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shemarmooresfedora · 3 years ago

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Series Summary: After being arrested, Spencer Reid desperately tries to get back home to his daughter, Camellia, who was placed into foster care in your home.

Pairing: Single!Dad!Spencer x Foster!Mom!Reader

Word Count: 1.7k

Content/Warnings: mentions of Diana’s Alzheimer’s and Schizophrenia, prison, separation of father and daughter, swearing

A/N: i hope you guys enjoy my new fic! this may be about 8 chapters or so! i’m not sure yet, going to see how interested people are in the plot :) (also quick disclaimer: i have never been in the foster care system so please excuse any inaccuracies)

Masterlist

Chapter 1

Spencer never wanted his daughter to see him like this, being brought into the BAU bullpen in handcuffs. He was supposed to be the good guy.

Right now, he couldn’t tell if he still was. He had good intentions going down to Mexico to get non-FDA approved medicine for his mom but he may have killed someone in the process. If only he could just remember.

Camellia ran into his arms to hug him, a hug he so desperately wanted to return if it wasn’t for these stupid cuffs around his wrists.

“They can’t just take you away, Dad,” she cried.

“I’m so sorry, sweetheart. I’m going to get back to you as soon as possible,” he promised, kissing the top of her head.

Spencer felt absolutely crushed as the guards had to drag his crying 11-year-old off of him so he could be taken to his holding cell.

You had just gotten off of work when your phone rang. Eileen, the head foster care coordinator, was calling.

“Hello,” you answered.

“Hey Y/N,” she greeted you, “I know you haven’t had a foster kid in a few months but I kind of have an urgent case. 11-year-old sixth grade girl. Mom has been out of the picture for a while, Dad recently imprisoned and on trial for murder. There are a bunch of family friends willing to take her but no direct family,” she explained.

“I can take her for as long as she needs,” you told Eileen.

“Great! I’ll text you the address, it’s the FBI headquarters.”

When you walked into the BAU, still in your dino scrubs and white lab coat, Eileen was surrounded by a frantic group of people.

“As I said before, I don’t doubt any of your credentials but this is the law. We can only give away a child to direct family at this point in time. If you are not direct family, you will need a lawyer to fight for custody as well as permission from her father but that process could take months,” Eileen stated.

“Spencer hasn’t spoken to his father in years and his mother is in a facility for her schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s,” a dark-haired woman spoke.

“Exactly so she must be turned over to the foster care system. I apologize to you all but this is how it works. We can’t bend the rules,” Eileen said.

“I don’t want Callie fending for herself in a house with 20 other kids,” a blonde-haired woman argued, “I’m her godmother. She stays with me all the time. She was staying with me while Spencer was in Mexico.”

“Sorry, my answer is still no. But, hopefully this will squash your concerns, Y/N!” she called you over, “This is Y/N. Jo will be placed with her. She is a pediatric doctor and currently has no other foster kids at the moment but all of her past kids have absolutely adored her. She always passes her surprise safety and wellness checks with flying colors.

“Hi,” you waved, intimidated by this huge group of frustrated people with guns on their hips.

“A doctor? So she isn’t even going to be home most of the time,” a curly-haired man scoffed.

“Actually, I own my own practice. I don’t work at a hospital so I usually have a regular 8-4 shift unless one of my patients needs urgent attention,” you clarified.

“JJ, don’t make me go,” a girl, who you could only assume was Callie, sobbed.

They were all staring at you like you were the worst person on Earth. You wanted to shrivel up and die. When you went through the process of becoming a foster parent, you thought this was a very admirable thing to do. You just wanted to provide a good home to kids in need.

“Do any of you have a key to Dr. Reid’s residence so Camellia can pack a bag?” you asked politely.

The woman closest to Callie that must be JJ pulled a key off of her chain and handed it to you.

“I’ll-um-leave my phone number and address here so you guys can contact me at any time or stop by. I understand your concerns but please know I try my absolute hardest to make sure all kids feel welcome and safe in my house,” you scribbled your information down on a scrap piece of paper.

“Are you ready to go, Camellia?” you asked softly.

She went around hugging everyone in the circle before solemnly nodding to you.

God, you felt like such an asshole.

After Callie finished packing her things from her bedroom in relative silence, you returned to the car.

“I don’t know what you like to eat but we can stop at the grocery store so we can get stuff you like and any other things you need,” you said.

You were met with silence from the backseat. You offered for her to sit in the passenger seat but she declined.

“Listen, I’m really not trying to be the bad guy here. Please don’t make me out to be one. I know you are having a tough time with your Dad’s situation right now but shutting everyone else out won’t help,” you spoke softly, “Trust me, I know.”

You sighed when the silence continued. You pulled out of the Reid’s driveway and headed to the grocery store.

You let Callie lead when you entered the grocery store, opting to follow behind her with the cart. She went immediately to the frozen meal section and started throwing them in.

“Camellia, that’s fine if those are what you want but just so you know, I love to cook so I can make you anything you want,” you offered.

“This is what I’m used to,” she spoke sharply, “My dad is not a bad dad, he just usually doesn’t have much time.”

“I never claimed he was,” you defended yourself.

After that, you kept your mouth shut. Clearly, she was a very independent girl and she had her own routine she liked to stick to.

You hauled all the grocery bags inside the house and unloaded them as Callie brought in her suitcases.

“So Camellia, I put all the food you picked out in these two cabinets. I mean obviously, you are welcome to anything in the kitchen but I just wanted you to know where the things you picked out were. I always have a grocery list on the fridge that you can add to,” you began to give her a tour of the house, “Bathroom is in there. There’s another upstairs. Here’s the living room with a TV,” you headed up the stairs, “Here’s my room.”

On your bed was an adorable toyger kitten cuddled up on your pillow.

“Oh! This is Winnie like Winnie the Pooh. I just got her a few weeks ago from a shelter. She is super friendly and loves snuggles so she will probably try to sneak into your bed unless you keep your door closed.”

“I don’t mind,” Callie spoke softly as she petted Winnie.

You smiled softly. These were the first words you got out of her that weren’t a rejection.

You continued the tour, “There’s a bathroom between our rooms but I tend to use the downstairs one so feel free to make it your own. And here’s your room,” you opened the door to a white room with a queen bed in the center, a small bookshelf, a few plants, and paintings.

“I hope this is good enough for now. We can go out this weekend to a home goods store if you want to redecorate. I’d even be open to repainting it if you want,” you offered.

Callie just set her bags down and nodded.

“Alright, I’ll leave you be. I’ll probably be downstairs for a while watching TV if you want to join. Let me know if you want me to make you anything,” you began to shut the door but Winnie slipped in first.

“Good night, you guys,” you smiled softly.

“Do you want me to wait out here or come in with you?” you asked softly.

Spencer had been denied bail, meaning he was transferred to a federal prison and Callie was going to be staying with you for a while. She had taken the news rather hard as expected when the team came over to your house to tell her. You still weren’t really accepted by the group so you mostly stood in the corner of the kitchen while they were all in your living room.

You had spoken to Eileen several times about Callie’s current situation. She gave you permission to do whatever you saw fit. This means you could opt her out of school one or two days a week if she wasn’t feeling up to it as long as she emailed her teachers and got her missed work in on time. You were researching different therapists for her to talk to because she didn’t seem to want to open up to you. You were also given a schedule of visiting times for her to visit her dad in prison.

“I’ll just go in alone,” she walked in the door to the visiting room, leaving you in the waiting room.

“Dad,” Callie tried to hug Spencer but the guard pointed to the ‘No Touching’ sign posted on the wall.

They both sat down defeatedly at opposite ends of the table.

“How are you?” Callie inquired, wiping her tears away from seeing her father locked up.

“I don’t want to talk about me, sweetheart. How are you? Emily and my lawyer visited yesterday and told me you had to be placed into foster care,” Spencer asked, concerned.

“It’s okay. Not the best,” she sighed.

“What’s happening? Are they hurting you? Are they not giving you enough to eat? Callie, I’ll have my lawyer on the phone and you out of there so quick,” Spencer frantically stated.

“No, Dad. Y/N is fine…nice, even. But she’s not you,” Callie cried.

Spencer’s face softened, “I’m so sorry, Callie. You don’t deserve to be dealing with any of this.”

“Just please come home,” she sniffled.

“I’m trying, sweetheart, I’m really trying,” he replied earnestly with tears in his eyes.

A/N: i will also be starting a series taglist if you don’t want to be added to my main taglist so just clarify which one you want to join! also i recommend listening to the song Home by Phillip Phillips because it is kind of like the theme song for this story

main taglist (just ask to be added/removed!): @samuel-de-champagne-problems @g0lden-cth @spencerreid9 @averyhotchner @coldlilheart @k-k0129 @ickleronniekinsemotionalrange @harrystylesandthegoobs @cmily @jswessie187 @rem-ariiana @hoodpankow @mochionly @spencerreid-187 @babymetaldoll @fics4arainyday @ssavanessa22 @all-tings-diego

series taglist: @ilovespencerreidmarryme

#spencer reid angst #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid x fem!reader #spencer reid x you #spencer reid #spencer reid fanfiction #spencer reid fic #dr spencer reid #cm fanfic #spencer x reader #reid x reader #criminal minds

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aion-rsa · 3 years ago

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Marvel’s What If? Trailer Breakdown and MCU Easter Eggs Explained

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Lost in the shuffle of Marvel’s live action TV slate and its implications for the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe (like DOOM being the secret bad guy of Loki CHANGE MY MIND) is the impending release of Marvel’s first animated series. What If…? follows the theme of the comic of the same name, which explores far-fetched alternate versions of big moments in Marvel history. As you can see from the show’s new trailer, things get very weird when you start messing with the sacred timeline.

The first season of the animated show is going to run for 10 episodes, but it seems we only got a look at four or five possible stories from the trailer. We’re going to try and take it one story at a time. If you haven’t seen the trailer yet, take a look below:

Okay, here’s everything we found:

Uatu the Watcher

The framing sequence for every issue of the comic was Uatu the Watcher telling readers how if one thing changed, the whole world might have turned out differently. Uatu is a member of a race of extremely powerful, nigh-immortal beings committed to watching (or “monitoring” if you’re a DC head) the universe, but never interfering. Among his gadgets and gizmos that enabled him to perform those duties were machines that would let him see alternate possible realities. It looks like that framing sequence will make its way to the animated series, with Uatu played by Jeffrey Wright.

Killmonger and Iron Man

The first big change we see is Eric Killmonger, the Black Panther villain, saving Tony Stark from a bomb at what would have been the beginning of the first Iron Man movie.

It looks like this one wraps up with a big battle, with Killmonger and Ramonda (T’Challa’s stepmother and queen of Wakanda) each leading forces. What’s potentially interesting about this would be how it ties the motivations of Tony Stark and Killmonger together – Tony, saved from the attack, would not be forced to create Iron Man armor and could potentially give Killmonger a different outlet for his anger at Wakanda.

Thor vs. Ultrons in Madripoor

This next shot looks like a bunch of Ultrons circling a brightly lit building. The color scheme makes me immediately think Madripoor, the southeast Asian island nation introduced to the MCU in The Falcon & The Winter Soldier, but it’s entirely possible that this is just some garishly lit Stark holding.

The Ultrons swarm the building and Thor is there to meet them.

Captain Carter

The second big story teased in the trailer looks to be along the lines of “What if Peggy Carter got the super soldier serum?” The answer is apparently “ride an Iron Man into battle.”

Peggy obviously isn’t going to become Captain America, but her becoming Captain Britain would be a bit of a big deal. Captain Britain is typically an X-Men thing – the original 616 Captain was Brian Braddock, created by legendary X-writer Chris Claremont and Herb Trimpe. Brian headlined his own title for a bit, flourishing under Alan Moore and Alan Davis before fading away, only to have Claremont salvage his character family, including his sister Betsy, for his massive, seminal X-Men run.

Brian became Captain Britain when he was approached by Merlin and his daughter Roma and asked to choose between the Amulet of Right and the Sword of Might to see what kind of protector he would be. Interesting that we see Peggy carrying a sword here…

We also get a quick glimpse of Arnim Zola, the Hydra scientist who eventually uploaded his consciousness into a series of televisions to become one of the big bads of Captain America: Winter Soldier.

Here’s where this story starts to take a turn: Dr. Strange meets up with Captain Carter, and presumably from here shit gets real weird.

Like when Peggy Carter has to fight Shuma Gorath. Shuma was created in the ‘70s by Steve Englehart and Frank Brunner as an amalgamation of a bunch of different, evil, mystical beings: he’s an eye surrounded by toothy tentacles whose name was taken from an old Conan story, while his backstory has a lot of Chthulu in it.

Comics fans might recognize him as the dark god of the Cancerverse from the climax of the excellent Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning Marvel cosmic run, but real fans know him as the only character worth playing in the Capcom Marvel fighting games.

Guardians

Marvel’s What If will also feature the late Chadwick Boseman’s final performance as T’Challa. This time, though, he’s also Star Lord. It looks like T’Challa was picked up at some point by Yondu and raised in space as part of Yondu’s Ravager team.

This is a really interesting swap: the cinematic T’Challa has been largely defined by his relationship to his parents, and to his father especially. He’s swapping one strong father figure for another here, and it’s going to be fascinating to see how much his temperament changes because of Yondu, and how much his temperament changes what Star Lord would do.

One change is front and center in the trailer: T’Challa somehow gets the Guardians of the Galaxy pulled into the battle of New York from the first Avengers movie.

Loki

We know Tom Hiddleston is reprising his role as Loki for the animated series. It looks like Loki’s somehow gathered an army of Asgardians, including Volstagg? Looks like he’s facing off against Fury, too.

It looks like this story might branch off from the events of Thor – we get a peek at Hawkeye pointing his bow and arrow in the rain, just like his introduction in the first Thor movie.

Loki also gets his hands on the Casket of Ancient Winters again. You’ll recall that he used this weapon to try and destroy Jotunheim in the first movie, but was stopped by Thor destroying the Bifrost.

Zombies

The biggest performance draw is almost certainly going to be Boseman’s return, but the biggest story draw is going to be the MCU debut of the Marvel Zombies. This is a concept ripped straight from the comics.

The extremely popular series was penned by Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman and drawn by Criminal artist Sean Phillips in 2005 as an extended riff on a What If story arc in Ultimate Fantastic Four. It introduced a world where all the Marvel heroes and villains were turned into flesh eating zombies who then went on to eat their way through the galaxy. It was followed by a PROFOUNDLY disturbing prequel comic by Kirkman and Phillips, Dead Days, and later by five (5) sequel miniseries.

Don’t be surprised if this Marvel’s What If…? episode spawns its own series.

Howard the Duck

After a few cameos in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies and Avengers: Endgame, our favorite comic book duck is back, hopefully in a meatier role in Marvel’s What If…?

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mirkwoodshewolf · 4 years ago

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My sweet buttercup; Eugene Sledge x reader

*Author’s note*

Hey guys well this only took me a couple days to write this little genius but now I’ve got it done and ready for you all to enjoy. Now I really wanted to try something different with this Eugene fic, I really wanted to DIVE right and get to the heart and root of the blossoming relationship b/t Eugene and the reader in this fic. So more n the lines of what they were like as kids together, early teen years, basically a Pre-WW2 fic mostly before the ending.

Warnings: Fluff, bit of angst, family disownment, mentions of PTSD, forbidden love.

But I hope you all enjoy this fic so much and until next time ;)

Taglist:

@plethora-of-things

@waddles03

@psychosupernatural

@ixchel-9275

@simonedk

@jd-johndeacon-or-jackdaniels

@dancingcoolcat

@queensdivas

@geek-and-proud

@queendeakyy

@kairosfreddie

___________________________________________________________

*June 14th, 1928*

It was a warm summer day in Mobile, Alabama. In the center of town stood a farmer’s market shop run by Sheldon (L/n). Sheldon (L/n) was once part of the 1st Marine division back during the Great War. After the war he settled back home in Mobile to run himself a farm where he was known for growing the brightest, freshest, most delectable apples in the whole state of Alabama.

Why if you asked people where the stores got their apples from, nine times out of ten they would tell you they came from (L/n) farm. Sheldon while having his shell shock moments from the war, still managed to have the American dream.

He married his high school sweetheart Marianne Lewis and they lived a good life together and had a beautiful baby girl they named (y/n) (l/n).

Sadly though, when little (y/n) was just a year old, her mom died of breast cancer. Sheldon was devastated but he tried to keep trudging on by being both hard working man, and loving father to his little girl.

Walking through the town was Dr. Edward Sledge, his wife Mary Frank and their two sons, Edward Jr. Sledge and Eugene Sledge. Eugene was five years old, going on six come the fall.

His bright auburn hair bounced off the summer sun and as they came right towards Sheldon’s shop, Edward stopped his family in their tracks.

“Maybe we best find another way around.” Suggested Edward warily.

“Edward, it was five years ago, can’t you learn to let it go?” Mary Frank told her husband.

“I have, but Sheldon on the other hand…..that man’s as stubborn as an ox.” It was then Sheldon came out with some crates of food ready to be shipped off to the stores.

As soon as he saw Dr. Sledge, a gruesome scowl came across the farmer’s face.

“Just what do you think you are doing here Sledge?!”

“Now Sheldon calm down, we were only passing by.”

“If you think I’m gonna do any type of business with you, think again! After what you had done…..”

“Sheldon there was nothing my husband could do to help Marianne.”

“Mary Frank you keep out of this.” Her husband warned her cautiously.

“You best listen to him Mary Anne. This is no concern of yours. Now get yourselves as well as those little monsters of yours away from my shop!” he spat down at the ground in disgust before slamming the door of his shop closed.

“Why does Mr. (L/n) hate us so badly mama?” asked Edward Jr.

“Oh never you mind that Edward. It’s just grown up business.” Mary Frank assured her eldest son.

“Come along boys, we’re gonna head back towards the barbershop and go through the back alley there to get to the fair.” The two boys groaned.

“But that’ll take longer!” whined Edward Jr.

“Why do we have to go back!?” groaned Eugene.

“Now boys don’t argue with your father. Now come along, or else we can just head right back home and forget about the fair till next year.” Their mother scolded them. That immediately got them to stop whining and soon they turned back around and went the long way to the fair.

They barely got a block away from Sheldon’s market shop when Eugene heard someone calling out to them. It was a faint psst sound so he stopped right by a flower cart and soon peaking out from it was a young girl around his age.

She had curly (h/c) hair and bright (e/c) eyes that sparkled like the stars at night. Eugene knew this girl very well, it was his best friend (well secret best friend) (Y/n) (l/n).

Yep. Even though Sheldon has repeatedly drilled into his daughter’s mind to never, ever, ever under any circumstances go anywhere near the Sledge family. But due to the fact that the two kids were in the same class as one another, they just—clicked immediately.

Her, Eugene, and Sydney Phillips were like the three Musketeers. But Eugene and (y/n) well—they had a special bond with each other. They were just like peas and carrots. Different in every way but somehow they managed to click with each other.

“Eugene, over here!” he smiled before turning to see his parents and older brother who hadn’t noticed he wasn’t with them anymore. He smiled and ran up to (y/n) who had a basket filled with wildflowers in them.

“Hey (y/n). Mrs. Mulley said you were sick last week and that’s why you weren’t at Sunday school, what did you have?”

“Just a bad tummy ache. But I’m all better and I’ll be back in Sunday school tomorrow.”

“That’s good. What did you find?” he said gesturing to her basket. Sometimes, if they could manage it, Eugene and (y/n) could be seen going out to the fields picking wild flowers together. They would even have contests to see who could pick the most flowers in a certain amount of time.

“Mostly pink and blue flowers. But check this out,” she then held up a yellow buttercup flower.

“That’s a buttercup flower. My mama sometimes grows those in our garden.” Eugene said.

“Buttercup huh? I like it, it suits it.”

“You know my mama says that if you hold a buttercup under your chin, it’ll make it glow. I tried it once but it didn’t work.” (y/n) looked at it with curiosity before putting it under her chin.

“Does it work for me?” and well and behold, her chin was glowing right over the buttercup flower.

Even at the tender age of five, Eugen B. Sledge always knew he held more than a friendship feeling for (Y/n). Whenever she’d laugh, his heart would beat faster and it felt like he was being tickled by a billion butterflies in his tummy.

His face would go red every time they would pick wild flowers together, and his heart ached every time she had to mention that her daddy didn’t want her talking to him.

“It sure does buttercup.” He said softly.

“Did you just call me a—”

“(Y/N)! Oh now where is that girl at? (Y/n)!” her father’s voice soon called out from the market. He whistled for her like she were a dog and that’s when she turned to Eugene and whispered.

