#and i am sorry for hijacking your work with the notes! although i hope they help a bit <3< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[voievod]

I am actually screaming crying throwing up on my knees gnawing at my fist kicking my feet in the air rn. Whispering what the heck with great affection as I am typing this. This is just so beautiful and majestic, like this is one of the works that make you feel like you have actually been granted the privilege to see our beloved spawn of terror Vlad in his full glory, as he was. The beads of sweat on his forehead, the gritted teeth, the sheer concentration on his face, the mane flying so beautifully behind him— And finally, finally someone takes into consideration that he was young and strong and full of life and energy (instead of that grandpa other artists tend to drift towards) and I thank you endlessly for it! ❤️

An actual live footage of me looking at the art:

You have also given us a detailed commentary on it and, being the annoying Dracula nerd I am, here I come with... commentary on commentary. Bear with me! ❤️

I actually think in his life Vlad might've taken part in knight tournaments.

Yes, he probably did, though not in the setting one might expect.

When it comes to Wallachian society, they did not have any kind of knight tournaments as seen in Western (particularly those famous in places like France and England) or Central Europe. The chivalric tournaments of jousting, melee combat, and pageantry were a hallmark of Western European knightly culture. The need for knightly culture evolved because these states developed more independent, relatively stable territorial boundaries. Compared to regions such as Wallachia, wars were not as common and frequent, and so the leisure or ceremonial aspects that defined the chivalric traditions of Western knights were needed to boost the spirit and excitement, and maintain the kind of battle-like physicality.

Wallachia (and Moldavia) had a different structure of warfare and social organisation which was influenced by its geographical location and political realities. Wallachia was a buffer zone, so that meant that the priorities of Wallachian society were more focused on survival and military readiness. There was little room for the luxury of tournaments or knightly display because Wallachians had to be constantly prepared for war and defence. The nobility and military elite in Wallachia (but generally in Eastern Europe) more likely engaged in regular practical combat training or ritualistic military displays, so training exercises, hunting expeditions, or mock battles designed to prepare for the harsh realities of war (even in Eastern European period movies, you can usually see scenes of mock battles and duels rather than tournaments). Knighthood in the Western sense was just not a central part of worldview in the Balkans because these men had to be practical, pragmatic, efficient, and seasoned. Besides, Wallachia was an Eastern Orthodox country with cultural ties to the Byzantine Empire and neighbouring Slavic states.

Also, Wallachia was in a constant state of war. Just during Vlad's six-year reign, he showed his military talents and skills here:

invasion of Wallachia, summer 1456

military expedition into Transylvania, winter 1456

military expedition into Transylvania, spring-summer 1457

siege of Bistrița, autumn 1457

conflict with Albu cel Mare, 1458

military expedition into Transylvania, spring 1459

duel between Vlad and Dan, spring 1460

military expedition into Transylvania, summer 1460

second military expedition into Transylvania, summer 1460

conquest of Giurgiu, winter 1462

military expedition into Bulgarian territories, winter 1462

the Ottoman invasion of Wallachia, summer 1462

battle of Chilia (did not fight but organised), summer 1462

local battles between Vlad and Radu, summer-autumn 1462

The only year he did not appear anywhere on a battlefield was in 1461, but that was the year he was preparing for the war with the Ottomans. Many European leaders never faced so many battles, let alone in the relatively short period of six years.

Buuut he most definitely could have tried that at the Hungarian court. Young Vlad spent some time with Hunyadi, he was also formally introduced to King Ladislaus V by Hunyadi himself. I can easily imagine Hunyadi encouraging Vlad to show his talents in a tournament while visiting the court as it would be a good opportunity to present himself and make himself known. I also agree so much with your take on fighting in tournaments while imprisoned, especially later on. Corvinus would also probably want to show that Vlad was still in shape when deciding to make him voivode again.

(Fun fact aside, but his father was raised and spent most of his life at the Hungarian court, so little Vlad would probably hear some stories about the old adventures. He could be familiar with these tournaments. Also, there is this legend that his father received a golden buckle from a noblewoman after winning such a tournament in Nuremberg.)

Does he look too young for you? Remember that he've lead an army attack for the first time when 25 years old! And in Hungary he was through the age of 31-44! Vlad Draculea would in no case look like the withered, aged old man how he's so often depicted as!!

Thank you thank you THANK YOU millions of times, my dearest! ❤️

The teeth:

Here comes the perfect time to indulge you in...

the Ottoman oral hygiene.

He definitely did not have the straight, flashy-white Hollywood smile, but I think he could have taken care of his teeth because he was exposed to it during his hostage days. In my story in particular, I have him naturally adopt certain cultural things and ways of life he is exposed to and grows accustomed to in the Ottoman Empire, simply because he sees the benefit of it, and they become important to his life and identity. The Ottoman stance on and care for personal hygiene (oral hygiene included) is one of the adopted things that he places great importance on.

Traditional methods such as oil pulling and miswak (chewing stick) were common as oral hygiene practices. Herbal treatments such as using sage and myrrh for oral care were also commonly used. The concept of preventive dentistry was greatly emphasised, especially through teachings on the importance of maintaining good oral health through natural remedies and dietary habits. Historical texts from the Ottoman era also provide insights into medieval dental practices. The Ottoman Empire was pretty known for establishing medical schools known as darülfünun, where dentistry was taught as part of the broader medical curriculum. In the 13th and 15th centuries, the Ottoman dentistry even began focusing on issues such as various dental diseases, periodontology, and child dentistry.

Lately I've found that maybe during Vlad's reign, he changed the Wallachian eagle so it would have its wings open

I had no idea about this and I love it so much! I am immediately writing this down. ❤️ Also, the whole design on the caparison is just insanely beautiful and detailed. Let me swoon and admire some more!

So he'd make an absolute unique and rare sight, because he'd have Western armour and Eastern sword.

Yes yes yes! And I find it so cool. Also, I think it also represents him as an individual — he went through certain things in his life, he was exposed to particular cultures, and all of it has left its mark on him and defined him. And that's beautiful to see. ❤️

This is an absolutely masterful and breathtaking piece, and people can see how much love and care went into every line and curve! I might be repeating myself, but every piece of yours just pushes the bar higher and higher. A majestic work of art of a majestic man from a majestic artist. ❤️

I promised you some art, and so I keep my oath!

Here's a piece of mine I have been working on for quite some time.

Vlad as your knight on a horse with shinning armour! Behold!

You'll be surprised that this is actually not from a battle, but rather a knight tournament! (In battle the horse of a voivode would probably be armoured better)

I actually think in his life Vlad might've taken part in knight tournaments (but feel free to correct me if you have better info 😉. Sure, I'll be crying if I find out that I should throw this piece into the trash, but I wanna be historically accurate 😅). You see, I don't think the Ottomans would've trained him in fighting with plate armour. So he'd need to learn that somewhere. That's why I think he might've taken part in some tournaments when he arrived at Bogdan's court at 16 years old.

But maybe he would have a chance even later in life, when he was held by Matthias in Hungary - you see, Matthias kept him in reserve if the Ottomans would attack Hungary, so he'd absolutely want to keep Vlad in fighting condition! And that's what tournaments were actually used for, to practice your battle skills outside of war.

Vlad was a great fighter, what use would it be for Matthias if he lost all his muscles and muscle memory while rotting away in prison? Also it would allow him to get back some prestige after the horrible propaganda dragged his name through mud, which would be profitable for Corvinus too - it would enable to put him on the Wallachian throne or in the lead of an army way quicker should the need arrise.

The complimentary wall of text: Some noteworthy details:

The face:

Physical characteristics I once again based on Modrussa's description and Vlad's seal

However his expression is strained with exercise and focus

Does he look too young for you? Remember that he've lead an army attack for the first time when 25 years old! And in Hungary he was through the age of 31-44! Vlad Draculea would in no case look like the withered, aged old man how he's so often depicted as!!

The sweat:

Yes, Vlad was a warmachine, but he was still a human being, and even such a god of war would sweat when wearing plate armour in the sun and while doing exhausting moves

The teeth:

I have a bad feeling mediaeval person with no access to Collgate wouldn't have pearly white teeth. However there was no coffee, black tea nor tobacco yet, so they wouldn't be yellow either

The horse:

A favourite breed for knight battle horses were the Friesians. I am aware that they probably looked different than today, but since I have no clue HOW different, I settled on drawing the modern one

The coat of arms:

Combination of Draculea's family crest and the coat of arms of Wallachia. Lately I've found that maybe during Vlad's reign, he changed the Wallachian eagle so it would have its wings open, but I have once again no good reference to depict it realistically, so I settled with what I have

The sword:

I think Vlad would still use the Ottoman kilij, since that would always be a weapon he'd be most proficient with (since he had the most time to train with that, and when you're literally fighting for your life in a battle, you don't want to experiment with novelties). So he'd make an absolute unique and rare sight, because he'd have Western armour and Eastern sword.

The missing helmet:

Ah yes, the artistic purpose. I am guilty of that too, because drawing Vlad's face behind the millimetres-wide slit of a jousting helmet is... ehm. But wait, have you ever seen a knight tournament? I highly recommend!!!

(for those less lucky ones - if interested - I might be able to make a short compilation of a tournament I saw of Traken on Karlštejn, they're amazing, I actually started drawing this when I saw them there on the grape harvest festival in September - that's a great historical event as well, with historically accurate costumes 🥰. I recommend!).

If not, then you'd be surprised that it's not full time clashing only! There are many tasks to test your agility, dexterity, and also proficiency in riding a horse - like shooting from a bow, spear throwing, cutting wooden logs with a sword, picking sword from the ground, catching a bracelet with a sword, etc. - and all of that on a horseback in speed! 😳 Fun 😁! And also for these you wouldn't need to wear a helmet.

Disclaimer: this is made on a digital tablet, but it's still painted nonetheless. No photoshop. I did use a photo reference (not for the face, though, that's from imagination only), but I still painted everything from scrap. At the beginning there was a blank canvas.

I know this is probably a totally useless and pointless disclaimer, but it had actually happened to me that I showed people a piece I was sooo effing proud of - another one with armour, I think the best piece I've ever made tbh - and people were like "eh, nice that you drew the face". And I was like "asdfghshdjd@# I also drew the effing armour, it took me weeks!! Why doesn't anyone appreciate that, have you ever tried painting a suit made of metal?!! It took SO MUCH WORK to make it look realistic and not one single person comments on it??!! 😭😭😭

...only to later find out that people didn't think that the armour was painted and not photoshopped 😅😆)

[perpetuelledaydreaming]

Back to you (Chapter VI)

Summary:  Y/N Stark and Peter Parker are unconditionally and irrevocably in love with each other, being friends for years was just the step before making it official. BUT, just the weekend they did, Thanos and the snap happened, leaving Y/N broken: without friends, avengers family or Peter Parker. So, she has to move on, at least that’s what everyone’s telling her and she really tries to do it and who better to help her than Harry Osborn. But, has she really let Peter go? What if Tony Stark -genius, billionaire, playboy, and philanthropist- knows how to bring Peter back? And what happens when he does? Is Y/N going to avenge again? Who’s going to lead the avengers now? Who is she going to choose? Harry or Peter? and who the hell is mysterio? *He doesn’t even go here

word count: 10.5k

author’s note: May was a really hard month for me and with everything that’s happening in the world, I didn’t even know if I should be writing? It seemed so pointless. But here we are anyway, it helps my mental health and that’s why I was so late with this chapter. I was going to make it longer but I think we covered our foundation here. Anyway, please if you are in USA be careful with everything that’s happening and I’ve been seeing some resources on instagram. I’ll try to post more here or on insta

series masterlist

“A pleasure to see you, Stark” Nick Fury stated as you shook his hand with a stone face. 

It wasn’t that you didn’t like Nick Fury, Tony, and Steve trusted him and in consequence, you did as well -at least the majority of the time-. He was the one that had brought them together but also with the fall of SHIELD, it wasn’t like before. Either way, you knew he was going to be part of this and you complied because you needed all the support that you could find to get the avengers together again. 

“So, what’s this about?”, you asked as you turned back to see an old Steve sitting down in the conference room already. 

It had been two weeks since the funeral and the world was going back to normal again, clearly as best as anyone possibly could. For you, it had been a busy couple of weeks with your non-profit and trying to figure out how to decipher Tony’s USB. The days you spent at the office were chaotic while the nights you spend them at your lab restlessly trying to find what Tony had left for you. 

No one knew about the USB, it simply remained between Strange, you, and H.A.P.P.Y while you tested every possible combination to unlock it but your efforts have been in vain. Regarding your non-profit, relocating the children to their parents had been a rather a bitch of a process. The protocol that your volunteers had designed, which was overall great and easier, had been hijacked by the government that decided to intervene and just add more paperwork and more time; which annoyed you because kids wanted to be with their parents and this was just another way of keeping them apart. 

Thankfully, Pepper and Harry had been helping you deal with everything and tried to see a foreseeable future for the non-profit and their facilities on the east and west coast. The facilities were still useful for kids that were in foster care of the kids who had lost their parents regardless of the snap, therefore, Pepper had managed to snatch a meeting with the president to discuss a possible alliance to keep the facilities working with their help. 

Truth was that you felt better if the government gave you a hand, it had been a full-time work for you and now it didn’t seem possible to handle it all since you wanted to go to University. Stark Industries would permanently have a percentage; after the sale, it would be smaller than the one the government had but the non-profit would keep working and that was your main goal. 

It was the only reason you had to agree to meet with Fury at the moment because you knew that now you would have the time and it wasn’t difficult to foresee what he wanted from you. 

“You need to be the new head of the Avengers, Y/N”, Steve finally said with a stern look. 

It was hard to see Steve as an old man when you had spent the majority of your life seeing him as this strong, young superhero that could have the mannerisms of a really old person. It was fun to make jokes about it and everyone did it, sure, you had picture Steve just like this for a Halloween someday but now it was too real. In all honesty, you didn’t want to judge his decision but somehow it pained you that he hadn’t chosen to stay with you and help you in this transition. Yes, he was there but not like before and it felt like you had been left alone by the other most important person in your life. 

“What about Sam or Bucky?”, you asked. “They are older”

“They became fugitives after SHIELD crashed down”, Fury explained. “We need you”

You knew it. You knew that neither Bucky or Sam were approved by the government and it annoyed you to the core because Sam was the best option along with you but now it wasn’t possible thanks to a couple of white old men in suits that didn’t know how was it out there.

“I saw this coming”, you sighed as your eyes connected with Steve’s. “Isn’t it too soon?”

“The world is going to look up to you since your father saved the universe”, Fury answer, and you turned around to watch him walk silently. “It’s up to you to keep the Avengers alive”

You remained quiet for a few seconds. The guilt and the burden swinging over your head as the words of Fury stuck in your head while you watched him. 

