#Toni Writes Stuff

[wardog-of-whimsy]

War Shenanigans (Common)

So I was going to a "War Writes" for my birthday but basically everyone told me NO. Except that my queue had a prompt list that got posted anyway, and I've had some answers. So I'm probably gonna do those... Hint.

But anyway.. The first one that hit my inbox I saw in the middle of the night and read the summary rather than the actual prompt... And basically saw two words Fake Boyfriend and brain went BRRRT. Of course, reading later and this is... NOT what the Prompt is. So this is a War Goes Rogue Fic Moment (feign surprise, dear audience).

So yeah they're all going to be separate stories in the Prompt(ly Distracted) Collection. Which I feel makes a certain sort of sense. And here's the first one!

Hey (I Just Met You)

Porchay Pichaya Kittisawat/Kim Khimhant Theerapanyakun

A music student rescues a Mafia Prince-turned-Idol from a drunk fanboy at a Bar. (They should make out about it, honestly.)

Anyway, y'all should read it and lemme know what you think!

💙💜💙💜💙💜💙💜💙💜💙💜💙💜💙💜💙💜💙💜💙

[that1geek06]

"English isn't my-"

Hush now my friend, and let me read the absolute beauty of a fic that you have bestowed this world and humiliated the first English speakers with

[kinneys]

The Bourne Identity (2002)

[aeterna-auroral-avenger]

WIP WORD GAME

Thanks for the tag @neonshrike! The rules are for each letter of the word you're given, share an excerpt from a WIP that starts with that letter. The word I was given is STAR.

So I picked my Rory and the Avengers WIP. I don't know if this will end up being two different stories because I haven't figured out how they'll work together yet, but yeah, I'm working on continuing Rory's story.

S - Still...the Void's curiosity tugged him down to Earth, the twinge of something new drawing him in like an unspoken promise. T - "This isn't like..." Rhodey paused as he tried to come up with the right wording, "court-mandated or anything, is it?" A - And while he had been in existence for many, many years, the powers he never asked for outranked him so far in years that it was laughable. R - Rory shook her head and explained, "No no, I'm talking about you two actually agreeing on something," while pointing between Tony and Steve, causing some among the Avenger ranks to chuckle.

I choose the word REST for those I tag (no pressure, of course). @gender-kenvy @bugboybuckley @sobeautifullyobsessed @lostinwildflowers @w1nkie and whoever else wants to play!

[naferty]

Inspired by that mini comic of the demon lord with standards and the kid hero.

Tony is the Demon Lord in charge of watching over his subjects. He's powerful, strong and super busy with paperwork and preventing society from collapsing on itself.

On a bright and unsuspecting day, the door to his throne opens with flourish and in come Natasha and Clint. Two of his most trusted enforcers. They're dragging someone with them. The individual kicking and struggling in their arms.

"Hey, Stark. We've brought you The Hero," Natasha says. Direct and to the point. Tony loves that about her.

"Or so he says, anyway," Clint adds, smirking.

"Great. Just what I need. Another Hero," Tony rolls his eyes. Over the years, the number of self-proclaimed heroes began to increase. They were a nusance more than anything and quick to surrender when Tony showed his true strength. Nonetheless, like clockwork, a new hero would pop out and storm his home to 'end the Demon Lord and save humanity.' Aiming for the riches it brought and the legend they'd create.

Tony never makes it easy for them. He's going to make every last one of them work for it.

"All right, let's get this over with. You, Hero," he says with a flick of the wrist, keeping it dramatic. "You are finally here. Let us commence our legendary battle and make the world remember us -" he falls short when he finally takes a look at the hero.

"Why are you a child?" he blinks in desbelief.

The hero is indeed a child. A tiny, skinny thing with rosy cheeks and brown hair framing that round face. He's wearing a pretty cheap set of armor and the sword he carries could only be described as a butter knife.

"I'm not a child!" cries the little thing. His face scrunching from the offense. It makes him look like an angry kitten. "I'm the Hero!"

"You're, like, nine," Tony groans and pinches the bridge of his nose. "Is that oracle sending kids now? This is ridiculous!"

