#cannot believe I didn't give Penny any dialogue in this

[silverstarfics]

It’s still 11th June where I am, so I’m on time! 

For @thunder-pride​ aromantic day I have... this. Which is not what I planned to write originally, but hey. Is this the first time I’ve ever written Parker’s POV? I think so. Anyway, enjoy some family chaos.

AO3 link

At exactly fifteen years of age, Parker officially decided that romance was overrated. It took him a lot longer to understand that this was a reflection on his own identity and not a commonplace thought.

He spent many years seeking companionship in lonely places. There was a sense of incompleteness in his life which he tried to fill with adrenaline and successful heists and then quickly snatched moments in strangers’ arms, but nothing was a match for the awkwardly shaped longing in his heart.

In every other person, that missing puzzle piece was shaped like a romantic partner. But while he had loved people before, it was never in the way they wanted. He didn’t let it bother him, instead finding momentary relief from solitude in the form of riches and those who couldn’t quite be called friends but were certainly the closest things he had to true companions. So, given he was never really exposed to the concept of aromanticism, he felt he could be forgiven for bowing to the misconception that romance was inherent in loving another and being loved in return.

The strangest part wasn’t realising he had accidentally become part of a family. It wasn’t learning that they loved him just as fiercely as he loved them. No, the strangest part was recognising that the strange void in his soul was gone. That sense of longing had finally dissipated.

He had never needed nor wanted romance, rather understanding and acceptance no matter what. He found it in the mundane moments, not grand gestures and it snuck up on him slowly so that he didn’t realise how much cared until his life was too deeply entangled with theirs to ever consider leaving. Because up until he had met the Creighton-Wards, that had been his strategy – if in doubt, run like hell.

Penelope Creighton-Ward was a force to be reckoned with. She could gain complete control of a room within a matter of minutes and had been known to intimidate an alleged Mafia ring. She was always perfectly poised and kept every emotion concealed beneath a mask of indifference.

To the public eye, anyway.

Parker got to know the real Penelope, the one who cried at rom-coms and sang in the shower and had a penchant for shortbread biscuits with her tea. She disliked overly hot weather but hated it to be too cold either. Her favourite colour was unsurprisingly pink, but she loved any pastel shade too. She was competitive to a fault and had a difficult time admitting when she needed help. She secretly enjoyed terrible puns and had once genuinely laughed at an awful Christmas cracker joke. Her safety soon shifted from Parker’s job to something he would die to defend. He’d never wanted children, but if he viewed Penny as a daughter of sorts, then no one needed to know.

With Penelope came John Tracy. Parker didn’t know what to make of John initially. He was a shy, scrawny university student who Penelope seemed to have forcibly adopted and proceeded to drag around against his will.

Flash forward to their International Rescue days and it was entirely different story. Parker wouldn’t say he was proud of the lad as such, but it was difficult to find a more suitable word. Sometimes he still saw flashes of that same awkward boy he’d met all those years ago, looking a little like a deer frozen in headlights as Penelope linked arms with him and dragged him into her various schemes, but that was rare these days. Still, he’d always have a soft spot for John.

From there on, the rest of the family followed. Scott was just as stubborn as his father had been and once he decided that he cared about you, it was impossible to shake him off. Sometimes he was obvious about it, but he could also be subtle which struck Parker as amusing because it was not a trait which anyone would immediately associate with Scott Tracy. But on evenings when Penelope’s social engagements ran on late and public appearance necessitated her continued attendance, Parker would often find himself joined in FAB1.

“Hiding again?” Scott quipped, sliding into the car without waiting for permission. He yanked the door shut and scrubbed his hands through his damp hair as if he wasn’t sitting on premium leather. He discarded his doubtlessly expensive suit jacket and leant forward between the seats. “Does it always rain over here? I thought people only joked about England being damp.”

“It’s November,” Parker remarked wryly. “Try visiting in June.”

Scott grinned. “I’ll bear that in mind.” He passed forward a bottle. “Here, I brought gifts. Or, you know, something to persuade you against ratting me out to Penny.”

