#i wonder if I can check out one or more of the other graphic novels she's done | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

kenananamin · 11 months

Text

A Storyteller's Biggest Fan

Summary: Nanami loves listening to you speak. You fill a silence he has never been able to fill himself, so when he sees you getting into the A Court of Thorns and Roses series, he’s ready (and excited) for the rambling to start. fluff, nanami is a very patient man, obv major acotar series spoilers (a/n: i was in the car w/ my bestie for 3 hours after a movie and we talked about a bunch of stuff and that included me rambling about acotar lmao so here's what i think nanami would do in a rambling session)

Nanami's bookshelf was... uniform. He enjoys non-fiction, good biographies and autobiographies, and a whole lot of business themed books. There might be a few poetry, fiction, or self-help books scattered in the mix but the bookshelf as a whole looked the same.

Your bookshelf on the other hand was very very different. You enjoy similar things as Nanami but your bookshelf is packed with fiction, crime and mystery, historical fiction, graphic novels or comics, some horror, and very recently... fantasy. Fantasy was interesting but you never saw yourself digging too deep into any fantasy lore. You never really enjoyed stories where a powerful creature hundreds of years old is yearning to love a small and fragile human... at least until now. You accidentally fell into the world of fantasy when one of your favorite youtubers made a video on a a series you've seen everywhere but never picked up for no particular reason.

But now... your days were filled with the damn series. Nanami had noticed that you had been too quiet and on your phone much more than before. He wondered if he had done something wrong but you quickly shut down that idea and tell him you've been completely enthralled by the ACOTAR series. You had found a fan made audiobook and checked out the e-books through your community library which is why you were on your phone much more than before. You pull out your phone to show Nanami the book and give a small summary on the books. He laughs at what he can obviously tell is contained excitement but tells you that you shouldn't be so secretive or shy with finding a fantasy series you like.

The next day, Nanami stops at the bookstore to buy the series for you. He had to look up the series and check he wasn't missing anything and double checked with the cashier that those five books were the complete series. It was very different than anything Nanami had ever bought but he flipped through a few pages to get a taste of what you were reading.

The next week was filled with acotar content not only for you, but for Nanami as well. He would hear you listening to the fan-made audiobook while you cooked on your nights and would sit across from you as you cooked to listen to a few chapters with you. He liked seeing your eyes widen at the new revelations and your almost inaudible gasps at some trials that the main character was being put through. Nanami would ask a few questions throughout to try to stay in the loop but he'd mostly stay quiet and watch you instead.

It was part of your daily routine to go to the living room couch or your bed after some meals where you would either watch something or grab your own books to read over tea. Nanami grabs his book and looks over to your phone to check if you were on the first or second book. After confirming, he grabs the second book and returns to the living room. He sits on the couch, puts his book on one side and reaches for the mug of tea you're giving him. He gives you your book and extends one arm on the back of the couch so you can lean on him as you read. Reading was a quiet activity but he appreciated every second of silence that would let him listen to your calm breathing and slow sips of tea.

After a while of reading, Nanami puts his book down and takes off his glasses. His eyes were tired and didn't feel like reading anymore. But he didn't want to move, he wanted to stay in that position so he asks for you to read your book aloud. You turn in his arms and ask if he's sure, you knew fantasy wasn't his cup of tea and you didn't want to force him through anything. He nodded and smiled so you turn back around and start reading.

"Oh yeah she's illiterate, that's kind of important. But Rhys teaches her how to read and write, it's kinda hot but ok whatever," Nanami laughs as you interrupt reading the book to give explanations as to why certain things are happening. It's been over an hour since you started reading and Nanami's planning on letting you continue until you stop yourself.

———

Almost a week after Nanami bought the books, you were completely done with the series. You would try to keep your rambling short if Nanami asked about it but you wanted nothing more than to talk about this whole series. After finishing the books, Nanami noticed you would use the quiet reading time to look up theories and read through ungodly amounts of reddit threads.

"Don't you want to talk about it?" Nanami asks.

You turn in his arms, "Talk about what?"

He points to your phone with his head, "About the books. You can tell me about the books and the theories and well — everything."

You lightly laugh, "Well it's interesting and I really really like it but I know this isn't your cup of tea, Ken. I don't want to force you through anything fantasy."

Nanami puts his book down and grabs your phone from your hand to put on the bed. He sits up straight against the headboard and says, "You're not forcing me through anything. I want to listen to you talk about it. Now go, start."

You smile wide, knowing he's genuine in wanting to hear about it.

Oh god, I hope he doesn't regret it, you think before sitting next to him and starting.

———

"And they're mates! He had visions of her even while he was under the mountain and she was on mortal lands! And the visions got clear when she crossed to the spring court!" You fall back on the bed to kick your legs up in the air and continue, "And she always felt him! She didn't know what it was then but she would describe a shadow looking over her and that was him, it was RHYS!"

The more you talk about this series, the more invested Nanami is becoming. He had to put down his mug of tea because he kept shifting all over his side of the bed in anticipation. One thing about you, you can recall a whole story with all important details and tell it to anyone. Considering how important details seem to be in this story, Nanami is happy that you're the one telling this story.

It had been a while since you started your recap. You had snuggled up in bed after lunch and it was now pitch black outside. Nanami didn't mind, he would just pass the mug of tea if he thought your mouth was getting dry and let you continue.

"Tamlin fucking gave up Prythian to Hybern to get Feyre back. Literally sold out every single court and fae and human for Feyre. So now there's a bleeding Cassian and Az on the floor, Tamlin is standing there like it's a regular Tuesday and he didn't betray Prythian, Lucien — well hold on, I like Lucien, that's my boy," Nanami laughs but let's you continue, "but he's there too and the king tells the guards to bring them in. Guess who, GUESS WHO COMES IN?!"

Nanami sits up and tries to actually wonder who, "Amren? Tarquin? The girl from summer? Umm... the weird uncle from the court of nightmares?"

You shake your head as your answer, "No, babe, it— oh my god," You sit up on your knees and ask if he's ready, "babe, it's fucking Nesta and Elain." Nanami's jaw drops and his eyes move wondering if he's missed a detail. "The king fucking brought them to Hybern and he's going to throw them into the cauldron to turn them into FAE. KEN, THEY'RE GOING TO BE MADE INTO FAE, FEYRE'S SISTERS ARE GOING TO BE MADE FAE AGAINST THEIR WILL. AND LUCIEN FINDS OUT ELAIN IS HIS MATE AFTER SHE COMES OUT FROM BEING THROWN INTO THE CAULDRON. AND NESTA IS SO PISSED ABOUT IT ALL SO SHE TAKES SOMETHING FROM THE CAULDRON, SHE'S FAE BUT SHE'S DIFFERENT AND THIS COMES BACK UP LATER. AND CASS AND AZ ARE STILL BLEEDING ON THE FLOOR DURING ALL THIS."

Nanami is running his fingers through his hair, visibly stressed about the state of the Illyrians, the middle sister finding her mate in Lucien and the eldest sister becoming something different. You continue to tell him about the end of the second book and he also ends up on his knees in front of you. If anyone were to walk in, they would see you both kneeling in the middle of the bed, you shouting as you excitedly tell the story and your hands gathered between you, almost as if you were both praying to each other.

"So Rhys winnows his group back to night after Feyre's burst while Tamlin takes Feyre back to spring. But guess what?" You inch even closer to Nanami, "Feyre did not lose her mind in Hybern, she's still Feyre and she ends the book by saying that the high lord of spring has just brought THE HIGH LADY OF NIGHT TO HIS COURT, BABE — KEN, SHE'S A SPY! THE FIRST HIGH LADY OF PRYTHIAN EVER AND SHE'S COME TO WRECK SPRING!"

Nanami mirrors your excitement and stands up with you on the bed as you lightly jump. You're still rambling about Feyre and Rhys's wedding and secret ceremony to make her high lady but Nanami is more focused on the vein slowly popping out on your neck. You're yelling, you're excited, your hair is flopping around while you jump and your hands are moving left, right, up, down, to your face then his chest, you're excited. God, Nanami loves your excitement. He loves the sight and sound of your pure unfiltered excitement.

"So that's the second book, what about the third book?" Nanami holds your forearms as he asks.

You turn to look at the clock and notice it's way too late to start the third book. You know yourself and once you start on the third book, you will want to keep going. You grunt and throw yourself back on the bed. You're face down on the bed and kicking your feet when Nanami kneels back down and strokes the back of your head. You turn your head and say, "The second book is my favorite but god I can talk about the third one for a long time," you sit up to ask, "what if we start the third book tomorrow? I'll start early so I don't keep you for too long or too late like today."

Nanami smiles and lightly runs one finger over your lips, "We can start the third book whenever you want. I don't mind staying up, it's not like we have anything to do tomorrow."

He leans to give you a small peck and pulls away to sits cross-legged on the bed with a pillow on his lap, ready to listen some more. You smile and raise your eyebrows, silently asking if he's sure. He nods and laughs as he motions to continue with his hand.

You sit cross legged in front of him and grab another pillow to pull onto your lap. You take a moment to decide where to start the third book, "So Rhys barely told the inner court about their first ever high lady, and everyone in spring thinks that Rhys went into Feyre's mind and manipulated everything."

Nanami nods and smiles across from you. You begin to ramble on about the third book and there is literally nowhere he would rather be. He mentally makes plans to heat up the leftovers or maybe pop in a pizza in the oven if he hears your stomach growl.

My storyteller. I love my beautiful little storyteller, Nanami thinks as your rambling fills the apartment again.

———

(a/n: honestly y’all i love my bestie so much, i told her everything in that car from acotar to creating this account lmao, i love you girlypop, thank you for letting me ramble about an illiterate character and my favorite bat boy 🥹 also anyone please message me if you’ve read acotar, i want to talk about it and see what others think lol this story might not get any attention and thats fine, i just wanted to express my love for my two favorite things rn (nanami and acotar lol))

OH AND ABOUT THE FAN-MADE AUDIOBOOK— PLEASE check her out, her youtube acct is The Reading Hag Returns and she single-handedly got me obsessed with this series. Here’s the playlist for the first book 🤭 https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2oTNYiJ-4JDcEYd99snnkdjXa2kK9z6i&si=9CQDcNAL6RuXHBAA

217 notes · View notes

medusamagic · 6 months

Text

So you want to know more about Big Barda

As Tumblr's resident expert on all things Barda, and as Kelly Thompson's Birds of Prey run brings far more attention to the character, I figured it was high time someone stepped in and gave the tumblr world a primer on DC's biggest and boldest heroine.

The Basics:

Introduced in Mister Miracle #4 by Jack Kirby, Big Barda was once the leader of Apokolips' premier death squad, the Female Furies. Trained from birth for a life of violence by Granny Goodness, Barda spent the first 250 years of her life as a living weapon. This all changed when she met Scott Free, a gentle Parademon-in-training with a mysterious past and a knack for escapes. Eventually, she and Scott both escaped to Earth, where they fell in love with both the Earth and each other. She's a lover, she's a fighter, she's a Pokémon card expert, but most of all, SHE BIG.

