#it felt super geared towards the straight gaze

[official-panini]

rwrb movie aka "a shitshow"

rating: 1 star, if you want something like the book this is not the place to go.

i watched the movie last night and i have a lot of Thoughts™. i have undone my tumblr exile specifically for this. this may be incoherent but bear with me pls.

there will be spoilers after the cutoff

i had 3 main issues with the movie. obviously i knew it wouldn't be perfect to the book (that would have added at least another 2 hours) but it felt like the screenwriters didn't have any idea what the core of the book was about....... so yeah i have come back to tumblr simply because of this movie.

Diversity: the books had SO MUCH diversity. Nora was bisexual, Pez was 100% queer, these two and June were in a very obvious polyamorous relationship (THEY GOT RID OF JUNE!!!). Amy was trans and had a wife. Rafael Luna was cut out entirely, so we lost a gay Mexican senator who had experienced sexual assault. Oscar wasn't even senator, so we got to see zero (0) Mexican senators. even in terms of other types of diversity, there was less. for example, Ellen wasn't divorced, the movie was just a perfect little nuclear family. not to mention it was Henry's grandpa that was king? instead of having a queen? like the vibes were so different because of that. not to mention, Bea wasn't ever addicted to cocaine. i mean, that added so much to the idea that the royal family wasn't perfect (they made her a pretty little useless princess in the movie).

Palatability: I don't know why I expected better from Amazon, but I was so disappointed. this goes hand in hand with diversity, but i feel like they watered down so many of the themes to appeal to straight audiences? it felt like the difference between "flamboyant" gay vs "quiet, doesn't talk about their sexuality" gay (hint: the second one is the type cishets want from us). even just the way that the only time we see a pride flag is in the reflection of the window. also, one of the scenes i really wanted to see was after henry/alex were outed and we'd see a montage of ppl on the internet speaking out for them, saying stuff like "this was an invasion of their privacy" "they deserved better" "we support you" "you made me more comfortable with my sexuality", etc. AND ESPECIALLY THE "HISTORY, HUH?" SHIRTS. JUST READING ABOUT THEM MADE ME CRY. basically the movie tried to ignore their queer identities past the trauma involved. they didn't celebrate the gayness, they only used it to be like "boohoo they're sad cuz they can't come out".

Character Development: Henry had a plot arc that i felt was more similar to the books, except for the fact that it focused on himself accepting his gayness instead of accepting himself in general. BUT ALEX. THEY DID HIM WRONG. i mean, he didn't have a sexuality crisis on screen (liam was completely ignored). but what really annoyed me was how they didn't show the "fire under his ass" and how he put it out. the entire thing in the book was that he wanted to do everything fast, as young as possible. his entire character arc was learning from June and Henry that he could slow down and get there in his own time. but instead he felt like a plot device to help henry in the movie, like he didn't have a personality beyond helping Henry (and occasionally campaigning for Texas, but w/o his character development we don't even know why he wants Texas so much)

Plot arcs: again, i should have expected this. but. i didn't. in the book, while the overarching plotline was the firstprince romance, a lot of other stuff happened too. while i would argue that there were many mini subplots, the big one was with Richards. he was the one who orchestrated the emails, who leaked them, who tried to sabotage the Claremont administration. and Luna defecting to gather information was so important because of the betrayal + forgiveness + trauma. like the election was so important in the book yet it felt like a background feature in the movie. other subplots that were taken out: june's displeasure with being used as a tool for her mother, henry's mother finally coming out of her room and fighting for something, even just Alex giving the speech in Austin during the election! it didn't even have "you obtuse fucking asshole", the best line in the whole book. it became a pure romcom instead of a contrast between love and politics.

tl;dr: the book was an escapist fantasy that painted a whole world that i would like to run away to, the movie was about two people falling in love with each other (it's hard to escape to a world made for only two people).

anyway i hated it, would not recommend.

[forever-rogue]

A game of 20 questions that ends with "Can I kiss you?" with bucky?

AN | this is just some sweet fluff - enjoy!

Warnings | none

Masterlist | Bucky, Main

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

“I’m bored,” you huffed as you paced around the living room for the upteenth time. Deciding to be even more dramatic you flopped onto the couch and sighed heavily, “there’s nothing to do!”

“You can find something to occupy yourself,” Bucky didn’t even bother to look up from the newspaper he was scouring as you rolled your eyes at him, “your generation would never survive back when I was young.”

“Whatever old man,” rolling your eyes, you quickly threw up your middle finger before shifting onto your back to stare at the ceiling, “I thought like...going into hiding in a remote location would be cool and yet...it’s literally the worst. We can’t even go anywhere or really do anything. Limited technology...can we at least go out and go for a walk around town?”

“No,” Bucky was quick to cut you off, throwing the paper onto the table, “it’s not safe. We can’t trust anyone, not right now. We’ll leave as soon as Sam gives us the all clear.”

“Hopefully soon,” your lips pulled into a pout as you stared at the crackling staccato of the ceiling. Your hands rested on your stomach as you twiddled your thumbs and concentrated on your breathing, “this is the last time I ever get mixed up with the two of you. You’re a load of trouble - more than you’re w-oof.”

Your head snapped up as you glared at Bucky for throwing his newspaper at you. He offered you a small smirk with a shrug of his shoulders. You wadded it into a ball and tossed it across the room before sitting back up. Bucky had already turned his attention to a new book and you took advantage of the moment and stared at him in silence.

It wasn’t long before he felt your gaze on him and caught your eye, quirking a brow in question, “can I help you?”

"As if," your face immediately warmed up as you dropped your gaze to the floor. Of course he'd caught you - he was still a super soldier after all, why you'd expected anything less was being you. An awkward silence settled over the two of you as he kept a knowing little smirk on his face. It wasn't that you didn't like him, oh no, it was quite the opposite...despite the fact that he might have been a little boring and old school, he was still handsome. And funny...although that wasn't always intentional. Regardless - you weren't about to just up and tell him that you had a thing for him.

You stood up and busied yourself in the kitchen, making some tea to help pass the time. Perhaps then you could read a book too….or maybe a bath. Something.

"Want to play a game?"

"Okay, now that sounds mega creepy," the question caught you off guard but made you laugh nonetheless as you focused on the tea and not his intense gaze, "but I guess….there's not much else to do you. What do you want to play, old man? Yahtzee? Go fish? Mahjong?"

"Very funny," he scoffed, "how about twenty questions?"

"Umm...sure?" you finished up your tea, stirring in some honey before taking your mug and padding over to him. He remained silent, but watchful as you sat across the table, "you want to start with being it?"

"No, no," he insisted, and you could practically hear the gears in his head turning. He was up to...something, "you're the little bored bunny, it's all you. Think of a person, place, or thing.”

“I know!” you huffed as you closed your eyes and tried to pick something...anything. So why was the only thing you could think of Bucky? Internally panicking, you tried to keep a straight face as you decided to roll with it; whatever happened, happened, “okay. Go ahead and ask your first question.”

“Is it a person?” oh no. He was going to get it almost immediately. It was like he just knew, as if he could read your mind. Swallowing the nervous lump in your throat you nodded lightly, “is it a man?”

“Yes - you know, you really know how to take the fun out of anything,” maybe you could discourage him from playing instead?

“Why? Because this is going to be easy for me?” a taunt followed by a smirk, “it’s all part of the game, bunny. Learn how to play better then. Does he have dark hair?”

“Yes,” you sighed, “I know how to play, you’re just no fun.”

“Mhmm,” he agreed, “is he famous?"

"I guess…people know who he is," grabbing your mug, you took a long, hearty drink, "fine, we'll say yes. That's four."

"Do you like this person?" damn it. He knew there was no way he didn't.

"Tolerate," you cleared your throat as he raised his eyebrows, clearly waiting for a yes or no to his answer, "yes."

"Is he older?" you didn't even bother to look at him before nodding, "is he a friend?"

"Yes," you set your mug down gently before catching his eye for a moment; you'd expected to find a smirk on his face, but instead there was a soft smile. It was the same smile that often managed to put butterflies in your stomach, even when you tried to fight it, "umm, Bucky-"

"Hang on," he whispered softly, "do you want to kiss him?"

"I-"

"Is it me?"

A silence filled the room, so quiet that the ticking of the aging clock on the wall was almost non-existent. Opening and closing your mouth a few times, you looked at him with a nervous expression.

At this point, there was no reason to lie. He'd see right through you either way. Instead you allowed yourself to meet his gaze before confidently answering, "yes."

"So, what I'm hearing is that I should kiss you?" before you knew it, both if you were standing up and walking towards each other. Your chest rose and fell softly as you looked up at him, but your nerves dissipated as he reached up and tenderly cupped your cheek.

"Yes."

He leaned in hesitantly, making sure you weren't about to change your mind, watching as your eyes widened in surprise. Just when you couldn't handle it any longer, you leaned up ever so slightly and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. The boldness of your action surprised you so much that you quickly pulled back, a nervous expression clouding your features.

"Bucky, I-"

"Its okay," he promised gently, as you couldn't help the grin on your face, "if you don't mind, I think I'd like to do that again. You know, just for practice."

"For practice," you snorted softly, "whatever you want to call it old man."

"Hey," he reminded you with a cheeky wink, "I'm not the one who made me the subject of twenty questions."

"Maybe so - but I know if the tables were turned you'd have thought of me!"

"Bold of you to assume."

"Am I right?"

"Yes."

"Good," you put your hands on cheeks and pulled him down back down to your lips, kissing him softly, "because I'd like to do that a lot more."

[papipopsicle]

SHY AWAY PART FIVE

Pairing: Bucky Banes X Reader

Summary: In which an imitation Captain America leads to Y/N leaving her holiday early and coming back to the field. Stuck between her only two friends, she's forced to reveal a secret she'd kept even from herself.

Song: Rain by Grandson

Warnings: swearing, small amount of John Walker (if he's in here, he's a warning)

Words: 1.4K

A/N- "Doar spune când, James, am sã-l gut ca un porc." Translates to "Just say when, James, I'll gut him like a pig." in Romanian.

MASTERLIST

feedback is always appreciated

"And if he was wrong about you, then he was wrong about me." The words ricocheted through Y/N's mind as Walker tried his hardest to coerce the trio into helping him. The brunette woman didn't care for his manipulative tactics, unable to focus on anything other than Bucky's dejected tone and melancholy visage.

He couldn't be more wrong, and she wished with everything in her conscious being that he could view himself through her eyes even for just a moment. They may be ever so slightly rose tinted, she admitted to herself, knowing she held her friends to a higher standard than most people. But she had good reason to.

"James Buchanan Barnes." Y/N mumbled the name, finding an instant affinity to the way it sounded in her hushed voice. She sat atop Steve's bed, two months had passed since Hydra and Shield both fell, the two free agents for the first time in three years. The file Natasha had given him lay flat across her lap, ogling at second photo attached, "That Sargent uniform... there is nothing I wouldn't let him do to me while wearing that."

Steve leant against his doorframe, entertained by his friend's enthralment, "And in his Winter Solider gear, and when you saw him pulling me out of the Potomac. I'm starting to think it's not just the outfits, honey."

A small part of her brain accepted in the hierarchy of humans in her life, Bucky was at the top. Y/N tried to convince herself he was equal with and just as platonic as Sam. Prior to 'The Blip', she was so head-sure when it came to that - but now her head swam with his voice and drowned a happy death in his scent.

"A word of advice then, stay the hell out of my way." John's strident voice pulled Y/N from her thoughts. Sam's hand lay on the small of her back, guiding her away from the imitation Captain. She felt like slicing open his neck right then and there, he didn't deserve the shield even for a minute. He could keep the stupid outfit, but the shield meant something to her, to most people.

"Doar spune când, James, am sã-l gut ca un porc." Y/N growled, shaking away her anger as the three walked in the opposite direction to John and his companion.

The air was quiet for a few minutes, maybe even ten. Y/N looked for the nearest hotel, finding an appropriate one and guiding the boys down these unfamiliar streets. Only a quiet 'this way' or 'next turn' came from her, seeming so unnaturally ordinary like an exploring tourist. Sam gave Bucky a once over, checking on his friend, finding his gaze firmly attached to the woman two steps ahead of them.

They may not be the closest kind of friends, but Sam could read the super soldier with ease. He smirked, choosing once again not to mention his findings, especially after the fragility of his self worth shone through the therapy session.

"So, what are you thinking?" Sam asked smoothly.

Bucky observed his surroundings before speaking, alert of all the pedestrians around him, "Well, I know what we have to do. When Isaiah said 'my people'..."

"Oh, don't take that to heart." Sam comforts him, his usual calm nature alleviating any awkwardness left from the station, "That's not what he meant."

"No, he meant Hydra. Hydra used to be my people, they were when he and I met." Bucky said lowly.

Sam let out a large sigh after a moment, piquing Y/N's attention, "Not a chance."

"Walker doesn't have any leads..." Bucky trails off, and Y/N covertly slowed her steps to fall back in line with the two men. She wracked her tired brain, piecing together the conversation she hadn't cared for, until a horrible conclusion struck her.

"I swear to all the gods out there," Y/N began in a hushed voice, her tone not playful like usual, "if you want to see Helmut, ask him to cooperate and help us on this, I am absolutely on board."

Both men scrunched their faces at her change of tune, knowing to be even more wary than when her voice sounded serious. She turned to face them, stopping their journey to the hotel to address the two properly.

"He knows all of Hydra's secrets." Bucky aims his words at Sam, "Don't you remember Siberia?"

The question was obviously rhetorical, but Y/N remembered it far too well. The event that fractured her only ever family. Being who she was, the accords were never going to fly, but the aftermath they lead to was catastrophic. She went on the run with Steve and Sam, finding ways every now and again to slip away for weeks at a time to visit Bucky.

"So you're just gonna go sit in a room with this guy?" Sam asks blatantly doubtful.

Bucky eyes both of his friends warily, "Yes."

"I'm sorry, how are you so okay with this?" Sam directs at Y/N, who had already began walking in the direction her map lead to. She assumed the conversation was over, not feeling the need to explain herself.

Y/N doesn't stop her ambling towards the hotel, now only a few minutes away. The boys surely follow after her, "It's pretty simple Sammy, I'd rather have someone I hate twelve percent less help us make things right before John even has a chance."

"Twelve percent?" Bucky queries, both him and Sam quickening their paces to catch up with her.

"Yeah," She threw a grin over her shoulder at them, "obviously an estimate. But, if I actualised my hatred at this current time, Helmut is at steady seventy five percent, while John is presently at eighty seven percent."

The two men nodded at her theory, silence settling over the group as they walked the final few minutes to the hotel. It was a small independent Bed and Breakfast with a black illuminated sign reading 'Sutton's B&B'.

"Three rooms please, whatever you have will do we aren't picky." Sam asked the tired elder lady at the front desk, flashing his pearly whites for extra charisma. Y/N found out a long time ago that her presence often frightened most women, she didn't have much experience when it came to charming them, that was Sam's area of expertise.

Bucky stood beside Y/N as Sam spoke with the front desk lady, his body nearly falling slack as the brunette woman leaned her weight against him. He steadied himself, wrapping his right arm around her figure- he had no reason to, other than he felt like it. They didn't shift away from each other when Sam turned back with a key each for them.

"I've been real nice and given Bucky the double, because I doubt he'd fit in a single bed. Y/N and I are sharing a twin single." Sam quietly said, feeling himself betting closer and closer to asking what was his friends deal.

He wanted a couple more days to clear the air before questioning the two, and maybe by then they'd have a straight answer for him rather than them both denying it.

"Night, James, message me if you need anything." Y/N implored in a hushed tone as the trio reached the super soldier's room for the night. She squeezed his side tightly and a small kiss landed on her forehead as they parted.

Bucky unlocked his door, smiling at his two friends, "Goodnight."

The old door clicked behind him, and Sam tugged along the sleepy ex assassin "Come on, you need to sleep if you want to destroy John Walker."

"Sammy?" Y/N asked with a small yawn, eyes attempting to find their room.

He pointed at a door a few steps away, locating their number, "Yeah?"

"You always know just what to say." She hummed, using her key and immediately flopping down on the small bed with a thud.

part six?

taglist:

@captainwans @fair-childd @emily500 @avada-kedavra-bitch-187 @rivers-rambles21

wanna be tagged? please comment or send in an ask :)

[fa-headhoncho]

Untitled TFATWS Fic: Part 3

Bucky Barnes x Reader

Prompt/Background: After turning yourself in to the government following the events of CA:TWS, they lock you up for the crimes you committed during your time at Hydra. Spending years there until Captain America got you on parole during the blip to help fight Thanos. Now, after doing community service acts and helping the broken society, when they give the new Captain America the shield, you’re thrown back into a life you didn’t want.

Word Count: 2058

Reader: Female

Warning: parole officers? canon level violence, john walker

Author’s Note: im being lazy and not writing rn but i have a stock pile of fics so get ready for shitty posts :p

Masterlist

Part 1 Part 2 Part 4

=====

Once you get onto the plane, you don’t hold back your emotions. The fight was enough but how Walker talked to Sam and Bucky on the car ride over sent you over the edge. You had to admit, the kid had good intentions but there was something about him that was off.

You don’t even wait for his private jet to lift off before turning to him and pinning him against the nearest wall. Your forearm was laying across his chest while the other was hovering over the knife clipped onto your hip. His managers and friend stand up, rushing to try to pry you off of him but he raises a hand to stop them. “Who the hell do you think you fucking are, huh?”

“Captain America.” He simply responds, looking at down you with a cocky smile. You let out a scoff, the audacity of this man. “Look, I didn’t know that you knew them.”

“Yes, you did.” You exclaim while your forearm digs into his chest, “You read my parole reports, it shows where I spend my time and who I talk to, Bucky and Sam being the main two who I interact with. They’re my friends and you’re using me as a pawn. Steve wouldn’t have done that, Captain America wouldn’t have done that.”

“You talk about looking up to him but you’re nothing like him. You throw around ‘brother’ like it means nothing, you have no idea what those two have gone through with Steve. You hold the shield like it’s a toy and using it to get what you want.” Your voice is menacing low and you knew if you still had your parole officer that he would be scolding you for it.

“Captain America stood up for the little guys but you’re just using it as a title, abusing it to act like the hero you tried to be before. You’re a fucking joke.” You release him and walk away. The air in the room felt tense as you plop down on the chair closest to the exit, furthest away from his management team who didn’t know what just happened.

“If you think I’m going to stand by your side after how you just treated my friends, you’re dead fucking wrong.” You shake your head and lean forward in your seat.

He lets out a chuckle, taking a step towards you with his hands fisted by his side. “You’re going to help me if I say you are. I say the words and you’re locked back in the goddamn cell where you belong. Remember who brought you here in the first place.”

“Hey, John, calm down.” Hoskins finally buds in. Walker scoffs and shakes his head, following him to join the rest of their team.

You shift your eyes to the floor, knowing he’s right. The power the government is giving their new Captain is a desperate attempt to give hope to those after the Blip. It’s going straight to his head and you knew it was going to get worse in the long run.

The rest of the flight is awkward. The tension never settling even if Walker acts like nothing just happened. Hoskins was keeping a close eye on you like you were going to bounce back to your Hydra days and take out everyone on the plane. To be fair, you wanted to but you weren’t stupid and you didn’t want to give him another reason to send you back.

Once the plane touches down, you’re out the door. The group was barely out of the seats before they could see you disappear into the airport. Haling a cab and taking it back to the apartment they were renting for you, changing out of your gear and plopping down onto the bed.

The events of the day finally collapse down onto you. This situation was going to be a lot harder than you originally thought. Walker explained it as just one mission to see where the Flag Smashers were taking the stolen vaccines and you would be on your way. “Free at last” to use his words but now you were roped in for the long haul.

You couldn’t stop thinking about the look of betrayal on Bucky’s face either. He had confided in you about how he felt about the new Captain and how lost he felt. If Steve wasn’t right about Sam then what the hell was wrong with Bucky?

Before you realize it, tears were streaming down your cheeks. You knew it was too early to try to reach out to them so you decide to give them time. They were still processing their interactions with the new Captain and the new information about the Flag Smashers being super-soldiers.

If you were going to have to work with Walker, you were going to have to figure out a plan. Racking your brain for ideas, one comes to mind that would be risky. It would be worth it, though. Staring up at the ceiling, you start strategizing a way you could pull this off. You were one of Hydra’s best agents so hopefully, this would be easy. After going against your original thought and shooting Sam a quick text, you slowly drift off asleep.

=====

Your leg bounces under the table as you stare at the clock above the door. It was half-past seven and the breakfast rush was winding down. The diner was slowly emptying, leaving a hand full of tables with families and friends enjoying their meal. The waitress comes up to your booth, standing there until you notice her.

“Ready to order yet, hun’?” The nice older lady questions, breaking your gaze from the entrance to her. You shake your head no before turning back to the door. She gives you a sad smile before looking down at her watch, “It’s been almost twenty minutes, sweetie, are you sure your friends are still coming?”

You nod quickly, no matter what kind of circumstances the two soldiers would never stand you up. Their hearts were too kind for that. “I was just a bit early, I’m kind of nervous.” You shyly admit, sending her a smile.

“Well, I’m bringing you something to eat at least,” She commands, you open your mouth to reject but she cuts you off, “on the house.” She gives you a firm look before walking off to the back.

Right as she disappears into the kitchen, the bell of the diner dings. Your head snaps to it and you can’t help the large smile that appears on your face at the sight of the duo walking in. The two immediately see you since you placed yourself right near the door.

Sam sends you back a smile while Bucky just eyes you down. You were wearing a simple sweater and pants while they were in their usual civilian gear, a ballcap and jacket. You couldn’t help but ogle at how good Bucky looked in the blue Hently you two bought when he first came to Brooklyn.

They slip into the booth, their broad figures barely fitting on the small seat. Sam elbows Bucky as he tries to get comfortable but he doesn’t acknowledge it.

“Morning.” You try to make conversation. “How was the rest of your day yesterday?”

“He got arrested.” Sam bluntly says making your jaw drop. “He missed his check-in with the shrink.”

“I told you not to tell her.” Bucky makes out through clenched teeth, he just shrugs in response. You go to scold him but he holds a steady hand out, “You can yell at me all you want later, what do you want? We don’t have much time.” Your heart drops with how aggressive he’s being towards you.

“I want to help you.” You announce, ignoring Bucky’s eye roll as he remembers who you’re working with. He goes to tell you off just like he told Walker but you start rambling before he could utter a word, “I know it’s not the ideal situation but Walker wants me on his team. If I could earn his trust and figure out what their plans are, I can report back to you two.”

“And how do we not know this is a setup?” Sam points out, leaning forward on the table as Bucky looks around the diner for any sign of said Captain America, “They could be listening right now, they still have you under lock and key.”

You gleam at the mention of that, realizing that you haven’t told them the good news. “Not anymore.” You extend your leg out from under the table for Bucky to see your naked ankle. “Walker pulled some strings to get me off my parole earlier.”

A look of realization comes across Sam’s face once he pieces everything together. He knew how mad you were about the new Captain America, how you helped him and Bucky against the Smashers instead of the other two, and how you didn’t know anything about Bucky getting arrested made sense.

“So, you made a deal with the devil.” Bucky snarkily questions, a look of disappointment on his face.

You let out a scoff at his words, “I did what I had to do, James. Not all of us were lucky enough to get pardoned.” You spit back, tired of how he was acting. “He tricked me, told me it was just one simple favor to repay him. Now, he wants me to be a part of his team to take down the Flag Smashers. Told me if I didn’t help that he would send me back to jail and it would reset everything I had accomplished in the last five years.”

Bucky’s eyes soften at your confession, hanging his head in embarrassment at his assumptions. The waitress comes up and sets the small plate of food down in front of you, giving an awkward smile to the boys before walking off.

You let out a sigh, feeling bad for yelling at him. He was being a dick but that didn’t mean you had to be one back to him. He was going through a lot and this was the last thing he needed.

Grabbing the fork, you stare down at the pancakes. “You don’t have to forgive me or anything but just understand where I’m coming from, please.”

They share a look as they silently communicate. Bucky narrows his eyes and Sam tilts his head at him. You look between them as you try to figure out what’s going on.

“I can’t read your mind, cyborg. Use your words.” Sam finally spits out then elbows him one more time, “Will you please scoot over? I’m suffocating over here!”

Bucky sighs and rolls his eyes at his friend. He gets up out of the booth and slips in next to you, using his larger form to push you closer to the window. Your eyes widen in surprise as he slings his arm to rest behind your head. He then takes the extra fork and stabs it into your hashbrowns.

Sam lets out an awe as he watches the two of you eat from your plate, “Don’t you two look so cute.”

“Shut up, Sam.” You both demand at the same time. He raises his hands up in defense, leaning back in the booth with a smug smile on his face. The two of you easily fall into conversation, catching up on things and giggling at the little jokes he was making. Suddenly, after a few moments of silence as the two of you enjoy the meal, you remember what Sam mentioned earlier.

Bucky lets out a little yelp when you send a swift smack to the back of his head, making the hashbrowns he was about to eat fall off his fork. “What the hell was that for?”

“For getting arrested, are you kidding me, James? Do you know what could’ve happened to you? I swear to God, James Buchanan Barnes, you will be the death of me—“ You continue to scold while Sam lets out a booming laugh. Mad at him for being so careless, you poke and prod at his chest but stop when you notice the expression on his face. Your heart can’t handle the way he pulls out his puppy dog eyes and his pouted lip. “Oh, don’t pull that shit with me.”

_____

untitled tfawts fic: @crowleysqueenofhell @mischiefmanaged71 @thewinterrbucky @lizajane3 @ahahafudge @spookycereal-s @a-girl-who-loves-disney @kittengirl998 @ sebby-staan

[tfatwsiguess]

Pursuit

The walk back was quiet. The three of you chose the nearest side road and followed some road signs down it. There wasn't enough of a signal yet to contact your ride, so your rag tag trio walked on in silence post a wildly unsuccessful fight. You wondered if it was that, or the fact that they were likely just as beat up as you that now kept Sam and Bucky the quietest you had ever heard them since Bucky joined the mission. You were guessing a combination of both.

"I'm sorry about Redwing." Bucky suddenly spoke.

"No you're not." Sam tiredly cut him off, to which the soldier didn't deny. "What's been going on in that big cyborg brain'a yours?"

"... It's computing," he answered, playing right along.

Wilson let out a throaty laugh, shaking his head towards you. "Ya know what? I can actually see it. I can see the gears turning." Your side was becoming irritated and you lifted the right of your shirt, checking the gnawing pain in your side. "Oop, look, they're malfunctioning." Sure enough, purplish blue colors were already scattering along your skin where the Flag Smasher had kneed you. "Shuttin' down! Now they're on fire."

The cyborg didn't acknowledge his frenemy's amusement as his gaze stayed straight down the road. You pulled the material back down, shoving aside the discomfort. "I'm not exactly fresh on my super soldier research, but I thought they pretty much became endangered once Steve Rogers took Hydra down... Ya know, the first time back in the 40's."

"They did. And now we gotta figure out where the serum's coming from."

"Yeah and how in the hell eight of those soldiers are running around after eighty years." Samuel added, suddenly becoming serious again.

A honk from behind cut the conversation short. The three of you looked to the right as an army Jeep pulled up beside you and slowed its pace so the two serviceman sitting in the back could address you from right alongside.

"Well that didn't go as planned, huh?" Walker began, seeming a little chipper for someone who apparently also just failed against the eight super thieves. He opened the back door when the driver stopped, to which none of you acknowledged. Although your gripe isn’t personal, there’s no way you’re buddying up with anyone involved with finessing the shield from Sam. And you could feel that these two would rather swim back to the states than starting a conversation with him. "Keep going." You hear him tell the guy in the front seat, who continued to drive alongside you. "Hey, at least we know what we're up against now. We're pretty sure it's one of the big three, so."

"Aliens, androids or wizards." Lemar clarified.

"There's no such thing as wizards!" Barnes argued, annoyance abundant in his voice. You couldn't help the light laugh at that, despite the inappropriate timing and the dull ache in your ribs, which is why you immediately regretted it when your body protested the movement.

Geez. You spend a few weeks at a refugee center without training and suddenly your body goes soft.

You missed the glance Bucky gave you after the laughter, which morphed into resentment when John continued speaking. "So aliens or androids then."

"More like super soldiers," the airman corrected.

"Shit," Hoskins glanced at his partner in peaked interest before looking back to Sam. "Super soldiers, for real?"

"Wow... Alright, then we gotta work together."

"That's not happening." Bucky denied nonchalantly.

Judging by Walker’s face, he definitely wasn’t expecting the blunt reaction you were. After that whole conversation in the hangar it was pretty clear how they felt about the whole ordeal, including the guy who was wielding the shield. While you couldn’t be sure how much this “New Cap” knew about how the shield got from Sam to him, it was hard to see this as anything other than insensitive for him to try and recruit them on a mission you all had already started. Especially so soon after his appointment to the position.

"We all know we stand a much better chance against all eight of them if we–"

"Just because you carry that shield doesn't make you Captain America." Barnes cut him off, making it plain and simple.

"Look, I've put in the work, okay?"

"Really? You ever thrown yourself on top of a grenade?"

"Yeah, actually, four times. It's a thing I do with my helmet," he rambled, and you didn't miss Bucky's annoyed expression at him actually answering. "It's a reinforced helmet, it's– it's a long story. Look, guys, it's twenty miles to the airport, you need a ride." He opens the back door, and again the driver brakes. "Get in."

To your surprise, Sam actually stops. In turn, you and Bucky pause beside him. You watched the waging indecision in his eyes, but neither of them made a move. It felt clear enough what was going to happen, and you needed a second of relief from this fresh wound anyway. So after a few moments of Sammy pointlessly looking between the two of you in conflict, you just shrugged and got in.

"So we have eight super soldiers on a bulk supply run. Why?" John asked once you, Sam, and eventually a begrudging James joined the carpool. Sitting at the head of the jeep adjacent from the boys, you saw the way Bucky quietly eyed the shield, as well as the man holding it so comfortably.

"Apparently their mission is to get things back to the way they were during The Blip." Sam offers.

"Makes sense." Hoskins looks between the three of you. "The GRC seems to think they're taking the cargo and redistributing it to Blip refugees. They might be trying to help."

"They have a funny way of showing it."

"That serum doesn't exactly have a great track record," John remarked in agreement with the super soldier of the group, nodding to him. "No offense."

You stared at him for a moment when he said that, trying to figure out in what way that comment didn't sound offensive to him. "... Well that's interesting to hear." You said, wanting to move away from that awkward moment. "About them taking the supplies to camps. We thought they’d be more focused on going after the suppliers. How did you track them down?"

"Oh, nah, man. We tracked you guys, through Redwing..." the curly-haired of the duo answered, scratching his neck as he mumbled that last part.

Sam's eyebrows creased in disbelief. “You hacked my tech?”

"Well it's not really hacking. It's government property." John commented conversationally. Sam's offended stare shifted to him. "… Ya know, we're the government." He chuckled a bit as he further explained, gesturing to himself. Your lips pressed together in the awkward silence as Sam literally just looked at him. This guy either had ridiculous nerve or just didn't know how to read a room. Bucky must've been sending an unflinching glare too, because John looked from him, then back to a ticked off Sam across from him. And you could tell there weren’t a lot of people who could tick Sam off. “Does he always just stare like that?"

"You get used to it." He answered shortly, despite knowing that wasn't the case in his situation.

"Look, things have gotten chaotic. That's exactly why the GRC is doing the best they can to get things up and running smoothly post Blip."

"Basically managing resources for people displaced by the big return." Lemar summed up. That much was common knowledge now. These days you couldn't go on the internet, turn on your TV or go outside of your house without some kind of ad in your face about it, so there was no reason for explaining it to the three of you like it wasn't information everyone already knew.

But you knew better than what the cheesy commercials and posters told everybody. While they may be doing good for people who came back and a percentage of the ones who stayed, they directly ignore the people who needed help the most before, during and after The Blip.

"The Global Repatriation Council does all that, I get it." Sam stated shortly, apparently just as annoyed with the unnecessary lesson. "What I wanna know is why exactly you two are here?"

"They provide the resources and we help keep things stable."

"Really?" You sat back, subconsciously catering towards your bruised ribs. "That's the assignment they put the new Captain America on in his first week?"

"Well the GRC was a big part of appointing me as Captain America. And, I think they realize violent revolutionaries aren't good for anyone's cause."

"Usually said by the people with the resources," Falcon remarked, smiling ironically at you and Bucky as he said it.

"Well we've got a lot of resources." John grinned, mirroring the amusement.

"So you think these people only plan to steal medicine and food to give to the people the GRC isn't taking care of?" You thought aloud, far from lost on the fact that it’s not anything you haven’t done for the resettlement camps back home. When it comes down to survival, laws aren't usually a friend. You understand when times are hard like that.

"Don't forget the robbery from the bank in Switzerland." Lemar nodded with a reminder. "People still get hurt when they use brute force to get whatever they want. The question is how far they're willing to go with this."

“That’s true... And those guys are even younger than I am. They grew up through The Blip… You don't take a super soldier serum just to use for bulk supply runs to camps,” you thought aloud. Those kids were specifically trained and more than ready for a fight. That's for something bigger. If the number of super soldiers should keep growing, it would only mean something either really good or really bad.

