#but i was just reminded of that breaking bad scene when tony said this

[takemetodragonstone]

we as a society talk a lot about walter white’s “I am the danger. I am the one who knocks!” but i feel we don’t talk enough about tony soprano’s “I’m the motherfucking fucking one who calls the shots!”

[vykio]

"Shall I say hello?"

Flash fic challenge!

Jane prompted: Andrew and Renee summer camp (bonus: archery scene). This is the slightly extended version of the scene I wrote!

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“He’s staring again.”

Renee looks up at Artie, then follows his gaze over her shoulder. There’s a table against the wall that everyone seems content ignoring. That’s fine, Renee supposes, since its single occupant prefers to sit alone and keep watch. Andrew is looking their way, but she thinks he just sensed their eyes on him. 

Artie says, “He’s always staring. It’s so weird.”

“You noticed, too?” Next to her, Charlie shudders dramatically. Artie copies her but ups the drama, wrapping his arms around himself as he shakes.

“You were staring first,” Renee reminds him casually. Finally, Artie breaks to look at her instead, a grimace seriously twisting his face.

“No, I wasn’t. I just noticed he was staring because I just looked that way.”

Renee had been inspecting her sandwich for its contents when he made his remark, so she won’t debate him on it. 

“He’s a starer,” Charlie says. “Have you noticed he stares at you a lot, Renee?”

She hasn’t, not really. Andrew and her exchange looks sometimes but it’s never unsettling like the others are making it out to be. When the instructors make bad jokes, he’ll find her in the crowd to roll his eyes and it makes her laugh. She says, “Maybe he wants to make friends.”

“He’s too scary to make friends,” Charlie says.

“He doesn’t talk to anyone,” Artie says, “not even if you’re speaking directly to him.”

“He talks to me.”

They all blink at Renee.

Charlie leans into her and whispers, “What does he say?”

He tells her when her shoelaces are untied, which is very nice of him.

He’d once instructed her to tell the camp counsellors he’d rather drop dead than do the zipline. “If they ask,” he’d said, “I’m foraging in the forest.” She’d thought foraging had been a fun, but she hadn’t gotten the chance to use it; no one had asked for Andrew until roll call after the session, and by then, he’d quietly returned.

Renee finds she’s neither good or bad at archery, but his advice at the range had been particularly useful for improving her stance. The range was outside and covered in nature’s debris, but she had not heard him approach until he’d said her name.

He’d been standing next to her some paces away, his eyes wide with concern, though his expression flattened when he’d successfully caught her attention.

“Drop your shoulder,” he’d told her. She’d dropped the shoulder drawing the string. Andrew circled to her other side and said, “No, this shoulder.”

She did, and when he was satisfied with her form, he’d let her shoot. She’d been steadier, her shot more sure, and it pleased her. He’d said, “Remember that,” then walked away before she could thank him.

Renee shrugs. “Normal stuff.”

“He’s not normal,” Artie is quick to say. “Caroline said he totally followed her around camp once and—you remember? He picked a fight with Tony and broke his nose.”

Shut up rises and swirls in her throat, but she swallows it back and buries it down. She doesn’t want to be irritated with her fellow camp mates, but these kinds of talks of Andrew have been popular because he keeps to himself and doesn’t stand for bullies. Renee won’t ever say Tony deserved the beating he got, but she doubts it was unprovoked.

She clears the gossip from her mind and corrects her mood with a practiced smile. “His nose was not broken. Shall I say hello?”

“No,” Artie hisses. He lunges at her from across the table but his grip is shaky. She easily breaks free from it and climbs over the bench with her tray in hand.

Andrew notices her immediately as she strides over to where he’s sitting. He looks suspicious of her but doesn’t tell her to go away when she invites herself to sit.

“Hello, Andrew,” she says.

He glances over at the table she vacated, then slides his gaze back to openly stares at her for a long minute. “Cool hair,” Andrew says, and Renee smiles brightly at him.

“Thank you.” She tugs at the blue tips of her hair then tucks her bangs behind her ear. She should tie her hair back to get it out of her way. “I did it myself.”

“I can tell.”

Renee laughs, not at all offended by that. She draws her eyebrows together to look upset, but her smile is too wide. “Hey, it’s hard work, you know. It won’t always look nice but I’m proud of it anyway.”

Andrew grunts, which Renee takes as acknowledgment. She asks, “Have you ever dyed your hair?”

“No.”

“Would you want to?”

“You just said it’s hard work.”

“Well, sometimes it is.”

“I prefer never to do hard work.”

“You like archery.” Andrew narrows his eyes at her accusation. “That’s hard work.”

Andrew doesn’t answer that. Instead, he puts his drink down and switches his sandwich for Renee’s. She watches him for a moment, amused as he appears to ignore her and takes a bite of her original sandwich.

“What’s this?” she asks, sliding her tray forward. 

She’s lifting one of the edges of the sandwich when Andrew says, “You hate onions.”

Renee can’t help the surprise that takes over her face. She smiles, wide and true and pleased to be known. She puts her dessert jello in his tray as thanks, and he shrugs one shoulder as if to say thank you and you’re welcome at the same time.

[ishipallthings]

Cap-IM Rec Week 2023 (Thurs)

Golden Oldies Thursday, July 20 for @cap-ironman Rec Week!

This is a day late, but here are some of my favorite older Steve/Tony classics!

Remember to show some love for your hard-working creators!

The Twice-Told Tale by arysteia

For someone he'd hero-worshipped for so long, Steve Rogers in the flesh is a pretty big disappointment. For one thing, he keeps looking at Tony as though he reminds him of someone else, and even if he never says anything, Tony's pretty sure it's his father. A lifetime of not measuring up to Howard's expectations is more than enough, thank you very much, and he's certainly not going to make an effort to live up to any of Steve's. Steve's pretty clearly failed to live up to his expectations, in any case, and that's not hypocritical at all.

(First Impressions Are) A Work in Progress by ras_elased

Tony has a point system for the times he can get Steve to be less than perfect.

i stole the keys to this guy by kellifer_fic:

Where it was Nick Fury's idea, but he didn't mean it like that.

many names in history, none of them are ours by aubkae

Steve's not sure if he'll ever understand Tony Stark, but it's good, living here. If he still wakes up sometimes convinced this was all a dream, well, it's better than it was before, and that's something, isn't it? The Avengers live in a world that both glorifies and fears them, but they know each other now behind the scenes.

bedrock and brick by lyra_wing

Immediate sequel to the movie, wherein Tony builds Avengers Tower. Or plays interior designer, take your pick.

Four (Or Five) Reasons for Kidnapping Tony Stark by scifigrl47 @scifigrl47

There are four reasons for kidnapping Tony Stark. Tony's sick of all of them. Well, there's potentially a fifth, but it's highly unlikely that Captain America will suddenly fulfill THAT fantasy. Tony's deeply disappointed about that. Steve Rogers, as always, is oblivious. At least, that is, until someone who isn't him kidnaps Tony. Then he's just pissed.

Honey, I Can See The Stars by twentysomething:

"The most he'd ever cared about anything remotely related was his uniform, which, beyond the stylistic, was pretty necessary. But now his suit comes from a lab far more advanced than the basement of a Brooklyn antique shop, and the only decision he really gets to make is if his pants are too tight. (They were, but he doesn't really think they changed them. He doesn't know why, but he thinks that might have been on purpose.) That being said, he doesn't know what he's done to deserve the double take Tony gives him as he walks in the room."

Mr. July by jibrailis

Tony is the only one who can defend Steve's virtue. Tony hates his life.

The Best Policy by starknjarvis

Tony Stark breezes through life on bluster and bullshit. When he gets hit by a truth spell, he locks himself away in his workshop so he can find a way to reverse it without anyone finding out. So why can't he say no when Steve keeps asking to spend time with him?

The Most Amazing Things (Some Terrible Lie) by copperbadge @copperbadge

Tony's decision not to reveal his identity as Iron Man to the world was shrewd and calculated. Too bad it's about to backfire on him like a Jericho missile.

the reason you ruminate the shadowy past by Mizzy

So, Captain America effectively manages to cockblock Tony for a year.

It's not Steve's fault. Well, actually, it is. But he was just proving a point - that if a superhero is gay, how can it be wrong? Steve just picked the wrong superhero to make the point with. Now America will think they're dating - and Tony's not going to be the guy to break Captain America's heart.

There's only one way out. To save face, Steve and Tony have to become fake boyfriends. Steve thinks the "boyfriends" bit will be the hardest to act... but maybe it's the "fake" part that will be the hardest act of all.

Even the Light is an Illusion by Mizzy

Death threats are an unfortunate side-effect of being Tony Stark, so he's learned to ignore them. The problem is, when someone really wants you dead, hiding your head in the sand just kinda exposes your ass. But it's not just Tony's behind on the line. Whoever wants him dead wants him to suffer first, and they're willing to do anything to make that happen. Tony knows there's only one way out. To save Steve, the Avengers, and the general public, Tony has to die. Of course, death isn't always the end, and Tony does what any other self-disrespecting scientist would do: he finds a way to fake his death and avenge his own murder. The trouble is, terrible decisions usually have a terrible price, and this one is no different. Tony has a chance to save the day, but the cost may be more than Tony was ever expecting to pay…

Tony Stark and the Super Sleeper, or actually, Soldier by RurouniHime (@thegertie)

The one where Steve keeps falling asleep on Tony.

Two Out of Three (Ain't Bad) by plingo_kat

It blindsides him one morning in the middle of his customary third cup of coffee; Steve walks through the door in loose cotton pants, shirt pulled up to wipe the sweat off his face from his usual morning workout, and Tony thinks: adorable.

and of course, the one that started it all:

Resurrection, Reconstruction & Redemption by Elspethdixon, Seanchai (616)

Doom brings Steve back from the dead. Hijinks ensue, some of which might vaugely be considered plot.

Hope you guys enjoy the recs, and stay tuned for more! Please mind the tags before reading. Check out my tag for previous years’ rec lists :)

[thestarkerisobvious]

Goncharov (Has A Happy Ending)

a

production

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Chapter 1 - Time And Her Cruel Games

“There’s no happy ending for people like us, Andrey. Only the misfortune of time and her cruel games of fancy.”

Tony’s mouth on his was warm and gentle and amazing, and was quickly driving all thoughts out of his head.

At least, that’s what Peter thought.  Up until Tony’s hands began working his ass again.

They had promised themselves they were going to sleep now.   At least, 

that’s what they had said in the shower.  Peter, certainly, was up for a little shut-eye.  Even Tony, the notorious insomniac, had admitted he was ready to try.  

“And you can’t blame jetlag anymore,” Peter reminded him, and not for the first time.  They had been in Naples for two days now.  Peter was actually eager to get out and see Naples, but so far they were still holed up at the top of the hotel.  No one knew they were in Italy, not yet.  Technically they were waiting for Tony to get the word that things were ready in New York.  While Spider-Man was getting photographed webbing up bad guys in NYC, THAT was when Tony and Peter would make their appearance.  

Ever since word got out that the face of Stark Industries was dating a hot youthful intern, the press had started to make noise about Ironman and Spider-Man.  Tony had taken the opportunity to whisk Peter away into hiding, claiming it was all about protecting “Underoos” secret identity.  Peter didn’t argue - he wasn’t in the habit of arguing with his older lover - even though he thought his secret identity’s days were numbered.  And that was okay with him.  Now that he was an official Avenger, and officially Tony’s boyfriend, the whole ‘secret identity’ thing seemed a little childish.  

But he said nothing as Tony made his plans.  There was a Spider-Man double who was geering up to take the stage - a friendly Avenger had volunteered for the role - now they were just waiting for the go-ahead.  Until then, it was their job to hide in the hotel.

At least, that's what they were telling themselves.

Of course… all  this laying around naked in each other’s arms all day and catnapping between sex was turning out to be very pleasant… and neither were very eager to give it up.

And it didn’t help that everything they needed was right there on hand.  In breaks between love-making Peter lazed about, googling all the landmarks that he wanted to see, and Tony was having all the information on the most famous tourist attractions sent up to the hotel room.  He himself had spent many summers there with his “Nonna” and knew a great deal of the country intimately, and was happy to serve as Peter’s tour guide.  When the time came.

Of course, that would require putting their clothes on.  Which so far they hadn’t really managed to do.

“But mostly I want to see the clocktower, the real one.  And the place where you say they actually filmed the scene,” Peter had explained as they worked out their Itinerary with FRIDAY - all a plan for The Day that they wanted to be seen and serendipitously photographed as a couple.  “It HAS to be RIGHT by the wall where they shot that scene - the one that everybody recognizes.  We’ll have to get pics of us by the actual clocktower, obviously…”

Tony was more than a little surprised that Peter was familiar with the movie at all… let alone such an expert on its shooting history, or the authenticity of the locale.  Let alone the accompanied history of Naples, Italy.

“It was an important movie for me… in my formative years…” Peter had said with a shy shrug and a ducked head.  That gesture alone told Tony that this was one secret he was going to learn.

It had been last night (or was it the morning before?  Time was losing all meaning for them in the hotel suite, and Tony loved it that way) that Peter had finally made his confession.  

They were laying skin-to-skin in a tangle of white sheets on the mammoth bed when he began to whisper the story.  “Imagine me, at thirteen, recovering from a tonsillectomy, with nothing to watch on tv… we only had cable then and I was too sick to get up and find a DVD… just flipping through channels.  It came on.  I had no idea what I was looking at… but the remote’s batteries were wearing out and I was too miserable to get up to do anything about it.  That’s why I watched it all the way through.  I thought it was really boring at first… but then…”

Sometimes he giggled and blushed, sometimes he hid his face in Tony’s neck and begged for a reprieve.  He didn’t want to tell this story, which was all the more reason that Tony needed to hear it.

“I thought it was really hot,” Peter finally whispered.  ”These men… they were supposed to hate each other but… but that’s not what it looked like to me…

“And I guess…”  He faltered again and covered his face with one hand.  Even here, laying lip to lip, toe to toe with his lover, he tried to hide.  

“I guess that was the day I first started to imagine…” he said, leaning up another two inches to whisper the secret into Tony’s ear.  “What those two, handsome men really wanted to do with each other.  I didn’t think they really wanted all that violence.  I think they just wanted to do this…”  He molded his long, lean body against Tony’s, entwining their legs and tightening his arms, trailing kisses down Tony’s bare shoulder.  

Tony wanted to know more, of course.  Discovering the movie, the moment that had triggered Peter’s sexual awakening felt like a perfect, surprise clue and all he wanted was more.  But Peter was too tight-lipped about those earliest fantasies.  No amount of teasing, bribing or begging would get Tony any more information.  Finally, he gave up.  

“And of course we’re in love… that’s why I tried to shoot you…” Tony finally joked. 

“If we were really in love you wouldn’t have missed,” Peter quoted back with a grin.

He was rewarded with a kiss.  A warm, gentle, amazing kiss that made Peter wonder if he should remind Tony about his promise to  try to get some sleep… hard to do when Tony’s free hand working its way around and back into interesting places…

“Again?” Peter thought about saying (although he was certainly up for one more go.  They had never done it three times in one night, but there was a first time for everything, wasn’t there?)  But instead, when he opened his mouth, he heard the word “Amazing.”

“Hmmm?” Tony asked, pulling up from the kiss just a little.  Peter looked up at him in the morning sunlight, a little embarrassed.  HE hadn’t meant to say it out loud.

But now Tony was looking down at him with those incredible dark eyes, and he had to speak.  “I said… amazing.  You’re amazing,” he whispered. 

“You’re amazing….”Tony replied, and Peter found himself look up into Tony’s face and seeing something that hadn’t been there before.  Something that almost looked like… fear?  Doubt?”

 “You’re amazing – everything about you is amazing…” the older man was saying now, his voice falling into a whisper.  “... and your mind is incredible and your body is… and the things you let me do to you in bed…”

Peter had to look away, blushing a little and hiding in Tony’s chest.  “The things you ‘let’ me do to you in bed” was a strange way to put it  – as if Peter hadn’t asked for it, as if he wasn’t constantly begging for more…

“But…”

A silence filled the room.  Peter blinked up in alarm. 

“...but?”

He looked up into Tony’s face just in time to see him reaching  up to adjust glasses that weren’t there.

Peter had seen the gesture a million times - Tony’s glasses were the armor he wore when he wasn’t wearing armor.  Peter had seen Tony make that move so many times before… but never around him.  This was the first, and his eyes widened when he realized Tony was trying to protect himself.

“...but… sometimes… well sometimes you reach down and find the watch in the same place the gun was hidden.  Sometimes… dammit kid.”  He shrugged, his eyes fell.  

He had seen the movie too.

“Sometimes… winter just comes to Naples.”

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This is chapter 1 of 3.  The whole story will be posted here this month.

story by @thestarkerisobvious​

incredible art by @mrstarksbaby​

Follow the tag #MrStarksBabyIsObvious Series to see what ELSE we’ve got up our sleeve...

[firstpooher]

As i seen many people pointing this out and I’m really for it, as you said it could be nightmares because of Babe being scared - or it’s his thoughts - Way mentions their “date” - Babe didn’t show up and Tony telling him to work harder - he’s scared that he’s gonna be bad mama and he doesn’t want to let his child down, as well as he doesn’t want to let Charlie down… or it’s the baby. I mean baby development can trigger Babe’s anxiety or it’s connected to baby’s power and it can cause nightmares or visions or so. I know they’re now very much involved into their mama/papa agenda but why did Charlie choose this nickname, I can be delusional but it doesn’t seem like coincidence to me. And I’m also very much for mpreg next season. I think that they should see our engagement and get us the plot we want, I think Pavel will not let us down.

Additionally, I wanted to ask you about one thing. I might be delusional but hear me out. At the end of first season - I mean last episodes (after Charlie’s death) I’m sure that death of the person you live is traumatic but Babe fainting and later crying every occasion, he doesn’t seem to be hormonal for you? I mean I was thinking and amount of tears was hormonal?

yes, on the first point I agree with you, it could be babe scared that he won't be a good 'mama' or as u also said letting the child down, and actually just thinking about it. Their baby. Charlie and babe's baby will mostly be a special one, regardless of his second gender. So maybe babe is also very worried about sth happening to his baby like what happened to him. He is worried about his baby that the baby will be hunted by people like tony too and this appears in his nightmares the chasing the feeling of being caged in way's arms (I applaud Pavel for his acting in this scene and his raw fear and worry) 

The baby will most likely be special. So yes, the baby will be powerful, and it can trigger babe's anxiety a lot, I agree with you. Also yes that specific word used did really confuse us all cuz of all times they said it as i recall starting in EP 6 the word "mama" it was either used as fluff word or a kink (lol we all know charlie fantasies about getting babe pregnant) [fluff charlie first attempt at using was for what?? yeah them having a baby. Running around and calling charlie papa and babe mama after this they used it as a kink lmao] 

But this time it was babe waking up from a nightmare and a word like this can be used like a usual pet name? So charlie would causally address babe by it when he was trying to calm him down (the mere presence of charlie in that time did actually calm babe down, but the word was for assurance) and that it makes me wonder, this little word made my head spin with thoughts the moment I heard and I had to replay it a lot cuz were they trying to really imply he is preggo or those two were fooling around together, still lost in between. 

i hope it will be mpreg too im so excited for it i hope Pavel hears us out, mu is all over the social media so I'm pretty sure he read this a lot lol

he wont disappoint, no.

To address your last question, let me begin by discussing the nature of babe's emotions and feelings from my perspective. He is an emotional alpha male, experiencing raw emotions like happiness, sadness, grief, pain, and anger. These emotions were evident right from the beginning. Personally, I believe he is someone who displays intense emotions when triggered. Therefore, it doesn't seem logical to me. The days when he witnessed the love of his life passing away, seeing their lifeless body, and feeling their absence was too much for him. It was a traumatic experience, and it wasn't the only one he had to endure.

Babe went through many unspoken challenges that we were unaware of. So, when he finally found someone who brought him comfort and peace, only to lose him within a few months, it didn't just break him; I believe it left him wounded, with every corner of his house reminding him of Charlie. It's natural for him to cry his eyes out. If you're considering the possibility of his reaction being influenced by pregnancy hormones, physical sickness could also manifest (depending on the person). However, I don't think his appearance in episode 11, looking pale, supports the pregnancy theory.

[anika-ann]

Love on the Brain - part 6.2

Ch6: Floriography (2/2)

Type: MCU x Criminal Minds crossover series

Pairing: Steve Rogers x reader    Word Count: 6000

Summary: After the long night, you come back to the case with fresh eyes… and a new piece of evidence. You wished more evidence was good news. It’s not.

Series masterlist

Warnings: series includes criminal behaviour such as stalking or kidnapping; graphic violence, gun violence; (mentions of) death; allusions to dub-con; possible PTSD and flashbacks; sexual innuendos and foul language. Loads of fluff and teasing. I’m covering my bases here to make sure - probably sounds worse than it is. If you’re interested in specific warnings for individual chapters, let me know.

