#that are fun to think about but not meant to be thought of for too long/too seriously

[2jimbi]

a/n: necesitamos más clingy megumi so aquí estoy para dárselos :) un poquito 🤏🏼 ooc pero ya no me importa jajaj hago lo q quiero | not proof read

“he’s sulking.”

“i am not.”

“why?” yuji asks, popping a gummy bear into his mouth. he’s curled up on the couch, mean girls playing loudly on the tv.

“his girlfriend’s gone—went to visit family for the week, so he’s sad.”

megumi grumbles annoyed. “so what? i can’t miss my significant other or something?”

“i didn’t say that,” she says, voice high and teasing. “but you’re ruining the vibes in here. we wanna have a day together, and here you are, souring the mood.”

megumi wanted to say something back, something bitter and harsh, but she was right. he couldn’t help he was clingy—even if he’d never admit it. he wanted to text you, but he knew that you rarely saw your family, so he wanted you to have a weekend of fun and memories, even if it meant not talking to him. you also had broke your phone during the trip, as noted when you called from your moms phone.

so, for a week, megumi was slowly going insane. he’d reread texts and look through old photos to help him cope. he felt like he was at war, fighting for his wife and kids back home—only that the war was kicking his ass badly.

“oh, fushiguro!” yuji says, mouth full of gummy bears. “y/n texted me last night.”

megumi’s eyes dart to yuji. “what? you’re just telling me now?”

“i forgot, my bad. but she told me she won’t be back for at least another 3 days. her flight got delayed or something like that,” he pops the last gummy bear into his mouth.

megumi felt like he just got shot. like he was the last remaining soldier fighting for his country and he just lost the war. he’d watch himself bleed out, limbs severed, and the enemy would laugh in his face as the faces of his wife and kids flashed before his eyes.

“ooh, that sucks.” nobara says, keenly looking at her nails as she files them down. she blows the dust away, pursing her lips as she stares at the finished product.

so, not only did he have to wait a week, he’d have to wait a week and 3 days. he prayed to whatever divine power was out there for the strength to keep going.

“everything in this movie could’ve been avoided if they just communicated,” yuji says with a sigh.

megumi tried to focus on the movie. he tried to be a good friend, but he couldn’t help that he was a lover boy at heart. he missed his girlfriend, maybe a little too much. if that were a crime, he’d be a convicted felon.

“i don’t think either girl was in the wrong, they were just—“ nobara abruptly stops. her jaw drops.

“what?” megumi says.

“so you just lied?”

megumi turns around and lo and behold, his one and only stands at the door. you were dressed down and looked crazy but megumi swore it made you look 100x more beautiful.

he immediately gets up from where he is and almost tackles you to the floor, pushing you out of the door and spinning you around. he hugs you so tight it’s constricting. “hello to you too.”

“god, i missed you so much,” he says, and his voice is so soft it makes you ache. “i thought about you every second.”

you tap his arm, and he instinctively loosens his grip. “i missed you too, babe. i’m sorry for not texting or calling. i just didn’t want to use my moms phone every time.”

he shakes his head. “it’s fine. why’d you tell itadori you’d come later?”

“oh, cause our flight was delayed, so i thought i’d come home later, but we caught an earlier flight. and i wanted to surprise you, so.”

he hugs you again, burying his face into the crook of your neck and his hands on your waist. “this past week was hell for me. i missed your beautiful face so much.”

yuuji whistles. “woo, fushiguro! you go man!”

nobara wretches. “at least close the door. i don’t wanna witness this.”

megumi walks over to close the door without a word.

“i was only gone for a week, baby. what’s the deal?”

“you, you’re the deal. radio silence from you for a week—i almost went insane. i did everything: scrolled through old photos, reread texts, listened to your favorite songs. it was so pathetic.”

the thought of him doing all that was funny, and it made you cheese hard. you kissed his cheek, and he returned the favor, but on your lips instead.

“well, i’m here now.”

he smiles, the kind of smile that makes his eyes twinkle and his face light up. then, he kisses you again. once, twice, thrice—until you’ve lost count and just stand behind the door kissing, lost in thought.

“get the fuck out of the hallway! i can hear you guys!” nobara yells annoyed.

megumi doesn’t say anything smart, just drags you by your wrist into his dorm. “you’re not allowed to leave me again, by the way.”

[mountttmase]

Navigating

Note - happy New Year’s Eve babies 🩷 my lasts fic of 2024 can you believe it? This was meant to be a blurb I’ve ended up with over 13k word and if that’s doesn’t sum up my 2024 then I don’t know what will. Love you guys sm and feedback would be appreciated as always 😘🩷

Pairing - Mason Mount × Reader

Word count - 13.3k

Warnings - fluffy

Movie nights were becoming somewhat of a monthly tradition at your best friend Libby’s house, and whilst the group had grown in size a little bit lately, it was still a highlight of your week to go and spend time with your people.

Most of the people here you went to school with, however funnily enough you didn't really become that close with them until you’d left school. It was your best friend Libby who was more friendly with them as they shared a lot of classes together but after a few nights out and mini holidays you liked to think of them as your friends too. The group only becoming closer when Libby finally got together with Aaron, a boy who’d been in her history class, who she’d always had a crush on and now you all hung out as often as you could.

The group grew even more when a few of the boys got girlfriends of their own as well as the girls inviting along their boyfriends until there was around 15 or so of you.

Unfortunately for you, you were one of the permanently single members of the gang. You didn’t mind it so much as you were quite happy waiting for Mr Right to come along at the perfect time but when Libby and Aaron were all over each other at all hours of the day it was hard not to feel a little left out.

They say opposites attract and Libby was everything you weren’t. She was fun, energetic and loved having everyone round her’s to entertain where as you just liked to show up and eat the snacks. Her and Aaron were as solid and a rock yet you could barely look at a boy and as new members were added every so often you never had anyone to bring with you.

‘You know what would be fun? Secret Santa’ Libby announced to the room as everyone was taking their seats. Her eyes sparkling with pure joy as she clapped her hands together excitedly but you were just hoping everyone else in the room wasn’t as into it as she was.

Whilst you didn’t hate the idea you also knew you didn’t know everyone here that well and the idea of having to buy for some of the boys in the group filled you with dread. There were some other single girls mixed in and a few single guys but you always made sure you were with Libby when you hung out and as much as you could make nervous small talk sometimes, the thought of picking a gift for some of these people filled you with dread.

‘We won’t be able to see each other at Christmas though, is there any point?’ You asked quietly, trying to make yourself as invisible as possible like always but you could see a few of the others who were in earshot around you nod in agreement.

‘We can just extend the deadline then, we’ll all be at Masons for new years right? We can just do it then it won’t make any difference’ she shrugged and you could see Aaron nodding along in agreement.

‘I’m in’ he told her, looking round to ask the rest of the guys who all seemed to be now nodding along and you knew there was no way you could back out of it now.

‘Okay but can we set a price limit? We don’t need everyone going big and I end up getting someone a stapler’ you mumbled, hearing a few chuckles from across the room and when you looked up some of the boys that had been listening in were smiling at you.

‘Why would you get someone a stapler?’ Libby asked, snapping your gaze away from them but you just shrugged. Your cheeks burning as everyone’s attention was on you and you didn’t know how to act now.

‘They come in handy sometimes’ you whispered, playing with your fingers in your lap in hopes someone would take over and say something else and thankfully Libby read your mind and went into presentation mode.

‘Okay so how about £20? It’s only got to be something small and silly’ she asked the group and thankfully everyone was nodding. ‘Amazing! I’ll write everyone’s name down and we can pick them out of a hat’

The only hat she could find was the one currently on Aaron’s head and as he handed it over to her you sat and looked around the group to figure out who’s name you’d want and not want to pick out but before you knew it she’d passed the hat to you and you’d picked out the first name.

You had to wait before you could read it though, her telling everyone to wait until everyone had a name so you could open them together but the tiny piece of paper was hot in your hand. You knew it was just a silly secret Santa but you didn’t want to make an idiot out of yourself in front of all these people or piss someone off by getting them something they hated.

‘Okay open!’ Libby suddenly called, everyone scrambling to open their notes and you took a big gulp before undoing yours.

Shit.

Mason was at the bottom of your list of people you wanted to pick, that was for sure. What do you buy the man that has everything?

Mason was probably the person you knew the least. He was fairly new to the group as he’d only moved up here a short while ago. The boys had spoken about him frequently as they told you they used to play against him when they were in the united academy but unfortunately none of them made it as far as he had. You’d always figured they were pulling your leg but after he’d moved up and Aaron sent a picture of all the boys in a group call playing fifa you had to concede that they were telling the truth.

You didn’t meet him until six months later, him joining everyone for a movie night at Libby's house and you still weren’t exactly sure why someone like him wanted to hang around with a bunch of nobodies like you lot but he seemed friendly enough and all the boys loved having him around. It also helped that he was easy on the eye but you kept to yourself just like always but you always made sure to say hello to each other if nothing else. From what you could see from his interactions with the boys, he was funny and easy going and had gotten you into some pretty cool parties in the last few months but you’d never had much of a proper conversation with him.

That was about to change soon though, excusing yourself into the kitchen so you could grab a drink but since so many people were here tonight Libby’s fridge had been basically cleared apart from a can or two right towards the back. Unfortunately for you they were just out of your reach and you huffed in annoyance as you cursed her for getting such a ridiculously tall fridge.

‘Would you like me to get that for you?’ You suddenly heard from behind you. Turning to the boy that had been plaguing your thoughts for the last 20 minutes for all the wrong reasons but right now you were happy to see him.

‘Please’ you smiled. Letting Mason grab the last two remaining cans before he passed you one over and you sent him an appreciative smile. ‘Thank you. Maybe you can spread the word to whoever’s got me for secret Santa that I could do with a stepladder’ you joked. Rolling your eyes a bit so you could make it obvious you were being silly but he just smiled back at you kindly.

‘Well at least you’ve got ideas, I dread to think what the person that got me is thinking’ he laughed. ‘I was gonna back out, you know cause I don’t know everyone super well, but Libby was looking at me like she’d rip my head off’

���Oh trust me, I’ve been on the receiving end of that look many times and I know it's not fun’ you sympathised. ‘Are you happy with who you picked?’

‘Not sure happy is the right word, more confused I’d say but I think I’d feel the same with whoever I got. What about you?’

‘Pretty much the same’ you laughed. It suddenly hitting you how easy you were finding it to talk to him since you’d barely spoken before. You wanted to talk to him more but the sound of everyone laughing in the living room snapped you both out of your little bubble and he was nodding back towards there.

‘Shall we go back? If I miss too much I’ll never be able to get back into it what with my short attention span’ he chuckled and you nodded thinking the same. Following him back into the living room so you could take your place back next to Libby as he took his seat a few spaces down in between two of the other boys.

‘Something you want to tell me?’ Libby whispered. Leaning her head down so she could speak quietly in your ear but you were confused as to what she was going on about.

‘What?’

‘You and Mason? You were both gone ages’ she winked but you just frowned back at her.

‘Don’t do that’ you huffed, watching her smile smugly at you but it soon dropped when she realised you weren’t happy with her teasing. Something she tended to do often and even though she probably didn't mean any harm it still annoyed you. Any boy you so much as looked at she had something to say to you and that teasing glint in her eye was driving you insane.

‘Do what?’

‘Try and make something out of nothing. He just helped me reach a drink that’s all’ you huffed. Crossing your arms as you sunk back into the seat and you knew that Libby realised she’d annoyed you as she offered you her bag of M&M’s with a sorry smile.

You tried to ignore what she’d said, knowing she didn’t mean anything by it but now she’d said it you couldn’t concentrate on the movie as Mason was filling your thoughts. Even sneaking a little glance over at him every so often but he was fully engrossed in the movie and you felt stupid that one little comment from her was making you act like this.

That was until around half an hour later when you seemingly let your eyes wander over to where he was sitting again and you found him looking back at you already. A soft smile playing on his lips as he realised he’d been caught but you just smiled back before looking back to the tv as you felt your cheeks burn.

You didn’t get to speak to him anymore that night, having to rush home so you could get ready for work the next day but that didn’t mean he left your thoughts. Frantically thinking about what you could possibly get him that wasn’t boring or cliche but you were coming up blank. You didn’t want to embarrass yourself in front of him and everyone else by getting him something rubbish and even though this whole thing was meant to be fun you were feeling more stressed than ever.

Soon enough it was Friday though and you managed to get out of work early. Getting off the train a stop early so you could take a wander through the park whilst it was still light outside always made you feel ten times better and you knew your favourite little secret coffee shop would still be open at this time so you headed there first. The sound of leaves crunching with every step was filling you with joy but the sudden sound of a big dog barking made you jump out of your skin moments after.

The noise went as quickly as it came, hearing whoever the dog's owner was calming them down pretty quickly but you could tell they were heading your way and you froze. You loved dogs, but big ones always frightened you at first and when you looked over to your right where the source of the noise was coming from, you saw a huge German shepherd with the fluffiest ears you’d ever seen.

‘Y/n? Is that you?’

‘Mason?’ You questioned. Watching the person come more into view and your suspicions were confirmed straight away as he greated you with his signature wide smile.

‘You alright? You look like you’ve seen a ghost’ he joked so you straightening yourself up and tried to look like you hadn’t nearly peed your pants.

‘Oh no, sorry I’m fine’ you smiled as your eyes averted to the huge dog sitting obediently next to him. ‘Who’s this?’

‘This is Ace’ he grinned. ‘Sorry if he was really loud a second ago, he saw a squirrel and freaked out’

‘That’s okay’ you smiled. Reaching out to scratch his head and thankfully enough he seemed pretty placid now. ‘Mase and Ace, huh? You sound like a crime fighting duo’

‘Well if he’s gonna shit himself at the sight of a squirrel I don’t see that ending very well’ he joked and you had to cover your mouth to hold in your giggles ‘What are you doing here at this time?’

‘Oh I finished work a bit early so I was just cutting through here to get a coffee’ you explained and a look of confusion took over his face.

‘Where from? I’ve been gasping for about half an hour’

‘It’s just round the corner, there’s a little coffee shop just in the woods’ you told him and before you knew it the next sentence was tumbling from your lips. ‘You fancy coming with me?’

‘Oh um- yeah sure’ he agreed, nodding excitedly and with that he followed you down the path and in the direction you were going in before he got there.

You made small talk as you walked to the cafe. A small hidden spot in the woods that you wouldn’t know was there unless you’d been shown but it was you who’d stumbled across it one day and was a secret you’d hadn't shared with anyone until now.

‘This is cute’ he noted as you approached and you had to agree with him. The little wooden hut looked like something out of one of those hallmark Christmas movies and it was your favourite spot for a little pick me up.

‘Yeah, well this stays between us’ you winked and he held his hand over his heart as if to promise it would. ‘Why don’t you grab a bench, I can run inside and get them’ you smiled. ‘What would you like?’

‘Oh, uh latte please but let me-

‘I know what you’re about to say, and the answer is no’ you smiled. Watching him roll his eyes before pulling Ace over to a picnic bench and you ran inside to grab your coffees and a few sweet treats

You were just gathering everything together when it suddenly hit you that this could be incredibly awkward. You didn’t know Mason and you weren’t good at small talk so you were beginning to wonder why you’d offered to bring him here in the first place. In the end you figured you could use this to your advantage and see if you could learn anything about him in order to get him something for secret Santa and you rehearsed a few questions in your head as you walked back over.

‘I got us a few treats, you can have the first pick’

‘Oh thank you, you shouldn’t have’ he smiled, reaching for the brownie and you made a mental note that he was a chocolate fan. ‘So how come you got to leave work early?

‘Oh some weird early Christmas thing they do, they let you choose if you want to work the morning or the afternoon and I chose morning. Why anyone would would pick the afternoon is beyond me’

‘This is so embarrassing, but I don't actually think I know what you do for work’ he laughed awkwardly and even though you pretend like you were offended there probably was no way of him knowing as you’d never spoken to him about it before

So you went on a bit of a deep dive and explained to him the wonderful world of data analysing and that you mostly worked with spreadsheets all day. You weren’t sure if he seemed impressed or thought you were mental but he was listening intently and you thought it was nice he was taking such an interest. This wasn’t going how you’d planned though as you were meant to be finding out more about him and so far all you’d worked out was his coffee of choice was a latte and he likes brownies.

You were having a nice time though, laughing away as you chatted easily but there was something about coffee that always made you overheat. No matter if it was freezing outside like right now or if you were just at home in the warm anyway, you always felt the same and you could feel the familiar heat traveling up your neck.

Mason was still asking you questions and taking quite a keen interest in what you did so you carried on speaking as you shrugged off your coat and placed your scarf next to you. This did mean you were only left in a t shirt but the cool breeze felt like heaven against your hot skin.

You were halfway through your sentence when you realised Mason wasn’t listening to you. Looking up to see his eyes fixated on your chest as he looked there intently and you could feel your arms crossing over your body to protect yourself from his gaze.

His eyes were back on your face immediately. Cheeks burning as he realised what you must have thought he was doing and it was like he didn’t know what to say as he fought to get his words out.

‘I’m s-sorry, I was just trying to read what that said’ he stuttered. Pointing to the words on your shirt that were just above your heart. ‘I promise I’m not being weird’

‘It’s okay’ you laughed, uncrossing your arms as you both giggled awkwardly and you sat with your hands in your lap so you could nervously play with your fingers under the table.

‘What does it mean?’ He whispered after a second and you could feel yourself internally cringing at having to speak about something like this to someone when you usually kept it so private.

‘It’s just some lyrics’ you shrugged, hoping he’d move on from it but unfortunately he was intent on finding out more.

