#she's hurt herself today and we might not be able to go to the expo sat

[kedreeva]

My friend that's been taking me around to the reptile expos just posted up one of her high-white Solomon Island ground boa baby holdbacks from 2019 on morph market and it is killing me. The high white babies like this just keep getting prettier as they get older. Their scales are keeled so it feels like petting a dragon, and they only get like 2-3 feet long (the boys like this) and every time I see one it makes me wish I was still keeping snakes.

She actually posted a bunch of other snakes too, if anyone's interested in acquiring some really cool species! She does ship!

[literarytrashcollection]

Where Are Any of Us Going? (Part 8/?): Suspicious

(Bucky x Reader)

AN: I’m considering adding a sexy scene in the next part or two. Thoughts?

I woke up to the bed dipping under additional body weight. I kept my eyes shut, waiting for some signifier of who it was. Once the familiar weight of Bucky’s metal arm was draped over my waist, I relaxed back into him. He pulled my hair away from my neck and pressed soft kisses along the length.

“Welcome home,” I mumbled.

He hummed in response, tightening his arm around me.

“How was your mission?”

“Can we talk about it later?”

I finally opened my eyes, peeking at the clock next to the bed. “I have to be up in three hours for work.”

He sighed heavily. “Can’t miss a day of work for me?”

“No, Pepper’s got me running the New York office for the day while she goes down to Malibu.” I rolled over so I could see him. He was a little banged up and bruised, but he was still in one piece. Pushing his hair back from his face revealed a cut across his forehead, already taped up.

He held my hand against his face, pressing a kiss to my palm. “I should’ve just told you to be an Avenger.”

“No, Pepper is so good to me. I’m her assistant and, ya know, she pays me in real money.” I laughed. His lips turned up at the corners. “I’m usually supposed to stay with her, Tony said because of my strength, I make an awesome body guard. But since she’s gonna be back tonight, she’s just letting me run things so she can have some time to herself.”

“He made you a glorified body guard for his girlfriend?”

“It pays, I’m useful, and it’s better than being an Avenger.”

He shrugged and rolled onto his back, pulling me with him so I was laying on top of him. He pulled my face down and kissed me gently. “I missed you, doll.”

“I missed you too, sweetheart.”

He sat up abruptly, taking me with him so I ended up straddling his lap, his hands on my hips as he studied my face. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” I pecked him on the lips and hugged him tightly. “So much.” I added, squeezing hard.

“Doll, you’re hurting me,” he chuckled. I quickly released and sat back. He caught my hands, looking over the metal appendages. “I thought they were supposed to still look like your hands.”

“I asked Bruce to leave it off. I kind of like them like this.” I turned my hands over. “It also makes all of the employees scared of me so they actually listen.” I grinned.

He smiled and shook his head, tracing his fingers up my arms and under the sleeves of my t-shirt. “I like them.”

“Me too. They’re really strong and I can feel a lot better than I could with the old ones.” I ran my fingers through his hair. It was silky, once I got through the tangles. “I’m sorry if they’re cold.” I frowned, moving my hands down his neck and over his chest.

He shook his head. “Mine is too,” he wiggled his metal fingers at me. I could see how tired he was; the bags under his eyes, the sallow look to his face, the droop in his muscles.

I pushed him back down on the bed and rolled off him, cuddling up against his side. “Sleep with me?”

“You mean…?”

“No, dirty old pervert.” I slapped his chest lightly. “Sleep. While laying next to me.”

“Right,” he nodded, shifting around until he was comfortable. He was asleep before I could say anything else.

Knock knock. I glanced at the door to see Steve letting himself in. He smiled a little and sat a latte and Philly sandwich on my desk.

“Thought I’d swing by,” he sat down across from me, unwrapping his own sandwich.

I arched my eyebrow. “Any particular reason?”

He shrugged and smiled at me with a mouthful of food.

I moved my paperwork aside and unwrapped my sandwich, watching him warily. “Is this something to do with Bucky?”

“Am I not allowed to bring my friend’s girlfriend lunch?”

I narrowed my eyes at him, waiting.

“Okay, okay,” he sighed and sat his food down. “Tony figured out where the signal from your receiver came from, a small, underground base in the middle of Austria.”

“That’s fantastic. But why are you acting so weird?”

He pressed his palms together, looking at the floor for a moment. “It’s going to be a very dangerous mission, but we need you to come with us.”

“Why?”

