#the debrief after this movie where i was explaining everything to my family had a lot of “ooohhh that makes more sense” reactions

[peralta-guaranteed]

What abkut mafia!jake au

Stop giving me awesome AU ideas that I cannot write the fic for! 😭

- due to some really, really bad choices after high school (did he ever make other ones? who knows), Jake Peralta has ended up as a grunt for the Ianucci family. He doesn’t really do much - he’s mostly someone who gathers information and new areas for them to work in, because he’s good at randomly befriending people and milking them for all it’s worth. He’s done a few ‘deliveries’, too, but has never had to really get physical.

- (he was at one family meeting that turned into the ‘farewell’ of a mistrusted member and he still has nightmares about it)

- he’s never been arrested for anything and thought the police didn’t even know his name, so imagine his surprise when he’s approached by one of their higher-ups (as if he knows the rankings, psh, pigs are all the same) and subtly but definitely asked if he would be willing to work with them

- his task seems simple: bring one of their cops into the family undercover, the same way he has ‘recruited’ several bodega owners and other ‘low-skill’ workers that turned out to be useful for the family. Maybe keep an eye on the cop as well and help her out if she’s struggling

- she? oh yeah, it’s a woman. A frankly gorgeous woman, he realises when they meet up with her and some FBI dude who obviously pretends he’s not FBI, to discuss it all further. Her name is ‘Dora’, and he knows that’s a lie from the second she’s introduced, but the less he knows, probably the better. The rules are set, he gets a special cellphone number of a ‘cousin’ to contact if something goes wrong, and two weeks later Dora Perez is steadily working her way up the ranks with the Ianuccis, who are very proud of Jake for bringing in this brilliant new talent.

- He might or might not be looking out for her a little bit too much. He might or might not get involved in far more shady dealings with the Iannuccis so he can work closer with her. He might or might not be in deep, deep shit.

- ‘Dora’ is grateful for it, though, he learns every time he drives her home after a more difficult job. She used to be withdrawn and quiet with him, which he tried to equalise by cracking more and more stupid jokes and doing random silly stuff during their drives, but then one time they drive in absolute silence while she cleans blood of her hands, and he says something, he doesn’t remember what, but it’s the right thing apparently, because she starts to talk. She talks to him during every ride after, telling him about the stress and the constant guard she has to keep up and how none of her research binders prepared her for this, and at some point she tells him about nightmares and seeing death around every corner and she can’t wait for this mission to be over.

- (for her sake, he can’t wait for that either. For his sake, he wishes it would go on forever.)

- They’re sent out for a big job together once, because Jake has already become ‘connected’ to Amy in the Ianuccis’ eyes, and they both end up with blood on their hands, and some of it is hers.

- he gets out of the car after that drive home, and gets up to her tiny, fake apartment, and helps her clean the wounds (nothing too big, just cuts, because thank god that guy only had a knife before he beat it out of his hands and then beat the living daylight out of him after he injured her) with the softest fingers she’s ever felt. Then the cleaning alcohol is swapped for drinkable stuff, and they talk, and they talk about everything and nothing, about how a dead-beat dad and an absent mother make a Mafia goon, and how family pressure and a sense of constant duty make a detective who so badly wanted to say no to this assignment but couldn’t.

- “For what it’s worth, Dora, I’m glad you said yes. I mean, not that- not that I want you to do this kind of work- and I want things to be over for you soon, because- but- I’m glad it’s you.” “Amy.” “Hm?” “My name is Amy. Amy Santiago.”

- He wakes up in her bed the next morning, with her in his arms, and he kind of doesn’t regret a single thing, even as his smart-brain is screaming at him. He’s pretty sure he would’ve willingly died for her even before this night, but now, he realises... that he probably will.

- Amy (Amy, not Dora) does freak out a little more than he does when she wakes up. She can’t get involved, she says, this is a job, a dangerous one, and she has to focus on that job and getting the mafia gang and not- okay, okay, let’s not overthink this then, Jake says only to calm her down, we don’t do anything ‘involved’, we’re just... having fun. Keeping things light and breezy. Helping deal with the stress.

- and so, despite how much it hurts and how much it makes him happy at the same time, Jakey the Jew becomes Jakey, Dora’s Loverboy. It helps, he supposes, because it means the Ianuccis won’t suspect them hanging out so much, and send him along to most of her jobs now so he can watch out for her, and he gets to be with her in a way, even as she constantly reiterates ‘light and breezy’ to keep him at a distance no matter how close they get.

- it doesn’t feel very ‘light and breezy’ when they spend time together in front of the TV, though, to get their minds to relax after doing whatever the Ianuccis needed them doing. It doesn’t feel ‘light and breezy’ when they joke around in the bodega getting ice cream on a particularly hot day out doing jobs, or when she shows him around the library after meeting her ‘cousin’ there for a chat. It doesn’t feel ‘light and breezy’ at all when she sighs into his arms when he’s holding her in bed, neither of them even wanting to take the night any further than soft hands under tshirts, because all they really need at some point is the comfort of each other.

- and then one day, after a few months of this ‘light and breezy’ and ‘Dora’s Loverboy’, Jake gets invited for a ‘Talk’ by the family. With a capital T. And he’s not been that high up in the ranks at any point, and he’s not really done much for the family, but he’s not an idiot. He knows what that means. So of course he doesn’t tell Amy, writes her a short but succinct note instead that maybe ends with the L-word somewhere in it, and goes to have a Talk.

- The Ianuccis know that there is a rat, but they don’t know who. And they know that if Jakey is good for one thing, it’s information. So The Talk doesn’t end as quickly as it usually does, and the way he’d expected. It hurts a lot more, for one thing. Jake thinks of offering up some other goon or lower family member as the rat, if only to make the torture stop, but his brain is too broken in the moment to figure out a convincing story. And when the name ‘Perez’ suddenly drops into the conversation, there’s really only one other name he can still think of clearly to blame. Peralta.

- he doesn’t remember much after that - he’s pretty sure he heard gunshots, but none of them hit him, so what’s the deal with that? Everything else is pretty much a blur of pain and cold, and lots of shouting, and then warm soft hands on his face and a quiet voice saying his name amidst it all, and when he wakes up the next time he’s in a hospital bed.

- He’s in that hospital bed for two weeks to recover, and no one visits him. Not that it should be surprising - Nana is dead, his mom doesn’t know about anything he’s done since the age of 18 for a reason, and there’s no one else who in their right mind should care to visit him. So imagine his surprise when a detective shows up, introduces herself as Rosa Diaz, and explains that she’s Amy’s partner at work, but she’s not here for official business.

- “She wanted to come see you. Hell, she fought tooth and nail for it. But she had to be debriefed, stupid FBI assholes, and then it turned out two of the Ianuccis got away, so we had to find them first to make sure they don’t go after her for revenge” (well that explains the constant patrols in the hospital for him, as well) “and we had to hide her for her safety, but, Jake, she wanted to come see you. I swear.” “It’s okay.” Jake says, and it’s really not, but he’s been a brilliant liar for years now. “You can tell her... it’s okay. The job is done, and I’m, I’m glad she’s finally got it over and past her. Really. Tell her it’s okay.”

- He’s debriefed by the FBI after he gets discharged, as well. They tell him ‘good job’ and ‘thanks’ and pay him a surprisingly large amount of money and cover his hospital bills, so that’s good. They also advise that he move, not far, but far enough that any possible leftover scragglers of the family don’t remember his old place for a ‘visit’. So he moves, a few blocks only, enough to get a new favourite bodega and deli and discover that the library is actually nearby and that there’s this community college that Amy kept talking about for some reason, and if he takes a few classes to finally get a degree, it’s not about getting a proper job at some point, it’s more about not thinking about anything else. About maybe forgetting, even if it was her that basically got him where he is now.

- (it does not work)

- she knocks on his door a month later. She looks strange in her professional outfit instead of washed out jeans and a tanktop with a stupid slogan on it, but also so perfectly her. That’s Amy, he thinks, not Dora anymore. That’s Amy, and he still loves her just as much as he did when she was ‘Dora’ in his sweatpants and tshirt. Maybe more.

- “You’re a hard man to find, Peralta.” She says, and he knows that’s a lie, but she smiles with a scared look through it and he takes it for what it is - an attempt at saying anything, really, after 1 1/2 months of silence, when she’s probably got a speech all prepared in her head but needs to get there first. “That’s such a bad, cheesy movie line.” He helps, and she laughs and yeah, that’s all he needs in life. “Well we never watched any good movies, did we.” “Hey, we watched Die Hard. That’s the best movie there is.” She rolls her eyes but nods, and opens her mouth, and Jake thinks that the speech is coming now, but he has no idea what it might entail. Thank you and good bye, maybe. Good job, great work, can you sign this official statement for me so I can add it to my paperwork? possibly. “Screw light and breezy.” She says instead, and then she’s in his new apartment, which is much nicer and cleaner than the old place was even after she worked her magic on it, and she’s kissing him, and he’s never, ever letting her out.

[lokis-army-77]

If You Please

Chapter twelve

Bucky Barnes x Reader

Word Count: 2588

This is technically a reader insert but without the (y/n) and all that. She also has no name mentioned so feel free to imagine as you please.

Follow the reader through the events of the Captain America movies and experience her love for Bucky Barnes.

Warnings: none

Note: Normally I am the type of person to be date accurate when writing things and if you are too, I'm sorry. I messed up on the dates, so the battle of New York happens like a month after it should. This is also a short chapter because it's a filler and I'm trying to just get to the Winter Soldier but have everything make sense.

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Masterlist

A few days later I had received a small archivist job in the WWII department of the Smithsonian. Thankfully the made-up resume and a few fake SHIELD recommendations came in handy. I would officially start the following week after a few background checks were cleared. In my free time until then, I unpacked all the boxes in my apartment. It started to feel more homely and warm when all of my things filled up the space. When I didn’t feel like unpacking anything, I started taking long walks to the VFW building. I hadn’t joined in on any of the meetings yet, I just stood by the doorway and watched, listening to the stories people told.

One day that week as I stood back in the hallway after the meeting had ended, a man came up to me. He was a little taller than I was and had the brightest smile I had ever seen. I had watched him in the meetings before, he was usually the one hosting them, giving advice to all who needed it.

“I’ve seen you standing out here for the past three days, why don’t you come have a seat next time? It would be more comfortable than standing out here for an hour.” He said as he leaned his back against the wall right next to me.

“I have thought about it, but I tend to get here after you have started. I don’t want to interrupt anything by just barging in.” I said over my shoulder at him.

“You won't interrupt anything, just come on in next time, we’d be happy to have a new face around,” He pushed himself off the wall and walked down the hall.

After that, I ended up joining the meetings and even spoke a few times. I learned that the man who came up to me that day was Sam Wilson, pararescue, who had served two tours in Afghanistan. From the first day he came up and talked to me to now, we quickly became friends.

The days had turned into weeks and I was finally able to live relatively by my own means. The Smithsonian was great, in the archives, no one was really around and I could spend a whole day without any interruptions, which allowed me to just concentrate on what I was doing. After closing, I normally walked to meet Sam, who was usually way too excited to see me, even though we saw each other almost every day without fail.

“You’re late today.” I jumped, startled out of my thoughts at the sound of someone talking to me. I looked up, spying Sam standing next to one of the small trees outside the VFW building.

“What do you mean late?”

“I mean you usually get here at three-thirty. It's four right now.” He said looking down at his watch.

“Oh sorry, I didn’t realize. I've just been lost in my thoughts lately.” I sighed.

“I know we’ve only been friends for what? A month? But I already know when something is bothering you, What is it?”

“Nothing really, just my brother. Since moving here he's called at least twice a week to check up but it’s been radio silence for the past two weeks, he doesn't even answer when I try calling him. I'm just a little worried that something bad is going on, considering his job.”

“Well, maybe he’s just really busy at the moment, or he's somewhere he can't call you. You know how it is being out on those military missions.”

“I know, it’s just the last time we were apart on a mission,” I trailed off and looked up at Sam, he raised his eyebrows, quietly waiting for the end of the sentence. “Someone close to us passed. It’s still fresh in my mind like it happened yesterday. I was there that day and I was too far away to even know what had happened, now my brother and I aren’t even in the same vicinity as each other, there is no telling what could happen and it makes me nervous.”

He gave me a small apologetic smile and patted my shoulder before leading me from the tree where we stood to where his car was parked. “What do you say we hang out at mine and just watch some tv? Get your mind off things? Or we can talk about it, either way, it’s better than dealing with it alone.” I nodded my head and grabbed onto the car door handle as he unlocked it.

Walking through the front door after him I took a quick look around. It was cozy, way more decorated than I thought it would be for a man in his early thirties living alone.

“Make yourself at home. Do you want anything to drink?” He asked neck-deep in the fridge.

“Okay, I’ll just have some water,” I called out as I made my way further into the living room. The couch was backed up to the wall a few feet away from the dining room table. I sat down on it and scooted as close as I could to its right arm. A few moments later Sam came over with two glasses of water and a bag of chips. He handed me my drink before crashing down into his own seat. “Thank you,” I said before taking a long sip.

He nodded as he said “No problem.” Before he got himself really comfortable he searched around for the TV remote. As he pressed the ‘on’ button the TV came to life. “What in the world is that?” He sounded concerned so I quickly looked at the screen.

“Breaking: Attack on New York City. This afternoon at 2:15 several unidentified aircraft descended onto Earth's surface. Strange beings, some are calling aliens, Accompanied these ships and are causing havoc in Manhattan. Eyewitnesses have stated that they have seen Iron Man, and what seemed to be Captain America, leading a team of three others fighting back against the invaders. The battle seems to be over but updates are still coming in, let's take a look at some footage of the downtown destruction.” My eyes went wide and my heart stopped as I listened to what the reporter was saying. I kept my eyes glued to the screen as it changed to show a destroyed street. As the camera panned around I spotted Steve fighting against two of the creatures, before the clip quickly changed to show one of the large ships crashing into the New York skyline.

“Oh God Steve, what did you get into?” I murmured to myself.

“You say that like you know him personally.”

“Uhh.” I just gave him a wide-eyed look of surprise. “I do, he’s my brother.”

“Now really isn’t the time to be joking about things,” He gave me a pointed look.

“I swear I’m not joking, he really is my brother. I can explain later, I need to try and get a hold of him.” I pulled out the small flip phone from my pocket and dialed the number for Steve's cell phone, it rang and rang but no answer. I hung up quickly and dialed the number Fury gave me at the beginning of the month. After two rings he answered.

“I assume you are looking for Captain Rogers.”

“Where is he? Is he okay?” I tried to keep the worried tone from coming through in my voice.

“He’s fine. He is in the middle of a debriefing. I’ll tell him you called.”

“Okay, thank you.” As soon as the words left my mouth he gave a quick hum and then hung up. I looked over at Sam whose eyes hadn't left me at all. “Everything is fine, he's in a debrief so that means that whatever happened in New York is definitely over.”

“That’s good to hear, hopefully, those things don’t try to come back again.” He shook like a shiver ran down his spine. “Now please explain how Captain America, a man from the 1940s, is your brother.”

“I can hear the skepticism in your voice.”

He held his hands up in defense, “Hey, I'm not the one saying I'm the sister to a 90 something-year-old man.”

“Look, it’s a long story that I would rather not get into now but the short version is that I was born in 1921, Steve is my older brother, we both ended up taking the super-soldier serum and fought against HYDRA in the second world war. We ended up crashing a plane into some Ice in the Atlantic ocean and were found and unfrozen last October.” “If you are really Captain America’s sister, then why are you never mentioned in anything?” I looked at him and shook my head.

“Well for starters it was the forties and I was a woman fighting on the front lines. Credit is never given where it is due. But there is also the fact that I was a part of the SSR, which was very secretive, after I died.” I put my fingers up in air quotes, “They should have erased most, if not all the files on me, per protocol. The only reason Steve is well known is because of his time going cross country selling war bonds.” I paused for a second before quickly adding, “I’m sure if you look hard enough, you’ll find me in the history books somewhere.”

Sam just sat there not really saying anything. This was the first time I think he had ever been quiet for more than five seconds. I let out a deep sigh and stood, grabbing my bag from the floor. “Thanks for having me over, but I think I need to go. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He stood and walked me to the door.

“Don’t be late. I’ll see you.” Sam waved me off and I headed down the street.

About half a year later while sorting through some archive files, I came across Peggy Carter. I felt a pang in my heart as I stared at the photo of her standing next to Howard Stark. Other than Steve and Bucky, those two were my closest friends. I fell down a rabbit hole after that, finding any information on the two that I could find. They had both helped found SHIELD in 1965, they had both gotten married and had children of their own. Peggy's children had stayed out of the public eye, but in true Stark fashion, Howard’s son evidently took over the family business and was living the high life. I pulled out a newspaper from the stack I had on the table in front of me and was shocked at what I saw. The title read ‘Howard and Maria Stark Die in Car Accident’, I knew Howard most likely wasn’t alive anymore but seeing the photographs of the wrecked car in the newspaper cast a somber mood through the room.

I laid the paper down on the table and ruffled through more of the papers before determining that we had no information on if Peggy was alive or not. That sent me into a frenzy of looking through phone books to try and find her and calling every retirement home in DC that I could. The only lead I had to go off of was a small interview from a newspaper, talking to Peggy about the seventieth anniversary of V-E Day, stated that she was living in Washington, DC.

After eight failed calls, finally, on the ninth, I had finally found a home which had a Peggy Carter as a residence in room 204. I rushed to pack up my things and left my office early. I ran down the back hallways as fast as I could without drawing too much attention. When I made it out of the building I ran full speed to the road to hail a cab.

Amazingly the traffic was almost nonexistent and I made it to the retirement home in only ten minutes. I fumbled out of the cab and I raced through the front doors of the building. I must have startled the women at the front desk because as soon as I rounded the corner to the staircase, they were yelling after me. I took the steps three at a time in my haste to get to the second floor. I stopped running when I was outside of room 204. I couldn’t see anything clearly through the frosted window so I knocked hesitantly and slowly opened the door and stepped in.

There in the middle of the room, against the wall was a single bed. A woman laid there quietly with her eyes closed. The closer I came to her the more familiar she looked. I let out a relieved gush of breath. There she was, older now, but still the Peggy I once knew. I nervously grabbed one of the chairs in the corner of the room and brought it over to her bedside so I could sit. Gently I gave her a small tap on the hand before just holding it in mine. She stirred but her eyes never opened.

All of a sudden one of the nurses from downstairs came into the room, with an angry and shocked expression.

“Ma’am, You can't be in here. If you want to see a patient, you have to sign in.” I ignored her, my eyes trained on Peggy's face. The commotion of the woman barging into the room had made her open her eyes and look around. I just watched as she scanned the room, first to the door on the left, to the wall in front of her, past me sitting on her right, then to the window behind me.” Her brows raised and she lifted her hands to her eyes to rub. The shock on her face was evident as she turned her head to stare directly at me.

“Hey Carter, long time no see huh?” I gave her the biggest smile that I could.

“Is it really you?” She reached her hand out to mine and grabbed hold.

“It is, it’s really me.”

“Ma’am, I mean it, you can't be here.” The nurse tried again, this time Peggy shot her a glare.

“Ms. I’ll have you know this is one of my best friends and she can be in here if she wants to. Now leave us alone.” The young nurse nodded her head and rushed out, even in old age she could still put on that commanding tone that struck fear in every man. She slowly turned back to me, almost like if she looked back for me, I would be gone. “How? How are you here?”

“It’s a long story Peg, are you sure you want to hear it?”

“Look where I am, I have nothing but time.” She laughed out and I let out my own small laugh as I shook my head.

In addition to what I had been doing, like hanging out with Sam, after that first visit, I made it a priority to see Peggy once or twice every two weeks, depending on how she was doing. Dementia had put a lot of stress on her, and seeing me after almost seventy-five years and looking relatively the same as I had when frozen took out a giant toll on her.

And that's how the next 10 months went until Steve eventually moved into an apartment directly under me.

Tag List: @ginger-swag-rapunzel @underc0vercryptid-reads @geek-and-proud @intothesoul @leyannrae @starkleila

[i-am-ironic]

I was gone for six months and suddenly my best friend has a baby!

Part 2 of this

I wasn't going to do this part but so many people wanted a part two and I came up with this idea!

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

Jon was excited, not for the long boring meeting that was about to start, but for the food he was going to get at his best friend's house after the meeting. Of course this might not be the worst meeting, there was supposed to be a new hero from Gatham, that could be fun. He wondered if Damian Robin was friends with this new hero, and if they were another adopted sibling.

As more and more people filed into the justice league's meeting room, Jon Super-boy kept looking and not finding his friend. Once everyone was seated the batfam entered, always so dramatic.

The big bat himself entered first, followed by most of his kids. Nightwing, Red Hood, Black Bat, and Red Robin all walked in, Red Robin making a beeline for the computer. The last to enter was Robin next to a girl in a black suit with red accents. If this wasn't such a serious meeting Jon probably would have teased Robin about the matching suits. She must be the new hero. He whispered something to her in french, so they were friends, very interesting.

When everyone was seated the meeting began in the same way it always did with a report from all the leaders about how their city's were doing. The second order of business was the mission jon had just completed. It had taken him six months, two trips off world and eleven other people but he had finally stopped the alien who had wanted to destroy the world.

