#TO ADD because i don't think i made myself clear: bruce would also not be okay if he ever did kill

[nyerusnova]

Going to toss in my two cents here real quick but I firmly believe: Batman cannot kill, and there cannot be exceptions to that rule, or else the entire ethos falls apart.

Like trust me, Bruce Wayne has personally contemplated killing people multiple times, and has come very close to it before. It is not that he doesn't ever want to kill, but he knows that the Batman cannot kill. Because if he does, then the hope of Gotham is lost, nevermind elsewhere at large. People will have no reason to believe in their heroes, when their heroes decide to play judge, jury, and executioner. Even if we (and diegetically, many characters) know that certain criminals/villains will never change their ways and only want to cause more harm, Batman especially cannot go that far.

Other heroes (most notably Wonder Woman) do fight for more "pragmatic" reasons, and thus will take a life when they deem necessary. But Batman is not one of them. What he's fighting for is not just harm reduction, it's to show people that goodness and justice can prevail. And you might not agree with that ideology, but that's still something important to exemplify -- both in-universe and out.

If he kills, then even ordinary people will have no reason to trust him. Batman goes from a symbol of hope to a yet another symbol of fear for the people of Gotham.

And no, the Joker of all people is not an exception -- he is in fact a major point/reason for the rule. Could maybe other people kill the Joker? Yeah, sure. Narratively boring in most cases, but it would take out the trash. However, of anyone in that universe, it absolutely cannot be Batman. Because that is exactly what the Joker wants: chaos! That's why him being taken out by other people isn't as interesting, because to him his own death is largely meaningless. What the Joker wants is to prove that anyone can be pushed to that edge, including someone as righteous as Batman. If Batman kills him, then the Joker has successfully destroyed the hope of Gotham. He wins. And that's not something Batman can ever take back or recover -- it's game over.

As for Jason: keep in mind that Jason has had chances to kill the Joker himself. But he hasn't, because he wants Bruce -- Batman -- to do it. It presents an interesting quandary, because with this, Jason isn't thinking about the big philosophical picture that Bruce is. (If you want a generous take on him, he is more "pragmatic" about harm reduction. Killing the Joker would save lives, and he wants Bruce to see that. A more realistic take is that it is selfish desire for vengeance as the main driving factor. I won't get into his characterization it now because it's a mess that deserves 10 posts on its own.) At the end of the day, what he really wants for his father to choose him, over his own ideals. And he's not even entirely wrong in wanting that. Fundamentally, that's what makes the conflict between them so interesting. Bruce cannot put his children or loved ones first; he is a hero first, and everything else second. That's the tragedy in being a hero. That bears it's own meta, imo.

In short, Batman's no-kill rule has persisted in comics for decades for a good reason.

I'm actually curious now to find out what the common consensus is so

[nobody-zero3000]

Yandere Batfamily x Amidala! Reader

Inspired by the Yandere Damian Wayne x Alien Leader reader by your-regular-toast-enjoyer. But also because I like Padme Amidala and Star Wars. I want to use the Gotham Knights video game version of the Batboys, Batgirl, and Batman. Since Damian Wayne is not in there, I was thinking about Damian Wayne from the Injustice 2 video game but older. I'm going to change and add a few things from the Star Wars Universe and add a few new things to Amidala's character.

Warning: yandere, age-gap.

Earth heroes have encountered a different galactic system not far from Earth's solar system. The Justice League has made contact with a planet that's part of the galactic government system, also known as the Intergalactic United Republic, and has agreed to send someone to the planet to at least show that Earth and the Justice League offer peace.

In the watch tower, the heroes are having a meeting about who should go on this diplomatic mission. Some voted for Green Lantern, Martin Manhunter, or Superman, but the results show that the best candidate for this mission would be Batman.

Martian Manhunter was a bit disappointed because he had heard about her reputation through some holo-nets and was eager to meet her. As well as introduce her to his niece, Miss Martian since she is a fan of her work.

"Then it is settled: Batman shall be the one to go on this diplomatic mission and talk with the queen." Wonder Woman had declared.

The meeting is adjourned. Batman boomtubes back to Earth to discuss details with the rest of the Batfamily.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the Batcave, Bruce calls in Robin, Red Robin, Nightwing, Batgirl, and Red Hood.

"As you all know, I summoned you here for an important reason. I have been chosen to lead a diplomatic mission for a planet called Naboo. But I'm not planning on going alone." Bruce pulls up pictures of the planet.

"This mission has to be taken seriously and delicately. Any hostile behavior will endanger Earth along with millions of civilians. Do not show any violent or hostile behavior, and do not engage or cause any conflict that may lead to dangerous consequences. Do I make myself clear?" Giving them a stern, firm glare to each of them, especially Damian and Jason.

Jason shrugged. "Got it. No violence unless they start it first, then we consider violence."

Bruce narrows his eyes at him.

Jason puts his hands up in mocking surrender. "What? I'm kidding. No violence, don't cause trouble got it."

Tim looks at the Bat computer screen, looking through the information. He looks over to Bruce and asks, "Question. Do you have any information on the ruler of this planet? Any photos of what they look like."

Bruce pulls up photos, "These photos were taken at the Watchtower when we made contact with the planet. We are still looking into other information from J'onn and Hal's research."

It shows a female, (Y/H/C), (Y/E/C), and the areas where white makeup is not covering are your hands, which are (Y/S/C). She was sitting on a throne, dressed in royal clothes and wearing white makeup with red dots on both cheeks. She stood straight and had a blank look. But her eyes showed kindness, patience, and seriousness.

The boys and girl are taken aback by how young the female is. They were expecting someone much older. Not just that, but how beautiful you were. It was like looking at an angel. If someone were to ask about the definition of an angel, they would show them a photo of you. But for some reason, if they had a photo of you, they would not want to share it with someone else; they want to keep you to themselves.

For Bruce, it took a lot of strength and restraint to not laugh at their expression and keep a straight face. He couldn't blame them. When he first saw you, he was shocked not only to find out that someone as young as you would be ruling a planet but also by your beauty. He has seen a lot of beautiful women (Selena, Talia, Diana, Lois, etc.), but you pretty much outmatched them all as well as caught his attention and kept a hold on it.

Snapping out of it, he puts away the photo, much to the family's displeasure.

"So that's who we're all going to meet. If I had known that, I would've been more 'ready to go' for this mission." Dick grins and crosses his arms.

"She's really beautiful, and she must be very smart to rule the planet by herself," Tim said, blushing and smiling.

"Is there any more information on her?" Barbara is very curious about this young woman.

Damian finally asks, "When do we leave for this mission? Most of all, who will be watching the city while we are gone?" At this moment, he doesn't care if they leave the city unguarded, as long as they leave soon. He is curious about this alien leader.

"While we're gone, I managed to get some League members to watch the city, as well as other independent heroes to keep an eye on the crime rate. Now that is settled, all of you pack your bags. We'll be leaving in 2 hours.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Batfamily boomtubes to the Watch Tower, and from there, they enter the Javelin spacecraft (which upgraded to travel at a speed of light thanks to Hal, other Green Lanterns, and Cyborg). Once they are settled in the ship, Batman sets the coordinates for the planet Naboo, and on they go.

"Coordinates for Naboo are locked. Prepare yourselves for light speed." Everyone is strapped in. Soon the ship takes off.

After the ship comes to a stop, everyone, besides Batman who is used to space travel by now, groans from the lightspeed, some felt either really tired or sick.

Red Hood groans and hunches over. "I'm starting to regret eating that Bacon Ultra-belly combo."

"You should wait afterward, Todd. We were going to travel through space at a fast rate. What did you expect, imbecile?"

"Shut it, demon-spawn."

"Alright, that's enough, you two. We're here that's all that matters." Nightwing lightly scolded them.

Batgirl decides to get into the conversation. "Besides, what did Batman say about bad behavior."

Red Robin includes, "What part of no hostile or violent behavior are you two not getting here?"

They all start to bicker until Bruce switches to autopilot. Turns the seat around to face them. "Enough" in a firm and stern voice. Narrowing his eyes gives them his famous Batman glare.

The bickering stops, and they turn their attention to him.

"Let me make myself clear, be on your best behavior and do not start trouble. Once we land, stay close by my side. Do you understand?"

Red Robin, Nightwing, and Batgirl nod their heads. After a few moments, Red Hood and Robin show they understand by nodding their heads, too.

Batman turns back to the front window and starts to move the ship toward the planet.

Realization starts to overcome the bat family members, and they all look to the front to see the planet.

Tim and Barbara had excited expressions since they were about to visit a different planet and would meet the ruler soon. While Dick, Jason, and Damian were shocked to see the planet and about the possibility that they were about to go to a different planet.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Meanwhile in the throne room of Naboo---------------------

A guard's com beeps, he answers, and a few words are exchanged. He nods and turns to the queen.

"Your Highness, the Earth's ambassador, has arrived and is now entering our planet."

"Very well, prepare refreshments and send starfighters to guide the ship to one of the land platforms."

"Yes, Your Highness." The guard leaves.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the Javelin enters Naboo, they are encountered by starfighters.

Batman presses a button that allows him to speak to the Starfighters. "This is Batman, Ambassador of Earth."

"Batman, this is Captain Olie; we are ordered by Queen Amidala to escort you to Theed Royal Palace. You can just follow us."

The starfighters fly ahead but not far from the Javelin. Batman starts to follow them.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

As they fly to the palace, all of them look out their windows to look at the new environment. Tim and Barbara show excited and awe expressions. Jason and Dick are in awe too. And Damian, even though he tried not to show it, thought the planet was beautiful too and a bit excited to experience a new environment, a new planet!

Bruce had to admit it was beautiful, and it looked peaceful.

Once landing in a near landing platform, they exit the ship wearing their superhero suits. As they exit the Javelin, a handmaiden and two guards walk toward them.

"Sir Batman, Ambassador of Earth, I am here to escort you to the throne room to meet with Queen Amidala." She gestures for them to follow her.

The other bat members give each other glances. Batman just starts to walk with her as the others follow him.

They reach the throne room, and the guards open the doors for the guests. (Pretend there are more chairs.)

On the throne sat the queen of Naboo. On both sides beside her are two handmaidens in their own seats. On her left is Captain Typho.

The batboys and batgirl look at the queen in complete awe. Batman just gives a neutral expression, but on the inside, he feels different.

'She is even more beautiful in person.'