Barda's signature defining attribute is her raw strength. Her raw muscle allows her to keep up with heavy hitters like Wonder Woman. This isn't to suggest that she's a simple-minded brute, however-- Barda has centuries of military experience under her belt as leader of the Female Furies. She's mastered multiple weapons, including spears, swords, and her signature Mega-Rod.

Below are some reading recommendations for anyone interested in Big Barda:

Essential Runs:

Mister Miracle Vol. 1 #4-18 by Jack Kirby (1971-1974)

This was the run that introduced the world to Big Barda, as well as the Female Furies. If you want to know the basics of Barda, there's no better place to start. This run is collected in a trade, as well as a part in The Fourth World Omnibus Vol. 1.

(NOTE: Even though Barda doesn't appear until issue #4, I suggest you start with Issue #1. It'll help you get acquainted with the rest of the mythos.)

Justice League International #14-24 by Keith Giffen and J.M. DeMatteis (1988-1989)

Big Barda was on the JLI! She plays off the other characters as well as ever, and a lot of what's great about her in Jack Kirby's original run is still here! Definitely check this one out if you want to see her in another team setting. This has been collected in this omnibus.

(NOTE: Once again, I recommend you start from issue #1.)

Popular Runs:

Mister Miracle Vol. 4 #1-12 by Tom King and Mitch Gerads (2017-2018)

Yeah, I know.

Listen, Tom King is a writer with... idiosyncrasies to put it nicely. The characters in the periphery of his stories tend to act really out of character, and his dialogue can be clunky at times. That being said, The Scott/Barda dynamic in this book is excellent, and this book has some of the best art that the Fourth World has seen since the 80s. The series has been collected in a trade.

(NOTE: Did you know that the CIA has over 2003 files on Tom King? Look up "Tom King CIA 2003" for more info!)

Mister Miracle: The Great Escape by Varian Johnson and Daniel Isles (2022)

If you're at all interested in the idea of a Young Adult reimagining of Mister Miracle and Big Barda's origin story with an all-black cast, this book was made for you. It's a bit heavy on the YA tropes, but the Scott/Barda dynamic is really solid. It was released as a standalone graphic novel.

Birds of Prey Vol. 5 #1-??? by Kelly Thompson and Leonardo Romero (2023-)

Admit it, this is the reason you're here. The Cassandra Cain & Big Barda is so instantly iconic, I'm surprised no writer has paired them up sooner. It also helps that this book has the single best Barda look since Jack Kirby's original run. Plus, she gets to throw down with Wonder Woman! What's not to love? This run is still ongoing, but the first 6 issues should be getting a trade pretty soon.

(NOTE: I started writing this before BOP #8 dropped, I had no idea about that thing that happens in the newest issue.)

Stories to Avoid:

Action Comics #592-593 by John Byrne (1987)

This is not a comic book-- it's an infohazard designed to cause pain and suffering to anyone who knows of its existence. Its premise is vile and disrespectful on the surface, and it becomes more insidious when you learn the context of its creation. This pair of issues is profoundly evil, rivaling even Avengers #200 in terms of loathsomeness.

For those who dare to investigate this, Content Warnings for rape, mind control, and human trafficking.

Anyway, let's end on something a bit lighter, shall we?

Remember that Mister Miracle YA graphic novel I mentioned earlier? Barda is getting a graphic novel of her own this summer! It's not out at the time of writing, but the preview pages look promising!

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed that introduction to one of my favorite superheroes ever. Please get back to me on this, I have no one else to talk to about Fourth World stuff.

68 notes · View notes

jesncin · 2 months

Note

hello! i've been following you for a little while and have recently started trying to get into DC comics. i was wondering if you have any recommendations of good starting points? there's so much out there that it's a little overwhelming lol

Hi there! Thanks for checking out my stuff :) it can definitely be overwhelming getting into cape comics, but the flip side of that is that you can start just about anywhere and there's a weird freedom to that. Some comic runs will be more accessible than others (and I certainly prefer those!) but if you ever find yourself not vibing with a run or not getting it, then you can drop it and hop onto something else (cough me and All Star Superman cough).

Lots of the stand alone graphic novels are self contained and designed to get new readers into the world of DC, so even if they're their own AUs, they can help you bounce into the other comics. Some very accessible to new reader comics off the top of my head (sorry my biases will be obvious):

Superman Smashes the Klan

All New Superman

Martian Manhunter 2019 Identity (polarizing, but very accessible)

Superman American Alien (the writer's a creep but story's pretty good)

The One Bad Day Series Anthology covering Gotham rogues is fun (I recommend the Clayface one, but I also enjoyed Two Face's!)

Haven't read it yet but I'm always recommended Wonder Woman Historia

Alan Scott Green Lantern (I read the first issue, and it's really accessible)

Girl Taking Over: A Lois Lane Story

The Mystery of the Meanest Teacher: A Johnny Constantine Graphic Novel (I KNOW MIDDLE GRADE CONSTANTINE SOUNDS WRONG BUT THIS IS REALLY FUNNY AND ENJOYABLE)

og Vertigo Hellblazer (I'm currently trying to read through it all and I haven't needed much context coming in)

Supersons (any, I found all to be understandable even when wacky things happen)

Batgirl: Future's End #1 (this is a one-shot from the new 52 but it's cute and holds a special place in my heart)

The Killing Joke (controversial but DC's perennial best seller for a reason. I recommend it so that you can read:) and The Batman Chronicles 1995 #5 (for a palate cleanser co-written by Kim Yale who was battling cancer and wrote that personal experience into Babs)

Batgirl / Robin Year One (much like American Alien, the writer sucks but ugh I really like these stories)

So yeah! I think that's plenty, but there's many more comics that I just jumped into and was able to understand and get really invested in. The world's yer oyster

#askjesncin #there's this false dichotomy that manga is easier to read compared to american cape comics- as if manga doesn't need reading guides too #I love that there are all sorts of artists and writers that get to work on these characters! that's its own strength and freedom #apples and oranges ya know? two cakes

24 notes · View notes

mask131 · 3 months

Note

Can you someday do a post about a very important question that always deeply fascinated me: How technologically advanced is Oz?

Wicked as a stage show puzzles me because it implies Oz has electricity, a broadcast radio system, and trains.

How much tech is present in Oz in the books?

Oh boy that's one COMPLICATED question... Now, before I start saying anything, I will point out that I am not an Oz expert by any means. I have not read all of the Oz books. However I do know an Oz expert that tackled the subject! He is here on Tumblr somewhere, but I know his Oz analysis and lore-exploration by his blogs. He started doing them more than a dozen year ago on vovat.livejournal.com ; and then he continued his Oz posts to vovatia.wordpress.com ; I know they have very, VERY helpful when it comes to my own knowledge of Oz, and he tackled several times the topic of technology in Oz and Baum's work, with quite fascinating analyses! So go check out these blogs, you might find some interesting info!

That being said, what can I tell you?

Since I haven't read all the Oz books I will stick to Baum's novels only - but before doing that I want to point out something... It is something I said in my previous Oz post (So you want to know about Oz 5), but the Wicked stage musical is part of a pretty big wave of 2000s-onward Oz adaptations that decided Oz was a steampunk world. I know you entertained yourself a pretty similar project of a Gilded Age Oz, if I recall correctly? And when you look at Oz adaptations, you have this wave of SyFy's Tin Man, and the Amazon series "Lost in Oz", and the graphic novel/animated movie "The Steam Engines of Oz", and more recently the show "Emerald City". Even "Dorothy and the Witches of Oz" had a steampunk-vibe to their Oz. It is kind of the modern direction to go.

Now back to traditional Baum's Oz... Does it have electricity? I don't think so. The Oz created by Baum is... it is something between a fantasy version of the late 19th century American countryside, and your archetypal fantasy land. The Land of Oz is mostly a huge countryside to be honest. Its lots of forests with woodsmen and wild animals ; it is lot of fields and orchards because most of Oz's economy relies apparently on farming ; the only other big industry seems to be metal-working (Winkies, the guy who made the Tin Man) and stone/gem-working (due to the huge presence of precious stones, though no mine or miner is ever descrbed in the Oz books) ; it is a lot of small villages scattered around the one big city that is Emerald City (or around big castles like the Tin Man/Wicked Witch castle) ; this all gives it a very medieval/feudal feel in structure... Though Baum really tried to give Oz originally a "fairytale feel" and thus you have the same historical madness typical fairytales have. For example, just like your typical Renaissance fairytales (a la Charles Perrault), you have mirrors and candies and porcelaine in Oz ; and yet, just like your also typical 19th century fairytales (a la brothers Grimm) you also have guns in Oz! Mind you the guns are rare and rarely used, they seem mostly to belong to the military cast (they are always wielded by soldiers or royalty bodyguards), and they are usually useless against the monsters and magical threats... But they do exist! But Oz seems to lack things like electricity of petrol or even steam machinery. At least in the beginning!

(In fact I had a chat with @artmakerproductions recently about fireworks in Oz. He wondered if the Oz The Great and Powerful idea of using fireworks as something non-existent in Oz could work with Baum's canon, and indeed, while the presence of guns implies gunpowder is a thing in Oz, there are to my memory no mention of fireworks anywhere in Oz... Maybe they appear at one of Ozma's birthday parties, but I couldn't find which one. Fireworks are evoked in his non-Oz/Oz-crossovered work "The Magical Monarch of Mo" but only as a comparison to how lightning appears in this country...)

Is there radio in Oz? Actually there is! In the opening of book 7, to get out of how he had written his way out of Oz in book 6, Baum explained his return to the series by "Oh yeah, Ozians got hold of the radio and now they send me radio messages about what is going on in Oz". So Oz DOES have some sort of radio equivalent. How, since there's no electricity or batteries in Oz? That's beyond me, but here's why it is difficult to say for certain what Oz's technology level is: Baum, as I said, started not giving a fuck anymore about continuity. As I explained the first two-three books are kind of solid in terms of continuity because they were designed as their own closed novels, but book 4 onward Baum just gave up any concrete effort at "solid" worldbuilding and went the "Fuck it, I'll add whatever I want" road. As such, don't expect any serious effort at making a cohesive technological system - Baum isn't Tolkien. He's the anti-Tolkien. That being said, another very interesting point when it comes to Baum's work is that, as you go through his fourteen Oz books, you realize how modern technology slowly creeps onto Oz. Baum was writing Oz book between 1900 and 1920 - and the technological evolution of these two decades quite influenced Baum. The addition of the radio element was one case of Oz "evolving"; in later Oz books there are also magical equivalents of television popping up. But if you want to see a concrete comparison, you can compare the first Oz book, "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz", with the last Oz book Baum wrote, "Glinda of Oz". The first shows an Oz so technology-lacking people are easily fooled by stage tricks ; while the last book is heavy on technology, with for example evocations of submarines, but it is a technology presented as a form of magic. Which leads me to my last point...

