#can't have it float away before ai get my first next time in it

[gonzodangerfeels]

Comes back with fries.

Looks like grimace comes with this happy meal.

[accioscarheadthings]

ULTRAMINE ~ CHAPTER 3

kenji sato x reader

summary: you learn all about the kaiju baby and the developments it has made, while spending time with kenji sato

pairings: kenji sato x fem!student!reader

warnings: none:), lots of fluff, reader and kenji being emi's parents

masterlist !

next morning, you were perched on a chair beside professor sato, yawning in fatigue.

kenji and professor sato made you stay the night at the mansion, providing you with a guest room.

you were up and early in the morning, eager to learn more about the kaiju baby at your disposal.

"come on. we have to stand up and measure you," professor sato spoke in a soothing voice.

"and analyze your entire genetic make up," mina added, hovering beside you.

but the baby kaiju still seemed doubtful of him, her beady curious eyes darting to you every so often.

"you guys are up already?" kenji stepped towards you, stopping at your side.

you spared a glance his way, giving him a sleepy wordless wave of greeting. you weren't one to get all cheerful and all in the morning. your brain had to flush out the exhaustion and drowsiness.

"kenji smiled back at you, offering you a cup of coffee, "thought you could use some,"

"oh, bless you. i can't thank you enough," you accepted it, sighing in bliss after taking your first sip.

kenji seemed pleased with your reaction, resting his elbows on the edge of your chair and standing behind you, his biceps bulging, "so, what are you doing?"

"we need to examine her so we can plan a training regimen to protect emi from protectors," professor sato said playfully at the kaiju baby.

kenji blinked, "emi? uh wait," he paused, "did you name her after mom?"

"i think she would approve,"

emi was still trilling in worry.

"okay emi," professor sato held up bunny in the hair, "now stand up nice and tall,"

emi got to her feet, slowly straightening up to her full height.

"my god," kenji deadpanned, "my dad's a kaiju whisperer,"

"good girl," i appreciated. emi's attention turned to you, letting out a happy squeal at your approval as her eyes brightened in excitement.

"ah well. looks like she's starting to like you," kenji stated.

"mina, please prepare to insert the microtracking device," professor sato instructed and the ai floated over, injecting as emi held out her hand.

"mina, treat please," professor sato took the donut when the ai handed it to him and held it out to the kaiju baby, "and before we eat, we say itadakiamsu,"

emi took the donut and munched on it, but few seconds later, her stomach let out a grumbling noise, and she looked like she was about to puke.

"professor sato, dr. y/n," mina addressed you both, "i believe that emi is experiencing a bit of nausea from the medicine.

you felt your chair being pulled backward and noticed it was kenji's doing.

"this never ends well," he stated as a matter of fact, "might wanna protect your coffee,"

i placed a hand over my cup, leaning back wearily as i let kenji drag me back.

"uh, dad, step away please," kenji waved at his father to get back when the professor didn't move,"

"oh she's fine," he brushed it off, "itdaki!-" the professor was knocked off his feet as he went flying backward, emi's puke hurling him to the wall at the far end, "-masu," he groaned, sliding to the floor.

kenji pursed his lips in amusement while you covered your mouth with your cup of coffee, letting out a laugh when emi trilled in joy.

you were jotting down everything kenji told you about emi's growth and development in these past few days, when emi leaped out of his hands and ran all around the room.

"get back here," kenji panted, "right now, missy!" he was in ultraman form, struggling to grab hold of emi, but the baby kaiju kept dodging him, running between his legs

emi squealed in delight, finding the entire situation entertaining.

you had put on your war suit to aid kenji; you couldn't grow in size like kenji but you had strange inhuman superstrength, much like kenji's alien genes.

you dodged a table emi had kicked your way, catching it and setting it down.

"here, baby. uh, c'mere," you had distracted her with a fish, handing it as a peace offering and got her to settle down.

emi sat on her butt in front of you, accepting the snack.

"that's my girl," you appreciated, caressing her leg as you leaned back on her.

after putting her to sleep, you headed to your guest room and took a long hot shower, easing your tired muscles.

you stepped out in nothing but a towel as wet strands of hair fell, framing your face.

you halted when you saw kenji sitting on the edge of your bed, wearing on his sweat as he had a towel slung on his shoulder.