‘Oh I see, what song is it?’ He asked and you cast your eyes over the lyrics once more.

But when our fingers touch, I feel my way back home

‘Navigating, twenty one pilots’

‘Ah I’ve heard of them, can’t say I’ve ever listened to them before though’ he told you before taking a sip of his coffee. ‘You like them?

‘Yeah’

‘Sorry, stupid question’ he laughed, he cheeks turning a healthy shade of pink but you just smiled back as it was something you would have probably asked him if you were the one grilling him. ’Have you ever seen them live?’

‘No, like I’d love to but I’ve not really got anyone to go with plus crowds aren’t really my thing and i probably wouldn’t even be able to afford it’

‘Really? Why wouldn’t you take Libby?’ He asked but you just shrugged as that was a bit of a sore subject for you.

‘Not her type of thing’

‘What about your boyfriend?’ He asked quietly. His eyes avoiding yours as he looked to the table and you wondered if he was asking this sneakily to figure you out or just genuinely didn’t know.

‘One has to have a boyfriend in order to take one somewhere’ you told him but he kept his head down as he nodded.

‘I see’

You didn’t have a chance to reply, a little boy and his dad coming over looking all apologetic and asking for a picture so you offered to hold Ace’s lead whilst he spoke with them for a bit and it suddenly hit you in the face that this wasn’t just your sort of friend you were having a quick coffee with. This was Mason Mount.

‘Listen, as much as I’d love to stay, I need to head home. I’m off for an away game tomorrow and I need to pack’ he smiled and even though you didn’t know him all that well you knew he’d been out for a while after an injury and this would be his first time being back in the squad again.

‘Oh cool, who are you playing?’

‘Ipswich’

‘Ah okay, well make sure you take a hat, I’ve heard it’s supposed to be freezing tomorrow and you don’t want your ears to get cold’ you told him. Mentally face palming yourself and wondering why you’d said that but he just smiled at you warmly.

‘I will’ he chuckled. ‘Do you want me to grab you another coffee before I go?’

‘I’m fine, I promise’ you reassured him and his kind eyes made your tummy flip as he sent a smile your way.

‘Well I’ll get the next one then’ he chuckled before bidding you goodbye and leaving you to finish off your drink.

You were putting everything in the bin when you realised Mason had forgotten something. Noticing the bottle that was for ace still sat on his chair and you didn’t know what to do.

You had Masons number, not that you’d ever texted him before but he was part of the movie night group chat so it wouldn't take that much for you to grab his number and text him. You weren’t sure how he’d react though and wondered if he’d be mad at you for not asking permission first but in the end you talked yourself round and sent him a quick text letting him know you had it.

You felt a weight lifted knowing he wasn’t mad at you and the little kiss at the end made your face flush. It was only one little letter but it was in the mind for the rest of the night to the point where you wondered why. Mason was was in a whole different league to you but you couldn’t deny you that you’d had a good time sitting and talking with him that afternoon.

You thought that might be the end of your private conversations with Mason but the next morning you woke up to see a notification from him on your phone and you felt your pulse quicken. Opening it as quickly as you could in your half asleep state and the sight of his face made you smile.

You’d never seen a game of football in your life but you made sure to keep an eye on the score when he was playing but when you saw it came to draw you wondered if you should send him a teasing text about it’s because he’s not worn a hat. In the end you decided against it as you didn’t want to overstep the line or even worse get ignored.

It was him that texted you next a day later as you were coming home from work and when you saw his name flash up on screen after it buzzed in your hand it was like a wave of excitement and anticipation rolled through you.

You were almost home so you quickly nipped into Sainsburys to grab everything you needed whilst Mason texted you his address. Offering to pick you up if he was too far but it was only a few bus stops away and there was one just pulling up as you left the shop. A short walk after you’d got off led you up a private road and when you were outside his drive all you could think about was how it looked like a castle.

You saw his little head moving in the front window as you walked up the path and soon enough he was opening the front door for you when you were about halfway there. His usual bright smile dressed on his face as he stood and waited for you and as you got near he stepped to the side and motioned for you to come in.

‘Here she is’ he beamed. ‘You know you didn’t need to do this, I would have come and got them’

‘I know, but I had Ace’s bottle too so I figured I’d grab that, and you’ve been traveling’ you told him as you stepped inside and a delicious feeling of warmth hit you immediately.

‘But you’ve been at work all day’

‘Yeah, sat on my arse’ you giggled and you followed after him as he lead you into the kitchen, offering you a drink whilst he popped his washing on and you couldn’t help but notice all the random assortment of things on his kitchen counter.

‘What’s all this?’ You asked, eyes taking over the random bits of paper, tickets and photos’

‘Oh just some bits I bought back. I always like to bring something back when I’ve been to an away game’

‘What do you do with it all?

‘It’s just in a big box right now. I’ve been meaning to organise it and stuff, you know so it’s easy to look back on, but I wouldn’t know where to start’

‘You should start scrapbooking’ you told him without even thinking but the short little laugh made your head snap up to look at him opposite you.

‘You what?’

‘Scrapbooking? I started doing it a few years ago with some of my old stuff from when I was a kid. It’s just a nice way of keeping it all together you know?’ You gulped, hoping you didn’t sound too ridiculous but he was nodding like he liked the idea so you didn’t feel too silly anymore. ‘And when I’ve been looking at mind numbing spreadsheets all day it’s nice to do something a little creative’

‘Do you have any pictures of yours?’ He asked, coming round to your side of the island so he could perch next to you and when his arm touched yours you felt yourself flush.

What’s happening to me? You questioned. Wondering if it was just being inside his house that was making you feel so hot and bothered but it didn’t help that his soft smile seemed to be melting your insides.

‘Not loads’ you gulped. Flicking through a few photos you’d taken of pages you were pretty proud of and he seemed fairly impressed. Asking you loads of questions about how you did it and what you used until your conversion moved to him asking about the memories you’d put in there.

‘You got dinner plans?’ He asked as his eyes looked up to the clock on his wall and you realised how late it was getting and you hadn’t had a thing since lunch.

‘No, I hadn’t thought that far ahead’ you laughed. ‘I’ll probably just pick something up on the way home’

‘Let me make you something, for saving my bacon’

‘Oh Mase, I-‘

‘Please? It’s the least I can do’ he told you but you still didn’t know if you should accept. ‘it’s just spag Bol, don’t worry I won’t kill you’

‘Okay’ you laughed. Smiling back at him just as wide as he had when you accepted his offer and he was quick to get up to make a start. Letting you help as he told you where things were that he needed but you also used it as an excuse to have a snoop around his kitchen.

‘Why do you have a million man united pens?’ You asked after a while. Your eyes catching the huge pile at the side by the fridge and you noticed the shy awkward look take over his face.

‘I always take one so I can sign stuff for the guys who wait outside but then I bring it home and forget to take it back with me again so I pick another one up and the cycle continues’ he huffed. ‘Help yourself if you want one’

You were surprised at how much of a good cook he was, asking if you could have the recipe but he let you know it was a Mount family secret and the only way to get it was to join. You knew it was just a joke but the idea made you blush and you knew you’d have to leave soon so you didn’t make a fool out of yourself. He offered to drop you but you knew he had an early training session so you told him you’d be fine on the bus as you didn’t live far. He wasn’t happy with this though and demanded he got you an uber so to avoid an argument you accepted.

It was on your way home you had a long hard think about what to get Mason for Christmas. So far he’d been asking you more questions than the other way around but from what you’d learnt tonight you wondered if getting him his own scrapbooking stuff would be a good gift. He’d told you he wanted to sort all his memories out and seemed really interested in what you’d done but you wondered if it was something he’d start himself or if he’d need a push.

Once you were in bed you made a start to find him the perfect scrapbook. In the end picking two as you couldn’t decide between the deep blue or the red and figured he might like to have both to keep both phases of his life separate. Everything else you figured you could grab from your usual stationary shop the next time you went as you could see the perfect stickers for him in your mind.

You kept away from talking to him until his next game. You knew he hadn’t started the game but you’d seen a lot of praise for him online and you couldn’t help but send him a quick message.

From that day onwards you kept in contact everyday, even if it was just a little good luck text before a game or evenings you’d spend the whole night talking. Your little fingers furiously tapping away at your screen to the point you didn’t want to say goodbye some nights and he never made you feel annoying or like you were a bother to him.

Your aim to try and find out more about him was working wonders as you were finding out new things every day. His favourite sweets, his favourite drink, his favourite holiday he’s ever been on. All now in your brain for future use but it was a week and a half later that you thought you’d learned something you didn’t want to.

You were at Libbys for a catch up, her and Aaron having taken a small trip the week before and she’d invited you over for some pizza and a catch up but you knew before you’d even started you should have done it at your house. Aaron was clearly online with all the boys playing one of their games and his cries were louder than you’d ever heard them. In the end you took it upon yourself to try and sort out the situation.

It seemed to do the trick and you and Libby were able to have a conversation in peace for the most part. Aaron reemerged around an hour and a half later to come and get a drink but he stopped by the sofa to check in on you both.

‘How’s your game?’ You asked and he smiled at the fact you’d taken an interest.

‘Yeah good, it’s just Mase and a few of the boys’ he shrugged. ‘Speaking of Mase, I’m 95% sure he’s got a girlfriend’

You weren’t sure why, but you felt your heart sink immediately. You enjoyed spending time with him lately and knowing he’d kept it from you stung a little bit. You kept your face as blank as possible though as Libby started to grill Aaron about it excitedly.

‘Why do you think that?’

‘He was texting someone as we were playing and you should have seen the smile on his face like that’s an I’m down bad for a girl smile’

‘I’ve never known Mason to even be talking to a girl the whole time we’ve known him’ she said, turning to look at you for some sort of agreement on your part but you just shrugged wishing you’d never asked.

‘Trust me, he talks to girls. He can get pretty much whoever he wants’ he shrugged, your heart now beating in your ears as you felt your skin flush. ‘This is different though, It's not a hookup smile it’s an i worship the ground you walk on type smile’

‘Is that how you smile when you think of me’ she smiled. Her hand on his thigh as he placed a kiss to her head and you felt like you were watching in on an intimate moment.

‘Always’ he whispered sinserly.

‘Ugh, you two make me sick’ you huffed, wanting to get up and leave them to it but you could see Aaron getting up to go so you stayed where you were.

‘Sorry squirt’ Aaron smiled, ruffling your hair as he passed by the back of you and you groaned as you got it back into place.

‘Anyway I won’t believe you until I meet this girl’ Libby called and you wished the pair of them would just drop it. You tummy swirling with sadness as you thought about him flirting with someone else and it took everything in you to try and seem unbothered.

‘I promise you, my spidey senses are always correct and I definitely think he’s got the eyes for someone. Maybe he’ll bring her to the next movie night if I can convince him?’

‘Ooo yes you should try’ she smiled, clapping her hands excitedly as you knew she loved entertaining for new people but you couldn’t think of anything worse than meeting Mason's new lady friend and having to act like it didn’t bother you.

‘Hey y/n? In case I don’t see you before you go, what’s your favourite chocolate?’ Aaron suddenly asked, turning back to you both just as he was about to leave and you were confused by the sudden random question.

‘Dairy milk, why?’

‘Mason was asking. He’s been asking a lot of questions about you now I come to think of it’ he mused but you wanted to move away from the topic as quickly as possible.

‘Oh… I’m sure it’s nothing’ you laughed. ‘Maybe he’s making a list of stuff he needs for new years?’

‘Oh yeah, could be’ he shrugged but you made sure to change the subject as quickly as you could so Libby didn’t ask anymore questions and put you on the spot.

It was less than five minutes later when Mason messaged you. A smug smile on your face as you read it over what he’d said but it wasn’t until you were on the way home and you reflected over the evening that it hit you what might be happening.

Why did you care? He was just a guy in your friendship group who was way out of your league and probably wouldn’t look twice at you anyway. You weren’t even sure if you could refer to him as a friend at this point as it was only over the last few weeks you’d grown somewhat closer so why did you care if he had a girlfriend?

Because you knew he didn’t look at you like he looked at everyone else. Because you knew he was bringing out a whole new side of you where you didn’t feel like a spare part or a burden and because his smile lit up a part of you you didn’t even know existed until now.

You never expected to have a crush on anyone at this point in your life, let alone Mason, and you had no idea what to do about it. The idea of pushing it down was appealing as the thought of him finding out was not on the top of your list of fun things to do and you knew it wouldn’t be that simple. You’d be spending more time with him soon enough and you didn’t want to act weird around him and scare him off so you figured you could just act like everything was normal and hopefully he’d be none the wiser in time for your crush to inevitably wear off.

You managed to keep things up until a few days later when it was movie night again. The last one of the year and you were really hoping you could spend some time with him beforehand as you’d be sat with Libby when the movie was on. Unfortunately for you he was nowhere to be seen and you knew Libby was looking at you weirdly as you constantly looked around the room.

‘Hey you’ you suddenly heard as you had your head buried in your phone, Mason's cheerful voice filling your ears and when you turned to see him you felt your heart thump. Trying to bite back a smile as he made his way over through the sea of everyone else and his boyish grin was making your tummy flutter.

‘Hey, you alright?’ You smiled back, trying not to let on too much about how happy you were to see him but he was smiling back at you just as widely and it was contagious.

‘Yeah good, training was a bit later today and it was tough so I’m knackered’

‘Well at least you can sit down for a bit now’ you offered as you pushed a drink you’d saved for him towards him and he gave you a grateful smile.

‘Speaking of sitting, will you come sit next to me for a sec? I wanna show you something’ he asked as he nodded towards the living and you followed him into his usual spot on the sofa. It was a few seats from where you usually sat but you figured you’d have time to move before the movie started. ‘What do you think?’ He asked as he passed you his phone and it took a second to realise what you were seeing. Laughing as you tried to speak and as you leant onto him he squeezed your thigh softly.

‘What’s this?’

‘I was talking to my tattoo artist the other day and he was asking about Ace. I mentioned you said we sound like a crime fighting duo and he sent me this yesterday morning’ he laughed, enlarging the hand drawn image of Mason and Ace dressed up like superheroes and you thought it was the best thing you’d ever seen.

‘This is incredible’ you laughed. ‘You should so get this tattooed somewhere’

‘Oh yeah?’ He winked. ‘I was thinking on my ribs? Like right under the champions league one’

‘Oh yeah, the perfect spot’ you teased. The pair of you chuckling away as you sat and spoke and just like always with Mason time seemed to pass you both by quickly.

The room had slowly started to fill up but you took no notice until the lights were being dimmed and you realised you weren’t sat next to Libby like always. Looking over to see her pouting at you but you felt too awkward to move now as everyone was sat down and you’d have to shuffle everyone up from their seats to be back with her. Not to mention you’d feel rude moving away from Mason.

‘You want a blanket, Mase?’ You suddenly heard from one of the boys across the room. Watching it catapult through the air but he caught it easily and when he unfolded it and laid it over the both of your laps you felt your cheeks burn.

‘You okay to share?’ He asked quietly. A slight quiver of shyness in his voice but you figured you must have been hearing things. There was no reason he would ever need to be shy with you and you figured it must have just been him trying to keep quiet around everyone. ‘Have you um, have you got enough room?’ He questioned. Trying his best to turn himself into the corner of the sofa to make sure you had enough space but you were quite happy being pressed up against him so you just nodded and let him lay his arm across the back of the sofa behind you.

You tried your best to focus on the movie in front of you but Mason was fidgeting a bit. You wondered if it was just him and that he was always like this but when you looked up to his face you could see he was trying to fight himself from falling asleep. He’d told you earlier it was a pretty brutal training session and clearly he was paying for it now but he looks so awkward and uncomfortable you weren’t sure if you should wake him up.

You went against it in the end, just manoeuvring him a little so he could rest his head on yours as you popped your head on his shoulder and you couldn’t contain your smile as he linked his arm through yours and hugged it to his chest.

You spent the next hour with him peacefully sleeping on you. His gentle snores and warm body almost sending you off to sleep yourself but you kept yourself awake and when the movie was over and the lights back on you felt him jolt awake.

‘Shit, was i asleep?’ He mumbled. Trying to look around the room to figure out where he was and you thought he looked adorable in his half awake state.

‘I think you were only awake for the first ten minutes’ you chuckled, watching his face contort in embarrassment but he had nothing to be embarrassed of at all.

‘Sorry if I crushed you’

‘You were surprisingly comfortable’ you whispered, looking up to see him smiling shyly at you but before either of you could speak Libby had come to stand in front of both of you and you were suddenly hyper aware of the fact you were both still under the blanket with his arms wrapped around yours.

‘Hey Mase? Aaron was sure you’d be bringing your new girlfriend tonight but instead you just stole mine’ she sneered and you felt yourself stiffen with awkwardness. Wondering what Mason would say or do but thankfully he just smiled back at her and held your arm a little tighter.

‘You’ve got Aaron’ he shrugged, trying to make out she was still fine but when she put her hands on her hips you knew she was more pissed off than she appeared to be.

‘But movie nights are our nights’

‘Well unfortunately you’ll have to learn to share’ he laughed. Letting you go before wrapping his arms around your shoulders from behind and pulling you back towards him like he was claiming you. You felt your cheeks burn at how he was acting with you but you couldn’t say you weren’t enjoying this side of him no matter how Libby was looking at you.

‘I didn’t even know you two spoke’

‘Well now you do’ he shrugged nonchalantly before unwrapping himself from you. ‘I wouldn’t worry, she’s only here for my spag bol recipe’ he joked but it went straight over Libby's head as she looked back at the pair of you blankly. ‘Anyway, I need to be getting off. I’ve got training early and I need to sort my washing out’

‘I need to go too, I’m on an early start tomorrow’ you told her but Mason grabbed your arm just as you were standing up.

