#at which point everyone finally got the joke and tried to attack me through the vc
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Created an absolute rage response in all my players with a red herring joke in last nightâs puzzle session and itâs one of my proudest moments as a dm
#they were trying so hard to figure out what the meaning of the red fish symbol was#until one of them asked the triton if he could identify fish type and i got to be like#'yeah khomros you recognize this as...a herring : )#at which point everyone finally got the joke and tried to attack me through the vc#dnd
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I really like your stories, especially about the Creator otter. It would be great if when the truth is known, they take the Creator otter to the "true creator" and when he tries to hurt the otter, the attack returns on its own or something happens. to prevent him from harming the beautiful otter and so it is known that he is the true creator, I imagine he would have many more pamperings than before
The Otter Chronicles Pt.3
â Previous Part » âĄïž
à«źê°Ë¶á” á á”˶ê±á Pairings : GN! Otter Reader x Fontaine
à«źê°àŸàœČâ©ÂŽ á” `â©ê±àŸàœČá W.K. : 2.2k
à»ê°àŸàœČá” á” á” ê±àŸàœČ১ Tags/CW&TW : Angst, some fluff, many mental breakdowns
à»ê°àŸàœČ˶Ëâ°Ë˶ê±àŸàœČá Authorâs note : I. Am. So. Sorry. You have been waiting for months for this but I didnât know how to continue and then I got writers block and UGH-
But Iâm here now :). And your gonna get your wish :3
Future note, this will probably be split up into at least one more chapter because I know for a fact I wonât be able to write all the idea, plus, I have an idea on how to finish it!!~~
As you snoozed peacefully, the quiet seemed to seep into the room, suffocating everyone within it.
âSo⊠the otter sat on your lap⊠sleeping⊠thatâs the creator?â Finally, Wriothesley broke the silence that had consumed the room, making Furina jump and you chitter under your breath, snuggling into her stomach.
âDo we have any proof?- I mean, besides what happened with the Primordial Sea-â âDo you need more evidence?â Neuvillette interrupted. His face was stern and cold, hands gripping at his pants.
âWell⊠itâd be nice to at least know for certain?â Wirothesley sighed out, a hand pressing to his forehead. He leans forward in his seat and took a breath before speaking again. âI mean, genuinely, canât you see where Iâm coming from? Sure, you might trust your gut or whatever magical power youâre keeping from us, but this is a little hard to believe for a guy like me. I mean, who knows! Maybe it was coincidence the Primordial Sea went back into the lock!! Because Iâve personally never seen a creature besides a human jump in there, have you? Maybe itâs all just one big joke I just-â He stopped, huffing, hands shaking.
âI⊠we gave our everything⊠to the Creator. And now Iâm finding out it was all a lie? If itâs true, and they really are THE Creator⊠then Iâve just been lying to myself?? That everything Iâve went through, every trial Iâve faced, every man Iâve stared down as we sent him to his death, every challenged Iâve faced⊠that i convinced myself that I would get through for them⊠that it was just a test to prove my worth⊠my loyalty⊠would it be for nothing..? IâveâŠâ The man stood up, chair knocking back behind him as he rose, tears staining his cheeks. Neuvillette also stood, putting a hand in front of Furina. Chlorinde simply sat with hands drawn to her lap.
âIâve devoted my LIFE to them!! Iâve given my EVERYTHING to THEM!! I thought⊠I THOUGHT⊠I THOUGHT THAT THEY WOULD SAVE ME FROM THIS DAMNNATION OF SOULS GRIPPPING TO MY CHEST, CRYING OUT THAT I COULDNT SAVE THEM!! MY SIBLINGS, MEN I KNEW COULDNT HAVE BEEN GUILTY AND AND- YOU WANT TO SAY ITS ALL BEEN FOR NOTHING?!?â âCALM YOURSELF WIROTHESLEY!-â âNO! BECAUSE THIS IS FUCKING RIDICULOUS!â
A shouting match began between the two men, Chlorinde jumped up and wrapped herself around a now shaking Furina who was about to cry again, holding your form close to her chest. As the men screamed at each other - and teacups started being thrown - you finally stirred, opening bleary eyes at the scene unveiling before you.
Why were people screaming..? What⊠You looked up to see Furina shaking and silently sobbing over you, Chlorinde hushing her and whispering into her ear, though you couldnât hear what she was saying. Wriggling around enough to face the shouting, your eyes widened at the sight of Neuvillette and Wirothesley screeching at each other, both Visions glowing wildly at the emotions of their wielders.
It was getting to a point where your ears were starting to hurt, so you leapt of Futunaâs lap, which led to her and Chlorinde whipping their heads to you, and ran over to the shouting men. You didnât know what had come over you, seeing them both fight - something you never thought you wouldâve witnessed honestly - and ran between them paws raised. Both paused for only a second, before Wirothesley started arguing again and Neuvillette followed. You tried to chitter and call over both of them, not getting anywhere with their raised voices.
You took a deep breath, focusing. This had been something you wanted to try since the beginning but just never had the time nor the energy to do so. But if there ever was a time, now was it. Your brows furrowed as you focused on any and all water in the current room, imagining the water following your command, as though alive and you its master. You grunted, catching Furinaâs attention as she called for you to come back.
Cups suddenly started shaking in the room, only the Archon and Dualist taking note. It also didnât help that the entire building was surrounded by water, though luckily you were able to mostly focus your attention on the small bits of water in the room. Neither Wriothesley or Neuvillette stopped to look at you as you raised your little paws to your head, the shouting mixed with your focus bringing on a headache.
Finally, it came to a close when Wriothesley shouted at the top of his lungs; teacups shattered and liquid swirled around the room, tea and water and otherwise swimming around the room like a raging typhoon, slamming into walls and knocking over objects. Finally the Duke and Sovereign stopped looking just as shocked as the Duelist and Archon. You pressed your paws forward, all the liquid slamming onto the arguing duo, pushing them into wall on opposite sides of the room.
Neuvillette looked remorseful while Wriothesley was shocked, eyes as wide as possible and jaw slacked. After a moment of silence you dropped your paws, allowing the two to fall to the floor drenched and standing in puddles.
âHoly⊠Holy Shit. They are theâŠâ Wriothesley looked towards Neuvillette who nodded. Wriothesley fell to his knees, hands gripping at his hair and tears filling his eyes.
âAll my life⊠was a lie?â You rushed to his side before he could spiral, rapidly chittering and crying, wishing you could speak so you could comfort him. In fear of another argument you began to cry. You sniffled and placed paws on his arm, practically begging him not to fall down that dark hole of spiraling thoughts.
Suddenly, you felt a hand on your head. Fingers gently carded through your fur, and you looked up, meeting Wriothesleyâs eyes. They were still teary, filled with grief and sorrow, but there was something behind it, something bright.
âMm⊠donât cry little guy. I didnât mean to uh⊠scare you?â His smile was shaky at best. You whined and climbed into his lap, paws pressed to his cheeks and small kitten-licks to the tears he evidently didnât know about, rubbing away any others you couldnât get. His eyes widened, quickly trying to rub away any stray tears he caught.
The others watched the scene, not daring to speak. Eventually Wriothesley picked you up to stare at you. All his life had been spent worshiping one person, they fell from the sky one day, and he figured thatâd be it. He got live in the generation that saw the return of their blessed Creator. Never to have them look him in the eye or anything.
But here you were. An otter. And you had already done so much more for him than the Creator had in such a short amount of time.
It would take a while, he figured, till his mind really did say that you were, in fact, the real and true Creator, till his mind could finally let go of the notion that heâd never get to see them because here you were, in his arms, caring for him.
â⊠Yâknow⊠youâre a pretty cute little otter.â Everyoneâs eyes snapped over to him when he spoke, more tears falling from his eyes. You squirmed around, desperately trying to get close enough to wipe them but were caught off-guard when instead Wriothesley wiped tears out of your eyes.
You cried, squirming in his arms to wrap your own around his neck. Everyone was silent as this happened, watching as his arms gently curled around you, slowly breaking down.
Neuvillette turned away, ashamed that he had lost his cool, and watched as Furina got up from the couch and walked over to you and Wriothesley. She couched down and sat beside you both, laying a head on Wriothesleyâs shoulder.
You chirped quietly into the mana chest, letting him silently sob into you.
Only the sound of moving water disrupted the calm.
à«źê°ă„Ë¶âą àŒ âąË¶ê±ă„ ËÊ ê°ââââàšđŻđ§đ„„à§ââââê± ÉË
That meeting was weeks ago, and now your little group was coming up with a plan to bring this news to light before all the other nations.
It had been well established to them that creatures of Teyvat, from small bugs to the largest beast, would all listen to you under any and all circumstances.
Like now.
While they all spoke under the moonlight inside Wriothesleyâs office - one of the most secretive places in all of Fontaine - you swam just outside the walls in a raft of otters, all in all just having a fun time until the inevitable.
The rebellion.
Naturally everyone in the room was pissed, especially since it had been years at this point that that false âCreatorâ had sat on a throne that was rightfully yours. They could see the effect your presence had on Fontiane.
The sun shone brighter, the water seemed clearer, less Meka broke down, flower bloomed easier, crime even dropped. It was great.
Everyone and everything seemed and felt happier.
Much happier than with that fucking liar.
A map of the large, floating Sanctuary and Shrine that was supposed to house the Creator was laid out across a table, specific entry point circled in red.
âNext week marks the beginning of the *Creatorâs Walk. Defenses will grow as this week passes but the first day of the walk, there will be no Acolytes.â Neuvillette broke the silence by pointing towards the circles on the map.
âBut theyâll still be in the perimeter. I should know, I was apart of the last Creatorâs Walk.â Chlorinde spoke up, adjusting her hat. âI canât think of any entrance we may have left ungraded, even if from a distance.â
They were silent as they thought. The Creatorâs walk was a Month Long holiday where the Creator would walk nation to nation - by themselves - in order to hand out blessings, push back monsters for a following month of no attacks and to retrace their original path between Nations, a show that they were all still connected.
The quiet was broken by the sounds of you chittering, the door opening and revealing you wrapped in a Melusine themed towel, Sigewinne trailing right behind you.
âThank you Sigewinne for returning them to us, now if you would mind-â Neuvillette started but was interrupted by the Melusine, ïżœïżœïżœYouâre talking about the plan right?â Everyone stared at her while you took it upon yourself to climb into Furinaâs lap.
âHow did-â âUh, duh. Iâve known all along? I wouldâve figured youâd have guessed that by now, especially with all the other Melusine and Meka treating them so great? Come on Monsieur Neuvillette, youâre smarter than that!â The sentence was ended with a giggle as she skipped over to the still shocked older man.
Neuvillette shook himself from the sudden stupor, sighing and nodded, before his eyes lit up.
âThatâs right. We have all the Meka of Fontaine on our side. Theyâd do anything for ma moitiĂ©. How in Archons name did we forget we have an entire army on our side?â Everyone stared at Neuvillette sheepishly, shrugs and mutters filling the room. Neuvillette sighs and hangs his head, but quickly rebounds.
âWell in that case, most Nations havenât fought our Meka-â âBut they have fought Ruin Guards.â Chlorinde spoke again. Neuvillette bit his cheek, she had a point. While Meka were different, it wouldnât take to much the Acolytes to find weaknesses due to said Ruin Guards.
Silence again.
âThe Local Legends and beasts alike could be of use. I mean, I doubt anyoneâs fought giant crabs before.â Furina mentioned, though most of her attention was on you, drying you off and petting you.
âThat is true, Lady Furina.â Wriothesley agreed. Eyes drew back to the map, taking in every spot on the thing.
âThere!â Sigewinne was the one to point to a point on the map, near the back to the left of the large estate.
âWhatâs the spot?â She asked, Wriothesley took one look and responded.
âThatâs a window to their wine cellar. Pretty unused but still guarded, why?â Sigewinne looked up with a grin.
âBecause itâs closest to a body of water.â Chlorinde looked closely at the spot, and her eyes widened a bit.
âShe has a point, and on top of that, while it is still guarded itâs much more lax, especially considering itâs not to far from where the âCreatorâ will be leaving but far enough where anyone would doubt an entry. On the other hand, it could only appear that way.â
âThatâs where Meka and monsters could come in.â Wriothesley started. âWhen weâre protecting the place we more expect other people than monsters considering theyâre all scared of the place.â
The plan started to come together, more pieces being added and who should go first and so on and so forth. Furina was too busy playing with you to really care, but looked up with a confused expression.
âWhen are we going to tell the others? Vision users, I mean. And⊠how?â Everyone looked towards her.
ââŠFuck.â And a new can of worms now needed to be opened.
à»ê°àŸàœČ˶Ëâ°Ë˶ê±àŸàœČá Authorâs note : IM SO FUCKING SORRY I CANT DO IT!! I swear I will be keeping this idea in mind tho because I now have a plan to map out all of the creator stories I swear it Iâm just tired omg Iâm sorry but I hope this suffices for now-
⊠This is so disappointing Iâm sorry-
#genshin impact sagau#sagau x reader#sagau#x reader#x gn reader#gn y/n#x gn y/n#yandere x reader#yandere x you#Otter!Creator#asks <3#anon <3
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The Only One | S.H.
Summary: in which reader has severe anxiety and Steve is the only one who can calm them down. Warnings: anxiety, panic attack Word Count: 0.9k
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Youâve suffered with anxiety and panic attacks for as long as you can remember. As a child, you were so anxious during school that you would hold all your emotions in until you got home, much to your parentsâ dismay. Once middle school came around, you were able to recognize that what you were experiencing was anxiety, and it was debilitating.
Your struggles improved slightly as you aged, but you still struggled quite a bit. When you started dating Steve, he helped you significantly. If nothing else, his presence calmed you, but it helped that he seemed to be a natural at comforting you from anxiety and panic attacks.
You had been struggling again recently; the aftermath of everything that had happened finally catching up with you.
After the adrenaline fades away into nothingness, youâre only left with fear.
God, and did it seem that you feared everything these days. Steve was patient with you, despite the frustration you had with yourself for putting him through this. You felt like you couldnât do anything normal anymore.
Thatâs why, when your group suggested a casual movie night, you wanted to try. You wanted to at least try to be normal, if just for one night.
âYou ready?â Steveâs voice chimed, his face coming into view.
His large hands cupped either side of your face as you nodded up at him. He beamed at you, and leaned in to place a chaste kiss on your forehead before leading you to his car.
The movie night started out fine, with Mike and El cuddling lovingly to your right, and Steve on your left. On the other side of him was Dustin, Lucas, Max, and Erica.
You hadnât realized just how many people would be attending the get-together. You attempted to choke down the tight feeling in your throat as the movie started.
Steveâs hand on your thigh brought you back to reality slightly, but the dull ache of panic still sat dormant at the bottom of your stomach.
âYou alright?â His concerned eyes met yours, and you nodded.
âYeah,â you spoke, an edge of uneasiness in your statement. Steve noticed, but merely rubbed your leg in response.
At about halfway through the movie, the feeling of anxiety still bubbled up every once in a while. It increased significantly when Steve stood up.
âIâm getting more popcorn. Anyone want anything?â
Everyone shook their head, too focused on the movie. Steve would be the one to get more food in the middle of a movie and risk missing the the most integral point of the plot.
Upon his descent towards the kitchen, your throat constricted at the lack of his warmth next to you. You attempted to cough, trying anything to get the feeling to go away. Unfortunately for you, it came out as more of a strangled noise.
Dustin turned to you, brows furrowed in confusion.
âYou okay, Y/N?â
You nodded, attempting to focus on the movie. I swear to god, you thought. If I have a damn panic attack in front of all these peopleâŠ
Despite your mental protests, all of a sudden the air left your lungs. You gasped, the attention of your friends all snapping from the movie to you.
âY/N?â A voice spoke, you thought maybe it was Max, but you couldnât quite tell.
âSheâs hyperventilating, sheâs going to pass out if she doesnât stop!â Another voice. Lucas?
âStââ you croaked.
âSteve? You want Steve?â The voice was Dustinâs.
âSteve!â
âWhat? Iâm almost done with the popcorn, hold your horses,â Steveâs joking voice chimes in from the kitchen.
âSteve, itâs Y/N! Get in here!â
Steve bolted from the kitchen, abandoning his popcorn. He was at your side in mere seconds, his hands rushing to your face.
âBaby,â he spoke, frantically. âLook at me. Look at me.â
Your eyes were clenched shut tightly, but you managed to pry them open slightly in order to peer at your boyfriend.
âThatâs it, good,â he cooed. âNow follow my breathing.â
You tried, you really tried to follow his breathing, but the panic was encompassing every fiber of your being.
âBaby, you gotta breathe or youâre going to pass out. Câmon, itâs okay, Iâm right here.â
His thumb rubbed under your eye, and he exaggerated each of his breaths to demonstrate.
Slowly, your breathing began to return to some semblance of normal. Steve sighed in relief, and rested his forehead against yours.
âWhat the hell just happened?â
Dustin and the others stared at the both of you, incredulous. Steve could feel your body tense, and he rubbed your arms up and down to comfort you.
âShut up, Henderson. Câmon, letâs get you home.â
Steve helped you up to a standing position before guiding you towards the door. He instructed you to put your shoes and coat on before making his way back to the others.
âThanks for yelling for me earlier, guys. Please donât bring this up around her, okay? Sheâs going through a lot,â Steve pleaded with the group, and they all nodded through wide eyes.
Upon seeing you two leave, the rest of the group merely looked at one another in incredulity, surprised by Steveâs ability to calm you down so effectively. The two of you left to return to Steveâs place, to which he ran you a nice bath and you cuddled the rest of the night, him whispering soothing words in your ear.
-----
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#steve harrington#steve harrington x reader#steve harrington headcanon#steve harrington fluff#steve harrington fanfic#steve harrington fanfiction#stranger things#stranger things fanfic#stranger things fanfiction#stranger things fanfiction fluff#steve harrington hurt/comfort#steve harrington x you
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Firstly, I'd like to apologise to everyone for the person I became when Time Stands Still at the Iron Hill came on. Secondly, Blind Guardian were magical
It felt like being invited to attend my dad's D&D session; I struggle to describe it any other way. Atmosphere was electric, the songs were hype, Hansi was just a really sweet, affable guy the whole way through. At one point we made eye contact and it nearly gave me a heart attack. Hansi the adoption papers are in the mail.
Was surprised they didn't do too much of God Machine. It was a nice even spread from their whole career, which was great to experience. And today was the 35th anniversary of Follow the Blind's release, so we got to celebrate that a little.
A Bard's Song was of course played and of course Hansi barely sung any of it because we knew all the lyrics by heart. It's crazy to experience that live. Singing along with everyone to a song that's meant a lot to you since childhood; I wept the obligatory solitary tear and was thankful when Violent Shadows came on next so I could recover from all the emotions xD
I'm not gonna lie. When Hansi said they were coming to the end of their show and they would have to leave after the next one - bearing in mind I knew full well there must be an encore - I burst into tears and spent the next song violently trying to hide my crying from the stage cos god I'm just a baby Hansi you can't say that to me even as a joke apparently Dx I was genuinely so upset at the idea of them leaving lmao
Luckily ofc they had a four song encore and played a bit of Twilight Orchestra in the interim. Hansi tried to tell us they had more songs for us but he kept forgetting the English word for "more" and spent a good minute trying to figure it out bless him xD everyone started chanting "Hansi" when he got it right finally lol
Valhalla was included in the encore and, yes, we did chant the chorus for far longer than necessary after the song ended. And then started it back up again a minute later xD
And we got one extra song that wasn't on the set list! Was not expecting them to play Majesty but it brought the house down. What had been a pretty sedate crowd suddenly broke out into crowd surfers lmao
So glad I got to see these guys finally; it's so bizarre to come face to face with someone who kind of directed the course of your life a little bit
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ep 23 : pirate radio is one of those fun episodes that i don't mind existing despite not making any meaningful character developments for the main cast. it's a harmless fun episode and i learned that dash's voice actor has some insane range to pull off both dash and the fucking parrot that sounds like grimoire weiss.
unlike doctor's disorders, pirate radio is just trying to have fun with its core ideas. that being the return of ember with a new ghost at her side, youngblood, to aid in her wish for complete musical control of the world.
my main issue with doctor's disorders is that it had an interesting idea with giving ghost powers to all the human kids, but it only did visual gags and didn't dive into how too many students felt about their new powers.
pirate radio, while not having as big of an idea as that, still likes to have fun with the idea of danny actually becoming a leader for the other students to look to, despite his complete lack of social ladder rungs. he doesn't use his powers to aid in the cause of getting their parents back until the very end of the episode where he's sorta forced to. and even then, they didn't get to that point without the help of everyone else, further empowering that humans are just as capable of fighting ghosts as danny is on his own.
the other kids are shown to actually respect danny somewhat once they realize his family is literally known for their ghost antics. people trust his judgement, they're willing to rely on the equipment he gives them, and everyone's motivated to get their family back. (this sounds like the jimmy neutron movie suddenly)
there's a joke in here about the cruise ship line giving away who the villain was in a way that made it super obvious. they did the exact same joke in doctor's disorders though, but i feel like the delivery in pirate radio is funnier because of sam's delivery of the line.
i guess my only gripe with this episode is that they make sure to socially reset everything at the end, rather than let it be known that danny helped lead everyone to saving their parents. people know the fenton family is fucking crazy by now, but it'd be nice if danny at least was viewed a little differently in a public setting because of this event. count it as growth towards breaking out of that "clumsy, weird kid" identity that he probably got branded with after the accident.
i think i'd also like if ember herself was more prominent, since fanning the flames was more focued on sam and danny than it was on ember. but ember sadly plays second to youngblood for the most part. which is unfortunate, since youngblood is gonna get his own episode in a little bit. but she came back, and that's better than her just being a one-off villain imo.
there's a moment during the final act where danny, once he's on the ship after passing through the ghost barrier, gets paralyzed because he tries to transform and the shield attacks him for it. which doesn't entirely make sense when viewed in previous contexts with the ghost shield. there's been moments where he actively uses his powers while inside one, or he was under a shield while already turned into a ghost. not to mention, in this exact scene, he is on board a ship with other ghosts that are not getting electrocuted by the shield.
it's probably just a reason to make sure danny can't immediately transform and start kicking ass. he has to actively act as a human, which ties back to that whole "humans are capable of fighting the ghosts too" thing from earlier, they dont necessarily need to rely on phantom to save them as long as they're given the time to prepare. (and hey, funnily enough, this exact thing comes up in the graphic novel 20 years from now!!!! wow!!!!! accidental allusions are great!) it's just the inconsistency that bothers me, it's not an actual plot hole or huge issue.
fun episode, nothing groundbreaking, the emergency ham gag was pretty good.
WE'RE DOING A NEW POST FOR SEASON 2, HERE WE GO
(link to the season 1 post here, check the notes for each episode)
#danny phantom#storm rewatches his childhood#s2#ep 23#review#idk this is just a fun episode and i cant hate it#i dont really like doctor's disorders sadly in tandem despite it having a similar thing going on#only because i think the execution in pirate radio was a lot better.
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Open Letter From Andrew Fox & Thomas Owen profile-pics My identify is Andrew Fox and at present... Iâm going to introduce you to the man who went from uncooked newbie > to highly effective multi-million greenback producing tremendous affiliate in lower than a 12 months. Warning - The story might ship shivers down your backbone and rock you to your very core. Meet Thomas - An Affiliate Beginner Who Lastly Escaped the â9 - 5â Rat Race and Generated $1,493,482.70 Affiliate Fee in 2021 cb-shot1 cb-shot2 cb-shot3 * These are Thomas's private outcomes. Thomas hospital 26 Years Outdated Mendacity In A Hospital Mattress With a Punctured Lung Was The Turning Level Hey , Iâm Thomas and yeah thatâs actually me. I would look okay however on the time⊠I used to be completely terrified! âSpontaneous pneumothoraxâ is your situation the physician instructed me. In layman's phrases - I had an ungainly fall and the close to catastrophic outcome was puncturing my lung! Whereas laid up in hospital... âWhat If I couldnât help my household?â ran by means of my head over and over Struggling for breath⊠like a freakinâ lower throat dagger had been jammed into my lung - I used to be rushed in for emergency surgical procedure. On the time I used to be working in a â9-5 â harmful job that I hated, residing paycheck-to-paycheck. YES - Genuinely Harmful! (Sure no joke - I used to be a Juvenile correction officer working for âcommonâ pay and bodily got here underneath assault a number of instances!) Beneath Paid , Over labored and pondering " Is that this actually what life is about?" Screw the dreaded â9 to fiveâ rat race - I realised it was by no means going to chop it. I wanted a approach out ⊠and quick! Working till 65 ⊠if I even made it that far.. Working in the direction of some lame social safety cost which can not even cowl heating plus meals payments alone. That TERRIFIED me. I typed within the traditional... âMake Cash on-lineâ on Google google-search-text Anybody ever performed that earlier thanâŠ? Yep - I bought suckered into each scheme underneath the solar. M.L.Mâs, surveys, in a single day millionaire guides and also you guessed it⊠FAILED miserably. However I knew there needed to be an actual approach. Certainly everybody on the Web wasnât a âphonyâ. Began my very own company - My earnings elevated however my stress went 50X by means of the roof! I began operating FB adverts for native firms. It really began off âOkayâ however as I attempted to scale I realised⊠Iâd successfully given myself 20 new âbossesâ as a substitute of 1. The truth is - it was attending to the purpose it was much more irritating than my previous 9-5 job. stressed-man I Knew there needed to be a greater approach! Thomas household Fortunately life is much more easy now. I moved to sunny Portugal! 310 days of sunshine a 12 months - One of many most secure and finest cultures on the planet to reside in and luxuriate in household life, whereas my online marketing enterprise cranks out $1,493,482.70 Affiliate Commissions this 12 months
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Bingo
Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader Word Count: 2.0k T/W: pure, stupid, fluff A/N: you meet Bucky at a Bingo night ft. Yori â€ïž
itâs a little dorky, but I thought it was cute!
Setting the tables with the rectangle cards, you smiled, straightening them out. Despite what your friends thought, you actually enjoyed volunteering with the local senior Bingo games on the weekends when you could. Feeling like they were often better company and far more entertaining than going to a club. It wasnât a very big meeting hall, but thatâs what made it feel so cozy to you. Hugging yourself when you finished the tables, you stroked the outside of your arms, feeling the softness of the cardigan you wore over your tank top. Sighing happily, you made your way to the announcing host, passing a few comments, as you waited for people to find their way in.
âHey! Hey, look!â You heard a familiar voice; turning you found Yori and his usual group making their way to their table, with one exception. Smiling you made your way to him, arms still crossed, âno, I want you to meet her,â you heard him say to his friend, making you smile.
âHey, Yori,â you said, coming to hug him, âbrought more friends?â
âI- Iâm Bucky,â he reached his hand to shake yours, to which you responded, taking his hand in yours.
âBarnes,â Yori added, reaching to slap a name tag on Bucky's chest.
