#endgame reader insert

[tldrthor]

The Princess (and the chaos she brings with her) - steve rogers x fem!reader (1/?)

Summary: when Thor asked the avengers to guard a dear friend of his, they didn't think twice before saying yes. What they didn't know was that said friend is the princess of one of the nine realms, and a lost love of one Captain Rogers.

Part 1 // I thought you were dead // word count: 3.5k

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"(y/n), you have to eject, right now!" Steve screamed over the torrents of wind whistling through the ship. Schmidt was dead, gone. So was the tesseract. But it wasn't over yet. "I have to put her in the water!"

The girl behind him widened her eyes, battling against the elements to reach him. "There's no world in which I let you do that, Captain!"

"I'm not asking for permission!"

"Well then, I guess we go down together!" She painstakingly made her way to him, every step a feat of strength. Her previously neatly pinned curls no longer even resembled what they once were as her hair whipped around her face.

As Steve turned to face her, she somehow still looked angelic. He felt that right now, she was more heavenly than ever. He couldn't let her die with him.

"Buckle in." He commanded, as they began their quick descent. He looked at her, the first woman who had ever made him feel seen, the only person he had ever met who was as crazy as he was.

As the ice flew closer, he turned and placed a hand tenderly on her face. Tears welled in his eyes as his mind wandered to the future they could've had. God, they could have been amazing.

"I'm sorry, (y/n)." He whispered. She could only just hear it, even though they were right next to each other.

He pulled the yellow ejection lever on the seat she had just buckled herself into, watching as her eyes widened. "No! Steve, no!" She lifted her hands to stop him, to jam the lever, anything to stay with him. She wasn't quick enough.

Steve closed his eyes as her seat was ejected, hearing her scream his name. There was no world where he allowed her to go down with him, and he trusted that wherever she ended up, Stark and Peggy would find her. He hoped they would be able to find him, too.

He hadn't prayed in a long time, but as he went down, he bargained with God for her safety.

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"It is my honour to introduce the new and improved Captain America and the Howling Commandos exhibit, in honour of the 100th birthday of Captain Steven Grant Rogers." The crowd clapped as the senator stepped off the podium, motioning for Steve to take the mic. Bucky and Sam laughed at how uncomfortable the Captain was as he stood thanking everyone for an exhibit he never wanted. All part of the job, he supposed.

After the handshakes, and the photo ops, and the autographs and the meet and greets, the boys finally got relative peace to wander around the new exhibition.

"I can't believe you used to wear these stupid suits." Sam laughed, standing in front of the main exhibit. Bucky sighed, budging Sam's shoulder. "Says the asshole who wears a bird suit to fight." He retorts.

Steve laughed at his friends antics, but walked away when he noticed an addition to the exhibit he hadn't seen before. He stared, wide eyed at the name in front of him.

(Y/N): THE MISSING HERO?

Steve found himself drinking in every inch of the gorgeous photo underneath the text, her bright smile and barely visible freckles. The lighting highlighted the different hues in her immaculately pinned hair. She looked just like an angel, as she always did in real life.

Steve looked down, forlorn eyes investigating very few artefacts in the glass exhibit. Her folded uniform, found in her room after the plane went down. The blush lipstick you wore every day. Finally, an object that Steve didn't recognise. A golden ring, encrusted in unidentified jewels and a family crest no one knew. He frowned.

He had known her only a short few months, but he regretted never asking about her family. And now, it would haunt him that he never did until his last breath.

"They never found her, huh?" Bucky placed his covered hand on Steve's shoulder, a sadness tinged in his voice. He had only met (y/n) briefly, but he knew even then that Steve's heart rested in the palm of that woman's hand.

He had asked about her, once, but the look on Steve's face when her name was mentioned told him everything he needed to know.

"No. Howard searched for years, found nothing. Turned out that she had lied on her intake forms for the SSR, too. We don't even know if (y/n) was really her name." He took a beat. "We have no idea if she survived or not."

Steve didn't have to make the subtext clear, Bucky knew he worried that he had killed her by ejecting her from that plane. Bucky also knew there was no sense in trying to tell him she would have died either way, that the ice would've killed her.

"You okay?" Bucky asked, after another few moments of silence.

Steve nodded, looking at the photo. "I'm glad she's remembered. I just wish I didn't have so many unanswered questions."

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"So," Tony started. "Thor is arriving with the guest of honour later today, who we have agreed to protect here for the meantime. We don't have a lot of background for this one. The dark elves are the ones we're protecting her against, but Thor said threat could come from many areas. Do we have any questions?"

The team looked nothing short of bored. Well, most of them. Cap always had the good grace to sit up and look interested. Scott was straight up asleep.

"Is she important? How long will she be staying with us?" Steve asked.

"No idea, and uh, no idea. Anything else?"

"Is she single?" Sam asked, earning a laugh from some of the others. Steve shook his head disapprovingly, but smiled at his friend's levity.

As Steve stood up to go back to training, FRIDAY sounded around the room. "Excuse me everyone, my satellites have detected a bifrost signal heading for the compound imminently."

"Speak of the devil!" Tony clapped his hands as everyone headed out to the bifrost landing site (something that had been instituted after Tony's lawn got scorched one too many times).

Bucky smacked Scott upside the head to wake him up with a jolt. "Oh, where are you guys going?" He called behind them, jogging to catch up. Steve waited behind from him, laughing at his groggy friend.

A bright light connected with the grass just beside the landing site. Tony's hands covered his eyes as he mouthed are you fucking kidding me. When the light cleared, Thor stood tall in his usual armour.

"My friends!" His voice boomed, "I present to you, my fellow avengers, the honourable princess of Alfheim, jewel of the Alfar and ambassador to Asgard." Thor's voice boomed through the halls of the compound. "This is my friend, (y/n)."

Beside Thor stood a girl. She was breathtakingly beautiful, with a heavenly stature. She looked like she could have been carved from marble by the hands of God himself.

A light Asgardian pink dress was covered by a golden chest-plate which fit her body like it had been moulded just for her. It was covered in intricate etchings of suns and stars, which caught the light and shone brilliantly. She wore golden jewellery, which was nothing like the avengers had ever seen. Golden ear cuffs covered her pointed ears, with her long hair pulled into an up-do, emphasising the golden, bejewelled tiara on her head.

"Princess?" Sam squeaked. Wanda smacked him, with a look that screamed don't embarrass us.

Tony tilted his head in confusion at the guest, who he could almost swear he recognised from somewhere. "Thor, you did not inform us that we were looking after the ruler of a planet. We would have been more prepared."

"I am not ruler yet, Mr. Stark." The girl cast her eyes up at Tony, as she smiled sweetly. Her voice was honey smooth, and anyone who heard it felt themselves being charmed by it. "I have heard much about you all from Thor."

"Should we bow?" Bruce whispered to Tony, who shrugged his shoulders. Thankfully, (y/n) took the lead and shook each of their hands.

She looked around at each of the gathered avengers. Thor made his introductions to the rest of the group. "Where are the others?" Thor enquired.

"Here!" Steve smiled at the site of his old friend, his view of the princess obscured by the large man. Bucky and Scott tagged behind him, also happily greeting Thor.

"Captain, it is very good to see you. Please, let me introduce you to the Princess (y/n)." Thor stepped aside to introduce them, but his eyebrows knitted together in confusion when neither of them moved, almost frozen in place.

"Uh... hi." Scott side-stepped the Captain and caught the eye of their guest. "My name's Scott Lang."

The girl tore her eyes away from the captain, unsure really on what to do. But her training kicked in, knowing that being rude was one of the worst sins a princess could commit. "Hello, Mr. Lang. I am (y/n)."

"Holy shit." Bucky breathed out.

The rest of the avengers watched the rather silent exchange with confusion. It was very unlike Steve to get so tongue-tied, and he would never be so rude as to not introduce himself.

"Captain Rogers..." The girl spoke first, confusing them further. "I believed you dead." Tears had welled in her eyes, intriguing the observing crowd even more.

"I thought you were dead." He breathed. "What... what is going on?"

Bucky interjected. "Um, hi. I'm Bucky, we met briefly in '45."

She smiled softly at him, but her eyes betrayed her confusion. "Sergeant Barnes, of course! Didn't you... also die?"

"Yeah, we've all got a lot of explaining to do." Bucky laughed as the absurdity of the situation caught up to him.

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Thor's eyes darted between his friend and the captain. When Thor asked the avengers to guard her from the war on Alfheim, he knew some hijinks would ensue. This is not what he expected. He knew you had spent some time on Midgard before and when you returned you were emotionally distraught. He had simply figured the war you had fought with the Midgardians had taken it's toll.

He eyed both the Captain and you, suspiciously. You were his dear friend, but you had never talked to him about any mortal love.

"So, Princess. You've been here before." Tony enquired.

The Princess licked her lips nervously, glancing at Steve, who had barely moved a muscle, his eyebrows furrowed. "Yes, Mr. Stark. I spent some time here during the second world war. I left Midgard when Johann Schmidt was defeated, and haven't returned since."

"Tell us about your world, Princess. I've never heard of it before." Natasha, the red-head in the corner, asked the guest.

"You have heard of it before." The princess smiled, explaining. "I believe we are now known as a fantasy character here - you call us elves." She pointed to her pointed ears as each avenger clung to her words.

Thor smiled at his Midgardian friends' curiosity.

"The Alfar still live amongst you, they are simply unseen. I believe you may know Tolkien?" At the mention of the author's name, everyone's ears pricked. "He was one of my father's greatest friends and many of his book settings were inspired by Alfheim."

"What!" Scott exclaimed. "That's insane."

"Really, Ant Man?" Bucky responded, pointing out that they were all ridiculous, when you thought about it. The world was crazy now.

The princess chuckled, and rose from her seat at the conference table. "Thank you very much for your hospitality, Avengers. I would quite like to rest in my chambers, if you would be so gracious to allow me."

"Um, yeah... consider yourself allowed." Tony stumbled over his words. Very unusual for him, and it did not go unnoticed by the others. "Dinner is at seven."

"Thank you, Mr. Stark. Captain Rogers," She addressed the Captain, who looked up quickly. His face was pale, and he nervously twiddled his thumbs. "Would you be so kind as to show me my rooms?"

He popped up, almost comedically fast. "Yes. Yeah, sure. Um, this way." He walked out quickly, darting his eyes back to make sure the princess was following him.

She followed, gracefully. Her skirts fanned out behind her as she walked. The avengers in the room could scarcely take their eyes off her as she faded from sight.

As soon as the door closed behind them, the room devolved into chaos. People shouting theories and questions left, right and centre. Mostly, everyone was just bewildered. Bucky and Thor discussed how they had both known the couple separately, and whether each had talked about the other.

Natasha watched as Tony sat quietly on his tablet for a few seconds, searching for something she could only assume was relevant to the discussion at hand.

"Bucky, what's the deal there?" Clint asked.

He was interrupted by Tony. "Aha!" Stark called, silencing the room. "I knew I recognised her from somewhere."

He projected a photograph to the wall, and the avengers gasped.

The photograph consisted of Steve and Bucky front and centre. Bucky had his left arm wrapped lazily around Tony's dad, Howard. And Steve was looking directly at the girl next to him, holding her to him by the waist. It was the princess. The gaze he looked at her with... it was like nothing they had ever seen from him.

"They didn't just know each other, they were in love." Bucky replied to Clint's question, a hint of sadness underneath his words.

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(Y/n) followed Steve along the large corridors of the compound, her smaller legs working double time to match his long strides. They walked in silence, for the most part. It wasn't the comfortable kind.

"Captain." She spoke first, again. As she called for him, he stopped walking abruptly, turning slowly. He met her gaze and then cast his eye down.

"(y/n)... I mean, um, Princess." He responded.

"(y/n) is sufficient." She whispered, almost guiltily. "I can't believe you're alive..."

"I can't believe you're alive," He retorted. "I searched for you, when I woke up. They couldn't find any records of you other than your enlistment form, and they found you had lied. People think you're just a ghost story..."

He took a breath. "I can't believe you're here and... an alien princess?"

"I know it's hard to believe, I hope you understand why I couldn't tell you back then." She laughed. "When I found that you and Sergeant Barnes were dead, I couldn't face being here anymore... I returned to Alfheim."

As she thought back on it, a tear sprung to her eye. On seeing her reaction, Steve couldn't help himself but place a friendly hand on her back, rubbing soothing circles. She briefly froze at the contact, but quickly, she moved her own hand down his arm until she was holding onto his hand with both of hers.

So much went unsaid, but the contact confirmed what they had both most desperately wanted to know. Would it be the same?

"If I had known that you and Sergeant Barnes were alive, Captain..." She admitted. "I would have returned in an instant, I give you my word."

He smiled, rubbing a thumb over the back of her hand. A red blush hugged her cheeks as he did so.

It was typical of him that he couldn't concentrate on the moment, "Why are you here?" He asked. "What are we protecting you from?"

She sighed. "The Svartalfar, or the dark elves. You may know them - they attacked Thor in the Midgardian city of London some years ago now." He nodded in recognition.

"They are determined to conquer Alfheim, and have set their sights on my family. They have already managed to get close to killing me."

She pushed the collar of her dress down, showing a large, angry, red scar just above her collarbone. His hands flew up to trace the scar. She gulped at the close contact, her eyes meeting his.

His expression gave away his concern, knowing that Thor had suggested she was in a lot of danger. "Don't worry, Princess. You're safe here." He smiled, softly. "We'll protect you with everything we've got."

"Thank you, Captain."

"It's just Steve." He unhooked their hands, and gave her his arm. She linked her arm in his, and he resumed wandering down the halls to her rooms. "Do you have any bags?"

"No, I fled to Asgard with nothing when I needed healing. The Asgardians were kind enough to offer many gorgeous clothes for me to bring, but I figured they were a bit conspicuous."

Steve laughed, "Yeah, they might be."

They walked for a little while longer, before Steve entered a room to the side. It was rather basic compared to what she was used to, but it would more than suffice for the meantime.

"This is your room." He stood by the door as she entered. "I'm just down the hall if you need anything. I'll get Tony to send you some less conspicuous clothes. See you at dinner."

"Thank you, Steven." He laughed at her inability to be too informal with him. He nodded at her, and turned to walk down the hall to his room.

As he entered, the photograph of her from the Smithsonian caught his eye from the nightstand. He picked it up, tracing her features with his finger - unable to stop the smile spreading across his face. Who would've thought? Not only was his girl alive, she was also alien royalty. Sometimes, just sometimes, he adored his strange, strange world.

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"Sir," The agent walked into the dark room with purpose in her every step. "The Princess has been spotted."

The man in the chair looked up at the mention of his target. "Show me" he ordered. He watched as agent transferred the images on her tablet to the big screen, showing grainy, far away surveillance of the avengers compound.

