time for herself. She is getting worn down and no one seems to notice besides Loki.

Loki and reader have been together for a long while and he notices it and she refuses any help when he offers it.

Few days go past and she is growing tired and reader has been falling asleep and not eating and Loki decided he needs to do something

So the next day he lets her sleep in and tells everyone to get out. They all nod in understanding and he makes u food. Makes you laugh, there’s taking a relaxing bath together and massage and then after you braid their hair when he goes into his female form (genderfluid Loki) you even cuddle and you rest your head on her chest and they laugh about it as you fall asleep once again.

YES. Yes. I love everything about this.

Summery: Loki watches as you run yourself into the ground, then is there to pick you back up.

Word Count: 1,924

Warnings: Slight mentions of nudity, nothing overly explicit tho

Masterlist

Rest and Relaxation

As the on-site clinical psychologist of the Avengers meant that you were never not doing you job.

Each and every person on the team had a seemingly never ending list of personal problems. The day you’d asked Tony to list a few of his stressors, and he’d replied “I’m going to need two bottles of whiskey and fifty feet of paper to even begin.” would forever be known as a day that would live in infamy.

Interestingly, it was also the day you started drinking.

Loki knew you had to take care of people- it was literally your job- but when that caused you to fail to prioritize your own wellbeing, that was when he started to have an issue.

“Darling, are you well?” Loki stood behind where you sat at your desk, placing both hands on your shoulders comfortingly.

“Yeah, why do you ask?” You barely looked up at him, your fingers never ceasing their clicking across your computer’s keyboard.

“Because you missed dinner. Have you been here the whole time?”

“It’s fine, I had a snack earlier.” You dismissed.

“What are you even doing?”

“Compiling a list of books and texts on the study of alcoholism as a coping mechanism. Both Tony and Thor tend to turn to booze when they’re trying to get through something emotionally- which I’ve told them multiple times is unbelievably unhealthy, but don’t listen to the licensed mental health counselor, I guess- so I’m trying to find them some actually concrete evidence so they don’t just have to take my word for it.”

Loki normally found it adorable and endearing when you spoke of your occupation and what you learned. This was different, though. You weren’t talking excitedly about something you were passionate about, your words were tense, manic, even. You stumbled over them in an effort to get them all out.

“Dearest,” Loki began, gently pulling your swivel chair away from your desk. “I think you need a break.”

“I’m fine, I have to-”

“It’s not your job to micromanage everyone’s behavior.”

You scowled, pointing indignantly to your framed college degree hanging on the wall of your office. Loki couldn’t help but let a chuckle slip at the look on your face.

“I was under the impression that your job involved you giving your expert opinion to your clients on how they can better handle themselves. Whether or not they improve is entirely up to them.” He pointed out. “I believe you told me once, “I get paid regardless of whether they get better or not”, does that not still hold true?”

“That’s different,” You insisted. “With regular clients, yes. But I act more as a consultent with you guys. My job is more to monitor everyone and step in if I see someone going off the deep end. Besides, I’m genuinely worried about Tony and Thor.”

Loki narrowed his eyes at you. “If I let you continue here, do you promise that you’ll go take a break when you’ve finished with this?”

“Yeah, I’m almost done, anyway.” You smiled weakly. “I’ll go get a snack, or something.”

Loki sighed and acquiesced, letting you roll your chair back to the computer. He leaned down to kiss your cheek. “Your work here is admirable, love, but please don’t run yourself into the ground for our sakes.”

“Hmm,” You leaned into his touch, gazing at him so lovingly that it made his knees go a little weak. 

It had not escaped Loki’s noticed that you hadn’t agreed not to keep tiring yourself out.

. . .

He couldn’t blame you, Loki realized. He certainly wouldn’t want to be put in charge of the mental and emotional wellbeing of the Avengers, a group of people who had long histories of trauma and other personal problems.

You were working as hard as ever, gluing yourself to your computer for hours at a time, or sitting and talking with a member of the team, trying to convince them to either get their own therapist or take better car of themself for stretches of time that seemed to go on forever.

To their credit, a few of them started to take your advice (mostly after Loki haggled them to do so), but it still didn’t stop you from crashing and burning.

Loki had only started showing up to group meals with the team at your behest, but you starting showing up less and less. He stopped seeing you around the tower at all, having to seek you out in your office.

He knocked on the door one evening after the table had been cleared at dinner. “Darling, you missed dinner.” He held the plate of food carefully in one hand, knocking again with the other when you didn’t immediately respond. “Darling?”

Still no reply. Loki cracked open the door, peaking inside. You were slumped over at your desk, head cushioned by your folded arms. He silently approached you, gently setting your dinner on the desk, and leaning over you. You were fast asleep.

He sighed, smiling fondly at you. He carefully eased you out of your chair and into his arms. He magically transported you to your apartment, setting about putting you to bed. He made a mental note to later take care of the food he’d brought to your office as he carefully changed you into sleepwear.

“Sleep well, my sweet.” Loki whispered, pressing a delicate kiss to your forehead as he tucked you into bed. Before he left, he made sure your alarm was turned off. 

. . .

You woke up the next morning to the smell of breakfast cooking. You looked around your bedroom, confused, not remembering coming back home. You were even more confused when you saw that you’d slept in. 

You got up, feeling more well-rested than you had in days, and went to investigate the kitchen.

Loki stood at the counter, pouring coffee into two mugs. He turned at the sound of your foot steps. “Good morning, my darling love,” He greeted with a smile. “Did you sleep well?”

“Yeah, actually. How did I get here?” You rubbed your eyes, squinting at him.

“You feel asleep in your office last night. I brought you here. You’re taking a day off.”

“Lokes, I can’t-”

“You most certainly can. I’ve already told everyone that you’re not to be disturbed. They were all quite understanding- it seems I wasn’t the only one to notice your lack of self care.”

You sighed, knowing there was no arguing with him. “I’m sorry you have to do all this. I’ve just been so busy lately I haven’t had time for much else.”

“You needn’t apologize, love, it’s alright.” Loki pulled you into his arms, his hold on you tight but secure. “I’m always happy to take care of you.”

He kissed you, and you finally let yourself relax. You realized just how much you’d missed this. You’d been so busy trying to solve everyone’s problems you’d left yourself no time for Loki. Your hand creeped up to tug lightly on his beautiful hair as he deepened the kiss, humming in contentment.

When you parted, you reached around him to grab one of the coffee mugs. He laughed as you attempted to maneuver yourself so you could drink, but still be held by him.

. . .

You were drawn into the bathroom by the sound of running water that was too loud to be the sink, but was definitely not the shower.

You peeked inside to see Loki crouching at the bathtub, carefully monitoring the gradually increasing water lever. You watched, smiling in realization that the hand which turned the hot and cold water knobs was smaller, daintier, and more prettily manicured than before.

“Hey there, pretty lady.” You joined Loki by the tub as she looked up at you, a flirtatious smile on her lips. 

“Hello, darling. Care for a bath?”

“I can’t remember the last time I relaxed and took a bath,” You admitted. “Join me?”

Loki pressed her lips to yours in a chaste kiss. “As you wish.”

You undressed as she finished adjusting the water. She let out a low whistle as you exposed more of your skin, to which you responded by throwing your shirt at her face.

You slipped into the hot bath as Loki followed your lead and began stripping. She’d gotten it perfect, because of course she had. The water was perfectly warm without being scorching. She tucked herself behind you, pulling you close so you were practically resting in her lap.

Her hands crept up your arms and over your shoulders, gently squeezing as she went. You groaned appreciatively as she carefully kneaded the tense muscles, her lips trailing kisses in the wake of her hands.

“Loki,” You practically whimpered as she mouthed at your neck.

“Feel good, love?”

“Feels perfect. You’re perfect.”

 She chuckled, wrapping her arms around your waist and leaning forward to rest her head on your shoulder. “And you are divine, and deserve the best things I and this universe can offer you. I’d pluck the stars from the sky if you asked me to.”

“I think I’ll pass on the giant balls of heat.”

Loki laughed at that, pinching your side. “You make it sound utterly unromantic when you put it like that,” She complained.

“I’m just saying; it’s a cute idea in theory, but a disaster in practice.” You protested, squirming away from her fingers.

When you were dried and dressed, Loki pulled you into your bedroom. She collapsed with you in tow, landing in a tangle of arms and legs.

You laughed, grabbing a lock of her hair. She always let it hang longer when she presented femininely, so tonight it cascaded down her back instead of pooling at the shoulders. Either way, it was gorgeous. “Can I braid your hair?” You asked.

