#brief carolmaria

[pruesgaultier]

she's my collar

final part in the blackhill band au. Nat and Maria go public !

a/n: this was supposed to be out yesterday, but i fell asleep while editing, so sorry and hope you enjoy !

This was it. August 14, 2023. United Center, Chicago, Illinois. After tonight, Maria and Natasha’s relationship would be revealed to the public. To say Maria was nervous would be an understatement. A gross understatement.

“Ria, calm down. It’s just like any other concert.” Natasha’s gentle voice was enough to make Maria calm down a bit.

“Except it’s not just any other concert. We’re about to announce our relationship to the world, aren’t you the least bit nervous?” Maria asked. Of course she was excited to tell the world about her and her wife, but the fact that their lack of privacy is about to get worse bothered her. 

Natasha got up from her place at Maria's vanity and went to sit on her lap. “No.” Natasha stated matter of factly; looking into Maria's nervous gaze. “I’m not nervous at all. I love you, you love me. We’ve been together for so long, the world knowing won’t change our relationship. We’ll still be Ria and Nat, we’ll just have a million fans.” She watched Maria absorb her words and felt the nervous tension melt out of her.

"You're right. You're always right, it's actually annoying." Nat chuckled and began stroking Maria's hair when she leaned her head forward on Natasha's exposed skin and exhaled. The redhead had on a black v-neck and Maria was grateful because she enjoyed the skin to skin contact. She pressed a firm kiss right where Natasha's heart is before slowly kissing her way up. 

"Don't start something you can't finish." Natasha warned while tilting her to allow Maria more access. Maria paused her actions, "Who says I can't finish?" the brunette asked before resuming. Natasha tightened her grip on Maria's hair before pulling her away from her neck, forcing Maria to look up at her. "Me, because you're incapable of having a quickie. Your idea of a quickie is longer than an hour which is time we don't have." Natasha loved her wife dearly, but there is nothing quick about sex with Maria; the woman was insatiable. 

"That's not my fault." Maria pouted, "Have you seen you?" Nat leaned down and pecked Maria's lips. "Everyday, but it still doesn't explain how you can be quick in every aspect of life except during a quickie. It's literally in the name, Mia." 

"It's simple, I like to take my time and worship every single inch of your body and I can't do that in 60 minutes or less." Maria explained, as if it was the most logical thing ever. Which it was. 

"My point exactly. Now, I need to finalize my outfit and you need to get Carol and Maria because you have to be on stage in 15 minutes." Natasha said before getting off her wife's lap. However, not before she was pulled into a kiss that left her breathless. Honestly, if it weren’t for the fact that there was a stadium full of fans, Natasha would rethink their ‘quickie’.

Once Natasha left, Maria walked over to her vanity to finish making herself look presentable. After she was satisfied, she walked across the hall to Carol and Maria R's dressing room. "Carol, get your head from between Maria's thighs and let's go!" she shouted through the door. "Fuck off, Hill! We'll be out in 5 minutes." Carol yelled back. 

Inside the room, Maria Rambeau let out a breathless laugh, still recovering from her recent orgasm. "I swear she has a sixth sense that tells her when we've had sex because she always knows." Carol huffed, rolling her eyes from her place on the floor; her head had indeed been between her wife's thighs but Hill didn't need to know that. "You do the same to her." Maria reminded her. Carol didn't reply because her wife was right, like always. 

10 minutes later, the 3 women were backstage waiting for the cue to go on. "You ready for this Hill?" Maria Rambeau asked, referring to Maria revealing her marriage tonight. "As ready as I'll ever be." Maria answered, confidently. 

“That's the beauty of a secret you know you're supposed to keep it but I don't have to fucking tell you anything, anything” Maria finished singing the outro for Strange Love, which tonight was the last song on the setlist when it's usually the first. However, since they were bringing Natasha out soon, Maria thought it would be fitting to put the first song she ever wrote about Natasha last. The crowd was screaming and Maria couldn't help but smile because they did this; her, Carol, and Maria. Tour always made her happy because she really loved her fans, but she can't lie and say she won't be happy to stay home and just be with Nat. 

