#sam the gargoyle

[citychronicles]

So I've had a bit of lack of motivation for a while but I'm finally getting back into things and the next story should be out soon. In the meantime have some preview of art

[crystiesong]

POV : You found out your best friend is secretly just a little creature of a guy

[eightcure]

Some Danny phantom sketches for the void

[gargoylespodcast]

Greg Weisman discusses themes of prejudice and the descendants of the Greek gods and monsters while Jamie Thomason talks about casting and directing this episode as we dive into this backdoor pilot for a potential spinoff. Greg Weisman also discusses, in depth, what that spinoff would have entailed, characters that would have participated – including one very familiar to us.

We are also joined by producer, writer, and author, Samuel Garza Bernstein who talks about the life and career of Hollywood icon, Roddy McDowall (who voiced Proteus in this episode)… and the biography that he’s writing about him. We all discuss what a great actor McDowall was in addition to what a great one-shot villain Proteus was and what could have been moving forward with the character.

Check out Bernstein’s biography about Joan Crawford: Starring Joan Crawford: The Films, the Fantasy, and the Modern Relevance of a Silver Screen Icon And pre-order his biography about Cesar Romano: Cesar Romero: The Joker Is Wild

Available on Apple Podcasts, Amazon Audible, Spotify, and your podcatcher of choice! And join us on Patreon for the Exclusive Video Edition! 

Follow us on Twitter at: @FromEyrie Follow us on Bluesky at: @GargoylesPodcast Follow us on Instagram at: gargoylesvoices Visit Jennifer L. Anderson’s online stores at: Angel Wings and Demon Tails Visit Samuel Garza Bernstein’s Author Page on Amazon! Visit Greg Weisman at: Ask Greg Everything you ever wanted to know about Gargoyles at: GargWiki

[fanart-for-life-bun]

Care for a flight? Happy birth Sam @suau-raised-by-corrupted-gems @starry-eyed-samantha

And happy creation day for my gargoyle steeb au too

Also below the doddles I weren't able to send beforehand

And lastly the silly interaction between characters :3

I'm gonna make this joke canon at some point bc it's too funny

Lil q won't know peace >:D

[romancemedia]

I always enjoy MsMojo videos, but this one takes the cake! This video highlights the top 20 best love triangles in Cartoon History and a lot of my personal favourites made the list!

Miss Martian, Superboy and Lagoon Boy - 7:51

Duncan, Courtney and Gwen - 15:25

Danny Fenton, Sam Manson and Valerie Gray - 14:00

Goliath, Elisa and Demona - 2:14

Donatello, April O'Neil and Casey Jones - 1:11

Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy and Kite Man - 11:31

Beast Boy, Raven and Terra - 10:32

Arnold Shortman, Helga Pataki and Lila Sawyer - 8:56

Korra, Mako and Asami - 20:22

Marinette Dupin-Cheng, Adrien Agreste and Luka Couffaine - 19:16

Star Butterfly, Marco Diaz and Jackie Lynn Thomas - 21:50

Rose Quartz, Greg Universe and Pearl - 23:07

[mouser26]

Sam and Charlie are suited up to wish everyone a super New Year!

[moss-covered-thoughts]

Easy fuckin peasy I love women

favorite character from any media BUT it has to be a woman. in the tags now go (pls talk to me about your favorite fictional women pls pls pls pls)

[godaweful]

the fact that no one questioned erika having "sam reich sux" shaved into their head a few episodes earlier really speaks to their character. we all assumed they'd just do this for the hell of it. truly bisexual chaos gargoyle of all time.

[azulhood]

Danny was tired, like 'I feel it in my bones and soul' tired. And he didn't want sleep at home because there's only so many nights, he could spend lying awake making sure his heart was beating in case his parents checked on him.

Currently he was flying aimlessly not really taking in his surroundings, but he could neither sleep while flying or fly forever. Normally he'd sleep over at Sam or Tucker's, but the Mansons had made it clear that he wasn't welcome at their house anymore and Tucker was grounded. Both would sneak him in if he asked, but he didn't want them to get in trouble for him. Which leads him to decide between his two choices, sleeping in a graveyard, or sleeping in a forest.

