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thirsty4villains · 2 years ago

Text

Bound | A Loki x Reader fic

Rating: E

Warnings: Eventual smut, human sacrifice, mentions of torture, blood and injury, violence, angst

Tags: slow burn, romance, fix-it, canon divergence of Avengers Infinity War/Endgame, humor, limited use of Y/N, action, sharing a bed

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Read on AO3 | Wattpad

Summary:

A year has passed since the Snap. As you look to find a fresh start in life, you end up in the wrong place at the wrong time. A small cult dedicated to the newly revitalized Norse religion chooses you as a sacrifice with the belief that this will give Thor and the other gods the strength to undo what Thanos has done. What you don’t know is that human sacrifices come with a powerful magic �� those who are sacrificed become linked with the god they have been given to.

It’s been a millennia since a human was sacrificed to one of the gods. You’ve been bound to Loki.

CHAPTER 17

You

“WHERE IS LOKI?” You screamed, tearing through the halls of Folkvangr to find Odin and Frigga.

Your shouts caused Vikings to peek their heads out of their bedroom doors. Heads following you down the hallway.

“Odin! Frigga! I need you NOW!” You fought the tears that were stinging your eyes. He had left you. He had put you to sleep and left you here after you expressly asked him not to. You went through all of this together and he left you. And all he had to say for it was a note with two words on it.

You had no clue how long you’d been asleep for, but judging by the light outside it didn’t look like it’d been long. But that probably didn’t matter considering Loki was probably back on Earth right now. Odin must have let him leave – he relayed the message from Idunn, after all, about her apples. He wouldn’t have done that if he didn’t intend to allow Loki to defeat Thanos.

You should have predicted this from the god of mischief, that he would pull one over on you. Loki didn’t take kindly to hearing no. Normally, it would make your heart soar to know that he cared so deeply for you, to leave you behind in order to keep you safe. But right now you were too pissed. You went through all of this together and you were expecting to see it through to the end with him.

Running down the halls, you continued to call Odin’s name. You checked his throne room, the dining room, and so far, no results. This blasted place was too big. Then, you remembered you didn’t have to run all over the place; you could conjure portals. Perhaps you’d find him easier then.

Despite your anger, you found a way to calm yourself momentarily and willed yourself to different parts of Valhalla. After a handful of tries, you entered the courtyard and found the Allfather sitting on a bench, talking to a raven perched on his arm.

The magic took more wind out of you than the running did, but you ignored that. You could rest later. After stepping through the portal you approached the Allfather. The raven on his arm turned its head to you and squawked, taking off from Odin’s arm and flying away into a nearby tree. Odin straightened the golden sleeve of his robe and addressed you.

“I hear quite a ruckus you’re causing through my halls, girl. I’ve already received some complaints,” he said calmly.

You stopped in your tracks. “You knew I was looking for you?”

“It would be quite hard not to know,” the Allfather replied.

“Odin, please. The more time I waste, the more likely Loki gets into trouble. I need to be there because if there’s any way I can help –”

“I’m sorry, but I cannot help you get to Earth. We swore to him that we would keep you here, safe.”

“We?”

“Frigga, Heimdall, and myself.”

You groaned angrily. The raven in the tree crowed three times like it was laughing at you. You’d heard stories about Odin and his ravens. They were intelligent creatures; his messengers. It probably heard and understood everything right now. You ignored the bird.

“So, you can’t help me,” you said, deflated.

“I made a promise to my son,” Odin replied. He gave you a sad look, like he wished he could help.

You sighed. “Fine, then I’ll find a way to get to him myself.”

Loki

Each of the Avengers were split into teams to recover the six Infinity Stones. Loki was assigned to go with Thor and Rocket back to 2013 to recover the Reality Stone in Asgard. Loki was on this mission partially because he knew his way around Asgard, but mostly because the heroes expected Thor to keep his brother in line. It took a lot of convincing to allow Loki to go back in time at all. Steve, Clint, Natasha, and Tony put their collective foot down because they believed the last thing they should be doing is allowing Loki to go back and meddle with time.

However, Thor eventually calmed their nerves and convinced them that Loki was being genuine, and reminded them of all he went through to get here. It helped a little, but still did not completely calm their nerves to put so much trust in the trickster god. As a compromise, they agreed on a magic-suppressing brace to be placed around Loki’s neck. Getting the brace on Loki also took a lot of convincing from Thor.

“They’ll only allow me to travel backward in time if I wear a collar?” Loki asked, taking a step back from his brother.

“Come on, Criss Angel, just put the brace on and we can go,” Tony said. He held the contraption in his hands.

The god of mischief eyed Tony up and down, eyes squinted. He looked between Tony, the collar, and his brother. He didn’t care so much about his magic being suppressed – well, he did, but he could deal with it. Loki more didn’t trust the fact that Stark created this contraption. For all he knew, it could be a trick because they still didn’t trust him. Maybe it also meant to subdue him, or control him, or something worse.

“Come on, Loki. Take too long and we’ll just leave you here. What’s it gonna be?” Natasha asked.

The god groaned. He approached Stark and held out his hand. “Fine, give me the damned thing.”

“I have to affix it myself,” Tony said.

“Of course,” the god remarked sarcastically. “Then get to it, and watch how tightly you put it on.”

Stark pulled apart the collar so he could fit it around Loki’s neck. “Don’t try anything funny, you hear?”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.” Loki rolled his eyes.

Tony stepped up to Loki and fit it around Loki’s neck. He snapped it closed, pulled out a device from his pocket, and pressed a button. A noise sounded from the brace much similar to the one of a car being locked.

“Heh, Loki’s his bitch now,” Clint remarked to Natasha, who had a smirk on her face.

“The indignity,” Loki muttered under his breath.

The god felt the connection to his magic to grow weaker. He could cast, it just would not be very strong magic as per Stark’s words. Loki also disliked the touch of cold metal on his neck, but other than that he was able to move his head around freely. His thoughts felt coherent and his senses were as sharp as ever – still, he didn’t trust any device created by Stark intended for him.

“Shall we?” Loki asked with mock eagerness. He was more than ready to get the Infinity Stone if it meant he could remove this accursed thing.

After some more teasing was had, the heroes got into their suits to prepare to travel through space-time. Each individual was given their vials of Pym Particles. Then, it was time to make the journey.

In their suits of red and white, the heroes stepped up onto the platform of the machine that would allow for them to pass back in time. The three scientists had worked tirelessly on this project, and it was finally time to put it to the test. The setting sun shone through the windowed-wall, illuminating the room in a warm golden glow. Wires, briefcases, boxes, and other various items were strewn about everywhere, showcasing just how much hard work was put into creating this device and how many hours, resources, and ideas were thrown at this thing.

With Bruce behind the control panel, at the helm, it was time. Everyone on the platform outstretched their arms toward the center as a gesture of solidarity.

Steve spoke, addressing each person in the room. His face was stony, yet hopeful.

“Five years ago we lost. All of us. We lost friends, we lost family… We lost a part of ourselves. Today we have a chance to take it all back. You know your teams, you know your missions. Get the stones, get them back. One round-trip each. No mistakes, no do-overs. Most of us are going somewhere we know – that doesn’t mean we should know what to expect. Be careful, look out for each other. This is the fight of our lives, and we’re gonna win. Whatever it takes. Good luck.”

“He’s pretty good at that,” Rocket remarked, glancing up at Scott.

“Right?” he replied, jabbing his thumb toward the man who gave the incredible, yet solemn, pep talk.

“I’ve heard worse,” Loki remarked, glancing at the first Avenger with a sly smile.

“Alright, you heard the man. Stroke those keys, Jolly Green,” Tony spoke.

“Tracking’s engaged,” Bruce spoke, tapping the keys on the console. One last button, and he joined the rest of the heroes on the platform. He hit the back of his wrist, engaging his suit.

“See you in a minute,” Natasha said, a giddy smile on her face.

The machine whirred. The hundreds of metal pieces on the ceiling moved and swirled, then expanded wider and wider. Below their feet a large, orange hole opened up, not much unlike the portals Loki conjured himself. It grew bigger until it reached the size of the platform’s floor, and each person was sucked inside.

Loki, Thor, and Rocket Raccoon split off from the rest of the group, traveling through the quantum realm. It reminded Loki of the Bifrost, yet stranger. Colorful, but not as vibrant. They weaved in and out of different timelines until finally they were brought to Asgard, one decade prior.

As always, Asgard stood brilliantly, the rays of its sun bounced off the golden palace; a beacon of power, wealth, and prosperity. They weren’t far from the palace. Just a few minute’s walk. Surrounding the three heroes was a square of hustling Asgardians, buying their bread for the day, or talking to friends they happened to run into. Beautiful marble buildings adorned the streets of homes, businesses, and libraries.

“Nice place,” Rocket noted, staring up at the impossibly high pillars and statues of Asgard’s mighty structures.

“Just don’t steal anything,” Loki replied.

“I wasn’t gonna! Okay, maybe just pick a pocket or two...”

“Stick to the plan, creature,” the god said.

“We’ve already been over this. I. Am not. A creature,” Rocket said angrily. He made sure to enunciate the word ‘creature.’

“We don’t have time for this,” Thor interjected. “Come on.”

Thor led the way, with his brother and Rocket in tow. At the moment, Jane was kept in a room for protection while the Reality Stone resided within her. Rocket held the device created by Stark that would pull the stone out of Jane’s body.

They creeped past the dungeons. Rocket pointed at Loki in a cell, flipping a metal cup in the air while he laid in bed.

“Is that you?” he addressed present Loki.

“Yes,” Loki said, stopping for a moment. He took a step forward, glimpsing at his past self. “Did I really look like that?”

“I dunno, I think you look just as ugly now,” Rocket shrugged.

“You two, come on!” Thor whisper-shouted.

They continued on their way, making it through the dungeons and just now entering the hallways of the palace. The three ensured they were concealed as they discussed the next steps.

“Here’s the deal, tubby,” Rocket said, addressing Thor. “You’re gonna charm her, I’m gonna poke her with this thing and extract the Infinity Stone and get gone lickety-split.”

Suddenly, Thor shuffled to the other side of the pillar he was hiding behind. Rocket and Loki ducked behind a nearby one. In one of the nearby corridors, the Allmother was walking with some of her handmaidens, instructing them to bring Loki food and books to his cell. She was wearing a turquoise dress and shoes, and her hair was put up elegantly; all exactly the way she was when the princes saw her last, before Maliketh’s attack.

Rocket spoke. “Who’s the fancy broad?”

“That’s my mother…” Thor spoke just above a whisper, his voice croaking. “She dies today.”

“Oh… That’s today?”

“Yes,” Loki said. “Brother, I met mother, you know. In Valhalla.”

Thor looked to his brother. “You did?”

“Yes. She’s okay. She’s with father. They’re in Valhalla together, as they were meant to be.”

Thor became silent. His eyes wandered in another direction, thinking to himself. After a moment he nodded his head.

“I’m glad,” he said silently. The god of thunder cleared his throat a few times. “Thank you, Loki. That makes me feel better.”

“Let’s go get that Infinity Stone, then,” Rocket said, motioning his head toward Jane’s room.

As planned, Thor went to see Jane and distract her while Rocket stuck her with the device that would extract it out of her. Loki, disguised as a guard with his illusion magic, relieved another guard of his post and waited outside the door until they were done.

It was quick, and then the three of them all warped themselves back to the present. They appeared at the Avengers compound, back on the platform of the time machine. Within milliseconds, every other team warped back as well. They were gone for what probably was hours, but came back literal seconds later. The sun setting over the horizon hadn’t budged an inch. It was strange, it almost didn’t feel real.

There was celebration when everyone returned with their assigned Stones. Earth’s Mightiest Heroes were one step closer to achieving what should be impossible. But the celebration was short-lived when Clint came back without Natasha. His face was gaunt and his eyes held anger, loss, and despair. He was shaking. When he was finally able to compose himself, he explained what had to be done to gain the Soul Stone.

Loki, Rocket, Nebula, Rhodey, and Scott let them take their time to grieve. In the meantime, they quietly went about their business. Loki used this time to sharpen his daggers. Even though he barely knew Natasha – in fact, they weren’t on great terms at all considering he threatened and attempted to kill her during the attack on New York – Loki did hold respect for her as a warrior and even as a trickster. He didn’t know her, but the loss indeed was great.

His thoughts wandered from the loss of Natasha to the loss of you. To his dismay, Loki kept replaying the moment in his head over and over of the moment the fire giant ship shut its doors and he was forced to watch them take you away. He also kept thinking about when Jorun held you in his grip a second time and grinned as he burned your skin, taunting Loki to make his next move. These thoughts haunted him, and they were the reason why he could not allow you to come with. You were fragile, soft, and too good. He’d already lost you once before and he’d be damned if he let it happen again. It pained him to deceive you like that. At that moment, he wanted nothing more than to make love to you – but unfortunately it was the perfect time to take his leave. That’s when lies are most effective, when trust is in the equation.

He just hoped you could find it in you to forgive and trust him again.

When they returned back to the compound Loki said a few words to Clint about how commendable Natasha was as a warrior. He nodded solemnly. Although it was clear the Avengers, and Clint especially, needed more time to truly process their grief, it was time to get the plan moving.

Since the Infinity Gauntlet no longer existed to channel the stones, the heroes created their own version of it using Stark technology. Now that all six stones were in their possession, they could put their gauntlet to use. The scientists carefully inserted the Infinity Stones into the Nano Gauntlet, and all six gems of infinite power glowed in their places, five on each knuckle and the mind stone on the back of the hand.

Loki held two once – but all six, that kind of power was unfathomable. And he would take it for himself if the circumstances were different.

It was time now to choose who would use the gauntlet.

“It’s gotta be me,” Bruce said, interrupting Thor and Tony’s conversation. Thor was insisting on being the one to wield it, but sighed and stepped back.

“You saw what those stones did to Thanos,” he continued. “Almost killed him. None of you could survive.”

Bruce approached the Nano Gauntlet.

“How do we know you will?” Steve asked.

“I don’t, but the radiation’s mostly gamma,” Bruce replied. “It’s like… I was made for this.”

Bruce picked it up, cradling the gauntlet in his arms as gently as possible.

“Good to go, yeah?” Tony asked, glancing up at Bruce with folded hands. His eyes were worried, caring, and determined all at the same time. It was really about to happen.

“Let’s do it,” Bruce said.

“‘Kay, remember, everyone Thanos snapped away five years ago, just bring them back to now, today,” Tony instructed. “Don’t change anything from the last five years.”

“Got it.”

Each of the heroes readied themselves for the power surge that the gauntlet would create. Steve put up his shield, each of the armored heroes activated their helmets, Thor stood in front of Rocket, and Tony employed his Stark energy shield to protect Clint.

Loki protested, “Hello? May someone undo this brace from my neck already? Preferably before he snaps his fingers?”

Tony cleared his throat. “F.R.I.D.A.Y., deactivate Loki’s brace.”

“Deactivated,” the artificial intelligence spoke neutrally.

The brace unlocked and fell from Loki’s neck. He caught it and threw it to the nearest garbage can. A loud thunk was heard as the collar hit the bottom of the bin.

“That’s a fifty-thousand dollar collar that you just threw in the trash,” Tony said.

One of Stark’s many robotic helper hands activated and fished the brace out of the garbage. It placed it back on the table in the center of the room.

“Wasn’t a fan,” Loki replied dryly.

“Alright, for real this time,” Bruce said impatiently. He looked at Loki before addressing the rest of the room. “Everyone ready? It’s time.”

“Yes, yes,” Loki said.

Helmets and shields were put back up, Thor stood in front of Rocket, and Loki - now with magic back at full power - conjured a transparent blue bubble around himself.

Bruce and Tony nodded at one another.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y., do me a favor and activate ‘Barn Door’ protocol, will ya?”

“Yes, boss,” the AI responded. Each opening and window in the room, and in the entire building, was barred by thick, metal walls to protect the outside world from what may happen.

“Everyone comes home,” Bruce said under his breath, and prepared to slide his hand into the gauntlet, which rearranged the metal pieces to his size. The gauntlet grew bigger and bigger until it wrapped around Bruce’s right hand and arm. When it finally stopped and clicked into place, the glove surged with power - all six colors: purple, blue, red, orange, yellow, and green electrified Bruce’s arm.

“Ungh!” Bruce groaned. He fell with one knee to the floor. The electricity crackled throughout the rest of his body and he was forced to hold the gauntlet with his other hand.

Everybody in the room watched with awe and horror as the strongest man in the world was forced to his knees, barely keeping himself from falling to the floor. He groaned, and the gauntlet’s power surged even more as he tried to get his bearings. Flames ignited, burning his arm and eating through the sleeve of his shirt. The green skin of his bicep was singed to red. He moaned in pain and sweat beaded his forehead as he tried to keep up with the power.

“Talk to me, Banner,” Tony said in between Bruce’s groans.

Bruce furled and unfurled his fingers. Through his grunts of agony he was able to say, “I’m okay… I’m okay.”

Loki watched in horror and curiosity at the awesome power of the Infinity Stones. He didn’t know how much longer the scientist could last.

The end of the gauntlet was burning too. Smoke emanated from it and Bruce’s arm, and a surging sound came from the gauntlet. Bruce groaned even more as he tried to stand, lifting his right hand with his left. The colorful lines of electricity creeped up to his neck, and he screamed as he forced his two fingers together until they finally snapped. Then, everything stopped, his eyes rolled to the back of his head, the gauntlet clanked to the floor, and he collapsed.

Everyone rushed to Bruce’s side.

“Did it work?” he asked. His face was contorted in pain and he squeezed Steve’s arm with his left hand.

The metal doors retracted open, and Scott looked out the window to see a congregation of birds flittering around a tree. Loki watched a deer sniffing the air carefully. Clint’s phone buzzed on a nearby table.

Then the blast came.

You

Even if Frigga did swear an oath, you didn’t care. You set out to find her. Odin told you that they swore an oath to keep you here, but that didn’t mean you couldn’t ask questions, and from what you knew from the little time you spent with Frigga, she wasn’t as cut and dry as Odin was with rules. She was sneaky like her son. Perhaps she would help you, even if indirectly, or so you hoped.

To your luck, you found Frigga in the first location you went to look: the willow tree where you had first met. Instead of being underneath the tree, she was standing in the center of the pond. The water wrapped around her legs, her blue dress billowed around her knees, and her hands were interlocked as she seemed to be chanting something. As you approached, you saw that her eyes were shut while she conducted her meditation, which explained why she hadn’t greeted you yet.

You opened your mouth, but Frigga spoke first.

“I know what you’re here for, child,” she said. Her eyes opened and she dropped her hands to her sides. The goddess picked up her dress and waded out of the pond, then cast a spell to dry her skin and the hem of her dress.

“Then help me if you can, please,” you replied desperately.

“You’ve already spoken to my husband, yes?” Frigga asked.

“Yes,” you said.

“Then you should know your answer. I’m sorry, dear.” She was genuine in her words, you felt her sympathy. Frigga even cupped your cheek with one hand.

“Odin told me you made an oath to keep me here. He never said anything about making an oath to not answer my questions.”

Frigga smiled. “Well, that is true. I can answer questions from you within reason.”

“There’s gotta be a way I can get back to Loki. Something, please,” you said hurriedly.

“Within reason, I said,” Frigga reminded. “If I just tell you right out how to leave here, I’m not holding my oath up very well, am I?”

“Aren’t you worried about him? It’s Thanos! He needs as much help as he can get.”

In the background, amongst some trees, a rabbit went into a hole.

Frigga’s smile faded. “Of course I’m worried. Loki’s my son. What do you think I was just doing in that pond?”

You looked past Frigga and to the pond behind her. You tried to recall the chanting, but it was so faint you really couldn’t make out any words. Well, no, that was a lie. You actually remembered one word in particular, the Asgardian word for ‘see.’ You heard Loki mention it once or twice during your lessons with him. It dawned on you.

“Were you scrying him?” you asked.

“Yes, I was,” Frigga said, and her smile returned. “You’re a sharp one.”

“And what did you see? Is he okay?”

“Unfortunately, scrying on someone on another plane of existence is difficult to achieve, unless you’re Heimdall,” she chuckled to herself. “I saw glimpses. He’s with his brother and the Avengers. I heard something about a plan to go back in time. I don’t know how they plan to do so, however.”

“Back in time..?”

It was then that you felt a sharp flash of adrenaline shoot through your veins. Anxiety and survival instincts flared up within you. You were in danger. You shouted, searching your surroundings, expecting something to come jumping out from the trees, or a threat to swoop in from the skies. But nothing, nothing happened.

You hadn’t realized that you fell onto the grass. Freya was currently holding her palm to your forehead. She had conjured some sort of soothing spell on you. It felt nice and cool to the touch. Sweat beaded on your forehead and in your palms. You were also panting. You tried to control your breathing.

“Can you hear me now?” Freya’s expression was one of concern.

Everything your body told you right now was ‘imminent danger,’ but your senses were telling you otherwise. It was still a sunny, crisp day on Valhalla, with birds chirping peacefully in the background. So why did you feel so panicked? Why were chills of instinct and reaction going down your spine?

Loki.

“It’s Loki. He’s in danger!”

“How can you tell?” Frigga asked, retracting her hand from your forehead.

“I felt immense panic come out of nowhere. It has to be the bond, it’s telling me that something is wrong, Frigga. He needs my help!”

You looked to the Allmother for answers. She couldn’t keep this stupid oath if it meant her son – no, if both of her sons were in danger. A mother wouldn’t abstain from helping her own children if it meant their deaths.

Frigga glanced at her surroundings and leaned in close so her head was just inches from your own. She lowered her voice.

“I’ve taken an oath, but I can tell you this: your bond to him is the key to getting back to him.”

The goddess stood up and extended her hand out to you. You took it and got back to your feet. You still felt adrenaline pumping through your body like you were supposed to run, hide, or fight, but it had to be ignored for Loki’s sake. Whatever you were feeling right now, he was actually experiencing somewhere on Earth. You had no idea what he was facing, whether it was Thanos or something else, but you felt in your bones that any move Loki took right now could be his last.

“Thank you, Frigga.”