“I gotta go, see you at church Eugene, bye!” she quickly ran off with her flower basket towards her daddy. As Eugene watched her father kneel down in front of her giving her a soft but firm lecture about running off, Eugene couldn’t help but feel those butterflies again.

“Eugene! Eugene!?” at the sound of his brother’s voice, he snapped out of his daze and quickly ran off before Mr. (L/n) could take notice of a Sledge boy staring at the two of them.

*September 17th, 1938*

It was a hard time in America. For five years now, the whole country was under a Great Depression. Every American was affected and of course that didn’t exclude the Sledge’s or the (L/n)’s. Without enough payment for the extra help, it was all up to Sheldon and (Y/n) to work the farm.

And in order to help bring extra money and food on the table, the Sledge siblings both got jobs helping their dad out with his physician at home job.

Right now Sydney and Eugene were walking along the outskirts of Mobile. Along for the ride was Eugene’s new little pup, Deacon. He had gotten Deacon as a ‘job well done’ gift from his dad. A client of his had a dog that recently had a litter of pups but times were tough and if they didn’t get the pups adopted soon they’d be taken to the shelter.

So Edward being the kind hearted gentleman that he was known for, got the dog and decided the pup would be a good gift for his son Eugene, as a token for being such a big help through these uncertain times.

As the two boys walked over the tall hill, they soon came upon the (L/n) farm. Sydney and Eugene were both shocked to see just how much the Depression had affected the farm.

The soil that they remember being a rich stretch of fresh soil was now dried up and cracking. Weeds were growing up in almost every spot imaginable. Without the extra help, it was almost impossible to keep the weeds in check.

And of course there was hardly anymore livestock anymore. Save for the horse, 2 cows, and the chickens. All the other animals the (L/n)’s once had, had to be sold off in order to get the money they needed to survive.

“Man, I heard (y/n) was struggling but—never did I think it was this badly.” Sydney said with a solemn shake of his head.

“No wonder why she said she had to quit school and be with her dad.”

“Are you sure it ain’t for another reason why you miss her?” teased Sydney. At that moment (y/n) had came out of the chicken coop with a bunch of eggs in a crate and the two of them watched her enter back into her family home.

“You wish you were right Sid.”

“Oh I know I’m right. I’m always right when it comes to you two. Don’t think I didn’t know about the time in 3rd grade when you offered to do her side of the book report when she broke her leg and had to stay at the hospital.”

“I was being polite and didn’t want her getting held back.” As the two of them bickered back and forth, the 10 month old pup had raced down the hill catching scent of the chickens and crept towards the chicken coop.

Deacon slowly stalked towards the door before entering inside of it. The young pup stared at the chickens before one of them caught sight of the unfamiliar creature that stood in their coop.

The pup then let out a series of barks which sent the chickens running mad with fear. From up on the hill, Eugene looked down to see Deacon was gone and from the barks that came down below, he immediately put two and two together.

“DEACON NO STOP!”

“Eugene wait you can’t go down there!” Sydney raced after him.

At that moment, Deacon came out of the coop chasing after the flock of chickens who were racing around frantically trying to escape this wolf-like creature.

(Y/n) immediately peeked out from her bedroom window and was shocked to see what was going on. The chickens being chased by the dog, the dog being chased by Eugene, and Gene being chased by Sid.

“Oh hey (y/n).” Sid stopped by her bedroom window.

“Sid what in the samhell is going on out here!?”

“Funny you should ask, but uhh—mind helping us out?” she quickly got on her shoes and crawled out of her window before running beside Sydney to try and round up the chickens.

Running around like—well chickens with no heads, Eugene, (Y/n) and Sydney all tried to calm the situation down before he father would return home.

“WHAT’S GOING ON OUT THERE!?!?” at hearing that thunderous voice. (Y/n) stopped running as she held a chicken in her arms and froze in fear.

“You guys need to get out of here, now!” she urged Eugene and Sydney on. Eugene who had finally gotten hold of Deacon turned towards (Y/n) but before he could say a word, a gunshot was heard and the shot landed just a few inches away from his foot.

“C’mon Eugene lets go!” Sydney pleaded and soon the two men took off running for the hills. The backdoor slammed open and there stood Sheldon with his shotgun in hand and his jaw dropped at the sight before him.

All the chickens out of their coop, now finally calm, the chicken coop now lay there in rubble (when (y/n) and Gene tried to wrangle Deacon and a few chickens that had gotten back into the coop, the sudden jostling and heavy weight of both humans trying to calm the situation down, forced the coop to collapse under their weight).

“What-gup—what happened here!? (Y/n) (m/n) (l/n). You were supposed to be gathering the chicken eggs!!”

“I know daddy.”

“Then why the hell are they out and about!? How did the coop get destroyed!? JUST WHAT THE FUCK WERE YOU DOING GIRL!?!?”

From up on the hill, Eugene’s heart broke at hearing (y/n) getting yelled at by her own father. She had nothing to do with this. So getting the courage, he held Deacon once more and walked down the hill back towards the farm.

“Eugene, Gene don’t you dare! He’ll kill you if you go over there. Eugene!” Sydney hissed out quietly but Gene refused to listen to his best friend.

“I—” (Y/n) began to respond till Eugene’s voice called out.

“She didn’t do it sir.” The two of them turned around. Gripping his gun tighter, Sheldon stood in front of his daughter and said lowly.

“What was that boy?”

“The chicken coop. And the reason why the chickens got out. It was my fault. (Y/n) had nothing to do with it. You see my dog—”

“Great, the Sledge’s have a dog. One more thing to worry about.” Sheldon muttered angrily to himself.

“Please Mr. (L/n), don’t blame (y/n) for this. She was doing her job just like you told her to do. If anyone’s the blame, it’s me. And I’ll do anything to make it up to you.” Hearing Eugene confess, it made (y/n)’s heart flutter and place her hand over her heart.

“Oh you can be damned well sure you will boy. As much as I hate to say this. You’ll be helping me out for the rest of the Harvest season, as well as repairing the chicken coop! And you young lady, come with me.”

He dragged his daughter back to the house as he whispered harshly to her.

“Throughout the time he’s here repairing and helping out, I don’t want you anywhere near him. No daughter of mine is gonna be seen with a Sledge.” As her father continue to rant out his hatred towards the Sledges, (Y/n) turned back towards Eugene and softly smiled at him and mouthed out a thank you.

Eugene smiled softly and seeing her smile it was like cupid’s arrow had struck him as he made goo-goo eyes at her. Even as Sydney snapped his fingers in Gene’s face to get him to snap out of it, Gene was stuck under the love spell he was on.

As agreed; Eugene worked with his father helping him run the at home physician and on his breaks, he’d ride his bike over to (Y/n)’s place to repair the chicken coop, as well as pull out the weeds.

Of course that didn’t stop Eugene and (Y/n) from sneaking puppy love eyes at each other as the two teens were put to work. Throughout the harvest season, it only allowed Eugene and (Y/n) to grow closer than they ever were before.

*June 14th, 1941*

Eugene and (Y/n). Never has there been a couple more meant for each other. Sid always referred to them as childhood sweethearts, and now for these past several years, they’ve really seemed to just hit it off. And with him being the only real person who knew of their ‘more than friendship’ relationship, he kept that to himself.

Of course Eugene’s parents never turned (y/n) away. From the early days when they were kids, they welcomed her with open arms. What they didn’t know was their blossoming relationship. Neither of their parents knew of their courting with each other, and they wanted to keep it that way for just a little while longer.

The two of them were at their favorite hillside where they once picked wildflowers when they were kids. Splayed out along a blanket cuddled close together watching the summer sunset. Eugene lying on his back with (y/n) lying her head against his chest, their hands intertwined with each other’s and their thumbs stroking the back of each other’s hands.

“Happy Anniversary my love.”

“What do you mean Gene?” she looked up at him.

“You heard me, happy 131, 456 hour anniversary.” Eugene said with a small grin as he picked up a buttercup flower and tucked it behind her ear.

“What? That’s way longer than when we first met.”

“I know. But it’s the anniversary of the day I first called you my buttercup.” He said as he cupped her face. Inside (y/n) felt warm and fuzzy remembering that day by the flower cart when Eugene had called her buttercup after finding out one glow underneath her chin. “But it’s fine if you forgot and didn’t get me anything.” Teased Eugene as he sat up trying to hide a grin. She rolled her eyes at Eugene’s teasing.

“Actually I did.” She crawled towards a log and pulled out a guitar case. Eugene’s eyes widened and as she opened the case up he said.

“Oh darlin you shouldn’t have but uhh—I don’t really know how to play.”

“Quiet you.” she teased back as she took the guitar (which was actually hers) and she began playing a soft tune. After letting the soft tune play for a bit she opened her mouth and began to sing.

As she sang; she began to remember all the times she and Eugene had together. From sharing secret letters/drawings with each other (with Deacon being the messenger dog), nature walks together, or secretly waving at each other from her father’s shop.

Their times doing out to the soda shops every Saturday night to go dancing. Always dancing together

We're far apart in every way

But you're the best part of my day

And sure as I breathe the air

I know we are the perfect pair

On a prickly path that goes on for miles

But it's worth it just to see you smile

And I cannot be pulled apart

From the hold you have on my heart

And even if the world tells us it's wrong

You're in my head like a catchy song

“I’ve always loved hearing you sing.” Sighed Eugene lovingly.

“The song’s not too gushy is it? Be honest now.”

“It’s everything but gushy, please sing more for me.” He said as he laid his head close to her thigh. (Y/n) continued to sing while Eugene just stared at her with loving eyes.

More memories came to both of them from their nature walks through any type of weather whenever they had free time. The stargazing’s they’ve done, and even one time when (Y/n) was struggling with the farm one spring that she ended up working till nightfall.

When morning came that morning, she found herself being covered with Eugene’s jacket and just a couple feet away from her, laid an exhausted Gene. He had actually came by and done the rest of the work for her so that she could get some sleep. As he slept, she had sat down beside Eugene and stroked through his auburn hair.

The seasons change and leaves may fall

But I'll be with you through them all

And rain or shine, you'll always be mine

On a prickly path that goes on for miles

You're the only one who makes it all worthwhile

And you should not blame me, too

If I can't help fallin' in love with you...

At the last verse, the two of them went red. While they have called each other their love or life, and while they were technically courting, neither of them has actually those three binding words. (Y/n) covered her mouth with her hand and looked down shyly as her face went red.

“Well that’s unfair. I was gonna tell you that first.”

“Yeah right.”

“I’m serious, I was gonna pull you up,” he stood up and helped her stand up. “Cover your eyes,” he covered her eyes. “Lead you over here.” He then guided her as he kept his hands over her eyes towards the wooded area of the fields. “And say surprise!” he uncovered her eyes and (Y/n) saw the sweetest thing she would ever see.

There along the willow tree they used to climb when they were kids, was a heart engraved at the center of the trunk and written in that heart were their initials. E.B.S + (F/I). (M/I). (L/I). She walked up towards their willow tree and placed her hand over the engravement.

“And then you’d say ‘Oh Genie. It’s—it’s so beautiful. I love it’.” He said imitating her Southern bell voice. “And then I’d say, ‘well, not as much as I love you’.”

“Guess I’m glad I beat you to it then.” She teased as she playfully bumped into him.

“I can accept that.” He said with a proud grin as he wrapped his arms around her waist while she wrapped her around his neck before the two of them finally kissed each other.

It was the kind of kiss that wasn’t deeply passionate that you couldn’t breathe. It was the kind of kiss that just felt like you found your missing half. Gene and (Y/n) were meant to be together and right as they kissed, it felt like it was right.

They were right for each other. And they began to dream of their bright future together. But of course no happiness lasts forever.

After returning from the fields later that evening, she came home to see her home filled to the rim with boxes. She asked her father what was going on and that’s when her father told her the grim truth.

They were moving to North Dakota.

Her father explained to her that the property here was just too dry to farm at anymore. Ever since the Depression decade the land hasn’t been the same. So he hired a contractor to tear the family home and the farm down, he had sold off the rest of the animals, and in two days they were gonna get a fresh start in a new land, with new people, and most important for him it would get them away from the Sledges.

(Y/n) was devastated. Two days and she’d never get to see Sydney Phillips, or Eugene ever again.

When she broke the news to Eugene the next day at the Willow tree, Eugene couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He held onto his weeping girl waiting for her to calm down before he finally spoke to her.

“But you’re practically an adult now (y/n). He can’t control you anymore.”

“What do you want me to say Eugene? I love you, I really do but—he’s the only family I got. And I—I have to stay with my family. I’m sorry!” with that she took off crying, heartbroken and alone.

Eugene looked towards the carving that he had done with his father’s old doctoring knife he used in the Great war. He placed his finger’s over (y/n)’s initials and knew what he had to do, but he knew he didn’t have much time so immediately he got on his bike and pedaled off as fast as he could into town.

By nightfall as (y/n) was solemnly packing up her stuff, Eugene came knocking at her window and he told her to come with him. He made up a story that Deacon wasn’t feeling to good and he needed his ‘mama’. Knowing how much she loved that dog, Eugene and her rode off on his bike.

They soon arrived at the church garden, which was an odd place that Eugene would bring Deacon at, but when she saw the candles all lit up and a beautiful flower archway standing near the back entrance of the church.

Wide eyed in awe, (Y/n) couldn’t believe what she was seeing. When she felt Eugene take her hand he got down on one knee and said to her.

“I don’t ever want to be apart from you. I don’t know what’ll happen in the future but—all I know is now. And I know that I love you so much that I’d marry you today. If you’ll have me that is?” tears of happiness filled her eyes as she said to Eugene.

“I’d like that too.” Eugene smiled and stood up as he embraced his fiancée and spun her around, the two of them cheering and laughing with glee.

After settling down, the two of them walked arm-in-arm with each other towards the pastor (who was actually their own Sunday school teacher who had since went up the ranks and was now one of the head pastor of their church). With Sydney Phillips as their witness and Eugene’s best man, the ceremony began.

The two young teens shared their vows together before the house of God and proclaimed their loyalty and love to each other.

“Then by the name of our Holy Father and in the eyes of the law; I now pronounce you—”

“Pastor Jacob! Pastor Jacob! Please can you help us our son is—Eugene? (Y/n)?” coming behind Sydney were Eugene’s parents.

“What is going on here?” asked Eugene’s father.

“(Y/n)!? Where are you girl you’re supposed to be packing!” soon coming up behind (y/n) from the bushes was her father. As soon as he saw his daughter with the Sledge’s he sneered out, “What are you two doing?” As both families came closer to see just what was going on, that’s when Eugene spoke up as he wrapped his arm around his future wife.

“Mother, father, Mr. (L/n). (Y/n) and I are getting married.”

“What!?” all three parents shouted in shock.

“That’s right. And we’ll officially be married as soon as Pastor Jacob says…..” (y/n) said firmly as she looked back at the pastor.

“Oh right, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride.” He stepped aside as he closed his Bible.

“Mrs. (Y/n) Sledge, has a nice ring to it don’t you think?” Eugene said as he cupped his wife’s face.

“Indeed.” The two of them kissed each other finally sealing the deal.

“What are you talking about married!? You both are too young to be married!” Mary Frank scolded as she came between them and pushed Eugene aside.

“Finally something we can agree on.” Sheldon spoke as he now stood beside his daughter. “(Y/n) (m/n) (l/n) you listen to me and you listen good, girl. We’re moving and that’s final. And you have got to stick with your family! So enough of this foolish teenage fantasy and come home!” he grabbed her wrist and began to drag her away.

Finally having enough of her father’s grudge against the Sledges, she broke free of his grip and proclaimed.

“No daddy!”

“No?” her father asked as if he had been punched in the face.

“The Sledges are my family now too. In the eyes of God and the law as Pastor Jacob has said.” Eugene brushed past his mother and stood beside his wife to give her backup.

“You can’t be serious. Are you really choosing to be family with the ones responsible for your mother’s death over your own flesh and blood?!”

“Are you making me choose?” she spoke with a trembled lip as tears filled her eyes.

Her father stood there in shock and everyone around them grew tense. Could a father really force his daughter to choose who she sides with?

“Yes. I am.” Her father demanded. Finally hearing that answer broke (y/n)’s heart but she stood her ground as she spoke in a broken voice.

“Then yeah. I guess I am.” Her father’s face showed absolutely betrayal before his eyes grew red and he snapped at her.

“Then I guess I have no daughter anymore.” Without another word he stormed away from the church.

Heartbroken by her father’s words, (y/n) wept out a river of tears. Eugene held his new wife close to him trying to comfort her, meanwhile Dr. Sledge walked up to the young newlyweds and placed a comforting hand to his new daughter in law’s shoulder. She looked up at the old physician and he told her.

“You’ve always been like family to us (Y/n). You’ve always had love here with us. Right Mary Frank?” after witnessing what she had seen, she couldn’t deny the fact that ever since they were kids, her son and this young girl were just destined to be together.

“Even though I don’t condone you both being married so young while you’re still in school Eugene, there’s—I cannot stop the bond that it is you both share with each other.” Hearing those words coming from her new mother and father, it repaired some of the damage that (y/n)’s heart had taken.

“Thank you Mr. and Mrs. Sledge.” She thanked them.

“Oh sweet pea, call me mama.” Mary Frank said as she came up and cupped (y/n)’s face.

“And whenever you feel like it, you can call me dad.” Dr. Sledge said with a warm smile. (Y/n) never felt so grateful to the Sledges, she continued to weep as she now hugged her new parents and they warmly embraced her back. Welcoming her to the family officially.

*August 29th, 1945 1st Person POV*

I lot has happened in the past few years. Six months after Eugene and I got married, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and America was officially in the war with the Axis Powers.

Eugene wanted to enlist so badly but dad said that his heart murmur prevented him from enlisting, they knew with that he would never get it. So he always begged his father for frequent checkups every day until one day it was gone. That was the day my life changed forever.

I begged and pleaded with Genie to not go but he kept saying he had to do this. He’d feel like a failure if he were stuck doing bond trades or collecting scrap metal, while so many men including our dear friend Sid are fighting out in the front lines.

At that point I knew I couldn’t argue with him anymore and so he enlisted. Of course the night before he left, we made sure to make that night extra special because we both didn’t know if this would be the last time we’d see each other. We memorized each other’s kiss, scent, and touch (and I knew Eugene was trying much harder than I was since I knew he’d suffer the worse).

I went back to school, got my high school diploma and I’m currently now working as a teacher’s work assistant as well as a part-time librarian at the local library. I had remained with mom and dad taking care of house as well as Deacon (God rest his little soul) just trying to distract myself from missing Eugene.

It was (for once this past few weeks) a cool Summer’s day. I was tending to the garden outside planting a few roses, daffodils and of course buttercup flowers but I didn’t expect to suddenly get jumped by two little body masses.

Soon enough I was in the dirt and two 3 year old kids were piled on top of me. One was a little boy who looked so much like his daddy when I first met him, except he had my hair and eye color, and the other was a girl with the same curly hair I once had as a kid and her daddy’s auburn hair and brown eyes but the rest were my looks.

“We gotcha mommy now say you surrender!” my son proclaimed as he held up his toy gun at me, while my daughter had a couple of sticks, pretending they were a bow and arrow.

“I surrender, you both got me.” I held my arms up in surrender. They cheered as they got off of me but that’s when I tackled them both to the ground and began tickling them both.

The two of them laughed as they tried to escape my clutches but soon our moment was interrupted by one of the servants, Octavia.

“Excuse me, Mrs. Sledge?” I stopped playing with the kids and the look on her face was—unreadable.

“What is it Octavia?”

“Just come inside (y/n) dear, there’s—someone who you need to see.” Oh god please don’t tell me. Not when the war was finally over do I get the news.

“Mommy, what is it?” asked my son.

“Gene, you and your sister stay with Octavia okay?” I told him as I stood up and brushed the dirt off my dress as best as I could.

Slowly I walked through the back entrance towards the dining room where I knew mom was at stacking the dishes. I almost didn’t even want to turn the corner to see an officer in uniform telling us now that Eugene was dead. Finally I worked up the courage to turn the corner and there my heart stopped.

Standing right there by his mother and father in full Marine uniform, was my Genie.

He slowly walked towards me and I him until we finally met in the middle. For years I’ve dreamed of this day to come that—now it feels like it is a dream. He raised his hand to my face and the moment I felt his touch, I knew this couldn’t be a dream.

“You—you’re as beautiful as the day I left buttercup.” At that moment, the tears poured down my face as I felt myself collapsing against him. Eugene kept me steady as his head rested against mine and he rocked me back and forth.

“You’re back! You came back…..” I wept into his uniform.

“I told you I would.” He whispered to me.

