#anyway this fine ladys called nebula and i love her already!!!

[networkunsupported]

you get 1 (one) artfight repost from me lads

partially because compressing this down into all the animation software nerfed the quality but also because it gives me another chance to go rahh look at @elizabelle881 s ocs they're the coolest fuckin guys ever and i love them so much!!!!

[takenbypeter]

my review of guardians of the galaxy vol 3 that nobody asked for

⚠️ SPOILERS AHEAD ⚠️

Can i just say amazing amazing movie!!! It was weird tho because I did cry alot but I still don’t think i cried as much as i did when Yondu died I think its cuz there was alot of people in the theater so I was trying to hold back, either way tears still fell. This movie had a lot of body gore, like I knew Rocket ripped off his face but i did not expect to see it, (I lit had to cover my eyes for that part cuz nasty). And the part were Peter cut out that guy’s headpiece and then the monkey ripping the lady’s face, like some parts i felt were unnecessary, or rather they didn’t have to show it for so long but go off I guess 😂 Anyways I went into the theater expecting to like Quill more but actually I ended up liking everyone else more, I already liked quill ofc but idk seeing everyone interact with each other just made me happy, it was like seeing a family together and then the endinggggg they broke my family up 😭 but its good they get to do their own thing. Drax is a father again!!! MY HEART! Ugh and Mantis I honestly did not want them to split those two up because those two are my favorite together. I appreciated Adam Warlock’s parts they were pretty amusing but like doesn’t he still got some fam back at home, or the colony? Ughhh I was a mess when Rocket was seeing the light and he was like im ready to go and Lylla was like not yet! Yo the scream that Rocket gave when they died, chills. Also I love floor so cuteeeeee, she has my heart, i want a white bunny now. When Nebula, Drax, and Mantis were arguing and he seemed upset that Mantis thought he was stupid, I think that shows how highly he thinks of her opinions of him, because he doesn’t seem too upset when others call him that but when Mantis called him that it seemed to hit him, and the fact that mantis made him forget made me wonder how many times shes done that to him, had to make him forget so he’d just remain the happy funny man. When I was rewatching the second one I was thinking about Peter’s grandpa because he lost his own daughter and grandson in the same day so I appreciate how we revisited that, and my sister pointed out to me that the newspaper Quill is reading is about Kevin Bacon talking about being abducted by aliens so that’s a funny little detail. Back to Drax and Mantis I appreciate how we got to see there serious side, or more cooperating? (Idk if that’s the word i want to use) in this, because we’ve seen plenty of their silly sides so this was a nice little thing, and omg his metaphors/analogies that scene is a fave. I also appreciated how when they found out Rocket was alive Nebula was crying, we can see how much she cares for her friends she just doesn’t have the words but Mantis took over to express for her and I really liked that scene. It was really nice seeing how much Nebula has come to care for everyone, like the scene with Peter in the beginning. Okay now for Gamora — ughhhh I hate hate what’s happening with her and not just her and peter, that is terrible, but when i was rewatching the other guardians i kept noticing moments between her and Groot and the way she always protected him, and it all just sucks and I wish there was a way for her to get those memories back. And when se went back to the ravagers at the end she was grinning and happy and that made me so upset but it is what it is. Another random take that doesn’t have to do with this vol in particular but every time I see Groot i get sad because I don’t know about y’all but I love OG Groot. Don’t get me wrong i love now Groot, and we know its not the same Groot. But the other Groot was very caring, constantly thinking of others, like he seemed very sweet whereas this one is still young he seems immature which is fine because like i said they’re diff but OG just has a special place in my heart so im always sad when i think about him. Omg the little Yondu cameo was so precious, you go Kraglin! I know I said I might start writing for Quill but i don’t think that’s going to happen, frankly I think I really like Warlock after this 😂 but im not gonna write for him. That’s all i got

[stjernfaerie]

I finally watched all of MCU

in release order because IT MAKES SENSE!!!!

special thanks to @littlegingrnut who watched ALL OF THEM with me. She’s the best. 

Idk if anyone cares at all, but I feel like sharing, so here’s some thoughts and reactions, enjoy: 

Phase 1: 

Iron man

okay but like how was Tony such a jerk in the beginning only to become like the most lovable character ever??

YINSEN DID NOT NEED TO DIE :((

did not like the antagonist what was that

I mean he’s not bad I just didn’t like him that much

I wanna get myself a jarvis tho 

all in all, really enjoyed it

got me really excited to watch more

The Incredible Hulk

didn't watch cuz aly said not necessary

we just skimmed over the important parts 

oh and watched the end credits scene

Iron man 2

this was really great

okay but like I love Ivan Vanko hes such a great antagonist

I LOVE TONY

HE’S SO GREAT

THE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT AND EVERYTHING GOSH AAH

oh damn ~Natasha Romanoff~

ma’am-

Pepper as a powerful business lady? YES  

just... really great shit right here

Thor

Mmmmmm I don't see the hype about Loki??

his two faced-ness is annoying me

also Thor? I didn't love him at first,, he's a bit cliché

STELLAN SKARSGÅRD YES SWEDISH REP

okay but Thor is a good boi actually,,, I take it back he’s pretty great

Oh nooo Loki - yeah lol as if he actually died 

YO WHAT WAS UP WITH THAT END CREDITS SCENE that got me all like WTF and shit

also told ya Loki didn’t die

Captain America: The First Avenger

okay full disclosure, I actually watched this one time before bc I started watching them in chronological order but never got any further than this

it made so much more sense this time

I liked it so much better this time 

because THE RELEASE ORDER MAKES SO MUCH SENSE 

anyway

this was good !!

I'm gay for Peggy omg

and Steve is such a good boi

DID BUCKY REALLY HAVE TO DIE

all in all not my favourite tho, not too memorable tbh

"I had a date" 😭

The Avengers

ohhh man

ALL OF THEM TOGETHER? UGH YES

Oh hello Dr. Banner nice to see u

Loki bro pls chill

OKAY HULK HELLO

NATASHANATASHANATASHA AAAHH I'M GAY

still don't get the Loki hype tbh. maybe a lil bit but idk

THOR OKAY I LOVE THOR NOW

TONY WHAT THE FUCK NO NO NO TONY DON'T

oh okay he's good

I love them all so much oh gosh

I MADE IT THROUGH PHASE ONE WOHOOOO

***

Phase 2

Iron man 3

this movie changed me

aly can confirm - I was very much not okay after seeing this

literally had anxiety through all of it

I mean I LOVED it

but like

the ptsd :(((

although I do love that they showed that, just made me love Tony even more

just... showing the ugly parts - love that shit

but also like noooo tony bby :(((( 

HARLEY!!!! IS SO GREAT !!! AND ALY SAID HE COMES BACK AT ONE POINT!! YAY

just.... Tony Stark man.

great antagonist, love the whole mandarin thing

EXTREMIS? NO THANK U that honestly gives me like zombie ish vibes or smth I don’t like it

but like it was great 

OH PEPPER JUST BECAME 10x HOTTER DAMN SHE JUST GETS MORE AND MORE ATTRACTIVE EACH MOVIE HUH

PEPPER ALMOST DYING? NOPE

THE PAIN IN TONY'S FACE? NOPE

all in all loved this so much and I am still not really okay

Thor: The Dark World

I see why people think this is the worst Thor movie.

DON’T GET ME WRONG IT WAS GREAT

but like,,, meh? the big end fight was so anti-climactic? not epic at all like what the fuck

I LOVE DARCY

but she's clearly gay so stop makin her fool around with the intern

but like Thor is such a soft boi and I love him

again, Loki's two-faced-ness – aRH

but,,,, I get the Loki hype now

I'm aboard the train

I love Loki 

oh oh oh the part in his prison cell when Thor comes to talk to him and is all like "enough tricks" and then his cell is all torn up and he's all torn up and AH BABY 😭

Thor just needs cuddles 

Aaaaand this is where I accidentally got the worst possible spoiler. :)))

I wanted to watch some wholesome Tony Stark content before bed and so I searched youtube for "Iron Man" and clicked on a video I thought looked nice and wholesome. I accidentally read the top comment and then proceeded to break down and freak out to Aly and Hanna on Aly’s live, and they comforted me and stuff <3 

Aly then told me that “hey remember that I told you that the little boy in Iron Man 3 comes back at one point? Yeah that’s at the funeral” 

STUPIDLY, I then watched the death scene on YouTube, went to bed crying, and of course, dreaming about it. I will never be okay again and I will never be ready for Endgame thank you and goodbye.

anywAY,,,,,

Captain America: Winter Soldier

*SO MUCH SCREAMING*

I thought that Bucky didn’t deserve to die - and he didn’t - but like,,, DYING WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER THAN THIS 

the ~bromance~

nat and steve I mean, so good

I AM NOT OKAY I WAS NOT PREPARED FOR THIS MOVIE BUT IT WAS AMAZING

Natasha tho mmmmmhhf

I was rly confused while watching but like everything came together at the end and it was so nice and damn this is one of my favorites so far

Sam is great I want more of Sam

Guardians of the Galaxy

multiple people had told me that they thought I’d really like this movie

honestly? I didn’t

it was kinda meh?

like I found it very predictable and cliché and not in a delightful way

idk if it’s just that I know that Chris Pratt is a dick but I don’t like Peter

I rly like Gamora and Nebula, but like I’m a lesbian, so I don’t think anyone’s surprised that I like the traumatized warrior gals

but like in general I’m kinda disappointed

I only gasped like twice, and it was barely gasp-worthy moments

Avengers: Age of Ultron

All of them together just makes me so happy, they’re so cute with each other AH

loved Ultron as the antagonist. that was great.

but,,,, I was a bit disappointed that we didn’t really get to see any regret from Tony bc he created Ultron

THE TWINS ARE FANTASTIC

whatever’s going on with Bruce and Nat, I don’t like it

TOO MANY moments that reminded me of the spoiler that I refuse to speak. Did not enjoy

everyone just needs to be hugged why doesn’t anybody HUG THEM????

not happy about Jarvis dying :((( even tho he technically didn’t die but like HE’S NOT JARVIS ANYMORE IS HE

and then Tony just replaces him with this Friday just like that??? no i’m not okay with that

in a ranking scenario this one falls in like the top of the middle range? Like it’s not one of the favorites, but it’s still up there. 

I FUCKING DID IT AGAIN ARGH

I was just reading about new MCU projects that are coming up and THERE WAS A SPOILER WARNING, but STUPID AS I AM I DISREGARDED that and kept on reading. I was just skimming through the text and I read “Loki who dies” and stopped right there, because AAHH FUCKING SHIT

I was on a call with Aly as this happened and so I told her that I had given myself a spoiler again and that it was about Loki, and she was all like I can’t remember anything that happens to Loki hmm, and so I thought YAY it’s okay, they just meant one of the times when he fake died!!! so I went on to keep reading, but before I could read anything else Aly stopped me, remembering. She told me it would be gut-wrenching and terrible and I’m just- 

So disappointed in myself. 