“I believe in you,” the goddess said. “But I can’t help you any more than I have. The Allfather will not be happy if he finds out I’m here with you, so I must leave, but know that my heart is here with you, darling. My heart is here with you and my son.”

“Thank you,” you repeated. You gave her a quick hug before she conjured a portal and departed to somewhere else in Valhalla.

You sat down under the willow tree, crossing your legs underneath you. Loki used the bond to save you in your time of need, and now it was time for you to do the same. Like Freya did when she meditated, you closed your eyes and tried to take in the magical energy that surrounded this place, as well as the magic and the bond inside you. Using that, you did your best to steel yourself despite the screaming emotions within you that something terrible was here.

Letting out a shaky breath full of adrenaline, anxiety, and love, you spoke.

“Hang in there, you bastard.”

#bound #loki #loki x reader #loki laufeyson #loki fanfiction #fanfiction #fanfic #fic #mine #loki odinson #loki romance #reader fanfiction #loki x you #loki x y/n

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themskteam · 5 years ago

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Infixity War Teaser #20

“I can’t-... let anyone die. Not this time…”

There is a spark of green and I howl in protest.

“No!”

*****

Just in case you missed anything~

Concept Art

Teasers 1 and Teasers 2

Drabbles

Chapters

And here is your one way ticket to our Calendar!!!

#marvel #msk #marvel msk #fanfiction #infixity war #infinity fix it #infinity war and endgame are not considered canon over here #infinity war #mod scarlett #teaser #maddie grimmwell #madephen grange #madeline grimmwell #dr stephen strange #stephen strange #dr strange #angst #time stone

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ageofevermore · 3 years ago

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The Iron Heart Project

SUMMARY– Tony Stark sacrificed himself for the greater good of the world, but in being the hero he left behind his daughters who have already lost so much.

PAIRING – Dad!Tony Stark x Daughter!Reader x Avengers Team [ 1.8k ]

AUTHORS NOTE – Here’s another angsty one for you. Canon Endgame and Infinity War plotline. Heavy mention of Tony and Natasha.

You barely recognized the small, clammy little hand that forcefully claimed a place within your tightly crumpled fist, or the darkness that drew closer after every minute past that you spent brokenly glaring out at the unchanging ripples in the water. Your heart felt empty as sunlight hit a shard of metal in the distance, only amplifying the grief that paralyzed your body. You hadn’t left the dock since your mother released that small bouquet of wildflowers you and Morgan picked, along with the metal that had once been inside of your fathers’ chest. The last physical part of him had been lost to the depths of a lake you’d never be able to explore to find it, and you weren’t sure how that pain could ever ease.

The small person beside you was quiet, save for soft sniffles and her wobbly bottom lip that offer you reassurance that you aren’t alone in this suffering. After falling from an alien wormhole, evil android, and multiple hydra takeovers, you, Y/N Stark, had surrendered your vulnerability to the prominent promise that your father could, and always would, come home after it all was over and done with. But he hadn’t come home after Thanos, and he never would walk through those wooden doors again. Anthony Stark, the genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist, had laid down his life to save a billion others. His selfless actions had rendered both you and Morgan fatherless, and Pepper Potts completely devastated. How was that ever meant to get easier?

Years ago — before the iron man suit or the Avengers initiative — the story of metal strong as iron was just a saying of affection between a father and his daughter. All those nights ago, when Y/N and Tony would sit beneath the stars on the roof of Stark Industries, stories of great adventure had been conceived and after every great escape would come the words, my love is stronger than iron. Cheesy, Tony was painfully aware.

On nights when neither could sleep and the stars were hidden by clouds and pollution, they’d escape to the lab to forge a tangible representation of their inseparable bond. During the process, small hands would clench and grab at the neckline or Tony’s shirt, offering advice on how they could make their Iron Heart project better. You were always his favorite lab partner.

When you had prompted the idea of Iron Man, it had been the result of cold medicine and delirium, though when the coughs and sneezes subsided that next week, your determination to succeed was driven and true: just like Tony’s always was. The small child of the billionaire with bright eyes and unruly hair created the perfect symbol of unity and strength using the schematics that had once been dedicated to her Iron Heart project.

You wished you could go back to those days, sit with your father for a while and slave over blueprints and schematics until the early hours of the morning when Pepper came to find you. You wished it could all be that simple again, without the threat of alien invasions and death lurking over your shoulder. It wasn’t lurking anymore. Never would you take Iron Man away from the world, though on days like this when you were confronted with the worst and forced to accept it, you wished the world would have considered that the man beneath the metal had a family waiting for him to come home. Nobody ever saw Tony Stark as a father, nobody considered that being a father was his favorite job.

You stood from the docks with a sudden inability to remain still. Your body was shaking, trembling from the sheer emotional distress you were under, though you paid it no mind, instead looking down at Morgan who was peering at you curiously. Grabbing onto your sisters hand again, you made your way back to the cabin where you and Tony had unpacked thousands of memories over the course of five beautifully uninterrupted years. You want those years back, even if it’s just for another day.

Wanda visibly flinched as you brushed past her, your sorrow thick and heavy and unbelievably painful as it flashed before the Avengers eyes. The loss of Vision had already put a heavy burden on the young sokovian, though the depth of which you were feeling for your father (and Natasha, how could you forget you’d lost Natasha in this mess too? A woman that had become like your second mother: your best friend) was sickening and heart-wrenching.

“Y/N—” Pepper called for her step-daughter, watching the distant gleam in the girl's bright eyes becoming farther and farther detached from the reality they shared. Y/N Stark was completely lost to her memory of the days when her father was alive and well.

The sea of Avengers that were sitting in what used to be Tony Stark’s living room watched warily as you brought Morgan towards a shelf of priceless artifacts. Pepper stepped out from behind the kitchen island, throwing a dish rag to the side with her eyebrows drawn in curiosity and sadness. Both you and Morgan were spitting images of Tony while in the trenches of his worst funk, though now the promise of late night juice-pops wouldn’t ease your misfortune. You’d have to find your own way out of this long, dark tunnel. Pepper worried you might never find the light again.

You reached up for the shimmering sculpture that could (and would) withstand the test of time, holding it tightly to your chest as if to relive the short months it took to make. They were months that you could barely remember now, but you cherished what minuscule details you could recall. Morgan reached towards the iron heart sculpture as well, brushing her small fingertips across its smooth surface with interest.

“Dad and I made this.” Your voice broke, though your strength didn’t falter as you bent down to further explain the significance of the sculpture to Morgan. “Look.” You gently turned the iron heart around, showing Morgan the two visible patches of missing metal.

You drew in a harsh breath as a new wave of inconsolable tears made their way to your eyes. You hadn’t stopped crying since the news of Tony’s death reached your ears two days ago, though each time you cried the weeping became more painful. You feared that the urge to crumble would never go away, but you couldn’t let Morgan see you so weak, even if you were terrified that you would never stop crying.

You reached into your shirt, retrieving the small shard of metal that you wore proudly each and every day. The only difference now being that the identical shard was no longer clinging to the interior of the Iron Man suit. The small charm that symbolizes so much was instead laying in your pocket, begging to be worn by a man that would never breathe again.

Reaching for the other necklace, you lifted the chain over Morgan’s head, letting the cold necklace lay atop of your sister's silky black dress. “Dad would want you to have it.” You whispered to her gently, sniffling, you reached to put the iron heart back to it’s place on the shelf when a dim beam of light projected from the top.

Tony Stark grinned happy with himself as he paced around a very disheveled laboratory. Schematics and blueprints were thrown about everywhere, shards of spare metal and faulty wrenches tossed aside onto every available surface. The sun had set ages ago, instead a city skyline painted a picture just outside of the windows behind him.

“Does it work yet, Daddy?!” An excited voice called, small little hands grabbing onto the billionaire's pants with utter impatience. Tony bent down to pick up the small child, a teasing grin on his face as she wriggled about anxiously. Strands of unruly hair fell into Tony’s mouth when he attempted to answer, though he figured the small child had already figured it out for herself when she leaned in impossibly close towards the microscopic camera. “Hi!” She waved, clambering higher up onto Tony’s chest when she realized his hesitation to proceed. “Say hi, daddy!”

“Hi.” Tony waved, a bright smile filling his features as he took appreciation for the small piece of technology that meant more to him then the billion dollar corporation he was standing within. “What do you say we include Jarvis?”

The small child shook her head, once again reaching for the silver heart with pure adoration. “No.” She exclaimed, once again waving to metal as if it had the limbs — or ability — to wave back. “But, we gotta tell it about us, Daddy. Like you tell Jarvis about your day.”

“Well, I’m Daddy—” Tony was cut off by loud giggles, small hands pressing against his cheeks as if to cut off his incessant lies.

“I’ll tell it!” The young child exclaimed, determination on her features as she wiggled down from her fathers arms and instead sat happily on the desk. “That’s Tony Stark, and I’m Y/N/N Stark! I’m four—”

This time it was Tony’s turn to cut off the little girl, tickling her sides as he spilled all her secrets to the small immobile metal structure. His smile, unchanged by trauma and heavy burdens, was bright as he continued to ramble on and on about favorite constellations and ice cream flavors. The world seemed so small in the moment, just him and his little girl to impress, though that reality wouldn’t stay the same for long.

“I think it’s breaking, Daddy.” The small girl spoke as she watched the iron heart begin to flash with sad, disappointment filled eyes.

The picture faded slowly, much to younger you’s prediction, but sound was still playing from the metal heart as you watched it brokenly. Every person in the room had lost Tony Stark, though the world was only missing Iron Man. Now, that fact seemed even more primitive.

“I love you stronger than iron.” The voice of a small child echoed around the cabin, Pepper Potts sniffling sadly as she watched her two daughters grieve in silence.

“My love is stronger than iron.” The sound of Tony’s promise was the final undoing of all the composure you had been trying to muster since Natasha sacrificed herself.

You crumbled to the floor in absolute despair, heartbreaking sobs shaking your body. The iron heart tumbled to the floor too, slipping past Morgan’s fingers as she attempted to catch it. Unlike you, it didn’t shatter, but yet another scratch was added to its battered appearance.

Tony Stark's love for his daughter outlasted the test of time, though inevitably he left them both behind to collect the pieces of a world that was vulnerable to opposing threats.

#tony stark #pepper potts #wanda maximoff #tony stark x reader #pepper potts x reader #wanda maximoff x reader #dad!tony stark #dad!tony stark x reader #avengers team x reader #iron man x reader #iron man #avengers team

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trashywormeateroffics · 2 years ago

Text

The right universe.

Summary: After Y/N's life turns upside down, she's full of grief. Somehow, one day, she manages to travel to the MCU, where she meets her favorite characters, including a certain god who seems willing to establish a friendship with her. Suddenly she's enwrapped in this new world, where everything she loved in a screen is now reality. How will she react? Will she be able to deal with the ghosts that haunt her? Or will she let them consume her? Will she be open to accept the love she is offered? Read to find out!

Read this on AO3!

Category: F/M.

Relationships: Loki/reader.

Characters: Wanda Maximoff, Pietro Maximoff, Sam Wilson (Marvel), James "Bucky" Barnes, Vision (Marvel), Tony Stark, Natasha Romanov (Marvel), Stephen Strange, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Bruce Banner, Thor (Marvel), Clint Barton, Steve Rogers, Peter Parker, other minor appearances of other characters but these are the main ones, Pepper Potts, Loki (Marvel).

Additional tags: Loki/reader - Freeform, Avenger Loki (Marvel), Loki & Tony Stark Friendship, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Fluffyfest, Slow Burn, Friends to Lovers, Mutual Pining, Pining a lot because we love to suffer, Domestic Avengers, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark is a parental figure, Natasha Romanov Is a Good Bro, Everyone is a good bro, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, y/n, After Infinity War but no one died and the purple bitch was defeated, Missions, Y/N is a universe traveller, Grief, Therapy, Protective Loki (Marvel), Loki in love.

MASTERLIST OF THE STORY

Chapter 2: In which Y/N meets The Avengers.

“I see…” Fury nodded with confusion written on his face. Y/N had told him everything, or as much as she could considering how shocked she was, and he was taking it pretty well. Or making a pretty convincing performance.

The car stopped and they both got out, Fury helping Y/N out and handing her the crutches she was going to have to use due to a casted leg and soon they were making their way to S.H.I.E.L.D's new headquarters.

“Is Maria Hill here?” She asked, a bit too excited.

“Who's asking?” A woman spoke behind them and they both turned around to see Maria Hill standing there with a curious gaze.

“Agent Hill, Y/F/N,” Fury introduced them. “Y/F/N, Agent Maria Hill.”

“Hi! So nice to meet you, I'm a huge fan!” Y/N exclaimed dumbfounded.

Maria smiled briefly at her and cocked a questioning brow at Fury, who was typing something on his phone. He looked up.

“I already sent you her files, I think we are gonna have to take her to them.” The woman nodded intently.

“Take me to who?” The young woman asked, frightened, but that was soon replaced with pure giddiness with the answer she received.

“The Avengers.”

---------------------------------------

The compound looked just like in the movies, before the unnameable titan destroyed it. From what Fury and Maria had told her, everyone was alive; including Tony, Natasha, Steve, Pietro and Loki, and he who shall not be named was defeated in the battle that took place in “Infinity War”, so “Endgame” and everything that happened after it had not happened in this universe. All of this happening two years ago, with a few divergences from the movies.

When they got out of the car that took them there, Tony Stark was waiting in front of the big glass doors. All she could do was stare at him stupefied while Fury greeted him.

“So who's creepy over here?” Tony said, looking at her.

Y/N cleared her throat.

“Hi!” She said in a squeak. “My name is Y/F/N.”

“Tony Stark,” he said.

“I know!” He laughed and Y/N felt her heart crashing into her chest and ribcage repeatedly.

She continued to stare at him in awe while he was enjoying all the attention, when Fury snapped them both out of it.

“Could you continue this inside? I'd like a coffee.”

Tony huffed but guided them inside the building, into an elevator, and to a meeting room with a big brown table and many chairs around it. Y/N and Fury sat down at the head of the table while Tony handed them both a cup of coffee.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y, tell everyone to come to meeting room A7, it's urgent.” He said to the AI.

A few minutes passed and the door opened revealing Natasha Romanoff with her red roots and blonde ends, then came Bruce Banner, Steve Rogers, Wanda Maximoff, and soon the room was filled with heroes. They all sat down and looked at her curiously, while she could not form a coherent thought in her head. She did notice that neither Thor, Loki, Peter or Strange were there.

“Who's the girl?” Clint asked.

Fury looked at Y/N and she took a deep breath before answering.

“Y/F/N.”

��Clint Barton,” he nodded.

“I know who all of you are…” She stated, but realized it wasn't clear enough, since everyone knew who they were. “Not because you are The Avengers, I mean yes because of that, but I'm n-” She breathed heavily and looked at Fury with pleading eyes.

“Her name is Y/F/N, as she has already told you.” He began. “This morning I got a call saying that a girl fell from a circle in the sky, a portal. She's the girl, and she's from another universe, where apparently all of us are characters from a movie franchise called the MCU: Marvel Cinematic Universe.”

“Cool!” Pietro said and that made her smile. Everyone else seemed very confused and they opened and closed their mouths as if they were about to ask something, but didn't know where to start.

“You can ask questions later, I'm sure Miss Y/L/N will be delighted to answer, but right now we need to decide what to do with her.” Fury stated.

“Miss Y/L/N,” Steve Rogers spoke.

“You can call me Y/N.” He nodded.

“Y/N, assuming that this is real and you are not lying, how did you manage to travel through universes?” He asked a valid question, Y/N knew.

She swallowed nervously, not for the fact that he implied that she might be lying, but because she told Fury that she didn't remember very well, just seeing the white circle and being sucked into it and then landing where he found her, and that had happened, it was true, but it was not the complete truth.

“I…” She coughed and smiled sheepishly. “I may have told you half the truth.” She said looking at Fury, who now looked more alert. “Not like that! I didn't lie, I just-” She sighed. “I may have evaded a bit of the truth. For me.”

“What are you talking about?” Natasha was the one to speak up now.

Y/N closed her eyes and took what seemed like the hundredth deep breath that day and spoke.

“My family had died two weeks ago, and I was… not dealing with it much I guess. I was living at my grandmother's sister's house with her and her husband because I had no other family member that I could stay with and I had no money. One day, two weeks after it happened, I kind of… exploded. I was in my- the room I was staying in and something clicked or cracked, if you will, and I just left. I left without telling anyone and I started to run. I don't know how long I ran for, but I ended up in the middle of nowhere, in front of a cliff and I… collapsed. I felt something building up inside me and between all the sobs and cries, I let out a scream. I was suddenly enveloped in this colorful, but mostly white, tunnel and I felt like I was going up and then I was falling and then before I hit the ground, everything went black. I don't remember anything else, and I don't know how it happened exactly.”

She ripped her eyes off the floor and looked at everyone, they all carried a sad expression, mostly Steve, who also seemed guilty for having asked.

Tony stood up and clasped his hands together.

“Well, that's that. She's staying here and we are gonna have to figure out if she opened the portal with some sort of powers or it opened on its own accord and she was at the wrong place, at the wrong time.”

“It seems as if she opened it.” Banner said.

“Yeah,” Clint agreed with him.

Fury got up from his chair and Y/N did too, everyone following suit. He signalled for the others to leave and one by one they did, not before giving her a kind smile, which she tried to return, but she was so starstruck that she was sure it probably looked more like a wince.

“Okay Y/L/N,” he grabbed her shoulders. “I'm keeping in touch with them and I'll probably see you again soon.” She nodded and swallowed nervously, she knew everyone here, but in the short time she spent with Fury she grew an attachment to him, due to him being the first person she saw when she woke up on that hospital bed. He seemed to notice her nervousness. “Don't worry, you'll be fine.”

“Okay,” she let out in a high pitched voice.

Soon he left and Tony entered the meeting room again with a wide smile.

“Okay kid, let's get you settled.”

------------------------------------

The room was beautiful, or maybe she was too excited to be there to not think that everything was wonderful. Tony had left her to settle in, and Nat, she had insisted that she call her that, perhaps out of sympathy or pity, Y/N thought, had left her a bag with some sweatpants and hoodies. “At least until you go shopping.” Tony had said.

After putting the clothes in the closet, she decided to take a shower. Soon after that F.R.I.D.A.Y announced that dinner was ready.

“Hey everyone,” Y/N said as she sat on the dinner table, between Bruce and Wanda.

“Hey Y/N!” Some of them said and soon small talk ceased as they were all stuffing their faces with food. They ate really fast and she realized that perhaps that was the consequence of never knowing when the next mission would strike and always being alert. When everyone was done they all took their plates to the adjacent kitchen sink.

“Pietro, today it's your day to do the dishes.” Nat remarked.

The speedster just sighed in annoyance but before anyone could say anything he went full flash mode and cleaned everything, including the table, in less than ten seconds. Nobody even blinked, probably used to it already.

Soon enough they all went to their respective rooms for the night and Y/N found herself tossing and turning in her bed, the cast being an annoyance to sleep with. After a while of huffing and covering and uncovering herself with the blankets, she eventually fell asleep.

---------------------------------

She was awakened by the sun on her face coming through the windows. Stretching herself, she yawned and got out of bed. After brushing her teeth, she held a handful of water in her hands and washed her face. It felt… nice. Last night after much thinking due to not being able to fall asleep, she realized that a lot had happened to her in the past few weeks, or years, if she counted everything that ever happened to her, and she deserved some rest and kindness, as everyone else did too.

Entering the living area, which also had a kitchen and a smaller table, she saw Tony and Steve making breakfast, and Nat sitting on a chair next to Bruce, who was reading the newspaper.

“C'mon man! I was so close this time!” She immediately recognized that voice. Turning around to where the couches were, she saw Peter Parker with a remote in his hands and Bucky smiling smugly with another remote in his own hands. Peter looked up and his eyes grew bigger.

“You must be the traveler from another universe where we all are characters in a movie franchise!” Y/N laughed.

“That's me, and you are Peter Parker!” She said, smiling.

“Y-yes, and you are…”

“Y/F/N, you can call me Y/N.”

“Nice to meet you Miss Y/N,” he seemed eager to say something and he held back for five seconds until he couldn't anymore. “Do I have my own movie?”

“Peter!” Tony scolded.

“I'm sorry Mr. Stark.” Peter said discouraged.

“No it's fine.” Y/N said with a wave of her hand. “Once I have a bite of those pancakes I'll tell you everything you want to know.” She said, making the teen boy light up with excitement.

And tell him everything she did. It seemed that the spider teen wasn't the only one with questions, and so she answered every single one they all asked. In return, she asked a few questions of her own.

~taglist~ @mischief2sarawr

let me know if you want to be added or if you dont want to be in it anymore!

#loki x reader #loki laufeyson #Loki Laufeyson x reader #Loki Odinson x reader #loki x y/n #loki x yn #loki x you #loki #avengers #avengers x reader #mcu x reader #the avengers

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captainsimagines · 4 years ago

Text

To Topple A Giant || Chapter Four

Summary: You had made it your mission to destroy even the smallest evils. When the opportunity arises to finally take down your own family after years of gaining their trust, you reach for it. And so does Steve, the man who represents a symbol of everything you hate.

Pairing(s): Steve Rogers x Reader || Avengers x Reader

Part 4 of 10 ~ Mini-Series

Warnings: This story contains mature themes and discussions such as extreme canon violence, strong language, emotional angst, mentions of Endgame deaths and recoveries, sexual situations, and emotional/physical abuse. All trigger warnings will be listed before the chapter. This is purely fanfiction.

Warnings in this Chapter: reference to past sexual assault (very minimal); misogyny/sexism; mention of Infinity War deaths/Endgame deaths; abusive parental relationship; canon violence; heavy drinking; reference to cocaine use

Word Count: 13,900+

Tony’s Cabin, 2023, 8:56pm

“Uh…”

You and Steve stared at the little girl in front of you, bouncing up and down with excitement as she held up one of Tony’s repulsors, the safety on but pointed right at the two of you. Steve instinctively pushed you behind him, the obvious fact being that a blast would most certainly kill you and not the super soldier himself. You were having difficulty holding in your laughter, watching as the girl kept poking at the metal, awaiting its true power.