"k-kenji," you stammered, placing a hand against the towel wrapped around your body, "w-what're you doing here?"

kenji's eyes widened at the sight of you, jaw going slack. he pursed his lips, taking a moment to reply, "it's been like thirty minutes and dad's hogging the water supply in my bathroom,"

his gaze followed a drop of water that dripped down your throat, following the dip of your collarbone and eventually into your cleavage, which was more prominent now because of your hand pressed against it.

kenji snapped his eyes away, feeling blood rush to his face, "s-so, um, i just wanted to use your shower. if you don't mind,"

"of course," you nodded, "go on. it's your house after all,"

"and it's your privacy after all," kenji stepped towards you, "i can't step all over it, can i?" he came to a stop in front of you, his gaze so sharp that they could burn the fluffy towel covering you.

you watched him in silence, contemplating his next move. he reached a hand forward and tucked a wet piece of strand behind your ear.

your skin tingled, goosebumps rising in your skin.

he brushed the back of his hand down your cheek, noticing the effect he had on you.

without another word, kenji stepped into the bathroom, grinning to himself, leaving you all bothered and flustered.

you were fixing your warbird suit in kenji's basement, having it haning in front of you.

seated on the table while your suit was held out in front of you.

emi who was watching her favourite rhymes about kaiju, ditched it and headed towards you, mesmerized by your suit.

you hadn't noticed her yet, too focused in the task in front of you.

it wasn't until she nudged your shoulder with her nail that you turned to her, "oh hi, emi baby," you greeted her kindly.

something about your voice captivated the kaiju baby and she stared at you in curiosity.

"uh, mina," you called the ai, it floated towards you, "why do i feel like emi's giving me heart eyes?"

"she is in a kind of way," mina spoke, "i suppose she can sense the feminine energy in you. naturally, her instincts would point her to the nearest-"

"-female," you completed, turning towards emi completely, "fascinating. didn't know her instincts were that sharp," you held out a hand for her and closed your eyes in uncertainty.

but emi surprised you by snuggling her giant beak into her palm, letting your hand slide over her big cheeks.

you snapped your head back to her, laughing in astonishment, "that's cute,"

emi let out a squeal, motioning her hands to you about something and you nodded, pretending to listen and just happy to be there.

that night, kenji came home to find you asleep on the floor with emi. the kaiju baby placed a hand over your body protectively (but it wouldn't touch you to not crush you under the weight of it).

mina had pulled up the baseball stadium stimulation and right now, you were in the middle of it with kenji and emi.

emi wanted to show you her batting skills that she learned from kenji, and you were more than intrigued to see a kaiju swing a baseball bat.

you stood beside kenji as he tossed the ball to an awaiting emi, "okay, girl. here comes the ball," he tossed it.

emi swung the bat with the right precision, sending the ball flying ahead.

"woaah!! that was amazing!" you dragged out the word, causing her to squeal out in contentment from her.

"yeah baby!" kenji pumped his fists into the air, "now, y/n, your turn,"

"what!" you defended, "hell no,"

"oh c'mon," he grinned, "emi would like to see you play too,"

"i can', and i won't, kenji sato," you stated firmly, crossing your arms.

"emi wants her mama to play too. isn't that right, emi?" kenji asked out loud.

emi trilled in reply, handing you a baseball bat to hold in an attempt to encourage you.

you stared down at it, "i don't know how to hold it,"

"i'll show you," kenji stood behind you, placing his hands over yours as he showed you how to swing the bat, his body covering yours.

you could feel his body heat radiate in waves, slowly engulfing you, "kenji..."

"yes, sweetheart?"

"w-what're you doing?"

his mouth pressed to your ears, grinning, "teaching you the basics,"

you nearly shivered, a tingle passing down your spine.

emi tossed the ball at you and you swung the bat with as much force as you could (with kenji's help too, of course). the ball went searing through the air and out of you.

"whooo!!" kenji appeared in front of you, jumping on his toes in excitement, "yeah!! that was great, y/n,"

his fingers caught yours, "now c'mon, we gotta run the bases," he pulled you after him, running down the path.

you ran after him, your hair blowing back and letting little laughs escape your lips. kenji chuckled at you over his shoulder.

emi chased after you and kenji, hands stretched in front of her as her face was pulled in a giggle while mina floated along cheering.

you and kenji jumped into the spot after finishing your laps, and emi followed your actions, hopping up and down with you both, sending sand flying in all directions.

everynight, professor sato would read the legendary ultraman stories to you, kenji, and emi, re-enacting them with hand motions.

you would lean back on emi's leg, while the baby kaiju rested its hand nail on your palm for you to hold.

kenji would glance and his heart would skip a beat at the sight every time.

step by step, you and the professor trained emi to defend herself using holographs; from drones, missiles, or from another kaiju.

emi made satisfactory progress as time went on, and you jotted it down, discussing the results with the professor.

while kenji was having a bad streak at his baseball matches, he was slowly climbing his way up, able to keep up with everything due to the help he got from you and his father.

the critics were finally favouring his side and showering him with praises and honors.

you, emi, and professor sato would sit together and watch kenji's matches together, cheering and hollering like fools.

the night the giants made it into the playoffs, kenji came home with a wide smile and you all celebrated his accomplishment.

kenji embraced you, lifting you off your feet for a moment before placing you back down.

you all were fast asleep in the basement, emi snuggled against you when your watch beeped once.

groggily, you peeked at it, sitting bolt right up from the incoming call.