For Jon this part was just as interesting as the updates. he did his best to look like he was paying attention but really he was listening to damian talking to the new hero, Ladybug. Everything they said was in french, which made things harder for him because he didn't speak french.

Superman was almost done with the debriefing when Red Robin spoke up, "Ladybug, Agent A needs you right away, code G."

The woman nodded standing. Robin stood too but was stopped by her hand, "i can deal with this Robin, ill call if i need back-up."

He frowned but sat back down. Looking back at superman to continue.

"Thank you superman, for that very detailed debriefing," batman said standing and walking to the head of the table,"now as I'm sure you have heard there is a new hero in Gatham. Red Robin is calling her now she had to leave a moment ago. While we wait for her I would like to give you some backstory, she was thirteen when she became a hero, in Paris. She fought a supervillen for five years before he was finally defeated. Her partner from those days has since retired. She moved to Gatham for college and began working with us as a vigilante about five and a half months ago,"

"That about sums up my life this far," the woman herself stood in the doorway holding a pile of blankets.

Damian walked over to her and carefully took something from the blankets, an even smaller bundle. "She wouldn't stop crying would she?"

"She wanted her dad."

Thats when it clicked: Damian was holding a baby girl, the woman had said the baby wanted her dad and now the girl was reaching up for damian's face. Ladybug walked over next to batman.

Damian had a baby. DAMIAN HAD A BABY!!!!! This was not happening! The same Damian who hissed any time someone tried to touch him, had a baby?????? That didn't make any sense! Where did he get a baby??? You leave for six months and suddenly your best friend has a baby! Ridiculous!

Ladybug began speaking, "im sure many of you are curious about my powers but I'm afraid I can't disclose that information. If anyone has any other questions I would be happy to answer them."

The Flash raised his hand, when ladybug nodded at him he said, "Is that your and Robin's baby?" Barry, always so quick to adresse the elephant in the room.

Ladybug turned slightly red but replied, "In a manner of speaking, yes. But not in blood. Are there any other questions?"

When no one said anything the meeting was adjourned, the heroes heading back to their citys. Jon joined the batfam as they left.

"So Robin would you like to explain why you had a baby and didn't tell me?" Jon asked.

"No."

"Ha!" Jason laughed as they stepped into the tube headed home. "He just doesn't want to explain how he reverse kidnapped a baby."

Stepping out into the bat cave the team walked to there respective changing areas. Leaving only ladybug and the baby with Jon.

"Could you explain?"

She laughed, "sure, basically a lady handed damian little Gabrielle here and sprinted off. We never found the lady so damian and I adopted her. Lagaly she is damian's daughter though. Can you hold her while I detransform?"

"I guess." He took Gabrielle from Ladybug as a bright light over took her.

When the light vanished the young woman standing there smiled at him, "Im marinette by the way."

"Nice to meet you marinette," he said handing her back Gabrielle, "Im Jonathan but everyone calls me Jon."

"Nice to meet you too," she looked behind him and smiled even brighter, "Dames, we had better go up stairs for dinner."

Damian kissed her and took the tiny mask off of Gabrielle's face.

"So im an uncle now, right Damian?"

"No kent my daughter will not be calling you her uncle."

"Why not?!" Marinette and Jon exclaimed at the same time.

"Mari not you too." Damien said in mock horror. "I knew i shouldn't leave you two alone together!"

Marinette giggled. At this point they had reached the kitchen and marinette took Gabrielle from Damian to put her in her high chair.

The three of them continued talking as the rest of the family joind the dinner table. Marinette and Damian took turns feeding Gabrielle mashed sweet potatoes. Everyone laughed and joked, even talking to Gabby some times.

After dinner about half of the team had to go home, everyone else went to their rooms or to the movie room to watch Avitar: the last Airbender, which wasn't a movie but they wanted to watch it on the big screen.

Damian whent to put Gabby to sleep, it was too late for them to go home and Alfred had already prepared a room for them.

"So how long have you and Damian been together?" Jon asked Marinette.

"Two years in May. I didn't meet his family until five months ago though." She smiled, "I met them the same day we got Gabby, I understand why he didn't want me to meet them for such a long time. I mean who could have guessed I was a hreo too?"

"Im glad he found you. He seems much happier when you are around." Jon said.

"Marinette can you come say good night to Gabby she wants you." Damien called from the top of the stairs.

"Ill be right there!" Marinette shouted back.

Marinette walked up the stairs as Damian walked down. "So I guess you like her." Damien said.

"She has the best friend stamp of approval." Jon replied enthusiastically.

"Thats good," Damien said thinking over his words before he continued, "because, I'm going to ask her to marry me." He poped open a ring box revealing a beautiful diamond engagement ring.

"Wow! Oh my god!! Can I be your best man?!!" Jon was vibrating with excitement.

"Sssshhhhhhhhh!! You have to keep this on the down low! No one knows about this not even Alfred!"

"Im pretty sure Alfred knows everything. Especially the things you don't think he knows. Its his secret super power." Jon contredited. "I should probably head to bed i have to get up early tomorrow."

"Why would you need to get up early?"

"Because Alfred is making pancakes and i want to be the first one to get some."

As jon drifted off to sleep he thought about if he would be as good of a dad as damian was, and if he would be able to find someone like marinette.

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

Sorry this i late but I was having trouble writing this chapter. Also has anyone else been watching avitar non stop, like at this point I'm pretty sure I've seen it 12 times.

Next im going to write a soulmate au so if you want to be tagged in that let me know. I hope you enjoyed! (The wifi is down at my house sorry if you weren't tagged, ill try again later)

@wannajointhecrabcult @corabeth11 @i-wanna-be-a-ninja @animegirlweeb @spyofthenightcourt @ivymala07 @marinettepotterandplagg @thequeenofpotatoeunicornss @bisha43rbs @dreamykitty25 @sublimesoulbouquet @maribat-is-lifeblood @thestressmademedoit @crytallized @tomanyfandomsonmymind @karukofox21 @nightstarblue @certifiedbidisaster @our-preciousss @lilyreadbooks12

[unlikelyempathpruneauthor]

'Family support's just so wholesome, i can't! Your writing's great 💙 i have a request (tho it's more than fine if you're not taking them/ don't feel like doing this one): bau!reader losing a loved one, not telling anyone and throwing themselves into work but masking it up pretty well so no one notices how broken they are until after a though case reader falls asleep on the jet and has a nightmare, reid puts 2 & 2 together and comforts them.. idk just feeling a bit moody today, hope u r fine 😊

Hold you in my arms

A/N: hey! I'm glad you enjoyed family support! Im glad you also enjoy my writing thank you so much! im sorry I took forever to write this one up! Hopefully its what you wanted. I did kinda rush the case so we could have Spencer and reader content, so sorry if it is rushed and bad. hope you enjoy this one!

TW: family member going through cancer.

things to know: the italics in the beginning are going through the death of the brother, and near the end is the dream. regular font is what happened or is happening how ever you want to put it.

You were a really private person, for the most part, but with your team, they knew mostly everything about you. Which knowing them for years was okay with you. As long as they didn’t know any more details you were fine with that. Your family meant everything to you and you wanted them safe. You never wanted to be the reason they were tortured or even killed.

However some things that caused death weren't your fault completely. Your brother was getting near to death. He’s been fighting leukemia since he was 15 and recently it's been getting worse. You stayed with him the days you didn’t work or didn’t get called in. Lucky the last few days you had with him you only had paperwork to finish.

The team noticed how fast you would complete them and how detailed and well written they were so they thought nothing of it. Spencer though he noticed despair and worry, but he didn’t say anything since you two were only friends and if you had something to tell him you would reach out.

“Is she okay?” Prentiss asked as the team shrugged. “Yeah Spence is she alright seems like something is up?” Rossi said as Spencer shrugged not knowing what was wrong with his best friend and “secret” crush. “She hasn’t said anything or talked to me, she’ll probably talk when she’s ready” he said as that left the team with that and spending their own free time the way they do.

You would walk into the hospital with two thoughts in your mind. “He’s alright he’s okay, he’s fighting” or “it’s too late you work too much and now he’s gone” and when you would enter the room relief was hit and you saw him eating or watching tv.  

You two would talk and spend time with one another, but he would beg you to go back to work and not worry. “Matt, no I'm staying until they call alright? You said as he held your hand. “Please go back to work I’m fine, I know you’ll make it in time once my monitor goes crazy” he said as you glared at him. “Don’t say that, I’m staying.” You said as he gave you the look your mother gave you. “Ugh fine I’ll go, but you need to call me if anything happens.

Like that you would go back to work and finish even more paperwork. Like nothing was wrong. You were sad inside but you didn’t show. You were strong, well you had to be, your brother was told he was gonna live for 2 months and he just passed his 1 month, this scared you. You couldn’t lose him now. He was your other half considering how young he was. Why do good people die young and terribly?

When that day came, you were called by your mom. You were home so you quickly left your home not even worrying if you left something on, your main focus was your brother. Seeing him alive when you go there.

Once you got to the hospital you arrived and saw them resuscitate him. They gave you a look that said, he wasn’t gonna make it and you needed to say goodbye. Your parents were sitting in chairs while you held your brother in your arms like the first time you met him. He was just your little baby brother and you knew he was gonna do great things.

Memories of you and him passed through your brain like one of those movies. The good and the bad. As the monitor went flat he was gone, your baby brother was gone. Tears just flushed through your eyes not caring if some got onto him. All you could do was hug him and let him rest the way he wanted to. In your arms.

“It’s okay, it’s time for you to rest.” You said as you kissed his head and held on for a while longer.

That was the last time you saw him. You currently got back from the funeral, and you changed so the team didn’t notice anything. As you walked over to your desk you got a new picture frame out with a picture of you and your brother when you were 10 and he was about 3. You smiled at the way your brother smiled.

“Y/n” someone said. “Y/n? You alright?” Spencer said as you looked at him. “Yeah Spence sorry I was just thinking. What’s up?” You asked as he smiled. “Well we have a case, so let’s go?” He said as you smiled back and headed to the conference room.

The case introduced was about an unsub killing young 20 year old males. Most of them were either in college or working for their families. They were good people but they were just killed for no reason. Which made you think of Matt. What if….no stop it.

As you debriefed the case you were headed to New Orleans. As you got your go bag you were met by spencer who was waiting for you per usual, spencer noticed something stopped you. “y/n? You okay?” he asked as he startled you and you blinked many times not knowing he was there. “Yeah im okay, uh just thinking.” you said as he hummed. “Alright..oh is that a new picture?” he asked as he grabbed the new frame with your picture. “Actually it's an old one, i just thought i could have another picture you know.” you said as he nodded. “Yeah, i do, is this your brother?” he asked as you nodded. “Yeah i was 10 and he was about 3 years old in that photo, it was the first day of school for the both of us, he was going to preschool and i was going into the fourth grade” you said as he noticed your sincere smile. “Is he doing okay?” he asked as your heart stopped, but you knew you had to lie, you didn't want to bother him. “He's fine, going into his fourth year of college,” you said as he nodded, but he read through your lie, you thought your heart stopped internally, but your whole body shifted and he knew something happened. you then were interrupted by a hotch. “Guys we should get going, seems like they need us earlier than i thought.” he said as you nodded heading over to the jet.

As you read through the file you were still thinking about Matt, you knew he wanted you to work instead of grieving for him, and you were gonna do that until it was gonna finally break you. You just kept thinking about getting privacy to let the tears to come out.

As you landed, you had to talk to the family of the recent victim. As you got there you saw them break down, not only did you lose someone, they did too. As if your instincts were nagging at you, you walked in to talk to the family, understanding completely what they were going through.

After talking to the parents, they told you Jerry was sick. He had been going through some type of chemotherapy and he didn't go to his last one days before getting kidnapped. That was weird, maybe the unsub knew who they were. But you didn't really know how to back that up with so you called garcia.

“Hello my beautiful princess, how may i serve you today?” she asked as you smiled. “God pen, never change,” you said as she hummed. “Not in any world my love.” she said as you looked down at your file. “Hey can you see if any of our victims was going through some type of therapy, like chemo?” you asked as she typed away and you waited.

Maybe this was some type of coincidence, like god was giving you a chance to save someone, after losing someone.

“Woah, uhh, our first victim, David, had thyroid cancer, and our other two victim, had leukemia. How does this connect?” she asked as you sighed. “Our latest victim had some type of cancer and was going through, chemotherapy.” you said as she sighed. “God why would someone kill someone who is going through a hard time?” she said as you sighed as well. “I don't know love, that's what I'm gonna figure out.” you said as she hung up leaving you to tell the team. You walked over to where everyone was standing and they seemed to pay attention before you began to talk.

“So all of our victims went through some type of sickness that involved them to get chemotherapy, what if our unsub is going through that and by killing them they are taking their place by getting some chemotherapy.” you said as they all shuffled looking through.

“That could explain why they didn't have certain belongings with them. And could explain why some didn't have their id.” Morgan said as you nodded. “Alright well call garcia to widen her search, good job y/n” hotch said as you nodded. “And this person might be working near any of the hospitals, our victims went to.” you said as they all nodded and you were getting ready to deliver the profile.

While this happened you got a call from your mother. You quickly picked it up leaving the room. “I'm sorry I have to take this.” you said as hotch nodded and you went into a hallway.

“Hey mom? Everything okay?” you asked as she hummed  “i am, its just i really hate to bother you, but i can afford the funeral i only paid half of it... And i don't wanna ask you for money-” she said, stumbling over her words as you cut her off. “Mom hey, dont worry about that, let me give you my credit card information all right? Tell them to send me the bill to my apartment. You don't have to worry about it alright?” you said as she sighed and sobbed. “Okay, im sorry...its just i saved up money for college but it wasn't enough and i know you do-” she said as you cut her off again. “Mom don't worry about it. I had some money saved up for him too in case he needed something. It's fine mom.” you said as you kept reassuring her. You then met the team again as they had a lead.

“Hey sorry it was my mom.” you said as they found a guy who lost his family because his wife had left him for his best friend, he was then told he had lung cancer and didn't have insurance or enough money to pay for his treatment. He was recently seen at the same hospital all the victims were at, and that meant he was getting ready for his next victim. He also worked as a janitor at the hospitals, which explained how he got the information from them.

You and Reid were sent to his house as the rest of the team was sent to the hospital. As you got there you noticed the lights were on. “You check the front while i check the back.” he said as you nodded. You had a police officer behind you as you cleared the house. Everything seemed clear, but the odd things was why were the lights on. He probably left in a rush.

You both checked everything as found and he had schedules of the patients. He also worked in many hospitals which explained how he met the other two victims. Reid called hotch and gave him the address to the hospital next on the list. It was most likely he was just living here because you didn't find any bodies in the house, but you still searched outside his house.

You were walking around the back as you noticed humps in the ground...oh no. “reid! I think i've got bodies” you said as reid came along with a dog and they were sniffing and barking. “Yeah he definitely killed them here. Morgan and prentiss just found a shack a couple miles away from here and all their clothes and stuff are. Where is he though?” he said as you nodded.

You ended up finding him in the hospital reid found next on the list. They ended up getting the guy and taking him to the station. He was in the interrogation room and hotch let you take him. Reid was with you and you just stared at the unsub.

“You ready?” he asked as you nodded. He walked over to the door entering the room as the unsub looked at both of you as you sat down. “So uh mark? Right?” reid said as the unsub nodded. “Yeah, can you tell me why I'm here?” he said as you looked at Reid and he let you take the lead. “Well mark, your property is filled with missing people who were filled missing, you know, because their family cares about them. Why did you kill them?” you asked as he scoffed. “Please my family cares about me.” he said as you glared at him.

“Really mark, they do? Then why aren't they here? We know your wife left you for your best friend and he matched all the victims appearances. You killed innocent boys who were just starting their life. You're just mad that their lives were settled and not yours.” you said as the unsub felt uncomfortable that you knew all that.

“Mark, we know you killed them because you were eventually gonna kill your own friend.” reid said as he just shook his head as if he was going crazy.

You two were just throwing the truth at him as he exploded.

“I had to do it! They were gonna ruin someone else’s life too! I couldn't let them go through that.” he said as you too got your confession, not that you needed it.

“Look mark, we didn't need this but we got what we need and i hope you get what you deserve.” you said as he yelled, “you don't even know what they felt. Why do you care so much!” he said as you stopped in your tracks and turned around. “You know what i do, i know what it's like to lose someone, they were already suffering so much, and you ruined it more for them. They had more time, but you didn't care. If you really care, family is important, and losing one is even worse, especially from sickness. Knowing that i couldn't do anything hurts. You're the one who doesn't know. You only know what it felt like to kill them knowing you were gonna live and they were gonna die.” you said leaving as reid and everyone behind that mirror just heard what you said.

As you got back on the jet, you were so tired you fell asleep right away. You were just so tired you didn't know what to do.

You were running through the unsubs home and noticed a body that looked familiar. It was matt. You quickly ran over to him and saw his face. He was already dead. You then were tied up seeing the unsub shoot him over and over. “NO! Matt, no! You had more time! Why!” you said.

“You had more time….why did you kill him…” you mumbled as you were moving around a lot and crying. Reid noticed and he quickly put his book down as he shook you up. “y/n...hey it's just a dream...y/n'' he said as you woke up with tears falling out of your eyes. “Im sorry, sorry.” you said as you wiped your own tears away. You sat there in complete silence. You were comfortable so it wasn't awkward.

You then saw the way Reid looked at you, which was the look that told you he knew what was wrong. You sighed in defeat as you asked him. “How do you know?” you asked as he half smiled. “Well today when you mentioned Matt, your mood changed, and I knew something was wrong, and you also wanted to comfort the victims family. You seemed like you knew what they were going through. And when you told us about the victims being sick, you seemed really sad for them more than a regular person would be and when you talked about losing family, I knew something was up.” he said as you nodded. “So you profiled me huh?” you said as he nodded and gave you a sincere smile

He was waiting, but he spoke first. “y/n i'm here for you, just know that, even if you feel alone i'm here for you always.” he said as you nodded.

He was about to get up as you spoke. “Matt died...two days ago...and the funeral was today, and i'm not okay.” you said as your tears fell out. Spencer held you as he wiped your tears away. “I'm so sorry, y/n.” he said as you shook your head. “spence its fine.” you said as he nodded, but he knew it wasn't fine. “Its just...when he died, i held him in my hands. I was there when it happened.” you said as he felt very sorry that you had to go through that.

“Im so sorry. Here come here.” he said as he opened his arms so he could hold you. You were thankful for Spencer, he was always there for you and you were glad he was there for you for this. It made being able to grieve much easier.

[cpd5021]

Runaway

This one is getting posted early because I’ll be insanely busy tomorrow. Enjoy!!

Happy Wednesday!!! One week closer!! They’re finally back to filming and I am soooo excited! Thanks to  @joy-meathiel  for this prompt!!

“Alright, listen up everyone. We’ve got a problem.”

Not the best words to hear first thing in the morning, especially from Voight who really didn’t see much of anything as a threat. It was my second week back from New York, but my first official day back in the unit. The first week had been spent filling out countless amounts of paperwork and doing debriefings to get caught up on everything I had missed while I was away. To say I felt nervous was an understatement. Not only was this my first day back under Voight’s noticeably watchful eye, but it was also the first day back with Jay. Not that we hadn’t been hanging out for the last week, enjoying the Bartoli’s I was promised and catching up over beers at Molly’s or my place. But something about spending the whole day with him had my stomach swirling in a way I couldn’t understand. I pushed the thoughts aside and turned my attention back to Voight, who, to my surprise, was staring right at me with a concerned look on his face. I sent him a questioning look, my eyes darting quickly to meet Jay’s who looked just as puzzled by Voight’s intense stare, before turning back to Voight. 

“Sarge?” 

I pushed when it didn’t seem like he was going to elaborate. He crossed his arms over his chest and let out a sigh, his eyes never leaving mine.

“We’ve got to get you out of town for a bit. Word is there’s a target on your back.”

His words set a panic rising in my chest, along with an extreme confusion as to how I could be anyone’s target after being gone for so long. 

“Who? How?” 

I asked, standing and moving to lean against the front of my desk. He chose to ignore my question and instead turned to address the rest of the bullpen. 

“Upton is going to be out of commission for a while until we get a handle on this thing. I’m going to assign one of you to get her out of here and somewhere safe. You’re to stay put until you hear from me and only me, is that clear?”

The room nodded in agreement, their faces a mix of concern and confusion. I looked to Jay again and my stomach did another lurch when I saw him raise his hand. 

“I’ll get her out of here, I know somewhere that’s perfect to lay low in.”

Voight nodded in Jay’s direction and then pivoted to walk back into his office, I was hot on his heels, grabbing the door before he could close it. He sat in his chair and motioned for me to sit down. 

“You’re going to go wherever Halstead takes you and you’re not to contact anyone until you hear from me. Got it?”

I nodded in agreement but still pushed for more information. 

“What is this about Sarge?”

He leaned back in his chair, letting out a sigh as he rubbed at his face. 

“The thing about those lines you crossed Hailey...they were big players. Gael has people in every corner of this city and he’s not stupid. At first he was targeting Roja’s but he’s smart enough to figure out she was too new for those kinds of connections.”