“Can I have that, Morgan?” Steve asked, his voice raising ever so slightly to try and seem nicer to the kid.

“Talk to her with your regular voice, Steve. She’s five, not a toddler.”

“Yeah!”

Now you laughed at Morgan’s declaration of approval, still standing behind Steve with your hands braced on his back.

Steve sighed and rolled his eyes playfully, “Alright, Morgan. Can I please have that back? It’s not a toy.”

“But daddy left it for me!”

You smiled at her, “Yeah, but he didn’t expect you to use it so early! Wait until you’re like… ten, then you can look through his things!”

“Y/N, ten?” Steve gave you a bewildered grin, eyes bright and laughter restrained.

“Okay, twelve.”

His shoulders sagged with a heavy laugh. He reached over and took the chance, grabbing Morgan’s wrist softly and ejecting the glove from her small hand.

“There we go!” you cheered, stepping out from behind Steve and scooping her up in your arms. Morgan started laughing loudly, kicking her legs to try and escape your hold. “Ah, don’t kick me!”

You had offered your time to Pepper whenever she needed it. You didn’t expect that she would call so early asking for a huge favor, her husband’s funeral not even four months ago. But you didn’t hesitate and packed an overnight bag, reassuring her that nothing would explode on your watch. On your way out of the temporary safe house, Steve had caught you just in time. A quick question of your future whereabouts and he was joining you, a tiny twinge of guilt in his chest from not seeing Tony’s daughter in so long. He was one of her godparents after all, just after Happy and Rhodey, beating out the third crowned position from Bruce.

He had been hurt by that initially, asking why he wasn’t even considered.

‘Bruce, the first time she comes into your room and stands over your sleeping body to let you know she had a nightmare, you’d scream.’

‘I wouldn’t be angry, just scared!’

‘Okay, after Cap here, you get custody.’

‘Oh, yay. Drafted fourth.’

Steve was happy to go see her on such short notice though, racing back up to his room to gather some overnight supplies as well. But you didn’t think anything of it - it was just a godparent wanting to see his godchild.

“Ouch, that hurt,” you laughed and placed Morgan down in her bed. “Nighty night time.”

“Daddy said he left things for everyone, not just me.”

Steve’s eyebrows shot up with curiosity, a sudden interest to know what his gift was exciting him. He had already given him the shield back... but then Thanos broke it. Maybe, another shield? No, T’Challa had already offered to send him a new one.

“Ooo, that’s interesting! I wonder if he got me that pretty bracelet I saw in that department store window that one time,” you gushed, pulling the blankets over Morgan. You fluffed out her hair, smiled at her, and told her goodnight.

“Night night!”

Both you and Steve called out from the doorway of her bedroom, “Night night!”

Several minutes had passed before you brought up the prospect of secret gifts again, knowing Steve was just as interested as you were.

“Want to go find them?”

Steve immediately stood up, clapping his hands together and giddy with excitement. “I won’t tell if you don’t!”

“Deal.”

You searched everywhere - living room, the garage, kitchen cabinets - even racing into the master bedroom, stealthy and secret, shame rising as you carefully picked up items around the room. “This feels like an invasion of privacy.”

Steve chuckled from outside the door, “Hurry up!”

But you found nothing. There was only one more spot to look - his office. You almost didn’t want to intrude any longer, this being his most sacred space, but the mere chance of Tony giving you a gift from the afterlife made you extremely happy. So you and Steve searched, stacking and restacking random papers and pushing away gadgets and books in the bookshelf. Finally, a small opening in the third shelf alerted you of your mission success.

“Oh, fuck yeah,” you cheered, reaching in and pulling boxes and clipped pieces of paper, all different colors and sizes, from the compartment. They were labeled with various names - Rhodey, Pepper, Happy, Clint, Thor, Steve, Nebula, you - and Natasha.

Steve sucked in his breath, his gasp similar to yours. “He got these before…”

“Yeah,” you nodded, handing Steve his labeled box. It was light blue, a white ribbon delicately wrapped around it, and with a cute little red ribbon with Steve’s name on it. It wasn’t big, but it was more than enough.

“Open it,” you said.

Steve shook his head, “Let’s open ours together.”

You agreed to his terms, taking your folder into your hands. It was one of those same art folders you had when you bought some new planners or notebooks. It was black, custom-made it seemed, as it had your name on the front in gold, cursive writing.

On the count of three, you both opened your presents.

Steve pulled out two sets of dog tags from the box, the sound of them clinking together reminding him of the times he would hug his fellow soldiers on the battlefield, cheers of victory mixed in with the smell of sweat and dry blood. He read the names on the metal.

‘Steven G. Rogers

987654320 T42 O

Brooklyn, NY. P.’

‘James B. Barnes.

32557038 T41 42 O

R. Barnes

Shelbyville, IN. P.’

He had not known they recovered his dog tags, faintly remembering clutching them tightly as he flew the plane into the ice. But SHIELD must have kept them for the museum, and Tony had recovered them. Bucky’s, however, were lost as soon as Bucky fell from that train. They were more rusted than Steve’s, almost as if HYDRA kept them underwater or stored for the majority of Bucky’s sentence. But no matter how Tony had gotten them, he was eternally grateful.

“Wow,” Steve said, clearing his throat. But you were too caught up in your reading.

‘Target whereabouts discovered mid-May of 2017. Only T. Stark and N. Romanoff approved for mission.

Transport at 20:00 hours. Target(s) confirmed and exterminated at exactly 0802 Pacific Standard Time.’

You choked on the sob that suddenly broke through, hand instantly reaching up to cup your mouth. Steve put his tags back into the box, shushing you to get you to calm down. “What is it? What’d he get you?”

Four pictures accompanied the short report, each face crossed out with red paint. A tiny laugh escaped and tears of joy started to flow. To say Steve was confused was an understatement.

“He… he got me justice.”

Steve took the file from you, reading over every word to somehow understand what you meant by justice. His eyebrows were furrowed in concentration and he looked up at you for more explanation.

You brushed your hair back and rubbed at your cheeks, the smile on your face now straining. Whether it was a sudden change of mind or the closure of your trauma was just that satisfying, you told Steve exactly what Tony and Natasha had done for you.

“After I joined you guys in New York, Fury sent me on a mission to infiltrate and bring back information about this dude my father was trying to literally destroy. But I had to play both sides - the good and the bad.”

Steve set the file down, his full attention on you.

“I got the information but for some reason, it wasn’t enough for my father. I had forgotten to get the most vital piece, something he thought I would automatically know,” you scoffed, your smile faltering at the next part of the story.

“I cost him ten million. And to teach me a lesson, he let these men do whatever they wanted to me. Anything.”

Steve’s breath hitched as he understood what you meant. And it was no longer a mystery why you had been planning to kill him ‘again’ after everyone came back from the snap.

“I returned to the compound in such bad shape. I only told Natasha. She cleaned me up, she took me to med-bay in the middle of the night, she brought me breakfast in bed,” you chuckled at the memory, hand reaching out to hold Steve’s.

“And Tony’s gift was murdering the men that hurt me.”

Steve let a few tears slip himself, his hand gripping yours tighter. “Y/N, if I would have known-”

“Hey, it’s okay. You didn’t know, though. I thought only Natasha knew. She promised me she would take care of it. I just didn’t think she would actually find them.”

“I think we know that Natasha could find literally anything and anyone,” Steve said.

You agreed with his statement, a smile returning to your face.

You jumped from your sitting position and went back to retrieve Natasha’s gift. “Hey, should we?”

Steve eyed the small, black box in your hand. He sighed as he walked over to you, eyes returning to the box.

“It was meant for her.”

You frowned, “Yeah, and I’ll ask Pepper if we can give these to everyone else.”

You paused and shook the box near your ear. It felt heavy in your hand, and the contents gave a little jingle.

“But this one was for Nat. I think she’d want us to at least see it.”

Steve chuckled and just nodded, awaiting the reveal. You pulled the ribbon and opened the box, surprised that Tony had given her a piece of jewelry. “Oh.”

Steve took the bracelet from the box, oblivious that the movement would unlock the charms from their heavy chests. In a matter of seconds, charms of similar size but different designs dropped to encircle the silver band. You inspected them in Steve’s hand - a red/white/and blue shield, Mjollnir, a pair of wings, two arc reactors, a singular arrow, a silver arm, a spider, an emerald heart, the letters ‘W’ and ‘V’ intertwined, a black cat, an ant - and your symbol, an intricately carved silver charm no bigger than your thumbnail, of your face. Tony knew no specific object or symbol was tied with your Avengers status, no one had ever given you one, but this was perfect.

“Wow,” Steve whispered, examining each charm closely with a lazy smile on his face.

“We were her family. This was an ode to that.”

“What do we do with it?” Steve asked.

You just shrugged, “Frame it? It would feel wrong just taking it for myself.”

Steve agreed. Later that night when Pepper returned home, you showed her what Morgan led you to. She let you keep your gifts and take the others, absolutely loving the idea of framing Natasha’s bracelet in the new compound being built.

Present Day, 2025, 8:10 am

The bright light from the open windows hadn’t hit you as suddenly as the random throw pillow that connected to your face, startling you with a quick gasp and causing you to choke on your spit. You snapped up, belly down and hair wild, eyes still half-lidded as you searched for the aggravator. And he stood there with a stupid grin on his face, already dressed in his stupid old man clothes, and stupid blond hair perfectly pushed back.

“What the fuck was that for?” you tried to yell, voice cracking at the end and just the slightest hint of drool threatening to spill from the corner of your mouth.

“I ordered room service. Plus, we have to leave in an hour.”

You grabbed as many pillows as your one free hand could hold, the other still tucked into the pillowcase below your head. You flung them wildly, none actually hitting the super soldier directly. His chuckle pulled a deep groan from you, and no longer wanting to look like a fool, you stumbled out of bed and pushed passed him roughly.

“You could have woken me up the same time you got up.”

“But you looked so peaceful.”

His sarcasm was not helping your souring mood. Steve headed over to the monitors to turn them on, already setting up the morning video chat with Bucky and Sam. “Do you always sleep like a mounted spider?”

You flicked him off, “Leave me alone so I can take my morning piss in peace!”

You slammed the door and made your way to the toilet. Now, you were no morning person. But it was simple enough for you to crawl out of bed with only minimal protest when your awakening was a peaceful one. Having a pillow thrown at your head while mid-dream was practically excruciating and no one, not even the grandest morning person in the world, could possibly awake happy from that. And to top it all off, you couldn’t even remember what you were dreaming of. Just another thing to blame Steve for.

After you had done your morning routine and slipped into a really comfy outfit, the breakfast finally arrived. You muttered a quiet thanks to Steve for ordering your favorites and damn him for knowing you preferred waffles over pancakes and a variety of creamers to choose from, and quickly filled Bucky and Sam in on what the plan for the day was.

You had been on missions with Steve before, but no matter how many times you regrouped in the mornings, you had never actually seen him wake up. After your rude awakening, you wondered at what point during sunrise he opened his eyes - ‘cause you’ll be standing over him with a pillow of your own.

“Torres has the air footage scheduled for around five today, then he’ll link you to the camera for the remainder of the mission,” Sam clarified.

“Is it possible to link earlier?” Steve asked.

“Not unless you can get the Wi-Fi password of the estate.”

You chuckled, still funneling mouthfuls of waffle into your mouth. “So, we can hack the Pentagon whenever we feel like it, but we can’t hack into my father’s estate without the Wi-Fi password?”

Sam cleared his throat, “You are so lucky this is a secure line.”

“Wait until she finishes her breakfast and her head will be screwed back on straight,” Steve joked, taking a long sip from his tea.

Almost immediately, your phone dinged with a new message. You angled your phone away from Steve but your smirk was enough to alert him of a side conversation happening under his nose.

Bucky: Ouch, I wouldn’t mind if you hit him upside the head.

Y/N: he threw a pillow at me to wake me up :(

Bucky: hit him

Y/N: bet

“Stop talking about me over the phone.”

“Don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Steve grumbled, the rough sound catching Sam’s attention as well. His eyes flashed back and forth between the two of you - Steve desperately trying to catch a quick glance at your messages, and you leaning away from him with thumbs moving at a rapid pace.

“Y/N, how you feeling?”

You put your phone down and pretended to not notice how Steve was trying to get a glimpse of your screen.

“A little queasy, in all honesty.”

A myriad of emotions were present and coiling in your body, each trying to sprout and bloom and gain their five seconds of fame. And for the past several years, it was easy to downplay their true power. Because the power they held wasn’t one of distressing strength, but rather one that tip-toed to the front of your anxiety driven worries. It planted itself there, up front, but ever so silent. For it to finally meet its match, to possibly be freed of such a coil - well, you were more worried about not succeeding in its erasure than its final blooming.

“We’ve come up with a system to make sure we both don’t go overboard or to tell the other that we’re alright,” Steve said, eyes on the monitor but hands loading bullets into your trusty handguns.

“Alright, that’s good,” Bucky spoke, finally. He typed away on his keyboard, “Give us a word we all use in case we need back-up immediately.”

“Mm, you should ask Steve. He loves his safe words.”

Steve rolled his eyes, “Something Avengers related? Or something no one would ever say?”

“Pick anything you want, just don’t let it be awkward to repeat out loud,” Sam joked.

Steve pondered for a few seconds before he settled on his chosen word, a hint of a smile forming. “Widow.”

You nodded, “That’s sweet. She’d like us using her alias for a dirty little safe word.”

You huffed suddenly, shoulder colliding with the carpet, the realization that Steve pushed you from your chair causing you to stare at him with your mouth hanging open. “Hey!”

“Steve, every single day I accept your fate from her murderous hands,” Bucky grumbled, Sam’s loud laugh causing the speaker to give a quick halt of static.

“She’s okay- hey!”

You flew across your chair and onto him, lunging your body as your main weapon in taking him down. You both tumbled to the floor, the sofa chair you collided with scraping along and pushing the coffee table with it. A lamp shattered on the floor right when you wrapped your arm around Steve’s neck and hooked your legs from underneath him and around his waist, his back to your front, both his arms coming up to tug yours out of reflex.

“Yield, you little shit,” you grunted, the grip of your arm remaining loose on purpose but your legs tight, heels now digging into his slim waist.

Steve groaned, both from your pointy heels and the sudden impact his body made with the ground. “I’m letting you win.”

“You seriously got a mouth on you.”

You let him go anyway, choosing to save your strength for the mission and not waste it on a petty little fight. Besides, you could always smother him with a pillow in his sleep.

“You two done?”

Both you and Steve stumbled getting up, faces back in your teammate’s view as you smoothed down your clothing and wiped at your foreheads.

“Now that that’s over,” Sam continued, clearing his throat. “The only task for today is to get a feel of the place, establish a legit backstory providing you some leverage, and to swipe those ID’s.”

“Got it,” you acknowledged, standing again to begin hooking your weapons in discreet locations in your clothing.

“And we’re not responsible for that broken lamp so it’s coming out of your paycheck.”

California really wasn’t like any other state. There was a vast difference from Northern and Southern, the difference being the amount of green fields visible. In Southern California, the mountains and desert areas took up most of the landscape, with an industrial complex here, a growing city there, and then nothing for a good ten miles. Since most of the landscape was below sea level, the atmosphere was almost always dry, modest dust storms forming only to quickly pass a freeway and disintegrate once it found the other side. It was more urban, more lively with people. But Northern California, even if it experienced the same weather patterns as the south, was mostly humid during the winter season. The mountains here were covered in lively agriculture, livestock roamed freely in the gated areas near the freeways, and the overall environment provided a rural look.

And the differences just stood out to you, your excitement for the livestock starting to annoy Steve as you kept pointing out every cow you drove past. He threatened to stop the car and dare you to tip one.

“So, how did we meet?”

Steve chuckled, “We’re coworkers, Y/N. Thought that question was obvious.”

You whined, “Steve, we have to put some drama into it! How about we say we met during one of Tony’s parties after Fury assigned you to this?”

“And what? I asked you to dance?”

You leaned over your seat and poked his arm, teasing him. “Would you have asked me to dance?”

Steve shrugged, “I mean, sure.”

He glanced at you and then back to the road. “Can’t we just be honest? I like the way we met.”

You pouted, “The way we met is a matter of national security.”

“You brought that thing back to an unguarded planet?” Loki seethed, his voice still a whisper as he followed Thor through the hallways of Avengers Tower. A tower he had been prisoner of for a few weeks now, but would soon be released from once Thor decided to return home. Besides, it had been more than a year since his unfortunate attack and after thousands of apologies, brainwashing excuses (which were true!), and quite a few long labor hours equivalent to Midgardian community service, his leash was extended somewhat.

“How am I the more level-headed one right now?”

Thor grumbled in response, now on his hands and knees as he searched for the tiny animal that had already eaten its way through the plush of the interior walls. “It couldn’t have gotten far. And how was I supposed to know the oxygen levels here would cause it to go crazy?”

“You couldn’t. In fact, I don’t know why it’s here in the first place!”

“Keep screaming, Loki. I bet that would make it come to us quicker!”

Loki was about to come up with another quick quip, but was interrupted by a quiet mumble down the hall.

“Oh?”

You rocked back and forth on your heels as you stared at the two brothers - one sweeping the floor on all fours and the other ducked down to scream into his brother’s ear. “Whatcha looking for?”

“Now, don’t be alarmed, Agent. But I may have misplaced my dog.”

“Dog?” Loki tilted his head, hands now cupping the side of his head in disbelief.

Your eyebrows shot up from his reaction, “Not dog?”

“It’s… an animal from Asgard.”

“Okay, what does it look like?” you asked, now more interested than ever.

Thor cleared his throat and rose to his feet slowly, “Like a dragon.”

You stepped back, almost tripping over your left foot. An involuntary laugh escaped from your lips and you brought a hand up to try and stifle it. “You brought a dragon into the tower?”

“He brought a dragon back to Midgard,” Loki clarified as he walked over to the wall and pressed his ear against it.

“Oh, yeah. That’s much worse,” you agreed. “Fury’s gonna shove his foot so far up your ass-”

“Yes, yes. I know what awaits me. Now, help us find it!” Thor begged.

This wasn’t how you expected to spend your first day as an Avenger. After all the training and promoting, the paperwork and oaths, you thought you would have a pretty chill afternoon. Arrive at the conference room, get the name badge and a rundown of your new field suit, and meet the rest of the team. Freshly nineteen and energetic as ever, you accepted this as a test. Find the dragon, make a good impression.

It only took a few more minutes before you three stumbled on an otherwise empty hallway, staring down the colorful creature as it licked one of its paws.

Your eyes widened, “It looks like an alebrije.”

“You have these creatures on your planet?” Loki asked, surprise written over his face.

“Nope, alebrije’s aren’t real. They’re fantasy.”

“Nevermind that, help me catch it!”

Loki began shushing his brother, hands swatting his massive shoulders in the process. You leaned down to the floor and tapped it with your fingernails, hoping the nice gesture would cause the creature to meet you halfway.

“Hey, buddy,” you cooed. “Can you come here please?”

The creature raised its head, colorful eyes on full display. Similar to rings of fire, but face like a fox, and fur as soft as silk. It titled its head, interested for only a second, before it kicked back and rushed toward the three of you at full speed.

“Oh, shit-!”

As he was the closest, Loki pushed Thor to the wall and lifted you from the ground. But before he could throw you out of the way too, the creature leaped. Loki shielded you with his body, wrapping his arms around you and picking you up as the creature kicked his back and sent the two of you flying through wall after wall. Loki was taking the force of it all, his chest angled in a way to protect your head. It was about ten walls you two flew through before you landed in what seemed like conference room B… or C… or A. Loki rolled you over and groaned in pain. You landed on your back, bright lights blinding you as you tried to adjust. Then a figure came into view as your blurry vision cleared.

You blinked rapidly and stared up at your new Captain. You smiled, a bit delirious, and raised your hand up for a handshake.

“Y/N Y/L/N, new recruit!”

Steve just stared, eyebrows scrunched, an expression resembling a scowl and bewilderment painted on his face. He took your hand in his and shook it.

“Forgive us, Captain,” Loki spoke, coughing as he turned over. “But you might want to get that shield of yours.”

“When did we become a couple?” you continued once you agreed on the ‘party meet-and-greet’ as your previous answer.

Now, this was a question Steve was wondering about since before you mentioned the necessity of such answers. Although he didn’t fantasize about being your significant other, he did wonder what possible event could jumpstart it. If anything, and he would take this to the grave, he assumed a line would be crossed during a particularly tempting mission. Bucky had admitted to him that on one mission, and Steve promised to take this to the grave as well, Bucky had to kiss Wanda to keep their cover. The feelings subsided soon after the mission was over, but Bucky confessed to real feelings developing. So if Steve had to bet, a particularly tempting mission.

“When we were searching for Bucky?”

You nodded, “That works. We can say the fall of SHIELD basically led to us to realize how weak the system was and how we could easily manipulate it.”

The road veered off to the side, now dirt and unevenly layered. You checked the directions Torres gave you just to make sure.

“And when is my birthday?”

You didn’t expect Steve to answer so quickly, and to get it right. Perhaps he looked over your file and remembered, because you were certain only your little friend group knew it. It was Bucky, it had to be him, the little shit, he told-

“Surprised?”

“A little. How do you know it?”

“Nat. Who do you think sends you those chocolates every year?”

You were overjoyed, really. “Wha-? Natasha said she did it.”

Steve smirked, “She covered for me.”

“Why?”

“Because for five years after the snap, you and Nat did nothing for yourselves and did everything for everyone else.” He had been witness to the two of you pulling all-nighters, washing the sheets of your fallen teammates as if they were going to return that weekend, celebrating their birthdays in secret with a small candle and a prayer. Moving from the compound and into his own apartment was hard enough, but seeing his remaining teammates wallow in cursed self-determination was worse. So, he asked Nat about your birthday to send you chocolates and a lovely handwritten note, careful to write in a font different from his natural one, and he would fold tiny paper airplanes and leave them around the compound where only Nat could find them, providing her a sense of playfulness in her busy day. Little joys to make up for such an impact.

“If it makes you feel better, I sent gifts to Nat and Bruce, too.”

But because Bruce had no forwarding address at the time, Steve settled for quick text messages here and there.

“And here I was thinking I was special.”