The graveyard was a little crowded with all the ghosts that called it home but he could probably find a quiet spot to sleep. The forest had a great view of the stars but was filled with traps from both his parents and the GIW after tracking his ecto-signature. Both options weren't appealing, but he wasn't about to chance sleeping on the roof of his house again. There were too many ghost detecting guns attached to it now. Danny sighed, graveyard it was, at least the ecto from all the shades/ghosts would hide him well enough. Decision made, now all he had to do was make his way over there. But first, where the heck was he? Danny looked around at the unfamiliar grey sky and gargoyles littered around and realized he had no clue where he was. He must have flown too far away from Amity without noticing...Again. It was really becoming a bad habit. Danny stared down at the city's inhabitants that were going home or heading to nightshifts or whatever and dreaded the long flight back to his town. And maybe it was ghost instinct, or maybe it was just his exhaustion. But his brain suggested 'What if I just possess someone?' And to him that seemed like a perfectly logical train of thought. He wouldn't control their body or anything, just sleep in their skin...That did not make it sound better at all. Before he could think twice, someone left a general store, arms filled with stuff and somehow projecting an aura of safety. The two thoughts of 'They look comfy' and 'screw it' clashed together in his head as he made the very stupid decision of performing a swan drive right into the someone. "WHAT THE-" "Don't worry, I'll be gone by morning I just need to sleep" Danny cut off the persons freakout-he should really get their name at some point- he would have explained more but the sleep gods had already done their job. This left one very confused, scared, and freaked out Batkid.

[citychronicles]

'Tinsel Troubles'

The snow was slowly fluttering down to the ground and Sam stared through the window at it in wonder. It was amazing to be able to see the snow fall without feeling the bitterness of the cold. He would be able to stretch his wings out and not have them cramped up all season.

Turning away from the window, Sam looked at his two friends who were at the bottom of a pine tree that Willa had brought indoors. Aster was tied up in a long, thick, shiny fluffy string while Alex was attempting to untangle her but given the younger teen was also attempting to reach a box full of shiny objects, it wasn't going anywhere.

"Why are you trying to decorate a pine tree?" the young gargoyle questioned. The two girls looked over at him, previously engrossed with their predicament. 

"We're helping Willa decorate for Christmas? We'll trying to anyway, if Aster would let me get her out of this tinsel" Alex commented before glancing over at the younger teen.

Aster rolled her eyes in annoyance. "It's going to take forever to untangle me from this tinsel so we might as well start decorating the tree."

"We need the tinsel to decorate so if you could just let me get it off" Alex barked back.

As the two girls began to argue again, Sam couldn't help but sigh. But something Alex had said came to the forefront of his mind.

"What is 'Christmas'?"

Aster and Alex ceased their arguing and stared at the young gargoyle with looks of surprise.

"You… you don't know what Christmas is?" Aster questioned, looking much more surprised than Alex.

Sam tilted his head in confusion. "Should I know what it is? I've heard people mention it in passing but I don't know what it is or why people are so excited to celebrate it"

After a moment of silence, Aster managed to get herself out of her tinsel trap and rushed over to Sam with her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Oh we're going to teach you everything wonderful about Christmas. It's amazing. There's snowmen, christmas carols, presents-"

"Let's calm down a little shall we," Alex cut in, stopping Aster's rambles before they got too far, "How about we start at the beginning, ease him into it"

Aster beamed at Alex then beamed at Sam who felt slightly worried. The two girls guided Sam over to the steps leading out the room and sat him down while they sat in front of him.

"So…" Aster began. "Christmas is a tradition started back way long ago but the more modern version started because of this guy called Jesus-"

"Who may or may not have actually existed." Alex added on.

"-was born a few thousand years ago and people celebrated his birth. Eventually that evolved over the years and the more modern version is people celebrating the winter season and giving each other gifts and enjoying each other's company. It's called a lot of things in a lot of places but here we call it Christmas."