Ant-Man

it was an enjoyable movie, but like,,, a little meh? 

I feel kinda the same as I did with GOTG

but I like each of them better than the other for different reasons? idk???

the plot wasn’t very thick, like I could have gone away to pee without pausing and probably not miss too much

I didn’t really get invested in the story or the characters

but it was enjoyable for sure

Sam!!! Hello!!!! 

Again, like with GOTG, I found it kinda cliché, but in a more delightful way this time

WE MADE IT THROUGH PHASE 2 AND PASSED THE HALF-WAY POINT WOHOOOOO

***

Phase 3

Captain America: Civil War

I constantly needed to be hugged while watching this

in the end I was fine, like I’ve been way less okay after some of the other movies, but during? needed hugs and cuddles

I love that they were fighting each other it was just... umff you know

but also like,,, LOVE EACH OTHER 

Wanda and Vision? no thanks I HATE IT

Steve and Sharon?? NO THANKS I HATE IT

literally that’s just weird on SO many levels

and that kiss was-- ugh I hated it. 

SPIDER BOY !!!!! UGH I LOVE HIM ALREADY

Black Panther heLLOOO

ALL THE STUCKY THOOO

Tony and Steve fighting in the end got me :( 

Doctor Strange

This one falls at the bottom of my list

It was the shortest movie but it felt SO LONG because I was so bored through all of it

it just never got me hooked, I didn’t get invested in the story at all. 

there weren’t even any characters that I liked enough to want to see more

sure another infinity stone and getting to know doctor strange and shit, I get why you kinda need to watch it

but I doubt I’ll watch it again

Guardians of the Galaxy 2

just like with the first one, kinda meh

I didn’t really get into it until the last half hour or so

the music really carried this movie tho

and baby groot !!!

I love Nebula so much, such a great character

Yondu dying was really great, it did a lot for his character

I still don’t really like Peter Quill

I feel like it was barely contributing to the infinity saga, the only thing that’s somewhat connected is that Nebula wants to kill Thanos, and the only reason I know that’s connected is because of spoilers

because I’m not really supposed to know the significance of Thanos at this point

but then again, maybe I’ll feel differently when I’ve finished all the movies

Spiderman: Homecoming

SPIDEY BOY !!!!!!!!! 

THIS IS A FAVORITE

I CANNOT EVEN BEGIN TO EXPRESS HOW MUCH I LOVED THIS MOVIE

THE TONY/PETER INTERACTIONS WERE SO GREAT

PETER IS A BABY AND HE’S SO GREAT AND AAAAAHH

HE’S ON MY LIST BTW

AND LIKE,,, CAN WE TALK ABOUT HIS FIGHTING SOUNDS COMPARED TO EVERYONE ELSE’S???? Like steve and thor and shit are all like huOH heeeUH oAH ya know?? and then peter’s over here like eeh heh mmmMHF 

HE’S JUST REALLY GREAT AND AAH I LOVED THIS MOVIE SO MUCH

LITERALLY SMILED THROUGH ALMOST ALL OF IT

except when things were going bad and during the fight scenes and shit and when he was in big danger and stuffs

BUT LIKE AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH

SO GOOD

OH OH OH AND STEVE’S LITTLE EDUCATIONAL VIDEOS WERE SO CUTE AH

hehehheheh and the end credits tho heheheheh

ANYWAY I LOVED THIS MOVIE SO SO SO SOO MUCH

Thor: Ragnarok

ANOTHER FAVORITE AAAAH

ALL THE BROTHERLY MOMENTS THO

Kinda mad that we didn’t get a hug there in the end but oh well

Thor is so sassy and goofy in this one I love it

ugghhhhh I love Loki so much

Hela has so much Maleficent vibes

Heimdall yESSS !!!

all the Thor/Hulk interactions were so PRECIOUS AAH

this was just such a great movie with great character development for both Thor and Loki and ughhhh IT WAS SO GOOD

“get help” was fucking ICONIC

VALKYRIE THO

oof not excited for infinity war :(( 

Black Panther

this one falls somewhere in the middle for me

like it was good, but it’s not up there

my main issue with it is that it didn’t really feel so much like a superhero movie, it was more just like... family drama

but Shuri tho, love her

and all the awesome ladies fighting!!! yes!!!!

BUCKY!!! 

Avengers: Infinity War

I am not okay

I will never be okay again

I thought Loki dying was gonna be the worst part - and honestly, knowing about it beforehand made it less painful actually

but NO NO NO 

THE LAST 15 MINUTES IS JUST A CRYFEST HUH 

REAL NICE THANK YOU

oh gosh I can’t even think 

I told y’all I didn’t like Peter Quill and well, HE DESERVED WHAT HE GOT 

oh gosh nope 

I’ve been feeling guilty that all of y’all had to wait a full year for endgame but AT LEAST THEN YOU HAD TIME TO BE OKAY AGAIN BEFORE ENDGAME

fucking shit what have I gotten myself into

Ant-Man and the Wasp

I liked this one better than the first ant-man

It’s still not up there but it was good

idk it could just be bc I know the characters more this time or because I kind of had pretty low expectations but I liked this more

oh also maybe I was just happy that I didn’t have to see like all my favorite characters die like I did yesterday :((( 

still not okay

anyway, ant-man and the wasp

I really liked Ava, really great character honestly

I liked Hope a whole lot more this time around

still don’t really like her and Scott together, especially after her mother like talked through him and shit. I feel like if I was Hope and my mother talked to me through my love interest, I would feel pretty weird about it all

but maybe that’s just me idk

oh but what I do like about scott and hope is all of hank’s comments about them

he’s funny hehehe

also Luis! great dude

okay but Bill FOSTER???? as in JANE FOSTER?? SEEMINGLY HAVING NO CONNECTION AT ALL??? 

there’s too many double names in this whole ass franchise and I’m upset

two Peters, two Eriks, two Fosters.... like I know that’s what real life is like, people have the same names, but THIS IS FICTION

YOU CAN AVOID THE CONFUSION

that wasn’t totally related to this movie specifically but this was the third strike dudes, I couldn’t just ignore it anymore.

oh oh oh and I did not appreciate the mid credits scene, I DON’T NEED REMINDERS OF THAT PAIN THANK YOU VERY MUCH

Captain Marvel

this one falls somewhere in the middle for me

like it was good, and I enjoyed it a lot, but it just wasn’t really anything that left me all like woooaaaah omg AH you know???

I really liked how it connected back to previous movies like with Ronan and the Kree people from GOTG and the tesseract and all that jazz

where can I get myself a flerken tho I want one

I appreciate that no one turned into dust, that was nice

my main problem with this movie is that HER POWERS MAKE NO SENSE 

like in the beginning it was kinda okay. I didn’t understand her powers, but at least they felt reasonable

then we got to the end and all of a sudden she’s flying and glowing and strong enough to stop and redirect a fuckin missile, and then she’s FLYING INTO BOMBS AND COMING OUT THE OTHER END COMPLETELY UNSCATHED?? 

OH AND THEN SHE FLIES INTO FUCKIN SPACE WITHOUT A HELMET OR ANYTHING AND SHE CAN BREATHE JUST FINE???

it just makes no sense, it’s completely unreasonable and it makes her too perfect to me. Too unbeatable. I don’t like it. 

but all in all a good movie, loved seeing young Fury and shit

Avengers: Endgame I WILL NEVER BE READY

As I thought, I wasn’t ready

But, I actually think that knowing about Tony beforehand made it a bit easier

I still wish I hadn’t known

and I still bawled like a baby 

but like,,, I think I would have been way worse off if I hadn’t known

I’m just so sad now

I really need a hug

and even though I just cried more than I’ve done all year I need to cry some more I think

I’m glad everyone who got dusted came back, although I kinda knew they would 

well, I would have been fine with Quill staying dusted tbh. I really don’t like that guy

NATASHA WAS NOT ALLOWED TO DIE, I WILL NOT BE OKAY WITH THIS :(

oh gosh yeah I know I have more thoughts about this movie that I wanna say but I need to be more okay first oh man

okay hi again, it’s the next day and I’m still sad but here are some more thoughts: 

I hated the whole Bruce/Hulk think. All the good parts about each side of his character were just erased.

I don’t even see the purpose of it. 

Okay I kinda knew that Steve was gonna go back to the 40s, but I WASN’T SUPPOSED TO KNOW THAT SO SHH

anyway, I didn’t like Steve staying in the 40s, and here’s why: 

he knew that this was the single one out of 14 million times they won against Thanos, so he knew that changing anything at all would fuck it up

but at the same time, I find it hard to believe that Steve could be aware that Tony and Nat dies and not want to do anything about it

even though he knows he can’t

so wouldn’t it have been easier to just go back to the present after he returned all the stones? So he wouldn’t have to live with that dilemma?

ALSO, I WILL NOT ACCEPT that after everything he did to get Bucky back, he just leaves him. Just like that. 

Literally the only reason this makes sense is as a setup for the Falcon and The Winter Soldier Disney+ series. 

But I still don’t like it

Spiderman: Far From Home

This was nice, I needed this. 

I didn’t like it as much as homecoming, but I didn’t expect to considering how much I loved hoco

it was really nice to see some more Peter Parker bc i love him but also like,,, most of it was traumatized spidey boy :((( and that was sad :(

He’s literally just a child and he’s already so damaged and it’s big big sad

the high school vibes were immaculate

not that I’ve actually been to high school in the US but like,,, it felt like a high school movie okok

Okay but like May’s character really did a full 180? I don’t really understand where that all came from, but uhhhh okay then

Okay, Quentin Beck. 

before we realized he was bad, I already didn’t like him, cuz it seemed like he was gonna start to become a new father figure for Peter and I WAS NOT COOL WITH THAT

but then I understood that that wasn’t happening so it’s all good

he’s a pretty cool antagonist. not a fave, but pretty cool. 

OH OH FLASH IS SO GAY FOR SPIDERMAN THO RIGHT

he actually got some real nice character development that I had not expected, that was nice

all in all, great movie, I love my spidey boy. 

pretty sad that I’m done tho... :( 

but also like, I watched all of them (except incredible hulk) in 34 days. That’s kinda impressive, right?

