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#the avengers? more like the orphans
avengersalways · 1 year
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randomshyperson · 3 months
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I Wanna Be Yours - Heart Shaped Series
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Chapter Summary: Once again separated, Wanda calls and brings news that changes everything, whether for better or for worse, it's still too early to say.
Warnings: (+18), making out, shapeshifting smut, intimate and unprotected s*x, creampie, fingering (both), slightly power dynamics, fluff and mild angst, avengers fighting like a family, brief mention of violence and injuries, some humor. | Words: 7.087k
A/N-> Am I getting too addicted to writing Shapeshifter Reader? Maybe. What can I do, it's so fun. Also, this is kinda late 'cause I spend the whole weekend watching Orphan Black (it's amazing). I hope you all like this, it took me some time, good reading!
General Masterlist | Wattpad | AO3 | Series Masterlist
-&-
Limping and bleeding, you kept moving. The suspenders of your uniform were unbuttoned and hanging around your waist, and you grunted in pain as you leaned against the wall of the secure apartment, needing a moment to overcome your fatigue to open the door.
Cleaning the wound in silence was the worst part; your powers were messed up by the whole thing, and even though you tried to change, the blood kept coming out and you were forced to find a sewing kit and solve the problem.
Half an hour later, on the living room carpet still trying to stop shaking, your cell phone rang.
You thought it was Valentina, wanting to know if the whole thing had worked out. You almost cursed under your breath, this checking habit of hers always irritated you; the jobs always worked out, especially if the payment was made in advance. You were a professional, and the attitude carried an insinuation that you would fail, and if Valentina continued with it, perhaps it would be better for her to find someone else for the job. 
But in a way, you knew that all this lack of patience had other reasons: with every stray bullet, every insult, and more difficult fight, you wondered what was the point of it all. You remembered Wanda Maximoff smiling at you, kissing you, and started to wonder if taking all that risk was worth anything, especially when crime made it so difficult to have moments with that witch who wouldn't leave your thoughts.
And as if guessing, it was Wanda calling. You smiled immediately, feeling a little excited for the first time that morning.
It had been so long since you heard her voice. After everything that unfolded with the Avengers splitting up and being chased, and this latest intense mission which, despite being very well paid, made it practically impossible for you to visit her. At last, Wanda was calling.
"Little witch." You greeted as soon as you picked up, only to hear a heavy sigh on the other end that made you frown in confusion. "Wanda?"
She sniffled, and you ignored the pain in your body to sit up straight. "I have to tell you something."
"Is everything all right? Are you hurt? Are you with your friends?"
"Detka, please." She interrupts you. "Just listen, okay?"
"Wanda, you're scaring me."
"I'm all right." She assures you straight away. "I'm safe, I promise. But I have... to tell you something. And I need you not to freak out, because I'm scared and if you get scared too, I don't think I can manage."
You sigh uncertainly, but end up agreeing. "I'm listening."
It takes Wanda a whole moment where the only sound is her breathing on the line. Until finally; "I think I'm pregnant." Your immediate reaction is to frown in a mixture of confusion and surprise. You don't say anything because you don't know what to say, and your silence makes Wanda sniffle again. "You have to say something."
You open your mouth, only to let out a short, nervous laugh. "I know, I just... I don't know what."
Wanda sighs, looking like she's trying to control her emotions. "Okay, I didn't expect, well I don't know what I expected. You don't have to do anything you don't want to do, we, I can take care of this and then-"
"Wait, what?" you interrupt. "Wanda, take a deep breath, okay? Just give me a second to think." You struggle to get to your feet, and with the injury, let out an involuntary grunt of pain. 
Wanda grips the phone tightly. "Where are you? Are you hurt?"
You chuckle weakly. "It's nothing, I've taken care of it." 
"Detka..."
"No, that's kind of funny actually." You continue, stumbling around the apartment after your suitcase. "And I don't say this to worry you, love, but I've barely made it out of this mission. I'm losing my touch, I guess, or maybe I just don't want this anymore. And when I was shot, I just had this really sad thought that if I died on that island, no one would care. The shooter would probably be very glad, and my boss would be annoyed at losing money but would surely find someone else for the job. What I'm trying to say is that I had no reason to get up, but then I thought, if I die here, my little witch will see my picture in the news and I don't want to go without saying goodbye. Wanda deserves at least a goodbye. So I got up, shot a few more assholes, and managed to escape to this dingy apartment and sewed myself back together, all the while wondering if this is what I really want to do with my life. The answer is no, Wanda. I don't want to have hundreds of people targeting me and risk my safety for a handful of jewels or whatever other shit I have to steal from narcissistic billionaires scattered around the world. I just want to lie next to you, and watch you laugh at some joke on TV, or have meals next to you and kiss you, you know? And now you call me, to give me the best news in the world over the goddam phone. That's not how it should be." You zipper up a suitcase with a few changes of clothes safely inside. "My only purpose is to be with you, Wanda Maximoff. I don't want to have this conversation miles away from you, so just hold on. I’ll come to you.”
This time, you know she's crying with happiness. She laughs tearfully as she says, "I'll be waiting, detka. Don't be long."
"I wouldn't dream of it."
Not surprisingly, the hardest part was getting to Wanda. Being a fugitive in the majority of nations has its disadvantages. It took almost two whole weeks for you to finally arrive at the address Wanda texted you, and unfortunately, you were late.
Only a very angry black widow was there to welcome you.
"I'm going to kill that girl." Nat declared as soon as she laid eyes on you. You tried to wave but ended up jumping in fright when a man's hand touched your shoulder. 
Steve Rogers and his nomad beard chuckled at your reaction. "You shouldn't be here, kid."
Recovering from the shock, you grimaced and pushed his hand away with a pat. "Don't kid me, Mr. America. And this is a free country, I can be wherever I want."
Nat chuckled, a hologram coming out from her watch reflecting brightly in the dimly lit room. The Avengers needed better safe houses, not even in your first years of crime did you stay in such a crappy loft. 
"That's a great one coming from an Interpol fugitive." He sneers back, but you lift your chin proudly.
"And what's it like being in this position? Have you come down off the moral high ground or do you still think you're better than the rest of us, Rogers?" You challenge, and although you sigh, Steve surprises you. 
He chuckles, shaking his head. "She's just like Wanda." He says to Nat from across the room, who clicks her tongue. 
"Yep, same punk-ass attitude." Grumbles the widow, but despite the grimace, it sounds more like a compliment than a curse. "I can't believe Wanda thought it was acceptable for her to share the location with anyone."
You snort incredulously. "I'm not 'anyone', Romanoff! I'm her…girlfriend!"
Nat rolls her eyes, ignoring your protest and Steve steps out of the doorway to approach his friend. "So Nat, is the place clean?"
The widow forces a smile. "Apart from the shapeshifter intruder, yes. We've left no clues behind. And considering the agent's new agenda, we're going to have a peaceful few weeks for the time being. Wilson and Maximoff can stop moving for a while."
"Good news at last." Steve commented, but you cleared your throat.
"Any chance of me catching a ride to the place Wanda won't have to flee from?" You ask, and their expression doesn't give you any more confidence. "Okay, I'll wait for her to give me the address and I'll go by myself."
Nat chuckles incredulously, taking a step forward. "It's astonishing how irresponsible you two are." She says. "I know it must be hard for you to think of anyone but yourself, but you need to stop putting her at risk."
You snort. "The only astonishing thing here is your judgment, Romanoff. Acting like you were born a hero. Have you forgotten everything you did before the Avengers or Shield?" You retort. "You're no better than me."
But Nat snorts, nodding. "The difference is that I never had a choice. I was trained from birth for it, I didn't know any other life until Barton and Fury gave me a chance. You revel in chaos."
You don't lose posture, even as emotion begins to rise in your chest. "You know nothing about me."
"But we know about Wanda." Steve interrupts the conversation, as accusatory as the widow. "After everything that happened in Sokovia, she's our responsibility. Our family. It's not something anyone who isn't an Avenger can understand. And I know that she was vulnerable with the loss of her brother and that you took advantage of it."
You take a step forward, shocked by such a low accusation. "Take that back! I would never-"
"Oh, cut it out." Steve insists. "We all know about the kind of work you do, manipulation and lies are your specialties. Your signature is to deceive." He accuses, and for the first time, Nat flinches. Because the whole conversation could easily be handed back to her, and perhaps already has been by other people. "What's all this about? What do you want from Wanda?"
"Not everything is about work. Maybe I just fucking love her!"
Steve laughs incredulously. "Oh please-" But Nat interrupts the whole thing with an annoyed snort.
"That's enough, both of you."
The captain looks at her with some surprise. "Come on Natasha, you don't really believe she's serious." He is careful to lower his tone, like a private conversation between the two of them, an almost silent agreement about letting you go or not. Still, in that empty place, it's easy to hear what they're saying. "Weren't you the one who always says that love is for children?"
The joke is not well received. Natasha takes on a hard expression as she faces Steve. "Do you really want to discuss this, Rogers? When we're all risking our necks over your feelings for Barnes?"
Steve steps away dumbfounded. "It's not like that! We're freeing someone innocent! The right thing-"
"Would be to bring him to justice." Natasha interrupts without losing her tone. "The morally and legally right thing would be to bring the person responsible for 100 years of crimes to justice. There's no other answer, no other way around it. But he's family, and you're family. And that's why I'm here, and all the others who will stand by your side and go against the law and risk their necks, jobs, and safety. Things aren't as black and white as this right and wrong discourse and by now I'd hoped you'd be able to recognize that better, Steve."
He looks away, embarrassed and thoughtful. Nat sighs and takes the opportunity to approach you again.
"I can give you a ride. Just don't make me regret it, okay?"
For the moment, that's all Natasha offers in solidarity with you. It's the kindest thing an Avenger - excluding Wanda of course - has ever given you. It instantly makes Nat your favorite.
Steve doesn't accompany you two to the safe place. He says he needs time to think, and from the looks he exchanges with Nat, it's not hard to deduce that he's going after the Winter Soldier. You don't know where Sergeant Barnes is, but you have the impression that they do. It's not your place to question or monitor Steve Rogers' movements, so you just respond to the polite nod of farewell he gives you.
He takes the stolen airship, which is a shame because you love riding in those - Valentina's vehicles were never that sophisticated, but you've already managed to steal one of those from Shield and the ride was a lot of fun until you had to dispose of the aircraft in the Caribbean. 
Natasha gets a truck, which makes you assume that the location can't be that far away. It's an incorrect conclusion because she comments on buying train tickets.
You fall asleep in your seat. That must win you some points with Nat, who is surprised that you trust her enough to sleep because when you wake up from a very nice dream with Wanda, she starts small talk.
Accords, favorite crimes, and the morally superior attitude of some agents. Natasha giggles at one of your stories - about getting compromising items from government leaders - and you consider it a personal victory. She herself has stories about missions from her time as Black Widow which, if you don't consider the horror of her childhood, were kind of amusing. It's probably that you're the only person Nat can tell these things to without any kind of judgment. Equal to equal.
She's almost at the nearest station when, at the signal, she surprises you completely.
"I know about the baby."
You blink at her surprised eyes. "Did she tell you?"
But Nat denies it, without taking her gaze off the road now that the two of you are reaching a busier area. Even with the different appearance, the blonde hair being something to get used to, she has to be careful.
"They ran tests before admitting her to the raft. With all of us that they managed to capture at the airport, in fact." says the widow. "It was to categorize skills, check for injuries, but they ended up finding something else."
You sigh, also paying attention to the surroundings and any curious civilians who risk looking inside the vehicle. Everyone seems busy with their own problems, but you also check the streetlights for surveillance cameras.
"She must have been so scared." You whisper, and the guilt surprises Nat. You swallow dry before adding: "I should have been with her."
"What happened, happened. It wasn't really an outsider's fault."
You smile sadly, it's not exactly reassuring, Natasha doesn't seem to be very good at these things, but she's kind enough. She means that the Avengers' fight was something between them and that it wouldn't make sense for you to blame yourself for Wanda's imprisonment. Even so, you feel you could have prevented it if you'd convinced her to run away with you. But again, how different would the life you could offer her would be?
"When I heard about the Raft, she was already gone." You say. "I guess I should thank you for being so fast in getting her out."
Nat chuckles briefly, turning the steering wheel towards the streets beyond the parking lot. This car will probably be abandoned there.
"It wasn't me who got her out, so no." Retorts the widow. "You must have seen the fight on television, the way we were divided." She waited for you to nod in agreement before continuing. "The team that was left standing, Tony’s side I suppose, helped capture the others. Fighting with Steve. But when the tests were done,  General Ross got very nervous. He was afraid the story would leak, and the image of a young terrorist that the media had planted would turn against him, now that it was a pregnant woman being beaten and handcuffed in front of the cameras. His anxiety alerted the others, and well, Stark may be many things, but as soon as he knew the truth, he got her out of there. Vision confirmed the whole thing, he's got some scanning abilities or something. And I think they come up with some story and Vision was supposed to chase her after the vehicle she was in left the route, but Wanda was never found by Ross again. I know Vision and Tony help her. And then she was the first of us to catch up with Steve."
Natasha parks the car. She almost thinks you're busy absorbing the story when you pull something out of your pocket and hold it out to her.