"So, as many of you know, Chicago is my hometown. I love it here and I love all of you. That being said, I have a surprise. We have a new song dropping tomorrow and tonight, you'll be the first to hear it." The crowd went crazy with screams. Maria loved the energy which helped calm her nerves for the inevitable reveal. "As with many of the songs I write, this one is about my beloved wife, who happens to be here tonight. I'm not telling you where though, you'll have to figure it out yourselves." Maria could see heads turning trying to see where Natasha could be but unbeknownst to them, Natasha wasn't in the crowd.

Maria turned her attention to Rambeau and Carol, who nodded in encouragement before starting the music. "This one is called She's My Collar." she announced before beginning

"If I could take her down and run, then I'd call her 'Cause she's standing drama, she know I'll call her She's getting on the sun and then she ordered Imagine me, imagine me now"

Backstage in a long burgundy dress with black detailing stood Natasha Romanoff-Hill. Her red hair was currently pinned and hidden under her dress, she had on 5 inch burgundy heels to match her dress. Next to her, was her sister Yelena Belova – soon to be Maximoff-Belova – who was finishing up her older sisters' makeup. 

"Are you nervous?" Yelena asked as she finished up. While Natasha did have her own makeup artist, she liked having Yelena do it for really big moments because they meant more. 

"No. Not at all." the redhead spoke matter of factly. She had told her wife the truth earlier, she wasn't nervous at all. "I love Maria. Maria loves me. The world knowing will never change that."

"Well, then good luck Sestra. I'll be watching with Wanda." Yelena said, squeezing her hands before leaving to find her fiancee. Natasha watched her little sister go and couldn't help but smile. She really loved her sister. Nat turned to the mirror and saw the finished product. I'm definitely getting Yelena whatever she wants, this has to be her best look yet she thought to herself. 

"Two minutes, Miss Romanoff. Please get in position." A stage manager came to Natasha before rushing to go handle something. Nat took a deep breath before taking her place in the wings. "She's the one I'm running with she's the one I'm running with she's the one I'm running with She's my collar" Her verse was next, it was time. 

"I'm yellow, she was blue it's nothing that she could hide" Natasha sang, her gaze focused on nothing but her wife. Maria was stunned, Natasha was a vision in red and made her breathless. "We made a green meadow whenever we would collide" Nat made her way to Maria, who finally snapped out of her haze. The taller woman smiled at her wife before placing a kiss on the back of her free hand. "I died a thousand times, I did what I had to do. Hey, that's just how it goes I'm still coming back to you" When Natasha finished her final verse, she gave Maria a big smile.

"I don't take her number, just don't think I'd call her (you, you, you) I take her down to somewhere dreading all day (you, you, you, you) I clear my system, I don't need no other (you, you, you) This is my persona, secret lover (she's my collar)" They sang together in perfect unison. In sync like always. 

"She's the one I'm running with She's the one I'm running with She's the one I'm running with. She's my collar" Maria sung the final words of the song with finality before pulling Natasha into a searing kiss. Nat wrapped her arms around her wife's neck returning the kiss just as much feeling.

"Chicago, I'd like to introduce you to the love of my life; Natasha Romanoff-Hill." Pandemonium. All around you only heard screaming and in the sea of people, you could only see phones. "Nice to meet you all properly." Natasha mused. The crowd was in awe at the reveal, they couldn't believe it. 

"Since our tour is coming to an end, Carol, Rambeau, and myself decided you guys needed a surprise because you're fucking amazing, so the new song was that. Nat coming out here was simply me wanting the world to know that I am in love with this amazing woman and we've been together for 10 years." Maria spoke excitedly. The nervousness she felt earlier seemed silly now. Of course her fans loved Natasha. Who wouldn't?

After finally telling the crowd goodnight, clearing out the dressing room, and fighting through the heaps of paps, Natasha and Maria we're settled into the condo Maria had there. The two women were happy to relax in the privacy of their home. Since the reveal and the walk to the limo, their phones had been blowing up which led them to being turned off for the night.  

"Well, this has to be the most exciting anniversary we've ever had." Nat's voice broke their comfortable silence. The redhead was still in her dress from earlier only now her hair was in a messy bun as she took off her makeup. 

"What about that one anniversary we went skydiving together?" Maria questioned leaning in the doorway wearing the sports bra and sweats she changed into after the show. She stood, admiring her wife. 13 years together, 10 of them as a married couple, and Natasha's beauty still takes Maria's breath away. 

