#earlier today i had the brilliant illumination of wait do other people straight up not live like this. I didnt realise it properly before

[anglerflsh]

i think i hauve ocd <- to be read in the i think i hauve covid voice

[spideyxchelle]

the odds are never in our favor

or, the hunger games headcanon that has been rattling around in my brain 

her name is in the reaping bowl 47 times

that is nearly seven times more than the average eighteen year old. the odds are certainly not in her favor. but they never could be for an outskirter kid from seven. her family is not one of the merchant class. she has had to beg, borrow and sometimes steal to feed her family. there is too little to go around and too many mouths to feed. still. she perseveres. she has no other choice. 

if today is the day she is reaped, she will go to her death knowing she did all she could for her family. 

besides, she tells herself as she shakily walks to the town square for reaping day, she could win. it isn’t common, but people from seven do win the games. while they do not have the training of the careers or the brilliance of people from three, people from seven have brute force. and sometimes a little brute force can make all the difference. 

hell, four years ago, a kid from seven won. at sixteen, too. he had outsmarted all of the contestants, hiding in trees and swinging from them to get around the arena, like a spider would from its webs. he had been fast. and a quick talker, too. he had a good humor about him. people in the capitol said he was charming. but Michelle didn’t think so.

even though he was two years older than her, MJ had known Peter Parker in school. he had been quiet. he had one friend, maybe two. when he had been reaped and this other persona, another identity, came flashing out on screen, it had been the antithesis of the boy he knew back home. it was as if he had put on a mask to bare the atrocities of the games. 

with his mask on, no one could see him flinch. 

it was brilliant. the capitol ate it up. they loved him. he was their golden boy. 

people from seven could win. and if she was reaped, MJ could win, too.

it wouldn’t come to that, she reminds herself. she is in the reaping bowl 47 times. but she cannot be the only one. there are other half-starving kids from all over seven. she could go home to her family after this entire affair. and just like that the last seven years of horror, the sleepless nights where she woke up screaming that she had been picked, would cease to exist. she would finally have aged out. 

one more day.

she can make it one more day.

the preening drone from the capitol welcomes everyone in the square, grinning from ear to ear about the games and the capitol and all of the good and glory the yearly spectacle brings to their great nation. it makes michelle sick. there is nothing noble about killing children. 

her fury travels down to her clenched fists that clasp at the worn lace of her reaping day dress. she hates the capitol. she hates every last one of those smiling dolls that paint their faces like murder is funny. 

her eyes search the dead eyes of the victors from seven that sit silently on the stage, awaiting the reaping. they will do nothing, just like she will in the crowd. and the cycle will continue. every year. forever and ever. 

children will be reaped and slaughtered for sport, and nothing good will ever be safe in this world of nightmares. 

“ladies first”, the disjointed voice of the capitol puppet chirps. michelle glances across the square to count off the top of her sisters’ heads. all four of her younger sisters stand rigid as stone. terrified. she wants to call out to them, to tell them it will be okay, that she will protect them. she will always protect them. 

“MICHELLE JONES”, the capitol official says gleefully. 

and michelle ceases to breathe. or think. or feel. it all goes away. like she had never been a person to begin with. everything that made her human eroded away in one horrible, endless moment. 

her eyes snap up to the stage and the traitorous friends and neighbors she had known all of her life make room for her to march up to the stage. no one says anything. no one tries to stop the injustice. she hates them all. she doesn’t blame them. 

the world is cruel.

something, maybe muscle memory or perhaps it is a peacekeeper, thrusts her forward and she begins to take the long walk up to the stage. someone in the distance is crying muffled sobs. she wonders if it is her mother. it could be. she does not turn around to check. her eyes are too focused on the stage and the stairs she will be expected to climb without fainting. 

suddenly she remembers the year twelve year old Cissy Cartright had been reaped. she had collapsed when her name had been called. the peacekeepers had dragged her through the square and dropped her heavy heap of a body on the stage. it had been horrible to watch. 

she will not be remembered that way. no. michelle finds some strength beneath her numbness and climbs the stairs. she stands silently beside her capitol executioner who pulls the male name from the reaping bowl. 

she does not hear who will join her in hell. she is frozen. unfeeling. and has the faintest sense that someone is watching her intensely, too intensely, from the stage. some peacekeeper amused at her shaking knees, no doubt. 

when her and the boy are escorted from the stage. she is taken straight to the train. she does not get to say goodbye. she is silently glad. she does not know what she would say to her family. maybe she would ask them to bury her under her favorite tree just at the edge of the forest. or maybe she would do something stupid. like cry. 

no, it is better that she is taken right from her sentencing to her death. there will be no time to reflect on what she has lost. she is completely lost in her thoughts. someone is talking to her on the fast moving train. she can hear the warped version of speaking distantly, but it is as if the radio is out of frequency. she sits, motionlessly.

until someone touches her knee. she jumps out of her skin and snatches the fork on the table in front of her, posing it as a weapon. 

the entire train car goes quiet. when her eyes focus, she realizes she has a fork at the jugular of Peter Parker. he is wide-eyed and intently watching her. she notices he is not afraid. he looks surprised, maybe even daring but not scared.

“you’re quick,” he observes. she nods, dumbly. “put that fork down, MJ.” on autopilot, she corrects, “only my friends call me MJ.” he quirks a grin. “I think, based on the circumstances, I can call you MJ.” she almost asks why. and then it hits her. 

she has been reaped for the hunger games. she is going to die in that stupid arena, fighting for her life. she is going to be forced to become someone that she is not. when it comes down to it, she will fight and lose whatever last glimmer of humanity she has been keeping from the capitol all of these years. 

she will become a shadow of who she once was. people will remember her as a killer. or the killed. or both. 

she drops the fork. she begins to shake. there is another commotion. but she pays it no mind. she is having a breakdown. she cannot breathe. why can’t she breathe? there is no oxygen on this train. it isn’t like the forest, her forest, with all of her trees that stretch to the high heavens. this metal box is going to kill her. it is racing toward her death. 

someone hauls her up into their arms, the embrace is strong and certain. and when she finally passes out from the stress of the day, she hears a quiet voice reassure her, “I won’t let you die, MJ. I promise.” 

when she wakes, the train is dark. she is pillowed in the softest bed she has ever slept in and someone has taken the time to tuck her in. she rubs at her weary eyes. no one has tucked her in since she was a child, and even then she had been so fiercely independent her mother had given up by the time she was four. 

“you’re awake,” someone from the shadowy corner of her room says. she sits up, like a shot, looking for something to use as a weapon. the lamp on the bedside table seems to work just fine. the voice chuckles, roughly, “relax, MJ. I’m not going to hurt you.” she cautiously turns the lamp in her hand on. her not-attacker is Peter Parker. victor of the hunger games. he is sitting quietly in her room. it is strange, bizarre even. the kind of thing that happens to other people and not her. after all, he is a superstar who became famous because he was unfortunate enough to be chosen to murder children in a sadistic game. 

it is bizarre because she knows his face better than she knows her own. he is on every screen in seven. all the time. he is not someone that should be sitting quietly in her room. but she tries to breathe. he does not seem like an immediate threat. 

after a moment of hesitation, she puts her lamp on the bedside table. the room is still hazily illuminated. his face gives nothing away. the mask again, she thinks. 

“what are you doing here?” she asks. “you passed out,” he answers. “earlier. when we were trying to talk with you and Eugene about the games. strategy. the doctor thinks you’re having some kind of stress induced breakdown.” he smiles. it is rueful. “I said I couldn’t understand why.” michelle blinks. she tries to piece together the conversation that is happening to her and notes, “you’re teasing me.”

“no,” he says, seriously. “I would never do that.” and MJ does something stupid. she believes him. “I’m sorry this happened to you,” he continues. “its an honor to fight for my district.” peter looks disappointed and says, “of course. well. I wanted to wait until you woke up to see if you were okay. I guess I’ll...go.” 

she nods. he hauls himself out of his chair. and before he goes, he lingers at the door and looks at her over his shoulder. “I am sorry, MJ.” 

she sleeps fitfully that night. she keeps hearing the resounding boom of the canon fire. she sees her face flash in the sky of the arena. she does not want to die. she tries to feel something. it is impossible. the capitol took it all when they called her name. 

she has a brief moment of clarity, sometime around three in the morning, when she realizes that THAT is why the hunger games exist. they make the tributes less than human so the rest of the districts know, without a shadow of a doubt, that they are less than. barely human. a means to an end. better to feel nothing. do nothing. 

never revolt. 

she will, she thinks. I will, she pledges to herself. 

and when she wakes the next morning, padding into the food car of the train, she sits opposite of Peter, who is locked in conversation with an older victor from a games twelve years ago, and says, “tell me how to win.” 

something in his eyes shifts. she cannot read it. mask mask mask, she thinks. but she waits for him to speak. patient and furious at her fate. he sees resolve in her now, she knows he does, and with the smallest smile, he says, “let’s begin.” 

