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anonymityisfunwriter · 8 months ago

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The Twin Flame - Epilogue: "The Great War"

"My hand was the one you reached for all throughout the Great War. Always remember, we're burned for better. I vowed I would always be yours, because we survived the Great War..."

Pairing: Sunshine!Reader x Grumpy!Bucky Barnes The Twin Flame Chapter List | The Grumpy x Sunshine Universe

"You can do this. It's fine. You're being silly."

He forces himself to take another deep breath. Anticipation thrums in his veins. It rolls off of him, he almost feels sorry for the poor person he sat next to on the plane.

He's practically shaking with excitement - and has been since he left his apartment back in New York. He can't really remember the last time he felt this excited.

The freshness of the Louisiana air fills his lungs as he drives with the windows down. Back to you. Back to you for the first time in months.

That's what the feeling is, he realizes.

It's the feeling of coming home.

You're right about the sky. It is really blue.

By the time he pulls up to Sarah's home, Bucky can hardly sit still. He hardly has the state of mind to remember to grab his store bought cake from the passenger seat of his rental car.

"Hey!" A familiar voice greets him. Bucky turns away from the car to see Sam's familiar grin beckoning over to him. "You made it!"

"Of course," Bucky breezily replies, the grocery store cake in his hand making it slightly easier to hide his fidgety hands. He tries not to crane his neck around Sam. He tries not to be rude and focus on what Sam's telling him.

In this moment, it's impossible for him. He can feel that inexplicable pull all over again. The ache in his chest slowly subsiding with every step closer to you.

It's almost funny to him. The disciplined solider, the highly trained assassin, the notoriously stoic Bucky Barnes, can hardly keep the giddiness of his face. He can hardly pay attention to his friend.

As Sam talks with his beaming grin and animated gestures, Bucky is sure he's at least faking it well, that Sam has no idea there's only one person Bucky is looking for at this moment.

It's clear that Bucky failed when Sam starts waving his hand in his face. "Um, Bucky?"

Bucky's head snaps back toward Sam. "Huh?"

Sam quirks a brow at Bucky, an unimpressed purse tugging at his lips, "I asked how's it going in New York."

"Oh," Bucky sheepishly exhales with a slight shrug of his shoulders. "It's fine. Same old, same old."

"You are literally not paying attention to a word I'm saying."

"Of course, I am," Bucky promises, once again, craning his neck to look around Sam. "I always listen to what you're saying."

"I think you should shave your head."

Bucky nods, still looking around the party. Still no sign of you. "Good idea."

"And can I have your arm?"

"Mhm..." Bucky hums, his eyes flickering to the house to see if there's any sign of you. "Sure, no problem."

"Stop it," Sarah scoffs, swatting Sam's shoulder.

Bucky takes a momentary break of searching for you, offering a gentle smile to Sarah. "Oh, hey, Sarah, how are you?"

"Good. Keeping busy."

"This is a great turnout. You should be proud of yourselves." He extends the store bought cake he brought to the party, "I almost forgot, I brought this for you guys."

Sam narrows his eyes, "Who are you and what have you done with Bucky?"

"Thanks, Bucky." Sarah nudges her head towards her house. "Hey, would you mind putting this in the kitchen? I wouldn't want it to melt."

"I got -" Sam begins to offer.

"Bucky," Sarah pointedly repeats, nudging her head toward the house again.

"Oh, yeah, sure!" Bucky blurts, still only half catching on to Sarah's innuendo. "I'll just - I'll be right back."

Sarah smiles widely. "Great. Thank you."

He stumbles towards the house before Sam can object again.

And the moment he starts towards that house, he can feel it. He swears he can. He can feel himself being pulled towards the house. Each step makes the ache lessen and lessen. Each step feels like his rib cage is expanding and allowing him his first real breath in months.

He looks at the roof, the night spent holding you in his arms. The flowers that create a gentle waft through the warm summer breeze. Everything feels brighter. Like for the first time, he sees all the hope the world has to offer.

There is no thought to it. His feet carry him up the steps, past the living room, past the dining room, straight to you.

You sigh as you hear the screen door slam shut and footsteps approaching the kitchen.

"Sam, for the last time, the cake will be ready when -" Your words stop dead in their tracks when you turn away from the counter to see who waits in the doorway. Those blue eyes that kept you staring at the sky day in and out. "James..."

A breath lodges in his throat as he takes in the sight of you for the first time in months. The cuts and scrapes, the knuckles bruised like violets, were all but gone. Still, he knew better than most that some scars would never heal.

And yet, you're here. Standing before him. Standing tall. With a smile that could light up this whole town. "Hi."

"Hi."

You chuckle, "You said that already."

"Right," he giggles. He couldn't believe he'd just giggled. He couldn't remember the last time he laughed, let alone giggled like an unburdened spirit. His hand anxiously rubs the back of his neck, "Hi - I mean - it's good to see you. Sorry, I just - I thought about this moment so damn much and I thought I knew what I was gonna say but - It's just - God, I missed you."

Your grin grows even wider. "I missed you too, so, so much."

"How have you - "

You don't wait for him to finish his question. You rush forward, pulling him down towards you. Your lips meet his in pure desperation, you need this like you need to breathe. Your fingers twist around the hair at the nape of his neck as his find your waist. He pulls you flush against him, his fingertips digging into your hips.

Despite how desperate and frenzied the kiss is, there's a sense of relief, of calm, of peace that accompanies it. It feels like you can breathe, a full deep breath after months of treading water.

After months of rebuilding, you've finally found your way back home.

"What a great way of telling me to shut up," Bucky chuckles against your lips. "You should do it again."

"Hold that thought," you sigh against Bucky's mouth.

Bucky quirks an eyebrow at you. "What?"

"AJ, Cass, Get out here..." You look over Bucky's shoulder to just beyond the doorway. "What are you guys doing?"

Sure enough, the two boys appear, meekly shuffling into the kitchen. "Nothing..."

"You're doing nothing? Really?"

"Uh..." Cass stutters out.

You lower yourself to each of the boys, your eyes playfully flickering between the two of them, "So who's gonna tell me what you two are up to?"

"Uncle Sam said he'd give us twenty bucks if we came to bother you," Cass blurts.

"He told us not to tell them!" AJ scolds his brother.

"Oh," you smirk, crossing your arms over your chest. "Did he?"

The boys both look down at their shoes with an apologetic, pouting expression. "We're sorry."

"Oh no, don't be sorry," you assure them. "Did he give you guys 20 dollars each?"

The boys shake their heads. "No."

"How about this? I'll give you guys 20 dollars each if you tell Sam that you saw Bucky going upstairs."

"Each?" they marvel.

"Each."

"Why'd you do that?" Bucky asks as the two boys scurry off to find Sam.

"You'll see."

Sam runs in only moments later, skidding to a halt when he sees you and Bucky standing in the kitchen. "Oh... hey, guys. What's up?"

You cross your arms over you chest, your lips pursing in distaste. "Nothing, just had an interesting conversation with AJ and Cass."

"Oh, okay," Sam excessively nods, feigning innocence.

"Sending children to spy on us," you admonish, tsking once. "That's low."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Sam lies, defiantly lifting his chin.

"They sold you out, Sam."

Sam's mouth gapes slightly. "For how much?"

"20 bucks each."

"Damn it," Sam hisses. "You know, I used to be able to bribe the both of them with a 5."

You point to the front door. "Get out."

Sam narrows his eyes, flicking two fingers between his gaze and Bucky's. "Fine... but I'm watching you."

"You know, I'm starting to get why you don't like Sam," you joke.

Bucky groans in relief, resting a hand on your waist. "It's about time."

You pat his chest once, your hand sliding down his arm to his hand. You lace your fingers with his and jut your chin in toward the back door. "Come on, let's go out back. I wanna show you something."

"What do you wanna show me?"

"You'll see," you coyly reply.

You lead him out the back door, following a path of carefully paved stone lined with wildflowers of all kinds. The smell of the flowers waft through the summer breeze once more. And just like before, the day seems brighter with you by his side.

As the path comes to an end, it splays out into an open circular garden brimming with vibrant colors, brimming with life.

In the very center, a willow tree with full, cascading leaves, standing tall surrounded by the most striking flowers he's ever seen.

You'd spent months working on it. A way to forgive. A way to say goodbye. A way to honor those fallen. And then finally, a way to move forward carrying the love and grief of your found family. "They're-"

"Poppies," Bucky finishes for you. The most strikingly red poppies he'd ever seen. The flower of remembrance, if Bucky remembers correctly.

He wasn't sure if it was the sun or simply the high of being so close to you after so long, but they almost looked like they were glowing in the afternoon light.

His breath catches in his throat. The stones beneath his feet merge into a singular path. Still holding his hand, you guide him around the garden.

While he wasn't by any stretch of the imagination a flower person, he was struck by the vivid blues of the small path of flowers at the very end of the path.

The same color of that bright blue afternoon sky. The sky that reminded you of your twin flame. No matter how far apart, no matter how much time passed, he'd always be there. As unwavering, as bright eyed as the vast blue sky. "Those are forget me nots."

"It's beautiful," he whispers.

"It's a memory garden."

"You did all this?"

"Well, Sam helped with the stones and that little table over there, but I - I wanted to do it alone. I wanted to mourn them. I even picked different flowers for all them."

"You took the bad and turned it into something good."

It felt like a lifetime ago that you said those words to him. Your silent vow to your caretaker - that you would leave the world better than you entered it, that you would take the bad and turn it into something good.

It was the same vow you made to each and every member of your family, whether they were gone or simply lost, that you would turn the ache of grief into something good.

"You remember that?"

"Of course I did. I remember everything about you."

The words leave his lips so casually, like there is no other choice, all roads lead back to you.

You find yourself momentarily at a loss for words, struck by Bucky's words. He really did remember. Those little, fleeting, stolen moments really meant as much to him as it did to you.

"We can sit here," you manage to rasp out, gesturing to the wooden picnic table at the end of the cobblestone path. "It'll be at least a few minutes before Sam finds us out here."