"Batman, Welcome to Naboo. I hope you managed to travel here safely with no complications."

"Queen Amidala. Thank you for inviting us to your planet and agree to meet with us."

"The Council of Naboo, Chancellor Valorum, and I have discussed and created a peace treat, but I would like to discuss it more with you."

A servant brings in a tray of refreshments. (Y/N) notices the other masked heroes.

"I see that you have brought company with you. Would all care to introduce yourselves, please?"

The others glance at each other, finally, Robin decides to introduce himself.

"Robin, I aide Batman on his missions and patrols around Gotham City. It's a great pleasure to meet you, Queen Amidala."

She nods in his direction before looking at the person next to him.

"Nightwing, protector of Bludhaven, former leader of the Teen Titans. It's very nice to meet you." He offers her a kind smile.

She nods her head and gives a small smile back, but gives a curious look. "What is a Teen Titan?"

Then shifts her gaze to the female hero.

"Batgirl, formerly known as Oracle. Thank you for inviting us here. You have a beautiful home planet!"

She gave Batgirl a grateful smile, "Thank you." Then she looked at the other male hero; he looked a bit younger than her, maybe around her age.

He shyly waves to her, "Hi, Red Robin. I also help Batman, as well as the other bat family members. Y-you have a really lovely home, you're beautiful, I-I-I mean your home is beautiful. Not saying that you're not beautiful because you are." He continues to stutter.

Robin rolls his eyes. "Smooth, Drake. Very subtle."

Queen Amidala just looks a little amused and tries not to laugh. She offers a smile and raises her hand to him, which gets to him stop. "It's alright, Red Robin. I understand, and thank you. You flattered me."

Red Robin opens his mouth but closes it and blushes.

She then looks to the last hero. He's physically well-built and has his arms crossed. She notices the blasters strapped to both sides of his legs.

"Name's Red Hood, vigilante of Gotham. And I got to say, you are way more hot in person compared to the photo that was sent to us." He complimented with a hidden smirk and gave a noticeable wink in your direction.

The handmaidens give a soft offend gasp and Captain Typho stiffens and clenches his fists.

Queen Amidala, however, is thankful the makeup covers her blush. She gave a confused look, but there was a fluttering feeling in her chest. She snaps back to reality and fixes her face into a neutral expression.

"Thank you, Red Hood. As much as I am flattered by your...compliment, we should probably go into the discussion about the treaty."

Batman, after sending a scolding glare to Red Hood (who does not show any regret about what happened but instead smugly looks to the other bat heroes who are glaring at him), looks to the queen.

"I agree; I do have a few questions and concerns."

"Of course, let us begin."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After discussing and reviewing the treaty, it was dusk. The Queen had adjourned the meeting and would talk with the Council of Naboo and Senator of Naboo tomorrow about the treat.

"I'll have some servants show you to your rooms that you will be staying in for a while. Once you have settled in, I'll have a couple of my handmaidens come to escort you to the dining room for dinner."

"Thank you, Queen Amidala." Batman gives a small bow.

Six servants show up in the throne room. Each of them escorts the heroes to the royal guest rooms. Bruce, Tim, and Barbara are neighbors; across from them are Dick, Damian, and Jason. All get comfortable with their room.

Near evening, two handmaidens come to each of their rooms to take them to the dining room, where the Queen is sitting at the end of the table waiting for them.

On the table are plates of food that seem questionable to the Batboys and Batgirls since this is their first time trying alien food. Bruce doesn't show it but even he seems to question the food but is curious to at least try some.

"Welcome, come every one, sit down. Enjoy the food."

Thinking for a moment, (Y/N) wonders if she should help them with which food is the best. After all, it is probably their first time trying food that was outside their planet.

"I would recommend the Shaak pot roast or the tip-yip but if any of you do not eat meat then I would try the Xizor salad or Aquaris Broth. Please let us know if you have any questions on the other food items."

The Batfamily sends appreciative looks toward her and starts to dish out. The servants that were about to dish out plates for them stop as they see this. They look to the queen, their expression partially asking, "What do we do?"

The queen just smiles and waves a hand to them. "It's alright. Let them dish out by themselves. It's getting late; why don't you all grab a plate and then retire for tonight or head back home to your families."

The servants smile at the queen and bow to her while both say. "Thank you, your highness."

The servants sit down and start to dish out as well.

There are different emotions running through the bat family. For all of them, there's admiration. For a few, there's surprise, confusion, and approval.

One who was most confused was Damian. It wasn't normal for the young adult to see a royal figure treating their servants like they were their equals.

His taught by his grandfather and mother that as royal figures, they are superior and therefore do not see non-royal figures, servants to be exact, as their equals.

But the more he thought of it, the more he started to admire the young ruler. This action showed that she was kind, generous, and fair. It made her even more beautiful.

They just eat their food for a while until one of the heroes decides to ask a couple of questions.

"So, what is it like being a queen? And how did you get the throne early? It just...you seem rather young...not that is a bad thing, but wouldn't your parents still be the ones running the throne?" Red Robin had asked.

Red Hood was about to scold him for asking those questions in the middle of dinner but stopped because he was curious, too. He wanted to know more about his sweetheart, about her.

The other masked vigilantes were curious as well.

(Y/N) stop mid-bite and set her spoon down in the bowl.

"Being queen can have hardships, but it can also be rewarding. I serve my people, and I do what is best for them. I've got to meet many different people and make connections and friendships with a few of them. As for how I got the throne, I wasn't born of royalty blood but rather I was elected by the people of Naboo. As for my parents, my father is an excellent builder, educator, and relief worker, while my mother voluntarily works in a variety of social services roles helping the underprivileged. I would sometimes go with my father to his relief missions to aid other people on different planets. It's what encouraged me to pursue this role."

Tim listens closely and pays full attention to her. He's actually surprised but amazed about her being elected for this role.

"Wow!...you must be very intelligent to have gotten such a role. It's amazing, and from the sound of it, you like to serve. Where did you go to school? Is there a specific school you have to go to? Different programs? It's amazing some your age could do this! I mean of course, I'm around you as well,...possibly. I mean I not old..not that I'm saying your old! Because you're not. You are young. Look young. B-beautiful, k-kind, and generous, and fair, amazing.

"Calm down there, Red Robin. I think she gets the point." Nightwing said.

"Stop. You're embarrassing yourself and us, for that matter." Robin said to him in a blank and annoyed tone.

(Y/N) just looks on in amusement and covers her mouth a little with her right hand but cannot control the small giggle that escapes past her lips. Even her servants find this amusing but manage to keep themselves from laughing at this event happening before them.

The Batmembers stop talking and freeze as they listen to her laugh. They thought it was a very nice laugh and couldn't help but smile. (Bruce and Damian gave small smiles, of course. But it is still a smile.)

Once (Y/N) got control of herself, she stopped giggling but still had a content smile on her face. She actually felt grateful for the young hero, it's been a while since she had even laughed.

"Thank you, Red Robin. You still continue to flatter me, and it's been a while since I laughed. You are one of a kind."

Red Robin couldn't stop the large grin growing on his face. He ducked his head and looked away, trying to hide his blushed face.

Unnoticed by the young queen, Nightwing, Red Hood, and Robin try but fail to hide their envious expressions. While both Batgirl and Batman look a bit amused but also a bit jealous.

"Who does he think he is, making my beloved her laugh like that?"

"I could have found a way to make her laugh. I have great charm, too."

"I compliment her and get a negative reaction. But when he does it, they find it amusing and harmless. Back off, Tim."

"She has an adorable laugh. But, ugh!...serious, how does Tim do it?"

Bruce felt amused, but he felt something else that made him frown at the same time. He can't help but stiffen a bit. Now, he feels disgusted with himself and scolds himself.

"I should not feel this way. It's wrong. Disgusting. She is around Jason's age.

Bruce lightly shakes his head a bit.

" It's nothing. It will go away. Right?"

[abyssal-ali]

Maribat Ships and My Vibe Explanations

These are based on the most popular tropes and scenarios I've seen particularly for a specific ship, but some are my own vision:) Moodboards I made for each ship, which are partially inspired by the below thoughts, are linked in the ship name.

Brucinette:

Boss x Secretary trope or Socialite meets Other Socialite and Both Discover each other is Less Shallow than they Thought

Alternatively,

Hero x Villain Love story.

Look, we all know Bruce has a bad track record with his Rogues and also Love in general

Black Cat Mari is the most popular, probably, but I think we should see more Villain/ Morally Grey Mari with other Miraculi

Not my favourite ship but it can be fun

Particularly when we add Dad Bruce and Mari gets to adopt the Batkids and be a Cool MomTM.

Dickinette:

Often a Villain x Hero romance, usually Black Cat Marinette and Nightwing.

A good trope to be sure, but I think we should spice it up more.

Vampire Dick Truthers (you know who you are) have a point with their Vampire Dick and Mari fics. Why not make Dick the villain in Mari's Rogue Gallery???

Overall a great trope, especially if you really delve into their characters: both are 'sunshine' characters who fight everyday to be the nice, kind heroes everyone thinks they are and expects them to be, even though it's the hardest route to take.

Jasonette:

(I'm biased as it's my #1 Maribat ship, but I'll try not to go on too long >.<)

Villain x Hero? Hero x Hero? Amazing, outstanding. What about Villain x Villain? I myself would love to see more Rogue Jason and Rogue Mari fics.

Any AU is amazing. I admit to having a fondness for Mob Boss Jason, partly because he is one in canon, at least for a while, and because I'm addicted to dark/mafia romance novels. Lieutenant Mari? Yes, please. Rival Mob Boss Mari? Heck yeah! Bat-affiliate Mari? Gimme. Please.

The amount of character exploration you could do if you wrote a romance where they actually stayed together, looking at you, DC is intriguing. Would Jason change for someone he loved? Would he give up crime lording? Would Mari accept him anyways but then they'd have to deal with one half running from the law/vigilantes and the other half being on the vigilantes' side?

Also, soft Jason. Nerding out over books and music and fashion and appreciating the fine things in life and meeting this cute fashion designer with a penchant to listen to Jagged Stone-

So many AU opportunities!! Bakery AU! Mafia AU! Coffee Shop AU! Meetcute at the Museum AU!...

Okay I'll move on now:(

Timari:

LISTEN

This ship IS THE DEFINITION OF THE CEO X SECRETARY TROPE!

I need more, I don't care if it's overused

Also, rival hackers or geniuses.

