#always asking for favors and thinking everyone will say yes 😂

[peaceeandcoolestvibes]

Me many times:

(Ft. MI GENTE 🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍)

.

[hanafubukki]

Pregnancy? 👀 Headcannons? 👀

Please say more.

((Also Hana I'm waiting for two of my asks to be answered wwraaaaaa 🦕))

I love how you guys always enable me 😂🤣💞💞

Apologies Anonie, I have a bunch of asks and I’m also a hoarder 😆 💞 it takes me a while to answer asks because: adult with low energy levels, sometimes I want to think more on an ask, some are quicker to answer than others, the muses have attacked me, etc. etc.

Curious though 👀 which other two asks? Was yours? I don’t think you labeled them with a “🦕” before 🤔 also do you want that as your name? (Unless you’re off anon, then that’s fine if you’re too shy or something 💞💞🫂🫂)

Hopefully in the meantime, these hormonal filled thoughts will do 🫡💞🫶 In hindsight, this is more horny than pregnancy headcanons lolol

Okay so these pregnancy headcannons are in a specific setting.

It’s in the past. (Are we surprised? 😆) You are transported before the fae vs human war. Meleanor and Levan are alive. Lilia is the Right General. And you? You are pregnant. (Think sometimes during first trimester)

You live in the castle with everyone the first week or so, but you’re not comfortable there. While there’s no war, not everyone looks favorably on humans. So, you were sent with Lilia to his cottage. Yes, that cottage. It was a gift by Maleficia to him for becoming the Right General. She gave it to him earlier since you arrived.

The cottage is different from what you remember. It’s not a home yet, but becomes one as the days pass by.

Lilia becomes accustomed to this peace with you. He’s nervous on how to treat you but he gets used to it. You are a big help calming his nerves.

(UTC for nsfwish, the real horny/hormonal thoughts, so stay away if uncomfortable. Also this is cliched but it’s me sooooo….lolol)

You’re pregnant and you’re horny. Great Sevens, are you frustrated. You pout and try not to let it show. You don’t want to make the General uncomfortable. He’s stubborn and it’s already hard on him with this whole situation.

The fae didn’t know that he could love for Great Seven’s sake! How could you tell him that you wanted to have sex with him? That you were hot and bothered and that he was the one making you this way. Those damn muscles. That sleek figure.

But he knows something is wrong and he asks you and you just…break down. Crying. Saying how you’re just sexually frustrated and you don’t want to hurt his feelings.

Lilia stays silent before plucking you and carrying you to the bedroom. He’s not blind. Do you know the restraint he’s had? You? Someone who loves him? Someone who treats him with such gentle touches. The one that can read him like a book. Whose smile haunts him even in his sleep?

Great Sevens, he was getting jealous of his future self because he has you. The current him? Had to hold back in respect for your wants and comfort. But then you tell him, you wanted him this whole time? His restraint? Gone.

He takes you to the bedroom. Lays you on top of him. You’re staring at him with wide eyes as Lilia tilts his forehead up against yours. Eyes half mast. Corner of his lips tugging upwards.

One hand slips into your hair and the other on your hip. “Go on. Show me. Teach me how to please you.”

He moves his hand and you gasp at how hard he is. You move your hips against his in the pace you prefer as he cups your cheeks. Swallowing your moans. Devouring you.

He won’t allow you to over do it though. He’s still hyper aware of the baby and he’s going to restrain himself back…after a round or two…

He going to make sure you eat and hydrate after for sure. Then both of you are going into the bathtub to soak.

I can see him even call a healer the next day if he left too many marks on you or he’s worried.

Some other domestic moments I thought of included:

Eating a strawberry and it leaves a stain on your lips. Lilia tilts your head up as he kisses you, “I’m addicted to your taste. Take responsibility.”

Shopping at the fae markets with him. You’re covered in a cloak, concealing you’re a human. The vendors are making fun of the General. He’s with a companion? That’s new. Come General, no need to be shy.

Lilia never thought he would want a family. A part of him even now still is confused. But to know in the future, he changes his mind? He can’t help but feel this hope, this yearning. And that surprises him even more, it’s something he’s always wanted but denies himself. During these moments, he just wraps his arms are you. Wishing for time to move quicker, so he could be in the present time with you.

As you see Anonie, this was more horny while pregnant than wholesome pregnant headcanons…whoops 😂😂 but as you can see, well you probably already knew, I am very not normal about him and I need him like I need my vitamins. Daily. 💞🫰🥰

[luffyvace]

☆♪Ace x childhood best friend reader (who he has a crush on)☆♪

I’m trying to make my titles more appealing and fun to look at hopefully it’s working~!

(still not bothering with aesthetics this is something i personally wanna do)

For the record these are gender neutral so no worries

How y’all met? I’m not gonna go into specifics but you likely went into his territory

unless you met on one of his trips to the city for food n such

those three brothers are close and two didn’t trust easily back then

But once you make it in they’re circle there’s no backing down

from then on you always go to play with them and go on adventures together

they decided to keep you as a friend rather than a sibling

(back to present)~

ace honestly loves you because you accepted him, your cool, your (likely) strong whether that’s mentally or physically and most of all you’ve stuck by his side all this time

even him and luffy went they’re separate ways to become pirates

but you? You two met and have never separated since

you’ve literally kept your promise not to leave unlike no other

your always there

finally he has someone in his corner

and someone as cool as you?? How could he not fall in love 😍😍

Really he figured it out while just spacing out one day real early

like early enough to see the sunrise

he was just staring off, scouting just in case, although his mind was mostly on you

he laughed to himself thinking about memories of you two

and even more so that your still here

he noticed how nervous he now was to talk to you when you got up

he had a funny feeling in his stomach, his hands/breathing was jittery and he kept running his hand through his hair, trying to fight a smile

he was so incredibly nervous yet excited to see you!!

but why?! Today’s an ordinary day!

what is he some kind of love sick puppy?!…

lovesick?

LOVE???

WAIT WHAT THE CRAP HE NEVER CONSIDERED THAT!!

wait….no way, right?? He’s in love??

bro WHAT?! HE’S IN LOVE??

he’s..in love with (name)

wow…all this time he never even thought of that

NOW HE REALIZES HOW FLIRTY HE’S BEEN WITH YOU?!

it wasn’t even intentional!!

and now that he realizes it…….he always has the funny feeling every time he talks to you!

and his heart spikes when you call him!

bro…..wow.

*sits there in realization for the next hour*

how he acts when he has a crush:

Honestly he’s just trying to impress you and make you happy in every way

he acts chivalrous, paying for all the diners you stop at, opening doors, pulling out chairs, reminding you of things, grabbing your coat, doing you favors (ones you didn’t ask for but appreciate)

yes this is all very cliche and cheesy but you can’t go wrong with that right??

I mean…does it look like he knows how to love?! 😀

he never met either of his parents!! 😬🤦‍♀️

bro is trying his best okay?? 🤷‍♀️

he playfully shows off

he does it in a way that’s not annoying too, it doesn’t feel like he’s bragging when he does it

”hurrrr look at my big musclessss! ᕦ(ò_óˇ)ᕤ”

LOLLL

he does it in a way that makes you laugh so it seems more like a joke

he gets you meaningful trinkets and stuff he remembers you like/said your wanted

when you two join the WBP

he also asks Marco and Izo for advice on how to act around you (just act normal bro)

as well as whitebeard!!

Thatch too

he rambled to literally everyone except you about you

then he has to beg and do favors for them not to tell you all the cheesy/embarrassing things he says

goodness Ace 🤦‍♀️

he goes around like a love sick puppy for a few weeks ranting about you and celebrating about becoming a man (😂💗)

but then when Marco asks when he’s gonna ask you out….

Ace FREAKS out.

like he literally forgot about that part-

IS IT TOO LATE?! DID YOU ALREADY FIND ANOTHER MAN??-

wait you two are childhood best friends you would’ve told him 🤨

oh.

okay well great!-

now……how does he confess?🧍‍♀️

seriously he doesn’t know how. He doesn’t know what to say, do or give you

OR where to do it OR when OR if he’s even good enough OR if you won’t like him..

WAIT WHAT IF HE’S NOT A GOOD ENOUGH BOYFRIEND?!

wait..WHAT IF YOU DON’T LOVE HIM BACK⁉️

He’s feels like giving up already😞

theres so many women/men in the world why would you want some lost parentless pirate who questions his existence…

now when he goes to Marco and says all that he just laughs at him and calls him emo 😊

no but in all seriousness he brings Ace back to his senses and reminds him about what if you DO love him back 😏

😮🤩🤩

he forgot all about that!- (😀)

WAIT WHAT IF YOU DO LIKE HIM BACK!!

THIS IS SO EXCITING!!

him and Marco run to find izo and have a bro meeting immediately

which happens and the three immediately start planning the confession >:3

they put they’re heads together to conjure something they know you’d like but doesn’t seem too sappy

his confession !! 🤩

the next time the ship stops at an island he takes you to a calm beach area where you relax and have some fun all day

your nakama are around but it mostly just seem like the world is just you and Ace right now

midday is when Ace strikes!

this was izo’s idea

no! it’s not because if he had to wait the next day to interact with you as his girlfriend he wouldn’t get any sleep >:(

Ace brought the topic to your childhood past together as you ate lunch and at some point you didn’t notice he transitioned to how he feels about you and how much he cares about you and that it would be everything to him if you became his girlfriend.

now it’s your turn to ‘WAIT WHAT’ :)

that was so smooth!

you didn’t even notice he was trying to confess until the end!

Wow did that surprise you!

at least your muscles were still working so that you could nod your head because you certainly didn’t know what to say!

____________「what do you say?」____________

____________Yes. No.____________ ＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ (mini bonus): if you aspired to be a pirate, simply don’t mind or would like to support his dream, you joined the spade pirates! (Which obviously gets consumed into the whitebeard pirates, but hey your captain made the decision so you don’t mind). If your strong he’ll make you vice captain since your his first ever nakama. <3 otherwise you might be the navigator, medic or something else your good at! Likely not something that puts you in immediate danger though. He worries about the ones he loves leaving him too much for that.