‘I’ll drop you home, yeah?’ He offered but before you could reply there was a scoff beside you.

‘What the fuck is going on?’ she questioned but you didn’t have time to explain and right now you didn’t exactly want to.

‘I’ll text you, okay?’ You told her. Pulling her in for a quick hug before following Mason out the door and as soon as you were plugged into the seat you knew the questions were coming.

‘Libby is intense sometimes. I get the feeling she doesn’t like us talking’ Mason told you as he pulled away from the curb and you shrugged your shoulders in response. Libby has been your best friend since you were kids but she was a bit of a control freak and whilst she liked to know the ins and outs of everyone else’s business, she very rarely shared much of her own life unless you pushed hard.

‘She’ll be fine, I think she just feels out of the loop’

‘What loop would that be?’ He quizzed lightly but you didn’t have the guts to look at him right now.

‘Well we’ve never really spoken before, I can see why she might be a bit confused’

‘And you didn’t tell her we talk?’

‘No’ you gulped, fiddling with your fingers in your lap for some sort of distraction but the next thing you knew Mason had pried them apart with his own and held one to stop you fidgeting. A kind smile on his face as he continued to look ahead and drive but you were thankful he wasn’t looking at you as you now resembled a tomato and you figured you should keep talking so you didn’t spiral about what was going on right now. ‘I didn’t see the need to and I like keeping this between us. She keeps things from me all the time yet wants to know everything about me. I just liked things being a little private cause I know she likes to make a big deal out of everything, I hope that’s not weird’

‘Not at all, I like it’ he reassured you. Squeezing your hand softly before letting go and you missed his warmth immediately ‘So I guess the next time I’ll see you will be new years?’

You hadn't realised you’d pulled up outside your house already, too distracted by the way his hand felt in yours and when he turned to you in his seat you did the same to get a better look at him.

‘I guess so yeah’ you nodded sadly. ‘I hope you have a lovely Christmas, and good luck with all your games’

‘Thank you, you too’ he smiled before a look of uncertainty washed over his face. ‘Do you um… let me walk you to your door’

‘Oh don’t be silly’ you told him but he was already unplugging himself and reaching for his door handle.

‘No no, I want to’ he smiled and you didn’t want to fight him on it so you just got out and led the way. Turning to face him as you reached your front door and you were both looking at each other like you didn’t know what to say.

‘Do you want to come in or…’ you started but you knew when he popped his hands in his pockets that it was going to be a no.

‘Best not, I’ve got to be up early-‘

‘Oh sorry, of course’ you laughed but he just smiled back softly at you.

‘Don’t be silly’ he smiled, reaching for your arm and pulling you towards his body and before you knew it you were tucked against him as he wrapped his arms around you.

It was like all the noise in your brain stopped. A calmness falling over you as he held you to his chest and your whole body relaxed into his as you felt his body do the same. God he smells so good you thought as you took a deep breath and you couldn’t stop yourself from holding him a bit tighter. You hadn't had a hug like this in a while and it was like you could feel all the broken parts of you being filled up by him.

‘Thank you for letting me sleep on you earlier’ he whispered into your hair and all you wanted to do was melt into him more.

‘Anytime’ you laughed and when he started to pull back you did the same. Quickly saying goodnight to each other before he darted back to the car and you noticed he didn’t leave until he knew you were inside.

You weren’t expecting to hear from him over the next few days. It was a really important game coming up for him and all he’d done was tell you how excited he was to play but the game had barely started and you felt your heart drop.

You hadn't even seen what had happened, but the distraught look on his face as he sat on the pitch was like nothing you’d ever felt before. You wanted to run to him, to hold him like he’d held you a few nights ago and let him know it was okay and that you were there for him but you couldn’t. You just started blankly at your screen as he walked off the pitch and down the tunnel.

You didn’t know what to do, if he wanted to hear from you or anyone at all, but in the end you sent him a text. Even if he didn’t reply you still wanted him to know you were there for him no matter what and later on that night before bed his name was flashing up on your screen.

Not exactly the reply you were hoping for but you understood. He was frustrated and hurt and probably wasn't in the mood for anyone or anything but the next day at around 4pm his name was flashing up again.

So he called you that night, and the night after you called him. Each night turning into one you’d spend on the phone with him for at least an hour but it always felt like five minutes. Letting Mason offload about how upset and disappointed he was with this fresh injury yet with each passing day you noticed him perk up a bit. Taking his mind off of everything and getting him excited for the holidays and it melted your heart to hear him talk about spending time with his family and getting to see all the little ones.

You figured Christmas Day he’d be too busy to talk but he text you in the evening asking for a chat and you loved listening to him talk about his day. Letting each other know what gifts you’d gotten and what you’d done until the excitement of the day had gotten too much for him and you heard his sleepy snores on the other end of the line.

If there was ever a time you wanted to crawl through the phone and be with him it would have been now as the thought of him sleeping all alone pulled on your heart strings. You wanted to hold him and stroke his hair and fall asleep right next to him but to you it was just a dream.

By the time New Year’s Eve had rolled around you’d spoken every day in between. You knew today would be different as you were actually getting to see him and you were nervous beyond belief but also filled with excitement at maybe getting to speak to him later. You knew he might be busy as it was his party but you were holding out hope that he could make time for you even just for a bit.

The plan was to get ready at Libby's house so you could get your drink on a bit early before you left and as soon as you were ready she was calling Aaron in to take pictures of the pair of you. She looked stunning all dressed up in a short sparkly number and you felt under dressed in comparison. Opting for a little black dress that was your trusty favourite as you just wanted to be comfortable tonight but now you were wondering if you should have worn something else.

‘Do you know if Masons, okay? You know after the injury? I'd hate to turn up and he doesn’t want company’ Libby asked Aaron as you all got your coats on and you listened intently to Aaron’s answer.

‘I’ll be honest baby, no one’s really heard from him since it happened. We’ve text him but he’s not said too much’ he shrugged but you made sure to keep quiet. Trying to keep the smile off your face at the fact he was seemingly only talking to you and you couldn’t help but feel a little smug about it.

You didn’t see Mason when you arrived, Aaron just barging his way in like he’d owned the place and after you’d shrugged your coats off you made your first stop in the dining room so you could drop your gifts onto the table before following the pair of them into the main living room. It was full of people and your eyes were only looking for one person to the point where Aaron and Libby had walked off to say hello to some of your friends and you hadn’t even realised.

It didn’t take much longer to spot him, standing with a guy you didn���t know and two girls in the tightest dresses you’d ever seen. Your mood plummeting as you watched the one closest to him laugh at what he was saying as she placed a hand on his upper arm and you had to look away.

You felt a set of eyes on you a few seconds after though, looking back up to see Mason looking your way with a soft smile on his face and you couldn’t help but mirror it. You wanted nothing more than to head straight over to him but the company he was with scared you and you didn’t want to interrupt. He was two steps ahead of you though and quickly said goodbye to the people he was with before making his way over to you.

‘You’re here’ he smiled. Stopping just in front of you and you wondered if he would hug you or touch you in any way but he didn’t. His smile and eyes a little dozy from where he’d been drinking but you knew he wasn’t drunk and if anything it just made him look even more adorable as his eyes flickered all over your face.

‘I’m here’ you laughed, not really knowing what to say as you were so nervous and you knew he was looking at your hands as you were playing with your fingers like usual.

‘You look… you look really nice’

‘Thank you’ you whispered, your cheeks heating at his words and you let your eyes flicker over him. He wasn’t dressed in anything outlandish, a simple boxy white t shirt and some baggy jeans but he looked just as good as always. ‘You do too’

‘Oh this old thing?’ He laughed, fiddling with the hem of his T-shirt. ‘Do you have a drink yet?’

‘No, we only just got here’ you told him, trying to motion to Libby and Aaron who you figured were still somewhere close by but you couldn’t see them anywhere.

‘Come on, I’ll get you one. I know where all the good stuff is’ he smiled and he surprised you by taking your hand and leading you through into the kitchen. You knew there were eyes on you but you kept your eyes on the floor and followed him, letting him pick you whatever drink he fancied and in the end he made you both the same before leading you back into the main living room. ‘Can i introduce you to someone?’

‘Oh um, sure’ you gulped, following him back to the guy who you’d seen him with when you’d first gotten here, but this time he was on his own.

‘This is Ben, we played together at Chelsea’ he smiled. Popping his hand on your waist as he stopped you but to your delight he didn’t move it away. ‘Ben, this is y/n’

‘It’s nice to meet you’ he smiled, his bright blue eyes staring right into your soul but no matter how pretty they were, they were no match for Masons chestnut orbs. ‘Thanks for looking after him up here, I know he appreciates having your little group to make him feel a bit normal’

‘That’s okay, it’s not me you should be thanking anyway’ you explained as you felt Masons hand leave you. Looking to the side to see him saying hello to a few more people you didn’t know but Ben seemed keen to carry on talking to you.

‘Of course I should, he’s been telling me loads about you lately’

‘Oh yeah?’ You laughed. The back of your neck warming as you tried to brush off his comment but he seemed insistent on telling you how much you were helping his friend.

‘I’m serious, I know things took a turn for him lately but he’s told me how much talking to you everyday has helped. Even if you don’t mean to be, it’s a lot to him’

‘Well I care about him a lot’ you admitted. Words you’d never even admitted to yourself let alone spoken out loud but it didn’t feel strange to finally say it. ‘I just want him to know he’s not on his own and he’s got us’

‘Well it makes me feel a lot better too’ he smiled before you felt that familiar warm hand on your waist again and Mason's lips by your ear.

‘Sorry guys, I’m back’ he grinned, squeezing you gently as Ben changed the subject. Probably not wanting Mason to know he’d caught onto the pair of you so quickly and you’d never been more thankful to talk about football before.

Mason didn’t leave your side for the rest of the night, and if he did it was only for a minute or two. His hand permanently on you whether that be your waist or his arm slung around your shoulder and you loved the way he didn’t want to leave you as you definitely didn't want to leave him.

‘You don't have to spend all your night with me, you know’ you told him as he guided you back to the kitchen to get you both a new drink and the look of shock on his face made you giggle.

‘Is that your subtle way of telling me to piss off?’

‘No’ you laughed. ‘But it’s your party, I thought you might wanna talk to some other people’

‘I’m fine here’ he shrugged as he passed you a glass and you made sure your face looked offended by his silly comment.

‘Just fine?’

‘Maybe a bit more than fine’ he chuckled, stepping closer to you as he threw you a wink and you could feel his breath on your cheek.

‘We should get going, secret Santa starts soon and you know what she’s like’ you whispered, a smug smile on his face as he realised what you were doing but he just nodded without breaking eye contact.

‘You go, I’ll see you in there’ he whispered. Letting you leave the kitchen on your own as he went the other way and as soon as you made it into the dining room you went and stood with Libby. You hadn’t seen her in hours but she never said a word about it and just smiled before she cleared her throat for everyone.

‘Secret Santa gifts are on the table. Just go and find the one with your name on and see what you get’ she giggled whilst clapping her hands and you knew she was excited as she dove right into hers.

Yours was next to Libbys and it was the biggest of them all. A big square box that was wrapped to perfection and you knew Libby was eyeing it curiously as hers was only a little bag.

Usually you would have waited until everyone had got going so you could open your gift whilst everyone was occupied but you were intrigued as to what was inside and you lifted the lid immediately. Tearing your way through the sparkly tissue paper until you caught sight of what was hidden inside. The red and yellow catching your eye instantly and you knew exactly what it was as you picked it up and gave it a once over.

‘I swear to god I’m never suggesting this again’ you heard Libby huff from beside you. Snapping you out of your moment with your gift as you looked at what she was holding and you couldn’t deny you felt awful for her. A crappy Christmas mug with the worst pixelated image of Santa you’d ever seen and a little box of hot chocolate powder to go with it. ‘There’s no way this was £20’

‘Ah I’m sorry Libs’

‘It’s whatever’ she told you before her eyes landed on your gift. ‘What’s that?’

‘It’s a vinyl’ you smiled as your eyes flew back to what was between your hands.

‘Twenty one pilots? That’s so random’

‘Not entirely’ you smiled, having a pretty good idea as to who you thought had picked this out for you as there was a certain song on this album that you’d spoken about with someone pretty recently. You were too nervous to look up and find his eyes though so you flipped it over to look at the other side to find two signatures perfectly etched onto the cover. A small gasp falling from your lips as you saw them and a rush of gratitude took over you. This was the most thoughtful gift you’d ever received and before you knew it your eyes were frantically looking for Masons.

You didn’t have to look too far, his eyes were on you already and and from the slight blush on his cheeks you were fairly certain it was him that had gifted you this.

You wanted to run over and pull him into your arms so you could thank him but you held back. Nodding down to the gift that was in front of him in hopes he’d open it but it suddenly hit you that what you’d decided to buy him paled in comparison to the thought he’d put in for you. You’d basically bought him crafting supplies whilst he’d he’d delved into your brain and got you something you’d loved that you would never have bought for yourself.

You couldn’t look, hearing a few giggles from people in his general direction and the nervousness took over your body and you had to flee. Popping your vinyl back into the box before making a swift exit out of the nearest door which thankfully led into the main room and you were back with Ben.

You asked if you could stick with him for a bit and he thankfully agreed. Telling you stories about Mason from when he was back in Chelsea and you loved learning about this side of him. The Mason up here seeming pretty reserved to the cheeky chap Ben was used to but you’d seen glimpses of it and you couldn’t wait for Mason to show you more.

You didn’t know what you were walking into but you found his room fairly easily. The door was slightly ajar and after a quick deep breath and a couple of knocks, you could hear his voice on the other side.

‘Come in’

‘H-hey, it’s me’ you told him as you popped your head round but he was waving you in fully so you walked in and shut the door behind you.

‘Hey’ he smiled ‘I take it this is all you then?’ He asked as he motioned to all the stuff you’d bought that was scattered over his bed and you felt like disappearing into the floor.

‘Oh um, yeah listen I’m sorry I know it’s a bit shit-‘

‘Are you kidding me?’ He laughed ‘I love it’

‘What? Are you serious?’

‘Of course, I’ve started sorting some bits out already but I think I might need your help with a lot of it. Do you think you’d be up for it?’ He asked. His tone excited as he smiled at you wildly and even though you’d be more than happy to help, the gravity of what he was asking you to do suddenly hit you out of nowhere.

‘Those are your memories, Mase’ you whispered. ‘Are you sure, that’s huge?’

‘Is it?’

‘Well yeah, if I help you then everytime you look at that stuff you’ll be thinking of me’ you explained but he just shrugged as he picked the red one up to give it a proper look.

‘You bought me the books, I’ll be thinking about you no matter what’ he laughed before his face got a little more serious. ‘I’m sure, okay? I really need your help’

‘I can help’ you nodded. Taking a seat next to him on his bed but you wanted to talk about something else rather than the random assortment of things on his bed. ‘I take it mine was from you then?’

‘You got me’ he giggled, holding his hands up in fake surrender. ‘Do you like it?’

‘Well I was hoping for a step ladder I can’t lie’ you teased but saw through you right away as he laughed along. ‘I’m kidding, it's perfect. Where did you even get it?’

‘I know people’ he shrugged. ‘I’m glad you like it though, I had no idea at first like we barely knew each other’

‘I did wonder why you suddenly wanted to talk to me so much’

‘I had nothing to go on, I needed something’ he smiled before his face got a little more serious. ‘Your present, It’s actually a bit of a two parter’ he smiled, reaching into his bedside drawer and producing a white envelope that he’d written your name on.

‘What’s this?’ You asked, taking it from him carefully and you wondered if it was just a Christmas card but he seemed a bit too excited to give it to you if it was just that.

‘Open it’ he told you softly and you couldn’t wait any longer. Tearing into it as carefully as you could before pulling out two tickets.

‘Mase…’ you breathed. ‘No Mase I can’t-‘

‘Of course you can’ he grinned, shuffling closer to you until your thighs touched. ‘The only reasons you told me you couldn’t go were you couldn’t afford it, which I’ve taken care of. You didn’t like crowds and I’ve booked you into a vip section so there’s not too many other people around. The only part I can’t help you with is finding someone to go with. You need to pick’

‘Will you come with me?’ You asked immediately. You knew they weren’t his thing as he’d told you he’d never listened to them before but you figured going with Mason made more sense than anyone else.

‘You want me to come? I didn’t get them for you for you to pick me’ he told you softly and you could tell he was biting back a smile at being the person you wanted with you.

‘But what if I want to go with you’ you whispered. ‘It’s my gift right? My decision on who I get to take. I want to take you’ you told him but then it hit you he might not want to go either and you didn’t want to force him. ‘But if you don’t want to-‘

‘Okay’ he smiled, cutting you off as he bumped your arm. ‘We can go together’

‘Look at us, eh. Who would have thought’ you joked, watching the way his eyes crinkled as he let out a laugh and all you wanted was to get closer to him.

‘Not me’ he winked. Bumping his shoulder into yours again. ‘Thank you, though. I was dreading this whole secret Santa thing but I’ve actually really enjoyed getting to know you’

‘I have too’ you whispered. His serious face was making you nervous, like he was about to tell you he’d see you around and burst the perfect bubble you’d created.

‘I know it’s like all over and stuff but we can still hang out right?’ He questioned. Your face breaking out into a smile at the fact you’d read it all wrong and you knew he was laughing at your reaction.

‘Yeah? You mean you still want to?’

‘Of course’ he grinned. ‘I mean I’ve been thinking of excuses for ages to try and see you. Remember when I needed washing tablets?’

‘I remember’ you laughed, grinning as he smiled back at you.