OR COFFEE SHOP AU

They're both coffee monsters, it's perfect

No I don't care that there are two dozen coffee shop Timari AUs, give me more.

Daminette:

ACADEMIC RIVALS TO LOVERS

Or just rivals to lovers is fine too

YOU REALLY THINK THESE TWO 'MUST BE THE TOP IN CLASS' WOULDN'T BE FIGHTING OVER GRADES AND THEN PAIRED UP ON AN ASSIGNMENT BECAUSE THEY'RE TOO INTENSE TO WORK WITH ANYONE ELSE AND THEN THEY HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER AT ALL TIMES LEST THE OTHER SABOTAGE THEIR PROJECT AND THEN THEY FALL IN LOVE-

anyways

I'm not even into HP but I want a Hogwarts AU with these two-

or any dark academia rivals to lovers au

Roynette:

Enemies or Rivals to Lovers

It's just a simple misunderstanding, as all large rifts start off with.

There's a translation issue or an eavesdropping that is taken out of context

(they're both idiots your honour)

But then something happens and they have to work together or they're made to talk and they realize it's all just a misunderstanding

And then they're like... " while we're clearing the air...so uh, I kinda have a crush on you'

"no way, me too!!"

And Mari meets Lian (or maybe that's what starts this, Jason and Mari are hanging out babysitting Lian and Roy comes to pick Lian up and they start talking and and and-)

And Mari loves Lian immediately of course, who wouldn't?

And so Roy likes her more because she likes Lian so automatically she's not as bad as he thought, and Lian really likes her too

And then they fall in love and Jason and Lian are the master matchmakers behind the scenes

You can pry OTP Jason & Lian setting up Roynette out of my cold dead hands

Konette:

I haven't seen or read a ton of Konette, but they usually meet at the Titans

Friends to Lovers 100%

They're both quiet and new and feeling out the dynamics

so they're often pushed together on purpose or by accident because the others are just so loud and chaotic

And then they become BFFs and are less inclined to join the others' chaos and so spend more time together, and so the cycle continues

And then one day something happens

Kon is Kryptonian and Mari had the Miraculous, they're usually the least-damaged members, but something happens, there's Kryptonite or magic or Something and one or both gets hurt.

The other jumps in front of them to take the blow because they can't let the other get hurt

"Why did you do that?!"

"I couldn't let you get hurt. You need to save our teammates."

Then the hurt one faints or passes out and the other confesses and thinks they can't hear them

They get back to the Tower safely and get treated and wake up and then they see the other

"Did you say you loved me, when I was passed out?"

"You heard that? Uh...yeah, I love you."

"I love you too!"

I haven't read much of any of the other ships to get a good feel on them, so I'm stopping here:)

[boop-le-snoot]

@buckyownsmylife hey babe! Remember that one time you threw that cool challenge? Here's my entry. Prepare to get absolutely ruined because daddy!Bruce is exactly that sort of man.

main masterlist ☀️ taglist

emotional support nerd

Your best friend's dad, Dr. Bruce Banner, is hotter than you thought he would be. 6k words, NSFW. Kind of Alt!Reader - she refers to herself as 'goth' in one instance. Tony Stark makes an appearance because God forbid I write a fanfic without him in it.

This is filthy pron, ft. age difference (reader is college aged) daddy kink, throat fucking, dirty talk, praise kink, cream pie, possessiveness, belly bulge and ending with a hint at a threesome. I really crammed all I could from Eyre's wheel in here, didn't I. Oh well.

"How much longer, dad?" Lyra's annoyed voice struck a chord within me. I tried to hide my snickering - unsuccessfully might I add - causing my best friend to shoot me a hurt look, equally fed up with me as she was fed up with her forgetful adopted father. "You know what, we'll take the subway."

Lyra's father's voice, both agitated and apologetic, reached my ears in bitten-off phrases as the traffic noises around us grew in volume, NYC rush hour rapidly approaching its peak.

With a sound huff, Lyra removed the phone from her ear, staring me down with the most amount of petulance I've ever seen on her usually reserved, placid face. "It's twenty more minutes. Apparently he's driving Tony's car," she offered in the way of explanation, like it actually did anything to better the cold, wet situation we found ourselves in. "Please, and I can't stress this enough, please don't be weird."

I felt a flood of amusement at Lyra's pleading tone. "Darling, if you wanted a normal friend, you should have looked elsewhere," I gestured to my outfit. I looked like a goth boy's wet dream: chunky platformed boots, fishnets, heavy eyeliner. Of course, all in black.

"You know what I mean," she whined, waving off my pointing hand and fixing me with a hard stare. "The least my dad needs is someone that is terrified of him just because sometimes he turns into a big green monkey. It's not as exciting as internet thinks, anyway," the last part of the sentence was mumbled but I heard it nonetheless as Lyra stared out into the traffic, clever eyes looking for a particular car model.

What Lyra didn't know was that I was not at all considering to be terrified by the man who dosed himself with radiation and developed an advanced version of split personality disorder. I could be intimidated by him, sure, because he was incredibly intelligent, a world class scientist with more PhDs than I had zeroes in my bank account, but even despite his green problem, Dr. Bruce Banner was about as far away from 'scary' as a man could be.

The few scarce pictures of him on the internet showed a short, stocky man with kind eyes and salt-and-pepper curls, always dressed in un-ironed, crumpled button-ups with dorky patterns. Looking at him, I mused that there was a high chance he spoke with a stutter and that fact amused me to no end. Jekyll and Hyde, alright.

Lyra was much the same way. Shy and reclusive, with curly brown hair and doe eyes, she spent a good chunk of her first semester in college being avoided by everybody because of her last name; I, on the other hand, avoided everyone out of habit, I'd never been a social butterfly, but the way people subtly made sure to exclude Lyra from all the activities filled me with quiet, seething rage, and I stepped over my general distaste of people and removed my bag from the seat next to me so Lyra could at least study in relative peace.

Yeah, yeah, you've heard it all, I'm sure. Weird goth chick adopts a socially awkward, shunned nerd and they become best friends forever. I had to admit that under the shy exterior, Lyra was smart, witty and even funny sometimes. She was willing to entertain my crude jokes without moaning, at least, and I was perfectly okay with listening to her rant about science every now and then.

Rain banged on the slanted roof of the café we were hiding in, the autumn wind howled, making both of us shiver at the prospect of having to go outside, even if it was for a short moment to run to Lyra's dad's car. The day had started out warm and sunny, but much like a badly calculated chemical formula, it all went downhill a split second after we had set out to leave campus.

"There he is," the grouch in Lyra's expression had me once again unsuccessfully attempting to conceal my snorting.

Nonetheless, I followed her out into the rain, struggling to keep up with the brisk running in my platformed shoes, unceremoniously crawling into the car behind her without sparing a glance at the driver in my eagerness to get out of the freezing downpour.

"Hi, dad," Lyra's tired voice spoke up at the same time as I angrily shook out my hair.

"I've just about McFuckin' had it with New York," I was afraid the dye in my hair would bleed out into my clothes, or even worse, the nice, cream-colored car seats.

"Hello, ladies," the voice that greeted us was low, gravelly and apologetic to boot.

My eyes shot up, meeting an expression full of surprise and amusement. I stared at the shockingly handsome face of Dr. Bruce Banner like a deer in the headlights.

The fine mimic wrinkles had stretched into a resemblance of a smile, soft, plush lips revealing a set of straight, white teeth. The five o'clock shadow framed his jaw, giving it a sharp, defined edge, his clever brown eyes slid down my form, faltering on the pentagram on my belt and my fishnet-covered legs, settling on my chunky boots before hastily snapping back up to my face.

"Dad, this is..." Lyra's voice was full of suspicious bewilderment as she attempted to dissipate the sudden awkwardness.

"Oh, yeah, I'm Dr. Bruce Banner, but you can call me Doc or Bruce," he cleared his throat, turning himself towards the windshield and starting up the car.

"Nice to meet you," I busied myself with putting away any stray hair just to occupy myself with something during the time I needed to recuperate from being just... Looked at by Lyra's dad.

It sounds ridiculous, I know, but I was so taken aback by his handsomeness and his aura of a gentle but powerful man that the ride to Stark tower, however swift, went on in slightly awkward silence. The streets outside were, thankfully, noisy, and the lack of an attempt to have a conversation could easily be attributed to Bruce's need to focus on the road, but Lyra's increasingly concerned looks did very little to settle the sudden racing of my heart.

"C'mon, I'll give you some sweats so you can let your..." Lyra's vague gesture towards my upper body disappeared behind her side of the door. "Hey, Tony," she suddenly interrupted her sentence, very obviously addressing another person who I managed to miss as Bruce parked in the spacious garage.

"I've been told you're finally bringing your friend, Green Pea," a voice I'd heard a thousand times on the TV poked fun at Lyra.

She bent down to retrieve her bag, shooting big eyes at me and mouthing an exaggerated "Sorry!"

Tony Stark looked about a week in debt on sleep, a contrast to the way he usually appeared in public. The exaggerated eyebrow raise made me shuffle awkwardly in my spot; the Led Zep tee caught my eyes as I lingered on it, aware of my own Mötorhead top on display. He noticed it too, causing his face leave the snide territory.

"Wow, I didn't expect kids these days to have any resemblance of taste in music but you've surprised me, Corpse Bride," he gave me a quiet wolf-whistle, watching me through lidded eyes.

I felt my eyebrow crawl upwards at his attitude but Bruce spoke up before I could say anything: "Tony, no," so firmly, I had to raise both of my eyebrows. I felt a smile tug at my lips, the situation strikingly familiar in it's essence. Like father, like daughter...

"No," Lyra's identical expression, fond and annoyed, topped up with an accusing finger pointed in my direction had everyone snorting a giggle at the situation.

"Lyra," I whined, just so I could coax her grin that she was very obviously trying to conceal. "See, I told you, every crazy genius needs their emotional support nerd," I fixed her with a pointed look.

She promptly grabbed me by the arm, leading all of us to the elevator as the two men behind us shared a hearty laugh at my well-timed joke. It was either that or I would have completely embarrassed myself by gaping and drooling over both THE Tony Stark and Lyra's father.

The rush didn't stop there. I was promptly and generously offered not only a spare pair of pants but also a whole room to stay in after an invitation to dinner I simply could not refuse. Dr. Banner firmly coaxed me into staying overnight with his pleading eyes and a hearty seasoning of guilt tripping, softly crooning how he simply could not let a young woman to wander the cold, rainy night in NYC alone.