“Mama?” Eugene and I separated from each other to see Octavia bringing in the kids. “Why are you crying?” asked my baby girl. When I looked up at Eugene, his eyes were wide and his body fell tense.

“Genie, I—I didn’t want to share this with you through letter. But—I’d like you to meet two very special people of mine. Kids come here.” Shyly they walked from Octavia up to me and Eugene as we now knelt down to their height.

Our kids soon came up and our daughter hid behind my back while our son fiddled with the ends of my dress as he curled himself around my arm.

“Eugene, these are our kids. The oldest of the twins is our son, Eugene B. Sledge Jr. and our baby girl, Daphne Eliza Sledge. Kids—this……is your daddy. He’s come home to us.” My son looked up at me hesitantly and I nodded to him telling him it was okay to go see him.

Little Gene walked up to his daddy and just stared up at him in both awe but a hint of fear.

“Little Gene, suits him. Guess you managed to convince Sid to not let us name our first boy after him.” Eugene teased at me as he gently ruffled his son’s hair. Knowing that this strange man in uniform wasn’t going to hurt him, little Gene smiled and immediately embraced his daddy.

Eugene embraced his son and kissed the top of his head and it just made my heart soar at seeing both my boys finally meeting each other and already loving each other. After giving his son some of his love, he looked behind me to our baby girl who was still shyly trying to hide from him.

“It’s okay sweetie bell. He won’t hurt you.” I assured her. Slowly but surely, she came out till she stood by my arm and clung onto it just like her brother.

“My, my, my. You—you look exactly like your mother when I first met her. Guess now I’ve got two buttercups.”

“How did you know my name?” Eugene looked at me confused so I explained to him.

“She likes to be called buttercup. Says it sounds more prettier than her real name.”

“Well whatever name you prefer darling, it sounds beautiful. Just like your mother, and just like you.” he gently booped his daughter’s button nose which made her giggle and finally loosen up around her daddy. Before long she too cuddled into her daddy’s chest and he gave her the same love and affection he gave his son.

Seeing him hold our two kids just—finally felt right. I always knew Gene would be a natural dad, and even now after being through such hell for the past 3 years, he can finally have some peace knowing his family has now grown.

The rest of the day it was just the four of us bonding and getting to know each other.

Of course I knew life wouldn’t be the same as it was before. For example the nightmares. Every night Eugene would suffer terrible and horrifying nightmares. Some nights I ended up staying awake all night just to make sure he didn’t suffer alone.

There wasn’t much I could do except to just assure him that he wasn’t there anymore and that he was home. Sometimes the kids would ask him why they would hear their daddy scream and cry but I told them to not ask him such questions yet.

After Eugene had returned with his dad from the dove hunting, I could see from the tearstains on his face and the slight red in his eyes that it didn’t go so well and that he had suffered flashbacks (I still remember when—well my old father still suffered from them night after night).

So Eugene and I, along with the kids decided to head out to Genie and is old favorite spot out in the fields. He and I were lying on our backs cuddled close to each other while the kids went off to pick wildflowers.

“How long till you found out about them?” he asked me. I looked up at him before turning towards our kids.

“A couple weeks after you left for bootcamp. I just felt so sick till dad checked me out and that’s when it was confirmed that I was pregnant. I would’ve mentioned it but—something like that can’t be said through letters.”

“They’re beautiful though. Just like you.” he said as I felt his nose bury itself into my neck.

“And you.”

“Mama! Daddy!” soon our kids came running up to us and Buttercup held up a buttercup flower. “Look what I found!”

“Yes sweetheart, you found the flower you’re named after. Did you know of a legend that goes with this flower?” she shook her head no. I took hold of the buttercup and told her, “If you hold a buttercup under your chin, it’ll make it glow. See how it works on me?” both my children looked at me in pure awe.

“Let me try! Let me try!” Little Gene called out as he reached out to take the flower. He took it and held it under his chin asking repeatedly if it was working. When Buttercup shook her head, Little Gene pouted, god he really was just like his daddy.

“No worries little Gene. It never worked on me either when I was your age, see?” his daddy said as he held the flower under his chin.

“Can I try it next daddy?” asked Buttercup. Gene nodded and held the flower under his daughter’s chin and low and behold, it worked on her. He smiled as he shook his head softly scoffing.

“Does it work?” she asked him.

“It sure does Buttercup. Apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree, huh (n/n)?” I smiled as he picked up his daughter and began kissing her all over her cheek making her giggle.

“Mommy can you sing for us?” asked little Gene as he crawled his way into my lap.

“What would you like me to sing?”

“The catchy song!” The kids both proclaimed. I smiled and said.

“Okay. But you both know I don’t have the guitar with me to play it.”

“Please mommy!” they both gave me the puppy dog eyes they inherited from their father.

“I swear Eugene this trick came from you.”

“Uhh excuse me? You’ve done the puppy dog eye trick on me way longer than I have. Don’t you put this on just me.” Eugene said trying to point the blame on me. I scoffed that’s when Little Gene said.

“Mommy sing for us now!”

“Now, now Little Gene, that’s not the way to get something from your mother or from anyone. If you want something you ask politely.” Eugene gently scolded his son. Little Gene nodded and apologized to me. I told him it was fine and that’s when I began singing the song that I had made for Eugene what felt like an eternity ago, which now became the kids’ favorite song.

Eugene set our baby girl down and laid his head across my lap while I stroked through his auburn hair as well as down his face. And every time my fingers came close to his lips, he would pucker them out and give each of my fingers or the back of my hand a kiss. The kids all lay down close to us with my boy laying his head near my knee while our baby girl cuddled herself tight against her daddy’s side, like a little kitten.

After I finished the song, Eugene and I thought it best to head back home and put these kids down for their nap. I grabbed our son while Eugene held our baby girl, both our kids clung onto us once they knew we had hold of them. Eugene and I looked at each other before leaning in and giving each other a soft kiss before heading back to the house.

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thecinematicalgorithm · 4 years ago

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Falcon & the Winter Soldier - Sam Wilson: Captain America?

I’m kind of late to the party, seeing that we’re now 3 episodes in to the long-awaited MCU series featuring Cap’s best buds, but as I’ve been away from Tumblr for some time I’ve decided what better way than jumping back in by analyzing a show that I’ve been looking forward to since its announcement. Also, Bucky Barnes has been one of my favorite characters in the MCU since The First Avenger, and I couldn’t pass up on breaking down his complicated psyche in the course of this show. So here goes, and be forewarned spoilers lie ahead!

When we left off with Sam Wilson in Avengers: Endgame, Steve had just handed down the Captain America shield, passing on the century-old icon and legacy. I felt this was not only a good choice on Steve’s part, but the only choice. Yes, I know it had been some debate for awhile over whether it would be Sam or Bucky to take up the mantle, but despite the comics I never really liked the idea of Bucky as the Captain, especially given his role as the Winter Soldier. He has too much dark history that, while not his fault, is too damning for the world to look at him as a symbol. Not to mention that Bucky is just far too weary and done with the world’s shit to even want to take up that role.

Sam however, is much better suited for the role and there are many reasons as to why. Firstly, Steve chose him. This is actually a critically important reason that I want to hash out now because, as I’m sure you well know, the end of this episode introduced a new character that, suffice to say, is missing that critical element. Flashback with me to 1942 when Steve sat in a recruitment center where he met Dr. Abraham Erskine, creator of the serum that gave Steve his incredible strength and abilities. It was here that Erskine saw, not a soldier or a warrior or even a hero, but simply a good man wanting to do the right thing. Throughout Steve’s basic training Erskine watched him, and when the time came he chose him for the experiment that would produce the first superhuman, telling Colonel Phillips, that Rogers was the “clear choice”.

Why is this an important detail in Steve having chosen Sam to take up the mantle of Captain America? When Erskine ‘chose’ Steve there was no Captain America mantle. No shield to hand down. Erskine was merely looking for a man who would not turn into some form of monster if injected with his serum. Right? In fact, despite there being no legacy at the time, I believe Erskine did know, or at least suspected that choosing Steve for this role wasn’t just about avoiding another Red Skull catastrophe. He knew he was creating something that would change the course of the war, the military, and history itself. He had no way of knowing what the future held for Steve, but he knew Steve would need to be the same man he saw in that recruitment center. That’s why he took the time to tell Steve to remain who he was, and why his last action before his death was to point at Steve’s heart, effectively telling him, “Stay who you are!”

Steve Rogers, from the beginning, was always the man who fought for “the little guy”. The underdog. The oppressed. The bullied. Erskine chose Steve because he was “the clear choice” even though that clarity was not evident to nearly anyone else. As he said, “...a strong man, who has known power all his life, will lose respect for that power. But a weak man knows the value of strength, and knows compassion."

Now, Sam is definitely not a weak man. Quite the opposite actually. He doesn’t even have super soldier strength and yet he’s able to tackle the “Big Three”. However, by the second episode we see exactly why Sam would be able to understand and defend the proverbial “little guy”. The Captain America films have never shied away from real-world issues that give the plot relevance and Marvel is continuing that pattern by giving voice to the oppression that the African-American community still faces to this day, and it’s about damn time. It is also diving deep into PTSD, mostly in regards to Bucky, but for now I want to focus on Sam.

The scene in which the police single out Wilson as he argues with Bucky shows us not only why the world needs a symbol to look up to, but also why Sam is the right man for the job. At the time when Steve was chosen, he was not the “ideal man” to everyone around him. He was not the alpha male. He was small, sickly, artistic, gentle and kind. He did not want to go overseas to “kill Nazis”. He was the underdog. But the world needed him. The world needed a soldier who would defy orders to do the right thing. A man who would not change his beliefs, or stoop to his enemies level. A man who uses his power to fight for others.

To the world around him, Sam may not be the ideal man but as Erskine would say, “he is the clear choice”. He has all of that as well as the life experience of someone who belongs to a minority that is stereotyped and pre-judged and oppressed.The introduction of Isaiah, and his place in the MCU history (or lack of I should say), is sadly far too realistic. Sam’s horror was justified and it’s something he will not be able to let go and do nothing about.

I think as the show continues Sam will come to realize that the mantle of Captain America, or that of Steve Rogers, isn’t about the icon or the legacy. It’s simply about doing the right thing, even if against orders, and always, no matter what happens, “staying who you are”. A good man. And this is why Steve chose Sam. He saw a good man that he knew would remain true to who he was and would always fight for “the little guys”.

Thank you for reading! Feel free to leave your comments, and keep an eye out for my next analysis on Bucky Barnes! Have a great day!

#falcon #winter soldier #sam wilson #bucky barnes #anthony mackie #sebastian stan #marvel #mcu #disney plus #steve rogers #chris evans #abraham erskine #stanley tucci #captain america #the first avenger #colonel phillips

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sunmoonandeddie · 6 years ago

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i wished on the moon for you

pairing: bucky barnes x reader

word count: 9,879

summary: After losing Bucky, you were devastated. So when Howard Stark asks for volunteers for an experiment, you're the first in line.

warnings: Some h*ckin’ words.

a/n: So like. This is lowkey inspired by old jazz music. I've always loved jazz, and I just wanted to write something surrounding it. Let me know what you think!

"Army camps are strange," you said quietly, peering out the window curiously.

Your driver laughed a little, saying something about how you'd get used to it, but you paid him no mind. You were too busy looking at your new home. Men in army uniforms swarmed the area, and you realized just what you were getting yourself into as the car parked and the driver opened your door. The was muddy, crowded, and the air reeked of testosterone.

"Y/N!"

You turned at the sound of a familiar voice, grinning as you saw the familiar brunette walking across the yard to you. The men around her were parting like the Red Sea. Her hair was perfectly curled, as always, her lips painted a bright red. Peggy Carter was just as perfect as she had been in school.

"Peggy!" You said happily as you embraced her. "I've missed you so much!"

It had only been a year since you had graduated from your overly priced boarding school, but you hadn't gotten to see your roommate in that entire year, despite the fact that she had relocated to America to help with the war efforts right after. Mostly because your parents had been determined to keep you at home, in the deep south of Louisiana, and Peggy had been stationed up north in New York.

She pulled away from you, her hands resting on your shoulders. "I have so much to show you. And Abraham is ecstatic to meet you."

Ah, yes. Abraham Erskine. Your new boss. The entire reason you had gotten to come was because Peggy had mentioned how gifted you were in science, and because the man trusted her so much, he had agreed to hire you. Your parents had been appalled at first. They knew, of course, how smart you were, but they expected you to focus on getting a husband and having kids after you had come home. You were supposed to settle down with a nice, Southern boy of the corn-fed variety and have at least four children. It was what they did, what your sisters and brothers did, and it was only natural that they expected it of you, too. Even though you had been given some leeway as the youngest of the family, your parents were starting to get impatient. Your hope chest was the only one left, and your mama reminded you every chance she got. Typically, only the first born girl got a hope chest, but your daddy had insisted that every single one of you did.

You envied Peggy, in that her parents wanted her to follow her passion, even if it meant moving across the ocean.

She led you through the camp as the men started to notice you. It was hard not to, since you and Peggy were the only women in a ten mile radius, and they certainly weren't getting anything out of her. When you finally found Erskine, he was standing beside another man and watching a group of soldiers doing push ups.

"Dr. Erskine, this is Y/N L/N," she said.

The man turned to look at you, shaking your hand firmly as he clasped it with the other. "Ms. L/N, I've heard so many good things about you. I'm so excited to work with you."

His accent took you by surprise, but you didn't let it show as you shook his hand back. "The pleasure is all mine, Doctor."

"And this is Colonel Chester Phillips," she said, motioning to the man that Erskine had been speaking with. He let out a grunt in replying, and Peggy rolled her eyes before turning back to watch the group of soldiers.

When you noticed the way Peggy was looking at one of the men, a scrawny one that looked more like a boy, you nudged her. "What happened to your no dating rule?"

"That was in school," she replied with an eye roll. She was pretending as though it was no big deal, but the blush on her cheeks said otherwise. "And you had the same rule, too, you know."

"I'm not the one staring lustfully at one of the men you're commanding," you teased, giggling as she smacked your arm. "But, really. Who is he?"

"His name is Steve Rogers," Peggy said. You had never seen her look at someone in that way, and it kind of confused you. She hadn't liked anyone in school, always claiming that the men were too immature and she didn't have time for them. You had adopted the same mentality after a while, which is probably why your parents didn't like Peggy too much.

The two of you went quiet, listening to the two men beside you talk. Something about a serum. You were a little surprised when Colonel Phillips grabbed a grenade and pulled the pin, but you relaxed when you realized it was a dummy. The men he had thrown it towards, however, had no idea. They began to scramble, and the man that Phillips wanted to have the serum ran, while Rogers threw himself on top of it.

You took a glance at Peggy, who was smirking triumphantly as he yelled for everyone to run. "He clearly has no regard for his own life and safety," you commented, but you were grinning. You could tell he had a good heart, and that was more important to you than being a good soldier.

You spent months with the army, even after Steve was given the serum and Dr. Erskine died. Having been given the most knowledge about the program, you had been asked to stay on. So you traveled with Peggy, staying in the same room and working side by side. It almost felt like grade school all over again. The only difference was that you were in a country side in Austria and not the center of London.

"When he gets back, you should tell him how you feel," you said to Peggy. The two of you were standing in a tent, a radio nearby. Steve had left on a mission to rescue a group of POWs days ago and you could tell how anxious she was. So you just kept telling her things the two of them could do when he got back, like dancing. The two of you had loved to go to the dance halls in England, but hadn't had time since the war started. "Maybe you two could go to that diner on Broadway? They have that delicious apple pie that tastes like it's from down south." She had always teased you on how adamant you were that southern baking was better, but you stuck by it.

She stood up suddenly, her eyes going wide. "Is that..." You followed her as she made her way out of the tent. She was completely focused on the horizon, and you realized as you kept walking, that there was a massive amount of men walking towards the camp.

And at the very front, was Steve Rogers.

Peggy froze, and you took the moment to nudge her forward. "Go."

She didn't need any more convincing. She walked towards him with a purpose, her stride sure and her hands in fists at her side. But you could tell by the way she was biting her lip that she was nervous. You didn't hear what was said, standing back a little as you watched her make what you were sure was some kind of smart ass comment.

"Let's hear it for Captain America!" You heard someone shout, and you laughed a little as you watched the men erupt into cheers. You hadn't seen the men this happy in a long, long time. Most of the time they wore sullen faces that matched the dreary weather. But now, even though they were hungry, covered in mud, and far from their homes, they had a ray of hope in the form of Steve Rogers.

You made your way back to you and Peggy's quarters, turning on the radio. It took you a minute or two to find a station that was playing music instead of news about the war, but when you did, you turned it up loud. Music was something you had missed while on the road. You were usually too busy to just stop and enjoy it, since you were constantly trying to decipher Erskine's notes. There were stacks upon stacks of his journals on your desk, but you ignored all of that for the moment. Hundreds of men had made it back alive today after days of thinking the worst. That deserved a little celebration.

So you kicked off your shoes and you sang. At first it started out with just a few phrases, the sound timid and soft, but soon you were belting along with it. You were completely losing yourself in the music. You sang word for word with Billie Holiday, one of your favorite artists, as she sang 'I Wished on the Moon.' It was an older track, released in 1935, and she was only a feature on it, but it was still your favorite song of hers.

You jumped as you heard a knock on the door, turning to see a man with shaggy brown hair and stubble lining his jaw in the doorway. "Is, uh... Is Steve here?"

Frowning, you crossed your arms over your chest. You were a little embarrassed that someone had caught you singing with the radio, if you were honest. You were technically a superior, even if you were a scientist. "Depends on who's asking." Even though Steve wasn't there, you didn't know who this man was or what he wanted.

"I'm James. Steve's friend," he said, his eyes focused on you with a type of intensity that you couldn't place. But it made your cheeks warm the longer he looked at you. "My friends call me Bucky."

Recognition dawned on your face as you pointed at him. "You're Steve's friend from Brooklyn?" When he nodded, you smiled a little, relaxing as you realized that he was one of the people that had just been saved from the HYDRA base. "He's told Peggy and me a lot about you."

"So... Is he here?"

You were about to tell him no, he wasn't, when the man in question came up behind him, Peggy by his side. "You lookin' for me, Buck?"

Peggy's gaze landed on you as she squeezed past the two men, taking notice of the song playing. "You still love this song?"

You shrugged as you moved over to turn it down slightly. "You know me. Billie Holiday will always be one of the best artists, in my opinion."

"So I see you've met Y/N," Steve said, bringing your attention back as he clapped a hand on Bucky's shoulder. "She was working as Dr. Erskine's assistant when they turned me into..." He motioned at his body, not sure how to explain it. "This."

"I didn't realize you were a scientist," Bucky said in shock, his eyebrows furrowing.

"She's always been smart. She graduated top of our class at school, beating even me," Peggy said proudly, a smirk on her lips. You had always thought that she was the person most proud of you, and you were always reminded of it when she started to brag about you. "I finally managed to get her out of Louisiana by telling Erskine about her. He seemed pretty eager to take on an assistant. Y/N's actually taken over his job since he died."

"It's really not that exciting," you insisted as you waved her off, wrapping your arms around yourself. "I spend most of my time trying to decipher his notes and what they mean. Peggy's the one that actually trained all the super soldier candidates."

"No," Bucky said, shaking his head. "Don't put down your work. It's impressive." He looked at you with a sort of wonder, and that added with the way he had been looking at you before meant only one thing.

You were in trouble.

You bit your lip as you sat at the bar with Peggy, sipping on a glass of whiskey. It gave you a little taste of home, reminding you of how your mama would shoot you a wink as she slipped in a little bit of whiskey into your sweet tea. She always made sure your daddy was none the wiser, since he would've thrown a fit if he had known that his little princess was drinking.

Oh, how you missed the long summer days that would fade into warm, sultry nights. Before your sisters got married, the three of you would sneak out and go to the dances in town, taking shots of alcohol from whatever soldier caught your fancy that night. You were never really interested in any of them, never even them give you a kiss goodnight. They could walk you home, and sometimes even hold their hand if they were lucky, but you never kissed them. None of them were worthy. They were just looking for someone to have one last romp in the sheets with before they shipped out to Europe.

You didn't want that. You didn't want to be wooed and then tossed to the side. All those men ever saw you for was your beauty. They saw your pretty face and that was it. They didn't care about the fact that you had a mind. So you had waited. You had ignored the teasing from your sisters as they snuck off to the soldier's beds, sleeping with a multitude of men before they were married. They had joked that you were going to be the only one to actually deserve to wear white on her wedding day. Your parents and your two brothers could never know, of course. They would've shot every soldier in town and then locked the three of you in your rooms until you turned fifty. Not to mention nailing the window shut, like your childhood friend, Elizabeth Ann's, parents did when they caught her sneaking out.