Steve laughed at your statement. He reached into the middle compartment to grab the mics you would be wearing. “By the way, make sure to hide this behind your neck. My mic will blend in as a button.”

You inspected the flat, button-like mic, awed by how intricate their design was. “They connected to Bucky’s?”

Steve clipped his onto his shoulder, the camouflage effect throwing you off. Yup, you loved science. “Yeah, they record everything and immediately send it back already transcribed.”

You unfolded the sun visor and watched how the mic picked up the color of your skin and blended naturally. “Remind me to send T’Challa and Shuri a gift basket.”

“And more.”

The estate was exactly how you remembered it. Modern and simple all at once, a brown exterior to easily blend into the surrounding forest, and massive front gate that only opened with a specific code. You leaned out the window and typed it in. There was no speaker this time, probably evidence of newly installed cameras.

“It’s beautiful,” Steve muttered, pulling into the long driveway and following the brick road.

It truly was. Even from where you were, you could see into the mansion as the walls were all practically made from glass. The walls in the back were normal, however, as that’s where most of the business was conducted. There were no swing doors, only large and heavy double doors made from cooled lava rock. And even though your father was a very organized man, the house was littered in trinkets of all origins: professionally stuffed exotic animals, roman and oriental statues, porcelain eggs, multiple pianos, and first editions of some of the most popular books in the world. There wasn’t any set theme for this house, but it was screaming ‘money’.

Steve parked the car away from the others, careful to leave enough room around it to ensure an easy escape if needed.

“Remember what I said - play the part. Leave the smart mouth to me, they know me. It’s what they’ve come to expect.”

Steve clicked his seatbelt and sighed heavily, “I apologize in advance.”

You gave him a small smile, “Nothing to apologize for, Steve. Like I said, this is a mission. Don’t stress about it.”

He shook his head, “Still.”

The sincere look in his eyes sent a tingle down your arms. You cleared your throat, “I feel dirty saying this, but know your place. You may be a Captain but you’re not manning this boat.”

For some reason Steve felt that he truly needed to apologize in advance. For the past several years, it wasn’t entirely real to him. He had not been directly involved. But now that he was here, parked and staring at you - the one person who had a first hand account of the horrors inside - he needed to make sure you understood he would never actually hurt you, or you him. “I trust you.”

You removed your seatbelt and opened the door, “I trust you, too.”

It was windy today, the ruffles from the trees almost disguising the labor coming from the back. You assumed they were still building the reception area. Steve jogged over to your side and hooked your arm in his, his body tenser than yours. Someone opened the heavy doors, immediately swallowing the oxygen for miles with merely their presence. You couldn’t help yourself from a small grimace, lips spreading into a straight line as you forced any other expression besides hatred.

Seda, standing at barely six foot and a smug look plastered on his aging face that worried even Steve. This was the man that had shot you when he was on the run - the man that would most likely do it again.

Seda quickly stepped down the stairs, “Y/N, so lovely to see you again!”

You let go of Steve to walk ahead, arms extended to match the idea of a grand entrance. “Really? Because the last time we saw each other, you shot me in the gut.”

Steve swore he saw Seda’s upper lip twitch. “You hold too many grudges. I was just following your father’s orders.”

You rolled your eyes and finally came to a stop in front of him, arms crossed over your chest. “Obviously.”

“And I’ve finally got the chance to meet Captain America! You’re much larger in person.”

No matter the acting skills one must obtain for this line of work, it was still obvious Seda was speaking through clenched teeth. He scanned Steve up and down, somewhat intimidated.

It was such a sudden shift, one you obviously knew was coming, but the deepness of Steve’s voice still caused unnatural goosebumps to rise. “I get that a lot. Helps in this business, though.”

Seda let out a low chuckle, “I would think so.” He turned and instructed the two men who had followed him out to reopen the heavy doors. “This way.”

Steve tried not to gawk at the amount of decorations and old-timey artifacts he swore should belong in a museum. So much furniture, so much history that shouldn’t mix but somehow worked. And was that… was that a stuffed polar bear?

“So, how you doing, Seda? Besides the usual,” you asked, hooking your arm back with Steve’s.

Seda walked with his head held high, only tilting his head downward when giving a silent greeting to those who walked by. You tried to memorize faces or see if there was anyone you recognized. But your father barely kept the same team for more than a few years. They either left voluntarily and luckily, or were simply never heard from again.

“Excited for the wedding. Jackeline has been running around nonstop on her finishing touches,” Seda responded.

You huffed out a laugh, “I bet she has. She used to have a scrapbook that outlined six different wedding themes.”

“And I haven’t seen the end of it.”

Only a few more twists and turns and you were finally near the familiar hallway that housed your father’s darkest work. The interior design was purposeful, no windows and no cameras. Steve unhooked your arms, opting for a more formal presentation between the two of you. Seda was difficult to please, but your father was near impossible. Better to not have his hands all over his daughter during their first meeting.

“Hey, what’s the wi-fi password? I’m expecting a few important emails today,” you asked before Seda opened your father’s office door. Steve had to restrain himself from blessing the ground you walked on. Bless you for remembering.

“‘Guadalajara’.”

“Thanks,” you mumbled, sending the password to Torres as quickly as you could.

It wasn’t the grand entrance you expected, truly, but you didn’t expect to see your father simply chilling behind his desk signing a few papers. He usually paced, was in a random meeting, or on the phone. Here, he was just… strangely normal.

He looked up, eyes locking with yours for the first time in seven years. “Now, I haven’t seen you since your little weekend trip to Jalisco!”

Yeah, since you had me shot.

Stepping into the office, the smell of cigars was heavy. Musty and daring, enveloping you like the times it did before. But now you had Steve - sweet Steve whose warmth you could feel behind you.

You shrugged, “I’m not traveling much outside the country these days. Too much shit going on.”

Your father stood up and let out a dry laugh, “No lie about that. Seda was telling me how loose the borders were when half the world croaked.”

“Emigration was common, yup.”

He smiled at you, walking over and placing his hands on your shoulders. You did your best not to tense your muscles. “I wish I could have been there. You guys made millions those five years.”

You swore you heard Seda scoff near the corner of the room.

“It’s about time we met! Ernesto Vega,” your father introduced himself, holding out his hand for Steve to take.

It was instant, the change, and you found yourself pushed softly to the side as Steve stepped forward. “Steve Rogers, sir. It’s an honor to meet you.”

Your father was practically beaming, “Y/N isn’t giving you a hard time with all the business, aye?”

Steve chuckled, “None at all. She steps back when asked.”

Okay, maybe he was a better actor than you took him for.

“I can’t believe you even have to ask,” your father hummed, glancing back at you with a disapproving look.

Steve shrugged, “More like ‘ordered.’”

It was scary how easily Steve was making your father laugh. “So, she listens to you? I wonder what that’s like.”

You interrupted, scoffing quietly. “I have literally done everything you’ve asked.”

And without glancing at you this time, your father quipped. “Everything but learn how not to complain.”

You rolled your eyes and met Seda’s stare. He always enjoyed the torment your father caused you. When he ordered you do something sketchy and you objected, Seda always had a front row seat to the slaps and harsh language spit in your face. He had a way of bringing up the abuse in almost every conversation he held with you - like it gave him some form of sick satisfaction.

“Regardless of my daughter’s inability to listen, I was still surprised when she named you as her partner.”

“The whole hero game was getting boring. I needed excitement.”

Your father agreed, “Don’t we all?”

Before he continued, he squinted his eyes at Steve and scanned him once more. Almost like he was double checking his initial choice.

“And you’re fine with breaking the laws of the country you’re the mascot for?”

“America has changed over the last hundred years. Trust me, I should know.”

Steve was answering exactly how you two practiced. You couldn’t help the small tinge of pride that it ignited.

“Oh, I can’t believe you’re older than me. I mean, look at you.”

“The positives and negatives of being America’s science experiment, sir.”

“But here you are now. Working for me.” Your father stepped back to sit behind his desk again. “I’m very happy.”

“Likewise, sir,” Steve replied as he shuffled closer to you, trying to not seem so suspicious. Last time Steve wanted to crawl out of his own skin was when he was barely being introduced to the new world. Times Square really was a concrete jungle, his and Bucky’s old apartment building had been demolished in the fifties, and inflation… don’t get him started on inflation.

“I’d like you to meet my two friends.” Your eyes widened. No, you weren’t supposed to meet them today. You hadn’t planned for this.

“Friends and competition alike.”

You tried to keep your voice steady, “Shouldn’t you warm them up before you invite them in? They’re gonna take one look at Steve and freak.”

Your father motioned for Seda to open the door. “Then prepare your speech quickly.”

Before you or Steve could come up with a game plan, your father called out to the new arrivals. “Amigos! Me gustaría presentarles al hombre detrás de toda mi operación.”

The men summoned were completely different from the last time you saw them. Given you saw Ramirez long before the snap and White even before then, change was destined. Ramirez was skinnier, no more protruding stomach, wrinkles almost nonexistent and eyes lively. He hadn’t disappeared with half the world, but one of his daughters did - so getting her back definitely helped his overall health. White, on the other hand, aged overnight. His hair was now gray, eyelids sullen but eyes wide, and his nose was tilted awkwardly, like a surgery to counteract the powder he sniffed. You couldn’t remember if he was dusted or not.

“Tienes que agradecer a mi hija por esto.”

He did not just give you credit for this.

“No fucking way?” Ramirez spoke, almost like he was out of breath.

Curse your father for not preparing these two. You quickly reminded yourself where your gun was hidden in case things got out of hand.

White stepped forward, circling you and Steve as if you were displayed in a museum. “Do we each get our own Avenger?”

“Maybe in the future. But this one’s mine.”

“I’m an Avenger, too. But okay,” you mumbled, offended by his singular statement. Steve’s lip twitched slightly but the look he threw at you let you know he wanted to smile.

“¿Cómo lo hiciste?”

“Ya sabes cómo es... La gente simplemente sigue mi ejemplo.”

You decided to speak, anything to get White to stop inspecting you like some ancient artifact. “Steve green lights the routes and passages. He’s been a main player all along.”

White squinted at you, “And how long has this been going on?”

“For almost ten years,” you answered.

White shook his head in surprise, eyes wider than you thought possible. His accent was more slurred than you remembered. “And you’re telling us now because-?”

Your father cut in, “The world is still in ruins. If we combine our forces like we discussed before that unfortunate disappearing act, we’ll be unstoppable.”

This seemed to catch Ramirez off guard, as if he truly didn’t remember the conversation your father brought up. You shoveled his reaction deep into your memory. Maribel would have to look into it.

Still, Ramirez played along. “And you’ll be loyal to us, too? Not just Ernesto?”

Steve nodded, his posture straightening. “I would.”

Now, the two new arrivals looked at you. You raised an eyebrow.

“Don’t look at me. I do what he says,” you admitted, nodding your head toward Steve.

They seemed to accept that answer.

“And he’s here to help us move the shipment this Saturday?” White asked.

“That’s the plan,” your father confirmed.

It was time for Ramirez to circle you both. But he did so more casually and without the intent of kicking you in the shins, it seemed. He went to sit on the couch nearest the door, away from the crowd. You could sense Steve tensing up, so you turned your body slightly to the side so you could see Ramirez through your peripheral.

“How do we know we can trust him? What those stars and stripes have to do with us?”

“You hear that Captain?” your father asked, leaning back in his chair with that twisted smile that always made your stomach drop. “Time to prove your loyalty.”

“Are you seriously going to haze him?” you spoke, a hint of a teasing tone on your words. It was time to liven up the conversation, for both your sake, or else your father was sure to go overboard. His hand… where’s Steve’s hand?

“Does she speak for you?”

Steve stepped forward, “No, she doesn’t.”

“Prove it.”

You should really punch your chest to get your heart beating again. Was he going to make Steve try the product? Record something as blackmail? Kill someone?

“Wha-” you began, but were immediately silenced as an arm wrapped around your neck and held you in place. The coldness of the gun’s muzzle tickled just below your chin, still and steady, but nonetheless terrifying. Your father had held you in this position before - hell, most of his men did when asked. But it wasn’t any of your father’s men threatening you under orders - it was Steve.

“Obviously, I’m not going to kill her. You need her for this whole operation to work. But a little roughing up never did any bad.”

He removed his other arm but kept the muzzle under your chin, grabbing both your arms skillfully and pinning them behind your back.

You had never seen your father so pleased. “Why are you dating my daughter?”

Steve chuckled and clicked the safety. No, no.

You scrambled to open your right palm and squeeze what you could reach. Steve seemed to understand right away, and he loosened his grip and placed his other shaking hand into yours. You squeezed tightly.

“Now, that’s like asking a man why he breathes air.”

No matter the position he currently had you in, you still praised his acting skills.

“Perhaps. But I know my daughter. Why you?”

Steve kept a firm grip. “Luck?”

“It seems so. Let her go.”

He released you immediately, clicking the safety back on. Seda was in front of him before Steve could place it back on his person, grabbing the gun and emptying it. Seven rounds tumbled and scattered to the floor. This seemed to please both men, as Steve wasn’t presenting himself with an empty threat. He really could have killed you.

“I’m assuming Y/N has told you stories about me. About my men.”

The floor beneath you was uneven, it seemed, but once your mind stopped playing tricks on you, you settled. You shot a quick glance to Ramirez, his eyes closed and hands clasped in his lap. He seemed distant.

“Only the ones worth repeating, sir.”

“Oh? And which are those?”

“Orders and the like.”

“So, you don’t know much? Nothing interesting? Nothing that could make me seem like the bad guy?”

The room grew hot, whether it was the natural air or the bubbling anger boiling in your stomach.

“Like I said, sir. I ask her what I want to know and she tells me. Other than that, it’s your call.”

The room fell silent as they debated their other questions.

“How much do the other Avengers know?”

You were about to respond when Steve spoke instead. “Oblivious. I’m still the stars and stripes for them.”

White scoffed, “Those symbols don’t mean shit in this new world. Ridiculous of them to still assume you’re the same man.”

Steve’s jaw tensed, “Exactly right, sir.”

This seemed to be enough for your father. He stood from his chair, walking over to shake Steve’s hand again. So righteous and personal, almost like he hadn’t just ordered the assassination of an old friend a few days ago. “I like you, Captain. You’ve boosted my business, you’ve handled my daughter, you’ve made me a lot of money.”

He looked away from Steve to look at you now, laying eyes upon a person he hadn’t bothered to reunite with in person. You had fought so hard not to be in the same room ever again, but now you were. A small little office, holding whatever air you were forced to share, on a mission that could change everything. You hated him, absolutely detested the ground he stood on, blamed him for the fallout, the change, the hurt.

“Seda, you trust him?”

Seda opened the office door and started ushering the other two men out. “I’m getting there.”

Your father laughed, “Always so cynical.”

Ramirez stood from his seat behind you, already gunning to make a good impression on your Captain. He shook Steve’s hand, “Until next time.”

“Sir,” Steve returned the handshake. Ramirez only adjusted slightly, and held his hand out to you. You looked down at it, momentarily stunned from any attention, but shook it in the way you were taught. Firm, short, and ready for business. You grinned at him and he returned the same emotion.

“Two Avengers. Wow,” he mumbled, and tilted his head in a farewell. You watched him go, a silly smile on your face.

You went to take your leave, cautious of being left alone with your father. But as fate had it, he stopped you from leaving so simply.

“Oh, and Y/N?”

You turned on your heel, lips plastered in a straight line. You raised your eyebrows at him, already annoyed from the request he most certainly had, no doubt. “Meet me in a few minutes. Alone.”

You forced yourself to nod, turning quickly and leaving the room. You shuffled down the hallway, Steve hot on your trail and reaching for your hand.

“Hey, hey. I don’t want to leave you alone.”

He tugged you back to him, but you pushed him into the corner room you were originally heading for. You shut the door softly, and allowed Steve to grip your hands in his.

“Well, you gotta. Link our mics. You’ll hear everything.”

“Safe word?”

You chuckled lowly but retracted the teasing attitude when you saw genuine worry written on Steve’s face. “Widow, Steve.”

“I didn’t mean to scare you back there. I couldn’t think of anything else to do-”

You shushed him, voice barely above a whisper. “It’s okay. You didn’t hurt me.”

“I fuck with you all the time but I would never take it that far.”

Where was this coming from? Steve looked like he was about to start hyperventilating. “I’m good. You didn’t hurt me. I’m fine, see?” you placed his hand on your chest, making sure he could feel your heartbeat. “I’m good.”

“You’re good?”

“I’m good.”

Steve removed his hand and placed it over his own chest, rubbing slightly. “I’ll be right outside when he talks to you.”

“I know you’ll be. Now, stand guard, whistle low to alert me.”

“This the room? You know the code?”

It was a simple office as well, but resembled more of a library than a workspace. It was dimly lit, cluttered, smelled of the wooden cabinets and the dust collecting on the books, and lacked any windows as well. You nodded to confirm Steve’s question, heading over to the farthest bookshelf and pushed it away from the wall. The loose dust swooped from the wood surface and into the air instantly, and you had to pause to sneeze down your shirt.

You wiped your nose, “I’m third in command. My father may have some things hidden but I have to know the codes to shit like this.”

Steve leaned his ear on the door gently, “You’re clear.”

You gave him a thumbs up and fiddled with the outside of the safe. It was built into the wall, black in color and definitely made way before you were born. It was quite rusted, the gold numbers on the lock almost faded.

“Let’s hope he didn’t change it.” You turned the dial - seven, thirty-three, eighteen - and it clicked on the first try. “Bingo.”

“Did you have a backup plan if that didn’t work?”

You snorted quietly, “Smash?”

Steve rolled his eyes and pressed his ear back on the door.

Everything inside had been recently rearranged. You figured your father used some of these ID’s when entering the country for the wedding and left them stacked on one another for the quick heist on Saturday. “We’re in luck! Both my father’s and Seda’s ID’s are here, along with-”

You cooed, taking out your phone and opening the camera app. You snapped multiple pictures, with and without flash. “Stacks and stacks of cash.”

You pulled your purse in front of you and pulled out your wallet to make room, shoving it into your back pocket instead.

“Help me put this in my purse.”

Steve left his post to help you shovel the ID’s discreetly into every pocket your purse provided, shoving things into corners so nothing protruded.

“Damn, we gotta leave the money,” you pouted.

Steve chuckled, “What a horrible thing.”

A sudden, boisterous laugh right outside the door caused you to rip your arm away from the safe, thankfully pulling the last of the ID’s with you. You pushed them into your purse, zipping it up. Steve reacted quickly as well, shutting the safe and rotating the dial, pushing the bookcase back into its original position.

“It’s Ramirez and White,” Steve whispered, looking around the room for any help. “What do we do?”

“Ramirez…” you blinked, eyes wandering around the room as well. Think, think, think. The doorknob jiggled. “Trust me.”

You ripped your purse off and threw it to the nearest couch. You hooked your arms around Steve’s neck and jumped to wrap your legs around his waist.

“Oh my-”

In any other scenario, the whimper that left your throat would have been caused by a surge of ecstasy. But you were frightened of being caught, the whimper a blatant signal to just follow your lead.

“Slam me into the wall, Captain.”

The door flew open just as Steve did as he was told.

“And I told him it was ridiculous - oh my…”

You lifted your head from Steve’s neck, wide eyes to accompany your surprised state. “Oh! I thought we locked the door!”

Ramirez covered his eyes bashfully, turning around and staring at the wall. “Don’t mind us, we were just looking for loose smokes.”

Opposite to his intruding partner, White laughed at the scene before him. He dipped low, hands on his knees as he joked. “Didn’t think Captain America had it in him! Been a stiff ever since the ice, huh mate?”

You could feel Steve tense against you, and he froze entirely. You drew your hand up to play with the strands of his hair, putting on your best flirty tone possible. “Oh, trust me. He’s pretty stiff right now.”

Steve seemed to calm under your touch, so he turned his head over his shoulder and gave an embarrassed smile of his own.

“Excuse us again, Y/N. You two enjoy your time,” Ramirez apologized, pulling at White’s jacket to guide him out of the room. Once you heard the click of the door, you jumped from Steve’s grasp and immediately began patting his back.

“I’m sorry.”

Steve chuckled, his blush rising from his shoulders to his cheeks. “It’s okay, you saved us.”

You inspected him closely, a little embarrassed with yourself. It was a bold move, but one that needed to be done. You stood in silence for a few more seconds, each of you adjusting to such a sudden change of breathing pattern.

You shut your eyes and groaned silently, “I need to speak with him.”

“Can I wait outside the door?”

You picked up your purse and swung it around your torso, “No, you need to wait in the car. Or smother Ramirez and White, your call.”

The lines on Steve’s forehead deepened, “Y/N, I can’t leave you alone with him.”

You wanted to argue further because Steve really over exaggerated. You fought a whole army of aliens, robots, and even the infamous Winter Soldier. Sure, you lost the battle with Thanos on the first try, you lost a teammate with Ultron, and gained a collapsed lung from Bucky’s insane roundhouse kick, but you were positive you could take your father. “You’re gonna have to. I’ve been alone with him before.”

Steve placed his hands on his hips and gave you a blank stare. “He shot you last time.”

“Ehh, Seda did.”

“Y/N.”

You laughed softly, “Then wait in the living room.”

“The shield’s in the car. If you need help, I may not have enough time-”

Steve and that goddamn shield. The guy was acting like he wasn’t a super soldier. You were annoyed. Annoyed with a pinch of salt?

“You whip that shield out to save me and I swear to god-”

“Okay, okay. I’ll link our mics.”

He fumbled around on his phone for a few seconds before you heard the softest beep from below your ear.

The last time you had entered that room alone, you left with a bullet lodged deep in your abdomen and with the threat of having it done again. Stumbling and crashing into the walls and random trinkets, leaving your blood stains on anything you used to steady yourself. This time would be different - it had to be. Your father wouldn’t shoot you with the Captain America waiting in the other room. Then again, your father always seemed to top himself each time you were forced to interact personally. In an instant, he dropped the good guy act. Or, hyped joy.

Now, his stare was cold and calculated, posture upright like he was awaiting your arrival. You couldn’t help but smile and roll your eyes, a tiny scoff breaking the silence as he returned it.

“You’re one damn good actor.”

