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#i was going to keep this canon based but i couldn't help myself and slipped in a shippy pic
darkhorse-javert · 10 months
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Hazy Summer, Shadowed Days
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@flashfictionfridayofficial- Canon complient musings from and about Andrew Foyle post war
Hastings June 1945
He slipped down the stairs in the bright summer moonlight, keeping his feet light. Shouldn't wake Dad, not his problem I'm awake at a god-forsaken hour of the night. He pulls his dressinggown closer around himself, skin cold with nightchill even in the warm air of the summer, pads across the hall and curls into the armchair by the unlit fire, seeking comfort in the familiarity of the moment. But the empty grate stared back at him, hollow, bare a shadow of it's normal self. Bit like me really. 26 years old, and what have I got from it? Five long years flying with the RAF, but my eyes are crocked, so that's out for a job, could never stand being a groundbased teacher even if they'd have me, Debden proved that.
Two-thirds of an Oxford degree in English, could finish that I suppose, I've got the papers, but I'm not the merry young lad who bounced into the Quads all those years ago, can't see myself going back there, with all those who are young enough, even if they had enough places.
Scraps and litter of poetry, all based around war-life and flying, but they wouldn't sell- we all want, need to move on from that, I don't want to be one of those Glory Days Warhorses that were a joke in stories. Who would buy them anyway? I'm sure there were better poets than my efforts who were already published
Might have to go in for an office job- as I said to Sam - but when I flinch at a phone, that's going to be a joke and a half for anyone I'm working with. And what skills have I got to offer them that another man hasn't.
Sam- the thought was a slap across the face, his glib words to her of weeks ago 'I'm going to work on you Sam', ah Hell, what have I got to offer her, such a smart, diligent girl as she is, she's found a job of sorts, as well as helping Dad. If I made a go of it, kept up the freindship and we got to something more I'd be sponging off her even as a friend. And if we got married, what a dream that was, would her empoyer even keep her on? Unlikely.
No, Sam was doing far better off on her own, not with me dragging her down like a stone, an old figure in a young skin, scraping around for what I can get, nothing to get it with. Can't even fish well.
"Andrew?"
He turns, Dad a soft dark figure in the doorway,
"Sorry, couldn't sleep."
"Mmm", Dad walks softly across, and perches on the end of the sofa nearest to Andrew.
"I wrote a poem, just before I came home," Andrew, looking back at the empty fireplace finds the words flying desperatly from his tongue 'talked about 'Summer Haze', and 'Uncertain Days' -sounds truely poetic doesn't it? But it's more like trying to walk on thick sand, everything slipping about under your feet, tumbling you down... What have I got Dad? Except wrecked eyes, and a degree I can't face finishing. And yet I'm not really really broken, thank God, and I'm grateful for that."
He hears his father swallow, then finds an arm slipping around his shoulders, tugging him insistantly close.
"Give yourself a chance, Andrew, ask around. Give yourself time."
But- but his mind says what if my time has gone, and I'm a lost fossil before I'm even thirty. And I don't want to have to go cap-in-hand to the RAF or SSAFA, leaning on others, Grammer School and Scholarship boy that I was. I should be able to do something.
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tattooedsiren · 7 years
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Harvey Specter & Mike Ross. Didn't realize we were keeping score. But if we are, he's still coming out ahead.
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lokis-army-77 · 3 years
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If You Please
Chapter Fourteen
Bucky Barnes x Reader
Word Count: 4440
This is technically a reader insert but without the (y/n) and all that. She also has no name mentioned so feel free to imagine as you please.
Follow the reader through the events of the Captain America movies and experience her love for Bucky Barnes.
Warnings: canon typical violence
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We escaped quickly and descended down into the dark, damp sewer system of D.C. until we came to a steel ladder directly in the middle of our path several minutes later. Maria climbed up first, to make sure the coast was clear then she signaled for us to follow. There was an SUV waiting for us a few paces away from where we had emerged. I slowly trailed behind the others and into one of the back seats. The drive to the base, which seemed to be a rundown dam in the middle of the woods, took us almost half an hour.
After getting out the van we rushed in through a singular gated door at the base of the dam. Nat was still losing blood but the first aid kit in the van helped slow it down. As we walked down the dimly lit hall I spotted a man running towards us.
“GSW,” Maria shouted out to the man. “She’s lost almost a pint of blood.”
“Let me take her,” the man shouted back, still jogging to us.
“She’ll want to see him first,” she said before we reached a set of double doors and hurried through them. Maria led us down a long corridor which opened up to a large room with a section closed off with plastic strip curtains. She reached out and pulled part of the curtain back to let us see inside. There lying down in a hospital bed was Nick Fury, who was supposed to be dead.
“Well, it’s about damn time.” Fury stated in a sarcastic tone. I looked to Steve, Who was holding Nat up, and gave him a quizzical look, which he returned with his own shake of the head.
After the initial shock of seeing Fury alive, Nat was sat down by the doctor who was trying to stop her arm from bleeding. In the meanwhile, Fury was explaining to the group how he was able to fake his death and why he was hunkering out in a dam. This plan also helped him to know which people he could have some trust in, seeing as how SHIELD was now compromised and there was no telling how far the clutches of HYDRA had gotten. Now that people thought he was dead, it would come as a surprise when he inevitably resurfaced.
When Nat’s stitches were done we headed to a table on the other side of the room which had several files and computers scattered about. I took a seat on the far end and put my head in my hands. I could feel a massive headache coming on, which was uncommon for me since I took the serum. It felt like white-hot knives were digging through the back of my skull and into the spot right between my eyes. It was so bad that I completely missed the whole conversation the group was having. I eventually laid my head down in my crossed arms to try and combat it, but the pain never subsided.
A hand came down on my shoulder, startling me out of my painful daze, it was Steve. I saw his mouth move but couldn’t hear anything but the loud ringing in my ears. I just looked at him confused. He tried saying something again but I still couldn't hear him.
“Stevie, I can’t hear anything over this loud ringing in my ears,” I whispered, I knew if I talked loudly the vibrations of my voice would hurt. He gave me a nod and held up his finger, telling me to wait as he walked away. The doctor from before came back with him and sat in front of me. The doctor motioned his hand like it was talking and I knew he wanted me to tell him what was going on, so I did. When I was done, he took a small flashlight out from his pocket and shined it in my eyes. He turned to Steve and said something then turned to me and grabbed hold of my hand.
Both the doctor and Steve led me to a second hospital bed, which was a couple feet away from where Fury had been and made me lay down. As I got situated under the covers, Steve tapped my hand a few times to get my attention and when he got it, he started to tap again. Morse code, he had made me learn it as kids, that way mom could never hear our secret conversations, it even came in handy when I joined the SSR. I watched closely as he tapped out a series of long and short patterns. He was telling me the doctor was going to give me something to help me sleep and that I would be okay. I nodded and tapped back a thank you before the Doctor came back and inserted a syringe into my arm, seconds later I could feel myself drifting away.
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I woke up hours later without the searing pain of a headache and my hearing fully intact. I flipped the covers away from myself and turned to let my legs drape off the side of the bed. I hulled myself onto my feet and began to make my way to the table the group was setting at yesterday. Sam was there drinking coffee and talking to Nat, and from what I could tell, it must have been early morning.
“Good morning sleepy head.” Sam sang out. I gave him a small smile as I took the seat to his right, across from Nat. “How ya feeling?”
“Eh. I’m not in physical pain anymore if that’s what you’re asking.” I looked down at my hands and eyed the ring I had been wearing since a few days ago. It glimmered in the light as I took it off and placed it on the table. I then took my locket necklace off and slipped the ring onto the chain. I was lucky I hadn't lost it yesterday, but I wasn’t thinking I would be going into a fight. Now that I knew more fighting was to come, it would be safer around my neck.
“Is that your engagement ring?” Sam asked quietly.
“Yeah. It was Bucky’s mother, Winnifred. He originally proposed with this locket, but a few months later, after talking to her and begging her to keep it a secret from Steve, she finally gave it to him.” I smiled at the memory.
“Wait, I thought Steve knew.”
“He does now. I kind of blurted it out when he tried to stop me from going with him to rescue the 107th from the HYDRA base in 1943, but we got engaged in ‘41.” I took a long pause before talking again. “You know it feels like just yesterday when I lost him, like the pain from him being gone still hurts, but I’ve learned to cope with it over the past two years. Now I have to find out that he is alive, but not himself because he's being used as a mercenary by HYDRA. He looked at me after you knocked him down and that look broke my heart. It wasn’t the look of a man wanting to kill, it was of someone who was scared, someone who had no clue what was going on. He’s still in there, I know he is and I’m going to be the one to bring him back.” I jammed a finger down on the table to make my point.
“Are you sure he’s really still in there? He’s been in and out of cryo hundreds of times throughout the last 70 years, no to mention, he’s probably endured countless hours of brain wiping and torture from HYDRA.” Nat said in a concerned but doubtful tone.
“I didn’t lose hope when he might have been dead in the forties, I won't lose hope in him now. I’ll find a way to bring him back to me.” That was when Steve came through the double doors and into the room wearing his old suit. “Steve, where in the world did you get that?”
“I borrowed it from the Smithsonian. Here, I found your office. Thought you might want it.” He tossed a bag at me and I caught it, slowly opening it to reveal my old suit. “I still have no clue why you keep it in there and not on display with everything else.”
“Thanks, that was very thoughtful of you.”
“Don’t be sarcastic. You’re gonna want it when we go to take out the helicarriers.” He looked at me then to the other two, “Come on suit up, we don't have much time before they launch,” he looked back at me, “I’ll fill you in on the plan after you get dressed. Oh and Maria has your staff, and new guns for you.”