“Oh, please do. You always make it look so pretty.” She quickly sat up and turned around so her back faced you.

You followed suit, leaning over to your bedside table to grab a hair brush. You ran it gently through her perfect inky curls, marveling at how it seemed to flow like water through your hands. Loki always liked when you did her hair, so you’d taught yourself to do every type of braid you could think of. You decided on a relaxed fishtail tonight, so you could have tendrils loose in front to frame her face.

You were silent as your worked, savoring Loki’s quiet hums and low groans of pleasure as your fingers brushed her scalp. She leaned into your touch, eyes slipping closed as you deftly wove strands of hair together.

“Done,” You announced, tying off the end. 

Loki brought the braid over her shoulder to see. “I love it.” She declared, shifting so you could see her face.

You smiled, taking her hand in yours. “I love you,” You told her.

“I love you, too.” She pulled your gently down so you were lying on the bed again. You adjusted so you could lay your head on her shoulder.

“Thank you for taking care of me today.”

“It was my pleasure. I look forward to doing it more.”

You laughed, snuggling further into you. “Hopefully I’ll learn how to do it myself so you don’t need to.”

“Don’t think I won’t still pamper you.”

“I wouldn’t think that for a moment.” You kissed her gently, feeling her smile into it. “I know you too well.”

She laughed quietly, holding you tightly as you drifted off to sleep.

#loki #Loki Laufeyson #loki odinson #loki friggason #loki x reader #Loki Laufeyson x Reader #loki odinson x reader #loki friggason x reader #marvel loki #loki marvel #marvel loki x reader

[arabellamonkey]

silent, spoiling love

stevetony | for the lovely cassie @meidui 🧡

fills the @stevetonygames square “dreams” and the fairy godmother challenge! <3

also on ao3

In the beginning, Steve doesn’t see anything weird in it.

They’ve finally moved together to the Tower, and as every member of the Avengers starts finding their place in their new dynamic, Stark does too. Bruce seems comfortable spending time in his new lab, Thor has taken great pleasure in trying up cooking, so he spends most of his time in the kitchen, and in the meantime, Nat and Clint are getting used to sparring in the new installations, just as Steve is.

When it comes to Stark, it seems like his place, or at least where he feels more comfortable, is in his workshop, putting his mind to work. Previous to their meeting, Steve knew Stark was a genius. So no, he doesn’t see anything weird in him inviting him to the workshop so they can talk about upgrading his suit in so many ways. He doesn’t see anything weird in Stark taking so much interest in it: not in the way his suit suddenly becomes more functional and definetly not in the way his shield has become more manageable thanks to him.

Just as he doesn’t see anything weird about finding an old New York Dodgers cap in his bed one night after having spent that day’s lunch talking about baseball with his teammates. Tony was there, of course, but he didn’t say much. To be completely honest, Steve had doubted if he was listening to them at the time. 

It isn’t until he realizes the cap is a real limited edition that must have cost a small fortune that he starts to wonder just how much attention Stark had actually been paying.

From then on, he starts being more observant. Especially, he starts paying attention to the only person he knows would be able to buy such an expensive, albeit thoughtful, gift.

And he’s not sure what to do with his conclusions.

Barely a week after receiving the cap, Steve comes home to find his entire kitchen remodeled after it confessing to his teammates how hard he was finding it to cook on a ceramic cob, when he had grown up cooking on gas stoves. Barely a few days after, Steve finds new clothes in his dressing room —that huge, almost-empty room he found so daunting in the beginning—. There are suits there —suits that fit him eerily well—, and they remind him of that time he told Tony about not having anything appropriate for the gala he’s invited Avengers to. And then there are other clothes, clothes that bring him back to that time Steve had confessed to Tony how daunting he found 21st-century fashion, and how hard he was finding it to even go shopping.

“There’s just too much to choose from,” Steve told him at the time, a wry smile in place. “I feel like, the moment I try to choose, I’ll drown in all those options. I never had much to choose from in the first place, you know? Ma basically patched up every piece of clothing I owned so they lasted as much as possible.”

Tony didn’t say anything then, nodding to himself instead as he listened to him.

Slowly but surely, he finds himself realizing just how much attention Tony pays to his words. Even when it seems like the genius has his mind on other, more important things, Steve finds himself surprised yet again and again with the results of their conversations. Be it their night chats, when neither of them is able to sleep and both end up drifting towards the common room to drink some milk while watching New York’s skyline, or when Steve ends up sitting on that old sofa in Tony’s workshop, Steve finds out just how relaxing it can be to talk to Tony at the same time he realizes just how much his teammate seems to care about him.

At some point, he begins to wonder.

It’s inevitable, really: they’ve spent the past year and a half living under the same roof, battling shoulder to shoulder and sharing secrets that seemed unshareable not so long ago.

So it’s only natural when Steve starts to wonder if there might be something there, between their conversations and Tony’s attentiveness. He starts to wonder if there might be feelings that surpass what two teammates like them are supposed to experience.

It’s only natural for him to look at Tony in wonder when the genius offers him to go on a trip to Los Angeles to watch the Dodgers. “It won’t be the same, I know,” he says quickly, avoiding his gaze as he balances on the soles of his feet, both hands clutching the two tickets he swears he’s been gifted. “But I thought you’d like to see them one last time.”

At some point, he stops wondering.

Instead, he starts probing. The next time the team is sharing a movie night, instead of looking at Tony with curiosity, thinking about all the possibilities, he takes the opportunity of having him sitting by his side and invites him to rest his head on his shoulder when he starts nodding off. When they finally go to that gala —where Tony can’t seem to take his eyes off him—, and Steve realizes Tony’s uncomfortable around certain people, he stops thinking and, instead, finds himself keeping him near, not hesitating to touch him to guide him across the room.

The next time both of them end up in the common room in the wee hours of the morning, sitting on the couch facing New York’s skyline, he stops just wondering and asks, instead, in a soft, tentative whisper, “You feel it too. It isn’t only me, is it? ”

Tony, already sleepy with his head resting on the crook of his neck, shakes his head softly and, after leaving a soft kiss on his neck, whispers: “Of course not, sweetheart.”

Just as the New York skyline has been the sole witness of the countless sleepless nights they’ve shared, it feels right for it to be the witness of their first kiss.

The first of many.

#stevetony #stony #stevetony fic #stony fic #my fic #my writing #stg 2022 #stevetony games 2022

[taking-thyme]

I find it so funny that I’m like “I’m not a good witch, I barely even meditate, nothing spiritual going on here” meanwhile I have supernatural things happen to me constantly but I still don’t think anything of it. I’m like if Shane Madej was a witch 🤦‍♀️

Like seriously, here’s a list of all the supernatural shit that’s happened to me so far:

I once started sobbing with worry because it was November and there wasn’t any snow yet, and not 5 minutes later did a blizzard begin. There was no snow on the forecast (hence the crying). My siblings still call me “the snow witch” after this incident 

I was joking about Satan at school one day and my nose immediately started bleeding. I told my history teacher and he absolutely freaked out and accused me of being a demon

My sister’s Godmother’s prayer rope (basically an Orthodox Rosary) exploded for no reason. It was just hanging on a hook, nothing touched it, and then I heard a “POP” and beads went around the room as the prayer rope lay in pieces on my desk. I cannot stress enough how literally nothing was touching it or anything. I just said “wow I must be haunted” and carried on with my day

I once had a dream where I actually hit the ground after falling. Apparently old wives tales say that if you hit the ground during a falling dream you actually die. Who knows, maybe I am dead and Purgatory is just Earth but worse?

I asked the Universe for a sign on what to do while walking home, disgruntled after a day of doing nothing, and immediately a Dove erupted out of a nearby tree fighting off a Crow. That’s an omen if I’ve ever seen one

I’m a pagan witch who works with Apollo, Thor and Odin. I once had a very important dream where I was speaking with Odin and Thor, but unfortunately I can’t remember what they said to me. I’m just so amazed that I actually had a dream about them

Also, on the note about working with Apollo, there are TONS of crows and ravens in my neighborhood and I always say "Hi Apollo" whenever I see them. In a tarot reading about which deity to work with, The Sun card flung itself out of the pile and I was like "Okaayyy, Apollo it is!"