"—every time I think he's going to ask me on a date, he doesn't," Peggy ranted, throwing back a shot of vodka. Her nose scrunched up in disgust as she shook her head. "I don't get it. I haven't exactly been subtle with my flirting."

"Peggy," you said, a smile tugging on your lips, "in case you haven't noticed, you're a little bit intimidating."

"I'm not intimidating!"

You couldn't help but giggle, feeling the alcohol start to take effect as you looked at your best friend. "Every man in here is terrified to talk to you." You shook her shoulder playfully. "It's because you're strong. And men are scared of strong women."

"Maybe that's why Bucky hasn't asked you out yet," Peggy replied, raising a perfectly trimmed eyebrow at you.

You sputtered, choking a little on the whiskey. "What? Why would you say that?"

She rolled her eyes, turning herself in her bar stool to look out at the sea of men in the bar. They were all in uniform, but you could easily pick out Bucky. He was sitting in the back with a group of about eight men, plus Steve. His head was thrown back in a laugh, his hand resting on Steve's shoulder. He was absolutely radiant. Even when he got in one of his moods where the only people he wanted to talk to were Steve, Peggy, and you, he was beautiful.

"Because you and Bucky do this all the time."

Your focus turned back to her, your eyebrows furrowing in confusion. "Do what?"

"This!" She motioned at you sloppily, the alcohol clearly taking it's toll. You hadn't seen her this tipsy since you snuck a bottle of liquor into your dorm room. "You two love to do this whole wistful staring when the other isn't watching thing, but the moment the other turns around, you look away! It's positively, absolutely pitiful!"

You shook your head, sputtering. "I don't do that! I don't do wistful staring!" You threw back the rest of your whiskey, turning to look at the bartender as you slid the glass to him. "I'm the ruthless southern belle that's broken the hearts of a thousand men, remember? And half of them were soldiers!" Peggy had always loved hearing stories about your summer when you went back to school, and it became an inside joke that you were a heartbreaker, simply because you didn't let men walk all over you.

"Mind if I buy you another?"

You whirled around to see Bucky standing there, a soft smile on his lips. Swallowing, you nodded, and he raised a hand to call over the bartender. After the glass of whiskey was slid across the bar to you, he turned to look at you once again. "So what's this about being a ruthless southern belle?" He took a seat on the stool next to you, and you were extremely aware of how his thigh brushed against yours. "And have you really broken the hearts of a thousand men?"

Groaning, you shot a glare at Peggy who had abandoned you and was walking towards a blushing Steve Rogers. "You heard that?"

"I most certainly did, and now I want the whole story."

He had a mischievous glint in his eye that made your knees weak, and you had to hold yourself back from kissing the smirk of those stupid lips of his. He was cocky. Usually it would make you run far, far away from a man, but he had a certain boyish charm that made you want to know more. You hated to admit it, but Peggy was kind of right about the wistful staring. In the six months since he had been rescued, you had spent a lot of time with him. Peggy and Steve spent most of their time together when they weren't busy with missions, and you and Bucky were always dragged along. Since both of your respective best friends were too wrapped up in each other to notice you, it ended with the two of you becoming extremely close.

So you told him. You told him about all the times you had broken a man's heart. Most of them were the same, but he still insisted. You would sneak out with your sisters to go to the dances, and when a soldier tried making a move on you, you'd turn him down. There were a few in there about boys you had grown up with trying to romance you, too. The entire time, Bucky was laughing and making jokes about how badly you must've hurt them, which in turn would throw you into a fit of giggles.

You weren't sure how long the two of you had been sitting there talking when he paused, looking at you for a long moment. He bit his lip, as though he was trying to make a big decision. Finally, he held his hand out to you. "Would you like to dance?"

Frowning, you looked out at the bar. "But it's so crowded. And no one else is dancing." You wanted to say yes. God, you really wanted to say yes. But you also knew that if you danced with him, the other men wouldn't ever stop making comments about you. They already did, but it would increase tenfold, and it would be nothing good.

You watched as Bucky slid off his stool, fixing his hat. "Then I think it's time we leave this bar and find a dance hall."

Looking at him in shock, you shook your head. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Well," he said, his blue eyes glimmering even in the dim lighting, "I want to dance with you. And if that means I have to find a dance hall, then that's what I'm gonna do." He held out his hand to you, waiting for you to take it. Seeming to sense your hesitation, he leaned his head down slightly, his voice no louder than a whisper, "Do you trust me?"

As much as the thought of opening up your heart to someone scared you, you did trust him. "Yes."

The grin that spread across his face was contagious as you placed your hand delicately in his, his fingers intertwining with yours as he pulled you out into the warm air. Summers in Austria were colder than Louisiana, but it was still summer. The feeling of freedom and adventures to be had lingered in the air, the night breeze gently twisting through your hair. The streetlights cast a soft glow on Bucky's face as you glanced up at him, quickly looking down when you caught him already looking at you.

"Why didn't you let any of those soldiers kiss you?" He asked. His voice was soft and sweet, his hand still holding yours. To the other people in the street, you looked like just another young couple wandering around, too drunk on each other to notice anyone else.

You shrugged a little as you kept your eyes forward. "All those men wanted was a quick, drunken romp. They would've forgotten about it the next night as they found some other girl to take home. Or, they want to find a woman that they can make into their little housewife to come home to after the way." The frustration you had gone through as a teenager was evident on your face as you frowned. "I never wanted that life. I didn't want to be one of those women that gives up her life, her career, because she meets a man. My sisters live that life, and I don't see the appeal. They're pushing out babies as fast as they can, only for the nannies to raise them while they get drunk at two in the afternoon."

"I see." Despite his short reply, you could tell how invested he was, how he was hanging on to every word you spoke. You briefly noted how his thumb was rubbing against the bank of your hand as you headed towards the sound of jazz music down the street. Light was pouring out from a building a few blocks down, and you could see young couples standing outside to get some fresh air before heading back in.

"My brothers are just like those soldiers. They chose the girls they married based on their pretty faces, not who they are as people." Your voice got quiet as you started to delve into a little bit more of what exactly the problem was. It was a little more personal. "Those men who kept trying to take me out only saw my face. They didn't care about the fact that I have opinions and dreams. I have goals in life." You let out a long sigh. "I want someone to fall in love because of who I am. Not because I'm pretty." You finally looked at Bucky again, only to find him staring at you with a little bit of sadness. "What?"

He stopped, the streetlight behind him casting a halo-like glow around him. His hands held onto yours, squeezing softly. "Y/N, you are the most vivacious woman I have ever met. You're witty and intelligent, with a tongue sharper than anyone I know." His eyes stayed locked on yours, your jaw dropping slightly. "You are extraordinary. Don't let anyone tell you differently."

You didn't know what to say. You had dreamed for so long of someone saying those words to you, and here it was. Finally swallowing the lump in your throat, you let out a bit of a laugh as you looked down in embarrassment. "I'm sorry. I've just... No one's ever said those kinds of things to me before."

Bucky smiled, using two fingers to gently tilt your head up to face him. "How about that dance?"

The day that Bucky died started like any other. You woke up to the feeling of his lips pressed against your temple as he started to climb out of the bed. It was before dawn, but you knew that he had to get back before the camp wake up call. Otherwise, you'd never hear the end of it. You had tried to tell him that you didn't care about their jokes, but he did. He had insisted that he didn't want your reputation tarnished just because of him.

"You could stay," you murmured, blinking your eyes open to see him pulling on his shirt.

He turned to look at you with such a soft smile that it made your heart melt. His hair was still mussed from sleep, a red line on his face from the pillow. "You know why I can't," he said, but he crawled back into bed as you sat up to lean on your elbows. Pressing kisses all over your face, his fingers wound through your hair. "I love you so much."

"With how much you sneak out of here before sunrise, you'd think you were trying to hide me from your friends," you teased, closing your eyes as you relished in his affections. There was definitely no way he was hiding you. He took every chance he could to kiss you in front of his friends, his arms wrapping around your waist to hold you close. He had made his claim on you as soon as you let him, since the comments the other men would sometimes make about you rubbed him the wrong way. You had called it being jealous. Either way, the other soldiers had stopped making suggestive comments, even if it was only in front of him.

Bucky pulled you closer to him, his hands resting on your waist right under your night top. "Just for that comment, I'm going to give you the biggest, sloppiest kiss in front of the entire camp today," he said, and you started squealing with laughter as his fingers ran up and down your sides, tickling you.

"J-James! Stop it! James!" You laughed and wrapped your arms around his neck, falling back onto the bed in a flurry of kisses. His hands finally stopped as your lips met his, relaxing into you. "I love you," you murmured, beginning to tug at the shirt he had just put on.

He must've realized what you were trying to do, because he pulled away with a shocked expression. "Were you going to seduce me to get me to stay in bed?"

You batted your eyelashes at him as you pursed your lower lip. It was a trick you had learned from your mama at a young age. "Well, it depends. Would it have worked?"

He groaned as he ran his fingers through his hair, shaking his head. "You're going to be the death of me, Y/N." Bucky smirked down at you as you let out a soft giggle, biting your lip as you watched him. "I'll see you at breakfast, okay?"

If only the two of you had known that it was going to be the last night you ever spent together.

A few moments after he had slipped out the door, Peggy snuck back inside, just getting back from Steve's quarters that he shared with Bucky. It was kind of a good situation the four of you had going. After the rest of the camp had fallen asleep, she would sneak over the Steve's room, and once she got there, your boyfriend would head over to yours, before both of them switched back in the mornings. No one in the camp was any the wiser since it was all done under the cover of darkness. Everyone knew about you and Bucky, of course, but Peggy and Steve had asked you two to help them keep their relationship in the dark. The Star Spangled Man with a Plan had a lot more enemies than his best friend, and he was determined to not put her in danger, which you (as her best friend) appreciated.

You managed to catch another hour of sleep before the camp alarm sounded, and you dragged yourself out of bed to get ready for the day. The camp was bustling when you and Peggy finally made your way to breakfast.

As soon as Bucky saw you, he made good on his promise. His arms wrapped around you as he dipped you low, his mouth pressing against yours. You could hear the men whistling and hollering around you, but you were too focused on your boyfriend to care.

"Hi," you whispered breathlessly as he pulled away, resting his forehead against yours.

His nose nudged yours as he said, "Hello." He smiled against your lips as he pulled you in for another quick kiss.

"I missed you this morning." You made sure to say it low enough so that no one else could hear you. By now, most of the men had turned back to their breakfast and were paying you no attention, but you still wanted to be careful.

"As soon as this war is over, we won't have to worry about sneaking around anymore," he promised, your fingers running through the hair at the nape of his neck. "You're going to be the head scientist at some fancy institution, and we'll have a little apartment close to Steve and Peggy's. I'll get to wake up next to you every single morning for the rest of my life."

The two of you had talked about the future of course, but he had never straight up said that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with you. Your knees felt weak just at the thought, nodding happily. Bucky had meant what he promised all those months ago. He had never even implied that he wanted you to stay home and give up your ambitions just to have kids. Instead, he took every chance he could to help push you forward.

Your little moment was broken, though, when Steve almost ran up to the two of you. "Buck, we have to go now," he said, the most serious you had ever seen him. "We have coordinates on Zola's location."

Bucky turned to look at you and you nodded. "Come back home to me," you said softly.

He nodded, pulling you into one more kiss. "I will. I promise." With a last look at you, he ran off after his best friend.

You watched after him, your finger tips raising to touch your lips. You couldn't explain it, but there was a feeling in the pit of your stomach that told you something was about to happen. You didn't know if it was good or bad, but you knew that a storm was brewing around you.

You could only hope that you all made it out.

You spent the entire day unfocused. You were struggling to get anything done, and Peggy was beginning to worry about you. Every few minutes, you'd glance out the window, looking for the silhouette of your boyfriend coming over the hill. Your leg wouldn't stop tapping and you kept having to wipe your hands on your skirt to get the sweat off.

You barely slept that night, the emptiness of the space next to you getting to your head. You tossed and turned and tossed and turned again. You could hear Peggy doing the same thing in the bed across the room.

"Are you awake?"

You sat up a little in your bed, barely making out her form in the darkness. "Yeah."

There was a pause. "Can I sleep in your bed tonight?"

You didn't reply, just scooting over to make a little bit more room. She grabbed her pillow and tiptoed across the cold floor, despite the fact that you two were the only ones there. The bed dipped as she crawled in, her warmth helping protect you against the cold of the Austrian winter.

"Peggy?"

"Yes?"

You hesitated, biting your lip. "Why do I feel like something awful has happened?" About an hour earlier, you had felt this sinking feeling in your stomach, a pang in your heart.

"Maybe you just worry too much."

Despite what your best friend said, you knew that she understood. She tried to put on a brave front, but anytime Steve went on a mission, she became an anxious mess.

"It'll all be alright tomorrow morning when they get home," she insisted, clearly trying to make you feel better.

So you just nodded, and let her squeeze your hand. You could feel her fall asleep beside you, but you laid awake for a long time before sleep finally overtook you.

The next day, you didn't hear the shouts until almost noon. It was overcast and cold, a soft blanket of slow from the night before on the ground. You had been going through more of Erskine's journals when you heard it. Anytime men came home from a mission, the other men in the camp would run out to greet them. Peeking out the window, you saw as they started to pour out of the bunks, heading for the hill.

Grinning, you ran out of your quarters, following after them. But as you got closer, you began to slow down. The group you were running to only had nine. There was one missing. The feeling of dread in the pit of your stomach grew as you balled your hands into fists.

Once you were close enough to see Steve's face, you knew.

The other soldiers grew quiet as you still asked, "Where's Bucky?" The blonde shook his head, his eyes red and puffy, and you felt yourself begin to shake. "No. No. He promised he'd come back to me. Where is he?!" You stood up on your tiptoes, as though trying to see if they were hiding him. As if this were some kind of sick joke. "BUCKY! BUCKY!" When that didn't work, you shouted, "JAMES!" It was becoming more and more clear to you that he wasn't coming back. You couldn't deny that he was gone. You collapsed to the ground in a puddle of tears, sobs shaking your body as your fingers dug into the ground. You were covered in mud, but you didn't care. The love of your life was gone. Despite all the snide comments the other men had made about you and Bucky's relationship before, they were dead quiet now. Their heads were lowered as they did their best not to stare at your grief.

You felt a pair of arms wrap around you, and you turned to cling to Peggy. You weren't sure how long you stayed there in the mud, but by the time she finally got you to stand up, all the other soldiers had gone, leaving just you, Peggy, and Steve. You felt numb as she led you back to your room, turning on the shower. Staring blankly at the wall, you let her undress you and shove you under the water, not bothering to try to wipe away the mud that had absolutely covered you.

That night was the first time you had cried yourself to sleep over James Barnes, and it most certainly wouldn't be the last.

Two years passed by in a blur, and you still felt empty. The war had been won, and you had gone back to America with Peggy in tow, but it didn't feel right. Bucky was supposed to be at your side. It didn't help that Steve had also died, leaving you and your best friend utterly broken.

Well, you were utterly broken still. Peggy had started to put the pieces back together and had even agreed to go out on a date with some man. He had been one of the soldiers that Steve had saved when he rescued Bucky. Part of you wondered if she was only going on the date because it was one of her last connections to Steve, but you didn't ask. You had no right to judge how she mourned.

You, however, threw yourself into your work. You had found yourself working with Howard Stark after the war. It was the kind of thing Bucky had always said you'd do.

But instead of coming home to the love of your life, you had no one. Peggy lived down the hall, of course, but it wasn't the same. It didn't fill the aching void in your heart.

So when Stark came in to tell you about his new experiment, you immediately volunteered your services, which is what led you to this.

You were climbing into a glass box, preparing yourself for whatever was about to happen. Either you were going to die, or you were going to be frozen. It was an experiment in cryogenics, to see if someone could effectively be frozen in time.

"Here, I want you to have this," Peggy said, wiping tears from her eyes as she took off her heart-shaped locket. It held a picture of the two of you on one side, and a picture of Steve and Bucky on the other. Her hands shook as she put it on you, moving your hair out of the way. "I want you to remember us when you're woken up in a hundred years," she teased, though you could tell she was actually upset.

You pulled her into a tight hug, tears falling down your cheeks. "Please live the best life you can," you said softly, your voice crackling a little as you held onto her. "I want to crack open a history book and see chapters filled with stories about you, okay?"

She nodded with a bit of a laugh, pulling away to look at you one last time. You had both given up on not crying, and it was a sight to see. "I love you, Y/N," she said, squeezing your hands.

"I love you, too." You looked up to see Howard Stark coming over, knowing it was time. "Maybe I'll see you on the other side," you said with a playful wink, before you leaned back.

"Ready?" Howard asked, his eyes searching your face for any hesitation. He was finding it hard not to cry himself, since he had spent the last two years becoming one of your closest friends. He could be an asshole at times, but he really did mean well, and he was fiercely loving and protective over those he cared about, which included you.

He was also giving you a chance to back out. This was the moment before, when you could change your mind. You could step out of the box and go home with Peggy. You could find a boy to settle down with, and see your family again. You hadn't even said goodbye to them in person, having just sent each of them individual letters explaining what you were doing. You had known that doing it in person would've hurt too much and they would've just eventually convinced you not to. But you had to do this. If only for the sake of science, you had to do it.

"Ready."

Cold.

That's the first thing you felt as you started to come to, though a deep soreness in your muscles is the second. You can also hear people talking in hushed voices a few feet away, but you don't quite have the strength to open your eyes.

"—found her in his lab. He had this locked room he never let anyone go into, but he would disappear there for hours at a time."

"How did you unfreeze her?"

"Easy. I just read his journals. He had everything written down with strict instructions on getting her out of there."

There was a long pause, before a different voice asked, "Do we even know who she is?"

"That's all in here." There was the sound of ruffling papers. "It's all medical and school records, but at least we know her name."

"Y/N M/N L/N. Born July 11th, 1921... Says here she went to St. Martin-in-the-Fields High School for Girls in London, but she was born in Louisiana."

"Boarding school," the first voice said. "Lots of southern families sent their daughters to get an education before coming home and being baby makers for the rest of their lives."

Well, that stung, even if it was true.

"Wait..." The second voice was speaking now. "St. Martin-in-the-Fields. Isn't that the same high school Peggy Carter went to?"

More ruffling of papers. "Holy shit. She was her roommate for all four years."

You took that moment to open your eyes, gasping as the light shone brightly on you. You felt like you had been hit by a brick. There was the sound of footsteps as the three people who had been talking rushed to your bedside. When you finally blinked your eyes open again, your gaze immediately went to the brunette man to your left. "Howard?! How long was I frozen?!" The others, a black man with nicely trimmed facial hair and a blonde woman with big green eyes were staring at you in surprise.

The brunette man that you were sure was your former partner shook his head, his brow furrowed. "I'm his son, Tony. You'd been asleep for almost eighty years."

You sat up in a rush, groaning as the pain hit you. The three people guided you back down to the bed. Once the pain had passed, you took a moment to look around. You were in what seemed like a hospital bed, but there were no machines around you. A window to your right gave you a view of a forest surrounding whatever building you were inside. Finally, you turned back to the people in front of you. "What year is it?"

They all paused, looking between each other like they were debating telling you or not. Finally, Tony said, "It's the year 2021."

Holy shit. Holy shit, it was actually a hundred years since you had been born, and that was... You didn't even know what to say as you looked at them in shock. Your mouth had gone drier than a desert. The man beside Tony seemed to sense what you needed, because he handed you a glass of water, which you sipped at greedily. When you were finally done, you held onto the glass like it was a lifeline. "Who are you two?"

"I'm Rhodey."

"Pepper."

You turned your head to look at the son of Howard Stark, tears rimming your eyes. "You look just like him, you know. You have the same eyes." That seemed to strike a chord within the man, who cleared his throat as he looked down. "Is Howard still alive?" The thought of possibly seeing him excited you, even if he was in a nursing home by now.

But Tony shook his head, sympathy in his eyes. "He died in 1991."

You knew when you had been put under that you most likely wouldn't come back to find anyone you had known alive, but it still hurt. The last time you had seen Howard, he had still been so full of life. "Did he live a happy life, at least?"

He was staring at you with such wonder, his mouth set in a thin line. "He built one of the biggest companies in the world. He was a devoted husband to my mother, Maria."

Your heart warmed at the thought as you smiled a little. "I always thought she would be good for him. I'm happy that he married her and settled down."

Slowly sitting up, you frowned down at the clothes you were in. Someone had changed you out of the clothes you had been wearing when you went under, and you were now clad in some... weird material. The name Stark was emblazoned across whatever long sleeved thing you were wearing. "What is this?"

