#jos that ai will take away

[reallytoosublime]

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[gothamphantomgoat]

[guillemelgat]

I'm sharing this song by Tarta Relena which is an adaptation of Pashtun women's improvised poetry published in the book Songs of Love and War, compiled by Afghan poet Sayd Bahodine Majruh and translated into Catalan as El suïcidi i el cant by Margarida Castells Criballès. Tarta Relena are a band of two young women who adapt lots of interesting texts and pieces of music from all sorts of eras and places into stripped-down electronic and vocal works with incredible harmonies and sonorities. I think this song has a lot of really interesting things going on, and the lyrics are very intense but very beautiful.

M’arrenquin amb un ganivet totes les pigues Let them tear out all of my freckles with a knife si nego que et desitjo, si amagues que m’estimes. If I deny that I love you, if you hide that you love me

Benamat, vine a la vora i seu amb mi una estona, Beloved, come to my side and sit with me a while que la vida aviat serà tal com l’hivern que s’escola. Because life will soon be like the winter that trickles away

L’espai entre nosaltres que ens separa l’un de l’altra The space between us that separates the one of us from the other em nega com l’onada quan s’empassa les barques. Drowns me like the wave when it swallows ships

Ai, agafa’m, ai, abraça’m, ai, tingue’m a la vora, Oh, take me, oh, embrace me, oh, have me by your side que aquesta pena meva se m’emporta i deixa sola. This pain of mine is taking me over and leaving me alone

La meva boca és teva, pots devorar-la sens por, My mouth is yours, you can devour it without fear però deixa’m la llengua lliure per anar-te parlant d’amor. But leave my tongue free to keep speaking to you of love

El jardí del món creares, oh déu meu, i no és pecat You created the garden of the world, oh god, and it’s not a sin que n’hagi pres la flor que a mi més m’ha agradat. That I’ve picked the flower which I like best

Amor meu, jura una cosa, jura que vindràs amb mi, My love, swear me something, swear that you’ll come with me que pugui jo sembrar-te totes les flors del camí. So that I can sow all the flowers on your path

Quan passo prop de la tomba d’un sant When I pass close to the tomb of a saint li tiro pedres pels desitjos que em va negant. I throw stones at them for the desires they deny me

I si era veritat que tu no em sabies estimar, And if it was true that you didn’t know how to love me digue’m per què despertes el meu cor endormiscat? Tell me why you awake my sleeping heart?

Ves-te’n lluny, amic meu, bon viatge i bon vent, Get yourself far from me, my friend, goodbye and good riddance dels amants n’eres un més, i ara me’n trobaré cent! As a lover, you’re just one more, and now I’ll find myself a hundred

M’he repintat les pigues i avui nit em crema el ventre. I’ve repainted my freckles and tonight my insides are burning Si ara em veiessis, perdries la raó per sempre. If you saw me now, you’d lose your mind forever

Demà els que tinguin gana deixaré ben satisfets Tomorrow anyone who wants it I’ll leave well satisfied travessaré la vil·la amb els cabells al vent. I’ll cross the village with my hair blowing in the wind

[marointhemoon]

land in sight

In which Joss Hayes looks after his best friend. Title taken from the Alfons Daiminger piece of the same name.

Written for AI-less Whumptober 2024, days 14 and 30: Concussion; Delirium (day 30).

Length: 500 words

Jo is aware of her existence. Her eyelids are so heavy; so is the rest of her. Though she can't see anything, she notices a presence next to her, breathing.

Something about her must visibly change, because she feels a large hand on her arm. Her tongue is too heavy, so she just hums. In response, she gets a deep, quiet, “Hmph.”

Joss?

It comes out as a wordless, embarrassingly tiny whine.

He snorts softly. “I’m here, Kenz,” he murmurs. Jo feels herself relax. Her fingers twitch. The same hand, warm and calloused, slips into hers. “You’re okay. You’re in sickbay.”

Jo manages another noise, this one a little less hollow.

“Can you talk?” he asks, uncharacteristically gentle. If Jo was even slightly more lucid, she might laugh. When did he get so soft?

She settles for a huffed exhale. “Think so.” 

“Good. I’d like your name and rank,” Joss says.

It takes Jo a second to register why he’s asking. “Corp’ral Johanna McKenzie.”

“Good. Date of birth?”

“April 8th, 2120.”

“Right. Do you remember what happened to get you here?”

Memory recall is a Herculean effort, but she tries. “There w’s … an away mission … right?”

She’s rewarded with a baritone sigh. “Mhm. What happened?” Joss presses. If she were any more lucid, she might clock him as sounding relieved.

“We were … tryin’ to disable a sphere,” she slurs.

Someone with a slightly deeper voice—way too lilting to be Joss—says something about painkillers. That explains the lack of pain, despite the feeling of her head being crushed. She manages a legitimate chuckle. She's probably high as a fucking kite.

“Mhm,” Joss says. “And then…?”

“Something … shot a wall? Maybe? I r’member going down.”

“How long ago do you think that was?”

“I dunno … three hours ago?”

A very long pause. Jo has just enough time to start getting worried before Joss cuts off her one-car train of thought. “Well, you're coherent and you’ve gotten everything else right.” Jo doesn’t have the wherewithal to ask what the fuck that means. She's distracted by Joss' thumb brushing over her knuckles. Somehow, she doubts he'd ever be caught doing this with anyone other than her. Even if she were in any condition to question it, she's not inclined. Didn’t they just get done talking about how he needs to get over himself and admit he’s in love with Reed, anyway?

“Will she be alright?” asks a rough British voice. Speak of the fucking devil.

“Yeah,” Joss says, with a confidence that makes Jo feel like she could breathe fire. “Yeah, I think so.”

“Good,” Reed murmurs. He puts a light hand on her head, and she makes the decision before she knows she’s made it: if Reed and Joss survive the war, she will be whoever the fuck she needs to be to be involved in the rest of their lives. They deserve to live and be happy together. She'll go through a hundred bad away missions to see that happen.

[empiredesimparte]

Joachim: Knowing her, Hortense must feel lonely in Pierreland Laura: I don't know, she's with Oliver after all. And she gets on well with the Pierreland imperial family Napoléon V: I'll go to the news. I didn't think about it, she must be waiting for me to call her

Joachim, teasing: You? Forget Hortense? Napoléon V: Don't add to it, Jo. I'm angry enough Laura: I'm sure everything is going well, Louis

Laura: Hortense is delighted to represent you abroad. And she knows that you have so much to do

Napoléon V: Thank you Laura Joachim : Charlotte is talking to your mother then? Is this the baptism of fire?

Napoléon V : Yes, Mother insisted. Unlike Papa, she never liked Charlotte's family. Joachim: She didn't like it when you appointed old Mortemart to the Council of State Napoléon V: Well… I'm not worried about Charlotte, she has a way with words Joachim: You said it! Laura: Why wouldn't Madame Mère like Charlotte's family? Napoléon V: Well…

Marie-Joséphine: Louis told me that he finally wanted to go back to Polytechnique, thanks to you Charlotte Charlotte: You're welcome

Marie-Joséphine : I appreciate it. Nevertheless… I fear that Louis will end up running away from his duties as Emperor. Unlike his father, political and administrative tasks seem to bore him. And he doesn't wish to delegate Charlotte: I didn't know that. Do you think that the Naval School would take him away from his role for good? Marie-Joséphine: Yes, that's what worries me. He would be heir, I would naturally have had nothing against it. But he is Emperor now

Charlotte: What do you want from me, Madame? I don't want to stop Louis from achieving his dream. He wants to be a sailor Marie-Joséphine: I know that. His uncle Henri also thinks I'm exaggerating. But Louis isn't a soldier or a sailor, he is an Emperor. Louis seems to listen to you now, more than Hortense or myself

Marie-Joséphine: If he takes a liking to a life that is not his own, it will harm the Crown. If you really want to be with Louis, you will have to know how to confront him and advise him. For us, he isn't an ordinary son or boyfriend : he is the Emperor above all

Charlotte: With respect, Your Majesty, I don't think it's any of my business. I prefer to be frank with you: I am on Louis' side, not yours Marie-Joséphine: You're mistaken, Mademoiselle. I'm not protecting my interests, but those of Louis. Please, think about it

⚜ Le Cabinet Noir | Park of Compiègne, 7 Floréal An 230

Beginning ▬ Previous ▬ Next

Mention of @officalroyalsofpierreland. Note : This post is chronologically situated a little before the front page of the magazine Voici of Oliver and Hortense

⚜ Traduction française

Joachim : La connaissant, Hortense doit se sentir seule en Pierreland Laura : Je ne sais pas, elle est avec Oliver après tout. Et elle s'entend bien avec la famille impériale Pierrelandaise Napoléon V : J'irai aux nouvelles. Je n'y songeais plus, elle doit attendre que je l'appelle

Joachim, taquine : Toi ? Oublier Hortense ? Napoléon V : N'en rajoute pas, Jo. Je m'en veux suffisamment Laura : Je suis persuadée que tout se passe bien, Louis

Laura : Hortense est ravie de te représenter à l'étranger. Et elle sait que tu as tellement de choses à faire

Napoléon V : Merci Laura Joachim : Charlotte discute avec ta mère alors ? C'est le baptême du feu ?

Napoléon V : Oui, Maman a insisté. Contrairement à Papa, elle n'a jamais aimé la famille de Charlotte. Joachim : Elle n'a pas apprécié que tu nommes le vieux Mortemart au Conseil d'Etat Napoléon V : Enfin... Je ne m'en fais pas pour Charlotte, elle a du répondant Joachim : Ca tu l'as dit ! Laura : Pourquoi Madame Mère n'aimerait-elle pas la famille de Charlotte ? Napoléon V : Hé bien...

(...)

Marie-Joséphine : Louis m'a dit qu'il souhaitait finalement reprendre les études, grâce à vous Charlotte Charlotte : En effet, je le lui ai demandé et il a accepté

Marie-Joséphine : Merci pour cela, l'Ecole Polytechnique et moi-même apprécions. Néanmoins... Je crains que Louis finisse par fuir ses fonctions d'Empereur. Contrairement à son père, les tâches politiques et administratives semblent l'ennuyer. Et il ne souhaite pas pour autant déléguer Charlotte : Je l'ignorais. Vous pensez que l'Ecole Navale l'éloignerait définitivement de son rôle ? Marie-Joséphine : Oui c'est ce qui m'inquiète. Il serait héritier, je n'aurais rien eu contre naturellement. Mais il est Empereur désormais

Charlotte : Qu'attendez-vous de moi, Madame ? Je ne veux pas empêcher Louis de réaliser son rêve. Il veut être marin Marie-Joséphine : Je le sais. Son oncle Henri pense lui aussi que j'exagère. Mais Louis n'est pas militaire ou marin, il est Empereur. Louis a l'air de vous écouter désormais, plus qu'Hortense ou moi-même

Marie-Joséphine : S'il prend goût à une vie qui n'est pas la sienne, cela nuira à la Couronne. Si vous souhaitez réellement être avec Louis, il faudra savoir le confronter et le conseiller. Il n'est pas un fils ou un conjoint ordinaire : il est l'Empereur avant tout

Charlotte : Sauf votre respect, Votre Majesté, je ne crois pas que cela me regarde. Je préfère être franche avec vous : je suis du côté de Louis, pas le vôtre Marie-Joséphine : Vous vous trompez, Mademoiselle. Je ne protège pas mes intérêts, mais ceux de Louis. Je vous en prie, réfléchissez à tout cela

[fantasies-fairytales-n-fics]

Thranduil and Josie Pt. 117- Scars

Summary: Josie's dreams haunt her. Thranduil is becoming weaker but soon receives a healing treat...and some hope. The morning in Dorwinion also shows signs of hope. Haldir and Jo share a much needed and overdue tender moment. Josie gets another visitor, then takes a trip. One that she eventually regrets.

*Warnings* Angst, violence, strong language, sexual references

Stories Stories Stories Masterlist

The twilight hours were ending as you abruptly awoke from a terrible dream, much similar to the one you had at Lestat's of finding Garrett in Raven's bed and he had seemed to be under some kind of black magic spell. She had answered her door completely naked and just grinned at you. Why were you dreaming something like this again? Not to mention the one you had of her and Thranduil not too long ago, which that one was completely off the rails as it weren't even possible. Something was wrong. Your intuition was screaming at you that Garrett may be in trouble and you needed to go to him, for if it were you, he would be right here no matter what, because he always had been...and even though he was upset right now, that wouldn't keep him away if you needed him. Now, the question was...how the hell were you going to get there? and...in a snow storm.

You opened the balcony doors, scanning your eyes over the mountains afar. The snow was still falling in clumps and the wind stung you like razor sharp icicles coming at you a hundred miles per hour. Gasping as it took your breath away, you slammed the doors shut and leaned on them with your eyes closed.

"Garrett? Can you hear me? If you can, please...please just come back so I know you are alright?" you whispered.

Your sweet baby was now awake and cooing, so you picked her up and fed her while waiting to see if Garrett would show up. A half an hour went by and nothing. Not a sign of him. He had heard you before, that's how he knew you needed him so you knew damn well he could hear you now and was probably ignoring you.

"Arrrgh." you huffed at his stubborn ass and laid Leean back down, then went to bathe and dress for the day.

Thranduil was awake as well for he could not sleep anymore. He was afraid he would not wake up. The evil of the forest was plaguing him, making him weaker by the day and he swore he would do everything he could to hold on for you. He wished and wished so hard for some way to reach you or for just something at all to help, which was interrupted by a voice that made him want to set himself on fire with the lit candle and end it all.