‘I didn’t really need them, I just wanted you to come over’ he giggled. And this last week or so, it’s been shit. But getting to speak to you and offload like you let me, I didn’t realise how much I needed someone for that’

‘I just hated the thought of you being alone and stressing about’

‘Well I did for the first night’ he laughed. Placing his hand behind your back on the bed and leaning into you more but it caused the bed to dip and you felt your heart flutter at how close his face seemed to yours now. His lips merely an inch away and it wouldn’t take much for you to lean forward. ‘But you’ve really picked me back up off the floor you know?’

‘It was nothing’ you laughed. Your eyes now in your lap as you nervously played with you fingers but once again he was. Breaking them apart with his own as he laced his through your and gripped your hand softly.

‘You do that a lot you know’ he chuckled softly, rubbing his thumb along the black of you hand gently and you could feel your tummy flipping as he did.

‘I think it’s just a nervous habit’

‘You don’t need to be nervous with me’ he whispered. Eyes dropping to your lips for a second before he was looking straight back in your eyes.

It was like you could feel the magnetic force of him pulling you closer, wanting nothing more than to kiss him and you were pretty sure he wanted to kiss you back as he was leaning in just as slowly.

This is it, you thought. The last few weeks imagining what it would be like to be closer to him and kiss him was now seeming to come to fruition but oddly enough for you, you didn’t feel nervous. This felt like you were exactly where you were meant to and all you wanted was to close the gap and finally feel him properly.

You were broken out of your trance by the sound of your phone ringing, the pair of you looking down and you cursed under your breath as you fumbled to try and retrieve it. Libby’s name flashing up on your screen and you gulped hard before answering.

‘H-hello?’

‘Hey, where are you?’ She asked. Music pounding in the background and it hit you that you’d barely been around her this evening.

‘Oh I’m… I’m on the loo’

‘Well hurry up and come back, it’s almost midnight’

‘I’ll be down in a sec’ you told her. Shutting off the call and turning to Mason who was looking at you was a soft smile. ‘It’s um, it’s almost midnight’

‘You go, I’ll see you down there in a sec’

‘Mase-‘

‘Go on, before she has another fit’ he chuckled, cutting you off with a smile but his cheeks were bright red and you knew he was feeling a little embarrassed so you made a quick dash and felt downstairs.

You made it down just in time, the whole room buzzing as it was edging closer to midnight and you found Libby fairly quickly. Taking her hand as she pulled you into her side and you could tell she was having a good night with all your friends.

When the count down began you felt Libby reach for you again, pulling you in for a hug first just like always and you squeezed her back before releasing her as you got to five. Knowing she would want to spend the last of the count down with Aaron and you’d be standing there awkwardly just like always.

You hoped this year you’d have at least someone around you but all the other girls were coupled up and you didn’t know where to look. Eventually backing off so you could stand to the side and out of the way like most years but a hand on your wrist stopped you.

It was like the next few seconds happened in slow motion, turning to see who stopped you and when you looked up into those warm brown eyes it was like you were transported back to ten minutes ago. Mason looking at you with his lips slightly parted as his breathing got a bit heavier.

You couldn’t hear the countdown anymore, all your energy focused on the boy in front of you but you knew it must have been finishing shortly as Mason pulled you closer to his body. His free hand cupping your jaw gently so he could tilt your face up towards his and as the words happy new year were shouted around the room he lent down and pulled you in for a kiss.

It was only short. His lips just about touching yours before he pulled back but it was seemingly just to check you were okay before he lent back in to kiss you much deeper and you felt your knees give way as he pulled you closer to his body.

You were aware that your hands were limp by your side but you felt too in shock to do anything with them for a beat until they were trailing up his strong arms and resting on his chest. His heart thrumming under your fingertips and soon enough the reality of the situation hit you causing a smile to break out on your lips that he was soon mirroring.

‘Happy new year’ he whispered once he’d pulled away. His face still close to yours as he stroked your jaw and the little glint in his eye made you lose your breath slightly.

‘Happy new year’

‘Sorry, I just-‘

‘It’s okay’ you smiled. Cutting him off slightly as you didn’t want him to apologise for anything that has just happened. ‘I’ve never been kissed at midnight so thanks’

‘The pleasure was all mine’ he winked as he wrapped both arms around your waist and pulled you further into him but you were still in such a daze you didn’t know what to say.

‘What is going on’ you whispered with a laugh, hoping he understood what you meant and from the laugh he sent you back you realised he had.

‘I don’t know’ he laughed back. ‘But these last two months, getting to know you, you’re not like anyone else I’ve ever met’ he told you but seemingly knew how that must have sounded as you tried to bite back a smile whilst he tickled your sides. ‘And I know that sounds cheesey as fuck, but being with you it’s like I’m finally alright after feeling so lost up here for so long. That song we talked about, I’ve been listening to it non stop and all I can’t think about is the fact when I’m with you I feel at home’

‘Mase’ you pouted, tears springing in your eyes immediately as you’d never heard anything so beautiful before and as he kissed your forehead you felt your skin tingle.

‘I know we were moaning about it, but I’m so glad we agreed to the whole secret Santa thing cause it’s like you’ve been right under my nose and I had no idea I could feel like this about someone. You get me in a way no one else does and the way we just clicked so quickly… I don't know. I’m rambling now but if you don’t feel the same it’s okay but I meant what I said upstairs. I wanna keep hanging out and getting to know you but maybe…’

‘Maybe what?’ You smiled, knowing he was trying to brush his feelings off just in case you didn’t feel the same but little did he know you were just in shock as you could never have imagined him saying this to you.

‘I don’t know’ he laughed, squeezing your sides again to make you laugh. ‘I don’t know how you feel and I don’t want to make an arse of myself’

‘I want the same’ you gulped, trying to find an ounce of courage to try and let him know how you were feeling but even though you wanted to shout it from the rooftops for him, it was like you couldn’t get the words out. ‘Sorry this is all so new to me I don’t really know what to say either’

‘I think we’re both just too shy for our own good’ he told you and you nodded in agreement, loving that he knew you so well already and when he pulled you even closer you wrapped your arms around his neck so his face was closer to yours. ‘So you like me… in the same way I like you?’

‘Yeah’ you gulped. Realising he’d changed his tactics to just ask you questions to make things easier for you and you smiled up at him as he kissed your nose.

‘And you’re happy to keep hanging out… just the two of us?’ He asked, lips trailing across your jaw now as your knees became weak but his strong grip around your waist was keeping you steady.

‘Yes’

‘And I can kiss you again?’

‘Yes’ you breathed, finding it increasingly difficult to answer him as he continued to kiss all over your face and you knew you were blushing like a fool.

‘Whenever I like?’

‘Depends on when you’d like’ you replied and the chuckle he let out just below your ear made you shiver in delight before he pulled back to look at you properly.

‘Right now?’

‘Go on then’ you whispered, watching him lean in a touch before his eyes flashed back up to yours.

‘One more thing’ he asked quietly, his face serious and you had no idea what he was about to say. ‘You promise this isn’t just for my spag Bol recipe?’

‘I’ll never tell’

‘I’ll take it’ he whispered. Finally leaning down and closing the gap again to kiss you softly and claim you in front of everyone.

[hoodreader]

𝒫𝑅𝐼𝒩𝒞𝐸𝒮𝒮 𝒯𝐼𝒜𝒩𝒜 𝐸𝒩𝐸𝑅𝒢𝒴 🐸👸🏾♡

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི tiana most embodies the energy of saturn for most of the film. she’s so absorbed in labor / work that she’s like a hermit. and the most saturnian thing about it as well is that she does it to sort of honor her late father, whom she looked up to + felt inspired by

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི it’s also a classic rags 2 riches type of story. tiana grew up impoverished, like most other black louisianans in the ‘20s

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི i don’t think these qualities of being a hard worker are necessarily admirable - u need balance. she worked her whole life ( three jobs !? ) and overworking urself is actually anti-saturn. that’s the lesson she had to learn

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི i’m guessing she’s a capricorn rising. always had so much responsibility and never really allowing herself to have fun + fail + be human + fall in luv

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི her personality is effortlessly graceful and really regal. despite being a poor black girl from louisiana, prince naveen thought tiana was a princess at charlotte’s party - i feel like royalty are able to identify themselves quite easily. so just wearing a princess dress doesn’t make someone princess-like, but bc tiana has so much grace / charm / poise, he assumed she was also of royal lineage

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི she’s pretty strong minded, funny, etc but she doesn’t really let people in enough for them to see that she is. when naveen came to learn that she did have a lot of personality outside of work, he was pleasantly surprised !

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི she’s also smart as hell :) bold and protective. she’s fiercely loyal - when the shadow man offered her all of her dreams in exchange for the necklace, she decided to be loyal to love / herself / naveen. even tho having that restaurant meant to much to her and her father

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི so for that reason… i’m getting leo sun vibes from her. regal, charming, loyal

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི she’s very sentimental - when her mother gifted tiana the gumbo pot her father used, she was brought near tears. her wanting to have a restaurant at all is very sentimental

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི she’s imaginative. despite everyone telling her that she shouldn’t pursue her dream - bc she’s a poor black woman - she doesn’t quit. she keeps going! she’s a dreamer

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི she claimed she struggled to dance bc she’s never done it, but she was able to so quickly learn how to dance with naveen in that one scene. she has a natural artistic affinity

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི she’s good in the kitchen! i think that’s a gift that shows intuitive abilities

♡ ྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀིྀི for that reason, i peg tiana as a pisces moon! sensitive, still loving her family a lot ( she just channels it into work ), a dreamer, and a visionary

as for her other placements… i feel like she’s a virgo mercury, virgo venus, and aquarius mars. but these are mostly vibes, lol

u cannn switch the rising and sun ( leo rising + cap sun ) instead. but that’d change her other planets too. so for that, i see: leo rising, pisces moon, capricorn sun, capricorn? mercury, capricorn venus, and aquarius mars.

what do you think? this was my favorite movie growing up, i watched it probably ( no exaggeration ) thousands of times lol. anyway, i hope this was a fun read. i want to do more disney characters son

[petermorwood]

One of the fun things about a Quiet Christmas is that ex-family food traditions can be observed, ignored or played with, and on different occasions @dduane and I have done all three.

We've stayed traditional with roast turkey (a crown roast not a whole bird, easier for two to consume - or slice and freeze - before boredom sets in) as well as non-traditional roast goose and, like this year, roast beef.

We've played with non-traditional turkey as Oaxacan mole poblano, and we've had Sauerbraten, venison, and even - with some special pleading at a Dublin game butcher - wild boar.

We've completely ignored the carrot-and-parsnip mash which - in my case anyway - always sat untouched in air-rescue-orange splendour on the side of my plate, because I hated the stuff.

Instead we've discovered the delights of roasting root veggies, a vast improvement on mashing them and, given there's often meat and potatoes already in the oven at Christmas, makes a lot of sense.

And every now and then there'll be a nod towards the tomato soup which invariably started any Christmas dinner from as long ago as I can remember until I moved out.

I like tomato soup in all its forms, so that wasn't a problem like the C&P mash, and as I got more adventurous the soups did too - but not at Christmas, because of Tradition...

*****

Soup wasn't planned at all this year, but happened unexpectedly when DD saw a recipe on-line - Spanish tomato soup with smoked paprika potatoes - and decided to try it.

This reads like a variant of Salmorejo, a cold soup like gazpacho, and having made it I think it would work well chilled in summer. In that case I'd either cut the potatoes into very small dice and fry them completely crispy, or slice them, fry them, let them cool and THEN dust them with smoked paprika / pimentón picante. Just a thought...

Because the decision was a bit spontaneous, i.e. after we'd done our last, very very last, bit of shopping, several ingredients were missing. We had no sherry, olives or orange juice, and neither of us could see the sense of two kinds of tinned tomatoes if the end result was going to be blended smooth.

It's a US recipe, so if "diced" and "crushed" have different flavours that makes sense. Here tinned toms are either whole or chopped, and I've never noticed them tasting different enough to matter.

*****

DD's IBS meant we also left out the onion and garlic, but I remembered we had a proper Spanish chorizo in the freezer, so that was defrosted, diced and added for a ten-minute simmer after the blending but before the potatoes.

The result...

...was superb.

The broth was rich, complex, warming and tangy, the chorizo was meaty and savoury, the paprika potatoes were spicy and just faintly crunchy along their edges.

Next time we'll lay in the missing ingredients and give them a try - sherry in particular Does Things For Soup - but our tweaked-by-necessity version was seriously good, and I can think of yet another tweak.

Adding chopped sun-dried tomatoes is getting two thumbs up from my Mind Palate, and there's at least one jar in the pantry, so I've a feeling there'll be another batch of this soup before too long... :->

[blacklister214]

Lestat's Thoughts Upon Meeting Louis in Person

I get such a chuckle out of Louis' thoughts versus what must be Lestat's thoughts during their first face to face encounter.

Lestat: He speaks my native language! Further proof we are meant for each other!

Louis: What, he thinks I'm too dumb to be bilingual?!

Lestat: He must incredibly successful and important to have managed to be warmly welcomed at this prejudiced establishment!

Louis: Is he saying I have no right to be here because of my race?!

Lestat: His name is literally Louis, when my destination had been St. Louis! Clearly this is destiny at play!

Louis: Is he making fun of my name?!

Lestat: (Stroking Lily while staring at Louis) I can't wait to touch you!

Louis: Is he trying to steal Lily from me, just because she's my favorite and he thinks he is entitled?!

Lestat: (Outbids him for Lily) There's no way I'm letting you leave with anyone else, it would crush me. Also I imagine she is a font of useful information about you. My apologies.

Louis: Son of bitch has humiliated me in front of the entire brothel! My reputation has taken a huge blow! Damn him!

[dragonbabes]

Compassion is not weakness.

Compassion doesn’t make you incapable of doing what needs to be done.

Compassion makes what you do mean more. It makes your steps feel a little more firm, and you a little more resolute. It makes it more than you; it makes it us… And, for me, I feel the weight of it a little more.

Compassion is what any leader worth their salt needs. They need to look at the people they’re leading and see them, know them, understand them.

I love good and sweet characters. Sure, the dark and angsty pasts and edgy lines are cool. Playing a character who is hurt and lashing out can be fun or whatever. I would understand why.

But playing a character who is hurt and bruised and being beaten at every turn, and still chooses kindness? To be able to take that pain and move on, to not let it sour your soul to the point that everyone has become your enemy because you know what they’re capable of? That’s real strength right there.

Anyways, I think that wisdom without compassion is a one way ticket to pride. Wisdom, in the hands of compassion, is safe to do what it’s meant to do; understand, advise, guide, and teach. When compassion becomes retribution, wisdom no longer understands — it knows. It doesn’t ask anymore, it doesn’t seek to learn or understand any further because it has all the answers, right?

I read a post a while ago about Solas watching Lavellan choose to keep Cole as a spirit, and how Solas may have thought to himself “in her hands, I may have been safe.” And it keeps me up at night.

Because compassion doesn’t twist you, it lets you see clearly. And we all know Mythal was once a spirit of compassion twisted to one of retribution. Then everything went to shit when Mythal brought Solas into physical being, and he too, was twisted by the world the Evanuris created.

Lavellan forgiving Solas is one of the hardest things I’ve ever seen done in the game. You should try it next time you play through. See how much stronger you can be when you smile and understand, rather than punch and pretend you know.

This has been my PSA thanks for coming… Be kind out there 💕

Unsure as to why the forgiveness of Solas from Lavellan is considered a weakness. Why is compassion always seen as weakness? Why is it seen as naive?

I don't know.

I think I'm sentimental, perhaps. I think I see what Levellan wants to see, or needs to see, maybe. I think she sees what Solas...wants her to see as well? Why else send her the letter, honestly.

You could say it's selfishness on his part, I guess. He left her, abandoned her, and now what? He wants her to stop him? What right does he have to expect from her?

The great dread wolf, wishing a mortal elf, a Dalish elf, to stop him. Insanity.

I think it just proves how highly he thinks of her, though. In the end, he knows he is nothing in the face of his vhenan.

To choose hope is not a weakness. To be vulnerable is strength.

[nicverse]

gates

just two fools loving each other. jason todd x fem!reader warnings: mention of blood, wounds and bullets.

ノㅤㅤ𓈒ㅤㅤ⊹ㅤㅤㅤㅤׅㅤㅤ✩ㅤㅤ˚ ♡

ㅤㅤׅ ㅤㅤㅤ𝅄ㅤㅤ꒪ㅤㅤ꒱ㅤ

Yes, sometimes he was a bit of a pain in the ass but you could never say you didn’t love him. He was trouble from the moment he stepped in your life, but the heart wants what it wants, and you opened your door for him every night so willingly. 

The more you denied your feelings, the harder it was to breathe without him. With Jason, you felt like your heart finally belonged to someone who appreciated it, he entered your soul and life without noticing, took you in his hands and guarded you as if you were his most precious treasure. 

The sins he committed every night were forgotten when he gave you his smile, a simple trace of happiness in his eyes wherever you were around him. Gotham was a cruel city but just the thought of living there without him made your heart race with desperation.

You would follow him anywhere. Jason never said it, but he would follow you too. He would take a hundred bullets for you if it meant keeping you safe —keeping you with him. He never thought he would need someone so much, but now every war he fought was for you, and every punch he threw was to keep the evil of the world away from you. 

You were complaining about another one of your coworkers while you cooked dinner. Jason loved listening to you, but he couldn’t help but admire the way you looked. It felt so oddly domestic. His arms resting in the kitchen aisle as you were too focused on your own thing, just talking about your day in your comfy clothes— a sight he wished he could wake up to every morning.  