His hand rests on the center of the picnic table as he takes a seat across from you. "So?"

Your hand slides towards his, but you don't hold his hand. You stroke his fingers, circling and toying with his middle finger until you move onto the next finger. It's your habit, Bucky knows from seeing you twiddle and twist your fingers for years, but instead of reaching for your hand, you reach for his. You use him to ground yourself.

You smile up at him with a small shrug of your shoulders, "So?"

"I guess I'm a little curious," Bucky wonders. Sure, you hadn't completely lost touch with Bucky in these months, but you both gave each other the space to work things out. "Things seem like they're really working out."

"I'm hopeful."

"Me too." He can't remember the last time he said that word: hopeful. He doesn't remember the last time he truly, genuinely felt that either. Sitting here, with you, basking in the sun, that's exactly the feeling that swells in his ribcage. Hope. Hope with more on the horizon.

"Yeah... that lawyer, Matt, is great. He really helped us out. I know it's not over yet, but I think we're finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. They called me to testify in front of the Senate next week."

His shoulders tense as he hears the words leave your mouth in such a casual tone. "Wait, what?"

"Matt thinks it'll work in our favor," you explain. "He says it's no good hiding anymore. That - that people think I'm a hero, that they'll take my side."

Bucky's eyebrows furrow, his jaw squaring as he takes it all in. "You're putting a lot of trust into this guy, aren't you?"

"Sounds like someone is a little jealous," Sam sarcastically mutters from behind Bucky.

"Guess he found us again," Bucky grumbles.

You reach across the table to grab Bucky's hand. "Don't be jealous. Matt's a good guy, but I won't lie, there was something a little off about him."

Bucky's eyebrows pull in. "Like what?"

You shrug. "I don't know."

"Maybe it's the fact that he's a blind vigilante that wanders around Hell's Kitchen on his off time," Sam deadpans, taking a seat beside you.

"No..." You shake your head, your mouth twisting as you try to place what exactly you found so strange about Matt Murdock. "I don't think that was it. I think it was his friend. He was nice, but what kind of name is Foggy?"

"What kind of name is Bucky?" Sam counters.

"I like his name, thank you very much," you retort.

Bucky can barely appreciate your defense of name as he tries to process everything that you and Sam have just thrown at him. "So you're telling me that you two have spent all this time with some vigilante-slash-lawyer and a guy named Foggy?"

"Exactly," you and Sam simultaneously reply.

Bucky takes a deep breath in, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I forgot how exhausting it is keeping up with you guys."

Sam snorts, "And that's not even the half of it."

"What more could there possibly be?"

"You're forgetting about Karli," Sam points out.

"Right," Bucky nods. "So where is she these days?"

"That's what Joaquin was doing after everything that happened in New York," Sam replies. "Apparently, it's not easy to find a safe place for one of the world's most wanted fugitive."

Bucky scoffs, "No kidding."

"She's somewhere safe. Somewhere we they can help her, teach her."

"I've visited her a few times. It's pretty cool. They call it a school for gifted kids, and it's actually like a real school," you explain, a look of wonder and awe shining in your eye. "They've got teachers to help with the powers. There's other kids that are like her. It's - it's the kind of place I would've really liked to grow up in."

That only leads him to yet another one of your many loose ends left to tie up. "Speaking of, no word from Fury?"

You take a large gulp of air. "Sorta."

"Really?" Bucky gapes.

"Well, we still have no idea where he is or how to get in touch with him. Plus, he's as cryptic as ever."

You sit on the dock, palms turned over in your lap, timing your breathing with the lapping waves below your feet. Sam clears his throat, "I have something for you."

Your shut eyes furrow at him, "Sam, I swear if it's another self help book-"

"Will you just look?"

You creak an eye open to see a thick, white envelope in Sam's hands, "What is that?"

"I don't know. It just showed up here, but look." You take the envelope from Sam, looking closely at the crisp white paper. On the corner, emblazoned on the envelope were the initials N.J.F.

"Do you think..?"

"I wouldn't put it past him. He was always a cryptic asshole," Sam shrugs. "I'll just give you a minute."

"No," you stop him. Though you were both at fault for Sam's absence on the day you returned to the place from before, you wanted him here for this. You wanted him here with you. You were ready to rebuild your found family once more. "Stay with me, please."

He smiles down at you, "I'll stay."

Both you and Sam wait with bated breath as you carefully tear the envelope open. On the inside resides a manila envelope with hundreds of pages neatly tucked inside.

"What is that?"

"I think it's your file," Sam replies. "I recognize it from when Fury first asked me to be your handler. It was a hell of a lot thinner back then."

"Do you know what's in it?"

"No idea. He showed me the first few pages and that's it. The rest was top secret."

You flip through pages and pages. You immediately recognize the handwriting occupying most of the pages, the handwriting of Nick Fury himself.

Pages and pages of his writings. All of them marked with his own thoughts, things he never told you, things you never knew.

'Intelligent... lacks even the most basic social skills.'

'Eager to learn. Even more eager to help.'

'Pierce has dubbed her SHIELD's greatest asset. The antithesis to the fist of HYDRA...'

"The fist of HYDRA?" you ask.

"The Winter Solider - they called him the fist of HYDRA. Funny how that worked out."

The next line that catches your eye, you read aloud, "I fear for her. I fear she's too soft for it all. Every day, I come to the realization that she is not built for this line of work. Every day, I fear she has less and less of a choice."

There's something about that line in particular that hurts more than anything else. Nick was the one person that believed in you from the moment he met you. And even he doubted you could handle it all. "He didn't think I could handle it."

"No, he just thought you were meant for more," Sam objects.

You offer a small smile at Sam as you continue flipping to through the file. "Why do you think he sent this? Why now?"

"Look at that, on the last page," Sam points out.

"It's a note," you whisper.

"I'm still rooting for you. Even from afar." - Nicholas J. Fury.

"So you haven't talked to him."

"Not exactly," you admit. "He sent some old files over."

"He made contact by sending you his old junk," Bucky surmises.

"I think it was his way of reminding me that I'm not alone, that he's still here, somewhere."

At least, that's what you believed. You believed that in his own Nick Fury way, he cared about you. In his own way, he might've seen you as a daughter as much as you saw him as a father.

And someday, you hoped you could tell him that.

That only reminded you of yet another thing you had yet to fill Bucky in. You weren't even sure how to tell him, or if he'd look at you and think you were crazy.

In the days after coming home, you spent hours ruminating over those flashes of memories. Memories of Tony, Natasha, and Steve. A moment in the Compound that you were sure never actually happened, but felt so intimately real.

It was Steve's words reminding you that Nick Fury cared about you that made receiving that package from Nick easier.

You decided that it was real. Every part of it. Somehow. Some way. The universe had gifted you one final goodbye, one last moment with those you held so dear.

It was as real as the friendship you and Tony had despite those dark moments. It was as real as Steve's familiar scent filling your nose as he apologized for hurting you. As real as the way Natasha held you while telling you that you changed Karli's story.

You didn't know how or why, but you were gifted one last moment with each of them. And there was nothing more real than the love you would always have for your found family.

You decide that's a story for another time.

You smile at Sam, then at Bucky, "Things really worked out for us, didn't they?"

"It's about damn time," Bucky grunts.

The Louisiana air fills your lungs as you look up to the sun, basking in the feeling of the warmth and sunshine bathing you. "I'll never get tired of the Sunshine."

Bucky watches you for a long moment. It was a sight to behold. Watching you stare up at the sky once more. He couldn't count how many times he'd prayed to anyone who would listen that he would get to witness that one last time.

All the times he saw you stare at the floor, bogged down by everything that tried to dim your brightness. He always wished you would stare up at the sky just one more time.

In his experience, people always looked worse in the light. People shied away from the light for fear of seeing all the cracks in the foundation, all the darkness that lurked beneath. You didn't have that problem.

And for someone like him, someone deprived of light for so long, he was glad that he could finally bask in the warmth. He was glad he finally stepped into the daylight.

As you sat before him, head thrown back, a smile planted on your face, he swears he's never seen you look more free, more at peace. He would never get tired of Sunshine either. "Me neither."

Sam gently pats your shoulder, rising from his seat, "Well, now that we're all caught up, we should head back before Sarah starts a search party."

"Why don't you go and we'll be right behind you?" Bucky sarcastically offers.

"Ha, ha," Sam stiltedly laughs, shooting Bucky a glare. "Not a chance."

"Come on, James." You extend a hand to Bucky, nudging your chin towards the house. "That way we can tell Sarah that Sam was using AJ and Cass to spy on us."

Bucky takes your hand, smirking at Sam, "That's a great idea."

"So this is how it's gonna be now? You and Bucky... and Sam?" Sam calls as you and Bucky start walking back to the house. "You guys are terrible friends!"

"Did you hear something?" you sarcastically ask Bucky.

He smirks over his shoulder. "No, not a thing."

"You guys could at least wait for me!" Sam calls as you three walk back through the house. "You know, I thought it would take longer for you two to forget about me."

"There you guys are," Sarah playfully exclaims as walk down the porch steps. "I was about to send a search party for you."

"Told you so," Sam smugly remarks.

"Would it be morally wrong to push him off the dock?" Bucky audibly wonders.

"Hmm..." You rest your hand on his arm, guiding him away from Sam and the dock, "I want to say no, but I'm leaning towards yes."

The day passes with a lightness that none of you have felt in quite some time. And while you all know that all of your problems hadn't been solved quite yet, there is no foreboding sense of doom building along the horizon. It feels right.

For the first time in a long time, you feel whole.

Sitting across from Sam, beside Bucky, gorging on food, the smell of the fresh water and the sounds of kids running around, it feels like you're finally in the right place at the right time. And perhaps most importantly, with people you could call yours.

You rest your head on Bucky's shoulder. "So what about you?"

Though he'd deny it for the rest of his life, Sam smiles at the sight of peace that flashes on Bucky's face as you curl against him.

Bucky hums thoughtfully, "Honestly, it's been quiet. Mostly therapy. I told Yuri about his son."