I was listening to a Tarot reading once and the reader went “I feel like the name Gigi or Cici is important” and I literally had to stand up and pace because my deceased Great Grandmother’s name was Gigi. A couple days later I was talking about her with my Mom and she mentioned redoing some of Gigi’s old craft projects, and I heard a woman say “Don’t mess with my stuff”.. So apparently Gigi is some sort of ghost or spirit guide 

I frequently see shadowy humanoid figures in my peripheral vision, but when I turn to greet them nobody’s there. While I do wear glasses, I’ve gotten my eyesight checked for anything that could be causing these figures and have gotten nothing. The figures are sometimes very detailed, with clothes and eyes, but once again, one look and nothing was ever there. I sometimes wonder if I’m seeing ghosts or something. 

My mother was declared reproductively sterile before giving birth to me and my 3 older siblings. Yet more evidence that I’m secretly a demon

That time a faerie ring popped up in my backyard. Our garden has flourished effortlessly every year since. 

As a witch, the first spell I ever performed was a healing spell. My friend was sick with Crohn's Disease and was bed bound at the hospital for a while, so I got his permission to do a healing spell to try and make him feel better. Not 30 minutes after the spell was complete did I get a text from him saying he felt a lot better and that it must've worked. He was also allowed to go home a few days later. 

I have a really good sense of Intuition, to the point where I can feel when it’s going to rain or snow before it actually does. I was on a walk with my Mom once, and I told her we shouldn’t go down that path because there would be snakes. She said that’s ridiculous, but not 5 minutes later, she just goes “Damn you, child” as a snake slides past her foot. I still haven’t let her live that down. 

Conclusion: I may be the Witch version of a Disney Princess. If I ever randomly stop posting, assume I've been whisked away on a magical adventure, please and thank you.

#witchblr #witchcraft #witch #baby witch #fave

[valkyrieandstrangeridingaragorn]

But isn't it just that mocking people who are broken by systems rather question the system that breaks then. Mobius supposedly has compassion for Loki but he repeatedly mock and belittles him and calls him a liar and backstabber. But that role was literally forced on him, he had no choice or free will. If Loki choose to be honest with Thor in the beginning he would have been killed. So Mobius really does mock Loki for being bad and not fate for making him that way. And the audience is meant to agree with Mobius? Life can force someone into having no other choice but people still blame them for making the wrong choice

Right, and it's a little more insidious than that.

From what we see in the first movie Odin isn't emotionally available, Loki has a lesser role in the family than his brother and even those who are not part of the royal family disrespect him (the servant laughs at his expense, Heimdall raises his voice at him, the guard takes too long to follow a direct order). We see Loki try to speak to Odin twice and it doesn't go well, not because Loki is not trying but it's Odin the one who refuses to listen and in the vault he tries to lie and gaslight his way out of it instead of having an honest conversation with his son.

So of course Loki has lived his whole life with this and he knows, because he was tried in the past, that telling his father something he refuses to see is not going to achieve anything - so he's forced to do something else. So many fans wonder why Loki never told Odin about Thor not being ready... because he knew he wouldn't listen!

And Mobius, the one who had supposedly watched his entire life prior to meeting him, puts the blame on him for being that way instead of those around him who made him that way, who forced him to look for loopholes and manipulations because they refused to just listen and trust him. They made him.

This is the same as blaming an abuse victim for not being straightforward about their needs because they're used to living with someone who would beat the shit of out them if they ever tried to speak up. The only blame there must be placed on the abuser and the victim needs help and therapy, not more abuse. You can't go to them and tell them it's their fault they don't raise their voice or ask for help... if you do that you're an asshole. That's what they did to Loki.

I'm not sure I like that thing in the series where we're supposed to believe fate is decided for everyone in the multiverse, I think that was HWR being full of himself. I do believe that Loki having been raised in an environment where he wouldn't be listened to, trusted or defended he had to survive somehow and he came up with certain behaviours and coping mechanisms that weren't healthy at all. If Mobius truly cared about him he would have helped him not abused him.

[the-lady-amphitrite]

— A FAIRYTALE BEGINNING | chapter 3

the winds of change

pairing: Loki / f!half-Asgardian!Reader

word count: 7,511

summary: you share with Loki an experience to not be forgotten and forge friendships that will last a lifetime

in this chapter: more time skips, some lore, some light flirting, Thor showing up at The Worst Time™, very brief and mild violence in the form of someone being thrown to the ground after being rude

author notes: this chapter is sponsored by me watching several episodes of vox machina because my brain couldn't handle more music, and my local coffee shop supplying me with many london fogs 

( previous chapter | read on ao3 | series masterlist )

“You need to hold still, little starlight,” your uncle, Sveinn, orders. He’s tugging on the bottom strap for the breast collar of the saddle you’re wearing, each adjustment to the straps causing you to lean into him.

You rumble out an apology and do your best to stop leaning forward as he finishes tightening the straps.

You and Loki arrived in your family’s suite of the palace over half an hour ago, racing hand-in-hand to the pavilion on the far side where you knew you would find your mother and your uncle waiting, Frigga trailing several steps behind you both.

The pavilion itself is enormous, completely open on one side with a few drapes in (what you assume to be) your father’s colour and depicting (what you know to be) his symbol dispersed between a few of the columns that line the side open to the realm beyond. With three wildly different seating arrangements spread around the entire space and plenty of space between each, this is where your aerial lessons begin each day.

Once you’d found where they were sitting, you and the princess begged for your mother to let you take Loki flying, but it wasn’t until Frigga said that she was fine with Loki being on dragonback that your mother finally conceded.

Your mother had consulted your uncle on if they had an actual saddle that was properly sized for Loki (rather than the usual unmoulded leather that stood in for a saddle during your drills) before she disappeared for several minutes and returned with one she believed would work.

Before your mother let your uncle strap the saddle on, Kára made sure she went over the basics of the saddle — the girth, the stirrups, the horn, the leg straps — with you both. Even though the saddle is similar to the ones used for horses, there are enough differences that are unique to it. Only once that was covered did she hand the bundle of leather over to Sveinn so he could strap it onto your back.

“This will be the first time she’s carried anyone. Normally we wait until a dragonling is fifteen, as you know, but since the princess is still young, I think this will work out fine,” Kára tells Frigga and Loki, the three of them over on the lounge chairs sitting as they watch.

You stare down at your uncle silently, listening to what Kára is saying and watching her out of one eye. Her hands are in a tight ball in her lap, her face unwilling to give away anything else.

Sveinn’s dark eyes are trained on the saddle strap he’s buckling and adjusting, but you know he’s listening just like you are since he can’t see your mother at that moment. He’s left his long, flat-grey hair loose today instead of binding it up into several braids like he usually does. How your mother always does.

They’ve told you before what it represents among the Drekasál. How it’s the sign of a Himingarpr, a sky-warrior. A Drekasál who goes to war when called, much as an Einheri or a Valkyrja.

His beard is still bound into a braid though, the end of it resting against the collar of his tunic.

“It will be more than fine, Kára. I have faith in your teaching skills, and your daughter’s own abilities,” Frigga reassures her, putting a hand on Kára’s shoulder and giving her a charming smile. “It’s not all that different from riding a warhorse.” A pause, then, “Well, aside from the fact you’re in the air and spinning around.”

There’s another pause. From the corner of your eye, you can see a flash of something on Loki’s face, but when you turn your gaze to her she just appears to be listening to Kára.

“All set over here, my soul,” Sveinn tells your mother as he stands up, dusting his hands across his trousers. The term of endearment for one's soulmate is one you often hear between your mother and uncle. He might not be your uncle by blood, but the bond between them and the relationship they’ve built? He’s family.

You stand and move over to the chairs, conscious of where your paws and tail are as you move between a pair of divans.

Loki perks up when you draw close and hops out of her seat to meet you. There’s a sensation of a hand brushing against your mind, the mind-link quickly snapping in place. You can speak and be understood just fine in this form, but the mind-link will make it easier to communicate with her while flying.

Are you ready for this? You ask as she brushes her hand against the saddle. Even though she’s tall for an Asgardian her age, she’s still shorter than you in your dragon form, her shoulders only coming up to your withers.

She looks up at you with a smirk. I’m ready.

At the sound of your mother saying your name, your head snaps up and your entire body straightens up, waiting for her instructions.

“The All-Mother and I will wait up here while you fly, and Sveinn will be flying with you. Your Highness, if you would please mount up, same as a warhorse.” At Kára’s words, Loki steps into the stirrup on your left and gracefully swings her leg over, planting it lightly in the right one. Once she’s settled, your uncle shows her how to buckle the extra leg straps that will keep her in the saddle should you perform any hard banks or spins mid-flight. Completely secured into the saddle, she then grabs on to the horn at the front.

“Ready,” Loki tells everyone. Sveinn and Kára nod at one another, and then Sveinn shifts into his own dragon form.

