#because clint is still upgrading it. basically she's a mess. but she's trying

[slightlytoastedbagel]

I've kinda sorta turned my stardew farmer into her own sona in the last few hours please help

[imagines-r-s]

Ocean’s Rise, Empires Fall

summary: you didn’t want your father’s death to be your downfall, but for the longest time it seemed like it was going to be to you and everyone else around you

taglist: @mdlyncline(send me an ask to be added to any of my taglists)

wc: 2.7k

a/n: kinda threw canon out the window, but nonetheless, i proceed. basically, clint and nat both survive- it doesn’t really check out but uh yolo

warnings: pretty angsty. very angst actually. there’s a description of depressive episodes so if that’s triggering please be cautious loves, mention of death

mentions of peter parker x stark!reader, but mostly avengers x reader (platonically)

When your dad snapped his fingers, he might have saved the world, but he destroyed yours. He obviously had no intention of doing so, he was just saving the world. You always knew your dad thought that he hadn’t done anything right in life, so you easily assumed that he thought this was his last shot. 

Tony wasn’t even aware of your existence until you were about four years old, but once he did find out he knew that he had to change his ways. When he did find out him and your mom came to an agreement for custody where he would see you every other week and every other holiday. 

What you didn’t know was that your mom had told Tony about you because she knew she only had a few years left with you, having been diagnosed with cancer a year before she had you meet Tony. She didn’t want you to be dropped off at some random man’s house and be expected to call him dad. 

She never had anything against Tony, he hadn’t done anything bad to her, she just figured with everything else going on in his life, he didn’t need a child to add onto that-boy was she wrong. When Tony met you the first time, his whole perspective on life changed. He wanted to be a good person for you, obviously, he wanted to for Pepper too, but he realized either way you would look up to him and you needed someone good in your life. 

He quickly noticed that you were just as intelligent as he was and the two of you bonded a lot through working in his lab. He made you do homeschool, considering how advanced you were and that if anyone knew that you were his daughter, you could easily be in danger. 

Tony didn’t hide anything from you, you were aware of the Avengers and that he was Iron Man, much to Pepper’s dismay. Considering that you grew up with all the Avengers, all of them thought of you as their own. You would always help your dad with upgrades to suits and the two of you even started on your own suit at one point. 

After the events that took place with Aldrich Killian, your parents were more adamant about your safety; making you train with Steve and Nat, finishing up your suit, and keeping more tabs on you. You understood, but it was still too much, which led to you starting to sneak out more. 

Although your dad had many regulations on your suit, you were still smart enough to be able to override them, that’s why you were able to leave the tower in your suit so easily. As you were flying over New York, you caught glimpse of a blue and red form also moving through the air. “FRIDAY, scan the area for any heat signatures.”

“Sure thing, Miss Stark,” the A.I responded before doing what you had asked. Whoever was flying was found easily, and you followed them until they stopped on top of a building. Expecting some sort of suit, you were surprised to see someone who looked to be about your age, wearing a homemade jumpsuit and mask, “what are you supposed to be? The outfit is kinda wack, not gonna lie,” he hadn’t expected anyone else on top of the building, so when he looked over and saw you in your suit flying beside the building, he was shocked. 

“You’re asking me that when you’re the one flying at the edge of a building?” you could tell he was your age by the way his voice cracked. Opening the suit to be able to step out, you stood by yourself on the roof of the building, “there. Is that better?”

“Oh, uh-uh, yeah. Is that Stark tech? Oh my god, you’re- you’re his daughter?”

“Aw, so smart.” 

“What are you doing here?” he asked. You simply shrugged, “Just disappointing my father, what about you, I never caught your name?” 

“It’s Pete... Peter. My name is Peter,” he said, purposefully lowering his voice. “My name’s y/n,” you mocked his fake lower voice, “So how do you do that exactly?”

“What? Swing?” you simply nodded your head, “oh, well, I was like bitten by this radioactive spider, and then all these cool things started happening. Like I’m stronger than I was before, I have quicker reflexes, etc.”

“So, you got the qualities of a spider, is what you’re saying basically?”

“Uh, yeah. Well, when you put it like that, the explanation is shorter,” you simply nodded once again. “So, Petey, what’s your superhero name? You obviously attempted a superhero look, but failed miserably.” 

“Uh, spiderman? I haven’t really thought of it.”

“You’ve put a lot of thought into it, haven’t you?” he shyly nodded, “haha, well, you have the name, you have the missions or ‘civilians’ to rescue yet?”

“I just stay around my neighborhood, for the most part, you know friendly neighborhood type beat.”

“That’s honestly really cool, looking out for the underdog that not many think to save immediately, I get it. It’s cool. Do you have a phone?”

“Uh, yeah, you want it, Stark?”

“Well, I know you want mine, Parker,” his eyes widened at the sound of his last name, “yes, I knew your name before I asked you.” He slowly nodded in response, handing you his phone to add your number, “so, what do you look like under that mask?”

“Oh, hold on,” as you watched him remove his mask, you smirked as his floppy brown hair fell over his face before he had the chance to move it up, “Oh, you’re cute, Parker. Well, you have my number, so text me. Gotta go.”

You quickly left before he had an opportunity to respond to you. Leaving him with your number and the hope that he would see you again. 

Peter had texted you shortly after, leading to the start of an amazing friendship. The two of you started teaming up more and more, which caused your dad to find out about your sneaking out, but it helped him with his discovery of the Spiderling. You two were a duo that no one wanted to mess with and it was that way for the next few years, up until Thanos attacked. 

You like to think that Thanos caused everything in your life to be messed up, but there were so many things contributing to your downfall: the Accords breaking your family apart, not seeing said family for years, Infinity War, losing the person you were in love with but too scared to tell, losing your family after they had reconnected for the first time in such a long time, your dad being lost in space, the five years, getting everyone back, and then losing your father.

Although a lot of good things came from all of that, you refused to think about the positives. Everyone tried to help you out of whatever was going on in your head, but no one could help, not even Peter. 

For the first time in your life, you were fearful. Fearful that another bad thing would happen. Fearful that you would lose more people. Fearful that you might self destruct, too. 

Pepper had tried her best to help, but she was also grieving. Peter was, too. Morgan didn’t understand. The whole team was sinking, but they worked so hard to keep you afloat. 

Bucky and Sam were trying to get you back into training, but anytime you went, you were hurting yourself more than anything else. Nat and Clint tried to get you back into your suit, but it had stayed in its case since the day Tony died. Wanda had tried to get in your head and help, it was a last resort, but she was hopeful. Banner tried to get you back into the lab. Steve and Rhodey were both well aware of how similar you were to your dad, so he simply kept a distance while keeping you away from things that would hurt you more in the end. Even Coulson tried to help by showing you his Captain America trading cards. 

But nothing they did worked. 

None of them gave up, but they were all losing hope that they would be able to get any aspect of you back to your old self. They knew that you were simply winding up to self destruct with all these bottled up emotions, and they didn’t want it to go terribly wrong. 

You hadn’t cried since the day he died. You felt terrible for not going to most of the funeral, but people understood. You felt like a disappointment knowing that you weren’t there for the people that needed you most. The completely abandoned them from such close proximity, any other time you would have found that statement funny, but know it just made you feel worse. 

When it hit a year since the funeral, you knew you either had to get up now or you’d slip deeper down the rabbit hole. For the first time in a long time, you got up from bed and you were able to take a shower. You combed out your hair, detangling out the knots. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to make you feel good at that moment. 

You felt a little bit more like yourself again, it wasn’t much but you’d take it. You had started walking towards the kitchen of the compound when you heard one of the doors in the hallway open. Looking down towards the hallway, you saw Morgan leaving her room. “Morgan, you ok?” 

“Yeah, I just wanted a juice pop,” she said smiling up at you. “That’s an idea I can get behind, c’mon let’s go.”

As the two of you were eating the juice pop, you hadn’t noticed that your family had crowded around the kitchen watching the two of you. Peter had woken up a little bit later than everyone else, but he saw that they were all crowded in the hallway, “guys, what’s going on?”

“y/n’s up and is laughing with Morgan,” Pepper said. Peter quickly turned the corner to see for himself, when he saw the two of you he smiled. He was so happy to see you up for the first time on your own since everything went down.

“You know that I can see all of you guys right there, right?” you said, after seeing the crowd of people in the corner. They all slowly emerged from the corner. “Yeah, we aren’t that small of a bunch are we?” Bruce stated to which you simply shook your head in response.

“It’s nice to see you up, doll,” Bucky said, kissing you on the top of your head. “Yeahhh, uh, I knew I needed to get up eventually, I guess. I don’t know.” 

“Hey, take all the time you need. Don’t stress about us, y/n,” Sam said. 

-----------------------

For the next few weeks, you eased back into everything. You started eating more, you got back to a kinda regular sleep schedule, you started training in small amounts, but still wouldn’t go down to your and your dad’s shared lab. 

It didn’t take you long to realize that even when some superheroes take time off, the bad guys never stop. Which was the reason why the team had been trying to talk you back into getting into your old suit. “C’mon, y/n, please, we need you. Your dad’s tech is what we need. Please,” Steve said. 

“Well see here’s the thing, it’s a dead man’s tech that hasn’t been used in a year, I don’t think it’ll help much,” you said pacing the livingroom. You didn’t want to bring the team down, but you weren’t getting back into your old suit. 

“y/n. Listen, HYDRA is planning an attack and we don’t know exactly when it will happen, but it’s happening tomorrow, please. Think about what your dad would have wanted,” you drew the line at him mentioning Tony. 

“My dad wouldn’t want some arrogant asshole to be trying to make me do something with his tech that I don’t feel comfortable doing yet. If you cared, you’d respect that. Now, talk to Peter or Banner, I’m sure they can figure something out.” with that last statement you walked away towards your room. 

You had a few moments to yourself before you heard a knock on your door, “y/n/n, it’s me.” You recognized Peter’s voice anywhere, “you can come in.”

“Are you ok?”

You simply nodded when you realized you were tearing up. No one had asked how you felt, simply because they assumed that you didn’t want to hear the question. “Hey, hey, hey, it’s okay,” he said before wrapping his arms around you. “Love, it’s okay. Let it out.”

You weren’t sure how long you had been wrapped up in Peter’s arms, but he held you tight as you cried through this moment. Everything you had bottled up was finally coming out. All the walls you had built in the past year were breaking. 

“Pete, I can’t help. You have to understand that I want to, but I just can’t go down to the lab and help. I can’t. And Steve expects me too and he said that dad would have wanted me to help and I just- I just don’t know what to do.”

