#i feel like eleven would also be a really good agent 8

[sirendoesomestuf]

bitches look at how to be freed by vecna you need your favorite song played, and how octolings were freed from the octarian hypnotism they needed the calamari inkantation played, and yet still say ‘no, a splatoon au would not be perfect for stranger things’???

[incognit0slut]

Right Kind of Wrong (2)

She never thought she’d be involved in a murder investigation and encounter her one-night-stand again, the awkward guy who isn’t exactly that good in bed—Or is he? Offended by the sentiment, Spencer is determined to prove her wrong… But as he gets tangled with the beautiful stranger, he realizes there is more to her than what meets the eye.

Part Summary: Spencer’s late-night endeavor is teased as a new case arises. wc: 2.8k

Warnings: 18+ content, graphic detail of murder

A/n: thank you for all the love it’s very much appreciated! also i want to remind you that this will be a long series, but if you like a murder mystery with a hint of humor and smut, then by all means please continue :3

Other parts: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14

BEING CALLED IN AT NIGHT WAS SOMETHING SPENCER WAS USED TO. It was part of his job. The moment he accepted to be part of the Behavior Analysis Unit at Quantico, he knew the downside of it all. The long hours and pressure to perform the job while working with some of the most dangerous and violent individuals could potentially affect him physically and mentally.

But above all that, he always looked at the bigger picture. His job was to bring justice by catching all the perpetrators of each crime he was assigned with. It was a very dangerous job yet he couldn't imagine his life without lending in his time and intelligence to catch the 'bad guys on the loose'—as Garcia would often put it. So having his dearest friend call him at two o'clock in the morning was something that occasionally occurred. He really didn't mind it.

Until tonight.

For the first time in his eleven years working as an FBI agent, Spencer wished the bad news could wait at least in the morning. By then he would have more time to spend his night with the most irresistible woman he had ever laid his eyes on.

He shook his head. Guilt was a complex, powerful emotion and it was what he was feeling right now. A dead body was found and all he could think about was the beautiful stranger who was now more than an enigma than she ever was. Even when he had seen her in her barest form, tucked underneath his warm body. Even when his hands had roamed around every corner of her luscious curves, her desperate moan sounded like the most beautiful melody to his ears.

God, he needed a drink. No, not alcohol, he wasn't one to drink liquor anyway. Well, excluding a few hours ago when sitting all alone waiting for his friends without holding any type of alcoholic drink seemed rather uncommon. He was already feeling out of place the moment he entered the dimly lit bar, his eyes scanning for any familiar faces but being greeted by none.

So ordering a bottle of cold beer seemed ideal as he sat by the bar on his own. He didn't even drink the whole liquid, merely gulping a sip or two before it became a mere prop for blending in with the crowd.

If it wasn’t for Garcia coaxing him into joining her and the girls for a night out in the city, Spencer would still be at the office, his nose buried in the paperwork he needed to finish. But Penelope Garcia was a force not to be underrated. She had a way with words and persuasion, thus Spencer found himself agreeing to spend the night with his peers.

Besides, he enjoyed being around them. He considered the people he worked with as more than mere colleagues. He had spent so much time with them that the bond developed was incredibly special and strong. He considered them as a sort of dysfunctional family in some ways, but it was a family nonetheless. It was a very unique relationship and a special one that he took pride in working with and he was very grateful to be a part of it.

But it didn't stop him from being mad at the fact they had bailed on him at the very last minute.

Fine—a little bit mad. They all seemed to have good excuses for their sudden absence. JJ had to drive back home for her sick son, Prentiss was called back into the office by their unit chief Hotch, and Garcia... well, her answer was pretty vague. All she had said over her frantic call was, "I'm so sorry, boy genius, I need to take a rain check tonight. I'll call you later!"

Then Spencer found himself in a situation he would never imagine being, sitting by himself at the most sociable place he could ever think of.

He needed to leave. The music bouncing over the stereo suddenly sounded too loud, and even though there weren't too many people inside the place, it was still enough to make his demeanor shut down from the several conversations floating in the air.

And don't get him started on the number of pathogens clinging to every nook and corner of this place. He shuddered at that thought as he once again wiped down the bar surface with another pile of napkins he requested from the bartender, who by the looks of it, was starting to eye him with annoyance.

A man suddenly pushed him from behind and went on his way without apologizing. Spencer made a mental note to never agree to another social request without a companion at his arrival. He was feeling more and more uncomfortable by the minute.

His fingers hastily tightened around the strap of his bag, ready to flee the scene when a sudden faint scent of chocolate fluttered through his nose.

Delicious, mouth-watering chocolate.

Spencer had always been conscious of his surroundings. The nerves in his brain would work their way into absorbing all kinds of entities that triggered his senses, and chocolate was a scent he could easily make out.

Chocolate smelled like... well, heaven. It had a sweet, decadent scent that was just divine, triggering all sorts of happy, positive emotions and reactions. He could point out a lot of facts about why roasted cocoa could trigger serotonin throughout one's body, but his brain was too busy trying to pinpoint the source of its scent.

Then he felt movement to his right and the scent lingered around the air like a delicious blanket coating his senses. And there she was—looking divinely gorgeous like heaven on a pair of legs.

Spencer knew there was no singular answer to describe one's beauty, as beauty was subjective and could be defined differently by each person. He also considered himself being very old-school as he perceived beauty through kindness and intelligence. Yet he was still a hot-blooded man and he wasn't going to lie; the woman sitting in front of him was physically attractive and pleasing to the eye.

The way her eyes lit up as they settled on him tightened the knot in his stomach. He might not have much experience with the opposite sex, but he knew when one was interested in his presence, and with that thought in mind he felt rather pleased and flattered.

His eyes roamed around her features; her glazed eyes, her high cheekbones, the delicate shape of her nose, and her plump lips that seemed to look so soft. It wasn't until later in the night he came to the conclusion that they were much softer than they looked. Because tasting her mouth was completely different than simply staring at it.

Spencer didn't know how touch-starved he was until he pressed his lips onto hers, lips that were incredibly soft yet turned every inch of his body very hard. He felt immensely dizzy with need as he nipped her bottom lip, feeling intoxicated each time she squirmed in his arms, her soft body pressing against him, making it more and more difficult to clear his mind with her hands between his legs—

"Late night?"

Spencer looked up. He could feel the blush creeping along his cheeks as if being caught having these inappropriate thoughts. Derek Morgan stood by his side, eying the amount of sugar stashed into the cup of coffee in his hand. To be fair, he really did need something that could wake him up and break him from going down memory lane again.

"Very," he murmured. He proceeded by mixing his caffeine with a spoon, unaware of how Morgan was watching him with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"My man," Morgan teased. Spencer sensed the taunting edge in his voice and turned around.

On a normal occasion, he would deny the suggestive tone Morgan would often taunt. His friend had a way of teasing him in what seemed to be simply goodhearted banter. But Spencer wasn't exactly a good liar. He was already quite flustered by the topic of conversation and the moment he opened his mouth, he knew he would only make things worse.

So instead he kept his silence and sipped on his drink, ignoring the grin plastered on Morgan's face as if an epiphany had aroused him in his wake.

"My man," Morgan repeated, wrapping a playful arm around his shoulders. "What has kept the young Dr. Reid awake on this lovely night?"

He shoved his arm away. "I wouldn't consider myself youthful anymore."

Morgan snickered. "You're the baby of the team." Then to annoy him even further, he added, “Kid.”

"I'm thirty-six." Spencer frowned as they climbed their way toward the conference room. "You know, men in their mid-thirties have prefrontal cortexes that are fully developed and they have a lot more experience throughout their lives. Their body is also fully functional so they—I am most definitely a mature, fully grown adult."

"Do you know what else they say about men being in their thirties?" Morgan threw him another one of his grins. "A very high sex drive."

"Actually, studies show that 30% of healthy people aged between 65-74 still enjoy sexual intercourse weekly."

Morgan groaned. "Don't give me that mental image."

"Reid!"

The two men turned to see Garcia scurrying towards them. How she still conjured so much energy at this time of hour would always be a mystery to him. The determined look on her face reminded him of their last conversation on the phone and Spencer quickly turned away, walking into the empty conference room before sitting himself by the round table.

Noticing the weird interaction between his two friends, Morgan threw Garcia a questioning look. "What's going on?"

"Oh, I'll tell you what's going on." She hurriedly entered the room and grabbed the remote control sitting in the middle of the table. She poked Spencer with the device. "This boy right here decided he's too cool to hang out with us."

"Garcia, you're the one who bailed on me."

"So not the point," she deadpanned. "My question is, when are you going to introduce us to your girlfriend? I didn't even know you were dating."

Morgan's brows shot up as he took a seat beside him. "Girlfriend?"

Spencer looked down as she went on, "Imagine my surprise when he answered my call and there was a woman's voice in the background. At this hour."

Morgan laughed at her emphasis on the time because it was common knowledge only certain things happen this late. Especially with an alleged female company. "Really?"

Disliking the way he was thrown into the spotlight, Spencer leaned in his chair and crossed his arms defensively. "She's not my girlfriend."

That statement only raised their interest even further.

"Oh?" That was Morgan.

"You naughty minx." That was Garcia. "Since when have you been seeing her?"

Spencer had two options. He could ignore their curiosity and remain silent, or he could flat-out give them a lie. He looked between the interest on their face and decided he couldn't escape their probing curiosity, so he answered in a very low voice, "Tonight."

"Tonight?" Garcia asked in disbelief. "Wait—didn't you go to the bar earlier?"

"Yes, before everyone ditched me."

"Oh my god," Garcia squealed in surprise. "Dr. Reid, did you spend the night with a stranger?"

There was a long pause as the grip around his mug tightened. Morgan let out a choked laugh. "My man."

"Stop saying that," Spencer muttered, his lips inches away from his steaming cup.

"I can't believe this," Garcia gasped between her giggles, clearly fascinated by this new information. "Our resident boy genius is actually a Casanova in disguise."

"Who's a Casanova?"

The three of them turned to see Emily Prentiss walking into the room followed by a very curious David Rossi. His other colleagues clearly didn't hear the beginning half of their conversation and Spencer wanted to make sure it remained that way.

He casually took a sip of his drink and replied, "Giacomo Casanova. A famous Italian adventurer and author in the 18th century. He became famous for his often complicated and elaborate affairs with women."

Prentiss scoffed as she and Rossi sat down by the table. "I know who Casanova is, I'm asking who is a Casanova."

An awkward silence settled in the room. Spencer shifted in his seat. He really, really didn't want to deal with this. Spending a very intimate night with a stranger wasn't something he would like to discuss in front of his peers. Ever.

He could feel the heavy weight of everyone's eyes and the blush slowly creeping along his cheeks when Derek stepped in, giving the room one of his charming smiles. "We were talking about me."

"You?" Prentiss quirked one of her eyebrows in mocked surprise. "I don't think your girlfriend would be happy with that."

Morgan easily laughed. "We were discussing my old Casanova days."

"Yeah," Garcia interjected. "We were talking about how bad his choices of female friends were."

"Hey!"

"Until now." She gave him a toothy grin. "We love Savannah."

Morgan rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair. He caught Spencer staring at him with a grateful smile and returned the gesture with an understanding nod. Spencer relaxed as the conversation rolled by and the topic of his secret escapade was long forgotten.

For now.

JJ, another member of the team, entered the room a few minutes later with a huge smile. Then the moment their unit chief, Supervisory Special Agent Aaron Hotchner, followed behind, everyone knew it was back to business.

Spencer placed his mug down on the table and focused his attention on the case at hand.

"Alright, so." Garcia pointed the remote towards the black screen and a moment later, gruesome pictures of a murder scene were presented in different angles. The picture of the male body covered in blood greeted them before a passport shot of a middle-aged man smiling happily at the camera was shown. "Fifty-six-year-old Kevin Marshall, a corporate lawyer, was found dead at his home by his secretary."

"At home?" Derek wondered. "Were there no security?"

"There was a sudden blackout going on in the neighborhood for about seven minutes. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary at that time of hour. His wife and kids were visiting her parents and Mr. Marshall was at home finishing some work. It wasn't later on when he didn't answer his calls that his secretary found him lying in his office with several stab wounds."

"Time of death?" JJ questioned.

"A quarter past midnight." Garcia clicked on her device before another detailed picture of the scene was zoomed in on the screen. "And this was found—no, carved on his back."

The picture had a clear shot of the wound on the victim's back, a sloppy carved-out handwriting slashed across his skin. Spencer narrowed his eyes. "Exodus 20:13," he read, his brain already discerning the meaning of the words. "Thou shalt not kill."

"Quite ironic, don't you think? Given the way the Unsub just brutally acted out his assault," Prentiss wondered out loud.

"The verse might actually tie with the murder into this god-given right for someone to bear arms. The Unsub probably feels justified in murdering the victim because he feels that this man is a sinner, thus he must kill him in the name of the Almighty."

"So, what? Are we looking for a religious vigilante?"

"That's what we're trying to find out." Hotch looked over his team and assigned everyone their work. "Since the crime scene is a mere hour away, Morgan can investigate the crime scene with JJ. Reid, go with Rossi to check the autopsy report. Prentiss and I will be here for his family as they're flying straight from Michigan."

"What can I do to help, sir?"

Hotch gave Garcia a pointed look. "Find everything you can on Kevin Marshall. Bank accounts, purchase records, extended family, and also the people he worked with. Report to me when you find something suspicious. Anything."

"Right." She nodded. "Anything."

"And find any possible matches from old cases that have anything to do with carving on body parts. Solved or unsolved."

"Carving on body parts. Got it."

Everyone started scattering around the room, ready to start the investigation. And although his mind somehow drifted back to soft lips and the scent of sweet chocolate, Spencer pushed them away, gulping the last drip of the sweetest coffee he had ever made as if he was draining down all these inappropriate images running through his mind.

It was not the time.

>> NEXT PART

[willow-lark]

Every Time Mike Uses the Will Voice™ in Stranger Things

In honor of s4 releasing in just a few weeks, I went back and rewatched the whole show to count the number of times Mike uses ‘the Will voice’ when talking to Will, aka one of my favorite parts of their relationship.

Criteria I used: the Will Voice is the tone of voice used by Mike Wheeler when speaking to Will Byers, characterized by particular softness, concern, care, and/or worry.

Mike, particularly in seasons 2 and 3, is routinely harsher, sarcastic, disparaging, and borderline rude with all other characters, with Will being an exception. The few times that Mike acts this way to Will, he is immediately remorseful (S3 Byler fight, for example.)

In total, Mike uses the Will Voice a total of 19 times in the show, nearly every time they interact. 

I also included a few times (*) when Mike speaks in the same tone of voice when talking to another character about Will (3/19).

