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myhockeyworld87 · 3 years

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Not So Dangerous Liaison - Sidney Crosby - Part 24

Word Count: 3,486

POV: Reader

Warngings: Language, NSFW, Smut

Notes: Sorry this is later than when I thought I’d get it out, but here it is anyhow. These two are finally back on track, but what will happen now that the season starts? As always love your feedback and Happy Reading! Let me know what you guys think.

Not So Dangerous Liaison Masterlist

Time flew in the twelve short days that you were away from Sid, though if someone had asked him, he would’ve told them differently. He facetimed you at least four times a day, along with numerous calls back and forth and more text messages than you knew what to do with. If you were being honest with yourself, you had to admit that you missed having him around all the time. You’d grown so used to be spending time together over the summer that even these few short days were rather hard.

Most of your time was spent, packing up things to move into Sidney’s house. It was mostly clothes and personal items, as his place was completely furnished, though it did feel weird leaving behind things. You debated about taking different knick-knacks that you had throughout your place, not knowing where to put them in Sid’s. He told you that it was your place now as well and to bring whatever you wanted, but you were still unsure. There was just this pit in your stomach that the two of you would be spending too much time together and you didn’t want to be moving all your furniture back in a month or so. You tried to tamper down that nagging feeling, as you finished hanging up the last of your clothes into your now shared bedroom closet. You had yet to spent the night at the house alone, even though you’d transferred almost all of your things. It just didn’t seem right without Sid there.

His plane was due in a couple hours, and you were frantically trying to finish up unpacking. He told you that he’d just take a car from the airport so that you wouldn’t have to be bothered picking him up, but there was no way you were going to let that happen. With fifteen minutes to spare, you headed off to the airport to await your boyfriend. The luxuries of flying first class allowed you to meet him at the private entrance instead of having to traipse through an endless number of people waiting at the terminal. By the time he touched down, you were leaning casually against the car just waiting for him.

The right side of his lips picked up into that smile you loved so much as he took his first step off the jet. “What are you doing here?” He was down the steps and halfway to you before you could answer.

“You didn’t think I would let some driver pick up my boyfriend, did you?”

Before he even thought about answering you, his lips found yours; crushing them to his as he kissed you as if you were his very life’s breath. “I should’ve known that you wouldn’t.” Another kissed followed. “God, I missed you.”

You were pretty sure the two of you would’ve gone on kissing for quite some time if it hadn’t been for the flight crew interrupting and asking where Sid wanted his luggage. As soon as it was stowed away in the back of the SUV, the two of you took off heading for home. “Did you get everything moved in?” Sid asked, lacing your fingers together as he drove down the highway.

“Surprisingly, yes. I thought I was going to be late picking you up but got all my clothes put away in record time.”

“Excellent, I can’t wait to see what you’ve done with the place.”

Sid was grinning from ear to ear, and you really didn’t have to heart to tell him that you’d moved nothing in but your clothes, so instead you changed the subject making small talk about the almost two weeks that you hadn’t been in Nova Scotia. There was no avoiding the subject once you were home though. “Where’s all your stuff?”

“In the closet.”

“No like furniture and pictures; that god awful lamp that looks like a thousand mirrors were shattered to make it.” You knew he hated that lamp, probably because he thought you broke the mirror and were headed towards an indefinite number of years of bad luck.

“Still at home.”

“But this is your home.” There was a seriousness to his voice that had been absent these last few days as well as on the ride home.

“Yes, but we agreed that I was keeping my place just in case.” Sid closed his eyes but it didn’t stop you from seeing him roll them.

“Yeah, I know, but babe this is OUR home now.” He emphasized the word our as if it was a new concept to you. “I want you to have your things here as well. I told you we could move out anything to make room.”

“I know you did. It’s just…” you trailed off not knowing exactly how to put things.

“What? Do you think this isn’t going to work? Because I can tell you it will, but if you’re having second thoughts…”

“No, it’s not second thoughts.”

When you didn’t add anything more, you could see his mind going into overdrive. “I get it.” He finally said, as if he knew what was in your head when even you didn’t. “We need a new place, one that’s ours and not something that was mine. I’ll call the realtor and we can start looking, or do you want to build.” Sid’s mind was in warp speed now and you were wondering if this is how he processed things on the ice this fast. “I mean you did just finish that house. There’s some really good land over by the practice rink. We could build there, pick a design we both like….”

“Woah,” you told him, taking your hand and bringing it to his lips, hoping to stop the incessant flow of thoughts that seemed to be spewing out of him. “I don’t want to move. You just bought this house, less than a year ago. It’s gorgeous, Sid, and I love the neighborhood. The house isn’t it at all.”

He kissed your fingers before taking them from his lips and cupping them in his hands. You could feel the clamminess there and knew that he was worried about what you were going to say. “Then what is it?”

“It’s hard to explain, but I just didn’t feel comfortable making those changes without you here. It doesn’t have to be done in just a few days; we have time. I just need to get adjusted to being here and then see what I want to bring. I guess you could call it baby steps.”

Sid exhaled his breath, a movement you could visibly see and feel. He didn’t need to tell you that he was relieved you were staying, for that simple act did it just the same. “Ok, baby steps it is, as long as you’re not going anywhere.”

“Well, I was thinking about taking you upstairs into OUR bed.” You gave him a little wink, then pulled him close to your body.

“Mmmm, well, in that case, lead the way.” The two of you spent the next several hours making up for lost time together. In fact, that was how most of the weekend went until Monday rolled around and training camp started. You and Sid adjusted to life together over the next couple of weeks, and despite all your earlier misgivings, being together as much as you were actually strengthened your relationship. You ended up spending more time than you thought at the arena helping with preparations for the home opener where the Stanley Cup banner would be raised in front of a sellout crowd. Which definitely helped give the two of you some space. It wasn’t until the first away game that things got messy.

Sid still sat with Flower on the plane, per your insistence. You were not going to take that ritual away from them. Which let you sit back and chat with some of the other guys, during the flight. You didn’t really see each other until you went to hand out the room keys. Sid took his with a little wink and then made his way to the elevator. It was about twenty minutes later that your phone beeped.

Where are you?

You shot off a quick, in my room, back.

You no sooner sent it than you saw those three little dots pop up, then disappear. They reappeared once more only to go away again. You finally set the phone down then went back to hanging your clothes up so they wouldn’t wrinkle. You’d just finished when you heard the knock at the door.

“Why do you have your own room?”

There was no point in him standing in the hall, so you opened the door to allow him to come in. “Did we not talk about this?”

“No,” and you supposed he was right and you hadn’t actually.

“Sid, this is a work a thing. I’m doing a job and so are you. When we’re on the clock, it’s strictly business.”

He seemed to think this over and that’s when you started to worry. “Ok, remind me what your job is again.”

You rolled your eyes at him but humored him anyhow by answering. “I’m here to act as a liaison, between the players and their families, as well as try to make things a little easier and more comfortable…” you stopped midsentence realizing your mistake.

“Ah, see you said it. I would be more comfortable if you were to sleep in the same bed with me.” He grabbed your waist pulling you close to him, and though you made an attempt, you still went willing into his arms. “I hate sleeping without you.” A cute little pout formed on his pillowy lips and suddenly you were mush in his arms.

“I hate sleeping alone too, but…”

“No buts. I’m either staying here or you’re coming to my room. Everyone knows we’re together. They won’t think anything of it.” His hands were gathering the material of your shirt, then sliding underneath it to caress your bare skin. You hated how he knew all your weaknesses and was currently using them against you. The gentle caress of his fingertips on your skin sent a tingling sensation all through your body. “So, which will it be baby, your room, or mine?”

“Sid,” you protested, albeit weakly. “We really shouldn’t.”

This time his lips went to the crook of your neck, where he dropped one kiss after another making you weak in the knees. “We should.” Another kiss. “We can.” He lightly nipped at the skin there. “We are.” You didn’t realize he’d backed you up to the bed until you felt your body lowering down onto it.

Sid hovered over you, his hips pressing into your intimately. “Wait,” you stopped him and you could see the frown already forming on his face. “We’re still keeping both rooms, and you’re napping alone.”

He sighed, a bit frustrated you could tell, but he nodded his agreement. “Though sometimes you could nap with me.”

“You’re very persistent.”

“You’re just noticing this now.” All you could do was shake your head and laugh at his comment. Of course, you knew he was stubborn on the ice; so why would this be any different. “I guess we’re staying here then,” he added with a wiggle of his brows before he kissed you long and hard. Sid’s hands were all over you, as he removed your shirt then your bra so that he could lavish attention to your breasts. A breathy sigh left your lips as he captured one nipple, his tongue swirling around it and making it taut before gently nibbling on the peak causing you to moan out.

His fingers stole down to your leggings, sneaking inside the waistband and cupping your sex. “So wet,” he hissed out loving the feel of your slickness on his digits. “I knew you wanted me to stay,” he added giving you that signature smirk of him. The retort you had died on your lips, as he rubbed slow circles around your clit. Around and around, they went, setting your body on fire, until your hips were lifting up into this hand.

“Stop teasing,” you breathed out, practically panting with need, as he continued to play with your pussy.

“Oh baby, I haven’t begun to tease you.” There was a wicked glint in his eyes and you knew you were in trouble. He removed his fingers from your body then, only long enough so that he could strip you from the rest of your clothes. He pulled you to the edge of the mattress, then started to trail kisses along your inner calf, all the way up to your thigh.

“Sid,” you whined, but he just smiled as he neared your core.

Instead of placing those luscious lips on your center, he kissed your stomach while his hands stole up and down your inner thighs. He made his way down until he finally reached your core, kissing all around your pussy lips and driving you wild until your hips bucked up. He backed off then. “Mmm, not yet baby. I’m not done teasing you.”

“Please, Sid.” You were outright begging now, needing him as much as you needed the air around you to breathe.

“See, this is why we need to share a room.” You should’ve known he’d work your body up to a frenzy only to point out that he was right all along. You wanted to argue but then he sucked on your clit and your mind hazed over in a cloud of bliss. His tongue worried the little nub, sending shockwaves of pleasure coursing through your body and when he slipped two fingers inside you, you thought you saw stars. “Is this what you want baby?”

Oh, how you did. You were so close to cumming and you knew he knew that. “Yes!” That one simple word echoed off the walls of the hotel room, and it was then you realized that you weren’t back in Pittsburgh in your own home and that quite possibly one of the guys could hear you. Instinctively, you clapped your hand over your mouth, as Sid started to pump his fingers in and out of you. When his lips found your clit again, you lost it; falling off the edge into the sea of pleasure.

Sid worked you through your orgasm, then quickly undid his pants pushing them down to the floor before kicking them aside. Cock in hand, he entered you in one swift motion and you couldn’t contain the moan that had been threatening to escape its confines of your fingers. Sid’s fingers dug into your hips as his cock thrust in and out of you; his groans now joining yours and you were sure that anyone passing by would be able to hear what was going on. “Fuck you feel so good,” he hissed out, thankfully in more of a whispered tone. His teeth were clenched as he fought the urge to cum inside you too quickly, wanting you to find that wave of pleasure once again before fulfilling his own needs.

Sid slowed his thrusts to stave off his orgasm, then brought your right leg up to rest against his chest. The angle of his cock hitting you just right, as he moved in and out of you. He heard the hitch in your voice, as he hit your g-spot and knew that you were close. “Cum for me baby.” The words fueled you as his cock pistoned your pussy. Your legs trembled as the second orgasm hit, your cunt squeezing Sid’s dick and sending him spiraling down with you.

A satisfied grin crossed Sid’s face as he lay down beside you on the bed, still with his shirt on. “Aren’t you glad I’m persistent?”

Your laughter filled the room, and while you were definitely grateful for that little escapade; you also knew he had a game tomorrow. “Get under the covers before I kick you back to your own room.” It was Sid’s turn to laugh, yet he followed your orders, stripping his shirt off before following you into bed.

Every away game from there on after, you ended up sharing room. Often getting teased by some of the guys when the two of you had been particularly loud, though Sid didn’t seem to care. In fact, you swore at times he was trying to make you scream on purpose.

Life with Sid was practically perfect. Neither of you seemed to get on the other's nerve, even with spending so much time with one another, which surprised you. If you were being honest, being together only made you love him more. The two of you were so comfortable in your routine you never saw things coming on January sixteenth.

It was the same as any other home game. You and Sidney rode together to the rink before the game with the Capitals, as you always did. Pulling into the parking lot, you gave Sid a long kiss before both going your separate ways. Sid took the same route to the locker room every time, even though it took twice as long to get there and while you adored him and all his little idiosyncrasies; you tried your hardest not to be a part of them, especially after the one time.

It was early in the season and you came across Sid in the kitchen, making his peanut butter and jelly sandwich. “That looks good,” you told him offhandedly and he offered you a bite. You took it not thinking much of it, then went on about your day. When they won that night, again the sandwich never crossed your mind. That was until Sid made sure that the next game you were there to take a bite of the sticky sandwich at the exact same time as you had the previous game. Thus, it continued for the next seven home games until they lost and you finally put your foot down not wanting another peanut butter and jelly sandwich for quite some time. Since, then you stayed clear of your boyfriend during his pregame rituals, as much as you could.

So today, like every other day, you were at the locker room well ahead of Sid. “Hi Dana, need anything?” You always checked in with the long-standing equipment manager before all the excitement got underway.

“I’m good but you have a visitor in your office.” You gave him a questioning look, which had Dana adding, “It’s the Caps GM.” A sympathetic look crossed his face before you moved on, wondering the whole time what the rival team’s general manager could want with you.

The door to your office was open, and you saw Brian MacLellan looking at the pictures hanging on your wall. “Mr. MacLellan, it’s good to see you.”

“Hello, Ms. (Y/LN). It’s nice to see you as well.”

“Please have a seat,” you said taking yours behind the desk, trying to hide the nervous tremble that had entered your voice. Your mind scrambled back to your last game in DC, just five short days ago, wondering what had happened to have the GM in your office at the moment. Once he was comfortably seated you probed for a reason as to why he was there. “Is there something I can help you with Mr. MacLellan?”

Elbows resting on the armchair, he steepled his fingers together in thought, and your stomach lurched wondering what either you or one of the guys did that warranted this conversation. “Actually, there is. I’ve talked to quite a few people about your Ms. (Y/N).” Oh god, the timbre of his voice had an ominous quality to it causing you to sit a little straighter than you already were. MacLellan took note. “All good things, I assure you.”

“Well, that’s good to know.” Now if he would only tell you why he was asking about you.

The air in the room grew thick, as the GM leaned back in his chair relaxing a bit. “I suppose you’re wondering why I’ve been asking about you.” You nodded, not feeling the need to confirm what you both already knew to be true. “You see Ms. (Y/LN), the hockey community is smaller than one would think and it seems your name keeps popping up.”

This had to be because you were dating Sidney. Even though Mario had made no qualms about the two of you dating maybe the NHL did. Sid was practically the face of the league and they probably didn’t want it known that he was dating an employee. You felt yourself shrink back, not that you were ashamed of your relationship with Sidney, quite the opposite. It was more from that you just didn’t know what you were going to say if he told you, you needed to choose between Sidney and your job.

#not so dangerous liaison series #sidney crosby #sidney crosby imagine #sidney crosby imagines #sidney crosby smut #nhl smut #nhl imagine #nhl imagines #nhl fanfic #hockey smut #hockey fanfic #hockey imagine #hockey imagines

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pixie88 · 3 years

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Mrs. Evans

Chapter 14 - Always the Bridesmaid.

A/N: Sorry I haven’t uploaded anything new in the last week or so but I have about 6 drafts on Wattpad waiting to be transferred over. I’m hoping this chapter has been worth the wait for you guys! Thanks for being patience with me! I hope you like it.

If you would like to be ADDED or REMOVED just let me know! I hate to annoy people with tags.

Read previous chapters HERE!

Warnings: Fluff & NSFW

Word Count: 2062

Pairings: Laila x Harry

Enjoy!

5 Weeks later

Laila is just finishing her last client of the day when her phone PINGS.

She shook her head.

Ever since that night he had picked her up from Nikki's he will not let her walk home in the evenings by herself. No matter how many times she had told him that she was fine with walking home, he'd be outside the shop waiting for her to finish at the end of her shift.

15 Minutes later

"Laila, your boyfriend is here!" Daniel calls over "OK, I'm just finishing up Mrs. Evans" she smiles up at her in the mirror.

Mrs. Evans has been one of Laila loyal clients, when she has move salons Mrs. Evans has always followed. She has to get 2 buses to get to this salon, Laila has offered to do her hair at home, but she says she likes coming to the salon as it gets her out of the house. Even though she shouldn't, Laila always charges her less than the salons prices, but unbeknownst to Mrs. Evans Laila makes up the difference through her tips.

"I'll finally get to meet this boyfriend of yours, Laila" she whispers, Mrs. Evans has a glint in her eyes "Hang on a minute! Is that why you asked for a late appointment? I've told you that he walks me home, haven't I!?" Mrs. Evans giggles "Mrs. Evans! That is sneaky!" she narrows her eyes at her with a smirk "Laila, How many times do I have to tell you it's Ivie!" Laila leans in and whispers "I know but my boss says it's unprofessional to call clients by their first names" Ivie huffs.

"Right, all done!" she gets up from the seat and hands Laila some money "There's a little extra in there to take this boyfriend for a drink" she whispers, Laila tuts "You didn't have to do that!" she isn't having any of it "Now where is he?" Laila walks her to the reception desk.

Daniel knows the drill to take the money from Laila once she has gone.

He's sat down when he saw her, his face lights up. He gets up from his seat "Mrs. Evans..I mean Ivie, this is my boyfriend Harry Taylor..Harry this is my client of..." it takes her a moment to think "11 years Mrs. Ivie Evans" he offers her his hand and a bright smile, "It's a pleasure Mrs. Evans" she smiles at him "Oh please call me Ivie. Nice to meet you Harry!" she shook his hand "Isn't he handsome Laila! He has dimples too, they say you will never be without a girlfriend if you have dimples!" Harry chuckles "Well thank you, Ivie! I bet you have broken a few hearts in your time"

Ivie blushes "I like him, Laila!" they are interrupted by the sound of a car horn "Oh, that will be my grandson! He's giving me a lift home, Laila can you book me in for 8 weeks time just text me a time. It was nice meeting you Harry, you better take care of her or I'll be after you!" Laila hides a laugh "Don't worry I will. Nice to meet you to Ivie" Harry tells her as she leaves the shop she waves over to Laila.

Once she is out of sight Laila hands Daniel the money Ivie had given her "She's paid £15?" Daniel asks "She said she put some money in there for me to get my boyfriend a drink" Laila says as she empties her tip jar and hands Daniel the extra fiver "I don't know why you don't just ask her to pay the extra tenner" Daniel shook his head "Because I've been doing her hair for years and she's a pensioner"

Harry looks at her confused "Laila, only charges Mrs. Evans £10 for haircut and makes up the difference through her tips" Daniel tells him "Ten pounds difference right?" Harry asks, pulling out his wallet and sticking a tenner in Laila tip jar "Harry!" she pulls it out and hands it back to him, he holds up his hands refusing to take it back "Harry! You can't do that!"

He shrugs his shoulders "I just did and I didn't know about the tip system last time, so call it a late tip!" She huffs "Plus, she did say to you to get your boyfriend a drink!" He winks "Fine!" She pockets Harry's tip and the rest of the jar.

She helps Daniel lock up before leaving for the day, Harry links his fingers through hers "How long have you been doing that for Ivie?" Harry asks her as they walk home "Since I moved to this salon! My other boss didn't mind, but Dave wasn't having any of it" Harry smiles at her "You know you are terribly sweet and soft! But it's also super adorable!" she rolled her eyes at him.

After Poppy told him five weeks ago about Laila's birthday, he confirmed it with Alec that it was in 6 weeks on 5th August. She will be 31, Rem had given him a few present ideas all of them, he knew she would gone nuts, it had to be something sentimental. It took him a few days, but he came up with the perfect gift for her.

~*~*~*~

A couple of days later

Harry stayed at Laila's for the night, as it was her birthday the next day. Her parents were having a do at theirs, they had invited Harry's family, but his parents were on holiday in Rome. Rose offered to for them to flight back, but Harry told them it was fine. Surprisingly Colin suggested they would take the couple out for a meal when they got back to have belated birthday celebrations.

Once Laila fell asleep, Harry managed to sneak down to his car and decorate the flat with balloons, party streamers and banners. He popped the flowers he had bought in a vase with her card, present and small birthday cake in front of the bouquet.

He crept back into bed.

The next morning he woke before her, she was laying on her side with her back towards him. He pulled her towards his chest, she began to stir, he had an idea. His lips kissed just below her ear, his hand slips into her underwear and moves to part her folds "Hmmm..." she hums. He brushes against her clit, her breathing becomes heavy.

His muscular frame surrounded her, he pulls the straps of her top down replacing them with kisses. He only has to stroke over her a couple times before her centre is soaked "Hmm....what a way to be woken up!" He smirks against her shoulder, his lips press against her ear "Happy birthday gorgeous!"

He places a small kiss against her pulse line as 2 fingers enter her, he watches her bite her lip, she pushes the curves of her arse against him and she begins to grind her curves against his crotch. He backs away "Ah ah! Today is about you!"

She huffs, he wants her just as much but today is about her. His pace quickens, her hand reaches up behind her and clutches his hair. She throbs with pleasure, a hot frenzy threads through her body to her core and as he enters another finger inside her while his thumb press onto her clit. Her eyes drift shut as she bucked her hips, legs begin to shake as he curled his long digit inside her and stroked all the right places.

She's barely holding back, the edge in near and she is more than ready to fall over it. Her clutch on his hair tightens as she hits her climax, calling out his name but before she's down from her high, he flips her onto her back, pulls off her underwear and his lips are against her apex. His tongue parts her fold "Harry, wha...what are you doing?" She feels him smirk against her core, he lifts his head a little to look up at her "Making you come in every way possible!" she doesn't get to reply before his mouth is back against her centre.

A little later

Both spent, trying to catch their breath, they collapse back against the mattress. Her head rests on his rising chest "That was one way to wake me up!" he chuckles "Get your pajamas on, I have another surprise for you," she reaches for her underwear and she grabs his t-shirt pulling over herself. "I'm going to have to cover your eyes for this part" He moves behind her, in just his boxers. His hands, cover her eyes, he guilds her into the living room he decorated the night before.

He removes his hands, her eyes refocus as she looks around the room "Wow! This is lovely!" she turns and captures his lips, he smirks "That's not all!" he points over to the dining room table, where her presents are. "You didn't have to get me anything!" he chuckles "I wanted to" she walks over and opens her card. The front reads *Happy birthday to my beautiful girlfriend*

"Open the smaller present first," he tells her, she opens the smaller one. It's a small compact mirror, she looks at him confused, he flips it over and in permanent marker it says *Your dare is to get a kiss from who you think is the most attractive person in the room* she laughs remembering this was his dare he had asked her to help him with at the stag weekend. She pulls his lips to hers, he smirks against them "At least this time you didn't tell me to kiss my own reflection" they both laugh.