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It was almost noon now and Steve, Sam, Maria, and I were quickly ascending the back stairs of the SHIELD base. We made it to the thirty-second floor in no time, only for the door to be locked. We all held our guns up to the door as Maria sent out some radio interference so one of the people in the room would come to check on the dish that was outside. When the door opened the man was surprised and instantly let us through
Steve came to a stop at the PA system and turned it on. “Attention all SHIELD agents, this is Steve Rogers. You've heard a lot about me over the last few days. Some of you were even ordered to hunt me down. But I think it's time, to tell the truth. SHIELD is not what we thought it was. It's been taken over by HYDRA. Alexander Pierce is their leader. The STRIKE and Insight crew are HYDRA as well. I don't know how many more, but I know they're in the building. They could be standing right next to you. They almost have what they want. Absolute control. They shot Nick Fury. And it won't end there. If you launch those helicarriers today, HYDRA will be able to kill anyone that stands in their way. Unless we stop them. I know I'm asking a lot. But the price of freedom is high. It always has been. And it's a price I'm willing to pay. And if I'm the only one, then so be it. But I'm willing to bet I'm not.”
“Always been one for speech haven't you Stevie?” I joked.
“Shut up kid, let's get going.” he shook his head, bemused.
“He totally came up with that on the spot didn’t he?” Sam asked.
“Definitely,” I replied.
We left Maria in the PA room where she would be able to monitor the status of the helicarriers as we tried to take them offline. Making our way down to the docking bay I looked out one of the windows next to where we were running.
“Steve, we need to hurry, the bay doors are opening,” I called out.
“Only a few more floors, we can make it.” After he said that, we started running faster, almost leaving Sam behind.
Finally, we pushed through one of the lower roof doors. I started to sprint toward the edge and before I jumped off, Sam grabbed my outstretched arm and started to fly. He maneuvered us to the far-right helicarrier and then let go of me. I plummeted to the deck and as I made contact with the ground I immediately threw myself into a tumble so I didn’t get hurt. As I sprang to my feet I was met with an onslaught of bullets. Ducking to dodge them I ran off to the side where a stack of crates was lying. I fished one of the guns from the hustler and cocked a bullet into the chamber. Taking a deep breath I stepped out from my cover and shot back at the men.
Two of the seven went down as a bullet went through each of their chests. I went to shoot again but a hand came out from behind me and yanked my right arm down. They tightly brought my arm to my back and grabbed my gun with the other hand. With my free left arm, I swung it back and clipped the person in the chin hard with my elbow. The grip they had on my right arm fell away as they fell to the ground. I turned around and quickly grabbed my gun from his hand and resumed shooting at the others.
I reached to the back of my holster where I had clipped two grenades before we had left the hideout. Pulling the pin and letting go of the trigger, I threw it at the men, who were immediately taken out with the blast.
“Hey kid you good?” I heard Steve's voice come through the comlink.
“Good as I can be. The deck is all clear, where are you?”
“Sam and I are inbound.” as he said that Sam shot up from below the carrier with Steve holding onto his hands. They landed a few feet in front of me and I jogged to catch up to them. “Wow, you took them all out really fast.”
I just smiled and held up the second grenade, “Work smarter not harder. Come on let's hurry up, the fact there weren't that many people on here is making me suspicious.” As soon as I said that we walked past one of the crates and Steve was pushed over the edge of the carrier by Bucky. “Steve!” Sam and I yelled simultaneously.
Sam jumped into action, trying to take off to save Steve from falling to his death, but Bucky grabbed one of the wings of his suit and flung him back. “Go put the chip in, I'll take care of this.” He yelled out to me.
I turned and sprinted to one of the doors that led into the carrier and I was met with two corridors. After looking down at each of them I decided on taking the right one. Reaching the end I heard a soft noise around the corner, I peaked around slowly and saw a man carrying an assault rifle. He was close enough for me to run up on him without him being able to get a good shot in with a gun. So that’s what I did. I ran at an angle from the corner and used my left leg to push myself off the ground and then my right to push off the wall and kick the man directly in the side of the head. He fell to the ground, completely unconscious. Not turning back I continued down the hall until I came to the stairs that would take me down to the systems room.
“Are you both okay?” Sam cut through on the coms.
“Yeah, I'm still on the helicarrier.” came Steve.
“Me too, I’m almost in the systems room. Where are you?”
“I'm grounded, the wings are busted.”
I exited the staircase and walked to the middle of the systems room. The opening to the targeting system was on the other side of the large cylindrical computer that took up the whole center of the room. I made my way around but stopped short when I saw him standing there, glaring.
“Bucky,” I held my hands up and took my finger off the trigger of my gun to show him I wasn’t going to do anything. “Bucky, I know you’re in there somewhere.” He just kept staring blankly. “I don’t want to hurt you, but I will in order to get this chip where it needs to be.” I took a slow step in his direction, but in an instant, he pulled his gun and shot mine out of my hand, and started to stalk towards me. I reached over my shoulders to grab the two separated staff pieces from their holsters as I moved backward. Bucky stopped walking and just started some more before he came at me full force. I quickly stepped up onto the railing and did a flip over him, landing behind him. Before he turned around I slipped the piece of the staff in my right hand around his neck and latched on with my left, forcing him to stumble back. This didn’t hold him long because he grabbed the bar and forcefully twisted it over his head, thus breaking my grip. I stumbled a few feet ahead, almost barely missing the punch that he threw. That was when I noticed Steve had made it into the room.
“Steve, a little help here would be great,” I said as I started to run back to Bucky who had turned around to face Steve. I jumped up doing a backflip kick, using Bucky’s back as a kicking-off point and landed back on my feet as Bucky slammed into the railing. Hoping he would stay preoccupied with Steve, I hurriedly ran to the system console and opened the chip holder. I took out one of the chips and placed it off to the side before reaching into my pocket for the new chip. I had almost put it in the open slot before I was knocked off my feet and the chip flew from my hand and over the banister. I turned over off of my stomach just in time to see Steve and Bucky also fall over the banister. I scrambled to the edge to see what was going on as I called out, “Steve the chip fell over.”
“I got it, stay there.” He yelled back before Bucky sent him flying. I watched as he grabbed the chip but it was dropped further down as Bucky came at Steve again. I took my second gun out and started to shoot near Bucky’s legs, in order to try and veer him off course without hurting him. Steve reached the glass bottom of the room and started sprinting to the chip which was nestled in between the glass and a metal beam. I stopped shooting as it became harder to get a clear target without also shooting Steve.
They were fighting now, hand to hand, Bucky had knocked Steve’s shield away and he pulled his knife out in the process. He stabbed Steve in the shoulder, when he fell to the ground Bucky dove for the chip. Steve wasn't far behind him, He latched onto Bucky, choking him then throwing him to the ground.
“Steve, don't hurt him,” I cried out as I watched them struggle on the ground, my hands went straight to my mouth as I heard the loud sound of bone breaking and Bucky’s scream right after. He tried rolling over but that gave Steve an opening to put him in a chokehold. “Steve stop, that's enough, you’re hurting him,” I yelled out in despair as I watched bucky struggle to stay conscious, I couldn't watch it anymore, I turned away. Seconds later Steve yelled my name. I hesitantly looked back over the railing, Bucky was lying unconscious and Steve was jumping up onto the landing under me.
“Here”, he tossed the chip up to me and I caught it. Suddenly a gunshot rang out and I looked to where Bucky was once laying, he was standing now, gun raised.
“Thirty seconds” Maria’s voice came over the com.
“I've got it,” I spoke back, making my way to the control board.
Another shot rang out, this time I heard the impact right behind me before a pain erupted on my side. I turned to see Steve laid out on the ground clutching his stomach, the bullet must have gone straight through him to me.
“Guys, they're going online right now, hurry!” Maria almost yelled into the com. I turned back around, holding my side and took the last few steps up to the console, and securely placed the chip in the open space.
“Charlie lock,” I huffed out, confirming to Maria that I had successfully put the chip in, as I slid to my knees.
“Okay, both of you get out of there.”
“No fire now,” Steve yelled.
“But Steve,” Maria said almost reluctantly.
“Just do it,” he yelled again.
The helicarrier jerked seconds later after being hit with the rockets. I slammed into the railing and was flung over, landing ungracefully in a heap on the glass floor. I could hear shouts of pain echoing, looking around I spotted Bucky stuck under a massive metal beam. Steve apparently had to because he was climbing down to him. He got to him quickly and started to lift the heavy thing off of him. Bucky wiggled out from under the beam and knelt there for a second before Steve said something to him that I couldn't hear, he reared back and swung a punch at him after that. I stood to my feet and slowly made my way to them, stopping multiple times to steady myself as the carrier trembled violently. I reached them just as a large metal cylinder fell into the glass floor, making it give way. I fell through the broken glass and into the cold water of the Potomac River.
I swam weakly to the surface. Once my head came out of the water I took a deep breath in and made my way to the rocky shore, careful to not be hit by any debris. The shore was farther away than I had anticipated and I was almost completely out of breath as I crawled my way out of the water. Laying on my back I looked and the smoke filled the sky.
‘So much for laying low,' I thought to myself. I was broken from my thoughts as a few yards down the shoreline Bucky came out of the water dragging Steve with him. He looked back at me as he dropped Steve to the ground but then turned to walk away. I got up quickly and ran to Steve, making sure he was okay. I took out the tracker Maria had given each of us in case anything happened and set it off. They would come find him now, I gave him a short kiss on the forehead. “Goodbye Stevie, I'll see you again some time,” I whispered to him before taking off my tracker and throwing it into the water.
I started walking in the direction Bucky had gone, He couldn't have gotten far with that broken arm and I was right. I found him slowly making his way through the woods. I stayed away from him, but he never left my sight. I knew he realized I had followed him when he tried to slip away behind a group of dense trees but was unsuccessful. He tried this a few more times before giving up and acknowledging that I wasn’t going anywhere. Finally, we broke out into part of the city, but we kept a low profile, or as low of one as two people in fighting suits and a man with a metal arm could. I kept inching closer to him as we walked and twenty minutes in I was almost next to him.
“Quit following me” He let out gruffly without looking back at me.
“No,” I argued.
“Quit following me, now,” He said a little more agitatedly.