Pepper smiled a little as she folded her hands in front of her. "They're called sweats. It's kind of the generic clothing your given when you come to the Avengers compound."

Avengers compound? The hell was that?

Seeming to sense your confusion, Pepper waved her hand to dismiss the thought. "I'll explain later. I can give you a tour of the compound, though, if you're up for walking?"

Well, that you didn't know about. You didn't know exactly what Howard had done when he had frozen you. Were your muscles frozen exactly in place, so that you'd be able to do everything you had been able to back then? Would you need to go through extensive amounts of physical therapy? Hell, were you even young anymore? You assumed you were, considering when you looked down at your hands they looked exactly the same as the day you had gone under.

The memory of that day flashing to your mind, you reached up to your neck, relaxing when you found the heart shaped locket that Peggy had given you.

Taking a chance, you slowly moved your legs to hang off the side of the bed, before standing up completely. The tile beneath you was cold to the touch and it sent a shiver through your spine. When you stood up, you found that Howard had managed to freeze you so that your muscles didn't deteriorate. There was a little stiffness, but that wasn't anything you couldn't fix.

"If everything becomes too much, let us know," Rhodey said, finally speaking up. "We don't want you getting overwhelmed by how much has changed."

You nodded, walking beside the three of them as they led you out of the room. You found yourself in a hospital wing, which you had expected. A few doctors were milling about, but not many. You weren't there for long as Tony led you through double doors into a massive hallway, glass lining both sides. On your right, you could see the outside. All you could see was forest for miles and miles and miles. On your left, you could watch a multitude of people at a state of the art gym. The machines were a little upgraded from what you remembered, but the idea was the same.

You were only half listening as Tony explained different things around the compound, Pepper and Rhodey sometimes adding in little anecdotes. You were taking everything in quietly, processing it as best you could. More than a small part of you had thought that Howard's experiment wouldn't work, and you'd end up dead. Sure, he was a genius, and he had successfully frozen rats for a few days to a few months, but eighty years? It had seemed absurd.

You should've known better than to estimate him.

"And this is the Avengers living quarters," Rhodey said as the four of you stepped onto an elevator. You were surprised at how smoothly it moved as it took you up three floors. They had kind of explained what the Avengers were, so you got the basic idea, but it was still hard to believe.

You stepped out of the elevator and into a large living room. What seemed to be a television hung up on the wall, and you were shocked at the sheer size of it. "You're just like your father," you mused as Tony went on and on about all the inventions you probably didn't know about.

He continued to give you the tour, explaining each and every room in detail. When he had finally finished his two hour long explanation of his lab, you were starting to feel tired. You had been one of the top scientists in the world when you had gone under, and now you were outdated. There'd be so much you'd have to learn if you ever wanted to catch up.

When you rounded a corner that led to a kitchen area, you spotted a group of about eight people sitting there. They paid you no mind, except for a familiar blonde. "Y/N?!" He shouted.

"STEVE?!"

The two of you ran to each other, and he laughed as he picked you up, hugging you as tightly in possible. All the others had gone silent in confusion as they watched you. The only people who knew what was going on was Tony, Rhodey, and Pepper. "They told me you died," Steve said, disbelief in his eyes.

"I was on the radio when you had died!" You had been in the room with Peggy, listening to the mission, when he had gone down. You had been the one to hold her as she broke down, a mirror image of you when Bucky had been lost.

A realization dawned on Steve's face, and he opened his mouth to say, "Y/N, you—"

"Y/N?"

You froze at the sound of that familiar voice, your heart beating harshly against your rib cage. There was no way. There was no way that he was alive. You had spent two years mourning him and had volunteered yourself for what you had assumed was a death sentence because of his death.

Steve moved to the side, and there he was. He was standing at the entrance to the kitchen, clearly having just walked in. There was a soft sheen of sweat on his brow, like he had just gotten back from the gym.

"Is it really you?" Your voice cracked as you felt the tears start to well up.

Without a second thought, the two of you were running for each other. You launched yourself into Bucky's arms, wrapping your legs around his waist. He smelled exactly the same as he had back then, and you took in a deep breath. His fingers were winding through your hair, and he just kept whispering, "I can't believe you're here. I love you so much."

You pulled back as you pushed his hair away from his face. "Your hair is longer," you said with a bit of a laugh, and he wiped away the tears that were streaming down your cheeks. "I like it."

He grinned, pulling you into a long kiss. You could practically feel the stares of disbelief as you wrapped your arms around his neck, elongating the kiss. His lips still fit perfectly against yours and it sent a sob through you.

You felt a burst of fury as he put you down, and you reached out to slap him. He stared at you in shock as you angrily pointed at him. "You promised you would come home. You scared the shit out of me, you... You asshole!"

But he just smiled. His hands reached out for you again and he pressed a long kiss to your forehead. "I'm home now, my love. I'm home and nothing's ever going to take me away from you ever again."

"Better not," you sniffled, your hands grasping his shirt so tightly your knuckles went white. "Because if it happens again, I'll kill you myself."

Bucky paused, confusion in his bright blue eyes. "What happened, though? How are you here?"

"I could ask you the same question," you countered, before explaining. "I worked with Howard Stark after the war. He spent a lot of time on cryogenics, and when he asked for volunteers... I offered."

Now it was his turn to be mad at you. "Y/N, please tell me you didn't offer yourself as an experiment." When you smiled at him sheepishly in response, he scowled, pulling you into his arms again. "You could've died."

"But I didn't. And apparently neither did you," you said, raising an eyebrow questioningly at him. You also looked down at his arm, finding metal there instead of the flesh you remembered. You weren't upset by it, just confused. He was still your Bucky, whether or not he had a limb missing.

But before he could explain, someone asked, "Okay, but who are you?"

You looked at the other people who were standing around the kitchen, a few sitting on bar stools. "I'm Y/N L/N."

A man with curly brown hair stood up, his eyebrows furrowed. "Wait. THE Y/N L/N?"

You slowly nodded, a little confused that he recognized you.

When he saw your expression, he pulled out what Tony had explained early was a cell phone, and tapped on it quickly before passing it to you. What you saw was an entire article on a scientific website about your contributions. They spoke about how you blazed a trail for other women to join the field, and about how the war couldn't have been won without you. The thought sent tears to your eyes as you laughed, covering your mouth in shock.

"Y/N... You're a hero," he said, before holding out his hand for you to shake, wonder in his eyes. "I'm Bruce. Bruce Banner."

"It's lovely to meet you," you replied, a blush on your cheeks.

He shook his head, grasping your hand. "The pleasure is all mine. Really."

Bucky must've thought he had been holding your hand too long, because he let out a low, "Hands off." You burst into laughter as you saw the same expression he had always worn when one of the other soldiers would hit on you, his eyes going dark and his lips set in a deep frown.

The others were a little shocked at how jealous he got, but he ignored them in favor of wrapping his arms around you, kissing your hair. "Don't be mean," you chided, and he just hummed in response. His grip on you was the same, despite his metal arm, and you still felt safer in his arms than you had anywhere else in the world.

"But really, how do you guys know each other?"

Steve decided to be the one to explain that time, glancing back at the two of you with a bit of sadness. "Y/N was Peggy's best friend from boarding school, and we all met when she got her a job working with the man who gave me the super soldier serum."

You looked at him with a frown, biting your lip. "Peggy?..." Steve nodded in response, knowing what you were asking, and you took a deep breath to steady yourself. You had hoped that you might get to see her in her old age, but you had missed her.

"I know that Y/N still needs to be introduced to everyone, but that can wait," Bucky suddenly said. You gasped as he threw you over his shoulder. "I'm keeping her to myself for a while."

You groaned in embarrassment as he started to carry you out of the room, kicking and hitting at his back in protest. "Bucky! Put me down!" But you stopped after you got to another elevator, which took you up to what seemed to be a hallway lined with bedrooms. You were proven right when he opened a door, bringing you into a sunlit room and tossing you onto the bed.

You watched Bucky with a soft, adoring gaze as he kicked off his shoes, peeling off his shirt before getting onto the bed. He crawled on top of you, his long hair falling on either side of your face as your hands moved to rest on his chest. "You're buffer than the last time I saw you," you murmured in awe, your fingers running over the skin. Your right hand brushed against his shoulder, where his metal arm connected. "What happened to you, my love?"

His calloused hand cupped your face, his thumb running tenderly over your cheek. "HYDRA captured me after I fell from the train, and they nursed me back to health." But a frown was covering his features. "They gave me a serum similar to the one Steve got, and they brainwashed me." Your heart sunk in your chest as you wiped away his tears. "I was an assassin known as the Winter Soldier for seventy years, before I escaped." His watery eyes finally met yours. "Y/N... I assassinated Howard and Maria Stark."

Your heart broke as you saw how much it hurt him, and you shook your head. "It's not your fault. You didn't know what you were doing," you whispered, pulling him down into a soft kiss. Howard had been Bucky's friend, too, and you could only imagine how much it hurt him. You held Bucky to your chest, both of you starting to cry. "I'm here now. You've got me and I'm never leaving," you whispered.

Downstairs, the Avengers were watching the spot you had just been in shock.

"Wait, Bucky had a girlfriend?!" Sam asked, shaking his head.

Peter seemed to have a different concern. "Bucky SPEAKS?!"

Steve rolled his eyes, smirking at the others. "Bucky had a life before the Winter Soldier, you know." He glanced back at the direction you two had gone, crossing his arms over his chest. He leaned against the counter slowly. "Y/N was the best thing that had ever happened to Bucky. I had never seen two people more in love. When he died... It was like her heart had been ripped out of her chest." The look in his eyes were hollow as his mind went back to the day you had sat in the mud, screaming at the sky for taking away the man you loved. "I had never heard a sound like that."

"So she just volunteered to be frozen by Tony's dad?" Natasha scoffed.

"She's one of the bravest people I've ever met," he said. "And the smartest. If she believed that she could do something to help progress, she was going to do it." He left out the fact that you had probably thought you wouldn't wake up. He had felt that kind of loneliness after waking up and finding that everyone he had known was either dead or within a few years of dying. It could really get to you, feeling like you'd been left behind.

The next morning, you woke to an empty bed and sun pouring in through the windows. You sat up harshly, looking around the room for Bucky. You almost thought you had dreamed the day before when he came out of what you assumed to be the restroom.

"I'm here, I just had to use the bathroom," he said as he crawled back into the bed, pulling you into his embrace.

You curled up against his chest, your legs tangling with his. "I thought I had dreamed yesterday."

Bucky chuckled as he kissed a press to your nose. "Go back to sleep."

"Will you be here when I wake up?"

He squeezed you a little tighter. The world had changed drastically. He had been through hell and back, and lived to tell the tale. There was a little more sadness lingering within the both of you, and you knew that you two were a little more broken than when you had first met. But he was still your Bucky. He was still the man you wanted to wake up to every morning. You still wanted to do life with him. You wanted to bicker over him leaving the toilet seat up, and steal the covers at night. You wanted to dance around the kitchen with him and take long strolls under the moon, drunk on each other like you had been all those years ago in a tiny town in Austria.

"Always."

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky x reader #bucky x you #bucky barnes fic #bucky barnes imagine #40s!reader #40s!bucky #40s!reader x 40s!bucky

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rabbitcruiser · 4 years ago

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World Aquatic Animal Day

Because (most) humans do not actually live underwater, it is easy to forget the vast array and variety of aquatic animals that populate the oceans, seas, lakes, and other bodies of water on our planet!

Aquatic animals may be vertebrates or invertebrates. They may breathe air or extract oxygen through gills or the skin. And they may live in either freshwater or saltwater. But no matter what their differences are, one thing is for sure–aquatic animals deserve to be noticed and appreciated!

World Aquatic Animal Day is centered around humans taking the time to learn about and acknowledge the importance of all of these creatures who make their homes in the water.

History of World Aquatic Animal Day

Created in 2020, World Aquatic Animal Day was created by folks over at Animal Law Clinic at the Lewis & Clark Law School (Portland, Oregon, USA) who wanted to bring attention to the importance of aquatic animals to our societies and ecosystems. Widely used around the world, aquatic animals are often at risk due to the interactions humans have directly with the animals, or indirectly through the corruption of their habitats.

In addition to ‘fish’, the category of aquatic animals includes a variety of other creatures, such as mollusks, crustaceans, aquatic birds, starfish, corals, aquatic insects, amphibians, marine mammals, reptiles, and more.

The idea for World Aquatic Animal Day is to raise global awareness so that humans all over the world would band together to create policies, laws, education, and outreach that will help to protect these valuable animals. The hope is to elevate the status of these creatures so that people are more likely to take an active role in learning about and acting on behalf of them. Different ideas for protecting these animals continue to be featured, from plastic pollution to climate change issues.

Many organizations throughout the world participated in the first World Aquatic Animal Day in 2020, including Canada, Chile, Australia, South Africa, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Croatia, Norway, Russia, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and more.

The hope is that many more will join in for future days in the coming years. The more people who get involved, the better!

How to Celebrate World Aquatic Animal Day

Celebrating the animals under the sea is the idea of World Aquatic Animal Day, and there are tons of ways to do it!

Watch a Documentary about Sea Life

Getting educated about aquatic animals doesn’t have to be boring. Learning from film crews that have been deep-sea diving can be a thrilling way to see, enjoy and appreciate the myriad of animals that live in the water.

Try out these documentaries:

The Blue Planet (2001). First airing on the BBC, this riveting series of shows gives a glimpse into life in the ocean. It was filmed in more than 200 different locations over a five year time period. And Sir David Attenborough’s voice over simply makes the ocean seem that much more compelling.

Turtle: The Incredible Journey (2009). This film uniquely follows the life of one sea turtle beating the odds, from when she was hatched to facing the natural and unnatural threats that occur in the life of such a creature.

Mission Blue (2014). Featuring the life and work of Dr. Sylvia Earl, a marine biologist and oceanographer, this documentary shows her life as it is dedicated to the study of the ocean, having spent thousands of hours of time in its depths.

Life in the Blue (2016). Showcasing the extraordinary variety and range of life that exists in the expanses of the ocean, this documentary specifically targets what takes place just under the surface in a small band of 10 meter deep water. Whether looking for shelter or hunting and foraging for food, aquatic animals participate in a host of activities in this rather small space.

Host an Under the Sea Party

Get family and friends involved in raising awareness of the needs of aquatic animals by inviting them over for a party that dives deep into the theme. Make the place festive with sea-worthy decorations and play tunes from a water-themed playlist (see below).

Serve snacks and desserts that stick with the theme of honoring aquatic animals, including cupcakes adorned with gummy fish, goldfish cheese or graham crackers, cookies baked starfish shapes or a veggie tray organized in the shape of a rainbow fish.

Fruit treats are fabulous for sea-themed parties! Oranges can be easily fashioned to create the look of an octopus by partially peeling eight strips and then leaving them sticking out from the bottom. (Draw on eyes with a non-toxic marker.) Apples can be creatively sliced to appear as crabs, while banana halves can be adorned with an eye and the stem cut to look like dolphins. And a watermelon can be creatively carved to channel the look of a sea turtle!

Raise Awareness for Aquatic Animal Day

Get others involved in the issues facing these creatures by holding events at work, school, clubs or other places where the community gathers. Make posters, host lecturers, or create a family-friendly charity event where the money is raised to donated to underwater wildlife funds. Don’t forget to use your voice to let government representatives know about the need to protect these creatures by writing letters to ask them for better rules, regulations, and laws.

Put Together an Aquatic Animals Playlist

Getting into the groove of music is a great way to bring sea creatures to the forefront of the mind–whether alone or at a party! Gather some eclectic songs together in a playlist on Spotify or another music hosting venue and jam in honor of the aquatic animals.

Try some favorite songs such as these, or come up with other creative ideas:

Too Many Fish in the Sea (1983) by The Marvelettes

Under the Sea (1989) Soundtrack from The Little Mermaid

Dead Sea (2012) by The Lumineers

Sea of Love (1959) by Phil Phillips

Across the Sea (1996) by Weezer

Only the Ocean (2010) by Jack Johnson

Deep Ocean Vast Sea (1989) by Peter Murphy

Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay (1968) by Otis Redding

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xstarker · 4 years ago

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Since the beginning and until the end (Part Three)

Peter is immortal, reincarnation exists, and in every lifetime Peter has met and loved Tony, only for him to die. He’s hoping this time might be different.

[Part One] [Part Two]

Author’s Note: I put way more effort and detail into this chapter than was necessary, but hopefully it isn’t too much for you all. I really didn’t want to post it as two parts seeing as there is no mentions of Tony in this one and this is a Starker fic, but I felt like this chapter added to the story and Peter being immortal in a fun way.

That being said, this chapter is centered around the events of Captain America: The First Avenger.

Warnings: Mentions of canon character “death”, Nazis, War, etc. This chapter includes mentions of Stucky and Steggy.

Words: 4.4k

Peter has always tried to avoid going to the doctor whenever possible. He knows that if a doctor were to examine his reflexes or his strength too closely, or God forbid take his blood, that he could end up as someone’s lab experiment – or worse. That being said, he also hasn’t exactly been super cautious in the past either.

Over the years he’s made a habit of using his curse of immortality and the unique features that came with it, to help people. He ran in front of oncoming traffic to save little girls, retrieved cats from trees, caught someone who fell off a building, and even stopped a predator or two. He has never just been that person who stands by and lets bad things happen if he has the power to stop them.

That’s why he ends up sitting in a medical exam room, waiting for a doctor to come clear him to join the military. He never really wanted to be an army man, but he also never expected one world war let alone two, and he certainly couldn’t stand idly by.

“You are marvelously fit, Mr Parks.” A deep german accent draws Peter’s attention to the curtain, a gentleman in a suit in the process of pulling it back and entering the room, Peter’s file in hand.

“Almost miraculously. You don’t even seem to have any real medical history. Your doctor gave me the results of your physical examination but little else. My name is Dr Abraham Erskine.” Peter tenses. Here was exactly what he always feared. Maybe if he grabs his clothes and runs now-

“So, you want to kill Nazis?” Peter’s attention is drawn back to the doctor.

“I don’t want to kill anyone. I just know that I have the ability to help all of those men who are out there fighting to end all of the genocide.” Dr Erskine nods.

“I can offer you a spot on a project I am working on. There are others, all of them hoping to be picked to be the first test subject.”

“Test subject for what? I don’t really want to be a test subject.”

“I will be honest with you, if you are with me. Yes?” Peter nods in agreement, curious by the strange doctor.

“The project is a serum to create the perfect soldier. However, from what I can see of you, it won’t be needed. Why is that?”

Peter swallows the lump in his throat. “It’s kind of complicated, but essentially I was bit by a cursed spider which gave me certain… genetic enhancements.”

Dr Erskine raises his eyebrows and smiles warmly, and seeing as the man doesn’t make Peter’s instincts go haywire, he thinks trusting him might not be the worst decision.

“That sounds absolutely insane, but given that you seem relatively sane and the physical evidence thus far, I suppose I have no choice but to believe you. Though I do expect that I will see more of these genetic enhancements overseas.”

“That is very likely, should you approve me sir.”

“Get dressed. You’ll need to pack a bag. Pack light though.” Peter smiles and jumps up from his seat, rushing to put his clothes back on and follow Dr Erskine out of the room, where the man then stamps a bold black 1A on his file.

“Congratulations soldier.” The doctor says, passing the file over to Peter. “You’re the second man I’ve approved tonight.”

“The second?”

“You will meet him when you ship out tomorrow morning.” Dr Erskine gives him another small smile and walks away.

As it turns out, the other man he approved is Steve Rogers from Brooklyn. They talk on the way to base, and he learns Steve has lost both parents to the war, and that he has always wanted to join himself but was never able to due to all of his medical conditions. When he actually begins to list them all, Peter understands why. He thinks Dr Erskine must really see something in him in order to risk bringing him into the military.

At base, dressed in their new uniforms, Steve and Peter join the line of soldiers currently waiting to meet their commanding officer. A few of them talk amongst themselves, but Peter and Steve stand quietly now, not wanting to step on anyone’s toes the first day.

“Gentlemen, I am Agent Carter. I supervise all operations for this division.” The woman matching the voice walks around them from the right. Her voice is both soothing and authoritative, as is the way she carries herself. She is a woman who demands respect immediately, and also one of the most gorgeous ones Steve has ever laid eyes on.

“What’s with the accent Queen Victoria? I thought I was signin’ up for the US Army.” Comes a voice to the left of them. Immediately, Peter knows the man has made a mistake.

“What’s your name soldier?” Agent Carter’s face shows absolutely no amusement.

“Gilmore Hodge, your majesty.” He’s so snarky Peter can’t help but roll his eyes.

“Step forward Hodge.” The man obeys the order almost immediately, to the surprise of both Steve and Peter. “Put your right foot forward.”