My heart ached at the mention of Vanessa. My first night back, after Jay had picked me up from the airport, we headed back to my place. I had been able to tell from his demeanor as we approached my house that something was up, but nothing prepared me for the blow that came when we walked into my place and found it void of any trace of my roommate's presence. Jay had explained all about how Voight had sent Vanessa back to narcotics and she was in a major undercover op. How I would likely not hear from her for a while because she had gone dark for the coverup. And how it all had to do with Gael. I had broken down at the realization that my actions had put her at risk and that she had been forced to uproot herself from this life that she fit so well into. Jay had calmed me down enough to give me the letter she left, stating that none of this was my fault and she would be so pissed if she found out I blamed myself. Her written words had brought a smile to my face but it wasn’t enough to ease the guilt that had settled into my chest. I swallowed hard and brought myself back to the present, looking at Voight and feeling lost over the mess I had put everyone in. 

“We’ll figure this out and we’ll get ahead of it. But for now, I want you out of the picture.”

I nodded again, blinking back the tears that were threatening to gather. He motioned for me to leave and I did so, feeling defeated as I went to find Jay. When I found him in the locker room, he was tossing some of his things into a black duffel bag in his locker. I sighed and moved to do the same. 

“Where are we going?”

I asked, assuming he had some remote hotel in mind and cringing at the thought of spending any more time in a hotel bed after the last month and a half in New York. He glanced up at me then, a slight smirk on his face that faded when he saw my own face. 

“I know somewhere good. It won’t be so bad.”

His avoidance of a direct answer had my defenses going up. I straightened my back and turned to face him directly. 

“Jay?”

He smirked again, his face turning the slightest shade of pink under my stare. 

“Ontario…”

My eyes bugged out at his reply. He was insane if he thought I was leaving the country.

“Canada?” 

I managed to choke out, causing him to chuckle at my hoarse voice. 

“No, sorry. Wisconsin. My family has a cabin up there…”

He trailed off when I still didn’t relax. I wasn’t sold on the idea of even leaving the city let alone the state. 

“Jay...hiding out is one thing but I’m not running away. This is all my fault, I should stay to help clean it up.”

I hated the way my voice sounded utterly defeated as I tried to argue with him. I knew I wasn’t going to win this fight anyway between him and Voight, so it was probably best to just go along with the plan. It didn’t hurt to try though. 

“Hailey, the most important thing right now is to keep you safe. Voight will figure this out and you’ll be back before you know it.” 

He took a step towards me, placing his hand gently on my shoulder to reassure me. I sent him a half hearted smile and then finished gathering my things. 

*****

The four hour drive up to the cabin surprisingly wasn’t that bad, we stopped once for gas and some snacks but Jay made pretty good timing to get us here. When he pulled up the long driveway leading up to the quaint little cabin nestled back in the woods, I couldn’t help but let my jaw hang in amazement. The setting looked like something from a Hallmark Christmas movie and I suddenly felt even more nervous about this whole situation. Spending an unknown amount of time with Jay was one thing, but here? This was going to be interesting. He informed me that we could settle in at the cabin and then head back into town later for some groceries and other necessities. I hopped out of the truck and lugged my duffel bag from the back seat, my jaw still slack the more I took in. I followed him up the steps of the covered porch, noting the adorable swing hanging from the rafters and gasped when we entered the cabin. It was floor to ceiling pine and it smelled amazing despite sitting vacant for who knows how long. There was a small couch propped in front of a fireplace with a tiny TV mounted on the wall above. I doubted there was any cable service this far out but the huge collection of movies on the bookshelf in the corner of the room looked promising. A long, solid wood table was in the center of the cabin, a top one of those old fashioned braided rugs and the kitchen looked just the right size for preparing some cozy food. I noted a door down a short hallway that I presumed was the bathroom and a set of stairs that led up to a loft above us. Under any other circumstance, this would be the perfect vacation spot. But the current situation was still leaving a bad taste in my mouth. Jay moved beside me, taking my bag and trekking up the stairs to the loft. I followed after him, curious to see more. At the top of the landing I noted a huge king size bed with what looked like a handmade quilt on top. Way better than the hotel beds I had been picturing. I was so busy admiring the comfyness of the bed that I didn’t notice Jay had come to stand in front of me. 

“So, there’s only the one bed. But I’ll take the couch.”

He rubbed at his neck, looking suddenly uncomfortable. 

“Jay, it’s your cabin. I’ll take the couch.”

He smiled sheepishly at me, glancing back at the bed before turning back to face me, a blush covering his cheeks. 

“We’ll figure something out.”

We headed back down the stairs and Jay gave me a brief tour of the tiny cabin. There wasn’t much more to see than what I had already noted but I enjoyed listening to the way he pointed out all the little details as we went. This place held memories for him, that much was obvious. 

After the tour inside, we walked around the property for a bit. He told me how him and Will used to come up here all the time and how their dad was a big hunter. His eyes lit up when he talked about all the delicious cooking his mother would do in the tiny kitchen and the sight made me melt a little on the inside. After a while, we decided to head back into town before the sun went down. Even the quaint little grocery store was enough to warm my heart and I kept picturing myself in a Hallmark movie. I picked up a sweatshirt from the little tourist section of the store, earning a grin from Jay. I had a limited wardrobe from what I had grabbed from my locker so the added warmth of the sweatshirt looked inviting. 

Back at the cabin, I relaxed into the couch that was incredibly comfortable after Jay had shewed me out of the kitchen, telling me he was going to cook for us tonight. I blushed slightly at the way my mind travelled at the thought, but managed to hide it before he noticed. I pulled my new sweatshirt closer, feeling a sudden chill as the evening air cooled down outside. Jay noticed and suggested I go take a hot shower while he finished dinner. I couldn’t object to the thought of some hot water so I grabbed my bag from upstairs and headed into the bathroom. For such a tiny cabin, I was surprised at the size of the shower in this bathroom. It had been redone to look like one of those spa showers and it was definitely big enough for two people. I shook those thoughts from my head and stepped into the hot water, letting my body melt in the steam. Once I was done in the shower, I tugged my new sweatshirt back on along with a pair of black leggings I had thankfully stashed in my overnight back. As I opened the door, letting the steam from my shower swirl in the short hallway, my nose was instantly filled with the most amazing smells. I followed them out into the kitchen and paused at the sight before me. Jay stood over the stove, stirring something in a large pot while another boiled away beside him. I watched as he bent to pull a pan of garlic bread out of the oven, adding to the wonderful aromas in the cabin. I shuffled into the kitchen, catching his eye and causing him to smile my way. I noticed a light blush spread across his cheeks but he turned back to stir whatever concoction was in the pot. I stepped up beside him, glancing into the pan and noting what appeared to be a homemade marinara sauce. 

“I didn’t know you could cook.”

I teased, sending him a smirk when he scoffed my way.

“There’s lots of secret talents I have that you don’t know about.”

His innuendo caused me to blush and it was my turn to dip my head down. 

“And you said I was aloof…”

I countered, trying to ease the sudden tension in the room. He chuckled at my response before motioning for me to go sit at the table while he plated our food. We enjoyed the meal, paired with a glass of wine he must have had stashed at the cabin as it wasn’t something we picked up in town. After dinner, I battled him over the dishes and he eventually conceded, letting me wash them up. Although he remained right by my side, drying them as I went. Once that task was done, I returned to the couch and drew my knees up by my chest, the chill back in the air now that it was fully dark out. Jay noticed my shiver and moved over to the fire place, expertly working to start a fire that cast a dim glow around the room. Once again I had the feeling that I was in some romantic movie and had to remind myself that this was Jay and we weren’t like that.  

“Add skilled fire builder to my list of skills you’re learning about.”

Jay smirked as he sat on the couch beside me. He sat on the opposite end but the couch was small enough we still sat incredibly close. There was no way either one of us would sleep comfortably on this tiny thing, a fact I would point out later. We fell into an easier banter, sipping on some beers Jay had grabbed from town and for just a moment I had forgotten all about why we were actually here. It didn’t take long though for our banter to bring up a joke Vanessa had once told and my mood instantly changed. Jay picked up on the shift in my mood and reached a hand over to grab my shoulder. 

“Hailey...none of this is your fault.”

He tried to reassure me but we both knew that wasn’t the case. I sent him a half hearted smile at his attempt to make me feel better. 

“Jay...we both know all of this is my fault. I never should have done what I did. I screwed everything up.”

We fell into a silence for a moment as Jay pondered how to proceed. 

“Hailey...what happened, yea you crossed some lines. But I think you’ve beaten yourself up enough for it. What’s done is done and eventually this will all work out. Vanessa is a tough girl, she’ll be alright and you’ll hear from her again. I promise you she isn’t mad. She made me pinky promise to make sure you know that.”

I smiled genuinely at the thought of that exchange between the two of them and Jay seemed relieved to see my mood lighten. 

“And New York wasn’t all bad right? I mean, it sucked not having you here for multiple reasons but you’re back now.”

His words confused me a little and I was asking him what he meant before I could think better of it.

“Multiple reasons?”

It was Jay’s turn to blush again and he brought his beer bottle to his lips, obviously stalling his response. I drilled my eyes into the side of his face, letting him know I wasn’t going to drop it. 

“Well yea...I mean, you’re the best partner...and everyone missed you…”

He stammered out a reply but I could tell there was more he wasn’t saying. Suddenly all the feelings I had pushed down after he got shot were front and center and there was a tiny spark of hope rising inside of me that he might feel the same way too. 

“Did you miss me? Aside from being your partner I mean?”

I picked at the label on my bottle, suddenly losing the confidence I had when I asked the question. 

“Of course.”

His words came out so sure that it caused me to look up and meet his eyes. I saw something within them that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. 

“I missed you too Jay.”

 I admitted softly, my words barely above a whisper. 

“Can I ask you something?”

His question threw me off a little but I nodded my head, waiting for him to continue. 

“What did you want to say to me in the hospital room? Before my phone blew it. I’ve been wanting to ask you ever since but it never seemed like the right time. But now, we have pretty much unlimited time so….what was it?”

My heart pounded the second he reminded me of that day and what I had truly wanted to admit to him. The fact that he brought it up made me think even more that maybe he did feel the same way, even though I had never finished what I was going to tell him. 

“It doesn’t really matter.”

I whispered, trying to cop out of this situation. As much as I did love Jay, I wasn’t sure he felt the same way and I couldn’t risk losing him. 

“It does to me.”

His soft response had me looking up at him again, that unrecognizable look even stronger in his eyes now. I smiled at him shyly, my head still dipped down as I picked at the label even more. Suddenly, his hand was over mine, taking the empty bottle from my fingers and setting it on the table in front of us. 

“I had just realized something after you got shot. But that would have been a horrible time to tell you.”

I mumbled out my words, really wishing he would let this go.

“So tell me now.”

He pushed, causing my heart to beat even faster. The way he was looking at me made me think he knew exactly what I was going to say and I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. When I didn’t respond he started talking again, slower this time as if he wasn’t sure this was a good idea. 

“Well, when you got sent to New York...the first week was rough and I thought it was because I was missing you as my awesome partner. Adam...just not the same. But then I would go home and the first thing I wanted to do was tell you all about my day and listen to everything that happened with yours. And then I hated that we weren’t having the same days and that you were off on this big adventure, probably kicking ass and showing everyone else how awesome you are. I wanted to go grab a beer with you at Molly’s or stay home and watch stupid Office reruns on TV. I wanted to hear you laugh, to know that you were okay at the end of a rough day. I’d wake up in the morning and the first thing I’d think of is if you got your coffee...because we all know how that goes if you don’t. I wanted to pick you up and drive into work together, or at least have to fight you off of my pens when you forgot yours. Hailey I...I guess what I realized, when you were gone...is that I kinda fell in love with you. And maybe I’m totally off here and that’s not what you wanted to say to me and I’m probably ruining everything right now but I just needed you to know because it’s all I think about now. You’re all I think about now…”

He trailed off and I blinked away the tears that had gathered in my eyes. The sight seemed to alarm him and he shifted on the couch as if he was about to get up. My hand grabbed his arm, holding him in place as I shifted myself on the couch to face him better. I bore my eyes into his, hoping that he could see in them that I felt exactly the same way. I didn’t trust my voice to speak but I wanted to show him just how right he was. I placed my hand against his cheek, smiling back at him when his lip twitched up into a nervous smile. I closed the gap between us, bringing my lips to rest just above his so they touched when I finally spoke. 

“I love you too Jay.”

And with that I pressed my lips against his. He instantly returned the pressure, placing his own hands against my cheeks as the kiss deepened. Sparks ignited between us and I could feel my breathing coming in gasps as our tongues danced against each other. When we finally broke apart, our foreheads rested against each other and our eyes shared the same look of passion between them. Our lips crashed again and this time Jay was pulling me into his lap, his strong hands gripping my thighs as my arms wrapped around his neck. Without any effort whatsoever, he lifted me up and I could tell he was headed for the stairs. My life might be a huge mess, caused by my own doing, but for the next few hours...I was in one of those stupid romantic Hallmark movies.

[areiton]

i'll fall alone in the dark

He meets Spiderman on a battlefield but he meets Pete while he’s on his back in the compound. Tony is gone, chasing Rogers and Barnes and Rhodey aches to follow him and a kid is sitting in the corner of his room, his face a mess of bruises.

~*~ 

Read on A03

~*~ 

Tony comes home. 

For days, weeks--since the dust coated that Wakandan battlefield and they realized just how much they’d lost--since Tony vanished without a trace and everyone decided that meant he was dead like Tony fucking Stark hadn’t made a lifelong habit of living just to spite the assholes who said he wouldn’t--

For too long, Rhodey had been quiet, faithfully believing when arguing with Rogers and the rest did shit. 

Tony comes home, because Tony always comes home, and Rhodey is there, a step behind Rogers, fury burning through him because Rogers is the one taking him from Nebula, Rogers is staring at him, all hungry and desperate and incandescent, and that--that is Rhodey’s job. 

Rhodey brings Tony home. 

Since that first night at MIT when he dragged a belligerently drunk billionaire out of a party and poured him into his bed, that has been his job, and he’s good at it. 

Rogers holds him up and Rhodey’s eyes skip past Tony, up the walk where Nebula stands staring sadly at Rocket, and--

“I lost the kid,” Tony says and the world fucking stops.  

~*~ 

He meets Spiderman on a battlefield but he meets Pete while he’s on his back in the compound. Tony is gone, chasing Rogers and Barnes and Rhodey aches to follow him and a kid is sitting in the corner of his room, his face a mess of bruises. 

“Who are you?” he asks, his voice a rough rasp. 

“Hi, um, Colonel Rhodes. I thought--um. If you want. I can stay with you,” he says, bright and innocent in a way no one in this compound ever is. “I--if you want? I can call--” 

“There’s no one,” he says, before the kid can offer. Mama died, and Jenny--it’s better to leave her outta this. 

Tony is the only family he’s got. 

He doesn’t realize he’s said it aloud until the kid says, “My aunt--she’s all I have. And I know I’d want her, if I were where you are. I’m not Mr. Stark. But I’ll stay, until he gets back. If you want.” 

The kid looks braced for rejection and he aches, a bone deep hurt that has nothing to do with his spine and everything to do with the team. 

Tony is the only family he’s got. The rest of them--

He opens his mouth to tell the kid to go. What he says is, “Pick a movie, kid. The silence is gonna get awkward.” 

~*~

Rogers dismisses it, says they all lost. 

It’s something he keeps turning over in his head, because he believes that. And yeah, ok, he’s not wrong. They all lost in a spectacular sort of way. 

But Tony reached out, confided in him--and Rogers didn’t even understand.

“What kid?” Natasha asks, once Tony is in medical and they’re waiting to debrief. She’s looking at him, and Rogers does too, bland curiosity on his face. 

The kid, Rhodey wants to say. 

Because there are kids--Harley, Riri, even the bots. 

But there’s is only one kid. 

How the hell does he explain Peter? How does he explain that Peter saved Tony, saved them? How does he explain a kid that was so damn good, so damn brilliant, that it brought Tony back? That losing the Avengers, Rogers betrayal almost broke Tony, did break Rhodey, and Peter was there, eager to learn, anxious to help, impossible to resist, and it was Peter who coaxed Tony out of his depression, who grinned at Rhodey when he came back, exhausted from PT. 

It was Peter, the need to protect him, the inability to stop him, that made Tony rework the Accords, that  made Rhodey step back into the War Machine. 

Peter wasn’t just some kid. 

In the end he explains it the only way he knows how, and he doesn’t give a damn how Rogers and the others take it. 

“Peter,” he says. “Tony’s son.” 

~*~

Peter was Tony’s first. 

But somewhere along the line, between movies and villains and science projects and lab experiments and takeout at three a.m., he became Rhodey’s too. 

He knew Tony would be a good dad. He’d seen the way Tony was with the bots and with Harley, with his niece until-- 

Tony was always going to be an amazing father, and Rhodey--Rhodey was always going to be that uncle, solid and steady, who spoiled the kids rotten and dragged them into and out of trouble, just like he always had for Tony. 

~*~ 

He sits by Tony’s bed, the same place he’s always sat when Tony was hurt, and waits. 

Because he has always been the place where Tony falls, the place he crashes apart, and Tony is being piece back together, is alive, even if the doctors aren’t sure how, even if he’s more fragile than Rhodey has ever seen him.

He sits by Tony’s bed, and he waits. 

And after twelve hours, Tony blinks, stirs restless on his bed and Rhodey shifts. 

It hurts, watching Tony’s face, the way it crumples, heartbreak and grief writ so sharp in the lines on his face, in the emptiness of his eyes, in the way he reaches out, blindly grasping and chokes out, “Peter.” 

Rhodey catches him. 

Rhodey catches him, holds him together while Tony sobs against his chest, and he never once cries himself. 

~*~ 

He watches Tony throw his heart at Rogers, watches him fall apart. 

He watches when he tells Pepper about Peter, watches grief age her pretty face in a way that he can feel in his own bones. 

He listens to the mad plan to rewrite time, and he goes with them, because there’s a chance, thin and grasping and he doesn’t trust Rogers, doesn’t trust any of them, but he can’t back away from the chance. 

It fails. 

It fails, and they fail. 

~*~ 

He doesn’t know if it’s worse that Tony doesn’t look surprised, crippled, by their failure, or not. 

~*~ 

Tony is different, after Titan. 

The world is different, and that matters, but Tony has been the epicenter of his life for over thirty years, and this is no different. 

He’s withdrawn, quiet, refuses to engage with the remaining Avengers at all. He’s touch starved in a way Rhodey hasn’t seen since college, spending long hours in Rhodey’s lap or curled into his side. 

He never talks about Peter, though. He clings, and sometimes, he cries, and Rhodey is steady and solid and holds him together when Tony is falling apart. 

Once. 

Just once. Tony looks at him and says, softly, “I miss him, platypus.” 

Rhodey holds him tighter. “Me, too, peacock.” 

~*~ 

The truth is--he does. 

He misses Peter so much it aches.

The whole world lost, the whole fucking galaxy did, but Rhodey’s world has been small since Mama died, and Jenny walked out of his life. 

His family is Tony, and the people Tony gathers around him. And all of them--Pepper, Happy, Tony--survived. 

Peter is the gaping hole in their world, the missing piece that no one can look past, and he misses him, a visceral aching loss that he can’t get past, and doesn’t know how to live with. 

~*~

Mama died. 

She died in a home invasion that made no goddamn sense, a random act of senseless violence.

Jenny didn’t. 

Jenny didn’t but she walked away. Rhodey was a superhero who couldn’t keep his family safe, who had chosen a rich white boy and left their family behind. 

And maybe that wasn’t the whole story, wasn’t the true story--but it’s the story Jenny told, and she scooped up his niece and vanished and he lost his Mama and his baby sister and his baby niece and he never quite got over that. 

He couldn’t get over losing his entire family in less than a month. He lived with it and through it and he carried it with him. 

Losing Peter is like that. 

He carries it with him. 

~*~  

The world is a crumbling mess and the Avengers are broken, scattered. Tony doesn’t care and Tony doesn’t care, long enough that Rogers comes to Rhodey, intent and earnest and concerned. 

“He almost died,” Rhodey says. 

“His son died in his arms,” he says. 

“He isn’t going to fix this,” he says. 

“Fix your own goddamn mess,” he snarls. 

He leaves Rogers there, starled and shocked and Tony curls in his lap and neither of them talk about it. 

~*~ 

Sometimes. 

When the Compound is quiet and the world is still and the grief is swamping, he will go to Peter’s room, curl in a corner and cry, silent and shaking, for the child that they lost.

His grief is an immense and private thing, small in comparison to Tony’s all-consuming loss. 

He grieves alone, falls apart in the dark where no one can see him, and in the morning, he smiles and he nudges Tony to eat and he puts on the suit and goes out to piece the world together. 

~*~ 

Tony tells him. Pepper is asleep on the couch and they’re sitting outside, the eerie silence almost familiar after a year. The air is clearer, and as he stares up at the star spangled sky he dreams he can see Titan. 

“We’re moving,” Tony says. Rhodey closes his eyes. Unsurprised, but still--it stings. “I can’t do this anymore,” Tony says, soft, plaintive. 

“I know,” Rhodey says. 

They’re silent, Tony leaning against his shoulder and the stars overhead. 

~*~ 

The night before they move, Rhodey finds himself almost at a loss. Pepper is already gone, supervising the movers. Tony is awkward and anxious at a team dinner for a broken team he doesn’t trust. Rhodey--Rhodey feels torn between two worlds and he misses Peter so much it hurts. 