Natasha and Clint, who've been struggling to hide their smiles, throw their own two cents in the pile. "Yeah, he showed up by the bridge shouting he's the hero. We dragged him so he wouldn't get himself killed," Clint says.

"What do you want to do with him?" Natasha ruffles the hair of the 'Hero,' making the child squirm in outrage.

He sighs. "Let him go. Are you hurt? Where are your parents?"

The child frowns. "I don't have any. My aunt and uncle are gone, too."

"Fucking -" he inhales. "Okay, come on." He waves for the kid to follow as he steps down his throne. "Unacceptable. It's completely unacceptable. I will have words with that Oracle." With a wave of his hand, he materializes an apron and wraps it on. "What's your name, Kid?"

"...Peter."

"I hope you like chocolate chip."

Half an hour later, Tony brings a plate of fresh, baked cookies to the table he sat Peter on. The kid is kicking his feet and his eyes are wide at the sight. His happiness for the cookies shone brightly. "Here. I made these myself."

[thestarkerisobvious]

SNIPPET

“Peter?  Look at me.”

Peter couldn't help but to blush. His face was all flushed and the redness was going down his neck. 

He took a moment to meet Tony's brown eyes. 

"Yes, Tony?" 

“You know I want to make you feel good, you know that, right?”  He cleared his throat, trying his best to speak in a normal voice (not easy, when his whole body was so hard he was practically vibrating)

The young one nodded.  "I do. I know that" he smiled. 

“And I can trust you - to tell me if something doesn’t feel good, right?  I need to know that you’re still ready to tell me ‘no’ when something just doesn’t work.  If you tell me ‘No, Tony’ then I will back off, and I won’t push you.  And I’ll know that it really isn’t working for you.  But as long as you say “Daddy” I’ll know it’s my job to… to stay close and to make you feel safe.  Does that make sense?”

"It does," he agreed, leaning into Tony's touch as he kept both his hands around Tony's massive erection. 

"I trust you, Tony… you're my Daddy" he kissed his lips ever so gently.                           

“I’m so lucky to have you…” he leaned forward, kissing the boy with a moan.  “I don’t know what I did to deserve having you here, but you’re here, and I’m so grateful.”

-from a longer work by @thestarkerisobvious and @cutepandaprincess

[polizwrites]

Redirected Aim

This is a fill for today’s  @flashfictionfridayofficial prompt [#FFF288 Loud Lie, Quiet Truth] as well as the @yearoftheotpevent  January prompt  Stockholm Syndrome. 

Fandom: MCU/Marvel Pairing: Bucky Barnes/Tony Stark Rating: Teen Tags: Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes. Recovering Bucky Barnes, Young Tony Stark, Kidnapping,  Stockholm Syndrome Summary:  The Soldier’s mission had been to retrieve the serum Howard Stark had reformulated, leaving no witnesses.  He chose a different target Word Count: 687

“You know Stockholm Syndrome isn’t really a thing,”  the young man declared, craning his neck to try to catch a glimpse of the man standing in the shadows off to his left.   “I’m not going to fall in love with you because you kidnapped me.” 

“That wasn’t  my intent,” he replied gruffly.  His handlers had made the mistake of giving their Asset  a too-thorough briefing.  The name Howard Stark and the phrase ‘super-soldier’ combined to trigger a cascade of memories.  He still didn’t really remember who he was, but he did know that Hydra was the enemy.  So the moment he was released to begin his mission, he disappeared instead.  

They had trained him well  in becoming a ghost and he could easily defend himself against anyone else his former captors would send after him. He hoped that wouldn’t be necessary; he’d spilled enough blood for several lifetimes. 

However, the Soldier - he had nothing else to call himself - was well aware he wasn’t Hydra’s only weapon. He also knew Howard Stark’s latest creation was of immense value; it was only a matter of time before someone else completed the mission he had abandoned.  But he  could at least try to mitigate the damage and make sure Howard’s legacy lived on in the form of his son.  

Tony Stark had the potential to surpass his father when it came to engineering and innovation, that had been clear from the briefing. However, whether he knew anything or not about the redeveloped serum was less clear, and in the Soldier’s mind, that made him a target.  