ALSO THERE’S NO MORE SPOILER DANGER YAY !!!

and finally, here is my ranking of the movies based on how much I liked them: 

0. The Incredible Hulk ( didn’t watch )

SPIDERMAN: HOMECOMING 

Thor: Ragnarok

Captain America: Winter Soldier

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Iron Man 3

Avengers

Captain America: Civil War

Spiderman: Far From Home

Iron Man 

Avengers: Infinity War

Thor

Avengers: Endgame

Iron Man 2

Thor: The Dark World

Captain Marvel

Black Panther

Captain America: The First Avenger

Ant-Man and the Wasp

Guardians of the Galaxy 2

Ant-Man

Guardians of the Galaxy

Doctor Strange

[queenmuzz]

Nebulae

Something that’s been poking around in my brain, possibly the first chapter to a future story, possibly just a one shot, but seeing the wonderful drawings people have been sending me have given me the motivation to write this instead of writing the Wormhole chapter Also you can read it here on Ao3

You were putting the finishing orders on the bookshop order list when you heard the familiar thud of the front door, and the shuffle of shoes and jacket being removed.  It wasn’t Dante, there was something sloppy, but flashy in the way he did it, nor was it Vergil, who’s movements were deliberate and steady. Nor could it be Alex, who was sitting in her room, listening to music (you could hear the faint thuds as she danced to music only she could hear on her headphones) No, it had to be Nero, which was odd, since you expected him to be still in Redgrave, in college right now.  One more semester, and the young man would be finished with his schoolwork.  

“Mom?  You home?”, your son’s voice rang out, confirming your suspicions.

“Yes!” you called out, “in the kitchen.”

A few moments later he appeared, and before he could say anything, you got up and gave him your best enveloping hug.  (It was impossible now, no longer was he the small boy, he had grown into a tall strapping young man).

“When did you arrive back?” you said after letting him go, as you headed to the cupboard.  “You must be famished, I think I managed to hide some of your favourite cookies from your uncle… oh no… oh wait, here they are!”  You reached a fake can of peas and unscrewed the lid.

“Just got back into town an hour or so ago, I hitched a ride with this chick who’s studying engineering, Nico.”  He attempted to not look too eager to grab the lemon macaron, and nibbled on it impatiently.  

“How’s school going?” you asked as he finished it and he took another one.

“Good, gotta one more assignment to do before exams,” he licked the crumbs off his lips and looked around, almost nervously “is dad home?”

“No, he’s out on a job with your uncle, it’s just me and your sister home right now,” you watched the tension ease out of him, “Nero, is something the matter?”

“Nah, it’s nothing major...it’s just,” he chewed thoughtfully, “well, I have to study and take photos of a city with a consistent architectural style and I figured… well, Fortuna would be the perfect place for that.  I mean, I’ve seen photos of it, and I think it would be a perfect place to analyze, and to be inspired by.  It’s just…” he took a sip of the glass of milk you offered him, “you know how dad is with that place, even if it’s been over a decade since they attacked us, and we’ve heard nothing from them since then.”

“Ah,” understanding dawned on you, “yes, I suppose your father would be rather cross, even if I think he’s overly paranoid.   You can’t really blame him though.”

“Yeah,” he agreed, “But he really needs to stop being a mother hen. I’m twenty five years old, a lot older than he was when he went there,”

“He only acts that way because he cares about you, Nero” you said as you took a delicate yellow macaron for yourself, “but, if it has any weight, you have my blessing to go.”

So surprised at your sudden agreement, he almost dropped the cookie, “Really?  You mean it?”

“I wouldn’t say something like that if I didn’t truly mean it, Nero, besides,” your smile was hidden behind your cup of tea that you nonchalantly took a sip from, “I’m certain it’s not just the buildings that interest you, but perhaps that young lady you’ve been corresponding with?”

Now the cookie was dropped, and it rolled off the table onto the floor, before coming to a stop in front of the fridge.  Your son spluttered,  a wave of crimson flooding his face revealing his true intentions.”

“No!... I mean, yeah… she invited me over to visit her and her brother, but I swear I am going to study architecture, I figured ‘Hey, two birds, one stone’ right?”

You chuckled softly as you set your cup down with a quiet tink, “Nero, even if seeing this girl was your only reason, I wouldn’t stop you.  You two have been corresponding for what, seven years?  It’s high time that you meet in person.”

“Well, it’s actually not just ‘two birds with one stone’, more like ‘three birds one stone’”, he clarified and you looked at him quizzically.  “The third reason I want to go to Fortuna is the reason I wanted to talk to you about it.” He looked even more nervous.  “I wanted to look for my birth mother.”

Now it was your turn to be shocked.  In all your years of living with them, the total amount of information Vergil or Nero had spoken about the mysterious woman could be written on the inside of a ping pong ball.  And you’d never felt the need to inquire, even though sometimes you wondered about her.  Was she a woman forced by circumstance to give him up?

Nero read your face and attempted to explain, “I’m not trying to form some mystical mother-son bond with her… hell, I might not even try to speak to her.  I just want to know who she was, and why she gave me up.”

“Nero,” you placed a comforting hand on his, “you know that this has a good chance of this ending up being painful for you.  Fortuna has a whole different culture than here, and people aren’t very accepting of those who don’t follow their version of morality”

“Yeah, I know,” he straightened up in his chair, “I just want to know, and if she was forced to give me up,  to let her know that I don’t hold it against her, that leaving me at the Orphanage was possibly the best thing she could have done for me.  Or,” his face darkened slightly, “if she didn’t want me, I’ll be able to tell her that I didn’t need her anyways, I have my own family that I cherish and love.”  He looked down at your delicate hand, now dwarfed by his strong ones.  It seemed like a few hours ago that it was a small child’s holding it, and just yesterday it was a tiny infant’s fist gripping onto your little finger.  “But no matter what,” he held your hand, and raised it up, forcing you to look up into his brilliant eyes, “You were with me from nearly the very beginning, you were the one who cared for me when no one else would, you were the one that got me to my dad, and helped raise me to be who I am now.  You will always be my mother, first and best.”

You attempted to smile, to keep the tears from spilling down your cheeks at his confession.  “Oh Nero…” you both got up and he embraced you, and you held him tightly as he kissed the top of your head affectionately.  If you wanted to return it, you would have to yank him down to your level. “I’m so proud of you.. You have no idea how much that means to me.”

“Well,” he chuckled, “don’t let my uncle find this out I’m a momma’s boy, I got a reputation to keep.”

A faint, yet insistent honking sound from the front of the business broke the silence. “Ah shit,” Nero broke the hug and grabbed his bag, “Nico’s back already, I promised that I wouldn’t make her wait too long before we hit the ferry. I have to go.”

“And you were gonna leave without even your favourite sister a goodbye hug?”  a voice from the doorway caused the two of you to startle.   There, leaning against the doorframe, a devilish grin on her face, was Alex, twirling a keychain on her finger.

Nero rolled his eyes, “How long have you been eavesdropping?”

She placed her hands up in a defensive posture.  “Look, I smelled those lemon macarons I’ve been spending ages looking for, and oooh, don’t mind if I do.” quick as a flash, she yoinked one off the plate, “so that’s where you hid them, mom.  Anyways, I came downstairs to see such a touching scene.  Almost brought tears to my eyes.” she mimed wiping up her cheeks.  “But did I hear something about going to Fortuna?  Very interesting….” “Yeah, speaking of which, my ride’s waiting, I gotta go.”  He passed her, but her sharp teeth were fixed in a conniving smile.

“Would be a shame if I happened to mention where you were heading to dad…” she said nonchalantly, wiping off the remaining crumbs with the back of her hand.”  her brother froze in his tracks.

“You wouldn’t dare…” his voice lowered dangerously, but she ignored the threat (she had learned a long time ago that her big brother would never lay a hand on her)

“Well, I’m not as good at keeping secrets as mom,” she smiled innocently at you, “but… let’s say… you let me tag along, you wouldn’t have to worry about me spilling the beans, and I’m sure mom could create a decent cover story.”

Nero mulled it over before sighing, “fine…. as long as mom agrees” both of them looked to you as the final arbiter.

You smiled gently, “alright, as long as you call me when you arrive, and give me a call once a day to update me.”  

Alex did a victorious fist pump as she pulled a knapsack, and Leon from behind the doorway.  “Awwww yesss,”

“It’s not just gonna be a vacation, Lex, I got important things to do there,”

“Yeah, like smoochin’ your girlfriend”

“Oh shut up,”

“Well, at least you have me to keep you behaving,”

“For the love of… you’re as bad as Nico”

“I’ll take that as a compliment”

The two of them continue to  goodnaturedly bicker as they put on their shoes and coats, and within a few moments they were out the door, towards the still honking van who’s driver Nero was yelling at.  Before they both hopped in, (Nero managed to call out ‘Shotgun’, much to his sister’s dismay) the turned to you, and gave you a wave, before the van pulled out at an alarming speed.

You chuckled to yourself as the vehicle disappeared around the corner, before heading inside.  They had both grown up so fast, and even though they verbally sparred even more than the twins physically sparred, you knew that they would have each other’s back.

It was time for a new chapter to begin….

[voyager-into-the-unknown]

This is Part of a Plance fanfic series that I have been writing. Matt, Pidge, and Lance are going to play some Killbot Phantasm in this one.

Chapter 7: An Evening with the Holts

Lance and Pidge descended the staircase and returned to the dining room. Matt was there with the pizza, and Colleen had reheated the leftovers from lunch. After everyone settled down to eat dinner, there was a lengthy discussion of the Defenders project, most of it too technical for Lance to understand, but he still followed the gist of it. Pidge had taught him a great deal about science and technology over the years, so Lance wasn’t completely lost, and he was greatful for that fact.

There was also much reminiscing about their shared fondness for Shiro. Matt told stories of his involvement with the Rebellion, and Lance and Pidge told tales of the Paladins’ many adventures. Sam even had some interesting stories to tell about Pre-Kerebos space missions, and about life at the Garrison in Sam and Colleen’s younger days. Apparently when they were cadets, they knew of several different ways to sneak out of the Garrison Academy to have little mischievous escapades with their friends and not get caught.

“Oh, so that’s where Pidge gets it from,” said Matt, giving his sister a knowing look.

“Well, if you think of it, that’s how our adventures really got started,” Pidge replied. “I used to go out into the desert with the scanning equipment that I built in order to listen to top secret radio communication signals.”

“Which is illegal,” Sam added.

“Yeah, But Hunk and I caught her doing that one night.” Lance smirked.

“Oh, goodness! Did you turn her in?” Colleen asked.

“Of course not,” said Pidge. “Lance was always sneaking out of the dorms to go into town in search of pizza, girls, and astronauts, and not necessarily in that order. That’s probably what he was doing that night, am I right?”

Lance looked guiltily at her. “Well, yes, but I decided to follow you instead...”

Matt interrupted him, “And look where that led you.”

“We became Paladins of Voltron that night,” Pidge said.

“Oh. I was thinking more in terms of pizza, girls, and astronauts,” Matt said, and they laughed at his remark.

“Well, I am having pizza with these two lovely ladies and two genuine astronauts right now, so you can’t blame a man for living his dream,” Lance quipped. There was more laughter.