"agent," the captain of kdf spoke into the phone when you answered it.

"yes sir," you nodded, conversing with him as he asked the needed questions.

you spared a glance at the others over your shoulder to make sure that they weren't eavesdropping, "nothing to worry sir, i have it all under control,"

TAGLIST !

@earth-to-mee @sassy-cat-in-town @breaddippedinorangejuice @nuhteyam @gameboigyu @byunpum @jennypenny-19 @doublebunv @moonjellyfishie @m00nd0v3 @despacito-uwu16 @reivelmin @seyoran @warlike-morning @crimson-mage-02 @b3e-sat0 @miffysoo @t4naiis @lovingyeet  @imsimping4life @mmeerraa @btszn @jusmango-shak @yobriisstuff @goldenpoison @fruchtgeschmack @iateurdad16 @bandolls

[shadowqueen402]

Say, mind doing a fanfic of (My TADC OC) Mooz’s Friendly Relationship with Kaufmo before Pomni’s Arrival where they are like best pals, and maybe add a scene where he just stands at Kaufmo’s Door after the events of the pilot episode had happened, please?

Here you go. It is going to take place when Mooz first arrived into the Digital World. Hope you don't mind if my oc does appear in this.

A new being popped up onto a stage, suddenly looking around in a state of confusion and panic. Music was playing while a bunch of objects floated around. The being quickly dodged the objects while backing away.

However, he soon found himself accidentally bumping into someone. The being jumped as he watched a purple jackrabbit in magenta overalls, a tall, white king chess piece in a purple robe, and a ribbon-like creature stumble down. The ribbon creature's comedy mask broke, revealing her tragedy face.

The music stopped as everyone turned to look at the being. "Caine, is this one of your NPCs or is this a new sucker?" The jackrabbit asked. "Because if it's a new character, we're gonna have to redo this whole theme song." He had a rather mischievous grin on his face.

"I'm not doing that again," A mix-and-match toy said to the jackrabbit, her arms crossed while she looked unamused.

"Serious, newbie…" A humanoid wax figurine stared at the being. "Please be careful next time. Do you have any idea as to how long it took for us to rehearse that?" She placed her hands on her hips.

"Calm down, snow princess~." The jackrabbit said her, grinning.

"Uh, who are you people?" The being asked. "Where exactly am I?"

"Take it easy, new stuff," A ragdoll said. "We've all been there on our first day of coming here. But you eventually get used to this."

"My, my!" A floating AI whose "face" resembled teeth flew down to the being. "It appears that a new human has entered this realm! And what is your name!?"

"My name…?" The being tried to say something. But then he realized that he couldn't remember his real name. "I-I can't remember! Why?"

"Nobody remembers their name when they arrive here," A being in a yellow clown outfit said. "I'm Kaufmo, by the way. Perhaps I can help you pick out a name?"

"Uh, sure?" The being asked. "What name do you have in mind, Kaufmo?"

"How about…Mooz?" Kaufmo suggested.

"Mooz?" The jackrabbit scoffed. "Is that all you could come up with, Kaufy?"

"Shut it, Jax!" The mix-and-match toy said, glaring at Jax before turning to Mooz. "But welcome to your new home, Mooz… Zooble, by the way… Over there is Gangle…" She nodded to the ribbonoid creature. "…Kinger…" Next to her was the white king chess piece. "…And Ragatha." She nodded at the ragdoll. "Crystal must have left to go guard." She noticed that the aformentioned wax figurine had left.

"I see you met Kaufmo," Ragatha said. "Maybe he can introduce you to the others." A smile was on her face.

"My comedy mask is broken," Gangle sobbed.

"GAH!" Kinger yelped at the sight of Gangle before calming himself down. "Oh, Gangle! You startled me!"

(Later)

Time went by for Mooz. He had gotten used to how things worked around in the Digital World. Plus, he and Kaufmo became the bestest of friends.

The two did everything together. Whether it would be something as simple as cracking jokes or doing one of Caine's in-house adventures, they always had fun.

Life in the Digital World was fun for them. Until one evening, Mooz decided to ask his friend something.

"Kaufmo, as crazy as this may sound, do you believe that there's an exit?" Mooz asked.