It had been surprisingly easy to snatch the young man from campus late the night before; he’d been drunk enough to not put up much of a struggle as the Soldier bundled him into the backseat of a stolen vehicle.  Now that he was conscious again, the abandoned factory was remote enough that his shouts for help would go unheard. 

The Soldier had retreated to a dim corner after binding his quarry loosely to a chair, mostly to keep him from injuring himself while semi-conscious.  The young man returned to his senses not too long after their arrival, and after a moment or two of apparent panic,  he took in his surroundings with an assessing gaze. 

After his brief outburst, Tony shifted around for a few moments - making the Soldier wonder if he had to take a piss.   But instead, his captive revealed that he’d managed to free  his hands. “You’re a lousy rigger,” Tony commented with a self-satisfied smirk, reaching for the knots that bound the rest of him to the chair.  “But for future reference, my safeword is Asimov.”     

“I don’t know what that means,” the Soldier replied, finding his companion’s bravado - as well as his whiskey brown eyes and slim build - more attractive than he ought to.  “Believe it or not, I brought you here to keep you safe.” 

Tony gave him a skeptical look. “And why wasn’t I safe before, pray tell?” 

The Soldier paused, considering how much of the truth to tell.  “Because of your father. Howard Stark has reformulated the super soldier serum.”

“What?” The honest shock on his companion’s face led the Soldier to believe Tony didn’t know what his father had been up to. “But how does that put me in danger?” 

“Because my … employers …,” the Soldier spoke carefully,  “instructed me to secure the serum by any means necessary.” 

“So now you’re going to try to trade me for it?” Tony snorted in derision, even as a  glimmer of fear flickered in those dark eyes.  “Good luck. Howard doesn’t negotiate.” 

“We’ll see.”  He wasn’t ready to explain to the young man that his father - and most likely his mother as well - were already as good as dead.  

“Would you at least step out into the light, so I can see your face?”  

The Soldier did as Tony asked, seeing no harm in the request. 

Tony looked him up and down, staring at his face with a mildly puzzled look.  “Huh - has anyone ever told you that you look like Bucky Barnes - Captain America’s sidekick?” 

[vulpinesaint]

I really like your writing style. Do you have any literature you can share that you use as inspo?

going to start by disclaiming that from a specifically stylistic approach, i don't know if i have any writers that are distinctly similar. i do have writers that i find inspiring, though! if none of these are helpful for style, i hope they can inspire you in the same way that they make me aspire to achieve fantastic things with my writing :) i am always a poet first and foremost, whether it's poetry or prose (which is often just poetry hiding in a longer form), so most of my recommendations are poems; i have a few books at the end, though, just in case. everything that i link here should be free to access!

i am like 90% sure that anyone seeing this will already know that i keep all my poetry over at @trickstersaint, but just in case you're coming direct from a quiz, that's the place to read more of my writing! now. onto my list of a bunch of other trans poets with tumblr platforms 🖤

keaton st. james (@boykeats), i think, was the first modern poet that i really found and loved. stumbling across some of his dictionary poems as a younger poet was so revolutionary to me, and reading his poetry changed the way that i thought about and approached poetry as a whole. inspiration in the way of seeing the things that someone can do with poetry. opening up all the limits. this is what every good poem will do for you a little bit, i think, but keaton st. james is always my first recommendation for a modern poet. highly recommend his collections growth and light (i personally really love light. guy who is normal about religion voice) and rural boys watch the apocalypse is to me what that one richard siken poem about being in a car with a beautiful boy is to everyone else haha

other poets whose work i really enjoy and admire include silas denver melvin (@sweatermuppet) and dante émile (@orpheuslament)! recommending the poems an impractical marvel and dioscuri from them, respectively. sweatermuppet also has a full collection called grit, and orpheuslament has one called misplaced organs and various saints (this particular one isn't free but linking it here!) :)

my favorite poem since high school has been gravity by maura o'connor. life-changing. that poem is just like me for real.