“I think you have to trust your gut with this one. If you can’t go through with it, then don’t force yourself. Tony wouldn’t want you to hurt yourself.”

You simply nodded at the boy in front of you, “I’ve missed you, Sunshine.” He grinned after hearing the nickname he hadn’t heard in so long from you. “I missed you, too, Starlight.”

----------

Somehow a newscast had gotten to the fight, it wasn’t in a private place, so you weren’t surprised to see the cameras angled at your boyfriend and your family. Everyone was being taken out, one by one. 

Sam, Bucky, Nat, Peter, and Steve were the last few still standing, but you could see how worn out they were. You thought about how you could help and there was only one valid option, you just didn’t know if you wanted to go through with it. Correction, you didn’t know if you could go through with it. 

You made your way downstairs, stopping right in front of the lab that still looked exactly the same. “Miss Stark, it’s good to see you again,” you head the familiar A.I say. “It’s good to see you too, J.” 

Slowly taking in the room in front of you, you slowly walked in. The familiar smell of your dad’s cologne still lingered in the air somehow. It wasn’t sad, it was just a bittersweet moment. “JARVIS, can you bring out Mark 85?” 

“Of course, Miss Stark.” You smiled to yourself when you realized that Bruce had likely updated your suit. 

The bracelets that went with the suit quickly clung to your body, giving you the opportunity to suit up with the click of the two bracelets. “Alright, JARVIS, play dad’s kick ass playlist.” The sound of AC/DC filled your ears as you made your way to help protect your family. 

By the time you had gotten there, the HYDRA soldiers had the upper hand, but you knew if you came around unexpectedly they wouldn’t be able to do anything. You took the time to get the other models to get to where you were, that way you could surround them. You watched as the Avengers all smiled to themselves after realizing you were the one doing this. 

The other models were able to disarm HYDRA, giving all the worn out Avengers to strike at them and get them to the right correctional facilities. 

“y/n, you came,” Peter said, he was the only one that wasn’t completely out of breath at that. “Yes, yes. No need to thank me, I completely saved your asses back there,” you have a slight bow causing everyone to grumble. 

“Man, you really are your father’s daughter,” Rhodey said. “And you love me for that, Rhodes, don’t even,” you said raising a brow. 

[mostfandomfanatic]

Here We Go Again

Part 4 - The Name of the Game

Summary: Before Bucky fled to Romania, he met you. You offered your home to him and fell in love, but he couldn't stay. Now, after waiting for him and thinking you were never going to see him again, he’s back with the Avengers and needs your help.

This is a story based on the music from Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader

Word Count: 5764

Warnings: None?

A/N: Finally. Hopefully an update is never this late again.

I’ve seen your eyes

Tender like mine

Only a week since we started

It seems to me

In a short time

I’m getting more open-hearted

Three days have past, and the small group of Avengers are still laying low in your home. Sam has been up and active since yesterday. And currently, everyone seems to be on edge as they watch the news.

Two of the other Avengers, Iron Patriot and Vision, were on screen being interviewed about a the recent mission that their team members have not returned from.

“Over half of the Avengers were on this mission, including Wanda Maximoff, who you, Vision, have been rumored to have a relationship with, can either of you tell us where they are now, and if they’re safe?” The host asked.

“Wherever they are, they’re definitely safe. Just this morning we got a message saying they’ll be on their way home soon,” Iron Patriot, also known as James Rhodes, replied.

“I hate these dumb interviews. They all ask the same questions,” Clint said, then taking a sip of his coffee.

“What exactly is stopping us from going back to the compound?” Wanda asked.

“For one, Tony said he needed to fix something with the jet,” Steve said.

“And, Y/n still needs to give us an answer,” Natasha added.

You sighed. The only thing stopping you from going is that you and Bucky still haven’t had a private conversation. Whenever you try to get the two of you alone, someone always comes and ruins the moment.

To be honest, you already forgave him for everything. It’s obvious that he feels bad about the way he left things. But you still need to hear him say it, or else it’ll eat you alive.

“Your thoughts are very loud today, Y/n,” Wanda commented.

“Sorry, I’ll try to think more quickly,” you joked.

“I bet if we switched channels to another interview, they’d still be asking about the same crap,” Clint said.

“Oh my god, I’m turning it off if you don’t shut up about it,” Natasha said. You laughed as they started to argue.

Standing up from your seat, you decided to look for Bucky. Maybe now you finally talk with no interruptions.

You found him in the backyard, enjoying the peace and quiet.

“Hey,” you said. He opened his eyes and turned towards you.

“Hey,” he replied.

“May I?” You asked, gesturing to the seat next to him.

“Of course.”

It was quiet again for a few moments, neither of you wanting to ruin the moment.

“Can I ask you a question?” You said.

“Sure.”

“What’s it like to be an Avenger?”

“It’s… exhausting. But knowing that we’re helping people, and doing the right thing makes it worth it.”

“Aren’t you tired of it all? You spent most of your life fighting… Fighting fights that you didn’t want any part of.”

“When Hydra found me, they took everything from me. My mind, my free will, my memories. Now finally I get the choice.”

You started to smile, thinking back to the past.

“It’s a good thing you ran into Steve then, he helped you get your memories back.”

“That's wrong.”

You turned and gave him a confused look. He smiled.

“It wasn’t all Steve, it was also you.”

“How did I-“

“You gave me a notebook and told me to write everything I could remember in it. You researched things that help improve people’s memory and told me that you would do anything you could. I thought you were crazy.” He began to laugh.

“What so funny? I just wanted to help you.” You said.

“Exactly. You wanted to help a criminal get his life in check. I remember I would just sit thinking how insane you were to trust me. Sometimes, I still don’t understand why you did it.”

“You know, I could say the same thing to you. I used to ask myself why you were so quick to trust me, a stranger that almost ran you over, but then I realized you had no choice. I was the only one who would help you.”

The both of you sat in silence for a few moments once again, just taking in each other’s words.

“Y/n, I’m sorry. For everything. I shouldn’t have left you like that.”

“It’s okay.”

“It’s not okay, I never should have abandoned you.”

“You didn’t abandon me, you had to go or else you would have been caught. I understand that now.”

“Still, I never should have left you. I regret it every time I think about it.”

You didn’t know what to say, so instead, you just looked down and fiddled with your hands. You could still feel his gaze on you.

“We had something between us, didn’t we?” You asked. Slowly you looked up at him, your eyes begging for him to say something.

“I thought so,” he said.

“Could we… could we have that again?” You asked.

“Y/n, I-”

He was stopped by the opening of the back door.

“There you guys are,” Steve said, “I hope I’m not interrupting anything important, but we’ve got lunch set up.”

“We’ll catch up with you,” Bucky said. Steve seemed to understand what he intruded on and left quickly.

“We should join everyone,” you said quietly.

“Y/n, don’t let me be what’s stopping you from joining the team, okay?”

You nodded and walked away towards the dining room.

I was an impossible case

No one ever could reach me

But I think I can see in your face

There’s a lot you can teach me

So I wanna know

What's stopping you now? You got what you wanted, he apologized and tried to make things right. Why are you still hesitating?

“Y/n, is everything alright?” Wanda said waving a hand in front of you face to get your attention.

“Yeah, I’m fine, just staring into space,” you reassured her.

You finally decided to listen in on the conversation the group was having. Something about Tony and a big engagement party.

“Don’t you ever get tired of the big parties?” Steve asked.

“Of course he doesn’t,” Natasha said, “he loves the spotlight.”

“Nothing wrong with celebrating, Steve. Maybe you’re just getting to old to appreciate them,” Tony said. You could tell he was joking.

“I know I am,” Clint said. Everyone laughed.

“I’m just surprised you could lock it down,” Sam said.

“Why is that so surprising?” Tony asked.

“Have you met you?” Natasha said.

The conversation eventually moved on, and suddenly, you had a feeling it was going to be aimed at you. You needed to make a decision, and you needed to make it fast.

“Did you fix the jet, Tony?” Steve asked.

“And upgraded it in the process,” Tony said.

“So Sam is awake and the jet is fixed, that only leaves one thing,” Wanda said, turning her attending towards you.

“So Y/n, it’s time,” Natasha said.

“We can talk through it if you want, answer any last questions,” Steve reassured.

What’s stopping you now? Just the fear of being hurt or being in the public eye? Or maybe being away from your family even more than you already are?

“What exactly, besides medical stuff, would I be doing?” You asked.

“I would be training you,” Natasha said.

“And what does that entail?”

“A lot of hard work, I would be preparing you for the field.”

“And we need to learn more about your abilities and what you can do,” Steve added.

“Okay, those are things I would just get used to over time. What about my personal life? Would I still get to see my family?”

“Of course you would,” Bucky said.

“Okay… then there’s just one more thing. I have horrible public speaking skills, and the Avengers are all over the news and there’s interviews, and press conferences, and contracts to sign, and I would be no good at any of that.”

“We would help you with that,” Wanda reassured.

“Interviews and press conferences basically follow a script,” Clint added. “ Like I said earlier, they always ask the same questions, and we always give the same answers.”

“And when they ask about your personal life, because they will, you can just give no comment,” Natasha said.

You sat there for a second, taking everything in. There’s no reason to say no now.

You looked around the table, meeting everyone’s eyes. Wanda, to Steve, to Tony, until you met with Bucky’s. You remembered what he said earlier.

‘Don’t let me be what’s stopping you from joining the team’

He’s not what’s stopping you, in fact, it’s quite the opposite.

“Then I guess that settles it,” you said, “I’m in.”

What’s the name of the game?

Does it mean anything to you?

What’s the name of the game?

Can you feel it the way I do?

Tell me please

'Cause I have to know

I’m a curious child

Beginning to grow

“I think it’ll be good to have another girl around,” Natasha said. She and Wanda decided to help you pack a few things for a few days until the rest of your clothes could be taken to the compound.

“Can we please have a weekly girls night so we can complain about the guys, because there are some things that I just can’t keep in anymore,” Wanda said.

“Like what?” You asked.

“Well for now, let’s just say that Vision doesn’t really understand personal boundaries.”

“What about you Natasha? Are you seeing anyone?”

“Yes, and everything is going pretty good so far. But Bruce is having some issues with his other half at the moment, so he’s keeping his distance. Anyways, I’m more interested in how things are going with you and Bucky.” You could hear the smirk in her voice.

“There’s nothing to tell.”

“Like we’d believe that, there’s obviously something happening,” Wanda commented.

“Maybe there is something, but I probably messed it up,” you admitted.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, earlier today, me and Bucky talked, and I basically said I wanted us to try… being together. But then Steve interrupted and I just… left. He didn’t try to say anything back. And as I was leaving Bucky said… nothing, never mind.”