He slips into the boy’s room in the dark, when the Compound is quiet and it doesn’t smell like Pete anymore, but it still looks like him, layered in every surface and space, and he feels familiar tears prickle the back of his eyes. 

He’s only a little surprised when Tony slips in behind him, curls on the bed against his back. 

“You never said you missed him,” Tony whispers. 

“He wasn’t mine to miss,” Rhodey says, and it’s true and it’s not. 

“Pete belonged to all of us,” Tony says, fierce and sad. “He loved all of us.” 

Rhodey shudders, twists and hides his face against Tony’s chest, and cries. 

Tony’s arms around him hold him together as he falls apart. 

~*~ 

It never stops hurting. 

It never gets easier. 

But the dam breaks, and Tony talks about Pete, sometimes. 

Rhodey does. Pepper does. 

Sometimes, Rhodey can think about him and it’s a familiar ache instead of a needle sharp stabbing pain. Sometimes, he can think about him and he smiles. 

~*~ 

The world spins on and he does what he can to fix it, to put it to rights. 

Pepper has a little girl and she isn’t Peter, won’t ever replace him, but she’s brilliant and beautiful and Tony smiles at her, holds her like she’s precious and grins, proud and pleased and eager to share this miracle with him and Rhodey holds her, holds his niece and blinks back tears. 

“You’ve got the best daddy in the whole world, sweetheart,” he whispers. 

~*~ 

Scott comes and he brings hope with him and Tony--

Tony kisses the sweetest smartest baby in the world and puts on the suit and lays it all on the line, his eyes bright and fiercely determined, and Rhodey thinks, again, the same thing he’s thought so many times. 

Tony was always going to be an amazing father.

[ghostprincess]

Sweet Things, Ch. 1 (Mysterio x Reader)

I finally got around to posting something. Yay! This has been stirring around my brain for a while, since before the movie came out, and I’m glad I can characterize Quentin as mostly canon. This series’ title will be based off of “Sweet Things” by The Pretty Reckless because I love that song and couldn’t think of a better title. 

Summary: Mysterio kidnaps Y/N Parker as leverage against Peter, as well as because he has taken a liking to her. But the longer she stays with him, the more twisted her reality becomes, until it’s nothing but him. Will Peter be able to save her before it’s too late? Dark!fic, Stockholm Syndrome, dub-con, etc.

Warnings: ffh spoilers, violence, drug/tranquilizer use (but that happens in the movie), uhhh Mysterio is his own warning so??

The notion of chaperoning my brother’s field trip did not strike me as exciting. I dreaded the long flight and the presence of hormonal teenagers. Add in all the shared trauma from the “blip” and it all seemed to create a hearty concoction of disaster.  

However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the trip was not as bad as I thought it would be. One of the new superheroes, Mysterio, had been helping Peter and what was left of SHIELD to destroy a new threat against the planet. He was a man named Quentin, a warrior from another dimension, who had lost his family and his entire planet to these creatures. I guess shared trauma wouldn’t be the word to use here, but given my history of losing my entire family for five years, we had some things in common that made him almost magnetic.

Besides the disastrous attacks of the impossibly terrifying Elementals and the looming threat of the earth’s destruction, I was having a pretty okay time. It wasn’t that Mysterio was pure eye candy… though he was… but he had a very unique personality that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. Ever since the night I met him, I couldn’t stop thinking about him. His presence was electric, and although he was righteous and tortured and brave, something seemed… off. I suppose that happens when you have to put on a facade to save a planet that isn’t even yours, though. I couldn’t imagine what he’d been through, or how he somehow hid the pain behind his piercing azure blue eyes.

The sudden sounds of laughter and joyous screams pierced the air around me, pulling me from my daydream and putting me on edge. I was stationed on the grounds of the carnival in order to help the innocent civilians escape the attack that was about to break out. The night seemed normal and fun, as it should be; but I knew that would all end soon. 

Peter’s voice suddenly murmured electronically into my earpiece, confirming his position to Fury and Mysterio.

“Peter, please be careful,” I whispered into the comm, stomach doing backflips. I couldn’t lose him again.

“I know, I will, Y/N,” he responded before being interrupted by Fury’s irritated voice. I took the earpiece out and turned it off, knowing that if I listened to them fight I would either get extremely anxious or accidentally distract them with my big mouth. 

I dropped the earpiece into my shoulder bag and looked around; no sign of trouble yet, just a seemingly normal night of partying at the carnival. People in masks and colorful clothes ran around excitedly and the smells of popcorn and cotton candy wafted through the air.

No sign of fire or smoke anywhere. Was Beck really sure of the creature’s arrival? 

I looked around again, scanning the crowd for any signs of distress, but found nothing. Except.... one of Peter’s friends, the girl he liked, walked past me obliviously. 

Shit, they’re supposed to be at the opera!

I reached into my bag to report the unexpected arrival into the earpiece, but was interrupted when the ground shook and I nearly lost my balance. The sounds of cracking and sizzling interrupted the carnival music followed by the horrified screams of the civilians. The wind suddenly transformed into a gust of hot air and a large orange mass began to emerge from the ground. 

As the crowd began to scream and run away, chaos broke loose and I was being shoved in the crowd. I pushed back against the swarm of people, desperately trying to push them behind me to safety, making sure I could save as many people as possible.

“Go! Get out of here! Run!” I screamed. A circus tent was mostly blocking my view of the main battle, flashes of molten orange and electric green lighting up the night. The monster’s horrible screams became louder and the ground shook harder as it seemingly gained strength.

The crowd finally parted enough to where I could stand behind a tent and have a good sense of what was going on while staying hidden. I got the last of the crowd out of the way after a few minutes of pushing and shoving them out of the way of falling debris, then stopped to listen to the fight.   

The urge to eavesdrop on the comms between Peter and Beck was overwhelming, especially considering that Beck’s laser-energy blasts sounded almost useless against the creature. I desperately hoped Peter was okay, and my knees trembled as a fear-induced nausea began to wash over me. I looked around the side of the tent just as a large green explosion shook the night sky, the energy of the blast pushing me to the ground. 

Mysterio had done something huge; possibly lethal by the looks of it. The man was no longer hovering in the air and shooting lasers, and the green lights blinded most of my vision. I shielded my eyes and stayed on the ground until the electric zapping noises died down, and the monster’s wails disappeared. 

I looked around the edge of the tent again and saw Peter’s silhouette standing over Beck’s kneeling form, and I immediately ran towards them. He’s okay. He survived.

“Peter!” I yelled in panic, and pulled him into a tight embrace.

“I-I’m okay, a-are you hurt?” he responded, looking crestfallen despite the victory. 

“I’m fine. Beck, are you okay?” I asked, reaching a shaky hand out to him.

“Well, now that you’re here, I’m alright.” He half-smirked at me and accepted my hand, pulling himself to his feet, his body slightly twisted in pain. I could almost feel Peter’s eye roll, and I didn’t blame him, though I found myself blushing nonetheless.

“Thank you for having his back,” I smiled, pulling the man into a tight embrace. I pulled away as I remembered seeing MJ and my stomach dropped, knowing I hadn’t seen her while I was evacuating the crowd.

“Oh! Peter, I have to tell you, I saw—“

“Y/N, go back to your base. We’re having a mission debrief and it’s need-to-know,” Fury interrupted from behind me. I startled, not even knowing he was there, then sighed.

“Alright. Peter, call me when you get back,” I said. I nodded at Beck with a sad smile and then turned and began the walk from the destroyed carnival back to the hotel. 

Having a younger brother as a superhero had definitely put me in some weird situations, but this has got to be among the top ranked. Especially when said younger brother used to be the same age as me until he was dusted for half a decade. My predicament was unique and exciting but no less terrifying and traumatizing. 

When Peter and May had returned, I had been in denial for days, thinking I’d finally gone crazy, until Captain America himself was brought in to explain to me what had happened. Ever since then, I’d been very protective of Peter, knowing that if I lost him again I would truly not survive. Silent tears escaped my eyes and I quickly wiped them away. 

He’ll be okay. They did it.

The distressed look in his eyes despite his victory begged to differ, and the thought ate at me relentlessly. What could have been wrong? Was he hurt? My heart rate was through the roof and I could feel the panic setting in as I imagined losing him again.

I entered the hotel and walked straight to my room, slipping past the students and two teachers frolicking around the lobby. MJ passed me in the hallway, looking shaken but unharmed, and I breathed a sigh of relief. 

I entered my room, 131, and I shut and locked the door behind me, finally sinking to my knees and allowing myself to hyperventilate. I couldn’t help but wonder whether the monster was really dead; what if it regenerated? What if another one showed up? Peter could’ve been in danger right now for all I knew, he could’ve…

Throughout the night, my thoughts slowly quieted down. I stood in the shower until the hot water ran out, the too-hot temperature being somewhat grounding and cathartic in my state. After I threw on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, I got into bed, the exhaustion finally hitting my body.

Knock knock knock.

I startled, sitting up in the bed and flicking on the lamp beside the bed. The clock read 1:42 AM. The knock had come from the window, and I looked up, seeing the figure floating outside my window. Mysterio. 

I quickly stood up and walked to the window to slide it open. He floated inside and then landed in front of me, the silvery helmet disappearing. His face showed pity and I looked away, embarrassed that he could read me so easily.

“Peter’s alright, I promise. Just got some verbal backlash from Fury, that’s all.” 

“Oh… okay. He never called me when he got back; he got back, right?”

“Hey, hey, it’s okay. Of course. He said something about talking to a girl he likes, so he’s probably just busy.”

“Oh, okay, that’s… that’s good.” I breathed a sigh of relief, falling back to sit on the edge of my bed.

“But how are you? Are you alright? I know it has to be scary, to have all this happening,” Beck said, putting a soothing hand on my shoulder. I looked up at him. His gaze was soft but calculated, as if he felt pity but knew what I was going to say before I said it.

“I’m fine. I just… can’t lose my brother again. Everything that happened with the snap, it just… it took its toll, I guess.” 

Beck sat down next to me and wrapped a comforting arm around me. 

“I’m really sorry to have to do this, Y/N.” I looked up at him in confusion.

“What do you m—“ A sharp pain blossomed in the side of my neck and I gasped. Beck pulled the empty syringe out and tucked it into a compartment in his armor, then watched as I tried to stand up. The room was spinning and my body was getting heavier, and I tried to run to the door to escape. What is going on?

Beck grabbed my arm and that was all it took for me to collapse to my knees, my vision slowly fading out. He walked to kneel in front of me and smiled sadly.

“I really am sorry. I’ll explain when you wake up.”

Just then, I heard a frantic banging at the door, and Peter’s voice yelling my name. It sounded distant and echoey, and what direction was it coming from?

“Shhh, don’t want to alert our company,” Beck whispered, and then everything went black.

[i-write-sometimes-blog]

Earth Girl (Rey x Reader) Two

Request: "Reader traveling the galaxy with Rey? If that makes sense."

"Loved the Earth Girl imagine!!! Would you be able to do a part two please? Maybe when they get back to the resistance base and they debrief the reader and ask her questions about earth and what not? and a lot of fluff with Rey of course!!"

Words: 1, 732

A/N: This was really fun to make! I seriously can keep going and going, it's like I'm writing a escape from my boring life. Hope you guys like this!!! Part one. Let's just pretend the Star wars movies and comics doesn't exist in this world.

“Movies?” Rey asked with a big smile on her face, she was so excited to learn about Earth, how was like to be there, what you eat, everything. “What is that?” was the usual question that came after you mentioned something new for her.

“Like… like a recording and there’s people that act as others” you explained. By that time you had learned that the space and earth wasn’t that different, both had things that were the same but they called in another way, so you tried your best to describe the things to Rey in a way she could understand what they were. “They usually tell stories”

“About what?” she said her eyes focused on your face as she impatiently waited for the answer.

“The past, the present, the future, every sort of stories. The relationship of a royal lady and a boy that fell in love in a big ship that sank in the ocean, for example” you giggled “Everything is possible in a movie.”

“Sounds amazing” Rey told you. “You said there are movies about people from other parts of the galaxy. How do they look like?”

You chuckled, it was still unbelievable for you that you were not longer in earth and instead you were sitting at the edge of a spaceship looking down at the strange scenario of this rebel base where humans, droids and a variety of species of “aliens” passed by. And the truth was the movies didn’t really made justice to this, you didn’t believe a single person back at home would even imagine a thing like that.

“Not like this” you started “Most of them are slim green beings with big black eyes” you couldn’t help but laugh at the memory of those tiny cartoon characters. “None of them looks like you, which is such a shame if you ask me” you told her giving her a wink and eliciting a laugh from the brunette.

“Hey, Rey!” someone yelled. It was the young charming pilot you met the day Rey rescued you, Poe if you remembered good. “Leia is back. Time has come, earth girl” he said referring to you. The General Organa had finally arrived to the base, she would decided if you stay or not with them or if she send you back to your past and boring life.

A few minutes after you were walking through the endless corridors of the Resistance base. The pilot was walking in front of you leading the way, Rey was by your side supporting you, she seemed to be a very protective person and you were glad to have her with you, rescuing you from being sold as a slave was a thing you never pay her. On the other side was the little sphere droid with orange patterns that beeped in a very high pitch something you couldn’t understand, not even with the universal translator on your neck.

“We talked about this, BB-8” you heard Poe said “Earth girl has to go back to her planet”

“Stop calling her that, Poe” said Rey in an almost angry way. “She has a name”

“Yeah, I know” he said annoying Rey. “We’re almost there” he informed you as he nodded towards a big room with a lot of people inside a woman talking to them in a firm tone.

General Leia Organa, Rey talked you about her and as far as you knew she used to be a princess from a planet not longer existed. She also told you about the history of her family and oh boy it was really confusing. Her father was a big bad man that tried to rule the galaxy, she had a twin brother and he was something called a Jedi. You were still processing all the information.

And there she was standing in front of a big crowd not doubting a single word. You waited ‘till her meeting was over and the she came directly to you and shook your hand.

“Y/N, it’s a pleasure to finally met you” she said “Rey and Finn had tell me what happened in that planet, I still cannot believe it” you were a bit confused not exactly knowing how to respond or how to even talk to this kind looking woman.

“Neither do I” you answered forcing a smile.

“General, the interrogation room is ready” informed a soldier behind her.

“Won’t be necessary, she really is from Earth” said Leia

“But, General, we don’t know yet. She could be a spy” continued the man.

“She’s not” said firmly the General, and thanked that she was on your side. “Give some clothes to this girl, she need to be unnoticed. Gods know what could happen if someone else finds out where is she from” she ordered with a soft smile on her face before turning around. The doubt invaded you.

“Wait” you called out and she faced you. “What’s going to happen now? why is it so important to be from earth? I don’t understand why people get so surprised about it.” since the very start you were wondering that, why people wanted so desperate to buy a human from your overpopulated planet?

Leia sighed before she raised her voice again.

“The Milky Way is a forbidden galaxy, your solar system is the only one with an inhabited planet, often taken for a myth.” She explained “My dear child, please don’t tell anybody where you’re from, for your own good. I’ll try to find a way to take you back to your home but for now my hands are tied” she said. How kind was this woman.

“Thanks” you told her, this was too much information. That was why the scientist never had found anything in the planets nearby, and you were the only one that knew that, you were sure they would take you as a crazy back in home if you’d tell them that.

“So what should we do with her for now?” asked Poe that had been quietly listening.

“I believe Rey can answer you that, Poe” she smiled “I like that plan, take her there, Rey” General Organa said before she was gone. You looked at Rey, what plan? she hadn’t even speak. It was like she had read her mind or something, you wasn’t sure but at this point it wouldn't be surprising if they told you that was a possible thing to do.

“So?” you asked Rey as she smiled back at you.

“Takodana” she said.

“What’s that?” now it was you who was making questions about how this world so far away from yours worked.

“A planet, you’re gonna like it, Y/N” she said and gestured over the exit door as she offered you her hand, without blinking you took her hand and she guided you outside to met the ship she had rescued you and now you knew it was called the Millenium Falcon and used to be Han Solo’s a rebel hero from the past war, who was also Leia’s husband and they had a son.... Well, this family was really chaotic, and you used to think that one movie with a girl that didn’t know who of the three men was her father was confusing.

Everything here was much more interesting that in your own planet, better than the same old routine everyday, the empty life you had and even though you were unfamiliar with mostly everything around you it felt more like living, as if all those years back on earth you hadn’t being alive until now, running holding hands with this beautiful and kind woman.

And then you were traveling through space with her, looking the hypnotic view of the lightspeed. You felt Rey’s gaze focused on you and seeing from the corner of your eyes you caught her smiling softly at you, as if she was watching a kid seeing snow from the first time, and you felt like that if you were honest.

“Takuduna” you said looking at her.

“Takodana” Rey corrected you giggling.

“Why this planet?” you told her still exploring the ship with your eyes, there were too many buttons and levers.

“I like it” she said “It has a lot of green and blue, a nice weather and we have a friend that lives there” she said, her words denoting true happiness by this planet.

“You born in this place?” you asked.

“No, I don’t know where I was born” she said with a sad tone “I used to live in Jakku” you were so curious about her, you wanted to know everything about this woman.

“And how is Jakku?”

“It’s a desert, sand everywhere, a powerful sun that really burn your skin and makes you sweat a lot. You wouldn’t like it, Y/N” she said

“That’s why you left?” you interrogated.

“No, I… I wasn’t gonna leave but I found BB-8” she started, her words having trouble to leave her lips. You knew this part of the story, Finn told you about how he met Rey and what happened next.

“Why you stayed in that planet then, Rey?” you tried to helped a bit.

“I was waiting for my family but” she paused “They just didn’t come” you cursed yourself in your mind as you saw how sad Rey looked now.

“Sorry” you said as you got closer to Rey.

“It’s okay” she said. Suddenly the ship got out of lightspeed and revealed a planet that looked very similar to yours, except that you couldn’t actually tell if there were continentes but it reminded you of earth.

“For a moment I thought you brought me back home” you told Rey and her eyes filled with desire to learn once again.

“Earth looks like this?” she asked as she glanced at the planet.

“Kind of” you said and Rey sat at the pilot seat to fly the ship to the green planet.

“I would like to see it” she murmured “Y/N, your home sounds so great” she said.

“You wouldn’t like it, Rey” you said repeating her words. “Believe me once you put a feet there you’ll hate it. This is much better” you said smiling at her. “Traveling with you, I really like it” you saw her smile growing bigger as she reached to taker your hand.

“And you haven’t seen anything, yet”

[moonlit-imagines]

Chicago (Part 2)

Steve Harrington x Wheeler!reader

warnings:

a/n: im an awful writer n i dont think ill be writing another chapter

prompt: yeehaw

part 1

“You didn’t tell me he was your ex-boyfriend.” You said as you rolled your eyes at Nancy.

“That’s because it doesn’t matter, we’re both past our relationship and you guys would be a perfect pair.” Nancy explained.

“It would’ve been some nice information to share, that’s all I’m saying.” You lifted your hands.

“Well, now you’re too deep in to hesitate. If you knew before, you would be having second thoughts.” She shrugged. You shook your head with a smirk and grabbed your bag. “Going to see him?”

“Maybe...” You avoided her eye contact with a slight laugh. “I’ll be back in time for dinner.”

—————

“Ahoy, mate!” Steve shouted at the counter.

“Ahoy, dork!” You retorted. Steve laughed at your comeback and kissed you from over the counter.

“My shift ends in twenty, want some ice cream?” Steve grabbed a waffle cone. “USS Butterscotch?” You nodded, then heard yelling in the breakroom.

“What’s going on?” You asked Steve. He packed your cone and handed it to you.

“They found some secret Russian code and traced it back here. They’re having some secret mission tonight, wanna come?” Steve explained. You took a bite of your ice cream and contemplated the idea.

“Hell yes.” You replied. You headed to the back to listen to the mission debriefing.

—————

How did you end up in an secret Russian elevator? Bad choices. That’s how. You were pacing around this elevator while the other four where screaming at each other.

“Shut up!” You shouted and everyone turned to your direction. You took a deep breath and they did the same before going back to screaming. You spent eight hours in there before having to crawl out the top and hide from the Big Bad Russians. Fortunately, you didn’t get caught and you roamed their base freely. Even got to see Steve fight a Russian soldier. But eventually you all got caught, it was only a matter of time. The kids got away, luckily. But you were interrogated. You put up a good fight, though.

Steve, Robin, and you were strapped together and freaking out. Soon enough, you were injected with something and began to feel it a bit later. It was all shits and giggles for a while, then the children came to save the day. You thought you were hallucinating. Back to the surface you went, you even got to see a movie.

“Hey, Steve, hey, hey, guess what?” You tapped his shoulder repeatedly.

“What?” He asked with a smile.

“Chicken butt!” You and him both died laughing.

“Shh!” The lady behind you stuck a finger to her mouth.

“Shhhhhh!” You replied.

“Guess what?” Steve whispered.

“What?” You answered.

“You’re adorable!” He and you broke into laughter again, and were shushed.

“Come here, lovebirds.” Robin dragged you out of the theater. “Water fountain!” She pointed. All three of you took turns drinking. Then you got dizzy and hauled ass the the bathrooms, where you puked up your insides.

“Think we got it out of our systems?” You asked as you backed your head against the wall and reached under the stall to grab Steve’s hand.

“Ceiling stopped spinning.” Steve muttered.

“Ask me something.” Robin instructed.