"While that was fun and exciting; but this was better. Now the world knows you're mine." Green connected with blue through the mirror and the tension increased by tenfold. Maria walked behind her and placed a delicate kiss on her neck. "Now the world knows you're mine." Maria echoed. "I didn't get to tell you earlier, but you look gorgeous." Maria complimented. 

Natasha hummed. "Thank you, I thought it would be perfect for tonight. I was hoping you'd like it." She had gotten the dress months ago and never found an occasion to wear it for.

"Like it? I love it and I'm going to love it a lot more on our bedroom floor." Maria said before picking Natasha up bridal style and carrying her to the bed. She had plans for her wife and they definitely didn't involve wearing that dress, no matter how pretty it was.

Outside, the world was freaking out about the news that Lesbian Fury and Russian Roulette's lead singers were not only in a relationship, but married. Their lives were forever changed. They'd have to do interviews and such in the future, but that was later. Right now, they planned on enjoying each other as much as they could because in their room, they were just Ria and Nat.

[marvelsassbutts]

What’s a headcanons that you haven’t yet shared that you absolutely belief even if there’s no evidence of it. Mine is that Maria’s mom can’t stand Carol despite knowing how happy she makes Maria something about that girl just bugs her lmao. Also that Carol might’ve known and crushed first (the direction most fics go which I love because who wouldn’t fall for Maria?) But that Maria made the first move because Carol was beating around the bush and didn’t want to ‘ruin’ their best friendship. And Maria was over it and wanted to bang it out that night lmao. Also the fact that Maria tried dating someone those first few months after Carol left again because she still hadn’t remembered and communication was so sporadic but she calls out Carol’s name in the middle of sex and that’s the end of that 😂

love all of these sm😭

i always headcanon that maria's parents get along with carol super well though!! only because when they show up for a brief moment in captain marvel i have to imagine the conversation being like:

"maria what's going on?!"

"i'm going to space i need you to watch monica"

"to SPACE?! WHAT IN THE-"

"carol's back im going with her"

"monica will have dinner and be in bed by 9, love you both"

I WANNA KNOW THAT CONVO SO BAD😭😭😭😭

other headcanons oooh let me think i have so many!

okay this one i have definitely shared in my writing but pierre being a confidant for both carol and maria when they were crushing on each other and he's so ready for them to get together he thinks they're insufferable

maria's favorite pet name for carol is "honey"

carol secretly visited maria during those 30 years and only avoided monica

the guns n' roses concert was their first date

maria demanded carol be in the delivery room with her and the nurses were too afraid to say no

THEY BROKE UP/DIDN'T SPEAK AS MUCH AT SOME POINT SORRY I'LL SAY IT

aaaannd i'm blanking but it's literally okay because i have a TWITTER dedicated to headcanons for them😭

[thatmexisaurusrex]

Fics Fourteen, Fifteen, and Sixteen of A Very Marvel Holidays Anthology are Up!

HEY, PEOPLE! I’VE POSTED MORE OF MY A VERY MARVEL HOLIDAYS ANTHOLOGY! Fics fourteen, fifteen, and sixteen are up now on AO3! I can't believe I'm almost done! The prompts used for these next three fics?

14. (SamBucky) Sam Finds Bucky, a Hyades (a rainmaker nymph), That Became Snow Due to the Cold

15. (CarolMaria) Skiing Trip for the Holidays

16. (SamChi) One Night at the Bar After a Mission Over the Holidays

Wow, I only have one more installment of this series after this. Dang. Kind of weird when you get to the end of something. Anyways, here’s more info on those fics! Enjoy and have a very happy holiday season! 🥰

Title: The Lonely Mountain at the Edge of the World

Pairing: Sam Wilson/Bucky Barnes

Rating: G

Word Count: 774

Prompt: Sam Finds Bucky, a Hyades (a rainmaker nymph), That Became Snow Due to the Cold

EXCERPT:

Sam wasn’t sure what he was looking at. Snow formed into human wandering down the mountainside. Sam stared curiously into the dark night, watching the moon softly light what had to have been a nymph missing an arm, spreading snow wherever he went. “I feel you,” said the nymph, a hyades if he was the one making the snow, turning his piercing gaze over to Sam, “Welcome, kind traveler. To the lonely mountain at the edge of the world.”