“No, I won’t. I’m not leaving you alone and hurting Bucky. I love you, I can't leave you again.” That made him stop in his tracks and eye me down.
“Don’t know who you are.” his voice sounded uncertain.
“Yes, you do.”
“No, I don’t.
“I have proof that you do.” I yanked the necklace with the ring and locket over my head and marched to him, holding it out. He took it hesitantly and looked at the ring first then opening the locket he just stared at the picture of the both of us together. I saw something flicker in his eyes before he gave the necklace back, it almost looked like he remembered something. He started back walking but didn’t say a word when I kept following, just let out a long huff.
It took us an hour to reach Ronald Reagan Airport, and I finally understood what his plan was. “So your plan is to hijack a plane?”
“You aren’t coming.”
“I don’t know why you want to argue with me, I’m coming with you.” He gave me another glare after that.
We were walking through the small wooded area across the road from the runway when suddenly Bucky stopped. There was a small metal sign secured to one of the trees to the right, in big bold letters it said ‘NO TRESPASSING’. Bucky pulled on it and it opened like a small door into the tree where a keypad was nestled. He typed in a series of numbers and a few seconds later the ground started to move several right next to us. I jerked my head in the direction of the commotion only to see the ground opening up to a narrow staircase that descended into the earth. Bucky then closed the sign and started down the stairs, I followed suit.
It became darker the further we descended, the sounds of cars faded into the steady dripping of water. By this time I was thinking to myself that we weren't hijacking a plane, but I was proved wrong as the stairs leveled out to flat ground and Bucky turned the hanger lights on. There in the middle of the room was a black jet with a red HYDRA symbol on its side.
Looking around the room there were papers strewn about, dust even covered some of the desks along the walls. The place looked like it hadn't been used in years. To my left, I spotted Bucky grabbing all sorts of weapons from a rack on the wall and shoving them in a tattered duffel bag before zipping it up and heading to the jet. I trailed behind him.
He raised his hand up and pressed on part of the back flap to the jet, a small handle shot out and he pulled on it, which opened the back hatch of the jet. When it settled on the ground Bucky and I climbed up the ramp and into the cabin. Bucky tossed the duffel bag onto one of the benches and headed for the cockpit. He hit several buttons and switches before sitting down in the pilot's seat.
“Where are we going?” I asked softly as I sat myself down in the copilot’s seat.
“Romania.”
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Tag List: @ginger-swag-rapunzel @underc0vercryptid-reads @geek-and-proud @intothesoul @leyannrae @starkleila @andy-is-gay
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boop-le-snoot · 4 years
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PARTY FAVOURS I A VENOMOUS INTERLUDE
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Did y'all know symbrock is canon? Well, now you do. Reader's favourite deadbeat surrogate uncle is in town and he brought a... Friend. No warnings, just a boatload of crack and fluff, as usual. Reader being mouthy. Takes place a little bit into the future - around after chapter 32: spoiler alert is useless because we already know a tonybrucestrange/reader quartet is the endgame. 💖💝✨
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"What," I had to pause for a second for my brain to catch up with my eyes. "The fuck?!"
It was truly a miracle I could say anything out loud, at all. Words weren't valid enough to describe my shock and confusion. The scene unfolding in front of me resembled and unholy cross between a B-rated horror movies about demonic possession and some deep-sea Eldritch monstrosity.
The eight-feet tall black, oozing dude in front of me? Yes, you, with the teeth. Ctulhu called, he wants his tentacles back.
The creature honest to god rippled, like some nightmare-fuel goth Jell-O, rapidly shrinking in size within seconds. As more of the black tar-like substance receded, a much more human form started to appear under it. Worn jeans, leather jacket, ungroomed beard and the look of a biker gang member coming off a serious bender.
"Uh, Princess?"
"Eddie. Fucking. Brock. Uncle Idiot." I punctuated each word with an increasing widening of my eyes. The world was fucking nuts. Two and two did not compute - Eddie might have looked threatening to some people - like white suburban Karens - even without the... Gooey squid-on-steroids thing he had going on. The man was built like a fucking brick shithouse, but I knew him way too well. Eddie couldn't be that badass to save a life.
"You two know each other?" Tony shrieked indignantly, a coarseness in his voice that indicated only one thing: my boo was well into his third drink. Hell, I didn't blame him - that gaping toothy maw was fucking gnarly.
Hands on my hips, I caught myself slipping into a mute rage, storming over to the 200lbs worth of pure dumbass and knocking him right in the face. "You! Didn't tell! ME!" A black tendril wrapped around my wrist, carefully but firmly securing it and preventing me from causing my non-related uncle any more physical damage. Although I must admit, my knuckles probably were more affected than his jaw. "You! Are! A MUTANT!!! HOW COULD YOU?! How could you NOT tell ME?"
I trusted the man with my soul and most embarrassing drinking stories. Hell, I called Eddie in a stoned haze the very same night I lost my v-card. I just thought we were bros, you know? I saw his whole fucking life implode more than once and personally flew to California to ice his injuries and his hurt ego countless times. I was done dirty in the worst way.
"I'm not-" Eddie's sigh was long-suffering. "I, uh, I have a parasite..." He sounded meek, in the same way he used to describe his drunkenly misconduct when I made our family driver bail out his ass outta jail in the morning.
"TAKE THAT BACK!" A deep gravelly voice thundered, seemingly coming out of his chest?
"Okay, okay," Eddie smiled. It was strangely soft and un-eddie-like. The only person he smiled like that was... used to be Anne. "This is Venom. They're an alien and we're, uh, a thing. It's a recent development." The tentacle unwrapped itself from me as I took an involuntary step back.
Even barring the fact that Eddie was dating an alien, this was way too fucking weird for 3 o'clock on a Sunday. I always knew the reporter was, for the lack of a better word, a little weird but he really took it to new heights. With Thor and Loki looking... Like that, I could see a human dating some sort of a hot alien. But with Ctulhu looking the way he did just minutes ago? Did Eddie seriously let all of those teeth in close proximity of his dick?
I had a "ERROR 404, common sense not found" hanging over me for the longest time. The others were quiet behind me, too, even Tony - one of my boyfriends, the most likely to cause utter chaos, was hanging back and expecting me to do something.
"Venom," I clarified, just to fill the silence with some noise while my brain processors re-synced.
"WE ARE VENOM." The tentacle that was sleek and black now had two completely white eyes and a smaller-scale version of the toothy grin that had drooled all over the common room carpet. Their voice had an interesting effect: it was so deep, the air around them vibrated slightly when they spoke.
I tilted my head examining the appendage. It was considerably less terrifying when it wasn't five times my size. "What are you?" And most importantly, are you a threat to my favourite non-related family member? I left that statement unspoken although it was obvious I was ready to fight it? Them? If need be.
"A SYMBIOTE," They replied, swaying the head-tentacle slowly. "WE LOVE EDDIE AND KEEP HIM ALIVE AND HEALTHY." So, they understood the actual question.
"Which is fucked up because Klyntar usually behave in the opposite way." Hearing Thor swear was, perhaps, even more unsettling than finding out about the symbiote-alien-boyfriend thing my uncle had going on. The thunderer himself was nursing a jug of golden liquid. The good Asgardian stuff, he must've been really fucking bamboozled.
"Okay. So anybody wanna fill me on the details before I beat up my favourite idiot?" I sighed, pointedly looking at Tony.
"I thought I was your favourite idiot!" He immediately retorted, hurt, but nonetheless opened his arms to give me a grounding embrace. We may have sucked face for a few seconds, because why the hell not, Tony was an amazing kisser and his tongue down my throat was very calming.
"Hold up, what the fuck?" Now it was Eddie's turn to act all offended. "Aren't you a little too young for him?"
"You and your most likely carnivorous goth space pudding can fuck right off if you're not going to be supportive of my very inappropriate, very polyamorous relationship with three incredibly hot boomers," I shot back, slipping into some resemblance of normalcy. Me and Eddie go way, way back and shitting on each other's bad life decisions was the founding stone of our bromance. Hell, he was the guy who showed me the wonders of sarcasm at an early age! Wonderbaum!
"There's three of them?" Eddie's voice pitched and he gaped, palming his face.
"SHE HAS A POINT, EDDIE. WE EAT PEOPLE. BEING UNSUPPORTIVE WOULD MAKE US LOOK LIKE AN ASSHOLE." Eddie's buddy stated, sounding almost fed up. So, they were sentient enough to recognize how much of a pain in the ass Eddie could be. I could work with that, disregarding the cannibalism comment, of course. What the fuck was up with that?
"Yes, Eddie, I also periodically bump uglies and trade disgustingly sweet text messages with the Hulk and a badass wizard," I rolled my eyes at the reporter's following gasp and angry muttering. "Venom, I like you."
"WE RETURN THE SENTIMENT. YOUR CHOICE IN MATES IS VERY WISE, CONSIDERING YOU ARE A WEAK MORSEL. THEY CAN PROTECT YOU."
"Shut up, Squid. I'll still kick your motherfucking ass if you hurt Eddie."
The emo space goo laughed, a terse scratching noise, showing way, way too many teeth for me to feel comfortable but I allowed myself to be placed on the couch between Tony and Eddie nonetheless. The initial shock of seeing a talking octopod with fangs passed quickly - I've seen Stephen's "trophies" he brought from his otherworldly journeys and Lovecraftian horrors were, honestly, pretty low on the gross/creepy scale.
"Both of you, explain. For the love of fuck," Tony sighed, emotionally exhausted and drained of his usual bravado.
"Eddie was my dad's friend until he moved to Cali, I've know him for fifteen years, give or take. He taught me how to ride a bike and bake the best pot brownies," I shrugged. There wasn't much to say. "I visited him whenever I could but you know, with school and then you guys, there wasn't that much time to iron out the details." I have Eddie a death glare, pointing to Venom's floaty head with my eyes.