"It was sent to me while I was in Greece. I guess this is my way of making us even." In your hand is the file of a job you rejected a few weeks ago. To track and recover a package of stolen vials, of a defector last seen in Morocco. Unknown contractor, but payment of half a million dollars in advance. 
"You should have taken it, the money was good." Nat commented as she grabbed the photo of the vials attached to a small one of her face with her hair still red, carrying market bags somewhere in Norway, the place where the last trace and possible suspect was seen.
You gave her a short smile, now that Nat had parked the car, she busied herself flipping through the old file. 
"I missed my chance." You mutter. "What about you, Romanoff? Did you miss yours?"
She mimics your smile, shaking her head. "No. This time, I finished off the bastards." She assures you, nodding. "I didn't get the chance to kill Dreykov myself, but someone who deserved it more did it for me."
You nod, respecting Natasha's choice not to delve deeper into that painful subject. You know just enough about the Red Room, and one of the few things is that General Dreykov was the leader and that Romanoff should have killed him years before. If she did it now, the mission must have been to put an end to the whole thing. 
"I kept monitoring Ross, after everything that happened. I heard you made a fool of him when you ran off alone from the team he set up for you."
She shrugged, a smile hiding the pride of her own abilities. From the car, you took only a backpack that she had prepared, and you weren't surprised to see Natasha take out a lighter and burn the files before throwing them in the nearest garbage can. 
Side by side and with your heads down, you walked to the station.
-&-
Wanda has a bit of a meltdown. It's the hormones, you're sure of it.
She jumps on your neck, expelling a sort of magical wave of excitement that makes you almost too cocky to recognize how happy she is to see you.
Natasha gets worried because the windows rattle and the last thing anyone needs is to draw more attention to themselves. She and Sam exchange a quick nod, and the widow mumbles something about the two of them heading out to restock supplies and you know it's a favor so you and Wanda have time to talk alone. The Falcon is confused by the whole thing, and you hear some distant questions along the lines of "Since when do we call the bad guys to the team" before Natasha closes the door.
Not that Sam Wilson's opinions are worth anything when Wanda pulls your face to hers and kisses you with all the longing she's been feeling.
It's passionate and intense and makes your heart soar. You break into a dopey smile like hers, nearly dizzy with love to the point of not being able to say anything. Wanda, as close as humanly possible, speaks first in a husky tone:
"You took your time."
The teasing makes you smile, and without stopping smiling, you start playing with the loops of her jeans. 
"Sorry, darling, you changed your address too quickly. You're getting good at this fugitive life, aren't you, Maximoff?" Your question almost goes unanswered when you decide to make a path of chaste kisses from her cheeks to jaw and to her neck. Wanda sighs affectedly, trying to keep her eyes open.
One of her hands goes to your hair, and she giggles when she feels it grow a few centimeters between her fingers. You nibble her ear before looking her in the eye and are greeted by dilated, curious pupils. 
"Why have you changed?" she asks quietly, her fingers still assessing the new length of your hair.
You scrunch up your nose, a gesture that has become habitual with the witch snuggled up to you. "I'm just following your friend's safety tips." You explain casually. "All I need is a cap and sunglasses and my Avenger disguise is complete."
Wanda snorts good-naturedly, knowing full well that you're making fun of the bad disguise she was wearing when you two first met. To be fair, Natasha has always believed that the simplest is the most effective, and so far, most Avengers have managed to go unnoticed with just glasses and a cap, no matter how ridiculous it may seem.
"Maybe I should follow her example." Wanda then comments, and although she seems to be focused on what she's saying, you're surprised to realize that her hands have reached down to remove your belt. "What if I get some blue highlights?"
Your laugh is a little hoarse and distracted because Wanda has thrown the belt into some corner of the apartment and is pulling you both backward, probably to where her bedroom should be. 
"I guess you either go big or go home."
She hums thoughtfully, perhaps making some mental note of the matter. You're more focused on the way she slips her hands inside your blouse and scratches your stomach, biting her lip as she feels your muscles twitch. 
Wanda closes the bedroom door with her foot, and you don't put up any resistance to feeling her lips on yours, hungry and impatient this time.
The kisses are too hot for you to think coherently, but you hear the last remnants of reason to hold a half-naked Wanda by the waist.
She, as breathless as you, looks at you with some concern and confusion at the interruption.
"Is something wrong?" Wanda asks hoarsely.
You swallow dry, your hands on her waist. "It's okay, it's just..." And suddenly, you seem very shy. You can feel your cheeks flushing, and maybe you should force your body not to have this kind of reaction, but you never do that with Wanda. You don't have to hide things from her. She looks at you expectantly, her hands caressing your shoulders as a way of reassuring you. "Hm, I was wondering, are we supposed to be doing this when you're...." And you looked down a little, at her belly, until Wanda understood.
She broke into a shy giggle, then looked up at you. "Oh, darling, you're so adorable." She declares, stealing a kiss before tenderly explaining; "It's still early, very early. I imagine it's only going to start being a problem towards the end, and well, I'm going to be a nervous, angry, horny mess by then and I think you'd better not dare deny me that kind of relief!"
You nod foolishly, panting that you will certainly do whatever she wants. Wanda's face takes on a new color, and she bites back a smile, her eyes darkening.
"Whatever I want? I like the sound of that." She retorts, leaning in to break the distance again. The next kiss is almost a shut-up, charged with naughty intentions. She sucks on your tongue and you practically whimper. It's such a submissive sound that it surprises you both for a moment. "Oh, moya lyubov (my love), parenthood has turned you into a whiny mess..."
You groan in a mixture of embarrassment and arousal, turning your face away. "And it made you quite mean, apparently." 
She doesn't allow you to be grumpy. She grabs your chin and pulls off your pout with a kiss that's dirtier than the last. You can only moan in response, and when Wanda determinedly gropes her way into your pants, not bothering with foreplay, and is greeted by a dampness so massive it could be embarrassing, it's she who breaks into a moan.
"Fuck, I almost forgot how damn hot you feel on my fingers." You even try to regain some control of the kiss, to get that cocky attitude out of your girlfriend, but there's no way to do it when Wanda sinks two fingers inside you, as deep as the position allows. All that rips through your lips is a throaty moan. Wanda giggles mischievously at your reactions. "I really can't choose, baby. Having you squeezing my fingers or buried inside me. If you can keep up the pace, do you think we could try the second one later?"
It wasn't really a difficult request to comply with - until it was, because Wanda was more insatiable than usual. The first orgasm on the armchair was not even close to being enough for her. Neither for you, to be fair.
Wanda seemed to have discovered something new - a dominant attitude that you both hadn't yet explored. As far as you're concerned, whatever Wanda wishes will work for you. You're there to please her, simple as that.
She seems to have no restrictions on the ways this can happen. With her fingers deep inside you, her tongue swirling across your clit or changing positions, and sitting on your face and coming messily until she's squirming all over the sheets.
She already came four times when you sense a change of attitude, and the connection between you and her is so intimate, that Wanda has barely adjusted herself on the bed and you're already hugging her from behind, your arms around her and your mouth busy marking her neck. She gives you a sleepy smile, looking truly ruined for the first time all night. It suddenly occurs to you that she'll tire more easily now.
You kiss behind her ear and adjust your hips. Wanda sighs as she feels the familiar hardness rubbing up against her ass.
"Don't tell me you don't have some energy saved up for your own challenge?" You tease next to her ear, grinding gently into her. The friction elicits heavy sighs from both of you, and Wanda grabs your hand that rests on her belly before entwining your fingers together.
“Just one more, dorogoy (sweetheart).” She whispers as she guides your hands into her chest. Your free one helps yourself fit into her, and the same moment you grope her naked breast, playing with the hard nipple, you bury your cock inside her. Wanda lets out a sinful moan, her velvet walls welcoming you with a breathtaking heat. You nearly came with the mere state of being inside her - the way she squeezes you takes you off orbit for a moment.
You wanna be gentle, she’s a pregnant lady for god’s sake. But it seems that Wanda expects just the opposite the second you move - She takes the lead of the movements, your hips serving as a lever for her to rock back into your cock. You have to bite her shoulder to keep yourself from coming, and her response is to hold your hand thingly against her breasts, a single request for you to keep stimulating her nipples. 
There’s no way to keep this peace for long - Wanda herself feels her body betraying her a short moment after, the deep strokes of your cock taking her to blinding pleasure now for her to do more than drool into her pillow. You found a sweet spot and she arches her back, a new wave of arousal dripping down her thighs. 
She struggles to catch a breath - trying to tell you she's close. There’s no need, really. You can feel the tightness increasing, and it’s impossible for you to hold it when Wanda finally comes. She cries out your name and her body goes stiff the next second. Your cum stays inside her, just like your cock. 
“That was… fuck…” She tries to form a thought, all tingly, with numb, tingling legs. You kiss her shoulder, slowly rocking your hips only to hear her soft protest. “Too much, babe.”
After so many orgasms, that’s not a surprise. But Wanda feels so tender, it’s so addictive. You move a hand down, to play with her clit between her fingers and she can’t help but whine.
“Who’s the whiny mess, now?” You tease and Wanda's attempt at response turns into a deep groan when you thrust into her powerfully, enough to shake the bed. She chokes into a moan next when you start to catch a rhythm. Your fingers, toying with her neglected clit almost bring her to insanity. 
The next climax comes faster than the last, and it’s harder. You have your face buried in her neck, your bodies entangled together as you move inside her. Wanda presses her face into her pillow when she comes, pleasure tears wetting the bed like her squirt. You groan against her skin when you fill her up this time, balls deep into her.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” Your rusky moans in her ear prolong her climax - she can feel herself squeezing the emptiness when you pull out. A mess of white cum coming out from both of you. It’s such a dirty sexual act to stroke yourself a little longer, to spread out every drop of your pleasure into her skin. 
Everything, every drop, belongs to Wanda. It’s all hers, because of her. 
Suddenly, she wishes she could do the same. Fill you up too, and own every version of your pleasure. This thought is written into her brain and pushed away so she can call your name. Your warm arms are around her before she can miss them.
“I should get you clean up.” You whisper and she holds closer.
“Later.” It’s all she whispers back, being defeated by her exhaustion next. 
You kiss the top of her forehead once she falls asleep, a smile on your lips before you allow yourself to give up on the tiredness as well.
-&-
If it hadn't been for the memories of last night and the sweet scent you knew, your natural reaction would have been to jump away in alarm at the soft caress in her hair. But you knew it was Wanda, and instead of running away, you sank your face against her neck and felt her giggle slightly, her heart racing before settling down.
She adjusted a little a minute later, and with a husky voice in your ear, whispered; "You have to get up, darling. We should talk."
Despite the soft tension that rose in your shoulders, Wanda's request was really just that. As a matter of course, it made you almost displeased that she would hold something like that back so as not to bother you. 
You hummed in agreement and placed a chaste kiss on her neck before pulling away. Wanda watched you expectantly, but you just stretched and pulled the covers off as if nothing important needed to be discussed.
She couldn't contain her own anxiety. "Are we going to talk now?"
You chuckled briefly, glancing at her for a second before looking around the room for your clothes. "I think we need to eat something first."
"Y/N..."
"I'm not avoiding the conversation." You interrupt her sincerely, to reassure the fears she can't hide from her eyes. You offer her a smile, your hands clutching the pants you've just found. "I'm just hungry. And I know you are too. This isn't an unpleasant topic, Wanda, it's just going to be difficult. For obvious reasons." You gesture softly, signaling to the hideaway room, so different from the fancy one she lived in in the tower. By instinct or not, once your pants are on, you also gently stroke the knife scar on your abdomen. Wanda knows exactly what you mean. "I think we're going to need a real plan. But I really don't want to come up with one on an empty stomach."
She nods, trying to smile but almost grimacing. Wanda is so nervous. All the passion of last night and the excitement of meeting you again are now calming down, and reality is coming back to her. You finish dressing and offer one last smile of reassurance before leaving the room in search of something to eat, and Wanda's immediate reaction is to put a hand over her belly.
She gasps softly. Her magic is able to feel life growing there. Her eyes fill with tears. 
Looking around, she spots some mold on the walls. She notices some of Natasha's stolen surveillance equipment tucked away in a corner so they can track the agents and breaks down a sob.
How could she let this happen? How could she be so irresponsible as to think of having children in such a condition? Even before, she no longer had a home. Living with the Avengers was almost a favor, an employment contract. And what kind of mother could she be in a superhero routine anyway?
And on top of everything, her child won't be able to meet her uncle either, buried in a land she once called home.
Wanda only realizes she's in the middle of an anxious thoughts spiral because suddenly a voice is calling her name. Your face comes into focus again, and she realizes that you're trying to help her breathe.
Great, a panic attack was all she needed.
"Hey, baby, it's okay, I'm here with you. Just breathe, okay?" you guided, gesturing for her to imitate your breathing. In a corner of the room, a breakfast tray smelled very good. Wanda tried to follow your lead, naming five objects she could see. She could see eggs, bacon, waffles, and orange juice. She could see a shiny chain with a small ring around your neck.
"Where did you get this?" She asks breathlessly about the item, and you smile pleased to see that she is coming to her senses.