As low quality as the image was, the woman arriving with Thor in the distinctive Alfar dress and armour was certainly the princess.

"Oh, my dear..." The man's deep voice dragged out. "You have walked right into our sights."

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a/n: let me know what you think! if you can't tell, this is basically the set up for a longer series... i'm really excited to explore this character and get deeper into the relationships!

i've never really written in the third person POV before, so let me know if it's something you like or not, and i can switch for the next part.

please like/reblog if you enjoy! let me know if you would like to be tagged in the next part <3

[lilstephenlover]

Wong: how much longer are we going to let them do that? Stephen: *rubbing the bridge of his nose* just... just give him a minute Y/N: *still pushing the doors of sanctum that are clearly labeled pull*

[writing-house-of-m]

Endgame

Wanda Maximoff x Reader

Summary: The group talks about the fight against Thanos

A/N: Three for three! I hope this one makes up for the angst posted yesterday 😊 For those who care, here is the request. Comments, reblogs and likes are much appreciated!

Prompt: "That was the night I nearly lost you."

It is the end of another party. This time, one thrown in celebration of successfully defeating Thanos once and for all.

It didn't matter where you were hiding Vision from him, Thanos kept finding him. So, when a plan was formed to hide Vision in Wakanda, everyone was ready to make it the last stand. It was a good thing Strange and Wong were able to gather so many people.

Most of those who helped in the final battle were still here, dotted around in the lounge area.

Everyone was exchanging stories about their version of events. All of you were in agreement about being in awe when Carol destroyed a ship single handedly.

You wouldn't have believed Bucky when he spoke about the raccoon he was fighting alongside if you didn't see the creature with your own eyes. You along with Thor and Peter had to corroborate his story. Especially to Tony who was sceptical.

Okoye spoke about the relief she felt at seeing the King again after he was thrown across the field. King T'Challa commented, saying the experience was not one of his finest moments making everyone laugh.

There were no major casualties and no deaths so it felt easy to joke about such things. You can only imagine what it would have felt like to fail such a risky plan.

It was Wanda's turn to speak, "That was the night I nearly lost you," she says, looking at you and squeezing your knee as she leans more into your side.

You and Wanda had each other's backs the whole time, fighting alongside one another. You have always worked well together. Finishing off enemies for the other left and right.

"I left your side for like, a second," you scoff, cinching your eyebrows, everyone laughing and looking amused at the scene.

Knowing Wanda could hold her own you left her so you could help Scott who was covered with aliens, like an apple overthrown by ants. Because she didn't notice you leave, too busy 'kicking names and taking ass,' as Mantis put it, Wanda was worried you were hurt. That was until she heard you compare Scott to Godzilla through her comms.

"I know, but I thought you were hurt," Wanda pouts.

You smile at her antics and begin to lean in to kiss her saying she is being ridiculous but you are cut short with all the jeers you hear from everyone in the room.

"No one needs to see that, lovebirds," you hear Natasha's disgust, loud and clear.

The conversation swiftly moves on to Thor talking about his new axe, Stormbreaker, and all the things it can do. Your attention is turned to Wanda as his voice drones on in the background.

"Hey," you whisper to get Wanda to look at you. When her green eyes meet yours you think of how lucky you are to be able to call her yours.

"You know I'm never gonna die, right? I still need to marry you," you say quietly while grinning.

Wanda smacks your chest, her grin matching yours. Before her next action she quickly looks around the room. You don't have time to ask what she is doing because in the next second her lips are on yours but gone just as fast.

"That's all good and well but you have to propose first," she says, centimetres from your lips.

You want to rebuttal but your attention is sucked back into the discussion around you when Scott says your name, recounting his events on almost being drowned alive by 'smelly aliens'. Hope, who is sitting beside him, shakes her head giggling at his explanation.

Conversations and drinks keep flowing long into the night.

Steve makes a heartfelt speech about everyone doing a good job in keeping the people on this planet safe. He goes on to say everyone who showed up for the fight has given everyone on Earth and even life beyond the stars a chance to appreciate their loved ones and live another day.

You always wondered what the endgame of this superhero life would be for you. But it's this. You're holding it in your arms and are surrounded by it.

The next step in your life is to make Wanda your wife, which you will do as soon as you perfect the proposal you have been planning. Together you will build a real life together and your friends will be there to witness it all.

Resting your head against Wanda's, your mind drifts to a normal life filled with white picket fences, crying babies, school pick ups and drop offs, regular home cooked meals. The stress of PTA meetings, bake sales, sports tryouts, college options. It all has you smiling to yourself.

You can't wait.

[leighbaylee]

— PUPPY PRINCE

written by mina leigh 𝜗᭪ , mike wheeler 𝔁 m! reader | wc 1446

summary. so called biology project being an excuse to see mike, desperately wanting to see him after asking him out. being mike wheeler’s first boyfriend. celebrating the honeymoon phase with lots of kisses!

labels. no definite description of reader, amab reader (anyone masculine presenting/labeling), he/him pronouns used. proud hellfire member mike + basketball player boyfriend. ♡

‧₊˚ ୨୧ mina speaks. hi everyone, i haven’t written a male reader fic in a minute so decided it was time to bring it back. school is starting august 21st for me so id really appreciate it if anyone requests for a drabble before i go mia. lots of love!

y/n pedaled through the streets of hawkins, the wind cool against his face as the familiar houses blurred by. he had one destination in mind: the wheeler household. he hadn’t told mike he was coming—why would he? surprises were always more fun.

as he reached the suburban neighborhood, y/n slowed his bike and hopped off, the tires crunching against the gravel driveway. he parked it by the side of the house and made his way to the front door, a small smirk playing on his lips as he thought about the expression mike might have when he saw him. with a quick knock, y/n waited, his heart racing a little in anticipation.

the door swung open to reveal karen wheeler, a welcoming smile on her face. ❝ hello, can I help you? ❞

putting on his most polite expression, offering a charming smile. ❝ hi, mrs. wheeler. uh i’m y/n, one of mike’s … close friends from school. ❞ a sour tone coming out from lying to his soon to be mother in law.

karen’s smile widened at the introduction. ❝ oh, hello, y/n! i’ve heard mike mention you a few times. what brings you here today? ❞

y/n glanced down, faking a moment of shyness before looking back up. ❝ we’ve got a biology project we need to work on. i figured we could get a head start, if that’s okay of course! ❞

❝ of course, of course honey, ❞ karen said, her voice warm. she turned slightly and called up the stairs, ❝ mike! y/n is here for your .. biology project! ❞

a few moments passed before the sound of footsteps echoed from above, and then mike appeared at the top of the stairs. he was in casual loungewear, clearly not expecting company, and a look of mild annoyance crossed his face. but that all melted away the moment he saw y/n standing there. His eyes widened, and he froze in place, caught between surprise and disbelief. ❝ y-y/n? what are you—❞

before mike could finish, y/n shot him a knowing smile, and mike’s irritation shifted into something more like panic. he forced a smile and quickly descended the stairs, grabbing y/n’s arm and pulling him towards the stairs.

❝ uh, thanks, mom! ❞ mike called over his shoulder as he practically dragged y/n up to his room. as soon as they reached the sanctuary of his bedroom, mike shut the door with a soft click and locked it, turning to y/n with an incredulous look on his face.

❝ what are you doing here? ❞ mike asked, his voice still tinged with disbelief, though there was a hint of something else—something softer.

y/n leaned casually against the door, crossing his arms with a playful grin. ❝ like i said, a biology project, ❞ he teased, winking at mike as he ruffled his hair and pressed a quick kiss to his forehead.

mike huffed in response, cheeks flushing slightly as he snatched y/n’s backpack and tossed it into a corner of the room. ❝ you’re crazy, ❞ he muttered, but there was no heat in his words. he gave y/n a light shove, guiding him toward the bed.

y/n allowed himself to be pushed, settling back on the bed with a content sigh. mike followed, slipping under the covers and resting his head on y/n’s chest. for a moment, they were quiet, simply enjoying the warmth of each other’s presence.

❝ you could have warned me you were coming over, you know, ❞ mike mumbled into y/n’s shirt, his voice soft and a little pleading.

y/n chuckled, running his fingers through mike’s dark hair. ❝ where’s the fun in that? but fine, i’ll give you a heads up next time—just because you’re my boyfriend ❞

mike made a noise of protest, but the faint smile on his lips betrayed him. he snuggled closer, letting out a small sigh of contentment. ❝ so, how’ve you been? ❞ y/n asked, his voice a little more serious. ❝ it’s been a week since we started dating … how’s it going for you? ❞

mike tilted his head slightly, thinking back to the whirlwind of emotions that had come crashing down on him the moment it all began. ❝ honestly … it still feels a little unreal. i remember how it all happened so … clearly. ❞

y/n nodded, encouraging him to continue. mike took a deep breath and let his mind wander back to that day.

mike had been frustrated, to say the least. lucas had been missing so many hellfire meetings lately, and eddie was getting increasingly annoyed. mike couldn’t understand why basketball had become such a big deal to lucas—it wasn’t like it was anything special. it was just basketball, after all. but lucas had made a deal with mike, a deal that mike couldn’t resist.

lucas had noticed the way mike’s gaze lingered on a certain someone—a certain someone who happened to be lucas’s teammate. and lucas, being the observant friend that he was, had concocted a plan. if mike covered for him with eddie, then lucas would help set mike up with y/n. it seemed like a win-win, and mike, desperate to keep hellfire together, had agreed.

but the situation had spiraled out of control. eddie had caught on to their little scheme, and so had dustin. mike found himself cornered in the hallway, frustration bubbling over as he lashed out at lucas. It was then that y/n appeared, his hand tapping lucas on the shoulder, signaling him to leave and head for practice.

y/n had stayed behind, his expression sincere as he apologized for lucas’s behavior, explaining that basketball was something lucas truly enjoyed. mike had been taken aback by the apology, his mind scrambling to process the words. but before he could respond, y/n had taken a step closer, his voice dropping to a more intimate tone.

❝ you know, mike … you’re not the only one who’s been hiding a crush. ❞

mike had felt his heart skip a beat, his breath catching in his throat. was y/n … was he saying what mike thought he was saying? he hesitated, unsure, but when y/n looked him straight in the eye, the answer was clear. mike didn’t even think—he just reacted, throwing his arms around y/n and blurting out a breathless, ❝ yes! ❞

it had been so out of character for him, so spontaneous and unlike the usual mike wheeler. but he couldn’t help it—he had been so overwhelmed with relief and happiness. y/n had laughed, a warm, genuine laugh, and hugged him back tightly. from that moment on, everything had changed.

❝ i will never regret not holding back, i'm so glad about it. ❞ mike says, his head looking up at y/n

y/n smiled down at him, his heart swelling with affection. ❝ i’m glad you didn’t hold back either. i’m lucky to have you, mike, ❞ he said, his voice full of warmth. he leaned down and began placing soft kisses on mike’s face, starting with his forehead, then his cheeks, and finally, the tip of his nose.

mike felt his face heat up under the onslaught of affection, but he didn’t pull away. instead, he flicked y/n’s forehead playfully. ❝ you’re such a nerd, ❞ he teased, though there was no denying the fondness in his tone.

y/n yelped in mock indignation, rubbing his forehead before leaning in closer. mike’s hands cupped y/n’s face, and he pulled him into a slow, gentle kiss, pouring all the affection he felt into that one moment. y/n’s arms wrapped around mike’s waist, pulling him closer until y/n shifted, rolling on top of mike. he grinned down at his boyfriend, his hands resting on either side of mike’s head.

mike giggled, the sound soft and carefree, as y/n began trailing kisses along his jawline, then down to his neck, his chest, and finally his stomach. each touch sent a shiver of warmth through mike, making him feel both safe and cherished.

but y/n wasn’t done yet. he suddenly reached over to where he had tossed his backpack and pulled out a textbook, a mischievous glint in his eyes. ❝ so … there’s no biology project, ❞ y/n confessed with a smirk, holding up the textbook. ❝ but we do have a final coming up, and i figured we could use this time to study. take advantage of the situation, you know? ❞

mike rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t help the smile that tugged at his lips. ❝ you’re unbelievable, ❞ he muttered, though he didn’t resist when y/n flipped open the book and settled back down next to him.

❝ unbelievable in the best way, right?❞ y/n teased, pressing one last kiss to mike’s forehead before they both turned their attention to the pages in front of them.

mike snuggled closer, the warmth of y/n’s presence making the idea of studying almost bearable. as they began to read, mike couldn’t help but feel that maybe, just maybe, he was the lucky one after all.

© MINA LEIGH 2023 - 2024

[a-spes]

S I X F E E T A W A Y - One shot.

Words count - 2,6k.

Tags & Warnings - Natasha Romanoff x reader, light angst.

Summary - You were Natasha's girlfriend. It has been a year since she died and you still can't accept it, visiting her grave whenever you can.

Song - It'll be okay, Shawn Mendes.

— — — — —

It has been a year. Twelve months, fifty-two weeks, three hundred sixty-five days. In other words, it has been an eternity. The thought of all the time that has passed makes you sick. Even after a year the pain is still the same, the people that told you it will eventually fade were a bunch of liars. You hate them because you are going through every day thinking the next one will be different but it is not, the urge to cry, scream, throw up and destroy everything around you never disappeared. At best, it fades during the good days.

However, this feeling always comes back. You don’t even know how you survived this year without her by your side. She has been your whole world since the first time you met. At the time, you agreed to join the Avengers only so you don’t have to leave her - you regret that decision now, convinced that she died because of them. 

You were supposed to be a family but the team fell apart on the first difficulties and doesn’t even exist anymore. After they saved the world, bringing back the missing population, the members that weren’t dead decided to leave. 

They said they needed some personal time, which you understand, but never told you for how long. It has already been a year and none of them checked up on you or replied to your attempt to get in touch, you can’t help but feel abandoned.

Since you have been back, being at the compound never felt the same anymore. This place no longer felt like home, it was just an empty building, full of ghosts and memories. After a few weeks you decided to move out, unable to stay here for one more day. 

New city, new start, new life. 

At least, you were hoping it would be that easy but it wasn’t. At first, you didn’t know where to go but you eventually decided to move to a small town in Ohio. She was your only family, you couldn’t imagine being far from her. Even if the only thing left is a stone with her name engraved on it, not even a body, you still wanted to be as close as you could.

The way everything happened made your grief journey harder. The worst is that you didn’t even get to say goodbye. Every time you think about it you can feel how your stomach twists. The last time you saw her, you were oblivious she would be dead the next one. 

As half of the population, you disappeared for five years because of Thanos. Five years for the one who stayed but it felt like a few seconds to you, barely the time to blink but yet you missed so much. 

You are blaming yourself for that. Even now, you are convinced that things would have gone a different way if you were here, that you could have done something. It probably wouldn’t have changed a thing, Natasha being stubborn, but being angry and denial is your way to deal with the pain of a loss.

