#Blame Freya for rushing me XD

[airi-p4]

Ice Dreams - Chapter 1

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | ...

Lukanette Figure Skating AU? Lukanette Figure Skating AU.

I’ve been planning this for more than one year already ( @mamanabeille​ knows ) but Freya’s recent art for me fueled me to finish the first 2 chapters (out of more than 60...)

Header art is traditional art drawn by me about one year ago - Full pic HERE.

Summary

Despite being very talented and loving to skate, Marinette is determined to quit Figure Skating after the lack of decent results and the great amount of stress and pressure on her shoulders.

On the other hand, Juleka and Luka are average skaters in pairs category who, after years of hard work, have finally started showing some good results. But suddenly, Juleka is forced to retire, leaving Luka at the verge of retirement because of his need for a partner.

Can Juleka convince Luka and Marinette to give figure skating a second chance? Can they form a bond strong enough to reach the top and accomplish their dreams? Could something more than partnership spark between them?

AO3

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CHAPTER 1: Marinette

Figure skating can appeal to people for many reasons: the competitive part, the artistry, the music arrangements, the performances…

For Marinette figure skating was everything- her whole life.

When she was happy, she would love to skate. When she was sad, skating never failed to cheer her up. She was athletic, flexible and talented, gifted by both technique and artistry, as well as tenacity to work hard and never give up. Skating was an irreplaceable part of her life.

WAS.

In past tense.

Because even when it’s pleasant to watch the beautiful programs the skaters have to offer, there’s something that never changes during competitions: the scores are what really matter. Fail one element and you're screwed. Keep the program perfect but with minimum difficulty, you're off the podium. Do perfect in practice but fail in front of the judges: it's over.

This was Marinette's case.

Recently, consistency always failed her in competitions, and it had been a letdown to see how the past seasons had been going blank for her, without any outstanding accomplishment, despite her being on top almost all of her childhood. Her effort, and full potential didn’t show off on her competition results.

Marinette's parents and her coach, Miss Bustier, associated her disappointing results to her mentor’s and grandmother’s passing. But Marinette was well aware that the main reason behind her failures wasn't only how much she missed her granny; the real cause had a girl’s name: Lila Rossi.

It had already been 2 years since Lila joined her training classes under Miss Bustier's teachings. And everything had gone downhill after that.

It's not that she hadn't already been enduring bullying from Chloe Bourgeois, but Lila's bullying was at a whole different level.

The pressure, the expectations, the stress, the bullying, the injuries and damaged property, the struggle her parents went through to pay for her classes and competitions, how she had to sew her own dresses because she didn’t have the money to buy them, how she almost had no friends left... Everything piled up for years and made her finally crumble. Her skating consistency was affected and led only to constant failure.

In the end, she was exhausted, and no matter how much she loved ice skating, she reached her limit. She surpassed her limit.

Lila Rossi had won.

For two weeks now, since her last failure at a National Competition, Marinette had been skipping her skating classes. Coach Bustier was always exceptionally kind to her, and had been considerate (in her own way) this time as well, suggesting she take a few days to rest and get back again when she felt confident again.

But Marinette didn't intend to return under her coaching. Instead, she had set her mind to resign from her classes and, probably, even quit figure skating too.

She couldn’t take it anymore.

The most talented skater of the decade was seriously considering quitting skating for good. And it made her sad, but she couldn’t see any other way out of the spiral of failures she was caught in. No one was there to get her out of the dark hole she was buried in.

She certainly didn’t expect a second chance in figure skating.

_________________________________

During the days she didn't go to her classes, Marinette always spent her time at the Miraculous Ice Skate Rink, where her 'grandfather', Master Wang Fu worked as a manager, taking care of the installation and the opening and shutting down hours, along with the material to rent and the tickets for open to public times. Being her mother’s uncle, she had been babysat by him and his wife since she was a little kid. It was, in fact, Marianne Lenoir, was the one who taught Marinette the skating basics and the one who made her start practicing and love figure skating since she was 3 years old.

Marinette loved her grandparents a lot, and the passing of Miss Lenoir still pained her everyday. After her tragic loss, they became even closer, especially when Master Fu gave Marinette his late wife's earrings as a memento - he knew she would have given them to her at some point, since she loved the dark-haired girl a lot. And with no children on their own, Marinette was the closest they had to a daughter or granddaughter. Marinette had promised to treasure the earrings. They had a ladybug’s design engraved on them, only visible when light illuminated themfrom a certain angle. They were very mysterious and unique, and Marinette had loved them since her eyes had fallen on them. After becoming their owner, not even once she took them off. She felt the luck on her side as long as she wore them.