"China, three years ago. I was working at the time, and I had a bad habit of keeping souvenirs." You say, stroking her hair. "It was in my pocket, and I put it back while I was in the kitchen. That's why you didn't get a chance to see it last night. Do you like it?"
She hums in agreement, having to close her eyes for a moment. You wait, wiping away her tears until Wanda has calmed down completely.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." She starts as soon as she can speak without crying. You mumble that it's okay, but Wanda keeps talking. "I just started thinking about how we're going to do this. How are we going to raise a child in this kind of life? We don't even have a home, let alone money. What if I end up in prison again, and they want to take my baby away and-"
"Wanda, calm down, nothing like that is going to happen." You interrupt but she shakes her head.
Just a second later, she breaks into a sob. "I'm so scared." She confesses tearfully.
You look into her eyes.“I’m scared too.” You confess in the same, a relief laugh escaping your lips now that you’re both being honest with each other for good. “I’m nearly petrified, to be fair. But it’s alright, Wanda. It is. Because for the first time in my life, I am not alone. I have you and you have me, and as luck would have it, a bunch of grumpy superheroes as well. We don’t have to be so scared, we got this. I’m here for you, sweetheart.”
She sniffles, getting shy all of a sudden. Her gaze goes to her lap before she finds your eyes again. And then she whispers: “I love you.”
You blink widened eyes at her, caught off guard. Wanda swallows, but then she smiles. She never needed words anyway; Your actions towards each other were always more than enough, not only for her but for the whole world to see exactly how much you cared for one another. 
“You don't have to say anything-”
“I love you too.” You cut her out, a bit out of breath. Wanda can feel her cheeks growing pink and it doesn’t help that yours are doing the same. But you giggle shyly then, letting her go to cover your red face for a moment. “Shit, why does that feel so weird? My chest is so warm…” Your reaction elicits a hearty chuckle from her.
“Perhaps you’re allergic to love confessions.” She teases, receiving a playful warning stare before you bring your arms around her once more, to pull her closer and on your lap. Wanda doesn’t waste time in pressing her lips to yours, smiling into the kiss like yourself.
You break apart to tell her: “Don’t get so cocky, but you’re the first person I said that to.” She hums contently, her fingers playing with the hair on your nape. You stare at her eyes for a moment, just memorizing every aspect of her face as if she would ever leave your mind, until both of you are scrunching up your noses, making funny faces at each other and breaking into shared giggles the next. 
You could marry her, right now at that second. Instead of asking, you just let out a deep breath and hug her again. The atmosphere of the room changed to a comfortable so intimate that for a second, you could believe that dirty hideout room was actually a home.
"We’re gonna be alright, Wanda." You whisper next. “I won’t let anything bad ever happen to you again.”
She sighs, breaking the hug to look at you. Her soft hands caressing your cheeks. “You can’t promise that, and it’s okay. Because I love you and I can do anything with you here.”
You kiss her briefly. “I can promise. I just did, the universe can fuck off, I’ll stand by my girl.” It’s your stubborn response before you break the distance again to kiss her.
For the first time in a long while, Wanda doesn’t feel so scared. She trusts you entirely, even if your promise is impossible and the future holds a nearly dangerous uncertainty. You’ll take care of her and she’ll do the same for you. 
She allows herself to push away real life, at least during breakfast. Sharing food in bed, giggling like two love-stuck teenagers. Making love in her bed all day, whispering sweet nothing to each other.
Until it’s time to get up and face reality.
Despite the evidence of your previous activities - matching set of hickeys and borrowed clothes - none of the Avengers pay any mind to that. Sam is clearly getting used to your presence, but he offers a grin at Wanda’s state before focusing on Natasha’s repeating security tips for him.
The widow is about to ask you and Wanda for a chat, you both can see in her expression that she wants to know how the whole baby thing will work out from now on when her cell phone rings. She steps out for a moment, muttering to whoever is on the other side - Wilson tells Wanda that’s probably Steve wanting to share locations and wondering if everything is alright. But when Natasha comes back to the room, she’s tense and serious.
She takes a deep breath and looks at Wanda.
“Clint decided to make a deal. For his family.” She says. Doesn’t take much explanation for you or Sam to understand that the Feds got him and instead of going back to the raft, he got himself some special conditions considering his service history. Wanda, out of surprise or denial, stares back at Nat with confused eyes. The widow sighs. “He’s not coming back.”
You don’t know everything about the Avengers dynamics, but you know about Wanda. And how much she cared for Clint since the man was some sort of mentor for her. That and well, Pietro gave his life for him so that has to mean something. Clint was supposed to take care of Wanda, not just turn his back on her like that. She didn’t need to join the team or this fight, but she did, at his request, and now he didn’t even bother to look after her, to make sure she was safe and well before taking deals that wouldn’t allow them to see each other for quite some time.
The saddest part is that Wanda understands it. Family comes first, after all. So even though it made her sick to her stomach, she wasn’t his daughter. Not really.
“It’s okay.” She forces a smile, trying to look “okay” for Natasha’s pitiful eyes. “Seriously, Nat. It’s fine. I hope it was a good one. Maybe Sam should try it too, he has family as well.”
Wanda is clearly taking the focus out of her, and because you can see her shaking, you take her hand. She instinctively leans into you, finding some calming comfort in your heat.
Sam scratches behind his head, a little unsure of how he became the center of attention suddenly. “Hm, yeah, but… I should wait a little. I mean, my sister is fine. She has nothing to do with any of this, so I think she can manage to be without my help for a few more weeks.”
Natasha merely shakes her head in knowledge, her attention on the witch pretending everything was fine. “Sure thing Wilson.” She mutters. “Wanda, I know Clint wanted to say goodbye, but he just… needed to make a choice.”
Yep, that definitely didn’t help Wanda feel any better. You offer Nat a look, but the widow is almost too terrible at the whole consolation thing.
“What I mean-”
“He chose his family. I got it the first time, Nat, I didn’t need it to hear it twice.” Wanda cuts off, very harshly. Hurt. “Like I said, it’s fine. I’m not a fucking child, I can understand why he did it. He was three kids and Nathaniel is just a baby.”
You try to ease the tension on Wanda’s shoulders by kissing the exposed skin of her neck. She smiles sweetly, still upset but appreciative of your gesture. The scene seems to make Nat remember something very important.
“Well, speaking of babies…”
Turns out the other Avengers forgot to mention that to Sam. He got very loud and excited.
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raineydays411 · 9 months
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My Father's Daughter
Part 9
Summary: You've been at the Wayne Manor for over a month.
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In some weird way you understand Christine.
You understand why she tries so hard to spend time with you while you're in her home. Why she begs for you to get off of your phone and cook with her. You get why she tries to make the other kids be nice to you. Scolds them harshly when they make snide comments underneath their breath about you.
Truly, you do.
You just...genuinely don't give a shit.
You don't care that she feels bad that she abandoned you for a completely other family and you don't care that she feels like she's losing time to create a bond with you.
You did not care.
Really, you didn't.
"Um,kid... you know I love you but I'm really not that kind of doctor" Bruce Banner said awkwardly over facetime.
You sigh. "Yeah I know B. You were just the first one to pick up the phone."
"Ouch." Banner laughed, " you know, you really are your fathers child."
You smile, one of the rare times you actually did nowadays. " How is the old man?"
You haven't been able to call him since he was paranoid whoever wants you would track your phone calls and find out where you are.
"Your father is even more annoying now without you than he ever has been in my entirety of knowing him" Banner deadpans, " He misses you a lot kiddo, we all do."
You smile sadly, missing your family.
It was hard, seeing these people you barely knew, with a mother you barely knew, stuck in a house you barely knew.
And the fact that they feel like a family. They argue and play jokes on each other. They eat with each other every afternoon ( Bat activities at night), Bruce kisses Christine goodbye when he goes to work. It was so domestic in its weird little ways.
But you didn't fit in.
They laughing and the jokes stopped whenever you walked into the room. The conversations were stale.
It was depressing.
It's not like they ignored you, oh no. That would've been preferable.
No half of them trip over their feet to try and include you in whatever they're doing.
Dick will turn blue chatting your ear off about whatever he thinks will get you to open up to him and Christine?
She will bend over backwards, frontwards, and sideways just to get you to acknowledge she gave birth to you. Every night she comes into your room and tries to talk to you about your life. And every question is met with a dull answer
"So any boys that catch your interest here?" " I don't know, I can't leave the premises"
"Were you in any sports? You look like you'd be a cheerleader like your momma!" " I was in mathletes and debate like Pepper"
"You really are beautiful my baby" "Thanks, everyone says I look like my dad"
It really was a struggle to get you to open up. Almost everyone at the manor had a hard time even starting a conversation with you.
Everyone except of course Alfred and surprisingly Jason Todd.
Alfred won you over as soon as you moved in. He vouched for you when you needed time alone and brings you snacks>
Jason is a whole different story.
See, the reason why it's so hard for everyone to talk to you is because they all refuse to acknowledge the elephant in the room. They're treating you like you were some other orphan Annie they decided to adopt and you just have no family waiting and missing you.
Jason doesn't.
In fact, it was him who caught you trying to sneak out of the mansion the first week you were there. Instead of scolding you or telling on you, he took you out.
"A cap and sunglasses? Kid, that's not a disguise."
"What do you mean?"
He took you to a diner he frequents, a tour of the rooftops to avoid people, and to the safe house he took over from Bruce.
"Tell me about your life." He demands, not asks.
You smile and tell him about it. Your life growing up with the Avengers, school and what major you're going for, that brief fling you had with Pietro before you had to move to Gotham.
It was nice. To be with someone that didn't want to change you. He didn't try to force you into forgiveness and let you vent. He even gave some pretty sound advice.
"You know, at some point you are going to forgive her." He says ignoring your indignant stare, " You don't gotta be bestfriends with her or anything, but that anger is going to either slowly consume you or slowly go way. And believe me, you want it to slowly go way."
And he was right in some ways. The longer you're there, the less anger there is and the more hurt replaces it. It festers inside you like some disease. The symptoms slowly leaking out every time one of them calls her mom.
Every night she comes into your room and tries to pry into your life as if she didn't voluntarily leave it, you feel it.
Everytime you see her brush Cassandra's hair out of her eyes, or kiss damian on the forehead. It's the gentle way she smiles whenever she sees Tim hyperfocused on mission reports, and the way she gets so excited whenever Dick or Jason walk through the front door. Hugging them and chiding them for not visiting more.
It hurts you that they truly are a family.
And after a while, it gets hard for you to try and say that you truly didn't give a shit.
Because honestly, you did
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Taglist: @stupendousnightmaretrash @opheliaas-stuff
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hubristicassholefight · 5 months
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Swordswoman Showdown Round 4/Quarterfinal
Kikunojo (One Piece) vs Brienne of Tarth (A Song Of Ice and Fire)
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(Better here in a "preferred character" sense, not "who would win in a fight")
Propaganda below cut
Kikunojo
She is a samurai and a retainer for the Kozuki Family, serving as one of the Nine Red Scabbards, a group of samurai that protect the Kozuki family and their country. She's a very skillful samurai, and she and her group managed to delay and hold off the main villain of the arc, (which was an almost insurmountable task for even the main character) and survived the experience despite her horrible injuries; She's canonically and openly trans! And she's gorgeous. And huge... She's 287 cm tall, which for the USAmericans in the audience is 9' 5". She's simply the coolest.
She’s a samurai and fights with a sword; tall trans woman <3
Legendary devoted samurai!; She's 2.87m tall, a time traveler, and not even losing an arm in the middle of the fight stopped her- she had it imediately cauterized and went back to the fight.
She's a lady samurai! Pretty and very skillful with her katana!
She is a samurai who was sent 20 years into the future to avenge the death of her lord; She’s so tall and canonically trans and I love her
She’s a badass samurai who fights for what she believes in and to help people. She is known as Kiku of lingering snow. She’s also canonically trans
She's a time traveling trans samurai, the only woman in a group of 9 legendary samurais; Her arm was chopped off by the biggest baddie so far and she continued fighting, isn't that badass?
One of the strongest samurai in her country; She's a trans icon
#kiku the greatest of all time#🐐#tall and gorgeous samurai lady#who is a trans icon#love that she is so tall that she doesn't fit in the image display#gets recognized as strong by the main character multiple times and proves it by being the most resilient badass of the entire arc#stands up to tyrants and abusers of class privilege#also helps break said main character out of the enemies prison and takes part in a rebellion against the corrupt prison staff#one piece#okiku#kiku
#kiku is canonically trans
Brienne
gets gifted a sword made with the rarest metal ever because she’s THAT good; she’s simply the best
Brienne is one of the top sword users alive in her day. She's descended from a man who's catchphrase was "I'm better with a sword." Better than what? You. Jaime Lannister. Loras Tyrell. Any five given guys at once. She has a fantastic sword that might be magic or cursed and is named Oathkeeper because that's what she does; I love her
Beat like 20 guys in a tournament when she was 19. Was given a magic sword. Won a sword fight against the premier swordsman in the realm. Very swordly; Very tall and strong. Holds her sword in high esteem. Accomplished with other weapons as well!