*“You know Will?” to El,  when she points at his picture, S1E2 ~22:00 (soft, concerned)

*“It’s not Will. It can’t be,” to the Party, upon seeing Will’s ‘body’ be pulled out of the quarry, S1E3 ~47:00 (soft, concerned, devastated)

“Will, is that you? It’s Mike. Do you copy? Over. Will, are you there? Will!” upon El playing his voice via Mike’s walkie-talkie, S1E4 ~7:15 (a little harsher, but concerned and panicked)

“We know. It’s okay. It’s gone. It’s dead. We made a new friend. She stopped it. She saved us. But she’s gone now,” to Will, visiting him in the hospital after he says the Demogorgon got him, S1E8, ~42:45 (soft, reassuring)

“Will! Are you okay?” to Will after he wanders out of the arcade due to an Upside Down vision; then Mike proceeds to put his arm around Will as they walk back into the arcade S2E1 ~9:15 (less soft, full of concern and worry)

*“I don’t know. He’s quiet today,” to Dustin and Lucas watching Will leave for his appointment at the Lab, S2E1 (concerned, soft)

“Will, what’s wrong? I couldn’t find you—are you hurt?… I’m gonna get you home, okay? I’m gonna get you home. Hold on,” when Mike pulls Will out of his Upside Down vision, S2E2 ~41:00 (panicked, concerned, full of care, worried)

“Is this all real, or is it like the doctors say—all in your head?…Eleven would [understand]…Yeah. She always did…[talks about seeing her]…I don’t know. Sometimes I feel like I’m going crazy…Hey, well, if we’re both going crazy, then we’ll go crazy together, right?” the iconic scene itself, S2E2 ~44:35 (soft, tender, reassuring, understanding)

“Will, you coming? Let’s go show Mr. Clarke. What? What?” to Will when they’re going to show Mr. Clarke D’art, S2E3, ~34:10 (soft, concerned)

“Will! I just found him like this! I think he’s having another episode!” when Will is being taken over by the Mind Flayer on the field,S2E4 ~0:45 (panicked, worried)

“Hello! Will! Mrs Byers? Is Will here? Is he okay?…It’s about the Shadow Monster, isn’t it?” to Joyce when he goes to see Will after school, S2E4 ~38:24 (concerned, high-strung)

“Maybe...Maybe that’s good. Just think about it, Will. You’re like a spy now. A superspy. Spying on the Shadow Monster…Yeah, yeah, I really do [think it’s a good thing]… He won’t [spy back]. We won’t let him,” to Will, talking about the Mind Flayer and Will being possessed, S2E5 ~2:00 (soft, reassuring)

“Will, what’s wrong?”, when Will wakes up from the vision about Hopper, S2E5 ~8:25 (care, concern)

“Do you see anything? I mean, in your now-memories?…Will, Will, are you okay? Will! What’s wrong?” when he and Will are standing together as the Lab agents begin to blaze the tunnels  S2E5 ~52:55 (panicked, concerned)

“Will! What’s wrong? Are you hurting again?” when Will is having a vision and unwittingly sending the Mind Flayer to the lab, S2E6 ~31:20 (worried)

“Do you remember the first day that we met? It was the first day of kindergarten. I knew nobody. I had no friends, and I just felt so alone and so scared, but I saw you on the swings, and you were alone, too. You were just swinging by yourself. And I just walked up to you, and I asked if you wanted to be my friend. You said yes. It was the best thing I’ve ever done,” to Will trying to get to him through the Mind Flayer, also iconic, S2E8 ~37:20 (soft, pleading, sweet)

“Hey. You okay? Are you sure?…Okay,” to Will in the movie theater when he feels the Mind Flayer when the power goes out, S3E1 ~12:38 (caring)

“Listen, I said I was sorry, alright? It’s a cool campaign. It’s really cool. We’re just not in the mood right now,” to Will when trying to placate him about not being interested in his campaign (although his sincerity is debatable), S3E3 ~21:11 (concerned, apologetic)

“What happened? Are you okay?” when finding Will after he destroys Castle Byers S3E3 ~45:08 (panicked, concerned)

Bylers lmk if I missed any! Hope this reference list is useful :D

[moonah-rose]

Defrosting Grumpy Three (a Season 8 meta)

I keep thinking about how Season 8 of Classic Who is almost like the first one the show has to a ‘season long arc’ that I don’t feel gets talked about enough. Obviously everyone knows it as “the one where the Master is in every story” but I feel like there is a subtle character arc for the Doctor in this season as well which is tied to the two main characters introduced in the first episode; the Master and Jo Grant.

I’m not the first one to point out that out of Three’s five seasons; this is the one where he’s at his most grumpy and short-tempered. I know a lot of people point to this season as reasons for why they don’t like Three and I totally get that, he’s a real git sometimes, in particular the first and last stories. There are moments where he’s asking for a slap and, no, I’m not talking about him claiming to be buddies with Chairman Mao and a Tory MP. Because I would’ve thought it was obvious that he drops those names purely to gain trust of these people who don’t trust him (at least that’s my headcanon because it doesn’t fit with the anti-capitalist, anti-pollution, anti-imperialist writing). Just him being constantly ungrateful to the Brigadier, snapping at Jo, or just being childish in the most ‘kid throwing a tantrum’ way possible.

But it’s easy to get why. By Season 8 he’s been trapped on Earth for we can assume at least a year. New Who fans who’ve seen the Power of Three and saw how crazy Eleven went when he tried to stay on Earth to study the cubes just for a few days/weeks know the Doctor can’t stand staying still, especially in one time and place. In his first season he could be short-tempered but slightly less so. In Spearhead he’s quite polite and motivated, though that could be the most pleasant form of Post Regeneration Trauma he’s been through. Plus he had Liz, who you can see he immediately clicked with. A fellow genius who finds herself out of place or treated a little unfairly as a female scientist surrounded by men, both of them willing to sass the Brigadier when he deserves it. He also still keeps trying to fix the TARDIS, as if convinced this won’t be as permanent as the Time Lords intended.

But by Season 8 (or you could say even before that, in Inferno) his attempts clearly haven’t succeeded past slipping into a terrifying parallel universe, and now cabin fever is setting in. And Liz, his science bud, has gone off and left. And while it’s sad we didn’t get a goodbye between the two of them, her passing remark towards the Brigadier about the Doctor just needing someone to pass him test tubes and fill his praise kink maybe implies that, at least from Liz’ POV, they weren’t as equals as Three thought, or she didn’t feel that fulfilled working with him, even if she did appreciate him as a friend. 

So enter Jo to replace Liz, who is everything Liz wasn’t. Liz had to study and work her way to her position; Jo is a spoiled girl who got to play spy by sheer nepotism. She failed A level science and doesn’t have the same sharp-wit he and Liz shared. Three is mean to her even before she introduces herself as his assistant when she only tries to help, and doesn’t hide his disappointment when she tells him. Perhaps it might also be that she reminds him of his companions before Liz; she’s cute and perky like Zoe and also loyal and determined like Jamie, even though she lacks Jamie’s physical strength and Zoe’s genius. Still, she’s young and he might not want to put her in danger the same way he nearly lost his previous young companions many times in the War Games.

When Three goes to the Brigadier to try to get rid of Jo, the Brig is far more smug than in the previous season, as he seems to have worked the Doctor out by this point. Their little moment at the end of Inferno where Three insults him and tries to escape only to then come back with his tail between his legs acting all buddy has shown him who Three really is; that this whole grumpy shtick of this is just a defence mechanism while he’s so out of his depth. I like to think the Brig hoped Jo would soften him up, to bring out the compassion that was more overt in his previous incarnation, as well as just pass him test tubes and keep tabs on him. His knowing smile when he watches Three try and fail miserably to fire her seems to prove his point.

In the same story we also have the Master showing up for the very first time. He was created to be the ‘Moriarty to the Doctor’s Holmes’. These kind of ‘foil enemies’ that pop up in so many stories, where you have a villain who is supposed to be a perfect match in intelligence or skill to the hero, are more often than not presented as ‘what the hero could have been’ if they chose to be evil rather than good; the Master is no different. And even though it’s not established until the next season that the Doctor and Master used to be friends, there’s clearly an underlining fondness in their banter which hints at past feelings as well as mutual respect. It says quite a lot that Three is more relaxed and friendly during his conversations with the Master half the time they talk than he is with the humans he’s meant to be saving, or even his own close friends. Because, for all their moral disagreements, the Master is his own kind and his only link - other than his broken TARDIS - to the rest of the Universe. 

In almost every story of S8, after the Master has revealed his evil scheme only for the Doctor to point out how it will backfire on him, they have to work together or form some kind of alliance of convenience. In Claws of Axos, the Doctor outright pretends to betray his friends and elope join forces with the Master to escape, only for it to be a trick in order to defeat the Axons. But considering Three’s attitude in this season, it’s a very convincing act as much to the audience as to the humans. And then in Colony in Space, the Master offers the Doctor half-ownership of the Universe....and the Doctor clearly hesitates! Yes, the Master tempts him with the persuasion of ruling ‘in the name of good’ but Three has to take a moment to remember what a slippery slope that line of thinking is. He’s so tired of being trapped, sick of being leashed by the Time Lords, that the Master comes along as a devil on his shoulder at his most vulnerable point. Considering the last story involves the Master summoning the actual Devil (or close enough) and is also where Three’s temper seems to be at its peak seems all too fitting.

It’s also interesting that the Master’s greatest fear that appears in the Mind of Evil is an image of the Doctor laughing maniacally over him. It’s the closest we get to an image of Dark!Three in the show. To contrast; the Doctor’s greatest fear isn’t the Master, it’s the eruption from Inferno. Seeing the Earth swallowed by flame - not because of an outside force like the Daleks or Cybermen, but by humans themselves. It’s easy to imagine him wondering why he even bothers with them when they’re their own worst enemy.

(Side note; apparently the Evil Overlord in the Inferno parallel world IS the Third Doctor, according to the Expanded Universe, though I haven’t read up on this. We were robbed of seeing Pertwee play an evil Doctor.)

So while this is going on and the Master is playing his games with the Doctor while also tempting him, intentionally or not, to the ‘dark side’, we also have Jo at his side. And Jo takes all of the Doctor’s snapping and mood swings like a pro, and is very quickly overwhelmed with a lot of the stuff she’s faced which that she didn’t know she was signing up for - being hypnotised, captured by aliens, taken to alien worlds in the far future etc. She screams as most companions did at that time, but because it is what you would expect from a girl fresh out of school and throwing herself into something she clearly didn’t properly prepare for. The Doctor has to save her a lot, more than often because she tried to help only to get herself captured. As much as he does warm to her - because he’s not immune to how adorable she is - it serves to prove his point. Even when he finally gets to leave Earth for a day, she’s too frightened to want to leave the TARDIS. What good is she to him?

Now she continues to prove she has her uses. She has her escapology skills which get them out of a few tight spots. Depending on the writer, she can turn into an Emma Peel-esque agent capable of self-defence and subterfuge. And she’s always patient with the Doctor, no matter what mood he’s in, and extremely loyal. She’s also kind and compassionate with every side character she comes across. There seems to have been a backlash to these kinds of qualities in female characters in the past twenty years or so, what I like to call the Cinderella critique, where if a woman is kind and generous more so than smart, sassy and sword-wielding she’s seen as ‘weak’. Jo is always there at the Doctor’s side when he’s managed to get hurt or knocked out (Three took a lot of naps, anyone else notice this?). Even after he does whisk her away to another planet and nearly don’t make it back, she could easily throw her job away if it was too much, but she sticks with it because you can see that she wants more than anything to be useful and do good for her world - it would be another two season until she found what her own passion was with being an environmental activist but this is where she wants to start.

But it’s not until the end of S8 that we see Jo’s greatest strength and how it saves Three when every other defence he had was gone. He’s spent most of that story chastising her for believing in magic and superstition, as well as anything else he can find to snap at her for like criticising the Brigadier even though he does the same thing all the damn time (this could be seen as a ‘I can insult my bro but you can’t’ moment but it’s still not pleasant). But when he learns the Master is preparing to sacrifice her, he runs in to save her despite knowing it’s a suicide mission. He also gives a cold exchange to the Master when told he’s a ‘doomed man’. 

Oh I’m a dead man! I knew that as soon as I walked through those doors so you better watch out! I have nothing to lose, do I?

It’s a telling line that, behind all his patronising and abruptness, he’s reached a point he doesn’t feel he has anything left to keep going. He’s lost his freedom and his knowledge of time travel; but he’ll die before letting Jo die or letting the Earth burn again. When Azal claims the daemons gave humans knowledge, Three responds: Finally he’s turning his anger on the one who deserves it to save the one who has been his friend, even at his lowest points, for the past several months, while still showing his disappointment in what he’s seen of humans living amongst them:

You gave them knowledge to blow up the world and they most certainly will. They can poison the water and the very air they breathe. 

When Azal appears, he nearly makes the Master’s greatest fear come true by offering his power to the Doctor instead. And the Doctor looks horrified, immediately doing a Jon Snow and refusing it. Unlike when the Master offered him power before, he doesn’t hesitate for a moment, even though Azal’s powers could probably get his TARDIS working again in a snap. He looks almost scared at the thought of possessing something like that. Perhaps his dark persona in that other world became that way because he did take such an offer?

Azal prepares to kill the Doctor for refusing his offer, which is where Jo saves the day by offering her life for his. A lot of people dislike this ending for the idea of the villain being destroyed ‘by the power of love’ more or less, but this was a lot less common a deus ex machina as it is in New Who. The Doctor explains how it works when they’re free as:

Azal could not accept a fact as irrational and illogical as Jo being prepared to give up her life for me.

Three says it as he’s just as baffled, if also amused, by it as Azal was. Why would Jo give up her life for him? Compare that with when Ten has to give up his incarnation to save Wilf, how he rants that Wilf isn’t important but he has ‘so much more’ to give. Even the Doctor wrestles when it comes to sacrificing himself for others sometimes but Jo did it without a seconds thought, made even more illogical given Three’s often harsh treatment of her. But one thing that is obvious is that Three’s grumpy face is gone; he’s smiling for the rest of the episode, looking at Jo with quiet heart eyes, and letting her drag him into the maypole dance, conceding that she was right and there is ‘magic’ in the world. 

Much like Rose was the companion Nine needed after the Time War to enjoy seeing the Universe again and appreciating life, Jo serves a similar purpose in S8 in that she gradually reminds the Doctor through her actions of the strengths in being brave, kind and selfless. She and the rest of the UNIT family are there to remind him of the goodness in humanity and that we’re always learning and trying to improve; as Three says to Azal that ‘they need a chance to grow up’. Jo is the angel on his shoulder to contrast the Master as his personal devil; right down to having her dressed in the sacrificial ‘virgin’ garb opposite the Satanic Master to cap the season off.

Three still has his sour moments after this but he’s far less cantankerous going forward and sweeter towards Jo especially, praising her bravery and learning in future, just as Jo also grows more confident in her abilities and enjoys her adventures with him. He seems far more relaxed on Earth and less desperate to get away because of the people he has around him that make it worth staying around for. Three’s morals and loyalty to humanity might not have been so firm had Jo not been there to ground him, especially with the Master constantly there almost holding out a hand to him offering freedom and excitement. Like all good companions, she saves the Doctor as much as he has to save her, in more ways than one, which she doesn’t get nearly enough credit for. And it’s what adds to the heartbreak of her eventual exit because of the effect she had on his life.

It’s just one of my favorite tropes when a character gets better and softens or becomes kinder not because they had to ‘change for someone else’ but because they were inspired by them, especially if it’s the person they underestimated the most.

[lovelyirony]

B99 au with the Avengers (guest starring T'challa, king of Wakanda, Jennifer Walters, queen of the law firm and our favourite; Carol Danvers, queen of space!)

presenting: the b99-inspired AU, where all the avengers work at a precinct and have fun with it.

“No,” comes the voice of Maria Hill. “We are not allocating funds from the precinct to fund this.”

“But in my defense, it will look cool and prove that we’re cool kids,” Bruce argues.

“I am not ordering a cake that says ‘the government sucks’ with edible succulents surrounding it to prove that we’re ‘cool’. Besides, you work for the government technically, Bruce.”

“Only because I get a good retirement plan out of this,” Bruce argues. “If I could get an amazing pension as a scientist researching for all eternity, I would. But as it turns out, the government doesn’t appreciate people who don’t pay taxes.”

“Criminals?” Maria asks pointedly.

“They prefer to be referred to as wealthy,” Natasha says breezily. “What, are we seriously gonna pretend like rich people don’t dodge taxes?”

“We’re not going to talk about that right now,” Fury argues. “Team, gather up! Here’s what’s going to happen.”

The team gathers around.

“Steve, you are not going to try to do anything impulsive to impress him, we don’t have time,” Fury starts out with. “And Tony, do not act aloof or anything because you think this is a waste of your time.”

“I have Project Runway on DVR, there is something better I could be doing other than my job, Sir,” Tony remarks. Bruce snickers.

“Bruce, you will not be gifting T’Challa the ‘I Heart Dismantling Big Corporations’ t-shirt. I don’t care if you already ordered it.”

“I was a slave to capitalism for nothing,” Bruce mutters.

“Natasha, do not try to intimidate him,” Fury says.

“What do you mean?” Natasha asks, flipping a knife in one hand.

“That,” Fury says flatly. “T’Challa is here to help our precinct look at international issues with nuance. He is not here to be scared away.”

“I doubt I could be,” comes a voice from behind. In walks T’Challa, who smiles genially at the small crowd. “A pleasure to see you all. I look forward to working with you.”

T’Challa is known for his work with other precincts. He’s either hailed as a hero or as a nuisance, depends on what reputation the cops have with the public.

In all respects, the “Avengers” as they call themselves are excited.

But they are also themselves.

Cue Clint Barton falling through a ceiling.

“Fifth floor stole our Keurig,” he announces, dusting plaster off of him. “Oh shit. T’Challa dude was coming today?!”

Fury grits his teeth and turns.

“I apologize for Clint here, but every team needs the country idiot,” Tony says. “And he found our Keurig, which means I have to give you my leave. I’ll be back in thirty.”

T’Challa watches Tony gesture to a man with a metal arm, and they’re racing to the stairs.

“Is that...normal?” he asks.

“Yes, unfortunately,” Rhodey says with a sigh. “I’m Colonel Rhodes. People call me Rhodey. Nice to meet you. Welcome to hell.”

-

T’Challa would not describe it as hell. He would describe it as more of a circus with incredible results.

He’s studied the team. They have amazing arrest records, have the best public image that he knows of, and are incredibly inclusive and investigative.

And...entertaining, if the last six hours are anything to go by.