HOPE YOU ENJOYED LOVLIES !! 🦋🦋

I need to write about ace more but I also needs get past the impel down arc but I also don’t (spoiler) wanna watch his death but I also wanna see more of his backstory and finish one piece and- ｡.:*｡.:*💥 _:(´o`」 ∠): …… d(￣ ￣) - I’m good

[carelocaiiel]

My Ships in One Piece (Mostly Talking About Vivi's Potential Mate Because Nobody Talking About it)

Okay so here's some (mostly strawhats) of my favorite ships in One Piece and i will share my thoughts regarding ships that i found hilarious or interesting. For those of you who ask whether number 1..2…3.. is a ranking..(??) No, I just sorted the strawhats members first.

Luffy x Vivi

Luffy and Vivi is perfect. They both can reaches mentally to one another and even punch like a bros in other to woke the other one. Vivi deeply trust Luffy and Luffy always think highly of her but he can be worried sometimes because he care deeply for her. I say they're perfect because Vivi can mentally reaches Luffy, and consider Luffy sometimes hard to be approach with mentally method, this is high praise for her. Luffy and Vivi shares a lot of similarities like

Both are :

Honest leader

Fearless leader

Loyal to their friends and family

Love Adventure

Have The Will of "D" in their names

Lost their family members to World Government

Targeted by Imu

I found out their compatibilities somewhat reminds me of these two MBTIs > Luffy as ESFP known for their lively and outgoing personalities while Vivi is ENFJ, the ones who make sure everyone feels included and cared for. The ESFP and ENFJ will likely care for each other quite deeply. And while im not really keen with zodiac, i really love how sometimes author use this as a hint or base of something in the story, like the magic in Black Clover characters are determined by their zodiac signs. I checked out Vivi is an Aquarius and Luffy is an Taurus. I found out Aquarius and Taurus in love can make for an interesting pairing, and it seems Aquarius is ruled by Uranus, the planet that governs innovation, technology, and surprising events.. Yes Uranus.. One of the ancient weapons.

I just love how Luffy is sad that Vivi choose not to join strawhat pirate and he respected her wish. Since they're both closer in age, i think it's cute to assumed maybe there's a time Oda thought that it would be cute to use Vivi as Luffy's first crush (but Luffy himself doesn't even recognize it) before Oda make Luffy aseksual. Even he is eager to save Vivi that time when he hear she is missing. I say this because there's just noway Luffy punch Vivi so normally if he's not irritated by her. Sometimes crushes really makes we more irritated than usual. And while yes he punches other women too, he's not someone who will punch woman that he consider HIS FRIEND.. but in that scene..we can see Luffy wanted Vivi to REALLY TRUST HIM and the other crews BECAUSE THEY'RE FRIENDS And thats why his punch to Vivi is more special .. Luffy wanted Vivi to acknowledge HIM.

And what i find interesting is Igaram's dream when Vivi said she is going to be a pirate queen 😂, reminds me that she is a D. too .. So their pairing can work out like Gol D. Roger and Portgas D. Rouge. Also, according to Volume 76 SBS, Vivi's image number is 5.5 and Luffy is Birthday is in May 5. Their blood type also the same.. type F.

2.Nami x Sanji

Nami and Sanji is actually my VERY FIRST SHIP. If Luffy and Vivi have respect then i say Nami and Sanji have natural chemistry that of a couple. While there's a lot of fans that favors Nami x Luffy, i just see NamixLuffy's chemistry is like a Sister to her lil bro which she REALLY TRUSTED. Luffy and Nami's like two of kindred spirits. I just love how Sanji calls Nami using -san instead of -chan like other girls. Sanji respect Nami so much and treat her on the top of women. I just thought there's a lot of potential in their dynamic because their dynamic getting more interesting over time.

3.Nami x Zoro

I always have this thought that MAYBE Zoro prefer girls who is sharp and know what they want. I just saw a lot of Nami Zoro scenes that make me think " They're so funny together" because they have mutual respect for each other's strengths while often buttheads. Sometimes they can be seen talking and discussing about trivial matters.

4.Zoro x Tashigi

Yes Zoro and Tashigi… and why not ? My only comment is that their dynamic is interesting and i would love to see more of Zoro's reluctant reaction to Tashigi 😂😭.

5.Zoro x Vivi

Zoro and Vivi.. Yes this one is interesting. Zoro ALWAYS respected Vivi. He knows Vivi's characteristics and he knows she is a smart and independent woman. While there's not a lot to say about this ship, i just like how Zoro always have this concerning kind of face when he see Vivi doing something wholeheartily. And not to forget "MR. BUSHIDO" , a nickname Vivi choose for Zoro. Aint that cute ? I love their friendship too .. Like i said before, maybe zoro prefer girls who is sharp and know what they want. I just think Zoro always see Vivi as that kind of girl.. and i think Zoro's respecting people who puts others first like Luffy.. his respect for Vivi is just the same because Vivi and Luffy are that kind of people who will protect others and not afraid to do that.

6.Usop x Kaya

I will just say THEY ARE CANON and you know it 😭.The way Kaya believe in Usop ? Its just so wholesome And i LOVE IT.

7.Robin x Law

THIS! ACTUALLY ONE OF MY BIG THREE IF I RANK IT. 😭😭 Great minds think alike right ??? Yes! And that is Robin and Law! I don't know what should i say about them … They're just HIT IT OFF! 😭A VERY MATURE AND TRUSTING RELATIONSHIP .. And that is big! Considering both of them growing up struggled to trust people. Zoro x Robin is nice.. But not as nice as this . A lot of people said Law will die before the "dawn" comes.. But.. Yeah.. 😭i just can't ignore this feeling to ship them.

8.Vivi x Lucci

LEMME JUST SAY THIS STRAIGHT! THIS IS THE MOST HILARIOUS SHIP THAT I MYSELF CANT EVEN BELIEVE I SHIPPED THIS 😭. She already roasted Lucci WAY back there when she was Miss Wednesday riding Karoo.

We know that Nefertari is the name of an Egyptians Queen. Whats more interesting is that Egyptians believed cats were magical creatures, capable of bringing good luck to the people who housed them, Egyptians saw cats as mutually beneficial companions. Who have The Cat as their Signature Devil Fruit transformation ? LUCCI! The ancient Egyptians believed the cat was a representation of Bast, Bast also represented fertility, and also protection. Who also said their job is to protect Vivi? LUCCI also 😭.

I just can't help find this pairing hilarious… sassy vivi vs stoic lucci? Yes thats it! 😭 Whats more hilarious? HIS FACE RESEMBLE KING COBRA, VIVI's father. If theyre related, i would say like father like son.

And this just keep getting hilarious…

There's this manga cover when Lucci feeding the pigeons and one of them wearing necklace which have letter "V" as if "Vivi" .In chapter 753, SBS revealed Vivi's representative animal is PIGEON 😭 well yeah she is a pacifist thats what to be expected .. But… who have piggeon as their friend? My Man Lucci. And not to mention Vivi's representative colour is white… 😭.

Vivi is associated with marriage too .. If you guys know, there's this manga cover when Vivi's scrubbing and the flag says "Bride Training". The curious thing is… THE CATS is the ones who helped her 😤! And the name of the one who request it! "Hattori" SUS MUCH..

Im starting to believe Oda is setting up Vivi to marry someone at the end of One Piece.

Not to forget her tank top in the color spread says TIGER 😭 yes.. big cat like leopard. Maybe Tiger in here is associating with Nefertari Lily so it can be "Tiger Lily". Tiger Lily flowers were often used in rituals as an offering to invoke healing, protection, and good fortune. Furthermore, Tiger Lily flowers were also associated with the goddesses of love and fertility. It was thought that the flowers could help individuals connect with their ancestors and receive guidance from the spiritual realm. In the famous play, Peter Pan, the character Tiger Lily was named after this flower, and it symbolized her beauty and bravery.

In Chinese folklore, the Tiger Lily flower was believed to represent the love between a man and woman, and it was often planted in wedding gardens. Whats wrong with Vivi and wedding? 😂…. Dreaming of a Tiger Lily flower can be a powerful symbol of transformation, growth, and rebirth. It may indicate that a person is going through a period of personal growth or is about to embark on a new chapter in life (AND YES SHE IS GOING TO HAVE HER OWN ADVENTURE) Alternatively, it may be a sign of good luck and prosperity.

In Native American folklore, the Tiger Lily was associated with the sun and was believed to bring warmth and light to the world.Maybe if Vivi's the true Uranus (like i said before in LuffyxVivi that her zodiac is associated with Uranus), then this sentence is make sense, since a lot of people saying Uranus is the sun.

A tweet by @chanchancilchan explaining that maybe Oda is inspired by Peterpan to move Vivi as character and associated her with Tigerlily from peterpan. Both Vivi and Tigerlily refuses any suitors even though they're old enough to be married, and Tigerlily is kidnapped by Captain Hook which suspiciously resembles Sir Crocodile. WHAT SURPRISE ME IS not these thing but A CHARACTER NAMED JOHN DARLING.

From what i know, John Darling is in love with Tigerlily. In the anime Peter pan no bouken, there was a whole episode dedicated to John and Lily's first date, with John trying to be a gentleman to her only to either misfortune to happen or to have Lily utterly tsuntsun at him 😭 i dunno but this reminds me so much of Vivi and Lucci (yes im delulu). What i am trying to say is… Look at this John boy, look at that hat! and his white clothes…. But .. This tiger-vivi story feat lucci should be stopped here.. Lemme go introduce my next fav ship.

9.Vivi x Sabo

If you read my babbling about Tigerlily-Vivi feat Lucci. I think you should know that this is the continuation 😭. The thing is… John Darling reminds me SO MUCH of young Sabo. What intrigues me the most is that John is a middle child and if we see Ace, Sabo and Luffy together.. It seems Sabo is younger than Ace since his birthday is in March, so he is the middle one. John is said to be very mature but loves his time being very adventurous and playful, Sabo much ? Speaking of his appearance .. In some Disney storybooks, John's nightshirt is blue instead of white .. Yes… He wears glasses(Goggles for Sabo) , stovepipe hat. Umbrella (Pipe for Sabo) and blue clothes.

Also.. Remember when Sabo said he must marry into a royal family?