He towers over you, a staggering twenty-seven hands high. He’s not the largest of the Drekasál — even amongst those still living — but he’s still much larger than you are. His pale scales gleam a light grey to you, near-white in the shine of the sun. Your mother has called him golden-scaled, saying he resembles the colour of the palace when the sun is high in the sky.

It’s a complete contrast to her own dark scales, something she once called “indigo”. To you, she just appears to have dark, cold-grey scales. Her dark scales and slightly smaller form make it easy for you to tell her apart from your uncle when they’re both teaching you in their dragon forms.

“Approach the edge of the pavilion, but do not jump off yet,” Sveinn orders. You follow along behind him to the edge, tail whipping slowly and your front talons grip the edge of the scarred stone as you look out over the shining city. Sveinn turns to you and you look up at him, waiting. “This will be different from flying with just a saddle. You know what to do. Trust that.”

“Yes, Uncle.”

“Then fly.” There’s a light tap on your back leg from your uncle’s tail, your signal to jump off. You hesitate for just a moment, long enough that you know both Kára and Sveinn notice, but then you push off the edge and free fall down the side of the palace.

Within seconds there’s a foreign sense of dread creeping along the back of your mind. It takes you a moment to remember that while you've taken this descent hundreds of times, Loki has never done this before. She’d probably assumed you would jump into the air, not free fall down the side of the palace. Even as she quiets her own emotions you can still feel the echoes of them as they’re muffled.

In a snap decision to soothe the fear of your friend, you tell her, Hold on tight. I’m going to level out.

Your wings snap open, pulling you away from the palace as you glide out high over the city. Loki’s own whispered emotions linger in the mind-link for long moments as you glide over and between various buildings, tangled and too faint for you to understand.

In a moment of curiosity, you try to reach a hand along the mind-link to brush against Loki’s mind. A feeling akin to relief washes over you when you realise you can, and you brush your hand against her mental-self’s cheek to soothe her as she had you earlier.

Muted and muffled as her emotions are, you’re not certain of her reaction so you turn your full attention to your flight.

The silence up here is only broken by the sound of wingbeats from you and your uncle who trails behind and above you. Below, you can see the everyday hustle and bustle of Asgard.

Some Asgardians are walking, some are horse riding, and some are in skiffs on the various rivers, but very few are paying any attention to the two dragons that soar above them. There are a dozen Drekasál still in the realm; between the others and the drills your instructors run you through most days, seeing a dragon flying about isn’t too unusual.

Some Asgardians — those who are on street levels high enough — realise you’re carrying someone on your back, stopping and pointing as you fly by. Others — those who are on lower street levels — look up, as if they’re expecting to see you do some of your drills. Yet you just continue to perform soft banks around buildings as you give Loki time to settle into being so high up.

You know everyone looking up knows who you are because of your scales. You’re not just the only blue dragonling in the Realm of Asgard, you’re the only blue Drekasál in the entire realm. Knowing who you are means they know you’re too young to be carrying an adult Æsir.

You spot a skiff rising up — likely to look at who’s on your back — but Sveinn dips down closer and lets his teeth flash. The skiff dives back down into the mass of others along the river. Sveinn stays low for a bit, likely warning off anyone with his presence alone before he rises back up and trails behind once more.

You’ve just banked around the outer towers of the city to head out towards the Rainbow Bridge when Loki finally speaks.

Is it always this quiet up here?

Sometimes some of the skiffs like to race us. Amusement rings with your words, and there’s an echo of laughter from Loki’s side.

Those who challenge a dragon are fools.

The eye-roll she makes is loud enough for you to hear. A laugh rumbles through you as you ask, Oh, are they? So should I be counting you among them?

Not if I turn into one myself, Loki replies smugly.

You’d seen a few examples of her shapeshifting ability over your years spent in lessons, but nothing that had said she would be able to shift into a dragon. To be able to do so she would have to be one of the few natural-born shapeshifters in the Nine. Most shapeshifters use a magical item, but the natural-born ones rarely need such an item.

Can you do that? You ask, looking over your shoulder at her in wonder.

She shrugs, turning her head away to look down at the city below. I haven’t tried, but why couldn’t I? How different could it be from changing to any other form the first time?

You don’t know how to answer that, don’t know just yet how to process that the Princess of Asgard is one of the natural-born shapeshifters, so you look ahead once more.

You’re approaching the Sea of Asgard now, the vast body of water that separates Himinbjǫrg and its all-seeing, all-hearing guardian from the rest of Asgard. You listen to see if your uncle objects to your current route, but when you just hear his wingbeats, you glide down to the underside of the Rainbow Bridge.

Weaving between the gleaming piles, you drift lower and lower until you can relax an arm and let your talons skim the top of the churning waters. Sveinn stays above the bridge itself, visible only when you leave the shade of the bridge.

As you close in on the end, you ask, Are you ready for something faster?

If you only go this fast, I’d rather ride a warhorse.

You let out a low rumble of half-amusement and half-insult, and then dart out and up from beneath the bridge. Rocketing past Sveinn as you ascend, you hear a startled gasp that turns into laughter from Loki. Letting out a roar, you level out and speed for the mountains at the far side of the sea as fast as your wings can carry you.

As you near the mountains, Sveinn’s wingbeats become louder. You know he’s catching up, but for some reason, you feel like you don’t want him to catch up. The desire is impulsive, but unshakeable, so you give in; you know just how to throw him off.

He’s done it to you before, after all.

You bank hard around the curve of the first mountains, the air rushing off your wings making the snow decorating their tops whirl up into a storm with how close you skim to them. You do the same thing around a second and then a third mountaintop, the storm of snow off each one larger than the last.

You bank hard once more, turning completely around the top of a mountain and glide back toward the city. With the fading sound of Sveinn’s wingbeats you know you’ve thrown him off — but only for a few moments. Your eyes scan the streets rapidly, looking for one of the rivers that feed into the sea.

Sveinn’s wingbeats become louder again just as you spot one, a bridge spanning it at the very edge that spills into the sea. No skiffs travel along it as far as you can see, so it’s one of the ones assigned to your drills. Perfect.

Hold on, princess! You fold your wings in, turning into a steep dive not too dissimilar from your drop off the palace at the beginning. Instead of fear this time, you can hear the delighted screaming-laughter from Loki.

If your dragon form could smile, you would be grinning at her reaction.

You shoot beneath the bridge, wingbeats a thunderous cacophony resounding off the walls and mixing with the roar of rushing water.

Down here, there’s not enough room for a dragon of Sveinn’s size to follow.

When you exit the other side you can still hear him, but when you glance up you don’t see him. All you see as you rush along this river are the criss-cross of streets above, the walls of the various buildings, and the Asgardians who are stopping to watch you as you rush by below.

Following the various twists of the river, you head back towards the palace.

You sail under another bridge, emerging out over one of the river pools, a roaring waterfall on the other side. You rocket up the waterfall without slowing down your mad dash, coming above the lower streets of Asgard before levelling out. The path to the palace is clear, and you dart over buildings and across the Rainbow Bridge.

Swinging your head back and forth, you realise you don’t see Sveinn anywhere. You must have lost him at some point while you were racing along the river. A sense of smugness begins to fill you. It’s almost foreign, almost like—

Your head whips around to look at Loki. There’s a self-satisfied smirk on her face that matches the smug feeling that’s echoing down the mind-link. You throw a barb of irritation at her as you realise the desire to outrun your uncle had come from her and hadn’t been born out of your own impulses.

Oh, don’t look so sour, Firefly! We had fun losing him, didn’t we?

That’s not the point, Loki! You used your powers on me. Frigga would —

My mother doesn’t need to know everything I do, Loki snaps, a scowl forming on her face. Your irritation runs higher in turn and her expression changes to an almost-pained look before she looks away. Tentatively, she says, Look, I’m sorry, okay? I just wanted us to have a little fun, but I won’t do it again. You have my word.

You turn your head back around, quiet for a few moments as you try to sort through how you feel about what had just happened.

There’s a sudden absence of Loki’s feelings being echoed to you; she’s cut the mind-link. You can’t help but assume it’s because you didn’t answer her, and despair washes through you. You hadn’t meant to hurt her with your anger, but the last whisper of her emotions had been hurt.

Out loud you call back, “I don’t need your word, Loki. I trust you. I’m sorry I got angry.”

Instead of saying anything back, Loki is silent. Not sure what to make of her silence, or what to say to break it, you remain silent too. You bank around the right side of the palace, ascending and aiming for your family’s pavilion on the upper-left side.