A line creases in between your eyebrows as you thought. You never would've guessed this was where the mission was going. Already the line was too blurred between if these kids were just stealing resources for homeless people from the people who wouldn’t help, or were ready to do anything to anyone to make their point.

They haven't crossed a line yet in your book, but things were just getting started, and they still could. Either way, you’d be there to see where things go.

"If the three of you were to team up with us–"

"No," Bucky answered rather calmly. He had been pretty quiet up until now. Silently brooding; sizing the two of them up and observing them closely. That reminded you more of the masked man in the middle of the street.

"Look, I got mad respect for y'all," Hoskins began with a hint of a smile, "but you were kinda gettin' your asses kicked until we showed up."

"And who are you?"

"Lemar Hoskins.”

"Look, I see a guy hanging out of a helicopter in tactical gear? I'm gonna need a lot more than 'Lemar Hoskins'." Sam requested.

"I'm Battlestar, John's partner," he elaborated, vaguely.

"Battlestar?" Just a hint of a devious smirk tugs at Bucky's lips, like he couldn't bring himself to even try to take him seriously over the name choice. "Stop the car!"

The Jeep lurched to a stop, and the black-clad agent got out without another word. John was getting a tad frustrated, if his expression was any indication. "Okay, I get it. I get the attitude..." he reasoned while Bucky marched himself towards a nearby pathway, no indication that he was actually listening. "You didn't think the shield was gonna end up here, I get it, Bucky! And I'm..." he sighed and looked towards Sam now, his tone and expression finally becoming more genuine. "I'm not trying to replace Steve."

Yikes. The new step dad speech. The best thing to make this situation more awkward. Even Sam couldn't help a half laugh half scoff at the remark, making John glance at you too now.

"It's impossible. I mean no one can measure up to him. I know that..."

For a moment, Sam was caught up in his mixed emotions again. It was fair enough to consider, but it didn’t change the circumstances. Yet, it wasn’t your approval John was really looking for.

You look over to Bucky and see he’s already far enough down the path. "Come on," you got to your feet, passing in between Sam and John, then by Lemar to hop out of the truck. You wouldn't let him walk back alone.

"I'm just trying to be the best Captain America I can be. That's it. And it would be a whole lot easier with Cap's wingmen at my side."

You couldn't help shaking your head, knowing he messed up on that bit. Plus, you had to wonder if this must be awkward for his bestie, sitting there while Walker was trying to add more sidekicks to the team after the zero coverage his own partner got in all the PR.

Sam laughed again, only with more disbelief this time. "It's always that last line." The look on John's face almost seemed confused at his response. You watched as Sam got off and left, not able to hide his dismay anymore as he went off to the same walking path Bucky was already halfway down.

"Next time, I'd try more sensitivity, and maybe offering him better than a demotion," you offered helpfully to the two partners. You left with that, and followed Sam while hearing Walker begrudgingly tell their driver to get going. Once you caught up with Sam, you checked your phone. "Well that ride lasted two minutes and forty-nine seconds. Totally called it."

"Yeah let's never do that again."

"Fair enough. I'll see if I can get Torres out here." By the time you two caught up to Bucky, it seemed you had finally walked far enough to get better service to contact Torres. With all the low morale right now, you hoped he could get here soon. The super soldier glanced at you for a moment as you tucked your phone away, then looked back up ahead.

"Thanks for the save back there by the way."

Once again, you heard Sam chuckle with an ironic smile, considering the fact that he also saved Bucky less than a minute after you. But you felt the segue that was coming. "Don't mention it."

"There aren't a lot of people who know how to fight super soldiers."

"Well they're newly trained." You shook your head and shrugged. "I wouldn't expect the same results if I were to go up against someone like you or Steve."

"Still knew how to handle them though. Knocked two down the road. You didn't even have to use those glowy knives until the last second."

"Ignore him." Sam cut in. "He's never talked to anyone with powers before."

"That's not true. I had a very interesting conversation with a scrappy raccoon once."

Sam smacked his lips. "Man, that was an alien raccoon with a gun. Next."

Buck's eyes narrowed in thought, and it seemed he was actually going along with the game. "There's always the purple jackass who blasted me with those stones."

"Thanos didn't have powers, he had a weapon. And getting your ass beat by him isn't talking."

"Then there was the girl with the glowing red hands and eyes..."

"Wanda, yes. There ya go." Sam congratulated. "Ya still never talked to her, so it doesn't count. But yeah, Alex is more like her."

"Not exactly." You finally cut in from between them. "It's not, like, magic or whatever, but I couldn't really explain the science either."

"Try." Bucky said.

His reaction didn't really surprise you. You understood he wasn't going to be as trusting when it comes to important information he didn't know about you when you’ve never worked together before. You might’ve felt the same way if you didn’t already know everything the internet could tell you about him. You still didn’t prefer constantly having to regale the mechanics behind your abilities every time you had a new partner.

"Basically, there's an electromechanical chip in my neck. Manmade. It gives me different... abilities." Going from group to group or mission to mission kept you relaying a cookie cutter dumbed down explanation to anyone who asked. But typically you tried not to use your powers until it was necessary. The less people who knew, the better.

"Really? I always thought you were some witch or got caught in some toxic spill or something. You didn't tell me you were part robot too."

"Tch, okay– I'm still totally human,” you chuckled at Sam’s joke. “Just like Bucky. It's a piece of technology. Doesn't really change anything else." You offered in example.

"I've never heard of the government implanting super powers through people's necks before." The stoic Barnes pointed out.

“You haven’t heard of a lot of things ‘cause you stay in your curmudgeon lifestyle.” Sam explains. “Like Uber and Facebook.”

"It's not from the government... Actually I prefer keeping it low profile from them. They get so damn antsy about anyone with special abilities being out of their control."

"So that's why you never joined The Avengers. I assumed you thought you were too good for us."

You shake your head and grinned at Sam's wisecracks. "Among other reasons." You joked back.

"So those knives you were throwing back there," Buck continued, still interrogating. "They just..." he trailed off, shaking his head and looking away from the path and to your hands now.

"They generate and disappear on command."

"Pretty cool right? Those babies cut right through a six inch steel door on our first mission."

"It's certainly something else..." he responded vaguely, apparently having heard enough for now.

He had barely looked towards you two during the whole conversation. It was clear he was still upset. Over the fight. Over the discussion with John.

Sam sent you an amused look, as not to be heard by Bucky, and you shake your head at him with a silent grin. For someone who was so persistent on Bucky not coming here, he was really having a fun time poking fun at him. Maybe his current affinity for jokes had everything to do with the uncomfortable encounter with New Cap too, but at least he still seemed like the Sam you knew before.

Not much later, you all met Torres at a private pickup point. It didn't take too long since he waited nearby the drop off point with the private military aircraft. "Hey. Alex told me it was a bust?" He looked between the three of you as you walked up.

"Not completely. We got a little more information to work with," Sam reported as he marched onto the aircraft.

"Well a little's always better than none," he remarked optimistically. "You guys ready to go?"

"Not just yet. A couple of those soldiers fell off the truck along the way and there's a chance they're still around the area. I wanna find them. See if we can get anything out of them when they’re not all posted up together."

You dropped Sam’s gadget off of your wrist and into the trash, rendered totally useless after the cartridge was shattered in battle. "How? They would've scattered in any direction by now."

"Don't tell me you're gonna try and send Redwing after them," Bucky nearly groaned as he watched Sam carefully placing some wrapped up red and grey broken remnants on a table.

You look over to see him sorting through the split piece of technology. "You saved that from the fight? Sam, that thing is on life support."

"Thank God," you hear Bucky grumble.

"He's been through worse, believe it or not."

"It's true. He just fixed it up from his Tunisia mission after a French pirate shot it." Jay bragged on his behalf.

"Like I said. Life support." You repeated, suppressing the urge to laugh with how seriously Sam took the life of the precious drone.

“Look, if I can do a quick repair job on his flight functions he’ll be faster than any of us at tracking down the stray Flag Smashers now that they’re on foot.”

"We don't need Redwing's useless corpse to find a couple masked revolutionaries. They can't have gotten too far by now. There’s nothing wrong with doing this the old-fashioned way.”

“Gee, wonder how many times you’ve said that.” Sam mocks, already working intently on the drone.

"Alex and I can search around the area for any signs of them. See if they went to any nearby buildings to get back in contact with the others." Barnes declares, ever a man of action over waiting.

Sam doesn’t bother looking up from his makeshift operating table. "Fine. Let me know if you find anything."

So with that, you and Bucky Barnes were walking outside together, looking through the woods and over empty roads to find any sign of nearby structures they could’ve reached at this point, or perhaps a phone booth they would've tried to access in order to reconnect with their comrades. Admittedly, it would’ve been easier with Redwing’s sky view and heat-detecting functions.

"You think they'll even come back for 'em?"

"I don't know." You looked around. "Their friends didn't do much when they fell off in the first place." It’s just past a half hour since the fight, and the two of you retraced your steps as best you could to check for recent traceable activity. But so far it was looking like there wasn't much other than flower fields and grass fields and old road to accommodate any kind of lead. Another advantage they might’ve planned out.

You sighed as the stretches of land you could see up to the horizon offered no indication of a super soldier on a mission passing through. Or anyone else that would be passing through on foot for that matter.

Bucky looked beyond the trees surrounding the meadows and listened for any movement. But he could see as well as you that any left behind cargo thieves were long gone from this area. It’d be a guesstimate finding exactly where each kid fell off. His teeth clenched in thought.

But he wasn’t worried. Maybe this impulsive idea wasn’t thought out much better than Sam’s attempt to revive his pet drone after, but they could still be found.

As he learned from his past line of work, no one was unfindable.

Eventually he found himself staring at your backside, leaving you unaware of his inquisitive eyes looking over your profile. "You’ve had a mission with Sam before?" He suddenly spoke up, to which you hummed a yes. "Just how old are you?"

You smiled in amusement at the outrightness of the question. After starting agent work at nineteen when you came out of hiding, you'd been surrounded by plenty of people much older than you. Even those having only so many years on you, took interest in your long history with this work at such a young age. So you got the question a lot, just not as investigative as this. "Twenty-six."

Your smile suddenly drops after hearing the age aloud, in the sudden realization of how strange it felt. Twenty-six years had gone by already, but you certainly hadn't felt like you've lived that long. Or maybe, you just felt like you spent so many years stuck in the wrong places.

And for Barnes, the youngest he saw amongst all the agents and assassins and heroes he's worked with was the fifteen-year-old spider kid. That was it. The gap was a canyon after that. Even he himself was years older when he first became a sergeant. "How'd you get mixed up in all this?"

"It's a long story... but between all the battles on this planet and all the drama with the Blip I'm just... trying to help people however it's needed while I’ve got the resources." You try to answer as smoothly as possible.

With a nod, his eyes scanned the area. His head turned when he heard a rustling, but it was just a bunny in the bushes. His vigilant gaze still scoured for any distant movement. "Parents?" He questioned, trying to piece together how you ended up in this world of gore and killers and straight at nineteen.

Stopping and squinting into the distance at a car stopped on the side of the road, you answer distractedly, "Uh, not so much."

"I'm sorry."

The sound of an apology brought you back to the conversation. You looked to him, almost taken off guard by the statement. One of the only times you ever heard an apology about your parents was when you were still a seven-year-old in the hospital twenty or so years ago. Honestly, it was such old news from an old life that you hardly thought about it anymore.

Instead of thinking about the accident that took the last of your parents, you gave him a short-lived smile. "Thank you."

You saw the pulled over car was just a civilian getting something from their trunk, then wondered how you were going to track them down now.

He stood there too, observing your profile. Something in his brain was trying to figure out the vague familiarity he sensed in you. His stare quietly rested on you as the question bugged him about the way you carried yourself.

"They're probably long gone by now, trying to catch up or regroup somewhere. These guys know how to disappear."

When you turned to him he turned away, giving one last look around to double check himself. "Yeah. It's too much ground to cover, and we don't have enough time."

You took Bucky in for a moment, now that you were in closer quarters. It was still a shock to see how different he seems now from the memory held in your head for so many years. His body possessed the same rigidness you recognized, but now there was a lot emotion there, too; restrained as it may be.

You looked away before he could catch you. "Right."

His hardened default gaze while looking for the soldiers softened during the silence, and he glanced back to you. This was the first time he was looking directly at you for longer than a second, and it was completely genuine. "… I'm sorry if I'm being weird. It's my first time in a while… working with people, again."

"It's cool. I get it." You dismiss with a soft smile.

He nods and you notice his eyes looking at anything else around.

Huh. A nervous habit.

This guy even has a nervous habit.

It was certainly humanizing.

His throat clears. "We should circle around and see if we find anything until we get back."

"Couldn’t hurt. Hopefully Sam will be done mourning Redwing by now," you commented somewhat seriously as you walked by him towards the direction of the jet, missing the subtle smile of quiet laughter tugging at the corner of Bucky's lips.

When you finally got back, the two of you found Joaquin and Sam standing over a shoddily put together military drone, not looking much better than when you left. "Did you fix it?"

"Nope." Sam wrapped the pieces up in a cloth. "He's gone."

"How tragic." Deadpanned Barnes.

Looks like the sarcasm comes right back around Samuel.

Torres watched as Sam dejectedly dropped the remaining remnants into the trash. "We tried everything."

"All I know is we better find answers about this anti-nationalist group and fast."

You nodded in agreement as you took the comm out of your ear. "There doesn't seem to be any place around here for miles to check out anyway. I think we're better off pinpointing whatever camps they could be heading for next. But we'll need a way to narrow the search."

"I may have a lead."

Sam shifted his gaze from you to the insensitive Barnes. "Really."

"Well, not so much a lead as someone who can get us one. On where the serum might be coming from."

It didn't sound too promising to Sam, especially with who it was coming from. Nevertheless, he shook his head, because you all weren't in the position to be picky. "I'll take it."

"Alright then." Torres leaned on the table and looked between the three of you. "Where to?"

✰ Baltimore, Maryland

"Hey, it's Black Falcon! What's up?"

You chuckled at the little kid bouncing a basketball on the sidewalk with his friend. Torres dropped you off in Baltimore around half an hour ago, and Bucky had lead you and Sam to an urban neighborhood, apparently where whatever lead he has must be residing. "It's just Falcon, kid."

"No, no. My daddy said it's Black Falcon."

Sam stopped as he passed by the kids, and you watched him. "... Is it 'cause I'm black and I'm The Falcon?"

"I mean, yeah. Technically..."

"So does that make you Black Kid?"

You grinned and rolled your eyes as the other boy laughed, and the first kid shook his head with a hint of smile still on his face. "Whatever, man."

"Are you his sidekick?" The second boy asked you. With an amused smile you shook your head and opened your mouth to deny it, when Sam's hand dropped on your shoulder with his arm around you. "Yeah. This is my new sidekick. I just recruited her." He shook your shoulder amiably. You could hear in his voice just how much fun he was having with this. "Black Sidekick. That's her name."

The first little kid shook his head as his friend kept laughing at his expense. "Alright man, I gotchu. I see how it is."

"Yeah, I got him, right," Sam grinned and good-naturedly nudged the second one. With another lighthearted laugh, you and Sam leave the smiling kids to catch up to Bucky down the street. "Alright, what are we doing out here, Bucky?"

"Well we're not here for autographs."

"You need to work on your people skills." Sammy advised, unbothered by the comment, and you were already anticipating another back and forth to strike up. "We got eight super soldiers to account for and right now we got nothing."

"That's the thing. We don't have nothing." Two of you stood there, waiting for the other to explain why you were in a rundown neighborhood in the middle of Baltimore. He finally stopped in front of a house, then slowly faced the both of you. "There is someone... that you guys should meet. The only one with the firsthand intel that we need."

You and Sam couldn't help sharing a glance. The look on his face that he was giving the two of you made you guarded. But before either of you could ask anything, he turned and marched up the porch.

You and Sam couldn't help sharing a glance. The look on his face that he was giving the two of you made you guarded. But before either of you could ask anything, he marched up the porch and knocked on the door, both of you following in suit.

"We're here to see Isaiah." He said when a teenage kid answered the door.

"Nobody named Isaiah live here."

“We just wanna talk to him." Bucky asks softly.

"You musta not heard what I just said. You ain't gettin' in this house." He replied in the deepening voice of a growing young man. You watch Bucky nod expectantly, then look downward as the kid denied any entry. "Y'all can leave now."

"... Tell him the guy from the bar in Goyang is here. He'll know what that means."

"... Aight, wait here." He conceded reluctantly and closed the door, locking it. It was easy to tell this wasn't the most secure of neighborhoods, but this kid was either extremely paranoid or just extremely vigilant.

"Nice kid." Sam remarked.

"How do you know this guy?" You ask, interest piqued in such a young person's cautiousness.

"I used to. We had a skirmish during the Korean War."

You tried to recall which decade that was, in relation to how old this lead has to be for Bucky to know him from so long ago. But once the boy let you in the house, you saw your answer in the withered man leaning against a wooden dining table for support.

"Today's your lucky day. He said he wants to see for himself."

You three filed into the small living room, and you got a better look at him. He somehow looked older and older the closer you got.

"Isaiah."

"Look at you..." his gruff voice croaked as he looked over the only paled skin in the room.

"This is Sam and Alex." Bucky introduced, then turned to you. "This is Isaiah Bradley." You look at him, air too stiff. But he wasn't even looking at the two of you. His eyes were trained on his old friend. "He was a hero. One of the few that Hydra actually feared; like Steve. We met back in ‘51."

"If by 'met' you mean I whooped your ass, then, yeah." Bucky's pink lips curled up a bit at the remark, the first hint you’d seen of anything other than a scowl, but your eyebrows scrunched. You looked to Sam, and his slight change in facial expression told you he was wondering the same thing, about who could've possibly kicked Bucky's ass one-on-one.

Bradley looked to the two of you. "We heard whispers that he was on the peninsula. Every soldier we had sent after him never came back. So the military dropped me behind the line to deal with him. And I took half that metal arm in Goyang. I see it's grown back." Your eyes moved from him to Barnes, and you could see his expression of conflict; guilt. "I was wondering when you'd get that arm back… See if you'd come to kill me."

James visibly swallowed a lump in his throat. "I'm not a killer anymore..."

"You think you can wake up one day and decide who you gon be?” His lips pursed to the side, almost into a bitter smile. “It doesn't work like that– Well, maybe it does for folks like you."

Quietly, the two of you were trying to put the pieces together. Isaiah doesn't know about Bucky getting his mind back and the pardon. While the world knew of Steve Rogers' best friend tragically becoming a Hydra assassin for eighty years, it wasn't public knowledge what Wakanda did for him, or his lifestyle now. Word always ended up getting around, that’s how you already knew, but he chose to keep that private from the mass media, somewhat understandably.

You looked to Bucky again, and had to wonder why be brought you all here if this man thought he was still The Winter Soldier. It was easy to see how hard this was for him as his soft gaze shifted down to the carpets.

“Isaiah, the reason we're here... it's because there's more of you and me out there." Isaiah's hands clenched, gripping around a small metal box on the table.

Sam's eyebrows furrowed. "'You and me'?"

Bradley was becoming angered, and Bucky tried to tread carefully. "We need to know how–"

"I'm not gon talk about this anymore!" He lashed out, throwing the small box. It scraped across the table, splintering the wood chips. You jumped in surprise as such a dainty little box impaled deep into the wall from Isaiah's outburst.

The young boy looked down, seeing his grandfather get upset like he had tried to help prevent.

But Sam's eyes were wide as he stared at the wall too, then the old man. In that moment it became clear enough...

Isaiah looked around eighty years old, which meant they would’ve given him the serum around the same time they gave it to Steve...

Silence deafened the room as Bradley slowly walked over. "You know what they did to me for being a 'hero'?" His voice was strained, but his face was both broken and furious. "They put my ass in jail," he spit out, eyes red, "for thirty years!" Bucky nodded quietly, still looking down with his mouth shut. Sam's mouth hung open, but nothing came out.

"I don't understand..." You began softly, mortified and perplexed. "Why– why would they give you the serum and send you out onto the field if they were just going to imprison you later?"

Old eyes watched you, and it felt like his gaze withered your insides. "You think they need a reason? They got their blond-haired blue-eyed soldier, and decided they were done with me..." His hard gaze shifted to Sam. "I stayed in that cell for decades... People running tests on me, taking my blood." Then his icy stare turned on Bucky. "Even your people found ways to get to me."

Sam shook his head, barely mustering a single word. "Isaiah..."

"Get out of my HOUSE!" He screamed, shaking now. You took a step back from the sudden strength to his voice, and turn to leave as Sam just stood there. The freckled grandson had to usher him out. "Alright, man. Let's go."

Once the door was shut and locked again, Sam was already storming off down the stairs. But your brain lingered on the porch, processing the news.

"Why didn't you tell me about Isaiah?" Sam demanded. Bucky put a hand on his shoulder as he opened his mouth to speak, but he shrugged it off and spun on him. "How could no one bring him up?!" Your eyes lifted to them as Bucky stopped beside him, sighing. "I asked you a question, Bucky."

"I know, I know..." Barnes trailed off, then looked back for you, catching your eye. Snapping out of your thoughts, you left the porch to rejoin them.

“Steve didn’t know?”

“No. They didn't tell anyone about him."

"So you're telling me there was another super soldier– a black super soldier out there for decades and no one knew about it?!"

"I always thought they'd never even consider giving black people the serum back then." You spoke your conflicted thoughts aloud.

You were starting to see that there was always more. More secrets of the things this country has done to black people. More monstrous truths from decades ago to hundreds of years ago to uncover that they’ll never let the public know. Today's black community works so hard to know and own their history, and live out their lives accordingly. But at this point, you now knew there would always be something unknown about the history. So many different things let slide by those people, hidden all throughout the past and never to be brought up again.

"From what I understand Isaiah didn't know they were giving it to him when it happened," Buck answered morbidly.

"So they used him to win their wars against his will and–"

"And then sent him to be experimented on like some lab rat." Sam finished for you, clearly well pissed off by the cover up.

You felt the same frustration, to say the least. Of course they would do such a thing. Just like their grandparents used slaves to build the country and let them die of it. Just like they put them through war and denied their freedom afterwards, they used and sacrificed Bradley to protect their precious home, and suffer the consequences later.

Whoop! Whoop!

Once again you were snapped out of your thoughts. Your group of three looked to your right as a cop car pulled into the neighborhood, right up next to you.

"Hey!" one policemen said as he and another got out.

"What's up, man," Sam asked shortly at the interruption.

"There a problem here?"

"No. We're just talking.”

“We're fine."

You watched them as they both came around the group, placing you all in between the two of them and their car. One eyed Sam in particular. "You have some ID?"

"Come on, man, seriously?" Bucky shook his head as Sam stared at the officer.

"What do you need his ID for?" You raised an eyebrow.

The officer turned to you when you spoke, his hand already settled on his belt where a gun laid in its holster and you were just itching for him to try and pull it. "Listen, just calm down and–"

"We are calm. I don't have my ID on me, what do you want?"

He looked from you to Sam doubtfully, like he'd never be stupid enough to believe that. "You're telling me you don't have any form of ID with you?"

"That's what I'm telling you. What do you need it for, we're just standing here."

Suddenly more people were gathering on the sidewalks, looking onto the scene. Bucky glanced over his shoulder before leaning towards Sam. "Look, just give him your name so we can get the hell out of here–"

"I’m not giving him shit. We're just talking!"

"Hey, hey!" The same cop reached a hand out towards Sam as if trying to keep him under control, then looked to Barnes. "Is he bothering you?"

"No he's not bothering me!" He raised his voice irritably, getting more frustrated himself. "Do you know who this is?"

His partner leaned over to mumble into his ear. You only caught the word ‘Avenger’.

The first officer looked to the group again, and with that, his expression immediately changed. "Oh, God… I'm so sorry, Mr. Wilson." His hand slips away from the holster, and he actually laughs. "I didn't recognize you without the goggles." He glanced at Bucky and nods. "Sergeant Barnes." Then his gaze came back to you. "And– you are..."

"She's with me."

You shook your head. Your arms sat across your chest and you just looked away in an attempt to restrain yourself from saying what you really wanted to. Even if they deserved to hear it, you’d spent too much of your life knowing when it was better to fight back or let it pass in order to prevent a potential, bigger mess.

"I'm really sorry about this..." He apologized awkwardly, watching as a second car pulled up next to theirs. There was a small crowd by now, surrounding you all from a distance. When the cop says to wait there, you don’t even bother asking what for as they go over to talk with the other policemen. With a sigh, you looked to Sam, and it was hard to see him restraining his anger. But even more so the look of shame you could swear was breaking through.

"Hey. I didn't tell anyone because he doesn't want anyone to know." Bucky whispers to both of you. "And he's already been through enough."

You look towards Isaiah's house now, and very faintly you can see the kid looking through the blinds at all of you. You hoped all of this wouldn't cause any trouble for them, between the pigs still holding you here and the fact that people could've seen you all coming out of their house.

"Sergeant Barnes..." The officer finally came back, still with an awkward look over his face. "There's a warrant out for your arrest."

"The president pardoned him for all that."

"Not for that. You missed your court-mandated therapy. It's like missing a check in with a P.O." He explained apologetically. "I'm sorry, but you're under arrest."

Sam watched Bucky's downcast expression. Your lips parted at the statement, wondering if arresting him and taking him to jail was truly necessary for one missed appointment. Then you remembered, the government still looked at him as The Winter Soldier.

You and Sam looked to Bucky as he quietly complied, not seeming at all surprised about this. More m irritated; bitter. But still he cooperated, and wouldn’t look at you two as he went with the cops.

You didn't know what to do as they placed the handcuffs on him in front of everybody. Your arms dropped from around your chest, wanting to be able to do something. "Is this really necessary?"

He was shaking his head as he got in the back of the squad car, not knowing what else to say or do. You sighed as they drove off, and onlookers finally started to disperse. Sam was looking towards the Bradley house in silence.

"We should go..." You told him, not even sure if he heard as he stared off in thought. "Sam? We gotta go get him."

"How are we gonna do that?"

"I don't know, but he's on his way to jail and we gotta be there." You shook your head unsurely, and his face scrunched up in either thought or frustration. There was still a lot to process from over the past five minutes. You knew it was overwhelming, but you still gripped his shoulder, lowering your voice. "People are watching. We should go."

Finally he nodded, tearing his eyes away from the little house. "Right... Let's go get him."

★

When you and Sam get to the police station, you head straight for the front desk, stopping next to a jar of lollipops on the counter as a guy at the desk tapped at the computer keys while answering your questions.

"How long do they detain someone for stuff like this?"

"Yeah, how does it work? He can just make up his session and he'll be released?"

"Typically the offender can be imprisoned for failure to fulfill the agreed upon terms,” he responded monotonously with eyes still glued to the computer, “but seeing as this is a condition of Mr. Barnes' pardon there may be an exception in place. Who are you in relation to the detainee?"

"We're... colleagues. Occasionally." Sam answers.

The guy finally looked up from the screen at that answer, apparently recognizing Sam now that he's paying attention. "Oh. Right. Well, he has no emergency contacts to reach out to for this sort of situation. Should I put you down as one?"

"Yeah, that'd be good." Sam nodded without hesitation.

After a brief moment of exchanging information, the desk clerk got back to helping you understand Bucky's situation. "He's actually already set to be released as soon as his therapist Dr. Raynor, gets here–"

"Sam Wilson?" You turned to see a middle aged woman walking up to the desk. "I've heard a lot about you. I'm Dr. Raynor, James' therapist."

He shook hands with the brunette. "Nice to meet you. This is my partner, Alex." He introduced, and she shook hands with you as well. "Thank you for getting him out."

"Now that wasn't me."

"Christina!" A voice called to the therapist before either of you could ask anything else. You all looked over to see John Walker taking pictures with some cops at the front door.

"You've got to be kidding me..." Sam groaned. "You know him?"

"Yeah. We did fields opps back in the day." She answered with a slight smile, and he broke away to approached your small group.

"I heard you were working with Bucky, so I thought I'd step in. He won't be following a strict schedule any longer."

"Well we haven't finished our work... Who authorized this?"

Without a verbal response, he just gestures to himself a bit too happily about the newfound powers he possesses. "Look, he’s too much of an asset to have tied up so just do whatever you gotta do with him, then send him off to me."

"To you?" You repeat.

"We've got some unfinished business, him and I. You too, Wilson. And uh..." he looked to you, and already you were receiving way too much attitude from the way his eyes assessed you, "Wilson's partner." He nodded to include you before walking away to join Hoskins at the front.

A door opened from behind, and you all turned to see Bucky coming out of the back hallway. He seemed fine at first, but you knew he had a mastered way of masking just what he was feeling, but if the crease between his old eyes was any indication, he didn't have much fun being put in the slammer over one missed therapy appointment.

"James, condition of your pardon: session, now." Christina declared as soon as she laid eyes on him. Bucky officially looked visibly miserable now. Like he had just gotten out of jail only to trade it off with the gates of hell. "You too, Sam."

"Nah, that's okay. I'll be out here with–"

"That wasn't a request!" She cut off, already down the corridor.

Sam didn't look happy either. He sighed and looked at you, to which you just tiredly shrug. It was really becoming a long day. "I'll wait." With your confirmation, Sam begrudgingly follows the first two. You watch as they both walk back down the hall for some joint therapy. "Oh boy. This won't end well..."

When you went to sit in the waiting area, you saw Lemar still coming in past the swarm of fanboying cops. But once they get away, John and he walk over to the last of the trio left around. How lucky for you.

"Hi, again," Hoskins smiled. He and John settled in front of you.

"We didn't really get to talk before."

"What was that with you getting him out of therapy?" You asked Walker.

"Ah, well, I’ve learned that sometimes in this business you gotta do things for people before they can come around to helping you."

"Yeah but, why didn't you just move his schedule around or something, instead of pulling him out of it altogether?"

He chuckled. "Trust me, I know how these therapy sessions go."

"You deal with 'em a lot doing what we do." Lemar pitched in.

"He won't be missing out on anything."

Was that really it? All that just so he could get "Cap's wingmen" on his side? Maybe it was pointless to linger on it, but you didn't understand why he was being so careless about it. All this over one appointment was certainly a hassle, but Bucky had been through a lot– in these past several years especially. And he's just getting back to a normal life after like eighty years... The way you saw it, court-ordered or not, if the therapy did anything good for him then bailing him out of it wasn't going to help. You watched John closely, and he didn't really seem to care about that.

Lemar's fingers rested comfortably beneath his chest straps. "You're Sam's partner on this, aren't you?"

"Got a name?" John asked when you nodded.

"Alex."

"Right," he laughed, again, as if you must've somehow misunderstood his question. "We saw the kind of stuff you can do on that truck. There were tear marks left all over it. We figured you must have some special hero name."

"No. Just Alex." You nodded, understanding the confusion. "I'm not an Avenger or anything."

"Really?" Hoskins' head tilted. "You seem like you fit right in with them."

"I'm just helping out. And I can't speak for Sam or Bucky but, I don't see them coming around any time remotely soon."

"And what about you?"

Your shoulders rise and fall a bit. "I don't really know you guys. None of us do. But I think it's safe to say there are gonna be some frictional issues between the three of you specifically." You disclose to the blond. "And that's never a good thing."

"We'll ponder on that." John pulled a sucker from the wrapper in his hand and stuck a lollipop in his maddeningly smiling mouth. "We'll be outside." With that they left you alone.

Bucky and Sam were in a private room at a police station because Bucky missed therapy, and they were still all jokes and smiles. That much was clear as they beamed proudly and did their little bro handshake as they walked outside, waving goodbye to the cameras and crowd of officers.

This was a new experience for them. They're excited. Maybe a little too excited. Anyone would be after the opportunity he was given. You understood that. And maybe it was just from the news about Isaiah and those cops back in that neighborhood that made you more tense.

He just gives off more of a fifth grader named class president having too much fun getting to tell everyone else what to do vibe to you, rather than a man wielding the power of the Captain America shield.

Once your guys came back out only a few minutes later, you rose from waiting in your chair. They didn't dare make eye contact with each other as they headed towards you. And the tensed shoulders and hardened eyes were enough to tell you how the session went. "I feel better." You heard Sam say with poorly faked enthusiasm.

"I feel awful." His rougher colleague muttered out.

"Is it possible you two just came out of that room hating each other more than you did before?"

Sam shook his head. "Nope. Not possible."

"Oh, it's very possible." Buck bluntly disagreed before looking to you. "Can we go now?"

"They said you're clear to leave." You turned around to head out. "But you're not gonna like what's outside."

"What now–" You three had barely stepped out of the police station when another cop siren immediately went off. Inadvertently you tensed at hearing the blare. And as if they wanted to prove your point, you look over and see Walker messing with one of the squad cars' speakers, Hoskins sitting on hood of it. You half sighed half groaned as your shoulders untensed.

"Was that supposed to be funny?" Sam mumbled. Bucky and you still followed him over to the rash-like duo.

"Friends, good to see you again." Walker smiled welcomingly, and didn't wait for any response. "If we divide ourselves we don't stand a chance, you guys know that."