She's defeated multiple of the top knights in the series in duels. One such knight gifts her the fabergé egg of swords and she uses it to defend orphans and stuff. Got out of a bad betrothal by dueling him and beating his ass so bad she broke multiple bones. Honestly there's so much more she is the swordswoman of all time. to me; She's buff and ugly and 6' 5" and so honorable and kind that she inspires the guy who fucks his sister to yknow. stop doing that. literally gets mauled for the sake of protecting a bunch of orphans (with her sword). also she's 20 she should be at the club ‼️
One of the best sword wielders in Westeros, the author says he would pick her to defend him. Has a cool sword called Oathkeeper. Manages to go up against 7 fighters and take out most of them,. The only true knight; First off, talking about book brienne, they massacred show brienne, the show runners simply didn’t understand what she’s about.“ She had no chance against seven, she knew. No chance, and no choice” brienne had plenty of choice but she couldn’t leave people to die. The chivalric paradigm is rotten and corrupted, but here is Brienne, the one true knight, who isn’t even a actual knight! “knights are for killing”, but here is a knight who risks her life again and again to protect innocents! Bri IS hope, she is the light in the dark that shows that things can be better, things must be better. Fundamentally an idealist: “Winter will never come for the likes of us. Should we die in battle, they will surely sing of us, and it's always summer in the songs. In the songs all knights are gallant, all maids are beautiful, and the sun is always shining”
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amorphousbl0b · 2 months
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Arcane does a fun thing with its narrative Darkest Hour.
Or: yet another post about how insanely smart this show is and how absolutely genius its writers are (and how jealous of them I am).
For the uninitiated, the Darkest Hour is the moment just before the climax in which the heroes are at their lowest point. When the Avengers are scattered and Loki opens the portal in NYC, when the Falcon has escaped the Death Star but lost Obi-Wan, when the Fire Nation is set to annihilate the Earth Kingdom, when Frodo fails to destroy the Ring at the Crack of Doom. The heroes must confront their flaws and change for the better for a happy ending.
Arcane’s darkest hour is, of course, in Act 3. One might place it at the very end of episode 9, and that’s certainly where the story is at its most hopeless. But I’d contend it starts as early as the end of episode 8 and carries on through the entirety of episode 9.
After all, that’s when Caitlyn and Vi have separated, lost all hope, and Cait is kidnapped by Jinx. Jinx’s mind is fully gone and throughout the episode everything falls apart around her. Silco is losing control of his chembarons and may well have lost his daughter, the thing most precious to him, and is only barely keeping his powerful façade in line. Zaun has realized how ridiculously outmatched they are in a war with Piltover and the revolutionary cause has become almost impossible. Viktor has manslaughtered his assistant and may never be cured. Jayce has manslaughtered a child and finally realizes how quickly he’s losing his morals. Mel and her mother are fully separating and she is struggling with her warlike destiny. Sevika gets the absolute snot beat out of her and limps to an empty office without a boss.
So yeah. Lot of personal Darkest Hours going on.
“But what’s the interesting thing?” I hear you ask in my ear. I don’t know why I hear you. Shut up. I’m writing. Are you even real?
Excuse me.
Arcane’s interesting twist on the Darkest Hour lies in part of the trope that I didn’t mention. That’s in the villain.
Most stories with a clear-cut villain have a plot structure something like this:
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Whether things are going well for one side is inversely proportional to the other. During the Darkest Hour, when the hero is at their weakest, the villain is at their most dominant.
Wait… isn’t Silco the villain of Arcane? Not to be too blunt, but he’s having a shit time. Things are falling apart for him just as badly as for everyone else.
That's the trick. Caitlyn and Vi are suffering. Jinx is suffering. Silco is suffering. Jayce is suffering. Viktor is suffering. Zaun as a whole is suffering. There is only one party in the whole story that isn't suffering, that actually is benefitting from this horrid state of affairs...
EKKO AND HEIMERDINGER
Kidding. They're not really a part of this dance. A big part of Arcane's theming is that acting to help people without an agenda is simply more virtuous than fighting for any invariably-flawed nation that innately perpetuates the cycle of violence.
No, the side that is doing fine is the other that is conspicuously absent from my two prior lists. While the characters that make up its leadership are experiencing personal Darkest Hours, the organization itself is essentially on top of the world, having just scored a huge victory and getting set to bring the war to an end before it even begins. I mentioned how poor the situation for the Undercity looks, but not its counterpart.
Piltover.
Wasn't it so that Piltover started this whole mess? Didn't their oppression cause the revolt that orphaned Vi and Powder's parents? Isn't it their actions that drive Silco to ever greater extremes? Isn't it their normalized political backstabbing that causes Jayce to sacrifice his principles because that's the only way to get ahead? Isn't it their corrupt police force that lets Silco operate his drug empire with impunity?
Silco might look the part. He might be the most personally evil character, might be the one who causes the most misery for our main protagonists Vi and Powder.
But structurally, the shining city of Piltover, its political machine, and its Enforcers are the actual villains of Arcane.
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fsfghgee · 6 months
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Band of Brothers
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<___________________________________________>
It was a cold night, the Lin Kuei brothers walked through the trees of the hill's forest, focused in completing an investigative mission related to recent moves by the Tengu clan. There was suspicion that they had joined forces with sorcerers and had begun kidnapping children from the village to offer them in sacrifice.
As they advanced, the ground became rougher and hillier.
-We are still very far from their territory… - Kuai Liang commented behind his older brother, sighing tiredly after having been without sleep for almost three days. Following in Bi-Han's footsteps, he tried hard not to show weakness.
-Let's find a place to spend the night and we'll continue at dawn. - Bi-Han decided with forced indifference in his voice. He had noticed the tiredness in Kuai Liang's voice and Tomas' silence, indicating his effort in order to keep up their pace, and not worry his elders. It wasn't Tomas' first mission, but he was still very young and inexperienced, and his lack of innate supernatural abilities already left him physically weaker and vulnerable compared to his brothers.
-But we must continue. - Worried about Bi-Han's change of route, the pyromancer stayed behind, looking at his brothers. - Lives are at stake, we can't afford to…
-Silence, Kuai Liang! - Bi-Han approached the younger one, his hard stare and his stern voice, trying hard not to show his annoyance for the young pyromancer's stubbornness. - Father put me in charge and as your older brother, I say we will find a place to rest!
-There is a cave not far from here…-Tomas says timidly, remembering the place he had already seen there when he wandered as a child on hunts with his biological family.
-Lead the way, Tomas.
The fire made by Kuai Liang reflected in Tomas' blue eyes, the youngest of the Lin Kuei warmed himself sitting closer to it, listening to the older ones talk about their mother and how much she was missed, especially on nights like those…
-If mother were here, she would tell you to listen to me and obey. I'm your brother! I just want what's best for both of us!
-If father were here, he would tell us to continue without complaining. Our delay can cost lives, Bi-Han!
-And none of them are more important than yours! -Tomas looked at Bi-Han, amazed at how passionate he sounded. It wasn't difficult to notice Bi-Han's love for his younger brother, although always acting tough and distant, he cared a lot for Kuai Liang. And Tomas wanted to feel that same love from him, but no matter how hard he tried in training and missions to impress him, all he always received from the older man was coldness. And after so many years, his hopes of one day it would ever change were dwindling every day. - We will complete the mission, but I need you by my side in your best shape.
Bi-Han reached out to hold his brother's hand, who held his hand for a bit before cuddling. Lying down on his back, Bi-Han let Kuai rest his head on his broad chest. Watching Kuai starts blinking slowly, drowsy and comfortable with the cold emanating from his older brother. Both extremely familiar to the abnormal temperature of each one…
It was comforting.
It didn't take long for Tomas to see them fall asleep. Also drowsy, he crawled into the empty space on Bi-Han's side and lay there. Looking carefully as he approached the older man's cold body, careful not to wake him up, he lay his head on Bi-Han's chest and snuggled up to him in the same way Kuai Liang did.
It wasn't the first time Bi-Han felt the young orphan invade his and his younger brother's personal space. He would never trust Tomas and his naivety, always worrying about the safety of the clan and Kuai Liang, he feared that one day his good guy facade would break and he would decide to avenge the murder of his biological family, if he let his guard down...
However, in the middle of the night, when he felt Tomas start to shiver, he got up carefully so as not to wake any of the younger ones and brought them closer so that the heat of Kuai Liang could warm Tomas up. Telling himself how useless the orphan would be if he caught a cold. And as a leader, he would be responsible if something happened to him.
One more scolding he had to listen from his father would drive him crazy!
Since his mother's death, he hasn't felt the same.
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virginiaoflykos · 8 months
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What to read after Light Bringer? (Series similar to Red Rising)
August 2023 update!
Red Rising is my favorite series of all time, and since I first read it, I have sought series and books similar in both spirit and execution. Some of these recs are books I haven’t read personally, but have often come up in discussions with other users!
1. The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson
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Status: ongoing, expected 10 books in total, 4/10 out at the moment
Book 1: The Way of Kings. The Way of Kings takes place on the world of Roshar, where war is constantly being waged on the Shattered Plains, and the Highprinces of Alethkar fight to avenge a king that died many moons ago.
2. The Craft Sequence by Max Gladstone
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Status: finished, 6/6 books out.
Book 1 (in publication order): Three Parts Dead. Comprised of 6 standalone books set in the same universe, the Craft Sequence tells the tales of the city of Alt Coulumb. The city came out of the God Wars with one of its gods intact, Kos the Everburning. In return for the worship of his people, Kos provides heat and steam power to the citizens of Alt Coulumb; he is also the hub of a vast network of power relationships with other gods and god-like beings across the planet. Oh, and he has just died. If he isn’t revived in some form by the turn of the new moon, the city will descend into chaos and the finances of the globe will take a severe hit.
3. Hierarchy by James Islington
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Status: ongoing, 1/3 planned books out
Book 1: The Will of the many. The Will of the Many tells the story of Vis, a young orphan who is adopted by one of the sociopolitical elites of the Hierarchy. Vis is tasked with entering a prestigious magical academy with one goal – ascend the ranks, figure out what the other major branches of the government are doing, and report back. However, that isn’t quite as easy as Vis or anyone else thought it was going to be…
4. Suneater by Christopher Ruocchio
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Status: ongoing, 5/7 books out
Book 1: Empire of Silence. Hadrian is a man doomed to universal infamy after ordering the destruction of a sun to commit an unforgivable act of genocide. Told as a chronicle written by an older Hadrian, Empire of Silence details his earlier adventures and serves as an introduction to the characters and the setting.
5. Dune by Frank Herbert
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Status: completed, 6/6 books out
Book 1: Dune. Set in the distant future amidst a feudal interstellar society in which various noble houses control planetary fiefs. It tells the story of young Paul Atreides, whose family accepts the stewardship of the planet Arrakis. While the planet is an inhospitable and sparsely populated desert wasteland, it is the only source of melange, or "spice", a drug that extends life and enhances mental abilities.
6. The Expanse by James S A Corey
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Status: completed, 9/9 books out
Book 1: Leviathan wakes. Set hundreds of years in the future, after mankind has colonized the solar system. A hardened detective and a rogue ship's captain come together for what starts as a missing young woman and evolves into a race across the solar system to expose the greatest conspiracy in human history.
7. The First Law by Joe Abercrombie
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Status: completed. 3 books in the original trilogy + 3 standalone books + 3 books in the newest trilogy
Book 1: The Blade Itself. The story follows the fortunes and misfortunes of bad people who do the right thing, good people who do the wrong thing, stupid people who do the stupid thing and, well, pretty much any combination of the above. Survival is no mean feat, and at the end of the day, dumb luck might be more of an asset than any amount of planning, skill, or noble intention.
8. Cradle by Will Wight
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Status: completed, 12/12 books out
Book 1: Unsouled. Lindon is Unsouled, forbidden to learn the sacred arts of his clan. When faced with a looming fate he cannot ignore, he must rise beyond anything he's ever known...and forge his own Path
9. Hyperion Cantos by Dan Simmons (one PB’s favorites)
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Status: completed, 4/4 books out
Book 1: Hyperion. The story weaves the interlocking tales of a diverse group of travelers sent on a pilgrimage to the Time Tombs on Hyperion. The travelers have been sent by the Church of the Final Atonement, alternately known as the Shrike Church, and the Hegemony (the government of the human star systems) to make a request of the Shrike. As they progress in their journey, each of the pilgrims tells their tale.
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damianbugs · 4 months
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i spoke about this briefly before, and i think i have my thoughts more collected now to develop on it; i feel like comics which show bruce comforting his child self in flashbacks of the wayne murder in crime alley understand the purpose of batman a lot more than the ones that have him talking to his parents.
if you've been keeping up with recent batman comics, then you'll notice a theme of bruce getting the chance to talk to his younger self. the important part though, is that it is not because of time travel or some detached third party force — it's the young bruce in batman's head.
it's the him hidden behind the black door in his mind when he's fighting his nightmares —
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Batman Knight Terrors #2, 2023. written by Joshua Williamson.
— and it's the him tucked away in corner of his mind after being drugged and tortured with his greatest fears.