"Open the other one!" she turns to the last present, she opens the box inside is a silver locket "Harry...It's...beautiful!" he smiles "Just like the one your Great Nan had?" she takes a closer look, its very simpler "It is!?" he smirks "After you told me how much you loved it. I asked Remy to get a photo of it from your parents, but that's not all look inside and check out the back of it" she flips it over.

Engraved on the back are the words and the date she asked him to be her boyfriend *I love you x 12/06/20* she opens it up and the photo is the one he took of them together on top o2 arena. She rushes him, her arms wrap round him "Thank you so much! Honestly the best present ever!" he's glad she likes it "You're welcome, I'm glad you like it. You go and get in the shower and I'll cook us up some breakfast" she places a soft kiss against his lips and makes her way towards the bedroom.

Her phone is vibrating against the bedside table, she swipes the screen, she laughs as she shook her head at her friends.

After her shower, Harry serves up her breakfast waffles and fruit, he even lights a candle on the birthday cake "What did you wish for?" he asks "A new boyfriend," she teases him, but soon regrets it when he begins to tickle her "Ahh!" she screams "What did you say, Laila?" he loves hearing her laugh "OK, I was joking! The only boyfriend I want is you" he stops "Good! The feeling is mutual, Princess"

Laila meets Nikki outside her work "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" Nikki screeched at her before wrapping her arms around her friend, "Thank you! But I can't breathe" Nikki loosens her grip "What did Harry get you?" Laila lifts her locket to show her "Oh wow! Laila! That's gorgeous!" they head in for their appointment with Daniel.

Continue reading this story here - Chapter 15.

@lem-20 @secretaryunpaid @shewillreadyou @aussieez @khoicesbyk @irisofpurple @tea-me-kah @casualpostqueen @gloriousalmondvoiddreamer

#atb #Always The Bridesmaid #fictional #original writing #Original Work #original story #@pixie88 #harry x laila

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shenanigans-and-imagines · 4 years

Note

Tell us about your bottled up OC lore

Everything below the cut. I’m serious when I say it’s long.

Loki x Sigyn (Logyn)

Incredibles AU: Sigyn is a superhero and Loki is her sworn arch nemesis. They’re flirted, fought, and occasionally teamed up to take on bigger threats. But, when an act passes forcing all superheroes to go into hiding, Loki finds it’s not fun being a villian without a hero. He finds Sigyn and the pair of them eventually fall in love, get married, and settle down with a couple of kids. But even if Loki can’t deny the happiness his new life brings him, are part of him longs for the adventure and excitement of yesteryear. He’s given an opportunity when a package arrives asking him for his “unique insight” on an upcoming project. How can he resist?

Look, I just want an opportunity to write them both as parents and also have some awkward PTA meetings between him and Sigyn’s fellow hero co-workers.

Just a big ol’ Hunger Games AU that I literally forgot about until just now: Start of the revolution against President Doom lead by survivors of the Hunger Games with Steve Rogers and their new symbol. It’s just two random kids in this universe not one boy one girl.

Tony Stark: Stark is a favorite of the capitol and builds a lot of their tech. He was taken into the games at 15. During the games he was blasted with some shrapnel and had to hide out in a cave. There he met Yinsen and he took pity on Tony. He helped Tony build a makeshift arch reactor to survive the games. Yinsen was killed and Tony survived by inventing weapons and blasting his way out.

Bruce Banner: Bruce is more of a hermit to the public eye, but still close friends with Tony. He was forced into the games at 13. Starting out as a rather timid and quiet boy he spent most of the game simply trying to stay out of everyone’s way, hiding in caves, trees and so on. It came down to the last handful of kids and none of them were particularly motivated to kill the others since all of them had done what Bruce had done and hid. To spice things up the game masters sprayed aggression toxin into the air. All the kids were susceptible to it, but Bruce was the worst. He ended up killing all the kids himself with his bare hands. Although the toxins did wear off Bruce still fears that anger inside of himself. He suffers from PTSD and when he is angry he does become violent.

Thor Odinson: Thor is another one of the capitols darlings. He and Loki entered the games together during an anniversary game in which if one was chosen and had a sibling that sibling must enter the game as well if they are at age. If by the end of the game both siblings are left standing, they can both live. He was 16 at the time. Thor relied on his strength with his preferred weapon being a large hammer. He was also one to form alliances with other members while Loki remained wary. In the end there was Thor, Loki, and two other members of their alliance. Thor wanted to be fair and give the two other survivors a chance. Loki took the opportunity to poison the water they stole from him and Thor in the night. Thor was at first disgusted with what his brother did, but over the years accepted that Loki did it to save both of them.

Loki Odinson: Along with Thor he is a capitol favorite. While Thor plays up the honorable warrior persona, Loki relies on the charming scoundrel. He entered the games with his brother at 15. Loki relied heavily on his wits and traps to survive. Once the alliance was broken he knew the other team would not kill him and Thor in their sleep, but they would steal some of their supplies. Loki made sure to leave food and water in the open for them to take, all of it poisoned. He does not regret anything he did in the games since it lead to Thor and his survival. What he hasn’t told Thor, or anyone, was that he knew that if Thor got in his way of living, he would have let Thor die.

Natasha Romanov: Game master for the reunion Hunger Games, Natasha is actually working for the rebellion as a double agent.

Clint Barton: He is one of the less praised winners; he makes less of a secret in his distaste with the capitol. He doesn’t have any family for the capitol to threaten, so he sometimes says things he shouldn’t. Clint entered the games when he was 14. His brother Barney was chosen as well. For most of the games Barney watched after Clint, both of them were skilled archers and shot at opponents from the trees. Towards the end of the game Barney went down to get some food while Clint waited for him. Barney was captured and tortured by some of the other kids to find out where Clint was, but he didn’t spill. That night Clint heard a boom in the sky and he woke up to see that Barney was dead. Clint spent the rest of the games looking for the rest of the kids and killed them all. Clint is more than ready to fight the capitol and shows it enough for people to catch on it, but not enough for the capitol to kill him.

Juliet Holden: Juliet remains out of the public eye if she can avoid it and spends as much time as she can with her family. She was forced into the games at 17 along with a girl named Beth who as 16. They stuck together throughout the games. Juliet used more hand to hand combat and hiding while Beth was more of an inventor. During an attack Juliet got shocked and Beth helped her through it. Juliet got out alright, but she lost a lot of her pain censors meaning she could take a hit longer. Beth took inspiration and made some make shift gloves that could shock opponents to death. Beth was eventually killed leaving Juliet the winner. Juliet still feels survivor’s guilt about Beth since she was the smarter one between the two of them. She hates the capitol with a burning passion, but unlike Clint has a very large family she needs to protect and care for.

Sigyn Odinson: Wife to Loki, their wedding was shown throughout the capitol making Sigyn as much as a capitol darling as Loki. This was planned by both Loki and Thor to keep Sigyn and Jane safe. If they were capitol favorites the capitol would be less likely to hurt either of them. As a result she became one of the few non-winners to be invited to the capitol. She knows how to be charming and play the role of the dutiful wife. Unfortunately with this new found confidence Thor started speaking more freely his dislike of the capitol. President Doom knew he couldn’t hurt Thor or Loki or their wives so he turned to their children. Jane couldn’t have kids so Loki and Sigyn’s children were forced into the games. Both boys died leaving Sigyn devastated. She no longer went to the capitol with Loki and was an adamant planner in taking down the capitol.

Poe Dameron x Lana Solo (Polo)

Modern AU: I wrote a sum up of it here

Bodhi Rook x Sera Darros

YouTuber AU: Linked Here

Coffee Shop/College AU: Linked Here

10 Things I Hate About You AU:

Jyn: Kat

Sera: Bianca

Bodhi: Cameron

Cassian: Patrick

K-2SO: Michael

Baze: Mrs. Perkey

Chirrut: Mr. Morgan

Draven: Dad

Male OC: Joey

Roadtrip AU:

Sera is going off the college and her adopted brother Cassian and his best friend Kay are helping her move across country.

Along the way they spot a woman having trouble with her car and offer her a ride to the nearest gas station to call a tow. The woman reveals herself to be Jyn Erso. She’s going cross country to meet her father who she hadn’t seen since she was about eight. When she calls the tow they say they can’t get if fixed for a few days. Sera then offers for her to join them on the trip since they’re going in the same direction. Jyn agrees and they’re off.

They travel for about a day when the car breaks down and they have to get it fixed. They go to a local mechanic where Bodhi is working. As he fixes the car he and Sera strike up a conversation where she tells them where they’re going. Bodhi says that he’s going to the same school she is, transferring from junior college. Sera then offers that he come with them since she wants to know someone when she gets there and it would be fun. Cassian begrudgingly agrees since the car isn’t at it’s best and having a mechanic on hand would be helpful.

They travel for another couple of days before eventually reaching a small camp sight. They had been driving all day and all need some rest. The nearest motel is miles always so they decide to camp out. Sera pulls what she can out of the car and makes up a camp using her blankets and sheets. They all have a nice night bonding and fall asleep under the stars.

When they wake up the next morning they find that the car has been stolen and the only things they have left are what they took out of the car the night before. Luckily, a couple, Baze and Chirrut, overheard they’re plight and offer them to ride in their RV. Chirrut and Baze are both former priest road tripping across the country to see what they can see.

Hawkeye Pierce x Elizabeth “Doc” O’Neil

Soulmate AU: Linked Here

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1787americanrevnerd · 3 years

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The Avengers (Student Body Government for S.H.I.E.L.D High School) Post: 1 of ?

Book Summary:

A High School AU that I hope isn't cliche, I tried to make it my own and it's also not focusing on any ships it focuses on them as a whole. When Nick Fury decides that he needs a Student government he chooses people that could never work together, for the student government he recruits Tony Stark (a bad boy/nerd) Steve Rogers (The skinny kid always trying to pick a fight with people) Natasha Romanov (a Russian transfer student) Clint Barton (no one really knows what he's doing there) Bruce Banner (the lovable nerd) Thor (a nice jock) Sam Wilson ( a pilot in training and actually has student body government experience) Bucky Barnes (the athlete who's always getting Steve out of trouble and never talks about his past) Pepper Potts (she's really just there to make sure nobody adds or subtracts from the population) and their siblings can only watch it all go to shit and then something greater coming out of it.

Chapter 1: Issues

Everyone has their... stuff, whether it be physical or emotional everyone has it. Most people find their people or groups in high school, but some don't fit into the system. Tony was smart but too cool to be in the nerdy group, Steve actually didn't really fit in anywhere, Natasha was a cheerleader and a transfer student that hated most people, Clint wasn't a jock but he didn't belong in any other category, Bruce was nerdy and geeky but had too many anger issues to really hang out with the other geeks and nerds, Thor was an amazing Football player but far to nice to be friends with the other jocks, Sam was a Track and Feild runner but had different dreams than the rest of them, Bucky was an athlete who spent most of his time protecting Steve to belong to any group, and Pepper was a future businesswoman who was too uptight by everyone else's standards. Some of them became friends with each other but it's not the same as having a whole group behind your back.

Tony Stark hated his father, it was the first thing you should know about him. Tony spent most of his time in his garage trying to make a robot suit which he called Iron Man and his friend Bruce called, "A Flying Death Trap" it was a slow process. Tony was a smart kid he was in all the AP classes, however, he was a ladies' man which meant that he didn't really get bullied. If he wasn't in the garage he would be nearby the coffee shop that his other friend Rhodey worked at. Tony was living his best life in general, except for the fact that he had only two real friends.

Steve Rogers was a skinny kid with a boatload of health issues, but that didn't stop him from trying to beat anyone to a pulp who did something wrong. His friend always pulled him out of the fights though saying that, "Your Mom would kill me if you got injured on my watch." Which Steve thought was unfair, why did his Mom and his best friend have an agreement of making sure he didn't get hurt? He wanted to be part of the football team but he was too skinny and had asthma. Steve wanted to play sports with his friends, unfortunately, that wouldn't happen, the worst part of his day was the hour he was alone because his friends were at track practice.

Natasha was a Russian transfer student, she was told to gain American government secrets Clint told her that this was frowned upon. She brought her sister with her and they were living at the Barnes house, she liked it there it was peaceful. She was a cheerleader, she only joined to make fun of the other girls. She tried to act like a stupid pretty girl, that way no one would pay much attention to her however that backfired quickly. Almost every boy wanted to date her, she didn't mind the attention people gave her now. The only thing she didn't like was the fact that people now had misconceptions of her personality.

Clint is a champion archer in the region and is currently trying to be part of the national archery competition. However he didn't really know what to do with his life, they don't exactly give out scholarships for archery. He spent most of his time in "little secret rooms" he found in the school. Clint also didn't have many friends, Natasha had her own stuff and he got the vibe someone like her wouldn't want to hang out with him. His grades weren't the best in the world which made him even more worried about the future and school. He didn't know what to do he thought that archery is the only thing he's good at.

Bruce was a nerdy geek with anger issues, which made it hard to hang out with people. He only had Tony, and Tony didn't always stay right next to Bruce. Bruce was bullied a lot, which didn't help in making friends. He was at the bottom of the social chain, at least he could get into a good school and have a bright future. Bruce tried to be a pacifist however he had really bad anger issues and everything stressed him out, he called the angry part of himself The Hulk. He didn't have bipolar depression, he just got angry easily simple as that.

Thor was a football player and very popular, however, he wasn't mean. Most people saw him as the jock, but that wasn't who he was, not deep down. He had a lot on his place, he would be getting the family business passed down to him because his "nutcase older sister was on thin fucking ice" his father's words not Thor's. He took care of his younger brother at most times, but they've hit a snag in their relationship. Thor didn't have many friends against contrary belief, sure he had people wanting to be his friend but they didn't want to know the real Thor.

Sam was trying to get his pilot's license which was a lot of work and took up most of his time. He was also on the track team which almost took up the rest of his free time. He did have time to talk with Steve and Bucky though. Sam was somewhere on the middle of the social food chain, he wasn't bullied or unpopular but he wasn't the most popular kid in the school. He had secrets though like everyone, one's he couldn't tell his friends knew about them but never asked. He and Bucky had a rivalry neither of them really knew why, Sarah and Rebecca say that they're competing for the best friend role. At least he had people, even if he didn't really like one of them.

Bucky was an athlete and only had one arm, well most of the time. He had a prosthetic but only wore it for baseball and if he had to wear it for the track. He had lost it when he was young, a freak accident and they couldn't save the arm. He had a big family so they were a big help with helping him. He had four sisters Rebecca, Lizzy, Martha, and Linda which was difficult at times but they were good to have around to tell you not to make stupid decisions.

Principle Fury wanted to have a student government, but he didn't want to be stuck with assholes running it. He had to decide who would be in it, and he already had an idea. They might not like each other but this would be a good bonding experience and it would help Fury out a lot. He sent Hill to go and gather them up, and put them in the office he found himself sitting in. This is not going to work, a part of him thought. He couldn't help but feel that he just made a grave mistake, like he interrupted the order of things, in retrospect he probably did.

No one was happy about the fact that they all had to work together. People thought that Stark wasn't serious enough, they said that Rogers would get into too many fights, some people had problems with jocks being in the same room as them. Others really didn't know what they were doing there, one of those people was Pepper Potts. Pepper Potts had an inconsequential life she wanted to be a CEO, but like that would ever happen. Fury told her to make sure that nothing happened to the other kids, make sure they have ground rules. So that was her job, to be the babysitter. This is going to be an interesting year for all of them.

Notes: This chapter was majorly inspired by The Breakfast Club. Did any of you catch that?

Part 2

#The Avengers (Student Body Government for SHIELD High School)#tony stark #steve rogers #natasha romanoff #clint barton #bruce banner #thor odinson #sam wilson #bucky barnes #rebecca barnes #sarah wilson #nick fury #pepper potts #alternate universe #high school #mcu #marvel #fanfiction #more tags on ao3

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tartagliaxx · 3 years

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yup, i totally agree! i dunno, i wanted to talk more with kokomi and gorou since they appeared for such a short amount of time and then the archon quest just ended. like when we saw sara lying at signora's feet, what happened to her? god knows bc there's no follow up to that. there were some loose threads left unanswered and i dunno, it definitely could've been better. the plot is good, rlly good, but the ending was just, meh.

honestly, i also agree with what you said abt the relationship between the harbingers and the tsaritsa. most of them seem to be loyal to her as long as they have smth they can get from her. also, have you ever thought abt the difference in how she treats venti and zhongli? venti was literally beaten and got his gnosis stolen by la signora whereas for zhongli, la signora made a contract with him which could've went peacefully if childe didn't unleash an ancient god—

sigh, considering snezhnaya is like, the second last place, it's gonna take like a million years before we can venture there.

also, i swear, all of my bad luck in genshin transforms into good luck in tears of themis. when i joined, it was the first shadow of themis with artem and luke. with the first 10 pulls, i got artem card's. after i got my guaranteed ssr card in normal banner (which was artem again), i pulled 10 times and got luke's ssr. and as for the new event, with the 10 limited pulls everyone got, i pulled marius's ssr card. within the next 30 pulls, i got luke's ssr card.

i wish. i oh so desperately wish that i could transfer some of my good luck into genshin. why, just why do i have such terrible luck in genshin. although, the pity system in tot is more forgiving than in genshin ngl

— r. anon

there's the perfect term,, there's so many loose ends w the story that i feel like so much potential was wasted. i was really looking forward to inazuma bc it's different from the two nations we've been on so far but... well... my questions were answered but yknow... not in a satisfying way? eh whatever ig... nothing could be done now...

isn't it canon that venti and the tsaritsa like... fought or smth? whatever relationship they had got ruined by some event and now, they haven't talked in like... years? i dont recall where i read/heard that but i deffo remember smth like that. in any case, it explains why the tsaritsa just didn't bother w venti.

sigh... how long until i meet my in-laws... altho istg, im going to flip if the entire snezhnaya region has sheer cold... fuck that im out.

reading that just... pains me... i have one ssr and that's from the first 30 pulls... nothing followed after it... nothing... i dont really have any luck in genshin either so even if i can transfer luck... sigh... my heart... i'm going to pull for marius' lost gold card and i'm praying, hands knees and all that i get him. please... im begging... let me have a win for a change 😭😭 also,, pity in tot is better? my friend told me that it's worse than genshin and i just believed her bc 100 > 90. is it related to like... its version of the soft pity?

#˗ˋˏ°• letters from cat island •°ˎˊ˗#˗ˋˏ°• from my darling : r •°ˎˊ˗#inazuma spoilers

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theawkwardterrier · 4 years

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Games We Play

Steggy Week 2k20, day 3 Prompt: Modern Day

Summary: Steve and Peggy’s new interest in their phones has the others confused and concerned.

AO3 link here. Thanks to @steggyfanevents for organizing!

Steve often sits up front to chat with Clint when he’s in the pilot’s seat. According to him, he used to do that during the war sometimes too, just shooting the breeze while being transported here or there. (Well, he actually said “shooting the shit,” which made Clint raise an eyebrow, but probably like him more than he thought he’d ever like someone who referred to “the war,” as if there’d only been one.)

It’s just the two of them today - unusual but they were the ones around - and yet Steve takes out his phone as they take off, fiddling around and muttering at it.

“You need me to drop you over the Apple Store on the way back?” Clint finally asks, trying to tease out what the issue is. He’s actually fine without a conversation, and Steve is pretty good at comfortable silence, but you take care of your teammates, notice when something’s different. Agent Carter might be around, understanding him in ways no one else can, but it can be good to get a new perspective.

“What?” Steve says, still distracted. “No, it’s fine.” He gives a final, triumphant tap to his screen, mutters, “How d’you like that?” and puts his phone into his pocket.

“Okay.” He leans back in his seat, crossing his legs at the ankle. “Now explain the appeal of NASCAR to me again.” So Clint does, and Steve still doesn’t get it, and Clint notices him continuing to check his phone the whole rest of the trip back.

“Morning, Aunt Peg!” Tony strides into her office as if Peggy’s assistant is a potted plant, and not even a particularly interesting one. Hugo is a bulldog with nearly everything, and had actually tendered his resignation in shame over his inability to stop Tony from doing what he wanted; Peggy told him that unfortunately this was a Stark feature that they would both have to simply learn to live with.

By which she means that Hugo can stand down and allow Tony entry without a fight - but that Peggy doesn’t have to give him a scrap of attention until she is ready to do so.

She doesn’t even glance up as he seats himself across from her, slapping a file folder against his palm. The gum he is chewing - actual bubble gum, like a child - is obvious from both the scent and the bubbles he blows to entertain himself as she continues to drag her finger across her tablet.

His patience, of course, runs out first. Doubtless he’d already been a little buzzy with energy if he’d decided to take a trip down with hard copy documents for her. “What are you doing there?” he asks, craning to see, but the glare from the window is too strong and a second later, she’s dropped the cover shut anyway and transferred her attention to her computer monitor.

“I think you’ve adapted too well to modern technology,” he tells her grumpily, watching the ease with which she switches between them. That actually makes her flick a laughing eyebrow upward.

“We use what we have and do what we must. I would certainly like to see you trying to get by in 1945.”

Tony shudders. “No bet. I’ve seen one of my dad’s old soldering irons from back then. Thick as a pipe. Totally without finesse.”

“Howard did manage quite a bit without your fancy tools, but there’s no shame if you couldn’t,” she says innocently, attention entirely focused on clicking something as he sputters in front of her. Typing a few final words, she finally turns toward him fully. “Now what was it you needed, or were you merely finding it dull in your workshop despite your precision soldering irons?”

“I’m starting to remember why I always regret coming down here,” he mutters, but flips the folder onto her desk anyway. “Just need your John Hancock by the arrows. Or Jane Hancock, I guess.”

She picks up the file, starting to page through it as she remarks over the top, “Oh, are we going to waste some perfectly good tea by tossing it into the harbor?”

“I think your Lipton is safe.”

“As if I would ever,” she says sternly, marking a large X across a paragraph she doesn’t like, turning the page and doing it again. Once she’s finished with the whole document, she drops it back onto the desk so it slides toward him.

“You must have known I wouldn’t sign that.”

“Worth a try,” he shrugs.

“Well, try again and see if it’s worth your while,” she says, just as her tablet makes a soft, insistent ding.

“Need to get that?” Tony asks, leaning shamelessly forward as she flicks the cover open.

She spins her chair, saying archly, “I do, actually. I assume you can find your way out?”

“Naughty pics from Cap, huh?”

“Yes, which leaves me to wonder why you’re so eager to catch a glimpse.”