Barnes leaned an arm on the car, adjacent from Walker; you leaned your back on the opposite car, arms crossed and hoping this wouldn’t take long.

Sam shoved his hands in his jacket reluctantly. "... So whatta ya got?"

"The leader's name is Karli Morgenthau." He started, and immediately the redhead with the bad temper came to mind. Suddenly that made much more sense than the long haired guy Sam and Torres had initially thought. "They're a group of radicalists, not much younger than you." Walker nods to you.

Hoskins leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "They geotag their locations then scramble the signal, but their symbol's been showing up around various displaced communities in Europe, so we've been targeting civilians helping them from place to place."

"We think they're finding ways to temporarily recruit people who believe in their cause to help them get their stolen supplies and then get back off the grid before they move again. In return she must be taking the medicine and supplies they just stole to these camps."

"They must figure by redistributing the money food and medicine that they're rectifying the post-Blip mandates." Sam reasoned. "Sending a message to the people making decisions... They gotta have some higher leader or hidden source though. The way they did that heist was a little too organized for some twenty-year-old kids if you ask me."

John nods. "You were there?"

"A friend of mine was, undercover. I saw the footage when they robbed the bank using a bunch of civilians to help distract the police so they could get away. It was precise, nobody was caught. They didn't hurt anyone until police tried to stop them..." He looked between the four of you as he broke it down. "Organized chaos. They must've learned it somewhere."

"Yeah well they certainly picked the wrong fight. Everyone’s struggling after the Blip."

"Trust me, Walker: whenever things get better for one group they usually get worse for another."

"Well trust me, this isn't my first counterterrorism mission and these things always end up crossing a line. And I got a feeling they're close."

"Too bad we have no idea where that line is." Bucky finally spoke up. "There are resettlement camps all over Europe, so, you're gonna have to look real hard."

A smirk played at John's lips. "Good thing I have twenty-twenty vision then, huh?" His friend couldn't help a chortle of his own. At this point it was like everything had to turn to a joke with them.

"Where is she now, Walker, do you know?" Barnes questioned irritably.

"No, we don't know, Bucky... But it's only a matter of time before we find out."

Bucky's eyebrows raised sarcastically at his cryptic response. "Things are real intense for you aren't they, Walker?" John only stared back at the snippy elder in silence, and Lemar slid off the car hood, standing behind him. You sighed quietly, starting to feel like you were standing in a vat of testosterone.

"Okay, easy." Sam interjected and stood between Walker and Barnes. "John's got a point. It's imperative we find them and stop them." You glanced at your partner, really hoping he wasn't gonna do what you thought he was doing. Luckily, he turned to John and Lemar. "But you guys have rules of engagement and all kinds of authorizations you have to get. We're free agents. We're more flexible. So it wouldn't make sense for us to team up."

Walker didn't say anything, so the three of you took your cue to leave and get back on track. But oh, Johnny wasn't done just yet. "A word of advice then." He called, making you sigh and turn around. "Stay the hell out of my way..." He warned, with a lingering stare on all of you. After a moment, when the point had apparently been made, they turned away and walked off the lot.

Such a long day.

After what felt like forever, your team of three finally left the station grounds. "Now that that's over with..."

“That guy's gonna drive me crazy. If I weren't already there."

"No argument here," Sam agreed, whether to Bucky's craziness or Walker being a lot, you didn't know. You look to the other two, getting back on track. "So what are we thinking?"

"I know what we need to do." The super soldier spoke up. "When Isaiah said my people..."

"Hey, don't take it to heart. He didn’t mean it like that.”

"He meant Hydra. Hydra used to be my people. So we need someone who knows about Hydra's old and new plans."

"Okay." You look past Sam, over to James. "Where do we get one of those?"

"There's... someone we can go to for help."

Sam looked over after the stretch of silence that followed, and his expression became more grave as realization dawned in his eyes. "Not a chance."

"We've got no other leads. Neither does Walker."

"No. I know where you're going with this."

"What am I missing here?"

"There's someone who knows all of Hydra's secrets." He explained to you, then looked back to Sam. "We need to see Zemo."

“No.”

"Zemo?" You repeated in surprise.

You knew the name. Pretty much everyone did really. The unstable psycho who framed The Winter Soldier for his attack on the Sokovia Accords conference in Vienna. In your circles, you knew him more as the crazy guy who brainwashed Bucky all over again after forcing him out of hiding.

Before that you had already looked up everything the internet had to offer about The Winter Soldier. It became a strict habit of survival after the incident. And aside from Zemo being all over the news seven years ago after the bombing, all that information on the soldier included Zemo’s “relationship” to him. But Sam mistook your remark as a question.

"He's the guy who bombed the UN meeting that killed King T'Chaka years ago, then framed Bucky for it as part of his plan to split apart The Avengers. He used to work Sokovian Intelligence, has had a grudge after what happened in Sokovia ever since, and hates anyone with super abilities. So you can see why going to him would be pointless. We're not seeing him."

"He's locked behind four inches of glass in a high facility detention center, more importantly he's our only shot."

"So what, you're just gonna go sit in a room with this guy?" Sam pointed out, making Buck think on the response.

“Yes, actually.” Barnes looked like he hated the thought of it, but eventually came to the hard conclusion. "... Ya got any other ideas?"

Sam sighed and looked to you. You looked over to Bucky. You could see how determined he was to do this. Like the idea had already been mulling around his mind for a while now. And if he thought he could handle it, maybe it was a smart idea. "It's that or wait until they steal something else. It can’t hurt.”

"Alright..." Sam eventually gave in, and sent the both of you an apprehensive look for what you were about to do. "Let's go see Zemo."

[thosewickedlovelies]

An Ode To Marcus Moreno’s Arms

Pairing: Marcus Moreno x GN!Reader

Rating: Mature

Summary: You’re a training specialist in swordsmanship at Heroics Headquarters, so you see a lot of Marcus Moreno.

Tags: Reader has a vivid (sexual) imagination, but there’s only a few brief sections.

Word Count: 2,272

A/N: This started out as an ode to his arms, but his arms are connected to the rest of him, so. Alternative title: In Appreciation of Marcus Moreno

My assumption/headcanon of his powers are telekinesis, plus general exceptional physical prowess and weapons skills? Idk, we weren’t given much, but those feel like solid abilities for someone implied to be the super among super heroes. Idk what this is but I regret nothing.

More content/worldbuilding set in this universe 💗

--

Marcus Moreno’s arms were capable of many things.

You knew this because you saw them on an almost-daily basis. You were one of the training specialists at Heroics Headquarters, one of a large, ever-expanding staff of instructors who were experts in their respective fields of combat or weapons. Your job, essentially, was to be a superhero minus the powers- and use your abilities to keep the Heroics in top form.

Your expertise was swordsmanship, which meant you spent more time with Marcus than any of the other heroes. All of the physical trainers and specialists sparred with the Heroics in mock villain showdowns, but you also helped them hone specific skills. You were here because your skillset and abilities matched Marcus’s.

So you’ve had plenty of opportunity to behold his arms at work.

One would think that they’d be most enticing mid-action, but it was a cosmically ironic fact that there was never really a wrong moment to ogle. How that man could make merely unsheathing his swords so erotic was beyond you.

But by now you’d seen it from every angle. You were as familiar with Marcus’s technique as you were with your own, and knew well the cycle of muscle contractions which rippled up his whole body. It started with his legs: setting his stance, primed and poised on the balls of his feet. Then every muscle in his torso, his clinging t-shirts sliding over taut flesh as they rode up with the lifting of his arms- his arms. Biceps suddenly incredibly present and visibly straining past barely-existent sleeves, tendons flexing rigid and obvious, a tangle of pathways you wanted to map with your tongue.

This show was best when he had started his day with tactical theory sessions, because then his expressive face got involved. Oh yes, it wasn’t enough for him just to be built the way he was, his face had to go and be attractive as well.

Tedious strategy debates with Miracle Guy during these sessions never failed to get under his skin- you could always tell how much steam Marcus had to let off based on the clench of his jaw. Or the way he’d drag his bottom lip over his teeth, nostrils flaring in an almost-snarl. When that happened you knew he gripped the hilts of his swords a little tighter, because you’d see the ridges in his wrist dip and pull like piano strings perpendicular to the line of his gloves. The blades would sing little sharper on those days, his arms freeing them in a jerk rather than their usual smooth, deliberate slide.

It was amazing you ever made it beyond unsheathing your weapons.

But oh, were you glad you did, because watching Marcus Moreno fight was truly a treat. The control he had over his body was remarkable; even when his limbs flung and stretched, they were to ready to contract again at a second’s notice. “Fight” was really too limited of a term for it- Marcus manipulated his body in an incredible harmony of mind and muscle, using his weapons- including his telekinesis- as extensions of himself.

You wondered sometimes how fine his control over his telekinesis was- if he could use it on himself. If he did use it somehow to give his blows that devastating extra speed and strength.

It was easy to understand, after witnessing him, why battle is often described as a dance.

On particularly ruthless training days, his tan skin would gleam with sweat. It would bead and trickle along the pulsing veins in his arms, drawing your attention even more, and salacious scenes would flash behind your eyelids: those same glistening forearms visible in your peripherals as they box you against a wall, that same intent glitter in his dark eyes as they come closer and closer, breathless, his chest heaving into yours-

You never let on to any of this though. You were a master of the blade, and had trained too thoroughly to let the appearance of an opponent get to you. Besides that fact, you would never do anything to risk your place with the Heroics. Although you were an authority figure, they were still superheroes, and thus unlike anyone else you’d worked with- it made for a challenging, stimulating dynamic in which you were constantly both instructor and student.

Even outside of the training arena, Marcus’s arms were a sight.

Holding data pads or writing utensils as he led the Heroics in discussions of group tactics, deftly manipulating characters onscreen or scribbling things on a whiteboard. Sometimes he would go to these sessions straight from physical training, and the cooling sweat on his skin would raise goosebumps all along the smooth flesh.

You observed how gently his arms could move in yet other circumstances.

Training specialists often joined in when the Heroics were given new gadgets to play with. And although these days tended to be slower, they still made you sweat. Watching the caution with which Marcus handled the gear at first, the slow care he reserved for things with which he was still becoming familiar. The precision and that control he always kept- even when his frustration slipped out in the form of snarky remarks, he was always conscious of his movements. As he gained confidence, the surety would return to his motions, his shoulders squaring in quiet triumph- his broad, broad shoulders, which you had imagined far too many times propping up your thighs while his hands and mouth were otherwise engaged between them.

You wondered if Marcus would treat your body like something new he had to master. If his hands would probe and caress with the same thoroughness. If the same wicked delight would steal over his features as he learned how best to coax you toward his desired goals; if his fascinated smirk would change after the thousandth time he had taken you apart.

It didn’t help that these sessions highlighted that he was a kind, competent teacher. His teammates exasperated him sometimes, but Marcus was the first to step in when one of them was struggling. A light touch to rearrange their stance, an encouraging word or smile. If you hadn’t personally felt the power thrumming under his skin, you would have never guessed that such a soft man was capable of his immense abilities.

Occasionally you had to remind yourself not to get all dopey-eyed when he was instructing the kids. If you thought he was patient with the adult Heroics, it was nothing compared to how he interacted with their younger counterparts. Equally firm and joking in turn, he taught them every trick he knew while desperately hoping they would never have to use the knowledge.

Some days were easier for him than others- the times they practiced with weapons could have unexpectedly diverting consequences. Marcus let Guppy hold his katanas, once- she was fully capable with her shark strength, but the vision of the diminutive girl brandishing swords that were taller than she was, her face aglow with a ferocious grin, had all the others in fits.

You swore he was suppressing laughter himself as he carefully took them away from her. His hands, already distracting enough, looked comically vast compared to hers as he delicately maneuvered them to pluck the swords from her grasp. Something about the sight of his thick fingers, resettling themselves around the hilts with reflexive ease, made your mouth dry.

His fingers squeezed other things, too, and it made flames leap low in your belly every time.

Lime wedges, on the rare occasions he indulged in drinks stronger than wine at the Headquarters bar. His friends’s shoulders, in affection and farewell, after relaxing with them at said bar following hard days. You longed to be one of those who Marcus slung an arm around in jest, a laugh shaking his shoulders and sparkling in his eyes. Would his skin be as warm as it was while swinging a weapon? What would his body feel like softened in mirth, instead of vibrating with focus?

You didn’t blame him for his more formal attitude during work hours. His days were busy, and you rarely saw him off the training mats. You had shared a few evenings with him on nights when the bar was quieter, though. He was perfectly friendly, treating you just like anyone else he was getting to know.

Tonight was one of those quieter nights, but you didn’t do more than cast a quick glance at the small group sitting in the corner before slumping to the bar. You were worn out today, and just wanted something strong and solitary before going home.

You sighed into the numbing wash of your drink, your eyes drifting shut. Nobody would bother you this evening; it wasn’t that kind of atmosphere.

Except- the barstool next to yours scraped against the floor.

You inhaled deeply, preparing to politely rip into whatever idiot was assuming you needed company- only to have the words struck off your lips by the apprehensive brown eyes of Marcus Moreno.

“Hey,” he said, clearing his throat. “I’m sorry to bother you. You can tell me to march right back to my table if you like, but uh, I just wanted to see if you were all right. After today.”

You could see that he genuinely meant it- he was perched only partially on the barstool, ready to take off again if you said the word. But his gaze was curious, concerned.

You brow furrowed. “After today?” you echoed, too caught off-guard to think of anything else. What could he mean? Nothing special had happened today. He’d disarmed you, sure, but it wasn’t the first time that had occurred in the eight months you’d been working with him.

Marcus shifted uncertainly. “You just seemed...tired. Reflexes slower than usual,” he noted wryly. “And, well. We have matching bags.” He pointed to his face, where dark shadows were visible beneath his eyes. He offered a self-deprecating, tentative smile, conscious that he was treading in new territory.

It takes you a minute to process. In all the time you’ve spent observing his fighting techniques to perfection, you’d never considered that he could have been using those same opportunities to observe you. It provokes a funny feeling in your chest, twisting your breath up in your lungs like tangled ribbon.

“Oh,” you murmur, surprised but unoffended by his mention of the bags under your eyes. “Well...I am tired today, I guess.” You took a sip of your drink, gauging his interest, hesitating before continuing. “My sister broke her hip, so she just moved in with me for while she heals. It’s been...a stressful transition,” you admitted.

He angles himself toward you, attention fully committed and eyes widening in sympathy. “Oh gosh, that’s terrible. Do you need some time off? I can clear it with the boss for you, work with Santino for however long you need.” He seemed to straighten up, as if ready to spring away and take care of it the moment you answered.

“No, please,” you chuckled in appreciation of his earnestness. “I might need a few shorter days, but neither of us need me fussing over her 24/7.” Both you and your sister were strongly independent. It meant that you had often been at odds when you were younger, but you were all each other had now, and had made efforts to improve your relationship.

Marcus nodded in understanding, settling again. He seemed at a loss for if he should leave or say something else, so you made the choice for him.

“Tired of getting your ass kicked in my lessons, Moreno? You know Santino doesn’t work you as hard.” Your fellow swordsmanship instructor was slightly younger, a newer hire who was still a little bit in awe of the Heroics.

You didn’t usually speak so flippantly to him, but his eyebrows arced high at the challenge, a smile tugging on his lips. “Sounds like somebody needs a reminder of who kicked whose ass today, ma’am.” Rolling right along with your apparent newfound playfulness.

You pinpointed, suddenly, what was different about him tonight, why this interaction felt different compared to your others. There’d always been an air of deference about him before, as if even outside of the arena he considered you a superior. But tonight he was just treating you like a peer, a regular person. Maybe it had taken your excessively dragging day for him to come to terms with the fact that you were a regular person, but the ice finally felt like it had broken between you and you just...talked, after that. For longer than both of you probably intended.

“Shoot, I have to go get Missy,” Marcus realized, catching sight of his watch. “But you- you’ll be here again? I mean, I see you here a lot.” He stumbled over his words.

Did he? It was true that you were often at the bar at the same time, but for him to acknowledge that meant that he actually noticed you. Remembered your presence.

“Yeah, I’m here pretty regularly,” you confirmed, cautiously hopeful.

“Good. I mean, I’ll see you, then- next time.” His voice rasped low, but there was a nervousness in his expression. He twisted his jacket between his large hands.

He wanted to see you again. “Yes.” You smiled at him, surprise and pleasure shining through. “I’ll see you next time,” you said with conviction.

His eyes crinkled in answer, and your breath caught. Your ordered yourself not to watch him leave the room.

You drove home with a quiet grin on your face.

[dissociativedaydream]

Soft - Part 3

Pairing: Bossk x Vertani!reader (read more about Vertani here)

Word Count: ~2.4K

Tags: NSFW (18+), brief mentions of alcohol, a dash of protective!Bossk, talks about family building, illusion to breeding kink, unprotected PiV, double penetration (both in V), brief mention of cum eating

A/N: so I have a headcanon that Trandoshans make noises like some lizards do to indicate their needs/emotions, I bring it up here toward the end so I wanted to address it

<- Part 2

NSFW below the cut

“No, the agreement was you could come but you stay on the ship.”

It had been months since your father kidnapped you from the apartment you had shared with Bossk on Tattoine. With the help of Latts you were able to convince your husband to let you follow along on jobs. He still insisted on continuing to pay rent in case you one day decided that you wanted to stay behind.

So the fact you were starting to ask to actually help with jobs was annoying him.

Latts and Dengar, the human man that joined your pickup, enjoyed the fact that you were annoying the normally stoic Trandoshan. It was evident now as Latts giggled and Dengar smirked while gathering his gear.

“Please. I can be helpful.” You pouted.

He huffed. “This isn’t a discussion about you being helpful. I don’t want you in danger.”

You continued to pout as he nuzzled your hair before following the other two bounty hunters off the ship. Boba hadn’t come on this one, something about them being able to do the job without him. He was sprouting into quite the leader.

To pass the time you took inventory and tidied up the ship. For someone that was a bachelor up until recently, Bossk kept his ship pretty well organized and clean. That meant you quickly ran out of ways to keep yourself busy. You grabbed the datapad that Bossk had gotten you for situations like this.

Settling into the copilot chair you read up on the planet you were currently on, some backwater jungle planet. You lost track of time, only looking up when you heard the group return. They all sounded like they were in good spirits so hopefully, that means the job went well.

“Hey wifey!” Latts Razzi swept into the cockpit with her standard smirk. “We’re going to go get drinks so celebrate, want to come?”

You all but jump out of your seat, “yes please, I’m so bored.”

Latts giggled holding out a hand to you. You wrapped your arms around each other’s shoulders and walked to where the boys were waiting just outside the ship.

Bossk clicked his tongue as you two appeared. “Making a move Latts?”

“It’s tempting,” Latts leaned her head into the side of yours as you two giggled.

Your husband extended an arm to you and you moved to embrace him. He leaned down to press a kiss to your lips, a rare occurrence for him. While Latts was joking, maybe he was a little nervous. Or the job paid a lot. You didn’t really care, you enjoyed the extra affection. He wrapped an arm around your shoulders as your group walked to the closest bar.

The bar was crowded, only a few seats were open at the bar counter. People stared at your odd group as you walked to the seats, Bossk’s grip on you tightened as someone whistles. There were only the two open seats and Bossk all but pushed you down into one, Latts sitting in the other. He took a territorial stance behind you two, glancing over his shoulder.

You followed his gaze to a group of Trandoshans, surprisingly you recognized one of them as Cradossk, his father.

Leaning in you whisper so that only he and Latts could hear you, “what is he doing here?”

“There was a liiiittle competition for the bounty.” Latts admitted, an uneasy grin on her face. “They’re not super happy about it.”

You grasped Bossk’s shoulder, his muscles were tense. “Maybe we should wait to celebrate until we’re back on Tattoine.”

Dengar snorted behind you, “I doubt they’ll actually try anything. Cradossk wouldn’t stop asking about you when we bumped into him in the middle of the job.”

You quirked your brow at him, “why?”

Before he could respond Bossk growled, effectively cutting him off. You frown, turning to your husband. His face was scrunched, his already intimidating appearance looking downright frightening. Well, frightening to other people.

“If you think I’m not going to get the answer eventually, then you don’t realize who you married.” You grumbled, squeezing his shoulder.

His face relaxed slightly, a breathy chuckle leaving him. “I know. Let’s get a drink then get going.”

~

“Are you going to tell me what your dad was asking or am I going to have to annoy it out of you?” You mumbled into the collar of your husband’s nightshirt.

You’d made it back to Tattoine that afternoon, the three bounty hunters going to report to Boba while you headed back to your and Bossk’s apartment. He’d stayed away until it was late, no doubt hoping to avoid this very situation. Unfortunately for him, you’re stubborn as hell.

He grumbled in response, the low noise rattling his chest. “Can’t this wait?”

You rolled your eyes before moving so you were face to face with the Trandoshan. He refused to make eye contact, instead opting to stare at the ceiling. Sighing you traced a finger down his chest, with his muscle relaxed he was softer than he looked.

“You’re hoping I’ll forget.” You smirked. “If you don’t want me to keep asking, then you’ll have to just tell me. It can’t be that bad.”

He was quiet and still for a moment, if it wasn’t for his blinking eyes you’d think he fell asleep.

“He wanted to know if you were expecting yet.” His voice was uncharacteristically quiet, obviously not wanting to have this conversation.

“Oh,” you reply.

You weren’t really surprised. Both Trandoshans and Vertani had a heavy focus on families and a baby would solidify your marriage. It was odd that Bossk was so reluctant to tell you something so normal to both your people.

While you wanted answers, you were reluctant to push. You liked to annoy him with little things, this didn’t seem little to him. Instead, you snuggled back into his side.

“That’s it?” Bossk interrupted the silence.

You hummed, “yeah.”

He pushed you back slightly so he could sit up, you propped yourself up on an elbow to watch him stretch.

“What do you think about it?” He asked, standing to gaze out the window blinds.

This was the most fidgety you’d ever seen him in the last year you’d been together. Normally he was the definition of either stoic or angry. It was making you a little nervous.

Nevertheless, you answered. “I would like a family but it’s not the end of the world if we don’t have one.”

Bossk didn’t react for a few minutes. You laid back down, tracing patterns on the blankets, waiting for him to respond. Finally, he moved but instead of speaking, he moved to hover over you, caging you to the bed.

“Pretty relax answer for someone trying to figure out my cycle.” He chuckled.

You felt your cheeks flush. He was half right.

“Sort of,” you admit.

He says nothing as he leans down, tongue lolling out of his mouth before he licks a stripe up your neck.

“Continue.” His voice resumes its relaxed grumble.

You sighed. “I thought maybe my cycle would sync with yours if I was around you more.”

His eyes snap up to yours, a mischievous glint in them.

“You should have told me, little wife,” he clicked his tongue in pretentious chastising. “Pheromones would fix that right up.”

Pheromones, duh, why didn’t you think of that? Bossk often let you know he could tell what emotion you were feeling through your scent, it made sense pheromones would be a factor.

“I didn’t know how you would take it.” Your second admission caused him to look at you skeptically.

“Isn’t communication key my little wife? Why wouldn’t I want to give you exactly what you want?” His voice is almost a purr as a hand moves down your chest, pausing over your breast. “What my girl wants, she gets.”

His words went straight to your core, surprised at his words.

“What about you? What do you want?” You asked.

Bossk’s hand moves down and lingers on your stomach, thumb stroking the fabric of your shirt lightly. He looks up at you pointedly.

“Noted,” you breathe, somewhat surprised.

You guess you shouldn’t be surprised. It’s not like either of you had been careful with sex but explicitly saying it changed things, made it real. He shifted, hand moving down to the crotch of his pants to adjust himself and drawing your attention to the straining fabric. Raising one of your brows you smirk at him.

“So pheromones, huh?” You giggled.

He shot you a warning look before pulling his shirt off, discarding it on the floor.

“I won’t be gentle when I fuck you while in rut.” He growled.

You giggle, “you’re usually gentle? Pretty sure the bruises on my hips beg to differ.”

He leaned down, nuzzling your neck before licking it again, this time with his sharp teeth grazing over your pulse point as well.

“That’s nothing little wife,” he murmured against your skin.

“Show me.”

The growl that erupted from your husband’s throat went straight to your core and admittedly startled you momentarily. He grabbed your shirt, the sound of ripping fabric the only sound in the room as his claws tore it easily. His tongue teased across your breasts, his saliva leaving a warm trail across your skin. He trailed his tongue up your neck and chin, nipping your skin lightly as he went. A strong hand trailed down your naked body, grabbing your underwear, nearly ripping it too.

“Uh uh, these are the ones you like.” You interrupted his movement.

He grumbled but conceded, they were his favorite, he carefully moved the fabric over your hips before his tongue was between your legs. Bossk’s tongue pushed inside you, a content grumble in his throat as he tasted you. His claws dragged up your thighs causing you to hiss at the sting. He paused, glancing up at you checking that you were okay. When you nod he acknowledges it with a flick of his tongue, hitting a soft spot inside you.

You moan loudly, his claws digging into the meat of your thighs in response. He’d stated on a few occasions that he enjoyed the variety of noises you made, especially in the bedroom.

“You know,” you murmured. “This isn’t very different from normal.”

His reply chuckle was deep in his throat, “Let me enjoy you little wife, I missed your taste.”

You huffed and rolled your eyes, squeezing his head between your thighs to be a brat. He growled in response, nipping your thigh with sharp teeth.

“Ow!” You recoiled, seeing red pinpricks where his teeth pierced your skin.

“That’s a taste of what you wanted me to show you little wife. Do you still want it?” He murmured before licking across the small wound.

You thought for a moment, you knew he wouldn’t hurt you to the point of genuine pain. Not that you entirely hated the pain either. All you knew right now is his tongue felt really good as it soothed your skin which caused you to whimper.

Bossk groaned, pulling his pants down. He reached down grabbing his cocks in one hand and started stroking himself, groaning at his own touch. You whimpered in disappointment and pouted.

Chuckling Bossk clicked his tongue, “want something?”

You reached down between your legs, touching your neglected clit. He grumbled, watching as you traced tight circles around the sensitive nerve. Pushing your hand away, he lined his cocks up with your entrance.

“Ready to try?” He asked softly.

You nod nervously, up until now you’d only taken one at a time. But you knew during his rut his amped up body would only be satisfied if you could take both.

He rubbed the heads of his cock through your folds, adding your juices to his, “Breathe little wife.”

Bossk eased into you slowly, you winced at the stretch and a whispered chorus of curse words left your lips. He moaned loudly as he bottomed out inside you.

“Fuck,” you whimpered.

His cocks left no area inside of you untouched, you’d never felt so full. You looked down your abdomen slightly swollen from the intrusion. Bossk was still other than his claws digging into the sheets with an audible tearing noise. His hips rocked slightly, pressing against every sensitive spot inside you.

Bossk groaned something in Dosh as he almost collapsed on you, his hips pulling back slightly before snapping into you again. You gasped loudly, you could feel yourself clench around him though his cocks didn’t allow for much movement.

“You’re so tight little wife,” he moaned before licking up your neck. “I could cum just like this.”

To emphasize his point he pulled hips back nearly all the way, just leaving the heads inside, before pushing back into you. You gasped again, each movement he made pressed pleasure up your core, the growing pressure of your orgasm coiling tightly in your belly.

He grasps your hips, pushing his flush against yours rocking so that his cocks pressed against the one spot he knew would unravel you quickly. You wrapped your legs around him as he pulls back just slightly before snapping hips back to press into just the right spot, hard. Your thighs shake as you feel the tension from your belly spread heat up your spine and down your legs, another thrust hitting just the right spot caused a shockwave of pleasure to flood your body.

Your pussy clenched around his cocks, Bossk swearing before he shuddered, his own orgasm hitting him as his cum flooding your pussy. As he pulled out you could feel the mixture of your juices drip from you and he leaned back to admire his handiwork.

You dropped your head down to the bed, feeling sore and more than exhausted. Bossk spreads your legs, mindful of pushing you too much as you hiss. He dips his head down, tongue running over your slit, tasting the two of you. You’d normally would have made a smart ass comment but his tongue soothed the sting that the stretch of his cocks left you with and you didn’t want him to stop.

He moved again to rest his head on your stomach the rest of his body still resting between your legs. You reached down stroking his face, earning a sleepy but content sounding grumble from your husband.

“You did good little wife,” he mumbled, “now go to sleep.”

You shift slightly, centering his head on your stomach before you stretch and close your eyes. Bossk made a quiet clicking noise, a noise you’d heard a few times when he was overly content, it was a welcomed noise as you drifted off to sleep.

[deathlikesdeep-dish]

“You’re Making Me Wet” (Zoro x Female Reader)

JUST UNDER THE WIRE BUT I FINISHED FOR BAE’S BIRTHDAY. It was not probably my best move to try and start and finish something in an evening, but here we are. A bit rushed, but I hope y’all enjoy this lil fic! I’ve been meaning to write this for a while, (specifically for the One Piece of Summer event) and haven’t gotten around to it. Inspired by the “We Can!” opening where the crew has a water gun fight, and sexy flirtation ensues. 

WARNINGS: cussing as usual, heavy suggestion but no smut! 

Zoro x Female Reader

Word Count: 1960

It was a particularly hot day aboard the Sunny, and the crew was beginning to get a little stir crazy. It would be days, according to Nami, before you all would arrive at the next island, and Luffy’s heavy, bored sigh every ten minutes after he’d ask how much longerrrr was beginning to wear on the entire crew. 

“Goddamn it, Luffy, if I hear you ask that question one more damn time, I’m gonna lose my fucking mind,” Zoro growls from his usual spot.

“Not like there’s much there to lose,” Sanji mumbles under his breath as he walks back to the kitchen, to the great amusement of both Chopper and Usopp, though their laughter is cut short by Zoro’s sharp gaze. 

“Shut up, cook,” Zoro ground out. 

You giggle quietly, but don’t say anything.

“Boys,” Nami rolls her eyes from next to you. You, Nami and Robin are all lounging in the shade on the deck. 

You look over at Zoro, who has uncharacteristically chosen to shed his usual gear in lieu of swim trunks and a simple white t-shirt. Though this is not out of place, as the entire crew had donned their swim gear after the third straight day of heat, it is still jarring to see the swordsman out of his normal attire. It left much less to the imagination, and made it difficult to concentrate. His brow is still furrowed in annoyance towards Sanji, his lips a thin, tight line. He doesn’t notice that you are staring, which you are grateful for. You are also grateful that both Robin and Nami seem content to occupy themselves with idle chatter. They have been giving you a hard time recently about your sometimes unabashed attraction to the greenette. 

You can see the slight sheen of sweat forming on Zoro’s tanned forearms and at the nape of his neck and as he tilts his head back, your gaze follows the sharp line of his jaw. He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, clearly attempting to calm himself down and you can see his facial features beginning to relax. How is it fair for someone to be this attractive, you think bitterly. 

Abruptly, as if Zoro felt your gaze, his eyes open and the flash to yours. They are vigilant at first, cautious, but soften when he realizes that it is you, and not some enemy, that is looking at him. You realize, stupidly, that he has trained his Haki to notice any sort of energies directed towards him, and you could kick yourself for being so careless. 

He smirks a bit, but otherwise does nothing. You flush brightly and look away, turning to ask Nami a question but you find that she is no longer in her spot.

“Hey, where’d Nami go?” You ask Robin.

“I think she went to talk to Luffy about something,” Robin replies vaguely. 

“Oh,” You say, looking around. Luffy, too, has vanished from his normal spot atop the figurehead. 

“Come to think of it,” You say a little more loudly, attracting the attention of the other crew members nearby. “Isn’t a little too quiet?” 

“Huh, you’re right, y/n,” Chopper says. “It is really quiet...” 

Before you can utter another word, you hear the loud yell of your captain from the helm. “Gum-gum….WATER GUN FIGHT.” He leaps onto the deck with a cackle and begins rapidly firing a water gun at Usopp and Chopper.

“Hell yeah! Talk about a super soaker!” Frank yells out, his Franky water cannons emerging from his shoulder pauldrons, primed and ready to go. 

Nami yells out to you and Robin. “Robin, Y/n!” You both look up and see her toss a similar water weapon to each of you with a mischievous grin. You catch it with a loud laugh. 

“Oh, you idiots don’t even know what’s about to happen,” You say evilly, launching up from your chair. 

“Oh yeah?” Usopp challenges, and the battle ensues. Since you joined the Strawhats with Franky in Water 7, you have been through many battles with your nakama. And in some of these, you recall with unpleasantness, you weren’t sure if the crew was going to make it out all in one piece. So, it is with great pleasure that you engage in this battle, one where the only stakes of the loss are cleaning up Sanji’s dinner or helping Chopper get a mat out of his coat. You, along with Robin and Nami, are in immediate opposition to Franky, Chopper, and Usopp. Your captain is, of course, trying to take all of you on at once. 

Sanji is still in the kitchen, probably preparing some sort of fruity drink for the ladies, and Zoro is to the side, being an overall dolt and spoil-sport. He rolls his eyes and crosses his arms over his chest, leaning against the side of the ship as he curls a dumbbell. 

“Nami, my sweet!” Sanji calls out, busting through the door with a tray of drinks, completely unaware of the chaos unfolding. 