Whenever you can, you are paying a visit to her gravestone. Sometimes, you would stay for a few days, refusing to leave : how could you when you know that she died alone ? Most of her life she thought she was alone, she didn’t deserve to die like that. So, now that she is gone, you are doing everything you can to make up for that, to let her know that you will always be here. 

You firmly believe that, wherever she is right now, she is looking at you and knows what you are doing, you need to believe that she can hear and see you because it means you are not alone. Even death can’t separate two persons.

That is why you have prepared this visit for days, wanting everything to be absolutely perfect for your lover. You prepared a whole picnic, everything being homemade, and decided to wear one the last outfit you bought together, a classy dress. You even braided your hair for the occasion. That is why your hairstyle is looking like a mess, it has never been your thing, Natasha usually being the one to do it. 

Some people would find it weird to celebrate her death date but it is really important to you. Painfull, for sure, but still important. That day, a year ago, she sacrified her life for the world and she deserves some gratitude. You feel like too many people don’t even know she is the one that saved them, the rest refusing to acknowledge what she did just because of her past. Even your former teammates don’t bother to care. 

So you decided to pay her a visit so you can celebrate her actions like the world should have. However, it doesn’t make you less angry or hateful against the whole world.

You check your bag one more time to make sure you didn’t forget anything. You are feeling a bit stressed because you really want everything to be perfect. After that last glance, you secure it at the back of your bike, ready to go.

Her gravestone is only thirty minutes from where you live. As you are lost in your thoughts, the journey felt like a few seconds. 

You realize you are almost at your destination when you enter the forest. Natasha’s grave is not in a cemetery but in a lovely clearing. As there was no body to bury, you were able to place it wherever you wanted. You spent days and nights thinking about the perfect place to eventually choose this one. It is in a lovely clearing in Ohio, a quiet and hidden place. Only a few people know her grave is here, she didn’t have a lot of family. 

You leave your bike against a tree on the roadside.

After a few minutes walk, you arrive at the clearing. You know she would have loved that place. A smile on your face, you take your time to settle everything around the grave. You brought a blanket, to sit in, a lot of food and even a speaker so you can play music. It feels the silence, making things less awkward for you. 

Obviously, you didn’t forget to bring a gift and some flowers. This time, you choose roses because they have always remembered you of her : they sting but yet are so delicate and gracious. She used to mock you for that, never answering your “ if you were a flower, which one would you be ? ” kind of questions. So you had to figure out the answers by your own. 

However, you know that, deep down, she was enjoying it. She would stay for hours, listening to your explanations about why she would be that drink rather than another one, with a faint smile on her face. She was just too stubborn to admit it. 

The thought of the past makes a sad smile appear on your face as you are replacing the old flowers with the roses you brought.  

“ I- ” once you have settled in, sitting on the blanket with the food out of the bags, you start talking. Except that, once again, you don’t know where to start. “ I made peanut butter sandwiches, … more than the last time. ”

Those are her favourites. She has always refused to share hers but, sometimes, she would make some for you so you had a snack when you came back from a mission. 

Now, you have to do them by yourself and it doesn’t taste the same, it doesn’t taste love. Yet, you still ended up eating the dozen you made last time you visited. In your defense, you were crying and it is the only thing that could bring you some comfort. 

However, you are still feeling bad for not leaving at least one for her so you decided to make some more this time. A lot more if you are being honest. 

“ Anyway, what can I say … ” you are thinking out loud. It is your thing, coming here and telling her everything that is going on in your life. 

Sometimes, you even come here just to share with her something that happened during your day. A bad or a good story, it doesn’t matter, you would come here immediately without considering what time it is when the urge to talk to her hits you. 

Once, you pedaled here in the middle of the night. It was creepy, if you are being honest, so you didn’t do it ever again. Plus, you are sure Natasha wouldn’t appreciate it.

“ I have found a new job. I am a cashier now and it is going well for the moment, I didn’t throw anything at a client yet ” you say, feeling proud about that fact.

A few months ago, you were fired from your job as a waitress for that reason. You definitely don’t have the patience or the tact required by that kind of work. 

“ Even if the clients are really annoying. It is frustrating, you know ? I am being yelled at all day, talked like shit and insulted but I don’t even have the right to be rude ” you stop talking for a few seconds, taking a deep breath - you won’t let the anger you feel towards these people ruin this moment. “ I liked it better when we were kicking bad guys’ asses. ”

You are thinking about this part of your life with nostalgia. You never had a normal job. When you were seventeen, you dropped out of high school so you could join the army. Somehow, mainly because of your curiosity, you ended up in some dirty stories - that is how the S.H.I.E.L.D noticed you, offering you to become one of their agents.

It is only a few years ago that you made the decision to leave the agency to be a part of the Avengers. It was a difficult choice to make but you did it because you wanted to follow Natasha, even a few years ago, you already couldn’t imagine living far from her. 

The two of you met when she joined the agency. As you, when you became an agent, she was lonely. Everyone was avoiding her because of the rumors about her past. You immediately thought it was unfair - if Fury thinks she has a place here, then you can trust her for sure. Plus you knew how it feels to be in that situation. 

So you decided to step up, being the first and only one that has tried to talk to her the first years. You never left her side since, always defending her when the others were talking dirt behind her back - which got you into a lot of trouble.

All that stuff, being a cashier or a waitress, is not something you are used to, you don’t think you are cut out for this kind of work. If you are being honest with yourself, you hate those jobs, you are just not ready to go back working for Fury. 

When you came back, he let you know that there will always be a place for you as a S.H.I.E.L.D agent, you thanked him but said no. For the moment, you just want to give a try to those normal jobs, even if fitting in is harder than you thought, being undercover having nothing in common with living it for real.

“ I also decided to eventually repair the broken things in my apartment. So far, I’ve fixed the front door, the fridge and the light in the living room. I think it is a good start, don’t you ? ” you wait a few seconds for an answer but, obviously, the only one you get is the silence. You eventually chuckle. “ I still hate that place tho’ ” and since you moved in, you can’t wait for the day you will be able to afford a better place. 

But for now you are stuck in that small, dilapidated and cold apartment, trying to convince yourself that it could be worse.

“ Anyway, I am here because I have a little something for you … ” you start, trying to not smile too hard. You take the present out of the bag, it is something in a dark blue box of the size of your hands. “ Ready ? ” you ask but it is more for you this time. You take a deep breath before you resume. “ Natasha Romanoff, for saving the world for so many years, for sacrificing your life for the sake of Humanity and, most important, for ... being the love of my life ... I have the honor to give you a medail ” your acting broke on the last sentence, the fake enthusiasm being replaced by sadness. 

Once you are done with your little speech, you carefully put the medail on the grave, with the flowers and the other presents. 

It is not a real medail, you asked someone to make it. It is supposed to be a replacement for the one the government refused to give her, even if she deserved it. Her name on a wall is the only thing she got from them.

“ But don’t think it means I forgive you. It was very stupid, but yet very … you … to sacrifice yourself for us. You always thought you had a redemption to earn ” you stop talking, trying to hold back your tears. “ And maybe it was true that people never trusted you but I did. I trusted you and you left me like that. I didn’t even get to say goodbye or … or … to give you a last hug. I- I blinked and, just like that, you were … gone, forever ” your voice is shaking, the last sentence being noticed more than a whisper. As tears are running down your cheeks, you still find the strength to add one more thing. “ I will never forgive you ” you say in a quiet voice.

You weren’t ready to lose her, you had plans for your future together. You were supposed to buy a lovely home and found a happy family. She shouldn’t have died before you could live your life together, before you had your happy ending. Only age should have taken her away from you, except that she decided otherwise. 

She has always been so stubborn and so hard on herself because of the things she did in the past. You truly believe that, if someone deserved a peaceful life, it is her but it is too late now that she is gone. The idea that you never had a chance to show her how sweet life can be is making you sick, you should have convinced her to leave earlier. 

When you came back from the dust, you were alone and lost. Not only did you need to accept that five years of your life have been stolen but you also had to learn how to live without the woman you love. It is the hardest thing you ever had to do in your life.  “ But … I love you so much, my idiot ” you eventually whisper. “ I just wish you were still here to hear that … ”

[mcubuckyxlokisbitch]

Out of all the Time Lines Chpt1: Avengers I need your help

Short Series !

Female Asgardian reader (now avenger) X TVA Loki

Chapter 1: Avengers I need your help (done)

Chapter 2: Interrogations and proclamations (done)

Chapter 3: Even Asgardians have myths (comming soon)

Chapter 4: -

Chapter 5: -

Chapter 6: -

Summary: After your Lokis death and have moved on and joined the Avengers. After the aftermath of Endgame you and the other remaining Avengers all seek shelter in the new Avengers Warehouse Pepper Potts bought as a temporary replacement while the Avengers mansion is being renovated. What happened after a very tired mission. Well, you're speechless, to say the least.

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

You entered the living room with the rest of the team all covered in dust, scratches and tired faces. All of you just saved another casual disaster but the aftermath was the annoying part, burning buildings, hurt people, without Tony stark it meant the clean up crew for the Avengers were the Avengers.

"Alright, what movie and what restaurant shall we engage in tonight." You say as you use your magic to teleport your sword to your room and grab the telephone on the coffee table, plopping on the couch.

"I don't know, but I am in the mood for some Mexican food," Sam said walking in and taking off his goggles.

"Yeah no we just had Mexican yesterday Sam there is no way I am eating another burrito, enchiladas, or taco for the 5th time this week." Bucky shouted as he stretched out on the loveseat next to the couch.

Scott, Thor, Wanda, Peter, Kate and Yelena walked in as they made their way to the kitchen and the living room to relax after a long day.

"Well I for one could actually go for some Phò." Wanda said while grabbing a glass of water. "Yes that actually sounds nice," you replied.

"Second it." Bucky Raised his hand and passed out on the loveseat.

"I will fiest on any of your choosing," Thor said while taking off his cape to wipe off the gunk from storm breaker.

"Phò sounds wonderful. Just make sure I get one of those spring roles. Oh and don't forget were running out of chilli sauce." Yelena shouted from the fridge.

"I just restocked." Scott threw his arms and groaned. "hah." Yelena mocked.

Peter took off his mask and rubbed his forehead combing his hair back, he had the worst migraine ever. Was this a spider sense? Why is it worse than ever?

You shouted for his attention, "Peter man of the hour, Mexican or Phò." Peter didn't answer, he was trying to hold himself on the table trying to compile himself.

"Peter?" You looked towards him. You started to get worried and walked towards him. "Peter. Did you hear me, Phò or Mexican?"

Peter looked at you and fell on his butt.

"Look kid we all are tired but at least try to make it to the couch I ain't carrying you." Same teased.

"Peter are you alright," Wanda said with a concerned face rushing towards him.

"Just tired... crazy migraine, feels like a spider sense but not ...it's the worst I've had." Peter looked at the concerned faces towards him, while he found support from your hand "Probably just tired." he chuckled.

"Well Phò it is, maybe next time Sam." You shook the phone and gave it to Scott to take the orders because he knew the team lie the back of his hand.

"Peter do you require help to get on the couch." You brought Peter back up as he tried to make his way onto the kitchen island.

"I'm fine just need water and a good meal. Imma lay by here." He groaned and slipped onto the table face on the surface.

You went to the sink to pour him a glass of water. Placed it on the counter making sure he drank every drop.

You grabbed a popcorn pack from a top shelf and brought it to the microwave as you set the time. You looked back at Peter who was getting a second refill.

You crossed your arms as you leaned back on the wall waiting for the timer on the microwave to go off. You closed you eyes resting your head as you looked up the ceiling.

"Teya what movie...Not silence of the lambs"

"Action or Comedy, Sam I don't mind..." You sighed not opening your eyes taking some shut eye before the alarm in the warehouse blares for the next emergency.

"Cassie said Gnomeo and Juliet was nice," Scott said looking through his phone.

"Bucky is scared of the Frog." You chuckled.

"In my Defense doll I only said it to make my move on you." he smirked kissing your cheek.

"Now thats a new level of low and pathetic." Sam groaned in disgust. You try reach for an aspirin on the top shelf but Bucky beat you to it.

"Here." he passed the bottle to you.

"I lift cars, I think can lift a shelf handle." you retorted to him

"We talked about this doll," he places both his arms on your shoulder.

"Right..." you breathed and dialouged dramatically " Why thank you, James, you're such a gentleman." flipping your hair.

"OH I call dibs on Robocop" Yelena raised her hand after laying out all the snacks.

"I'm letting the kid's pop culture spinner decide." Sam takes the remote from Scott and faces back to Peter. "Yo Pete what movie."

"Babylon," Peter replied from the kitchen island still rubbing his temple.

"As long as it's not Hamilton." You teased.

"Sams got it all memorized by now." Bucky continued.

"Not as much as you Buck, I heard him belting burn last night," Sam replied. The microwave beeped as you turned your back from the crowd and you grabbed a bowl to place the pack in.

"Heh well, you can say he's gonna be your right-hand man." you giggled at your cringe joke. "Get it." but no response was made, just silence from the crowd.

"Oh cmon that was fun-" you turn to see the reason of their response and froze "Ny......"

"Avengers I need your help."

[gabriel-xander]

I Wish You Died Instead Ch. 2

[Scaramouche x Fem!Reader]

A/N: I started writing this before all of his lore came out/Before the last Sumeru Archon quest, so there will be a handful of inconsistency later on. My advice to you? Just go with it!

{Also on Quotev, Ao3, and Wattpad under Gabriel Xander}

Chapter 2: You Get Slapped Twice

You sigh quietly when you knock against Scaramouche's office door.

The other Fatui agents had looked at you with some sort of judgement when you entered the building with Kazuki. You always made the effort to separate yourself from everyone else, so your reputation with the others was pretty shit. It's not like you were hated (hopefully), but they probably wouldn't go out of their way to save your ass if they saw you getting attacked.

That being said, they were all openly praying for you when you made your way to Scaramouche's office. Kazuki even hugged you before you left??

"I didn't tell you right away because I wanted to spend one last moment with you," Kazuki had told you, "Out of everyone I have ever met, I've always hated you the least."

You're gonna die for sure. <3

Scaramouche's voice snaps from the other side: "What."

That was the cue and permission to enter. Just his special way of showing he cares or whatever. You open the door and step inside, immediately feeling the overwhelming presence of the Balladeer. You close the door behind yourself, getting on your right knee to show false respect towards the Harbinger.

"My Lord, you wanted to see me?"

You kept your voice flat and bored, your expression was half hidden by your mask, though it was for naught as your face is devoid of emotion.

"Where were you during the meeting?" Scaramouche asks, not looking up from whatever paperwork he was completing.

"Reviewing the reports from my last deployment," You keep your response short, as you learned that Scaramouche hated the chatty ones, "I apologize for my absence."