I can't wait to see Sabo meet Vivi, because Vivi has met his other two brothers, she has even had a deep talk about Luffy with Ace and has collided with Luffy.

10.Sabo x Koala

Next is Sabo and Koala, actually i don't have anything to say about them.. They're partner and their synergy is good. So well whats more to say ? 😂

11.Smoker x Hina

And last one is Smoker and Hina?? WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO SAY ? 😭 THEY'RE PERFECT FOR EACH OTHERS AND THAT'S FINAL. I MEGAYACHT EM!

HAHA... AND THAT'S IT MY BABBLING about My Fav Ships in One Piece ... Mostly i babbling about Vivi but that's exactly my point since not a lot of people bringing that up. Actually i'm fine If these characters end up not having a romantic relationship with each others. But that's the point of shipping, isn't it? to have fun, and I already feel very happy with these ships, especially LuffyxVivi, RobinxLaw and VivixLucci (OMG FORGIVE ME ABOUT THIS ONE).

[helloiamadrawer]

NEUTROPHIL SQUAD BF ANALYSIS

𝘜-1146

the kind hearted/cool headed bf, sure he may look emo but that's not the point. Always gives his honest opinion on everything, great to lend an ear if you to want to talk about your day or vent. Stumbles upon his words when he's around you for some reason (he thinks he's sick but he knows what he's feeling). would literally die/kill for you (well I think everyone in the WBC squad would ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯)

Love language: quality time because spending time with you seems to be the good part of his day it's really sweet, but from time to time when he's really slammed with work, he'll send one of his comrades to tell you that he's okay and still alive protecting the body and stuff.

Do they like PDA?/Fav. type: Not much of a fan but if you initiate it, he'll give you the okay. His fav type of pda would be hand-holding for sure

𝘜-4989

The fun, chaotic, creative bean of the group. First thing you thought of when you met him was If he's a neutrophil then why is he so damn cute? 🥺

Gives you his trinkets/self invented weapons as gifts (You invested in a weapon rack in your dorm for one or two of them but for the rest you had to put them in a chest/box). Makes you wonder how the heck he does it but yk 4-9 is mostly bending the rules 98% of the time when it comes to using unknown items as weapons 😂

He tells the most hilarious stories of how he gets stuck in the migration routes that he wouldn't dare tell his squad about.

The tension between your hand and his fluffy white hair is strong and he's aware of it. It's like this: you two are sitting together, your hand was soooo close to petting a side bang and then the second he turns his head to you, you dart your hand back and look the other way. So what does the clever 4989 do? He takes off his hat and threads his fingers through his hair before actually taking your hand and placing it on the top of his head. "You know, all you had to was ask, silly."he implied with a grin. annnnd now you're burning from embarrassment.

Whenever you see him smile or laugh it's like the sun to you, warm and full of energy.

Love language:physical affection (pda is def on the table for him)

𝘜-2626

The mysterious, alluring but caring bf, a bit of a playful stalker kind of vibe, but really is a soft boi compared to his bloodthirsty side when eliminating germs. So expect to be scared half to death for fun, he'd be the type to sneak up on you and say "boo." and you halfway jump out of your skin then after he'd be all "sorry, love you" and give you a quick kiss on the cheek then disappears until you run into him again to return the favor.

At times, you forget how you turned out to like him, no it's not the bangs that cover his face like a hentai protagonist, it's his acts of service and his calming voice that seems to soothe you when you're in the darkest depths of sadness to then distracting you from what you're doing because you think of him that much and you want to slap yourself silly. Ugh is he actually that attractive? the answer to that is yes.

Teasing is in his nature as a boyfriend, this neutrophil will text you good morning and then sending you videos and pictures of him covered in blood his last killing, and the caption would be 'spamming me covered in this stuff cuz u like it'. now wait just a goddamn minute..how did he know you liked that?? The pet names are two times more bold, you just want to go over wherever he is and hit him (playfully)

Love language: words of affirmation/quality time

𝘜-2048

Ugh. the flirty, bold but respectful of your space (not) bf. Such a cocky bastard. Thinks he's hot shit 🙄 (spoiler alert: he is. )He looks so stupid with those stupid side bangs and it makes him so stupidly...handsome, dammit!

Casanova head ass not making you blush commenting on how beautiful you look today when you literally wear the same outfit everyday (that will change shortly) and god the flirting, just shut him up with a kiss and that'll do (sometimes..)

Spoils you as in buys you your fav flavor of glucose/new clothes/stuff that could help you in situations if he wasn't there to save you: like a simple black garter belt and a small dagger as a date gift.

He has a bit low self esteem issues because of his past (being a chonky myelocyte back then) soon maybe comment on him how good he looks covered in blood and maybe he would look more cuter if he cleaned up lol either way he's great to you in every way :)

Love language:gift giving/physical affection I can see him trying to push your limit of how much pda you can take before it gets pretty noticeable asshole

𝘜-2001

thoughtful, mature but intriguing bf vibes, his eyes say a thousand words as your smile lit a thousand worlds within himself.

you two kind of started out a little awkward but then once you all started to know each other, it was starting to click. hes the type of bf to give you flowers on the first date kill me I can see him doing that ahhhhh

Like 1146, hand holding is fine, everything else is for in your dorm room okay maybe one hug here and there but that's the limit.

Has a secret sweet tooth but a sucker for coffee instead of tea, remembers your order exactly ☺️

Knows where you are if you "borrow" his jacket for fun and he'd be all chill with it but really he kind of needs it, sometimes you can turn it into a game with him to make it more fun before he heads off to work.

Love language:quality time/words of affirmation with a sprinkle of physical affection.

a/n: I am finally back!! and with a new hyperfixation too, may do a B cell x Memory cell thingy in the future so hope you enjoyed this first Cells At Work piece love y'all!! 💗💗

[jedi-enthusiast]

Original Post

@sonic-fairyspell THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!! and NEVER apologize for rambling, I love rambles and listening to people’s theories on stuff- (it’s actually very motivating lol) -plus i’m about to ramble your head off, so it’d be kinda hypocritical to not want you to ramble 😂

—————

To answer your question:

Yes! It's the emblem of the Jedi Order!

Most of the clones wear the normal emblem, but the Coruscant Guard wears the emblem of the Temple Guard—since both guards share a mutual dislike of the Blue Guard- (the natborn Corrie Guard, basically) -because of how the Blue Guard treats them. This leads to them working together, growing close, and becoming friends!

Whether it's the regular or the Temple Guard emblem, though, both symbols are painted on for the same reason.

In the middle of The Great War- (which, yes, i'm still working on, don't worry) -the clones have been exposed to some pretty harsh anti-Jedi sentiment. It pisses them off, but there's really nothing they can do, and they at least have the comfort of knowing that the Jedi aren't treated like objects, right?

That is, until the Corrie Guard overhears some senators complaining about the Jedi "not doing enough" on the war front- (nevermind the fact that they were doing everything they could with limited numbers) -which isn't really something new…

...until they hear them refer to the Jedi as "a Republic resource" and talk about them like they served no purpose except to obey their whims.

(and boy, didn't the clones find that familiar)

This news spreads quickly throughout the GAR and boy are they pissed. Even more so, knowing that they can't really do anything about it.

So they decide to do the only thing they can, show the Jedi that they're not alone.

They paint the Order's emblem on one of their shoulder pauldrons each, always adding their own unique spin but also making certain that it's still clear what it is.

The Jedi are touched, and they return the favor.

They paint their vambraces- (the only armor any of them ever wear, much to everyone's mutual chagrin) - in their battalion's colors, showing that they aren't alone either.

…

Rex is the first to paint his shoulder pauldron in the 501st-with clean, precise, lines, in their signature blue.

He shows it to Ahsoka, and she almost cries.

He shows it to Anakin, and Anakin is...curious.

Rex says that all of his brothers are doing it, and Anakin asks why—genuinely curious, since they place so much value on their armor being unique.

Rex tells him that it's to show that they're loyal to the Jedi, not the Senate—because the Jedi have fought and died with them, while the Senate has never given a shit about them.

This is when Anakin stops being curious, and starts getting angry—because Padme and Palpatine are part of the Senate, and he views this as disrespectful to them.

He and Rex argue until Rex realizes that Anakin will always put his pride, put his attachments, over them—that he'd personally wipe out half the battalion if it meant Padme wouldn't get hurt, no matter that they were people too.

So Rex stops arguing.

He doesn't take off the paint, though.

But word passes through the battalion what Anakin thinks about all of this, and no one else wants to chance it.

So technically Anakin doesn't force them not to do it, but he definitely makes it clear what he thinks—and no one wants to piss off the guy with severe anger issues who's in charge of your every move in a dangerous situation.

[90s-2000s-barbie]

Hello, Megan! How are you doing? I was wondering if you have any tips for someone wanting to start a 90s/2000s collection like yours.

Where do you shop? How long did it take to accumulate your collection?

Last question might be weird but do you sleep in the room in the photos? The reason I ask is because I want to make my room look like that but I'm a little worried about what people will think...

Hi! This is a great questions and literally anyone can do it and affordable! So I’ve been collecting my whole life but I started going super into it in 2009. Not only do I collect nostalgia, I collect about anything I would see and like, antiques, records vintage clothes, toys, ex. What started my interest is I just saw something a couple antiques i wanted at goodwill and passed it up and I would never live it down. I will forever remember is and kick myself in the ass for it. I said that’s it, I’m not regretting leaving something so cool behind in fear of being judged.

Even though I started in 2009, I will admit, no one has to break bank to start collecting. The best place to start is goodwill, local thrift stores, flea markets, garage sales. I don’t pay much for anything I own in my collection. One time I thrifted an entire huge box full of vintage McDonald’s toys for $2! It’s very simple to do. Some garage sales, people were so tired of selling, they would tell me to have things for free! Like I’m doing them a favor getting rid of the items. lol u really don’t need to spend much.

I started collecting by going to my local goodwill every week and I’d find a cart FULL of 90’s -2000’s finds and I’d spend like max, $50 for my entire cart and I’d find the coolest stuff, toys, clothes, books, ex.