When it comes into view, you see Sveinn and Kára — both in their Æsir form — standing near the edge of the pavilion. For a brief moment, you want to do nothing more than fly away. Avoid whatever conversation is about to happen because of your disappearing act.

You’d run off with the Asgardian princess, after all. Something you’re rather certain you weren’t supposed to do.

You can’t remember if one of them had said that you had to remain with Sveinn the entire flight. It was implied that you should since he came along though. Right?

Kára and Sveinn step aside as you land on the pavilion, your head down as you walk further in so Loki can easily dismount.

“How was it?” Frigga asks, standing up from the couch she was lounging on.

Loki’s words are stuffed with unbridled mirth. “It was amazing, Mamma!”

She launches into her own retelling of the adventure she’d taken with you as she unbuckles herself and steps out of the saddle.

When she climbs down you use your nose to help keep her from stumbling. She smiles, pausing her story and pressing her forehead to yours for a second before returning to regaling her mother with what had happened. Frigga takes her daughter by the hand, smiling down at her as they walk out. Before they leave, you hear Loki ask if she can do this again, and Frigga telling her that it’s a discussion for tomorrow.

Once the doors to the pavilion close, you stiffen. Alone with your family at last, you curl in on yourself.

“I see the princess had a good time,” Kára says lightly as she walks to your side and begins unbuckling the saddle. You make a sound of agreement. “Did you have a good time, my star?”

“Yes, Mamma.”

Kára finishes with that side and stops in front of you, tilting your chin up so you look at her. “Talk to me, little starlight. What’s wrong?”

You look over at Sveinn and then back at her. You see her slowly put together the pieces as you repeat the movement a few times. Your mother laughs.

“We were actually worrying recently that you were a little too passive for a Drekasál. Your uncle had already made a habit of giving his instructors the slip during drill training by your age.” She grins over at your uncle who comes over to help finish taking the saddle off.

“Don’t let her fool you, your mother would shift back to an Æsir mid-flight and scare her instructor when she would suddenly disappear out of the sky!” The weight of the saddle slides off your back and you shake your body, settling the scales that had been trapped beneath it.

“Hey!” your mother laughs out. “It was good practice. For me and for the other dragonlings of my conflagration.”

After listening to their laughter you look at each with one eye, softly asking, “So…I’m not in trouble for running off with the princess?”

“Of course not. You had a little adventure on your own and then you came home. Besides, I would hardly call flying around the city running off.” Your mother smiles up at you, reaching up and scratching the underside of your chin. A low rumble of contentment emits from your chest, your eyes falling half-shut for a few moments.

When the sensation disappears, you return to your Æsir form, staring up at both members of your family who look down at you with gentle love. Your mother scoops you up and settles you on her hip, pressing a kiss to the side of your head.

“What would you say to us bothering your babba, little starlight?” Your uncle asks.

Your face immediately lights up and you turn to look at your mother with wide eyes. Placing your tiny hands on her cheeks, you pout at your mother as you plead with her, “Please, Mamma. I miss him. I haven’t seen him since this morning.”

“You know, I think he could use an interruption.” Your mother winks at you, beginning the trek to her heartmate’s office. “I’m sure Babba will be thrilled to see his favourite dragonling in all the realms.”

◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦

After that afternoon, Loki often frequents your aerial lessons with your mother and uncle. Sometimes your father shows up too, giving tips to your friend since he’s often dragonback during battles.

It’s only a couple of weeks after that first flight that you’re running drills with Loki, something you hadn’t considered until Týr had suggested it one afternoon as Loki was mounting up. Of course, if the princess was going to learn how to fly dragonback into battle, then so would her older brothers Baldr and Thor.

You smile as you wander the streets of Asgard with your mother, out shopping for birthday presents for your father on this beautiful, chilly winter day. His birthday is soon, and you can’t help remembering how much things have changed in the last two years because of his suggestion.

You had met Thor not long after you’d begun your seiðr lessons. Soon after that, you began seeing more of him when your other lessons with the court children near your own age started. Between your currently shared arithmetic, history, linguistics, and weapons and tactics lessons, you see the younger prince often. The addition of him to your aerial lessons meant that (aside from Loki) you saw him more than any of the others.

Baldr, though, is a different story.

The Crown Prince is older than his siblings by a few years, just old enough that his lessons are with a different group of court children.

Like Thor, his skills in seiðr are minimal, limited to whatever his future godhood might be (something to do with light, perhaps), so he’s not in your seiðr lessons either. The aerial lessons are the only time you see this prince outside of the dining hall.

It’s also the only time you see the Drekasál that joins your lessons as his companion — a small and nearly black-scaled drekakona of Asgard known as Ásta.

You’d learnt quickly that both princes dote on and adore their little sister. Their doting had quickly extended to you as well because she called you her friend at the beginning of their first aerial lesson.

You’d never been doted on by anyone outside of your small family before, but you enjoy how both princes indulge Loki’s tendency for small bits of mischief on them. Small illusions and harmless spells are smiled at and laughed at by the brothers.

You grow fond of both her brothers because of those moments. You might have known Thor before, but you’d never really spent much time with him outside of lessons.

And now you’ve somehow befriended all three of the royal children, so now you often find yourself tagging or being dragged along with them on various adventures through the city and palace. You certainly don’t mind, even if you catch the occasional look between your parents and uncle that say they might care that you spend so much time with the royal children.

But it’s nice. It’s different from when you have to spend time with your cousin. He’s often more interested in learning to fight with his battle-axe or recounting tales of various heroes of Asgard (which always ends up with him proclaiming himself the Lion of Asgard, a soon-to-be warrior and hero of the realm).

And while Loki’s brothers like to tell the tales of the heroes of Asgard too, it’s rarely a topic that’s carried for long.

“What about this store?” Your mother asks, breaking you out of your wayward thoughts as she stops you at a glass-front shop. Despite having wandered through half the city’s shops so far, you’ve yet to pick out a present for him. Nothing you’d seen in any of them had really felt right to gift him.

What can someone gift to Týr Hymisson — General of Asgard’s armies and close friend of All-Father Odin — that he does not already have? What could you, a child who has not yet seen fifteen years, give him?

Looking up at the shop’s signs, your face lights up as you spot one that mentions the shop carries magical items.

“Can we look at those, Mamma?” You look up at your mother, pointing at the sign and bouncing. As soon as she says yes, you drag her as fast as you can into the store.

In here the air is warm compared to the nipping chill outside. You do not pause as you begin to hunt for the magical items. Your mother calls out a greeting to the shopkeeper who waves and greets you both from behind her counter.

You quickly begin to glance over several of the items once you find them. Each item has a little card attached to it, a list of items within and the spell (or spells) on it. As your mother takes them off the shelf you tell her about what each of them can do based on the little descriptions.

You find it amusing to see her reactions to a few of them, especially for the raven quill that writes with one’s own blood. Blood magic can be dangerous, but you can’t help but be at least a little interested in how some of it works.

One of the last items your mother takes off the shelf is a small orb with a raging storm inside. You’re both fascinated by how the storm is trapped within the thick glass as you read the card describing it. “It says someone who could wield atmokinetic abilities made it. And it’s not something that you can use, just looks pretty.”

“I wonder which sky god created it,” your mother muses, setting it back on the shelf. Her gaze shifts to something higher on the shelves, pulling it off and handing you the card as she opens the box.

“It’s a crow quill, spelled to always return to its box at the end of the day. It has uru nibs so they never wear down and can use magical inks without potentially damaging the quill’s spell.” You peer in the box, staring at the assortment of differently sized bright silver uru nibs and the long dark feather that lays below them in the pale-grey setting. There’s an ink bottle in the box as well, but when you lift it out you’re not certain what colour it is since it’s so dark. “Colour?”

Your mother glances at it, turning it so the light from outside strikes against the bottle. “Dark red, like a sweetberry.”

“Does Babba like that?”

“I think he would. It’d be a nice break from all the blacks and browns he uses.” You make a noise, unsure if you want to get another colour. Your mother brushes a soft hand against the shoulder of your dress, a smile on her face when you look up at her. “If you want to get him this, we can also get him some other inks. Would you like that, little star?”

You nod your head, and she guides you to the counter.

A quick inquiry as your mother is paying for the quill box lets you know that a shop just down the street sells a wide selection of high-quality inks, both magical and non-magical alike. You and your mother thank the shopkeeper and step back out into the chill just as a familiar laugh races towards you both.