They’ve received a new case, something about a robbery involving over twenty thousand dollars’ worth of jewelry.

T’Challa accompanies Steve, Tony, and Natasha to the crime scene.

Steve examines the footage before beckoning for Tony and Nat.

“What level we dealing with here?”

“Six,” Tony says. “Look at the way they move, they’re definitely here on an assignment from someone else.”

“But they’re new to the business,” Natasha points out. “Look at how that guy’s head turns. He doesn’t know how to angle it away from the camera. Level Five.”

“Concurred. Let’s go see the case.”

T’Challa is...impressed.

But he knows the way that jewelry works; his little sister is particularly an aficinado for “correcting” thievery movies or the secret agent movies, and keeps him updated on jewelry and its value.

“I like to know its worth!” Shuri had defended.

“This is just because you’ve been obsessed with seeing Rihanna in Ocean’s 8,” Nakia had teased her.

“And? Don’t tell me you weren’t having to manually close your jaw after seeing all of the gala looks.”

“Fair point.”

He turns back to the case at hand.

“They stole only rubies,” Natasha says. “Why?”

“Real rubies are so rare that their worth on the market is unspecified, meaning you can define your own value,” T’Challa answers.

“Back to Level Six,” Tony says. “So. Let’s review the footage. Face covered, professional, but new to the business. Who has the power to contract this out?”

“I have someone we need to talk to,” Natasha says. “Let’s head back after witness statements.”

Carol Danvers is a worldwide traveler. If space travel was a thing and they proved that aliens were real to the public, she would most likely be out in space dealing with that.

But she’s well-traveled is the main point of this. Which means she knows international criminals, as does T’Challa.

They greet each other.

“Didn’t know you made housecalls,” Carol remarks, sitting down in Bruce’s chair. He doesn’t protest, just gives her a raised eyebrow.

“On occasion,” T’Challa responds, grinning. “Good to see you again, Captain. Any leads?”

“One,” Carol says. “Red Skull. American, moved to Germany. Really weird, has a thing for the color red and being a genuinely terrible person. Steve kicked his face in once. It was cool.”

“My foot hurt for two weeks,” Steve whined.

“Baby,” Natasha snorts. “Anyone seen Thor or Clint around?”

“Thor is currently negotiating dinner plans with Bruce’s family,” Tony says. “It’s not going well. Thor wants Bruce to have a sit-down dinner and Jennifer wants them to wait until eleven.”

“Why eleven?”

“She has a big court case. Her office hours are basically until midnight. Thor says that’s too long. Jen told him that if he truly wants dinner at seven, she’s willing to let a woman who robbed three different banks to buy luxury cars go.”

“Harsh,” Carol says. “Thor should’ve learned by now.”

“Perpetual lack of common sense,” Bruce comments, walking by. “Partially my type.”

“The other part?” Carol asks.

“Not legally allowed to say.”

“There was an...incident,” Fury responds. “Bruce has limited amounts of conversational topics he can partake in after the great Thirst of Thursday.”

“My creative title,” Steve says brightly. “I am scarred for life!”

T’Challa laughs.

-

They do catch the criminal. Natasha manages to find...someone. Carol moves a car. It’s all quite impressive.

At the end of the night, he is invited with the rest of the group for a round of drinks and dinner.

He enjoys seeing the teamwork, and enjoys being a part of it. Bruce smokes them all in a round of BS (new card game, his father will definitely enjoy it too much), and he’s invited by the ladies to be adventurous in drink choices.

(He ends up choosing a lot of wrong ones.)

But he gets the feeling that this won’t be the last time he sees this team.

Or the last time that Clint Barton doesn’t have pants.

[canyouevenwritebro]

Sunflowers (pt. 1)

Summary: The reader has been with the Avengers since they rescued her from HYDRA. She has joined them on countless missions since then but this may be the hardest one yet. Set in 2016 CA:CW.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story. It’s purely fiction.

Characters: steve rogers, tony stark, natasha romanoff, bucky barnes, sam wilson, wanda maximoff, clint barton, peter parker

Word count: 4.5k

Warnings: angst, depression, violence, death

a/n: hey!!! i did it! my first fanfic.

When the Avengers raided the HYDRA base you were kept in, they found you inside a cryo-chamber sleeping peacefully. After every personnel was captured, they transferred you to the compound along with artifacts and files of experiments they performed. Eventually, they found your file. It was quite lengthy. Your father was working for HYDRA but he turned on them and planned to take them down. As a result, they silenced him and your mother. They knew that whatever he knew about HYDRA, he told her. They spared you because you were just a kid. Instead, you were out on the Thanatos program. It was your father's project and it was almost done up until his betrayal. They thought you would be perfect for the program. They could groom you to the perfect obedient soldier they needed. On top of that, what could be more cruel than using your father's work to torture you?

They gave you a version of the serum used on the winter soldiers, with their own upgrades of course. They incorporated it with the Extremis serum and that left you with a super soldier that can breathe fire. Phoenix, they called you. The ultimate weapon of death.

After briefing everyone on your situation, they woke you up. You stepped out of the chamber confused. You were met with unfamiliar yet kind faces that it overwhelmed you. You made a run for it and nearly burned down the entire medical wing before they tranquilized you again. You woke up in a small glass cell where they told you that they meant no harm. Somehow, you believed them.

That was a year and a half ago. Now, here you were walking around New York and trying your best to be part of society. After extensive amounts of therapy of course. You were on your way back when you saw an old man in a flower shop organizing his stalls. You were mesmerized by the flowers' beauty and found yourself crossing the street to get there.

"Looking for anything specific, ma'am?" he asked

"No, not really. Maybe something cheery?" God, why are you so socially awkward?

"Well, in that case," he said, "here are some sunflowers." He handed you a bouquet.

"My wife loves them. When she's upset, I get her these because they always look towards the sun and the color brightens up the room," he said with a smile.

"Thank you so much," you said as you handed him a $20 bill "Keep the change"

You were now back at the compound and you were rummaging through the kitchen in search of a vase. You didn't find any (Seriously? a state of the art training compound owned by a billionaire doesn't have a vase?)

"I guess a pitcher would do," you whispered to yourself as you headed to your room.

"What is that?" asked Tony.

"Sunflowers. Got it from the guy near the train station. It's a good metaphor when you think about it. They're always looking on the bright side. I didn't get many opportunities to go sunbathing when I was at HYDRA." you said with an awkward chuckle.

"Alright. Fair enough. I'm headed to MIT for the speech thingy. Wanna come?"

"Nah. I still have to catch up on culture." you giggled. Years of working for HYDRA also didn't give you a lot of me-time.

"Okay well if you change your mind, you know how to get there."

"Copy that."

You headed to your room. Yours. You actually owned something. You turned on your TV and scanned through the channels. Doctor Who reruns? Sure. Hours had passed and you've scanned through hundreds of channels. You decided to turn on some news in the background while you read.

"On breaking news, eleven Wakandans are amongst those confirmed dead after a violent clash between the Avengers and independent mercenaries in Nigeria." Your head bolted up and you reached for the remote to turn the volume up.

"Brock Rumlow, former SHIELD agent, led the team of mercenaries to procure a biological weapon being tested at the Center for Disease Control Nigeria Division. It was believed to be a suicide mission as eyewitness account said Rumlow wore a type of bomb in his vest. Avenger Wanda Maximoff contained the explosion only to have the blast thrown into a building killing a total of 30 people. We have yet to receive an official statement from the Avengers. More details tonight only on Channel 6 News at 8." You listened with intent and your heartbeat was beating fast. Those poor victims. Is the team on their way home? Are they okay? How is Wanda doing? Your mind formed a million questions.

"FRIDAY, call Steve Rogers." a faint ding let you know that your request is being done.

"Y/n." Oh, thank god he's okay.

"Steve! Are you guys alright? I saw what happened. I am so sorry."

"We're alright. Search and rescue was already on the scene when we left."

"How's Wanda? Do you need me to do anything?"

"Physically, she's safe, y/n. Emotionally? This is gonna take a toll on her."

"What about the others? Nat? Sam? You?"

"We're gonna be fine. We're on our way home."

You met the team on the law of the compound. They were visibly stunned and you cut through them to hug Wanda. She was your best friend and you know that this was going to affect her greatly. You were right. She locked herself in her room and the only thing you heard was the sound of the news and sobbing.

In his office, Steve kept replaying what had happened in Lagos. Knowing him, he was gonna blame himself for this. You wanted to leave him be but your concern for Wanda kept you standing by his doorway.

"Steve? You got a moment?"

"Y/n. Do you need anything?" he said as he paused the video on his computer.

"No. I just wanna say I'm sorry about Lagos. Sam and Nat told me what happened."

"It's not your fault, y/n. It's mine. Rumlow mentioned Bucky and all sense of the mission disappeared in my head."

"Don't blame yourself. Bucky was or is, your best friend and he's still missing. You have a right to have emotions."

"Thanks. I... uh...  I needed that. Have you talked to Wanda yet?"

"No. Her room is locked. Maybe you should try talking to her. Both of us saw you as a mentor. She'll listen to you."

You gave him a faint smile and headed for the kitchen. Maybe some food could help them. You moved the vase of sunflowers from your room to the middle of the large dining table.

Tony walked in and asked everyone to meet in the conference room. He got the news as he was coming home from Massachusetts. After a brief interaction with a grieving mother and the news of the mission, he knew what he had to do.

Inside, you were met by General Ross and his assistant. Rhodey was already inside and the rest of the team followed suit. Wanda had stopped crying but you knew she would never get over this.

The general discussed the Sokovia Accords with the team. As much as you'd like to be on Steve's side, you knew the team needs to be put in check. One more incident like this and the world might lose their trust in you. You agreed with Tony. Rhodey and Sam were discussing, or perhaps fighting would be a better word, over the Accords. Tony just sat there looking like a rebellious teen listening to his parents' lectures.

To prove a point, Tony showed the team a picture of Charlie Spencer. He died in Sokovia after Ultron planned to drive the human race into extinction. You felt your heart drop. He just wanted to do some good and he was caught in the crossfire.

At that point, the fighting and bantering was too much and you just zoned everyone out. You wanted to cry and you knew that the team was slowly drifting apart. Steve walked out after receiving a text. You didn't ask why. He has a private life after all.

You decided to take your frustrations out on the punching bags. You finally had a home. A family. But you feel the world caving in around you. With one last punch, the punching bag came flying through the room engulfed in flames. You fell to your knees as tears clouded your vision. Dum-E, who Tony programmed to follow you around with a fire extinguisher as a joke, finally put his programming to use.

"Y/n." a familiar voice called to you

"Nat. Hey." you struggled through the tears.

"Talk to me."

"I- I just want the team to stay together. You guys are the only family I have."

"Me too, y/n. I used to have nothing till I found this family."

"I want to help. What can I do to help?"

"I'm off to Vienna for the signing of the Accords. I'm meeting Steve on the way to try and change his mind. Maybe you can help."

"I'll try."

Nat took you to a cathedral. Steve was on the other end by himself. He looks... tired. On the altar was a picture of Agent Carter.

"Oh. That's why he left."

"Hi, Steve. I just wanna say I am so sorry for your loss," you said as you walked towards him.

"Nat. Y/n. What are you doing here?"

"We didn't want you to be alone and I'm also taking y/n with me to Vienna for the signing of the Accords."

"There's plenty of room on the jet," you said

"Who else signed?"

"Tony, Rhodey, Vision."

"Wanda?"

"TBA."

"Clint?"

"He said he's retired."

"There's still time to change your mind, Steve. Come with us to Vienna." you pleaded one last time

"You know why I can't do this y/n. If I sign, we're surrendering our freedom to people with agendas different from ours."

You felt a lump in your throat. "I'll be in the car." You said to Nat as you turned around not looking at Steve once as you walked out of the church.

"She hates me now, doesn't she?"

"No, she doesn't. She's just scared."

Nat was right. As always. You got in the car and tried to meditate. You didn't want to cry. Not when cameras surrounded you. You tried to steady your breathing but your brain seemed to do the exact opposite.

~~~Flashback~~~

"Injecting serum in five seconds." an emotionless voice said. You tried to break free but you were strapped down to the table. Even if you weren't, it was like you were trapped in your own mind. You couldn't move. The next few hours were a blur to you. The only thing you remember was the excruciating pain coursing through your veins.

"Serum successfully administered."

"Good. Take her to the cell for the remainder of the process."

You woke up in a pool of sweat inside a dark room. Alone. Like you have been since you were a kid. You don't remember much of it. Sometimes you see your parents in your dreams. You were 5 years old and they took you to the park. Your mom was helping you get to the other end of the monkey bars while your dad went to get snow cones. You were happy. But that memory was soon followed by the sound of gunshots and screaming. You couldn't understand what was said but you didn't need to be a genius to know it was full of anger. Your mom told you to hide and you did. But they found you anyway. Since then, you were subjected to vigorous training. You now know 30 languages and deadly fighting skills. You became a weapon and today was the final step of your transformation. Eleven years of training and they deemed you ready. After they reprogrammed your brain to be obedient, of course.

The man in the army uniform handed you a folder. "Your first mission, soldatin," he said, "Procure the obelisk. No survivors. No witnesses. You have 48 hours. Report back here as soon as it is finished." You nodded and opened the folder. It was of a tiny village at the base of the Swiss Alps. In the middle of it was the said obelisk encased in glass. You took a handful of soldiers with you and you headed for the village.

You succeeded in your mission. The obelisk was safely placed inside a containment unit in the jet. The village was burned to the ground. Bodies were piled on the streets and the only sign of life was your team and a handful of livestock the villagers kept. With that, you headed back.

"Very good, soldatin. Go with the doctor." and like the good soldier that you were, you walked behind the man in the lab coat.

You passed by a few offices on your way to the medical wing. Amongst other things, the serum enhanced your hearing. The faintest whispers sounded like normal talking.

"You heard about the mission?"

"Yeah. I heard y/l/n didn't even show mercy for those villagers." the voice chuckled.

"Bettenhauser's gonna be pleased." said another.

"I bet. He and y/f/l/n worked together on the program and seeing it do its purpose mus be so satisfying"

"Her father was an asset for us. That was before he betrayed us, though."

"Well, we got her now. She is an even bigger asset than her father ever was."

You kept walking and you ended up in a room with four other people in coats. In the middle of a room was a large glass case with a chair.

"Step inside the chamber, soldatin. You need to rest." and just like that, your feet dragged you inside. One of the coats placed a mask on you amongst other things. You felt your eyelids getting heavier and heavier and heavier. Gone.

The glass chamber now safely enclosed your unconscious body. Your body was now as cold as ice.

~~~End of flashback~~~

Since that first mission, you had killed hundreds of people for HYDRA. Innocent people. They haunt your dreams to this day but what's done is done. All you could do is help as many as you can.

You were taken out of your trance by the sound of the car door closing. Nat now sat beside you.

"Eagle Hangar please," she said to the driver

The drive to the hangar was silent. So was the flight to Vienna.

"Here goes nothing," you said to Nat as the elevator doors opened. World leaders were gathered in the room and cameras were flashing everywhere. A lady with a clipboard checked you in and quickly walked away.

"I see you are not fans of the spotlight." said the man in the suit. You later learned his name was T'Challa. Prince of Wakanda.

"It isn't very flattering," Nat said to him.

"Well, considering your last trip to Capitol Hill, you seem to be doing great so far." you chuckled at his response. You read about that months ago. You even saw it on YouTube on "Black Widow most iconic moments compilation.

"You don't seem like a big fan as well." You told him

"The accords, yes. The politics? not very. Two men in the same room can get more done than a hundred."

"Unless you need to move a piano." the voice behind you said

"King T'Chaka. This is Y/n Y/l/n. Allow us to apologize for what happened in Nigeria."

"Thank you, Ms. Romanoff. I'm sad to hear Captain Rogers won't be joining us."

"That makes three of us." You replied to him.

Just then, you heard a voice come on through the speakers asking everyone to take a seat. King T'Chaka was giving a statement when both yours and Nat's attention was drawn to his son who was looking out the window.

"EVERYBODY GET DOWN!" He screamed as he bolted for his father.

Like instinct, you threw yourself in front of Nat. It's something that you started doing after you joined the team. You thought after all the lives you've taken, protecting as many as you can could "wipe the red off your ledger" as Nat put it. You were a very effective human shield as a result of the serums. You weren't immortal nor did you have instantaneous healing due to the reaction between the two serums but you still healed faster compared to average humans. You felt a spray of glass cut through your skin and a searing heat touched your skin. Search and rescue came after the explosion and took you and Nat to get medical attention. You were perfectly fine but Nat had a few cuts and bruises. In typical Nat fashion, she walked it off like it was nothing.