Bucky took a deep breath, keeping his patience, as he looked down to the tag where Yori had written âsingleâ in parentheses, âyep. . .thatâs me.âÂ
âThis- this is the one I told you about,â Yori nudged you on the elbow pointing to Bucky, only making him more nervous as he immediately looked down to Yori with a questioning look.
âOhh,â you nodded slowly, squinting your eyes at Bucky who met your gaze again, âyou mean the anti-social grumpy one whoâs scared to come because heâll lose? That one?â
âYes! That one,â Yori bobbed on his heels happily with a smile.
âWhat -Iâm not-â
âWell,â you tilted your head, âI hope you have a good time and perhaps win something,â Bucky smiled, âbut I think youâre going to need your hand back for that.â
Jaw dropping, he looked down to find your hand still in his, âright,â he laughed nervously, letting go, âsorry, of course.âÂ
You laughed quietly, biting in your lip watching him look anywhere but to you, mainly keeping his head down.
âYori, you need anything you know where I am,â you softly placed a hand to his shoulder, âBucky,â he looked up with a half forced smile, but you waited a moment, âit was nice to meet you, Iâm glad you came.â
As you turned to walk away you could hear Yori whisper, âI think she liked you.âÂ
Followed by a quick change of subject from his friend, âI think you should find our table.âÂ
And lastly, âI know where our table is, and if you can keep your eyes off her, youâd see it too.â
With a giggle to yourself, you walked up to the foldable table that had been set up for you to sit at as usual. You were alone, but you were in charge of any assistance and you kept the first, second, and third prizes hidden. It was harder than one thought to keep curious seniors from nosing around for them.Â
While the night was long and you stayed quiet, you were very grateful to have a little more entertainment tonight. It seemed Yori and his friends got their own entertainment out of teasing and poking fun at Bucky, who was a true sport through it all.
âAbsolutely not,â you heard Bucky say. Looking up you saw him holding his card to his chest, with Yori trying to convince him to let him take a peek at his numbers, âare those the rules of Bingo?â Bucky shook his head, but another one of Yoriâs friends tried to peek from his opposite side, âOh,â Bucky dropped his jaw, leaning even farther back in his chair to keep the card hidden against him, âa double front attack? Really guys?â
Unable to hide your smile, you kept an eye on the table, specifically Bucky. Who after giving the group a few amusements, looked over to you. Blinking softly, happy that he noticed you, you lifted your hand to wave subtly. With another half smile, that was genuine this time, he raised his hand to wave, but forgot just how far back he was leaning in his chair. Soon, you watched him vanish from sight and he found himself flat against the floor, with a wince.Â
âThatâs whatcha get, you punk,â Yori told him through a laugh and an assertive nod.
It wasnât long before there was a soft murmur of quiet laughs spreading throughout the hall, as Bucky reset his chair and sat properly in it this time. He pressed his lips together tightly and avoided everyoneâs eye line, but yours. Hand over your mouth, you looked mildly worried, raising your half furrowed eyebrows at him, he could tell you were asking if he was okay. To that he carefully nodded, before turning to someone else who was addressing him at the table.Â
The half way break came up shortly after, and you had to help a few people. When you looked back up from your table you saw Bucky, hands in his pockets and bouncing on his heels about three people away down the small line. Leaning your head to the side to see him, it took him a moment, but when he saw you, he gave a quick smile, before being spoken to by the elderly lady in front of him.
âYouâre a very handsome young man, so nice of you to come play,â she said, to which he gave a shy thank you, as she asked you for a new marker, âheâs a very handsome young man, you know,â she whispered loudly, before glancing back at him, âand sheâs single you know.âÂ
Ducking your head, you gave a monotone, âthank you, Mrs. Kasey,â putting your hands over your face, hiding the embarrassment, you composed yourself and straightened up, âhey, what can I help with?â
âWord is you got the prizes?â Bucky perked an eyebrow and gave the most obvious wink.
Half smiling, half jaw dropping, you looked around his hip to see Yori, who was keeping a curiously careful eye on his friend, shaking your head you looked up to Bucky, âso. . .they sent you? I donât break that easily.â You crossed your arms over your chest, playfully, keeping eye contact.Â
âWell,â he shrugged, âto be honest Iâd like to know what weâre playing for too, I mean whatâs our motivation here? I donât know,â you covered your mouth, hiding the smile accompanying your soft giggles, âWhy are you laughing? This is serious. What is the purpose of playing Bingo if you donât know the prizes?â
With a real laugh at how hard he was trying to convince you, âokay, alright,â you reached under the table bringing up the prize in your hand, elbow against the table as you held it up, he looked down.
âA jar of jelly beans,â Bucky nodded, bobbing his head back and forth before a confident, âokay, seems fair, what about second place?â
You held up a jar in the other hand.Â
Bucky looked between you and it, âthatâs- thatâs just a smaller jar of jelly beans,â he lifted his shoulders as if asking âwhy?â
âThese people really like their jelly beans,â you admitted, âI figure you can guess what third place is.âÂ
âSeriously?â he dropped his shoulders, disappointed.
âWas there something you were hoping to get instead, Mr. Barnes?â You set the jars down, resting your chin on top of your laced hands as you looked up through your eyelashes at him.
He swallowed, deciding if he wanted to say anything, he winced as if he was going to regret what he was going to say- luckily for him the announcer called everyone back to the tables. He sighed, and you leaned back in your seat as you parted ways again. The evening remained entertaining with Yori occasionally reminding everyone at the table that if Bucky wins heâd share the prize.
Towards the end of the event, Bucky was the only one at the table still in the final rounds, meaning the entire table squeezed around him, glancing at his card and intensely listening. When the last number was being called, they all had a hand on Bucky, clinging to him like it was the olympics and he was their champion.Â
âSeventeenâ was announced and you noticed a sudden shift in Buckyâs demeanor, even though everyone around him was ecstatic, he looked like his mind was suddenly somewhere else, until he shook his head like shaking off a bad memory and he lifted his card. He didnât have to say it, his group was already exclaiming Bingo enough for him. He came up casually with the other two, and you handed each of them a jar of jelly beans.
Bucky gave a âthank you,â and took his back, but it was gone before he could even offer it to anyone.
âWhatâs the joke?â Yori held out the jar back to Bucky swiftly, âI canât open it.âÂ
Smiling, Bucky popped open the jar in no time and immediately it was out of his hands again.Â
âCongratulations,â you said behind him, making him turn around, he saw you had your jacket in your arms and purse over your shoulder, âI hope Iâll see you next month?â âNext month?â He tilted his head, âI thought it was weekly?â
âVolunteer rotations shift,â you explained, gesturing your hand in a circle, âI wonât be back until next month since weâve got new volunteers.â
âOh,â he nodded and there was silence.
âAnyway, I hope Iâll see you around,â you waved to him and to Yori as you left, pushing in the doorâs brace open.
As it shut, Bucky furrowed his eyebrows, with a sigh, still watching the door.
âGo,â Yori said next to him and waved him away, âyouâll regret it if you donât.â
Bucky took a moment to consider it, âtake the bus okay? I donât want you guys-â
âYes, yes, we will,â Yori said, already turning back to his friends.
Smiling towards them, he started a jog for the door, exiting, he looked to find you. Already on the sidewalk, he met up with you. Obviously causing you to stop in your tracks and wait when you heard him.
âHey, um-â he looked around, âcan I walk you home?â
âSure,â you nodded, smiling.
There wasnât a terrible amount of conversation, but you liked his company and didnât want him to feel like he had to talk.
âI think itâs really sweet what youâre doing, what you did tonightâ you said, looking straight ahead, even though you knew he was looking at you, âthere hasnât been that much laughter in a very long time,â you exhaled sadly, âmost of them spent five years alone, or missing out on seeing their grandkids grow up. I was so happy to see their smiles.â
âAnd what about you?â
You finally turned to him, âI was here, aloneâ looking down, you laughed, âthen again I was alone before, so. . .â you bit in your lower lip, wincing âthat sounded so pathetic.âÂ
This time he laughed with you, âno,â he shook his head, âI know how alone feels.â
Stopping on the sidewalk, you exchanged glances, âwell, this is me,â you pointed up to your apartment building.
âRight, okay,â he breathed nervously.
âThanks for walking me home,â you said, walking towards the steps.
âYeah,â he ran a hand through his hair, âhey, do you- would you want to get dinner?â
âFinally,â you giggled, before turning back to him, âit took you four blocks to ask!â He gave a shocked expression, only making you smile bigger, âIâm free Sunday, meet you right here at six?â
âOkay,â he said happily, âitâs a date then.â
âPerfect,â you squeezed your arms, hugging yourself.
He swallowed harshly, before taking a step closer and leaning in to kiss you on the cheek, sweetly. When he pulled back, he looked slightly nervous, as if that was the wrong thing to do.
âYou missed,â you batted your eyelashes, with a soft smile.
Bucky took a second, unsure if you were serious, either way he took his chances and met your lips with his. Somehow this one took you by more surprise, causing you to move your hands against his chest, holding on to his jacket, until he pulled back.
âBingo,â you whispered.
#spilledkauffie#bucky x y/n#bucky x reader#bucky x you#bucky x female reader#bucky barnes x reader#bucky barnes x you#bucky barnes x y/n#bucky barnes x female reader#bucky barnes imagine#bucky barnes fluff#bucky barnes one shot#bucky barnes fic#bucky barnes fanfiction#bucky imagine#bucky fanfic#bucky fic#james bucky barnes#james buchanan barnes#james buchanan bucky barnes#winter solider x you#winter soldier x y/n#winter soldier x reader#winter soldier fluff#winter soldier fic#marvel#marvel fanfiction#sebastian stan#sebastian stan fanfiction
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Xiao: Fainting HCS
FUCK. I FORGOT TO POST THIS EARLIER. AHHHH. I HAVE WORK IN LIKE 2 MINUTES SO IâLL BE BACK TO REPLY TO EVERYONE.Â
Hey anon! So sorry it took me forever to finish writing this but good luck if youâre planning on pulling Xiao. I really wanted to finish writing this fic as an offering to the gacha gods that c1 xiao wants to bless me (even tho thatâs not gonna happen). But good luck to everyone rolling today^^.
Disclaimer: I have not watch anything about Xiao because my hype can only take so much. This was written before 1.3. So if I get anything wrong or Iâm missing something. Thatâs why.
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Can I just say how far Xiao has come in my writing since the first part of the semi series? Sniff, feel like weâre making character development for a character thatâs not even out yet. I canât wait for mihoyo to take my HCS and rip them apart.
Xiao Semi Series
[ Friendship ] [ Falling in Love ] [ Cuddles ] [ Protective ] [ Affection ] [ Jealously ] [ Opposites Attract ] [ String Of Fate (Soulmate) ]
[Masterlist]
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[taglist] Â <- if you want to be added, please read this first.
â @hanniejjiâ@mikeysbikeââ @unionwitchâ @musekalaâ @sunnshiiiâ @stanzasticâ @akaaseaâ @xoneaboveallxâ @adoring-ghostâ @asheseilerâ @childeloverâ @dilucszâ @dai-tsukki-desuâ @thicmittenâ @nonniechanââ @snowy224 @mayumintsuâ @tigerpriestess @yuu-yuukurotsukiâ @legionqueensavâ @eva-0403 @youaskedfurretâÂ
Xiao: Fainting HCS
Instant panic mode engaged. If youâve ever doubted his adepti power of swiftness youâre about to be mistaken. Heâs noticed that you seem a bit out of it but brushed it off as you being tired from your recent journey. If there was anything bothering you, you would tell him. But as he turned around to greet you back, it seems like time is slowing down for him. He sees how your eyes glazed over and become unfocused. The muscles in your body snap and you drop to the ground. He can feel his blood run cold as past memories that have been waiting to jump at him suddenly claw at him but he doesnât even register them. Heâs already running towards you.
Heâs already caught you in his arms before you can even meet the wooden floor. His brain is racing as he quickly checks your pulse to make sure you didnât suffer from a heart attack or a curse. He makes a quick search over your body to check for any injuries, he can already feel the red hot iron of anger fill his system at the thought of someone trying to take advantage of you or threaten you. Heâs usually logical in these types of situations, even the death of Rex Lapis didnât shock him this much, but heâs been battling his conflicting feelings ever since he met you. But now that heâs finally accepted you and himself, he wouldnât know what to do if anything happened to you. His mind flashes to Guizhong before he shakes away the thought.
It doesnât occur to him that you might be sick as he tries to shake you awake. Whatever teachings Guizhong and Morax have taught him fly out the window as he holds you so close to his chest, heâs pretty sure his grip on you is bruising. He knew mortal souls werenât as strong as adepti and staying around one might cause sickness or even worse- death. Was this his fault? He can feel the drop in his stomach as he tries to reign in his emotions and powers, not here.
Verr almost screams when Xiao breaks the wooden ceilings and lands in front of her. Sheâs scared that there was a monster outbreak or something was wrong with Xiao before she notices your passed out form in his arms. As much as she likes to joke around and thinks your relationship with Xiao is cute, she knows that if anything came to seriously harm you she wouldnât able to calm Xiao before he goes on a rampage. You mean so much to him and he hasnât opened his heart to anyone except you.
She can tell heâs nearly past his breaking point as he looks at her with dilated eyes as he asks, no commands, her to help you. Itâs such whiplash to her. Xiaoâs always been polite and reserved that she almost forgets he used to be a demon slaying Yaksha, but this isnât the time for her to worry about that. She quickly leads him to the backroom since thereâs no way Xiao wouldnât bite any hand that comes near you. Bless Verrâs heart since this isnât the first time sheâs had to handle Xiaoâs outbreaks that she manages to save face and contact a doctor that was staying at the inn to look at you. She does feel a bit bad for the doctor who looks like heâs about to piss himself in fear as Xiao growls and watches the doctors every move with piercing yellow eyes.
Xiao is still wary when the doctor and Verr try to calm him down and examine you more closely, always flinching back whenever their hands get too close to you, letting out a dangerous hiss whenever thereâs the slightest twitch of discomfort in your face when the doctor feels your heated forehead. As soon as the doctor concludes that youâve been sick for the past few days and your body just needs to heal itself and recharge, the tension on Xiaoâs shoulder loosens and the suffocating aura thatâs been filling the room slowly filters out. Verr canât help but sigh in relief but canât bring herself to scold Xiao for breaking the inns roof as she watches him look over your form with worried eyes as he softly nudges your cheek. Heâs still holding you but his grip has loosen slightly as he rests his forehead against yours. He breathes a sigh of relief as he rubs small circles in your hand. Xiaoâs never been the most affectionate or shown to be the most caring but youâve seriously scared him. She quietly leaves him be and closes the door as she begins to prepare to fix the damages.
Xiao never leaves your side as he waits for you to wake up. He canât help but berate himself for not confronting you. The doctor said you would be fine but he canât but imagine your body falling in a more violent scene. He quickly shakes those thoughts away as he paces around the room, sits besides you, then goes back to pacing. Usually he would go on a walk or beat his aggression out but he doesnât want to leave you alone should you awake early.
Xiao doesnât ramble about his day while youâre asleep, instead he just observes your features and the small movements you make to remind him that youâre okay. How your chest moves up and down as you breath or how your eyes sometimes scrunch in sleep. Youâve made him almost trip when you did it the first time since he thought you were waking up. He canât help but think back to his fellow Yakshaâs and what they would say if they saw the way he was acting now.
Since his panic attack has mostly subsided heâs found himself growing more curious. Heâs still worried about you but heâs managed to reason with himself that youâre okay, just sick which heâs going to scold you a bit for when you awake, so he softly brushes his fingers across your face. Before snatching his hand away in embarrassment. What the hell is he doing? Guizhong would slap him sideways if she saw him now. He huffs at himself as he deflates a little and rests his head on the bed beside your head. Heâs patient. He will wait when your ready to wake up.
When you suddenly gain consciousness, it feels as if the entire world is weighing you down. You slowly blink open your eyes to see a worried Xiao hovering over you, his hands awkwardly in the air since heâs not sure if itâs okay to touch you.
âHow are you feeling?â Xiao asks as his eyes dart all over the place before resting on your face. Youâre still a bit out of it but you can tell he must have been really worried. You try to give him a small smile but with how scuffy you feel you can bet itâs not a pretty picture.
âLike I got slammed with one of Zhongliâs meteors,â you tried to laughed before coughing as Xiao quickly pressed a cup of water to your lips. Slowly letting you drink and calm down.Â
âIf you have time to make jokes then youâre alrightâ Xiao sighs before his features change slightly. His eyes glaze over in concern as a small frown appears. He really does look like a kicked kitten as he slumps over as the stress finally lifts as he feels your hand softly run through his hair.
âSorry,â you say, he must have been so stressed out while you were passed out for him to look so exhausted. He simply nudges into your hand before turning his face to kiss your palm,
âThereâs no need for apologies. Iâm...just glad youâre okay,â Xiao mumbles before heâs back to pressing his head into your stomach. You canât help but smile delicately as you reach over and bring Xiao up with you until heâs lying over you as you hug him gently. Thereâs a bit of shuffling before youâre able to spoon him as he letâs himself relax after the two day panic attack he just went through.
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When youâve fully recovered Xiao seems to hover around you a bit more. Well not a bit, a lot more, but no one has the heart to tell him that. Itâs actually kind of adorable seeing the aloof and reserved adepti seem to follow you around like a loss duckling. Making sure youâre okay and youâre not overworking yourself. He still keeps his tough demeanor but you seriously gave him a big scare.
When Zhongli and Childe come over for their weekly visits of tea, they were aware that Xiao had locked himself in a room to watch over you and anyone that even stepped near the door would be skewered with a spear - and Verr would make them pay for the damages (Zhongli) and whatever consequences Xiao saw fit (Childe) - but they are happy to see youâre okay. You all fall back into your usual rhythm of conversation or Childe trying to get a rise out of Xiao while you and Zhongli talk about how lovely the weatherâs been.
Zhongli letâs you in on some details that Xiao or Verr never mentioned while Childe and Xiao are fighting about who knows what. How Xiao wouldnât leave your side or that he resembled a kicked kitten as he nudged your hand when he thought no one was looking. He offers you some medicine herbs to help with exhaustion and to take care of yourself. Likewise, to give Xiao some pain medication on his behalf. Youâre one of the few good things in Xiaoâs life and he doesnât want anything bad happening to you.
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Hmm. I didnât mean to but I totally believe in the dad zhongli train and I think Zhongli basically just gave you his blessing? Maybe Iâm thinking too hard on this haha.
Maybe this is better? Trying to figure out writing styles are hard. Either way, Iâm never gonna end up kicking my paragraph HCS habit haha. If you couldnât tell, I really like feral protective but lowkey vulnerable types (coughrazorcough). Xiao is so OOC at this point I donât even know how to fix it. Please come home Xiao.Â
(Edit: FUCK YEAH HE CAME HOME WITH DILUC. WE 90ED THIS BITCH AND IM ABOUT TO MAX HIS TALENTS. ILL SHARE IT WITH YOU ALL (since people have been asking) WHEN I GET BACK FROM WORK)
#genshin#genshin impact#genshin x reader#genshin impact x reader#genshin imagines#genshin impact imagines#genshin headcanons#genshin impact headcanons#genshin fanfic#genshin impact fanfiction#genshin xiao#genshin impact xiao#xiao#genshin xiao x reader#genshin impact xiao x reader#xiao x reader#xiao x aether#xiao x lumine#xiao imagines#xiao headcanons#genshin fluff#genshin impact fluff
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Just wanted to say 2 things:
1)Love the fic where he proposed over a cup of teaâŠso sweetđ
2) we all know how H has asthma sometimes soâŠcould u write something w/the reader helping him with an attack idk or during an interview/concert/family gathering do as u pls
A nice day
XOXO
firstly, thank you so much thatâs so sweet of you <33 and secondly, um yes i would love to give this a go at writing for you! hope you enjoy;
Harry couldnât breathe.
He was in a panic, completely terrified of the uncontrollable situation. He was having an asthma attack concocted with a panic attack and it was brutal.
âShit,â Jeff whispered as he watched Harry breathe heavily and loudly on the floor. His friend was currently on his hands and knees trying to gasp for air, whilst dressed in his notorious Fine Line outfit.
It was the big night. The one night only at The Forum for the release of his new album Fine Line, hence the costume. He had been nervous all day, with shaking hands and a tendency to forget simple things. You had been with him all day; having a slow brunch together out in the Hollywood Hills and then just chilling around for the afternoon. You didnât want to anything to strain his voice, so talking hadnât been an option. That left you either to sleeping and cuddling, whilst watching a movie, or sex. Now you were all for sex, but Harry complained that he liked talking to you during it and so that got shut down pretty quickly. You didnât forget what he whispered to your ear though just before you cuddled into watching Bambi;
âKeep your moans for later, youâll be fucking needing them for what I have planned.â
But that was over two hours ago now. Harry had been whisked away to start getting ready, what with hair and makeup first. Youâd left him to it, telling him you would just lounge around and wait for him. It was when he was getting into costume had you announced you were just going to go down the street to get some coffee from Dunkinâ - seeing as there were few of them back in England, where you most commonly lived with Harry. The problem was you hadnât come back yet, and it was an hour later.
âHarry mate, you need to calm down.â Kid Harpoon told him carefully, kneeling down next to his good friend. Nothing was working though and Harry was too breathless to ask anyone for his inhaler.
It had started by thinking about how nervous he actually was for tonight. It was such a huge show and one of a kind too. He was playing his new album and it wasnât even 24 hours old yet. There was so much pressure weighing him down that he couldnât breathe - he was suffocating in the anxiety of his own mind and he couldnât escape at all. Then because he was in so much of a panic his asthma hit him and added another reason to his breathlessness. It was finally made worst when he realised you werenât by his side to help him. You werenât there to quickly eliminate the asthma and focus on helping him overcome the panic attack, instead he had his mates surrounding him - crowding him - and they didnât know the first thing to do.
âSarah, whereâs Y/N?â Mitch shouted, making Harry squint the thought away. He didnât want to think about how something back mightâve happened or might be happening to you. Where were you? Sarahâs response did no better to help him.
âI donât know.â
âHarry bud. Talk to us.â Jeff spoke, crouched down in front of him. Harry shook his head, tears running from his eyes as he began crying. The sobs were really harsh and embarrassing. The tears were heavy and mixed with snot running from his nose to pool on the floor below him. He was not doing well at all, coughing when the asthma choked him up. He couldnât do this. He felt like he was in a small box and it was only getting smaller. He felt as if he were going to die. Genuinely.
âDoes he look like he can talk, dickward.â Adamâs voice came from the other side of Harry, messing his head up even more. There was so many voices and he couldnât focus on just one, but he didnât want to. He wanted yours. He needed yours. You.
Whenever this has happened before he was always luckily in the comfort of his home, or the tour bus and always with you. So this was unfamiliar and terrifying. He was beginning to think youâd left him or youâd gotten seriously hurt, but he couldnât do anything to help. He was stuck - paralysed to this position as his lungs collapsed in on themselves and his brain sped the same speed as a train. You were his comfort person and it was only ever you that he wanted in situations like these. Just you.
âMove out of my way. Move!â Harry thought he heard you and your voice, but he hated that his mind could be playing tricks on him in desperation for what, or whom, he truly wanted.
He felt someone crash on the floor in front of him and the almighty smell of lavender and soap hit him all at once. This time, he was glad to have someone sit so close to him, because it was you.
âHarry look at me, hey, hey. Youâre okay. Look at me bubs.â You spoke calmly, trying not to sound panicked yourself, even if you were heavily worried. You watched as he looked up at you, eyes ridiculously red and puffy whilst his nose was dripping like a leaking tap. You wanted to rub his tears away and dab away the snot, but your main priority was on his breathing first. âOkay good, okay.â
Your hand went into your bag and picked out his inhaler. You shook it a few times, before putting it into Harryâs mouth. âOn three, one, two, threeâŠâ Harry tried is best to breathe in and you pushed down on the canister. âGood, bubs, really good. Okay again, one, two, threeâŠâ You repeated and then a third time until you could tell that the wheezing of his asthma attack had disappeared.
âT-thanâŠâ Harry tried to mumble out, but couldnt because he was still in panic and his throat was so dry.
âSshh youâre okay.â You turned to one of the crew members and asked for them to fetch you a bottle of water. You asked people to clear out of the room and leave you with Harry for a bit, knowing he wouldnât settle in front of all these people. You sat on the floor, crossed legged, and brought Harry to lay his head in your lap with his body trailing behind. You offered him one of your hands to squeeze if he wanted to, which he appreciated, cupping both of his around yours. Your other hand laid to stroke through his gelled hair - that would no doubt have to be redone now.
Instead of going straight into talking to him, you sang his favourite lullaby to him in aid of calming him down. It always worked, or at least helped a little. You sang quietly, noticing the beat of his heart soften with every line you sung. You were by no means a professional singer like him, but he liked the way it was so imperfect and mellow. It calmed him to hear something so simple and so you. Whilst you sang the crew never came back with your requested water and you thanked them, before you were the only ones left in the room.
After you finished singing you noticed how calm Harry was, almost still - the complete opposite to how heâd been all of 10 minutes ago. It was amazing what the power of you could do to him.
âWhat colour are we feeling?â You and Harry had created your own little system by which you would let each other know how youâre feeling by a colour of the rainbow. Youâd designated a meaning to all of them that only you two could understand and used them on the days when you werenât feeling great, to help understand each otherâs feelings better.
âThe whole bloody rainbow.â Harry mumbled out and you passed the water around so he could take a few sips, to which he thanked you graciously for.
âOi, you canât have that as your answer.â It was a rule that you could only use one colour to some your most intense emotion in that moment, otherwise there was kind of no point to the system.
âBut itâs true. I feel grey with confusion, blue with sadness, purple with frustration, yellow with fear and even light yellow with cowardice. Yet I feel pink with happiness and light red with love.â
âWhat about red red?â You teased, not being able to help yourself.
âWhat? Lust? Always, for you that is.â You leant down to kiss his head as he cracked a joke, showing you that your Harry was still there beneath all this worry.
âTell me what the colours represent in real life.â
âPurple because I am frustrated that I had to have a panic attack right before the biggest show of my career. Yellow because I am frightened that nobody will like the album and it will be a complete fail of a night. Grey because I canât choose one colour and focus on it. I.. Iââ
You could tell he getting himself worked up again, so cut him short. âBubs stop, youâre okay. Listen to me.â You tucked his hair behind his ear as if to open it up for him to hear better. âDonât ever be frustrated with yourself for something like this. You are allowed to have moments of weakness; you wouldnât be human if you didnât. Did this compromise your show? No. Did this show off how strong and brave you are? Yes. Thatâs what is important, therefore we can swap purple for dark yellow because you were brave. Which means yellow can also turn to dark yellow because you are so brave for doing something so huge and so wonderful. People already love the album H. Canât get enough of it. Everyone will sing along to every word, I can promise you that. Or at least I will. You are amazing, so never undersell yourself. Thatâs important to me and for you. Bubs, you are so amazing for what youâre doing here tonight and I couldnât be prouder of you. Yes, a panic attack isnât nice and it isnât convenient, but it just helps show how much you care about tonight and it going a success. That must count for something.â
He didnât say anything for a bit and that was okay. He was most likely getting his thoughts together and mentally preparing himself for the greatest night of his life. You bent your body over so you could hug him, since his back was to your front, and just give him a squeeze to reiterate how proud you are of him.