Does Oz have trains? Not by the time Baum wrote them ; though modern day adaptations and authors did add a handful of them to the Oz world (and you can also find things such as ray guns or time-travelling machines in modern Oz books so you know, it evolves with its time). But Baum did wrote about a carriage that did the entire tour of Oz for touristic purpose: that's one of the subplots of "The Emerald City of Oz", and how Dorothy shows her aunt and uncle all about the fantasy land. It is not a train, but you have already here the idea/potential for a train-like system here (even though it is rather a carriage/wagon drawn by a wooden horse that can never tire and doesn't eat). And here's my point: the reason technology is so weird in Oz, and why it is also lacking in many way, is due to Oz being filled with magic.

Most Ozian equivalent to our world's technology is, in Baum, powered by magic. There is no camera or surveillance system, but there are the Magic Picture or Glinda's big magical "spy on everyone" book. There are no lie detectors, but there is Glinda's pearl. The magic eye of the Wicked Witch of the West was explicitely compared to a telescope. Etc etc. Magic replaces most advanced technology around the Land. Advanced technology and mechanism do exist, and Baum was very fond of the idea of the... "magical mechanic" if I can say so. What he does is basically take an actual real-world technology, but take it to fantasy extremes - which notably is why the Oz books are considered early sci-fi. There's how the Tin Man came to be: Baum took the workings of actual real-life prosthetics for missing limbs, but pushed it to the extremes by making a "vintage android". There is how the Woggle-Bug came to be: a great scholar used a machine to project an enlarged image of a small bug on the wall. Quite ordinary right? But turns out the machine literaly enlarged the bug to a greater size - which is a very common sci-fi tropes (all those rays that shrink or enlarge things or objects). And while it is not an Oz example per say, Baum gave us the most blatant example of "magical technology" with the realm of Ev, where lived Smith and Tinker, the inventors of many fantastical automatons, first of which being Tik-Tok, a sentient automat that is considered one of the first robots of modern literature!

So... On one side, Baum tried to show a land that would not advance technologically because magic was there and much more powerful. It is the line by the Good Witch of the North, about how Oz still has magic because it is not "civilized", and one of the traits of "civilization" is advanced technology. Take how guns are treated in Oz: they exist but they are not made a big deal out of, and in fact prove quite useless among the many magical items and beings. And yet, on the other side, Baum's Oz is the literal proof of the law "Any advanced technology is magic" ; or rather a whacky incarnation of this principle, because indeed, the most advanced form of technology in Ozian lands work by fantasy and extravagant sci-fi rules (Tin Man, Tik-Tok), while most of the great spells and magic items of Oz are fantasy equivalents to our real-world technology (the Magic Picture, or even the Gump which works as a fantasy equivalent of flying machines).

#ask #oz #land of oz #the wizard of oz #technology in oz #the wonderful wizard of oz #oz analysis

24 notes · View notes

guardianbingo · 4 months

Text

Guardian Bonus Bingo FAQ

Welcome to Guardian Bonus Bingo!

This is a very low stakes, low pressure fest meant to be fun and inspire more Guardian fan creations. Whether you’re returning after having participated in the original Guardian Bingo or are joining for the first time, we’re happy to have you here!

How Does It Work?

We’ll issue five prompts over ten weeks (one new prompt every two weeks), starting on June 9.

Prompts go out every other Sunday and you’ll have two weeks in which to create a fill. Then a new prompt will be issued. This cycle repeats until we make it through all five prompts.

We’ll also have an amnesty period at the end for prompts you might have missed earlier in the fest.

What Do I Earn By Completing Fills?

A sense of accomplishment, the adoration of your fellow fans, and the fun that comes with creation.

Completing all five earns you a bingo, a badge created by the amazingly talented @highlynerdy, and your name on a shoutout post at the end of the fest.

Can I Fill Multiple Prompts With A Single Work?

Maybe. The single work will need to be composed of multiple parts.

As one example, a multi-chapter fic where each individual chapter is inspired by a different prompt would work. A one-shot would not.

Similarly, multi-panel art with each panel inspired by a different prompt would work while a single piece of art would not.

If you have something in mind but aren’t sure, check with a mod.

Is There A Signup Period?

Nope. You are welcome to join at any time up until the end of the amnesty period.

What Works Are Accepted?

Pretty much any new creations, including, but not limited to:

Fanfic

Fanart

Edits/Gif Sets

Vids

Moodboards

Playlists

Rec Lists

FanARTifacts (tangible creations, crafts, etc.)

Podfics (with original author’s permission and a link back)

Translations (with original author’s permission and a link back)

Meta Analysis

If you have another idea, check in with the mods but it very likely works.

What Are The Length/Content Requirements?

None! This is meant to be fun, not stressful.

Want to write a 100k multi-chapter epic? That’s a tall order for ten weeks, but we’re cheering you on! Want to only post drabbles? Also wonderful!

The same applies for non-fic creations.

The point is to make stuff, not worry over min/max requirements.

Is This Fest Novelverse or Drama?

Either or both! It’s totally up to you. All prompts will work for both.

What About Ships And Ratings?

All ratings and any ships (or no ships) are allowed, though works should be appropriately tagged.

Crossovers, Derivatives, Other Priest Novels, And RPF?

While the fest is Guardian themed, all are allowed. Just tag appropriately.

How Do I Interpret The Prompts?

However you wish! They're meant to be a source of inspiration and a starting off point. You can adhere to them as strictly or as loosely as you'd like. Follow your muse and have fun!

Can I Use A Creation For This Fest And Another One?

So long as the other fest has no objections, you are good to go!

Ok, So What Isn’t Allowed?

Old works previously posted

Plagiarized works

Harassment/abuse of other participants

Sounds Great! Where Do I Post My Creations?

The AO3 Collection

Tumblr – Tag @guardianbingo in your post or DM us for a reblog (you can also tag it #guardianbingofest but Tumblr’s tags are very wonky so that might not work well)

If you happen to post elsewhere (Dreamwidth, Twitter, etc.), then you may submit a post on Tumblr if you’d like us to reblog your creation. You do not have to be on Tumblr to participate.

Will The Mods Keep Up With My Fills?

No. Since people may be posting on platforms other than Tumblr, it’s up to participants to keep up with their fills so we don’t miss anyone.

If you’d like to claim a badge and a bingo shoutout, please complete the fills reporting form.

What If I Still Have Questions?

Ask away on Tumblr, or email [email protected]

Email may get a faster response.

Fest Coordinators

Logistical Coordinator & Primary Contact - @tehfanglyfish

Graphic Designs and Badges - @highlynerdy

Original Guardian Bingo Prompt Coordinator - @sasamelons

#faq #bonus bingo

26 notes · View notes

fozmeadows · 1 year

Note

I'm going to a writer's conference later this week and will be meeting with an editor at Angry Robot. Checking out their website, I saw you'd published An Accident of Stars through them, but I know your more recent books have come through Tor. I was wondering what your experiences were like with an independent publisher, and if publishing that way is something you'd recommend to currently unpublished writers or not (feel free to disregard this ask if that's something you'd rather not get into, of course. I was just hoping to hear a little more from someone more knowledgeable than me about these things).

Thanks for asking! While not wanting to speak for anyone other than myself, my experience with Angry Robot has been positive. I did have some trouble with an outside editor while publishing with AR, but that wasn't on them, and when they were made aware of the issue, they responded very professionally. Though AR is now largely under new management - meaning, the people I worked with directly for the Manifold Worlds series have since moved on - I'm in occasional contact with some of their current employees (for promotional and new cover purposes) and have no complaints to levy.

There's no one definitive experience of indie publishing; like most things, it can vary wildly depending on who you're dealing with. While indie publishers generally have less money to work with than the big houses - meaning, smaller advances and less paid publicity - they can make up for this in other ways. My very first publisher was Ford Street, a small kids' and YA indie based in Melbourne, and the owner was - and is - extremely adept at booking his authors for in-person events like school visits and bookshop signings. Precisely because they're competing against trad houses, successful indies tend to be very invested in helping their authors earn out, as they often don't have - or don't yet have - the type of high-earning back catalogues and/or big name authors that the big houses can rely on for a base level of income. They might not be able to pay as much up front, but a good indie publisher will help a new author establish themselves through things like signings, in-person and online events, and convention appearances, which benefits you both.

That being said, aside from checking whether a given publisher is good at supporting/endorsing its authors, the two main things you want to know with indies are their distribution and financial track record. In the former case, and especially if you're looking at a hybrid publisher or aren't sure of the difference between an indie, a hybrid and a vanity press, you need to have an idea of how your work will be distributed: if the publisher can get you into bookshops, if there's any international distribution, and whether, if the publisher asks for ebook, graphic novel and/or audiobook rights, they actually have the ability to produce your work in those formats. In the latter case, there's been several instances of ambitious indies collapsing and leaving authors in a limbo re: both money and rights, as happened with Night Shade Books before they were finally taken over by Skyhorse - but if you've done your due diligence and everything looks fine, then go ahead!

#foz answers things #publishing #writing #books

146 notes · View notes

popart-vvv · 24 days

Text

Goodbye Volcano High 1-Year Anniversary Post

So, today marks one year since the release of Goodbye Volcano High. I'm going to write a bit about it. I am in love with its characters--special mention to the protagonist: an enby with fashion reminiscent of the 2000s. That appealed to me a lot because I know someone similar to them in real life. However, these are my top three favorite characters, as listed below: Reed--A chill drummer bro with a proclivity for writing, sharing a voice with Seteth from Fire Emblem. Naomi--A cute nerd whom Fang--and by extension, the player--can choose to enter a relationship with, sharing a voice with Dorothea from Fire Emblem. Rosa--For all her smaller screen time, she makes the most of it with her sweet nature and her bonfire scene. Seriously, trans Latina FTW I'd also have to say that the game reminded me of the first Life is Strange in that, in the end, a majority of the choices you make impact your relationship with the other characters, and not what the ending entails. You know what they say; it's the journey that counts. Also, this.

That is all. ...Wait, how did I hear about this game? I was on Twitter one day when one of Wolf Nanaki's posts about the game popped up in my feed. I was intrigued by the character designs, so I decided to check out her other posts about the game. And thus, a wonderous rabbit hole.

One last thing: I know that this game ends with an asteroid that may or may not have killed everyone...

I still want more! I wanna know what Alvin is like and how he and Reed met, I want to see more of Rosa, I want Leo, the scrapped character, to be implemented in some way!

...That may not happen. Still, it would be nice if there was a follow-up. Maybe an anthology series that focuses on new characters and/or the pre-existing supporting cast... A graphic novel, maybe?