Except, that wasn’t the case anymore.

Marinette had her own theory of how Lila might have corrupted them when she touched them once, since all her luck was now gone from her side from that moment onwards.

On the ice, Marinette skated a little. But when she attempted to jump, a memory of her last competition crossed her mind and she fell down. Instead of standing up like always, she stayed seated on the floor, tears falling down her cheeks.

"Marinette! Are you ok? Did you get hurt?" asked Fu, worried. Rushing (as much as his old legs allowed him to) to aid her.

"Master-! I- I-... I can't skate anymore!" She broke down to cry even harder.

"That's not true, Marinette. You're just feeling discouraged now because of your recent results in competition. It's normal to feel like that. It will be ok"

"No Master…  It's not just competitions… It's everything… Lila, Chloe, my coach, my parents, my friends…and I miss Granny Marianne so much... I'll never be able to follow her steps now… I should just be realistic and give up..."

"Don't say that, dear. You have luck on your side. Like a ladybug. Lady Chance. You are talented enough to overcome this. I’m sure Marianne would be proud of you, even if you don't follow her steps. And you know? There's no need to compete if you don't feel like doing it. Many people just skate for fun or minor competitions. I’m sure the future has good things prepared for you. You just need to keep moving and you’ll find the right path to follow. And whatever you choose to do, we'll be proud of you. The doors to this ice rink are open for you to come whenever you want to"

That's right. She could skate without competitions. She could focus on something else and have skating as a hobby. Maybe she could make a living out of a figure skating outfit designer…

It was settled. She was quitting. And she was telling her parents tonight.

"Thank you, Master. I know what I want to do now" she answered, giving him a heartfelt hug. Fu smiled at her and patted her back a little, happy to see her smile was back on her face and how his granddaughter's tears had finally stopped.

___________________________

Marinette was very nervous when she arrived home. She tried to sneak to her room without being noticed, but her mother had been waiting for her, with a deeply worried expression on her face. Marinette gulped. 'She has probably found out I've been skipping my classes' she thought, but her mother's mind was focused on something else- more serious. Something the girl didn’t expect or could have imagined.

“Marinette. Calm down and listen to me. Are you still friends with Juleka?”

Marinette blinked: that was not the question she expected. She sighed before answering, confused about her mother’s unusual distress.

“Yes, mom. It’s been a long while since we’ve last seen or talked to each other, but she is my friend”. She paused for a second. “Why do you ask? You’re scaring me...”

Sabine Cheng took a deep breath before answering “Marinette… Juleka is at the hospital”.

Marinette’s mother’s grip on her shoulders wasn’t strong enough to keep the girl from jumping in shock, neither stopped her from panicking a second later.

“What!? What happened to her!? Is she ok!?”

“Calm down, Marinette. She’s ok. She just fainted. She…” Sabine paused, hesitating, before continuing with the explanation. “She’s been diagnosed with an eating disorder”

Marinette felt a rush of mixed feelings forming inside of her: but between sadness and worrisome, anger was the first emotion to come out of her body.

“No…! No way! I’m sure it’s all Chloé’s fault! She used to make mean comments about her body since we were little. Her ideas must have grown bigger in Juleka’s mind! Just because she was taller and larger than many of us…! And now Juleka is…! Juleka is…!”

The spiral of emotions she was feeling ended up falling in the form of tears, again, in a crying whimper. Sabine, worried for her daughter, cupped her cheek and let her cry until she calmed down a little. It was not easy for her to wait patiently to ask her what she had really wanted to know after she had heard about Juleka’s condition, but she knew the girl needed to let it out, even if it hurt her to see her daughter crying like that. It almost felt like there was something more behind the salty water spilling from her eyes, but she remained silent until her sobbing sounds ended, being engulfed by the silence of the living room. When the wait finally was over, Sabine Cheng spoke again, looking straight to her eyes.