"Oh Thrandy...did you miss me baby?" Raven taunted him from the other side of his unbreakable magic bound door.

"I thought you were leaving and never returning? I could not get so lucky it would seem that you may have been eaten by wargs. What is it that you want now?"

"Really Thranduil? Without me, you have no hope at all and here you are, still belittling me. I...thought about what you said, about Jareth hunting me for the rest of my life, so...I had to come back and try to stop him...permanently. Believe me, I did not do it for you but unfortunately, I need you to help make this happen."

"Have you forgotten I can do nothing while trapped in here or did you hit your head on a tree during your broom ride back to hell?"

"Oh look at you, the King has tasteless jokes today. Here...not that you deserve it, but I brought you a treat, something much better than the slop the goblins are feeding you. I need you strong for what's to come."

She shoved a piece of Lembas through the tiny hole in the wall and stepped back quickly so he could not grab her again.

Thranduil could not believe his eyes and wobbled his was up, gazing down at the healing bread.

"How did you obtain this?"

"It was a piece of cake. I just flew into Lorien on my broomstick and swiped some...although I had to deal with the Brothers Grimm chasing me on my way out. You should have seen the looks on their little sprite faces as I vanished into the air. Priceless. Not very good Marchwardens like the other brother who screwed your wife."

Thranduil ignored her comment and picked up the magical bread. "Rumil and Orophin..." he whispered. He now had a shimmer of hope that maybe they followed her in order to find out why she was there. Did they know what she took? Because if they did, they surely must wonder why she would need or want elven bread, and risk her life to get it.

"Did you say something?"

"I...was offering my gratitude." Thranduil lied.

"Oh lord, has hell frozen over? The King of Mirkwood is thanking me? I must log this in my journal."

Thranduil rolled his eyes and devoured the delicious dough that would fill his belly for the rest of the day and night...and hopefully soon, start to heal him....but he knew he would need more each day. So now, he also knew he would have to do the unfathomable...be nice to Raven. Just the thought of it made him want to vomit what he just ingested.

"Yes. I am. You risked a great deal to for this."

"Well now...I'd be a fool to believe you were sincere, but I'll take it for now. I have to go now...I will be back after nightfall....oh...and here...I thought you might like something to swig it down with."

Raven then shoved three small vials through the hole that held about two shots of wine each.

"I would give you more, but that's all that will fit through there...happy early Thanksgiving...ok...ttfn!"

Thanksgiving it was for him and he certainly was thankful for this gift. He sat on the bed and relished in the sweet taste and velvety feel of the hard vintage as it rolled down his throat. He was feeling better already.

After you dressed, you put on your moonstone necklace along side the emerald pendant, then clutched your gem in your hand. With your eyes closed, you wished as hard as you could for the means to get to Garrett. He had come to mean so much to you and you didn't care who approved and who didn't anymore. You and Garrett knew what was between you both and that was all that mattered.

You got Leean all dressed up in a cute little outfit that Lola had brought in and all three of you went to the dining hall for brunch, stopping to get Legolas and Haldir on the way. When you all arrived, people were all standing at the windows gawking outside, which now baffled you because the windows had all been glazed with ice and frost...and now they weren't.

"Lola...please hold Leean."

She took her and you went right to the now clear window and touched it. How was this possible? There was still some wind and light snow outside but the storm was gone that was just there an hour ago and the glass that you could now see through was merely cool to the touch.

"Legolas...Haldir....what do you make of this?"

"Perhaps it is the magic inside of your moonstone my lady." Legolas suggested as he too gazed out the window a bit befuddled himself.

"I agree Jo. You just received it last night and now this morning, the storm has ceased.....Jo....I am heartfully sorry for how I behaved yesterday. I overindulged with the ale and let my emotions get the better of me."

"Hey...no apologies. How about a hug instead?"

Haldir slightly blushed as you wrapped your arms around him.

"You and I...I have neglected...I promise, we will spend some time alone together soon and talk...ok? I miss you." you spoke into his ear.

"Jo...I miss you, more than you could know but you are going through hell...I do not expect to be a priority in your life at this time...or at any for that matter. All that matters to me is that you and Leean are safe. I feel so drawn to her, which is probably because of you and Thranduil."

"And she adores you. I see it every time you hold her...I...adore you." you told him as you placed your hand on his cheek.

"As I adore you both my lady." Haldir said in all sincerity and offered you the elven sign of respect.

Oh how you truly did miss him and all the time you both used to spend together. You and Haldir had been through so much at each other's sides. When everyone believed him dead, you did not. You had felt him...in your dreams...but that was because he really was alive....why couldn't it be that way for Thranduil, you thought as you almost cried.

You took Haldir's hands into each of yours. "You are my best friend. Forever Haldir of Lorien, my hidden hero. That will never change." you whispered up into his sky blue eyes.

The Marchwarden's eyes slightly glistened with tears. He still loved you immensely and always would even in knowing he would never have you to call his.

You kept ahold of his hand and then took Legolas'.

"Come...Let us eat as a family." you cheered and smiled.

An hour went by as you all ate and talked of normal things. You sat between Legolas and Haldir while holding Leean as they both cutely entertained her and for just that short time, all was somewhat right in the world...but perfect it would never be...not without your King.

And then, your mind drifted to Garrett again. The servants were outside clearing pathways on the patio and you desperately wanted to go outside for some air that wouldn't freeze you solid where you stood.

"Would you two mind caring for Leean while I take some time to myself. I...I just have some thinking to do."

You didn't dare tell them you were going outside or about Garrett, or the nice moment you shared with them would be ruined.

"Josie...I think you know we would not mind to ever look after the little princess of Mirkwood." Legolas stated with a loving smile at his baby sister.

As you left the dining hall, you snuck off and went out a side door in hopes that with the weather breaking and being outdoors, you would have a clearer mental reception at possibly reaching Garrett. When you came out onto a patio, a servant was sweeping the walkways, the suddenly, she ran over to something in excitement.

It was two small buds of a purple flower poking up through the snow covered ground. You weren't sure what kind they were but all they reminded you of were lilacs. Thranduil's flower.

All you could do was smile, feeling it was another sign that you had asked for from him to show you he was still alive in your heart and would always be with you. It was like a sign of spring...a vigorous spring....yet it was only November.

You made your way to the bay that was iced over but the Rhun sea beyond it rippled wildly. You couldn't even go by boat if you wanted to, for it was too dangerous...but then again, everything right now was. You still hadn't gotten to speak to Narcisse about Jadis and your dream, but that was because he decided to plant his lips upon yours. You didn't know what you hated more, the fact he was so bold to do so, or the fact...you liked it. You concluded that to be solely because you were lonely and deprived of a man's intimate touch.

After a few minutes being in your own head, you became frustrated.

"Garrett! Damn it! Answer me!" you shouted....but all remained silent.

"Will I do?" a woman's voice from behind you spoke.

"Selene?? oh my god!!" you shouted and ran to her, giving her the biggest embrace.

She laughed and hugged you back, this time without fear.

"What...what are you doing here? I mean, not that I am unhappy to see you, just shocked. Lestat..he was here and told me you were with Michael at the castle Corvinus."

"I was...am...but...I wanted to come see you...my friend. I have missed you and Lestat has told me about the danger you're still facing...not to mention, I hear you have had your baby." she said as she looked over your now flatter stomach with a smile.

"I have! and she is the most beautiful vision ever. Look just like her daddy...." you said and then your eyes fell in sadness.

"Oh...Josie...I am so sorry for your loss. I can somewhat imagine your pain when I had believed Michael to be gone....annnnd....I shouldn't have even said that considering he's not. I'm sorry Josie, I didn't mean to..."

"No...Selene...it's ok. I am happy for you, really. You got the love of our life back....and you deserve to be happy. You and I are a lot alike you know? Your Craven was my Peter...and we both went through hell with them, dreaming of another world where our true loves existed, longing for them to save us....and we both found that dream regardless of how it all ended. I will never regret a single moment of my short time with Thranduil, even the bad times. He was the peanut butter to my chocolate you know?"

Selene chuckled. "Yes...he certainly was.....Thranduil may have despised me but you loved him and boy did he certainly love you...and for your loss, again, I am so very sorry."

"I know it's hard for you to speak kindly of him. I am also sorry....for what he did to you."

"Can't really blame him honestly. I mean, I was here to kill you to make Caroline suffer. I am so glad I didn't." she smirked.

"Meee too!!" you laughed.

"You saved my life Josie and I will never know how to repay you."

"Well first of all, you did by coming to Lestat's and helping us when you didn't have to."

"And you saved my life again there so I still owe you." she chuckled again.

"Well....I know how you can pay up!" you said as it just hit you. "Take me to Garrett's."

Selene had come just when you needed her. another part of your wish had been answered along with the weather being bearable to fly in. Over the Rhun and then over the river and over the woods to Garrett's house you went in Selene's arms. You felt awful for not telling Legolas and Haldir, but you knew they would try to stop you...and you didn't plan on being gone more than a few hours, which Selene had you there in under thirty minutes.

She landed right at his front door and then told you she would wait nearby for when you were ready to leave. You weren't worried about Garrett's clan because they all knew who you were and he would have their heads if they ever hurt you, so in the front door you walked. after knocking with no answer. It was daytime, so all the vampires were most likely asleep from their night run.

Up the velvety carpeted winding staircase you went and came to Garrett's open door, but his room was empty so you went inside to wait for him. What a shock you got at the first thing you saw that wasn't there the last time you were. The painting of him that you had Marius do sat propped against his bed and above his bed on the wall hung another....of you.

You were wearing a lavender dress and sitting in the grass surrounded by violets that accented his also purple room. Two red pillows laid upon his bed giving an extra color pop. It amazed you that a vampire's favorite color was purple, just as it was yours...and that he was so decorative. Obviously he had Marius paint you for him, but you couldn't imagine Marius willingly making one of you in such a provocative way, so you knew Garrett had told him just how he wanted it. That part didn't bother you. It was actually more beautiful than anything, seeing yourself through Garrett's eyes.

You walked around some more and saw pictures of him as a young boy pinned on a bulletin board that also were not there before. Had he went back to his old home and taken them or did he just have them stashed away and decided to take them out? It was odd because he was so adamant on not remembering his old life let alone looking at it everyday. He was clearly missing it all and you hurt for him....and then on his nightstand sat a photo of a brunette. Young and beautiful. It had to be his sister Sally who died because you could see Garrett in her.

Something else then caught your eyes that completely threw you, more so than the paintings. On the bench at the foot of his bed, laid a hot pink bra. Of course he was a man who had needs, you just didn't think he was actually fulfilling them. Besides, it was none of your business who he was fucking...so why did it bother you so much?

You moved on to a desk that held another photo of him and another man and picked it up. It definitely had to be Ryan, his brother because they looked so much alike. You wondered if he had ever came out of his coma and if Garrett had went back to see him at all.

Beside it was another one of Garrett in his human life bedroom. You had to chuckle because of all the rock band posters that hung on the wall. You wondered why he didn't have any hanging up now, although he did have a guitar and a piano. Something about this photo though, you couldn't stop staring at him. Not because of how different he looked then, but because of how sad he looked.

You continued looking at the one of him and Ryan. Garrett, then Roman, was smiling and appeared happy in that photo. It was a genuine smile that looked so beautiful on him. If you had known him then, you could have easily seen yourself falling for him....but you weren't even born yet since you were only two when Roman became Garrett.

You were so lost in the photo and his smile that you didn't notice the sudden scent of molasses fill the air.

"Josephine?" Garrett's voice came from behind you.

You gasped and spun around, dropping the picture frame, the glass shattering all over the floor.

"G...Garrett...oh my god...I..I am so sorry!"

You rushed to clean it up but he swept down to you so fast and lifted you away that you barely saw him move.

"No, don't touch the glass. I don't want you to cut yourself. It's only a frame. It can be replaced."

He stood gazing down at you with a bit of a perturbed look.

"Why are you here? Better yet, how did you get here?" he flatly said and began cleaning up the glass effortlessly with his hands as he stood over it with bare feet.

'Selene....and I...I...had a dream about you...a bad one. I had to make sure you were alright because you wouldn't answer me. Did...you hear me??"

Garrett stood up, holding the photo with a stunned face.

"You...came all the way here to check on me?"

"Yes. Is that so shocking? You didn't answer me so I became worried. Were you ignoring me?"

He walked over to the desk and put the picture back.

"I was...you shouldn't have came. You have more important things to worry about than the likes of someone like me."

"Damn it Garrett, I do worry about you and there's nothing you can do about it...and stop talking about yourself like that. I don't like it."

"Why? It's true. I'm nothing but a vile vampire that repulses everyone around you. You should be too."

"Well I'm not and..."

He turned around, his shirt wide open, revealing multiple scars on his chest and stomach which didn't appear fresh, but rather old. How did you not notice them before when you had been with him once? Did he have the power to conceal them like Thranduil did?

"Garrett?? What...how? Ok, wait...do you seriously think I am going to be repulsed by that? is that what you're trying to do by walking around here half naked? Because it's not working. They're scars. I have some too."

"Oh, you mean like this one?"

He came to you and gently took your hand, revealing the bite wound scar on your wrist that he gave you. You covered it with your other hand and peered up at him.

"This is why you should be disgusted by me. I have hurt you so much. How in the hell can you even look at me after all that I've done to you and even to your King... when I can't even look at myself....literally." he slightly joked.

"Because you're not that person anymore and you are heartfully sorry for what you have done...and you've tried so hard to prove that...in which you have to me. The others don't matter."