"Did something go wrong?"

Why does he care?

"..."

You open your mouth but quickly close it again.

He doesn't care, he probably asked just to tell you to shut up. You see him do that with other agents, and you're not feeling like you're up for his sass.

"Whatever, I don't really care," Scaramouche sighs, "Start packing your bags, we're going to Liyue tomorrow morning with Tartaglia."

"Fuck."

"What was that?"

Ah shit. You didn't mean to say that out loud. The air is tense, there's no going back now. You're going to regret this opening your stupid mouth.

"With all due respect, My Lord-"

You wince when you hear Scaramouche push the chair back to stand up. He's walking towards you.

"-This is a sudden decision and a departure to a nation across Teyvat requires more planning. Not only that, my recent report-"

SMACK!

Your cheek burns from the aftermath, and you thank your luck for not falling over from that painful, backhanded slap. You bite your tongue to stop yourself from yelling in anger, and you dig your fingers into your palm so you don't slap him back.

This is exactly why you never fucking talk to Scaramouche.

"Get ready for tomorrow, [L/n]," Scaramouche smirks sadistically, "I'd hate to kill you so soon. You're the most tolerable second in command I've had so far."

You don't respond, not because you know to stay quiet, but because you don't want to waste your breath for someone like him. You stand up and keep your head low, stuffing your hands into your pockets to hide that your fists are shaking with aggression.

"Yes, My Lord. Is there anything else?" You ask quietly.

"Hm... yeah. Now that you mention it, I was going to do it myself, but since you're here..." Scaramouche walks to his desk to grab a few papers, "Do you know where Tartaglia is?"

You furrow your brows, "Yes, My Lord. He's-"

"-Just take these to him and tell him the plans for the departure," Scaramouche basically thrusts the papers at you, so you had no choice but to get them, "Can you handle that?"

Motherfucker is mocking you.

"Yes, sir," You bite back, "Would you like a coffee with that order?"

"Watch your tongue."

You look down at the papers and frown. You've only spoken to Tartaglia that one time, and you're honestly praying he won't recognize you. He might want to fight you or something.

You bow slightly before leaving the office, jogging down the halls to find the ginger bread man. Scaramouche rolls his eyes at your departure, heading back to his desk to complete the paperwork.

He doesn't like how simultaneously expressive and monotonous you are. You have so much fighting spirit, but your delivery is so dry. It's most definitely a front you display in front of him since you know how to behave. But Scaramouche wishes you can hide that true part of yourself better.

...

He doesn't know why.

——

You lean your back against the wall, watching Tartaglia beat the living shit out of his subordinates in the largest training room. That included Kazuki, so it was amusing to see his cocky ass get ate.

The Zapolyarny Palace was home to many Harbingers and Fatui agents. While there were a few from each group that had their own homes out of the palace they lived in, you unfortunately lived with the majority in the damn palace.

Sure, staying in the same building with the Tsaritsa was epic and all, but... you're not a die-hard worshiper like most people. In fact, you don't really have a favorite Archon. You thought Barbatos was pretty nifty, but that's about it.

Joining the Fatui wasn't to devote yourself to the Tsaritsa and her mysterious plans. You joined because you're curious about the truth behind Khae-

"[L/n]?"

You're brought back when Kazuki calls out to you. Poor Kazuki was laying on the floor and panting with exhaustion. Tartaglia was standing above him victoriously, a sadistic smile plastered his face.

"Kazuki," You nod in acknowledgement, both of you keeping it strictly professional when you're around others.

Tartaglia looks at you and widens his eyes a bit: "[L/n]? Oh, I remember you!"

Ah shit.

"Lord Tartaglia," You bow deeply, "it's a pleasure."

"Hey, didn't I tell you to call me Childe?" The Harbinger chuckles as he steps over Kazuki towards you.

"Oh, yes. Apologies, Lord Childe."

"No, just... ah, we'll work on it," The ginger sighs, "Did you come for your friend here? Or did you finally miss me enough to come find me?"

You see Kazuki in your peripheral vision pinch the bridge of his nose in exasperation. You almost do the same.

"Oh, how did you know?" You reply humorlessly, showing Childe the papers, "Actually, Lord Scaramouche made me his messenger girl. He wanted me to inform you that his branch will be departing to Liyue with you tomorrow morning. And he wanted me to give you these."

Childe raises a brow as he takes them. You see his eyes move side to side as he quickly reads through the first paper.

"Hm... Well, me and my subordinates were actually supposed to take this ship to Liyue for some business as well. It seems Scaramouche wants to preserve resources and have us both leave tomorrow." Childe summarizes for you.

Which he really didn't need to. Maybe he's just being friendly so you can drop your guard just so he can find a weakness and exploit it.

He then frowns, "That's way too soon for a spontaneous trip. The ship won't have room for all of us if Scaramouche plans on bringing all his subordinates."

You simply stand there with your hands behind your back, listening to Childe's woes quietly. Not that the gossip will help you, but you can never be too careful about observing people for later references.

"What do you think, Wakus Bonkus [L/n]?"

You frown, not understanding why your opinion matters for this.

"I-"

"Ooh! You naughty, Wankus Bonkus!"

"-Actually! Come with me, won't you, [L/n]?" Childe starts walking out of room, "You too, Kuzashi!"

"It's Kazuki," The male in question sighs quietly as he pushes himself to stand.

You wait for your comrade before you two leave the room, quickly trailing after the Harbinger who took long strides.

"You're alive," Kazuki says with wonder.

"No shit, Sherlock," You scoff out a laugh, "Wait, no!"

You skip ahead to walk in front of Kazuki, walking backwards so you can face him.

"Kazuki~! Kazuki~~!" You sing in a low and "spooky" tone, "This is the ghost of [L/n]~! I've come back with a warning~!"

The brunette rolls his eyes, though you couldn't see thanks to his mask. You snicker quietly and spin around to walk normally.

"Lord Scaramouche just wanted to yell at someone, honestly," You said, "He wanted to tell me about the departure to Liyue for tomorrow morning. Apparently, he also wanted us to tag along with Lord Tartaglia and his subordinates. Something about saving the resources?"

"What? But... You guys can't leave Snezhnaya yet. Your recent report about-"

"-Yeah, I tried telling him that but he fucking pimp slapped me into the next nation."

You're pretty sure you heard Childe snort.

"...Are you okay?"

"What, are you worried about me? Don't be getting soft on me, Kazuki."

"Well, fuck you too, then."

"Charming." You tense up suddenly when Childe stops in front of Scaramouche's office, "Lord Childe, why are we here?"

Childe knocks on the door twice before opening it, "I'm coming in, Scaramouche."

God dammit, Childe.

You wait until Childe enters the office before you silently throw a tantrum and stomp towards the office. Kazuki was watching that happen with deep understanding in his eyes.

"What do you want?" You hear Scaramouche spit out before you enter the office with Kazuki.

You almost wave awkwardly when Scaramouche looks at you with, what you believe is to be, disgust. The Balladeer pushes his chair back and marches around the table and towards you. You honestly expect him to beat you up right then and there.

"Did you bring him?"

"What is this about your trip to Liyue tomorrow?" Childe interrupts with a frown, "This is too soon for your departure, especially with the amount of people that will be coming."

Scaramouche frowns, "Deal with it. I have no other business to attend to here, so I might as well head to what concerns me next. The next ship heading to Liyue doesn't arrive until next month, I'm not waiting that long."

You feel Kazuki's eyes on you, you had to bite your tongue to not speak up. Unfortunately, the Archons have chosen you to be their silliest clown for today.

"And you, [L/n]?" Childe crosses his arms as he turns to look at you with expectancy, "What is your opinion on this?"

...

Wat?

You widen your eyes from behind your mask and shake your head, instinctively taking a step back when you see Scaramouche get closer in your peripheral vision.

"Oh, I—don't-my opinion isn't-"

"-No, tell me, [L/n]." Scaramouche was suddenly standing in front of you, causing you to flinch, "You clearly have something to say. Then say it."

Childe is literally dead to you now. If you weren't a subordinate, you would've given Childe a look that read exactly as "I fucking hate you".

"Well... Two months ago I received an "anonymous tip" from a Fatui agent who received that tip from a civilian somewhere in Snezhnaya," You made air quotes when needed, then placed your hands on you hips, "Apparently, a Treasure Hoarder group had ambushed some Fatui and stole not only their equipment, but also the Visions from those who had it."

Scaramouche frowns, "Yeah, I remember that. I sent you out to deal with it."

You nod, "Right. The Treasure Hoarders were dealt with, but we lost a handful of men and their entire beings disappeared. However, those Treasure Hoarders were no doubt killed."

You had made the order for their execution, but you didn't stick around to see the monstrosity you made your soldiers become. You couldn't handle it.

"So, what's the issue?"

"Two days ago, when it was my day off, I got um..." You furrow your eyebrows to think, "I guess ambushed is the correct term, but I wasn't in danger. Anyway, I got a surprise visit from a random civilian. She told me that she was the one who sent that anonymous tip from before. But she had actually deceived us at that time."

Kazuki crosses his arms, "And how did she recognize you?"

"Her son was one of my subordinates, and he was the one who gave me that tip in the first place. He gave a detailed description of my appearance to her just so she could come find me."

"What happened next?" Childe asks with a serious expression.

"Well, two months ago, she and her son, Isaac, were beaten near death by several groups of Treasure Hoarders. They took Isaac hostage and stole his Vision, then they threatened to kill his mother if Issac didn't agree to cooperate and become a supplier. So, Isaac led a group of agents to a false camp site to get ambushed. And that was the version of events we were exposed to."

You had kept your voice monotonous the entirety of your explanation, not wanting Scaramouche to have a reason for calling you emotional or whatever. Either way, it just comes naturally to you when talking to the Harbingers.

"But I guess those agents we thought were dead, are actually still alive and are part of the Treasure Hoarders. They've been using their Visions and equipment to replicate the technology, armor, and weapons. Isaac is probably dead, but it's for sure known that he at least stopped cooperating with them. I haven't heard from his mother since two days ago."

You hold your hands behind your back, waiting in the tense silence for what the Harbingers might say.

"[L/n]..."

SMACK!!

You could barely see the hand coming towards you, the next thing you knew, you were on the floor with no doubt a bright handprint burning your right cheek. Your mask had flown off from the force, causing it to slide against the floor and out of your reach.

This motherfucker slapped you.

Again.

You...

Really hate Scaramouche so fucking much.

Kazuki takes a step towards you in concern, but he remembers where he is and stops. Folding his arms behind himself to preserve his image, Kazuki looks away, opting to just look at your mask.

"Scaramouche-"

"-I deal with my subordinates however I see fit, Tartaglia," The Balladeer says coldly, cutting off the ginger, "I'm staying in Snezhnaya after all. It seems I haven business to take care of."

You can taste your blood pooling in your mouth from how hard and suddenly you bit your tongue. You keep your head down and stay where you are, knowing that behaving like this will make him happy about "making you submit".

"Our business seems to be done now, correct?" Scaramouche starts walking to his desk, "Leave. All of you. I'm getting tired of looking at you."

Well, Childe didn't want to keep looking at Scaramouche either! He grabs your mask and leaves the room without another word. Kazuki was quick to follow while you were just getting up from the floor.

"Come back tomorrow morning after Tartaglia is to depart," Scaramouche says, "You don't want me to be the one to seek you out first."

"Yes, My Lord," You mutter quietly to keep your lips as closed as you could to stop the blood from seeping out.

And with that, you leave his office for the 2nd time that day with a bruise already coloring your face. You close the door behind yourself and immediately turn your head to the side to spit out a surprising amount of blood.

Gross.

You hear Childe telling Kazuki some orders, but you were more focused on spitting out the metallic liquid to actually pay attention to what was said. When you hear a pair of footsteps grow distant, you assume Childe has left you alone. You pull down your sleeve and wipe at your mouth to rid of any red that may have stained your lips.

"Here," Childe's gloved hand (even though the glove looked like it was halfway on) holds out your mask to you, "Is... Scaramouche always like that?"

Childe's eyebrows were furrowed together, a small frown etching his lips. You can't help but notice that his two red earrings compliment his blue eyes. You've always acknowledged that Childe looks pretty, but it was more of a physical thing. His personality is starting to shine through in making him more attractive.

You smile softly, "Thank you... And yes. But you learn to tune it out... Or so I've been told by an apparent liar."

Childe chuckles, "I didn't mean to get you in trouble like that. But also, you did save me from an unpleasant trip with him, so I guess I owe you one."

"No, there's no need," You don't bother putting your mask back, "You're the reason why I was able to get a word in at all. So, I should be thanking you, Lord Childe."

He shakes his head: "Just Childe."

"Lord Childe."

"Childe."

"Master Childe?"

"Childe."

"Sir Childe?"

"..."

"Childe, sir?" You couldn't help the grin, "Mr. Man Childe Sir?"

The blue eyed male rolls his eyes with a grin matching yours, "Alright, alright, wise guy. You should get some rest now, no doubt your boss will run you ragged tomorrow."

"Yeah, I know," You sigh and begin to bow, "Have a g-"

"-You don't need to do that," Childe pats your arm to get you to stand up right, "We're more like casual friends, don't you think? Relax a little."

Uh-

"O-Okay," You smile nervously, your habits yelling at you to stop being so expressive with a Harbinger, "Have a good night, Lor-erm, Childe."

"Good night, girlie."

[short-honey-badger]

✨️Update✨️

Chapter 1 of Heavenly Demon is up! Come join me on AO3!

Ryomen Sukuna has been the demon of the Opera House for decades. He longs for glory of his own but knows that his...extra features would have him burned at the stake. That is until he meets little you, curled up and crying at the feet of a stone angel in the chapel that is rarely in use. As the years pass, the girl grows into a talented young woman, taught by Sukuna himself. However, the night of her debut, a man from her past arrives and flips their world upside down. (A Phantom of the Opera rewrite)

The young woman debates with herself. Suku wouldn't be too upset with her if she was a little late, would he? She didn't know, and you were nervous to find out. But it had been so long since she spoke with someone who knew her when her father still lived, and dinner outside of the theater sounded so nice. She glances back at the lonely spider lily that sits on her vanity and then back to the bluebells that she holds and makes her decision.

“Give me a moment to get ready. I can't very well go out dressed in just my nightgown.”

Gojo could cry to the heavens with how excited he is, but settles for telling you to take your time and that he and Getou would wait outside for her.

Unknown to the three of them, the demon has listened to the entire exchange, and hot rage boils in his chest. How dare they. He seethes in silence, all four eyes trained on the white-haired moron who thinks he can take his student away. Ryomen Sukuna would show this interloper exactly who he was intruding upon, and he would show his dear student that he did not tolerate her tardiness.