“That was the night of the U.F.O. crash. Shiro had returned to earth in a stolen Galra ship,” Pidge explained.

“Hunk wanted to go back inside before we got caught,” Lance added.

“But I wanted a closer look,” Pidge said.

“And I ran after her, of course. Hunk thought we were both insane, but he followed us anyway.”

“Hunk still thinks that both of you are insane,” Matt remarked. “But I’m glad he followed you. Someone had to keep you two out of trouble.”

“According to Shiro, that’s practically impossible,” Sam said with a chuckle.

Pidge smiled. “We actually met Shiro that night. Keith was trying to rescue him.”

“Hey, I was trying to rescue him too!” Lance said, unconvincingly. “Everything was going great until we all got on Keith’s hover bike and he drove us off the side of a cliff.”

Sam and Matt thought this was very funny.

“Who taught Keith how to drive that thing?” Matt asked.

“Shiro, of course!” Sam chortled.

Colleen looked horrified. “You all could have been killed!” She turned to her daughter. “Young lady, I should have grounded you even longer.”

After supper, Matt, Lance, and Pidge volunteered to clean up the dining room and feed Bae Bae while Sam was watching a favorite television program in the living room. Colleen went to check on the laundry. As they were finishing up, Pidge asked Matt if he wanted to play Killbot Phantasm with them.

“Neither of you has made it to level 36 yet, so you want my help, don’t you?” Matt asked, already knowing the answer.

“Maybe,” said Pidge.

When Pidge had finally convinced her brother to play the game with them, Lance grabbed the white bag from the sideboard and some cold drinks before following Pidge and Matt upstairs. He then helped Pidge set up the Mercury Gameflux II while Matt said in the chair by his sister’s desk.

“How many times have you two played that game?”

“Hundreds,” said Lance.

“You’ve had hundreds of video game dates with my sister? Alone in your room in your pajamas with my baby sister?”

“Matt—“ Pidge sounded annoyed.

“It was perfectly innocent,” Lance reassured him.

“Then why exactly do they call you Loverboy Lance? How many girls have you seduced in those Paladin Pajamas?” Matt asked.

“Matt, stop it!” Pidge was beginning to get really annoyed.

Just then, Colleen came upstairs with a basket of laundry.

“Matt, is this one of yours, sweetheart? Your father says it isn’t his.” She held up a light blue button-down dress shirt. Lance couldn’t hide his telltale blush.

“That’s Lance’s, Mom.” Pidge explained, a bit pink-cheeked. “There was a stain on it, so I put it in the wash for him.” Well, that wasn’t exactly a lie.

“Thanks, Mrs. Holt.” Lance said. He took off his sweater and began buttoning up his freshly-laundered shirt over his T-shirt. Colleen left, but not without raising her eyebrows and exchanging glances with Matt in such a way that said keep an eye on those two.

Matt looked at Katie’s bed. “Your covers are a bit wrinkled. What exactly were you two doing up here unchaperoned?”

“We had chaperones. Bae Bae and my trash nebula pets were with us.” The green and blue trash floofs trilled as if to affirm that statement.

“I was playing the guitar,” Lance said, pulling his sweater back on, “Pidge and I were singing a song that I’ve been working on.” Lance’s guitar was still leaning against one wall.

“Trying to serenade her, huh? Pretty slick. Loverboy is trying to put the moves on you, Katie.”

Pidge looked furious. “Matt, stop it! Lance wrote a song for me, and we were singing it together, and it was actually quite beautiful. Mom and Dad even came up here to listen and they loved it.”

“Okay, okay. Truce. I am sorry that you are so easy to tease.”

Pidge made a face at her brother, then turned to her boyfriend. “Lance, I hope you don’t have to deal with this sort of thing back home.”

“Well, I do have four older siblings instead of just one, so it’s actually much, much worse,” Lance confessed.

Matt cackled. “Well, that makes me look forward to meeting my future in-laws even more. When are you two getting married?”

Pidge glared at her brother. “I should have left you in space.”

“Yeah, But then you wouldn’t be getting these cheat codes. You are both up to level 34, right?”

Pidge sighed. “Yes.”

“Okay, well, you each get a turn to play against me. If I win, you have to answer a few very personal questions for me, and I will give you one of the codes as a reward.”

“Is this some kind of fiendish torture you learned as a Galra prisoner?” Pidge asked.

Lance moaned. “He’s worse than Veronica.”

Matt grimaced like the maniacal host of Garfle Warfle Snick. “Let the game begin!”

Pidge went first. There were some very intense moments in which she nearly beat her brother, and Lance cheered her on the entire time. In the end, however, Matt won. Pidge groaned.

Matt grimaced. “Okay, it is my understanding that you have owned those two fuzzy trash parasites since you were fifteen years old, but you have never revealed their names to anyone. My question is this: what are the secret names of your two trash nebula pets?”

Pidge covered her face. “No, Matt.” She was blushing.

“I’ve actually been wondering about that myself,” Lance admitted.

“Answer the question if you want those cheat codes.”

“Fine. The green one is named Pidgeon.”

“You named a trash parasite after yourself?” Lance couldn’t contain his laughter. “I’m beginning to like this game.”

“But what’s the blue one’s name?” Matt insisted.

“Let’s play another round.”

“Answer the question, Pidge. You want to get to level 36, don’t you?”

She sighed. “Okay, fine. His name is....” She would not make eye contact with either of them. “Lancelot.”

Lance and Matt erupted in a fit of laughter. Lance wiped away a tear, “Aw...that’s so sweet...I’ve never had a garbage poof named after me before.”

“Garbage poof?!” Matt laughed so hard that he nearly fell off of his chair.

“Hey! He’s a cute little garbage poof,” said Lance, giving the creature a little pat. It trilled happily.

“I hate you both.”

“And we both know that’s not true. Your turn, Loverboy.”

Matt made quick and easy work out of beating Lance, much to his embarrassment. But Lance dreaded what came next even more.

“Okay. Your question is this: what exactly are your intentions toward my little sister? Because if you are trying to seduce her and make her just another one of your conquests...”

“Matt, stop it! You have gone to far!”

“No, I’ll answer the question.” Lance said. “First of all, Even though I have flirted with a lot of girls, I don’t have any ‘conquests’ to speak of, and I have never thought of women in such a degrading way. Secondly, Pidge and I have been Paladins and best friends for three years, and I have the highest amount of love and respect for her.” Pidge smiled at him proudly. “Thirdly, both of us are in our first serious relationship, but we know that we are totally committed to each other and have even discussed our future together. A future that will hopefully include marriage and a children of our own, who I am sorry to say, won’t be named Pidgeon or Lancelot.” Pidge began to smirk. Matt was having a hard time keeping a straight face.

“I don’t think we’ll name any of them Kaltenecker either.” was Pidge’s deadpan addition.

“Aw, I thought Lance Kaltenecker McClain, Jr. would make a great name for our first child.”

“Sorry to disappoint you,” Pidge said before she finally collapsed in a fit of giggles.

Matt roared with laughter. He gave them all of the cheat codes after that.

Then Matt was finally silent, smiling to himself as they made it to level 36 to beat the final boss. They took on the challenge together, working together exactly as Paladins of Voltron should. As when operating the giant mecha’s right and left arm, the sword and shield of Voltron, they were unbeatable. When it was over, they high-fived each other.

“Team Plance does it again!” Lance kissed her.

Matt cheered. “We should celebrate.”

“I have already thought of that.” Lance said as he opened the white bag.

“Peanut butter cookies! I knew it!” Pidge exclaimed.

“Hunk’s special recipe.”

“I owe you both an apology,” Matt admitted. “I was just being an overprotective big brother, and I was really wrong about you, Lance.”

“No hard feelings. If I had a little sister as awesome as yours I would probably be overprotective as well.”

“A toast, then, to the garbage poofs! Or maybe to my sister and future-brother-in-law!” Matt proclaimed. “Here’s to Pidgeon and Lancelot!”

They clinked their bottles together, and then Pidge said, “We are definitely naming one of them after you.”

“One of your future kids?” Matt asked, flattered.

“No, the next garbage poof I decide to adopt.”

Lance nearly choked on his peanut butter cookie.

[fallen-imagine-angel]

Come Back To Me (Part 2) - Peter Parker x Reader

Notes: Hey guys, so I finally finished Come Back To Me part 2! It took a little bit, but I think it makes up for it by being so long. Oh, and Chapter 13 of the HP AU should be up by tomorrow or the next day, hopefully. I’m planning on posting it one of those days. Tag List is open for anything, too! Have a great rest of the day :) 

Summary: Part 2 to Come Back To Me, where you live in the Avengers compound to find a way back to the love of your life.

Come Back To Me - Part 2

Peter Parker x Reader

Requested?: Yes, by @soniasalvatore1 “Can you please make a part 2 to “Come back to me” I really liked it and just want to see what else would happen in the story”

Word Count: 5,190

Warnings: mentions of suicide & depression!! don’t read if those trigger you!! also, FLUFF and ANGST!!! 

Two years. It’s been two years since Tony recruited you, and three since Peter disappeared. Everything has changed.

You spend your days training with Natasha and your nights in the lab with Tony and Shuri. Shuri’s your best friend now, but the term is loose. Both of you are too distraught to really do ‘best friend’ things. The compound isn’t happy, just as you expected. Everyone has lost someone, and it’s taking its toll. 

Steve keeps to himself all day, only coming out of his room to train occasionally. You hardly see Rhodey, but when you do, he’s with Tony and Pepper. Valkyrie and Thor usually spend time with each other, and Valkyrie drinks a lot. You occasionally talk to Thor since he knows what it’s like to lose someone to something other than the dust. Clint mostly spends time with Natasha, so you see him occasionally before or after you train. Bruce stays to himself, beating himself up about how he couldn’t hulk out in time. Okoye and Shuri talk a lot about T’Challa, becoming almost a sisterly duo. You wish you could join, but it wouldn’t fit. You didn’t know T’Challa. Rocket and Nebula, on the other hand, bicker all the time about random things. And then there’s you. 

“Are you ladies almost done training for today? I need my lab assistant.” Tony walks into the training room to find you and Nat battling it out.

“She’s a natural born fighter, Tony. How come you didn’t bring her in here before two years ago? She’s almost as good as I am now.” Natasha tries for a smile. You appreciate her efforts to make you feel better.

“Well, I did learn from the best.” You get in a jab to her side.

“That you did.” Nat nods affirmatively.

“Okay, can you two be done? I’ve got some tech that needs working on, (Y/n), and you’ve already been training for...what is it? Five thirty? Yeah, you’ve been training for eleven and a half hours. It’s my turn.” Tony grabs your arm and drags you away from Natasha. 