“What did he say?” They both asked.

“He said that I shouldn’t let him be what’s stopping me from joining the team… But it’s the opposite. If anything, he’s the reason I agreed to join.”

“You should tell him that,” Natasha said. “And you should wear this when you do.”

You turned to look at what she was referring to to find her holding up a dress from you closest. It was a off the shoulder velvet dress.

“Oh my god, I forgot I had that.” Your face flushed as you thought of Bucky seeing you in that and imagining how he would react.

“It’s cute, he would love it,” Wanda said.

“We’re definitely not letting you leave without it,” Natasha said as she placed it with the pile of clothes that need to be packed.

“What would I even wear it for?”

“Your welcoming party, of course.”

“Welcoming party?”

“Tony’s idea, he’ll take any excuse to have a party. Besides, it’ll be a good way for you to meet everyone on the team.”

You’re definitely no good at parties, all the dancing and drinking will surely end in some sort of embarrassment on your end.

A knock on the bedroom door caught everyone’s attention.

“Hey,” Peter greeted, “Mr. Stark said that we need to leave in five.”

“Thanks Peter, we’ll be down soon,” Wanda said.

“You ever fly before?” Natasha asked as she helped carry your bags to the jet.

“Once or twice, but it’s been a while,” you replied.

“Don’t worry, it’s a smooth ride,” Wanda said.

And she wasn’t wrong. The ride felt like it was over before it even began.

When you stepped out of the jet, you immediately started taking in your surroundings. The surrounding trees, the large facility. It was a lot to look at.

“C’mon, there’s a lot more to see,” Bucky said, gently pushing you forward with his hand on your back.

And you make me talk

And you make me feel

And you make me show

What I’m trying to conceal

If I trust in you

Would you let me down?

Would you laugh at me

If I said I care for you?

Could you feel the same way too?

I wanna know

The name of the game

The team guided you through the hallways to an office surrounded by glass walls. A man dressed in all black with an eye patch stood at the head of the table. Next to him was a thin woman in a fitted uniform. They looked very intimidating, and you made a note to try to make a good first impression.

“Relax, they’re just going review some things with you,” Bucky reassured you.

“You’re late,” the man said as everyone entered the room.

“Actually, we’re right on time,” Tony said. The man ignored him and aimed his attention towards you.

“You must be the new recruit,” he addressed, then held out his hand. “Nick Fury, and this is Maria Hill.”

You shook both of their hands and took a seat along with everyone else.

“Alright, so let’s just cut to the chase, tell us about your powers.”

“I can heal physical injuries, and I can also heal irritations like headaches. When I heal, I absorb the pain into myself, which causes me to feel drained afterwards. I can release that pain onto others, or release it by hurting myself.”

“Do you have to do it through touch?” Maria asked.

“To heal, I have to be close, but I don’t have to actually touch the wounds. And as far as I know, I can only do it through my hands. But for redistributing the pain, I need physical contact.”

“What kind of pain does the person feel?”

You hesitated to answer. You’ve only ever redistributed pain to two people. And one of them was Bucky.

You remember how it happened. It was the first night with him at your home and he was on edge, afraid that if he wasn’t keeping his eye on you, you’d be calling the police. He saw you pick up your phone and panicked, and backed you up to the wall with his metal hand to your throat. You didn’t know what to do, so you reached your hand out and sent a pulse of pain to his chest, sending him back onto the floor.

“I don’t know.”

“We can go more in depth with that another time. We have enough information for us to determine a good way to train you. So right now, let’s get you settled in,” Maria said.

“I’ll show you to your room, Y/n,” Natasha said.

“That was over pretty quickly,” you stated as you followed her out of the glass room. Glancing back inside, you could see Bucky looking your way.

“Maria could tell you were uncomfortable answering that last question so she stepped in,” Natasha explained.

You felt as if you were walking through the hallways for forever, and it was almost as if the walls were caving in around you. You convinced yourself that it was just your nerves, but you couldn’t help the lurking feeling that you didn’t belong there.

Your room however, was very spacious, and even though all the shelves were empty, and the walls bare, the room looked perfectly designed. Everything seemed to be in the perfect place. Even the bed was already made and there were already clothes in the closet.

Yes, it was all fantastic, but everything seemed too perfect. Sitting on the bed, it was almost as if it was too comfortable.

“Wow,” was all you could seem to say.

“There should be an outfit on the chair over there for later. We’re calling for an immediate press conference to welcome you into the group.”

“Am I going to have to answer anything?”

“Most likely. But don’t worry, we can handle any questions that you don’t have an answer for.”

“I guess I don’t really have a choice.”

“By the way, the press conference will be broadcasted live.”

“Is that normal?”

“Only for special occasions,”

She left you alone to get changed. You sent a text to your mom saying to turn on the news, figuring that your family would like the surprise.

The outfit picked out for you was very professional. A fitted, black blazer with a grey blouse, and a high waisted, black skirt. No shoes, so you guess the ones you have on will be fine.

“Are you ready?” Natasha asked, coming in as you were finishing putting on the blazer.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” you said.

“Great, let me just run some things over with you as we walk.” She immediately walked out of the room, expecting you to follow. “First off, there will be cameras and they will flash a lot. And they will probably ask you about your family or relationships with us, and you can answer them if you’d like, but if you start to feel uncomfortable, just reply with no comment.”

As she listed off the many things you needed to look out for, you could see the group up ahead. Tony appeared to be giving everyone a pep talk of sorts. You could see Bucky in the back rolling his eyes and you smiled.

I have no plans

No one to see

And no one has been invited

Now I am here talking to you

No wonder I get excited

They were about to introduce you as the newest addition to the team. You were just waiting for the signal to walk in.

“Miss L/n, it’s time,” Maria said.

Natasha was right. There was a lot of flashing. Almost an overbearingly amount, but you managed to keep a smile on your face for the camera. You joined the rest on the small stage and stood with Tony as he introduced you to the world.

“This is Y/n L/n, our newest member of the Avengers,” Tony announced, and reporters all began shouting their questions. “Miss L/n will answer a few questions after Nick Fury explains everything that I just said in a more serious tone,” he joked.

“Hey,” Bucky, who you chose to stand next to, whispered into your ear. “You’re tense, just breathe.”

Taking his advice and taking a deep breath, you could feel yourself starting to relax.

“Thanks,” you whispered back to him.

“It okay to be nervous you know,” he said. You held your breath once again as his fingers brushed against yours.

“Miss L/n will answer some questions now,” Nick said, gesturing for you to step up to the mic.

“You’ve got this,” Bucky encouraged.

Cameras flashed as you stood in front of the small audience of reporters. You smiled and pointed to a reporter on the left.

“How did the Avengers come into contact with you?”

“I’m an old friend of Sergeant Barnes,” you answered honestly, then pointed to another reporter.

“What skills do you add to the Avengers team?”

“I have healing powers, so I can assist them with injuries when they come back from missions. And once I’m trained, I might even be helpful out in the field.”

“Are you related to Y/d/n L/n, who’s known for disliking mutants?”

You froze at your father's name.

“He’s my father, but I have no relationship with him.”

“Are you prepared to take on the role and the title of an Avenger?”

“All my life, I’ve only wanted to help people. And this is the perfect opportunity for me to do that, so I’m prepared for anything that these guys throw at me,” you smiled and looked back at the group, they were smiling too.

“What’s your relationship with Sergeant Barnes?”

You were taken back by the question, but quickly recovered and tried not to show your hesitation.

“We’re just friends.”

Your smile and the sound of your voice

And the way you see through me

Got a feeling you give me no choice

But it means a lot to me

So I wanna know

For the next few days, you were busy moving into your new home. Boxes filled the large room, and you’re beginning to wonder if all of your things will fit.

“Okay, you’re gonna have to get rid of some of this stuff… or get a storage room or something,” Wanda said, out of breath from helping carry boxes.

“Yeah, I guess moving from a whole house to one room would cause some issues,” you laughed.

“It’s exciting though, right?” Wanda asked as she opened up a box full of books and journals. “Your starting a new chapter of your life.”

“Yeah, I guess it’s pretty exciting,” you smiled.

“Are you excited for the party?”

“I actually am,” you said, sighing as you took a seat to rest. “Who exactly will be there?”

“Let me think... besides everyone you already met, there’s only a few other members of the Avengers for you to meet,” she said, starting to go through one of the boxes filled with books. “Thor will be there, and I believe T’challa and Scott will be there as well.”

“Is that all?” You joked.

“Hey, what’s this?”

You looked over to see her holding up a leather notebook. You immediately recognized it as the first notebook you gave to Bucky.

“It’s a notebook that I gave to Bucky for him to write his memories in,” you sighed. “He forgot it when he left.”

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked,” Wanda said, handing the notebook over to you.

“No, it’s okay. I forgot I had it.” You opened the book to a random page and glanced at some of the writings and sketches. “I probably should have thrown it away back then, but for some reason I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.”

You flipped through the pages and smiled when you found a rough sketch of Steve. You remember when Bucky showed it to you, seeing him so excited made you excited along with him, so much so that you threw your arms around him in a hug. Which was the first time you touched him after you used your powers on him.

From the corner of your eye, you could see a red figure in the doorway.

“I'm sorry to interrupt but Stark is asking for your presence,” Vision said.

“Great, what does he want now?” You mumbled to yourself.

Making your way into the common area where the party will be held, you took in all of the decorations. They were a bit extreme for your taste, but there was no point in arguing with Tony.

“Ah, there you are,” Tony said as you entered the room, getting the attention of Natasha and Steve. “What do you want for music?”

“Anything is fine,” you told him with a shrug.

“Alright, how about your attire? I can have Pepper get you something,” he offered.

“I already have something to wear.”

“Okay, what about drinks?” He asked, moving toward the bar.

“I don’t drink so whatever the rest of you want is fine with me.”

“You don’t drink?” Steve asked as he set a large box of beer onto the bar.

“Let’s just say that hangovers are not my thing,” you shrugged.

“They’re almost done here and the party starts in two hours so we better go get ready,” Natasha said, making her way over to you and pulling you along with her.

Natasha and Wanda insisted on helping you get ready, saying that they were going to make you irresistible. They did your hair and makeup, and helped you choose jewelry and shoes to go with your velvet dress.

You weren’t sure why you needed to look so glammed up, you weren’t trying to impress anyone. Or at least, you were only trying to impress one specific person.

Once the party started, you greeted everyone as they arrived to the party. Shaking their hand and introducing yourself, following the instructions Tony gave you. Natasha introduced you to some of the other Avengers, such as King T’challa and Thor; both were very charming and kind.