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Detective Comics #1075, 2023. written by Ram V.
after experiencing something traumatic, the one bruce sees suffering from it isn't himself, but the young bruce wayne in the alley. because at the end of the day, every hurt circles back to that night, to that boy, that he can't save no matter how hard he tries — because that boy never left the pool of blood he was sitting in.
i think people often attribute the existence of batman as something created for his parents. to avenge them, or to be the symbol that could have saved their life had he existed before, to stop anyone else from being killed in the same way. there's some truth to that, however, to me, the answer is a little more selfish.
i think it has always been for himself, but not the him now, but the him that is still stuck in that alleyway, waiting over his parents dead bodies. batman is a symbol of hope and reformation and justice, but at its core, batman is what saved bruce wayne.
as a result, the panels above have a very different feel to say, this moment when bruce sees an illusion of his parents in Superman/Batman #56, 2009. written by Michael Green and Mike Johnson.
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it's an emotional moment for sure, but it didn't quite speak to me the same way this absolutely phenomenal moment did in Batman: Blind Justice, 1989. written by Sam Hamm.
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of course this moment is a lot more cynical in how bruce uses batman to cope with his guilt, while the other moments focus on batman providing young bruce with the hope to continue that he isn't alone — the sentiment of batman being the one to pick him up from the floor and lead him away from the scene in a shared motif.
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it reminds me of that one discussion that batman is a victims power fantasy. his own fantasy! because bruce has — in order to have a semblance of control over himself — separated himself from this event that it is a completely different child at the scene of the crime. it's this fact that let's him reach down, hold the boy's hand and tell him everything will be okay.
this bruce wayne is a child, his child, gotham's child, thomas and martha wayne's child, an orphan to protect.
batman was made for children like bruce wayne, to stop them from becoming like him and for them to hold onto when it does — because batman is still trying to fix a problem that has an endless hole. he can never reconcile this trauma and let the boy in the alley leave, because that's not what batman was made for.
batman was made to protect the little boy, and in order to do that, he must remain in that alley.
there's still a bruce wayne who had to grow up, who learned to fight and love and lose again and again, a bruce wayne who becomes batman. a batman who then, tries effortlessly to fix problems and save people, who goes out everynight because if he doesn't, then that boy in the alley is left there for nothing.
then there comes a moment where he falls through the cracks and he's face to face with the child who can't leave and can't grow up and knows nothing but loneliness and grief — and batman gets to tell this child that life becomes more than just this alley.
the child is happy, if even for a moment, that batman is there. that's what batman is for.
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tiny-smallest · 2 years
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things I Did Not Expect from Journey To The West, a summary by an lmk fan whose wife is reading and sharing EVERYTHING:
Wukong is basically baby in the beginning? Like my god he’s just so excited and eager to learn??
The jokes about ‘ANOTHER MOUNTAIN’ and ‘ANOTHER RIVER’ Were Not Exaggerating
it really is a monster of the week format, which is neat; I wonder if this novel is where that trope started
Wukong is incredibly polite... most of the time
there is actually some basis in the book for things I saw circulating in fandom which is kind of cool
there is also some basis in the book for things I assumed were made tf up, like Wukong being a hero to the people of mortal realm as told in Macaque’s shadowplay backstory (found in the Slow Cart Kingdom chapter, where The Gold Star Of Venus tells the captive monks that Wukong is “a person of vast kindness” who “will avenge injustices, assist the oppressed, and comfort widows and orphans”
Wukong doesn’t dispute this, either, which means he’s actually done it
Wujing is very quiet at first, but slowly starts coming out of his shell and is kind of sassy sometimes! I love it but I wish he had more screentime? more time in his head?
the author really did just forget the horse is a dragon I wish that bro did anything at all
Bajie is... surprisingly awful for awhile, and in ways I can maybe see are supposed to be him acting out because of the whole ‘let me force you on this trial on pain of something probably worse’ thing, but it’s frustrating the novel doesn’t give him the same depth it gives Wukong by giving us more insight to his thoughts
speaking of which I’ll be honest, when I first poked into the lmk fandom and saw people who had ready jttw there, I was expecting their accounts of Wukong and a lot of the awful shit that happens to him to be exaggerated some because he’s their favorite and sometimes you just quietly inflate the facts to make your favorite less problematic c’mon we’ve all done it but- no. 
Holy shit, they were not kidding this monkey really does just get put through so much shit. 
The BOOK takes MULTIPLE instances to DIRECTLY SAY he’s in tears, and not the ‘noble, poetic’ kind of tears that a lot of old epics give to their heroes (minus maybe the Flowerfruit Mountain revelation in the WBS chapter) but like- very real tears. 
He has a few instances where he’s a bully and he steals some shit but none of that warranted what happened to him, there’s the MOUNTAIN AND THE FUCKING CIRCLET, there’s him taking blow after blow for Tripitaka (sometimes kind of rightfully, since there’s a couple instances so far where it’s his fault the situation exists at all), there’s him being set on fire and drowned and Bajie constantly turning Tripitaka against him in the beginning, Wukong is constantly saving them all from danger after they do something he told them not to or walked up to someone he told them was a demon, and like at least two or three times Tripitaka promises they’ll listen next time, or thanks him, and then PROCEEDS TO NOT DO THAT, there’s the fact that Tripitaka uses the circlet WAY too many times, and in situations where nobody’s life is in danger, there’s the fact that Tripitaka always resorts to name-calling when he’s angry with Wukong, there’s multiple references to Wukong looking sick and starved, there’s watching in real time as he internalizes the idea that he’s ugly and scary and his only worth is what he can do for other people- holy shit this monkey has trauma, and he really, honestly doesn’t deserve it compared to what he’s actually done.
like no seriously I don’t have all the time in the world to hunt all these quotes down but here’s one that happens when Wukong tries to prevent them from discovering a demon who had disguised himself as an innocent human child in trouble:   "You wretched ape! How villainous you are! You don't have the tiniest bit of kindness in you! Every thought of yours is bent on making mischief and working violence! I told you that it was a human voice calling for help, but you have to spend countless words to claim it was a monster. Look! Isn't that a person hanging on the tree?" Seeing how the master was putting the blame on him and also the form before his face, the Great Sage lowered his head and dared not reply, for there was nothing he could do at the moment and he was afraid that his master would recite the Tight-Fillet Spell. He had little choice, in fact, but to permit the Tang Monk to approach the tree.
like bruh that one made me straight up feel murder as an emotion
(also ‘Wukong isn’t the main character’ MY ASS)
in that same vein Book Tripitaka is just... so unlikable
like I see there was a definite attempt at making him interesting- it’s clear that some of his reactions are borne from the trauma of what happened to him right at the start of his journey, and it’s intriguing to me that as the novel goes on he outright regrets ever agreeing to this quest- much different than most characters on A Hero’s Journey, and especially given that he’s a monk on a religious mission
also worth noting that it seems the gods almost deliberately set it up so that he and Wukong would have instant friction
but my god the way he treats Wukong when Bajie is infinitely more trouble and disrespectful is just... infuriating; he’s downright vicious to him
I did not expect to hate Kuan-Yin so much but I super do fuck her
what happens to Red Boy is so very fucking DISTURBING FUCK KUAN-YIN
also fuck Erlang
THERE’S JUST A CASUAL GENOCIDE? OF FLOWERFRUIT MOUNTAIN? THAT’S LARGELY GLOSSED OVER AFTER WUKONG FIXES THE ISLAND AND KILLS THE HUNTERS?? LIKE BRUH THAT’S PRIME ANGST MATERIAL CAN WE MAYBE DIG INTO THAT A BIT MORE??
certain chapters I saw hyped up really are Actually That Good, including the White Bone Spirit chapter, the Slow Cart Kingdom chapter, the Red Boy chapter, and the (very bizarre) Macaque chapter
it probably wasn’t the author’s intention but Tripitaka comes off as super aroace
on that same note, Wukong says a thing or two that gives a range from which to pick your favorite personal headcanon; mine is demi
Bajie keeps losing it over women but also knows what Wukong’s ass looks like which is bruh okay
the tiger slaughtering I saw referenced really does happen just immediately after Wukong is freed, and then Wukong makes that skirt just... part of his outfit forever
Wukong really does utterly adore his monkeys it’s so cute
the Macaque chapter is indeed weird, but very good; also super cool to see what might be fiction’s first instance of the evil doppelganger trope
that part where the three disciples sneak into a daoist temple to eat all their food and hang out? is really cute, and I wish we had more moments building up to that kind of development in their relationships
but interestingly, we DO see developments that happen as a RESULT of this chapter!
Bajie is way less trouble, for one thing, making more jokes with the others and causing far fewer headaches
and Wujing is more talkative! as well as sassy!
as for Wukong, when Tripitaka starts panicking over obstacles in their way, he starts saying “we’ve got this” and “you have the three of us” instead of “you’ve got me” and “I can handle this.”
Wukong is disturbingly So Ready to show off how unkillable he is and I’m glad the lmk fandom has agreed this is a self-harm behavior because YIKES
the amount of times Tripitaka falls off his horse or experiences his soul yeeting itself from his body is both relatable considering the circumstances, and really frustrating
Wukong seems to agree actually because most of the time he’s surprisingly kind and cheerful when assuring Tripitaka but every now and again he snaps and says or does something mean
Wukong and Tripitaka’s relationship is by far the most explored one at this point (just finished the Macaque chapter) and somehow there is still wasted material THERE’S MORE YOU CAN DIG INTO BOOK PLEASE
the fact that Wukong and Macaque fight like feral cats to each location in that chapter remains hilarious and is especially funny without the lmk context (of which we still have none)
so much of this book explains so much about lmk Wukong but like we still need to know exactly how much of the book they’re making canon to their universe skjfnslkdjfnsdf
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hotreadingwitch · 4 months
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MADE TO LIE - the news
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TW: sexism (interviewers discussing the sex tape objectify Y/n)
Y/N 
Natasha’s shoulders tensed. 
“I can’t believe Tony made you and Bucky make a sex tape…” she exclaimed, her voice calm but her words angry, “he’s such a fucking pervert sometimes” 
“Yeah! And made you release it everywhere” Wanda added zealously. 
Y/n had been close with Wanda and Natasha since she’d become an Avenger. She’d quickly built friendships with the two women as they both had their own traumas to heal from, Natasha with her past in the Red Room and Wanda with the death of her parents. Over the last few years together they’d grown beyond friends, becoming sisters in every sense of the word. She trusted them with her life, yes, that was necessary as teammates, but more than that she trusted them with her past. Having shared more details with them than anyone else at the compound they knew things that even Tony didn’t.
“I couldn’t believe it either trust me” Y/n replied back to the girls, “He was so rude before too! Telling me to get over myself and focus on the mission…”
Though she was mad, Y/n’s mind couldn’t help but drift back into the feeling of Bucky’s lips on her skin the night before, making her body warm instinctively as if he was touching her right then and there…Distracted by her thoughts, she almost missed the funny look that passed between the two women in front of her.
“What?” She questioned, “I know that look—what is it?”
“You have to tell us Y/n…” Wanda hesitated before her mouth curved into a mischievous grin. 
Most of the other Avengers thought Wanda was fierce because of her powers but mostly innocent otherwise. If only they knew the truth…
“Oh God,” Y/n rolled her eyes, “You want to know if it was good or not?” 
Natasha stared at her with a smirk, winking in response. 
“Oh c’mon, you two are ridiculous” Y/n protested, biting down on her bottom lip to stop her oncoming smile. 
“Please! He’s so dreamy” 
“We want to know every detail…” 
“Fine, so—“ 
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
“Hey Y/n,” Bruce said, blushing, “you might want to come out and see this…”
Y/n, Natasha, and Wanda quickly reached the compound’s glossy, high-tech media room after walking through the bedroom-lined halls of the complex. Her neck prickled as she entered the space, making her head turn towards the source of the feeling. Bucky stared back at her from where he sat beside Steve on the couch, his legs spread open in a masculine stance as he listened to whatever the other man was saying. The rest of the team all turned to look at her once they realized that she was standing there. Her cheeks flushed. 
Bucky got up in a huff, brushing past her and the girls without a single word. It was as if her mere presence aggravated him. Her eyes must have reflected her confusion and budding embarrassment because Natasha held out her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze when Y/n took it gratefully. 
“Don’t let him bother you” Steve called out, instantly diffusing the knot of tension building in her stomach. 
Steve was another close friend of Y/n’s, definitely her favourite out of the guys. They’d bonded when Tony had first brought her into the Avengers initiative, saving her from the criminal life that she was forced to lead, under a notorious gang-boss in France. 
“Welcome to Good Morning America” a woman on the television spoke with a crisp accent, interrupting the awkwardness, “This is Stephanie Lancaster reporting to you with the latest gossip. Recent news includes the leaked sex tape of none other than popular Avenger Y/n Y/l/n and reformed mass-murderer, the Winter Soldier, James Buchanan Barnes”
“I can’t say I expected this!” another reporter chimed in, “What is a kind and respected hero like Y/n doing with a bad boy like Barnes? Remember when she organized that charity gala for orphaned children? What has he ever done that’s good? They couldn’t be more different…”
Y/n’s cheeks flushed again, this time with a spike of anger. 