You have a system between the two, they each get eleven and a half hours, and then you get an hour of sleep. They don’t know about most of the system, just that Tony gets you in the lab at 5:30 pm sharp. What he doesn’t know is that you’re in the lab until five every morning. Pepper usually forces him to go to bed around midnight or one, two which he makes you promise to go to bed no later than an hour after he does. You always promise, but never actually keep it.

“What are we working on tonight?” You ask, taking off the boxer’s tape on your hands.

“Whatever you were working on last night. You haven’t finished it yet, have you?” He asks you as you continue to walk toward the lab.

“Nope. I’m close, though. I think I can have it finished by tonight. Is Shuri already in there?” You yawn. Tony eyes you suspiciously as you yawn.

“Yes, she is. Have you been getting enough sleep lately?” He frowns.

“Of course. Just tired from eleven hours of training.” You grin at him. He nods, not all the way convinced by your answer. You step into the lab, being greeted by Shuri.

“(Y/n), I made a few modifications to your invention but I didn’t get to finish them, so here’s the list. I’ll let you work on them now. Meanwhile, I’m going to finish upgrades on my brother’s suit.” She gives you a quick hug before walking to the other side of the lab. You mentioned nothing of the fact that her brother turned to dust because you know she would only get upset. She’s set on bringing her brother back just like you’re set on bringing Peter back. You’d made web formula modifications for him, so why can’t she do the same for her brother’s suit? You won’t spoil her dreams, because that would be spoiling your own in the process.

“Thanks, Shuri.” You give her a small smile before getting back to work on your invention. It’s an invention that can locate a person no matter what dimension they’re in.

~+~

Hours later, after Tony and Shuri have already gone to bed, you’re still working in the lab. It’s about three in the morning now, and you’re so close to being finished with your device. If you get it finished soon, then you can maybe call it quits and turn in early for the night.

“(Y/n)?” You hear a groggy voice from the doorway. You look over to see Tony standing there with a confused look on his face.

“Morning.” You wave your hand dismissively, getting back to work.

“Why are you working this late? You need sleep.” Tony walks toward you, trying to take the device from you.

“I’m almost finished. I don’t stay up this late all the time.” You jerk your hands away from him, continuing to work.

“Really? The security footage begs to differ.” Tony points to a camera in the corner, making you sigh. Then your device starts to whir.

“It’s working! Quick, give me a person to locate!” You snap at him. 

“Thor?” He rubs his eyes, yawning again.

“He’s in his room! Ha! It works! Who’s another person who isn’t in this compound?” You ask, suddenly very awake.

“Uh, there’s this guy named Ant-Man who fought my team when Cap and I were...not on good terms. Can you find him? I haven’t seen him in a while.” He suggests.

“Ant-Man? What’s his name?” You ask, typing in some stuff to the device.

“Scott Lang.” He answers.

“Hm...it says he’s in something called the Quantum Realm? No idea what that is, I hope he’s okay. Probably just on a mission of his. Anyway, it works! Now to try it to do it on Peter!” You rush to type in some other things, trying to locate Peter. It beeps, signaling it can’t find him.

“What’s the problem?” Tony looks at it, seeing it light up red.

“It can’t find him!” You yell in frustration, trying to find everyone you know that turned to dust. No dice.

“It can’t find anyone? So it can find every dimension except the one that we’re trying to find? Unless...” Tony trails off, guilt lacing his voice.

“They’re not dead, Tony. Don’t even think of that. No, we’ve just got to try again,” You try it again, to no avail, “Ugh!” You throw the device into the trash, not seeing Tony picking it up and putting it away for future use.

“Hey, hey, kid, just go to bed. We’ll figure it out tomorrow after your training.” Tony lays a hand on your shoulder. An idea pops into your head.

“What if we didn’t have to wait anymore?” You grin, grabbing multiple pieces of technology from everywhere.

“What are you getting at?”

“Time travel! We could go back in time to save them!” You grab his shoulders excitedly.

“Kid, get some sleep. You’re only nineteen. This isn’t healthy.” He shakes his head, sighing.

“We just have to make a portal, then we could go back in time and save all of them! We can save Peter!” You ignore his comment completely.

“(Y/n), listen to yourself! Okay, say we go back in time. We save them. Peter is sixteen years old. Do you really think you can date a sixteen-year-old kid Peter? He would still be in high school.” Tony growls, trying to knock some sense into you.

“Plenty of people date with age differences, Tony.” You point out.

“It would be illegal!” He yells, causing you to fall silent.

“Tony...I’m not looking to date him. It’s not about having him as my boyfriend, it’s about having him back. My Peter. My best friend. Sure, I’m in love with him, but I would be fine getting him back and just being his best friend. I just want my best friend back. Please.” You sniff, a tear slipping out of your eye.

“Oh, (Y/n)...” Tony pulls you in for a hug as more tears slip from your eyes. You bury your face into his shoulder.

Then it hits you.

“What if...what if we didn’t go back in time to get them, but we went back to stop the snap from happening? What if we went to The Collector and got the Reality stone, then got the Time stone from Dr. Strange, and the Space stone from Loki, and had Wanda destroy them all.” You offer, your brain going a thousand miles a minute trying to process everything.

“That’s...that’s actually not a bad idea. We’ll get to work on that tomorrow, though. As of now, we both need to get some rest.” Tony pushes you out of the lab. You groan and trudge to your room, flopping on your bed and finally getting some much-needed rest.

~+~

The next morning, you jump out of bed and run to the training room, finding Clint already in there talking to Natasha. 

“Hey, Clint. Nat.” You give them both happy smiles, something you’ve never done in your two years here. They both seem taken back by the happiness you’re radiating.

“What happened to you?” Nat asks.

“Tony and I may have figured out a way to get the others back.” You grin. Both of their eyebrows shoot up in surprise.

“You’re...serious?” Clint asks with a hint of hope in his voice.

“Maybe. It’s a really good possibility, though. We’re working on time travel.” You nod. Clint gives you a smile, the first you’ve ever seen from him. The rest of your training is spent working hard.

~+~

Eleven and a half hours later, like clockwork, Tony saunters into the training room.

“Let’s go!” He yells, and he doesn’t have to ask twice. You’re saying goodbye to Natasha and heading to the lab.

When you reach the lab, you realize that the outline of a portal has already been started in the center, and Shuri is tinkering with it.

“You guys started without me? Traitor.” You punch Tony in the shoulder. 

“I never said I wouldn’t.” He shrugs, giving you a smile. You jump right in, getting to work beside him and Shuri. Bruce even comes in for a couple of hours to help you guys work. For once, you don’t feel hopeless.

~+~ 

A few weeks later, you’re finally finished. There’s a portal sitting in the center of the lab, and you’ve tested it to make sure it works.

“We have to figure out who will go.” Tony frowns, scanning the portal one more time for any possible malfunctions.

“I know who will go.” You give him a look. He nods, having the same people in mind as you.

“So what’s the news?” Everyone else shows up in the lab, filing in through the door one by one.

“We found a way to get the others back.” Tony drops the news, and everyone’s faces go into shock. Except Clint and Natasha’s, of course. 

“You’re serious?” Steve asks.

“How?” Nebula asks skeptically.

“Even the ones who didn’t turn to dust?” Thor steps up, his fingers crackling with untamed electricity.

“Yes, even Loki. Even Gamora. Everyone. Because….we’re going back in time.” You answer their questions.

“Back in time?” Rocket yells.

“Yes, back in time, rabbit. Did you not hear them?” Thor beams, now in a much better mood.

“I heard them.” Rocket growls, but he doesn’t seem that angry at Thor. He seems to have a soft spot for the god.

“When are we leaving?” Steve asks.

“Now.” You bite your lip, looking through the Avengers and Co.

“Who’s going?” Nebula asks, narrowing her eyes at you and Tony. Shuri and Bruce are off to the side, already positive that they’re not going. Bruce doesn’t want to fail again, and Shuri isn’t sure she’s ready to see her brother again, since he left her in her lab when he was off fighting and ultimately, dying.

“Me, Steve, Thor, Nebula, and Natasha will go,” Tony answers, and you clear your throat.

“And me.” You add. Tony turn to give you a look, but you glare at him and make him shut up.

“So...we’re just stepping through the portal? Where...when are we going first?” Thor asks, furrowing his eyebrows.

“Your ship. Before Thanos arrived. We’re getting the Space stone from Loki first.” You smile at him. He nods. 

“And, we’ve got a remote for the portal so we can open it anywhere to any time and send something through or walk through. That’s why we need Bruce and Shuri here, to keep track of what and who comes back through the portal.” Tony informs everyone.

Everyone who was picked for the mission steps forward and the rest take a step back. Shuri turns on the portal and the team steps through. You feel like you’re submerged in water.

~+~

When you arrive on the other side of the portal, it’s like getting a fresh breath of air. You take a deep breath and look around the ship, seeing everyone happy and talking. You spot Loki amidst the crowd.

“Brother!” Thor bellows, grinning and running over to him. He envelops him into a large hug, which Loki is very confused at.

“I swear you were just in the other room.” Loki mumbles.

“I am from the future! We have come to rescue you!” Thor sweeps his hand toward the rest of the team, including you, and you wave slightly. You were trying not to fangirl. Of course, you’ve heard of all of these heroes, but you’ve never met any of them. And true, Loki isn’t a hero, but he’s an anti-hero, and he tried to save his planet and his brother in the end, so he’s a hero to you.

“Right...look, we’re about to head to Earth, so I’ll see your...team...there.” Loki rolls his eyes at his brother's antics, probably thinking he’s playing a trick on him.

“Look, Reindeer Games, we need you to hand us the Tesseract. And come with us. You’re going to die if you don’t, I promise you that.” Tony steps forward, holding out his hand to Loki.

“You’ve got to be kidding me. No. I don’t even have the Tesseract.” Loki huffs, crossing his arms.

“Do not lie to me, brother! I told you, I’m from the future. Any moment now, Thanos will show up and steal it. Then he will...destroy everyone. Do you think we can take Heimdall, too?” Thor turns to Tony.

“We can’t take all of your people, Thor, but I will allow Loki and Heimdall.” Tony begrudgingly agrees.

“C’mon, trickster, we need the stone. If you don’t hand it to us, we’ll be forced to take it from you.” You frown.

“You said Thanos is coming any moment now, yes?”Loki hums, glancing at the front of the ship anxiously. 

“Yes. Come with us, brother. Please.” Thor practically begs. Loki reaches into thin air and flips the Tesseract to Tony, who of course catches it with ease.

“Where are we going?” Loki asks, narrowing his eyes at you and Nebula in particular since he’s never seen the two of you.

“We’re not going to the same place as you. You’re going back to the compound, three years in the future. We’ve got some unfinished business in other places.” You answer him. He nods, seeming to deem you worthy of answering his questions.

“Okay.” He agrees, surprisingly.