"How did he take it?"

"About as well as you'd expect," Bucky solemnly responds, his mouth twisting as he recalls the heartbroken look on Yuri's face when he told him about his son's death. "But he knows, he doesn't have to wonder anymore."

You lace your fingers with his, gently squeezing his hand, "I knew you would do the right thing. You always do."

You end the day sitting beside Bucky on the dock you'd spent so many days sitting and staring up at the sky wishing for this very moment. The moment that brought you back to him, finally back to him.

While flashes of the battle may always come back to you in a blur, you could also see all the light the future held for you. At last, all of you, all of him intertwined.

And in this moment in time, your little found family, you had all finally found your peace.

As the sun sets over the horizon, you rest your head on Bucky's shoulder, melted into his embrace. "Sometimes, I can't believe it."

Bucky looks down at you. "What?"

"That we survived. That we're here. Together. For a long time, I thought I'd lost you. I really thought I'd lost you."

"You couldn't lose me," he promises. He stares at you in awe as you watch the sun sink beneath the horizon. And in that moment, he knows, he's finally found his way back to you. His soul, his heart had found its rightful place in this world. And whatever the future might hold, at least he'd have you by his side. "Not then. Not now. Not ever. It's you and me."

"Ahem..." Sam clears his throat from behind where you and Bucky sit.

You sigh, rolling your eyes. "And Sam too."

"If you insist," Bucky grunts.

"It's me and you." It's more than a promise, it's an unspoken vow. A vow to always find your way back to him. A vow to reach for his hand even in times of darkness. A vow to always be his.

You intertwine your fingers with his, squeezing his hand three times, "It's me and you."

Bucky Barnes Masterlist Inspired by Taylor Swift Series

And that's (officially) a wrap on The Twin Flame. Thank you all so much for joining me on this journey. I love you all. 💛 (Stay tuned, dear readers, I've got some extras coming your way…)

As always, let me know what you think! Reblogs and comments are always appreciated! 💛

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gl1tchr · 3 months ago

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Gotham City Limits Rogue Bios

These are the same little lore dumps from my original post, but as text so they can be more easily read/accessible!!! Since it's huge blocks of text, I'm sticking them all under a divider, and I'll update this post when I finish more rogues!!

Jonathan Crane, "Scarecrow"

Jonathan Carter Crane was born and raised in Louisiana by his heavily religious grandmother after the passing of his parents. As a child, her fire and brimstone preaching struck immense fear in him, especially when she would claim his mother was burning in Hell for being Protestant and not Catholic. As he grew older, he was not swayed to belief by her teachings, and would silently reject the faith while he still relied on her. At 23, Crane received his Bachelor’s in Psychology and one of his professors would pull some strings to get him into a Master’s program at Gotham University. Crane would bury himself in his education, and the study of the human mind would become his one comfort in life. He went on to earn his Master’s and PhD in Psychology, deciding to remain in Gotham to teach. While he attempted to find contentment in his life in Gotham, Crane found himself increasingly obsessed with fear, which affected his teaching, hitting a rut in his 30s.

When a mugger attempted to rob him one night, Crane pulled a gun on him. The mugger revealed he was not armed, and only had a flashlight in his pocket to look like a gun. Crane grabbed the man and forced the gun to his temple, taking immense joy in the terror he had caused the young criminal. After setting him loose, Crane came to the realization that he was meant to instill fear in others the way his grandmother had done to him, and became the Scarecrow. He would don his frightening costume, inspired by undertakers, highwaymen, and, of course, scarecrows, to terrorize criminals - or anyone he deemed worthy of punishment - with his signature Fear Toxin. This outlet has allowed him to continue teaching undistracted, though it won’t be long before his double lives converge and he can no longer separate Jonathan Crane from the Scarecrow.

Edward Nashton, "The Riddler"

Edward Theodore Nashton is a Gotham native, the lone son to parents who had very little affection for one another before he was even born. When he was, their relationship became even more tumultuous, leading to a divorce in Edward’s childhood. While his mother remained the same, his father deteriorated into severe alcoholism and would abuse him both emotionally and physically. He tried to tell his mother about the abuse that occurred when he went to his father’s, but she didn’t listen, and nothing was ever done. For much of his life, Edward would feel he simply wasn’t heard. In his teens, Edward began toying with cybernetics and discovered a knack for programming. The more he learned, his pace increased, finding it difficult to fill his time with as much stimulation as he possibly could to quell the volume of his mind. In his 20s, Edward would work for a short time at a cybersecurity company before becoming bored again. He would attend college at Harvard, earning his Master’s in Business Administration, specializing in finance. This allowed him to work freelance, offering accounting to whomever he wished to work with. Unfortunately, he would find himself unsatisfied once again, feeling as though the things he was doing weren’t enough.

Edward eventually realized he could be selling the information he learned from his work, making him an incredible asset for insider dealings. Much of his early criminal behavior was white-collar crime, however, as he became entrenched in the lifestyle, he began dealing with more and more shady individuals, including organized crime. Realizing he would need a more legitimate source of income to cover his tracks, Edward got his teaching certificate and began working at Gotham University teaching finance. In this way, he has been able to control a great deal of Gotham’s criminal underbelly from the comfort of his classroom, and with the safety of anonymity.

Jervis Tetch, "Mad Hatter"

Jervis Benjamin Tetch is the youngest of seven siblings, and the son of two professors of science at Oxford University. While his older siblings excelled in the sciences, Tetch was drawn to the arts. While his parents didn’t outright shame him for this, they showed little interest in encouraging his creative endeavors, often drilling him about the difficulties those in the arts faced in having successful careers. Feeling as though he would never get the attention he wanted from his family, he decided to finish his studies abroad in the states. With his grades, he was able to get a full-ride scholarship to Gotham University, where he would be enrolled for only two years.

During his time in college, Tetch would fall into a deep depression. Feeling isolated with no support system, he turned to recreational drug use to get through school. This drug use would fuel a bizarre infatuation with the story Alice in Wonderland, which he used for inspiration for many of his projects for class. He would also begin acting strangely, his classmates reporting he’d become oddly talkative and outgoing in the weeks leading up to the horrific murders he would commit. Allison Wells would be the frequent target of his odd behavior, reporting to several of her friends she felt unsafe around him. Eventually, Allison would inform Jervis she was seeing someone, and her friends would confront him outside of class demanding that he leave her alone. After a particularly aggressive episode, Jervis would drug and kidnap Allison, her boyfriend, and her three friends, holding them captive in an abandoned building near the school for several days before slowly picking them off, ending with Allison. Jervis is currently serving multiple life sentences in Arkham for quintuple homicide.

#gotham city limits #jonathan crane #edward nashton #jervis tetch #scarecrow #riddler #mad hatter

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stawpny · 1 month ago

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random states and their genre of music they would listen to

New York: punk rock (musicals..)

Massachusetts: dad rock (90’s) or like that one Irish song I have no idea the name of

California: pop (mainly 2000’s but he’ll play popular songs occasionally)

Texas: capitalist country

Florida: absolutely anything

Louisiana: southern jazz (did u know there’s a house in New Orleans)

Illinois: Midwest emo (The Front Bottoms, Modern Baseball, all of it)

New Jersey: indie folk (the crane wives is all I can see him listen to)

Alaska: noah kahan and Hozier

Connecticut: entirety of the yacht rock station

Washington: grunge rock

Gov: only listens to horrible pop songs they play on the radio

Nevada: ayesha erotica

Virginia: classical fella

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whitesinhistory · 4 months ago

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A post shared by I Dissent 🇵🇸🔻🍉 (@katie.blue.is.the.feeling)

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So the Republicans are trying to shut down the government to damage their own states so that they make the Democrats look bad before the election… Is that the game plan they’re going with?

Here is the full list of Republicans who voted against the stopgap bill to prevent a government shutdown in September 2024:

Indiana: James R. Baird, Jim Banks, Rudy Yakym III, Victoria Spartz

Ohio: Troy Balderson, Warren Davidson, Jim Jordan, Max L. Miller

Florida: Aaron Bean, Gus M. Bilirakis, Kat Cammack, Byron Donalds, Matt Gaetz, Anna Paulina Luna, Cory Mills, Bill Posey, Michael Waltz, Daniel Webster

Texas: Michael Cloud, Tony Gonzales, Lance Gooden, Morgan Luttrell, Nathaniel Moran, Chip Roy, Keith Self, Randy Weber Sr., Beth Van Duyne, Roger Williams

Arizona: Andy Biggs, Elijah Crane, Paul A. Gosar, Debbie Lesko, David Schweikert

North Carolina: Dan Bishop

Colorado: Lauren Boebert

Illinois: Mike Bost, Mary E. Miller, Darin LaHood

Oklahoma: Josh Brecheen

Tennessee: Tim Burchett, John W. Rose, Andrew Ogles

Missouri: Eric Burlison

Georgia: Andrew S. Clyde, Mike Collins, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Richard McCormick

Utah: John R. Curtis

South Carolina: Jeff Duncan, Russell Fry, Nancy Mace, Ralph Norman, William R. Timmons IV

Kansas: Ron Estes, Tracey Mann

Mississippi: Mike Ezell, Michael Guest, Trent Kelly

Iowa: Randy Feenstra

Minnesota: Brad Finstad, Michelle Fischbach

Idaho: Russ Fulcher

Virginia: Bob Good, H. Morgan Griffith

Wyoming: Harriet M. Hageman

Maryland: Andy Harris

Louisiana: Clay Higgins

Pennsylvania: John Joyce, Scott Perry

West Virginia: Alexander X. Mooney

California: Tom McClintock

Kentucky: Thomas Massie

Montana: Matthew M. Rosendale Sr.

New York: Claudia Tenney

Wisconsin: Thomas P. Tiffany, Derrick Van Orden

New Jersey: Jefferson Van Drew

Alabama: Barry Moore, Gary J. Palmer

Arkansas: Bruce Westerman

Why is this important to me? I would have been out of a job. Government contractors would rather cut you and rehire you for less pay or benefits. Also, if I miss 1 or 2 paychecks I will be homeless.