A third cut him off then, adding, “I think they’re cute, and well, they’re obviously pleasing each other”
This caused the three reporters to chuckle. Wanda changed the channel but each one was the same. Y/n sat on one of the couches, letting the cool leather soothe the jumble of emotions that she was feeling as the gossipers divisively discussed everything about her from the stretch marks on her thighs to the way she moaned Bucky’s name. Interrupting her growing moodiness in an instant, she heard her voice ring out over the media room speakers, “Just. Like. That.”
“Oh my god,” Wanda said, shocked, finally just turning the TV off with a click.
“How can they even play a clip of that on television” Natasha joined in, her brows knitting together. 
“Well, it’s nothing everyone hasn’t seen already” Sam chuckled.
“Meaning?” Y/n asked, her head snapping back to face her friend.
Steve sighed from behind Y/n before responding, “Not only are they broadcasting short, blurred clips of the tape on most of these channels, you two are the number one trending video on Pornhub as of this morning” 
“Great…” Y/n stated, suddenly annoyed, “So every horny person in the whole country has seen me naked now?” 
“I haven’t seen it Y/n” Bruce came forward, the ever-respectful gentleman, “If that makes you feel any better…”
Y/n looked to the corner expecting to see Bucky glowering before remembering that he had stormed angrily out of the room. She sighed, agitated that she was taking the brunt of the exposure alone without the man who was supposed to be her partner in all this. Of course, Bucky was coming out mostly unscathed by the media, even getting a few ‘props’ from the more sexist networks and shows. Taylor Swift had sung it best, If I was a man, then I’d be the man.
Her slumped shoulders were a visible gesture that was not missed by none other than Steve Rogers. As Y/n stood and said a quick goodbye, walking back through the empty compound halls to her room, Steve followed. When she noticed him lagging behind her she paused, allowing him time to catch up. 
“Hey Steve” Y/n exhaled with a bitter laugh. 
“Hey” an apologetic look painting his perfect features, “Wanna talk about it?”
~
They soon arrived at her room. Y/n opened the door, revealing her space to him. It was different from Bucky’s. Where his space was cool and dark, hers was warm and cozy. It had crisp white bed sheets, comfy chairs for reading, bookshelves and large windows that looked out to the forest greenery surrounding the compound, giving her a sense of calm that she had never found living in the city. 
“How are you feeling?” Steve braved, his concern clear. 
“I feel awful,” Y/n told him honestly, “How could Tony assign this mission to us, Steve? Bucky and I are polar opposites. We might’ve completed ‘step one’ but who knows how we’ll be able to get through the rest of the plan if he can’t even stand to be near me” 
“I know Y/n, I know” he consoled before hesitating.
“C’mon Steve tell me” she smiled knowingly with an eye roll, “I know you’re dying to spit out whatever wise, old-man advice you’re about to give” 
“Look” Steve began kindly, brushing off the small dig, “I know he’s an ass. I’m his best friend Y/n, I know that better than anyone but I have to say you should give him another chance. He might seem cold now but he’ll warm up soon enough…How could he not when he’s with someone as amazing as you?”
Steve never failed to make her feel better and yet the pit in her stomach remained. 
“I just—” she started, “I’m scared Steve, this feels like it’s going to be the death of me…and I don’t know why” 
“I don’t know what’s going on with all this exactly either Y/n, but I know you’ll figure it out”
“Thanks” she sighed again, her mood slightly improved.
“And with Bucky…” 
“Yeah?” 
“Be careful” 
“I will Steve,” she placed a comforting hand on his, “You’re a sweetheart you know? But don’t worry, he can’t hurt me” 
“Right…” Steve’s eyes flickered with something she couldn’t decipher. 
He left then, going to exercise with Sam, leaving her typical comforting room cold in his wake and her mind racing. 
BUCKY
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. 
Bucky’s heart rate revved in his chest like one of Tony’s over-priced sports cars. He was practically bionic at this point, how come he still had feelings? 
“Motherfucker…” he uttered his thoughts aloud as wet droplets ran down his neck to his wide shoulders and below. 
The cool water was supposed to help stabilize his pounding heart not make him sink further into the thoughts that had been threatening to consume him since last night. Being intimate with Y/n had made something suspicious bloom within him. His chest tightened every time he remembered her spread open just for him, his cock pounding into her, making her wet, making her— 
Two hard knocks pounded on the door to his en-suite bathroom. Steve. He was the only one with a key to his room. Better safe than sorry until the Avengers team could figure out a way for the Winter Soldier programming to be permanently removed from his mind. 
Most days Bucky spent working out at the compound or hanging out with Steve and now even Sam Wilson, one of Steve’s annoying friends who’d helped them out with the HYDRA disaster a couple of years ago and later the fight between the whole team that Tony now jokingly called their ‘Civil War’. It wasn’t safe for him to be out in the world most of the time, though the compound’s therapist Dr. Janet Pashia did help him work through most elements of his past. 
Bucky turned the nozzle of the shower off, cutting the steady stream of water short. In a moment of intense anger with Tony’s high-tech gadgets, he’d vented to Steve until they had replaced the thousand coloured buttons with what he considered to be a much more practical handle that simply turned the water hot and cold. He didn’t need anything lavish or extra. In all honesty, after all he had been through, he craved simplicity over anything.
“Steve” Bucky greeted with a grunt, walking out of the bathroom, a fluffy white towel hanging low on his waist. 
“Save that grumpy tone for Y/n” Steve raised an eyebrow. 
“What’s that supposed to mean?” 
“You’re smart Buck, I’m sure you can guess how your storming out today made her feel”
Bucky released a low noise of pent-up frustration. 
“She just drives me mad! You should’ve heard her when we got assigned the mission Steve, her hesitance to do what clearly needs to be done pissed me off and last night—” 
Bucky ran a hand through his dark hair, pulling at the wet strands in desperation before continuing, 
“I’m a professional for fuck’s sake” he gritted out finally, “I wouldn’t be acting this way if I was working with Natasha or with Wanda” 
Steve was silent for a beat, “Well Buck, you’re not as ‘professional’ as you used to be and we both know it” 
Bucky fixed Steve with a glare that would make a lesser man faint. 
“What?” Steve shrugged innocently before laughing, “Hey, that’s a good thing. I like the new you—the new/old you. Whatever you wanna call it. I like that you’re a bit of a softie these days…” 
Bucky’s gaze eased but he let out a heavy sigh, “Yeah well, it doesn’t mean I want to be all soft all the time and there’s still that part of me that’s…cold, untouchable” 
Steve smiled gently in that wholesome way that Bucky was sure only he could do. 
“You’re getting better, that’s all that matters” he stated with confidence, “Look at me. You’re trying, more than I’ve ever seen you try at something in your life, getting checked out by all those doctors and specialists, seeing that therapist you like, keeping your mind as clear as possible. You’re doing good Bucky, whether you want to admit it or not. I can say that can’t I? I know you better than anyone” 
This time his smile seemed more hopeful. 
“Thanks, Steve” Bucky cleared his throat, putting a veiny hand on the other man’s shoulder and clasping it. 
“But Buck, with Y/n…try and ease up on her, she deserves it” 
He got up from where he sat, heading towards the door, when he turned to look back at his friend there was a knowing glint in his eye. 
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sanjisboyfie · 4 months
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๑ keep safe : more in common than you'd think 彡 skypiea arc begins (21)
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one piece x male reader
cause i'll be you and you'll be me 
there's lots and lots for us to see 
lots and lots for us to do 
she's electric, can i be electric too? 
『 prev 』
it took maybe an approximate 20 minutes before the crew began crying about how much they missed vivi. zoro and [name] were the only ones keeping some composure.
“don’t be whiny! if you wanted her to stay with us that bad, you should’ve just taken her by force!” zoro crudely remarked.
“you savage!”
“you’re the worst!”
“moss head.”
“three sword style!”
“hey, wait, luffy, three-sword style isn’t an insult,”
“four sword style,”
[name] laughed behind his hand, finding the annoyed expression on zoro’s face entertaining.
“what about you, [name]? aren’t you sad that we left her?” chopper asked, tears in his eyes, “or are you as heartless as zoro!”
“no, i’m sad,” [name] nodded, “but we’re gonna see her again so there’s no point in crying about it,”
“it’s a different kind of heartless!” usopp said in an accusatory tone, pointing a finger at [name].
“cursed orphan.”
“heartless [name].”
“you’re the second worst.”
“hey! wasn’t my take more optimistic than anything?!” he shouted at all of them, shaking his head as he saw that there was no use getting through their teary eyes.
“well, if anything, it looks like we finally made it off of that island,” a new voice spoke, not phasing the crew at first. but then [name] turned around and squinted his eyes at the new figure.
”wait…” he held his stare on her for a moment longer, lips pressing into a thin line as he began to hum in thought. her face was familiar…but he couldn’t remember from where he had seen her.
“enemy attack! enemy attack!” usopp began shouting, crocodile tears running down his eyes.
“here to avenge your organization, i’ll take you on!” zoro said in his usual aggressive tone.
“who is she?” [name] and chopper asked at the same time, much calmer than the others on board.
nami hid behind [name], usopp beside her before he took ahold of the sheathed sword that was resting on [name]’s back, “i’ll take care of you like i did last time! don’t come any closer, woman!”
“wait, who is she?” [name] repeated in confusion, smacking usopp on the head for touching the sword.
“who cares?! she’s that beautiful lady!” sanji answered, hearts in his eyes as he was rather excited about the situation.
the woman walked across the deck, using her devil fruit abilities to knock the weapons out of zoro and nami’s hand.
”i thought i asked you guys before to not point such dangerous things at me,” she said in a disappointed voice, “and you, how could you not remember our meeting when you were so passionate in killing me?”
“killing you…first meeting,” the crew watched as [name] mulled over his memories before he came to a conclusive: “don’t remember!”
“that doesn’t matter now! what matters is, how long have you been on this ship?” nami shouted at the woman, pointing a finger in her direction.
“all this time…”
“wait, you guys didn’t know she was on board?” [name] asked, looking at the rest of them.
they all whipped their heads around to look at him, eyes turning into angry slits as they shouted all in unison, “don’t tell me you knew she was here!”
[name] put his hands up in surrender, “well listen! i didn’t know it was her, but i knew someone else was on board with us! i thought she was someone luffy brought along with us…also i don’t even know who she is, so don’t get so mad at me!”
the crew couldn’t even begin to be that angry with [name] as they realized his reasoning wasn’t far off from reality. luffy was definitely a captain that’d drag new crew members onto the ship without telling anyone. so they all lowered their angry gazes from [name] and instead refocused on the woman.
“what’re you trying to do, baroque works?!”
the lady ignored nami and looked at luffy, “monkey d. luffy, you haven’t forgotten what you did to me, have you?”
“wait, can we at least get an introduction?” [name] pathetically asked, his request falling onto deaf ears.
“hey, you! don’t lie, i didn’t do anything to you!” luffy cried out, fighting against the grip sanji had on his collar. a childish whine was in his voice as he looked at the woman.
“yes, you did. what you did to me was unbearable. take responsibility,”
“you don’t make any sense! what do you want me to do?!”
“let me join your crew.”
everyone, minus zoro and m/n, shouted in surprise. well, sanji shouted in infatuation. everyone else was just baffled to hear such a forward request. [name] was still hung up on figuring out her identity, the piercing blue eyes she had were definitely memorable. but he could think of where he had seen them.
“you made me live when i wanted to die. that’s your crime.” she revealed, making sanji calm down and luffy hum in thought. “there’s no place for me to go or go back to. so let me stay on your ship,”
“oh! i see, then i guess we have no choice…okay!”
“good job, luffy, every life is valuable. you’re a good captain,” [name] praised, roughly patting the captain on the back.
“hold on a second, it can’t be that easy!” nami shouted at the duo in annoyance.
“don’t worry, she’s not a bad person!” luffy said in a confident tone, smiling so wide, but it didn’t ease the entire crew’s worries at all.
“if you say so!”
“and you! don’t be so willing to let this woman join us! don’t you remember?! she’s the one that wanted vivi dead!” nami reminded [name], shaking him back and forth. “she was crocodile’s right hand woman! you can’t trust her so easily,”
“what’s her name even?” [name] asked, allowing himself to be throttled back and forth by nami.
“nico robin,” the woman replied, eyes set on focusing on [name]. “you know, we have more in common than you’d think, [name]. i have a feeling we will get along just fine,”
“nico…robin,” he said her name slowly, looking at her with his eyebrows furrowed. nami stopped shaking him, seeing the gears turning in his head and praying that they were turning in favor for kicking her off of the boat.
”yeah, we will get along just fine,” [name] finalized after thinking to himself, “but if you try anything on this ship to endanger this crew, i’ll throw you over this ship and watch you drown to your death,”
“scary!” usopp shouted from behind the mast.
but [name]’s words only made robin laugh and say, “then, i look forward to it,”
“alright, well, this begs for a cup of coffee,” [name] gently pushed away from nami, promising that he’d come back with a cup for her as well.
[name] carefully brewed a cup of coffee for two, bringing it back on deck and blinking several times when he saw that there was debris falling from the sky. the ship began shaking as pieces fell in the ocean and the crew screamed in shock when a huge ship also fell right next to them.
he kept himself steadied on the deck, moving his arms with the motion of the ship so that the cups of coffee wouldn’t spill over. when the sea around them finally calmed down, he walked onto deck with everyone else.