[ughseoks-main]

you’re your father’s daughter

Peter Parker x Stark!Reader

summary: where peter, your boyfriend of many months, finds out that you’re tony stark’s daughter

requested by anonymous: Can you do a peter parker x reader imagine where they're dating and her dad is tony stark but nobody knows because she uses her mom's last name and lives with her mom and basically doesn't like her dad and then could you make it be like how peter would react to finding out about that

word count: 4.4k

warnings: angst, swearing, daddy issues

a/n: wow this is a lot longer than pretty much all of my oneshots whaaat?? it’s like,, halfway edited kinda?? so like dont judge it too hard lmao. but anyways i hope y’all enjoy & let me know what you think!

You didn’t like Tony Stark.

Sure, he was your dad, but after what he’d done to you and your mom, your dislike for him had grown immensely. You could barely remember living with him; you were so young that only bits and pieces of your life then stuck with you. Most of your memories with him seemed to be happy, yet you couldn’t stand to even hear his name.

Although it was so long ago, you could still remember the day you and your mother left. She was crying, but being so young, you had no idea why. You were too young to understand why you’d moved, but a few years later your mom explained to you that she and Tony both decided it was best for both you and your mom to move away. She never went into detail why, saying it wasn’t her place to tell you, which led you to assume that Tony wanted to live out his playboy lifestyle with nothing holding him back, even if that meant abandoning his daughter in the process. The last time you spoke to your father was the day you moved out all those years ago.

Even after all of that, you still had Tony’s number saved in your phone. It was silly, but you couldn’t make yourself delete it. Somehow, having his number saved kept you connected to that little bit of happiness he gave you in your younger years. The only time he called was on your birthday each year, and you always let it go to voicemail. He’d leave roughly the same message each time, usually saying ‘happy birthday’ and that he loved you.

He never said he missed you.

You’d listen to those voicemails over and over again, each and every replay digging into your soul. Deep, deep down, you knew you missed him, but you’d built up so many walls that the sadness manifested as resentment in your heart. Even hearing his name could make your blood boil; a defense against the cold, prying fingers of loneliness and longing.

Shaking your head to bring yourself back to reality, you realize that you’re sitting in the lunchroom next to your boyfriend, Peter Parker.

“He just treats me like… like his own kid, you know?” he says adoringly, taking another bite of his sandwich, “He always listens to my ideas and encourages creativity and thinking outside the box. Whenever I suggest something, he takes it into consideration instead of waving me off for being just a kid.”

If it were anybody else, you’d try to change the subject or politely leave to do something else. However, neither of those options worked with Peter. Even if you changed the subject, he’d somehow find his way back to Tony; plus, he knew you way too well to tell if you were trying to leave because you were upset. So, you just sucked it up and tried your best to filter out all of the Tony Stark talk. Now, you were sure that if you ever told him about your situation, he’d immediately stop. After all, he would never do anything to hurt you.

However, telling Peter wasn’t a risk you could take.

If anybody ever found out that you were Tony Stark’s daughter, your life would never be the same. People would only befriend you so they could use you, and you would always be compared to him. You wanted to be your own person and make a name for yourself without the help of your famous dad. Critics would most definitely blame your success on your bloodline rather than your brilliant, science-oriented mind, which wasn’t something you wanted to deal with.

“So, I was talking to Mr. Stark,” Peter’s eyes grow wide with excitement, “and he said I could invite my friend to come to the lab with me sometime! I figured with how much you love science and how brilliant you are, you’d have a blast with us. It’s like a scientific playground up there!”

“Uh,” you rub the back of your neck awkwardly, “As much fun as that sounds, I think I’m busy. Maybe another time?”

“But I didn’t even give you a date-”

“It’s just… not a good time right now, Peter,” you emphasize, giving him a look that told him you weren’t budging.

“Oh, that’s okay..” he looked disappointed, which crushed your heart, “It’s too bad. I mean, I honestly think you guys would get along great. You’re actually super similar! Sometimes I think you’re, like, his long lost daughter or something. You know, just the other day he-”

“Peter, can you just- can you just stop?” you snap, unable to listen to any more. Peter didn’t know any better, but you just couldn’t listen to him talk about Tony for a second longer.

“Is everything okay, Y/N?” he asked, concern evident in his voice, “You know, you can tell me anything.”

“Just- just forget it, okay? I’m fine, I promise,” you lean over and plant a kiss on his cheek before standing up to go to class, leaving him sitting confused and alone at the lunch table.

Later that afternoon during your free period, you were sketching plans for a new invention when your phone began to buzz on your desk. After throwing an apologetic look the teacher’s way, you slipped out of the classroom before holding the phone up to your ear.

“Peter, I was in class, you know,” you say only half-seriously, smiling a bit.

“Sorry, sorry,” he apologizes, “Um, I was just calling to make sure you’re, uh, okay.”

Your smile falls, the events from earlier that day flashing across your mind. In all honesty, you had been preparing for this phone call, so you knew pretty much exactly what you were going to say. It was simple: you weren’t feeling well and you just needed some sleep, that’s all. Before you could speak, however, a familiar voice speaks in the background of the call.

“Who ya talkin’ to, kid?” the muffled voice of Tony Stark poured into your ear, causing you to freeze in place and blurt a quick ‘i’m fine’ to Peter before hitting the end call button as quickly as possible. You take a moment to control your breathing, your heart beating a million times a minute.

________

Frowning at his phone, Peter pulls it away from his ear and turns to Tony.

“What, girl problems?” he smirks at Peter, giving him a soft punch to the shoulder.

“Yeah, uh,” Peter stutters, “It’s- it’s nothing, let’s keep working.”

Peter doesn’t see Tony’s eyes widen when he sees your name glowing on the top of the screen as he sends you a text telling you to meet him at the coffee shop later. A small picture of you making a kissy face accompanies a million yellow hearts and heart eyes decorating your contact name.

Tony clears his throat as Peter turns off his phone, shifting his focus back to the task at hand.

________

The door to the coffee shop makes a light ding as you open it, the fairy lights strung along the windows illuminating your face in the darkness of the night. You scan the room to see Peter sitting nervously at the table in the corner by the window, the table you two always sit at.

“What’s up Pete?” you say nonchalantly as you take a seat, even though you already know what he’s about to ask.

“Is- is there something you’re not telling me?” he asks, cutting straight to the chase as he looks up at you with his wide, brown puppy eyes.

“I wish I could tell you that everything is fine, Peter,” you sigh, “But I just can’t. And as much as I want to tell you why, I can’t.”

“Why?” his voice breaks, your heart breaking along with it, “Why can’t you tell me?”

“I just can’t,” you whisper, voice raw with emotion.

“If we’re in this together, we have to-” he paused and took a deep breath, lowering his voice a bit since people were beginning to stare, “We have to trust each other, Y/N.”

You remain quiet and fiddle with your hands, unable to force the words out of your mouth. After holding them inside for so long, you didn’t know how to let them out. A squeak from Peter’s chair causes you to look up at him, taking in his cold face as he stands up and looks down at you with disappointment.

“Peter, wait-”

“Talk to me when you’re willing to tell me the truth,” he states before walking out the door, leaving you sitting alone at the table.

________

You didn’t know how long you sat at that table before you went home, tears streaming down your face. When you walked into the house, your mom was already in bed, so you quietly snuck into your room and clambered underneath the covers. You didn’t care if you were still fully dressed; you needed to sleep and forget about the events of today for just a little while.

No matter how long you sat there with your eyes closed, sleep never took you away. You were stuck in bed, replaying your conversation with Peter over and over again in your head until you were sick of thinking about it.

“Ughhh,” you groan, sitting up and rubbing your face before murmuring to yourself, “I can’t believe I’m doing this.”

Sliding out of bed and into your vans, you tiptoe through your house and close the door gently behind you, not wanting your mom to know you left the house so late. With a quick glance at your phone, you note that it’s nearing 1 am, so Peter would most likely be asleep. Whatever, you think to yourself, pulling your hoodie sleeves down over your hands to protect against the cold as you make your way towards his apartment.

When Peter open the door, it’s clear that he’s been crying, which shatters your heart.

“Couldn’t sleep either?” you try joking, but he doesn’t seem to return the sentiment.

Cracking jokes at a tense time? The Stark in you was really starting to shine through.

“Why are you here?” he replies, his nose and cheeks tinted pink from the amount of tears he had shed, while yours were tinted from the cold.

“Peter, you have to understand that I- I want to tell you everything, but i just can’t,” you try to explain, the desperation clear in your voice.

“I don’t even know what to say, Y/N,” he exasperates, opening and closing his mouth a few times before letting out all the words he’d been trying to find, “I don’t know what’s up with you, but you’ve been so different lately. You’ve pulled away from me ever since I told you about Spiderman and the Stark Internship. I invite you to things, really cool things like working in a lab with Tony Stark, because I care about you and I want to share these experiences with you and you just- just blow me off like it’s nothing to you! I don’t know why you never want to talk about the internship with me or go on visits-”

“BECAUSE HE’S MY DAD, PETER!” you finally yell, not caring if you wake up the neighbors.

“W-what?” he stutters, eyes going wide.

“Because he’s my dad and he left me and I cannot stand to think about him, let alone talk about him, okay? There. That’s the big secret, and now you know it. Are you happy now?” you snap, finally putting your truth out into the open.

Instead of answering, Peter stands there shocked, hurt filling his gaze.

“Pete?” your voice is quiet now, worried you’ll scare him off because of the look in his eyes.