âY/N.â Harry spoke quietly, as your body encased his. You embraced his warmth and inhaled the beautiful scent that he was wearing. He both smelt and looked phenomenal.
âYes bubs.â
âYou know I love you right?â Of course you did, but it still made your heart flutter as crazy as the first time he said it to when he tells you now.
âI do.â
âAnd you know youâre it for me right?â
âWell.. Iââ You didnât want to get too ahead of yourself.
âBecause you are.â Harry turned himself around, making you sit up so he could move. He was lying with his head facing upwards now, face looking less red and puffy, and staring right into the souls of your eyes. He looked magical. Beautiful. He thought the same of you. âAnd,â he moved his fingers to take off his S ring from Gucci, that probably cost more than your annual salary, and place it onto your ring finger of your right hand, âI give you this as a promise to share my last name with you someday.â
Seeing the initial of his last name sat on the finger opposite to the one he claimed he would one day put two more rings on, brought you to tears. âHarryâŠâ You didnât know what to say, you were speechless. You had never expected for him to do something as monumental as this and had never experienced it before to know how to react.
Of course youâd always dreamt of marrying him and being his for eternity, but never thought of it possibly becoming your reality. Now, Harry was completely devoting himself to you and only you and it suddenly all felt like the dream was settling in place.
âI swear to you Y/N, iâll love you until the next lifetime and iâll find you again. I love you so much, I canât even tell you how much because it is so infinite. Youâre so kind and patient with me and you see me for me, not for the Harry Styles, just Harry. Iâll never let a day pass without you on my mind and I think itâs because you were always meant to be mine. My heart is yours.â He smiled once he noticed you were crying, moving one of his hands up to wipe the tears away.
âHow do I top that?â You whispered to him, but mostly to yourself. Both of you laughed.
âJust tell me you love me.â
âI do. I do love you Harry.â You nodded and then he sealed your confirmation with a kiss to his lips. You rested your hand upon his cheek, placing the coolness of the S ring upon his cheekbone, as he placed his hand under your chin to guide you into the kiss. He tasted divine and you smiled knowing that you got to have him like this, taste him like this, for the rest of your beating heartsâ days.
#harry styles#harry styles x reader#harry styles fanfic#harry styles x y/n#harry styles fanfiction#finelinevogue#finelinevogue harry styles#harry blurb#harry oneshot#harry styles concept#harry styles fluff#harry styles asthma asthma#ask finelinevogue#ask harry styles#anon response#anon#finelinevogue blurbs#finelinevogue masterlist#harry styles fine line#one night only fine line#fine line album#fine line concert blurb#harry styles concert#harry styles concert blurb
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I Can Live With That (Young Justice x GN!Reader)
Word count: 2.3k
Shadow Of A Bluebird Masterpost
Summery: Recovering from being kidnapped and learning to use new powers is hard. Now add confusing romantic feelings and a lot of secrets and what seems like a calm change of pace is actually about to bit Dick in the ass. (I'm tired and writing season three of this series rn so don't come for my horrible summery)
Star City
April 1st
You were never big on surprises, having reflexes like yours and having gone through so much combat training usually meant that if someone managed to sneak up on you they would be met with some kind of attack. That only got worse after you got back from the Reachâs ship. Dinah insisted that you take a few days to rest and stay home. Something which at first you were willing to do but after two days you were antsy.
Ollie found you punching your way through a sand bag and waited at the door for you to notice.
âWhat is it Ollie?â You asked and the man finally walked in to stand by your (still punching) body.
âYou should be restingâ He pointed out but you kept punching.
âFrom the team. I amâ You retorted and he stilled the bag after your fist hit it.
âYou were tortured to the point another of your metagenes activated kid, you need to rest.â He reiterated and you finally stopped punching and turned to him.
âIâm fine. This happened before, remember? Iâm used to it-â You tried to say but he held both your shoulders and looked you in the eyes.
âY/N, you are not okay. You canât keep pretending you are because once enough piles up youâre gonna break. We can help you, you can work through all of thisâ Ollie pleaded and you looked down. A few years ago you would have pushed him away from you, after all he was Dinahâs boyfriend not your dad. But now his words wormed their way into your brain and you nodded.
âFine. Iâm going to visit Dick and Connor in the warehouseâ You told Ollie and walked out of the room. Ollie, who in reality had become a sort of father figure for you, something you never had before, watched you leave with a worried frown. Your behavior scared him.
Bludhaven
April 1st
When you got to the warehouse Dick set up for those of the team that stayed at the cave you were surprised to find he was there alone.
âWhereâs everyone else?â You asked as you parked your motorcycle in front of the warehouse.
âAt the Hall, they went to get what we salvaged from the caveâ Dick said and you walked around, examining the space.
âThis place sucksâ You commented and he sighed.
âItâs temporaryâ Dick scolded and you turned to him, hands on your hips. âDrop the team leader act Wonder bird. I wanna hang out with my friend, not my commanding officerâ You chided him and he smiled, just a small smile.
âFine. It sucks and I miss the caveâ He confessed and you smiled sadly and sat down next to him.
âHow do you feel?â He asks and you lean your head on his shoulder.
âLike shitâ You mumbled and he looked at you worried.
âStill in pain?â You shake your head at his question, still resting it on his shoulder.
âJust emotional stuffâ You said and Dick adjusted himself so your head was on his chest and he could hug you.
âIâm sorry we didnât get to you soonerâ he whispered and you wrapped your arms around one of your oldest friends.
âItâs not your fault. Iâll get over it eventually, weâve both had worse, remember?â You asked him playfully but Dick just held you tighter.
âI thought theyâd keep you with Gar and Bart, when I saw you were with Tim and the other humans and then what you told me they said- Iâm so sorryâ He told you and the thought that Dick was more worried about you than you were for yourself made you feel so guilty.
âDick-â You tried to say as you pulled away from him but he took your cheek in his hand.
âYouâre one of the strongest people I knowâ He said and you smiled bashfully and lightly pushed him away.
âWhat is up with you Wonder bird?â You asked and he smiled at the nickname.
âI was worriedâ He said trying to match your joking tone but you could hear the sincerity in his voice.
âMhm, and thatâs it?â You questioned and he looked away.
âDick is this about the-â
You were cut off by Garfieldâs voice, âAre you two dating? Did I miss that? When did that happen?â He asked and you jumped, quite literally floating in the air.
âGarfield! Donât scare me like that!â You scolded the boy as you floated back down to the ground.
âYou must admit that it is enjoyable to scare you when you fly into the air like thatâ Lâgann said and Nightwing laughed, hiding the bashfulness from before.
âYouâd think that, but when they throat chop you out instinct youâll change your mindâ Nightwing said and you rolled your eyes.
âDid the two of you talk to Dinah?â You asked and both Gar and Lâgann nodded.
âDid you?â Gar asked.
âI live with her, I think thatâs enoughâ You said, deflecting easily. Youâd known Gar for years, hell you saved him when he was hurt and Mâgannâs blood gave him shapeshifting powers. But you still werenât that close with him.
Later that night you and Nightwing left the warehouse together. For as much time as you were there you both had other places to stay.
âYou wanna join me on patrol?â He asked and you looked at him questioningly. âLiterally a few hours ago you questioned what I was doing here hanging out with you, Iâm not gonna make Dinah even angrier and go on patrolâ You told him and he nodded.
âRight-â He said and you cut him off.
âBut I do want to talk about⊠That'' You said, generally gesturing to the warehouse.
âYou wanna come to my place?â Dick asked and you nodded, you both got on your bikes and he led the way.
Mount Justice
Team year four
It was a quiet day at the cave and you and Dick took that as a chance to spar. You were both the best martial artists on the team by far so sparring with each other one on one, no powers was fun.
You dodged each strike Dick threw at you, weaving around and below his arms.
âYouâre tired Wonder birdâ You chided as you swept his feet out from under him and pinned him to the ground.
âIn my defense Iâve been training longer than you todayâ He said as he flipped your positions so that he was pinning you to the ground. âSo itâs my lucky dayâ You joked as you used a move Dick taught you and wrapped your legs around his neck and forced him to the ground.
âWhat do you think of my technique?â You teased as you released your hold on him and stood up. He quickly followed.
âPretty good pretty birdâ He said as the both of you circled each other.
âBut not good enoughâ He said as he charged and kicked at you. As you blocked a kick to your side he jumped and kicked your stomach with his other foot. The worst part was that he managed to land gracefully back on the ground.
âDamn acrobatâ You said as you held your stomach and Dick simply bowed.
âAt your serviceâ He said and got back up.
You decided if he was gonna flex so would you and you cartwheeled to him and when he blocked your kick you wrapped your legs around him and brought him crashing down to the mats.
Once you both recovered you stayed on the mats and just laughed. Both of you were exhausted and sweaty and having fun.
âThat was pretty fun Wonder birdâ You told him, using the old nickname in a teasing tone. Dick had changed his codename from Robin to Nightwing. He outgrew his wings as you said.
âWell I definitely had fun Pretty birdâ he replied, teasing you with his own nickname.
The two of you stood up and grabbed your water bottles to take a drink.
âSo, Pretty bird?â You asked him once you both hydrated and he blushed slightly. Heâd never called you that before, and he scratched the back of his neck sheepishly.
âYou canât tell me itâs not trueâ He said, trying to sound confident. It didnât particularly work.
âCareful Dick, someone might think youâre flirtingâ You teased. The thing is as your friendship with Dick evolved and your natural teasing rivalry turned into mutual flirting.
âWell, is it working?â He asked, the confidence finally seeming real and you walked up to him with a smirk.
âWhat do you think?â You said, leaning closer and before you knew it Dickâs lips were on yours as your arms wrapped around each other.
When you pulled away you both looked at each other slightly flustered, slightly shocked that something actually came of your mutual flirting. It was bound to happen but you both just ignored the implications of your flirtations up until now.
âSoâŠâ Dick said and you weren't sure what to say.
âI- um-â You looked at the clock above the door of the training room, then back at Dick.
âShould go, I have to go on patrol soonâ You told him and left.
Soon after that you took your break from the team to focus on college which was keeping you busy and then everything with the Reach and the invasion, you both just didnât talk about what happened that day at the cave.
Bludhaven
April 1st
You both walked into Dick's apartment, he covered his Nightwing uniform with a jacket he kept in his bike.
Dickâs apartment was very lightly furnished and still full of boxes.
âYou thought of asking for help unpacking?â You asked him and you couldnât help but say it sarcastically.
âYou offering to organize my closet?â He asked and you joked.
âNope, unless you have something cool I can borrow in thereâ You retorted and eventually you both sat on the lone couch in front of a turned off TV.
âSoâŠâ He said and you turned to him, noticing the Flying Graysons poster above the couch.
âSo⊠We kissedâ You said and Dick continued.
âAnd weâve been flirting for over a yearâ He said, matching your blunt tone.
âAnd we havenât talked about it because things have been crazyâ You said.
You both sat in silence, it wasnât necessarily awkward, just silence. You were both in your heads. Youâve never really felt the way you did towards Dick until then. Sure you had the odd weeklong crush but never flirtations like this and while you wouldnât call it butterflies you definitely found comfort with him.
âWhat you said earlierâ You started, breaking the silence. âAbout me being-â
âThe strongest person I know?â He asked, cutting you off and you nodded.
âDid you mean it?â You asked and he nodded, cupping your cheek in his hand like he did at the warehouse.
âEvery word. Y/N Iâve known you for a long time and especially these past few years, what youâve told me- and how you handle everything that youâve been through. It amazes meâ He said and you could feel tears form behind your eyes. You put your hand over Dickâs and put your forehead to Dickâs shoulder
âDickâ You mumbled and he chuckled as he embraced you.
âThatâs my nameâ He said and you lightly punched his chest.
âYouâre making me feel things you assâ You said and he once again chuckled. âDoes that mean you like me too?â He asked and you mumbled something into his shoulder.
âHm? What was that?â He asked, pushing you away from his shoulder so he could see your face and you felt your cheeks flush.
You mumbled the same thing again knowing full well he could hear you and was just being a tease. He made a show of trying to listen before he asked you to repeat that again.
âI love you, you jerk!â You told him jokingly and grabbed the edge of his suit and pulled him into a passionate kiss. When you pulled away it was his turn to blush.
âI thought you never had a significant other, howâre you such a good kisser?â He asked and you smirked.
âI guess you donât know all my secrets just yet Pretty birdâ You told him and chuckled as he pouted.
âThief, I came up with thatâ He said and you rested your head on his shoulder like you did at the warehouse.
âWe can share itâ You told him as he adjusted himself. He laid down on the couch with you snuggled into his chest.
âI can live with thatâ He told you and you smiled. That night you had the most restful sleep you had in a long time.
A few days later though Dick met with Wally and they sat in Wally and Artemisâs house in Palo Alto.
âDo you really think this is the time for love confessions?!â Wally asked as he paced around his kitchen and Dick sat there. He loved you he really did but that didnât mean he could tell you about everything. âWally-â âNo! The cave is gone! Artemis is so deep undercover that if something goes wrong I canât do anything to help her and you chose now to get all sappy with your crush?! Dick my girlfriend is risking her life and youâre kissing Y/N!â Wally yelled before he finally sat down and took a deep breath.
âIâm sorry, Iâm happy for you Iâm just-â âDonât apologize Wally, itâs fine.â Dick said and Wally looked at him.
âAre you gonna tell them?â The speedster asked and Dick looked down, guilty.
âI just hope they can accept it after this is all overâ He confessed and Wally understood what he meant.
There werenât many things you hated more than liars. You had been lied to so many times by your so called mother, your teachers with the Shadows, even the League. The only thing Dick could really hope for was that you can live with it.
#shadow of a bluebird#dc x reader#yj x gender neutral reader#yj x reader#young justice x reader#gender neutral reader#metahuman reader#reader insert#gn reader#dick grayson x reader#roy harper x reader#black canary#green arrow#nightwing x reader#nightwing
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the game: âKabbu would prefer it never be spoke of againâ
me: lol
spoilers for Kaliâs sidequest, so mid-ch4 or later, and very vague chapter 5 spoilers in one line
(also imposing my genderfluid leif hc on everyone by picking whatever pronouns to use for a given fic. this time itâs he/they)
â..but I finally chased the whole swarm of âem out of town! And thatâs how I got this!â The mantis brandished one of her limbs, which had a not-insignificant chunk taken out of the side, to the overall impressed reaction of the small crowd that had gathered around the table.
Before anyone else could, Vi jumped in next. âOh yeah? Check this out!â She showed off a patch about the size of her palm on her upper forearm, slightly raised and glossier than the rest of it. âSo we found this cave with a gigantic midge-â
âI thought that was from when you slipped on a puddle of berry juice and smashed your elbow against the bar,â Doppel called from across the room.
A wave of laughter, followed by a second (and a âVi!â from Kabbu) when she spun around to make a rude gesture at him.
When the noise died down, she huffed, shook her head, and tapped a little scar on her forehead that just intersected with her right eyebrow. âWe were traveling the Sands when we came across a whole pack of banditsâŠâ
Leif watched her talk with a grin, sliding ever so slightly closer and closer, until she got to the part where she knocked out the Burglar. As soon as she paused for breath, they interjected, âAnd then she missed catching her boomerang and got smacked in the face.â
Again, laughter, especially when she tried to elbow them and they dodged that and the couple follow-up attempts to just turn around and smack them. For a half-second after Leif got out of reach, she went for her beemerang before thinking better of it (the tavern didnât bother with the hassle of a No Weapons policy but had a very strict No Weapon Use one, which she wasnât getting in trouble on over a joke).
Instead, she flopped back into her chair.
Next to her, Carmina tapped the surface of the table. âEh, cheer up, kid.â Ignoring the withering glare Vi gave her, she said, in playfully mocking tones, âWhat about this one? What fearsome beast did you confront to get that?â
Vi froze when she pointed to her torso, the single clean gash of a scar that went up her left side.
A loud clatter diverted everyoneâs attention. Kabbu had collided with Bea, spilling a whole tray of drinks. He swayed for a moment, eyes wide, and then bolted out through the exit.
For a breath, it was silent in the tavern. Then, the murmurs started.
Leif and Vi exchanged a glance. Vi jerked her head at the exit, and he got up to leave. With a heavy sigh, she reached into her stash. âI got it.â
---
It took a distressingly long time to find Kabbu. Leif had started going through the city, asking every bug they saw if theyâd noticed him, Vi scouting from the air. Theyâd finally gotten a trail, and, on the outskirts heading towards the pier, they spotted him on a lower path. Leif conjured a few ice pillars by the riverbank to give Vi something to work with, and then started climbing down.
Kabbu was huddled at the edge of the waterfallâs pool, rocking back and forth. It was painfully reminiscent of his initial response to the...situation.
After leaving Kaliâs, heâd been dead silent. Walking in the middle so they could lean weight against him, rigidly tense. Sitting in the corner of the room as the other two of them got patched up (theyâd managed to win without attacking Kabbu at all. Every so often, Leif wondered if that had actually made things worse, in the end.) and then again at the inn, staring off away from them, rocking.
âItâs not your fault,â Leif had said, after he and Vi had had a long silent âwhat do we do?!?â debate.
He stopped rocking, but didnât say anything, didnât turn to face them.
âThe only reason we werenât affected was because weâreâŠâ they gestured to their body. It was yet another inescapable reminder that something was wrong with them. What could-
And then Vi had jabbed them sharply and gestured with both hands to Kabbu, frowning.
âBecause weâre all weird.â
âYeah, and it couldâve just as easily been me!â she added, with strained lightness. With no response, she circled around to stand next to him. Staring at the wall as well, she murmured, âI mean, if weâre gonna try and blame any of us, I was the one who actually broke the dumb thing.â
Still, nothing.
She turned and gestured frantically.
With a sigh, Leif reached across the bed. âKabbu?â They touched his shoulder.
He jerked away from it as if it was painful. After a few heavy, shaky breaths, he said, âI...Itâs not either of you, but I wish not to discuss it. I simply need some time.â
Theyâd shared an uncertain glance, but in the end, agreed.
---
Leif walked up next to him. âKabbu,â he said, as neutrally as he could.
He started lightly, but quickly resumed his original pose. âIâll be fine,â he breathed âI just need some time.â
âMmhmm.â They plopped down unceremoniously. Remembering how heâd been averse to touch last time, they kept themself from leaning into him. For now. âWe heard that one before, and it doesnât seem to have helped.â
He stiffened. âI told you before,â he whispered, âI would prefer to never speak of it again.â
Leif kicked their legs in the water. âThen you should have picked friends who are less stubborn and nosy.â Not that they were entirely sure where to go form here, but they were perfectly willing to sit until that happened. Maybe theyâd even get lucky and something would compel Kabbu to talk.
(Considering his track record, they doubted it.)
And, in fact, the two of them were still like that when Vi found them. âKabbu,â she scolded as she landed on his other side. âWhat was that for?â Her glare faded quickly, and she sighed. Crossing her arms, she looked down as she spoke. âI wouldnât have told them about what happened.â
That got him to sit up, whirling around to face her. âOh, Vi, no, I would never.â
For the absolute briefest of moments, her slouch eased. Then she instantly doubled back down on it, squeezing her eyes shut.
âViâŠâ Scooting toward her, he reached out. âMay IâŠ?â
With a tiny sigh, she allowed herself to be pulled down and into a hug.
Leif watched the exchange with narrowed eyes. Of all the things that wouldâve been bothering Kabbu, that hadnât even occurred to him. He didnât doubt Vi would have thought he might, though. But even so, she seemed more upset than Leif would have expected. When she did get upset, she got very particular about physical contact. And yet here she was letting Kabbu practically fold himself around her. Something was up.
He got his answer when she wrapped her arms around Kabbuâs neck, resting her chin on his shoulder. It positioned her perfectly to face Leif. She grinned, and waved, mouthing âget over here.â
Ohh. Leif jumped in on the hug, specifically positioning themself to pin Kabbuâs arms down against Vi.
âWh- Leif!â He struggled for a moment, but they held on tight. âI canât believe you would manipulate me like this, Vi.â
âI wasnât planning it. It just kind of happened when you got all upset about me being upset.â She bonked the side of her head lightly against his. âAnd we wouldnât have to do this if you would let us help, or something!â
âIndeed. You remember what happened the last time you refused to talk to us about an internal struggle?â
He tensed up entirely. Then, his breath hitched. For a while, he was silent, shaking as he tried to stay composed, to keep it in.
âLeif,â Vi hissed, âWhat the heck, you canât just say stuff like that!â
âNo,â Kabbu whispered. âTh-theyâre right.â He gasped, and then he broke down crying.
At that point, they both loosened their grip. She still gave them a Look, but then shook her head, dropping it. Silently, they adjusted around to hold him more comfortably, settling in to wait.
---
âI know itâs not my fault,â he whispered. âBut thatâs not the problem.â He sighed. âNo; itâs still hard convincing myself not to try and shoulder the blame, but thatâs not the biggest part of it. Itâs-â He cut off with a gasping breath.
A few minutes later, he picked up again, voice thick and rough. âYou were getting hurt...and I couldnât protect you because I was the one hurting you.â He broke off again, pulling his one hand away from Leifâs grasp to huddle into himself. âI was hurting you, and I could see and hear and feel every moment of it.â Â He started to talk faster and faster. âAnd all I could think was that surely this was enough and she would stop, she had to stop, or else I-â
Leif put a hand over his mouth. âBut you didnât. Weâre alright, and weâre safe. All three of us. Now,â they said as they let go, âdeep breaths.â
They started modeling it, to give him a rhythm to follow, and after a moment Vi joined in too.
â...You know,â she said, some time later, âitâs pretty arrogant of you to think there was no way we were gonna win. Give us some credit.â
Kabbu stared at her, unreadably still.
With a huff, she looked away from them. âUgh, thereâs a nicer way to put it, but I donât know what it is.â
âNo, I-â Kabbu lifted a hand, paused before he could touch Vi. âMay I?â
She took it, and placed it on top of her head.
An exhale of a laugh. âI think I understand. You,â he twisted so he could see Leif and her at the same time, placing his other hand on the side of their face, âboth of you, saved me in the end, and if I can remember thatâŠâ His gaze went distant for a few seconds. âWell, it...it helps, with some things.â
Leif hummed. âWhat are the other things?â
He wavered but didnât break contact with either of them, closing his eyes. âIâm not sure thatâs anything that can be helped with.â
âAt least let us try. Besides,â he murmured, âitâs good practice telling us when somethingâs bothering you.â
â...I suppose thatâs fair.â He sighed. âThe harder part...is the loss of control.â Kabbu paused, dropping his hand from Leifâs face to the fluff around his neck, running his fingers through it a few times. âI- I know itâs not going to just happen again, but itâs hard to convince my body that. Especially when I have dreams about it. WhichâŠâ He was quiet for a while, until he continued, almost under his breath, âWhich has been happening a lot.â
Vi huffed. âDoes that mean we need to sleep right next to you more often?â
His eyes widened, but then he stiffened, retracting his hands to gesture as he talked. âI donât want to force you-â
âUgh.â She slapped at his arm. âYeah, yeah, we can figure that stuff out when it comes up. But...it would help?â
Looking down, he wrung his hands. âIt might.â
Leif took the opportunity to drape their head back over his shoulder. âThen weâll try that. And you have to wake us up. Weâd say âif itâs bad enough,â but you havenât earned deciding that privileges.â
Kabbu hunched in the body-language of a glare (not something he did often, but highly effective when he actually meant it). But then he sighed. âAlright.â
âThen can we go home?â Vi tipped her head all the way back. âI just realized weâre gonna have to move stuff with the beds, and Iâm already too tired for that.â A beat, then she looked back at Kabbu. âUh, if you feel okay for that.â
He nodded.
âGood.â She got to her feet, stretching. ââCause I donât think we could actually carry you.â
âHmm,â Leif said, still leaning on Kabbu. âWe should test that.â
âPerhaps not right now,â he said, with his usual tone of concern for this sort of exchange.
For Kabbuâs sake (and because he also didnât have the energy to try at the moment), Leif conceded.
As they walked, he bumped Kabbuâs side lightly. âIs there anything youâve found that helps?â
He stared at him for a moment before he picked up that thread of conversation. âIf I can make myself move, doing something that I know Iâm doing on purpose. The problem there is just that I get frozen, which...feeds into itself.â
âMm. Weâll remember that, then.â
When they did get home, they collectively spent about five seconds regarding the bunk beds before giving up and piling on the lowest bed (Kabbuâs) with extra blankets. Leif pressed against Kabbuâs front and Vi got on the other side of him so they were back-to-back. Heâd tried protesting both of them, but not with much energy, and in the end fell asleep before either of them, easy as if it were any other regular night.
#an aquila original#bug fables#kabbu bug fables#leif bug fables#vi bug fables#bug fables spoilers#My writing#fanfiction#aquila plays bf
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A Favor: Part Twenty-Nine
Nessian Modern AU
Masterlist
a/n: not an ending, but a middle.
this chapter was ridiculously difficult to write and edit. it tops out at 7.5k words so⊠beware
***
Cassian and Nesta make full use of the summer house without his friends there, making love on every other surface just because theyâre all alone and they can. Nesta shows a soft spot in particular for having sex in Cassianâs old bed, proving to him that she can be just as sentimental as he is.
Which is how they end up sprawled naked on the living room floor early the next morning, fast asleep in each otherâs arms with nothing but a throw blanket to cover them.
Cassian is woken up by the sound of the front door being flung open, followed promptly by a feminine yelp as the intruder catches sight of the tangled couple in the living room. âOh, youâve got to be kidding me.â
Cassian whips his head up to find who interrupted his sleep, and his nostrils flare in shock when he sees Mor at the entryway. He carefully but swiftly moves his arm out from under Nestaâs head and replaces it with a nearby pillow before starting to stand up. âWhat the hell are you doingââ
âFuck no, I can see your assâNo, now I can see your dick!â Mor squeals in disgust, promptly spinning around and clapping her hands over her eyes like she can burn the image out of her mind.
âWill you shut the fuck up?â Cassian whisper-hisses at her, throwing a worried glance at Nestaâs still sleeping form. She doesnât shift an inch.
Scooping up his flannel sleep pants from the floor, Cassian pulls them on while Mor makes gagging noises with her back to him.