“We gonna wrassle? Cause I got a few moves I know you’ll like.” Peter knows the punch is coming before she does it, yet he still lets out a soft laugh. Carter makes eye contact with him and gives him the smallest smile, just as another man in uniform approaches.

“Agent Carter.” She straightens her blazer.

“Colonel Phillips.”

“I can see that you are breaking in the candidates. That’s good!” The man – Colonel Phillips - comes to a stop in front of Hodge. “Get your ass up out of that dirt and stand in that line at attention until someone comes and tells you what to do.”

Hodge hops up fast, immediately complying. “Yes sir.”

“General Patton has said that wars are fought with weapons, but they are won by men. We are going to win this war because we have the best men.” When he gets to ‘men’ Peter sees his eyes connect with Steve’s tiny form, and his statement suddenly sounds like more of a question. The colonel looks over at Erskine, his face doing nothing to hide the disappointment in his eyes.

“And because they are going to get better. Much better.”

The colonel goes on to explain the goal is to create the best army in history, and he says every army starts with one man. As it turned out, that one man would be chosen by the end of a week’s worth of tests. They do all of the basic things you would expect an army to do, everyone competing to get the best time or the most push-ups, the best score. Peter doesn’t really compete, but he doesn’t bother hiding his ability to do them all with ease either, knowing Erskine wanted to see what he could do in action. He ends up with the best scores in most of the tests, while Steve is dead last in nearly all of them. This doesn’t seem to disappoint Erskine in the slightest.

“Faster ladies! Come on. My grandmother has more life in her, God rest her soul.” They are all doing push-ups, next to him Steve struggles to barely do one. Peter feels bad for him, knowing he is struggling to do all of the tests but he’s still pushing himself as hard as he can.

“Please tell me you aren’t really thinking about picking Rogers.” Peter’s super hearing picks up on Colonel Phillips’ voice before he’s even finished walking over to the truck in front of the group.

“I’m more than just thinking about it. He is the clear choice.”

“When you brought a 90-pound asthmatic onto my army base, I let it slide. I thought ‘What the hell, maybe he’d be useful to you, like a gerbil.’ I never thought you’d pick him.” They come to a stop at the truck, and Agent Carter has the group switch to jumping jacks. Peter can hear the struggle in Steve’s lungs.

“You stick a needle in that kid’s arm, it’s gonna go right through him. Look at that, he’s making me cry.” Peter glances over at Steve, and really the sight is something pitiful.

“I am looking for qualities beyond the physical.” Erskine explains.

“Do you know how long it took to set up this project? All the groveling I had to do in front of Senator What’s-His-Name’s committees?”

“Brandt. Yes, I know. I am well aware of your efforts.”

“Then throw me a bone. Hodge and Parks both passed every test we gave them. They’re strong, they’re fast, they obey orders. They are soldiers.”

“Hodge is a bully. As for Parks, I have already told you he is not going to be receiving the serum. He does not need it.”

“You don’t win a war with niceness Doctor.” Peter’s eyes follow Colonel Phillips, watching as he grabs a grenade from the truck. “You win wars with guts.”

Peter watches him pull the pin and toss the grenade, not feeling the familiar tingle of danger run up his spine, he immediately knows the bomb is a dud. This was a test.

“Grenade!” He yells, and everyone begins jumping away, scared out of their minds. Peter steps back, but watches in fascination as Steve immediately moves to wrap his entire frail little body around it, planning to risk his own life to protect everyone else around him.

“Get away!” He yells. “Get back!”

Both Peter and Erskine smile. Peter gets it now, why Erskine wants Steve.

Peter and Steve are similar in a lot of ways, and had that been a real grenade, Peter knows he would have done the very same thing. He knows this is the kind of person who power belongs to, and he knows if anyone else had gotten the curse that he had, they wouldn’t have used the abilities the same way.

Well, anyone else but Steve Rogers.

That same day they tell Steve he’s been chosen to go first, and Erskine comes to talk to Peter alone, a bottle of Schnapps half empty in his hand. He tells him about Johann Schmidt, how he believes all the myths and legends, and that he believes a superior man is meant to wield hidden powers left in the Earth by the Gods. Peter knows this to be mostly true, but doesn’t say anything about it. The Doctor also tells him about how Schmidt was the first to take the serum, and how the serum amplifies what a person is like on the inside, having made Schmidt a monster both inside and out.

Once again, Peter understands his decision to take Steve.

“Peter, I am telling you this because it is very likely Schmidt will try something. Though we have many precautions in place, HYDRA has eyes and ears everywhere. He will find out. In case something should happen to me or to my research, I am asking you to help Steven in any way you can. Win this war for all of us.”

Peter nods, determination in his gaze. “I understand Doctor. Isn’t there any way I can be there tomorrow? Just in case?”

“I am afraid not. I have pulled as many strings as I can just to get Steven in that pod first. I am trusting you to do what needs to be done.”

“I won’t let you down.”

Peter gets word he is to ship out to London only an hour in advance. He doesn’t have much to pack anyways, but he does wish he could say goodbye to Steve. He wonders how the procedure went, and when he will see his friend as well as Dr Erskine again.

It’s the flight to London that he learns he won’t ever see the doctor again, but the procedure was successful.

“Sorry you had to hear it from me pal.”

“It’s not your fault Mr Stark.”

“Oh please, I’m barely older than you. Call me Howard.” There’s amusement in Howard’s voice, but none of their faces match it.

“Not that I am complaining, but why am I being sent to London? And where’s Steve?” Peter’s seated near the front of the plane, Agent Carter and Colonel Phillips talking in hushed tones near the rear. Peter tries to catch a few words, but the plane is so loud it is already making it hard enough to hear Howard less than ten feet from him.

“Dr Erskine knew something like this could happen. He had certain plans in place, which included leaving me a very detailed letter about his experience with you. I convinced the Colonel you would be useful on the front lines, and if I can manage to get you in my lab too, I wouldn’t exactly be disappointed.”

“That depends on what you mean by getting me in your lab.”

“Cursed spiders causing miraculous abilities aren’t exactly common Parks. As for where Rogers is, Senator Brandt talked him into doing propaganda shows since Phillips wasn’t exactly keen on him joining us in London.”

“What? I thought the serum was a success.”

“It was, but that doesn’t mean he wants an inexperienced science experiment running around with a gun. His words, not mine.”

Peter sighs. He knows Erskine would hate his work going to something as trivial as that. Peter hates it too.

“If I am going to be in your lab, it’s going to be to help you with your work. Not as another experiment.”

Peter helps Howard in the lab in-between missions. They throw playful banter back and forth while working, becoming quick friends. Howard continues to ask about the spider, and Peter does his best to answer questions, but refuses to be submitted to any tests, never wanting the military anywhere near his DNA, even if he does trust Howard to some extent.

On one particular mission in November of 1943, he’s sent with two hundred soldiers from the 107th to Austria. It’s on that mission that he briefly meets the man Steve can’t seem stop talking about whenever they see each other, Bucky Barnes. They try their best against the forces of HYDRA but in the end, Peter still returns with less than half of the men he left with, and Bucky is one of the unlucky souls that doesn’t return at all.

Peter lies awake that night, unable to sleep as guilt eats at him. The next day he tries to convince Colonel Phillips to let him go back to try and save the rest, but is given a firm no. The Colonel tells him it’s too risky, even if he were to go alone.

Steve comes to base for a show just a few days later, his audience the remaining members of the 107th. They don’t seem all that impressed by the propaganda, yelling and throwing things at Steve to get him off-stage. Peter understands their frustration, but he also doesn’t believe Steve really did anything to deserve that sort of treatment.

Peter goes to find Steve after the show, and sees Peggy has beat him to it. He is about to turn around and go wait for a better time to speak with Steve when he catches part of the conversation the pair are having.

“Schmidt sent out a force to Azzano. Two hundred men went up against him, and less than half returned. Your audience contained what was left of the 107th. The rest were killed or captured.”

“The 107th?” He hears the panic in Steve’s voice, and then he is on his feet, rushing toward the base where Colonel Phillips sits under a tent planning their next move, Peggy behind him. Peter doesn’t need to hear the conversation to know where this is going. Instead, he decides to go wait in Steve’s tent with his bag packed, knowing he would be there soon to pack a bag himself.

When Steve does get to the tent less than ten minutes later, he looks surprised to see Peter. “Let me come with you.”

“What?” Steve’s already grabbing things and shoving them into his bag, anxiety clear on his face.

“I was with the 107th on that mission. I asked to go back out there, but Colonel Phillips wouldn’t let me. Please, let me help you.” He’s practically begging, but he would never forgive himself if he let Steve go alone to try and rescue the men which he should have been able to bring back safely himself.

“What exactly do the two of you plan to do? Walk to Austria?” Both men turn their heads to Peggy as she enters the tent.

“If that’s what it takes.”

“The Colonel is devising a strategy. If he detects that-” Steve interrupts her.

“By the time he’s done that, it could be too late.” Steve throws his jacket on and grabs the metal shield he has been using as a prop for his shows, then exits the tent with both Peter and Peggy on his heels.

“You told me you thought I was meant for more than this. Did you mean that?” The question is directed at Peggy. Peter puts his belongings in the car next to Steve’s and hops in the passenger seat.

“Every word.”

“Then you gotta let us go.”

“I can do more than that.”

Peggy comes back with one of the showgirl’s helmets, the letter A painted on the front, and Howard as their pilot.

Howard gets them almost all the way there, but bombs begin to go off all around them. Steve and Peter make the decision to jump before they get all the way in, urging Howard to turn around immediately.

Once on the ground they sneak onto one of the trucks coming into base, easily taking out the two HYDRA soldiers inside. They wait until the truck parks to sneak out, Steve leading the way onto the roof.

Inside the base it’s a lot more sneaking around, which Peter happens to be rather good at, and it turns out so is Steve. They pass a set of what looks like some sort of ammunition, except it glows a bright blue. Steve pockets one of the clips to bring back to base for Howard.

When they finally find the cells, they subdue the guard and begin unlocking them. Bucky is nowhere to be seen. Steve gives the men instructions on how to get out, and is immediately ready to go looking for Bucky again. He pauses on his exit to look at Peter.

“Are you coming?”

“Recusing Bucky is your mission. I think I should make sure the rest of these men get out of here in one piece. I owe them that.” Steve nods, then takes off out the door. Everyone else, including Peter, begin to make their exit, causing chaos all around the base.

In the end, Steve and Peter return to base with another hundred or so men, including Bucky, following close behind.

That night everyone goes out to a local bar for drinks. Steve goes around asking who wants to go back out with him and help wipe HYDRA off the map, and surprisingly a decent few say yes. Unsurprisingly, so does Bucky.

“What about you Peter? You came with me for the rescue, will you join us?” Peter gives Steve a smile.

“As if you could keep me away. I came out here to make a difference Steve, and there is no better place to do that then with you.” Peter doesn’t mention Erskine asking him to stay with Steve, because even if he hadn’t asked, Peter would still have agreed. This is where he was needed the most, he could feel it.

Howard makes Steve a shield after hearing that it seems to be the man’s preferred weapon. He makes the suit at Steve’s request. It looks good on him, making him look somewhat like a superhero while still being properly fitted for war. Peter almost asks Howard for one himself, but decides against it.

The Howling Commandos is what they end up calling their group of chaotic men. They wipe base after base off the map, the group all getting to know each other rather well during the missions.

Then on one particular mission, they ambush a train Dr Zola is said to be on, headed toward another base. A hole gets blown in the side during their fighting, and Bucky falls, assumingly to his death. Steve doesn’t take it well to say the least, because that night he sits alone in that same bar as before, attempting to drink his sorrows away, the bar in ruin around him thanks to the war.

Colonel Phillips interrogates Zola for hours, and the next day they have enough intel to send everyone out on another mission, as it turns out, the last one they would go on together.

Steve enters through the front, causing a scene and effectively getting himself kidnapped, which of course is just part of the plan. Peter and three others use grappling hooks to swing in through the window, clearing the room quickly. Schmidt makes a run for it in all of the chaos, so Steve runs after him, shield in hand. Peter follows, doing his best to clear the way of any HYDRA soldiers that get in Steve’s way.

They lose sight of each other after Steve follows Schmidt through a door that he manages to keep open with his shield just long enough to slip through, but Peter and Peggy are quick to find another way to catch up with him, stealing Schmidt’s car and speeding down the runway after him.

They make it just in time for Steve to jump onto the plane, Peter bringing the car to a stop just in time for one of the wheels to be hanging off, but not sending them over the edge. Right before he jumps, Peggy surprises them both by speaking up.

“Wait!” She pulls him down for what Peter is sure is their first kiss. “Good luck.”

Steve turns to look at Peter. “What? I’m not kissing you.” Peter can’t help but laugh, Steve smiling and making the jump to the plane without another word.

On the edge of the runway, Peter throws the car into reverse until the front two tires catch on the edge and finally, they are safely planted on the metal ground. He turns the car around, and drives full speed back toward the base.

The last time he speaks to Steve is with Peggy by his side, over the communications to Schmidt’s plane.

“Come in, this is Captain Rogers. Do you read me?” They both run to the seat at the same time, Morita already seated, having been waiting for any word to come through from the other side.

“Captain Rogers, where is your-?” He doesn’t get to finish the sentence because with one shared look, Peggy and him are switching places and she is grabbing the intercom in her hand.

“Steve is that you? Are you alright?”

“Peggy, Schmidt’s dead!” That should be good news, so why did Steve sound so panicked?

“Steve what’s going on?”

“Peter? The plane’s rigged to blow.”

“Of course, it is. Why wouldn’t it be?” Peter groans in frustration, anxiety building. If the plane was rigged to blow, there were very few options for a safe landing.

“I can try and force it down.”

“I-I can get Howard on the line. He’ll know that to do.” Peggy’s might be in worse shape than Peter, but no one could really be sure. Both of them are close to tears now, but Peter has never seen Peggy look so vulnerable.

“There’s not enough time. This thing’s moving too fast and it’s heading for New York.” A pause and then, “I gotta put her in the water.”

“Please, don’t do this. We have time. We can work it out.” Despite her trying to reassure him over the radio, Peter knows they don’t have nearly enough time.

“Steve is there any sort of emergency pod or autopilot you can reset? Anything to where you can set the plane to crash but get out safely?” He’s unsure how he manages to get the words out without his voice cracking, so many emotions flooding his senses all at once.

“Not from where I am sitting. I already tried overwriting the autopilot but it’s locked in place. I’d need a genius to overwrite it. Right now, I’m in the middle of nowhere, if I wait any longer a whole lot of people are going to die.” Peter feels a tear roll down his face, and when he looks at Peggy, her face mirrors his own. They were both losing a loved one today, Peggy an almost lover, and Peter a brother, if only in war.

“This is my choice.” Steve speaks solemnly.

“Peggy.”

“I’m here.”

“I’m gonna need a rain check on that dance.” Peter places a hand on her shoulder, she reaches her own up to hold his.

“Alright. A week, next Saturday, at the Stork Club.”

“You got it.”

“Eight o’clock on the dot. Don’t you dare be late. Understood?” She’s talking through tears now, but she manages to speak clearly despite that. Peter remains quiet, letting her talk Steve through this. He isn’t sure he could speak at this point if he tried.

“You know, I still don’t know how to dance.”

“I’ll show you how. Just be there.”

“We’ll have the band play something slow. I’d hate to step on your-” The line goes dead.

“Steve?” Peggy lets out a sob. Peter clenches her hand a little tighter, releasing a shaky breath as the tears overflow.

“Steve?” It’s no use, they both know it’s too late, but she can’t help it. She has to try. Peter feels eyes on them, and turns, making eye contact with Colonel Phillips who at some point made his way here. Peter couldn’t be sure when, too distracted before to notice, but the Colonel’s face shows it was long enough that the man knows what happened. He turns and walks away, leaving the two of them to mourn alone together.

“Steve?”

#starker #tony stark x peter parker #peter parker x tony stark #starker wip #nova writes #since the beginning and until the end #immortal!peter parker

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420medicinerx · 4 years ago

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420 Medicine Rx

420 Medicine Rx 920 International Parkway. Suite 1056, Lake Mary, FL, 32746 407-794-0420 https://420medicinerx.com/

Dr. Lane Phillips spent most of his career treating acute diseases at Heathrow Urgent Care which provided care for over 100,000 patient visits. After watching the increase in the multitude of synthetic medicines being used by the medical profession on his patient's charts, he decided to go back to his core belief and the real reason he went to medical school – prioritizing the prevention of illness over the pharmaceutical treatment of diseases.

This included using natural treatments over medicines when available. He then opened the Dr. Phillips Center for Wellness with the goal of emphasizing proper nutrition including vitamins, minerals, and natural remedies.

#Medical Marijuana doctor Heathrow #Medical Marijuana doctor Lake Mary #Medical Marijuana doctor Sanford #Marijuana Card #Marijuana Prescriptions #Marijuana Doctors #Medical Marijuana States #420 Medical #420 Evaluations

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et-lesailes · 5 years ago

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before and after // part one

PART TWO

pairing: steve rogers x agent!reader

word count: 2940

summary: you are an agent and part of project rebirth, and have taken an interest in the man picked for the project-- steve rogers himself. you can’t help but be drawn to him both before and after he takes the serum that makes him become the honored captain america, but it is only after that you finally get to show just how drawn to him you really are.

themes: virgin!steve, seductress!reader lmao. smut to come in the next part ~

taglist: @viarogers , @evanstush , @chibi-crazy , @chalamet-evans , @world-of-losers , @songforhema, @sebabestianstan101 , @tanyam93 , @bval-1, @wonderwinchester , @little-miss-exo, @poerebel , @pining-and-tired , @gogomez-509 , @patzammit, @a-distantdreamer, @malthestorytellerblog, @rainbowkisses31, @jbug491writinghelp, @quaiderade, @melannie77, @gigistorm, @lille-kattunge

note: so like this was only supposed to be one part but i got way too fuckin rambley so here we are. tbh i don’t even know if this is interesting or well written at all but it’s an idea i randomly had muse for and when i get these strong bursts of muse i feel like i don’t write as well for some reason?? i’m not sure?? so let me know what you think :)

JULY 15TH, 1943

A devious twinkle lights up your eyes as you look upon the group of new men just recently enlisted, remaining hidden from their view for now behind a truck while they are spread out across the grass doing push-ups as Colonel Phillips yells at them to pick up the pace. You are intrigued by one figure in particular, and that is the small, scrawny body of Steven Grant Rogers, a young and sickly man recruited by Dr. Erskine. You are aware of the super soldier experiment the doctor has in mind, and while the Colonel seems to be disgusted and in disbelief over the addition of the frail member, you have other thoughts.

You watch as he struggles to even lift himself up on the ground, sweaty blond hair a mess around his thin face. Still, he persists. He refuses to give up it seems, and you feel as though you already understand why Erskine wanted him.

“What a pathetic little guy,” the male beside you comments, your hand currently holding his arm, as usual. Sergeant Joseph Brooks is a rather cocky, loudmouthed, and brazen soldier, strong and skilled at what he does yet known to have aggressive tendencies. He is also your boyfriend despite all of this, and in your own odd way, you love him. You suppose you’re a little… crazy, when it comes to relationships. You like to feel thrilled and excited, you find amusement in even the most toxic of men, and several friends have expressed concern in the past. Why do you feel such an adrenaline rush from arguing at the top of your voice, throwing things around the room only to be manhandled into an angry , heated, but amazing fuck afterwards? Well, perhaps the last part answers that question itself.

“He’s adorable,” you coo softly, and your boyfriend blinks before laughing. “Mm. That’s an even worse thing to say about a man, darling. You’re cold. Not that he really passes as a man....” You arch an eyebrow as you look up at him, tilting your head curiously. “What constitutes a man then, Joe?” He smirks and turns to face you more properly, gripping your hips and jerking you powerfully to his body. “Someone with muscle. Someone who can fight to protect their girl, then can take her as his own right after.” His voice is a low growl sending shivers down your spine, and you can’t help yourself as you grab the collar of his uniform, pulling him down for a rough and ardent kiss.

“Grenade!” You hear the sharp voice of Colonel Phillips cutting through the field, and your kiss is broken. Joe seems rather alarmed and alert, but you nonchalantly turn your head towards the commotion, watching as the men scatter away. Only one remains, and he throws his flimsy body at the weapon, curled up on top of it as he closes his eyes tight. “Get away!” he yells at the top of his lungs, moving his arm in a swift motion. “Get back!” You cannot help but stare, awe alighting your impressed gaze as you watch the courageous and sacrificial act despite knowing very well that the weapon is not real. You then look towards the Colonel and Dr. Erskine who are watching as well, noting that even the Colonel himself looks affected for once.