I leave no stones unturned. Some people hid things at goodwill and wait for the color tag to go on sale so look everywhere! I would go by myself and look for a few hours and pick out everything old, and decide at the end what I LOVE and put back things that I just don’t. I’d find cool 2000’s clothes hidden in the kids clothes! I found a vintage adult sized Powerpuff girls sweater in the kids! People hide stuff everywhere and workers also put things in wrong spots just cause it’s got cartoons on them. lol

So the photos of my room is right before I moved into my own house but YES. I slept in that room for years and everyone that walked in thought it was cool! Now I have childhood friends sending me photos of it and asking why my room is all over the internet! lol 😂 I had 2 beds so I could have my best friends over and have cool sleep overs, all my friends, guys and girls loved it and even my boyfriend loved it when we first started dating. My mom loved it cause it reminded her of when me and my sister were kids. She would come up and hang out with me and we would watch Britney and Backstreet Boys videos. I say, do things FOR YOU. If people aren’t supportive, then that’s there problem. As long as ur responsible and not harming anyone or anything, then there is nothing wrong with u doing what makes u happy! ❤️ If u have anything ur really into, the fashion or toys, ask any questions u want, fill free to ask. Something I always do with everything, is pick something up, look for a year. Sometimes older stuff didn’t always have a year on it. Now they always have years.

Also I don’t make YouTube videos anymore but I do have one thrift haul on my YouTube channel Nostalgic Studioz. Can kinda see what I found going to one goodwill! One store is all it takes. lol

Thanks so much for the ask! I love talking about my hobbies and I hope this helps u too! ❤️❤️

Here is one flea market haul and there is that box I spent 2 dollars on to the right. lol I bought all of this in one place, one day at the local flea market. Ohio’s biggest flea market is like 30 mins away and it’s my FAVORITE place in the world. It’s opened all year around and it’s like a giant garage sale.

[catt030516]

The burning fire of our fallen tree makes me reminiscent youth. Coon hunting till late, starting a big fire, pulling the trucks around it. Getting drunk.

Being in love like never before.

You can’t replicate being naive. We actually never used anything. I think we thought we were going to just have babies and live happily ever after.😂😂😂 we never had any which must have just have been the universe.

But, he broke up with me because (I told you the cologne story) I wasn’t forthcoming about hanging out with someone of the opposite sex. Then his dad signed him out of school the next day.

In response to him having a cheating scandal or two with his ex and Mary.

Like I said I miss being naive. Because now that I look at it without the “buts…” it’s harder to just blame me. He hurt me w/o excuse. I did the same. Wish I’d have been stronger and then I’d have been less scared of the truth. And he had no reasons to cheat on me. That was mean.

Just saw Mike in my driveway today. Asked me how the fire was.

I instantly thought:

“Kelly? Cate? For the love of Christ why did you fuck that up and give this man another shot when he was clearly fucking another woman???!?!?”

Fear.

Fear of change.

Fear of what others would think.

Its almost always fear. Fear prevents more unhappiness then any straight up abuse does.

I was scared to lose my kids. I was afraid he’d take them from me. At that point in his life, Buoy did nothing but support and love me. He was good with Evan who was two. And I never appreciated that until it was too late.

And damn, Bukowski said it best:

“…and there’s nothing ever worse than “Too late.”

We get such a small flicker of time on this wheel of karma tic life, and it’s amazing what lengths we go to to gain the favor of someone or everyone else but ourselves. Just so we can live another lifetime ( I believe within our own family lines) and try to do it correctly.

**If I’m rambling quit reading because I’m copying it/pasting it for the journal entry I have to do😂😂**

I think the hardest decisions are the ones the ones we carry out in length because we are afraid. Afraid of hurting someone. So we what? Hurt ourselves? Hurt other people with us? Hurt our futures.

There was a time, when for approx. a month I would be sat down on Sundays prior to leaving to go home. You’d give me these dancing words, basically you were trying to say, “Look, I feel like lost. I need more of you.”

You are human. It would be hard to process, but with Evan, hell, I have asked his father. Even 6 months was not unreasonable. But in your confusion you let her, exactly a year to the week,come and tell you you were together.

Which was made clear to everyone but her.

After every sacrifice I’d ever given you. After all of the missed holidays, swallowed grief, sleepless night, long drives. Shared secrets. Shared motherfucking secrets.

Just because you could never look up and say, “yes, Dawn. You moved out I’ve been seeing someone. It’s going well. I don’t hate you. You are the mother of my children. We both made mistakes. But I understand and respect the life you’ve made this year as well. I’m sure you will respect my life as I respect your

Instead, it was jokes and dancing instead of answering the direct question. Who knows WHAT you are are afraid of. Maybe your just a borderline who can’t exist without the presence of chaotic relationship? I honestly have to admit I DONT know. I can’t know you at all after any of that, can I?

So for about a month you’d have these talks with me. Usually right after sex once I was dressed and ready to leave to make the drive home. Instead of saying, “I’m lonely don’t leave” you’d act like a stepdad/someone who was not Ron. You’d tell me how you weren’t divorced. All this bullshit I will never listen to again in my life. You acted like I didn’t have someone I just lost! Someone your cowardice denied me the right to sit at his funeral. The nerve of you.

Yes, I was very caught up in my feelings. When Ronda found me passed out barely breathing there’s no way to describe how angry I was she found me. I acted like Sylvia Plath.

And why wouldn’t I? I was begining to experiance the very long eulogy that is burying a man that never existed. Whose not physically dead. But there’s nothing NOTHING left of who I thought I knew.

I understand a lot of people live the way they do. It’s about the years, not the rules or any degree of happiness. I want you to remember (and I’m sure you do) who was really there for you, when you were hard? working Friday nights, when things were upside down with your mom. Did you ever have to worry about me running around Ron, Did you? Did you ever? Did you care when your kids heartbeat stopped or were you relieved? I at least bought in to the fact I was part of your family. I introduced myself to the nurse as your girlfriend. Stupid me. Should’ve told her to hurry in and close the door.

“ I’m the mistress. Yes it’s been a year my boyfriend is afraid of his wife finding out and not being his friend anymore.”

😂😂Could you fucking imagine? Me putting up with you in that capacity??

Yeah, I can’t either.

That fear made all of that even harder then it had to be. Just because you couldn’t just say the truth. You drug this out so long, have said or done things nearly unforgivable ( I forgive once I process, for very selfish reasons.)

I hope you had a nice time we were together. I hope you long to feel how wonderful it was since wAaaay back in Angola. I hope it felt good to have me there next to you. Inside of me in our bed you now share with Dawn.

Because unless you’re

on your knees pleading for apologies for your egotism and dishonesty, you’ll never so much as kiss my cheek.

Ron Stroupe died last December. I don’t know who you are or why you’d think I’d put up with any of your antics. Please don’t cause this home, the home that brought you in without question, anymore damage.

The Ron Stroupe I knew had an estranged wife. He isn’t afraid to tell her about me. He wouldn’t have done that to us. He was a man. Hard or not, he was a man, not a coward.

6/23/2023

Can you celebrate 29 years or do you have to jump back to year 27 1/2?😂😂😂

[spooderman04]

Forewarning: this reeks of 2012 avengers fan fiction but just roll with it alright

Also it’s not a coherent thought but that’s besides the point

So you remember 5+1? Yep your right here’s another one

5 times Tony surprised the avengers with languages, and one time …

1. Tony can speak Russian.

2. Tony knows ASL

3. Tony speaks Dora

4. Tony knows Arabic (idk some kidnapping language

5. Tony speaks Italian (idek)

+1. I have no idea please repost and help me figure out

1. Tony walks into kitchen ethier early in morning or late at night. Nat is also there. Nat is venting in Russian. Include self doubt or background reference. Maybe both. Tony walks in purposely making his footsteps heavy so he doesn't get a knife to the skull, and responds in Russian. Nat is obviously surprised and they talk. Or not. They could just watch a movie and never speak of it again idk.

2. Clint tries to hide the fact he's deaf so they don't see him differently. Yes, Nat knows. She always knows. Clint had it taken out of his shield file a long time ago. He can lip-read and has basically invisible hearing aids. An emp takes out Clint's hearing aids during some small fight or something. Clint doesn't have a spare and has to last through briefing and life at the tower until they can give him a new pair in the morning. He just wants a bagel in silence and runs into the team in the kitchen cuz Tony never sleeps, Steve, Nat, and Bruce get up at the buttcrack of dawn, and Thor just likes poptarts. But anyways the team finds out, Clint's tired and can't lipread 6 people at once. And Tony kinda emerges from the shadows like finally I have some hearing aid designs I want you to try out… but in ASL. Nat also knows ASL. Cuz why the freak not. And Clint's kinda like, what? how did you know, and how do you know ASL?? (In ASL btw, just to confuse Steve) and Tony kinda shrugs it off and says he hacked shield remember (but Clint knows better. He knows he's just as observant as him and was probably just waiting for Clint to willingly tell the team (yes he's made 7 prototypes already)) and Clint kinda drops that one in favor of asking where he knew ASL from. Tony says the original Jarvis taught him some, and learned everything after hiring a deaf employee. Or maybe he learned it after he found out about Clint. Nat respects him for respecting Clint. She talks to Fury about changing her recommendation.

3 ok so basically after Afghanistan Tony learned as many languages as he could, especially the less common ones typically used but potential kidnappers. So he learns Dora (similar to the wakandan language) uhhh idk team goes to wakanda for some reason, maybe Bucky, Bucky's a good option. anywaysss. idk someone talks in wakandan, maybe like the guards or other people walking around, maybe okoye to techalla or shuri. He ends up in shuris lab cuz they're science nerds do you expect otherwise. And shuri kinda just says ethier smarter than he looks or another white boy for me to fix. If it's the latter Tony can respond with and a nerdy teenager in need of a father figure for me to adopt. Or something like that whie in wakandan and he gets a shocked look and a smile before shuri says “a competent white boy for me to fix”

4. Team gets kidnapped. Kidnappers speak some wierd language not even natasha knows, and clint dosnt even know how to ask “can i pet your dog” in said language, and the kidnappers think no one knows what theyre saying because everyone just looks confused as all get out, or drugged out of their minds ie. bruce and thor, and once they spill a location or the evil plan or somthing tony can use he responds in this random language no one knows, the kidnapperslook shocked, and a few seconds later a suit breaks in with shield on its tail rescuing them. Yeah i know not as funny but im tired okay

5. Yeah the rest idk what to do with

If u got ideas add em cuz I'm bored and don't know where to go😂

5. ??? I need help guys

If u got ideas add em cuz I'm bored and don't know where to go😂

[sirensplayhouse]

hi, i know you probably get asked the same questions frequently and it might lowekey annoy you, but i’m pretty new to manifesting and i wanted to ask you a few questions.