Spying a pair of underwear flung over the arm of a chair, she bends to pick them up with two pinched fingers and turns to face Cassian, whoâs now appropriately covered. Heavy judgment wrinkles her nose as she casts a glance to the owner of the panties, then to Cassian. âGranny panties, Cass? Is this what your sex life has been reduced to?â
âDonât touch Nestaâs underwear.â He stalks over to Mor and snatches them out of her hand, before grabbing her by the elbow and dragging her off into the kitchen.
She shakes him off once theyâre out of earshot from Nesta and takes a seat across from him at the wooden breakfast table. She brushes her golden hair over a shoulder and smirks. âSomeoneâs been having fun on their own while waiting for the rest of the party to arrive.â
âWhat are you doing here?â Cassian repeats.
Mor waves a languid hand dismissively. âI ended up taking a commercial flight. I wasnât a fan of being stuck on the same private plane as Az and Elain.â
Cassian blows out a tight breath, wishing heâd at least gotten some warning before his plans for the day were ruined. Plans that included taking Nesta in the lake before breakfast.
âBut seriously,â Mor glances over her shoulder in the direction of the living room, âwhatâs up with the prude panties? I thought you wouldâve thawed that ice pussy by nâŠâ She trails off at the look on Cassianâs face, and a glimpse of fear crosses her own face. She forces a nervous laugh and twists her fingers together. âI suddenly remember making a promise a while ago,â she murmurs while staring down at the table.
âItâs a good thing you remember,â Cassian says stoically, âbecause I was just about to bring it up.â
âI know, I know, no criticizing your girlfriend.â Mor rolls her eyes.
âItâs about a lot more than that,â he grits. âItâs about how youâre only wary of her because you donât trust me to choose who I give my love to. Itâs about how you donât respect my decision enough to maintain boundaries when you talk about Nesta.â
For once, Mor looks put off her game. âI never meant it like that,â she tries to say.
âThatâs what it looks like,â Cassian retorts. âIt looks like youâre judging someone you have no right to judge, like youâre trying to protect me from an imaginary threat.â
Mor coughs aloud. âDo I really need a scolding for a girl I see maybe twice a year? I havenât even thought about Nesta since the New Yearâs party.â
âItâs not a scolding,â Cassian says firmly. âItâs an order to be on your best behavior for the duration of this vacation, because the sisters and I went through a lot to get Nesta to come here. There will be no catfights, or backtalk, or rude looks and snide tones until weâve returned home. The same applies for everyone else once they get here.â
âOr, how about this? Iâll stop making ice pussy jokes if you stop being thisâŠâ Mor waves a hand up and down at Cassianâs shirtless figure with a grimace, âunrecognizable creature with the tension of a forty year old single dad.â
Is Cassian tense? Of course heâs fucking tense. The last time he convinced Nesta to go to a family event with him was Christmas Eve, and heâs never letting that mistake be repeated ever again. His glare confirms it.
âMorrigan,â he says lowly with a hint of warning.
âOkay, okay,â she exclaims, throwing her hands up in surrender. âBut for the record, Iâve never said anything rude to your girlfriendâs face, and I never plan to.â
Cassian crosses his brown arms across his chest. âNo, youâve only done it to my face.â
Guilt crosses Morâs features for the quickest second. âOh.â She bites her bottom lip. âIn that case, Iâll pull back from now on.â
He releases a terse breath. âGood.â Now to hammer the message into anyone else who might threaten the quiet solitude he and Nesta have found here.
âI didnât mean to hurt you,â she adds somewhat apologetically. âYou know I just want the best for you.â
âAnd you know I already know whatâs best for me.â
Mor dips her head in reluctant acknowledgment. âCan we go back to normal, then? I donât like feeling like your adversary.â
Cassianâs shoulders slump in relief, and his crossed arms fall away. âOf course, Mor.â
Like flipping a switch, Mor claps her hands together. âGood. I left my luggage in the rental car and itâs super heavy; I brought enough clothes for three outfit changes a day. Why donât you put those big strong muscles to work while I get settled into my room?â
Before Cassian can object, sheâs out of her seat and flouncing out of the kitchen. From the entry hall, Cassian can hear Mor say perkily, âGood morning, Nesta! Love the undies.â
Cassian drops his head onto the table with a thud, lifts it, then drops it again. Mor is going to be a work in progress.
âYou okay?â A voice makes Cassian look up from the wooden table. Nesta stands in the kitchen entryway wearing nothing but Cassianâs shirt, and her hair is a rumpled mess from sleep. Her hands twisting into the hem of his tee tells him she couldnât be less excited about Morâs early arrival, though the rest of her doesnât show it.
Exhausted apprehensiveness drops in Cassianâs gut. âHow much of that did you hear?â he asks warily.
âNot much. I just woke up a minute ago and heard your voices.â She comes over to him and wraps a comforting arm around his shoulder. âWhy, were you guys arguing?â
Cassian slings his arm around Nestaâs waist, basking in her warmth. âNot exactly.â
She frowns. âWas it about me?â
âIt was about Mor.â
She nudges him. âWill you tell me about it?â
âNo,â he quips, yanking her down onto his lap. He pecks a kiss onto her lips. âItâs nothing you need to worry about.â
Nesta hums to herself. âSo our morning plans are out the window?â she asks, raising a brow.
âYup.â
âDoes Mor actually like my undies?â
âNope.â
***
The rest of Cassianâs friends and Nestaâs family arrive by late afternoon, piling out of a dark SUV in a frenzy of noise and colors. Nesta forgot how⊠many of them there were.
She lets Cassian and Mor handle the greetings, choosing to observe everyone from her spot near the stairs.
Azriel is the first to catch her eyes. He looks the same as ever, dressed head to toe in black even in the middle of a heat wave. Elain is an overdressed peacock in comparison to him, not that anyone would be comparing them, because they carefully stand at opposite ends of the entry hall.
He sends a simple nod Nestaâs way, which makes her narrow her eyes. Does he think he can act too cool for her just because they havenât talked in a while? Idiot.
Feyre notices Nesta next and waves her arms wildly. âGet over here!â
Nesta reluctantly pulls away from the banister and nears their group, offering only a half smile to everyone there before hiding behind her sisters. Cassian cuts a glance her way in solidarity, and it feels like a pillar of reinforcement against her wavering self. She scrambles around for a solid ten seconds for something to say, either to her sisters or to the whole group, and finally comes up with, âWhat are we having for dinner?â
âThatâs still hours away,â Rhysand assures. âEveryone scram and put your shit up first.â
âThe girl has a point,â Amren grumbles. âIâm starving.â
âYeah, Rhys, can we have an early dinner?â Mor whines.
And just like that, Nesta has melted into the background again. Which might be for the best, considering how loud it is right now.
Feeling overwhelmed, Nesta checks on Feyre and Elain to make sure theyâre not paying attention to her, and then meets Cassianâs gaze through all the luggage and bodies. Tilting her head toward the back door to let him know that sheâs leaving, she silently slips down the hall and out of the house.
Outside in the gardens, the light breeze soothes her heightened senses. Itâs hot as shit at this hour, but sheâll take it for the peace and quiet.
Only a few minutes into her getaway, however, Nesta hears the porch door open behind her. Her shoulders stiffen when she hears footsteps that donât belong to Cassian. There goes her peace and quiet.
Nesta is surprised to find Amren slinking up to her side, her small head appearing at Nestaâs shoulder.
Discomfort crawls through Nestaâs bones at the womanâs unexpected presence. Itâs a subtle sense of wrongness, like being in the proximity of a predator but not having enough information to guess how theyâll attack.
âHiding out from Rhysieâs big bad inner circle?â Amren taunts.
Nesta stiffens. Just because itâs true doesnât mean it needs to be thrown in her face.
âI suppose I canât blame you,â she goes on. âWe can be a scary group.â
âIâm not scared of anybody,â Nesta says, keeping her focus glued to the treesâ cherry blossoms. âI just wanted fresh air.â
âAnd Iâve wanted to find out what Cassian sees in you ever since he gave me that verbal lashing about being nice to his new girlfriend.â Amren turns to face Nesta fully, closing in. âWhat kind of pussy grip can a woman have to make Cassian of all men heel?â She hisses in a thoughtful breath through her teeth.
Nesta only shrugs, but her interest is piqued at the idea of Cassian warning Amren away from her. She definitely doesnât need the protection, and once would have found it offensive, but⊠she likes the idea of someone standing up for her, being unapologetically on her side even if they have no good reason to do it. The only other times she can remember feeling defended were brief, subtle childhood instances with Feyre and Elain, and that was only because blood instinctively defends blood. Itâs different to feel chosen. It makes her chest crack.
When Nesta doesnât respond, Amren throws out, âAre you on the spectrum or what?â
Nesta again doesnât reply.
âNo one mentioned it, but I assumed as soon as I saw you.â
âItâs rude to make assumptions,â Nesta says, her voice cool as a running river.
Amren barks a laugh that sounds like a whip lashing. âI like you, girl.â
Nesta finally meets Amrenâs silver gaze and states, âI donât like you.â Her tone is blunt, to the pointâbut if she has to participate in this twisted version of small talk, then she should at least get to be honest.
Amren laughs aloud again, as if that genuinely amuses her. Nesta doesnât know how amused Amren will be when she realizes that Nesta is serious.
She shrugs to herself, turning back to face the garden. It isnât her problem, she decides.
***
âEven for you, this is overprotective.â Rhysâs voice comes from behind Cassian, who stands at the sliding glass door at the back of the kitchen that peers out onto the gardens. Heâs been watching Amren converse with Nesta for the last seven minutesâor rather, heâs been watching Nesta, inspecting her body language to gauge her discomfort.
It was a struggle not to hold his arm across the back door and block Amren from following after Nesta earlier. Amren had the look of a cat going out to play with a new toy, and Cassian had nearly snarled at her for it until she gave him that expression: the raised brow and sneer that said Really, Cassian? Pathetic.
It made him think of how Nesta would feel if she knew he was trying to physically keep people away from her, and he managed to have enough shame to move aside and let Amren pass with only a warning look.
So far though, it looks like Nesta is handling herself just fine. He shouldâve known better than to underestimate her.
When Rhys doesnât get a response, he comes up to stand at Cassianâs side and get a look through the glass door. âI never thought youâd be applying your passion for security to your damn girlfriend.â Rhys lets out a low whistle.
Without taking his eyes off Nesta and Amren, Cassian tells Rhys, âProtecting her is protecting myself. When she gets hurt, I feel it twofold.â And he really doesnât want to be hurt on this vacation. Nesta already thinks heâs a crybaby as it is.
Rhys is silent for a long minute, as if he canât deny that he would feel the same way for his own girlfriend. Eventually he says, âI might finally understand whatâs going on in your brain whenever youâre around her.â
Cassian only nods.
Rhysand claps his hand down suddenly on Cassianâs shoulder, breaking the somberness of his confession. âCall them in to help make dinner,â Rhys orders. âI want all hands on deck tonight.â
Cassian looks at his brother with narrowed eyes. âAnd what will you be doing to help?â
âIâll be watching the game on the nice TV that I paid for, in the beautiful new living room I also paid for.â
âBastard.â
***
Nesta and Azriel help prepare dinner in silence. Their quiet acknowledgment of each other is better than any words could be, but itâs all shattered when Mor dumps a serving platter on the counter right next to Azriel.
âOoh, ricotta-stuffed mushrooms!â She grabs a handful and starts arranging them onto her platter. âAz, how was your mystery weekend away? I havenât seen you since you got back.â
Azriel shares an unreadable glance with Nesta before sliding his chicken parmesan dish toward her and saying loudly, âWow, is that football?â He promptly turns around and walks out of the kitchen.
Nesta glares after him in disbelief, but Azriel canât hear her wordless cries for help because heâs already in the living room.
Left alone at the kitchen counter with Morrigan, Nesta keeps wiping at the wine glasses that have been gathering dust in the cupboards. From the corner of her eye, she can see that Morâs mouth is tightened into a displeased line.
Not that Nesta isnât grateful for it, but Mor usually isnât one to keep her mouth shut. She wonders if something is wrong that she doesnât know about. âYou look constipated,â Nesta tells Mor under her breath. âAnything you want to get out?â
Mor only scoffs in indignation. Then she shakes her head and mutters to herself, âI promised not to say anything.â
Now Nesta is really intrigued. âPromised who?â she prods. âCassian?â
âLike you donât know about it.â Mor rolls her dark eyes.
Nesta doesnât know, though after Amrenâs comment earlier she might have a hint. âI would prefer you be honest with me rather than follow Cassianâs orders.â
âThatâs funny, so do I.â Mor plucks up a stuffed mushroom and shoves it into her mouth.
Nesta thinks back to how she woke up to Cassian and Morâs voices lowered in seriousness. After what Nesta overheard on New Yearâs Eve, itâs no secret that Morrigan doesnât care for her, but she suddenly has the urge to have it said to her face. âWell, if you want to stop holding back with me, I wonât tell.â
Morrigan sets down her mushroom platter with a thump, turning to face Nesta like sheâs done her a personal wrong. âYou know what I know about you, Nesta?â Mor says. âI know that Cassian has changed since heâs gotten with you. I know that heâs more serious whenever heâs around you. I know that you donât love him as much as he loves you. How can Cassian expect me to trust someone that doesnât want to be around his own family? How can he expect me to trust you with his heart? Not that Iâm allowed to be saying any of this, because Iâm supposed to be hiding my feelings about you to stop my best friend from hating me.â
Itâs crazy how a year ago those words would have been enough to make Nesta retreat to her room and never come out again. Each statement pricks like a shard of glass against her skin, though none of them are accurate or true.
And yet Nesta finds herself hurting more for Cassian than for herself. She feels her familiar old mask go up around her face and harden there.
âIt sounds like your problem is more with Cassian than it is with me,â Nesta says stoically. âBecause I wonât be going through any trials to prove myself. I have nothing to prove. I donât care if you like me or not, if youâre nice to my face or cruel behind my backâbut itâs rude to shit over your friendâs life choices like that. Heâll stop trusting you if you keep it up, and it wonât be my fault when it happens,â Nesta finishes. She wordlessly gathers the wine glasses in her hands and abandons a silent Morrigan to go set the table.
Nesta knows the dynamic at dinner is off with her presence there.
For once, Cassianâs priorities lie somewhere other than laughing with his friends. He keeps a protective hand on Nestaâs thigh from the moment they take their seats, and he only removes it when heâs filling her plate with food.
With memories of Christmas dinner hanging over all of them, Cassian looks like a bodyguard prepared for attackâ except heâs contributing to a good half of the tension at the table.
âHow was the drive here?â Feyre pokes at the two of them in an attempt to break the ice. Nesta glances to Cassian for his response, but his attention is taken by the platter of bread rolls.
Sighing internally, Nesta answers, âBetter than yours, thatâs for sure.â
Everyone laughs hesitantly. A steaming bread roll then appears on Nestaâs plate, golden and fluffy with a buttery aroma; one glance at the rest of the bread tells her it was the biggest roll in the pile.
Nesta drops her walls enough to give Cassian a small smile and an arm rub of appreciation, and then she reaches straight for the bottle of wine.
She loves Cassian and hates this dinner too much to allow this to go on.
After filling Cassianâs empty glass high with Merlot, Nesta presses it into his free hand with a subtle kiss on his cheek. âRelax a little,â she murmurs into his ear.
It takes ten minutes and two full glasses for her plan to take effect, but relax Cassian does. Like oil slipping through rusted gears, the tension in the room slowly unwinds and natural conversation starts to flow.
âYou guys will not believe what I had to walk in on this morning,â Mor announces at one point during the meal.
âYeah, yeah, Cassianâs ass and dick, weâve already heard,â Amren says.
Cassianâs glare at Mor is more lighthearted than life-threatening. âThis is why I canât talk to you anymore,â he states, pointing a finger at her. Nesta is so glad for the lack of tension in his shoulders that she doesnât even care if everyone basically knows about her having sex in the living room.
With Cassian acting more like his normal self, the pressure to make useless small talk is no longer on her. Nesta is content to watch everybody share stories and laughter, but for once she doesnât feel like an audience member on the outside looking in. Maybe itâs because no matter how much Cassian drinks, his hand stays steady on her leg the whole night, keeping her rooted there with everybody else. He doesnât let her fade into the background for a second.
âWhatâs that on your wrist, Az?â Morâs voice rings from one head of the table. Azriel snatches his hand back in a flash before Mor can reach for it. From his other side, Nesta grabs it smoothly out of the air to take a look at the cause of Morâs question.
She raises her brow at the sight of three colorful bracelets lining Azrielâs right wrist.
Az tries to pull his hand away, but Nestaâs hold is tight. Even if the signature of the maker wasnât stamped onto one of the childish bracelets, she would know who had made them with one glance.
âWhat does it say?â Mor asks her.
âNothing. Just some beads.â Nesta pulls Azrielâs dark sleeve over the beads that spell out GWYNâS BITCH and gives his arm a little pat. She sincerely hopes Elain is thoroughly over Azriel by now.
âWas that Rainbow Loom I saw? Since when did you wear kiddy bracelets?â Mor snorts at Az.
Nestaâs attention is pulled away from their conversation by a heavy head falling onto her shoulder. âNestaaa,â Cassian slurs, slumping against her side.
Blushing at the attention heâs drawing to her, Nesta tries to shove a drunk Cassian back upright. âI think we need to get you to bed.â
âOh really? Promise youâll tuck me in?â He tries to wink at her, but it comes off as a strained blink.
He looks ridiculous. It isnât helping the blush on her cheeks, though.
âI promise.â Nesta shoves her finished plate aside and grabs Cassian by the bicep, standing up and attempting to drag him with her. âCome on, Iâll take you right now.â
Mor is quick to get to her feet. âWe can take him,â she offers eagerly.
âWhoâs we?â Azriel mutters. Nesta hears a hard stomp, and then Az is coughing, jumping out of his seat after Mor. âYeah, weâll take him,â he says.
Nesta reluctantly lets Cassian slip out of her grasp as Morrigan and Azriel take one of his arms from either side.
âWait, but I want Nesta to tuck me in!â Cassian twists around as heâs dragged away, drunkenly finding Nestaâs gaze. Heâs pouting.
Affection battles with secondhand embarrassment and wins. âIâll be right there,â she promises with a wave. As soon as Mor and Azriel accomplish whatever it is theyâre trying to accomplish. Her voice flattens into a cold warning when she adds after them, âBe careful with him.â
Daring a quick glance back at the table, Nesta wants to cringe when she meets everyone elseâs eyes. Rhysand looks highly amused. Feyre looks disturbed, and Elain looks glum with envy, the love-obsessed bitch. Amren is Amren.
After dinner is over, dishes duty is handed over to Rhysand and Amren goes off to bed complaining about beauty sleep, which leaves Nesta alone with her sisters in the foyer.
She doesnât quite know how, but she ends up forgetting her promise to Cassian and following the girls out to the front porch for some fresh air instead. The sun has long since set, taking some of the summer heat with it, but the air is still stuffy as the three of them settle down onto hand-painted wooden chairs. Lanterns on the porch are lit up to keep the darkness away, and the lake before them gleams with the reflection of the rising moon.
Feyre is the first to speak, her voice hesitant. âItâs hot out tonight, isnât it?â
âIâm not doing this,â Elain announces. She stands abruptly from her chair and goes back inside.
Nesta and Feyre stare wide-eyed after the swinging front door, but a minute later Elain returns holding a decanter and three crystal glasses. She sets the glasses down on a side table and starts pouring. âItâs not really Tennessee without a strong whiskey,â she says to no one. âAnd Iâm way too sober right now to handle this vacation.â The third glass gets an extra finger of liquor, and it ends up in Elainâs hand. She passes the other two to Nesta and Feyre before settling back into her seat.
Nesta grimaces at the drink in her hand without even tasting it. She hates most alcohol, but strong alcohol especially. For the sake of her sisters, however, she throws back half the glass without thinking.
Liquid fire scalds her tongue and throat, and she groans aloud. Instant regret.
Elain has no such issues downing her liquor. âDid you know,â she says after swallowing a gulp of whiskey like itâs apple juice, âthat our old place is just a mile and a half that way?â She waves with her glass toward the back gardens.
âIs it really that close?â A frown wrinkles Feyreâs brow, like the memory of their old home might taint the perfect life she has now.
âYes,â Nesta confirms. She doesnât offer anything else.
Feyre shudders despite the temperature. âI hate even thinking about it. Itâs so depressing. Reminds me of Papa.â
Which is also depressing, Nesta thinks to herself.
âIt wasnât depressing for me,â Elain says, chin tilted up in defiance.
That doesnât surprise Nesta. Even in the depths of their fatherâs patheticness, he was Elainâs favorite man on earth.
Nesta used to wonder how her papa would have reacted if Elain was the one with crippling endometriosis pain every month instead of her. Would he have ignored her cries like he ignored Nestaâs, or would he have come running to her aid?
Itâs not a question thatâs worth Nestaâs time and energy, though. Not when the man himself has long been six feet under. Instead she pokes at Elain, âThen why did you hide your background from every guy you met like you were ashamed of it?â
âI was ashamed,â Elain says primly, âbut that doesnât mean I hated all of it. We didnât all grow up with a ten foot stick up our ass; at least I could appreciate what we had without taking my attitude out on everybody else.â
The whiskey must be working quickly, because Nesta canât hold back an unseemly snort. âThere you go again,â she drawls in a cutting tone, pointing an accusing finger with the hand that holds her glass at Elain. âDishing out shit when you canât take it back. At least not without crying.â
Feyre, who was trying to hide her cringe with the rim of her drink, now perks up with eagerness. âShe does do that, doesnât she?â she exclaims. âI thought I was the only one who noticed.â
Elainâs lips twist into an indignant sneer. âWhatâs this dynamic now, whyâs everyone ganging up on me?â
Nesta mutters, âBecause you need to hear it every now and then.â Turning to Feyre, she adds, âGod, she can be fucking annoying.â
âOh, like youâre everyoneâs favorite person to be around?â Elain scoffs.
âAt least I donât pretend to be something Iâm not. Thatâs called a con artist, Elain. Youâre a con artist.â
Thereâs stunned silence for a tense momentâand itâs broken by full laughter. Elain is chuckling sweetly as she says, âWell, I suppose itâs okay if only you two are the ones who notice it. It can be our little secret.â She presses a finger to her pink lips.
Feyre giggles along at that too, but Nesta remains quiet. Too sober for the current mood, perhaps. âDo you think someone will notice at one point?â she asks Elain. âThat the smiles and Southern charm andâthe kindness...â She doesnât know how to feel about that word in relation to Elain. âDo you think someone will notice that thatâs not all there is to you?â
Elainâs grinning face freezes quicker than an actressâs. âNo one will know,â she answers smoothly, âbecause Iâm not going to be with anyone else for a while.â
At the confused silence filled only by the chirp of cicadas, Elain supplements, âIâm trying out the single life.â
Nesta meets Feyreâs eyes, and it only catalyzes the sound quelling up in her throat. At the same moment, the two sisters burst into cackling laughter. Well, Feyre cackles. Nesta makes a noise that imitates a dying whale.
âIâm serious,â Elain insists, glaring at them. âIf Nesta could spend all those years living like a widowed hag, why canât I? I donât need men to live.â
Nestaâs laughter sours at the insult, and she turns to Elain with seriousness in her tone. âNo one needs anyone else, Elainâbut you treat loneliness like a leper from the Middle Ages. Are you even happy for me and Cassian beneath all that jealousy?â
Elain shifts uncomfortably in her chair and mutters, âOf course Iâm happy for you two.â And then she adds in a much quieter voice, âDeep, deep down.â
âIs that what was wrong with you on New Yearâs?â Feyre asks gently. âYou were jealous?â
Nesta raises a brow; she didnât know this.
âI wasnât exactly having fun watching you two suck face right after getting dumped by Azriel,â Elain tells Nesta. âBut that doesnât mean Iâm not happy for you. I justâŠIâm not used to being the lonely one.â She huffs out a sigh and reaches for the decanter again. âIf anyone should be in a happy and healthy relationship right now, it should be me.â
Feyre turns to Nesta and whispers too loudly, âYouâre right, she is fucking annoying.â
âDonât get too friendly; so are you.â
Feyre leans away from Nesta in affront. âI didnât even do anything this time!â
âYou donât need to do anything for Nesta to think sheâs better than us,â Elain chimes in.
The three of them break out into bickering, which soon devolves into hysterical laughter, which then morphs into a comfortable silenceâwhich doesnât last long until theyâre bickering again. They spend the rest of the night going in small circles like that over their whiskey, occasionally taking breaks to talk of more serious things: Elainâs flower shop is finally starting to pick up business, but expenses are still too high. Nesta is worried about Cassian being all alone in Italy by himself, but sheâll never show it to him. Feyreâs work at the childrenâs art studio is making her seriously consider having kids (âDonât you dare, youâre way too young,â Nesta threatens).
Each of them reveals that they miss at least one of their shitty parents these days.
Maybe itâs because theyâre under the same night sky that they spent their childhoods under, but if Nesta closes her eyes, itâs like sheâs seventeen again, letting her sisters stay up and talk her ear off even though itâs a weeknight.
***
The lack of Nesta in Cassianâs bed must stop him from succumbing to deep sleep, because his nap is hazy and doesnât last more than a half hour. When he blinks awake, the fog of wine from earlier has mostly cleared away and the lamps in his room are lit. Mor sits on the bay window seat and Azriel lounges on a chair nearby, both of them murmuring quietly to each other.
Noticing Cassianâs movement, Az turns away from Mor and drawls, âThat was quick.â
Groaning, Cassian rubs at his eyes and sits up straight. His shirt and jeans are flung on the floor, and he can only assume he took them off himself before collapsing into bed.
Holding the thin blanket to his chest, he demands, âWhat are you guys doing here?â
âOh, now he has modesty,â Mor grumbles.
Cassian grabs his wrinkled shirt from the floor and shrugs it on before repeating his question. âWhat are you doing here, and whereâs Nesta?â
âDonât know,â Az shrugs from his chair. âBut Mor wanted us to talk alone, so Nesta probably doesnât need to be here.â
Growing wary, Cassian straightens up against the headboard. âTalk about what?â
Morâs words take him by surprise. âI wanted to apologize.â She straightens up in her seat and throws a cautious glance at Azriel. âAnd I wanted Az with me for moral support.â
Az rolls his eyes to himself, likely considering the task beneath him.
âI didnât take your words that seriously this morning,â Mor goes on, âbut Iâm taking them seriously now. Someone made me realize that Iâve been blaming yourâgirlfriend... for our relationship changing when Iâm the one whoâs been pushing you away the whole time. While you were falling in love, I wasnât there for you. I didnât trust you to find love without my input, and I didnât respect you when you did.â Tears line her dark eyes, taking Cassian aback. âIâm sorry,â she says weakly. âPlease donât hate me.â
A headache takes root in Cassianâs temples, and he has to shut his eyes against the dull thudding. âI could never hate you, Mor,â he says past the lump in his throat. That was never the problem, though her words have eased some of the pent up frustration in his chest.