He chuckled deeply, “We do what we have to do in front of the people who threaten our reign.”

You kicked the leg of a nearby chair to turn it toward you. Sitting down, you retorted with a chuckle of your own. “You’re not royalty.”

“We are... you are.”

Third in command. Daughter of the biggest drug lord south of the border? In most cases, you could be considered goddamn royalty. Did you want to be? No, because the title that seemed to fit was ‘a chess piece in the middle of a mad supremacy’. But that was too long.

“So, what is this? You scared my Captain is gonna knock you off your feet and take your place?”

His hands slammed the desk. His little basket of pens and pencils toppled over and spilled onto the floor. “I have waited seven, long years for you to bring that man to me. And each time you defied me. Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you right now!”

You remained seated, a blank stare boring into your father’s. “Uh, probably because he would avenge me. Get it?”

He wasn’t one for jokes, though. “It would be so easy.”

Aggravating him further was not the smartest thing to do. And Steve had the same thought as he fumbled with his own thumbs outside, hearing the conversation from afar. He almost wanted to barge in just to put your ass in time out.

But you had seven years to make up for - a little joke here and there shouldn’t hurt much.

“You do know I’m an Avenger, right? Trained by Natalia Romanoff herself?”

You worded your sentence carefully, her alias need not be spoken out loud unless you needed backup.

“Answer me.”

When his nostrils flared, you knew better than to twist the knife.

“Steve didn’t sign the accords. He was on the run for two years before you asked me for him. This is public knowledge.”

He pointed his index finger at you, shaking it wildly. “You lie. Why you lie?”

You had to blink multiple times through your shocked state, mouth agape and involuntarily racks of laughter spilling. He couldn’t be serious. You could only repeat the same thing so many times.

“Like I said all those years ago - He. Was. On. The. Run. No contact. I had no way of contacting him!”

He struggled to grab whatever on his desk to raise toward your face. In this case, he pointed his phone in a threatening manner. “Excuses! Remember the last time you made such a poor excuse?”

The laughing stopped, your mouth immediately shutting. You clenched your jaw to work through your murderous impulses.

You wondered how your hands would look wrapped around his neck. Red and angry, tightening as each desperate second passes, nails forming crescents as they pressed in his skin. If there was a window, you would definitely kick him out of it. Wave goodbye as he fell dramatically. But the mansion was one story high and you couldn’t magically conjure up a window. God, this would be the absolute best time to have Wanda or Loki here to use some of that dark magic. Either way, you just wanted to wipe that shit-eating grin off his face right now.

“He. Was on. The run.”

“And I thought you learned your lesson.”

You stood from your seat and leaned on the desk, arms holding you up and face inches away from his. “You gonna send in your men to remind me? With my Captain a few feet away?”

His lips were trembling as much as yours were - face blotchy with silver droplets of sweat and an angry blush now reaching his forehead. For a seventy-five year old man, he still had such a rage in him that didn’t risk a heart attack. Lucky bastard.

“He best not interfere if it’s what I choose to do.”

Outside, Steve gripped the back door handle to the point it squished in on itself, metal twisting awkwardly and splintering the paint. His free hand was balled into the meanest fist, even his stubby nails wreaking havoc on his pale palm. He was making himself bleed by the restraint. He took slow breaths, eyes closed but ears fully alert. He wouldn’t cry. Not right now.

“I called you back alone to invite you to breakfast the day after tomorrow.”

Whether it was because he knew you were only a few seconds from lunging yourself across his desk to break his neck or because he was tired from all the energy he had just exerted, your father slumped back into his seat as he spoke.

“The hotel has free breakfast.”

He shook his head in complete astonishment, “You’re not getting out of this. I have important business to discuss with each of you.”

You continued to stare him down, “Over coffee?”

He shrugged his shoulders, “I can’t leave the estate so close to the wedding. Your sister is flying in tomorrow and I have to make sure construction is done by then.”

“Right, ‘cause you’re the best father in the world.”

Being in the same room was suffocating, but you couldn’t help but be fascinated by the man. How unbelievably thoughtless yet calculated he could be. How unbelievably fake yet so damn real in all his hidden meanings.

“Jackeline likes to think so.”

Your sister was sweet, sure, and there was an unspoken agreement between the two of you to not fight one another, being the only daughters and all. But you were eight years old when she was born, already tainted by the world in which she was just born into. Forgive your lack of sisterly bond. When you were sixteen, you dipped. Now, at the sprouting ages of twenty-six and eighteen, you two couldn’t be more different.

Actually, yes you could. If she thought your father was a good man, she was entirely ignorant of the world she lives in.

“Good for her. Why don’t we discuss the shipment transport during the most important day of her life?”

“Nice try. That’s what the rehearsal dinner is for - rehearsal.”

You gave your father a sad smile, “You really won’t trust me. After all these years of following your orders.”

“Now, let’s not go bringing up the past.”

You interrupted, “Why not? You’re trusting my Captain and I to help you move that shipment but won’t trust me enough to tell me where it is right now?”

He was back to standing but he was much calmer. “Right now, I trust your Captain more than you. What kind of man would leave everything moral behind for a bunch of criminals? A bad one.”

“You’ve known him for like, two seconds.”

Your father searched his pockets for loose cigarettes. “He left everything moral behind for me. For you. And you left me behind for everything moral.”

Rolling your eyes, you backed away from his desk and headed for the door. “Sometimes you don’t make any sense. Is that it? Are we done?”

“You accept my invitation?”

“Do I really have a choice?”

“No.”

The mansion seemed larger than when you entered, the hallways longer, the walls closing in, the trinkets reaching out to stop you by the wrist. The longer you stayed in this hell hole, the more likely you were probably going to unleash the rage attached to your body in the form of your favorite weapons. Bomb the hell out of this place.

You marched to Steve’s car. He was already waiting, leaning along the passenger door like he was going to open it for you. If he did, you might kill him too. So, you repeatedly snapped your fingers at him and pointed around the car, silently but angrily motioning him to get in. He didn’t need to be told twice. In fact, he thought it might be therapeutic for you to throw the door open and slam it yourself. It was.

Steve started the car. He didn’t need to ask, there was no reason to since he heard everything. And so did Sam. Bucky. Scott. It was being transcribed as you swerved out of the estate. God, you wanted to throw up.

“I’ll tell you when to stop.”

Steve choked on his breath, “Stop?”

You rolled down the windows to breathe in the crisp cold air, teeth becoming sensitive as it passed into your lungs. “Once we get past the cameras and nearby neighborhoods.”

“Did you need-“

“When I say stop, stop. Fucking damn, Steve! Listen to me for once!”

Steve didn’t know why he was challenging you. Your father had just brought up one of the most traumatic moments of your life, basically called you a hypocrite and a coward - he tried to tear you down. And here you were, holding it all together like the champ he found you to be. But he never handled your outbursts well, even if they were completely justified.

“Don’t fucking give me orders if you won’t tell me what they’re for!”

“Stop the fucking car!”

He slammed on the breaks, instincts still kicking in during your argument and he reached his arm out to your side to hold you back from the powerful surge. His body lunged forward, however, chest hitting the steering wheel and horn.

You scrambled out of the car and ran into the woods, feet guiding you through mud and prickly bushes until they reached a more secluded spot. Steve stumbled along after you, nearly tripping over the same rocks you had avoided masterfully.

Before he could ask what you were doing, you pulled your gun from its hidden holster and clicked the safety. Steve’s eyes bulged out of his head just in time to see the first round sound off mid-air. He crouched down to the floor and shielded his head. You shot away from him, obviously, until all seven rounds were dislodged, aimed in the sky diagonally.

Once the last bullet exited, you simply packed everything up. Now calm and collected, you turned around and headed back for the car.

Steve’s voice cracked as he spoke, “Seriously?”

You pushed branches away from your head as you walked, “Seriously.”

“Do you know how dangerous that is? Those bullets don’t just disappear into thin air,” Steve scolded, jogging up to speed walk beside you.

“So fucking what? I’m keeping the rent low in this area, then.”

Steve sighed in defeat, “Talk to me.”

“Sorry, I’m shutting down.”

“Y/N-”

You groaned, tears of frustration not entirely formed, but in their beginning stages. “You already know what’s stressing me out, Steve. Do you need it in writing?”

“I know, I’m sorry,” Steve lowered his voice. “What do you need me to do?”

“Just,” you paused, stopping to face him. You opened and closed your hands mid-air as if that would help you formulate your sentences better. “I don’t know. But when I find out, I’ll let you know.”

This Steve could accept. So he simply nodded, guiding you the rest of the way with his hand gently placed on your lower back.

The drive back to the hotel was fairly silent. The radio provided a calming relief from such drama. Steve would glance at you every so often to check on you, but you were always resting your eyes. This was only the first day of the mission - officially. If you were this drained from one encounter, Steve needed to rethink this whole operation. Whether it was healthy to keep you on, or if the threat was just too large. But no matter the alternatives, Steve understood that this week was going to be difficult either way, and you needed to be present. This was your mission after all. He was just your partner.

Even with a thousand things on your mind, you were still conscious enough to check your surroundings, check-in with the agent posted behind the front desk, and reconnect your mic with the teams.

Steve pushed open your room door and threw the car keys on one of the nearby tables. “Nap time?”

You ignored his initial question, “I didn’t think seeing them in person again would be so draining.”

Steve watched you carefully, somewhat scared that you would pull out your gun again and shatter a window. “It was pretty cramped.”

You started to disarm yourself, tearing off your sweater and holsters clumsily. “And they acted like we were all on good terms! Around you, at least. I know they’re acting for my sister’s sake and then we can go back to hating each other after, but really?”

Steve sat on the edge of his bed, eyes sorry. “I really don’t know what to say.”

You threw yourself onto your bed, burying your face into the pillows. You continued speaking, albeit muffled. “You don’t have to say anything - just let me rant.”

“You’ll tire yourself out, Y/N. C’mon, we gotta draft up this report-”

You lifted yourself up and started smoothing down your hair, “I need a drink.”

Steve pointed to the computer, “The report.”

“A drink.”

“Y/N, it’s getting late. The sooner we draft it, the sooner-”

You grumbled out again, already opening the door and shoving your boots on. “Steve, I need a drink. You know what they do to me, what they’ve done to me, what they continue to do every single day. Now, join me or not but I am going downstairs for a drink.”

Steve paused for a moment, looking around the room hesitantly. “Can I at least take the laptop?”

You threw your head back and walked out the door, “Take the goddamn laptop, jesus fucking christ, c’mon.”

If there’s one thing you were happy about today, it was that you booked a hotel with a mini bar on the second floor. It wasn’t an outright full bar, but it was low lit, clean and the counters were made from fine wood, and there was a variety of flavors to choose from. There were only a few hotel guests spread out and a single bartender. You and Steve took seats at the counter.

“Whiskey sour,” you called for the bartender, trying and failing to give him the nicest smile you could.

Steve settled in his bar stool, “Thought you wanted to drink to drink hard.”

You chuckled at him and extended your arms in a stretch, “I’m mad, not depressed.”

He grinned at your movements - as if just sitting in a bar already loosened you up. “In that case, get me a beer.”

Natasha had called Steve for help after your fourth beer and fifth whiskey. Her coaxing proved to be pointless, each request of a safe passage home seeming to enter one ear and leave the other. And you’ll end up killing her when you were sober enough for sending unwanted reinforcements, but even she didn’t want to fight you. If you wanted to drown in liquid courage, that courage churning itself into raw despair, then she would allow it.

Steve stared at you for a few moments. Head hanging low, a deep frown etched into your tired expression, index finger tapping your glass as if you were debating whether to down it in one go or to leave it. Steve had never seen you like this, guard destroyed and face practically pale, just begging to be left alone. And it seemed the whole bar felt the same way, as there was no music playing and everyone was wallowing in their own grief.

“I can spot you from a mile away, you know?”

Your voice immediately pulled Steve from his own mind and he was surprised you could still form coherent sentences given the amount of empty glasses in front of you.

“I don’t mean to interrupt.”

You scoffed, leaning away from him as he sat down in the stool beside you. “Natasha sent you. Don’t tell me otherwise.”

“I’m not saying anything.”

“Good.”

Steve ordered a beer for himself, and although he was driving, one beer wouldn’t impair him anyway. It wouldn’t even cause a dent in his 20/20 vision.

“Fucking ridiculous, it’s fucking ridiculous!”

The bar patrons seemed to wince simultaneously and the bartender simply gathered a few of your empty glasses to wash. Steve didn’t hush you, didn’t touch you, didn’t try to reassure you. If you needed to cause a scene, it was time. Your silence for the past week had been frightening, but when Tony returned last night, half dead and without the kid, it seemed to be your breaking point.

“Wanda destroyed it. She destroyed the fucking stone and all he did was use another to bring it back.”

Steve took a sip of his beer to disguise his quivering lip, but his eyes had no curtain. His waterline swelled with fresh tears, eyes instantly reddening, an undesired sting pinching the corners.

“Strange must have had a reason. He must’ve, but - how can that reason include the death of trillions?”

“We’re going to find a way-”

“And if we don’t?”

Steve kept his lips on the bottle, incisors biting down only slightly as he took in your rhetorical question. You continued speaking.

“He destroyed the stones.”

“Carol is looking for answers.”

You shook your head and pulled out your wallet, leaving whatever cash you had on the counter before standing up. You stumbled but Steve latched onto your arm and pulled it to hug his waist.

“Loki?” you mumbled, raising your head to lock eyes with Steve. He didn’t know if you were calling him another name or if you were asking for the God’s whereabouts. “Bucky?”

“Hey, stop, stop.”

“Peter?”

Steve could only nod. What use was it to lie to you? Your new vertical position seemed to magnify the true extent of your intoxication as your eyes finally glazed over and limbs trembled.

“Let’s get you home, okay?”

Gripping his shirt, you apologized each time it would crumble and you would accidentally tug it downward. But Steve didn’t care. You were practically limp in his arms, heavy and without proper use of your legs.

“You’re a good man, Steve.”

Steve sighed sadly but couldn’t help the small smile that formed as he looked down at you and found you sporting a silly one of your own.

“A really good man. I’m happy you’re still here.”

Steve paused for a moment, taking in your words and holding back his own tears. If there was a time he wanted to be drunk off his ass, it would be now. He was somewhat jealous of the brief relief alcohol had given you, loose and not fully aware of the drama of the world. “I’m happy, too.”

“No, you’re not,” you slurred, allowing Steve to guide you to his car. You slumped against the passenger door as Steve searched his pocket for his key. “I heard you crying last night.”

Steve halted his search mid-pat, a hard crease forming between his eyebrows as he lifted his head. “I wasn’t-”

“I cry too,” you admitted, a drunken pout on your face. “You don’t have to lie to me.”

Perhaps it was a dirty thing for him to do at this moment because you wouldn’t remember a single word of this conversation in the morning, but he figured there was no immediate harm. He found his key, unlocked the car, and helped you inside. Only once he entered the car himself did he take advantage of your blurry mind.

“I cried for Sam and Bucky. Who do you cry for?”

You clicked the seatbelt on, mind clear enough for safety precautions it seemed. “Poor Wanda.”

Steve nodded and started the car. “Anything else?”

“Did I ever tell you about the time Loki asked me on a date?”

Steve immediately shut off the car and turned to you. “Huh? When?”

You grinned, small giggles bubbling from your chest. “A few months ago. He was so shy, too. I said yes.”

Steve ignored the twinge in his chest, “How was it?”

You leaned your head back and tilted it towards him, your smile faltered slightly. “Never went on it. And now he’s dead.”

The urge to lean over and wrap you in a much needed hug was there, eating away at him since you called him a good man. But he had taken advantage of this situation far too much, so he simply nodded in understanding and started the car again.

“I’m sorry.”

You barely heard him, but you mumbled a quick response before letting the alcohol fully consume you. “Me too.”

You thanked the bartender when they slid you your drink. “I hadn’t seen him since before the world went to shit.” You took a quick sip. “Kinda strange.”

Steve nodded, wondering if he should dive deep into the issue at hand. Instead of outright saying his outdated spiel, he eased into it. He gave you a few needed sips of your drink, at least. “Y/N, can I ask an honest question?”

You hummed, “My toes are already tingling. You could probably ask me what my kinks are and I’d tell you.”

Steve suddenly burst into a fit of giggles, “You never could handle a sip of alcohol.”

Your eyes rounded at his reaction. Perhaps the alcohol affected him in other fun ways that he didn’t know. “Nope, I’m a lightweight.”

Steve contained himself before clearing his throat, “The question…”

“Go ahead.”

He rolled his shoulders and took a sip of his beer. Leaning in closer, he lowered his voice. “If it comes down to it, and god forbid you’re incapacitated, do you want me to kill your father?”

Your mouth opened slightly, the words stuck behind your tongue. You looked down at your drink, as if some special response was swimming in it. You knew your answer, but the way to phrase it was lost.

“I don’t want his blood on your hands.”

“But if it was the last choice?”

You sighed, “If you pull that trigger, they’ll never stop coming after you.”

Steve’s eyebrows scrunched together, “But if you pull it?”

You shrugged and raised the glass to your lips. “That’s my life, Steve. Let me deal with the consequences.”

“That’s just it - you don’t have to. At least, not alone.”

God, you hated how perfect Steve sounded all the time. Whenever he was annoying you, fighting you, or protecting you, his syllables were stretched in the most glorious way, dipping into every crevice of the person they were delivered to and warming inches of body slowly. You wanted him to have somewhat of an evil side for once in his life, but no matter how many times you thought he would explode, he didn’t.

Two years ago, when he dropped you from his life in an instant, you had assumed you finally caught a glimpse at this evil side. It was the only time you were truly scared of him.

“You really are a good person.”

Steve swished his beer bottle around, “I wish everyone would stop being surprised by that.”

“I’m not surprised. I guess I just want to hate you, and I can’t.”

Steve’s shoulders slumped like crumbling mountains and you couldn’t stop thinking about how vulnerable he looked. You wanted to pull him closer and rest your head to his chest, hear his heartbeat and apologize for theorizing a possible hatred.

“Why do you want to hate me?”

“When you wouldn’t sign the accords, part of me saw that as the mascot of America not caring if he invaded and pillaged everything in his path.”

“But I-” Steve interjected, but you stopped him by raising your hand and waving it gently.

“I know why you didn’t. Hell, I helped you escape.”

“Why did you help if you hated me?”

Being vulnerable with Steve wasn’t anything new. You were each other’s support system for those lonely five years, but it all changed the moment you defeated Thanos. So, for the last two years you didn’t quite get along. But here, now, you could always tell when Steve was being honest and open.

“Guess I thought that if you were willing to help me with my family, I should help you with yours.”

His therapist desperately tried to rationalize the experiences Steve would tell, instructing him to look past hard exteriors and accept help from others. That his old friends were still friends, and enemies should never be compared to those he loved. And he knew he was easily blinded when something or someone had the slightest mishap, instantly writing it off as harmful.

He spoke of you often during his one hour sessions - stories of your blatant silliness and crude jokes; how you would poke your finger into his sandwiches when you thought he wasn’t looking; how you almost beat up a kid and his little gang for baiting Peter after his identity was exposed; and how you and Sam had gotten into a bar fight over something so trivial, so unnecessary, that it was almost unbelievable to see you innocently scoot away from the body on the floor in the police video, as if you had nothing to do with it and those few feet of distance automatically cleared you.

His therapist would just listen.

“Did I ever thank you?”

You smiled sadly, “You went into hiding soon after. Then we went to battle, lost everyone, went to battle again, and then…”

“And then.”

‘And then’ wasn’t really something you two liked to bring up. It was still a fresh wound, somewhat patched up, but still open.

You spaced out for a few minutes, both of you enjoying your drinks. You were no longer drinking to get drunk, not that it was your original goal to begin with. You just sat in comfortable silence, reliving the events earlier that day and drafting an internal report.

“What are you thinking about?”

You pursed your lips and thought, clicking your tongue when it finally dawned on you. “This was the first time I saw Marcus White sober.”

Steve sat up straighter, “Are you sure? He didn’t look it.”

“Yeah, he usually speaks quickly and he fidgets. But he was coherent this afternoon.”

“Should that be a red flag?”

You took out your phone and sent a quick text to Torres for him to monitor White closely for the next few days, just in case. “A big one. My father referred to him more often than he did Ramirez.”

Steve tackled every idea in his head quickly, speaking as a new one popped up. “They could be planning a move against Ramirez. He’s close to overthrowing your father.”

You raised your head from your phone, “And the wedding would be a perfect distraction.”

“He would kill his greatest rival on your sister’s happiest day?”

You let out a low chuckle, “This man has nothing to lose. It won’t matter who he topples along the way.”

Steve opened the laptop, silently congratulating himself for bringing it despite your insults, and began drafting the report. The two of you worked for the next hour, nursing a couple more drinks before you sent the final copy to Bucky.

TAGLIST: @dumb-ass-writer @justab-eautifulmess @supraveng @mycosmicparadise @missnighttigress

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carelessannie · 3 years ago

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Neuropsyche on AO3 is one of my favorite Starker writers (come @ me if they’re on here and I literally just missed it) but I was reading back over this one and wow. Had to be my next Saturday Starker rec.

I consider this a really likely way that Peter and Tony would actually get together in canon, and it’s written so well for that trope. Full of angst (literally the majority is sad Peter) but has a really satisfying happy ending.

Perfect if you’re interested in a slow burn pining fic, in Peter growing up and being a badass, in Tony groveling... in your heart lurching inside your chest from the intense feels, this is the fic for you!

Rating: E Word Count: 39,040 Warnings: Slow burn, smut, no infinity war or endgame

#saturday starker recs #starker #peter x tony #ironspider #fic recs #fanfic #ao3 fanfic #crack fic #kind of #neuropsyche

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doitwritenow · 5 years ago

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IronStrange Starter Kit - Master Fic Rec List for all Y’all Because You’ve been Asking and I’ve been Avoiding

Hi! All you anons and askers, I made a list!!! Hopefully some of these are what you’ve been after. :D

(Please reblog this, lol, I spent too much time on it...)