“I know I shouldn't be thinking about murdering someone but this asshole makes me reconsider it,” you said, your eyes pinned on the food “I told you I could take care of him” Jason suggested, you shook your head quickly, turning to point him with your finger.

“No Jason, you can’t blackmail my coworker. I’ll deal with it myself” he chuckled with a roll of his eyes. You always insisted on taking care of things by yourself, too stubborn to let him make your life easier in his own ways. “What's the fun in that, princess?” you rolled your eyes, too used to his nicknames now. 

You secretly loved them. It made things special between you too, an unspoken agreement of intimacy. 

“Let me remind you, the last time I let you deal with something for me, you ended up with a bullet in your arm” you turned to face him, arms crossed in front of your chest. Jason smiled, nodding his head before speaking again. Your mind went back to your bloody bathroom, hands desperately trying to remove the bullet without killing him but he was smiling the whole time. 

Jason knew he would be fine with you. He decided to open his gates to his favorite angel: you. He let your hands run across his scarred chest and heal his wounds so tenderly, longing for the warmth of your fingers across his skin as you scolded him for being so selfless and impulsive... And Jason? He couldn't care less about your complains because he would repeat it over and over just to feel your hands in his body.

“I know, I would do it again just for you.”

—another one from my jason x journalist!reader. i'm writing the first chapter now but until i decide publish it i'll be updating you guys with these small interactions.

—i'm accepting requests now! i'd love to make yours <3

[illuminatedferret]

If your still taking prompts, I'm always down for Hualian kisses. Maybe a kiss on the cheek?

Hello!! Yes, thank you for the prompt! I had a lot of fun thinking up something to write for this. I hope you like it <3 It got a bit long for a ficlet!

-

Xie Lian’s lips planted solidly upon Hua Cheng’s cheek.

Great! Except that he hadn’t meant to do that. When he’d moved in, he’d had every intention of planting a kiss on his husband’s lips, not his perfect cheek. Blinking dumbly, he fell back onto his heels and met Hua Cheng’s equally surprised expression.

There was just something a little surreal about seeing two eyes blink back at him after all this time. It had been weeks since Hua Cheng returned to him on Mount Taicang, but it was only now upon their return to Puqi Village that the ghost wore something other than his true form, adopting the youthful visage that had once greeted Xie Lian on an oxcart not far from here a year and a half ago.

“Ah... Sorry,” Xie Lian finally said, uncertain in his words but needing to say something. “I didn’t... I’m sorry!”

Hua Cheng blinked at him, but he didn’t seem upset, only nonplussed. “Is gege feeling shy?” Back in Puqi Village after so long, went unspoken. They had been received exultantly, but at the moment they were alone, allowed the time to explore the new shrine the villagers had erected in the place of Xie Lian’s poor little shack.

Xie Lian shook his head rapidly, little fly-aways of hair following his movements like a lazy eye. “No! No, of course not! It’s just, in this skin, we’ve never-”

He bit on his tongue, too embarrassed to finish. 

We’ve never kissed in this skin before.

And for some reason, as he popped up onto his toes to give his husband a kiss, that thought had likewise popped into his head, and his body had instinctively switched targets to something tamer than Hua Cheng’s lips.

Hua Cheng stared at him for a moment before he shook his head and started to laugh.

“Please don’t laugh at me,” Xie Lian said mournfully. Hua Cheng’s shoulders shook under the force of his laughter. It went on for another few moments before he took a deep breath, pulling his composure back on- or trying to, at least.

“So last night was fine, but a kiss isn’t?” he asked, clearly tickled. Well, it was better than feeling insulted, but...

“A kiss is fine!” Xie Lian insisted. “A kiss is really fine! I promise!” He was never going to live this down. He knew it. The mere thought made him feel defensive. Maybe if he was particularly effusive right now, he could do some damage control...

Maybe.

“Are you sure?” Hua Cheng teased. “Gege, what don’t you like about this form? Let me fix it for you.”

“I like it, I like it! There’s nothing you need to change!!” Please don’t take it the wrong way, I really didn’t mean it!!

“Really?”

“Of course! San Lang is handsome in any form. And this one is- it’s very good! Very, very good!”

Hua Cheng hummed consideringly. “Is that so?”

“Yes! I-”

Xie Lian’s tongue fell thick in his mouth as Hua Cheng swiftly stepped forward. Something about the confidence he exuded had Xie Lian stepping back in tandem, until the wood paneling of the wall beside the shrine’s door was at his back, trapping him in place. Like a rabbit before a fox, he could do nothing but stare with wide eyes as the ghost king leaned in close, a familiar light shining in his dark eyes.

“So the problem is gege?” Hua Cheng asked softly.

“...” Xie Lian nodded slowly. His husband wasn’t even touching him, but when he spoke like that, this old cultivator’s body yearned to feel him. The phantom impression of Hua Cheng’s fingers on his chin blossomed, so strong he could almost believe it was real.

“If that’s so... If gege finds it hard to be with me in this skin, perhaps we should work on that,” Hua Cheng whispered huskily. Heat immediately pooled in Xie Lian’s stomach at the tone. It was a slightly different pitch than he was used to, but it was still deep enough to drag against his bones, an unmistakable promise clear in every syllable.

Xie Lian swallowed dryly. His fingers reached out and curled tight into the loose red sleeves Hua Cheng favored in this form. “M-mn. Good call.” Hua Cheng’s true form might have been his favorite, but that didn’t mean he didn’t love all the man’s other forms. Each of them was special to him. Even the impulse to shy away from giving his husband the affection he deserved was quite a serious problem indeed! So... Obviously... Obviously they needed to work on this. As soon as possible.

Hua Cheng smirked. Yes, in any form that was a dangerous look. Xie Lian felt his heart speed up as his husband stepped even closer. Hua Cheng was a bit shorter in this form, turning their height difference from something nearly insurmountable into something nearly manageable. It certainly shortened the trip between their faces. Xie Lian watched his husband descend with bated breath before letting his eyes fall closed, waiting, waiting, waiting-!

“Xie-daozhang!”

Huh?

Xie Lian opened his eyes. Hua Cheng hovered a mere hair’s breadth away. For a moment, the world was still, and Xie Lian thought he might be able to pretend there was nothing stopping them from simply-

“Xie-daozhang!” The call came again from somewhere outside, coming closer. They probably had only moments until the speaker was upon them.

Xie Lian closed his eyes and poorly stifled a groan. Hua Cheng laughed lightly and closed the distance, letting their foreheads press together lightly. Not the part of their faces Xie Lian had wanted to touch... but better than nothing.

“Later?” his husband asked.

Xie Lian sighed. 

“Later.”

[legalmente-loca]

New Year And Dirty Ribbons

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Female Reader

Summary: It's New Year's and Dean couldn't resist giving you a gift to start off a nice, dirty year.

Word Count: 1,544

A/N: Happy New Year to everyone, I hope you have a great time and end your year as you wish!

Tags/Warnings: 18+, smut, cum dripping, oral (male receiving), cowgirl

You were making the last preparations on the table when Dean silently came up behind you and wrapped his arms around you, resting his chin on your shoulder.

“How’re you doin’?”

“Just putting the finishing touches on.”

“Mhm…” He nodded and placed a kiss on your shoulder. “Do you need any help?”

“No, I’d rather do it alone.”

“What, do you think I’d screw up?” He smiled and turned you around.

“No, I just think you’d distract me.”

“Distract you?” He snorted. “No, how could I?” He leaned in and placed a kiss on your lips.

“Dean…”

He placed more kisses on your lips until he started kissing you, his hands on your hips, but you pulled away.

“See? This is what I meant.” You gently punched his chest and pushed him away.

“Ow, c’mon, we can have fun while we do things.” He raised his eyebrows playfully and you shook your head in amusement.

“It won’t happen.”

He snorted and crossed his arms.

“Fine. But just so you know, I’m not happy.”

“Three, two, one…! Happy New Year!” You exclaimed in unison.

You laughed as you toasted with Sam, Castiel, and Dean. Castiel didn’t quite know what to do, but he copied you all, and Dean held you by the waist and kissed you.

“Happy New Year, sweetheart.” He murmured against your lips.

“Happy New Year.”

He placed another kiss on the tip of your nose before drinking what was left in his glass.

“Well, let’s hope this year is better than the last ones.” Sam said, leaving his empty glass on the table. “What are you going to do this year, Cass?”

“I… I think I’ll do not use my wings as much and walk more.” He nodded. “That way I’ll observe nature more closely.”

You raised both eyebrows and lifted your glass.

“Here's to that, Cass.”

The night passed between laughs and conversations about what you were looking forward to this year. Sam said he would read more, Dean said he would focus on taking care of baby more.

“Dean, you treat that car better than you treat anyone.” You had commented.

For your part, you said you would focus more on yourself.

You stayed a while to tidy up with Castiel and Sam. Dean said he was too tired and that he would help with whatever he could tomorrow. You watched him leave with a raised eyebrow. Normally, he was the tidiest one.

When you got to your room, you ran a hand over your face as you opened the door and walked in before closing it behind you. You immediately smelled… Roses? You looked up and there you saw it.

“Oh… My… God…”

Dean was there on the bed. A bed covered in rose petals. There were candles lit around the room, but what definitely caught your attention the most was Dean. He was lying on his back, one arm under his head and one leg bent, naked. Of course, naked if you ignore the fact that he had a Christmas hat covering his cock.

“Hey, sweetheart.” He said in a seductive voice.

“What’s all this?” You hesitated, taking a step forward.

“What does it look like? It’s your New Year’s present.”

“That doesn’t exist.”

“Are you complaining?”

You stayed quiet and gave him a once over. Oh, you definitely weren’t complaining.

“I need to ask…” You clicked your tongue. “What’s under the hat?”

He smirked and shrugged.

“It’s your main present. You goin’ to open it?”

You took a deep breath and walked over to him. Slowly, as if you were hesitant, you sat down on the edge of the bed beside him. You reached for the hat and slowly took it off.

You couldn’t help but laugh when you saw that his dick was wrapped in Christmas paper.

“Really, Dean?”

“I told you to open it, didn’t I?”

“Why didn’t you give me this gift for Christmas?”

“Uh, I thought the necklace would be enough back then.”

“More than your wrapped dick?”

He laughed and pulled his hand out from under his head, moving it to your chin.

“C’mon… Unwrap it.”

You tilted your head and began to tear the paper. You noticed that, with each movement of your hand, what was underneath it grew harder and more erect.

“Good girl.”

When you finished removing the paper you saw his cock, completely hard and erect. There was a red bow at the base.

“Wow, the surprises never stop coming.”

“Aren’t you going to play with your present, sweetheart?” He caressed your chin and brought your face closer to his member.

You licked your lips and gave him a lick, earning a growl from Dean.

“Fuck, darlin’.”

You began to lick his tip as you looked into his eyes. Dean’s hand moved to your hair, moving it out of your sight and stroking it. The head of his cock was already throbbing from your licks and you decided to take it into your mouth. You bobbed your head up and down, feeling the veins brush against your cheeks as you cupped them.

Dean moaned, holding your hair and pulling his head back against the pillow.

“Yeah, that’s it… Damn… So well done, sweetheart.” He murmured as he kept his gaze on you.

Saliva slid down his cock, reaching his pelvis. His chest rose and fell in line with his rapid breaths. You could feel the precum on your tongue as you bobbed your head up and down.

His legs shook and he pulled at your hair. You moaned as he pulled your head away from his cock, saliva running down your chin.

“I need you damn now.” Dean mumbled as he pulled you down.

He pulled your pants off along with your panties and placed you astride him. You leaned into him and held his cock, stroking it gently before guiding it to your entrance, then slowly lowering yourself down. Dean’s nails dug into the skin of your hips as he fought himself not to start thrusting.

“Oh, fuck-…” You moaned as you went all the way in.

Dean caressed your cheek and pulled you in for a kiss as you began to move up and down. His cock slowly moved in and out of you as his lips danced with yours and your tongues tangled together.

Your moans filled the room and Dean placed a kiss on your cheek as he held the back of your neck with one hand.

“You’re doing so good, baby. So damn good.” His eyes rolled back and he shook his head, trying to stay in the present.

“De-Dean…” You whimpered.

“It’s okay, I’m here.” He murmured as he placed another kiss on your lips. “Keep going.”

You panted as your movements increased in speed. Your juices poured out of you to spread over his cock as your ass bounced over and over against the bun at its base.

You were close, you could feel it as could he.

“C-come on, baby, cum for me. Be my good little girl and fuckin’ cum now.”

You moaned loudly as you clenched around him, your nails digging into his shoulders. He gasped as you squeezed him and held you tight. His cum shot out inside you, staining your insides and making you shiver as you slowly came down from your ecstasy.

“God…” You rested your forehead against his shoulder.

“You okay?” He asked.

“This was the best gift in the world.”

He smiled.

“I know, I’m awesome.”

“Oh, don’t talk.” You lightly punched him on the shoulder.

“Ouch! Again? You deserve a punishment for that.” He said as he sat up and gently pulled you off of him, leaving you on the bed.

“So, what are you going to do, tough boy?”

“I have an idea.”

He looked down at the bow that was still tied at the base of his cock. After everything they had done, it was flattened and stained with cum dripping down his cock.

He pulled the bow off and inspected it with a sly grin. You tilted your head in curiosity, wishing you could read his mind, but you had to settle for waiting for what he would do.

In a moment, he pushed you so that you were completely lying on the bed, a gasp coming from you. He straddled you and held your cheeks in one hand. His firm but gentle grip kept your head still and right where he wanted it.

“Stay still.” He murmured. He shoved the bow into your mouth and tied the remaining part around your head. “There we go. Atta girl.”

You could feel the cum entering your mouth, running over your tongue and down your throat. The bow served as a gag and you whimpered.

“Hey, don’t blame me. It’s your fault for being so violent, baby. I have to control you.” He laughed softly and caressed your cheek. “You’re going to stay like this all night, doll.”

He placed a kiss on your forehead and laid down beside you, wrapping his arms around you and holding your head against him.

“I admit this is a damn nice treat for me too.”

You rolled your eyes, but snuggled into him anyway. Obviously his packed cock would end up satisfying him too.

Dean Winchester One Shots

Dean Winchester Masterlist

Masterlist

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[m0thlegs]

Honestly, this is a really strong argument.

I think people tend to overlook this ship, for one because fandom spaces tend to centre men a LOT despite being filled with majority queer people and women (and queer women), and we have the classic case of “fans of a popular mlm ship being weird and feeling the need to dismiss or demonise female characters who feel threatening to their ship that they want to uphold above all else”, nothing new here, fork found in kitchen.

But also, I don’t even think the WRITERS cared that much about Sky, what she meant, and the impact she could’ve had beyond “girl has a crush on a man, then gets fridged twice in the same show because the writers got too scared to develop her as an interesting presence or force in the story beyond her one-sided crush on a prominent male character”, because even in season 1 we were barely shown ANY characterisation for her outside of Viktor, and a lot of observations made about her have been by dedicated fans analysing the tiny details and “blink and you miss it” Easter eggs (which is shit, quite frankly. Like what can be said for the majority of season 2’s writing, Easter eggs are meant for fun side quests, they should NOT be your main source of storytelling or characterisation. I said show don’t tell, not don’t show or tell me anything at all except for frames that show up for a nanosecond. Do better). Other than that though? We had SCRAPS of her, and have mostly only been going off of fanon characterisation since the show can’t be bothered to give it to her themselves.

It’s like to them, she only existed to further his character development, and once she started to become too prominent or interesting of a presence in the story, the writers got scared and killed her off again so she wouldn’t “threaten” the relationship between two men (at least.. that’s my theory. I don’t know their exact thought process but that’s what it feels like to me, based off of what we were shown.). Which is ridiculous, it’s not like you can’t have your cake and eat it too, they could’ve been equally important pieces for Viktor’s narrative, but the writers never gave us a real reason to care about Sky (not that you shouldn’t care anyways, even if the narrative says otherwise); we were never shown much of her motivations, her goals, or a more in-depth look of her personality beyond Viktor, so a lot of fans tend to overlook her for that reason as well, since a lot of people seem to uphold the text as gospel and either can’t or refuse to use their imagination beyond that.

I’m really upset with the treatment of Sky, by both the fans and the writers. She could’ve been such an interesting piece of the story, but nobody seemed to consider that when writing the show, so we’re forced to scrape together bits and pieces and even make up our own to do her justice.

We need to abolish the "Viktor didn't care about Sky" argument. This mandela effect started somewhere god knows where but it's gotten to a point where my eyebrows do the angry bird thing every fucking time someone says it.

1. If he did hallucinate her, that's an insane level of obsession, I'm afraid. Guilt and grief are one thing, building her dream commune is something completely different. Also I'm sorry let's not pretend that guilt and grief are not inherently romantic, they are in their case. He was ready to off himself after she died. There's nothing casual or colleague like in the way Viktor treats Sky post her death. In love with the idea of her or in love with her, it doesnt really matter

2. If he didn't hallucinate her and she was indeed real, then he let her guide him and spent months upon months doing the equivalent of giggling in flowers and holding hands. He again in that case built her project for her and cared for it for her.

3. He wore Jayce's blanket with HER pin. He kept the cog AND the notebook.

Viktor loved them both, it's quite clear when you stop quivering over one ship or the other being more canon. I genuinely dont know how we are all still arguing about it or why as a matter of fact.

Why isn't he allowed to love them both?! Some people act as if THEY are Viktor and their feelings about him are the canonical ones. The rules of fandom state we award him pin of bisexuality until a canon decision is made. That's how it works. If either side doesnt like him being with either Sky or Jayce, then that's frankly an issue that needs looking in and not project onto the others.

