#i’m not normal about him i’m sorry i wish i could just be like mmmmmmm toji hot but i CAN’T | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

moczothe1st · 6 years

Text

Let’s Play Fire Emblem IV: Genealogy of the Holy War, Part 11: A Little Pegassistance

Part 10

Welcome back to Fire Emblem IV: Genealogy of the Holy War. The only game that is also a secret government idiot-detector; unfortunately it can only detect the idiots in its own script.

When we left our heroes, they had officially been declared murderous traitors by a pair of men who look like, respectively, a blood-crazed Viking and a parody of a Nazi colonel, thus proving that people in Jugdral genetically have no ability to judge character by sight. Fortunately, Lewyn’s mom, the Queen of Silesse, offered us sanctuary in her own country, and we escaped. Let’s see how that goes!

Sigurd is now a traitor in the eyes of his beloved Grannvale. In desperation, his army flees to find refuge in the northern kingdom of Silesse.

Silesse was founded by the Wind Crusader, Ced. It lies under the watchful guard of valiant pegasus knights and wind mages, and for over a century since its foundation has maintained itself as a neutral nation and resisted all invaders. However, since the death of its king several years ago, the royal family has been plagued with strife over its inheritance and shades of war creep over the peaceful land.

(You may have heard of him.)

and has confined himself to Zaxon Castle in protest.

has set to work raising an army for himself as Thove Castle. Out of disgust at his uncles, Prince Lewyn left Silesse to travel the world years ago.

(“Rather than killing them both, which he could have done with his eyes closed.”)

Is there no end to the dukes’ avarice? Their lust for power will condemn Silesse, a beautiful and majestic land, to the searing ravages of a brutal war.

(Sigurd! She’s a queen, even if her sprite is just a recolor of that lady who gave Lex his Brave Axe. It’s ‘your majesty’.)

Rahna: I know Sailane is perhaps too small to house all of you adequately, and I’m sorry. But please, bear with me a while longer. I’m doing all I can to hasten your liberty. I’ve sent letter after letter to Belhalla to advocate for your innocence. As of yet, however, I’ve still heard nothing at all from King Azmur.

Sigurd: This… this has to be Reptor’s doing! First he betrays my father, and now he’s stopping your emissaries! He must be!

(Sigurd Logic Moments: 2! He’s growing!)

Rahna: Calm yourself, Lord Sigurd. I know well the pain you’re feeling, but you cannot let your grudges rule you. Your anger will not save your father. Hatred will only destroy you from within. I swear to you, we can and will find a way to set this right, but you must be patient.

Sigurd: You’re right… I’m sorry, your highness. I really appreciate all you’ve done for me.

Rahna: It’s alright, Lord Sigurd. Oh, before I forget… there actually has been some good news from Grannvale of late.

Sigurd: Good news, you say?

Rahna: A previously unknown daughter of Prince Kurth has been discovered. All of Grannvale is rejoicing at the news.

Sigurd: What?! Is that even possible?

(… Well you see, Sigurd, when a prince loves another man’s wife very much, he puts his royal sword into her Loptyrian cloak, and…)

Rahna: It took King Azmur only a glance to recognize her true heritage. She bears the Brand of Naga, the proof of a true heir to House Belhalla. There is no doubt, she is Kurth’s child.

Sigurd: I see… thank goodness. At the very least, this means the royal lineage won’t go extinct.

(“And if I had been paying even the slightest attention to the backstory, I’d know that’s my wife!”)

Rahna: That’s not all. The princess and Duke Arvis are in a relationship. King Azmur has given his blessing, and a magnificent wedding will soon be held.

(EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW-)

Sigurd: Arvis? Really?

Rahna: All who’ve seen the happy couple eagerly attest that this beautiful princess and Duke Arvis are perfectly matched. To say nothing of how happy the couple is said to be! Young love is wonderful, isn’t it?

(EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW-)

Rahna: … Oh, Lord Sigurd, I’m so sorry. I forgot. Your wife is still-

Sigurd: Deirdre… my wife’s still gone, yes… it’s been over a year since she vanished. She’s missed an entire year of watching Seliph grow up.

Rahna: I’m so sorry, Lord Sigurd, but be of good cheer. I know you’ll reunite someday.

Sigurd: You’re right. I feel it, too. I can’t give in to sorrow yet. I can’t give up on finding her.

Rahna: Ah, of course. I’ll be with you in a moment. Lord Sigurd, one last thing… beware Duke Maios of Thove. I regret to say my brother-in-law has long hungered to claim Sailane for himself. It’s only a matter of time until he goes so far as attacking you. I wish I could provide you with reinforcements, but…

Sigurd: I know. The capital is under the very same threat from Duke Daccar of Zaxon. You cannot afford to weaken your own guard. Daccar would pounce upon you given even a hint of weakness. Don’t worry, Your Highness. There’s nothing the Thove army can throw at us that we can’t handle.

Rahna: Ah, of course. I should be more confident in such veteran heroes as yourselves. … Oh! I’ve been talking for so long, I lost track of the time. Take care, Lord Sigurd.

Sigurd: You, too, Your Highness. Thank you.

Lewyn: You just chatted for hours and hours with Sigurd, yet you can’t even acknowledge your own son?

Rahna: My son? The one who abandoned me two years ago, going gods know where? How do I talk to someone who’s clearly not here?

Lewyn: Heh… so this is how it’s going to be. You’re still made at me, then?

Rahna: Of course I am! Do you have any idea how hard it was without you, and how worried I’ve been after you? That my own son could be so cold-hearted… I thought I knew you better than this.

Lewyn: Look, I know you’re upset, but I had my reasons for all this.

(“They were bad, but I had them.”)

Lewyn: But come now, I’m home safely! Surely that counts for something and you can forgive me? I swear I’ll make up for it and be the very picture of a good son. Hew, how about I give you a shoulder massage to start.

Rahna: Oh! What nerve, treating me as if I’m an old crone! Look, Lewyn, there are more pressing matters we need to discuss, and soon. Come to Silesse as soon as possible. Do not forget! Do I make myself clear?

Lewyn: … Sigh. I thought she’d never stop.

Mahnya: Indeed, she hasn’t been anything as lively as this since before you left.

Lewyn: Thanks, Mahnya. Knowing you’re at her side is a big relief. Look after her, okay?

Mahnya: Yes, sir! Rest assured, I will protect the queen with my life, on my honor as the captain of the Silessian Pegasus knights.

Lewyn: Thanks… oh, and one more thing. Are you gonna leave Erin here with Sigurd?

Mahnya: Oh. Eavesdropping, were you Erin?

Erin: You were about to tell him too much, so…

Mahnya: Ah. My apologies, Erin. There are things he shouldn’t know just yet, of course… Erin, I’ll be leaving with Queen Rahna and returning to Silesse Castle shortly.

(JUST SHUT UP AND GO)

Mahnya: You’ll stay here and keep an eye on Prince Lewyn. Best of luck.

Erin: Thank you, Mahnya.

(… What?! No! Don’t leave!)

Quan: Rest assured, we’ll be back, leading the full military might of Leonster to your aid. May that day come soon, my friend.

(I don’t need them! Finn is about to promote and you’re a godlike shatterer of men! Forget the army and just stay! AT LEAST LEAVE THE SPEAR!)

Ethlyn: I’m going with Quan, Sigurd. Don’t worry, though. We’ll be back before you know it! Take care of yourself.

(… eh, don’t feel the need to rush.)