1. ik everyone has a different journey, but is there a “preferred” way to manifest for someone who has no experience and is also in doubt? ik you can do it even w doubts, but i literally don’t know where to start. should i write my affirmations? say them in front of a mirror? think them?

2. for someone who is at the beginning of this journey, is it the best to start manifesting “small” things and then go on to the most serious one? should i just focus on one in particular?

3. what was the craziest/biggest thing you manifested? (need this for motivation 😭)

4. how long did it take your first time to manifest something? what did you do? where you skeptical at first?

5. would reading any of neville’s books help?

6. my biggest wish is to change my body but i can’t “logically” believe it’s possible. i read you don’t believe logic is real, yet from a scientific point of view i dont know how to accept this. any tips? did you change anything “crazy” about yourself?

love ya so much, have a great day❤️

wheewww ok let’s get started 😂first off welcome to my blog love, glad to have you🫶🏾

1. affirmations are just your thoughts so when we say affirm we mean just think in your favor. also some people say their affirmations in the mirror for different reasons so if that’s appealing to you then you should do it, same with the scripting.

2. I don’t believe in “small” or “big” manifestations, there’s no reason why you can’t have the thing you desire now so why wait ? I know I didn’t start off “small”

3. I’ve manifested a lot 😂 idek but ima just say my telepathy

4. when I first found out about loa ? I got my manifestation in just two days , I was in shock a little bit but then I got hype and I was like “can’t nobody tell me I’m not the goddess of my reality😭”

5. yes and no ima be honest I love Neville’s books but sometimes people can have a hard time understanding what he’s actually saying (I do believe someone made a summary of his lectures and books tho lmk if you want me to reblog it) but they’re really great for motivational purposes and getting the gist of the law . I recommend reading Neville and Joseph Murphy because while Neville focuses more on imagination and visualization , Joseph Murphy focuses more on affirmations or ‘reprogramming your subconscious’ but overall they’re both helpful and have success stories in their works.

6. ima tell you this now😂you need to get rid of any ‘logical’ mindset, I would say go and read other peoples personal success stories and maybe that will help or you can always just try it for yourself 🤷🏾‍♀️I’ll reblog some success stories that I know have pictures linked to them and last but least, I wouldn’t say ‘crazy’😂but from a logical standpoint ? it might seem crazy , I changed the color of my eyes .

I look forward to hearing from you again and seeing your journey progress even more love , have fun !🤍 and remember manifesting is all about you, you make the rules and don’t forget to have fun with it🫶🏾

[the-widow-sisters]

Hi! Love your stories as always 😍. Here’s an idea. Could you do one where the Avengers have a talent show night and Yelena forces Natasha to do something with her?

A/N: Thank you so much!!! 🥰💖

And thank you for this request! I was so excited for it as soon as you sent it in, and I’ve been working on it for a while now, trying to take some breaks in between. My hands are almost totally healed up, but I’m still trying to be a little cautious despite the fact that I really don’t want to 😂

I hope you enjoy!!! 🥰💗 I had a bit too much fun with this one 🤣

Word Count: 7320

  “Natashka!!!” Yelena cried as soon as she entered the door, quickly unleashing Fanny and making a mad dash for the redhead that was sitting on the couch. Natasha jumped a bit as Yelena suddenly jumped over the back of the couch, landing almost on top of her.

  “Woah, woah, where’s the fire?” Natasha laughed, and Yelena wasted no time in kicking off her shoes, exposing her smelly feet from her run, and she could not even hardly enjoy Natasha’s disdainful nose-wrinkling as she grinned wildly at her sister.

  “Guess what?!” Yelena demanded, and Natasha raised an eyebrow, a grin on her face as she silently questioned the blonde with a tilt of her head. Yelena repositioned just a bit as she rested her legs across Natasha’s lap. Natasha leaned away from the feet just a bit but kept her gaze locked onto Yelena’s.

  “I met Kate Bishop and that sweet baby puppy Lucky on my run,” Natasha huffed in reply to Yelena’s completely different tone that she used to talk about the Golden Retriever as opposed to Kate.

  “And she told me that the Star Spangled Speedo is hosting a talent show for the Avengers! I always hate his team bonding stupid things, but this one actually sounds fun!” Yelena excitedly cried, and she quickly realized that Natasha was not quite matching her energy level. However, the redhead’s eyes were soft and she had a small smile on her face.

  “Yeah, I heard about that. I was actually on the committee to arrange it,” Natasha admitted, and Yelena’s eyes went wide as she gaped at the redhead.

  “Seriously?! And you didn’t tell me?!!!” Yelena cried, positively offended, and Natasha squeezed Yelena’s leg placatingly.

  “I didn’t know you’d be this interested in doing it,” Natasha admitted, and Yelena scoffed immediately before brightening a bit as she thought of what she was going to say to her sister.

  “I think I’m going to play guitar for it. But there’s just one problem,” Yelena declared, and Natasha tilted her head slightly, a strange sense of what almost seemed to be dread surrounding her as she looked at the blonde. Yelena felt some curiosity rising within her, but she ignored it in favor of readying herself for the insane amount of pouting she was no doubt going to have to do to achieve this tall order.

  “What’s that?” Natasha hesitantly questioned, and Yelena grinned a little.

  “I need a singer,” Yelena proclaimed, and Natasha raised an eyebrow.

  “Don’t you sing?” Natasha asked, and Yelena just huffed, rolling her eyes heavily.

  “Yeah. But it’s not nearly as good as a certain poser’s voice that I know,” Yelena declared, and while Natasha’s eyes were gentler in response to the compliment, there was still a firm resolve within her that seemed very much against Yelena’s idea as she massaged Yelena’s calf gently.

  “Little one, you know I don’t sing in front of anybody. Much less a giant crowd of people,” Natasha explained, and Yelena immediately widened her eyes just a little to try to portray a sense of innocence that would hopefully be persuasive.

  “But Natashka! It would be amazing! Everyone would be mesmerized and stunned!” Yelena declared and Natasha shook her head, not convinced in the least.

  “Yelena, my voice isn’t even that good,” Natasha protested, and Yelena furrowed her brow, feeling a small stab to her heart as Natasha self-deprecated.

  “Yes, it is. Don’t be ridiculous,” Yelena argued immediately. Natasha just looked at her, not believing her despite Yelena’s confidence in her. Yelena scooted even closer, moving her legs off of Natasha’s lap as she moved nearer. She rested her chin on Natasha’s shoulder, hugging Natasha’s arm against her torso. Natasha looked away from her as soon as she realized that Yelena was about to start pouting.

  Yelena just poked her bottom lip out ever so slightly, trying to achieve a sense of pitifulness.

  “Please, Natashka… I just wanted a chance to spend time with you and win together,” Yelena expressed, knowing that she was hitting Natasha in the gut with that statement. Natasha groaned a little, still trying not to look at Yelena. Yelena let out a small sigh of unhappiness, running her hand up and down Natasha’s arm in gentle strokes.

  “But if you don’t want to, I understand,” Yelena declared sadly, and Natasha immediately snapped her gaze to Yelena’s, accidentally sealing her fate as she finally laid eyes upon the pout.

  “Yelena, that’s low,” Natasha informed her, and Yelena held her sad look as she just pouted up at the redhead. Natasha stared at her for a long moment, light green locked onto honey-greens.

  Finally, Natasha groaned loudly and unhappily, letting her head fall back against the top of the couch.

  “Fine,” Natasha grumbled just barely under her breath, and Yelena immediately brightened with a giant smile, getting up and running to get her guitar. Once she had gotten it, she plopped down next to the redhead excitedly. Natasha sighed deeply but looked over at the blonde.

  “Now! Let’s get my amazing guitar skills going and your country croon!” Yelena cried excitedly, and Natasha narrowed her eyes.

  “Call my singing a country croon one more time, and I’m not doing it,” Natasha told her playfully, but there was a very serious undertone just beneath the surface. Yelena just smiled winningly.

  “Understood.”

   …………………���…………………………………………………………………………………

       “Fancy seeing you here, Kate Bishop,” Yelena commented as she and Natasha approached Kate, the two of them rounding the edge of the stage.

  They had arrived at the auditorium for talent show night, and Natasha was ridiculously nervous even though they had been practicing “American Pie” for a week, and it was a song they both were very familiar with singing and playing. Natasha had not spoken a word almost from the moment they had left, and Yelena had even very tentatively and hesitantly offered to call the whole thing off. However, Natasha had seemed to be determined to do it for Yelena, and she had assured her she was going to be fine.

  However, not everyone seemed that fine. In fact, Kate looked terribly nervous, wringing her hands as she spun around to look at the pair that had just came over to her.

  “Hi, guys! Have you heard from Clint?” Kate asked, hurrying over to them and looking between them worriedly. Natasha looked at her just barely before suddenly locking her gaze onto what was on the other side of the curtain.

  “No… Why?” Natasha asked almost distractedly as she took in the large sight of all of their friends and fellow Avengers starting to gather in the crowd of the auditorium. Yelena immediately looked to her and reached out to squeeze her arm gently in reassurance. Natasha glanced back at her gratefully, but Yelena quickly noticed that Natasha still had her attention on the growing audience.

  “I asked him earlier this week if he’d join the talent show with me, and I haven’t seen him all night! I gave him a sheet with his part of the song to memorize and everything but I haven’t heard anything from him. And he’s been busy all week and I haven’t even been able to ask if he had a chance to study the lyrics!” Kate rambled, growing increasingly nervous. Yelena just scoffed lightly.

  “If you really think you’re going to get Clinton to sing, then you have a more vivid imagination than I thought you did, Katie,” Yelena spoke, putting her guitar case down and propping it against the wall so that it would be ready for she and Natasha’s performance.