A/N: divider by @firefly-graphics​; Second part - the few first paragraphs in italics are from the end of part1 of sixth chapter, just to remind you what’s up 😁

“Why don't you ever use your strength on me?" she said. “Because love means renouncing strength," said Franz softly. – Milan Kundera, The Unbearable Lightness of Being

No one protested against your plan. No one pointed out that the Tony’s coffee machine was a thing from caffeine addicts’ dreams and could prepare virtually anything. No one offered to help you with the large number of cups and sweet treats you had mentioned, understanding that needing air meant needing some alone time too.

It seemed they could all be pretty smart cookies after all – you would crack this case before it was too late, right? There were no other options anyway.

You motioned an awkward ‘gotcha’ on Emily and Hotch, nodding to yourself.

“Should have remembered those orders – some things never change,” you said wistfully, grabbing your phone with a credit care in its case. “Coming right up, guys. It’s on me.”

“Thanks, Bean.”

You smiled tightly at Spence, all but escaping the room as you felt more and more embarrassed at your emotional outburst – something coffee could hardly make up for, especially since it wasn’t your first scene in the past 24 hours.

You were all over the place ever since this mess started and you really did need to get your head straight.

And since getting a good night sleep in Steve’s room – bless him – didn’t help, your morning slip-up only making for more nerves, it seemed that you needed to do it alone.

…

As you stalked towards the elevator, quick on your feet, you heard him before you saw him. You sped up – but you could never outrun a supersoldier.

He fell into step with you, still a foot behind when he tried to talk to you – something you desperately didn’t want to do unless you were interested in falling apart.

“Sparkles,” he called out softly, having you grit your teeth as you ignored the itch to either push him away or to jump into his arms – because everything bad always disappeared when he held you. Or it felt as if it did.

But this wasn’t going to just go away with a hug; you needed to actually solve the case to have that happen and you couldn’t afford to be distracted, be it by your weakness or Steve’s presence or his complete lack of self-preservation.

“Steve, we’ve talked about this,” you hissed. “Go back to that room or I swear to god…”

“No.”

You halted in her steps, head snapping to him to shoot him an incredulous glare. He said what?

“What the fuck do you mean no?”

Could he just wipe that stupid concern out of his face and go back to where he had five other people protecting him instead of parading around when he could get shot?! What was wrong with him?!

Why did he have to be so obstinate and irritating and--- so Steve.

“I mean no,” he repeated firmly. No shit. “You’re upset and I-“

You shook your head, not letting him finish as you started walking again, long strides in quick succession so you could escape him before he could try and dive into your feelings and try to help. Before you could punch him or maybe kiss all the stupid out of him.

You sped up upon the last thought, practically breaking into a run.

You may not be able to outrun a supersoldier, but you could try to outrun the onslaught on feelings you had. For him, among others.

Ha, he said no. Idiot.

“You know what? Fine. Fine. Do whatever the hell you want. See if I care!”

The elevator door slid open invitingly, having you slip in and turn on your heels to glare Steve down just in case he didn’t get the memo.

Vainly.

“Sparkles, wait. Just stop for a minute,” he pleaded as he pushed into the elevator with you just as the door was closing.

“Seriously?!”

God, he was the most maddening person on this damn planet-

“What floor, Agent Jones?” Jarvis asked, perfectly polite and unfazed, while you crossed your arms on your chest, staring ahead and ignoring Steve standing by your side.

“The lobby, J. Thank you,” Steve replied to the artificial intelligence calmly.

Jarvis didn’t even reply, sending the elevator down in slow pace as to prolong your suffering.

Even when making a point of avoiding Steve’s gaze, you could see him in your peripheral vision. He kept looking at you steadily, resembling a kicked puppy as you watched the numbers tick by, his presence immense and nagging even in its silence.

You reached number 24 until you couldn’t handle it anymore.

“What?” you snapped, not dignifying him with a single look – which clearly bothered him. Good.

“Sparkles… look at me.”

Your stomach made a somersault at his gentle tone; you felt your resolve not to break into stupid tears again cracking.

No. You would not fall for this. You would not.

Gritting your teeth, you lifted your chin and turned to face him, mindful to glare, because he was supposed to be in the conference room minding his own sitting-on-his-ass business; you were determined to explain it to him again.

Your expression slipped when you got hit by a full load of his sincerely worried gaze.

Damn you, Steven Grant Rogers. Damn you, damn you, damn your stubborn reckless heroic ass-

“You’re so bossy and stubborn and reckless and I hate you,” you spat viciously, irritated and somehow relieved by a small smile growing on his face with each word and good lord, if he could just-

“I know. Come here.”

Carefully, slowly enough to give a chance to back out, he took your hand, twisting it slightly so your fingers rested over his pulse point, feeling every strong beat of his heart. You felt your expression falter further. That bastard read you like a book. Reading between the lines, staring straight through the wall of anger you had put up to reveal the fear underneath.

You felt his eyes studying your face as you stubbornly focused on the wall behind his shoulder – even if the dead eyes of Kyle Meyers were glaring back at you – until the mass of muscle moved closer and closer, once again giving you enough time to stop him. But you didn’t.

You accepted his hug instead, gulping against the lump in your throat when he enveloped you entirely, arms shielding you from the world, his chin resting on the top of your head. You melted into him as few stray tears rolled out of your eyes at last, seeping into his shirt.

He didn’t say another word; he just held you close, until you relaxed into him, hands reluctantly rising to wrap around him as well.

You were painfully aware that the elevator had stopped, but Jarvis had enough tact at least to leave the door sealed.

“Okay… maybe--- maybe I don’t entirely hate you,” you admitted quietly and lord, wasn’t that the truth.

You felt him smile into your hair, his hand rubbing your lower back comfortingly. He held you so carefully and yet firmly, giving his reassurance and comfort so willingly, his frame pressing to yours reminding you he was strong and not easily hurt.

And that he cared.

He cared so much, offering not only his body heat to sooth the shivers running up your spine whenever you remembered the board in the meeting room with his pictures on it, but also warmth; kind, protective and almost loving, stoking the feelings you were so stubbornly stomping on. Your own love. Actual romantic love.

No, of course you didn’t hate him – not even when he was being a stubborn jerk.

You loved him.

You loved him with your whole heart and you couldn’t imagine losing him and all your damn investigation was falling apart and maybe so were you a little and you hated that.

You sniffled a few times, fighting the full-on sobbing. It was only over a day, but you were psychically exhausted and you knew you were being unreasonably impatient but that didn’t really help you to stop being that way, only adding to your frustration. And to the fear that no matter how hard you tried, this might end up in a tragedy.

You had no right to dump all that on Steve, you needed to deal with this shit on your own; but you told him anyway.

“I’m… scared,” you whispered reluctantly, Steve’s arms tightening momentarily at your admission.

“I know that too. Thank you.”

You chuckled minutely, pushing slightly against him so you could look up at him, eyebrow raised in doubt.

“For being scared?”

“For being worried,” he corrected you softly.

He didn’t say it out loud, but as you met his gaze, you heard the rest of his words as clear as if they had been spoken: thank you for being worried for me.

You’d always be. Watching him now, the gorgeous image of his face, beauty written in his features and expression, body and soul, you knew your feelings were never going to go away. Even years down the line, even if you’d live in another city and cut all communication, the picture of Steve – and more so, the burn of a feeling whenever he touched you – would always remain.

He watched you with a tiny smile on his lips, tender fingers fixing the hair that had got out of place when he hugged you, the gentlest caress of his fingertip on your temple. You released a shaky breath when the pad of his index finger slid down to your chin, holding it up to keep your gaze trapped in his; as if you wanted to escape it again.

His eyes roamed your face – it occurred to you that you must have looked like such a mess and he didn’t seem to care – settling on your lips, sending your heart into frenzy, your gaze flickering to the temptation of his mouth in such intimate proximity.

Inevitable gravity guided you to erase the last distance, fighting with the reason in your brain. The spark was tangible now, you could taste it on your tongue as something in Steve’s eyes shifted, pupils dilating like they had when the morning found you in his bed and you had suggested sharing it. His insanely tempting lips were right there for your taking, barely moving as he spoke your nickname softly, no more than three inches from your mouth.

“Sparkles, I-“

The ding of the elevator shattered the moment, having you draw in a sharp breath, Steve’s firm arm on you loosening enough for you to take a step back, head spinning. You were pissed beyond belief for Jarvis’ timing – and grateful.

Not the time. Now was not the time.

Gulping, you stepped out to the lobby, Steve following suit – reminding you that he in fact, shouldn’t, as you walked past the few other employees walking in the lobby.  

“You shouldn’t be here,” you sighed, not even bothering to look at him, knowing how he’d react.

“I’m still in the building,” he argued, voice a little raspy, sending a pleasant shiver down your spine, your stomach deliciously warm still.

Leave it, Jones.

Later. Think of it as a reward. We’re 75% sure he feels the same now, he wanted the kiss too. This will be worth the try, chances are high.

LATER.

You cleared our throat. “True that, but we said you shouldn’t be walking alone. This isn’t even the residential area.”

“The private elevator is right here. I think I can make a few steps without hurting myself...” Steve continued, almost carefree. “I’m not you when you get drunk.”

Should you punch him or kiss him for trying to be funny? Maybe both at once – just punch his mouth with yours. He was literally asking for it.

“Ha, ha,” you laughed sarcastically. “You’re still a little shit, GG.”

And I love it. I love you. How dare you.

“So are you,” he shot back, pace leisurely, getting you to slow down too. “Look, Sparkles… I know—I didn’t want to take this seriously, but I see it is now. I promise, I just wanted to check on you. Thank you for calling in your old team. I know it couldn’t have been easy and it brings memories.”

You sighed. It was hard to be mad at him when he talked like that. And looked like that.

“It does, actually. But mostly the nice ones,” you assured him, a smile playing on your lips.

It was easy to say that now; now that he was with you, when you got the ugly emotions out. Steve might be a little shit – but you’d be damned if his presence wasn’t all things wholesome.

“Like Dr. Spence Genius Reid and his ridiculous coffee preferences? ...or Genuis Penelope Garcia who calls you angel or honey?” he added quickly after a beat, having you stop dead in your tracks, your jaw falling slack.

No. No fucking way.

Realization hit you like a ton of bricks, stunning you speechless for a moment.

Make that 85%. Maybe 90% if you were counting the way he instantly zeroed on Reid rather than Garcia – and yes, it could have been that Reid was actually physically present, but… maybe it wasn’t just that.

“Steven Grant Rogers… are you jealous of my friends? Is that what’s been bothering you?”

“No,” he said way too fast, utterly unconvincing.

You gave him a look, wordlessly asking him to try again and think before speaking. Red tinted the tips of his ears, hands slipping into the pockets of his jeans as his gaze lowered to the floor for a moment.

Oh god, he really had been jealous the whole time. You couldn’t believe it. The gentle stroke to your ego was such a welcomed feeling it almost had you forget all about the troubles of this morning.

“Well, you’re—you know, you’re…” Steve muttered, swallowing heavily as he was looking for the right words, “you’re one of the most important people in my life. And you get along with them so well… they might end up stealing you back. So… yeah. I might be. A little bit. I just don’t want to see you go.”

Oh.

Your heart swelled with affection at his confession, stumbling in your chest when he looked up to meet your gaze, shy and a little guilty.

As if only his behaviour was the insufferable one; as if he was the only one whose fears got the best of them in the past 30 hours or so.

“Oh GG,” you whispered, fingers itching to comfort him. “I don’t think I could go back to that job. I know we were making a difference there too, but here… there’s just something very right about being here.”

With you.

At that, the corners of his lips quirked up a bit, eyes lighting up. Encouraged, you continued.

“And you’re one of the most important people to me too…. So I’m glad you’re letting them help. Now let me save all of our lives and sanity by bringing coffee and donuts.”

“We could have had it delivered,” he pointed out.

“Yeah, but I’m honestly so done with being copped up. It’s clearly not helping my judgement. Scratch that, it’s driving me crazy and I’ll be happy to breathe in the New York City’s not-so-fresh air.”

Steve hung his head with a sigh, eyeing the busy streets with longing. What an adorably pitiful image of a huge man.

“I can relate to that. I am definitely jealous about that. Going out.”

Grimacing, you reached out to rub his arm – and with a last second decision, you stepped on your tiptoes, pressing a brief kiss on his cheek. The shortest stubble prickled your lips, a welcomed distraction from the fact that your aim was a little off.

He gifted you with a soft smile, large hand landing on your shoulder as if keep you in place, thumb caressing the bare skin on the side of your neck. The thrill it sent through your veins had you nearly tremble in excitement.

Definitely 90%.

It was like a shot of an instant determination to get this case done as fast as possible for a whole different reason – so you could explore this sooner. Preferably three minutes ago so you could make out in an elevator.

Later, Jones. Focus.

“I know, GG. I’ll be back before you know it and the caffeine will help us solve this and we’ll be back to our routines.” Perhaps with some adjustments. “Though I’ll let you run a few extra miles before joining for your next morning run, I can already tell you’ll be sprinting like a crazy supersoldier. Soon.”

Maybe if you said it one more time, you’d actually believe the optimistic view.

“You could keep up,” he said, sounding confident he was right.

The way his eyes subtly flickered all over you, a shadow of a promise when he met your gaze again, had you swallow loudly. Perhaps he wasn’t only talking about running; and damn, wasn’t that distracting and since when did Steve flirt with you? Little shit-

Later. You’ll deal with this later.

Your lips twitched as you shook your head.

“Yeah, right. In my dreams. Maybe,” you threw over your shoulder and you walked out of the building at last.

Once outside, you shot him a look and mouthed an amused and exasperated go back when you found him still watching you – as pleasant as it was to have him look at you with longing that went beyond envying you your freedom. He looked at you as if you had been in his dream before; and the mere idea made you giddy all over.

In your dreams, there might have been some other activities revolving around Steve and keeping up with him, but you wouldn’t spell that out for him. Yet.

Steve shook his head as if he heard your thoughts and disagreed, spinning on his heel and heading back to the elevator.

Maybe you imagined it, but there seemed to be a new pep in his step; there definitely was in yours.

Truth was, Steve would have done nearly anything you’d asked him; and so when you told him to just go back at last, he obeyed, even if he was in no rush to return to the conference room. In fact, he made to turn and the moment you weren’t looking anymore, he watched your retreating figure until you rounded the corner and disappeared out of sight.

Only then, he shuffled his feet back to the elevator.

His body was still buzzing; his senses and his mind were full of you. How your body always mended into his so naturally, how you had looked at him in the morning, still sleepy, but so trusting – and almost heated as you practically proposed you two shared the bed next time. Most recently, how your lips brushed his cheek, low, so low it was almost on his jaw, almost in the corner of his mouth.

It was maddening, really, that you didn’t aim an inch or two elsewhere, but it filled him with heat – and with hope.

It was there earlier too, even if originally, he had followed you to the elevator only to comfort you.

But once inside, it was impossible to ignore the sparks spicing the air as you looked up at him; with such intensity, eyes wide, affectionate… as if you wanted to kiss him there too. You even leaned in; he tasted your breath on his tongue, his lips almost brushing yours--- and then Jarvis just had to mess it up.

To say Steve was disappointed was an understatement, but coming clean about his jealousy later and the sweet reward in the form of a kiss – albeit only on his cheek – almost made up for it. It felt like a promise; and Steve couldn’t wait to collect, making a promise to himself that when, hopefully when, you’d kiss him and agreed to go out on a date, he’d laid the world to your feet.

So no, Steve wasn’t in any rush to go back to the grim conference room, empty of your presence, but full of threats to women he had dared to speak with.

He re-entered the room with a sigh, met with concerned gazes of your former teammates as Natasha and Tony seemed engrossed in guaranteeing the women from the photos a bodyguard to escort them to the Tower.  

“Is she gonna be okay?” Reid questioned with a soft frown, only making Steve sigh again.

He would be jealous and inclined not to reply, but he understood that the question was coming from a place of genuine worry and friendship.

And it wasn’t Doctor Spencer Reid you had almost kissed a few minutes ago.

“I think so,” Steve said, his lips turning upward again as he recalled something akin to amusement when you were leaving the building, lighter on your feet you had been walking out of this very room. Yeah, you’d be okay. “I know she really was sorry about earlier. She’s… she worries,” he defended you gently.

“There’s no need to apologize,” Emily assured him as she looked up from the reports on the table, a somewhat teasing smile playing in the corner of her lips. “If I had my boyfriend in danger, I wouldn’t have a clear head either and would sure as hell snap at people.”

“We’re not-“

“You might as well be,” Natasha interjected as Steve automatically went to disprove Emily’s assumption.

Smartass redhead.

“She’s my best friend,” Steve protested lamely, unable to help the giddy feeling of hope warming up his chest.

You were. But maybe, maybe, you could be more soon.

“Eeeeeh yeah, but you’ve been doing googly eyes on each other since forever and you’re grinning like you finally kissed the hell out of her. Come on, it looks like even the profilers from the FBI think you’re dating,” Tony added, smirking as he looked up from his work as well.

“Now you trust profiling?” Steve sassed him back.

“We just trust someone who’s been working with the kid for years,” Natasha hummed. “And is a profiler.”

Steve just gaped, having no counterargument.

Why was he friend with these people again?

“That’s not--- not the point. I just wanted to say that she’s been so determined to resolve this ever since she found the photos and it’s taking us longer than she imagined, I guess,” he sighed again, scowling at the offending objects. “I understand her concern with--- she must have seen a lot of cases like this when she was with your team.”

The air in the room shifted – metaphorically and literally, since Reid’s head whipped in Steve’s direction so fast Steve was surprised he didn’t break his neck.

Reid’s face was stunned, staring at Steve in silent shock, before he snapped back to the board, frantically looking all over it and then zeroing on Steve again.

Was it Steve’s imagination or did the genius’s skin turned a shade paler?

“What did you just say?” Reid asked with such urgency that it sent an icy shiver down Steve’s spine, prompting him to reply immediately.

“That when she was working with you-“

“No, no, about the photos. She was the one to find them?”

Steve gulped, suddenly feeling incredibly guilty at the other man’s surprise; he honestly thought it had been mentioned. And if it hadn’t, he wouldn’t think it was all that important with how often the mail got mixed up – but everything about Reid now was screaming that somehow, this detail was crucial.

“Uhm, yes. In her mailbox-“

“Son of a bitch--- and neither of you thought to tells us that?!” Reid exploded, his voice going an octave higher with the curse and making everyone in the room jump – and look at him as if he had grown a second head.

Blind to the reaction he received, Reid grabbed his phone, dialling, mild panic painting his features as mumbled to himself, phone to his ear.

“Come on, pick up, pick up, pick up-“

Everyone – the BAU team included – watched the genius with mute wonder as he paced, grimacing when the only response he got was the dialling tone.

The sound was ominous in the quiet room; and as it was, a slow understanding crept up to Steve’s mind, his heart racing.

Reid looked worried, truly worried. What if he was worried for you and it had nothing to do with the way you left the room?

“Reid, what’s going on?” Emily asked at last when the man cursed under his lips, staring at his phone with disdain, eyes barely flickering up at the question.

“She’s not on any of these photos.”

Steve wished he understood what the hell stating the fact again meant.

And apparently, so would the others.

“Yeah, we knew that…?” Emily questioned slowly, visibly confused as Reid tried his phone again. “And now we learned an additional information about Jones being pulled into it more than we thought, her being the one possibly worthy enough to even find the photos, but…”

She trailed off, watching Reid helplessly as he ignored her, turning his back to them all, mumbling under his breath again.

A lump in his throat – and a mess in his head – Steve looked at the last remaining member of the BAU. Hotch’s gaze was calculating as he observed the board and Reid’s erratic behaviour.

Then all of sudden, his whole demeanour changed, eyebrows rising, arms uncrossing; the most expressive Steve had ever seen him.

“Reid. You’re not seriously suggesting Jones planted the pictures and is actually the unsub?” he questioned, voice flat.

Steve felt the wind knocked out of him, blood pressure skyrocketing so fast his head actually spun for a second. His fists clenched on their own volition, as to defend you against the completely absurd claim.

“I’m sorry what did you just say?” Steve found his voice, incredulous – and menacing.

Steve would have thought he misheard agent Hotchner, but the beat of shocked silence that followed told him he wasn’t the only one rendered speechless.

Reid’s head snapped to them, a scowl on his face, hand with a phone still by his ear.

“What? Of course not, that’s absurd!” he blurted out, almost offended. “But she might be a target!”

Cold horror seized Steve, stealing last remnants of breath from his lungs. Claws of ice, not unlike those which grabbed him when he plunged the aircraft into the Arctic, bit into his skin, quickly gnawing deeper, aiming straight for his heart.

A confused what sounded in the room, maybe even from Steve himself, but he wouldn’t be able to tell.