Parker accepted the bottle, trying to repress a smile. The function was located in a hotel ballroom, so Penelope had booked the suite for the night which meant he could officially have a drink without worrying about driving.

“So,” he remarked, turning to glimpse Scott, now lounged against the backseat looking as if he were on the verge of falling asleep at any second. “I take it that you’re also hiding?”

Scott took a long drink, then draped an arm across his face with a loud groan.

“They’re like… I don’t even know. Vampires? I’ve been in three different time zones today. I’m not even sure how long I’ve been awake, but it’s definitely more than twenty-four hours. I’m too tired to deal with people trying to get with ‘the Tracy Heir.’” He dropped the finger quotes with a rueful chuckle. “Which is funny because that’s not even my title anymore. I’m CEO. Technically, John’s the heir now. I swear that’s why the little shit insists on hiding up on Five for these events.”

“A wise choice.”

“God, I know.” Scott sat back up and propped his elbows on Parker’s seat. “So? Can I hide out with you for a while?”

Parker reached for the radio. “Only if you don’t complain about my music.”

He glimpsed Scott’s relieved face in the rear mirror.

“You could even try sleeping,” he added, unintentionally softer than he’d ever usually address anyone other than Penelope.

In his defence, it was difficult not to feel protective over Scott when the lad insisted on running himself into the ground and was so obviously desperate for approval that it almost hurt to witness. He surreptitiously turned up the heat so that the car grew nice and toasty and invited sleep, unable to deny the warm fondness in his chest when he glimpsed Scott bundle the suit jacket under his head and let himself drift off.

Approximately fifteen minutes later, John’s hologram appeared above the steering wheel.

“Is Scott with you?”

John was always one for directness. Parker appreciated that. Fancy words floated around all too often in Penelope’s circles so it was always nice to cut to the heart of a matter.

“He’s asleep.”

John’s frown relaxed. “Oh, thank God. Pen said she’d lost sight of him and he keeps disabling the tracker I put in his phone. I didn’t want to have to tell Kayo that he’d been kidnapped again.”

“Tracker,” Parker repeated slowly. John raised a brow as if daring him to comment. If anything, he wanted to laugh. He was far too used to these boys’ ridiculous hijinks to be surprised by them anymore. “He’s alright. I’ll keep an eye on him.”

Alan’s hologram suddenly materialised beside his brother’s. “Ooh, did Scott finally leave? Ha, see? I told you, Gordo. You owe me five bucks.”

John elbowed him out of sight. Two seconds later he returned, all ruffled hair, gleaming eyes and a smile bright enough to rival the sun. He reminded Parker of an overexcited golden retriever puppy; impossible to dislike with seemingly endless energy. Gordon, on the other hand… If Parker secretly found the lad funny and admired his ability to bounce back from the brink of tragedy time and time again, then no one needed to know that, least of all Gordon himself.

“Aw, crap,” Gordon sounded from somewhere out of range of the holoprojector. “He couldn’t have lasted another hour? Dammit, Scoot.”

John’s exasperated stare was accompanied by Kayo’s loud laugh and Virgil’s perplexed, “Did you place bets?”

“Yep,” Alan confirmed gleefully. “John kept telling him that he looked dead on his feet – which was a dumb move by the way, Johnny, because you know he just gets more stubborn whenever you lecture him – so we figured he’d inevitably end up ditching Penny’s party early.”

“It’s not a party,” John corrected. “And don’t call me Johnny.”

“Schematics,” Gordon declared.

John pinched the bridge of his nose. “Gordon, it’s semantics.”

“Dumbass,” Kayo sniggered.

The sound of her laughter was fast becoming a familiar sound. Penelope had many associates but not so many true friends and Kayo was one of the more recent additions to the list. She’d spent more time at the manor than any other frequent visitor lately and Parker hadn’t been sure what to make of it at first – what to make of her. But with each new glimpse behind the walls Kayo kept up, he grew fonder of her. She was funny too, with dark humour to match his own and it was always refreshing to have a new verbal sparring partner.