Tony added something too, in a tone way too surefire and patronising. I guessed he noticed my eyes lingering on Dr. Banner, being a genius and all.

In a short amount of time, I found myself seated at a dinner table next to a happy, giggling Lyra who'd downed a glass of wine and was well into her second. I found it adorable how much of a lightweight she was; not hesitating in the slightest to point out that fact when she made hands for a pitcher of water.

Tony was the first one to snark back something vague about his college days and all the wild parties he used to throw, booing Bruce upon discovery that he, in fact, actually studied in college in favour of partaking in various illicit activities. That had both me and Tony giggling with Lyra promptly joining in, both of us losing it over the running joke or her being either a test tube baby or the result of immaculate conception.

Bruce's face blushed scarlet. He sputtered, a few stray drops of his lemonade landing on the (ironed!) collar of his purple shirt, cough disappearing in the wake of Tony's truly amused cackling. Dr. Banner was well on his way to either choke on his Lo Mein or turn green; thinking quickly, I decided to defuse a situation by sharing a harmless, funny story that happened to me as a freshman.

"I went on a date with this guy who said that music was the most important thing in his life, and I thought, wow, that's so beautiful!" I began my story over Lyra's incessant snickering. "So we had dinner and went back to his place because I'm a whore," the whole table erupted in laughter at my deadpan remark, Tony reaching over to give me a high five.

"And as we got there, he put on one of his demos which was just a bunch of sampled and remixed Guns'n'Roses songs, and I thought wow, that's gotta be one of the worst things I've ever heard," I pointedly looked away as Lyra's cackling grew in volume, having heard the same story several times by now and the outrage I expressed at the situation first hand.

"But instead of that I said, wow, that's so cool! Then we did the thing and his whole bedroom was covered in Axl Rose posters and I'm sure at some point Mr. Rose stared right up my asshole," there were tears streaming down Lyra's face as Tony flopped his upper body onto the table and Bruce convulsed helplessly in a silent fit of giggles. "And then I thought to myself: wow, I would have to pretend to like his music if I dated this guy and I just couldn't do that..." I breathed out, succumbing to the mirth at the dinner table. "It was good but not November Rain good, y'kno?"

Bruce snorted loudly, sliding down his chair with a hand over his face. The table shook with the force of Tony's cackling; I didn't see his expression but the howling, rasping noises sent me into another fit of laughter, right on par with Lyra.

"Is this..." Tony rapidly inhaled the much-needed oxygen. "Is this why you keep wincing whenever I play the 'Roses in the lab?" Tony wheezed and Lyra nodded.

"I just... I can picture it, and I-" she made a vague, encompassing gesture and a face.

"Please, don't," I urged with a snort. "There are better ways to get disappointed."

Dinner went on by smoothly after that, everybody happily making remarks on my dating fail, the topic of Lyra's birth and Tony's college shenanigans dismissed.

I caught Dr. Banner's pointed look as we finished our dessert - he was studying me, eyes searching for something that he very obviously wished was there. From the damp roots of my hair to the soft, cotton top clinging to my chest, I wasn't left unscrutinzed and unexamined. Like one of the many specimens he studied on a daily basis, Bruce lingered on the many characteristics that made me stand out in the grey crowd.

"Would you like to see the labs?" He asked, appearing behind me without a single sound.

The freshly cleaned dishes clattered in my arms. I'd almost dropped them, startled, but Bruce's hand landed on the top of the stack right before the top plate would have slipped off and shattered into pieces on the cold tile of his kitchen.

Blood rushed to my ears. "I'd love to," my brain had briefly returned to reality, the rush of meeting both Stark and Banner succumbing to logic and reason. My and his fields of study briefly overlapped, the question he posed was more than reasonable. In fact, many people would cheat, lie and steal to be in my position.

Bruce smiled, opening a cabinet and taking half of the dishes I was holding to stack them up in their proper place. The sleeves of his shirt were rolled up, exposing wide, muscular forearms littered with dark, coarse hair.

I was sure my face was flaming. After waving off Lyra's attempts to put shoes on me and leaving her to watch her TV show, a wide, warm palm rested on the back of my waist, gently steering me towards the elevator.

I tried to keep my eyes off Bruce in the large mirror on the walls of the car as it swiftly moved down, scrutinizing my appearance instead. My throat bobbed, the elevator car suddenly too small and too hot.

His eyes left marks on me - invisible ones, the kind that I knew were there just from the scorching heat sizzling on my skin.

There was a certain je ne sais quoi about him. Perhaps, it was in the way he was acting - a polar opposite of what I'd had expected, Dr. Bruce Banner possessed a quiet confidence and his patience appeared to be endless, heartily doused with an appreciation for his closest ones. The way his eyes lit up in response to people smiling around the dinner table was hard to miss.

When Bruce spoke about his research - whatever wasn't classified, anyway - the spark expanded into a mischievous fire. I could hardly understand the nuances in his work, scratch that- I could not understand a single word he was saying, at all. The individual syllables registered as they should, but my traitorous brain could only focus on the way he licked his lips in between quickly inhaled breaths.

"You're not... Following, are you?" The corner of his mouth lifted upwards, clever brown eyes fixed on my face.

God, I hoped I wasn't drooling. But to deny the obvious would have been a stretch. "No, not really," I swallowed, willing my eyes to lift from the large veins on the hand that was pointing at a set of equations. Reasonably good at math any day, they looked like the scribbles of a madman to me at the time.

Dr. Banner sighed, letting silence creep among the whirring machinery in the lab for a brief moment. "I don't scare you?" He removed his glasses, cleaning them with the corner of his shirt.

The question reeked of self-doubt and, perhaps, insecurity. "No," I answered simply, not giving him the slightest chance to find doubt in my words. I was barely holding my voice from shaking, afraid he'd misunderstand my reaction to the sudden change in atmosphere.

He was closer to me than I recalled. My hip was almost brushing his, the bulk of his shoulder millimeters from touching against my bare skin, the smell of something herbal, like tea, and sharp chemicals clouding my senses. It was such a contrasting experience.

Bruce turned to me, an expression between hunger and regret forcing me to shiver and look him straight in the eye. A hand landed on my waist, holding me in place with gentle firmness. "I'm a monster, I could hurt you," he whispered, leaning into me like a touch starved kitten. The man screamed contradiction. "We shouldn't."

Vivid images of the Hulk and the rampages years prior flashed through my mind; the rubble, the collateral damage in the form of many lives. I barely remembered it, having been too little to really understand what was going on. One thing, though, I knew for sure: ever since the world became aware of Lyra's existence, there had been no incidents. Sure, the Hulk still appeared when there was a threat, but there were no documented incidents of the green creature running amok, accidentally.

"You won't hurt me," I spoke with conviction. Perhaps, I was bluffing just slightly but I wouldn't lie like that to myself. The variable, the... Twelve or so percent chance of things going... Awry, it made a small, malicious worm inside of me rejoice and fill my limbs with familiar adrenalised yearning. "You're not a monster. Far from it, actually," I used the hand that was not supporting me against the desk to gently cradle the side of his face, letting my fingertips brush over the rough five o'clock shadow on his cheek.

Bruce emitted a sound somewhere between an agitated grown and a pleading whine, sagging with the sound exhale, pressing himself flush with my chest. His face slipped from my palm, the warm tip of his nose running a steady line up my neck, sending goosebumps running wildly down my back as his hot breath tickled the arch of my throat.

"Baby," the nickname punched a stuttered gasp out of me with the intensity contained in just that one word. "I've been hearing all these amazing things about you," his voice dropped, low baritone rumbling straight into my ear. "I won't be able to hold back. I'll want you all to myself," his bicep flexed under my hand.

My knees would have bucked if I wasn't grasping onto Bruce for dear life after those words. I had some sense of personal pride in me, so while my body was an easy, traitorous thing, my mind was more than eager to participate in this game, to ping pong a little bit before... "Yeah? What things?" I breathed.

Teeth briefly closed around my tender skin, nipping for just a second. "You're kind, beautiful," his hand took a steadfast hold on the back of my neck, exposing my throat to his mouth. More skin to mark, more time to whisper. "Intelligent, bright and clever," the more he spoke, the fiercer he became. Bruce's grasp tightened until I was pliant in it, willingly following his silent commands. "A bit of a pain in the ass," a healthy dose of humour was added into the mix as my ass was roughly grabbed, our fronts pressed together at his insistence.

"That sounds about right," I didn't resist the sudden urge to snark, thoughts lazily floating in my head, like clouds on a bright sunny day, fleeting and sparse. None of them caught on. I was focused on feeling the need, on my need to feel.

A sharp smack landed on the plump of my ass, the sound resonating in the eerily quiet lab. The sounds of machinery had dulled at some point, leaving just the two of us panting our lust into each other's space. "I know you can be a good girl. Will you, princess?" His fingertips dug into my flesh, surpassing the soft sweatpants as if they weren't even there.

I could only nod, dumbly, overcome by the sudden rush of blood to my body. The life coarsing through me sang, demanding a release of the pent-up tension.

"What's that?" Bruce removed himself from my neck, catching my unfocused eyes with a crooked smirk on his lips.

"Yes," I swallowed, breathing through my mouth.

"Mmm," he hummed, running both hands over my sides, over the frayed edges of my Mötorhead top. He admired it, briefly, setting his eyes on the band logo that was right over my breasts. Having decided something to himself, Bruce promptly removed it, lifting it over my head with ease and leaving it right on the science lab table.

Taking hold of my hand, he walked over to a hidden set of sliding doors that revealed a rather large, frequently used bed, shutting them just as I walked in, wearing only my bra and borrowed sweats. My back was pressed to the door in mere seconds, hot palms chasing away the chill of the lab as Bruce slotted his lips over mine.

He tasted like something I've never had before. His lips - so plush and supple, took hold of the kiss with practiced gusto, sucking me in without a chance or the desire to escape. I drank from him, sucked on the bottom lip as his tongue explored my mouth, danced with mine.

The room was spinning, the ringing in my ears growing in volume. I was only partly aware of the sensation of sliding down the wall; our knees thudded on the carpeted floor simultaneously, heavy breathing the only noise I could distinguish.

"Breathe, baby, that's it," Bruce coaxed, gently stroking my nape. The soft cotton of his shirt crumpled under my fingers where I held onto him, desperately searching something to ground myself with.