It’s Thor, and there’s someone chasing after him that you don’t recognise. Thor shouts your name as the two boys run by, waving without stopping. The dark-haired boy sounds annoyed when he yells Thor’s name, but there’s a grin on Thor’s face as they keep running down the street.

You turn to your mother, wide-eyed and pleading. “Mamma?”

“Yes yes, you can go, my star. Make sure you make it back for dinner, okay? I’ll be out here shopping for a few more hours if you need me.” She gives you a swift kiss on your cheek that you return before racing off after the boys, yelling for them to wait up for you.

You catch up to them a few streets later, where the boys have collapsed on and beside some dark barrels resting against a tall, grey-stoned wall. You look at Thor, long teen limbs splayed out on the cobblestone of the deserted street and panting with a grin on his face as he greets you. The boy sitting on one of the barrels, elbows resting on his knees, looks up at you with a tight smile and familiar dark eyes.

“Don’t make me chase you so far next time. Why were you running Thor? What did you do?” You ask, hands on your hips and looking back down at the pale-haired prince.

“Ate Loki’s sweetberry tart,” Thor replies, pointing up at the boy on the barrel. You sigh at Thor, a fondly exasperated smile on your face. Despite all the changing he’s done physically in the last couple of years — a deeper voice, a growth spurt that briefly shot him into gangly limbs, muscles that are filling out said limbs thanks to his training — he’s still the same boy you met all those years ago at heart.

“Was it worth being chased halfway across Asgard?”

“He went north along the Rainbow Bridge first, before we came out this way,” Loki tells you, glaring down at his brother. “I should have made him run into a wall.”

“A wall wouldn’t have stopped me!” Thor protests, rolling over and sitting up. He flexes his arms, his grin wide. “I am Thor, God of Thunder! Walls cannot stop me!”

You and Loki both glance at each other. Look back at the godling between you. And then you both start laughing at his declaration.

His recent godnaming by the Weavers of Fate had declared him the God of Lightning and Thunder. Yet, for whatever reason, Thor had shortened it down to just God of Thunder, instead of God of Lightning.

“Your greatest downfall will come from your sweet tooth, Thor.” You sit down on the barrel beside Loki’s. “At least you didn’t fall into one of the rivers this time.”

Thor’s arms fall, a grimace on his face. “Yes, at least I did not do that this time. Baldr hates it when we leave only one of the sweet buns for him.” Thor looks at you, a crooked smile on his face now. “You’re lucky you don’t have to deal with brothers, Firefly.”

Firefly.

It’d started as a simple, offhand joke a couple of years ago by Loki. You’d been trying to transmogrify a pile of feathers into a fire flower you were studying, but somehow they’d become a small army of fireflies. And then those fireflies had decided that they would call your shoulders their new resting place until Loki had helped you change them back so you could try again. She’d joked back then that they probably thought you were one of them, and the nickname had stuck.

Even though they don’t know why it started, Thor and Baldr started using it for you almost immediately the first time they saw you responding to Loki calling you Firefly.

“Baldr might as well be,” you tell him with a smirk. “He’d probably say I’m as annoying to have around as a sister.”

“You’re better than another sibling.” Loki knocks his shoulder gently against yours with a smile. You return the gesture with a gentle knock of your own, smiling at his words as warmth fills your chest and radiates into your arms and clasped hands.

“Thanks, you too,” you reply softly, your gaze on your hands since you can’t seem to look up at the face of your best friend. You feel a little too warm, especially where Loki’s shoulder had knocked against yours. Like you’ve sat a little too close to a fire for just a little too long.

Thor chooses that moment to stand up and look down the street, away from both you and Loki. He says over his shoulder, “Look, there’s a bakery just down the way! I will go see what they have. Would either of you like something besides tarts?”

After a brief debate over what Thor should buy, the thunder godling leaves to go see if the bakery has sweet buns (for him and Baldr) and tarts (for you and Loki). Silence looms in the space between you and Loki now that Thor’s gone. Neither of you takes the opportunity to start up a conversation, so you take the chance to look at him out of the corner of your eye.

You take in this form, admiring how much he still looks like him, even with all the minute differences. The sharper jaw and cheekbones countered with the nose you’ve seen a million times. Dark hair that you’re used to seeing in a braid that hangs over Loki’s shoulder is now barely brushing past his jawline. Lips that are thinner than what you’re used to, but still curled into that familiar smile. Dark-coloured eyes that—

That are staring right at you.

You hadn’t even noticed that you’d gone from staring at him out of the corner of your eye to just full-on staring. You freeze, unsure of what to say but then blurt out, “You look nice like this.”

Loki’s lips twitch like he’s trying to suppress a smile. “I look nice?”

The low rumbling baritone of his words makes you stutter at first. “Y-yeah. I mean, you’ve always looked really nice! And now you look a little different. It’s a good different. You look like you, just… different.”

“What about me is so different, my brave Firefly?”

There’s a strange sensation that breaks out in your chest, almost as if your heart is flipping and beating harder when it shouldn’t. You’re not sure how you’re confident enough to do it (though perhaps being called his brave Firefly has a part in it), but you reach up and brush the fingertips of one hand against his cheek.

With a soft smile, you tell him, “Your jawline and cheeks. They look sharper now, but the shape of your face is the same.” You poke gently against his nose. “This is exactly the same though. So are the shape and I assume colour of your eyes.” Your hand fiddles with some loose strands of his hair. “Your hair is a lot shorter. It’s still soft though, and I would wager also the same colour.”

When your eyes flicker to his mouth you pull away slowly, your gaze moving back up to be arrested by the look on his face.

“You look nice in both your forms too.” You swear that his whispered words cast a holding spell, suspending you both in this moment. You’re not sure at all what the look on your best friend’s face is. It’s mesmerising, captivating in a spell-like way. Yet you’re entirely certain no seiðr has been cast on you, that this moment is something… else.

“Brother! Firefly! I have returned with a bounty of treats for us to share!”

Both of your heads snap away from one another. You hadn’t realised that you’d started to lean back in until Thor practically threw a bucket of ice water over your heads.

Your tongue is tied in knots, unable to form words for several moments. Loki merely smiles at his brother and thanks him as he takes one of the bags his brother is holding, completely unaffected by whatever had just happened unlike you. Regaining your tongue, you thank your friend for the treats as he hands one of the other bags over to you.

You refuse to look at Loki as you dig through the bag, still trying to process what had (almost?) happened before Thor returned as you take out your first tart. More importantly, what had almost happened between you and Loki? What would have happened if Thor hadn’t shown up at that moment?

You bite into your tart, casting aside your questions in favour of enjoying it. The burst of a mildly sweet flavour has your shoulders drop, recognising the taste of the strawberry pear fruit inside.

The three of you move on to talk about nothing and anything as you each enjoy your own treat. You and Loki don’t talk about what might have happened, and Thor doesn’t act as if he’d interrupted anything. In a way, it’s almost like you imagined the moment.

And yet, when you and Loki do look at each other you swear you can see the embers of the look he had earlier still flickering in his eyes. Enchanting, whispering to you to lure you back in and discover what it is that you’re seeing.

You quickly resolve to look at him as little as possible as the three of you continue to talk. Not that that does much for the way your mind replays both the earlier moment and each of the subsequent looks he’s given you.

At some point, you can hear the rowdy sound of other Asgardian youths as they come down the street. It’s not the first group to pass this way, and so none of you does more than glance at them as they approach.

The three of you are laughing over a shared memory when one of the boys first speaks.

“Oi, what do the three of you have there?” The largest boy in the group asks, stepping forward. He’s tall, likely taller than Thor if the prince were to stand up. The most notable feature to you is his warm-grey hair that hangs down to his shoulder, and even that isn’t an uncommon feature here on Asgard.

You all look between each other before Thor addresses the boy. “Just some tarts for us and my brother back home.”

“Who’s tarts?”

“I believe her name was Gertha. She owns the bakery just down the road.” Thor points down the road with his thumb, a wide and friendly smile on his face.

The sudden sneer on the boy’s face is all it takes for your own smile to slip away and coldly tell them, “I suggest you move along and stop bothering us.”

You had hoped that your words would make him leave. Instead, he looks at both brothers with outright disdain on his face and dripping from his voice as he says, “What, are the two of you such weaklings you need the protection of a girl?”

All three of you stand up, each of you insulted by this boy’s words while his friends make various noises and gestures behind him. Hot anger boils in your blood as you step forward with your teeth bared.

No one insults your friends like that. Especially not to your face.

Loki’s hand comes around your front and snakes across your waist, pulling you back behind the brothers. “He’s not worth the effort, Firefly.” Loki’s words are as brittle as thin ice.