“When’s the last time you peed your pants?” Steve asked.

“Today.” She replied and you all started laughing. “When they pulled out the bone saw!” Your giggles filled the bathroom and Dustin kicked the door open.

“Come on!” He shouted. There were Russians guarding the exits, so you made a run for it. Then you heard a crash and looked up from behind the counter you were hiding at. You were completely lost on how the car from the food court had been thrown across the mall. You looked up to see El and the group of kids you met a week ago, along with a newer face. And your cousins.

“Nancy? Mike? What the hell?!” You started freaking out with Robin, but Steve grabbed you.

“Hey, slow down. We’ll catch you up.” Steve pulled you into a hug. You listened to Nancy’s story about the monster attacking Hawkins and how it was coming and the gate was under the mall.

“Wait, that’s what we saw down there? That was a portal to another dimension?!” You started freaking out again. Steve took your arm and wrapped his arm around the front of you, kissing the top of your head. Nancy smiled at that, and Mike eyed Steve. Then El collapsed on the floor. You all rushed to her side and watched Nancy’s boyfriend cut her leg open. You couldn’t bare to watch and hear her screams.

“I don’t understand what all of this is.” You told Steve. “She has powers? There’s an inter-dimensional demon in Hawkins? A bunch of kids are the ones who always fight it? You’re all messing with me, aren’t you?” You started laughing anxiously.

“Are you okay?” Steve asked, grabbing your hand.

“Sorry, yeah, when I start freaking out I laugh hysterically.” You laughed harder. Steve pulled you into another hug, which calmed your fit of laughter after a moment. You were breathing a bit hard and shook your head. “One week in Hawkins and this is what it has to offer.”

“Hey, everything’ll be fine. It always is.” Steve assured.

“Y/N?” Nancy called to you. “Can you use one of these.” She handed you a revolver.

“I was raised by Todd Wheeler in Chicago, of course I can use one of these.” You checked how many bullets were left inside. Fully loaded, six bullets ready to go.

—————

You were not expecting anything that night had to offer. When Nancy brought you and Mike home, you all washed up and went to bed. She came to see how you were doing, and the answer was “not good.” Your cousin sat at the edge of your bed and talked to you about anything to get it off your mind.

“How are you doing with Steve?” She asked you. You sat up straight against your headboard and smiled.

“Good, good. We’re not official yet, but he’s been treating me well so far. I hope it goes somewhere. Do you think it’s weird? Like, since we’re cousins?” You brought your knees up to your chest and hugged them.

“No! No, it’s not weird, don’t worry. I really think you and Steve are gonna be a good couple, and you know everything about the Upside Down situation, which is a bonus. It’s hard when you can’t talk to the other person about that.” She explained. “You should go see him tomorrow.” The two of you talked until you passed out on your bed. Karen caught sight of that in the morning and smiled to herself. She looked forward to you being apart of her family.

Morning came and you were woken up by Steve.

“Sorry, your aunt let me inside and told me I should wake you.” He whispered, not wanting to wake Nancy. “Do you want to go somewhere with me? I don’t care where, just...somewhere.”

“Yeah, let me get dressed.” You grabbed some clothes from your closet and got ready im the bathroom. You stared at yourself in the mirror. You had bruises around your torso and marks on your face that you tried your best to cover. You took a deep breath and emerged from the bathroom.

“Ready?” Steve asked as her grabbed your hand. You nodded and he led you out of the house. You stepped into his car and he hesitated to start it. “Are you okay after last night?”

“I’m okay, Steve. Don’t worry.” You grabbed his hand. “Let’s just go somewhere peaceful where we don’t need to think about the supernatural.”

“Say no more,” Steve started the car and drove down Maple Street, “I know the perfect place.”

[theysaywhatasadsight]

Wedding Bells, Part One (Steve Rogers x Desi!Reader)

A/n: *Slides up to you* Good Evening (technically its morning hehe) but this fic was made possible by Amy (some may know her, she was formerly @thelazypangolin ), by @messy-random-bitch and @officially-tonynat-shrine who listened to my crazy headcanons and gave me amazing ones. @nasarogers is the clueless American I would die for (love you bby) and @shurisneakers and @chillingbucky wanted to be tagged. Technically this is a desi au, so translations are right next to the sentence and some pop culture references are in the glossary. The story is based in Delhi so if any of y’all live there don’t come for my head skkssk. (P.S.: IDK if the ‘person sitting in the lap of another person in a car’ is technically illegal here or not? Imagine my surprise when I went to Europe and found out it’s illegal there RIP. So ignore the “is this actually allowed?” question, please and thank you.

Warnings: Floof, some violence and blood, swearing (well it’s in another language)

"Agent (L/N), thoughts?" The post mission debrief was often long and complicated but this time, one of her many gods had clearly smiled upon her as it was over in an hour. Most of the junior agents had cleared out of the room, leaving behind a few of the senior ones and the director of SHIELD. "Don't let Richardson go next time; all he does is whine and make extremely bad decisions. Our job is to provide assistance to the Avengers, not to be heroes ourselves. Let's keep ourselves a bit on the down low." "Agreed." Smith piped up. There were nods around the table. "I'll talk to Richardson, push him on a desk job for a while." Everyone stood up and filled out. Walking beside Nick, YN grabbed his tablet for him. "Always working, Sir." "Unlike you, Agent (L/N). A whole month for a wedding? It's not you that's getting married is it?" He looked completely serious but she could see the glint of mischief in his eye. "What? I haven't taken a single holiday in a year. Besides,its my cousin's wedding; they're pretty close." "I suppose you're not joining us for the Islamabad mission?" "Not really, already I get called unpatriotic too much. Good luck!"

She handed off the debrief files in the Avengers' living room. A few were lazing around, some off to shower or maybe nap. She herself wanted one, not wanting to wrestle with a saree and a suitcase. "So I hear you're not showing up for the next month?" She handed the file to Natasha while Tony looked up from his phone where he was declining with Pepper and Morgan who were away to Chicago for a meeting and visiting Pepper's family. After Ultron, it was always better to have physical copies of files. "Yeah, cousin getting married." "Oooh, with the number of days you were leaving I thought it was yours." "Don't, Fury already made that joke. And besides, wouldn't I invite you lot to my hypothetical wedding?" She smiled as she sat down on the sofa next to him, grabbing an apple from the coffee table. "Considering it was Steve's wedding too I would think we would already be invited, I did call you all to mine." He smirked. Y/N nearly choked on her apple. "Wait, what?!" "Darling, we know you've been hooking up. Or planning to." Natasha sighed and glared at Tony. "So much staring at each other on missions. You always covering his ass, and might I remind you of the time he went into a coma after a mission and you nearly ripped the place apart?" "Clearly, your super senses are gone because there is nothing there. Nada. Zilch. There is absolutely no potential there. We're just colleagues." "Colleagues who hooked up once? Last new year's you two were slobbering over each other. You left Bucky and Me dancing alone to that...what was it called again?" "Sheila ki Jawani*?" "Yes! Amazing song, by the way. Movie didn't make a lick of sense but then again, which heist movie does?" Glad at the change of topic, she smiled. "Do you need more movie recommendations?" "Nope, Bucky and I still have your old list to go through." "Call me if you need explanations. Only WhatsApp calls though, I'm not shelling out a fortune to explain the reincarnation of Shanti Priya* to you."

Hungry, jet lagged and extremely fatigued she landed at the Delhi airport, hoping against hope that the crowd assembled at the pick up was for the Tik Tok star that was also on her flight and not because her whole clan hadn't seen her for 3 years. But when was she ever lucky? When she had left the army to join SHIELD everyone had been very disappointed in her. Not that any of them knew. For immediate family, she was in HR for Stark Industries and for the rest she was in 'Amreeka, doing something or the other'.

When they told her she would be sleeping alongside her younger cousin who was training to be a doctor she just sighed. The nerd would probably study the whole night and keep the light on. Maybe she could do some pending work; jet lag would keep her awake anyway. Work, yes. Work would keep her awake. Definitely not daydreaming about a pair of blue eyes that wouldn't go away; the owner of whom was the biggest fattu (coward)  she had ever seen.

He missed Y/N. It had barely been 4 days since she was gone. He should ideally know better. Fraternising among agents wasn't good. Her job would be in danger if anyone found out. He never really had a thing for rules though. "Good God, Rogers, stop moping about and give her a call." "I-what?" "Yes." Natasha frowned at him from where she was leaning against the countertop. He was crushing the cardamom, trying to figure out if it went after the chai was done or before. "Ask her when the cardamom goes in. I think it's before the whole thing boils." "I, uh, I'll look up a recipie." "Care to tell me why Steve Rogers, who loves coffee as black as his soul is trying to replicate YN's sweet as hell chai? Couldn't you get some from Starbucks?" "That's no chai,that's just tea and milk. She had it once and almost threw it at the barista's head...Nat, why are you looking at me like that?" "Nothing, nothing at all."

"They're no longer in Islamabad." "What?" "Someone leaked the details of the raid to them. They're moving it to India now, possibly to the capital. They have enough contacts to pull it off, even HYDRA's helping them." "New Delhi, isn't that where Agent (L/N) is now?" "Fury, she's on vacation; besides she's not picking up any of her calls." Natasha glared at Nick. "A radioactive gas that can take out the entire subcontinent and a dude who's not stopping at anything to further his our-return-to-the-dark-ages agenda? Pretty sure it beats all weddings. Send someone with the briefing and gather your team. We’re sorting this shit out, fast."

"No. Absolutely not. I'm not going to show up at her door asking her to cancel her family commitments and go back to work." "Really, the concern you two have for each other is extremely sweet and nauseating; but you have to do it. Get in, get recon and get back in contact. If the rumour is true we'll have to assemble the whole team." The former assassin rolled her eyes at Steve's aghast face. "I got her address off an old file; I'll ask her to pick you up. And please, don't get lost somewhere; we really don't have any spare agents to track you down." "I've been outside the States before, Widow. And using confidential information for personal purposes? Nefarious." "This is the reward I get for being a good wingwoman. Fine, don't come crying to me when you're invited to her actual wedding." As he set about packing he daydreamed about jumping off the top of the compound and wondering if his feet would still work to escape into the surrounding forest.

She got the text the minute Natasha assumed Steve's plane took off. "Your boyfriend is headed towards Delhi. Introduce him, be the black sheep you are and for the love of God read the files and make a plan." The rest was just code saying the plans had changed, the expected mission derailed. When her family began pestering her, saying that her turn at the altar was next and asking about boyfriends, she had blurted Steve's name by accident, the fact that it made a perfect cover was a different matter. That's what happens when you space out while talking to Sunita Chachi*, woman has a tongue sharper than Gordon Ramsay's knife. Her mother had just smiled sadly and asked two of YN's younger cousins to share a bed when told another guest would be joining them.

30 minutes after the plane landed he immediately wanted to go back. What he was used to was executing secret and well-coordinated missions, not the actual planning and coordinating. Sam argued he was growing soft. He just liked listening to YN's voice. And now he was in an unfamiliar land with no foreseeable end to his stay and a wedding to attend, apparently. YN smiled at him at the receiving line, smiling as a lover receiving a spouse after a long separation. She walked up to him and whispered "You're my boyfriend from work, you know zero hindi and Natasha introduced us." She embraced him and leaned forward for a kiss. It lasted shorter than he would've liked. She continued whispering as she grasped his hand and lead him to the car which already had three people in it. "Did you pick up more guests?" "Nope, they just wanted to see you first." Opening the door as Steve tossed his bag in the back she yelled something at the assembled children and got in the right. Was the kid in the front supposed to drive? "Do you need an invitation?" One of the kids yelled out.

He had judged wrong. There were not only three teenagers, there were two more kids who had been too shy to outright stare at him like their elder siblings (he assumed) had. One sat in his lap, staring outside the window. The others chose instead to glare at him unnervingly. YN drove, swearing at everything. One of the younger ones laughed at something she said and immediately had his ears covered and shushed."Didi* don't teach Gudiya bad words!"

"Arey baba sorry, tu toh janta hai traffic kitna bura hai; akele chalane ki adaat ho gayi hai bhenchod. Sorry."  (“You know how bad traffic is, I’m used to driving alone, sisterfucker” Basically the reader’s saying the traffic is the worst and how she’s used to driving alone and hence swears often while driving; also people from Delhi apparently like to attach swears to everything.)  She grinned as her cousin gasped again. She was at the moral, change-the-world stage. YN missed that.

“So, change of plans?” Pinky grinned at Y/N as she looked up from a complicated looking textbook. The kid had somehow made it to medical school without losing her mind or her calm demeanour. “I’m only gonna switch places at night, right now let me study Anatomy.”Sighing at her cousin’s confused stare, she glared back.  “Arey you’ll want to sleep next to your boyfriend na?” “Uh, yeah, I mean, thank you, but it’s no problem. I don’t want you to get in trouble because of me.” “Calm down. If we get caught sneaking around in the middle of the night its worse for the two of you. I got into MBBS, I can basically get away with murder now.” she smiled. Y/N wondered whether her cousin would be a sociopath or a leader later. She went about chalking up the updated plan for the recon, only hoping her family would behave themselves around Steve. She caught some part of her wishing it was the real thing so that the poor guy’s suffering wouldn’t be in vain.

Hey bhagwaan (oh God), I need gangajal* and a stiff drink. Also a lobotomy.

“How did that idiot even cross the border this quick? And how are we getting informed this late? This is going to be a logistical nightmare, the government is going to put the pressure on us.” “Maybe someone exposed him or he got pushed back down on the social hierarchy. It’s a mess.” On the pretense of sightseeing, Y/n had dragged Steve away from her nosy relatives to get details for the now completely changed mission. "Can I try that?" He gestured to the bowl of chaat* in her hands. "Don't cry if you find it too spicy then. You couldn't even tolerate my butter chicken; even my youngest cousin can eat that." "My tongue is really not fond of burning and not being able to taste anything for a fortnight." "Oh? What is it fond of then?" His answering blush made her smile. "I-uh, we need to report within three days, Nat is busy getting everyone together and ready for the mission." "The engagement is in 2 days! How are we even going to get out?" "How much do you like this cousin anyway?" "How. Dare. You. Rahul is one of the few I actually like." "Yeah, how many are there? I lost count at 13." She punched his arm and snorted, earning a smile from him and a glare from the chaatwala*.

YN truly regretted coming back here. The never ending taunts, the upcoming solo recon mission (that she would have to give Rahul’s engagement a miss for, he was one of her favorites too) and the fact that the guy she had been thirsting over the past few months was suddenly her so-called boyfriend. Massaging her temples as she got up to get ready, she hoped desperately the recon would not involving fighting. She already had thinning hair due to the stresses of being a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, her hair being yanked out while pins were still attached to her hair wouldn’t help the cause.

"Mummy!" She yelled over the din of the loud, jarring music. Her mother was smiling and gossiping with her sister-in-law. "Thoda kaam aa gaya; Delhi wale office Jana padega." (Some work popped up, I’ll have to go to the Delhi office) "Itni raat ko? Uss gore ko lekar?" (So late? With the foreigner in tow?”) "Are kuch nahi hoga, bohot important hai, warna nahi jaati." (Nothing will happen. It’s too important, otherwise I wouldn’t have gone.) "Wapis aa jaiyo jaldi, raat ko ghumne safe nahi hota." (Come back quick, It's not safe to roam at night.) "Pakka." (I promise)

"MADARCHOD!" (”MOTHERFUCKER!”) She grunted as she ducked, the bullet nearly embedding in her collarbone. She fired back two shots, one at a goon's head and one at his accomplice's knees. Whipping her head at a noise, she gasped as Steve has a bullet graze him as one of them took a lucky shot at him. He only winced. The goddamn lehenga* got in the way of her running after the idiot who could run like fucking Milkha Singh* even after being shot in the knees. They both chased. The recon turned ugly after someone spotted the tent she was wearing that was pretending to be a skirt. If they somehow got out alive, she'd burn this thing. By the time she caught up to Steve, who had left her long behind, she came upon a sight that gave her a heart attack. The men (apparently some were laying in wait for them) all lay dead in various poses, with Steve in the middle grunting and struggling to get up. Firing at someone who awoke, she leaned down, cradling his head in her hands. "Steve. Hey, whoa. Don't die on me. Where are you hurt?" He was bleeding all over her skirt. "Knife to the ribs. Two or three times..may...maybe. Hurts like a bitch." "I'm getting you up. We're going home, okay?"

This was a terrible situation. Somehow supporting the huge, burly figure of an extremely injured Steve, she set him down, leaning against the bike they had zipped around on and somehow escaped on, looking for her phone in the carrier attached. She lived this bike even when she lived here; it belonged to her uncle who would give the keys to only her. The sagaai* had clearly ended an hour or so ago. People still milled about, probably the men from the tent house they had booked for the whole tamasha*. “Shobhit, neeche aa. Garden ke side. Aur Bunty aur Puneet ko bhi leke aaiyo.” (”Shobhit, come downstairs, to the garden side. Bring Bunty and Puneet with you.") “Itni raat ko kya kar rahi ho bahar? Khatam ho gaya aapka office ka kaam?” ("What are you doing out so late, is your office work done?") “Are tu neeche aa, sab samjhaati hu.” ("You come downstairs, I’ll explain everything" )

“Samjhaana agar shuru karti toh achha hota.” "It’ll be good if you start explaining now." Shobit muttered as all three of her cousins stared at the crumpled figure of Captain America on the ground, to their cousin wincing in pain, her lehenga covered with blood, again to Steve. “Isko uthake Pinky ke kamre tak jaane mei meri madad kar. Yeh marr warr gaya toh naukri gayi meri.” "Help me pick him up and take him to Pinky’s room. If he dies, I’m losing my job."

“First of all, I’m not a doctor. Yet.” Pinky also did her fair share of staring at everyone. Y/N could feel her eye twitching. Whether it was out of anger, stress, or the false eyelash that had ripped from her lash line as she drove like a madwoman in the traffic, no helmet or gloves. Steve screaming like a grandma as he held on for dear life was a tiny bit amusing though. Endearing maybe, Nope, definitely not endearing.

“I should tell you that because I have very, and I mean very little experience in sewing. Particularly sewing up bodies professionally. If he dies, I am not responsible.” She yawned once, extremely sleepy. “That being said, someone get cotton, Dettol, and uh my sewing kit is in the left front pocket of my backpack. Jija*, there’s no anesthesia, but I suppose you don’t need it, super strength and all. Didi*, aisa muh mat banao (don’t make that face), just because none of the oldies know who he is doesn’t mean we’re stupid too.” Y/N shut her gaping mouth.

“He’ll live.” Pinky said as everyone in the room collectively sighed. The suture had been painful to witness, Y/N biting her lip so hard she tasted copper. Steve seemed okay now. When he had taken that guard’s knife to the stomach, Y/N’s heart had stopped. The fear she felt, that was no general fear at seeing someone stabbed or even a friendly fear (was there even such a thing or was 3 AM her just rambling?). The panic she felt was heartbeaking. “Make those self realisation faces later, Di. I’m tired and I just want some sleep.  “Jija ko unke kamre tak chodke aa. Koi raaste mei mile bol dena bike bhid gayi thi, hospital se aate hue late ho gaya tha.” (Jija is the hindi word for sister’s husband. Pinky’s telling him to drop him to his room and if anyone asks to tell them he had an accident, the bike hit something and they were late coming from the hospital.) “Tu sabko heart attack dilayegi kya?” (Do you want to give everyone a heart attack?") “Aur koi bahana mile toh batao.” ("If you have any other excuse then tell"

As everyone scattered, Y/N shut the door to change. Her cousin just lay down on the bed, semi-asleep. She cracked one eye open when Y/N reached out her hand to switch off the light, whispering “So you are a secret agent?” “Nope, I sell veggies with Captain America.” “Ugh, way to thank me for saving your boyfriend’s life, with terrible puns.” “He’s not my...leave it. Good night. Oh, and PInky?” Pinky hummed. “Thanks.” “So jao.” (Go to Sleep)

“Tell Romanoff we’ll need backup. They clearly planned ahead for the move, the facility is impossible to get into, and now they know we’re coming. Also, Steve is injured." “Very well, we’ll invite ourselves to the wedding. Take care if your boyfriend until then."Natasha sounded worried but her tone was light. “Bring a gift, I’m not keeping strangers in my family home without payment.”

Glossary *-Sheila ki Jawani is a pretty popular Bollywood Item Song. Played at every wedding /party since 2010 *-The Reincarnation of Shanti Priya is a reference to the film Om Shanti Om where the leads get resurrected after having an unhappy ending *Chachi- Father's younger brother's wife; aka yn's aunt *Gangajal- Water from the river Ganges that Hindus consider sacred, its used for purification purposes (guess why Y/N wanted it *wink wink*) *Didi- Elder Sister *Chaat: some spicy-sweet snack, it's a general term; desis feel free to imagine your favourite. *Chaatwala: the person who owns the chaat shop *Lehenga: a crop top and floor-length skirt outfit worn at weddings and traditional functions *Milkha Singh: famous Indian athlete, also known as "The Flying Sikh" because of how fast he was. *sagaai- engagement *tamasha- a sarcastic way of saying how over the top the whole wedding is.