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camisoledadparis · 3 months ago

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THIS DAY IN GAY HISTORY

based on: The White Crane Institute's 'Gay Wisdom', Gay Birthdays, Gay For Today, Famous GLBT, glbt-Gay Encylopedia, Today in Gay History, Wikipedia, and more … October 29

Iolaus and Heracles mosaic

1000+ BC – Iolaus was a Theban divine hero, son of Iphicles and Automedusa. He was famed for being Heracles's nephew and for helping with some of his Labors, and also for being one of the Argonauts. Through his daughter Leipephilene he was considered to have fathered the mythic and historic line of the kings of Corinth.

As a son of Iphicles, Iolaus was a nephew of Heracles. He often acted as Heracles' charioteer and companion. He was popularly regarded as Heracles's lover, and the shrine to him in Thebes was a place where male couples worshiped and made vows.

Iolaus (L) and Heracles (R) united by Eros

The Theban gymnasium was also named after him, and the Iolaeia, an athletic festival consisting of gymnastic and equestrian events, was held yearly in Thebes in his honor. The victors at the Iolaea were crowned with garlands of myrtle.

Iolaus provided essential help to Heracles in his battle against the Hydra, his second labor. Seeing that Heracles was being overwhelmed by the multi-headed monster (the Lernaean Hydra), who grew two heads in place of each one cut off, Iolaus sprang to help, cauterizing each neck as Heracles beheaded it.

1618 – Sir Walter Raleigh was executed on this date (b.1552). The famed English writer, poet, courtier and explorer was responsible for establishing the second English colony in the New World (after Newfoundland was established by Sir Humphrey Gilbert nearly one year previously, August 5 1583), on June 4, 1584, at Roanoke Island in present-day North Carolina.

The question for us here is this: Was Sir Walter Raleigh Christopher Marlowe's lover? Anything is possible, especially when so little is known about both. For many years, this provocative possibility has been suggested, even though it is based entirely on speculation. Marlowe wrote a poem titled, "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love," which begins with the charming invitation "Come live with me and be my love." A twin poem, "The Nymph's Reply to The Shepherd," appeared shortly thereafter, and there is little doubt that it was written by Raleigh out of love for Marlowe.

1931 – Clyde Hicks of North Carolina (official fucker!) was stationed in Hawaii, arrested on sodomy charges and sentenced to six years in prison. He was transferred to Alcatraz where he was put into solitary confinement for passing a note to another man. He was released in 1935.

Wayne Winterrowd (L) & Joe Eck

1941 – Wayne Winterrowd, American gardening expert and designer who wrote extensively on the subject, was born (d.2010). The garden Winterrowd and his partner built covered 7 acres at their Vermont home and became a tourist attraction to visitors from around the world.

Winterrowd, who was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, started gardening when he was three years old and read widely on the subject while he was growing up. Visits to an aunt who lived near Lake Pontchartrain helped him learn about gardening and he developed an interest in tropical plants on family trips to Florida and Cuba.

While teaching Jacobean literature at Tufts University in 1969, he first met Joe Eck, and they lived together in Denmark where Winterrowd had earned a Fulbright scholarship.

Together with Eck, Winterrowd learned as much as they could about gardening and earned a living by teaching English, French and Latin at area elementary and high schools. They spent the 1960s and 1970s as part of the homegrown food movement.

Moving from a farmhouse in Pepperell, Massachusetts to Readsboro, Vermont, Winterrowd and Eck devoted themselves to creating the North Hill garden, in which they grew Himalayan blue poppies, Japanese dogwoods, locust trees, magnolia, and stewartias. They cleared the hilly wooded land they had acquired, planting a diverse variety of plants, including as many as 100,000 daffodil bulbs. The garden drew visitors from around the world to their home in Southern Vermont near the Massachusetts border.They also grew fresh vegetables and raised dairy cows, pigs and poultry. Roger Swain, host of the Public Broadcasting Service television series The Victory Garden said "Their garden is of such quality and diversity that it rivals any in Europe. But there is nothing derivative about North Hill; it is American gardening at its best", with Fergus Garrett crediting Winterrowd and Eck with being "one of the driving forces in North American horticulture."

Winterrowd and Eck traveled across the United States and Canada to design customized gardens for their customers.

Winterrowd and Eck were joined in a civil union in 2000 and were married in 2009 after Vermont legalized same-sex marriage. Winterrowd died at age 68 on September 17, 2010, at his home in Readsboro, Vermont due to heart failure. He was survived by Eck and by a son they adopted.

The Swiss Guards in traditional uniform.

1954 – Alois Estermann (d.1998) was a senior officer of the Swiss Guard who was murdered in his apartment in the Vatican City.

Estermann was born in Gunzwil, in the Canton of Lucerne. In 1998 he was appointed as Commander of the Pontifical Swiss Guard.

According to official Vatican statements, Estermann and his Venezuelan wife, Gladys Meza Romero, were killed in May 1998 by a young Swiss Guard Cédric Tornay, who later committed suicide. Estermann, formerly acting commander of the Swiss Guard, had been confirmed in his position the same day. Tornay had earlier been reprimanded for breaches of discipline and had been passed over for a medal routinely awarded to Guards after three years of service.

The British journalist, John Follain, undertook extensive interviews with key witnesses to the murders to inform his book, City of Secrets: The Truth behind the murders at the Vatican (2006). Follain dismisses speculation that Estermann, his wife, and Tornay were murdered by an external fourth party or that Estermann was a spy for the former East German government.

Follain's research indicated that Cédric Tornay did indeed kill his commander, and his commander's wife before turning the gun on himself. Tornay found the running of the Swiss Guard archaic, and resented the dominance of the Swiss German majority contingent. Tornay turned to Alois Estermann for affection, and enjoyed a short homosexual affair. Their relationship deteriorated into acrimony as Tornay realised that Estermann had betrayed him with another guard. Estermann's close links to the Opus Dei movement, and his final refusal to award the benemeriti medal for 3-years service led to further frustration and Tornay's ultimate decision to kill Estermann.

Pope John Paul II personally celebrated Estermann's Funeral Mass in the church of Saints Martin and Sebastian.

1985 – Gio Benitez is an American broadcast journalist and correspondent for ABC News, who appears on Good Morning America, World News Tonight, 20/20, and Nightline. He also hosts the Fusion version of Nightline. He has won two television news Emmy awards.

Benitez was born in Miami, Florida to Cuban parents. He is a 2004 graduate of Miami Coral Park High School. In 2008, Benitez graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and Sociology from Florida International University. He is fluent in both English and Spanish.

Benitez joined ABC News in 2013. He has covered a wide range of stories for the network, including the Boston Marathon bombing; The Alabama child held hostage underground in an eight-day standoff; the American mother stuck in a Mexican jail and nearly every major snow storm that swept the nation during the winter of 2013.

Before joining ABC News in 2013, he was a reporter for WFOR, the CBS owned-and-operated TV station in Miami, where he covered the 2012 Presidential election and reported extensively on the Trayvon Martin case.

Benitez married longtime partner Tommy DiDario in front of family, friends, and ABC News colleagues inside the historic Walton House in Miami, Florida in April 2016.

Gio Benitez with husband Tommy DiDario

1989 – Under the headline "Peek-a-Boo," New York's Outweek magazine publishes a list of 66 celebrities and public figures who are allegedly gay but closeted. The article marks the beginning of controversial "outing" by some gay activists.

1995 – On this date in Iran, a 31 year old man was convicted of "ugly and improper conduct" and sentenced to twenty lashes for cross-dressing.

1997 – U.S. Congressman Barney Frank introduced a bill calling for the extension of health insurance coverage to the domestic partners of US federal employees through the federal employee health program.

2011 – Died: Axel Axgil (b.1915), Danish gay activist. Axel and Eigil Axgil (b.1922 - d.1995) were a longtime couple. They were the first gay couple to enter into a registered partnership anywhere in the world following Denmark's legalisation of same-sex partnership registration in 1989, a landmark legislation which they were instrumental in bringing about. They adopted the shared surname, Axgil, a combination of their given names, as an expression of their commitment.

Axel, born Axel Lundahl-Madsen, and Eigil, born Eigil Eskildsen, inspired by the 1948 UN Declaration of Human Rights, together with several friends, founded F-48 or Forbundet af 1948 (The Association of 1948), Denmark's first gay rights organization. By 1951, F-48's membership had grown to 1,339 and there were branches in Sweden and Norway. In 1985, F-48 became the Danish National Association of Gays and Lesbians (Landsforeningen for Bøsser og Lesbiske, Forbundet af 1948 or LBL). The couple launched a magazine, Vennen (The Friend).

In 1989, Denmark became the first nation in the world to recognize domestic partnerships for same-sex couples. On October 1, 1989, the Axgils and 10 other Danish couples were married by Tom Ahlberg, the deputy mayor of Copenhagen, in the city hall, accompanied by worldwide media attention. The Axgils had been a couple for 40 years.

Eigil Axgil died on September 22, 1995 at the age of 73. Axel Axgil died on October 29, 2011 at the age of 96.

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noirapocalypto · 9 months ago

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ᴏᴄ ᴅɪᴄᴛɪᴏɴᴀʀʏ & ɴᴀᴠɪɢᴀᴛɪᴏɴ

─── ᴀꜱ ᴅᴜꜱᴋ ꜰᴀʟʟꜱ

Set in the futuristic year of 2077--we follow the stories of various individuals from all backgrounds and origins, as they navigate living and surviving among gang wars, shady corporate dealings, and seedy, supernatural underground networks.