You were taken to a tent to get a fresh set of clothes while Nat talked to Prince T'Challa, now king under horrible circumstances. When you got out, he was gone and she was on the phone.

A few minutes later, your phone rang.

Captain Grandpa calling...

you dropped the call and went to check on NAt

~~~BUCHAREST~~~

News outlets revealed Sargeant Barnes, Bucky, was behind the bombing. You knew Steve was gonna go after him. He'd been looking for Bucky since SHIELD fell. Now, he found him in Romania. Orders were given to shoot him on sight and Steve wouldn't let that happen.

~~~BERLIN~~~

Bucky was now in custody.

"What part of don't make things worse didn't you understand?" you asked Steve

You were in one of the offices watching Bucky getting evaluated by the doctor. You were in the other room talking to Tony about what would happen to your teammates.

"We're lucky they aren't in jail," he said

This was all too much. You went to the bathroom to splash some water on your face. You hadn't slept in 24 hours nor eaten anything. You looked in the mirror and fixed your hair as best you could.

BLACKOUT.

What was happening? You ran out and saw a lot of commotion.

"Get me eyes on Barnes," yelled Everett Ross.

You saw Nat and Tony walking towards the exit.

"What happened? What can I do?" you asked

"Don't know. We need to find Barnes." Tony said

"Please tell me you brought a suit," said Nat

"Sure did. It's a lovely Tom Ford three-piece two-button. I'm on active duty non-combatant."

Just as he said that Agent Carter, the younger, ran past you "follow me," she said. The three of you did and she led you to the facility's lobby.

You had never met Sgt. Barnes but from what Steve told you, he was a good man. The person you saw in the lobby was not him. He reminded you of your time at HYDRA. Cold and merciless. A soldier.

Sharon and Nat ran in and tried to fight him to no avail. You managed to get him down but he pinned you n the floor. He was trying to choke you and as a last effort to break free, you took a deep breath and exhaled a stream of fire. He dodged out of the way and you managed to get up. The next thing you saw was T'Challa going after him. You set fire to the staircase to slow him down but he still got away

You went outside only to see Steve on the rooftop pulling a helicopter from the sky. Sometimes you forget that he's a super-soldier just like you.

"Y/n coordinate evac. Get civilians as far away as you can," said Tony through comms. You wanted to help Steve but you got your orders.

~~~Fast forward to Berlin~~~

You did what Tony said and got civilians to a safe distance. When you went to meet with Nat and Tony, they told you Steve and Bucky were gone. They assumed Sam was with them too.

~~~Steve's POV~~~

"This would've been a lot easier a week ago," said Sam

"If we call Tony or maybe y/n--" he cut you off

"Who knows if the accords will let them help." he had a point. After everything that's happened, the UN would not listen to them even if they found out about Zemo.

"We're on our own."

"Maybe not." you looked at him questioningly. "I know a guy"

~~~End of POV~~~

You were now back in a conference room with General Ross. He gave you 36 hours to bring the three men in. He wouldn't hesitate to kill Steve if it meant bringing Barnes in.

"My left arm is numb. Is that normal?" he asked. Nat put her hand on his shoulder.

"You alright?" she asked

"Always." you knew that was a lie. Numbness in the left arm was a sign of a heart attack. But he's Tony. he could be bleeding to death and still say witty sarcastic remarks. You wish he didn't do that. You wished he'd open up to you more. "36 hours. Geez."

"We're seriously understaffed," said Nat. It was just the three of you there now.

"Would be great if we had a hulk right about now. Any shot?" Nat shook her head

Not even the Hulk. It would be nice if just Bruce and Thor were there. Maybe things wouldn't be as bad. Bruce and Thor would've deescalated matters before you could say Mjolnir.

"You really think he would be on our side?" she asked. You hadn't thought of that but knowing Bruce, he would want the team to be together.

"I have an idea." Said Nat

"ME too. Where's yours?

"Downstairs. Where's yours?" said tony.

~~~QUEENS~~~

"Spiderman? really?" you asked Tony in the car.

"HE stopped a 3000 lbs car going 40 miles an hour wit his bare hands and he swings from webs."

"But he's dressed in a red hoodie and swim goggles." you chuckled. It was probably the lightest moment you had in the last week alone.

You and Tony knocked on the apartment door. It was answered by a middle-aged woman. She was beautiful honestly. She had those kind motherly eyes that reminded you of your mom.

"Hi. I'm Tony Stark. This is y/n y/l/n. Is Mr. Parker here? we have some good news for him." Tony sad

"I'm May., his aunt and no he's not here. He should be home soon though. You're welcome to wait." she invited you in and served you some walnut and date bread. It was horrible but you didn't have the heart to tell her. she was so nice.

"So what is this good news you're here about?" she asked. Tony didn't actually tell you what his plan was. Not in full anyways so you were just as curious as her.

"Oh its a grant from the September foundation that he applied for. I approved." as far as bullshit made-on-the-spot excuses go, that was pretty good.

"Oh, he never told me that.

"He probably wanted to surprise you," you said to her

"Probably. Are you also a receiver of the grant?" she asked

"No. I'm interested in how the foundation is run so I asked to be here" she nodded. You didn't think she'd buy it but she did. Just as he said that the front door opens and a young guy walked in. He couldn't have been much younger than you. He had his earphones n and he was going on about this nice car parked outside. Tony's of course.

He saw the three of you on the sofa and he was clearly starstruck upon seeing Tony. He couldn't even speak without stuttering. He repeated his excuse to Peter and he surprisingly went along with it. Tony asked for five minutes alone with him and you were left in the living room with Aunt May. When they got out of the room, Peter informed his aunt that Tony invited him to the compound to talk more about the internship. You knew it was a lie of course because just a few hours later, Peter was standing next to you on the car to the airport.

~~~BERLIN~~~

Vision informed you that Clint came to get Wanda at the compound. Immediately, you knew this wasn't gonna end well. You don't want to fight her but you don't have a choice

As a last effort, you tried calling Steve but hews just declining your calls. Eventually, none of them would even go through.

~~~Fast forward~~~

"Steve, you know what's about to happen. Do you really want to punch your way out of this one?" Nat said.

"Just come with us. Please," you pleaded. He looked at the both of you

"Alright, I've run out of patience. Underoos!" yelled tony. just as he did, Peter grabbed Steve's should and landed on top of  the helicopter

"Nice job kid"

"Thanks. I could've stuck the landing a little better. It's just the new suit but it's perfect, Mr. Stark" he went on this babbling for about 45 seconds. You thought it was funny.

~~~

"I'm trying to keep you from tearing the Avengers apart," Tony said. You wanted the same thing. You all do.

"You did that when you signed," said Steve

"You're gonna turn Barnes over and you're gonna come with us now because it's us" You could hear the sadness and frustration in Tony's voice. "Come on" he whispered

You heard Sam's voice through Steve's earpiece "We found it. The quintet is in hangar five. North runway." you let out a deep breath. This was it. Steve raised his arm as Redwing cut through his restraints.

"Alright Lang," said Steve

"What the hell was that?" asked Rhodes

"I believe this is yours, Captain America"

"Oh great. There's two on the parking deck. One of them is Maximoff. I'm gonna go grab her. Y/n come with me. Rhodey, wanna take Cap?" said Tony as he grabbed you by the arm and flew towards Wanda... and Clint?

"There's two on the terminal. Wilson and Barnes"

"Barnes is mine," said T'Challa

~~~Fast Forward~~~

"Wanda. I think you hurt Vision's feelings"

"You locked me in my room."

"I did it to protect you."

"Wanda, stop this now. I don't want to fight you but you know I will."

"I can't live in fear anymore, y/n." and with that, she used her powers to drop cars at you.

"I'm done playing nice. You want a fight? I'll give you a fight." you said as you aimed fireblasts at her and Clint.

A fight has now ensued between the two teams. Tony attached a miniaturized jet pack to your back so you could chase after the others. Steve and the others were making a run for the hangar when Vision used his laser to stop them in their tracks. You landed in front of them, skin now glowing red from the fire inside you. The others followed suit.

"You must surrender now." Vision's voice thundered over you despite being in an open space. You were now face to face with your friends.

"What do we do, Cap?" asked Sam

"We fight."

"This isn't gonna end well," whispered Nat

"They're not stopping," said Peter

"Neither are we."

a/n: what do you guys think? I hope you like it. it's my first time writing fanfic. criticism would be greatly appreciated. part two coming soon depending on the response to this...

[girlfriendsofthegalaxy]

tuesday again

tuesdays just keep fucking happening and there’s nothing any of us can do to stop them

listening shoutout to @flora-flauna​ for showing me Stayaway by MUNA (” cool sad queer girl pop “) and that’s spot on. there’s a really fun sludgy electronica thing happening in the chorus that i’m ALL about 

reading got both of these last spring, read through most of it, got distracted and did something else (probably a schlocky vampire romance given my tastes last spring) but i came back to the 2009 eight-issue Dynamite Comics run of The Good the Bad and the Ugly- they don’t seem to have acquired the rights to clint’s face which is at times screamingly funny. not a movie adaptation, a spinoff official fanfic. it’s mmm all right?  there are some major issues with art continuity in general but there are some fun nods to all three movies.none of the official fanfic for this film is Good, and i include all the weird little spinoff novels which are OPENLY and HORRIBLY racist and transphobic. 

Dynamite Comic’s 2009 eleven-issue run of The Man With No Name . clint is a little more on-model here, also some fun nods to the movies (tuco and angel are here with soup!) and overall a little more enjoyable than their GBU run imo aside from a very very weird character decision near the middle. has some Young TMWNN backstory with a man that looks nothing like young clint. seems to be in licensing limbo? the files i acquired left out issue #8, hopefully nothing important happened in that one. has provided us with a new meme 

watching the 2013 one-season anime Coppelion. okay listen. LISTEN. sometimes the heart wants a terrible anime to watch while knitting socks.

i have a lot of thoughts about this that might turn into a proper Poste, but at this point it might as well be an article pitch. 

these genetically-engineered high schoolers are sent into the ruins of Tokyo to rescue survivors of a nuclear accident. i did not realize that it was a nuclear power plant accident until almost the third episode- it is euphemistically referred to as the Contamination and i thought it was a biological agent for most of those first three episodes. there are Zones, as in the Roadside Picnic book/S.T.A.L.K.E.R. game series, but that touchstone isn’t quite accurate because it’s more like “this is a dangerous area of greater radiation but no spooky shit is happening”. it is a very soft apocalypse- there aren’t a lot of bodies or destruction with one notable exception. the countryside is taking back the city in a very real way, everything is super lush. there’s a neat bit about feral packs of dogs that the series forces you to notice and then doesn’t do anything with, and a neat subplot about guilt and mutual aid that i wish was explored more than in a very superficial Our Country Will Recover Because Of The Enduring Spirit Of The People way.  

set in 2016, the manga ran from 2008-2016. i SUSPECT the anime itself is heavily influenced by the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster (it was actually meant to come out in 2010, but the disaster delayed it. not sure how far along in development it was at the time). there’s a ongoing theme of Science Has Two Sides: Positive And Negative, which i think could be much more interesting if the show were willing to dive scientific ethics a little more, but it seems to be crippled by Japanese nationalism. were this an American series, i would probably be like “oh this is propaganda about how great Sandia Nat’l Labs is, thanks Honeywell International I hate it” but i don’t know because i’m not Japanese and nobody other than blogs with names like The Pantsless Anime Blogger seems to be writing critically about this series. 

given Japan’s history with cities devastated by American bombing, i expected the subplot of Americans dumping nuclear waste into the already-contaminated city to have a bigger role? this did some interesting things with the role of the government and science in major nuclear disasters, ans set up a lot of questions about those roles and responsibility and ethics and rebuilding, but never followed through. the art is a little wonky in places (there are two distinct styles at war) and there are some serious pacing and information reveal issues, but the premise is interesting and the backgrounds are gorgeous. apparently the manga is better/a little more political but i think i’ve gotten all i want out of Coppelion. 

 playing civ 6. honestly the less said about this the better, bc two nights ago i played eight hours of it. this game is very bad for my brain bc it really encourages my unmedicated tunnel vision and i got shit to do. i really just think there should be more female warmongers i can  play as. 

there’s a lot i could say about how Bleh this game makes me feel re: who’s civilized and who’s not, how “colonization” is an explicit policy, how the Domination victory is the easiest to achieve(imo), the “barbarians” & treatment therof, &tc, smarter people than me who are paid critics have written about this. 

anyway i tried it, it’s not for me even though it is very addicting, on to the next thing bc there are practically infinite games in the world.

making sox. lotta Anxiety Knitting lately, this is the third sock i’ve cranked out in the past week. might rip out the half-inch of ribbing bc i think i can get one more V repeat out of the yarn i have left and i hate having tiny useless balls of sock yarn left over 

[groovycatcollector]

The Wonderfully Right, And The Horribly Wrong (Daryl Dixon Love story)

Summery: After losing her brother and his wife, one young woman is left on her own, caring for a new born and trying to survive. After being taken in to a community after years of mistrust, how will she adapt, and what effect will a certain archer have on her. Starts the last episode of season 5

Warnings: slow-burn, angst, eventual fluff, violence, strong language. ptsd, age gap

Pairings: Daryl Dixon x OFC

Chapter 8

“We look like a danm ‘Baby and Me’ group” I joked, sitting across from Carl in the kitchen. Both of us had put our kids on the floor with pillows around them, making it a sort of make-shift baby fort. I poured us both some water before grinning like a mad woman with my chin resting in my hands.

“Who is she?” I sang, knowing I was irritating him. He plonked his big cowboy hat onto the table “If you’re gonna be annoying I can ask someone else” Carl looked as if he was trying to be an adult, and I looked as if I was trying to be a kid, bit of an odd pair.

“Who are you gonna talk to? Eugene? Morgan?” I was poking the bear, suddenly I pretended to be horrified, sitting back in the seat. “Oh no” He looked puzzled “Oh sweet Jesus no” I exclaimed. “You” I jolted forward pointing an accusatory finger at him “You were gonna talk to Abraham weren’t you?”

He looked at me blankly, arms crossed “Nina” I sat back, my outburst over. “I’m just saying he’s shit with the ladies” I missed goofing around with people, Carl reminded me of Beau, the baby’s daddy; Serious, a bit shy but as sweet as sugar on the inside. “Seriously who is she” I said again, a bit more serious. “Or at least what kind of person she is”

He talked, talked a good bit, and even though it obviously was Enid he still wouldn’t confess. I’ve seen her walking around, she was pretty, also the only girl his age. “Well, what does she like?” I was spinning my web was master match making, I missed this. “Find something your both into, make it a thing. Know anything she likes?” He shrugged, oh Jesus save me,teenaged boys

“Okay, what do you like about her?”  Carl paused “Shes smart, and pretty” okay… not much to go on “Have you expressed any interest?” He was rubbing his knees and his face was getting redder by the minute. “Okay well complement her, for a start. Or maybe start off my showering, that’s always a good place to start. Then find something you’re both interested in and go from there”

Carls face lit up like he had an idea “I know what to do” I could barely blink before he had swept up his hate and Judith and nearly ran out the door. Letting out a sigh I sat back

“Okay then”

I needed to get ready anyways, I was going on a run with Spencer Daryl and

 **

“Seriously stop thanking us, we can use the practice” Glenn scolded taking the bag of formula as Maggie bounced the baby on her lap while I shrugged the kami jacked I found in storage over my shoulders. I smiled, grateful to the couple that they consider babysitting “practice” for their oncoming child, still, I needed to go on this run, wanting to find a gift for the two to them as a congratulations present, and a few other things.

Glenn set the bag down on the counter “So feed every two hours, if he cries we check the diaper, feed, and bounce”

I rolled my eyes, he had a look on his face like he was saying this more for me then him. I crossed my arms, knowing what he was doing “Yes, okay you got it” I admitted, throwing my hands up in defeat. He leaned agents the island “He’ll be fine, stop stressing” I looked down and back up at him, I know he will be; especially with Glenn and Maggie. Taking a deep breath I decide to ask them.

I twitched my nose. “Hey Mag, could you come over here?” Her head darted in my direction, before standing, keeping the baby close to her chest. I shuffled my feet, brushing my hair out of my face “So you know how he’s being baptized in a few days?” They looked calm, Sweet Jesus I hope they say yes. “W-W-Well” Oh no, I started stuttering again, I could never shake that habit off “I was wondering” Fuck sake, deep breath “Wouldyouliketobehisgodparents?”

They stared at me blankly, “What” Maggie asked, before a wash of understanding washes over her face, and her shoulders relax. “Just in case anything happens to me, I want to know he’ll be well looked after" I explained desperately, my hand moving way too much for it to look natural.