It was up to you and although you had tried to escape it and have a little peace of mind the last few weeks it was an irreversible fact that you were in charge now, whether you liked it or not. Pepper had let you go back with her to the cabin and she had tried not to push it, but the talk was brought up either way.  

…

“You do know you don’t have to do it if you don’t want to”, Pepper said as she brought you your cup of tea while you sat in front of the fireplace. 

“Thank you”, you answer softly as you took the cup in your hands, warming them. “The way I see it, I don’t have many options now that Steve made his choice”

She sipped on her coffee as she watched you carefully. Her eyes gleaming with fear, you knew she didn’t want this for you and neither did Tony, that’s why they try to avoid it as much as they could but now you were at this crossroad. It was even harder now to accept this new burden considering how your father’s story had turned out. 

“I mean it, y/n”, Pepper insisted, her voice stern making you turned around completely to face her. “You don’t have to do this. Tony and I once hope that you would be the CEO of Stark Industries, that you could leave that life behind.”

“Pepper…”

“Y/N, I don’t know if you realize this but you are not Tony,” Pepper said, as she placed a hand over yours. “Your father, because of who he was didn’t have a choice, but you do.” 

You shook your head. 

“But I am like him”, you said quietly as you took Pepper’s hand into yours. “I can’t brush off his legacy and you know how much I wanted this since I was a kid”

“You also wanted to run Stark Industries like me”, Pepper said as she raised her brows. “But avenging, it can’t be your whole life”

“And I still want to”, you assured her. “I know it can’t and I don’t want to live as Nat or Steve did, I just don’t want to let dad down. I feel like everyone knows it’s on me”

Pepper remained quiet for a few moments and she sighed, she squeezed your hand as her gaze went to the fireplace in front of you. 

“You are not letting him down Y/N, you could never do that and I know what you mean because Tony felt somehow the same and that’s why he fought so hard”, Pepper replied quietly, she sucked in a breath as she turned around to watch you again and gave you a soft smile. “I’ll try to be okay with any decision you make, but I want you to still go to university as you had planned before, your life can’t be on hold anymore”

“You know I want to go; you don’t have to ask me that. I started sending my applications after what happened”, you said as you took a sip of your tea. “Thank you for understanding”

“I dealt with your dad for a long time, I know better”, Pepper said with a chuckled while you giggled. 

“You really think I can be like him?”, you asked. 

“Y/N, you don’t have to be like him. You have to find yourself and whatever makes you feel okay”, Pepper replied honestly. “If you believe you have to do this, you can do it kid”

“Thank you, mom” 

You knew you wanted this; you knew you had to do this because you wanted to make Tony proud. He had believed in you, Nat too, and know it was your chance to prove everyone that you were succeeding and that Tony’s legacy was still alive. 

… 

But now sitting in that conference room with Steve and Fury, you couldn’t help feeling as if you were suffocating while they watched you carefully waiting for an answer. Maybe the feeling would go away, you were just starting but what worried you is that the feeling didn’t stop. 

“Mrs. Stark?”, Fury’s voice woke you up from your thoughts and you blinked trying to get back into the conversation. 

“Sorry”, you muttered as you cleared your throat. “I get that we need the Avengers alive but we are only five. It’s less than what you guys,” you signaled Steve, “had when you started it.”

Nick Fury looked at you with a smile as he took out from his trench coat a couple of folders and threw them on the table, his only eye gleaming with satisfaction, as if he was proud, he already knew everything as if he hadn’t snapped and was still aware of everything that was happening. 

“We have some ideas for recruits”, he said smugly. 

You rolled your eyes and took a hold of some of the folders, your eyes followed the letters and the pictures on it and you couldn’t help but feel a shiver of fear as you read the profiles of this people. It was becoming too real and although you were great at making things work you couldn’t help but feel responsible for them.  

But at the end of the day, they were exactly who you needed to make it work. 

You nodded your head and turned around to watch Steve. “Do you agree with all of them?”, you asked as you raised the folder with your hand. 

Steve remained quiet for a few seconds. “I think they have what it takes”

“Then we need to call them in”, you stated as you stood up, your heart thumping on your chest. 

It probably wasn’t a good idea for you, to have Peter at the meeting. But he had become an official Avenger when both of you decided to go to Titan with your dad and he was the most beloved hero of New York City -apart from you-, it was obvious that you needed his help to do this. 

But clearly, he wasn’t thrilled. 

You were walking through the hallways of Stark Tower; you had just finished a meeting with the volunteers of the facilities to thank them all for their help during this time and now you were late to the Avengers meeting. Honestly, the anxiety of the meeting hadn’t slowed down, the ache in your stomach got worse as time passed and you felt like your mind was somewhere else as you checked over and over again the points of the meeting. 

It wasn’t any news that when you were distracted enough you became a klutz. So, as you ran through the hallways of Stark Tower to get into the meeting in time, you unexpectedly collided with the brown-hair boy with chocolate eyes with specks of honey that made your heart stop. 

It wasn’t at all the meet-cute that it could’ve been. 

Peter, obviously with his super-strength didn’t even flinch as you fell forward on the floor as people gasped as they saw you there. It was as if you had wanted to run over him but he was a wall, so as you hit his back you were the one flying over. Papers everywhere, the screen of your iPhone probably cracked, a sharp pain on your shoulder and the ankle that Thanos had injured was throbbing a bit. 

“I-I’m sorry”, Peter managed to let out as he helped to collect the files that you were carrying along with your phone while you sat down on the floor wincing. 

“Don’t worry, I was the klutz”, you replied and it seemed that Peter froze as soon as he heard your voice. 

Maybe he hadn’t even noticed that it was you but the face when he realized it was you, it wasn’t pretty. 

Not even because of his hostile expression but he didn’t look well. He had bags under his eyes, the shadows made his usually big eyes become smaller, his brown curls weren’t styled as he liked but they were over the place and he seemed pale. It was as if he hadn’t sleep in…

“When was the last time you slept more than two hours?”, the question came out of nowhere and you wanted to hit yourself in the face because it wasn’t even appropriate. 

But you knew him, you knew how he sucked in everything around him. Peter’s sense had dialed to eleven since he was bitten by the radioactive spider and along with his anxiety thanks to the sense of responsibility he had after becoming Spider-man. You used to think that you overthink a lot of things but when you met Peter, you realized that it wasn’t half as bad. Sleeping together, your voice, your hands on his curls, your laugh, and holding your hand were things that helped him blow the anxiety away. Nonetheless, he couldn't do it anymore. 

Peter stayed quiet, examining you. You looked like heaven to him: rosy cheeks, your hair a bit messy but now more styled, the black turtle neck you were using looked elegant but casual by wearing your force 1 with them, he could tell that you were tired but the shadows under your eyes didn’t overshadow your y/e/c eyes, and those lips, you had just placed some Chapstick over them and he could tell. Peter decided right then and there that growing older suited you, you looked so good and he just wanted to kiss you right there and then. He wanted you to hold him and tell you that he hadn’t slept since you fought, he wanted to tell you that he missed you and that you two were meant for each other. 

But as much as he wanted to kiss you and tell you that he loved you, he didn’t do it, the angered and sadness clawing their way into his heart. 

The last few weeks had been confusing and tiring. He had returned to Midtown to all of your friends asking about you and while he didn’t say anything about Harry, he had to break down to them that you weren’t together and that you weren’t returning to Midtown either. 

…

“Do you mean she’s abandoning us!?”, Flash exclaimed dramatically as they all sat down in the lunch table while Peter only rolled his eyes. 

“I don’t know what she’s doing but she’s going to be 21 in a couple of months”, Peter explained. “She’s not coming back to school”

“Well, we are leaving in a few months to college”, Betty intervened. “We just have to take the final exams again but this fall we are going with Y/N to college” 

“These are the most important ones!” Ned cried. “Where the memories are made!”

He was barely holding it together and Betty was just playing with his hair, in an attempt to calm him down while MJ remained quiet, as if she was trying to process what was going on. Peter had wished that you were the one who told them but he understood that they had questions and that you wanted to keep to yourself. It was usually the thing you did when you were feeling down, still, he couldn’t help to hate it at the moment. 

But as always, MJ came out with the logical response and wisest answer. 

“She’s not abandoning us Flash,” she snarled as she gave him a side glanced and then looked back at Peter. “She has grown and she just lost her dad. We don’t know what was like to live without us, so let’s just give her time and she’ll come back to us”

Peter rolled his eyes, not in an obvious way but enough for MJ to notice and see red. 

“And get over yourself Parker, yes, she broke up with you but we don’t know what her life has been like for two years!”, MJ grumbled. “You know how much we can change in even six months?”

“MJ it’s not about me and y/n as a couple but-”

“-as best friends”, Peter and Flash said at the same time. 

Flash looked back and forth between MJ and Peter while they looked at him bugged eyed. 

“Shut up, Flash. You just literally became part of the group”, MJ grumbled and she stood up from the table as she faced Peter. “Stop being butthurt with Y/N and give her time”, she said walking away. 

All of them remained quiet for a second.

“Are we going to do what MJ said?”, Flash asked quietly. 

“When do we ever do something that MJ doesn’t say”, Ned replied as he placed his hand on Betty’s shoulder. 

“What if it’s too much time?”, Flash asked once again. 

“We just have to wait, Flash, don’t worry”, Betty replied.

But Peter remained quiet as he looked away, zoning out. It was actually something Peter saw coming, he knew that MJ and you had become close before the snap, and MJ was a fierce and loyal friend while you were as well. It didn’t surprise him her reaction and he also knew she was right, but he couldn’t help but feel still angry over what had happened with you and at that point he didn’t know if he was even mad at you but at the fact that he snapped away and you didn’t. 

…

It had been a few weeks after MJ snapped at Peter, he thought maybe his anger would die down but as his eyes focused on you, it still hurt so much. At the moment, Peter could’ve said a lot of things but why? Did he wonder if you really cared about him? What were you possibly going to say that would make him feel better? Would telling you off make him feel better? Of course not, he would feel awful if he said anything bad to you. Therefore he didn’t answer. 

“Peter, please”, you pleaded as he helped you stood up by grabbing your hand. 

But he didn’t budge, he didn’t open his mouth. He simply walked past you towards the conference room and you turned around, with a bleak expression, seeing him walking away.

It hurt. 

You had heard that some people preferred someone yelling at them and telling them off rather than to have someone not saying absolutely anything. Honestly, you didn’t understand and it was maybe because Tony had always said what was bothering him, he never stayed silent and neither did Pepper, so you didn’t understand until now how hurtful it could be. You winced at the realization you had done it to others, it was your preferred mechanism to disappear and stay with yourself, it was easier for you since you liked being alone but now you realized it was even worst. 

Your phone buzzing took your eyes away from Peter before he made a right to make it to the conference room. 

“What now?”

The screen turned on, with a small crack over it, and you couldn’t help but smile as you saw the MIT email on it. 

We are pleased to inform you that you had been admitted to MIT undergrad programs of electrical engineering, physics, and business …

You couldn’t contain your excitement as you watched the screen. It was something that Tony had always wanted, he had a pull-on MIT and had wished that you were going to his alma mater, along with Peter. It was a bittersweet moment for you, one day you had picture yourself there with Peter and Tony picking you up on the weekends to New York to spend time with Pepper, training with Nat and Steve, visiting your friends. 

But everything had been erased and now you were here, being head of the avengers and already definitely late for your meeting. 

The race to the hallways was rather quickly and in no time you were in front of the conference room but before you opened the door you took a deep breath. 

The ache in your stomach didn’t budge one bit, your feet couldn’t stop tapping on the ground as you bit your inner cheek.  This was your first move as head of the Avengers and you needed to play the part;  Fake it till you make it, you thought to yourself as you fixed your hair as best as you could and straightened your outfit; taking a deep breath, you walked in. 

It seemed like one of those dreams when you watch yourself, from another place, like a scene of a movie. At least that was how you felt as you tried to catch in on all the people who turned around as soon as you walked in with determination and the poker face that Tony had once taught you, but it felt like you were gasping for air as you saw from the corner of your eye Fury glaring at you. 

“You are late”, Fury stated. 

“I’m running a multimillion-dollar non-profit and was in a meeting with a correspondent of the White House, and I’m going to run this show,” you stated as you walked next to him, in front of everyone present. “So no, I’m not late”

It was a bold move and you prayed internally that it worked as you had a stare-down with Nick Fury, which you couldn’t even picture in your wildest dreams, and although you knew it was a lie about the White House, it was a way to assert your leadership. 

“Let’s begin,” you said by dropping the folders on the table and turning around to face everyone.

If Ned could be right there and then, you knew he would’ve passed out. 

Peter was sitting at your right, a bit slouched but he was in, next to him Wanda was sitting down as she winked at you, Lila Barton was sat down next to her with Clint by her side. On the other side of the table, there was Steve, Bucky, and Sam -or how your dad liked to call them The Army Bros, Steve and his kids, Ménage a Trois, among others-, then Harley was next to them smirking at you, Cassie Lang was also with Scott who seemed a bit in awe with the view in front of him. 

It was exciting seeing them together in one room, you could see a team forming here; you just hoped that it didn’t have to happen with an alien invasion followed by a significant battle in New York. 

“You have been called here because The Avengers are not done”, Steve said sternly as he looked at all of them. He might have been over 100 years but the force on his voice and the sense of leadership in his eyes didn’t go away for a second. “We still need to have a future.” Steve gazed at you as he finished and you sucked in a breath. 

It was your cue. 

“There was an idea to bring together a group of remarkable people, they did become something more and fought the battles that we couldn’t win”, you explained seriously, watching how Nick Fury turned around to see how you cited each one of the words he had said to your father. They had stuck with you all these years and you didn’t see why you shouldn’t bring them up now. “We need to be the next generation of that group, maintain the legacy, we have a responsibility with the world”.

Your eyes connected with everyone’s in the room, except for Peter who immediately looked away. 

“That’s the reason that we call you in”, Fury intervened as he walked towards you and Steve. “You have the abilities to save the world”. Everyone stayed silent as they watched him. “Y/N Stark or Iron hea-”, Fury began by dropping the first folder that contained your profile. 

“-don’t even say it, it’s just Stark”, you interrupted as you raised your hand for him to stop, Fury simple rolled his eye with a still stone-cold face drawn. 

“Spider-man”, he said looking at Peter, folder dropped. 

“Scarlett Witch”, Wanda sucked in a breath as the folder dropped in front of her. 

“Winter Soldier or White Wolf should I say?”, Fury asked. 

Bucky remained quiet as he gazed at the folder that Fury had thrown on him, clearly bigger than any of the others. He just sighed and nodded. 

“Falcon, the new Captain America”, Fury said and Sam smirked as he placed a hand over Steve’s shoulder while Bucky rolled his eyes. 