  “Don’t call me Katie—wait! You’re going to participate, too?! And you’re playing guitar?” Kate asked excitedly, temporarily distracted from her nerves about Clint as she gaped at Yelena. Yelena just shrugged, reaching over and wrapping her arm around Natasha’s shoulder lovingly. Natasha immediately flinched a little, distracted from staring at the crowd.

  “We are participating,” Yelena corrected happily, and Kate looked even more enthusiastic.

  “Oh, my gosh! Are you singing, Natasha?!” Kate asked, positively thrilled with the mere idea of Natasha singing. Natasha looked significantly more nervous but nodded just barely in reply, not uttering a word. Yelena grinned, endlessly proud of her sister and her singing abilities even if Natasha herself was not.

  “Yep. And we’re going to knock the competition out of the town,” Yelena confidently assured her.

  “Park,” Natasha corrected gently, and Yelena just rolled her eyes, waving her free hand dismissively at Natasha as she slowly removed her arm from Natasha’s shoulder.

  “Whatever,” Yelena replied, and Kate just huffed a little. However, she was quickly looking significantly more nervous as Steve got on stage to introduce the show. Natasha subconsciously reached out to Yelena, interlacing their fingers, and Yelena quickly returned the gesture, offering her support since she knew how hard this was for her.

  “Oh, no… Clint, where are you?” Kate nervously spoke aloud, looking over toward the crowd as she tried to search him out. Yelena caught a hint of movement from behind the brunette, and she raised an eyebrow, moving her head slightly to take in the sight of the person coming in.

  “Dang, kid, you really miss me that much?” Clint teasingly piped up as he somehow miraculously popped up from behind Kate, coming around the corner of the curtain. Kate spun around with a ridiculously wide grin as she bounded over to him.

  “My gosh, am I glad to see you!” Kate cried, and Clint shrugged, his hands in his pocket as he chuckled a little. He shot Natasha a soft glance and a smile, and Yelena immediately realized that Natasha must have told him that she was going to be singing. Natasha responded with a somewhat grim smile.

  “Did you memorize the rap?!” Kate demanded, and Yelena snorted aloud. Kate looked back at her somewhat confusedly, and Yelena just raised an eyebrow.

  “You want him to rap? You guys really don’t stand a chance,” Yelena laughed, and Kate returned her attentions to Clint swiftly, her gaze still questioning. Clint shrugged.

  “I lost the paper,” he admitted, and she sighed with slight exasperation but quickly forced a smile on her face as she hurried over and grabbed a paper, waving it in front of him.

  “Don’t worry, I’ve got another copy! Here, quick! Look it over, and just roll with the beat when it’s time,” Kate assured him, and suddenly Steve was calling loudly over the microphone.

  “So please welcome our first act! The Howling Hawkeyes,” Steve announced, and there was laughter amongst the crowd. Kate’s eyes widened as she looked back at him.

  “It’s time now!” Kate cried, snatching the paper from him as he just narrowed his eyes at her, completely unimpressed.

  “Seriously? The Howling Hawkeyes?” he demanded, and Kate flashed him a giant, awkward grin.

  “It was the best I could think of on short notice! We’ll talk about it later!” Kate assured him, grabbing his arm and heading for the stage with her paper in her other hand. Yelena huffed a bit in reply to the pair, and she raised a hand in a small wave.

  “Break a femur!” Yelena called after them, flashing a small glance at Natasha as she both attempted to throw off the competition and make Natasha laugh. Natasha immediately looked at her as if she were insane.

  “Thanks—wait, what?!” Kate paused for just a moment with terror but then Clint kept heading onto the stage, and Kate was forced to rush after him to keep up.

  “It’s a leg, Rooskaya,” Natasha told her, laughing in spite of herself, and Yelena puffed up just a little as she realized she had made her big sister laugh. Yelena just huffed, pulling at their interlocked hands and pulling her quickly around the stage and toward the crowd to get some seats.

  “Either way, poser. Let’s just go watch the show!” Yelena proclaimed excitedly, and Natasha allowed herself to be dragged to the nearest set of four empty seats so that Kate and Clint could come and sit near them when they were finished with their act.

  They settled down just as the music was starting up, and Yelena noticed that Natasha was much more relaxed since she was sitting amongst the crowd and away from the stage that was the center of attention. Yelena smiled a little, directing her attentions to the show before them.

  Kate was nodding her head a bit with the beat, and she had laid her paper on the edge of the stage. Before long, Yelena immediately recognized the song just before Kate started to sing along.

  “It’s going down, I’m yelling timber! You better move, you better dance,” Kate sang confidently despite the fact that nervousness was practically oozing off of her as she skipped about in front of them on the stage. Clint was standing there, perfectly bored but seeming somewhat impressed by Kate’s singing ability.

  “Let’s make a night, you won’t remember! I’ll be the one, you won’t forget!” Kate started to gather a bit more confidence about herself in her movements, glancing over at Clint as she grabbed a piece of paper she had laid nearby on the stage.

  Once she finished belting out the high notes, she then hurried over to Clint, gesturing to him to take over with the rap part of the song as she handed him the paper. Clint furrowed his brow, looking down at the piece of paper that she handed him as he started to ready himself.

  “The bigger they are, the harder they fall,” he started to read aloud, not rapping at all as he read the words on the paper as if he were the poorest of actors. Natasha immediately facepalmed, and Yelena was pulling out her camera to record him.

  “This… Biggity?” he asked as he looked over at Kate uncertainly. Kate nodded encouragingly despite the fact that several Avengers were starting to laugh at the performance in spite of themselves.

  “Boy’s a diggity dog… Have them like Miley Cyrus,” Clint paused immediately, furrowing his brow as he gaped at the paper and squinted hard. He then looked back up to Kate, shaking his head.

  “I’m not saying that,” he declared, and everyone immediately burst into laughter. The Avengers watching this were getting way too much enjoyment out of the entire thing given that most of them knew the words to the song.

  “Come on! It’s just words, Clint!” Kate tried to persuade him to her point of view, and Clint just huffed a bit, raising an eyebrow.

  “Yeah… Words I’m not saying,” Clint informed her, and Kate was immediately coming closer to him, pouting ridiculously as she started to beg the man.

  “But, Clint—”

  “The only way anyone’s saying that is if you do it,” he told her, and she quickly paled at the idea, pausing for a moment. She then shook her head as she laughed somewhat embarrassedly, her throat bobbing as she swallowed hard.

  “Okay… I think we’re good,” Kate replied with an awkward grin. Yelena, however, suddenly started booing loudly from her place in the group gathered there.  

  “Oh, come on! We deserve a show! Twerk! Twerk! Twerk!” Yelena started to chant, and soon enough, almost all of the others in the crowd started yelling along with her. Natasha raised an eyebrow at her, and Yelena just smirked widely, continuing along as if Natasha was not looking at her at all.

  Clint just groaned and Kate looked as if she were somewhere between wanting to do it and wanting to run off of the stage. She glanced at Clint and they shared a look. After a few moments of this eye contact, they both shook their heads and headed off the stage.

  Everyone, with Yelena being the loudest, groaned in disappointment.

  “Aww…. Kate Bishop! That was so disappointing!” Yelena cried as soon as Clint took his place in one of the empty seats next to the sisters. Kate just sighed as she moved next to Clint where he was sitting beside Natasha.

  “Yeah, I get that a lot,” Kate mumbled under her breath self-deprecatingly, crossing her arms as she fully accepted the fact that she had likely lost all chances of winning the competition.

  Soon enough, Wanda and Vision came onto the stage in a flourish. Their act was to attempt to perform magic without using their powers.

  “Hello, everyone!” Vision greeted somewhat uncertainly, laughing nervously as he offered a wave. Wanda waved to everybody as well, a grin on her face as she glanced over at Vision encouragingly.

  Yelena just rolled her eyes at the two. However, she was quickly distracted by how Natasha’s hand was starting to clench and unclench just a little where it was resting on her leg as she grew slightly more nervous with the eventual arrival of their time to perform. Yelena furrowed her brow, tilting her head a little as she gazed at Natasha who had locked her eyes on the stage.

  Yelena knew that the older woman needed some manner of distraction to keep her from having a total breakdown about this. Therefore, she reached out to her, taking Natasha’s hand in her own and bringing it over into her own lap as she played with Natasha’s fingers.

  Natasha’s gaze immediately snapped over to Yelena’s, and her eyes quickly softened as they made eye contact. Yelena squeezed her hand gently in her own, reassuring her that she was there with her every step of the way. Natasha responded with the slightest of nods, understanding despite the lack of verbal communication.

  They were soon brought back to the show as Wanda spoke extra loudly to get everyone’s attention.

  “For this act, we will need a volunteer!” Wanda called, and the smallest of smirks tugged at Natasha’s lips before she quickly forced a façade of innocence on her face. Yelena raised an eyebrow, wondering what she was about to do.

  Natasha looked over at Clint, pretending to be surprised.

  “Clint, there’s something in your hair,” Natasha spoke concernedly, looking up at the top of his head. He furrowed his brow a little, raising his hand to mess with his hair.

  Suddenly the spotlight was centered on him, and Wanda and Vision grinned widely.

  “Perfect! Thank you, Mr. Barton!” Vision shouted happily, beckoning him up to the stage. Clint froze for a moment, and then he glared at Natasha grumpily. She just shrugged nonchalantly, and Kate laughed as she patted his shoulder affectionately.

  “Go get ‘em, Clint,” Kate encouragingly spoke, and he grumbled something inaudible under his breath.

  He got up with a deep sigh and headed onstage. He stood next to Vision somewhat awkwardly, a tight smile on his face as he very uncomfortably prepared to be their guinea pig in their insane magic act.

  “Now, for all of your viewing pleasure, we will be putting dear Mr. Barton inside this box!” Vision announced as Wanda grabbed a large, person-sized box and tugged it over to the center of the stage. Wanda opened up the door on the box, and Clint just sighed a little, looking over at Vision unhappily.

  “Mr. Barton, if you will?” Vision waved his hand to the box, and Clint just groaned before stepping inside very hesitantly. Wanda shut the door behind him with a large smile, and Vision turned to the audience.