Title: Just Another Moment With You

Pairing: Maria Rambeau/Carol Danvers

Rating: G

Word Count: 780

Prompt: Skiing Trip for the Holidays

EXCERPT:

And there was still a lot about herself that Carol was trying to figure out. There was a lot that she was still trying to know. But if there was anything that felt right, it was this. Maria. Monica. They felt right. And Carol knew she couldn’t stay for long, knew the stars were calling too her, but at least in this brief moment, she could be there for them. So, she took them skiing.

Title: Meet Up at the Bar

Pairing: Sam Wilson/Shang-Chi

Rating: T

Word Count: 1,169

Prompt: One Night at the Bar After a Mission Over the Holidays

EXCERPT:

“You like him,” Katy had said the first time she saw him watching Sam in action months after Shang-Chi first met the man, unable to stop gazing at what seemed to be a metal angel floating down to the earth to talk it out with a rhino guy. “What? No,” said Shang-Chi, laughing, but Katy could see right through his words. “Uh-uh, I can tell,” she had said to him, “You like him.” “Don’t do anything weird,” said Shang-Chi. “Mm-hm. Sure. Not doing anything,” Katy had said, giving him a knowing nod that made Shang-Chi nervous because that totally meant she was going to do something drastic. “I’m serious,” said Shang-Chi, trying not to catch the attention of Captain America as he did his thing, calming down the guy in a rhino outfit by talking to him about his daughter, “No funny business, Katy. I never look cool around Sam as is. You can’t interfere.” “Okay. Not going to interfere,” said Katy, which definitely meant that Katy was going to interfere.

[whiteravengreywolf]

It’s Been a Long Long Time (CarolMaria fanfic)

A/N: Here’s an extract of my new CarolMaria story. It’s just fluff set in a WW2 AU. If you want to read more, the link for the full story will be at the end of the post.

They swayed with the music, slowly. Carol had turned out to be the most clumsy of the two, her sock-clad feet accidentally stepping on Maria's feet often enough for Maria to make fun of her. After a while, the blonde had gotten the hang of it, and now she only stepped on Maria on purpose, to push herself just a few inches up and place a kiss high on Maria's cheek.

The trumpet was replaced by the voice of a singer, and Maria closed her eyes and let the lyrics sink in. Carol watched her do with a smile. She placed a kiss on her neck and closed her eyes as well, sighing happily. Her breath tickled Maria's neck, who couldn't quite hold her smile. They basked in each other's warmth, even if it wasn't a particularly cold night. Maria's fingers moved slightly. She found the edge of Carol's skirt. Her shirt would usually be tugged inside, but after a day of frantically running around looking for a job, the shirt had moved and bundled and turned. Maria barely had to pull on it to find Carol's warm skin underneath, and the scar she had left from that time she'd been shot. Carol shivered when she felt Maria's finger gently caressing her scar. She didn't stop her. She'd come so close to death that time, it was good for Maria to remember that she was still there, in her arms, and she didn't plan on going anywhere else anytime soon.

Behind them, on the couch, Carol's orange tabby cat had fallen asleep a long time ago, stretched on the length of the couch itself as it belonged to her. So they were three then, Carol realized with a smile. Three in a tiny apartment in Greenwich Village that was not even big enough for one.

"We should move out..." Carol breathed out against Maria's neck.

Maria opened her eyes and smiled.

"Where to?" she asked jokingly. "We barely had the money to rent this place for the month."

Carol removed her head from Maria's collarbone to her lover's sadness and looked at Maria's face.

"Well, I have an idea, but you'll have to hear me out."

Maria placed a kiss on Carol's forehead as they continued to sway. The song had stopped and after a brief silence, another song started. It was a French song the soldiers had brought back with them to America. The melody was catchy, calling for an energized dance. Carol and Maria continued to gently sway, their rhythm unchanged by the music. Maria didn't understand the lyrics. Carol understood a little, after all, you didn't spend two months in a French war hospital without picking up a few things. It was a love song, that much she was sure of.

"How about we move to England?" Carol suggested.