Finn: By your leave, sir, I’ll be departing with my lord. Thank you for all you’ve done for us. Don’t give up, sir. I know the charges against you will be cleared and your good name restored. I know you can do this.

(*sob*)

Sigurd: Thank you. You’ve got quite the journey back to Leonster ahead of you. I wish I could do more to help you on your way. May your journey be a safe one!

And there goes two units I will sorely miss for this map. Also Ethlyn.

You know, this world would be a lot safer if people stopped decorating their castles in red.

Maios: Very well, relay my orders to Cuvuli: Move in on Sailane! Dithorba, I trust your pegasus corps are already briefed on their mission?

Dithorba: Yes, sir. Our task is clear. My squadron is to raid the enemy from above, disrupting their tactics.

Maois: Good. Now get to work! Grannvale will owe us a handsome reward for bringing them the heads of their infamous traitors!

And here we go. First and foremost, of course:

Mmmmmmm. Normally I would say Aideen is not combat unit material regardless of promotion, but her levels this run have been so great she actually is. Her magic in particular is so bonkers she’ll be nuking fools with the most basic of tomes now that she can fight; I have her buy a thunder tome from the armory and prep her for the arena. (Oh, and Alec is joining Noish on the sidelines. He’s not very good, and experience is best shared among the increasingly awesome super killers I’ve assembled.)

Sigurd: 7 wins, gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Strength, +2 Speed

Arden: 4 wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Strength, +1 Defense

Lex: 6 wins, Gained three levels: +2HP, +1 Skill, +3 Strength

Azel: 7 wins, gained three levels: +3 HP, +3 Magic,

Aideen: 5 wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Skill, +1 Speed, +1 Magic, +2 Luck, +1 Defense

Midir: 2 wins, a new low. No levels.

Holyn: 7 wins, Gained two levels, +2HP, +2 Skill, +2 Strength, +1 Magic

Ayra: 7 wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Strength, +1 Luck, +2 Defense

Jamke: 7 wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Strength, +2 Defense

Dew: 7 wins, Gained five levels, +3 HP, +3 Skill, +1 Strength, +1 Magic, +3 Luck, +2 Defense

Lewyn: 7 wins, gained three levels: +3 HP, +3 Skill, +2 Magic, +1 Luck, +1 Defense

Lachesis: 7 wins, Gained six levels: +3 HP, +3 Skill, +4 Strength, +2 Speed, +4 Luck, +1 Defense

Beowulf: 2 wins, what did you do, eat some of Midir’s loser pills? Gained no levels.

Erin: 7 wins, gained five levels: +4 HP, + 1 Skill, +1 Strength, +3 Speed, +2 Magic, +1 Luck, +1 Defense, +1 Resistance

Bridget: 7 wins, gained three levels: +2 HP, +1 Magic, +3 Luck, +1 Defense, +1 Resistance

Taillte: 7 wins, Gained three levels: +1 HP, +2 Skill, +1 Speed, +1 Magic, +1 Luck, +1 Defense

Claude: 1 win. He is no Aideen, to be blunt.

Wait, you say. Seven wins… for DEW?! Well, see, in among those arena wins, we also had much better stuff:

BEHOLD MY PEERLESS ARMY!

Oh, man, I’ve been watching them all languish in the teens waiting for this; the Paragon Band switched hands several times, and I do not regret any of them, even though they were stupidly pricey. Because our team’s overall power has just skyrocketed. Dew and Lachesis in particular just jumped from liabilities to ridiculous frontline killers. In addition to their giant physical stat jumps, both gained Pursuit as an ability, and Lachesis got a horse (!) and the ability to use any non-legendary weapon (!!!!!).

But… Midir. Uncool there, man. You need a jump. Where could we get something like that…?

Aideen: Of course. I bought it for you, after all! Silesse’s pegasus knights are a formidable foe. With a bow of this caliber in hand, I know you’ll be better prepared to fight them.

Midir: Milady… I still can’t believe this isn’t a dream! I can’t believe we’re actually married…. I’ve dreamed of this for so long.

Aideen: I’ve long dreamt of the same myself. I had wanted to act upon it for so many years, but I couldn’t, even at my loneliest… But… I think by now you can just call me Aideen. I’ll always look out for you, Midir. I’ll always pray for your safety.

Sweeeeeet. As I’m sure you can work out, this is something you’ll only get if Aideen and Midir are married; though to avoid you being totally screwed, if she married Jamke he gets the Brave Bow instead. I prefer Midir just because he needs the bow way more, frankly. Jamke’s Killer Bow is just as good and his stats are better than Midir’s by a solid margin anyway.

Trivia, if she marries Azel, then she’s the one who gets a present, a unique staff of some sort that I don’t recall off the top of my head. But they in general aren’t a great pairing otherwise.

So here’s the map. It looks wide open but it really isn’t; the whole southern half is totally closed off to us until we deal with Maios and Thove Castle to the far northeast. The current enemy force consists of a huge squad of wind mages moving toward our castle, a bunch of bandits moving toward all the villages because fuck you, and Dithorba’s pegasus knight unit who will start moving on the first enemy phase.

Not much to be done at first because nothing is near us; I just have everyone move out as far as possible; our first priority is to get to the villages before they burn.

Cuvuli: Move in! Teach the traitorous scum the terror of a wind mage’s wrath!

Okay, first of all bro, you’re literally committing treason, so maybe stop judging us. Second, wind mages are actually pretty wrathful, but they can’t actually reach us, so what follows is a scene of them all moving one space into the forest. Wrathfully. Afterwards, off to south, Duke Evilton Sr. has some fun.

Daccar: Heh heh… why, this little drama is finally getting interesting. Wouldn’t you say, Pamela?

Pamela: Indeed, sir. However, as I recall we didn’t account for Sigurd’s fugitives being here. Their strength poses a real risk to the plan. If Maios at least succeeds in weakening them, perhaps Silese’s fall will still go smoothly?

Daccar: Even if he fails, I still have my private deal with Grannvale in my favor. Their Lord Andre should arrive shortly with a battalion of reinforcements.

(Eep. And on an even worse note, Andre was mentioned last chapter; he’s Aideen and Bridget’s brother. If he’s working with Reptor and Langbalt…what happened to their father? We haven’t heard anything about him, but he was a friend of Prince Kurth just like Sigurd’s dad. He can’t be in a safe place right now…)

Daccar: Hehehe… my victory is certain, Pamela! I’ll be sitting on the Silessian throne by the end of the week.

Pamela: Without a doubt, sir!

Oh goodie, so Grannvale’s coming up here too. We can assume the deal is something like, “We make you king and you’re basically our governor in the region”, which you’d think an ambitious fuck like Daccar wouldn’t be down for, but maybe he really just wants a crown. Once again, our turn is just moving; the enemy should reach us next turn.

Unless they don’t move. Lazy bums. Well, we’re close enough to clear the first village.

Mmmmmmmmmm she’s such a badass all of a sudden. Nothing much else to do, though, so end turn…

Would you guys pick it up?!

Sigh. Well, on our turn, we’re close enough to take shots at them. Let’s rock this shit and try to clear out as many mages as we can before the pegasi get here.

Not bad! They’re generally pretty troublesome folks; wind magic is light and accurate, so the mages are usually pretty tricky to get rid of. But we’re making solid progress and nobody is in a position to get hit too hard. End turn!

*wince* Well, we took some hits, but mostly only to Erin, who can thankfully handle magic damage well. That jerk putting Azel to sleep is the real annoyance. Only Claude can fix him, so now I have to get him up there. Claude cannot fight to save his dumb life, so the first thing to get done here is to clear out the area. Kids?