  “So! Now that our volunteer is inside the box, we will perform a little switcheroo, and we’ll open the box to reveal—”

  Suddenly, a sandbag somehow came loose from its place above the stage, crashing down. Wanda jumped with the sound, fear gripping her for just a moment as red magic suddenly encompassed the box. Wanda’s eyes widened as she realized what she had done, and she looked at Vision, completely frozen. Vision’s eyes were just as wide as her own as he just stared back at her blankly.

  Natasha, Yelena, and Kate all were staring at the box, wondering what Wanda had accidentally done to Clint. Yelena was already withdrawing her phone in case this was worthy of taking a picture.

  “What’s going on out there?” Clint asked loudly from inside the box, and Wanda let out a slight breath of relief with the realization that Clint was indeed still inside the box and seemed to be in one piece and unharmed.

  “Well… Slight change of plans, we’re opening the box now to see what fascinating magic my lovely assistant has done to our volunteer!” Vision spoke aloud, looking to Wanda to signal her to open the box. She hesitantly grabbed the handle, pulling it open.

  Everyone immediately gasped, swiftly followed by loud laughter. Yelena wasted no time in taking a picture as soon as the door opened, her laughter barely contained. Kate’s eyes went wide as she swiftly fished for her phone, withdrawing it and getting multiple pictures in the midst of her staring at Clint. She was even zooming in and getting close ups.

  Clint was currently standing in the box wearing nothing but a diaper, and as he realized that he was in so little clothes, his eyes widened and he started to turn a bit red at the tips of his ears as he swiftly reached out, grabbing the door and pulling it closed again.

  Wanda was almost horrified, but she also looked dangerously close to laughing aloud. Vision looked mostly embarrassed at the occurrence as he laughed nervously.

  “Okay… Umm… I think that’s quite enough for today,” Vision declared before turning his attentions to Wanda.

  “If you don’t mind, darling, please do your magic and bring the old chap’s clothes back?” Vision requested kindly, and Wanda nodded quickly before twisting her hand, flicking her fingers as red magic encompassed the box yet again.

   Wanda then reopened the box with Clint fully clothed once again. He barely resisted the groan as he headed off the stage immediately with his ears still red as a beet, avoiding everyone’s gaze as they laughed and clapped for the duo onstage. Wanda and Vision quickly bowed before heading down off of the stage. Yelena cackled as he came over and sat back down between Natasha and Kate, staring straight ahead.

  “I always knew you were a big baby, Clinton. But the question is whether the diaper was on the whole time or did Wanda’s magic put it on?” Yelena laughed aloud, and Clint just raised his hand nonchalantly and very obviously switched off his cochlear in reply to her. He offered Yelena a smug glare before returning his attention to the show.

  To all of their surprise except Yelena’s, Peter suddenly came onstage, looking terribly embarrassed and uncomfortable.

   “Okay… So, um… tonight I’m going to be singing… and, um… Well… it’s all because of a dare, so it’s probably not going to be so good,” Peter explained nervously, and Yelena immediately cackled before hooting loudly.

  “GO, LITTLE PETER!!!” she shouted, and he immediately turned red as he spotted Yelena. Natasha raised an eyebrow as she looked at Yelena, leaning over to her.

  “You were the one that dared him, weren’t you?” Natasha asked, and Yelena immediately was sent back to when she had dared the boy to sing “Your Man” by Josh Turner earlier that week after she had found out about the talent show. She had made sure it was in front of Tony, and sure enough, not wanting to let his father figure down or make him see him as any lesser, he had agreed. Yelena was thrilled, and she had organized a master plan as soon as he had agreed.

  “Oh, yeah,” Yelena admitted easily, a way too big smile on her face as she raised her phone and turned on the recording option, reaching down in her pocket and checking for the special surprise she had stuffed away. Once she was sure it was there, she quickly wiped her hands off on her pants, not wanting the germs from it.

  The song quickly began playing, and Yelena was immediately giggling, doing her best to keep her laughter quiet so that she could get a high-quality recording of Peter singing.

  Everyone was immediately hooting as they recognized the song.

  “Baby, lock the door and turn the lights down low,” Peter strained to sing, his voice not naturally wanting to drop to that depth, and Yelena was stuffing her face in Natasha’s arm as she videoed the boy, trying her best to keep from messing up her recording.

  “Put some music on that’s soft and slow. Baby, we ain’t got no place to go,” Peter’s voice was already starting to sound a bit funny as he strained for the low notes, and Yelena held her stomach as she squinted hard, pressing her face harder against Natasha’s arm. Natasha rolled her eyes in reply to her with a slight sigh.

  “I hope you understand, I’ve been thinking about this all day long. Never felt a feeling quite this strong,” Peter’s voice cracked ridiculously, and Kate wince terribly.

  “Poor guy,” Kate acknowledged painedly, and it was taking all of Yelena’s self-control not to burst into loud laughter.

  “I can’t believe how much it turns me on, just to be your man,” Peter was turning a ridiculously bright shade of red, and Yelena almost felt bad for what she was about to do to him as she brought her knees up before her on the seat. She was suddenly very glad that they had managed to get seats near the front row.

  “There’s no hurry, don’t you worry, we can take our time,” Peter sang, and Yelena quickly withdrew her package from her pocket, barely resisting a laugh as she tried to keep it out of Natasha and Kate’s line of sight for the moment.

  By now, Clint had turned his cochlear back on, honestly curious as to what Peter sounded like. And by the looks of it, Clint was enjoying it way too much as he was laughing quietly to himself, a giant smirk on his face.

  “Come a little closer, let’s go over… what I had in mind.” As he held out that note, Yelena wasted no time in shooting her package by the elastic, whooping ridiculously as she wolf-whistled. As the surprise landed onstage, hitting Peter squarely in the chest, everyone quickly realized what the package was, and there was a mix of laughter, accompanying wolf-whistles, and clapping.

  “Underpants?” he squeaked, barely able to breathe, and he held up a pair of women’s panties there in his hand, pinching the elastic between his fingers as he held it as far from his face as he could. Natasha furrowed her brow, and Clint laughed loudly as he held his stomach.

  The underpants were a deep shade of purple, and Yelena barely held herself together as she waited for Kate to put two and two together.

  “Y’know, Kate, those look like they could be yours with how purple they are,” Clint joked a bit too loudly, obviously having not adjusted his cochlear perfectly back at normal hearing ability as his voice was far too loud. Kate suddenly went pale as a sheet as she gaped at the stage. Everyone started laughing even harder, and Peter’s eyes went wide as he looked suddenly as if he might pass out, the music still playing.

  “YELENA?!!!” Kate cried, and Yelena finally allowed herself to burst into ridiculously loud laughter.

  “You broke into my apartment?!” Kate cried, positively horrified as she referenced her apartment there in the compound. Yelena just feigned a nonchalant shrug, still overtaken with laughs.

  “Well, it wasn’t locked. If you didn’t want me to come in, think about locking the door, Kate Bishop. Or put locks on your dresser,” Yelena declared as soon as she was able to control herself, and Kate just shrunk down in her seat, embarrassed beyond belief.

  “Besides! Everyone knows I stole the underwear and shot them on him! It wasn’t like it was really you or anything that shot it. That would’ve been way worse,” Yelena declared loudly, trying to ensure other people overheard in a sudden spurt of sympathy for the kid. Everyone quieted a bit after that, but still laughed somewhat, and Kate found herself somewhat grateful for Yelena’s save despite the fact that it was indeed her underwear onstage in front of everyone.

  Tony was quick to come on stage, helping Peter leave the area since he looked like he was on the cusp of passing out. Tony took the underwear, wincing a little as he catapulted them in Kate’s general direction. Kate swiftly jumped forward and grabbed her underwear, stuffing it in her pocket quickly as she tried to slump down in her seat and hide.

  Natasha sighed deeply, looking at Yelena with disapproval and furrowing her brow unhappily. Yelena just shrugged nonchalantly as she leaned her head against Natasha’s shoulder, and Natasha just sighed deeply. Yelena had the feeling that they were likely going to discuss it later, but she quickly refocused her attention as Steve came back onto the stage.

  “Well, since this talent show was my idea, I’ll be performing, too. I’m going to recite a bit of poetry just before our final act,” Steve declared, looking at Yelena and Natasha pointedly. Natasha immediately stiffened in place, and Yelena got up, knowing that they could not miss their cue. She held her hand out to her sister, and Natasha reached out, taking it as Yelena helped her to her feet.

  “Good luck, Natasha,” Kate wished, and Yelena immediately glared at the brunette. Kate shrank just a little underneath her glare.

  “Why does she get the luck?” Yelena demanded, and Kate nervously grinned somewhat awkwardly.

  “She didn’t shoot my underwear on a stage in front of all of my future coworkers,” Kate told her before quickly shrinking in her chair with the glare Yelena shot her way. Natasha gently squeezed Yelena’s hand, distracting her, and the blonde smiled at her a little as they headed for backstage.

  Steve was reciting the Star Spangled Banner and there were mixes of laughs and groans at how goofy he sounded. However, Yelena was not even listening to what he was saying, her attentions focused on her big sister who looked more scared than Yelena had ever seen her. Natasha was taking deep, long breaths, and Yelena felt the strongest stab of guilt within her.

  She stepped forward, cupping the sides of Natasha’s neck as she pulled her in closer. She pressed her head against Natasha’s.

  “Natashka, you can quit anytime. I don’t want you to do something you’re this nervous about. I can go on by myself,” Yelena assured her, and Natasha, despite the definitive terror plaguing her and that was haunting her gaze, somehow managed to conjure more of that overwhelming selflessness as per usual. Yelena felt her heart warm as Natasha brought her hands up to the sides of Yelena’s face.

  “You want this, sweet girl. You’ve been looking forward to this ever since you found out about it. I can’t let you down,” Natasha told her softly, and Yelena felt herself melting at Natasha’s unadulterated care as she looked at Yelena so tenderly. Yelena moved forward, pressing her nose against Natasha’s.

  “You won’t be letting me down,” Yelena sighed heavily, wishing she could convince Natasha of this somehow. Natasha just stroked Yelena’s cheeks gently with her thumbs, and Yelena’s eyes softened considerably, staring into Natasha’s conflicted eyes.