The buckle of his belt clattered and then clinked again as he wrapped the worn leather around my wrists, bringing them together in front of my chest. I exhaled sharply at the intimate gesture, a whine bubbling up from my chest when Bruce used a single fingertip to raise my chin.

My eyes met his; a brown iris tinged with the faintest of green around the outer edge. "This okay, princess?" He sought my face for confirmation, for agreement, for anything.

I nodded, stuttering mid-gesture, remembering our previous interaction. My mouth did not want to cooperate but I forced it to, even if it came out as little more than a pitiful mewl. "Yes, daddy," the word, sweet and sticky like fruit syrup, poured from my lips.

My eyes slid shut as my conscience - or was it common sense? - took hold of the situation. I was on my knees in front of my best friends dad, a virtual stranger, and I'd just-

Bruce's soft chuckle stopped the negative spiral of my thoughts. "That's my girl," he sounded a tad more breathless now, a hairliner in his perfect façade of self-control. As if he'd sensed my indecisiveness, he tugged on the makeshift restraints, pulling me closer, closer and into his lap.

A warm, solid chest with a healthy amount of fluff greeted me. Bruce let my lax, pliant body fall into his arms, catching me effortlessly and bringing my face to his lips. "You have nothing to be ashamed of, you're my good girl," he peppered soft kisses all over my flaming cheeks, my twitching nose, my fluttering lashes.

"Please," I begged, shame giving way to the flood of arousal that seemingly hit me all at once. I was aware of the dampness collecting in my panties, the stiffness of my limbs from holding back the ravenous desire to paw at Bruce like a wild animal. "Please, daddy..."

"I know, I know, baby girl," he soothed, not stopping his tender assault on my face. "Daddy will make it all better. I know just what you need," Bruce finally pulled away. I heard the sound of him undoing his zipper and then the awkward shuffle of him shucking off his pants.

Somewhere in between of all that, he'd ended up sitting down on the bed, wearing only his boxers, his shirt hanging open. The red crawled down his chest, partially masked by the coarse salt and pepper hair; his lips were cherry red and his hair was sticking out in odd directions. Bruce looked sinful.

My eyes inadvertently landed on the impressive bulge in his boxers; in response to my widened eyes, he reached out for it, stroking the outline of his thick cock through his boxers. "Like what you see, baby?"

"Yeah," My mouth watered.

"Baby wants a fat cock?" He teased, sounding like he knew exactly what he was doing, testing my self-control like that. With a flick of his wrist, it sprang free, slapping against his tummy, coating the fine hairs with drops of clear, musky fluid.

I swallowed, feeling the taste of him from afar and yearning for more where I was parked between his spread legs.

In a gesture almost loving, he tugged on the belt still wrapped around my wrists, bringing my face to his leaking shaft and my hands to the base of it, letting me feel the weight of his balls in them. The cock throbbed, neglected, weighed down by the heaviness of his full balls.

"Go ahead, baby, suck my cock," the encouragement came with a gentle push to my head.

I obediently followed, wrapping my lips around the pink, moist crown of it, a hum beginning in the back of my throat. My God, Bruce tasted heavenly... I whirled and slipped my tongue a around his head, I dipped into the slit to drink the nectar right from the tap, idly coming to awareness of the broken, choked moans coming from the man above me.

Raising my head got me a view of his chin; head thrown back, the lax O of his mouth glistened in the meager light. My eyes slid lower, to the flex of his abs. Bruce fought hard to stay still. The desire consumed me, a sudden rush of power at having Dr. Bruce Banner's cock in my mouth and the man at my mercy; I inhaled, sliding my mouth further and further down his throbbing length.

"Fuck," I heard him mutter before his hands gripped the sides of my face. "Hungry, baby, are you?" His eyes glowed a faint green; I shuddered at the power he held within himself. Held back for me. "Tap my thigh twice," he spoke and I had no choice but to obey. "Okay. Do that if it gets too much, alright?" I nodded. He gave me a wide, beaming smile. "Good girl," he praised, experimentally bucking his hips into my mouth a few times.

In and out. I focused on my breathing, sharp, little inhales: his girth took up all the free space in my mouth, the tip of it barely fit into my throat. The burn, the stretch; I felt every tenth of an inch, every bulging attempt of my body to accommodate Bruce's huge cock. It was delicious, I couldn't help but crave the same stretch in my neglected, sopping wet pussy.

"Fuck, you're taking it so well," Bruce moaned wetly. "Your mouth... S'like heaven... Could fuck it all day, that's my good girl," the rambling increased in it's intensity as the pace of his hips hastened. Drool and tears flowed like a river; my chin was dropping with it, spit connected my face to his pelvis. "Oh," there was a brief pause to his movements; suddenly, he pulled out, fisting the base of his cock, staring me down with a ferocious gleem in his eye.

I must've looked a straight mess; my face like a crime scene, my clothes disheveled, covered in fluids and most of all - I was desperately grinding against my own feet, too focused on the glorious cock in front of me to notice the weakness of my own flesh. "Daddy?" I questioned, wincing at the grating of my own voice.

Without a word, the belt was tugged once more; in a set of movements just slightly north of acrobatic, I found myself laying on my back in the middle of the bed, my sweatpants suffering a haste demise in the corner of the room.

Bruce crawled atop me, leaving a trail of sloppy kisses on every inch of my skin he could reach, mouthing something inaudible into every pore of my body. As he drew closer, I discerned bitten-off phrases, stringing my desire into sticky, tangy mess at the apex of my thighs.

"My perfect baby girl," the words reached me; all tongue, he kissed me once more, arching into me as much as I arched into his hot grasp. A brief inspection of my face - he was satisfied with what he saw - and Bruce crawled back, settling in between my spread legs, breathing hot air on the lips of my sex still covered by a sopping wet piece of fabric.

"Oh fuck," I yelped, feeling him smooch it soundly, the hot wetness of his tongue penetrating the meagre lace barrier with ease.

He moved it aside anyway, with a single finger, giving my pussy a broad lick, moaning into my cunt like a man gone mad. It took a few more licks for him to feel sated enough to surface, all the while holding my hips down. I was so sensitive, I felt even the tiniest flicks to my clit, I was sure if I didn't cum then and there, I would explode.

"Such a pretty pussy, princess," his heavy breathing paused briefly. He nipped my thigh. "So wet, is that all for me?"

"Yes, yes, daddy," I rasped, pushing my cunt into his face, losing all shame and trepidation.

"So tasty," he continued the torture, outlining my lower lips before taking another nosedive right into it, swirling his tongue around every fold, sucking onto my clit.

Bruce ate my pussy until my thighs shook, until my core quivered and I could no longer hold back the choked, ragged screams starting somewhere in the low of my belly and coming out as unholy, all-consuming yowls filled with unadulterated lust.

"Louder for me, baby," he inhaled rapidly, and then, he sucked on my clit.

The world stopped, halted on it's axis, every muscle going rigid in my body and every nerve ending simultaneously coming alive. Faintly, I heard a chant, repeating two syllables over and over, it sounded like my voice - but I had no control over myself. All I could do was weakly grind my hips against Bruce's mouth, faltering when the crashing waves of my orgasm began to recede.

The infuriating overstimulation stopped; blinking hazily, I saw Bruce's eyes glimmer brown and green in front of my face. His nose and his chin was glistening with a thin coat of sticky fluid; disheveled and red, he looked a man on the verge of a revelation.

Something hot and blunt nosed at my cunt, bringing back the moment to me - I realized, with a great deal of impatience - how empty I felt. The decision was minute. "Daddy, fuck me, please, I want your cock," the words came easily.

"That's my girl," his eyes fluttered shut as the first inches squeezed through the snug of my cunt. I was sopping wet and as relaxed as I'd be, but even then, it was a stretch. "Good girl, good baby," the mumbled praise made me whine and my pussy clamp on his cock. "Relax, let daddy fill you up." Breathing through it, I consciously unwound myself around him, letting my palms rest freely on his shoulders. "Let daddy take care of you."

Like melted sugar, his husked words stuck to me inside and out. Short, sharp thrusts; Bruce was patiently burrowing himself inside of me, making his way to reach the deepest parts of me I didn't even know existed. His cock head pressed against something hard and spongy inside of me; stars burst behind my eyes I'd clamped shut on reflex.

I moaned weakly, tugging on his arm, pressing myself closer. It felt so, so good. Like a raw nerve had been exposed and he was stroking it, pushing that little switch with every stroke of his hips.

"I'm not gonna last," he muttered as once again, my cunt squeezed him snugly in place, just as greedy as I was to feel that tiny explosion spark up within me again.

"I want..." I panted. Bruce set in a punishing pace after that, a palm under my ass, squeezing it so hard there would definitely be bruising. I craved it, I needed to see the evidence this was not some elaborate fever dream. "I want... Daddy to fill me up," words came out garbled; it sounded like gibberish to my ears but Bruce - they spurred him on.

"Oh yeah?" That breathless, boyish cockiness was back in his voice again; despite how fucked out he sounded, I prepared myself for something truly out of this world. I just knew.

He sat back on his shins, dragging me by the hips with him, making me shiver and moan and twitch and clamp onto him again as his throbbing cock hit that special spot again. And again. And again.

"Look at me, baby," a hand on my belly and his eyes burning right through me. As they slid down, towards the apex of my thighs where he was still moving within me almost lazily, I saw it.

"Oh fuck," I couldn't utter much more than a two-syllabled profanity. There was a bulge in my belly, just above my pelvis, moving in rhythm with Bruce's hips. And then he pressed on it and I-

Something, someone, somewhere was screaming. The noise was loud and pitched, but even then, I could barely hear it though the neverending waves of bliss that enveloped my whole being. Gold and silver at the edges of my rapidly darkening vision; I was drowning in something that smelled and felt like Bruce. The safety of his arms, the warmth of his heated body, the rapid snapping of his hips-

Oh.

"I'm gonna, fuck," the last word was but a ghost of a human speech. Growling low and filthy, Bruce leaned into my ear, his breath hot and moist. "Mine," his hips stuttered, his cock nestled deep, the sensation bordering on painful, forcefully extracted pleasure. It throbbed with every spurt of his seed; each one felt like a solid punch in the gut to my abused pussy.

"Daddy," I mewled, my body jerking away from him but my mind and my soul yearning for more. His rapidly softening flesh made the idea of being separated unbearable.