All he thought of was you, possibly in danger. Of you walking down the street with a light smile on your face, numerous coffees in hand along with a box of donuts, not having a single clue that you might be the very target of the stalker you were investigating. You, unsuspecting, suddenly catching a bullet straight between-

Doctor Reid’s cursing snapped him back to reality – but a nightmare was still unfolding in front of him.

“Goddammit! Can’t you--- tap into her phone or something?” Reid demanded frantically, earning a reluctant and very much confused response from Tony.

“I could…?”

“Do it,” Steve barked without thought, already making his way out of the room, adrenalin pumping.

Natasha was faster, making him stop by stepping in his way boldly – and stupidly.

Did she think she could stop him? Why would she even try? This was you. They couldn’t expect him to just stand back, that was simply absurd.

“You sit down, Romeo.”

“I’m not sitting down,” Steve spat, irritation rising. “Tony, do you have her location yet?”

“Jarvis is on it…” Tony said slowly, watching Steve try to sidestep Natasha with a frown, the spy mirroring Steve’s movements, her face speaking of just how unimpressed she was. “For whatever reason.”

“I don’t care for the reason—Jesus Christ, Natasha, get out of my way before I move you! If Reid thinks she’s in danger-“

“Then still, Natasha’s right, you are not going anywhere,” Hotch stated almost calmly – but Steve could tell that his façade was cracking. He was scared for you too – only more reason to get fucking moving.

Bullets or no bullets.

“We’re wasting time here. Those bullets are not just dangerous to me,” Steve reasoned swiftly, glaring murder on Natasha who reciprocated it wholeheartedly. “I’m probably still the one least likely to get seriously hurt-“

“That’s not exactly true, they’re calibrated to your DNA-“ Tony pipped up.

A growl gathered in Steve’s chest and he wasn’t about to hold it back.

His fists itched to punch his way through anything and anyone. Because this was you. And he didn’t give a damn about anything else, because his ribcage felt tight at the mere thought of you getting hurt. Let alone—he couldn’t even think it.

“I don’t give a damn. If she’s in danger-“ he argued again, pissed beyond believe because he could have already been on his bike and Tony would text him your location on his way down to the garage-

“I’ll take Clint,” Natasha announced, having Steve sigh irritably, because telling Barton only prolonged the time you stayed unprotected, which was simply unthinkable.

“You guys stay here, especially you, and keep trying to reach her,” she stared at Steve pointedly before moving onto Reid. “And you explain to them what the hell is going on. Keep us updated.”

Steve grinded his teeth, but before he could protest, Natasha exited the room and Hotch subtly took her place.

“I know this is hard, but you need to stay,” he said, using the same tone he had when you lost your nerve earlier, levelling him with a steady look, and it made Steve nearly combust with frustration.

Because he was not you – he didn’t answer to this man. Especially since you were in danger…but he was willing to give him one minute more. He didn’t move as Hotch looked over his shoulder at Reid and reluctantly followed his line of gaze instead.

“Do you think the stalker doesn’t consider her worthy either?”

“No, it’s the exact opposite,” the genius muttered miserably, scratching his forehead, equally frustrated.

“Talk to me, Reid. What does that mean? Why do you think she’s a target?” Emily pressed, encouraging.

“It’s obvious-“

“Pretend it’s not, Boy Wonder,” Tony sassed him, for once speaking the words Steve would if the anxious lump in his throat wasn’t making it hard to even breathe.

“Sorry—you said that about a week ago, there was an article about you two,” Reid started, pointing to somewhere before the beginning of the timeline they had built and Steve automatically nodded. What did that- “That was probably the secondary trigger, though we still need to find the initial stressor. Anyway, the public thinks you’re dating and even your co-workers think you’re in love – and I can’t exactly blame them.”

Steve could hear Tony’s smirk, but he didn’t give a shit at the moment. It only added insult to the injury now that Steve almost kissed you – because he then let you walk out of the lobby only to find out this.

“Six days later, she receives an envelope with pictures of you. Not her, you.”

Jaws of guilt biting into his stomach at the single word: him.

You might be in danger and it was on him.

“We thought that the stalker made a mistake,” Steve said quietly, swallowing hard and feeling like a stupid little boy. “The mailmen messed it up plenty times.”

“That is not likely,” Hotch sighed. “This stalker seems incredibly meticulous, she’d know.”

“Exactly.”

Steve’s hands clenched into fists as Reid once again reached for his phone, trying to call you; with no avail, judging by his clenched jaw.

“Okay, let’s say I buy that,” Tony jumped in after yet another failed attempt. “But why take pictures of Cap if…?”

“It’s true that it’s more common to take pictures of the victim, but the unsub could have thousands of pictures of Jones we don’t know about. However, she received these 23. And in every single one of these, Steve is talking to another woman,” Reid explained. “Smiling at her, shaking her hand, possibly looking like he’s giving her his number-“

“I’m not-“ Steve defended himself lamely, but Reid only shook his head.

“They see what they want to see, fit it into their narrative. Truth is not important to them.”

“Not if they’re in love with her and want to protect her,” Hotch added, realization evident on his face.

“In love? With her?” Tony parroted, still puzzled.

Steve wasn’t; not anymore. The pieces of the puzzle were falling into place, creating a horror image of you and him. Him, secretly enjoying the attention you showered him with, your protectiveness over him, your persistence – leading to you both missing an essential clue.

Of course the stalker was in love with you; you were impossible not to fall for. Steve would know.

God, he was such an idiot.

“I can’t believe I didn’t figure it out sooner!” Reid exclaimed, genuinely outraged on his supposed stupidity. “That’s what we’ve been missing. The photos were an act of service of sorts.”

“They say look how he’s with other women. He’ll hurt you eventually, he’ll cheat on you,” Emily continued, having tuned to Reid’s thought process.

“Yeah, exactly. And think about the flowers and the note. I’m sorry I scared you into hiding. I could hurt people who are not worthy of you, if necessary, but I would never hurt you. They were saying more than we thought---- I could hurt people who are not worthy of you. They are actually able to hurt Steve because they have the bullets. I really think we’ve been looking at it all wrong.”

They all were; you were. And it was a fatal mistake that might cost you your life.

Steve had to swallow the bile rising up his throat at Emily’s astonished face, his nails digging into his palms to relieve the tension. Why was he still here, when he had fucked up and was supposed to be out there, helping Natasha-

“Oh my god,” Emily whispered, eyes flickering all over the notes, until they landed on Steve, the genuine fear only feeding the flames of Steve’s personal hell. This was on him. Your blood could be on his hands. “It’s not the women who aren’t worthy of you…”

“The unsub thinks you’re not worthy of Jones,” Reid finished ominously and for the moment, Steve couldn’t but full support the stalker’s notion of that. “She’s the one the stalker has been after all along.”

“And she just walked out of here without care for the world,” Emily said, gulping.

“She’s still by the café though and Romanoff and Barton just arrived,” Tony announced. Steve automatically strode to him to look over his shoulder, a flicker of hope igniting in his chest.

Indeed, three dots were scattered around a building of what Steve assumed was the café; and he should feel relieved at that.

But he didn’t.

Because Reid called your number again and you still weren’t picking up and Natasha wasn’t calling either.

Steve took a wavering breath as he listened to the dialling tone, his acute need to just run and check on you by himself resulting in pacing, eyes flickering to the door every other second. And every time it did, he could feel Hotch’s glare on him, a silent plea and a warning.

And then finally, Tony’s phone rang.

One tap to accept; one to put Natasha on speaker.

“Stark, we have a problem,” Clint huffed into the phone, breathless. All air was sucked out of the room at once. “Pull the security footage from her route and the café, especially the alley behind the café if you can get that. We found her phone and her watch in here.”

Your watch. Your phone. The two things that contained a locator Tony used to track you down. And they were abandoned in an alley.

Dark spots danced in Steve’s vision when choked out the question he as he already knew the answer to.

“Any sign of-“

“No. She’s gone, Steve,” Natasha said, regret lacing her voice. “Jones’ gone.”

Jones’ gone, screamed a voice in Steve’s ear in echo and he let it, squeezing his eyes shut, every muscle in his body tensing, ready to fight – but there was no one to punch. Only himself. Gone, gone gone- mocked him the voice, sickeningly sweet as it whispered the endearment Steve’s lips spoke more often than your given name. Sparkles’ gone and it’s your fault.

Steve’s fists ached to punch his way through, but he couldn’t very well punch himself. So he did the second best thing.

He drove his fist into the drywall with a roar and fuck, did the sting of a breaking skin and bruised bones feel good. It almost made up for the burn of angry tears in his eyes and the pit in his stomach.

I’m sorry, he whispered in his head to the smiling image of you, panting and flexing his fingers to feel the burn as if it could prove how guilty and sorry her truly felt to the imaginary you. As if that did any good.

Sparkles, I’m so fucking sorry.

→ Next part

Series masterlist // Steve Rogers masterlist // Misc masterlist

Shoutout to those who saw through my attempts at mystery (some even in prologue).

Shoutout to those who didn’t and thus made me feel like I’m not entirely predictable. OR to those who decided not to share to help me keep the others on their toes, who followed my request and marked things as a possible spoiler.

Cough cough Dead Poets Society reference cough. I was so excited about the ‘Steven Grant Rogers… are you jealous of my friends’ moment 🥺 One of the first things I wrote for this series, so I hope you enjoyed 💗

[lexiloos-currentobsession]

BCS season 5 roundup!

Magic Man

-Saul Goodman is ~official~

-Ziiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeegler

-I ADORE the magic man montage

-The scene where Kim refuses Jimmy’s plan for convincing her client to take a plea deal and then does it herself anyway reminded me of when Jimmy told her to beat Howard to Mesa Verde and she initially declined but ended up sprinting through HHM

50% Off

-Nacho’s face when he sees his father in the restaurant 💔

-I don’t know why I’m so obsessed with context but I geeked out over Lalo giving Domingo the nick name Ocho Loco since we know him as Krazy 8 but no one has called him that in BSC yet

-This early still-Jimmy-at-heart phase of Saul Goodman is so fun to watch. Confidently strolling through the court house in ridiculous outfits dropping so many great phrases:

-Into every life a little rain must fall

-Life’s a rich pageant who are we to judge

The Guy for This

-HANK and GOMEY!!! What a perfect reveal

-I’d honestly forgotten that in Breaking Bad Hank said Krazy 8 was an informant but now it seems so obvious that we’d see how that came to be

-I’ll say it again, I love watching Kim Wexler yell

-A Suzuki Esteem, it’s an import

-Acker accuses Kim of saying anything to get what she wants and it seems to really affect her. I don’t think it gets to her because she believes it to be true of herself, but because she KNOWS that’s true of JIMMY

Namaste

-Me during the opening scene:

-Jimmy does the ole bang on the interview room door to make it seem like you’re walking away from the negotiating table trick that Hank JUST did to him to the criminals he’s meeting with

-My friends still call me Jimmy, you can too

Dedicado A Max

-Jimmy squeezing into the construction meeting 💀

-An all-time great Mcwexler scene: Kim role playing as Kevin

-The Acker scam is probably my favorite so far

-He’s claiming our prime contractor is an escaped felon lolol

-There’s a moment when Kim is confirming to Jimmy she wants to go after Kevin personally where she says “ok” and Jimmy replies “ok” while extending a beer her direction. She smirks. THIS is true Mcwexler happiness.

-Jimmy and Kim really make schemin and drinkin beers look so damn enjoyable

-Kim makes a hilarious face when Jimmy is on the phone with Mike and says “this is not like that other thing”

Wexler v Goodman

-I just feel like if just we get out there and we hustle we can do it!

-Jimmy is having FUN giving acting instructions. The whole shooting the commercial montage makes Jimmy so lovable

-The shot of Nacho and his car in that warehouse with missing windows is so sick

-Jonathan Banks plays Mike playing a sweet innocent old man so well

-No Cliff my hookers were taller than these

-Ofc Kim proposed to Jimmy

JMM

-Jimmy asks who the hell is Jorge de Guzman right when the opening credit for Tony Dalton pops up on screen

-They absolutely nailed the whole consummating the marriage scene because Jimmy is honest with Kim which showed way more intimacy than the actual act

-LIGHTNING BOLTS SHOOT FROM MY FINGERTIPS!!! I love that this specific language was included in the rant because now we know what Jimmy is thinking when he does the lil finger waggle to make something happen

Bagman

-One of the coolest things about this show is how it influences the way you view Breaking Bad on a rewatch, and this episode is a prime example. Seeing what Mike and Jimmy go through in Bagman completely recontextualizes their relationship for me. The closest feeling I can relate it to is when after you’ve known two people for a while you find out that they also know each other.

-Did Mike and Jimmy think they would be able to steal the car of the guy they baited and sniped???

Bad Choice Road

-Jimmy in the tub scene 👀

-Kim is the queen of impulsive decisiveness

-Ok Lalo IS Spider-Man. First the roof thing at Travel Wire and now him jumping off a ravine onto the esteem

-Jimmy pestering Kim with that ”pro bono means no money” argument is rich considering she held him down when his license was suspended

-When Lalo presses Jimmy for more about what happened in the desert Jimmy throws in the detail about drinking his pee, which was the same thing he did when Kim tried to get him to open up about what happened

Something Unforgiveable

-Kim snorting in laughter at Howard’s accusations of Jimmy made that scene

-There are a myriad of reasons why Kim turns on Howard and one I don’t see mentioned enough is TIMING!! Consider this, Jimmy tries to break up with Kim on the same day Howard approached her about Jimmy being unhinged. She brings this up to Jimmy that night almost as a way to distract from the heavy shit they’ve been experiencing. They spend the evening lightheartedly brainstorming schemes against Howard, then it becomes serious for Kim when she thinks going through with a plan will keep Jimmy in the relationship

-Jimmy leaves the mint chip off his room service sundae. I don’t exactly know why but it feels significant

-I’m trying to imagine how Jimmy felt when Kim did the finger guns at him. I imagine whatever he felt in that moment is what he was trying to convey to Kim when he did them to her in Saul Gone

[melodylnoelle]

Drunken Sentiments

The Cards Have Spoken - Week 11 (@brightsun-and-darkmidnight ’s cards)

Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe   Characters: Tony Stark Category: Fluff - Talking lovingly about their partner to others Relationship: Roommates AU: Cannon - Post Winter Soldier Warnings/Notes: Drunk Tony, but also softer Tony so there’s that. // For these, we are setting it to a minimum of 500 words. You can use these same cards for your own story if you like, but please tag me and @brightsun-and-darkmidnight so that we can see what you do! This was a different one for me, for sure. Please enjoy   Words: 1158 Summary: Tony gets drunk at a party and starts gushing about Pepper Masterlist

           The party was bustling, as they usually did when Tony threw parties. There was no real reason to have a party, if he was being honest with himself. Maybe he just wanted the distraction for everyone since their world turned upside down. Maybe he just wanted Steve, Nat, and Sam to get out of their offices for once and stop looking for Bucky. Or maybe he was just trying to distract himself from the empty home.  

It had been an open invitation – no particular invites besides to his friends, no political posturing to do this time. It was nice, seeing people of all types come together, even if for many it was probably just a chance to see the Avengers up close. Not that all of them seemed to mind. Nat was more of a social butterfly than she let on, though it might just be an act. Rhodey was having a great time flirting and telling overly exaggerated war stories. Even Thor had made an appearance, a nice break from his travels with Jane or wherever else he was going on the bifrost. The only ones that seemed to be uncomfortable were Bruce, who found every time he was around a group of people uncomfortable, and Steve, who was trying very hard to keep to himself and failing.  

           But there was one glaring omission, the only thing that could put a dim to the light the night was bringing.

           Pepper was away on business – some important business emergency that apparently one of the managers at the company couldn’t handle by themselves. He understood. The business had to run, after all. But seeing all of these happy couples dancing and drinking together didn’t make missing her any easier.

           And it didn’t help, of course, that his friends kept asking after her, reminding him that he had no one to share the night with today. At the end of the night, the penthouse would be unusually empty other than him and JARVIS.

           He answered them all honestly as the night went on, telling them what she was up to. He watched as the crowd dwindled as the night went on, happy couples walking out the door to celebrate in whatever other way the night brought.

           Soon enough, it was just him and the rag-tag team of other Avengers and former SHIELD agents that had no where better to go on a night like tonight. They had all had quite enough to drink – Thor, Steve, and Bruce excluded, of course - and were sitting in front of a projector watching movies that Steve and Thor hadn’t yet seen.

           It was the romantic scene in the movie – where the main characters finally got over whatever hurdle it was that kept them apart – and kissed that really set him off.

           “I miss Pepper.” The words were just a little slurred, just the touch of waiver to the soft tone of his voice.

           “When is she coming back?” Bruce indulged him as he threw another handful of popcorn in his mouth.

           “Tomorrow. I think.” He thought about it, but couldn’t remember what day it was if he was being honest. Was it after midnight, so it actually meant tonight? Or was it really tomorrow night that he had to wait for to see her again?

           “Well, that’s not so bad then,” Nat said from across the couch.

           “You know, she does so much around here. It’s so nice having her here.” Tony couldn’t stop his thoughts from imagining how it will be like to have her back in their shared space.

           “She does seem to keep you in check, that’s for sure.” Maria quipped as she took another sip of her beer.

           “Aw, don’t ruin the moment.” Clint shot her a look. “He’s being sweet for once. It’s nice to see him actually show that that cold, sarcastic heart can love someone.” He was smiling, and there was a murmur of chuckles across the room.

           “Oh, ha ha. Very funny.” His brain clung onto that word instead of the underhanded insult that came with it. “I do love her, though.” He continued after a moment. “I mean she’s just so… nice and great and… incredibly sexy-“ the last word ticked up with the hiccup that had risen from his throat.

           “Ah, now you’ve done it, Clint,” Nat chuckled.

           “What? Am I not allowed to talk about her? I miss her!”

           “No, no, Tony, it’s fine. Just spare us some of the details, ok?” Steve was shaking his head, not looking at Tony.

           “Fine.” He sat quietly for a moment, but the whiskey in his system just wouldn’t let him let up. “She just gets me. Always has some sarcastic remark to say back, always knows where my brain is going before I do. I don’t know how I got so lucky with her.”

           The sound of the elevator over the credit music was enough to momentarily derail his thoughts.

           “JARVIS! Party’s over. Whoever it is that’s coming up, turn the elevator around and send them on their way.”

           “SIR, I’M SORRY, BUT I CANNOT DO THAT.”

           “What do you mean? You can do everything! Why not?”

           As he was finishing his sentence, the elevator door opened to reveal Pepper dragging her luggage the first few steps into the lobby. Her blonde hair was up in a messy bun, and there was a sag to her shoulders indicating she hadn’t slept enough.

           She was beautiful, and it set his drunken heart racing.

           “Hey!” He jumped off the couch, stumbling over uneven ground – was it uneven? Or was he just more drunk than he realized? Either way, he realized he didn’t care. “You’re back! How was your trip?” He asked as her as he pulled her into a hug,

           “Nice to see you too?” There was a question in her tone as she pulled away. “How drunk are you?”

           “Ah. Enough. But I missed you. How are you? How did everything go?”

           “I’m fine, and it was fine.”

           “I missed you, you know.”

           She chuckled. “I missed you, too.”

           “See? Just takes some alcohol to get some humanity out of him. It’s sweet.”

           Tony heard Clint’s quip from behind him, but he didn’t care. All that mattered at that moment was that Pepper was there. He pulled her back into him arms again, crushing his lips against hers. He felt her lips curl up into a smile as she returned the kiss.

           “And now it’s about to get weird. Why don’t we give them the room, guys? Surely there’s somewhere else that we could watch movies from in this tower?” Maria said from behind them.

           “Movie room’s downstairs.” The couch creaked as Steve rose while he spoke, and soon enough everyone followed him out of the room.

           That was fine, Tony wanted it that way. At least now, the penthouse didn’t feel as empty as he expected it would at the end of the night.

[ablogwithoutacause]

You never watched Mi Familia with me. I understand it was painful. The complication in birth scene. The negative traits many of the characters had. I understand, but to me It’s a beautiful picture that depicts how we don’t get to choose what family we’re born into. But we have a choice, and we decide if we make it. I’m living something of a movie… a “Mi Familia” movie.

My anxiety attacks seem to be persistent but I work on them day to day to not let them control me. Today at work I did what you told me. Another sleepless night. Eight circles, one for every hour I was obliged to be there. As every hour passed, a circle was filled in. I do something similar for my daily push ups. Each circle represents a set of ten. Every day five circles are filled. I got through the day. Over thirty hours went by and I found myself at home. Anxious, worried that no matter how many times i closed my eyes, it was as my eyelids were held open by compressed springs ready to release back into an open coil. I was worried another anxiety attack was coming. My heart beat would not subdue to a controlled THun-thUN... no matter how many times I controlled my breathing. My cousin Tony told me this, "Being alone is real, getting lost in your head is real. Anyone can be a tough guy, a bad guy. But no matter how big, how strong that man is to the open eye... when the door closes, and the lights turn off... that's when it gets scary." Tony was locked up for over a year. He was a tweety bird in a cage... and probably came close to losing his mind more than a couple of times.