Well, anyway, love the game, love the community.

(P.S. Yes, Reed and Naomi's respective actors were major draws for me!)

#goodbye volcano high #gvh

16 notes · View notes

dragonydreams · 5 months

Text

No Crisis, Only Calm (Redux) - Buck & May

Title: No Crisis, Only Calm (Redux) Fandom: 9-1-1 Rating: General Audience Pairings/Characters: Evan "Buck" Buckley & May Grant Tags: mentions Evan "Buck" Buckley/Tommy Kinard, Coming Out, TV show recs, pseudo sibling bonding Summary: May shares with Buck the magic of Heartstopper after Buck tells her about his date with Tommy. Timeline: post 7x05 Word Count: 1,633 Disclaimer: I claim no ownership over these characters. I am merely borrowing them from Reamworks, Brad Falchuk Teley-Vision, Ryan Murphy Television, and 20th Century Fox Television. Betas: Thank you to @medieshanachie for looking this over for me. Author's Note: This idea popped into my head after seeing an article about Heartstopper S3.

Author's Note 2: I wasn't satisfied with the first version of this story so I reformatted it and expanded it. I'm much happier with this now and hope you enjoy it too.

Read on AO3

Are you on shift?

The text popped up on Buck's phone and he couldn't help smiling at it. He didn't hear from May as much since she'd started college, but she has been checking in more since the lightning.

Not today, Buck responded. What's up?

His phone lit up with May's face as he was alerted that he had an incoming video call. He immediately accepted.

"Why were you being weird Saturday night?" May asked before he could even say hello.

Buck did a wonderful impression of a fish as he stared wide-eyed at May. He nervously licked his lips before he asked, "What do you know about Saturday night?"

"Eddie texted me to ask if I knew why you were acting weird."

"Why would he ask you that?"

"That's what I said!" May exclaimed.

"And it took you a week to follow up with me?"

May rolled her eyes. "I had classes. And study groups. And homework. So much homework."

"Well, Eddie and I have talked since then and he now knows why I was acting weird," Buck said, hoping to end this conversation. It wasn't that he didn't want May to know about Tommy. He actually kinda wanted to shout from the roof to tell everyone about him.

"...and?" she prompted.

Buck took a moment to decide if he wanted to tell her. He hadn't told Bobby yet, but he could trust May not to gossip. If he asked her not to, at least.

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly before answering. "When I saw Eddie, I was on a date. With a man. But I was caught off guard and reacted badly."

"Since when do you date men?" May asked.

"Since Saturday," Buck said, wincing slightly.

"OMG, was he your bi-awakening?" May squealed, excitedly.

"I suppose you could call it that," Buck admitted. "He kissed me the Thursday before our date and it felt like the whole world came into focus." He could feel himself grinning like an idiot as he remembered the kiss.

"How far down the research hole did you fall after?"

"Not very, if you can believe it."

"I'm having trouble believing that," May teased.

"I know, it's very not me. Then again, so is being into men." He paused to think about what he'd just said. "Although, I guess that is me, now."

While he'd been speaking, May was obviously looking something up on her phone.

"In that case, go watch this," a text with a link popped up for a trailer, "and then call me back."

Buck clicked on the link after May hung up on him and watched the clip about two teenage boys in England falling for each other - one was gay and the other was bi. Apparently it was based on a graphic novel.

As soon as Buck finished watching he called May back. "How did I not know about this?"

"Because you weren't seeking out queer YA shows?" May suggested. "But you should watch. The episodes are only like half an hour each."

"I guess I know how I'm spending the rest of my day."

Buck watched May look away briefly and bit her lip before meeting his eyes again. "Want some company while you watch?"

Buck blinked back the sudden moisture in his eyes.

"Yeah, I think I'd like that."

"I can be there in an hour. With ice cream," she said.

"I'll be here."

"I'll see you soon," May said before ending the call.

Buck stared at the phone for a minute, moved by May's offer to share this show, which she obviously enjoyed, with him.

~~*~~

Buck was sitting at the kitchen table when there was a knock on the door 58 minutes after he'd hung up with May. Now that May was going to introduce him to this show about a bi-awakening, as she'd called it, he was curious about what else was out there.

He'd found the expected "Could I be gay?" quizzes, but he already knew the answer to that question. He still loved women, but he was also definitely attracted to men. Which made him bisexual, or pan, but he thought bisexual was the right word for him.

He went to open the door and May was grinning at him as she held up the bag with ice cream in it.

"You know, I don't think I've ever actually been here before," May said as Buck held the door open for her. "This is nice."

Buck blinked as he closed the door and realized that she was right. "Well then, it's about time. It's a loft so the tour will be quick. This is the kitchen, bathroom is over there," he pointed to a closed door next to the stairs, "bedroom is in the loft, and living room is this way." He led her through to the room in question.

May took the ice cream out of the bag and noticed that Buck had already set out a couple of spoons and glasses of water. The show was pulled up on the TV, just waiting for them.

As she made herself at home on the couch with one of the pints of ice cream, May said, "So, tell me more about this guy that turned your world upside down."

Buck felt his cheeks heating up as he settled next to her with the other pint. "Well, Tommy's a firefighter with Harbor. A pilot. He's actually the one that flew us to rescue your mom and Bobby."

"Hold up," May said, sitting up from her slouch and holding out her hand. "You don't mean Tommy Kinard?"

"Uh, yeah," Buck confirmed.

"Damn, Buckley. He's fine," May said. "I mean, he's old enough to be my dad, but damn."

Buck felt his face flush again as he couldn't help but agree. "Yeah, he is."

"So how did you go from him helping to rescue Mom and Bobby to him kissing you?" May asked as she settled back.

"Well, uh, I guess both Eddie and I wanted to get to know Tommy better after he helped with the rescue. Those two started spending a lot of time together and I guess I got kinda jealous. Like Eddie was replacing me? But also because he was spending all this time with Tommy. Things got a little out of hand at this pickup basketball game and I got Eddie hurt. Later that night Tommy came over to tell me that he wasn't trying to come between me and Eddie and I told him that I just really wanted to get to know him better. That trying to get his attention was exhausting and then he kissed me."

Buck took a big bit of ice cream after he finished word vomiting all over May.

"Wow," she said. "That was a lot."

"Oh, and after making sure I was okay with the kiss he asked me out for Saturday."

"And you didn't spiral after that kiss?" May asked. "That seems like something that would cause you to spiral."

"Yeah, I was kinda surprised about that myself," Buck admitted. "But it was more like a puzzle piece finally turning the right way to fit in a hole in a larger puzzle. Everything just felt right. Settled in a way that I've never been in my life before."

"That sounds wonderful," May said, in awe.

"It is. Of course then Eddie and Marisol showed up at the restaurant Tommy took us to on Saturday and I was so surprised that I went all dudebro and told Eddie we were just two guys hanging out and were gonna go pick up some hot chicks later."

"You. Did. Not."

"Oh, I did. Tommy was not amused and instead of going to a movie after dinner he got an Uber home by himself. Just left me in front of the restaurant."

"Can't say I really blame him," May said.

"Neither could I. But I told Eddie and he convinced me to call Tommy. Luckily he agreed to meet me for coffee and I invited him to be my date at Maddie's wedding."

May's eyes widened. "You're bringing him as your date to your sister's wedding? Way to come out to everyone at once."

Buck shrugged. "This is who I am. It shouldn't matter if I want to bring a man as my date instead of a woman. I'm happy and that's all that should matter. If anyone has a problem with that, that's on them, not me."

"I am loving this attitude," May said. "And you're right. It doesn't matter."

"Just, uh, I haven't told Bobby yet, so for now can you not say anything? I'd rather he find out with everyone else."

"Of course. So just me and Eddie know?"

"Maddie knows, too. It was kind of an accident, but she does know. I let the pronoun slip when I was talking about my interrupted date to her."

"How'd she take the news?"

"You know Maddie, she was totally supportive. Surprised, but supportive. Eddie, too."

"And now me," May said. "Thank you for sharing this with me."

"Thank you for sharing this," he gestured to the television, "with me."

"Is that your way of telling me you're talked out?" May teased.

"Yes, but I also want to see this show," Buck said.

"Then let's watch. It's been a while since I did a re-watch," May said.

"How many times have you seen it?" Buck asked.

"A couple," May answered. "It's a really sweet story. Lots of good queer representation."

"Is this your way of trying to tell me something?" Buck tentatively asked.

"No, I just like watching all kinds of love stories, not just heterosexual ones," May said. "But thank you for asking."

"Anytime," Buck said.

He grabbed the remote and hit play.

Link to trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrK4xPy4ahg

#911 fic #evan buck buckley #may grant #bucktommy #Fic: No Crisis No Calm (Redux)

18 notes · View notes

juni-ravenhall · 3 months

Note

Hey, I want to start learning coding and animation ( preferably 3D, but I would've mind 2D either.) and I was wondering if you knew a good program or engine to start with.

You seem to know a lot about stuff like this so I thought I'd ask, no pressure though.

Have a great day/night

yay!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D ur very welcome to dm me if u want more specific advice but ill tell u some basics :3

for coding, if its for games, you should pick a game engine that's commonly used and has a lot of free tutorials, and pick the programming language that is used for that engine (if it uses a regular programming language). the langs are all similar to each other so its more about learning the "programming logic" than really learning one specific language, so its ok no matter what you start with, dont worry. some engines also use "visual scripting" / "logic blocks" to build the game logic instead of typing out stuff in regular code, which can be easy to start with.

preferably pick a free engine (its okay if they have paid upgrades / paid licenses for professionals, just ignore that part until ur working on a serious project, ur just learning for now!) so u can try out a couple free engines to pick one that feels the most fun to get into. some ones i would rec:

Ren'Py is a free engine for visual novel games / text adventures, and its very easy to get into imo. it has its own simplified code based on Python but u dont need to study any python to start. just follow a tutorial and read the code in the examples etc, and try to make a small game. you can use .png artwork for your sprites, both stuff you grabbed somewhere or if you wanna put in your own drawings, so the graphics are easy to work with.

Stencyl is a free engine for 2d games, you could make a 2d platformer, 2d action, a puzzle game, stuff like that. graphics are easy here too, just 2d art you make yourself or grab free from somewhere. it uses visual scripting. follow a tutorial and itll make sense pretty quickly.