"S'good, s'my good girl, m'so proud," he mumbled, looking slightly disoriented as he removed himself from me, immediately pressing me to his side and interwining any free, flailing limbs.

We laid in silence, each of us slowly coming back to Earth after the completely unreal experience we just had. I didn't know what to think, didn't know what to do as the realization set in, the post-orgasmic haze giving way to a sudden rush of clarity.

"I can hear you overthinking," Bruce's voice was fond.

Before I could muster up the courage to snark back, the divided doors opened, one very concerned Tony Stark standing there, armed with a tranquilizer gun in one hand and a pack of cookies in the other. His mouth, previously open to (probably) yell at us, remained as open when his eyes had registered the scene in front of him.

I stared at Bruce. Bruce stared at Tony.

"The noise," he offered in the way of explanation, dangling the pack of cookies, looking, for once - speechless. He recovered quickly, however, even if the remark was a thin ghost of his usual sass: "You pick the nerd over me? I'm hurt," he scoffed in mock irritation, although I was pretty sure I saw some satisfaction in there, too.

Bruce looked at me. I looked at Bruce.

A mischievous grin slowly crept up his face, an identical one beginning to appear on my own face seconds after.

"Hey, two nerds is better than one, right?" My response is what did it; or, rather, it was the evidence of my previous throat-fucking clearly audible in my voice... Tony dropped the cookies and then, the tranq gun.

Bruce Banner taglist: @pilloclock @mikariell95 @letsby @sleep-i-ness @toomanyrobins @persephonehemingway @mostly-marvel-musings @schemefrenzy @lillsxd @bluecrazedandbeautiful @slothspaghettiwrites @sapphicnoodle69 @couldntbedamned @xoxabs88xox @marvelsbanner @tripleyeeet @tatestripedsweater @stuckybarton

[fairydust-stuff]

I agree with so many of these points! Honestly I've had these same gripes myself! I do like damien but I agree he's got issues from a writing perspective.

though I will say. Some of these things happened because of bad adaptation bullshit choices! Comic writers forgetting multiple important things! I read Damien's orginal orgin comics/ the Grant Morision run. And it still had a very found family vibe.

Because a lot of fans ignore this but Batman couldn't handle Damien. They fought all the time it was a mess it was heavily hinited that Damien being the product of Bruce's rape didn't help matters.

So Batman nearly dies/ fakes his own death for a while. And Dick and Alfred end up co parenting. With Damien as the Robin to Dick's Batman. And Damien starts out saying Dick isn't family/ isn't blood and has no influence on him.

Only for Damien to end up embracing Alfred and Dick as family outside of blood ties by the end. There's even an issue with Damien questioning if he's evil because him and Dick end up fighting a bad guy who is murdering the family members of criminals due to this mindset. At about the same time Damien realizes out Talia's love is disturbingly conditional.

Where Alfred tells him its ok for damien to define himself outside of both Talia and Batman! The entire run emphasizes blood does not matter!

I don't care what anyone says Dick Greyson is Damien's dad along with Alfred. They made him the boy he was today. Batman didn't do shit!

Yes! Damien works as Dick's Robin he does not work as Batman's Robin. Damien works best when is with either Jason or Dick. But so many writers force this obnoxious blood purity father, son duo.

In my unpopular opinion Batman works best when you don't draw too much attention to him as a father. Because at least in the things i've read/ seen. I think batman is frankly terrible as a parent. Even some of Dick's issues can be tranced back to the fact Bruce is emotionally stunted. After Jason there was no coming back from that.

I do wish they'd do more with cassandra in general she seems cool as a character. The girls do get sidelined in the batfamily for males. I wonder why (sarcasm). It is true though that dc doesn't seem to know what to do with Tim.

"And I'm sorry I don't care how skilled you are as a child assassin, you are still a child. Like in the Animated movies he should not be able to beat Deathstroke in a straight 1 to 1 fight."

Its annoying because Damien got his ass kicked/ kidnapped in his introduction comic run! Damien would get over confident and get his ass handed to him. The Grant Morison run did a good balance of having Damien as skilled but also showing he still had a lot to learn. Also the author knew audiences needed to see Damien humbled every once in a while.

Dc animated Damien is way too good and its freaking obnoxious. Yes Slade should be able to take him out!!!!!! I also hate the storyline where abuse victum's become perfect powerhouses due to abuse. Its not how that works!

"Fifthly. For Damian's character arc to really work/make sense ot has to be acknowledged that Talia is not a good mother."

Ugh! Talia needs to be treated as an abuser period! Once again orgin run made that abundantly clear. I honestly think the run for all its criticisms does handle talia as an abuser well.

They even do a passible job with the subtext that Damien is the product of Bruce's rape. Batman is visiblly uncomfortable around her. He looks almost painted whenever talia's obsesstion with him is brought up.

But then dc animated is like nope lol! men don't get raped and Bruce is just so hot for her and eww! I do feel bad for Talia fans but if the writers want Damien around. Talia's rape of Bruce will always be the elephant in the room. She roofied him!

Though I will add my own gripes why is Jason made so evil in Damien's orgin comic. I know he was in his villian era but trying to kill Dick was WTF! it was like the writers needed a shadow damien or something and slotted Jason into the roll.

Asking out of curiosity, but why do ya dislike Damian Wayne? I ask this not in a acussitory manner mind, as my only exposure to Damian is in non comics material such as those animated movies he popped up in. More so curiosity cause he seems to be a very controversial character among the main comics fandom itself.

He is controversial. There are a few reasons, some I could change my mind on with better writing and others would take a lot more for me to get behind him. I'll start by saying if you're reading this and are a Damian fan don't continue, you aren't gonna like what I have to say so don't both hate reading for the sake of it.

Firstly the concept of the Bat Family for the most part up until that point was about Found Family. Let me be clear I'm not saying it was sunshine and rainbows and they all got along great all the time BUT it was about broken people finding each other and trying to work together to make a difference. The very concept of giving Bruce a blood son ruins that, you need only look at most Damian fans when the debate on who should be Bruce's successor comes up, they will always say Damian despite the fact he has shown NOTHING to prove he deserves it, their only reason is he's the blood son. While yes being both biological and adopted kids is a thing that exists and most real people can do it and it works most DC writers are not adopted parents and dont know the specifics of how you depict that balance and it shows. It reeks of weird blood purist, anti-adoption vibes that just aren't good. Like the rise in "bad parent Bruce Wayne" towards Jason and Tim and some of the others (not sure he knows Cass's name anymore) conveniently corrolates with demon brats creation. Coupled with the fact on more than one occasion writers have seemed to make it seem like Damian does indeed mean more just cause he's blood related. I just don't like it. I wasn't overly fond of Helena Wayne (although she was better cause she was from another world instead of the canon one) and I don't like Damian for the same reason.

Secondly he was forced as Robin. As I said in a recent post up until Damian the role of Robin had only really been changed when it was necessary. Jason was made Robin because DC wanted Robin to be a kid again but readers liked the storylines they were getting with young adult Dick Grayson so they promoted Dick from sidekick and created Jason Todd. Likewise when Jason died there was no Robin, Dick wasn't about to go back to being Robin and Jason was dead thus Tim was created to fill a role that needed filling. Even Stephanie was made Robin due to Tim being unavailable for a long period of time (i dont remember the specifics but i think it had to do with his family finding out about Robin) so even when she lasted not even a year, she was still filling a vacamcy instead of being forced into a role that was already filled. Damian however was just created. They had not taken the proper steps to develop Tim out of being Robin naturally (and before people come at me with "oh he had plenty of time" Dick Grayson got FORTT YEARS and Damian is coming up on nearing 2 decades so shut up) and thus his creation has directly led to the problem we have right now in DC were we have TWO Robins cause they demoted Tim back to being Robin when Red Robin didn't work out (and 3 batgirls but that ones Barbara Gordon's fault). Coupled with the fact his introduction came right after the revival of Jason Todd thus basically screeching to a halt any real meaningful development that plotline could have had because suddenly DC had a shiny new toy to play with. Damian's creation was a turning point for Batman comics and not a good one, because it contributed to the derailing of multiple characters arcs and plotlines and some have still not fully recovered.

Thirdly his character upon introduction was already redundant. He's a child raised by assassins.... OK well we already have Cassandra Cain. He's a Robin willing to kill and will really test the Bat Fams moral compass. OK well as I said we'd already revived Jason Todd and he was already taking the fight to the Bat on the no kill rule. Literally the only unique thing he had upon introduction was that he was a blood relation to Bruce which I personally do not think should mean anything. But DC starting from that point going forward started to have a horrible undercurrent of blood purity. The only thing I can think that he is semi unique on is being biracial but even then not entirely his since Cassandra is biracial as well AND they never do anything with him being biracial. Plus if they really wanted to they could have reconned one of the existing Robins to be biracial without derailing multiple other characters plotlines.

Fourthly. He's an obnoxious and annoying brat 90% of the time. Like I get it, being raised by Talia (although there's conflicting information on of he was actually raised at all since the timeline does not seem to add up for his age and at one point he was grown in an artificial womb and artificially aged but that's been retconned but the timeline still don't add up if he's not artificially aged somewhat. His back story is a mess I ain't gonna make heads or tails of it) will inevitably result in a very arrogant child afterall Ra's and Talia's egos rival Lex Luthors. BUT they want us to believe at times he can back that up. And I'm sorry I don't care how skilled you are as a child assassin, you are still a child. Like in the Animated movies he should not be able to beat Deathstroke in a straight 1 to 1 fight. He just shouldn't. Both are highly skilled assassins sure but Slade is like 6 times Damian's age, double his size and at least 3 times his weight. There is also the fact that his dark, brooding, arrogant, cruel character sort of worked when he was Dick Grayson's Robin cause it was flipping the established dynamics for Batman and Robin. But when he's Bruce's Robin it doesn't work, we no longer have that little bit of sunshine that Robin is meant to bring to Batman (and don't think I haven't noticed how Batman's character has got crueler and darker since Damian became his Robin) while Batman is meant to be a guiding hand for Robin to keep him on the right track.