"Back in my day, we used to call it Yule or Winter's Blessing"

All three teens jumped in surprise when Willa spoke up, looking over to where the older wizard was perched in her usual chair in the corner, sipping a cup of tea and reading a book.

"It's a lovely holiday but overrated in my opinion. Too much yapping about presents and spoilt kids whining about not getting what they want." Willa continued, taking a sip of her tea. She gave Sam a warm glance and a smile "I'm surprised you never celebrated Winter's blessing. Did you or Nau never have time for it?"

Sam's heart deflated slightly at the mention of his brother's name but he quickly shook it off. "I don't remember ever doing anything. Whenever winter came we just tried our best to get through it. Also other… things got in the way of probably celebrating it. Is it something I should start being interested in?"

Aster put an arm around him and smiled enthusiastically. "Yes. Like I said, Christmas is amazing. Oh something I forgot to mention is Santa, he's a big part of Christmas nowadays. He's the one that delivers presents to families all around the world. And you gotta make sure you've been good otherwise you'll get coal instead."

A scoff escaped Alex as she rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "Don't tell me you still believe in Santa. Everyone knows he's just a fairy tale to tell little kids"

The younger teen stood up, faking offence. "Not real? Of course he's real. He brings the spirit of Christmas joy and also presents"

"No-one's ever seen him so he doesn't exists" Alex argued.

"But if no-one's ever seen him then that means he could be real" Aster rebutted.

As the two girls began to argue again, Sam and Willa let out sighs of defeat. The older wizard went back to her book while Sam stared out the window at the glistening world outside. It seemed the snow had finally stopped falling and now the courtyard outside was covered in a white wonderland. An idea quickly presented itself to Sam.

"Hey. How about we go outside? I've never gotten to go outside and play in the snow before and maybe you could teach me some 'Christmas tradition' that I should know." he proposed, hoping that would bring the two younger teens out of their squabble. Alex and Aster looked at each other with a slight glare before wide smiles plastered their faces and they descended upon Sam, dragging him outside and into the frosty outdoors. What had he just gotten himself into? You can find the rest of the story here :

[crystiesong]

And now we're finally onto the first AU scene of Frozen Moments. I love this AU, it might be my favourite but there are some others that could take that title.

[clockwayswrites]

Dead on MAYn '25 Day 1: Jason meets Danny as a ghost.

cw: temporary character death, discussions of death

Danny didn’t know why any of them thought it would work. The first time had been a one in a million chance. He had lived. The one. This time, it was another of the other nine hundred ninety-nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine possibilities.

He had died.

At least he had a grave this time.

Sure, it was a little surreal to be standing on the edge of it and watching the casket containing his dead body be lowered down, the sounds of sobbing friends and family around him, but he had a grave.

It was…. nice.

The fact that he didn’t really feel strongly about being dead bothered Danny a little, but that’s just the way it was. Maybe it was a ghost thing? Being half dead hadn’t bothered him too much either. It’s just… the way things were. Sure it sucked, and there were things he missed about being alive, but what could he do about it?

He had died.

The end.

Here lies Danny Fenton.

Beloved son, brother, and friend.

“No—no! Don’t put him in the ground, he’s not… he’s not dead! He’s just, he’s just… you’ll see. He’ll be back and—”

“Sam! Shut the fuck up!” Tucker snapped. He sounded angry in a way that Danny had never heard him before. “He’s dead! Jesus fucking Christ, he’s dead… and you killed him. He listened to you and now he’s dead! Why did we ever…”

Jazz wrapped her arm around his shoulders, pulling him close. Always the savior. “Hey, Tucker, it’s okay, come stand by us.”

But who saved her? She looked so pale all in black, like she was dead herself. Her red hair flames. Her eyes cold and empty.

“He’s not! He’s not…” Sam’s sobs turned muffled, drifted away.

Her parents were probably taking her away from the funeral, or at least towards the back of the surprisingly large crowd. Sam’s parents never did like him; he guessed that didn’t change even in death. Or maybe they just didn’t want Sam to make a scene.