“I think you should go,” his voice is soft, cracking with emotion at the end of his sentence.

“Wait-”

“Go.” his gaze hardens before he shuts the door in your face, sliding down the other side of it as another round of tears spill down his cheeks. He felt so betrayed; how could you ever keep a secret like that from him?

You stand there for a moment, numbness spreading across your whole body. That wasn’t the reaction you were expecting, but it was definitely the one you feared the most. You didn’t even register that you were walking down the hallway, lost in thought about how Peter would most likely break up with you.

You’re going to lose the person you loved the most.

And you can’t let that happen.

Suddenly, it was like everything was clear again. Before you can take another step down the stairs, you spin on your heel and run back up to Peter’s door, knocking.

And knocking.

And knocking.

“Peter, please let me in,” you plead, leaning your forehead against the door as you continue to knock, wishing that he would just open the door.

With a sigh, you lean back and slide your phone open, going to his contact in your messages. One tap later, you take note of the small dot that reperesents Peter moving quickly across the map.

“Fuck,” you breathe, sliding your phone into your back pocket and running back down the hallway. There was only one place he could be going; the place you never thought you’d return to.

Much to your surprise, you only hesitate for a moment once you’re outside of the tower before running inside and demanding to be let up.

“I need to get upstairs!” you urge, giving the very tired receptionist an exasperated look.

“The tower is closed, Ma’am,” she repeats, annoyance clear in her voice, “You can come back tomorrow during our work hours.”

“Please…” you take a glance at her name tag, “Katy. Please, I need to get up there and talk to Tony.” “If you don’t leave the premises, I’ll have to call security,” she warns, reaching for her phone.

“No!” you reach out towards her and she raises an eyebrow at you, “I mean, please, I’m begging you. Just call Tony and tell him that Y/N Y/L/N is here to see him and he’ll let me up.”

“I’m sure that he’s asleep-”

“I can guarantee that he isn’t,” you pressure, leaning over the counter and giving her the biggest puppy eyes you could muster.

After a few more moments of consideration, she caves, sighing a quick “Alright” before lifting up the phone and speaking quietly into it for a few minutes.

“You’re clear to go,” she gestures to the door, and you catch a small bit of surprise in her voice as she did so. Clearly, she wasn’t expecting Tony to let the random teenage girl from the lobby upstairs.

You walk towards the elevator, heart in your throat as you press the button for the floor that the receptionist told you Tony was on. Each floor you pass makes a small beep, each one elevating your heart rate slightly until the final ding of the elevator rings out.

When the doors open, he’s there.

Tony Stark, the man you hadn’t seen in years.

You stand awkwardly for a moment, frozen in place until finally he coughs and gestures toward the living room, blurting out a quick “Pete’s in there.” Giving him a simple nod, you walk past him and began walking down the hallway, nervous to see Peter because of what he might say to you.

As your nerves begin to build, your pace begins to quicken as well, growing from a casual walk into a full on sprint. After what seems like an eternity of running, you finally slide to a stop in the doorway, trying to catch your breath as Peter’s head jerks up to look at you with red, puffy eyes.

“Peter, I-”

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” he falters, looking you straight in the eyes. You can’t hold eye contact with him, so you stare at the ground as he continues, “It was so, so hard to tell you about Spiderman. Did you know that? Did you know how hard that was for me? I trusted you with that huge secret, Y/N, yet you couldn’t tell me something as- as little as this.”

At those words, you jerk your head back up, raising your eyebrows at him. You can tell that he regrets the words as soon as they come out, but you can’t just let it go.

“Woah, woah, woah, Peter,” you feel the anger begin to rise within you, “this is not ‘little.’ Just because it isn’t some sort of secret identity superhero reveal doesn’t mean it isn’t a huge part of me. It’s almost impossible for me to talk about, so for you to say that it’s ‘little’ really fucking hurts.”

“That’s not-” he takes a deep breath, “That’s not what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean, Peter?” you cross your arms, waiting for an explanation.

“Mr. Stark is one of the most important people in my life. He’s helped me with so much and I don’t know where I would be right now without him. Probably dead, to be honest. At this point, he’s my father figure, you know? And I just can’t believe you kept something like this from me for so long. It hurts that you didn’t trust me with it, especially when I’ve trusted you with so much in my life.”

“You think that this didn’t hurt me too, Peter?” you retort, “You think that keeping this secret from not just everybody, but you, the person I love most, was easy? It was so so fucking hard to hear you talk about him every day, Peter. It was so hard to pretend like I was busy every time you invited me to things or like every time you spoke his name it wasn’t like a knife was being shoved into my chest, because he’s giving you the love he could never find in himself to give me. I understand that he’s your father figure, Peter, but he isn’t mine. I’m so happy that he loves you, but it’s really hard to hear about that when I know that he never loved me.”

You wipe away tears that you didn’t know you’d been shedding until that moment before whispering, “I never meant to hurt you, Peter.”

He was looking down at his shoes, so you had no idea what he was thinking or feeling. All you wanted was for him to say something, anything, in reply. At this point, you were ready for anything he threw at you.

“He talks about you, you know.”

Okay, maybe you weren’t ready for that.

“W-what? I don’t- How do you know that?”

“I-I never knew it was you until now. I always assumed that he just kept his kid a secret from the world for their own sake, which I guess is actually somewhat true,” he swallowed harshly, “I guess your mom keeps him updated on your life because he always talks about how smart and accomplished his kid is. He’d tell me about how they won the science fair when they were only in third grade and were competing against middle schoolers, or how they’d scored a major internship that only five kids were awarded nationwide. I must be pretty thick since I never put the pieces together until now, but Y/N, he does love you. He loves you and he’s so, so proud of you, even if you don’t know it.”

“Then why- why didn’t he ever tell me?” you ask, unable to comprehend everything Peter just told you.

“Because-” he pauses for a moment, thinking, “Because, if you didn’t want anything to do with him, he probably knew that and stayed away because he didn’t want to upset you. At least, I’m assuming that’s why.”

You take a minute to take everything in, reconsidering everything you’ve ever thought about your father. All this time, you might’ve been wrong about him. Looking back on it, you can remember times when your mom would attempt to talk to you about the situation, but you’d always refused, not wanting to even think about him after what he’d done. 

But now? Now, you were willing to listen.

“I’ll be back,” you blurt out before running out of the room, pushing all thoughts about Peter to the back of your mind as you search for the person you need to talk to the most.

When you find him, he’s sitting on the steps of a staircase with his head in his hands, looking rather gloomy.

“Uh, Tony?” you clear your throat awkwardly and Tony looks up at you slowly, not believing his own ears when he hears your soft voice addressing him.

“Oh, hey kid,” he says calmly, attempting to brush off any nervousness, “So, you and Spiderling, huh? I gotta admit, I didn’t see that coming. Didn’t think that kid could love anything more than he loves his homework-”

“Tony,” you tentatively place a hand on his arm for a moment before pulling away, effectively stopping his rambling. While he was talking, you’d managed to make your way up to sit next to him on the stairs. “I-I want you tell me what happened.”

“Well, it all started when I met your mom at a bar-”

You give him a look and he closes his mouth, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly.

“You know what I mean.”

“Why do you want to know?” he asks, genuinely confused as to why you were suddenly open to discussion after so long, “After all these years, why now?”

“Because,” you pause, trying to find the right words, “I think I’ve had the wrong picture in my head my whole life. Why we left, why you never called. All of my assumptions have caused a lot of hurt for so many people in my life, and I just want to know the truth now.”

He nods, taking a deep breath before explaining everything to you. When you were born they kept everything a secret from the press, wanting to give you as normal of a life as possible before you were inevitably discovered. However, the older you got, the harder it was for them to keep you a secret. They could continue to keep you hidden for your entire life, but what kind of life would that be? Limited to the confines of the tower, never allowed to see anyone outside of immediate family. After plenty of long, solemn discussions, your parents decided that it was best for you to move away with your mom. Tony would rather see you grow to your full potential from afar than near him and weighed down by the burden of fame. 

And just like that, everything suddenly makes sense to you. While you knew it would take time to grow back into a father-daughter relationship again, you also knew it was something that you were determined to accomplish someday.

After the conversation dies, you sit quietly with him for a few minutes. As you sink into the comfortable silence, a sudden thought crosses your mind, it’s urgency causing you to jump to your feet.

“Wait- how did you knew Peter and I were dating?” you blurt out, turning to look at the amusement in Tony’s eyes.

“Saw your name on the kid’s phone. It had lots of little heart emojis by it, so I assumed,” he shrugs, smirking slightly.

“Speaking of Peter, I should, uh, probably go back and talk to him,” you begin to walk down the steps, nearly making it to the doorway before Tony yells after you.

“Hey, keep it PG!” he shouts, shooting you a wink when you turn over your shoulder.

Shaking your head, you try to wipe away the smile creeping up on your face as you turn back around and make your way back to the boy you love.

Once back in the living room, you’re surprised to find that Peter is nowhere to be seen. You’re about to pull out your phone and give him a call when suddenly, you’re attacked with a hug from behind, a yelp falling from your mouth.

“Peter!” you laugh, melting into his arms, “You scared me!”