Glenn glanced at Maggie, who smiled back “Of course we will” Glenn said, reaching out and touching my Bicep. A wave of relief washed over me, relaxing my muscles. “Thank you” I said, genuinely grateful. “When is the christening?” Maggie asked, starting to bounce the Baby I have yet to name in her arms. The other name threw me off and I tried to remember

“In a few days, Gabriel said he needed to refresh his memory of Catholic baptisms” Maggie nodded “Just tell us the morning of and we’ll be there” She smiled, and I hoped that they understood what they were getting into.

  **

  I sat in between Daryl and Spencer in the pick-up truck waiting for the turn off into the small town, where hopefully we’d fine a few shops that still had a few products inside.  I could them some baby clothes, or some wood and make them a crib. Spencer attempted to make small talk over Daryl’s useless stick driving but to no avail; both Daryl and I were focused on other matters. My leg occasionally bumping agents Daryl’s or Spencer’s thighs, causing Daryl to tense his arms agents the wheel and Spencer to move closer to me.

After knocking on the window we strolled into the shop, all armed with only hand knives, Spencer staying close behind as I followed Daryl. The store was dark and silent, expect for a few bangs of a stuck Rotter. Scanning the shelves, seeing a few boxes of incense, I figured it must have been a bit of a Hippie shop. Shoving whatever labelled ‘Natural Remedy’ into my rucksack; only a few bottles of oils and dried herbs.

“I’m gonna check the back” I called out, heading towards that door that said ‘employees only’ where the nagging was coming from.

Daryl shot me a look “Nah, I’ll get the walkers in a sec,”. Rolling my eyes at his dismissal I opened the door to the back. The second my hand pulled the handle back I knew I fucked up. The walker over powering me, and knock me to the floor.

Shit. Shit. His teeth biting and snapping towards my neck getting out a grunt I tried to bring my knife up to his head, but I couldn’t reach.

The only thing blocking his jaws from my neck was my forearm. Shit, I tried to kick my legs, trying to knock him over, but that only made him get closer to my face. I pushed the rotter back a little, just about to get my knife through its temple, but a knife went through his eye, inches away from my chin away from my chin.

Throwing him off of me I gasped for air .My ‘savoir’ spoke “Fuck Nina I told you I’d get it” I looked to Daryl standing over me, with a red face and veins pulsating in his neck. I propped myself up on my elbows “I had him” I huffed in annoyance. “Shit was reckless and you know” Jesus I feel like I’m being scolded for sneaking out on a school night. Spencer had slipped behind me into the store room.

Pushing myself to my feet I stand only a few inches away from him “I said I had him” Daryl stepped back. “Really? It didn’t look like it. Actually it looked like you were about to get bit” My temper was getting the better of me, I would have apologized if he didn’t have his finger in my face. I slapped it away, the dark shop making him seem more threatening, but this only pissed me off more.

Jesus Christ what is wrong with him. “I said I had it Dixon” I spat, turning on my heel and walking into the back. Obviously Daryl didn’t feel like this conversation was over, he grabbed my arm and was about to open his mouth to scold me.

I quickly decided that I wasn’t listening to a lecture before blurting out an “I’m sorry”. He dropped my arm, his eyes were a stern blue trying to read me. I’m a good liar, I know that much, but see saw threw it. He squinted his eyes before walking past me into the back.

“Clothes, shitty CD’s and candles mostly” Spencer announced as we walking in. It was dark due to the lack of windows, turning on my torch so I could get a better look “Take the clothes, they can be used has bandages” I said.

I strained my eyes trying to read the labels on boxes threw the dust. I brushed the curls off my face finding a book. “Natural Births: A Doulas Guide”, perfect, now I’ve a little thank you present for the godparents

Stuffing clothes I thought could be bandages I looked down, and saw a purple scarf and smiled at the genital colour. Hesitating to pick it up, it felt so wrong to even consider something frivolous at the end of the world.

Actually, no it didn’t. Fuck it I want a pretty head head scarf. I put my rucksack down warped it around my head once, just enough to keep the hairs off my face.

I walked over to the boys hearing a few laughs and a few “fuck yeahs” after curiosity got the better of me. They were kneeling down over three or four boxes, and peering over I could just about see glass bottles.

Spencer turned, smiling while handing me one of the mixed matched bottles. “This has been a great day” He beamed before turning back to the boxes. I brought my torch up to the bottle, no label.

I cautiously unscrewed it, taking a whiff. Immediately regretting it as the smell burnt my nose hairs. Regret soon turned into pure joy after registering what I smelt

Moonshine.

Part one Part two Part three Part four Part Five Part six Part seven

 Part nine Part ten Part eleven

Tags: @buckysjuicyplums

[etherealwaifgoddess]

What He Wants (Pt. 22)

Main Characters: Bucky Barnes x Enhanced Reader

Summary:  On going series of Bucky getting his shit together and falling in love with you.

Warnings/ Content: more lemons, shocking i know lol.  And a VERY brief mention of past non-con while he was under HYDRA’s control, nothing graphic or specific, just a reference but I felt the need to include it because I love ya’ll and don’t want to offend anyone. 

Word Count: 1458

Author’s Note: Hello lovelies! Here’s one more part for tonight and then tomorrow I’ll post the rest. Can you believe we’re only two parts from the end?? I certainly can’t. But for now enjoy another lemony fresh installment. Because as much as Bucky enjoyed your little performance in the last part, the man is a giver. 

If you missed the first few parts, you can read them here: 1 2 3 4 5 67 8 9 10 1112 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

XOXO - Ash

What He Wants, Pt. 22

Bucky’s silence worries you a little considering how vocal he was beforehand. “So that was… okay?” you ask hopefully. The last time you had done that you were still in college so you weren’t exactly experienced, but you hoped it was good for him.

Bucky stares at your incredulously. “Doll that was… that was… fuck, I still don’t even have the words for it. Good doesn’t even begin to cover it.”

“Oh.” you can’t hide your surprise or how pleased you are, “Good. I wasn’t sure and I tend to overthink things.” 

Bucky shakes his head, “It was perfect, absolutely amazing. I just wish I could have hung on a little longer.” he blushes, feeling a little self conscious, “It’s been a while and god help me just the sight of you down there about did me in.” 

“It’s okay, Bucky. Please don’t think I care about that, I really don’t. It’s been a very long time for me too.” 

Bucky chuckles, “My definition of a very long time and yours are really not comparable, mouse.” 

“You know I’ve had my abilities for eleven years now. I’ve only had three failed relationships since then and only two of them progressed to the bedroom. And it was disastrous both times. After that I gave up.” you explain, hoping it helps ease his mind a little.

It doesn’t, it just makes his heart ache for you and he wishes he knew who those idiots were so he could go tear them limb from limb. “Well, sweetheart, I went off to war in 1943 and I wasn’t exactly a ladies man before that.” 

You try to sort out if he’s kidding or not, unsure by how nonchalant he’s being. “You’re kidding, right? I saw the exhibit on you at the museum in DC when I was a teenager. All those pictures; you and Steve before the war, and then you in your uniform, and in the Howling Commandos. You looked every bit the ladies man they played you up to be.”

Bucky laughs, “It wasn’t hard to seem suave next to Steve before he was given the serum. And honestly, I grew up in a house full of women and a best friend who was either sick or tripping over his own two feet. I spent all of my time taking care of my sisters, taking care of Steve, and at the library.”

You struggle to respond to his brutal honesty. It seems so unbelievable but also explains a lot. “Okay, so maybe the historians exaggerated. But what about after all that?” 

Bucky cringes, “There is no after. HYDRA captured me and that was pretty much it for the next seventy odd years. Once Steve got me out I wasn’t fit to be around anyone, let alone try to date a girl. I get flashes sometimes and I think… I think they used the soldier sometimes. With other agents or whatever. I don’t know why and I don’t remember all of it though.” Bucky takes a long breath. He never talks about the little he remembers of his time with HDYRA but he wants to with you. Bucky feels a little lighter unburdening to you and he thinks that at some point maybe he’ll share all of it with you, when he’s ready. 

You try to stomp down your horror at his revelation before he sees your expression. You wish you hadn’t pushed the conversation, “Bucky that’s awful.” 

“It’s okay, doll. Don’t look so upset. Like I said, I don’t really remember it much. But now you believe me? It’s been a very long time for me. And I couldn’t be happier that it’s with you. You’re perfect, mouse.” he leans over to caress your face with his right hand and you nuzzle against him. 

“I’m glad it’s with you too.” you say against his palm, planting a firm kiss against it. 

“Now, no more gloom. I’m gonna go grab my arm and then you’re gonna be the one who’s lying brainless on the bed.” he gives you a wolfish smile and jumps up off the bed. 

Bucky returns to your bedroom, fastening on the arm Fury had brought for him, testing it out carefully. “God, I love this thing.” he says. 

Bucky joins you on the bed, sitting on the edge so he can run his vibranium hand from your hip to knee. “So soft,” he purrs, “I can feel it.” 

The cool metal leaves trails of goosebumps as he trails it along your skin. “That’s amazing. I’m glad Shuri was able to make it for you.” 

“Me too, mouse, because I want to feel you every way possible.” 

Your eyes widen as he pulls your hips so you’re laying on your back on the bed. 

“Scoot up, doll.” he tells you and grabs a pillow. He wraps his vibranium arm under your thighs and lifts your legs and hips up to slide a pillow under your butt. Bucky starts trailing kisses across your thighs and up your hips to the soft swell of your belly and the fleeting self consciousness that rises up in you is quickly shot down by the throaty noises of appreciation he’s making. Bucky moves his kisses over top the soft cotton of your panties and you can feel his hot breath through the thin fabric making you clench your fists in the blankets so you don’t squirm. He finally pulls down your panties, tossing them on the floor by his sweatpants, and you’re bare in front of him at last. Bucky makes an almost pained sound and lays his head on your thigh for a moment. “Oh, doll, you really are perfect.” he says reverently. 

You are floating at his compliment. There is a lightness in your chest in knowing he has seen all of you, even the flaws that you would hide, and still desires you. Bucky runs the long pointer finger of his right hand up your folds while his vibranium hand rubs a thumb over your hip and squeezes it gently. You tremble, knowing what’s coming. Bucky’s right hand parts your lips and he runs his flattened tongue along your core. He laps at you, his nose rubbing at your clit for a moment and you squirm a little uncontrollably. He pulls back a moment, “So fucking sweet.” he growls before diving back in. Latching on to your clit, he alternates between sucking on it and flicking it gently with his tongue. You’re trembling hard, unable to believe how good feels when he slides two cool, metal fingers into you. “Oh fuck, I can feel you tightening up on me.” he moans and his shoulders shake a moment. His mouth continues to worship your core and his right hand jolts up to cup your breast, kneading it gently. 

Your body is on fire under him. You feel positively consumed by him, his mouth and hands overwhelming your senses. You can’t keep up with the flood of pleasure and you’re grinding down on his mouth with embarrassing fervor but you can’t help yourself, it’s just too much all at once and into too many places. The rhythm of his tongue against your clit and the two fingers inside you speed up and you make a soft keening sound, barely able to keep your hips in place on the pillow. His right arm snakes back down to lay across your lower belly, keeping you in place securely. The orgasm that hits you does so with little warning and you go from whining gasps to screaming his name in an instant. Bucky groans loudly and the vibrations add to the intensity of your orgasm as he draws it out longer and longer, before slowly bringing you back down. Carefully he laps at your slick folds, cleaning up and savoring the taste of you before he moves away.

You’re still breathing hard and your thighs tremble beneath his cheek as he rests on you, tracing circles on the soft skin of your thighs. You slip a hand down to play in his hair affectionately and he looks up at you, his beard glistening from your arousal. He can see the joy on your face and pride swells in him for being the cause of it. Bucky moves up next to you on the bed and carefully removes the pillow from under your hips. You can’t help but notice a hardness pressing against your thigh and you look down to see Bucky is rock hard again. “Round two?” you offer with a mischievous smile. 

Bucky groans but shakes his head, “You don’t have to, doll. This damn thing is an overachiever.” 

“We could… you know. If you want to.” You’re suddenly shy but very, very ready.

Tag List Lovelies: @my-current-fandom-is @blacklightguidesnic @amazonianbeauty@ladyemofhousestark@abswritesfandoms@rupestria @dark-night-sky-99

[eddycurrents]

For the week of 5 May 2019

Quick Bits:

Age of Conan: Bêlit #3 throws a few road bumps in the way of Bêlit’s plans as the Kushites renege of their deal and her drunken “Captain” continues being a jerk. I’m really liking this exploration of Bêlit’s early days from Tini Howard, Kate Niemczyk, Scott Hanna, Jason Keith, and Travis Lanham.

| Published by Marvel

Archie #704 throws some roadblocks in the way of Archie and Sabrina’s relationship through the form of a “Bachelor”-like charity programme set up by Cheryl. I love the even more stylized pastel colour palette from Matt Herms.

| Published by Archie Comics

Batman & The Outsiders #1 is an entertaining debut from Bryan Hill, Dexter Soy, Veronica Gandini, Clayton Cowles. I’ve not read the arc in Detective Comics that feeds into this, but this first issue provides enough information for new readers now to be lost and gives good incentive to check out what’s come before. Great art from Soy and Gandini, with an interesting look inside a team and a compelling start to a mystery about the last survivor from a metahuman generating factory.

| Published by DC Comics

Bettie Page #4 concludes the QE2 aliens caper. Love the art from Julius Ohta, Ellie Wright, and Sheelagh D.

| Published by Dynamite

Bronze Age Boogie #2 continues the strangest Doom Patrol story as the Martian invasion angle has taken hold in the future and a motley crew of heroes bands together to try to stop them. Stuart Moore, Alberto Ponticelli, Giulia Brusco, and Rob Steen are playing with some interesting cross-media influences to tell a highly entertaining tale. It’s rounded out with the usual goodies in the form of prose, letters, and what’s probably my favourite of the back-up strips so far, Major Ursa, from Tyrone Finch, Mauricet, Lee Loughridge, and Rob Steen.

| Published by Ahoy

Conan the Barbarian #6 sees Jason Aaron, Mahmud Asrar, Matthew Wilson, and Travis Lanham tell a story of Conan’s frustrations as a mercenary in the skirmishes between Turan and Stygia. People constantly underestimating Conan is always a fun story.

| Published by Marvel

Deadly Class #38 sees Marcus and Maria return to King’s Dominion. It’s kind of messed up seeing the new status quo, but at the same time the tension that Rick Remender, Wes Craig, Jordan Boyd, and Rus Wooton build here between to old Legacy kids and Marcus & Maria feels like it’s going to explode, suggesting something even worse for the characters is coming soon. It’s very captivating.

| Published by Image / Giant Generator

Detective Comics #1003 reveals the identity of the Arkham Knight. It’s not really anyone you could have possibly guessed, but an interesting addition to Batman’s rogues gallery. Also the cult surrounding the Arkham Knight is certifiably insane. Gorgeous artwork again from Brad Walker, Andrew Hennessy, and Nathan Fairbairn.

| Published by Marvel

The Empty Man #7 goes full Clive Barker as we get an explanation for what the Empty Man really is and how he continues to manifest himself upon reality. I know I keep saying it, but the body horror brought about in the art from Jesús Hervás and Niko Guardia just can’t be stressed enough. Every issue they seem to outdo themselves with creepy and intriguing designs.

| Published by BOOM! Studios

Eve Stranger #1 looks to be another winner for Black Crown. This first issue sets up the titular character as a secret agent who seems to need to reboot her memory every week. Why, exactly, is left unknown, but that’s part of the fun. David Barnett, Philip Bond, Eva de la Cruz, and Jane Heir do a wonderful job here with the action and intrigue. Also it’s great to see Bond doing more espionage tinged action, his art always looks so great telling these kinds of stories.

| Published by IDW / Black Crown

Excellence #1 is a thoroughly excellent debut from Brandon Thomas, Khary Randolph, Emilio Lopez, and Deron Bennett. The world and character building in this first issue is impeccable and the art from Randolph and Lopez will just blow you away. Incredible development of a magic-based society and the class structure therein.

| Published by Image / Skybound

The Flash #70 begins “Year One” promising new insight and occurrences during Barry’s origin story. Given that the last time this happened his mother was murdered, changing the timeline and resulting down the line in Barry trying to fix it with Flashpoint, anything’s possible. The real draw, though, is the stunning artwork from Howard Porter and Hi-Fi. Porter is really giving this his all and it shines through wonderfully.