Or maybe they were trying to keep her safe.

She had killed him, after all.

A little part of Danny wanted to go after her, to apologize for something that he hadn’t even done. He hadn’t tried to die. It just happened: nine hundred ninety-nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine in a million. Why had that risk ever been worth it?

Was it love?

He had loved her once, he knew, in that reckless, fleeting way that only teenagers could love. Had she loved him back? Had she been unable to live without him? Had the risk been worth it?

Tucker was pressed against Jazz, their heads bowed together. Mom stood next to them, looking so small. Dad loomed, a hunched gargoyle of grief.

No.

No, the risk was never worth it.

What had she been thinking?

What had he?

“Amity Park gathers today to morn one of their own, taken too soon away from us,” Mr. Lancer started from where he stood behind the gravestone and next to the oversize photo of the Danny who once was.

Alive.

Danny slid into his gave, settled into the soft, damp earth, and closed his eyes.

-

For a time, Danny stayed in Amity Park—added another ghost to the slogan of ‘most haunted town in America’. It was hard. It was like without him, things fell apart. He’d never thought of himself as important before, but it was like he was some sort of linchpin.

At first, Danny was with his family a lot. It was home, after all. It was home with his stuff in his room that his parents wouldn’t go into and that Jazz spent too long in. Danny sat by her a lot as she held his NASA teddy bear tightly and told it about her day.

He stayed away when Jazz was with their parents. They only argued. About him. About his death. About their parents obsession to try and bring him back or talk to his ghost. Always about ghosts.

When his family argued, he visited Tucker. Tucker was different too. That laughing, vibrant guy that was Danny’s best friend was gone. This Tucker was angry and withdrawn. But Danny had to suppose that was fair. Tucker didn’t remember everything else—the before. No one but Sam did. Well, and the ghosts. All Tucker knew is that Sam had convinced Danny to walk right into his death for no reason.

It also didn’t help that a few weeks after his death, Tucker’s family started packing to move. His parents got jobs in another city. Another city in another state. It was better to be away from Amity Park and all the craziness, they had explained to Tucker. Tucker had then explained it to Danny’s grave while Danny sat silently and invisibly on the gravestone. Tucker was leaving—going to where Danny couldn’t follow.

Sam was gone too. Sent some where so that she could ‘get better’.

Or be less embarrassing to her family.

Danny didn’t think too much about it. In part, because he couldn't. The longer that he was dead, the more it was like his ties to life were slipping through his grasp. He felt sad about Sam—sad and angry and confused—but it was like a stray thought that sometimes came to his attention. Mostly he felt… apathetic.

Once Tucker moved way, Danny stopped thinking about his friend too. Even Jazz and his parents stopped holding his attention as their fighting petered out. Jazz had threatened to never speak to them again if they perused trying to contact Danny’s spirit. The risk of loosing both their children proved too much their parents. Last Danny had listened to Mom and Dad talking, they were even discussing going into green energy research. That would be good.

It also meant that Danny had to leave while the portal was still hooked up. It was troublingly easy to kiss Jazz’s forehead one last time. To brush his mother’s cheek. To rest a hand on his father’s shoulder. To say goodbye.

To leave.

The swirling green of the zone felt like coming home.

-

“Phantom, must you?” Clockwork asked wearily.

“Yes, I must,” Phantom answered with as prim an accent as he could manage. He was draped over a gear, letting it slowly tick down to his inevitable fall. “Because, my timeless friend, there is nothing to do around here.”

“Pandora—”

“Is in the middle of preparing for the tournament.”

Clockwork frowned. “Ghost Writer—”

“Is reorganizing his classification system. Dorathea is busy with ruling, Frostbite is too. Undergrowth I need to let cool off… there’s nothing to do,” Phantom said.

“Have you tried talking to the new ghost your age?”

“Of course I’ve—wait what? Who?!” Phantom dropped off the gear wheel and sped over to Clockwork, spiraling around the Ancient. “A ghost my age? A new ghost? Where are they? Do you think they’d want to talk?”