“Kayo, Gordon, no.” Virgil’s long-suffering sigh of exasperation was swiftly followed by a curse and the sound of shattering glass. “Guys, come on. This is what I’m talking about. No, John don’t try to- Oh, for God’s sake. This family is a nightmare.”

Yes, this family was a nightmare… a nightmare which Parker happened to be very fond of. He lowered the volume as the squabbling reached new heights and stole a glance over his shoulder to check that they hadn’t woken Scott. But no, he was still out for the count.

“I’m putting myself up for adoption,” Alan protested, now seemingly standing on the kitchen counter for no apparent reason. “Hey, Parker…?”

“No,” Parker sighed, horrified to discover that he was smiling. He tried to patch up his disapproving frown to no avail. Oh, well. It wasn’t as if they didn’t already know he secretly found their antics hilarious. He reclined his seat and watched as the chaos resumed. He’d go and check on Penelope in a few minutes but for now this was free entertainment.

When he was fifteen, he’d decided romance was overrated. Nowadays, he still stood by that sentiment. He had his family and that was more than enough love for him.

[mcflymemes]

INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE (1989) PROMPTS *  assorted dialogue from the film, adjust as necessary

i hate these guys.

this is a new experience for me.

it happens to me all the time.

you lost today, [name]. but that doesn't mean you have to like it.

may we go home now, please?

i've got a lot of fond memories of that dog.

he sticks out like a sore thumb. we'll find him.

does anyone here speak english?

what are you hiding?

archaeology is the search for fact, not truth.

forget any ideas you've got about lost cities, exotic travel, and digging up the world.

we do not follow maps to buried treasure, and "x" never... ever marks the spot.

70% of all archaeology is done in the library. researching. reading.

we cannot afford to take mythology at face value.

help me get us out of here.

are you kidding? i made all that up.

she talks in her sleep.

try not to talk.

give me your other hand. i can't hold on.

i can get it. i can almost reach it.

[name], let it go.

those people are trying to kill us.

i didn't know you could fly a plane.

our situation has not improved.

i'm as human as the next man.

i'm like a bad penny, i always turn up.

throw down the gun or the girl will die.

no! don't shoot!

please do what he says!

[name], what are you doing here?

head for the fireplace!

why are you sitting there resting when we're so near the end?

don't look at me like that.

i would have done anything to get it. you would have done the same.

i'm sorry you think so.

i'll never forgive myself.

thank god... it's fake.

look, can we discuss this later?

i came here to save you!

look what you did! i can't believe what you did!

i'll never forget how wonderful it was.

you have chosen wisely.

did you intend to leave us standing on the doorstep all day?

now look, i've gone and caught a sniffle.

don't take that tone with me!

this is the second time i've had to reclaim my property from you.

that belongs in a museum.

why are you trying to kill us?

my soul is prepared. how's yours?

what have you brought?

i'm sorry about your head. i thought that you were one of them.

you came back for the book?

is that what you think of me?

who gives a damn what you believe?

follow me. i know the way.

i find that if i just sit down to think... the solution presents itself.

in this sort of race, there's no silver medal for finishing second.

we didn't talk. we've never talked.

what are you complaining about?

you could go down in history.

you're going the wrong way.

the pen is mightier than the sword.

are you crazy? don't go between them!

my reputation preceeds me.

it would make me very happy.

shooting me won't get you anywhere.

we're well out of range.

you call this archaeology?

we are on the verge of completing a quest that began almost two thousand years ago.

we're just one step away.

since i've met you, i've nearly been incinerated, drowned, shot at, and chopped into fish bait.

we're caught in the middle of something sinister here.

you're a great deal like your father.

how dare you kiss me.

leave me alone. i don't like fast women.

you say this has been just another typical day for you, huh?

you're meddling with powers you can't possibly comprehend.

if only i could have been there with you.