“Marinette, I need to ask you something. And please, be honest with me" Marinette gulped and nervously nodded. "Are you eating properly? You’re not throwing it out, aren’t you? I know you’ve always been thin, but I can’t help it but worry about you… You know how common eating disorders are in figure skating… And with what happened to Juleka and how discouraged you look recently…”

Marinette tensed at her mother’s question, more offended than shocked. “Of course not, maman! I’m properly eating what you put on my plate! I would never waste what it takes you so much work. I’m grateful I always have freshly baked bread on my plate”

Marinette’s mother relaxed at her daughter's answer, hugging her.

“Good. That’s good. I’m so glad. So relieved. Thank you, Marinette”. She spoke again after breaking the hug. “I think you should pay Juleka a visit. Here’s the room number and the hospital address. You should be there for her”

“Thank you for telling me, maman. I’ll visit her tomorrow morning”, the girl said, grabbing the paper with Juleka’s hospital contact from her mother’s hand.

“Good girl. I’m proud of you”

“Thank you, maman…” the twin-tailed girl managed to answer, feeling both happy and nauseous for the trust in her mother’s eyes. The thought of seeing disappointment on her parents' face terrified her.

‘No… I definitely can’t tell my parents yet…’ she thought.

_______________________

When Marinette arrived at Juleka's hospital room, she wasn't alone. The door was partially opened and she saw a blue-haired boy standing beside her. As soon as she knocked on the door, the boy noticed her and approached, with an interrogative and sad expression on his face. He was handsome despite his sad expression, Marinette thought, distracted for a second.

"I- I'm- Juleka...?" She managed to say, and the boy just nodded.

“Juleka, you have a visitor. I’ll let you two talk privately" he said, turning his head to the girl in the bed. "Thank you for coming,” he solemnly told Marinette before leaving the room.

“Thank you” she said when getting inside, without looking at him.

It had been a while since Marinette had talked to Juleka. It had been more difficult to keep in touch after she switched to pairs skating some years ago, even if they still exchanged messages and hung out together sometimes.

“Juleka, how are you? I heard you fainted and…” Her feet moved slowly towards her friend as she greeted her, but she gasped when she saw her figure: she couldn't be healthy looking the way she did.

“Marinette. Thanks for coming” Juleka weakly smiled.

“Juleka, look at you! You look so skinny! You have to eat! You shouldn’t listen to what people or magazines say, it’s dangerous! You need to be healthy.”

“I am healthy" she assured her, but Marinette's worried eyes made her admit her problem. "But… you’re right. There’s no need for me to keep throwing out my food. I’m retiring from figure skating”

"What?" Marinette gasped, and Juleka reaffirmed her words with a nod. “Oh no, Juleka! I know you loved it… I’m so sorry for you…” The baker's daughter sympathized.

“It’s Ok, Marinette. Thank you… I’m actually more worried about my brother. We were a team and now his dream is crushed because of me… He can’t compete without a partner and… I’ve wasted everything…”

“Oh, Juleka…”, she warmly hugged her friend.

Not wanting to talk more about her eating disorder, Juleka asked Marinette a question.

“What about you, Marinette? How are things going? Are you getting closer to your dream? You were always first place no matter what! I bet you’ve been improving and setting even higher scores by now. I wouldn’t be surprised if you could even land a triple axel!”

“I can land it, actually! It’s just… for some reason I can’t seem to land any of my jumps lately during competitions… I keep failing over and over… and then there’s Chloé and Lila… You know… I’m thinking of quitting…” she said in a sigh.

“Oh no, Marinette! You can’t quit! You are the most skilled and talented skater I’ve ever seen. Your scores as a child were in another league! You are bound to make history in figure skating, I know you do. You can’t quit!”

“It’s not a matter of skill anymore, Juleka… It’s a matter of results and wasted effort. I just… I can’t do it anymore. I can’t keep my parents overworking to pay for my skating classes with me failing every single jump in competition. I can’t look at their disappointed looks every time I fail their expectations. And Lila’s bullying only keeps escalating while my coach never believes anything I say… I’m not motivated anymore. I don’t have the strength to keep trying...”

Marinette looked devastated as she spoke. Quitting figure skating couldn't make her happy. Juleka knew she would be feeling even worse than herself. She didn't like to see her friend like that.

“Are you sure, Marinette? Because I think it’s a waste. You could win an Olympic gold medal if you aimed for it. It’s just… so frustrating…”

“Juleka…”

After a long silence, Juleka set her determination and faced a surprised Marinette with a serious look on her eyes.