“I think that the only way to find out is to go talk to him,” Clockwork said dryly. “I believe that he has been lingering around the lighthouse.”

“Lighthouse! Got it, thanks CW, bye CW!” Phantom yelled as he sped off.

The lighthouse wasn’t one of Phantom’s usual haunts, but he could get he appeal of it. Somewhere isolated, up high, and built to be safe. Phantom gave the lighthouse a wide spiral, not wanting to scare the new ghost away.

“Hello? Clockwork said you were new!” Phantom called out. He ducked to avoid the beam of the light. “Anyone home?”

“Not my home,” someone said for somewhere.

“Oh, I mean, yeah, duh, just a saying. But don’t worry! You’ll start building your haunt soon. I can even help you with that. I scoped out all the spots when I started my own recently.”

Part of the dark shadows of the lighthouse seemed to practically peel away until the other ghost was standing there. He was short—shorter than Phantom even, and seemed to vanish even when Phantom was looking right at him.

“You died recently too?” he asked.

“Yep! I guess a few months ago? Time is weird here,” Phantom said with as shrug and drifted closer. “Anyways, I’m Phantom.”

“…Robin,” the other ghost said hesitantly. “I’m Robin.”

---

AN: I have a lot of feelings about the wish episode and Danny being turned into a halfa again. (No Sam ranting though, please, everyone is dumb when they're a high schooler.) I would love to add another two parts to this--but with getting sick I've not been able to. But maybe in time? Also, CW plotting? Noooooo, never. And go visit @deadonmayn to check out all the other entries!

[demonic0angel]

City Spirits Cont. (click for clarity)

Ty for the various suggestions and ideas from everybody! And thank you for the support! I really appreciate it :D

Notes:

+ Dani is the spirit of the Batvehicles, including the Batboat and Batplane. As explained in this post, she can travel freely amongst any vehicles owned by the Batfam in Blüdhaven and Gotham City. She mainly stays with the Batmobile, however.

+ Dan is the spirit of Blüdhaven. There are a few reasons for this.

1) I had already planned the background for this AU longggg before I ever thought of drawing it out, and there had always been a sister spirit to Gotham City (I will make a post about this later), 2) I feel like too many spirits in one city would piss off Danny and Dan and also piss off me, 3) Both Dan and Danny are stronger than Jazz and Dani, and I wanted to show that through the scale of what they're spirits of, ex: Danny being the most powerful so he gets the biggest city and Jazz being much weaker, so she is only Crime Alley, etc, 4) Blüdhaven is often described as being even more violent and corrupt than Gotham (which I honestly don’t believe), but I like how Dan represents that sort of city, 5) *gently makes my Dick and Dan puppets kiss* no other reason.

+ All spirits were attached to their place at similar times, but did not come to awareness at the same time. Danny woke up to existence first, while Dani came to awareness last. Their strength also relates to how big/important the places or objects they are attached to.

+ Dani is dressed like Batman with Robin features and accents. She isn't dressed in the formal, old style like everyone else bc the Batmobile isn't that old. She came to awareness not that long after Batman started using it and due to time shenanigans, so she is rather young compared to her siblings.

+ Dan is dressed like a 1900s cop/detective. I got the inspiration from this reblog by @blackdiamondcat and I really liked it. His face is hidden bc all of their faces are hidden.

+ Extras: other spirits include Sam (who travels between any park/garden in Gotham, which includes Neo-Eden and Robinson Park), Tucker (the Watchtower), Valerie (Arkham Asylum), and Wes (the gargoyles in Gotham City, as inspired by @voiceofdragons in the comments of the original post). (Still subject to change). The only spirits in Blüdhaven are Dan and occasionally Dani, since Dan is very territorial.