“FRANKY SUPER CANNON,” Franky yells, firing a jet of water directly into Luffy. The blast is so powerful, that the Luffy is launched into Sanji, who is then launched into the marimo as he sits with his weights. The three of them are also immediately drenched with water from Franky’s cannon.

“Hey, what the hell!” Zoro barks out, standing up with a menacing glare.

“Stop getting in the way, moss-head! You knocked down my drinks for the lovely ladies!” Sanji replies with equal rage. 

“Why you….” Zoro replies. “Give me a fucking water gun. I’m gonna kick this cook’s ass.” 

“Ha! Not a chance, you couldn’t even touch me, cretin,” Sanji says. 

Luffy is cackling as Franky tosses two more water guns to Zoro and Sanji respectively. 

“Don’t wreck my ship!” Frank yells out with a laugh, as Zoro and Sanji are brought into the fight. The battle continues for a while longer, Zoro wanting desperately to use his swords (aiming a gun was not exactly his strong suit) and Sanji not wanting to use his delicate chef hands too vigorously (my hands are only for cooking and women, he’d say). Zoro, turning his attention away from Sanji, who is being attacked by Luffy and Robin, looks around to find you. You’ve been hiding from him intentionally, knowing that he would show you no mercy. 

“Oh, y/n…” Zoro calls. “Where have you been hiding? Don’t think I’ll let you get away scot-free.” 

Hearing his voice, low and taunting, throws an unexpected pang of desire down your spine. You bite your lip in an effort to remain silent. You know that you hiding is pointless. He could find you in a second with his Haki. He’s teasing you intentionally. Does he know how desperately aroused that this is making you? 

“Got ya,” You hear in your ear from behind you. You jump at the sudden closeness of his voice and yelp a bit. 

“Ugh, Zoro,” You complain, hoping he doesn’t notice how breathless you are. “You’re such an ass,” You turn towards him and meet his gaze. He is much closer than you thought, so when you turn around and look up, your noses nearly touch. He makes no moves to back off, challenging you. You take a step backwards, cursing in your mind, and rip your gaze from his. This is a mistake. Your eyes settle on his torso. The white t-shirt he has been wearing is all but translucent now, soaked with water from the fight. The fabric clings to each line of his chest and abdomen, and even though you’ve seen him shirtless many times before this, there’s something particularly erotic about him being fully clothed and yet so exposed. 

Your lips are parted as you let out a shuddering breath. You take a step back, trying to regain composure, only to find your back against the side of the ship. He is very close. And you have nowhere to go. “Uh,” You stutter. You look up at his face again, which was yet another mistake. You are now close enough to trace the lines of his face with your eyes. You notice, for the first time, how ragged the scar over his left eye actually was. You feel a tinge of sadness, wondering for a long moment how it happened, and hating the thought of him suffering. 

That thought quickly leaves your mind, as he reaches to place a hand on either side of your head, leaning in. “What the problem, y/n?” He teases.

Since when has the socially awkward first mate become so incredibly seductive?! 

“Zoro,” You start, droplets of water from his hair and his arms dripping onto your skin. “You’re making me wet.” You finish without thinking. 

His grin widens and you don’t realize why until you remember the words that had just come out of your mouth. You flush bright red and you bury your hands in your face immediately. 

“Oh my God,” Your words are muffled by your hands. Oh my God, please just fucking kill me now.  

After a moment, you feel warm fingers wrap around your wrists, to pull your hands to the side. You try to ignore the tingling sensation emanating from his touch. 

“Sorry. Didn’t mean to make you wet,” He says slyly. “Let me fix that,” he finishes before stepping back to strip off his shirt. The two of you are far enough away from the rest of the crew to feel particularly vulnerable. Though you know, of course, that Zoro poses no threat to you, you are beginning to feel like your dignity may end up being threatened if you’re not able to get your shit together. 

“Zoro, what are you doing?” You ask in a near whisper.

“Y/n,” He breathes. “You must know that I can sense you.” He looks you directly in the eye, his dark gaze penetrating. “I know your energy. I know when you’re near.” 

You are disarmed, unable to look away. “I’ve trained myself to know. Because I need to know that you’re safe.” You are taken aback, not expecting to hear something so sentimental come out of the swordsman’s mouth. 

“I know when you’re looking at me. I know when you stare. I can sense your heart racing right now,” He continues, leaning in so that his lips barely brush yours. 

“I can sense that you want me in the same way that I want you,” He says finally. 

Wait, what? You think, your mind hazy. He had never once given you any indication that he felt this way. “What did you just say?” You ask.

“I said that I want you.” He replies simply. 

You don’t know what to say. You’d never even allowed yourself to consider the possibility that Zoro may feel something like this for you. 

“You don’t have to answer right now,” He reassures you. “And there’s no rush. I want you to feel comfortable, y/n.” 

Your heart is warmed by the gesture and you are grateful that you are going to be able to have some time to process this information. Nami and Robin are going to lose their shit, you think.

“But y/n,” Zoro says, the same sly tone back in his voice as leans down to your ear. “If I catch you staring at me while I’m shirtless again,” He gently tugs your earlobe between his teeth. You gasp, nearly collapsing. “I make no promises to go slow.” His lips trail to the hollow beneath your ear, and you brace your hands against the wall of the ship. 

“I may be honorable,” He whispers. “But I am a pirate.”

[angstsfordays]

No, Mama!

Summary: Steve Rogers faces the toughest challenge in his century’s worth of life presenting in the form of his 3-year-old son. Inspired loosely from the tiktok video on this post. 🥺💖

Pairing: Dad!Steve Rogers x Mom!Reader Warnings: None. Just FLUFF all around. Word count: 5k-ish Notes: Hi! I’m back with another story now that exams are over and I am on holiday! No angst this time just lots of sweetness. Really hope you like it as it’s just cute domestic fluff with 1 out of 2 favourite century old super soldiers!

Have a look at my masterlist of other stories if you’re interested! 🥰

Leave a like, reblog or comment to let me know what you think! Thank you! :) 

———————————————————————

The drive back home from the compound was always welcomed by Steve. Even after his many years of fighting, the world still counted on his help every now and then. As the saying goes, evil never rests.

He was starting to grow wearisome of the fighting but he knew that the world still depended on the Avengers. His innate sense of justice could not allow him the selfishness to abandon his duty. Furthermore, he needed to ensure the world was safe to keep his whole world safe.

Steve Rogers counted himself lucky still. He was able to meet someone who understood his line of work and still wanted to be with him till the end. You were a former SHILED agent and Avenger, now retired to take care of your family. As committed as you were to your career, you knew the moment your son was born, you were willing to give everything up to dedicate your life to him.

You exchanged your stealth suit for mom jeans and baggy shirts. Your combat boots with sneakers. You did not regret your decision.

You figured that you didn’t want your son to grow up with two parents who are often absent and risking their lives in the field. You made the choice to take a step back to raise your son with full time commitment.

Perhaps, you might return back to the field when he grows older. But that’s a thought for many years later. For now, it was a daily routine of diapering, feeding, napping, playing and lots of entertaining a spirited toddler.

You left your son, Hugh James Rogers to entertain himself with his wooden blocks and animal toys while you cleaned up after lunch. You just finished with the last set of dishes before washing your hands clean. 

The beeping sound of the Stark Technology home lock alerted your senses of someone entering the front door of your home. Recognising the sound of familiar footsteps, you quickly made your way out of your kitchen to welcome the arrival.

The clank of metal on the floor only served to quicken your steps as you threw yourself onto the big mass in your living room.

“Welcome back, Stevie.” Steve chuckled as he took a step back when your welcome caught him by surprise, his hands went to scoop your legs up and around his waist. You pulled away from the crook of his neck when you previously laid your head and gazed lovingly into your husband’s eyes.

Your fingers went to cradle the sides of his face before your thumbs moved along the bags underneath his eyes. Your brows furrowed at how tired he must have been from the mission. He had been away for almost three months and it was the longest he had been away from you and your son.

“I’m fine, doll.” Steve could sense your worry as you observed him silently for a moment. You knew better than to believe him. “I’m calling Tony.”

“Come on, love. There’s no need for that.”

“Don’t you try and stop me. Why does he get to stay home with Morgan and have you go out on such long missions? He’s not the only one with a family.” A pout formed on your face as your husband tried to coax you into leaving things be.

“Tony promised to give me a break after this. I won’t be on call for missions.” Steve reassured you. You raised an eyebrow with slight doubt but you knew Tony was a man of his word.

Steve’s heart soared at how much you looked after his well-being. He felt like the luckiest guy in the world for having someone to take care of him. With you, he could let his guard down and be vulnerable. People were used to viewing Steve with such awe, expecting him to be all strong and unfaltering.

However, he was only a human. He craved to be comforted when he was feeling his lowest. Steve was glad that he found and met you.

“I missed you so much, Stevie.” Steve was almost not ready for the onslaught of kisses that you started to pepper him on his face and lips to show how much you missed him. He relished in your love and care but it was short lived before you had yourself released from his hold.

Disappointment washing over him, he made to pout and whine until he heard your voice perked up.

“Hugh, Daddy’s home!”

The mention of his son’s name had Steve quickly follow you into the living room. As your son tilted his head in response to the sound of your voice, you crouched down beside him to get his attention.

“Look, Hugh! Where’s Daddy?” Your voice squealed in the baby talk as you gestured for Hugh to look towards Steve. Hugh did not move from his spot as his eyes moved to watch Steve who crouched down on his knees to meet his son’s eye level.

“Hey buddy, it’s me.” Stretching his hands out, Steve gestured for Hugh to come straight into his arms. Steve’s face was filled with anticipation for his son’s welcome. However, as seconds passed, dread started to fill Steve when Hugh still remained seating down.

You caught Steve’s crestfallen expression and decided to intervene.

“It must be the beard, babe. The last time he saw you, you were totally clean shaven.” You tried to explain at your son’s unusual behaviour.

“Should I shave it?” The gears in Steve’s mind started shifting at your words. You chuckled at the panic look that Steve showed.

“No, it’s fine. Besides, I love it.” You responded fondly as you moved to caress his full grown beard.  Steve’s eyes twinkled at your remark but he still looked sullen at your son’s lack of interests towards him.

“He will come around, Steve.” Indicating for Hugh to let you carry him, he toddled his way into your arms. Making your way towards Steve who now stood up, you hoped that you can help Steve to reacquaint Hugh soon.

If you were a little heartbroken at your son’s apathetic attitude, you were sure it was a thousand times worse for Steve.

“Should I bring the shield in so that he recognises me?” Oh, Steve.

———————————————————————

It had only been three days since Steve returned home from his last mission. He was still relishing in the comfort of his own home and the company of his family. With your help, Hugh starting to warm up to Steve again.

It involved the shield and a lot of re-enactment of himself as what Hugh watched on TV. Steve even called for Bucky to deliver the suit to your home from the compound so that he could get in costume for Hugh to be familiar with him.

However, his happiness was short lived when a call arrived for you. It was 3am when you got the call from the compound. You were called in for a special mission and honestly, both of you were taken aback since you have not been back in the field since you got pregnant with Hugh.

It was a hostage mission involving the child of a very powerful Italian mafia boss. You were specifically requested as you developed a friendship with said boss after saving his life once from your earlier SHIELD days. He did not want other Avengers involved despite their stronger talents. He only trusted you as a friend to get his only child back.

You agreed on account of your friendship and empathy with his plight as a parent. You were honestly worried about returning to the field after such a long hiatus but Steve had confidence in you. He understood the situation and encouraged you to take on the mission.

Your mission will take 48 hours and you had to leave Hugh for the first time in awhile. Aside from worrying about the mission, you also worried if Steve could handle Hugh on his own. He hardly parented on his own as you were always around.

You looked at your watch and saw that it was 8.30am. You were tasked to leave in half an hour. You had woken earlier at 7am when Hugh climbed into your bed. You decided to quickly freshen up and spend some time during breakfast together before you got ready to leave.

With your bag in hand, you left your room and turned to see your son and husband in the living room. The sound of your boots clicking on the wooden floor attracted the attention of the two men in the room.

“Mama!” Hugh called you as he put down his favourite dinosaur toy to walk over to you.  Placing your bag down on the floor, your arms stretched out to scoop your baby boy into your arms. His own chubby finger reached out to play with the lapels of your suited jacket.

 Steve looked at you from head to toe, admiring how you looked in a full formal black suit with a white silk blouse and combat boots. You reminded him of the first day he had met you when you were introduced to the team.

“It’s been awhile since I saw you in this getup.” You shifted Hugh’s weight in your arms before you responded.

“I thank god it still fits.”

“You look amazing, darling.” You could feel Steve’s eyes raking up and down when you sat down with him on the couch. He leaned over to give you a quick peck on the lips affectionately.

“Are you sure you will be alright?” Call it a woman’s instinct or more so mother’s instincts, you had a nagging feeling about leaving Steve alone with Hugh. No doubt Steve is a loving father, but in all the time of raising Hugh, his presence was staggered with missions, meetings and conferences.

Furthermore, Hugh was still getting to warm up to Steve after his previous long absence.

“I will be alright, Y/N. You raised Hugh so well, I’m sure he will be a good boy while you are away.” Steve reassured you of your worries as he smoothened Hugh’s messy locks. Hugh was in a long-hair phase now.

“Alright, I should go soon. I still need to head down earlier for the pre-mission briefing.” You said before looking over to Hugh.

“Hugh, Mama is going out for awhile. Be good for Daddy, ok?” Hugh’s interest in your attire was suddenly lost as soon as he heard your words.

“Why, Mama?” Hugh was smart and receptive for his age. He had slowly become attuned to the concept of Steve’s frequent and long absences from a young age. You had made sure to remind Hugh of Steve’s presence through video and phone calls nevertheless.

It was one of the ways to make sure Hugh bonded with his father. Sometimes, you were afraid Hugh’s bond with Steve would falter and you knew Steve shared the same worry so you did your best to be the bridge between father and son.

Luckily, you knew Hugh was incredibly fond of his father still as he always needed to have his Captain America plush to sleep.

“Hmm, Mama’s friend needs my help and as soon I am done, I will be back.” You thoughtfully came up with an answer that was easy enough for Hugh to understand.

“Like Dada?” Hugh made a thoughtful expression when he heard your answer.

“Yeah.” You nodded enthusiastically, thinking that Hugh will be understanding as how he would when Steve leaves for missions.

“NOOO! Dada go away long. Mama go away long.” Taken aback by Hugh’s sudden outburst, you looked up to meet Steve’s panicked expression.

“Oh Hugh, it won’t be long. Only two moons and I will be back, baby.” Calming your son down by bouncing him in your arms and patting down back, you hoped Hugh will ease on his crying.

“No, Mama!” Hugh immediately stood on the couch to wrap his whole body around your torso. His crying grew louder by the second. You and Steve were at a loss. Hugh rarely had such emotional outbursts. He had always been an easy-going child with a calm temperament.

“Hugh, Mama will be back really quick. Daddy will be here with you to wait for Mama.” Steve tried chiming in to calm your son down. Hugh seemed to start easing up on his cries and you handed him over to Steve.

“Baby, I promise I will be back real soon! You are a brave boy. Aren’t you, Hugh?” You tried to engage Hugh with encouraging words.

“Yes.” At the mention of the word ‘brave’, Hugh lifted his head off your shoulders to look at you.

“Hugh James Rogers is the best boy I know because he is really brave.” Taking advantage of the moment, you continued to give motivating words to Hugh so that he would feel better.

“Hugh is brave.” Your son responded adorably and you heart clenched at how cute he was. It was also because you almost regretted the decision to take on this mission.

“Yes. Hugh is brave.” You emphasized his words once more before starting to pick up your bag and making your way to the door. Steve followed closely behind you with Hugh in his arms, his nose still sniffling from his previous crying. 

“Take care, babe.” Turning to Steve, your hands reached out to bring his face closer and you give him a quick peck.

“I could say the same for you.” You eyed him before continuing. “I can’t be contacted at all for the next 48 hours. I already wrote down what to do for Hugh. His routine and such. I left it on the fridge-”

“I know, I know.” Steve returned with an expression that said he got this.

“You can do it, Daddy.” You stroke your thumb affectionately across Steve’s face. “Bye Hugh.” You made a kissy face, hinting for Hugh to lean down and give you a kiss.

“Bye, Stevie.” Steve leaned down similarly to kiss you once more and a bit longer than the previous ones. As he pulled back, he leaned in to kiss Hugh for another round of affection.

“Bye, boys.” You gave one more goodbye before walking over to the car. As you sat in the seat, you looked out the window to see your boys waving you goodbye.

Let’s do this, Y/N Y/L/N.

———————————————————————

Once you drove out of sight, Steve finally turned back to enter his home. Looking at his son with snot dripping from his nose, Steve went to clean it up. His eyes drifted to the clock hanging on the wall. 9.03 am.

Steve went back to his son whose sitting on the kitchen counter staring back with his wide eyes.

“Hey buddy, what do you think about reading some books?”

“No, Mama.” Steve was surprised at the immediate rejection. He did not expect Hugh to be putting up resistance once you had left.

Steve pondered for a minute on how to respond.

“Hugh buddy, should we play?”

“No, Mama.” The feeling of dejection washed over Steve once more at Hugh’s response to his proposal. How did you do it?

Steve went ahead to carry Hugh off the counter and bring him to his play area into the living room. Setting Hugh down on the baby-proofed flooring, Steve waited to watch what Hugh wanted to do.

Hugh looked back at Steve for a moment before standing up to walk over to the TV. Hugh’s head moved left and right as if he was looking for something. His small hands then skillfully reached to open the drawer and take out the remote.

“Boss-boss.” Hugh repeated. Steve had no clue what he was trying to say.

“What is it, bud?”

“Boss. Baby.” Like the over century old man he was, Steve had no clue what his Son was saying.

Hugh started stomping his feet and repeated the two words. Steve scrunched up his face in confusion at his actions.

“Boss. Baby. TV.” Hugh reiterated like a mini adult. Steve went to switch on the TV and the channel came on. Hugh’s finger went on to press the only white button on the remote, switching the channel to Netflix.

Steve’s eyes widened in amazement at what his son was doing. Hugh went on to click to the profile picture he recognised to be his. You had let him choose it himself.

Steve’s attention went back to the screen and the first thing he saw made him dawn in realization at what his son was trying to tell him along.

“You are indeed the boss baby, Hugh.” Steve spoke as he looked between the character on screen and his son. Steve inwardly chuckled at the slight resemblance. Hugh looked back at his father for a moment before passing the remote back to him.

Letting out the deep sigh, Steve thought that he was in for a long day.

Following an hour and a half of Boss Baby, Steve figured that it was too much television. He wanted his son to play like a normal child back in his days with toys. Steve’s decision was met with opposition as Hugh started throwing a tantrum.

Steve didn’t mean to make him upset but he was firm in his decision. He ended up cajoling Hugh for a good thirty minutes before convincing him to play with his toys.

Steve let out a deep exhale as he made his way to make lunch. He lifted the magnet that held the note you left for him. It explained Hugh’s routine and preferences.

Looking over at Hugh playing in the living room, Steve hoped that he could get lunch right for his son. He already felt defeated barely two hours into your departure. How did you do this for three years of Hugh’s life everyday?

Steve shook his head at his inadequacy as a father and hoped he could make it up to Hugh.

Lunch passed by with no issues, Steve thanked the heavens that he recalled Hugh loves cheese and made a grilled cheese sandwich. Nothing could beat the satisfaction that was brought from Hugh’s enjoyment of his lunch.

“How is it, buddy?” Steve’s question was met with silence but Hugh continued to take bites out of his sandwich. Steve grinned at this sight and considered this a small win.

Little did he know, this was his only win for the day. Nap time took awhile as Steve tried to pat a restless Hugh to sleep. After nap time, Steve had to wake up a grumpy Hugh from his nap and changed his diaper. If looks could kill, Hugh’s sent Steve into a deep hole for waking him up.

Steve tried to please him with milk and cookies. Afterwards, it was playtime before dinner. Dinner became a struggle when Hugh refused to have the porridge that Steve made. Hugh ended up having the leftover soup you had made and then kept in the fridge a day before.

Bath time was a nightmare as Hugh immediately started running off once he heard the word ‘shower’ came out of Steve’s mouth. While Steve was definitely quick to catch his son, Hugh ended up resisting his hold.

Hugh started splashing water from the tub that Steve had prepared which caused Steve to get wet and eventually joining his son.

Surprisingly, Hugh warmed up back to Steve and they had a great time pretend playing during bath time. However, this happiness was short lived once again when Steve announced that bath time was over.

It was another round of struggle for Steve to dry Hugh and dress him. The super soldier’s son ran out of the bath room and around the house stark naked. Steve had to chase him without his clothes as well. It was another twenty-minute chase and round of persuasion before Hugh allowed himself to be dressed.

It was already 10.30 pm and Steve decided it was bed time. Steve carried Hugh to his own bed and prepared to pat him to sleep. With his Captain America plushie in tow, he laid down for a peaceful moment.

Fighting aliens and bad guys could not tire him out as much as today. Steve patted Hugh’s side rhythmically and slowly, hoping for Hugh to fall into a trance. When Hugh started to blink, Steve assumed he was going to sleep soon.

Steve made the move to shift himself off Hugh’s bed but was met with a whine.

“No, Mama.”

“Come on, bud. You have to sleep.”

“No, Mama.” Hugh quickly sat up from his once sleeping position and made grabby hands at Steve. “Mama’s not here-”

Steve caved when he saw the puppy eyes and carried Hugh to his shared room with you. Placing the long bolster on one end of the bed, Steve placed Hugh between himself and the bolster to prevent him from falling off the bed in the middle of the night.

“I want Mama.”

“Me too, buddy. Hey, I know. I have drawings of Mama somewhere-” Steve got off the bed to search for something in his drawers and made a ‘o’ face towards Hugh as he held up several sketchbooks.

“Look what I have here, Hugh.” Steve exclaimed animatedly as he walked over back to his Steve who now sat against several pillows. Steve settled beside his son and began flipping the pages.

“Mama is here!” Hugh quipped excitedly when he spotted a sketch of you. You were leaning your chin on one of your palms, elbow on a table as you watched a video on your phone. You were in between a grin and chuckle as Steve recalled you watching a funny animal video.

It was a significant sketch because while you were doing nothing special and it was just an ordinary day where both of you had the day off, it was in that moment Steve knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with you like this.

A simple and happy life with someone he loved and cherished.

Hugh went on to flip more pages and amazed Steve with how quick he was to recognise details in what he drew. You really did a great job raising Hugh. Steve only wished he had done more.

In fact, through today, he realised how he fell short on being a parent as he struggled with managing Hugh. This dawning realization had fell on him like a bomb and he didn’t even have a shield to protect himself.

“Mama again!” Hugh’s call snapped Steve out of his thoughts and his attention went to the random photo of the two of you. You had a love for taking and collecting photos. While photos can be forever kept in phones, there was always something special about one that was printed.

The photo in Hugh’s tiny hands was from your honeymoon. The two of you went to Japan and you were keen to see the cherry blossoms. You had one of the locals take a photo of you and Steve under a blooming cherry blossom tree.

“That’s right, bud. And there’s Daddy!” Steve pointed to himself who wrapped his arms around you close from behind.

The two of you were at peace for once. Away from saving the world, away from the perils of Avenging. It was just the two of you in the comforts of each other.

“Mama!” Steve scoffed jokingly at Hugh’s insistence. That’s why they say boys are always close with their mothers.

“Is Mama pretty?” Hugh turned to look at Steve and nodded fervently. Steve smiled at his son’s adorable act and decided to try his luck.

“Is Daddy pretty?”

“No, Mama!” Hugh huffed in response and even gave Steve a side eye. Oh well, he tried, Steve thought.

———————————————————————

The next 24 hours felt long but Steve got used to the routine. A text came after dinner time and Steve started to cheer inwardly when it came from you.

Your mission was successful but you needed to clear up some back-end work. Your mafia friend also insisted to thank you properly for your help and invited you to stay for a meal.

You initially refused as you wanted to quickly return home. However, you caved in at his persistence to persuade you. You will be back tomorrow before lunch. Steve wanted to share with Hugh the news but held back, once he figured that it might excite Hugh so much that it will disrupt his routine.

He figured he could tell Hugh the next morning closer to your time of return.

Steve ordered for flowers and your favourite takeaway to be sent as he thought of preparing an event for your return. He wanted to celebrate the success of your mission and showed his appreciation of you too.

As it got closer to noon, Steve had set up the living room with streamers and balloons. It was a little over the top but who cared? This was for you, his wife.

As soon as he heard the beeping of the door lock, he knew you had come back home. Steve heard you calling out for him and Hugh. Steve told Hugh to keep quiet and was pleased that his son was actually co-operative.

“Oh, what’s this?” Your voice drew closer as your steps drew closer to the living room, Steve pull the string of the party popper. Confetti in the air, Hugh blew into the party horn.

“Welcome back, Mama!” Steve exclaimed and your reaction was enough to call this event a success. Your jaw dropped at what your husband did and no words could describe how you felt. Multiple emotions came rushing in: surprise, joy, amazement, heartful gratitude.

“What’s this?” You asked once more. You took another gasp when Steve passed Hugh a bouquet of your favourite flowers. Your son took confident steps and presented them to you. You were floored.

“Oh my goodness. You guys-”

“Congrats on a successful first mission back after a break. We’re so proud of you, sweetheart.” Steve came up to embrace you and you were still reeling in from the surprise event he had done.

“Thank you. I’m so touched-” Steve’s lips came to meet yours before you could even finished. What a welcome home indeed. Your bliss was momentarily interrupted when you felt something or someone trying to claw your legs for attention.

You immediately crouched down and put your bouquet aside, leaving your arms open to scoop Hugh into your arms.

“Thank you, Hugh. I miss you so much, baby!” You started peppering kisses over your son to which he responded in squeals and giggles.

“Did you and daddy do all of this?” You asked animatedly.

“Yes, Hugh helped!” Hugh nodded while indicating to himself and you responded with a few more big kisses on his cheek. “Hugh is such a good boy!”

The three of you retreated to the couch where you continued to admire the setup of the living room. Hugh sat between you and Steve as he played with the party horn still. Steve was just quietly appreciating your presence back at home.

You started sharing about the mission while he listened to you intently. You asked Steve about his two days with Hugh and he let out a grunt. Chuckling at his exasperated expression, you knew it must not have been easy.

“The next time someone calls me a hero, I will say they’re wrong. You’re the real hero, Y/N. All mothers are.” An appreciative smile formed on your face at your husband’s words.

“Hugh said he had fun with me.” Steve excitedly told you of his accomplishment. Yesterday during playtime, Steve casually asked Hugh the question. Steve didn’t expect much, knowing that Hugh was still warming up to him.

“Hugh, are you having fun with Dada?” Hugh didn’t give a verbal answer but he nodded in response to Steve’s question. His response got Steve excited and Steve asked once more.

“You like spending time with me, buddy?” Hugh nodded once more and Steve knew that all his struggles were not in vain.

“Oh wow, that’s amazing Steve! You did such a good job.” Steve cooed under your praise as you caress the side of his face and leaned in for another soft kiss.

“Hugh, you had a good time with Daddy?” Hugh nodded wordlessly to your query as he fiddled with the confetti remains stuck on the couch. Steve and you looked at each other with wide satisfied smiles.

“Do you love Daddy?” You asked once more to which Hugh nodded once more. Steve let out a silent ‘YES’ as he held his hands up in victory.

“How much do you love Daddy?” You asked your son once more and Hugh paused his actions for a moment to think. He turned to you and Steve, the two of you waiting curiously for his answer.

“This much!” Hugh extended his arms out wide and horizontally.

You burst out in laughter as Steve clasped his hands together in gratitude towards Hugh’s answer. You could tell he was basking in joy.

“I love you this much too, buddy!” Steve returned with his own exaggerated gesture and Hugh laughed at his father’s silly antics.

“Mama.” Hugh made his way over to your lap and started to tell you how he missed you and if you missed him. Of course, you missed him so much. You made sure you did a good job so you can return to him safe and quick.

You and Hugh started to be in your own loving world as you exchanged sweet words, tender hugs and kisses.Steve, on the other hand, felt that his moment of bliss was short lived as he looked on at the both of you.

“Hey buddy, I want hugs and kisses too.”

“No, I want Mama!” You cooed at your son’s insistent preference for you, even if you feel bad for Steve.

“Hugh, you must thank Daddy for taking care of you. He loves you very much too, you know.” You tried to bring Hugh’s attention back to Steve.

“Thank you, Dada!”

“Nothing can beat a mother’s love.” Steve chimed as he looked at how Hugh was trying to hold your attention fervently. That’s it. He was going to make the call.

“Where are you going?” You asked Steve as he stood up from the couch.

“I’m going to call Tony. I’m taking a sabbatical. I want to spend more time with Hugh from now on.” You beamed at Steve’s words. He was making such a big decision.

“Once I get it approved, I won’t rest until I have what you have with Hugh too.” Steve proclaimed with determination before turning to Hugh.

“Hey Hugh, you and I are going to spend lots of time from now on. Are you excited, bud?” Hugh took a moment to ponder thoughtfully before smiling wide at Steve.

“No, Mama!”

“Oh come on!” Steve let out a grunt before marching out to get his phone asap.

You turned back to Hugh who had a cheeky grin and you jokingly chided him. “Stop teasing your dad, Hugh James Rogers.”

Hugh looked at you with a sparkle of mischief in his eyes and giggled. 

“Silly dada!”

———————————————————————

[ineffablewordsatnight]

A Treat For The Wicked

Pairing: Hoseok x Female!reader x Yoongi (main pairing), OT7 x Female!reader, Namjoon x Female!reader x Jin

Word Count: 8692

Warnings: smut, 18+, BDSM elements, Pet Play, Puppy Play, Dom/Sub, Master-Kink, Oppa-Kink, degradation, praising, edging, overstimulation, punishment, spanking, paddling, masochism/sadism, subspace, puppyspace, threesome(s), excessive cuddlings in the end (remember your aftercare!)

Summary: Hoseok and Yoongi are away, shooting their M/V for their upcoming collaboration. The rest of your boyfriends decide to give them a little treat to help them relax after they come back. This included dressing you up in your favorite puppy gear and leaving you to the mercy of your Master and Oppa.

“How long will Yoongi and Hoseok be gone, anyway?” Jimin was grabbing a bag of chips, plopping down next to Taehyung and Jungkook who were already lazing on the couch, playing video games. “I don’t know.” Tae reached out with his hand, demanding a treat as well which Jimin offered him happily. “I guess it depends on how long it will take to finish shooting their M/V. They have been working for weeks on it.” Jimin hummed in agreement and sank back deeper into the couch.

“Oi, we finished baking cookies.” Jin’s voice reached them before the tall man himself rounded the corner, a plate of freshly baked chocolate cookies in his hands. You trailed behind him also holding onto some cookies. “We used three different kinds of chocolate to make them super sweet.” You announced proudly and grinned. “Want some?”

The bag of chips was left behind - forgotten, just like the game and the younger ones surrounded the new treat. “These are delicious.” Jungkook mumbled while munching on his second cookie. “I can’t believe you allowed Namjoon to help and they still turned out fine.” Jimin giggled. “Hey!” Namjoon’s head shot out from the kitchen and he pouted towards the others. “Oh, don’t worry.” You smiled innocently. “We only let him stand in a corner and read the recipe to us.” Now all of you were giggling. “Hey!” Namjoon’s voice was suddenly way closer and he snaked his arms around your smaller frame to snatch some cookies for himself.

“Aish, there won’t be any left for Yoongi and Hoseok. What about their treat?” Jin scolded the others. “Oh, I have a better idea for a treat for our hyungs.” Taehyung’s mischievous eyes trailed up and down your form and you instinctively took a step back, trying to hide behind Namjoon. The others looked at Taehyung expectantly. “Well, I remember that our dear rappers like to play with a certain cute puppy.” He smirked in your direction, your head poking out from behind Namjoon. “After all, they will be quite stressed out and a little treat would be appropriate.”

All eyes were suddenly on you. You couldn’t help but make yourself smaller, trying to disappear in yourself. You couldn’t deny that the idea sounded appealing to you but the combined attention from your five boyfriends was still intense and made you feel small and fragile.

“Baby.” Namjoon suddenly spun around and tilted your head up to meet his eyes. Your heart fluttered in your chest at his gentle gestures. “Don’t you want to help our loves to relax after a long day?” He smoothed his warm palms up and down your arms and a trail of goose bumps followed his touch. You gulped audibly, your gaze trailing over the expectant expressions of your boyfriends. You knew you could decline the offer but you wanted to make them feel good and so you looked back to Namjoon and nodded. A wide smile appeared on his face, showing off his dimples. “That’s our good girl”, he cooed with adoration in his eyes.

Slowly, he pried the now empty plate from your hands and placed it down onto the nearest surface. “Well, let’s go and get you ready, okay?” You nodded again and stepped closer to him, following the tall rapper out of the room. “I’ll help you,” Jin handed his own plate to Jungkook and trailed after the two of you.