Link to AO3 -> HERE

@goth-mami-writer

[kierancaz]

So desperate to feel something I’ve stooped so low as to putting on a mcu movie

[buckets-and-trees]

Can you do a part 2 to "Tiny Vessels" where Steve regrets leaving Reader and was just confused and went back to her? I hate it when Steve leaves Reader for Peggy.🥺

You know what? Yes. I also hate that he went back. I half didn't even like writing Tiny Vessels, but I still remember feeling so compelled to write it the day that I did - I think I was punishing him and wanting to add even more layers to him having made a big mistake by going back in time, so... yeah.

AND LET ME BE CLEAR - I'M NOT VEXED YOU ASKED FOR THIS, NONNIE! I'm actually pretty touched that it resonated enough for you to ask for a follow up.

Fandom: MCU Title: Don't Forget You Were the One Who Characters/Pairings: Steve Rogers x gn!Reader Word Count: 1.3k

Content Warnings: angst

Additional Notes: This will clock in as the second of the five offerings for my 300 follower request fest. This ask kicked around in my head, but then this morning it clicked, and I wrote it out in just a few hours, so if there are mistakes, it was the rush of writing. The original was a one-day write, and so I guess it's fitting that this one was, too. And as the original was also heavily influenced by a song, I listened to Wild Way by Tori Amos for some of the inspo on this.

Your breath caught at the sight of him standing next to your door, and you came to an immediate halt.

“Hey,” he said, pushing off from where he’d been leaning against the wall, a forced and uneasy smile on his face.

Good, you thought, he shouldn’t feel comfortable.

As you approached and unlocked the door, he didn’t make any other moves to touch or greet you, and you were glad he had enough sense for that. You were glad for the moment of putting your keys in the lock and turning it open to have your face hidden from him so you could bite your lip in frustration. And fear. You desperately worked to keep your heart from racing, knowing he’d be able to hear your heartbeat if he tried – and you knew he would be hyper focused on every sound, movement, and reaction.

You entered your home and left the door open for him to follow you inside. You dropped your purse and keys on the table next to your entry and kept walking. You heard him slowly close the door behind him.

“So, when did you get back?” You asked, knowing he would be waiting for you to speak before pressing you into any further conversation.

“No small talk,” he murmured. You turned to face him, a frown on your face. “No, of course not. Um, today. Only an hour or two ago.”

You crossed your arms and were quiet for another few moments.

“Why did you come here, Steve?” You finally asked.

“You know why–”

You cut him off with a scoffing noise. “I don’t know why.”

“You know in my letter I said– “

“I didn’t read it,” you interrupted again.

He drew his head back sharply, blinking at you. “You didn’t – didn’t Bucky give you – “

“You left without a word, and thought I would want to read a letter you gave to Bucky to give to me? You didn’t get to do that to me.”

He dropped his gaze and put his hands in his pockets. “Okay, that wasn’t fair.”

“It was cowardly.”

You saw the effect those words had on him. You didn’t care that they cut him to the core. He deserved it after carving your heart out and crushing it without a care.  

“Did you think you could leave, walk around in whatever yesteryear with Peggy Carter for ten months, change your mind, and just come back and think I’d be waiting and ready to welcome you back into my arms?”

“No,” he took a few steps toward you, looking back into your eyes again, “I knew it wouldn’t be that easy, and I didn’t walk around in the past for ten months. I wasn’t there a full two days before I was trying to come back. It took time to hunt down the right people and technology, but it wasn’t even a full two months that I saw there before I got out.”

“Wait, so… you were only there for less than two months but you let ten months pass here for your time to reappear here?”

“I know that scientifically I could come right back, but I also knew I left and I didn’t deserve to come back and act like I hadn’t left.”

“No, Steve!” you dropped your head. “This is what was wrong with us before, only I didn’t know it back then because I was too caught up in all the Captain America aura about you. I couldn’t believe someone like you would be with someone like me,” Steve opened his mouth to say something, but you held your hand up, raised your head back up and kept talking, “but you were even worse. You didn’t think you deserved love or happiness at all. I was stunned by every bit of us getting together, it felt like a stupid modern fairytale in the middle of everything else that was awful. After a while I even started to believe it myself, thought maybe I was good for you even, but not good enough for you to stay in the end, and now you’re telling me you thought you had to do even more time to make up for leaving?”

Steve sighed, and you could feel the waves of ache radiating off him, matching the ache in your own chest.

“You were too good for the failure I thought I was,” he started to explain. “I knew it wasn’t just me who failed in defeating Thanos, but it didn’t make me feel like any less of a failure, and every day I was living a life full of reminders of how much we lost. Until you. I started to build something again after you.”

“Then why did you leave?” the question burst from the part of your heart where everything still felt like scorched earth.

Steve sighed. “In the letter – “

“You get to tell me to my face, Steve Rogers.”

He nodded. “We brought back half the universe, but I still felt like a failure because we lost Tony and Nat. I couldn’t face it. But when I got back there, I couldn’t shake how vile and cheap it was to run away, and the only one I wanted to talk to about it – about fixing the snap, about losing Nat and Tony, about leaving this time for the past, about trying to get back to the future – I only wanted to talk to you.”

He took another step toward you, but you took a half a step back.

“That was a good speech,” you said, “but Steve…”

Your shoulders softened, and he stepped forward again. He tentatively reached out, took your hand, and you looked down at them.

“It can’t be just a good speech,” he said. “I need it to be the best speech of my life.”

You couldn’t hold back the overwhelming battle of emotions anymore, and tears started falling down your cheeks. You heart yearned to let him right back in, and yet it also wanted to banish him forever.

His other hand came up to brush some of your quiet tears away with his thumb.

“I hate you so much right now, Steve,” you cried while not being able to resist leaning into the palm of his hand. “I had to.”

“I deserve it, but I want to deserve you at some point. I didn’t expect to come back and be welcomed into your arms, I expected to come back and earn the right to wrap my arms around you again.”

“God damn you, Steve Rogers. I want to tell you yes, but I can’t promise you anything any time soon.”

“I know,” he said, closing the gap between you and pressing his forehead down to yours.

“No,” you whispered, and put a hand on his chest – not to push him away, but to at least hold him from coming any closer. “You might think you know,” you your voice was firm but quiet, “but I don’t think you do. I’m hearing what you’ve said. It means everything that you said you’ve come back for me, but the man I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with still smashed my heart and left me alone for almost a year.”

Steve didn’t say anything immediately, only continued to stroke his thumb over your cheek, hold your hand, and keep his forehead pressed against yours for a few minutes. Everything still hurt, but it was a balm for the moment.

Finally, he spoke. “Unless you tell me to go, I’m never leaving again. You’re my end game, as long as you need, whatever it takes. I will wait – patiently, but with no pressure and no expectations.”

Then you let the silence fill the space between you.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “And I love you.”

“For now, just kiss me once.”

He did not hesitate, capturing your lips in the kiss he’d been desperate to have for far too long and not knowing when he would get to kiss you again.

↠ Masterlist | Aspen's Ask Box | Field Guide to the Forest

[tldrthor]

Part II: The Princess (and the chaos she brings with her) - steve rogers x princess!reader

summary: the princess gets to grips with life in the avengers tower, the captain does his best to not allow his feelings to get in the way of acting normal. everything is nice... but for how long?

part 2 // it was an honour and a privilege, for his words to reach only her ear // word count 2k

you can find part one here and here's my masterlist <3

a/n: nothing much happens in this one but i needed to set the scene! hope you enjoy this short and fluffy fic x

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

Steve felt a kind of giddiness he had never felt before. It was almost nauseating; somewhere between the greatest euphoria and the deepest of depressions. He felt himself unable to bring words to his lips, when Bucky knocked on his room door to ask him how he was holding up.

“This is fucking crazy, man.” Bucky had breathed out. It seemed the same cat had got his tongue.

Steve had breathed out a half-laugh. “Yeah, it’s definitely crazy.”

He felt delirious. Dizzy with every emotion he had ever, and will ever feel. He found himself staring at the clock as time ticked by, agonisingly slowly. He fought against every instinct he had to run to her, make sure she never left his sight again.

It had been nearly 80 years since they had last seen each other. What if she had moved on? What if he was too different for her now? What if she was different?

As they had talked, it felt the same. But the talk they had had wasn't quite enough for the captain. He fought against every instinct he had to charge into her room and demand answers to the thousand questions running through his head.

His best bet would be going for a run, clear his head, work off some energy. It was a nice day outside, and a weekend so most of the agents and personnel were off-base. He shrugged on some gym clothes and headed out. He found himself lingering, as he walked past her door, trying to fend off thoughts of charging in and blurting his deepest thoughts to her.

The sound of... struggling? He could hear her, with ragged breath and the sound of what he thought was someone bumping into furniture. His eyebrows furrowed as he went into avenger mode.

"Princess?" He knocked quickly on the door, listening as he did for further sounds. As he knocked, the noises stopped. It was only through his supersoldier hearing that he could still hear her ragged breaths.

A small, breathless voice came from behind the door. "I'm okay, I'm alright!"

The captain wasn't entirely sure what to do. "Do you need help with anything?"

There was silence for a moment. And then, the lock on the door turned and she stood, once more, in front of him. Now, she was more flushed, and her hair had fallen ever so slightly out of place. The captain still thought she was the most radiant being he had ever seen.

"I... I am sorry to ask, captain. I am so used to having handmaidens that I can't get my armour off by myself." She looked away as she said it, and Steve cursed himself as a blush spread it's way over his cheeks.

"I'll help!" He said, perhaps a little too much enthusiasm behind his words. He immediately pulled it back, "or I could get Natasha, if you want."

The princess smiled at him. "It's okay, I wouldn't want to bother Miss Romanoff, if you don't mind helping?" She held the door for him and he entered her chambers. If she had been on Alfheim, or Asgard for that matter, this would have caused great scandal. For a brief moment, regardless of the circumstances, she was grateful to be back on Midgard.

She lifted her arms to show him how the chestplate connected around her torso, and he began to undo the intricate mechanism stitching it together. They were both hyper-aware of their closeness in that moment, each fighting not to think about it too much.

"It's beautiful." Steve tried to cut the silence, but his voice came out as more of a whisper. "Your armour, I mean. The carvings." He cleared his throat.

She made eye contact with him, and he nearly audibly gulped. "Thank you." As the mechanisms finally gave way, she pulled the piece over her head, holding it in front of her. "It belonged to my grandmother, the last Queen of Alfheim. They say even the stars themselves bowed to her."

Steve didn't miss the sadness layered in her voice.

"I never knew anything about your family before. It's crazy that they're kings and queens." Steve confessed.

She placed a hand, lightly on his arm. She couldn't think of what to say in response to that, but the gesture was enough. She hung the armour in the wardrobe, then began to take off her jewelry starting with her jeweled tiara. As she pulled it from her hair, he audibly gasped.

With the way her tresses fell, and covered her ears, it was like the princess disappeared and was replaced with (y/n). His (y/n). The one he ejected from the plane to save, all those years ago. The one he had mourned since he came out of the ice.

She turned to him, smiling. "You look the same, you know." She continued, "As when we last saw each other."

Steve caught a glimpse of himself in her mirror. He didn't feel the same as back then. He had been so full of hope, so naïve. The modern world made it hard to be optimistic.

"I'm older, now. You haven't aged a day." He responded.

She chuckled. "Steven, you are the same boy who jumped on the grenade at Camp Lehigh, it doesn't matter how you've aged." The kindness of her words as she said his name moved him in a way that no one had in a long time. "My people age far slower than Midgardians, so physically aging is an honour. I hope that one day, I experience the blessings of the years."

"What... what age are you?"

"Are you quite certain you want to know?" She asked, a hint of a smirk on her lips. When he nodded after a moment's hesitation, she continued; "I am 578 years old."

His jaw nearly hit the floor in shock. He looked at her features intently, his mind clawing desperately for anything to say. She didn't look a day over 25, and hadn't since the 40's.

"That's... um, pretty old." He stuttered out. Well, that was not what he had meant to say.

Her melodic laugh reached his ears and he had to admit, he breathed out a sigh of relief. "Captain, that is not a very becoming thing to say to a lady," She giggled. "I am barely a quarter of the way through my life span."

"God, sorry I didn't mean it like that, just... It's all so strange."

"I know, Captain. It is a long time in comparisons to a Midgardians life. I hope that it does not disturb you too much."

In the silence of the room, Steve suddenly became aware of the distance between them, or rather, the lack thereof. She was so close he could almost feel her breath on her face, as her eyelashes fluttered, looking up at him.

Her irresistible eyes.

He could reach out and grab her, right now. It would be easy, romantic, passionate, wonderful. He wanted to do it, badly. To feel his hands on her waist, to wrap her in his arms. He wondered, briefly, if she would tangle her hands in his hair.

In the real world, he couldn't do it. They had been apart for nearly a century, and even when they knew each other, they hadn't gotten that far. He didn't know if she still... felt that way.

His head was spinning, everything seemed to be moving too quickly and too slowly at the same time. Mayday, mayday, mayday.

He cleared his throat and moved away. Well, it was more of a jump. So much for looking normal, he thought to himself.

"We should go for dinner, uh... people will be waiting." He examined her features. She smiled politely, but her eyes betrayed something else. Was that... disappointment he detected? He was probably wishful thinking.

"Of course, Captain. I will get changed into the clothes Natasha brought for me, and then we shall go." She elegantly picked up some clothes, and wandered to the bathroom.

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

Dinner was lively as ever. At Thor's request, everyone had joined the team in the dining room for some pizza. Steve and the Princess wandered in later than everybody else, but were welcomed with cheers and laughter. It was nice.

"Princess (y/n)!" Thor boomed, motioning his friends over to two empty seats beside him. "I believe you have met everyone bar the young master Parker, over here." He pointed towards a young brunet boy, sitting rather awkwardly at the corner of the large table.

He waved, whispering a barely audible "Hi."

"Hello, Master Parker. I am (y/n) of Alfheim."

"Yeah, I heard, um. It's Peter, not Master Parker. My name I mean. If you want to- if it's your tradition or whatever you can call me that too I just... um, most of the uh avengers call me Peter, I mean." He placed a hand over his face in what even the princess understood was teen angst.

"Peter, then." She smiled politely at the young, flailing boy.

"I call him bugboy, if that's any more appeasing to you." A familiar voice parted through the din of the many, many conversations being had around the table. The princess looked to see Bucky sitting across from them, next to the man called Sam.

She laughed politely, at his joke, understanding immediately that the young avenger certainly experienced a lot of jokes at his expense.

Her attention was diverted, once again, by Mr. Stark. "Have you ever had the Midgardian delicacy of pizza, your highness?" There was a hint of sarcasm to his deference, that was not unnoticed by (y/n).

"Tony, she lived in Brooklyn in the 40s. Of course she's had pizza." Steve spoke up for her, also noticing the way Tony laced disquiet with her titles. He was being overprotective over pizza, and even though he was aware of the fact, he couldn't stop himself.