“Because we’re going to use you essentially as a spy.” His face was tight. “As hard as it is to hurt you, we can put the receiver back on you and let you get some information from them. We can’t just burst in there guns blazing. If it’s dangerous, you should be able to protect yourself. If it’s just a bounce point for the signal, then it shouldn’t be a big deal.”

“What if the receiver explodes? They probably know that I’m with you guys. If they see me coming, they might know what’s up and try and blow me up.”

“They already disabled it.”

I leaned back in my chair. “If it’s dangerous, you guys will be right behind me, right?”

“Me and Tony, yeah.”

“Why not Bucky?”

“Because not only is it an old HYDRA base, but he…” Steve shook his head, “he could not handle seeing you go into someplace so dangerous. We… We can’t tell him that you’re going.”

I nodded slowly.

“Tony is going to put together a bullet proof suit for you to wear under your regular clothes. You’ll have coms and video so we’ll be right in your ear. We won’t let anything happen to you.”

“I have to think about it.”

“You’ll have time. Tony needs to finish your suit and Natasha is gonna run through a quick lesson in self-defense, so if anything turns sour, you can protect yourself.”

“Just covering all of your bases?”

He shrugged and nodded.

“Do I really have a choice in the matter?”

“You do,” he nodded. “We can’t make you go. But it would be the easiest way to get in there.”

“How could Natasha or you or Bucky not get in easier?”

He looked pained. “If they have surveillance, then we could get spotted before we even get in.”

“Steve… I don’t know,” I rubbed my hand over my face, “What’ll we tell Bucky when I go off training with Nat?”

“You’re shopping or whatever. Or just tell him that Nat offered to train you for fun. To help with your body guard position for Pepper.” He nodded.

I stared at him for a long time, studying the worry etched into his furrowed eyebrows and the tension in his shoulders. “Fine. I’ll do it.” I took a drink of my latte.

Steve was silent for a moment before taking in a deep breath through his nose and sitting back in his chair. “I was hoping you’d say no.”

“Then why did you come?”

“Because these people hurt you, and who am I to say you can’t do something to fight them?”

“Someone who’s probably done it enough times to see how it can hurt someone?”

He shrugged. “And because Bucky is my best friend and I know he’d be destroyed if he lost you fighting a war we’ve been fighting for decades.”

“Are we sure it’s HYDRA that started all of this?”

“It’s coming from a HYDRA base so we have to imagine that it’s a viable connection.” He chuckled dryly.

“You get to tell Pepper.” I told him, returned to my sandwich.

“You’re holding your punches,” Nat snapped at me. I was panting, sweat dripping off every surface of my body. It felt like someone had run a towel over my mouth.

“I will break you.”

“If. You. Hit. Me.” She snapped and yanked me back to my feet. “Do it again.”

I bent over, bracing my hands on my knees. “I need a breather.”

“Enemies will not give you a break.” She took her position and started in on me. I quickly blocked her first hit, squawking as I stumbled back. I dodged another hit and jabbed her in the stomach, shoving her back with my knee. She rolled and quickly came back to her feet, jumping at me and wrapping her legs around my head. I stepped into it and threw her back on the ground. I rolled on top of her so she was pinned beneath me, her hands pinned over her head in one of mine, the other on her throat. “Better.” She huffed when I released her.

I walked over to the side of the room and grabbed my water bottle, sitting down for the breather that I felt I’d earned.

“You already had some training, didn’t you?”

I shrugged. “A little. My parents were always supportive when I wanted to learn stuff. I did a couple of those boxing for self defense classes before I decided I wasn’t interested.”

She nodded. “What about the shooting?”

“I don’t know. I think that might’ve come from the receiver or the mind control thing.”

“We’ll have to practice that before you go.” She nodded.

“Go where?” Bucky asked, Steve following him in.

“With Pepper to Austria for a tech expo.” Nat lied easily, a small smile on her lips.

Steve nodded a little. “Tony and I are going to.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize you were going out of the country.” Bucky cleared his throat a little.

“I just found out earlier today. I was going to tell you tonight at dinner.”

“Can I go?” He asked a little awkwardly.

“Actually, we have another mission to run.” Nat cut in before I could make a fool of myself.

“Right,” he nodded. “When are you leaving?”

“I think it starts next weekend, right?” Steve asked, making painfully pointed eye contact with me. I nodded. “We should get going, Buck. I’m sure the girls are busy too.”

Bucky waved a little and walked across the room with Steve.

“You have to make sure that you are sure in your lie. If Bucky gets suspicious then he’ll start nosing around.” Nat whispered to me. I nodded. “Let’s run it again.”

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