Cassian lets out a long-suffering sigh. âItâs not just you. Itâs every single one of us. Weâve known each other so long, weâre so fucking entangled in each other, that even when Iâm living by myself up in my cabin I feel like I canât get away from it.â He stares out the window like he might find some relief there. âThatâs why Iâm going overseas. To get some space from all of this.â He waves between the three of them and laughs bitterly. âWe created this incestuous little circle and now we donât know how to care about anyone outside of it.â
He catches Az frowning, fingers toying with one of the bracelets on his wrist that Cassian spied earlier.
Mor sniffs away a lingering tear. âWhat about Nesta, then? Where does she factor in?â
Cassianâs mouth turns down in a distasteful frown. He still doesnât like that he has to leave without her, but the fact that he doesnât like it is only more proof that he needs to do it. âI canât let Nesta be a part of me,â he answers. âI need to be all of me.â
Only once he learns how to do that can he be the friend and lover that the people in his life deserve.
***
Nesta wakes up the next dawn not on a hard chair, but in a soft bed. The smell of Cassian lingers on the sheets wrapped around her, and she blinks blearily as she tries to remember the events of last night.
Feyre fell asleep first. Elain and Nesta were just going to close their eyes for a moment and take a brief rest as well, but the next thing Nesta knew Cassian was helping her take out her contacts and laying her head against a pillow. Now the sun is dawning and she has a pounding headache. She needs at least another ten hours of sleep before sheâll be fit to face the world again.
She looks around for her phone to check the time and spots it plugged into the charger on the bedside table. Despite feeling like sheâs been rammed with the flu, the tiniest smile lifts Nestaâs lips at the thought of Cassian carrying her to bed and making sure to charge her phone.
She finds her lockscreen blown up with notifications, all from her shared groupchat with Gwyn and Emerie.
Clicking into her texts, Nesta scrolls back through the hundreds of messages to see what she missed.
Emerie: i canât believe nesta isnât here for this.
Emerie: what the hell is she doing
Gwyn: probably hanging out with her best friends the inner circle
Gwyn: or getting railed
Emerie: >:(
A tired laugh escapes Nesta as she reads the texts, and sheâs grateful for the reminder that these are her chosen friends. This is her found family, and sheâll be back with them soon.
Scrolling a little further back, Nesta finds the cause of all the commotion.
Emerie: A RACCOON JUST FELL THROUGH MY CEILING IM GONMA DUE &%!@
Emerie: DIE
Followed by multiple pictures of a scarily large raccoon chewing up Emerieâs bed.
Nesta shudders at the images. Reminding herself to message the girls back as soon as she has her head on straight, she puts away the phone and drags herself out of bed.
Her knees wobble a little as she stands upright and slips her glasses on, but her body keeps moving automatically toward the door. Itâs not until sheâs halfway downstairs that she realizes sheâs looking for Cassian.
In the main hall that cuts through the house, Nesta glances between the back door and the front door. Instinct tugs her toward the front door, and as she passes the living room she spies Elain knocked out on the couch.
One of her legs dangle off the edge of the cushion and she still has her shoes on, like she dragged herself up onto the loveseat in the middle of the night and fell straight asleep.
Cassian brought Nesta up to their room sometime during the night, and Rhysand would have done the same for Feyre, but Elain⊠Elain has no one to carry her to her room, Nesta realizes.
Hating the unusual feeling of pity that blooms inside of her, Nesta goes over and grabs a throw blanket from nearby. She flings it haphazardly over Elainâs body. There, that should do it.
She might take a few seconds to tuck the blanket in a little better, but then sheâs out the front door and jogging down the porch steps. Early morning dew beads the grass, and the sun isnât high enough in the sky yet for the heat to be unbearable.
Like perfect timing, Cassianâs form appears from the lightly wooded running trail that circles the lake. He has his hair tied up and is wearing nothing but workout shorts, and even from this distance Nesta can see the sweat gleaming off his hardened chest.
She forgets about her headache and the bitter aftertaste of alcohol coating her tongue. Her feet speed up on the grass, and then Cassian takes sight of her too. He grins wide and breaks into a run toward her.
When theyâre mere feet away from each other, Nesta is the one to halt first and hold out a hand, blocking Cassianâs incoming bear hug. âDonât you dare.â She eyes his body with a warning look. Nesta will do a lot of things for her boyfriend, but sticking her face into his sweaty pits is not one of them.
Cassian looks her up and down with scrutiny, trying to decide if going in for the hug anyway is worth it. âFine,â he gives in. He spins on his heel and walks down to the head of the pier, where a standing shower is set up for washing off after swims in the lake.
Twisting the faucet, Cassian stands under the cold burst of water and gives Nesta a look that says, Happy now?
Nesta cautiously goes over to where Cassian stands, but she gets too closeâ
In a blink, sheâs being tugged under the shower stream, held tight to Cassianâs chest.
âCassian!â Nesta splutters, trying to pull away. Droplets hit her glasses and blur her vision, and she has to shove the glasses up into her hair so she can properly glare at Cassianâs face.
He only laughs deeply and tugs her closer. âLike you donât smell either. Youâve been in that dress since yesterday.â
Nesta catches her breath under the pouring water, glancing down at her soaked sundress. Right; she probably needs this more than he does.
The water isnât freezing like she expected, she realizes as she relaxes in Cassianâs arms. Itâs actually the perfect temperature, almost soothing after the initial shock to her senses.
Broad hands stroke long lines across her arms, like Cassian is making sure that she isnât uncomfortable. The action triggers an old memory inside Nestaâor rather, an old familiar feeling. The feeling of Cassian in Nestaâs early days of knowing him, always pushing her out of her comfort zone but never tossing her in the deep end to drown.
âI handled my sisters and your friends pretty well the other night, donât you think?â she murmurs into his chest.
Cassian looks down at her with pure reverence in his eyes. âI canât be surprised. Youâve always been like that.â
âLike what?â
âBrave as hell. From the minute you stepped outside of the little circle youâd drawn around your life, you became the bravest person I know.â
âNot true,â Nesta states matter-of-factly. âI can name at least three braver people.â
Cassian pokes her in the ribs, but his smile is good natured. âItâs just an expression, Nes. Take the compliment.â
The shower keeps spraying around them, refracting the sunlight to scatter rainbows across Nestaâs vision. âI couldnât have done it without you,â she tells Cassian earnestly. âI did the bulk of the hard work, but youâŠyou gave me that first push. You taught me I could find safety in others, because you were my first real friend.â
Her words clearly take Cassian by surprise. Maybe itâs because Nesta is so rarely open about her true feelings, so her words have more value when she is. Maybe Cassian just wasnât expecting to get so much credit, which is why he blinks rapidly now. âAnd what now?â he tries to tease, emotion tangled in his throat. âYou have better friends?â
âMuch better,â Nesta plays along, but her gaze carries all her sincerity. She suddenly laughs to herself, remembering: âI was terrible at socializing.â
Itâs something she brushes off easily now, but few people will ever know that part of her inability to get close to others stemmed from a debilitating fear of rejection.
âNot to me.â Cassian reaches out to twist the faucet off, leaving the two of them standing soaked in the morning air. âI loved talking to you. I couldnât stop wanting to talk to you, even if you didnât feel like talking back.â That was how insistent heâd been on becoming her friend, that he would open up to her even when she was closed off to him.
Nesta watches Cassian tug his hair tie off, a little dazed by how much she feels for him in this moment. She isnât ready for when he scrubs a hand vigorously through his loose hair, shaking the dripping strands out like a dog.
âCassian!â Nesta scolds for the second time this morning. She flinches back at the water droplets hitting her eyes, making Cassian laugh when he looks back up at her. âSorry,â he says, not sounding sorry at all. To make up for the assault, he delicately plucks her glasses off the top of her head and uses the hem of her wet dress to wipe off the lenses as best he can.
He slides the glasses back onto her face and nods, inspecting her. âThatâs better.â Then he swoops down to kiss the mole beside her mouth.
Nesta wrinkles her nose in surprise. âWhatâs that for?â
âItâs a thank you,â he says. âThank you for your car breaking down in the middle of the woods, and for agreeing to spend the night at my place last September.â
Nestaâs brows raise high in amusement. âShouldnât you be thanking Feyre? For calling in that favor with you?â
âOne day, Iâll do that too,â he promises.
Nesta bites down on a smile and shakes her head, muttering, âRidiculous.â Yet she canât help but wonder: who would she thank?
The universe, probably. Whatever forces made it possible for her to wake up every day in the same bed as Cassian, eating the food he cooks and accepting the unconditional love he offers.
She suddenly shivers under the rising sun, becoming aware of how just uncomfortably her sundress clings to her body. Without Cassianâs words distracting her, everything is damp and cold.
Cassian notices and slips his hand into Nestaâs, already starting to pull her away from the pier and toward the house. âLetâs get you dry,â he says. âIâll make us pancakes before everyone else wakes up.â
âWith chocolate chips?â
âWith chocolate chips.â
So hand in hand, the two of them walk back up to Cherrywood House.
***
a/n: IM FREE OF THIS BEAST. that ending was absolutely horrible to write, but i hope it satisfied you anyway. and if didnt, well, thatâs what the epilogue is for
tagging: @sjm-things @thewayshedreamed @drielecarla @valkyriewarriors @superspiritfestival @aliveahaahahafuck @cupcakey00 @sayosdreams @rainbowcheetah512 @claralady @thebluemartini @nessiantho @missing-merlin @duskandstarlight @lucy617 @sleeping-and-books @everything-that-i-love @cassianscool @swankii-art-teacher @wannawriteyouabook @arinbelle @awesomelena555 @julemmaes @wickedqueenoffantasy @poisonous-bloom @observationanxioustheorist @gisellefigue08 @courtofjurdan @theoverlyenthusiasticwriter @wolfiixxx @cass-nes @seashade @royaltykxx @illyrianundercover @monstrousloves-explodinggalaxies @humanexile @that-golden-lyre @agentsofsheilds @mercy-is-alive @cassiansbigwingspan @laylaameer01 @verypaleninja @maastrash @bow-dawn @perseusannabeth @dead-on-the-inside666 @jlinez @hungryreadingaddict @anidealiveson @planet-faerie @shallowhighwaters @ghostlyrose2 @chosenfamily-valkyriequeens @rarephloxes
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The Perfect Wingman.
Pairing: Single Dad!Sebastian Stan x F!Reader
Genre: Fluff, tiny bit of Angst
Warnings: mentions of injuries, blood
Requested: Nope
Summary: Felix, Sebastian Stan's five year old son, is the perfect matchmaker (with the help of Uncle Anthony, of course!)
Author's Note: Hiya peeps! Another matchmaker fic lmao there's just something about that trope where kids play matchmaker for adults that's just... đ anyway enjoy!
---
"Buddy! Hi!"
Y/N glanced at Chris Evans as her boss spoke to her, seeing him running towards somebody. After her boss left, she turned around and smiled when she saw him chatting with Felix, Sebastian Stan's five year old son. The kid was literally sunshine in a bottle, making everyone around him happy. Guess that's another thing he got from his father.
Aside from looks.
Then she looked around, but couldn't see Sebastian anywhere. "Boo!" Startled, Y/N screamed and held a hand over her chest as she whirled around to see Sebastian doubled over in laughter behind her, clutching his stomach. "Oh my God!" she groaned as several heads turned to her at her scream. "You should've seen your face," Sebastian wheezed.
Y/N pouted at him and swatted his chest. "I could've had a heart attack!" Y/N wasn't an actress, she was just an assistant on set. Her only work was to make sure that all the actors on set were hydrated, which in turn led to her becoming good friends with all of them. They were all very friendly people, the Marvel cast. "But you didn't. Felix!" Sebastian called out and his son looked up.
Running as fast as his little feet could carry him, Felix jumped into his father's open arms, giggling. Y/N watched them with a smile on her face; Sebastian was a great father. "Meet Y/N," Sebastian introduced her and she waved at the kid. "Hi Felix," she grinned but Felix was mesmerized. Wow, she's so beautiful.
He simply blinked at her a few times, his jaw dropped. Y/N raised a questioning but amused brow at him, her eyes flickering to Sebastian who was watching his son with an exasperated look on his face, all too aware of his shenanigans. She laughed at Sebastian's expression and Felix snapped out of his thoughts. He raised his arms and leaned forward; a silent request of please pick me up.
Y/N gathered him in her arms, his tiny arms going around her neck as she held him on her hip. "Hello!" He had surprisingly clear speech, he did not mispronounce his L's and R's much. "Hi! How are you today? Enjoying yourself?" Felix nodded excitedly. "Yes!" Sebastian simply watched them with a soft smile as the girl he fancied talked to his son.
Sebastian had had a crush on Y/N ever since they began filming, and at this point, 4 months later, the only person who was oblivious to his feelings was Y/N. Everyone knew, and everyone heartily teased him for it. He had always wanted to ask her out; seeing his son get along so well with her only fueled his feelings. "Are you⊠are you an actwess too, Y/N?"
"No, darling, I'm a helping hand. I help everyone stay hydrated."
"What does that mean?"
"I give everyone water when they ask for it," she explained and Felix nodded, eyes the same colour as Sebastian's blinking at her in wonder. "Water is impowtant," Felix stated matter-of-factly making Y/N giggle. Felix decided he wanted to hear that sound much more frequently. "Felix! Is that you?!" Y/N, Felix and Sebastian turned to see Anthony making his way towards them.
"Uncle Anthony!" Felix squealed and Y/N put him down on his feet, smiling at the way he ran to Anthony Mackie. "Your son is so cute," she commented, turning to Sebastian only to see him already staring at her, a soft smile on his face. "It seems as though he has taken a liking to you. I wouldn't blame him." Y/N rolled her eyes at his flirting but blushed.
He did flirt with her a lot, but come on, that was just a part of his personality. Surely he didn't have feelings for her, he couldn't. Oh but he did; very strong feelings, on top of that. "Cheesy," she jabbed back and Sebastian clutched his chest with a pretend hurt look on his face. "You wound me," he pouted and Y/N grinned at him.
What they didn't see was Felix and Anthony staring at them, eyebrows raised in an identical manner. "Uncle Anthony, can I ask you something?" Anthony smirked but nodded. "Does papa⊠does papa love Y/N?" Anthony laughed loudly, realising that the adorable kid was the perfect wingman for Y/N and Sebastian. So he said, "Yes, yes he does."
"She is really pwettyâŠ" Felix confessed, his own cheeks turning pink. "Aw, look who's blushing," Anthony teased, pinching his little cheeks. Felix blushed more and slapped his hands away, pouting. "Do you want your papa to go on a date with Y/N?" Anthony asked the child. Felix thought for a moment before nodding.
"Yes. If he likes her, he should just tell her!" Oh, bless his innocent heart. If only it were that easy in real life. "He will ask her soon, we'll make sure of it. Here's what you can do to helpâŠ"
---
2 months had passed since Felix visited the sets and Sebastian was getting impatient. If you thought his flirting was too much then, you should see him now. He flirted with her every chance he got but Y/N used to brush him off each time; he possibly couldn't be genuinely interested in her. She didn't think herself to be worthy of his affections, so, as much as she liked his flirting, she never reciprocated.
As Y/N gathered a few bottles of water in her arms, she heard a screech behind her. "Y/N!" Smiling, she turned, dramatically faking an 'oof' as a tiny body collided with her legs. "Felix, honey, hi! Didn't expect you to visit the sets today," she grinned as Felix let go, smiling broadly up at her.
"His babysitter couldn't make it, had to bring him down."
Her smile turned nervous as she saw the father of the cute kid walking towards her, a suave smile plastered on his face. "That's okay, papa, I can just hang out with Y/N!" Felix assured him before frowning at the dozens of bottles in her arms. "Do you need help?" Ah, ever the gentleman. One more thing he gets from his dad.
"Thank you so much, sweetie," she cooed as she handed him two bottles. It wasn't much, but seriously, how much could a little child carry? That was enough for him. "Can you go give these to Scarlett and Chris?" she requested, pointing to the spot where Scarlett Johansson and Chris Hemsworth were standing. "Okay, Y/N!"
She grinned when he left. "Seriously, how did you manage to birth the most perfect kid in the world?" she commented, turning to Sebastian. "Look at me," he said unabashedly, wiggling his eyebrows. "Seb," she huffed and nudged him, raising her eyebrows in shock when he took the bottles from her arms. "I have some time before my next scene."
"That's my jobâ"
"Nope, can't have you carrying all these bottles, sweetheart. What if you drop them?" She pouted as she followed him through the busy set. "Do you think I'm clumsy?" He glanced at her, worried that he actually offended her, but smiled when he saw her playful look. "Nope, but I don't want you to trip over the fallen bottles and hurt yourself."
"Now that was a good line," she whistled and Sebastian laughed. As Sebastian and Y/N chatted more, they heard a loud wail coming from a few feet away. Freezing up, both of them turned to see Felix sitting on the floor, surrounded by Elizabeth Olsen and Chris Evans as he moaned in pain. Y/N's eyes went wide with fear when she saw the cut on his knee.
Talk about hurting oneself...
Forgetting the world around her, she quickly rushed to the child, Sebastian hot on her heels. "Bub, stop crying," Chris tried but Felix wouldn't listen. The moment he saw Y/N, though, his tears ceased. "Y/N," he whimpered and reached towards her, finally content when she took him in her arms. "Oh, honey bun, you'll be okay," she whispered, kissing his forehead.
"It hurts," Felix insisted. "I know, darling, let's patch you up." Without any word to anyone, Y/N led him away from the crowd, sitting him down on one of the chairs littered across the place. Sebastian, Chris and Elizabeth watched her; Chris and Lizzie were smirking but Sebastian was beyond shocked. The worry on her face the moment she found out he was hurt, the way she cradled himâŠ
The way his son had stopped crying when he saw her, as if she were his mother. The way he reached out to her instead of him. "Just ask her out, pal, look at her. She's perfect for you. And for Felix," Chris told him, patting him on the back before leaving with Elizabeth.
Sebastian stayed where he was for a few more minutes, heart racing and mind in an overdrive, watching as Y/N took care of Felix. Be mine, please.
"All okay, bub?" Y/N crooned as she tied a bandage on his knee after cleaning the blood off. "Thank you, Y/N!" Felix threw his arms around her neck and buried his face in her neck, smiling widely. Y/N returned the hug ardently, rubbing his back. "Felix?" Felix looked over Y/N's shoulder to see his dad standing there, a small smile on his face. "Papa!"
He made no point in moving out of Y/N's arms and Sebastian took the hint, merely ruffling the boy's hair. "You doing okay? Y/N take care of the boo-boo?" Felix nodded eagerly. "It doesn't even hurt now," he said proudly and Sebastian smiled. "Did you say thank you?" "He did, Sebastian," Y/N assured him.
"I wish Y/N took care of my boo-boos all the time!" Felix pouted. Sebastian froze again, his eyes darting to Y/N when he saw her stiffen. "How is that possible, sugar?" Y/N joked nervously as she stood up, Felix still in her arms, holding him on her hip like before. "Papa can date you! And then you can get married and then you'll be my mama and then you'll take care of all my boo-boos!"
Sebastian and Y/N stared at each other as Felix innocently looked at Y/N with a huge smile on his face. "M-Married? Bubba, I don't think your papa likes me in that wayâŠ" Sebastian suddenly found his voice. How dare she? "Y/N, I do like you, why do you think I flirt with you all the time?" he scoffed, rolling his eyes.
Y/N's eyes went wide. "Wait, I thought you were jokingâ"
"I wasn't. Will you go on a date with me?"
"Sebastian, I-I⊠I'll be honored."
"Oh please, iubi, the honor's all mine," he chuckled and, not caring about who was watching (including his own son), leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers in a sweet kiss. Y/N's heart fluttered at the term of endearment as she kissed him back. Felix groaned loudly in Y/N's arms, covering his eyes. "Yucky!"
Sebastian and Y/N had to break the kiss because they laughed too hard. Felix slid down Y/N's arms and ran towards Anthony, who was watching them with a small smile, proud of his best friend for finally making a move on the woman he liked. Anthony smirked when the pipsqueak stopped next to him. "Good job, bud."
"Thank you, Uncle Anthony." And Felix gagged again as he and Anthony turned to Sebastian and Y/N, only to see them in another liplock.
---
A/N: Thanks for reading! Leave a like if you enjoyed, reblogs will be accepted and appreciated too <3
#sebastian stan x reader#sebastian stan x you#sebastian stan x y/n#sebastian stan x female reader#sebastian stan characters#bucky barnes x reader#winter soldier#disney#mcu#marvel#avengers#fanfic#writing#writeblr
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I Said No (Wanda x R): Pt 5
Pt 1, Pt 2, Pt 3, Pt 4, House Map
Summary: Movie theater, Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and the county fair
âWe can come back to get the rest. I donât understand why youâre doing that.â
Wanda watches you struggle trying to carry everything you brought from the store but two bags that Wanda herself is carrying.Â
âBecause, my young Padawanda, it is one of the most important rules of the Jedi Code. One must never make a second trip to the car lest he be a nerd.â
âOh my gosh! Have you seen Star Wars?â You and Wanda turn your heads towards the porch where Sam and Peter reside. Peter runs down to you in excitement. âWhich ones have you seen?â
âOnly like all of them!â you answer, just as excited as Peter to have someone else here who likes the movies. Laura finds them boring, Clint thinks theyâre too long, and Nat says sheâs not a child. You tried watching them with Cooper and Lila but they fell asleep halfway through. So no one can blame you for getting excited. Unfortunately, the little bounce that accompanied your answer causes a few things to slip from your arms, but Peter, given his incredible reflexes, catches them all before they touch the ground. âThe force is strong with this one,â you tell him.
âAnd a second trip is what makes you a nerd.â Sam mumbles under his breath on his way over to help by taking the bags from Wanda. âWhatâs on your neck?â He asks her. Her hand flies up to her neck only to find it sticky.
âItâs what happens when you mess with a Jedi,â you answer for her in a silly voice making Peter laugh. You also make Wanda blush as she recalls how it happened, but you donât see this since you and Peter are already making your way to the house. Sam, however, does notice Wandaâs face and recognizes that look, leaving him stumped. Wanda only snaps out of her trance when the door closes behind you and Peter.Â
âI donât get it,â he says to Wanda. âWhat is it about her? Is it the confidently flirty but still kind of geeky thing that does it for you ladies?â
Wanda, embarrassed at being caught, heads to the house ignoring Samâs questions. She can still hear him as he yells after, âDonât walk away! I need to know if nerds are the thing now!â
Sam catches her in the kitchen along with you and Peter putting things you bought where theyâre meant. Instead of asking Wanda anything, he turns his questions to you and Peter, who you all find out has a girlfriend now. Sam guesses his ânerds are inâ theory correct based on that and soon he is agreeing to watch Star Wars with you, Peter, and Wanda. He threw Wanda a subtle wink when neither you nor Peter were looking as if to say âyouâre welcomeâ for including her in those plans. Clint, coming in from the side door, catches the ending of that conversation and groans.Â
âNo! Laura! Peter and Y/N found an interest they can both be annoying about,â he goes to complain to his wife. Later though, he as well as everyone else joins you to watch the movie. You and Peter thoroughly answer all of Sam and Pietroâs questions and hush everyone at your favorite parts, mouthing the lines along with the scene. Wanda ends up not watching the movie anymore but watching you and she begins to wonder if maybe Sam was right.
***
âHow much longer?â you find yourself asking the next morning trying not to sound as out of breath as you are. Youâve been jogging for you donât know how long now but it feels way longer than what Nat had promised it would be when she woke you up at six in the morning.
âAnother mile,â she answers, no sign of struggle in her voice as if this is a cakewalk. You suppose it is for her since sheâs had to slow down numerous times for you to catch up.
âAnother mile?!â
âHey, you said you would keep up today,â Nat reminds you.
âYou know you canât trust anything I say during my havenât-had-caffeine-yet hours. Donât I get points for trying?â
âLike your little green friend says, âDo or do not, there is no tryâ,â Nat retorts.
âI knew you were paying attention last night!â You increase your pace to jog beside her. âYou can act too tough to like Star Wars all you want around everyone else, but Iâll always know the truth.â You can see her shake her head from the corner of your eye. You donât say anything for a moment, but being one who cannot let the quiet linger too long, as Tanya would attest to, you speak up. âSo, howâs your little green friend doing?â
You turn your head for a second to show Nat you were genuinely looking for an answer and in the next sheâs practically running away from you. She went fast but not quick enough for you to miss the little redness creeping up on her cheeks. You have never in your years of knowing her seen her blush before. You have seen her sweat after a sparring match with Clint, get a bit of a sunburn, and get so angry she looked like she would pop a vein, but not one of those times were her cheeks turning a rosy color. Aww, Romanovâs in love. Once youâve come to that conclusion, you go to tease her. Wait, where did she go?
âYou asshole!â You yell at Nat who you finally find casually leaning on the car door watching you storm up to her. It took you an hour to find the car after losing the trail you were on trying to find Natasha. She doesnât even flinch as she reaches over and pulls a twig out of your hair. âWhat happened to you?â
âYou left me!â You huffed, walking around to the passenger side while Nat got in the driver seat unfazed. Truth be told, after 30 minutes without any sign of Nat, you thought she was putting you through some kind of test. You were getting paranoid, so itâs not surprising you took a tumble when you swiftly tried to avoid an attack from what turned out to be a squirrel running up a tree. But youâll just keep that to yourself forever.
You head straight to the shower when you get to the house ignoring the morning greetings from those you pass on the way. âWhatâs up with her?â Sam asks Nat in the living room. âShe hasnât had her caffeine yet.â
You let the shower wash away your moodiness which, you can admit to yourself alone, stemmed for the most part from embarrassing yourself. Afterwards, you head to the kitchen ready to eat whatever everyone had for breakfast, but come up empty. You guess theyâd finished all of it if the plates and pan left out to dry say anything. You open the fridge looking for something to eat. Maybe there is something in there you can heat up. Unlike Laura, Wanda, and self proclaimed chef Pietro, you cannot cook to save your life.Â
âWhatâs cooking, good looking?â Speak of the devil. Maybe he can make you something? You know all it would take is some batting of the eyelashes and a compliment. No, Wanda said no. But there is nothing in the fridge to heat up and you were hungry. Wanda would surely understand it was for the greater good, right? Already breaking the first rule, I see.
Caught red handed, you look over Pietroâs shoulder to see Wanda walking into the kitchen to join you two. Sheâs raising her eyebrows at you waiting for an answer.Â
âOkay, new rule,â you say. Pietro is confused at what he assumes is your response until he sees that you arenât talking to him. âNo more reading my mind,â you say sternly, pointing at Wanda.Â
Pietro smirks. âYeah, I donât need you to hear what goes on Y/Nâs mind when she is thinking about me,â he says to Wanda. Both you and Wanda roll your eyes. âSam is asking for you outside,â is all she says to him and off he goes with a groan.You groan as well, the chance of getting someone to make you food leaving with him.