“Iron lad”, Fury said gazing at Harvey who seemed like he wanted to pass out as he quickly took a hold of the folder and began reading it full speed. 

“Statue”, he said looking at Cass while Scott looked at him with panic. It was clear that he didn’t want Cassie there but by the way, Cassie was excitedly looking at the folder and what was written about her, it wasn’t his choice to make. 

“Finally, Kate Bishop”, Fury finished as he nodded at Clint who was sternly looking at you.  

Cassie quickly turned around to look at her, bug-eyed. “Thought that you were Lila Barton?”, she said confused. 

Before Clint or Lila could even respond, you interrupted them. 

“It’s Lila’s secret identity”, you explained with a smile. “No one can know she’s related to Clint. It can risk their cover and we don’t want anything happening to them”. 

“Thanks, Y/N”, Clint said with a tight smile. 

It was clear that you would’ve to talk with Clint and Scott soon and calm them down, they reminded you of your dad and well, Lila and Cassie reminded you of you at that age and how much you wanted to follow your father’s steps into becoming an actual hero. They wanted to be in it so badly that they went behind their parents back to make it happened and it was the same as you began to build your suit without Tony knowing it. 

Lila had talked with Fury at the funeral, she had sneak from Clint and Laura while Fury was having a word with Carol. She had explained to him that she was good with the bow and arrow, maybe even better than her dad; and most importantly, she had realized that she wanted to do something good if she knew how to do it. On the other part, Cassie had been begging Scott, Janet, Hope, and Hank to let her into the team, Cassie was smarter than Scott and in the few years that had passed, she was sure that she wanted to follow her dad’s steps after actually losing him. Although Hope and Scott didn’t agree on it, Hank and Janet had a soft spot for Cassie and had given her a suit, after a few trials they had realized she was really good. It didn’t take long for Fury to hear the word and contact them. It wasn’t a pretty discussion with Hank or Hope, but Janet and Scott more or less got where Cassie was coming from, finally convincing them it was a good option. 

Lila was fifteen while Cassie was fourteen, approximately a year younger before your first mission; it seemed like it was time to train them although a part of you wanted them to stay training for a little longer. 

“What about the other ones?”, Peter asked as he looked at Steve, drawing you back to the conversation. “T’Challa? Or Captain Marvel? Where’s Thor?”

You winced at his remark, it stung that he was unsure about this new plan and this new era. Did he wanted to be there? Steve had been the one calling him and knowing how much Peter respected Steve, you were sure he was going to say yes. But now that you were actually listening to him, at the dead tone he had, at the way he was avoiding you or even zoning out, you didn’t know if it was the best idea to have him on the team. 

But Peter wasn’t doubting you. He didn’t doubt you for a second, in his heart he knew that you were going to be a great leader, but as he gazed at you, it became too much. 

“They’ll come when they are needed but we need a response team, the foundations,” Steve said as he signaled the room. “You are that team” 

Peter nodded in response. Truth was that Peter felt proud that he had been called, he remembered like it was yesterday when Tony had officially made him an avenger. How you had jumped into his arms and planted a kiss on his lips as if you didn’t care that you were going to a new planet and facing the scariest villain that you had met, all that it mattered was how official this was. But that was it, it came back to the fact that he wanted to stand up with you and hold your hand and be your support but he couldn’t do it. 

“Anyway, newbies you are not official members yet”, you stated as you signaled to Cassie, Harley, and Lila. “But we need to start training you and we will begin next week”

“How much training?”, Harley asked concerned since you knew he was about to finish college this semester. 

“Don’t worry, we will start on the weekends. You’ll be flown here from Boston and San Francisco by one of our quinjets”, you explained. “Lila, you’ll come every two weeks since you train with Clint almost every day and there’s no better teacher for your specialty”

Lila nodded excitedly as she gazed back at Clint, who simply smiled and placed a kiss on her forehead. 

“We are going to train in the tower again?”, Peter asked as he looked at you, he was really looking at you, you gaped for a bit by the way his eyes were looking at you. 

“Ye-Yes… I-uhm- until the compound it’s -uhm- I already ordered to rebuild it”, you stumbled through your words as you tried to maintain the first eye-contact that Peter had given you. “It’s on my name now”

Peter nodded quietly and you smiled as a response but it didn’t last long as he quickly gazed back at Fury as he began to explain the regime that you were going to follow and how the group trainings were going to go, especially since Sam and Bucky had a special mission in Europe for the next month or two. Harley along with Cassie were the ones doing the most questions and most of the talking regarding the new initiative, Lila asked a few questions but it seemed like she was more familiar with the spy language that you were using. Wanda, Sam, and Bucky took on the role of mentors as they sometimes intervened and explained how things worked, along with you and Steve. Peter talked a few times as well, but he stayed quiet for most of the meeting, he knew the protocols and the plans so he didn’t have many questions. He was zoning out as he looked at you when you weren’t looking, god, he was trying to avoid it because it created a lump on his throat the more, he looked at you and knew that nothing was going to happen between you two again. 

So, when you lifted the meeting, he stood up as fast as he could and walked out of the room. 

“So, what’s up with him?”, Wanda asked as everyone began walking out of the room and you stayed alone picking up the papers and giving a nod to Fury as he told you that he was going to be in contact. 

Wanda was a big part of your life. She became like a sister after Ultron and although she was a couple of years older than you, it was a matter of time before you became best friends. The nights that you stayed at the compound and that Peter spent with Aunt May, became official girls’ nights between you two and sometimes Natasha (although she wasn’t a fan). You knew she was the first person that realized you had feelings for Peter and it was the first person you told about your first kiss after Scorpion attacked you. She also told you about Vision and you were there as she slowly let her guard down with him, at the end falling head over heels for him. 

Their relationship was sweet and authentic, neither of them was trying to be someone that they weren’t and they accepted each other with everything they came with. When you lost both of them to the snap, it somehow made you feel okay? That they weren’t living without the other because they seemed so meant to be together, Vision adored her. Nonetheless, when Wanda came back and Vision didn’t, you knew it was going to take a toll on her. Wanda had been staying in the tower since all of you came back, she hadn’t left her room and she hadn’t been herself as she tried to deal with the grief of losing Vision, Bucky had been overprotective of her the last few days of her and Bruce checked up on her every day, you also visited her as much as you could and you had heard that Peter had swing by a couple of times as well. This was the first day that you had seen her out of her room and you were beyond happy about seeing her like this. 

“I thought that he had told you when he came to visit”, you said as you turned around and wrap your arms around Wanda who hugged you back. 

Wanda and Peter were good friends, she saw him as a little brother and she messed around with him when she had the opportunity. They used to try to sneak up on him with Vision sometimes, but Peter’s spidey sense was too strong for them to win; at the end, Wanda resorted into levitating a few things when Peter wasn’t looking and it would annoy him before he would shot his web to the object that would be flying over his head with a red halo or in another place of the room. 

“He didn’t do much talking actually, he just listened”, Wanda explained as she let go of you. “So, what happened?”

In all honesty, you were somehow dreading this part of telling Wanda about Harry, you remember how happy she was when you told her about Peter and was all over your team even after older avengers were kind of apprehensive about it. 

You sighed as you leaned on the table. “You know Oscorp Industries?” 

“I don’t like where this is going”, Wanda bit her lip, wincing as she watched you carefully and you nodded in response. 

The memory of Peter’s eyes gleaming with tears as they fell from his cheeks while you spat out that you were with someone new hunted you. Your heart sank more and more was you thought about it, it was one of the worst things you had to do. 

“It’s not that I forgot about Peter, but I was just so lost and everyone was telling me to move on”, you shrugged as Wanda sat on one of the chairs next to you. 

It was true, you never forgot about the boy with chocolate eyes. It just happened that when you were getting better, Harry appeared in your life and just made it easier. It was easy and calming to be with him, he was everything you would want on a boyfriend. 

“I know the feeling”, Wanda mumbled and you felt guilty that you were talking about your love life when Wanda’s significant other had passed away. “So, what’s he like?”

You huffed as you tried to find words to describe Harry. “He’s gorgeous to look at, he is kind and humble. I just like to be around him”. 

Wanda eyed you suspiciously for a few moments and it scared you because you knew how good she was at reading you and knowing your feelings. It scared you that she might tell you that you were making the wrong decision. 

“But he’s no Peter”, Wanda stated as she looked at you intently. 

No, there was no way that Harry would compare to Peter. And it was unfair to do it because they were too different, the only thing linking them together was that they cared about you. 

“No”, you answered honestly as you closed your eyes, pinching the bridge of your nose as you tried to find the right words to fight Wanda’s gaze. “He isn’t but I do care about him, a lot. You can’t understand how much he has help-.”

“-do you love him?”, Wanda interrupted and you became stiff as she mentioned love. 

It wasn’t that the fact that neither Harry or you had said it, he knew how delicate that was for you and the fact that you had only told Peter that you loved him had maybe restrained Harry to actually mumbled it out. But on your part, you knew how your heart felt warm when you saw him and how you automatically smiled, he made you laugh and made you feel okay; still, you hadn’t said it. 

“I think I do”, you answered honestly. 

Wanda rolled her eyes as she stood from the chair and splayed her hands on the table, a straight-face as she eyed you again, as if she was in an interrogatory, “It’s a yes or no answer Y/N”. 

And you felt the pressure like she had meant you to feel it. “Wanda, stop”, you felt your cheeks growing warmer and even maybe a headache as you looked right back at her, but you knew better than to avoid her questions and you finally answered, “I can’t give you one”. 

Wanda finally looked away as she passed a hand through her hair. “So, what are your feelings for Peter then?” Wanda sighed. 

“I love him”, you stated without any doubt on your voice, making her shoot a look at you of confusion. 

What’s it weird to say that you love your ex-boyfriend but doubt that you loved your current one? Maybe, you thought as you hopped off the table. 

“If you are so sure then why don’t you go back to him?”, Wanda asked, annoyance lingering onto her voice. 

You smirked as you watched her because it was too obvious who she was going to choose, “Oh, I see you are Team Peter on this”

She gave you a light smile back. “You know I love Peter but Y/N…”, her lips pressed for a second as she tried to fix her words, “I remember when you told me about Peter for the first time and there was something inside you that you couldn’t control”, she said as she walked closer to you, “It was as if this bright feeling was filling you, everything inside you shined.” 

And you remembered it, you remembered how you felt golden when you were with Peter. How your heart fluttered on your chest as his lips pressed against your body and then against your lips. How his hands would always seek your body and how on the nights you would spend together, you would fall asleep to the beating of his heart. 

“I’m not disputing that,” you stated curtly, as you recollected all the folders with a little more speed than you would. “but I have Harry too and he helped me during the time I lost everything and we just get along so well. It would be unfair for me to simply toss him after Peter came back”

Wanda’s gaze was burning your back and you could tell she was swallowing somethings just to get off your back because she noticed you were getting riled up. 

“I understand,” she finally said as you sighed and looked back at her. “But if you want this team to work, Peter and you have to keep being the best friends that you have always been”

At that very moment, Peter was thinking about the same thing. 

Was it even worth trying to work for this new team out if you weren’t on talking terms? No, it wasn’t. You were his partner and he was yours, even if years had passed for you and you were with someone new, nothing could change the fact that together you guys worked. Together you worked better than anyone in the team, Peter even believed that you guys were more connected than Nat and Steve at some point before the snap. It was the actual true, Peter knew your every move and you knew him; most importantly, you would do whatever was needed to keep the other one safe. 

But how?

“How what?”, a voice snapped Peter out of his thoughts realizing he had said it out loud. His eyes followed the husky voice, recognizing that the elevator at Stark’s tower had been emptied while he had been thinking about you. 

His eyes found this boy, should he even say boy? No, he was a man. Peter was sure that he could be confused with a model, his almond eyes were green-ish or grey-ish, he couldn’t tell and were accompanied by a sharp jaw with well-groomed facial hair. He passed a hand through his dark hair and Peter realized how tall he was. 

“I…”, Peter mumbled as he rose a brow. “It’s nothing, uhm- which floor are we?” 

The guy simply nodded and smiled simply at Peter. “We are arriving at the penthouse, right now.”

Before the doors opened, F.R.I.D.A.Y.’s voice could be heard in all the elevator. 

“Hello, Harry”, the AI said smoothly. “And welcome back Peter, Mrs. Potts wanted to see you”

Peter blinked in surprise; he felt his body stiffened as he heard the name. It wasn’t that Peter had been stalking you or trying to find who you were dating. Just casually some days prior, Peter had recruited Ned to find out and without a doubt, Ned worked faster than the FBI. 

…

“There are no photos?” Peter mewled as he walked through the walls of his room while Ned was furiously typing on his computer.

Peter wasn’t per se proud of how fixated he was on it, but he just wanted to know who had been the guy that you had actually opened your heart to that wasn’t him. You weren’t too much into relationships since he met you, you were focused on avenging and school; relationships other than your close friendships, and later, Peter’s were the things occupying your mind. 

You had gone out on a couple of dates with both boys and girls before Peter, but nothing more than a friendly chat or maybe a kiss happened between you and them. Peter tried not to be jealous but the relentless flirting did annoy him, and sometimes he let shades of it through. 

You noticed it, so when the girls would come by to talk to you at lunch and play with your hair while Peter watched, you tried to be as nonchalant as you could. With boys, you simply and politely most of the time (if they weren’t being an asshole) asked them to get lost or refused their advances. And always after the fact, Peter would be in an unusually high good mood. 

So, now with Harry, he was clearly on a mission. 

“No man, apparently his father wanted him out of the spotlight,” Ned replied as he rubbed his tired eyes. “Not that this Norman Osborn appears on many things. Remember that I had to do a presentation about him? There was barely any information”

Peter huffed. “Well, then what did you found?”

Ned glared at him as he began typing again, his fingers moving faster than Peter’s eyes. “Well, he is a billionaire and a philanthropist, he had projects in Latin America and Africa on bioengineer which he’s pretty good at”

Peter rolled his eyes, he knew how much you cared about doing your part in the world, you understood your privileges and tried to do something good about it. You didn’t like to be a girl with daddy’s credit card, there was nothing more annoying to you than when people assumed you were vapid and frivolous because of who your father was. 

“Perfect, what else do we know about Mr. perfect?”, Peter snarled as he began descending from the walls and sat next to Ned. 

Ned opened various tabs on the computer that seemed like it was going to burst with information at any point. “He has won several awards about bioengineering and as an activist. His mother was from China but he lived a few years in Malaysia as well, he went to a snobbish school and speaks English, Malay, Mandarin, French, and Spanish”

Peter’s eyes rolled to the back of his skull. “Can he be any more perfect?”, he whined and stayed silent for a few moments. “Is there any information about him and Y/N?”

