#sam and frodo are sitting there invisible because they are being protected by the gift of love and honor galadriel gave them

[ach-sss-no]

I feel weird giving out unprompted permission statements because I'm making a big assumption that anyone's going to want to use my work. That said I also know people do like to build on other people's art and can't always work up the nerve to ask, so: Anyone is free to use this design if they want to for any reason- I don't own this character anyway. (Although I am hopeful that you do not, you know, monetize it, because i cant do that and if you do that its not fair ;_; ) Feel free to remix, improve, use as basic inspiration, etc. I would appreciate a tag/mention if you use it so I can see what you did!

This design has evolved a little since I first started drawing it, and I will see people reblogging the original design notes and think 'oh no! those are out of date and I don't have new/accurate ones!'

Reblogging the old one is still an honor- and the first take on a design just sometimes has a different appeal because it's less refined and more chaotic (especially with a character that should be chaotic), so I suspect some people will just prefer the older drawings & they'll still get shared, which is great! But I felt as if the project was a little bit incomplete without an update, since I think I've reached the point where if you see that old post & then come to my blog and look at my current content, there's a noticeable difference.

Also I kind of like making design notes.

If anyone's wondering why things changed, the answer's really simple- 90% of it is just the result of him settling into having more consistent anatomy and facial structure so that I can keep him looking accurate across different angles and poses. If you look at the old drawings you may notice that Gollum has an inconsistently shaped squishy head. That's fine for a concept post but doesn't work as well for maintaining him across different comic panels or in an animatic, at least not the way I work.

In the same vein, while my art is still & will always be heavily stylized, I started giving him more structured semi-sorta-realistic anatomy so that he wouldn't look entirely out of place next to less bizarre-looking characters such as Aragorn. (I feel that's also helpful in nudging Gollum into the uncanny valley where he ought to be, rather than leaving him so abstractified that there's a risk you won't see anything wrong with him having noodle arms.) He also acquired the new-style 'garbage bag' outfit because I found a reference in LOTR to his arms and legs being bare/exposed (it's in one of my favorite passages, the 'an eagle would think Gollum was dead if it came by right now' passage in The Two Towers):

Not even an eagle poised against the sun would have marked the hobbits sitting there, under the weight of doom, silent, not moving, shrouded in their thin grey cloaks. For a moment he might have paused to consider Gollum, a tiny figure sprawling on the ground: there perhaps lay the famished skeleton of some child of Men, its ragged garment still clinging to it, its long arms and legs almost bone-white and bone-thin: no flesh worth a peck.

[moonbeambucky]

Fallin’ for You

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Mutant!Reader Word Count: 3630 Warnings: light angst, fluff

Summary: The Avengers spend their day off at a farm near the compound where the leafs aren’t the only things that have fallen.

A/N: This is my submission for @nataliarxmanxva Sofi’s Season’s Change Writing Challenge. My prompt was “Don’t look at me like that, this was not my idea” Reblogs, comments and likes are always appreciated! gif source (x)

It was a beautiful day as the crisp wind blew, rustling the golden leaves of the surrounding trees. You were excited, walking with a little extra zest in your step as you crunched on the leaves that trailed up the entrance of to Lee Farms.

This past weekend had been their annual fair, kicking off your favorite season, fall. It’s the perfect weather; cool enough to snuggle up in a hoodie in the early mornings and evenings, with just the right amount of sun during the day, whose rays warmed you like your favorite hot drink. 

This season had your favorite festivities like apple picking and finding the perfect pumpkin to carve for Halloween. You missed going to the farm near you. It had been a yearly tradition with your best friend Joe but life has changed for both of you and it’s not something you’ve been able to keep up on.

Tony knew how much you missed it so he arranged this outing as a treat for the team, a break from the nonstop missions you’re all exhausted from. He booked the farm for the day, offering a generous donation to the small family owned business to help them convert their power system into something clean and more sustainable. Not everyone wanted to come though. Clint left to see his family which was understandable and Wanda and Vision stayed in. You thought they would enjoy the farm, especially Vision who loved experiencing new things but they wanted time for themselves.

