#pre top gun: maverick

[polar-equinoxx]

that moment when you’ve just gone on leave for christmas and you see all these couples around you reuniting and you think no one is there for you until you catch sight of your wingman and launch yourself at him

part 1 || part two

[nixies-creations]

For @topgunalternateuniverse bingo. Bingo Square - Bodyguard: Hangster - Bodyguard Jake x Popstar Bradley.

"So is there anything you can't do?" Bradley asks, shifting in his seat and watches as Jake expertly begins to start the pre-flight checks. "Expert pilot, chef, dog walker, bodyguard, pillow. I mean, we haven't come up against something that you didn't excel at." Pausing, Jake turns to blink at Bradley, head tilting to the side as he looks at the other man before giving a small shrug. "Lots of things, Mr. Bradshaw. Ain't no one can be perfect all the time." Bradley hums, rolling his eyes, "Okay, so the only thing you're bad at is calling me by name, instead of Mr. Bradshaw all the time. That's my dad, man, not me." It isn't quite whining—even if his mom would classify it as such, were she here to hear Bradley's rather petulant tone.

[reiverreturns]

cyclone berating rooster for breaking the hard deck in training:

cyclone berating maverick for breaking the hard deck in training:

[nanny-sc]

Headcanon:

Everybody know him as Jake "Hangman" Seresin, mostly nobody know that before he was Jakub Nikolas: an slovak orphan who was adopted and went to USA when was 15 yo and the Seresin choose him as their new family member.

The fear to be isolated (and bullied) made Jakub started present himself as "Jake Seresin" and did the possible to transform himself as the perfect Texas/USA boy. He even loose his accent.

But Jakub Nikolas continue to live in littles thing: he never changes his name (when was abandoned there was a letter: 'Jakub' is the name of his mother's brother, death in war, and 'Nikolas' his father name, how can change it?), when he is at home, alone, he speaks, and sings, in slovak and even notes for himself arent in english.

Daggers and Icemav do a bet about Jake real name, seeing that his signature is so long (and not understable), for the first time Hangman is not afraid to share his real past and say them all.

(Bradley is shocked when he realizes that his dad and his crush share the name)

[scottishaccentsareawesome]

Rooster: You're everything to me. Hangman(sighs): That's very sweet, but don't you think YOU should matter to yourself as well, Bradley...? Rooster: Of course not. What do you think "Self-Destructive" means?

[foreveraweirdoneslife]

No One Needs To Know (sneak peak)

Basically 3,000 words of Jake pining for a stranger coming tomorrow (song requested by @nerdgirljen)! Here's a snippet:

In the corner of the room and not that far away from the counter where Jake is sitting, there is a pool table. A man and a woman are playing against each other. The woman is bracing herself against the edge of the table, watching the guy take his turn. If Jake had to guess, he'd say that she is about his age. For the guy he can't tell because he's standing with his back towards the room. Somehow, however, he's caught Jake's attention - or maybe it's just the bright colored Hawaiian shirt he’s wearing. Jake sticks another one of the fries into his mouth and continues to watch the two playing pool. At that moment, Hawaii bends over the table to actually take his turn. Jake can't help but acknowledge that Hawaii’s backside looks pretty good despite his slightly distracting shirt. He's definitely well built.

[pollyna]

If people give shit to Mav because nobody believes he's married to someone with a boring name like Tom, when they ask Iceman who he's married to and he answers Pete, everybody smiles along, and yeah, yeah, it does make sense. Pete could be a lawyer, a kindergarten teacher, a doctor or a botanist, it wouldn't be very relevant because Pete is the man Admiral Kazansky goes on trips with, to hike in Yellowstone Park and to skydive that time he was bored and without anything to do. Pete is the man who sometimes makes him lunch and always, always, leaves little silly notes in the admiral's jacket when he has long meetings and conferences outside the national border. Pete, who asked Tom to marry him back in '91 and said yes when Tom asked in '11. Pete is a calm, normal, borderline boring, and composed person who loves the Admiral and likes a peaceful and relaxed life.

Yeah, exactly that Pete.

(But then Tom introduces his husband to them, and they can be admirals or secretaries or janitors alike, and everyone thinks that they really really don't know Admiral Kazansky at all.)

((Mav's favourite story is about that time Ice introduced him to Admirals Simpson and Cain. Years later, he's still crying for how much he laughs when he tells the tale.))