[wickedsingularity]

Christmas Miracle [one-shot]

wickedsingularity’s Christmas Stories 2018 Masterlist

Fandom: MCU Pairings/characters: Steve Rogers x reader (but not really), Wanda Maximoff, and all the Avengers post AOU/pre CACW (and @iguess-theyre-mymess starring as Sam Wilson's girlfriend/baking-partner) Words: 3747 Warnings: Angst, fluff, overworked, stress, nagging family, kissing, almost smut

Prompt/summary: When work and Christmas and sleep deprivation just becomes too much… Steve comes home from a mission and sets off a miracle. (Inspired partly by my own life and partly a Norwegian commercial.)

The busiest time of the year was busier than ever. It was also supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year, but with all the rogue HYDRA agents running around it was just stress, stress and more stress. They'd been fairly quiet all year, but now, right before the holidays, they were everywhere. Steve and Natasha had been sent away to deal with the larger of the suddenly active groups, and I was running around at home, working my ass off.

As the IT manager to the Avengers and what was left of SHIELD, I shouldn't be too busy, Tony made sure we had state of the art equipment, and I was pretty damn good at my job if I could say so myself. But it seemed that everything went wrong lately. I barely had time for my usual duties, as I was called here and there to fix the most ridiculous problems. And in the middle of it all, our servers crashed and I tried my best to get it back online as it was vital to Steve and Natasha's mission, even though everyone else felt their buggy printers or out-of-battery-mice was more important.

After a long day of fixing screens that showed everything upside down and saving a hard drive from someone accidentally opening a malicious attachment to an email and fixing the server temporarily and not doing any of the maintenance I was supposed to do, I dragged myself home to an empty apartment. Dry toast was my dinner and the couch was my best friend. That was also where I was reminded of all the other things I had to do at home. The lists were there in front of me on the table after one panicked evening when I decided I needed to write it all down in an orderly fashion. All the Christmas presents I had to buy, I had even figured out what to get everyone. All the baking I had to do. All the cleaning and decorating.

I groaned and reached lazily for the remote and turned the TV on. I don't know what channel it opened on because at that moment I got a text. I touched the fingerprint scanner and saw that it was from my mom. Have you decided what to do for Christmas yet? Your old room is waiting for you!

Another groan and my heart rate sped up. I glanced for a moment further up the thread.

I don't know. I don't know when Steve will be home.

If he can't come, you're welcome to come alone. Though we'd love to see you both!

Have you talked to Steve yet? Your grandparents are eager to see you too!

I hadn't replied to the last two, prompting her to send the current one. Steve's mission was on radio silence and no one knew how long it would take. I contemplated chucking my phone out the window.

Someone bursting into a Christmas song on the TV caught my attention. A family was gathered around their open front door, a group of cheery carollers standing in the driveway. I don't know what movie it was, because I tuned out before the guilt could overwhelm me. Instead, I remembered all the laundry I had to put away and dishes I needed to clean and the windows that needed to be cleaned because I could barely see through them, but I couldn't move from the couch. I just stared blindly at the TV for a long time, my mind going over all the things I had to do in an endless loop until another text dragged me back to reality.

This one was from Wanda. Want to skip work tomorrow and come with me to help me find a present for Vision? He's not easy to shop for.

I was able to reply to this one. I wanted nothing more than to get away from everything for a bit and spend some time with Wanda, maybe even get started on the Christmas presents, but I couldn't. I would have loved to, I need to get some shopping done too, but I'm still swamped with work. Everyone is useless. Laughing emoji.

Wanda's reply was quick. Oh, I'm sorry. Just let me know if you can get away, or if I can do some shopping for you while I'm out. Followed by five hugging emojis.

Thanks, I'll let you know!

A flash of guilt for saying no to Wanda went through me, even though I knew I was being ridiculous. I had just said no to her too many times the last few weeks.

I was done for the day. It was about nine, but I still turned off the TV and got ready for bed. On top of everything, whenever Steve was gone, it took me ages to fall asleep, and when I did sleep, I slept poorly and woke up early. So, I figured, the earlier I got into the bed, the earlier I would sleep and maybe long poor sleep was better than short deep sleep.

A few days later, nothing had changed, except I was now working alone. I had a few people working under me as the IT manager. Good people too. But all of them had applied for time off before Christmas and I'd granted it to all of them, except the one who was out sick. I worked better on my own anyway, it was faster and easier than getting more people involved. It was a flaw I had, one I was very aware of and one I should probably work on right now. It would have taken a lot of weight off my shoulders.

But I just couldn't do it. Not now. I did my best to fix everyone's problems and make sure the makeshift fix on the server didn't buckle under the strain and tried not to think of all the things I never got around to.

I was sleep deprived and stressed. My entire body was a tight knot of muscles, every time I turned my head my neck protested and pain shot through my head, my brain worked a million miles a minute, and my heart rate was probably through the roof and I nearly had a heart attack every time the phone rang or someone called my name in that please help me-tone of voice. I kept thinking about all the things I had to get done at work before Christmas but seemed to never have time for, and all the neglected tasks at home. The holidays were just days away. I decided to force myself out to get presents after work.

But when I got out, I was starving and exhausted, so I went home and would try to find all the presents online. With express shipping, I might get them all in time. And then I could spend a little bit of time every day the rest of the week, getting the apartment ready. I was proud of this idea and felt some of the burden lift from my shoulders.

But all I could find online was one present. Everything else was sold out. I was just about to throw my laptop into the toilet and cancel Christmas when my phone went off. I jumped half a foot off the couch, but my heart nearly exploded when I saw Steve's contact picture grinning up at me. I answered right away.

"Hi, doll." His voice was like a balm for my soul.

"Hi... I miss you." I felt my voice almost break, but I swallowed it down and hoped he didn't notice.

"I miss you too. How is my best girl?"

"Busy. So busy. But it's that time of year. When are you coming home?"

"Couple of days. We're just finishing up now. Did you work out the server glitch?"

"Sort of. It's online for now, but it's only a temporary solution. I suspect HYDRA has something to do with it though, given all the other things happening. But I'm doing my best."

"I believe in you, sweetheart."

"Fingers crossed." I grinned into the phone, trying to sound hopeful, but was glad he couldn't see how my lips twisted into a tight line instead.

We were silent for a few moments. I could hear him breathing at the other end, and I tried to imagine us curled up in bed, him the big spoon, his breath on my neck and his arms tight around me.

"I really miss you," I said.

"Are you okay?" Steve sounded concerned now.

"Yeah," I lied. "I just miss you. It's Christmas after all."

"I'll be home in two days, three tops."

"I can't wait."

"Me neither. Nat is waving me over. I got to go. I love you, okay?"

I felt the lump in my throat. "I love you too, Steven Grant." The line went dead and I dropped the hand holding the phone into my lap. "So much."

Steve hadn't been entirely truthful. He was already on his way home when he called, and he wanted to surprise her. But the call worried him. There had been something in her voice, something that told him she wasn't just busy, something was wrong.

After he had relieved Natasha as pilot, letting her get some sleep, he had called Wanda. If anyone knew if his girl was hiding something, it was the Scarlet Witch.

"She's been working really hard, Steve, everyone is on her tail," Wanda had explained. "According to Maria, her entire staff is gone for the holidays, and she's been doing everything herself. She is everywhere trying to help everyone and everything seems to be buggy. And whenever I see her, she gets paler and stiffer and there's a pained frown on her face. I don't think she's sleeping well either."

It was just as Steve expected. "Have you picked up on any of her thoughts?"

"You know I try not to do that." Wanda had hesitated for a moment. "But I couldn't have even if I wanted to. There are many thoughts in there, bleeding out. I couldn't pick out one from the other, without putting my hands around her head."

Steve pushed the Quinjet a bit faster after he had hung up. The hours flying back went by too slowly for his liking. Even slower was the medical check-up and the debriefing after. He tried to reschedule the debriefing for the next day, or at least a few hours later, but no such luck. By the time he went back to the apartment at the facility, she had gone off to work.

Steve stood still just a few steps inside the door, looking around. Next to the couch stood a basket of laundry that needed to be folded and put away. The dishwasher door was open and the inside was filled to the brim with dirty dishes. There were no Christmas decorations, no sign of anything Christmassy anywhere. Kicking off his boots, he walked further in and saw the handwritten lists and sticky notes on the coffee table. She had made orderly lists, and it made him crack a small smile, it was so typical her. They were sorted into what needed to be done around the house, what presents to buy for everyone, what Christmas decorations were to be put up, and what cookies to bake. Each list had a checkbox for "started" and "finished". The only thing checked off as finished was one of the presents for Tony, with a yellow sticky note next to it saying "online, estimated 23rd". No check marks in the started-columns.

He sighed and went into the bedroom to unpack his bag and take a much-needed shower. As he sat the bag down on the foot of the bed, he noticed that her side of the bed was barely slept in. Instead, her pillow had replaced his, and his was further down as if she'd been holding it while she slept. Steve's heart broke as he just imagined how these weeks had been for her. He knew she didn't sleep well without him, he didn't sleep well without her either. And she'd been so busy and she'd not had time for anything, she hadn't even answered her mother about Christmas judging by the texts Steve himself had gotten with questions about why she hadn't replied.

He set his bag on the floor, that could wait until later. And then he put the pillows back in their rightful place, pulled the covers up as neatly as he could.

"FRIDAY, are the others in and available right now?"

"Welcome home, Captain Rogers. Miss Romanoff is in the shower. Everyone else is in and available."

"Could you ask them to meet me here in half an hour? And could you call in Tony too? Say it's sort of a family emergency."

"Of course, Captain Rogers."

Steve tore off his uniform and went straight into the shower to wash away the grime of the mission. It was the quickest shower he'd taken his whole life. Body barely dry, he pulled on the first clothes he could find and got straight to work on the dishes, getting the machine started and handwashing the rest he could find.

Half an hour almost on the dot, there was a knock on the door. He told FRIDAY to open the door and Vision floated through before it was halfway open. Shortly after him, Wanda, Sam and Rhodey came in. And wet hair blowing behind her, a newly showered Natasha came running inside seconds later.

"What is this about a family emergency?" Rhodey asked.

"My poor girl has been working her ass off and has been running left and right to help everyone else but herself. I haven't been home to help out either. I was hoping we could all help her now. Before she gets home?"

They all nodded to a chorus of "of course".

Steve breathed out a sigh of relief. He would have tried to do it all himself if he had to, but he was glad they all wanted to help. He walked over to the coffee table and the lists there. "Sam, can I ask you to bake some cookies? You don't have to make everything on this list, but at least the ones that take the least time?"

The Falcon nodded and took the list Steve handed over. "I know just the person to help me with this," he said with a grin getting his phone out and walking over to the kitchen to make a call.

"This is a shopping list?" Wanda asked, grabbing one of the lists. "Vision and I can get this."

"Thank you, both of you. I can cross out what she's getting you, and get them myself later," Steve said.

"No, no, we'll look appropriately surprised."

Steve nodded and found his wallet, pulling out a credit card for them. "Rhodey, Nat, could you help me clean and decorate? If Tony shows up, he can help with that too."

"Sure, anything you need," Rhodey replied and Natasha nodded.

Steve looked around at them, and he had never been more grateful for each and every one of them. "Thank you, all of you. I know it's a lot of work and you probably have better things to do this close to Christmas, but I really appreciate this."

"It's no worry, Steve," Sam said, having just hung up and walked over while folding up the baking list. "We've all seen her getting more and more stressed lately. She's family, we're all family."

"This is what family does," Wanda added.

Soon, the apartment was filled with the fresh smell of soap. Dishes and laundry were dealt with, and Tony arrived with a gorgeous, plump spruce. Down the hall, the smell of baking made everyone salivate. Wanda sent pictures when she couldn't find the exact thing on the list and asked Steve for advice about what to get instead.

Decorating was next and everyone came in to help out a bit, while the gingerbread cookies were cooling before frosting, and when Wanda and Vision had finished all the gift shopping and placed them neatly wrapped around and under the tree in the common area.

It had been some long, hard hours, but the place was transformed. Steve had made sure everything was just the way she liked it and he couldn't wait for her to come home to this surprise. He didn't know how to thank everyone, but they assured him it was their pleasure as they left to let him rest for a little bit before she came home.

Steve sat down on the couch and looked around. It was almost perfect, there was just one thing left. He grabbed his phone and dialled a number.

"Hello?"

"Hi, this is Steve."

"Oh, hi, Steve, dearest! How are you? How is my baby girl?"

"We're good, thank you. I just called to let you know what's happening for Christmas. I'm really sorry, but something has come up at work for both of us. We can't make it."

"Oh, what a shame... It's been so long since we've seen our precious daughter, and there are so many people who are dying to finally meet you."

"I know. We're really sorry. We'll try to take a few days after New Year's if that's okay with you."

"Yes, please do! Have a Merry Christmas both of you and try not to work too hard!"

"We'll try. Merry Christmas to you too, say hi to everyone for us!"

Another day of being pulled in every direction. Another day where I could barely get a moment to spare for what I was supposed to work on, instead I was helping everyone else with silly things, and no closer to a permanent solution on the server glitch. Another day closer to Christmas and nothing was done. And still two days until Steve came home. I didn't even want Christmas anymore.

The halls in the building were quiet. There was a lingering smell of baking, and I felt a stab of guilt at all the baking I had yet to do. Tears pricked at the back of my eyes.

"Well, I can always try again next year," I mumbled to myself as I pressed my hand to the scanner next to the door and it swung open. The apartment was dark, I was sure I had left at least the kitchen light on. I frowned. "FRIDAY, could you please turn on the lights?"

"Of course."

The whole apartment was flooded with light and I gasped. A tree, lights, stars, tinsel, Santas, it was all there. And from the couch, a figure emerged.

"Steve?"

"Hi, doll."

My purse dropped from my hands and I ran across the room and jumped into his arms. He made a sound as if the air was knocked out of him and then chuckled, his arms wrapping around me. But seeing him and feeling him after the past three weeks of hell without him and what he had clearly done for me, just made the damn burst. His name was wrenched from me in a whine before I buried my face in his neck and the tears fell freely from my eyes.

"Oh doll," he said and sat down on the couch with me still wrapped around him. "It's okay." His arms tightened around me, holding me as close as he could. He whispered in my ear, probably all the reassurances he could think of, but he could have been reciting all the numbers in Pi for all I cared. It was his voice and his warmth and the safety I felt around him that I cared about at that moment as all the stress and worries bled out of me. I hadn't wanted Steve to know how hard it had been, but somehow, he always knew, always found out. He could read me without seeing me, just like I could read him.

I don't know how long it was before I calmed down. But when I did, I was starving, and it was the growling of my stomach that had me pulling away from his drenched shirt.

"Don't worry, I've got dinner in the fridge, it just needs warming up," Steve said, his hands cradling my face, thumbs wiping at the wetness below my eyes.

"I thought you said you'd be home in two or three days," I said, frowning. "Not that I'm not happy to see you."

"I wanted to surprise you."

"Well, colour me surprised. How did you manage all this?"

"Everyone helped. All the gifts are bought and wrapped. There are cookies in the jars and boxes on the counter. The place is sparkling clean and festive."

My breath of relief turned into a chuckle and then laughter, and I couldn't stop. Steve's smile grew and grew until he too started laughing. I fell sideways on the couch and off his lap, lying on my back and heaved for my breath.

Steve leaned over, planting a kiss on my cheek and that finally made me stop. "I'm sorry," I said, my voice shaky. "You just came home from a mission and you're probably so tired and you haven't even had time to process it because you had to do all this and I just cry and laugh and I'm just a mess."

"I'm just glad to be home again and I'm happy I could help you get this done." He climbed in between my legs and finally pressed his lips against mine. The last bit of stress rolled off me and I hummed. "Oh, and if anyone in your family asks," he whispered against my lips, "something came up at work for both us," his lips moved down to my neck, "and we can't visit for Christmas."

"Oh, how I love you, Steven Grant Rogers," was all I managed to say.

His lips moved lazily against my neck, finding that spot just below my ear that turned me into putty in his arms. I raised my hips, grinding them against his, feeling the need for him bubble up inside me. But then he pulled back and sat up. "I love you too. But go take a quick shower and I'll warm up dinner. Your stomach is still growling."

I groaned and tried to kick him, but he dodged my legs and was up and by the fridge before I could say "bastard".

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[thorsstorms]

Savior Pt. 4

Thor x Reader

Word count: 3.4K

Summary: After saving you from an attack on NYE, Thor can't forget about you. He wants to be near you, to get to know you, to be in your everyday life.

Warnings: kissing. slight angst.

Masterlist

Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

We were ready to go past security at the airport and it was already 7:45. Thor still wasn’t here yet. I kept telling them to wait, that he would show up. The the matter of fact was, I didn’t know if he would show up. After all I don’t know him that well, but I thought well enough to know he was loyal. He wouldn’t say he would come while not planning on it, right? I looked around in circles watching all entrances. Waiting to catch a glimpse of his tall form over all the others here.

“(Y/n)..” Lauren looked at me with sad eyes.

“No, he said he would come.” I snapped back at her, already feeling anxious. We started to drift towards the long security line, maybe he would show up while I was still in line. 

Nothing. I tried to not let my emotions show. I kind of feel stupid after waiting for him. I felt stupid for thinking that I could have been something more to him. My emotions consumed my thoughts and I didn’t even realize we were sat at the terminal. It was now 8:10 and they are starting the boarding process. We were in zone 4, so we probably had ten more minutes before boarding. I watched out the windows. The morning was rainy. I could see the dark clouds looming over the airport, threatening to pour any second. As soon as I stepped into the on boarding tunnel, I could hear the rain padding against the metal. We stepped on the plane, and started down the tight rows to our seats farther towards the back of the plane. Of course we’re sat so far back where it’s the loudest. I sat down in the window seat with Lauren next to me, then Anthony in the aisle seat. My mother was sat a few rows ahead of us. I stared out the window at the pouring rain and watched as the clouds lit up with silent lightning. We were sat on the tarmac for about 20 minutes before a loud boom of thunder erupted from the sky. The pilot immediately came over the intercom saying that they will have to wait till the storm passes because of being struck by lightning during take off could be dangerous.

I sighed and pulled out my phone to plug in my headphones and watch a movie that I previously downloaded. I briefly took my phone off the airplane mode option because we weren’t taking off yet. A few text messages started to come through now that I was connected the LTE again. I didn’t recognize the number, but I proceeded to unlock my phone and open them. My eyes scanned over the words and my heart skipped a beat. I grabbed Lauren’s arm quickly and tightly with my phone free hand, but my gaze stayed locked on my phone screen trying to read the messages. Her attention was now directed towards me and my grip on her forearm.

“Ow, what?” She yelped, frustrated from her conversation with Anthony.

“Lauren it’s him. The storm! It’s Thor,” I told her finally meeting her eyes. She looked at me confused before I showed her my phone screen. The texts were Thor saying that government officials showed up at the Stark tower and put it on lock down till they finished an official debriefing of the events on NYE, and came up with a game plan. In the text it explained that it continued into the morning because Tony was very Stubborn and won't cooperate. This was his way of getting my attention. Before I knew it my blind happiness was clicking the ‘Call’ icon. It rang once before it answered with an urgent hello.

“(Y/N) have you left yet? I’m sorry,” I could hear his apology was real.

“You are making it a bit hard to do so,” I said giggling, completely forgetting that I was just feeling betrayed by his absence this morning. I looked out the window as a loud clap of thunder shook the skies. I smiled into the phone, once again feeling speechless because of him. “You are so extra Thor.”

“I must make it up to you. I will come to you when you get settled at your home. Okay?” Thor said reassuring me that he will go the extra mile to see me. I repeated ‘okay’ quietly. Looking down at my hand in my lap, picking at my nails. I could feel Lauren’s eyes boring into the side of my head. I lifted my head and glanced to her giving her a look to wait a minute before she starts asking questions.

We were silent a for a minute, before I reminded him that I cant leave if he keeps up with this storm.

“Oh, you are right.” I watched out the window and the rain slowed to a stop, no longer seeing the clouds light up. I heard the pilot come over the intercom a few moments later telling all passengers and flight attendants to prepare for take off.

“I have to go now Thor.” I spoke into the phone. He started to say something back, but the engines turned on and picked up speed. They grew very loud and I just said into the phone, “I’ll text you when we land, goodbye.” And hung up.

I looked again to my friend next to me and gave her a shy smile. She just rolled her eyes at me snuggled into Anthony’s arm when the plane started to slowly move toward the runway. I settled into my own seat, leaning my head against the window. I plugged in my headphones again and turned on some music to try and drown out the sound of the rumbling engines.

I woke up by Lauren ripping out my earphones and I heard the Captain say we are to be landing soon. I straightened up in my seat and lifted it back into an upright position and tied up my earphones in my bag that was now shoved under the seat in front of me. I double checked my seatbelt, and looked out the window. You could see everything. Not a cloud insight. I could see clearly everything below us. I felt relief flood over me at the sight of my home state. Vowing to myself and then vocally to Lauren next to me that it’s going to be awhile before I go on  another trip. And if I do, it’ll be at a beach.  

We landed smoothly, or as smooth as it can be, and proceeded through the lines to exit. We followed the crowd towards baggage claim. My brother was the one to pick us up and gave me a crushing hug when he saw us. He’s younger than me, but 6’4 and solid muscle. He may only be 18 but he definitely didn’t look it. He and Anthony loaded our bags in the bed, and then we all hopped in the truck. I was definitely not without struggle.