âYou could have just asked me, you know?â Wanda says, leaning against the sink.Â
âI thought I said no mind reading,â you remind her. She chuckles when you close the refrigerator door and hit your head against it in defeat.
âI wasnât,â she defends. âI was serious when I said he canât cook. I may have saved you from food poisoning.â
âMaybe, but I would have been full and happy for a moment. Since you chased away my shot at food, I think you should make it up to me by making me some breakfast,â you try, leaning against the fridge.
âOh? I should, should I?â You nod confidently thinking it might just work, but she tears that thought away when she continues, âCause I remember you still needing to make it up to me when you didnât buy the ice creams.â
You frown, âI thought youâd forgotten about that.â She smiles, with nose scrunch and all, shaking her head. âFine, you want to go to the fair? Iâll take you to the fair tomorrow!â
âA fair? I want to go!â you hear Cooper shout. He is coming in through the back door with Lila who looks just as excited and with Nat who does not. You ignore Natâs face when you tell Cooper that you can all go to the fair. He and Lila run off in excitement to tell the others. Nat glares at you as she takes a seat at the kitchen table.Â
âSee,â you turn to Wanda. âNow I have to take you for sure. Make me some food now, please,â you beg her, drawing out the word please. She squints her eyes like sheâs thinking about it and then, âOnly because you asked so nicely.âÂ
âThank you,â you throw her a huge smile at which Wanda rolls her eyes.
âBut if you are going to be here,â she says pushing you away from the fridge, âyou are going to help. Youâve got to learn how to cook for yourself.â And you do just that. You nod along intently listening to all her instructions, not wanting to miss a thing. Sometimes youâd interrupt to make a joke and when one is about her brother, she playfully punches you. You are so immersed in your little bubble, you forget Nat is not too far away watching your interaction with curiosity. She has you try the food first and you could almost moan. You notice a blush creeping up on Wandaâs face and suddenly sheâs avoiding your eyes.The food is so good and you were so hungry that maybe you did let out a little noise of satisfaction. Before you could say anything, another voice interrupts, âWhatâs this I hear about a fair?â
You turn slowly recognizing the tone your cousin uses. Itâs the who-made-these-plans-without-asking-me-first tone. You smile at Laura, mouth full of food. You see Nat point at you but Laura was already looking at you. âYeah, I think she knows it was me, Natasha.â
***
A few uneventful hours go by and you are bored out of your mind. You have a sudden urge to go out seeing as the sun was still shining. You pull out your phone having an idea of what to do to kill some time. You scroll through your phone to see what movies are playing at the only movie theater in town. You see that the next showing is for a horror movie.Â
âDo you like scary movies?â you turn to the group playing Uno in the living room. Pietro gets up in excitement when you mention going to the movie theater. Sam agrees to come as well and drags Peter out the door when Peter wants to stay claiming itâs to keep the kids company. You are about to head out with everyone but you notice Wanda still sitting on the couch. You wait for her to get up when Pietro says, âYeah, good luck with that. Sheâs too chicken to watch scary movies.â
Wanda, offended, gets up quickly from the couch, âAm not. I just think theyâre boring.â
âSure,â Pietro chuckles as he heads out the door.
âYou donât have to come if you donât want to,â you tell her. You think she is going to stay, but she starts heading out the door to the car.Â
âYou sure thatâs not enough butter, Y/N?â Peter asks you when he sees how much butter heâs already put in the bucket at your insistence. He can feel some of it through the bucket already.Â
âFine, thatâs good. You grab some napkins. Iâll hold the bucket,â you tell him after you see his eyebrows scrunch. You all go to the designated room and pick a row to sit in having pretty much any seat you want since it was practically empty. You sit down next to Peter and notice Pietroâs eyes falling to the empty seat on your other side. He aims to sit next to you but his sister who was sitting next to Peter before beats him to it. He throws her a confused look as he shuffles his way down to sit in her abandoned seat. âReal subtle there, Wanda,â you say, amused more than anything.
âI can see the screen better from here.â You let her bad excuse slide and turn to the screen as the movie begins to play. Between you, Peter, and Pietro, the popcorn is gone in record time. The jumpscares begin halfway through the movie. Peter holds the empty bucket as a safety blanket which you find adorable. You donât even know if Wanda is watching the movie. Sheâs got her eyes somewhat hidden behind her fingers. You want to tease her, so you reach to take her fingers away from her face, but another jumpscare happens and she takes your hand in her free one. You feel her squeeze the life out of your hand in anticipation of another jumpscare.Â
Your palm begins to sweat and you start to feel uncomfortable with all the butter on your fingers, so you slip your hand out from hers. She turns to you in question. âSorry, my handâs full of butter,â you whisper. She reaches over you to ask Peter something. Without a word, she leans back in her seat with napkins in her hand and cleans all the butter off your hand before taking it in hers once more, this time interlacing your fingers. She turns her focus back to the movie. You feel you should just do the same, so you follow her actions. You let her hold your hand for the rest of the movie until the lights come back up.
Wanda shouldnât have watched that movie. It is much too dark in the bedroom. It is much too quiet. She can hear Natâs soft breathing from beside her. The silhouettes of various items around the room are creeping her out. She doesnât think she is going to be sleeping any time soon. Maybe some tea will help. She gets up quietly trying not to wake Nat, but when sheâs at the door, Nat asks, âWhere are you going?â
âThe bathroom,â Wanda lies easily. Sheâd rather not let Nat know that she couldnât sleep because of some scary movie. What kind of superhero would that make her? As she heads downstairs, she wonders if you were still awake. She turns down the hallway to peek into the living room and sure enough you were still awake watching television. She walks over to you behind the couch. âWhat are you watching?â she asks. You feel your soul leave your body not having heard her approach. She giggles as she walks around to sit next to you. âSorry.â
âItâs okay, just warn a girl next time.â She turns her attention to the show. âItâs Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Itâs really good. I used to watch it with Laura when she would babysit while my mom was at work. Some of the jokes I wouldnât even understand but Iâd laugh âcause she was laughing,â you reminisce.Â
âYou and her are very close.â
âYeah, well, sheâs practically the only family I have. My mom passed not so long ago and seeing as there was never a dad in my family picture, my aunt and uncle took me in. I donât have any siblings and neither does Laura so, sheâs kind of it.â You add, âWell, apart from Clint, Nat, and the kids of course.â
Another two scenes go by on the show before you ask, âDid you have a nightmare or could you not fall asleep?â
Wanda looks down embarrassed so you add, âI promise Iâm not teasing. Iâm just asking.â
âI couldnât sleep. It was too quiet and dark and Natasha was already asleep, so I thought I would come down here,â she replies.
âOh, so you thought I would definitely put you to sleep. Wow, I donât see how this friendship is going to work if you think I bore you to sleep,â you tease. Upon seeing her tired smile, you take pity and pat your thighs and gesture for her to lie down. âCome here.â
When she lays her head on your lap, you begin running your fingers through her hair. You hear her yawn and a few minutes later you find her sound asleep. Careful not to wake her, you reach over to the blanket you were meant to use on you and throw it over her body instead. Another two episodes play before you fall asleep.
***
You wake up once again with a sore neck and you feel that your body might be as well, but when you remember the reason, you donât find it in yourself to complain. You look around prepared to see Nat in gym clothes holding a coffee cup but you find the living room empty apart from you and Wanda. You look out the window and see the sun is barely about to rise. Surprised to have woken up before anyone else, you decide to make the most of it but you are quickly sidetracked getting distracted by Wandaâs sleeping form. âI can feel you staring,â she says, her voice husky which you try hard not to find attractive. She turns her head to look up at you with sleepy eyes. âFriends donât do that.â
âI was not staring. I was admiring,â you respond. âAnd friends can admire their friends.â
âWell mine donât the way you do.âÂ
âAinât that a shame.â You boop her nose with your finger making her scrunch her nose.
âThey do, however, let me sleep,â she jokes. She turns her head back as if she was to go back to sleep and you decide this might be the best time to get up. You gently lift her head from your lap and swivel your body off the couch. âWhere are you going?â she whines, when you place a pillow under her head.
âI am going to wake Nat up for once in my life,â you reply with determination. You stretch and shake your legs trying to get the feeling back in them.
âGood luck with that,â is the last thing Wanda says before closing her eyes and going back to sleep. You head to the kitchen to start the coffee pot and then make your way upstairs. Luckily, the door was left open so you donât make any noise on your way in. You tiptoed your way to Natasha and bent down so your face was eye level to hers. You honestly canât believe youâve made it this far since she is the lightest sleeper. This is the spy they chose for the Avengers? You giggle to yourself imagining the face Nat is going to make when you scare her. Oh, if they could see her nowâŠthey would be satisfied with their choice, you think as you try to choke out, âUncle. Uncle.â Nat somehow has you in a choke hold and you are tapping furiously on her arm. Once she realizes itâs you she lets go.
âY/N, what the hell! I could have hurt you!â she yells at you as youâre coughing. You stare at her unbelievably, rubbing at your neck, and once you can speak again you say, âThen what was this to you? Some light foreplay?â
Once you both settle down, she realizes you were up before her. You take some exercise attire out for yourself from your luggage. You might not like to exercise but gym clothes are sure comfy to lie around in. âYou gotta keep up, Natasha. You donât want the boss man to catch you slacking. Oh, Iâm also making coffee so donât worry about that.â
âWhatâs got you in such a good mood?â she asks, her eyebrows furrowing. You smile in turn. âI donât know what you mean. Iâll catch you downstairs.â
You leave her to change and head downstairs with your clothes. You go to the kitchen first and make two cups of coffee. Then you go to the restroom to change. After she finishes changing, Nat goes to the kitchen and sees you were not kidding. Natasha takes her cup of coffee to the living room as she always does and finds Wanda asleep on the couch. She sighs as things start adding up. She guesses this is the reason for the lack of a grumpy attitude from you so early in the morning. She wants to say something but Nat would rather take a motivated Y/N over Y/N complaining every five minutes on their hike. So, she doesnât say anything for now.
You actually keep up with Nat this time and to top it off you donât talk too much like you always do. Nat thinks itâs because you're in a good mood giving you motivation, but the reason for keeping her pace and keeping quiet is your fear sheâll leave you again if you say something to set her off and lose her like yesterday. Nat even goes as far as giving you a compliment at the end. Well, semi-compliment, but her âNot too bad, Y/Nâs are few and far between so you return to the house feeling proud of yourself.
This time youâre the one saying good morning to everyone when you enter. You see a few of them still eating breakfast in the kitchen. You hope there will still be leftovers by the time you come back down after showering. Knowing how some of the guys eat, it is going to have to be a quick shower. Laura sees you eyeing the food and says, âDonât worry, we saved you a plate.â And here you thought Wanda was the mind reader. âWanda told us you were grumpy yesterday from not catching breakfast so we made sure to make more.â That explains it. You smile, happy someone kept you in mind. Now you can shower in peace. You thank her and head upstairs.
âYou saw that, right?â Laura turns to Clint and Nat who walked in not too long before you left.
âSheâs been like that all morning. Not one âAre we done yet?â or âWhy do you hate me, Natasha?â on our hike,â Nat replies in a hushed tone as if itâs so unlike you to be agreeable in the morning.Â
âDo you think it has anything to do with a certain somebody?â Laura felt the need to ask.
âWell she didnât just find a love for exercise,â Nat sarcastically says.
Clint sighs, âDo you think we have to talk to her again?âÂ
Nat goes to respond, but Laura cuts off whatever Nat was going to say, âNo, if anyone is going to talk to her, itâs me. And itâs not going to be some crappy âno datingâ rule type of conversation. You two are great when it comes to getting someone to talk with your intimidation, but save that for your job, which speaking of, Wanda is your coworker, so you may want to talk to her as well if you had to talk to Y/N because last I remember it takes two to tango.â
Nat and Clint stare at Laura in shock, embarrassment and guilt rightfully taking over their bodies. âAre we clear?â Laura asks them though itâs more of a statement leaving no room for argument.Â
âYes.â âYeah.â
Upstairs, you make your way to the guest room to grab some clothes. Wanda is sitting on the bed reading her book. She is still dressed in her pyjamas, which makes you smile. The sound of her turning the page shakes you from your thoughts and saves you from staring a bit too long. Wanda smirks without bothering to look away from her book and you know she caught you.
âMorning, Iâm just gonna get some clothes,â you explain as you move to where your bag is. Wanda speaks up while you zip your duffle closed, âIâm sorry for bothering you last night.â
âCome on, Wanda. You could never be a bother,â you say sincerely, giving her a smile that she shyly returns. âAlright, the shower is calling my name.â
âYeah, I can hear it screaming,â she jokes and laughs when you take mock offense, âHey!â She goes back to reading when she sees you heading out the door but you call her attention once more, âOh! Thanks for telling them to save me a plate.â
âOf course,â she replies like it wasnât even worth mentioning. You nod at her and then go to shower, closing the guest room door behind you.
A few seconds later, the door opens up again and Wanda amusedly says, her eyes never straying from the page sheâs reading, âDid the shower call the wrong name?â
âNo, it was definitely calling Y/Nâs and mine too, Iâm sure, but I wanted to talk to you first.â
Wandaâs head diverts to the door at Natâs voice.Â
âAnd you needed back up for it?â Wanda looks over to Clint who awkwardly stands behind Nat.
Clint clears his throat, âWell it was only fair if Y/N got both of us, you did too.â
Wanda straightens her posture as she places her book beside her. âAh, so this is about Y/N. I had a feeling.â
Nat and Clint come into the room, Clint closing the door behind him. Nat goes to sit on the end of the bed and Clint stands behind her. âLook, we were wrong to tell Y/N what to do or rather not do. She is an adult and has the right to do whatever she wants, but you have to understand sheâs someone who tends to get ahead of herself and we didnât- we donât want anyone to get hurt,â Nat starts.
âSo youâre saying she is getting ahead of herself with me? That what? Come two weeks, sheâll realize she doesnât want me?â Wanda starts to get visibly upset.
âNo, thatâs not what-â Clint tries to speak but Wanda is not done talking. âEven if that was the case, it would be her choice. It would be my choice.â
âWanda, you are not going to be here in two weeks. You are not going to be here in a few days,â Natasha calmly says trying to reason. âLook, we love Y/N, okay? But she often finds herself making mistakes-â
âSo I would just be another mistake?Â
âNo, you would be a dangerous one,â Nat says trying to get something through to Wanda.
âI would never hurt her.â
âNo, maybe not intentionally,â Nat continues, and when Wanda looks like she is going to argue, Clint interrupts, âWanda, just let her finish.â Wanda takes a breath to calm herself down and then nods for Natasha to carry on.
âBeing in our lives more than she has to could get her hurt. Even this morning, I hurt her when she was probably just trying to play some stupid prank. Being around us is dangerous. Why do you think Clint kept all this a secret,â Nat motions around the room. âWhy do you think I was so upset about her and Yelena? Why do you think we havenât said anything to Y/N before? Those other girls arenât you. Those other girls arenât Yelena. I donât even know where she is right now. We live different lives. Say things do work out with Y/N. Much like I donât know where my sister is, there will be times she wonât have a clue where you are or if youâre okay. When Clint and I say we donât want anyone to get hurt, it goes both ways.â
âWan, have you seen my blue shirt with the buttons?â Pietro storms into the room like a man on a mission, not even bothering to acknowledge Nat and Clint are in the room as well. âI know I packed it.â Not until he reads the hurt in Wandaâs eyes does he read the room and like the protective sibling he is, he is quick to get defensive. âWhatâs happening here?â
Her brotherâs interruption could not have come at a better time. Wanda didnât know how to respond to Natâs explanation. She was feeling herself choke up, Visionâs voice springing in her head again. Sheâs happy to have Pietro here so willing to jump in to defend her but she doesnât want to drag him into it, so she clears her throat and says, âNothing. We were just talking.â He still looks unsure, so she gets up from the bed and offers, âIâll help you look for it.â Her eyes plead for him to let it go. Luckily, he does and heads out the door. Clint and Nat watch Pietro leave and Wanda stop by the door. âYou donât have to worry. Y/N made it clear to me that weâre just friends,â she says in defeat, then turns to follow her brother.
âWell, that went well,â Clint says sarcastically.Â
Wanda spends the next two hours helping Sam, Peter, and Pietro get ready. She helps Sam pick an outfit first seeing as he was the first to shower. She has to pry one of Peterâs t-shirts from his hands saying heâs twice Peterâs size and he cannot pull the nerdy look. She helps Peter next. Itâs mostly just styling his hair he needs help with. At last she helps her brother after having knocked on the bathroom door four different times telling him to hurry up.Â
âHow does the one with superspeed take an hour in the shower?â Sam asks rhetorically. Sam, Wanda, and Peter are on the bed in Cooperâs room watching Pietro straighten out his shirt.
âHey, it takes time to look this good,â Pietro says as he fixes his collar. All three of them nearly roll their eyes. âDo you think Y/N will like this shirt?â
âYeah, if it was on Wanda, maybe,â Sam snorts. Peter holds back a chuckle while Wanda tries not to react.Â
âYou look nice,â Wanda says, not wanting to tear down her brotherâs confidence. Everyoneâs attention is drawn to the closed door when someone knocks. They hear you ask if you can come in. Pietro responds, âOne second.â He goes to lean against Cooperâs desk casually and all three on the bed try really hard not to laugh. Peter has to shove his face in a pillow. âOkay, come in.â
You let yourself into the room, your eyes falling on Wanda immediately. âNot that you donât look nice in them, but do you really plan on wearing your pjs to the fair?â you tease her. âI mean, youâll for sure be turning heads, if thatâs the plan.âÂ
She replies, âI was waiting on the shower. Someone was taking their time.â She points her head in Pietroâs direction who gives you a nod in acknowledgement and a ââsup?â Samâs mouth forms a line trying so hard not to laugh out loud. Peterâs face stays hidden behind the pillow but you can see from the side of his neck his face was getting red. You feel like you walked in at the wrong time given everyoneâs behavior. You tell Wanda, âYou might want to hurry. Clint says weâre leaving soon.â With that you turn to leave wondering what you had walked in on.Â
When you shut the door, everyone in Cooperâs room excluding Pietro bursts out laughing.
âWhat the hell was that, man?â Sam asks between fits of laughter.
Peter gets up and leans against the desk to mimic Pietro, ââSup?â Everyone laughs again, Pietro leaning over to slap Peter in the back of the head.
***
They take the family car and Natâs car to the fair. Sam and Peter ride with Nat while the rest of you ride with Clint driving. As you wait in line to buy tickets, you lean over Wandaâs shoulder, who is standing right in front of you with her back to you, and say âI meant to say this earlier but you look nice.â
She smiles and then turns around to face you as you take a step back. She jokes, âI thought I looked good in my pyjamas but someone implied it wasnât appropriate for the fair.â
âOh definitely not appropriate. It was way too sexy. We couldnât have that around the children,â you reply making her giggle.
âYou donât look too bad either,â she returns the earlier compliment, taking in your outfit as you shuffle forward with the rest of the line. âYour outfit is very nice.â
âOh, this. I just threw it together.â No, you didnât. You took your time with it. âBut thanks,â you wave her off. When you reach the ticket stand, you rush in front of Clint to pay for yours, Wandaâs, Lauraâs, Natâs, and the kidsâ tickets. You explain to him when you are all walking together that you kind of owed Wanda for something and you were the one who promised to take the kids here much to Nat and Lauraâs displeasure so you kind of owed them too.Â
You make it inside the fairgrounds. A giant banner that reads âWESTVIEW COUNTY FAIR!â greets you overhead. Everyone gets excited upon seeing the banner and all the lights in the background. Well, everyone but Nat and Laura, Nat not ever a big fan of fairs and Laura not a fan of taking care of kids at a fair. Out of all the lights shining on the fairgrounds, your favorite is the one shining through Wandaâs eyes as she takes everything in with wonder.Â
âSo what do you want to do first?â you ask her.
She turns to you and almost looks embarrassed. âI donât know. Iâve never been to a fair.â
âWhat?â you ask in shock. She shrugs not knowing what else she could say. âWell, itâs settled then. We are not leaving until you get the whole experience. Letâs go buy some wristbands for the rides. We are going on every single one.â Her eyes widen and the wonder in them from earlier shifts into nervousness. âItâll be fun, come on,â you reassure as you drag her to another line, leaving everyone else behind.Â
You and Wanda get on every ride but the ferris wheel telling her you have to leave that one for last. You even ride some twice, but you get hungry and ask Wanda if she wants to eat yet. She agrees that she could take a break for food. You try various things the fair offers wanting Wanda to try everything. âYou Americans like to fry anything you can,â she comments as she takes another bite of her fried oreo. She hums as she finishes it off. âI understand why,â she says, making you laugh.Â
You spot Laura and Nat sitting at a table near the stage where some band is playing music. You and Wanda head on over. Soon everyone regroups there, finishing off the food they bought and watching people dance. Clint pulls Laura to dance with him. You all sit at the table watching them with a smile when someone obstructs your view of them. You look up to see a tall guy in a black cowboy hat smiling down at Wanda beside you offering his hand out asking her to dance. She looks at you, unsure of what to say. You give her a smile that admittedly took you a second to form and nod encouragingly for her to accept. She smiles politely at him and takes his hand. You watch them dance, your eyes only ever straying when you see Wanda going to look at you. You watch when he leans down to tell her something in her ear and she laughs. You wonder what he told her that was so funny. Your eyes roam over him. Heâs handsome, youâll give him that. He has a nice face, good posture. You note he is also respectful with his hand placement when dancing, so you can appreciate that. It seems like Westview County has their own Steve Rodgers. The thought bugs you.
Someone blocks your view once again, only this time you are kind of thankful for it. You look up to see Pietro asking you to dance. âWhy not?â you say, wanting to do anything rather than stare at Wanda dancing with some guy. He pulls you to the dance floor. You enjoy your time dancing with Pietro though you get dizzy from how quickly he spins you. Youâre a little disappointed your dance is cut short when Lila taps your arm asking if she can dance with Pietro. You smile at her saying of course she can. With your distraction gone to dance with Lila, your eyes search for Wanda once more but you cannot seem to find her. You feel someone grab your hand and you are spun into that someoneâs arms. Your eyes fall to familiar green ones and you smile, âSmooth moves, Maximoff.â
âThank you,â she says with a smile as she starts to sway with you to the music. âYou let me dance with a stranger.â
âYouâre dancing with me now and we were strangers not so long ago,â you rebuttal.Â
âBut at least we know each otherâs names.â
âDid you not get his name?â you ask.
âI never asked for it,â Wanda returns simply, shrugging. You find it hard to believe that his name never came up so you say, âThat was a lot of talking for him to not have given you a name.â
âYou saw us talking? I would not have guessed you were paying attention. Every time I looked at you, you turned to look away,â she teases you.
You swallow, choking on the embarrassment of getting caught. âDoesnât matter. His nameâs probably Brad or something. He looks like a Brad.â
She laughs then catching on to your tone she asks, âY/N, are you jealous?âÂ
âWhat? Me, jealous?â you ask, astonished. She nods, smiling like she has her answer. âWanda, I could never be jealous of some Brad. Dance with a Marcus and then maybe, but a Brad? Pfft. No.â
She just laughs and pulls you closer. You let yourself go and dance with her until whatever song the band is playing ends. âLetâs go play some games. I feel like shooting something,â you say, making her laugh loudly.Â
Everyone decides to play with you as well so you all head over to the different stands. Nat wins the shooting game, Clint coming in close. He wins the popping the balloons with darts game. They give their prizes to Cooper and Lila. Peter and Sam spend some time with the hammer and bell game; Peter hitting the bell every time garners some attention especially from some girls which frustrates Sam. Pietro wins a fish when he plays ring toss. It seems like everyone but you has been winning something. Even Wanda won a stuffed panda she gave to Lila after playing a water shooting game. You were getting frustrated trying to knock some blocks off a stool. Youâve spent a good $20 on this game already. Wanda catching your frustration decides to help you out. When you are down to your last ball, you try your best to focus and throw the ball. Two of the three blocks fall down. The last one is teetering on the edge. You think youâve lost but a second later it falls over. You shout with glee. You ask the attendant for the keychain that has the letter W on it.
Wanda watches you with a smile as you approach her. âThank you for that,â you say, and when she tries to play naive, you continue, âI know you knocked the last block.â
She gives you a sheepish smile. You hold out the keychain to her. âI figure this only rightfully belongs to you. May it proudly hold your keys until you lose it.â She tries to say no but you take her wrist and place the keychain in the palm of her hand. âIt has your initial. You have to keep it.â
âIâm pretty sure the W is for Westview County,â she counters.
âA happy coincidence.â You donât take no for an answer and she finally smiles and thanks you, putting her new keychain away so she doesnât lose it. You look around to see the others still distracted with the games but you also catch your cousin yawn. You know this means youâre leaving soon so you grab Wandaâs hand and head over to the line for the ferris wheel.
You thank the attendant when he checks you have your belt on and pulls the bar to your lap. The wheel starts turning and when you are midway to the top, it shakes a little as two people get on the final empty cart. The shaking makes Wanda nervous. She grabs your hand almost protectively as her posture turns into one that looks ready for a fight. You turn your palm over to interlace your fingers and rub your thumb on her hand to try to soothe her nerves. âHey, itâs okay,â you say. She turns to you and you see her irises are red. âThey always do this. Weâre okay. Just donât rock the cart and weâll be good.â
She takes a breath willing herself to relax. The red in her irises fade back to her green. She sits back and the ferris wheel moves again, this time not stopping for people to get on. You keep holding her hand squeezing it from time to time in reassurance. You can see Clint and everyone from the ferris wheel and point them out to Wanda. The only ones to see you are the kids who wave to you. You wave back.Â
âDo you come to the fair every year?â Wanda asks.
âPretty much. Thereâs not much else to do,â you shrug. She ponders this for a moment and then, âSo youâve brought dates to the fair before, Iâm guessing.â
âYeah?â You say more like a question wondering where she was going with this.
âIn the movies, people on dates always kiss on the ferris wheel. Did you kiss them?â
âWanda,â you say her name but it comes out more like a warning.
âSorry, I was just wondering,â she mutters, then turns to look back at the fairgrounds.Â
âNo, I didnât.â You answer sincerely. She looks back at you. You explain, âThe two other people Iâve taken to the fair on a date were too afraid to get on the ferris wheel.â
âYou said âotherâ,â she says smiling at you.
You look at her confused. âWhat?â
âYou said âthe two other peopleâ meaning other than me. So is this date?â she raises an eyebrow, an amused expression on her face.