Eddie nodded. "What she said..." And then launched an elaborate tale about some company called Life Foundation, some evil dude named Drake and his own alien pudding named Carnage, who was one ugly motherfucker judging by Eddie's and Venom's combined "ew" face, their aching need for human brains to survive and other, more trivial things, like mental breakdowns in a lobster tank and getting dumped by a fiancé and eating their way through a HYDRA base after being captured and tortured. What a wild fucking ride.
"Sounds like you had a rough year," Everybody's dumbfounded silence was ended by Tony who took a slow swig of his whiskey before speaking.
"Yeah, no shit," Eddie muttered, twisting his black coated fingers in elaborate but frankly pretty shapes. His alien wrapped around his neck like a tube scarf and additional tentacles appeared between Eddie's hands, gently prying them open and enveloping them in a sort of a hug? It was hard to compute, the black mass appeared to be totally amorphous.
"How's your anxiety?" I asked, damn well knowing Eddie's mind tended to run like Tony's: zero to sixty in point five with no clear destination. Having an alien inside of him must've really thrown Eddie for a loop.
"It's, uh, better. Venom helps," The reporter admitted, still staring at his hands but the crease between his brows had disappeared and the expression he wore was kind of fond.
"Good. You know, Venom," I thoughtfully addressed the definitely sentient creature. "Eddie is a bigger dumbass than me, which is saying something. You ought to keep a really close eye on him. If not for me, he'd probably be dead from alcohol poisoning, like, years ago."
"WE ARE AWARE. WE CAN ACCESS EDDIE'S MEMORIES." A head manifested itself on a thicker tentacle, floating over to look me in the face but maintaining a respectful distance and staying out of my personal space bubble. "AND WE ARE THANKFUL. EDDIE IS THE PERFECT HOST. WE LOVE EDDIE."
I felt the corner of my mouth tilt upwards at the alien's proclamation. It was child-like in its blunt honesty but carried a certain weight with it. It told me whoever tries to separate those two in any way would get eaten faster than they could say "SIKE!". And honestly? I would help Venom hide the evidence.
"I literally had you for thirty minutes but I would kill everybody and then myself if you two got hurt. This is too soft, I can't." I snorted, extending a curious hand towards Venom. They looked so shiny. I had to touch them.
And they let me. Venom butted their head into my palm and let me gently run my fingers over their slightly cool, slippery flesh. It felt like putting my hands on a surprisingly sturdy yet bouncy piece of flubber. I purposely avoided the small maw and the endless rows of sharp teeth but managed to accidentally brush against something rough and scratchy - as it turned out, the Symbiote had a very long, very dexterous tongue. And didn't that give me a bunch of interesting mental images.
"Oh my God, NO!" Wanda moaned from somewhere, the voice mortified and disgusted.
"Why are you touching the people-eating alien?" Bruce yelped, entering the room with several people in tow. The scientist looked worried, a little bit green around the edges. The tablet in his hands beeped periodically, signifying the ongoing sciencing bender he was in process of.
"WE WOULD NOT EAT THIS HUMAN. WE ARE FOND OF THE MORSEL." Venom defended, well, venomously. Eddie wisely choose to stay silent, trading a knowing look with Tony.
Stephen Strange sighed, briefly closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose with a jagged movement. "One day, Princess, one day you will stop collecting people that are obviously bad for your health and your future. That, or space in the tower will simply run out." With a deeper, calmer sigh, the sorcerer landed in front of me on the floor, sitting cross-legged and subtly begging for a head scratch. Which meant just placing his always neatly trimmed curls under my free hand. His jealousy was about as subtle as a foot in the face.
"I'll just ask Tony to build more floors, duh," I rolled my eyes with force at the obvious solution, giving into Steph's demands, beginning to card through his hair. It was calming both of us, really.
Bruce came over to give me a kiss and my other boyfriends didn't even grumble about the scientist placing himself in my lap, crawling over both Tony and Stephen to get comfortable.
Our dynamic was unconventional and more than a little weird, but it worked for us and the rest of the team most certainly didn't complain about the vast decrease in conflict that came with the territory. Come to think of it, all of us were more tactile than just a group of friends sharing a house and I was very much on board with that. None of us except select few (looking at you, mister doctor) were hugged enough as children and we were making up for it in spades right fucking now.
"Girl has a type," Wanda remarked, like the messy little shit she was. I stuck out my tongue in retaliation.
The Avengers' brain trust began talking about Venom's slightly inconvenient diet that directly resulted in multiple felonies for one Edward Brock, and as much as I tried to follow the flow and make my own, however feeble, contributions to the scientific side of the conversation, the new life form was much more interesting. I asked Venom several questions and they deemed them acceptable enough to answer - which evolved on both of us absolutely geeking out over the differences in our physiology. The space pudding didn't hold back one bit, insulting the inferior human biology with gleeful gusto.
"They need a chemical called phenethylamine," Bruce sighed, having deduced it through discussion since Venom and Eddie both protested aggressively against any kind of invasive testing. "I can synthesize it. No more head-chomping, no more murder."
It made perfect sense. Except it didn't. "Brucie-bear, you're a brilliant fucking scientist but a shit psychologist." I interrupted whatever came next. "Venom is a person, like me and you and, yes, even Hulk. Tell me this: if you found a way to get rid of Hulk, would you stop sciencing in the gamma radiation field?" I looked my boyfriend straight in the eyes, hoping for a spark of common sense. "Do you see my point? You science, Tony engineers, Steve draws and Clint bakes. Venom hunts. It's who they are, you can't give them a pill to make it go away."
The weight of my word landed in the room like lead, heavy. The only source of sound was the TV, playing the news quietly in the background for the longest time. Those few minutes felt like hours until Thor expectantly turned towards Eddie/Venom.
"IT IS SO. WE ARE AFRAID WE CANNOT INFLUENCE OUR INSTINCT TO HUNT PREY. KLYNTAR ARE APEX PREDATORS." The little black goop sounded almost apologetic. It was hard to hear undertones with their voice being so deep and grating. "BUT WE CAN TRY." Okay, I could totally hear the hope. Finding out the Eldritch horror could make puppy eyes was... Terrifying, to be honest, because they fucking worked.
"Got any better ideas?" Tony asked me sarcastically.
"I do, actually." I leveled a look with Natasha. She understood. "HYDRA goons. The aliens that, for some reason, keep invading New York every month or so. Stephen's adventures in Hell. Do I need to continue?"
"Wait, hold on," Steve raised his palms. "We don't kill HYDRA, we deposit them in SHIELD custody."
I snorted at the naïve Captain. "And what do you think happens to them there? Did you honestly think they just let torturing, murdering, world-domination planning psychos back on the streets?"
Steve frowned in confusion. "They go to prison?"
Natasha choose that moment to step up. "It's not uncommon for them to possess certain enhancements to be deemed too dangerous to be released back into society. Some of them are low-tier mutants and inhumans. Trust me, Steve, the lethal injection is a much more humane treatment than solitary life imprisonment in a ultra-high security prison." Romanoff stated with a trace of compassion. "And some mutants, we can't contain for prolonged periods of time." She added quietly, looking away.
Rogers was staring blankly into the wall, mulling over the information in his head. His intensive thought process was plainly visible on his face. I heard about some kind of fiasco with HYDRA agents suicide-bombing a city in Europe few years ago and Steve was there, along with Wanda and Sam.
"Venom is a whole person, and even if they look like they could be the main character in Call of Ctulhu video game, we can't just disregard them like they are some kind of badly behaving pet. They're my honorary uncle's boyf-sorry-significant other, for fuck's sake," I threw my hands up in the air in exasperation. "Y'all should know I don't fuck with people who give shit to one of my own. Don't disappoint me like that." I finished, feeling more tired than I had in months. I didn't regret giving into the found family dynamic, however I didn't exactly sign up for hard choices like them vs my long lost uncle, y'know?
Great, now I had a headache and three very concerned boyfriends glaring at me for unknown reasons. The urge to pace always manifested strongly within me as the emotional atmosphere rose in the room. With Bruce dangling off my lap, I couldn't do even that and I felt the restlessness blossom into irritation more and more with each passing second of my existence.
Eddie remained silent, looking down. Venom had mostly receded into the reporter's body, save for a few tentacles tightly wrapped around Eddie's palm.
"Alright," Steve suddenly said. "We can work with that."
"Princess, you look like you're either going to cry or yell any second," Bruce said softly, squeezing my shoulder and pulling me closer.
I immediately hid my face in his chest, taking several deep, shaky breaths. "Eddie is family. Y'all are family. It's terrifying to have to choose between the two." I said, after a brief moment of hesitation.
The reporter made some sort of a choked gasp, quickly masking it with a cough - I knew him way too well to miss the way he was fighting back tears of his own. Bruce understood, he really did understand me - hopped off my lap and let me hug Eddie properly, my happy-sad tears soaking through the collar of his tee.
"You're, uh, welcome to stay. I'll have a guest room prepared." Tony cleared his throat, passing his half-finished glass to Stephen who swallowed the liquid in one gulp. My boyfriends were so fucking emotionally illiterate. Disaster humans.
Huh, I really did have a type.
Later that night, I made the mistake of barging into Eddie's room with a bottle of really fancy whiskey I liberated from Tony's overstocked liquor cabinet. Visiting my uncle and boozing and smoking on the balcony, for old times sake, was my plan and...
I failed the mission successfully.
I didn't bother knocking. As soon as I saw a pair of bare feet, my eyes traveled further up on the couch on their own volition. There were so many tentacles, a writhing, oozing silky black mass and Eddie was making sounds, unmistakable noises-
"UNSEE. UNSEE. OH MY GOD, UNSEE, UNSEE." I stumbled back into the common room shivering.
"What happened, is everything okay?" Bucky stood up as soon as he saw me enter the doorway with my face scrunched in a grimace of regret. I felt like I've gone through the five stages of grief in the shortest time possible for a human being.
Somwhere, I heard Wanda's sudden moan full of pain and misery. "Please, stop THINKING about it!"