Genre: Urban Fantasy | Cyberpunk | Horror Sources: Cyberpunk 2077 | True Blood | Original Concepts

✧ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴀɪɴ ᴄᴀꜱᴛ ✧

SVLEM | 29 ✦ Warlock ✦ Rapper, Music Producer ✦ Black Mage Records, The Hales

lore | vp | aesthetic

Judah DuBois | 30 ✦ Demon ✦ CEO of Argent Media ✦ The Dubois

lore | vp | aesthetic

Embry Ellis Knight | 32 ✦ Lycan ✦ Smuggler, Mercenary ✦ The Knights

lore | vp | aesthetic

Paolo Velasquez | 28 ✦ Lycan ✦ Mercenary, Drug Dealer ✦ Independent

lore | vp | aesthetic

Paola Velasquez | 28 ✦ Lycan ✦ Mercenary ✦ Independent

lore | vp | aesthetic

Renato Ventura | 31 ✦ Werewolf ✦ Gang Leader ✦ [ gang name pending ]

lore | vp | aesthetic

✧ ꜱᴜᴘᴘᴏʀᴛɪɴɢ ᴄᴀꜱᴛ ✧

Casey Hale ✦ Bastien 'Baz' Clermont ✦ Alec 'Tyrant' LeBlanc ✦ Darcy Hale ✦ Silas Hale ✦ Frida Montoya ✦ Amirah ✦ Beckett Hale ✦ Archer Crane ✦ Avis Hale-Crane ✦ Noah Hale ✦ Maeve Hale ✦ Shay Morrissey ✦ Elliot Crane

✧ ᴡᴏʀʟᴅʙᴜɪʟᴅɪɴɢ & ʟᴏʀᴇ ✧

Settings ≫ Angel City ✦ Republic of Texas ✦ Houston ✦ North Cal ✦ New Orleans ✦ Louisiana

Locations ≫ The Woods ✦ Hale Estate ✦ Academy of Magics ✦ The Bayous ✦ The Ranch

Beings ≫ Witches ✦ Lycans ✦ Demons ✦ Fae ✦ Sirens

Demon Bloodlines ≫ The DuBois ✦ The LeBlancs ✦ The Clermonts

Covens ≫ The Hales ✦ Wildhearts

Wolf Packs ≫ The Knights ✦ The Cranes

Labels & Collectives ≫ Black Mage Records

Street Gangs ≫ [ To Be Added ]

✧ ᴀʟᴛᴇʀɴᴀᴛᴇ ᴜɴɪᴠᴇʀꜱᴇꜱ & ᴛɪᴍᴇʟɪɴᴇꜱ ✧

╰┈➤ ─── ᴜɴᴛɪʟ ᴛʜᴇ ᴡɪʟʟᴏᴡꜱ ᴡᴇᴇᴘ

The Realm of Four Seasons has been thrown into political turmoil as the crown has suddenly fallen and the throne remains empty. Several Houses of Nobility vie for the title of King or Queen of the Four Realms, while others scheme, plot and fight for the survival of their legacies. As the noble lords and ladies contend for power, the commonfolk struggle to live in a world where magic and supernatural forces thrive alongside senseless wars of greed and destruction.

Genre: High Fantasy | Dark Fantasy Sources: A Song of Ice and Fire | Original Ideas

── ʟᴏʀᴇ Lands ≫ [ To Be Added ]

Nobility ≫ House Hale ✦ House DuBois

Holds ≫ Wintersun ✦ Frostvale ✦ Springtide ✦ Suncrest ✦ Autumn Song

╰┈➤ ─── ᴡʜᴏ ꜱᴇᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴡᴏʀʟᴅ ᴏɴ ꜰɪʀᴇ

[ Plot WIP ]

Genre: Post Apocalyptic | Cyberpunk Sources: The Walking Dead | Fallout | Original Ideas

#blogkeeping #oc dictionary #pinned

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swirlingyouintomypoems · 4 months ago

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I wasn’t tagged by anyone, but I love these so I had to :)

*picture of that one Marina tweet in the reblog for those of us who don’t know what I’m talking about

No pressure tags: @thedelicatearcher @long-lost-soul @statecfgrace @burningreddaylight @cadillacjohn + anyone who wants to!

I missed the y in Italy every ignore this it’s too late now😭

#lilly talks #tag game #polls #tumblr polls

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rapeculturerealities · 1 year ago

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Idaho Banned Abortion. Then It Turned Down Supports for Pregnancies and Births. — ProPublica

Idaho legislators disbanded a state committee that investigated the root causes of maternal deaths, making it the only state in the nation with no such mortality review.

They allowed two bills to die that would have put Idaho on the same track as nearly every other state with abortion restrictions — including Florida, Kentucky and Texas — by extending postpartum Medicaid coverage to 12 months. Idaho’s Medicaid coverage ends two months after birth, the minimum under federal law.

They turned down $36 million in federal grants to support child care this summer, while other states with new abortion restrictions — Alabama, Louisiana and Missouri among them — made investments in early childhood education and day care. Idaho lawmakers at the time attributed the decision to a pending audit of a different batch of grants.

Democrats generally support these kinds of measures, but Idaho Republicans dominate the state capitol and therefore control which bills move forward.

Rep. Brent Crane, a longtime Republican leader who chairs the House State Affairs Committee, said GOP lawmakers last year had hoped to put forward bills to improve health care and support for kids and families after the Supreme Court struck down federal protections for abortion rights. They instead got bogged down in debate over exceptions to the abortion ban.

#Idaho #Abortion #reproductive rights #reproductive health #reproductive justice

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tinylongwing · 7 months ago

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top five birdiest locations you've been to?

Oooh good question! I don't have like, hard numbers on these so they're not super well ranked except for by vibes.

First is NE Queensland, Australia. I did a semester abroad there in undergrad and my god the sheer number of new birds all around! I saw so many absolute treasures! From birds of paradise like Victoria's Riflebird, to absolute icons like the Galah and the Southern Cassowary. 10/10 bird destination.

Second I'll put southern Nicaragua. All the diversity of Costa Rica, with birds like Scarlet Macaw, King Vulture, and Keel-billed Toucan. Hundreds of amazing species. Absolutely unforgettable. I'm so thankful that I've been able to work there on and off over the years. I've traveled most of the country but the southern portion has the highest bird diversity from what I've found.

Third, let's go the US Southeast. I think generally it's accepted that this has the highest bird diversity in the US. I've spent plenty of time in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Florida and seen so many excellent birds there! Florida in particular gets a special mention for endemic treasures like the Florida Scrub-Jay.

Fourth is just a smidge to the west over in Texas, particularly the portion along the whole Rio Grande. Highlights for me include Whooping Crane, Aplomado Falcon, and all three US kingfisher species! Plus Plain Chachalaca which is just hilariously noisy. Big fan.

For five... Man now it's hard to pick, I have several places sort of on par with each other. Hawaii is goofy because of all the introduced species, giving it a ridiculously inflated diversity on top of the absolutely amazing native species. South Korea was really fun, though I went in winter when diversity was relatively low, and still got to see fun birds like Azure-winged Magpie, Eurasian Goshawk, and Varied Tit without even leaving Seoul. And then of course like, California has a ton of species and some of the most incredible vagrants that just show up at random sometimes.

I think that's eight locations now so I'll just stop, haha.

#ask meme #birblr

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magnetothemagnificent · 11 months ago

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My birding week vacation is over, so here are all the bird species I saw:

1. Little blue heron

2. Sharp-shinned hawk

3. Black vulture

4. Great egret

5. Sandhill crane

6. Mourning dove

7. Common loon (there were two of them just hanging out at a lake. We couldn't believe it but they were unmistakable)

8. Cattle egret

9. Great blue heron

10. Anhinga

11. Double-crested cormorant

12. Red-winged Blackbird

13. Limpkin

14. Wood stork

15. White ibis

16. Muskovy duck

17. Boat-tailed grackle

18. American crow

19. American coot

20. Common gallinule

21. Common grackle

22. Glossy ibis

23. Palm warbler

24. Osprey

25. American purple gallinule

26. Wood duck

27. Red-shouldered hawk

28. Pied-billed grebe

29. Royal tern

30. Eastern Phoebe

31. Roseate spoonbill (last year it eluded me, but this year I saw two at two separate locations!)

31. Black-bellied whistling duck

32. Tricolor heron

33. Northern harrier

34. Yellow-rumped warbler

35. Tree swallow

36. Swallow-tailed kite

37. Ring-billed gull

38. Turkey vulture

39. Mallard

40. White pelican (there were two just hanging out at an artificial lake in the middle of a residential area)

41. Red eyed vireo

42. Mulard

43. American pekin

44. Mallard/Pekin hybrid

45. Downy woodpecker

46. Grey catbird

47. Blue-grey gnatcatcher

48. Fish crow

49. Northern parula

50. Snowy egret

51. Chimney swift

52. Common yellowthroat

53. Bald eagle

54. Red-bellied woodpecker

55. Blue winged teal (we only saw these guys because we had to walk an extra 1.5 miles to take the long way back to the car because an alligator decided to block our short way back)

56. Great-crested flycatcher

57. Louisiana waterthrush

58. Laughing gull

59. Northern mockingbird

60. Mottled duck

61. Loggerhead shrike

62. White eyed vireo

63. Tufted titmouse

64. Northern cardinal

65. Black and white warbler

66. Ring-necked duck (I saw this lone duck from the car as we were driving past an artificial lake. From it's silhouette I could see it looked different from the other ducks common in the area, so we stopped the car literally on the side of the road so I could run out with my binoculars, and sure enough it was a new species to add to the list. And then when we came back a few days later, it was still there swimming around and diving, so I guess it lived around there.)

67. Carolina chickadee

68. Swamp sparrow

69. Ruby-crowned kinglet

70. Pileated woodpecker

71. Belted kingfisher (we visited the same place three times because my Grandpa saw kingfishers there a few times. It wasn't until the third and final time, while we were ready to give up and leave, that we saw it, perched on a sign post over the water)

72. House sparrow

73. Cooper's hawk

74. Carolina wren

75. White-throated sparrow

#birds #birding

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anonymityisfunwriter · 2 years ago

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The Twin Flame - Chapter 33: "Look What You Made Me Do"

"I don't like your little games, don't like your tilted stage, the role you made me play of the fool..."