“He’s a handsome man,” Tony says, seemingly unbothered, but when Peggy replies, “He certainly is,” he makes a retching sound and stands to leave.

“Bothered by a woman enjoying her sexual prime, are we?” she asks, and he beats his way out of her office, passing Hugo at a near-jog.

She chuckles quietly and applies herself back to the task at hand.

“I don’t think it has an easy answer,” Bruce says, “and we’ll probably be dealing with it for a long time yet.”

“It’s probably a good first step that it’s being taken on at all. Back—” Steve stops himself, takes a sip of his drink; he tends toward coffee on the whole, but when they meet up he usually joins Bruce in his search for the best chai in the city.

“You were going to say, “back in my day…” weren’t you?” Banner teases, gently delighted. “It’s okay, you still can. I won’t tell.”

Steve shakes his head. “Tony probably has some kind of radar for it.” He moves off the curb to let a couple pushing a baby carriage go by, then steps back up to walk the last block to the tower beside Bruce.

“How’s the latest alloy coming?” Steve asks, tossing his cup into the garbage by the reception desk. Bruce groans, even though it’s nice to have someone actually remember what project he’s working on.

“We’re getting close, but the fine tuning is a killer.” The elevator arrives and people start flowing out into the lobby. “What are you up to for the rest of the afternoon?”

“Not much,” Steve starts, but then puts his hand in his pocket, distracted by the vibration from his phone. “I’m just—I have to—”

“Are you coming?” Bruce asks, after he’s been holding the door of the empty elevator for a solid minute and Steve, engaged with the device, doesn’t even seem to have noticed. Bruce wonders if he’s read the research about changing brains based on screen use.

Steve waves a hand, attention still on the screen. “I’ll take the next one.”

“Same time next week for book club?” Bruce calls as the doors close.

“Yeah.” Steve actually looks up at him for a second, that familiar grin on his face. “This’ll all be finished by then.”

Bruce returns to his lab with the definite feeling that he doesn’t want to know exactly will be finished.

“There really aren’t any beaches like the ones over there. I’ve only ever been while I was working, and I still managed to have a good time,” Natasha says, finishing the last of her steak.

“We are planning a vacation,” Peggy says thoughtfully. “The middle of April, as long as no world-ending danger pops up between now and then.”

Nat smiles. “We’ll try to keep it to a minimum. Although you could always slip out before things get really bad and just forget to have your phones on.”

“Steve would never stand for it,” Peggy says, which is true, but they both know that Peggy herself wouldn’t either.

“Is everything…” Natasha hesitates. Uncharacteristic, maybe, but she still isn’t entirely used to the rules of having friends. “Are you and Steve okay? Because I’ve been picking up a little...something lately.”

“What? Oh, yes, everything’s fine.” Peggy takes a little sip of iced tea through her straw. “I have no idea what you might have detected.” And if Nat wouldn’t have said it with equal complete casualness, she might have believed her.

“Are you sure? Because--”

Peggy’s phone buzzes inside her purse on the table. She takes it out, pursing her lips as she looks at the screen.

“You’ve been on your phone a lot lately,” Nat says slowly.

With a laugh, Peggy taps one last time and slides her phone away. “Isn’t everyone these days? Terrible habit, but I’m sure I’ll break myself of it one day soon.” She picks up the dessert menu. “Now, what’s for pudding?”

Natasha orders the most deeply chocolatey thing on the menu; she figures she deserves it with whatever’s going on.

“A strong bout,” Thor says, clapping Steve approvingly on the shoulder.

Steve walks over to the bench at the side of the gym where they left their stuff. “You too, even if the whole ‘mythical god who can call down storms’ bit tilts things a little in your favor.”

“Your little disc stands up well to them!” Thor assures him earnestly, tapping the shield as Steve sets it down and picks up his phone. “But perhaps I can make it up to you.”

“Depends,” Steve says with a frown, taking in whatever is on the screen, “on whether you know anything about the game Scrabble and what to do with these letters.”

Thor leans over to look. “You use the letters to make words which intersect, I understand.” His eyes roam over the board and then he says tentatively, “Are there not gherkins on Midgard?”

“Huh?”

“Gherkins?” Thor forms a little shape with his large fingers in demonstration. “Small pickled cucumbers?”

A smile grows over Steve’s face. “You’re a genius,” he says, manipulating something on the screen. “A genius at storms and at Scrabble.”

“Well,” says Thor, clearly pleased but trying to be fair, “perhaps only very good at Scrabble.”

“You know what was really great? When you put down kinkajou,’” Steve says around the toothbrush in his mouth. He spits. “I had wanted to use that N but it was worth it.”

“It was,” says a satisfied Peggy from where she’s changing into her pajamas. “And I’d like to know where exactly you pulled ‘bezique’ from.”

“Churchill loved it. He tried to get me to play a time or two. I was just lucky the B was already on the board.” Flipping off the bathroom light, he comes over to the bed and pulls the covers aside for himself.

Between their combined salaries - well, after Peggy found out that Steve was still getting the baseline amount agreed to after he’d woken up and had negotiated an appropriate raise on his behalf - they’ve been able to afford not only a bed that they can sprawl in, but a bedroom that their new mattress can fit into. Lying down in it might be Steve’s favorite part of the day.

“Did you realize we’d been worrying everyone this week? They all think something awful has been happening or that we’re breaking up.” He stretches, shoving the extra pillow to her side (he can’t sleep with more than one).

Peggy snorts. “Amateurs. They should just be lucky that they didn’t see us after the poker championship back in—What was it, ‘44?”

“Just before - December of ‘43. I didn’t think I’d make it to New Year’s,” he recalls fondly as she climbs into bed and snuggles into him.

“I’d never have let that happen. You’re smart, moderately talented, and you play to win; it would be a shame for that to go to waste.”

He kisses her. “Good to know where I stand, I guess.” He kisses her again. “Maybe we’ll tone things down a bit but how about a new game tomorrow?” He kisses her a gentle third time.

“We’ve played every day since we discovered the application,” she points out. “Why should tomorrow be any different?” She kisses him this time, pressing him back into the pillow until he forgets all about competition or vocabulary or any of it.

(Eight and a half months later, she types “magnetizes” triumphantly into her phone - and on a triple word score too - as they wheel her up to the maternity floor. They don’t tell anyone else about that part.)

#steggyweek20 #Steggy #Steggy fic #Steve Rogers #Peggy Carter #Avengers #this is prob the weak link of the week but here we are...

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ggukcangetit · 4 years

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Dreamcatchers 4

Pairing: jungkook x oc

Synopsis: DI Jeon didn’t need a new partner. Unfortunately, his superiors felt otherwise; especially considering the extremely high-profile murder that had just taken place in the port city. Recent transfer, DI Choi Yuri finds herself confronted with a new cityscape, unfamiliar people, a hostile partner, and a homicide that is certain to bring back unpleasant memories.

Genre/AU: fluff/action/mystery | detective! au | police!jungkook, police!oc

Word Count: 4.4k

Rating: NC-17

Warnings: mentions of violence, alcohol, blood, drugs, death. Basically stuff you’d associate with a murder mystery/crime drama

Previous: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Acknowledgement: shoutout to @stutterfly for designing this beautiful banner which i am completely in love with and stare at for no particular reason throughout the day. also a big thank you to @kinktae for helping get through a really tricky bit in this chapter :*

A/N: reminding everyone that this story features a named oc because i’m still very unfamiliar with writing second person reader inserts. i’m not aiming for strict accuracy in this story, and all criminal investigation/forensics knowledge i have has been gathered by watching crime drama/procedural dramas! my knowledge of geography is also not totally accurate so apologies for that. once again, one thing right by @hobios prompted me to write a police inspector! jungkook story. would highly recommend reading that because it’s probably one of my most favorite pieces of writing!

Time: 4.37 am

Yuri had spent the entire night researching Park Jimin. Right from where he went to school up to all the scandalous newspaper articles recounting every aspect of his personal life. Priding herself on being able to maintain a professional outlook in her investigations, Yuri couldn’t help but feel appalled by what she had found. Park Jimin appeared to be arrogant, sleazy, manipulative, privileged, and everything that she despised in a person. Yoongi’s words rang in her head as she contemplated dropping the idea of acquiring a blood sample from the prodigal son of Park. No, this wasn’t because of her last case in Seoul. That was not why she was backing off. This was simply because she had no patience to deal with the self-absorbed antics of a privileged 20-something man.

Closing one of the last tabs, she caught sight of a familiar face. Not familiar in the way that you recognise an old friend, but familiar like a phrase you hear and cannot for the life of you remember where it was from. Park Jimin was seen exiting a famous restaurant in downtown Busan and beside him was another young man, so extraordinarily eye-catching in his loose trousers and green cardigan in a way that only an exquisite piece of art is.

An exquisite piece of art…

That was it. That was the phrase that made it click in her head.

“He’s literally a piece of art!”

“I mean, yes, he’s definitely conventionally attractive,” conceded Ahreum, a little annoyed that her photography was almost completely being ignored. “But what do you think of the pictures?”

“‘Conventionally attractive’? Is that the best you can do with your Literature & Creative Writing degree?”

Of course! This was Ahreum’s friend and Instagram muse.

Yuri snatched her phone from it’s charging spot and quickly scrolled through her friend’s Instagram. Sure enough, Park Jimin’s friend in loose trousers and green cardigan stared back at her from various parts of Busan, his expressions varying only slightly but creating completely different moods throughout Ahreum’s profile.

Kim Taehyung…

xxx

Yuri checked her phone for the fifth time in the last 3 minutes. Ahreum was supposed to pick her up at 8 am. It was currently 8.02 am. Not that it really made much of a difference, but she was raring to go ahead with her plan. A plan she had no doubt could easily blow up in her face, but weeks of fitful sleep coupled with shots of sugary coffee had given her a weird adrenaline rush which she didn’t want to lose.

A couple of minutes later, Ahreum pulled up outside her apartment, her large bike contrasting heavily with her petite person.

“Still don’t see why I couldn’t drive to the place,” muttered Yuri, putting on the large helmet with artistic paint splatters all over.

“The plan was to corner Jimin, and you can’t do that in your car which has a fucking police sticker right at the back.”

Yuri frowned. “Your plan was to corner Jimin. I just wanted to talk to him. And -” she fixed her bag across her body and put both hands on Ahreum’s shoulders - “I kept the sticker for parking privileges. I can take it off whenever.”

“Whatever. Just hold on tight,” said Ahreum, revving up the bike.

4.5 minutes later, they had reached their destination. Yuri knew that it had been 4.5 minutes because she had been fervently counting the seconds to distract herself from falling off the vehicle

“WHO drives like that? Are you totally insane?” she managed to get out, her hands fumbling on the straps of the helmet.

Ahreum gave her a sheepish grin. “Sorry, timing is essential in this case. Tae had texted me that they had reached just before I left from my place. We don’t have a lot of time. So I ugh-”

“Whatever. Let’s just get on with it.” Yuri tucked the loose strands of hair behind her ear, and mentally rehearsed everything she was going to tell Jimin.

Unfortunately, fate had other things in mind, because as soon as they opened the door to the diner, a familiar face (which most definitely should not have been there) spotted them and came over.

“Fuck.” Ahreum pulled out her phone and frantically sent Taehyung a text before the entire plan went down the drain.

“Yuri? Ahreum? What are you two doing here?” asked Seulgi, her long brown hair looked freshly washed and smelt of flowers.

A: why didnt u warn me that s was here fuck fuck fuck

T: i didnt see her… look it wont be that big a problem will it

A: pls tae the last time she saw ur boy they almost set fire to the library

T: shit ur right… umm maybe she-

Ahreum paused her frantic texting as soon as Seulgi came over to them. She gave Yuri a quick nod and decided to wing the situation as best as she could.

“Seulgi! This is incredible! I can’t believe we ran into you like this!” Ahreum hugged the taller girl. “I wanted Yuri to try the breakfast here so we decided to drop by before she had to get to the station. This is really incredible, I was planning to call you today actually. It’s almost time for me to choose my specialization and I wanted to-”

Yuri took this chance to slip off, as Ahreum steered Seulgi outside the diner. She didn’t really know why Ahreum was so intent on Seulgi and Jimin not meeting, but she trusted her best friend’s reasons.

Looking around, she saw that the large table near the window was occupied by the people she had been looking for. Kim Taehyung and his best friend Park Jimin. The latter had his back towards her, and as she approached she saw Taehyung’s eyes fall on her. She gave him a small wave, gesturing towards her phone’s lockscreen - a picture of her and Ahreum.

His face lit up in recognition as he stood up to greet her. “Hello! I’m Kim Taehyung. I thought Ahreum would be with you.”

“She’s umm…” Yuri glanced towards the doors of the diner through which Ahreum had led Seulgi out. “She’ll be here in a bit.”

“DI Choi, that’s not really true,” Jimin turned towards her, his eyes cold and alert. “Taehyung, your friend is diverting dear Dr. Ahn before she could see us and sabotage their poorly constructed ambush of me.”

Taehyung’s mouth hung open slightly, not really sure what was going on. “DI Choi? As in Choi Yuri? As in Ahreum’s best friend from school?”

“Yes,” said Yuri, feeling extremely awkward. She had expected to get two words in before Jimin caught on, but it seemed like she had severely underestimated him. “I’m sorry Ahreum didn’t tell you what this meeting was about. These aren’t the most favorable circumstances for us to meet. Nonetheless, I’ve heard a lot about you and it’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

Taehyung bowed in response, but his expression was still uncertain.

“What brings you here, DI Choi?” asked Jimin. “I doubt it was because you were dying to see me again. But -” he stood up and leaned towards her ever so slightly - “I wouldn’t be opposed to the idea if that were really the case.”

Not for the first time, Yuri realized how powerful Park Jimin’s presence was. She could see him becoming a very successful CEO with how he commanded people’s attention. However, she couldn’t shake off the uncomfortable feeling his gaze elicited. It was like she couldn’t predict what he was going to do next, much less fathom what was going on inside his head.

“Mr. Park,” she said, sitting down on one of the sofas in the booth. Taehyung and Jimin followed suit, but this time, they were both seated on the same side. “I’m afraid this isn’t a social call. I’ve come to talk to you about the ongoing investigation regarding the death of Kang Eunwoo.”

“I believe I answered all of your questions last time,” said Jimin, narrowing his eyes. “In fact, I believe I answered all of DI Jeon’s questions. You didn’t have much to say, as I recall.”

Taehyung’s head snapped towards his friend. "Jeongguk? You were at the station? Why didn’t you tell me, Jimin? What’s going on?”

“You and I both know that you didn’t provide much information. But that’s not what-”

"I don't think I was really required to answer any of your questions, DI Choi. Linking me to a rival company heir's death without a shred of evidence - " he leaned forward once again, his silver bangs falling over his forehead - "Some would consider that harassment. That would mean my lawyer would have to become involved. And neither of us want that, now do we?"

This is harassment. You really don't want to know how I deal with any kind of harassment, DI Choi.

Yuri took a deep breath, trying to ignore the words that kept her up almost every night.

"Your cooperation is highly appreciated, Mr Park," she continued, placing her hands on the table. "However, in order to save you from any further harassment, there is something you could help us out with."

Jimin did not respond immediately, giving Yuri the time to continue her, frankly, insane idea.

"We would require you to provide a blood sample. Which would help us eliminate you from the investigation. It shouldn't take up too much of your time - just a short visit to the station, and you'd be free of us."

Yuri waited for a response - anger, disbelief, frustration - anything really. What she didn't expect was laughter. Full on hysterical laughter. In fact, Taehyung was probably not expecting it either because he kept glancing at his friend worriedly.

"You are truly remarkable, DI Choi," said Jimin, once he had calmed down. He wiped a lone tear from his left eye, the many rings on his fingers glinting in the sunlight. "After everything that you've witnessed, you really thought you could somehow convince me to provide a blood sample? Sweetheart, I have 10 years worth of DNA that the police have been trying to get a hold off. Do you really think you'd be able to convince me when you weren't even able to get an alibi out of me?"

Yuri's face fell slightly, her mind grappling with ways in which the situation could be salvaged. It was at this point that Ahreum came over, looking distinctly more worn out than when they had arrived at the diner.

"Ahreum." Jimin turned his attention to the other girl. "You have such an interesting friend. Are you sure she's from Seoul? I didn't think such naivety could survive in the capital. Much less in law enforcement."

Ahreum frowned, snatching up the glass of water in front of Taehyung and gulping down the entire contents. "Stop being a dick for once in your life, Jimin."

"I love when you talk dirty to me." Jimin winked at her.

"Cool it, Jimin," said Taehyung, his expression no longer confused and worried. "Ahreum, what the fuck is going on?"

Ahreum looked at Yuri, not sure how she could help with the situation. Apparently, things hadn't gone well while she had been diverting Seulgi. "I'm sorry, Tae. I don't know anything other than Yuri wanting to meet Jimin."

"But you knew it had something to do with an investigation," said Taehyung, his handsome features creasing. "Why didn't you tell me that your best friend Yuri was a detective? That doesn't seem like information to just leave out."

Ahreum looked at him guiltily. In Taehyung's eyes, he was the only one who had no idea what was going on, and he felt both hurt and betrayed by her. This entire plan had been a train-wreck and to make matters worse, Seulgi had returned to the diner because she had dropped her keys inside.

"What the hell?" Seulgi stood at their table, her eyes narrowing disapprovingly. "What're you doing here, Park?"

"Hello to you too, darling," said Jimin, leaning back into the sofa lazily. "It's been so long since I've seen that beautiful face of yours."

"So." Seulgi turned towards Ahreum. "Are you really interested in going into forensics? Or was it just a way to distract me so that I wouldn't run into him?"

"Seulgi, I-"

"Darling, they were just trying to convince me to provide a blood sample," interrupted Jimin, his face curling into a smirk. "Was that your idea? You know I would've said yes in a heartbeat if you had asked nicely."

"Fuck you, Park!" spat Seulgi. She turned to Yuri and shook her head. "This isn't how I thought you'd get things done. I can't believe you're bargaining with a murder suspect!"

"Now that's a bit harsh, isn't it darling?" Jimin was enjoying the situation immensely.

"Jimin, don't." Taehyung warned his friend.

"Seulgi, please, this isn't what you think-" Ahreum ran out after the taller girl, the diner eerily quiet after the blowout.

"Jimin, you can find your way home yourself, right?" asked Taehyung, getting up to swipe his credit card at the counter. "I have to go."

Jimin nodded, his fingers lazily running through his silver hair. It was a wonder all the rings didn’t get caught in his hair.

"And Yuri - " Taehyung paused, his long fingers clenching around the plastic of the card - "It was nice meeting you, I guess."

"I think that went rather well, DI Choi" said Jimin, once they were the only two left at the table. "I was thoroughly entertained."

Yuri pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling a headache coming on. "My apologies for wasting your time, Mr. Park. Have a good rest of the day."

Once outside, she realised that Ahreum had left. Her mode of transportation had left. Without letting her know. She sighed and unlocked her phone, trying to figure out if it would be easier to walk back home or to the station.

"Were you abandoned as well?"

Yuri took a deep breath, preparing herself before facing Jimin once again.

"Friends these days aren't what they used to be."

"I don't know you, Mr. Park." Yuri crossed her arms and tilted her head to one side. "I have no preconceived notions, and I have no affiliations in this place. I am merely doing my job - trying to find out how Kang Eunwoo died. I don't really understand why you're trying your damned best to make things difficult for us. But let me tell you one thing- I'm not going to stop until I get to the truth."

Jimin seemed at a loss for words for the first time since she had met him.

"If you didn't have anything to do with Eunwoo's death, providing the blood sample should be nothing more than a formality for you. But by declining to assist us, you're pushing us into thinking you do have something to hide. I don't know about you, Mr. Park, but if I were involved in a murder investigation, I'd like my name cleared as soon as possible. All personal conflicts aside."

xxx

Back at the station, Yuri felt her head was going to explode. She hadn't eaten anything the entire day, her morning coffee forgotten in the chaos of the diner mission. On top of that, her desk had a large pile of papers waiting to be read.

"Goh dropped these off when he came in," said Jeon, noticing how she was staring at the pile. "Just procedural stuff - it's pretty much the same everywhere in the country. But each station requires anyone who joins to read through them and sign."

"Oh, I see -" Yuri stopped abruptly, her head spinning towards her partner. He had never managed to go two words without snapping at her, much less initiate a civil conversation. Why was he suddenly behaving like this? Was this some kind of trap? Was he baiting her?

Jeon seemed completely unaware of Yuri's internal dilemma, and continued typing on his work laptop until his phone pinged with a message. He quickly closed the laptop and walked towards the exit, already speaking to someone on the phone.

Yuri glared at his desk, trying to figure out what he was playing at. Gradually, her eyes landed on that wretched file. The 2nd Nov case file. The file that seemed to be Jeon's purpose of existence.

The 2nd November case that Jeongguk’s been overseeing - I want you to go over it. You might be able to help

Yoongi's words rang in her head. She began reaching over the partition that divided her desk from Jeon's, her hand was just a few centimeters from the file-

"Need some help?"

Yuri jumped in astonishment, Jeon's voice startling her into knocking her knee into the desk. She ignored the throbbing sensation, and focused on trying to explain herself.

"Need a pen to sign the papers. Mine's out of ink."

Jeon seemed to buy this reason, and picked up a pen from the large stack sitting inside a pale red mug on his desk.

"Anything else?" he asked, when her eyes kept flitting back to his desk.

"N-no." Yuri sat down hurriedly, sifting through the papers she hadn't looked over even once.

The next hour went by without much incident. Yuri had managed to grab a dodgy looking sandwich from the break room, and somehow finished it off in between large gulps of water. Never again was she leaving the house without eating.

Her texts to Ahreum had gone unanswered so far, which was hardly surprising. Yuri was pretty sure she was trying to explain things to Taehyung. It was best to give her some space at this point - she'd call and check on her later at night.

Jeon's phone rang again causing him to rush out once more, and from the fragments that Yuri managed to catch, it was Chief Inspector Goh on the other line.

"DI Choi?"

Yuri was stunned to see Park Jimin standing by her desk.

"How can I help you, Mr. Park?" she asked, after a moment's pause.

"I'm here to... cooperate."

"You're agreeing to the blood sample?" she asked, incredulously.

"Yes."

Yuri cursed under her breath. It was lunchtime, which meant that Seulgi and most of her team would be off.

Suho happened to be passing by at just that moment. "DI Choi, can I speak to you for a moment?"

"S-sure. Mr. Park, please wait here for a moment."

"You managed to convince Jimin to provide a blood sample?" asked Suho, lowering his voice.

"I guess so..."

"The labs are closed for lunch right now."

"I know." Yuri bit her lip in frustration. "I don't know how long he'll be willing to wait. It's already a miracle that he's showed up."