“Okay.” Tony nods and clicks the remote, opening the portal. Loki, without hesitation, steps through to the other side. Thor gets Heimdall, gives your group a smile, and steps through the portal with Heimdall to get some much needed time with his brother and Heimdall back. Tony closes the portal and opens up another one.

“To Knowhere, pre-Thanos.” You smile at them and step through.

~+~

Another breath of fresh air and you’re in the middle of the Collector’s Museum on Knowhere. 

“Collector!” Tony yells, cupping his hands around his mouth.

“How can I be of service?” He appears behind your group, cocking an eyebrow at everyone.

“Give us the Reality stone.” Nebula’s now at his throat with one of her many weapons.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Shouldn’t we ask nicely first?” Steve asks, putting a hand on Nebula’s shoulder. She shrugs him off and presses the knife harder against The Collector’s throat.

“He wouldn’t react well to asking nicely.” She growls.

“She’s right. Why should I give you the Reality stone?” He narrows his eyes at her.

“Because if you don’t, there will be consequences. Half of the universe will die. That means half of your clientele. And you, of course. You’ll die.” You smile sweetly at him. He glares at you.

“And why should I believe you?” He sneers.

“Because in about thirty seconds, Thanos is going to barge in here and take this from you no matter what, and he won’t spare you. I suggest you give us the stone and run so he doesn’t get to you next.” Natasha speaks up, instead of just giving her signature intimidating look that she’s been giving this entire trip so far.

“Fine. Take the stone.” The Collector gives Nebula the Reality stone once he realizes you’re telling the truth.

“Another down. Let’s go.” Tony opens another portal, and everyone steps through.

~+~

You’re now standing on Vormir, right behind the purple thumb and his daughter, Gamora. Everyone looks at each other apprehensively.

“I’ll grab my sister. Tony, open the portal as soon as I’ve got her because we’re both going through as soon as I do. Then, you guys go wherever you need to go.” Nebula instructs. Tony nods. Nebula sneaks forward and taps Gamora’s shoulder. She spins around, ready to fight until she sees Nebula. She relaxes a little bit and willingly walks through the portal with Nebula without her having to explain anything.

As Thanos drones on about his big plan, Tony opens another portal and everyone walks through unnoticed. 

Disaster averted.

~+~

You, Tony, Natasha, and Steve step into Dr. Strange’s Sanctum Sanctorum. 

“I know why you’re here, you don’t have to tell me. Why do you need the Time Stone?” Dr. Strange appears from nowhere, giving your group a look.

“If you’re so all-knowing, then you should already know the answer to that question.” You raise an eyebrow at him.

“You’re right, I do. You want it to possibly save half the universe. Look, I’m tasked with keeping this stone at all times so I do not think I will hand it over to the likes of you.” He shakes his head.

“Then you also understand that you handed it over to Thanos when he tried to kill me.” Tony crosses his arms.

“Now why would I do such a thing?” Dr. Strange hums, flipping through one of his books absentmindedly.

“We don’t know. But you should give it to us because you and everyone you love will most likely die if you don’t.” You growl.

“So, if I give you the Time stone, you will save the world?” He asks, snapping the book shut and returning it to its place on the shelf. 

“Yes. Please, just give it to us. You’ll get it back three years from now, I promise. But it won’t actually be gone three years since we’ll only have it for about ten minutes.” Tony explains. Dr. Strange nods and opens the necklace, handing the Time stone to Tony. You thank him and step through another portal to your last destination. 

~+~

You arrive in Wakanda, in Shuri’s lab, next. You see Wanda standing there with Vision.

“Wanda, we need your help.” Steve steps forward.

“With what?” She asks, narrowing her eyes at you since you’re the only person she doesn’t recognize.

“We need you to destroy these stones.” You say as Tony lays them out on a table for her. She nods, a little hesitant, but seems to understand what’s at stake since you’re obviously not the regular Tony, (Y/n), Steve, and Natasha. Even though she wouldn’t know what you’re normally like.

She starts to use her power to destroy them.

A few minutes later, they all shatter, causing a massive burst of energy to throw everyone off their feet and into the nearest wall. 

“Ugh...time to go, guys.” Tony groans and opens a portal. Everyone climbs through, leaving a confused Wanda behind.

~+~

When you arrive back in your time, everything is different. No one is in the lab besides Shuri, Bruce, Thor, Loki, Heimdall, Nebula, and Gamora. 

“What happened?” Natasha asks.

“The rest didn’t know when you would come back, so we waited. For three years.” Shuri explains.

“We’ve been gone three years?” You furrow your eyebrows.

“Time travel. We don’t know how it works yet, we just figured out how to do it. It’s the same time as when you left, and the same place, but as soon as you destroyed the stones, everyone started appearing again. It’s been three years in their minds. They’ve been living here for the past three years and Thanos is only a distant memory to them. They remember the other timeline, but it’s more like a dream to them.” Bruce shrugs.

“Interesting. Well, I guess it’s better to be gone for three years than them be gone for the rest of our lives.” Tony racks his brain for explanations, but you don’t care.

“Where’s Peter?” You ask.

“Probably in his room.” Shuri gives you a small smile. Without warning, you and Tony rush out of the lab and find your way to Peter’s room. Tony had shown it to you a long time ago, and you had memorized the route from every room you had been to, so you get there a split second before Tony does.

“(Y/n)-” Tony stops you, putting an arm in front of the door. 

“What? I need to see him, Tony.” You try to shove him out of the way, to no avail.

“I need to talk to him first. Please. Let me. You can talk to him right after. I promise.” He begs you, giving you his puppy dog eyes that rarely many people got to see. You frown, sighing. 

“Fine. You have five minutes.” You begrudgingly let the billionaire go first. He’s a father figure to Peter, so it makes sense. You’re just the best friend.

~+~

During those long five minutes, you get a call. From your mom.

“Honey?” Your mom asks.

“Yeah, mom. It’s me.” You nod.

“Oh, good. Are you coming home for dinner tonight?” She asks simply, and you smile, a tear slipping down your cheek. It’s been so long since you last heard your mother’s voice.

“Yeah, I’ll be home. I gotta go now, but I’ll call you later, okay? I love you.” You hear her say a soft “I love you” back before you hang up, biting your lip to keep from crying already.

She’s okay. Everyone’s okay.

~+~

A few minutes later, as promised, Tony walks out of the room and closes it softly.

“You can go in now. You’ll thank me later.” He pats your back and walks off, leaving you slightly confused and nervous now. You’re not sure if you want to go in yet, after what Tony just said. Why will you thank him later?

Cautiously, you open the door. Peter is sitting on his bed, staring at his phone, crying. You hear a distinct voice playing on the phone.

“Uh, take care. I love you.” Your voice. Your voicemails. He’s listening to your voicemails.

“You weren’t supposed to hear those. How did you get that? I would’ve thought that- after...after the time change, your voicemails would’ve changed, too. Maybe disappeared.” You mutter, your heart rate picking up rapidly.

“Tony had my phone...he was never on it, it was to kinda...preserve my memory in a way, but he had it in his pocket at all times. Probably hoping that he’d give it back to me one day…” Peter trails off, not even looking up at you. Is this what Tony meant when he said you’d thank him later? He was wrong.

“I’ll just go.” You tear up, not from being with your best friend, but from not being able to have a happy moment with your best friend once he’s back.

“No, don’t. Please stay.” Peter grabs your hand and pulls you back to him, hugging you harder than you’ve ever been hugged before.

“Shuri says that dying is a distant memory for you. Almost like a dream. Do you remember it?” You whisper, letting your tears flow.

“Yeah, I do. Not vividly, just kinda the overview of things. I know I disintegrated, but I can’t remember much after that.” He admits, pulling you closer to him. You let out a sigh of relief.

“I remember everything. I remember being without you for a year. I remember being without May, Ned, or MJ for a year, too. And...without my dad for half a year.” You take a deep breath and pull back from Peter to get a good look at him. He doesn’t look much different besides being slightly older. Nineteen suits him well.

“I’m so sorry, (Y/n).” He brushes a hair behind your ear and your breath hitches in your throat.

“I should go. I’ve got a dinner with my family, and-” Peter cuts you off mid-sentence.

“Aunt May and I, and your family should do dinner together tonight! It would be a great way to catch up again, especially after everything. Shuri explained to me that regular civilians have a different perception of what happened than us...heroes. They don’t think that you, Tony, Steve, and Natasha have been gone for three years. Your mom has lived like you’ve been here the entire time, for some reason. I’m not sure why.” He explains quickly, making you slightly confused but more understanding why your mom wasn’t completely freaking out that you answered the phone.

“Okay. I think dinner with everyone would be good.” You nod in agreement.

“Great. And...before we go, there’s something I need to do.” Peter scratches the back of his neck anxiously.

“And what-” You’re about to ask what that would be, but before you can get the sentence finished, Peter’s kissing you. You’re surprised, to say the least, but not in a bad way. Your hands make their way to his hair, pulling at the disheveled curls as you kiss back. You’ve been waiting for this for too long.

Maybe you would thank Tony later.

“That’s what I had to do. I’ve been waiting to do that for...forever.” Peter grins once you pull away. Then, he kisses you again. And again. And again.

“Peter, as much as I absolutely love kissing you, we should get to our apartments. My parents will be wondering where I am.” You grin and take his hand, pulling him out of his room and into your car that Tony had gotten you a little while ago for your birthday.

~+~

When you’re finally back at your apartment building, you run up the stairs to see your parents. Peter has been able to see Aunt May for three years, but you haven’t seen your parents since the day your mom disintegrated and your dad committed suicide.

You knock loudly on the door to your apartment, Aunt May and Peter behind you, waiting anxiously. Aunt May knew of why you were so excited, she also had a distant memory of what happened, since she wasn’t necessarily a superhero, but she was involved in the life of one.

“Hi, honey!” Your mother hugs you and you hug back tightly.

“Mom! Where’s dad?” You look behind her. She gives you a concerned and sad look.

“Where’s…(Y/n), your dad...your dad committed suicide two years ago. How could you forget that?” Your mother places her hand on your forehead to check your temperature.

You go numb.

“He...what? Why?” You mumble, suddenly feeling very claustrophobic. Everything was supposed to be okay again.

“Well, he said he didn’t feel quite right. Like something was off. He kept complaining about it for half a year until...he killed himself. A year before he did, he was fine. Nothing was wrong. But then, six months later...he wasn’t himself anymore. He said he felt like he wasn’t supposed to be there like nothing felt quite real anymore. I don’t know what he was going on about, but he couldn’t bear to live with it any longer. Are you sure you’re okay? How come you don’t remember this? You were distraught and went to stay with Peter for a little bit.” Your mom pulls the three of you inside and goes to get a thermometer for you.

“He’s...he’s gone. For real. I’ll never get to see him again.” You mumble, not really able to contemplate anything else at the moment.