The taste of hot iron in your mouth sharpens instead of dulling. His cold tone is one you recognise, and you hate that you do.

“You’re right. He’s not worth the effort of my fist.” You twist your hand, pulling on seiðr threads and making it influence the world around you. The cobblestone beneath the boy’s heels jerks upward, sending him crashing into the pavement.

There’s a sudden murmuring from the other boys, but then your mouth tugs up into a smirk as a familiar wave of magic comes hurtling down the street from your left. You grin with your teeth on display as the boy on the ground stands up, knowing what is about to happen.

His lip is split, and there’s a bit of blood coming from a cut along his eyebrow. The snarl on his face would concern you if you didn’t know, but—

“What is going on here,” your mother snarls, storming up the street. The kiss of her magic — unbound but not a power that can snag on anything as it whips about — has Loki tensed up, shoulder’s tight even though he knows your mother.

After all, a Drekasál’s temper can be unpredictable for most. Especially when it comes to protecting who they claim as theirs.

And your mother’s temper is very well known among Asgardians.

You step around Loki’s arm, staring down at the boys as their faces all change into ones of fear and recognition at the sight of who’s arrived. And you tell her, “He insulted the princes, Mamma. We were doing nothing but sitting here and minding our own.”

The boy you injured blanches at your words, eyes darting from you to your mother as she stares all of them down. You know the shape her eyes have taken, becoming an imitation of the ones in her dragon form.

A warning of the dragon that lurks beneath to those who would dare cross her in this moment. It’s a warning that all Drekasál can give, even if they don’t always do so.

The boy you threw to the cobblestones ducks his head, voice wavering as he says, “I’m sorry, Raven-Feeder. We meant no offence—”

“And yet offence was had if your face is any indication,” Kára interrupts, her tone as sharp as her talons as she gestures to his face. The boy reaches up, cupping his hand to hide the cut on his forehead behind his palm. Your mother is silent for a moment as she glares at each of them. “An apology, from each of you to my daughter and the princes.”

Each of the boys nearly trips over their own feet to apologise before they hurry off.

With them gone, you see the shoulders of each prince relax, a sigh of relief escaping your lungs.

Your mother turns, putting both of her hands on your cheeks as she tilts your face around with a worried frown.

“I’m fine, Mamma.” You put your hands over hers, smiling up at her. “No punches were thrown. I just used seiðr to move cobblestones and make him fall on his face.”

“You would have, if I hadn’t shown up.”

“Of course. Loki and Thor are my friends and those boys insulted them.”

“They insulted you as well, little Firefly,” Thor interjects. It takes you a moment, but you faintly recall how Thor had moved to throw the first punch after the boy had gotten up. Your mother showing up is the only reason that it hadn’t broken out into a fight.

You shrug, pulling out of your mother's hands. “He called me a girl. He wasn’t wrong.”

“You’re training to be a seiðkona. You’re more than just some girl.” Loki’s jaw twitches, a familiar tic of his irritation that you’ve seen several times over the years.

“Aye, my brother is right. You might have even been a valkyrja-in-training for all they knew with that left hook of yours.” You can’t help but laugh at Thor’s words.

“Remind me to show them next time,” you tell him, playfully swinging your left fist at his shoulder. He ducks away, a grin on his face. The matching eye-rolls from both your mother and Loki send you and Thor into a fit of giggles.

“Well I think that has been enough excitement for today. Come along, little starlight. Dinner still awaits us.” Your mother bows her head at both of the princes and then turns away. You pull Thor into a quick hug, telling him you’ll see him tomorrow in class.

Loki’s hug lingers longer, and you plant a quick kiss on his cheek before saying you’ll see him tomorrow. Bright and early as you do most days.

With a smile at both princes, you bound off after your mother, eager to return home to your family.

( next chapter )

@ladydracona​

Find the lore notes for this chapter here!

#loki x reader #loki x you #loki x y/n #loki imagine #loki laufeyson x reader #loki laufeyson x you #loki laufeyson x y/n #a fairytale beginning #the prince and his dragon #of fire and of ice #amphi writes

[prettyboysdontlookatexplosions]

@onihcinimkcin said before we started it that there was a good movie inside shang-chi and the legend of the ten rings trying albeit not very hard to get out and i think that's true. i think in that better movie awkwafina and shang-chi are closer to true co-leads than they are here, and also the beginning of the movie does more work to set them up as these kind of sad losers lying to themselves about how much they're enjoying their lives. highlight awkwafina's fear of failure thread more strongly from the start, and make shang-chi more obviously fucked up and someone who is kind of frozen in this stasis and isolation outside of that one friendship. simu liu plays him basically as an affable everyman and it works fine up at the start but casts an increasingly weird lens on the film as his backstory of trauma piles up to eventually reveal that not only did he run away from home at 14, but he was raised to be a child assassin, and oh also on top of that he watched his mom get brutally murdered by his father's enemies when he was like seven and then his dad made him watch him brutally murder all those enemies a couple days later and then when he was 14 he killed the man who killed his mom. like. WHAT. this man is NOT dysfunctional enough to be carrying that kind of baggage around. so in the other movie he's more obviously a fuck-up sort of numbing himself out and running from his capabilities or the possibility of doing anything ever, and awkwafina who i know has a character name and i actually thought was pretty good in this but has such a distinctive voice even now that she's dropped the blaccent that i can't not call her awkwafina, she is basically doing the same thing but with much smaller stakes. and then the movie is still a big dumb fantasy adventure but the human core of it is a movie about two young kinda-adults facing their fears of growing up, which are really fears of failure, of trying, of being their whole selves, which means their weaknesses but also their strengths. the outline of this concept is inside the movie but the movie doesn't actually do anything with it. it's like a paint by numbers but only the outline and the numbers. i'm not asking for revolutionary filmmaking but i feel like they should at least paint the numbers themselves.

in this better movie i think also a really easy improvement to make to the last face-off scene with his dad is that when shang-chi squares off with his dad again ready to be an actual threat this time, we drop the strings & brass and bring back the hip hop adjacent beats we got earlier in the movie, which was like the best thing this movie had going for it - that bus fight is one of my favorite marvel fight scenes ever and it's not because it was much better than they usually are, it's literally just because the soundtrack slapped - and which would also be a way of being like, "i'm not my father's terrified son anymore, I Am My Own Person, Who Checks Out Mozart While He Does Tae-Bo Listens To Hip Hop While Doing Whatever Cool Shit Michelle Yeoh Taught Me Like Three Scenes Ago"

also a better movie has way more clarity on how sympathetic it wants his dad to be because this one went from "you have always been afraid of me" / "you raised me to be an assassin" to "your family needs you dad" / [heroic sacrifice]... too quickly. i'm not inherently opposed to deathbed redemptions and think that the guard sacrificing himself in thor ragnarok is one of like 5 genuinely powerful moments the mcu has ever had. but that happened too fast.

i mean in a perfect world also the movie would not look like shit all the time and the martial arts inspired fight scenes would not just remind me that there are literally hundreds of movies that have shot martial arts to look cool as hell while this movie refuses to ever look even a little bit cool and also there would not be SOMEthing i can't articulate going on in the directing where by the third act big marvel battle scene even the actors seem over it and nobody at any point seems to care that much about anything and at one point tony leung and michelle yeoh are facing off and it's totally dead air with no dynamism or intrigue and you're like ok i'm a film idiot who doesn't know movie words but there has to be some reverse movie magic going here in the directing or editing or cinematography or SOMETHING because i know that these two actors acting at each other SHOULD be a lot more intriguing than this. but like. we can't have it all and i'm trying to be realistic. this is why i also did not mention that this better movie would not descend into mind-numbingly stupid-looking and bafflingly inert aerial combat in the third act, because like, again, i know who i'm dealing with i know kevin makes them agree to it when they sign their contracts.

anyway. i liked the karaoke scenes, having non-english dialogue scenes in a marvel movie, awkwafina's green pants which were the only thing in this movie that did not look ugly or tacky as hell, and the bananas idiotic yet delightful return of TREVOR, who was already one of the best ideas in the very best movie (iron man 3) and who i can't believe they brought back here to be a weird goofy plot device but i'm glad he's cleaned up and is in his own way thriving. also as far as CGI critters go i did enjoy morris, a fuzzball with two butts and peacock-colored wings. solid concept, no notes.