At this point I'm writing just to write. To clear my mind. To empty out my heavy load into the vast yet complex "inner-webz". I see it as doing something with my time. Investing energy into something else. shifting inertia from one object to another. My mind was yet again filled with unnecessary thoughts. Each thought, a crab in a bucket (my mind). Just as one wanted to escape, the others brought it down and the pressure, the space not being relieved of worry.

I spoke to my mother for over an hour on the phone. That was enough to allow me to sleep a few hours. I woke up a bit refreshed. Nothing replenishing, but just enough fuel to get me to the next town. My dinner was a pimped out yakisoba maruchan... As the noodles softened in boiling water... I heated up chopped leftover chicken with raw garlic and onions. After the chicken was hot and the onions were glazing, I drained the water from the noodles and threw them in the casserole with the chicken and the members of the allium family. I poured the yakisoba sauce in, and cracked an egg in there. It was very savory and masked the generic instant noodle taste. I wish i had some bell peppers in the fridge. that would've pieced it all together for me.

To accompany the dinner, I made a chamomile and cinnamon tea, lightly sweetened with honey from Zacatecas. My mom had told me to have a spoonful of honey to help relax and go to sleep. I then spoke to my older brother... we're worried for the youngest. He expressed to me how just as he was once worried for me, now I am worrying for the youngest. He handed me the big brother belt i had long refused to wear. Now I have put a distance between the youngest and I, a distance which would be used as a pneumatic tube system, like those in bank drive-thrus. Only respect and wisdom would be passed on from me to him. His break-up with your sister is promoting him to engage in behaviors that are concerning. Again... reminding me of Chucho from Mi Familia.

Now... It is time to attempt to sleep again... since I am scheduled to work in less than 5 hours. I have no control over what I dream. These stress related dreams are no good for my waking life. This will be my next task. Controlling how I react to said disturbing dreams. I don't want to be afraid of what is healthy for me... sleep. I miss you, I learn from you daily. I wish you were here. And because I want you here, I will do everything in my power to have you here. Love you.

[captains-simp]

hey! so i love wanda and i was wondering if you could write one kind of enemies to lovers or something like that where reader and wanda don't get along well, jealous scene or maybe a very suggestive fight. very angst but happy fluffy ending please

Enemies to lovers owns my whole gay heart and I CANNOT write it without there being sexual tension so xksksjsks smut alert

@g-cordelia hope it's okay to combine your request with this too so there's a healthy dose of angst and fluff with it

"Please don't go."

"Don't you fucking lie to me."

Warnings: choking, fingering, spanking, strap on sex, mentions of oral and hints at mild injury

6k words

[ masterlist ]

Buy me a coffee ☕

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Your actions jeopardised the whole mission." Steve said sternly before raising his voice when he saw he received no reaction from you or the redhead. "Whatever is going on between you has to stop!"

"You say that like it's ever been any different." Natasha added.

The pair that usually felt like the protective big brother and sister of the team where acing the role of disappointed parents. Admittedly that did make you feel bad, but Wanda showed no signs of giving an apology and you would be damned if you did first.

Natasha and Steve waited for any kind of response from either of you and got nothing. You and Wanda continued to glare at each other from opposite sides of the table, your stubnorness stopping either of you from looking at the two standing at the head of the table.

"Just write up your reports." Steve sighed, giving into the tension of the room before anyone else. If it had been just you, Wanda and Natasha there was no telling how long you'd be in there.

You both got up from the table at the same time, still refusing to break eye contact.

"Y/n stay behind a minute." Oh so they're switching it up to disappointed teachers now. Your attention fell to Steve in a look of confusion although that didn't mean you missed the smirk that played on the corner of Wanda's lips. You cursed her like a sailor in your head and hoped she heard but her back was to you and she was strolling out the room.

"I thought you guys were getting better." Steve sighed as he leant against the table.

"We were when we didn't have to talk to each other." You said honestly. There had been a few weeks prior where you and Wanda had had no missions together and therefore had no reason to talk or train with one another.

"You can't resort to avoiding each other as a way to solve your problems. All that does is make things escalate even more when you're actually together which will inevitably happen. Because believe it or not you two are on the same side and have to act like it." Natasha said sternly. You stared down at the table and thought about how how her words were. But it wasn't like you had that warning before.

When the pair infront of you knew you weren't going to say anything in response Steve filled the silence once again. "You're both suspended from missions until you can learn to work together." He decided.

"What?!" You cried as you snapped your head towards them and stood up. "You can't be serious."

"Deadly." Natasha said. You looked frantically between the two in disbelief.

"Alright." You said finally and clenched your jaw. You turned around and left the room without objection from the two Avengers, heading straight towards Wanda's room.

You never really knew why you and Wanda never got on. Maybe it was because she reminded you so much of the popular girls in high school you always envied while wanting them in your bed...no, it definetly couldn't be that. You just didn't know what.

It didn't take long to get there when you were walking like you were out for blood, that wouldn't be an unexpected result of what you planned. You banged on her door several times in a closed fist so it didn't take her long to answer.

She looked concerned when she opened the door and as soon as she realised it was you that same smirk from the meeting room fell back into place.

"Did they ground you?" She asked as she leant against the doorframe.

"Suspended." You spat. A shit eating grin started to appear but you wiped that off her face instantly. "Both of us."

"What the fuck? I didn't-"

"Yes you fucking did and now I'm paying for it too. You wanna know the best part? We can't go back in the field until we can work together nicely." You said bitterly.

"Why don't they just keep us on separate missions?"

"You can go ask them that later. Right now we're training." You said simply and you grabbed her forearm and pulled her out of her room down the corridor.

"We just got back." Wanda argued but followed you anyway after slapping your hand off her.

"Not prepared to put the work in, witchy?" You mocked, not looking at her as you marched through the compound.

"Don't call me that?" Wanda warned as she kept your pace.

"What are you gonna do? Read my mind?" You continued to taunt as you arrived in the gym and made your way to the mats.

Wanda put her red jacket on the floor and stepped away to take up her position as she eyed you. "I could snap all your bones into pieces so small they could be mistaken for ash." Wanda said stoicly.

"I don't think that's gonna get you another mission." You replied calmly, knowing that while there was a truth to Wanda's words she would never give you more than a split lip or bloody nose in the worst training sessions.

"Don't be a smartass y/n, it doesn't suit you." Your jaw clenched at her words.

Without warning, the entirety of your right arm lit up in flames and was aimed at Wanda in an instant.

You sent a wave of fire her way that she swiftly engulfed in her powers and sent back towards you. She looked less than impressed from your warningless attack.

"That was tacky." She said.

"I know, seemed fitting for you." You grinned but stopped when the red mist surrounded your body and lifted you into the air before a larger wave of fire was sent hurtling down to the redhead. The wall of fire blocked her view of you and subsequently dropped you to the ground as she dealt with the flames.

As soon as you landed and the fire parted you sent another blast Wanda's way only for her to do the exact same thing. You both ducked at the same time, your powers hitting opposite walls and leaving marks Tony would be on your asses about when he found out.

Wanda was clearly thinking the same thing. "We can't use our powers in an enclosed space, especially not yours." She said, her accent thickly woven into her voice.

"Okay then, let's see if Natasha's lessons have paid off." You said as you raised your fists and got into your defensive stance. Wanda mirrored you the way she had been taught and narrowed her eyes.

"They definelty have." She insisted as her eyes flickered over your form to try and identify your weak points already in a very obvious way.

"Just try to keep up." You mocked and swiftly moved to swipe her legs out from under her but she was surprisingly prepared. She jumped up to avoid your attack and kicked her leg out mid air and landed it on the center of your chest. You stumbled back in shock while Wanda looked very proud of herself. The last time you saw Wanda train it was clear she wasn't familiar with close range hand to hand combat. You hadn't expected her to improve so significantly in such a short amount of time.

You gritted your teeth and went for her stomach this time which she easily avoided but wasn't expecting another attack to follow so quickly. She blocked the continuous blows from you until you saw your moments and kicked one of her legs out from under her. Your mistake was thinking you succeeded the moment she was down because she spun around and kicked both of your legs out. You caught yourself partly as Wanda stood up so you were on kneeling.

Wanda's smirk was quick to take place when she saw your position, not missing the opportunity. "You look good when you're on your knees." She quipped.

Your eyes widened at her boldness and a heat rose up your neck that you knew wasn't your powers. You rolled back on the balls of your feet and swiftly stood up to look anywhere but the smug redhead infront of you.

"No snarky remark for that?" She challenged and you charged at her again. Anger feuled your attacks making them miscordinated and all round bad.

"Shut the fuck up, Maximoff." You huffed and made her grin even more at the clear signs that she was getting to you.

One of your punches was pushed to the side and Wanda took the chance to show you just how much she had learnt from Nat. You weren't entirely sure how she even did it it was so quick. Your arm was outstretched behind your back painfully due to Wanda's unrelenting grip on it and made it that much easier to push one of your legs down onto the floor. She held you like that for longer than necessary, soaking up the view of you struggling in her grasp.

"Get off." You snapped and winced when she pulled your arm back more.

"What's the magic word?" She teased.

"Now." You demanded. She tutted and pulled harder. "Maximoff!" You ordered through the pain. She leaned down beside you as her voice dropped to a low whisper.

"Beg." It was one word but you couldn't deny the effect it had on you. It was as though her light breath on your ear shot throughout your body and settled in a place you really didn't want it to.

You were about to object and tell her to stop being a bitch but her grip tightened and she pulled to a point where you thought your arm might just snap off under any more pressure.

"Please." You cried through gritted teeth. She instantly let go all too quickly and you collapsed onto the mat on your front. You heard her chuckle menacingly but cut herself off when Nat appeared in the doorway.

"We told you to write up your reports, not train." Natasha scolded as she watched you massage your shoulder and glare at Wanda.

"Sorry, just got a bit carried away." Wanda smiled, her innocent and sweet act that she put up for everyone except you returning. "Y/n's had enough now anyway." She smirked to herself.

"Fucking psycho." You muttered loud enough for her to hear but not Nat. Her jaw visibly clenched from that making you revel in the small victory as you finally got up from the mat.

"Just get on with the reports." Nat sighed and turned to leave as Wanda called out.

"On it."

"Aww, you trying to be a good girl, Maximoff?" You mocked as the pain subsided and your need to overrule what had happened came through.

"I don't have the time to stress over that, not when I'm busy putting brats in their place." Wanda said as she advanced towards you with a look you had only ever seen aimed at those you were fighting against.

"What?" You whispered as you backed up and felt your back hit the wall. Wanda's hand came up suddenly and wrapped itself around your throat firmly and cut off your breathing. Your eyes widened as you grabbed at her hands but she didn't budge. She looked amused at your efforts as her head tilted slightly to the side.

"And you certainly need to learn your place." She took her hand away and left you gasping for air for a split second before grabbing your arm and pulling you out of the gym.

You stumbled a little as you tried to keep up with Wanda's long strides you could usually match. Your whole body was already trembling in anticipation, more so by the tension filled silence between you both as you travelled through the compound and ended up outside the redhead's room.

She opened her door and shoved you into her room swiftly. You didn't have much chance to take in your surroundings because the Sokovian gripped the back of your neck and forced you to lay on your stomach on her bed.

She made quick work of your clothes, discarding them to some soon forgotten about corner.

You turned your head to the side and gripped the sheets as you felt Wanda's slim fingers trialing up the back of your thighs before she gripped them roughly and forced them apart and lifted your lower half up. Her fingers returned and glided along your drippikg folds, collecting your arousal as she reveled in the effect she had on you.

"What was it that made you this wet, slut? Was it being on your knees for me? Begging me? Or did you enjoy the pain? I bet you enjoyed me choking you too." She chuckled darkly and didn't wait for you to respond.

She slipped two fingers inside your soaking cunt without warning making you gasp out in pleasure. Her fingers curled inside you beautifully, brushing some kind of nerve ending every second they were buried inside you. She had you a moaning, quivering mess in no time.

"Wanda...fuck! Right there, oh God!" She snickered against your skin as she worked her fingers expertly. Even then she wanted to test you. Well it was more that she was setting you up for failure.

"Shut the fuck up. I don't want to hear another sound from that whiny mouth." She ordered and you couldn't help but shiver from her dominant nature.

Of course it didn't last long. Her fingers felt so damn perfect inside you and you couldn't help but moan at the unspeakable pleasure.

She brought her hand down fast and landed it on your ass with a harsh smack that echoed through the room. She did it to both of your asscheeks until they were bright red and you were trembling. The sadistic redhead didn't stop there, she continued to rain down smacks that edged you further to your edge with the pleasurable pain.

Soon, you were moaning into the air as you came around Wanda's slim fingers, desperatly clenching around them in an attempt to prolong the pleasure. Thankfully, she kept pumping her fingers inside you, not caring when the overstimulation kicked in. She even started scissoring her fingers inside you, stretching your walls in a way that has you whimper loudly.

"Gotta stretch you a little to get you ready for my piece, sweetheart." She said in a sinister tone. "There's no way you'd be able to take it otherwise, it's already going to reck you with its size." She husked into your ear and withdrew her fingers, spanking you again when you whined.

Wanda got off the bed and disappeared into her closet, shortly returning with a large strap secured around her waist and pointed at you. You whimpered at the sight of it, not sure you could handle its size.

The Sokovian kneeled behind you and gripped your hips with both her hands as she lined up the strap with your entrance.

"I'm going to fill you up so nicely, Princess. Gonna have your cumming in no time." She husked, her voice dripping with lust.

A scream was ripped from your throat when Wanda thrust the entirety of the strap into your pussy. She set about her harsh, abusing pace instantly and preened at the sound of the pleasure filled cries that left you.

She grabbed a fistful of your hair and slammed your head down into the pillows on your side do she could still hear all of your desperate moans. The rough action earned the redhead a cry of her name.

Her pace was unrelenting, everytime she thrust back into you she somehow managed to hit deeper, pounding the toy against the most sensitive and pleasurable part of your cunt.

"Mommy!" You moaned loudly, not realising your slip up until the words left your lips. Your eyes widened and you feared Wanda's response, but what you got was a smack from the redhead that stung your ass in the best way. Her fucked you with increasing vigor too, wanting you title to spill from your lips again. And it did. Over and over, each time going straight to Wanda's pussy.

"Fuck, I'm gonna cum." You whimpered as you gripped onto the sheets tighter to prepare yourself for your release. But Wanda pulled the strap out the the very tip and held it there as she leant over to whisper in your ear.

"Beg me." She ordered and you whimpered again. It wasn't like you hadn't already submitted to the red head you hated but begging would be something that would loom over you for a while.

Your thoughts clashed with the overwhelming need from your pussy as it desleratly tried to clamp down on the tip that didn't provide nearly enough pleasure.

"Please, Wanda." You whispered.

"Please who?" She asked sweetly, clearly testing you making you groan.

"Please, mommy just let me cum." You whined and Wanda smacked your ass hard. She edged the dildo in further ever so slowly and stopped again.

"Mommy, please! I need to cum." You tried again, desperation seeping into your voice. Wanda hummed.

"I can see that." She mused as she rubbed small circles on your throbbing and soaked clit. "I just don't see why I should, brat." She punctuated the name with a harsh slap to your ass again and you caught onto what she was hinting at.

"Please, I'll...I'll be so good for you, mommy."

"Yeah, baby?"

"Yes! Please mommy I'll be so so good for you. Just please please let me c-" You were abruptly cut off by your own whorish moan as Wanda snapped her hips forwards and filled you up entirely.

One of her hands tangled itself in your hair and forced your head down into the pillows, not stopping your incoherent babbles filling the room along with the sound of your pussy being fucked by Wanda and her thighs slapping against yours.

The Sokovian tugged on your hair again so your head was off the pillow.

"I'm gonna cum!" You cried out into the air.

"That's it, baby. Soak my fucking cock." And with that demand you came harder than you ever had around Wanda's strap and moaned continuously as the redhead prolonged your pleasure by continuing to pound into you.

But it soon became too much for your sensitive pussy. You squirmed away from Wanda but she placed one hand on the middle of your back to keep you flat against the bed.

"Too much." You managed to say, however the redhead didn't seem to care.

"I'm nowhere near done with you, Princess."

*

Laying panting and gripping onto Wanda's bedsheets like a lifeline wasn't exactly what you expected to be doing on a Thursday night. You were drenched in sweat and although Wanda had pulled out the toy minutes prior, you were sure you could still feel it filling you up, the faint throbbing a forewarning of what was to come.

It took you a while to gather the strength to get up. With anyone else you probably would have just stayed the night in their bed, but you weren't sure you could do that with Wanda. Although she wouldn't kick you out, you didn't like the thought of sleeping beside the redhead. It seemed far too...soft? Whatever it was, you were sure Wanda would agree.

You searched for your clothes while she took a most likely deliberately long shower, images of her naked figure covered in water invading your mind.

Once you cursed them away they were just replaced with flashes of what you had been doing for all those hours, remembering how she pulled on your hair as she praised you when you went down on her. Of course you did that while on your knees.

What happened between you and Wanda wasn't a one time thing. In fact it became increasingly common until you were in each other's beds almost every night. You would have been fuck buddies if you had considered each other a friend.

It worked. You and Wanda were able to work out your pent up frustration towards each other in a way that didn't hurt one another....well, if that didn't include the scratches along Wanda's back and the constant aching between your legs.

You didn't even make snide comments about each other in meetings or during training. You were able to keep everything in the bedroom.

The success of what you two had going forced you to ignore the noteable change in feelings you had towards Wanda. You saw her differently but couldn't quite tell how. Sometimes it was as though the unplaceable emotion you had towards her from from start spiked and other times you were purely confused.

It was always most prominent after she made you crash over the edge of bliss or when she came undone beneath you. Those moments when your bodies went limp and you were caught up in each other's embrace because you didn't have the energy to move. Hearing her exhausted breathing match her rising and falling chest and faint heartbeat if you had your head on her chest. Those tender moments were the ones that caught you off guard.

You refused to make a big deal out of it though. You refused to investigate your feelings or even acknowledge them. What you had with Wanda was the most efficient thing you could do. You didn't want to muck it up but you knew it couldn't go on forever. Another labelless feeling emerged at that thought.

Natasha was the only one who knew what you were doing. Neither of you told her, the spy was able to figure it all out on her own quickly and confronted you both about it once, only saying to be careful. That was the only time she addressed it verbally but you could always feel her watching you both carefully when you trained.

You thought it was going great. You and Wanda had finally been cleared for a mission that you would both be on, the team certainly needed the man power. That was until Nat told you otherwise.

"What do you mean I'm not going?!" You exclaimed across the room. You had seen Nat in the meeting room looking up something on her tablet and had gone in to enquire something about the mission that was long forgotten.

"I've thought about it and you and Wanda still aren't deemed the most reliable when put together for a mission, with this one being as important as it is we can't afford to make mistakes." Natasha sighed.

"So why don't you take Wanda off the mission? I have more experience."

"Her powers are perfectly fitted to this mission, we need her."

"And not me." You knew you came across as petty, but you had been dying to go back into the field.

"Y/n." Nat tried but you scoffed and glared at the screens with those assigned to the mission. Your eyes found Wanda's picture first and your jaw clenched at the sight of her ridiculously attractive face.

"What did she say to you?" You demanded as something clicked in your brain.

"She didn't say anything, this is my judgement." Natasha began but you didn't buy it.

"We both know if it was you you would have told me as soon as you decided it. You had no issue with me and Wanda being on this mission before. Hell, you cleared us both for the field." Nat glanced down at her tablet guiltily as she searched her brain for another hopeless lie.

"This is unbelievable." You scoffed and turned sharply on your heels to storm out of the room, ignoring your name being called by Nat.

You soon found Wanda in the kitchen making herself a coffee as she hummed softly. You willed your brain to ignore the warmth you got from seeing the redhead in her own, peaceful world.

"Do you have a problem with me?" You demanded, snapping her out of her trance. She visibly figited when she saw you approach her and lean on the edge of the kitchen island on you hands with an expectant look.

"No?" She said, seeming unsure.

"Don't you fucking lie to me." She seemed startled by your increasing aggression.

"What are you talking about?" She asked as she stirred her drink.

"Don't play dumb with me, Maximoff. You got me off the mission!" Wanda stopped her movements as she froze, clearly caught off guard by your discovery. Given how Nat had acted you guessed you weren't meant to find out it was Wanda who said something.

"It's for the best." She finally said but avoided your eye.

"It is not your place to decide what's best for me, you don't get to do that." You argued.