The others were still munching on the remaining cookies. “Poor baby. Our hyungs have been really stressed out, so they are going to go pretty hard on her.” Jungkook stared off in the distance. “Hey!” Taehyung chimed in. “Why don’t we prepare a blanket fort for cuddles and movies after they are done?” He jumped up and down in excitement. “Yeah…yeah let’s do that.” Jimin grinned.

 ---

Meanwhile, Jin had dragged you to Namjoon’s room while said male had left to fetch some essentials and toys from their shared playroom. “Come on, love. Let’s get you prepared.” Jin gently laid you down onto the bed and climbed over you. He started kissing you and the touch of his soft, pillow-like lips on yours calmed down your nerves. You relaxed and pulled him closer, he was now laying on top of you with all his weight and your kisses deepened. He nipped on your lower lip and a low moan escaped your throat.

“Already getting started, hm?” Namjoon had reappeared in the door frame, holding onto several items. He discarded them on the small table next to his bed but before you could get a good look at them, he had already joined you and Jin, effectively obscuring your view. “Now, now baby. Don’t spoil the fun.” He grinned down at you and you mewled, which only made his grin wider.

He helped you sit up and removed your T-shirt, both men groaning as your breasts sprang free. Namjoon promptly attached his lips to your right nipple while his fingers plucked and pinched at your left one. A shriek left your mouth, but it was soon muted by Jin’s lips which started kissing you feverishly again. You were slowly getting dizzy with all the attention you were receiving. Little moans and mewls were constantly escaping your lips but they were eaten up by Jin as soon as they left you. The two tall frames of your boyfriends caged you in between them and sparks of pleasure trailed from you aching breasts straight down to your centre.

With heaving breaths, Jin separated himself from you, looking down at your flushed form with adoration in his eyes. He grinned and then grabbed Namjoon by his hair, pulling him off your nipples and in for a kiss. Joon groaned and kissed Jin back just as hard. The sight of them making out above you had you squirming in your place, unconsciously rubbing your thighs together. The two boys separated, panting and with red cheeks, and grinned down at you with darkened eyes.

“What’s the matter baby? Something bothering you?” Namjoon was chuckling at your troubled expression. While you were captivated by Namjoon’s voice, you didn’t notice Jin’s hands trailing down your stomach and down to the seam of your shorts. “Do you need us, sweetie?” Jin’s voice brought your attention from Namjoon to him. “Do you need us right here?” He cupped your centre over the layers of your clothing, but as you tried to ground against him to relieve some pressure, he suddenly pulled away.

“Sorry, honey. But we are only warming you up. You know that.” Jin’s tone was mocking and filled with fake sadness. Still, he was yanking down your shorts and panties in one go, making you lay bare in front of their dark eyes.

“There you go. Nice and wet.” Namjoon’s voice came from above you and you craned your neck to look at him. He was standing next to the bed, staring intently at your dripping centre. So intently that you tried to close your legs. “Nuh uh, baby.” He quickly climbed between your legs, causing Jin to retreat to the top of the bed, playing with your hair. “Keep them open and just let me work.” He grinned up at you and proceeded to dip down to lick a long stripe along your centre.

You threw your head back towards Jin and groaned lowly in your throat. Namjoon mimicked your groan but he didn’t continue his ministrations. “Just a taste.” You heard him mumble to himself. You lifted your head in confusion and looked at him. “You know I would love to eat you out until you are a crying mess but this isn’t what we planned so roll over on your knees so I can properly prepare you.” He scooted back a little, giving you the room to assume the position he demanded.

With you on your knees, you were face to face with the bulge in Jin’s sweatpants and you couldn’t help yourself but mouthed on his clothed erection, nuzzling into the fabric. At your actions he wheezed and tightly grabbed your hair which made you moan loudly.

“Fuck, (Y/N)…don’t…fuck.” He groaned but you wouldn’t let up. “Fuck. Fine, I’ll let you blow me…just…” He lowered his pants, so you were face to face with his beautiful erected cock. Admiring it for just a second, you wasted no time to suck him into your mouth, nibbling and trailing your tongue all over his shaft.

Namjoon chuckled behind you. “That’s right baby. You take good care of Jin and I will take goooood care of you.”

You mewled around Jin’s length and wiggled your butt at Joon. The latter just smirked, and you could hear the sound of a bottle opening before cold liquid squirted on your butthole. You shrieked but Namjoon only laughed and rubbed soothing circles into your hips with his fingers. “Just relax. I’ve got you.”

You tried to lose your muscles and simultaneously took Jin deeper into your mouth. This caused him to curse and to grab your hair tighter, using his grip to guide you up and down in slow, steady motions.

Meanwhile, Namjoon rubbed his forefinger around your hole, slowly loosening up the muscles and occasionally dipping in. “Take a deep breath, baby girl.” You did as he asked, and he inserted one finger into you. You took another shuddering breath and tried to further relax your muscles. The feeling wasn’t quite foreign as you all did anal before, but it still felt weird in the first few moments. Namjoon slowly thrusted his finger in and out, moving it in every direction to lose you up until he could add a second one. At the new intrusion you moaned, causing Jin to shudder at the vibrations against his length.

Namjoon was slowly fucking you with his fingers, scissoring them occasionally to open you up. “There you go, baby. You take my fingers so well.”

You mewled and slobbered all over Jin’s cock. The older one was having a hard time to not just trust up into your waiting wet cavern, but he held himself back for your sake. They had a job to do after all.

“Namjoon, hurry the fuck up.” Jin groaned and pulled you up so you were only able to suckle on his tip. The other grinned. “Fine, fine. Baby, do you think I can fuck your ass? I know I said we would only prepare you, but you are too cute to resist. So, won’t you let me fuck you while you suck hyung off?”

You were whimpering and nodding. Even if they weren’t going to let you cum, you still wouldn’t miss the chance to please them.

“Good girl.” You preened at Namjoon’s praise and then gasped at the feeling of being so full so suddenly as Joon shed himself inside of your tight hole in one go. “Fuck, you’re so…ugh…you’re so tight, baby.” He groaned, stilling himself for a moment to let you adjust to his size.

After taking some deep breaths, you gave Namjoon the signal to continue and he slowly began to fuck you. You on the other hand returned to your task of making an absolute mess out of Jin and licked a long stripe from his balls to the tip of his dick. You proceeded to suckle on his tip, drawing out salty drops of precum and then taking him as deep down your throat as possible.

“Ugh…(Y/N)…do that again.” Jin cursed and grabbed onto your head again to fuck you deep onto him. Namjoon on the other hand had sped up and was now pounding into you, making it increasingly difficult to properly suck off Jin.

“Here, let me help you baby.” Jin grinned, grabbed your head to hold it still and fucked up into you. You chocked and gargled, your spit dripping all over his cock and down his balls. Not being able to do anything on your own, you could only concentrate on the amazing feeling of being stuffed from both ends. You were so full, revelling in the attention you were receiving.

“Fuck…” Namjoon’s pace increased, he was now merciless hammering into you. “I’m so close.”

“Me too.” Jin echoed his groans.

Both men effortlessly fucked into you, desperate to reach their ends. Jin was the first one to give up and you made sure to swallow all of his cum after he groaned and released into your mouth. “There you go. Such a good girl.” He crooned and petted your hair.

You were drowsily smiling up at him, not being able to concentrate on anything else as Namjoon was still merciless pounding into your ass.

“Ugh…fuck.” With a deep groan Namjoon came, shooting his load deep inside of you. “Good…good fucking girl. You did so well.” He massaged your ass but didn’t pull out right away. “Hey Jin, could you hand me the plug?” The other male already held a silver butt plug towards Namjoon, attached to it was a soft, curled, black and white tail. He thanked him and slowly pulled out of you, making sure not to spill any cum. Namjoon carefully trailed the plug around your hole and slipped it in. It fit snugly and you could feel the soft fur tickle the back of your thigh.

“There you go. Nice and pretty. All plugged up.” Namjoon grinned at you and helped you sit up. The plug shifted inside you and you mewled.

“Thanks for that, puppy.” Jin smirked down at you and you could feel a shudder running down your form at the pet name. “Now let’s get you all geared up, yes?”

You could only stare up at them as Namjoon grabbed some white piece of clothing, holding it up to show it to you. It was a white lacy bra and a matching pair of panties, both were decorated with straps around your torso, waist and arms and see-trough patches at certain parts. He grinned mischievously and helped you to put in on. Jin was standing next to Namjoon holding a baby pink leather collar and matching cuffs for your wrists and ankles.

After he put everything on your body, they stepped back and admired your form. “Wait, something is missing.” Namjoon fiddled with something behind his back and presented a pair of black and white Huskey ears which he attached to your head. “There you go, a perfect little puppy.” He smiled and pointed to his feet, a silent command for you to kneel, which you instantly complied to. You dropped to the floor and looked up at your boyfriends, tilting your head.

You could already feel yourself slipping into your puppy space, your mood getting giddier and more playful, excitement was running through your veins.

Jin stepped closer to you, kneeling down and attaching a leash to your collar.

“Come on, puppy. Let’s get you to the playroom.”

He handed the leash over to Namjoon and quickly cleaned up the mess that you left behind. Namjoon waited for his partner to follow up, then he gently pulled your leash causing you to start crawling next to him.

The three of you made it to the playroom that was shared by the eight of you. Namjoon opened the door and led you through right to the middle of the room.

“Sit.” Namjoon pulled the leash tighter and you instantly sat down onto your heels. “Good puppy. Now stay. There’s a good girl.” He patted your head. “Now be good and stay here until Master and Oppa are coming home, okay?” You whined and nuzzled into his hand not wanting them to leave you alone. Jin came up behind you and unhooked the leash from your collar. “They will be so happy if they find their surprise.” He petted you as well and then pulled Namjoon off the floor.

“I’ve got one last toy, love.” Jin pulled a bone-shaped gag out of his front pocket. He stooped down to your level and pushed the silicone bone into your mouth. “There, all tied up and pretty. Now stay.” He repeated the command one more time, making sure that you would obey. You once more whined low in your throat, but you could only watch as the two of them left the room.

Namjoon and Jin returned to the others in the living room, finding a comfortable looking pillow fort ready to use. “That looks quite nice.” Jin smiled at the younger boys and carefully crawled to their resting forms. They were already laying comfortable in their built pillow fort. Namjoon joined them as well and they formed a happy cuddle pile.

 ---

After some time, they heard keys jiggling and then the front door opened. “Welcome back!” Jimin chirped and smiled at the two older men but he made no effort to stand up, too comfortable in the embrace of his other boyfriends. “What’s this? A cuddle pile? And where is (Y/N)?” Hoseok looked over at them, pulling a grumpy looking Yoongi with him.

“Ahhhh, this is for later.” Jungkook grinned and snuggled closer to Taehyung who was petting his hair. “How was your shoot?” Jin stretched his hand towards Yoongi, grabbed it as the male came closer, and rubbed soothing circles into his palm. “We’re done.” A happy smile was etched onto Yoongi’s face. “Really? That’s great.” Taehyung chimed in, smiling brightly at his older partner. “Yes…yes, it is. We are finally finished, and everything is perfect.” The gummy smile was still present on Yoongi’s face as he turned around to Hoseok. “Right, Hobi?” The other male nodded. “Yeah, we are just really tired right now.”

“Sounds like you need some sort of stress reliever. How convenient for you. There is a surprise in the playroom just waiting so serve your needs.” Namjoon smiled lazily up at Hoseok who was leaning down towards him to steal a soft kiss.

“Oh?” Now Yoongi’s interest seemed peaked. “Well then, let’s see what it is. Shall we, Hobi.”

Sauntering away, the two made their way over to said room and went inside.

 ---

You have been waiting for what felt like an eternity. It has hardly been more than twenty minutes, but your puppy-side wanted attention and a partner (or partners) to play. Still, you were patiently waiting in your kneeling position, your hands kneading the soft carpet beneath you. You slightly shimmied your butt around, trying to get some feeling back into your legs from resting your weight on them for so long. Just as you wiggled your toes and slightly stretched your feet, the door handle moved and Yoongi and Hoseok appeared in the door. They were both clad in comfortable looking outfits, both spotting sweatpants and shirts.

You yipped happily and quickly scrambled to your feet, crawling towards them while wagging your tail. You nuzzled into them, scratching at their pant-clad legs and trying to nibble at their fingers, unsuccessfully of course, you were still wearing a gag after all. In your playful mindset you didn’t notice their domming and dark mood, but you quickly realized which route this evening would take as Hoseok spoke up.

“This whole welcoming act is cute, mutt, but I don’t remember allowing you to try and bite my fingers off.” He loomed over you and you instantly stopped what you were doing and shrunk back, making yourself as small as possible down by his feet. Your eyes briefly flickered towards Yoongi, but he too was wearing a stern expression and you whimpered trying to show your submission.

“Eyes on me, bitch.” Hoseok’s hard voice brought your eyes back to him and you caught his sadistic glare. Judging from the way he didn’t call you pup or puppy, you supposed you had to earn their forgiveness the hard way.

Before you could react or plan your further actions, Hoseok roughly pushed you over causing you to lay sprawled out by their feet. From your new position you were able to have a good look at Yoongi again, who was standing by your head, maliciously smiling down at you.

“You know the rules baby.” Yoongi crooned. “You obey us without questioning. No cumming without permission. And no speaking. One bark for yes. Two barks for no. Five barks is your safe word. You got that, pup?” You slightly waggled your butt and barked once, the gag in your mouth distorting the sound.

Their figures were still towering over you, now completely ignoring you and seemingly having a silent conversation.

“Up.” Hoseok commanded suddenly and you scrambled to your feet, sitting back on your heels and looking up at him. “Were you a good girl while we were away?” You barked once and slightly wiggled your tail. “Oh yeah?” He encouraged and the wiggling of your butt increased. “Well, we will be the judge of that, won’t we?” He spat. You whimpered and looked up at him with sad eyes. “Don’t look like that, bitch.” He slapped you across the face, causing you to stumble back against Yoongi’s legs. “You will have plenty of time to show us how good you are.” Yoongi knelt down behind you, making sure to secure your body against his. He started to scratch you behind the ears that rested you’re your head, slightly calming you down. “You have to excuse us, we might be a little…stressed out…from the shoot, so this will be rough for you.” He shoved you forwards on all fours again. “On the other hand…you’ll probably enjoy that even more, being the little masochist you are.”

He chuckled darkly and you couldn’t suppress the whimper that escaped your mouth. Your thighs were unconsciously rubbing together, their dark promises arousing you to no end. Hoseok noticed this of course and immediately kicked your thighs apart.

He shook his head in disappointment. “And here I thought you were behaving, but it seems like you are just a good for nothing dog after all. Well, this is nothing a simple punishment can’t fix, don’t you think so mutt?” You instantly stilled at his words and your lower lip trembled at his animosity. He didn’t even deem you worthy of another glance as he turned around and strolled over to the cabinets on one of the walls.

“Don’t look so sad. You know he is right, and you deserve punishment, don’t you think so?” Yoongi patted you on the head with a condescending tone. Your eyes flickered over to him and you followed his movement with your eyes as he trailed a hand from the collar around your throat down your arms and to your hands.

“You know, it’s quite convenient that you are wearing these.” Yoongi was tapping against the cuffs around your wrists. “We have to thank the others for this cute addition. Makes it easier to string you up and use you.” He grinned. Meanwhile Hoseok was rummaging through the drawers and came back with rope, a blindfold and nipple clamps.

“Stand.” He commanded and you quickly rose to your feet, slightly wobbling. “Hands.” Without looking at him you reached out to present them to him. He threaded the rope trough the linking parts of your cuffs, bound them together and attached them to a hook on the ceiling. Then he pulled at the rope until you were standing on your tiptoes. You couldn’t contain a whimper as your arms strained above your head and you had to balance carefully to not put any more weight on them.  Hoseok chuckled darkly. “Is this uncomfortable, mutt?” You barked once trying to look as pitiful as possible to make him have mercy on you but to no avail. “Good, let’s make this even worse then.” Using scissors that suddenly appeared in his hands, he cut off the bra straps and teared through the front, causing the beautiful lace to flutter useless to the ground. He grinned like a Cheshire cat and let the metal claps he previously palmed in his hands wander across your skin. You shuddered at the cold material that scraped across your body, nipples pebbling to attention. With a dark glimmer in his eyes, he attached the nipple clamps to your sensitive breasts. You emitted a pained shriek and the two men openly laughed at you. The pain quickly turned into pleasure and you gasped as the tingling raced from your nipples to centre in your pussy.

“Don’t look so pained.” Hoseok was stepping close to you, leaning down and staring deep into your eyes. He rested his hands around your neck, slowly applying pressure and making you gasp and splutter. Your constricted airflow only added to the pleasure that was coursing through you, slowly black dots were dancing in your vision and you mewled pathetically. Hoseok huffed. “Don’t act like the pain doesn’t excite you.” He suddenly yanked hardly at the string that connected the clamps sending waves of pain-pleasure through your body. “I know it does.” He chuckled again and grabbed something that was securely stored away in his back pocket.

A black cloth fluttered across your vision and the last thing you saw before Hoseok blindfolded you was Yoongi who had taken a seat in a chair in the corner of the room.

The darkness enveloped you and suddenly everything felt more intense. The tight leather around your neck, the strain on your arms as they reach up to the ceiling, the teeth made out of metal as they bit into your sensitive nipples and of course the arousal that was steadily increasing, ruining your panties and surely making them translucent by now.

You tried to listen to any movement, any sound that might give you a clue to what was going to happen next, but you couldn’t make out a single sign.

All of a sudden, you felt leather caressing your skin. Hoseok must have grabbed a riding crop and was now trailing it down your back, tapping your ass and rubbing it between your thighs, collecting some of the sticky liquid that gathered there.

“You’re such a messy dog. Leaking from both ends. Getting aroused by us pushing you around.” He scoffed and you heard him taking a few steps back. “Yoongi hyung.” He said in a singsongy voice. “Don’t you want to have a taste?”

You heard a grunt and then a slurping noise. You whimpered and squirmed in your place. Yoongi must have cleaned the crop from your juices. You would do anything to see that. “Quiet. You don’t get to complain over there.” Yoongi’s voice was rough and breathy, accompanied by Hoseok’s laugh and you instantly froze in your place.

With no warning, the crop was back on your body again, now slightly wet from Yoongi’s spit. It was trailing down the front of your body, flicking against the nipple clamps continuing down your stomach to your thighs. Then the touch vanished. Before you could anticipate Hoseok’s next step, the sting of a hit thrummed through your body.

You cried out as Hoseok repeatably stroke your ass, your thighs, your back and even your tits. Your whole body was burning, every single nerve ending at flame, sending pleasure through your whole being. The strikes were unpredictable, without any pattern and it slowly was driving you mad. You loved the biting pain of the crop that littered your body with red marks, each and every hit only making the ecstasy that thrummed through you veins worse. You already felt like combusting, the darkness surrounding you only adding to the overwhelming pleasure.

The strikes abruptly stopped and you accepted the moment to breath, only to be surprised as he yanked down your panties with a harsh motion, the sodden material clinging to your wet folds, a string of arousal connecting the material to your core as he managed to pry them away.

“Would you look at that. You are absolutely wet and messy down here.” He snickered darkly. “You truly are a little pain-slut, aren’t you mutt?”

You barked twice, trying to deny his harsh claims to preserve any amount of dignity but who were you kidding?

“Oh, you don’t agree? Don’t lie to me, bitch!” His angry voice was paired with a precise spank on your clit and to your horror you felt sparks flying through you as an orgasm took you over. It was weak and unfulfilling because there was no further stimulation but an orgasm non the less.

“Did you just…cum?” Hoseok sneered in disbelieve.

The blindfold was ripped away from your face and you had to squeeze your eyes together to accustom yourself to the new lightning. But as soon as you opened them again, you were faced with the angry scowl on his handsome features. He must have lost his shirt a while ago because his naked chest was pressing hard into yours, torturing your clamped nipples and making you appear small against his large frame.

“You did, didn’t you. You are such a slut.” Yoongi chimed in, standing up and coming to a halt behind you. He too must have undressed while you were blindfolded because his own bare skin was lined up with yours. His breath was hot on your neck and he lazily kissed you behind your ear making his way down until he reached your sweet spot where he sucked and bit down to leave a red and purple mark.

“You’re in for it now, mutt.” Hoseok’s voice was filled with malice and you instantly dropped your gaze down to your feet to escape his fury.

While doing so, you didn’t catch the glance Hoseok and Yoongi shared above your head. A look full of proudness and excitement. They couldn’t believe they made you cum from just that.

Levelling their expressions to neutral ones again, Hoseok reached up to uncuff your wrists from the hook while Yoongi was stabilizing your body with his own. They both dragged you to the bed and shoved you onto your knees.

“Stay still, bitch.” Hoseok commanded and you didn’t dare to move a muscle even though the nipple clamps rubbed uncomfortably against the sheets, dragging your sensitive nipples around and inflicting sparks of pain on you. There were rough hands shoving and pulling at your body and you heard clicks and then you couldn’t get up. They had attached the cuffs on your wrists to the ones on your ankles and now you were left with your ass high up in the air and your head burrowed in the silk sheets.

“That’s not fair, Hobi.” Yoongi whined as he looked at the position the other one had locked you in. “How is she supposed to help me out now?” He pointed down to the tent in his pants. Hoseok rolled his eyes. “You’re so annoying…fine, I’ll change it.” He unlinked the cuffs and you were able to support your weight with your hands again, now on all fours.

“You better keep your ass up and head down, bitch.” You felt a sudden pressure on your lower back and out of instinct you arched your back to present your ass and sopping centre to the two men in the room. The only praise you got for your action was a quick slap on your butt.

Yoongi, being satisfied by the position you were in now, was climbing up to you on the bed and leaned against the headboard. He reached out to your face, caressing your cheek and then moving to the back of your head to remove the gag that still caused you to drool and slobber all over yourself. You preened at his gentle touches and soaked in the comfort as he removed the offending object from your mouth.

“There, now you’ll be able to get punished and earn our praise again.” He grinned wickedly. Meanwhile, Hoseok was rummaging through the drawers again and proceeded to produce a wooden paddle from the depths of your toy collection.

At the woosh-sound of the paddle striking through the air as Hoseok tested the feeling in his hand, your head quickly turned around to watch closely as he stepped up behind you. He smirked down at you and showcased the cut-outs on the paddle. Your eyes widened and a new wave of excitement throbbed through you. If he used it on you, it would print the word ‘slut’ all over your skin.

“This is new, isn’t it?” The sadistic glee in his eyes was worrying you. “I’ll bet that this is going to hurt. Very. Bad.” He grinned again. “Perfect.” Yoongi answered, mimicking the look on Hoseok’s face.

“But we are going to make your punishment fair, won’t we? I’ll give you fifteen strikes while you blow Yoongi…you keep it up and do good, you’ll get a reward. How does that sound? Good?”

You didn’t do anything for a moment, trying to find the catch to his offer, this couldn’t be the whole punishment could it? He was way to lenient with you. But even if there was going to be a catch, you simply couldn’t refuse your Master.

So, you barked once, sealing your fate and giving yourself up again to the capable hands of your lovers. The smile that overtook Hoseok’s face was increasing your worry, but it was too late now.

“Yoongi, you’ll keep count.”

Your eyes widened and your gaze flickered to the other male who was already staring at your fidgeting form. “Of course.” The corner of his lips twitched, and he hardly managed to suppress a smile at your troubled expression.

“Don’t worry, puppy. I’ll make sure you get what you deserve.” You gulped. This was bad. Very bad.

“Let’s start then, shall we? Oh….and you better not come from this too, bitch, or I will ruin your pretty ass for real.” The threat in Hoseok’s voice made you whimper but you didn’t flee from your position, choosing to instead worship Yoongi’s cock with small kitten licks. With you occupied, Hoseok took a swing and the paddle landed on your butt with a loud thud. You cried out, tears already escaping your eyes from just this one hit. It hurt so much but at the same time it sent pleasure through you as your body absorbed the pain and translated it into pleasure.

“One.” Yoongi’s voice was slightly rougher but he still held his composure otherwise.

Hoseok was trailing his hand down your butt, tracing the letters that had already appeared on your tender skin and trying to soothe the stinging ache. You struggled to concentrate on his soft touches instead of the pain but before you could calm down completely, Hoseok hit you again.

“Two…fuck Hobi do that again, she takes me so deep when you do that.”

Yoongi’s statement caused Hoseok to strike you rapidly for multiple times and you felt hot tears streaming down your cheeks. Hoseok’s treatment had caused you to took Yoongi’s cock as deep as you could, choking yourself on him to try and distract yourself from the white blazing pain from your ass. Yoongi was panting heavily and not counting at all. You whined low in your throat, causing him to look down at you.

“What? Oh…I don’t know…four?”

Hoseok snickered behind you. “Four it is, if you say so.”

You whined again in protest, but both just ignored you.

This went on for a while, you were trying your best to please Yoongi, licking up and down his shaft, tracing the vein on the underside and taking him as deep as you could. While you were doing this, Hoseok was abusing your ass, hitting you over and over again.

Due to Yoongi not really paying attention the number of hits you received was far above the agreed number, you didn’t really count yourself, but it must be close to thirty now. Your ass was bright red, everything hurt, and you were openly sobbing now. This was one of the worst punishments you had ever received, your ass was on fire, but you were sure that you could handle it. You calmed yourself down further at the thought that you could always tap out and use your safe word if they went too far. But the session was far too good to stop it now.

Hoseok had stopped punishing you to give you a moment to breath and you focused all your energy on making Yoongi come. The older grabbed your hair tightly as you bobbed up and down. Yoongi was twitching, holding you tighter and thrusting up into you feverishly. Just as he was about to come, Hoseok delivered one last blow to your already abused ass, which caused you to fall forward, taking Yoongi deep down your throat.

The rapper moaned and with a full body shudder he came in your mouth.

“There you go puppy…you’re such a good girl. Swallow all of it, you got it?”

You hummed around him and yipped once to show your consent. After you swallowed, you pulled back and opened your mouth, sticking your tongue out to show him that it was all gone.

“Good girl.” Yoongi scratched your ears and you wiggled your tail in contentment. You were still in incredible pain but in your current headspace the praise nullified it all.

You heard a thud behind you and suddenly Hoseok was next to you, smoothing out your hair and cupping your cheeks in his big hands.

“Shhhh puppy, it’s going to be okay. Don’t cry.” Hoseok called you puppy again, so you must have done something right, a warm feeling spread through your heart. “Hey, hey look at me. What’s your colour cutie?” You were staring at him for a second, confused until his words registered in your head. You were still feeling fuzzy and ready to slip back into your other headspace, but you could concentrate enough to answer him. “Green, Master.”

He smiled brightly. “Good girl. Now on to your reward.”

They carefully repositioned you on the bed, so you were lying on your back with your head hanging off it. You winced as your butt made contact with the silk sheets, but you worked yourself through the pain and relaxed. They had reversed their positions while moving you and now Hoseok towered over your head while Yoongi had made himself home between your legs.

“We’ll give you a treat, just as promised puppy. Yoongi is going to eat you out, but don’t you dare to cum without permission, got it?” You barked once in understanding. “Good.” Hoseok grinned. “Now open up.”

He pulled down his pants and underwear and proceeded to burry himself deep down your throat. Due to your position he was able to reach deep and he groaned as he saw the outline of his cock through your throat.

You were concentrating so hard on not gagging and pleasing Hoseok that you didn’t notice Yoongi’s breath getting closer to your centre. The first lick of his infamous tongue caught you by surprise and you nearly jumped out of the bed but Yoongi grabbed you by your hips and grounded you to devour your pussy.

He raised his head and looked you dead in the eye.

“Do. Not. Come. I’m serious puppy.” The threat had you gulping, still you nodded which made him go back to his task.

Hoseoks dick bobbing next to your head caught your attention and you immediately opened your mouth again to take him back into your wet cavern. “Good girl. You’re such a good girl, puppy.” His praise only spurred you on and you started to suck him off with more vigour. While you were doing your best to please him, Hoseok reached down to your clamped nipples and played with the chain that connected them. During your punishment you had almost forgotten the offending attachments, but now that he was playing with them again, the sensations came back and hit you like a train. At on particularly hard thrust down your throat, he ripped them off.

The sensation had you screaming, white hot pleasure nearly overwhelming you and you had to concentrate hard on not cumming as the blood rushed back into your abused nipples.

“There you go. Such a good puppy. You did so good.” He groaned, his pupils dilated to the max, only leaving a ring of colour. You looked so cute, sprawled out beneath them and absolutely ruined. Well, not absolutely, but you were nearly there.

Yoongi continued to eat you out with passion, licking long stripes down your whole pussy and sucking at your clit while humming to intensify the pleasure. You felt so good, you thought you were coming apart at the seams. He seemed to notice your growing pleasure as well, but every time you came close to the brink of an orgasm, he stopped all his movements. Hoseok picked up on his game as well and stopped fucking your throat every time Yoongi stopped his ministrations.

They continued edging you and you felt like you were going to combust. You were constantly whining, trapped between the velvety feeling of Yoongi’s rolling tongue, which merciless teased your clit, and the harsh, punishing strokes of Hoseok’s cock as he buried himself again and again down your throat.

You couldn’t speak. You couldn’t think. The only thing you were capable of at the moment was concentrating hard on not cumming and disappointing your master and oppa. They must have felt that you were close to your breaking point because Yoongi was slowly easing up on teasing you and instead just rubbed your bud in slow steady circles.

“You are such a good girl, puppy. You are so good for us. So good.”

Hoseok mirrored Yoongi’s praises but only in an abbreviated and growled version. His thrusts were getting sloppy and with a long groan he came inside of your mouth. You whined as his salty taste flooded your taste buds and you swallowed, sticking out your tongue again to show him that it was all gone.

“Good girl. You did so well, pup. Fuck.”

Hoseok moaned, his dick still hard, ready to go again and you sniffled, looking up at him with a pleading gaze.

During Hoseok’s orgasm, Yoongi didn’t stop his movements and you were crying softly as your orgasm was ripped from you again. Your boyfriends still paid you no mind and just cooed down at your messy form. You looked so broken and ready to be put back together.

“Okay, okay, baby. No more teasing, I promise.” Yoongi petted your outer thigh and stood up.

“Come here, puppy.” Hoseok held out his hand and you shakily hosted yourself up and into his arms. Your muscles didn’t quite work yet, they felt like jelly, and you had to lean on your lover to stabilize yourself. Yoongi pressed himself to your back and you were now sandwiched between their two bodies.

“You did so good. Are you ready to get fucked now, puppy? Are you ready for your real reward?” You nuzzled your head into Hoseok’s neck and nodded to answer Yoongi’s question.

“Good.”

Yoongi knelt down behind you and gently removed the butt plug from your hole while Hoseok distracted you with sweet kisses. You happily returned the kisses, feeling elevated at the soft caresses of Hoseok. The other man groaned deeply as he saw your hole clench and then a small trickle of Namjoon’s cum escaping you.

“Fuck, baby.” He circled your puckered entrance, capturing some of the white liquid and slowly started to fingerfuck you.

“Hurry up, Yoongi!” Hoseok whined. The other just chuckled lowly, retreating his hand and dipping the other into your messy centre to gather some wetness to lube up his dick.

“You ready, princess?”

“Yes, oppa.” You shakily answered, leaning a little bit more on Hoseok to grant Yoongi easier access. He circled your hole before pushing in, sheading himself inside of you with a deep and rasping moan. You echoed his sound and instinctively clenched tightly around him.

“Fuck…you are so tight even after already getting fucked. You’re doing so good. Such a good girl.” He started kissing up and down your neck, nibbling and biting, leaving dark splotches behind.

Hoseok couldn’t wait any longer as well, he hoisted you up so your weight was against Yoongi, draping your legs over his forearms and slowly pushed into your wet pussy. “Fuck. Yoongi. I can feel you. So good. Ugh.” He panted against your damp skin and just enjoyed the feeling of your warm walls around him.

You whimpered, feeling so full, gravity pulling you down onto them and making the whole experience that more intense. After letting yourself adjust for a few moments, you started to wiggle, squirming in their hold to signal that they should start to move. Instantly they both complied. Skipping any form of foreplay due to the pent-up frustration the three of you felt, they immediately started to fuck you hard and fast.

One pushed in while the other pulled out, creating a rhythm that had your sensitive walls trembling and that had you, thanks to Yoongi’s restless teasing earlier, close to orgasm in no time.

“O…O…Oppa. M…m…master. May I…ngh…may I please cum?” You had a hard time forming any words, but they took pity on you.

“You can cum puppy. You can come as often as you want.” Hoseok rasped into your ear, his pace slightly picking up.

“You’ve been such a good little slut, go ahead. Cum for us.” Yoongi reached around your waist and his nimble fingers found your clit, where he started to deftly play with the sensitive bud.

The added pleasure was the last straw and with their permission you came hard on their cocks. For a moment you felt nothing, but the peak of ecstasy and you felt suspended in time, then everything came crushing down on you and waves of pleasure drowned you. It seemed like you were dissolving into nothing, melting to a puddle on the floor, but their hands, kisses and thrusts kept you grounded, chaining you down and allowing you no escape.

You slowly came back to earth, but even after the intense orgasm, they didn’t slow down and trembles of small aftershocks raced through your body. Yoongi hadn’t let up on the touches of your clit and you whined in overstimulation, just now realizing their praises and gentle touches.