Ned eyed Peter for a second, contemplating him in silence. “Do you want me to tell you that?”

Peter’s eyes connected with Ned’s, he was so tired of crying every night but it was almost impossible for him to stop. When he closed his eyes, he could only see you, you were a trigger for him. 

“No, let’s leave it alone for the day”

…

“Aren’t you going come in?”, Harry asked slowly and Peter simply nodded as he followed him to the large living room. 

Peter’s mind was running as if he had sipped four coffees without any milk, his jaw tightened as he watched Harry comfortably sitting on the grey sofa where once Tony had sat Peter to tell him stories about his fights, to explained him new plans, to finally confront him and you about your ongoing relationship that you had kept a secret for almost six months. 

He felt himself growing hot and his anxiety flew out of the charts. Peter, who seemed so innocent in his jeans, white shirt and black hoodie began thinking about the many ways he wanted to toss Harry out of the apartment without a second thought. 

Maybe you were his trigger, seeing you in that black dress was telling him that you were with someone else was his trigger but now Harry had become his new one. Now he could only picture you with Harry; Harry who looked like a model and was also a genius, Harry who had been there for you when Peter wasn’t and eventually took his place, maybe Harry was everything that Peter wasn’t. 

Peter only realized how worked up he was getting when he began to shake, his eyes widened as he looked at how his hands had formed into a fist and now were red thanks to all the pressure. He cleared his throat as he placed his hands on the pockets of his jeans and started walking away from the living room, maybe he could go to his old room in the tower although if he was being honest he wanted nothing more than to go to your room where he stayed most of the nights years prior.  

He remembered how you would open your window for him, especially designed for him to swing through swiftly. He remembered the nights where he would just crash your lips against yours and you would hum in response as both of you fell into your bed. He remembered also the early moments of your friendship, how you would go back to the penthouse excited after Tony had let you tried a new piece of tech, or maybe one of your works had worked. He remembered your laugh most of all, bouncing off the large walls and windows, how it would warm him up. 

But then Harry’s voice stopped him, “Woah, Woah”. Peter snapped around to see the tall boy walking towards him, “You can’t go anywhere big guy. Mrs. Potts doesn’t like it when not close people walk around”

Now it was a fact, Peter wanted to rip Harry apart. 

“I don’t need permission from Pepper to be here”, Peter retorted. He was a little bit glad that he was on a first-name basis with Pepper and Harry still weren’t, pried filled his chest as he looked at Harry staring blankly at him. 

It lasted a few second, Peter watch how Harry was examining his face and his stand. Then his eyes opened like plates and he gaped at Peter.

“Wait”, Harry muttered. “Are you-”

“-Peter Parker”, Peter stated as he glared at him. 

Was he being a little bit too standoff-ish? Yes, but at the moment he didn’t care, because it was his territory. He had been living in that penthouse for three years before the snap, he was basically family to the Stark’s and not even Harry could take that away from him. 

“I-Uhm- It’s nice to meet you”, Harry muttered as he offered Peter his hand. 

Peter looked down at it, somehow doubting Harry’s move but at the end of the day he knew nothing good would come up if he wasn’t polite. Hell, Peter was even polite to villains, although Harry had become his one. 

“It’s nice to meet you too”, Peter replied as he shook his hand, firmly. 

Harry pressed his lips into a tight smiled as he nodded. “Y/N, she talked about you, a lot.”

It wasn’t a complete lie. Harry had forgotten to even ask about Peter after the snap and since you never brought it up, it never crossed his mind that the love of your life was back. You had talked about Peter a few times, most of them ended in tears from your part and Harry had seen your social media was filled with pictures of Peter Parker, as well as the penthouse where Tony had photos of the three of you and all the other avengers. He knew how much Peter meant for you and now, although Harry wasn’t one that got nervous, he felt a shiver of panic running through his back as Peter let go of his hand.

“She talked about you; you were -uhm- are extremely especial for her”, Harry muttered.

Peter stared up at Harry, jarring silence filling the room as his heart rate increased. Harry’s eyes were blank and Peter felt stiff and uncomfortable, but another part of him felt a slight jolt of joy as Harry had mentioned how special he was for you and by how Harry was acting. Peter wanted to take the small charm that had the Iron-Spider-suit and jump from the window, maybe even swing from building to building while screaming of joy. You had talked about him, to the point that it seemed to make Harry uncomfortable. 

“Yeah…”, Peter said simply as he gave a step back. “I’m going to leave now…”

Before could even turn around completely, he bumped into Pepper. 

Pepper had this thing about her, she could be serious to the point of scary but she could also be the sweetest woman on earth. Pepper had become an important mother figure to Peter, and she got extremely well with May (who at first wasn’t a fan of Tony) to the point they would have a few talks over the more humanitarian side that Stark’s Industries needed or any new project that had Pepper busy. Moreover, Pepper was always there for both Peter and you, after every mission or school project, she had managed to make time for the both of you, which was impressive being CEO of SI. Peter was sure that Pepper knew he had feelings for you since he first arrived, she would give him these looks and he was sure that they had talked about it with May. 

When you finally told both Tony and Pepper, she was there to help Tony get more relaxed about your decisions and she was the one that gave Peter permission to sleep on your bed when Tony didn’t feel very comfortable, she would keep him off your room for the time that you guys were together. 

So, when Peter saw Pepper again (since he hadn’t really spoken to her at the funeral) he felt his heart clenching on his chest, the ache didn’t go away as she watched her. He hadn’t said anything to Pepper since Tony had died, anything. He hadn’t acknowledged the women who acted as a mother to him, how much she must be suffering from Tony’s death, and now your sudden role as leader of the Avengers. 

“I have been leaving messages, Peter”, Pepper said sternly, pulling her blonde straight hair behind her ears and he was sure he winced at her voice. 

“I’m -I …”, Peter stumbled through his words as he tried to phrase how sorry he actually was. “I’m sorry Pepper”, he finally said. 

She stared at him; a blank gaze was drawn but after a few seconds her features soften as she looked at the shy chocolate eyed boy. 

“It’s okay”, Pepper muttered giving him a light smile as she patted him on the shoulder and pulled him in for a small hug, which was short-lived as Pepper quickly turned to see Harry awkwardly standing there. “Harry, I’ll take Peter away but you can wait for her in the living room”

Peter watched Harry carefully who seemed dumbfounded at their recent interactions but as soon as Pepper talked to him he straightened himself and cleared his throat, giving her a charming smile. 

“That would be perfect”, he replied with a nod, muttering a quick ‘thank you’ before he turned around and walked to the couch again. 

Peter felt like a masochist as his eyes followed Harry, analyzing the way that he walked and wondered how you two actually looked like but Pepper didn’t give him much on an opportunity to ponder on his suffering from you. Quickly, walking away and telling Peter to follow her which forced Peter to remove his eyes from Harry who was taking a seat of the large living room again. 

“So, how have you been?”, Pepper said as soon as they got enough distance from the living room, the only sound on the hallway was the clicking of her heels. 

Peter smiled tightly at Pepper; he was not okay but he didn’t want to have any sort of conversation with Pepper where he would be the one to feel bad for himself. Not when Pepper had lost Tony. 

“I’m okay”, Peter lied.

Pepper contemplate him as she wrinkled her nose, “Well, you don’t look okay, Peter. Have you been sleeping?”, she replied as they got to her office. 

Peter wanted to answer and assured her that he had been sleeping and feeling well, happy to be back and grateful with Tony who had died for him to be there. But nothing came out, he simply shut his mouth and nodded.

“Yes, that was what I imagined”, Pepper chuckled as she opened the door. “Come in, I have to introduce you to someone”, Pepper said. 

Peter stood there for a few moments when Pepper moved, she could see the tiny human that was laying down in fairly modern and beautiful playpen. The toddler wiped her head around as soon as she heard Pepper and Peter and he felt like crying when her big-doe-brown eyes locked with Peter’s. 

Peter had not paid much attention to Morgan at the funeral, he was thinking only about you. He guessed that he would meet her eventually after you talked but it never happened. Nonetheless, he could tell that the little child was the spitting image of Tony Stark, Peter could tell that she was going to be smart beyond her years just like you and Tony and that she would have both of your wits and humor. 

“So, you want to meet your goddaughter?”, Pepper muttered as she looked sweetly at Peter.

Peter’s eyes opened like plates.

“Am -I am her godfather?”, Peter stuttered as he entered the large office and walked towards baby Morgan who watched him intently. 

“Yes, Tony wanted you to be the godfather and so did y/n”, Pepper answered and Peter felt her heart-warming, not even looking at Peter quickly kneeled to say hi to Morgan.

Peter didn’t know Morgan, he was afraid she was a little apprehensive because of how rapid he had kneeled and offered his hand to her. 

“Hi baby Stark”, Peter whispered at Morgan, who quickly responded with a wide toothy smile and she giggled. 

Opening her arms, she signaled for him to grab her from her playpen, and Peter followed suit at her request with a smile. She was as light as a feather to Peter, almost lighter and he easily placed her on one hand as she took a hold of his face and began examining him closely while Pepper watched wistfully. 

“Peter!”, Morgan suddenly blabbered and Peter was stunned, he wiped his head quickly to Pepper who laughed at his reaction while Peter chuckled too. 

“How -uhm?” Peter began but was cut off by Pepper. 

“Tony told her stories about you, so did y/n”, Pepper explained as she walked towards the large white sofa in her office and patted the space next to her for Peter to sit down. “Y/N wanted her to know who you were, so for the night stories she would often tell her about you and her.”

Peter felt his heart on his throat as he heard Pepper’s words. Every word that came out of her mouth was exactly what Peter wanted to hear, he was holding on to any hope for you and him, although deep down he knew he had to respect your choice, whether he liked it or not. 

 “I know that you are not okay Peter”, Pepper sighed, a woeful expression drawn on her face. “I’m so sorry you had to find it this way and everything that happened”

Peter nodded, trying to hold on to whatever sense of stability he had on him but it was useless as his eyes locked with Pepper, who had seen him both at his best and his worst. Peter sank on the couch as he placed baby Morgan on his chest who kept playing with his features, he felt like he had exhausted all his tears the last few weeks. 

“It’s just… everything hurts when I think about Y/N”, he whispered, his voice breaking. “I thought that… I just can’t deal with her choice”

“It was not entirely Y/N decision”, Pepper quickly said as her hand quickly ghosted his arm. She looked down biting her lip, Peter could see she was unsure of what she was going to say. “But you can’t understand how broken she was without you.”

Peter sniffle causing Morgan to stop playing with his features and watching him carefully, finally turning away from him to face Pepper. 

“Mommy, what happened?”, Morgan’s tiny voice made Peter’s heart skip a beat. She was so smart already and he let a genuine smile out. 

Pepper smiled too as she picked Morgan from Peter. “Uncle Peter is a bit sad, that’s all”, she explained, and then her eyes returned to Peter’s. “The first six months after the snap she just… she shut down Peter. We didn’t see her and nothing could get her out of that bed. We were so worried about her for months, we didn’t even know if she was going to make it. ”

“What?”

Peter had seen you after the fact, he had heard you when you said that you didn’t forget him and how Harry expressed how important he was for you, but he never expected you to be so lost without him. Peter always believed you were the stronger one on the relationship you had, he was the one following you like a puppy since he first met you and from then on, his feelings just grew to a point that when he finally kissed you and told you his feelings, he was sure his heart was going to explode. He had harbored his feelings for so long, he struggled to maintain them in a line when they were finally out. But you, you were so elegant and delicate with your feelings for Peter. He knew you loved him but being trained by spies from an early age may be helped you conceal your feelings longer or because of your personality, you seemed to be the master of limits. Peter never picture that you would fall apart so badly without him. 

“I’m not going to tell you that you aren’t allowed to feel that way”, Pepper continued, clearly shuddering at the memories of you at the time. “But I just want to say that you should forgive her because this world wouldn’t be right if you two aren’t together, at least as friends and partners”.

Peter stayed silent for a few seconds. It felt like the poisonous anger and the debilitating sadness that had overcome his body the last few weeks were being dissipated by Pepper’s words. The common anxiousness that overwhelmed Peter was neutralized by a second as he quite literally felt like he could face all his emotions, trying to immerse in processing the new information. He realized that you may not have done what he would do, he realized that being angry about the fact that he had snapped and you didn’t wouldn’t help anybody, he realized that not talking to you was being more hurtful for both of you. He realized that if he claimed to love you so much, he would be there unconditionally and he felt ashamed he hadn’t. 

Peter nodded, finally embracing every feeling he had and confronting himself. 

“I under-”, were the only words that Peter managed to get out of his mouth before the hairs in his arms quickly stood-up, he could feel the goosebumps erupting in his whole body as his head snapped at the windows that reached both the ceiling and the floor. 

He stood up without a word as Pepper watched bug-eyed, holding Morgan a little bit tighter. 

“Whats happe-”

Screamed began coming from the streets, they filled the room, and then a roar shook the city.

---

TAGLIST: @erindanus​ @spideylovin​ @zlamaneserca​ @bethanystan​ @cedricisnotonfire​ @eridanuswave​ @babebenhardy​ @lyzalovealk​

[alwaysbringabookwithyou]

Hi, I'm sorry to bother you, but i was wondering if you could talk about/redirect me to your thoughts about studying for your Master's? I'm starting a Master's in Literature in September, and although I have a Bachelor's in Literature, I don't feel like I have an effective studying method/not sure how to approach studying at Master's :( Do you have any advice?

Hi anonymous! Thank you for your question!

Okay so here is the skinny: I didn't actually bother doing a masters. I graduated from my BA in July 2017 and i started my PhD in September 2018. HOWEVER I do have a few tips for studying effectively.

Find a schedule that works for you. Seriously. Okay so some things will be timetabled out of your control according to your profs availability or whatever but take control of the rest. I spent my first year of undergraduate studies trying to stay up late at night to work because I thought that was the done thing at university. It doesn't work for me. I get up at 6.30am every morning and i start my work day at 7.30/8am. I go to bed at 11pm. People think I'm crazy but that's when I'm most productive. Obviously this works in reverse too, don't sit at your desk at 6.30am if you're a late night worker - do what works best for you!

Follow your curiosity! Again, I wasted a lot of time producing mediocre essays on topics I thought my professors wanted to hear about instead of chasing the things that made me tick. Since I've started doing that the quality of my work and my enjoyment of it have sky rocketed.

Remind yourself breaks are PART of the process not an optional extra. Take five. Do a meditation. Eat something. Drink some water. Your work will be better for it.