| Published by DC Comics

Hawkman #12 brings Bryan Hitch’s tenure on the series to an end with the conclusion to “Cataclysm”. This is an excellent, action-packed final confrontation between the legion of Hawkmen and the Deathbringers, setting up a whole Hawkman for possibly the first time and hints as to worse things waiting on the horizon.

| Published by DC Comics

Infinite Dark #6 amplifies the terror and chaos as the dead-ish things exposed to the void start spreading fear and panic throughout the station. Ryan Cady, Andrea Mutti, K. Michael Russell, and Troy Peteri ratchet up the horror here.

| Published by Image / Top Cow

Invaders #5 raises more questions after we thought some things were coming into focus in the previous issue, as Chip Zdarsky, Carlos Magno, Butch Guice, Alex Guimarães, and Travis Lanham continue “War Ghosts”. The tension here on the brink of all out war between the US and Atlantis is incredible, and there are more interesting twists that suggest something far more sinister occurring.

| Published by Marvel

Jim Henson’s The Storyteller: Sirens #2 features a gorgeous adaptation of the story of Chinese mother goddess, Nuwa, by Chan Chau with letters by Jim Campbell. The artwork is amazingly beautiful supporting a very sweet tale.

| Published by Boom Entertainment / Archaia

Justice League Odyssey #9 opens up an interesting thread that Starfire, Cyborg, and Azrael may be unduly under the influence of Darkseid. Dan Abnett is setting up some simmering conflict between Jessica Cruz and the rest of the team here, along with quite a few occult catchphrases thrown in to help amplify the mood.

| Published by DC Comics

Lodger #5 is the end to this excellent crime drama from the Laphams and it is all kinds of messed up. We learn what really happened to Ricky’s family and...yeah. This has been a strange, at times disturbing, ride and they stuck the landing.

| Published by IDW / Black Crown

Murder Falcon #8 is the epic conclusion to this series as Jake and Murf take on Magnum Khaos. Between this series and Extremity, Daniel Warren Johnson has proven himself time and again as a master storyteller and it shines through with the heartrending end to this story. This one goes up to eleven.

| Published by Image / Skybound

Red Sonja & Vampirella Meet Betty & Veronica #1 is an interesting mash-up of the three properties from Amy Chu, Maria Sanapo, Vinicius Andrade, and Taylor Esposito. Some nice fish out of water humour as Sonja and Vampirella acclimate to Riverdale.

| Published by Dynamite

Savage Sword of Conan #5 concludes “The Cult of Koga Thun” from Gerry Duggan, Ron Garney, Richard Isanove, and Travis Lanham. Some interesting twists in this finale of what has been a highly entertaining adventure.

| Published by Marvel

She Could Fly: The Lost Pilot #2 sees Martín Morazzo cut loose again with some of the designs and presentation for Luna’s dreams and schizophrenic episodes.

| Published by Dark Horse / Berger Books

Star Wars: Age of Rebellion - Boba Fett #1 features some incredibly rich artwork from Marc Laming and Neeraj Menon. Great detail throughout this story spotlighting Boba Fett’s cold, silent amorality.

| Published by Marvel

Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #32 begins “Unspeakable Rebel Superweapon” as Aphra and her young protege steal the titular MacGuffin. There’s some interesting flashbacks to Aphra’s youth and it’s great to see Caspar Wijngaard doing more Star Wars art, even if just the flashbacks.

| Published by Marvel

These Savage Shores #4 is a sumptuous feast. Ram V, Sumit Kumar, Vittorio Astone, and Aditya Bidikar are elevating the artform of comics which each subsequent issue. The epistolary narrative, the horror and mythological themes, the plays upon the nine-panel grid, the shadowy character designs, the lush and spooky colours, the overlap with historical events, the unique approach and detail in each character’s missive...just one of these elements would result in an entertaining tale, this comic mixes all of them into a superlative package. You’re doing yourself a disservice if you’re not reading this series.

| Published by Vault

The Unstoppable Wasp #7 throws Nadia a birthday party, wherein she learns of her relations to what seems like half of the Marvel universe. Also, issues a death threat to Tony Stark. It’s cute, from Jeremy Whitley, Alti Firmansyah, Espen Grundetjern, and Joe Caramagna.

| Published by Marvel

War of the Realms: New Agents of Atlas #1 sets up the conflict in the Pacific with Sindr while introducing a swath of new international characters to the Marvel universe. Also, Amadeus Cho continues to be a massive idiot, even at his shrunken size. Great art from Gang Hyuk Lim and Federico Blee.

| Published by Marvel

Wonder Twins #4 sets up the twins with a pair of dates, allowing for some hilarious misadventures. Also, Polly seems to have a weird obsession with testicular cancer. Mark Russell, Stephen Byrne, and Dave Sharpe continue the fun, even though this one kind of takes us away from all ages material.

| Published by DC Comics / Wonder Comics

Wyrd #3 opens up the messy can of worms of Wyrd’s past further as a figure out of the past he can’t remember emerges for a “meet”. Great tone and atmosphere for this story from Curt Pires, Antonio Fuso, Stefano Simeone, and Micah Myers.

| Published by Dark Horse

X-Force #7 begins “The Counterfeit King” from Ed Brisson, Dylan Burnett, Damian Couceiro, Jesus Aburtov, and Joe Caramagna as past and present threaten to collide. Some nice character development for the team as they wait for Deathlok to do his thing.

| Published by Marvel

Other Highlights: Accell #20, Age of X-Man: Apocalypse & The X-Tracts #3, Battlestar Galactica: Twilight Command #3, Betty & Veronica #5, Black Hammer: Age of Doom #10, By Night #11, Captain America #10, Captain Marvel #5, Catwoman #11, Curse Words #21, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #6, Gunning for Hits #5, Hack/Slash vs. Chaos #5, Hit Girl: Season Two #4, House of Whispers #9, Ice Cream Man #12, James Bond: Origin #9, The Last Space Race #4, The Long Con #9, Marvels Annotated #3, Oberon #4, Ronin Island #3, Section Zero #2, Shadow Roads #7, Six Days, Spider-Man/Deadpool #50, Star Wars Adventures #21, Supergirl #30, Symbiote Spider-Man #2, The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #44, Unnatural #9, Vindication #4, War of the Realms: Journey Into Mystery #2, Wasted Space #9, Waves, Wonder Woman #70

Recommended Collections: Accell - Volume 4: Slipstream Dream, Beyonders - Volume 1, Blackbird - Volume 1, Doctor Who: The Thirteenth Doctor - Volume 1, The Freeze - Volume 1, Justice League - Volume 2: Graveyard of the Gods, Pearl - Volume 1, Quantum & Woody! - Volume 2: Separation Anxiety, Red Sonja/Tarzan, Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider - Volume 1: Spider-Geddon, Star Wars: Age of Republic - Villains, Thor by Jason Aaron: Complete Collection - Volume 1, The Woods: Yearbook Edition - Volume 1

d. emerson eddy feels like a frappuccino.

[fireinmoonshot]

ANGELS | AUGUST WALKER x READER | PART ONE

PART ONE OF ? Summary: You’re the daughter of the Secretary of State and, after being caught up in an assassination attempt against your father, are assigned a bodyguard – August Walker. August isn’t sure about his new assignment, especially as it’s so different from what he’s used to, but as soon as he meets you, something clicks, and something tells him that this might not be so awful after all. Pairing: female!Reader x August Walker  Fandom: Mission: Impossible Word Count: 2444 Warnings: Mentions of blood, mentions of nightmares, mentions of death, mentions of guns. A/N: I posted before about having started the BBC series Bodyguard earlier today, and this idea came to mind. It’s partially inspired by that scene in episode 2 (which you’ll know if you’ve seen it). Anyway, I know there’s another bodyguard!August fic out there (which I haven’t got around to reading yet!) but I hope you like this one, too! I really loved writing this first part. I don’t know how long it’ll end up being, but maybe 5-7 parts! Hope you enjoy! <3

It’d been impossible to miss the news story that had broken out the week before. Even August, a man who spent a majority of his day working, had managed to catch the breaking news story on TV when he got back to his apartment later that evening.

SECRETARY OF STATE AND DAUGHTER CAUGHT IN AN ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT.

He hadn’t thought twice about it. These sort of things, they happened all the time. Politicians were often in the centre of things like that, and even though it was a little more serious this time, being the Secretary of State and all, he didn’t care very much. It wasn’t a rarity, even though the news stations and media were desperate to make it seem like it barely ever happened. Sure, it was rare for a politician’s family member to be caught up in it, but it meant nothing to him. The only casualty was his personal assistant, and the Secretary was still alive and well.

The following day, he’d gone back to work, focusing only on the job ahead and not on the fact that the Secretary and his daughter had nearly been killed the day before. Why should he have to?

Everything was normal at the CIA that day. Sure, there was a buzz in the air, people trying to figure things out with the Secretary and what had happened, but August wasn’t involved in any of it. He’d spent most of the day in meetings with Sloane and the team, preparing for the next mission. For most of the day, the assassination attempt hadn’t even crossed his mind.

In fact, it only really crossed his mind five days later when he was called into Sloane’s office.

“Walker, I’ve got a job for you.”

He took a seat in the desk opposite her and waited.

“It’s something different than what you’re used to, but I’m certain you’ll do well. My client has asked for the best of the best and I’ve assured him that you are exactly that. It’s not usually something I’d assign to you, but you’re the best agent I’ve got. What do you say?” She raised an eyebrow.

“What is it?” He pressed.

“You’ll recall, I’m sure, the news about the attempt on the Secretary of State’s life last week, yes?” Walker nodded. “Right, well, I’m sure you’ll also remember that his daughter was caught up in that attack, too. The Secretary has asked for a protection detail to be assigned to his daughter. He’s rightfully afraid for her safety.”

Walker furrowed his eyebrows. He wasn’t going on a mission to save the world. Instead, he was going to be protecting the rich daughter of the Secretary of State? He tried to keep the distaste off of his face. “Do I have a choice?”

Sloane didn’t hesitate before she answered. “No, you don’t. You start tomorrow morning at 8:00am. I’ll email you everything else you need to know. And both the Secretary and I expect you to do your best work, Walker. I also think it’s important to mention that I’ve known his daughter since she was young, and I trust you completely in keeping her safe. You’ve had the life of the world in your hands before and I’m sure you’ll be more than capable with having the life of one in them this time.”

She dismissed him and Walker left the room instantly. He sighed as he walked down the corridor, back to his office. He was a bodyguard. There to protect someone he didn’t even know the name of, simply because she’d gotten caught up in the middle of something by accident. Simply because she was the daughter of a rich man.

He shook his head and walked on.

Maybe Sloane was right. He’d had the life of the world in his hands before. What made having the life of one in his hands so different? Wouldn’t it be easier? Something in the back of his mind told him it wouldn’t be, and he believed it.

It had only been six days since the attack and yet you’d been woken up more than once a night by the sounds of gunfire and the images of blood in your dreams. Or, more accurately, nightmares.

You hadn’t told anyone about the nightmares. After all, they only affected you. No one else, bar your father and your driver, Teddy, would understand, and both of them were dealing with their own troubles. They didn’t need to hear your troubles, too. They were your own problem and no one else’s.  

And Irene… you’d lost her, your fathers personal assistant. You could still remember the sight of her blood, the feeling of it seeping into your shirt and on your face… you shook your head to shake the thought from your mind.

No, no. Today would be different. You were sure of it.

Your father had called you into his office just after you’d woken up and you hadn’t hesitated in making your way there after you’d gotten dressed. He’d given you space to deal with everything, just like you’d asked, though you weren’t sure if it was doing you much good. Perhaps talking to him about it would be good, or maybe even to Teddy.

Though, your train of thought was cut off when you stepped into his office and found him standing there with three other people. Two of them, you knew, and one of them was unfamiliar.

Your mother, Erica Sloane and a man. A rather handsome man, you had to admit.

“Sit down, sweetheart,” your father smiled, sitting down at his desk.

Usually, things weren’t so formal, but clearly, this was different.

“What’s going on?” You asked.

“Well,” he began, looking up at Erica and the man. Your mother moved around the desk to join you, placing a comforting hand on your shoulder. She knew how hard this all was for you.

You’d grown up away from this life. Your parents had divorced when you were eleven, and your father had moved away after that. You used to spend summers with him and the rest of the year you spent with your mother in Seattle. That was home. The fuss and bother of your fathers second life had never really been something you’d gotten used to. And then you got thrown into the deep end.

“I know you might disagree, but I think it’s important that we do this. After the attack earlier this week, your safety is of utmost importance to me,” your father explained, not looking away from you for a second. “I’ve gotten into contact with Erica, who you know, to provide you with a protection detail. It might seem a little much, but–”

“No,” you shook your head. “No, it’s good. If you hadn’t organised it, I would have asked anyway, Dad. This is good. And like you said, it’s important. It’s good.”

Your father seemed a little taken aback by your words, but he didn’t let the shock show on his face for long, instead, he smiled. “Well, good. That makes things easier.”

You looked over to Erica and the man. Erica smiled at you and you were instantly filled with warmth. Your father had known her when you were young, and they’d stayed in contact for a while after. Clearly, he trusted her to find someone worthy to protect you, and you felt the exact same way. Judging by the look of the man beside her, too, you knew she’d chosen the right person.

“This is Agent August Walker,” Erica introduced. “He’s primarily an agent in the Special Activities Division, but for this specific detail, I’ve chosen him to protect you. He’s the best agent I have at the CIA and I’m positive he’ll give this job everything he has.”

Slowly, and a little hesitantly, you stood from your chair and crossed the room to Erica and August. He nodded at you as you stood in front of him, and then, you extended a hand and introduced yourself. His hand was warm, and even though the look on his face wasn’t particularly friendly, you felt comforted.

“Thank you for agreeing to do this,” you said.

August gave you a tight lipped smile in response. “My pleasure.”

You were, August admitted, not the person he’d expected you to be. When he and Sloane walked into the Secretary’s office that morning, he’d expected a snobby rich girl, just happy with her father’s money, to waltz in. He’d expected you to whine about how you didn’t need protection, that you were fine on your own.

What he saw, though, was completely the opposite of that.

Something inside him stirred with the realisation.

August had to admit that you were rather beautiful. Not just pretty, even though you were that, too. But more than that. He hadn’t seen pictures of you on the television, only a few blurry images that media helicopters had managed to grab when you, your father and your driver had been escorted away from the scene. He remembered one shot in particular – a blurry shot of a young woman, you, covered in blood. The thought of that shot alone made him uncomfortable.

He hadn’t expected you to agree to the idea of having a bodyguard. He was sure he’d have to listen to your father and Sloane talk you into it over a few hours, not for you to agree straight away. And you would have asked for it if your father hadn’t organised it in the first place…

As he and Sloane walked towards the car outside your family home, a million thoughts were running through August’s mind. He couldn’t seem to settle on just one. But after he’d stayed up so late the night before, dreading having to deal with a snobby rich girl, he’d been pleasantly surprised.

His words in response to your greeting were true: it was a pleasure.

Or, he supposed, it would be. He hoped.

He watched as Sloane got in the car and drove off, leaving him practically alone at your home. This would be his base for however long it needed to be. There were a few other bodyguards around. Your father had one, as did your driver, Teddy, and your mother, too. They were recently assigned, just as he was. Yet he was the only one assigned to you. The only one they trusted to look after you.

Glancing down at his watch, August sighed softly and wandered back into the house, heading out to find you. It was a Sunday afternoon, meaning that August wanted to know your plans for the week ahead so he could prepare adequately. If he knew your every move, it’d be easier to keep you safe.

It took him a while to find you, though, when he did, he wasn’t surprised.

You were sat in the library, curled up on a window seat and staring out the window at the lavish gardens surrounding the property. Even from far away, August could tell that you felt a little out of depth here. Something told him that you didn’t spend much time here as a child, or even as a teenager. He’d have to find that out later, though he wasn’t sure a Google would give him the answers he was so curious about.

He was quiet when he walked up to you, and as he cleared his throat to announce his presence, you jumped. August didn’t miss the way your eyes flashed or the way you tensed up until you noticed that it was him.

“Oh,” you cleared your throat. “Sorry… just you… ah, what can I do for you?”

“I’m just here to discuss this week’s schedule with you so I can organise protection details in advance.”

You nodded and sat up a little more, tearing your gaze away from the window. “Right, of course,” you hummed. “Sorry. I’ve never really done this before… the whole bodyguard thing. It’s a bit strange.”

August stifled a chuckle. He agreed wholeheartedly.

You pulled your phone out of your pocket to check your calendar just as August sat down on the other end of the window seat. He pulled his own phone out, too, and opened up a new note, ready to write down your plans.