Kaufmo went silent for a bit. He thought about it rather deeply. "Huh, up until now, I never gave it much thought," Kaufmo admitted. "I would ask Caine, but you know how he is. However, if it makes you feel better, I can try to find out if there really is one."

"You mean this wholeheartedly?" Mooz asked.

"You bet!" Kaufmo flashed a smile. "That's what friends are for!"

(Present)

Mooz now stood in front of the door to Kaufmo's now vacant room. The only difference was that his friend's face now had a red x over it. He only visited this place whenever nobody else was around.

"Hey, Kaufmo," Mooz softly said to himself. "Though, I know you're no longer here, I just wanted to tell you about this new member. Her name is Pomni. She's a bit shaken up, but if you had met her, you would have helped her get used to things around here."

He gave a sad sigh, slight regret appearing on his face. Why did he have ask Kaufmo about an exit? After asking, his clown friend became determined to find one. And at the cost of his sanity.

The day that Pomni arrived was also the day that Kaufmo abstracted. And to think that Ragatha was looking forward to introducing him to Pomni…

Maybe if he hadn't said anything about an exit, Kaufmo would still be here. The majority of his friends have since been abstracted for the same reason and are now in the cellar.

"I'll miss you always, Kaufmo." Mooz turned around to face away from the door. "There may be a day where we will be reunited. Along with our other friends. If possible, I look forward to it. I'll keep smiling and making others for you, my best friend."

Without another word, Mooz walked down the hallway, leaving Kaufmo's door behind.

[ghooostbaby]

maybe it's because i had to get a new computer for school in the last few months (and also being back in University post-pandemic when they figured out they can offload a lot of costly labour to provide university services by offloading the responsibilities to the students by making things "virtual/online/digital")

but it feels like a very steep curve of acceleration in just how mediated by online/digital/computer accounts and processes my life is ... everything i need to do or need to acquire I have to find some online platform that I need an account for and then have to go through all these extra identity verification methods to get into and then invariably some part of that process goes wrong, or i DO get into them and then something I'm trying to use them for and there's no accessible way to find support from a fellow human. just the coldly serene text of the FAQ pages spinning me in circles where the thing I need that should be so attainable I get error after error that I can't contact anyone to help me resolve... it's kind of grim and terrifying what the future is going to become with such an accelerated push into more and more computer automated technology.

i truly do feel like a ghost trapped in a machine ... it feels totally alienating. like I'm just floating in this vacuum of metal and 2020s website design unable to enter anywhere, just doing 2 step verifications and creating and entering account information and account synchronizations that go nowhere and i can never move beyond this place...

even my fucking university exams. all of them this semester are "remotely proctored", for courses required for the degree we have to provide our own space to do an exam (when there are reports every night on the news of the complete crisis of housing in this country) on our own computer, download a chrome plug-in that seems to be spyware that will monitor you through your webcam and microphone and record your screen, and if AI notices any flag behaviours notify your prof who will watch your video to see if you were cheating... the amount of logistical work I had to do to get set up for this exam, when I have enough to do with studying for the exam, it makes me so angry how much of University services are being eroded away and the work is being pushed off on students to do for free, actually we're PAYING THEM to do this. I even have a disability and asked the disability office for accommodations for the exam, because when I was at a University before I had always been told part of my accommodations were to do the exam in a separate space to help with distractions and anxiety... so if that's the case for an exam where the University handles all the logistical considerations, I would think it certainly should be where I have to do the exam in my home where I have no control over the noise around my apartment or find some public place to do it, and all the work I need to do setting up my computer for this ... and the disability services basically said "nice try" and gave me some canned bureaucratic "please fuck off" response. the last exam I did I booked a study room at the library and took out one of the laptops the library loans and the webcam was not working and I missed the first 35 minutes of the hour time limit trying to figure it out. I contacted my professor and the exam support (thankfully at least this is ONE case one of these online platforms allows access to a human support person) and they started the hour from the time I got into the exam, but it was so stressful. the next day my professor emailed me to get the details because they wanted to make a complaint about the library for it and I'm like ... these librarians are the ONLY things keeping me from totally losing my mind and just being a human presence talking to me and helping me out in the faceless void digitally automated hellscape...

i had kind of been safe for a while with my ancient macbook that just couldn't access certain websites and apps, that was slowly having more and more apps and websites just refuse to support my OS anymore ... now that i can access them I have to say this is much worse.

[waywardxrhea]

Part Twenty-Two: Training

[slow burn romance between Steve Rogers and SHIELD agent Emma Baker]

Warnings: 18+, contains humor, fluff, mental health, family trauma, romance, angst, language, violence, (potentially smut later on).

installment list

Word count: 4k

Emma trains with the Avengers.