#flim #what was the marvel movie i had a really good fix for #oh far from home #yeah. far from home could have been a great movie and instead it sucked so so so so bad that i refused to see a marvel for like three years #i guess i've seen three of whatever phase we're on now though so maybe i'll watch the rest #although god eternals looks boring

[forlorn-kumquat]

tony stark's adventures in babysitting

also here on ao3

----------

As the alarms wailed around them, Steve gave Tony a sheepish grin. “I think maybe this was a bad idea.”

“Now?” Tony demanded, incredulously. “Now you listen to me?”

“Sorry,” Steve offered, his voice almost drowned out by the alarms and by the sound of shouting as the room was stormed by SHIELD agents. Tony waved them off, wordlessly, still staring down at Steve. He was unmoved by the puppy-dog eyes the kid was shooting his way, clearly hoping that Tony was going to let him out of any trouble he was in. “Really, really sorry.”

“Yeah,” Tony drawled, crossing his arms over his chest, “I don’t really think ‘sorry’ is going to work, this time.”

Twelve hours earlier

“Does someone want to tell me why Captain America is a teenager?” Fury’s voice was tinny over the crappy connection on the Helicarrier, but there was no mistaking the unmistakable sound of ‘don’t have time for this shit’ that was coming through loud and clear.

“We have no idea,” Tony replied. “One minute, Cap was his usual, annoying self, and the next he was still annoying, but now shorter and with more acne.”

“Hey!” came an indignant yell from behind him, and Tony spared a glance back at the scrawny kid perched on a bed in SHIELD medical, currently being poked, prodded, and outright gawked at by a whole team of medical staff. Steve was glaring at him, but it was a much less intimidating look coming from someone currently younger than Peter.

“There were at least two magic users on the field,” Tony went on, turning his attention back to Fury. “Not to mention whatever questionable excuse for science AIM was getting up to. It could have been any one of those things, or a combination, or something we don’t even know about yet.”

“What do we know?” Fury demanded.

“Not much,” Tony admitted. “I’m going over the stuff we confiscated from AIM, and Strange and Loki are working together to piece together everything they did on the field. But, we don’t know what we’re looking for, so I can’t even begin to give you some kind of time line.”

Fury looked less than pleased by that, but he couldn’t exactly argue. “Keep me updated,” he snapped, instead, the communication channel going dead before Tony could reply.

Tony glared at the screen before turning to glare at Natasha and Clint, sitting off to the side watching his conversation with Fury. They actually had the audacity to be munching on popcorn; Tony had no idea where they’d gotten it, but his stomach growled, suddenly, reminding him just how long it had been since breakfast.

“Why was I the only one talking to Fury?” he asked, swiping a handful of Clint’s popcorn and chewing noisily. “Aren’t you super-spy ex-SHIELD agents supposed to do this kind of thing?”

“Nat and I took a vote,” Clint told him, between bites. “Neither of us wanted to do it, and Thor’s busy, and Bruce is still green, so we nominated you.”

“Besides,” Natasha added, grinning unrepentantly at him, “you’re so good at it.”

“I hate you both,” Tony informed them.

Swiping another handful of popcorn, he stalked across the room to where Steve was still sitting, a swarm of doctors, nurses, and who the hell knew who else hovering around him. Tony was pretty sure that a good third of them were completely unnecessary, but he didn’t have the expertise needed to kick them out; that had to wait until Bruce was less green and angry.

The kid had a positively miserable look on his face at everything he was being subjected to, but he brightened up when Tony approached. Tony would have been flattered if Steve hadn’t been staring at the popcorn in his hand.

“Is that for me?” he asked, eagerly, already reaching out for the popcorn.

“Mr. Stark, we cannot allow Mr. Rogers to ingest any unknown substances until we’re sure he’s not allergic to them,” one of the white coats argued, but Tony rolled his eyes.

“Steve, you ever been allergic to corn?” he asked, getting a frantic head shake out of the kid. “What about butter? Salt?”

“Actually there’s no salt or butter on that,” Clint called out, and Tony turned and gave him a disgusted look.

“Heathen,” he declared, dramatically, and Steve burst out laughing, badly hiding his grin behind his hand when Clint shot him a look.

“Laura wants me to watch my sodium intake,” Clint tried to explain, but Tony had already tuned him out.

“So it’s basically corn and air,” he told Steve. “You allergic to either corn or air?” When Steve shook his head, Tony poured the popcorn into his outstretched hands over the protests of the medical staff. “You said, yourself, that you found the serum still in his blood,” he reminded the doctor. “And I doubt he can just spontaneously develop new allergies in the span of a couple hours.”

“And I’m hungry,” Steve mumbled through a mouthful of popcorn, giving the doctor a mournful look. “Really, really hungry.”

Tony rolled his eyes as one of the nurses cooed over Steve’s puppy-dog eyes; the expression that was already pretty effective for him as an adult was magnified about a hundred times as a kid. And clearly Steve was not above using that to his advantage.

“In fact,” Tony went on, “if you’re done with the kid, I was going to take him to get something to eat.”

“They’re done!” Steve yelped, jumping off the examination bed so fast that he almost tripped over his own feet, and was only saved by Tony reaching out to catch him.

“Mr. Rogers, we still have a lot of tests to run-” the doctor started, but Tony cut him off.

“Kid says no more tests, you’re not going to run any more tests,” he said, firmly. “There’s nothing more that you can discover about his condition than you can’t find from the samples you’ve already taken. He’s not a damn lab rat.”

There was a moment of stunned silence, and then Steve latched onto Tony’s arm like he thought the doctor might drag him away, otherwise. “I’m gonna go with him, now.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll bring him back before curfew,” Tony reassured them, before sweeping out of the room with Steve hot on his heels.

#mcu #tony stark #steve rogers #kumquat writes

[the-firebird69]

Also encroaching on him no matter where he goes or what he does these people are extremely rude they don't know what their place is ever and they just got bombarded to hell an attitude is worse I want the cream puffs out of his face and we have to figure out a way to do that because we're moving on to the next venue and then it's going to be the max and it's completely blindsided like they said we would

Thor Freya

Don't start this whole stupid s*** cycle again hospitals and lawyers and all that stuff

We're preparing to count right now we're going to install bases to the north we're going to begin rating the max because they're ripe

Olympus

So we were heard my friend and for a long time a lot of people looked into it and more and more and more and we have support now for the maneuver and we have support from our counterparts too for the maneuver it was a difficult time what we got through she's very happy right now

Thor Freya

My husband says that it's like eating cud for years and that's something that's usually thrown away and you chew it Intuit and chew it and eventually Harvard becomes digestible and cows do it all the time it's horrible but I'm very happy with what's going on and I see it in writing with starcraft and Warhammer Star wars even but more so the first one the first ones and Independence Day Independence Day 2 and there's a plethora of other movies that are starting with the d****** idiot Leroy Olympus has fallen and they're talking about the White House losing the White House down in the movies and it's awesome and really they're telling me that they're starting to come in from the upper Midwest and Midwest into DC and their attitude is getting worse

Hera

They're actually pouring into DC and New England New York and the outskirts of DC and then they're coming in and they're taking over a positions and the max are just sitting there thinking that there's separated like Daddy is calling him saying he's saying are you deaf and they're not listening. Just a matter of time before they get it but they are going in there in numbers and they're continuously pouring in and it is the whole bunch including the three and they're in trouble too and we want to tell you what happened

We're going to publish now

Thor Freya

Olympus

[odisn]

❝       𝐈 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐋𝐃𝐍'𝐓 𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐌   . . .   𝐀𝐍𝐘 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐌 .      ❞

#faceclaim. #arc. ragnarøkr. #imagine thor reaching earth #with the last surviving asgardians #and finally having a moment where #all the events. all the injuries. all the / losses / catch up with him #he goes from not opening up #from being just this shell #of a man to completely breaking down #when they ask him what actually happened out there #millions of billions of lightyears away #and they ask about Odin. Loki. Heimdall. Frigg. Sif. Hogun. Volstagg. Fandral. even mjolnir #and he's just like '' I couldn't save any of them '' #shit at this point he's been through so much #even the fight itself with Surtr knocked everything outta him #physical exhaustion he can handle but now #he has to lead his people #having lost his family. his confidence. their home. #what do they have ? will they even listen ? where does Thor even BEGIN #to start repairing the damage #he just doesn't know #he's been a leader through the entire journey to earth #calmed his people down helped patch up survivors #treat those for shock but #here's a moment where he's being cared FOR #instead of caring FOR others #and shit he doesn't realise how much he needs it #after losing not just HIS everything #but everyone else's too #anyways I've been doin a lot of ragnarok thinking happy weekend