Pairing: Sunshine!Reader x Grumpy!Bucky Barnes The Twin Flame Chapter List | The Grumpy x Sunshine Universe

"We have breaking news. There's a complete lockdown at the GRC meeting in Lower Manhattan where authorities are saying they're tracking multiple threats from groups seeking to stop the GRC's vote on global resettlement. There is a no-fly zone in effect..."

You watch the broadcast in the storefront before you in abject horror.

You so badly believed that there was good in Karli. You wanted to believe that she would do the right thing and stop this before it got out of hand, but here it was.

Completely and totally out of hand.

Your earpiece crackles to life, pulling your attention away from the screen. The voice you hear is not the one you were expecting, "Sam, this is already a shit show. Can we really handle this ourselves?"

Sam's voice suddenly fills your ear, "Don't worry, I called in backup."

"Backup?" Bucky asks, wading through the spectators formed around the GRC building.

You look away from the screens, scanning the street for the sight of Bucky. You find him in the middle of the sidewalk, his neck craned up to look at the skyscraper that was supposed to host the now delayed GRC vote tonight.

Though you're certain he can't hear your approach over the loud sounds of sirens waling and people scrambling through the frantic scene, you see his eyebrows furrow, he quickly looks away from the building, frantically scanning the area.

He finds you in an instant, his eyes drawn by some inexplicable gravitational pull to you. A breath lodges in his throat at the shock of seeing you.

In that moment, he swears his heart skips a beat.

A goofy grin pulls at the corners of his mouth the moment he sees that it's really you, you're really here, standing just a few feet away from him. So close he can almost touch you, "Hi."

You gently wave as he steps up to you, "Hi."

He resists the instinctive urge to pull you back into his arms.

There's so much he doesn't know right now. He doesn't know where he stands with you. He doesn't know how tonight will end. What he does know is that nothing feels more right that having you by his side. So instead of pulling you into his arms or keeping you at arm's distance, he just keeps smiling that boyish grin, "You're here. I - I can't believe you're here."

You nod, your fingers incrementally lift, subconsciously reaching out to him, "And you're here."

Sam's voice once again echoes in your ear, his tone dripping in sarcasm, "And now that we've established that we are all indeed here, we need to keep our eyes open."

You know Bucky's hearing the same thing you are from the unimpressed frown that weighs down his smile. "That's your plan? Keep our eyes open?"

"Sam's never been one for the plans," you whisper to Bucky.

"I heard that," Sam chides.

"And I say that with all the love and respect in the world!" you add.

"They're gonna move in on the building soon," Sam informs you and Bucky as he soars around the perimeter of the GRC building, "Karli's not gonna be far from the action. Be ready."

"Be ready. Got it," you mutter to yourself, rolling your shoulders in an attempt to psych yourself up, "Good call, Sam. Be ready."

"Shut up," Sam grumbles.

"What? I said it was a good call!" you incredulously exclaim.

"I can't believe you're actually here," Bucky continues, chewing on the inside of his cheek to tamp down what he's certain is a ridiculous smile, "It's good to see you. Here, I mean - It's good that you're here."

You shyly smile up at him, "It's only been a week, James."

"Doesn't matter," Bucky nonchalantly shrugs, though he swears his pulse stutters when his name falls from your lips. Just like before. He wants to tell you that this past week since he left Louisiana has felt like one of the longest weeks of his life. He wants to tell you that he doesn't know how he survived six months away from you when a single week was this heart wrenching. He wants to say that now that he's had another taste of what life is with you, he doesn't intend on living without it again. He's still not brave enough. He fleetingly wonders if he'll ever be. "It's always good to see you. Always."

Now, it's your turn for your heart to stutter in your chest. You suck in a soft breath, unsure of what to say to him.

You know what he means, though. You know that there's never a time when you're not happy to see him. Even when you're angry with him, even in the most dire of circumstances, your heart will always be content when he's near. A rightness overtakes you, like you're whole again.

It feels like home.

It feels like peace.

"Alright, guys, I got visual," Sam interjects, cutting through your reunion with Bucky.

You immediately crane your neck, looking up to the night sky to try to spot Sam, "On Karli?"

"On you guys, just standing there, staring at each other," Sam deadpans.

"You're an asshole, you know that?" Bucky sharply retorts, following you as you begin wandering toward the building.

"The power's still out in the building," you tell them, walking along the edge of the taped off scene. Bucky trails behind you, intently listening to your every word. "I know it sounds like a bad idea, but I think we might be better off splitting up."

"I've never heard of a worse idea," Sam dryly remarks, still soaring around the perimeter of the GRC building. "You sound like the first person that dies in a horror movie."

"I happen to agree," Bucky reluctantly admits, sparing you an apologetic glance over his shoulder.

Your mouth twists to one side, crossing your arms over your chest, "So you guys only ever agree to overrule me, huh?"

Bucky shrugs, trailing behind you as you work your way through the crowd, "It's a shock to me, too."

"Why would they-" Just as you begin to speak, a loud hissing sound reverberates through the building. Bucky instinctively grabs your arm, pulling you away from the building and closer to him. You look over your shoulder at him, "That can't be good."

"Sam, they gassed the building," Bucky urgently informs Sam.

"Why the hell would they gas the building?" Sam mutters, more to himself than to you. He sucks in a small breath, just barely audible to you and Bucky, "She's not trying to get inside, guys."

"She's trying to get everyone out," you finish, a sinking feeling taking root in the pit of your stomach.

"We have to find her," Bucky firmly states.

"As opposed to what we were trying to do earlier?" you snarkily retort. You quickly shake your head, placing your hand on your chest, "Sorry, I get sarcastic when I get nervous."

"Maybe you should stop spending so much time with Bucky," Sam teasingly suggests.

Bucky scoffs from beside you, "Let's focus on one thing at a time, alright?"

"I'm going inside," Sam tells you. "I'll warn the evac team and tell them to keep people inside. You two focus on finding the hostages. Find the hostages, you find Karli."

"Now, that's a plan!" you exclaim. "The trio is alive and well, everyone!"

Bucky smiles at you, watching as you beam at the reunion from his peripheral. You turn to him when you feel eyes on you, he doesn't look away, instead he nods, jutting his head in the direction of the building's garage, "We should go."

And with that, you and Bucky are off.

He knows you're trying to stay out of sight. He knows the risk you've taken by coming here tonight. It doesn't change that your presence seems to be magnetic. People have always liked you, been drawn to you. Who wouldn't turn to the light in times of darkness?

As much as you try to shy away from the cameras, you don't keep your head down, too preoccupied with finding Karli as quickly as you can. Your eyes drag across the scene, looking for anything that might point you in Karli's direction.

You've both only trailed half the perimeter when you notice a masked Flag Smasher duck into the sealed off garage.

You place your hand on Bucky's forearm, pointing at the building's garage, "Look."

He wordlessly nods, walking side by side with you as you approach the entryway. You duck around the corner, only slightly peaking your head out to get a better idea of what you're walking into.

"They're further in the garage," you whisper. "We should be able to get in without being seen.

"Alright," Bucky agrees, he taps on the earpiece, informing Sam of your plan, "Sam, we're gonna work the building from the bottom, Sam. Let the evac team know to keep people inside -"

"Like I said already," Sam points out.

"And we'll cover the exit points from the garage, we can't let her move hostages, it makes the chance of recovery a lot lower."

"There's some hostages being taken up to the roof, there's a helicopter there, but I keep getting-" Sam abruptly stops speak and you hear a pained grunt come from his side of the comms.

"Sam?" you frantically call out to him.

"Sam!" Bucky calls.

Dread washes over you as nothing but silence is heard from Sam's end of the comms device. You sharply inhale, holding your breath. You're not sure if it's to stop you from taking off to find Sam or if it's simply to offer comfort, but Bucky's hand quickly reaches for yours, squeezing it tightly.

"Sorry," Sam apologizes after a long, drawn out moment. He sounds a little out of breath and agitated, "There's Flag Smashers everywhere. Their supporters are crawling around too. Trust me when I tell you that they are not interested in talking to us."

Though he does his best to hide it, you can see the breath of relief that overcomes Bucky when you hear Sam's voice. Bucky nods, though Sam can't hear him, "We'll watch our backs."

"I'm making my way to the roof. Again. I'll let you know when I've got the hostages secured."

"Got it," you agree. As you both sneak into the garage to surveil the Flag Smashers, Bucky doesn't drop your hand. Hand in hand, you hug the walls of the dim garage, just out of sight of the Flag Smashers operating further in the garage, "You know, none of this makes sense, James."

"How do you mean?"

"Karli is trying to stop the vote tonight. She did that. She's got her hostages, so why go out of her way to create more chaos? Why force people out of the building?"

"It's a misdirect," Bucky whispers, the pieces finally falling into place in Bucky's mind. "She's not out to stop the vote anymore. And I can bet that she's not planning on letting those hostages go."

"No," you vehemently refute, refusing to accept such a morbid answer, "I know Karli's misguided, but that's a little far, even for her."

Bucky frowns, debating on whether or not to voice his doubts about Karli. He tries not to let Zemo get into his head, but he can't help but think that Zemo might be right about this: you are too close to Karli. You can't separate your fate from hers. "Has it ever occurred to you that she might be too far gone to save?"

"No."

He takes a deep breath, he tries to tell you what he fears as gently as he can, but there's no easy way to say that he's not sure there is a path back to the light for Karli. He wants there to be. He's not quite convinced of it himself though. "I know you want there to be good in her, but there might not be anymore. We may need to accept that."

"People used to say that about me too, you know?"

"You are not Karli!" Bucky frustratedly groans, sweeping across another parking row. "And I want to help her as much as you do, but-"

"But nothing!" you forcefully state, keeping low as you join Bucky behind a concrete wall. You do your best to remain level headed about this, to keep your emotions from clouding your judgement, but you can't help but see yourself in Karli's shoes. You can't help but think that, under slightly different circumstances, you would've been Karli. Without a Flag Smasher in sight, you both continue working your way through to the other side of the garage, "She's a kid, she just needs someone to look at her long enough to see the good there. You know that as well as I do."