“I’m so sorry, (Y/n).” Aunt May and Peter hug you, trying their best to comfort you in the best way they could. Peter especially, since he knows what it’s like to lose a father.

“Honey, take your temperature.” Your mom hands you a thermometer and you put it in your mouth, not paying much attention to it. You hear a beep and your mom takes it out of your mouth.

“No fever...weird.” She frowns and goes to put it away. She then serves dinner and everyone eats silently. An awkward tension grows over the table.

“So, uh...me and (Y/n) have an announcement. We’re dating.” Peter smiles, trying to take your mind off your father. He laces your fingers together and holds your hands up for your mom and Aunt May to see.

“Oh, I’m so glad to hear that! You know, (Y/n), I knew you two would get together ever since you started hanging out when you were kids.” Your mother gushes. “I saw it, too! Did you see the way they would look at each other in middle school? Totally crushing on each other, but never even noticed it! I’m surprised it took them this long!” Aunt May joins, making you smile. Maybe things wouldn’t be so bad after all. Sure, you don’t have your father, but you had adjusted to life without him before. It shouldn’t be so hard this time, especially with everyone else by your side.

“Did someone call for a party!?” Ned and MJ suddenly burst through your apartment door, hugging you and Peter tightly.

“Oh my gosh, you guys! I texted you, like, fifteen times this morning! How come neither of you answered?” MJ punches your arm lightly. So, she’s like your mom. No clue about anything.

“MJ!” Ned yells, pointing at your intertwined hands. MJ raises her eyebrows and looks at you, winking.

“Now I think I know why you weren’t answering.” She smirks.

“MJ!” Both you and Peter yell, heat rising to your cheeks. You bite your lip to keep a smile from forming. If only she knew.

“Okay, okay. The adults are here, right. So, what’s for dinner?” MJ grins and they sit down and start eating your mother’s homemade food. You smile to yourself.

Maybe this can be your new little happy family.

[cynicalclassicist]

The Substitute

Written by Chris Newton

This isn’t mine but was done by another of the Lockdown writers who very kindly sent it to me.

If there was one thing Lou loved more than chips – and the beautiful girl with the seriously amazing hair that served them in the university canteen – it was Doctor John Smith’s lectures. Sometimes he would arrive late – bursting into the lecture hall with his Edwardian velvet jacket billowing behind him, already theorising aloud, often in midsentence. Other times Lou would arrive early, the first student there, only to find him already feverishly chalking away at his blackboard and boasting at thin air. It seemed that the Doctor was a walking lesson, and anybody who was lucky enough to be in his orbit – whether a student of St. Luke’s or not – might learn a thing or two. If they could get over the initial confusion, that was. The Doctor’s lessons weren’t necessarily always in chronological order, occasionally anachronistic (he himself often seemed unsure of what year it currently was), and not guaranteed to be in English, but things usually came together in the end. 

She’d once seen him segue from a talk on recording paranormal activity to a masterclass on creative writing, explaining that “ghosts and stories are the same thing. They’re what remains of us when we die.” (Although what any of that had to do with Chemistry, Lou had no idea.) 

Disappointingly, Amazing Hair Girl hadn’t been working in the canteen today. Come to think of it, she hadn’t been around much recently. Not to worry – surely a Doctor John Smith lecture would make up for Lou’s meagre portion of chips. 

Lou was in for her second disappointment of the day, because when she hurried excitedly into the class, it was not the Doctor upon the podium as usual, but a rather severe looking woman in Victorian style clothing who stood leaning on a parasol. There was something a bit Mary Poppins about her, albeit in an intimidating sort of way. Scary Poppins, thought Lou.

“Good afternoon, class,” the woman grinned as though amused by a joke that only she was aware of. “I’m afraid boring old Doctor Whatever-he’s-calling-himself-these-days is ill. I’m your substitute teacher for the day and my name is Mistress Thascalos.”

“What’s wrong with the Doctor?” Lou couldn’t help blurting. 

“Oh, I dunno,” Mistress Thascalos twirled her parasol dismissively. “Spectrox poisoning? A lethal dose of radiation? Falling off a tower? It’s usually something like that, isn’t it?” 

“But he’s okay? He’ll be back?”

“He does seem to make a rather annoying habit of surviving, yes. Anyway – textbooks! Turn to page…” she hesitated, “what subject is this?”

“Advanced Mathematics,” an eager student provided. 

“Maths? Ugh. You know what, who needs textbooks anyway? If you all have a look beneath your seats, you’ll find the very latest in virtual reality technology.”

The students did as they were told and, sure enough, they each found an incredibly hi-tech VR headset. The latest design from Magpie Electricals. 

“Well, don’t be shy! Put them on!” the substitute teacher smiled mischievously. 

“Miss...,” Lou raised a hand, surveying the headset uncertainly. “What does this have to do with mathematics?”

“Well… Very little,” said Mistress Thascalos. “But you’re not missing anything interesting. Take my word for it – I’ve been to Logopolis,” she mimed a yawn. 

“These headsets are the ultimate educational experience,” she declared as the students pulled them onto their heads and over their eyes. “From the comfort of this lecture hall you can sail the oceans,” there was a collective gasp as the students’ immersive experience began. “You can soar through the skies,” Mistress Thascalos continued, “you can probe the furthest recesses of the known universe.”

Lou could not believe what she was seeing. One minute she had been flying through clouds, but now she had burst through the earth’s atmosphere, rocketed past the moon, and was careering towards a distant nebula as constellations wheeled overhead. 

It was overpowering and awe inspiring. It filled her with a desire for adventure, a desire to explore… a desire to obey.

No, that couldn’t be right, could it? OBEY. She tried to focus her thoughts, but all she could think of – even with the vast infiniteness of space all about her – was the Mistress’s voice. Not so much the words, because the substitute teacher wasn’t speaking anymore; she was singing. The haunting timbre of her strange lullaby was like a siren’s song beckoning Lou to spaceshipwreck. 

Sing the days of love

Softly lay me down

Tenderly the night will come

Gently lay me down

Something in Lou’s subconscious was screaming at her to resist, but the melody was wholly overpowering. 

“I… Must… Obey…,” Lou mumbled, half consciously. 

“Now then boys and girls,” Mistress Thascalos struck her parasol against the floor with a joyful authority. “Please attend carefully! Your minds are now slaved to mine. To do my will shall be the whole of the law. As you can see, it’s a big old universe out there – we’ve got lots of work to do!” 

Mistress Thascalos giggled and then sighed. 

“He’s going to let me out eventually and I have to be ready. He will test me. I have to test myself first. I could tear your minds apart. I could claim mastery over you. I could even turn into a weird snake thingy and possess one of you. Actually, I don’t recommend that, between you and me it’s kind of icky.”

She dropped her parasol and sat, somewhat dejectedly, on the edge of the podium. Her face was inscrutable – or would have been had any of the students possessed the mental autonomy to look at her, but none of them saw the Time Lady sitting in contemplative silence. None of them saw the tear that pricked at her eye. Eventually, she clapped her hands together twice and the students collectively snapped out of her influence.

“Class dismissed,” she muttered.  

The students groggily removed their headsets, vaguely aware they’d been on some sort of simulated tour of the cosmos. That was the thing with VR, it was incredibly realistic but it always made you nauseous after too long. Lou thought she must have nodded off. The last thing she remembered was a strange song. I must have dreamt it, she shrugged, before shouldering her bag and shuffling off toward the canteen for a vegan wrap in the hope that Amazing Hair Girl would be back.

***

Missy prowled down the university corridor, past the entrance to the Terrance Dicks Library, and then pushed open the door to the Doctor’s office a peek’s worth. The room was empty, and the TARDIS was gone. She pirouetted across the rug to his desk, rummaging through the collection of sonic screwdrivers in the caddy. She selected one of the earlier models, a small slim silver rod. Surely, he wouldn’t miss this one. 

Unable to resist, she reached out to open the 2000 Year Diary resting upon the desk, but just as her fingers couched its stiff leather cover, the wheezing, groaning of ancient engines filled the room and she hurried for the door.  

She made her way across the quad, and down past the bins and to the heavy iron door which lead to the bowels of the university. A student, still in the previous evening’s glad rags and looking rather green around the gills, was slumped against a stack of bin bags. Missy shooed him out of the way as she pushed against the door’s rusted rivets; it didn’t budge.

“Seriously?” she sighed. “Friends Only?”

Missy turned angrily to the student, raving at the young man as though it was his fault. 

“The Doctor’s set the door to allow friends only,” she yelled.

“Please…,” murmured the student. “I don’t feel well.” His hand shot to his mouth.

“I am his friend,” Missy continued. “His oldest friend. We were at school together.”

Behind her, the door gave a metallic squeal.

“Don’t take that tone with me!” Missy snapped, angrily turning back to the door. “What about the Axons? Remember the Axons? Or Rassilon, remember? Get out of the way – Pizwow!!” she made the noise of a lightning bolt. 

The door remained shut fast. She booted it in frustration and then gave a grunt of pain, hopping on the spot. 

“Fine,” she sighed. “Fine. What about today? I could have killed them all. Kind of wanted to, actually, not gonna lie. Did give it some serious thought. But I let them live. I had them under my power, but I chose to let them go. Because…,” she gritted her teeth. “Because it was right. And, no, I’ve not gone soft, I didn’t do it for me. I did it for him. Because he’s the only person I’ve ever met who’s even remotely like me. Because I am his friend. We had a pact; every star in the universe – we were going to see them all. But he was too busy saving them. I don’t think he ever saw anything. That’s why he has all those pets, those silly little humans; he’s always trying to see the cosmos through their eyes. Maybe one day he’ll see it through his own. With me.” 

The door seemed to gurgle and then opened with a deep clunk. Missy had never heard a door that sounded begrudging before, but it had conceded to her logic. Friends Only meant that the Doctor’s first friend was allowed in. Missy strode through just as the hungover student by the bins was beginning to retch.

She waltzed along to the vault as the door slammed shut behind her and pointed the old sonic at the lock. There was a lot of whizzing, whirring and bleeping, until eventually it rotated to the right with a clunk and she let herself in.

Honestly, one thousand years locked in a vault with nothing to do but escape. Did he really think she wouldn’t have engineered a way out by now? She once built a gun out of leaves. She could get through a door if she wanted to. Missy shook her head.

The Mistress, the renegade Time Lady of Gallifrey, locked herself back into her prison. Without hope, without witness, and without reward. 

[kittenwritesstuff]

You can’t hurry love

Fandom: Marvel Pairing: Peter Quill x (Guardian)reader Genres: fluff, mention of alcohol, jealousy Words: 2.285 Summary: Reader is in charge of new recruits and she becomes friends with Kraglin. That makes Peter jealous - requested by @luxdxvine 

Gently, you stroke Groot’s back as he snuggles to your shoulder, a quiet yawn coming from his mouth. You smile fondly at him, humming a lullaby to lull him to sleep and just after a minute or two his breathing becomes steady, his eyes closed and expression that of serenity.