After a quick 10 minute drive we arrived out our house and Lauren and Anthony immediately took off to go home. My brother was kind enough to grab our bags from the truck while my mother helped me inside the house. As soon as I was sitting, I grabbed my phone and quickly sent a message to the number Thor had text me from saying I was home. I looked around my house from my seat on the couch and was so glad to be home. The feeling of arriving to your house after a long vacation, or in this case a short but insane vacation, is indescribable.

My mother went to her room to do her own thing, and make some calls about our safe arrival. I looked down at my phone waiting for a text to come through from his end but nothing was happening. I turned on Grey's Anatomy on Netflix to pass time. Throughout the rest of the evening we had visitors pop in and out of the house, some family and some family friends, all coming to see that I was alive and well. It was nice to see everyone, but my mind never cleared of my phone in my pocket. I was hyper aware of every ding that came from it, immediately grabbing at it and ferociously looking to see what it was. Many were texts and tweets to me saying they were glad I was back safe. I began to grow impatient with his lack of response.

Around 8 PM I decided to send another. It said that I was getting tired from our day of travel and was going to bed soon, I hope to hear from him. I sent it and hobbled to my room with my crutches. My dog was following behind me.

As soon as my head hit the pillow I was already feeling extremely tired. My emotions for the day were a whirlwind. I was anxious and upset, then ecstatic and relieved, and now confused. I tried to clear my mind of Thor. I tried to dream up a million excuses as to why he hadn’t text back yet, but none seemed to fit.

-

It had been three weeks. Three weeks since I returned from New York. Today I was getting my full cast removed, and it was going to be replace with a boot and a knee brace for extra support, as well as starting physical therapy.

I waited for Thor to text back for three weeks. I finally got a bit worried and decided to call the phone at the Stark tower. A man picked up after the phone system let me through to Thor’s Quarters, but it wasn’t him.

“Who is this?” I asked curiously. My heart was beating fast and my head didn’t know what to think.

“Uh, Sam. Who is this?” The voice retaliated.

“My name is (y/n). Um.. is Thor there?” I was confused as to why he answered the phone.

“Oh no, I heard this phone ring from across the hall, but he went back to Asgard a while ago.” I don't know what came over me, but my immediate reaction was to hang up the phone. My eyes opened wide realizing I just hung up on the person that could answer my questions, but I was scared to come to terms. I stared at the phone in my hand as if it were a foreign object. I dropped it on to my bed, not wanting to even be near it. My head was spinning so fast, I felt nauseous. Of course he went back to Asgard. Why would he take the time to stay here when it’s not his home? I sat down at my desk and just looked at my phone laying there. I felt tears spring up to my eyes but I’ll be damned if I left them fall over a guy. I know better than to get attached to a guy I had just briefly met. I let myself wallow in my defeat, feeling stupid, for about an hour.

My mind went through a couple stages. Denial, there’s no way he would just forget about me so fast. Anger, he lied to me. Depression, was I not good enough to have him stick around? Of course not. He was a god. And then Acceptance, I cannot change what has happened or what decisions were made, only learn to move on from it. Regardless, the heartache I felt was horrible.

I stood up from my desk chair and wiped under my eyes where stubborn tears had fallen against my will. I vowed to myself to not let this ruin my myself. I don’t need someone to depend on or spend every minute with. I have been doing things on my own for a very long time now, my head just drifted to far down the line with him in mind.

The next week I started my spring semester in college. I engulfed myself in my school work, and my full time job as a nanny. Between the kids and school work, there wasn’t much time for thinking about men. He managed to stay off my mind for a while. My mother warned everyone that came in contact with me not to bring up New York. Of course there were random news broadcasts about the Avengers and their most recent missions, but none ever mentioned Thor’s name. He really must have left.

I was a couple weeks into the semester and sitting in my Nutrition course writing notes from a lecture. My professor liked to keep the door open, but I get so distracted easily it made it a bit harder for me with people walking by.

A loud group of friends were walking by and caught my attention. They were talking loudly with no regard for classes in the hallway that were in session. I turned my head to look out the door at them.

“Did you see ‘em,” one girl asked.

“No, I’m going down there now to see if he’s still there. I want a picture with him!” Another girl said. They started to walk further away but I could still catch their loud voices.

“What the hell is an Avenger doing in OKC anyway?” My blood ran cold and my pen dropped from my fingers. I felt the blood drain from my face.

‘There’s no way,’ I thought to myself. After thinking about it for a minute I turned back towards the front of the classroom with a urgent look on my face. If he’s really here, he must be getting attacked by college students. He would stand out like a sore thumb. I made eye contact with my professor who was now looking at me, eyeing me. He gave me an ‘are you okay?’ look and I just panicked again. As quietly and as quickly as I could, I gathered my things and stood up from my table. I sent him an apologetic look but he just waved me off as I walked out the door. While speed walking down the hall and down the stairs I pulled out my car keys from my backpack and secured my phone in my pocket. I came into the main building and examined my surroundings. There was a gathering group of people by the coffee shop, not to far from the main entrance doors. I pinpointed the Asgardian stretching tall among the others. Luckily, he wasn’t drawing to much attention because he was in regular clothing. He was stood there looking in circles around the group of students just smiling politely and saying hello over and over, probably enjoying the attention.

I was stood frozen at the bottom of the stairway watching what was happening. I was in a strong trance watching this until a group of guys coming down from the stairs bumped into me, sending my keys flying. They gave me a short and quick, ‘sorry about that,’ but otherwise ignored me because they were to focused on the out-of-place Avenger.

I quickly grabbed my keys from the ground and stalked toward the growing crowd. I had to shove a few people out of the way, but otherwise it was pretty easy to get to him. His back was now facing me, probably overwhelmed with so many people.

With no time to contemplate my actions, I quickly grabbed his hand and yanked it in my direction. I felt his rough callused hands resist against my small hands. He snapped his head in my direction. I didn’t even turn to look at his reaction. Instead I pulled him out from the crowd by his arm, and immediately headed for the doors leading to the parking lot. My legs were moving fast, speed walking to the exit. I could hear his slower footsteps following suit behind me.

“(Y/n)! I have come to see you as soon as time allowed it.” I heard his words behind me. I ignored him and continued to pull him towards the parking lot. I felt his hand give mine a tight squeeze as I opened the doors to the outside. His hand on mine felt amazing. I couldn’t deny the heat that flowed through my body when I touched him. Without slowing my steps I turned my body sideways to look at him. Anger consumed my thoughts.

“What the hell is wrong with you? Coming here like that?” I thought it was incredibly stupid of him. He could have waited till I got home. I didn’t wait for his reaction. I let go of his hand that had returned the tight grip. We made it to the truck. I hopped in the drivers side and started it while he opened the passenger door and just stood there looking at me. Frustrated I turned my head towards him and sternly told him to get in. After he closed the door, I looked towards him. Thankfully I was driving this my brothers truck today, I don’t think he would fit in my own car with out his head touching the roof and knees in the dash.

“Where have you been.” I spoke shortly. My face showed anger, but my heart felt urgency. My heart was begging for an answer that made sense. My arm rested on the center counsel and his hand came to rest on mine. I picked up my arm to pull it away, but he pulled it back to him to interlace his fingers with mine. I succumbed to his actions, loving the feeling anyway.

He looked at me with despair. He knew what he put me through I could see it in the look on his face. His thumb rubbed circles on the back of my hand while he gathered his words.

“Asgard needed me.” He looked at me gauging my reaction, and when I didn’t give him one he continued. “The beings that attacked New York. During the battle I injured their leader. And they sought revenge on me by threatening my people.” I could see he was telling the truth. His shoulders tense and a pained look on his face at the thought of Asgard attacked under his rule. “It took awhile to take care of.” He looked up at me, meeting my eyes. I immediately felt bad for being selfish. He saw my face change to sympathy but he quickly denied my feelings.

“But that is no excuse for my lack of response. I should have sent you a message at least. It was unfair of me.” He finished again looking shamefully down towards the floor boards.

“Thor..” I started, but didn’t know what to say. “Your people needed you. I understand that,” Accepting his reasoning. His eyes raised to mine. His beautiful irises captivating my consciousness.

“Can I kiss you now?” He said with a hopeful tone.

“I’d like that,” I replied leaning in to meet his lips. His lips molded with mine for the first time in a long time. A shock wave ran through my body at his passionate touch. His hand came up to my jaw, elbow resting on the center counsel that was dividing us. He deepened the kiss, his tongue fighting against my own. I could feel his remorse. A stray tear escaped my eye and I didn't even know I was crying till I tasted the salty drop. Thor pulled away, but kept me close.

“Why the tears my love?” He said gently wiping his thumb across my cheek. No more tears followed, but my chest felt lightweight at his presence. I turned to rest my head on his shoulder while him arms snakes across my back in a side hug.

“I just missed you.” I spoke simply. I enjoying the feeling of him and his embrace. We both looked up from each other out the windshield. There were two students standing there staring at us, one with their phone out. When they saw we were looking, Thor gave them an annoyed face and they scurried off. I giggled to myself at how innately protective he was. I sat up straight and put the truck in reverse.

“Where to now my love.” He ask curiously. He watched my movements with caution as I operate the vehicle, not understanding quite how it works yet.

“We, are going home.” I replied heading out of the overcrowded parking lot.

[theoverworld]

There Is No Such Thing As Area 51

There is no such thing as Area 51. Sorry! And the fact that it’s the golden egg of conspiracy theories worldwide is exactly what the US government wants. I’m writing this in a bit of a rush and I don’t have any of my thoughts organized, so I’m just going to break it down as follows:

Groom Lake / Paradise Ranch / Edwards AF Extension / Restricted Training Facility UX104

These are a few names for the place you know as Area 51. I don’t know much about its history, but essentially it was intended by the US Air Force to be a secret weapons-testing facility during the Cold War. It had a few on-site extensions; one of them was for developing experimental rocket and jet engines, one was for training contingents of troops for nuclear warfare and post-apocalyptic survival, etc. But much like the third Star Wars movie, the site and its purpose got out around the time of the Roswell incident, and a media frenzy popularized the base. The government tried at first to quell speculation about it, but then adopted another strategy: feed into the hype, and simply move the base a few dozen miles away.

Today, Groom Lake (Area 51) is a small but functional military airport and base. It’s got a bunch of bunkers mostly housing low-security servers, and some munitions tests are performed there. Staff are regularly moved in and out, mostly folks who are low on the totem pole and trying to climb up the ladder to the real facility. There are some very outdated nuclear fallout shelters that are still maintained and used for storage. The facility consumes an enormous amount of power, and everything possible is done to make it look like a well-guarded military base that is engaged in some huge, secret operations.

The employees really do fly there every day from Las Vegas on conspicuously inconspicuous jets marked as “JANET,” sometimes referred to as “Just Another Non-Existent Terminal.” And they want you to notice. And wonder. They want you to wonder where those jets are going.

And they never want you to spend one second thinking about where they came from.

The real “Area 51”

This is the most exciting part, because as far as I can tell in my limited and clandestine researching, nobody has ever divulged the real secret before. It’s pretty highly guarded, and they straight up murder people who are stupid enough to share it. Murder isn’t even the right word. They erase people from existence. Sometimes entire families. That’s why the government freaks out when they find that one of their employees is terminal and has nothing left to lose. It’s why if you’re an employee there, you only see their doctors, so that they know about your health before you even know about it. They want you to die real quick of a sudden heart attack, so that you never have a moment to think about how you might do a public service and air their dirty laundry. And sometimes they induce those heart attacks when they determine you to be an HMT, or “health-motivated threat.”

But I didn’t need to see a doctor to know that I am suffering from the same malignant tumor that killed my father: glioblastoma multiforme. Every three months we get a health evaluation, and every six months we get a CAT scan. I simply didn’t report the very damning symptoms this past eval, and I’ll probably be gone before they scan me next. I really wanted to do this instead. Maybe just to be the first, I guess. The only other thing I’ve ever done with my life is fix computers.

The real secret military base is McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas.

The history of the airport was always bound up in military involvement. Before and during WWII, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Air Force were building, storing, training, and doing all sorts of things there. Basically the government (and its corporate benefactors in the military-industrial complex, of course) acquired full ownership of the airport around the time Area 51/Groom Lake exploded in the public eye. It was a rush job, and a simple solution.

For all intents and purposes, McCarran is an airport. It moves civilians in and out and all over the world just like any other airport on earth, but its subterranean operations are really something else entirely.

First of all, you have to understand the structure of this military base.

Because it serves ostensibly as a business of public transportation, every single aspect of the base has dual functions. This is called “masking,” and it is deployed with remarkable effectiveness at McCarran. To name a few examples, the constant take-offs and landings of airplanes provides sound-camouflage for cutting-edge engine tests. The public completely ignores these sounds and dismiss them as the standard cacophony of airports. Some of the jets themselves are even equipped with technology under test, while others are used to transport hundreds of government employees dressed as vacationing civilians. At any given time in McCarran, up to six of the gates* (corrected by a reader; I initially said terminals) are filled with employees of the highest echelons of the US military and government. They sit around on their iPhones, dressed as college kids in their pajamas or weary businessmen. And they’re paid to look the part.

The entire base is heavily guarded by plainclothes soldiers. Military police, tactical specialists, counter-terrorism forces, and all kinds of soldiers scurry about the airport dressed like cops, airport security, and desk attendants. Their weapons are usually concealed sidearms; the real firepower is packed by the boys waiting around underground. Assault rifles and armor-piercing weaponry is stored around the airport’s public spaces in various places. It’s not hard to do, because nobody’s looking for it. And of course they hire a good number of civilians to work the TSA and other positions; this is called “mixing” and it’s necessary. What kind of airport would never post any job listings?

Have you ever watched the mechanics ducking in and out of the planes outside, or seen your luggage loaded onto the plane as you board? Well, all of that cargo transport activity acts as a cover for the mass movement of special forces, lab equipment, military hardware, exotic building materials, etc. It’s not hard to do. They drive one of those rigs by with all the luggage spilling out of it, and then you instinctively don’t question what’s on the other four rigs behind it. We even have mix-ups and spills occasionally, and nobody bats an eye.

You’re always exposed to some level of radiation while flying (and McCarran, by the way, is why the standard of safe exposure is set where it’s at), but excess radiation from weapons-testing is vented into the earth and out of the nearby desert. Having an airport to explain the radiation is an effective means of ridding the base of nosy folks with Geiger counters. But the true genius of this top-secret military installation is at the largest scale: the base was built under an airport because of the enormity of its power consumption. But it consumes a lot more power than a regular airport, so it was built in a city that consumes a tremendous amount of power – Las Vegas. So the base is hidden from view, even on the electric power grid. Area 51? Not so much. And that’s on purpose.

Inside the base

So if Area 51 is the distraction, what do we call the real one? It has many names, but it’s usually referred to as the “NEXUS.” That’s an acronym, but not many people know what it means. Not even me. Everything about the Nexus, from its operations to its structure, is compartmentalized. That means everything is need-to-know, and virtually nobody knows anything more than their own specific task. You could work in an office in the Nexus doing something like accounting, and never have one single clue what the woman next to you does. Or the guy down the hall. They say not even the President knows exactly what’s going on there, just a few generals and some dudes in the CIA.

The business culture here is insane. It’s like North Korea. Everyone is smiling, everyone is fine, and everyone is happy to say just a few phrases about what it is they do (when we’re allowed to socialize, which is not much). Every line is bugged, every room has a camera in it, and nobody knows who’s watching/listening or when. So that makes you think, nobody here is telling me the truth about anything. Not even the guy I share an office with. I wonder if any of us know why we are here. People you’ve worked with for a long time will suddenly get “reassigned” or have a “medical emergency” and you’ll never see them again. And nobody will remember that person, no matter how many people you ask.

I actually got hired to do some programming for the Navy when I was in my early 20’s out of college, and then got sent to Groom Lake to do server tests. They liked my IT/networking skills, so after a series of strange psychological tests and mountains of non-disclosure agreements and background searches, I got offered a job “at a facility near Las Vegas proper.” Here are a few stipulations of that job, by the way: It’s a $1,500,000 after-tax lump sum plus a $220,000/year stipend, housing/car/medical paid for – but psychological breakdowns, anxiety attacks, grave health conditions, and family issues void the contract. I also sign approximately 2 new non-disclosure agreements per week, most of which read “under penalty of death” somewhere. Employees aren’t allowed to leave the grounds for 5 years, and we all live underground. Term of service is 5 years, then 4 in debriefing, wherein we get to live in Vegas but report to another facility four days a week. We are discharged and observed for the rest of their lives. Our passports are permanently void; we cannot ever leave the continental US. I heard a statistic that 20% of former employees commit suicide. I don’t know if it’s true, but if it is, I bet it’s actually “suicide.”

The base is underground. It’s a network of large structures called hives, which form what is called the “Colony” or the “Nexus.” We make lots of Resident Evil jokes, by the way. Except unlike in that movie, the government doesn’t try to make its employees feel comfortable with fake forests and windows overlooking digital cityscapes. It is a dark, dreary, Soviet-style labyrinth of halls and bunkers, replete with all sorts of submarine-like features: water- and air-tight hatches, trap doors, reinforced blast doors, etc. The only exception are the office ‘buildings’ inside where chair-moisteners like me work. They look just like the office you work in. Except the men with guns standing guard 24-7 everywhere, looking over your shoulder. Oh, and the beautiful, almost surreal glow of the cutting-edge laboratories that pock the lower levels of each building. I’ve never been in them, but I’ve passed by a few times.

There are 4 hives to my knowledge (although I wouldn’t be surprised if there were more). I work in Hive 1. I run some of the servers with a few other guys on one particular floor (there are 16 floors in our hive), but we monitor and maintain all of the servers in Hive 1 so we move around a bit. I’ve gotten to skim some of the data that passes through, and from what I can tell, we’re the most boring hive. I’ve compiled the following list based on the things I’ve intercepted on our network and also from hearsay from other coworkers. The Nexus has multiple networks and they’re all decentralized, but there are some ways in which they communicate, and it is via those lines of communication that I am privy to some sensitive information. Here’s what I know:

Hive 1: finance, accounting, operations/organization divisions, troop training/housing, and some small-scale weapons testing.

Hive 2: Chemical engineering, some nano-tech research, and “advanced psychological fitness,” whatever that means, for elite military forces. Probably black-ops stuff and how to survive thirty years in solitary confinement at a Siberian prison. I also have reason to believe this is the hive where the bigwigs meet and live.

Hive 3: Upper levels = bioweapon and disease research/testing. If the government has zombies, they’ve got to be here. I’ve wanted to make so fucking many zombie jokes over the years, but I never know which of my coworkers is a rat. Lower levels = Advanced space-travel and space-warfare technologies. Particle engines and gravitational beams and the like (guessing, no real evidence). Science-fiction stuff. I once saw an email with all sorts of coded language, marked “A-B,” which is widely believed to refer to “astrobiology.” That’s alien life. Maybe it’s just some single-celled organisms or fossilized plants from some meteor, or maybe it’s something much more advanced. Whatever it is, there must be some reason it’s not on the upper levels with all the biologists.

Hive 4: Total informational blackout. There are encryptions and firewalls and network security features protecting this hive that I’ve never seen before, not even on top-secret Navy projects I worked in the past. I’m being very nonspecific in the language I use to describe our server clusters and networks because I don’t want to tell them exactly who I am. They’ll eventually find out anyway. But there’s a widely-whispered rumor about Hive 4: allegedly, the most terrifying thing in the world is in that structure on floor 15.

There are a few unusual things about Hive 4. First of all, none of the top brass has clearance to get in there. They access it remotely via video feed in their conference rooms, and materials are often transported from 4 to 2 for physical review. I don’t know why our bigwigs won’t go into 4, but maybe it’s because it’s too dangerous? There was one guy who worked in 4 a few years ago when I first started, and he caused the first Nexus-wide lockdown I’ve ever seen. He was being escorted through 1 thumpers (what we call the squads of black-booted soldiers that grant access to different hives), and he started shrieking about IDA’s. I didn’t hear his screams, but I heard the gunshot while I was eating lunch. They put a bullet in the back of his head before he could finish his sentence. IDA’s, by the way, are inter-dimensional anomalies. I have no further information on what those are.

Another thing I’ve read minimally about are “the twins.” I don’t know who or what these are, but they’re the “above-top-secret” gem of Hive 4. It is treasonous to even correspond about them on our secure networks unless you are cleared to do so, and only four employees are. I’ve only seen a few things about them. One was a medical record. No vitals, unusual vocalizations that manifest hallucinations and psychosis in nearby employees, and skin that produces violent nausea when touched. The document was basically speculation that the skin functions much like the Australian stinging tree or a jellyfish.

I read documents about people who worked with them as well. In 4, a woman was remanded to the psychological ward after being in the same room with them, and a soldier who stood outside of the laboratory where they are kept basically killed himself. Specifically, he peeked inside during a routine access, then began bashing his own brains out with the butt of a pistol while singing an Irish folksong. The woman who was remanded to psych was even weirder: during breakfast with her colleagues, she grabbed a fork, stood up, walked out of the mess hall, stripped all of her clothes off, blinded herself in both eyes, then somehow managed to make her way all the way up to Floor 1 where the access corridor to Hive 3 is located. How she managed to operate the dozens of keycard readers, passcode boxes, and retinal scanners is still under review. Last email regarding her was sent in 2012, about how she sits in the dark of solitary on Floor 11’s psych ward with a permanent and blissful grin on her face.