As the newest member of the team it took you a while to learn all about their different personalities. Tony felt most comfortable in the lab tinkering with something, Sam always found a way to liven up the room and Steve tried to include everyone, making sure each member knew how valuable they were to the team and to him. Bucky kept to himself mostly, often reading in his room and you were surprised he came along. Overall everyone made you feel welcome, well except for Bucky. To him you were invisible and it wasn’t just because that happened to be the strange gift you were born with.

You discovered your power in the worst possible way. You already felt like an outcast in school, having only a handful of friends but still never really fitting in. You were eating lunch with Joe when you heard some girls giggling from the table behind you, their voices increasing in volume and you just sensed it had something to do with you. Suddenly you felt something foreign smack against your back, slowly sliding down. You stood up in shock to see a cheeseburger on the floor. The girls wailed with laughter as someone else threw fries at you.

Before learning to control you power your emotions would set it off. Your eyes closed to stop the hot tears from escaping, your fists squeezed into tight balls until –poof– you vanished. You opened your eyes to see everyone’s mouth agape in shock and confusion. You didn’t understand until you looked down, being able to see through yourself save for the thin outline of your body only visible to your eyes. The shock you felt turned you visible again and you ran out of the cafeteria.

The whole school was talking about you, calling you an invisible freak. Joe stood by you, defending you against them and cheering you up as he raved about how cool you were. You love your powers, now more than ever, but at that time you’ve never felt like more of an outcast.

Here you were again, feeling out of place for the most part. Bucky just didn’t see you. Sometimes that was okay though, because every time you saw him your heart fluttered. You couldn’t help the crush you had on him, he was obviously very attractive but there was more to him than that. He was mostly quiet except around Steve, that’s when he blossomed with his beautiful smile shining through. And his laugh, oh how you loved that sound.

When you were around Bucky you were horribly clumsy except during a mission. Somehow in the midst of stress that’s when you were the most levelheaded. Enemies surrounding you, great, no problem. Pouring a glass of orange juice in front of him, complete disaster.

Being invisible had its perks though because at least you could watch Bucky without the threat of embarrassing yourself. You never abused your power though, only pining for him silent and unseen while he cooked dinner or when he would sit on the grass after a nightmare, letting the gentle wind and the morning symphony of birds relax his mind.

A few days ago you went to watch him at the gym, Natasha unknowingly passed by you as you watched Bucky lifting an enormous amount of weight. He grunted, bringing up the barbell and you had to bite your lip hard to stifle the noises that threatened to escape. Steve hovered over him, encouraging his friend to finish his set. Bucky’s tongue slipped out to lick his lips as his face strained from the exertion.

“Hello Miss Y/N.” The tranquil voice of the android broke the silence.

You turned around with a look of horror, with eyes as wide as your mouth was open to see Vision, innocently standing there to greet you as his powers enabled him to see through your own.

“Y/N?” Bucky questioned, looking over towards where it was assumed you were standing. You smacked your head as you became visible, dragging your palm down your face in disbelief.

“Working out today?” Steve asked. From the corner of your eye you saw Natasha cock her head, smirking as she watched the embarrassed expression on your face grow. “Uhhhhhh, I’m not here,” you said, practically sprinting out of the gym.

I’m not here!? Ugh, you’re so stupid.

Natasha caught up with you after, forcing you to admit your feelings for Bucky. She vowed to help you though, trying many times to gauge Bucky’s interest but he was very protective of himself. It’s probably why he’s barely a word to you now.

Bucky may not be interested in you but at least you had an eager audience of animals. You walked to the open pens of the goats and sheep, attempting to pet them but they stuck their heads out, overzealously nudging your hands with their face as they were eager to be fed. Their tongues tickled your palm as they lapped up the food pellets you had, allowing you to finally pet them after a few rounds of feeding. You walked backwards, smiling as you said goodbye to those animals before slamming into something– no, someone.

“S-sorry,” you stammered, having backed up right into Bucky. You washed your hands in the outdoor sink, wishing you could rinse away your insecurities as well. Finding Natasha, you looped your arm through hers, telling her about your latest disaster.