“And how exactly can a man fight a grenade?” you slowly whisper into your boyfriend’s ear before pulling back from him, approaching the scene of “attack”. “It’s a fake, darling,” you call out in a light and silky voice, and you can already feel all eyes on you. Being a woman in an army camp full of testosterone, this is a basic reaction as it is, but even you can say with confidence that you are attractive, and you take great pride in it. “Colonel Phillips here just loves to play tricks, don’t you?” You look towards the old man innocently, even batting your eyelashes, and he scoffs fondly. He does not take bullshit, that’s for sure, but he’s come to see you as a daughter figure. “Maybe you can motivate these slackers to do better.” He remarks, and you giggle lightly. “Line up, boys,” you demand with a simple call, and as expected, they all flock to you. Standing in a line, gazing at you in awe, Steve Rogers right in the center. Standing in between the big and burly men, he looks even smaller than he already did before, if that is even possible. Your eyes are fixated on his blue ones, watching him stare back with a slightly flustered expression, though remaining standing straight and dignified.

“What’s a pretty little lady like you doing at a place like this?” one of the men calls, and you turn your head to look at him as a few snicker around him. “First of all, you can refer to me as Agent Y/L/N.” Your voice is suddenly sharp and commanding, and he seems to be surprised. “I supervise all operations within this division.” You step closer to him and tilt your head, letting your eyes practically pierce through his as you whisper, “And I look pretty doing it.” He barely gulps and you wonder if this man is all talk and no game-- he seems overwhelmed to simply be standing in a five foot radius of a woman. Smirking, you step back to look at them all, eyebrow raised. “I’m looking forward to working with you men, so you better train hard and try not to get booted. If you can’t handle it, then don’t waste our time, just leave.” You start walking up the line before pausing at Steve, now able to inspect him closer. “And do not,” you say, directed towards everyone as you look to each side of the line before keeping your eyes on him, “think that this unit is all about who has the bigger…” you pause as you trail off, eyes purposefully moving down towards Steve’s crotch before looking to everyone again continuing nonchalantly, “muscles.” You smirk as you see the red on Steve’s cheeks, then glance back at Dr. Erskine as you continue talking to them. “Being a good soldier is important, yes, but so is being a good man.” He flashes a small smile at you, nodding his head in approval. Still, your devious brain has you look at Steve again, enjoying making him sweat a little. You lean in, letting your lips barely brush against his ear as you whisper, “The way you handled that grenade was impressive, Rogers.” You allow him to know that you’re well aware of his name, figuring it might be a bit of a confidence boost for the guy. “I look forward to see how you handle the rest of this training… and me.” You pull back and his pacific eyes are wide, but he is still obediently staring straight ahead. “Yes, Agent Y/L/N,” he speaks as steadily as he can, and as you subtly let your eyes drift down, you smirk as you see the tent in his pants.

“Well,” you abruptly announce, standing back again nonchalantly. “Continue on, men, and please try not to make Colonel Phillips get a sore throat over having to raise his voice so much.” You look towards the man with a playful smirk before turning around, swinging your hips as you make your way back to your boyfriend. You know all eyes are still on you, and you love it. He keeps a territorial hold around you, looking at all of them with a smug grin clearly to show off that he’s the one who has the pleasure of calling you his, and that no one else will take that from him. The jealous looks in return are amusing, but you only care about Steve’s as you look at him over your shoulder while Joe takes you away, giving him a coy wink.

Colonel Phillips sighs as he looks at his men all watching you leave, some practically drooling. “That’s it. Five minute break, go get your damn heads out of the gutter. If you’re not back here at 16:00 sharp, don’t bother to come back at all.”

_______

“Did you guys see that? She winked at me! Man, how lucky am I?”

Steve frowns slightly as he listens to Hodges brag, barely wrinkling his nose. He’s a bit confused. He’s almost positive you were winking at him, but that makes absolutely no sense. A girl has barely even looked at him with both eyes open, why would he of all people get the flirtatious gesture of one?

Especially from someone like you. Not only do you have a boyfriend, but you’re the most beautiful and intriguing woman he’s ever seen. He never thought he would be interested in someone who seemed so mischievous, so bold. Like the other recruits, he’s known of you for a while now, even if you hadn’t formally introduced yourself until that day. The men had seen your face around, and they had instantly fallen in love with it. Steve is no exception. He’s felt drawn to you from the beginning, and he absolutely hates that his mind goes to quite vulgar places when he thinks of you, because he never wanted to be that type of man. For God’s sake, he’s never even kissed anyone before. He sighs as he looks away, running his fingers through his hair.

“What’s wrong, Rogers?” another recruit remarks, grinning. “Are you jealous? Aw, you couldn’t have thought you had a chance with her anyways, right?” Hodges joins in as he laughs in amusement, arching an eyebrow. “Have you even been with a woman before? Wouldn't they just ... break you? Especially a woman like that, oh I bet she’s a naughty little thing in the bedroom. Steve, buddy, you’d barely last.”

“The things I’d do to her,” another one speaks up with a playfully desperate groan before Steve can even reply. “That pretty little body is practically begging for attention, and I’d love to give it to her. God, I’d give anything just to at least see her naked, did you see her wiggle that ass for us when she left? I just want to fuck it off.” Steve frowns deeper, the vulgar talk bothering him even though he’s thought about such an action several times, even within the mere few minutes of having met you for the first time. He can’t help but remember the way you talked to him about handling you…..

He reddens. He’s hard again. ‘What is wrong with me?’ he thinks, trying to casually turn away from the others; they are thankfully still in the middle of talking about how much they’d like to fuck you to notice. He sighs deeply, taking a swig of water before leaving the tent, trying to think of anything else. He needs his focus for the next few hours, and the thought of your naked body intertwined with his is, for obvious reasons, only serving as a distraction.

_______

AUGUST 3RD, 1943

“I got beat up in that alley.” Steve says to you, his eyes focused out the window of the car. “And that parking lot. And behind that diner.” You listen to him in slight amusement, but mostly intrigue.

It’s been a few days now that you’ve gotten to know him, having witnessed his training and having had a couple of discussions about Project Rebirth. It is now finally the big day, and you have to admit you’re a little nervous. Steve, on the other hand, seems rather unfazed, as if he’s in any regular car ride going to any regular appointment.

“Seems like you have a lot of fond memories here,” you joke, looking to him with a slightly raised brow. Humming, you also glance out the window. “Ever have any dates in that diner?” He blinks and scoffs, looking to you somewhat in disbelief. “Of course not. In fact, this is the longest conversation I’ve ever even had with a woman, let alone go on a date with one.” You chuckle softly, though for some reason, you like this. It is sometimes frustrating to you how obsessed men are with dating and sex, how they start so early. “What’s stopping you?” you ask, and he looks to you as if it’s obvious. “Uh, the fact that I don’t have any girls to go on a date with?” He looks down, adding with a bitter chuckle, “Women aren’t exactly lining up to dance with the guy they might step on.”

The car pulls up to the antique store and you hum thoughtfully. “I’d go on a date with you.” You tell him, suddenly looking at him seriously. Lightly placing a hand on his thigh, you add in a soft murmur, “And I’d definitely dance with you.”

He’s left in shock as you get out of the car, sitting there for a few seconds before realizing he needs to get out too, quickly trying to compose himself as he hastily opens the car door.

_______

DECEMBER 7TH, 1943

You smile happily as you take a sip of your drink at your table in the bar, overhearing some soldiers nearby go on about Steve’s courageous battle with HYDRA. It’s been over four months now that Project Rebirth succeeded, and Steve, now known as Captain America to the general public, has been doing great. He is a true super soldier, and the same dedicated, selfless gentleman you had met months ago.

“The hell are you smiling about?” a naturally rough voice breaks you out of your thoughts, and you look up to Joe coming back to the table barely biting your lip. “Nothing, darling.” You glance towards the beer in his hand. “Is another drink a good idea? You’ve already had a lot…” You know how the man gets when he’s drunk, and to be quite honest, you fear it. “I can handle it.” He says with a scoff, sliding into the seat across from you. “And once I’m done,” he mutters, reaching under the table to take a firm hold of your thigh, “I’m going to be craving something else, so you better make sure that sweet little body is ready for me.”

In the past, this would elicit a little giggle and “yes sir” from your naughty little lips, but now, you find yourself losing interest each day. It’s not uncommon for you to feel bored with a boyfriend, but you’re also beginning to realize you’re a bit tired of the type of men you’ve been seeing. You’re about to respond to him when you suddenly notice a familiar strong and handsome figure entering the bar. You stare as you admire Steve in his army uniform, marveling at the way it frames his broad shoulders and gives him such an air of authority. “I’ll be right back,” you excuse yourself, not even caring how obvious you were being. Scooting out of the seat and quickly checking yourself, making sure the red dress you wore was still clinging onto your body just right, you made your way over to the man who was approaching the bar. “Hi there, Steve,” you purr, corner of your lips tugging upwards. “Here to celebrate after bringing down the latest HYDRA factory, I imagine?” He turns to look at you and immediately flashes you a charming smile, seeming genuinely happy to see you. “Of course. Even if I wasn’t in the mood, the boys expect rounds on me,” he jokes, and you notice the way his pacific hues “subtly” take in your appearance. “And why wouldn’t you be in the mood? You do so much for this country, Captain, you deserve to celebrate sometimes too...” you murmur with a natural seductive hint to your voice, unable to help yourself. How could you not? You had already thought he was damn adorable back in his pre-serum days, and now… now he is practically a work of art. You can tell that something in his eyes changed upon being called Captain, and while he should technically be used to it, it is clear you had meant it in a different connotation.

You aren’t sure how experienced he may be now. The two of you have not been able to talk as much as before due to his constant missions, and even if you had been able to, you probably would not exactly be chatting about a body count. You know he has girls lined up, and for obvious reasons-- but if he’s ever actually slept with them, you are unsure of. You doubt it. He still seems like the same Steve underneath all the muscle, though you do remember having seen him making out with some blonde private working for Howard Stark. Maybe he’s not as innocent as he looks…

“Celebrate, hm?” he says, and his deep voice brings you back to reality-- a very welcoming one, at that. “Well, you know, since the serum I can’t get drunk. So to be honest, being at the bar isn’t much of a... proper celebration.” He admits with a low chuckle, and you barely grin deviously. “Oh, yeah? Are you saying you’re looking for a proper celebration…?” you ask innocently, and he barely bites on his lip. You look back towards Joe, and thankfully, he’s occupied talking with some other sergeant friends. Returning your gaze to Steve, you hum softly. “How about this, Captain,” you murmur as you stand even closer to him, “if you really want to celebrate, meet me in the bathroom in five minutes.” You run your fingers over his arm slowly, looking up into his eyes and barely smirking upon seeing the simultaneous desperation, excitement, and conflict in his features. “And if you don’t… well, I know how to take a hint, darling, so you don’t have to worry.” You give him a wink before turning around, practically strutting off to the bathroom as you make sure to wiggle your butt and give him a good show.

#steve rogers x reader #steve rogers smut #steve rogers fanfiction #steve rogers imagine #chris evans x reader

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angelic-holland · 5 years ago

Text

TMO Alternative Epilogue

“Love, that is the only thing that can occupy and fill eternity. In the infinite, the inexhaustible is requisite.” - Victor Hugo

Word Count: 3.6k

Warnings: mild angst but also plenty of fluff and a few doubts

Summary: You and Harrison create a life together.

A/N: thank you all for the love on this series, can’t wait to hear your reactions!! this series meant a lot to me and I put a lot of work into it psychologically and all, im geniunely super proud of the story as a whole even though it ended up ending very different than how I originally intended! <3

The Birth

***

“There you go darling! Squeeze my hand as hard as you need to,” Harrison murmurs, pushing hair out of your eyes.

“Haz, I-, ow! This baby wants to kill me,” you cry, afraid you might break his hand as you squeeze it.

Your doctor, the one you met with the moment you arrived in Boston 5 months ago, Dr. Glenn, is encouraging you, telling you she sees the head.

You can hear the baby’s cries and the sound brings tears to your eyes, happy tears.

“Almost there, excellent work Adeline,” Dr. Glenn praises you, and all of a sudden a huge weight lifts off your shoulders as you give birth.

Harrison kisses your cheek as you let go of his hand, “Can I see him?” you ask, wiping the tears from your eyes as you watch Dr. Glenn clean your baby off and wrap him in a blue blanket.

“Happy, healthy, this little guy looks great,” Dr. Glenn helps position your child in your arms and you swallow down a sob, because he has Tom’s nose. And Tom is-

“Have you decided on a name yet?” one of the nurses asks as your baby coos and cries in your arms.

“I uh, I was thinking Phillip, Phil for short, like your mom,” you looked anxiously up at Harrison, hoping he liked the idea.

His face lit up brighter than Christmas tree and you felt your heart fill with warmth as he nods.

“Hey there Phillip, you’ve got the best mommy in the entire world,” Harrison smiles, reaching his hand out to rest on your shoulder.

***

8 Months Old

“No! I, I don’t deserve to be his mother!” you shout, sitting down on the couch as Harrison paces the room.

“When are you going to- Y/N, I thought we got through this! I thought you- when you left to go back with Tom-,”

“Don’t say his name.”

“When you left with him all that time ago, you were better! You were happy! I thought you were ready to be a mom! With me,” Harrison stops, turning toward you. Pleading with wide blue eyes, begging you to see you the way he sees you.

“I-,”

“I mean, what could have happened in four days that changed that? Is this because you-,”

“I killed him! Harrison, I killed the father of my child and now-,”

“Harrison! Y/N! Come quick!” Ian shouts from the kitchen and both of your eyes nearly bug out of your skulls, terrified something happened to Phillip.

By the time you and Harrison make it to the kitchen, Ian is sitting up against the fridge, clapping excitedly with a huge smile on his face.

“Where’s Phillip? Is something wrong?” You ask, looking around for your son when you hear him babbling from behind the center island.

You watch him, gasping as he struggles to stand on two feet, clapping his chubby hands together.

“Mama!” He cries out, your mouth falling open in awe.

“Phillip, oh my goodness, look at you!” You praise, kneeling down on the floor next to Ian, opening your arms to encourage him to keep moving.

“His first steps, look at him, practically running already,” Harrison chuckles, sitting next to you, the fight from earlier practically forgotten about.

“Come to mama,” you encourage, smiling widely as Phillip’s feet start to move faster, wanting to be wrapped in your arms.

“Da-da!” Phillip shouts instead, falling right onto Harrison’s lap.

His hand curls around Harrison’s thumb, snuggling against his chest as you brush a dark brown curl behind Phillip’s ear.

“Always knew he’d be a daddy’s boy,” you chuckle, “he did say your name first.”

“No! He was laughing, his speech slurred a little, that’s why it sounded like Haz, but his first word was loud and clear, mama, he loves his mama,” Harrison says, kissing your cheek.

As if to echo his words, Phillip wordlessly crawled from Harrison’s lap to yours, snuggling against your stomach as you hold him close. You could get used to this, you definitely could get used to this.

***

3 Years Old

“We need our own place,” Harrison reasons, “it isn’t safe to raise Phillip here. Bless Ian and the rest of the guys for helping us out these past few years, but I want to keep him away from the mob, from danger.”

“This place is like a built in babysitter though, there’s always someone here to help look after him when we want to go on a date night or we’re both working…”

“Well, that’s what babysitters are for, and besides, you’re almost never away from him for more than a few hours at a time. I found a beautiful townhouse for rent in the North End. Three bedrooms, two floors, even has a small backyard. Don’t you think Phillip would love to run around and play in a backyard someday?”

You nod, resting your head on Harrison’s chest as you think it through. Logically, there was no reason that you shouldn’t move into your own space. Sometimes the men got too excited during meetings, shouting and cheering when Phillip was trying to sleep. Plus, sharing a room with Harrison and your ever growing son is getting exhausting.

“Three bedrooms,” you muse, smiling at the idea of Phillip having a younger sibling to run around with.

“Yeah, you know, our room, Phillip’s room…” Harrison’s sentence tapers off so you can fill in the blank.

“Maybe a little brother or sister for him?” You smile, gently kissing Harrison’s jaw.

“Really?” Harrison sounds like a kid in a candy shop as you trail your lips along his jaw and down his neck.

“Really, I was an only child, it sucked, so Phillip deserves more than that,” You close your eyes and imagine having another kid, a kid of Harrison’s, a kid of yours.

“I would love for Phillip to have a little brother or sister,” Harrison sighs as you straddle his hips, “maybe both.”

“Oh no, we do not want a 19 kids and counting situation, mister,” you giggle as his hands curl around your sides.

“Who said 19? I just want three, darling, three cute little kids to run around and play with.”

“You’re a great dad, you know that, right?” You smile, tracing your finger along the curve of his nose.

“And you, Y/N, are the best mom Phillip could ever ask for.”

As if on cue, just to interrupt your moment, Phillip wakes up, “mama? Daddy?”

“Maybe we can make those babies when we have a room of our own,” you laugh, getting up out of your bed.

“Great plan,” Harrison sighs, watching you pick Phillip up to bring him to cuddle. He couldn’t imagine his life happening any differently. And neither could you.

***

4 Years Old

You just got Phillip to sleep in his new bedroom and you’re exhausted after moving into the new townhouse all day.

You all but collapse on your new bed next to Harrison, “finally got our little boy down,” you curl up with your head on Harrison’s chest.

“Are you talking about Phillip or me?” Harrison chuckles, his eyelids drooping.

“Hmmm both, but I have to ask you something, need to ask something of you.”

“Anything,” Harrison says, suddenly wide awake as you tap your fingers against his chest.

“If they finally catch up to me, if the FBI come snooping around asking you questions…”

Harrison’s breathing stops for a moment as his arm tightens around your side, “they haven’t in almost five years…”

“If they do,” you continue, “if they do, I need you to promise to kill me, to take me out, I-,”

Harrison sits up immediately, pulling you up with him, “no, absolutely not. Your case is cold, there’s been no activity on it according to my sources on the inside, we’re fine, you’re fine,” he sounds like he’s trying to convince himself more than you.

“Harrison,” you turn, cupping his cheeks, “it’s a precaution, me asking you this. But I have some leftover needles from back in the day, they’re locked away in the safe. If, and it’s a huge if, if something happens to me and they’re seconds away from catching me, then you use that needle on me. Simple jab to my neck.”

“Why would I- you know I could never kill you-,”

“Don’t think of it as killing me, okay?”

“How would it not be-,”

You press your forehead to his, forcing his eyes to meet yours, “it would be saving our child from the horror of finding out his mother is a-, was a serial killer, he can’t know that I- that I used to kill people. So you would have to kill me.”

“I can’t-,”

“Harrison,” your voice is final and you don’t give him a chance to speak, “babe, I- I wouldn’t ask this of you if I wasn’t thinking of Phillip, of our kid, of his future. It may never come up, you might be right, maybe the FBI has forgotten about the Scooby gang,” you shake your head, “but if they haven’t, please don’t hesitate to make sure Phillip has the best life possible, please take care of our baby.”

Tears well in his eyes as he kisses you slowly, “for Phillip,” he says through gritted teeth.

You nod, kissing him again, “for Phillip.”

***

5 Years Old

“Hey, Phillip, wave for daddy!” You laugh, holding onto Phillip’s arms in the wading pool.

Harrison was kneeling at the edge, video taping you and Phillip, his introduction to the public wade pool in Boston Common. It’s a hot day, probably in the mid 80’s and humid as hell. Your baby bump is peeking through your T-shirt, due in October.

Phillip waves, “hi dad!”

You wave as well before Phillip jumps in your arms, resting his head on your stomach.

“I think I can hear her, she’s my little sister, right? Can we name her Matilda?” Phillip giggles. He’s recently been on a Matilda binge, watching the movie over and over again when you and Harrison allow it.

“Matilda?” You giggle, feeling her kick once again, Phillip backing away with wide eyes.

“Was that her?” He squeals, reaching up on his tiptoes to press his hand against your stomach.

“That was, that’s your little sister,” you grin, resting your hand over his smaller one, feeling her little feet pressing right against your belly.

“Matilda?” He looks up at you with wide eyes, dark brown eyes that remind you of Tom’s.

“Why do you want her to be named Matilda, sweetie?” You smile, crouching down to tickle him slightly.

“Because mama! If she’s Matilda, she can use her super magic powers, and steal me cookies from the jar above the fridge before dinner!”

“Oh, so you just want a little sister so she can be your little cookie stealer?” You joke, picking Phillip up and resting him against your hip.

“Noooo,” Phillip insists, “I want a little sister because I know I would be the best big brother!”

“Alright, well since Matilda isn’t born yet and can’t steal cookies for you, how does a snow cone sound?”