In terms of how I actually study a TEXT the process goes like this: read the text, annotate as I go anything that looks interesting or weird or is repeated a lot. Write a lot of questions in my notebook. Finish the book- return to questions, select most interesting one with the most relevant textual evidence, search those key words to find out if anyone else has written an essay on this, if they haven't i attempt to answer the question, if they have I read it and see if I agree, and if I don't I write a response to their paper with my own answer to the question. If i agree with them i usually just pick another question lol

More on how to approach a text: look for patterns but also deviations and inconsistencies, look for where it is using other texts like novels or even songs or advertisements, think about tje context of its production, if all else fails go back to basics and close read the first page to see how it sets up the concerns of the text- then think about how well it follows through.

Ask for help and guidance. Professors are scary and you want them to think you're smart but not using them as a resource is dumb af. Go to office hours or send them an email if you have questions.

Tip for editing essays: read it aloud if you have time. Actively force your brain to engage with what you've written. Does it make sense? Does it flow? Most fun if you pretend you are giving it to a conference audience that will supply rapturous applause.

Find somewhere you can actually study. If you get distracted working in your bedroom don't work there. If the study commons or coffee shop is noisy and you need quiet don't work there. If the library is cold and it's distracting you don't work there. Find a space that will keep you on track (this can be hard depending on your needs but if it is hard TALK TO YOUR DEPARTMENT / UNI ADMIN- personally I had real difficulty adjusting to how noisy American university libraries are so I talked to a prof and he was like 'you can work in this disused classroom' - solved!).

Hand writing notes helps retention and also you will not be tempted to copy and paste note style writing into an essay. Again this really depends on what you are like as a student but I used to have this massive hang up that EVERYTHING I typed had to come out PERFECT. Now I am queen of The Draft(tm). I free-write/brain dump everything I think about my topic into my notebook. Then I type a first draft - even if some of the points are literally analysed by me typing "bla bla something about sun tanning and the beauty industry'. Then I print it out and go through and mark it with a coloured pen. THEN I type it up. Not edit it. I type it up from scratch. Then I read it aloud and make minor edits and submit.

Do your readings and go to class! Not sure if you have classes but if you do hijack that shit when appropriate. Obviously don't be That Guy. But if you are in a class and the discussion is moving towards talking about the presentation of Hollywood in F Scott Fitzgerald's work and you want to write an essay on that then speak up and utilise the hive mind. Say 'what do you guys think about how this guy uses a megaphone in this part and what does it tell us about different kinds of "directing" going on in this book?' Just say it- maybe someone else has noticed something you haven't and it will help!!

Anyway I hope this was helpful but please get in touch if I can provide any more clarification or examples! My final tip is to crush it ☺

[mel-the-fangirl]

Lady Killer - Requested

Tom Holland x Reader

Words: 2,174 (wooooo)

Requested by: anonymous

“Can you do one where tom is like sort of a player and you like him but pushed your feelings aside since he would never commit. But then he realizes he loved you the whole time you were friends and tries to win you back after you started dating someone etc etc??”

I have two completely different versions for this one, I’m such a mess lol. I am so so sorry this took forever. Ily. Good lord, I hope you like this one. REQUESTS ARE CLOSED FOR NOW. I’m sorry!!

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

“So what was her name this time?”

“I’m not entirely sure.. I think it was DeeDee? Something along those lines.”

“Your phone says it was Corinne and she thanks you for an amazing night.”

“Oi, give that here!”

Your friend, Tom, snatched his phone from your hands. Although hanging out with him was always the highlight of your day, there were always unanswered texts and missed calls that you would spot on his phone from different numbers that made your blood boil.

Tom was a full blown player, he didn’t look like it but that was what he was. And what were you? Oh, you were just his best girl friend (note the space between the words), who would hang out with him all the time until a booty call worth his attention called him away.

You were also his best girl friend who was in love with him, very reluctantly in love. It was such an unpleasant cliché, falling for a handsome, wickedly charming lady killer like Tom. Why you kept hanging out with him, you didn’t know why. Actually you did. You kept hanging out because you loved being with him.

But whatever, right?

“How did I get DeeDee from Corinne?” Tom mumbled to himself, standing from his seat. You two were on the train, heading back to his apartment from a late lunch. Your stop had just been called.

“Excuse me.”

You two turned around to find a chesty blonde eyeing Tom flirtily.

Really? On public transportation?

The blonde slyly handed Tom a slip of paper and winked at him before walking off to another part of the train. The doors opened and you couldn’t get out of there fast enough, your feet carried you speedily towards the turnstiles.

“Hey, Y/N! Wait up!”

Tom caught up with you and placed an arm around your shoulders, you really, really wanted to shrug him off but you didn’t want him to know you were affected. You two exited the train station like that, his arm around you. People looking on the outside would assume that you two were together and you wished they were right.

It was such a lovely day, as lovely as it could get in grey old London. The sun surely wasn’t going to be shining any time soon but it wasn’t as dreary and miserable as it usually was and it certainly wasn't as dreary and miserable as you.

“What’s up?” Tom asked you once you reached the park in his neighbourhood. He sat on one of the benches and patted the space next to him.

“What do you mean?” you asked as you sat

A harsh gust of wind blew past, making your hair fly into your face. You heard Tom laugh as he scooted closer to help you out. His hands wove into your wild hair, smoothing it back so you could finally see. The feel of his fingers combing through your hair was soothing, you closed your eyes momentarily.

“Y/N, we've been friends for quite some time, love. Don't you think I'd know when something's bothering you?” he spoke softly, tracing your cheekbone with the tip of his fingers

It felt heavenly.

“Was it the blonde on the train? I won't call her if you don't want me to. She's pretty fit though, it'd be a shame to miss out.” he mumbled the last part under his breath

That made you crash back down to earth. Why did he always have to ruin moments like this with his stupidity. You caught his hand before he could touch you again and you gave him a tight smile.

“Don't flatter yourself, Tom. I'm not jealous, I just got a bit dizzy.”

“Oh, so you don't mind if I call her up?” he already had his phone out, typing in the number on the little piece of paper he was given

“I'll be a minute, Y/N.” he kissed you on the cheek and went farther away, phone pressed to his ear

Why did it have to be like this? You just couldn't understand it, was there something wrong with you? How come Tom couldn't see you that way? Why was he always looking for something else when you were right there at his side?

All the questions floating around in your head didn't have answers, none that you could find, at least. You'd always tried your best to push aside your feelings for Tom since he was.. Well, Tom, and he didn't want anything serious. But every time you looked at him and he gave you that stupid smile, it felt hopeless.

Tom walked back to you, a smug look on his face.

“Got your date?" you asked, hoping his answer wouldn't hurt you too much

“Don't I always?” he replied, sitting back down and stretching his arms above his head

Ugh.

The following weeks, you and Tom continued your tradition of meeting for a late lunch then sitting at the park, swapping stories. The names in his would change regularly while only one name was the headline of yours.

“Y/N, you talk about this Sebastian a lot. Is there something I should know?” he questioned once he finally got fed up with it

You couldn't help the rosy blush that coated your cheeks, Tom noticed it and felt his heart drop. He waited for your reply with mild nervousness.

“Well.. Sebastian is the guy I'm dating, sort of."

“Dating? You're.. Dating someone?”

The stare he was giving you almost bore holes onto your face. Why was he looking at you like that?

“Jesus, Tom. Is that really so unbelievable?” you ran a hand through your hair, flustered

“No! No, that's not what I meant, Y/N! I just.. You do talk about him a lot but I didn't know you were dating him.”

Or anyone actually, he thought to himself. Tom crossed his arms and squared his shoulders, struggling to push off the uneasy feeling he was getting.

“So, tell me about him.”

You fiddled with the ring on your index finger, twisting it around and around. Tom observed the soft smile that was beginning to form on your lips.

“Well, he's quite nice really. Handsome.”

Tom rolled his eyes but you went on, giddiness blooming in your chest. He watched you beneath furrowed brows, the light in your eyes, the way you radiated a different aura when you talked about this Sebastian. He didn't like it one bit.

“Don’t tell me you fancy him already.” he didn't like the jealous undertones in his voice. He wasn't jealous. He shouldn't even be jealous.

“Maybe I do.”

“Oh, come on, Y/N. You've been on what, a couple of dates?” he scoffed in an attempt to hide how hurt he was starting to feel

“At least it’s been a couple of dates, you bed your date in the same fucking night.” you retorted harshly

Neither of you spoke, the stinging truth of what you said was still making its rounds within Tom. You wished you could feel bad, the way he was dejectedly looking down at his hands should've made you want to apologise. But it didn't.

“I'm going to head home. Text you whenever.”

He didn’t acknowledge that you said anything nor did he make a move as you left. Tom remained there on the bench, deep in thought.

Later that night you were all dressed up and ready for your date with Sebastian. He'd texted you that he was on his way but it’s been quite some time since then, it wasn't like him to be late and not let you know.

You were just about to call him to ask where he was when there was a knock on your door. You excitedly rushed to get it.

“Hey, I was just about to call you-”

“Well, I'm glad to hear that.”

There was indeed a handsome man on your doorstep, but it wasn’t the one you were expecting. Tom was standing in front of you, a big smile on his face.

“What in the hell are you doing here?” you hissed, stepping out and shutting the door behind you

He just gave you a dazzling smile in response, it just made your heart flutter. You hated it how even though he manages to piss you off monumentally, just one smile could thaw your initially icy demeanor towards him.

Before you could even stop yourself, a smile came unbidden onto your face. Once Tom saw you smiling back at him, he visibly relaxed. Because if his initial plan of standing at your doorstep while he smiled charmingly at you didn’t work, he’d have to resort to plan B, which was getting down on his knees and begging you not to slam the door in his face.

“I’m glad you’re dressed, you look beautiful, darling.”

Heat climbed up to your cheeks at his compliment. Despite dating Sebastian, and despite Sebastian being so sweet and nice, Tom still owned your heart, he always has.

“Tom, what are you doing here? I have a date, he should be arriving any minute now.” you made it a point to look up and down your street, searching for any sign of Sebastian

“That Sebastian really is nice.” he told you as he led you into his car, you wondered why you were just going along with him.

He slid into the driver’s seat and started the engine.

“What made you say that?” you asked as he left your street

“Well.. I might have.. Intercepted him as he arrived at your house. He was quite gracious about it.” Tom sounded impressed

“Oh my God, Tom. What the hell is this? Where the hell are we even going?”

“This is a date. And it’s a secret, sort of.” he stated, plain and simple. Tom Holland was finally taking you out on an actual date, after years of friendship and your one-sided feelings.

This certainly wasn’t what you thought you’d be doing with your night. A hijacked date and your womanising friend driving you to some mysterious location.

Turns out the mysterious location wasn’t exactly mysterious. Tom had taken you to the park in his neighbourhood, the park where you two always went. You climbed out into the cool night, Tom brought out a picnic basket and a few blankets.

You made the familiar trek to yours and Tom’s usual bench but as you walked closer, you noticed that fairy lights were strung along the sides, making it look like it was glowing.

“You did this?” you asked

“Uh, yeah,” he scratched the back of his neck, chagrined. “I know it’s not much.”

“It’s beautiful.” you mumbled as you sat down

Tom set the picnic basket down on the ground and wrapped a blanket around yourselves. He sat facing you, you felt the need to position yourself the same way. And so you two sat there, the fairy lights projecting shapes and shadows on your faces.

“Y/N,” he began, taking your hand in his “You’ve always been so kind to me, so patient. You’ve always been a good friend and you’ve always been there for me, even when I was being an asshole. And I never deserved any of it.”

You started to shake your head but he squeezed your hand to stop you from saying anything.

“Just, let me finish.” he took a deep breath and continued, “I never deserved you, Y/N. The things I’ve been doing, how I’ve acted, I know you never approved but you never said anything, you just let me be myself until I realised that I wanted to change.”

“And that’s what I love about you. You never pressured me to be something I’m not but I’m ready to change now, Y/N. It took you dating someone else just to make it all clear for me. I’ve been so busy getting caught up in other people,” his eyebrows knitted together

“That I didn’t see that I had this amazing person right next to me. And I’m sorry, Y/N, I apologise from the bottom of my heart that-that it took so long for me to realise..” Tom trailed off, gazing into your eyes like a man seeing colour for the first time in a field of flowers in the spring

The weight of his words began to sink in, you looked at him with wide eyes.

“Y-You mean..?” you stammered

He nodded, scootching closer to you. His hands moved up and down your arms.

“I’m here, if you’ll have me. Flaws and all. I know it might be hard considering.. What I was like, but Y/N, I promise you. On my mum’s life. I won’t hurt you. I may already have before but I swear to you,” Tom’s eyes shone with such emotion against the glow of the fairy lights

“I swear I will take care of you, I will love you and only you for the rest-”

You’d heard enough, you leaned over and pressed your lips against his.

Finally.

[beaniegender]

Fandom Fic Rec Days - My Personal Favorites Fic Rec List!

In honor of #ficrecdays (happening Feb. 10th, 11th, and 12th), and my stupidly long ao3 bookmarks page which is a pain to go through, I want to make this list of the best of the the best of my favorite fics - the ones that make me gasp or laugh or cry and just generally ache at their beauty each time I read them. I hope you’ll read and enjoy them too! I encourage you to try something even outside a fandom you know well because all of these works are great fiction in their own right.

This list includes a total of 24 fics or series from nine fandoms: James Bond (3 works), The Martian (1 work), Marvel which is mostly Captain America (5 works/series), Soccer RPF which is all FC Barcelona RPF (4 works/series), Star Trek (2 works), Star Wars (1 work), Supernatural (2 works/series), True Blood (1 work), and The West Wing (5 works).

Some of these fics are already wildly popular, but in order to promote less popular fic a bit more, within a fandom works are sorted from least to most ao3 kudos. Read on and discover my absolute favorite fanfics!

James Bond

Search and Seizure by @kryptaria00q and @stephrc79 (16670 words, James Bond/Q/Alec Trevelyan) - After two assassination attempts on MI6 executives, the British Secret Service now requires self-defence training for all high level employees. Bond and Alec have taken it upon themselves to help keep their lover safe, no matter how much Q might hate them for it. Too bad they never seem to be able to stay on track. (a.k.a. frisking porn with plot)

basically trust porn along with being real porn. everyone’s POV gets shown off and it’s just so much fun watching these boys interact when they so obviously care for each other!

Treasons, Traitors, and Treachery by kryptaria and @zooeyscigar (63245 words, James Bond/Q) - All James Bond wanted was a quiet holiday on his luxury motoryacht on the Costa del Sol. Time to recuperate and think about his future with MI6. But his plans get hijacked when a traitor to the crown returns, bringing news of an even greater threat to MI6. And the traitor isn’t working alone. Thankfully, neither is James.

every single character in here is written flawlessly, and the OC is one of the BEST OCs to ever OC. There’s sass and hilarity, believably written government intrigue, and a very realistic level of depth in all the characters.

so you were never a saint. by @paperclipbitch (12319 words, gen) - “I think Bond’s trying to be your friend,” Eve tells him. “…well,” Q says slowly, “this is a new and disturbing development.”

the asexual!Q epic that defined a lot of my Q headcanons. also a lot of my MONEYPENNY IS AMAZING headcanons! it’s sort of an ensemble fic and sort of a character study and it just makes me like MI6 so much.