"You can't -" A large commotion cuts Bucky off. A group of Flag Smashers whip a side door open, tugging more hostages and shoving them aboard a stolen armored truck. You grab his arm and tug him out of sight just behind one of the structural beams. You slightly poke your head out, watching as the final hostages are loaded up on the armored truck.

"The hostages," you mouth.

"What are you doing?" he hisses.

"We need to be careful," you quietly reply, hiding behind the pillar. "If we jump in they could run, or worse, they could hurt the hostages. We need to assess the situation."

He snorts, "Since when do you assess situations?"

You dramatically sigh, rolling your eyes, "I sorta told Sam I'd be careful. One bullet wound and he thinks I'm reckless and 'self destructive'."

"Then let's assess, shall we? These are choices that Karli is making of her own volition. Choices that you and I never got. You and I didn't get to choose, not once," Bucky softly explains, gesturing to the hostages being loaded onto one of the armored trucks, "All this, this is her choice."

"I know that," you quietly admit, swallowing the tension that rises in your throat. You remind yourself that you swore to always see the good in the world, to be the good where there wasn't any. You hadn't done that lately, but helping Karli was a pretty good place to start. "But this can't be it. This can't be how her story ends. And I know she can still choose to be good."

Bucky opens his mouth to speak, but before any words come out, Sam is cutting him off with another urgent piece of information, "Where are you guys?"

Bucky clicks his comms device, unmuting himself, "South exit of the garage, why?"

"Karli's got another truck full of hostages on the street," Sam informs you. "Just pulled up out of the garage. Out of the north exit."

You and Bucky share an uneasy look. "Another one? We're watching the truck they have right now."

"They're splitting up the hostages," you mumble to yourself.

"What?"

"They're splitting up the hostages," you repeat, this time loud enough for Sam and Bucky to hear. As you speak, you hear the armored truck you'd been watching rev its engine. You look up to Bucky with a remorseful gaze, "Which means we're gonna have to split up."

"No!" Bucky reaches out and gently grabs your hand, refusing to let you go. "Just hold on a second, isn't that playing right into Karli's hand? We're giving her exactly what she wants."

"She's a kid, James. And I know you don't believe in her, but I need you to believe in me," you plead, squeezing his hand as tightly as you can. "Her story doesn't have to end this way."

"It's too dangerous. Please," Bucky begs, his voice hoarse with desperation.

His eyes bore into you. They glisten with sincerity, concern, and worst of all, fear. You rest your other hand on his, trailing your thumb on the back of his hand. "I can do this. I can help her. I'll be okay."

Bucky stiffly nods in concession, "You better be."

"I will," you promise, squeezing his hand one last time, "I'll see you in a minute."

Without another word, he takes off in one direction, you in the other.

As you reach the north exit of the garage, you press your earpiece, "Sam, where's the other truck?"

"About a block north of the building, it looks like they just stopped in the middle of the street. The street is sealed off, but if you cut through the garage and take a right, you might be able to get through."

"On it."

And though lately you've felt plagued by misfortune, you can't help but feel like you've finally found your luck. Just like Sam said, the truck is stalled in the middle of the street. Not surrounded by Flag Smashers nor by police cars like you anticipated, you find only one person.

Hidden behind a Flash Smasher mask, a head of red hair pokes through, telling you've found the person you've searched for all night.

It barely registers in the back of your mind that this is almost too coincidental.

A set up, like Bucky said.

You shake it off, you can take whatever Karli throws at you.

As you approach the truck, you hear the muted screams of the hostages reverberate in the truck.

"Karli!" you call out to her, almost gasping at her current state. You find her standing in front of a truck full of hostages, holding a flame over the truck as a threat to not come any closer. "What are you doing? This isn't helping anything!"

She chuckles triumphantly, like your predictability will be your downfall, "I knew you'd show up here eventually."

You stand before her, your hands up to show you mean no harm, "That's what you wanted, right? Everyone to finally pay attention to your movement - to you?"

She furiously rips her mask off, sneering at you, "You still don't get it. This isn't a vanity project like your Avengers. This is the only way to help ourselves! All we ever wanted is to matter."

You inch closer to her. You freeze when she shifts the flame closer to the truck, warning you once more. "You do matter. You've always mattered."

"I will never matter to people like you," she seethes, the anger in her voice causing the flame to pulsate with every syllable spoken. "You only care about power. You only listen to power."

"What are you talking about?" you frustratedly question, this time remaining where you are as to not push her any further down this path, "I'm here to help you. I don't care about the GRC. I don't care about any of it. I came here to help you."

"You're a liar," she spits, standing her ground in front of the truck, "You only help yourself."

Not having made any progress with her, you hear a familiar voice bellow down the street.

"You have got to be kidding me," you grumble to yourself. This is a bad position to be in, you immediately realize. Enemy to your right, enemy to your left. Standing wedged between them, it's hard to keep an eye on either of them, let alone the both of them. You sigh in exasperation, "Of course, you're here, John."

"I couldn't let you have all the fun, could I?" John stands there, still in full Captain America gear, holding an odd replica of Steve's shield before him. He eerily states, "I couldn't have planned this better myself. You're just the people I was looking for."

"Couldn't have been creepier if you tried, John," you bitterly quip. "What do you want, John?"

"I want to finish this," John grits.

"I never meant to kill your friend," Karli offers as a condolence, it's clear to you that she's just as shocked as you are at John's appearance. "I don't want to hurt people who don't matter."

John winces, his grip tightening on his shield, "You think Lemar's life didn't matter?"

Even in the dark night, you swear that you see remorse flash across Karli's face. She shakes her head, "Not to my fight."

"And what about those hostages, Karli? They have families, friends. They matter as much as you do," you bargain with her.

"Those people?" Karli coldly repeats, still swinging a flame in her hand. "The people that want to take everything from us? Rip away the only homes we've ever had? They matter as much as we do?"

"Karli! Don't do this!" you exclaim, unable to turn to her entirely with John still standing there. You look over your shoulder, shaking your head, "It doesn't have to be this way!"

"I already told you, if you're not with me, you're against me. And I know who you are." Karli's words sound more and more like an accusation. You don't miss the betrayal and hurt that she hurls at you, almost like she no longer believes any good resides within you either. "I know what you stand for. You're no better than them."

"What will killing those people solve, huh? What do you gain?" you ask her.

"And if I let you stop me? I get labeled the bad guy, a danger to society." Karli's voice gets louder and louder, becoming more pointed with every statement. There's a bewilderment in her actions that you know won't be assuaged by any words you have to offer. "I get thrown on the Raft. And you? You get to save the world all over again. You get to be the hero."

"You're not a bad guy." You look between Karli and John. You hold out your hands to each side of you. You finally give in, fully turning to face Karli, "Please, don't let them make you a villain, Karli. Stop this."

John takes the opportunity to strike while you're distracted. He throws the shield, it cuts through the air, striking you in the shoulder.

You jaggedly hiss, clutching your shoulder at the impact against your injured arm. You swear that you feel the old gunshot wound tear open as the makeshift shield clatters at your feet.

You look down at the shield, no sturdier than a piece of plywood. And with that, your final thread of patience with John Walker snaps. You glare at it as it ignites on the ground.

"Did you just throw that at me?" you fume, the shield burning at your feet.

"General Ross offered me a deal," John tells you as he picks up a piece of disassembled scaffolding. He clenches the metal pipe in his hand, "I give him you and Karli and I get it all back. I get my legacy back."

"The legacy of executing an innocent man?" you rhetorically ask.

The pipe violently slices through the air. You stumble back, just barely dodging the swing. John's chest heaves with anger, too lost in his own grief to realize that he'd let Karli get away once more, "Lemar's death is gonna mean something. And I'll finally be a hero."

"This is not how you become a hero, you idiot!" you yell, ducking down he swings the pipe at you.

You spare a glance over to where Karli stood, and just like you suspected, she's gone.

But what shocks you is that she didn't leave without igniting the armored vehicles, it terrifies you that she truly left those people to die.

"John," you caution as he stands poised to attack. You notice that eerie look in his eye again, but this time, it doesn't just flash in his eyes. It takes him over. "You want to be a hero? Let me help those people."

His eyes flicker to the burning truck, the sounds of panicked, frantic screaming floods his ears. He tentatively nods, allowing you a moment to subdue the flames. The smell of smoke fills the air as you rest your hand on the hood of the armored truck. With a swipe of your hand through the air, the flames begin to smolder out.

You slowly exhale, the smoke beginning to clear with the gentle breeze you pull in. You turn around with a grateful smile, "Thank-"

Before you can finish speak, John catches you off guard, rushing forward to pin you against the truck. "You are not a hero."

"I never claimed to be," you grunt, pushing back against the pipe as it digs into your clavicle. You know you can't win like this. He's too focused on you, and you'll never get to talk Karli down with John on your tail. And more urgently, you can't save those hostages like this. You need to play this smarter, convince him to let you go for now, "But I'm not what you need to worry about. Karli's gonna get away and you'll never get your shield back. You'll never avenge Lemar's death. You'll never be a hero."

"Shut up," John demands, attempting to pin you again.

You bend the pipe toward John, relieving all pressure against you. He looks down at the U-shaped pipe with a defeated, bewildered expression, then back to you. "What's more important, John? Me or being a hero?"

John's chest heaves in anger as he breaks away from you. His fists twitch with indecision as he debates his next move. He sucks in a breath, stepping away from you, "You're next."

Those are his last words before he takes off after Karli. Considering her expert evasiveness, you're not worried that he'll find her before you do.

And if you're lucky, he'll run into Bucky or Sam before you have to confront him again.

You bolt for the back of the armored truck. Holding the hostages inside is a piece of knotted metal pipe wrapped around the door handles.

You lay your hand on each end of the pipe, prying it open. The pipe groans as you unwind it from the door handles. When it's mostly straightened out, you swipe the pipe away, finally releasing the hostages. You pop the door open, poking your head in, "Is everyone okay?"

In the hot bed of the truck, they waste no time before rushing out for the exit. One by one, you help the hostages down from the truck, taking each of their shaky hands as they scramble back to safety.