Once again, not bad! I really love how Dew is able to fight an enemy and kill it in a single turn, like how real units do. And even better (I legit forgot this) Restore is a distance staff, so Claude doesn’t have to get too close after all. I then have Sylvia dance him, and he hits the army with the Fortify staff to pop us all back up to full.

Yes, he did gain two levels in a row there. Fortify is a Hell of a staff. Now then, some cleanup. Let’s see if we can remove Cuvuli and his leadership stars from the equation.

Nobody tell him that he’s only the first miniboss of the chapter and fighting him isn’t very far at all.

And there he goes! No more leadership stars and especially no more Sleep staff. I end the turn by smacking a few more of his pals.

Sigurd, you really need more strength. Even with your ring that gives you more strength. Well, only four mages left and we can start moving east at top speed. End turn!

…. Okay, three mages left. Not sure what that one guy who went after Bridget was thinking, but hey. Time to purge the last ones and move ourselves into the edge of the range of the pegasus squad as they just barely start to reach us from the east.

And yes, Taillte did go twice in there. Sylvia is running with the team because I actually want her to get married now. Claude gets himself a wife! And speaking of Claude…

Claude: I did return to Grannvale and attempted to relate the truth to His Majesty. But Reptor interfered before we could meet, and now I too am branded a traitor to the motherland.

Sigurd: Ugh. I’ve had enough of just sitting here and letting Reptor have his sorry way! I swear, I’ve half a mind to storm straight into Grannvale and end this once and for all!

Claude: No. You know better than to rely on brute force or to risk the common folk’s safety. For now, Lord Sigurd, we must endure.

Sigurd: But, Father Claude…

Claude: Make no mistake. I feel your pain, too, too but this crisis’s end now lies in fate’s hands. There is nothing any of us can do to save ourselves anymore.

… … … … Holy shit, Claude. Fatalist, much? I end my turn, fully aware of the crushing hand of oblivion slowly grinding me down.

Only Jamke gets attacked, and only one enemy hits him. But who cares? We’re all doomed and only fate and random chance can save us. *sigh* I… guess I should fight back, even though it’s pointless.

Sigh, there were a lot of misses there. It’s because of how there’s no point in fighting your destiny, I guess. Fate determined we should lose.

End turn. If it even matters.

One of the Four Great Heavenly Princess Falcon Queens of Silesse hits Midir, and does about six damage while leaving herself totally exposed. So, uh…

Thus passes Dithorba, I suppose. Don’t worry, she’ll have plenty of company soon.

And that’s the Pegasus unit broken. Time to move east, and fast; some of these villages are starting to get dangerously low. While the turn prepares to end, however, something new to show off…

Some happy couples have formed! Beowulf and Lachesis was pretty much set in stone, but I honestly wasn’t sure how Ayra would end up; either Jamke or Lex was the endgame, but I legit wasn’t certain which would end up coming on top. She spends more time with Jamke since neither has a horse, but Lex gave her that Brave Sword and got a boost from that. In the end, Jamke wins out, which works just fine for me. Hail Verdane!

Anyhow, now that we’ve broken Maios’s opening lineup, the defenders become our next issue. The castle has three lines of defense; two small ones made up of a mage commander and two mooks, and a major squad around the castle of three more mages and seven armor units. Pretty basic stuff, barring the fact that all the mages are using Wind magic and so they’re far more annoying than what we’re used to. Particularly this one:

Blizzard is the wind-magic siege tome, and it will be very annoying as we proceed. He’s hidden among the second small line with no indication he might be there, which, you know; always remember to look at your enemies, kids. Time to start our charge! First, Lachesis clears a village.

It’s so delightful that she can just do that now. I can’t express it. No other combat happens, sadly, because Silesse is full of goddamn forests and progress is very slow. Remember back in Verdane, when the map was full of forests and everything was slow? It was annoying then, and making it snow hasn’t changed that. These villages will not be giving us much money.

Though thankfully when we actually reach them, it’s pretty easy to clear ‘em. And we are finally able to reach the attack range of the enemy defense line, so on their next turn they should be taking a shot at us. It won’t end well for them. End turn!

I warned ‘em. Now let’s rock this shit.

Awesome! Now it’s time to get Erin and Azel to the final village, and we have four turns to do it. I think we got this. Unless something goes terribly wrong, of course.

Maios: Without this key, there’s no way they’ll ever get over here. Heh heh… I almost wish I could see the looks on their faces!

Nope, that actually isn’t a problem, we can lower that bridge again, and even if we couldn’t, we do have a pegasus now. Still, I mean, A for Effort. If some earlier bosses had tried that, we’d have lost back in frickin’ Jungby.

Also, Blizzard Dude takes a shot at Erin, but she’s a dodge champ and it doesn’t connect.

… Azel, less so. I didn’t realize there were more than one Blizzard Dude. See what I said about checking your enemies? I need to follow my own advice. Aideen patches him up and levels.

God her magic stat is so huge. What even is happening.

Erin hits the final village, but isn’t able to clear it…

She’s gotten a bit strength-screwed this run, I’m afraid. Still, I think we got this. The only way that village could fall totally is if she and Azel both somehow miss twice next turn.

… Unless we die from being Blizzarded, jeez. All three hit, and not one had an even 40% to do it. Just one of those little reminders FE doesn’t actually like you. Luckily, Lachesis still has a healing staff on top of her other amazingness, and she steps up to heal her hubby. He takes advantage of this to run up and clear the village, letting the rest of the army move on toward the Blizzard Jerks.

… You know, this is really weird. The speed and skill are normal for a pegasus knight, but she somehow managed to trade the normal ‘high offense’ for a fairly solid defense growth you usually don’t see in her class. She can actually take hits better than she can give them at this point. It’s weird and I’m not sure I like it, but it’s interesting to see.

Anywho, with the Blizzard Dudes burned down, let’s take some time to clear villages before we open up the path ahead.

Info Kiosk: If it’s still drawn and you don’t have the key, you’re not getting across. Mind you, if you have a thief’s sticky fingers at your service, that might not be a problem…

GEE I’M SURE THAT WON’T BE IMPORTANT.

Info Master: Divine heirs can wield even the most advanced weapons with ease, and’ll have an easier time growin’ stronger. ‘Course, it’s not every day you meet someone blessed with that sorta blood.

…………………….. That… really should have been shared in the first chapter, honestly. I mean, I already knew it, but…

Actually Innocent: If you don’t mind, perhaps you could do a little dance for us? It’s been so long since we’ve had time for respite or fun…

Sylvia: Yup, not a problem! If you think it’ll cheer everyone up a bit, then I’m gonna dance my feet off! … Okay! Heeeeeeeeere we go!

Sylvia: Whew… well, how ‘bout that? Everyone feelin’ a little better?

Not Even a Creep: Oh! What fantastic dancin’! I dunno how, but now I feel like I’m ready to give life my all! I can’t thank you enough, miss. Here, perhaps this magic sword’ll help ya out. It oughta do a fine job of keeping ya safe.

Sylvia gets the Shield Sword, which grants +7 defense to anyone holding it and which, nothing personal honey, she absolutely will not be getting to keep. It’s going to someone who fights.

As you might have guessed, this scene only pops up if Sylvia visits this one specific village, which doesn’t look any different from any of the others. It’s not even like, ‘the closest to the castle’ or something. It’s second closest to the castle. Totally arbitrary

No, the game doesn’t give you any hint to this.