Unity is a free engine for 2d and 3d games, you code in C# (theres also plugins to use visual scripting). very popular with tons of different tutorials and resources, but can be overwhelming to get into. you can check out some video tutorials first and see if that feels like too much for you to start with, or if it seems doable with tutorials. (u can download free 3d models / 2d assets to get started if needed)

Unreal Engine is free and mostly for 3d games. you should prob have a good computer to try using it tho. it has a visual scripting blocks language too so it seems relatively easy to get into, and good if you want to make the typical AAA looking stuff, bc thats what everyone else is doing with that engine. (you can download free 3d models to get started if needed)

there are way more engines so you can also search for them to find more options. a popular paid one i would add is RPG Maker which might be relevant depending on ur interests. and a not-as-popular but beloved-by-me engine is GB Studio (where you make gameboy games), which is free and pretty easy to use, it uses visual scripting.

its ok to try different engines but make sure to not get stuck just hopping between engines, try to follow some tutorials from start to finish, or to finish your own little test projects. one good tip about game dev tutorial videos is: watch each video twice, first one time just watching, and then again once to actually follow along. it tends to feel less confusing.

for animation:

u should pick a type of animation u prefer the style of, to start with, theres obvs similarities in how to make good movements/etc between all types of animation, but a lot of differences in how to technically do things.

(to get good at movements/etc for all types, study and practice the principles of animation + study from irl reference + study from your favourite animations!)

i think, if you think 3d seems more fun than 2d then go for it, and vice versa. its not going to be vastly more difficult one way or the other, it just depends on your personality and what comes easier to you. there are also different types of 2d animation, like traditional (think old animated movies/cartoons - and most pixel art games), or rigged, where you move a 2d image based on a rig / armature / skeleton just like with 3d or stop-motion puppets. an example of this type of 2d is the MLP:FiM cartoon, the Cult of the Lamb game, and many other modern cartoons and 2d games. lots of vtubers have 2d character art that is animated like this too.

if you want to make traditional 2d animation, the best types of games to do with this would be 2d games in general (platformers, rpgs, puzzles, whatever) and visual novels - you can do either pixel art, or regular drawings (raster art), or vector art. (for a fun example of 2d animation in a visual novel, see the old Ace Attorney games.) for this type of animation you just draw a bunch of images, and import/export the sequence of frames as sprites in your engine, pretty much. programs id recommend for doing trad 2D animation is Krita (free, great art program, i use this to draw and animate all the time, but not good for pixel art), and Aseprite for pixel art (not free, but great, i use it for all my pixel art / animation).

if you want to do 2d rig animation, you will need an engine that supports this type. i dont have much experience w this animation style (only a tiny bit and not for gamedev) so i cant really help, but i think you should prob pick Unity engine if u want to do this style, and im sure theres a bunch of tutorials for that to get you started.

if u want to do 3D, you download Blender for free and go wild. pair with Unity or Unreal engine to start with. there are tons of free blender youtube tutorials for all purposes and skill levels, you can both model, sculpt (like clay style), paint textures, rig, animate, and render, all within blender without even needing to leave the program if you dont want to. (i use other programs for texture painting tho, like Krita which is free.) follow some simple beginner tutorials for making a simple model, then for a simple character and making a simple first animation, and it wont be that hard. it might feel overwhelming for like a week or two but then itll be fine if you keep at it. try to follow only recent tutorials for approximately the same version of blender that you install, otherwise it might get confusing.

after making a model in blender, you will be able to export it to various formats and import it in 3d engines like Unity or Unreal. there are tutorials for that too. i really recommend picking a beginner tutorial and just going with it, and maybe if they provide you with free tutorial models for the project, you could switch out one of their models with your own 3d model to test it out.

i know this is super long... i tried to make it digestable.... TL;DR:

start with Ren'Py for visual novels if u wanna make some easy visual novels with 2d art (drawings etc)

start with Stencyl or GB Studio or RPG Maker if u wanna make other types of 2d games, especially with pixel art

start with Unity or Unreal Engine for 3d games (but unity can also do all kinds of 2d games. unreal might be heavy on ur comp)

get Blender for free now. install it on ur computer and rejoice. if u want to make 3d stuff ofc :)

get Krita for free now and same as above rejoice etc. but its for drawing, trad 2d animating, image editing in general, and making drawn textures for 3d.

if u can afford it and want to make pixel art, get Aseprite for relatively cheap. there are other programs u can use so dw if u dont want to pay, just my recommendation.

12 notes · View notes

frostironfudge · 2 years

Text

Silhouettes In the Spotlight - Bucky Barnes - Fourteen

Summary: Bucky Barnes has worked immensely hard to have a filmography expanding across genres and garnering accolades from critics, peers and fans. Y/N Y/L/N, with her debut novel (fan-fiction turned New York Times Bestseller) has two other best sellers under her belt. Next is her highly anticipated fourth book lined up for release. SHEILD Productions has acquired the film rights to her debut novel and they want Bucky Barnes to play the lead (aka himself) by any means necessary. This story is about angst, lust, heartbreak, and love. After all fairytales only exist in books and movies right?

Warnings: fluff, angst, insulting language to the reader by a secondary character, alexander pierce is still a shit head he doesn't understand personal space, SA mentioned not described, drugs mentioned not consumed, entertainment industry language (basically misleading way of delivering news), slight amount of smut, dirty talking, legal stuff being spoken about, fbi workings. reader has alot of anxiety described through this chapter at various points.

Pairing: Actor!Bucky Barnes x Plus Size!Fem!Reader

Word Count: 7.6k || Dividers: @firefly-graphics

Main Masterlist || Fic Masterlist || AO3 || Fic Playlist

Chapter Thirteen || Chapter Fifteen

HEADLINES:

Fan’s excitement for book announcement turns sour, watch Y/N Y/L/N Take Control Of The Situation, We Stan A Powerful Woman

Fans Praise Steve Rogers Standing Up For Y/N

Smouldering Hot Dolores Sets The Runway On Fire While Walking For Best Friend's Brand

Loki and Ace Are They A Thing? When Will They Admit To Their Hidden Romance?

Bucky Barnes and Y/N Share An Intimate Moment Amidst Chaos, Five Times These Two Were Bestie Goals.

Bucky watches from the sidelines of the lit fest. The auditorium brimmed with excitement. He wondered if this is how you felt during the cast reveal for your previous books. Pride weaves into his bones as you step out on stage, massive applause breaks out and he can’t help but wolf-whistle as well.

You’re his girl and he would be damned if he didn’t come out to support you. He has to bite his lip before he moans seeing your outfit, yet again. The way the suit pants cling to your ass has his own tightening.

Flashes of this morning coax his mind, your hands in his hair tugging him closer and pushing him away. The taste of you on his tongue. Fuck he needs to remain between your legs for days before he can satieate himself.

Your eyes find him just as he licks his bottom lip. Heat pools in your belly at the thought of Bucky on his knees, licking the remnants of you from his lips, his stubble glistening.

He smirks at you as he watches the slight shift in your demeanour. He knows you’re thinking about this morning as well.

“Oh my god.” He hears a voice exclaim, “That's! That's Bucky!”

He turns his head around, sure enough a few seats down they raise their phones for a picture.

“Hey could you hold off on posting that? I’m here to support her.” He calls over the voices that are slowly going down in decibel.

They nod he knows it's a long shot but he has to take it, today was about you. To an extent Steve as well, given he was on the panel from HYDRA’s Publication House too.

Steve walks out next waving at the crowd, the cheers are deafening, flashes of the cameras ensue. He comes over smiling and hugs you.

The host gestures for the two of you to take your seats.

Yelena sits next to Bucky, Angel next to her.

After what Bucky had said to Yelena she hadn’t spoken to him more than required. However she was speaking a little more to you, which he appreciated.

The crowd begins to settle into silence as the crew checks for the mics and hands one each to Steve and you.

“Welcome Everyone!” The host cheers, “I’m Peter Quill, your host for this fine evening in literature. Though as an entertainment presenter I may not be qualified.” The crowd laughs, Peter grins.

“Now I can, however, ask right off the bat if these two have been having fun filming, I Think I Met You In My Dreams Once.”

The crowd cheers again, Steve laughs and you chuckle. Both smiling at the crowd.

“Are you having fun on the film set? Ms. Executive Producer?” Steve teases, you roll your eyes at him.

“When you aren’t taking too long in hair and make up, yes.”

“Hey, I’ve got to look great to bring your character to life.” Steve defends, raising a brow in challenge.

“You’re right, Beck did have his hair blow dried and then a pommade made with more spray to hold.” Your deadpan delivery makes Bucky laugh, Steve always was the worst when it came to his meticulous hair process. No matter the role this was always the case.

Steve rolls his eyes, “It’s all good fun.” He says with a smile.

The two of you turn back to Peter.

“Now, Y/N we heard some news that you broke Steve’s heart.” Peter tilts his head and gives you a knowing look.

“Oh yeah, he’s upset that my new book doesn’t have a character inspired by him.” You explain.

“I don’t wike it.” Steve pouts like a kid, slapping his hand on his thigh.

“Oh you know what I meant you smart lady.” Peter points a finger between the two of you.

Steve shakes his head, “Honestly man, let it go. We’re here to talk about books.”

“Right, right.” Peter shuffles through the cue cards.

Steve looks at you, you smile at him. Then your gaze shifts to Bucky. He smiles at you. Seeing him there cheering you on makes you beam brighter. Happiness coursing through you at having a partner support your endeavours so wholeheartedly.

“So Steve, do you plan to return to writing? Maybe a joint venture?” Peter gives yet another speculative look.

“Hmm maybe I could, you never know I do have one more book in my contract. I wonder if a murder mystery would be fun. Would you all read it? Though I mean I’d have to ask our favourite author for tips.” Steve looks at you then at the crowd they cheer in agreement.

“Murder mystery and fun?” Peter shudders, “I don’t know why chicks dig that.”

“Are you critiquing reading preferences, Quill?” Steve tuts, “in a room full of readers and writers established and budding. Damn.”

You shake your head disappointed at the judgement rolling off in waves from Quill.

“Oh come on you gotta think it's a little messed up.” He defends.

A chorus of boos ring.

“Depends on what morals you follow.” You chuckle when you hear a hoot, “Morally grey tends to be a favourite colour.”

“Rhys Bass! Baby!!!” A person calls out and everyone cheers.

“Llyod Hansen!” Another person exclaims.

Steve laughs, “I wouldn’t know where to place Llyod.”

“Oh trust me, we do.” You answer on behalf of everyone.

Bucky chuckles, Yelena looks at him.

“Are you on the spectrum of morally dark colours?” She whispers.

“Don’t think I am.” He laughs again.

The interview goes on, the questions get directed more towards Steve. Quill shoots the random question to you but they aren’t about your book.

Bucky’s hands are tight fists on his knees. What kind of blatant disrespect was going on?

Yelena sighs disappointed at the yet again horrible question,

‘Did you write the books because you felt sad you never had a long term boyfriend?’

‘How are the sex scenes so vivid?’

Bucky’s texting Sam, he wants to know everything there is to know about Peter Quill.