This was the first time the two of you were alone… August had a feeling it wouldn’t be the last time, either. He wasn’t particularly nervous about being alone with you, no, not that. Just… concerned. There was something about you. Something about the way you were acting. The way you’d jumped when he arrived. The way you were so eager to have a bodyguard. It confused him just as much as it intrigued him. He wanted to know more about you, and that shocked him a little. Usually, he was one to keep back and not intrude when he knew he really wasn’t wanted all that much. But with you? Something told him to step forward a little more.

“This is usually all private… feels weird to share it,” you mused. Then, you looked up at him and gave him a small smile. “Ready?”

He nodded, urging you to continue.

The two of you sat in the library for about ten minutes, August listening as you relayed the upcoming weeks plans to him and writing them down. You didn’t have too many things planned, and August was a little surprised. As the daughter of the Secretary of State, August had expected your diary to be full of events and galas. To find out you only had four things planned, and for all of those things to be nothing particularly serious or grand, was a little shocking.

When you finished, you locked your phone and leant back against the pillows behind you. “Is that all, Mr. Walker?”

He glanced over at you as he tucked his phone back into his pocket. Mr. Walker… “Yes, that’ll be all. Thank you,” he replied. “This place is pretty well secured, so I’ll be just outside if you need me.”

You watched as he walked out of the library and sighed, crossing your ankles. When he was out of sight, you turned to glance out the window again. This would be good, just as your father had said. Necessary. You squeezed your eyes shut for a second, but even a second was too long – blood flashed, gunshots echoed. You opened your eyes instantly and took a deep breath.

This would be good. August Walker seemed capable of protecting you. He seemed more than capable, actually… if only he could protect you from the terrors of your mind, too.

[douxreviews]

The Very Best of Supernatural

Supernatural was just renewed for a fifteenth season. Which is insane. Even more disturbing is the fact that I've been reviewing this show for fourteen years, and it just... won't... end. Looking back over my earliest reviews, it's funny that I kept fretting about cancellation. Who knew?

The 300th episode will air this Thursday, February 7. In observance of this major event, six Agents of Doux compiled lists of their favorite Supernatural episodes, and I tallied our choices and made a final top ten. Okay, eleven, because there was a tie in there, but it was really hard to bring it down to eleven, let me tell you. Our list of honorable mentions went from here and out the door.

So here they are. Please note that if you haven't seen all or most of the series, there will inevitably be spoilers. 

11. "A Very Supernatural Christmas" (season 3, episode 8)

Christmas arrives smack dab in the middle of Dean’s last year on Earth, or so we believed at the time. Sam, knowing he will soon be left to carry on after his brother’s death, has no desire to celebrate which is at odds with Dean’s intention to collect as many happy memories as he can before the end.

This marks Supernatural’s first holiday episode with a marriage of gruesomeness, absurdity, and bittersweetness we'd already grown to love – from a blood-soaked Santa dragging a father up the chimney in front of his son, to bridge-playing pagan gods threatening Dean with the swear jar while preparing him and Sam for ritual sacrifice, all ending with the brother’s exchanging heartfelt gifts from a neighborhood Gas Mart as Baby looks on. The pièce de résistance – learning Dean’s amulet was a Christmas gift from a young Sam in unsaid acknowledgment that Dean was often more of a parent to Sam than John was. And no, I’m still not over Dean throwing it away. – Shari

10. "In the Beginning" (season 4, episode 3)

A remarkably funny but ultimately tragic tribute to Back to the Future, Dean is sent back in time by Castiel and interacts with his young parents. He discovers that his mother and grandparents were hunters, and that Mary essentially sold as-yet-unborn Sam's future to the Yellow-Eyed Demon in exchange for John's life.

"In the Beginning" is a perfect example of the attention the Supernatural writers pay to continuity and series mythology, since it explained Mary's actions in the pilot episode on the night that she died. Plus it features, in my opinion, one of the most touching moments in the entire series. It's when young Mary tells Dean, not knowing that he is her son, "You know the worst thing I can think of? The very worst thing? It's for my children to be raised into this, like I was." It choked me up when it first aired. It still does. – Billie Doux

9. "Baby" (season 11, episode 4)

The longevity of this series has allowed the writers to experiment and take chances, which often gives us exceptional episodes. This is one of them.

The Impala is home for the Winchesters, a legacy from their father. That car is not just in nearly every episode; it's also the setting of many of the most important brother scenes in the series. "Baby" gave us an entire episode from the car's point of view. I'm going to crib from my initial review: "This episode was such a love letter to the fans. It was the world of the Winchesters, but not what we usually see on the show. It was what happens in between and around what we usually see." The camera angles, the head in the cooler, the windshield wipers, the valet parking, Castiel on the cell phone, the brothers singing "Night Moves" together, it was different from all the others but a practically perfect episode. – Billie Doux

8. "Fan Fiction" (season 10, episode 5)

Supernatural's 100th episode ("Point of No Return") was good, but arc-plot heavy. Coming in the middle of a very serious storyline, it's dramatic and moves the plot along. But its 200th, "Fan Fiction," is a complete contrast and a sheer joy from start to finish. An episode centred around a girls' school putting on a musical they wrote themselves, based on the first five years of Supernatural, sounds like a terrible idea. And yet, writer Robbie Thompson makes it work. The episode also features great performances from the young actresses, but it's the numerous call backs in jokes and the way the episode revisits old favourites with a twist that make it one of the show's most re-watchable episodes. – Juliette

7. "Swan Song" (season 5, episode 22)

Endings are hard, as Chuck would say. You have to balance expectation with payoff, death and survival and a resolution that feels satisfying. For Supernatural, this was supposed to be it, the show's literal swan song, as planned out by Kripke. It was sad and painful. If this had been the ending, it would’ve left us with Dean trying to live on after losing his brother to spend eternity with the Devil in hell, and that’s pretty brutal. Of course, framing the story around Baby, and making the car one of the most important things in the universe, was perfect. The only reason we didn’t end with Sam in the box is because of season renewal, leaving us with more questions than answers. Including what happened to Chuck. – J.D. Balthazar

6. “Dark Side of the Moon” (season 5, episode 16)

This episode has always been a huge favorite of mine. The opening scene where Dean and younger Sam set off fireworks to "Knock Knock Knocking on Heaven's Door" was so gorgeous that it gave me goosebumps.

How many shows would dare to send their two main characters to Heaven? And show that Heaven as somewhat creepy? What I found poignant was that the brothers' choice of happy memories mostly don't include each other. I've often thought that a perfect end to the series would be the two of them in a Heaven that finally included each other, with everything that ever divided them fully resolved. – Billie Doux

5. "Wishful Thinking" (season 4, episode 8)

Absolutely one of their best comical episodes, from the "deep woods Duchovny" line to the suicidal teddy bear. Although, of course, what makes funny Supernatural episodes work is that there is always an element of underlying seriousness or tragedy. Here, it was the acknowledgement that using magic to make someone love you is evil. This was also the episode where Dean told Sam the truth about his experiences in Hell. – Billie Doux

4. "Don't Call Me Shurley" (season 11, episode 20)

Supernatural has a warm heart and it's often hilarious, but it's not often happy. Usually, the joy of watching Supernatural comes at least partly from knowing that whatever's going on in your own life, Sam and Dean surely have it worse. But "Don't Call Me Shurley" is different. The ending of "Don't Call Me Shurley" is miraculous – and we mean that literally. The rest of the episode is a delight anyway, offering a witty back and forth between God and His Voice – and finally confirming what "Swan Song" had only suggested. But that ending, when, temporarily at least, we get a real miracle and a moment of salvation, is what makes this episode really special – eleven years of storytelling reaching a thrilling moment of clarity. – Juliette

3. "The Monster at the End of This Book" (season 4, episode 18)

Oh, how I love this one. "Monster" is the introduction to the meta episodes where the Winchesters discover that they are main characters in a series of novels called "Supernatural," written by hack writer Chuck Shurley. As I said in my write-up of "Baby," it's taking radical chances with the narrative while continuing to stick closely to the show's mythology that makes Supernatural special.

And wow, this episode is special. Clever and funny and full of geeky in-jokes (especially the boys' disgusted discovery of the existence of Winchester slash), there is also that foundation of tragedy that makes it all work. The brothers cannot escape their fate. It's in the Winchester Gospels. – Billie Doux

2. "Changing Channels" (season 5, episode 8)

Take a beloved character, mix in playful jabs at some of the most popular TV shows while both expanding the narrative and laying the fate of the world on the interpersonal relationship of our favorite brothers. No wonder it’s one of the show’s creator, Eric Kripke’s favorite episodes. We discover the Trickster we’ve grown to know and love is none other than the Archangel Gabriel, little brother to Michael and Lucifer. Now that the Winchester’s have given Michael and Luci the Earth on which to wage their civil war, Gabriel is eager to see it end no matter the cost.

This doesn’t mean he can’t have fun doing it. Between the sitcom Supernatural’s opening credits, Dean fangirling over Dr. Sexy, Sam and the literal nutcracker, and the meta nod to Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s portrayal of a ghost on certain Seattle based medical show that shall remain nameless, we are treated to a host of laugh out loud moments. My personal favorite was Sam’s less than ecstatic performance in a genital herpes commercial. – Shari

"Nutcracker!!!!"

1. "Mystery Spot" (season 3, episode 11)

There’s something both twisted and poignant about watching Dean die again and again. Funny in a macabre way, for sure but also a touch tragic because in the Supernatural verse, those deaths were real. Well, real in that each was recorded, and each time he went to heaven briefly. No wonder Death finds Dean fascinating and frustrating.

Of course, it was really Sam’s episode, dealing with the pain of watching his brother die again and again, and the numbness that came with it was palpable. To this day, in season fourteen this episode has been referenced. Pretty good impact for a generally comedic episode. – J.D. Balthazar

Conclusion (by Billie Doux)

Putting this list together made me want to rewatch the entire series, although with so many seasons, that's turned into a major commitment. You know, we could probably put together lists of our top ten best comic episodes, the ten most tragic, ten scariest, ten best angel episodes, ten best ghost episodes, and so on because with so many seasons, there's so much to choose from.

It's interesting that the Groundhog Day episode "Mystery Spot" turned out to be our number one, simply because most of us put it on our list. Is it yours? Is your favorite even on this list? Post it in the comments!

Billie Doux has been reviewing Supernatural for so long that Dean and Sam Winchester feel like old friends. Courageous, adventurous, gorgeous old friends.

[emilywhite1999]

My 10 Best Series to Watch 🎥

1. Stranger Things (Netflix) - this has to be my favourite. This ‘80s classic had me on the edge of my seat at the end of every episode. All the characters are extremely likeable and the plot had me hooked throughout. The sci-fi/horror thriller is about a boy named Will who goes missing. His friends go on a terrifying adventure to find him which is full of many twists and turns. They meet a girl named Eleven on their travels who ends up being the key to finding their friend. 

2. Black Mirror (Netflix) - I watched this series not really knowing what it was at first. It really blew my mind in the end though. Each episode is a different story set at different points in the future. Every episode is constantly unpredictable and based around different kinds of futuristic technology and how they can potentially ruin/destroy our lives. The scariest thing about it all is that the future Black Mirror shows us doesn’t actually seem that far off being possible.  

3. Atypical (Netflix) - a great series about a teenage boy with autism who decides he is ready to find love. I found  the series was very good as it not only focused on the boy but also on his family and their issues as well. I thought it was a fair representation of how some autistic people struggle with certain aspects of life and also of how a lot of families find having an autistic child. A very heartwarming series that left me excited for season two. 

4. West World (Sky) - a series that left me with more questions than answers at the end of each episode but all your questions are answered eventually, you just have to keep following the story until it all clicks into place. West World is a futuristic theme park looked after by robotic “hosts” which are extremely life like. In the park you can do whatever you want with no consequences but as the hosts begin to gain consciousness they realise that they are just puppets to the humans and so want revenge for the way they’ve been treated. Was hooked throughout this series. 

5. Walking Dead (Sky) - this series has a lot of seasons to it but if you want something to binge watch for a while then this is your show. I won’t lie it does have some episodes that are a bit pointless where not much really happens but I found it worth it for the good ones. The season finales are especially worth it as characters get killed off that you really won’t expect. It follows the story of Rick Grimes, his family and the group of survivors they are with. They are constantly on the run from zombies and battling each day just to survive. Rick quickly learns that the fear of the survivors can actually be more deadly than the zombies.   

6. The Get Down (Netflix) - I’m not sure many know about this series on Netflix but I would highly recommend it. It’s a music-driven drama set in the late 1970s. It is when disco was dying out and hip-hop was on the rise. It tells the story through the lives, art, music and dance of a group of young people in the South Bronx. The music in it is pretty good with a few catchy tunes that I actually ended up downloading on Spotify. The characters are likeable and the story focuses on lots of relevant topics and issues that young people at that time faced. Go check it out.

7. Travellers (Netflix) - a very good series with a very interesting concept. It’s hard for me to explain in a sort of summary so here is the google description of the series: Hundreds of years in the future, the last surviving humans discover a way of sending consciousness back through time, directly into people in the 21st century -- "travelers," who assume the lives of seemingly random people. They're also secretly working as teams to perform missions in order to save humanity from a terrible future. Armed only with their knowledge of history and an archive of social media profiles, the travelers -- who include an FBI agent, a single mother and a college student -- discover that 21st-century relationships are as much of a challenge as their high-stakes missions.

8. Humans (All4) - this is a sci-fi drama set in the future where every household has a human-like helper called a Synth. They are relied upon for all kinds of tasks but the world is sent into chaos when they all become conscious. They have to then fight for equal rights and to gain the trust of the humans. Some of the Synths feel physically fighting back is the only way they can win though which makes it even harder for the ones who just want peace. A similar kind of story to West World in terms of having robots that gain consciousness but I found this one more realistic as I think robots really could end up doing the jobs that we don’t want to.   

9. Lost In Space (Netflix) - I have only watched a few episodes but from what I have seen so far I think this series is going to be a very good one. It tells the story of a family headed for a new planet. Their spaceship crashes on the way though and they are left stranded with other survivors of the crash. A member of the family that first crashes, Will Robinson, finds a robot on the planet that at first seems dangerous but eventually becomes Will’s protector. Their seems to be more to this robot than meets the eye though and in some flashbacks we see similar robots attacking humans. I’m excited to see how the story will unfold and what other things they will find on the unknown planet. 

10. The Mist (Netflix) - when I first started watching this series I felt it was a bit of a rubbish storyline. Come on, a deadly mist that sends people mad? Not much of a horror story if you ask me. After watching a few episodes though I did get quite into it and by the end of the first series I was gripped. It had a lot of hidden messages in the storyline and script so it got me thinking a lot throughout. I won’t tell you anything that happens as I think you should just watch it for yourself without knowing what to expect. 

[good-and-safe]

Mythical, swan lake, and starlight

mythical; Dream destination?if i don’t see hobbiton before i die, i’ll haunt everyone

swan lake; Do you like poems? If so, what’s one of your favorites?oh yes my whole adolescence was poetry!! i still love elizabeth barrett browning’s fuckin classic “how do i love thee” sonnet. in high school, my honors english teacher made us all memorize and perform a poem (he outlawed frost’s “fire and ice” bc 90% of the class ahead of me chose it lmao) and the whole thing deeply stressed me out, but then i read that sonnet for the first time and i remember just feeling… Calm. 

starlight; Share a secret.i mulled over this forever bc suddenly i don’t know anything about myself but i’ll go with the story of the first time i remember tricking a man just because i could. this is less a secret and more a long-winded story, but long-winded stories are kind of My Thing and plus… my family didn’t know it even happened until a few years ago, so:

when i was 12 i went to disney for the first time with my family [eleven (11) of us went. E L E V E N. i was the oldest of the six children there. our parents are… Morons]. 

let me set the stage. this was the time before cell phones were really A Thing. like, yeah, they had been on the market for a bit, but (in my area, at least) only Wealthy Adults had cell phones. 

picture it: february 2004. the motorola RAZR wouldn’t be released for another 6-8 months. commercial use of 3G had just reached north america. the iphone was literally not even a thought in steve jobs’ turtleneck. it was the time of brick-like nokias and clam-shell samsungs. the time of 1-square-inch screens and T9 keyboards. the time of $.10-.20 per text and “i like my beeper just fine!” the time of playing snake during long bus rides on your friend’s dad’s flip phone that was meant only for work emergencies and using internet explorer because it was the only browser your elementary school’s ragged desktop computer had. 

a simpler time.

so at that point, i don’t think either of my parents had cell phones, and nor did the other adults on the trip. because of that we needed some way to ensure that, should we split the party (because someone always inevitably suggests to split the god damn party), we have a way to keep in contact, so we did what any middle-class, early 2000s family would do: we brought three or four long-range walkie-talkies with us.

i consistently commandeered one of those walkie-talkies because i was 12 and walkie-talkies made me feel like a secret agent (and also my mom was wrangling my then 3 y/o brother while my dad and his best friend walked us in circles and no one really ended up using the walkies anyway). one of our last days, we went to epcot. at 12, i just didn’t give a shit about epcot (other than spaceship earth bc that shit was tight), so i was bored and hungry and restless, so i started fooling around with my walkie. my family had all agreed that we’d stay on channel 7 to contact each other, but this walkie had 14 channels, which meant 14 opportunities for me to eavesdrop on other people’s conversations or to make contact with an unknown entity. 

so there i am, standing in the middle of future world on a rainy day, switching channels and calling out “are you there?” while my family argued about where to have lunch or some such, when i get a response.