Hahahaha.

Now, as the game hinted at earlier, Dew can lower the bridge by going to the space where it was lowered before. However, I don’t want to do that yet; this is a chance to kill off some of the enemy while leaving them unable to swarm us. I have Taillte and Midir move into the range of the enemy who have distance weapons, and get Lachesis and Aideen ready to heal them. End turn.

… It’s only as I do this that I realize his Brave Bow means he’ll be killing most of what he fights. So, uh… hopefully he dodges a lot!

Score. Midir, you can stick around.

… Taillte, Midir just rocked this, do not screw it up for me.

… Taillte, you just got a great level, do not die and ruin this for me.

Yessssssssssssssssss. Okay, now we can lower the bridge.

We’re still not friends, you little shit. And with the way clear, we can, as the kids say, slaughter our foes.

Score. All that remains is three armor units and the boss himself, and none of them can reach anyone who they could reasonably kill in a single turn.

… Wait, why did they go for Midir at range…?

Okay, better. I mean, it’s not that I want to lose, but I feel bad if they don’t at least try. Now, let’s kill them all!

And here we go! The enemy army for Thove Castle is broken, so nothing left to be done but kill Maios himself. He’s a baron, because of fucking course he is, and he’s packing the A-rank wind tome Tornado. Get used to this sort of thing from here on; 99% of enemy bosses are going to be barons with great weapons that will ruin your day. Lewyn’s other douchey uncle is going to be one too. Fortunately, we have him super, super outnumbered.

Once again, bro, insulting us by calling us traitors loses some impact when you’re in the middle of treason.

On the other hand, Midir basically bounces off him. This is going to be a giant pain in the…

….. Never mind, forgot she had this.

Okay, battle’s over. What follows is mostly people whiffing at him for three turns, but there is one good moment…

Well. He almost succeeded in family victory.

There we go. Not much left to do but clear out a few villages and start moving people South to the big giant half of the map we conspicuously can’t enter.

Info Master: House Velthomer wields the power of fire, as bestowed by the fire goddess Vala. And House Freege wields thunder, as bestowed by the thunder god Tordo.

… Neat? Yeah, other than the sword, they’re all like this, generally giving game backstory you probably already worked out because it’s blatantly obvious. It’s like someone screwed up and put these villages in here when they should have been in the prologue.

A few empty turns of moving later, we have two fronts; one protecting Thove, and one getting ready to hit Silesse to the south. Don’t worry if you don’t think to do this; the game gives you plenty of time to run back to either or both if needed. That set up, let’s take Thove!

(God, nobody likes their nobles in this world.)

Info Master; The entire population of Thove is rejoicing at his downfall!

Sigurd: Hm? Are you sure? I mean, I just conquered you. Am I not the enemy here?

(Does this count as a Sigurd Logic Moment?)

Info Master: Lord Maios was nothing but a tyrant. All he ever did was bleed us dry. You fight in the name of Queen Rahna, and there isn’t a Silessian alive who doesn’t bear the utmost adoration for our queen.

(“I mean, besides her two brothers-in-law and their revolutionary armies.”)

Sigurd: Is that so? Thank you. Anyway, in the interim I think I’ll leave governing Thove to you, sir. Once the crisis has settled, the queen will arrange a proper successor. Until then, I’m sure you’ll be a just governor to help heal Thove’s wounds.

Info Master: Very well. Please, Lord Sigurd, do all you can to protect the queen. She is a treasure to us, and a beacon of peace and kindness.

Sigurd: Rest assured, my good man. So long as I live, I will let no harm come to Queen Rahna. You have my word.

And with a zap of Aideen’s Warp staff, Sigurd heads off to join the southern front and Thove is ours. Let’s call it a fair end for the week, and cut off things here. Next week: Everything goes to Hell!

#Let's play fire emblem IV #let's play fire emblem #let's play #Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War #fire emblem 4 #lp #My writing

14 notes · View notes

swagirii · 7 years

Text

NY JM Concert

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO I was really tired to begin with because I do not live in NY. I live 3 hours away from NY. So I just planned a whole day to be spent at NY. This part is like annoying probably so you can skip it if you want HAHAHA but I had to work until 1 am on Friday night and slept for like 3 hrs and caught the 7 am bus to NY. I slept for another 3 hrs in the bus and got there. Ate dim sum MMMmmmm my first time :-) but how do you not get the liquid to be all over your plate. I’m such a noob. and went shopping at soho WHERE SWINGS AND GIRIBOY WERE THE NIGHT BEFORE but I was shook because a shirt was like $50. so I left and went to time square and went to line store remEMBER this is all new to me because I’m like a country girl who raises cows for a living. loljk. idk. pls ignore. anyway so... after that I was pretty exhausted and it was like 4 pm ish. Met up with another friend (so now a party of 3!!!) and decided to head over to the concert place.!!! omg so excite. I wasn’t really excited at first because I was pretty tired from the whole day but while walking to stage 48 like I was getting excited LIKE HELLO I WILL MEET JM IRL AND NOT ON COMPUTER EVEN THO IT FEELS LIKE A DREAM RN

So I got there and the line was pretty long even though it was like 6:00 well I guess I don’t know how long concert lines are because this was my first concert. ;-; and meet&greet people got to go in at 6:45 pm. So we went in. and they did this extra search of our bags and touched under my boob to see if I had a gun. (even tho nochang can just kill me with his chingchangchong) and threw my water bottle and my friend’s hard boiled eggs away (LOOOOOL). we got there and the meet&greet was some booty tbh. OK BEFORE I WAS GONNA SLEEP IN THE BUS WHILE GOING TO NY, I WAS THINKING OF EACH THINGS I WAS GOING TO SAY TO EACH MEMBER OKAY BUT THAT WAS ALL RUINED BECAUSE IT WAS LIKE “meet&greet” and just take a group picture and gtfo. ._. So it was our turn and my friend was the first in line for the group so she went in all awkward like “hi...” BECAUSE IDK C JAMM LOOKS SO MUCH LIKE C JAMM ON THE INTERNET. LIKE THEY ALL LOOK THE SAMEEEEEEEEEEEE I CAN’T. IT’S TOO REAL. and she stood next to C Jamm and he was like “wassup wassup” HE’S SO NICE AND HUMBLE like he’s the cutest potato thing. and I think I was standing next to Swings? I don’t even remember, because I was wildly searching for Giriboy like I CAME ALL THE WAY TO SEE YOU WHERE ARE U I need to hold your hand IDK ASDKFLASDJFA;SDF. and Swings was just trying to make us stand so we can all be in the pic. then I saw Giriboy behind me like on the step kind of thing AND HE DIDN’T HAVE HIS GLASSES AND WAS WEARING A BLACK BUCKET HAT and kinda looked like