The Martian

You Know You Have a Permanent Piece of My Medium-Sized American Heart by tricatular [on tumblr but I’m not able to tag them, sorry!] (9151 words, gen) - “Hey Hermes!” The ambient suspicion level in the Rec ratcheted up significantly. Kapoor was disturbingly cheerful. “We’ve sent you some mission updates in the data dump, but Mitch and I wanted to personally let you know—” Mitch visibly rolled his eyes in the background. “—That thanks to some…strong suggestions from the White House, and on Annie and Director Sanders’ recommendation, we’ve started releasing Watney’s Mars logs to the public.”

deftly mixes standard narration, transcripts of recordings, and social media posts to show what Mark’s journal back to Earth would have been like both for him and for everyone who cared about his story (ie. the whole planet).

Marvel / Captain America

Walking Far From Home by TaleWorthTelling (6222 words, various Sam-centric pairings) - Sam’s relationship with birds starts early and inexplicably.

basically, Sam Wilson’s whole life. as the author’s note says, “Sam is the only person with his shit together, but he got there the hard way.” and then we’re treated to 6000 words of what that path was like, including stellar input from Sam’s OC family and the familiar MCU favorites. and Sam can talk to birds!

The Murder Ballads by BetteNoire (160839 words, 3 works, Steve/Bucky) - Something wicked is coming for Steve Rogers. Luckily for him, something even more wicked stands in its way: the unrepentant, unbroken Bucky Barnes. A murder-mystery/action thriller with violence, magic, and several big MCU guest stars.

like most CA fans I’ve read a stupid amount of post-winter soldier fic, so the first praise for this series is that it has a completely original take on that subject. and that take - the plot complexity, the multi-layered characterizations, the sequel - made me fall in love with Bucky all over again and permanently changed the way I think of him.

your blue-eyed boys by Feather (123233 words, 4 works, Steve/Bucky with sides of Pepper/Tony, Bruce/Betty, and Clint/Natasha) - Steve has no plan. Not because he hadn’t tried to make one. He’d tried to make lots of plans. Plan, adapt, plan again, tried to think of every contingency. And then he’d thrown them away, because there wasn’t much point. What could you plan for? He couldn’t guess the possible contingencies, the situations, the potentials. And he sure as sure hadn’t figured on what’s happened now, on coming back to his place and finding Bucky here. He hadn’t even hoped for that. He hadn’t realized he could. [post-Winter Soldier recovery fic]

if you’d like a slightly more typically-plotted approach to your post-WS fic than “The Murder Ballads” you absolutely can’t go wrong with “your blue-eyed boys”. it’s the most realistic version of Bucky’s recovery that I can imagine - heartbreaking and sickening and real. and the love between Steve and him and the team as a whole is obvious. DON’T MISS the associated verse, which is 450000 words (and growing) of shortfic in the same timeline, and which incidentally has the best OCs in the entire fandom.

Hollow Your Bones Like a Bird’s by @scifigrl47 (95514 words, Clint/Phil) - In the wake of the Chitauri invasion, Clint Barton wakes up in a world that he very nearly had a hand in destroying. And confronting a loss he might not be able to cope with. The Avengers always needed something to avenge, but once the crisis is past, what keeps them together?

I have yet to see a better representation of grief in fanfic, and that’s only maybe half of Clint’s problems in this fic. maybe you’ve noticed I like realism when fic deals with hard topics, and this shies away from nothing - and Clint will treat you to excellent analyses of his friends, as well as many bird facts, along the way!

Ain’t No Grave (Can Keep My Body Down) by spitandvinegar [on tumblr but I’m not able to tag them, sorry!] (107076 words, Steve/Bucky) - It’s six in the morning, and Steve is heading out on a run when he nearly trips over a bouquet of sunflowers on the front steps of his brownstone. For a second paranoia takes over, and he kicks the flowers a little, waiting for them to explode. They don’t. They also came with a card, which he picks up. The front of the card has a tasteful picture of the Brooklyn bridge at sunset. It’s very nice and sedate, like the kind of card you would buy to give to your boss. On the inside someone has written a short message in big, shaky block letters. I AM SORRY FOR SHOOTING YOU. Steve sits down hard on the steps.

ok yet more wonderfully detailed post-ws Bucky trying to recover fic, except in this one Bucky is homeless and a drug addict and ADOPTS THE BEST OCS with the BEST POVS EVER, oh my GOD. also Steve is smart and kind, Sam is long-suffering (and smart and kind), and the whole thing is hilarious.

Soccer / FC Barcelona RPF

only the children (know what they’re looking for) by therestisdetail (7253 words, gen) - I drew a picture of him, later, but I shall not show it to you for it is a sad demonstration of what will happen if you stop drawing when you are six, and certainly much less charming than its model. He wore a shirt that was too large and had soft dark eyes hiding beneath dark, indecisive hair; it did not seem to know if it was short or long, or what shape it wanted to be. He was very pale, very slight, had no shoes, and held a battered football beneath one arm with an air of pride. (Le Petit Prince redone feat. FC Barcelona)

a young Andrés Iniesta meets an even younger Leo Messi, and they quite simply tear my heart in two. no knowledge of The Little Prince required, but the fic is just as understatedly beautiful as the original.

Like a Hand Grenade by @meretricula (20430 words, 2 works, Cesc/Messi) - Cesc Fabregas is born a girl. She still loves football.

full disclosure, I do not care about Cesc Fabregas. I didn’t care about Cesc Fabregas even before his career got, frankly, weird and dispiriting. but BY GOD these works make me care about genderbent!Cesc and everything she could have been. the sequel is particularly nice for some cameos from other well-loved players!

Go Gentle by @ferritin4​ (20977 words, eventually Xaviesta) - Things change, but only some things. In which Barça is indeed més que un club, no one stays on top forever, and it all comes back to Andrés in the end.

hands down my favorite football rpf. uses the A/B/O trope and the idea of pack dynamics to tell the story of the last decade of Barcelona football, which makes a hell of a lot of sense, and although Andrés is quietly the star, the different POVs let a lot of people shine.

It’s Going to Take a Lot to Drag Me Away from You by meretricula (31296 words, 10 works, Xaviesta, Fabregas/Messi/Pique, and Messilla) -  Everybody knows Barcelona’s midfielders are psychic anyway. (Soulbonding AU)

try to tell me that a soulbonding AU isn’t the most logical thing in the world for Xavi and Iniesta, just try to tell me that! there’s also a good look at how the politics of this system could get messy quick, which, let’s be real, just makes sense for barça-centric fic.

Star Trek

How Many Roads? or, 27 Times Jim Kirk hit on Nyota Uhura by Deastar (8806 words, Uhura/Spock) - After the bar fight, Nyota thinks to herself that if this is what being hit on by Jim Kirk leads to, she’s very glad she’s never going to have to see him again.

Uhura and Kirk’s relationship goes from the dumpster fire it was in Iowa to the professional respect we get throughout the movies, but we never really see how it happens. this fic shows all of that and much more, and oh my god, I just like these characters so much.

Counteractive Measures by rikke_leonhart (9159 words, loosely Kirk/Spock) - The thing is – giving Jim Kirk a dare will never ever work. “Enlist,” she repeats to herself as Pike’s back disappears out the door. She snorts. It’s one of those things that just keep getting funnier.

Jim Kirk’s whole life - if Jim Kirk were a girl, and slightly less cliche about her motivations and psychology. and if Spock and especially McCoy were just as awesome as ever, because of course they are!

Star Wars

The Last Poem of Jedha by @schweinsty (15486 words, gen) - How Bodhi Rook temporarily misplaced the two most important things in the galaxy, and how he found them again (with a little help).

literally every fic on this list is amazing, I promise, but this one is my favorite out of them all. if you’ve ever cared about star wars for five seconds, please read this. the world-building, the characterizations, the plot structure, the family and team relationships: all stellar!

Supernatural

In His Image by @whitmerule (153067 words, Gabriel/Sam and Castiel/Dean) - Kali can breathe life back into a corpse, but what exactly is Gabriel now? Gabriel flits around various centuries trying to work that out, Dean has another powered-down angel and a little brother to look out for, Castiel has forgotten how to trust, and someone keeps sending Sam annoying little notes on his laptop. Oh, and Bobby would like to remind you all that there’s an Apocalypse still going on. Covers season 5 from Gabriel’s death to the finale.

half season 5 AU, half historical fiction, it feels like one story thread should distract from the other but instead it all works together to make the definitive Gabriel-centric story!

Sammyverse by shangrilada (249230 words, 42 works, gen) - It’s an AU, but not a deep one, until season 4 or thereabouts, where it starts to get kind of weird. Basically, Sam has really hideous asthma, and the boys are both pretty excellent at dealing with it and each other. They’re [not] all from Dean’s POV, and even though I’m branching now into later stuff, I’m going to keep doing pre-Stanford–Season 2 for a long time because that makes me happy. Honestly it’s a lot of H/C porn of the boys just being friendly and affectionate towards each other, because that’s how I like them. It is, to put it simply, gen. To put it more honestly, it’s as fucked up as I see it in canon and not a bit more or less. You can read into it as much or as little as you like.

it’s just like the show, except Sam is chronically ill and also the boys like each other. based on the show you might think the boys already like each other, but my friends, this ‘verse will show you just how much was missing. Dean’s internal monologues are things of beauty, and I love how much Jess is featured in the Stanford-era fics. (note: this master list includes most but not all of the fic in the verse, so if you’d like the rest be sure to check the author’s page or ask me for links!)

True Blood

We Who Are Alive And Remain by @branwyn-says (10448 words, Sookie/Eric) - Terrified by changes she witnesses in herself, Sookie hides from the world and everyone in it. When Eric finds out her secret, she will either find that he is worthy of her trust-or she’ll be dead.

the non-linear timeline makes this fic shine, and from the very beginning the plot is intriguing. before the plot is resolved we get to see a lot about who Sookie is who Eric is to her, and the dynamics between Sookie and nearly everyone in her life.

The West Wing

We Don’t Notice Time Pass by pene (1304 words, gen) -  “I’d no idea you’d even met her.” It’s friendship and it’s women.

focusing on female friendship within The West Wing is annoyingly difficult, but this story focuses on what relationships among women can be. Mrs. Landingham acts as a bit of a mentor to Ainsley, and Ainsley’s relationship with her childhood best friend is achingly and heartwarmingly true to life.

Define Your Terms by candle_beck (4443 words, Josh/Sam) -  It’s very complicated inside Josh’s head.

Josh is manic and about five conversations ahead of Sam. it works out because these two idiots care about each other very, very strongly. I love Josh’s mental voice in this one!

Vidui by Marguerite (7358 words, gen) - In the fall of 2001, Toby went to shul. In past years he had carried sins enough to confess, sins both petty and great, transgressions against God’s ordinances and those of men.

a beautiful meditation on Toby’s relationship with the people he works with/calls his family, through an explicitly Jewish lense. Toby is the person, and the Jew, that I wish I could be <3</p>

The Thinner the Skin by Jane St Clair (2149 words, Josh/Sam) - Of couches and expensive suits, with some mention of madness.

if you’re going to write a Josh/Sam post-Noel fic, this is unquestionably the way to do it! nothing is shied away from but there’s all the best kind of comfort that h/c can offer, and nice backstory details that make the characters seem realer.

highways and byways and roads in between by @greatestheights​ (10456 words, Josh/Donna) - “Maps are for losers. Maps are for people with no sense of adventure, like you, and…I don’t know. Toby, probably.” Josh, Donna, the open road, five states, and some of the things they said while they were driving.

Josh and Donna and, just, everything that they are (that is, a well-meaning idiot and better than you, respectively), with a healthy dose of Donna/career. everyone is characterized spotlessly, the dialogue is episode-caliber, and there’s fun local geography/culture!

[lufancy]

Rosary

Resistance!AU (?) - angst

a/n: This is written for someone very dear to me who passed away yesterday. She experienced WOII and told me her heartbreaking love story I will never forget. So because of that, I have written this. 

Every day people were taken away, ever since the enemy occupied the country. It could be your friendly neighbour, your family, maybe even the one you loved.

The current queen of my country has fled to England for safety, that’s were they couldn’t get them. That’s where she was able to reassure the people of her land to have hope through the radio.

However, people living in my country were living in fear.

Like a dark cloud that has come to shadow their lives, they are scared. Scared because they don’t know if today would their last day. People were hiding, holding their breaths, acting like they were fine when actually they were not. They are afraid to die but they try to have gope.

‘If you have done nothing wrong, you have nothing to hide and we will not harm you.’

Those were the words of the enemy. Yet they attack innocent lives as if it’s all a game.

All that, only for power.

Everyone lived in poverty ever since the enemy entered. Not only had they bombed their way in, they also started to make the rules. Rules that would only benefit them.

Who was going to save all of these people?

Only a small group of people called the resistance tried to take action against the unwanted suppressor. One of those people was my boyfriend; Kim Junmyeon.

He was brave, loving and fought for what he felt was right. It made him sick to the stomach to see soldiers brutally ripping families apart and killing people for ridiculous reasons.

He was one of the leaders, and he led a small group of 8 other brave men who joined the resistance.

I remember him coming back home one day. A beaming smile on his handsome face as he opened his arms to embrace me, then spun me around. Just before he kissed my lips he gazed into my eyes. “You won’t believe what I’ve just been told.”

“What?” I laughed.

“I have been assigned to do a huge mission. One that could take the third biggest concentration camp down.” However instead of being excited I started to become worried… sad even, “There was an attack on a camp a few days ago which they won, but the ambushers – probably the Allies - were smart enough to bomb the place where the enemy keeps their weapons. Apparently they ordered a truck to fill the lack of weapons - and here comes the good part - Doyoung’s group hijacked the truck! Which means the camp is extremely vulnerable right now!”

He never had to do anything that dangerous before. The missions he usually got were sneaking targeted people across the friendly border to put them further away from the enemy but this… this could get him killed instantly. “Why isn’t Doyoung leading the mission then?”

The happy face on his face fades away and his volume lowers, “He died during the whole ordeal.”

He died.

A leader stronger than Junmyeon died.

How am I supposed to let him do this mission then? It’s way more dangerous.

“I don’t know, Jun. It sounds risky.” I try to convince him with my worried eyes but I can see there was no convincing possible.

He held me by the shoulders as to make it clear and said my name in a serious tone, “This could save a lot of lives. Thousands.”