Full story link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19112068

[boasamishipper]

endgame review (spoilers!!!)

okay so now that i’ve finally stopped crying and had a good night’s sleep here are all of my thoughts on avengers endgame:

things i liked:

the opening scene with clint losing his wife and kids -- my heart was in my throat the whole time; i felt so so bad for him

nebula and tony bonding

steve getting rid of that beard like thank god

tony and pepper reuniting

tony FINALLY telling steve off for everything; as a lifelong tony stan this was super cathartic

scott reuniting with cassie; in fact, all of scott’s scenes were awesome

bonus - the fact that the only reason any of this was able to happen was because a rat accidentally turned the machine back on

the fact that tony got married to pepper!!! and had a daughter!!! he was such a good dad to baby morgan i loved it

carol’s new haircut  👌 👌 👌

tony looking at peter’s picture  😭 😭😭

“shit :)”

“i love you 3000″

all of the time travel scenes. did the rules make sense? nope. did i love seeing the crew go back in time to all of the previous avengers movies and see their past selves and fuck around with the timeline? absolutely.

going off that -- getting to see all the minor characters like jane and frigga and hank was awesome. i loved the entire time heist plot.

loki making fun of cap by transforming into him

“hail hydra” followed by that smirk (and the fact that they made fun of the whole hydra!cap thing was awesome)

the cap vs cap fight

thor getting to talk to his mother

tilda swinton’s character and bruce talking. seeing her again was def a surprise.

nebula and gamora talking and teaming up to fuck thanos over. karen gillam was great in this film.

tony getting to talk to his father (and the fact that the code name he used was howard potts like??? i cry)

“we’re a long way from budapest” be still my 2013 clintasha heart

the new infinity gauntlet being made out of tony’s iron man hand

the fact that they brought everyone back without fucking up the timeline. i was so worried they’d have to erase tony’s kid from existence but they didn’t so thank god.

steve wielding mjolnir. ngl that was pretty cool.

EVERYONE COMING BACK!!! (i knew it was coming. everyone knew it was coming. but it was still great to see.)

steve saying “avengers assemble”

PETER AND TONY’S REUNION!!! (i waited an entire fucking year for this and it was WORTH IT)

PEPPER FIGHTING ALONGSIDE TONY!!! HOPE FIGHTING ALONGSIDE SCOTT!!! battle couple goals :D

“hey peter parker”

“i am inevitable.” “i am...iron man.” S O B B I N G

tony’s death. like am i sad that tony died??? 150%. but it made narrative sense, he got to be happy with his kid and pepper (for however brief of a time), he found the loophole in time travel that allowed him to save everybody, and he dusted thanos. “you can rest now.”  😭😭😭 a fitting ending for the strongest avenger.

the entire funeral scene. the viking funeral wreath thing with the “proof tony stark has a heart” on it??? GOOD SHIT. i was bawling.

happy and morgan. that kid’s going to have happy wrapped around her little finger.

tony’s final message

the thorkyrie scene (even if i didn’t like what was being said i’m glad they shared some screentime.)

harley coming back!!!

sam becoming captain america (THANK GOD)

the end credits with rdj (the man who singlehandedly made the mcu amazing) being billed last. the theater was cheering and crying at the same time and it was amazing.

the final bit at the end with the noise from tony making his first suit. 😭😭😭

things i didn’t like:

the way they treated thor. taika made thor so amazing in ragnarok and the russos (and the screenwriters) got jealous and shit all over it!!! wtf!!! (and all of the fat jokes and jokes about his ptsd were NOT cool. didn’t like rocket slapping him out of his panic attack either.) can’t believe they made him an alcoholic who sits on his ass and plays fortnite all day. wtf.

for that matter -- i CANNOT believe that he would just up and fuck off with the guardians of the galaxy and abandon his people. is valkyrie a worthy leader??? absolutely. but so is thor!!! that was his entire arc in endgame like WTF!!!! (also the fact that we didn’t get a thorkyrie kiss is fucking CRIMINAL)

also why couldn’t he keep the short hair??? why did he have to get mjolnir back when taika went to all the trouble of showing he didn’t need the hammer to be a hero? did they just want to fuck up EVERYTHING that taika did?

the ending for steve. ‘nuff said.

no you know what? i’m going to go into this further. do i like steve? no. i never have. his actions toward tony in civil war put him on my shitlist forever, and that’s all i am willing to say about that. but you expect me to believe that steve fucking rogers (who KNEW that peggy moved on, lived a good life and had a husband and kids) really went back and fucked up the timeline just to be with her? he barely knew her!! they barely bonded in the first avenger at all!! also there are so many plotholes with how in the world he managed that (what happened when the other cap woke up from the ice???) also does this mean that his ‘romance’ with sharon is technically incest??? and did he just live out the rest of his life with peggy knowing that bucky was being tortured by hydra? insert “it’s bad writing” gif here.