THIS WITHOUT THE GLASSES and like hello every1 he was NOT WEARING GLASSES !!!! I CAN’T so I was like omg.......... and he just kinda looked at me so I was like “I’m a big fan of yours!!!!!!!” and THEN ALL OF MY FRIENDS GOT ENCOURAGED AND WAS LIKE ME TOO me TOO and he just kinda nodded as a thank you multiple times. :( I WANTED TO HEAR HIS VOICE ok sike. im gonna chill. but still highkey regret that i was not being extra during the “meet&greet” because the staff were like don’t bring ur phones no selfies BLEHLAHELBLEHLA BLEAH ok whatever good bye and i didn’t notice any1 else during the picture bc i forgot abt them soz

and the concert didn’t even start until like 8:00 pm and i was mad bc they kept playing hiphop music other than JM like i was ready to go rain shower idk and some ppl blocking the view in front of me my friend asked if they could squeeze us in bc we couldn’t see and they completely ignored me after the first word. :-) well they moved after that so its ok but anyway... like whatever :)... the show started with osshun gum and im sorry but ive been out of this scene for so long like i forgot who he was like i know hes from high school rapper but i didnt even watch the show :-) rip but he was so cute i know hes 1 year younger than me like HES A BABY (bgm: shes a baby zico) and he was dressed “normally” too so he looked like a normal person and it was just cute ok but i didnt know his songs so i felt bad.

the next person was han yohan OMGGGG U KNOW I ACTUALLY LOVE HAN YOHAN BECAUSE IDK LIKE IM INTO THOSE ROCK THINGS NOW and he played curt cobain BECAUSE IM CURT COBAAAAAAIN 300 km, I’m Sorry, and then later super saiyan with black nut OMSDFKLASJDFKLASDJFASKGJSD F ok. Enough said. This is better explained with the live. goodbye. I just love. and hes the only one who actually sticked w the schedule that was pre released before concert lol

and then it was the love of my life giriboy and he was supposed to perform zoa... wybh and then hogu but he started doing mix it up but whatever i was shouting like crasy so WHATEVER OK and he did all these weird cute moves... like icant believe it happened in front of me. i feel like its a dream. :( i hope he does it again in my dreams. and did hogu then ended.

i was proud to shout all the lyrics (NOTICE ME)

then it was nochang like omg i love him because for the longest time i thought he didnt wanna be on stage because idk... gossips and his interviews... but he was the best on stage he looked like he really enjoyed and we were like TUUUURNNNNN UUUUUP ok but tbh no one knew his lyrics... bc they’re too sophisticated4us but he did emancipation, ching chang chong, and turn up and he was wearing all black again. but took his hat off a couple of times. his head is pretty. he actually stuck to the schedule too omg i feel like giriboy was not feeling well or something :( or he was more concerned about his single

then it was black nut omg YOU GUYS KNOW HOW I HAVE A THING FOR SKINNY GUYS im just kidding but i love black nut and he killed it today with his porn hub shirt on hahahahaha first he did honmono which i dont rly kno because i been living in a cave for so long and then it was silky bois like BOIIIIII HE DID THE AUTOTUNE THING LIKE HE SANG IT but it was good and hes the only one that was all smiley throughout the concert and remember he always used to wear sunglasses but like no sunglasses today and like... he was the best eye contacter :’) omggg so cute and then he did 100 like kill all of em i was screaming

then it was bill stax OK LIKE I KNEW NONE OF HIS SONGS IM SORRY BUT I FORGOT HIS NAME CHANGED TOO RIP :’( I NEED TO BE GONE FROM THIS WORLD and then we did giddiyup? like that song with the horse with c jamm and nochang it was lit because that’s like an old song and everyone knows that EXCEPT NO ONE SCREAMED 수컷말쉿 except me like WHERE ARE YALL but anyway... then it was c jamm he did know and puzzle which was like... idk those songs... i really need to get on my game maaaaneeesss

and then swings was being v soft today and was like this is for the ladies and did 듣고있어? and some other SONG THAT I DON’T REALLY KNOW THE NAME OF BUT THOSE WERE SWEET SONGS AND IT WAS NICE BECAUSE HE WAS BEING FUNNY WITH ALL HIS GESTURES LIKE KISSING FROM HIS HAND like where all this confidence come from i need some and then he did bulldozer which was #lit i kinda wish he did 양아치 or 괜찮아 but it didnt happen its ok

then it was da whole crew with sushi rain showers and carnival OMG WHEN CARNIVAL STARTED WITH GIRIBOY i cried ok i didn’t but i almost cried because just. like. IM HEARING IT LIVEEEE HELLO i was shook. and sushi was ok except they added some extra lyrics for the live i guess and i kinda didnt hear the lyrics and rain showers was lit as alwaaaaaays

they didnt really talk like esepcailly giriboy because i know he doesnt talk in general but its like in american so i guess he was done. i hope hes happy

#me #giriboy

14 notes · View notes

lovemesomerafael · 4 years

Text

Destroying The Planet To Save It Chapter 26: If Guns & Ammo Had A Centerfold

Chapters 1-25 Read It On AO3

It was almost three a.m. when Joss finally stumbled into her apartment, exhausted and more than ready to fall into bed. She wasn’t ready to open the door to find the lights on. Which is why, when Bucky woke up on her couch, it was to her scowling face over the barrel of her Wilson Combat EDC X9.

Once she recognized him, she immediately took her sights off of him and engaged the safety, but the scowl remained. “You scared me.”

“Sorry. That’s why I left the lights on, thought it would let you know I was here without freaking you out.”

“I see. Also, you could have let me know to expect you. That’s a thing people do. Prevents a lot of unfortunate shootings.”

Bucky grinned. “I figured you for a girl who’d make sure of her target first.”

“Stop.”

“What?”

“Stop being cute,” Joss said, holstering her sidearm and then beginning to remove her weapons belts entirely. “I could’ve shot you, and I just got back into Anderson Cooper’s good graces. What do you think the world would do to me if I shot Bucky Barnes? So don’t smile at me like that, because then I’m going to want to kiss you, and I’m trying to be mad at you right now.”

“Yeah?” Bucky asked, getting up. “You think I’m cute?”

Joss evaded him on her way into her bedroom closet, where her gun safe was. “Not the point I was making, Bucky.”

He was standing just behind her as she tapped in the combination. “Well, that’s what I heard.”

Once she’d stowed her weapons, nowhere nearly as carefully as she normally did, she closed the heavy door and turned to him, a weary half-smile on her face. “I’m too tired to resist you.”

Bucky pulled her into a hug, which she returned with a long sigh. “Mmmmmmm,” she half-moaned. “You feel good. I needed a hug after a day like today.”

“That’s why I’m here. I figured you’d be tired, thought I’d see if you needed anything to eat, or wanted to vent, or anything.”

She buried her face in his chest, groaning, “Ooooooohhh, no. I’m doomed.”

“Why are you doomed?” Bucky chuckled, low and sexy, stroking Joss’s hair while he held her.

Joss hesitated before turning her head to rest it against his shoulder. “Because you’re breathtakingly handsome; you’re like if Guns & Ammo had a centerfold. And now I know you’re thoughtful, too.”

“Did you just call me a Guns & Ammo centerfold?” Bucky laughed.

“Mmmmm Hmmmmm.”

“Why do I like that so much?”

“Because you get what I mean, and you understand how much I like it.”

“Good answer,” he said, kissing her hair. “But I’m not sure it’s thoughtful of me to be here. I just really wanted to see you, and taking care of you after a long day seemed like a good excuse. I don’t want to ruin your illusions, but it’s actually incredibly selfish.”

Joss looked up at Bucky. “Really? You wanted to see me?”

“Feeling a little doomed myself, Joss.”

They smiled at each other before he leaned in to brush his lips across hers. He meant it to be a simple kiss, light and comforting. But they were both surprised by their reactions to what they’d just said to one another. As it sunk in, their kiss deepened, quickly becoming breathless as they adjusted the way they held one another from a hug between friends to the embrace of lovers. Bucky didn’t hesitate to accept the invitation of Joss’s open lips, while Joss melted her body into his when he tightened his arm across her lower back.