“Mmm,” he mumbles, giving you a tight squeeze before letting go and spinning you around to look you in the eyes, “Where’d you run off to?”

“I, uh, talked to my dad,” you explain, finding it a bit odd to call him Dad after so long.

His gaze softens as he tucks a strand of hair behind your ear, “And how’d it go?”

“Pretty good, actually,” you admit, a bit surprised yourself by how smoothly it went.

“Listen, I never apologized for earlier,” he says quietly, guilt shining in his eyes, “It was wrong of me to ever say those things-”

“Shh,” you put a finger to his lips, “Yes, you may have said some things you shouldn’t have, but you were rightfully upset and I know you didn’t mean them. I’m sorry for hiding this from you for so long. Even if Tony and I weren’t talking, you still had a right to know about my past, because it’s what makes me who I am today.”

“But-”

“No buts, Peter. We’re both at fault here. Communication is key, and we both kinda failed in that area. We can talk more about this tomorrow if you want, but I’m exhausted and in need of some ice cream. Care to join me?”

Smiling, you grab his hand and try to pull him in the direction of the elevator. Instead, you were jerked backwards, shooting him a glare when you realize that he has planted his feet into the ground to prevent you from going any further.

“Actually, I have a much more efficient way of getting there….” he grins, wrapping his arms around your waist and carrying you over to the balcony outside.

“Peter, oh my god, I am NOT going to do this- AAAAA!” you scream and close your eyes as he jumps over the edge, letting your bodies fall. Your arms wrap tightly around his shoulders as he holds you close, swinging from building to building with ease. (You could’ve sworn you felt him laugh at you.)

Before you knew it, your shrieks of terror turn into shouts of glee as the wind rushes by your face. Peter assumes that you’ve gotten used to the sensation of flying through the air as he takes a quick glance at your now open eyes and wide smile. However, the real reason you’re no longer afraid was because of a single thought that crosses your mind as your hair whips around your face.

Nothing, not even swinging high above the city in the dead of night, was as scary as losing the people you loved most.

taglist (+ a few people i think might enjoy this, feel free to ignore!);

@minnie-marvel @quxntumvandyne @lokis-sunflower-anna @cynicallystiles @laurfangirl424 @misslunala @secondsineternity @peter-prkers @sighspidey @signed-potato @lokiislowkeyhot @highlady-ofthe-summercourt @0captain-marvel0 @delicately-written @thefallenbibliophilequote @tohollandback @buck-ets @newtimewriter @thedaughterofdawn @lltrashll @paradoxparker @propertyofmarvel @sagebrandy-loves-pancakes @flaminghottaquito @marvel-galaxy @moonkissedtom @yoinksholland @futzingclint @lokiismischief @whycantwebefriendz @hedwigthelegend @yellowkenyon97 @casuallytumblingdownthestairs  @yelyahryan @em-aesthe @peter-parker-fyeah @screechingtacoglitter @candycornparker @smexylemony @sleepybesson @hollandroos @spiderboytotherescue @starsholland​ @pumpkinsandparker

[bensdump]

ramen! mine! | ksj

∷ Your weekly visit to the local convenience store was getting ruined by an entitled ramen thief.

Seokjin x Reader

Words: 3,700

∵ fluff

∵ e2l au

23:04:37 » Friday 20th April 2018

Sweatpants + a huge jumper + messed up hair + Cheeto dust on your face= only acceptable when at home or on a late night trek to the convenience store.

You were doing the latter.

The walk to your local 24hr convenience store every Friday was the highlight of your week. Normal people would be terrified to walk alone at night, but you loved it. Everything was on mute; no one was around; just you. The stars couldn’t be seen through the layers of thick clouds, but it was reassuring to know they were still there. You could do anything you wanted, no one would see. You could fling off your jumper, run around stark naked and no one would bat an eye, there wouldn’t be anyone there in the first place. You were alone.

You remembered the walk to the store like the back of your hand. Take a sharp left after leaving your apartment. Along the thin path that was decorated with daisies; ivy cloaking and embracing the brick wall like camouflage for the old graffiti that painted the walls. Under the not-so-safe bridge with the not-so-clean river flowing past it. Past the snowy white cat that always rested on that wall; you never forget to give her a small chin scratch. Then up the typically busy street, but that was the best thing about being here when the city was asleep. No one was in the way of you scoring that weekly beef ramen.

That’s what you always did every Friday. It was also what another certain someone started doing every Friday since the 20th April.

It was like clockwork at this point. You enter the store, greet Dave; the half-asleep employee who you were on a first name basis with, walk to the back of the store; it was where the refrigerators and your favourite drinks were, then skip happily to the third row; your beef ramen was always the only one left on the shelf at this time of night.

Something was stopping you from your normal routine; the something being a tall handsome man at the other side of the aisle, eye-fucking your ramen. He looked just as abominable as you do this evening. Same jumper, same Cheeto dust.

But his face was near perfect; not one spot in sight. Soft to touch, smooth. The features seemed to be carved with utmost delicacy and care, maybe a few slip-ups, but it was near perfection to you.

He radiated so much character to you with just one look, the one small ring hanging from his ear told you he was up for anything but has a limit, as there is only one piercing. Deshelved hair, but had the messy look everyone wanted, showed you how careless he is about his hair- he has his face so you wouldn’t worry about hair either.

His chocolate eyes looked distressed and determined as he looked at your ramen- Your ramen.

It clicked for you that he was staring up your beef ramen; you felt disgusted on behalf of your ramen. You glanced back up at your competitor; he had the same stare on his face; both of you had slits for eyes and you knew only one of you could walk out of the store a champion.

You could’ve sworn you saw a tumbleweed fly past his long legs. The stare down was intense; you weren’t nervous at all, he can give you his best.

You darted towards the ramen with a lengthened arm stretched out. It was so close; your finger grazed the ramen and danced along the packet, but it was taken from your grip.

You weren’t one to brag but, your reaction time was pretty outstanding so that ramen was back in your hands in no time. The soft contact of his skin you thought about touching, grazed your thumb; you only took into perspective how close you and this ramen stealer were. He towered over you with a glare pointed at your hands on his supposed ramen.

“Hands off, I was here first,” he pulled the ramen towards his chest, ultimately pulling you with it.

“RAMEN. MINE,” you couldn’t form proper sentences under pressure; so you let broken words fall from your mouth and pulled the ramen back with the same amount of force- a little more hostile than him.

“What? Sorry, no crazy lady, this is mine,” He pulled it back; his attitude ticked you off more than it should this evening and you and ‘crazy ramen thief’ had a tug-of-war in the middle of a convenience store aisle.

It got out of hand quickly. Somehow you ended up pulling too hard; he fell into you, and the shelf behind you. Products fell and were spread all over the floor. “Y/N?”, the sound of crashing awoke Dave and he advanced towards the aisle; he will kill you if he sees this mess.

“Well, see you later Y/N,” the ‘crazy ramen thief’ shoved the ramen into your chest with a stupid grin- it made you want to punch him.

But what made you want to punch him, even more, was when he dashed out of the store, leaving you to blame for the mess.

You decided right then; you have a new enemy. At least you got the ramen.

23:04:01 » Friday 27th April 2018

It was the same for today as well, leave your apartment to go buy your evening meal. You took the same route, looked at the same things. You took a sharp left after leaving. Went along the thin path with the daisies and the ivy graffiti wall. Under the not-so-safe bridge with the not-so-clean river flowing past it. Past the snowy white cat. Then up the typically busy street. But then something happened that never happens on your route. You saw someone else. He had the same pace as you, slow steps that were leading him towards the convenience store that illuminated lime green in the distance.

The thought popped into your mind; you know that messy, dishevelled hair. It was 'crazy ramen stealer’. You didn’t stop to think for a moment when you bolted past him, leaving the thief in your dust. The wind was sweeping your hair over your shoulders and untangling messy knots. You felt the satisfaction of buying the last pot of ramen flow through your veins already; it pumped the adrenaline through you faster. Your legs stretched out further with each stride.

That, unfortunately, was your downfall. Legs. He had them; you didn’t.

You made a trivial mistake running past him- he recognised you instantly. He laughed at how pathetic you were; you couldn’t beat him. He lifted his feet and picked up the pace, breaking out into a sprint.

Panting resounded in your left ear as you saw the thief matching your movements with less amount of effort. This guy got your blood pumping- but in the wrong kind of way.

He smirked and you could’ve done it; you could’ve reached out and slammed your fist into his face. He was already gone, but not before snarky words dripped out of his foul mouth:

“Good evening. It’s Y/N, right? Well, sorry to make this greeting short, but I’ve got to go buy some ramen.”

You walked, clutching your stomach, puffing and panting, through the automatic doors of the store to be greeted, not with Dave, but with Dave selling the last pot of beef ramen to a grinning bastard. He walked past you with the smug look on his face you should be wearing and spoke.

“I’m Jin by the way. I have a feeling we will be meeting up more often.”

23:01:12 » Friday 4th May  2018

Today you planned to leave earlier- it’s only a few minutes but that could make the difference between losing and winning with Jin.

Jin.

The name haunted you for all of last week; his name and face stuck in the back of your mind, he was the source of the burning feeling you were experiencing; the reason you were getting so competitive over just ramen.