for more of a narrative style, if you've read + liked my piece aromanticism, i definitely recommend with those we love alive by porpentine! really gorgeous twine piece with a kind of mysticism to it that could definitely tie back into the kind of stuff you'd see in my little quizzes too :)

if you're looking for actual literature-as-in-books, i can point you towards our wives under the sea by julia armfield and white is for witching by helen oyeyemi. both are novels that i've enjoyed for their kind of eclectic and poetic writing recently! i will also take any chance to recommend my favorite book, which is the hours by michael cunningham; regardless of similarity or inspiration, i find the writing of this book gorgeous and heartbreaking and i think it scrapes at the human condition in a way that draws blood. gently. if you know what i mean.

i hope this was helpful! i constantly feel as if i don't read enough poetry so if anyone has any suggestions they want to give me. i am more than happy to hear them <3 happy reading everybody!

[summerlycoris]

Puhpandas had a great idea recently (glitchtrapped Tony.) And I wanted to take a stab at the concept.

More specifically at the "What happens after." bit. Hint- Tony gets lost and ends up back near his old house.

Under a readmore because it could be triggering if you've been physically assaulted before. There's feelings in this that could touch on nerves.

********

He'd traced his steps, along a familiar road. Now he stood on the street, facing his old house. He felt all dazed, and confused.

Why?

Everything hurt- his back, his stomach, his neck, his arms. And something bad had happened to him. His head ached, but not nearly as much as his heart ached. 

'... Because it's not my home, it's their home, and I'm wanted no more…'

He couldn't go home. Because it wasn't his home anymore. It was someone else's now. He couldn't remember how to get to his Grandma's from here. He couldn't remember a lot of things.

(He didn't want to remember.)

What had happened? He'd gone to the pizzaplex? Gregory had been there? 

Did someone jump me on the way home?

He knew what really happened. But he couldn't believe it- didn't believe it- it hurt too much- He could feel something poking around inside his mind. Something he'd been trying to ignore. 

He didn't cry. Or sob. He just hurt. 

Get out of my head get out of my head get out of my head-

He was on the swings suddenly, in the park that sat down between their street, and the next street over. He hummed a song absent-mindedly. One of those old songs that Grandma would play on her old record player. A song that his Mom sometimes sang along to.

I'm missing time? Did I got abducted by aliens?

Ellis would laugh with him about it next week, when they'd meet up at school again.

They used to play here a lot, when they were in elementary school together. Pretending the playground was a pirate ship. That the floor was a crocodile infested river- so you'd have to jump from circle to circle, never landing on the soft blue floor. Making the merry-go-round spin so fast, that they both would get thrown off it after a dizzy spell, and collapse to the ground laughing and carrying on-

It just made his heart ache more. His brain pounding against his skull.

He kicked his legs uselessly. He wasn't swinging. Not really. Just sitting. Just trying not to be still. He wasn't going anywhere.

The playground didn't have any lights that stayed on at night. It wasn't that kind of playground, where you'd need to worry about teens going there and doing bad things in the dark. This was a good part of town. Nothing bad could happen here. 

The only lights were distant street lamps, and the starlight filtering down.

What time is it?

Tony had a watch. Had a watch- it was missing now. So was his entry pass to the pizzaplex.

Did someone mug me?

He also had a different shirt than he'd worn to school- a Bonnie longsleeve? Hadn't they stopped selling these? Where did he get it?

Did someone… reverse mug me??

The sun was starting to rise in the distance. He could understand why they'd given him a new shirt- his old one. That had... gotten stained, hadn't it?

How long have I been here?

His arms and belly felt weird. He lifted his shirt and sleeves to look at them. Well... He wasn't gonna stain his new shirt, at least. He stopped looking- it just made him feel queasy.

Lights were coming on in the houses, one by one. He could see a light on over at Ellis's house, through the back yard. 

He could go there. And they could have breakfast together. They could pretend they'd had a sleepover together, like old times. Ellis could loan him a sleeping bag. A watch. A new head. And nothing bad would have happened to him and there would be nothing weird poking around in his head and his heart would stop aching and-

And Ellis's Mom was there. Standing in front of him.

How long has she been there?

He started a little, nearly falling backwards before clutching the chains tighter. 

"Tony- It's okay. It's Olivia, do you remember me?" She had her hands in front of her, in a way that should probably have been calming. 