  “I love you more than anything in the world, and you’ll never let me down. If this is too much for you, I want you to quit. And please be honest with me about it,” Yelena pleaded with her, and Natasha sighed a bit, moving her head slightly to kiss Yelena’s nose gently.

  However, just as she was about to speak, Steve suddenly spoke up from the stage.

  “Alright, everyone! Please welcome our last act, the Widow Sisters!” Steve called, and Yelena smiled a little at Natasha, pulling away and squeezing her arm as she swiftly bent to open her guitar case so that she could go on.

  “Okay, poser, you better be cheering louder than anyone else out there. Or you’ll really be in for it when I,” Yelena trailed off, just gaping as she realized Natasha was already going onstage. Yelena gripped her guitar in her hands tightly, wasting no time in rushing after her.

  Soon enough, she was by her side, and they were both walking onto the stage. Natasha took a deep breath, about to approach the microphone, but Yelena quickly grabbed hold of her wrist, stopping her as she stared into Natasha’s eyes.

  Everything in Natasha’s stare communicated unadulterated fear. However, there was also a significant amount of love, concern, and determination. It almost took Yelena off-guard, and she just stood there gaping at Natasha for a long moment.

  Natasha was going to do this no matter what Yelena said.

  Yelena finally just swallowed, offering her sister a small smile despite the fact that she was feeling horridly guilty for even asking about this in the first place.

  “I love you. You can do this,” Yelena whispered, and Natasha smiled at her just barely before suddenly procuring something from her pocket. It was a folded-up piece of paper, and Yelena looked at it confusedly before glancing up at Natasha.

  “It’s a bad time to ask, but can you read music?” Natasha asked, chuckling nervously.

  Yelena unfolded the piece of paper, releasing Natasha’s arm for just a moment as she read the symbols across the paper. She looked at Natasha a bit uncertainly.

  “I can read most music…”

  “Will this work?” Natasha checked, and Yelena nodded, almost speechless.

  “I can improvise if I get lost,” Yelena assured her, completely bumfuzzled at the fact that Natasha had apparently come up with her own song and had totally gone off-script from what they had practiced together. Natasha offered her a small smile, squeezing her arm.

  “Good. Let’s do it,” Natasha whispered before turning to the microphone.

  Steve was standing nearby a stool with a lowered microphone and a music stand, and Yelena quickly realized that he must have fetched it for her to play. Yelena smiled at him gratefully before taking her seat not too far behind Natasha.

  She opened up her piece of paper and placed it on the music stand before swallowing slightly, looking over at Natasha in silent questioning. Natasha nodded to her, gripping the microphone stand carefully, and Yelena replied with a nod of her own before starting to very tentatively strum.

  “I’m not afraid of anything in this world… There’s nothing you can throw at me that I haven’t already heard,” Natasha started, and the crowd was dead silent, everyone just staring in complete amazement at the Black Widow herself singing absolutely gorgeously.

  “I’m just trying to find a decent melody… A song that I can sing in my own company,” Natasha sang carefully, her eyes shifting over to meet Yelena’s as she sang the next part. Yelena almost zoned out for a moment, gaping at the intensity in her sister’s gaze as she smiled just barely at her.

  “But, darling, look at you… You gotta stand up straight, carry your own weight. These tears are going nowhere, babe,” Natasha gently continued, and Yelena quickly realized that she actually had missed listening to a bit of the song in the midst of staring at her big sister. However, she very happily noted that she had not missed any of the guitar notes.

  “You’ve got to get yourself together, you’ve got stuck in a moment, and now you can’t get out of it,” Natasha added, and Yelena just stared at her, mesmerized by the song.

  “Oh, love, look at you now, you got yourself stuck in a moment… Now you can’t get out of it,” Natasha sang, her eyes locked onto only Yelena’s as she addressed this song just to the blonde. Yelena felt her chest squeezing as she realized that Natasha was singing just for her.

  “I will not forsake the colors that you bring. The nights you filled with fireworks, they left you with nothing,” Natasha’s eyes darkened just a little with guilt, and Yelena knew she was thinking of all the times that Natasha felt she had let Yelena down. Yelena just returned her gaze, putting as much love as she could in her eyes as she just marveled over the love in every word of the song.

  “I am still enchanted by the light you brought to me… I listen through your ears, through your eyes, I can see,” Natasha sang before looking at her sister with a smile that made Yelena’s heart throb as her heart filled with a deep love and adoration.

  “And you, Rooskaya, are such a goof,” Natasha transitioned to speaking her obviously self-altered lyrics as she gazed at her baby sister, and Yelena just laughed a little, continuing to strum as she glanced down just barely at the music to keep track of what she was playing.

  “To worry like you do, oh… I know it’s tough… and you can never get enough of what you don’t really need now, my, oh, my,” Natasha sang loudly and heartfeltly, looking away for a moment, and Yelena could hear the barely disguised guilt and feeling in the words as she obviously referenced her own feelings. Yelena took in a small breath, readying herself to contribute to her sister’s song and support Natasha since she remembered the basic chorus.

  As their voices melded with the chorus, Yelena could not help but grin as the both of them looked at each other, their eyes melting as they gazed at one another. Yelena felt her heart swelling as Natasha’s eyes filled with a joy that they had not had that entire night, and Yelena held out for as long as she could on the lyrics until they reached a point where she did not know the words any longer.

  “I was unconscious, half-asleep, the water is warm ‘til you discover how deep,” Natasha held out the note, giving the song more effort than Yelena had ever heard from her. Yelena’s eyes widened as she watched, completely shocked.

  “I wasn’t jumping, for me it was a fall, it’s a long way down to nothing… At all!” Natasha sang beautifully, and Yelena felt a sharp stab to her heart as horrible memories resurfaced in her mind. But that look of pure adoration from Natasha made the memories melt away as the redhead stared into her eyes.

  “You’ve got to get yourself together…. You got stuck in a moment, and you can’t get out of it,” Natasha quieted a bit at the end of the line, and Yelena slowed her strumming to match Natasha’s pace.

  “Don’t say that later will be better, now you’re stuck in a moment, and you can’t get out of it,” Natasha quietly finished, her eyes concentrated only on Yelena. Yelena just stared at her, suddenly realizing that tears were streaking down her face just barely at the pure beauty of and the raw love in Natasha’s voice. Natasha’s eyes were filled with love and unshed tears as she gazed at Yelena.

  However, they were quickly stirred from their moment as everyone erupted into deafening applause, standing in their seats and filling the auditorium with noise. They both looked at the crowd with shock before looking back at each other. Natasha nodded to them all with a slight grin, uttering a low thank you into her microphone before heading over to Yelena.

  Yelena stood up, her guitar strap around her neck and shoulder, and Natasha stood between Yelena and the crowd, wiping her tears gently with her thumbs before moving forward and pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. Yelena leaned into it heavily.

  “You were beautiful,” Yelena whispered just barely, words meant for the both of them despite the fact that no one could have even remotely heard them given the clapping that was ensuing around them.

  “And so were you,” Natasha returned gently with a small grin. Natasha then wrapped her arm around Yelena’s shoulders, guiding the both of them offstage and back to their seats as the applause finally died down after what felt like an eternity.

  “Nat, that was amazing,” Clint complimented with a giant smile, and Natasha reached down, hugging him gently. He returned it quickly before Natasha finally pulled away, sitting down next to Yelena.

  Once they were sitting down, Yelena immediately noticed how Kate was trying to hide her face from the group. Yelena furrowed her brow, and when Kate accidentally glanced in their direction, she quickly realized that the brunette was crying.

  “Kate Bishop… Are you… crying?” Yelena asked, and Kate immediately sniffed hard, straightening in her seat as she tried to appear nonchalant and calm about it.

  “Nah, just got something in my eye,” Kate argued, and Clint just smirked a little, bumping Kate with his shoulder playfully. Kate shot him a grumpy look, trying to keep him from exposing her, and Yelena grinned widely.

  “Huh. I didn’t know me and poser sounded that beautiful,” Yelena declared, looking at Natasha with all of the love in the world, and Natasha just beamed back at her. Kate just huffed but nodded easily.

  “You guys were incredible. There was so much love in that whole performance. It was the best one all night,” Kate admitted, wiping her eyes a bit less secretively than before. Yelena grinned a little with the praise, resting her head against Natasha’s shoulder. Natasha placed her cheek against Yelena’s head, and they silently watched as Steve stepped up onto the stage.

  “Okay… So the votes have been coming in for our competitors with the online poll we set up, and votes are closing up right now because everyone here except for the competitors have put in a vote,” Steve declared. He paused for a moment, looking at the crowd, and everyone was waiting with bated breath to find out who would win.

  “And the winner is,” Steve stopped for dramatic effect, and Yelena reached out, taking Natasha’s hand tightly in her own.

  Steve grinned just a little as he looked down at the iPad he had been handed.

  “The Widow Sisters,” he announced, and everyone wildly applauded, hooting and yelling with unmatched energy in support of the girls.

  They both pulled away from each other quickly, staring at one another in surprise. Yelena felt her entire being warming with excitement and happiness, and Natasha just laughed lightly. Clint immediately reached out, wrapping his arm around the both of them as he squeezed them in a side-hug.

  “Great job, guys!” he declared, positively thrilled for the both of them, and they grinned widely as they got up to head onstage. Kate stopped them just before they passed, and she reached out, hesitantly offering a hug to Natasha. Natasha quickly leaned in, hugging her gently.

  Natasha then passed her, letting her reach out to Yelena. Yelena just rolled her eyes, offering a very awkward and hesitant side-hug that she was not entirely sure she was comfortable with.

  “Congratulations, Yelena!” she happily told her, and Yelena just sighed a bit, thanking her despite her discomfort. She then headed over, taking Natasha’s hand and getting on stage.

  Steve handed them the award, and another round of applause erupted. Yelena marveled at the trophy but looked at Natasha with a giant smile. Natasha just grinned back at her. Steve held a camera in his hands, moving in front of them as he paused.

  “Alright, smile!” Steve called with a grin, and Natasha reached out, locking her arm around Yelena’s neck as she held her near, Yelena bent her head over to press the top of it against Natasha’s neck, and Natasha rested her chin on Yelena’s head.

  And as the camera flashed, it captured a permanent record of one of Yelena’s proudest moments in being Natasha’s baby sister.