General rules: These are complete unless indicated otherwise, and end happily unless indicated otherwise. There’s a variety of ratings, as I have no qualms against smut, but I don’t usually read it outside of a larger plot. So I don’t think there’ll be many explicit stories on here. Word counts vary; I indicate general length but don’t go into specifics. What else, uh... Bold stuff is the headers and general subjects. I link the titles. Block quotes are author summaries. Enjoy!!

Okay so first off, there are a couple of Fandom Staples who just have leagues worth of good short stories, and if you haven’t read them, then definitely treat yourself to the array:

A Thousand Futures of Me and You - VisionaryGalaxy (Vishanti, what a legend, ily so much). This is a series of unconnected one-shots, each their own and covering a variety of tropes and moments and themes and AUs. They’re so fun (and/or painful and/or thought-provoking and/or tense and/or sexy)! In-character and amazing, consistantly.

Prompt Collection - amethyst-noir (Arbonne). (Also a legendary human). This is exactly what it sounds like: a series of prompt fills in all sorts of tones. You’ll almost certainly find something here that feels like it was just made for you!

Alright, onto the individual stories and series!

Long fics/series:

The of overqualified hands and pi figures series - lantia4ever. (This was my first Ironstrange story, and it is no less magical now.)

A series of one-shots, all set in the same alternate verse in which Tony and Stephen first meet following the events of the first Avengers and then continue to meet after that throughout the canon up until Infinity War and eventually beyond it. Becoming friends - and more along the way.

Time After Time - fancylances. (I love love LOVE this one. Highly recommended.)

Tony Stark is unstuck in time. Stephen Strange might just be the only person in the universe qualified enough to help.

Citizen Erased - Imagined. (This author. Just... such a wonderful, talented, stunning person who makes wonderful, talented, stunning works. This story is masterful.)

What do you do when no one in the world ever manages to remember you?

Anyone who sees Tony Stark promptly forgets he ever existed after mere seconds. When everyone he has ever cared about has lost their memories of him, he goes to Stephen Strange, possibly the only one who can help him lift the curse. But a terrifying danger is coming, and saving the world isn’t an easy job to do when no one can remember who you are.

if only the gods had mercy on us and it’s sequel a soul too deep - orphan_account. (Vishanti, this series... It’s so beautiful and emotional and heart-breaking and heart-warming. And it has so few views for so many words! One of my absolute favorites, VERY highly recommended.)

Tony Stark loved Stephen Strange. He loved him more than anyone could ever imagine. But then a terrorist group attacked the convoy. Then there was a car accident. In the middle of it all, there is tired, battered love. (And, maybe, a little bit of genius)

From the Top - lucifersfavoritechild. (Everyone reads this fic. Written by the blogger Monarch Of The Ironstrange Ship, it’s an MCU rewrite around the relationship. Very fun.)

“Stephen, if you’re . . . there somewhere . . . when I drift off, I’ll be with you again. I can’t wait.”

|| Personally, I think the MCU would be much better as a love story between Stephen Strange and Tony Stark. Don't you?

Starting from Iron Man, and going all the way to Endgame, with all the appropriate stops in between. Let's take it from the top.

UNFINISHED: Skin Deep - Mystical_Magician. (Super cool premise, and super interesting to read! The dynamic here is very fun.)

A battle that should have finally killed Stephen instead launches him into a parallel universe. Exhausted from centuries as Sorcerer Supreme, he chooses instead to explore this new world in any animal form except human. Having hoped for peace at last, he can't stand to be looked up to, to be responsible for others, to have the world on his shoulders.

If he'd hoped to avoid excitement, however, he really should have stayed away when he noticed an enormous explosion and a falling metal suit of armor as he passed through Afghanistan.

UNFINISHED: The End of Infinity - FriendlyNeighborhoodFangirls. (Self rec. Very long, very slow-burn. Canon-compliant Endgame fix-it. I’m trying so hard, lol.)

In 2023, the battle for the universe has been won. At a cost no one can forget, the fight is over—for all but one. Stephen Strange has an idea. An impossible idea spanning dimensions and timelines, life and death, and the lines of good and evil. But he's played impossible odds before—perhaps he never stopped.

All that Loki wanted was to fight, one last time, for the fate of his universe. So when he finds himself fighting for another, crashing into the past, he has a few intended words for the wizard that forced him there. But not before he finds a boy. Or, more accurately, before the boy finds him.

Peter Parker had been waiting for the next mission. He just doesn't expect it to come from the future, armed with a ridiculous story demanding a ridiculous quest. And he doesn't expect not to be able to tell Mr. Stark.

Tony Stark is trying to rebuild from the Civil War, knowing that someday, something will come that he needs to be ready for. And he doesn't know it yet, but two universes are trying to rebuild around him, and that something is already here.

Seven Stones. Five dead. Two universes. And one impossible quest to tie it all back together.

UNFINISHED: Sunrise in Exile - Ragdoll (Keshka). (Another fandom favorite! And for good reason. This is really really good!)

Tony does the math and realizes their best chance to save the universe is by... not confronting Thanos on his own turf.

So he steals a wizard and a spider and a space ship. And he runs.

(Three humans and an A.I in space, the alien friendships they make along the way, and discovering how science and magic might coexist in a universe where they can be one and the same.)

Shorter plotty ones:

Out of Suffering - Mystical_Magician. (So this author??? THIS AUTHOR??? Very very good, much yes, very good.)

Stephen Strange does not like people, but 14,000,605 lifetimes of fighting and dying alongside this small group have worn down his walls. He likes them, gods help him. He might even consider them friends. It’s really for the best that they all go their separate ways once Thanos has been defeated. In their eyes, he’s barely even an acquaintance.

Now if only Tony and Peter would stop surprising him.

moros - spookykingdomstarlight. (Almost got a spot in the angst section. Very good).

There were fourteen million universes Stephen had birthed into existence and let die and, in far more than he cared to count, the visitor standing before him had become something… dear.

Shaking is Caring - mariadperiad20. (This is just STUNNING. Highly loved.)

5 times Stephen's hands would shake, +1 time they didn't.

It's Kinda Chalky - DestielsDestiny. (This one’s pretty short, but definitely worth it.)

You can live an entire lifetime by looking into someone’s eyes. His sister used to say that all the time. Stephen never gave it much thought back then. These days, he can think of little else.

Something Magic - Imagined. (Beautiful!)

There is only ever one rule that matters:

do not fall in love with the enemy.

An Idiotic Theory - FriendlyNeighborhoodFangirls. (Self rec! I tried to be funny.)

His wizard has been cursed, again, and Tony's already used up his luck for the day.

(Stephen says it's not a curse. He says Tony's whole daily-allotted karma-based luck theory has minimal merit, citing the fact that Tony had come up with it while he was drunk.)

Tony really should have saved his miracle.

Love Through Time - babywarg (morphaileffect). (I love this one. It sticks with you.)

Tony discovers an old drawing of, and finally remembers, his invisible friend Stephen from when he was a child.

Alternates - doobler. (Super cool!)

After being punked by a lowbrow magician, Stephen finds himself falling through doors to otherwordly dimensions. How will he ever get home?

132 - 28ghosts. (Soulmate AU! Very fun, incorporates Stephen’s time-loop with Dormammu.)

Ninety-nine point eight percent of humans have a soulmate mark that tells them the age their soulmate will be when they meet them. Tony Stark has a mark. It's just that his is...different than most people's.

(Or: six people who aren't Tony Stark's soulmate, and one who is.)

and when the world falls (I will fall with it) - HeavenChild. (Another multichap soulmate AU. Absolutely lovely.)

Tony will give anything to those he loves.

People will take everything he gives before leaving him in shambles.

Rhodhey, Pepper and Vision have had enough.

Or the five times Tony had his heart broken and the one time he didn't.

i saw the end of the world - JumpToConclusions. (Why has no one read this fic??? It’s so good!!! Stephen knows the future since he saw it on Titan, and things grow more complex from there.)

Tony and Strange are trying to make this work, this being remaking The Avengers. ...And maybe they'll stumble into something else along the way.

Tiresome heart, forever living and dying - Mystical_Magician. (R e a d t h i s p l e a s e. The mythology is so cool and the symbolism is so beautiful and the prose is so satisfying. One of my absolute faves.)

As a fledgling crane, Stephen was too curious for his own good, and it was this curiosity that led to Eugene Strange finding and stealing away his feather robe. Trapped in human form, cruelly forged into the perfect son, not even his father's death freed him when his robe was so well hidden. He only managed to break his father's mold after breaking completely in the aftermath of his accident, and slowly gluing those broken pieces back together at Kamar-Taj, but not even magic could find what had been hidden. Enter Tony, after the defeat of Thanos.

Fluffy ones:

From The Outside - Live. (Hilarious.)

Being a sentient life-form surrounded by humanity can be hard. Especially when said humans just can't admit their feelings for each other.

Sleeping Iron Man - Golden_Asp. (Another fun one. Perfect balance of ridiculousness with a touch of angst to make it interesting.)

Stephen Strange stared at the Avengers on his doorstep, Tony Stark flung over Steve Rogers' shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "He touched something, didn't he?" "Yuup." or The one where Tony touches Sleeping Beauty's spindle, is put into an enchanted sleep, and everyone, even Rocket Raccoon, take their turn kissing him. But Tony only has one prince charming.

Doctor Ob(li)vious - lantia4ever. (One of my very favorites. So cute.)

Stephen starts getting some weird looks from the Avengers, spanning across disturbed, confused and even scared all the way to curious. He dismisses it at first until weird turns into knowing.

And knowing turns into realizing...even if the scheming teenagers had to all but paint it on the walls for him to do so. Oh wait...

Applied Combinatorics in Two-Player Games - 28ghosts. (Short and fun and full of snark.)

After a battle, Tony Stark and Stephen Strange argue about games.

“Chess is not a solved problem.”

“Has been since ‘97, Kasparov versus Deep Blue. Kasparov, 1; Deep Blue, 2; three draws.”

“Chess is a game, not a problem.”

The Courtship of Peter Parker's Father (Figures) - flyingonfeatherlesswings. (Peter plays matchmaker! Adorable.)

Peter couldn't stand to sit by while Tony and Stephen danced around each other any longer. Something had to be done.

Speaking Eyes - Vrishchika. (Not Steve Friendly. Tony is amazing in this. And Stephen is so fantastically dramatic.)

Tony has always had expressive eyes.

The Signs of Sleep Deprivation - FriendlyNeighborhoodFangirls. (Another self-rec. <3)

"Tony said to put the potato in the dishwasher, so that's what I did."

Sometimes, Avengers just show up to say hi. Sometimes, they all show up at once, and Tony makes an party out of it. Sometimes, he invites the snarky, oblivious, somewhat insecure wizard because, and Peter quotes: "everyone else is coming".

Sometimes, something needs to be done.

Show Me Your Scars (And I'll Show You Mine) - Imagined. (Adorable. Lovely. Imagined does it again.)

The worst part is that Stephen keeps tucking his hands away, just as Tony wants to hold them. He keeps hiding them, surreptitiously, no matter what they’re doing. It’s only when Tony kisses Stephen, or hugs him, that he feels the hands settle on his back, uncertain, ready to pull back within seconds.

It only makes him want to cuddle up to Stephen even more, but he backs away, not sure if it’d be welcome.

Promise? Promise. - sharonscarters. (AU, kidfic, absolutely adorable.)

A four year old Tony Stark runs away from home and finds his Guardian Angel.

What The Doctor Ordered - wakandan_wardog. (Post CW. Kind of not Rogues friendly? So fun, makes me smile. I re-read this one a lot.)

The Rogue Avengers are called back to New York because the heavy hitters are going to be needed against Thanos. Of course, there are some truths that Steve Rogers will need to accept sooner rather than later. Tony Stark has moved on and Stephen Strange will not suffer fools lightly.

Hurt/Comforty ones:

Among The Chaos of The Stars (You're My Safe Harbour) - ShootMeDead. (Oh my vishanti. OH MY VISHANTI. So so so so SO good.)

Stephen has always been able to hear the stars. Tony is the only one who can silence them.

each night like a white noise frequency - Phierie. (I ADORE THIS FIC. OKAY. I LOVE IT. READ IT.)

Stephen is no stranger to making hard choices. He doesn’t regret his actions on Titan, but months later they weigh on his mind heavier than ever; the cracks begin to show.

Just An Accident - CucumbersInGold. (I really like fics with Stephen’s hands and the difficulties thereabout. Idk, just one of my favorite things. This is beautiful).

Stephen's hands act up.

Learning, Unlearning - Caaaaaaas. (More character study than anything else. Really good.)

Whatever Stephen wanted with life, life just didn’t seem to know what to do with him.

In which Stephen learns and unlearns some very important lessons.

your eyes have their silence - doctortwelfth. (Oh look it’s another scars fic. I told you I liked them.)

Tony is gentle with Stephen’s hands even when Stephen forgets to be.

Burning Lines Into The Snow - petroltogo. (Not very Steve friendly. Short and sweet.)

Post CW: It's not just the team that's so broken they are barely able to comprehend how many parts they're missing now, how many have been ripped and twisted and torn. It's Tony as well, right down to the core, the damage so far-reaching even he doesn't know how to fix it.

And then there's Strange, who has his own way of covering the cracks.

Old Bones - CJtheWeeb. (Owch. Dumb geniuses trying to be invulnerable.)

Sometimes Stephen Strange has great days, where he was nearly pain free and his hands still enough to where he could pick up a cup of water and barely spill a drop.

Today was not one of those days.

something taken, something new - meowrails. (So in-character. The premise was a little off to me, but I’m so glad I decided to read this one. I really really like this fic.)

The ChronicConnection implement and app allows a person that lives with chronic or illness-induced pain to transfer their burden temporarily to a willing loved one.

Tony and Stephen sign up as beta testers.

Angsty ones (happy ending unless otherwise mentioned):

day one - days4daisy. (THIS IS SO GOOD OKAY IF YOU READ NOTHING ELSE ON THIS LIST READ THIS).

Three days in Stark Tower. Stephen must be in bad shape if he just agreed to this.

His Merlin - babywarg (morphaileffect). (This author keeps showing up on this list because they are A LEGEND. A LEGEND I TELL YOU.)

As a child, Tony imagined himself a Knight of the Round Table. Little did he know he would grow up to be a king. And that he would have a wizard by his side to lead him to either glory or destruction.

there is no heart for me like yours - turtle_abyss. (Soulmate AU! Wonderful. <3)

Being able to feel your soulmate - a phantom touch, a bone-deep awareness - is a divine torture. To know, but not see. To seek, but not find. To feel someone holding your hand and not be able to hold theirs.

Grace - StrangeMischief. (*cries in beautiful fic* Happy ending!)

“Pain’s an old friend.”

Us...Me - StrangeMischief. (This will hurt you. So melancholy. Pepper and Tony live their life, and Tony remembers. Not a happy ending.)

“I don’t believe in happily ever after.”

One-Thousand Cranes - FriendlyNeighborhoodFangirls. (Self rec, sorry. Hopeful ending.)

After it all, a man with shaking hands makes a wish.

courtesy - deathofglitter. (Dealing with the fourteen-million futures. So good.)

Stark looked at him like he looked at the amulet that rested on his chest like a steady promise - dutiful, a bit burdened, and trying to hold a profound lack of personal emotion whatsoever, still personal enough to protect as anyone would a precious object.

La Douleur Exquise - BananasofThorns, StrangeMischief. (More pain. Pepper and Tony, and Stephen watching and trying not to wish. Very good, no happy ending.)

The before was easy. There were fewer boxes in their minds and no chains around their hearts. There was no hurt. No tears. No dreams.

But those days were long gone.

Stigmata - babywarg (morphaileffect). (AU! Soulmates again. Very interesting, beautifully done.)

Since Stephen was little, mysterious wounds have appeared and disappeared on his body, leaving mysterious scars. His mother says it's because he's one of a Pair, and he's absorbing pain meant for someone else.

*wipes brow* PHEW! That gotta a little more in-depth than I first intended... Have fun, my MysticIron friends. Happy quarantine.

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the-witty-pen-name · 4 years ago

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Fell in Love in Scotland Pt. 3

Sam Wilson x F!Reader

Warnings: ptsd/trauma related to war; mentions of nightmares; angst; cursing; pining; slow burn

Summary: After finding about the new Captain America, the reader goes to Louisiana to visit Sam.

Word Count: 906

A/N: I’m sorry this a little shorter than I expected, but I feel like I summed it up and didn’t want to overdo it!

This references Civil War, Endgame and Infinity War events in flashbacks but you know, canon is a thing I like to just maneuver around so I’m sorry if there are many major inaccuracies!

This is unedited and please let me know if I missed anything that should be included as a warning!

“Sam, I need to tell you something.”

No going back now.

“You can tell me anything. You know that…”

“I have feelings for you!”

“What…?”

“Sam, I’m in love with you. I have been for a while and that’s why I haven’t kept in touch. I just let my feelings get in the way, but not having you around was worse than being around you and keeping it all bottled up. I just… I know that it can be weird but I want to be your friend and I want you in my life so if you don’t feel the same just don’t force me out…”

His lips were so incredibly soft, and his kiss was so tender. Even though it was a spur of the moment kind of kiss, you can still feel a little hesitance behind it.

“I’m in love with you,” he says when you both pull away, and you still look shocked that he just kissed you.

“R-Really?” you ask, somehow still in disbelief at the notion even though the man just kissed you.

“God, you really couldn’t tell?” he asks with a chuckle, and you feel flustered.

“Um… no,” you answer honestly, feeling foolish. “I thought you just thought of me as a friend.”

He rests his hand on top of yours and the sensation makes your stomach flip.

“I am very much in love with you,” he confesses, rubbing his hand over yours, his thumb tracing patterns on your skin. “I wanted to tell you so many times, but I just didn’t want to ruin anything. Steve told me how he thought you felt, but I didn’t say anything because… I don’t know, every time it felt like the right time something got in the way.”

It was around 6am when you woke up, the sun was still lighting up the room even though your blinds were closed. You turned over to face away from the window and you saw Sam was still there, his back to you, snoring softly. You made a mental note to make fun of him about it later.

You wanted to badly to wake up like this all the time. You knew he was only there to be a good friend. He was there because he understood what you were going through. He never even inched closer to you, he kept as much distance as he could between the two of you. He was there for support. You closed your eyes again when he shifted and let him think you were still sleeping when he carefully gets up and leaves.

He’s going to try to come back before you wake up. He always does. Most nights when he’d come to your room after you’ve had a bad nightmare, you’d wake up the next morning with him sitting up on his side with his coffee and yours would be sitting on your nightstand waiting for you.

It was nice. It was just always so sickeningly sweet, how could not realize this man was in love with you?

Because he’s Sam Wilson and he is so sweet and selfless to everyone in his life.

If he was anyone else, the implications of his feelings were beyond obvious. But Sam went above and beyond for everyone he considered a friend. Maybe he did treat you special, but it was very easy for you to talk yourself out of the notion because of his nature.

Also, the little safe house in Scotland didn’t last forever. It was a temporary escape but you all needed to keep moving. The harsh realities of your situation reared their ugly head quickly and before you knew it, you all had to abandon the little house.

If you were to tell Sam, it should’ve been there but you missed your opportunity. Life after that wasn’t calm for a long while.

Then not only did the world fall apart, it fell apart twice. The second time, neither of you were even there to help Steve. Then, when you thought everything could somehow go back to normal, Steve left.

Scotland was the one chance you thought you had and you completely blew it.

Now sitting here with him, the sun hot on your shoulders, and him looking at you like that, you don’t even think about Scotland as this absolute you once thought about it as. It was just a chapter. And now you two are entering a new one, wherever it’s going to take the two of you.

You wish that you realized then what you know now. There would be no going back to normal. The whole idea that the world and life was once good and now you just needed to wait for things to pass was just a lie you told yourself. Problems were always there, and you only noticed when you were forced to confront them.

Now, the world is continuing its usual things. There is no Endgame. There is no final battle, because after every fight is the mess that is left behind. The world had problems before the Blip, and it will continue to have problems after. You wish you had this realization before, maybe things would have started differently for you and Sam but the past doesn’t matter. Because right now, you and the rest of the world is healing. And you know that you’ll do so with a Captain America suited for the times you’re living in.

Taglist:

@greeneyedblondie44 @witchybarb @stiles-stilinski-24-dylan @sassy-kassaay @aynanasstuff @claudiaatje @lieswithoutfairytales @ttalisa @januarystears

#sam wilson x y/n #sam wilson x reader #sam wilson x you #fluff #slow burn #friends to lovers #justsamwilson #sam wilson fanfiction #sam wilson #the falcon and the winter soldier #anthony mackie characters

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mellowasinyellow · 4 years ago

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100daysofwriting - Day 1

So I thought for the first day I might just briefly outline all of the WIPs I have actually made a start on and that might help me to decide where I want to focus some energy. I have some for Katniss/Peeta in THG fandom and some for Natasha/Clint in the MCU.

Everlark

folklore series - so I started this series of fics inspired by songs from Taylor Swift's album folklore because honestly those songs just immediately bring to mind so many scenarios that made me think of Katniss and Peeta. I made a start on chapters based on peace, my tears ricochet, invisible string, this is me trying, and mad woman. I also have a bit of an outline for continuing the story that was started in 'the 1'.

I've had this one WIP ongoing since about 2015(?) which is a bit of a monster that has grown beyond me but basically it involves Katniss and Gale being raised in the Capitol in relative poverty after their fathers are conscripted into the peacekeepers because of traitorous activity. Mrs Everdeen is still from 12 but was moved to the Captiol to be married (this part is sketchy) and she still had a little childhood romance with Mr Mellark. Peeta gets reaped and Mrs Everdeen reacts to this as he looks like his father. Katniss gets a crush on him as she watches him prepare for the games. She hates herself for it but finds herself checking up on how he is doing even during non-mandatory viewing.

Arranged Marriage - I feel like this is such a cliche for thg fandom, but I just imagined my own way that the pairings happen but I'm so bad at writing slow burn so this will probably never materialise, but if you want a semi-decent thought out pairing/arranged marriage system I would be happy to lend you mine.

Miscarriage fic - I will never post this, but it's in my WIP folder. It's full of nasty feelings that feel a little better when they are written about.

Modern AU Pandemic Quarantine! - ofc, this is essential. Katniss and Peeta end up as the only people not to move home from their dorm for the quarantine. Slow burn that I can't fucking write should ensue.