"Brain bleach, oh my God," I cringed. "Where's the Clorox?! I have decided I don't need my eyeballs-"
"Oooh," Tony's proverbial lightbulb lit up. The engineer sounded like he was about five seconds away from building a space ship and permanently moving to another planet. "They're together-together..." Tony intercepted me nonetheless, doing the most effective thing to make me stop speaking and thinking bullshit. He kissed me. With lots of tongue.
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ratwrites · 5 years
Text
As Long As I Live
Requests.
Masterlist.
Summary: Rex's Jedi General is severely injured during battle and he refuses to leave her side
Prompt/s: As long as I live I will keep you safe. I promise.
Warnings: Major injury, angst, lots of fighting, lil bit of fluff
Pairing: Captain Rex X Reader
Word Count: 6,276
A/N: Finally finished my wip with Rex ol' boy! Since I'm rewatching the Clone Wars in honor of the new season coming out I decided to try and write my favorite Clone baby!
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[[MORE]]
The gunship landed roughly down into the battlefield. Men had already been lost just during the flight down. "Get ready boys!" You yelled, over the gunfire. To your left side Rex drew his guns looking to you. You nodded your head to him before the light inside the ship flashed green.
"Let's go!" Out into the battlefield you and your men went. You spotted Obi Wan's blue lightsaber flashing in the distance. You took off toward your fellow Master your men following behind you in a blaze of blaster fire. Rex stayed hot on your heels almost at your side the entire run. You enjoyed working alongside Rex. You were allowed to move freely with him compared to other Captains'.
"Welcome to the party!" Obi Wan greeted, as you and your men reached his position. You fell to his side swinging your lightsaber to skillfully avoid the shots being fired.
"Doesn't seem like much of a party!" You reported. The droids were advancing.
"Move in!" You ordered. You and your men advanced, Kenobi and his following.
"What's the situation?" You questioned, glancing quickly at the ginger.
"We need to get those shields down otherwise we'll never get the tanks close enough to retake the base," he explained, not missing a shot. His skills definitely outranked yours. You paused looking toward the rayshielded tower. You glanced behind you seeing the tanks waiting for orders.
"We sent Waxer and Boil to try and shut the shield down, but the perimeter was well guarded," he added.
"Bombs! Take cover!" You and Kenobi dodged behind a rock as the blast went off.
"So what do you intend to do?" You asked, taking this moment to get the plan.
"I'm thinking about sending a squad to do it, but it's a risky move. I would go myself but I am needed here," he explained. Rex was at your side in moments.
"The clankers are falling back," he announced, looking over his shoulder to shoot one.
"Good Rex, keep them going back," you replied, sending your Captain a smile. He nodded before running off.
"A squad would be too obvious. The losses would be high. I will go. I'll take Captain Rex with me," you stated. You moved back out into the battle Obi Wan following.
"Are you sure?" You nodded in confirmation.
"Alright, we'll cover you. You'll need to go to the south side of the tower that's where they have the least security." You didn't say another word to the Master. You ran further into battle deflecting shots as you went. You spotted your Captain.
"Rex!" You swiftly jumped to his side deflecting a shot that would've hit him.
"Thank you General," he huffed, his attention on the battle before him.
"We're going to the south side of the tower Rex! We need to get those shields off!" you ordered. The Captain turned his head to you. You could sense his uncertainty. He bowed his head. With that the two of you departed from the main battle Cody and his men covering your escape. You slid into the planet's forest.
"What's the plan General?" Rex asked, sneaking at your side. You retracted your lightsaber holding it at your side as you moved.
"We've got to sneak in and get the shields off. Master Kenobi says that the south side is the easiest way to get in, but we'll still have to deal with some droids before then," you explained, pausing in your steps. Rex followed your lead as you crouched down. A group of super droids passed luckily not spotting the two of you.
"Waxer and Boil were no match for their defenses, hopefully having a lightsaber will even the odds," you chuckled, holding up the weapon. Rex scoffed playfully.
"You'll overpower them. Be sure to leave some for me,'" Rex teased. You two had become close over your time fighting together. His sense of humor matched yours to a T. It helped that you and Anakin got along as well so Rex was used to your Jedi shenanigans.
"Let's go." The two of you crept on slowly approaching the south end of the tower. You frowned seeing what you were up against.
"And this is the weakest point of their defense?" You groaned. Two battalions of B1 battle droids along with two tanks and and four rollers.
"The odds of us getting in don't look good sir," Rex warned, his guns now holstered at his waist. You slipped your saber away as well studying the defense.
"Someone doesn't want us getting in. Any ideas?" You sighed, looking at your Captain. He tilted his head toward you slightly.
"Isn't it your job to come up with the plan?" He joked.
"I'm fresh out of ideas Captain," you shrugged. You both looked back at the defense.
"Look!" You watched as a battalion began to march toward the main battle one of the tanks going with it.
"Our odds just improved," he grumbled.
"I think I've got a plan," you blurted. Rex's attention was on you.
"It's crazy, but I think it'll work. I'll draw their fire, see if I can lead them away into the woods. Once they're distracted that'll give you a chance to go in undetected," you spoke. Rex removed his helmet the expression hardening his face telling you that he didn't like your plan.
"That's suicide General," he scowled. You rolled your eyes.
"Everyday in this war is suicide Rex! Plus, you're the one who said I'll overpower them," you remarked, repeating his joke. His scowled deepened.
"I don't like this plan," he announced.
"You don't have to like it Rex you just need to do it."
"And what if they overrun you? Then what?" Rex asked. His concern surprised you. You were good friends, but this was the first time you'd decided on such a risky plan; this was also the first time you'd had such an Anakin Plan.
"If I am overrun then I will call for aid. I'll be fine Rex." You rested a hand on his armored shoulder. His expression lightened slightly.
"Contact me once you're in and once you're out, got it?" He nodded, his helmet returning to his head. You didn't give him the chance to argue. You lit your weapon and lunged out. You sprinted toward the droids instantly drawing their attention to you.
"Jedi! Get her!" You ran past them turning their attention away from Rex's position. You began to fight striking down any droid that got too close to you. You began to back up drawing them further away from the tower. You jumped aside as the canon began to fire as well. The rollers were staying out of the fight to your surprise. Your eyes caught Rex who was sneaking foward. You watched as he rolled a droid popper under each of the rollers disabiling them. He disappeared from sight and into the tower.
"I'm in and heading to the generator room," your com beeped. You didn't have time to properly respond. You sent him a beep letting him know you acknowledged him. You ran back further drawing them away again. Their numbers were slowly dropping the longer you fought. Your arms were starting to protest, but you didn't stop. You couldn't afford to stop. The tank fired again hitting uncomfortably close to you.
The tanks shots came more accurately with each time it hit. You took mental note that their aim normally wasn't this good. The tanks must have a new targeting system which was bad news for you. You drew them as far as they would go and held them. The tank advanced as the droid population got smaller. Your heart sank as another battalion of droids rounded the corner with their own tank.
"Come on," you groaned. You needed to get rid of the second tank. You jumped aside again the heat from the blast sending a shiver throughout your body. Your senses were being overwhelmed as the new battalion began to fire from a different angle. You ran forward into the second battalion taking them head on. You swiftly got to the tank leaping onto the base. You hurtled to the top cutting it open. You dropped inside destroying the droids. You sliced your saber through the controls. You exited the tank rolling away as it burst into flames the explosion destroying some of the nearby droids. The shield began to lift.
"Yes! He got it!" You cheered. Your happiness was cut short as a blaster shot grazed your arm knocking you to your knees. You had little time to recover as the tank fired almost hitting you. You barely managed to roll away. Pain shot up and down your arm causing a groan to leave your lips. You kept fighting the droids closing in. You began to moved back toward the woods.
"I'm out!" Your com echoed. Your eyes went to the base. Rex was fighting his way out, but he was in view. You trudged toward Rex taking out whatever droids got too close.
"Come on Rex!" You yelled, over the fire. The Captain eventually made it to your side.
"Your arm!" He called, his back pressing against yours as the droids surrounded you in a half circle.
"Not now Rex!" You snapped. Now that he was at your side his life was your top priority.
Your senses screamed at you. "Watch out!"
.
Rex made it into the tower. It was surprisingly dark and quiet compared to the fighting outside. He wanted to get back to her as quickly as possible. "I'm in and heading to the generator room." The com light beeped green signalling that she'd heard him. He drew his blasters and crouched low slinking through the shadows. He'd studied the tower's schematics before they'd left for the reinforcement mission.
He rounded a corner quickly dodging back behind it as a set of commando droids passed him. His blasters were against his chest. He inhaled deeply and exhaled it before dipping out into the hallway. He made quick work of finding the generator room. He slipped inside silently taking out the two droids inside. He dragged them aside placing them out of the way. He moved to the control panel. He swiftly began to deactivate the shield keeping his ears peeled for incoming droids. "Yes!" He silently cheered, as the panel wirred signalling that the shield was down. He needed to get back to her. He took off out of the room and back down toward where he'd come in. He cursed as the commando droids were waiting near his exit. He fired at one striking it down. The other jumped into action.
Rex fired at the droid unhappy that it dodged his blaster. The droid made quick work of disarming him. He fought hand to hand with the droid only for it to knock him onto his back. He rolled away from it's attack reclaiming one of his blasters. He rolled onto his back as the droid pounced. With one shot it collapsed. He collected his other blaster and got back on his feet. An explosion outside sent Rex into a panic. He bolted for his exit only to be greeted with a group of droids.
"I'm out!" He signalled joining her fight. Some of the droids turned to face him. He had no cover, but he had every intention of getting to her side.
"Come on Rex!" She was fighting her way toward him. The closer he got the sooner he realized that she was injured. A part of her sleeve had been burned away revealing a nasty graze across her upper arm. Once at her side they moved into a defensive position placing their backs together.
"Your arm!" He pointed.
"Not now Rex!" The lack of concern for her injury upset him a little. All he wanted in this moment was for her to be safe. The fighting continued.