"Not even Thranduil?.....shit...I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that."

"No, Garrett, it's alright. I know you didn't mean anything by it. It's an honest question. Of course it mattered to me how he felt but it couldn't stop me from what I felt. Nothing can."

But something certainly could. He knew you would retract that statement in a heartbeat if you knew what he had done with Raven.

"Your graciousness of me I do not deserve. I don't deserve any of you."

He let your hand go and went to turn away.

"No...don't you do that."

You took his hand back and made him look at you.

"How...did you get these? I want to know. I want to know everything about you Garrett Lee." you asked as you lightly rubbed your hand over his scars. He reacted to your touch by sucking his stomach in with a gasp and grabbing your hand.

"Please don't touch me like that." he firmly said, jerking your hand away and walked to the other side of the room. The further away from you, the better.

"I...I'm sorry." you stuttered in shock.

He stood with his back to you, looking out the window.

"They're from the accident. They never completely healed. Not even becoming a vampire can completely remove them."

"I see. Well...how did I not see them before? When we..."

You paused, feeling you shouldn't finish the sentence.

"Because I hid them from you with my magic. I had just met you and you were already frightened enough by my presence."

"Then why are you not hiding them now? Did you really think I would be scared or be turned off? Are you trying to push me away?? because it's not working. You're....you're beautiful Garrett."

You couldn't believe the words that just escaped your lips and neither could he as he slowly turned to face you.

"You don't need to say these things to me to make me feel better. I know what I am."

"Garrett, can you ever just stop?? Is it so hard to believe that someone can truly care about you, under all of your scars?"

He laughed. "Is that a serious question? Of course it is Josephine! What part of I am a vampire do you not understand?"

"That is not ALL that you are. Not to me! Why are you doing this?? What has changed?? Is it still because of Legolas, because I explained to you about what you saw. It's like you're deliberately trying to turn me against you."

He was...because he was so disgusted with himself for what he allowed himself to do with Raven.

"Because it would be best for you and that's all I want. I'm poison Josephine. Plain and simple. There's nothing good about me. That part is dead and buried when I... Roman died."

"Really? Nothing good about you? Let's see, you've saved my life more than I can count on one hand and you saved Legolas too, no matter the reason you did it. You only kill bad people unlike most vampires that even kill for sport. You're always there watching over me to make sure I am safe. You make me laugh with your cheesy ass jokes. You hid your scars because you didn't want to scare me and now you're trying to push me away because you think it's what's best for me. That don't sound like someone who has no good in them to me....and....these....the paintings. You kept the one of you, even though you did not want to see yourself. You kept it because it means something to you...and the one of me...I don't even have words for. It came from your heart that you seem to think is so bad...and..."

"Stop!! Will you just fucking stop Josephine??" he snapped making you jump. I am not this perfect picture that you are painting me as. You know why?? This is why!"

He picked up the bra and threw it at you. Gasping, you caught it and when you did, the scent smacked you right in the face. Raven's scent. Your eyes slowly rolled up to his as they filled with tears and your body trembled.

His body was stiff as he too trembled, his eyes also gleaming of oncoming tears.

"Now do you think I'm so wonderful?" he panted, trying not to cry.

You could hardly speak and choked out the words.

"Y...you...s..slept...with...h...her? She..was here?"

"She was...it...it's not exactly as you must think...."

"Really Garrett? How is it then because you look guilty as sin. She was here and you didn't kill her??? Instead...you put your dick in my evil sister who is partially responsible for Thranduil's death!!"

"She used her wicked ass magic on me alright! At...first...anyways. She literally turned into you...she had your voice, your body...your sweet beautiful face and...she said things to me...she even tasted like you..."

"Wh...what do you mean...at...first??"

"Because....I...I was strong enough to break her power. The way she had me touching her....I...I would never touch you in that way....and then...she taunted me, wanting me to take her...and I...I don't know what the fuck happened Josephine....I was just so angry about her and other things... and disgusted so I..."

"So you just....screwed her anyways? I think I am going to be sick...."

Now he was crying as he came over to you and tried to take your hand.

"Josephine...please...I am sooooo sorry...I...I hate myself."

"You should! and don't touch me! Don't you ever touch me again." you cried in anger as you slapped his hand away. "Well...are you satisfied now?? You got what you wanted...for me to believe you are not a good person!! I could have forgave you if you had stopped after she had tricked you, but you didn't. I don't care who you bed Garrett, but her??? That I care about! But not you...not anymore!"

Your words sliced through his dead heart like a sword.

"Josephine...you...you don't mean that..."

"Oh I mean it with every breath in my body. Why do you care? it's what you wanted! You really should be careful what you wish for, because you just might get it all...and then some you don't want."

You turned and ran out, shouting for Selene as Garrett ran after you.

Selene sped up to you as you were gasping and panting as Garrett stood behind you with a look of dread upon his face, like he had lost his best friend...in which he had.

"Josie, what has happened?? Breathe honey...breathe."

"Get me out of here!"

"Josephine, please don't go...please....this can't be over. I didn't want this...not like this..."

"Shut up! You shut...up!!" you raged as you shoved him, which just wasn't good enough. You had so much anger pent up inside of you from everything that had happened up to that point and this put you over the edge. You began slapping his chest over and over, screaming at him, crying so hard.

"I trusted you! How....why... would you do this to me??"

Garrett stood there and took it as tears streamed down his cheeks, knowing he deserved every hit.

"I hope it was all worth it...." you reeled through your teeth. "Selene, I want to go...now!"

Selene looked at Garrett, not knowing what to do. He nodded at her with a pained smile for her to take you.

You and Garrett gazed at each other intensely for a moment and then you were gone.

You thanked Selene as she dropped you off at the back door of Narcisse's castle and then ran inside, straight to your room where you were stopped by a worried and angry Legolas.

"Josie, where in the hell have you been??"

Hell was a big word for him to say so you knew he was livid.

"Oh wait...do not answer that. Your smell tells me all that I need to know."

"Legolas...please....I...I cannot deal with this right now."

You threw your hands over your face and broke down bawling.

His eyes widened and he scooped you into his arms.

"Josie, I'm sorry...what happened? Why are you crying?"

You were not going to tell him and never would. You didn't need Legolas and Garrett at each other's throats again.

"It...it don't matter anymore. I...I just want to be alone. Where's Leean?"

"With Lola in your room asleep....My lady, forgive me for my anger. I was only worried sick about you."

'I know Legolas. It's fine. It's my fault. I made a stupid mistake and it won't happen again. Trust me. I'll see you later ok?"

Legolas reluctantly nodded as you went into your room and closed the door.

Lola was asleep on the couch and your angel was also in dream land in her cradle. You kissed her forehead and collapsed onto your bed, stuffing your face into the pillow, silently sobbing. Why....why did it hurt so much? you asked yourself and then cried yourself to sleep.

@redeemer46

[topazy]

Sky of stars

Pairings: Lexa/reader

Warnings: none

Chapter: 0.03

“Maun hef.”

You looked around, panicked, knowing the mountain men could return at any moment. “We need to go. Get the children to carry whatever they can, while I look for the wounded.”

The older woman looked hesitant.

You clasped your hand around hers and said, “We need to go. They will come back.”

“We have nowhere to run, and our closet’s allies are miles away.”

Knowing she had a point, you stepped back and looked around, hoping to see your parents or your leader, Catia. You needed to come up with a plan fast. An injured man limped back into the village, telling everyone to run.

They were coming back.

“I know a place we can go. Everyone follow me!”

—

An elderly woman frowned, “Trikru?”

You let out a sigh. Trikru was the closest one to your village, and you had a feeling they wouldn’t turn you away. Well, Lexa wouldn’t. But it was hard to explain that they had no other options.

Ophelia, the woman who hid the children, nodded in agreement with you.

The moment you crossed the line into the other clans' territory, Lexa appeared in front of you. She opened her mouth to speak but said nothing as Anya approached with two riders on either side of her. Both of them aimed their arrows at you.

Anya stopped in front of the intruders and spoke sternly, “Gon.” Weapons.

You placed your weapons on the ground before facing Trikru’s leader.

“Chomouda yu don kom op hir?” Why did you come here?

You gulped down. “Ai've kom op hir gon Tu reasons. Gon lom op Yu en as op gon favour.” I've come here for two reasons. To warn you and ask for a favour.

Anya was visibly amused. “A favour?”

“Maun hef yu don taken most kom Oso kru, leaving jos elderly o kwelen behind. Bilaik village ste nes Won after yumi. Emo na probably jomp op hir nes. en ai laik asking taim Yu'll hon daun Ai kru raun.” The mountain men have taken most of our people, leaving only the elderly or weak behind. Your village is the next one after us. They will probably attack here next... and I'm asking if you'll take my people in.

Anya eyed you suspiciously, “Bilaik kru, ba nou Yu?” Your people, but not you?

“Nou. Oso clans haven’t seen blinka gon blinka raun a long gou, ba Ai kru are innocent.” No.Our clans haven’t seen eye to eye in a long time, but my people are innocent.

Anya lifted her hand to signal the riders to lower their weapons. “There are only seven of you.”

“The mountain men took everyone else, including our leader.”

—

“I can’t decide if your coming here was brave or stupid.”

You smirked at Lexa’s words, but continued to carry on walking. When you reached the fire pit, you carefully placed the logs into it. When you turned back around, the brunette was standing incredibly close to you.

If you are to stay here, your people will need to learn to fight our way.

Trikru were known for their warriors, so this wasn’t a surprise. Anya had decided that your people could stay on the condition that those who could fight the mountain men when the time came would be allowed to stay.

“I understand.”

“Good.” Lexa said, staring intensely for a moment. “We start training at dawn.”

When Lexa turned to walk away, you grabbed her hand and made her glare. “Thank you. I know Anya values your opinion and wouldn’t have let us stay if it wasn’t for you.”

Lexa pulled her hand back. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

[luminnara]

It’s Been A Long, Long Time | ch 4

Summary:  When HYDRA had their prized asset, the Winter Soldier, they did something no one ever thought was possible: they gave super soldier serum to an omega. With the sole purpose of tending to him during his ruts, she spends decades living in HYDRA facilities, denied her humanity and her life. Now, years later, Bucky Barnes has his mind and his own life back...and the last thing he ever expects is to see a familiar omega again. Bucky/OC, a little angsty but mostly smutty/fluffy/romantic!

Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four | Part Five

Taglist:  @kyrah-williams @oceanmermaidwitch @shawnie--jo @super-cape @ferxaniti @namjoonwatcheshentai @fandomsstolemylife00 @youngblood199456 @nightlygiggless @darlingely

Amoretta swam in and out of sleep. Whenever she surfaced, she saw bright lights and strange faces, and, assuming that she was in a HYDRA lab, she decided it was better if she just kept on dreaming. After a while, though, she couldn’t manage it anymore, and she finally woke up enough to actually take in her surroundings.

She was in a hospital bed, and...a gown? She couldn’t remember the last time she had been given clothing. When she tried to move, she found that her arms ached, and she had an IV sticking out of her. Okay, so wherever she was, they were trying to take care of her. Maybe. That seemed like a good sign. 

“Oh, good, you’re awake,” a man’s voice said. “How’re you feeling?”

A figure came into view, blurry at first, and as he got closer she was able to get him in focus. Amoretta immediately stiffened, feeling threatened by this stranger, but as the scent of omega wafted in, she relaxed slightly. She couldn’t smell any alphas nearby, and that was good. 

Two good signs so far. 

“Wh-who are you?” She asked, her voice wobbly and hoarse. Her throat was so sore that talking was painful. 

“My name is Dr. Bruce Banner.” The man said, reaching towards a nearby table and grabbing a water bottle off of it. “I’m with the Avengers.”

Amoretta frowned. “The...who?”

He came near her slowly, twisting the cap off the bottle and offering it to her. “You’ve probably got a lot of questions. Mind if I ask a couple, though?”

She gave a little shrug as she raised the bottle to her lips. It felt strange to hold, the water tasting...different from what she was used to.

“Can you tell me your name?”

She thought for a moment, brows knitting together. “Subject 1096.”

It was Bruce’s turn to frown. “Did you ever have a...different name?”

After a moment, she nodded, trying to remember. It felt like it was on the tip of her tongue, just out of reach. Had it really been so long since she had gotten to say it?

“We can come back to that one.” Bruce said gently. “Do you know what year it is?”

She thought for a moment. “19...1986.”

The doctor pulled off his glasses, pinching the bridge of his nose and mumbling something along the lines of “Christ, not another one…”

She got the feeling that she was off by a few years. 

“Well, Ten...is it alright if I call you that?”

She shrugged.

“...alright. Ten, it seems like you were cryogenically frozen for a few decades.”

“...decades?”

He nodded. “Your body seems to have handled it well, though.”

“Did I puke?” She asked, wrinkling her nose.

“Not that I saw.” He chuckled. 

Well, that was a little surprising. She had a tendency to vomit after being wrenched out of unnaturally cold naps. “Where am I?”

“You’re in my lab, at Stark Tower.”

“What continent?”

“North America.”

She made a thoughtful noise. “What month is it?”

“June.”

“So Ursa Major is out?”

Bruce paused. “...well, it’s hard to see with all the light pollution in the city, but...yes, I suppose it should be…”

She let out a sigh. “I miss it.”

Her voice was already sounding tired again, and Bruce was quick to take the water bottle back before it slipped from her hand. 

“You should get some more rest, Ten.” He suggested. “We’ve got plenty of time to get you caught up when you’re feeling more energetic.”