Canon Pandemic Quarantine AU - pandemic a few years after the end of the war forces Katniss to admit she wants Peeta as more than a friend with whom she hunts, bakes, rebuilds the district. Cue sexy pandemic times and a resentful Haymitch that keeps accidentally breaking the rules.

Divorced but co-parenting Everlark - obviously finding their way back together

Another classic of their children being reaped and dying - I don't know why I write things this depressing. They just tend to come out in one big rush and then I never address them again.

Real weird teen pregnancy modern day AU - don't know where it's going or why...

Modern day AU dead Prim - Peeta and Katniss just met each other through mutual friends and are kind of flirting. Peeta is a bit infatuated. Katniss stops going to mutual friend parties and he finds out it's because her sister died. Instead of staying away he gets tangled up in her grief and does all sorts of practical things while Katniss wallows. Also it's E rated but not that much fun... can't entirely explain where this one came from either...

Single Parent AU where Finnick and Annie play match maker. Probably my fave Everlark in the works but it's another one that has grown so big for the 20 minutes I can dedicate to it each week.

Clintasha

Red Room Take Down - Nat and Clint are retired and living a quiet family life with their child. SHIELD appears asking for Nat's help in taking down the red room and dealing with the fall out, specifically what to do with the girls that they get out. Nat is torn but chooses to go. Chaos ensues with the 'rescued' girls. I need to actually develop some OCs a little if I ever want this to be good but tbh the pending Black Widow movie is kind of holding me back on this one too because I hope we find out more about the red room.

So I have a weird habit of writing from Lila Barton's POV. I can't explain it. I have AoU and like to pretend it never happened but anyway I have a WIP about Lila detailing the collapse of her parents' marriage after Clint retires and he and Laura actually have to spend time together without Natasha. She then goes on to describe the custody settlement and her utter joy that Auntie Nat sleepovers with them at her dad's place. She feels utterly betrayed when she finds out they are getting engaged.

Fluffy AU - Clint and Natasha in an established relationship with a son born between infinity war and endgame. Natasha still sacrifices on Vormir, but Steve gets her back no bother and it's so nice and happy and fluffy and Clint and Natasha are together and they have a son who has both parents back and Steve gets to make all this happen and he is so happy too and they have a barbecue and go swimming in a lake and clint/natasha have private time, and their kid wants to be captain america, and did I mention how HAPPY everyone is?

Another fic similar to the above just about everyone being so HAPPY. Endgame reverses the snap and instead of weird farm family coming back Clint and Natasha get their daughter back and it's just a cute moment about her reappearance and their race back to the spot she disintegrated from. (Steve/Bucky go to Vormir and Steve is sacrificed, but that fucker CHOSE to leave).

This is another one that has just grown bigger than my brain. it's based off the idea that Natasha helped with coordinating fosterings during the blip time. Clint loses his mind when he loses his family and crashes in BedStuy but finds a neighbour girl (Kate Bishop) who is fending for herself in post-apocalyptic Brooklyn. He helps her out and tries to get children's services involved but it has collapsed. Finds out Natasha is the one getting everything in order. He gets in touch. She's at the end of her tether and asks why he can't keep looking after her. In the end he does and she ends up getting involved and all three get overly attached to each other. I haven't got as far as the events of endgame and idk what's going to happen. It might be tragic.

Pregnant Natasha but nobody knows what is wrong with her because they don't even suspect her being pregnant is possible. Just a real vivid description of the early unpleasant pregnancy symptoms.

Another absolute monster - Sort of canon compliant to begin with aside from before the farm family disappear. Clint and Laura are in the middle of separating and tensions are running quite high at the farm. Snap happens. Nat and Clint accidentally run into each other while both a bit low during the blip and get drunk and share home truths. Begin working together from HQ and both get a little less sad. He convinces her she doesn't have to be responsible for the world's fate every moment of every day. Clint has a break down at Morgan's 1st birthday and realises that things will have to change. Nat has this realisation later. They begin sleeping together. Accidental pregnancy. More feelings come out between them. They enter a more conventional relationship and have baby. Baby is really hard work (colic) and they struggle with comparisons and feelings of inadequacy. Pepper helps them to identify the colic and improves everything greatly. Happy times with baby while also running the avengers. Opportunity to reverse snap. Some good scenes between Nat and Tony. A big conversation between Nat and Clint about what it will mean. Steve and Nat end up going to Vormir together. Nat is obviously about to commit suicide. Steve over powers her and gives her a pep talk about the situation she is running away from and how to deal with it. He self-sacrifices. Clint goes back to farm fam and Natasha goes back to BedStuy with baby. Clint has to tell Laura and then the kids about the last 5 years and their new siblings. Nate is super into it. Cooper is a bit aloof and cynical. Lila is confused. Laura is quietly seething. Clint helps put the farm back together about 5 years of neglect and the kids meet baby. Family gets happier. Laura and Nat eventually meet again and it's civil/friendly.

My own version of what happened in Budapest.

The Call - inspired by a post here on tumblr. Nat calls Clint as she bleeds out. Just needs a beta reader and then I would consider publishing.

AoU reimagined but with Clintasha - I'm not sure where this one is going it's like a massive spider web right now with lots of ideas shooting off, but basically it is inspired by this post and just involves a lot of hoodwinking the other avengers.

Accidental Baby Acquisition - Natasha becomes Yelena's child's legal guardian after Yelena gets taken out. Natasha and Yelena are estranged at this point and Natasha things the whole thing is a trap and brings Clint along. He is surprisingly good with the baby so she ropes him in to teach her. The three of them end up bonding.

5 times there's only 1 bed + 1 time they choose to sleep in the same bed.

non-superhero AU Clint and Nat both think they have adopted a stay cat but actually the cat has owners and just likes strokes and eats a lot so has many 'families'. They get into an argument over which of them the cat belongs to only to find out the cat has owners and they are moving away. They decide to adopt a cat between them as both are not hope that much and the shelter refused them as single people. Slow burn ensues, which I am shit at writing.

#100daysofwriting #everlark #clintasha #thg #mcu #clintasha fanfic #clintasha fanfiction #clintasha fic #everlark fic #everlark fanfic #everlark fanfiction #natasha romanoff #clint barton #katniss everdeen #peeta mellark

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thirsty4villains · 2 years ago

Text

Bound | A Loki x Reader fic - Chapter 18

Rating: E

Warnings: Eventual smut, human sacrifice, mentions of torture, blood and injury, violence, angst

Tags: slow burn, romance, fix-it, canon divergence of Avengers Infinity War/Endgame, humor, limited use of Y/N, action, sharing a bed

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Read on AO3 | Wattpad

Summary:

A year has passed since the Snap. As you look to find a fresh start in life, you end up in the wrong place at the wrong time. A small cult dedicated to the newly revitalized Norse religion chooses you as a sacrifice with the belief that this will give Thor and the other gods the strength to undo what Thanos has done. What you don't know is that human sacrifices come with a powerful magic — those who are sacrificed become linked with the god they have been given to.

It's been a millennia since a human was sacrificed to one of the gods. You've been bound to Loki.

CHAPTER 18

Loki

The attack came out of nowhere. A ship appeared in the sky and rained hell down on the Avengers compound. Dust, rubble, and glass came down as the building caved in. Some of the heroes got caught in the descent of the rubble and collapsed with the lower floors. Others made a mad scramble to avoid the concrete, wood, piping, and other hazards coming right at them.

A metal beam screeched as it dislodged from the walls and Loki’s head narrowly missed it as he dodged out of the way. However, he dodged right into the path of a large chunk of cement. It took Loki with it on the way to the floor, crushing him.

“Loki!” Thor said, running over to his brother and avoiding the last of the crumbling debris. He bent down and helped Loki push the piece of wall off him.

Loki grunted as the weight of the cement was lifted. He took Thor’s hand and was lifted back to his feet.

“Thank you, brother.”

The compound – what was left of it – finally settled in a large heap. Loki wondered if there were any casualties. The Avengers have faced far worse than a building collapsing on top of them, so he was not too worried of any deaths. There were more pressing matters on his mind because below the compound, in the crater caused by the explosion filled with dust and debris, sat the Mad Titan on a piece of rubble.

Out of instinct, Loki’s hand reached for his dagger, then stopped upon realizing that Thanos was just… sitting there.

“What is he doing?” Loki asked under his breath.

“I do not know,” Thor replied.

The brothers and Thanos watched one another from their respective spots.

A few minutes later, Steve and Tony approached the Asgardians. Tony had a large gash on the side of his face from where the debris had obviously collided with him. Steve’s red, white, and blue colors were muddled from the dust. Thor and Loki also had some bruises and dust accumulated from the attack.

“What’s he been doing?” Tony asked.

“Absolutely nothing,” Thor said with bewilderment in his voice.

“Where are the Stones?” Steve asked.

“Somewhere under all this,” Tony replied, looking around at the absolute mess before them. “All I know is, he doesn’t have them.”

“So we keep it that way,” Steve said.

“You know it’s a trap, right?” Thor said.

“Oh, of course it is,” Loki said, without breaking eye contact with the Mad Titan from his spot below.

“Yeah… But I don’t much care,” Tony said, also responding to Thor.

“Good,” Thor nodded. “Just as long as we’re all in agreement.”

A crackle of thunder sounded, and Thor’s eyes glowed electric blue. The clouds in the sky electrified with lightning, and the god of thunder summoned Stormbreaker and Mjolnir into his hands.

“Let’s kill him properly this time.”

“Brother, here,” Loki said, pulling one of the golden apples out of thin air with his magic. “Eat.”

Thor grabbed the fruit and took one large bite. “I’m not going to wait any longer.” He threw the apple back at Loki. Lightning crackled down the thunder god’s biceps. “Mmm, I already feel stronger. Thank you, brother.”

“Captain,” Loki spoke, holding up the partially eaten apple. Steve caught it in midair and took a bite out of the other side.

“Incredible,” Steve said, staring at his own reflection in the golden fruit. “I know exactly what Thor means. I feel… I feel like I could run ten marathons.” He passed the fruit to Tony, who waved his hand.

“I’m not much into sharing food.” He shook his head at Loki, who held out one of the other uneaten apples. “Also never really been much of an apple person.”

“Suit yourself. Hope you don’t die,” Loki said, disappearing both apples with his magic.

“Enough talk,” Thor said. “Like I said, let’s kill him.”

They descended the hill of debris.

—-

“You could not live with your own failure,” Thanos spoke as the four men approached him. Each had weapons in hand or weapons at the ready, and adrenaline on high. “Where did that bring you? Back to me.”

The heroes said nothing, just silently came forward. Thanos pressed on. “I thought by eliminating half of life, the other half would thrive. But you’ve shown me that’s impossible. As long as there are those that remember what was, there will always be those that are unable to accept what can be… And will resist.”

“Yep, we’re all kinds of stubborn,” Tony spoke first.

“Unthankful,” Thanos mused to himself with a smile. He stood up and slowly armored himself. “Because now I know what I must do. I will shred this universe down to its last atom. And then, with the Stones you’ve collected for me, create a new one. Teeming with life, knows not what it has lost but only what it has been given. A grateful universe.”

Thanos pulled his double-edged sword out of the earth it had been lodged in, and looked down at the Avengers, tempting them to make a move.

“Born out of blood,” Steve replied to his monologue.

“They’ll never know it,” Thanos said. “Because you won’t be alive to tell them.”

“No. It ends here,” Loki said.

Thor roared, and the battle commenced. The four heroes and Thanos ran at one another to begin the final battle for the Infinity Stones. Thor and Tony worked together to charge his electricity into Tony’s tech, amplifying the lightning into a super laser into Thanos. Just in time, Thanos was able to hold back the blast with his double-edged sword. Tony, attempting to increase the energy output on Thanos by moving closer, was snatched up and thrown several yards away, landing headfirst into a heap of rock and rubble. Out for the count.

Should have taken a bite, stubborn fool, Loki thought.

Thor, Loki and Thanos squared up next. Thor and Thanos fought at melee range, with Loki casting spells from afar. Out of green mist appeared a cloud that rained fire onto the Mad Titan. Hot embers descended upon him, to which Thanos yowled in pain and quickly switched his attention onto Loki.

Thanos made like he was going to run at the trickster, but opted to throw his double-edged blade instead. It came flying at Loki, twirling in the air at immense speed. And Loki, caught off guard, was hit by the blade and crashed into debris. He stumbled, and his head throbbed for a few seconds. It should have hurt more, much more, but he knew by how quickly the pain subsided that the apple’s juices were working as intended. He badly wanted to get back at Thanos for the attack, but currently Thanos was brawling with Thor, who seemed to have it handled at the moment. Loki opted to find Tony and make sure he wasn’t seriously injured – or dead.

However, the tables turned quickly and Thanos had the upper hand again. Thankfully Steve, in a miracle, summoned Mjolnir to draw Thanos’ attention from Thor. The First Avenger and the Titan fought. Steve used Mjolnir and his shield to work off of each other to do damage to Thanos. Thanos took quite a bit of electricity and hits from Mjolnir, but ultimately gained back his footing, and with his blades, shattered the red, white, and blue shield until the Captain was holding a jagged semicircle.

Steve gritted his teeth.

“In all my years of conquest and violence, slaughters… It was never personal. But I’ll tell you now, what I’m about to do to your stubborn, annoying little planet, I’m gonna enjoy it. Very, very much.”

In the distance, a light beamed down from Thanos’ ship, and all of his forces came down with it.

Steve grunted and managed to stand on his feet. He removed his shield and looked at the chaos that was about to rain down on him and whichever Avengers may have remained.

His concentration was broken when a familiar voice sounded in his ear.

“Cap, you read me?”

It was a voice he hadn’t heard in five years.

“Cap, it’s Sam. Do you hear me?”

Steve put his finger on his ear, where his audio feed was, like he was going to respond. But no words came.

“On your left,” Sam said.

Steve looked over his shoulder and an orange, runic portal swirled out of thin air.

Out of the portal came the Wakandans that disappeared with the Snap; T’Challa, Shuri, and Okoye. Then, gliding above them came the Falcon, and then dozens of more portals appeared, filling the skies. The heroes and victims who had been gone for five long years finally returned; Doctor Strange, the Guardians of the Galaxy, Spider-Man, Valkyrie, Scarlet Witch, the Wasp, Bucky Barnes, and thousands upon thousands of others. The sky was lit orange with portals and the hope to defeat Thanos once and for all, seemed actually feasible.

“Up, Stark, up!” Loki said, as he casted magic to get the unconscious Iron Man back on his feet.

“I’m up, I’m up… Oh my god,” he gaped as he saw the scene before him.

Thor stood on his feet too, resummoning Stormbreaker to his grasp and smiling triumphantly at the heroes who joined the fight.

“Is that everyone?” Doctor Strange asked after all the arrivals came through.

“Like you wanted more?” Wong asked.

Through the crashed structure of the Avengers compound grew Ant-Man, holding all the heroes who’d been caught underground in the palm of his hand; Rocket, the Hulk, and War Machine.

Everyone was here. Every Avenger who survived the Snap, and every single person who was Snapped out of existence five years ago was here on Earth once again, and they were going to get it right this time. They were going to win.

Shouting, battle cries, adrenaline filled the air. Steve, Captain America, The First Avenger – spoke.

“Avengers!”

He summoned Mjolnir to his hand, gritted his teeth, and looked at Thanos with ferocity in his eyes.

“...Assemble.”

The real fight began.

—---

Tens of thousands of heroes and monsters ran at each other, as the final fight of the Infinity War took place.

And after everything, the apples did come in handy. Loki worried that his plan was all for naught, but in a strange, roundabout way, it worked out. Now the tricky part was to hand them out while there was an active war happening.

The hardest person to reach was Valkyrie, who was fighting on her pegasus. However, with the right timing and a few failed attempts, Loki was able to teleport himself seated behind her on her steed.

“Valkyrie, I –”

“Loki?!” she shouted. She was so distracted by his sudden appearance behind her that she missed spearing one of Thanos’ monsters. “You’re dead!”

“Yes, well, there’s a long story there. Anyway, don’t have much time. Eat this.” He handed her one of the apples.

“Idunn’s apple? How did you..?”

“Like I said, long story. Now eat it!”

She looked incredibly confused. “Um… Okay! Thanks!” She took the fruit and began to eat into it while spearing some more enemies.

“Wow, that packs a punch,” she said. Loki teleported back off of the winged horse and to the ground.

The Hulk was quite easy to find. He shouted to Banner and tossed the apple up at him, who snatched it and began to eat.

“Jesus, Loki, that’s some powerful stuff,” he remarked. Without even blinking, he pummeled about twenty monsters into the ground. One of them, armed with a glaive, sliced at him while his back was turned, but not a drop of blood fell. The Hulk turned around, and the alien took a step back before it joined its comrades in the dirt.

The next person he offered a golden apple to was Doctor Strange, who Loki had only met very briefly while he was busy falling between dimensions. He didn’t exactly have fond feelings toward the man for humiliating him, but now wasn’t the time to hold grudges.

“Strange!” Loki shouted over the commotion. The sorcerer was currently using magic to slice through enemies, gliding through the air as he did so. Wong and some other casters were assisting.

Doctor Strange looked over his shoulder down at Loki on the ground.

“Yes..? I’m kind of in the middle of something right now!” He shouted back as he casted a spell that melted some of Thanos’ cronies like ice cream on a hot sidewalk.

Loki threw the apple up to Strange. He was about to explain when Valkyrie flew by on her pegasus again.

“Eat it, Strange! It’ll make you ten times stronger!” The warrior shouted.

“I’m not really particularly hungry right now… But fine!” A large crunch as the sorcerer took his first bite of the apple.

“There you go,” Valkyrie said. “Hey kid!” She shouted down to Spider-Man, who was slinging webs around. “Catch!”

Valkyrie threw her partially-eaten apple at the teenage superhero.

“Am I supposed to eat this?” he asked, sounding very confused.

“Yes!” Loki shouted.

“Uhhh… okay! This doesn’t seem very sanitary though,” Peter pulled his mask above his mouth and began to chew. “Woah!”

The apples were being passed around more than a joint at a college party. Obviously there weren’t enough for everybody, as there were thousands of warriors on the battlefield, but many had their share of a few bites, including Black Panther, The Winter Soldier, Pepper Potts, Mantis, Falcon, Hawkeye, and more. And the power boost was visible.

At one point, Rocket Raccoon was swarmed by dozens of Chitauri. He should have been overpowered, but many of their weapons seemed to bounce off of him, like there was an invisible shield surrounding the raccoon. He taunted their failed attempts, shouting expletives while blasting bullets into their faces, and moving faster than he physically should be able as he darted from alien to alien.

The Hulk who can already jump up onto buildings was able to propel himself hundreds of feet into the air, catching onto a Chitauri Leviathan and bringing it down to crash into more of Thanos’ soldiers below. His left arm still hurt from the Nano Gauntlet nearly frying it to a crisp, but the apple’s healing properties kept the pain at bay. His green skin also emitted a light golden tinge. There were even moments where he surprised himself with his newfound strength, where he punched a member of the Black Order so far that it nearly crashed into the Wasp, who was fighting her own goonies.

“Hey, watch it!” she shouted.

Bruce cringed. “Sorry!”

A large piece of building came down onto Spider-Man while he was holding back a hoard of alien monsters from swarming the battlefield. The rubble and cement crashed onto him, some pieces collided with his head. Some of the monsters were caught up in the collision too, each one killed. He, however, coughed a few times, stood up, and brushed it off as if nothing had happened. There was a decent throbbing in his head, but with every second that passed he felt it healing.

“That should have killed me,” Peter said, stunned.

With his super-strength and some webs, he was able to get out of the debris and back into the fight.

He looked down at his fists, which he felt brimming with the newfound strength powered by the apples, and back at the fight. “This is crazy.”

Iron Man, who at this point had been offered a bite of apple a few times by now, declined each time.

“I don’t use anything in battle that I haven’t invented myself. Also, say no to drugs and all that jazz. But I will accept a nice glass of whiskey if you’re offering,” he told Loki.

“Stark…” Loki said under his breath. He shook his head at the man’s obstinate nature. Lucky for him, at least he was holding his own. For now.

Far away, on the other side of the battlefield, Scarlet Witch was facing off against Thanos.

“You took… everything from me,” she spoke, her eyes red with magic and hatred.

“I don’t even know who you are,” the Mad Titan replied.

“You will.”

Rising into the air, taking rocks and rubble with her, the Scarlet Witch threw the heavy material at Thanos with her magic. He was thrown back, but got back up quickly and ran at her with his double-edged blade. He nearly got her head, but just in time she stopped him with her energy. For the first time since taking a bite, she noticed little gold flecks when casting her magicks. She threw Thanos back and enveloped him with her energies, which she was going to crush him to death with.

“Rain fire!” he shouted.

“Just do it!” he said again in response to Corvus Glaive, one of his Black Order fighters.

Then, all turrets on Thanos’ ship turned downward to the battlefield, and hundreds of lasers fired down, hitting both hero and alien.

Much of the fighting stopped to prioritize taking cover from the deluge. Loki whipped his head up to see a bright blue laser coming right at him. It was then and there that he wished he’d revealed his true feelings for you before coming here.

You

Under Freya’s willow tree you sat meditating. For the most part you were able to fend off the fight-or-flight feelings the bond instilled in you from whatever Loki had to be experiencing right now. He needed you, and that mattered more than any distraction or Odin coming to try and stop you. And if he did find you, oh, he would try. But unfortunately, the magic just wasn’t kicking in. Still, you felt the grass poking underneath your legs, and the leaves of the tree swayed above you in the light breeze.

So, you took your mind back to the beginning. You recalled the pain and absolute terror when you were sacrificed; your first interactions with Loki; how you couldn’t stand each other; and when those feelings changed, leaving you confused and excited whenever he was around. And then there were the magic lessons in the hopes that you could break the bond, which eventually brought you closer together. You remembered the brief touches, the stares, the overwhelming feelings… And then, of course, there was the night you spent in the forest of Valhalla sharing a sleeping bag, talking about how it could never work. You remembered your feelings that night, and also your feelings when Loki poured his heart out to you about his true heritage. Then arrived the giants of Muspelheim and the feelings of affection, fear, and hope that Loki would come to rescue you. And when he did come… how tenderly he treated you, like you were a wounded bird fallen from its nest. After all this, you finally got Idunn’s apples, and you revealed to one another how much you really meant to each other.