"There should only be a few people on the mission." She tried.

"I know that, I've seen the intel. But we already discussed that those people should be powered. Why am I being taken off?" You demanded again.

"It's dangerous." She muttered as she stared down at her drink.

"It's my fucking job. You think I don't know that."

"Of course you do, but there's a bigger risk than the usual missions we've been on. A bigger risk of you getting hurt." She muttered the last bit, like she wasn't entirely sure she wanted you to hear her. Granted, Wanda showing concern for your safety was new.

"Any one of us could get hurt." You said, lowering your voice marginally.

"But it's you I'm worried about." She insisted. It was your turn to become uncomfortable, shifting slightly under her gaze that held something new.

"I can take care of myself." You said as you crossed your arms, feeling a sudden defensive need to protect yourself.

"I know... but I care about you." You exhaled slowly, becoming increasingly uncomfortable at the tone of her voice. "If something happened to you..." She continued, "I don't know what I would do." Her voice was barely above a whisper, the softness laced in it undeniable. It sparked something in you. Something you didn't want to accept.

"Good luck on your mission, Maximoff." You said through gritted teeth and went to leave but Wanda was behind you instantly and took ahold of your hand to pull you back.

"Wait, I wasn't done-"

"Well I am." You snapped and yanked your hand out of her grip.

"What..?" She said slowly.

"If you don't want to work with me then we won't, no need to keep fucking anymore." You huffed and went to walk away.

"That wasn't what I-"

"Stop!" It wasn't a cry of anger. It was pure desperation. Your pleading look took Wanda by surprise and pained her to see. "Just stop before you say something you can't unsay." You said shakily. Your unspoken message was received. You didn't want to hear about Wanda's feelings towards you. She just didn't know it was because you were afraid that it would uncover what you had been feeling all along. You couldn't handle it. You were scared.

Wanda nodded, defeated, and let you go. You were filled with grief as you walked away, your footsteps feeling heavier than usual. You wanted to look back, to go back to her. But you couldn't.

*

You distracted yourself with a particularly ruthless training session the day of Wanda's mission. Carol showed you no mercy in sparring, weight lifting and boxing - even encouraging power use every now and then. But your mind still wandered to the redhead the way it usually did.

When you finally collapsed on the mat in defeat Carol chuckled and tossed you your waterbottle before encouraging an ice bath and strolling out of the gym for her evening flight.

You stayed on the floor for a while after you finished your water, only stopping staring up at the ceiling when Nat's outline blocked the lights. You sat up and looked at her hopefully, seeing that she was back from monitoring the mission and didn't seem distraught or upset.

"How did it go?" You asked as she sat down across from you.

"It was a success." She said but she didn't seem all that happy.

"And everyone's okay?" You asked cautiously. Nat gave a half shug and sighed lightly.

"There was ice - a lot if it and it was so cold. Dangerously cold." Nat started. You tried not to clench your jaw or show any signs of annoyance, knowing there was no need to point out that mission was fitted for you and your powers that would have guaranteed everyone's safety.

"Wanda got a little cut up, it was impossible to fight on that ground." You eyed the door and bit your lip, refraining from giving in to the urge to go see her.

"She doesn't want to talk to anyone right now, but she needs seeing to the cut." Nat said as she placed a first aid kit down infront of you. She was back already? And why did you have the kit?

"She won't see anyone either." Nat said before you could verbally question her. It took a moment for you to understand what she was saying.

"I don't think she wants to see me, Nat." You said as you pushed it back her way only for her to toss it into your lap.

"Goddmit, y/n. Can you two stop dancing around each other and actually talk?!" She exclaimed.

"We tried that-"

"Talking, y/n, not shouting or arguing. Talking." She said firmly and got up before you could protest further.

You pondered over what Natasha said for a while. You knew she had a good point, that talking was exactly what you should have done from the start, but it was just another thing that frightened you.

"Your job is facing your fears." You muttered aloud to yourself.

You finally got up from the ground, first aid kit in hand, and trudged along the compound towards Wanda's room. You tried to figure out what you could say on the way. But it all came out a jumbled mess that made no sense. Multiple times you stopped in the hallways and considered turning back before convincing yourself to keep going.

You knocked softly on Wanda's door and was surprised that it opened for you. The redhead in question was sat on her bed with a pillow in her lap, fiddling with her hands the way she always did when she was anxious or deep in thought. That evening it was both.

She glanced up at you as you closed the door but turned back to her pillow quickly when you gave her a short smile that didn't quite meet your eyes.

Regardless, you cautiously walked towards her bed and sat down next to her with the small box between you. You brought one of your legs up under you so you could face Wanda and eyed the cut above her eyebrow in concern. She still didn't say anything, neither did you.

You opened up the small box and got out a pack of wound closure strips and carefully unwrapped one. Wanda didn't object to you gently holding the area around her cut as you placed the strip on and lightly smoothed over the edges until you were sure it would stay on.

"I let my emotions cloud my judgement." She mumbled as you prepped another strip.

"It happens to all of us." You said.

"But I didn't listen to you. I should have." You sighed and stopped unwrapping the strip to look up at the redhead and watch her closely. She looked back at you with a guilty and pained expression that was full of regret.

"Yeah." You nodded slowly as you went back to the medical tape and raised your hands to put it on but the Sokovian held your wrist to stop you. "What's done is done, so just let me put these on and we're good." You said but she still didn't let go.

"Just like that?" She questioned.

"The mission was a success. If I'd had been there you wouldn't have gotten hurt, that's all."

"You were really mad though." She continued and you put your hands down to rest them, not failing to notice that Wanda was still holding your wrist but with a much lighter grip.

"It's hard to stay mad at you." You admitted.

"You've always been mad at me."

"Well it wasn't exactly like you were the friendliest person to me." You pointed out. "I was never mad at you, Wanda. I just hated that... that you made me feel something I've never trusted, so I didn't trust you. It was never your fault, I was unfair." You admitted as you stared down at the tape the whole time, afraid to meet the redhead's eyes.

"What did you feel?" Wanda asked, her voice void of emotion making it more difficult for you to say. You gulped as you continued to stare at the tape, willing yourself to give Wanda the answer she needed. The answer she deserved.

"Love." You voice shook. "I loved... love you." You were shaking more as you finally looked up at Wanda. Her eyes were wide and her lips slightly parted like there was a million thoughts trying to be heard but without the ability to.

She didn't say anything for a while. A long while. She stared at you in disbelief then at her pillow as though it would give her all the answers.

Tears rushed to your eyes that you tried to blink away as your head swam with curses to yourself for admitting your feelings. You had opened up and been vulnerable to Wanda, and the result was the exact reason you had sworn to never do it again.

Once you were sure she wasn't going to say anything to you, you took it as your cue to leave. To leave so Wanda could prepare her rejection speech for you. However, as soon as you put your hand to the door she spoke out.

"Please don't go."

You turned around slowly and met her light brown eyes you had always found impossible not to get lost in when you had your fingers or tongue inside her. You timidly went back to the bed and paused before sitting down next to her, facing the wall instead of her this time.

"I thought it was one sided." She started and you felt yourself begin to shake with nerves again. "I thought you didn't love me back." You looked to Wanda quickly and searched her features for any signs of a lie, any signs that she was setting you up to push you down but she was gazing back at you longingly with tears glistening in her eyes.

"When you confronted me about the mission, I was going to say it then, you knew that." You squeezed your eyes shut and nodded, remembering the fear you felt in that moment.

"I wasn't ready, I thought I wouldn't ever be but," You took a deep breath "I want to try, for you." You took ahold of Wanda's hand to reiterate your point. "I care about you too Wanda, so much. More than I could ever express or even handle and I didn't know what to do about it. I mean we've tried a fair few things now," You both laughed a little, "but it I don't think any of them are going to work as well as accepting it and...and I don't know." You looked to her for guidance because fuck did you need it. You needed Wanda to guide you down whatever path you chose to take, as long as she was there with you.

"Maybe we could start with something small." She suggested with a small smile that made her eyes shine.

"Like a coffee date?" You tried.

"Exactly like that." She confirmed, giving your hand a reassuring squeeze.

"Then I'll pick you up around 2." You said cheesily making Wanda laugh. "But first, I have to finish tending to this cut." You declared as you turned around to face her entirely and crossed your legs under you, pausing for a moment to give Wanda a short and sweet kiss.

[wlwmarvelenthusiast]

Darkest Secrets

Requested by @mcmorgan9794

Summary: Keeping this secret from Wanda has been hard, but you don't have a choice but to come clean when everything is brought to light.

Warnings: None

Word Count: 3,446

You’d always wanted to tell Wanda your deepest, darkest secret. You had been with her for well over a year, after all. A secret like the one you harboured wasn’t something that you should keep from someone you loved so dearly. But your secret was the ugliest part of yourself. It was something you hated, lurking deep within every inch of your body. It brewed in your blood and rested in your bones, uncontrolled at the best of times and unstoppable at the worst. It was a burden you’d never wanted to place upon the girl you loved.

Yet, keeping it from her hurt too. She’d look at you with those soft green eyes, spilling everything to you. Tears would stream down her cheeks as she’d tell you all about how much she hated the powers she’d been given. You’d hold her close and whisper soft words of comfort, wiping her tears away with the pad of your thumb, refusing to tell her you felt the same about your own. She would tell you everything. You wouldn’t tell her anything. You couldn’t tell her anything. She thought she was a monster. In reality, you were the monster. If she knew that, her heart would shatter.

Sometimes, these facts were all you could think about. It was the quiet moments. Wanda was away getting coffee with Natasha, Tony and Bruce were in the lab, Thor was on Asgard, and Clint was home with his family. You were left alone at the compound. You hardly ventured out of your own room. While silence screamed in the dark room, you tried to distract yourself with a book or a movie, but it didn’t last. Instead, the weight of your secret was crushing the oxygen out of your lungs. It always did. You longed to have Wanda back, to have her by your side and thread your fingers through hers. She didn’t know how agonizing solitude could be.

You curled up in your armchair, pulling your knees up to your chest and curling your arms around them. You squeezed your eyes shut, wishing you could will the overwhelming thoughts out of your head. They were screaming at you. They were reminding you of the monster that lay dormant in your very soul, cackling as they pushed images of what you were capable of. Then you imagined Wanda. You could do her so much harm and she didn’t even know it. Were you putting her in danger every day you lay by her side? You swallowed as you tried to force back the tears.

The dark thoughts came next. They always did. You wondered how much better off the world would be without you. You wondered how much better off she would be without you. She loved you. Losing you would break her heart, but she’d be okay eventually. If you hurt her in the way only you knew you were capable of, you knew she would never be okay again. None of them would. The dam broke and tears spilled down your cheeks. Hurting Wanda Maximoff would kill you.

And as you were about to imagine all the ways you could take yourself and your monster out of this world, your phone rang.

You grabbed the phone off the table, wiping the tears from your eyes with the back of your hand. You took a steadying breath before you even dared look down at the screen. The first thing you noticed wasn’t the person who was calling, but the time. It hadn’t felt like it had been as long as it had since the other had left you alone in the compound. The darkness in your head could do that. You lost track of time often when you reached that place. An hour could pass, then two, and then six.

It was Natasha’s face that was flashing on your screen. Worry filled your gut. Was Wanda okay? She had to be okay. You forced a deep breath in, and then out. Her phone had probably died. The Sokovian was notorious for remembering to plug the charger into her phone, but forgetting to plug it into the wall on the other end. After reminding yourself of that a few times, you finally found the ability to slide the answer button and hold the phone up to your ear.

“Hey.”

“Thank god,” Natasha’s voice said. There was a loud screech in the background, the sound of metal grinding against metal. “Listen you need to get to the hospital.”

Your heart dropped into your stomach. Oxygen caught in your throat and you were barely able to let words squeeze past the lump that had formed. “The hospital?”

“The ambulance is almost there. She’s hurt bad. Don’t come anywhere near Midtown.”

You didn’t even bother to respond. In fact, you didn’t even bother to hang up the phone. You simply slammed it down on the table that you’d only just picked it up from, heading for the elevator. A million thoughts were racing through your head. There were so many emotions tugging at your heart that you could hardly decipher one from the next. Fear, anger, and worry were all fighting to take over every one of your senses. You couldn’t breathe. It was as if on autopilot that you made it to the garage and hotwired one of Tony’s cars.

Scenery was flashing by you, mere streaks outside the windows of the car. The pedal was on the floor beneath your foot. You flexed your fingers; knuckles having gone white with the force of your grip on the steering wheel. Your brain was showing you visuals of Wanda lying on the table, shining green eyes dulled in the absence of life. Head too wrapped up in the thoughts that ran through it, you didn’t realize you weren’t headed for the hospital at all. You were headed toward midtown, exactly where Natasha had told you not to go.

You’d never been an Avenger. You would never be an Avenger. Maybe it was selfish, refusing to help others when you had the ability to. People died and you might have been able to stop it. Your own powers scared you too much to allow you to. It was something you’d decided long ago. The lives of every civilian that you could have saved were worth it. You couldn’t unleash that sinister thing that lived inside you. Yet, here you were, rushing toward the fight like you were Tony Stark in his suit of armour, or Steve Rogers with a vibranium shield strapped to your back.

The car screeched as you slammed your foot down on the brake. The seatbelt dug so hard into your ribs that you weren’t sure a few hadn’t snapped beneath the pressure. The adrenaline pumping through your veins assured you wouldn’t feel it even if they did. You fought to keep your breathing under control as you stepped out of the car and took in the destruction around you. Someone here had hurt Wanda, and, honestly, you couldn’t find it in you to care which one it had been. You’d kill every single one.

Gravel and rubble crunched beneath your feet as you ventured further and further into the warzone that had broken out in Midtown New York. They looked human, whoever they were. They were armed to the teeth and attacking every moving thing in sight. None of them had noticed you yet. That was better for both of you, for the time being. You shut your eyes for a brief moment and listen to the sounds around you. Civilians were screaming and car alarms were blaring and explosions roared. Then there was running, and it stopped at your side.

“I told you not to come here. Wanda’s at the hospital.”

You opened your eyes. Natasha was at your side. Blood trickled down her temple, staining her pale skin. She flinched as she put weight on her left leg to move a little closer to you. Wanda might have been the woman you called your own, but the Avengers were your family. Seeing one of them hurting in the way Natasha was only stoked the fire that was beginning to burn hotter and hotter inside of you. Your gaze moved away from her and back to the oncoming forces. They were getting closer.

“How did you know I was here?”

“Tony’s cars have trackers. We got an alert the second you left the compound and another as you came here. Get to the hospital.”

But you’d already stopped listening. The incoming threat had gotten close enough to notice you now. Green eyes followed your gaze until she, too, noticed the men approaching the two of you. She raised her arm, the gun still clutched tight in her grip. You could tell by the bewildered expression on her face that she hadn’t at all been expecting you to stop her. Your hand grabbed her wrist, lowering her arm until it was back against her side. You suspected it was the crimson gleam in your eyes that was the only thing that was keeping her weapon lowered.

You turned back to her once more. Surprise was written across every feature on her face… no, it was fear. She was afraid. She should be scared of you. Your skin began to blacken as you began to fade into nothing. Her eyes were still able to find yours, glowing bright as ever. She flinched when you reached out, backing up as you reached for her hand in an attempt for a final goodbye. You bowed your head, wishing she’d let you feel the warmth of her skin beneath your hand one final time.

“I’m sorry, Natasha.”

Then you turned away from her. The last of your human form faded away. It was hard to make out any shape in the tall, dark shadow that you’d become. Haunting golden eyes cast to the men that were racing toward you. As if to match the scene, a dark cloud rolled in front of the sun. Its shadow cast down onto the city, the darkness concealing you even further and making your eyes glow seemingly brighter. They continued to approach. They didn’t know their mistake. You did. You were dangerous at any time. You were more dangerous now that they’d hurt the person you loved more than you had ever loved before.

You raised your arms into the sky, feet leaving the ground. When your feet had been touching the concrete below them, you’d already been towering over the oncoming men. Now, you looked down upon them. Guns raised to where you hovered in the sky. It was almost comical. One of them screamed, and suddenly they were all firing. Their bullets tore through you, yet they didn’t touch you. Your head tilted to the side ever so slightly as an unsettling grin appeared in your dark shadow, disrupted by the whiz of dozens of bullets flying through it.

“Knock knock,” you said. Even your voice was sinister, a deep rumble that felt like it emanated from every direction, or deep inside of any listener.

The laughter that burst from their chests was strange, at first. It seemed out of place in such a setting. Confusion flickered across each of their faces. Then they laughed harder, and harder. Guns fell to the ground and they howled with laughter, but it contrasted their eyes. There was no sparkle of amusement in even one. It was pure, unbridled fear that you could see shining in them. One by one they fell to their knees, clawing at their throats as they tried to stop. One had tears streaming down his cheeks as he covered his ears, trying to block out the sounds that were torn from his own throat.

They couldn’t get in their comms to tell their men to keep away.

The next group that came for you met the same fate. Soon they, too, were on the ground. You got some sort of sick satisfaction as you watched them fall, unable to control their bodies. You’d taken over, grabbing hold of their heads and their bodies. You’d grabbed onto their lungs and ripped laughter from their chests, absolutely uncontrollable. When they lost control of that, that was when the fear started to take over. Fear would grip at them; you could feel it emanating off them. It would only get worse. You’d watched men take their lives as they lost their minds.

There was a reason you never used your powers. You were afraid of them, sure. The reason you were afraid of them, however, wasn’t because of their strength. Their strength could have saved lives. It wasn’t even because you couldn’t control them. You were addicted to your own powers. You took pride in watching grown men reduced to tears, curled up on the ground, shaking like an abused puppy. Your sick satisfaction was what you feared.

Was this what it felt like to be an Avenger? Were you taking pride in watching the civilians able to run from the scene, or was your pride in the fact that they no longer feared the invading forces, but you instead? The men were rendered immobile as the New Yorkers ran far from the scene. There you were in the centre of it, arms outstretched eyes gleaming, and grin growing wider and ever more evil. Natasha was still hovering just outside of your reach. You could feel her. You turned to face her. You could tell by the look in her eyes that she no longer recognized you. She put her lips to her comm.

“Evacuate the area. Don’t come down this way. Clint, go check on Wanda.”

Wanda.

Your powers ceased. No one rose right away. It would take some time for them to recover. They were gasping for breath. Their arms were too preoccupied hugging themselves tight to bother even trying to wipe the tears that covered many of their faces. Some of them were even rocking back and forth as the effect wore off. You dropped to the ground, human form taking back over. Your eyes were back to normal as you looked to Natasha once more. Neither of you said anything, but you took off running.

*

You pulled your hood up further, gaze locked to your black running shoes. You couldn’t help but feel like every set of eyes was on you. That’s how it felt, you supposed, being wanted by every agency on the planet. With the ability to change your form, though, it was pretty easy to hide in plain sight. Your footsteps echoed on the hard floor beneath your feet as you kept forward. Anyone who saw you would know you were on a mission. You knew exactly where you were going.

She was sleeping when you arrived. The cuts on her body had been stitched and bandaged, and her broken arm had been cast. Sam’s signature was already present on the red material, accompanied by a bad drawing of a bird. You couldn’t help but smile a little to yourself at that. Hopefully, it had kept a smile on her face as her world fell into turmoil, something undoubtedly caused by you. That simple fact would always break your heart. You had to turn to the window to keep the tears at bay.

When you turned back to Wanda, her green eyes were on you. There was something in her eyes that you couldn’t quite read. Her head tilted to the side as she looked at you, in a form that would be unrecognizable. It wasn’t just hiding you from the authorities, but it was hiding you from her. It was protecting her from you. She didn’t need to know that it was you, the woman who had never for a single second deserved to love her or be loved by her. A small smile grew on her lips.

“You forget I can read minds, my love.”

Of course. Wanda had always promised you she’d never read your mind. She would never violate your privacy like that. Right now, though, standing in her hospital room, you hadn’t been you. Obviously, she’d found it appropriate to peek into the mind of the stranger who had been watching her sleep. You should have been mortified. You’d never wanted her to know that you were here. Instead, a large part of you was relieved.

“Hey.”

“Hey yourself,” she breathed out. “So, that was quite the secret.”

Even though you deserved it, it still felt like a knife to the heart when she said it aloud. You nodded slowly, cracking your knuckles nervously. “I’m sorry.”

“I know.”

You studied her face. Wanda really was a saint, with powers like the ones she had. She was kind, thoughtful, and respectful. You were sure if you’d had her powers right then, you’d be digging through her mind trying to find out what she was thinking. Her eyes weren’t showing you enough. They were calm, though, and it was keeping you calm. Your breathing was level and your head was steady on your shoulders, something you wouldn’t have had been able to say only five short minutes ago.

“Are you afraid?” You managed.

“No,” she assured instantly. “Confused. Why didn’t you tell me?”