“I find no amount of lives enough to risk yours.” His face softened. This could be a one-way ticket to misery and he knew, but he was going to contribute to the end of this country’s suppression. Yet he could understand my worry, because in the end I was as important to him as he was to me. “What am I going to do if this doesn’t work out?”

“Don’t make that face, you know my heart won’t be able to take it.” His hand was on my cheek, caressing in comfort. “I love you, and I’m sorry for putting you in worry but… I feel like this is the right thing to do.” His expression became pained. Yes, he had his doubts but he couldn’t back down now. “Look, I will be getting a lot more men. Do you remember Yoo? He will be going too as a leader; you know he is strong.”

“Yoo? All I know about him is that he’s hot tempered and very jealous of my smart boyfriend.” I smiled.

I remember Yoo as the man angry because Junmyeon got to become leader before him. “But he has never lost a fight and neither will I. Besides, I will pray. God will hear me.”

The day Junmyeon left for his mission was dreary. I cried in his arms and he tried to comfort me as much as possible. He had a lump in his throat too from leaving me like this, crying. He promised me to come back and there was a fire in his eyes that couldn’t be stopped easily.

“Please return to me safely.” I cried into his chest.

He was trembling a little so I knew this was hard for him too. “I’m going to miss you, babe.” He kissed me tenderly before letting go.

“Come on love birds, get off each other. We’re going.” Yoo interrupted us and Junmyeon sent daggers his way.

I wiped away my hot tears and tried to fix myself by putting on a brave face. “Do y-you have everything?”

He laughed, surprised to hear such a question instead of telling him to not go again. He raised his hand and spread his fingers to show me the rosary hanging on his fingers. This is what he prayed to every day. God would hear him and keep him safe. Definitely.

Sixty years later have gone by since then and I have become much older. I have kids, and those kids even have children. Although I’m old, wrinkly and a lot slower than before there is still much life in me.

“Grandmother, what’s this?” I saw my grandchild Eun on his toes trying to see what was lying on the big cupboard table. His finger was digging into the small glass saucer where he held up the item on it with his finger. “A necklace?”

“Don’t touch it so carelessly, Eunnie.” I picked him up. He was a lot heavier than a few years ago. “This is a rosary.”

His eyes widened in curiosity, “Special necklace?”

“It’s what people use to pray with.” He cocked his head in confusion. The rosary had a beautiful silver cross at the end and it’s still as shiny as I first received it.

“Where did you get this from, grammy?” He giggles and started playing with it.

I put Eun down and sat him on the sofa then put the rosary back. “I’ll tell you a story, Eun. Back when there was a war, the one you learned about in school, I had a boyfriend, Kim Junmyeon. He was with the resistance, and was a very manly and brave man. One day he went on a big mission to save people, but was betrayed. When he tried to save people, the enemy was already waiting for him. Because of that he was captured and thrown into a camp. Someone there managed to get out and gave me this saying; ‘He begged me to please give this to his girlfriend.’ And that’s the last I’ve ever from him…”

“Do you miss him, grammy?” By now Eun had a runny nose and was in tears because of the story. He was quite emotional so I hugged him as he cried while in my hug.

“Tremendously, this was the rosary he prayed with every day, and now I use it every day to pray, for him.”

a/n: In case you are wondering what part of this had actually happened and what not: first of all Kim Junmyeon was not her boyfriend hahahah. I just used him because he seems like a good soldier. Also I added many extra elements.

The story I was told:

‘Back during World War II, I had a boyfriend and we were both in the resistance. He got betrayed and was put into a concentration camp. There was someone who escaped and my boyfriend gave him this rosary, asking if he could ‘Please give it to my girlfriend’ It was the rosary he used every day to pray with, and now every day I use it to pray for him.’ And she did, she protected it really well and always kept it on her cupboard table… I’m basically Eun (and I chose Eun because I watched Scarlet Heart hahaha)

I miss her..

May she rest in peace..

NOTE: I refrained from using any countries in this scenario…..

[gulescamisade]

New York:  Day 2

JOHN: - ASSUMING they ended up sleeping in an alley, John probably cuddled up with Kankri. However, he miserably wakes up over and over to vomit, straying farther away from the group during these excursions for courtesys sake. He gets more sweaty, stumbly and shaky the more this goes on-

ROSE: -She looks up from her typing to watch John. At some point he feels her hand on his back, rubbing in little circles.- Good morning. ROSE: It is a punctual wake up call, if I were pressed to say one good thing about this place.

JOHN: - he is NOT having a good morning but he wheezes and smiles anyway. He's chewing some peppermint gum, and still slathering on the Vicks which is helping somewhat- yeah, no kidding. bright and early in flavor town.

ROSE: As far as I can tell, based on the feed, no one else is in any danger. ROSE: Immediate danger, I should say. But we're not sure where Roxy, Jake, your father or the cherubs are.

ROSE: It could be a good sign that they're off the grid like that.

JOHN: - Thank you for providing a positive option he'll be choosing that one- yeah. i mean... my dad is with them. i'm not worried. he probably has things on lock down. - oh how ironic this statement is-

JOHN: d'ya want some water? the only food i have is cake but i have lots of water bottles. - also the sort of shock blankets EMTs carry. there were likely three that they all had to share. -

ROSE: Wherever it is, I presume it's better than what you'd get if Banksy were commissioned to construct a parody of a city.

ROSE: ...Yeah. that would actually help a lot.

JOHN: - passes her one-

JOHN: - SIGHS because he already really hates this place. - this is beyond banksy this is like what michael bay would've done if youd asked him for a dystopian flick. pretty on the nose, betty. just sayin...

ROSE: Nothing is on fire except for our reliable steel trash fire, John, and I would never insult our most stalwart ally that way.

ROSE: Although if I see one single depiction of Ronald McDonald anywhere, I am extraordinarily liable to flip a tit.

JOHN: well i hate to say it, Rose but in all likelihood your tit is getting flipped.

ROSE: I said a tit, John, not necessarily any of mine. Ronald -- can I call him Ronald? Is that deemed appropriate?-- likely has at least one under that puffy yellow garment.

ROSE: All I am saying is that it is likely to be golden brown on both sides.

ROSE: Not unlike the McGriddle.

JOHN: - laughs helplessly even tho he doesn't want to. STAHP-

ROSE: -She twists open the water bottle-- grateful that they've got something-- taking a sip. Her head still hurts, but it's normal style headache, not migraine getting nuked by all the lights of times square, so she can deal a lot better.- ROSE: I mostly have some of Baldur's baby food I prepared. ROSE: I doubt that will last terribly long, but I'd like to avoid any of the food here if we can help it.

ROSE: So, we have banana and peanut butter mush, and cake.

JOHN: maybe the others have some more stuff. - he doesn't wanna wake them up yet tho. let them rest... -

ROSE: Well, it could be a lot worse.

JOHN: hey I'm not knocking banana peanut butter mush. sounds good honestly. - except he's not interested in any food rn, he's too nauseated. the only reason he stopped vomiting is because is tum is empty except for water-

ROSE: It is. Protein and at least one kind of potassium. The possibilities are endless.

MEULIN: -She's slept pretty restlessly -- post-traumatic stress and dangerous locations will do that to you -- and only manages to sleep soundly once she sees familiar words scrolling over her sunglasses, knowing that at least someone else was awake to watch out in her stead. It was difficult having only so many senses, being unable to tell if any noise should alert them. Now, though, she stirs again, squinting in whatever haze of light manages to permeate the neon signs.-

http://www.guyfieri.com/wp-content/themes/guyfieri/images/xshow-header-bigbite.jpg.pagespeed.ic.2DQMNZ--Hj.jpg

[ GOOD MORNING MEULIN ]

MEULIN: -SQUINTS LOUDER AT THIS SIGN.- (GUY CAN TAKE A BIG BITE OF MY BOOTY.)

JOEY: =rubs at her eyes, sitting up= ...what guy?

[HE MIGHT]

ROSE: Fieri, comma.

ROSE: Morning.

JOEY: oh....

JOEY: he's still a thing?

ROSE: I took the liberty to scout by air a bit. I can confirm two things.

ROSE: One is that this city is hopelessly large, and most of the buildings are equipped with searchlights on the highest floors.

ROSE: The other is that he is very much still a thing.

ROSE: He's plastered all over the place.

JOEY: sorry ive been out of the loop in this universe for quite some time now

JOEY: i can tell you in some of them he is but a distant memory

JOEY: although it might be to give the world a false sense of security, waiting to rise again

MEULIN: UGGHH...

MEULIN: I'M SO MAD THAT MY BODY IS EVEN LETTING ME F33L HUNGRY RIGHT NOW.

ROSE: Let's start a fair clip back, actually.

ROSE: Should I be horrified by him? more so than everything else about this place, I mean?

[He's only the high chaplain of interstellar war. The key architect of the hilarocaust itself. Pay no mind to the fact that he ruthlessly murdered and cooked every supreme court justice in his rise to power]

JOEY: your guess is as good as mine =shrugs= i dunno what this version of him is supposed to be like

JOEY: hes either a harmless cook with his own tv show using way too much grease or not many really know about him

JOEY: here its obviously not the case

ROSE: Right.

ROSE: It's fine. We should eat, anyhow. Keep our strength up without succumbing to the Big Bite. Do any of you have food on you?

JOEY: oh shit! =rummages through her sylladex= i have a bag of milky ways!

ROSE: I wonder how long we can last on candy and baby food.

MEULIN: I HAVE. UM.

MEULIN: ...

MEULIN: ...EDIBLES...

JOEY: =places a milky way fun size bar on her sleeping brother's head=

ROSE: Edible what, exactly?

MEULIN: ...RR...

JOEY: boogers are edible, yet....im not feeling that

MEULIN: PRETZELS. AND... RICE KRISPIES...

MEULIN: BUT THEY'RE. YOU KNOW.

JOEY: ???

ROSE: I really don't. Although I should disclose I was working under the assumption you were talking about edible panties or body chocolate.

ROSE: So they're probably not worse than that.

JOEY: =LAUGHS=

MEULIN: HAHAHA!

MEULIN: UH... WELL THEY'RE. YOU S33... THEY ARE NIP INFUSED.

MEULIN: SO.........

ROSE: Oh.

ROSE: Well, that'll at least help us cope.

MEULIN: YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT, AND ALSO. WE PURROBABLY SHOULDN'T EAT TOO MANY IN ONE SITTING.

ROSE: We'll ration.

JOEY: hehehehehe

JOEY: we get high or get cavities

JOEY: it's a race to either

MEULIN: -casually pulls out Rice Krispies on that note... TIME TO GET FUCKING BLAZED. She offers one each to Joey and Rose.-

ROSE: ...Thank you. -TIME TO DO A WEED BREAKFAST. she might reconsider but she's sick of her head hurting, and she hasn't had a thing in her stomach since they arrived.-

JOEY: thanks

JOEY: =she wipes her hands on her pants before taking it. Does it help? Who knows?=

JOEY: =nibbles the krispie=

MEULIN: -They're pretty tasty and definitely Rice Krispie treats. They don't seem to taste any different than a normal one, but in about five to ten minutes they should feel a nice buzzy body high and a bit more floaty than before... depending on how high or low their tolerance is. They might be a lot floaty and a lot buzzy.-

JOEY: =she's a lusus vet. the occasion never called for drug use!=

JAMISON: =slowly lifts a manhole cover then jumps out of it. Where has this old man been?? Puts the cover back and scurries to the group= Oh fantastic you're eating! Here I've got some clean water. =thunks down a gallon jug, yes he's still shirtless... AND ARMED=

ROSE: -She's just starting to relax and let that buzzing feeling take over when JAMISON THE SUDDEN.-

ROSE: Fuck!

MEULIN: !! -IT'S THE RESPONSIBLE ADULT PARTY, EVERYONE SCATTER. But no she just smiles at Jamison.- HI! THANKS.

JOEY: =Nearly jumps out of her skin and fumbles with the rice krispie, almost dropping it. It's like when your parent catches you smoking! It's...almost like that, actually.=

ROSE: That was sudden. I figured you'd gone somewhere, but... It seems you went... There. This is good to have.

ROSE: Hello. Also.

JOEY: hiiii dad! um...where did you get the water?

JAMISON: Oh... didn't mean to give you all a start! Good morning! I'll go hunting down normal appearing meat later! No worries on the water I staked out a source and purified it myself with something I whipped up! :D

JOEY: =I knew it, it IS sewer water=

JAMISON: =LISTEN. SURVIVAL.=

ROSE: That's a relief. ROSE: We were just taking supply of what we've got. Suppose we'll be able to manage for long enough to figure which way is... out.

JAMISON: Any way can be out, missy! Haw! Simply pick a direction!

JOLENE: -waddles over after disappearing herself. this is a bad habit this family has.- agreed! and if it requires blowing holes into any of the buildings then i have explosives. :)

ROSE: Well. Shit. 

ROSE: Alright. I'd first want... a car. Because it seems kind of desperate if we're going to be making our getaway from acts of explosives on foot.

ROSE: I was thinking we could try and tail one of those freight trucks.

JOLENE: that's probably a good idea........ -she just wants to level this whole place-

JAMISON: =beams at Jojo= Like the old days!

ROSE: The old truck hijacking days.

JOLENE: it really takes me back...

JOEY: ive never heard this story =chinhands, munching on this riceweedie=

JAMISON: Oh! There's tons of stories we can tell!! =proudly beams=

ROSE: I'm sure there's... plenty of time.

JOHN: - HE GAVE MEULIN A LOOK LIKE... so it's you... you're the supplier. but given they're in a crisis situation he lets it slide. And takes a bite of a rice krispy hoping it will help with the nausea. -

JOLENE: yes, true. for now let's focus on getting out of here. -peeps the rice krispies- what have you got there?

ROSE: Breakfast. 

ROSE: Laced with a relaxant to dull the overwhelming stimulus of our environment.

ROSE: -WOW she's starting to think she's really good at being high-

JAMISON: They've scrounged up some-- oh? Hm........ 

JAMISON: So long as your reflexes are kept sharp!

JOHN: - How elegantly she puts it-

ROSE: :)

ROSE: :)

JOLENE: ... -squints-

JOLENE: are those weed rice krispies????????????????

ROSE: ...There is a mite touch of THC.

JAMISON: Awww come now Jojo! The youngsters aren't used to such dastardly dangers as we are!

JOHN: - please body digest these faster so he can feel not sick-

JOHN: - pleading with your body is a common medical practice don't you know-

JAMISON: Also it's a bit hard to find something that seems safe to consume out here.... I've even got looking for meat but I apparently haven't gone far enough on my last search!

JOHN: well i have lots of cakes

JOHN: they're safe... my dad made them.

JAMISON: Oh! Well that'll do finely! Good job old boy!

JOHN: it's not the most nutritious thing but...