Everyone made their way into the chicken barn, passing an incubator before huddling around baby chicks. You squealed in delight, gently cupping the pale yellow fuzz balls of cuteness. Natasha grabbed your phone at your behest, to take pictures of you holding one close, softly caressing its little head.

You placed the chick back gently and were about to pick up another one but something caught your eye. Looking over you saw Bucky standing against the wall watching you and your eyes flared with anxiety. He shifted his focus on Tony teasing Sam. That’s right, you knew he wasn’t just watching you, why would he?

The group laughed as Tony couldn’t stop his jokes, asking Sam if he feels at home in the chicken coop. Everyone was distracted by their back and forth, laughing as Sam told Tony he looked like a shiny metal chicken. You smiled but kept silent, not wanting to get yourself involved in this and turned back towards the baby chicks when you noticed Bucky was still up against the wall. He’s smiling at the chicks but he hasn’t gone near them at all.

You’re not sure what gave you the courage to speak up but you walked towards him and asked why he wasn’t holding them. He softly cleared his throat, “I don’t want to hurt them,” he said, waving his metal hand up.

His eyes held a fear you couldn’t understand. “Bucky you would never.” You said it confidently, knowing it was true in your heart despite Bucky’s apprehension.

You turned his metal palm over with your hand and placed the tiny chick in it. Grabbing his other hand you motioned for him to cradle the small animal against his chest. Your breath caught in your throat when you realized your hands were still touching his. The gaze of his beautiful blue eyes hypnotized you for a moment before you let go, nervously smiling and running back to Natasha.

After washing up again everyone stopped to eat. The farm had graciously put together a buffet of different offerings, cheeseburgers, pulled pork sandwiches, chicken wings (which you declined after spending so much time with the baby chicks) plus sides of fries, kettle chips and fresh corn. Natasha had wordless configured the seating arrangements so that Bucky was across from you. You caught Bucky’s gaze as you sat down on the bench, trying to control your shaky hands to avoid spilling your cup of apple cider. Smiling quickly you looked away before filling your plate with food.

You spaced out while eating until you hear a voice call your name. Looking up you see Bucky waiting for an answer to the question you didn’t hear.

“Huh?” you asked, wiping your mouth with the napkin.

“Is it good? The corn?”

You pondered his seemingly obvious question for a second and you were about to answer him but you stopped yourself, feeling pieces of corn all throughout your teeth. You shut your mouth tightly and nodded your head as you hummed your answer. You hated doing this but there was no choice, you went invisible, just for a few seconds to pick the corn out of your teeth in private.

“Hey Frodo, will you take the ring off and come tell us what you wanna do next?” Tony sarcastically said.

You reappeared, smiling at one of the many nicknames he’s given you. “Okay so is everyone ready for the corn maze?” you asked enthusiastically. You explained that you’ve done them more times than you can count.

“What’s the fastest time you’ve ever finished?” Sam asked.

“My record is twelve minutes.” It was the fastest time you and Joe had ever done the maze and Sam nodded approvingly.

Natasha split everyone into teams, she and Steve, Sam with Tony and of course you and Bucky. You made a mental note to buy her a churro when you get out of there as a thank you.

“No, no I’m sitting this one out,” Tony spoke up. “Getting lost in a field of vegetables, not my thing. You kids have fun.”

You were disappointed because you believed everyone should enjoy a good corn maze but now Sam insisted on joining your team thanks to your earlier bragging. “Twelve minutes huh? Well with me on your team we’re gonna get outta here in less than ten,” Sam laughed, throwing his arm around you.

Everyone waited for the farm employee to come over. The clearly intimidated kid squeaked out the rules of the maze, showing everyone an aerial map of the large field. He explained that the theme was based off of Charlotte’s Web.

“Ooooh I love Charlotte’s Web!” you interrupted.

Sam narrowed his eyes towards you and smirked, “Y/N will you let, uh what’s your name?”

“K-Kevin,” the boy sheepishly replied.