Over the next few weeks, Emma begins her training with the Avengers. She first starts with Natasha, working on her fighting form. The first days are a bit rough, with Emma wanting to give up multiple times. When she gets really frustrated, Natasha can tell, so when this happens one day, she stops and asks her, "You like music right?"

"Yeah, why?" Emma asks, confused.

"Well fighting is kind of like dancing in a way. Your opponent's moves are usually in a pattern, or rhythm because everyone fights in their own style, usually the same way every time. If you can figure that pattern out then it's easy to knock them off that rhythm and beat them."

"Okay, I can see that. Where are we going with this analogy?"

"Let's call it for the day while I explain." The two gather their stuff and head out of the training gym. While heading out, Natasha says, "Well for training we can program a playlist into SAM for you to practice with so we can get you into that habit of a rhythmic fight. Maybe we can get into contact with Stark and see if he can program the AI to see an opponent's patterns too. In theory, this programming could then find a song that matches their fighting pattern and you could use that to your advantage. With time you'll learn to see the patterns on your own."

Emma smiles and says, "I'd like to try that. Whatever can help me get better at this whole hand-to-hand combat thing."

"Hey it's not that you're bad, you're surprisingly good at it actually. You just aren't at the level the rest of us are. I've had years of training, Steve is...well Steve, Sam and Rhodey are military men, and Wanda and Vision have powers so they don't even have to deal with combat."

"I just hope I won't be dragging you guys down..."

"It's not like we've had too many leads on anything lately, so we have time," Natasha replies with a small smile.

Maria walks up behind them and says, "Not for long, hopefully. We've started to hear things floating around that may indicate that Rumlow of all people is up to no good. We'll need everyone with the skillset searching for him, that includes the both of you."

Natasha nods, telling her, "Give us the intel that you have and we can get on it."

"See now this is more my speed," Emma says. "Now I know I'll keep busy with training and this plus what's left of my personal life. Or lack thereof."

"I'm sure you'll be fine," Maria tells her as Natasha waves a quick farewell and heads off. When she's out of earshot, Maria says, "It's not like you're doing anything about that personal life of yours."

Emma gives her a look and asks, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Em, your so-called personal life is your weekly video chat with your therapist and occasionally taking a trip into the city with me to see a show."

"What's wrong with that? I like hanging out with you!"

"And I like hanging out with you, but you need to do something about your not so little crush on-" Maria abruptly stops her sentence as Sam and Steve round the corner.

Emma can't help the slight blush that creeps onto her cheeks as Sam greets them with a smile. Relief floods her body when neither mentions what Maria had been talking about though. Realizing this, Emma relaxes and asks casually, "Where are you two off to?"

"I'm about to prove to Steve I can beat him in a fight," Sam says confidently.

"Good luck with that, Wilson," Emma tells him with a laugh. Before they head off, Maria's words echo in her head, and a wave of confidence hits Emma. She turns to Steve before he turns away and says, "Hey you got this," with a subtle wink. Steve smiles and mouths Thank you before heading off.

When they're out of sight, Maria elbows Emma in the ribs and smirks before saying, "See, you just have to do more of that. Did you see that stupid smile on his face?"

Emma can't help the smile on her own as she replies, "I will admit that was a rush. I just feel like life is about to get way too busy to try and navigate this...flirtationship."

"Life is never too busy for love," Maria replies.

"Tell that to yourself! I don't see you riding off into the sunset with prince charming."

"Do as I say not as I do, Baker," Maria quips back while they walk to her office space to start on their intel hunt.

A few more weeks of training and intel hunting go by in a breeze with Emma not even realizing how much time had gone by. One afternoon when the rest of the team had gone out following a small lead they found, Emma and Sam are sitting on the couches in the living area trying to find more information for their manhunt.

While they search, they off-handedly chat, Sam asking, "So how's your training with Nat been going? I've noticed you're getting a lot quicker and stronger with your fighting."

"Oh thanks, I think it's been going well actually. Stark helped us get some extra programs into SAM so I can be more battle-ready. You know if that time ever comes."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean, there haven't been any crazy events that need avenging in the last few months since Sokovia. I feel like HYDRA and whatever other organizations may be out there are just taking a break."

Sam laughs, saying, "That isn't a bad thing by any means."

"Exactly," Emma replies, taking a sip of her water.

Sam decides to tease her by saying, "What, are you scared of fighting some bad guys now that you're an Avenger?"

"Not scared, just..." she pauses and stops her search on her laptop. "I feel like I would definitely be the first one of all of us taken out. You, Wanda, Vision, and Rhodes can fly, Steve and Natasha are complete badasses, and I've got a drone. I just feel a bit in over my head." At the conclusion of her statement, Emma starts messing with the hem of her shirt to distract herself from her anxious thoughts.