“Mhm.” her eyes fluttered closed. “Doctor?”

“Yes?”

“What city am I in?”

“New York.” He said, looking down at her curiously. “Manhattan, more specifically. Why?”

She smiled a little. “I wanna see...Brooklyn…”

As she drifted off to sleep again, Bruce rubbed his face. Well, that certainly was oddly specific of her to say. It was a good sign that she seemed lucid, though. 

“Captain Rogers is outside, Dr. Banner.” FRIDAY’s AI voice said. 

Bruce met him at the door, making his way out as quietly as possible. Steve looked anxious, standing with his hands on his hips as he waited for news. He hadn’t gotten a chance to find Bucky yet, his friend either working out or sleeping, and all he had managed so far was a quick debriefing and a shower. 

“I ran down as soon as FRIDAY called,” he said. “How is she?”

“Sleeping again. Just missed her.” Bruce said wryly. “Walk with me, I’m starving.” 

Steve fell into step beside him, heading towards the elevators. “Did she say anything?”

“She did. She seemed a bit out of it...couldn’t remember her name, hasn’t been awake since 1986.” He hit the UP button and stood back. “Seemed very interested in constellations, though. And Brooklyn.”

Steve stared at him. “Brooklyn?”

“Told her she was in New York, and the last thing she said before she fell asleep was something about Brooklyn.” Bruce shrugged. “Really interesting thing was her blood tests, though.”

“Blood tests?” Steve asked, stepping into the elevator and waiting for Bruce to join him before the doors closed again. 

“Definitely an omega.” Banner said as they headed up several floors. “Her scent is so muted because they pumped her full of enough suppressants to kill a normal person. Pretty sure that’s why she’s so tired...her body is working overtime trying to process such a high dose. I think it was just pooling in her system while she was in cryo, not really going anywhere, so now her kidneys are doing everything they can to—“

“Banner.” Steve interrupted before he had to listen to an entire scientific explanation. 

“Right. Sorry.” The scientist cleared his throat. “There was something else that I found already. She’s, uh…well, at some point, she was given super soldier serum.” 

Steve froze. “HYDRA gave the serum...to an omega?”

“It’s confusing to me, too,” Bruce put his hands up in defeat. “Thanks to that, though, it’s hard to determine how old she is, or who she is, without her telling us. All I know is that she’s an unmarked omega super soldier with a hell of a dose of heat suppressants to work through.”

“Any idea when she’ll be up again?” Steve asked as the elevator dinged to signal their arrival. 

“Hard to say.” Bruce said, following the alpha out towards the shared kitchen near the common area. 

“I need to get to the bottom of this, Banner. FRIDAY, will you find Bucky? I need you to tell him—“

“Tell him what?” A voice asked. 

Steve smiled in relief. Bucky was there, sitting on the couch with a plate of Alfredo balanced in his metal hand, looking mildly curious about whatever his friend was talking about. 

“Oh, good,” Steve said, approaching him, Banner following behind. “You’re already here.”

“What is it, Stevie?” He asked, an eyebrow raised. 

“Well, as you know, I visited an abandoned HYDRA base today.” 

“I’m aware.”

“And I found...something.”

“...something. What kind of something?”

Steve suddenly wasn’t sure how to describe his discovery. “Well, it’s a...not an it, I mean, I found a…”

“Rogers here brought back an omega test subject.” Bruce interrupted. “She’s down in the lab right now sleeping off some nasty meds.”

Bucky’s posture hadn’t changed, despite how awkward and almost nervous Steve had gotten. He leaned back against the cushions, slurping down a few noodles while he regarded his friend with a mild expression. 

“Alright, so?” He asked. 

“So...I was wondering if you had any idea what HYDRA was doing experimenting on an omega.” Steve said, hands on his hips in a stance that was supposed to say I mean business, so listen to me.

Bucky wasn’t bothered by it. He was the biggest, toughest alpha in the tower, aside from the rare occasions Thor was roughing it down on Midgard with the rest of them. The others could puff up and posture all they wanted at him, but it never had any effect. He was always calm and cool, generally disinterested in their displays. He knew he was stronger, and he didn’t need to prove it, especially not when he didn’t have an omega to fight over. 

He shrugged. “I want exactly privy to all their secrets. I know they kept cells full of omegas around for a while.”

“What did they do with them?” Steve asked.

“Whatever they wanted?” Bucky shook his head. “I really don’t know. If they were experimenting on ‘em, that never concerned me.”

“You’ve gotta know something, Buck.” Steve sounded exasperated. 

“Why do you care so much?” He asked. 

“Because something isn’t adding up.” Steve growled. 

“They gave this omega enough heat suppressants to last a lifetime,” Bruce said. “Her system is all kinds of messed up.”

“Makes sense.” Bucky ate another mouthful. “HYDRA wouldn’t want to deal with hormones going crazy or any unplanned pups.”

Steve stared down at his friend. “Did they let you rut?”

“Stevie, at least take me out to dinner before you start asking about my sex life fifty years ago.” Bucky said dryly. 

Steve just raised an eyebrow.

“...yeah. They did. Think they couldn’t stop my ruts.” He relented. 

“So did they...you know…” Steve trailed off awkwardly. 

“Were you ever given omegas to get you through them?” Bruce asked, proving once again how much more capable of having this conversation he was than Steve. 

Bucky finally had to glance away from them in embarrassment. “Well…yeah. But I, uh...the Soldier, he would just kind of...well, they didn’t really last long, if you uh. Catch my drift.”

Steve paled. 

Bruce gulped. 

“...what? Look, I’m better now, I’m way past that. Besides, I never meant to hurt anyone, I wasn’t myself—“

“This omega is a super soldier.” Bruce said quietly.

Bucky’s face dropped, a flicker of something passing over his face. “...what?”

—

“Finally,” Bruce sighed happily, inhaling the smell of leftover pizza. 

“Bucky, does the number 1096 mean anything to you?” Steve asked. He was sitting in a chair across from his friend, Bruce sitting at the kitchen island while he ate his dinner. 

Bucky shook his head. “Don’t remember any numbers like that. They mostly just called ‘em all omega.”

He was trying to seem cool and collected, but his scent had shifted slightly. Steve could catch just the slightest hint of distress in it, and as he did so, he narrowed his eyes. He may have been separated from Bucky for almost 80 years, but he was still his best friend, and he could tell when he was hiding something. 

“Why would they give the serum to an omega?” Steve asked. 

“Branching out?” Bucky shook his head. “Why do they do anything? They’re HYDRA. They can do whatever they want.”

“So you don’t remember anything about an omega super soldier?”

“I don’t know.” Bucky sniffed defensively. 

“Buck, it’s okay if you do.” Steve growled. “We’re not going to judge you for anything you did. We just want to help her and figure out who she is—“

“Well I don’t know,” Bucky snapped, big fangs bared in a warning. 

Steve responded with a low growl. 

“There’s a lot I don’t remember, or did you forget how many times they wiped my memory?” 

“Seems like you’re hiding something, Buck, and I wanna know what it is.”

“Why do you care? You should just drop it,” Bucky snarled. 

Steve regarded him carefully. Oh yeah. He was definitely hiding something. 

“Hey, hey,” Bruce interrupted from the kitchen, intent on stopping their fight before it could start. “Relax, fellas. Don’t make me get the big guy out to shut you both up.”

Steve backed down. The threat of having the Hulk going after him was enough. Bucky didn’t seem to share the sentiment, though, his lips still pulled back in a blatant display of aggression. It was the first time in a while that Steve had seen him acting so defensively about something, and it was concerning, to say the least. 

“Buck,” he said, voice low with warning. “Are you hiding something?”

Bucky’s nostrils flared angrily and the insinuation that he was keeping secrets, but he managed to reign himself back in, stifling another growl with a loud sigh. 

“I dunno, Steve.” He admitted. “There’s...a lot I don’t remember. If I’m bein’ honest with you, I’m not even sure why I’m feelin’ so worked up about this.”

Steve nodded. It was a relief to hear that Bucky wasn’t acting this way entirely on purpose, at least. 

“You feel okay?” Steve asked. “Not rutting soon, are you?”

“I’m fine, Steve.”

“You sure?”

“I’m sure.” Bucky snorted. After a moment of silence, he spoke up again. “Is the omega, uh...is she okay?”

“Physically, she doesn’t seem to be too worse for wear,” Bruce said from the kitchen. “The only abnormalities I found in our preliminary blood tests were evidence of the suppressants and the serum. Other than being exhausted and needing to adjust to consciousness again after decades of cryo, she’s fine.”

“Good.” Bucky said, a little too quickly. “I mean...that’s good.”

“She should be awake again by tomorrow. Hopefully, she’ll be up for a longer chat then.” 

“You comfortable talking with her?” Steve asked, looking at Bucky. “It might be good for her to see someone else who used to be connected to HYDRA. Might help her ease into everything.”

Bucky gave a nod, already distracted by thoughts of this omega. Was it possible that the girl he saw in his dreams was real? It was hard for him to know what had actually happened to him and what he had imagined, what with HYDRA wiping his memory whenever they felt like it. Ever since he had gained his mental freedom, though, he had been plagued with nightmares, his sleep always filled with the faces of people he had killed. 

As time went on, they were getting better, but they never really stopped. He just...didn’t always have to deal with the worst ones. Sometimes, he even got to have dreams that were...nice. Sometimes, he dreamt of a familiar scent, one he couldn’t really place and that he could never remember when he woke up. Sometimes, he dreamt of an omega, with long, dark hair, and the prettiest eyes he could ever imagine. He always saw her in flashes, a smile here, a sigh there, and with no idea as to who she was or where she came from, he had chalked it up to his mind trying to give him some relief from the nightmares. It had to be wishful thinking, and nothing more. 

Unless it wasn’t. 

He spent a while chatting with Steve and Bruce before retreating to his apartment. With Tony and Pepper gone for the night, spending it in some fancy hotel so that Stark could give a talk at some expo, and most of the others resting after missions, the tower was quiet. It left Bucky too much time to wander and think, and before he knew it, he was making a detour down to Banner’s lab. 

As soon as the elevator doors opened, he paused. What was he hoping to accomplish, exactly? He didn’t have the kind of clearance that Bruce did. He wouldn’t be able to sneak in, and even if he could, what would he do? Appearing at her bedside would just freak the poor omega out, and that wasn’t the kind of first impression he liked to leave these days. 

He shook his head, pressing the button for his floor and leaning back against the elevator wall. He needed to be patient. Tomorrow, when she woke up, he would be able to see her for himself and decide if his weird dreams had any truth to them. 

Not that he was getting his hopes up. He shouldn’t, after all. He would just set himself up for disappointment. 

Just before the elevator doors slid shut, though, the tiniest, faintest hint of a scent wafted in, and Bucky’s eyes widened. He knew it. He knew that scent, or at least...he used to know it. Somewhere, in a part of his mind that he tried to forget about, he had memories of a peaceful, starry night sky, a hint of pine, and a touch of cinnamon. 

Then, the doors closed, and it was gone again, leaving him confused as the elevator rushed upwards.

[useless-catalanfacts]

La fera ferotge (“The fierce wild beast”) was the 1st song by which the singer-songwriter Ovidi Montllor became famous. This was published in 1968 (during the fascist dictatorship! keep that in mind).

Read more about l’Ovidi in our previous post.

The song uses fable-like lyrics to criticize the dictatorship’s fearmongering, the way in which it made people be scared of the antifascists. Particularly, about how the middle class is convinced by those in power to fear the liberation movements that would benefit them as well.

Here’s the original lyrics in Catalan and the translation to English:

[He makes a sound with his mouth to imitate a trumpet. Back in the day, people who went around towns reading the news would make a similar song with their trumpet to show they were about to say the news. Ovidi is imitating this.]

Per ordre de l'Alcalde, es fa saber a tothom que una fera ferotge del parc s'escaparà. Es prega a les senyores compren força aliments i no surten de casa fins que torne el "bon temps". Tot el que tinga cotxe que fota el camp corrents, i se'n vaja a la platja, a la torre o als hotels.

By the Mayor’s order, everyone must know that a fierce wild beast will run away from the park. Ladies are asked to buy much food and to not leave home until “good weather” is back. Everyone who has a car, leave right now and go to the beach, a countryside house or a hotel.

L'Alcalde s'encarrega, fent ús dels seus poders, de la fera ferotge deixar-la sense dents. El que això no acompleixca que no es queixe després si per culpa la fera ell rep algun turment.

The Mayor takes care of it, using his powers, to leave the fierce wild beast toothless. Whoever doesn’t obey this, don’t complain later if you are tormented by the wild beast.

[News trumpet sound.]

Jo que no tinc ni casa, ni cotxe, ni un carret em vaig trobar aquell dia la fera pel carrer. Tremolant i mig mort: -Ai Déu, redéu, la fera! I en veure'm tan fotut em va dir molt planera: -Xicot, per què tremoles? Jo no te'n menjaré. -I doncs, per què t'escapes del lloc que tens marcat?

I, who have no house, nor car, nor a small cart, that day I ran into the wild beast on the street. Shaking and half dead, [I said] ‘My God, my God, the wild beast!’ And seeing me so fucked up, she [the beast] told me in simple words: ‘Boy, why are you trembling? I won’t eat you.’ ‘And then why do you escape from the place you were assigned?’

-Vull parlar amb l'Alcalde i dir-li que tinc fam, que la gàbia és petita, jo necessite espai. Els guàrdies que la veuen la volen atacar, la fera es defensa, no la deixen parlar. Com són molts i ella és sola, no pot i me l'estoven. I emprenyats per la feina, a la gàbia me la tornen.