As the party went on into the night, the music blared and most of the guests getting drunk, everything seemed to good to be true.

“Look who’s fashionably late,” Clint shouted, getting the attention of you.

“Who is that? He looks familiar,” you said to Natasha.

“That’s Doctor Strange, he’s a sorcerer,” she told you.

Realization hit you as you remembered why you recognized him. One of your friends from work was a huge fan of him, she even made a poster of him and hung it in one of the hospital rooms. You’d be lying if you said you weren’t a fan of him as well.

“Doctor Strange as in Doctor Stephen Strange, the man who used to be one of the best neurosurgeons in the world?”

“You know him?”

“Not personally, but I used to be a fan of him when I was a nurse.”

“Really?” She inquired with a sly smile. “You should go talk to him.”

“He’s talking to Tony, I shouldn’t interrupt.”

“Yes, but Bucky has been staring at you for the last eight minutes now and frankly, it’s getting on my nerves, so you need to do something to get him make a move.”

You looked around to see where Bucky could be staring at you from, but you still couldn’t find him. Damn her and her assassin eyes.

“Fine,” you sighed.

Taking a deep breath and mustering up all the courage you had, you made your way over to where the two men seemed to be in a heated discussion.

“Excuse me, Tony,” you interrupted. They both sighed, deciding to continue their argument later. “Could you introduce me?”

Reluctantly, Tony introduced the two of you to each other, then left in a hurry to find Pepper.

“So you used to be a nurse, right?” He asked, leaning against the wall nonchalantly. He looked you up and down, as if he was analyzing you.

“Yes, I was for about a year before I quit,” you answered him. You could feel your cheeks start to flush.

“Why did you quit?” He asked. You could tell he wasn’t very interested, but was trying to be nice.

“Oh, just for personal reasons,” you shrugged. He took a glance behind you and smirked.

“It seems your knight has arrived,” he said.

“What?”

“Hey, doll.” Bucky came up from behind you, wrapping his metal arm around your waist, “Wanna dance?”

“Oh, Bucky. Hi. Sure,” you said, feeling flustered from the way he was holding you. “It was nice meeting you,” You smiled at Stephen, who nodded back with a smirk.

“C’mon, dance with me.” Bucky took your hand and pulled you into him away from Stephen, then led you out onto the balcony. “You look beautiful, doll,” he complimented, wrapping his arm around you tighter as you swayed to the music, almost as if he wanted you all for himself.

“You don’t look so bad yourself,” you said confidently, and began to move your hands up his arms to his shoulders. “Where have you been? I haven’t seen you all night?”

“Sam got me into a game of pool,” Bucky shrugged.

“So weren’t avoiding me?” You asked, smiling slyly.

“Why would I be avoiding you?” He seemed genuinely concerned by your question.

You were now wondering if that was the right thing to say.

“I don’t know, I just feel like we haven’t been seeing a lot of each other lately,” you told him honestly, casting your gaze downward.

“I’m not avoiding you.” Bucky lifted your chin to make you look into his eyes. “I’ve just been busy, and so have you.”

“Is that how it’s always going to be?” You asked sadly.

“What do you want me to say, doll?”

“You know what I want.” You voices, barley above a whisper.

A moment of silence passed as you waited for him to say something, but instead felt him pull you even closer and rest his head on top of yours.

“Let’s just enjoy this moment.” He said softly. You nodded your head and sighed as you listened to his heartbeat.

What’s the name of the game?

Does it mean anything to you?

What’s the name of the game?

Can you feel it the way I do?

Tell me please, 'cause I have to know

I’m a curious child, beginning to grow

With the party basically over and the music softly playing in the background, the few who were left were gathered around in a circle on the couches.

Everyone was sharing some of their stories. Peter shared his victory against his ex-girlfriend's dad, Thor shared his reconciliation with his brother, and even Doctor Strange shared how he became a sorcerer.

Finally, after another story from Scott, you found an opening to go freshen yourself up.

“I’ll be right back guys,” you said, getting up from your spot on the couch to head to the closest bathroom.

Deciding to just take off all the makeup, you washed and dried your face. The party was technically over anyway, so what would it matter. You were sure that Bucky wouldn’t care either way.

You wonder what Bucky was thinking while you danced. You’re bodies pressed against each other with your head on his chest and his resting on yours. If he feels the same way you do, what’s stopping him?

You came up with different guesses. Maybe he’s scared that something will happen to you because of his past. Maybe he doesn’t want a relationship in the public eye. Maybe he just doesn’t feel that way about you anymore.

You hope it isn’t the last one.

You made your way back slowly, but paused at the sound of your name.

“Seriously guys, what do you think of Y/n?” It was Natasha.

“I think she’s wonderful, she shows the true spirit of an Avenger,” Thor said.

“She needs a lot of work, but I think she fits in great,” Tony added.

“Tell me why we have to keep lying to her again,” Bucky said. Lying? What were they lying about?

“Buck, you know how she’ll react if she finds out,” Steve said.

“And besides, we were never planning on keeping her away from her family, no matter what deal we made with her father,” Natasha reassured.

My father? A deal? What are they hiding from you?

“But what if she does find out?” Wanda questioned.

“She won’t,” Natasha said, she seemed to be getting a bit irritated now.

“Listen, unless someone goes up to her and says ‘we made a deal with your father to keep you away from harming your family’ she won’t find out, so if you would please shut up now and-”

You froze, not caring what Tony decided to rant about.

How could they do something like that? After you told them about him, and how he feels about you, how? And why? You didn’t think your father hated you that much to think of bribing the Avengers, but I guess you were wrong.

But then again, you didn’t think the Avengers were that selfish.

And you make me talk

And you make me feel

And you make me show

What I’m trying to conceal

If I trust in you

Would you let me down?

Would you laugh at me

If I said I care for you?

Could you feel the same way too?

I wanna know

Oh yes, I wanna know

In the darkness of your room, you sat silently staring into space, not bothering to wipe your tear stained cheeks. It’s been over an hour since you left the party. You knew that if you tried to face them after what you heard, you would fall apart right in front of them.

It still doesn’t make any sense to you, no matter which way you look at the situation, it all just seems wrong and unsettling.

You didn’t bother getting up when you heard a knock on your door. You suspected it could be Wanda, or maybe Natasha. Both would be difficult to talk to, maybe even impossible at the moment.

“Hey doll, it’s me,” Bucky’s muffled voice said through the door. A pain ran through your chest and you took a deep breath, trying to stop more tears from flowing.

“Go away,” you said, as loudly as you could without your voice breaking.

“Is everything okay?”

No. Everything is not okay. In fact, everything is far from being okay.

“Go away,” you said more firmly.

“Not until you tell me what’s wrong.”

Sighing, you gave FRIDAY the okay and Bucky came rushing in. He paused when he saw your hunched over form and rushed over to you, kneeling on the ground so he could see your face.

“Doll, what’s wrong?” He wiped away your tears with his thumb, something that would normally make your heart race.

“Were you ever going to tell me?” You asked quietly, gently taking his hands away from your face and refusing to meet his gaze.

“Tell you what?” He asked softly.

“About the deal you made with my father?”

He froze, eyes widened and mouth gaping.

“You weren’t meant to hear that,” he said hastily.

“Answer the question,” you said firmly.

Numb. That’s all you could feel now. No matter what he said in this moment won’t make a difference.

“Yes, we never intended to keep you away from your family.” He voice sounding desperate.

“You made a deal with my father, the one person who hates me most of all.”

“Doll, believe me, we were going to tell you.”

Finally meeting his gaze, you remained unmoved by the sadness on his face.

“After all I’ve been through, I never thought you would be the one to break me like this again.”

His face fell, and he shook his head sadly.

“Don’t say that.”

“I don’t want to talk anymore, please leave.”

“Doll.”

“Please Bucky. I just want to be alone.”

Eventually, he did leave, and the second the doors closed and locked the tears started flowing again. And they didn’t stop until you fell asleep at sunrise.

The name of the game

Does it mean anything to you?

What’s the name of the game?

Can you feel it the way I do?

What’s the name of the game?

Tags: @moonbeambucky @welp-im-mikey @bucky-smiles @california-grown @sexyvixen7 @psyc0drama @mdgrdians @rebelfleur22 @bvckys-doll @minigranger

[victimofthemusic]

Five Times Tony Stark Was a Good Dad (And One Time He Wasn’t) Pt. 3

Hello! No, you guys aren’t misreading this, it’s an actual update! It’s taken me a long time to get back into this story, my life has been very crazy and I’ll be honest, I haven’t written much in the last six to eight moths. However, I saw Infinity War and holy shit, did it place me back in this Universe. I’ve had the beginnings of this chapter to written out since the last update of this story and it took me this long to finish it. I’m not sure how happy I am with this chapter compared to the last two, but I think it fits. I know Peter has Super Spidey healing, but I’m such a sucker for these kinds of fics and I really wanted to write one. Thank you so much for the love and support of this series, Part 1 has well over 2,000 likes and Part 2 is working it’s way up to 700, that’s the most I’ve ever received on any of my stories and I’m completely blown away. I love each and every one of you. If you’re new to this series, you can read Part 1 here and Part 2 here. Also, I have one other Homecoming Fic, where you’re Tony Stark’s daughter and you get rescued by Spider-Man and that can be found here and a dating MJ Would Include request here. I hope you guys enjoy!! (:

P.S. If I missed anyone that wanted to be tagged in this, I’m so sorry! I’m posting this at 3 in the morning and trying to sort through all your kind messages and keep track who wants to be tagged is a bit of a challenge, I think I got all of you, but I apologize if I didn’t! 

~~~~~~~

It was an unusually quiet night around the Tower, Rhodey was upstate at the new Avengers facility for his weekend stint of physical therapy for his legs, Pepper was back in Malibu working on the new StarkPhone launch and Happy had followed her there for security, leaving Tony to his own devices.

When usually when left with nothing to do, he’d be down in the lab working on a project or tinkering with the Iron Man suit or rebuilding the transmission in one of the twenty cars that he owned. But, for some reason, he found himself in the living room, staring at an infomercial and occasionally replying to emails that he’d been neglecting over the week— choosing to spend time with Peter in the lab instead.

Ever since he invited Peter and his little friend into the lab a few weeks ago, Tony found that he didn’t really mind the kid’s company and what had originally started as a one time offer to appease his guilt, had turned into a three or four time a week thing. Sometimes the kid would come over and they’d screw around with upgrades to the Iron Man suit or they’d try to improve upon Peter’s web fluid—which, Tony admitted with no small amount of pride, was damn near impossible considering Peter’s original formula was damn near solid. That didn’t stop them from trying to make it stronger and last longer, but their attempts usually didn’t come out very successful, much to their collective frustration. And sometimes, when they were tired of messing with Iron Man or formula’s for new web fluid, Peter would wander off to a part of the lab table that had become his own little spot and catch up on his homework, occasionally asking for Tony’s input.

And Tony…didn’t really mind. He didn’t mind that Peter had slowly but surely became part of his daily routine and taking up a space in his life that Tony, once upon a time, didn’t really want to be fulfilled. He knew that Peter wasn't necessarily a child of his own biological making, but that didn’t stop him from feeling a sense of responsibility and dare he say it, an attachment to the kid that was more paternal than mentor like. He liked having the kid around him, in his lab, in this big Tower that got more lonely as the days went by without the other Avenger’s bustling around it—Sam teaching Vision and Wanda to cook in the kitchen, Natasha and Clint wrestling in the living room, Steve watching from the couch with exasperated amusement in between sketches, Thor polishing his hammer at the dinner table while Rhodey read the news paper and Bruce tinkering around in the lab with Tony.

Peter breathed life into this Tower that had been robbed of it when the Accords came into play and had divided the only family Tony had ever really been apart of. And damn if Tony didn’t love the kid for it.

So that’s why, sitting there, alone in his big and empty Tower, that Tony began to physically feel the kid’s absence.

He glanced down at his StarkWatch, biting his lip. It was 10:30, surely the kid wasn't that busy that if he were to, theoretically, call the kid and see if he wanted to come over tomorrow and work in the lab, maybe go to the new science exhibit at Museum of Natural History—he did, after all, have an in to the Research Library—grab a late lunch and come back and watch some movies with Vision and Rhodey, since it was still technically movie night even though the rest of the old team wasn't here and if it got too late, he could always crash in his room here and he could always take Peter to school Monday morning, as long as it was cool with Aunt Hottie—

“Sir, you have an incoming call from Ned Leeds,” F.R.I.D.A.Y. said, startling Tony out of his train of thought.

Curiosity piqued, Tony said with a wave of his hand, “Patch him through.”

A moment of silence and then the sound of loud music and laughter rang through the overhead speakers of the Tower, making Tony wince.

“Mr. Stark, sir, sorry to interrupt your evening, I’m sure you’re very busy, but may I just say that I think it’s totally awesome that your A.I. answers your phone calls—“

“Thanks, Guy In Chair, but—“

“Can she do like, a trace on the number and then like, a background check on the person—“

“—how’d you get my number? And, here’s the real question, how’d I get your number?”

“Oh, I got your number from Peter’s phone and I did a reverse phone hack and added myself into your contact list, in case of an emergency—“

“Lemme stop you there kid,” Tony said sharply, pinching the bridge of his nose to stave off a headache, “you mean to tell me, you stole my number from Peter’s phone and managed to reverse hack into my phone, which, by the way, I don’t appreciate, and added your number to my phone on the off chance that I would need to call you? And why, may I ask, do you think that would ever be a possibility?”

The tell tale sign of a gulp could be heard over the line and Tony sighed in exasperation, “Was there a point to this conversation, Ned or—“

“Oh!” Ned exclaimed, “Yeah, sorry sir, um you see, it’s Peter—“

Tony’s heart most definitely didn’t stop working at that sentence and it didn’t seem like taking oxygen into his lungs suddenly became more difficult at the thought of Peter being in any sort of danger.

“Is he okay?” Tony demanded, sitting up straighter and summoning the suit.

“You see sir, I told everyone in our gym class that Peter knew Spiderman and then Liz—this really pretty senior that, like, half the school is in love with including Peter—mentioned she was having a party tonight at her house that basically the entire school was invited to and that we should stop by, which was so awesome because we’re only sophomore’s sir and not cool people—“

“If there’s a point here, Ned, I’m missing it, so you better get to it.” Tony demanded sharply.

“Right, anyway, we got invited and well, um, Peter was nervous and a senior handed us each a drink and Peter downed his and well, he’s really drunk and is about to swing through this house in his, you know, other identity and I tried to stop him, but he wouldn't listen to me and—“

“I’ll be there in five, try to stall him as best as you can.” Tony said quickly, ending the call.

He ensured that F.R.I.D.A.Y. had located the call before he summoned one of his cars to the location and he was off into the night, trying to quell the anger and shame that was boiling through his veins.

Anger, that the kid could be that stupid and utterly reckless, to risk his secret and the safety of his loved ones for kids he wouldn’t even waste another thought on after graduating high school.

And shame, because he knew what it was like to be Peter’s age and to want to be seen and seem cool by your peers. To want to fit in so desperately that you're willing to do almost anything to get it. Alcohol has cost Tony so many things in his life and he’d be damned if he let someone like Peter follow in his footsteps.

He made it to the party in three minutes, taking a moment to do the deep breathing exercises Bruce taught him, so he didn’t completely lose it on the kid and alert everyone to his sudden appearance at the party. He landed with a dull thud against the roof, alerting the intoxicated teenager that was attempting to don his suit a little too closely to edge of the roof for Tony’s heart to handle.

He really was quite the sight—he had the suit on backwards, well the half he had on, the other half was dangling pathetically in the evening breeze while Peter seemed to be trying to figure out how to get the rest of it on without jumping too far and falling off of the roof.

“Mr. Starkkkkk!” Peter slurred in greeting, eyes bright and blood shot with the alcohol, “What’re you doin’ here? Did you know there was go’na be a party here? Did Liz invite you—“

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Tony demanded, completely ignoring Peter’s inquiry, lifting the faceplate of the Iron Man mask. He was doing everything in his power to keep his voice level and not shout like he so desperately wanted to, breathing exercises be damned.

Peter hiccuped, “”M trying to put my suit on because I told ev’ryone that ‘Piderman was go’na be here, but—hiccup—I got ‘istracted when I got here n’d now my head s’all—“ he made a waving gesture in the air, like that explained it all, which, to be fair, Tony did understand what he meant a little too well and it only added to the anger welling inside of him, “—weird, like it’s not part of my body n’d I was go’na swing through the house n’d be like ‘wasss up ev’rybody ‘m ‘Piderman’ and give Ned a fist bump so he looks like he’s cool too—“

“And how do you plan to do all of that when you can’t even get both legs in your suit, kid?”

Peter gazed dumbly back at him, before looking down and yeah, okay. Mr. Stark had a point.

He looked back up at Tony with unfocused eyes and with such a blatant uncaring shrug that only teenagers knew how to accomplish, that Tony snapped.

“Do you realize how stupid this is?” Tony said sharply, “Not only could you hurt yourself or someone else, you’re running the risk of outing yourself to your entire school! Who, I’m sure, have all their little smartphones with their little cameras and it’s only a matter of time before this would end up on YouTube, then the media would get a hold of it and then that’s it, kid, you’re no longer anonymous and you’ve put everyone you love in danger. Do you want that?”

Peter opened his mouth to reply but Tony couldn’t handle it, “Not uh, you don’t get to talk, the adult is talking,” he snapped, waving his hand as if he could physically swat the rebuttal on the kid’s tongue away, “Now, what you're going to do is get out of the suit, put your clothes back on and then you’re coming back to the Tower with me and if you know what’s good for you, you’ll do it without any sort of complaint.”

Peter, thankfully, heeded Tony’s words and, after some struggling, managed to get the suit off and into his own clothes. He swayed slightly on the spot and Tony acted fast, tapping the center of Peter’s suit, summoning it back to the Tower and he scooped Peter up, cradling him like a baby against his chest. Peter rested his head gratefully against the cool armor, the world beginning to spin around him at an uncomfortable rate as he felt the repulsers of the suit ignite and Mr. Stark take off into the night.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y., please send a text to Peter’s little friend and inform him there’s a car waiting for him outside and that it will escort him home and that if he doesn't leave that party in five minutes, it’ll be a phone call to his mother.” He heard Mr. Stark’s voice over the whooshing of the wind and Peter giggled. Who knew Mr. Drunken-Womanizing-Playboy-Tony Stark could be such a dad.

Iron Man, more like Iron Dad, Peter thought to himself, giggling.

His giggling came to an abrupt stop, however, when his stomach gave a uncomfortable lurch. Suddenly, the cool wind washing over his face felt suffocating and Peter could picture how high up they were, how small the buildings would be and how the only thing separating him from death was Mr. Stark’s gentle grip and his stomach gave another churn and then—

Oh no

“Uh, Tony, I—I—don’t feel so good—“

“Kid, I swear to god, if you toss your cookies all over this suit—“

He opened his mouth to reply, but instead of words, the tacos he and Ned split before the party came back up and he tried, he really tried to aim away from the suit, but there was only so much he could do when he was squished against Tony’s chest and suspended twenty-thousand feet into the air.

“Mr. Stark, I am so—“ Peter began, beyond mortified and feeling much more sober than he was five minutes ago, but Tony shook his head and Peter could feel the heat of his glare through the faceplate of the suit.

“Save it, kid. You’re lucky this is one of my older suits.”

~~~~~~~~~~

They made it back to the Tower without another incident and once Tony was out of the ruined suit, he sent it off with DUM-E to get it hosed off, he sent Peter up to his room and he sent himself to the bar for a drink.

He eyed the bottle of bourbon, but thoughts of a drunk and stumbling Peter on a roof top made him opt for a bottle of water instead.

He collapsed on the couch, suddenly feeling everyone of his years and rubbing his temples to ward off the migraine that he could feel blooming behind his eyelids, he wondered, not for the first time, how he could've done this to his mother. Tony had started drinking right around Peter’s age, and at first, it had started as something to piss his father off, but he soon came to realize that alcohol numbed the pain and help hide the scars his father’s words had left behind. Drinking had turned to experimenting with drugs and if it wasn't for Rhodey, who’d pulled him back from the brink of every bender, he would’ve been dead before his twenty-first birthday.

His drinking and partying had put a strain on his relationship with his mother and did nothing but serve to be a source of shame for his father with all the headlines his drunken shenanigans had earned him.

And while Peter wasn’t his kid, not biologically or legally, he felt responsible for the kid. A sense of duty to steer this kid in the right direction and Tony would be lying to himself if he said he didn’t love the kid and care about his wellbeing.

Peter reminded him a lot of himself at fifteen. Always the smartest kid in the room, always interested in things that weren’t cool and struggling to find a place amongst his peers who teased him for being who he was. The difference, however, was that Peter was good. He was so inherently good and all the harsh things that this world had done to him had yet to diminish the purity and resolute kindness that radiated off of the kid in waves. Peter used his powers because he wanted to help people, Tony did it because he hoped, that maybe, for every life he saved, every act of good he did, it would serve as a penance for all the bad he had done to the world.