“This isn’t why I came over,” Bucky murmured when they were forced by their basic need for oxygen to separate their mouths momentarily.

“You came over to comfort me, right? This is very comforting.”

He liked the smile and hint of promise in her voice. He smiled, too. When she lifted her lips back to his, he decided not to worry that she might think he was trying to take advantage of her. The way she was kissing him – if anything, pushing things further – left no room for that concern. He let any hesitation go and gave himself over to full concentration on her lips, and the way she gnawed sweetly at his, the tiny, breathy sounds she was making, and the way her body felt against his. There was nothing about this that felt too fast, or inappropriate. In fact, it felt right in a way that was going to get very hard to resist in a minute.

Bucky lifted his mouth from Joss’s and hugged her again. “You should, um… change into pajamas and let me make you a snack so you can go to sleep. We have a debrief in the morning.”

Joss groaned, but loosened her arms and stepped back. “OK.”

He was happy to see that she looked as dazed as he felt.

She took a very fast shower while he made her a grilled-cheese sandwich with the ingredients he’d scoped out in her kitchen earlier. The timing was perfect; he was just sliding her sandwich onto a plate when she padded into the kitchen wearing a T-shirt and soft, grey shorts. It was her house, and she was going straight to bed, so fuck if she was going to wear a bra, but she did pull on an Air Force sweatshirt in some sort of nod to propriety.

“I heard you laughing,” he said, by way of greeting.

She smiled happily at seeing what he’d made for her, and sat down at the small, round wooden table that separated her kitchen from the living area. “It occurred to me to wonder how you got in here, but then I realized what a dumb question that was.”

“I’m getting you new locks,” Bucky said, a slight frown of disapproval crossing his face. “The ones you have now wouldn’t present a challenge to anyone, and Stark makes ones that are even hard for me to get through.”

“Thanks for worrying about me. I feel pretty safe right this minute, though,” she looked at him in a way that renewed the arousal he’d had to work to get back under control.

“Not sure you should,” he responded, and the desire in his eyes made it very clear what he meant. “You might’ve let the big bad wolf in already.”

Bucky enjoyed watching her wrestle with how to respond: the way their agreement to go slow dictated, or the way she wanted to. He actually laughed when she said, “This is the best grilled-cheese sandwich ever.”

Going with it, even though he’d had his hopes up for a moment, Bucky responded, “It’s my specialty. My mom used to say there’s nothing so wrong a grilled cheese can’t make it better.”

“Wise woman.”

“Great cook, too. “

They chatted casually while Joss ate, humming appreciatively as she finished. “You have my permission to break into my house and make me a midnight snack any time you want.”

There was nothing Bucky wanted more right that moment than to make Joss his midnight snack. But he chose to respond to that the way she’d actually meant it. “I’ll keep that in mind. Right now, it’s time for you to get some sleep.”

She smiled when he accompanied her into her bedroom and watched while she brushed her teeth, then actually tucked her into bed. Everything in her wanted him to sleep next to her, but she forced herself to behave. He helped by kissing her sweetly on the forehead rather than the way he really wanted to. After the flash of her abdomen when she took off her sweatshirt before getting under the covers, and the tantalizing shape of her breasts under her T-shirt, Bucky seriously doubted that he had the strength to resist her if she started kissing him again the way she had earlier.

“Sweet dreams. I’ll see you at the debrief.”

“Good night. And thank you again.”

“Anytime. Now get comfortable. I’m going to sit with you until you fall asleep.”

No one had ever done that for Joss before. She wasn’t sure quite how to feel about it, and she wasn’t sure she’d be able to fall asleep. Surprisingly, though, as soon as she was on her side with her eyes closed, feeling Bucky stroking her hair and listening to his soft breathing, she found that she couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt so safe and cared for.

As exhausted as she was, and now showered, fed, and extremely comfortable, Joss fell asleep quickly. She hoped to have raunchy dreams about Bucky, but when she awoke in the morning, she was disappointed to find that she couldn’t remember any.

The debrief went more quickly than anyone had expected. There simply wasn’t much to say that wasn’t already known, and not much second-guessing to be done. Tony, not having slept, looked haggard and disheveled, but that wasn’t new to anyone who had known him for any length of time. Sam and Anita were still in the medical building, attending remotely. They looked very sweet, cuddled together in her hospital bed, but her eyes were haunted and she said almost nothing. More than once, Sam had stopped Director Coulson from pressing her for information.

“If she’s got something to say, Director, I’m sure she’ll say it,” Sam said, tone respectful but nonetheless with a note of subtle warning in it.

Coulson gracefully backed off. He fully understood Sam’s meaning. Besides which, Phil Coulson had been through a few of his own, similar experiences and was entirely sympathetic to Anita’s situation. He had no wish to traumatize her further; he just wanted to make sure she had the opportunity to speak if she had something to say. The Avengers, and S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives, could be an overbearing lot.

When the post-mortem on the operation was complete, Vision was asked to present his information. He was, of course, entirely unaffected by having worked through the night.

As it turned out, the scientists had been all but finished with the main analysis of how the machines worked, and how they could be safely dismantled, by the time Bruce and Catherine had called it a night. What had kept Vision and Tony working was a discovery made by S.H.I.E.L.D. as they’d analyzed the glowing green orb removed from the machine. S.H.I.E.L.D. had discovered that the orbs themselves had an energy signature that could be detected if one knew where to look. Tony and Vision had spent the night creating an algorithm that could do just that. Even as the meeting was occurring, S.H.I.E.L.D. had programmed the algorithm into the systems in its satellites (and some others, which S.H.I.E.L.D. was covertly “borrowing” for the purpose). Those satellites were now feeding information to S.H.I.E.L.D. which its systems were, at this moment, utilizing to create a map of all the machines in the world.

Once the debrief was complete, the team broke up for a late lunch, which lasted until Director Coulson notified them that the map was complete. The Avengers and select senior S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel then reconvened in the building assigned to the Avengers. They spent the rest of the day assigning teams to take out the various machines.

Since Arias was now known by all to be in custody, his plans exposed and his organization in ruins, not much resistance was expected. By all accounts, all of the most senior members of Arias’s empire had been in the bunker to take part in the attack on Washington, which left only low-level workers minding the machines. Since nearly all of the Arias employees currently in custody had shown themselves eager to turn on him in order to save themselves, it was an even bet whether anyone would be left guarding the machines when the Avengers arrived to destroy them.

S.H.I.E.L.D. used Tony and Vision’s algorithm to locate thirty-five machines worldwide. Not surprisingly, Natasha and Clint volunteered to team up to destroy the three machines in Russia and Belarus. The two in China and one in Malaysia were assigned to a five-person S.H.I.E.L.D. team who were already embedded in that part of the world. India, Afghanistan, and Kazakhstan would be Bruce and Catherine’s problem, while Vision and Wanda would handle the machines in Saudi Arabia, Zambia, and Nigeria. There were seven machines across Europe, which were the responsibility of Steve, Sharon, and a team of European S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. When Steve teamed up Bucky and Joss, and assigned them to the machines in the very desirable locations of Papua New Guinea, Australia, and New Zealand, Bucky recognized it for the matchmaking attempt it was. He said nothing and certainly didn’t object.

Initially, there was a question whether Steve could, or would, assign Anita to any team. Steve was a hopeless and kind of adorably obvious romantic, and he did want to assign Anita and Sam to work together. But her condition would be the determining factor. Director Coulson, hearing that, decided to take a chance. He told Anita that. Coulson thought that, had it been him, the opportunity would have given him an incentive to heal, and something to look forward to, both crucial in recovering from something like what Anita had endured.