"Actually, Captain, I never got around to trying it during my time here."

A silence befell the dining room.

"What?" The harsh words came from Bucky, but it was a sentiment echoed quickly by Cap, and then young Peter.

"How could you have lived in New York for several years, and not had pizza?" Steve laughed at the Princess, who sheepishly smiled.

"I honestly did not realise it was a food, and I lived mostly on army rations anyway..." She explained.

"Oh my god, she's never lived." Sam spoke, dead-pan.

Tony finally interrupted the cacophony. "Well then, ma'am, consider this evening an education."

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

The evening was lovely. The conversation (and wine) flowed, never a dull moment. Thor and the Princess dazzled with tales of their worlds and the many battles they had faced. Steve and Bucky reminisced with the Princess about the times they had shared together.

As the evening grew quieter, the Princess found herself feeling safe, for the first time in a while. She was all too aware of Cap's arm slung over the back of her chair, dangerously close to being around her shoulders. Her heart skipped a beat every time he leant down to her ear, to share something only with her. It was an honour and a privilege, for his words to reach only her ear.

For the last 80 years, she had felt like she was spinning out of control. With the war, and especially the last attack, things had been worse than ever. But now, she could get used to this.

She dared, as she laughed at one of Tony's jokes, to put her head on the Captain's shoulder. As she did, she happened to catch Bucky's eye - he smiled and winked.

Yeah, she could definitely get used to this.

Unfortunately, she wouldn't get the chance to.

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

== TAGLIST ==

@vicmc624 @jvdgement @capswife @megluv1 @moviegurl2002 @aliciaasky @yiiiikesmish

i tagged everyone who said they wanted part 2, but let me know if you want to be removed from the taglist at any point! thanks so much for your support on the first part x

[lilstephenlover]

stephen: *just existing* y/n: stephen: y/n: who needs drugs when i can look at your eyes

[munsons-hellfire]

It All Fell Down | Steve Rogers

SUMMARY: You and Steve promised each other a life together after you bring everyone back. 5 years had been enough for you two to marry and have a child together, but with a possible chance to bring everyone back including your brother it was worth it. You just wish you knew the risk before it all fell down.

PAIRINGS: Steve Rogers x Reader

CONTENT WARNINGS: SFW, fluff, angst, time-travel, alternate universe, death, blood, gore, thanos.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay, so this song is definitely inspired by Dynasty by MIIA. I was listening to it on repeat and came up with this idea, I thought about writing it for ACOTAR but I felt that the idea I had in mind fit Steve better so here we are. Highly recommend listening to the song at least once, mainly towards the end of the one-shot, when their facing off against Thanos. This is also a AU as it doesn't quite follow the movie ending. I took a different route. Also I have included a dragon in this story but I'm kind of changing things up so it might seem confusing when introduced to the dragon. I hope you like this!

WORD COUNT: 5.8K

James Rogers giggled as he ran around your house. Your husband was out and you were home watching your son. Your parents were there to help, they were in the kitchen cooking dinner for the five of you. The only thing missing was your brother. He had been one of the many people who disappeared when Thanos snapped his fingers. He was right by your side, fighting with you and Steve.

Then he was gone before you even had a chance to register what was truly happening. It was a struggle at first for everyone to live in a new world where only 50% of the population lived. When you found out that you were pregnant life became a little more bearable. You still helped out at the Avengers compound but you had taken to motherhood quickly and loved it more than anything.

Steve was an amazing father to your son and you couldn’t wait to tell him that James would be a big brother in a few months. But everything changed when Steve returned, Natasha with him and an old friend you thought had also disappeared. The shock was evident in your face as you stopped in your tracks standing in the hallway and staring at Scott Lang,

“Scott?” You breathed out, the shock leaking from your voice as well. He walked towards you pulling you into a tight hug.

“It’s so good to see you.” He whispered after pulling back from the hug.

“How?” You didn’t understand what was going on and you wanted to cry, your emotions were all over the place.

“I was stuck in a place called the Quantum Realm.” He explained.

“Daddy!” James yelled running past you and Scott and immediately jumping into his father’s outstretched arms.

“You two have a kid?” He asked, looking from you back to Steve. The blond soldier smiled softly, holding onto James tightly as he walked up next to you.

“We do.” Steve answered.

“James, this is mommy and daddy’s friend Scott. Scott, this is our son James.” Your child tried to hide away in his father’s grasp, his shyness taking over at the new person. Scott smiled at your son. “What’s happening?” You proceeded to ask, wanting to know why Scott and Natasha were here.

It was normal for Natasha to always be here. She had married your brother before the Accords had happened. Therefore she was your son’s Aunt by marriage. And even after he had disappeared Natasha still came over. She spoiled James to death and you love their relationship.

“We might be able to bring everyone back.” Natasha said, hope lingering in her eyes. Something you hadn’t seen in the last five years.

“What?” Your words were choked as they fell from your lips. Steve reached out and grabbed a hold of your hand entangling your fingers together.

“If we can go back in time and retrieve the stones we might be able to reverse what Thanos did. We can bring everyone back!” Scott said excitedly.

You exchanged a look with your husband, he had his eyes on you. Your parents entered the room looking at the group and understood what needed to be done.

“Do it.” Your mothers voice ran through your ears and you turned to look back at them.

“Mom, I can’t leave James. One of us has to be here with him.” You said.

The older woman stepped forward, she grabbed your free hand and held it in hers. A soft sad smile graced her pink lips, she too had hope clear as day in her brown eyes.

“James will be fine with his grandparents. The world needs Captain America and The Dragon Rider. The world needs saving, and if you can bring everyone back, if you can bring Lu back, then you need to go. You need to be there when he returns.” Tears started to flow down your cheeks.

“Okay.” You paused and looked at your husband. “After we do this we retire permanently.”

“I can agree with that.” Steve said softly, sending you a bright smile.

You turned back towards Scott and Natasha. “Let’s go bring our family home.”

───── ❝ ◂ ❚ ⊱ꕥ⊰ ❚ ▸ ❞ ─────

In the days since you and Steve had agreed to help bring the others back, you had gathered everyone that was left. You and Natasha had found Clint and brought him back. It was a sight to see and one you had never expected to see. When others joined you some had to be introduced to Egan, your fire-drake. He was the last of his kind, looking for his bond partner. The dragon had bonded with you years before you had become an Avenger. He heard your cry for help one night when you were out on a mission as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent.

You had sustained an injury to your abdomen and were left to bleed out. Had it not been for Egan you wouldn’t be here right now, you wouldn’t be an Avenger, or a wife, or a mother. You wouldn’t have everything that you have. You found the bond between you and the dragon and held onto it until he had managed to get you back to S.H.I.E.L.D. From there he never left your side.

The two of you started to train together, and he showed you how to use his powers. The bond that tied you two together allowed you access to the fire-drakes powers, it allowed you to use them as you pleased. With communications you were the only one who could understand him when he talked, oftentimes you’d translate for him if he talked to the others that were a constant in your life.

For this mission you’d be going back in time to 2012 with Steve, Scott, Tony, and Bruce. However you’d have to leave Egan behind. He wasn’t going to be thrilled about it when you went to tell him. He had been your protector for years, you couldn’t be separated from each other and if you were it would only be in death if one of you died. His duty to you as a bonded partner was to help keep you safe.

You stood looking at the machine that would take you back to 2012. While you were so excited to bring everyone back, to bring your brother back something felt off about this mission. Your gut was telling you that something was going to happen. The others had gathered behind you looking at what you had been looking at.

“I need to talk to Egan before we leave.” You mentioned Steve and the others listening to you. They kept their gaze on the time traveling device. This plan had taken a few days to get together, especially having to learn more about each of the stones and where they’d be.

“He’s not going to be happy when you tell him he has to stay here.” Steve said, as he walked up to you placing his large hands on your hips and pulling you close to his body.

You glanced up into his green-blue eyes, a hand lifting up to rest on his cheek. You moved your thumb back and forth, the feeling of touch enough to comfort you.

“I know. And even though we’re moving back through time, he’ll still be able to feel our bond and I’ll still have access to his powers. It will be okay.” You tried to smile but you couldn’t ignore the gut feeling. You heard a thump coming from outside, indicating that Egan had returned from the lake, his favorite spot on the Avenger’s compound. It was odd for a fire-drake but he loved it.

Steve placed a kiss on your temple and removed his hands from your hip. Your hand fell from his face and you started to walk away, heading outside to speak with Egan while everyone started to prepare for the mission.

“Egan.” You called out, when you stepped outside.

“Yes, my dear Rider.” He called back, whispering in your mind.

You came to a stop, lifting your eyes to look at the fire-drake. He leaned his head down towards you. You lifted your hand and scratched underneath his chin. The scales were rough, but it was nothing you weren’t used to.

“I have to leave for a mission and I need you to stay here.” You said, looking away from the dragon.

He released a puff of air, the sentence enough to anger. “Why, Rider?” Egan had a knack for calling you “Rider” instead of using your name but you really didn’t mind. If that’s what he preferred to call you then that’s what you allowed him to call you.

“We’re going through a place called the Quantum realm, you can’t go in there and you can’t go back in time. But the bond will still work and I will still have access to your powers. Therefore I’ll be able to keep myself protected until we get back.” You explained.

“Why does this mission require that of you?”

“We’re going to bring everyone back, Egan. There is a way to do it and this is the way.”

“You know dangers will follow you back, that’s why most do not reach further back in time.”

“I know, and my gut is telling me something will happen but we have the chance to bring them back. We need to bring them back. So I’m going despite what my gut is telling me.”

“As long as you don’t die on me, Rider.”

“I won’t, I have you to come back to, and a kid to come back to.”

“Is this truly the last mission? Does this mean retirement is finally on the horizon?”

“I hope so, why?”

“I smell the child you bear, when the child is born I will become their new bonded dragon.”

You looked at the dragon, his orange eyes gleaming at you. “I forgot you could smell babies in the womb. Why not James?” You asked.

“He is bonded to another dragon, and that dragon will make its appearance known when James calls out to it. Just like you did, and just like the child inside you calls to me.”

“You’ll protect this child?”

“It is my duty, just like it was my duty to protect you Rider. So long as you promise to be safe on this mission.”

“I promise.” You looked back as Steve stood at the door holding it open. “It’s time to go, I’ll see you when we get back.”

“If you need me to talk, I’ll be there through the bond.”

“Thank you, Egan.”

With these words you watched Egan lift off into the sky and fly back towards the lake. You turned around and headed towards Steve. Then you’d all leave to retrieve the Infinity Stones, one step closer to bringing your brother back.

───── ❝ ◂ ❚ ⊱ꕥ⊰ ❚ ▸ ❞ ─────

You returned, a smile on your face. All the stones had been collected. You were now closer than ever. As you looked around however you noticed one person missing from the group. Natasha. You stepped forward, away from Steve.

“Where is she?” You asked, calling attention to everyone. Clint fell down to your knees. When he did you felt it then and there. You walked to Clint, until you too fell to your knees. Your hands reached out for Clint, he looked at you with a defeated look on his face. His best friend was gone, your sister-in-law gone, there was no way you could bring her back.

You rested on Egan looking up at the sky as he rested on his make-shift bed that was placed in the water. While he liked to be around water he didn’t exactly like certain parts of it. You needed to hear what happened but you also needed space from everyone, Steve knew that. You had always been that way after a loss. But something like this, he wasn’t so sure he’d be able to pull you back from whatever spiral was going on in your mind.

“Calm the thoughts.” Egan whispered in your mind.

You ignored the dragon. “Do we know if she had family?” Tony asked, finally breaking the silence between them.

“Yeah. Us. Lu.” Steve said, mention your brother. The blond looked up to you, while you looked away at the mention of your brother. Now you had to tell him that he lost his wife, that he wouldn’t ever get to see her again. Tears escaped your eyes at the thought of telling him, you’d need Steve with you when you told Lu.

“What?” Thor questioned, walking over to them. He was taking the news just as hard as everyone else if not worse.

“Huh?” Tony stood from the bench looking at Thor.

“What are you doing?” He asked.

“Just asked him a question.”

“Yeah, no, you’re acting like she’s dead. Why are we acting like she’s dead? We have the stones, right? As long as we have the stones… Cap, we can bring her back. Isn’t that right? So, stop this shit. We’re the Avengers. Get it together.”

“Can’t get her back.” Clint said, finally speaking. A quiet sob escaped your lips as you closed your eyes.

“What’s he…? What?”

“It can’t be undone. It can’t.”

Thor laughed, looking around at his friends, at his family. “Look, I’m sorry, no offense, but you’re a very earthly being, okay? And we’re talking about space magic. And “can’t” seems very definitive. Don’t you think?”

“Yeah, look, I know that I’m way outside my pay grade here. But she still isn’t here, is she?” Clint asked, as he walked away from the post he had been leaning against. You sat up on Egan’s back, looking down at the others. But your eyes found your husband. Tony pulled his glasses off and lowered his head.

“No, that’s my point.” Thor tried to fight, it seems he really was the only one fighting. You could really say much, you didn’t know what you could say.

“It can’t be undone.” The words echoed in your ears like a drum. Releasing a shaky breath you looked away from the others again. “Or that’s at least what the red, floating guy had to say. Maybe you wanna go talk to him, okay? Go grab your hammer and you go fly and you talk to him.”

“Clint.” You muttered, placing your eyes back on the man. He turned, pulling his eyes away from Thor to look at you. But you said nothing, his name was all you could manage to say. But he could see the pain on your face. It hurt to see that pain, he had to look away.

“It was supposed to be me. She sacrificed her life for that goddamn stone. She bet her life on it.”

Bruce turned back towards them, looking around at his friends. His eyes lingered on you, only then when you felt his gaze did you look at him. “She’s not coming back. We have to make it worth it. We have to.” Steve stood, his eyes found Bruce’s.

“We will.”

When the others left you slid off Egan’s back onto the dock. Steve took your hands in his and held onto them as he steadied you.

“You should tell him.” Egan whispered in your mind. You looked back at the dragon, a glare exiting from your face and towards Egan. He only chuckled in your head.

“What’s he saying?” Steve asked, pulling you back to him.

“He wants me to tell you something.” You whispered softly, lowering your head afraid to look at your husband. It wasn’t that you were afraid to tell him, it was more that you were afraid of what you might lose. One person near and dear to you was gone, you couldn’t lose anyone else, but that lingering feeling wouldn’t go away.

“What is it?” Steve questioned, quirking a brow.

“James, he is going to be a big brother.” You said softly, a small smile falling onto your face. The sadness had been replaced with happiness and Steve pulled you into his embrace as he released a laugh.

“When did you find out?” He pulled back to stare at you, scanning your face for any trace of a lie.

“A few days ago, Egan later confirmed it. I wasn’t entirely sure until he told me that he could feel the bond between him and our kid.” You explained, looking back at Egan who gave a nod.