Jayce, sky, viktor, mel, get behind me. Baby's first fandom behaviours are ensuing.

I wholeheartedly agree. I love skyvik, I wish people weren’t so crazy over ships in this fandom

[kristea9ay]

YIPPPEEEE! A NEW UPDATE! YOU ARE GIVING ME SO MUCH DOPAMINE!

You said you didn't mind questions or thoughts, so... hope you really meant it:

First and foremost... I am THRIVING off of your Celestial Family(?) AU, I love family dynamics so much, and for Macaque to be the overly protective one fits so well. How I see it, Macaque wants to be in ARMS reach of his child and nowhere farther. It's not about seeing him. It's about being able to get to him - and otherwise save him - from any threats with how potent his energy is.

But how's Wukong? Is he more leanent? Does he want to train him himself? (Obviously, Wukong is still protective but still)

Though it might be a bit too early for training, depending on how old Xiaotian is. Actually, yeah, how old is he during this ark?

It's understandable that Xiaotian is a little frustrated at their protectiveness, but it speaks wonders how he does still comply, worrying that something else is going on. I hope he tries to bring it up to his parents because their are so many ways that would play out, being telling the truth, an argument, a brush off, a break down- no matter how it would go it would be fantastic.

I also love how the Brotherhood is still close, despite everything, and I wonder how much progress they've made, as they succeeded on the first attack on Heaven (or a second one cause Mei is alive, but screw timeline stuff) so he might be weaker, unable to help the world like he wanted to because of the strength needed.

Basically, that's what I think is happening, Azure is losing strength to keep the whole world together. AND based on the Lore Notes, Xiaotian will be the one to fix that. Azure is having a net loss of energy as he's not strong enough to hold the power of the emperor and is slowly turning to stone or might actually just start cracking and die how he did in the show.

The state of Heven itself is fascinating to me, like, what about Nezah?! Or his father?! I assume neither would be in any sort of power because... Azure.

With that being said, has the dynamic changed in the Brotherhood, even if they are all close, with Azure being the emperor, Macaque and Wukong being together, DBK being the husband of a Celestial, and Peng's whole dislike to Macaque (who hasn't shown up yet hmmmmmmm), Yellow Tusk's hesitancy in the show for Azure being emperor, things are bound to have changed at least a little.

Speaking of DBK, It seems like Redson might still have the Samadhi Fire just with the same thing they did to Xiaotian cause JTTW people didn't get Wukong on their side, but they were there to potentially help him I suppose. Anyway- Mai might not have a ring inside her, yaaaay!

Oh, and speaking of Mai, how did she and Xiaotian even meet? Redson and Xiaotian probably met cause their parents are friends, but Mai doesn't live on FFM, at least in the show.

Oh jeez, what about the Lady Bone Demon?! She wouldn't have to revive Macaque, so he wouldn't be her pawn necessarily, but in the need of power or energy for Azure, DBK could go and free her - that would be fun.

ANYWAY- Thank you for giving me an unhealthy amount of dopamine and a gourmet meal with this delicious art\story. Don't worry about the infrequent posting or even the quality of writing. The determination to make a good story seems to do wonders for many people. Know you'll have at least one fan reading no matter how the AU goes <3.

Okay byeeeeee~

Oh my goooosh 😭💕 ok first of all THANK YOU SO MUCH

This message filled me with so much joy that I literally had to call my sister and tell her about it XD

It genuinely makes me feel so happy when I see people enjoy what I make and to see how much you analyze and wonder how things work in this AU just-jdjdkdkskjee

It makes me so happy 😭

I will explain a few things, because I don't think I'll get into much detail about some things in the comic.

1. Yes, Wukong is still very protective, but he has a different coping mechanism. I wanted make him more closed off, because even in the OG series, he keeps to himself and tries to hide whatever is wrong (example: when he went on a "vacation" when he found out about LBD)

2. MK is training with Red under the guidance of Nezha, but it's more about the energy training and focus. But he does train with them some basic fighting

3. CELESTIAL REALM. OOOH boy I sure did change this one a lot. Ok so in this AU, Mac actually is successful in convincing the brotherhood to NOT attack the celestial realm and take down the Emperor.

In the OG, as far as I understand, they were unhappy with The Emperor because he didn't care about the unjuctice and didn't want to help those in need.

So Macaque convinced them not to try and take down the Emperor, but you instead try and help those in need as much as they can themselves. By this time, Mac and Wukong are already together.

DBK and PIF met in this AU because Nezha and her were sent to check in the brotherhood from time to time (Nezha and PIF are siblings in this AU)

So then Xiaotian, Red Son and Mei are born around the same time (not exactly in the same day but yk) and heaven has a BIG problem with that. They are scared, because these children are a mix of one of the most powerful beings AND their being raised by the brotherhood, their enemy. So they proclaim, that they will either give their children up and let heaven raise them (and own them) or there will be war. And ofc, there was war and the Brotherhood won and Azure became the new Emperor.

Nezha is still their friend and ally, because he did not agree with heaven and ultimately decided to side with the brotherhood. He also guarded the children and made sure they were safe when the fight began, that's one of the main reasons why he is their God-father to all 3 of them.

3. And about Mei, her father in this AU is Ao Lie and he and the rest of the pilgrims and Tripitaka ARE the brotherhood friends.

The JTTW happened, but very differently. Wukong wasn't really a part of the group, but they did come across Wukong and the Brotherhood. Tripitaka helped with the ceremony to help RedSon contain the Samadhi fire, which is how he earned their trust. He and the Pilgrims also helped them during the war against heaven.

I hope this explains some things ^^ feel free to ask if yall have any more questions or want to clarify something. If I can answer it without spoiling the comic, I will 100% answer 🫶

[nessieart]

The Way Back. V

WC: 7.5k (its super long im so sorry!)

eventual bucky x reader. maybe steve x reader. im still deciding dontshootme

Summary: These powers were meant to help people. Help The Avengers, your family. It felt like every time you used them, something bad always happened. Maybe someone has the answers, somewhere.

An: I've had half of this done already, and wasn't sure where to put it. So here we are! Enjoy!

Masterlist

Previously:

"I bet you say that to all the girls, Bucky," you tease, placing a hand on his chest. You push him away slightly so you can order a drink for yourself, but Bucky steps back into your space, holding your hand to his chest.

He looks over your shoulder for a moment, then down at you as he lowers his face next to your ear.

"Maybe, but I'm here with the prettiest dame in Brooklyn tonight. And there's nowhere else I'd rather be."

Oh, he's good. You bring a hand over your mouth to stifle the laugh that wants to bubble out.

"Alright, soldier, buy a gal a drink first," you chuckle. It earns you a bright smile, and Bucky turns to get the bartenders attention.

As you gaze around the bar, you see a familiar head of blonde hair, then realize he's leaving. You turn to Bucky, "why is Steve leaving?" Bucky stiffens next to you. He looks at you from the corner of his eye.

2011

New Mexico was oddly cold this time of year. You still haven't gotten used to it after moving back here for 3 years. After leaving California, packing up your whole life from your small apartment, you decided going home might do you some good. Helping out the family business wasn't what you had in mind, but you had no other options. It wasn't permanent, that's what you kept telling yourself. Your mom just needed a little help, that's all.

Dr. Jane Foster sat in your section of the tourist-fueled diner in the middle of Roswell. Small green alien decor with a retro ‘50s vibe was all the rage - at least it was in the ‘90s.

“Look, I get it, sure,” you shrugged, placing the plates of toast and waffles (in the shape of little green men) on the table, “it's all hilarious to poke fun at the failed Astrophysics major - in green antenna - but I left all those theories back west. Sorry, Doc.”

“I read your graduating thesis,” she bursts out, hands clamped tight around the coffee mug on the table. “Your theory on Parallel Existences and Space-Time Resonance was,” she huffed out a breath of disbelief, “was truly amazing! It was inspiring! I want you to come work with me, er us. With us. please?” The sentence was rushed, and she hardly took a moment to breathe, but you understood.

There was another huff across from her, the girl in glasses and a beanie rolling her eyes and putting more waffles in her mouth than she should.

“Lay off, Jane,” Darcy, you think her name is, says around a mouthful of waffles and syrup, “she obviously would rather work her minimum wage, shit job, where she has to dress like that,” she points her fork up and down at your outfit, “-than see the hunky space dude you hit with the van.” 

Your eye twitches, and you place your hands on your hips. Dr Foster shoots her companion a glare and mutters something about it was an accident, and you're too focused on their banter to hear the bell above the door, and the man approaching the table of your current customers.

“Well, what's the verdict, my dear?” An accented voice pulls your thoughts away.  And you're looking at one of your idols.

“D-Doctor Sel- Selvig,” it's a whisper, and you're staring wide-eyed at the man, mouth gaping like a fish as you fumble about what to say. It's all stuttered syllables, and you promise you're more verbally inclined than this very moment. You have a PhD for crying out loud. Well, almost a PhD, but who's keeping track?

Dr Selvig chuckles, placing a hand on your shoulder, “I'm assuming that's a ‘yes'?” Your frantic nodding is all you could muster.

Your brows are furrowed, arms crossed at your chest and head tilted to the side. Surely, this space hunk, that Darcy calls him (probably derogatory, not affectionate), can't be from, well, space. Could he?

You read Jane's readings she gathered from the other night as she drove back to her ‘lab’. She talked a mile a minute and hardly paid attention to the road as she pointed out certain scans and readings on the paper in your hands. Her hands articulated wildly, and your hand on the wheel of the van to keep it between the lines on the road.

The blond Adonis in a too tight shirt smirks down at you, mimicking your stance with a twinkle in his electric blue eyes.

You narrow your eyes at him, “you're from space.” It's not a question, and the man - a God he had said - nods once.

“From a planet called-”

“Realm,” he corrects.

“Uh huh,” your head tilts the other way.  “Asgard.” He grins, big and bright, and then claps his hands together so loud it sounds like thunder. 

“You were far easier to convince than the rest of your friends,” he claps a hand on your shoulder, and you're sure the force of it sends you into the floor beneath you. A quiet ow leaving your lips.

His voice is accented and deep, and dare you say…old timey? Like going to Medieval Times or something.

He puts on a show, voice loud and booming with purpose as he describes his home. There's a fond smile on his lips and a far-off look in his eyes. 

You roll your shoulder to ease the sting, “With Dr Fosters findings on the Einstein-Rosen-”

“Bifrost,” Thor corrects you again.

“Uh huh, bifrost. With her data on the Bifrost, it would only conclude to lead somewhere else. Somewhere far away that we could never hope to discover in our lifetime. Multiple lifetimes.” You've paced away from Thor's grip and around the room. “Imagine if you could travel anywhere, any place conceivable to the known universe…it’s. It’s extraordinary.”

There was a repetitive loud banging on the glass door behind you. It made you squeak in surprise. Four large people stood on the other side, all wearing…well, odd clothing. Three men and a woman.

“My friends!” Thor’s thundering voice shouted.

—

It was still hard to believe, even though you watched them all disappear. 

A beam of bright, radiant rainbow light appeared from the heavens, engulfed Thor and his friends, and then they were gone. A large glyph seared into the desert sands was the only thing left of their time on earth. 

After that, things happened so fast. Working with Dr. Selvig, being recruited by SHIELD. Doing something you loved and missed.

And then the explosion happened. 

Everything was fine one minute, and then the next, the readings were off the charts. SHIELD started evacuating all personnel on the upper floors. You insisted on staying with Selvig to try and tame the Tesseract, but it’s been hours, and you have nothing to show for progress.

Nick Fury is an intimidating man. You've  only been in his vicinity a handful of times. You're pretty positive he only has one emotion; serious.

It all happened so fast. Fury was shouting, and so was Selvig. The only thing you could hear was the ringing in your ears, then a pain so searing hot and ice cold, shot through your chest it almost made you pass out. It felt like you were on fire. Every breath and subtle movement was painful. A groan leaves your lips, and it takes considerable effort to open your eyes.

You could hear voices call your name. Maybe it was your name. Who were you? 

How did you end up on the floor? It was all a blur.

“Now then, who are you?” A lilting accented voice above you asked. When your eyes meet the striking bright blues of the stranger - or did you know him - he smirks at you.

“I- I don't-” was that your voice? It sounds so far away. 

There’s a lot of loud noises across the open room - guns, yeah, probably guns - the ringing is slowly subsiding as you sit up. The burning sensation is all but gone now. There's a man knelt down beside you, a hand gripping your bicep and tugging you up to your feet.

“C’mon, kid, we gotta go,” he says in your ear. It feels like eternity as you drag your eyes from your hands to his face. 

“You - you have an eyepatch. Are you a pirate?” 

The man shakes you a little, “Snap out of it, Agent. Get that brain goin’,” he - Fury! How could you forget - pulls you along with him, a briefcase in his other hand.

“Please don’t,” the quiet voice seems to carry far in the wide open space. “I still need that.”

“This doesn’t have to get any messier,” Fury says, slightly turning back to the mystery man clad in green.

Fury slowly steps in front of you, shielding your body with his. You’re vaguely aware of more conversation being had in the room, but the ringing is slowly taking over again the longer you stare at the scepter in the stranger's white knuckled grip.

There’s a loud shot that rings out, and Fury is at your feet with a bullet hole in his shoulder. You yelp in surprise and kneel down next to him.  There’s a rush of footsteps toward you, and when a pair of hands try to pull you along, they phase right through you.

You stare up at the stranger, both of your eyes wide in surprise. His eyes were eerily blue.

“What in the Nine Realms are you?” There’s wonder in his voice, and then he doubles over in pain, a bodyguard, and Agent Barton pull him along in a hurry, along with the large silver briefcase.

There’s a groan below you, and Nick Fury is sitting up, yanking the bullet from his vest.

Everything goes blurry and dark around the edges of your vision as Fury all but drags you out of the building and into a helicopter.

—

It was hard to remember how you got here, in a bed, in an off-white room with monitors and an IV connected to your hand.

Your mind is still trying to catch up. The events of the last day and a half are still fuzzy and catching up with your sluggish brain. The hiss of the door opening pulls your eyes up from your lap, Agent Coulson stands in the doorway.

“How - ?” 

He raises a hand as he steps closer, “you've been out for most of the day. I was starting to worry.  We brought you on the helicarrier,” someone is there to remove your IV, and Coulson helps you out into the hallway.

He places a comforting hand on your shoulder, waiting for you to get your bearings.

“I remember-,” your eyebrows scrunch up, and you shake your head, “I remember the Tesseract acting up. Dr Selvig was trying to stabilize her, but she wouldn't respond.”

Coulson led you down the hall and onto the bridge. Director Fury and Agent Hill were conversing when they noticed you entered.

“The energy release opened a portal,” your hand comes up to your chest (whether you realize it or not). There's a slight burning sensation when you do. “It went right through me.  Didn't it?”

You peer around the room, Coulson and Hill look worried, and Fury is as serious as ever. His large footfalls echo in the open space. You feel like Fury is stalking towards his prey, and you're it.

“That beam went right through you, Agent,” he stops a few inches from you, single eye peering down his nose at you. “Saw it myself. Are there any side effects I need to know about?” You shake your head.

Fury tugs on the black tank top resting on your collarbone. When you look down, there's a very noticeable bright blue glow coming from your chest.

Pulling it down just far enough to not flash the whole room, there's a palm sized blue crystal seared to the flesh of your chest. 6 inches long, below your clavicle and ending between your breasts.

The skin around it is scared and puckered with healed over burn marks. You touch it, and it's solid, glowing brighter when your finger runs along the edge.

“What the hell?” You look up at Fury with wide eyes, tears gathering and blurring the edge of your vision. “Can it come off? How did it - what - ? Take it off-” 

Your mind is running a mile a minute, heart rate also kicking up. You're pretty sure your breathing is ragged and sporadic. 

Oh, so it's definitely a panic attack. 

You're gasping for breath when a comforting hand runs up your back, Coulson is talking softly in your ear to bring you back down.

Am I on the floor?

“Yes, it's ok. Breathe, follow along. Do what I do,” a soft voice says to you. Your hand is placed on their chest, and you can feel the beat of their heart and the rise and fall of a chest. The purple cotton shirt is soft under your fingertips.

In, out. Breathe. In, and out.

“You're doing great,” the man says. You look up to his face. He's quietly calm. The uptick of a smile pulls at his lips when you mimic his breathing again.

“Great,” you exhale a long breath. “I just had a panic attack in front of Dr Banner. Good going, y/n. Smooth.”

Banner chuckles, squeezing your hand he still holds to his chest, “don't worry about it,” his smile is polite, and he helps you stand.

Behind you, Fury calls your name, “Agent, why don’t you help Dr. Banner with locating the Tesseract? I’m sure your…abilities could prove useful.”

“Um, sure.”

--

Bruce (he’s asked you on multiple occasions in the last half hour to call him Bruce) removes his glasses from his face. There’s a slight flush on his face after he examines the crystalline scar on your chest. It sits flush against your skin, but hard has a rock when touched.

You sat on top of the table, and the black sports bra didn't cover any of the crystalline on your sternum. It was easier for Bruce to examine it this way.

“So, what's the verdict?” You put the tank top back on. At least it covered a majority of the blue glowing rock.

Bruce sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he did. “I'd need to x-ray the area, just to be 100% sure, but I think it might be fused with you. Your sternum, maybe a few ribs.”

“So in other words, it's a part of me,” you slid off the table and stood, “whatever this is, it's not going anywhere.”

Bruce gives you a sullen look, shaking his head a little. There was a commotion outside the lab, a bunch of armed SHIELD agents filling the hallway. They were escorting a prisoner. The man from New Mexico is tall, pale, and mysterious.