(i am glad that he passed the shield onto sam though. bucky would have been a terrible choice for captain america.)

ALSO. you know who would have been a better choice to go back in time and live the rest of their life with the people that they loved and could not be with due to reasons outside their control? CAROL MOTHERFUCKING DANVERS. let her go back in time and live a happy life with her wife and kid. #carolmaria4evr

the fact that natasha died instead of clint. i literally cannot fucking believe that they fridged the first female avenger just for clint’s (and everyone’s) man pain. it was bad enough when they fridged gamora for thanos’s man pain. clint should have died in nat’s place and the fact that he didn’t is a huge fucking cop out and that’s the that on that.

for that matter -- clint’s entire storyline prior to going back in time was WILD. his only explanation for killing all those people was “thanos snapped half the universe and you didn’t die so imma kill you.”  FUCKING WHAT????

the fact that the russos are patting themselves on the back for their “woke lgbt rep” that was actually just a “leave for the bathroom and miss it” extra. you know what would have been better? a stucky ending. a sambucky ending. carol going home to monica and maria. valkyrie kissing a girl. ANYTHING would have been better than that.

speaking of carol -- she was CRIMINALLY underused in this movie. she was barely shown mourning fury (and also!!! why did we get no confirmation about monica and maria????) and barely spoke to the team in general. i thought she was going to have a major role (and would help them go back in time) but she didn’t and that disappointed me.

did i like the fact that she destroyed thanos’s fleet? yes. but i wish she was used more. she’s the most powerful avenger ever!!! and i wish that she got to speak more with tony as they’re friends in the comics.

(BRIE LARSON IS AN ACADEMY AWARD WINNING ACTRESS AND THEY BARELY USED HER!!! LIKE WTF)

i won’t even get into the makeup thing bc that’s already been said and done. actually no i will. there was no reason for her to have perfect hair and lipstick and makeup. that’s not who she is. please let butch ladies continue to be butch please and thank you.

the fact that they didn’t bring gamora and natasha back :(

this might be controversial but i didn’t love the fact that pepper and tony suddenly retired to a lakehouse and became stay at home parents. i was totally expecting pepper and tony to keep running stark industries and make it into a charity organization that helped people in need/those affected by the snap.

the fact that they never fucking explained how time travel worked and WHY they couldn’t just go back and kill thanos as a baby (that was a good suggestion!). and the thing where nebula shot her past self and somehow lived??? it made no sense. i mean. i know it’s bad writing. but i was expecting it to be at least a LITTLE better. where are my explanations.

speaking of bad writing -- did the avengers ever come out and say the reason that everyone got dusted? did everyone know it was bc of thanos? why are some places in such states of disrepair and others are not? who ruled wakanda since shuri and t’challa were dusted? so many unanswered questions. rip.

the directing of the final battle was on par with the throne room battle scene in the last jedi in that both are chaotic and messy and that’s the that on that. as was the scene where hawkeye was beating up the yakuza. messy. lame. yawn.

the scene with all of the female superheroes. was it cool? sure. do i wish natasha could have been there? YES. do i wish that the mcu had more female superheroes? DOUBLE YES. was it a blatant attempt for the russos to pat themselves on the back and be like “sEE!! WE’RE FEMINISTS!!! LOOK AT US!!”?? definitely.

honestly, i was expecting the acting to be way worse than it was based on how all my mutuals were going off about it. overall, though, it was clear in some scenes that the actors had no idea what the context of their lines were and the acting was pretty meh throughout, and for the biggest marvel movie of the year the acting should be a damn sight better than “meh”. but this just reinforces what i know already, which is that the russos are shitty directors. get them as far away from the mcu as possible please and thank you.