‘I want to speak with the Mayor, and tell him I’m hungry, that the cage is small, I need space.’ The guards see her and want to attack her, the wild beast defends herself, they don’t let her speak. Since they [the guards] are many and she is alone, she can’t and they beat her up. And irritated by the job, they take her back to the cage.

[News trumpet sound.]

Per ordre de l'Alcalde es fa saber tothom que la fera ferotge ja no ens traurà la son. I gràcies a la força no ha passat res de nou, tot és normal i “maco” i el poble resta en pau. Au!

By the Mayor’s orders, everyone must know that the fierce wild beast won’t worry us [lit. ‘take away our sleep’] anymore. And thanks to the force, nothing new has happened, everything is normal and nice and the town remains in peace. Come on!

[News trumpet sound.]

[twstinginthewind]

✍ Home for Punch

✍️ you give me a word and I give you a story.

Dear Mom,

I gotta admit? It feels weird writing a letter home. Especially considering that you just texted me a couple minutes ago. But, I did promise I would do this, so as your most dutiful and only son, here it is.

Classes are going pretty well. I think you'd be pretty proud of how I'm managing in the potions class. Kitchen training kinda paid off in there, you were right! And you have to tell Pops for me, that our history professor, Prof Trein? He remembers him from when he was a student here. Said he had high hopes for me. I asked whether he thought the same about Jo, and he said she certainly took after Pops and then walked away with his cat. It's a cute cat. I'll get a picture to you sometime.

Speaking of cats! I hope ours are doing good. I miss Sugar and Cream a lot, so make sure you give them extra pets from me while I'm here.

I've been making a lot of interesting friends, here. I think you might know the mom of one of the other members of the board game club? He says his mom's a big deal restauranteur in the Coral Sea; I dunno if you have any crossover there, but if you know a Ms Ashengrotto, that's her. Her son's running a cafe out of his dorm lounge so I bet he's gonna be taking over for her someday, hehe. Maybe she'll send him to you to train. Also, my dorm head is a lil weird, but he's made this absolutely incredible AI robot that acts like its his little brother and it's SO CUTE, MA. He's almost like a real boy, if real boys came equipped with jet packs and laser attacks.

Anyway, I'm also sending some photos I got of me and Jo and some of our friends. I wrote names on the back so you know who's who. I can tell you more about everyone later, but we do spend a lot of time with Deuce (i think he went to middle school with our cousins on your side? Gotta check), Ace, and Carol. Yeah, definitely more to tell later.

Have a good week, and can you send more rainbow cookies? My dormmates loved them.

Love, Punch

[thatwheelchairchick]

Okay, I know this is random, but I've got a thing for quotes, I kind of collect them, so I thought I'd share a few that I feel describe my MCs, even if it's not about their stories.

Lexi Adams from Instincts:

There were two reasons I was scared to let people in; the damage they could do and the damage they could find – Chris Mc Geown

I love Lexi, and while she lets both Bobby and Gary in, its in a superficial way, and what I mean is that she doesn't let them get deep enough to hurt her. It's not until she's struggling that she talks about her brother, and she has no intention of telling them about her traumatic past, not until she's forced to.

You have a past that is daunting to think about, but your future is glowing – Jennae Cecelia, Uncaged Wallflower

This one is definitely just a Lexi quote, I can't even explain why.

Lauren Moore from As It Seems:

He made me feel worthy of love, and even though it's over, that is mine to keep – Jo Wilson, Grey's Anatomy

That one is specific to the story because Lauren was essentially abandoned at 16 and even though it's been many years by the time AIS happens, she's definitely carrying that trauma, so when her relationship ends, this is essentially what she takes from it (you know, when she stops being angry).

Nikki Riley from Snapshots (not posted yet):

Whatever happens, love that. Because maybe, just maybe, everything is perfect – Maddie Dawson, A Happy Catastrophe

Nikki struggles a bit in her journey because she's constantly being pulled away from the person she openly wants to be with. But then she decides to just go with it.

You, with your sunny disposition and tender heart, have always been enough – Zara Bas, I Have To Tell You Something

This might just be self explanatory.

[aion-rsa]

Doctor Who: Previous Guest Stars Who’d Be Great as the New Doctor

https://ift.tt/2W1ERwy

It’s not unusual, in the world of Doctor Who, for the same actor to play more than one role on screen. From classic to modern Doctor Who, Nicholas Courtney, Ian Marter, Lalla Ward, Jaqueline Hill, Jean Marsh, Adjoa Andoh, Eve Myles, Naoko Mori, Vinette Robinson and more have all played multiple parts in the whoniverse. Before she debuted as companion Martha Jones, Freema Agyeman was a Torchwood employee who fell foul of the Cybermen in series two’s ‘Army of Ghosts’. Karen Gillan was a seer in series four episode ‘The Fires of Pompeii’ before she recurred as Eleven’s companion Amy Pond. Even the Doctor has had test runs. Colin Baker played a Gallifreyan commander in season twenty before taking over from Peter Davison. Peter Capaldi appeared in ‘The Fires of Pompeii’ as well as playing John Frobisher on Torchwood before taking up residence in the TARDIS.   

In the search for the new Doctor then, it makes sense to rifle through those actors the show already picked once to see who might be asked back. Continuity can be handled if need be – just do what Russell T. Davies did and make up something about spacial genetic multiplicity, or what Steven Moffat did and pretend it was all part of the Doctor’s plan to remind him to be a good man. In a few cases, the shared genetics wouldn’t even be an issue as the actor in question’s first appearance was either solely as a voice, or beneath too many layers of prosthetics to matter.

Gliding over a few previous guest stars whose current filming commitments likely take them out of the running (Andrew Garfield, Carey Mulligan, James Norton, Felicity Jones, Gemma Chan and Gugu Mbutha-Raw are probably all tied up…), here’s a choice selection of guest actors since 2005 who could all make fantastic, and very different, Doctors.

Chris Addison

Played: AI interface ‘Seb’, who greeted the recently deceased to Missy’s Nethersphere. Appeared in: Two-part Series Eight finale ‘Dark Water/Death in Heaven‘. Watch his stand-up and there’s a real Tenth Doctor energy about writer-director-producer-comedian-actor Chris Addison (The Thick of It, In the Loop, Veep). That probably means his time has come and gone on Doctor Who, as the show isn’t likely to want to repeat itself at this stage. Addison also has his plate full with the third series of Sky/FX’s excellent comedy-drama Breeders, but you could definitely picture him at the TARDIS console, couldn’t you?

Arsher Ali

Played: Bennett, a bookish recent military recruit to a Scottish underwater mining facility in 2119. Appeared in: Series 9 two-parter ‘Under the Lake/Before the Flood‘ Part of a large crew (initially at least) we didn’t see loads of Arsher Ali in his Doctor Who role, but what we saw was enough to convince that he has the presence and bearing of a potential Doctor. He was great as the lead in BBC’s Informer and as a conflicted journalist in the first series of The Missing, as well as in supporting role in Line of Duty‘s best series. Add all that to his breadth of stage experience and he’s a highly intriguing prospect.

Percelle Ascott

Played: Delph, a member of the Ux, humanoid aliens who live for thousands of years and have the power of telepathic inter-dimensional engineering (they can teleport planets). Appeared in: Season 11, Episode 10 ‘The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos‘. Not the only entry on this list with a Doctor Who-adjacent role in his back catalogue (see also: Anjli Mohindra in The Sarah-Jane Adventures), as a teenager, Ascott played science geek Benny in Russell T. Davies’ Wizards Vs Aliens. He was great then, but really showed his range in cancelled-too-soon Netflix supernatural drama The Innocents, where he stole the show. When he popped back up opposite Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor as the wise and conscience-led Delph, it was hard not to imagine what he might do in the Doctor’s role.

Zawe Ashton

Played: Lieutenant Journey Blue of the Combined Galactic Resistance, a solider on the Aristotle. Appeared in: the Ben Wheatley-directed Series 8 episode ‘Into the Dalek‘. A regular on ‘Next Doctor’ wishlists for some time now, Zawe Ashton is a terrific actor who came to fame as hedonist Vod in Channel 4 student comedy Fresh Meat and who’s recently been seen in Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale. In ‘Into the Dalek’ she played a ‘shoot first ask questions later’ soldier, but Ashton has the range for serious, absurd and very funny – in short, everything required to make a great Doctor.

Maxim Baldry

Played: Dr Polidori, a nineteenth century character who was part of Mary and Percy Shelley’s social circle. Appeared in: Series 12’s ‘The Haunting of Villa Diodati‘, about the summer Mary Shelley conceived her famous science-fiction novel Frankenstein. Baldry’s scored a role in Amazon Prime Video’s new mega-money Lord of the Rings TV series, so his dance card is likely full for now, but he’s just the sort of actor to breathe fresh life into the role of the Doctor, much in the way Matt Smith did back in 2010. He’s probably best recognised right now as Viktor, the asylum-seeking boyfriend of Russell Tovey’s character in Russell T. Davies’ future-predicting Years and Years, but the Russian-British actor has been acting in films since he was a child.

Sanjeev Bhaskar

Played: UNIT’s Colonel Ahmed, a colleague of Kate Lethbridge-Stewart in the fight against Missy’s Cybermen-from-corpses wicked plan. Appeared in: Series 8 finale ‘Death in Heaven‘. This Doctor Who role was just not enough of Sanjeev Bhaskar, an actor-writer-comedian whose role as DS Sunny Khan in ITV detective series Unforgotten has elevated him to the status of national treasure (partly because of his backpack, but mostly because of his decency and warm humour). Bhaskar is playing Cain opposite Asim Chaudhry’s Abel in Netflix’s forthcoming The Sandman series, and there’s series five of Unforgotten on the way, but wouldn’t he be great as the Doctor? As would another member of his family (see below)…

Mark Bonnar

Played: 22nd century miner Jimmy Wicks in the one with the ‘ganger’ clones. Appeared in: Series 6 two-parter ‘The Rebel Flesh/The Almost People’. No, of course they won’t let another funny, clever, slightly scary Scot with a brilliant face be the Doctor so soon after Peter Capaldi, but in a parallel universe, Mark Bonnar would make a very fine Doctor – something that hasn’t escaped Big Finish. He’s got it all (funny, clever, slightly scary, brilliant face) and frequently steals whichever show he’s in. Watch this two-parter, Catastrophe, Unforgotten series two and the brilliant Guilt (series two of which is approaching) for evidence of that.

Kevin Eldon

Played: Ribbons of the Seven Stomachs, a trader in the ‘Antizone’ obsessed with the Doctor’s “tubular” (or Sonic Screwdriver), and the voice of companion Antimony in an animated online adventure. Appeared in: Series 11’s ‘It Takes You Away‘ and 2001 webcast ‘Death Comes to Time’. It just seems a waste for the multi-talented Kevin Eldon to only play just one (or technically two, but just one on-screen) role on Doctor Who. And because his series 11 appearance was under a faceful of prosthetics, it wouldn’t even cause any continuity errors for him to come back in the role of the Doctor. Or a companion. Or another alien. Whatever it is, just give us more Eldon please.

O-T Fagbenle

Played: ‘Other Dave’, an engineer on an expedition to The Library who was eaten by the Vashta Nerada but brought back to life in the computer core. Appeared in: Series 4 two-parter ‘Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead‘ Fagbenle has recently been seen as Natasha’s fixer in Black Widow, June’s husband Luke in The Handmaid’s Tale, and as the lead character in sitcom Maxxx, about a washed-up former boy band member. The man has dramatic and comedy range, a very good American accent (not necessarily relevant here) and excellent screen presence. He’d rock the role of the Doctor.

Siobhan Finneran

Played: 17th century landlady/witch prosecutor Becka Savage/Morax queen Appeared in: Series 11’s ‘The Witchfinders‘. If the new Doctor’s going to be a woman in her early fifties, then it should really go to Jo Martin, but if she’s busy, how great would Siobhan Finneran be? The Happy Valley and Downton Abbey actor’s a treat in everything. She can be equal parts funny and imperious, and you can easily imagine her running circles around alien fiends and having a load of fun doing it.

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Tamsin Grieg

Played: the Nurse who inserts Adam’s infospike on Satellite 5. Appeared in: Series 1 Simon Pegg-starring episode ‘The Long Game’, alongside Anna Maxwell-Martin (who might also deserve a place on this list come to think about it). Tamsin Grieg would make such a good Doctor it almost makes you angry she’s never played the role. She has the dramatic chops to deliver all the world-saving speeches, and the comedic skill to give it all a sparkling light touch. She was chilling in her small Series 1 role, but it only showed a tiny portion of what she can do. Also, wouldn’t she look great in a signature coat.

Suranne Jones

Played: Idris, into whom the ‘soul’ of the TARDIS was poured, making her the ship incarnate until her body died. Appeared in: Series 6 episode ‘The Doctor’s Wife‘, written by Neil Gaiman. Perhaps a bit too similar to Jodie Whittaker to be a likely successor, but you only have to see Suranne Jones in BBC/HBO drama Gentleman Jack to know that she’s made of Doctor material. As nineteenth-century landowner and famed lesbian Anne Lister, she’s cleverer and faster than everybody else, with a fierce sense of boundary-breaking why-not-ness, and plenty of emotion. Look at most of Jones’ roles, including that of the TARDIS itself, and she’d be great in the part, especially if her regular collaborator Sally Wainwright is enticed into the showrunner gig.