"Watch out!" Without warning Rex was off of his feet and thrown. He rolled as he hit the ground quickly recovering to see why he'd been thrown. His world moved in slow motion as the tank fired. Horror flooded into him as the shot hit its mark sending his General, his friend, flying backwards. Her body roughly struck the ground her lightsaber leaving her hand. She laid on her stomach her Jedi attire singed. He screamed her name, but she didn't budge. Rex got to his feet and ran to her his world still rolling in slow motion. His gut clenched in fear the closer he got. He didn't have time to check for life signed. He had to assume she was alive and protect her. He refused to believe she was dead.
His world returned as he positioned himself in front of her. He was no match for these droids. "This is Captain Rex! (F/N) is down! I repeat (F/N) is down!" He bellowed over his com. He lost all formality in this moment. He didn't have time for it. Rex's eyes spotted her lightsaber a few paces from his foot. He hesitated. He'd never fought with a lightsaber, it was forbidden for him to fight with a Jedi's weapon. He put rules aside. He had to protect her. He put his blasters in their holsters and retrieved the sacred weapon. He fell back to her. Rex took a stance above her planting each foot on their aide of her limp body. He ignited the blade it's bright color standing out in the fight.
He began to deflect the blasts his hands tingling against the hilt. It was as if the blade was using him to fight inside of him using it. The energy from the blade was strong and familiar. It was her blade after all. Hr didn't fight the pull of the blade deflecting any blaster shots that dared to hit her. His attention turned to the tank as it fired. With one swift move of his arms he deflected the blast to his own surprise. He kept going. The rage and fear in him fueled his every move. There had only been one other time he could recall where he'd been so angry and afraid and that was a night he didn't want to remember.
"Captain Rex!" Obi Wan leapt over him and into the battle. His brothers appeared at his sides helping defend his fallen Jedi. Cody passed him following Obi Wan. He hadn't realized that he'd been holding his breath until Obi Wan destroyed the tank. Eventually the droids were defeated. Another battle could be heard. He slowly stepped off of her as Obi Wan approached him. The lightsaber remained ignited in his grasp until the General cast him a cock of his brow. He closed the blade keeping the hilt in his hand.
"What happened?" Obi Wan asked, rolling her carefully onto her back.
"Tank got her.." Rex muttered, his voice shaking slightly.
"Well, she is alive, but barely. Cody contact Master Plo and tell him we need a medical transport now," he ordered. Cody nodded taking a few steps back before turning on his com. Obi Wan continued to check her over for a moment before standing up.
"You did well Rex," he praised, resting a hand on his shoulder. He gave the armor a squeeze. Obi Wan began to walk away.
"General!" He called. The Jedi faced him. He silently held the weapon up.
"Hold onto it Rex. I'm sure that's what she'd want." He nodded and hooked the weapon to his belt. He slowly moved back to her dropping onto his knees next to her. He removed his helmet setting it on the ground. Her face was burned along with most of her body. He wasn't even sure how she was still alive, but he was beyond grateful.
"Hang on (F/N).. Just hang out," he muttered, his voice breaking. He couldn't lose her. Another hand on his shoulder made him jump. He looked up at his brother, Fives offering him a reassuring smile.
"She'll be alright Rex, she's tougher than she looks," Fives soothed. He looked away from Fives and back to her.
.
Rex helped load her onto the medical transport along with Fives and General Plo. "We'll take her to the medical station. She'll get the proper care she needs," Plo assured. Rex didn't budge from the transport.
"I- I can't leave her," Rex stated, staying by her side.
"Captain Rex you are needed in battle, I assure you Master Fisto will take care of her," Master Plo offered.
"With all do respect sir, she is more important than this battle. I am not leaving my General now," he defended. Master Plo was stunned to silence. Fives rested a hand on his shoulder again.
"We'll save some clankers for when you return," he promised.
"Very well then..." Fives left the ship leaving Rex behind. He didn't want to leave his brother's but her life seemed more important in this moment. He cared deeply for her and his brother's knew that.
.
Rex paced back and forth in front of the medical bay. Once they arrived at the station she'd been rushed off to the emergency wing. He'd been directed to a different room and stripped down to his blacks. One of his brothers tended to the minor injuries he hadn't even realized that he'd received. Once he had been patched up he had gone in search of her which led him to the room he paced in front of. The red light glowed above the door signalling that Master Fisto anf the others were still working. His attention snapped to the door as the light flickered green.
Master Fisto stepped out. "How is she?" He pressed, trying to look past the Jedi only for the door to slid shut.
"She'll be fine Captain. You got her here just in the nick of time. If she had gone any longer without a Bacta tank her burns would've killed her," Kit explained calmly. A relieved sigh left the clone's lips.
"It should only take her a few days or so to heal enough to where she can be taken out of the tank, but she won't be returning to the line of duty until I clear her," he added, placing his arms neatly behind his back. Rex nodded. He didn't care much for the details, he just wanted to see her. Master Fisto smiled gently obviously picking up on that. Without another word he stepped back into the room allowing Rex to follow.
"Come." With one word the staff in the room left leaving him alone with her.
His eyes scanned across her body taking in her appearance. A white cloth had been wrapped around her chest to cover her breasts while another wrapped nearly around her waist and thighs to cover her bottom. The burns across her skin made him cringe. He'd seen much worse, but seeing such injuries on her almost made him sick to his stomach. He sat on a white bench in front of the tank looking up at her. Guilt twisted in his gut. It should've been him. She shouldn't have risked her life for his and he intended to tell her that as soon as he got the chance. He let out a heavy sigh resting his elbows on his knees. His head fell allowing his back to hunch. He looked up at her again. Her face was peaceful in the tank. The breathing apparatus in her mouth caused her chest to rise and fall steadily telling Rex that she was in fact alive.
.
Rex spent the next few days helping out around the medical station. Master Fisto had tried to get him back into the field with no avail. Rex adopted his stubbornness from his Jedi General's, especially her. He'd always thought that Anakin was stubborn, but not half as stubborn as her. He had attended a few medical missions to the battlefields, but never stayed to fight.
He walked down the medical halls bowing his head respectfully to a passing Kaminoan. He'd just returned from a supply run and desperately wanted out of his armor. He returned to his temporary quarters which was cozier than his barracks. Once the door slid shut behind him he began to detach his armor until he was back down to his blacks. He quite enjoyed a break from his tight and heavy armor. He hung each piece up on a stand the station had lended to him.
His stomach growled quietly demanding that he eat something. He huffed and made his way out of the room and back down the hall he'd just come from. Instead of going to the docking bay he veered off in the opposite direction where he would find the mess hall. "Captain Rex!" One of his brother's drew his steps to a halt.
"Yes Shore?" he asked, turning to face the medical clone. He'd learned most of their names over the few days.
"Master Fisto wanted me to inform you that Master (L/N) has been removed from the bacta tank and has been taken to patient room 756," he informed. Rex's breath caught in his throat.
"Uh, thank you!" Before his brother had a chance to stop him he took off.
He arrived outside the room a lot faster than he thought he would. Calming himself he stepped toward the door and inside the room once it slid open. She laid on a white cot a blanket covering most of her body. He approached the cot. She seemed to be sleeping and he had no intentions on waking her. Quietly he grabbed one of the white chairs from the room and placed it next to the soft cot. He sat down leaning back in it. He would wait for her to wake up.
His stomach growled at him again reminding him of his hunger. He ignored it pushing the desire to eat down.
.
Rex had changed his position resting his arms on the cot. His head and fallen against his arms while one of his hands found her nearest one taking it gently into his large grip. Her skin was still a scarred in some places and probably would be for a while. Sleep had almost taken him until she shifted. He raised his head only to be met with her groggy gaze. "Rex?" She rasped, her voice hoarse. He smiled widely his heart skipping a beat at the sound of his name.
"How are you feeling?" he asked. She shifted a little more letting out a cough.
"Thirsty and tired," she chuckled, coughing again. He stood up and wandered to the door. To his luck a medical droid was walking past.
"Can you get some water up here please?"
"Certainly." The droid wandered off. He returned to his seat.
"So, you're welcome," she said, suddenly. A playful smile crossed her beautiful lips. Rex frowned.
"You shouldn't have done that. You could've been killed," he scolded. He hadn't forgotten that he intended to give her a piece of his mind.
"But I wasn't," she pointed, trying to keep the mood light.
"But you could've been," he reported, hotly.
"Yeah well, you could've died too," she countered. Rex's frown deepened his brows drawing together.
"I'm a clone, I'm meant to he expendable. You're not, you're a Jedi," he stated.
"Not to me you're not- your safety was- was much more important than my own." Her words silenced him.
"I wasn't going to let you die," she added, holding his gaze. The door opened revealing the medical droid with a glass of water. Rex stood and retrieved the water dismissing the droid. He brought her the water carefully sitting her up so she could drink. He aided her sips his hand on the bottom of the glass tipping it up. After the glass was empty he set it aside before sitting back down.
"It was reckless of you," he began, again. She scoffed rolling her eyes.
"Reckless is what I do Rex," she reported, her voice a little better.
"And it is my job to protect you. I can't do that when you're shoving me out of the way and taking the hit yourself," he growled.
"Well I decided to do your job. I couldn't let my best Captain die and that's that," she snapped. Rex fell silent again. He took a moment to take in her appearance again. She was perfect in every way. Rex could find no flaws on her. They'd changed her into a white tank top and pair of loose white medical pants. She looked away from him and up at the ceiling.
"You know, I don't think I've ever seen you without your armor on before," she blurted, randomly. Her gaze fell back to his. His hard expression softened toward her a small smile daring to tug at the corners of his lips. He ran a hand to his neck rubbing it.
"Didn't see the need of wearing it around the station all the time," he explained. She squinted at him.
"How long have you been here?" She asked.
"Since we brought you here."
"And when was that?"
"Five days ago..." Rex muttered. She gasped.
"Rex! Don't tell me you've skipped out on your duty to be here," she pleaded.
"Fine, then I won't tell you," he replied, helping lighten the mood. She shot him a glare.
"The Council isn't going to be happy about that, neither is the Senate." She shifted into a more comfortable position.