“Good girl. Such a good puppy.”

“You are doing so well. We love you. We love you so much”

“You break so pretty. But don’t worry, doll. We’ve got you.”

You whined again, leaning forward to burry your head, which was resting on Yoongi’s shoulder, in Hoseok’s neck, nibbling and biting there to distract yourself.

“There you go. Welcome back, baby. You think you can handle more?” Hoseok kissed your neck and shared a glance with Yoongi as you weakly nodded. They both started to pick up their pace again, now hammering hard inside you.

Your whines, sobs and moans increased in frequency and were also getting louder. The slapping of skin on skin echoing through the whole room. The two rappers were moaning and groaning, lost in the pleasure and the feeling of your velvety walls wrapped around their cocks. They were getting close; you could tell from them loosing their rhythm from time to time and you were not far behind.

“Gonna…gonna cum, puppy.”

“We’ll fill you up so good. You’re going to be dripping from our seed.”

You moaned at their words and clenched hard around them.

They both groaned and Yoongi emptied himself in your tight ass. He stayed still, shaking with aftershocks and watched Hoseok fucking you with a dazed smile on his face.

“Come on, (Y/N). Be a good girl and come with me.” Hoseok had pushed you back against Yoongi again and was leaning down to bite and suck on your puffy nipples. The added stimulation combined with Yoongi’s touch on your clit was enough for you and you let out a loud wail as you came again, causing Hoseok to cum as well.

The three of you stayed still for a few seconds, panting harshly and trying to get down from your climaxes. Yoongi was the first to move and he carefully pulled out of you, still holding you up so you won’t fall. Hoseok turned you around and laid you gently on the bed, pulling out as well. You whined at the empty feeling, feeling drained of all of your energy.

They just stared at you, laying there, an absolute mess, the ears on your head had slipped up a little bit, cum leaking from both of your holes. You looked absolute divine in their eyes. A small whimper coming from you caught their attention.

“Don’t worry love, we got you.” Yoongi sat down next to you as Hoseok grabbed his discarded shirt and quickly wiped himself down.

“What do you think about a nice bath, yeah?” You and Yoongi nodded in affirmation and Hoseok picked you up bridal style to carry you to the attached bathroom. Arriving there, he sat you down on the edge of the huge bath tube and started removing the collar, cuffs and ears. Yoongi was preparing a bath, adding a sweet-smelling bath bomb and grabbing some fluffy towels.

“There you go. Now, your butt is going to sting a bit, but just work through it. We can apply lotion later, okay?” Hoseok’s voice seemed far away, you weren’t quite there yet after such an intense session, but you found yourself nodding along his words.

The hot water of the bath made you hiss, especially as it reached your tender behind, but you worked yourself through it, the heat relaxing your sore muscles. Yoongi and Hoseok climbed in with you, sandwiching you between them. You leaned into their touch as both of them grabbed a washcloth and started to clean you. As Yoongi reached to clean you between your legs, you flinched away slightly and mewled in pain.

“Don’t worry, love. I’ll be gentle, okay?” Yoongi reached out again and you allowed him to clean you, opening your thighs to grand him access.

You let yourself soak in the water and their warm embraces. Your mind still not quite catching up, so you just concentrate on the feeling of the gentle touches from your lovers. They noticed your still absent mind and softly coaxed you out of the water after they finished cleaning. After drying you off, they applied some lotion to your sore butt to soothe the sting. You sighted and happily wiggled your buttocks towards them. They smiled at your cute antics, finding it adorable that you were still in your pet headspace even after everything they did to you.

The two rappers threw on some clothes and dressed you in some boxers, a long comfy shirt and some fuzzy socks.

“Do you need something baby? Water, a snack, cuddles?” Yoongi smiled at your small form. You only nodded and the two of them chuckled. “Okay, let’s go to the others and see what we can do.” Hoseok hoisted you up again and carried you to the living room.

The others were still cramped in there build blanket fort; the only difference were the pizzas laying around.

“Hey guys.” Hoseok took you to the others and placed you and himself in the middle of the bunch. They all cooed at your adorable little form, you instantly snuggled closer to them and they enveloped you in their warmth.

“So, how was your treat?” Jin grinned as Yoongi came back, a bottle of water and a chocolate bar in his hands. “It was good.” He chuckled and handed you the water and sweets. You quickly grabbed onto the items and chugged down some water, unwrapping the bar.

“Just good?” Taehyung raised an eyebrow at Yoongi, who plopped down, joining the cuddle pile. “It was great, thank you.” Hoseok smirked at the others.

“What did you do? Is she still gone?” Namjoon looked over at your still out of it form and then up at Hobi. “Yeah, we did go pretty hard.” He sheepishly smiled. “But she enjoyed it so it’s all gucci.” Yoongi grinned. “We just need some cuddles, pizza and a movie.”

“Well, we can help with that.”

[lilxberry]

You Owe Me 20 Bucks - Steve Rogers

Synopsis;

Steve just simply wants to protect you, you find it extremely annoying how his plans to protect you get in the way of you doing your job as an Avenger, and Bucky and Sam have a running bet.

Warnings: A lil bit of language. Arguing. Mentions of violence. Mentions of betting. Wack ass stuff man. Fluff.

Words: 2,030

Pairings: Steve Rogers x Reader 

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You walked into the meeting room, ready to be briefed by Fury for the next mission. This would be your first assignment in 2 months since your injury. Ever since you had woken up, everyone had babied you, especially a certain super soldier, which ticked you off to no end.

You took your place in-between Wanda and Bucky and prepared yourself for the droning voice of Fury and the nagging of Steve. “Hey, you good?”

You inwardly groaned at Bucky’s question. It was nice that the team cared so much but it was a bitch to deal with all their incessant babying and over protectiveness. “I’m fine, Buck, really.”

As if he could sense your irritation, he retreated and opted to leave you be. You signed in relief and sunk back into your chair. Just as you had gotten comfortable, Fury entered, followed by Maria then Mr. Patriarchy himself. “Avengers.” Fury simply greeted to grab everyone’s attention.

And so, the briefing had commenced and passed by, the only thing left on the check list was to discuss who will be part taking in the mission. “A team of 6 will be going in, the others will stay behind and only move out when needed. Stark, Barnes, Barton, Maximoff, Y/L/N, you 5 will be joining Rogers at the base.”

Before any body got the chance to voice their readiness, Steve had spoken up. “Y/L/N isn’t ready.”

You saw red as he had easily diminished your ability to be out in the field. “Like fuck I’m not ready.” You quickly stood from your seat so fast, the chair had scrapped against the floor before falling over harshly.

“If I say you’re not ready then you’re not ready.” Steve crossed his arms over his chest, standing his ground. Thing is, you were stubborn, every Avenger and agent knew that about you.

You walked towards in quick, long strides and stared him down, inches from his face. “It’s my body, I know when it’s damn ready.” You stepped back and looked towards Fury. “So, when we due to head out?”

“In an hour.”

“Great, see you guys at the jet.” You quickly turned on your heel and headed towards your room, ignoring the calls of your peers.

“I guess that’s all. Dismissed.” Fury disbanded the meeting, sending the remaining Avengers to prepare for their mission or go back to lazing around, ready to be called out as back up. Steve sighed heavily through his nose as her closed his eyes and pinched the bridge between his pointer finger and thumb.

As Bucky passed his best friend, he patted his shoulder and flashed him a tight-lipped smile, sympathising with his friend. This is gonne be one long mission.

_______________

The time came for the team to meet at the jet. You stepped on to the platform and headed over to the jet to meet with the others. Just as you placed one foot on to the flying metal contraption, the blonde of the 40’s due spoke. “I said you’re not ready.”

You rolled your eyes and chose to ignore his complaints. Ensuring your gear that you’re decked out in is securely strapped on, you made haste towards a free seat at the back off the jet, unfortunately getting blocked off by Steves’ broad and muscular form. You huffed and quickly side stepped him, proceeding to sit.

“No matter how much you nag, they’re still gonna tag along, dude. May as well give up before you’re driven mad.” Clint commented, eliciting a soft giggle from Wanda and a snicker from Tony, both trying desperately to cover their amusement up in any way available to them.

“He has a point. Maybe instead of butting heads, you could help her through this mission.” Bucky spoke directly to his friend.

“Or they could actually listen and not go.” Steve narrowed his eyes towards your ignorant and slouched form, folding his arms across his chest. Tony rolled his eyes before making his way through the jet to pilot it.

“Okay losers, can we all quieten down now. Daddy’s got a jet to fly.” And with that, Tony had the jet off the platform and heading to your destination. Steve huffed and sat opposite you next to Bucky. He stared you down whilst you continuously ignored him through the whole flight.

_______________

“What the hell, Steve?! I had it handled!” You yelled at your fellow Avenger as you all boarded the jet, ready to head back to the compound.

“Didn’t look like it!” Steve had replied, matching your volume.

You scoffed and threw your arms up into the arm in exasperation. “You have a seriously fucked up hero complex, you know that?!”

The yelling match continued between you both throughout most of the flight. By this point, the others within the small confides of the jet had pounding migraines and are in need of about 20 Advils each.

As soon as the jet landed back within the grounds of the compound, you both stormed out of the jet, heading to your separate rooms, both slamming them shut as loudly as possible, hoping the other would hear and convey how pissed you were.

“Ah, young love.” Tony quipped as his suit disassembled from around his form.

_______________

It had been a full week of you ignoring Steve. He had tried previously throughout the week, but you blanked him, simply as if he hadn’t existed. He knew he seriously messed up the second enemy after enemy headed towards you. He knew you could have easily defended yourself and have taken them out even easier but, you were right. He does have a fucked up hero complex.

But mostly, he always felt the need to protect you. Falling in love with a completely independent and able Avenger is a tough gig. Apparently.

Steve had had enough and decided he was going to talk to you, whether you wanted to or not. He marched with determination straight to your room and knocked brashly. He heard you groan from the opposite side of the door before the light patter of your feet pad along the floor. You swung the door open widely with a look of annoyance across your face, but it had quickly faltered as you tried to close the door just as hastily. He jammed his foot between the door and its frame.

“Leave me alone Steve.” He could easily detect the irritation and impatience within your voice. He pushed the rest of the way into your room and you groaned loudly once again. “You clearly don’t understand English, should I try Spanish? German? Ukrainian? Mandarin?”

“Okay, I get it, you’re pissed and you don’t want to see me. Well tough shit.” He stepped closer to you as you stood your ground. “We need to talk whether you like it or not.”

“Oh yeah? And what do we need to talk about exactly?”

Steve inhaled deeply before continuing. “About how you’re acting. You can’t act like a stroppy teenager whenever someone gives you a helping hand during a mission.”

You scoff, unbelieving of what he is saying. “That wasn’t a ‘helping hand’, that was undermining myself as an abled agent and my abilities to handle the enemy. That wasn’t a ‘helping hand’, that was throwing me to the side while you did all the work.” Your shoulders heaved up and down as your breathing became heavier the more anger filled you.

“Jesus Christ Y/N, I was trying to help! I led the mission that day and it’s my responsibility if any of you screw up. All I did was ensure none of you did.” Steves’ voice raised to match yours.

“NO! You ensured I didn’t screw up because “I’M NOT READY!”” At some point you had started to pace around the room in an attempt to calm you.

Steve ran his hand down his face as he groaned loudly. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath in, willing himself to calm himself down also. “I just care about you Y/N/N. Please, why can’t you just understand that.”

“Well, you should go care about someone else. I didn’t see you hounding Starks’ ass about being careful.”

“Jesus H Christ, I’m in love with you, alright?!” Steve had exclaimed loudly in exasperation. You froze on the spot and slowly turned, shock evident across your face.

“Wha-what?” You stuttered out in a quiet whisper. Steve registered what had just slipped passed his lips and opened and closed his mouth, attempting to come up with some form of excuse for what he had said. “What did you just say Steve?” You spoke, your voice raised, pronunciation clear.

Steve sighed and looked down before tilting his head in the slightest to gaze into your eyes as he spoke sheepishly. “I said I’m in love with you, I love you.” He searched your face for the slightest inkling of reciprocation in the mix of a million emotions displayed across it. It had been a good minute or so of silence as you comprehended what he had just told you. He began to feel self-conscious and paranoia presented itself within him deeply. “Please say something.” He pleaded, his voice quiet.

This seemed to have snapped you out of whatever trance had engulfed you and you swallowed thickly as you looked up at him with wide eyes. You willed yourself to be brave as if you were back out in the field. You charged forward and crashed your lips to his, the move bolder than what you were used to doing.

You grasp on to him tightly, afraid he would pull away, although, you knew that was not going to be the case for he instantaneously reciprocated the intimate action with as much gusto and desperation. His larger hands came to hold on to your hips, knuckles turning white from how tightly his hands balled up your shirt.

Sooner than you had liked, you both parted and laid your foreheads against the others as you panted, desperate for any intake of oxygen. “I love you too, Steve.” You whispered breathlessly, looking up into his beautiful, blue orbs. They had even seemed to have an extra shine in this moment as you gazed deeply into them.

He smiled a huffed out a small chuckle, his thumb rubbing up and down against your side in a soothing and loving manner. “God, you drive me crazy.”

You both continued to stand there for what felt like hours when in actuality, was only a minute or so. Suddenly, a loud knock at the door echoed throughout the room before opening and revealing Sam and Bucky on the other side. “Hey, you guys comin-oh, damn, our bad. We’ll uh, leave you to it.” And with that, Sam quickly turned and shoved Bucky out along with him as he closed the door behind them.

“I think you owe me 20 bucks.” You heard Bucky’s voice through the door which had muffled the sound slightly.

“Man, I was sure they’d go another week before one of ‘em confessed.” You heard Sam whine as you presumed while he fished out the bills from his pocket to hand over to his apparent betting partner.

Their interaction had caused both you and Steve let out a small bout of laugh before turning your attention back towards one another. “I guess we should head down for food, huh?” Steve suggested whilst he had a boyish grin etched upon his face.

All you could do was mirror his smile and release a near inaudible ‘yes’ as you nod and step back, taking his larger hand into one of your own. He quickly pulled you towards him to lay a final pure, sweet, gentle kiss upon your plump lips. “Let’s go.”

He led you out of your room and towards the elevator, ready to join the others for food. As you stood in the elevator, you felt Steves’ gaze on you. You turned you head and sent him a wolfish smirk. “Bet you 20 bucks that they told everyone.”

Steve threw his head back in laughter as he wrapped his arm around your shoulders and brought you closer into his side. “You’re on.”

_______________

Those pants are nice, yeah, just the pants, definitely just the pants I’m admiring, nothing else... *definitely is looking square at his ass* ...yeah man, nice pants...

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I did a Steve fic, noice

I’ve been super sucky with fics recently but I mean, college stuff, losing family, this, plus messing my knee up badly yesterday after accidently yeeting myself down some stairs, it be like that 

I really hope you enjoy this

As always, constructive criticism and requests are welcomed and greatly appreciated :D

[jaceyneedsabetterusername]

Enlighten Me

Pairings: Marcus Moreno x Reader

Summary: You’d been in love with Marcus since you were seventeen but wrote it off as a silly little crush on an older man. After seeing you again when you were 20, about six months after the loss of his wife, romantic feelings for you stir in Marcus that have him feeling confused. Two years of secretly pining after a seemingly impossible relationship leads to some confessions. 

Warnings: Age Gap (13-ish years),  Little angsty, Mentions of his wife’s death, Brief mention of pedophilia (Marcus just says he’s concerned about being seen this way), Brief mention of kidnapping (just super quickly says that reader saved kids from being kidnapped)

Word Count: 4200

______________

You stood in the briefing room of headquarters, waiting for the rest of the Heroics to arrive. Tech-no, Ms. Vox, Miracle Man, and Blinding Fast were the only other heroes there so far and the meeting couldn’t begin until everyone was present. Being in the Heroics Headquarters for the first time in what felt like forever sent nerves throughout your body like the first day of training. Even though you had always felt like a legitimate member of the team, you hadn’t been called on to do a job in a while. It was almost always Miracle Man, much to your secretly jealous chagrin, or occasionally Tech-no, depending on whether or not the problem could be fixed with gadgets. Regardless of who had been called how many times throughout the year, there was always an annual meeting of all the Heroics just to ensure that everyone was on the same page as far as current threats and protocols. This was that meeting. 

You stood beside Tech-no, listening to him explain the newest creation he’d invented in an attempt to block out Ms. Vox and Miracle Man’s incessant voices. Both of the heroes were nice people but they had egos the size of China and it did get grating sometimes. You’d always found it best to just avoid the people who had annoyed you on the team instead of getting involved in the incessant bickering that constantly seemed to be plaguing the team.

“With a simple press of the blue button, I was able to send an EMP straight to the power source of the detonation system. Stopped the bomb and Miracle Man caught the lady. Pretty neat, huh?” Tech-no explained, his demeanor pretty calm despite knowing how excited he got when his devices were successful. 

You smiled at his story, “Wow, that’s amazing!” 

“Have you been called in lately? I haven’t seen you around in a while.” He noted, brows knitting in curiosity. He’d always been like a big brother of sorts to you, one of your favorite people on the team, so of course he would notice your lack of presence, especially after spending so much time together. 

You shrugged, “Not much, only a handful of times this last year. I helped Sharkboy and Lavagirl with those elemental giants in Arkansas back in March and then Invisi Girl and I rescued all those kids from those kidnappers in Louisiana but it’s been a pretty dull year other than.” 

Tech-no’s face twisted sadly, “I’m sorry. I know it’s no fun to get left out of the action.” 

“It’s alright. Just gave me time to focus on my schoolwork.” You lied. Well, not about the schoolwork but about it being fine. You couldn’t lie that there were times you felt like you were treated like you were less important than the other Heroics for multiple reasons. Typically, the Heroics came up in generations where the last generation’s kids would take over for them. Most of the current Heroics had been born in about the same six year time period so they were all relatively the same age. However, your parents weren’t superheroes. They were just normal people who happened to somehow create a superhuman child. On top of that, you were about thirteen years younger than most of them. By the time you had decided to finally seek out help and direction from the Heroics at the age of seventeen, it was clear you were a strange in between age. The current generation had been in their late twenties-early thirties while their children, if they’d had any yet, were in the first two or three years of their lives. Especially after you’d been trained by Grandma Moreno, the team had taken to you quite well but always felt the need to protect you, despite the fact that you had superpowers, just like the rest of them. 

The door to the room slid open soundlessly but after years of training with Grandma Moreno, it was something that you noticed right away. Your heart stopped when you saw Marcus Moreno walk into the room, all geared up and with his swords strapped to his back. Your eyes were trained on his tall strong figure as he glanced around the room, inspecting who had already arrived. Butterflies erupted in your stomach and you could have melted then and there when his gaze met your own. Small crinkles appeared at the corner of his eyes as a wide smile spread across his face. “Mirror! Long time no see! How you been, kid?” He asked happily, pulling you in for a big hug. 

It took a lot of effort to not show how your heart fell when he called you that. Kid. It was all you’d ever be to him. You’d harbored a crush on him since you’d met him, though then you’d written it off as some puppy love crush on an older (and married) man. Over the years, though, the stupid feelings had anything but subsided, choosing to bubble up inside into some ridiculous unobtainable love for a man that would never love you back. Or so you thought. 

When Marcus entered the room, his eyes were automatically scanning the space for your bright smile. It was the same smile that made his heart flutter the way his wife’s did. It was the only other smile to ever have brought him such feelings of longing. When he saw you talking to Tech-no, he couldn’t help the way his lips turned up into a wide smile. 

These feelings made him uneasy, however. It felt wrong- inappropriate to have any sort of romantic feelings or attraction towards you being so much younger than he was. He had known you since you were seventeen and watched you grow into the beautiful young woman standing before him now, only growing more and more radiant with each time he saw you. By all accounts, you were an adult. You were on the verge of graduating from college, living on your own, and working a second job outside of being a Heroic. Even with all this, he was certain that if he had ever made his feelings known, you and the rest of the Heroics would look at him like some pedophile- except he was far from anything so disgusting. Any hint of romantic attraction to you hadn’t blossomed until you were twenty, when you had shown up at HQ one day, suddenly a woman instead of the girl he once knew. Even then, it was only a few months after the death of his wife and he was sure it was his heart’s way of trying to cope and fill the void with a safe presence. He was sure the feelings were purely temporary and hid them away from anyone, even himself for a while, but over the course of the last two years, he was almost frustrated to say they hadn’t subsided. Now you were twenty-two, strong and independent, beautiful and intelligent. 

With all logic, Marcus knew that having feelings for you shouldn’t make him feel dirty, especially when he’d had aunts and uncles that were fifteen years apart in age, but he couldn’t help the way the nickname kid had spilled from his lips before he could catch it in a subconscious attempt at overcompensating for his emotions. He cringed internally but kept an altered look of happiness on his face. He caught the way the twinkle in your eye faded just a little at the name and he felt a little bad for making you feel like a child. 

“Y’know, I have a real name.” You chided, rolling your eyes jokingly. 

Marcus chuckled, “I can’t remember the last time anyone used their real names on duty.” 

You raised your hand towards him, “I can’t remember the last time we didn’t just call you Marcus, even on duty. Besides, this hardly counts as being on duty.” You added, glancing around as more heroes shuffled into the room, clearly splitting off into groups based on how much they could stand one another, which wasn’t much.  

“Well, I don’t really ever go out as an actual Heroic anymore so I don’t really count.” He insisted, noticing how your eyebrow raised, eyes glancing down at his uniform and the swords strapped to his back. “It’s more of a formality for meetings like this. I don’t usually wear it.” 

“Okay, one, you do still count. You’re still the leader of this team. Two, if I have to wear this,” You motioned to your get-up, “You should have to suffer too.” You insisted with a laugh. 

Marcus couldn’t help the way he glanced down at the mention of your suit, though he tried as hard as possible to not make it look like he was actually checking you out. The smokey grey material sparkled ever so slightly in the light and was skin tight, covering your arms and legs entirely. It was modestly cut at the top, though it still showed the curvature of your breasts due to the tightness of the material. Thin black lines drew long angular patterns down your arms, torso, and legs, before disappearing beneath your tall black boots that covered just above your knees. Your hair was braided back back there were still some tendrils that hung loose at the front. You were a sight for sore eyes and Marcus’s eyes must have been aching because he never wanted to look away. 

Tech-no looked between the two of you, noticing the way he was seemingly forgotten about the moment you saw each other. He smirked to himself, noticing how both you and Marcus looked at each other differently than how you looked at anyone else. “I’m gonna go talk to Crushing Low but it was nice seeing you again, Mirror.” He excused himself, patting Marcus on the shoulder as he did. 

“Oh, okay!” You had honestly almost forgotten about the other man, too entranced by Marcus’s presence. 

It got quiet between you and Marcus after Tech-no had left, apparently having provided some sort of unknown buffer between the two of you for your unspoken tension. Marcus stood with his hands on his hips, looking down at you with a smile and you chewed your lip, trying to think of anything to say to break the silence. 

“Well-”

“How-” 

“Heroics, I’m glad you could all make it.” 

You and Marcus had begun to speak at the exact same time, only to be cut off by the ever commanding presence of Ms. Granada as she floated into the room gracefully despite her insanely high heels. With momentarily startled eyes, you shot Marcus an apologetic look before making your way to your designated seat around the large circular table. You sat between Sharkboy and Miracle Man, Marcus taking his seat across the table from you and crossing his hands over the files you’d all been handed. 

The meeting went quickly as Ms. Granada did a recap of the last year. In the file had been a list of all the missions gone on, all villains, new and old, as well as more boring things, like the budget for the upcoming year and guidelines on how to handle the press when situations got more destructive than preferred. 

After she had finished everything up, you all rose from your seats and began to leave, very few members of the team wanting to be around each other any longer than necessary. You decided to hang around HQ a little longer, it having been a while since you’d been to the building. There was one place in particular you’d always loved. In the back of the massive building, there was a garden that had always felt a little out of place amongst all the cold clean metal of the facility but it was somewhere you’d always felt drawn to. There was a small pond with little koi fish that swam around inside and a moderate variety of plants, most of which were actually somewhat tropical looking, all around. Gravel formed a path that wound through the mulch, crunching beneath your boots as you walked and breathed in the fresh air. You knelt down beside the pond and watched contently as the little orange and yellow fish glided through the water effortlessly.

“Had a feeling I’d find you here.” Marcus’s voice startled you and you whipped around in a knee-jerk reaction. 

Your heart rate slowed and you chuckled a little, “Yeah, couldn’t help it. It’s been a while since I got called here to help out with anything. Figured I’d better come to my favorite spots before I didn’t stop by for another few months.” 

Marcus sighed knowingly. He knew you weren’t called in for many missions and he was partially to blame for it. When Granada consulted him on which Heroics to bring in when the world was in peril, he always suggested other people first. Perhaps it was selfish of him but he was honestly just terrified of losing you. Especially after his wife’s death, he wasn’t sure if he could handle losing you as well. It wasn’t that he thought you were incompetent by any means, he was just genuinely scared for you and the idea of Miracle Man getting a good beating made him feel better than the idea of you taking one. 

“You know, you’re still a valued member of the team. Even if you’re not called in all the time.” Marcus tried to reassure you, walking beside you through the winding path of foliage. 

You shrugged, “I guess. I know my powers aren’t as cool or useful as some of everyone else’s. I mean, Miracle Man can fly. Tech-no can build almost anything. Lavagirl can literally control lava. You’re a freaking magnet!” 

You and Marcus both laughed when you called him that and he shook his head, “What are you talking about? You’re amazing! You can create physical projections of yourself! That’s pretty awesome.” 

You felt the blood rush to your cheeks at his compliment but still just shrugged again, “Yeah, but I can only really make them do separate tasks when I really focus on them which is hard to do in the heat of battle.” 

“Hey, you are talking down on one of my best friends and I really don’t appreciate it. You really are absolutely amazing, though, and everyone sees it.” Marcus stopped, hand coming to your shoulder to make you stop as well. A goofy little laugh followed his lame joke and you couldn’t help but feel the warmth blossom in your heart at his compliments. When you locked eyes with him, you were sure he could be the last thing you ever saw and you wouldn’t ask for anything more. 

That bit of doubt still crept up into your mind though, even though Marcus had a way of making you feel like you were the most important person in the world. You glanced away, avoiding his gaze, “If that were true, I’d be picked for more missions. Sharkboy and Lavagirl live on another planet and have a six-year old. I’m single, kid-less, and live twenty minutes away. They both manage to go on more missions each in a month than I do in a year.” 

Marcus’s face fell when you began to walk away again. He never would have thought that his attempts at keeping you safe would have had such an impact on your self-esteem as a hero. Marcus had seldom used his powers anymore, something he felt was unnecessary if he wasn’t actively working as a Heroic, but before he could help himself, his hand had flexed just enough to will the metal vambrace around your left forearm to pull towards him. 

Your eyes shot down to the way your arm was being pulled towards Marcus and then back up at the man in utter confusion as to why he wouldn’t let you walk away. The force wasn’t strong by any means but just strong enough to draw your attention.

“I’m sorry.” He apologized simply, unsure of what else to say. 

As far as you knew, none of what you had just said had been his fault. By the way he apologized, you could tell he wasn’t simply apologizing for the way you felt but it was like he was sorry for something that he’d done. “For what?” You asked, confused. 

Marcus let his grip on your protective vambrace go and you took a natural step towards him, bodies closer than you meant them to be but not making any effort to correct it. “It’s my fault you don’t get called on often.” He admitted, looking away guiltily. 

“What? How?” You asked, desperate to understand what he meant. He was the leader of the Heroics so you were sure that he had some say in who was called in but you had never thought to attribute your lack of action to him. 

“Granada has actually suggested that we bring you in for many missions throughout the years but… I’ve always been the one to suggest other people.” Marcus continued slowly and he could see the hurt in your eyes at his confession. 

Your mouth fell open a little, trying to hide the hurt in your eyes. Did he have any idea how long you’d been feeling undervalued? Less than? Treated like a little kid? “Why would you do that? Do you not think I’m good enough?” 

The look in your eye almost made Marcus regret ever coming clean to you. He had hoped that telling you Granada had requested your assistance multiple times would make you feel better. Instead, he should have seen how this would just make you feel worse. 

Your heart almost broke. You could handle Granada thinking you weren’t as good as everyone else. You could handle Miracle Man treating you like he was better than you (like he did to everyone). You could handle the mothering way Ms. Vox treated you and the way Tech-no treated you like a little sister. The one person whose opinion you valued the most had never outright treated you like you were less than. But now, it seemed that he’d thought you were all along. 

“No! That’s not what I meant at all! You are one of the best people on the team. I just-” 

“You just what?” You snapped more aggressively than you meant to, cutting him off before he could finish his sentence. 

Marcus closed his eyes and turned his face away from you, “I just couldn’t risk losing you.” His voice was calm and guilty, remorseful and scared. 

The venom in your chest began to subside at his confession and your voice softened, “You’re not gonna lose me, Marcus.” 

His eyes slid open at the safety of your calmer voice, feeling more able to face you now that he didn’t have to see the anger in your eyes anymore. He swallowed hard, deciding that it was too late to turn back now. “I never thought I’d lose my wife either but… I was scared of being wrong again and losing you too.” 

There was a pause while you tried to interpret what he meant by this last statement. He had always cared about you, that much had been clear, but you’d always assumed that it had been in a brotherly fashion. The way he looked at you now as he poured his heart out to you made you feel like there was a little more behind the words than you ever thought. 

“You don’t have to be scared.” Your voice was soft, almost a whisper, as you took another subconscious step closer to him. Marcus’s eyes glanced down at the mere inches between your shoes and his before raking up your body and finally meeting your eyes.

“There’s more than you know.” He admitted quietly, his voice low and raspy. His eyes searched yours, terrified that this was the last time he’d ever see those beautiful eyes looking at him in this same way. He was about to cross a line that he couldn’t come back from but something about today made him feel like he couldn’t go any longer with this secret in his heart. 

“Then enlighten me.” 

His Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat, “I might lose you still if I do.” 

“Then it sounds like you have a decision to make.” You responded, anxiety rising as you looked at him with a straight face. You hadn’t meant to sound so blunt but he couldn’t say something like that and not expect your brain to linger to the worst possibilities. What could be so bad that he was convinced it would ruin your friendship? Was he kicking you off the team? Were you being reassigned to somewhere else in the world? Was about to insist you go back to training? Was he moving? The sudden flood of doomsday-level thoughts concerning your friendship made you vaguely annoyed that he would lead you on with a comment like ‘there’s more than you know’ and then continue to beat around the bush. 

“I think I love you, Y/N.” He blurted out, suddenly feeling a massive weight lifted off his chest. That weight was quickly replaced by a bubbling sense of insecurity when your mouth fell open in a state of disbelief. 

“Y-you what?” 

Marcus’s heart was caught in his throat and his breath hitched, unable to make it past the lump. His nightmare was coming true. This was a mistake. “I-I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have-. This was a mistake.” 

“Wait!” You reached out to place a hand on his bicep when he turned to leave. He stopped and turned back to face you, hurt evident in his eyes, “Don’t leave.” 

“I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I just- I’ve had feelings for you for a while now and I didn’t want to come off as the creepy old guy.” He began to ramble uncharacteristically, the typically smooth under pressure superhero reduced to a panicked lovestruck boy. 

You put a hand over his mouth and looked straight into his eyes, “I love you too.” 

Beneath your palm, his jaw went slack. Slowly, you removed it, biting your lip with a small nervous smile as you waited for him to respond. “You do?” 

You nodded shyly, never thinking that your dirty little secret would ever come to light. “I’ve had a stupid little puppy love crush on you since I was seventeen but I’ve been in love with you since I started college. I was always just worried you’d only ever see me as a little girl.” 

Marcus’s hands nervously came to rest on your hips as he stared down at you in disbelief. He shook his head, “You’re an amazing woman, Y/N. One that’s impossible not to fall in love with.” 

Your hand came up to his cheek, the stubble scratching your skin lightly, “And you’re the most amazing man I’ve ever met. One that’s impossible not to love.” You mimicked his sentiment back to him with pure genuine intent. 

His hand came to cover yours, pressing his face further against your skin, pulling you closer to him by your hip. It was an innocent move, one of a man desperate to finally experience what he’d been keeping bottled up as a deep secret for the last two years. “Are you sure you’re okay with this?” He asked, obviously referring to the thirteen year age gap between the two of you, “I don’t want to take advantage of you.” 

“I know that I’m younger than you but I’m not a naive child. You’re not taking advantage of me at all. Believe it or not, I am absolutely and irrevocably in love with you. If you want me, I would love nothing more than to be with you.” This was it: your all or nothing, all cards on the table, point of no return. The words you only told Marcus in your dreams were spoken and unable to be taken back. 

 His deep brown eyes flicked to your lips and then back to your eyes, his intention clear and awaiting any sign of hesitation, to which he found none. You leaned up on your toes but he finished closing the gap between the two of you, your lips touching in a gentle experimental kiss. His lips were soft in stark contrast to the stubble that scratched your skin. At this close proximity, you could finally breathe him in and it exceeded all expectations. He smelled clean, like freshly washed laundry, but with a hint of what you could only place as men’s body wash. 