As you hear footsteps approaching you, you turn your head in the direction and notice Drax. He gives you a lopsided smirk when you shush him putting your index finger on your lips before tilting your head to the little one napping on you.

With even more gentleness he takes Groot from you and lays him in the crook of his arm.

“They’re waiting,” he whispers and you nod, mouthing a ‘thank you�� as you head outside of the ship and onto an opening somewhere in a forest, on a planet you didn’t catch a name of, since Rocket was screaming his lungs out at Peter for hell only knew what reason. You simply stopped paying attention to their bickering.

It’s funny – how quickly and easily all of you bonded and formed a family, without even using that word to describe the nature of your relation. You had each other’s backs, supported one another in one way or another (you always valued Drax’s advices, they were literally the funniest ever).

You met the Guardians by accident. Well, it was accident you just had, what you thought then, a misfortune of being in that place, in that time to witness it. Despite the voice of reason telling you that it wasn’t normal for a large ship to just crash onto the ground like that, you decided to help them. You offered your tools and experience, in both tending to the ship and to its passengers, Peter Quill asked you to join them.

You agreed only because Gamora was giving you a pleading look behind his back.

You had only one condition – you travel alone, in your own ship and if you don’t want to participate in a mission, you won’t, no words of complain from anyone.

Yeah, about that… your ship became ‘ladies’ bedroom’ and travelling alone meant that you stayed in different room on the ship while it was moving. You were annoyed only at the beginning but as the time passed by, you got used to that. You found your place among that gathering of various individuals, who surprisingly completed one another. You were from Earth and, like Peter, were taken by Ravagers, although you separated from them earlier to work on your own.

Latest events resulted in making all of you more of a family that you’ve been before and you loved it. Yondu’s loss was painful yet it finally opened Peter’s eyes, something neither you nor Gamora managed to accomplish.

And now, as you for the first time, and the rest for the second, saved the Galaxy, it was high time to accept new member. You’ll have a lot of work once everyone get a word about what you did.

You clear your throat to gain attention. Mantis flashes you a warm smile, Kraglin waves his hand and Nebula looks as per usual – as if she’s about to kill everyone and bathe in their blood. Actually you have no idea why she stayed. Gamora was sure that after Yondu’s funeral Nebula would go to get Thanos but she decided to tag along for a while.

With is another positive result of the events – family member reunite and try to get along with each other, yay!

“Alright, losers, first things first. You listen to me. You don’t undermine what I say. And the most important thing – we’re a team. We don’t cross anyone out. We stay together, and that’s what I’m gonna teach you. How to fight in a team and how to protect your team members. Because, believe me, they’re gonna need it.”

_____

You’re pretty happy with how things go now. You’re mothering Groot, you’re training the newbies, your ship became a full ‘girls only’ cabin as you’ve spent almost every evening on gossiping and talking shit about the boys.

It’s fun. It really is. Totally wonderful. You’re on cloud nine for most of the time.

Expect the moments when you feel like you’re gonna tear yourself apart with your bare hands because of that stupid guy.

Gamora noticed something but she kept her mouth shut. Only once she told you that she’d listen to whatever you got to tell, if you needed it. Nebula only narrowed her eyes every time she caught you with gloomy face. You were careful around Mantis, touching her only if you had to and willing those foolish thoughts away.

“This is called vodka,” you answer Gamora’s question as she examines the liquid in shot-glass with a furrowed brow.

“Is it strong?” Nebula asks as you hand her her own glass and you nod.

“Yes, it is. Mantis?” you inquire as you make to fill a glass for her. She’s a curious one, you have to admit it – she tries everything you give her, although only after asking a thousand questions.

“Just a bit. I’m not entirely fond of alcohol. It makes my head spin and my stomach flip.”

“That’s what it’s supposed to do, honey,” you snicker, offering her a glass with a bit of liquid, just as she requested. You pour vodka into your own glass and raise it.

“To the girls.”

“Cause we run the damn Galaxy!” Gamora adds and all of you chuckle as you tap your glasses together before downing the liquor. You swallow it and hiss, Gamora let out a ‘ha!’ and Nebula licks her lips, drawing up her glass for you to refill it. Mantis grimaces and puts her glass down, which is a evident sign that she doesn’t like vodka. You’ll bear it in mind next time you pick a liquor.

Gamora slides her glass towards you and so you pour some vodka in it after you did the same for Nebula.

“Y/N,” the latter starts, her voice turning a bit metallic at the last letter of your name.

“Yes?”

“You seem to be rather quiet lately. Is there a reason why?”

“Wait a second. Are you worried about me?” your brows jump up as shock fills you. You turn your head to look at Gamora.

“Did you tinker with her brain? Is that really your sister?”

She gives you a tight smile though you can see sparkles of pride in her eyes.

“It’s still Nebula. We talk a lot lately. I’m teaching her about different emotions.”

“Well, then, you’re a damn god teacher. And Nebula, thank you for concern, but there’s nothing to be worried about. I’m fine.”

“Bullshit,” she states, confidence in her voice and, once again, you’re caught off guard. It appears you underestimated their skills. They’re more observant than you thought.

“There’s something bothering you, right?” Mantis adds and you rub your forehead, lowering your head a little.

“I’m fine, really.”

“Is it Kraglin? You spent a lot of time with him lately, are you-?”

“Kraglin? Are you shitting me right now?” you exclaim, looking at Gamora with utter surprise. How did she even come up with something like that? You and Kraglin are only friends, and yes, you enjoy talking to him and listening to his stories about being a Ravager and how it was when Peter was younger and Yondu always threatened to eat him. He’s funny but there’s nothing more than friendship between you and him.

As you think about it, it might, in fact, look like the two of you were slowly but gradually becoming an item.

“Oh shit. Does it really look like that?”

“Yeah, kinda,” Gamora admits and nods her head. You heave out a sigh and scratch the back of your neck.

“For the record, there is nothing between me and Kraglin. We’re pals. End of the topic. You, however,” you point your finger at Gamora and she blinks few times, feigning to be surprised, “what did you do to Peter? You got his hopes all high and then  turned him down.”

“I didn’t do that.”

“Yes, you did.”

“She didn’t,” Nebula chimes in and you jerk your head to look at her, your brows knitted.

“The hell is going on here? Why am I feeling like I’m being interrogated or something?”

“Peter’s not all grumpy because I turned him down. I did this a long time ago, anyway, he knows I don’t like his that way and he’s over it.”

“When why is he so sensitive lately? I mean, every time I talk to him, he’s bitching at me for no reason.”

“That’s because he thinks you and Kraglin are a couple. Or soon will be. Peter is jealous. I touched him and it’s all red inside him,” Mantis explains politely and your mouth falls agape. You quickly down your vodka.

“Holy fuck,” you pant and hide your face in your hands, trying to sort it out. Peter is acting strange because he’s jealous, possibly of your presumptive relationship with Kraglin, who, by the way, made it clear that he fancies someone else. So, there may be a small chance that Peter feels the same about you as you feel about him, although you don’t see a possibility to confess since he’s being an asshole around you.

You growl.

“Putting it aside, why did you say no to him in the first place?”

“His pelvic sorcery doesn’t work for me. But -,” she refills your glass, urging you to drink. She joins you, Nebula as well and when you put your glasses down, Nebula finishes Gamora’s sentence.

“- it may work for you.”

“You’re the worst ever,” you say as they burst out with laughter, Mantis giggling. You only hope that they’ll help you figure out how to let Peter know that you’re not in any kind of romantic relationship with Kraglin.

_______

Despite your initial doubts, you must admit – Gamora is a genius. She gave an idea immediately as if she already had it in mind and you wondered for a moment how obvious you must’ve been about your affection.

Anyway, it’s all arranged now. Your ship was cleaned and turned into a small restaurant. There’s a table for two people, there are chairs and even a flower in a vase in the middle of the table. It looks lovely and you smile to yourself. They even put a cover over beds for that all you can see it’s the table. Also, Rocket put few lights in various places – they give a light alike to candlelight without the risk of burning anything.

For a brief moment, a surge of panic courses through you. What if you were wrong and Peter wasn’t in love with you? What if he laughs it off and you’ll have to live with shame? Lord, you hope you and girls read the signs correctly.

You jump onto your feet when Peter’s annoyed voice reaches you and you swallow hard preparing for a mocking laughter when he’ll see you all dolled up – in a dress and high hells, hair done and make up on…

But it never happens. Instead, there is a sharp inhale and silence after the door opens and you lift your gaze to see what’s going on.

Peter stands still at the door, Rocket peaking his head curiously and grinning like an idiot. You wave your hand to urge him to go and, mumbling curses under his breath, he does, leaving you and Peter alone.

“You sure it’s me who’s supposed to be here? Cause I can get out if you expected somebody else.”

“Stop being a dick, Peter,” you roll your eyes and Peter cracks a smile yet he fidgets with his fingers in a nervous manner.

“That’s my usual behavior, Y/N, you know that, don’t you?”

“Nope, you’re less of a jerk usually. I noticed it started recently after you’ve put me in charge of training new ones. Something changed, Peter.”

“Yeah, the number of people on this ship,” he states matter-of-factly and you fight an urge to punch him in his guts.

“Something else. Please, Peter, cooperate with me on this.”

“Well, given that there’s more of us now, we eat more. And I mean, a lot! I thought Drax eats for more or less three, but damn, Kraglin has an appetite. And he’s mean, he takes what’s mine.”

“You mean food?” you quirk up a brow at him and Peter becomes sheepish. He runs a hand over his stubble, looking at his feet.

“Not really. Though he eats a lot of my snacks, it’s getting ridiculous. I leave something for later and then it’s gone, disappearing into thin air. I started putting my name on my snacks but it doesn’t stop him. At this point, I’m frustrated to no end and I won’t hesitate to bite off his nose for that.”

“You’re unbelievable,” you mumble affectionately, shaking your head and Peter snorts.

“And you’re a huge dork.”

“Yeah, I agree.”

“I’m standing here, in a dress and you’re rambling about Kraglin stealing your food.”

“It’s a serious thing, Y/N.”

“Well, if the food is more important to you…”

“No, no!” he assures, grabbing your wrist as you make to walk pass him. You give him a bashful smile, your heart pounding in your chest, the temperature unbearably high and Peter locks his eyes with yours.

“I thought you were his.”

“I was never his, Peter.”

“Shit, I’m an asshole.”

You giggle, stepping closer to him. He snakes an arm around your middle, pulling you to him.

“Kiss me, you asshole,” you whisper and before your eyes can fully flutter closed, Peter’s lips land on yours.