Fifthly. For Damian's character arc to really work/make sense ot has to be acknowledged that Talia is not a good mother. At best she's deliberately raising him in a dangerous environment and at worse she is actively abusive. It's the only way you can justify half of his character traits and why he's even here in the first place. Here's the issue for all I dislike Talia as a character... I don't believe she's an abusive mother. One thing that seems to be consistent for Talia was that she did love her family. Talia's flaws for me are in her inability to choose a side and her entitlement towards Bruce and other men (well and the whole worldwide genocide of anyone not League of Assassins). Now I am more willing to accept this one as just being how new Talia is but I don't blame some of her fans who feel miffed about this however they do have to acknowledge that there's no real way to do his story without her either being an incompetent parent or a down right bad one (but don't worry Talia fans Bruce is also awful nowadays so she's not alone there....)

Now his arrogance and overall unlikable character can absolutely be fixed with good writing. I hated him in the Animated movies (kid you grew up in the mountains leaving to kill you SHOULD NOT BE LECTURING BRUCE FUCKING WAYNE ABOUT STOCKS) but I'm quite liking him in Boy Wonder where it's actually tackling his own sense of entitlement and showing that he needs to learn from his predecessors rather than acting like he's better than them purely because he shares dna with Bruce.

BUT the conceptual issues I have won't go away quite so easily. It's why if I'm asked if I could wipe one Robin from existence, it will always be him. He could be written wonderfully, he could get a comic run that is the best written thing ever and I will still always say him when asked that question. And I know I'm not alone on that.

[mrslaufeyson002]

Rise Chapter 8 part 2

I was going with Steve as his date/girlfriend. The party was filled with a lot of people. Steve and Sam were playing pool as I stood by nearby watching. Sam was being cocky (like he always is) and I laugh along with Steve. Sam ended up winning. "If I had known it was gonna be a firefight, I would have called." Steve says talking about the mission from earlier. "No, no. I'm not actually sorry. I'm just trying to sound tough." Sam says and then points at me. "Was Taylor a part of this?" I shook my head no. "I was stuck on babysitting duty." I look over to Thor and Loki, then excused myself.

I join Thor and Loki by the bar. Loki glares at me, but I didn't react. Steve joins us and wraps his arm around my waist. Loki glares at Steve, but like me, he doesn't react. We were all drinking and talking (except Loki) when an old man walks up to us.

"I gotta have some of that" he says referring to the bottle in Thor's hand. "Oh, no, no, no." Thor says replies, almost like he is telling a toddler no. "See this...This was aged for a thousand years in the barrels built from the wreck of Grunhel's fleet. It is not meant for mortal men or woman." I'm confused and about to ask a question, when another old man near by makes himself aware. "Neither was Omaha Beach, blondie. Stop trying to scare us. Come on." He says, clearly wanting whatever was in the bottle. Thor was hesitant at first, but pours the old man some. I pour myself some more champagne, but kept wondering what would happen to someone like me with a little drop from that bottle. I watched as the old guys reaction. He was really drunk and needed help walking out of here. That's what it does.

Steve and I saw Nat and Bruce at the bar. We walked over and heard a bit of the conversation. "So what do you think? Should I fight this? Or run with it?" Natasha asks Bruce. "Run with it, right? Or did he...was he...What did he do that was so wrong to you?"

"Not a thing. But never say never." She walks away and we walk closer to Bruce. "It's nice." Steve says to Bruce. "What is?" Bruce stumbles on the word 'what'. "You and Natasha, of course." I smirk slightly. "I ship Brutasha."

"No, we haven't...That wasn't..." I laugh a little. "It's okay, Bruce." Steve adds in, "Nobody's breaking any bylaws. It's just she's not the most open person in the world. But with you she seems very relaxed."

"No, Natasha, she's just...She likes to flirt." I walk up closer to Bruce. "I've seen her flirt, up close. This ain't that." Bruce scoffs and Steve walks up to stand next to me. "Look, as maybe the world's leading authority on waiting too long, don't." Steve holds my hand and we walk off to say bye to the guests and thank them for coming.

We gathered around as a group, eating Shwarma, talking, and laughing with each other (except for Loki, again). Loki kept glaring at Steve. "But it's a trick." Clint doesn't believe the whole 'being worthy' thing. "No, no, it's much more than that." Clint continues with a mocking voice. "Ah, whosoever be worthy shall haveth the power." Thor laughs, but in a serious tone, Clint continues, "Whatever, man! It's a trick." Thor holds his hand out to the hammer in a 'go ahead' way and says, "Be my guest."

"Come on. Really? Clint asks in a 'are you serious' tone. "Clint, you've had a tough week. We won't hold it against you if can't lift it up." Tony teases Clint and everyone laughs. Clint grabs the handle of Mjolnir and grunts as he can't lift it. "I still don't know how you do it."

"Smell the silent judgement?" Stark teases Barton again. "Please, Stark, by all means." Clint challenges Tony.

Tony clears his throat as he gets up off the couch. "Never one to shrink from an honest challenge." He walks over to the hammer and tries to and fails like Clint. "I'll be right back." He comes back with a piece of his armor. He still can't, even with both hands. Rhodey even tries to help him out, but they can't lift it.

Bruce stands up to try. He stands on the table and grips the hammer with both hands. He tries and tries, but fails as well.

Steve gets up to try. Loki rolls his eyes at him. Steve doesn't even grunt and the hammer moves a tiny bit. Thor looked upset for a second, but Steve being the nice guy he is, pretends he can't pick it up.

Bruce looks at Nat and I. "Do you girls want to try?"

"Oh, no, no. That's not a question I need answered."

"I agree with Nat."

I'm talking and laughing with Bruce and Nat, when I heard Maria Hill say, "Steve, he said a bad Language word." I couldn't stop laughing and Steve just looks at Tony. "Did you tell everyone about that?"

"The handle's imprinted, right? Like a security code." Tony suggests and Thor stands up. "Yes, it's a very interesting theory. I have a simpler one." He picks up Mjolnir and flips it in the air. "You're all not worthy." Everyone groans and laughs at Thor's statement.

There was a sudden high-pitched noise and it made everyone flinch or tense up. A weird voice speaks up and the elevator closes. "Worthy." A broken robot is awake and moving around (one of Tony's). He also had wires tangled around him. Everyone looked to see what was happening. "No. How could you be worthy? You're all killers." It points to all of us. "Stark?" I ask my voice trembling a little. "Jarvis." Tony says trying to get the A.I. butler online and awake. "I'm sorry, I was asleep. Or I was a dream." The robot continued. "Reboot Legionnaire OS. We got a buggy suit." Tony says tapping a hologram like pad. "There was this noise. And I was tangled in...In...Strings. I had to kill the other guy. He was a good guy."

"You killed someone?" Steve asks the malfunctioning robot. "Wouldn't have been my first call. But, down in the real world, we're faced with ugly choices." Thor asks him a question. "Who are you?"

"I see a suit of armor flying around the world." It plays a recording of Tony's voice. "Ultron."

"In the flesh. Or, no, not yet. Not this chrysalis. But I'm ready. I'm on a mission."

"What mission?" I ask trying not to stumble on my words. "Peace in our time." An army of robots burst through the wall and I tensed up. I was waiting for one of them to hit me, but nothing hit me. I looked down at my hand and I couldn't see anything. Was I invisible? I couldn't tell, but I stayed where I was, too afraid to move. A robot almost flew into me, but before it could, Loki must have scene or sensed me, because he picked me up and threw himself (and me) over the bar. I landed on top of him and I blushed. "Thank you...for saving me." He chuckles. "You're welcome, Taylor." I peek my head up over the bar and saw Steve destroy the last robot with his shield.

"That was dramatic." Ultron says irritated. "I'm sorry, I know you mean well. You just didn't think it through. You want to protect the world but you don't want it to change. How is humanity saved if it's not allowed to evolve? With these? These puppets?" He crushes the robots head. "There's only one path to peace. The Avengers' extinction." Thor destroys Ultron with Mjolnir, or at least he thought he did, but instead I heard his voice say, "I had strings, but now I'm free." Then the lights in his robotic eyes went off. We all just headed into the lab to discuss what just happened.

New face claim character

Jesy Nelson as Dr. Dawn Palmer

[vicky-shitposts]

my only friend, the end

17th Feb. 2021,

it's only half past midnight but i feel i could write so much about my day already. firstly, i finished the 30 day squat challenge i was doing with Phoebe and Billie. it almost killed me off and i literally collapsed at the end. i don't know if my arse is fatter or if im thinner, but i connected Phoebe because of it and that's the best prize to me; i went on minecraft for the first time in ages and all i really did was trade with a villager and add a glass floor/ceiling between the open walls of my ravine. i loved collecting the materials and it gave me something to do for two hours; i had an argument with one of my closest friends because of rape and cancel culture, all because i shared a clip of my latest song with her. ever since Marilyn Manson was exposed as an abuser, i knew that there was something coming and the day finally arrived. i've fell out with far too many people over shit like this, and i knew she would have something to say which is why i avoided it. i don't like arguments, confrontation, or losing people that are close to me. this is why I wish that i lived in a distant castle by myself; i did manage to get a payment but i know that's all gunna go south very soon. might as well start looking for places to run away to now.

half past one am, just had a shower. at the end it started to run cold and for a few moments it was strangely really nice?? i also forgot to mention that i managed to get another merit in my history assignment on slavery, and celebrated with a quorn steak meal - chips and pepper sauce in addition of course. but it's going to be about another hour at least before my hair is dry enough for me to sleep. im debating doing an all nighter and finishing off Inner Mechanism in the process. at the very least im going to watch Name Of The Doctor before i sleep, purely for my darling Walter Simeon, the face of the Great Intelligence.

half past three, listening to Punkyoungirl - Adam Ant. urge = satisfied. didn't watch Doctor Who but i hope to put my head down and be asleep by four am. my amazon parcel has been dispatched so hopefully it'll be here by lunch time and mum's bf will wake me up saying "your package is here". had to order a new phone case, and got a new film with REG as the lead.

amazon order has arrived. throughly happy with my case, it's crystal clear and a bargain for £4. currently waiting to watch How To Get Ahead In Advertising with mother, sat playing minecraft and thinking. it's Georgia's birthday today, part of me wants to message her and wish her a happy one but i don't think it'll be received well. i know she's never going to read this or care, but if it gets to you G, i really miss you and i love you too <3 can't stop thinking about my fall out last night either. i keep sending two people stupid and annoying snaps, and i want to send it to her but i know it'll either be ignored or reignite the flames. fingers crossed that something is resolved soon. oh, i also had two homemade flapjacks for lunch after i woke up. sleeping pattern is probably fucked but isn't everything right now??

my mind is RACING. just finished watching How To Get Ahead and oh boy, i could write a whole essay on it. who knew that a film made and released at the end of the 80s could stand and be so relevant today?? there's capitalist bullshit everywhere, big brother is still watching and there's a trappy little fucker lodged between my shoulder and my head. really wish the script was released as a book so i could truly divulge and rip it apart!! Richard E Grant may be a genius, but so is Bruce Robinson. i wish i could snog the first and collaborate with the latter. if Bruce's recent book wasn't so long, i would definitely look into getting it - or maybe i could read it after i finish With Nails?? tell you what, i'll look into it. currently im on my way to sainsburys in a pathetic attempt to get cheap lego set that i know won't be there; i was proved correct as they didn't have it. sigh.