Marcus felt the way your body melted into his touch. Your skin was soft as silk against his, your lips like pillows he wanted to stay in forever. Your perfume danced around him, engulfing his senses and rendering him incapable of thinking of anything but you. Finally, he pulled away, resting his forehead against yours. Your lids slid open only to see him already admiring you. 

“There’s nothing I would love more.” Marcus repeated. Two and a half years ago, he never could have imagined he would ever love again. Two hours ago, he never would have imagined that you could have possibly loved him back. But here you were, gazing up at him in a way he only let himself think about when he was alone, wrapped in his arms the way he dreamt about, saying the words he’d felt guilty for fantasizing about hearing from you for so long. 

[jaalismyhusband]

Roommates (part 3)

Title: Roommates

Pairings: Bucky x f!reader

Warnings: angst, attempt of rape, mentions of stalking, dark!bucky, explicit language, it ends with fluff tho!

Wordcount: 1.8k

Catch up: Part 1, Part 2

Masterlist

Part 3

Days, weeks, hell, months went by and Y/N still couldn’t bring herself to forget about Bucky. No matter what Jason did or said, it was Bucky who she fantasized about late at night. She and Jason were together for a while now, but they haven’t got far, beside a messy make-out. Jason said he would wait, no matter how long she takes. Nevertheless, something about him trying to insinuate sex very often, left her doubting his previous statement. She didn’t want to feel pressured to be intimate with someone, and that’s exactly what she told him. The reaction he gave her left her in shock and on the verge of crying.

“What’s your problem?!” he shouted out of nowhere. Y/N flinched at the sound of his booming voice in his small apartment. He was raging.

“I don’t understand. What do you mean?” She tried to sound more confident, but her voice was shaky with fear.

“You know exactly what I mean! Why don’t we ever have sex? What’s holding you back so much? Unlike you, I try to make things happen!” Jason confessed.

“Excuse me? I am trying!” she got defensive.

“Are you now? Well, let’s see if you mean it.” A mischievous grin plastered on his face and she knew that meant trouble. She started to back away from him. Eyes opened wide and filled with tears.

“Come here, you little bitch. That’s all you’re good for anyway!” He tried to grab her, but she couldn’t let that happen. Everything was a blur from then. She bit, kicked and punched – mostly air though. Thankfully, she shimmied out from under him after a successful hit. Running straight for the door, she never looked back.

When she was in the safe distance from him and sure, that she wasn’t being chased, she broke down in tears. Sliding down the wall in the dark alleyway, she let all that pent-up frustration flow out of her in form of tears. Why would he do that to her? She was blinded by the want for their relationship to work so much, that she didn’t notice the obvious red flags.

After some time, her eyelids got heavy. Exhaustion from the sudden rush of adrenaline struck her all at once. She stood up and began walking back to the Stark Tower. Thankfully, she wasn’t far. As she got home, it was already late night.

Bucky was waiting for her to come back, as every other night. Even if he didn’t admit it, he was worried sick about her. Nevertheless, he shrugged all the comments she ever made with a simple I couldn’t sleep.

Ding of the elevator doors alerted Bucky of her arrival. Her footsteps were heavy, as she made her way through the room seeking comfort of her bed.

“Y/N!” She flinched at his voice and he immediately knew; something was very wrong. One look at her dirty clothes, teary bloodshot eyes and a bruise on her cheek left his brain speculating. Slowly, he approached her.

“Babygirl, talk to me. What happened to you?” She thought all of her tears were left in that humid alleyway, but it only took that pet name to start the faucet in her eyes. It’s been quite a while, since he addressed her as that.

“I missed the way you used to call me.” She gave him a teary smile. His face scrunched up in confusion. He didn’t realize it was affecting her so much.

“Well, I figured it would be inappropriate to call you those, since you started dating.” Her lips dropped from a weak smile to a frown. Bucky must have struck a sensitive nerve. He took her to her bedroom and sat her on the bed.

“Stay here,” he commanded. Even if she wanted to resist, her body was worn out and weak. Bucky started going through her drawers fishing out clean clothes for her to change into. Then, he handed them to her.

“Go and shower. I know you’re exhausted, but trust me, you’ll feel better.” Half asleep, she obeyed and staggered to the bathroom, closing the door in the process.

“I’ll be near, if you need something!” Bucky shouted through the door and tried to fight the urge to walk in on her naked and vulnerable. This is not the time, he scolded himself. Deciding to make something useful instead, he went to the kitchen to prepare some tea.

After what seemed like eternity to him, Y/N finally came out of the bathroom, dressed in clothes he picked. The control he possessed over that decision was exciting him. Looking over her frail appearance, he took the tea and motioned for her to follow him to the couch. Once seated, he offered her a blanket, which she accepted, wrapping herself up in the cozy material.

They sat there in silence for a while, neither of them sure, how to start. Bucky scanned her face. She felt his gaze on her, but was too ashamed to talk about what happened. Solely because, it was mostly her fault. If she didn’t lead Jason on and confronted her real feelings, she wouldn’t have been in this situation in the first place. She wiped the sensitive wet skin around her eyes, attempting to dry the tears.

“Did he hit you?” Bucky’s low voice was frighteningly calm, as he motioned to her red cheek. She shrugged her shoulders, feeling uncomfortable and exposed.

“I guess, yeah. It all happened so fast.” Her throat was dry, making her voice sound even more weak. She must have looked pathetic right now. Regardless, Bucky’s sympathetic look gave her some strength to tell him what happened. She noticed, he was trying to control his breathing and clenched his jaw during her monologue.

“That pathetic excuse of a man.” Bucky mumbled, clearly disgusted by Jason’s actions. His brows furrowed in an angry expression. He was going to find that motherfucker and show him, that absolutely no one can touch his girl. Ready to stand up and fulfil his promise, he was stopped by Y/N’s voice.

“I’m sorry, Buck.”

“Baby, you have nothing to apologize for.” He tried to reassure her, but his words fell on the deaf ears.

“No, it’s mostly my fault. I got myself into that situation because I wasn’t honest with Jason. The truth is, I already love someone else.” This is getting interesting, Bucky thought as he sat back on the couch. Was there a third man? Who could it be? Bucky was sure she didn’t regularly meet with any other males beside him, Jason and male members of Avengers.

“It doesn’t matter, because he doesn’t feel the same. Anyway,” she took a deep breath and continued, “I led Jason on, using him as a way to bury my real feelings. Long story short, it backfired on me, because I wouldn’t sleep with him. I don’t know why though. Even if I never confessed my feelings to that person, it still felt like cheating. At first, Jason was understanding, but soon he got impatient and well, you know the rest.”

Bucky was envious of the man she loved. Her loyalty was just another great quality added to her personality. He wanted to be that man so badly. The gears in his head were turning almost painfully hard, trying to figure out the man’s identity.

“And also, I want to apologize for neglecting you, Buck. I’m sorry for all the times I couldn’t hang out with you or rushed out of conversations because of Jason. I want you to know, that I regret it and now I realize, he wasn’t worth it. I’m sorry.” She felt the need to say it. She wanted him to piece it together and realize he’s the one her heart longs for.

Afraid to say something, that would expose his true feelings, he only pulled her to his chest and held her tightly. Her body fit against him snugly as they cuddled on the couch. Stroking her hair, he whispered: “I know, baby. I’m sorry too.”

She squeezed his torso with her small arms and snuggled into the crook of his neck, inhaling his musky scent. It felt right to be in his arms. Bucky’s hands were stroking her soft skin, lulling her to sleep.

Bucky wanted to stay like this forever. They have never been this close to each other. Sure, they have hugged before, but not like this. She held on to him so tightly, Bucky thought he would explode with the amount of warmth swarming his chest. Her body was so soft and intoxicating. The smell of her shampoo was very familiar to him, because of all the times he snuck into the bathroom to watch her shower. Would she be turned on, like him, by the idea of him watching her? Or would she push him away with disgust plastered over her beautiful face? How would she react if he told her that he heard her every single time gasping and moaning when she played with herself? His super-soldier senses allowed him to hear her even through a closed door. She never noticed anything. It was amusing to him, how oblivious she was to his occasional stalking.

Noticing her grip weakened, he realized she fell asleep in his arms. He waited so long for this to happen and now that it did, he couldn’t get enough. He wanted to freeze time and never let anyone disturb her slumber.

He scooped her up and she unconsciously tangled her limbs around him like a koala. Letting the blanket fall back on the couch, she shivered and pressed herself into him more. Bucky took them to her bedroom. He wasn’t keen on leaving her grasp, but after what she had told him today, he didn’t want to overwhelm her. Sighing, he tucked her in bed. Pressing a gentle kiss on her forehead, he wished her goodnight and turned around to leave.

Y/N’s hand flew up to his wrist, waking her up immediately, afraid to be left alone by him.

“Please, Bucky, stay.” He froze in a place, thinking he was hallucinating. But her pleas were just as real as her hand tugging him back to her inviting embrace. He couldn’t refuse her, so he got in bed behind her. Draping an arm around her, he pulled her close to him, nuzzling his face into the back of her neck. She held onto his arm squeezing it with her arms towards her torso. He had to control himself as he felt her breasts press firmly against his forearm. He placed a chaste kiss on her neck and she hummed at the innocent ministration. Now content, they both fell asleep pressed tightly against each other, with their legs tangled.

Part 4

@vicmc624 

[supernaturalfreewill]

Words: 3,306 Sam x Reader Warnings: none! Summary: Y/N deals with the aftermath of what she has just seen when she stops in The Ivy Cafe in town. A/N: Shit is about to hit the fan. Maybe. Maybe not. This is part of a series! Read Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3, and Part 4 first!

Your name: submit What is this?

You felt frozen. You couldn’t believe what you were looking at. You stepped back absently so she was out of view again, your mouth agape, and realized vaguely that they were calling your name—your latte was ready. You accepted it aimlessly but immediately dug into your pocket for your cell phone and dialed your sister. It was like you needed to confirm that you had really just seen what you had just seen.

You heard her characteristic ringtone clearly from where you were standing, your cell pressed up to your ear.

You swallowed hard at the strangled feeling in your throat, trying to clear it so you could get some air. You felt a little like you were reeling. Who the hell is that guy? What do I do? Do I confront her? Fuck! Sam was literally right outside waiting in the car… You started to head for the door and as you reached it, one hand on the handle to push it open, you glanced back over your shoulder across the café. You had a clear view of them now, and your stomach rolled as you watched her lean forward and kiss him, one of her hands sliding into his hair to pull him in, breaking away with a smile on her face. You turned away abruptly and pushed outside, glancing quickly over at the car. Sam was leaning back in the passenger seat, his eyes closed, faced turned toward his open window to feel the breeze.

I’m gonna be sick. The potential implications of what you had just seen were making you dizzy.

You rushed into the pharmacy, praying that Sam’s prescription was ready. All you wanted to do was put as much distance between where you and Sam were and what you had just seen. Maybe if you put physical distance between you and them you wouldn’t have to deal with what was happening, maybe it would become untrue. What the hell were you supposed to do with what you had just seen? You hastily grabbed Sam’s meds and rushed back out to the car, your latte still in your hand, completely forgotten. You slid into the driver seat and plopped it down in the cup holder. Sam looked over at you and straightened up. He immediately sensed that something was wrong.

“Y/N? Are you alright?”

You couldn’t look at him. You just started the car and threw it into gear. “Mhm! Yep! Let’s just get you home,” you said. “I’m sure you’re ready to be home…”

He waited for you to look over at him, to meet his eyes, but you just stared straight ahead through the windshield. “Are you sure you’re alright?” Sam asked again. You could hear the sweet concern in his voice, but it also still had that vaguely dreamy quality.

You did your best to shove down the feelings of anger, shock, and disbelief that were threatening to overwhelm you and arrange your face into a small smile so you could turn and meet his eyes. “I’m fine, Sam. How are you?”

He gave you a small, somewhat crooked smile, his eyebrows lifting a little in relief from your words. “I’m great. But a bit tired.” He yawned again and leaned his head back against the headrest of his seat.

“I can imagine,” you said, turning onto the highway. “Let’s get back to the bunker so you can rest.” Your voice came out much softer than you meant it to, but luckily Sam seemed to have bought your forced smile. You were a little grateful that he was still a bit loopy, because sober Sam probably would have seen through you in a heartbeat. He always could tell when something was wrong. You bit your cheek to keep angry and disgusted tears from welling up in your eyes.

You raced the whole way back and the time had passed mostly in silence. Sam seemed to be dozing a little, in and out of being awake, the toll of the painkillers and probably the physical trauma as well. But you finally pulled into the underground garage and parked your car. Sam climbed out and said your name to grab your attention as you were shutting your door.

“Your coffee,” he said, holding the paper cup you had completely forgotten about in the cup holder. You stared at the printed logo on the side: The Ivy Café. “You didn’t drink any?” he said, giving you a questioning look. You were never one to leave undrunk coffee undrunk.

You nodded and forced another smile, shrugging. “Wasn’t as tired as I thought,” you said. “Plus, I probably already had too much coffee this morning. Here, I’ll take that,” you said, accepting the cup from him and falling into stride next to him. “You take this.” You handed him the little paper bag with his prescription. “You can’t take any until tonight, though, okay? Doctor’s orders.”

Sam thanked you and smiled. “Okay. Got it.” He turned and gave you a sleepy smile. “Thanks again for today. I know you wasted a whole afternoon on me at that doctor’s office...”

Wasted? On Sam? There was no such thing. You felt a bubble of emotion rising up in your throat again at his words and you tried to choke it down, tried to clear the tightness. “No need to thank me for that,” you said quietly.

“Well… I really appreciate it anyway.” Sam let out another yawn as you both reached Dean and the Impala, which seemed to be mostly back together as Dean was putting his tools away.

“So, are you bionic now or what?” he asked Sam, giving him a smirk and patting him hard on the back.

Sam held up his cast. “I don’t think so.”

“Still hopped up on the good stuff?” Dean asked. Sam let out a big yawn again and shrugged.

“Hand doesn’t hurt. I’m mostly just sleepy now,” he said.

Dean nodded. “Damn. Sounds like I missed the fun Painkiller Sam,” he laughed, giving you a knowing look. You returned the smile as best you could and put a gentle hand on Sam’s back, encouraging him to head in, your fingertips floating lightly over his shirt. Electricity shot up his spine and he actually jumped a little in response and looked down at you.

“Oh—sorry. Didn’t mean to startle you,” you apologized, misreading his reaction.

“That’s alright—It wasn’t—you didn’t—” Sam’s tongue suddenly felt twisted in his mouth. He couldn’t quite get the right words out. He avoided Dean’s perceptive gaze, ignoring the little smirk playing across his lips. “Umm… I’m gonna go get some food and then take a nap, I think…” he said awkwardly.

“Good idea. You coming in?” you asked Dean, trying to give him a meaningful look behind Sam’s back.

“Yep. I’ll be right in,” he said. His brow dropped low over his eyes at the expression on your face. It immediately created a hard pit in his stomach.

_ _ _ _ _ _

You hadn’t stopped pacing since you had made it to your room. And every other cross of the area rug you looked up at that little paper coffee cup, the familiar logo on the side, sitting in the middle of your desk, the liquid inside now completely cold.

Sam had let you make him a grilled cheese but he had also obviously noticed that you were much quieter than usual. You had to excuse yourself from the kitchen because you just couldn’t handle it anymore—you felt sick. And you felt like you were lying to him. You never wanted to lie to him. He deserved so much more than that. Another minute and you would have burst out with what you had seen and you really didn’t want him to hear it while he was exhausted and potentially still a bit fuzzy from the meds. So, you had run away and sequestered yourself in your bedroom, where all you could do was obsess over what you had seen and try to rationalize it. But there was no way to rationalize the way she had kissed him. Or the way she had ignored your call. Again. How many times was that today? While Sam was enduring the pain of a displaced and broken bone in his hand?

Almost as if on cue, your cell phone started to ring and you startled, looking down to see your sister’s name flashing on the screen. You shut your eyes and tried to steady yourself. “Fuck.” You answered, trying to sound normal. “Hello?”

“Hey, sis! Sorry, I missed your calls and texts! It was super loud at lunch and then I was in the movie. How is Sam?”

“How was the movie?” you asked her, hoping your voice didn’t sound as stiff as you felt.

“Oh, it was good! I mean, a little more jump scare than psychological thriller but—still good. So, how is Sam? How is his hand?”

You pinched the bridge of your nose and shut your eyes tightly, sitting rigidly on the edge of your bed. “Well, it’s very broken. He has a cast. He has to wear it for 6 weeks at least.”

“Oh, no… My poor guy… God, I’m so sorry I couldn’t be there today,” she said. “I can’t wait to get home and see how he is. Is he in a lot of pain?”

You gritted your teeth. “He’s on a lot of painkillers, but I’m sure it still hurts. I mean they had to force the bone back into the right place.”

“Ugh. Poor, Sam.”

“Yeah… well… How is—how’s Sarah?” You were gonna make her say it. You were going to make her lie to you over and over. There would be no way for her to say it was a mistake. And maybe it would be enough to force you to leap over the disbelief and spinning confusion and the sick feeling in your stomach and push you straight into whatever had to come next.

“She seems good. Yeah, seems fine. Still really busy with work like usual,” your sister said. Her tone was cheery and upbeat, but to you it just sounded disingenuous.

“Good. That’s good…” There was a beat of silence.

“Well, I’m just leaving the movie theater, so I should be home in like half an hour or so. Maybe a little more.”

“Mhm. Okay. See you later.” You didn’t even wait to say goodbye. You just hung up. You flopped backwards onto your back from the edge of the bed, rubbing both your hands over your face and heaving a heavy sigh. Fuck. Now what? Anger started to bubble again in your chest and you jumped up, casting one more look at The Ivy Café cup on your desk, and striding out into the hallway.

You could see that Sam’s bedroom door was open as you headed down the hall, so you stopped to check on him and you felt like your heart broke at the sight. He was collapsed on his bed, sleeping with his cast propped up on his stomach. You leaned against the doorframe for a moment, resting your head against the cool wood, and just looked at him fondly while your mind spun. He didn’t know. For now, he didn’t know. What would come next? You felt like it was up to you in some sick way… what to do?

Sam was sleeping with the blankets all crunched down at the end of the bed and you quietly tiptoed in and pulled them over him. He didn’t stir. You studied his peaceful expression for another moment and then stepped out to find Dean.

“Hey,” you said, finding him at his desk in his room, laptop open.

His face was serious, worried. “Hey. What’s going on?” He watched as your jaw tensed.

“Meet me in the garage in five minutes?”

He nodded. “Sure.” The flat tone of your voice only increased his anxiety.

Five minutes later, he was leaning up against the Impala, patiently waiting for the sound of the door from the bunker swinging open and the familiar cadence of your footsteps. He straightened up when the metallic echo of the slamming door announced your arrival. His face darkened when you finally came into view and he saw that you had your shotgun slung over one shoulder and were carrying a gun case in your other hand.

“Whoa—whoa. What’s going on? You’re freaking me out, Y/N,” Dean said. “Do I need to go get my guns?”

Your face was impassive as you met his eyes. “You can if you want. I just really need to shoot something right now.”

Dean looked uneasy. “…something. As long as it isn’t someone.”

Your jaw tensed again. “You coming?” You didn’t wait for his answer, but you could tell he was following you with long strides. You exited through a side door in the garage and started the walk on a well-beaten track into the open space and woods behind the bunker. You had a target range set up back there and goddammit, did you need to shoot something.

Dean watched you open up your gun case, leaning your unloaded shotgun against a nearby stump. You grabbed a pair of ear muffs and threw it at him. Dean caught them, pulling them on as he watched you expertly load the magazine into your pistol, pull on your own ear protection, and take aim at the target. You fired your entire magazine rapidly, 7 rounds, straight into the center of the paper target, and with cold indifference swapped in your spare magazine and fired 5 more.

Dean’s unease grew. He stepped up next to you as you let your pistol drop to your side, and your other hand pressed over your face. You shut your eyes for a moment and tried to take a stabilizing breath, smelling the cloud of gunpowder hazy in the air. You ejected the empty magazine from your handgun and replaced it in the gun case.

“Y/N…” Dean said hesitantly.

“No,” you said. You picked up your shotgun and loaded 5 shells. “Not yet.”

Dean gulped.

You stepped up to the firing line again and aimed for the targets hanging in the trees, blasting each one in quick succession, and even causing one to drop off its rope onto the ground. Dean stared at the empty shell casings smoking on the ground, but he just waited this time. You heaved a sigh and pulled your ear muffs off, letting them hang around your neck, and you set your shotgun back in its place against the stump.

Dean pulled off his ear protection too and waited for you to look up at him. His apprehension was growing by the moment. Finally, you sank down on a large round of cut wood and looked at him. Dean gulped and cleared his throat.

“This is about Sam?” he asked. He thought you had finally reached the point where you couldn’t stand it anymore—couldn’t handle Sam being with your sister and having to sit by and watch them be together. Maybe his idea that you spend some time with Sam that day was about to backfire—maybe you were going to leave.

But your answer wasn’t exactly what he expected. “Sort of.”

“Sort of?” he repeated. He watched as you absently started reloading your pistol magazines. Your hands needed something to do—you felt frantic inside.

“It’s more about my sister than Sam but… obviously that means it is also about him.”

Dean’s face contracted in confusion and he shook his head vaguely in a question. “Okay…” His voice was deeper and had more gravel to it than usual.

You nervously chewed the inside of your cheek, forcing another bullet against the spring in the magazine. “We went to pick up Sam’s prescription after his appointment and they told me it would take them a little while to get it ready. So, I decided to grab a coffee while I waited.”

“Okay…” Dean shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans. The wrinkles in his brow were heavy.

“I saw my sister when I went into the café.” Your hands ceased all anxious movement. “She was there with someone.”

Dean just stared at you, trying hard to read on your face what was coming.

“She was not with her friend Sarah today. And they were not having lunch and going to a movie. She was—she was with some guy. And—” you swallowed at the annoying tight lump in your throat that seemed to keep re-forming. “And she was holding his hand and I watched them kiss.” Your eyes finally raised to meet Dean’s.

Dean felt a swelling of confusion and disbelief in his chest, quickly followed by a wave of anger. “…You’re sure?” The gravel in his voice was even heavier now than before. Your answer was to give him a look that clearly said ’seriously?’.

You tilted your head as you stared at him. “You think I would mistake seeing that? I even called her phone while I was standing maybe 8 feet away and I watched her ignore the call. And just now, she finally called me back to see how Sam was and she told me the same lie—that she was with Sarah and they went to a movie and lunch. She couldn’t be there for him today because she was busy cheating on him. He was having a bone in his hand forced back into place, and she was cheating on him.”

Dean paced a tight circle, rubbing a hand over the shadow of stubble on his chin. “And Sammy, he didn’t, uhh—”

“No. No, he was in the car…” The blank look on your face morphed into anguish as Dean looked at you. “Dean, what the hell am I supposed to do here? I mean, he has to know… I can’t let him just go on knowing that—that it’s all a lie.”

Dean felt an uncomfortable sense of déjà vu. Hadn’t Sam said the same thing about staying with your sister when he had since fallen hard for you? It was all a lie, that he was deceiving himself. Dean’s mind raced. Long-term he was thinking that maybe this would somehow work out for the best but in the short-term… goddamn, it was going to be a mess and it was going to hurt like a bitch…

“Okay… Okay,” Dean muttered to himself, pacing another couple of tight circles. “Well, I agree with you. He has to find out but—the question is how?”

“Exactly. Do I tell him? Do I confront her and make her tell him? Do we somehow help him find it out for himself? I mean—what the fuck do we do?”

Dean looked at you, his mouth hanging open a little, at a loss. He shook his head absently, his green eyes wide. “I can see why you needed to shoot something…” he said vaguely.

You sighed and nodded. “Yeah…”

[the-headbop-wraith]

X 

3 _ 40 _ The Land Time Forgot

 Part 2

 Before the Mystery Skulls could begin officially on their new assignment, they swung by headquarters office and met with security. Temporary passes went to each member, even the Mystery hound. Once the park was shut down fully and the cleaning crews made the final rounds, the crew took one assigned golf cart over to the Land that Time Forgot attraction. Arthur was issued the keys, and he was the one grumbling about coming out to do this gig.

 “Just pretend we’ve been called off holiday for an emergency exorcism,” Lewis, once again, tried to appeal for optimism.

 Arthur held the staff access open for his crew. The corridor extending within dark and though the emergency lamps buzzed active, only afforded so much light for them to navigate by. They had backpacks with essential supplies loaded up, flashlight torches among the essential gear, but for the time the trope worked with the shoddy light and let their eyes acclimate.

 “I’m goin’ through with this, right?” Arthur snapped. “You go, I follow. Let me have my bitchin’ gripes, okay.”

 Mystery set a paw on his knee and yipped.

 Through the corridor Vivi led the way, with Mystery behind her, and Arthur with Lewis trailing. “We have maps,” she stated, “but we’ll take a patrol and get our orientation.” She swung around and pointed to Arthur. “Make sure walkies are on.”

 Arthur placed a hand on his chest. “I, turn my walkie-talkie off? Never.” He pinched his thumb and forefinger together, and whispered to Lewis, “I turn it down super-duper, itty-bitty low.”

 “Maybe don’t confess that.”

 The entirety of the ride was inactive and still, like browsing through the clothing section of a store alone, while the mannequins judged your every move. Though the animatronic dinosaurs were not immediately visible, their watchful gaze was felt by the members of the Mystery crew. No draft skittered through the interior building, and despite the abundance of foliage, there was an unnatural ambiance in the dearth of nocturnal presence. Everything about the attraction became otherworldly, detached from an established norm prevalent in the former active day – wherein lights and sound ran rampant. The isolated world of the ride was by perception boundless, yet sterile and contained like an ordinary jelly jar fitted with twigs and a bit of soil to appease a small insect or lizard.

 After making the rounds of the ride, the group placed themselves at the loading dock. The carts sat on their tracks within the suspended dividers, where guests could stand to climb in or out of the carts. The dull gleam of an emergency light draped its light over the collected members.  Mystery leapt into one buggy and put his paws on the front handlebars.

 Yap!

 Arthur pulled out a folded page and slapped it to the hood of the buggy. “Okay, fifteen animatronics. All chillin’, save for one.”

 “Allo,” Lewis presumed. “Won’t stop, can’t stop. Any idea where our dino-terror might be off to?” Vivi shifted at his side, digging around in her backpack.

 “There’s no tellin’ how much truth there is to Mr. Klayton’s story.” She clicked on a torch, but quickly shut it off. “But he’ll likely respond to light or sound, and movement.”

 “Like a real T-Rex,” Arthur groused.

 “Precisely,” she whispered. “We’ll trust it responds strongly to light, over sound. So be very quiet. Arthur.”

 Arthur glared. “Why’re you picking on me?”

 Lewis poked his shoulder. “You scream. Very loud. Alerts our foes. Not good.”

 Vivi came around to Arthur’s side and clicked on her light, though she kept a had capped to its side. “Our first order of business is determine how much control can be managed over this mechanical nuisance, wouldn’t you say?”

 Arthur nodded. “Yeah. Good start.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “That’ll depend on what’s bugging Allo, or what’s controlling him. That’ll give us a foundation for what we’re dealing with.”

 Lewis whistled, and Mystery gave a soft yip. The dog came over to his group and waltzed around them. “Let’s get a move on then. Get this thing flushed out, and see what it’ll do.”

 “I’d rather not,” Arthur whimpered.

 Vivi pointed to him. “You and Lewis then. You brave boys, see what you can figure out about the deactivated animatronics.” She turned away, studying the abyss of the ride interior. “You wanna start from the exit or entrance?”

 “Exit,” Lewis vouched. “You and Mystery then? What’ll you two get up to?” Arthur was already folding up the page, and began rummaging through his own backpack.

 “We’ll see about coercing Allo out.” She adjusted her backpack and moved her hand a little off the flashlight. “Don’t worry about us. We won’t get into any excitement without permission.”

 Lewis started after her. “But Vii, that’s dangerous!”

 From a considerable distance, she called back, “Turn on your walkie! We’ll meet you back here!”

 Lewis sighed, and reached around to his backpack for the volume switch. “En un buen comienzo, no es así.” He clicked the transmitter. “Viiiii….” Arthur grabbed him by the sleeve and began dragging him.

 “We’ll meet them middle way on the track. The sooner we start, the quicker we can finish.” He spoke, hushed. “But make too much noise, that dino will zero in on us.”

 Once released, Lewis hopped off the end of the loading slab and followed. “You have no escrúpulos about this?”

 Arthur grumbled under his breath. “Let’s set the record straight, she saved your butt today. Don’t forget that.”

__

 When they moved beyond the range of walls and certified fortifications to guide them toward the world outside, the attraction became more unsettling as the artificial jungle scenery enclosed and thickened around them. High and in the distance, a red sign blazed faithfully above the gloomy fronds towering, but it seemed a mocking landmark, enticing misguided travelers. A lure on an angler fish, while unknown perils lurking like jagged teeth ready to ensnare the gullible.

 Trekking within the thicket was monotonous, given that Arthur examined each and all of the inactive puppets dotted throughout the foliage. This task was made possible due to an interesting and terrifying feature of the animatronics; a mirror in the eyes reflected light, similarly to genuine nocturnal animals. By setting the flashlight to their face, it illuminated the eyes and singled out where each machine was if within the appropriate range.

 “I’m getting jumpscared trying to find the chill pacifists,” Arthur muttered. He held a clipboard in both hands, while Lewis held a torch. The two sifted among the plastic and cloth replicated plants, working closer to the giant carnotaurus. The animatronic gazed into the endless black, a sentinel. “That thing is a ship with teeth.”

 The two stood beneath it, dwarfed.

 “Can you imagine if this ONE was running around?” Lewis whispered, but a little too loud. He capped his flashlight. “The damage it’d do.”

 Arthur stumbled forward, but Lewis caught him before he could fall. He grumbled about the uneven floor, where fabricated vegetation lay tattered. “Damn. Yeh. Another tally for human interference.” They made the remainder of the way to the column legs. “I haven’t seen all the entrances or exits, but it’d be more practical for them to access a machine with mobility security.” Lewis moved away from him, taking the light with him.

 “Here’s another penny for your thoughts.” Lewis aimed the torch down on the carnotaurus feet and prodded the claws with his sneaker. “Allo shredded those fences and bit a poll in two.”

 Arthur knelt, the clipboard balanced on his thigh. “Yeah, I was there. Well, sorta. What’re you getting’ at?”

 “The wood was reduced to toothpicks. Toothpicks.” Lewis applied more pressure to the claw. “Klayton said the animatronics were made nerfed, so they wouldn’t damage each other if they get into a ‘brawl’.” He did air quotes, momentarily redirecting the slice of light through the canopy. “And to prevent them from tearing up the set. But all the animatronics we’ve looked at, have pliable rubber claws. The toes here, too.”

 Arthur wrote onto the notebook pinned to his clipboard. “Good catch. So, our feathered nightmare can’t be a part of this attraction. The question now, where did he come from?”

 “Or when he arri—” Arthur leapt up and capped a hand over his mouth.

 “Shh!” He went into alert mode, spiked hair standing on end and eyes dissecting the area over-and-over. “The light,” he hissed. Lewis shut the light off. In the blanket of null and sensory deprivation, Arthur uttered, “Yu hear that?”

 Lewis wouldn’t dare move, aside from rove through the daunting gloom with his limited visual capacity. However, he trusted Arthur’s perception, there was good reason to be alarmed. Also, Arthur was rarely wrong. For a short time, nothing trickled through to suggest a presence or any direct threat. Then, a faint but ambiguous rustling – it was impossible to determine the direction. He tugged Arthur’s hand down.

 “Vivi? Mystery?” he squeaked. The sounds ceased. Not good. “Let’s go this way.” He pushed Arthur sideways. “I hope that thing doesn’t see in infrared.”

 “Don’t jinx it— ARGH!” Arthur twisted around, his legs became tangled with Lewis’ ankles and the two collapsed. This incident was to their benefit, when the allosaur launched its snout through the shrubbery and snapped on empty air. “RETREAT!” He took off running, but more shredded, decorative texture in the terrain sent Arthur crashing in a stringy-bean heap.

 Lewis rolled aside and plucked up a rock. “You stop that right now!” He brought the suspiciously light rock down on Allo’s head, which succeeded in destroying the fake plaster prop between his palms. The Allosaur seemed to blink off the assault. “I pictured that going a lot differently in my head….”

 The allosaur swung its head back and screamed a prehistoric yowl. Lewis grabbed the flashlight he dropped and staggered backwards, mind churning through the benefits of turning tail and running versus trying to face the machine. Bottom line, he needed something to slow it down with. The team studied the machine, it’s many malfunctions, and how to locate the thing….

 But forgot to devise the certified way to incapacitate it! And it was going to require more than dropping an anvil on its head.

 With a piercing snarl the allosaur thrust its jaws out, cutting the distance between it and Lewis in mere seconds. Its teeth clamped down on soft material and it began thrashing, hissing, and snorting.