“No. Marinette, I can’t let you quit like that! Look at me. I’ve been forced to quit because of my condition. I wanted to keep skating! I didn’t want to stop! And yet… you say you want to quit. My brother says he wants to quit. WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!? You have no consideration for me or for yourselves!" She yelled and then paused to take a deep breath. "Marinette, look at my face and tell me again you want to quit! Can you do it?”

“I-... I want to… " Marinette paused, unable to lie. "I want to keep skating!" She finally admitted. "But I can’t anymore, Juleka! I’ve tried to endure it, I’ve tried so hard! And yet… Nothing! It’s just useless. What’s the point when I’m starting to feel that skating is not fun anymore?”

“Oh no, Marinette, you can’t say that! You can’t give up your dream so easily. Who was that skater you admired? Your grandmother? Miss Lenoir? You dreamed of being like her someday! Graceful, elegant yet strong; sliding on the ice like if you were an angel coming from heaven, announcing salvation to all the graceful public crying tears of joy at your beautiful movements. I know you can do it, Marinette. You just need something or someone to…" Juleka paused for a moment. "Wait, I… I have an idea. Why don’t you try pairs skating for a while?”

Marinette was taken aback at her friend's suggestion.

“What? What are you talking about? I told you I want to… to quit…”

“No. Listen to me. You just need to try it out. You try, and I won’t oppose you quitting if you decide to do so after you’ve tried it out.”

“What’s the deal…?”, Marinette said, unconvinced.

“I want you to take my place. I want you and my brother to help each other recover your motivation, your goals, your dreams. We just got a decent score for international competitions and I… I messed up. He did his best and improved a lot. He could score high, to the top maybe, with the right partner… and I think you’re a better fit partner than I could ever be” she said in a weak sigh.

“But- I don’t even know your brother. And I’ve never done pair skating before! And most importantly- there’s no way I could fill in your place! Nobody can! I'm sure you’re important for your brother, and he doesn’t even know me! He won’t want me to pair with him anyway” Marinette protested.

“That’s my part. I’ll convince him to give you a chance. So I need you to give pairs skating a chance, too. You both still have a second chance in figure skating. And I bet you can reach the top in a few years'', Juleka smiled. Her eyes showed conviction in her words, but Marinette had doubts.

“Are you sure he-?” she started, but Juleka cut her, knowing how the question ended.

“I’m sure. Just give it a try. For me. For our friendship. I want you to skate on my behalf. Please... I’m begging you, Marinette. Just one week. One more chance. I’m sure you won’t regret it. No, I promise you won’t”

“Ok, Juleka… I’ll do it. Just one try. No more. I’m quitting if I can’t keep it up. Or if your brother doesn’t like me…”

“He’ll like you. He just needs to meet you.” she smiled in reassurance and Marinette hugged her.

Marinette, noticing the time, broke the hug and spoke again. "I have to go now, but I’ll come again next week. Get well soon, please”

“Thank you, Marinette. For coming and for accepting my selfish request. I’ll send you a message later.”

“Of course, you are still my dear friend, Juleka. Get well soon, ok?”

“I’ll try… Thank you for coming”, she answered, waving her goodbye. ‘Now I need to convince Luka…' she thought, eyeing her friend crossing through the door.

[shadowdianne]

I!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AM SO FUCKING EXCITED. YOU DID IT!!! SDIKFGDSAFKJSA LOOK AT THEM BEING SO PRETTY AND STUPID. I LOVE Valanthe by tw, sexy gay vampire is so done (like me bb, i got you) and i really really whant to know more about mini Cassandra and Argia...but but but what about my other idea? do you like it? will you pretty please write it for lil old me? I know i'm your fave, don't listen to the other one, he aint sht _ Love, T

Hello there T. You see, there’s something that you should know about me; I hoard stories and ideas like a dragon Xd Peeps here can back me up on this. I liked your idea, a LOT, but for that one to happen I still need to smooth a few things before getting to it canon-wise with what is happening and will happen on the story. I’ll do it tho, no fret, but, for now, I was talking to M the other day with some details regarding Freya that made me go: uhm, maybe I can write something out of this. And since last time I wrote for H I thought… why not. Let’s keep the chaos going :P

So, I truly hope you like this. Which is not what you asked but, oh well, I’m a troll Xd

Ah, I’m working under the impression that M sent you or at least talked about both her ring and how did it feel for Freya to feel them all die. If she hasn’t, let me know and I’ll share that one with you.