You breathed out slowly. “I didn’t want to hurt you. My powers? They’ll hurt you.”

“Will you hurt me?”

“Never!” You insisted. “I… I only hurt them because they hurt you.”

She smiled. “Then I’m not afraid.”

She beckoned you. You padded slowly toward the bed, watching as she stared up at you with an amount of love and adoration that you didn't deserve. Wanda glanced at the door, making sure no one was there to see, and then took your hand in hers, tugging on it to get you to sit down next to her. Instant calm washed over you, drowning out any negative, scared thoughts that had been in your head for days previous. It was like her hand was a lifeline, keeping you anchored on the spot. In the last few days, you’d been anything but calm and present.

You’d been a wreck without her, not knowing if she’d hate you… if you even saw her again. You didn’t know if you’d be able to feel her touch again, to feel her hands on your cheeks or to feel her grab onto you and pull you into a searing kiss the way she did. But you had seen her again, and, somehow, she didn’t hate you. Now, it seemed now you could get oxygen flowing through your body again. Still, you were uncertain.

“And can you forgive me?” You asked, voice so quiet she almost didn’t hear it. “Can you ever love me again?”

Wanda took her free hand and put it on the underside of your chin, tilting your gaze up to hers. “I see nothing that has to be forgiven.” She brushed her thumb across your cheek, wiping away a stray tear. “I love you. I will never, ever stop loving you.”

“Promise?”

“I promise you,” she assured.

She leaned forward and then her lips were on yours. It took you a second to realize the salty taste was from the tears that were streaming down your cheeks, but it didn’t seem to be bothering the Sokovian. Both of your hands found hers and you held tight, as if afraid you’d never see her again if you dared to let go. She slipped one hand out of yours as she pulled back, using it to brush a strand of hair behind your ear.

“I’m sorry I kept it from you,” you muttered.

“I’m sorry you were so scared all alone.”

Your heart swelled. You really had found the perfect woman. “You’re really too good to me. You know that?”

Wanda laughed. “You deserve the world. You know that?”

With the way you tucked yourself against her in a hug, it was obvious she knew you felt the same of her. Her hand stroked your hair as you finally, for the first time ever, felt absolute ease and a sense of peace. Hiding that secret from Wanda had been the second hardest thing you’d ever done. The hardest had been coming clean with it. You snuggled a little closer to her, burying your head into the crook of her neck and mumbling against her skin.

“I’ll never hide anything from you again. I promise.”

Wanda pulled you away so she could look at you. “While we’re revealing secrets, I suppose I should tell you about the engagement ring in my jacket pocket.”

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Revelation

Breach Masterlist

Warnings: non/dubcon sex (series), general angst, some blood and anger this chapter.

This is dark!Winter Soldier/Bucky and explicit. 18+ only.

Note: SURPRISE! I somehow got this done this morning so voila!

I won’t demand but do ask for feedback; likes, reblogs, replies, comments, asks, especially on this series, but again, enjoy in your own way! <3 Love you!

A six-hour car ride and a brief flight saw you at a second safehouse; bigger and isolated from the world in a nest of trees. Steve accompanied you alone as Howard disappeared to ‘sort out business’. You watched and listened to it all, always keeping Luka close.

Your room was as big as one of the houses you’d lived in during your days in South America. Luka wanted to stay with you and you wouldn’t have let him sleep anywhere else. James, or Bucky, whoever he was those days, looked grim as he commented how nice it would be for you to have your privacy. You didn’t dare ask him to stay in the room though you wanted it. You had grown used to his presence.

You slept the first night soundly, waking only once or twice to look at the door. The usual shadow wasn’t there. That made you frown and run your fingers through Luka’s hair. You were safe now but that wouldn’t last, it never did.

You woke yawning, the hours of sleep reminding your body of its long-hewn fatigue. You could have slept for days. You peeked out into the hallway and Luka pushed past you, sprinting out the door. You followed him and called him back to you with a reprimand. He was excited about all the new places.

“Mishka, you stay close, we’re only going to get some breakfast,” you said as you took his hand.

“Mama, this place is so big! I wanna stay here forever,” he sang as he tugged on your arm.

“Why, so you can tear the walls down?” you tutted, “What has gotten into you?”

“Papa’s friend, Steve, he told me he fights the bad guys,” Luka swung your arm, “will he fight the ones who hurt you and Papa?”

You stopped just outside the kitchen. You turned Luka to you and bent to look him in his face. “What men, mishka?”

“The one’s we’re running from,” he said innocently.

You gulped and cradled his face in your hands, “don’t you worry about that, my love, me and your father will always keep you safe.”

The boy looked confused but didn’t ask more, he only nodded and you stood with a sigh. You took his hand again and pulled him into the kitchen. You sat him on one of the tall chairs along the island counter and searched the fridge. You poured each of you a bowl of Cheerios and pushed his across to him as you leaned on the other side of the counter and spooned up the cereal.

“You’re here,” James’ voice startled you as he came to a sharp stop just inside the doorway, “you weren’t in your room, I was--”

“You said we’re safe here,” you lowered your spoon, “Luka was hungry.”

“We are safe,” he exhaled and slowly crossed the room to stand at the end of the counter.

“You want some?” you shook the box at him.

“Eat,” he took it and grabbed a bowl of his own, “I’ll get it.”

He added milk and sat beside Luka. Your son smiled at him and received a goofy look in return. There were moments James wasn’t so guarded but those were always reserved for your son, never you. When he looked at you, you only saw his guilt and pain.

“Howard will be here at noon,” James said as he turned back to you and stirred his bowl, “I’ll talk to them first.”

“Talk?” you asked.

“They need to know… everything,” he said reluctantly, “you watch over Luka while I’m with them and try not to worry. We can trust Steve.”

You nodded and scooped another spoonful into your mouth. You chewed and stared at the counter. That wasn’t what you were worried about, how could you explain all that had happened?

✰

After you ate, you took Luka to the living room and Bucky left you again. After some giddy pleas from your son, you turned on the television. There were few times in his life, and yours, that you had the luxury of a screen. You sat and watched puppets spell and count for a while before you grew bored.

Luka tired of the wooden car he’d outgrown a while ago and jumped on the couch. You tried to get him to stop but only found yourself out of breath.

“Mishka! You will break it,” you caught him mid-leap and swung him down onto his feet, “why don’t we play a game?”

“Oooh, hide and seek!” he chimed.

“I don’t know, that might not--”

“Please, papa hates that game but it’s so fun,” he clapped, “please, mama.”

“It is fun when you can only hide in the broom closet. You will get lost in here.”

“Promise, mama, I will not go far, please?”

You sniffed and stared into his hopeful eyes, James’ eyes. “You stay on this floor and do not go past the stairs, understood?”

“Yes, yes, yes,” he squealed, “now mama, you have to close your eyes. No peeking.”

“I know how this game works,” you sat and covered your face with your hands, “thirty seconds, mishka.”

“Thirty?” he whined.

“Twenty-nine, twenty-eight…”

You heard his feet stamp away and you smiled, counting louder with each number. When you reached one you got up and went to the hall. You looked up and down for any telltale sign of him. Nothing was different.

You went to the kitchen and searched all the cupboards and the pantry. He wasn’t in there. As you checked the closets and still did not find him, you felt the panic rising in your throat. Your heart hammered as you ran around the stairs, he hadn’t listened!

You heard a voice, a high pitch you knew well. The front door was open just a crack and you ripped it open as you followed Luka’s sing-song. He sang a Russian tune you taught him as he was carried on the back of a dark-haired man. You ran across the porch and past the armored car in the lot.

You tore Luka from the stranger’s back and both cried out in surprise. You put your son down as the man turned to you. You grabbed the collar of his shirt and punched him as hard as you could, just as James taught you. You heard the crack of his nose as you pulled back again.

“You take my son!” you snarled as he put his arm up to block your next strike and your hand gleaned off his chin, “my son! I will kill you.”

“Mama, mama,” you felt Luka tugging at your pants.

“Go inside, Luka,” you barked ready to strangle the man.

“He’s wasn’t taking me, mama, we were playing,” Luka begged, “he’s just a kid, like me.”

You stopped and looked the man in the face. Luka was right, he was sixteen, maybe seventeen, familiar even. You growled and let him go hesitantly. You pulled Luka close to you.

“Who are you?”

“I should ask you the same,” the adolescent stemmed the blood leaking from his nostrils with the heel of his hand and tilted his head back, “you sure pack a punch, lady.”

“Who?” you stepped forward again and he backed away.

“Tony,” he snorted and turned to spit up blood onto the ground, “Tony Stark, Howard’s son.”

“Howard?” you blinked, “oh, I--” you looked down at Luka who looked terrified, “I’m sorry, I didn’t know, I-- let me help you clean up.”

“Uh, I don’t think so,” he chuckled and backed away from you, “I think I can handle this.”

“Mama,” Luka huffed.

“I’m sorry, mishka, I did not know,” you grimaced, “I so very sorry, I really--” you looked at Tony again.

“I’m fine,” he pulled his cuff up to his nose, “really, I shouldn’t have just taken the kid.”

“I couldn’t find him, I was so scared, I--”

“Luka,” James’ voice drew you around. He stood on the porch and descended the steps carefully as he took in the scene, “what’s going on? What are you doing out here?”

“Playing a game,” you said as Tony shook his head.

“What happened to the kid?” James asked as he pointed at the bloodied teen.

“Your wife, that’s what happened,” Tony spat.

“She’s not--

“I thought he was taking Luka,” you interrupted James, “I’m sorry, I--”

“It’s okay,” he took Luka’s hand and pulled the boy close, “you did what I showed you,” he turned to the younger Stark, “you should get that cleaned up or it’ll stay crooked.”

“Uh huh,” Tony dragged his feet through the dirt towards the house, “such a pleasant little family.”

You watched him go and hung your head. You felt awful and held up your shaky hand, your knuckles sore from the assault. Bucky took your hand and looked it over.

“You okay?” he asked.

“I hurt him,” you said, “I hurt a kid.”

“He’s fine,” James assured, “I’ll talk to Stark, it’s fine.”

“I’m sorry, papa, we were playing hide and seek and I didn’t tell mama I was going outside--”

“I told you not to play that game,” James looked down at Luka, “this is why, because you scare us.”

“I’m sorry,” Luka repeated.

“Well, everyone’s safe so…” he rubbed his forehead with his gloved hand as his eyes met yours, “it’s your turn, I’ll keep and eye on Luka.”

“My turn?”

“Upstairs, they’re waiting,” James said and raised his hand as if he would touch your shoulder but instead dropped it, “answer the question but you don’t need to talk about what you don’t want to.”

You nodded and swallowed as you looked past him to the front door. There were no questions they could ask that you didn’t dread.

✰

Howard and Steve sat on the other side of the table. It felt like a real interrogation, like you’d done something wrong. And yet, as you explained your time at Hydra, from employee to experiment, neither seemed to flinch, they listened and took notes but did not show the horror you felt.

“Do you know what they were doing to your son the day of your escape?” Stark asked.

“No, I was… sedated for much of it, they took him from me and--” you shook your head, “I was so angry, I never been so angry and when I woke I felt invincible and when the doctor came, I would’ve killed him, I think.”

“And I know it’s probably a moot question but you don’t know what they were giving you? The capsules, the drip?”

“I never seen the charts,” you shrugged and looked down. 

Your hands were trembling and you were overwhelmed. It was the first time you said any of it aloud and once you started, it streamed out like a river. Now that it was all out, the emotions began to flow too.

Then the realisation and the fear. It was, easy even for you, to guess what Hydra intended for your son. He was to be like his father, more efficient than his father. You lifted your head, terrified, and glanced between the men furtively.

“My son is not a weapon,” you said, “know that and do not make him one.”

“That is not our intent,” Steve assured softly, “that is not the type of weapon we use. That’s why we’re here, away from SHIELD, away from Hydra, we can’t let this happen to anyone else but given what we know, this experiment wasn’t just shelved. There are others out there and we need to get to them before another Winter Soldier appears.”

“But how… me and James hide for so long,” you said, “we cannot possibly know--”

Steve’s throat constricted and he looked at Howard. They weren’t telling you something.

“What you have told us today is all we need from you,” Stark said evenly, “It is a start for us to uncover the rest.”

“Uncover?” you blinked and frowned, “what do you mean uncover?”

“You and James have given us locations, details, security procedure,” Stark continued, “with that, we can gain access to the information we do need and find out where they’ve moved their new Soldat operation--”

“No,” you snapped as your chest squeezed, “you would send him back there?”

“We didn’t say--”

“You don’t tell me but you think I am stupid. I know James and I know he feels so bad he would go back to die,” you snarled, “he did nothing wrong. It was not him!”

“But… you, uh, he--” Howard began awkwardly.

“Hydra did that, Hydra made him that monster and he doesn’t not owe you anything. He killed the men who would take my child from me and he kept Luka safe, he is done.”

“Look, Bucky is my best friend and I understand, it wasn’t him, but he did those things, even if it wasn’t his choice and this is what we can do, this is the deal we can offer you. He gets us that intel and you get your safe haven.”

“And if he doesn’t come back?” you stood and slammed your hands on the table, “you would kill him all over again, Steven.”

Steve reeled as if you’d slapped him and Howard raised as brow as he looked at him from the corner of his eye.

“You friend? Really?” your English became more fractured as your rage rose and you hit the table again, this time leaving a dent in the metal, “you no friend to know what you send him back to. They not kill him, not his body, and they torture his mind.”

“Please, ma’am,” Howard said calmly, “it was his idea--”

“I don’t care, you let him!” you shouted, “You think him evil but I know he not. He save me and he has son. You would let a father die.”

“Just calm--” Steve intoned.

“No, no be calm,” you began to rant in Russian as you turned and stormed to the door.

“Where-- Wait!’ The men stood and followed after you.

“I go James!” you hollered as you strode out into the hall, “he trouble!”

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 311: Hand Gun

Previously on BnHA: Horikoshi was all “thinkin’ about dropping in some woke analogies of the very real and very presently relevant issue of racial profiling idk what do you guys think” and then shrugged and did it without waiting for an answer, and ngl it was a bit sudden, but I’m here for it. All Might was all “DEKU YOU NEED TO EAT” and Deku was all “OKAY” and took his hero bento and went to go stand dramatically on a tower in the rain whilst having some highly anticipated Vestige flashbacks. OFA II was all, “sup, I guess I’m not Kacchan... OR AM I,” and ngl I think he is?? Alternate universes anybody?? Hello??? But anyway, so OFA the First a.k.a. Yoichi was all “remember that time you guys rescued me from my evil brother and Two took my hand and we Had A Moment?”, and Two and Three were all “ahh yeah good times”, and it was very nice and very, very gay. The chapter ended with it being very unclear if Two and Three have actually lent their power to Deku yet or not lmao. Y’all need to get your shit together dudes.

Today on BnHA: Horikoshi is all “what if I gave a random bad guy a fucking tommy gun that shoots nails” and jesus christ calm down son. The Hawksquad, a.k.a. SQUAWK as per @hotchocolatier​, are all “time to drive aimlessly around town acting like Deku has a restraining order on us because that’s literally the best plan to combat the League we could come up with,” and I have no further comment. Hawks is all “idk about you guys but I want to know more about AFO and Tomura’s whole deal” and I can’t remember the last time I identified so strongly with one of these characters. All Might is all, “[EXPLODES???]”, and the chapter ends with that mysterious hot girl from the Tartarus breakout being all “HELLO I CAN TURN INTO A GUN AND I LITERALLY DON’T GIVE A FUCK” and (1) WOW, and (2) IT’S TRUE, SHE CAN, AND SHE REALLY DOESN’T. GODDAMN.

(ETA: so this wholly escaped my notice on the first go, and also has nothing to do with the chapter itself, but I only just realized that this chapter was scanlated by a new group, TCB Scans. they actually did a very good job, and I’m curious if they’ve found a new RAW provider, because the quality this week is actually crazy good in comparison to what we’ve been dealing with for the past few months. I’m gonna have to get caught up on what exactly happened here lol.)

so what will it be this week? more Vestige antics? more of Sad Nomad Deku standing on buildings and pretending like he’s some cool aloof antihero, as if he could fool us when we all know his hero backpack is secretly stuffed full with his nerd diaries and the remnants of all the hero bentos that All Might keeps giving him?? or, just putting it out there, just a crazy thought, but you don’t suppose we might actually cut back to U.A.? mmm. side-eyes emoji

maaaaaan I’m starting to get tired of this trend of beginning chapters by dropping in on random power-tripping civilians and/or Shindou lol. just once can we get a chapter that opens with someone I actually give a fuck about

oh at least Endeavor is here

A WHAT SUPPORT ITEM!??! HOLY SHIT DDLKJSLFKJL

lol somehow that’s more terrifying than bullets for me?? like I’m fully aware that bullets will fuck you up way worse and that in real life nail guns probably don’t work like this AT ALL and only have a range of like... hold up let me just google... up to 100 to 150 m/s and distances of up to 500m wait WHAT

okay wait. hold up. like I was expecting google to tell me nail guns only shoot a few feet at most, and instead the first search result is some CDC blog article that’s “dispelling” the “””myth””” -- please note my repeated sarcastic quotation marks -- that nail guns can fire 1400 feet per second, by explaining that actually they can fire anywhere from 315 ft/sec to 1,295 ft/sec, and that “it is in the pneumatic nail gun user’s best interest to handle these tools as if they were a firearm despite having a lower velocity” dlkjdslkjflkl

SO THAT SCENE IN IRON MAN 3 WHERE TONY RAIDS A HOME DEPOT AND BUYS A BUNCH OF RANDOM TOOLS AND SHIT AND GOES ON TO STAGE A ONE-MAN INVASION OF AN INTERNATIONAL TERRORIST’S FLORIDA MANSION HQ IS ACTUALLY TRUE. YOU’RE TELLING ME THAT THE FILM “HOME ALONE” IS ACTUALLY A DOCUMENTARY. “the Discovery Channel television program “Mythbusters” compared the penetration capacity of an airborne projectile shot from a pneumatic framing nail gun to that of a 9mm hand gun” HELLO YES AND A MERRY “WHAT THE FUCK” TO YOU AS WELL

anyway, so. there’s apparently a reason why the Number One hero, who can burn people with the intensity of a sun going supernova, is hiding here behind this concrete support column making frowny faces. nope. nuh uh. he ain’t about that. I don’t blame you buddy

so now he’s barrel rolling out of his hiding place and setting this dude THE FUCK ON FIRE because HELL NO. BAD ENOUGH I HAD TO WATCH THAT FUCKING MUSHROOM EPISODE LAST WEEK! YOU TAKE THAT SHIT SOMEWHERE ELSE

LOL look at his face

I know the context is actually him being all “I know I’m responsible for basically everything that happened and so that’s why I’m so grim and serious about this mission to set things right piece by piece,” but in my mind this pissed-off face is 100% all because this dude tried to shoot his eye out with a nail gun. look at that. you made him go full flame face again. beard and all. protecting his face so that it can hopefully melt any stray nails that get too close. nope nope nope

good lord. so what’s up next. let me guess the guy fighting Best Jeanist has like an atomic chainsaw or some shit

lol nope we’re just cutting back to Hawks and Jeanist chilling in the Jesla after they’ve wrapped things up

Jeanist has got some serious Groot energy you guys jesus christ he’s like 12 feet tall

oh snap someone threw a pipe at him now

today is just the chapter of Endeavor being assaulted by random DIY tools I guess

I mean, I get why they’re pissed at him obviously; I would be too lol. but tbh I also don’t really understand the “get out of here we don’t want your help” attitude that all of these people suddenly seem to have?? like it if were me, I would be fucking DEMANDING for him and the other heroes to be working round the clock to fix their stupid mess. I mean who else is gonna do it?? it’s their mess, I sure don’t want to be the one to clean it up instead. anyways but whatever lol

oh shit?

so they haven’t dropped the whole “OFA secret potentially gets revealed to the world” thing yet after all. that makes sense I suppose, it did seem like that whole thing wound up playing out a bit too easily

anyway so yeah

the locals are definitely none too happy. well at least Dabi’s got something to be cheerful about I guess

so now we’re cutting to the interior of the Jesla and they’re chitchatting about the current investigation

oh wow this actually makes a bit of sense now. so there was a reason they were keeping their distance from Deku

please note that even in this abstract Endeavor’s-Mental-Image-Of-Him panel, Deku’s eyes still don’t have the light in them anymore :( my poor son

also ftr I still think using Deku as bait in this particular sense is the shittiest idea ever ngl. like sure, let’s let the sixteen-year-old run around battling miscellaneous escaped prison convicts while we stay several kilometers away ON PURPOSE despite the fact that you’re using him as bait to draw out the Big Bad, who just a reminder can destroy anything with a mere touch and who you were all basically helpless against. what exactly are you all planning to do if Tomura or one of the other League VIPs actually shows up to retrieve him?? are you even keeping tabs on him at all in real time?? jesus

(ETA: well that escalated quickly lol.)