Lastly, you focused on the bond itself. The pesky thing that got you in this whole ordeal in the first place, the magic that enhanced your desire of Loki and magnified your feelings. Just being in proximity of him drove you mad – and when you had your first kiss, it was like a drug.

How much of it was the bond and how much of your feelings were your own you did not know. This magic was ancient and uncertain, fueled by the anxiety, fear, and desperation of people who wanted their gods to make things right. But somewhere, deep down, you knew that despite your confusion, your affection, and your lust for Loki heightened by the binding magic – you loved him.

You loved Loki, the trickster god, the bastard Jotun son, the prince of Asgard, the almost-conqueror of Earth. The man who healed your wounds, taught you magic, and saved you from the fire giants.

And then he left you, but that didn’t matter right now. You knew that stubborn god only did it to protect you. It was out of love that he’d done it. He loved you. And you loved him. And now it was time to save him.

The bond within you tightened as you thought of Loki and your connection with him, and then in a flash, you were gone.

An amalgamation of confusing colors, sounds, and shapes whizzed past you as you were transported out of Valhalla. You didn’t know where you were or where he was, but you knew that you were being taken to Loki. You had tapped into the bond, just like Frigga told you.

It occurred in the span of half a second, then you appeared on a dimly lit battlefield. From the heavens, in the instant you arrived, a blue beam of highly-charged energy hit you, then reflected off of something, and redirected west, taking down a Chitauri Leviathan with it.

You uncovered your ears and opened your eyes after the blast was repelled. Loki did the same, and stared in shock at your sudden presence.

“Y/N?” He shouted, eyes wide. “How are you here? And… how did you do that?”

Loki and you looked up and noticed a faint, transparent bubble surrounding the both of you. The laser, it reflected off of you.

“The binding magic. I tapped into it to take me back to you,” you explained.

“And the forcefield?” Loki asked.

“I’m not entirely sure.”

The lasers continued to rain down, but the two of you were safe in your bubble. Another laser ricocheted off the forcefield and flew off into the dark gray clouds that overlooked the chaotic battle scene.

“Darling… I think when you tapped into the bond. In that exact moment you were transported here, the magic saved me.”

“I think you’re right. I was too focused on the bond to be casting any magic of my own. It must have known you were in danger, so it protected you.”

Loki nodded. He tried to appear calm and collected, but you could tell that he was processing that he’d almost just been killed.

“Thank you,” Loki said. And in that moment you swore he was about to kiss you. However, the battle for the universe currently raging probably wasn’t the time to do it, and his body language changed.

Loki’s expression soured. “I can’t believe you came here after I expressly told you not to!”

You scoffed. “After you told me? I never agreed. You put me to sleep and then came here, and then when this whole big combat started I could feel you in danger. I’m the one who has a right to be angry!”

Another laser bounced off the forcefield.

“We can talk more later, but yes, I know my actions were incredibly deceitful and I hope that after all this you can forgive me.” Loki brushed a strand of hair behind your ear. “Thank you again for saving me.”

You smiled, then retrieved your half-apple from your pocket. “Eat, because if that laser would have killed you then I know you haven’t had one yet.”

“Perceptive,” Loki said with a small smirk. He took some bites, then gave it back to you. “Now you eat. And I see that you haven’t taken a bite yet either, despite the bond weakening with my absence. So finish it, because I’m not going to have your death on my conscience again.”

So you did, took bites of the apple until all that remained was the golden core. The fighting was sparse as heroes and foe alike were still taking cover from the lasers, until suddenly, the blasts stopped. The turrets on Thanos’ enormous flagship ceased fire and turned their attention to the sky. Everyone wondered what the hell could be happening that would draw the turrets’ attention from the battle at hand. Then, a huge blast came from the sky and Captain Marvel descended from the heavens.

“Right, so, there’s a lot happening here,” you said, looking at the enormous battlefield. “This is a lot more than a ship of fire giants.”

“Which is why I wanted you to stay where you’d be safe, but then again, you never really were good at listening to me, were you?” Loki said teasingly. “But since you’re here, why not keep the two of us safe?”

“Shield us both?”

Loki nodded. “Yes, since no one has eaten a full apple, no one here is truly invincible. Stronger, yes. But still killable. Shield us or anyone else if they are in danger.”

“Okay,” you said, unsure but ready.

At that moment, a group of hostiles attacked. Four of them jumped on Loki and two on you. They must not have seen the shield because their eyes never left you nor Loki. The aliens made contact with the shield instead, bouncing off of it. They laid on the ground in a daze, grunting in pain. The shield disappeared with the impact. While they were incapacitated, Loki stuck his dagger in two that attempted to jump on him, killing them swiftly.

The third alien jumped up quickly and snarled at Loki, lunging at him and scratching his side with its talons. Loki retaliated with a blast of light blue magic. The magic froze the alien’s limbs and it howled in agony until it toppled over.

While Loki dealt with that, the fourth one tried to ambush him from behind, but in time you managed to tap into the bond to regain the shield, centering it on Loki. Its corpse flew back comically and hit the ground several feet away.

“Thank you,” Loki said.

The two that made to attack you were still on the ground, seemingly not aware of where they were. You sliced one’s throat with a sword you conjured out of the air. The other Loki roasted alive with embers he spewed from his hands.

“This is just a fraction of the dangers here. Thanos’ entire army is here to fight, a half-dozen aliens is nothing compared to the thick of it.” Loki spoke your name. “Do you understand?”

You nodded your head. “Yes, Loki, I understand. I knew what I signed up for when I came here.”

He nodded in return but there was something in his eyes, fear perhaps, or worry. He didn’t want you here, you knew that, but nothing could be done now. You were here until the battle had a victor.

Nearby, the Wasp and Spider-Man were being overrun by Thanos’ forces. As you and Loki ran to approach, you redirected your shield onto them. This was enough to give them breathing room, and many more aliens bounced off their shields the same way they did yours. With enough space to get their bearings, the two heroes got back into the fight. Spider-Man slung webbing to trap most of the horde, while the Wasp finished them off.

“Thank you magic shield lady!” Spider-Man shouted.

Loki killed the last few aliens coming their way, using his illusory duplicates to draw them into a trap.

The two of you moved on, and in that time you shielded Captain America from a laser blast from a bulky, ugly creature carrying a bazooka looking weapon.

“Thank you,” he said, grateful yet confused at the new participant in the battle. With his shield, he sliced the creature in half.

Close by, Iron Man and Falcon were fending off some of Thanos’ soldiers, when a member of the Black Order aimed to shoot Iron Man in the back. The first shot hit, and he careened into the ground. The alien grinned, and went to shoot him more, but the blasts bounced off of your shield and back at her. Falcon dealt the final blow.

You and Loki helped Iron Man get back to his feet.

“Are you okay?” you asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Thanks for the assist. Glad I didn’t die back there…” He shook his head. “I’m sorry, you are who?”

You said your name and he introduced himself as well, even though you and nearly everyone on Earth knows Tony Stark.

“So you’re the one who helped Loki get here, huh? Well, thanks again for the help.” He turned his attention to the god of mischief. “Still don’t trust you.”

“I wouldn’t expect any different, Stark.”

“Pff.” And with that, Iron Man took off into the skies to rain lasers down on more of Thanos’ soldiers.

Of all the heroes you encountered, some you’d heard of, many you hadn’t – the last you met was Thor. He was one of the ones you knew since he fought in the Battle of New York, and of course, he was also Loki’s brother. Now that you knew Loki… you weren’t sure what to think. Loki tended to avoid talking about his family, but of the times he did, when he mentioned Thor there were many mixed feelings. There was love for his brother but also a deep-seated jealousy over the favoritism shown to him by their father.

At the exact moment you shielded Thor from an enemy’s attack, Mjolnir collided with the barrier. The shield rattled and shook, emitting a high-pitched sound. Thor, Loki, and you covered your ears and hunched over in pain from the vibrations it emitted. The alien, however, was less fortunate. It, which attempted to gnash Thor’s throat but hit the barrier instead, rattled from the inside out and shattered into a million pieces.

“Woah,” you said.

“That was intense,” Thor remarked, looking between you and the disintegrated alien. “Thank you, m’lady.”

He approached you and Loki. “I don’t believe we have met.”

The two of you exchanged names, although much like with Iron Man, you didn’t need much of an introduction from the god of thunder.

“Oh!” Thor clapped his hands. Then, without warning, the god of thunder pulled you into a bear hug. “Thank you for helping my brother.”

Choking through his immense biceps, you squeaked out a ‘you’re welcome.’

“Please, Thor, don’t kill her,” Loki said.

“I’ve heard much about you,” Thor said to you. “You are very special to Loki, I know it. He doesn’t like to show it, but I know he cares deeply for you.”

You felt your face grow warm for a second. “O - oh.”

“I mean, you two are –” Thor broke off, pointing between the two of you. He raised an eyebrow.

“Bonded?” Loki said.

“Together,” Thor corrected.

“Brother, please, now is not exactly the time to…”

“Fine, fine,” Thor interrupted. “But I know what I’ve heard about her from you, Loki. And I see it, too.” He bent down and smiled, taking your hand in his large one. “You’re a fine match.”

All you managed was a nervous laugh.

“Like Loki said, we can talk about it later. I have more alien heads to bash in.”

The god of thunder, with his mighty strength, leapt into the air and rained lightning down with Stormbreaker onto another horde of Thanos’ soldiers.

“I apologize,” Loki said awkwardly.

“No, no, it’s fine. I like him,” you replied.

Up in the skies, Captain Marvel used her energy abilities to annihilate more foes. Meanwhile, as you and Loki focused more enemies a voice sounded: “Loki! CATCH!”

Hurtling at the god was the Nano Gauntlet. Its trajectory was high; he grunted and jumped into the air, just barely catching it in his arms. Talking to the two of you was Valkyrie again, she had thrown the gauntlet.

“We need to keep it away from Thanos!” she shouted from her pegasus.

And sure enough a swarm of aliens was approaching, all eyes locked onto the gauntlet in Loki’s hands.

“Darling,” Loki addressed you, holding the gauntlet out. You took it tenderly, afraid you may drop it – and you very well could, given how heavy it was. By simply holding it, energy surged through you, coursing through your fingers and up your arms into your entire body.

You shielded yourself. But what was Loki going to do?

A battalion of dozens of Thanos’ soldiers charged at you and Loki stood peacefully. Back straightened, he took slow, deep breaths. His hands were together, one on top of the other. From him, there was complete silence. And then, it happened.

A blaze of flames erupted around Loki, shooting outward and upward. It happened so quickly that most of the foes charging were caught in the inferno and incinerated upon impact. They shrieked and screamed, their bodies burning to a crisp and falling to the ground, blackened.

Loki swooped to the side, swaying his arms with him, using the dancelike motion to redirect the fire. The remaining aliens who had not collided with the inferno had little time to react as it came thrashing toward them. Right before they became enveloped, the flames formed the shape of an enormous phoenix. The flaming bird bent down and wrapped its wings around the encroaching foes, bringing them to the same fate their allies suffered just moments before.

With one last flourish of Loki’s hands, the phoenix cawed, spewing ember and ash into the sky, then – it dissipated.

A few dozen fried corpses were strewn about Loki’s immediate area. He turned around to look at you and your heart swelled. Sweat beaded on his brow, from both the effort and the heat of the fire. But you didn’t care about that; what did make your heart flutter was the look of confidence in his abilities and then the change to immediate worry. Loki ran to you.

“Are you hurt?”

“Me?” you asked with incredulity. You jerked your chin toward the dozens of dead Thanos soldiers. A laugh escaped your throat. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Good,” Loki said.

“I thought you said the Phoenix’s Glory was more for show than battle,” you said.

“Well, it just so happened that it was useful at that moment.”

“Mmhmm,” you remarked.

“Anyway, I’m glad you’re okay.”

Loki reached for the gauntlet, which you handed over gingerly. Then, Loki’s silhouette warped for a moment and an illusory clone of himself also holding a clone Nano Gauntlet sprang into being.

Nearby, Bucky Barnes and Star-Lord had just finished fighting off their own horde of enemies.

“One of you, HERE!” Loki said, tossing the gauntlet. Both turned their heads. The Winter Soldier jumped and caught it in midair. “Don’t let anybody have it!”

Bucky nodded and sprinted away. Loki sent his double off in an opposite direction to distract the aliens from the real one. It proved effective as a decent amount of hostiles caught sight of him and went to attack.

With most of the attention on the gauntlet you had an opportunity to breathe. You watched the battlefield and, by the looks of it, you could actually win this. Much more enemies were going down than allies. They seemed desperate, and Thanos in the distance grew angrier. You had to push down the fear within you that you were actually fighting against Thanos right now.

Further up the battlefield, one of the hostiles finally caught the Loki double. It vanished, and the gauntlet double with it. Upon realizing they’d been duped, they scrambled to look for who had the true gauntlet. Like a hot potato, it was being tossed from hero to hero in a desperate attempt to keep the key to the universe out of the hands of the Mad Titan.

At one point you overheard something about getting to a van, but you had no idea how that could be relevant.

Loki and you ran, doing anything in your power to keep the aliens from achieving their goal. You kept yourself and Loki shielded, whilst he employed magic and daggers to delay, distract, or kill.

In the distance, Thanos threw his double-bladed sword at the old van half-buried in dirt and rubble. An explosion erupted, and Captain Marvel with gauntlet in hand, just inches from the vehicle, was thrown backwards hundreds of feet. The gauntlet fell from her grasp and skidded to the ground.

The gauntlet didn’t have an owner.

It was a free-for-all.

Thanos, Captain America, Thor, and Captain Marvel scrambled for the gauntlet, each vying for possession of it. One by one the Avengers attacked Thanos. With the power stone, he flung Captain Marvel out of the picture. Thor came in next to try to grab the gauntlet, but Thanos stopped him. They were at a stalemate, with Thor pressing Stormbreaker against Thanos’ chest and Thanos keeping Thor at bay. Then, Captain America jumped onto Thanos’ back to give Thor some support. In desperation, Thanos headbutted Thor and threw Captain America off of his back, punching him in the face hard.

“I have to help,” Loki said as the two of you looked at the scene ahead.

“What are you going to do?” you asked. “Even with the apples Thanos is incredibly strong. You could still die.”

“I know, but I can’t let him wipe out the entire universe. That’s why I am entrusting my life in your hands.”

“What do you need me to do?”

“Stay far away from Thanos but protect us as best you can. You’ve come a long way since the first time I asked you to conjure a needle. You can make a difference.”

You nodded slowly. “Okay.”

You didn’t realize that the two of you had been holding hands. Loki kissed the back of your hand, and then parted from you to face Thanos. You watched him leave you and fought the tears that stung your eyes. Now wasn’t the time to cry; it was time to act. You pushed onward and found a small hill you could use as a vantage point.

Loki broke into a sprint. Thanos was currently on Thor, punching him relentlessly.

“That’s enough now,” Loki said, trying to hold back his rage upon seeing Thor’s face bloodied and bruised. The god of thunder was entirely unconscious.

“No, it’s not,” Thanos said, punching Thor again with his massive purple fist. “Now it is.”

The Mad Titan stood up, looking Loki up and down. “You Asgardians are exhausting to deal with.”

“And I’m about to be so much more exhausting than him,” Loki said in response. With a flick of his wrist, four clones materialized next to Loki; two on each side.

“Ugh,” Thanos said.

All five Lokis dashed forward and then split up to surround Thanos from all sides. Thanos ran to scoop the Nano Gauntlet from the ground, but one of the Lokis was too quick, materializing in front of him and picking it up just to throw it to another Loki. Thanos stuck out his right leg to kick the Loki, and it poofed out of existence. He ran to the Loki now holding the gauntlet, but another intervened and conjured a cloud of black ravens. Blinded by the birds, the real Loki took his opportunity to jump on Thanos’ back and hold his dagger to Thanos’ neck.

From your vantage point you had no idea which Loki was what after all the running around, but you did know the real one would be doing the killing. From afar, you casted your shield again onto Loki. Thanos attempted to elbow his assassin in the face, but the shield forced it back. Thanos growled in frustration. He jumped backwards in an attempt to fall and sandwich Loki between his back and the ground. The force was too much for your shield to handle and it popped on impact. Loki groaned in pain underneath Thanos’ crushing weight. Struggling, he attempted to push Thanos off of him. As he did so, a golden glow formed around the god, and with one final push of strength, Loki shoved Thanos off of him.

He gasped for breath and two of the remaining three copies rushed in to distract again. The two copies worked together to surround Thanos with fire. Thanos got up quickly and charged, jumping right through the fire without a thought. The flames that caught on Thanos’ clothes were extinguished almost immediately with how furiously he ran. The two Loki clones began to conjure more fire, but Thanos was too quick for them. He leapt into the air and punched them out of existence. But it had been long enough now that Thanos did not know which of the last two Lokis was the real one. All he knew was: one of them was currently holding his key to the universe.

“You are exhausting,” Thanos said with disdain. “Like a little gnat, and I will swat you.”

Thanos looked between the two Lokis, weighing his options.

You wanted to put the shield up again so badly. But it was not completely invisible and Thanos would notice it, and give away the real Loki’s position, so you had to wait until the last moment.

Thanos looked past the Lokis in front of him and in the distance, saw you.

“And your little girlfriend’s a gnat too.”

“Don’t talk – no, don’t even look at her,” The Lokis spoke, irate.

“I don’t care about her. But unfortunately for you,” Thanos remarked. “I can see through your trick. You have a golden aura around you, and your doubles do not.”

“Well, that’s unfortunate,” the real Loki said. He and his clone looked at one another.

“Throw it to me!” A shout came from the skies. It was Iron Man. A puttering noise came from his jets, and the last five or so feet to the ground was a fall.

“I guess no more flying for me. Loki, throw it!” He repeated.

The Loki double made to throw it, but Thanos picked up one of his dead soldier’s weapons and chucked it at him. The clone dematerialized, the gauntlet clattered to the ground, and Thanos made a mad dash for it.

The last Loki left – the real one – also sprinted to pick the gauntlet back up.

You made to conjure another shield around Loki when one of Thanos’ soldiers tackled you to the ground.

“Ungh! Get off of me!”

The alien snapped its maw at you, bending lower to try to take a bite out of your neck. Slobber dribbled down from its jowls.

A surge of strength flowed through you as you were able to push the horrid creature off you. It toppled onto the ground and attempted to tackle you again as you stood up but you dodged out of the way just in time.

“Enough of this!” You outstretched your hand and threw a fireball at it. It swerved out of the way and sliced at your arm.

“OW!” You shouted. You didn’t have time for this, Loki needed your help. In your anger and frustration you flung out both hands and screamed. The magic within you stirred and a powerful force blew the hostile back one hundred feet. It didn’t get back up.

With that taken care of, you whipped around. In the twenty seconds you were preoccupied, Iron Man was unconscious on the ground, or dead, possibly. You didn’t know. The Nano Gauntlet was still on the ground, and Loki and Thanos were battling it out.

Loki found an opportunity to stab Thanos with his dagger. Enraged, Thanos punched Loki, who fell to the ground. He rolled out of the way right as a giant purple fist came down to collide with his face. Loki quickly stood up and awaited Thanos’ next move.

Then, Loki’s head whipped to you.

“Y/N, watch out!”

Something was approaching you from your periphery. In a flash, you put up your shield and the alien fell back. You conjured a sword to slash it in two. In the small window your shield had fallen, a member of the Black Order grabbed you, holding your hands behind your back.

“You are so pesky,” the creature spoke.

You were about to scream an expletive at it when you heard a pained groan from the god of mischief. You looked back down the hill to Loki. Thanos had twisted his arm behind him, throwing the god to the ground. Wriggling underneath the alien’s grasp, you tried to do something, anything to get free. Your captor just laughed.

Loki struggled to get up, but Thanos stomped Loki in the chest. Again, and again. Then, Thanos fell to his knees and began punching the god in the face, just like he’d done earlier with Thor. Except, Loki didn’t have anyone to save him. You were trapped and forced to watch as your love was beaten to a bloody pulp.

After some time, Loki stopped trying to get up.

No…

“No!” you screamed.

Thanos looked from Loki to you with a grin on his face.

“Say goodbye,” Thanos spoke. He raised his fists over Loki’s body.

Fear, anger, worry, protection, and love all washed over you as you watched Thanos bring his fists down in slow motion.

Something deep within you sparked.

“LOKI!” you shouted, and you no longer stood on the little hill you had inhabited. Instead, you teleported right between Thanos and Loki. You raised a hand to protect your face from Thanos’ blow and tapped into the magic that connected yourself with the god of mischief.

Thanos’ fists came down upon the barrier. His fists ricocheted off and The Mad Titan launched backward several feet.

“Get him out of here!” A voice said. It was Iron Man, who had managed to get back up. With his laser glove, he shot the Black Order member who was currently pursuing you down the hill. Iron Man ran toward Thanos, who crawled away and slipped the gauntlet onto his hand.

From your knees you watched Iron Man and Thanos duke it out, then turned your attention to Loki. He still had a golden glow about him, albeit faint, but he was out cold. His blood coated your hands, and there was a lot of swelling on his face. It appeared to be healing, but was it enough?

You opened a portal directly underneath and the two of you fell through it; you apologized to him when he inhaled a pained gasp. On the other side, you popped out far away from where Thanos could hurt Loki any more. The two of you appeared nearer to the destroyed Avengers compound. Loki’s breathing was shallow.

“Hang in there just a bit longer,” you whispered.

—-----

Thanos threw Iron Man off of him.

“I am inevitable,” Thanos spoke triumphantly. The gauntlet was on – and grinning, he snapped his fingers… But nothing happened. His grin disappeared and he went to snap again but with the same results. He looked over at Iron Man.

The hero raised his right hand and engaged the Infinity Stones into a gauntlet of his own creation, built right into his suit. Multi-colored lightning crackled and Iron Man groaned but maintained eye contact with the Mad Titan.

“And I am Iron Man.”

His fingers snapped.

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