Peter was too good of a kid to turn out like Tony and it scared him to think of Peter following in his footsteps. Of making his mistakes. He knew, logically, that Peter was still a teenager. That he was going to make mistakes, but Tony couldn't help but feel disappointed in the kid anyways. He wanted Peter to be better than him, damn it. He had to be.

It was only eleven, but Tony felt beyond exhausted, so he made his way to his room, passing Peter’s along the way and he couldn't help but stop and peak in the doorway. He wanted to make sure that the kid actually made it to his room in one piece and didn’t drown himself in the shower.

Peter did manage to make it in bed on his own—sprawled out on top of the sheets in the Iron Man pajamas that Tony had bought him as a joke, he never expected the kid to actually wear them—and if the snores coming out of the kid said anything, he’d been passed out for a while.

Tony smiled, shaking his head before padding softly across the fluffy carpeting of Peter’s room, grabbing a blanket that was thrown across the love seat in the corner and gently draped it over Peter. He snuggled into the warmth, seeming to relax a bit more in his sleep and Tony brushed his bangs back from his forehead.

“Oh, you’re going to be in a world of pain tomorrow, kid,” Tony muttered, “I wouldn’t wish a first time hangover on anybody.”

Peter snuffled in his sleep, eyebrows furrowing as if he heard what Tony said.

Tony chuckled softly, shaking his head once more, “Good night, kid.” he whispered to the quiet room.

Peter rolled over on his stomach, burying his head in the pillows, mumbling in his sleep and Tony paused, because there’s no way that kid said what he thought he said—

“G’night, Irondad.”

Tony blamed the warm feeling in his chest on the alcohol that was still sitting, untouched, in the bottle downstairs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sunlight, Peter decided, was literally the worst thing that world had invented. It burned every time he opened his eyes, threatening to fry his corneas right from his skull and it was only made worse by his Spidey-senses, which usually made every one of his senses feel like it had been dialed to eleven, but today, it felt like they’d been dialed to one hundred.

And it was only made worse by the high voltage electric guitar that was blaring from downstairs and Peter recognized it as one of the songs on Tony’s I’m Trying To Be Productive playlist he’d played in the lab.

Wait—

Peter glanced around at his surroundings and he realized he was in his room. But not in Queens, where his Very Worried Aunt would expecting him to be sleeping, safe and sound.

Instead, he was in his room.

In Stark Tower.

Which was in Manhattan.

And he had no idea how he ended up here.

Cursing colorfully, Peter flew out of bed and immediately regretted it—the room started to spin and his stomach churned dangerously, bile rising in his throat and threatening to come up all over the dark grey carpeting.

He took a second to breathe, fighting back the nausea and praying he wouldn’t ruin Tony’s carpet. Eventually, the restless ocean in his stomach mellowed out, the nausea turning into more of a bleh feeling.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y?” Peter asked hesitantly, rubbing his eyes.

“Yes, Mr. Parker?” The A.I. responded dutifully.

“What happened last night?” Peter asked, toeing the carpet and wondering if he really wanted to know that answer. Now that he was awake, the night was coming back to him in flashes and he prayed that some of those flashes were wrong.

“Mr. Stark received a call from Mr. Leeds last night at around 10:35 pm, informing him of your whereabouts and possible levels of intoxication and he flew to the residence of Ms. Liz Allan’s, where he encountered you, on her roof, attempting to put on your suit. He flew you to the Tower and provided a car to escort Mr. Leeds home.” F.R.I.D.A.Y. replied.

Peter nodded—which, come to find out, makes splitting headaches worse—and thought over all the information the A.I. had provided for him and while all of it fit, there was one thing that was missing and he hoped, beyond all belief, that it wasn't true.

“Did I—,” Peter cleared his throat, wishing he hadn’t, which seemed to be the running theme of today, “—did I by chance, possibly, when Tony flew me back to the Tower, which I’m assuming was in the Ironman suit, did I uh, you know, um—“

“Mr. Stark is headed up in the elevator, Mr. Parker.” F.R.I.D.A.Y. interrupted him.

Shit

“On a scale of 1-10, how mad is he?” Peter asked meekly, glancing up at the ceiling.

“While my body scans show no outward signs of irritation, Sir’s heart rate is elevated and his blood pressure is higher than normal, so my estimate would be an 8.5.” F.R.I.D.A.Y. answered after a brief moment of hesitation and Peter couldn't decide if it was his imagination or if he just wanted someone on his team, but the A.I.’s voice sounded sympathetic and that was a bad sign when a computer felt bad for the wrath that was bound to rain upon him.

“On today’s episode of Peter Screw’s the Pooch, we talk about underage drinking and it’s adverse effects it has on young heroes and their abilities to think properly.”

The door to his room burst open and Peter winced at the noise of wood hitting dry wall, but that paled in comparison when he saw an angry Tony Stark standing in the doorway.

“And while we usually save questions from the audience for the end of the show, today, I think we can make an exception,” Tony continued, making his way into Peter’s room, a sarcastic smirk dancing on his lips and his usually kind eyes were on a low simmer, anger lurking in the shadows.

Peter gulped.

“To answer your question, Mr. Parker, yes, you did, in fact, regurgitate your tacos and cheap beer all over my Mark fifteen, after I kindly took time out of my night, to fly over to the suburbs of Queens, to a house full of your classmates, to save you, from possibly making one of the worst decisions of your teenage life.”

Peter winced at Tony’s steadily rising voice, one because it was making his headache worse and two, because, well, Tony was yelling at him.

“So, since I didn’t really get a coherent answer last night, what the HELL were you thinking?!” Tony demanded, crossing his arms tightly over his chest.

Peter swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing nervously, “I uh—“

But Tony cut him off, “Because I can tell you what you weren’t thinking. You weren’t thinking about the fact that if you flew into that house, drunk off your ass, might I add, you not only could’ve injured yourself, you could’ve hurt someone else. Or, more importantly, you could’ve exposed your secret to all your little classmates, who all have their little smartphones, with HD camera’s and access to the internet and you could’ve been the next viral sensation, which would blow your cover to the ENTIRE WORLD.”

Tony’s shout made Peter jump and shrink back from the rage in his voice, but he was so lost in his rant that he didn’t even notice, “Which, not only put you in danger, but all your little friends and your unusually attractive aunt.”

Peter’s eyes widened, “Oh god, aunt May, Tony—“

He waved him off, “Oh, now you’re thinking of someone besides yourself? Don’t worry, she thinks your sleeping over at Ned’s tonight because me, being the cool parent that I am, brought you here, instead of dropping you off at home last night and saved you from the verbal ass chewing of the century.”

Guilt swelled in Peter’s gut, eclipsing any nausea that had been lingering, and he dropped his eyes to the floor in shame.

“Seriously, Peter, what were you thinking?” Tony demanded and Peter could hear the exasperation and fatigue in his voice and his guilt increased ten fold.

If Peter was being honest with himself, he wasn't thinking. Not entirely, at least. He just wanted one night, one night, where he could be a normal teenager. Who went to parties and let loose and danced and didn’t have to worry about saving the city from weird thugs with Avenger’s masks and high tech weapons. Who didn’t have to worry about keeping up with homework and studying on top of late night patrols and keeping up a secret identity from his aunt who worked two jobs to supplement the lost income because her husband died in a robbery that Peter was too angry and bitter to stop. He wanted to fit in, to be cool and seen by the most beautiful girl in entire school.

He just wanted to be normal.

It all sounded so stupid, now that he thought it out.

Well.

“I just wanted to fit in.” Peter said softly, “The kids at school, they don’t see me, you know? I know it’s stupid, but I just wanted to know what it was like. To be cool. To be—“

“—normal.” Tony finished for him, voice unusually gentle and Peter glanced up at him hesitantly, nodding.

“Yeah.”

Tony sighed, rubbing his hand down his face, taking a seat next to Peter on the bed, “Kid, I get it. Maybe not the whole hero thing at fifteen, but when I was fifteen, I was in college, with kids that were older and cooler and I just wanted to fit in. But Pete,” Tony said softly, “drinking is never the answer.

For anything. Trust me kid, alcohol won’t solve any of your problems, they only create more problems. And they can lead to things that you’re not ready for.”

Tony glanced away from him, “Take it from someone who knows, it takes you down a path you’ll have a hell of a time getting off of. I know I have a hard time showing it, but kid…you mean a lot to me and I never want to get another phone call like the one I got last night, you hear me? I’m not kidding. If I ever hear about you doing something stupid that involves the suit, I’ll take it away from you and you won’t get it back.”

Peter’s eyes widened and he opened his mouth to protest, but Tony shook his head, “No, I mean it. If you want to make it public that you’re Spiderman, you’ll do it when you’re older and on your own terms. It’s not going to be because you made a stupid choice when you were drunk and you exposed yourself to the entire world. This is for your safety as much as it is for mine and everyone else you care about.”

Peter sighed, “I understand. And I promise it won’t happen again. Especially if this is how I feel as a result.”

Tony chuckled, ruffling Peter’s hair, “Hangover’s are a bitch, kid, if that’s not enough to make you want to wait to drink until you’re older, I don’t know what will.”

Tony stood up, “Alright, I’m gonna go order breakfast—what are you doing?”

Peter, who thought that the lecture was over and it was safe to go back to bed, propped himself up on his elbow, “Um, going back to bed? I wasn’t kidding, I really don’t feel good and I’m tired—“

“Oh no no no,” Tony tutted in disapproval, backing his way out of Peter’s room, “You’ve got a suit with your puke all over it, waiting to be cleaned in the lab and then you have homework to do and web fluid to make—“

“But—“ Peter looked longingly at the California king with it’s soft sheets and fluffy pillows and his body physically ached at the thought of leaving it.

“Or I can always call your aunt and tell her what really happened last night—“

“Coming!”

Tony smirked.