[thatsrightice]

F-14 FUN FACT OF THE DAY #10

Aviation Electronic Technicians for the F-14 would pull a harmless prank on shorter air crew members before their flights. They would lower the seat all the way so that when the pilot or RIO got into the aircraft all you would see is the top of their helmet in the cockpit and the middle finger.

[natashatrace]

hi, writing is hard right now, so this is much more of a not!fic but!! enjoy this exploration of the cyclone&rooster&maverick of it all pre/during/post tgm. <3

//

somewhere in my head right now, there's a short story exploring the past relationship of cyclone & rooster before, during, & after tgm.

rooster going through top gun for the first time and cyclone taking an interest, sensing the anger and the grief wrapped around rooster like a cloud he can't shake. cyclone knows it's crippling the kid in ways that rooster doesn't even realize. cyclone also knows about the history, right -- he was only two years behind mav at top gun, so he remembers the stories of the RIO that died during a training exercise. probably remembers all the rumors that flew, too.

after an exceptionally rough day during top gun, cyclone speaks to rooster one-on-one and slowly, it becomes a regular thing. one-on-one conversations, cyclone checking in on the kid throughout hops and classroom instruction. maybe cyclone gets teased by another instructor for having a favorite and cyclone denies it (poorly).

and then the awards ceremony happens, rooster & the rest of his class become graduates, and cyclone finds rooster sitting alone at the reception. rooster's a few drinks deep, buzzed enough to explain how he thought not getting to go to the academy was what had made him so angry all this time. but now that he's here at top gun, now that he's made it and is one of the best pilots of his generation, he's realized it wasn't about the academy at all. it was about finding out that maverick, his fiercest supporter, didn't actually believe in him. it was about being told he wasn't good enough despite the fact that he's clearly good enough.

(of course, we know that maverick believes in that kid and was just acting on his own fear/carol's wishes. but rooster doesn't know that. cyclone certainly doesn't know that.)

cyclone continues keeping in touch with the kid after that. keeps tabs on him. maybe iceman finds out and tries to casually bring up rooster in a conversation, but cyclone makes it clear he won't be gossiping about the kid so maverick can find out because "that is your real goal here, isn't it, sir?"

(it makes iceman grin. he and cyclone develop a relationship of mutual respect. they don't ever talk about rooster. iceman gets maverick out of trouble all the time. cyclone doesn't understand why.)

//

when cyclone finally meets the infamous maverick, he's already not a fan. he sees this man as a selfish, arrogant pilot that can't step aside to make room for anyone that could knock him off this pedestal. when he asks maverick, "is that how goose's son sees it?" it's intended to provoke him deliberately. cyclone's heard all the stories from rooster about how maverick wasn't at fault, but he also wonders if rooster only believes that because maverick drilled it into his head so many times.

he knows rooster being one of the recalled graduates is going to be a problem. and yet.

(also, there's something so interesting about how similar cyclone & rooster's ideas for the mission parameters are. rooster wanting to fly the mission more slowly than maverick (bc he's stubborn, bc he doesn't want to take instruction from the man that tried to keep him from getting here, etc etc etc). and tHEN, lo & behold, cyclone changing the mission parameters so that they all have more time to reach the target just like rooster demonstrated that first day. are they both trying to do the opposite of maverick, yes, but are they ALSO trying to do the same thing bc their styles of flying are similar and that's why cyclone's taken a liking to rooster? who could say for sure. insert the 'i've connected the dots' post).

//

rooster's angry after the bird strike & wants to know why maverick stood in his way. maverick says "you weren't ready" and rooster wants to hear him say it -- pushes maverick to say that he didn't believe in rooster, but maverick doesn't say it bc that isn't why.

(rooster flips it. does it for him. "i won't make the same mistake.")

//

cyclone goes from "they know the risks, all of these pilots accept that" to "get them home, now." and it's an incredible journey, right -- it's maybe one of my favorite things about the film. cyclone warring with what he has to do as an officer in charge versus what he wishes he could do in order to keep his own people safe.

but with this whole pre-canon journey in mind, cyclone trusting maverick to be team leader takes on a whole new Thing. he's trusting maverick to pick the right team, to pick the right wingman, and to complete the mission. that mission now includes getting everyone home. it includes getting rooster home.

maybe he's realizing that maverick is the best chance at that.