“So Y/N, tell us, do you feel insecure about a woman like you being given such a huge platform for your book? I mean you clearly knew what would sell and from having a plus sized character to instead having smoking hot Dolores playing—,”

“I want to stop you right there.” You raise your hand to gesture Peter to shut the fuck up, “Your questions are highly disrespectful, yes multiple of them are disrespectful. Look around this room, genuinely, everyone here is from different backgrounds, cultures and sizes. You don’t get to sit there and make comments or assumptions based on how I look. Also, there is more to Dolores than her looks.”

“Now you’re being rude, sweetheart, I’m just asking you simple questions.” Peter chastises, “It should be easy to answer.”

Bucky stands up, “And you’re an absolute gaslighting fucker.” He calls out.

“Bucky Barnes?” Quill laughs, “Nice to see you man.”

You shake your head, Steve looks at you then Bucky, finally to you.

“Do you want to punch him or should I?” Steve rhetorically speaks while standing, rolling back his sleeves.

“No, actually none of it. Everyone, I'm terribly upset that this event probably didn’t go as you wanted. I had big news I wanted to share but it seems Peter Quill can’t leave his investigative, intrusive, entertainment roots. Anyways to save Peter the trouble—,”

“Y/N.” Gidieon Mallick walks on stage cutting you off.

You look at him.

“Mr. Quill, please leave the stage. You’ve done horribly and not followed our given cue cards at all. Blatantly, disrespected one of our most prestigious authors. Ms. Y/N please be assured that you will be receiving an apology from him. Everyone, we will be taking a short break.” He announces, gesturing with his palm he asks you and Steve to follow him.

The two of you follow and the crowd breaks out into chatter, Bucky, Yelena and Angel head out towards the two of you.

You’re biting on your tongue while Gideon reprimands the interns and Peter Quill.

Bucky catches the tail end of the conversation.

“Absolute fucking atrocity! How can you go off script??” His skin tinged red as his anger grew. Steve rolls his eyes, as if this wasn’t what they wanted. Drama for more clout.

“I really am sorry.” Peter looks at Steve and you.

“Save it.” Steve says, grabbing your hand and leading you to your group.

“So Bucky and Steve standing up for you is going viral already.” Angel informs you to look at her tiredly and then at the floor.

“Are they going to talk about the new book?” You ask, she nods.

“The buzz is being generated enough, I’m hoping we can have no advance reader copies and the only sneak peeks that come are from you.” Yelena adds, you look at Bucky.

His scowl is trained on Quill. You move towards him, reaching for his hand.

“James.”

He recognises your tone, wanting him to dismiss the matter.

“Feather.” He warns you as well.

“Please?” You look up at him with a small pout.

Bucky melts, rapidly the anger leaving him, “Fine.” He chuckles as you grin, having won your way.

“Come here.” He says, tugging on your arm and you’re pulled against his chest. His arms wrapped around you, your shoulders drooped. Home. He’s home.

“You’re home.” You mumble.

Bucky kisses the top of your head.

“As we have discussed and contemplated, we’re in agreement. An in-store release will ensure more buzz.” Gideon and his team are all smiles.

Yelena looks at you then back at them, “Perfect, we’re glad we’re able to work in a way that caters to both the teams.”

“It always is a pleasure working with you Miss Belova.” He moves his hand forward, she meets him halfway.

“And Ms. Y/L/N we are positive the book is going to be a hit, our editor had some concerns but with the way HYDRA is climbing upwards we know this will only take us further on success.

“I sure hope so.” You smile beaming brightly.

“Well printing is well underway so we should have you start signing within the month for in store copies—,”

A chorus of phones chiming around the room occurs. Everyone’s devices in their hands. An intern swiftly moves to switch the TV on, the news reports flooding in,

“In a shocking revelation done by Peter Quill of Entertainment Today, he has uncovered the ongoing affair between Alexander Pierce and Actress Dolores. Sources wonder is this why she stays on projects even due to her diva behaviour? There is a thirty year age gap between them fans suspect predatory behaviour and the grooming of Dolores done by the decorated producer and owner of HYDRA—,”

The picture flashes and you have to clutch your hands tightly. It reminds you all too well of your own experience.

“Switch to HYDRA.” Gideon sneers, the intern scrambles to switch.

“In a horrible breach of privacy, our esteemed leader Alexander Pierce was found consoling a distraught Dolores and this story is being turned and twisted by entertainment tid bit and disgraced reporter Peter Quill, who, if you remember insulted Steve Rogers and Author Y/N Y/L/N publically at the announcement of her highly anticipated fourth book.” Sharon shakes her head disgusted at everything.

“We have reached out to Mr. Pierce and Dolores to find out from the source the matter and set the record straight.” She adds, “For now I will allow my team to take over coverage of the forest fire crisis ongoing in Los Angeles.”

“See, nothing to be worried about.” Gideon smoothens his tie, giving a tight lipped smile.

You nod.

“I’m sure Mr. Pierce will explain.” Yelena adds.

Peter Quill stares at the cops parading around his home and then the small little white powder bag they somehow found inside his home. He was good with this, never letting the party boy side of him touch the limelight in which he shined and thrived.

Now he was sitting in a room in the police department. A camera in the corner turned off for privacy with his lawyer.

“Mr. Quill, you have a phone call.” His lawyer hands him his phone.

“Hello?” Peter greets.

“Mr. Quill, I suggest you heed this warning.”

His eyes wide, the caller’s voice easily recognised.

“I was doing my job.” He defends, “I was sent—,”

“Peter, save yourself some dignity, I know other things about you as well. We don’t want those coming to light do we?” Alexander chuckles.

“N-no.”

“Alright then, I’m sure your lawyer will be able to handle this matter. Consider this a final warning, Mr. Quill. I do not like my privacy invaded and after today I’m sure you will agree.”

“Yes, Sir.”

“Good boy.”

Peter hands the phone back to his lawyer as the line goes dead.

“I hope you recorded that.” Peter says, his lawyer smiles.

“I always do.”

The dominos begin to fall.

The first being Dolores and Alexander’s speculated affair. No matter how many times the two clarified the situation people wouldn’t let go.

Edits of fans and experts of body language labelling Alexander as a predator. Dolores the victim.

You swallow thickly as almost all of the signed on creatives of HYDRA were ushered into the auditorium housed within the headquarters.

The issue was rapidly evolving and frankly getting out of hand. Interviews being stopped in the middle asking how the best of advocated actors, actresses, directors and producers are associated with this kind of man.

All of your social media feeds were drowning under the comments, some very horribly rude and outright attacking you on a personal level.

“I told you not to read them.” Bucky chastises from next to you. You tuck away your phone.

“I can’t ignore it already. The whole mandate of saying nothing is annoying me, countless people want him to be taken down.” You complained to him.

“I know it’s bothering me as well.” He sighs, grasping your hand gently, you feel the soft ridges of the metal as he rubs soothing circles onto the back of your hand.

You stare at the limbs, just wanting to lift his hand and kiss it. Just to see the sweet flush that would coat his cheeks. Just to see that shy smile of his, just to admire him.

“We’re in public.” He warns, reading your mind, “As much as I love you doting on me, I don’t think SHIELD—HYDRA,” He corrects himself, “can tolerate another piece of drama.” He snorts.

“Careful what you wish for,” Steve exhales loudly as he sits next to you, “dogs are sniffing around for something that might break the internet further than the current scenario.”

You roll your eyes, “What are they going to do? Have them release more photos, of others?”

“Possibly.” Steve gives an apologetic smile, “Angel’s heard conversation that maybe they might pitch the three of us being a throuple.”

“The fuck?” Bucky says, you groan.

“I don’t think we can take that news down like that.” You defend.

“Well, think about it, over time speculation has happened.” Steve says you and Bucky exchange a glance.

“People ship the two of us.” Bucky adds sharing a look with Steve.

“Oh god.” You press your palms against your face.

“This is not what I envisioned happening when I wrote Stucky x reader.” You mumble prompting Bucky to laugh.

“I did like the werewolf one.” Steve praises, Bucky chuckles, nodding in agreement.

Your head snaps towards Steve then Bucky.

“You.” You glare at your boyfriend.

“In my defence, Steve asked me about it first which is why I had to read it.” Bucky raises his hands.

You turn to Steve, “You.” your tone is hopefully menacing.

“Sorry.” The blonde says very unapologetically.

The microphone feedback makes everyone look up at the stage, the three of you in the secluded corner watch on as the legal head of HYDRA, Schmidt is standing at the podium.

“As you are aware of the recent negative light shed upon Mr. Alexander Pierce, we ask you all to check your emails for the social media statement that will be issued from all of your accounts over the next twenty four hours.” He concludes, hand running over his tie.

“We assure you that no predatory or grooming behaviour was done by Mr. Pierce.” He declares, “As you know a man of his stature and power will be cursed by the media and preyed upon by women who want money. Ms. Dolores has set the record straight and all will be well again for us. I hope there are no questions that would like to be asked by all of you.”

The silence just continues on, no one dares to say anything.

“Alright then, you’re all dismissed please post the message on your socials. It is mandatory on your contracts.” Schmidt completes then walks off stage.

“Fucking hell.” Natasha’s voice has the three of you turn.

“Nat, pleasantly surprised you didn’t skip out.” Steve smiles at her, she rolls her eyes.

“Mandatory meetings are all the fun.” She says, her gaze shifts to you.

You offer a small smile, she looks back into her phone. Bucky’s hand rests on your shoulder to offer comfort.

You look down at your phone, reading over the generic statement that provides a stance while saying you take no stance.

“Miss Y/N?”

Four pairs of eyes fall upon the intern as they clutch their folder tighter. You offer a smile.

“Yes?”

“Mr. Pierce would like to see you in his office. I’m supposed to escort you there immediately.” They say, you nod.

You feel Bucky tense behind you. His hand moving protectively to your shoulder. You place your hand upon his, “It’s just a meeting, I’ll call you okay?”

You turn to meet his gaze, still unconvinced.

“James.”

“I’ll wait for you.” He declares.

“As will I.” Steve adds.

Gathering your bag, you step to the aisle. Natasha grabs your arm, turning you.

“Since when?” She questions, green eyes trained on you, observing every little flicker of emotion running over your face. Through the cracks of your poker face.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Natasha.” You reply cooly, gently prying your arm out of her grip.

“Y/N.” Her jaw tightens, eyes narrowing as she doesn’t buy your lie.

“Nat,” Bucky calls out, distracting her enough to allow you a moment to slip away.

“Bucky, you better tell me.” You catch her words, Bucky meets your eyes across the auditorium.

Asking for your approval to tell her, you watch as Steve shakes his head. You look at Bucky, he gives a subtle shake as well. They’re against telling her.

You shake your head as well, exiting the auditorium.

The lift’s music seldom distracts you from the increased pounding of your heart. Each beat echoing across your form. You grip the support bar. Perspiration coating your palms.

The intern regards you with worry, a tight-lipped smile doesn’t ease their concern. The ding announces your arrival to the floor. On cue your phone rings, discreetly you answer it from your watch.