”who did that?” he asked, sliding the cup over to nami who slapped his hand away.
”it’s not appropriate to drink coffee after such a terrifying experience!” she scolded, but [name] easily sipped the hot drink and hummed in delight.
“i’ll take it off your hands, cursed one,” robin’s voice spoke up from the side, making [name] chuckle.
“here, but drop that stupid name,” he handed it over to her without issues and watched in delight as she took the first sip, “how is it? i’m good, right?”
she nodded her head, taking another sip, “it does taste really good, i’m familiar with the beans you used. you took some from alabasta?”
he hummed in confirmation, looking to the rest of the crew as he sipped more of his favorite drink, “so what was all that?”
”does it look like we’d know?” zoro snarkily replied back, making [name] stick his tongue out to him.
“doesn’t hurt to ask, you negative swordsman,” [name] said in spite, not appreciating the attitude.
as the crew was trying to figure out why ship remains were all falling from the sky, nami had noticed that the log pose on her wrist was pointing straight upwards.
“what’re we gonna do?! our log pose is broken!” she announced, making everyone look at the compass-like device on her wrist. oddly, the needle was pointing directly upwards rather than in its usual horizontal way.
“that’s not it. it was updated by an island with a stronger magnetism,” robin corrected her, looking at the device, “if the log pose needle is pointing upwards, that means that there is a sky island it had locked onto.”
“sky island?!” [name] cried out, stars in his eyes as he imagined the scenary. “in the clouds?! are you serious, robin!?”
she chuckled at his excitement before continuing, “more precisely, there’s a sea that’s floating in the sky that so happens to have an island.”
once again, [name] cried out at the crazy idea, stars in his eyes as him and luffy began jumping in a circle. their shouts of excitement easily drowned out those of usopp and chopper, who were fearing for their lives.
“i’m getting more and more confused,” sanji sighed.
“what’s there to be confused about? robin explained it clearly, idiot cook!” [name] said in a very cheerful tone, his eyes turning to crescent, “island in the sea sky, island in the sea sky!”
“shut up!”
“yay! there’s a sea with an island in the sky, let’s go!!” luffy cheered, pointing up at the sky.
robin sighed and used her ability to cover luffy and [name]’s screaming mouths, so she could continue explaining in peace.
“to be honest, i’ve never seen the sky island, nor do i know much about it.”
“yeah! it’s impossible for an island or a sea to float in the air!” nami said, happy to hear a voice of reason over [name] and luffy’s childish babbling. “so the log pose must be broken!”
“our concern right now should not be the log pose, it should be how we get to the sky,” robin corrected once more, “no matter what weird situations this ship gets caught up in, or how panicked we get, we must not doubt the log pose. this is an iron clad rule!”
“so we are going to the sky island!” [name] said victoriously, finishing his cup of coffee and licking his lips, “nami, get us there!”
“stop ordering me around like you’re the captain!”
“nami, let’s go to the sky!!” luffy chimed in.
“idiot captain, we can’t just go to the sky!” sanji butted in, kicking down both [name] and luffy.
“well, let’s figure it out!” [name] walked over to the remains of a coffin on the deck, pulling on the skeletal figure out of the box, “can’t these guys give us some answers? maybe the ship over there too?”
“don’t just casually touch a dead person’s skull like that!” usopp and chopper cried out in fear, seeing [name] so nonchalantly prodding and poking at the bone.
“[name] has a point. we can dig some clues up from these remains, as well as the ship over there,” robin said, walking over and gingerly taking the skull from [name]’s hands.
“i call going to the ship,” [name] cheered, jumping over the railing without waiting for approval and swimming his way over to the wrecked ship.
“hey! no fair, [name]!! you’re hogging all the adventure to yourself!” luffy shouted from the deck, jumping up and down in annoyance.
“wait, i wanna see what’s over there too!!” usopp cried out in frustration. he grabbed ahold of luffy, who launched them over the side of the ship and to the wreckage.
“exploration!” the two shouted into the air, roughly landing on the wooden planks.
[name] was already on deck and going through old treasure chests with an unimpressed look on his face. most of the stuff was already emptied out or there was nothing worth while.
but finally, he hit the jackpot. he excitedly called out to luffy and usopp, holding up a piece of parchment with a proud grin.
“look! this just proves that it’s real! there is a real sky island and its called — skypiea!”
“amazing! let’s bring it back to the deck — oh, but i can’t move, i feel weak,” luffy suddenly collapsed into [name]’s arms and the cold rush of water hitting his legs made him realize that the ship they were on was beginning to sink.
“shit!” he cursed, bringing luffy to piggy back on his shoulder and grabbing usopp by his collar. he shot them forward very quickly, harshly landing on deck and spitting out some sea water he accidentally swallowed.
he weakly held up the parchment, grinning when he saw it was still in tact.
”see! see! it’s real!!!” luffy cheered, still collapsed on [name]’s back.
“alright, the sky island exists! it’s a dream island!” chopper and usopp began cheering together, creating a dance line in celebration.
“don’t get too carried away! this could be a fake, there are a ton of fake maps out there anyway,” nami chided the celebrating trio, making [name] face palm at her blunt attitude. she seemed to realize her mistake when she saw the absolutely horrified looks that luffy, chopper, and usopp were giving her.
“nami didn’t mean that, right nami?” [name] said, trying to calm the group’s depression.
“y-yeah! there’s definitely a possibility it’s real…”
luffy and nami began arguing back and forth with one another and [name] tried to block out the sound of their screaming. instead he opted in searching the sky, as if there were clues of the sky island right above them.
robin seemed to take note of his daydreaming and engaged him in conversation, “are you willing to go to the sky island, [name]?”
he looked at her with a smile and nodded his head, “wouldn’t that be so fun! no one would even believe us when we tell them,” he laughed to himself, thinking of being able to boast of going to skypiea. “they’ll all think we’re insane!!”
“well, this bunch already can accomplish that without even needing to go to an island in the sky,” robin mused, watching the scene unfold in front of them. the two were now sitting on the stairwell and conversing as if they were the only two on deck.
“i wanted to get the chance to talk to you alone,” [name] said suddenly, a serious look on his face, “nico robin, i’m sorry about what happened to you,”
the woman blinked, not showing her surprise in [name] knowing about her past. she didn’t expect him to know simply because he was a good amount of years younger than her. but with the amount of people on the crew, there was bound to be someone that was aware.
“were you the one that made it happen to me? then there are no need for apologies,” she spoke softly, smiling when she saw that he was still frowning.
“it’s just…no child deserves that,” he says after a couple of moments of silence, “children that have to suffer, tch, it makes my blood boil thinking about what they’ve done to you.”
robin waved her hand, “you weren’t there and we barely know each other, why the sudden cause for concern about this?”
[name] shrugged, “like i said, no child should have to go through that. no matter how old you are now, it doesn’t change the stuff you had to endure as a child,”
she felt a part of her heart thaw at his confession. [name] was being truly sincere with his words, she could tell. and it made her feel comforted that someone was being so nice to her amidst all the changes. but, she couldn’t indulge on this feeling for so long. so she simply smiled once more, gazing at him knowingly.
“i do suppose we share an experience in that aspect, huh?”
[name] spoke carefully, “more in common than you think - wasn't that what you said earlier?”
and not wanting to leave the man in such a saddened state, robin poked his side with a sprouted hand and laughed at his shocked expression, “well, it’s best not to dwell on things like that for so long,”
“of course, of course!” [name] cheerfully replied, his expression doing a complete shift and showing his usual optimistic side.
internally, robin wondered how [name] could be so carefree. she didn’t doubt that he shared some similar troubles. so it baffled her to see him so carefree and uncaring. but she decided that it could be a conversation for a later time, or not even a conversation at all.
[name] and robin’s intimate conversation coming to an end made them turn their attention back onto the rest of the crew. while they were temporarily in their own world, luffy, sanji, and zoro were sent down below the sea to “salvage” the ship. so when they looked back on deck, the only people of the straw hat crew were nami, usopp, and chopper.
then looking to his left he realized, there was an unknown huge ship that was next to them and it seemed that there was a monkey leading them.
“monkey.” he said simply, pointing a finger at the creature and looking at the rest of the crew in confusion, “hey, guys, who is that?”
“as if we’d know,” nami sighed in annoyance.
“did you just say i was very monkeyful?! hehe, thank you for taking note of my ruggedly good looks,” the creature said, making [name]’s eyes widen in shock.
“why can it speak?! it’s not going ooh-ooh-aah-aah!! lame!!”
“is that really what you should be focusing on right now? those guys could be trouble,” usopp came running over and hiding behind [name]’s figure, pointing a finger at the ship, “go on and sink them before they can get the chance to attack us,”
“what obscene power do you think i have?” [name] sweat dropped, feeling usopp’s legs shake behind him. “i can’t just do that to these people — they haven’t done anything to us!”
”not yet they haven’t!”
“what do you guys think you’re doing on our turf though?! even though you called me handsome just now doesn’t mean i’ll let this slide!”
“who called who handsome?” the crew said in unison, bored looks on their faces as they didn’t understand what the monkey was talking about at all.
“your turf?” robin called out, taking the initiative to get answers out of the monkey.
“yeah! everything in this turf is mine to salvage! it’s all mine! so explain to me why you were here, are you planning on taking my treasures?!”
nami and usopp looked nervous, beginning to shake and sweat where they stood.
“oh, if you’re gonna salvage it, could you show us?”
the scared duo looked at [name] as if he were out of his mind, turning their heads slowly to shout at him. but then they heard the monkey on board the other ship begin laughing to his heart’s content, as if [name] told a good joke.
“are you so flattered by my good looks you wish to accompany me in salvaging this ship, pursuing this career together for the rest of our lives?!”
the crews’ jaws dropped as they saw the flattered and blushing expression on the monkey’s face. [name] smiled, seeing that this was the perfect excuse to buy zoro, sanji, and luffy time — since they were the ones underwater and actually salvaging the ship.
“yes, yes, handsome man!! please! show me and i’ll consider sailing with you and joining your salvaging crew!”
“well, since you asked so nicely!!”
“i can’t believe that that worked!!” usopp and nami said in a hushed shout. “there’s no way this guy is that stupid!”
“hey! who knows, if he finds us some really great treasure, i’ll elope away with him!” [name] said jokingly, making the rest of the crew look at him with deadpan faces as if to say, “that’s not even a funny joke.”
the monkey on the other ship began to show off his abilities on salvaging, whatever that entailed. [name] was only pretending to pay attention. his eyes were scanning the water to try and see how close or far the three of their crewmates were.
he clicked his tongue in annoyance when he saw that he couldn’t even sense their presence, that’s how far down they were.
as the crew now had no other option but to watch the others salvage the ship, they just stood along the railing and made sure to keep an eye out for any of their three crewmates.
then suddenly, luffy shouted about something happening below water and the entire crew tensed up as his voice echoed on their end. there was a tube that connected them, auditorily, to sanji, zoro, and luffy underwater. this caught the attention of the salvaging pirates, who turned their heads at the unfamiliar voice.
usopp slapped his hand down onto the speaker and [name] took the reigns in distracting the monkey, “say what’s that monkey doing over there? does it do something cool, mr. monkey?” he was pointing at their ship's mascotted head, a big body of a monkey. 
this was effective in making the monkey blush and direct his attention elsewhere, “please, simply call me masira, mr. monkey is too formal for future lovers! oh! and that monkey there, i’ll just show you what it can do!”
[name] grinned, high fiving nami behind him as he successfully got masira off of their backs. then masira started huffing air into some sort of tube and the crew began to piece everything together.
“ah, so they start filling it up with air to make it rise to the surface-”
“help!!! help! there’s someone on the ship!!” an unfamiliar voice echoed from below the water surface, making the crew get on guard again.
“i bet it was zoro’s dumbass that started attacking them,” [name] said to himself, easily blaming the swordsman. masira jumped under water and [name] eagerly waited for who would emerge from the water.
it took a long while before anything happened, but the next thing to shock them wasn’t even anyone from their crew coming back up from the water.
instead it was a giant turtle. and [name] felt stars in his eyes show as he saw its huge size.
“that’s so cool, can we use it as a boat instead?! say, robin, didn’t you use a turtle before, we can use one again!!”
robin chuckled, finding [name]’s childish nature amusing, “i don’t think this one would listen as well as mine back then — it’s too big to control,”
“hey! you two, don’t talk so casually when something as weird as that is in front of us!”
“but it’s just a big turtle,” [name] whined at nami’s scolding, then he grinned devilishly, “alright, it’s decided! scaley! your name is scaley!!”
“don’t go naming the giant turtle, idiot!” nami shouted once more. “aren’t you worried for your crewmates?! they just got eaten by that thing!!”
“huh? they did?”
”pay more attention, won’t you?!” usopp cried out, crocodile tears running down his face.
“oh, i’ll take care of it then,” [name] simply said with a shrug. just as he was about to get the rest of their crew back, the day light had suddenly turned dark. this made the entire crew stop and focus their attention on the switch.