Paterson Joseph

Played: the venal Rodrick, who competed against Rose Tyler in The Weakest Link on the Game Station. Appeared in: Series 1 two-parter ‘Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways’. Paterson Joseph was famously up for the role of the Eleventh Doctor that ultimately went to Matt Smith, and has been a stalwart entry in ‘Who next?’ lists of this sort ever since, so… this isn’t going to happen, but wouldn’t it have been great if it had? The Peep Show, The Leftovers, Noughts + Crosses actor and Big Finish voice artist is currently showing off his commander chops in BBC One submarine thriller Vigil.

Ralf Little

Played: Steadfast, one of the few crew members of an off-world colony ship who weren’t murdered by nano-bots. Appeared in: Series 10 episode ‘Smile‘. He’s currently solving baroque murders on a fictional Caribbean island in Death in Paradise, but none of that lot ever last long, which could free Little up for another spin in the TARDIS. Little has been a familiar face on British TV for years, after playing feckless teenager Anthony on The Royle Family and starring in a BBC Three sitcom that spanned the entire noughties, but now a little older, with plenty of experience under his belt, it could be Ralf Little’s time.

Susan Lynch

Played: Pilot Angstrom, a competitor in an intergalactic race who meets Thirteen on her second ever adventure. Appeared in: Series 11 episode ‘The Ghost Monument’. You don’t need telling why Susan Lynch would make a great Doctor, just watch any decent British drama from the last decade and she’s in it, showing you. From Save Me to Unforgotten to Happy Valley to Killing Eve to any number of TV and film roles, she’s a scene-stealer who can play mystery, tragedy, power… everything the role calls for.

Daniel Mays

Played: Alex, the unwitting foster dad of a Tenza-in-human-form son, George. Appeared in: Series 6 episode ‘Night Terrors‘ written by Mark Gatiss. RADA-trained Danny Mays can do comedy, drama, has some serious dance moves, and was a Line of Duty guest star, so we know he’d have no problem at all learning the Doctor’s long speeches. If the TARDIS wanted to cast a Gallifreyan Doctor by way of Essex, he’d be top of the list.

T’Nia Miller

Played: The General, Military Commander of the Time Lords, in their Twelfth Regeneration. Appeared in: Series 9 finale ‘Hell Bent’. The Years & Years and Foundation star played a Time Lord in her Doctor Who debut and can even already tick ‘Regeneration’ off the to-do list. Miller clearly has the bearing and gravitas required of the Doctor, looks great even in impractically massive armour, and was the absolute stand-out in Netflix’s 2020 horror series The Haunting of Bly Manor. If they could work out the continuity for a reappearance, she’d rock the role.

Lucian Msamati

Played: Guido, the father of Isabella, a new enrolment at Rosanna Calvierri’s school for girls. Appeared in: Series 5 episode ‘The Vampires of Venice.’ Since appearing in this 2010 Doctor Who episode, Msamati has gone on to appear in major series, from Game of Thrones to Gangs of London and His Dark Materials. He’s an experienced stage actor too, who’d be sure to bring dramatic heft to the role of the Doctor.

Anjli Mohindra

Played: the Scorpion-like Queen of the Skithra, a species that relies on other species for their engineering. Appeared in: Series 12 episode ‘Nikola Tesla’s Night of Terror‘. Anjli Mohindra already has a long history with Doctor Who, having appeared under layers of prosthetics and make-up in Series 12, provided the voice of the Mechanoid Queen for animated Time Lord Victorious series Daleks!, and playing the recurring role of Rani Chandra from series two of The Sarah Jane Adventures. Would that preclude the Vigil and Bodyguard star from stepping behind the TARDIS console in the top role? Nah.

Sophie Okonedo

Played: Elizabeth X of The United Kingdom aka Liz 10 of Starship UK. Appeared in: Series 5 episodes ‘The Beast Below’ and ‘The Pandorica Opens’. One of our finest actors, Sophie Okonedo not only played the future queen opposite Matt Smith and Karen Gillan in Doctor Who, she was also the voice of the Shalka Doctor’s companion in the BBC’s ‘Scream of the Shalka’ animated webcast, way back when. She’s currently starring in Amazon’s Wheel of Time adaptation and voices the key role of angel Xaphania in His Dark Materials, so probably has too full a plate to step into the TARDIS, but casting her as the Doctor would be a no-brainer.

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Tom Riley

Played: Robin Hood. Appeared in: 2014 Series 8 episode written by Mark Gatiss ‘Robot of Sherwood’. Tom Riley played a legendary genius and multi-hyphenate over three seasons of Da Vinci’s Demons so taking on the role of the Doctor wouldn’t really be a stretch. The actor is currently playing Augie in HBO/Sky drama The Nevers, which started life as a Joss Whedon-created supernatural fantasy before the showrunner left the project after the first six episodes.

Danny Sapani

Played: Colonel Manton/Runaway (depending on your perspective). Appeared in: Series 6 episode ‘A Good Man Goes to War’. The River Song/Melody Pond revelation overshadowed much else that happened in ‘A Good Man Goes to War’, but nonetheless, seasoned Brit actor Danny Sapani made an impression as enemy of the Doctor, Colonel Manton, who conspired with Madame Kovarian to kidnap Amy and Rory’s baby. Sapani’s enjoying a long career on screen and stage, with stand-out TV roles in Penny Dreadful, Harlots and Killing Eve, as well as the upcoming part of Captain Jacob Keyes in video game adaptation Halo.

Amit Shah

Played: Rahul, brother to missing person Asha Chandra, both victims of Tzim-Sha. Appeared in: The Series 11 opener ‘The Woman Who Fell to Earth‘. A skilled comedic actor who has a habit of stealing scenes, even in serious supporting roles like this one, or last year’s turn as a doctor experimenting on children in His Dark Materials, Amit Shah would be a great surprise to find in the TARDIS. Experienced but not yet a household name, there’s a Matt Smith vibe about this one. Revive him as a companion, at the very least?

Peter Serafinowicz

Played: the voice of alien warlord The Fisher King (though the character’s screams were provided by Slipknot front man Corey Taylor). Appeared in: Series 9 episode ‘Before the Flood‘. Likely not the photo of Peter Serafinowicz his Nan keeps on the mantelpiece, this is the villain he voiced in a Series 9 two-parter. It’s Serafinowicz out of the make-up and prosthetics though, who’d make an intriguing prospect as the Doctor. Great voice(s), great face, serious presence, humour, loads of experience… what else do you need?

Nina Sosanya

Played: Trish Webber, mother of Chloe Webber, the little girl endowed with the psychic powers of an Isolus. (And in Big Finish audio adventure ‘Aquitaine’ Captain Maynard’). Appeared in: Series 2 Olympics episode ‘Fear Her‘. A regular RTD collaborator, with previous roles in Casanova and Wizards Vs Aliens as well as Doctor Who, Nina Sosanya is a joy to see in any cast, which must be why she’s (thankfully) in everything. She’s great in comedy (Good Omens, WIA, Staged, Nathan Barley) and in drama (Last Tango in Halifax, Killing Eve, His Dark Materials, Little Birds) and would no doubt make a very convincing centuries-old two-hearted big-brained Time Lord. Get her a statement coat and get her in the TARDIS.

Meera Syal

Played: Dr Nasreen Chaudhry, the scientist in charge of an ill-fated deep drilling mission in a Welsh village. (As well as voicing audio stories and audiobook Borrowed Time). Appeared in: Series 5 two-parter ‘The Hungry Earth’ and ‘Cold Blood‘. Actor-writer-comedian Meera Syal, CBE, had a fair crack of the whip in Series 5 Silurian two-parter, but would always, always be welcome back for more. As well as comedic talent, she has the dramatic presence, brains and stature to play the Doctor. Her husband Sanjeev Bhaskar (see above) will just have to fight her for the role.

Joivan Wade

Played: Bristol graffiti artist Christopher Riggens aka Rigsy. Appeared in: Series 8’s ‘Flatline’ and Series 9’s ‘Face the Raven‘. Joivan Wade is currently starring as Victor Stone in Doom Patrol for the MCU, so it may be a while before he returns to the UK, but his two appearances in Doctor Who proved him to be a charismatic talent who’d energise the TARDIS if welcomed back.

Harriet Walter

Played: British Technology Secretary and later, Prime Minister Jo Patterson. Appeared in: Series 12’s ‘Revolution of the Daleks‘ (as well as voicing the role of Beatrice in audio story ‘The Boy That Time Forgot’). Having a Dame in the TARDIS would be quite something; that Dame being Harriet Walter would be off the charts brilliant. Just look at her – the face, the voice, the hard-to-define quality that means the moment she opens her mouth, everybody shuts up and listens. Harriet Walter, stage and screen star of Killing Eve, Succession, The Crown, Downton Abbey and so much more, would make a very fine Doctor indeed.

Marc Warren

Played: Elton Pope, co-founder member of LINDA, a group of humans who meet to swap stories on their encounters with the Doctor. Appeared in: Little-loved Series 2 episode ‘Love & Monsters‘. A very familiar face on British screens, with regular roles in hits including Hustle, Mad Dogs, The Good Wife and The Musketeers, there’s always been something about Marc Warren that makes you think he’d make a really great alien. See him as The Gentleman in Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, or Mr Teatime in The Hogfather, and you’ll agree. Top Doctor potential.

Gemma Whelan

Played: the voice of loads of characters for Big Finish audio adventures, but never (yet) on screen. Appeared in: ‘Ninth Doctor Adventures’, ‘Dalek Universe’, ‘Counter-Measures’ and more. Always a treat wherever you find her on screen, actor-comedian Gemma Whelan is best recognised as warrior leader of the Iron Islands, Yara Greyjoy in Game of Thrones but she’s been great in Killing Eve, Gentleman Jack, Upstart Crow, The End of the F***ing World, and recently, a killer episode of Inside No. 9. If Doctor Who is looking for another late-thirties Yorkshire lass to take on the Doctor’s mantle in future, go Whelan or go home.

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Doctor Who Series 13 will air on BBC One and BBC America this autumn.

The post Doctor Who: Previous Guest Stars Who’d Be Great as the New Doctor appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3CC4kfL

[azhefa-moved]

❛ Duels only lead to dead men, not respect. ❜

          “  in my experience, it’s aint about respect,  ”  he replies lowly. fighting is second nature to him and CHALLENGES are to be expected when one lives among warriors. he doesn’t take a question to authority lightly, nor any other sort of affront. the smallest sign of weakness is an invitation for death. it’s about survival. and if it is about respect, then, well— isn’t the other guy ending up dead the same thing?  that’s the point of it all isn’t it?  maybe she isn’t so fond of the idea in general. but it is not like he relishes taking life. it is simply  a necessary part of this world. it always has been for him.  // @shewhowalkedtheearth

[jbbarnesnnoble]

Chaser - Downdraft (Part One)

Chapter Title: Downdraft

Series Summary: Storm chasing is your passion. You decided in high school to study atmospheric science and spend your life studying storms. An accident leads you to the Avengers compound. A mother hen Tony Stark, a confused and concerned supersoldier, and some meddling friends, life is taking a new and unexpected turn.

Part Summary: You and your team head out to track a storm, putting you on a collision course with danger. 

Features: Storms and storm chasing, incorrect science

Pairing: Eventual Bucky Barnes/Reader

Notes:  In this part, we’re introduced to reader and her ragtag team of storm chasers. We also see a bit more of her relationship with Tony. We haven’t met Bucky yet. 

Word Count: 1866

Log #15042018

Location: Lynchburg, Virginia 

Downdraft (n.) - “a column of cool air that sinks toward the ground. It is most often accompanied by rain.” 

The air was heavy with the promise of a storm. You knew the conditions were perfect for tornado formation. Usually you didn’t venture too far to the east in the midst of tornado season but you’d been tracking the storm system and knew the potential for fireworks was there.

For as long as you could remember, you were obsessed with the weather. Your mother would recall how you could tell it was going to storm without ever looking at a radar map when you were a child. You almost wondered if you had some kind of mutation. It was an ability that persisted into adulthood. Your mother’s favorite story to tell was about how you begged her to go home one day when the weather was clear and rain wasn’t in the forecast. Three hours later a storm rolled in that knocked out power for most of the town and brought down some of the bigger trees. 

“What’s the game plan, Twister?” Sheridan asked you. Casey Sheridan was one of your partners in the field. The man was a trained first responder, volunteering back home with the local EMS. You had a small team assembled, all with the goal of studying storm systems to advance the science communities understanding of them.

“Thanks to our generous benefactor, we don’t have to pull a Jo Thornton and get right up with the tornado. The AI system will control the flight of the probes into the tornado and give us perhaps the most comprehensive data to date. The more storms we do this with, the more complete the data set becomes. Even if the probes become damaged entirely, the data will hopefully transmit. They have a home base they’ll return to and enough energy for a three day trip. Thanks to Stark we have them,” you explained. 

“I hate that we work for a billionaire,” Deacon grumbled. No one was fully sure of what Deacon’s real name was. You knew it because you hired him. He adopted his nickname from Fallout 4 and stuck with it.

“We don’t work for him Deacon. We’re an independent group of scientists with funding from Stark Industries…there’s a difference,” you argued. He raised an eyebrow in your direction.

“Potay-to, Potah-to, Twister. Stark pays our bills, and I for one say, eat the rich,” Deacon replied. You shook your head at him. 

“Well when you’re done plotting how you’re going to overthrow the bourgeoisie, I need you to finish a last check on the probes, Deacon. You know. Your job,” you said. You saw him roll his eyes and laughed to yourself. 