You didn’t take a moment to appreciate the reasons why you come out here so late. Your steps were hasty; flying straight past the snowy cat, not stopping to scratch her. You made it onto the typically busy streets; the air at night-time was definitely different. It felt bitter but when you breathed it in you felt warm. You couldn’t describe the feeling in words- like you were at home while standing outside.

Lime green lights flickered into your vision and the sign that had imprinted itself into your mind came into view. Your stroll became a skip as you entered the store.

Jin was nowhere in sight- brilliant. Joyfully, you skipped to the back aisle and grabbed your favourite drink and took a U-turn to the third.

It was sitting there perfectly on the shelf. Untouched. It felt strange just being able to grab it like this- you missed the competition a little.

You slammed the ramen and drink on the counter triumphantly and handed your money over to Dave. You had a smirk on your face, but he wasn’t here to see it, making it feel pointless.

Stepping out of the store and inhaling the night air once again you thought about waiting for him; just for gloating purposes obviously. It was a silly thought and you brushed it off. You didn’t want it to seem like you care. You plodded down the few steps and looked up to see the one and only; you hid the ramen behind your back.

“Hello there, Y/N,” he said your name differently, it was dragged out longer; it was said with a little more power. You couldn’t admit to yourself that you got excited whenever he said it. Maybe because it was him was saying it.

“Don’t even bother hiding it, I already saw you skip in there and buy it.”

“So you stalked me,” he turned while scoffing at your assumption.

“I wasn’t stalking you, I just happened to see you through the window,” you nodded at him while pushing past his shoulder- you wanted to be petty.

“Well, this is a goodbye, Jin, I’m going to enjoy my ramen,” you wiggled the pot in his face and turned on your heel to walk a confident stride home. Even though he didn’t want to, Jin couldn’t help but watch you walk away from him.

23:05:02 » Friday 11th May 2018

You couldn’t believe it- you were late. It may have been by a few seconds, but you were still late.

Sprinting seemed pointless now as you saw him standing outside the store, plastic bag in hand. But when you saw him, you felt yourself start to run faster.

You approached him and he jolted at your presence, looking extremely panicked you were actually here. You smirked and thought it was cute for like one second. Just one small second.

“So you were waiting for me?”

“For ages. You really need to start working out,” his retaliation struck a chord with you.

“You need to clean out that dirty mouth of yours.” A hearty chuckle/squeak was heard from behind you as you decided to just walk away from him; you didn’t win this week.

“Where are you going?”, you have never twisted around so fast. Why was he asking?

“I didn’t win, so I’m leaving,” you corrected him, and he began slowly nodding looking every but your gaze. You set off walking away again when Jin finally said what he was dodging around and groaned before saying it.

“Wait! There was two this time,” he was telling the truth as he pulled out two beef ramens from the plastic bag, “do you want it or not.” The question sent a small flame to your chest, the chilled night cooled it down again. Your first instinct was to say yes to this 'crazy ramen thief’. You noticed your favourite drink laying in the bottom of the bag- it made your heart soft.

You were hesitant at first; there would be lots of bickering if you sat and ate with him. You didn’t want to start hating him; he didn’t even seem that bad of a guy, but he stole your ramen. “Fine.”

01:45:08 » Saturday 12th May 2018

“Jin! Stop it,”

“Y/N, come on, you can’t hate a classic.”

“I don’t, but it’s coming out of your mouth,” you flicked his forehead again; you can’t remember how many times you have done that tonight.

You were right when you thought there would be bickering for the better half of the night; at the moment Jin thought it was hilarious to hum the Batman theme tune in your ear, you, on the other hand, did not. Your eardrum was beginning to ache and you felt the need to blame it entirely on Jin.

What you didn’t expect, was to learn so much about him. You found out you were right about his earring, hair, and the confidence he has with his face (a little too confident), and learnt much more about this intriguing character.

“Okay, I concede, I’ll stop,” you didn’t mean to let out a heavy sigh, but the relief of not hearing 'dunununun batman’ again was an amazing feeling.

Taking a moment to breathe and relax in the silence was a rare moment with Jin, but now that you’re experiencing being with him for more than 3 minutes, it’s wasn’t so awful. A raw gust of air drifted through you and Jin, biting at you on your nose and ears; you snuggled further into your jumpers collar, you waited for the harsh wind to pass before emerging again.

“Do you know your nose and ears turn red when your cold,” Jin was speaking in a softer tone than before, it sounded much better than the annoying hums.

You reached and covered your nose- you did not know that. He laughed at your sudden shyness; it was a nice contrast from your normally confident personality.

“Don’t worry. It’s cute,” he grabbed his drink and began sipping. You hadn’t said a word and dropped your hand, shocked. It was obvious you weren’t answering any time soon; he started panicking, chugging the drink so he didn’t have to speak to you.

“Jin uhm” your voice was out of the blue and it made Jin start choking on the drink.

“Are you okay,” you started hitting his back in hopes it will help- it didn’t.

He swatted at you and stood up and away from your surprisingly strong smack. “I’m good,” his reply was short and combined with strained coughs, “I should go.”

He grabbed his plastic bag and started running away from you quicker than he was last week.

“Bye!”, he lifted his hand as he ran away and left you alone; you could still hear his small coughs from far away.

“What a strange man.”

23:03:59 » Friday 25th May 2018

Today felt a little different. There was only one pot of ramen there. Last week ended the same as before; there were two pots there so you ate together. But…

It was weird because you thought you would be eating with Jin again- no matter how much you two bickered, you didn’t mind the company.

But now you weren’t spending this Friday night with him, and it bugged you more than you thought it would.

“Y/N, hey,” Jin glided through the doors and past the aisles, “you grab the ramen and I’ll get the drinks.”

He had become so casual with you- it was freaking you out. You had only known this man for six weeks; you had sworn him off as your enemy; you only talked to him a little. Now he was acting like a friend and you realised you didn’t want that at all. You wanted more which was even scarier.

He happily stepped up next to you and followed your gaze to the one pot of beef ramen.

“Oh, there’s only one. We could share it.”

“No,” you answered almost immediately and stepped away, “I don’t want to eat with you.”

“No?”, he claimed in a hurt tone and just looked at you, “We’ve been eating together for the past two weeks.”

“Yeah, well, I don’t want to eat with you anymore,” you started walking out towards the door and away from this emotional mess you were feeling; if you were around him it got worse, and it terrified you as you haven’t even known him that long.

Your hand was taken from your side and you were pulled to face Jin, “why not? You know I’m actually starting to like you… just a little.”

“Me too.”

“Good, so can we just buy-”, you forced your hand from his grip and stepped back in surrender- the weird clenching feeling in your heart was becoming overwhelming.

“No Jin, I like you, it’s not like how you see me,” you stated as you slowly stepped back, “it’s weird, we’ve only known each other for six weeks. I should just go,” you spun and dashed out the door before his hand could catch you again and didn’t stop running till you made it to the familiar snowy white cat.

She called out to your distressed form and you promptly answered with the usual chin scratch. You sighed and rested your head in your spare hand as you continued scratching the stray cat.

You really couldn’t see Jin again after you said that.

00:02:42 » Saturday 2nd June 2018

The streets were dead.

Jin sat at the table outside of the lime green convenience store, two pots of ramen laid out neatly with chopsticks next to each one. It had been an hour; he knew you weren’t coming, but he waited there in the darkness still.

He played with the lid on one of the pots, entertaining himself as the Batman theme song left his lips in a hum.

Jin really needed to see you after he heard what you said.

23:20:57 » Friday 15th June 2018

He wasn’t going to wait two hours for you again. He chucked the untouched ramen into the trashcan with hostility. It had been two weeks- you still wouldn’t show up at your place. Your place?

He knew you were right when you said it was strange and scary to feel this way about someone you only just met; he understood as he was experiencing it himself.

23:00:00 » Friday 22nd June 2018

You dragged your feet along the thin path; you barely noticed the daisies and ivy anymore.

You took your time under the not-so-safe bridge.

Past the snowy white cat that always rested on that wall; not ignoring her on purpose and forgot her usual small chin scratch.

Then up the typically busy street.

You missed the noise, specifically Jin’s noise. You hadn’t seen him for three weeks and it frightened you that you were still grieving over him. You hadn’t noticed how much he had an impact on your weekly schedule.

You lugged yourself through the door and neglected Dave, leaving him in an awkward position of being halfway through a hello. It was straight to the third aisle; you haven’t been in a great mood because of Jin, you needed some ramen.

You looked the same as you did those ten weeks ago: sweatpants, stained jumper, Cheeto dust everywhere, and messed up hair. Before, when you were seeing Jin every week, you didn’t realise you dressed up a little more. It all felt stupid now.

Once again, the ramen was nearly in your grasp, so close before it was snatched away and you were pulled towards your thief. The crazy ramen thief.

“You know if you would’ve just listened to me I wouldn’t have had to wait for you here every Friday.”

“Jin-”

“No, don’t say my name,” he loosened his grip on the pot and let it drop between you two, “You left me for three weeks… I missed you.”

You were dismayed and the three words threw you off track- he didn’t let you get a word in.

“I missed the strange ramen competition we had, it was ours- it was fun to see how determined you were to win against me,” he brought the cup back up to chest level, “your such an idiot, I liked you too. I know how scary it is for you to go from hate to love so suddenly.”