“Will you let my man Kevin here finish? I really don’t want to be stuck here all day.” You mimed zipping your mouth shut and throwing away the key as Sam rolled his eyes, missing the way Bucky cracked at smile at your gesture.

Kevin laughed and then stopped himself, unsure if he was allowed to laugh at an Avenger. He continued, flipping over the map to reveal a color coded version of the maze. He explained that the pathways have different color ribbon around them and that you need to find the black ribbon where Charlotte is depicted to cross the bridge of victory.

Steve looked over the map he handed each team, “It’s blank.”

Kevin explained there are nine mailboxes hidden within the maze, each provided a small piece of the map. You could look for them if you want or just try to get out on your own. “If you make the first nine moves correctly then you’ll be out in fifteen minutes, if not we clear the field at the end of the season so we’ll find you eventually,” he said, finding the courage to make a joke.

“Why am I doing this?” Sam questioned.

“Because it’s fun!” you replied with a beaming smile.

Making your way into the field you were given two options, right or left. Steve and Natasha went right and so Sam insisted you three turn left. You crossed under the bridge of victory but clearly you’re a long way from finding its entrance. Bucky stayed relatively silent, following behind as you and Sam tried to navigate the maze. You found one mailbox, taping the tiny section of the map to its corresponding location on your paper, but it didn’t help you. After thirty minutes of Sam’s increasing frustration he finally spoke up.

“I thought you were good at this!”

“Yeah, well each maze is different Sam,” you said as you pondered a crossroads between green or red ribbon.

“What’s the longest you’ve ever been in one of these?” he asked.

“Hmmm,” you thought about it, “Close to two hours.”

Sam practically shrieked, “Why didn’t you tell me that before?”

“You didn’t ask,” you said, holding in your bubbling laughter as you stared at his frowning face. You turned around at the sound of Bucky laughing and it made your heart swell. There it was, that sound you seldom heard but loved so much.

Sam shook his head, “Nah, nope. I’m getting out of here.”

He went through his backpack and put on his goggles. Both you and Bucky stared at him in confusion. When he took out his drone you had to question him. “Sam what are you doing?”

Redwing flew up above the field scanning the pathways.

“Sam you can’t, that’s cheating!” you tried to plead with him.

“Don’t look at me like that, this was not my idea!” he said, touching his goggles and presumably deciphering his way out. “I did not sign up to be stuck in a corn maze all day. I’m gettin’ outta here the easy way.”

Sam turned the corner, focused on leaving the maze. You and Bucky stared at each other, sharing a knowing look before bursting out with laughter.

“Shut up!” you heard a distance voice shout.

You wiped tears away that formed from laughing too much. “I guess it’s just us,” you smiled at Bucky. “Uh… unless you want to follow him out,” you said, regretting that you gave him an opportunity to leave.

“No I’ll stay. I just hope it doesn’t take two hours.” Your smile faded for a moment before he continued speaking, “I’m still hungry.”

“Oh! I have some almonds in my bag if you want,” you scrambled to search inside your bag to pull out the small packet.

It slipped from your hand before you gave it to him and you both bent down at the same time to get it, bumping heads in the process. The force of Bucky’s strong body knocked you to the ground.

“Ow,” you hissed, rubbing your forehead.

“I’m so sorry!” Bucky apologized, helping you up to your feet. You brushed off the dirt from your backside, clearing your throat and offering Bucky to lead the way.

You and Bucky continued, finding another map near red colored string. You pulled up your incomplete map and looked over it with Bucky.

“So we’re here but we need to get to Charlotte,” you pointed to the blank space on the map where you knew the exit was.

“Charlotte’s the spider?” Bucky asked.

“You don’t know Charlotte’s Web!?” Your question came off a bit snappier than you intended.

Bucky rubbed the back of his neck and laughed, “I wasn’t around for it, doll.”

You froze for a moment before spewing out your words entirely too fast in response to the name he called you, “Oh well you should watch it. I mean it’s a children’s book you could read it, but there was a movie too.” You took a deep breath after that mouthful, reminding yourself that he calls everyone doll and it didn’t mean anything.