“Yay! Snowcone! Come on mommy!” Phillip tugs at the sleeve of your shirt as you meet Harrison at the edge of the pool.

“How was it in there bud?” Harrison asks, draping a towel over your shoulders and kissing your cheek.

“My turn,” Phillip giggles before kissing your other cheek.

“Alright boys, there are plenty cheek kisses to go around, but I heard a little guy would like a snowcone,” you smile as Phillip rests his head on your shoulder.

Once you get to the stand, you squeeze your eyes shut when the sickly sweet smell of cherries hits your nose.

You’re not a kid. You’re not in your parent’s station wagon waiting for them to come out of their friends house, the now sour taste of a cherry ice pop lingering on your lips.

“Mommy! Open your eyes silly!” Phillip laughs, tugging at your shirt sleeve.

Harrison gently squeezes your hip, mildly concerned at the glazed over look in your eye.

“what flavor do you want bubs?”

“Could I get blue raspberry?” Phillip asks, “pleaseeee.”

“Of course, nice job using your manners, bubs.”

By the time you get Phillip home for his nap and the blue raspberry snowcone stain cleaned off his chin, you’re exhausted.

“C’mere, lemme give you a little massage,” Harrison says, patting the bed in front of him.

“What would I do without you?” You smile, stripping off your shirt and sitting in front of him, your hand resting on your baby bump.

“Well, you’ll never have to find out. Hey, do you think our baby, who Phil has very aptly named Matilda will have my eyes?”

You think for a moment, “I mean, I hope so, you have very beautiful eyes.”

Harrison’s hands start massaging your shoulders, “Do we tell Phillip?”

You raise an eyebrow, unsure of what he means, “tell Phillip what? That we aren’t naming our daughter Matilda?”

“Hey! Why not? Matilda is a cute name,” Harrison brushes your hair off your neck, pressing his lips to your skin.

“Okay, maybe we can call her Matilda, I feel like we have to get a good look at her first, like, what if she doesn’t look like a Matilda?”

“How do you mean?” Harrison asks, running his arms down your own, intertwining your hands together as he rests his chin on your shoulder.

“You know, I look like a Y/N, and an Adeline if I want to,” you laugh, “you look like a Harrison, Phillip looks like a Phillip. Was that what you were thinking of telling him?’’

“No, I was wondering if we should tell Phillip about his dad…”

You and Harrison haven’t talked about Tom, almost ever. From the day you came back to Boston and damn near collapsed in his arms.

“I- Harrison,” you smile weakly as he hugs you, “I took care of the things I needed to in Idaho.”

“Are you okay? What happened to-,”

“I’m fine,” you choke back a sob, “he’s dead.”

They seem like very contradictory statements.

You killed Tom. You killed him because the FBI was seconds away from catching both of you. In your mind, the only way he could- the only way either of you could escape the police was death.

When you first made the decision to kill Tom along with the rest of the men from your safe house away from home five months ago, you didn’t expect to be pregnant. When you fell in love with Tom Holland and you still had it set in your mind that you’d kill him, you figured you’d put yourself out of your misery shortly after. But if your life taught you anything, you had to clean up your messes. What happened between Tom and you was a mess, no doubt about it. And if you wanted to give your kid a life, more of a life than being known as the kid born from two serial killer, you had to stick with your original plan, no matter how horrible it made you feel. You couldn’t leave your baby parentless, and you certainly couldn’t kill him just because you wanted to die.

You turn around on the bed, cupping Harrison’s cheeks in your hands, “you, for all intents and purposes, have been Phillip’s dad since I found out I was pregnant.”

“I love you,” Harrison sighs, “I love Phillip, and I love Matilda or Julia or Elaina, whatever our baby’s name will be, I love our little family.”

“I love you too,” you smile, kissing him gently, “Thank you for being my sunshine.”

Harrison chuckles as he lays back, pulling you right down with him, your head resting on his chest as he curls the sun necklace in his palm.

“You are my sunshine, my only sunshine,” he begins to sing, nudging you to sing along with him.

“You make me happy, when skies are grey,” you sing along, smiling as he kisses the top of your head.

“You know, this song puts Phillip to sleep, just like it puts you to sleep,” Harrison smiles, reminiscing on all the times you’ve sung to Phillip with him and ended up almost drooling on his shoulder.

You’ve fallen asleep again, snoring lightly on Harrison’s chest as he rubs your shoulder and kisses the top of your head again.

“Goodnight darling, don’t forget that you’re my sunshine,” Harrison closes his eyes, quickly falling asleep with you.

***

8 Years Old

“Hey! We need to write Santa a letter!” Phillip jumps up, running around with his toy airplane, plopping down next to you.

“Is that so?” You grin, turning to wiggle an eyebrow at Harrison.

“Yes! Because he got Mattie the doll she wanted! And I got my airplane!”

Harrison holds Matilda close to him, snuggling her into his chest as she giggles and squeezes her plush doll.

“That’s very nice of you Phillip, why don’t we write the letter tomorrow?” You smile, picking up your mug of eggnog right as his foot collided with it, nearly knocking it over.

Suddenly you’re a little kid again, sitting through Christmas with parents who weren’t actually present as you accidentally knocked over your mom’s cup of coffee.

“When you make a mess you have to clean it up!”

“Y/N…”

And it’s not your dad’s biting voice and it’s not your mom’s was withdrawn one.

It’s Harrison and your parents are nowhere in sight, your stomach isn’t covered in coffee and you aren’t getting sent up to your room to spend Christmas alone.

You blink your eyes open and ruffle Phillip’s hair that looks all too much like his dad’s, grounding yourself in reality.

“Merry Christmas,” you smile at him, looking back to Harrison and nodding, a silent gesture that you’re okay.

“Nice save, darling,” Harrison chuckles, watching Matilda reach her arm out and make grabby hands at you.

“Want to come to mama?” You ask, holding your arms out.

“Mama,” Matilda giggles, tossing her doll to the side and crawling out of Harrison’s lap.

She walks over to you, stumbling a few times but ultimately climbing into your lap to snuggle into your body.

Last night Harrison and you exchanged gifts. For a while you’ve just been each other’s partners, that’s how you introduced yourself to Phillip’s friends parents at school and to the parents at Matilda’s play group.

“I got you something,” Harrison says, handing you a small bag as you settle into bed next to him.

You look at the red shiny material of the bag and smile, “thought you said we weren’t going to exchange gifts.”

He shrugs, slinging an arm around your shoulder, “I know but I saw this in the store the other day and couldn’t resist.”

“Well good because I got you something too, it might be stupid so like tell me and I’ll get you something else,” you sigh, turning your grab your small box off the nightstand. You had it specially made in a jewelry shop in the North End, you came across the idea one day while out walking with Matilda, she would tug on your sunshine necklace and remind you of all that time ago when Harrison bought it for you.

You hand him the ring box, resting your head on his shoulder, snuggling into the warmth of his white T-shirt.

“Oh my god,” Harrison chuckles, “open yours too.”

You open up the bag, pulling out a similar ring box.

“You didn’t, Haz…” you break into a huge grin, opening your box as he opens his.

You bought him a ring, in the center was a golden sun.

“You’re my sunshine,” you choke out, catching the glimmering diamond inside your box.

“I know you said we can’t get married, that we can’t legally be husband and wife but I feel, I know that we’re basically husband and wife and we’ve got two lovely kids and, wow I just am obsessed with the idea of calling you my wife.”

You smile through tears as he helps you put the diamond ring on your finger, “I like the idea of calling you hubby I guess.”

“Alright! Family picture! Squish together and I’ll try to get a timer on the camera,” Harrison sets his Polaroid on the fireplace, turning the self timer on for 10 seconds. He jogs over to you, kneeling behind you as Matilda claps her hands.

The camera clicks and you’re positive none of you are looking at it, but you’re going to cherish the photo. Phillip is sticking his tongue out and trying to do bunny ears with his fingers behind Matilda’s head. Matilda is half-turned to you, giggling with her eyes crinkled, she does, in fact, have Harrison’s eyes. Harrison and you are grinning as he rests a gentle hand on your shoulder. You’re a little mismatched family but you wouldn’t have it any other way.

***

Taglist: @gioandreolli @honeymoonparker @itsjusttor @averyfosterthoughts @worldoftom @angelhaz11 @rebekkah4766 @murdermornings

#harrison osterfield #harrison osterfield imagine #harrison osterfield x reader #harrison osterfield x y/n #take me out

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stella-monstrum · 4 years ago

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Rob Zombie; "Why it's time to step outside the confinements of his own box."

For close to four decades,

Rob Zombie has brought nonstop psychedelic grooves and a rockstar presence while gracing his own music and the silver screen with gut-churning, drug-tripping visuals. He not only commands quite the presence in films (whether his own successes or others’), but also makes appearances within many other horror soundtracks. There’s no denying that Zombie is a bloodied savant who has stayed incredibly consistent.

[ᴿᵒᵇ ᶻᵒᵐᵇᶦᵉ. ⁽ˢᵒᵘʳᶜᵉ: ᴳᵒᵒᵍˡᵉ ᴵᵐᵃᵍᵉˢ⁾]

(Written by Stella, edited by Jacob J.)

(Side note; tumblr’s photo formatting is a pain)

Let’s take a dive into his music before getting into his film library. From 1985-1997, White Zombie released six albums (between studio and compilations). La Sexorcisto: Devil Music Volume One didn’t break into the Billboard 200 chart until a year after its 1992 release. Shortly thereafter, it became the hot and groovy bong success of the band, going on to sell two million copies. Astro Creep 2000, their final and fourth studio release, was their first and only album to chart within the Top 10 of the Billboard 200 in 1995. Up to this day in 2020, “White Zombie” has been featured in 47 TV, film, and video game soundtracks, from Beavis & Butthead to Pen15 to Bride Of Chucky (which includes a personal favorite moment of mine), amongst many others.

After the disbandment and separation, Zombie continued on his solo journey. He has gone on to release six studio albums, with a seventh on the way in March 2021, titled The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy. A multitude of hits—eight to be exact—sat within the Top 10 of the Billboard 200 records.

══════════════════

Zombie’s extensive film career is a “Super Beast” on its own.

He has been very vocal about gaining inspiration from 1920s-1980s horror culture. In many interviews, he’s cited Stan Lee, Bella Lugosi, Alice Cooper, and Steven Speilberg as being responsible for molding the brain that we know today.

Some of his influences include:

George A. Romero’s Dawn of the Dead (1978)

A Clockwork Orange (1971)

Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)

The Shining (1980)

Zombie’s upbringing in the carnival industry alongside his family is another key influence.

[[I’ll only be focusing on Zombie’s live-action films here.]]

══════════════════

In 2000, Rob made his directorial and (very memorable) screen debut with House Of 1000 Corpses.

It took three years to be released because of quarrels with major production companies regarding the film’s majorly aggressive themes of torture, blood, violence, sex—not to mention his arrogance with MGM, fighting to get rights back from Universal. Eventually, Lionsgate bit the bullet, albeit with the major stipulation of having Rob edit it down much further so House could pass with a “tame” R rating.

[[House of 1000 Corpses: Rainn Wilson as taxidermy merman (Source: Tumblr—and if you’re brave, you can view the scene here.)]]

══════════════════

In 2005 and 2019, the franchise’s next two installments—Devil’s Rejects and 3 From Hell—were released. The franchise is heavily influenced by the shocking, sickening, and unforgettable ’70s classic Texas Chainsaw Massacre. It follows a family of psychotic, sadistic, and bloodthirsty (if I’m being honest) necrophiliacs. They kidnap, kill, torture and brutalize anyone who gets in their way. At the end of Devil’s Rejects, they somehow manage to survive a police shootout, escape prison, and waltz on into Mexico (as seen in the franchise finale 3 from Hell).

Look, it’s all complicated.

Main Characters from the franchise:

Captain Spaulding—Sid Haig

Baby Firefly—Sheri Moon Zombie

Otis B. Driftwood—Bill Moseley

Momma Firefly—Karen Black (recast as Leslie Easterbrook after Karen’s passing)

(Other notable appearances throughout: Chris Hardwick, Rainn Wilson, Danny Trejo, Dee Wallace, Ken Foree, and Diamond Dallas Page.)

⁽“ʰᵒᵘˢᵉˢ ᵗʳⁱˡᵒᵍʸ”, ᵈᵛᵈ ˢᵉᵗ﹔ ˢᵒᵘʳᶜᵉ﹔ ᵗᵃʳᵍᵉᵗ.ᶜᵒᵐ⁾

══════════════════

The notorious/controversial Halloween (John Carpenter, 1978) remakes from 2007 and 2009.

(ᵃ ᵛⁱᵉʷ ᵒᶠ ᵗʰᵉ ᵇᵒˣ ᵃʳᵗ ᶠᵒʳ ᵗʰᵉ ʰᵃˡˡᵒʷᵉᵉⁿ ʳᵉᵐᵃᵏᵉˢ ⁽ˢᵒᵘʳᶜᵉ﹕ ᵃᵐᵃᶻᵒⁿ⁾)

Look, this is a remake that you either adore or hate with a burning passion. If you’re a horror fanatic, you know what’s up with the original.

I personally adore Zombie’s take. The fact alone that he gave us an entire background story as to why Michael became the psychotic slasher that we’ve come to know and love. Plus, with an increased suspense and gore factor? Worked incredibly well and did justice (in my opinion).

The film made me feel bad for Michael, with moments of child Myers in therapy, particularly his love for making masks to pass the time while he was locked up and the touching family moments between him and his mother Deborah (Sheri Moon).

ᵈᵉᵇᵒʳᵃʰ ᵃⁿᵈ ᵐⁱᶜʰᵃᵉˡ ᵐᵉʸᵉʳˢ ⁱⁿ ʲᵃⁱˡ ᵗʰᵉʳᵃᵖʸ. ⁽ˢᶜʳᵉᵉⁿᶜᵃᵖ, ʰᵃˡˡᵒʷᵉᵉⁿ. ˢᵒᵘʳᶜᵉ﹕ ᵍᵒᵒᵍˡᵉ⁾

[Michael’s cell in the 2007 Halloween remake. (Source: Google)]

Add in the supporting cast of Michael McDowell (Loomis), Brad Douriff (Sheriff Leigh), Scout Taylor-Compton (Laurie Strode), etc., and I honestly think that it came together very well as a remake.

The films rated relatively low, but they did gross higher than the budgets that they originally had to film on. Again, I’m not going to give much attention to the higher-ups of critical perception—it all comes down to personal taste.

══════════════════

“Lords of Salem” (2013)

[[Promotional art for Lords of Salem. (Souce: Google Images)]]

A film that’s centered within Salem, Massachusetts,

this film—you guessed it—tackles witches, occultism, possession, Satan, and all the usual topics. Heidi (Sherri Moon) is a radio DJ who gets sent a mysterious record that’s labeled as being from “The Lords.” From then on out, shit gets a little dicey and admittedly, very disjointed. You can’t fault the cast here, and I loved the visuals that they were going for. However, with set schedule conflicts and multiple rewrites, which led to essentially running out of time to film? As a whole, what looked great on paper just couldn’t be done justice.

My FAVORITE sequence within the film (SPOILERS):

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I can forgive the disjointedness solely because of how mind-boggling and brilliant the film’s history and proper visuals were. Also, we got to see Dee Wallace, Judy Geeson, and Patricia Quinn as creepy and badass witches who moonlight as Heidi’s landlords. Also Meg Foster who leads their coven? Can we talk about what a femme-fueled power cast that is?!

[[Left to right: Patricia Quinn as Megan, Dee Wallace as Sonny, and Judy Geeson as Lacy Doyle. (Screencap, Lords of Salem. Source: Google) ]]

[[Meg Foster as coven leader Margaret Morgan. (Screencap, Lords of Salem. Source; google)]]

Like I said prior, the film gets a little wild. If you’re...well, buzzed prior to watching, it may make a little more sense.

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“31” (2016)

[[Film poster for 31 (Source: Google)]]

[Synopsis from IMDB; “Five carnival workers are kidnapped and held hostage in an abandoned, hellish compound where they are forced to participate in a violent game, the goal of which is to survive twelve hours against a gang of sadistic clowns.”]

Here, we clearly see that Zombie is invoking his childhood growing up within carnivals. In a 2013 interview with LA Weekly, Zombie divulged more about it:

“When we were kids, my parents would [work at the carnivals], and me and my brother would get dragged along to these things all the time and have to work.”

He went further on to say;

“Yeah, and it's not the nicest world. As a kid, you get exposed to the crazier underworld of the carnival. Me and my brother, when we were very little, we'd be inside the haunted house playing all day. So, already, what people are paying money to be scared [of], we're just playing in because it's fun. We saw the inner workings behind the machines.”

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(”31″ trailer, source; Youtube)

Once again in this film, Zombie brings a powerhouse cast:

Jeff Daniel Phillips as Roscoe Pepper

Meg Foster as Venus Virgo

Malcom McDowell as Father Murder

Judy Geeson as Sister Dragon

Richard Brake as Doom Head

You can view the entire cast at IMDB here.

Set in 1976, Zombie stays true to his nods. Again, depending on taste, this is a huge hit or a wild miss with mindless homicidal violence, campiness, and climbs across the monkey bar of standards that we’re used to seeing from him.

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So at this point, you’re probably wondering why I think that it’s time for Rob Zombie to step out of the confinements of his own box...

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It’s no secret that Zombie sticks to only a small group of tropes:

Slashers, families or groups of homicidals that lack remorse, the occult, etc. There’s no shame in sticking to what you know. Hell, Zombie has seemingly cracked the code over the past two decades that he’s been in the film industry that so many directors still don’t seem to get.

IMO, despite whatever you personally feel about the films mentioned above- I feel like we’re living a freaky groundhog day repeat within Zombie’s filmography.

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Now, if it ain’t broke, why fix it? Look, I’m not saying that Zombie has to change anything. However, I would love to see him tackle some other nuances that we’ve already seen from him in small doses.

- Children: We haven’t seen Zombie exactly take on what horror films depict kids as. Sure, he made a breakout and impeccable choice with young Michael Myers (Daeg Faerch) back in 2007. I personally would adore to see a reimagined (NOT remade) Children of the Corn on acid, one we all know Zombie can tackle and turn every existing view on its head.

- Witchcraft, The Occult, Satan, Voodoo: Zombie genuinely had a phenomenal concept (on paper) for 2012’s Lords of Salem. It was unfortunate that they ran out of resources and ran into unfortunate circumstances on set while filming.

The film wasn’t a total tank, though, given how inspiring and insane all the visuals were throughout the 1 hr, 41min film. I am absolutely positive that, given a full-force opportunity, Rob could rectify the mess that was out of his control. We completely saw that he provided visuals that left quite the impression, and he could take those taboo subjects by the goat horns.

- Animals (not the human form): It’s no secret that Rob and his wife Sherri are ethical vegetarians. It would be so tongue and cheek to see them take on such topics as animals getting their revenge, or even vegetarians torturing carnivores. This twist on the formula would make for an interesting viewing.

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2.) In regard to time periods,

Zombie stays within—and pays homage to—the 1970s and 1980s quite a bit. Obviously, those are the eras that Zombie personally loves the most when it comes to filmmaking. However, it would be very interesting to see him take on current day settings.

Zombie has such a unique viewpoint. Given changing climates in politics, human decline/growth, the economy, etc., he would do work that could easily put Ryan Murphy to shame.

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3.) He could also do with some different casting every now and then.

Let me preface this by saying that I adore every repeat casting choice that Zombie has made for his films.

Of course chemistry is a huge thing, and sticking to his friends is a very smart choice. However, he also has the potential to make new stars, boosting the power of those that may be under the radar. He can support those new stars with cameos from classic actors that we haven’t seen in awhile. I can’t begin to even fictionally cast those who fit the bill, but I do believe that with the “Zombie Touch,” he can bring so much more fresh air to the usual casting.

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There’s no doubting what Rob Zombie is clearly very good at. Despite mixed reviews from the horror world and critics, it’s time that his fans open their eyes to new possibilities. Of course, there are die-hards, but digging your feet in further doesn’t allow the growth of horror and its ever evolving themes.

[[ʳᵒᵇ ᶻᵒᵐᵇⁱᵉ, ˢᵒᵘʳᶜᵉ﹔ ᵍᵒᵒᵍˡᵉ ⁱᵐᵃᵍᵉˢ]]

This theory has been on my mind for a very long time—since 3 from Hell came out. I’m sure, in his usual fashion, we won’t be seeing any new films from Rob anytime soon (what with his new album set to release in March 2021, not to mention the toll that the pandemic has had on Hollywood.)

Still, it never hurts to challenge the set standards and ways.

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