PS: Love ya, don’t hesitate on coming to scream at me. You really make my day.

PS2: Dan, I’m so sorry Xd

-.-

She couldn’t quite place what had woken her up, mid-nightmare and a dull pain at her side, just where one of the galaxies she has made it her own, painted over her body, emitted a soft glow that bled through her fingers as she checked on it. She only could remember her own voice as she had gasped and stumbled while she freed herself from the sheets that covered her body, memories of the distant sound of cawing crows shadowing her thoughts as she had glanced at her side, recognizing not only the room but the person that rested next to her, naked form covered, fingers splayed millimeters away from where her hand had been up until a second ago.

Her thoughts had been sluggish, her breathing erratic, but she had managed to pull the strength to move to the window, just below the lover’s seat that spread from it. Muscles sore from spams she didn’t quite remember having, she grabbed one of the smaller cushions the seat had and covered enough of herself as she looked beyond the titillating lights of the city below.

It had been some time, she had thought as she grazed her side once more, flinching as if expecting for blood to pour even if the skin was as flawless as the skin of an adventurer could be since she last had a nightmare so real it had almost felt as if true. She had had them, of course, every other night after the first time, when she had considered them all dead, gloom, and twisted sorrow clouding her every step. As years passed, the nightmares and visions hadn’t become softer, but she had known when they would come if they did happen to attack her while awake.

Unless it came from combat. Unless it came from memories she couldn’t quite bottle and throw away.

She was not egocentric enough to believe herself above such nightmares now and yet, as she kept on looking at the mountains, the snow that could be glimpsed in lighter grays than the rest of the rocks that guarded the valley that led up to Whitestone, she pushed the very tip of her tongue against the velum, trying to get her heartbeat to slow down once again as snores kept on creeping from her companion.

Cassie had tended to have deep sleep when she had been younger only to transform into a lighter type of one later on in life. Now, however, as they kept on trying and trading as softly as possible into something neither of them could have ever expected to happen, that ability to wake up with the mere change of air pressure, was gone and Freya knew how much the human actually needed to rest. If it weren’t for those moments, those in where the brunette got to relax, the half-elf doubted Cassie would ever keep her sanity for much longer. Plenty of things to decide, plenty more to get right for not only herself but the town itself and what laid beyond.

She had always hated, and looked with contempt, the chains her title had meant back home, and she could feel the restlessness on Cassie’s own brow. They both needed the other, balance the everyday decisions so they didn’t feel as threatening as one direct blow against one’s lungs would mean back in battle. And, sadly, they both knew what that actually felt like. And, there was the fact that they worked well together, the companionship, the inner and outer moments in where Freya eyed Cassie and knew herself safe.

Freya sighed once more while rising her free hand and glanced at the ring that was fastened around her middle finger through the contraption the silver chain usually at her neck -now hot to the touch- managed to create. The sigils written around the band of the ring itself glowed faintly as she eyed them, the magic within the metal soft and quiet in the middle of the night. Unscrewing the chain that hugged her wrist, she saw each link of the metal dissolve and reform while, in a practiced movement, she let the ring fall from her finger as she opened it, the different bands that hugged the main one opening and creating the astrolabe she had gotten to love.

The ring fell a few inches, still secured by the now reformed chain on her wrist, the metal sizzling as she moved it until it hit the moonlight that, as pale as silver, tinted the edges of the window’s glass. Pain still irradiating from her body, she focused on the rings of metal as she forced her breathing to even out with each spin the now dangling ring created, the sound of Cassie’s breathing another one she focused herself on while she tried to keep her mind trained on every other aspect that wasn’t the wound that should have been hers to bear.

It was difficult, she thought, hair falling around her face, devoid of her usual braids, its tips tickling her naked shoulders, to relinquish to the usual self-deprecating point of view in where she blamed herself for the death of those who now rested a few stories below, under the castle’s gallows. She had come to enjoy, to love, the moments she now had, she had created, beyond the loss and fear those very moments had once built on her heart, but there were still points of quiet darkness that made her swallow as she felt a spike on her heart, a tremor she tried to calm down as the ring spun quicker and quicker with each passing second.