"I think I saw one of the junior lab technicians come back early," Suho wondered out loud. "Let me call him and ask."

Yuri waited as Suho dialed the number on his phone. In the meantime, Jeon had returned, his eyes catching sight of Jimin and temporarily halting him in his tracks.

What followed next was one of the most stressful 3 minutes of Yuri's life. Jeon was speaking to Jimin, when Suho informed her that the junior technician was available to draw a blood sample but would not be able to stay long enough for the sample to be handed over to either his senior or Seulgi herself. This was a definite issue because according to the station's protocol, junior lab technicians were not allowed to officially check in anything related to an ongoing investigation. It seemed like Yuri would have to wait at the lab until Seulgi or a senior technician came back, so that the sample would not be left alone until it had been properly entered into the system. The only problem was, Jeon appeared to be packing his stuff and Yuri's window to grab the 2nd Nov file was closing. This would've been the perfect moment, given that he was slightly distracted due to his conversation with Jimin. Suho seemed to sense the conflict raging within her, and offered to wait at the lab instead.

"Are you sure?" asked Yuri, her attention fixed on the file still on Jeon's desk.

"Yes," said Suho. "But I think you should tell Jimin that I'll be taking him to the lab instead of you. He'll probably take it better if it’s coming from you."

Yuri nodded and walked over to where the two men were having a conversation.

"- a bit annoyed that he didn't know I had been down here." Jimin chuckled and ran a hand through his hair.

"Why didn't you tell him, then?" asked Jeon, frowning. Yuri took this opportunity to swipe the file from his desk.

"Ah! DI Choi, I was beginning to think you had forgotten about me," said Jimin, his eyes falling on Yuri.

"Sorry for making you wait. Unfortunately, I have some urgent matters to attend to. DS Lim will take you to the lab and make sure everything is alright." She hid the file under her coat, and beckoned for Suho to come over. "Thank you once again for your cooperation, Mr. Park."

Jeon raised his eyebrow questioningly, but Yuri was out of the station before he could get a word in. She didn't have much time before he realised his precious file was missing.

Once inside her car, Yuri opened the file and read through every single inch of it. It was a grim case no doubt - a single mother had been stabbed to death by a homeless drunk, who was assumed to be the father of her three year old daughter. The girl had been missing since then, while the man awaited his trial in jail.

The pictures were quite awful. The small nook where she had been living told a rather tragic, almost pathetic, story. A young woman without many choices. Her pale, lifeless body only added to the sense of despair. Yuri wondered why Jeon was so obsessed with this case. Sure, it was terribly sad, but not unlike many other drunken brawls resulting in an unfortunate death. She wondered who was in charge of looking for the girl at this point. According to the file, no body had turned up in over a month. Which meant that she was either alive or her body would probably never be found. If the former was true, there was a high probability that this was a kidnapping. It didn't make much sense. Maybe there was something she was missing...

Staring at the picture of the woman's corpse, her eyes caught sight of a small detail - a ring. A ring which looked very familiar.

Sifting through the pictures, she found a close up of the ring in question. It had been lying near the body and it was assumed that the ring had fallen from her person at some point during the struggle.

Only...

Yuri took out her phone and quickly snapped a shot of the picture of the ring. This was absolutely against protocol, but she was desperate at this point.

It had been 20 minutes since she had run out of the station, and after making sure that Jeon had left, she made her way back in and dropped the file at his desk.

xxx

"Did you clear things up with Taehyung?" asked Yuri, sitting down at the table.

Ahreum picked up some pasta with her tongs and placed it on Yuri's plate. Tonight's dinner was in honor of Namjoon making it home before the clock struck midnight.

"Yeah, he's not one to hold grudges. He was just a little upset that I had lied to him."

"He looked quite betrayed when he realised that we had set them up like that."

"Don't worry about it." Ahreum shrugged while pouring wine into the glasses. "He's fine now."

"Tae can't stay mad at Ahreum for too long." The deep voice sounded familiar yet strange to Yuri, who had barely interacted with Ahreum's older brother when they had all been living in the same city.

"Namjoon!" she stood up, giving him a hug. He was still awkward with any kind of physical affection, though he had grown into his limbs and no longer resembled a gangly teenager. "Took me 4 days but I finally managed to get a glimpse of you."

"Ah," he said, pushing his black-rimmed glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Sorry about that, Yuri. I had a major project due last night so I was basically living at the library doing research."

"Well, I hope it's not going to be as difficult to meet you from now on. You and Ahreum are the only people I know here."

"No new friends yet?" asked Namjoon, digging into the pasta. "Ahreum, this is delicious! We should've called Seokjin over. He always appreciates good food."

"Seokjin? As in the guy who runs The Moon's Post Office?" asked Yuri.

"The one and the same. How do you know him?" asked Namjoon.

"Happened to visit the bakery on my first day here. He's got quite a way with shortcrust pastry."

Namjoon laughed at this. "I'm sure he'll be happy to hear that. That place is Seokjin's pride."

"But back to the friends question," he continued, grabbing another helping of pasta. "Detective work not leaving you much time to socialize?"

"Sort of..."

"She's been having trouble with her new partner," piped up Ahreum, her eyes glinting mischievously. "Maybe you can help her out on that front."

"Oh? Who's your partner?"

"Jeon Jeongguk."

"You're not getting along with Jeongguk?!" Namjoon nearly spilled the wine on himself.

"Namjoon, please calm down. It's not that serious," said Ahreum, rolling her eyes.

"Sorry," her brother murmured, placing the glass back on the table. "It's just... I know you both. There's no reason for you to not get along."

"He's being a dick," supplied Ahreum, helpfully. "Not sure why. Doesn't sound like the guy you're always gushing about."

"I don't think 'gushing' is the right word... but I get your point. Has he said anything to you, Yuri?" asked Namjoon.

Yuri didn't hear what Namjoon had said. Her attention was fixed on her phone, specifically on an email from Seulgi. The blood on Eunwoo's sleeve was a match for the sample taken from Park Jimin earlier that day.

xxx

another chapter done!

#jungkook #jungkook fic #jungkook x oc #jimin #taehyung #seokjin #namjoon #hoseok #yoongi #bts fic #btsbookclub #c me write bangtan

104 notes · View notes

hoekaashi · 4 years

Text

For Better or Worse | B.K. + M.I.

a/n: this took me so long to complete, but here it is. yes, i was inspired by that one picture of tattoo artist deku w bakugou, ya know. that one. yes this came out longer than i wanted to it to be bc i have no self-control. also no banner bc im a lazy poop. also also, i had no idea how to end it, so yeah characters: bakuguo, izuku, mina, kirishima, sero, kaminari, a pinch of todoroki warnings: language, alcohol (they are all aged up), bakugou’s inferiority complex, deku looking dangerous in an all black outfit and a beanie yes yes taglist: @babydabi @suckersuki @bakugoustanaccount @animoozies @haiikyuuns @depths-of-your-soul @differentballooncollection @waitforitillwritemywayout

The thumping from the bass made Bakugou feel like his brain was rattling in his skull and the dim lights of the club were straining his eyes. He needed a break from the sweaty people around him, but his friends wouldn’t let him leave. He looked around the dancefloor, sure that he wouldn’t remember this moment in a few days from now. Lifting his half empty glass to his lips, he took another sip of his drink, the strong taste of the alcohol hitting him hard. He narrowed his eyes when the DJ let out a strong gust of wind again from the hoses on the ceiling next to the confetti cannons that had gone off not long before.

Again, Bakugou needed a break. One look at his friends taking care of the birthday girl was the only confirmation he needed that he could step away from them. Mina’s drunken complaining fell deaf on his ears as he pulled away from Kirishima’s grasp. As he made his way off the dance floor, the groups of people around him tried to push forward to fill the space he was leaving vacant. He walked over to the bar and leaned back against it, wishing there was an open seat for him to take. Downing the drink in one shot, he placed the empty glass on the counter and watched his friends from where he was standing.

Bakugou hated clubs. He hated the crowds of people who invaded his personal space as they danced on him or with other people. He hated being around people who couldn’t hold their liquor and did stupid things with their inhibitions thrown out the window. But most of all, he hated having to deal with drunk people constantly using their intoxicated state as an excuse to persistently hit on him or even feel him up. It was frustrating and annoying, and as he got older, he learned how to best deal with those situations rather than getting into fights. But it had been a while since he had been out and it was Mina’s birthday. Sure everyone had to get together and persuade him, but in the end he agreed that it wouldn’t be an awful time.

And it wasn’t. Hot, sweaty, smelly, claustrophobia inducing, and even sticky, but not awful.

He had been scrolling through his phone in hopes to prevent anyone from talking to him when his friends approached him.

“Bakugou, I want a tattoo!” Mina shouted. Even after all she drank, she seemed pretty sober.

He raised an eyebrow. “And you’re all okay with this?”

“Nah bro, we’re all wasted so we told Mina that it was your decision.” He looked at Kaminari who was leaning on Sero for support.

“My decision?”

“Bakubro, just take care of her,” Kirishima said, placing both his hands on Bakugou’s shoulders.

“Take care of - what the fuck are you on?”

“Alcohol bro,” Kaminari said with a serious face. “We’re on alcohol.”

Sero chuckled. “I’m taking these two home to try to sober them up before going to bed.” He was DD for the night, in charge of everyone until Mina decided to go on a little adventure. “They’ll thank me for this before they head out to work tomorrow.”

Sero began to walk away with Kaminari using him as support and Kirishima shuffling behind them, leaving Bakugou alone with Mina.

“Please! Please Bakugou? It’s my birthday.” She looked at him with pleading eyes.

Bakugou didn’t even hide his annoyance. He looked at the time. It was one in the morning. “If there is a shop that’s open right now within a seven mile radius, we can go.”

Mina squealed and grabbed Bakugou by the arm as she ran in her heels to the exit. It didn’t take long for her to stop running with her grip still tight on Bakugou’s arm.

“Where’s my phone…” she mumbled to herself looking around for it. Bakugou watched in amusement as Mina began to pat herself down with one hand while searching the ground around them for her purse.

When he was fully amused, he reached into his pocket and pulled out her phone. “Here.”

Her eyes slowly lit up as she recognized her phone in his hand. Mina had no recollection of leaving her purse at home and Bakugou being nominated to carry it for her. She managed to get on the internet and started looking up tattoo parlors near them. After a few minutes of struggling, she managed to find one. Bakugou didn’t even try to hide his annoyance over the fact that he had to sit through Mina possibly getting a tattoo. It had been a long night and he wanted nothing more than to take a cold shower to wash away the feeling of all those people who were around him.

Bakuguou trailed behind the birthday girl who was dancing in the middle of the parking structure as she walked to his car. The chilly breeze and the fresh air were both helping her sober up and she had a vague memory of where he had parked. As annoying as he found his friends, Bakugou enjoyed moments like tonight where everyone could be themselves and forget about the stress of being an adult. When they could let their guard down and just enjoy life for a night. Why was he on board with this whole tattoo business in the first place? Because who was he to stop his friend from living her life the way she wanted to? It was a harmless tattoo, and he would be there to make sure it would be something she wouldn’t regret later on.

Getting into the car, the first thing Mina did was put the top down while Bakugou grabbed a water bottle he brought just for tonight and opened it, handing it to her so she could hydrate herself. Once he managed to get her to drink at least half the bottle, he took off, using her phone’s GPS to guide him to the shop.

Mina stuck her arm out of the car and leaned back in her seat, enjoying the feel of the cold air on her warm body. Bakugou relaxed as he drove, one hand on the wheel, and the other propping his head up. Even if this felt like a chore, he enjoyed nothing more than the feeling of the cool night hair on his skin as he drove.

True to her word, the shop wasn’t far from where they were. Bakugou was able to park right out front due to the ungodly hour that they were out at. Mina didn’t wait for the car to be fully parked before jumping out and running to the door, ignoring everything Bakugou was yelling at her. He followed behind her, taking his time as he waited for the hood to come back up, slowly feeling regret creep in.

When he entered, Mina was already sitting at a seat, talking the ear off of who Bakugou assumed was the artist. He was wearing a black short sleeve shirt, with a beanie that covered his green hair. Once he got closer, he saw that the man sported his own fair share of tattoos along with glasses and freckles that adorned his face. There was no other person in the shop.

“Bakugou! I decided on what I’m getting,” Mina giggled.

The artist glanced back at Bakugou but said nothing to him as he began to prep the design. Bakugou raised an eyebrow to her. “Are you gonna tell me?”

Mina continued to giggle. “Nope, it’s a surprise!”

“Why the fuck is the tattoo you’re getting a surprise for me? Now tell me before you get something regrettable inked on yourself. I won’t hear the end of this if I don’t.”

“No!” Mina stuck out her tongue.

“Alright, you said on your left shoulder, correct?” the artist asked.

“Yes ma’am!” Mina lowered the dress strap so it hung off her shoulder. He got to work, transferring the design to her skin and began the inking process.

Bakugou watched with his arms crossed as the artist worked. He noticed how there was a small crinkle on his forehead and how his tongue peaked out as he concentrated. His hands moved skillfully and quickly. Mina was talking about something that went over Bakugou’s head to which the artist replied to. He wasn’t engaged in their conversation, he didn’t have the brain power to be at this point. Mina fell silent when the stinging from the tattoo was finally hitting her. Bakugou refused to give her his hand when she asked for it, saying that she got into this mess herself and she needed to deal with the pain on her own.

“You know, you could just give her your hand,” the artist muttered. Mina wasn’t making a sound from the pain but she did flinch every now and then and hiss.

Bakugou blinked. Did the artist just say that to him? “Aren’t you not supposed to give tattoos to drunk people?”

He cocked an eyebrow but didn’t break his concentration from his work. “My method of tattooing is a bit different. I can give tattoos to tipsy or slightly drunk customers without the design getting messed up from the alcohol in the blood. She would also be much worse off if I tattooed in the traditional sense as well.”

Bakugou leaned forward and noticed that he did in fact use a different method of tattooing. “A different method isn’t going to prevent the alcohol in the blood from ruining the way the ink sits.”

The artist sat back and sighed. “Look, you don’t see me barging into your workplace and tell you how to do your job -”

“Because I’m not fucking dumb.”

He rolled his eyes. “And I’ve been doing this for a long time. I know how to do my job.”

“Yeah, scamming people into getting some ink and for it to be fucked up like a month later. They paid full price for it and you don’t have to worry about anything because they signed paperwork just for this occasion.”

The artist took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment. “You could hunt down every one of my customers and I bet my entire business that not even a single one would say they were dissatisfied with the work done. But since you’re so hellbent on making me feel ashamed, why don’t you check back here in a month and tell me how fucked up you think the tattoo looks?”

“And what if it is? You’ll give her money back? She’ll still have a shitty piece permanently on her body.”

“You can tattoo something on me, anywhere you would like doesn’t matter how big it is,” he replied in a heartbeat.

That piqued Bakugou’s interest. He thought about the proposal while the artist got back to work. “What’s in it for you then?”

“If it doesn’t look bad, I get to tattoo you. Same conditions.”

Bakugou took a seat at the front of the shop without saying anything else. The shop itself looked pretty fancy, there was no doubt in his mind that this guy was probably famous in the tattooing world. But at the same time, anyone with some money could get a place that big and make it look impressive. He knew he should check out the reviews online, but it felt like that would take some of the excitement out of this bet.

Watching him work, Bakugou wondered if he gave himself those tattoos that decorated his body. If he did… he was about to be even more annoyed because they looked damn good. From what he could see on the artist’s arms and neck, they were all different tattoos but they flowed together effortlessly. It felt like they were trying to tell a story even though most likely they weren’t. Bakugou knew he was staring, but he felt himself get lost in what little he could see. Before he realized it, Mina was finished and wrapped up. She refused to let Bakugou see it properly since he wouldn’t let her hold his hand. Instead of staying with her inside, he got his car ready as she paid and the artist went over proper care with her. Just as Bakugou drove away, he realized he never got the artist’s name.

“Deku,” Mina said as the wind whipped past them. It felt different now that she was sober, but she loved it either way. “His name is Deku.”

“Okay, okay. My turn. Truth or dare?” Kirishima spun the bottle and everyone watched as it landed on Bakugou for the first time that night. Kaminari howled and Sero whistled.

“Make it a good one because this might be our only chance with him,” Sero commented.

Kirishima nodded and waited patiently for Bakugou’s answer.

“Truth.”

Kaminari booed.

“Why do you keep talking about Deku? I’ve seen his work and he’s good and all, but are you like… in love with the dude?”

Bakugou’s frown deepened. “I’m not fucking in love with that nerd. I’m annoyed. Pinky won’t show me her damn tattoo and I’m not about to lose this bet to him.”

“Oh, that tattoo looks awesome. I made an appointment to get one too,” Sero said, pointing to his arm where he was planning on getting it done.

“I just got a new piercing there this morning.” Kiri moved his hair out of the way to show his new helix piercing. “Deku is so chill, bro. We made plans to get lunch this Friday.”

“Man, I went by his place with Mina last night and he was a mess,” Kaminari said as he laughed from the memories.

Bakugou watched, slightly annoyed, slightly in awe of what was unfolding in front of him. Within a couple weeks, Bakugou felt like his world was tilted on its axis. All by one man whom he just met. As much as he told himself to not let it bother him, he couldn't help but to hyperfixate on this new person in his life who made a rage he didn’t know he had in him erupt. Never had he wanted to beat someone so bad in his life. As awful as he knew it was, he was hoping the tattoo came out looking shitty so he could have this victory.

He needed this victory.

Because to him, it felt like his friends were slipping away.

He felt like he was being replaced by someone more likable. More friendly. More easy going. Someone better than him.

And he would never admit how much that hurt him.

Bakugou stood up abruptly. Without saying anything, he headed outside of the apartment he was in and made his way to the curb to sit down. Was he overreacting? Probably. Most likely. But he knew his feelings were valid. He wasn’t the best friend, but they all stuck around for some reason. So he couldn’t be that awful. Right?

He let out a deep sigh and looked at the clouds that were passing him by. His gaze didn’t move even when Kirishima joined him.

“You know we aren’t replacing you, right?”

Bakugou didn’t respond.

“We don’t know why you hate him so much, but we respect your feelings. No more Deku talk in front of you.”

“That won’t stop you from hanging out with him,” he said drily.

“No, but even if I hang out with him and enjoy his presence, you’re my best friend dude. And that’s never changing. You’re stuck with me for life.”

A pair of arms wrapped around Bakugou’s shoulders and the force of the hug pushed Bakugou forward. “You’re stuck with all of us!” Kaminari shouted.

“Get the fuck off of me dumbass!”

“Not until you believe us!” Kaminari leaned forward and tried to kiss Bakugou’s cheek. Sero and Kirishima were laughing, enjoying the scene that was unfolding before them. It didn’t take Bakugou long to shove Kaminari off of him. The blond didn’t miss the small upturn of the corners of Bakugou’s mouth either.

“Okay, but since you’re boring as usual, we’re going to give you a dare.”

Bakugou stared at Kaminari in disgust. “No.”

“Get a piercing from Deku. Unless you’re too chicken…”

All three of them smirked. They knew Bakugou would do it. He never backed down from a dare. As long as it was sensible.

“You want me to waste money on a dare?”

“Nah bro, we’re all paying for you,” Sero said.

Bakugou took a minute to think about it. “After I complete this dare, all of you are gonna shut the fuck up for a week.”

“Bro, it’s not a bet. It’s a dare.” Kirishima frowned. “You’re not even paying for it. And we’re letting you choose where to get it. Kaminari wanted to you get your di-”

“He doesn’t need to know,” Kaminari interrupted, shoving his hand over Kirishima’s mouth.

Bakugou stood up and dusted his jeans. “Fine, let’s get this over with.”

The shop looked a lot different than how Bakugou remembered it, but it was also currently daytime. He took a good look at the sign, Deku written in front of some sort of drawing of an ugly, green, bunny ears mask. There were a lot more people inside as well. Bakugou hesitated going in - he wasn’t in the mood to talk to, or even see, the artist. Deku. Deku, the tattoo artist.

When he walked into the shop this time, he was greeted by someone at the register. He easily found Deku in the crowd of people, his green hair visible today. His outfit still consisted of all black, but it made him seem more edgy than how his friends make him seem to be. From the stories he heard, he would never have guessed they were talking about the same person he met that night with Mina. The Deku his friends knew was a clumsy, anxiety-filled guy who seemed to be in his head a lot. The Deku in front of him was too sure of himself and his abilities to be the same person.

“Hey Midoriya!” Kirishima said as he waved.

Deku looked up and smiled at him, casually passing his gaze over Bakugou. “Hey, is everything okay?”

“Yeah, everything’s fine. We came here for someone else.” Kirishima gently pushed a pouting Bakugou forward. “He’s here for a piercing.”

Deku raised an eyebrow and didn’t even try to hide the cocky smile on his face. “Is he sober? I might get a lecture if he isn’t.”

Bakugou rolled his eyes and took a seat without being told to. “Gimme the damn paperwork and let’s get this over with.”

Deku motioned for the person at the register to come over and told him to prep Bakugou. As he filled out the paperwork, he couldn’t help himself as his eyes kept wandering over to wherever Deku was. What was so good about him that made people flock to him? What about him attracted so many people to his shop? He internally cursed himself every time he got distracted and went back to finishing his paperwork. He handed it off to Kirishima who went back to the front with the others to pay for what he was about to get done.

“So what’ll it be?”

Bakugou crossed his arms as he remained seated. “My tongue.”

Deku nodded and went to get what he needed. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that walk-ins weren’t common during the day. All the artists in the place were busy with their clients. Deku actually had walked away from someone he was working on but the man didn’t seem to mind. There was a small crowd waiting for their turn to be seated - Bakugou assumed they were also walk-ins from how half of them were glaring at him. And from how one of them started arguing with the cashier who looked visibly scared and confused.

The sound of a stool being dragged over to him brought Bakugou’s attention back to the task at hand. Deku placed his materials down on a small table next to the two of them.

“What made you want to get this done? By me of all people?”

“They dared me.”

“Your friends?” Deku got everything ready before he got to work.

“Yeah.”

“Known them long?”

Bakugou narrowed his eyes. “What’s with this small talk?”

Deku grimaced at his tone. “I’m just trying to be nice. Get to know you. I don’t think you’re a bad person…”

“And how would you know that?”

His expression softened. “You have some great friends. They wouldn’t hang around you if you were a bad person.”

Bakugou felt himself relax slightly. He motioned to the guy with the two tones hair Deku was working on before Bakugou came in. “What about him? Is it okay for you to leave your client like that?”

“Yeah.” Deku scooted his stool closer to Bakugou. “He’s a friend of mine, he didn’t care. Tongue.”