 Arthur released the chunk of fake palm trunk he swung into Allo’s teeth and back peddled. “I’m all for solving this case lickety-split, but we won’t do much of that in traction.” He snatched away Lewis’ flashlight and searched the ground, until he spied the notebook with the clipboard.

 “Valid point.” Lewis began after Arthur, springing over a cracked log. “Vivi!”

 “Viv-vi!” Arthur hollered. “Where’s the road?” He jammed the notebook in the backpack and fitted it safely to his spine. One more shield between him and teeth!

 Lewis bolted between two close standing trees. “Keep running, the track winds around here. We’ll intercept with them, we gotta! Vivi!”

 A fearsome wail shot through the once silent theme ride. Despite the ground Arthur and Lewis covered, the noises of cracking timber and thumping footsteps propelled after them from the oppressive gloom. The thunder and rumble gained, growing intense and closing fast.

 Arthur barely dodged a set of small standing dinosaurs, emotionless and motionless in the dark. “Help us, we’re gunna DAI!”

 __

There was absolutely no way some hulking, mechanical nightmare could navigate the staged scenery without alerting her or her companion. The slightest movement issued rustling or crinkling, from the material used to fabricate soil and lush greenery, to the low hanging branches lumped by carefully sculpted cloth, and the canopy high above. Everything smelled artificial and tinged with dust, it reminded her of offices with the fake plants that hung around forever. Not the nice ones that looked real, but the very fake, obvious fake plants with plastic stems and ratty cloth soil with the green Styrofoam base. It was likely more impressive with the lights and sound ambiance of living things, even if artificial. She wished they had a chance to go through the ride and see what it was like.

 “Hello!” Vivi called. “Rawr! Rawr-rawr!” Then, she paused and listened. Not an echo nor a snort. Would the animatronic snort? In all the excitement that day she didn’t see much of it in action, aside from its retreating tail end. “That’s ‘I love you’ in dinosaur!”

 Bark. Mystery kept his tone low, while he slunk beneath some fern leaves.

 “Machines need love too.” She swung her flashlight through the faux grove, a thick haze of dust swirled through the blue beam. “Echo!”

 Mystery’s eyes glint as he rolled them. He trotted ahead, sniffing at the ground. It was spongy and soft, a layer of plant fiber set above sand or wood chips.

 “Any leads?”

 Woof. He toed at a fake collection of rocks – them being fake because they were glued together.

 “Maybe the therma frost broke it for good.” She snuck around a tree trunk, the structure made of cement and rock hard. A lush green, petrified tree. “I hope not, I was looking forward to cracking this case.” The light she flashed through the depths of interwoven branches, and wiggled it swiftly like a strobe.

 Mystery yipped.

 “Therma, perma. What’s the differ—ENCE!” She froze, her light caught the burning glare of twin orbs suspended three meters above the floor. “Mystery….”

 Mystery gave a noisy snort and inched forward, but wiht caution. His ears straight, eyes intense.

 Vivi let the light trail down. “Hmm?” She swung the light down and up. “Oh, that one’s way too big.”

 Borf. Mystery trotted the remainder of the way, with Vivi in tow.

 “That looks like a mini-Rex. Baby T-Rex?” she posed. She went up and touched the underside of the belly. “The eyes glow. That’s nice to know.” She continued prodding the mini-Rex. “Squishy.”

 Mystery yapped. When she turned a light on him, the hound nodded aside and resumed his trek.

 “You gotta admit, they are cool. For cheesy attractions.” Vivi whistled, as loudly as she could muster. Sometimes she would give a hoop, or a holler. “Aside from the technicians, no one else is probably allowed this close to them. Except for Allo nuisance, he does his own thing.” She took a deep breath and gave her loudest yell yet.

 Mystery stopped in his tracks and gave her the widest-eyed stare.

 Vivi aimed the torch through the brush, listening. “Where could it be? We don’t have the time to search half the park this night.”

 A few yards away, Mystery padded up a decorative slanted log and perched at the peak. Nothing to the right, nothing to the left. Yip! He leapt off and landed beside Vivi. He grumbled under his breath and barked.

 “Let’s wait ‘til we meet up with them. We might cross paths on the way there.” It would be a while before they returned to the entrance of the ride, but somewhere they had to cross paths with the Allosaur. That is, if the machine was still within the attraction, or within sensory range to her dino-summons. She was beginning to doubt it remained inside the attraction, if like Mr. Klayton indicated, it was becoming more mobile. That was going to be a problem.

 “If we can’t draw it out,” she began, “we can’t devise a way to coax it, or restrain it. It shredded a fence just fine, but maybe we can tangle it up in a good net?”

 Yarf.

 “Cliché. But effective.” A sound from the rear startled her. She whipped around with the flashlight, holding steady and listening. It wasn’t a sound, was it? The fake foliage settling as they passed, nothing ominous or pursuing. “A snare?” She flashed the light over the tree branches. “Hmm. But what sort of cable and how much tension?”

 Mystery whined.

 “I want to get with Arthur on that.” She turned her light and recoiled! An ominous and hulking shape crouched behind a flowering palm plant. A stegosaur, or something. It stood on four short, but column legs. “I don’t trust the owner, or Ms. Attorney Lady. But I wanna catch him in a lie, and try getting a read if he’s into something shady or….”

 The walkie-talkie crackled against her backpack, squealing with a surge of static and muffled yammering, all of what might’ve been voices.

 “Or if he’s not very bright,” she ended, in sigh. She unclipped the communicator and snapped the send button. “Lewis! That you?”

 “AAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

 “Lewis.” She snapped the device away when a roar ripped through.

 Mystery sat down and gave his ear a well-deserved scratch.

 “Talk to me, boys! What’s happened?” She picked up with a run, the beam of her torch bounded across the uneven terrain and across elephant ear leaves. “I think I know what’s going on, but are you okay?” Mystery caught up at her side, his collar rattling in rapid succession with his zipping stride.

 In the background and distant, Arthur came through chattering up a panicked storm, “It found us! We’re bein’ chased— WeWereSoFuckingCarefulThisIsUtterBullShit!”

 “Language Arthur!”

 “My gods, Lewis! We’re gunna DAI!” The communicator gave a dramatic, electrical wail as Vivi toggled the relay switch.

 “Okay! Okay! We’re on our way, don’t panic!”

 Bark!

 “Who’s panicking?” Arthur wailed. “We’re being chased! We’re so lost, and we’re being chased!”

 Lewis hollered through, loud and clear, “Where are you!”

 “Not at the entrance.” One of the animatronics was in her path, once again freaking her out – what with all the noises churning through the communicator. “Find your way to the backside! I don’t know where we are! Can you make it to the back? This place is a box, we can follow along the wall—”

 A response was not forthcoming, not for her. Lewis gasped, speech labored, “Watch out!” Following came snippets of silence, with patches of Arthur screaming and the Allosaur shrieking. Some sort of distinctive weight thumped, almost vibrating the walkie-talkie in her palm. There was some cussing in there and harsh scuffling. The screech of the Dinosaur became intense, until it was right there in the communicator.

 “What’s happening?” Vivi halted in her tracks and listened through the device, terse and powerless.

 Mystery shot by, his barks fading as he tore through the pseudo jungle. Vivi resumed in a job, leaping logs and some sort of small animal puppet. The whole time, the communicator was treacherous and silent.

 “Hang in there! Mystery and I got your trail!” When she snapped her finger off the transmitter, Arthur’s voice punched through:

 “This was a bad idea! I told you guys, didn’t I say? I called it! One Hundred Percent CALLED IT! I’m a fucking seer! AYYYEEEEEE!”

 RAAARRR!

 “Just shut up and run!” Lewis snarled.

 __

  How far the Allosaur was behind them, this was hard to say. It followed with intense, single-minded focus, pronouncing the diminishing stretch by cavernous bellows. The duo was in some horrendous video game level with an instant game over, snapping at their heels.

  The jittering beams of their flashlight flickered across the thick fibrous carpet, revealing snags and gleaming across sinister disasters hidden among the shadows. Though, neither Arthur or Lewis paid much mind to the ground beneath them – except to save them from colliding with a low branch – focus was averted high above, to the bright mocking glare of the EXIT sign. It was a beacon in the night, the easiest recognizable landmark in the abyss of the hellish attraction.

  “Hang in there! Mystery and I got your trail!” crackled through the radio Lewis gripped, the plastic creaked under intense pressure.

  He toggled the transmitter, “THANK YOU!” He was having a hard time keeping up with Arthur, despite inspiration being super motivating.

  The Allosaur gave a peeling shriek, the noise of it vibrating in Lewis’ ears, growing louder and more deafening. It was right at his backside.

  Lewis scrapped between two narrow trees, nearly getting wedged in the narrow space. A rebounding Thunk! echoed, and the Allosaur hissed. But the sound of it did drift away. However, he did not stop to look or spare a thought, he recovered his speed and tried to catch up with Arthur. He pinpointed him by the sporadic patches of yellow light flittering through the shrubs, and managed to catch his stride.

  “Pepper!” he panted.

  “Kingsman!” Lewis vaulted over a rock.

  “Nice day at the office!”

   “Marvelous! Absolutamente asombroso!”

  “Technically, it’s nighttime.”

  Lewis exhaled, “True!”

   A thundering screech crashed through the plastic flora somewhere to the left. The Allosaur was gaining, due to the fact it was not a living animal. On the other hand, Lewis and Arthur ran on fumes.

  “The Exit, there should be a door!” Lewis huffed. The red beacon was neigh ninety degrees airborne, a few more meters they should come to the boarders of the building.

  The line of his light did hit a sheer and solid surface, which by the explanation of his light revealed a rugged boarder of stone standing at about ten or eleven feet. Well above his height clearance. But there was no clean cut wall, no slate, and no irrefutable explanation of exit. Nothing but a cliff face.

  Being more spry and agile, Arthur flew up the wall like a squirrel. He chucked his light up, his hands caught grips with practiced ease and with a small bit of leverage propelled himself skyward.

   That looked easy! Lewis jammed the flashlight between his teeth and felt for a handhold. His fingers easily found a knot, he braced his foot and—

  Fell backwards. With a hunk of cheap plaster gripped in his hands.

   “Lewis!” Arthur set his light down on his teammate, and hissed, “What the FACK?! Get up here!”

  Lewis bit down on his flashlight and scrambled to his feet. From his safe perch, Arthur held the light steady while Lewis took another fixture of the coarse wall and shoved his toes into niche. He managed to ease himself up a foot or so, but applying too much weight and the crappy Styrofoam snapped. The outer layer was stiff and scrapped his knuckles when he came down. Lewis looked up at Arthur and they locked eyes.

  “AAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

   The Allosaur shrieked. Arthur turned his light up, catching the eye sheen of the animatronic as it barreled through the fake jungle. “Oh my god! Um, Don’t move! I’ll get help!”

  Lewis spat out the flashlight. “Arthur?” The Allosaur expelled another echoing howl. He turned, angling his light through the thicket. “Arthur!” The soft yellow light that drenched him, was now gone. Lewis had never felt so alone, so utterly betrayed. “ARTHUR!”

  The thundering parade of the Allosaur hurtled toward his focal point, everywhere it went the plants rustled and crashed. It snarled, the sounds of its violent procession closing in on him. It must have infrared vision!

  Lewis pressed his back against the cold fake rock. The Allosaur bounded through the thicket, the frayed ends of his light brushed against its snout. It closed in with terrible swiftness, weaving around artificial plants, but never once detracting for more than a millisecond. Lewis began inching away, if he timed it right, it might just shatter its CPU. But his timing had to be impeccable.

  A blissful light drenched his shoulders, along with a stringy long rope thing. Likely a vine prop. The tale end of Arthur’s hoot, “—Tight!” Came through, and Lewis had enough foresight to piece together the full phrase. Without delay he dropped his flashlight and grabbed the rope.

  The Allosaur barreled forward, chewing through the remaining few feet, teeth glittering in the spotlight Arthur cast. Lewis braced himself, he wasn’t sure what for. A Tarzan themed holler peeled from above high, and Lewis shot up at rocket speed. The angle of the line zipped him across the upper edge of the plaster cliff face. He cleared it but barely, his jeans scrapped eliciting a sharp yelp. Out somewhere across the open air, the Tarzan yowl waned in its descent.

  Then Arthur really started screaming.

   Lewis had to release the vine thing, or he would have gotten skinned on the concrete surface of the floor he was on. He crawled to the edge, and peering down tried to make sense of the swaying murk below. A succession of snarling poured forth of the large, black heap; it thrashed and swept into a stray flash of the yellow beam Arthur held. He thought this was clear indication where Arthur wound up, but the light cut off. He heaved off his backpack and dug through the folders and tools, until his palms clasped the large cylinder camping lamp.

  “I did NOT THINK THIS THROUGH!”

  He clicked the light on and turned it down. There was Arthur, running around the erratic animatronic. The dinosaur roved in circles, shaking and snapping, not fully invested in chasing the yellow blur. After affording a brief examination, he recognized the actual issue. The other end of the rope was snagged between its teeth, and the animatronic was fighting to cut it free. The line was tangled somewhere, this provided by how every time the Allosaur went to turn on Arthur, it’s head snapped sideways.

  “Arthur!” he hooted. “ArthurArthurArthurArthur!” He dashed along the edge of the cliff flailing the flashlight around. “Get over here ya dweeb!”

  The rope at last snapped with a grueling CRACK! and the Allosaur swept its snout towards the tiptoeing figure. A peeling shriek, something like an EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE shot out of Arthur as he did a one-eighty and charged out into the jungle thicket.

  A rumbling snarl thundered out as the Allosaur resumed its chase, it’s tail flashing out of sight within the shrubbery.

  Lewis stamped his foot. “Damnit!”

  __

  Meanwhile, Arthur was running for his life. Several times he nearly stumbled or lost his footing. Though he had the advantage of choosing a tight pathway difficult for Allo to pursue, the animatronic was not distracted by a second target. It was able to lay full focus on him, and track him with crazed efficiency. Or frenzy. He managed to catch his second wind in the meager intermission, but his muscles were giving out. Running on the spongey floor was strenuous, and the Allosaur’s grating call was closing in. If it got a clean opening, it would have its jaws on his neck.

  There! He took a sharp right, in the line of sight of Allo. The dinosaur lunged, but Arthur already tucked into a stunt roll. Its feet trounced the earth right behind his shoulders, but he kept going until he was back on his feet. At no more than two meters there was some shadow, and bent – what he guessed would be roots – the trees weren’t real. But that black, unmistakable, hollowed space – there was no mistake on what that was. He’d stake his life on it, as he was about to.

  The roots were concrete, hard as stone, bent and arched around a gouged hollow beneath the fake tree. Arthur clambered through the wedge, with the Allosaur not more than a breath behind his feet. His immediate thought was, ‘How deep is this!’ He smacked his flashlight against the wall and the light doused, the space around him blacked out. His hands prodded the walls seeking space or drafts, he jammed his elbows and shoulders at every inch, pushing further away from the hissing hydraulics of the Allosaur as it snapped and worked its way after him.

  He felt the walls and ceiling, using his legs to kick for any missed crease that might afford an exit. There was nothing but concrete on all sides – left, right, up, and down – solid, unyielding.

  “SHIT!”

  The Allosaur snapped its jaws inches from his knee. “Fuck you!” Arthur tried kicking its snout, however ineffective it was. The machine twisted its neck and squeezed in further, the servos in its jaws whirling. It wouldn’t help, even if he wasn’t exhausted. He had nowhere to go—

   Something snagged his collar and yanked him upward. He gave a little sob.

  “Gotcha! I got ya Artie!” Lewis heaved him out of the hollow between the knotted roots, and dropped him on the ground. “You okay?” He adjusted the camping light, checking Arthur over, making sure he was in one piece.

  “Yes, fuck! That was too close!” Arthur gave his own body a full pat down. All there, except for the gash in his vest where he fell earlier. All the stuffing on that side fell out. “It almost turned me into bubblegum!” He got onto his feet and paced a bit, before stopping to hunch over and set his palms to his knees. He just needed to breathe a moment.

  “Take it easy now, you’re fine.” Arthur took a noisy breath and gargled. “Smooth, climbing into that… what is this? A burrow?” Lewis turned his light onto the opening, where he hauled Arthur out.

  “I don’t give a toot what it is.” Arthur rounded the side of the tree, but cautiously. The Allosaur was still being raucous, snarling and grunting. It sounded like they had some time to catch their breath. “Probably for those lil dinosaur thingies. Are they chickens? The small nuggets.”

  Lewis quirked his brow and shined the light across his face. “Raptors?”

  “Chicken tenders,” Arthur insisted.  Lewis came over with the light and stood beside him, observing as the Allosaur persisted with its struggles. And failed to free itself.

  “It’s… not getting loose, huh? It’s stuck.” He shined the light lower, against the backside and shoulders of the unruly thing. It was surreal, watching the rubber suit cover on the dinos backside jiggle, but not ripple like the way muscles should. As muscles would, if on a real animal. For most of the night they were running from this thing, and it felt very real, like a hunting predator. Not some deranged AI, or whatever went off with it. Nonetheless dangerous, but creepy and sinister.

  “Y’know what,” Lewis went on, stunned, “I think you caught it!”

  Arthur gasped. “NO!” He leaned a little closer, but wouldn’t get too close. “No! Really? I did it? I did it! The case is over!” He throws his arms up. “WHOO! I am a mastermind!”

  “Don’t get too hyped,” Lewis warned. “We caught it, but we still don’t know what’s up with it, or if someone is controlling it.”

  “CASE CLOSED!” Arthur hooted. “Our contract said we have only gotta catch it! Done deal!”

  Lewis chuckled and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Por el amor de…” he sighed. “Y’know, lemme be honest, I thought you bailed back there. On that cliff.”

  Arthur dropped his arms and gave Lewis a befuddled stare. He winced when Lewis shined the light his way. “What! What kind of loser do you take me for? Abandoning my best bro. Get outta here.” Lewis laughed.

  “It was pretty stupid.” He turned the light back onto the Allo. “I have a habit of overestimating myself, getting in over my head. You guys… always come back, and keep me outta trouble.”

  Arthur shrugged. “Eh, we’re even now. Right?”

  “Right.” He held up his fist. Arthur smirked, and returned the fist bump.

   The Allosaur gave a grating wail, gears grind in its neck as the body twisted, the rear legs shoved at the padded terrain. At the cement roots, they crackled and squealed. With another shriek, the Allosaur ripped its shoulders free – a flint of light ignited off the Allosaur’s neck.

  “Shit!” Lewis backed up, and pulled Arthur with him.

  “Fuck a balloon!”

  The Allosaur hauled its arms and neck free, the cement barrier that once caged it snapped apart. Lewis swung his light on the dinosaur, the beam momentarily illuminated a space on its arm torn open, revealing foam and inner padding. It was fleeting, and before Arthur or Lewis could react to what would happen next, the dinosaur veered aside and charged off. Disappearing into the fake foliage of the eerily silent jungle. The thundering footfalls and rustling shrubbery diluted after seconds, until once more silence tormented the fabricated fauna sprawling abundant.

  Arthur dropped, but Lewis caught him before he collapsed entirely. The taller figure held onto his friend, and used his other arm to pat his back. Arthur sniffled and shuddered.

  “There-there. We knew it was way too easy.”

   “We never get a freebee!”

  Off somewhere, echoing yaps rebounded through the area. Lewis gave a holler, and reached down to take up the camping lamp. “Over here!” He swung the light around, flashing the vibrant rosy beam through the clutter of petri-timber. “We’re okay!”

  “No we’re not!”

  Lewis sighed. “We’re in one piece!”

   “Yeah!”

  Soon, the panting rasp of a dog threaded its way towards the two. Once Lewis was able to interpret the direction, he hauled Arthur with him toward his teammates. “Vivi?”

  “Yeppers!” she called. She was not far from the dogy gasping. “You got away from it?” The swaying blue beam preceded the clopping footfalls as she raced to them, out of breath and hair frazzled. “What happened? You’re both okay?” Upon seeing Arthur hanging off Lewis, she handed her flashlight off to Mystery and knelt before him.

  “He’s in a little shock.”

  Arthur whimpered, “It got away.” Vivi scrunched up her face.

  “That’s… not something I expected to hear from you.”

  Arthur brought his hands to his head. “No! We managed to trap it—”

  Vivi turned her eyes up to Lewis. “You caught it!”

  “Eh,” Lewis shrugged. “Isn’t that past-tense?” He moved down the slope, guiding the path with his lamp. “Temporarily snared.”

  Vivi groaned, “I miss all the fun stuff!” Arthur balked.

  The group examined over the area, inside the warren and the arched cement tree roots, decorative fantasy décor for the ride-goers. Vivi took interest in the snapped root ends, where the rebar stuck out, warped and shattered.

  Vivi poked the corrupt end of rebar. “Can we decide how much gauge of cable to use, when we need to catch it?”

  Arthur stood nearby, gazing off into the thicket with Lewis’ lamp flittering through the grove. “Sure. I don’t think it’ll have that much tensile strength in its hydraulics.” He perked his lips and nodded his head. “But we’ll work on how to keep it from tearing loose later. We kinda fucked up figurin’ how we’ll get it into the trap, though.”

  Lewis was crouched, giving Mystery’s shoulders a rub while the dog laid on the floor resting. “True. But we can vouch that Mr. Allo is on someone’s payroll.” He perked, and stood. “Did you see, Art? It did rip its skin cover, on its arm.”

  Arthur didn’t answer immediately, vouching to listen and study the perimeter. “We can try shorting it, given if the interior wiring isn’t insulated. That’s no guarantee.” He patted his own arm. “Insulation takes time to incorporate, and costs extra. It would also bulk out the equipment. So, we can think of that as an alternative, if getting it to behave doesn’t work.”

  Vivi stretched and gave a yawn. “Okay, we have some intel to work with. It seems like time to call it a night, sound good?”

  “You won’t hear a complaint from me,” Arthur chimed. “Stick a fork in me.” He was already walking away, with Mystery hurrying after. Lewis grabbed up his backpack and followed.

  “The Allo might need to recharge,” Lewis mentioned. He took Vivi’s hand, and helped her up a loose fitted slope. “Each animatronic has a battery life for a few days, but we don’t know how long our friend has been running amuck. That might be the reason it took off.”

  Vivi adjusted the light between her hands. “We’ll snoop around the park in the morning, try and find where it went and build our game plan. Did you guys hear me, I was making a lot of noise. That thing didn’t give a truck about Mystery or me.”

  Ruff!

  “I didn’t hear ya, but I’ll take your word for it” Lewis affirmed. “Someone has access to the Allo controls.”

  Vivi stroked her chin. “Someone that knows we’re investigating the park.”

  Together, Lewis and Vivi did a dramatic, “Hmm….” Simultaneously.

  Arthur yawned and rubbed his face. “Can you guys draw up accusations tomorrow? After we’ve slept on it.”

  Woof.

   Together, the Mystery Skulls navigated their way through the fabricated jungle, trading stories on the encounter with the Allosaur and their escape. At one point Arthur stopped midsentence and in his tracks, then turned the camping lamp around the area they were currently within.

  “Where the fuck are we?”

[stormyweaver]

Borrowed Time || Chp. 1

So my latest hyperfixation has been this show on Netflix called ‘Swee/t Home’. It’s a live-action South Korean adaption of a webtoon comic, and seriously if you’ve never heard of it before, at least watch the first episode. If you aren’t hooked, gosh, I don’t know what could make a person want more! But you don’t have to have seen the show to enjoy this I think, but again I’d highly reccommend checking the series out. I adore every single character and I’ll probably be writing more about them all, but for now I’m focusing on Pyeon San/g-wook because h-he’s my fave... He’s basically a mysterious drifter who dolls out justice in his own badass way, and he’s amazing and a super complex character. 

MAJOR SPOILERS FOR EPISODE FIVE, YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED:

This is after Sang-wook kills the pedophile he was hired to find, and then drags his body outside while bringing two other victims who had died to a monster inside the apartment building. It was pouring raining and my brain instantly went: how can you have a out-in-the-rain scene without sickness? BLASPHEMY! Anyway hope y’all enjoy!

The timing might have been slightly comical if he didn't have a splitting headache. Or, was it a concussion? That... nurse had mentioned something similar, but he truly hadn't paid her any mind. Why would he give someone so prying the time of day in the first place? He hated being touched without his permission, no matter the reason; maybe she had simply been trying to help, but there was absolutely no way in hell he was going to let her continue treating him as if he was some weakling.

No, he only... felt weak, due to all of the stress. He would bounce back eventually - he inevitably did. Though he could never fully comprehend why, his body had an uncanny ability to heal faster than most, and bestowed him with a strength that most people only ever imagined themselves possessing. It had served him well over the years, made him capable of surviving on his own for as long as he'd needed to, aided him in carrying out the tasks others simply didn't have the stomach for. It had of course, had it's downsides - there were injuries and ailments he simply couldn't knock in a matter of hours, and those instances where he'd been forced to finally allow his body to rest were intensely irritating.

A bead of sweat rolled down his forehead as he staggered through the dirtied hallway and, sensing that he was finally alone, allowed himself to lean bodily against a flyer-littered wall. His breath was coming in short, harsh pants, almost bordering on wheezing, though his teeth instantly grit at the idea. He wasn't weak-- damn it, if Jae-heon had just left him out there to die, he wouldn't be feeling like utter, completely useless shit right now. The zealot likely loathed him just like the rest, if not fear then at the very least an intense dislike. Only his 'vows' or whatever meaningless word of God had made him keep the gate open. He swallowed- or rather, made an attempt to, and was unsurprised to find that the action was mildly painful. Pair that was the throbbing near his sinuses, the malaise, and the general feeling of being lethargic, it wouldn't take a medical professional to inform him that he was unwell. What was that old saying? Something about only fools catching a chill from standing out in the rain? Nonsense. But... well, he wasn't about to start pondering old proverbs with a pounding headache. At least he wasn't getting a nose bleed. Just a stuffy one. It took Sang-wook longer than he would have preferred to stand up straight again and continue limping down the walkway, but eventually he did, coming to a stop on the corner of a vacant room. He could practically hear his limbs creak as he perched himself on the edge of a step, and one hand automatically slipped into his jacket pocket. Some habits were harder to break than others. And if ever there a time he truly needed a smoke... With the lit cigarette between his lips, he began to ponder what his next move would be. He had technically finished his business there; no other reason to remain other than the fact that fucking monsters were roaming the city. Of all the positively inconvenient bullshit - monsters. Not that he had any real plans after taking care of matters. He never did. Being a drifter meant not making attachments, not allowing himself to get roped into anything unless it was related to his main task. And yet there he was, with an apartment full of people who either saw him as a thug or a threat or, for some irritatingly insane reason, a person to be pardoned. A laughable concept at best. He didn't even want to be pardoned - he didn't regret the things he had done, to begin with. And wasn't that one of the key steps to getting into heaven? Being repentant for your sins? Well, that was already one big strike against him. Just how did that damned nosey priest expect him to continue on, then? Why had he been so adamant about "saving" him? Why? A trail of smoke filtered past his nostrils, nose absently wrinkling as the thoughts only served to frustrate him all the more. What the hell was he going to do... He brought the stick to his lips again, but his breath caught pre-inhale, mouth forming a deeper frown than normal. A small pin-prick had been stinging the back of his nose ever since he'd woken up, but so far he'd been able to ignore it. Until now. He sniffed harshly, once, twice and, thinking that was that, but the moment he closed his lips around the cigarette, he inhaled harshly through his nose. "hH'KGSHHh!" The sneeze jerked his head down sharply, though he managed to keep it relatively quiet. The last thing he needed was some passerby hearing and having the guts to try and approach him. Though containing it hadn't done his headache any favors, and his teeth had nearly snapped the cigarette in half. Hell, he couldn't even smoke in peace. What was the point of still being alive, again? "You shouldn't be smoking," Ah, there it was. Sang-wook didn't need to glance up in order to place the voice - he could smell the self-righteousness from a mile away. Or, he would have, had he been able to smell anything at the moment.

Resisting the urge to sniffle, he made no attempt at offering even a semblance of acknowledgement towards the other. Not that it would stop him from poking his nose where it didn't belong, so it came as no surprise when Jae-heon stood directly in front of him, gradually lowering himself until he was seated similarly to the other with a soft grunt. Sighing, Sang-wook plucked the useless cigarette from his lips and tossed it to the floor, swiftly crunching it beneath his boot. "I'm not,"

Jae-heon hummed in acknowledgement. "I don't say it to judge," Sang-wook wasn't sure why he felt the need to clarify, but his gaze did flit over to the other's general direction for a moment. He could see the glint his blade gave off out of the corner of his eye. Curious. Although he didn't doubt the other's skill, he just didn't see a point in taking it with him everywhere. But that was ultimately his choice, and he didn't have the mental capacity to bother pondering why he did so. "How are you feeling?" The scarred man barely lifted his eyes to Jae-heon, who gestured with his chin towards the direction Sang-wook had originally walked from. "Yu-ri took a look at your head injury, right? Is it serious?"

The only response he gave was a meager shrug. Sang-wook wouldn't willingly give information about how he was feeling when it didn't matter in the long run. Whether he was fine or slowly bleeding out, what difference would it make? You shouldn't be alive in the first place; why does he care? God, thinking made his head throb. Couldn't he just be alone in this god forsaken complex for more than a solid minute?

He heard Jae-heon sigh, noted him shift slightly, but still kept his gaze glued to the floor. "What you did... I can't agree with your actions," Sang-wook almost scoffed aloud. Was he really expected to listen to a lecture about right and wrong? His attention was already split, anyway. The itch sparked in his sinuses still burned, not having been satisfied with the weak excuse for a sneeze, and every facial muscle was tensed as he worked to smother the sensation into submission. At least he always happened to look stoic, so he doubted the other would notice. Still, hearing Jae-heon gear up for a sermon of sorts didn't bode well for his waning resolve. "But I do understand why you did what you did. The others might not - they might still see you as something that you're not-" "What would you know about what I am?" Sang-wook interjected sharply, a scowl evident on his features. Admittedly, it hurt to talk, and he internally cringed at the trace of hoarseness in his voice. But he didn't like anyone thinking of him as some misunderstood wretch worthy of some kind of redemption. He wasn't a hero, he wasn't a villain, not good or evil - he simply was, and he never needed to be more or less than that, didn't need to satisfy anyone's opinion of him. Jae-heon glanced down momentarily, looking as if he were trying to gather his thoughts. Speaking could come as easily as breathing at certain times, and yet there were moments were every point of diction managed to fail him. "I'm not here to pity you. And I wouldn't claim to understand you. Every person has their reasons for what they do - and every person has to stand with those reasons before the almighty. I'm not here to judge," The scarred skin beneath Sang-wook's eye jumped slightly. "Then what are you here to do? Whatever it is, you're wasting your..." He had to pause, throat constricting momentarily before he sighed unevenly through his nose, "... breath. You should be more concerned about yourself," Jae-heon couldn't help but quirk a miniscule smile at that. "That isn't God's way. Besides, I wouldn't still be alive if I had decided to be selfish," His thoughts shifted to Hyun-su, Mr. Han, Ms. Im and Ji-su - he had all of them to thank for his life, for making it this far. People who, while they may not have shared the same faith as himself, had believed that sticking together and looking after each other was the way to survive - was the right path. No matter their differences, they chose to be selfless, and that was what had led them to finding the other survivors. Sang-wook didn't reply, mainly due to the fact that he wasn't sure he could safely do so without breaking his concentration. Though it didn't matter - Jae-heon continued anyway. "You didn't have to bring back Min-Ju and Su-ung. I won't ask you why, because to me, what matters is that you did. That means something," When Sang-wook didn't respond again, Jae-heon opened his mouth to continue, only to be silenced when the other opposite him took in a sharp inhale and twisted off to the side. "hH'GKxnt! h'HCHGnt!" Jae-heon blinked for a moment, not really startled by the sneezes but seeming to examine Sang-wook with a little more scrutiny, to which the the other flashed him a glare. Unfazed, he continued to gaze at the other. "You look pale. You should be resting," Sang-wook simply scoffed, cringing at the phlegm lining his throat. He desperately needed to sniff back the moisture threatening to breach his nostrils, but his pride held the action back as Jae-heon continued to press the issue. "You're up and about after having passed out - and you were in the rain for a good while. You might be getting sick," And if he was? What the hell did it matter? Sang-wook wanted to press both heels of his palms against his eyes and grind until the pressure behind them lessened at least a little. He was exhausted, and fatigue suddenly swept over him like the storm clouds still raging outside. Everything felt heavy and sluggish which, for someone with normally such sharp senses, was more than off-putting. It felt wrong. He felt wrong. Why was the good Christian wasting time worrying about whether or not he was ill when there were literal monsters still roaming the apartment? As if sensing his turmoil, Jae-heon finally moved to stand back up, katana blade resting by his side. "You should go see Yu-ri - at the very least she can give you something for your head," He began to turn away, paused, then uttered something that made the skin on the back of Song-wook's neck prickle uncomfortably.

"Take care of yourself," Jae-heon’s retreating footsteps seemed to echo unusually loud, and it wasn't until he could no longer hear them any longer that Sang-wook finally indulged in a thick, pitiful sniffle and allowed his head to drop into his waiting hands.