He caught his breath, and felt panic start to ease out of him. He nodded. And she seemed to relax a little, too. 

"Oh, good. Sweetie- listen. I've rang your Mom. She's on her way now. And so are the police. Okay?" She looked at him intently, and kneeled down in front of him. While he kicked his legs and stared off into the distant sky. The stars were going out.

"Tony? Did you hear me?"

"Um. Yes. Sorry Mrs Martinez." 

He couldn't look at her. This is so embarrassing. Having to be picked up by his Mom like this. Had he and Ellis broken another vase trying to play skip rope indoors? That was a silly thing to do, Tony. You know better-

He could feel her eyes looking through him. 

"Do you… want to talk about it, sweetie?"

He shook his head frantically, and choked out "No- no- no-"

"Hey, sweetie. It's okay. You're okay now. Everyone was so worried about you…" 

Why?

She looked at him so pitifully. Had he said that out loud?

A car pulled up, on his old street. A familiar car. Mom's car. 

And she was there. So quick, he'd barely seen her race up to him. He thought she'd grab him, and swing him around in a spinney-hug. She used to do that, when he was little. 

Instead she stopped next to Mrs Martinez. It looked like she'd been crying earlier. She was still crying. 

His head kept hurting. Pounding in a rhythm now. He couldn't take it much longer-

She couldn't get any words out. Mouth gaping open like a fish's would. But he could get the message- What happened to you?

He went to answer, but felt… sleepy. Really sleepy. He was gonna fall off this swing any second-

But he didn't fall. Instead he heard his voice talking to his Mom. It sounded strange to him. Like he was listening underwater…

"Mom, I… I lost track of time at the pizzaplex. It got dark, and someone h-hurt me when I was walking home… please don't be mad…"

He went to sleep as Mom pulled his imposter into a hug.

[blixerxii]

Thinking about how Kelsey was like “this shits taking too long” and then started plagiarizing her encyclopedia but she is somehow still on B

[imavikingo]

Everytime I look at Tumblr and see the tl I remember why I hate endgame with a passion you couldn't understand.

They fucked up Steve and Bucky so bad (yes, Bucky too bc suddenly he doesn't matter/isn't even a secondary character that deserves to be near Steve)

It's so funny to me (not) bc they talked about gay characters being in the movie at panels and interviews and even talked about Stucky at some point (basically queerbaiting) for then... Steve not even acknowledging Bucky. An awkward and impersonal hug doesn't cut it.

And Steve suddenly yearning and talking about Peggy? When he didn't even mourned her that bad and already had let her go ages ago? They knew they fucked up in CATWS with Steve and Buckys relationship, so they tried to distance them and then inserted Peggy bc ofc

(they possibly didn't have the time for a new character and they already had fucked up pairing Nat and Bruce and Wanda and Vision). Steve didn't have anyone else he cared about so they couldn't give him a new girlfriend. So they used Peggy AGAIN.

I'm not mad bc "Stucky not canon grr"

No.

I'm fucking pissed off because they did the worst character assassination and friendship assassination possible. Every movie of Cap America revolved around Steve saving Bucky at some point and him caring about him above all else, and you want me to believe that Steven Grant Rogers didn't care about him when Bucky died in front of his eyes? AGAIN? That Peggy's death was more important and impactful for him? If that was the case then why the fuck did he crash the plane then? If he cared so much about Peggy since forever?

No, that was just lazy writing and a way to reinforce Steve's sexuality "He can't be gay and you can't say that bc he LOVES PEGGY"(even tho he only kissed her once, even tho he crashed the plane and didn’t give her the coordinates, he didn't really care that much after all) they could have paired him with Nat in later movies, but they didn't.

That's why I only raise my eyebrows a lil when people say that x character will be gay canonically in a marvel movie/series. Is more than possible they won't. And if they are they're Deadpool, a secondary character no one cares about (obscure in lore too, so they can cut them off) or is plain queerbaiting again (because yes, even if you don’t see Steve and Bucky’s relationship as romantic, they DID QUEERBAIT IT)

Steve and Buckys relationship wasn't even written in a romantic way (you can ship them or not), but they tried so hard to rectify Steve's heterosexuality in endgame, that they fucked up their character arcs on purpose. And now they will always feel hollow and inconclusive. A bad taste in the mouth, a painful reminder of what it was and a what? 11 year long? characterization.