You had two modes of transport. The van followed the pickup truck. The probes would be launched from your truck closer to the tornado. All you had to do was press a button on a remote you had in the cab of the truck. It was the first time the probes were going to be used. Up until then, your research had depending on distance analysis and observing the damage after a storm.

“National Weather Service just issued a tornado warning. It’s go time. Radar indicated rotation about two miles south,” Cody said. She was your eyes and ears on almost everything. She and Casey worked together tracking the radar and any warnings. Your main job was ensuring your team stayed safe and analyzing the data that came in. 

You had a degree in meteorological and atmospheric sciences. It was your passion. You had graduated from Cornell and had your master’s, with a dream of getting your PhD eventually. Your encounter with Tony Stark had changed your life for the better. 

Anxiety was setting in as you and your team headed south toward Lynchburg. You had a good idea of where the tornado would touch down based on the radar imaging. Cody and Casey remained in the van with Deacon driving. You were on your own in the pickup. You always worried going into a storm. About your safety. About the safety of your team. It was only natural.

“FRIDAY what’s the radar looking like?” you asked the AI as you drove. Tony had outfitted your truck with access to FRIDAY. You argued at first but she was helpful in a pinch. He had done a lot to add protection to your truck and the van. You knew he worried about you, which still shocked you. 

“There is rotation approximately a half mile south,” she said. You nodded to yourself, and opened up the comms, another gift from Tony.

“We’re about a half mile out. There’s definite upward motion on that cloud up ahead. Pull off to the left coming up. We don’t want to get too close to this thing,” you said.

“Rain. We need to be ready to move. If this thing is rain wrapped,” Cody said her voice trailing off. 

“Looks like we’ve got touch down. I’m deploying the probes. FRIDAY’s sensors will guide them toward the tornado,” you said as you pressed the button. You watched as the probes flew off toward the storm, praying they worked. When confirmation came from the team you had silent moment of celebration.

“Twist, I think we gotta go, this thing is going to come up toward us and we don’t want to get caught out,” Casey said.

“Copy, Sheridan. Let’s continue moving to the south. We can avoid running into it and still gather images. Keep your eyes up Deacon, you never know when something will pop up,” you said. 

You drove forward, keeping an eye on the storm as you tracked it’s path, doing your best to judge what a safe distance was. You didn’t expect the debris that knocked into the truck that made you swerve off the road and flip. 

——————————————————————————————————–

Tony was pacing around the lab. Bruce was doing his best to reassure Tony. Most of the team had never met you, but Bruce had. Your innate curiosity always managed to turn things around and diffuse the tension when Bruce and Tony would argue.

“We have a problem,” FRIDAY said, breaking the tense silence.

“What’s going on?” Tony asked, trying not to sound panic.

“Sensors in her truck indicate that there was an impact and the truck has flipped on its side,” FRIDAY said.

“Is she alert?” Tony asked.

“In and out, sir. I will patch you in to their comms,” the AI said. Tony knew as soon as he was patched in.

“Status report,” Tony said.

“Christ Stark a little warning,” Sheridan snapped.

“Noted. Now, status report,” Tony said.

“A piece of debris hit the pick up. We were about one hundred feet back. She went careening off the side of the road and the truck flipped. EMS ETA is about ten minutes. She’s been in and out of consciousness but there doesn’t seem to be major external injury,” Cody replied. 

It didn’t take Tony long to get to Virginia, not with a quinjet. He was grateful to have Helen Cho on his payroll now, because as soon as you were stable, you were going to the compound, no arguments. There were few people Tony cared about on a deeper level. You were one of them. 

“Kid’s in surgery, but the doctors think she’ll be fine,” Tony said. He called Pepper as soon as he had news.

“She won’t be happy about being dragged to the compound,” Pepper pointed out.

“Tough. She needs to recover, not be out on the next chase. Her team agrees. They’re all going on vacation to be with their families, no argument. She needs to rest. And we both know she won’t do that if she’s not at the compound,” Tony said.

“You’re on your own then. Because we both know she’s not going to like it,” Pepper said. Tony sighed. 

“She’ll be on board when I give her free reign of the lab,” Tony said.

After talking to Pepper it was a waiting game.Tony had to pull serious strings to be able to see you. Your family was hours away and they weren’t going to come. He knew that. If you were awake, you’d know that. It had been that way for a long time. Another reason Tony worried about you, why he looked out for you. 

“Hey kiddo,” he said once you were awake. 

“Tony?” you asked, your voice raspy. 

“Yeah. You had a bit of an accident,” he said. He watched your expression change as the memory of what happened came back. You groaned. He wasn’t sure if it was in pain or annoyance.

“How’s the truck?” you asked. He snorted. 

“I’m having it brought back up to New York. Too much Stark Tech in that thing to let it go to a salvage yard,” he said.

“So it’s totaled?” you asked.

“Afraid so, kiddo. Gert is no more,” he said. You had named the truck, something that amused Tony to no end. 

“And the others?” you asked.

“They’re fine. A little shaken, but fine.  The van’s coming back up to the compound too while you recover. Your team is taking time off too. Visiting their families,” he said. You looked at him. He knew an argument was brewing. It was prime time for tornado season. You didn’t want to miss it.

“Tony,”  you started to say. He shook his head.

“Kid, you broke your leg. You’re down for the season. You need to rest and recover,” he said.

“But you have that cradle thing,” you argued.

“That we only use for life threatening injuries or if we desperately need someone back in the field. There’s no shame in letting things heal the old fashioned way,” he said. 

“I need to be back out there,” you argued.

“No. You need to rest. Your team needs time to rest. They thought you were a goner, kid. You’re lucky it seems to only be a minor concussion and a broken leg,” Tony retorted. A nurse soon came in, ending the standoff between the two of you. It wasn’t long before you were being brought up to the roof, where a quinjet was, and loaded in to be brought to the compound. Tony hadn’t come alone.

“Romanoff, meet Jo Thornton. I think you two will be spending a lot of time together,” Tony said. You glared at him.

“That’s not my name,” you snapped before offering your real name up. Tony had a habit of calling you by the name of the main character from Twister. You preferred the nickname Twister or Twist, if for no other reason than it being the nickname of a character from Rocket Power.

“Well, you know what they say Dorothy. There’s no place like home,” Natasha said as the aircraft began making its descent. Tony had opted to pilot it, leaving you to get acquainted with Natasha. You had a feeling she was one of the people Tony was going to rope into looking after you. 

You allowed yourself to relax and drift off into a light sleep, dreaming of your next chase and the thrill that came with it. 

[singledarkshade]

New Old Friend

Part Three

(Part One and Part Two can be found here) Jack grimaced as he listened to the tenth complaint phone call in a row about power outages. Glancing over to where Jo sat, he saw she was listening to something very similar.

“Okay, Mr Fredrickson,” Jack said, finally managing to get a word in, “We’ll look into it.”

Hanging up he sighed, waiting for Jo to finish her conversation.

“Call Henry?” Jo asked the moment she’d hung up.

“Please,” Jack clasped his hands together. He headed over to their small chalkboard they had and cleaned it. He updated it to read, ‘0 days since something weird has happened.’ They’d never made it to 4 days never mind a full week.

Jo appeared at his side and handed him the phone, “Henry.”

“Henry,” Jack said the instant he took the phone, “We’ve had calls that there are a lot of power surges and outages around town. Tell me it’s not you.”

There was a pause before the other man replied, “Not from anything I have going on just now.”

Jack sighed, “Damn. That means GD is more than likely to be the culprit. I might need your expertise while I check this out.”

“We’ll meet you there,” Henry said before hanging up.

Frowning slightly, Jack mused, “We?”

Henry hung up the phone turning to where Rip and Gideon were scanning over some of his inventions. The AI was impressive but also very opinionated.

Henry loved her.

“Problem?” Rip asked.

Henry nodded, “I think your shard may be causing some power problems in town. I’m heading to Global Dynamics. Feel like coming along?”

Rip smiled interested, “I assume I have the credentials.”

“Who do you think you’re talking to?” Henry tried to look offended but didn’t quite manage to get rid of his smile, “Your ID badge is in the wallet I gave you.”

Gideon frowned, “I assume I will be turned off.”

Rip bit his lip at her tart inquiry as Henry turned to her.

“Actually no,” he smiled, “GD is used to people field testing their experiments. Although we might want to avoid Fargo, he is our current AI expert.”

Gideon smiled sweetly making Henry chuckle at how Rip rolled his eyes. Grabbing his coat Henry led them out to the truck. Rip climbed inside and Gideon appeared to sit between them.

Starting to drive, Henry smiled as he saw Gideon study their surroundings.

“Dr Deacon,” she said, “I am intrigued by the town. You stated that it was created for those with genius intelligence?”

Henry nodded, “Back in the fifties Albert Einstein and President Truman founded the town as a haven for the smartest people in the country. To give them a place to create and learn. It wasn’t much at first but soon the town grew.”

“It is a shame we do not have a place like this within our own universe,” Gideon noted thoughtfully, “It would have been a good place to relocate the children after we removed the Time Masters.”

Rip shrugged before musing, “It would be an interesting place to have grown up,” sadness filled his voice, “Or to raise a child.”

Gideon shook her head so Henry wouldn’t ask Rip anything, she didn’t say anything further simply watching the scenery fly by. Reaching GD, Henry was pleased by the soft impressed noise Rip made when he drove through the shield surrounding it.

“Hologrammatic shielding,” Rip noted, “Impressive.”

Henry nodded, “There are a lot of top-secret projects within this building, we need good security.”

“Of course,” Rip nodded, a small smirk on his face.

Henry frowned, “What?”

“I believe Captain Hunter has already worked out several ways to infiltrate this building,” Gideon noted amused.

Glancing at the other man, Henry frowned at the slight shrug, “Just try to refrain from doing anything that will get you thrown in federal prison. Or do you know how to escape from that too?”

Innocence covered Rip’s face as they climbed out the truck and started to the front door. Henry pulled out his security badge and motioned Rip to show his. The guard studied it for a second before turning to Gideon.

“She isn’t real,” Henry said before explaining Gideon was an ‘experiment’ Rip was working on.

Looking extremely impressed the guard motioned them inside and Henry led them to the rotunda. Turning he found Gideon glaring at him.

“I’m not real?” she demanded sharply.

“He didn’t mean it like that, Gideon,” Rip soothed, “It was a simple way to get past the guard without going into the technical specifications.” Giving a sniff she turned to look around and Rip shrugged, “She may forgive you sometime soon.”

Henry moved to stand in front of Gideon, “I am extremely sorry I called you not real, Gideon. I never intended to insult you.”

Gideon smiled and nodded graciously before turning to Rip, “You should be taking notes.”

Before Rip could retort a call came making them turn to see Jack jogging over to them.

 Jack Carter had the look of a man who knew he was about to step into an insane asylum, a look Rip often saw on his own face when dealing with the Legends.

“I called Alison,” Jack said as he reached them, “She should be meeting us soon.” He looked at Gideon and asked, “Who is this?”

“I am Gideon,” she replied, “It is a pleasure to meet you, Sheriff.”

Jack moved to shake her hand stunned when it went through hers, “What?”

Henry laughed, “Sorry, Jack. Gideon is an AI, very advanced. Rip is testing an interface.”

Rip turned showing the disc attached to his temple, “Henry agreed to help me with the experiment.”

“What do you want, Carter?” a bored voice came from behind them.

Rip turned with the other two men to see a tall man with a sneer of superiority on his face walking with an elegant woman whose air of authority marked her as the boss.

“Nathan,” she scolded the man at her side before turning to them, “Carter, Henry and,” she paused at Rip, “Dr Hunter I presume.”

Rip nodded and took her offered hand, “Yes,” he said before adding, “And this is Gideon, my AI companion.”

“Dr Alison Blake,” she introduced herself to both of them, “Gideon, you are incredible.”

Gideon smiled back, “Thank you, Dr Blake.”

“Please don’t,” Rip muttered, “Her ego is big enough as it is.”

At Gideon’s sharp look he stared innocently at her.

“Dr Nathan Stark,” the final man introduced himself, “I’ve read your papers on Artificial Intelligence.”

A cough made them all turn to the Sheriff, who was standing waiting to explain why everyone has been called.

“Carter,” Alison turned to the Sheriff, “What do you need?”

Jack turned his attention from looking annoyed at the new man to Alison, “We’re getting reports all over town of power outages. I checked with Henry and it’s not him.”

“That’s some police work there, Carter,” Stark stated.

Irritation covered Jack’s face, but he continued, “We’ve gone over the other options in town and it’s not connected to any of them. So, here I am.”

Alison held up her hand to stop Stark from retorting, “We will check the list of projects to see if there is anything that could be causing the outages.”

“What about my favourite place, Section 5?” Jack demanded.

“That’s classified, Carter,” Stark stated, “As you know.”

“And as you know,” Jack retorted, “It’s usually the cause of all the problems.”

Alison sighed in annoyance, “Section 5 projects will be included in my check. Why don’t we head to my office?”

                                 *********************************************

 Gideon was fascinated by Global Dynamics. Not the humans, who were arguing as humans usually did while her Captain was sitting watching, taking in the dynamics and relationships between the people in the room.

The interface her Captain was wearing which allowed her to be seen by the people in this world, had the excellent side-effect of allowing Gideon to interact with the computer systems of this world.

And the Global Dynamics computers were fascinating. None were as advanced as she was of course, but for the period they were in, advanced enough.