[fanart-for-life-bun]

Some fanart i made for @starry-eyed-samantha @suau-raised-by-corrupted-gems both to celebrate their official comic release and to once again demonstrate my immense gratitude for their support in my AU (and the first person to destroy me in fanart war XD)

Can't wait to see what's in store for their beloved steven, or rather Lil quartz

Go check it out guyzz

[orellazalonia]

Comedic Relief

Summary: After overhearing teammates call you the "comic relief" and question your seriousness, you begin to doubt your place on the team despite being a genius in disguise. Bucky finds you spiraling in your lab, reminds you of your brilliance, and confesses how deeply he values and loves you. (Bucky Barnes x chaotic!reader)

Word Count: 1.4k+

A/N: Wanted something angsty. I also debated having them run away temporarily and having Bucky find them first, but I liked how this turned out in the end. Happy reading!!!

Main Masterlist | Earth’s Mightiest Headache Masterlist

You weren’t supposed to hear it.

Honestly, you never meant to. You were crawling through the ceiling vent to test your portable gravity-altering boots as one does and accidentally dropped into the hallway by the training center. You didn’t land gracefully. You bounced. Twice.

No one noticed.

You were about to make a dramatic entrance to demand “scientific respect and perhaps a sandwich” when your name floated through the crack of the door.

“She’s just… not serious,” One of the rookies was saying. “I know she’s smart, obviously, but it’s like, can you trust her in a real op? Last week she got distracted mid-mission because she thought the enemy base’s reactor looked ‘like a sexy espresso machine.’”

You could hear someone chuckle before another added, “Yeah, and she asked Fury if ‘thermonuclear’ was a made-up word.”

You blinked. That was a joke. You knew what thermonuclear meant. You’d accidentally built a thermonuclear coffee machine last year that tried to launch itself into low orbit. They made you name it and put it in a SHIELD containment box.

“Honestly, she’s more of the comic relief, you know?” Another said. “Like, she’s the team mascot. Not really part of the brain or someone you should trust.”

You weren’t sure what part of you tensed first. Maybe it was your jaw, your spine, or your heart. It wasn’t a new feeling. Not really. It was just louder this time. More final. Heavier.

Mascot.

The word stuck to you like wet concrete.

You backed away before you could hear any more of the conversation, suddenly hyperaware of every squeak of your boots and every stupid joke you’d ever made this week. The “avocado bomb” prank on Steve. The trivia challenge you crushed but then celebrated by pronouncing “Columbus” as “Co-LUMB-us.” The marble run you built through the ventilation system that made the whole compound sound like a wind chime when it rained.

God. Was that all they saw?

You didn’t go to dinner. You didn’t reply in the group chat, even when Sam tagged you and asked why Bucky was sulking in the corner muttering “Where is she?” like a pissed-off gargoyle.

You didn’t even remember walking back to the lab. Your feet had carried you here on autopilot to your safe place, your mess, your cathedral of chaos and half-finished thoughts.

You locked the door behind you, not that anyone ever came in uninvited. Not unless Bucky had something to smuggle in for you (usually food or a weapon you weren’t technically cleared to modify). Not unless Tony wanted to gawk at your entropy.

The lab lights flickered on automatically. You winced at the brightness.

You moved like a ghost, almost afraid to touch anything. Your hands hovered above your desk, your workbench, the tower of half-functional prototypes stacked like a junkyard Jenga tower. You didn’t sit. You just stared at the avalanche of yourself. Your weird, brilliant, overwhelming mind spilled out across surfaces. Wires like spaghetti. Notes written in both formulae and doodles. Gel pens next to soldering irons. A circuit board shaped like a cat.

It all looked… childish. Stupid.

What were you even doing?

You finally collapsed into your chair, spinning once, twice, then fast enough that the corners of the room blurred. You kicked off the counter and made a loop around the floor, feet dragging. The motion didn’t help. If anything, it amplified the static in your chest.

Mascot.

You blinked hard, squeezing your temples. “No. No no no. Shut up. We’re not doing this today.”

You spun to your desk. Grabbed a marker. Scrawled something on the board.

atomic weight of hydrogen: 1.00784 u. bananas are a lie. you don’t need potassium that bad. you matter. you matter. you matter.

You stared at it for a long time. Then erased “you matter” so hard the whiteboard squeaked. Your hand kept going long after the words were gone. Until it hurt.