And finally, a woman, the last hostage on the truck, throws her arms around you the moment her feet hit the ground, leaving you a little shocked. She cries, "Thank you, thank you so much!"

You momentarily stiffen at the unexpected gratitude. You'd become accustom to working in the dark, no one knew who you were, no one knew what you did, no one even knew you existed. It was the definition of a thankless job. You'd always been okay with that. You figured that as long as you left the world a slightly better place, it was all the thanks you needed. That was the only legacy you'd ever need.

After the moment of shock passes, you return the embrace, she sobs into your shoulder. Though you're the one comforting her, there is something that is equally soothing to you about someone knowing you, about not working in the shadows anymore. You gently comfort her, patting her back, "You're safe now."

The moment you're done guiding the hostages towards the paramedics stationed at the police lines at the end of the street, this never ending night continues with even more chaos.

This time it's Bucky's voice that comes through on the comms, "Was anyone else aware of Walker being here?"

Anger floods your veins, testing the last of your patience for anything John Walker related. You speak through gritted teeth, "Where are you?"

"Construction pit, a block south of the building."

Though you're not sure how, too overcome with anger and frustration, you make it to Bucky in what has to be record time. Fists clenched, nostrils flaring, pain shooting from your once again bleeding wound, you find Bucky standing in an abandoned construction pit.

"Where is he?" you demand the moment you see Bucky.

Bucky's eyes widen, more at the bruise sweeping across your collarbone from John's attack than the building frustration in your tone, "What the hell happened to you?"

You snap your head over to John, "John Walker happened."

"Hold on!" Bucky interrupts.

You look up at Bucky with a bewildered expression. Bucky hesitates for a second, stepping between you and John, "He was actually sort of being helpful. Trust me, I hate it as much as you do."

"Ha, even your boyfriend's on my side," John taunts.

"Alright, that's it!" you snap, lunging at him, "Let me at him! Let me at him!"

"No," Bucky warns, locking his arms around your waist to keep you from charging at John. "He's not worth it."

Bucky holds you firmly against him as your hands violently grab out, your legs kicking out as you try for a single hit, "Just this once. Just one time."

"She's crazy!" John shouts at you.

"Call her crazy again and I let her go," Bucky sharply threatens.

John's lips snap shut as he glares at you. You grab the hand that rests against your midsection, "Just one hit, James. Just one, I promise."

"As fun as that would be to watch, we've got bigger things to worry about. We've got to get to Karli," Bucky reminds you, his embrace less about restraining you and more about grounding you. "She's not too far gone, right? We can still change how this story ends."

You finally allow yourself to settle, with a long deep breath. You look up at Bucky with a tender smile, "You're right."

"I knew we'd see eye to eye eventually," John remarks.

You don't respond to John, instead silently glaring at him as you walk away to remove yourself from the situation.

Bucky steps up to John, speaking in a low, threatening tone, "Make no mistake, Walker, if you fuck her over, if you sell her out, I'll kill you without a second thought."

The muscles in John's clenched jaw tighten, this time, he knows better than to say anything with Bucky staring him down.

"Hey, guys," you call from the center of the pit. "What exactly was the plan to save the hostages stuck on the scaffolding?"

Bucky jogs back over, refocusing on what they were doing before you stormed over here, "We tried getting up there, but the scaffolding is too unstable. Any movement could tip the truck."

"And the hostages?"

Bucky shakes his head, "Same problem. Sam's dealing with a rogue helicopter, so it's on us for now."

You hear a pained groan from the welded pipes that make up the scaffolding. Even the cool nighttime breeze causes the structure to sway and dislodge the armored truck.

You step forward, standing directly underneath the collapsing scaffolding, "That thing's coming down any minute. Do we have time to get up there and get them out from the back of the truck?"

Your answer comes with a loud snapping noise above you. The piece of wood lodged against the front wheel finally gives to the weight of the truck, just as the truck is about to tip over the edge, you bolt to the center of the pit, right into the path of destruction.

"No, don't!" Bucky shouts, sprinting to push you out of the way.

Just as it begins its free fall right on top of you, you stop it. The hood of the truck groans, the metal slightly rippling with the amount of pressure placed on it as you muster every ounce of strength and power you have.

Bucky freezes before you, his eyes squeezed shut as the shadow off a falling truck hovers over him. After a split second, he creaks an eye open. With no crash before him, his head snaps up to the supernatural sight.

Above him, above you, the truck floats several yards above. Bucky's jaw drops, eyes comically wide as he looks up with an unabashedly proud smile as the truck levitates mid-air, "Wow."

"Who made armored trucks so heavy?" you complain through gritted teeth, straining as you try to bring down the truck slowly.

"I think that's the Scarlett Witch!" you hear a civilian shout from behind police lines.

Though you have no regrets about saving those people, you know from the crowd formed behind you, that you've just sealed your fate. If General Ross didn't see you in Latvia, he was certainly going to catch you now.

You can't focus on your grim fate as the weight of the truck starts to take its toll on you.

With a low, guttural sound building in the back of your throat, the truck begins its descent to the ground. Slowly, it falls to the ground, landing with a violent squeal of the truck's suspension.

"No, it's Black Widow!"

"Black Widow doesn't have powers," another stranger argues.

"No, no! I'm no one, just a random person. No one important," you call back once the wheels of the truck are all firmly planted on the ground.

"I think Redwing caught that on camera. I know I called you a show off before, but that was insane," Sam beams through the earpiece, a light chuckle embedded in his words.

"So much for assessing the situation," you laugh in between pants, trying to catch your breath from overexertion. You rest your hands on your knees, muscles burning from tension.

Overcome with the need to make sure you're okay, Bucky places his arms around your shoulders without a second thought, "Are you alright?"

You nod, muscles still begging you for rest as you stand up, "Yeah, I just need a second."

"You're amazing," Bucky whispers in awe.

A deeper flush builds on your cheeks, "Thanks."

The breathy tone from his voice continues as he slowly leans closer to you. He brushes a stray strand of hair away from your cheek, "I mean that."

You shift your weight to the balls of your heels, "You're pretty - Pretty amazing too, I mean."

He chuckles, his hand glides down from your shoulder, skating down your arm to the palm of your hand. He laces his fingers with your, gently dipping his head down.

"All the hostages are accounted for, guys," Sam announces. You both jolt away at the sound of Sam's voice flooding your ears again, "Now, we find Karli."

"Have I ever said how much I hate Sam?" Bucky frustratedly sighs.

"No, but I'm starting to get why," you sarcastically remark.

"You okay?"

You shakily nod, "Yeah, I'm alright, but you should probably go fill John in. The less I have to speak to him, the better."

As Bucky walks over to John, who unloads the hostages from the last truck, you stand off to the side, still desperately trying to catch your breath when something in your peripheral catches your eye.

Amidst the cloud of debris kicked up by the truck, you notice something in the entrance to the underground construction site.

You look out into the smokescreen to see a cloaked figure standing there. You slowly approach, careful with each footstep to ensure you don't alert them to your presence.

Unbeknownst to you, a piece of scaffolding lies on the ground before you. Your foot swipes it, sending it clattering further into the garage.

The figure whirls around, clearly startled at the sight of you. You can't make out their face in the dim light and they don't miss a beat before taking off further into the underground tunnels.

You don't know why, but something possesses you to sprint after them, following them as the smoke screen beings to clear. They sharply turn down the labyrinth of corridors. Over and over again. Over and over again. Over and over again.

By the time you realize it, you're so far into the underground tunnels you're sure that you're not going to find your way out without help.

You've almost lost all hope, until you run right into a familiar face, "Sharon?"

"Thank God," Sharon sighs in relief, clutching her midsection in fear. "I've been trying to find you all night. I- I came because I thought you guys could use a hand, but I found Karli first and I didn't think I could take Karli alone so I stayed hidden." Sharon nudges her head in the opposite direction of the corridor you though you saw Karli run through. "She went through there. Batroc too."

"Batroc?" You vaguely recognize the name. "That French guy? Did all bad guys just decide to show up here tonight?"

She chuckles with a nod, "Guess so. I think they might be working together."

Your shoulders dejectedly slump, "Of course they are."

She juts her head down the hallway, pulling out her gun as the two of you begin scanning the abandoned corridor. You walk side by side. She watches your back, you watch hers. The hallway lights flicker above you as you approach the door.

She looks back to you as she takes the door handle. You silently nod, urging her inside. She turns the handle and slowly creaks it open. She slides in first, skating against the wall with you behind her.

Without a word, she points to the right side of the room, you point to the left.

There's nothing in the room. Nothing at all. No sign of Karli. No sign of anyone having been here recently.

By the time you've searched your side of the room, you're certain that Karli has once again slipped away.

"Anything?" Sharon calls.

"No, I don't see either of them," you shout back, making your way back to the center of the room. You remorsefully sigh as you stand in the center of the room. "No sign of Karli or Batroc."

She drops her gun, smiling at you. It's the first friendly smile you've seen her give you since before you both went on the run, "You know, me and you would make one hell of a team."

You return the smile, "Thanks, Sharon. I think so too."

You stare at the back wall of the room, scaffolding surrounding the area casting all sorts of eerie and creepy shadows all over the room. Your eyes drag over the room once, twice, three times. It just doesn't make sense. If she'd run through here, she'd still be here. There was only one way in this room.

Only one way in, only one way out.

Chills radiate down your spine and set your nerve endings on fire. It feels like ice cold water is now stuck in your veins.

Suddenly, everything about tonight hits you all at once. All the chaos. All the panic. All the disconnect. The fact that you're standing alone in a room that no one could ever hope to find you in. Split up from your team. From the only people you know you can trust.

Trust was a rare commodity, Nick Fury once told you. He also told you to go with your gut. And right now, an uneasy feeling swelled in your gut as you slowly turn to find Sharon Carter standing between you and the only exit route, gun in hand.

Pointed at you.

"Sharon?"

The Twin Flame Chapter List AnonymityIsFun Masterlist

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