“He’s not bonded with James?” Steve seemed confused, and you understood why.

“No, apparently James is already bonded to a dragon. One that’ll come to him when he calls out to it. I guess my time is coming up which means that Egan will need a new bonded Rider and it seems that our child is the perfect match to take over.”

“As long as you still make sure both our children know how to handle these dragons with care. I’m happy we’re having another kid.”

Once again you were smiling. Though the thought of having to raise this kid in a world where Natasha no longer existed broke your heart. But one thing was clear, you would make sure your kid knew who their aunt was. You rested your forehead on Steve's. He closed his eyes for a moment and so did you. The moment was broken when they called out to you and Steve. With a heavy sigh the two of you headed back towards the building to hopefully bring everyone back, to bring your brother back.

───── ❝ ◂ ❚ ⊱ꕥ⊰ ❚ ▸ ❞ ─────

Your eyes were on the gauntlet, the scan was finishing up. Steve stood in front of you, while Rocket and Tony were looking at the glove.

“All right, the glove’s ready. Question is, who’s gonna snap their freakin’ fingers?” Rocket asked, sending the question around the room.

“I’ll do it.” You shifted slightly as Thor walked over to the gauntlet.

“Excuse me?” Tony inquired.

“It’s okay.”

“Stop, stop. Slow down.”

“Thor. Just wait.” Your husband said, stepping in front of him and taking charge. “We haven’t decided who’s gonna put that on yet.”

“I’m sorry. What, we’re all just sitting around waiting for the right opportunity?’

“We should at least discuss it.” Scott said, jumping into the conversation. You knew none of them would be able to handle the power. The only ones strong enough to handle it would either be you or Bruce. But you knew very well with the baby growing inside you, you couldn’t risk it. Your eyes found Bruce as he found yours. The two of you exchange a silent conversation without words.

“Just let me do it.” You heard Thor whisper to Tony. “Just let me do something good. Something right.”

“Look, it’s not just the fact that that glove is channeling enough energy to light up a continent. I’m telling you. You’re in no condition.”

“What do you think is coursing through my veins right now?” Thor proceeded to ask him.

“Cheez Whiz?” Rhodey remarked, glancing at the God of Thunder.

Thor pointed to him, but his eyes remained on Tony. “Lighting.”

“Yeah.”

“Lighting.”

“Lighting won’t help you, pal.” Bruce said, taking a turn in the conversation. It’s gotta be me. You saw what those stones did to Thanos. They almost killed him. None of you could survive. Maybe Y/N, but that’s a big if.” Bruce further explained, walking right up to the glove.

“How do we know you will?” Steve asked him, his hand had found yours. You squeezed it gently but kept your eyes on Bruce.

“We don’t. But the radiation’s mostly gamma. It’s like… I was made for this.” Bruce grabbed a hold of the glove and turned away from everyone. Steve placed you behind himself to keep you and the baby protected. Steve knew about the shield that swarmed around the baby, but you didn’t have one and this was his reasoning for you behind him in case something happened.

“Good to go, yeah?” Tony asked his friend.

“Let’s do it.”

“Okay, remember, everyone Thanos snapped away five years ago you’re just bringing them back to now, today. Don’t change anything from the last five years.” Tony explained to him.

“Got it.” Everyone shielded up as a way to protect themselves.

“Friday, do me a favor and activate Barn Door Protocol, will ya?” Friday started to do what Tony had asked, the sun disappearing from the building all together.

“Everybody comes home.” You watched as Bruce pushed his hand forward sliding it into the glove as it shifted into a different size to better accommodate Bruce’s hand for the snap. When it was all done, the stones started working. The power moved up his body, he fell to his knee groaning.

“Take it off! Take it off!” Thor shouted.

“No, wait. Bruce, are you okay?” Steve asked, holding his hand to the side but looking at Bruce. Bruce released another groan.

“Talk to me, Banner.”

“I’m okay.” He finally answered. I’m okay.” You felt the glimmer of hope finally settling in your chest as you watched the scene before you unfold quickly. Bruce lifted his hand, and snapped his fingers. The glove slid from his hand and he fell to the ground.

“Bruce?” Steve called, running to his side and kneeling down. Clint ran to the glove, kicking it away.

“Don’t move him.” Tony said. You kneeled behind Steve looking down at your friend. Bruce looked around at you, Steve, and Thor while holding onto Steve’s arm.

“Did it work?” Bruce questioned you all.

“We’re not sure. It’s okay.” You glanced up at your husband, a smile falling onto your lips. But that smile faded when destruction fell onto the compound. Egan flew from the water and towards the building. In the midst of the collapse you were pulled away from Steve. You knocked your head in the process, and a pipe flew into your shoulder. A scream came from your throat.

“Egan!” You screamed. You were in the rubble by yourself. It felt like it was falling down, like it was going to collapse any second. You couldn’t see Steve, he was nowhere in sight. “Steve!” You screamed once more.

“I’m coming, Rider.” Egan’s voice filtered through your head. “Stay calm, deep breaths.”

You moved to your knees looking around, a sharp pain shot through your shoulder, you looked over to the left side and noticed the pipe protruding from it.

“Shit.” You mumbled to yourself. Moving your other hand you ripped a piece of your suit off. Releasing a few breaths you placed your hand onto the pipe, then you proceeded to pull the pipe out. Another scream escaped your dusted lips. You took a second to stop, then you noticed the spot you were in moved again. Panic started to fill inside you, you were trapped with nowhere to go and were more than likely going to die.

“Focus on the pipe, not death. I will get to you, Rider.” Egan said.

Taking another deep breath you exhaled again, then you proceeded to pull on the pipe again. Tears began to prick at your eyes as you continued to pull on the pipe. Finally you were able to get it out of your shoulder, then you took the cloth you had ripped from your suit and tied it as tight as you could to make sure the bleeding stopped. Just when you thought the rubble around you was going to collapse, Egan appeared, moving it out of the way.

“Climb on, Rider.” You smiled brightly at the dragon and moved onto his back, holding on as he started to move back the way he came from. The rubble from the building moved around his long body. He continued to climb up while you stayed close to him to ensure that none of the rubble hit you in the process. You could feel the pain coming from your shoulder but you were choosing to ignore it. You needed to get back to the surface to fight.

“Did you see any of the others?” You questioned, attempting to subside your panic over who might have been injured or worse died.

“No, but he returned.” Egan managed to get out as he pushed through more rubble close to breaking the surface.

“Who returned, Egan?”

“The one we lost to.”

“Thanos?” You closed your eyes, the feeling that lingered in your body was still there. It was all because of the Titan, he had returned. And he might have been from a different time but it seemed he still had the same plan. “Shit, this is not good. Fly, you need to fly now.”

Egan didn’t need to be told twice. He took off and flew up towards the entrance he had come in, upon flying through it you looked to see the army Thanos had with him. Your eyes found Steve as he picked himself from the ground, standing against Thanos even if it was a last ditch effort. Suddenly a voice came through on your speaker, that connected you to the rest of the team.

“Hey, Cap, you read me?” Hope filled your chest when you heard your friend’s voice for the first time in five years. “Cap, it’s Sam. Can you hear me?” You pulled your eyes away from Steve as something started to appear behind him. “On your left.”

A portal appeared, three figures walking through it. When you got a closer look you saw that it was T’Challa, Okoye, and T’Challa’s sister Shuri. He nodded to Steve as Sam flew out of the portal. More portals were appearing, the ones you had lost all returning to help aid in the battle against Thanos. To aid as one whole team, to win for a better future. Tears glimmered in your eyes when you caught sight of your brother on his own dragon, Terra.

It was an unfortunate event to watch not only your brother disappear but his dragon as well. He had bonded with his dragon years prior to your bond with Egan happening. He knew well before you did that you would find a dragon to bond with. Egan flew higher in the air coming up next to Terra. Both dragons sent a nod to each other as you continued to smile at your brother.

“Avengers…” Steve called out from down below. “Assemble.”

Battle cries left everyone’s throats as they all took off towards the enemy, yourself included. Egan flew lower and lower to the ground, breathing fire on the army that came towards your team.

“I need to drop down, get me as low as you can then continue to fight okay?” You ordered, looking around for your husband. You wanted to fight by his side, you knew very well that your brother would come looking for you anyway.

“I can do that Rider.” Egan lowered down close enough that you could drop to the ground. When you did you rolled forward, pulling a blade from your suit you took off running for Steve. When you made it to him, you slid on the ground throwing your blade into the familiar Chitauri alien you once fought against. Steve looked down at you, then he picked you up from the ground pulling you into a hug.

“I’m okay.” You whispered, hugging him just as tightly. “We’re okay.” You promised. When you pulled away from him you walked over to the alien and pulled your blade from its body.

“Don’t leave my side, unless you're with Egan.” Steve ordered, while you were tempted not to listen to him you understood his need to keep you and your baby safe. Before you had a chance to reply someone stepped into your line of sight.

“This looks like a great time for a family reunion.” Lu said, a bright smile covering his face. When your older brother was close enough he pulled you into a hug.

“I missed you.”

“I know, I missed you too. Now, where’s my wife?” Lu questioned when he pulled back from you. He watched sorrow fill your face and Steve’s face at the mention of Natasha. You could tell he knew just from your looks. “How? How did she die?” He pushed, a few tears escaping his eyes.

Your lips trembled, “she sacrificed herself for the soul stone, I’m so sorry, Lu.” You cried out, hating to be the one to tell your brother. He looked down at the wedding band, a soft cry leaving his lips. Then he wiped his tears away.

“Okay.” He breathed out. “I will mourn her loss after we win this battle.”

The three of you went back into the battle, you stayed close to Steve fighting as many of the aliens as you could. The gauntlet was being dragged across the battlefield to get it back to the van and return the stones. Steve grabbed a hold of you to cover you as shots were fired down around you. You moved away from Steve pushing your blade through another alien as Steve talked to Peter Parker.

The firing shots were getting worse and worse, Egan had returned to protect you from the cover until eventually it stopped. You looked up watching as Carol flew down towards the ship and destroyed it completely. A smile tugged its way to your lips as the female finally showed up to help. You moved away from Steve and Egan, swinging your blade into the aliens that came towards you. Their blood fell onto your body, but you didn’t have a care in the world.

“Y/N!” Someone shouted your name. You turned around and when you did you came face to face with your husband. He looked at you, like it was the last time he’d get to see your face light up when he appeared. He was okay with the fate he had chosen for himself, if it meant that you and his baby were alive then he was okay to die this way. Finally your eyes lowered to the blade that had been plunged into his stomach. Everyone on the battlefield seemed to halt their movements, even the ones you were fighting against.

“Breath.” Steve whispered, lifting his hand to the side of your face. When the breath of air finally left your airways he collapsed to the ground. You followed in suit, grabbing a hold of him and pulling him into your chest.

“No, no, no.” You cried out, the tears breaching through. Your hands had long since let go of the blade you had, they were now holding onto Steve’s wound. The blond looked up to you, a smile washing onto his face. “No, please don’t leave, don’t leave us.” You cried out. Your brother and Tony had appeared. Tony came up next to you looking down at his friend. While Lu came to the other side. Both Egan and Terra shielded you all but they could feel it come, they’d have to move out of the way.

“You tell James, I love him.” Steve ushered out of his lips.

You shook your head. “No, you’re gonna tell him yourself because he needs you. Our babies need you, I need you.”

“I’ll always be with you, no matter where you go, no matter what happens. I’ll never leave your side. I love…” Steve choked out the next words. “I love you… so much.” Steve looked over at his brother-in-law. “Take care of her, and the kids.”

“I will, Steve.” Lu said.

Finally your husband gave you a final glance as he took his last breath. You looked at him, never leaving his eyes. “Steve?” More tears fell down your already stained cheeks. “Steve, baby, please.” You lowered your head to his chest to listen for a heartbeat but felt nothing.

“Stay calm, my dear Rider.” Egan whispered in your head. You noticed that Lu had managed to get Tony in the air and away from you. He had climbed onto Terra and went back into the battle as it had begun to rage on again. You summoned every inch of the power that connected you to Egan.

A gut wrenching scream rushed through your mouth as the powers swam out of your body burning any alien that was a few feet from you. But you couldn’t fight anymore, exhaustion had rendered you useless. Time seemed to slow down as the powers disappeared from your body. You lowered your head back to Steve’s body and held onto him. You were numb, not able to feel anything that happened around you. This was the last thing you had ever expected.

This life you had built with Steve had been taken away from you just like that. It all fell down in the end and there was nothing you could do about it, nothing you could do to save him from saving you. At some point your brother had returned to gather you up from the battlefield. Terra had picked up Steve’s body. Nothing would be the same now that he was gone. You were just thankful to have your two kids, a piece of him remained in them and you were forever thankful.

───── ❝ ◂ ❚ ⊱ꕥ⊰ ❚ ▸ ❞ ─────

In the aftermath of the battle you had learned that Tony had sacrificed himself to save everyone else. You stood out by the lake, James in your arms and resting his head on your shoulder. Bucky came up next to you, he looked at the child in your arms. Finally you turned to look at the man that Steve called his best friend.

“Are you going to be okay?” Bucky asked, finally breaking the silence between you two.

“No. I won’t, not for a long time. But I know that I’ll get through it. I have James and his little brother or sister. I have my parents and my brother, and I have all of you. So while I say I won’t be, I will. I just need a day at a time.” You explained. Bucky gave a nod of his head.

“Was it your idea or his?” Bucky pointed to your son.

“He insisted on your first name being his middle name but I thought that James was a perfect first name and that he would love to share the same first name with his uncle. He has Lu’s name as his middle name so it works out.” You paused looking back out at the water, taking in a breath you held it.

“Breathe.” Egan whispered.

You exhaled and looked back at Bucky. “I expect you to be one hell of an uncle to these kids. I don’t want you to be a stranger, I know Steve wouldn’t be too happy about it.”

“I will visit as much as I can, Y/N.”

“Sounds like a deal, Bucky.” With those words you walked away from the man. He watched as you disappeared, going back to the life you had created with Steve even though he wouldn’t be a part of it anymore.

[pastaxandria]

The Red Thread: Chapter 155

The Library of Pastaxandria has recorded for its shelves: Chapter 154 of The Red Thread.

Ship: Matt Murdock x F!Reader

Chapter Summary:

You paused where you’d written down, ‘Hrairoo: Orchid Suspect One’, to glance down at the three elderly women gathered around the small table. “I heard some kids at school say they saw her on the roof doing weird stuff with a bunch of candles once,” the kid said thoughtfully as Mrs. Hrairoo drew a series of cards from the deck and set them down in a familiar formation. It was a pattern you knew from somewhere—cards arranged into a rough cross, with another line of cards beside it. Damn it, I know this one, come on brain. You just needed a nudge, something to stir your brain into remembering. “Also she has a ton of glass jars—you have no idea, like… so many jars, man. But I swear, no one bakes bread like her. That stuff’s magic.” Wait a second. Now you knew where you’d seen that card pattern. And if that was the pattern Mrs. Hrairoo was laying down, then that meant… …those were definitely not your normal, average, everyday playing cards. Or: in which your old skillset comes in handy.