"Ems, Steve and I wouldn't let anything happen to you," Sam tells her. "You've had our backs with that tech of yours all this time, and we'll have yours if it comes to it."

"Thanks, Sam," Emma replies, a small smile on her lips.

"Now, since neither of us seems to have made any progress over the last hour, wanna go outside and do some training? I'll suit up, you get that drone of yours and we'll see what you've got against me."

"Oh, you're on, Wilson!"

Emma and Sam both take off to get their gear and meet outside where she switches on all of SAM's combat tech once she gets into the field. When she doesn't see Sam anywhere without assistance, she puts her drone in stealth mode to fly up and find him.

"If you want the games to begin you'll have to find me first," Sam's voice comes through the coms that are attached to her AI glasses.

Emma scans the surrounding area and sees him crouched behind some of the training tires that are in one of the far fields. "Game on, Wilson."

Along with her combat training, Natasha had started to train Emma in undercover work and espionage, so she tries to use that training to sneak up on Sam. She scans the area again trying to find the best ways to sneak over to where he is but is suddenly alerted of an alarm trip on the roof of the compound.

"Did you see that sensor trip?" Sam asks.

"Affirmative," Emma replies, abandoning the mission to find him.

"I'm gonna go see what it was," Sam tells her.

"Well at least come get me!"

"You got it," he says with a laugh. He flies by and grabs Emma under the arms to fly the pair of them to the roof, asking, "You eager for your possible first real fight as an Avenger?"

"Hell yeah," Emma replies as they land on the roof.

The pair of them look around but can't see anything at first glance. Through her glasses though, Emma sees a man the size of an ant standing on the roof. She elbows Sam subtly and he uses his goggles to see the man as well. "I can see you," Sam announces.

The man suddenly grows to full size, making Emma jump a little bit. Under her breath, she mutters to her AI, "SAM can you find anything on this guy?"

"On it, boss."

"Hi, I'm Scott," the man says with a small wave.

"What are you doing here?" Sam asks.

"First off, I'm a big fan," Scott tells him. He then turns to Emma and says, "Oh and you're that chick that does the reporting! And the blogs! You're one of the reasons I'm such a big hero fan, I'm so honored to meet you!"

Emma smiles a bit but then remembers that the man is an intruder, so she drops the smile and says, "While we appreciate the recognition, who are you? We're gonna need a bit more than just Scott."

"How about Ant-Man? You heard of me that way?"

As he says this, SAM pulls up a file on him that shows his prison record. Using the new knowledge, Emma says, "Now, Mr. Lang, I see you have a heist record. Tell us why we shouldn't take you down right now for breaking onto the property, presumably for a heist."

"Well I know it seems bad that I came uninvited, but I just need to borrow some technology. I'll bring it back in a few days, you won't even know it's gone. I just need it to save the world, you guys know how that is."

"Yeah, we know exactly how that is," Sam tells him while taking a step toward him. Sam then radios to the security guards in the facility, "I've located the breach, bringing him in."

"I'm really sorry about this," Lang says before shrinking down and then coming right back up to punch Sam in the jaw, sending him flying. Sam releases his wings and grabs Emma to drop her to the ground below, shouting, "You see if you can find him down there, I'll search in the air. He can't have gone far!" Emma tucks into a flip before smoothly getting up and running, calling out her understanding of the order.

Emma keeps her drone out of sight in stealth mode so they could at least have that element of surprise and continues the chase on foot. SAM spots Lang in the grass and Emma sprints over to where he's running. "Wilson, on my location!"

"On it!" Sam lands shortly and begins trying to stomp on Lang when he locates him.

Lang, in his tiny form, begins attacking Sam, knocking powerful blows to him that should not be possible for someone of that size. Emma has SAM analyze his patterns and is about to attack when Sam deals a punch to Lang that ends with him on the ground in his full-sized form.

Sam starts to tend to a glitch on his suit and tells Emma, "Cover me!"

Emma takes a stance between Sam and the man. Immediately, Lang gets up and apologizes, telling her, "I'm sorry, I'm sure you're a great person, but I need to do this." With those words, he shrinks down and knocks a punch into Emma's abdomen.

With the wind knocked out of her, Emma powers through and makes a quick jab to where Lang was flying midair by her face. She hears him groan in pain as he turns back to normal size for another round. From above, SAM fires blasters, providing a distraction while Emma runs at him to get him off his feet again. She sweeps her leg under his and pins him to the ground, but right as she does, he shrinks down and out of her hold.