things i wish we got:

a carolmaria reunion

a peter&may reunion

a fury&everyone (and esp a fury&carol reunion)

clint sacrificing himself instead of nat sacrificing herself

valkyrie talking to thor about overcoming alcoholism and ptsd

thor staying in new asgard with his people

steve going back and dancing with peggy like he promised and THEN going back to the future (where all of his friends are) and retiring or helping fury bring back shield.

better writers

better directors

an end credits scene that set up phase 4 (tho i assume we will be getting that in spiderman far from home)

tldr - thor got fucked over. tony is a hero and the love of my life. steve shouldn’t have gone back in time to be with peggy. nat shouldn’t have been fridged. the writing was meh and the directing was worse. not the complete and utter shitshow i was expecting, but not the so-called greatest movie in the mcu. give rdj an honorary oscar. 6/10.

[pruesgaultier]

Happy Birthday, Nat

summary: VERY late i know but it’s natasha birthday and maria has the perfect plan

December 3rd, 1984. The day Natasha Romanoff was born. Natasha doesn't like celebrating her birthday, mainly because the Red Room didn't allow for such things, so she doesn't feel like it's important. However, Clint along with Maria, Maria R, Carol, and Fury, she's learning that things such as birthdays, downtime, and other things are just as important as getting missions done. So today, they all made sure the world wasn't ending so Natasha could spend time with them as a family.

Maria woke up bright and early to make Nat breakfast which consisted of homemade blueberry muffins, a recipe her grandma taught her when she was younger. She had made them for Natasha last year and Nat fell in love with them. Maria smiled as he plated the final muffin before picking up a candle and lighting it before putting it on the top muffin. She picked up the plate and carefully made her way back to their bedroom. Maria gently opened the door before smiling at the sight of Natasha curled up in bed, burrowed under the covers because of the slight chill while Liho was asleep on the cat pillow near Nat's head. Maria gently sat the plate down on the bedside table before making his way over to Natasha's side of the bed.

He gently ran his fingers through her hair. "Sweetheart, wake up." Maria whispered softly. Natasha stirred but didn't wake up. "Baby, get up." she said a little louder. Sleepy green eyes locked onto hers, "Mia, what time is it?" Natasha muttered, bringing a hand up to cover her yawn. "It's just after 11." Maria said, glancing at the clock on the table. "Ugh, it's our day off Ria, why'd you wake me up so early." Natasha pouted. Maria just rolled over to grab the muffins. "Happy birthday, my love." He said, presenting the plate to his girlfriend. Natasha's eyes lit up seeing the plate. "Are these the homemade blueberry muffins you won't tell me the recipe to?" Natasha asked, eyes full of glee. "Yes, these are those muffins. Now, make a wish." Nat closed her eyes and made a wish before blowing out the candle. "Thank you, baby. I adore you." That was the closest Maria would get to an 'I love you' and he was fine with that. Natasha was still learning that love wasn't for children and that she was deserving of love and that she could give love. 

Natasha took a muffin off the plate and took a bite. "Mhm. This is so good, Mia." Natasha moaned. Maria's cooking was out of this world and Natasha loved it so much. Maria cooked for them and always tried new recipes, while Nat tried the food and failed at cooking with Maria. But it was nice, having someone to come home to, someone who takes care of her like this. She's never had that before. Maria moved to sit against the headboard. "Eat up. We're going out and we have to get ready soon." Maria told her. "Where are we going?" Nat questioned curiously. "We're going ice skating." she replied. Natasha squealed. Squealed. Maria was expecting a good reaction but he didn't expect her to squeal with excitement. "Seriously?!" See, Natasha had gone on a long rant a few weeks ago about how she really wanted to go ice skating because she wanted to try some of the tricks and with her ballet training it shouldn't be that hard, but could never find the time. Maria being the amazing girlfriend that she is, rented out an entire rink just for today. Natasha didn't know about that yet. "Yes, seriously. Now come on, we have to get dressed. Go shower and I'll feed Liho." Maria ushered her out of bed before picking up Liho and leaving the room. 