“Liked?”, you questioned him with caution, still unsure of what he was saying. He scoffed and tugged the ramen pot so you were in position.

“I have feelings for you too,” he spoke softly and his breath fanned on your lips before he leaned in and embraced you in a warm kiss.

Somehow the ramen pot stayed in between you two; figuratively and literally.

23:10:34 » Friday 15th February 2020

“Grab the ramen, I’ll get the drinks,” Jin shouted as he ran to the end aisle.

“There’s only one,” you shouted across the store as you frantically examined the shelf, but there was nothing in sight. You and Jin were unable to celebrate valentines yesterday so today’s plan was unplanned and spontaneous, but the familiar feeling of being here again was nostalgic as you looked back on how you and Jin met.

You chuckled to yourself at how stupid you two were.

“What are you laughing at, freak,” a bottle was placed on your head and Jin stood tall behind your petite size; you turned and grabbed the bottle and giggled again.

“Nothing,” you left him in the third aisle and arrived at the counter.

Dave, sadly, no longer worked at the convenience store and you were greeted with an unfamiliar and foreign face, “just these then?”

You and Jin walked, hand in hand, out of the store unto the typically busy street.

Past the snowy white cat.

Under the now fixed bridge and clean river.

Up to the thin path that no longer had daisies but the ivy was still standing strong.

And arrived at your now shared apartment to enjoy your beef ramen together.

[emberbent]

Book 1: Fire | Chapter 3: Slow Burn

The stars shone like innumerable diamonds strewn about the velvet sky. As Shinza walked beside Amrit, their path illuminated by torches, crickets sang their nighttime song. They came to a fire pit behind the house, filled with branches and surrounded by stones. Shinza took her place and watched Amrit kindle a fire with one swift thrust of his fist. 

“It was really nice of you to invite me to dinner,” she said. 

Amrit smirked. “I just hope my family didn’t scare you off. My mom, she uh… lets her mouth run sometimes.”

“I see where your sisters get it from,” Shinza retorted. She hadn’t had a good meal like that since the last time she’d gone to Nero’s family’s house for dinner. It hadn’t been until tonight that she realized how much she missed the buzzing of conversation, the overabundance of food and the elder family members insisting she eat more, and Nero’s little brothers arguing one minute and scheming together the next.

“I knew you had good taste in movers,” Amrit chirped as he planted himself on the stone next to hers. “How can anyone not like The Last Dragon?”

“It’s so good!” Shinza agreed.

The two of them talked small for a while, and for the first time since she’d arrived, she felt at ease. Amrit took a long look at her. “Listen… I hope you’re not too frustrated with what happened today. I don’t want you to get discouraged.”

Shinza met his eyes for a moment and then cast her gaze to the flames. Her shoulders stooped as she leaned forward on her elbows. “I just wish I knew what’s wrong with me. Or why my chi was blocked in the first place.”

“There’s nothing wrong with you,” he insisted. “Trust me, I’ve worked with some really terrible firebenders before. Students who showed much less aptitude than you, and they all became proficient in the end. I don’t know why your chi was blocked, but I know exactly why your flame is so weak.”

“Why’s that?”

Amrit leveled with her. “You have no drive.”

Shinza stared at him hard for a moment, struggling to keep herself in check; but the events of the past two days had thrown her for a loop, and she couldn’t hold it in anymore. “No drive? You think I didn’t already know that? Do you have any idea how often I’ve heard that throughout my life? From my parents, from my teachers and professors?”

She stood up and paced in front of the fire. “No drive… unbelievable. I know I have no drive! I’ve been aimless my entire life, Amrit. Some people are born knowing what they want to do with their lives, but I wasn’t so lucky. I wasted four years getting a degree that barely pays the bills and fielding complaints from my parents left and right that I have no passion.”

Amrit listened intently, his onyx eyes following her as she paced in front of him. Behind her, the flames grew taller. “Keep going. What else?”

“You know what else I don’t have, Amrit? Guidance. One day I’m a dreamer with my head in the clouds and the next I’m suddenly the Avatar? What exactly am I supposed to do with all of this? I keep asking people what’s going on, and no one will be straight with me. I don’t know the first thing about this job, and now all of a sudden people are bowing to me and telling me I’ll do amazing things? How am I supposed to unpack all of this? I’m eleven years late and a complete failure. I’ve failed before I even started!”

The fire roared behind her. Amrit smirked. “Do it.”

“Do what?!”

“Bend fire. Dancing dragon. Go.”

Amped up, Shinza completed the form from their earlier training session. But this time, as she pushed her palms outward, they emitted a strong, concentrated flame. 

Amrit leapt off his stone. “Good! Do it again.”

For just a second, Shinza was afraid to extinguish the flame in case it didn’t come back. But as she ran through the movements again, executing each step with precision, she produced the same controlled, brilliant flame. 

“You did it,” Amrit grinned, watching Shinza hold the stance and keep the fire she’d produced alive, staring at it with wide eyes. “You’re a firebender.”

She took to performing the movement over and over again until she was satisfied that she could produce consistent results. Reeling with excitement, she couldn’t wipe the grin off her face as she took her place on her stone, pressing her hot palms against her cheeks. Fire… she was a firebender. After a whole life spent as a nonbender, she felt she had so much to catch up on. At the same time, the realization that the Fire Sages hadn’t called on the wrong person after all weighed heavily on her shoulders. The long path before her stretched out to infinity.

“I shouldn’t have yelled at you like that, Sifu,” she said after a moment.

Amrit waved her off. “You needed to get it off your chest. Your chi may have been blocked, but you were also holding yourself back. Fire is pure energy; it’s passion and resilience and the drive to move forward no matter what. You just needed a little persuasion, is all.”

She couldn’t argue with that. Staring at her palms, the two fell silent for a while. Then, Shinza remarked, “You know, the way the warriors described you, I thought you’d be a lot older. But you’re, what, my age?”

“Mmm… maybe a little older.” Then he admitted, “I may have made my own assumptions about you, too.”

Shinza’s left brow arched. “Oh?”

“Well, you only know one firebending form, and you know it really well. So maybe a relative of yours was a firebender, and you used to watch them practice; then you’d do that move over and over again, hoping you’d produce a flame. Your movements are exact and elegant - I think you’re probably a dancer. You’re reserved, straightforward, and you demonstrate the most self-control I’ve ever seen. I would have lashed out at me a long time ago, but it took you until tonight to finally let it all out. ...Oh, and you’re maybe a little spoiled.”

Shinza stared at him for a moment and snorted in response.

Amrit’s gaze darted to her hands. “Can I ask about your scars?”

She shrugged. “Sure. It doesn’t bother me.” Holding the backs of her hands up, where the scars were darkest, she continued, “I was too young to remember when it happened, but I was playing - spinning around, you know, like little kids do - and I fell into a lit lantern.”

“Ouch,” remarked Amrit.

“What about you?” Shinza replied, gesturing at his metal prosthesis.

“Oh, you mean The Leg? Isn’t it gorgeous? Fire Nation metalwork at its finest. You can touch it if you want.”

She did; leaning over to brush her fingers along the intricate scrollwork, she nodded appraisingly. “It is. And you really refer to it as The Leg?”

“I mean, what else would you call it?”

Shinza sat upright. “What happened?”

All at once, the cheer in Amrit’s eyes drained out and his face darkened. His mouth sealed shut like a vice.

“You don’t have to tell me,” she murmured. 

“It’s okay,” he assured her. “It’s just… I’ve never actually said it out loud. I don’t even know how to say it.”

Shinza waited patiently. 

“I got married when I was twenty-five,” Amrit began, after having taken a deep breath and expelled it. “To the love of my life, Gao. We’d grown up together. Actually, funny story - we hated each other as kids. But then we got older and, you know, things change. We fell in love and had a beautiful wedding. A couple years later, she was carrying my children - twins, a boy and a girl - when an ancient spirit appeared, demanding a sacrifice. It was unusual for this spirit to appear before a thousand years was up, but it did - it was unhappy with the lack of reverence shown to the world. It sensed the smog coming from the refineries and saw the oilbenders working like slaves on the rigs offshore. And it said that if we didn’t offer a tribute - a live, human sacrifice - it would take one for itself. Of course, the whole village couldn’t just choose one of their own to offer up. So the spirit returned. It took Gao. I lost my leg trying to, uh… trying to get her back.”

The two were quiet for a long time, staring into the fire. Finally, Shinza said, “I’m sorry, Amrit.”

“Me too,” he replied, looking pale. Shinza knew there was nothing she could say that would ease the pain that was so apparent on his face.

“For what it’s worth, you were right about me,” she said. “I’ve been incredibly selfish. For the past two days, I’ve been complaining about this sudden revelation - how confusing it is, how no one’s helping me, and how much of an inconvenience it’s been to have my life turned upside down. I’ve always longed for a purpose, and now here it is, right in front of me, and I’ve been so ungrateful to everyone who has helped me so far. Even you. You guided me to my flame, and I’ll never be able to thank you enough for that.”

“I think I was meant to help you,” Amrit replied, looking into her eyes. “I’ve spent the last ten years wondering why it had to be Gao and our babies who were taken. Why it couldn’t have been me instead. But it took me until today, right now, to realize that maybe it all happened so I’d end up right here on this stone next to you.”