Lang flies up and knocks Emma to the ground before rounding on Sam, catching him in a hold with his legs. Sam turns on his jetpack and drags the pair of them down the field, going flying when Lang goes small again. Emma gets up from the dirt and races over to where Sam is, helping him up. Right as he gets to his feet, he uses his wings to hit Lang which returns him to his full size on the ground. That doesn't last for long though as he shrinks down and starts running yet again.

"How the hell are we supposed to beat this guy?" Emma asks. Sam doesn't answer, he just runs in the direction of the building Lang is heading to. Emma sighs and follows the pair who enter the storage area.

"What if he really does need this to save the world? Who are we to stop him?" Emma asks quietly as they enter the dark room.

Sam shoots her a look. "Wanting to save the world, that's exactly what Ultron said. And HYDRA with the murder helicarriers. How can we trust someone who just barges into the facility to take Stark's tech? And that's another thing, you could get fired by Stark and Potts. Let's just focus on getting this guy."

Out of nowhere, Sam's wings spread, almost hitting Emma. She jumps out of the way but then scoffs and says, "Okay, wow you didn't have to try and decapitate me, I was just thinking out loud."

"I'm not doing this!" Sam shouts as he goes flying out of the door. "He's in my pack!"

Emma curses and begins running after him, shouting, "SAM what can we do?"

"Running scans on the pack now," she replies. After a second, she says, "There isn't much we can do other than shooting the pack with the blasters. He's taking the thing apart from the inside!"

"Well, I'm not shooting him out of the sky!"

"I'm going down either way! Just do it!" Sam shouts.

"SAM, lowest impact blaster. Get at an angle where you don't have to risk hurting Wilson. Do it now!"

"Yes ma'am," the voice comes. Emma runs in Sam's direction as she tracks the drone's movements with her glasses and watches it shoot a blaster at the pack right when Sam is getting closer to the ground. She flinches when the blast makes contact but is grateful that he doesn't get hurt.

After the impact of falling to the ground, Sam gets up as Emma meets with him. He takes his goggles off, telling her, "They're fried. Where the hell did he go?"

Emma looks around and sees Lang flying off on an ant. She begins ordering blaster shots at him, but he gets away quickly and is out of sight. "Damnit," she whispers as she calls her drone back to their location.

She helps Sam onto his feet and they begin to walk back into the compound. "Can we both agree that Cap doesn't need to know about this?" Sam asks as they head inside.

Emma laughs and nods, telling him, "I can agree to that, Mr. I can beat Captain America in a fight. How'd that go anyways? I never followed up."

"Well, I really thought I had him at first. He seemed super distracted in the beginning." He smirks and asks, "Do you happen to know anything about that? You were in fact the last one we talked to before going to the gym."

Emma smiles mischievously and replies, "No, no idea. Maybe you're just getting really good, Wilson."

"Uh-huh, that's what it is," he responds, laughing. The two get to the labs to start getting Sam's pack fixed. "Again, no word of this to Steve, okay? You need to erase that footage from SAM's drive and we need to go erase the security cams that captured that."

Emma glances over at him and asks innocently, "Oh come on, what if I wanted to use that footage to figure out what I need to work on fighting-wise?"

"Oh don't you use that excuse, you get enough combat training that you can use any of that footage."

"But those are controlled fights with my peers, not an actual fight where the person was trying to beat us."

Sam gives in, sighing as he says, "Fine. You can keep your drone footage, but I'm deleting the security cams. And I swear if Steve even gets a second of that footage, you are not going to enjoy our next game night, Baker."

"Oh I'm so scared!" Emma replies sarcastically. The two laugh as they set up the lab tech with Sam's broken pack. They walk out of the lab to go back to their intel search and Emma asks, "What if someone asks about the blaster scorches in the field or the broken garage door Lang threw you out of?"

Sam thinks for a second before responding with "We took our training game a bit too far."

"Fair enough," Emma replies as she sits down on the couch again, settling in to continue her search.

Over the next couple of months, training continues with little to no encounters with any threats. Sam and Emma keep their little fight with Ant-Man a secret from the rest of the team in the meantime until they find something on him.

Some days when the team is training together, they split off into groups for sparring with Natasha watching. Almost every single time Emma and Steve end up together, this being completely intentional on the rest of the team's part.

"So we meet again," Steve says with a smile as he faces Emma for the exercise.

"That we do," Emma replies, smiling back. "You ready to have your ass handed to you?"

Steve laughs at Emma's joke and tells her, "You may be kidding but I know you've been working hard with Nat, I'm not gonna underestimate you."

"Good idea," Emma says with a wink and a laugh as they get ready.

The two go easy on each other for a few minutes, passing jokes and quips between each other as they go. Natasha walks by and sees this, telling them, "Oh come on don't be afraid to hurt each other. You can walk it off if you do."