âA friendly date,â you say, making her frown. She huffs in defeat letting go of your hand and hold the lap bar instead. The night had been going so well, you didnât want this one thing to ruin it, so without letting yourself think it over, you wait until you get to the top of the ferris wheel. You lean into her space and look her in the eye to show her you are serious when you say, âDonât tell Nat or Clint.â She looks confused but the confusion quickly turns into a pleasant surprise when you gently grab her face and lean in to kiss her. It doesnât last long enough to give her a chance to kiss you back. You pull back with a cheeky smile and say, âI did promise the whole experience.âÂ
The kiss may have ended too quickly for Wanda but it was long enough for a few people to catch it. One of them being your cousin whose kids were pointing to you and Wanda on the ferris wheel in excitement. She just shook her head in amusement when she saw you kiss Wanda. The other person to catch you was Wandaâs brother who, when seeing you kiss his sister, just whines, âNo, Y/N.â
______________________________________________________________________
I'm sorry this took so long. I got sidetracked and then when I started I got stuck and in my true fashion, once I started writing, I couldn't stop and I couldnât leave you without taking you to the fair. So, I hope the length of the chapter makes up for the wait. Oh, Happy Mother's Day to all the mom's out there doing their best to be good moms! I created a house map of how I picture the inside to look, you know without the fine details.
Next chapter bring your bug spray, youâre going camping.
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For real though watching yhs has lead me to the conclusion that despite Grian seemingly has such an active fight instinct....most of the time he actually doesnt respond to situations with half the fight attributed to him.
When faced with a traumatic situation Grian will absolutely bare his teeth at the nearest threat. He's absolutely vitriolic towards Sam at all times without fail and has even initiated physical violence in their confrontations once or twice. He's often on edge, often quick to angry outbursts, just overall rather hostile when faced with a dangerous/frightening/harmful situation. Which definitely indicates his main response to these scenarios is to fight. Hard.
However the more I engaged with fanon the more I faltered. A lot of fanon does portray him as very hostile in the face of trouble. Which should make sense. Canonically Grian knows when to say no, when to argue, and even sometimes when to physically fight back. Any episode with Grian present will likely have examples of him pushing back against harmful situations. And yet something always feels very Off about that being the start and end of it in a lot of fanon. Which led me down an interesting line of thinking.
I honestly suspect that Grian's volatility and will to fight back isn't nearly as strong as one would believe from observing him on surface level. In fact, his on the surface hostility feels like it's borderline a facade altogether to be honest.
I mean look at examples throughout canon of Grian in distressing situations.
Yhs halloween episode. The one where Taurtis got stabbed. And the following situation where Grian is famously forced to dress up like Taurtis. Grian would later be very upset about Sam stabbing Taurtis, however his initial response was to nervously laugh and even give Sam appeasing praise. I mean, Grian says "you weren't supposed to stab him" pretty clearly, but he anxiously laughs before and afterwards and even tells Sam he's proud of him when prompted. Obviously Grian was very upset about the whole thing later on after taking Taurtis to the hospital however in the moment he's mostly silent and when he's not he's just nervously laughing throughout, even agreeing with whatever *Sam* says when he's outright prompted by name for an opinion, then when everyone else tries to play it off casually Grian actually goes along with it almost entirely, even agreeing to let Taurtis drive him home for some reason. Then, according to his own story, he had an opportunity to talk to police at the hospital and he didn't incriminate Sam. He knew they were supicious of *him* but he still didn't incriminate the actual killer. "I told them I found him like that" Grian alleged. Honestly it sounds like he didn't tell them much of *anything* before being released and making the walk back to meet Sam. The next morning Grian was significantly more vocally upset about Taurtis being stabbed and expressed being upset with Sam however he seemed significantly more anxious than he was angry throughout the interaction. Then Grian immediately pretty readily agreed to go with Sam and Yuki to school and willingly put on the Taurtis outfit before the other's even started with the threats in the name of making things 'less awkward'. He certainly objected, however he was once again a lot more anxious than angry, nervously laughing, coming up with really weak unimportant excuses, and agreeing within ten seconds of being asked. Pretty much the rest of his time dressed as Taurtis goes very similarly. He objects to most things he's told to do and brings up Sam stabbing Taurtis multiple times despite the other's not wanting him to but is primarily nervous rather than hostile and he never actuslly puts up enough resistence for it to stick. Even when the other's were stuffing plastic down his throat and he told them he thought it may kill him Grian still did it and told the other's he *liked* it when pushed. Eventually he got out of it by running on Rowan's command and no sooner than being told to get out of there. When Sam found him again Grian immediately even reverted back to doing as he was told and cowering away from him in obvious fear up until Okami and Rowan showed up and shoved Grian behind them. Then he *still went home that night* knowing Sam would be there. When they found Taurtis it was pretty clear that Grian was hoping Taurtis would help him once he got his memory back however when instructed to stop telling Taurtis who he was Grian for the most part did aside from subtle pushing about the familiarity of certain things and then later when Taurtis got his memory back and made it pretty clear he wasn't going to help Grian? Grian conceded. He spent a good few minutes arguing about everything he'd gone through- everything they both had- and insisting it wasn't okay but when Taurtis made it pretty clear he wasn't going to do anything and they collectively agreed Grian was the real problem? Grian kinda...stopped. When Taurtis made it clear he wasn't going to be helping, Grian just kinda fell back into their normal routine with the other's, and when Sam demanded an 'apology soda' from Grian for what he'd apparently done, Grian bought it for him saying "If that's what it takes for things to go back to normal".
Let's also look at Grian's involvement with the law during/shortly-after the Halloween situation. When Sam and Yuki dragged him to join the Yakuza he was upset and objected anxiously but caved as soon as he got pushback. When Sam wanted to steak from the Yakuza he once again got objections from Grian who nervously insisted that it was a terrible idea but once again Sam shoved aside Grian's complaints and once again Grian just kinda fell into place despite being upset. When the police also started threatening the trio's lives to work for them, Grian objected. He questioned if they were allowed to do that and was very openly not happy about any of it, however he very quickly submitted under pressure. Both times Grian was locked in solitary confinement he loudly protested his sanity and both times he voiced how disturbing it was on a really deep level being locked up like that but both times when he was let out he just went with the other two again and let them brush it all off- even knowing full well they let him out to be *death fodder*. He just went with them relatively quietly save for maybe a token remark or two. Honestly the large majority of this bs Grian was involved with was under physical threat and he almost always bent under it. Even down to his fight with Pie over Ellen. Pie showed up and started challenging their relationship. Sam, Taurtis, and Yuki insisted they have a knife fight. Grian said *no*. Pie said yes. Sam, Taurtis, and Yuki affirmed there would be a knife fight. Grian objects more. Everyone else present discusses how the knife fight will work. Grian gets stabbed. Grian suggests they just ask Ellen who they want to date *obviously*. Ellen chooses nobody and leaves. Grian was upset but then just kinda accepts it and goes on with what the whole group was doing before.
And just to round this out with one more example. The Starwars Cosplay Incident. Apparently Sam burst into Grian's room, undressed him, shoved him into Leia Cosplay complete with fake boobs, and locked him in the basement for three days. Grian sits there for three days until Taurtis rescues him. Grian has a moment of being rightfully very angry and finally even tries to physically attack Sam, demanding to know if Taurtis is aware of what Sam did to him and insisting that they can't expect everything to be fine now. Except it kinda...was. Taurtis stopped Grian from attacking Sam, they both brushed it off as a joke and not a big deal, and then they went to school. And Grian just *went*. He walked with the other two, he wore the outfit Sam put him in, and he just kinda moved on. Grian would later object when the clones tried to pull him out of class, snapping that he just wants to learn and get an education like a normal person and demanding to know why he's not allowed to. But he goes! And when he's released he walks right back to Sam and Taurtis, makes some bitter remarks to them, and let's them shove it all aside as if it's unimportant. Later when it's Grian, Sam, and a member of school staff alone in the closet, some innapropriate remarks are made to Grian. He very quickly says he's reporting the remarks made by school staff but Sam tells him not to be rude and it doesn't seem Grian ever does. Later on when Geode makes a comment about Grian's outfit as well Sam and Taurtis start pondering *giving* Grian to them. Grian repeatedly said *no* but with a lot more despair than defiance and we don't even know if he'd have actually followed through with fighting back if they'd tried to actually give him away because they were interrupted before the situation got to that point. Grian once again just let the other's move on as if that didn't happen and continued following them around, though! And he wore that damn outfit he was very explicitly uncomfortable with. All day.
Which is kinda all to say that when it comes to fighting back Grian is a lot more bark than bite.
Grian throws out a lot of bitter remarks, makes his objections very apparent in most things, and even has more than one vitriolic rant to his abuser(s) throughout the series. But that layer of his responses to things is so fragile that it tends to fall away within minutes- if that, sometimes *seconds*.
Of course ive seen other people take note of this and argue that it means Grian actually *wants* to do these thingd he's objecting to but I think that's silly. If it were just things like group crime or violent acts then id possibly see it but Grian puts up the same kind of response to having plastic shoved down his throat and to being locked in the basement for days which there's no way in hell he was any kind of okay with. The more likely scenario here isn't that he secretly wanted to do any of these things and made his resistence weak so he could pretend he tried while still doing it.
The likely scenario here is that his fight response is much more for show than one would think. Because Grian's strongest most influential response to things really never seems to be to fight. Aggression is really hardly Grian's overall stance on handling a distressing situation.
Much more frequently you see the most influence coming from completely other instinctive responses.
Looking for outside help in adults, friends, and classmates like when Okami and Rowan protected him during his time dressed as Taurtis or when Grian tried desperately to get Taurtis to be on his side and help him after Sam seriously hurt him both when Taurtis first got his memory back after Halloween and when Taurtis found Grian in the basement during the Starwars Cosplay Incident, hell, even during his fight with Pie it can be argued that Grian calling for them to just ask Ellen was an appeal to outside help as he hoped Ellen would agree to end the fight and save him from the situation as a result.
Running away- or trying to at least- from the threat. Most notably seen back during the halloween incident when he quite literally ran out the back of the gym and hid from Sam+Yuki then hiding behind Okami and Rowan when they showed up in an attempt to flee from Sam which is how he got away from the other's at all during that situation. Grian's consistent need to exclaim every so often how much he wants to go back to Europe is a subtler example of this, though, of Grian's urge to get away.
Honestly though being quiet and moving as he's directed seems to be the most common winning response. You see little sparks of reaction from him but most of the time Grian is just quiet, nervously laughing, following Taurtis and Sam around in what they ask of him, and even outright appeasement strategies to maintain a calm environment. This is So common from Grian. This is what usually wins out. His quiet nervous laughter and agreeing with Sam when Taurtis is first stabbed. The fact that he didn't tell the police what Sam did when alone with them during questioning and then immediately walked to meet up with Sam and went to school with Sam+Yuki with literally no objections. The fact that he didn't say no like *at all* to putting on the Taurtis outfit in the name of not making things awkward and complied within seconds of first being asked. How he proceeded to do what he was asked all day and didn't make any move to get away until Rowan outright instructed him to run. The fact that he went back! The fact that he went along with it when they joined the Yakuza and when they stole from the Yakuza and when they joined up with the cops and when they *forced him into a knife fight*. How Grian eventually just lost his spark of defiance after Taurtis first got his memories back and made it clear he wasn't helping Grian, with Grian agreeing to buy Sam a fucking *apology soda* if it meant things would go back to normal after hearing everyone else agree that *he* was the problem in all he'd been put through. The way he just goes back to following Sam and Taurtis after they got him locked in solitary confinement on blatant lies because they *wanted* to. The way he walks around school with the other two while wearing cosplay that made him feel gross and uncomfortable that Sam had literally physically forced onto him and just went along with what he was told in the end.
Grian always puts up a fight but not a good one. He makes side comments, he makes objections, he even has more than one emotional rant about the hell he's put through, however this never wins out in the end and this presenting fight is very frequently just barely holding down much stronger freeze and fawn instincts that usually win out pretty damn quick.
Which!!! In a situation like Grian's it actually makes significantly more sense to have strong freeze and fawn responses than to have a strong fight response! I mean, think about it. A fight response is primarily useful in scenarios in which it's possible to take strong action to remove the threat. You're attacked by a dog so you throw stuff at it till it backs away. You're picked on by an upperclassman so you punch em' in the nose expecting fully that they'll leave you be after. Someone attacks you while you're walking home so you try and stab them with your key. Fighting is an incredibly good response for random/one time attacks. If you're ever kidnapped you wanna scream and punch and kick and make a scene so they can't take you to a secondary location. You fight. Fighting is optimal for unexpected stranger conflicts. That's not the situation Grian's in though. Grian suffers from serious long term physical, emotional, and financial abuse. He's in a country he doesn't have residency or family in, he doesn't have a readily available source of income, he doesn't have his own mode of transportation, it seems that most of the time he doesnt have a clear way home, he's often dealing with long term friends of his and seemingly his biggest source of support prior to this situation, even back in Europe he doesn't have much support system to run to given his parents canonically left him, he's frequently under threat of physical danger, etc. This is not the kind of situation in which an intense primary fight response helps. This is the type of situation in which an intense primary fight response either gets you seriously hurt or wandering the streets with no way to provide for yourself. It would likely be similar if he presented an intense primary flight response to be honest. In long term abuse situations where there's no rational way of escaping safely or no rational place to escape to? Often the primary responses that promote survival are fawn and freeze. Appeasing the aggressor or sinking into the background. Those are your ways to stay alive when you can't expect to 'win' or escape. It absolutely makes more sense for Grian to have primary fawn and freeze responses than a primary fight response.
But then why does he present so much hostility? What's with all the bitter remarks and the attempts to voice objections and the occasional overt insults/screaming? How does a fawn/freeze response present as fight when first pressed at?? Well fun fact, I have experience with that kind of presentation because I *was* that kind of presentation. Oh boy did I try to push strong fight responses towards my abusive father with token resistences and petty remarks even though most of the time I crumpled under the slightest pressure and spent my time ignoring the problem or dissociating or trying very hard to avoid future conflicts. You put up a token front of fight even if that's never going to be your primary response for the sake of your own mental health, really. To assure the world- and *you*- knows that you don't *want* this situation. So you can say you tried. Out of some misguided hope that your attempted bravado won't be seen through and that maybe this time they'll just stop pushing instead of calling the bluff. Which. Makes sense with Grian as well. I mean looking at the times he really truly goes off before reverting back to a more appeasing stance, most notably his rants from when Taurtis first got his memory back as well as from when he got out of the basement during the Starwars Cosplay Incident. Most of those rants were taken up by Grian loudly and passionately reiterating what he'd been through, insisting he was the victim, and calling Sam an awful person before the defiance fades out and he becomes more willing to just go about their day. It's one attempted push hoping the other parties present will vie in his favour and a reassertion that he's not okay with this and that *he* is being hurt which gives way within minutes to a much duller attitude. That's just a painfully familiar format. Adding on Grian's token objections/passive aggressive remarks to many situations that distress him and how quickly those objections give way as dismissed by others. That kind of behaviour feels strongly like an attempt to preserve your own mental wellbeing as much as possible with the knowledge that you tried to some extent and with just generally hearing out loud that you are the victim even if from yourself. Grian's behaviour just really feels like a facade of defiance to cover up general helplessness which makes a Lot of sense for the scenario. Probably more than just plain defiance would.
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Lost and then Found pt. I
Imagine being taken by HYDRA. After years with them, they set you loose on someone you haven't seen in a while. Unfortunately for HYDRA, you weren't as susceptible to their mind experiments like they thought.
Words: 8.6K Author's Note: Major trigger warning! There will be a bit of talk about non-consensual pregnancies and some failed pregnancies from said attempts. Also I didnât want to post this, but this upcoming week is going to be stressful for me and I honestly donât know how much writing Iâll get done. Please read the bottom note for help on hopefully part 2 of this.
Tag list: @aya-fay @70s-chic @sipsteacasually @kaitlyn2907 @scarlettwitch99 @thingsforimagination @b1sexualtonystark @living-that-best-life @alexnicolaidisss @l0ve-0f-my-life @eliwinchester99 @mimilh @rosesloml @meredeph @lexy9716âÂ
The team had been hanging around various floors of the tower when FRIDAY alerted everyone that they were needed in the meeting room ASAP. And when FRIDAY sounded urgent, the team knew it must be serious. Leaving the gym, Steve and Bucky run into Clint and Natasha who had been coming out of the locker rooms.
"Any idea what's going on?" Bucky asks Nat.
She shakes her head. "FRIDAY wouldn't cough up any more information. I contacted Tony, but he just urged me to get my ass moving."
As they wait for the elevator, the doors slide open and they nod to Wanda who's already standing in the back corner. With her arms crossed over her chest, she nods to each of her teammates as they file in. Ever since she had lost Vision, she hadn't been quite herself and everyone knew to give her whatever time she needed.
In the meeting room, the atmosphere is immediately tense. Sam is at the table and as a testament to how serious the situation is he doesn't even crack a joke the second he lays eyes on Bucky. Everyone takes a seat, with the exception of Tony who's still pacing at the front of the room with a tablet in his hand.
"Tony," Steve calls out. "What's going on?"
A moment passes and then Tony stops at the head of the table, looking up. "This." He swipes up on his tablet screen, sending a video hologram to the middle of the table so everyone can see. "This came in about fifteen minutes ago."
The video plays and the team watches on in shocked speechlessness. The video shows a young girl who couldn't have yet been a teenager be strapped down to a gurney and injected with several different vials. They listen as the poor girl screams and thrashes, and sobs about burning on the inside.
The video cuts out before popping up again and shows the same girl, a little older this time, and having a mouth piece shoved into her small mouth before a contraption is lowered around her head. Eyes dart to Bucky and no one says a word as his metal arm whirs when he watches the young girl go through something very similar to what he went through. As she screams, the video cuts out again yet again.
Everyone had been so focused on Bucky's reaction, that no one paid any attention to Wanda as her eyes widened when the video came back for a third round. The girl on screen is definitely older now, her baby fat has all but vanished, and she looks defeated. Her hair hangs in limp strands around her face and there's a collar around her neck that Wanda knows gives off one hell of a shock to the person wearing it when they disobeyed orders. An older male walks into view and the girl cowers away. She winces, her hands flying up to the collar around her neck. "Begin," a voice then sounds. The male lunges for the small female and she tries her best to fend off his blows, but she ends up beaten and bloodied within thirty seconds. At the end of the fight the man is given instructions and then he walks over to the girl, kneeling down and biting her around the wrist. She screams, the man takes a bullet to the back of the head, and the video cuts out.
This time when the video comes back, the girl looks a little more steadier on her feet and less beaten down. She looks ready for a fight. Towards the end of the clip she has bloodied, pointed fingertips. She's shoved back into a chair and that's when her emotionless mask drops, begging to not be wiped. She screams as they start the procedure and then by the end of it there are no more tears. There's just an emotionless female awaiting orders as the video cuts out.
Finally the last clip shows her fighting like she's been doing it for years, taking down one attacker after the other until she's the last one left standing. There's a sharp whistle and the girl stands at attention, and the video zooms in on her stoic expression before cutting out altogether.
"Who sent this, Tony?" Steve readily asks.
"Don't know. I have FRIDAY chasing an IP address that just keeps pinging in every part of the world."
"Do we even know who she is?" Natasha asks. "And what the whole point of this video was?"
"No. Not a cl-"
"Her name is Y/N." Everyone looks to Wanda who can't take her gaze off her hands in her lap. "She was already there with HYDRA when Pietro and I showed up so long ago."
"Willingly?" Clint wonders.
Wanda shakes her head. "When we had gotten there, she had just turned nineteen. She was already stronger than the average human, but we never truly saw what she could do. She was different." She finally looks up, expression sad. "HYDRA was not all that we thought it would be, but by then there was no turning back. We'd seen Y/N around base, but she was always so stoic and never spoke to anyone. But when we had one on one time with her and the guards would leave us under her care, it was like a switch had flipped within her. She was so much lighter and she spoke to us like we had been friends since we were children."
"Why didn't we find her the first time we met you and your brother?" Tony then asks.
"She had been gone for weeks by then. They told us she was killed on a mission they sent her on, and that me and Pietro were going to be the new fists of HYDRA."
"The last video was stamped a week ago," Bucky says. "HYDRA lied."
Sam huffs. "Of course they did."
"They must have seen you, your brother, and Y/N getting friendly. They couldn't have their best weapons socializing and turning against them," Bucky says.
Clint sighs. "So what's the plan?"
"We get her back," Wanda says, leaving no room for Tony or Steve to say otherwise. "She was forcefully taken, unlike Pietro and I. She does not belong with them."
"It's been years, Wanda," Natasha says softly. "She might not be the same girl you knew."
"But what if she is? She is the only family I have left."
For a long moment no one says anything, so Tony takes it upon himself. "Then we look for her, but you're responsible for getting through to her. She'll only know you, not us."
"Fine."
Steve and Tony talk a bit more about being prepared for when FRIDAY tracks down their target, and then everyone is being dismissed.
Wanda takes a moment, letting everyone get up and walk out first, when Clint walks up behind her chair. Placing a hand on her shoulder, he leans down some to say, "Y/N is not your only family, kid. We're your family too." Wanda's heart cracks just a little and she reaches up to cover Clint's hand with her own to let him know she understands. "Just keep that in mind in case we don't find Y/N or she's no longer who she used to be."
Wanda gulps and then nods. "I will."
Working for HYDRA has been absolute hell. Ever since you had been taken as a little girl you were hell-bent on getting out of there which meant doing anything and everything to be in their good graces. Obviously you didn't learn to do so until you were sixteen and had most of your emotions under control.
They experimented and tortured and even tried their mind wipes like they did on their beloved Winter Soldier, but surprisingly your mind was never empty like they hoped to be. Of course, though, you kept that little detail to yourself wipe after wipe. But after everything that went on while you were in their grasp and after whatever they turned you into, you realized you couldn't quite leave and turn yourself loose on the public while you had no control over what you could do.
So you stayed and obeyed like a good little soldier, and attempted to train their new little puppets. Only being left alone with Wanda and Pietro became the one thing you started looking forward to up until they told you the twins didn't survive one of the trials. You had been heartbroken and devastated, but you couldn't let them see. So you nodded, let them move you to another facility and began anew.
You lost yourself within HYDRA, honing your skills and becoming someone even the other soldiers started to become wary of. The mind wipes became less and less the more obedient you became, but then they had a new mission for you- a mission which made your loathing for them hit an all time high.
You've been sitting in solitary for weeks now, biding your time until you could break free and get the hell out of dodge. All morning you've been antsy and it only becomes worse when you can feel the tension mounting all around you.
The door opens and you immediately snap to attention, but the guard that comes in does not have a lunch tray in his hands. Instead, he has a uniform which he readily tosses at you. "Get dressed. You've got a mission."
You quietly snarl at the guard after catching your suit and his hand immediately goes to the electrical prod at his side. "Careful," you drawl. "You wouldn't want your superiors to find out you injured their most prized possession."
His right eye twitches and he lets his hand fall limp. "The clock's ticking on your life, bitch, and when it's up I'll happily put you down."
"We'll just see about that."
The guard turns around and stomps away so he's standing just outside your door, and you hurriedly strip to get dressed in the apparent new uniform. The material for the pants are thin and fit like a glove, but you've worn these before and you know they're impenetrable to blades. Your boots are standard issued, but the long sleeve shirt- the shirt gives you pause because of the padding that's been added to it.
Once you're dressed and your hair has been tied up, you march up behind the soldier and readily clasp your hands behind your back to await orders.
Emotionless mask in place, you're led out and about the base. Everyone seems to be in a tizzy and the smell of gunpowder and blood is thick in the air. You can hear the gunshots and shouting from behind closed doors several rooms away, and you're not surprised that that's exactly where you're led.
The General meets you outside one room in particular and he dismisses your guard with a wave of his hand. You bite your tongue to keep from smiling at the fact the guard grumbles at being dismissed so easily.
"Ah my dear Y/N," the General coos. "Come. We've got several mice trapped and we need you to rid us of them once and for all." You blankly blink at him, nodding once to let him know you understand your mission.
The second he turns around to enter the code for the room, your shoulders drop just a bit and you attempt to put yourself in the mindset of fighting once again. The door slides open and you follow like an obedient little soldier, only to stop short at the sight of the assembled heroes standing on the opposite end of the room. One in particular stands out, her scent hitting you like a freight train and you have to try your hardest not to show an inkling of knowledge about who she is.
You stand next to, but an inch or so behind, the General's left side with your hands still clasped behind your back and feet shoulder width apart as you stare straight ahead. You're trying your damnedest to focus on the red, white, and blue shield Captain America is holding out before him, and not show any recognition for Wanda who is desperately calling out to you in hopes of recognizing her.
You block out what the General is saying, no doubt gloating about your skills, and zone back in just as he gives what he thinks is a command you're programmed to obey. With your right foot planted, you take a step back with a left and flick your wrists out at your sides so claws unsheathe themselves. You can hear several heartbeats pick up speed and you finally meet Wanda's gaze. She seems to still as you offer her the faintest of grins and send her a wink, only to twist on your right foot a moment later and send your clawed left hand into the throat of the General.
The Avengers all tense and prepare for a battle as the General gurgles on his own blood, and you lean in close to his ear so you can say, "Your first mistake was taking me from my family when I was just a little girl." He tries to pull your hand from his throat, but he is no match for your strength. Growling, you squeeze your hand that's still embedded in his throat. "And your last mistake was reintroducing me to Wanda, and giving me hope." Just as the alarms start to blare, you rip the General's throat out and let his limp body fall.
"Y/N?"
You glance up, smirking at Wanda and her wide-eyed expression. "Hello, little Maximoff." You flick your hand free of some of the blood and then smile at her companions. "Avengers." You nod at them in greeting.
"You remember."
You blink at her, not bothering to answer the obvious. Instead, you can hear walkie talkies going haywire outside the room and you turn around to glance up at the windows where you know others are watching. You mockingly wave at them with your bloodied hand and start pacing in the middle of the room, putting Wanda and the Avengers at your back. Looking up at the window, you let your smirk drop into a scowl. "You think you can take me from my family, torture and brainwash me, and then sic me on the only other family I've ever known?" You yell, seething. Cracking your neck, you let your rage take over and feel the bones shift uncomfortably in your face. Even your eyes burn and you know they're flaring an electric blue. "You're fools for thinking you could control me."
You feel a soft pressure on your wrist and immediately turn to growl at the person who dares touch you, but you lower your head in shame when you see it's just Wanda. She softly gasps and you try to turn away. "What did they do to you?" She asks as she gently grasps you by the chin to make you face her once more.
"What they do best?" You mumble, sharp teeth catching on your bottom lip. "They turned me into a monster."
Wanda's voice catches in her throat, but before she can say anything you're facing the door and stepping in front of her to shield her. Seven soldiers rush in, electrical prods gripped tight in hand.
"Why don't they have any guns?" You hear one of the Avengers ask.
"They must want her alive," someone else answers.
"If you don't stand down, we're going to have to resort to drastic measures," one HYDRA agent says.
"Then resort to them," you growl, "because now that I know Wanda is alive you're gonna have to kill one of us just to separate us again."