Bakugou leaned forward and watched as Deku put his gloves on. He picked up the needle and held Bakugou’s tongue between a pair of tweezers with two circles on either side to help him know where exactly to pierce the tongue.

“You’ll feel a pinch but it’ll be fast.”

Bakugou couldn’t stop the corners of his mouth from turning up slightly, amused by the warning. Deku didn’t lie, it was quick and he barely felt a thing. The rest of the process was quick and Deku talked him through care and maintenance of the new piercing. The cold metal balls felt foreign in his mouth and he kept moving it around to feel a bit more comfortable.

“And the pain will get worse the next couple of days. Soreness is normal, but make sure you keep cleaning it properly to avoid getting it infected. Also pay attention to the foods you’re eating.” Deku kept talking as he walked Bakugou to the front where his friends were waiting for him. Bakugou felt his annoyance increase with each word that left Deku’s mouth.

“Shut up ya damn nerd. You literally gave me a paper with all this fucking information.” Bakugou did his best to keep his voice down, but ended up yelling anyway.

“Sorry!” Deku replied instinctively.

“No need to apologize to him. That’s just how he is.” Kirishima slung an arm over Bakugou’s shoulder. “Thanks for taking him right now.”

Deku smiled. “No problem. I’ll see you on Friday.” He looked at Bakugou as he began to turn away. “And I’ll see you in a few weeks for your tattoo.” He walked away before Bakugou had a chance to reply.

It pissed him off even more how cocky Deku was acting about this bet. He was so sure that he would win, it made Bakugou want nothing more than to crush him. But that would have to wait until the one month was up.

Mina stretched when she got out of the car. “Thanks for driving us Bakugou!”

He grunted in response. All of his friends thought he always drove because he hated everyone else’s driving, which was partially true, but it was just that he enjoyed being in control of where he was going. He got out, eying the tattoo on Mina’s shoulder as she rushed into the shop with Sero and Kaminari rushing in after her. Kirishima waited for his friend as they walked in together. The shop was unusually empty for this time of day, but Bakugou didn’t question it. He had a feeling in the pit of his stomach that he would be going home with some new ink today and he didn’t need to deal with an even greater audience.

Mina was already showing off her tattoo to the two people inside. Deku’s friend nodded along as he listened to whatever Mina was talking about. Bakugou felt his palms get sweaty. He hated losing, everyone knew this, but where was this extra anxiety coming from? Why did Deku of all people make him feel like he would never be able to reach him - like he was on some immeasurably high platform and Bakugou could try to climb up there but he would never reach the peak.

Kaminari waved a hand in Bakugou’s face. “Earth to Bakubro. What’s your vote?”

He blinked once, twice. Looking at Mina’s tattoo properly for the first time, he couldn’t find a single thing wrong with it. No line looked droopy, nothing looked distorted. “It...looks great…”

Kaminari laughed. “So it’s unanimous! All six of us think the tattoo looks fine.”

Bakugou didn’t realize the voting had already taken place. He was so deep in his thoughts, not that it would have mattered if he was paying attention.

He shrugged, not having enough mental power to fight this. “What’s it gonna be, nerd?”

Deku prepped a chair that was next to a set up table. “Take off your shirt and sit back.”

Everyone gathered around, wanting to watch Bakugou receive his punishment. Deku got to work, not bothering with transferring a design onto Bakugou’s skin beforehand. Seeing that made Bakugou worry about what was going to happen as Deku dotted his skin over and over again with the gun. Bakugou listened to everyone talk, never once speaking up, as he took in this moment. Seeing his friends interact with Deku and his friend pissed off Bakugou, but at the same time he felt warm inside. Something about this moment felt right to him, he was meant to meet all these people, they were put into his life for a reason. Deku? He was just the newest addition even if he hated to admit it. They were friends, sort of. But rather than the friendship he felt with anyone in his life, Deku made him want to be better. Bakugou felt so complacent after meeting Deku for some reason. Seeing him own his own successful business, have his own fanbase, but still be humble and kind. Bakugou felt like he needed to work harder before he could feel good about himself. And he was determined to get there even more now that Deku was in his life.

For better or worse.

The tattoo was finished faster than he thought, fully colored and swollen. He looked down at his hip where his new tattoo lived, and groaned. “You gave me that shitty green bunny mask? What even is it? Are you coming out as a furry?”

Deku blushed. “W-what? No! It’s like…” He hesitated, feeling embarrassed. “It’s a symbol that I adapted from this hero I liked as a kid from a comic.”

Bakugou squinted at the tattoo and realized what it was. “All Might.”

Deku looked at Bakugou in surprise. “You used to read his stories too?”

“Tch, of course. He was the best superhero and anyone who thinks otherwise is fucking dumb.”

The other five watched, all feeling different emotions, as they watched Deku try to have his first bonding moment with Bakugou and couldn’t help but share the same thought of how those two would become fast friends. Sure there would be lots of fighting, but there would never be a dull moment with them. They also knew Bakugou wouldn’t rest until he was able to tattoo something on Deku. Maybe that was a good thing, maybe it was bad. But no one could wait.

#bakugou katsuki #bakugou fic #midoriya izuku #midoriya fic #deku #deku fic #bakudeku #kirishima eijiro #sero hanta #mina ashido #kaminari denki #bnha #boku no hero academia #mha #my hero academia #bnha fic #mha fic

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hobeemin · 4 years

Text

Memories

🌼 Genre: Romance, Fluff, College AU, f2l

🌼 Pairing: Kim Namjoon x (f) Reader

🌼 Rating: pg13

🌼 Warning(s): Unless you count Monie’s appearance 😁😊

🌼 Word Count: 1.2k

🌼 Credits and Shout outs: @spicykoreantatertots a huge and warm thank you for reading this over and giving me great feedback 💜 @taerseok for helping me with the f2l’s questions 💜, and to my lil bro @guktro for his guidance with helping me with this banner. I was ready to pull my braids out!

🌼 Banner resources found here and here

🌼 A/N: To @editingverse this is a special gift to you :3 Editors deserve just as much credit as writers, if not more.

It started off simple. He offered you his chocolate milk and that alone solidified your friendship. Thick as thieves, two peas in a pod. Practically attached at the hip, you two were inseparable. Kim Namjoon was your best friend in the entire world, your soulmate perhaps, but all you knew then was that life would be pointless without him there.

But the inevitable happened.

You had to move away.

A new job transfer for your mom was the reason for the move. Still, Namjoon made you promise to stay in touch.

“One mind, two bodies, moon child.”

That was your mantra. And for a while, things seemed normal until you got older. The calls and texts became sporadic, emails left unanswered, time moved on and so did you. The best friend you had was now a distant memory of the past.

Autumn had arrived. The vibrant leaves crunched under your boots as you walked through the quad, earbuds in, bobbing your head to your favorite song. Throughout your time in college, you spent much of your time to yourself but managed to collect a tiny group of friends. Deciding that your passion was art, you spent your alone time sketching and painting anything you came across. Wrapping your infinity scarf tighter around your neck, you found a bench off the path and plopped down. Humming to yourself, you set your bag down and pulled out one of your sketch pads and a charcoal pencil.

“What do I wanna draw today,” you ask yourself, tapping the tip of the pencil under your chin.

With a smile, you began to create the shape, adding the shading as you went along. Focused, you hardly noticed anything around while you drew until a fuzzy white blur ran up to you. You jumped in surprise dropping your sketchbook on the ground. In front of you stood a medium-sized dog, wagging it’s nail while his tongue lulled happily.

You plucked your earbud out and gave a laugh.

“Who do you belong to? Your mom or dad isn’t gonna be happy you ran off.”

The dog barked, jumping up to lick your face and you giggled giving him a pat on the head. “You’re certainly friendly. You remind me of another dog I used to know.”

A smile formed as you recalled the name.

“Monie.”

“Monie!”

Your eyes widened as a man jogged around the quad holding a leash. By his expression, he looked distraught. Turning his head his eyes zoomed on the fluffy American Eskimo dog. Scowling, he ran towards you and the dog, tripping over himself. He placed his hands on his hips and stared hard at the dog.

“Monie! You nearly gave me a heart attack. I take your leash off for two seconds and you decide to zip across campus. What am I gonna do with you?! I swear dude. Not cool.”

You snorted, watching him fuss at the dog, not taking any notice of you. You cleared your throat making him look at you for the first time since he ran over.

“Hi. I’m guessing you’re his owner?”

He nodded, a smile forming for the first time. His dimples deepened as he looked away in embarrassment. “Yes. I’m so sorry. He usually doesn’t do anything like this. I don’t know what came over him. Monie just freaked as we were walking.”

Dressed in a light hunter green jacket, white shirt, dark khaki pants, boots, and a maroon beanie, he looked comfortable. He stopped rambling once he spotted the sketchbook on the ground. “Oh, is this yours?”

You nodded picking up the other items Monie knocked over. He picked it up looking over your recent drawing. Nostalgia hit him at once looking at the image. Two children playing under the full moon.

“Moonchild,” he murmured.

Your head jerked up staring at him. “What did you say?”

He pointed to the picture. “Moonchild.”

Your jaw dropped open. “One mind.”

His eyes crinkled as he grinned. “Two bodies.”

You screamed from your spot and practically jumped into his arms. “Joonie!”

He wrapped his arms around laughing. “Y/N! I can’t believe it’s you!”

You pulled away, beaming. “Small freaking world. I can’t...This is...Wow.”

Namjoon nodded in agreement. “I’ll say.” He looked you over, shaking his head. “You look amazing. How long has it been? Jeez, almost ten years.”

“Ten long years,” you mused. “What are you doing here of all places?”

He joined you on the bench, Monie laying between you both. “I transferred here this semester. I start classes soon, philosophy,” he answered happily.

You smiled fondly at him. “I’m not surprised. You were too smart for your own good growing up.”

He laughed, clapping his hands. “I couldn’t help it. You didn’t seem to mind back then.”

You coughed as pink dusted your cheeks. To lighten the mood you poked him playfully in the side. “True, but who was it that got you out of trouble all those times?”

He raised his brow, poking you back. “Touche.”

It was almost as if you both hadn’t been estranged for almost a decade. Getting back into a familiar groove. It felt comfortable. The bell from the clock tower chimed signaling that it was close to the early evening. Frowning in the direction of the clock, you sighed. “Crap I’m gonna be late.”

Namjoon looked at you, trying to hide his disappointment. “You have to leave?”

You sighed as you packed your art supplies. “I’m supposed to meet up for a group project.”

He fidgeted a bit as he turned to face you, taking your hand into his, making you freeze. Your eyes met his, and he began to speak.

“Y/N, there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about you. You were my best friend.”

You felt a pang in your heart as he spoke. You felt the same. Time just got in the way. With some hesitation, you reached over and squeezed his hand. “I missed you too, Namjoon. I regret not staying in touch. And now you’re here.”

He smiled at the warmth coming from your hands. It was something that he missed from when you were younger. It gave him comfort. Now that Namjoon was sitting next to you, he took in your features. Gosh you were beautiful, just like he remembered. Time had been good to you. And he was determined not to let you get away this time.

He scratched the back of his neck nervously trying to come up with the words to say.

“Y/N, I need to say this cause I don’t know if I ever will–listen, I’ve...I’ve liked you since we were kids. The day you left, I had planned to confess my feelings to you, but then you moved and I never got the courage to do it again.” He squeezed your hand gently, those dimples appearing once more. “I-I know this is sort of sudden, but would you consider letting me take you out? I would love another chance to see where this friendship takes us.”

He gazed at you with hopeful eyes with determination behind it. Something that was always present when you were younger. Truthfully, you wanted to see him again too.

“Yes,” you answered.

His smile spread wide. “Really?!”

You nodded. “Of course, but I get to pick the place.”

He poked your forehead gently and chuckled. “Still bossy as ever.”

You leaned in and placed a kiss on his cheek sweetly. “One mind.”

He blushed giving you a wink. “Two bodies.”

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dlamp-dictator · 4 years

Text

Allen X’s Gacha Rules for a ‘Good’ Gacha Game (Featuring Arknights)

Hey look, that Arknights essay came quicker than I thought.

Continuing on my goal of finishing up all my years-old drafts by the end of February, I think it’s pretty damn convenient that I glanced over this half-finished opinion piece just in time for the next limited banner for Arknight’s CN server to be announced. This is a topic I’ve been wanting to cover for awhile now. If there was anything that was a decent marker for Allen X’s gaming experience these past 4-ish years it was the fact that he got real into Gacha Games. I’ve dipped my toe into quite a few different Gacha phone games over the years. AFK Arena, Granblue Fantasy, Girls Frontline, and even an Ikkitousen gacha game at one point. And of course Arknights, which is my current main gacha game at the moment.

Honestly, the only thing I didn’t play was Fate/Grand Order, and for damn good reason, but one thing at a time.

Anyway, with all that time I spent playing these games I’ve slowly given myself a ruleset and mindset for how I handle these gacha games. And I figured I’d talk about how I go about playing some of them, some of the experiences I’ve gained, and what I look into when it comes to the money portion of playing a ‘free-to-play’ game. I’ll mostly be talking about Arknights since it’s the main gacha game I’ve been playing for the past year and I don’t play two of these at once for damn good reason.

So, with that all said, let’s start off with...

Point 1: Methods of Ten-Pulls

For those new, the typical loop for most gacha games is to roll for rare characters and use them to complete segments of the game, whether for their looks, stats, or playstyle (but mostly looks). The characters themselves are usually drawn in an attractive and appealing way, along with having abilities and statistics that are desirable from a gameplay perspective, at least those of a higher rarity. The more you pull and buy into the gacha, the higher the chance you get for a rare character. Some games have deals where you pull can pull for free with some in-game resource like Girls Frontline, and more commonly the game encourages you to pull 10 at a time to increase your chances.

For any good gacha game, I feel you should be able to pull for free at a fair rate. That varies a lot depending the game mechanics at play, how the game handles duplicate pulls, the rarity rate of gacha pulls, and so on, but in general if you can pull 10 times every two weeks I’ll consider the game fair, at least on that front.

Arknights is actually a pretty good example of this. Headhunting aside, you can pull 4 times a day using in-game resources in the recruitment section of the menu, but those pulls tend to be a lot more common and not viable in the endgame like some of the ones you get in headhunting. And even without the recruitment section you can usually ten-pull about twice a month if you do the daily and weekly missions plus the weekly Annihilation missions. When I first discussed Arknights in this regard I had some confusion about how Annihilation worked and assumed it reset monthly. I apologize if I misled people with that statement.

Anyway, by doing all the activities and missions that give you Orundum, the gacha currency, you should be able to collection about 10,000 Orundum every month, which is one guaranteed ten-pull a month. This is a little under what I would had preferred for Arknights and there’s a good chance I’m missing a free source of Orundum somewhere (and I’m rounding down to play it safe), but... it’s fair enough.

But onto my second point.

Point 2: Premium Currency in Relation to Real-World Currency.

In short, I should have a clear idea how much it cost to pull a character if I was going to whale. Typically, in most gacha games you can purchase a premium currency in order to pull characters with real world money. The amount can vary from game to game, but there should be a clear idea of how much it cost to pull for a character.

As a free-to-play game, most gacha games do need some kind of reliable income. Let’s be real here, this game doesn’t run on happiness and sunshine and I don’t mind giving money to products I want to see succeed and continue, but if it takes 20 bucks to ten-pull I’m going to find that ridiculous unless the gacha rate is in highly my favor.

Arknights uses Originium Prime as it’s premium currency, an item that can be transferred into 180 Orundum per unit. One Originium Prime costs one dollar. You need about 33 Originium Prime to get the 6,000 Orundum needed to pull ten times, or a little over 3 Originium Prime to pull once using 600 Orundum. This means on average it costs around $33 to pull on command.

This is absurd for a tower defense game.

Now, Originium Prime does a lot more than let you engage with the gacha, but the brass tacks of this is that for every ten-pull you do you could just as easily get 3 games off a Steam sale, maybe more. I also think I should note that Arknight’s store lets you buy 40 Originium Prime for $30 as a bundle, cutting that cost to about 75 cents per Originium Prime. There’s also an option for 66 Originium Prime for $50, but that for just a little over 75 cents per Originium Prime if my math is correct. Either way, Arknights is asking for quite the price to engage in one of its main mechanics.

And yes, you can gain Originium Prime in game by perfect-clearing stages and clearing the challenge modes, but there’s a finite a moment of those stages and events maps are pretty scarce in Arknights, coming around once every two-ish months with about 15-20 chances for Originium Prime. As a casual player this is... fine, but for folks that rush the endgame this is... a tad much.

Now, I’m a casual player. I don’t rush to the latest content and I don’t try and min-max a gacha game of all things. As much I mostly just buy a monthly pack that grants me about 300 Orundum for free daily for 30 days and 6 Originium Prime upon purchase. This makes the grind a little easier and it’s a cheap way to show monetary support to the development team. However, I do recognize there are people that do these min-max and rush content and my opinion of these folks aside I think those folks probably spend the most money as well, undeservedly so. But this is more a discussion of the individual person and not the gacha community as a whole.

So... moving on...

Point 3: Late Game Viability as a Free-to-Play

To me, it should never feel like you need the gacha to finish the game or get to the endgame content. For a free to play game, you should be able to at least finish the initial pre-update content without needing to try and a pull a rare character to get you through a hard segment of the game. Events and Post-Launch stuff have a bit of wiggle room, but overall I don’t think you should need a team of the rarest characters to just beat the game, at least not a meta-team. That doesn’t mean the desire to pull can’t be there, but at least for the launch-content, you should be able to finish it out as a free-to-play player. Thankfully, most games (most good games) will give you a pretty decent team to work with if you truly have bad luck with rolls. Girls Frontline is a good example of this.

Arknights... isn’t as generous as I’d like it to be.

In Arknights, by the end of Chapter 4, with limited engagement of the Gacha, you’ll have handful of 4-Stars that can be leveled to the late game with decent stats, Amiya, and an assortment of 3 stars that can technically get you through those first four chapters if used and placed wisely. But some four stars like Gavial, Courier, and Dur-nar are time-limited if I remember correctly, so as of me typing this there’s no reliable way to get some of those characters.

Meanwhile, in Girls Frontline you got most of team Anti-Rain by the mid-game pre-updates, a group of 4-star guns that had already great utility and with half of their members being in the meta of the pre-update endgame content, and are still viable to this day if I remember correctly.

This is a major point of contention I have with Arknights. I think they’re fairer than most gacha games, but I’ll admit they don’t like giving handouts, not as many as I’d prefer anyway. Even the stingy AFK Arena gave you more stuff after maintenance updates and the like, and I hate the fact that I complimented AFK Arena on anything.

But onto my last point.

Point 4: 5-Star/SSR Rates Must be Around 4% or Higher.

This is the main reason I’ll never touch F/GO (along with other reasons). Every gacha game should, statistically, guarantee a five-star/SSR/highest-tier rarity after 30 pulls. Any more than that and you’re playing with a rigged slot machine by my standards. Like I said, the main goal of most gacha games is to get you pulling for these are fancily drawn jpegs and pngs, and while those characters technically have gameplay function and even limited animation in certain non-gameplay settings, they’re still pictures nonetheless. And if I have to dip more than 30 times to get something good then what’s the point.

Again, using Arknights, their 5-Stars are at a rather generous 8%, but their 6-Stars being at a tad crueler 2%. By all accounts, I shouldn’t be touching Arknights because of this, but due to the nature of how busted Six-Stars are and a few other details like base functions, potential levels, and some other factors in Arknights gameplay, I let this slide for the moment.

Regardless, I shouldn’t take more than 20 pulls to get a highly rated unit of some sort. The details of the specific unit can be discussed at a later date, but my point remains.

Also, any gacha game that mixes accessories and characters in the same pull pool is equally unplayable. Characters have utility and gameplay functions that can be used for multiple strategies and methods, along with out-of-game benefits ala the base mechanics of Arknights depending on the game. Accessories and items are stat buffs in game where grinding levels is already purposely tedious. Anything making that act more of a hinderance is honestly trying to rob you blind and should be avoided like the plague.

Now... one more thing to talk about.

About Arknights Specifically

You know... between me bitching about Chapter 7, bitching about Chapter 6, bitching about 7-18, and bitching about Code of Brawl I get the feeling you all think I hate Arknights.

Trust me, I only whine and moan because I love this game and the people who made it, I wouldn’t waste my breath or keystrokes otherwise.

That said, I would like to see some things change about Arknights on a foundational level. I’ll try and keep this short, but no promises.

Endgame Team for Free

This is the team you have to work with for 6-7 because of story reasons and I think this team should gained for free to by the end of chapter 6, everyone in this squad should be in your rooster by the end. Even Blaze, her kit is good, but not as busted as Silverash so she wouldn’t shatter the game’s difficulty. This team overall is very well balanced for end game content and has all the essentials to get through it. E2 medics and guards, cheap vanguards and defenders for last minute placements to stall, a good sniper that can do solid burst damage, some specialists just in case you need to manipulate enemy movement and path detection. I believe you can get Rope, FEater, and Myrrh free, but Blaze and Greythroat for reliable lategame damage feels like a must. And I see nothing wrong with giving out those two for free anyway, especially for what was near endgame content at the time and how pivotal Blaze and Greythroat were to the storyline of Chapter 6. And yes I feel the same way about Rosmontis in Chapter 7 too. She’s actually a pretty niche unit and a 6-Star that’s expensive to upgrade, just having her in your pocket wouldn’t shatter the game like it would be if you gave us, again, Silverash.

Gacha Rates

I think arguing for cheaper prices with the Originium Prime is a fools errand because corporations will never listen, but I’ll at least say this. The rules of the gacha that followed the WWE Banner should be for all future banner. You should get a banner-specific currency that lets you outright buy the rare units on said banner if you have bad enough luck. You needed to pull 300 times to get W or Weedy and about 50 times to get Elysium. I feel like both of these should be cut in half. Going by the math I previously did counting that requirement in half would mean only doing 15 ten-pulls, about 495 Originium Prime (89,100 Orundum) or a little over $370 for a limited operator.

This is still absurd for a tower defense game, but it is a far more fair than the original system.

Other Small Quality of Life Changes

A quick pull for recruitment operators so we don’t have to see the bag animation 4 times over. Girls Frontline had something similar by the time I left and it was all the better for it.

A similar form of auto-play to Girls Frontline where you can send in one of your 4 squads to auto play a map off screen a number of times and come back later when they’re down for materials at the cost of extra sanity.

Have a Orundum be a log-in reward. Again, something Girls Frontline did and I think coughing out 1,000 Orundum once a week wouldn’t kill anyone.

Buff Amiya goddammit. Either remove/shorten the stun on her S2 to make her have reliable (if random) magical burst damage or remove the instant retreat on her S3 so she can become a hard-hitting damage unit at the cost of a high SP cost and cooldown timer. Don’t give major drawbacks to your only non-event free 5-Star when Silverash exists. When Click and Haze has more viability than your main character you have a problem.