Emma laughs and tells her, "Nat, I'm not worried about hurting him."

"Let's try that technique I showed you the other day, Baker. Steve, pin Emma to the ground," Natasha says with a smirk. Steve's powerful stance falters for a second when she tells him this. Nat notices and tells him, "Oh man up, Rogers."

"Yes ma'am," Steve says, regaining his focus. Before Emma even has time to process what's happening, Steve has her pinned to the floor, holding her shoulders down. Emma looks up at Steve above her and can feel the heat in her cheeks, hoping it isn't noticeable.

After what feels like forever looking into Steve's eyes, Emma's mind and body kick into gear, remembering the move Nat showed her. She quickly tucks her elbows close to her body so Steve couldn't get his knees under her arms. She then crosses her body with her arm and grabs Steve's wrist with one hand and his tricep with the other to lock his arm in place. Kicking up one foot, she loops it over to the outside of one of Steve's legs and plants the other between them. Their bodies are entangled impossibly close together, and although she wants to, Emma tries not to focus on that as she continues the move. With Steve's body locked into place, Emma lifts her hips and flips the two of them over with a bit of effort. When she's on top, she pins his shoulders to the ground and says, "Good thing you didn't underestimate me."

"Wouldn't have dreamed of it," Steve replies, holding eye contact with her.

From behind them, Sam whistles. "Get a room you two," he teases. Natasha smirks at the comment, giving Sam a high five in response.

"Okay everyone, let's call it for the day," Natasha calls and everyone starts heading to the door.

Emma rolls off of Steve and onto the mat, rubbing her shoulder a bit from the impact of it hitting the floor when Steve pinned her. Steve stands and offers Emma a hand up. She takes it and he tells her, "You had great form, I'm impressed. I'm sorry if I was a bit rough on you."

"Thanks," Emma tells him with a smile. "I was just a bit caught off guard at first is all."

Steve subtly looks around to see if Sam was around before telling Emma with a smirk, "I could tell." Emma's heart jumps in her chest at the words, but before she can come up with a response, Steve is already heading for the door.

Emma stands frozen in the room alone, or so she thinks. She hears footsteps behind her and then comes Maria's voice saying, "Wow! You could cut the sexual tension there with a knife! And you say it's still just a flirtationship?"

Emma groans and replies, "Yes, I'm sure." Only then does she realize the shaking in her hands from the encounter. "Every time we have to pair up for training, Steve and I end up together, and every time it ends like this. Sam makes a joke, one of us turns up the flirting, and then nothing happens after that."

"Well, why don't you do something about it next time?"

"Maria, you act as if I know how to do that."

"You don't?"

"We've been over this, I don't have good experiences with relationships. At all. Any other relationship I've been in was my partner taking advantage of me because I just wanted to prove my parents wrong and prove that I could be loved. I had no clue what a relationship was supposed to be like, so I got taken advantage of." She sighs as she lets her hair down, continuing with, "I have so many feelings for Steve and he makes me think I could be worth loving, but I'm so afraid to take the jump because I don't want to get hurt. I would rather suffer from all these feelings than lose him... Who knows, I could be making it all up too, the flirting I mean. I'd hate to ruin what we have over a complete misinterpretation of what's going on."

"Emma, if he's been flirting back then he's got to have feelings for you," Maria tells her.

"But if he feels the same way then why doesn't he make a move? What if it's just flirting?"

"Steve wouldn't do that, Em. He's an honest guy and doesn't seem like the type that would lead someone on like that. As for the first problem there, what if he has the same anxiety about making a move as you do?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean the last girl he cared for in this way he had to say goodbye to. What if he's afraid of something like that happening again?"

Emma thinks for a second and nods. "I see your point, I guess at the moment I'm just gonna have to be fine with what we have going on because I'm not sure I'll ever have the confidence to make the first move. Plus I've been busy trying to find out intel on Rumlow and Ant-" she pauses, "another person that caught my radar."

"If you're talking about what happened with that Ant-Man guy, I totally know what happened, Em," Maria laughs. "Sam may have deleted the footage, but the security guy told me everything."

Emma laughs and tries to keep the subject away from her awful anxiety about wanting to be with Steve. "So you know how Sam totally got his ass whooped?"

"You act as if you didn't!"

"Okay physically yes, but my tech was intact at the end of that battle, so I say I did better!"

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, Emma."

Emma laughs before parting ways with Maria to freshen up. While walking back to her room, she can't help her mind wandering to all the times Steve has acted flirtatious towards her and she smiles at the thought.

a/n: okay this was one of my favorite chapters to write because I got to display Sam and Emma's friendship but also because we're finally in the territory of open flirting between Emma and Steve! Oh my heart, I love them!

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