Natasha smiled as she watched her girlfriend and cat – but not her cat even though it's been 3 years – leave. She's never been this happy, especially not on her birthday of all days. She really loved him, even if she hadn't said it. She wants to say it, she'd wanted to say it when Maria literally walked through fire to save her after a mission went wrong, but she's scared. Good things don't last for her, they never do. She's still the Black Widow, people want her dead and will go to any and all lengths to get to her. If they find out about Maria, they could hurt her. Or worse, kill her. Of course Natasha knows Maria can take care of himself just fine, however it was just a fear she couldn't shake. Natasha shook her head. It was her birthday and her girlfriend was taking her ice skating, so that's what she should be focused on. 

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After both women showered and got ready, it was time for them to leave. Maria didn't tell Nat any other details about their ice skating trip, just that it wasn't that far. Natasha was practically bouncing with excitement, Maria can't remember seeing her this excited; but she thought it was cute. When they pulled up to the rink, Natasha practically jumped out of the car. "Come on Mia! I'm ready to skate." Maria laughed and quickly got out of the car. She took Natasha's hand to lead her to the rink. Maria flipped on the lights and to Natasha's surprise Fury, Carol, Maria Rambeau, and Clint all yelled "SURPRISE!" Natasha jumped back in surprise before a big smile graced her face. 

"What are you guys doing here?!" she asked excitedly. "I wasn't going to miss the birthday of my favorite child." Fury told her, ignoring the offended gasps of both Marias, Clint, and Carol. "Don't act offended, y'all are too smart to not have known." He replied like the smartass he was. Natasha jumped on Maria, who just barely managed to not fall over. "Thank you!" she muttered over and over. "There's no need to thank me. Now, we have this place to ourselves for two hours, so let's have some fun." Maria said.

The group went to put on the skates they had gotten from the skate rental when they arrived earlier, Clint bringing over Maria's. Nat went to head over there when Maria stopped her. "You're not gonna be needing those." Maria stated matter of factly. Natasha made a confused face "Why not?" Maria didn't reply, just signaled to Fury who picked up a bag and handed it to Natasha. She took the box out of the bag and opened it to find a pair of black ice skates with red laces. There was even an 'N' in the corner of the skate. Nat was speechless. No one had ever gone to these lengths to make her happy, she didn't know how to feel. "They're beautiful." she whispered out as she stared at the in awe. "Now, put them on and we'll see if you'll actually be as good as this as you say." Natasha and Maria put their skates on and headed toward the ice. Nick flat out refused to ice skate, something about not wanting to embarrass himself and keep his dignity.

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Natasha’s a natural on the ice, but no one’s really surprised. Maria can’t help but watch in awe as Natasha glides across the ice so effortlessly, so freely. She looks beautiful and Maria thinks he just fell in love with her all over again. Natasha does tricks that have taken even the best of ice skaters years to learn and perfect so easily. Carol being the competitive person that she was, tried and failed to outdo Nat but that just landed her with a face full of ice and her girlfriend scolding her in the corner while she pouted. 

“Masha, come here!” Natasha's voice captured Maria’s attention. He skated over to the center where Natasha was waiting. Maria went to speak but was interrupted by Natasha pulling Maria her down in a tight hug which Maria returned just as tight. “What’s wrong?” She asked after she heard Nat sniffle in her ear. Nat pulled back from the hug so she could look Maria in the eyes. “I never thought I would have this. I never thought I would be free, let alone celebrating my birthday with people that actually care about me. I don’t deserve this, Mia. Not after all the bad I’ve done.” She was a killer, she didn’t deserve to be happy after all that she’d done. 

“Hey, none of that. You deserve good things and you deserve to be happy. You didn’t have a choice then, but you have one now. One that you’re using to be better, to do better. Everyone here loves you regardless of what you’ve done because you cared enough to be more than who they made you.” Maria spoke softly, but firmly. Natasha often thought she was undeserving of many things, but Maria would always be there to remind her that she was. "I love you.” Nat’s voice was shaky when she said the words, fear lacing her heart. She loves Maria so much, “Can you repeat that? I don’t think I hear you over how loud my heart is beating.” Maria’s voice cracked a little. “Maria Hill, I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I lo-” Maria cut her off with a kiss. “I love you so much more.” She said after they came up for air.

“Hill! Keep your hands where I can see them! That’s my favorite daughter you’re kissing on!” Fury yelled from where he was sitting. Maria just put her middle finger up toward him while bringing Natasha in for another kiss. Fury and the others just laughed. Natasha was happy and in love and that’s all that mattered.