She could have been better, she should…

The pain on her side started to become stronger once more, her breathing labored, cold kissing her skin as heat began to radiate from her neck, choking her in the meantime. She couldn’t quite speak now, anxious anger clouding her mind. She heard her name being called, however, at the very back of her brain in an almost sleep-like tone that turned more urgent as she was called once again. Cassie’s scent, familiar now in a way that made her focus on its very sweetness, enveloped her while the brunette came into her vision field, face masked by shadows as the woman approached her, hands up, fingers circling the point in where her veins met with her wrist.

They had talked about this, about the nightmares, about the anger and loss and defeat. Cassie’s own screams similar in form whenever those hit. Yet there was always the point of exposure that made Freya want to react against it as she had done with Jericho and Ireena so many times before. Cassie, however, white and brown locks mixing in patterns Freya’s frozen eyes focused on as her breathing grew ragged,  didn’t step down and, silently, she nodded at her with the cobwebs of sleep disappearing from her eyes the longer they kept at being half-seated at the lover’s seat, the ring between them, spinning, spinning, halting.

“The tree is glowing so strong that even I can see it.” Cassie’s voice was almost conversational as if she was expecting Freya to comment on it, and the half-elf emitted a soft laugh that didn’t quite reach beyond the back of her throat. The human’s lips, however, curved and she moved her fingers up, closer now to Freya’s inner part of the elbow, as she pressed in and out of her skin. Subconsciously, Freya started to match her breathing to the movement, remembering when she had pulled a similar trick back when she had been Argia, as Cassie protested of how she felt seasick on the little boat the half-elf had managed to get for them all. Mind still cloudy, she focused on the words, on how Cassie began to describe the vein-like patterns of the tree as the mountain breeze rattled the window’s glass, as the rugged feel of the cushion on her upper thighs grounded her. What had it been what she had told Cassie then? Something about pressure points.

Time lost its meaning until she looked up, muscles easing up with each passing second, and Cassie tilted her head in answer. She wasn’t able to see in the dark as she did but enough time had passed for the human to be able to zero on her, no rush on her pupils as she nodded and waited, strong grip around her while the ring began to spin once more.

She could see how Cassie glanced up quickly at it, at the metal, the sigils, the magic, but she remained in the same position as Freya unclenched her muscles, wishing for the chain to shorten once more as, carefully and rotating within Cassie’s hold, she turned her hand, palm up, so the ring could now rest between the soft, plush meat of her fingers. Feeling Cassie’s fingers moving down once again, writing words on her skin, Freya closed her eyes and willed for not the crow but the stale taste of dead to backtrack enough for her to blink back to what stood in front of her.

She couldn’t quite place if her body moved but Cassie smiled at her the second she opened her eyes once more, voice quieter now, a barely-there whisper as she moved forward and placed her other hand at the base of her neck, three fingers pressing against her skin, trading through the hair as a kiss was deposited on her forehead.

“Hi.”

There was still a long way to go but Freya felt her body relax, moonlight gentle as she craned her neck enough to peck her way into Cassie’s cheek.

“Hey.”

[yunasightx]

So, I recently saw @rondoel was interested in hearing about Mcmercy Headcannons if Mccree and Mercy if were to have a happy ending , even if that’s not exactly how they picture their story themselves.

So, well , if anyone is interested in some Cowboy and Angel fluff (after a healthy amount of angst)) .. let me dust off the headcannons that have been collection dust for the last few years. Hope you enjoy !

Warning LONG Post / info dump incoming

Disclaimer: I headcannon Mcmercy as a slow burn couple who go from teenaged orphans who find a home in overwatch,to reluctant teammates , to friends who develop crushes , to lovers over the events of the story of Overwatch. ( there also might be a bit of fiddeling with the time line here, since Blizzard cant seem to make up their mind on how old Angela was when she was approached by Overwatch to join vs when Gabe gave Jesse his ultimatum)

Headcannon time!!

When Retribution happens Angela and Jesse (who are about 29-30 at this point) have been low-key daiting for about 7-8 years , (Because of their high profiles and responsibilities within Overwatch and Blackwatch, and because neither of them likes making a fuss about it, only the higher ranking memembers they are close to know they are together. When they are on the field, their jobs come first and they remain professional... with a few teases , flirts ,and hand holding snuck in here and there. But ultimately , getting the job done and keeping the team safe are their primary goals. ).