“is that you?” the voice said.

it was a man’s voice, and he sounded angry. i repeated myself. 

“are you there?”

the same voice answered almost immediately and when i looked up to see if my parents were paying attention to my communication with a stranger, i saw a man walking through the courtyard who’s mouth’s movements were matching up with the words coming out of the walkie talkie in my hand.

“denise, where are you? we were supposed to meet up at noon!”

based only on the tone of his voice and the mean furrow of his brow, i decided i didn’t like this man and that he needed to watch his tone with denise. 

i said, “no, we said 1. 1 o’clock in front of the big umbrella.”

“what?”

“1 o’clock!” i repeated. “i’ll meet you by the umbrella at 1.”

then i got anxious because i was talking to a stranger and my family had apparently settled the lunch debate because i was shepherded toward the electric umbrella, the very place i, as denise, told the man we’d meet. i shoved the walkie-talkie deeper into my sweatshirt pocket, though, and quickly forgot about the interaction, because french fries. 

however, over an hour later, my family and i were still in the outside seating area of the electric umbrella watching the water show and giving the adults a chance to catch their weak-ass breath when i heard someone shouting by the entrance. i look over and it’s the same man i’d seen/talked to in the courtyard earlier and he’s yelling into his walkie talkie and pacing back and forth, arms flailing. boy looked foolish as hell. 

so my family gathers our things and filters back into future world’s courtyard. we pass the guy and, if memory serves, he was whining – whining – on and on about “you said we were going to meet back up” and “i’m here all alone” and “this isn’t fun” and blah blah blah blah like a big giant man baby throwing a tantrum. i couldn’t make out denise’s responses, but it was clear to me that she was just as over this guy as i was. i (obviously) had no idea what this woman looked like, but her unperturbed, droll tone, solidified denise in my head as a bombshell with curly red hair who was the kind of woman that chewed bubble gum and blew bubbles while men spoke, letting them pop loudly to communicate just how much she Did Not Care about what they had to say.

with that in mind, i smiled to myself, feeling some weird kinda powerful, and at that very moment, an older boy wearing heelys rolled into my path, so i tripped him. 

tl;dr if we could harness the power of adolescent girls and direct it toward common good, the world would be a better place 

also i hope denise is ok

fin.

[boarix]

Fallout OC Interview!

Thank you so much for creating this and tagging me @robobrainmurdermysterytheatre you are a peach!

Rules:

1) Choose an OC

2) Answer questions as that OC

3) Tag 5 people to do the same

I’ll tag @nuclearmu5hroom @pistachiozombie @red-flare-art @free-hugs-for-ghouls @juliannahandart no obligation, only if ya wanna

1)      What is your name? Well, most everyone calls me Wraith… or I guess I should say I have everyone call me Wraith. My parents named me after my dad, Philip and my mom’s middle name Lynn, so Philippa Lynn Wolf. When I married Nate, I changed my last name to his; Keita-Johnson. So all together; Philippa Lynn Keita-Johnson. First fuck-nut who calls me Pippa will wish they’re dead.  

2)      How old are you? *sighs* Creeping up on two hundred forty…  

3)      What do you look like? You know what a brown kiwi bird is?

4)      Where are you from? Where do you live now? My parents were from the Midwest Commonwealth. The mitten. *laughs* We moved around a lot… spent a few years in the Columbia ‘wealth… Now I live just north of Boston, in a Minutemen settlement called Sanctuary.

5)      What was your childhood like? It wasn’t bad, honestly. I had a really good relationship with both my parents and my… adopted? Yeah, let’s say adopted, brother named Bartholomew.

6)      What groups are you friendly with? Are you allied with any factions? I’m the general of the Minutemen and a former Heavy Agent with the Railroad.

7)      Tell me about your best friend. *sucks in air over teeth* Welp… is it possible to be best friends with someone when you don’t know their real name? …I…we… next question, please.

8)      Do you have a family? Tell me about them! I have a habit of picking up strays so yeah, my family is pretty big. *laughs* I’ve got like, a dozen brothers and sisters from other mothers and misters, a grandson, a bunch of four-legged kids… BIG family!

9)      What about a partner or partners? MacCready and Hancock are my boyfriends. It didn’t seem right to make them pick each other or me, ya know? *attempts to waggle eyebrows suggestively*

10)   Who are your enemies, and why? Anyone who would hurt innocent people. ‘People’ includes ghouls and synths, by the way. You know what? People are anyone who is just trying to live their lives! *stands up and starts gesticulating excitedly* So, if you’re a super mutant, or a, I don’t fucking know, an intelligent deathclaw and you’re just trying to make it in this ridiculously dangerous… oh… sorry. Umm… I don’t like shitty, mean mother-fuckers. So, yeah…  

11)   Have you ever heard of The Brotherhood of Steel? What do you think about them? I love Danse. I kinda stole-adopted him. *laughs* The rest… They have the capacity to do great good for folks. They… ultimately fail to see that people are what they should be saving technology for not from. Their definition of ‘people’ needs work too.

12)   What about The Enclave? Maybe Mac mentioned them but I really don’t know…

13)   How do feel about Super Mutants? I love Strong! He’s my big green monster! As for the others… I feel sorry for them. Honestly. That being said I cannot allow them to hurt anyone.

14)   What’s the craziest fight you’ve ever been in? Oh damn… that’s hard to say. I have this bad habit of going full berserker when I fight… I don’t remember stuff and will start throwing shit… and people… and pieces of people… Just recently I fought a woman who was possessed by an alien artifact. She had telekinetic powers and was floating and had a bunch of crap flying all around her like a shield, ya know? Anyway, I threw some beds at her. It was unreal. Sad too.

15)   Have you ever fought a Deathclaw? *rolls eyes* Who hasn’t, amiright? I don’t really like to though; they are just animals after all.

16)   Do you like fighting? I like Judo and Jiu Jitsu. I like practicing the martial arts. I like target shooting with Mac. I don’t ever like to hurt anyone or anything but I’m not so naïve as to believe that I can save others without hurting others. Does that make sense?

17)   What’s your weapon of choice? Judo chop! Knives are fun too. I’ve never been great with guns but Mac has helped me a lot.

18)   How do you survive? Your wits, your charm, your skills, brute force, some combination? (a.k.a. what’s your S.P.E.C.I.A.L?) My strength is… well let’s just say it’s higher than… it’s high. Outside of that, when I took the test to enter the Marines my base S.P.E.C.I.A.L, starting at Perception,  was four, four, three, six, seven and my luck was one *groans*. Having low luck and charisma kinda bites but I can usually think my way out of stuff. If that doesn’t work I’ll just lose my shit and start throwing furniture. *sighs*

19)   Have you ever been in a vault? What do you think about them? I’m the sole survivor of vault one eleven. Vault-Tec is madness. Pure and simple.

20)   How do you beat all the radiation around here? Has it affected you? I had run-ins with Vault-Tec even before the War. I think they had their evil eye on me as soon as I joined the military. After the car accident that killed my parents, they ‘helped’ with my hospital stay. I’m also pretty fucking sure they messed around with my genes. My augmented strength and rad resistance, not to mention my longevity, are the results of their mad-scientist bullshit. I’m ghoulish. I can withstand quite a bit more rads than the average human and I even heal a small amount from them.  

21)   What’s your favorite wasteland critter? I wish mole rats weren’t so interested in biting my face off… they’re kinda cute, ya know?

22)   What’s your least favorite wasteland critter? Bloodworms. Gross.

23)   How do you feel about robots? You know I love Codsworth! KL-E-O, P.A.M and Ada are good friends. Well, as much as P.A.M is anyone’s friend. Robots are people too.  

24)   How many caps do you have on you right now? Zero. They make too much noise and slow me down. Mac always carries them for me. I trust him.

25)   Nuka Cola or Sunset Sarsaparilla? Nuka Cola! Quantums up!

26)   Do you do chems? Not recreationally. I don’t have a problem with recreational use, so long as it doesn’t interfere with whatever it is I’m trying to accomplish, you feel me? *tries to mimic Hancock’s voice: fails miserably*

27)   Do you ever think about the Pre-War world? Not as much as I used to. I’ve made so many friends, reconnected with some old and fallen in love… I’m trying to live in the present as much as possible. Gotta keep moving forward.

28)   What’s your deepest regret? What would you do differently? Father and Maxson. I…  I couldn’t get through to them… *sniffles* next question, please.

29)   What’s your biggest achievement? Or what do you hope to achieve? I’m proud of the Minutemen settlements. I’m happy to have been a part of their comeback story. I hope to expand and make safe trade routes and farming possible for as far as we can safely and efficiently reach. For those who would have us of course; not interested in any tyrannical bullshit.

30)   What do you want for the future? For yourself? Your friends? The world? I want what anyone wants. Peace and love, friends and neighbors. Peace and love.

[ughthatimagineblog]

four years

requested:  hi there! I adore your work! could you possibly write a spencer reid x reader, where the reader & reid have been dating for quite sometime but she enlists in some sort of branch of military. timeskip to many months later where the two are finally reunited after her deployment? please & thank you!

warnings: fluff, sadness at the beginning lol rip, nice ending, spencer reid (because damn)

word count: 1567

a/n: hey so this was really fun to write and my heart got excited like 8 times. so this ones for the person who requested! let me know if u like it! other than that if i gave any false information I’m sorry im a mess lol also i changed many months to four years so xxxxtra sadness

Uniforms, training, fittings and goodbyes were all in the process of joining the U.S Airforce. As an esteemed member of the FBI at the BAU, you decided it was time to move onto different things for a while. To serve the country you fought hard to protect from the inside.  From the beginning, joining was hard. Balancing work with relationships with the many tests you had to take before joining. Looking back it was easy. The tests were, at least. But the hardest part was saying goodbye to your relationship.  Working at the BAU, you didn’t have much time for outside relationships. Meaning, if you were going to fall in love, it was going to be with someone in your department. After all, the schedule agents ran were tight knit, and the smartest decision was to get involved with someone with the same schedule as you. Which was true, at first.

 Spencer Reid was tall, smart and undeniably attractive. Upon your first meeting you found it fascinating how he always knew something about every topic there was to talk about. You worked well as a team and were partnered with the man quite frequently.       As you worked with him you noticed he went on tangents sometimes, long rants of information that others found annoying. You found it fascinating.  “Sorry.” He would apologize to no one else except you at the end of every one. You would put your hand up and say, “No need to apologize, Dr. Reid, I’m sorry that you stopped there.”         Flirtatious banter continued through your time at the unit and eventually, you and Spencer formed a relationship. A quiet one.  One with secret meetings and quiet dates at your place or his. Walks late at night on the town. Most of the time you’d visit museums together. You cared for mostly the art ones but he loved both history and art. And you. He loved you.        And everything was going fine until the day everyone learned you were being shipped overseas for a few years.  It was heartbreaking, you thought, looking back on that day. You and Spencer still hadn’t made your relationship open so you had to say your goodbyes a day early, in the privacy of his home. You would never forget the way he cried. The way he wanted to ask you to stay but knew he couldn’t because everything was already set in stone.

  “You know I can’t stay here. Major General is shipping all new recruits from the area out tomorrow. I’ll be sure to write, Spence. You know I could never forget about you. Besides, I’ll be back in a few years. Only four. And I’ll have my job back.”  He looked at you, sniffing, his eyes glistened with a little bit of hope. And tears, but you also saw hope. “You’ll have your job back?” He asked and you nodded, cupping his face in your hands.  “Of course. I talked to a few people at the BAU and they told me that I would be welcome back if I wished. I told them I would.” You reassured. “Of course they would give you your job back you’re one of the best on the team. The only problem is. . . How are we going to do this?” Spencer replied and you looked at him, tears forming in your eyes. “I think we have to put this on pause. I don’t think we can do this. With my training and all of the work you do here, there won’t be time.” Spencer’s head fell.  “But, I promise that I won’t leave you for another person while I’m away. I love you.” You lifted his head up and he nodded, sniffing and he pulled you in for a hug. “I love you too.”

Looking back, it was heartbreaking, but now, standing in front of the doors to the office, it felt like a far away dream. Like a sad nightmare now almost forgotten. Today was your first day back to work and you asked Hotch and Rossi to keep quiet about it.  Walking in, your heart raced a million miles an hour. The day was just beginning at nine AM in the BAU and only a few people were in the office. Hotch, Rossi, Derek and JJ. The moment they saw you their faces brightened. JJ even screamed a little. You had to set your box full of office items down so they all could hug you.

 “You’re back!” She yelped and you laughed. “Indeed I am. And I’m here to stay unless they call me in again. Except, the next time it will be for shorter periods of time. I’m a U.S citizen with military experience with a job in the federal government. They won’t steal me away for long.” You promised and Derek laughed. “Well, we got a new case yesterday and we could really use your help.”  “We could really use you.” JJ finished for him. “Everyone was, has been, so torn up since you left.” She explained. “Reid was the most upset.” Hotch spoke and you nodded.    “About that,” You began. “Spencer and I had been in a relationship before I left. We wanted to keep quiet so nothing would be compromised at work, but when I had to leave we had to put it on pause. It doesn’t surprise me he was torn up. I was too. I sobbed the entire flight overseas and every night for the first six months.” You laughed at the end.  “Well, he’ll be ecstatic to see you.” Rossi gave you a pat on the arm. “For now, let’s get to work while everyone else shows up.”  You nodded and smiled, organizing your old cubicle to look like how it used to.

 Over the span of an hour and a half, everyone began pouring into work. You were organizing and mulling over files. A few people stopped by to welcome you back but other than Garcia, no one really made a big deal out of it.  Looking around the office at about eleven, you noticed Spencer hadn’t shown up yet and your heart sank. Always tomorrow. You thought to yourself before continuing with your work.  It was at about eleven thirty when you heard the sweet, familiar sound of his voice. “Sorry I’m late. Flat tire on the way to work and had to catch the bus.” He explained to everyone as he entered the building. A few people told him good morning and he set his stuff down at his cubicle.  You sat there, patiently, a smirk plastered to your face as you waited for him to notice you. He draped his coat over the back of his seat, sat down and started messing with the papers left on his desk. A crowd started to gather around him as they all waited for his reaction to your presence. Most of the office had learned of your relationship in his absence that morning and if they didn’t know yet, they knew you two were extremely close.  Spencer slowly looked up from his work to notice the crowd of people around his desk, Derek at the front. “What’s going on?” He asked, simply confused and you nearly let out a giggle.  Derek had one hand casually in his pocket and the other was holding a coffee mug. Spencer’s back was to you and you could see everyone’s smiling faces as they faced him. “Aren’t you going to say good morning to your girl?” Derek gestured his coffee to you and Spencer slowly turned.

“To my wha-” He saw you, a smirk on your face and a sparkle in your eye. You were resting in your chair, leaning back. “Oh my God, Y/N.” He nearly leapt out of his seat and you got up as he ran over to you and hugged you.     Feeling him hug you again was the best thing in the world in that moment. You inhaled his sent and felt every inch of his touch and it was in that moment that you realized the amount of missing someone could be measured.      “I didn’t know you were coming back today.” He whispered into you hair and neck. You felt tears. “I wanted it to be a surprise.” You fessed and looked over his shoulder. The crowd was smiling at you and Derek gave you a two finger salute with a smirk before turning and going about his business. As did everyone else.      He pulled away and cupped your face in his hands. You got a good look at the man in front of you. He had changed. Aged. His hair was no longer long and sort of curly. It was now short and messy in a stylish way. His brown eyes somehow grew darker and stubble littered his chin. He no longer looked like the skinny brain boy from your department. He was now an intelligent man who you loved.     Your heart fluttered and suddenly you felt five years old again. “I love you.” You whispered and he smiled. “I love you too.” And his lips were on yours. You remembered correctly. The curve of his lips, how sweet it felt to feel them semi chapped-semi smooth. How his lips fit with the curve of your own. And how it was a beautiful sorrow to feel them pull away.    “We have some catching up to do.”

hope yall enjoyed!