Bucky smiled in response to your flustering as you continue through the maze. More time has passed now and although you’re enjoying spending the time alone with Bucky the insecure part of you can’t help but to wonder if he’s regretting his decision to stay. You wondered if Natasha & Steve got out of the maze. You hadn’t seen Redwing flying over head in some time so you assumed Sam did. Even though you’re enjoying yourself with Bucky you felt very disappointed in your lack of skills.

“I swear I’m really good at these normally, or maybe I’m not. Maybe it was all Joe,” you thought.

“Joe?” Bucky questioned with a hint of sadness in his inflection.

“Yeah he’s been my best friend since we were thirteen. He was the only person I could trust. Everybody else judged me or tried to use me because of my powers but not Joe.”

Bucky’s mouth opened to speak but you continued, frowning as you expressed how much you missed Joe. He shut his own mouth, feeling his whole body sink at your confession.

“But I get it,” you continued, “Our lives a very different now. Me with all of this world saving stuff and now that his wife is pregnant I think our corn maze days are over.”

You heard Bucky sigh in what seemed like relief but again you doubted it. He was probably just catching his breath from all the walking you’ve been doing in the hot sun together.

The farm was oddly quiet except for the distant sound of a tractor. Your mind drifted as you passed the pink ribbon representing Wilbur the pig.

“There were two movies actually,” you said looking up at Bucky, continuing the conversation about Charlotte’s Web that had finished long ago. “The original is my favorite, better music.”

“Oh yeah?” he replied.

You began to softly sing under your breath as you referenced the map for a possible route out, “Oh we’ve got lots in common where it really counts, where it really counts, we’ve got large amounts. What we look like doesn’t count an ounce. We’ve got lots in common where it really it counts.” You felt Bucky’s eyes on you which made you smile nervously.

“Is that from the movie?” he asked. You nodded quickly, feeling embarrassed for singing at all. “Will you watch it with me?”

You turned your head up, brows furrowing in confusion and shock. “Um, yeah sure.” Your face began to heat up and you didn’t think it was from the sun.

“Back at red again! Bucky I don’t think we’re ever getting out of here. I’m afraid I’m not a good corn maze partner,” you said, holding your head in your hands in frustration.

“It’s fine, I’m having a really nice time.”

“Can I ask you something?” You swallowed hard before continuing, holding on to some form of false courage. “This is the first time you’ve talked to me… like ever, outside of a mission. Now you want to hang out. I mean, I want to but I’m…” you stammered on before realizing you had spoken over Bucky.

He repeated his words, “I like you Y/N.”

“What?” you screamed. “I mean, sorry, it’s just this came out of nowhere…”

Bucky cleared his throat, “Yeah, I’m not good at letting people in after everything… I put up walls to protect myself.”

You smiled at his admission. “When Steve told me you liked me…”

“Natasha!” you jokingly hissed her name.

He chuckled, “I never thought you saw me as anything more than a teammate but when I found out I was trying to find the right way to tell you.”

You sighed heavily, “Well we can thank them both if we ever get out of here.”

Bucky laughed, that sweet sound that you’ve been hearing more and more as the day went on. “Oh it’s just this way.” Your brows furrowed as you stared at him waiting for an explanation.

“Yeah, I saw the black string a long time ago but I made us go the other way.”

“Why?”

His smile softened. “Because I wanted to spend more time with you doll.”

“Bucky Barnes I’m going to beat you over the head with this corn!” you joked, playfully shoving him. Your hands lingered on his muscular chest as you stared into his blue eyes, the corners crinkled as he smiled from ear to ear.

He wrapped his arms around you and you felt yourself growing warmer under his stare. Your eyes focused on the way his tongue slipped out to lick his lips as he leaned in towards you and you closed the gap. You whimpered as his soft lips molded perfectly with your own, stealing the breath from your lungs.

Overcome with emotion you had unintentionally disappeared. Redwing was flying overhead as Sam watched Bucky awkwardly kissing the air.

“Yeah, they’re falling for each other,” he smirked, telling the rest of the team.