"I don't care what they think, I couldn't leave you," he admitted, shamelessly. He hadn't realized that he'd taken hold of her hand again until she squeezed his lightly. He retracted his hand a blush forming on his cheeks. She giggled.
"I don't mind Captain.. I was quite enjoying it," she murmured. She offered her hand back out to him. Hesitantly he took it again the blush on his cheeks deepening as she intertwined her small fingers with his. Her skin was soft in his grasp; the contact caused his own skin to tingle. The smile that graced her face was one of kindness.
"Tell me Rex, what is real reason why you stayed with me?" she asked. Rex didn't respond right away. At first he wasn't sure what she was implying, but then it dawned on him. She was a Jedi after all and could probably sense the love and adoration that was washing through him.
"I-" he hesitated, her hand squeezing his in assurance.
"I couldn't leave you.. I couldn't leave knowing that you may not have survived," he sighed, looking away from her.
"It is my job to keep you safe and I felt as if I failed you... I still do," he revealed. She tugged on his hand drawing his eyes back to her.
"You haven't failed me Rex. From what Master Fisto told me if it wasn't for you I would be dead," she murmured.
"You saved my life Rex and I am forever thankful for that." Her thumb stroked the side of his hand illiciting a content shiver from him. No one had ever treated him like she was in this moment. Even the smallest amount of affection was foreign to him, but welcomed.
"And you saved mine General," he reported. She let out a quiet laugh.
"(F/N), please, we aren't on a battlefield my friend." Her smile grew. She began to shift letting go of his hand to cast the covers aside.
"(F/N), what are you doing?" he questioned, sitting up in his chair. Her name rolled wonderfully off of his tongue. He'd said her name before, but not casually as he was now.
"I wish to stand, my legs are screaming for movement," she chuckled. Carefully she slipped her legs off of the edge of the cot. Rex stood to his feet coming to stand at her side.
"I don't know if you should be up and about so soon," he warned. She waved him off. She began to push herself off of the cot. Rex moved into action taking her arm into his hands. His hold was light, but sturdy enough to keep her on her feet. She leaned her weight against Rex letting out a pained sigh as she began to walk. He stayed with her moving at her pace. His focus was on her.
"This hurts," she groaned, pressing against him a little more. Her hand found Rex's giving it a tight squeeze. He didn't like seeing her in pain.
"You should sit. I highly doubt General Fisto wanted you up and about so soon," he alerted. She nodded in agreement. Rex helped her back to the cot gently lowering her down. He released her and tried to step back only for her to tug him down onto the cot. He plopped down next to her with a surprised grunt drawing a giggle from the Jedi.
"Stay with me?" She asked, resting her head on his shoulder. He could've sworn his heart grew two sizes in his chest. The content happiness flowing over him was almost overwhelming.
"Always," he replied, resting his head on hers. He'd never shared a moment like this with anyone. It was a simple gesture, but one that he would remember for the rest of his life.
"(F/N)?" He brought his head back up. She did as well glancing up at him. She tilted her head in a silent question.
"As long as I live I will keep you safe. I promise," he declared, straightening his posture. She rested her head on his shoulder again drawing him back down into a comfortable slouch.
"The same goes for you Rex don't you dare think for a second that you are only meant to fight and die. There is more to your life than that Rex.. You are worth more to me." His head found hers again. Every instinct in his body told him to take his chance and show her just how much he cared, but he didn't. She was still a Jedi and even their position now could be considered a violation of her code. It was clear that she was attached to him just as he was to her. His stomach growled lightly reminding him that he still hadn't eaten all day.
"Why don't you run to the mess hall and eat? I'll be here when you're done, I promise," she sniggered. He rolled his eyes as she fled her comfortable position on his shoulder.
"Do you want me to bring you anything? You haven't eaten in a while either," he stated. She nodded her head vigorously.
"Food sounds delightful!" She chirped.
"Then I will return." He stood up from the bed standing in front of her for a moment. He hesitated, but pushed his worry aside. He leaned down placing a hand on the back of her neck. She leaned into him as he placed a tender kiss into her hair. He'd never actually kissed anyone before contrary to his legion's beliefs. She hummed in content as he parted from her and quickly made his exit.
.
She'd spent two more weeks at the medical station until she was finally cleared to return to the war. Rex entered her quarters just in time to watch her finish dressing herself in her Jedi robes. She looked over her shoulder smiling at him. He held his helmet against his hip as she approached him. "Captain," she greeted, reaching up to press a feathery kiss against his cheek. His face warmed up as he smiled down at her.
"General," he replied. He ran his hazel gaze over her taking in her stunning appearance. His eyes eventually landed on her upper arm guilt still fresh in his mind.
"Hey, you've got that face, what's bothering you?" she demanded, kindly.
"What face?" He asked.
"The face that tells me you're thinking about something you shouldn't be," she replied, playfully.
"I have a face?" He questioned, sending her a puzzled cock of his brow.
"Yes, you do, now out with it soldier," she teased, pushing his chest armor lightly.
"I was just thinking about- about that day.." He looked down at their feet.
"Hey, look at me," she ordered. He did as he was told his stare locking with hers.
"That's in the past. We both survived and we are both well that's all that matters," she soothed, reaching up to gently stroke his cheek. He leaned into her touch letting his eyes fall closed briefly.
"And what's this?" He opened his eyes once her touch left him. Her eyes now rested on the lightsaber attached to his belt.
"I- I've been looking after it since... Since..." He cut himself off and unhooked it from his belt. He offered it out to her. She carefully took the weapon from his hands attaching it to her own belt.
"Thank you Rex," she murmured. The tension between them slowly brought them closer together. Rex's heart was racing in his chest, but their moment was cut short. He pulled back from her as Master Fisto entered the room.
"Your cruiser is waiting for you," he announced, coolly.
"Thank you Master," she bowed. They followed the older Jedi out of the room and down to the docking platform. They boarded the ship only to be greeted by a large group of clones.
"Fives, Kix, Dogma, Jesse, Hardcase, Appo, Echo, Tup! What are you all doing here?" she beamed, hugging each one of them.
"We heard you were bring released so we wanted to see our General back into battle!" Fives squeaked. They all stood proudly around her each one just as happy to see her as she was to see them.
"I don't know what I would do without you boys," she gushed.
"Crash and burn, obviously," Kix responded. Rex shot him a warning glare, but she waved it off accepting the joke with a hearty laugh. Kix hadn't been with them during the incident. He'd been assigned to a different mission alongside Anakin and a few other members of the 501st, but when he heard what had happen he was distrot just like the rest of the men.
"Ready to go?" Obi Wan ruined the moment stepping into view.
"Master Kenobi!" She smiled, walking to greet him.
"Welcome back Master (L/N)," he acknowledged. She followed him to the bridge her men following behind her.
"So, how was medical duty?" Tup teased, elbowing Rex.
"Not bad, it was definitely a nice break from all the fighting," he replied.
"Did you two..." Hardcase wiggled a brow at him. His face heated up.
"Come on Hardcase cut him some slack! He's obviously been struggling to woo the Jedi," Fives chortled.
"Fives!" Rex squawked, punching his shoulder. The men laughed as they stepped onto the bridge.
"We'll be taking you to Felucia where you will be aiding Master Skywalker in a skirmish," Obi Wan explained, to the troops. They all silenced and listened as the General explained the mission. Once he was finished he dismissed them from the bridge, but none of them left. She smiled at them leaving Obi Wan's side to join the company.
"Come, we should ready the gunships," she suggested. Their group went down to the cargo bay where three gunships rested. They were greeted with more of the 501st. Rex watched as more hugs were passed out between her and the other clones. Jealousy crept into his mind, but he pushed it aside. They all began to ready the ships each clone talking excitedly to one another. His eyes were trained on her as she wandered around the three ships overseeing their work. She occasionally stopped to speak to some of the clones sharing laughs with them. It was good to be back around his brothers.
"Ready to get back into battle?" Appo asked, nudging the Captain.
"Definitely, I've been looking forward to those clankers Fives promised me," he exclaimed, catching Fives' attention.
"In honor of our missing Captain we'll let you be the first out into the fight," Fives boomed. Cheers rang up from the clones nearby.
"Of course we'll let General (F/N), run out at your side," Jesse teased.
"I'd be disappointed if you didn't." Her voice drew their attention. Jesse looked away embarrassed drawing more laughter from him and his men.
"It really is good to have you both back," Echo sighed, resting a hand on each of their shoulders.
"It's good to be back Echo."
"We've come out of hyperspace and are taking you in now," Obi Wan spoke, through her com.
"Get ready boys! We're shipping out!" She called. The troops loaded themselves into their ships. After a few moments the ships jerked signalling that they'd taken off. The longer they were in flight the more of the battle they could hear.
"Here we go boys! Helmets on!" Appo ordered. Those who didn't have their helmets on began to put them on. Rex looked down at her readying himself to attach his helmet.
"Here's for luck!" she announced. She pulled Rex down by his armor pressing her lips against his own. Butterflies exploded in his stomach at the sensation. The clones hooped and hollered each one getting hyped and even more excited. Once the kiss ended he stood dazed for a moment unsure if he was dreaming or not. The light flashed green. Rex drew himself back to reality and put it helmet on. He unloaded with his men staying right at her side. With the ignition of her blade their squad propelled themselves into battle and he fought at her side until the job was done.
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foolgobi65 · 6 years
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Hey Maya! I was so thrilled to see that Chitrangadaa fic that I couldn't help storming into your Askbox. Can I please request a Hogwarts AU for Chitrangadaa if you haven't done it yet? Thanks! :))
ah im so glad u liked it!! please feel free to send me as many prompts as you want! also this is completely unedited and possibly quite terrible, and i decided to go with gay ulupi and chitrangada this time which is … lowkey canon anyway but still i really hope you like it! if you dont just send another prompt and i’ll try again lmao!