She hadn’t informed her Captain of her new abilities just yet; he might insist she not pry too much into the information she should not be privy to. Considering all the things he’d had her hack in the past though, he had no way to complain but she felt it best to keep this information to herself for the moment.

Accessing all the files for the people in the room, Gideon was impressed by Dr Blake. Smart and independent, she was raising her son alone who himself was different. Dr Deacon, Gideon already liked but seeing his file she was very impressed, and in another life, he would have been taken as a Time Master. Sheriff Carter was not as conventionally smart as the others, but he had his own kind of intelligence and his file showed how many times he had saved the town.

Finally, was Dr Stark, who Gideon didn’t like at all. Yes, he was smart but in this room that wasn’t unusual, but he believed himself smarter than everyone else. Gideon had seen that arrogance before in Thawne, in Druce and so many others.

He was the type of person who could so easily fall into supervillainy if the right, or wrong, type of dominoes fell. It looked however that the people in the room with him kept him on the right side, if only just.

Scanning the systems, Gideon checked for the power issues to help the Sheriff. Going through all the projects, she was impressed by some of the things the scientists were studying although others were laughable but that was humans, eternally optimistic.

Continuing her way through the systems, Gideon turned to Rip.

“I need to speak to you privately,” Gideon said to him softly.

Confused Rip touched the interface and turned it off before he moved to the other side of the office away from the others.

“What is it?” he asked softly so he wasn’t overheard.

“I have checked the projects within Global Dynamics, and nothing could cause the power outages Sheriff Carter is investigating,” Gideon told him.

Rip frowned, “How…”

“The interface Dr Deacon created allows me to access the computers,” Gideon smiled at him, “Quite interesting.”

Rolling his eyes, Rip noted, “But I’m guessing that is not what you wanted to tell me.”

“Astute as always, Captain,” Gideon replied before telling him, “The shard is in a laboratory in the area known as Section Five. It appears safe at the moment but accessing it may be difficult.”

“Wonderful,” Rip sighed.

 Rip was surprised and extremely interested that Gideon could use the interface to access the computers, but it would likely be helpful to reach the shard. Henry motioned him to follow on as he and the Sheriff headed out the office.

“Well?” Rip asked Henry falling into step with the other two men.

“They’ll let us know,” Henry replied, as Jack let out an annoyed sigh.

They reached the exit and started to the cars. Glancing at Gideon, Rip shrugged, “It’s nothing in here that’s causing the power outages.”

Henry and Jack both stalled turning to Rip.

“How do you know that?” Jack demanded.

“Gideon,” Rip explained, “She had a quick check of the systems.”

Henry’s eyebrows rose in surprise, “The interface?”

“A small side-effect we didn’t expect,” Rip noted.

Jack chuckled, “Let’s not tell Alison or Stark about that but at least I won’t be wasting my time waiting for them.” He rested a hand on the top of his jeep, frowning in thought, “Okay, so there has to be a reason why the power in the town in going crazy.”

“Well, it has to be someone in town,” Henry noted, “But if it’s not a GD experiment, then it could be either an unsanctioned one or, even worse, a school project.”

Rip stared at them, “You’re kidding?”

Both men shook their heads, Jack adding, “I thought the same when I first came here but the kids are just as smart as the parents. Which means they can be just as much trouble.”

“Okay,” Henry said, “Let’s get back into town and make a plan.”

Jack nodded, “I’ll meet you both there.”

As the other man left, Henry and Rip climbed back into Henry’s truck. Rip reactivated the interface allowing Gideon to be seen by Henry once more.

“So,” Henry said as he began to drive, “Did you find anything else interesting while you wandered through the GD systems, Gideon?”

Innocence covered her face, “Why, Dr Deacon I am shocked you think I would look at things I am not authorised to access,” she told him.

A mischievous smile touched her lips making Henry laugh.

[areiton]

a giant sign - ironhusbands

Read on AO3

~*~ 

He’s been friends with Tony long enough to know when his sulky moodiness is a passing thing, when it’s a low simmer that will eventually explode. 

He’s been friends with Tony long enough to know when his anger is pushed at Rhodey, and when he’s just angry, and Rhodey is the nearest safe target. 

He’s been friends with Tony long enough that this--this should sink in, a lot sooner than it does. 

Pepper thinks he’s been friends with Tony long enough because they’re both idiots. 

 ~*~ 

After Vanko, Tony is sulky and short tempered, none of the normal banter and teasing while he works on the armor. He’s quiet, mouth a hard line while Rhodey plays with Butterfingers and DUM-E chirps sadly for attention. 

Rhodey shouldn’t have favorites, of course, but Butterfingers with her shy sweetness has always been his favorite. He rubs oil into her claw and she almost preens for him, and he chuckles while Tony silently codes. 

It takes almost eighteen hours, but Tony finally slumps against the worktable and the War Machine is gleaming and beautiful, deadly. 

“You’re good to go, honeybear,” Tony says, rubbing his eyes. 

There’s a smear of grease on his cheek and in his hair, and a knick on his finger that’s oozing blood, shadows under his eyes, and his smile isn’t quite right, a little tighter and colder than Rhodey is used to. “All that Hammer tech is gone and you’re outfitted with even better weapon systems.” 

Rhodey smiles, and some of the tension in Tony’s shoulders loosen. 

 ~*~ 

He cleans Tony’s hands, bandages them and drops a kiss on his forehead before he steps into the armor and flies away, and he can feel Tony’s gaze on him, chasing him across the sky. 

 ~*~ 

Tony doesn’t make weapons anymore, not for the military, not for private owners, not even for SHIELD. 

But when he opens up the AI Tony has coded into the armor, he’s greeted with an array of weapons that make the Brass pant and his dick a little hard. 

Tony always made the very best weapons. 

“Think you can get him to open the weapons division up again?” his CO asks, his voice hungry and Rhodey laughs because this--

“No. Tony hung up his weapons.” 

“That’s not what the suit says,” his CO objects, and Rhodey shrugs. 

Tony has always had rules, rules he expects the entire world to live by. 

And then there was Rhodey, slipping under them. 

 ~*~ 

The Air Force shoves a new pilot, a pretty bright eyed Academy grad, into the suit while Rhodey is tied up at the Pentagon. 

He hears about it through the chain of command, and there’s a pulse of fury, because that’s his. 

The suit isn’t like a plane, fit to be flown by any passing warm body. That is his, given to him by Tony. 

And it’s an asset of the USAF and he can’t really throw a fit, because the War Machine saved fifty children in a militant cult’s sway, brought down the charismatic leader holding a gun to the head of his seven year old bride, and all without casualties. 

He doesn’t complain, but it twists, tight and angry in his chest. 

 ~*~ 

“Rhodes. What the hell is going on with the suit?” 

“I don’t know, sir. It’s still in Norfolk and I’m in DC.” 

“It’s not in Norfolk--it took off without a pilot thirty minutes ago.” 

Rhodey sighs. 

 ~*~ 

“You stole property of the USAF,” he says, three days later. It took three days to get away and Tony hadn’t answered any calls in the days since the armor took off without a pilot. 

“I took back something they had no right to use,” Tony answers, his light breezy tone razor edged. “If you don’t want it, it should come home.” 

Rhodey huffs. “I didn’t approve the other pilot.” 

Tony stares at him, something sharp and gleaming in his eyes, something that Rhodey didn’t quite recognize. 

“That suit isn’t for the Air Force, platypus,” Tony says, sharply. “And the next time I find out someone else is piloting, I’ll remote destroy it.” 

Rhodey blinks, and then nods, slow. “Ok, genius.” 

 ~*~ 

Rhodey is halfway around the world, escorting the President back to the States, when Tony flies a nuke into space, and the armor doesn’t feel safe, doesn’t feel like Tony wrapped around him, protective and indestructible. 

It feels like a tomb, a coffin too small for the way he feels, for the way his heart is pounding too hard, for the way the world is going supernova. 

 ~*~ 

Romanov eyes the suit, the way he stands, broad and powerful, his Gatlin gun a heavy weight at his shoulder, protective at Tony’s back, in the aftermath of the attack,and her smile is small and knowing and he shoves it aside, and focuses on this--

Tony, alive, bright and beautiful and alive. 

His fingers itch, ache to reach out and touch. 

 ~*~ 

“We’re doing a rebrand,” Karen says. 

“It tested well,” Chad adds. 

“War Machine is just too--hostile,” Karen says, a moue of displeasure on her pretty lips. 

He doesn’t say, Tony named me that. 

He doesn’t say, Fuck your tests. 

He doesn’t say, I don’t want your goddamn brand. 

James Rhodes is a good soldier and this--this belongs to the USAF, despite the protests and safeguards Tony has raised. 

“We’re calling it Iron Patriot,” Karen says, brightly. 

“It tests well,” Chad adds.

Rhodey hates it. 

 ~*~ 

AIM handles the rebrand. 

The military has accepted that Tony is not getting back into weapons, wants to distance themselves and their personal watchdog from Stark and his tech, his weapons that they can no longer access. 

Rhodey understands the desire--but watching a stranger coding his armor, picking JO apart and pulling her out of the suit, stripping away the weapons Tony built to keep him safe and replacing them with AIM tech he doesn’t know--

He feels nauseated. 

They paint the suit, blue and red, stripes and stars, a callback to their greatest Soldier, and he hates it, hates it, because Tony built this, built him and he doesn’t want to lead a team of armored soldiers or super soldiers or heroes. 

He wants to do what he’s done his entire adult life. 

He wants to walk in Tony’s footsteps, familiar and recognized because of the light reflecting off his best friend. 

He doesn’t say anything, and when they tell him, brightly satisfied, that he won’t be mistaken for Ironman anymore, he chokes his screams behind his teeth. 

 ~*~ 

It goes to hell. 

The suit gets stolen, and Pepper gets stolen, and Tony’s shitty coping mechanisms save the day. 

And when it’s over, when he’s wrapped up in a suit that feels dirty and wrong instead of safe and his, he sees Tony watching him, Pepper curled in his arms, and he doesn’t recognize the look in his friend’s eyes. 

 ~*~ 

Tony isn’t speaking to him. 

He doesn’t notice, not right away. There’s the mess to clean up, the President to return and debrief. 

Tony is busy making sure Pepper doesn’t die, and working with the best in the medical field to get his own heart put back together. 

He’s there, of course he’s there, when Tony goes under the knife again. 

But Tony doesn’t speak to him, not really, not in the hospital or after, and then he’s busy with the move from LA to New York and Rhodey is deployed again.

It’s pushed aside. 

 ~*~ 

“Tony’s pissed at me,” he tells Pepper. 

“I am really not who you should be talking to about this,” she sighs. 

“Pepper--” 

“We broke up,” she says, abruptly, and that makes him go quiet. “So you need to figure out your shit, and get back to him. He needs you.” 

“I don’t know what upset him,” Rhodey says. 

She barks a laugh, because Pepper has never cared about appearances with Rhodey, something that never fails to make him smile. “You know--Tony won’t make anyone else a suit. Not even the Avengers or SHIELD--they asked. He didn’t even make me a suit, when we were dating. You’re it. And that suit--Rhodey. It’s a giant gun toting sign that says ‘property of Tony Stark, don’t fucking touch.’” 

He’s silent and she laughs in earnest, now, delighted and shocked, “You didn’t know.” 

“He didn’t say,” Rhodey protests and she laughs and hangs up on him. 

 ~*~ 

“Pepper said something interesting,” he says, stepping out of the suit on the landing pad. It gleams, silver and familiar, so close to the Iron man armor that they can be--are--mistaken again. 

“Pepper says a lot of interesting things,” Tony says, his gaze flicking back to the suit, and some of the tension in his shoulders going loose. 

Rhodey extends a sheaf of papers. “The Brass signed off on this, this morning,” he says. 

Tony eyes it warily and then huffs and takes it from him, because Tony’s hangups about being handed things never extended to Rhodey and how had he never known. 

Tony’s eyes flick up to him, shocked and hopeful. 

“Apparently saving the President’s life means I can call in favors. As of this morning, the War Machine can only be upgraded and maintained by you,” Rhodey says. “And only piloted by me.” 

“Why?” Tony asks, and Rhodey huffs. 

Reaches out and draws him close with a hand on his hip, and hope is wild, burning in Tony’s eyes. 

“Because I don’t want anyone else touching what you made me,” he murmurs. 

“Because you keep me safe,” he breathes, and Tony whines, the words brushing over his lips. 

“Because I’m yours and that suit that you gave me--I only want you touching it,” he says softly, lips brushing over his jaw and the corner of his lips. “I only want you touching me.” 

Tony makes a noise, half sob, and Rhodey smiles and kisses him.

 ~*~ 

Later--

Later, after he has spread Tony across his bed, when he has come down Tony’s throat and fingered him open, when Tony has dug crescents into his shoulders and come, white and sticky across Rhodey’s abs, head tipped back, face slack with pleasure, eyes bright and trained on Rhodey, when he’s come, spilled in the tight heat of Tony and wrapped around him, kissed him until his lips feel swollen and bruised, when he scoops his come from where it’s dripping down Tony’s thigh, presses it back in, fingers pressing in and making Tony groan--

After he carries Tony to the tub and cradles him against his chest in the water, Tony leans his head back against Rhodey’s shoulder. 

“You coulda said,” Rhodey murmurs. “Mighta been easier to write it on my forehead--property of Tony Stark.” 

Tony flushes, still shy and Rhodey smiles, kisses him gently. “It’s fair, you know.”

“Why’s that, honeybear?” 

“You’ve been mine since MIT, genius. Only fair that I’m yours.”