Iron Dad indeed.

~~~~~~~

Thank you guys for reading! I hope you enjoyed it and I’m excited to hear your feedback! Suggestions and requests are much appreciated! (: 

@jadepc @autumnhunter1 @randommemewithadream @rebbie444 @abaikgirl @fantabulousshipperfromcamelot @afittingdistraction @letsallsleepoverwork @pepperr-pottss @help-i-need-a-cool-username @onedaysomedaytoday @ileavechaosinmywake @bloop-da-loop @rachhhhhl @anniejglee @hiccup-is-left-handed @spid3rboy @bonza-bear @claraangi

[rainbowtransform]

The Means to An End

First Part here, or read it on AO3

It’s years down the line before Shuri finally cracks the code in Tony’s game. She’d locked away the phone and didn’t even glance at it until her children pulled it out of its hiding spot and show it to her.

“We can’t crack it,” they told her, staring. Her fingers shake, and she opens the familiar game. The Black Panther comes on screen and it meows like a kitten. Shuri’s eyes fill with tears and she sinks down, cradling the game.

Her children go to find their father.

KuKhanya, May, and Ubomi come running in with Peter. He stares at her, glances at the game and tells their children to go to their rooms. “Umama is just thinking  of someone we used to know. Go.”

“Listen to your father,” Shuri chokes out, and they turn, fleeing. Peter sits next to her, doesn’t glance over, and says, quietly “I still miss him.”

“I know.”

“It feels like he’s still here.”

“Yeah.”

“Did he make that?”

“I got it when I was sixteen. He’d given it to me. Told T’Challa that I would crack it when I’m older. When he died, I…” She swallowed.

“You stowed it away.”

“Yeah.”

“You know Karen?”

“The first suit Tony’d given you?”

“Yeah. You know why I asked you to make me a completely new one and not upgrade my old one?”

“Because you’re a boy.”

“Excuse you,” he shot back in a snooty white voice. “I’m a man.”

Shuri giggles.

“No. It’s because the suit’s the first thing Tony gave me. It… reminds me of him.”

The game feels cold under Shuri’s hands. “I’m suppose to crack it,” she whispers. Peter nods, and offers his own hand. “If you’re going to try, I’m not going to stop you,” he tells her. “But I’m not going to let it mess up your sleep schedule.”

Shuri’s lips curl into a smile. “You sound like my brother,” she says.

“Considering we haven’t heard from him in a few weeks, that’s an improvement.”

“He’s taken a vacation.”

“Yeah, from everything.”

“He deserves it.”

“Always.”

Shuri shrieks, throwing the game away from her. “This is impossible!” She screams. The children are in school, and Peter sighs. “NADĚJE, monitor Shuri’s blood pressure.”

“Monitoring Creator’s states.”

“Ha, ha,” Shuri scowls. “NADĚJE, cancel order.”

“Order canceled.”

“Still haven’t figured out how to get them human-like?”

“Nope.”

“You’ll figure it out.”

“Do you know?” Shuri asked, jabbing a finger at him from behind, eyes locked on the code streaming steadily from the computer screen.

“It’s Tony’s secret.”

“He took it to the grave,” Shuri smiles grimly. “I would have loved to know it.”

“NADĚJE, could you order some pizza?”

“From where, Creator’s Second?”

“I don’t know, surprise me?”

“I am not programmed for that.”

Peter sighs. Shuri bangs her fist against the computer’s desk. “Hey,” Peter says grabbing it gently. “We’re not hurting the computer; it hasn’t done anything.”

“This is one of the reasons I hate Tony. But the code is beautiful and complex, and it seems just like… something I’ve seen before.”

“Why don’t we try it, together?” Peter suggests.

“I’m smarter than you, Peter.”

“I know, Shuri. But maybe you need a fresh set of eyes. You’ve been working on this as a sixteen-year-old, and,” he checks his watch. “Now it’s been six days, four hours, thirteen minutes, twenty-six seconds. Twenty-seven seconds. Twenty-eight. Twenty-nine. Thirty. Thirty-o”

“I get it!” She says yanking her hands back.

“You’re also running on six hours of sleep, spread across those six days. An hour a day, Shuri. An hour.”

“It isn’t my fault,” she mumbles. “My mind runs through eighty-thousand scenarios per minute.”

“Yes, which is why I want to help.” Peter leans over, pressing his lips gently on Shuri’s. “Let me help you?”

She pushes him away. “Fine, you puppy-dog boy.”

It takes them three months to finally crack the code, and they both are wide-eyed, slack-jawed as they stare at the hologram.

“Hey, Shuri,” Tony Stark says. He’s in his lab, eyes bright and he smiles. “This is going to be pretty weird, huh? But, listen, do you have Peter there? You do remember Peter right?”

The two adults grip each other’s arms. “Ah, you guys are basically inseparable. I’m even sure that you guys are going to get married, too. Maybe have a couple kids. Four, I’d guess. This is for everyone I’d left behind, basically. I’m not going to lie to you guys. I don’t expect to win this fight. I’ve… got something Thanos really wants. Something he’s been craving. But he’ll have to kill me before I reveal anything to him.”

“I’m going to go with Rhodey, because he’s my best friend. Rhodey’s been with me through thick and thin, wouldn’t take my shit or my money. ‘Charity,’ he’d called it. But… he’d invited me to his room, put up with DUM-E for years. I really hope his kids know what a good father he’s going to be.”

(Rhodey’s been dead for three years.)

“Pepper… she’s the love of my life. She couldn’t take me being a hero, and honestly? I never expected her to. She’s different. Doesn’t take my shit, keeps my mind on track, has 12% of my company,” Tony’s smile is thin. “She’s the best thing anyone could ask for. Happy’s being intertwined with her because he’s the best boxing buddy-slash-driver I could ever ask for. He’s the best person to talk to.”

(Both Pepper and Happy left the country. Last Peter and Shuri heard of them, they remet up and had been tanning by the beach together drinking and swapping stories of other places they’d been since the kids took over the company and they’d left.)

“The Avengers,” here Tony’s face darkens just slightly. “They’re following Roger’s lead. I don’t know what they’re doing now. Hopefully some sense has been knocked into them. Scott’s got a daughter, and Clint’s got a whole fucking family. They’ll grow soon.”

(They’re still together. The only difference is that there’s no one to be their scapegoat anymore. It’s rather sad.)

“The New Avengers are the my pride and joy, honestly. They’re the best team anyone can ask for, and they act like a family. They’re teens, but their better together than apart. I’m proud of them, and I hope they know this.”

(They do, they really do. Shuri swallows, hard, and Peter’s arm tightens.)

“Peter’s my first ‘mission’ so to say. Clint’s not the only one to recruit Avengers. I know Peter, and he’s going to do things with or without someone’s permission. I just hope he knows the sacrifices, and how hard it is. Especially if you’re dating a civilian. Pretty sure Shuri’s okay with that, though,” Tony smiled bitterly. “Just know… I’m always going to be proud of you, kid. Anything you do. Except the things I did, and the things I wouldn’t do.”

“Shuri…” Tony huffed. “You’ve either turned forty-seven, which is when the code gets easier, or you’d finally asked for help.” He raises an eyebrow. “What took you so long? The game’s designed to know if you’re working with someone else, and it’s better to figure out… you know. A place. How’s Vision, by the way? The Bots? FRIDAY?”

(Vision disappeared, years ago. Peter heard a rumor, once, about a man with a stone in his forehead who was helping others. When asked, he’d reply “It’s what my grandfather would want,” and turn away. They haven’t heard from FRIDAY since she’d broken the news that Tony was dead, and the bots are still shut down. They’re clean, spick-span even though they aren’t ‘alive’ anymore.)

“Vision’s gone, if I’m really thinking ahead. He’s… upset, probably. Angry, scared. Hopefully he’s going to a therapist. If FRIDAY’s shut down, you just got to rewire her to accept you as her new boss; she’d understand. The bots are different, and you can’t trick them into coming back online. The only ones who can do that is JARVIS. I didn’t have enough time to implement it. She’s learning, and she’ll continue learning.”

“That’s probably it. Um. Oh! Kit-Cat said you liked this one video of me dancing. Welp, here’s a side-by-side of me as sixteen, twenty-five, thirty, and thirty-five doing it. Oh… tell T’Challa that it didn’t matter he’d kept the Exvengers. It was better that they were in Wakanada rather than them loose on the world.”  Tony sighs. “If I survive this, I’m thinking maybe, maybe, I’ll consider going on that date with you.”

And Shuri understands. After Tony died, T’Challa grew distant for a time before coming back. He didn’t marry, despite the councils’ insistence that he “must have a wife, or husband,” and T’Challa had laughed with Shuri.

“They can’t make me,” he tells her. “I can’t, Shuri. For right now, I can’t.” And his eyes were distant, in a place Shuri couldn’t follow.

“Who broke your heart, brother?” Shuri had asked. “Who held your heart tight in their grip, and hurt it?”

“Someone who is longer with us,” T’Challa told her. (And for all her genius, she didn’t ask for help for Tony’s game, and didn’t figure out it was him that T’Challa gave his heart to.)

Shuri and Peter replay the message twenty times over. So much that KuKhanya had come downstairs, and blinked at the sight of her parents watching a strange man. “I’ve seen him,” she said. “On TV. They said he was smart.”

“Not smarter than me,” Shuri jokes.

KuKhanya shrugs. “I don’t know, Umama, he seems smarter than Father.”

Peter mock-gasped and Shuri burst into a round of giggles.

The next time T’Challa visited, Shuri showed him the video. He swallowed, reached out and brushed through the hologram.

“Why didn’t you tell me, before?”

“He must’ve made some last-minute additions to it before he’d died. See? The code of… dancing is decades old, but the one where he’s talking? That’s the day before he died. See? See the difference in color of the code?”

“Yes.”

There’s silence, and then Shuri asks. “Why didn’t you tell me about you and him?”

T’Challa’s smile is bitter, small, and he replies with: “There was no point, sister. Remembering and loving the dead like family is different from a lovers’ death. It’s more painful.”

“Especially since you’re… the Black Panther?”

“Yes, Shuri. Especially since that.”

When they turn and exit the lab, they go to the children sitting around eating dinner. Peter has a Kiss the Cook, He’s Spider-Man apron on and is serving chicken parasame around the table. “Uncle T’Challa!” They all shriek, and he smiles.

“Eat,” Shuri tells them, giving them the mother-eye. KuKhanya sighs, and Shuri looks at her.

“You are the Heir to Wakanda,” she tells her daughter. “You have to do things you don’t like, KuKhanya.”

KuKhanya pokes at her food. “I don’t want it,” she mumbles. “Not if there’s all these rules and things to go with it. Especially making a heir?” She scowls. “Why can’t Ubomi or May do it?”

“If you don’t marry, that’s okay. But that means making a heir falls onto one of your siblings’ shoulder. They’re still young, aren’t they?”

“May’s three years younger, and Ubomi’s a year younger than May.”

“Don’t talk back to your mother,” Peter says from the kitchen.

“Daaaaaaaaaaaaaad,” she whines playfully.

After dinner, T’Challa asks if the children wish to hear a story. They are excited, elated, because ‘Uncle T’Challa’s stories are the best! Better than Dad’s!’

“There was once a boy, young and full of life. But life was cruel to the boy, and gave him a bad father and a neglectful mother. But, mercy was kind, and gave the boy a nice frien-”

“What’s his name?”

“His name?” T’Challa smiles. “It’s Tony.”

No one notices a spark fizzing from the game they’d left on. No one sees something traveling through wires and electrical places. There’s something in the lab, but no one sees it.