Bucky’s with you, he’s with you.

Alexander’s assistant beams at you, heading to open the door. Heels clicking and adding to the dread flowing through your veins.

He must know your plan.

He must know what you’re trying to do.

Dolores probably is his pawn.

Another betrayal.

Another fucking disaster.

You’d lose everything.

You’d lose Bucky.

Your mind is the worst enemy and the best friend you could have.

“Ah, there you are, have a seat.” Alexander says from the desk he’s perched upon, facing the chair he requests you to take.

You sit, placing your bag down and turning your watch face inward.

“I read through the manuscript, I think we have a hit on our hands.” He grins.

You smile, “Thank you.”

“Though towards the end, I see you changed the original direction you wanted to take, why is that?” His fingers drum along the mahogany table.

“Did you not like it?” You ask, he leans in closer prompting you to shift back. He smirks, eyes tracing over you.

“You don’t have to be afraid of me, sweetheart. What happened that night, is just insurance against your thoughts of insubordination towards me. Even if you would never, the thought can taint your mind.” He raises his hand, fingers stroking your cheek.

You cower back further, fingers tightly gripping the handles of the chair.

“This is why I prefer Dolores, always so easy to manipulate and bend to my will and fancy. The mouth on her. Such a good little fuck. I wonder if you…” He hums.

“Please don’t.” You whimper.

You feel him draw closer, “I won’t, as long as you keep your damn mouth shut. Now your little book’s rights are going to be bought but I’m going to sell them for a profit after the launch.” He shifts away walking to the drink cart.

You watch him pour himself a drink.

“I’ll provide you with a percentage to take care of your mother. After all, we're a family here at HYDRA.” He grins, you nod, “How is she?”

“Doing better on the new medication regime.” You answer, his smile turns menacing.

“Good, you wouldn’t do anything to jeopardise that, would you?” He questions your integrity.

“I won’t let anything happen to HYDRA.” You say, it pleases him.

“Good, now run along. I’m eager to have you personally sign my copy once the printed books come out.” Alexander gestures with his hand for you to go out of the office.

You scramble away, only when the elevator doors close do you breathe easier as the floors increase between Alexander and you. The doors open at the parking level.

You’re tucked into the corner of the elevator.

Bucky stands there, gaze trained upon you as you stand supported by the railing. He steps onto the elevator.

Covering the distance to you, pulling you to his chest. Your hands move to wrap around his shoulders.

He sighs once you’re safe in his arms, with him. Gently he cradles your jaw, making you look up at him. Stroking your skin with his thumb. His lips press to your forehead. Then brush over your lips.

The doors open again,

“Holy fuck!” The camera flashes.

Bucky turns, lips no longer against your own he presses for the close door button but the paparazzi block it with their lenses and feet keep the doors pried open.

You grab onto his jacket to prevent him from lashing out at them. Your phone chimes. Bucky looks down at the screen as well.

From: A. Pierce

You two can’t keep a secret, allow me to tell the world on your behalf.

Unless you would prefer another few secrets revealed.

Bucky looks back at your face, your hands shake. He closes his eyes, this is not what he wanted. Not how he wanted to reveal to the world he was yours.

“Feather.” His voice anchors you over the increased roaring of the paps.

You look up, “James.”

Soft lips press to yours, you close your eyes, allowing Bucky to guide you. Your palm cupping his cheek.

You knew this kiss was his apology, his admission, his pain, his acceptance, his plea, his protection and his love.

Bucky hopes you feel all that he wants to say to you. He hopes he hasn’t disappointed you, he hopes you understand.

When you kiss him back, his shoulders sag with relief.

He turns you away from their prying eyes, shielding you with his body. The security finally pulls the paps back allowing the doors to close.

Bucky’s forehead rests against yours, you want to cry. This is not how the two of you envisioned the world knowing.

Another moment stolen away.

“I’m so sorry.” He whispers, you only hug him tighter, hiding away yourself against his chest.

Everyone on set regarded you differently. The crew whispered as the new couple passed by, Bucky holding your hand not letting go. He leads the two of you to the breakfast table.

Steve, Loki, and Ace are waiting for you at the table.

Natasha watched from afar, Maria shaking her head disappointedly.

“What?” Nat questioned.

“I hate when Alexander does this, uses the personal lives of people to his own gain.” Maria sighs.

“What do you mean?”

“The news with Dolores broke, I was with Alexander and Nick. Instead of trying to have things be smoother or address it. He wanted to know if anything was going on between them on set. Pulled information off of a crew member.” She explains.

Nat’s gaze moves to the two of you, you both had been careful. She made sure you would get moments tucked away with Bucky. The senior staff are bound by ironclad NDAs. Though Alexander could have pressured anyone.

The world hadn’t been kind. Questioning Bucky’s choice as well as your own.

Then they’d say it was perfect, a broken imperfect man with an imperfect broken woman.

Kind words lost amongst the sea of horrible words. So much so you had deleted the apps from your phone.

Bucky had hoped to spare you from this part of his life. He knew you could take negative reviews or critique for your books.

Over the past days he saw you reading everything discreetly. He wiped your tears, had you wipe his own.

You knew people could be horrible, you’d seen it. Now you were living it.

Reclusiveness had turned into a better option, words that you had learned to handle were overwhelming.

You missed interacting with fans, they supported you. Several supporting your relationship, defending it as well from the haters and trolls.

Sam wanted the two of you to issue statements or do an interview. Bucky was against it, the two of you were together, some would like it and several wouldn’t, he only cared about your wellbeing. If you wanted to speak to the world he would speak with you.

For now he was supporting you in the chaos to which you were newly introduced towards. The move had helped Alexander no longer an article floated about his pictures with Dolores.

“Imagine if it was the throuple thing?” Steve jokes, Loki glares at him.

“Then you two would have to take turns cheering me up.” You add, Bucky snorts.

“She’s making horny jokes, she’s really upset.” Ace remarks.

Loki shakes his head, “I thought horny jokes were her forte.”

“They are, dirty fucking mind.” Bucky chuckles, you poke his cheek.

“You love it.”

“I do.” He kisses your cheek.

“I’m happy though, you don’t have to shy away.” They grin, you smile.

“Yeah it has its perks, not hiding.” You shrug then look behind Ace at Nat.

“I want to speak to the two of you.” She says, “In private.”

Bucky shares a look with you, the two of you follow Nat to her trailer. She locks it, a determined expression on her face.

“Alexander was informed by a crew member about the two of you. I know we were discreet and we did everything we could to keep prying eyes away.” She states,

“I think it’s one of the core cast, Dolores yes but she already has everything on her plate. You two need to reevaluate the friendships forged.”

“Why are you worried?” Bucky raises a brow asking on your behalf, the two sisters had made their stances clear only wanting professional relationships with you.

Nat exhales, “For whatever reason, you both are withholding information from me. When I asked Yelena and she kept her mouth sealed shut too, I understood it ran deeper than a surface level issue.”

You seek out Bucky’s hand for comfort, his thumb strokes over your tattoo. He knew the action grounded you as well.

“I want to apologise for the way I’ve acted, pushing you away. Being rude and frankly the opposite of the friendship I found with you.” She shakes her head disappointed at herself.

“Nat…” you don’t know what to say to her.

“I’m not seeking instant forgiveness. I know it will take time to repair things. I just, I know how he can be and yet I thought you were after the money.”

You wince.

“I’m sorry, I really am, I just want to get to the bottom of who is behind telling Alexander.” She presses, watching as Bucky and you share another glance.

“Look it was bound to happen, and we already have a plan to smoke the leak out.” He grins, you giggle.

Natasha regards the two of you perplexed by the positive attitude, a stark contrast to the way the two of you have behaved over the past few days.

This was the next domino, have the public find out about the two of you. Dolores had been on your side, she wasn’t blabbing that much you knew, because the story was to be about the throuple with Steve and Bucky if it came from Dolores.

This much was sure that Alexander was being overly cautious. Which meant he would want to keep an eye on everything, which meant he would slip up.

“Well, if you need me to do anything, let me know.” She adds, you nod at her.

“I need you to continue being mean and reserved, I have to tell different people different things you said to us here.” You let her in on the plan.

“So just continue the way you are and we can always meet up privately.” Bucky shrugs at her.

“It's good seeing you this happy, Barnes.” She smiles at him, “You take care of her.”

“I’m trying every day.” His blue eyes gaze down at you, softening as he regards you being there in his life. Being his happiness, adding to it.

“You succeed everyday.” Your eyes find his warmth spreading through your chest at the love you feel just from his gaze.

“Alright then, now before the clothes come off, please leave.” Nat gestures to the two of you out the door.

“Bye, Natasha–,”

“Nat.” She corrects you trying to undo one step.

“Nat, I’ll see you on set.”

She smiles as do you.

—-div

“Alright, we’re going to move in on Pierce tomorrow.” Darcy informs the three of you.

“We want you all in a safer public space.” Scott adds, “I believe your book launch is placed appropriately?”

You nod, “It's in place.”

It had been almost a month and a half now since the book was cleared into printing. The movie schedule was constantly thrown off by Dolores to aid with the case’s timeline.

Prompting Natasha to keep asking you to step in over and over so they could shoot the opposite cast’s scenes.

The leak was in place tonight, the book had to tank. It was the only way you’d be able to free yourself.

Andy and Matt were working hard on finding loopholes for Bucky and Steve. Most of the ways out however involved paying their way out. Signing another set of contracts that cut off their ways of income and working in the industry.

“We have a lot of evidence against him, it will be a process to go through. Given his position and influence we anticipate a bail. However we anticipate travel restrictions so that he cannot flee the state or country.” Darcy takes a deep inhale then exhales slowly.

“We have one chance. One. Are you three sure you want to come forward with everything he’s put you through? There are other victims who have said yes and others who have said no. We will not force you, you need to make this decision on your own.” She waits, observing the three of you.

“I’ve been waiting a long time.” Dolores says, “I want him to rot and if he dies that's great too.”

“I’m in.” you answer. Everyone turns to the woman on the left.

“We’ll take him down.” Maria Hill promises.

The crowd is still there surprisingly despite the overnight leak. The night was filled with caffeine and chaos. A lot of people had downloaded the book based on the numbers Yelena had observed.

Social media was in an uproar. People who read the leaked version, divided in opinion. Goodreads was getting reviews based on the leaks and trying to disregard them or block those to stop prompting readers to be tempted to read the book.

Several accounts who made it their life’s mission to hate on you because Bucky was off the market were sharing download links to tank your ratings and for once you wanted them to not get blocked off.

The outfit for today was cream pants that hugged your curves, paired with a navy top which was low cut but in a way that gave nothing away. It was teasing enough for Bucky. You chuckle remembering his expression at the fitting.