You stood. Paced a little more. Opened a drawer. Slammed it shut. You tugged at the sleeves of your hoodie, pacing faster now, muttering in a half joking, half begging, yet all unraveling way. “Who the hell builds a weather balloon to see if birds migrate better with Taylor Swift playing on a speaker? Who sets a toast-loving AI loose in the kitchen and calls it a ‘learning moment’ when it sets off four smoke alarms?”

You knocked into your shelf, and something clattered. You didn’t catch it. You didn’t care.

You backed into your chair and sank again, hands braced on your knees like gravity got heavier just for you. Your eyes burned.

“They’re right,” You said quietly. “I’m a joke. A distraction. They keep me around because it’s easier than telling me to leave.”

Somewhere behind you, the electronic calendar chimed softly:

Reminder: Tell Bucky you love him. (He already knows, but say it anyway.)

Your throat closed up.

You covered your face with both hands and curled forward, trembling. The quiet buzz of your machines felt deafening. You had built this place, crafted it like a cocoon, a temple, a home. Now it felt like a parody of genius.

You didn’t hear the knock at the door. Or the creak as it opened.

But you felt it when Bucky entered, his presence like a storm and a lighthouse all at once. Steady. Warm. Wordless.

He stood there for a moment. Watching. Taking in the wreckage. You hadn’t noticed the tears on your face until he knelt in front of you and reached up, thumb brushing just below your eye. He didn’t say anything right away. He just held you.

You weren’t even sure when your body had folded into his. One moment, you were curled in on yourself, vibrating with self-loathing, and the next, your face was buried in the crook of his neck and his arms were wrapped around you like armor. Like he could physically keep the world out if he just held on tight enough.

You gripped the front of his henley like it was the only solid thing left. It smelled like coffee and the soap he never admitted to stealing from Steve.

“I thought you were joking when you said you could feel my breakdowns in your soul,” You whispered, voice raw.

“I can,” He murmured against your hair. “Like a bat signal but sadder.”

You let out a broken sound, half sob, half laugh.

His metal hand rubbed slow, careful circles on your back; warm from the adaptive heat plates he let you install. The other hand cradled your head like you were fragile, which only made the cracks inside you widen. He never looked at you like you were fragile. Not until now.

“They think I’m a joke,” You mumbled into his chest. “They think I’m just the team jester with a few fun facts and a death wish.”

“That’s bullshit.”

“They’re not wrong.”

Bucky pulled back just enough to look at you, not with pity, but with fire.

“You built a quantum drive in a toaster oven,” He said firmly. “You hacked an alien translator using a flashlight and a Etch A Sketch. You—” He huffed, voice breaking. “You are the only reason half this team is alive.”

You stared at him, voice stuck in your throat.

“But I make everything a joke.”

“Because that’s how you survive,” He said softly. “You think I don’t know what it’s like to be underestimated because people are more comfortable laughing at you than respecting you?”

You looked down. “I just… if I stop being funny, I’m afraid they’ll stop wanting me around.”

Bucky reached up, cupping your cheek, thumb stroking beneath your eye.

“If they can’t handle all of you, not just the jokes and chaos and weird trivia, then they don’t deserve you. But I can.” His voice was low, steady. “I love you. All of you. The ridiculous, the brilliant, the heartbreaking mess of you. You could set the tower on fire trying to build a better microwave and I’d still think you’re the smartest person I’ve ever met.”

You blinked fast, and a soft smile tugged at your lips. “That was one time.”

“Twice,” He corrected. “And the second time, you swore it was intentional to teach Tony humility.”

You let out a breathless laugh, and he smiled. That sweet, rare smile he only ever gave you like you were something secret and sacred.

“C’mere,” He said, pulling you in again, tighter this time.

You curled into his lap and let yourself stay there, finally still, finally quiet. His hands never stopped moving, thumb tracing your spine, fingers gently combing through your hair, grounding you with every touch.

And in that moment, you didn’t feel like a mascot or a distraction.

You felt like someone loved and seen.