DUM-E, U, and ButterFingers come online, slowly, sensing something unfamiliar yet fatherly. FRIDAY overrides NADĚJE and with a whispery, fluttery, little-girl-meeting-her-father, whispers:

“Boss?”

[witchymarvelspacecase]

Spread Your Wings - Pt. 5: The Words

Summary: Reader is a HYDRA experiment (like the Maximoffs, but not voluntary) who grows wings (like Angel from X-Men). She escapes (escape covered in Prologue) and is now trying to rescue and prevent further kidnappings and experiments.

Word Count: 1987

Warnings: Swearing, mentions of phobias

A/N: Here it is. A very, very large THANK YOU to both @imhereforbvcky, and @writingwithadinosaur, for their general wonderfulness and amazing writing skills! I have tagged everyone who liked/reblogged/commented on the prologue, if you would like to be tagged, or untagged, just let me know! There’s a few POV changes here FYI

Spread Your Wings Masterlist

Updated: 9/6/18

“Barton” turned out to be Clint Barton, or Hawkeye. A sarcastic archer, who you decided quite quickly may be your new best friend.

You met him when Bruce Banner arrived, and he Tony and Wanda took you down to the lab to start running scans on your head. Clint came in just as Bruce attached the last electrode to your head.

“I see you guys finally talked someone into getting your cerebral hair extensions,” he drawled as he passed behind Tony, and clapped Bruce on the shoulder.

Wanda chuckled, as did you. Tony rolled his eyes, but Bruce smiled good-naturedly, and introduced Clint to you before he explained what all the wires and sensors would be doing for the test.

“Basically they’re gonna fry your brain, kid,” Clint said from his position leaning back against a table with his arms crossed, legs crossed at the ankle.

“That’s assuming I have one left at all,” you replied. Clint laughed.

“Why are you even in here, Legolas? Don’t you have a secret family in the country to bother?” You cocked your head at Tony’s question; you knew there must have been a story there, you’d have to ask about it later.

“Natasha called me, and asked me to come help out with the kid you found. As for me being in the lab, I just wanna bug you, Tony.”

“Clint,” Wanda interjected as Tony opened his mouth to retort, “it may be best if you wait to bother Tony until he’s not messing with Y/N’s brain. Go find Nat, she’ll be with Tomas.”

Tony shot her an indignant look, Clint chuckled and made to leave, but stopped at your side briefly.

“Whenever these guys let you loose, we should talk; I know all the gossip,” he said with a wink as he left. You smirked and shook your head very slightly, careful not to dislodge any of the wires resting on your skin.

…

“Well, it looks like we shouldn't remove the chip at the moment. I’m not saying it’s not possible, but we don’t have the right equipment for that here,” Bruce said after studying the test results. Your shoulders sagged a little; you hadn’t wanted to get your hopes up, but a part of you had really hoped the chip could be gone.

“But, I think I know what’s wrong with it,” Tony said from across the lab. He was looking at a large screen suspended from the ceiling that appeared to have detailed schematics on it. “We should be able to fix it up in the meantime. Might even make a few upgrades.”

“So long as they’re not like the HYDRA ‘upgrades’, that sounds good.”

“Nothing like those,” Tony said, coming over to stand in front of you, “anything happens that you’re not comfortable with, we’ll stop. You just gotta tell us.” He reached out a hand and rested in on your shoulder. You looked at him, Bruce, and then at Wanda, who was still in the room. Wanda gave you a small smile and a nod. Everyone in the room understood your apprehension; your fear. You met Tony’s eyes again, and nodded.

“We’ll get on the upgrades then. Give us a day or two, and don’t use your chip until we upgrade,” Bruce said as he and Tony set to removing the sensors from your head.

“Should be an easy promise to keep.” You smiled a little and Wanda led you out of the lab.

…

Later that evening, you were on the roof of the building. It wasn’t particularly high off the ground, but it was enough. Enough that when you spread your wings to their fullest extent, and felt the breeze brush over your feathers, you could breathe a sigh of relief. Though your back, and still healing wing ached, open air would always make you feel better, safer. Not that bundling up with a million blankets next to a fireplace wasn’t nice too, but at your worst moments, you sought places high up, off the ground and open to the elements; something easy to launch off. It was a great source of comfort for you, but you knew that it was the opposite for most people. Especially, it seemed, Bucky.

Bucky had come to the roof looking for you. In general, he tried to avoid the roof of anything over two stories. Bucky had enough traumatic memories associated with falling, that heights and edges were among his least favorite things. But seeing you standing there, backlit by the setting sun, he almost forgot his fear. Almost; he still didn’t approach the edge.

“Hey, I’ve been looking for ya,” he called, causing you to turn around.

“Sorry, I needed the height.”

“Nothin’ to apologize for, Doll. But would ya’ mind stepping away from the edge a little?” You complied, but tilted your head in question; not only at his request for you to step back, but also at his use of a nickname. You didn’t mind, quite the opposite actually, you just hadn’t expected it.

“I, uh, I don’t like heights much,” Bucky explained, rubbing the back of his neck, looking uncomfortable. Fear you could understand, even if this particular fear was entirely foreign to you. You nodded and came closer to him, pulling your wings tighter to your body.

“It’s called Basophobia, the fear of falling. Fear of heights is Acrophobia. They’re different things, but sorta related I guess. I have Merinthophobia,” you paused at Bucky’s confused expression, “it’s the fear of being restrained, or tied up. I guess I’m Claustrophobic too, but I think that’s more cause if I’m in a space that I can’t spread my wings out, it sort of hurts. Aaaaand I’m completely babbling, aren’t I? Sorry.” You began mentally berating yourself. Nobody gave a shit what their phobias were called, let alone what yours were. You didn’t really talk to people much, but for some reason, Bucky made you want to talk.

Bucky chuckled lightly.

“Don’t have to apologize,” he said. There was a small smile on his face as he said it, but you still felt the need to apologize again; the awkwardness had diminished but for some reason you were still hyper-aware of every single thing you did when Bucky was present. Everything that he did too.

At that moment he had closed most of the distance between the two of you. He was looking at your wings. The setting sun was filtering through the filaments of your primaries, making them look especially soft. Buck seemed transfixed, barely stopping himself as he reached put his right hand to touch the feathers.

“Shit, sorry! I didn’t even ask,” Bucky said, pulling his arm back quickly and muttering something that sounded like “way to go, ya jerk”, under his breath.

You laughed quietly before saying, “it’s okay to touch them; I don’t mind.”

Without thinking, you reached out, grabbed his right wrist and brought his hand back up to your left wing.

He looked to you, still unsure, but you smiled and nodded slightly in encouragement. Ever since leaving HYDRA, you’d been sensitive to touch; you sought it out, craved it almost, especially when it came to your wings. The scientists at HYDRA had only ever touched your wings in a rough, cold manner. After escaping, having people touch your wings was a reminder that you weren’t in that place anymore; that you were free. You took great comfort from other people’s gentle touches.

Bucky seemed awestruck. He hadn’t taken any comfort in touch when he’d first escaped HYDRA; he had even flinched away from Steve. He could enjoy physical contact after a while, but he was shocked at you. Not only had you not stopped Tomas or him from touching your wings, which Bucky knew would have been the focus of most of HYDRA’s experiments (much like his arm had been), but you’d welcomed it.

He spread his fingers, lightly brushing them over the top arch of your wings and down the feathers.

“They’re so soft,” Bucky brought his face closer to your wings, looking at the feathers. He was just a breath away from you, you could feel the warmth from his skin just as he could feel the warmth of your wings.  He hadn’t noticed how close he’d gotten to you. The moment he did, he went to move away. However, at that same moment, the door to the roof banged open, starling both of you. Then Bucky was startled again.

Bucky who had been standing with his back to the door, had quickly turned his body to face it, and brought his right arm behind him to move your body entirely behind his, placing himself between the door and you. But your instant reaction had been to wrap your wings around the both of you, just as you’d done to shield Tomas, but now it was Bucky. Bucky, who was so used to being the one to put himself in the line of fire to protect other people. Whether it was out of a twisted self-hatred, or the knowledge that he was physically able to handle more damage than most people didn’t matter, he did it. Except, you had done it instead. The only other person who had put themselves in the line of fire for him was Steve. But while Steve did it because of years of friendship, you’d put yourself on the line for him after only having known him for a few days; it threw Bucky for a loop.

When you realized that the person coming out the door was not a threat, you retracted your wings quickly and completely, hiding them from sight, but you didn’t step away from Bucky. You were almost pressed to his back, but his arm had wound its way around your side to hold you in place as you’d wrapped your wings around the both of you; he hadn’t released you yet.

“Steve? What’s got ya slammin’ doors all of a sudden? I know your ma raised you better than that,” Bucky teased a little stiffly. He held his body rigid, his arm tightening around you.

“You gotta come to the conference room. Tomas remembered something, but we can’t make heads or tails of it. We’re hoping Y/N can.”

“What’s the rush?” you asked gently, not wanting to startle Bucky, who was still tense.

“He said it was something the HYDRA soldiers had said after their ‘angel’ comment.”

“Then let’s hear it,” you said, resting your hand on Bucky’s forearm, just enough to remind him that he was still holding you. He moved his arm slowly, glancing over his shoulder at you as he did. You gave him a half-smile as you walked around him towards Steve, and you gave his arm a light squeeze as you passed. Bucky smiled a little as he followed you and Steve down the stairs to the conference room.

That was where everything went to shit.

You sat in the chair closest to the door, Bucky on your right, Natasha on your left, and Tomas repeated the words he’d overheard the soldiers saying. He struggled a little since the words were not in his native Portuguese, but in Russian. But it didn’t matter because the words still had their desired effect.

“желание, рушиться, восемнадцать, сумерки, кулер, девятнадцать, злокачественный, отъезд, ноль, двигатель” (desire, crumble, eighteen, twilight, cooler, nineteen, malignant, departure, zero, engine)

You barely even heard the third word. Your ears were filled with a ringing sound and your vision was narrowing and unfocused. But the moment the last word was spoken, the damage had been done. It was only made worse by Tony speaking up when he noticed the change in your demeanor.

“Angel?” he asked, using the name you hated. He meant it as a harmless nickname, but for you, it was more.

“готов к полету,” you responded. (ready to fly).

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