Wanda steps up next to you then, hands slowly rotating at the wrists as red energy floats around them. "And trust me, I am not so easily killed."
You can sense the Avengers all stepping into line behind you, but you don't bother looking at them. Instead, you focus on the threat in front of you and the fact they have more people gathering outside once the first line falls. Then from one second to the next, there's a silent command that sends the HYDRA agents into fight mode.
You break off from Wanda, drawing a few agents towards you. Your fighting skills come into play and it's easy for you to either block or withstand the shock of the electrical prods. However, the agents are not so lucky since you're going in for the kill. If you're not kicking in knees and snapping necks, your claws and teeth are digging into throats and ripping out flesh. You're roaring and snarling, and scaring most of the agents you come into contact with, but there are a select few which are all too happy to disobey orders and engage you in physical combat.
You take quite a few hits to the face and sides, and for a moment you're worried, but you have to push through and worry later.
You're not sure how long the fight lasts, but all you know is hat the last agent you claw until he's gurgling on his own blood is the last one to go down. Panting and heaving, electric blue eyes scan the room. All the Avengers are still standing, most of them don't even look like they participated in the fight, but all are watching you with wary eyes.
Wanda steps in your direction and you growl, but then stop the moment her hands go up to show you she means no harm. "It's over," she tells you, her accent heavy and reminding you of so long ago when you first took her under your wing. "If you want to leave, you need to calm down. My team has no idea who you are and you being so hostile makes them nervous."
"Team?" The word rumbles through your throat as your gaze jumps from person to person. "But where's Pietro?"
When your gaze lands back on Wanda, she's smiling softly. But that smile soon wobbles as she shakes her head. "He died a while back. I'm sorry."
You shake your head as you take a step back and Wanda quickly closes the distance between the two of you. She wraps her arms around until you lower your head to her shoulder and you sniffle quietly. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay. He died a hero," she says. "We saw the error of our ways and the Avengers took us in." You finally allow yourself to wrap your arms around her, breathing her in and calming your rage. When you feel yourself sag against her, you finally pick up your head and smile as she runs a finger down the bridge of your nose. "There you are."
"M'sorry."
"For?"
"For you having to see me that way. I didn't even know you were alive and then they just told me to dress and take care of a mice problem they had. I didn't know it was the Avengers."
"It's okay," Wanda assures you. "You did the right thing."
"Um, I hate to break up this crazy reunion, but we need to go."
You glance at the man with wings and nod. "That would be a good idea. They'll send more soldiers soon."
Captain America glances at Wanda. "Get her to the quinjet. We're gonna do a sweep of the base before bringing it down."
Wanda gives him a nod and then she's urging you to follow her. You follow her through the winding hallways and an elevator ride up to the surface, and you huff a quiet laugh when you see the destruction left in the Avengers' wake. Off in the distance there's a jet and Wanda wastes no time in leading you up the ramp, and onto a seat.
"Just wait right here." She rushes towards a door and you're surprised a small bathroom sits behind it. She grabs what appears to be a hand towel from inside and then walks over behind the cockpit of the jet, grabbing a bottle of water from inside a bench seat. Then walking back over to you, she gestures to your face. "You've got a lot of blood."
"Oh." You take the towel and water, and quickly wet the towel to start wiping off your face and hands. There's nothing you can do for your clothes, so you leave them be.
As you wait for the others to return, you fidget in your seat and exhale softly as you catch Wanda's gaze. "What made you guys hit this specific base?" You wonder. "They're usually very careful about the comings and goings so they didn't attract the wrath of the Winter Soldier."
Wanda smiles and takes a seat across from you. "Bucky has been going on a world tour of tearing down HYDRA bases in his free time. We think HYDRA got tired of it and wanted to lure us into a trap, so they sent us a video of you."
You frown. "Why me? And what video?"
"They wanted me to rush in and not be at one hundred percent, hoping I'd make a mistake," she says. "Bucky and Natasha believe HYDRA saw us getting close, so they separated us and told us the other had died so we'd follow them faithfully. And when they sent that video, I was stunned. I wanted to rush in and bring you home, but the team made me take a beat." Having stood up halfway through her explanation, Wanda had retrieved a tablet and tapped away at it. Handing it to you, you find a paused video on screen.
Pressing play, you watch yourself be tortured and experimented on, and taught to kill. You wrinkle your nose at how young you were and how sickly you were at one point until they found a method that took and made you what you currently are. You're so caught up in the video that you aren't paying attention to your surroundings and are surprised to see the Avengers walking up the ramp.
"Done already?" Wanda asks.
"All we have to do is detonate once we're up in the air."
Wanda exhales in relief and you meet the gaze of several Avengers who don't know what to think of you after seeing you rip through the HYDRA soldiers like it was nothing. To break the ice, you say the first thing that pops into your mind. "So that was fun."
Iron Man snorts as he walks on by, heading straight for the cockpit. "Great. Another murder-happy supersoldier."
"Uhh, I'm not a supersoldier," you say. The rest of the team glances at you and you go on to explain. "On the video, you all saw the man bite me. Right?" There are various forms of acknowledgement. "Well that's what turned me into what I am. A bite."
"A bite from what?" Black Widow wonders.
You shrug. "The best I can come up with is a werewolf."
Hawkeye snorts, but at your no nonsense expression he sobers up. "Oh. Uh, those exist?"
"I'm assuming so," you say. "I get extra rage-y during a full moon, so I'll probably have to be chained up when the next one comes around." Wanda looks startled at your confession, but you flash her a small grin. "It's fine. I'm used to it by now."
Everyone takes a moment before either taking a seat or steadying themselves, and then there's lift off. The quinjet rises higher and higher until it hovers mid-air. Captain America walks towards the cock-pit and after giving the all-clear you can hear a distant boom and concrete caving inward.
"Well that's another base down," Captain America says.
Exhaling in relief, you allow your eyes to close and relish the feeling of being free. Your moment of peace, however, is short lived when you feel eyes on you. Opening them, Captain America and the Winter Soldier are sitting across from you now. Wanda has taken the seat next to you and you smile as she lays her head on your shoulder.
"I know you've been through a lot, but we have some things we'd like to discuss," the good Captain says.
You nod. "Ask away."
"They wiped you over and over," the Winter Soldier says matter of factly. "Why didn't it take?"
"I honestly have no idea," you admit. "The first time, it took. I didn't know who I was or where I was."
"How did you break out of it?"
"Something one of the doctors said triggered a memory from when I was younger and it just snowballed from there. I started remembering, but a few months after that I was wiped again. The second time didn't take quite so well, but I still forgot. I just knew there was something missing and slowly but surely it started coming back," you say. "But then after I was bitten, the mind wipes completely stopped working. It hurt like hell and I learned to fake it until I could find a way out of there."
"We didn't find much on you," the Winter Soldier says. "Their computers were already self-destructing, but we did manage to find a book where they wrote down your trigger words. You don't mind if we say them to make sure you're telling the truth?"
Wanda's head immediately snaps up, no doubt ready to tell them to back off, and you grin at her protectiveness. "It's fine." She then turns to look at you in shock and you wave her off. "Honestly, it's fine. They don't work. I should seriously win an Oscar for best actress."
Hawkeye and the Black Widow stand on either side of Captain America and the Winter Soldier, and he slowly reads the words aloud after opening the book. "Blue. Full moon. Bitten. Beta. Wolf. Red."
Everyone seems to hold their breath and the corner of your lips quirk into a grin. "Still doubting me?"
Captain America huffs. "That's unbelievable."
"You've fought aliens and Asgardian princes, Captain. My broken mind should be the least unbelievable thing."
"Steve. My name's Steve," he says. "And you're not broken." Your grin falters as you blink at him in surprise. "And this is Bucky." The Winter Soldier nods at you and you return the sentiment.
"Clint," Hawkeye says.
"Natasha."
"Sam."
"And I'm Tony Stark, but I'm sure you knew that."
"Uh, sure," you slowly muse. When he squawks and turns around his seat, you huff a small laugh. "Of course I know who you are. I know who you all are thanks to HYDRA and their obsession with you. I just wasn't privy to the fact that Wanda was part of the team until now."
They take your word for it and now that with the knowledge that the trigger words do nothing to you, it seems to bring some ease to the group and everyone finally settles in. According to Wanda the jet ride is going to take a bit so you might as well make yourself comfortable.
About twenty minutes into the ride, you shift uncomfortably in your seat. You chalk it up to the fact the seats aren't really that comfortable to begin with, but when you move to stretch your back a little you feel a pang just to the right side of your abdomen. The pain causes you to still and when it lingers you close your eyes to concentrate on your hearing. Unfortunately, the roar of the jet's engines prevents you from hearing anything.
You abruptly stand up which causes every gaze to snap to you, but you pay them no mind. You feel a cramp suddenly take hold on your lower abdomen and you bend at the waist, breathing through it.
"Y/N?" Wanda calls out.
"Something's wrong." With those two words, you feel the tension in the jet amp up. Your hand goes to your side, rubbing there and then following towards the cramp in your lower abdomen. "Something's really wrong."
"What's going on?" She asks.
You whirl around, eyes burning and you don't even care that they're flaring blue at your friend. "Your magic. Can you feel things with it? Or people. Anything?" You ask in a rush.
"I- I don't know what you-"
"Can you feel someone's conscious or whatever! I need- I just-"
"Okay. Okay," she slowly stands up. "I can. Now tell me what's wrong."
You immediately grab her right hand and set it against your abdomen. "Tell me if you can feel anything." Your eyes burn again, this time with unshed tears. "I can't listen for a heartbeat over the jet's engine."
As your words sink in, Wanda's eyes widen. "You're pregnant."
"Holy shit," you hear someone mutter behind you.
"It hurts." You finally allow the tears to fall. "It's not supposed to hurt."
"How- how far along?"
"Three and a half months. Please, Wanda, I can't-"
Without further prompting, Wanda's eyes glow red. You glance down and see her hand glow red as well, her magic then slowly encircling your abdomen. After what feels like an eternity, she slowly smiles. "There it is." Her gaze darts up to you and the red fades away. "I can feel him. Or her."
You choke back a sob, your hand flying to your mouth to muffle it. Wanda immediately embraces you and you sink into the comfort she's offering you. Then after a moment there's a hand on your shoulder that doesn't belong to Wanda and you lift your head up to see Sam.
"Hey girl, mind if I check you out? You fought awfully hard back at the base and given your condition I'd be more at ease if I knew everything was good."
Your brow furrows. "You're a doctor?"
"No, but I've got some training bandaging people up for the real docs. The most I can do for you right now is check for tender spots so I can report back to the doctor at the compound and insert an IV."
You look to Wanda for her opinion and she nods to let you know it's okay. Then looking back at Sam, you nod. "Okay."
Clint immediately pulls down a cot from where it was folded against the quinjet wall and Sam gestures for you to lay down. He instructs you to lift your shirt and you do so, lifting it until it's bunched beneath your bust. "Okay so I already see some bruising."
His fingertips touch the side of your abdomen and you automatically growl. He freezes and you wince. "Sorry. Instincts."
He chuckles. "It's okay. Given what you apparently are and the circumstances, that's to be expected. Am I good to proceed?"
"Yeah." You inhale shakily. "You're good."
Sam continues his brief examination, pressing here and there around your abdomen for any tender spots. You wince at one particular push and he quietly apologizes. When he's done, he leans back. "You're definitely gonna have to be checked out as soon as we get to the compound."
"Understood."
"But I'd like to get an IV started if that's okay. With you being pregnant and under HYDRA's care, I rather get some fluids in you that I know haven't been tampered with."
"Yeah. Yeah, that's fine."
You sit up and Wanda walks over to sit next to you on the cot, taking your hand between both of hers to offer you some semblance of comfort. Steve gets up to go speak with Tony and you ignore the quiet conversation they're obviously having about you. You can feel various stares on you, but you keep your gaze dead ahead and manage to keep from fidgeting or lashing out.
You don't know when, but you end up dozing off against Wanda. Then the next time you're conscious, you're being gently shaken awake and you watch as everyone starts to disembark the jet.
"We're home," Wanda murmurs. "Are you ready for this?"
"Yeah."
Slightly stretching, you're apprehensive about any sort of pain flaring but it never comes. You're thankful for it and then stand up to walk side-by-side with Wanda. Arm hooked through hers, you follow her off the jet and into the sleekest building you've ever laid eyes on. Sam is waiting for you, alongside a woman who smiles kindly at you. She introduces herself as Doctor Cho and you readily follow after her.
The labs make you apprehensive, but Wanda and Sam assure you everything is fine. Doctor Cho has you change into an unflattering medical gown and she talks through everything right before she does it so you're not caught off guard. All in all, being poked and prodded by this woman is a lot more pleasant than when HYDRA's doctors did it.
After a while, Doctor Cho comes back with a tablet in hand. You can see she wants to ask for privacy, but you immediately let her know that you're okay with Wanda and Sam hearing everything. Since you're staying wherever Wanda is, it's only fair the others know what's going on with you so there are no secrets.
Smiling, Doctor Cho glances at the tablet before looking up at you. "So everything seems to be completely normal," she says. Sam and Wanda exhale in relief. "Sam mentioned some bruising around your abdomen when he first walked in, but there is no sign of any bruising whatsoever. You and the baby seem one hundred percent healthy given everything you've through."
"I heal fast," you quietly admit. "I'm not sure why it took so long for me to feel the pain, but I panicked because of the baby and I wasn't thinking straight back on the jet."
"As an expecting mother, it's normal to panic. I had first hand experience with Mr. Stark's wife a few years back. Panicking is normal, but you just have to remember to breathe and take it one step at a time."
"Easier said than done," you mumble.
Doctor Cho chuckles. "Well for the next few weeks, I want you to take it easy. I'm not putting you on bed rest because of your accelerated healing, but I don't want you doing any strenuous activity."
"Don't worry," Wanda muses. "I'll make sure her butt is planted on the sofa at all times."
"Well okay then," Doctor Cho says. "I have some clothes for you if you want so you don't have to get back into that suit."
"I'd like that. Thank you."
"And if you're up for it, I'd like to see you again next week so we can make sure you and baby are still heading on the right track. I'll even order in some prenatal vitamins and a few others that you're lacking."
You nod. "Okay. That sounds good."
Reconnecting with Wanda had been easy. You were happy that she and Pietro got away from HYDRA when they did, even if Pietro didn't get to enjoy his freedom, and she was sad that you had been under HYDRA's thumb this entire time. But a little wine (for Wanda) and a lot of grape juice (for you), and the two of you were chatting like you hadn't missed any time at all.
After that, settling in at the Avengers' compound was a lot easier than you anticipated. Everyone, with the exception of Tony and Clint, lived just behind the compound in a new building that had been erected not too long ago and it was a lot more homely than you were expecting. You had moved in with Wanda for the meantime, keeping to her quarters so as to not step on any toes. But on the rare chance you decided to stretch your legs, you were surprised that the others would cordially start a conversation with you to see how you were doing.
Then after several visits with Doctor Cho where she continued to tell you that you and baby were doing extremely well, Wanda decided to have a family dinner in celebration.
"So who's all going to be here again?" You ask, already looking through the refrigerator.
"Just the usual," Wanda tells you. "I didn't want Clint and Tony to have to drag their families out here, but they do check in every now and then. They're happy you're settling in."
You snort, shutting the refrigerator door and standing straight. "Are you sure that's it and it's not because I haven't ravaged anyone to death?"
"Y/N.."
"I'm only joking." You grin. "Now can you please contact the others and tell them to hurry up? I'm starving!"
Grinning, Wanda takes her phone in hand and starts tapping away. She chuckles at something on her screen a few moments later, but before you can ask what's so funny you hear several individuals approaching. The aroma of the food hits you next and your mouth immediately starts watering. Steve, Bucky, Natasha, and Sam walk in- each and every one of them carrying various bags of takeout.
"Hey Y/N, think you got a little drool there," Sam says, gesturing to the corner of his mouth.
And without missing a beat, you say, "Not only am I a pregnant woman, Samuel, but I'm a pregnant wolf. I will eat you if you don't stop teasing me."
Sam gasps in offence as everyone else chuckles, and then they're setting the food down on the table to start unloading it as Wanda asks you to help her with utensils and drinks. But the second you turn back towards the table and see all the food laid out, you pause and take it all in. And then promptly burst into tears.
Everyone seems startled, but you're quick to get yourself under control. Sniffling and then wiping the tears away, you say, "I'm sorry. It's just that there's so much food!"
Steve is the first to chuckle. "You're crying because there's a lot of food?"
"Well yeah. You brought all this food and you're not expecting anything from me." Steve's smile instantly vanishes. "HYDRA would offer me nice things, but it always came at a price."
Sam whistles lowly. "Well that just took a turn for the depressing." A beat passes and then, "Come on, little momma. Come grab some grub."
Wanda smiles kindly at you and you finish making your way to the table. You end up with her at your side and Bucky across from you, and a table full of food laid out in front of you. Then the second Natasha reaches for pan fried dumplings, you reach for one of the largest burgers you've ever seen and a whole tray of fries. You groan at the first taste and proceed to finish it off in five more bites. You eat some fries and then stare at the remaining burgers with longing.
"Go ahead," Natasha tells you. "We have more than enough."
You sheepishly grin in her direction and grab another hamburger, devouring it without a care in the world.
But then when you eye the sushi and reach for it, you gasp when the chopsticks in Bucky's hand whack the back of your hand. "No. Raw fish is bad for pregnant women."
A growl unconsciously slips free and the whole table freezes. But then the situation you're in sinks in and you roll your eyes as you pull your hand back into your lap. "Then just say so, Barnes. Don't whack me. I'm not a damn dog." You're scowling at him, but then your words sink in when you see the corner of his lips twitch. "Oh shut up."
The whole table laughs and you shake your head, grinning as you then reach for a container of Chinese noodles that smell absolutely divine.
Later, stuffed full and laying across a sofa, the whole lot of you are relaxing as the TV plays some random TV show Sam had put on. A commercial comes on for pampers and you groan. "I am not looking forward to diaper duty."
Wanda chuckles, but it's Natasha who asks, "So you plan on keeping the baby?" You startle at the question, glancing over at her. "I mean everyone just kind of figured you wouldn't want to given the circumstances of when and where you became pregnant, so-"
"No, I get it," you tell her. "When HYDRA first told me the plan of birthing them a soldier, I kind of lost it. I pretty much went feral at the idea of forcefully having a baby." Gulping, you quickly sit up to explain all that went down. "They wanted to breed me," you sneer, "and they had to sedate me for their chosen soldier to just enter the same room." Immediately your nose tingles, everyone's anger wafting off of them in waves. "Unfortunately for them, they forgot to take into account that my metabolism burned through everything ten times faster than a normal human and I came to just as my pants were being unbuttoned. The guy barely had time to smirk before I ripped his throat out. With my teeth."
The men all stare at you in various stages of shock, but Wanda and Natasha both smirk. "Atta girl," the redheaded assassin muses.
"Killing their top candidate was a big upset, so they attempted to wipe me again," you say with a shrug. "But when the higher-ups got wind of an unscheduled wipe, they came down to see what that was all about. Needless to say, they were not impressed with their Doc's breeding tactics. Doc One took a bullet between the eyes and they brought in Doc Two who was a big fan of artificial insemination." Everyone winces. "Pregnancies one and two didn't stick, so they tried pregnancy three with a sample they had in the freezer. I don't know who the father is, but HYDRA was really ecstatic when month three came along and the two of us were still in good health."
"And you're okay with keeping this baby?" Wanda softly asks.
"I kind of have to be. This baby," you say while gently touching your abdomen, "is half me and half someone else who I'm pretty sure is enhanced. Even if I thought adoption was an option, I don't think I could live with myself knowing a piece of me was somewhere out there."
Everyone takes a moment after your story sinks in, thinking about all that you've been while in HYDRA's control. Afterwards, Steve clears his throat. "So before anyone goes overboard with baby stuff, we're gonna have to put you in your own apartment." He smiles when he notices he catches you off guard with that. "No need to overflow Wanda's apartment with baby things when we have plenty of room to spread out still."
"A-Are you sure?" You ask. "I was ready to start looking elsewhere for a place to live, but-"
"No. HYDRA will be on the lookout for you and that baby," Wanda says. "You're staying here where they won't dare to infiltrate."
You glance at each present Avenger, taking in their pleasant expressions and sniffing them out for any hints of deceit. Finding none, you allow yourself to relax and grin. "Okay then. We'll stay here."
Cohabitating with the Avengers is nothing like you expected. Everyone's guard is down while at home and everyone likes spending time together in the communal spaces when there's not a mission for them to be worrying about. Sam especially gets a kick out of seeing how your appetite holds up against the two supersoldiers and he's impressed that you can eat the same amount or sometimes more.
And when the full moon is less than a week away, it's not just you who's worried about it.
Tony flies in when they notice you're quick to anger and they quickly clean out the hulk proof room that hasn't been used in quite some time. Steve and Wanda take charge, asking what would make you most comfortable, and you admit that anything with your scent on it will do. But what catches everyone off guard is that you sheepishly request something with their scent on it as well and you have to embarrassingly admit that it's a werewolf thing. With you spending so much time with them, you've kind of latched on and your wolf considers them yours.
Everyone is game to get you whatever you need and within half an hour they've got your bed set up in the room, and blankets and pillows from those you'd been living with these past couple of weeks. Everyone takes care to not annoy you the couple days leading up to the full moon, and then you're encouraged to go ahead and settle in the room the day you snarl at Tony for making a puppy joke.
Wanda sits in an armchair in the room as you sit against your headboard, talking about anything and everything as you practice some of Bruce's meditation tips. The door to the room is open for now, and every now and then you can hear someone pass by to quietly check in.
No one needs to tell you when the moon's reached its apex because you can feel the change within you. Your breathing becomes a little heavier and your fidgeting is no doubt more apparent. Sweat starts to bead along your hairline and you curl your fingers inward so as to not shred any of your bedding when you feel your claws suddenly elongate.
"Y/N..?"
"Wanda." You inhale deeply and slowly release it. "I think it's time you go."
You hear the armchair creak under Wanda's weight. "What? I can-"
"Go." You exhale deeply once more, slowly glancing up and eyes burning blue. "You need to go."
A growl slips free and then Steve's immediately in the doorway. "Wanda, come on."
Your gaze stays glued to Wanda as she cautiously stands and she smartly walks backwards to the door rather than giving you her back. And the second the door slides shut, you're leaping out of bed and pacing the entirety of the room. Your agitation ends up getting the best of you and you end up ripping your shirt off, thankful that you had been talked into wearing a sports bra underneath.
The walls are opaque, but the second a voice comes over an intercom you're whirling around to glare at the exact spot where everyone is congregated around screens and keeping watch over you. "Y/N, you need to calm down. Your heartbeat is way too fast."
You snarl and a fist flies towards the wall. There's a loud thump, but they put you in a hulk-proof room for a reason. No matter how much strength you have, you won't make a single crack in the glass.
As you pace all around the room, you growl and roar out your agitation.
Fortunately for you, you have a fair amount of control and you never resort to harming yourself. You do, however, tire of pacing and your bed looks all too welcoming. So once you deem it safe enough to let your guard down, you crawl into bed and surround yourself with the various pillows and blankets of your pack.
The following morning when you wake up, Doctor Cho whisks you away for an evaluation to make sure the full moon didn't affect the baby. And once you're given the all clear, Wanda and Sam lure you into the kitchen with a promise of a hearty breakfast.
You're more tired than usual, but you manage to perch on one of the bar stools at the kitchen island, setting your elbow on the island top and setting your chin in the palm of your hand. Wanda starts to slice up some avocados when you notice there's an itch under your skin that's telling you you need to do something, but you aren't sure what. The feeling amps up as the time ticks on by, but before you can get up and start pacing in agitation there's an arm draping around your shoulders.
The familiar scent of Steve overwhelms you and you feel yourself automatically lean towards him. He chuckles. "How are you feeling?"
"Like I wanna snuggle the hell out of you," you mumble. Leaning away from him, you turn on your stool and part your knees, pulling Steve as close to you as possible. "Seriously, just hug me. I need to scent everyone again."
Sam snorts from his spot at the stove and Steve happily obliges you. Your arms wrap around his waist and you lay the side of your face against Steve's chest, a happy rumble slipping free as Steve embraces you back. "I don't know why you're laughing, Wilson. I'm cuddling all of you."
After about five minutes, you let Steve go and you readily drag Wanda into his vacant spot. She laughs, but hugs you back the moment your arms go around her. You shove your face into the side of her neck and you can't resist rubbing your cheek along her shoulders.
Sam ends up getting the same exact treatment right before breakfast is served up and since Natasha isn't really a hugger, she does sit next to you and allows you to at least drape one of your legs over hers underneath the table.
Afterwards, instead of heading back towards the apartment you share with Wanda, you eye Bucky who's sitting on the couch with a book in his right hand. And though he's been perfectly cordial with you since you've been brought in, you knew better than to just approach him out of the blue like you can with Wanda, Sam, and Steve.
Steve chuckles as he sees your hesitance, but he offers you no help in broaching the cuddling topic with his best friend. However, just as you enter Bucky's peripheral, he readily lifts his left arm that had been resting on the armrest. You sigh in relief and crawl in Bucky's lap, sitting sideways and laying your head on his shoulder. His metal arm curls around your back and his hand which he's holding the book settles down atop your knees.
You soak in Bucky's warmth and scent, and before you know it your eyelids get heavier and heavier.
The click of a phone's camera sounds and Bucky glances up to see Wanda pointing her phone at him. "What?" She feigns innocence. "It's adorable."
"She's exhausted," he says. "I'd fall asleep anywhere too if I had to go through what she did."
"I can take her if you want," Wanda says. "Float her on back to our apartment."
"No. It's fine," he's quick to assure her. "I wasn't planning on moving anytime soon anyway."
Wanda nods, hiding her grin as she walks towards the elevator where Steve and Sam are already waiting. Getting in, all three individuals smirk at Bucky cradling a sleeping pregnant werewolf in his lap.
"If she names that pup after Barnes, I'm throwing hands," Sam says.
Wanda laughs. "I don't think she's thinking about naming her child after a man she's only known for a couple of weeks, Sam."
"Well some would think that one would not sleep in the lap of someone they've only known for a couple of weeks, but here we are," Steve then says. "Unless it's a werewolf thing."
Wanda, Steve, and Sam take a moment to think about it before Sam says, "I got twenty that says those two end up hooking up before the baby bump makes itself known."
"What? No way." Wanda shakes her head. "I have twenty that says she's just extra cuddly because she's hormonal and just came down from the full moon."
"Guys," Steve admonishes them. A moment later, he grins. "Twenty says a real attraction grows and those two end up together."
"You're on, Rogers."
Author's Note: So you guys wanna give me baby name suggestions? And gender suggestions?
#avengers imagine#marvel imagine#marvel gen fic x reader#wanda maximoff#steve rogers#bucky barnes#sam wilson#natasha romanoff#marvel#avengers
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