Before everything went to hell in a hand basket with Overwatch and Blackwatch, they started tentatively talking about next steps in their relationship. It’s no question that they wanted to stay together at this point ,but they were not in a rush for something like a wedding or kids at that moment. Jesse likes the idea to ultimenly have that one day if they can , and Angela.. doesn’t exactly hate it. It’s never been her thing before, but being with Jesse does it make her consider it .

Between the fall of the Swiss base/ disbanding of the Orignal OW and the Recall:

Jesse keeps track of when Dr Ziegler’s name is mentioned in the news , espically when Reaper starts going after former Overwatch members. He uses his contacts in the trafficking rings to get supplies to whatever relief camp or distaster she is helping with. And he’s still in contact with Genji , who he asks to make sure Angela is safe... even though the ninja is like “you know, she’s in Central America right now. You can go see her. She’s not mad at you. Well... not that mad anymore. And you know as well as I do that Angela can handel herself, you don’t have to worry about the bounty all the time. Why not set up a vacation in Fiji?”

(Ana joins in on this after Angela finds out she and jack are both alive. Jack doesn’t care because he’s never really liked the punk Gabe brought back from Route 66 and always though Angela deserved better. )

Meanwhile, Angela keeps track of every news article on Jesse being spotted and the bounty on is head for his arrest. She has a little map with marks following his sightings, and complains to Genji that he needs to be more careful. Since she moves around so often for when she is needed , she doesn’t keep many belongings — the acception beating a certain Deadlock belt buckle that was left to her and a shelf full of wooden figureines that Jesse would widdle during his downtime on missions and leave on her desk over the years. She’s the one who actually finds out about the location of Echo and through Genji and Baptise tracks down Sombra to pass the info to Jesse (in return she offers the information she knows about Moria and the basis of why she wanted her research , and possibly being able to reverse Ameile’s condition. )

Echo then gets in on this , because when Jesse told her “ They want me, but they need you.” She realizes he was talking about Angela after the others filled her in on everything that’s happened since while she was asleep. That Jesse didn’t want Angela to blame herself for what happened at the Swiss base, and the world did need Mercy again.

Post Recall:

Cue to Genji , Zen, and Ana tracking down Jesse and then pretty much dragging him and Hanzo back to the Gibraltar base — because he needs to stop being stubborn. Also cue Pharah, mei and echo telling Angela that she needs to stop being stubborn and stop avoiding him on base like an akward teen.

Eventually, they slowly start to pick up where they left off. It’s akward at first because they are still working through their own regrets and fears of letting people they cared about down, and wondering if they are on the same page while they try to figure out how to run the new Overwatch. They never stopped loving each other, but it takes time for them to find their footing again outside the battle field, espically since Jesse still has his bounty and can rarely leave the base.

Over time , Jesse naturally starts becoming the one that trains the new faces of Overwatch and eventually has his bounty lifted to where he can help lead missions , and Jack even recommends him as the new Striketeam leader ( that role he eventually passes on to Tracer in a few years ) Meanwhile, Angela works on establishing the infermary for Overwatch and working with the new supports and medics to get everything back inform to help people and fight talon.

As far as marriage or even a wedding, Angela is fine with just them understanding who they are to each other , and they don’t need a piece of paper to prove that. Jesse’s a little bit more a romanti —-nothing big and fussy , but he at least wants to exchange rings. They agree on a small ceremony on base with Reinhardt witnessing.... but, pharah, genji, Ana, echo , torb, Lena , and Brigitte go to town and end up decorating the whole base.

As far as kids .... They have their own reservations and fears about being able to be parents , but they ultimently just come to the decision to try, and if it happens it happens.

..........first try and they get landed with twins XD.

Jesse is banned from picking the names of American outlaws, so he goes with famous ones from other countries. Angela keeps going with names from one from Norse mythology ( ie: Tyr, Eri, Freya,Odin...but ABSOLUTELY no Loki.)

(Then , another little girl about two and a half years later . They also have a ranch in Montanta where they spend their downtime and have winter holidays with the overwatch crew. It’s been jesse’s project he been working on once he got off probation after joint Blackwatch)

Thanks for checking out this installment of “ when a writer who is a nerd has too much time on their hands”.