Idk man, I know I've talked about this more than three times, but omfg Tumblr reminds me why I hate that fucking movie!!! It's not my fault!!!

I know I'm going to end up writing something out of spite bc I can't take it shdkdjjcif

"It's been more than 4 years get over it" NEVER

Also the bit with Johnny Storm in Deadpool and Wolverine was also a dig (a fuck you if you will) to the fans bc Deadpool explicitly calls him Cap. And it implies that Steve as a character (not that old Steve nonsense) won't be back.

It's funny they've remade over and over again some movies (Fantastic 4, Spiderman) changed actors for characters (James/war machine, Bruce) and they include them in the multiverse/plot, but they won't do the same to some movies and some characters when they fuck up their stories, because they know if they do, they will have to acknowledge WHY they did it. Like with James/war machine changing actors.

So yeah, that's one of the reasons I don't care about Marvel anymore.

**I mean remake the movies ((Also they Can't remake Cap America bc that would mean they need to remake every important movie. And they don't have the time, the money nor the need. So that's why they decided to fuck their character arcs))

or include some characters in multiverse (they're going to do that with Tony/RDJ/Dr Doom after all, no?) and they also won't remake Cap bc the movies are amazing.

But the point stands. Steve couldn't be in DaW bc that would imply he's an alternative one or that Old!Steve was an alternative one or wasn't even Steve to begin with. But they couldn't do that ofc, no, bc that would give the fans hope in seeing Steve and Bucky together once again. So they did a dig at the fans bc "haha you thought it was Steve, but it's Johnny!"

Idk if I'm making sense at this point I'm tired af, need to sleep.

The thing is that they fucked up Steve Rogers's arc on purpose (Bucky's too, and others charas too tbh) and now they expect the fans to accept everything they give us with open arms. And imho I won't accept shit.

"Deadpool saved the MCU" how? If the other og characters are DEAD or they fucked them up too? Or are the butt of the joke now? Don't make me laugh. Most people don't gaf bout the new charas bc they only are presented in series not everyone watches (only available in one place) or are presented with characters that are dead now or as a replacement for the og characters. They aren't interesting on their own (not really, at least in mcu) and that's why most of the new stuff isn't liked as much. If they wanted to present more characters the opportunity passed already.

Also now if you want to watch and really understand 1 movie (if you don't read the comics too) you need to watch like 20 other movies and 5 shows. it's fucking exhausting.

[wardog-of-whimsy]

(Home) Sick (For You)

Kim runs himself right into exhaustion proving how fine he is while Chay's traveling abroad. His brothers (and brother-in-law) are definitely going to have something about this... and wait until Chay hears about it.

***

[puhpandas]

I love ggy so much how did they accidentally make the most intriguing hypothetical gay romance ever

[forgotten-train-stop]

Is it gay to go ghost hunting with your best friend

https://archiveofourown.org/works/60345988/chapters/154012627

[petercushingscheekbones]

Does anyone think of that moment when Tony and Cameron are literally in bed and he’s so upset about Declan leaving and she says “I knew you and Declan weren’t going to work out you’re too similar”

like leave Cameron alone and go fuck that old man Tony. We know you want to

[thestarkerisobvious]

Warmth

based on a prompt by @awesomestarker

story by @thestarkerisobvious and @mrstarksbaby

moodboard by @mrstarksbaby

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

Best.  Vacation.  Ever.

It was silly, but ever since that one year that the electricity had gone out, Peter insisted.  One entire day without electricity.  Except for the refrigerator, of course.  And the hot water heater.  But that was all.  As little device use as possible.  Even to look up information.  That’s what books were for.  During the day they would read or play chess or play card games with the tarot deck or just sit and talk in the sunlit rooms and enjoy the day.  Then, at night, sleeping, bundled up in the living room by the fireplace.  Just like they had done that first winter.