Wordcount: 5.9k

Warnings for this chapter: none!

Read me on AO3 because that’s where penguins hang out

[thetargaryenbride]

We Cough Blood And We Drink Wine [Tony x Daughter!Reader] - C.5

AN: Please feel free to correct me if you notice something out of line or characters being OOC. Thank you. Hope you like it 🖤🥀

Warning: None

Word count: 3K

Pairing: Thor x Stark!Reader

Masterlist || Chapter 4 || Chapter 6

It’s been a month.

A whole month since you, Nebula, and Tony were stuck on the Milano spaceship.

Tony was getting frustrated and worried about you because you refused to eat. You had told them ever since day one that you were a super soldier and that you had withstood long periods of starvation without a problem. But Tony was still doubtful and he felt that you were lying only so he and Nebula could get some food. He worried too much which would turn into anger and frustration because he was helpless. He couldn’t do anything to save you all. He couldn’t repair the damage inflicted on the ship and you were stuck, unable to fly anymore.

It was eating him from the inside out that he couldn’t help his own daughter who was growing weaker and weaker by the day.

Your wounds from Thanos were so grave and you were just so exhausted and drained that even your enhanced healing abilities couldn’t properly heal you which allowed an infection to settle in. And not eating was making you even weaker. You were nothing more than a normal human now – a normal human who was slowly dying in his arms.

“Hey, you,” whispered Tony as he entered your room. The room used to belong to a woman called Gamora but you had crashed into it after taking the ship.

You were currently lying on a bed, something you had been doing for a long time now, covered by blankets in a futile attempt at warming you. The raging fever was making you so cold. Colder than the Siberian fields you had crossed.

“Hey,” you whispered, sending him a smile, your eyes staying closed. They were too heavy. You felt a sudden prickling sensation on your arm and you guessed it was time for your medication. Tony and Nebula had been surprised to find out that Quill had an impressive stock of medical supplies on the ship and they had tried their best to keep your state stable. Recovery was agonizingly slow, though.

“How are you feeling today?” asked the man and you hummed.

“A bit better.”

He smiled. You didn’t need to look at him to know that he did. You two had gotten very good at such types of communication. You could just feel him, his energy, and he could just feel you. Just like how you were exceedingly good at communicating through your eyes only. You could hold a whole detailed conversation just by looking at one another and moving your eyebrows.

“I, uh, bear good news! You’ll be… out of your misery soon,” he sniffed. “We all will.”

“Charming,” you let out a weak chuckle. “Let me guess. Oxygen is ending soon,” you struggled to do so, but you finally cracked your eyes open and looked at him.

He had gotten thinner and weaker, you noticed. You felt concern but at the same time relief. Because death would soon embrace you all and you would finally rest in peace. The only thing that was bugging you was that you would die with many regrets and unfinished business.

And with unredeemed sins.

Suddenly, hot waves crashed on your skin and you gasped, body convulsing. Tony flinched as he quickly took another needle and filled it with a light purple liquid. Finding the needed vessel, he didn’t hesitate to pierce it and pump the drug inside. A few seconds later, you calmed down.

Things like that would occur occasionally. You would suddenly get extremely cold then the temperature would jump and you’d feel extremely hot. Ice and fire would dance in you and cause a hurricane.  

Tony sighed shakily as he grabbed a cloth and dampened it in cold water, tapping your face with it a few times before settling it on your forehead.

“It’s ok,” he choked. “Everything’s gonna be ok,” he caressed your face and leaned to kiss the crown of your head before he climbed in the bed and brought you closer. With whatever strength you had left, you snuggled to your father’s side and let his presence wash away all the fear. You knew he was not telling you something, but for all your genius, you couldn’t understand what it was. 

The oxygen was ending soon and he knew that you had realized that. You even told him it out loud. But what you didn’t know was that ‘soon’ was too close for comfort. In fact, ‘soon’ was coming in mere hours.

And he couldn’t tell you.

He didn’t want to tell you that death would snatch you all away in the morrow. He didn’t want you to die terrified. And despite your efforts at hiding it, he knew that you were.

“Sleep… sleep now,” he muttered as he tightened his arms around you and you nuzzled in the crook of his neck. The least he could do was comfort and warm you. He knew you always slept better when he was close by. He managed to drive both fear and nightmares away. The least he could do was help you die in peace. And the only way for you to die peacefully was in your sleep.

Not much time passed and he felt you relax as your breathing evened out. He planted one more kiss on the crown of your head before he stood up and moved to the other room.

“Hey,” he murmured and the blue woman nodded her head.

“You should be with Y/N,” she rasped out and his lips twitched as he turned to glance in the direction of your room for a second before back at the alien.

“Oh, I’m going back to her… I just… I don’t want to leave you alone either,” he told her offhandedly and she raised her eyebrows in surprise. “I uh, actually came to invite you to join our sleepover party,” he said with fake enthusiasm and she looked at him with wide eyes. He sat down on the floor next to her and both stared at the window and what was beyond it – the stars.

“I’ll go grab my pillow,” she finally uttered and he nodded, watching as she stood up and left for her room. He stayed for a while, staring at the galaxy stretching in front of him, trying to keep his emotions and tears at bay. He failed. He failed the universe. He failed his friends and teammates. He failed Pepper. But most importantly, he failed his own child. In the end, he didn’t break the vicious cycle of bad parenting. He was just as failure a father as Howard had been.  

Just as he was about to stand up and go back to Nebula and his daughter, a bright light blinded him. It was coming closer and closer and closer. The energy it was giving off was no different than that of an actual star.

Then he managed to look past the glow with squinted eyes and see the shape of a woman who was staring at him with concern and regret. And then she dove down and a second later he felt the ship shake as it began moving once again.  

He was shocked at first but the shock melted into hope as a wide smile stretched from ear to ear. He rushed to the other room, almost bumping into Nebula, and he excitedly told her and, now woke from the sudden jerking movements you, about what just happened. Relief flooded all three of you as you shared a group hug.

A few hours had passed since the appearance of the strange woman. For a second there, as the oxygen was getting thinner and thinner and it was getting harder to breathe, you had begun losing the hope you had built previously. But then you saw the familiar sight of planet Earth.

The joy and relief were indescribable.

You entered the atmosphere and not long after the ship was landing on the lawn of the Avengers Facility.

The people who had been inside had felt the tremors and had run out, wondering what was happening. When they saw the spaceship, their thoughts immediately went to Tony, you, and the others. Who else could be on that ship after all?

They gathered in front of the Milano with hopeful faces.

Then the doors opened and the fresh familiar Earthly oxygen flooded in. You took large, much-needed gulps and let more smiles grace your faces. Tony insisted on you being taken out first but both he and Nebula were too weak. They could barely stand on their feet, much less carry another person so Tony opted to rush, more likely stumble, out of the spaceship to ask for help. The moment he stepped out, he was swarmed by his teammates and surprisingly hugged by Steve, all previous animosity vanishing.

“I lost the kid,” he muttered and Steve’s arms squeezed him. “Pepper…is she?” he asked, dreading the answer, but then the strawberry-blonde showed up breathless and latched onto him for dear life.

“Tony… where is Y/N?” asked slowly Natasha with glistening eyes filled with worry and dread, and he nodded back at the ship.

“She’s inside but her condition is pretty bad. Someone has to… someone has to go get her and bring her to the medical facility at once,” he spoke quickly and shakily and Thor immediately rushed inside the ship.

He harshly opened the doors and peeked in all rooms before he finally found you in one of them, lying on the bed, looking so vulnerable. It sent tremors down his spine. You looked to be on the brink of death and it was their fault.

No. Thanos’ fault.

No. Their fault.

He rubbed his temple in order to disperse the forming headache before he gently pulled the blankets away. His heart dropped. There wasn’t even a single spot that wasn’t covered in bandages.

“Thor,” you whispered with a small smile and he gulped, smiling back at you the best he could.

“Hey, my lady,” he then gently lifted you, trying his best to ignore the quiet whimpers of pain, and moved slowly so as to not jerk you too much, exiting the ship and joining the rest. Natasha couldn’t hold back a tear when her eyes landed on your broken form and the woman moved closer to you, now safely and comfortably tucked in Thor’s arms, caressing gently your cheek.

“How did we get here, huh?” you asked wobbly as your own tears escaped and Natasha managed a broken smile.

“We fought...We lost,” were the words that barely left her lips. “But we’ll fix everything,” she promised and you nodded, your lips still trembling as more tears leaked.

“Blonde suits you,” you whispered and Natasha chuckled, leaning down and pecking you on the cheek.

“C’mon, kiddo. Let’s get you fixed, hm?” spoke Tony softly as he approached the three and caressed his daughter’s head, wiping your tears with his thumbs. You gulped, nodding, and he sent you a weak smile, leaning down to kiss your forehead before stepping away and letting Thor move forward as everyone started walking inside the Facility.

Steve and Thor helped Tony. They brought him to the nearest bathroom and showered him, getting rid of all the dirt and grime. Then they put him in new clothes.

Meanwhile, Pepper, Natasha, and the new woman – Carol Danvers was her name – helped wash you up, but instead of putting you in fresh clothes, like how the guys did with Tony, they put you in a hospital gown because you needed to have more IVs plugged into you than Tony needed and your freshly bandaged wounds would need to receive more treatment very soon.

Bruce forced both of you onto wheelchairs afterward and even when he insisted you were admitted into the infirmary so you could rest, recover, and be treated more thoroughly, you insisted to be part of the gathering first.

You and Tony attracted looks of pity as you rolled into the big meeting room. You were both so skinny and fragile that everyone worried that you’d crumble at any second now.

“It’s been twenty-three days since Thanos came to Earth,” spoke softly Rhodey, followed by Natasha.

“World governments are… in pieces. The parts that are still working are trying to take a census and it looks like he did… He did exactly what he said he was gonna do,” she spoke grimly as multiple familiar faces appeared on the hologram screens, one of them being Peter, making Tony and you look down and place your heads in your hands in total defeat, guilt, and sorrow. “Thanos wiped out… 50% of all living creatures.”

“Where is he now? Where?” asked Tony and Steve shook his head.

“We don’t know. He just opened a portal and walked through.”

“What’s wrong with him?” Tony pointed at Thor, who was sitting on a stool next to your wheelchair, his gaze focused on the floor, his elbows on his knees. You were sending him concerned glances that would occasionally flicker to Tony to make sure he was doing all right. Seriously, you just worried too much for these two men. 

“Ah, he’s pissed,” answered Rocket. “He thinks he failed. Which of course he did, but there's a lot of that goin' around, ain't there?”

“Honestly, at this exact second, I thought you were a Build-A-Bear.”

“Maybe I am.”

“We’ve been hunting Thanos for three weeks now. Deep space scans, and satellites, and we’ve got nothing,” sighed Steve before his eyes fully landed on Tony and then on you. “Tony, Y/N, you fought him,” he stated and the two in question turned to look at the soldier with furrowed eyebrows.

“Who told you that?” asked Tony. “We didn’t fight him… No. He wiped my face with a planet and broke every bone in my daughter’s body and then almost choked her to death-” he sneered as his nose scrunched up, causing everyone to flinch as their eyes widened at the revelation of the battle that the Starks had led against the Titan. “-while the Bleecker Street magician gave away the store. That’s what happened. There was no fight,” he accentuated the last word and Steve nodded.

“Ok. Did he give you any clues? Any coordinates? Anything?” Tony just made a mind-blow motion with his hand and Steve sighed as he turned to face you. “What about you, Y/N/N? Do you remember anything?”

“I…uh…” you stuttered as your eyebrows furrowed in concentration which only brought a headache, making you wince as your hand flew to grasp your head. Tony snorted in irritation as he glared at Steve accusingly.

“Yeah, tough luck asking her. I mean, it’s not like the grape didn’t use her for a fly swatter. It’s not like she spent two months on a ship going through infections and fever. Like, can you not torment my kid with pointless questions, Rogers?! As if Thanos would reveal any coordinates to anyone. Are you kidding me?! We got nothing!” spat out Tony and everyone looked down. Thor’s eyes landed on you again and he grasped your shaking hand. You gave him a tired smile through watery eyes and looked at your lap once again.

“I saw this coming a few years back,” muttered Tony after a minute of silence. “I had a vision. I didn’t wanna believe it. I thought I was dreaming.”

“Tony, I’m gonna need you to focus,” continued Steve but Tony interrupted him.

“And I needed you. As in past tense. That trumps what you need. It’s too late, buddy… Sorry,” he said as he stood up. “You know what I need? I need to shave,” he grit out as his hand crashed down the bowl and mug in front of him as he wanted to support himself from falling, using the table. You straightened in the wheelchair, wanting nothing more than to get up and go help your father before he did something that would threaten his health…again.

“And I believe, I remember telling-” he started as he struggled to remove his IV.

“Tony, Tony, Tony!” came in Rhodey’s warnings but he didn’t pay any heed to them.

“-why otherwise, that what we needed was a suit of armor around the world. Remember that? Whether it impacted our precious freedoms or not. That’s what we needed!”

“Well, that didn’t work out, did it?” asked Steve

“I said we’d lose. You said ‘We’ll do that together too’,” he imitated Steve’s speech perfectly. “Well, guess what, Cap. We lost. And you weren’t there. But that’s what we do, right? Our best work after the fact? We're the Avengers? We're the Avengers? Not the Prevengers?” he asked as he whirled to look at each member.

“Ok, you made your point. Now sit down, please,” said Rhodey sternly as he tried to grab Tony and help him sit but the man wouldn’t budge.

“No, no. Here’s our savior… She’s great by the way,” he said as he pointed at Carol, and Rhodey was now actively holding Tony and trying to force him to sit down.

“Tony, sit, sit down!”

“We need you. You’re new blood. Bunch of tired old mills… I got nothing for you, Cap. I got no coordinates, no clues, no strategies, no options… Zero. Zip. Nada. No trust, liar,” he grit out in Steve’s face as his hand flew to his chest, ripping out the arc reactor, causing you to quickly stand up alarmed, only to get dizzy as your legs shook. Thor shot up and grabbed you by the shoulders, steadying you as he watched both you and Tony with concern.

“Here, take this. You find him and you put that on,” he growled as he shoved the glowing piece into the captain’s chest. “You hide,” he muttered as he stumbled and slumped on the ground, Rhodey barely catching him.

“Tony!”

“Dad!”

“I'm fine. I...” he waved you off but before he could reassure you that he was alright, he collapsed.