JAMISON: Mustn't be picky about what you get to feast on in the wild, it could be the last meal you pass up! Haw!

MEULIN: CAKE IS GOOD. -thankfully being high makes you also want to eat just about anything... unless it's made by Guy, because fuck him.-

JOHN: - he breaks two out right now. months old but they're kept fresh although they might taste like they've been in hammer space for a little too long-

JOLENE: -frowns thinking about the cakes because she knows james is missing...- i'll have some cake. thank you, john.

JOHN: - he's frowning for the same reason-

JAMISON: I'll take one as well! Need to keep my wits sharp!! =THEY'LL FIND EVERYONE AND FIX JADE, BUCK UP EVERYONE!!!=

JAMISON: =HE BELIEVES!!=

JAMISON: Now then! I'll take that to go and SCOUT! :D

JOHN: -there's yellow cake that says HAPPY LATE DECEMBER and another one, chocolate that says HAPPY EARLY JANUARY

ROSE: Be careful. Try to avoid shooting anything.

ROSE: -EYES the cakes. REALLY, EGBERT FAMILY...-

JOLENE: .... -james............-

JAMISON: =DIBS ON THE YELLOW CAKE, pistol-winks at Rose= No promises but I will gather a route for us so get your rears in gear!!

JAMISON: And drink some water!

ROSE: -She is interrupted by a STOMACH GROWL. She levitates over a pretty large slice with her majyyks.-

JOLENE: -grabs a slice of chocolate cake and gobbles it down. YUM.-

JOHN: - HE makes sure everyone gets a large slice except himself because he's waiting for the cannabis to kick in-

JAMISON: =Bends down to touch his toes, stretches this way and that. If they're in the alley still he takes a running start at the wall and hardcore parkours his way up to the roof of one of the buildings= TALLY-HO!!!! =There he goes....=

JOHN: - bemused amazement at Jamison-

JOLENE: ... there he goes.

MEULIN: ...-shimmery eyes.- I WOULD TOTALLY DO THAT IF HE INVITED ME.

JOEY: so now we have dessert, candy, and happy times to fuel our energy =giggles=

ROSE: I... You know, that sort of reminds me. 

ROSE: Obviously you are not beholden to stay, but I haven't seen any other trolls, outside of our group. Right? Just humans and... Less... Healthy looking humans.

JOHN: that is weird now that you mention it...

JOEY: if the troll to human ratio is low here, theres a chance of another group out there with one human surrounded by trolls 

JOEY: =presses meulin's nose= boop

JOHN: hehehehe... boop! - does it too-

MEULIN: -IS BOOP!!!- (=ﾟ･ﾟ=) 

MEULIN: PRRP! -bunts at their hands. Pet her.-

JOHN: - It's good luck! he gladly gives her head scratches. -

MEULIN: MAYBE THERE'S A FLEASON. PRRRRR.

JOHN: i kind of imagined... more trolls?

ROSE: Yeah...

JOEY: =Pats Meulin's hair floof, shrugging=

JOEY: maybe were meant to be here

JOEY: if youre saying this isn't a coincidence

JOHN: -...THAT IS NOT A COMFORTING THOUGHT-

JOEY: =sorry! it's not a lullaby to her either=

ROSE: I don't doubt there was intent in the decision.

ROSE: What I would like to find is the purpose behind this place.

ROSE: What these glamorous banalities mask.

ROSE: You know, that shit.

MEULIN: PRRR PRRR... 

MEULIN: NOT GOOD STUFF. WHY WOULD THE EMPURR WANT TO F33D PEOPLE?

ROSE: Chemicals, probably. Fuck it.

JAMISON: =APPEARS again= Mind-control! Well.. it's a theory. Also if you have the necessities then you control the land. 

JAMISON: A typical tactic done with water mostly but food isn't any different!

ROSE: Chemicals. -nods-

JOHN: maybe the food is... - dramatic pause- PEOPLE

JOHN: nah just kiddin

JOHN: or not..???

ROSE: Let's not rule anything out.

JAMISON: True, we should keep open minds so to not be surprised! JAMISON: Whatever these devils are eating isn't good for them and I can't say cannibalism does a body good!

MEULIN: .....

MEULIN: UMM...

MEULIN: WELL...

JUDE: -he's in the bg here just perpetually going hhhhhhh-

MEULIN: I'M PURRETTY SURE THAT'S STILL A THING ALTERNIA DOES...

JAMISON: =Peeps Jude.......=

JAMISON: Well yes, for you troll lot it is fine you're biology is capable of handling it. The same can't be said with our own digestive system. =Do you need a hug Jude? A sweaty, shirtless, hairy dadhug?=

MEULIN: BLEH. MEULIN: BUT WASN'T THERE A SIGN ABOUT D33P FRYING BABIES?

MEULIN: -stares off into the neon distance...-

JAMISON: Then it's quite possible that cannibalism has been introduced or even forced upon locals!

JUDE: -nO NOT REALLY DAD BUT THANKS...-

JUDE: okay but haven't you noticed the traits the humans around here are taking on?

JUDE: ashen skin... they've got growths on their heads??

JUDE: it'd make sense if they're being forced to eat their own

JUDE: if the condesce is trying to convert humanity to troll customs-- no, worse

JUDE: convert them into trolls themselves

[No? Maybe. Look, it's a decent proposal. However, no, there aren't any signs EXPLICITLY advertising frying babies, or any other humans for that matter.]

MEULIN: -SHE COULD SWEAR SHE SAW ONE LAST NIGHT-

JAMISON: Why that's a silly thing to do EVEN FOR Fish Hitler...... =squints= so she might just be doing it..... JAMISON: Confound it the seabeast is no genius when it comes to biology!.... Perhaps capturing one for testing is necessary....

JAMISON: I'm sure I would whip up a DNA analyzer!

MEULIN: OH... -geck face- THAT'S SO SUPURR GROSS?? WHY WOULD ANYBODY DO THAT???

JOEY: its a motivation if the fish queen wants an army of mindless followers

JOEY: rebuilding her race to the extent that all choice or doubt in her reign has been taken from them

MEULIN: MAYBE SHE SHOULD CLAWNSIDER REBUILDING HER BUTT WHEN I PUT MY FOOT IN IT. -grumpy growls. This cat does not like this town.-

JAMISON: Well said! There's ample space for my fists of fury along with your boot old girl!

MEULIN: OH MY GOD I ONLY JUST REALIZED YOU CAME BACK.

ROSE: Haha. Fuck.

MEULIN: WE JUST HAD A CONFURSATION AND EVERYTHING.

JAMISON: Right-o! Never stray for long when there's work to be done!

JAMISON: So, seeing how shooting is against the group consensus what about capturing?

ROSE: I could justify that, yes.

ROSE: We want to avoid a ruckus until we're certain they cannot corner us.

MEULIN: (ฅ•ω•ฅ) MEULIN: I'M GOOD AT POUNCING. I'VE B33N PRACTICING MY WHOLE LIFE.

JOEY: .....(adorable...)

JAMISON: Meulin! Would you like to capture a zombie with me? :D

MEULIN: -SNRKS and nudges bashfully at Joey. She heard that!!!-

JAMISON: =Holds up a net he made=

MEULIN: OH HELLS YES.

[ LOOK AT THIS NET THAT I JUST FOUND ]

JOHN: i think we should establish a base first that isn't an alley out in the open :0

JOHN: what about hijacking one of those trailers

ROSE: Was there room in those sewers?

JAMISON: Do we plan on being here for long? JAMISON: We could appropriate a building!

JOHN: - scratches under beard as he considers all these options-

ROSE: No, we need to catch up with the others. And despite her enthusiasm, I don't think Jolene has enough bombs to demolish this whole place.

JAMISON: Oh, well that's just a matter of creating more.

JOEY: we should keep a low profile before coming up with a solid game plan

JOEY: THEN we can make things blow up

JAMISON: Hm.... actually I would like to meet this "Guy" and take all his files.

ROSE: Well. Ideally, we would have a bomb on the side of town opposite we're going to escape from.

JOHN: hmm we're more than 20 hours from minnesota... if we somehow scored a trailer we could get out of town quickly if we need to and then take turns sleeping on the way there...

JAMISON: That is my near-end game to see what the devil is going on!

ROSE: Establish some sort of distraction.

JOEY: or direction

JOEY: if were going to sightsee, lets make an itinerary

JOEY: =smiles blissfully=

JOHN: - takes a deep breath. his stomach feels better and his nausea is gone. - those were really bomb ass rice krispies, meulin.

JOHN:... you still have that pb and banana...

ROSE: -SNORTS and laughs uncontrollably-

JOHN: @Rose

ROSE: -slides a lil plastic baby food container towards JOHN-

JOHN: - here he is, a grown ass man with a child eating baby food-

MEULIN: YOU ARE FURRY WELCOME.

JOHN: - incredible-

JOHN: - also he feels all tingly-

MEULIN: -she hasn't kept up with the conversation too terribly, thanks to the fact that she doesn't have to listen and can read it instead.- I THINK THE SEWERS MIGHT BE GOOD. THEY HAVE LITTLE AREAS DOWN THERE RIGHT?

MEULIN: IT WON'T SMELL GREAT BUT I THINK IT MIGHT BE BETTER THAN ICKY BUFFALO RANCH NOOK HELL.

JOHN: alright well... we have a lot of different ideas. and i honestly don't know what's the best choice.

JOHN: should we vote?

JOEY: =her eyes get spherical=

JOEY: theres such a place as buffalo ranch nook hell?

ROSE: Let's steal the zepplin.

JAMISON: I would like to have a base of operations and the sewers weren't so terrible for tha- oh a zepplin would be grand!

JOHN: is that a serious option because if so i like it.

JOHN: - HAS WIND POWERS-

ROSE: Yes. Fuck it. Fuck the sky. Let's steal it.

JOHN: yeah! - fist pump-

MEULIN: -leans toward Joey- WE'RE IN IT. WE ARE IN BUFFALO RANCH NOOK HELL.

JOEY: does anyone know how to actually fly one of those? it's hard from what i have heard :\

JOHN: oh, I have wind powers

JOHN: plus they probably do... - points at jo jo and jamison-

MEULIN: HE SAYS, SUPURR CATSUALLY.

JOHN: - he just takes for granted that the old people know everything-

JOHN: - floats as an example for joey-

ROSE: I, too, have powers, but I'd also think that hauling everyone up into the sky will attract a measure of attention we're not prepared for.

ROSE: Which is second to my previously stated stance, fuck the sky.

JAMISON: Oh! Yes you have been floating as of late I recall... =strokes mustache=

MEULIN: FUCK THE SKY!!

JOHN: ohhhh thats true. - considers this-

JOEY: ... =glances down at the rice krispie- aight, how strong is this stuff?

ROSE: Thank you.

MEULIN: I MEAN... IT'S A WHOLE KRISPIE...

MEULIN: (ฅ•ᆺ•ฅ)

JOHN: - only took a bite of his and put the rest wrapped up in his pocket-

JOEY: since when can people fly??

JOHN: it's not such a weird thing where we come from.

MEULIN: OH YEAH, PEOPLE FLY AROUND ALL THE TIME.

JOEY: i come from earth. this earth! everything is weird to me!

MEULIN: ARADIA HAS THESE TOTALLY BALLER WINGS, AND SO DOES MY BOSS ANGER STARE.

JOEY: anger....stare....

ROSE: Redglare.

JOHN: but like... if we had somewhere to land it, i could use wind currents to bring down the zep. maybe rose's psiionics could steady the landing.

MEULIN: (●ↀωↀ●)

ROSE: I am a psionic, of sorts. -Little finger sparks to demonstrate...-

MEULIN: BUT THEN WE WILL ALSO HAVE TO KILL WHOEVER IS ON BOARD! PURRBABLY.

MEULIN: RIGHT?

JAMISON: Probably!

JOEY: =whispers to meulin= (why is redstare so mad?)

JOHN: wow haha... settle down there.

JAMISON: Or capture them HAW!

JOHN: we don't have to kill anyone.

JOEY: =JUST....WATCHING THE SPARKS....LIKE ITS A NORMAL OCCURRENCE!=

MEULIN. -fails to whisper back- I THINK SHE HAS A BAD DAY, BUT LIKE, EFURRY DAY. WE SHOULD DO SOMETHING NICE FOR HER LATER.

MEULIN: -considers giving her boss weed... hmm-

JOEY: =gasps= does she like desserts? what about one of your riceweedies?

MEULIN: YES. I AM UPVOTING THIS PLAN.

JOHN: ok all in favor of trying to steal the zep say aye.

MEULIN: AYYYY ELL EM AY OH!

JOHN: that works.

JAMISON: AYE AYE!

JOEY: okay if you know what youre doing! :D

JOHN:... but we're not going to kill anyone unless they try to kill us first. - STERN GLANCING. -

MEULIN: OKAY CAPTAIN JOHN!

JOHN: - makes a face. don't even joke about that. he wants to hide behind rose. -

ROSE: And we should kidnap a... are we really going with Zombie? As a name?

MEULIN: -what?? IS HE NOT THE ZEPPELIN CAPTAIN AND/OR TEAM CAPTAIN?? JEEEEEZ-

JAMISON: I haven't the slightest what the devil else to call them.

MEULIN: I AM ALSO VOTING FOR "SQU33BS."

JOHN: hey we can knock out two birds with one stone. there has to be a pilot, right?

ROSE: Yes, but I doubt the people down here are running anything of importance.

ROSE: I mean, look at them.

MEULIN: CATCH ONE SQU33B, HOP ON BLIMP, NYOOM OFF INTO THE SUNSET.

JOHN: maybe the pilot will know more. - head scratcher-

JAMISON: By the time you all have the zeppy down Meulin and I should have one secure.

MEULIN: YUP!!

JOHN: alright. that works too!

JOEY: =starts singing, clapping john on the back= 

JOEY: she says that my life is over 

JOEY: "boy you don't know what you got till it's gone 

JOEY: come put your head upon my shoulder" 

JOEY: she gave me her hand but i ignored her 

JOEY: oh dr. john 

JOEY: what am i doing 

JOEY: what am i doing i wrong? 

JOEY: cuz i keep on trying 

JOEY: something ain't going 

JOEY: something ain't going on 

JOEY: oh dr. john

JOHN:... - THIS CHILD. he loves her already-

MEULIN: -she would sway but she has no idea this is a song-

JOHN: - pushes her playfully- get back jojo!

JOEY: =im 37 my dude=

JOHN: - he has no idea-

JOHN: - you're like 10+ years older than him-

JOEY: =theres probably something in grubloaf tbh=

JAMISON: =PLUS GOOD GENES=

JOEY: =aww you say that cuz im your kid=

JAMISON: =Also he and Jojo have THE BEST GENES. Spry old folks=

JOEY: =that she wont deny=