Anyway, that’ll be it for me. Next time... I talk about something that isn’t me bitching.

#your dictator is speaking #arknights

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illogicallyinclined · 5 years

Photo

i love One (1) Blue Birthday Boy

Year 1

logan transfers colleges 9 days after his birthday, so joan – after learning that logan’s enrolled in a scifi lit course – gets him like four boxsets of Doctor Who as both a belated birthday gift AND a sort of “welcome to our team, sorry you’re going to have to bail us out of a lot of bullshit” present

patton asks when logan’s birthday is that December, and when logan offers a “oh, it was earlier this year” and Nothing Else, patton is devastated to hear that he has missed his goalie’s ‘Special Day’

Year 2

joan leaks logan’s birthday to the rest of the team (unbeknownst to Logan) during the preseason in September, and patton pounces on the opportunity to help make birthday plans

on November 3rd of logan’s second year, the day predominantly goes the way that it normally does; he wakes up, does team weightlifting, goes to classes, and then he gets ready for practice. no one mentions his birthday, and it legitimately doesn’t bother him because a) his father has instilled in him the idea that his birth is something insignificant and unworth celebrating, and b) he hasn’t even told anyone that it’s his birthday anyway, so he doesn’t actually think that any of them know

after practice, virgil asks logan to help look for his copy of The Canterbury Tales, which he “needs for class” the following day. logan stays behind to help him search, and he is legitimately floored when he finds a gift from joan and a gift from coach sanders addressed to him in coach sanders’s office, where virgil had asked him to look for the missing book

there’s a sign reading “Take These, You Big Nerd” that was UNDENIABLY written by roman, so logan does so with no small amount of hesitation, tucking the presents into his bookbag before continuing his search for virgil’s missing book.

logan, despite his best efforts, does not find it, and his suspicion raises when virgil claims that he couldn’t find the book either and would like to continue the search at Remy and Emile’s apartment next. however, logan keeps his hopes low because his birthday Isn’t Important and he’s pretty sure that the coaching staff just got him gifts as a formality

yet, when he and virgil enter the apartment about 15 minutes later, logan is greeted with the entire team, who yell out the obligatory “surprise!!!” before unveiling a banner from the ceiling that simply reads “It’s A Boy!!!!”

logan doesn’t get emotional. he doesn’t. but there are a bunch of cupcakes on the kitchen table AND a whole stack of pecan tarts that remy swiped from his Starbucks, so it’s hard to fight back the warm feeling that floods his chest in that moment

birthday shenanigans ensue. it’s a thursday, but payton still convinces half of the team to shotgun some beer in honor of their goalie anyway.

remy hugs logan for two minutes straight, already half-drunk off wine and laying out a list of reasons that logan is one of the Best Things to ever happen to him while Emile feeds into it with his own Logan Stories,

logan doesn’t know what to say, so he doesn’t say anything, just leans into remy’s embrace and tries not to let the fact that he deserves None of This detract from how nice it all feels

D and remus tease logan about how he's "officially an adult,” and logan rolls his eyes, but he also accepts hugs from each of them as well, not even protesting when D shoves his cold hands up logan’s sweatshirt or when remus affectionately pulls him down into a noogie.

virgil brags about how logan is his roommate to roman, roman lets out the MOST affronted noise before asserting that it the bond between Captain and Goalie is too complex for a lowly defenseman to understand, and logan worries for all of ten seconds that they’re about to pull him into their Strange and Unwarranted argument until patton swoops in to save the day, pulling logan into a side hug and offering him a pecan tart before placing an unexpected kiss to his cheek.

logan is too baffled to notice the cheeky look that patton sends virgil and roman’s way.

virgil and roman end up competing to see who can come up with the best compliment for their residential nerd, but they both lose to remy, who returns after another glass of wine to lay his appreciation for the starting goaltender on thick before corralling him back to the kitchen table, where remy promptly yells at everyone to “SHUT UP, we’re singing happy birthday now”

the team does so, and they do it Badly. remus elbows roman for no reason, and roman’s voice jumps up half an octave. virgil and D speak the lyrics in a blunt monotone. logan is pretty sure that the Aces invent a new key signature. (he’s never cared about a group of people more in his life.)

logan opens twenty-two gifts that evening, and the party rages on until three in the morning. he doesn’t understand a single moment of it.

that evening, someone changes the groupchat name to “Logan Crofter Saved My Life,” and logan doesn’t understand that, either.

#hockey au #hockey hcs #full cast #i can't draw anything for the boy rn #because i have four midterms next week and think he'd approve of my choice to study for them #so i gotta live vicariously through this team #until i can give the blue boy the Art and Appreciation that he deserves

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notyetneedcoffee · 5 years

Text

Soul Seer, Pt. 7

Pairing: Loki x Reader

Warnings: Nothing really in this chapter

Author’s Note: Takes place right after Avengers 1, with time travel elements and hints of Infinity Wars. Does NOT follow cannon after Avengers.

* * *

Chapter 7

“Good morning.” You knocked on the door frame. “Mind if I come in?”

Steve Rogers looked up from a conference table covered in reports. He had a cup of coffee in one hand and was wearing generic issue SHIELD workout sweats. Stubble shadowed his jaw. “Sure. You, ah, look good.”

“You look like you a week-long nap is in order.” You tried to smile. “Delegating isn’t really in your wheelhouse, is it?”

His conflicting feelings hit you even though he only frowned. “I give orders just fine.”

“True, but you still have to be working just as hard as everyone else… even if you’re already running on fumes.” His scowl deepened at your words. You stepped closer, voice softening. “I’m sorry. I tend to let my mouth run away from me. It’s just that I can see that you are far more exhausted than you look. Stopping to sleep for a bit is completely understandable.”

The Captain stared at you for a long moment before nodding. “You’re right. That why you’re down here? To send me to my room?” He tried to joke.

“No, actually. Loki is going to roll out a plan to Fury’s people, and he asked me to be certain you were there.”

“I wasn’t invited to that meeting.” Steve stood up, squaring his shoulders.

“Neither was I.” You smiled. “But look who set it up.”

“Loki wants me there? You’re certain?”

“He was very specific.”

“Give me five minutes.” Rogers put down his coffee and left the room. A few minutes later he returned in a fresh uniform. “Let’s go.”

Waiting for the elevator he kept glancing sideways at you. “What?”

“Just trying to figure you out.” He sighed. “You seem like a good person. Stable. Yet you’ve been in Loki’s head. You seem connect now. I just don’t trust him.”

“Probably a good plan.” You smiled. “And for what it’s worth, I’m trying to figure me out, too. But I can promise you, I’m not a liar and I’m not going to betray Tony’s trust.”

The elevator doors opened and you both stepped in. He turned to you with an smirk. “You, for some weird reason, I trust.” He laughed. “I’m learning to quickly adapt to weird.”

“Good to know.” You smiled. The Captain’s straightforward and honest personality made him a bit of a calm amongst the stormy auras of the spies which made up the highest ranks of SHIELD and the unique people of Stark’s organization.

Through the glass wall of the conference room, you could see Loki standing at the head of the table scowling at the man sitting to Fury’s left. Stark, too, scowled. Your paced slowed as the aggravation and hostility hit you full force.

Steve’s steps faltered as he quirked an eyebrow at you.

“Just got kicked in the teeth by their bad attitudes.” You shook your head. “It’s okay. My shields are stronger than yesterday.”

“You let me know if you need anything.” Steve offered, placing his hand on the small of your back. He looked up to see Loki’s eye turn to him, eyebrows high. “Though, I’m sure Loki won’t let them get away with much.”

“I’m sure.” You walked through the door as Steve held it open. All of the seats were taken, so you stood towards the back, beside two men in black SHIELD gear. Steve edged in between you and the men. The man beside Fury stopped talking and stared.

“Were you supposed to be here?” He said, it wasn’t really a question.

Stark rolled his eyes. “Griffin, it’s fine. Go on.”

“She doesn’t have clear...”

“Continue.” Loki hissed.

The man, Griffin, looked at Fury for the nod before continuing his brief. “The hanger is being used to store the alien equipment until it can be identified further and crated. We will need you to train a team of technical SMEs to head up the inventory logistics.”

“Ah,” Loki looked at the ceiling. “There it is.” He paused before looking at Tony. While staring the man in the eye, he pulled up a complex set of calculations on the 3D display. Everyone looked confused, but Stark and Banner leaned forward. “I took the liberty to review the calculations of the containment field for your arc reactor powering the tower. With some modifications and improvements that I’ve provided here, you will be able to create a large enough containment chamber to effectively disintegrate the material while modulating intensity due to variable non-earth element fusion events. Of course, the bleed-off excess energy will be immense. Therefore, I have included a conversion device allowing the energy to be transferred into your existing National power grid.”

The room was silent. You could feel the question and uncertainty screaming off everyone but Banner and Stark. They were both bright with concentration and wonderment. Tony sat back, his hand over his mouth. Banner slowly took his glasses off, turning an opened mouth stare to Loki.

“What?!” Fury finally broke.

“This would power the whole country for, what? Um...” Tony rubbed his face.

“At yesterday's consumption rate, 11 years, 4 months, and 22 days.” Loki answered plainly.

“Tony,” Steve had an idea what they were talking about, but he wanted to be certain. “What is Loki’s proposal? Exactly?”

“It’s a furnace.” Banner answered. “A way to destroy all of the alien material and convert it to useable electricity.”

“It would take months to build.” Stark was staring at the calculations again. “But it would be worth it, a billion times over.”

“Well,” Griffin shrugged. “That’s one way to get rid of the slag. It doesn’t address the training you need to provide...”

Loki shut down the 3D model. His face went hard. The room went silent again. “No. There will be no cataloging assets. No training on Chitauri weapons. No alteration to Earth technology. It all burns.”

The room exploded. Everyone shouted at once. You flinched back from the onslaught. Loki shouted “ENOUGH!” at the same time Steve shouted “QUIET!” - The room froze.

“I don’t think that decision is up to you, Loki.” Fury said calmly. “The technology out there...”

“Will shift the balance on the world stage, immediately.” Steve scowled.

“There are bigger things in the universe, Captain.” Fury scowled.

“But we still have to live here. A shift that big will have major geo-political consequences, and not necessarily for the better.” Steve retorted.

Banner looked between the two before turning back to Loki. “You said Thanos would be coming.”

“I did.”

“So we need every advanced weapon we can get.” Griffin growled.

“How effective are traditional munitions against your suit? Against your shield?” Loki asked.

“Chitauri weapons are the AK’s of space race, huh?” Tony sighed.

“I would suggest something of a more innovative nature.” Loki nodded.

“I can’t agree with this.” Griffin growled.

“If we move as if we are going to keep all this alien technology, it will cause global turmoil. If we say we’re going to share it, there will years of posturing and infighting before anything gets accomplished.” Steve leaned forward, hands on the table.

“But if by destroying it, we can provide clean energy to bring the world’s powers together to work on a solution...” Banner muttered.

“It’s a step in the right direction.” Rogers nodded.

You leaned back against the wall, eyes catching Loki’s. He was good. The corner of your lip tipped up. The hard, determined lines of his face never changed, but you could see the gold shoot through the green of aura. You felt the satisfaction.

Ghost like finger swept down your cheek, down your jaw, around the back of your neck. The urge to tip your head back for a kiss was overwhelming. Instead you smiled and closed your eyes. The touch vanished and you looked up to see his eye sparkle with mischief.

“You mean to say,” Fury was leaning forward on the table. “You want me to go to the World Security Counsel and tell them we’re destroying all the alien weapons in exchange for putting the utility companies out of business? That’s not going to fly, gentlemen.”

Loki stood at the head of the table, looking every bit the royal he’d been raised to be. “You’re going to tell them the Chitauri weapons are useless in the defense of your world against alien forces, and your only specialist refused to tell you how to use them against your own people. I will, however, help you clean up the damage. I will assist your finest minds with their plans to protect this world. I will help you harness the energy and materials necessary to turn those plans into reality. I will fulfill my oath. I will not be a tool for your government, or any other.”

He paused, turning a small smile to Bruce. “Unless the good doctor wishes to order me to teach the people of SHIELD the secrets of alien weaponry.”

“I, ah,” Banner’s eyes shot around the room. “Um, I think, ah...”

Loki’s brow arched. So did Fury’s. You felt like laughing.

“Just go with your gut, Doctor.” Steve said kindly.

Banner took a deep breath. “I’m going with Loki’s plan.”

“That’s not -” Griffin growled.

“Don’t.” Fury bit off. “There’s no point. So, this continues as a salvage operation. Sweep up the alien technology as quickly and as safely as possible. Run down anything that lands in the wrong hands. Quarantine at a protected location.”

“So we’re done here.” Griffin frowned.

“This meeting is, yeah.” Fury closed his folder, standing to leave. The SHIELD personnel began to file out behind him.

Loki pulled out a chair and sat down. He crooked a finger to beckon you over. His hands pulled you down to sit on his knee. You smiled, the calmness on your face not betraying the nervousness you felt at everyone’s scrutiny. “I would like your assistance with the next meeting.”

“We have representatives from the Office of Emergency Management, the National Guard and the city coming in.” Stark explained.

“Emotions will likely be running high and there will be a great deal to accomplish in a short time.” Loki’s hand slid down your back.

“You need someone to cut through the posturing and get to the point?” You asked.

“It would definitely be better coming from you.” Stark rocked back and forth in his chair. He swung around to look at Rogers, who now rested a hip on the table. “So, did you just decide to pop in or we’re you following Y/N through the halls?”

“I asked her to fetch the Captain.” Loki admitted freely.

“Pieces on a chess board, huh?” Stark rolled his eyes.

“What?” Steve asked.

“You have to admit, Cap, what you said was critical to shutting SHIELD’s plans down.” Stark shrugged.

You saw anger flare to life around the Captain as his brow creased, glaring at Loki. “You used me! You had her come get me just to manipulate me.”

“Captain, I can assure you...” Loki began but was cut off.

“I can’t trust you at all.” Steve pushed off the table, and turning to leave. “Not at all.” He stormed away.

You stood up to follow, but Loki’s hand on your waist stopped you. His face remained impassive, but you knew better. Leaning forward, you pressed your lips to his cheek. Brushing another kiss over his ear you whisper, “Let me make it right.”

Loki looked at you, but did not answer. You ran your fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck. “I’ll be right back.”

He nodded once.

You ran from the room, trying to catch Steve before the elevator came. You got your arm in the doors just in time, causing them to open again. He stood there, hands fisted and jaw tight. “I don’t want to hear it.”

“Well, too bad.” You got in the elevator with him. “Steve, you said what you said because it’s what you believe. You can’t argue that with me.” He just glared at you. “Loki recognized that you would take the stance you did. It’s consistent with your known beliefs. Someone needed to say SHIELD couldn’t have the alien weapons because it would shift the balance of power and it couldn’t be Loki. It would be immediately dismissed if it were. Coming from you, it’s worth more. Think about it, Steve.”

He just sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands.

“You’re exhausted. On edge. I understand why you got mad.” You sighed as well. The elevator doors opened and you both stepped off into an empty hall. “Loki may have manipulated the situation to assure the outcome he wanted, but he did not manipulate you. You responded honestly. If anything, Loki knew he couldn’t do what he needed to do without you. He needed you to be there to moral voice in the room.”

“He could have just asked.” Steve grumbled.

“Really? You don’t think Griffin wouldn’t have said you were in cahoots with Loki if he had?” You squeezed his forearm. “Steve, your reaction had to be in the moment and honest. You’re poker face sucks.”

“Did Loki tell you all this? Did you know when you came to get me?”

“No.” You shrugged. “Between my own talents and being able to work through all the stuff I learned while I was in his head... I guess I’m beginning to understand how he thinks... sometimes anyway.”

“He know you’re tell me this?”

“Yes. He would never do it himself.” You smiled up at him. “Not to be mean, just because he wouldn’t think to do it. But I want to do what I can to keep us, I don’t know, just okay. Things are going to get tough. I think we’re all going to need each other and things being so raw makes it hard.”

Steve nodded. “Okay, I’ll think about what you said. I think I’m going to take your advice, too.”

“Get some rest?”

“A little.”

“Good.” You hit the elevator button. Steve began walking away. You called out to him one last time. “Steve. Thank you, by the way, for always checking on me, too. I really appreciate it. Sleep well.”

He waved at you as you disappeared into the elevator.

As you stepped out of the elevator, heading back to the conference rooms, you nearly ran bodily into Loki. His arms wrapped around your waist, pulling you tight against his chest. Your hands instinctively slipped over his shoulders. He inhaled deep, nose trailing over the skin of your temple.

“Did you calm the Captain?”

“I did.”

His tongue slid along the sensitive flesh beneath your ear. His breath hot. “You wish to assure his alliance.”

“I think he’s a friend worth having.”

Loki’s lips captured you lower lip before his tongue slid over yours. He pulled away much too quickly. Beneath his tight control, his simmering desire, you felt something else... “A friend to you or I?”

You sighed. His long experience on the outside, the one not included, left a painful echo.

“There is no difference.” You breathed against his lips.

Loki’s hand came to the back of your head as he kissed you hard. You felt his fingers press into your lower back, pressing you against him. Passionate, deep, the kiss carried as much emotion as heat. You moaned into his mouth, unable to contain it. His lips curled up, even as he kissed you.

“My pet, you are a delight.” He spoke against your lips, still holding you tight against him.

“Not so bad yourself.” You whispered.

“Keep that a secret. I have a reputation to uphold.” He nipped you lower lip lightly between his teeth. “Speaking of which, we need to get to our meeting. How does the saying go? I’ll be the be the bad god, you be the good mortal.”

You giggled. “Is that like bad cop, good cop?”

Loki leaned over and whispered in your ear. “Yes, but with more magic and delicious noises.”

You laughed.

The elevator doors opened. Natasha stepped off with a group of people, Loki released you as she scowled at you both. Pulling you back against the wall as the seven people walked by, Loki breathed against your ear. “I fully intend to finish what I’ve begun, my pet. This is but a minor delay.”

“Promise?” You whispered to Loki as you smiled politely at the last gentleman to exit the elevator, an older Police Chief. Something cold, and feeling distinctly like his fingertips, tweaked your right nipple. You jumped, looking at Loki standing a off to your left. Magic.

He just gave you a wicked smile. Oh, yes. It promised.

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#loki x reader #loki fanfic #loki fic #loki fan fiction #loki layfeyson x reader

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dragonstoravens · 4 years

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Babylon Vol. 1: Meetings (2.0)

[ID: a blue patterned banner with text reading “BABYLON.” End ID.]

(A few changes have been made to this chapter post-beta reading, so here’s the newest version. I will also be posting chapter 2 today, and hopefully keeping to an update schedule until all of book 1 is posted. I’ll also be making a masterpost, so people can easily read from the beginning. Happy reading!)

READ ON WATTPAD HERE!

1. Meetings

Azure looked at the comm line as it lit up and made a soft buzz. She wiped her hands on her pants and turned off the tool she was using. "Ma's not supposed to call me this early in the month..." she muttered, donning a headset and tapping the answer key. "Ma? It’s a couple weeks early, isn't it?"

There was a long pause, before someone cleared their throat and a vaguely confused sounding, yet still determinedly professional baritone voice said, “...Dr. Zaraya? Is that you?”

“Been a while since someone’s called me Doctor, but no, I don’t think I’m the one you’re lookin’ for." She scratched her head, also confused. "This is Ma’s line.” She thought for a moment and added, “If you compromise her comfort I'll personally fling you into a star."

“...Her daughter?”

“Use child, kid, or spawn if you would. Not exactly a daughter.”

“My apologies,” he amended swiftly. “And your pronouns?”

“She and her, still. They’s too mushy in the mouth for me.” She smiled a little. To Azure, it never got old to have someone ask and correct themselves that quickly.

The man made a soft noise of assent. “At least you know the Doctor. She’s been exceedingly difficult to find so far. My name is Trinity Jericho-- he/him, please-- and your mother built something for me some time ago. I need her to repair it.”

"Oh boy. I got some awful news for you, pal." She transferred the line to a more secure one, a soft beep in the background as she did. "She doesn't really have the time to make fixes these days, she's under lock and key. She can't play mechanic for you, even if she wanted to."

Trinity let out a long, hissing breath. “She’s still under house arrest? I suppose they must have changed their security sometime in the past three years…” He sounded genuinely frustrated, even through that calm, professional voice. “Well... thank you for your time. I apologize about the wrong number.”

On the other end of the line, Azzy frowned. Of course her Ma was still under house arrest, that’s how life sentences work. She would ordinarily have let him hang up, but she hated the idea of something her mother custom made breaking down and going obsolete. "Well now, hold on a minute-” she blurted. ”I said she can't do it. If it's a fix you need, I can handle it." She shifted in her seat and dropped her feet onto her desk with a heavy clunk. "Jericho, is it? What am I working with, and what was the year of installation? If it's Ma's custom work, you're not gonna find a single soul that can figure those connections out faster than I can, and you sound like the busy sort."

“...Hm.” A pause, as he seemed to consider her offer. “Well, with anyone else I’d say it’s impossible, since the model is one of a kind, but it seems as if you’re the best chance I have. It’s a right eyeball, basic internal connection to the brain for sight, along with some extra capabilities. Installed in 30XX. Something went wrong about a week ago, and I lost all movement in that eye and most of my sight. I’d like to have depth perception again.”

Azure rubbed her temple. "An eyeball in 30XX..." Another hum. "I think I remember her mentionin’ somethin’ like that. Here." A ping sounded to her device, notifying her that the message had been sent. "Head to those coordinates, I'll get you cleared with my cap’n to come aboard, and we'll get you seein' right faster’n a warp speed jump to your next door neighbor."

There was another chime sound from his end as he received the coordinates. “That’s not too for from where I am— I can be there in an hour. Is your workshop on a space station? These coordinates seem a bit high to be planetside.”

"Of a sort. Ping when you arrive, don't get too smart no matter how saucy the helmsman tries to be with you. Good luck." The call ended with a click. Azure leaned back in her chair and hit another button, this one connected to the ship’s onboard intercom. "Indigo, I have a personal request, and I need it approved fast."

Trinity was nothing if not punctual. Almost exactly an hour later, the airlock door of the enormous cargo freighter that was Rebel Blue opened to reveal a handsome young man with sandy colored hair swept back away from his forehead. Behind one ear was a longer piece of hair braided neatly with a black glass bead, and tiny black studs glinted in his earlobes. He had a black cap pulled low over his face, a casual touch that looked completely out of place next to the rest of his clothes-- a dark green button down, black slacks, and dress shoes. He stood with his hands loose at his sides, a posture of practiced calm.