He was right.

Anita spent as much time as she was allowed working with a post-trauma therapist, processing the helplessness and terror she’d felt while trapped within the machine. More difficult was coming to terms with the horror of the drug-assisted programming she’d endured. She couldn’t talk about it with Sam. She trusted him completely, but couldn’t stand the idea of him knowing the terrible violation of her body and mind she’d experienced. She knew that the shame she felt was natural but misplaced, and thought she might, someday, be able to share what had happened with him. But not today. For today, she worked within the privacy of her therapy sessions. Her therapists agreed that it would be healing for her to participate in the destruction of the remaining machines. So, the combination of her hard work and innate strength, together with Sam’s complete support (and, she was honest, the promise of some sweet payback), helped Anita quickly reach a point where she was ready to partner with Sam to destroy the three machines in Central and South America.

Tony led a team that destroyed the machines in North America, and S.H.I.E.L.D. took care of the rest.

Clint’s Russian sucked, and he knew it. In fact, his Russian was so rudimentary that he had been on more than one mission where his cover was that he didn’t speak Russian at all. His Belarussian was even worse. Fortunately, they knew to within ten yards where the machines were, so for this trip, he and Natasha didn’t need a cover at all. They simply slipped into Belarus, blew their way into the cavern in which the machine was located, and destroyed it without a word to anyone but each other. There had been a small, easily overpowered crew guarding it, but they were so demoralized already by the news that Arias had been captured that they were already half-defeated when Clint and Natasha arrived.

The two had been in full mission mode when they’d gone in, though, so such an easy achievement of their objective left them feeling keyed up and unsatisfied. Because they had no intention of remaining in Belarus for longer than it took to complete the mission, they had nowhere to go. Which is why they ended up expending all their pent-up energy having rough, sweaty sex in their quinjet as it lay buried under camouflage netting in an airfield on a destroyed Hydra base.

It wasn’t perfect. It wasn’t romantic, like Clint would have liked, and it was a little more light-filled and exposed than Natasha preferred. But it was exciting, with a hint of danger, and in a situation that they recognized as being fitting for them. They weren’t house-with-a-white-picket-fence people. Sure, they liked a big, comfortable bed they could move around on, and where they could sleep tangled together afterward. But it suited Natasha to be on her knees on the textured steel floor of the quinjet, while Clint stood holding the overhead rails designed as an in-flight handhold. Just as it suited Clint to pound into her as he bent her over one of the workstations in the cabin. And when that turned out not to be quite enough for them, they both enjoyed their slow, deep fuck with Natasha straddling Clint in the pilot’s seat.

It was Natasha who said “I love you” first this time. Clint didn’t point that out. Instead, he simply assured her that he loved her, too, and made sure that she had at least two orgasms to his every one.

In Russia, the machine they hit had simply been abandoned. They destroyed it and, again spoiling for a fight that hadn’t materialized, they flew straight across the country to destroy the second. When it, too, turned out to be abandoned, they destroyed it and then Clint stood, watching Natasha until she turned to see why he was so quiet. He pushed her back up against the machine, running his hands over her body in her black leather until she was gasping for breath and rutting against him. Then he slowly, slowly unzipped her suit and bared her breasts.

She looked gorgeous, leaned up against a dead, useless hunk of hardware in an underground bunker lit only by a light cube, flushed, with her erect nipples rising and falling as she panted with arousal. When he began to use his mouth to tease her, she let her head fall back against the black cowling of the machine and simply concentrated on the feeling of his lips and tongue. He never teased long enough to be frustrating; he had an innate sense of when she reached the peak of her arousal, and then would entirely satisfy her need to feel him sucking at her nipples, laving them with his tongue until they began to be too sensitive to continue.

He was surprised when she let him completely remove her clothing, so that she was entirely naked as she freed his cock and positioned him so that he could thrust roughly into her. He wasn’t gentle; she didn’t want him to be. The sound of her body being slammed against the side of the machine as he pounded his dick into her echoed in the abandoned space along with their rhythmic cries. She nearly screamed as she came. But he wanted to make this last. This moment, this setting, was so representative of all the things he found exotic and fascinating about her that he wanted to stay here, fucking her and listening to her uncontrollable cries of pleasure for as long as possible. The problem was, he found the whole idea so arousing that it was almost impossible to hold back. When he was finally unable to contain his climax any longer, he came with an explosive shout of her name that could be heard throughout the empty facility.

The facility Bruce and Catherine were assigned in India wasn’t guarded. The building that housed it wasn’t even locked. Arias’s men had simply admitted defeat and left it to its fate. There were only minor differences between the machines, so it took Bruce and Catherine no time to destroy it and remove the orb within it to take back to S.H.I.E.L.D.

Afterward, Bruce took the time to show Catherine some of the places he’d lived and worked when he’d been in India, trying to do good and lay low at the same time. They didn’t talk directly about the Hulk. There didn’t seem any reason to. They were in the midst of a mission, and both sensed that they had time. For Catherine, they had the rest of their lives. She’d known for a long time that she would never love anyone but Bruce, and she now knew that the Hulk presented far less danger to her than he imagined.

Bruce could feel that something fundamental had changed when she’d seen him transform in D.C. She hadn’t pushed him to talk about whatever had happened between her and the Hulk, and he hadn’t asked. In part, because he wanted to keep things exactly as they were now. Catherine was here and they were together. As long as he didn’t think about the future, he had everything he wanted. It was as entirely illusory as the feeling of safety created by not looking down from a height, and he knew it. The fact that it was temporary did not somehow mean she was safer from him. But he ignored that.

The machine in Afghanistan was fairly brilliantly placed in a mountain cave on the edge of the city of Bamiyan. That city was safe enough for foreigners to visit, if they were careful, and close enough to allow Arias to create phenomena that would affect the capital, Kabul. This machine was not abandoned. S.H.I.E.L.D.’s intelligence had told them it wouldn’t be. The machine was known locally to exist, and the locals thought that having such a thing could be very useful.

Given the instability of the country as a whole, the Avengers had decided that going in with force was courting disaster. Instead, they’d decided that social engineering was far superior because it would allow them to destroy the machine without ever letting Arias’s goons know they’d been there. Done correctly, the plan would leave them thinking that they, themselves, had done it. Steve and Coulson had specifically chosen Bruce and Catherine for this mission because, of everyone on the team, they seemed the least like they could be any sort of threat (as long as Bruce wasn’t nine feet tall, green, and pissed off).

The plan had worked perfectly. In fact, not only had the machine been destroyed, it had actually been blown up. That part really had been the fault of Arias’s men, although Bruce had definitely helped them come up with the really bad idea that had made it happen. And Catherine had turned out to be quite a talented burglar, stealing the orb from the machine right from under the owners’ noses in the commotion.

From there, Bruce and Catherine had moved on to Nur-Sultan, the ultra-modern capital of Kazakhstan. The placement of the machine there was very similar to that in Washington, D.C. in that it was inside a bunker-like facility underneath a city. Since Nur-Sultan is such a new and rapidly-growing city, it had been easy for Arias to build the facility without anyone noticing anything unusual going on with the construction project that was its cover.