“What's going on?” You edge closer to the window as they pass, the mystery man staring at Bruce and giving him an all-knowing smirk. Then his eyes shift to you, and the smirk drops, his brows furrow, and the same look of awe crosses his features that he gave you back in the basement of Project PEGASUS. And then he's out of sight.

“C'mon, they should be back by now,” Bruce says. You follow him out of the room and down a different hallway when you enter the bridge.

“Who should be back? Bruce-” 

The monitors flick on around the room, projecting a live feed from a chamber. The green clad man is encased in a large glass prison. Your eyes scan the room, finding Natasha Romanoff seated at the large table in the middle of the room.

There's also a video playing in front of her, too. You come up behind her, placing a hand on her shoulder, and she turns to you to give you a hug.

You met Nat after you joined SHIELD, being assigned to the New Mexico base along with Clint Barton. Nat had come and gone a few times, and you two got along well enough that you considered her a friend.

“I'm sorry I couldn't do anything to help Clint,” you whisper to her. She pulls back from the hug and gives you a serious look.

Nat looks down at your chest briefly, “don't be, I saw the footage.” She squeezes your bicep and returns to her chair. A sigh leaves you, letting go of some of the stress on your shoulders.

Looking up when you hear a few pairs of boots enter, you jolt in surprise. 

“Thor?” You're already making your way towards him. He has a huge grin on his face as his arms open wide. He lifts you into a crushing hug, a big deep chuckle of your name rumbling in his chest as your arms wind around his neck.

“What are you doing here? I never thought I'd see you again,” you pull back to look at him, and he sets you down.

“Truth be told, I never thought I would be back on Midgard so soon,” his face somber, and he leaves a hand on your shoulder. “Not after the Bifrost was destroyed. This disastrous mess with Loki, I fear, is all my fault.”

You tilt your head, “Loki, your brother?”

As if on queue, the TV screens and monitors around the room pick up sound, Fury's and the stranger's voice echoing around the room.

You walk closer to Natasha, peering over her shoulder at the video that plays.

“In case it's unclear. You try to escape, you so much as scratch that glass,” Fury turns and presses a button. It opens a large hatch door on the floor below the glass chamber Loki stands in. “Thirty thousand feet, straight down in a steel trap. You get how that works?” 

The hatch doors close a second later, and Fury points towards the man in the cell, “Ant,” then points to the control panel, “Boot.” 

More words are exchanged between them, and then you're suddenly aware of someone staring a hole into the side of your head.  When you look, there's a man in a red white and blue leotard all but glaring a hole through you. 

You go to open your mouth, but he quickly snaps out of it and focuses back on the monitor in front of him. You look around to see if anyone notices, but everyone else is focused on other things. 

“-to have the Tesseract, to have power. Unlimited power. And for what?” Loki stares at the camera with a mischievous grin, “A warm light for all mankind to share. And then be reminded what real power is.” 

“He really grows on you, doesn't he?” Bruce jokes.

“Loki's gonna drag this out. So, Thor, what's his play?” The man in blue speaks up. He briefly makes eye contact with you and then turns his gaze to Thor.

Thor shakes his head like he zoned out a little, “he has an army called the Chitauri. They are not of Asgard or any known world. He means to lead them against your people. They will win him the earth. In return, I suspect, for the Tesseract.”

Every time someone has mentioned that glowing blue cube, the crystal scar on your chest pulses a little. Maybe from phantom pain from a few days ago, but it burns again when you bring your hand to it. 

“Selvig?” Thor's question of your mentor's name snaps you out of the pain in your chest. 

“He's an astrophysicist,” Bruce says.

“He's a friend,” you and Thor share a concerned look for Erik. You pace back towards Thor and put a hand on his overly large forearm, trying to comfort him. His hand dwarfs yours when he covers it.

“I don't think we should be focusing on Loki,” Bruce says. He begins to pace around, his eyes seeking a solution to a problem. “that guy's brain is a bag full of cats. You can smell crazy on him.”

You stifle a snort when Thor goes rigid, “Have care how you speak. Loki is beyond reason, but he is of Asgard, and he is my brother.” You give a gentle squeeze of your hand, and Thor gives you a small nod.

“He killed 80 people in two days,” Nat simpers.

“He's adopted,” Thor supplies quietly. 

“I think it's about the mechanics.  Iridium, what did they need the iridium for?”

“It's a stabilizing agent,” you say. Another voice behind you also saying it at the same time.

“Means the portal won't collapse on itself, like it did at SHIELD.” Tony Stark. Of course. You met him once before, for the internship at Stark Industries, years ago, another lifetime ago.

Stark walks along the room, patting Thor on his bicep as he walks by, “no hard feelings, Point Break, you gotta mean swing.” He notices you, a stutter in his step and the brief furrow of his brow, then continues walking.

“The only major component he still needs is a power source,” Stark continues.

“Something of high energy density,” you cross your arms, nodding.

“Something to kick start the cube,” Stark finishes.

“When did you become an expert in thermonuclear Astrophysics?” Agent Hill asks Stark.

“Last night. The packet. Selvig’s notes-”

“the extraction theory papers?” you asked. “I - I uh, helped him with those,” you say quieter, a heat rising to your cheeks when the eyes around the table turn to you.

“Does Loki need any particular kind of power source?” You can see the star on his chest now. How could you miss it? Phil hasn't stopped talking about him for almost a year. Captain America himself. You blame the slip in memory due to the accident. You're sure no one else notices your memory slip.

“He's got to heat the cube to-” 

“-to a hundred and twenty million Kelvin-,” you cut off Bruce.

And in turn he finishes your sentence,“-to break through the Coulomb barrier.”

Stark continues both your train of thought, “unless, Selvig figured out how to stabilize the quantum tunneling effect.” 

“Well, if he could do that he could achieve Heavy Ion Fusion at any reactor on the planet,” Bruce surmises. It's a lot to take in. 

“Finally, people that speak English,” Stark says, he walks up to Bruce and shakes his hand, complimenting him on his research and how he turns into the Hulk.

Bruce gives a shy smile and thanks him. Bruce beckons you over as they turn to leave the room, and you follow behind, sharing one last glance at Thor. You give him a small wave when he nods at you.

-+

Steve never considered himself a jealous person. Bucky had always made sure to include him in everything he did. Steve never felt left out with Bucky around.

So he wasn't sure what this feeling was, deep in his chest. It ached, it felt heavy, and it made his heart thud painfully behind his rib cage. He subconsciously wasn’t sure if it had to do with his heart murmur or the bruises on his sternum from the fight he got in the other day.

Steve had met you a few days ago. It was like you fell out of the sky, quite literally, in front of him. You gave him the most dazzling smile. He thought he was going blind. He had enough medical problems, and going blind wouldn't have surprised him.

So why were you here now? Talking and flirting with Bucky, of all people. Steve thought you liked him. You even said as much.

I like you like this, Steve. You even placed your hand on his cheek. His face turned hot under your touch.

Bucky caught Steve's eye over your shoulder and gave Steve a wink. He leaned in real close to your ear and said something. The breath from Bucky's lips fanning across your cheek and moving your hair.

Your hand came up to your mouth, and you laughed. Steve could see your shoulders shake, and then your hand landed on Bucky's chest.

Steve's nostrils flared, and he balled his fists so tight he thought the skin would split. And when he met Bucky's eyes again, his chest went warm. He turned on his heels and walked out of that bar so fast the soles of his shoes could catch fire.

=

“You ok, Cap?” Fury's voice snaps Steve out of his memory, eyes refocusing in the room. He had watched you follow Bruce and Tony down the hall to the lab, he assumes.

He was so surprised to see you standing there, embracing Thor like you were old friends. Hell, maybe you were. But then your eyes found his, and for a brief moment, hope flickered to life in Steve for the first time since coming out of the ice. But the light of recognition never triggered in your eyes, and they just continued to scan the room and back to Thor.

As you left, you tossed another glance behind you, small recognition in your eyes when you looked at him. Maybe you did remember. And then your gaze shifted to Thor again and gave a small reassuring wave.

Maybe it wasn't you he met 70 odd years ago. Maybe it was a relative. That's what he likes to think, anyway. That's what he keeps telling himself. 

Steve stands, hands spread wide on the table in front of him as he looks at Director Fury. “Why is Charlie here?”

Fury looks confused for a brief moment, single eye squinting in question. “Who the hell is Charlie?”

==

Bruce tried and failed to hide the smile on his face, “and all I packed was a toothbrush.”

A small chuckle left your lips from the other side of the lab. You were trying to focus on the readings on the tablet in your hands and also adjusting the parameters of the search for the tesseract on the monitor in front of you. Display readings fluctuate as you expand the search to South America.

Bruce lets out a sharp ow when you hear the small spark of an electrical prod go off. you squeak in surprise as Captain America comes barging in at the same time.

“Hey!” His broad frame appears in front of you, blocking your other companions from view. “Are you nuts?”

“Jury's still out,” you can hear the shrug and smug smirk in Tony’s voice. “You're tiptoeing big man, you need to strut!”

“And you need to focus on the problem, Mr. Stark,” the Captain argues back. 

There's a ringing in your ears the longer they disagree and argue. A blue light flashes in your periphery, a sharp pain in your chest. You're vaguely aware of something shattering at your feet as you hunch in on yourself. The pain in your chest is unbearable, and the tearing at your throat is getting harsher by the second; pain in your vocal chords like you've been screaming for hours.

The searing pain suddenly stops, and when you can feel other sensations other than the agony in your chest, you open your eyes.

There's audible sighs of relief when your vision focuses after a few rapid blinks. Above you stand Tony, Bruce, and one very concerned Steve Rogers.

“Wha-” your throat was hoarse and dry, and you cough a few times to try and clear it. A gentle hand on your back tries to soothe away the ache.

“You ok, kid?” 

“Give her some space.”

“Charlie, you with us?”

Your brow scrunch tight as your eyes cut to Captain America, “who the hell is Charlie?” He helps you stand and takes a step back, his hand coming up to run through his golden hair and then rub at the back of his neck.

Tony eyes the Star-Spangled man, eyes squinting in curiosity. 

“I'm sorry, you look like someone I used to know. You know, before,” Rogers shrugs sheepishly. “Maybe a relativ-”

There's a beep from across the lab, and Tony perks up, an audible ah ha! as he makes his way to the monitor. He deflates when it was just a false alarm. Mumbling something about JARVIS taking his sweet old time.

Steve lets out a loud huff, turning to leave but stopping in the doorway, “just hurry and find the cube,” and then he swiftly exits.

Bruce is still crowded in your space, trying to make sure you're ok, a tentative hand on your shoulder to ground you.

“You alright over there, Nightlight?” Tony asks.

You snort softly,”Y-you're one to talk. I don-don’t know what happened,” you put your head in your hands. “At least the pain is gone.”

Bruce makes a startled noise, and when you look up, Tony is in your face, and you try not to jump in surprise.

Tony taps your chest with the end of the small prod, it clinks on contact, and he hums. “I'm sure it's fine,” he shrugs.

“Tony I don't-” Bruce starts but cuts himself off when you turn and leave.

Answers. You need answers, and the only one who you think might have them is currently locked up in a cell made for the Hulk.

--

You peered through the glass window just to make sure no one else was in the room. Natasha was exiting, and as her door closed with a woosh, yours opened.

Loki had his back to you, hands clasped behind his back. When he sensed another entering the large empty space, he turned his head to glare over his shoulder.

His back straightened when he caught sight of you, though. Turning to face you head on and stalk to the glass as you took hesitant steps forward.

“Well, well,” his voice echoed in the room, a smirk pulling up one side of his lips, “ if it isn't the little mortal. Tell me, do the others know about what the Tesseract has done to you? Your little magic trick?”

You shake your head. The phantom pain from earlier was crawling up your body, and you brought a hand to your chest as a shudder went through you. Loki arched an eyebrow at you when you stepped closer.

“I don't know what's happening to me,” Your throat felt tight, and you pulled the shirt collar down to show him the crystalline scar on your chest. 

“My, you are full of surprises, little mortal,” his smirk was anything but teasing. Glittering blue eyes stared down his nose in condescending fashion.

“Can you remove it?” You gave a hopeful look, “you can do magic, right?  Please.” You stepped closer to the glass, breath fogging up the outside of it as you stared up at Loki. 

A sneer pulled at his lips as his shoulders squared tight, “I am not a magician.” 

You both studied each other for a moment, and then a sly grin spread across his face.

An explosion rocked the helicarrier so hard you lost your footing and stumbled back, grabbing onto a railing. Just as you're about to get your bearings and stand, another explosion goes off, and you fall, hitting your head on the railing as you go down.

“ow,” you mumble, rolling over on your side. “Phil…” Looking up, you see a very large gun in his hands.

He spares you a small glance, then focuses in front of him, “Move away, please.” 

You use the railing to sit up, kneeling on your knees as you wait for your head to stop spinning.

Loki has his hands up as he moves away from the control panel. A voice calls your name, and you see Thor in the glass case.

“Thor,” you rasp, and grasp along the railing as you make your way to him.  “Are you ok?” You ask when you get close. He nods, and he looks over your shoulder at Loki and Coulson. 

“Even I don't know what it does. Wanna find out?” Phil smirks.

One minute, you're looking at Loki near the console, and then there's another behind Coulson. Spear in hand.

Time seems to slow as Loki double pierces Phil in the back and sticks out his chest. The audible gasp that leaves his lips seems to echo in your mind.

You hear Thor yell, and you scramble forward to get to Coulson as he collapses to the ground.

“Phil, no. No, no, look at me. Hey,” your hands are frantic as you press them to the wound, pouring blood into his white shirt. 

He says your name, coughing a little, and blood leaks from his lips to spill down his chin.

“I-its's - it's ok. Do-don’t worry,” there's a thumb pressed to your cheek to wipe the tears from your face. You didn't even realize you started crying. 

You feel the sudden onslaught of wind as the hatch opens behind you, but you can't bring yourself to look away from Coulson. The release of hydraulics is loud in your ears and then the release of locks. And you know Thor is gone.

The hatch closes, and it's quiet again. Only your sniffles and the ragged breathing of Phil can be heard.

He turns his head to the side, “you're gonna lose,” his voice is weak, and you look behind you to Loki. His face is impassive as he looks down at you and Phil.

“Am I?”

Phil takes a labored deep breath, “it's in your nature.” his hand grabs yours and holds on loosely.

Loki scoffs, “your heroes are scattered, your floating fortress falls from the sky. Where is my disadvantage?”

“you lack conviction,” you say, and you and Phil fire the massive weapon at Loki. He goes flying back through a window as debris falls on him.

“so, that's what it does.” his eyes come back to you, and he blinks slowly.

You take the earpiece from his ear and put it in your own, “Agent Coulson is down, I need medical assistance in detention bay 2. Repeat Agen-”

“I'm on my way,” you hear Fury grunt. 

“Sir,” you choke out, trying to keep Phil awake. He smiles weakly up at you.

“Nightlight, you alright up there?” Tony's voice comes through the comm in your ear.

“Yeah, just. I'm fine,” you give Coulson a light slap on the cheek. “Stay with me, don't close those eyes, mister.” 

Coulson gives you an affirming hum.

There's a rush of footfalls coming behind you, and you turn with a relieved sigh, hoping it's Fury and the medics.

“Hey! Get off me! No!” Rough hands grip your arms and haul you up and away from Phil, and all he can do is plead with silent eyes. “Phil!” 

“What's happening, Agent?”

“Nightlight! Talk to us!”

“Get off m- ah!” There's a sharp pain to the back of your head, and your vision starts to go black. The last thing you see is Phil as you pass out.

**

It's opening night at the Stark Expo, and you can't stop fidgeting nervously backstage. Howard notices and places a comforting hand on your shoulder. He had asked you for help in the 'secret SSR lab', your powers made the heavy lifting easy, your knowledge of 'future tech' - Howard likes to call it - helped him finalize the last few projects before the Expo takes off.

Howard managed to convince you to wear a dress tonight. At least it was practical, it has pockets. The blouse was green plaid, and the skirt was a pale beige. He wanted you both to match, but he'd take it. Before you could change your mind, Howard had rushed you out of the house at record speed.

"Relax, kid," he fixes his tie a little, "everything's gonna be fine. You're gonna do great. I'll be there the whole time."

You fidget again, running your hands down the front of your dress, then the bracelet around your wrist Howard gave you before arriving at the Expo. The single jewel adorning it was the same color as the crystal scar on your chest. You nearly broke down into tears when he presented it to you.

"You're the sister I never knew I wanted - or needed - it's just a small thanks," he said it so nonchalantly, like it was an everyday thing. You shoved him and then pulled him in for a bone crushing hug. Howard was definitely the brother you never knew you needed as well. And you hope he knew that, too.

"Why can't you just get one of the girls to introduce you? Isn't that what they're getting paid for?" You gripe. Crowds were not your thing. Public speaking was certainly not your thing.

"I feel like I'm gonna pass out."

Howard rolled his eyes, grumbling about you being overly dramatic. He shoved the speech in your hands for last-minute prep.

You can feel your palms begin to sweat just thinking about giving the opening speech for the Stark Expo. A few hundred people would be out there. Watching you.

"Oh, God." You can't do this. What were you thinking? You didn't thrive in the limelight like Howard. You didn't have Tony's charisma with the media. You can't go out there and talk about the Expo and the things Howard and the other brilliant minds of this age hope to achieve by being here.

Howard knocked your chin with his knuckles, placing his top hat on his head, "Don't stress about it, kid. Just let me do all the talking," he gave you a wink.

You could hear the music flare off and end, the girls on stage finishing their routine, one calling and introducing Howard.