Horikoshi is all of a sudden dropping whole pages of exposition here and I can’t be bothered to summarize this lol so just,

a big fat YES to what Jeanist said, though. that’s why imo they would have been better off laying a trap at U.A. rather than just wandering around out in the open. I assume they’re trying to cut their potential losses because U.A. is full of students (and civilians), but those students also happen to be more capable than pretty much anyone else in the manga at this point. and tbh they’re already in life-threatening danger regardless of how things play out from here on, so they might as well at least try to use the few advantages they have right now. U.A. is almost certainly going to come under siege at some point anyway, so they might as well prepare for it

lol I don’t think I’m explaining this very well because I don’t have the patience right now to break it down point by point like it really ought to be, so for now I’ll just say that imo “U.A. siege” stands a good chance of being the eventual endgame even now, and so this whole “Deku runs around being bait” arc is really just killing time until then lol. like and subscribe for more rambling nonsensical takes such as this. maybe next time I’ll even put it all into one single sentence for maximum meandering senior citizen rant value

well it’s nice that they’re finally talking about all of this I guess

we readers have known all of this for months now but this confirms the heroes are finally caught up. ALSO, Hawks is so fucking smart, as always. kinda wonder if things would have played out differently if All Might had let him in on the secret a bit earlier. probably that’s why Horikoshi made damn sure they didn’t find out until after the War arc lol

OH MY GOD YOOOOOO HAWKS OUT HERE ASKING THE REAL QUESTIONS

“anyone else wondering why AFO bothered to raise Tomura as his fake heir for fifteen years when he was secretly planning on taking over his body the whole time” YES, [raises hand] lmao Hawks where the hell were you when I was debating this “AFO is the final villain and Tomura is just his pawn” thing on multiple occasions over the past several years lol

lmao seeing them debate the metaphysics of OFA and all of its mystical bullshit is seriously surreal you guys

JEANIST HAVE YOU CHECKED OUT MY META TAG I HAVE WRITTEN SO MANY ESSAYS. I ACTUALLY WAS PLANNING ON WRITING ANOTHER ESSAY ABOUT THE THING THAT I’M PRETTY SURE HAWKS IS ABOUT TO BRING UP, BUT I NEVER GOT AROUND TO IT WHOOPS, BUT MAYBE I WILL NOW LOL LET’S SEE HOW IT GOES

yes!!

WHICH AFO FUCKING ENSURED HE WOULD BE BY LITERALLY PLANNING OUT EVERY LAST DETAIL OF HIS FAMILY TRAGEDY, FROM SECRETLY GIVING TENKO THE QUIRK TO MAKING SURE NO CIVILIANS OR HEROES WOULD HELP HIM UNTIL AFO FINALLY STEPPED IN. I’M 1000% CONVINCED THIS IS THE CASE YOU GUYS. NOT JUST BECAUSE I’M NOT A FAN OF “THE WORLD IS A FUNDAMENTALLY SHITTY PLACE, ACTUALLY” TAKES BECAUSE MISTER ROGERS TOLD ME TO ALWAYS LOOK FOR THE HELPERS, BUT ALSO BECAUSE IT LITERALLY JUST DOESN’T MAKE A LICK OF SENSE OTHERWISE. THEIR ENTIRE HOUSE CAVED IN FFS, YOU’RE TELLING ME NONE OF THE NEIGHBORS FUCKING OVERHEARD THAT SHIT AND WENT “UMMMMMMMMM” AND WENT TO SEE WHAT WAS GOING ON?? “DIDN’T THERE USED TO BE A HOUSE HERE, AND LIKE A WHOLE FAMILY, AND SHIT?”

LIKE I’M SORRY, BUT IT’S ONE THING TO SAY IT’S REALISTIC THAT NOT A SINGLE PERSON WOULD ATTEMPT TO HELP THE WANDERING TRAUMATIZED CHILD AFTERWARDS (WHICH I DISAGREE WITH AS WELL BUT AT LEAST THAT’S MORE SUBJECTIVE), AND IT’S A WHOLE OTHER THING TO ARGUE THAT IT’S REALISTIC THAT NO ONE WOULD BE FUCKING NOSY. LIKE THAT’S A WHOLE DIFFERENT LEVEL OF “THAT’S NOT HOW ANY OF THIS WORKS” ENTIRELY LOL. anyway tl;dr AFO is a piece of shit and Tomura’s entire worldview is based on a magnificently intricate and savagely cruel lie more at 11

anyway so after all that ranting it looks like that wasn’t even what Hawks was talking about after all lol. I just went off for absolutely no reason lol oh well. instead it seems that Hawks is suggesting that Tomura’s carefully cultivated hatred might not yet have actually reached “can defeat OFA” levels even after all of that trauma. interesting!

don’t mind me, I’m just sitting here while my brain furiously scrambles to put together all the parallels between Hawks and Tomura that it never noticed before until exactly this second. like I’m not even sure that was the intent here at all (I need to check out another translation or two lol), but regardless my mind decided that now would be the perfect time to make the connection between these two twenty-somethings who both had horrific childhoods and spent years being molded by their respective manipulative guardians, and developed eerily similar “laugh at everything because what else can you do” coping mechanisms to deal with it all hmmmmm

anyway so they were talking more about their strategy, but now all of a sudden Jeanist’s phone is beeping??

AND NOW WE’RE CUTTING AWAY TO ALL MIGHT AND HIS MIGHTMOBILE DAMMIT so that means the call to Jeanist was actually something important then!! WAS IT BAKUGOU OMG. DOES YOUR INTERN WANT A WORD FFFKLFSJK please it’s been so long I just need a little crumb or two to tide me over lmao have mercy

anyway so All Might’s following the GPS tracking device he’s apparently got planted on Deku (which in my conspiracy headcanons he’s actually had for a long time now, like since before DvK2 lol because HOW ELSE WOULD HAVE HAVE KNOWN THAT THEY WERE FIGHTING EACH OTHER IN GROUND BETA, PEOPLE) and thinking angsty thoughts about Deku’s sucky life

AND NOW ALL MIGHT’S PHONE IS RINGING TOO?? BAKUGOU HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE YOU CALLING. “WHERE ARE YOU HIDING THE NERD GODDAMMIT”

OMG

lol is he under attack or is he just finally giving All Might the slip like we all know he SECRETLY PLANNED TO ALL ALONG oh my poor dumb angstmuffin

OMG AHHHHHHH WHAT

DID ALL MIGHT JUST FUCKING DIE LMAO NO OF COURSE NOT, BUT WHAT

WHAT IS HAPPENING OMG

THE FUCK IS THAT. AT LEAST IT’S NOT A NAIL

OH IT’S A SPEAKER!! OMG DID THEY TAKE ALL MIGHT HOSTAGE

“THEY’RE HERE” WELP, TIME TO SEE JUST HOW SHITTY THIS SHITTY PLAN REALLY IS LOL

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

SHE!!!!

omg. AND OVERHAUL JUST CHILLING THERE IN THE BACKGROUND ALL “WHAT DO YOU EVEN WANT ME TO DO I’VE GOT NO FUCKING ARMS” YEAH GOOD RIDDANCE LOL

DOES THIS GIRL HAVE ONE GIANT LEG OR WHAT, LIKE WHAT’S THE DEAL HERE

-- HOLD UP WAIT, THE GUN IS HER ARM, HOLY SHIT SHE CAN TURN INTO A GUN -- OKAY HOLD UP BECAUSE I NEED TO SAY THAT IN BIGGER TEXT BECAUSE !!!!

YOU GUYS, THE COOL TARTARUS GIRL IS BACK AND HER QUIRK IS “CAN TURN INTO A FUCKING GUN.” THIS IS NOT A DRILL!! MY BEST GIRL MT. GUN IS FINALLY BACK ON THE SCENE WITH HER QUIRK “CAN DO ANYTHING A GUN CAN DO.” “I HEARD Y’ALL WENT AND NAMED ONE OF YOUR HEROES ‘GUNHEAD’ EVEN THOUGH HIS HEAD ISN’T EVEN A GUN, LIKE WTF IS UP WITH THAT LET ME SHOW YOU HOW IT’S DONE” DANG OKAY

lmao only fifteen pages this week, and STILL NO KACCHAN (THEN WHO WAS PHONE!!!), but man I don’t even care because finally we’ve got a cliffhanger that’s actually deserving of being a cliffhanger! hot dog. okay then

[wrenhyperfixates]

Anything

Pairing: Loki x reader Summary: When the Avengers latest mission is to visit local schools, Loki’s insecurities start to get the better of him. But with you to there comfort him, he realizes that with you by his side, he can do anything. Warnings: a little angsty, but mainly fluff A/N: Enjoy :)

Permanent Tag List: @lucywrites02 @frostedgiant​ @lunarmoon8​ @twhiddlestonsstuff​ @lokistan​ @lowkeyorlokificrecs​ @gaitwae​ @whatafuckingdumbass​ @castiels-majestic-wings​ @kozkaboi​ @cozy-the-overlord​ @birdgirl90​ @myraiswack​ @mythicalgarlicknot​ @what-a-flammable-heart​ @mlqcikemenmc​

Disclaimer: Gif not mine

Loki frowned, looking out the window, down at the Avengers getting into Stark’s limo. They were doing some kind of awareness week at schools in the city, something or other about being a good citizen and staying safe. The God of Mischief had been invited to come, but he didn’t think it a particularly good idea. He’d never done anything with children before, and he wasn’t sure this was the best time to try.

“Loki?” you asked out of the blue. He whipped around at the sound of your voice. “What are you still doing here?”

“Oh, hello, darling. I just did not feel like going,” he said with a shrug. It wasn’t entirely a lie, but he still felt bad. “And what about you?”

“They insisted someone stay in case of an emergency call,” you explained. You weren’t totally sold on his excuse, but were terrified of pushing him, especially because things were going so well between you recently. “So that means we’re alone, right?”

“Yes, darling. Indeed, it does,” he replied, a smile curling on his lips.

Faster than lightning, Loki was pressing his lips to yours in a passionate kiss. You’d been dating for a little over a month, but were keeping it a secret from the rest of the Avengers. You both had your own reasons for that. Loki was afraid they wouldn’t approve and try to come between you. You, however were worried that Loki would put too much pressure on himself to be perfect if they knew, ending in him pulling away from you, convinced he wasn’t good enough. But either way, you agreed it was too soon to let them know. Soon, Loki had you pinned on the couch with his body, the raw desire in his kiss only growing. All too soon, you had to break for air, but you were quick to recapture his lips after catching your breath.

After a while, you were content to just lay with each other, cuddling while a movie played in the background. You were talking, and it reminded you of his flaky excuse from earlier. You were still worried about pressing, but god damn it, he was your boyfriend and you should be allowed to check on him.

“So...” you began.

“So?”

“So what’s the real reason why you didn’t go with the rest of the team?”

“Ah,” he said. “That.”

“Mhm. You don’t have to tell me,” you replied, caressing his cheek, “but you can always talk to me. I’m here for you, Loki. I promise.”

“I know, darling. Thank you,” he said against your skin as he nuzzled into your neck. He didn’t want to trouble you with what was on his mind, but your eyes were so innocent and full of adoration that he couldn’t resist. “I am afraid. Afraid that I would not be good with kids, that I would frighten them. Afraid that their parents would learn of my visit and cause an uproar. Afraid that I will never escape my past.”

“Oh, Loki,” you cooed, filled with compassion. You wanted to take his face in your hands, but he was still hiding in the crook of your neck. You settled for intertwining your fingers with his. “You are so, so much more than your past. New York wasn’t even your fault, for crying out loud. You are amazing, kind, insightful, compassionate, intelligent, beautiful. The list goes on and on, I assure you. The only way to deal with your fears is to face them head on, don’t you think? They may not even come true.”

You could feel his tears staining your skin, though he was obviously trying to hold them back. You were overcome with a powerful need to comfort him, to protect him from the world. It was so unfair that after all he’d been through, everyone who had hurt him, he blamed himself for all this. That he worried he wasn’t worthy of love when he was, in fact, the most deserving person you’d ever met.

“My darling,” he whispered, his voice breaking ever so slightly. Your chest swelled with pride as you realized you were one of the few—possibly the only—people he let himself be vulnerable with. “I cannot thank you enough for your words, truly.”

“You’re welcome, Loki,” you replied, taking a page out of his book and kissing the back of his hand. “You mean the world to me, my love.”

“And you the same to me,” he finally lifted his head up, and you turned to look at him. “I feel I can do anything with you at my side.”

“Does that mean what I think it does?”

“Yes. I will go with the rest of the team tomorrow if, and only if, you come with me.”

“Deal,” you agreed, kissing along his jawline and starting another make-out session.

Luckily, you heard the Avengers before you were in view of each other, giving you and Loki a chance to untangle yourselves and move to opposite ends of the couch. You shared a smile before turning your attentions to the TV as if that’s what you’d been doing the whole time.

“Well, I hope you two had a nice time while we were out doing hard work,” Tony joked.

“Tell you what,” you replied. “You get someone else to hold down the fort, and we’ll go tomorrow.”

“I’ll stay,” Bruce volunteered, a little too excitedly. He never was one for social settings. “Have fun.”

After catching up for a few minutes, you were all setting about your various tasks for the rest of the day. Before meeting Sam in the training room, you gave Loki’s hand a quick squeeze and pecked him on the cheek. Once you were gone, a feeling of dread settled in the pit of his stomach. But he’d meant what he said, and he was willing to do anything so long as you were there.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“What do you mean we can’t visit the same classroom?” you incredulously asked.

“It’s too slow,” Steve explained. “We cover more ground, so to speak, if we split up.”

“But can’t Loki and I be a pair? Please,” you pouted.

“Sorry guys,” he said. “We have to stick to the plan if we’re going to get to all the classes.”

You frowned as he walked away. You understood where he was coming from, but felt like he should have been able to make an exception. But it seemed like there was no getting him to budge, so you dropped the matter.

“Hey, at least our classes will be right next to each other,” you tried to comfort Loki as you all walked towards your assignments. “I’m sorry I can’t stay with you though. I know I promised.”

“Oh, my sweet darling,” Loki replied, pulling you aside to give you a quick kiss. “It is not your fault. It is some Midgardian rite of passage, is it not, to be scared on your first day of school?”

You smiled at the way he was cheering you up, despite obviously being very worried about the whole situation himself. Honestly, you really couldn’t fathom why anyone was afraid of this gentle, beautiful man before you. Why he was afraid of himself.

“I love you, Loki,” you said, giving him a big hug. He melted into your touch. “You’re going to be wonderful. You feel ok with this, right? We’ll figure something out if you don’t.”

“I shall muddle through, somehow,” he assured you. “It is like you said, I must face my fears.”

You gave him one last encouraging hug and smile before disappearing into the classroom you’d be talking in. He took a deep breath before knocking on the door of his assigned room. The teacher, a middle-aged man with hair starting to gray, welcomed him. It was a little unnerving to Loki that he seemed to have no qualms with the God of Mischief entering the threshold. The class, too, was watching him with nothing less than rapt attention and bright eyes. Perhaps you were right, after all, and not as many people as he thought were still holding onto the image he’d had when he first came to Midgard.

“Hello, children,” he began after a nervous gulp. “It is lovely to be here with you today.”

“Hello, Mr. Loki,” they chorused back.

As he began the talk on safety, he relaxed a bit. It was a room full of third graders, for Norns’ sake. He had faced off against fire serpents and sea monsters. Surely he could handle a group of kids. And as he soon found out, he was right indeed. More than handle, in fact; he was great with them! As he waltzed out of the room and into the next, he wondered if he might have a family of his own one day. He didn’t know how you felt about adopting, but he was starting to like the idea. It didn’t go too well for him in his childhood, but he could ensure that some other innocent kid won’t go through what he did. Besides, the circumstances were entirely different. Though, he supposed he was getting ahead of himself, imagining having a family with you. Still, it sent a thrill right to his heart.

After a very successful morning, he met back up with you. Being the first two done with the presentations, Loki took the opportunity to whisk you away to a secluded hallway to kiss you again.

“So it went well, I take it,” you laughed as you broke away.

“Just as you said it would, darling. I even had fun.”

“Well then, congratulations, my love. I think that deserves another kiss,” you said, wrapping your arms behind his neck.

“I think that you are right,” he agreed, tickling you a little.

As your lips met again, you heard a loud, overdramatic gasp that could only belong to Tony. You both sprung back from each other, realizing the hallway wasn’t as private as you’d originally believed. Besides Tony, the other Avengers were all standing there, taking in the scene too. Shooting each other a nervous glance, you and Loki braced yourselves for whatever came next.

“You two,” Tony said, feigning utter shock and hurt, “are dating? Woe is me! How could you keep this a secret from us, your dearest teammates?”

“Spare me, Stark,” Loki said, rolling his eyes and taking your hand. If you’d been found out, might as well be confident about it. “Yes, we are together. And I, for one, couldn’t be happier.”

“Neither could I,” you agreed, going to kiss him again.

“Now, now,” Tony interjected. He stood between you and put an arm over each of your shoulders, leading the way outside. “No kissing in the halls. But you know what? I think this is the start of an awesome era for the Avengers. Just think of all the jokes!”

You giggled as Loki rolled his eyes again, though he was fighting a losing battle with a grin. As you got into the limo, fingers locked once again, Loki began to accept something. It was right what you’d said about that not being the real him at the Battle of New York. No, he was himself now. Someone different, perhaps better and stronger than ever before. And it was you in a large part who had helped him see that. He knew in that moment that he’d been entirely right; with you by his side, he could do anything.

[babyjamiebarnes]

Build-A-Bear

Part Eight

Featuring: Bucky x Stark!reader, Steve, Sam, OC Monique, Tony

Warnings: language, implied smut, talk of pregnancy/children, pregnancy scare

Chapter Summary: Sam finds out about Reader and Bucky’s secret. Reader has a scare that helps Reader and Bucky have a very important conversation.

Author’s Note: This was originally going to be longer but in light of recent events in America, I decided to postpone a violent scene (so warning for the next part: violence). It’s kinda short and I’m so sorry but I wanted to give you something. As always, feel free to buy me a coffee!

Tags: @amourmarvel @fangirlvoice @kennedywxlsh @devilswaldorf @what-the-hap-is-fuckning @alyispunk @fredweasleysbitchh @wearegroot @sunflowerbebe107 @prestigious-tea

(Part One) (Part Two) (Part Three) (Part Four) (Part Five) (Part Six) (Part Seven)

Despite his frustration with finding out he was breaking way more than just company protocol, Bucky’s attitude simmered and eventually fizzled out as the day went on. You’d bet seeing you uncomfortably directing security where to put your lab equipment while Bucky’s cum stuck to the inside of your thighs had an impact on his mood.

The rest of the day went by surprisingly well, all things considered. You took the day to set up your at-home lab while Steve got groceries and cooked, Sam installed security cameras in all the common areas, and Bucky searched your place for any bugs or wires. No one was weird about things, aside from Bucky when you first arrived. Sam was his usual goofy self and Steve was a dad stereotype.

That night, however, Steve sat everyone down in your living room for a little chat. Steve and Sam sat on the sofa across from you and Bucky, almost like they were concerned parents talking to you before sending you to prom.

“Okay, time to address the elephant in the room. Who knew about who you are before it was leaked?” Steve asked, elbows propped on his knees and that signature crease between his brows.

“Other than dad, Pepper, Rhodey, and Happy, just Monique,” you shrugged. “But it wasn’t her. She has nothing to gain from telling anyone.”

“Well, unfortunately we’ll have to look into her anyway,” Steve sighed. “But if it’s not her, it won’t be a problem. And you’re sure there’s no one else?”

“What about that boyfriend of yours?” Sam asked.

“It’s not him,” you said meekly. “I never told him.”

“Are you sure he couldn’t have found out?” Sam pressed.

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

Sam nodded but added, “We should still talk to the guy —”

“I didn’t know,” Bucky interrupted from beside you.

Sam looked confused, but Steve next to him was smirking, clearly trying to hold back a laugh.

“What?” Sam asked.

Bucky leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees, his stance wide and fingers intertwined in the middle. If the situation wasn’t so serious, you’d be even more turned on.

“I didn’t know,” he repeated with a forced, tight-lipped smile. “I found out this morning and I was just as shocked as you were.”

“I said I was sorry!” you groaned, tossing your arms in the air in exasperation.

Bucky leaned back to wrap an arm around your shoulders and pull you into his side. When he slid his arm over your neck, you instinctively gripped his forearm but the giggle you let out showed you weren’t trying to pry him off you.

While you wiggled in Bucky’s grasp to get comfortable, Sam’s eyes darted between the two of you in a mix of shock and curiosity.

“Man, how the hell did you get a girl like that?!”

Steve finally let his laugh out at this. Bucky just tightened his arm around your throat, making you moan quietly, just barely loud enough for him to hear.