[nessamaurice]

Simple Ch. 6 (Loki x F!Reader)

Masterlist

Summary: Tony and the Avengers are in desperate need of something like a “babysitter” to have an eye on Loki and teach him “how to human”. He decided to stay on Midgard over the dungeons of Asgard as punishment for his deeds in New York. That’s where you swoop in. A simple receptionist at the Avengers compound. You have to share an apartment in the compound with Loki and damn, he’s a really tough nut. With your open and kind character it seems that you are slowly cracking his shell. But suddenly things are getting twists that will change your life and your relationships there irreversibly.

Story rating: M

Chapter trigger warnings: harming

Words: 2108

6

It turned out the tests Bruce made with you seemed to be alright, nothing you didn't knew or that wasn’t indicated before. The following days passed without anything special happening, except your relation with Loki. You tried to pick up the conversation with Loki again but apparently the moment was over. He shut himself off again. But you didn't miss out that he continued to feel more comfortable around you. The next day he accepted your tea offering for the first time. That made you ridiculously happy and you couldn't hide the big grin appearing on your face.

"What's so funny?"

"What? Oh, no, nothing." After a few moments of silence you couldn't hold back, "Do you like my tea? Today I chose a rose flavored green tea. I love the scent of roses. I don't like the flowers themselves, they are everywhere you look, being pretentious, I'm just weary of them, but their scent...“ You let out a little, soft moan. „Wonderful."

Your rambling was met with silence and you almost gave in, disappointed. But before you looked away you could see a small smirk tugging on his lips.

A few days later you just couldn't contain yourself anymore. You turned in your winged chair to Loki.

"How are you feeling today?"

"...What?"

"How do you feel? We've been sharing these rooms for quite a few days now and have barely spoken to each other. Tell me something. Anything. Or ask me something! Just let us interact in any way. I can't take it any longer."

He looked you straight in the eyes, the dimmed sunlight making the green-blue almost glow. Then a question seemed to pop up in his mind.

"What are you reading?"

You looked down at the book on your lap. "What I’m reading? Oh, that is something specific. It's called Antiquitates Iudaicae. It's not that easy to read, it's not like a novel or something, it is more like a history book. The text is about 1900 years old. A roman-jewish historian named Flavius Josephus tries to explain his beliefs to the Greek to help them understand his culture."

"Why are you reading this, since it is not easy to read?"

"I am a faithful person and it helps me a bit understanding the setting and the time when the bible was written. There are no other ancient Jews from the first century left around here, so I wanted to know how he tried to explain his culture to persons that have no relation with it."

"So, you believe in god? Then you must be humbled to be in the presence of one." A lofty expression appeared on his face, but was wiped away the second you started laughing.

"I'm sorry, really. Don't want to be disrespectful. But do you really think you are a god? Just because you have access to other dimensions and live a few thousand years? Not that this wouldn't be highly impressive, honestly. But you are as far away from being a god than I am. You are a creation, not a creator."

Loki wanted to say something but the words kept stuck in his throat. His face turned sly.

"You have no idea what I am capable of." His voice was low and husky.

"You are completely right. If there was some sort of food chain, I'd clearly be beyond you because of your many skills and knowledge. But they don't make you the summit, neither. Look, I totally see why the ancient Norse people thought of you as gods. What you can do is really admirable. But I would never give you this title. I got too much respect of it."

Loki tried to swallow down his anger. He really wanted to behave but even more he wanted you to explain that. "So, what do you think deserves this title?"

"Love. Compassion. Mercy. Omnipotence. I think, nothing in the whole universe happens without him allowing it to happen. Even the bad things. For the most people it's hard to accept that. They blame him for all the terrible things. It's not like that he would cause the bad things to happen. But he knows exactly what's going on. He knows every outcome of every move. And, I believe, he leads us on the tracks we should go. Not like we are just marionettes and he sets every move, but at some points, big decisions that give our lifes a turn, he may give us a certain push. A lot dreadful stuff happened to me in my life, but who knows that it couldn't have been even worse? Who is able to say the way it went is not the best of all possibilities? Even if it is hard to cope with, I know he gives me the strength to get through. Whether it is some sort of energy that comes from within me or he puts people in my life that will help me with whatever comes my way. But that is my totally personal point of view. The nice thing is, I don't have to persuade anyone to believe the same. My faith is individual. Nobody has to agree with me. This is what helps me get through life. Not to give up.... What sort of faith do you have? ...if you have one at all?"

Loki listened carefully and his face slowly softened as he followed your thoughts. He seemed a bit surprised as you addressed the question to him, like he was asked for his opinion for the first time in his life.

"That is a very interesting point of view, I have to admit. I can imagine that it is not very popular, but interesting, though. I... I never really developed something you could call faith. My culture is full of myths and legends. I learned everything about our Allfathers and Gods, but never took it really personal. I was not attracted to do so."

He stopped talking and started pondering on that thought. You watched his face, his eyes getting lost. You used the opportunity to take a closer look and studied his face. It was edgy and delicate at the same time. His bright eyes pierced right through you every time he looked at you. He was very concentrated on what he wanted to say next, so you simply kept quiet and waited for him to form his thoughts into words. It was rather beautiful to watch his mind work.

After a short while he continued, "I think there might be something like a higher force that has impact on our lives. But that started just recently. I long thought that I am the master of every of my own steps and if I place them right, everything will work out just fine. I will get what I want if I only fight hard enough for it. So that's what I did, I fought for my own purposes. But all I got was misery, sorrow and hatred." 

You could literally see his pain boiling up from the inside. It was tearing him in two. You reacted out of instinct and reached out to lay your hand on his cheek. His eyes darted at you immediately, turning glassy. Softly you stroke over his cheek with your thumb. You wished you could just pull him into a tight embrace and help him let go of all expectations towards himself. To put down his guard. It was like you could literally feel his inner need of ease and solace. But he was just too much of a proud man. He pressed his lips together and pushed your hand away, abruptly stood up, stepping towards the window front, staring outside with his arms crossed.

"I'm sorry." Was all that came to your mind. Pathetic, you thought. And he thought that as well.

"You have no idea what you are talking about." He hissed turning towards you. "Don't act like you would understand. YOU HAVE NO IDEA!" He shouted at you and disappeared right in front of your eyes. You sat there in your winged chair, nonplussed. You looked around the room, but no sight of him.

Far beyond puzzled, you started to talk with the air. "I... I don't if you are still here? But, I wanted to say that you are right. I have no idea what you've been through. What it feels like to be in your skin. If I were, I know I would have done the same that you did, because you are the only person that feels this way. I am no one to judge. I never judge. Well, at least I try. The big truth is that it's simply impossible to compare individuals with each other. We are the summaries of our experiences and we all have our very own way of perceiving the world around us. So, I have to add as well that you also have no idea what you are talking about. I do understand. Traumata are a serious thing and everyone reacts differently to that, but don't treat me like I had no empathy. Maybe everyone else treated you like you didn't even had the right to speak your mind, but I'm not like this. You are intelligent and attentive and if you haven't noticed that by now, you are obviously blinded by some kind of rage and hatred. And pride. But I don't want to push you. Just know that I won't let you treat me like this. I will not leave you because I can imagine that you've been left too often in your life, but I will not tolerate it. Okay, and because it feels like I have a serious conversation with myself outside of my head I'm gonna go into the kitchen to get me a drink because that's fucking strange. Feel free to join me there."

You sat on a barstool and looked out of the giant window front at the other side of the even bigger room. You felt the cold sweat of the glass condensing in your hand, running over your fingers. Totally lost in your thoughts you didn't notice Steve sitting down next to you. He really tried not to startle you but failed.

"Sorry Y/N. Just thought you looked like something was on your mind you'd like to talk about?"

"No problem. Ah, no, it's okay. There were just some intense emotions between Loki and me."

Looking at his raised eyebrows you awkwardly cleared your throat as you explained yourself, "Oh no no no, not something like that. Totally not. No no." Somehow you dwelled in that thought a bit too long.

"Well, that were lots of 'no's but okay." Steve laughed and pushed you slightly with his shoulder to the side.

Before you could blush too obviously you changed topic, "Have you seen Tony? The last time I saw him was when were having pizza. Is everything alright?"

"To be honest I haven't seen him, neither. Well, at least not in person. I walked by the lab and saw him video chatting with Bruce, so he must be okay. But don't worry, wouldn't be the first time he disappears for a few days without telling anyone. ... Are you sure you don't want to talk about what's weighing you down?"

"Thank you Steve. Everything's fine." You conjured a smile though you didn't felt like smiling which made it totally implausible. But Steve accepted you didn't want to talk right now. He assured you can knock on his door whenever you wanted before he left the open kitchen of the common room again. You really, really hoped Loki would show up in the kitchen. You imagined both of you together having a drink, talking, enjoying each other's companionship... But you were pulled out of your day dream by a polite voice.

"Miss Y/N, your presence is demanded outside of the personal rooms."

"What? Me? For what?" You thought JARVIS sounded differently than usual.

"I am sorry, Miss, but I was not given further information than it being important and urgent."

"Uhm, okay. Sure. Just a sec." You gulped down the rest of your Gin Tonic and jumped off the barstool. For a moment it felt like someone was slightly brushing your arm as to hold you. You stopped, looked around, but didn't see anyone, so you went on.

After you slipped into your shoes and a coat you were going down to the ground floor with the lift. The doors opened and the blood in your veins froze. Two giant, black-suited men immediately entered the lift. One grabbed your arms and pulled them violently behind your back and the other one pressed a strongly sweet smelling piece of fabric on your mouth and nose. You felt a sharp sting right into the side of your neck just before everything went limp and dark.

Taglist: @it-jinxed-us​, @humbledarkness​, @lunawitch19