It was also not difficult for Bruce and Catherine to access it, given that most of the guards had deserted it. All they’d had to do was basically be themselves with different names and backstories. The few Arias cronies who’d remained behind in Nur-Sultan wanted very much to keep control of the machine for their own ends. As a result, they’d been thrilled to meet some disaffected expatriate scientists who wanted in on the ground floor of something so exciting. With their obvious knowledge in relevant fields, it hadn’t been hard for them to get an invitation to see the machine and, from there, it was a simple matter of activating Stark technology and getting out of the way. The machine whirred and hummed, glowed grotesquely and emitted a noxious smell never associated with it before. As the noises increased in pitch and volume, Catherine began to predict imminent explosion, and Bruce just went along with her.

The crew had eventually fled, so frightened they didn’t even notice Bruce and Catherine weren’t with them. The scientists had simply locked the doors behind them and taken their time destroying the machine and removing the orb.

Bruce hadn’t been in Kazakhstan for years. The last time he’d been there, many of the most recognizable buildings in the capital were still under construction, and the city itself had still been called Astana. Catherine had never been there. The two decided that, since their mission was complete (which Catherine got a childish thrill out of saying), they would spend a few additional days there.

The days were getting colder which, in a city where negative forty degrees Farenheit isn’t unusual, can be very cold. This particular day was snowy and blustery, so Bruce and Catherine were being luxuriously lazy, enjoying breakfast in bed. They’d both been very hungry, which wasn’t surprising given the number of times they’d made love the night before. They were now at the stage of feeding each other random bits of fresh fruit just because it was there, the sappy silliness of it particularly appealing after the seriousness of the past few weeks. Breakfast more or less over, Bruce was propped against the thickly-padded headboard with Catherine lying against his chest.

“I’ve never understood how the two of you can be such good mates. He’s like, the anti-Bruce. You’re all calming tea and meditation, and he’s all coffee and chaos.”

“Maybe that’s why it works.”

“I could never work with Tony Stark. He’d drive me crazy.”

“I actually think I’m the one who drives him crazy. He wants me to get all wired about stuff, and then he gets frustrated when I don’t.”

“I can imagine that, now that you say it,” Catherine laughed.

“He’s brilliant, you know.”

“That I know. Hard to miss. And, of course, if you do, he’ll make sure to point it out.”

Catherine could feel Bruce’s chuckle in his chest as he leaned down to kiss her hair. “Yeah, he’s got his quirks. But there’s a lot more to him than he wants most people to think. Good things. Honorable things.”

She turned her head just enough to kiss his chest. After a moment of fond silence, she said, “Bruce?”

“Hmmmmm?”

“Can we talk about what happened in D.C.?”

“You mean…?”

“When I met the Hulk.”

Bruce stalled by reaching over and picking a piece of melon from the almost-empty plate and holding it in front of her lips. When she took it in her mouth, he picked up another for himself. “I guess we’re going to have to talk about a lot of things, at some point.”

She sat up to face him, pulling the sheet with her so that she remained covered. “I love you.”

“I know. I love you, too,” he said, looking at her with utter adoration as he stroked her cheek.

Catherine waited for the “but.” When, surprisingly, it didn’t come, she told him in as much detail as possible how she and Sharon had interacted with the Hulk outside the machine room in Arias’s bunker.

“He’s not an animal, Bruce. He’s so much more intelligent and aware than I understood. He recognized me. He knew who I was. Sam and Sharon, too.”

“I guess that’s not such a surprise. The team says he mostly recognizes them.”

“Which is why he’s never hurt them.”

“I… guess you could say that.”

“Which is why he’ll never hurt me.”

He looked at her for a moment, mouth open as though a hundred objections were fighting to escape at the same time. “He’s completely unpredictable and uncontrollable.”

Catherine didn’t respond. She simply waited, sitting cross-legged before him on the bed, one of his hands in one of hers.

“He’s fueled by rage, Catherine. His entire being is, is… based on rage. He’s just blind anger, striking out at everything in front of him.”

“Did you listen to a word I just told you? He’s not blind rage. His presence is a defense mechanism, Bruce, it’s protection. For you, for those you love… I mean, he protected the planet when the Chitauri came. And me. I know you know where I live. I know he protected my building because it was mine.”

“Yes, but he’s still dangerous.”

“Yes, he’s dangerous. He’s dangerous in the same way Captain America is dangerous. The way the Black Widow is. He’s dangerous to people who try to hurt others. But not to everyone. Not to your teammates. Not to me.”

“I can’t take –“

“That chance,” she finished with him. “I know. What I’m trying to tell you is that it isn’t what you think. The danger, what there is of it, is so much less than you imagine.”

“Catherine…” Bruce sighed, leaning his head back on the headboard.

“I want to ask you something. There’s a reason I mentioned Tony Stark.”

Bruce didn’t move his head, only his eyes, so that he was looking at her through narrowed eyes. It was a little silly, but not entirely a joke.

“Bruce, I… These past weeks, with you… I don’t want to go back to being strangers. I want to be with you. We’ve wasted so much time, I don’t want to waste any more.”

“…And? What are you asking me?”

“I’m asking you whether you want that, too. Because if you do, then everything else is details.”

Bruce raised his head and noted the sheen of emotion in Catherine’s emerald-green eyes as he regarded her. “Yes,” he said simply.

“Yes?”

“Yes. Except, maybe I should ask you what Tony Stark has to do with it first.”

“Don’t make jokes,” she said, although she was laughing. “He could help us figure out how to test things out. Because watching you – him, I have so many questions. I want to know so much about him! Not to get rid of him. Not to control him. To know who he is.”

“Cathy, he could kill you.”

“Yes, but-“

“What do you suppose that would do to me?”

Catherine blinked and moved her mouth as if to speak, but could think of nothing to say to that.

“Did you really think this was all altruism? It’s not. It’s self-preservation, too, Catherine.”

Catherine’s voice was small as she asked, “Is that a ‘no’?”

“It’s a ‘be aware what you’re asking’. It was bad enough knowing how much I hurt you by leaving. If I seriously injured you? God forbid, killed you? I’d be even more of a psychological disaster than I am now. That one, I wouldn’t make it back from.”

She looked down at their clasped hands and, for a moment, played absently with his fingertips.

“I hadn’t realized that,” she said softly.

“I didn’t think so.”

Catherine crawled over Bruce’s thigh nearest her, pushing his legs apart so that she could lay between them with her head on his chest, arms around him.

“That’s different,” she said softly.

To her utter surprise, Bruce laughed. Not a belly laugh, or an amused chuckle, but a wry, cynical exhalation. “And the penny drops.”

She looked up into his face, which required a fairly uncomfortable cat stretch, but she needed to see his expression. He wasn’t smiling. He looked the way he had that terrible night in London. For a moment, their eyes met, volumes of communication happening much faster than words could have accomplished it. She lay back down then, and sighed. He simply petted her hair, stroked her back as far as he could reach, and tried to bite his tongue hard enough to distract him from the sound of his heart breaking.

He was disappointed when she sat back up, crawled back over his leg, and rested next to him on the headboard. She was still touching him all along their sides, and she slid her arm under his so that she could intertwine her fingers with his again, their hands resting on top of the sheet over his thigh. Even so close to her, still naked in bed holding hands, he already felt cold and alone.

But he couldn’t blame her. He had the same problem. He could take the risk for himself, but not for her. He supposed that the fact she loved him that much, too, would have to comfort him in the long, lonely years to come.

#The Avengers #The Winter Soldier #Captain America #Bucky Barnes #Bruce Banner #Steve Rogers #Tony Stark #Clint Barton #Natasha Romanoff #Sam Wilson

0 notes