Azure, her hands clean for once in her life, greeted him at the lock, cybernetics quietly crackling. Her beanie was slouching precariously towards the back of her head, her brassy red dyed hair braided neatly to the side. She carried herself with an easy slouch. One look and you could just tell this person did not ever sit in chairs properly if they could help it. "Azure. Pleasure to meet you, welcome to the ship. Hope Smalls didn't get too fresh with ya."

“The pleasure is mine.” In person, his voice was quiet, smooth, and just expressive enough to sound friendly. As he approached to shake her hand, she caught a glimpse of his right eye from under the brim of his cap. It was the same deep emerald green as the left one and looked perfectly normal, except for the fact that it was completely motionless, creating the somewhat unsettling effect that he was always staring directly at her. Unlike some visitors they had, he didn’t look like he’d been too put off by the ship’s snarky AI pilot. “He was fine, but I get the impression that your ship doesn’t typically get many visitors.” He looked around- with one eye, at least. The other stayed locked in place. “I… can’t say I’m too surprised. Forgive me, but this place looks more like a cargo carrier than a passenger ship or station.”

She was entirely unphased, peering into the motionless eye with a thoughtful look that softened the hard set of her jaw. "That's because it is. Handled the retrofittin’ myself." She turned and started walking, the crackling subsiding as it became clear he was actually here for maintenance and not to ransack the ship. "I hope you don't mind, I'm not great at pleasantries so I'm just gonna take you straight to the med for the standard exam. I’m a doctor in cybernetics, not you know...doctorin’."

“Of course. As long as you can fix my eye I don’t particularly care what your conversational skills are.” He put his hands in his pockets-- again, casual in a way that seemed like an affectation. He was a little too careful not to shove or ruin the line of the slacks. “Speaking of eyes, do you truly need me to close mine? Your pilot kept cracking jokes about security.”

She rolled her eyes. "Nah, Smalls is just fuckin’ with you. There’s enough firepower aboard the ship that you’d likely die on sight if you tried anythin’, and half the place is still storage anyway so it really ain’t worth much to get into." It didn’t seem like a real threat or warning, but a casual observation. She led him to an elevator and pressed a button. "As far as business goes, you might be interested to know I worked on your eye durin’ the initial blueprintin’ phases."

“Oh, is that so?” He sounded vaguely impressed. “I suppose more people knew about it than I thought. Up until now— well, up until recently, I assumed only I and your mother knew about it.” He didn’t seem too upset about the revelation, but perhaps it was just the unshakable calm that he seemed to carry with him. Neither his voice or his face betrayed much emotion beyond the words he spoke-- at best, the sort of interest one might have in talking about the weather.

"Oh, it’s just you me and Ma, unless you're a blabbermouth. And I didn’t know who it was for at all until you called." The elevator door slid open and she stepped inside, pressing another button and leaning leisurely against the wall. "She called your eye the Babylon Project. Joke about your name, I'm assumin'. I helped design some of the attachments and recordin’ implements."

He chuckled. “That’s a decent pseudonym, though I don’t think those two cities have any real biblical connection. Perhaps I’ll use it sometime.” He pursed his lips. “My work tends to require that I keep my mouth shut, so most of the details are under lock and key. Mistakes happen, but I intend to keep it that way as much as I can. I’m sure you can see how some of the functions work best if they stay unknown.” Unbidden, the memory of one time he hadn’t been able to keep his mouth shut sprung to mind, and he frowned. He still hoped that particular interaction wouldn’t come back to bite him. He certainly wouldn’t be the one to seek it out.

"I'm nothin' if not able to keep a secret. Talkin’ gives me hives." It could have been a joke, maybe. The elevator doors slid closed, and then opened a few long moments later. "You're about to meet Pthalo. She conducts all her business on paper so you can burn evidence if you wish. It's standard protocol to have an uninvolved medic test for health, I'm sure you're aware."

“Yes, I understand the need for doctors. There was a similar procedure when I got it.” He smiled. “The eye itself isn’t the secret, just the functions. Thanks to your mother, it looks like a high tech prosthetic unless you know better.”

"Unfortunately, more and more people know better lately. We might need some updates here ‘n there just to keep it tidy."

As they reached the doors to what must be the med bay, they were greeted by a blue alien with a gentle yellow glow beneath her skin in a pristine white lab coat. Her voice was just barely noticeably dual-layered, harmonizing with itself under her breath.

"Good evening, my name is Pthalo. Azure's going to let me take it from here, and I'll lead you to her workshop after the appointment." She gestured to the room behind her and to the right, windows looking into a pristine medical bay, a pitbull posted just outside the door.

“Hello, Pthalo, I’m Trinity Jericho.” He glanced down at the dog, his expression changing to make him look younger, somehow. “May I pet her?”

Pthalo gave a sunny smile. She oozed sunshine. "Oh you're more than welcome. Her name is Payne, she's the ship-wide emotional support animal." Payne's tail began a steady rhythmic thumping against the floor as he approached, eyes closing as soon as his hand touched her head. This was a very good dog.

Despite his earlier actions-- cooly professional posture, minute care for his fancy clothing-- Azzy watched as Trinity now knelt down right next to the dog without a care for the dusty floor. He scratched industriously behind the ears, using both hands, and the first real smile Azure had seen from him came to his face. It was...cute. “Who’s a good girl? You are, yes you are!” After a while of similar whispered baby talk and petting he finally stood, almost reluctantly. The smile remained a moment longer, fading back into obscurity as he moved towards the med bay door. “Sorry for the delay. That’s a very good dog you have, ma’am. I’ve never seen a ship with an emotional support dog, but it’s actually quite a good idea. Maybe I’ll suggest it to my company.”

"It's no problem, being pet all day is her entire job." Pthalo gently closed the door behind them, and Azure could be seen through the windows making her way down the hall, presumably to her lab. "The ship takes all types, dogs couldn't judge if they wanted to. We have a few members that make use of her presence daily, she's become quite spoiled. I'd say anything that's good for low level employee morale and health is good for the company, but that's not news I'm sure." She gestured to an examination table. "Hop up, shirt off. Please point out where the prosthetic is."

“No, I understand that concept well enough.” He looked back down to address Payne. "I’m sure it’s just as good for you as it is for everyone else, huh girl?” The dog panted and grinned. Trinity smiled back, and then turned his attention back to Phalo. He took off his hat, carefully fixing his hair that had been trapped beneath, and unbuttoned his shirt, revealing a tattoo across his left collarbone showing three small but beautifully detailed birds in flight, just over his heart. Each one’s pattern and shape was unique. The opposite collarbone was decorated with something that looked like a half-destroyed tower. The tattoo seemed to continue onto his back, out of sight. He got onto the table, and looked back up and over at Pthalo. “Right here.” He pointed to the motionless eye.

Pthalo startled but regained her composure almost instantaneously. "You know, I probably could have guessed that, eh?" A gentle smile. "Do you wash it regularly? Was this a loss of operation due to trauma or defect?" She was walking around to collect tools as she glanced at a clipboard. "Azure gave me a quick rundown, but these checkpoints are odd, even for a standard prosthesis upgrade...." She glanced over him once, then moved in to look closer at his eye.

“The nerves were damaged in an accident. I was legally blind for a while. The other eye was salvageable, but the right optic nerve kept deteriorating so I eventually just gave in and replaced it. It’s very high tech, for a prosthetic,” he explained. “I wash it regularly, and follow all the care instructions, so it should move freely but it started locking up about a week ago. That’s why I’m getting it fixed- or upgraded, I suppose,” he corrected. That would likely make more sense with Azure’s position as a cybernetic engineer. Cybernetic upgrades to an existing prosthetic weren’t uncommon.

"I have to wonder...." She continued to look him over quietly, clearly contemplating something as she checked his vitals. Now that she was doing work, she became much more serious. Her movements flowed like water, seamlessly transitioning from one test to another, until eventually the medically-minded dance ended, and she made a few marks on her clipboard. "Well, Mister Jericho," she smiled, "it would seem you're healthy as a clam. Happy as a horse? Oh, what's the saying? Terran idioms are difficult." She passed his shirt to him. "You may just want to keep that off, if I know anything about Azure's process, it may get dirty if you keep it on."

“To be honest, I prefer your versions of the idiom.” He carefully folded the shirt over his arm and slid off the table, giving Pthalo a professional smile. “Thank you.” He turned to head towards the door, just as the clunk of a pair of boots and the soft snuffling of two dogs greeting each other heralded someone in the hall outside. A woman poked her head through the door, a different pit bull in a red harness pressed up against her shin.

“Hey, Pthalo, I—“ her eyes fell on Trinity and widened. Silence reigned for a brief moment, and then the woman shook her head as if to clear it. “Hold that thought.” The door shut again and heavy bootfalls clattered off down the hall again. Faster, this time, like she was running.

"Cadet! Cadet you can't just-" Someday, Pthalo thought, people would tell her what was going on. She sighed and rubbed her temple before turning to Trinity. "I'm sorry, could you stay here a moment?" She opened the door and gestured Payne in, who plopped down at his feet with her tongue out. "I've not been given enough information and I've an awful feeling I'm going to need to get Azure." With that, she quietly stepped outside to place some kind of call. Things didn’t ever stop moving on this ship.

Trinity frowned as Pthalo left the room. Something had been strange about that woman, beyond just her reaction to seeing him. If he’d met her before, he certainly couldn’t place her. With not much else to work with, he sighed softly, sat back down, and started petting Payne. His good eye scanned the room for any possible exits— he hoped this wasn’t turning into a trap, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

In the hall outside, Pthalo breathed a sigh of relief as the call was answered. Azure’s voice on the other end emanated confusion. "Azure, who is Mr. Jericho? I feel like maybe you've lied to me given Cadet bolted at the sight."

At the sound of her name, Cadet halted and turned to walk back towards the med bay. She sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. “Shit, ok. Pthalo, I don’t think she knows either.” She leaned over to speak into the receiver as well, addressing Azure. “I mean, unless you do know him, in which case that’s a whole different ball game.”

Azure's voice over the comm came through with thinly veiled annoyance. "At most, he's a family client, and that's really stretchin' the definition. I'm on my way up, hold on a minute."

Pthalo looked at Cadet. "What's the issue? He's here for cybernetic treatment, we're sending him on his way after."

“Well, hopefully that’s all he’s here for,” Cadet said. “I’ve only met the guy once, and his intentions were fine that time, if a bit misguided, but...” She lowered her voice a bit. “He works for Fate. I never got his name, but I recognize that face. It could be a coincidence he’s here now, but I don’t like it. We can’t take chances when that bastard’s involved."

It was at that moment Azure stepped out of the elevator to join them, hanging up the call as the doors opened. "He never mentioned anything about his work. He needs his eye fixed, it isn’t movin’." Her left hand fiddled with a set of goggles in her pocket.

Pthalo rubbed her temple again. Someday she’d have an aneurysm, and then they’d all be sorry. "Let's take care of him first and you can question him after. The man's shirtless in my med bay and I'd like him out so I can focus on some more important matters."

Cadet sighed. “Alright, fair enough. But we have a decision to make.” She looked around at the other two. “Are we telling Perry? Either he already knows she’s here, or he’s actually totally clueless again, and I don’t know how to tell. Plus, Perry basically told the guy they’d kill him if they saw him again. We might be looking at a tussle if things don’t go well.”

Azure glared up at the ceiling, trying her best to figure out how not to out who her mother was in the process. "He isn't here because he was specifically lookin’ for me, even. I really don't think he knows Perry is here. It seems he’s just real unlucky, not everyone can be God’s favorite."

Pthalo's gaze bored into them both, but she said nothing.

Inside, Payne took to licking Trinity's face.

Cadet stared Azure down for a bit, as if she was trying to pull more details out of her with nothing but a steely gaze, then sighed. “Ok. I believe you. We just have to hope Perry stays away from the lab while you work, then, and best case scenario he leaves without ever knowing they’re here.”

"I'll take him straight down." Azzy wasted no time, stepping into the med bay with her hands in her pockets. Payne immediately ceased her licking and barked once. "Sorry Payne, you'll have to end your bath for now." She shifted her gaze to Trinity. "C'mon, we've got work to do. Doc cleared you so we're set."

Trinity smiled slightly as he got up, with one last pat to Payne and a quick backwards glance at Cadet as he followed Azure down the hall. He still couldn’t quite place her. Maybe it was the voice that was familiar, but she’d barely spoken directly to him so he didn’t have a lot to go on. His best bet was to do as he was asked without asking questions or protesting. Acting like something was wrong was never a good idea in a situation like this. Better to ride it out as quickly as possible.

Azzy led Trinity to the elevator and hit another button, much more alert and tense than when she first greeted him. As soon as the door was closed, she turned on him. She didn’t mince words, tone dry and calculated. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she hoped against all hope he wouldn’t try and call her bluff. Perry’s safety depended on it.

"Who are you, and why are you here, and how did you get that number?"

Trinity took half a step back in the tight confines of the elevator, feeling a strange sense of deja vu. A knife-sharp British accent echoed in his mind-- ‘I know why you’re here. Do you?’ He kept his voice as steady as possible, easily slipping into the icily calm tone drilled into him through years of practice. He didn’t want to give her a reason to jump. “I’m Trinity Jericho, I’m here because my right eye doesn’t work, and I found the number after weeks of digging trying to get ahold of your mother so she could fix it.” He held his hands out, palms up, though despite the gesture of surrender his expression never wavered. “I swear on the Jericho name.”

Azure stepped towards Trinity, her diminutive height the only thing stopping her from truly towering as she searched his gaze. Static filled the elevator, making the hair on his neck stand on end. After a moment, she seemed satisfied, and the elevator doors opened. She shook her hands a little, and the crackling coming from them ceased. Her slouch returned. "I believe you, you don't seem the overtly underhanded sort. I'm sure I'll find out I’m wrong once I’m dead, though." She walked out and led him to a workshop with a single long glass wall, and one wall covered in plans and blueprints and molecular structures and anatomy drawings, some printed and some by hand. She gestured to a seat in the middle of the room. "How's your pain tolerance?"

Trinity frowned at Azure’s back as they headed into the room. She was certainly one to watch. That static was highly unusual, even among the most powerful cybernetics he’d worked with. “High. Especially around the eye, since the nerve’s completely cybernetic.” He sat, crossing his arms. “I don’t particularly enjoy being out of the loop,” he said, conversationally. “Would you care to explain any of that?”

Azure considered Trinity’s comment as she rummaged in a drawer. "I sure would love to, but that seems like it would invoke the ire of someone best left alone." She glanced at a screen and filled a syringe.

"I will tell you one thing though; no one on this ship knows who my mother is, and it's best that it stay that way. The illustrious Dr. Zaraya is understandably tough to reach, and if every cred-hoarder with an itch for a bionic-dick knew I was out here and capable of practice, not one of us on this ship would get any of the privacy or quiet we need, least of all me." She turned and gestured to his arm while she continued. "I'm no good at lyin, it's usually better that I just don't say a damn thing, but this ship with all it's colorful backgrounds make that a little tough, and so on occasion I’m called to do some talkin’ I’m not suited for."

Trinity let out a long breath. “Alright, give me a moment to run that through my southern drawl translator.” There was a surprising level of joking sarcasm in the comment, despite the situation. Maybe because of the situation-- it seemed like his ability to keep that calm exterior was waning a tad. The sarcasm seemed more natural for him, somehow. He paused, then continued. “First of all, no one will get this number from me. I didn’t intend to find it in the first place, although I’m glad I did. And yes, the other people I’ve met so far do seem… colorful. Who is it you don’t wish to make angry, the woman with the... metal arm?” He frowned as he said it, as if the words had some deeper meaning to him, but the look was gone in a moment.

"Cadet's just fine." She glanced at him from the corner of her eye and held the syringe next to his arm. "One, two, three." She poked him, pressing in the plunger as she spoke. True to his word, he didn’t flinch. "It would seem you're just the ladder climbin' sort, which isn't the worst thing to be, truth be told. That just tends to not sit well with certain members of our little crew here is all. Bein' well connected is dangerous, and it's why I'm gonna have to be the only one you let touch this eye of yours. Anyone catches the signature on it, you're in for tinkerin'." She walked back over to her desk after removing the needle and started digging through drawers filled with various tools. "The problem with your eye can be handled without taking it out. It's not infected, and it looks like you take care of it exactly as you were told, so it oughta be a case of replacing a coupla nodes and maybe beefin up the temp control to preserve 'em for longer."

“Perfect. I don’t plan to let anyone see it, anyway. That’s why I was looking for your mother to do this in the first place. It’s best to keep it among people who already know how it works.” He smirked slightly. “On that note, since you know how it works, you can be confident I’m not bugging this ship. And as for improvements, I won’t say no to anything that makes it less likely I’ll have to impose on you again for a while.”

"It's every cybernetics engineer's dream to make an installation and never see the person again, while somehow knowin' nobody else touched it." She passed him an eye patch. The front of it was embroidered with a skull and crossbones. It was very clearly from a costume. "This is for your good eye. I'm turning this one off, so you can't watch me mess around. Tends to freak the brain out."

He gave the patch an expressionless once over, but pulled it over his good eye without comment. “I’ve been walking around with this one not moving or processing depth for over a week, and seeing at maybe half capacity. I think my vertigo has vertigo.”

Azure allowed herself a little giggle of amusement. It came out somewhere between a laugh and a snort. "Tell me about it. One little thing goes haywire and the whole thing stops workin'." There was the quiet buzz of a tool he couldn't see. "I'm a…” She searched for the term that preserved her identity best. “...fully integrated user, and sometimes, if I don't do maintenance at the exact right time, my ankle shuts off. I trip and drop whatever I’m holdin’ and it’s just a damn mess."

“Yes, I noticed the sparking. Unique, although that’s not surprising considering who your mother is. I’m no expert, but I’ve done a lot of research to make sure I use and care for mine properly. This is the first time it’s broken in a way I can’t fix since I got it, which is a testament to quality if I’ve ever heard one.”

"Flatterin’." It was said with amusement, but she was hard at work, her hands occasionally brushing against his face, gentle but sure. "You're one of the smart ones, although that's because you don't treat 'em like a science set the way I do." She took a step back and hummed, the toe of her heavy boot tapping against the floor. "Remind me of the finer points of this thing. I recall the Babylon project well enough for my part in it, but I'm sure the good doctor put somethin’ else in this sucker for you."

“Right. I have found that the best ways to learn are observation and experimentation. I imagine you’re a bit of a climber yourself.” He smirked. “You probably know most of this, but I’ll give the rundown. The eye’s really just the center of the implant, there’s a cybernetic nervous system in place spreading from the optic nerve to the brain stem. The biggest feature she added besides the basic eye functions is the sensor. If I can get a clear line of sight to anything tech based, my eye can communicate with it and set up a one way sensor. Video and audio, streamed directly into my brain’s image processing centers. I can only have one up at a time unless I want to make my brain bleed, according to her. I’ve never tried. It’s extremely difficult to find even if you know exactly what you’re looking for. If it does get found, it’s one way so it doesn’t trace back, and it's programmed to decode itself if you dig too deep. Nothing’s infallible, though, so I prefer it if people don’t know I can do it at all. People tend to be suspicious of you if they know you have a nearly undetectable way to spy on them, and I prefer that people trust me.” He gave her a sardonic smile, seeming to recognize the irony of that statement, before continuing.

“In terms of other cybernetics, there are a few implants I have that aren’t directly connected to the eye.” He patted his thigh. “Leg taser, installed separately by a different engineer. It’s basic tech, off the shelf. The other one’s connected to the same neural network as the eye, but it’s kind of a filter function, like an extremely fast-working cybernetic liver. I can drink all day and never feel it if I so desire, and it’s extremely useful if I think someone’s trying to poison me.” The bitter twist to his lips made her wonder how often that kind of situation came up in his daily life.

Azure looked him up and down, deep in thought. She didn’t say anything for a minute or two, and then she stepped forward to continue her work. "Who put in the liver filter? Cybernetics take up a lot of energy, alcohol is a great fuel for short bursts of speed or even to power the taser...." She was mumbling now and a few sparks flew from the eye and landed to cool on his cheek before he heard her set the tool down and grabbed another one. "Wouldn't be hard to add something to give you a digital readout to an outside device to track things filtered, the filter itself could probably use an analyser update depending on when you got it, and if they're hooked to the same network but the thigh isn't, you're running at half energy efficiency and that's a cryin’ shame.”

Trinity heard a soft click and his eye turned back on. Azure was holding a board in front of him with a few lines on it. "Here, calibrate a minute before you take the eye patch off."

He nodded and obeyed, taking note of the changes she’d made as he waited. The site of the prosthetic felt slightly cooler than it used to, a little less noticeable and more comfortable. His sight seemed to be back to normal, but there was the suggestion of a zoom function tickling at the back of his head. She hadn’t mentioned that part, and it wasn’t immediately obvious how to activate it. Rather than experiment further, he returned his attention to the question she’d asked him.

“Your mother did most of the installation on the neural network, including the liver. I was a bit worried about poisoning at the time so I asked if cybernetics could do something about that. She went a bit above and beyond with it, but I won’t complain.” He blinked the eye several times, adjusting to the return of his sight. “Honestly, those updates sound helpful. I’ve taken to externally charging the taser so it doesn’t drain me so much, but I’ve got some burns to show for it when the external charges overheat or don’t line up right with the implant.”

“Lord mercy, do not ever charge that externally.” She frowned in his periphery, a cringe at the mention of the burns. “That’s how you wreck your actually organic nerves until they’re crispy. We're fixin' that today, shouldn't be hard. Where'd you have your main port installed?" She started circling his seat and looking him over, eyes narrowed as the gears began turning in her head.

“What’s a little more nerve damage?” He quipped, but it seemed offhand. He was too busy ‘searching’ the eye for any further functions to notice, squinting and experimenting as he looked around the room. There was an almost hungry look of excitement on his face as he did so, as well as evident relief at the more comfortable feeling. Somewhere in his brain, he found a "camera" function, complete with what felt like an output...idea? The suggestion of a way to export something. After a moment he seemed to process her question. He tapped the back of his neck, between the tops of his shoulder blades, easily concealed by almost any clothing. Just above it was a large, elaborate tattoo in the shape of a Celtic trinity knot, and another tattoo of a crumbling wall stretched across his toned back, curving over his spine and around his shoulder blades. It seemed meant to join up with the half-destroyed tower inked on his collarbone opposite the birds. The birds were flying towards it, she realized. Towards the wreckage-- or maybe away from the crumbling wall? As with all his tattoos, the placement and detail must have been painful. No wonder his pain tolerance was high.“Here. Direct to the spine.”

She walked around him once more and pulled a triple ended cord seemingly from nowhere. She handed a screen to him, one already set aside for herself. A few taps of her screen, and his lit up with a mapping of his nervous system and the cybernetics attached to it. "Oh man, you see that jumble there?" She points to what looked like a tangle of cables in his neck. "I'm going to move those."