“Trust me, she’s a pain in the ass,” Bucky teased. You giggled again and squirmed out of his grasp to straddle his legs, now that everyone in the room knew your secret.

“You can always be a pain in my ass,” you smirked as you draped your arms over his shoulders and scooted forward so your pelvis was pressed against him. He groaned in frustration and tossed his head back, gripping your ass cheeks in an attempt to ground himself.

“You better watch your mouth before I fuck you right here, right now, princess,” he practically growled. You bit your lip to tease him just a little bit more. He had only called you ‘princess’ twice but it was definitely doing something for you.

“I hate to be a buzzkill,” Sam started, “but her dad would skin you alive if he heard you saying that.”

“And then filet what’s left if he saw this,” Steve added.

“Bucky’d probably taste pretty good though,” Sam shrugged. “Especially if we got to the thighs.”

“Yeah, I’d go for the thighs,” Steve agreed, making Bucky roll his eyes.

“I’d go for something else,” you piped in.

“Okay, let’s end this before it gets out of hand,” Steve said. You frowned but plopped back onto the couch next to Bucky instead of on top of him.

The rest of the night was spent mapping out who knew about you, who might’ve figured it out, and what any of those people would’ve gotten out of leaking your secret. You adamantly ruled Monique out; she didn’t need the money or the attention and already knew the type of stress your secret put on you. And her concerned texts begging you to believe it wasn’t her and vowing to castrate whoever told the media helped support your case. Unfortunately, it led to a lot of dead ends. You knew it couldn’t have been Happy, Rhodey, or Pepper, but that left literally no one as a suspect.

Halfway across town, your dad, Rhodey, Happy, Pepper, and Bruce were going over their own documents and information to get to the bottom of it. None of the news stations were willing to divulge their source, claiming it was “anonymous” so they didn’t know who said it, but Tony wasn’t convinced. He was worried about you, but he also knew your temporary roommates were solid protection for you.

He just didn’t know the additional protection you’d need with one of those roommates.

•

Bucky was always great about your period. It usually only lasted a few days because of your birth control and was on the light side, but he had no issue with laying down one of his “safety towels” before laying you down during those three days. He even set reminders in his phone so he knew to be prepared. So when his reminder popped up on what was usually your final day, he walked in with a towel while you lounged in bed, but he was confused at your own confusion.

“Why do you have a towel?” you laughed.

“Babe,” he whined. It amused you to no end when the big bad Winter Soldier whined at you. “I’m horny.”

You laughed again as he tossed the towel onto the bed beside you and settled his weight between your legs.

“Okay? Why does that involve a towel?”

Bucky furrowed his eyebrows at you.

“Aren’t you on your period?”

It only took one second for the realization to make your breath catch in your throat. It took one more second for Bucky’s entire body to grow tense.

“You’re on your period, right?” he asked. The urgency in his voice did nothing but stress you out more. You pulled your body out from under his and ran into your bathroom, rummaging through the drawers looking for an old test you were sure you had lying around somewhere. You had personally only ever taken one as a joke, but you knew Britt had panicked and taken more than a couple at your place before she got married.

“[Y/N].” Bucky’s voice behind you as you crouched on your bathroom floor made you pause your searching. “Talk to me,” he pressed.

You didn’t look at him as you spoke.

“I’m late.”

He let out a huff behind you but quickly crouched beside you, wrapping an arm around your shoulders because if he thought he was scared, he couldn’t imagine what you were feeling.

“Okay. We’ll go pick up a test and cross our fingers in the meantime,” he said quietly.

“How are we supposed to get a pregnancy test, James? Everyone knows who I am now,” you snapped.

You hated how easily you could tear up because you didn’t want to cry over your situation, but the stress hit you too quickly for any other reaction to kick in first.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” you muttered quickly, pawing at your face to wipe away stray tears. “I’ll call Monique and have her pick one up.”

“Okay.” Bucky was treading lightly, you could tell. “Do you want to be alone or do you want me to stay with you?”

You bit your lip and took a deep, shaky breath to push more tears back.

“I think I want you to stay.”

Bucky let you sit between his legs while you called Monique.

“Hey, what’s up?” she answered almost immediately.

“I need you to come over,” you said, trying and failing to cover the panic in your voice.

“What’s going on? Are you okay?” You could hear rustling in the background and knew she was already sliding on shoes to rush over.

“I kind of need you to pick something up for me.”

“Anything.”

“Um… I need you to grab a pregnancy test.”

“A preg—” she paused. “A… okay, yeah, I’ll pick that up and swing by soon.”

“Thanks, Momo,” you replied quietly, tossing out the nickname you gave her after you two rewatched Avatar: The Last Airbender a couple years prior.

“See you soon, love you,” she said as you heard the slam of her door.

“Love you.”

True to her word, Monique knocked on your front door less than 20 minutes later. Since Steve and Sam practically interrogated her just a couple days before, they didn’t hesitate to let her in. She proved she wasn’t one to just let them toss around unsubstantiated accusations.

“Hey booboo,” she cooed as she stepped into your room. “I grabbed three different brands just to be safe and threw in a bottle of sparkling grape juice and a bottle of champagne, depending on what results we get.”

You couldn’t help but finally laugh at the cross between a cringe and a smile on her face. You practically lunged off the bed to give her a hug. She held you a second longer than usual and started leading you to your bathroom. When Bucky started to follow, she turned sharply.

“Uh-uh. You stay put. You’re the whole reason this is happening.”

“Monique, it takes two,” you chuckled behind her.

“And he’s the one who ejaculated in you.” You scoffed and grabbed her arm to tug her into the bathroom with you.

“We’ll be out in a few minutes.”

Bucky loved seeing how easily your best friend could immediately lift your spirits, but hated being sequestered in the bedroom.

The minutes ticked by even slower for you. Monique tried to keep you occupied as your phone and her phone counted down until the results would appear. One only took three minutes but the other two took five, so you anxiously stared at the three-minute test lying face-down on the sink until Monique’s phone beeped.

You breathed out an early sigh of relief at the test that read “NOT PREGNANT.”

“Two more,” Monique reminded you.

Those last two minutes felt even longer than the first three. But once your phone dinged, you and Monique each grabbed one of the two remaining tests. Judging by Monique’s squeal, you had the same results. You peeked over just to make sure and barreled through the bathroom door, startling Bucky as he sat on the edge of the bed.

“Not pregnant!” you screamed in excitement.

You ran and tackled him, sending him onto his back on the bed.

“Do I need to remind you two what caused this in the first place?” Monique laughed behind you two.

All of your heads turned when your bedroom door swung open to reveal both Steve and Sam looking even more concerned than usual.

“Did you just say what I think you said?!” Steve asked.

“What do you think I said?” you asked, sitting up onto Bucky’s lap.

“We heard ‘I’m pregnant’!” Sam shouted.

“Not pregnant!” you clarified and held up the test you were still gripping. “No babies yet.”

“Yet?” Bucky parroted.

“Uh… yeah…?” you replied hesitantly.

It was something that seemed so far into the future for you two that you never discussed it, but you did want a kid or two someday. And judging by the scare you just had, it was something you should probably discuss soon, just in case.

But Bucky’s reaction pretty much answered your unspoken question. He moved a hand to the back of your neck and pulled you down for a forceful, heated kiss. He easily slid his tongue into your mouth and squeezed your ass — until Monique cleared her throat.

“You should probably use these next time,” she said as she tossed a box of condoms at you.

Bucky pulled away quick enough to catch the box before it hit you, but the rest of the room still laughed at your expense.

“You really like giving Stark a reason to kill you, don’t you?” Sam asked Bucky, who groaned out loud and collapsed back on the bed.

“I didn’t know!”

•

That night as you and Bucky were lying in bed — just a couple hours after your period finally started — you forced your nerves away and asked the big question.

“Hey, what were you feeling today? Before I took the tests, I mean.”

Bucky continued to stroke your arm, unfazed by the topic.

“Initially, fear. And then the more time passed, the more that fear turned into... excitement, I guess? I mean, I always wanted kids back in the day, but now I’m kind of worried, you know?”

“Why?” you prodded, propping yourself up on Bucky’s chest so you could look directly at him. He propped his head up with his hand to look back at you.

“Do I need to remind you that I was the deadliest assassin in the world 10 years ago?” he smirked.

“Well yeah, but not anymore!” you smiled back. “You’re my Bucky Bear now.”

“Mm, keep saying cute shit like that and I’ll actually get you pregnant next time.”

You giggled at this but shook your head.

“Monique got us condoms for a reason.”

“Do you want to use one now?” Bucky smirked.

“I gotta be totally honest,” you started slowly. You felt weird saying this but, “I don’t think I want to use them at all.” That cute little wrinkle popped up between Bucky’s eyebrows as he silently questioned your answer. “I just… I like feeling you.”

You swung a leg over his body to straddle him and pressed your body to his. Your lips attached to his neck before trailing up to his ear.

“I’m not against them if you want to use them,” you said softly. “But you should make that decision soon.”

He made up his mind real quick.

[just-dreaming-marvel]

Retry

MAIN MASTERLIST

tony stark x reader

Word Count: 2,700ish

Summary: After Tony and you break up, you get kidnapped by Loki. When you’re found, you’re not the same person you once were.

Warnings: mentions of rape and abuse, nightmares

You were an agent of SHIELD, assigned to be Tony Stark’s personal assistant due to him being Howard Stark’s kid. You two were always flirtatious, even up to the day he was kidnapped. You searched and searched for him, until you and Rhodey found him in the middle of the desert, three months after he had gone missing. You stayed by his side through everything. Helping him recover and defeat Obadiah, falling in love with each other along the way.

It wasn’t all lovey-dovey for the two of you though. Your relationship was built on heavy sarcasm and teasing, which often led to disagreements and/or nights of heated passion. You mostly fought about Tony’s decision making, especially during the time you didn’t know he was dying. During that time, the fights became more hurtful, either bring on the most heated passion you’d ever experienced or nights spent in different rooms. By the end of his disastrous birthday party, you decided that you were through. Leaving nothing but a voicemail for him, telling him that it was over.

“I’m sorry, Tony,” you voice clearly showed that you were crying. “But I can’t do this anymore. We’re too different, constantly trying to change each other and fighting. It’s not good for us. I’m so sorry, Tony, but it’s over."

You busied yourself in missions after that, ignoring your broken heart and his own desperate voicemails. You were at the SHIELD facility when the Tesseract formed a portal, allowing Loki through. He took both you and Clint as mind-controlled hostages. He used you for a bit before deciding that you were nothing more than a play thing to him, allowing his other controlled hostages to use you for their pleasure. You were beaten, raped, starved, spit on, and many other vile things. When they finally left you, in that cold dark ceil, you had no clothes or food. And you knew not where you were.

Tony was enraged when he found out that you had been taken, even more so when Loki wouldn’t give anyone your location. While having the chance to be near you, Loki was able to see in your mind the love you still had for Tony. And he couldn’t wait to taunt him with it.

When Tony arrived at Stark Tower to confront Loki, Loki used the Mind Stone to enter the billionaire’s mind. Causing him to see what he wanted him to see.

Tony was suddenly in his Malibu mansion. He quickly spun around, examining the place. It was the same, but different. There was clearly a woman living there with him. Tony walked around, seeing the stories of Iron Man saving the day framed on his walls. There were also a few picture of the two of you. He grabbed one, taking if off the wall to look at it. You both were all smiles, him in a tux and you in a white wedding dress. Tony’s mind was running a mile of thoughts a minute, when he heard singing. He followed the sound of singing he heard coming from the kitchen. When he entered, he froze at the sight of you cooking in the kitchen. You were there, safely in his kitchen. You turned to the side to grab something, allowing him to see that you were pregnant and that there was a ring on your left hand. His breath left him. When you finally noticed his presence, you turned and smiled widely at him.

“Hey, honey,” you walked up to him, giving him a sweet kiss. “How’s life down in the workshop?”

“It’s… It’s… I’m sorry,” Tony was in shock and very confused. “What’s going on here?”

“What do you mean? I’m making dinner.”

“I mean, like… what are you doing here? And how are you pregnant?”

“Umm… sweetie, do we really need to go over how babies are made? Cause when a mommy and a daddy—“

“No, I mean, you aren’t suppose to be here.”

“Did something happen down in the workshop today, Tony?” You rested a hand against his scratchy cheek. “Did you hit your head again?”

“No, I did not hit my head!” He stepped back, frustrated.

This wasn’t you. You shouldn’t be this sweet to him and you shouldn’t be here. You were no where to be found right now. There was no way you were at the mansion, and pregnant.

“But I’m afraid someone’s messing with yours,” Tony stated. “We aren’t together. You broke it off, left, because I was too much. We were too different.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Tony. But I think you need to get some rest before dinner.”

“Yeah, Tony,” Loki’s voice mocked him. “Maybe you should get some rest. Maybe then you’d be fast enough to safe her.”

Quickly, the setting changed. Tony was now in a dark, cold cement room. He turned, slowly, analyzing every inch of the place, until his eyes landed on the scene behind him. A man was stand over you, zipping up his pants. While you, naked and bleeding, were shivering and curled up on the floor.

“Y/N!” He shouted, rushing towards you. But when he went to touch you, his hand went straight through you. “Y/N?”

The man left, leaving you there to cry on your own. Tony went to try and hold you again, but his arms went straight through you. It was breaking his heart to see you like this and not be able to do anything to help you.

“She fought, at first,” Loki appeared beside him, looking down at the two. “She’s quite the fighter. But then, she was slowly worn down. An interesting process to witness.”

“I’m going to kill you,” Tony muttered, standing up with his fists clenched tightly. He spun around, aiming to punch Loki, but he had disappeared. “Come out and fight!”

“Oh, I don’t need to fight when I’ve already won,” Loki chuckled. “If you hadn’t let her get away, then she would have been with you instead of with Barton, where I was able to get her.”

Tony growled, throwing himself at the god. He grabbed his clothes and pushed him onto the ground, causing the scepter to leave Loki’s hand. The illusion faded from around them, back to present day Stark Tower. The two fought, until Tony was thrown from the tower and saved by his suit. Tony fought harder than ever to end Loki and his army. When the army was defeated and Loki was detained, the Avengers set out to find their missing person, you. Using Clint, they went back to every location Loki had been hiding in. Finally finding you in the last possible location, a week later.

You were still naked and extremely thin, close to death. Tony immediately pulled you into his arms and flew out of the building, heading straight for the SHIELD hospital. You were taken out of his arms almost as soon as he landed. But he swore to never leave the hospital until you could.

It took you a few days to gain full consciousness and, even then, you weren’t yourself. You were more quiet, closed off. You flinched at the slightest touch from anyone. It pained Tony to see you this way. At first, you had refused to let him in your room. But one night, he was sitting just outside it and heard you screaming in your sleep. He rushed inside and brought you out of that dark place your tired mind had taken you. After that, you let him stay close by.

Tony made it his goal to see you smile again, to hear that laugh. He was willing to try anything to get you to feel better and open up to him, even if that meant embarrassing himself. He tried preforming obviously bad talent shows with various instruments, singing, and magic tricks. He tried reading to you and showing you funny videos. But nothing. It was like all the happiness, everything that made you, you, was sucked out of you.

When the doctor’s said that you were physically healthy to go home, he took you back to his place in Malibu. You didn’t even put up a fight. You slept most of the flight there, allowing Tony to make goals to help you heal and make you fall in love with him again.

Some how make you laugh and/or smile everyday.

Show his love through acts of kindness.

Limit his daily time down in the workshop. Unless you’re down there with him.

Stop taking life risking missions, or making life risking decisions, unless absolutely necessary.

Get you to talk. Even if it’s just getting you to tell him how much you hate him. He needed to hear your voice.

You stayed up in your room for the first week in the mansion. Tony didn’t question it, bringing the food and entertainment to you. While eating, he would talk about the inventions he was working on or the things his friends were up to. After the first week, you began joining him in the workshop, silently watching him work from the couch. One day, he brought a stool to sit beside him and offered it to you. It was clear that you were nervous to sit that close but you did it anyway. Finding your new spot in the workshop. He began to teach you things and explain what he was working on. He’d even offer for you do help, and was surprised when you shakily took the tool from his hand in acceptance.

That became your new routine. You’d eat and sleep up in your room, and then spend the rest of the time helping Tony in the workshop. You two were in the midst of working on fixing one of the arms of his suit, while it was on him, when the arm fired up and shot him back into the wall. You immediately covered your mouth, trying but failing to suppress the laughter bubbling in you. Tony groaned against the wall, rubbing his head, before he realized what was happening. He looked at you with so much pride, you almost were embarrassed and stopped laughing, but you continued anyway. Causing Tony to laugh along as well. A week after that incident, you began to talk. It wasn’t much, mainly just asking for a certain kind of food or for Tony to pass a toll. But it was progress.

During the weeks you were with him, Tony left notes around the mansion, reminding you that he cared. He’d stopped taking missions. Fury agreeing to it until you were yourself again. Which Tony was slowly seeing. There were still some hard days and nights. Days were you would go back to not smiling, laughing, or talking. Nights that were full of nightmares, no matter what. There was one night that was particularly bad. So bad, that it scared Tony.

He was getting settled into his own bed, not long after checking on you for the last time that night. This was the most good nights that you’d had in a row, making Tony feel like things were getting better faster than he originally thought. But he thought that too soon. Tony had probably been asleep for no longer than an hour when he woke up to your screams.

“Please! Don’t!” You screamed. “Stop! AAHH!”

Tony was up and sprinting to your room faster than he ever had before. He threw open the door to see you thrashing around and still screaming.

“Stop! Don’t touch me! Please!”

Tony raced over to your bed, sitting beside you. His hands found their place on your shoulders, trying to keep you from thrashing.

“STOP! LET GO OF ME!”

“Y/N, it’s just me,” he calmly said, trying to coax you out of the state you were in. “I’m not going to hurt you. I just need you to wake up. Please, sweetheart.”

“Get off me!”

He tried to shake her shoulders as gently as he could, trying to wake her up without making it worse. “Y/N listen to my voice and wake up.”

Your eyes snapped open, but were clearly still panicked. You were breathing heavily and shaking beneath his hold. When you realized you were being pinned down, you began sobbing.

“Pl-please don’t hurt me…” you whimpered. “I’ll do anything… just please… don’t touch me…”

Tony held his hands up. “I’m not going to hurt you. I promise.”

“You aren’t?”

It was clear to Tony that you were still stuck in that nightmare. “No, I’m not. I would never. I’m here to protect you.”

“All the others have hurt me… why are you different?”

“Because I care about you. And I would never do anything like that to hurt you.”

Tony patiently waited for your breathing to calm and for your body to relax. You were almost back asleep when you spoke up again.

“Tony?” You called quietly.

“Hmm?” He hummed from beside you, relieved that you were back with him.

“Thank you… for being here…”

He leaned down and held a kiss to your forehead as your eyes fluttered close. “Always, honey, always.”

While Tony was slowly seeing a positive change in you, you were seeing a change in Tony. He was less selfish, still sarcastic to no end and teasing. But he was caring, and showing that he cared more. It warmed your heart to see that he was working hard to better himself without changing too much of himself.

Before the two of you knew it, you were talking like normal again. Teasing him back and throwing a sarcastic comment his way every now and them. It felt like the old days, but with less fighting. It was so nice. Eventually, though, it would have to end. You were better and couldn’t live with Tony forever, especially since you two were no longer together. But the two of you longed to be together, you were just both afraid to voice that to one another.

It was the night before you were suppose to move out. Tony went looking for you, wanting to try and get his feelings out. He finally found you sitting in your designated spot in the workshop. You were staring out into nothing, twirling a screwdriver in your hand.

“Hey,” Tony called, coming up to you. “You okay?”

“Yeah…” You answered with a sigh. “Just not ready to leave yet…”

“You could always stay.”

You shook your head. “I can’t do that to you, Tony. It’s not fair. You need to start living your life again and I mine.”

“But what if this became my life. You here, with me.” Tony came around to stand in front of you. “I know we ended things badly. But I want to give us a second chance. We’ve both had some time apart and have experienced things that have changed us. We aren’t the same people we were when we were first Goethe. And I’d like us to try again. I understand if you don’t want to, but I couldn’t let you leave without you knowing how I—“

Tony was cut off by you grabbing onto his shirt and smashing your lips on his. He was taken by surprise, briefly, but quickly kissed back.

“What was that for?” Tony asked when they parted.

“That was to get you to shut up,” you answered. You let go of his shirt and moved around the table. “This is for staying by my side for all these months.” You pressed another kiss to his lips. “And this,” you whispered once you parted again, “is because I love you.” You brought Tony in for another long, passionate kiss.

“I love you too,” he whispered, panting after parting for the third time. “Now, are you going to stay?”

“I think I’ll stay for a little while longer,” you smirked. “See what life has in store for us.”