1. Chitrangada’s family is old, reputed, and cursed – every generation shall bare only one child to continue the family line. When Chitrangada is born, her father spares a brief moment to be disappointed that she was not a boy before kissing her forehead. After all, his grandfather was born of the Clan Mother and there are still stories that attest to her strength of will.
“My beautiful daughter,” he whispers and kisses her soft cheek once more, “Chitrangada.” 
2. Chitrangada enters Hogwarts the only daughter and heir to her family’s vast Welsh fortune. Traditionally, they are a family that has kept to themselves, far enough from the grip of London that they are easily forgotten amongst the high drama of the Sacred 28. Not for them are the vices that often plague the privileged – they cannot afford to lose an heir to liquor or grudge at the gaming boards. Even less do they suit the political intrigue of the English, the power plays and ideological warfare that has led to Kamsa’s 25-year iron grip. Chitrangada is raised safely in the family home, told to keep her head down and finish seven years without attracting any notice from those who might try to have her fight their battles. Courage too is just as likely to cull the lineage as stupidity.
“Gryffindor,” the Sorting Hat screams the moment it touches the 32nd in a line of Hufflepuffs.
3.“You know,” Chitrangada hears from somewhere in front of her,“there’s an easy fix to your problem.”
Chitrangada looks up, furiously brushing away her tears and attempting to pretend that she wasn’t just crying in an abandoned classroom.
“What do you know about my problems,” she asks the girl, a Ravenclaw by the looks of her robes, perhaps a year older than Chitrangada herself. The girl lowers herself to the ground, resting her back against the wall next to Chitrangada.
“You want to fight, yes?” Chitrangada bites her lip.
“It’s not so easy, you see my family–”
“I know about your family.” Chitrangada furrows her brow. “Then you know why my father won’t accept it.” She snorts. “And he would be right! I would be endangering everything my family stands for, for nothing!” Tears leak from the corner of her eyes and she buries her face in her knees once more.
“But you’ll do it anyway, won’t you.” It isn’t  a question. “Why?’
“Because things are so horrible, and I knew nothing,” Chitrangada says to the blessed dark behind her closed eyes. “I can’t go back to my home and spend the rest of my life reading obituaries and know that I did nothing to keep people safe!” She swallows.“I won’t run,” she says finally,“especially knowing how many people don’t have the option.”
The girl shifts closer and sighs, bringing her own knees up to her chest until they both sit side by side, shoulders a seam.“That’s as good a reason as any,” she says,“and so I’m going to help you.”
Chitrangada raises her head, and it is a moment that she will remember for all the rest of her days. The moonlight streams through a window, and it makes the other girl’s hair shimmer, brushes against the delicate planes of her face, nestles in the curve of her slight, faint smile.
But most of all, it lends a gleam to her eyes, iron that has turned into the steel of certainty. Chitrangada’s heart skips one beat, then another, and suddenly she feels like there is nothing she cannot do.
You only die if you lose,” the girl says,“so don’t. I’ll help.”
Chitrangada blinks. “Don’t lose?”
“Easy, right?”
Chitrangada smiles.
4. The girl, Ulupi, turns out to be a born researcher who for some reason has decided to focus her considerable energies into turning Chitrangada into a fighting machine. Ulupi finds books, pamphlets, old scrolls squirreled away in the recesses of the library, ranging from defensive spells to healing salves, battle theory and runes that turn one’s steps silent. 
The only thing Ulupi is not is a duelist, which means that Chitrangada by her fourth year is a master of theory, but only middling in practice. At night, she starts to slip out of the Common Room to practice stinging hexes at targets.
If practice is merely an excuse to drown herself in work, to have something to do when not with Ulupi than think of Ulupi, of how pretty and smart and lovely she is, and how she cannot give Chitrangada children,then no one but Chitrangada and her poor conjured dummies needs to know. Ulupi would conjure bubbles and remark that they are better training for reflexes, but Ulupi also prefers to be asleep between the hours of 12 and 8, so Chitrangada and her dummies are alone.Or, that is what she thinks, until she walks into her usual classroom and finds herself dodging a stunner.
“Protego,” she shouts instinctively when she feels the whiz of the next, without even the sound of an incantation for warning. It is the new moon, and the room is still pitch black.
“Lumos.” In the light, Chitrangada sees her attacker and gasps: Arjuna, two years her senior and said to be the most gifted duelist in generations stands with his wand out. He blinks.
“What are you doing here?” Chitrangada’s eyes widen.
“What are you doing here?”
His eyes move from her to the dummies spread around the room. “I was practicing.”
“In the dark?” And yet, Chitrangada looks and there are marks on the dummies that she knows weren’t there the night before. It is true: Arjuna has learned to duel in the dark.
An expression crosses Arjuna’s face, but he is too trained for Chitrangada to decipher its meaning.
Another stunner, and Chitrangada puts up a shield. He aims another, nonverbal the whole while, and Chitrangada is annoyed enough that she sends a stunner back. Arjuna’s shield is a work of art, his stance a mirror of the dueling text Ulupi had found last winter, and they begin to fight in earnest, trading spells until finally Chitrangada is panting, her wand in Arjuna’s left hand.
She will never be an auror, she thinks, and blinks away her hot, furious tears. She will die in the streets of London, ending the family line by 18. She will break her father’s heart.
“You’re good,” she hears from beyond the veil of her intense self-pity, “if a little unpracticed. Why don’t I know who you are?”
Chitrangada frowns. She is rich for sure, but Arjuna is a Kuru of London, one of the Sacred 28. Headmaster Bhishma himself is his Grandsire, and it is common knowledge that Arjuna has been trained as a duelist since three years of age. He attends classes to satisfy his elders but notoriously refuses to spend free time with his peers. Why would he know who she is?
“I’m younger than you,” Chitrangada finally offers when she realizes the question wasn’t rhetorical.“We don’t share any classes.”
“But we have people of all years in Dueling Club and I thought I knew everyone there.” Chitrangada’s eyes widen – the Hogwarts Dueling Club is a society for the elite, and while it is open to anyone in name, entry is usually based on invitation. Chitrangada trains in secret, in order to prevent word from getting to her father.
“I was not invited,” she says, and then when she sees Arjuna attempt to object, she adds–“My father would not approve.” Better he think her father old-fashioned than be forced to explain the family curse.
Arjuna’s eyes harden. “How have you trained so far?”
Chitrangada shrugs.“Books.” To speak of Ulupi is to think of her, her sweet smile, the way she smells of flowers, the brush of her fingers when she passes a pamphlet across their shared desk. Chitrangada ruthlessly crushes the thought of her best friend.
He exhales.“Books.” Chitrangada nods.“Then you are remarkable – to have lasted so long against me without proper training. Are you sure you won’t join the Club? We can be very discreet, and you are probably better than a fair few.”
Chitrangada smiles, heart light at Arjuna’s praise. Perhaps she might make it to 19 after all.“No,” she says,“as much as I might like to, I’m afraid it’s quite impossible.”
“Fine,” Arjuna shrugs, and Chitrangada tries not to feel hurt at how easily he brushes her aside. But then he moves back into the dueling stance and Chitrangada’s heart skips another beat. He smiles, tossing Chitrangada back her wand.“I’ll just have to train you myself.”
Chitrangada’s jaw drops. She is in love.
5.“You are not in love with me,” Arjuna says a year later when Chitrangada confesses her deep, abiding passion for her illicit dueling master.“I don’t know why you just won’t tell Ulupi.”
”Ulupi?” Chitrangada splutters.“If you don’t like me you can say so, there’s no need to make implications!”
Chitrangada managed to keep her midnight sessions with Arjuna a secret for an entire week before Ulupi came barging into their classroom, furious at being kept out of the loop. By the next week, she had drawn up a new schedule that allowed Arjuna and Chitrangada at least four hours of sleep and given Arjuna a tome about training to duel without the use of each of the five senses.
“I don’t need to make implications,” Arjuna says,“she’s already told me.”
“Told you what?” Chitrangada blushes crimson, reminding herself to breathe. Does Ulupi know? Chitrangada has tried so hard to keep her feelings to herself.
“That you think you need to be with someone who can give you an heir, and since Ulupi cannot you are convinced it is best to live in misery, hopefully marrying some man who will give you a child before you die in the Auror service.”
Chitrangada’s knees shake, and she feels herself sinking to the ground, her lungs tightening until she can’t breathe. She hears Arjuna calling out, and when she next opens her eyes it is to the horrifying sight of Ulupi’s face, one single tear running down her cheek.
“How could you be so stupid!” Chitrangada is not sure if this is directed to her or Arjuna kneeling behind Ulupi, wringing his hands.“I’m talking to the both of you!”
“Ulupi,” Chitrangada begins, but stops at Ulupi’s outstretched hand.
“Did you really think that after everything, I wouldn’t have a solution?”
“Does the Hogwarts library have books about…” Arjuna’s voice lowers.“procreation?”
Ulupi rolls her eyes.“It has books about sex too.” Arjuna flinches.“But no, I found this at a Muggle bookstore last summer. You’re going to be a sperm donor!”
“A what?” Arjuna and Chitrangada say this as one. Ulupi laughs.
“Well,” she says,“the muggles have figured out how to isolate what of Arjuna is needed to create a child, and so he will….donate –”
“Donate my –”
“Yes,” Ulupi says, finally flushing herself.“In a little bag. Then we will… insert that into Chitrangada, and she will have a child!”
A moment of silence. “A child,” Chitrangada whispers. Is it possible?
“My child?” Later, they will all laugh at the sheer amount of scandal in Arjuna’s voice.
Ulupi glares. “Well it doesn’t have to be your child if you don’t want it to be! The child will have two parents once Chitrangada and I marry, and even if she dies I will be a researcher and stable enough to satisfy the family.”
“Marry,” Chitrangada breathes, gazing at Ulupi as if it is again the first time. In a way, it is. She is, if possible, even more beautiful than that first night, all blazing eyes and steel certainty that even the stars will move to align with her vision for their future.
“Yes,” Ulupi says, turning to grab Chitrangada’s hands and bringing them up to her lips. “Easy, right?”
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