One of my colleagues whom I trust told me that he saw the twins once through hacked access to a video feed. He said they are woman-like, about twice as tall as a full-grown man, with unidentifiable black growths dangling from their heads (like hair but thicker), and they basically float a few inches off the ground and drag their toes lightly as they move. They’re utterly pale. He never saw the faces, but he claims that they appear to distort reality (or at least the video feed) in such a way that space looks bent around them. Perhaps these are the IDA’s that earlier dude was screaming about.

This is all I have for now. But hopefully the world knows the truth someday about what goes on down here. We are all basically prisoners. We have very limited and supervised access to the internet, so if you don’t hear from me again, assume they figured me out.

[the-shield-of-infinity-writing]

When she can’t breathe, he’s her air (Gift)

Author’s Note: This is a gift oneshot to the lovely @violentlybarnes who is a wonderful person AND writer! Thank you love! Hope you enjoy!

Note: Mentions of past, hurt, comfort

Words: 1280

The entire Quinjet was quiet as the team traveled home from their latest mission. (Y/N) was leaning against Bucky as she stared off into the distance with an expressionless face. Something that happened in (Y/N)’s past came up to stab her into the back and it caused her to lose control. She almost killed Steve from the swirling emotions that clouded her judgement and now she couldn’t look, nor talk to anyone. She was so afraid she’d lose control, because these people were her friends, her family, her everything. “(Y/N), what happened wasn’t your fault.” Steve said, wiping the blood from his busted lip. She glanced up to him, taking in the bruises that littered his face, the ones that she had caused. “It’ll be healed by tomorrow.” He said.

“That’s… That’s not the point Steve.” She finally spoke as everyone looked to her when tears flooded her eyes. “I almost killed you today because I couldn’t control my emotions. I lost sight of what was happening because of something that happened years ago. If Tony hadn’t been there I wouldn’t have stopped Steve. That’s the point. Not only did I almost kill the leader of our team I almost killed my best friend.” She said before she covered her mouth, her eyes fluttering shut as tears trailed down her face. After the Quinjet landed back at the Tower (Y/N) and Bucky both excused themselves from the debriefing as Bucky walked into their bedroom on their floor. (Y/N) was in the shower, sitting on the tiled floor while she sobbed into her hands while trembling.

“(Y/N)?” Bucky asked, knocking on the bathroom door when he watched her silhouette pull to become smaller. “(Y/N), I know what it’s like to hurt someone you care about. Shit I almost killed Steve back when I was… him.” He whispered as he heard the cold water squeak off. “I just… This isn’t what I wanted… I finally was doing good. I was finally doing something that no one like me could do before.” She whispered when Bucky slide open the glass door to look down at her. “(Y/N), listen to me… Steve is still alive okay? That’s all that matters.” He said before he saw the goosebumps on her flesh when he took off his jacket and wrapped it around her. He sunk onto the floor beside the shower door as she pulled the jacket to cover her shivering nude body.

“I know, but I never wanted you to know about my past.” She whispered as Bucky glances to her. “That you killed that boy who tried was kidnapping people and selling their organs on the blackmarket?” He asked when she winced. “He didn’t deserve to die! No one does Buck!” She snaps, looking up to him with an angered expression. “I didn’t say he did (Y/N), but you saved more lives than his. (Y/N), I spent the last seventy years as a puppet to Hydra, I killed the innocent daily. Those who had no idea who I was, those who were just going about their day, those who had families. (Y/N), I had no control. Neither did you.” He said as she grew quiet. “Life has a way of testing you. Pushing you until you can’t do anything.” He explained softly.

“I still hear his screams… I let him suffer because I knew what he did. I let him slowly drown.” She whispered when she snuggled against his side as he wrapped his arm around her. “(Y/N), those nightmares will never go away. They will always haunt you, but you have to move forward. That’s not who you are anymore. You are someone people look up to… Someone I look up to. In my moments of weakness… You are my strength, my guidance. You are my path when I’m lost. Whenever I forget who I am, or where I am… You are always there to remind me. So your name's (Y/N) (M/N) (L/N), you are an Avenger. You live with your boyfriend James who you’ve been with for almost a year now.” He said when she nudges him, smiling softly at him.

“You’re such a dork.” She whispered as he grins softly. “Only when it comes to you.” He mumbles as she chuckles before looking up at him. “I’m sorry you had seventy years of your life taken away like that.” She said, laying her head onto his shoulder when he reached down and tilted her chin up to look at him. “(Y/N), it was all worth it, because I met you. And no one asks for the things that life throws in our face. We just have to get up and stand stronger than before. You are a strong girl, but you make me stronger. Now, no more crying over spilled milk. We can’t change what happened, but we can move forward and do better.” He said before standing up. “Come on I have some sweatpants and a big t-shirt with your name on it.” He grins to her.

“Are they yours?” She asked as he quirks an eyebrow. “Did you really have to ask?” He questioned causing her to giggle as she stood up when he brush her wet hair from her face. “You know I love you right?” He asked when she smirks. “Did you really have to ask?” She mimicked his voice when she squeaks as he pinches her side. “Cute.” He growls playfully causing her to laugh before she wraps her arms around his neck as she pulled him closer. “Can we watch a movie so we can forget about tonight?” She asked when he nods before picking her up with his metal arm while walking out to the bedroom. “I have a better idea.” He said, setting her onto the bed as she got dressed and looked at him in confusion when he walked out.

“What?” She asked, leaning off the bed to see come back with a remote and pressed the play button. Suddenly gentle music filled the room as her eyes widened before she looked up to him when he offered out his hand. “You said you wanted to dance with me. I think it’s the perfect time.” He smiles when she slowly reached out and took his hand in hers as he helped her up. She wraps her arms around his neck as his slides over her waist when they chuckle together. “Romantically cheesy.” She comments when he shrugs before taking her hand in one of his as he spun her around causing her to giggle from the fluttery feeling she got. “Thank you.” She whispered softly before she leans forward and pressed her lips against his own.

“You’re welcome.” He smiles as he kisses her back. “You know just what to do to make me happy.” She spoke softly before laying her head down onto his shoulder while they swayed. “I could say the same to you my dear.” He whispered as he rested his chin on her head before his eyes fluttered shut. Nothing else mattered in this moment, not the mission, or those who had fallen from the duo. It was just them. In their own little world, in their little bubble where nothing else existed. She loved him and he loved her. They took care of each other. They loved each other. She let out a sigh of content as her eyes slowly fluttered shut while the soft melody played on. She felt safe in his arms, she felt like she was at home. No one could hurt her, not even the voices.

Bucky Tag: @jediavenger9 @buckyappreciationsociety @this-is-reighlen @aravensdaisies @nerdyandproud9 @parker-benflorian @ameliahinwonderland @sarah-fangirls-and-stuff @violentlybarnes

Permanent Tag: @kanupps06 @lehumbletrashcan @hortonhearsahoeblr @madamrubrum @tillielynn16 @ididntasktogetmadedidi @eliza-hamilton-helpless @archy3001 @inselaire @breezy1415 @tremendouslyelegantstrawberry​ @donttalktomewhenimreading @txcountrybelle @i-am-a-dragon @abbywro-blog @shayna-winchester @thomashiddlestonloveloki @doctorcelina @impossiblepizzapeace

[the--blackdahlia]

Red Dawn Chapter 17 (SPN AU)

Title: Red Dawn Chapter 17

Summary:  Calumet, Colorado is just a normal, American town. And the Winchesters are just a normal family. Until war breaks out on their doorstep. Now, they have to fight not only for their lives, but the lives of their friends, neighbors, and all of America. Based off the Red Dawn movies.

Warnings: language, angst

AN: There should be one more chapter! Thank you for reading!

There was a checkpoint up ahead. Benny had taken the lead since Dean was in no position to show any papers or talk to any military personal. Amongst the refugees that Jo and Jimmy had in the truck were some military POW’s. Some of their group had been killed when they dropped into Calumet looking for the Hunters to offer them support. They were what was left. Andrew Gallagher, Victor Hendrickson, and Cole Trenton.

“Stop.” A man at the checkpoint said. Benny rolled down the window so the man could lean against it. “Can I help you?”

“Colonel Benjamin Lafitte requesting permission to bring some Americans home.” Benny said. He produced his papers for the man to review. “There are other military personal in the vehicles behind us.” The guy radioed back what he had and was told to let them enter. Benny motioned for everyone to follow, and together they made their way into Free America.

Dean wasn’t sure what was going on. One minute, he was sitting in the back of the Impala, holding Sam and praying that his pulse was just faint and would come back. The next, his little brother was being taken away from him with promises that they would try to fix this. Dean’s wild animal mode activated and he wanted to launch himself at the person who took his Sammy away from him, but he was held back by Cas and Bobby.

“Are you okay?” A sweet woman asked, noticing all the blood on Dean. A tear fell down his face.

“It’s not mine.” He whispered. She looked up at the two men who nodded in agreement. She offered up a sad smile before walking away to check on the others. Dean slumped against the Impala.

“Dean…” Cas said. Dean looked up at him.

“I failed him.” Dean whimpered. “Sammy…dad…mom…I failed them all.” Cas grabbed Dean and pulled him into a hug. And soon, he wasn’t alone. Several other arms were wrapped around them, hugging the last Winchester, trying to take away his pain.

“Dean.” Cain said, stepping towards him after the group had disbursed to get food and medical help. “As someone who has lost a brother, I know how hard this is for you.” He placed a hand on Dean’s shoulder. “I just want you to know that now Sam is someplace safe, where nothing can hurt him. You did protect him in the end.”

“Why don’t I feel like it?” Dean asked. “Why can’t my dad and Sam and Caleb, and everyone that has died just come back?” Dean looked at Cain for the answers, but Cain could only offer a small shrug.

Later that night, Dean, Benny, Andy, Victor, and Cole were all set in the commanding officer for this post’s tent. He was debriefing the men of their “adventures” in enemy territory, and giving Dean and Benny credit for all the kills and saves. Dean didn’t say anything though. Because the one save that meant the world to him hadn’t been accomplished and he missed him. He missed him so damn much. Once the CO released them, Dean bolted, despite the fact that Benny hung back to talk to the other three. Dean wanted to find a bar and drink himself silly. Maybe he could drink just enough that he could see Sam again.

“Dean.” A soft voice from behind him. He turned around to see Ruby standing there.

“Shit Ruby, you can’t just sneak up on people like that.” Dean said.

“Sorry.” She said, looking down. She didn’t really talk much, Meg usually did all the talking for her, much like Dean used to do for Sam. “Lisa asked me to bring this to you.” She held out a Calumet High gym bag.

“Why?” Dean asked. Ruby looked up at him.

“It’s Sam’s.” She said. Dean didn’t even have to be told twice, swiping the bag from her.

“Uh…thanks Ruby.” Dean said. She nodded and walked away quickly. Dean quickly headed towards the quarters he had been given, wanting to hide away from everyone. He didn’t want to see another damn person ever again, but he knew that wasn’t possible. So hiding for a few hours was the next logical step.

Dean walked into the small tent. The fabric helped block out a lot of the sound from the outside. He flopped down on the provided cot, the gym bag setting on the ground beside him. He ran a hand down his face, fatigue hitting him hard. He was a little pissed at himself that he didn’t even get a bottle of beer, but there were more important things right now. Like that damn gym bag sitting on the floor. He carefully pulled it up onto the cot by him, like it was the most important object in the world. And to Dean, it was.

Carefully unzipping it, the first thing Dean saw were a couple pieces of clothing. Everyone kept a few pieces away from the general group that they didn’t want ruined. One of the shirts in Sam’s bag was one of Dean’s Led Zeppelin tees that he had left on the back floorboard of the Impala. The other was Sam’s soccer jersey he had been wearing the day they made a break for the mountains. Dean held it in his hands, staring at it. The wolverine colors, the name Winchester on the back, Sam’s number, every little detail. Dean carefully laid it aside and went through the bag more.

There was a couple spiral bound notebooks that had come in the supplies from Cassie and her brother. The first one Dean opened had some homemade games; tic-tac-toe, hangman, and Mad Libs. Dean had to smile some at the answers that he was sure Caleb had gave Sam for the Mad Libs. Sam’s best friend had a dirty mind and a dirty mouth, but if you had asked his mom, she would tell you he was a fine young man.

Dean got to witness that first hand.

The other notebook was a little bit thicker than the game one had been. Opening it up, Dean realized it wasn’t just a notebook. It was a journal. Sam had been writing in it, trying to keep himself sane. Carefully, Dean flipped each page, reading the little snippets that Sam had put on the pages. There were little doodles in the margins, but Sam’s real strength was with the words. He knew how to handle a pen and poor so much emotion and strength into the simplest of words. Dean sometimes was jealous that Sam had such an amazing gift. That’s when Dean noticed his name wrote at the top of the last page.

Dean,

If you’re reading this, then either I’m dead or stupid enough to let you read it. Probably the first part. I have the Winchester luck after all. If I’m dead, you’re probably blaming yourself right now, aren’t you? It’s not your fault Dean. Whatever I did, I probably shouldn’t have. But that’s not important right now. What is important is that you need to move on with your life. Don’t drink yourself into an early grave, don’t turn into dad, don’t do anything like that. You told me that you were going to get me out and I was going to go on and tell people our story. Well, this is how I’m going to do it. Through you. You have this journal and you have all the memories. You have to live on to tell our story. As for the rest of your life, I really liked Lisa, I thought she was nice, but I don’t think she was right for you. Plus her and Benny seem pretty close. Out of all your girlfriends that you’ve had in the past, I think I would be happy to see you and Cassie together. She risked her life to help us and I can’t think her enough. She’d be willing to put up with your dumbass. And Dean, here’s the mandatory chick flick moment that you hate (I know you love them). You’re the best big brother that anyone could ask for. And I know that you would be a great dad someday, because you already raised me.

I love you jerk, Sammy

Tears filled Dean’s eyes. He wasn’t sure if he could go on looking through Sam’s bag, but something was calling to him. He carefully laid the journal on top of the jersey. There were a couple small items in the bag that didn’t catch Dean’s interest, but one thing did. Sam’s wallet. He didn’t even know that Sam had brought it with him to the mountains. He saw a corner of a piece of paper sticking out of the bottom. He opened it to see a picture he thought would be lost for the rest of his life. One of his favorites. It was the one that he had seen several times on the fridge since John had it printed years ago. Sam was squirmy from John tickling his sides. Dean hadn’t really wanted to be there, but now he was glad he was.

Something snapped in Dean then. He didn’t cry anymore, he didn’t scream. He didn’t do anything like that. Instead, he gathered up everything of Sam’s and put it back in the bag. He grabbed his own items and headed towards the Impala. Some of the supplies from the mountains were still in the trunk of the Impala.

“Dean?” Cas said, watching the Winchester looking around the car. “Dean, what’s going on?” Dean didn’t say anything though. He just got in the car and sped off from the base. Cas ran over to the others who were in line to get food.

“Cas? What is it?” Benny asked. Cas’s eyes were wide.

“Guys, Dean just ran off.” Cas explained.

“What do you mean he ran off?” Jimmy asked.

“He’s gone.” Cas said. “He left. And I have a feeling he’s not coming back.”

Tag List: @petrovadixon @theas-bedtime-stories @aiaranradnay @policeofficerdean @af112992 @dekahg @cutie1365

[warmheartworldwide]

Sex-Education and Mental Health at the Children’s Homes

The following blog comes from Stuart Luter who just spent 10 weeks at Warm Heart:

Today is my last day at Warm Heart and I find it impossible to believe that 10 weeks has already gone by. I came into this summer with few expectations. I knew I’d be teaching the Women’s Empowerment Curriculum I had previously designed and implemented in Haiti, but the rest was up in the air.

My first few weeks were spent getting adjusted and brainstorming additional projects. I soon realized that there was a high demand for, and lack of prior education on, mental health among the kids. Psychological assessments of the kids from a year ago found signs of low self-esteem, eating disorders, anxiety and mild depression, yet nothing had been done to address these issues.

Mental illness has been a huge part of my life. While I’ve been fortunate and have never personally battled it, my family and close friends have for years. Throughout high school and into my first year at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill I’ve been very passionate about eliminating the stigma of mental illness, raising awareness, and doing all I can to connect people to experts who can help. So when I read the psychological assessments compiled by a previous volunteer, I immediately wanted to do something to address a crucial yet neglected issue at Warm Heart.

It began as research and quickly developed into a full-fledged Mental Health Awareness and Coping Curriculum. After six weeks of hard work, another volunteer, Madeline McElwain, and I had designed seven lessons and piloted each lesson with a group of kids. The lessons include Recognizing and Understanding Feelings, Anger Management, Self-Esteem, Mindfulness and Coping, Body Image and Eating Disorders, Mental Illness Awareness, and Alcohol Training and Substance Abuse.

Screenshot from Anger Management lesson

We tested different lessons with different age groups. When we tried Feelings with the youngest kids (6-8), it was too difficult to get them focused because they couldn’t understand the concept. Anger Management we did with all the boys. The youngest ones were again difficult but overall it went very well and they were engaged. Self-esteem we did with the middle school girls and surprisingly it was the most successful of all the lessons.  

The high school kids who did the Alcohol Training and Substance Abuse lesson found the information relevant to their lives and asked some great questions. The kids had a lot of stigmas about mental illness that our lessons helped them to recognize. For Eating Disorders, we did a short survey to identify the 11 girls who exhibited signs of the problem and worked with them.  

We then edited the curriculum, eliminating any unnecessary information and emphasizing the most important topics. In the Substance Abuse lesson, we eliminated drugs like heroin which didn’t seem to be a problem and instead focused on meth and weed which are. For Mental Illness, we eliminated schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and focused on anxiety, depression and suicide.  

Teaching Self-Esteem mental health lesson to middle school girls with Madeline 

We had several debriefing discussions with Tidty and Noina, Warm Heart’s social and public health workers, to get the Thai perspective. They emphasized how crucial this program was for the kids who had never been exposed to such information before but who really needed the lessons. We worked with them to fully explain the lessons and discussed how they will continue to teach them in the future; everything has to be translated into Thai. The plan is for someone here at Warm Heart to continue teaching until all of the kids have attended every lesson.

I also taught my Women’s Empowerment Curriculum each week to 12 of the young women at Warm Heart. I came into this summer confident in the quality of the curriculum, but I learned more than I could have imagined about sex and empowerment education during my time here, and as a result I ended up revising the lessons a lot.

Closing ceremony with middle school girls from Women's Empowerment Program

After listening to a Ted Talk on the subject, the biggest adjustment was shifting my previous focus on the risks and dangers of sex to having a candid discussion about pleasure and intimacy. The objective is to promote self-esteem and to empower young women to take control of, and have confidence in, their own bodies and sexuality. The girls definitely felt uncomfortable during this discussion, but not in a giggly way. They avoided eye contact with me but it was obvious they were listening and they said they understood what I was talking about. They were all still virgins but are at the age where they’ve started thinking about sex and getting pressure from boyfriends.  

Additionally, we emphasized condom use as the most feasible birth control option for the girls here. After several discussions, Michael, Nit and I concluded that condoms made the most sense: they’re the only option that protects against pregnancy and STIs, they’re free in Thailand, they’re very effective if used correctly, they have no side effects, and they’re easily accessible.

Michael asked me to design and administer a birth control survey to the girls and boys ages 12 and older. The survey asked questions about sexual activity, contraception and pleasure. Surprisingly only 5 out of 27 reported being sexually active. Only 4 reported feeling confident in their sexuality, a telling sign of the prevalence of low self-esteem.

If it sounds like everything was smooth running, it wasn’t. The biggest obstacle we ran into was the difference between Thai and Western cultures in how to treat others. The kids constantly discourage one another, saying they’re not smart enough or pretty enough to reach their goals in life. The Thai staff tells the kids they need to lose weight. The kids come up to the volunteers and hold our stomachs, saying “baby?”  It seems that everyone tears each other down, and as a result, the kids focus on their flaws instead of their strengths. Madeline and I had several discussions with Evelind and the kids about this, and Evelind had discussions with the Thai staff as well. Unfortunately, it caused a lot of tension which was really frustrating. My work felt pointless if what I was teaching was constantly being undermined the second the kids left the class.

As challenging as it was, it also reminded me that it’s really hard to change culture. Nothing happens overnight, but I had faith that if I constantly reminded the kids and staff, over time they would begin to treat each other with more love and respect. In my final weeks I saw signs of improvement so it’s encouraging to see change at the very basic level.

Spending time with one of the youngest kids at Warm Heart, Ganda 

While a lot of my time here has been spent working and teaching, I’ve also had a ton of fun. From weekend travel to spontaneous temple visits to movie nights at Pradu and live-music bars in Phrao, the other volunteers and I have had a blast getting to experience the Thai culture both as tourists and locals. I’ve made memories that I’ll never forget with a diverse group of inspiring individuals, and I wouldn’t trade my time here for anything.

After school homework help break with C, the youngest of three brothers.

This experience has immensely impacted me, and I feel that I’ve made an impact as well. I’ll miss this hidden gem in the beautiful mountains of Phrao, but I’m confident that Warm Heart will forever remain a part of my life. It’s too special a place, and has given too much to me this summer, for me to say goodbye and never look back.

Weekend trip to Pai with volunteers (l. to r.) Lauren, Cecilia, Annaleigh, James, Stuart, Madeline, Alex