Shinza took that in, treasured it. Tucked it safely against her heart. Then she touched Amrit’s shoulder. “I won’t let any of it be in vain,” she promised. “I’m honored to have you as my teacher. And my friend, I hope.”

The glimmer in his eyes returned, and he smiled. “Are you kidding me? I just told you my deepest, darkest secret. We’re best friends now.”

The two fell silent again for a long while. Then Shinza spoke again. “Amrit? What do you know about The Organization?”

“More than I’d care to know,” he said. “They want to end the cycle because they think the Avatar is inherently too powerful, antiquated, and no longer necessary. Basically, they want you dead.”

“Wonderful,” Shinza muttered. “What else?”

“They believe no one person should have as much power as you do - not you personally, but you as an institution - and that you can’t be trusted to wield it responsibly. Historically, there have been some pretty ineffective Avatars, and even some bad ones. After the last handful who all turned out to be incredible, The Org thinks we’re overdue for another one. Oh, and they think too much taxpayer money is spent on keeping you in your Avatar finery.”

Shinza couldn’t help but laugh. “But the Avatar is the one who protects those taxpayers. And besides, I didn’t ask for all the fancy pajamas and portraits and gifts people are sending. I don’t understand these people.”

“I don’t either,” Amrit replied. “But Shinza, it’s more important than ever that you get through you training as quickly as you can. The world needs the Avatar, whether they think they do or not. You need to be able to protect yourself and the cycle.”

She mulled that over for a long time. “There’s just… a huge problem that I can’t see past. Okay, fine, I’m the Avatar. Sure, my job is to bring balance to the world and all of that. My duty is to people, but Amrit… people are awful. I don’t understand them, and most of them I don’t even like. Some people purely aren’t worthy of respect. How am I supposed to reconcile all of that?”

“I don’t know the answer to that one,” Amrit said, a little defeated. “Look, don’t think about it too hard tonight, okay? You should probably go on and get some sleep. Now that you’re a firebender, we’ve got a long, brutal day of training tomorrow, starting bright and early.”

Shinza rose and smirked. “Can’t wait.”

[loving-barnes]

Explosions: Chapter five - Revelation

(Y/N): I don’t know what to say. Sorry for my mistakes. 

Warning: Language

Words: 3612

EXPLOSIONS MASTERLIST

Chapter five – Revelation

               There was a silence at a cemetery. A lot of people were dressed up in black clothing, wearing black glasses, and holding a single red rose in one of their hands.  A priest was talking to the people, giving the last blessing to the young woman, who had died a few days ago. Everyone was quiet, listening to him, silently crying. In the first row, her family was sitting right in front of the casket. The mother was broken. Her oldest son had to be with her until the end of the ceremony. She almost passed out, because she was the first one who had to throw the rose into the pit.

   Adeline was standing behind all those people, giving the last good-bye to her friend. She wore a black tight skirt, a chemise of the same colour with a black blazer on top of it. Her brown hair was brushed into a massive low bun. The make-up she put on her face was very easy, nothing extravagant. The silver tears were running down her cheeks.

    She thought of the last party, the last day they spent together. Jen had a smile of a six-year-old child, even her behaviour could be compared to it, but she was intelligent and sweet to everyone. And now, she was gone – somewhere in the stars, looking down at the people who loved her, who she loved.

    There was supposed to be a small sitting after the funeral, but only the closest family was invited. Even her colleagues, or just Adeline, weren’t. When it all ended and the people slowly left the cemetery, Adeline was walking with Dan by her side, trying to hide the salty tears in her eyes.

    “Do you want a lift?” Dan asked her while they were walking to the parking lot. Monica was already waiting there for them with another girl. “We are going to the bar, have some drinks, and talk – remember Jen. Everyone will be there.”

   “Thank you, but I want to go home. Maybe I’ll give you a call, and come later,” she tried to smile at him, but it was very hard for her. She wasn’t in the mood for any kind of smile or other facial expressions. “Can you take me home, please, or somewhere near my street? I would like to take a hot shower and eat something light. I wasn’t eating for a while.”

   Her friend nodded. The only thing he did was a tight hug with one hand around her shoulders. Together, they came to the other girls and finally got into Dan’s car. Dan was the driver; Adeline was sitting next to him, and Monica, with the female colleague, was in the back, quietly chatting. Adeline remained silent the whole time. She was scanning the streets of LA, surroundings, people, who were trying to live peacefully in this fabulous town.

    She felt the pain, but it was mixed with anger in her veins. She wanted a revenge, she wanted to stop that man, before another innocent people would die because of him, and his fire. Adeline wanted to kill him. She had a lot of reasons for it, but the death of her friend was when he crossed the line. No matter what her father told her – not to show her powers - she was determined to find Goth today and kill him. And if she dies today, it would be worth it. Why have superpowers and not use them?

    “Call me, if you change your mind,” that was the last sentence Dan told her. Adeline gave him a nod, then waved with her right hand and approached the building. She heard the car left.

    When she was in her apartment, it was time to get ready for her mission. Right after she closed the entrance door, she took off her black clothes and threw them on a chair next to her workbench. Only the underclothing stayed on. The brunette turned on the laptop, which was lying on the bed. While it was loading, doing automatic actualisations, she took the catsuit out of her wardrobe and put it on. Adeline didn’t forget to set up the device, which changed her voice, but didn’t turn it on. After it, she destroyed the pretty bun and brushed her hair into a high ponytail. Because she had a lot of spare time, she turned on a hair straightener and let it heat up. If she’s going on a mission, and it might be the last one in her life, she has to look good. Maybe they will remember her as The Beautiful Guardian. Suddenly, she smiled.

    When the computer was finally working, it was time to hack into the satellites and every public camera. That was the only way she could find the public enemy. The woman tried her best and did everything, every method of finding him. There was another loading, re-counting, searching for the object.

    While the computer was working, and looking for any kind of information, Adeline finished her hair with the hair straightener and turned it off. Her brown hair was straight like never before. The length of the hair was under the shoulder blades. She took a section of hair and rolled it around an elastic band.  The woman had time for some makeup. She drew black lines on her eyelids, fixed the eyebrows, and at the end, she put a mask on her face. It was finally finished, matching the catsuit. Though, there was something missing.

   The last time she went into the field, she could only use her hands or shield. After the last incident, she got herself two iron bars for fighting. The basic length was about thirty centimetres, but when they spread, the length was about one meter. They could spread, and go back just with a quick move of her hands. She kept them on her back, where she created a leather cover for each of them. Some warriors had swords there, she had these iron sticks.

   Before she could put on black army boots, the computer gave her a signal of a result. She ran to the laptop and look at it. She found a record of him – he was in a casino. Was that his next place for another “explosion party”? Adeline needed more information.

   It was almost dark outside when she was fully ready for this mission. The position of Goth changed. He went into another, much more famous casino. There were a lot of tourists, rich and influential people. This casino was the main settlement of the politics and other famous people. She took a deep breath. Goth must have a plan, where he wants to kill the most important people in this country. It was time to go. Adeline checked herself in the mirror, even checked the shoelaces, and turned on the device for her voice.  

   “Let’s do this,” she said to herself with a different voice. Adeline felt good. The adrenaline increased in her veins. She was ready to kick some ass.

   Locking the front door, turning off the laptop, and shutting the lights off, she finally left her apartment on the balcony. This wasn’t the first time she had to climb up on the roof. From there she could get anywhere she wanted.

    The view from the roof was beautiful – the whole town was illuminated by colourful lighting. She didn’t enjoy the view for long. Adeline started to run and jumped on the other building. She never stopped, she continued. There was no time for stopping or catching a breath. It was just a matter of time until something happened. Goth was in a casino full of people. They didn’t know him, his face, but she did.

    After half an hour of running and jumping, she was finally near the casino. The view from a roof of a gallery was a very good choice. She could see everything from that spot. The woman had some time to breathe deeply and calm her heartbeat.

   Her intuition, information from the internet, and cameras were correct. Suddenly, a lot of people were running out of the casino, in a panic. There was chaos, but no explosion, no fire. What was going on? Even the employees ran out. It was time to move. There was no time for any hesitation. She used the fire stairs, in the back of the building.

    Before she could reach to the people, there was the missing explosion. It wasn’t huge like the earlier ones, and nothing much happened until the front door burst open. Adeline immediately put her hands in front of her, and the shield spread around her, and many other people. They were safe for a while.

   “Look, it is The Guardian,” said someone near her. “She came to help.”

   “Help us!”                                                                                                

    These positive words brought a smile to her lips. She had a motivation – help the innocent people. “Everybody, get out!” she ordered loudly with a different voice. “This place is not safe! You are in great danger!”

   And there was that moment when she finally saw him at close quarters. Goth. He was wearing a special robotic suit. It had some weird grippers on both sides, which were floating around him like they were alive. He was dangerous, and the devilish smirk scared the hell out of her. But he was different, older, with long grey hair, and muscles. The last time she saw him, he was this ordinary man, who had evil thoughts and had a big quarrel with her father. She could remember his attitude, those eyes, and even voice. When she was younger, she was afraid of him.