Peter shouldn’t be happy the electricity went out that one year.  Shouldn’t be thankful.  Should acknowledge, at least, some of the danger they could have been in (if it weren’t for the generator.  And the backup generator, of course…)

But he couldn’t help it.  Right now, he was glowing.  Even in the cold cabin, he was glowing.  He should at least go wrap up in the fuzzy blanket again - and he would soon - but for now he stayed where he was.

Watching the Sexiest Man Alive chop wood.

And he was.  Officially.  Voted Sexiest Man Alive.  More than once.  And Peter, now sitting in the seat closest to the window, almost shivering with the cold, couldn’t have agreed more.

He had sat there with the cup of hot cocoa Tony had made for him at his feet.  He had been sitting at the kitchen table, reading in the sunlit room.  He had found an old Llewellen book (“Charms, Spells and Formulas”) that he had bought ages ago at a used book store but never got around to reading.  He was now pouring over a chapter about “gris-gris bags” and scribbling out lists of herbs to look up.  One list to check against Tony’s fully-stocked spice rack, one to check against his collection at home, and one to check against the internet as soon as they allowed themselves back on line.

Tony had only rolled his eyes and groaned at the idea of ordering MORE spell ingredients, but didn’t interfere with the new project until he noticed Peter was shivering at the table, tucking his hands under his legs when his fingers got too cold to write.  

“Humor me,” Tony countered when Peter insisted “I’m fine!” through chattering teeth.  The next thing he knew he was sitting in the living room in front of the fire, warming his hands on a mug of hot cocoa.  

“Are these cinnamon for my protection?” Peter asked with a grin.  “Maybe,” Tony said with a sideways grin.  “Someone has to protect you from yourself.”   

Peter smiled, silently stirring in the intention.  Then noticed that Tony was rolling up his sleeves.   

“And what are you doing?”

“We need more of this,” Tony replied, kicking a pice of firewood with his boot.  “I’ll be back.”

And now here they were - Tony outside chopping firewood, Peter sitting at the couch closest to the window so he could watch.  Watch and wonder.

What was it about that man, Peter wondered, watching those powerful arms move, the iron muscles flex as Tony raised the ax above his head over and over again.  It wasn’t the muscular build, not that alone.  It couldn’t have been.  Captain America had bigger biceps, and much bigger pectorals.  And Thor, well, Thor was a god.  Who towered above all of them, making even Cap look like a short man.  There were more muscular men in Peter’s life.  And as for strength…

…Peter lay back a little in his seat by the window.  Smiling wistfully.  

The truth was, Peter was stronger than Tony.  Stronger than most of the Avengers, actually.  Possibly as strong as Captain America, although Peter never set out to prove it.  Never needed to.  He knew what he knew.  Besides, it didn’t matter.

Peter never thought much about being so strong.  Never thought about the muscles he had built up just swinging across New York City every day, or lifting vehicles off of each other in pileups.  In fact, whenever he thought about being “strong” the only thought, the only memory, that came to mind was holding a splitting ferry full of people together on his own.  He wasn’t strong, not compared to fracturing ferries, or collapsing concrete buildings, or crashing airplanes.  So he never really thought about how much stronger he was than Tony.

Oh, but in Tony’s arms at night, it felt so good to feel weak…

“Enjoying the view?” Tony asked as he brought in the first load of firewood. 

“Very much so,” Peter acknowledged.   

Tony headed outside again, closing the door firmly behind him to keep in the heat.  Peter shivered a bit, grinning to himself.  Tonight was going to be sweet.  When Tony was done chopping firewood he would probably want a shower - a good place to warm them both up, certainly - and then they would have to figure out another way to keep themselves warm.  Although maybe not.  It was barely afternoon, maybe too early in the day for that.  Peter would get up from his seat and, after finding a warm sweater, find some way of making Tony a meal.  As a reward for all this wood-chopping.  They had a whole list of dishes that could be made with the use of the battery powered hotplate or the fire  - some sandwich melts, probably..  And maybe even some hot coco.  Yes, certainly some hot cocoa.  Definitely.  As a reward for all this wood-chopping.

Peter would do that.  Get up from his chilly seat by the window and do that.  But not just yet.

Because right now, Peter just wanted to watch.

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