//

cyclone glancing over to rooster fearfully when maverick picks him for his wingman. cyclone's voice breaking when he says there's nothing rooster can do for maverick, not in a goddamn f-18. cyclone exhaling heavily when rooster gets shot down going back for maverick. cyclone's stunned reaction when the f-14 is located with rooster in tow.

//

i like to think that after the mission, cyclone does his duties of going through debriefs and meetings and checking in on everyone, and then he goes to the medical wing to see maverick. he's Professional about it and Awkward As Fuck about it, but he thanks maverick for serving his country and, more quietly, for getting everyone home.

maverick, always more perceptive than the fucker has any right to be -- "i was getting bradshaw home one way or another, sir. i know you know that."

"yes, captain. i do."

he still doesn't like maverick much. but he's grateful.

and then he goes to check in on rooster. he's just as Professional and just as Awkward (bc i think that's cyclone's default setting when there is any chance of Emotion).

(see: turned to face the window like a doofus while he monologued about picking mav for team lead. someone make a comparison gifset of cyclone at the window & hilary duff at the window in the 'come clean' music video.)

he, again, thanks rooster for his service and tells the kid he's glad to see him back in one piece. and then, breathing out a dramatic sigh --

"fuckin' maverick, huh?"

and rooster snorts, wiping a hand tiredly over his face. "god, i know. guess i'll have to find someone else to complain about now."

"oh, don't worry," cyclone huffs, shaking his head. "i think you'll still have plenty to complain about with him around, lieutenant."

[andmakeithome]

eyes closed, watch the fall

The first time the day repeats, Maverick thinks it was all a dream. A horrible dream, something he’ll do his damnedest to prevent. He holds tight to Goose and keeps his own head on straight, vowing to keep Goose alive until he can’t anymore. The second repetition invokes a strange sense of unease and déjà vu. Just a nightmare, maybe, or maybe a recurring dream; Maverick doesn’t have any other word to describe it. The third is when he knows he’s in hell.

read on ao3

a/n: thank you so so so much to @icemankazansky and @boasamishipper for the betas!! this fic would not be what it is without you two <333

[compacflt]

idk if this question has already been answered or not but idrc, would your ice have considered it "talking about it" to admit his physical attraction towards mav? like calling him beautiful or genuinely complementing him. this goes for mav too

i do feel post debriefing ice would call mav beautiful openly or some sappy bs like that

love your writing 💌

anon i need you to know this ask was so cute it made me physically nauseous. i was sick all week thinking about how cute this ask was. thank you for sending it.

i actually had a couple drabbles where yes ice both pre- and post-TGM mission is like yeah im physically attracted to you, but it’s less like “oh my god you’re so hot 😍” and more like “i mean, yeah, you objectively look like tom cruise so it’s not like i really have a choice.”

but “beautiful” specifically i had not thought of, and it has knocked me off my feet and made me go feral/rabid/undomesticated for a few days straight, so i will be writing something about this. thanks.

[mcu-and-buckybarnes-things]

Ice: Maverick, quick! I’m leaving for the airport in 10 minutes and I really need to do this.

Maverick, starting undressing: 😳 10 minutes is hardly enough but come on babe!

Ice: No no, I mean my business trip will take 2 weeks and I need to shout at you in advance for whatever foreseeable dumb shit you’re gonna do.

[nixies-creations]

For @topgunalternateuniverse bingo. Bingo Square - Delivery Person: Hangster - Horse Ranch Owner Jake x Delivery Person Bradley.

Bradley loved the days he got to take something out to the Seresin Horse Ranch. Both to see the horse and to see the attractive ranch owner. One day, he swears, he'll work up the courage to ask the man out on a date. One day.

[marta-my-dear]

You know as much as I adore Icemav as a couple, I don't really have a choice as to shipping them!! because if I stop for a second and think about that scene in Ice's office and to know that they kept that friendship for 30+ years and the gentle way Mav says how's my wingman and that Ice protected him all this time I -

To have a friendship like that!!! Just thinking about it destroys me you know?

[my-top-gun-loves]

Rooster: Do you take constructive criticism?

Hangman: I only take cash or credit.

[29625]

Slider: Yo Dickhead, what do you call it when a short person waves at you?

Maverick: …What?

Slider: A microwave. *giggles like a maniac*