“Go right ahead.” He watched the screen with clear interest, a cousin to the hunger she’d noticed in his eyes before. “Did you make this? What a useful way to interface. I usually just end up poking around until I find what I need, but it’s much more efficient laid out this way.”

She kept tapping and then suddenly, he could not feel his liver or taser. But he could feel, as if through a fog, something sliding beneath his skin. On the screen, tendrils of nodes and wiring pulled away from nerves and muscles.

"Yeah, made it myself. Diagnostic tools're incredibly helpful, do you not have one?" She wasn’t looking at him, looking intently at her screen. "The extra screen you're holding I programmed myself, I figured it was useful for those of us who're a little on the paranoid side when it comes to physical interactions. I'm tryin to find a way to adapt it to standard medicine but my expertise isn't in temporary cybernetics, so I'm still doin’ research on how to make that work."

“I have a simple one, but it really only works for the taser because that’s standard. It gets confused trying to diagnose anything your mother did, and sets off all kinds of alarms when nothing’s wrong.” He grinned as he watched the wiring pull away on the screen. “Yours is… intriguing. I’ve dabbled in temporary and external cybernetics, just a part of my business, but I’m not the company expert. Maybe it could work like a cybernetic endoscope, where you swallow a camera in order to watch the live feed? It would have to be adapted and attached in a way that it could view the nerves, though, instead of the throat or digestive system.”

"That's an interestin’ idea, I'll look into it." She sounded genuine enough, for how distracted she looked. More tapping, and the wiring changed direction, beginning to spread along the length of the spine and daisy-chaining itself along the vertebrae. "As for the diagnostic tool, it makes sense that the consumer basic one wouldn't work with Ma's design. I'll get you one that works, I got plenty, and upkeep's important enough to your health that it's gonna be necessary anyway." She laughed a little to herself. "Not to mention I feel annoyed FOR you with the false alarms."

He chuckled too, nearly too quietly to hear. “Yes, I’ll admit it is frustrating. Thank you... Azure.” It took him a minute to remember her name, having only heard it a few times since boarding the ship, but as soon as he did, his brow furrowed, like he was remembering something. “...What was it you called that other woman, before?”

She glanced up at him, confused, but returned to her work a moment later. "Pthalo? The doctor?" After a moment, her brow also furrowed, and she squinted at him. If he was putting pieces together, then she really needed to get him out of here, for his own safety. "...or are you talking about Cadet?"

His fingers dug into his thigh. She winced, visualizing the newly placed wiring i'm there, but he didn’t flinch. “Cadet, that was it. Now where do I...” he paused again, thinking, and as no more explanation seemed to be immediately forthcoming, Azure returned her attention to the screen.

His liver reconnected, and so did his taser. She continued tapping on her screen, and slowly but surely, a couple more function concepts entered his brain. "You should feel a little less tired at the end of the day now, and you shouldn't need to eat nearly as often."

He shook his head, looking back at her. “That’s going to be quite helpful, thank you. And how do I activate the other functions you added? I can tell there’s a zoom function in the eye, and a few other things, but I don’t know your signature.”

She looked up at him, confused for a moment. Then something clicked, and for the first time since he'd met her, she looked bashful. "Oh, my bad. I always forget about new people." She scratched her head. "It uh.... requires some attunin’. I don't like tellin’ people how to live their lives so-" she waved vaguely at the air, "you'll need to assign a thought pattern or physical movement to each of them, and it'll write to the main core."

“Smart.” He smiled. “I’ll have to take some time to do that later. I like the way you have it set up, though, where I know it’s there without being told. It feels natural.” He still sounded a tiny bit distracted, like he was lost in thought, but genuinely happy about the developments.

"I don't like being overly aware of mine, so I assume non obtrusive is the way to go for others as well." She detached her cords and handed him his shirt, and started rummaging through her things, head in cupboards. "Let me know if things start actin’ strange, I'll send you my regular ping address so I don't confuse you for Ma again. That line isn’t really supposed to ring unless it’s her, you can imagine how confused I was."

Trinity stood up and pulled his shirt on, buttoning it all the way up once more.“I appreciate it. Thank you for the tune-up, as well as the other updates. How much do I owe—“ he froze suddenly, his eyes widening and mouth falling slightly open as the puzzle he’d been trying to solve all afternoon suddenly clicked into place. For some reason, even as his face grew more expressive, his voice became less so. He quieted, as if afraid someone outside the door would overhear. “Ah. I should really leave.”

"Oh it’s only a few-" She squinted at him, and then sighed. She’d REALLY hoped to avoid a freakout of any kind. Her voice remained level and she carefully closed the cupboard she’d been digging in. "You frequent a very specific bar, do you not?”

He nodded with a tight little smile, and began to move towards the door. “If I recall, you owed someone 10 credits from that little situation.” She almost had to strain to hear him, even from just a few feet away. “They asked you if having an eye like mine was possible, to verify my story. That’s where I heard your name. And you knew from before we got in the elevator.” He faced her, expression deadly serious. “I will swear to you again that I didn’t track anyone down to get here except your mother. But I’d prefer not to be found here, just in case someone else doesn’t believe me.”

She sighed again, hands crackling once more as she shook them. Sparks flew to the ground and petered out. “That bet ended in a draw, thanks to Ma. Follow me, move quiet, get your hat on and don't talk." She looked at a nearby screen for a moment, thinking, nodes at her joints beneath her skin glowing a pale purple. "I believe you, there's no way for you to have found that number without knowing who my ma is. You're not gonna die, I can talk them down, but that's not something I WANT to do because I’m shit at talkin’, so let's just go." She brushed past him and began her trek down the hall.

He did as she said, pulling the cap down over his face and following behind her. “I know I’ve already been recognized, so I assume the only reason I’m still onboard is that you and the others who saw me agreed not to share that information.”

Azure sighed as she entered the elevator, bouncing nervously on the balls of her feet. "Cadet recognized you, but I don't think she or Pthalo really want to bother you at this point." She glanced over. "One hell of an impression you must have made, if your neck wasn't snapped on sight." She curled her hand into a fist and then shot her fingers out over and over, little static pulses emanating through the room each time. "I don't think I need to tell you that you can probably find a much better role model than the one you've got. Partially because you can probably tell by now, and partially because my opinion ain't gonna matter to you much."

He shook his head incredulously, and backed up just slightly from her crackling hands to lean against the elevator wall. “You know, I think this is a first for me. The only other people I’ve met who treat me like a criminal over who I work for are business competitors.” He sighed, still watching her hands carefully. “I appreciate the opinion, but no one’s perfect. He’s a great leader and a great businessman, and at the very least I can learn from that. I don’t appreciate his advances towards your friend, and I understand the danger he poses, but considering how well defended everyone on this ship seems to be, is it truly this much of a problem?”

Azure looked at him, her voice measured. The accent seemed to disappear with how carefully she spoke. Each word dripped with weight. "Did you ever think about why he tries to find her, when she so clearly doesn't want to be found? Did you really think about the fact he does this so often, so routinely, the same way every time, to the point where if it had been anyone else that had made that eye, if it was any less high tech or more well known, you would've probably ended up helping him find her whether you meant to or not? You don't know what he did before he got to be the cutthroat he is, and why he's that way to begin with." She glared at the elevator doors as they opened. "You're a climber, and that's all well and dandy, so you probably don't really care all that much because it's none of your business, therefore it shouldn’t have anythin’ to do with you. But it is OUR business. And we don't like him because he's maybe the lowest life form we're aware of, and we care for our own."

He watched her as she spoke, expression impassive. Silence reigned for a few moments after she finished, and he used the time to process her words before responding, slow and calm. “I understand. I have accepted that I am a criminal to some, and I’m sure it’s justified in many cases. At least I can appreciate your loyalty. I have some of my own.” He looked over at her, meeting her eyes with a directness that seemed to cut through all the tension between them. “Here is what I can promise you. No one will be getting that number, and no one will learn anything about this ship or who’s on it from me. I’ll pay you for the fix and improvements, and hopefully stay well out of your way from now on. But if the eye breaks again... I’d rather have you fix it than anyone else. I’ll understand if that isn’t an option.”

Azure looked up at him and something behind her eyes softened, though her hands continued crackling. She looked almost concerned, even after her diatribe. The elevator doors opened once more, and she began her beeline to the docking bay. "I'll always fix somethin' Ma made when it breaks. Hopefully it doesn't break often though. The bill will reach you later. Won't be much, I made some easy adjustments." She looked back at him. "And I never said I thought you were a criminal. I said your boss sucked ass. I think you've got lofty goals and an eye for progress, and for some people the ends to that progress justify the means, and I’m not really one to act like I know what’s right or wrong in that situation."

“Fair enough.” He watched her hands with just a touch of apprehension, and adopted a slightly more casual tone. “If anyone here could be considered a criminal, I wouldn’t be too surprised if it was you and your friends. Not that I have room to judge.”

She laughed. "Hey, I'm just the mechanic, unregistered custom implants notwithstanding. You'd be behind on your paperwork too if you tinkered as often as I do."

“I realize those implants are absolutely not industry standard… but neither are mine. I doubt anything your family makes is. You realize you could easily rip me apart using those, yes?”

Her brows shot up into her beanie, then quickly lowered themselves as she ran numbers in her head. She looked down at her hands, crackling with nervous energy, like they were an interesting puzzle. "...I hadn't thought about it. I wouldn't know where to start to get the accuracy high enough to accomplish dismemberment." She looked at him, expression far away and distracted. "...SHOULD I be able to rip you apart?"

He huffed out a quiet breath, on the edge of becoming an anxious laugh. “I’d very much rather you didn’t! I’m just saying I’ve never seen anything like your cybernetics before. You’re telling me you’re that powerful of an integrated user and you’ve never realized what you could do?”

She looked down at her arms, and her brow furrowed. "I'm always tinkerin’ with 'em, I knew they were good but I figured the market for 'em was high enough someone else would've had 'em figured out as well eventually. I guess throwin' trains isn't a common necessity. Technically it's not necessary for me either but....I need them to be like this to accomplish the goals that I’ve got for later. I’m on a steppin’ stone right now." Her face was almost bewildered. "...I could kick Crim's ass."

“You shouldn’t be directly fighting anyone, with that kind of power!” His volume rose a degree, and he clamped his lips back over the sound before anything else could escape. Logically, she was probably joking, but the idea of what she could do to another human being with those tiny, sparking hands was genuinely unsettling. He removed his hat to run a hand anxiously through his hair, replacing it immediately afterwards, and muttered something to himself that sounded a bit like the beginning of a Hail Mary with a touch more swearing. This was certainly a different side of him than the buttoned up businessman that had presented himself in the ship’s airlock a few hours ago. “Trains. Jesus. I’m damned glad you haven’t decided I’m your enemy, Azure.”

"Shit, me too." She would have giggled if she didn’t feel sort of foolish for not having the realization herself. "It's not that hard, I just eat a lot. It only gets tough when I'm nervous." The airlock was within sight now. She gestured ahead. "Your ride is waiting."

He shook his head, letting out a long breath. “I feel like I’ve dodged at least three bullets and I’ve barely been here an hour.” He held out a hand to her with a crooked smile. “Nice to meet you, Azure. It’s been bad for my blood pressure.”

She shook off the static again and shook his hand. "Pleasure's mine, Trinity. See a doctor about that." She gave a little wave and hollered to no one in particular, "Disembarking personnel bay five, open the airlock!"

And with that, the doors slid open.

Trinity gave her a final wave before that cool businesslike persona reasserted itself over the person Azure had somehow caught a glimpse of-- someone who smiled, baby-talked dogs, and bastardized Catholic prayers if you caught him off guard. Shoulders back, he turned and strode down the gangplank to where his own pod waited to return him home.

Taglist (ask to be added or removed!): @glitterandstarshine @rainbowcoloreddays @the-starlight-chills @erased-in-stone @charlottedotexe

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wordywarriorwrites · 5 years

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Chapter 17: Deliverance

Masterlist: The Boss of Brooklyn A03 Story Link Author: @wordywarriorwrites Summary: When it comes to being The Boss, James Buchanan “JB” Barnes rules with an iron fist. For him, there’s no room for sentiment, and certainly no time for distraction, even if it is in the form of an old flame. Steve Rogers had bowed out of the life a long time ago, but a twist of fate brings him right back into the fold, and face-to-face with a man he once loved. When a game of cat and mouse turns into a matter of life and death, both will be forced to decide whether they’ll be loyal to the business, or faithful to each other. A/N: Bucky Barnes Mob Boss AU. Stucky. For: @star-spangled-man-with-a-plan Star’s Multi-Fandom Follower Celebration with the prompt, “Why did you do it?” & @sherrybaby14 Sherry’s Fall Into You Challenge with the prompt, “Show me. Prove that you can handle me.” Warnings: Language, violence, drug use, alcohol, smoking, explicit sexual content, illegal activities. *Re-blogs are welcome. Plagiarism isn’t. *

Twelve Weeks Later…

Grand Bahama Island was nothing short of paradise.

Clear-blue waters and sandy shores. All-inclusive resorts, fantastic cuisine, and a population that consisted of friendly locals, old money, and the nouveau rich. Privacy, exclusivity, and luxury, all wrapped up in an idyllic package.

And now, Bucky owned a piece of it.

The deed was discovered inside an understated, navy-blue letter storage box. It had been found crushed at the very bottom of the heap of customary tributes and gifts Bucky received on his birthday. Banner, Sam, and Natasha had been helping him sort through everything and write thank-you notes for weeks, and they were finally in the home stretch.

Those lower on the totem pole gave cash or a nice bottle of booze. Others higher up on the food chain arranged to foot the bill for more extravagant things, like a tailor-made suit or a custom watch. People at the very top spared no expense, and usually gifted items like a trip to a destination of his choice or an imported car, but in this instance, someone had decided to give him a multi-million-dollar mansion just off the coast of Florida.

“It’s from Fury,” Banner declared. “Paperwork’s legit and the place is legally yours.”

Sam let out a low whistle, “That’s one hell of a birthday present.”

Natasha opened the final envelope from the pile and pulled out a stack of papers, “And here’s another.”

Bucky quickly scrawled a personalized message to Fury before he set his pen aside and accepted the file. The pages had little sticky-note flags that drew attention to each place that required a signature, and all corresponding lines had been properly dated, initialed, stamped, and notarized.

It had taken awhile, but Steve finally signed the documents, and had formally stepped aside.

“I hope you’re happy now,” Natasha muttered.

Bucky sighed and turned to Bruce, “Take this directly to Wanda, and tell her to transfer the money as discussed. Sam, go with him. I want you both back here and ready to leave in thirty minutes.”

Both men nodded and hopped to it, and once they were gone, Natasha crossed her arms over her chest and gave him the stink-eye. He pointedly ignored her huffiness, left the office, and went to double-check his luggage. He, Sam, and Bruce were due to fly out to Bermuda in three hours to set up shop, and after Bucky made sure he had everything he needed, he left his bedroom, and dropped the bag by the door.

“He’s gone,” Natasha snapped as she entered the living room. “Are you satisfied?”

“Don’t start,” he warned.

“Given enough time, you two could’ve taken the whole of New York. You could’ve been an unstoppable, untouchable powerhouse, and your influence at home and abroad would’ve been limitless.”

“He wanted his freedom,” Bucky bit out lowly. “And I granted it.”

She laughed and threw up her hands, “Well, if you won’t have him, others will. I know some guys here who’ve been chomping at the bit for years, and they just can’t wait to get their hands on him.”

Somewhere on the fringes of his brain, he heard Natasha point out that Steve was smoking hot, filthy fucking rich, and had that whole “wounded, bad-boy” thing going on – all of which his future bedmates would find exceedingly attractive. She also surmised Steve was bound to fall in love again eventually, and might even get married someday. Natasha then went on to say she hoped to be invited to the wedding, and that if Steve and his future husband ever adopted children, she would be the best auntie.

Bucky wasn’t entirely too sure how it happened. One minute, Natasha was prattling about baby clothes, in-home nannies, private schools, and how expensive college tuition was; the next, he had her by the throat, and slammed up against the wall. How the gun got in his hand was a mystery, and he didn’t know how the barrel ended up pressed to the center of her forehead, either.

All it took was one look into her triumph-filled eyes for Bucky to know she’d keyed him up on purpose. Natasha was the only person in his life he truly trusted and cared for, and Bucky had never raised a hand to her before, but his violent overreaction was proof he’d let his emotions overrule his reason yet again.

Bucky immediately released her and lowered the gun, “Nat… Shit, I didn’t…”

“An unacknowledged weakness is a dangerous thing,” she wheezed.

He cleared his throat and took a step back, “I just… I need you to leave it alone, alright?”

Natasha closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the wall, “What you need to do is nut up, go to Steve, and beg for his forgiveness. You know he belongs here with you, so, stop fighting it.”

The long stretch of heavily-weighted silence was broken by the return of Sam and Bruce. Both men had been laughing and chatting excitedly about the upcoming trip, but when they saw the cannon in Bucky’s hand and the abrasions around Natasha’s throat, they fell silent.

“Everything cool?” Sam wondered.

Natasha coughed and waved him off, but it wasn’t until Bucky holstered his weapon that the tension dissipated. While Banner examined Natasha, Sam approached him, and asked if he was all good.

Bucky nodded and clapped him on the shoulder, “Just a misunderstanding. Won’t happen again.”

A few moments later, a text announced the arrival of their car, and as it was Sam’s job to ensure it was actually their ride and not some sort of ambush, he shouldered his rucksack, and headed down first. After Bucky received the all clear, Bruce picked up his duffel, mumbled that travelling with the Boss was a pain in the ass, and followed suit.

Bucky gathered his bag and told Natasha he’d text when they landed. He’d been waiting in the hallway for the elevator for some time before the door to his penthouse opened, and she came out to join him.

“Can you forgive me?” he requested solemnly.

“Bring me back something pretty and I’ll consider it.”

“Just let me know what kind of jewels you want.”

Natasha said, “diamonds and rubies,” and on the heels of her quip, the elevator door parted. As they descended, she linked arms with him, placed her head on his shoulder, and confessed she didn’t want him to be alone. When he pithily told her that she’d end up with wrinkles if she didn’t stop worrying, she pinched his bicep hard, and called him an asshole.

Bucky grinned and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, “Stop busting my balls, alright? I’ll be fine.”

Whatever she may have said by way of response was cut off when the elevator signaled that they’d reached the ground floor. The driver was quick to stow his bags and open the door for him, but before he could get in the back seat, Natasha tugged his arm, and halted him.

“Just promise me,” she insisted. “Promise me you’ll think about what I said.”

Bucky was saved from having to lie to her when Sam leaned out and yelled that they needed to get a move on. The last thing he heard before Natasha slammed the door in his face was, “Steve’s in Île Saint-Louis,” and her blurted declaration caught not only his attention, but Bruce’s as well.

“That’s not good,” Banner spluttered. “If Steve’s in Paris… Oh, that’s bad. Very bad…”

Sam glanced at him and made a motion with his hand for him to continue, “You want to fill me in?”

Bruce launched into what could only be described as an impassioned tirade that lasted for the entire drive to the airport and all the way through take off.

He informed that Mason Dubois, the only child and beloved son of multi-billionaire and former mob Boss, Luc Dubois, lived in Paris. They were direct descendants of Jules Bonnot, who founded the Bonnot Gang in France in the 1900’s. Luc had followed in his ancestor’s footsteps, but unlike Jules, he hadn’t been an anarchist, and he’d never been caught. Before his untimely death, Luc ran the biggest game in the country; when the father passed away, the son stepped in, and his political ties, fortune, and Bonnot lineage meant he had more money, status, and power than God himself.

It was common knowledge that the Hornec gang was the most active and notorious crew in Paris, and though Dubois received a cut of the profits, racketeering, drugs, and illegal slot machines weren’t his stock and trade. He and his associates were definitely upper-crust, white-collar criminals, and they were extremely well-funded and very well-connected.

Sam still couldn’t see what the problem was, which prompted Bruce to reveal that Mason Dubois was Wanda’s cousin by marriage. He’d been in town the night of Bucky’s party and Wanda had introduced him to Steve. They were both in the business, knew some of the same players, and had common interests. Mason was also considered one of the most eligible bachelors in France, and for all intents and purposes, Steve was single as well.

The not-so-subtle implications of Banner’s long-winded diatribe made Bucky close his eyes and pinch the bridge of his nose. As soon as the plane landed and they got checked in to the resort, he retreated to his suite, and poured himself a more than liberal drink.

Bucky had done the impossible. He’d reclaimed Brooklyn; restored his people’s confidence in full; asserted complete control over the West Indies; and had come back from what could’ve been a very costly and fatal mistake. He should’ve been glad his long-term plan had succeeded, but he wasn’t, and the more he examined the reasons for his uneasiness, the more uncomfortable he became.

Steve’s acquiesce to the terms and subsequent departure to Paris meant he’d decided to free himself from the last vestiges of their strained, complicated relationship. He was no longer under any obligation to Bucky or the Families, which meant all bets were off. Wanda could play match-maker all she liked, and as a free-agent, Steve could conduct business -- and climb into bed -- with whomever he wished to.

And there was nothing Bucky could do about it.

His former best-friend, past partner-in-crime, and soon-to-be-lost love of his life was in danger of being taken off the market in more ways than one, and Bucky knew Natasha’s parting words had been a last-ditch effort to make him come to terms with it. She wanted him to not only admit his feelings, but also face the consequences of his actions, and repair the damage.

If Bucky had been honest – if he’d, just once, put Steve first – maybe things could’ve been different. If he hadn’t pulled him back in; hadn’t lifted him up just to screw him over; hadn’t betrayed him and rejected him and broken his heart so many fucking times…

The sound of his phone going off prodded him out of his thoughts; he’d forgotten to text Natasha, which explained why she’d reached out first, but before he could type a reply, another message came through.

The words, “Let me handle Bermuda,” appeared, along with a URL that redirected Bucky the website of his preferred airline. According to the departure schedule, if he booked the ticket immediately, and hauled ass to the airport, he could be in France just after sunrise. Natasha followed up again mere seconds later with, “You go get him and bring him home.”

Bucky scraped a hand over his face, took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. With his heart somewhere in the vicinity of his fucking throat, he penciled himself into first class, checked in before he could change his mind, and called down to the lobby for a car.

Though the prospect of an uncertain outcome terrified him, Bucky was going to Paris, and in twelve hours, he’d know for sure whether or not his change of heart was just in time, or far too little, and much too late.

Chapter 18: On Va Voir

Everything: @jennmurawski13 @nerdy-bookworm-1998

Steve Rogers: @patzammit @hearttoearth The Boss of Brooklyn: @star-spangled-man-with-a-plan @jamesbarnesappreciationsociety @captain-rogers-beard @lilliannaansalla

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