He raised his eyebrow at you in a 'See? I took care of it' kind of way. You let out a huge sigh of relief. The weight of the last few hours stress falling away and off your shoulders. There were cheers and applause so loud you could barely hear anything else from backstage, so you pear out the curtain just in time for Howard to smooch one of the girls on stage.

When he pulls away, he give her a sly wink, then sees you roll your eyes at him on the side stage. He was a natural on stage, he speaks about the flying car Stark Industries was hoping to manufacture for the future. You had some input, having worked with Tony on his Iron Man repulsors, but left out some core details about it.

Howard may have grumbled about you withholding information, but eventually let it go.

There definitely weren't any flying cars in your future. Just as fast as the car on stage started hovering, and gasps of awe could be heard in the crowd, the repulsors short circuited, and it came crashing down.

"Well, I did say a few years, didn't I?" Howard tries laughing it off, but you see the tick in his jaw. There was still applause and cheers, Howard smiled and waved.

"Before we move on and you fine folks get to see the rest of the Expo," he continued, he glanced your way, giving you a soft smile. "I'd love to introduce you to the other brains in the family. The woman who is responsible for over half the things you'll see here."

Your heart leaps, hands wringing together as Howard looks back at you again, hand held out and arm stretched toward you.

"Please give a wonderful welcome to my baby sister. You might know her, God knows I love her: Charlotte Stark!" There were more cheers and whistles, Howard's bright pleading eyes begged you on stage. And how could you say no now?

With one deep breath, you walked on stage, the bright lights not as blinding as you thought they might be. You focus on Howard, his smile wide as you make your way over to him. He takes your hand, and as soon as he has a grip on you, he twirls you around. And when you stop on the other side of him, laughter bubbles up before you can stop it. Howard laughs with you, and for a moment, you forget about the crowd of people and why you were terrified to begin with. He squeezes your fingers before letting go and resting his elbow on your shoulder. His other hand holding the microphone between you both.

"Charlie, say something nice to the people of New York," the mic points at you, and you gaze out into the crowd. Your cheeks hurt from smiling so wide.

You laugh lightly, head titling to the side, "Somethin' nice," Howard groans, a quiet 'smart ass', you elbow him in the ribs. "Hello, everyone. I'm not very good at public speaking. Howie got all the charm and charisma in the family. But I did get the good looks, so I suppose I won in that deal."

Howard lets out an offended 'Hey!' and you giggle. It wasn't so bad, not with Howard by your side. The two of you work well together on stage. Playing off small banter and getting hollers from the crowd of people felt good. Natural.

After explaining a short summary of what people could expect from the Expo, you and HOward took your leave of the stage, whistles, catcalls, and applause following your exit.

"That was -" grinning ear to ear, slightly breathless.

"Pretty amazing, right? You're a natural kid."

Howard wrapped his arm around your shoulders, and the two of you walked around the surrounding vendors for a few minutes.

"-While men are layin' down their lives? I can do as well as them, and I got no right to do any less." Your heart does a leap against your ribs. That sounded like Steve. Your Steve. As you pull away from Howard to get closer, you see him and Bucky. Disagreeing, or arguing, either one most likely.

"that's the thing you don't get, Bucky. It's not about me."

"Right, 'cause you have nothing to prove," Bucky doesn't miss a beat.

Howard nudges you. You followed his line of sight to see Dr. Erskine a few feet from Steve and Bucky. This must be it, you think. The tipping point. The deciding factor that changes Steves life forever.

"Charlie?" A surprise call of your name flows from Steve. You give him a smile and wave, making your way over to the pair.

"Steve, James," you greet them. "staying out of trouble, I hope?" You eye them.

"'Course, dollface," Bucky says. The hat on top of his head is lopsided, his flirty smirk he gives you go well together. "Can't say the same about Steve, thought," he cuts Steve a glare.

You hum, "I gathered as much." You motion to the faint bruise on Steve's cheek. Poorly covered up with makeup.

He shrugs in response, "He had it coming," you hum again.

"You both look dashing," you say, Steve's clothes are a little too big for him, but they still look nice. Bucky's wearing his army greens. He's very handsome, you have to admit. "Sergeant, huh?" You flick the medals adorning his breast pocket.

"My last night, doll," he responds. There's a flash of something behind his eyes. "You should come out dancin' with us."

"Hey, Sarge! We gettin' sodas or what?" you all turn to see two girls waving at BUcky. His cheeks turn red.

He clears his throat, "Yeah, we are," he begins to walk away. Before he gets too far, he turns back to Steve, "Promise me you won't do anything stupid before i get back?"

"How can I? You're taking all the stupid with you."

Bucky signs and closes the distance between them, They hug each other tight. "You're a punk."

"You're a jerk."

It seems too intimate for you, not meant for your eyes. But they part. Bucky looks to your arms spread wide. You step up into his embrace, arms wrapping around his neck as his circle your waist.

"Thanks for that dance, Sarge," you whisper in his ear. When he pulls away, you kiss his cheek. "Be safe over there, y'hear me?" You try not to choke on the words, knowing his future and what's in store for James Buchanan Barnes, almost makes you want to tell him.

Tell him it only gets worse from here. War changes people. This war changes two best friends for the foreseeable future. Fate twists and takes them and makes these two best friends completely different people on the other side of the century.

"Anything for you, dollface," Bucky says in the space between you.

"Don't win the war until i get there," Steve tells him. You loop your arm with Steve's as Bucky backs away. His hand comes up to his hat, and he gives a flirty salute. Then he's turning and joining the girls that were waiting for him. You think one asks if he was really friends with Howard Stark's sister.

"So, what now, Tough Guy?" You ask Steve, the both of you still staring off at Bucky's retreating form.

"I've got something I need to do first," he begins to walk further into the recruitment office.

"I'll wait for you out here, okay?"

Steve shakes his head, "You don't have to do that, Charlie, really. I'm sure you have better things to do than spend your time with me."

You scoff, "No offense, Steve, but shut up." His eyes go wide. "I like hangin' out with you, dummy. We may not have known each other very long, but you're my friend. Whether you like it or not. Got it?"

Steve stares at you for a good minute, blinking slowly. He smiles small and then nods. "Yeah, okay." As soon as Steve is out of sight, you search for Dr. Erskine. You find him around the corner.

"Doctor," you greet him, he turns to you, surprised, "I know about your plan. Let me join the SSR. Please. I feel like I need to do this."

"My dear," he gives you a knowing smile, "It's not up to me. Why not talk to your brother about this? Surely, he could just bring you along like before. Mr. Stark hardly takes no for an answer. Which I'm sure you are well aware of, yes?"

You laugh, "Of course. I'll uh - leave you to it, then."

**

[blueraven0]

Welcome! Been waiting for your account! Meant to ask, Have you listened to the Ithaca saga yet? If so, are you still alive mentally?

I'm gonna be honest, I've asked if you guys want a Tumblr account from me BECAUSE I wanted to yap about the Ithaca Saga lol

@pomiidorii and I stayed up to watch the live, and it was SO much fun. I laughed so hard at the joystick infant, on Polyphemus with Luke being the Cyclops, Luck runs out with the macarena and the face slap, No longer you when Mason just decided to randomly dance with Jorge, or when Talya and Jay swapped roles during their songs. When they brought the ghost of Polites it was a great idea too, and LOL when Jay pointed at Luke during God Games for Zeus cheating on his wife, and his face completely dropped LMAO

But about the Ithaca Saga, I managed to not cry during it but it was really hard, considering the topics of families reuniting (or positive family dynamics) is one of the very few things that make me emotional. (Don't be fooled, I've cried after the live when I listened to the two last songs again...)

What I didn't expect was the vocals of Ayron in Hold them down, that was AMAZING. I fully thought I'd be skipping that song because I personally cannot handle the topic of SA very well in media, but the song itself was so good that I completely detached the meaning and now cannot stop singing it. During the animatic however, it was really hard to watch the part where Antinous sang about Penelope, it was truly sickening.

Odysseus was SO GOOD my jaw completely DROPPED. I LOVE when characters go completely apeshit after being wronged and (rightfully) take revenge (coming from an Ares devotee, this isn't that surprising). The appearance of Telemachus as the new Warrior of the mind?! And the way Ody just straight up refused to listen to any of the suitors, with his little sassy "No 🫶", I was SOLD.

Do NOT let me start about Anna completely SERVING vocals in The Challenge and Would you fall in love with me again, OH. MY. GOD. Her voice is such a beautiful mix of powerful and delicate, I don't get how she's doing it! And the part when Pen and Ody embrace and Just a man starts playing?? ARGHH!! Such an amazing use of literacy, Jorge has outdone himself.

Another little thing, the switch from Ody growling at the suitors and the second his boy asks for him, his voice softens to answer. STOP THIS MADNESS JORGE!! And when Mico and Jay hugged?? Oh my heart...

The interlude of Steven saying he couldn't come to Ithaca because of the beating he got LMAO and the singing in the shower LOL Neal Illustrator already made a great animatic with that part!

I cannot believe that EPIC is done now, it feels so weird. I remember randomly finding Jorge with the blue eye filter on TikTok and thinking, who is this weirdo? And immediately skipping him LMAO I had no idea that weirdo would come back months later with a full musical that I'd love so much! All in all, it was a great experience, even though I joined only around a month before the Vengeance Saga.

[tavsianus]

WIP Tagging Game!!!

Rules: make a new post with the names of all the files in your wip folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Tag as many people as you have wips. People send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them, then post a little snippet or tell them something about it!

Thank you for tagging me, @allmightskitten ! But, because I'm into 19 other fandoms with almost a 100 WIP, I'm not gonna write them all here. Since I'm also more into One Piece these days, I'll share some of them instead!

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This world is a wasteland (where nothing can grow) - DQ Brothers & Law

I've been working on this since this poll, and the first chapter is almost finished! This is a DQ Brothers fic that focuses on Law and his new life with the Donquixote Family who happens to be the mafia. He gets adopted by Doflamingo (not because of the goodness of his heart, mind you!) and gets closer to Rosinante as they try to survive. I've planned to make it 9 chapters (and already drafted what'll happen at each one), too.

2. Fools & Clowns - Buggy/Mihawk

What the hell is Buggy supposed to do when he suddenly encounters the infamous Marine Killer - Dracule Mihawk - who also seems to decide to mess with a lowly pirate like him for some reason? (Or, Mihawk tries to flirt but Buggy thinks he is getting threatened, which causes a lot of frustrations to the swordsman.)

This is going to be a fun, silly little fic with lots of misunderstandings.

3. I love you anyway - DQ Brothers

Rosinante is a freeloader who lives off of his brother's back because of his inability to keep a job (he really tries but they keep firing him for some reason!) but Doflamingo loves him regardless. (Or, Doflamingo has attachment issues and makes it Rosinante's problem, even if he doesn't know it.)

4. Flesh, blood and all that other nonsense - DQ Brothers

When Doflamingo came to them with Homing's head, the Celestial Dragons decide to humor him and say that they would let only one of the brothers back in; the choice was his. What would Doflamingo do now?

5. Lovesick - Buggy/Shanks

For the first time in his life, which wasn't that long, mind you, Shanks had gotten to see an actual prince. He had blue hair that he had never seen before with a red nose to match. He was the cutest boy that he had ever seen! He knew then and there that he had to be friends with the other. (Or, a pirate boy and a young prince meet and fall in love, and decide to run away together. Roger and his crew was not included in the making of this plan, tho.)

6. Outrunning Fate - Buggy-centric

What if Buggy had been a slave before being rescued by Gol D. Roger and his crew?

7. Sickly Sweet - DQ Family (focusing on Homing's Wife)

The love of a mother is unconditional, which meant she would do anything to make sure that her boys were happy and safe, even if it meant giving herself up little by little. (Cakeverse AU)

8. No better version of me - Buggy & Shanks (Maybe even Crocodile??)

"What the hell?" Shanks mumbled in confusion. "What is wrong with your wanted poster, Buggy?" The other boy's bounty had been substantially increased to 1,000,000 Belli after their visit to an unkown little island had ended with them fighting with a marine ship and the writing had changed from 'Dead or Alive' to 'Only Alive' as well. Which was strange, considering that for the Marines any pirate was the best if they were dead. Even Roger and the others were flabbergasted with this sudden change! Buggy took the poster out of his hands, almost causing it to tear along the way and stared at it, looking just as pale. "….Oh shit." (Or, Buggy has a secret that he is dead set on to keep it hidden but life doesn't seem to follow his wishes as he is dragged back to a place that he hadn't thought that he would ever return.)

9. Just a bite, that's all - DQ Brothers & Law

I'm not going to spoil too much but this'll be a Zombie Apocalypse AU where DQ Brothers find a lost Law when trying to survive together (Rosinante is happy to see the kid but Doffy, well, not quite. He doesn't like to share.)

10. and now you'll see (that there's not much left of me)- DQ Brothers, Law

This is a Medical horror AU where Doflamingo forces Corazon to go under a *procedure* after his betrayal. He's angry at his brother but he'll be damned if he lets him go away from his side.

11. No idea who you are meant to be - Buggy-centric, Roger, Xebec

There's a rumour going around that Xebec is still alive and planning an attack. Roger and Garp meet once more to talk about this threat. Everyone in Oro Jackson is nerveous and all serious, but neither Buggy nor Shanks have any idea why or what is going on.

(You guys probably know the theories about Xebec, tho I was SHOCKED that there were no fics about it or with him and Buggy. That needs to change real soon!)

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These are some of the WIP's I'm planning to finish first! See any you're intrigued by?

Again, thank you for tagging me, this was fun! I'll tag @veroinfaciem @viviancurtis @acescorazon @peaceshire @portagas-chan @drheartstealer @the-bar-sinister @aimbutmiss @lumiolivier @pointycorgiears @emma-cowboylikeme . I thought you guys might like this! I hope you won't mind the tagging.

[furornocturna]

I would love to see more of this.

From personal interpretation and analysis of this pairing and their interactions, miscommunication and assumptions are at the core of their dysfunction besides the mistakes made and physical harm caused. Macaque thought so highly of Wukong in the past but lowly of himself, which he would later project onto Wukong when they have their falling out (assuming Wukong had always seen him as lesser too, confirming his insecurities) and then acts off those assumptions as fact. Not helped by present-Wukong’s barbs about him “living in [his] shadow”, or being a “puppet” to LBD (“You always did have a sidekick kinda vibe.”). Wukong has always been kinda bad at healthily and properly expressing his feelings and showing how much he cares for those he’s close with, taking things into his own hands his way and not communicating his intentions properly under the belief withholding that information will decrease others’ worries, but actually does the opposite onto of giving the impression he doesn’t care, and is untrustworthy plus doesn’t trust them. The show shows this in explicit detail with how it impacts Macaque and MK especially.

Both are at a point where they still care for the other despite it all, but believe the other doesn’t so they’re stuck in this push, pull, back and forth of wanting to reconcile but hesitating in fear of learning for sure the other has no interest in making up + falling back into the anger whenever an unresolved sore spot pops up. An outside source that puts one into a lovesick altered state that brings those old feelings to the surface (albeit potentially exaggerating them) and forcing them both to have to confront them is a fun trope to play with. And is especially effective for character exploration in those that are more stubborn and less open when it comes to feelings.

With Macaque being the one affected, Wukong is made to confront the depths of how deep Macaque’s feelings used to/still run for him. Which is extra angsty if he never knew Mac was interested in him romantically in the past. The show is a lot more explicit on the details on Macaque’s end, and this man is the down bad one. You have to have a LOT of feelings to write a whole ass shadow play about your relationship and breakup, to then put on repeat performances for. And to keep going out of your way to find/target your ex for revenge or to save his life. Someone who doesn’t care wouldn’t’ve bothered with nearly so much effort.

Like, he def fell both first and fell HARDER, where it took Wukong a bit longer to realize/recognize what his feelings were and what they meant. Macaque is the much more obvious one and Wukong is just aggravatingly oblivious. Monkey King also has a habit of avoiding issues that aren’t an immediate dire concern or are things he doesn’t believe there’s a point to addressing because it’ll only bring more hurt and/or is something he can’t fix/will only make worse. He needs a bigger push, a shove and a full-PowerPoint presentation pointing it out to him that this is something he can fix and feelings are mutual.

With Wukong as the affected one, it’s brought to Macaque’s attention just how much Wukong keeps under wraps and the depths of the Monkey King’s deeper insecurities. Insecurities Macaque seems to believe Wukong doesn’t have the way he does. The depths of the pain and how tormented Wukong is too, haunted by his mistakes and how his flaws/faults have done so much harm. Macaque I don’t think believes Wukong cared about him as much as he did for him, or for their relationship. Only to find out that, no, Wukong cared a LOT. Far, far more than Macaque’s convinced himself to believe after their falling out. Macaque has the iconic “the hero and the warrior were like the sun and the moon” spiel, but I don’t see NEARLY enough discussion with Wukong’s VERY, arguably more charged and intense “Everything I did was for US!”

Wukong has made many mistakes. He’s done a lot of things wrong and made bad choices, even if some were well-intentioned. Not that it didn’t still hurt, but Macaque having to confront that he’s been applying malice to Wukong in places that weren’t deserved forces some self-reflection on his end that both the show and parts of the fandom don’t give him as much as he needs to more effectively grow as a character/have a more meaningful and earned redemption arc.

End of rambles

Okay here’s what i was talking about in this post ☹️

It’s only a WIP cause i accidentally made wukong the one in love and not macaque 💀 (Wukong as luka makes me ARGHDHEIDN)

But lmk if y’all want more of this reverse au of my pink lemonade au 😭😭

[paintedcrows]

Nooo little Stanley watch out! Your striped shirt, bandage, and sad backstory are too Fallen Human Coded!! The Undertale narrative is going to get you!!!