    Adeline grabbed the iron bars, and with a quick move, they stretched into a full length. She was ready to fight him, not letting him know, who she is, and why she was doing it. The woman wanted revenge, and she could not wish for a better time and place. “Goth!” she screamed his name very angrily and got his attention. Her eyes were full of anger and hate.

   The man widely smiled and started to laugh. “Oh, this is brilliant.” His accent was strong; his eyes were hidden behind dark goggles, and he was slowly approaching her. “And what do you want, little one? You wish to fight me? Aren’t you scared?”

    Goth provoked her. Adeline ran towards him, clutching the bars in her hands, ready to attack him. “I want to kill you, you fucking bastard!” she growled. She jumped; her hands made a move and attacked him with the iron bars. The evil man was fast, avoiding the hit, and tried to attack her too. It was an equal fight between them. Both of them were fast, very skilled. She hit him with a stick, however, he returned it back, and she fell on her knees. It was a mere second, and she was already blocking his attacks.

   Some people were watching this fight from a safe distance. They saw how The Guardian tried to knock him down. A woman was fighting this huge, strong man. All of a sudden, he was the one who was winning. Adeline was suddenly on a ground, trying to recover from a powerful punch. Her vision was blurry. A robotic sound came from her right side. She turned her head to him, and in the last second, when a fire came out of his suit she put her hand up and protected herself with a purplish shield. She got herself some more seconds to recover. When the fire stopped, Goth seemed to be surprised. He never saw anything like this – a magical shield protecting a person.

    Adeline took her chance, removed the shield, and kicked him in his knee while he lost his focus. He fell down; an angry, painful sound came out from his throat. The woman grabbed the shafts, stood up, and continued with the fight. Now she was in advantage – using her kicking skills, she knocked him down.

    “An old man trying to beat me?” she started to laugh at him and took a deep breath. Adeline was standing above him, looking into his goggles. “You should have stayed at home, in a rocking chair, watching sitcoms, old man.”

   She wasn’t the only one who was laughing. He did the same thing. “Oh, and do you think that you can kill me?” he teased her. “Don’t be conceited, little girl. You are way too weak, you are unskilled. You won’t kill me. You don’t know how to do it. You don’t have the strength. I can see it in your magical eyes, little one.” A smirk came to his face.

    “Oh, shut the fuck up,” she rolled her green eyes and put one of the iron bars behind her back. The other one was still in her right hand. “Any last words, before I’ll kill you?” She was ready to put the stick into his throat.

    Goth started to laugh again. “Fuck you, little girl,” and after those words, a massive explosion was heard from the building. In a second, her eyes saw a fire coming straight to them. The instinct commanded her to raise her hands, and protect herself. The ashes and a black smoke, followed by some rocks devoured her. When everything ended, she could see the damage after the explosion. The shield disappeared, and Goth ran away.

    “Fuck!” she snarled. “Motherfucker!” she cursed under her nose one more time and looked around. He was nowhere to find. While putting the second shaft behind her back, into the cover, she went from the devastated building, right into the middle of the street. Goth had to be somewhere near. It was not possible to escape that quickly, or was it?

   Some people were hurt; some of them were lying on the ground and bleeding. The explosion was huge, and she was only able to protect herself. She couldn’t create a shield, which would protect the whole street. Adeline didn’t know how to help them now. She needed to find Goth and end it. And there he was, trying to escape from her and the police.

    Adeline ran as fast as she could. She gritted her teeth; put her energy into the legs, just she could run faster. A shot was heard from behind her. Someone tried to take her down – probably the police. But she wasn’t with Goth. He was the public enemy, her enemy. She heard another shot. Suddenly, she stopped, turned around, and protected herself with the shield. A bright light surrounded her. She could see the bullets running into the purplish thing. It absorbed them. When the shooting stopped, she started to run again, but without the shield. She didn’t know how to run and have it around her.

    After a while, Adeline stopped running. Goth was nowhere to find. He escaped her! If the police didn’t stop her, she could have caught him, and finally, kill him. However, the situation changed, and now Adeline was the main suspect. It was time to leave, and go home, but something lifted her up in the air. She couldn’t feel the ground under her feet, she was flying. Who the hell took her away? “Let me go!” Adeline screamed. That “someone” accepted her request and let her go while they were passing by the roof of a building.

    She fell on her knees and palms and rolled over to her back. The brunette took a deep breath; her eyes widened when she saw Iron Man right above her. “Shit!” she said to herself.

   “Who are you?” he asked her. It was Tony behind the mask. She knew him; she could recognize his voice. His arms were suddenly aiming at her. A light in his palms started to grow. That wasn’t a good sign. “Are you deaf?!” When the woman didn’t reply, he tried to shoot her.

   Adeline protected herself with the shield. “Leave me alone!” she screamed at him.

    The Iron Man was shocked when he saw that purplish magical thing around her. “Now seriously, who the fuck are you?!” he asked her another question. His voice wasn’t pleasant. “You are Goth’s sidekick, ha?!”

    Her eyebrows went up. “No, I am not! I was trying to kill him!” she shouted at him with an angry voice.

   “How can you do that?” he asked about the shield. “What are you?!”

    “That’s not your business!” she growled. Tony immediately attacked her, but she was still under the protection of her shield.  He tried his best to destroy it, but that never happened. “Stop it, you dick!”

    “WHO ARE YOU?!” his mask went on, and he showed his face. Tony’s chocolate brown eyes were staring at the unknown woman. Finally, his hands went down, and she could finally cancel the shield.

    “Queen Victoria, dickhead,” she replied cheekily and stood erect. Her knees were hurting her, but it wasn’t that bad. “You don’t have to know who I am.” With a quick move of a hand, she took one of the iron bars, and spun with it, ready to defend herself.

   “This is my town, and…”

   “This is my town too. Stop acting like everything belongs to you, Stark!” she scowled at him. “It is not about you! Not anymore.”

    Tony rolled his eyes. “Whatever,” he said, and the mask went back on his face. “Prepare to die, you weird crazy bitch.”

    In a second, they were in a fight. Adeline knew she had no chance with him. Stark’s suit was special - he was strong in it. When she hit him with a stick, he barely even felt that. “Fuck this shit,” she mumbled and threw a shield around her. When his armour touched the protective magical material, it threw him back, and he fell on the ground. “That was unexpected,” she said to herself. Now it was time to run away.

    He stood up. “You are not going anywhere!” Stark yelled at her. He was immediately next to her, and he grabbed the woman by her waist, not letting her go. She tried to get rid of him, kicking him in his armor, but he was stronger. “Let’s look under the mask, shall we?”

   “NO!” she screamed. She must remain confidential. “Let go of me!”

    Tony’s hand was on her face. Adeline could feel how his hand was pulling it down. With all the moving, the device, which changed her voice, unwillingly turned off. When she finally got out from his metal arms, Adeline realized her mask was missing. It was too late to cover her face. She looked into his face, an evil look was in her eyes, and she was breathing heavily.

    Tony’s mask went once again up. He was shocked. “Adeline?!”

    “Surprise,” she sighed.

   “What the fuck?!” he didn’t understand it. “How? Why?!”

    “Oh please, don’t act like you care,” the brunette rolled her eyes. She stood up, quickly grabbed her mask from his hand, and ran away from him. Tony was still in shock, that’s why she took the opportunity and escaped from him.

    “Young lady, you owe me an explanation!” he wanted to catch her a few seconds later, but she was already gone. The only thing he saw was empty roofs around him and even streets. She was good – he had to admit it.

    Adeline had been already way away from Iron Man. Once again, she used a big truck for transportation. She needed to create a plan because she was sure, Tony would like to visit her in the apartment. The only option she had was a “sleepover” at Monica’s place. On the corner of 54th street, she jumped off the truck and hid in a small dark alley. This inconspicuous street brought her to her building. The brunette had to be careful. What if he’s already there? She left her balcony open. Why did she sleep with him not long ago? How could she be so stupid?

    There were no people on the street. It was time to move. She quickly ran to the main entrance and opened it. She was lucky – none of the neighbours was around. Ste stepped into the elevator, and it lifted her up. When she was there, Adeline slowly went to her door. She listened carefully, but no sound was heard from her flat. Adeline took out a key from her bra – the only safe pocket for anything. She opened the door and entered it. There was quiet, no one was there except her.

    The brunette took off the army boots, catsuit, and put it into a traveling bag. There was no time to shower or any other girly stuff. She put there some clothes, laptop, charger, and as fast as she could, she put on some regular clothes.

    While she was leaving, she called Monica. “Hello?” said a woman’s voice from the other side.

    “Hey, Mon. It’s me, Ad. Listen,” Adeline was speaking slowly, with a fear in her voice. “Can I please come to your place? I need a place to stay. Something unexpected happened. I’ll explain everything later. I just need a place for a night or two.”

  “Oh, sure, Adeline. Is everything okay? I’ll be waiting for you. I’m on my way home from the bar. I’ll be there in five minutes.”

   “Thank you. I’ve got to go. See you in a few minutes,” and then the call ended. Adeline locked her apartment, put the mobile into the pocket of her jeans, and went to her friend’s flat. Her place wasn’t safe anymore. Tony will try to find her, and it was just a matter of time when that would happen.