Bucky stands before you with a small box in his hands. You raise a brow. It was five minutes till you had to go out to face the crowd at the bookstore signing.

“Just, I had this made as a ‘happy book launch day’ gift.” Bucky swallows a sudden nervousness taking over him.

“James, why are you nervous?” Your palm cups his cheek.

The red flush takes over his features. He gnaws at his bottom lip, “I just—, I’m wondering if this was a good idea, I mean not the giving you a gift but the gift itself.”

“James—,”

“I just, I hope you like it and I know you don’t like the whole materialistic aspect so I tried to combine the emotional aspect too—,”

“Baby,” you place your free hand right over his sternum feeling his heartbeat against your palm, “I’m going to love whatever you have in that box. And the fact that you put so much thought into it? I already love it.”

A smile breaks out across his features, the crinkles by his eyes enhanced and pure joy radiating from him. Handing you the box he moves to hold you by your waist, watching as you open it.

The velvet is soft and you see a soft glimmer as the gift catches the light. He takes your gasp as a good sign, his nerves begin to settle.

Across the box, lays a necklace, the pendant shaped like a quill, an exact replication of your tattoo. The shaft of it has a line of diamonds that reflect in the light. You look up at your man, not understanding why tears are gathering in your eyes.

“It’s beautiful.” You whisper, “I love it, James… Thank you.”

Bucky leans in brushing the escaped tear away from your cheek with his lips, “May I put it on you?”

You nod, he gently takes the necklace from the box, moving behind you. He meets your gaze in the mirror. The soft metal touches your skin and he watches the pendant shift as he decides the perfect length to wear it upon.

His fingertips trace along the nape of your neck to your shoulders. Bucky presses his lips to the crook of your neck, “Perfect even better than how I envisioned it.”

Your hand moves to his hair, running your fingers through it as you turn your head to kiss him. Warm hands encircle around your waist yet again holding you close.

Slowly your lips part, Bucky groans, watching the piece of jewellery nestle over your sternum drawing his eyes to your breasts.

All too soon he has you pushed against the wall, lips latched to yours as his hands explore your body, cupping your breast and palming it. You whimper onto his tongue. It only urges him on.

There is a knock on the door, “I hope y'all are decent.” Sam hopes to the heavens above.

You make a displeased sound as Bucky pulls away from you, gently setting your legs down from where they were around his waist.

“Patience, Feather.” He whispers, your hands roam over his chest.

“What is it Sam?” He questions, blue eyes trained on your seemingly innocent face.

You know the warning look. You don’t heed it. Your hands move to his belt buckle. To you Sam’s voice already drowned out.

“Feather.” Bucky hisses as your index finger trails over his growing erection.

“Don’t you want to see me just in the necklace?” You look up at him, pushing the fabric lower, allowing yourself to give him slow gentle pumps.

Bucky’s hands come to rest on the wall on either side of your head, caging you in. You bite your lip, his eyes turning towards the stormy blue you loved, not the kind out of his anger but the kind born out of you making him unravel, turning him feral, needy.

Bucky’s flesh hand grasps your neck. The thoughts begin to fly out the window from your mind.

“Feather, don’t start something you won’t finish because if I have to take over. Everyone will know just by your stride that you got fucked in the green room by your man.” He squeezes gently, your palm squeezes his length.

“You’re my good girl aren’t you?”

You nod.

“Words Feather, my good girl uses her words, even if she’s being a needy little brat.” He chuckles, if you turned him needy and feral for you he knew how to do the same to you.

“Yes, your good girl.” You answer.

You watch as he leans in, his breath fanning across your face, you just want to taste him.

“Can you both not?” Sam groans, “I cannot with you both right now, Y/N, you have to be out in five minutes. Stop letting him seduce you.”

Bucky closes his eyes, you giggle as he withdraws his hand from your throat.

“Feather, I know it's yours but you gotta let go of my dick please.”

“Oh, oh,” your skin heats as you retract your hand helping him get decent.

“For the record, you seduced me.” He narrows his eyes at you.

“Hey, we both know you probably thought of me naked with only the necklace on before I suggested it.”

His mouth hangs open, sputtering to cover up the clear truth. You cover your mouth to stop laughing out loud. Bucky shakes his head, a bemused grin on his lips.

The door is opened to a disappointed Sam and Yelena staring at the two of you. Their arms crossed.

“Just wanted to wish her good luck.” Bucky defends.

“Right, and does that involve your fly being open?” Sam raises a brow, Bucky scrambles turning around then huffs.

“It isn’t—,” he shuts up at Sam’s stern expression.

Yelena raises her phone to her ear, “She’ll be out in thirty seconds.”

Bucky pulls you close, lips pressing against yours in a quick kiss.

“Good luck, Feather. Once we’re back home I’m going to tell you the reason behind your nickname.” He kisses you again, leaving you breathless grasping onto his shoulders.

“Th-thanks.” You squeak out, he squeezes your ass, your eyes widen, skin heating, “J-James!”

He only gives a wink coupled with a cheeking grin. As he follows Sam out you watch him walk backwards laughing at your befuddlement.

“Ready?” Yelena questions, offering her hand to you as she always did, walking with you till it was your turn to venture alone.

You grasp her hand, nodding, “As I’ll ever be.”

There is a chorus of cheers when Yelena walks out to introduce your arrival. You spot Bucky, Sam and your mother sitting in a section reserved for family. It makes your chest warm seeing that area occupied finally.

When you step out it’s as surreal as the first time, the cheers, the squeals, the happiness of your readers infectious.

The first two hours are a blur of writing names, interacting, hearing the reader’s theories for the book and maybe a snippet of your next one. You take a sip of water as the line is held back for a moment.

You grab the sharpie as the line begins again,

“Hi, thank you for coming out to see me today—,” your mouth dries when you look up at the figure towering over you.

“If you could make that out to Alexander Pierce, that would be great.” Alexander smiles at you.

“A-alexander?” You find your heart plummet, he was supposed to be behind bars by now.

He pushes the book across the desk. Nudging your frozen hands into action. Opening the book you write down, his name,

“How about a sweet message?” He raises a brow, “I am your boss after all.”

“I um, sure.”

To Alexander Pierce,

Your actions speak louder than my words, which is why people can hold them in their hands.

Regards,

Y/N

He peers at the message, eyes narrowing then he smiles. He parts his mouth about to speak when you watch him descend onto your table headfirst.

You shift back standing, the chair plummets to the floor.

Darcy Lewis and Scott Lang stand behind Alexander, pressing him down on the table and extending his hands to cuff him.

“Alexander Pierce, you’re being placed under arrest for multiple charges of sexual assault, blackmailing, non consensual administration of narcotics, and financial embezzlement.” Darcy speaks clearly, her voice ringing above the bookstore’s clamour.

Alexander struggles in the grasp, “You’re making a grave mistake, Agent.”

“You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.” She says, Alexander’s gaze locks on you.

“You opened your mouth, didn't you? If I come to know you have, I’m going to ruin your life. You fat fucking slut.” He roars, Darcy presses his shoulders down to prevent him from getting up.

Bucky’s cologne suddenly surrounds you. You look up, only to see his chin. He has you tucked against his chest protectively placing his arms around you.

“You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. Do you understand the rights I have just read to you?” She waits for his response which is only laughter.

“Oh Agent, you’re all going to regret this, don’t you know who I am?” He sneers.

Darcy rolls her eyes, “Alexander Pierce, do you understand the rights I have just read to you?”

“I do.” He seethes, “I want my fucking legal team.”

“We will contact them.” Scott says, they lift him up from the desk, he looks at Bucky. Anger coursing through his body.

“I warned you Barnes. Now you will know the consequences.” The older man spits out.

Bucky makes sure you cannot look at Alexander, palm blocking your head’s movement.

“Are you threatening me? Mid arrest? I haven’t done anything to you Alexander. I have always respected you.” Bucky speaks, Alexander’s anger only grows, he’s dragged out.

The bookstore grows quiet. Eerily so, the cameras still held up despite the FBI retreating and leaving.

Bucky gently shifts from you, still holding your hands within his own. You regard the entire store only hoping the threats he made will reach online so they can be used in court as well.

“Everyone I am so sorry, the event will have to be postponed to a later date. Those who did not get a chance to interact will have their tickets refunded. You will retain your book and the signing will take place at a later date.” A representative from HYDRA announces.

Bucky leads you back inside the green room. Sam and your mom are already watching the news unfold on his iPad.

She looks up at you demanding an explanation.

“I’ll explain later, mum—,”

“What did he do to you?” She cuts you off.

“Mum,” you swallow the lump forming in your throat.

Her eyes move onto Bucky, “Why was he threatening you? You were supposed to take care of her.”

He kneels in front of her, “I regret it everyday that I couldn’t protect her.”

“Mom it isn’t Bucky’s fault.” You sit next to Bucky grasping her other hand, “I’ll tell you everything. Just you cannot blame anyone but Alexander okay?”

She regards the two of you, Sam shifts, “I’ll make sure the three of you have some privacy.”

He walks out, shutting the door behind him.

“Alright, tell me and no covering anything or hiding any details. I may be sick but I’m not weak.” She warns, “I didn’t mean to blame you Bucky, I just, she’s my only child.”

“I know, I just, when I saw her that night, I blamed myself. I should have known better.” He sighs, you grab his hand with your free one.

“We’ll tell you everything, if it becomes too much tell us to stop and we will.” He requests of her.

“You will do the same.” She says, the two of you nod.

HEADLINES:

Alexander Pierce Arrested At Signing Of Author Y/N’s Fourth Book

Dolores Looks Sombre Exiting The FBI Branch

Bucky Barnes, Steve Rogers and Other HYDRA Creatives Come Out In Support Of Long List Of Victims Of Alexander Pierce’s Abuse

‘This Is A Shock To Me’ Says Ace In Recent Interview Praising Alexander Pierce

Author Y/N Continues Book Signings Amidst Ongoing Court Case — How Exactly Harrowing Was The Ordeal If She Can Function Normally?

Brock Rumlow Arrested In Conjunction With Charges Pressed Against His Uncle

HYDRA Projects All Come To Standstill As Crews Organise Protests To Support Victims Os Sexual Assault.

Bucky Barnes And Y/N Y/L/N Spotted Getting Cozy At His Favourite Restaurant, Onlooker Spills The Beans On Their Conversation.

A.N.: so the queue didn't work and i had other one shots as well prepped but nothing went through so i manually reedited everything since i lost most of it unfortunately, i hope you guys enjoy the chapter, i know sometimes its fast paced compared to slowburn, we're nearing the end of it

Taglist is Open comment or DM to be added!

Taglist: @stevesmewmew @elle14-blog1 @crazyunsexycool @sebsgirl71479 @pandaxnienke @slutforsexyseabass @eclecticpatrolroadlawyer @pandaxnienke @vampire7595 @buckyinluv

76 notes · View notes