“hey, who turned off the lights?” [name] asked no one in particular, looking around and seeing that everything around them was pitch black.
out of nowhere, a figure broke out form the water and crashed onto their deck. unfortunately, it was more like they crashed into [name] as he was standing right in the spot where it landed.
luffy, all wrapped up in some fabric, was laying on top of [name] and he wasn’t even conscious. soon following, sanji and zoro jumped onto deck.
”why did it have to be me?” [name] sighed, pushing luffy off him and coughing as he tried regaining his breath. nami came running over, slapping their captain several times over and demanding answers to questions he wasn’t even conscious to hear.
“set sail! let’s hurry and get out of here while we still can!” zoro huffed, a huge package resting on his back.
sanji, who had the same amount of loot behind him, added in, “he’s crazy — he must of been one of the sea animals.”
the two began finishing each others’ sentences in explaining what happened underwater. then just as they were about to set sail, the monkey from before had popped up out from underwater and demanded they give him back his treasure.
at the sight of his imposing figure so close, chopper ran away from the front and hid behind [name]’s leg. but [name] didn’t look at all intimidated. instead, he was too focused on the sky and what was making it so dark.
figures of enormous size were all standing on the horizon. his eyes were blown completely wide as he took in their sheer size and tried to stay calm when he saw that one of them began moving.
“everyone start rowing, now!!” [name] shouted, being one of the first to snap out of their stupor. the rest of the crew that were capable of rowing got ahold of the oars and started frantically trying to get out of the giant’s sight. after their rowing efforts and [name] directing the currents beneath their boat vey minimally, they were able to get away - somehow. 
“what the fuck was that?” [name] breathed, resting his hand on his chest to calm his racing heart. he was collapsed on the deck and the others were debriefing on what just happened.
after kicking out masira when they realized that he was still on board, the discussion turned into what they should do now that they had no clues as to where they were.
robin saved the day, though, when she presented an eternal pose of an island named “jaya.” after arguing back and forth, mainly between nami and luffy, they decided to start their journey to jaya, get as much information as quick as possible, and then go to sky island.
“thanks for the takoyaki, sanji!” [name] proudly proclaimed, showing off the octopus that he had stolen off from robin and nami’s plates.
before the chef could kick some sense into him, he jumped up the stairwell and hid behind zoro.
“don’t use me as some shield!” the swordsman grunted, but he didn’t move from his position in front of [name]. instead he challengingly stared down at the blonde chef, who was glaring at the both of them.
“if you’re gonna wanna get to me, sanji, you have to fight zoro!” [name] shouted, inciting a fight between the two almost instantly. the two began bickering and [name] was forgotten.
and he hummed in delight when he felt the food warm his once empty stomach.
“yummy!” he cried out, showing it off to robin so she could take one as well. she grinned, thanked him gently, and took one off of his plate. it was hers to begin with, but she wasn’t interested in eating it.
but seeing [name]’s childish grin staring her down as an invitation, she couldn’t help but indulge the man. and when she hummed in delight at the food, [name] grinned and nodded his head even faster, “so yummy, right? here, have the rest! i’m gonna steal some of luffy’s!!”
robin took the plate off of his hands and watched as the h/c haired man ran across the ship shouting for luffy to hand over his food. and now two fights were happening on deck, between sanji and zoro and then luffy and [name] wrestling one another.
it seemed that no matter what was going on, like escaping from giant mystery shadow figures, the merry was always bursting with life. robin sighed, taking another takoyaki into her mouth and wondering how the rest of her journey with the strawhats would play out.
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taglist (lmk if u want to be tagged ! <3 :
@skullr0se, @strawberrii-tea, @triangulartriangles, @anotherlovefool, @haratatsu, @sinmp, @3v37773, @taru-nami, @disc0dild0s, @boredwithlifeatthispoint, @kaulitzer, @notplutos, @cheetosins
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lightwing-s · 1 year
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the batboys' favorite male marvel heroes
Our golden boy, Dick, is a massive Spiderman fan. He’s not embarrassed in the least to admit it, and he’s also not worried people will think of him as just liking something popular. He has pretty good reasons to like Peter Parker and he’ll defend it to hell and back. He’s young, fun, and lighthearted. Heroic and smart and handsome and sweet and Dick can go on for hours and hours on that topic. At a young age, he sympathized with Peter for a number of reasons: they were both orphans, taken in by someone after this loss; even after all that pain they still grew up to be happy and joyful people to be around; both are very smart. As he grew into his super hero persona, they started sharing a whole lot more, like their flexible fighting style, the way they both deal with villains. And you’d often tell him they share the same bubbly personality. Also, Bruce used to spoil him rotten with spidey gifts. Comics, action figures, school supplies, spiderman shampoo and conditioner, towels… You name it, Dick has had it at home. Truly a spidey fanboy through and through. He also has a costume at home waiting for the day he can go on patrol wearing it.
Let's be honest here, we all know Jason would live for the anti-hero trope. Growing up, he’d always been drawn to more heroic types of antiheroes, like Wolverine for example, who’s hell bent on fulfilling his duty but does not live by the hero standards as some others do.  But after a certain incident with a crowbar and a clown, he saw refuge in the spirit of vengeance himself, the Ghost Rider. C'mon, a motorcycling maniac, whose body is completely covered in fire and who fights for justice no matter what? *side eyes a certain somebody* there's no way it isn't up to his alley. He’s in the comic store right after patrol, in the early mornings, to buy whatever issue was released next and reads it like it’s a Jane Austen novel. He also buys older issues, and keeps them wrapped and well stored like his precious babies and he ain’t letting anyone touch them. Perhaps with one dear exception, you.  Jay is into the classics though, if he had to pick between one out of all the riders he would have to choose the very first rider, Johnny Blaze. When riding his own bike, he’d pretend to be a rider, spitting lines he remembers from the comics and using them on random robbers he stops on the streets. Don’t talk to him about the movie though, that’s off topic.
Tim Drake is not one to pick “silly” heroes like his older brothers do. Or he at least pretends to do. He’s into the smart supes, with admirable brains and capacities well beyond imaginable. But he’s also a bit of a contrarian, so he won’t go for easy picks like Dick Iron Man. So when he sees a powerful AI turn into a nearly unstoppable android he instantly becomes a fan. Even before living with Bruce and becoming Robin, he would ask his parents to get him the new Avengers issue with Vision in it. However, unlike his brothers he’s very chill about it, he doesn’t feel like he needs to explain why his favorite is the best, or why they're a token of justice or a mad warrior. He knows Vision is good and that no one can fight him about it. He also wishes he could stay awake without the need for rest like he does, but he’d definitely miss the coffee.
Don’t really let anyone know it, but Damian’s favorite hero is his dad. But Batman is a real, flesh and bone man, so it won’t count here. He struggled to have a favorite hero, reading comics is “for children” and he’s too mature for that. He’s an adult. But when he caught a glimpse of Dick sleeping watching the new Moon Knight tv show, this boy got hooked. Not only is he a cool,  merciless fighter, he is also intelligent and has a cultural impact on him like no other. Marc’s internal conflict with all of his personalities feels like a reflection of Damian’s own troubles with his families’ contrasting ideals: is he supposed to be a deadly weapon just like his grandfather would want, much like Jake Lockely, or is he a nicer warrior-esque hero like Marc and his father? Anyway, that cape, Dami loves the hooded cape *see that, bats? much cooler!*
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kiritella · 9 months
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Marvel Masterlist
Oneshots:
No Place I’d Rather Be (Bucky x Reader)
Fading Lights (Bucky x Daughter)
Slipping (Bucky x Reader)
Holding On (Bucky x Reader)
The Heartbeat of a Soldier (Bucky x Daughter)
Snuggles (Bucky x Reader)
Sleep and Cuddles (Bucky x Reader)
Flames and Bridges (Bucky x Daughter)
Falling for the Flames (Firefighter!Bucky x Reader)
Rumbling Hearts  (Biker!Bucky x Reader)
Helplessly Pregnant (Bucky x Wife!Reader)   
Love in Broken Times (Bucky x Wife!Reader)
Stunt Double (Bucky x Reader)
Betrayal (Bucky x Daughter)
Multilingual (Avengers x Reader)
When Tomorrow Comes (Bucky x Daughter)
The Truth Shall Set You Free (Bucky x Daughter)
Midnight Escapades (Bucky x Wife!Reader)
Love Me… (Bucky x Reader)
Red as Iron [Pt I] , [Part II] , [Part III] (Bucky x Daughter)
Daddy’s Coming Home (Bucky x daughter!Reader)
Chaotic Love (Loki x Reader)
Love and Electricity (Loki x Reader)
Tastes Like Love (Bucky x Fiancee!Reader)
Ready or Not (Father!Loki x Wife!Reader)
Series:
The Long and the Lost 
Status: Complete [12 parts]
Pairings: Father!Bucky x Daughter!Reader
Summary: 2021.  82 years since your birth.  78 years since Bucky has seen you, but the memories are still as vivid as the day they occurred.  Still struggling to accept the fact that he missed your entire life, what happens when Bucky finds you at the age of 16, captured by the organization that made his life hell?
———————————
All We See
Status: Complete [8 parts]
Pairings: Bucky x Reader
Summary: You’re the person Bucky goes to for a breath of fresh air, the one who’s smile is the brightest, the one that has the softest voice. You are sweet and kind, something he is falling for a little more every day, but you have someone, and he respects it...what happens when he finds out your special someone turns out to be a monster you can’t seem to get away from?
———————————
A New Maybe
Status: Complete [11 parts]
Pairings: Bucky x Anna(rmc), Mom!Anna x Reader, Bucky x Reader(plc)
Summary: For as long as you can remember, it’s been you and your mom, Anna, along with the here and there boyfriends that’s she’s had. Your father had abandoned you, and it seems that every man that comes into both your lives ends up leaving which leaves you with trust issues. Then here comes Bucky, a man after your mother’s heart and your trust, and it seems he’s too stubborn to abandon you.
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Secrets Hidden in Yellow Paper
Status: Complete [7 parts]
Pairings: Bucky x Daughter
Summary: A DNA test gone wrong or gone right? An orphan for the last five years, Irina finds out she’s the daughter of James Barnes, an Avenger, a hero, a legend. When she gets accepted into an internship at Stark Industries, she’s around the man himself...but would he accept her as his own? That is, if she ever has the guts to tell him...
Drabbles:
Past and Regrets (Bucky Barnes)
The Thunder of Our Hearts (Bucky Barnes)
A Moment to Last Forever (Bucky Barnes)
She is Everything (Bucky x Daughter)
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dendrophalaen · 4 months
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my thoughts on godzilla minus one
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tl;dr i had a religious experience (positive) and it may be my new favorite godzilla movie
i'm going to try to organize my thoughts lmao i have never done a film analysis or review
story
i went in knowing next to nothing, so i was very afraid this was going to be heavy on the imperialist propaganda and reminiscing on the "good old days" of the japanese military
however i was pleasantly surprised to see that it was quite anti-government :]
loved the delivery of the themes of "all lives being precious" and "living on for yourself as well as for the sake of others" – not hammy or blunt!
FORESHADOWING OF THE EJECTION SEAT? chef's KISS we love picking up what the movie is putting down and getting to see the payoff
speaking of foreshadowing:
dr. noda: [takes noriko's picture]
me: oh no she's going to die
i spent like the last quarter of the movie with a headache because i was clenching my teeth and holding in tears after noriko's death ("death") AND koichi planning to blow himself up and orphan akiko
and all the ex-navy guys rallying together to defeat godzilla
i am not immune to classic story beats
semi-related i thought noriko would be covered in radiation burns, but then i realized a depiction of that would probably be insensitive
also the guys measuring radiation in plastic costs? come on now i know we weren't fully educated in the risks of radiation but there must've been some sort of better ppe
characters
i enjoyed like every character which is rare for me in a godzilla film
koichi just can't catch a break. this man gained so much trauma in a short amount of time, like he doesn't have ptsd because the trauma is ONGOING. i think he's my favorite and it's very easy to root for him
his introduction is of him as a shaky baby-faced pilot and then you find out he was supposed to be a kamikaze pilot like goddamn
i liked noriko's assertiveness ("hey i'm staying in your house now :)") and her ability to see kindness in koichi and sumiko
her struggle of wanting to become independent is very relatable. you could see the bittersweetness in her eyes showing that she felt guilty yet grateful for koichi's support........
i was surprised how quickly sumiko agreed to taking care of akiko? but it makes sense since she was (is) a mother and could not bear to see another child suffer, and akiko gave her life a new purpose
i would've liked more focus on the female characters and i don't think it's fair to just blame it on the era :playdead:
i really liked the chemistry between dr. noda, captain akitsu, and mizushima
dr. noda in particular felt like a nice foil/parallel to serizawa from the 1954 movie; he's also a scientist but he's much more personable(?)/"human"
dr. serizawa was my favorite in 1954 but he was very anguished and set on making reparations by killing godzilla (and koichi could be a parallel to him in that regard)
noda focused on protecting the living, not avenging the dead
ough mizushima. being a Youth who feels useless sure hits home
i'd say tachibana is my least favorite just by comparison to everyone else, but he's honestly so valid for his whole deal
visuals and sound
very elegant color grading, costuming, and set design!
i don't know film girl help
GOOD SOUNDTRACK the music set the scenes so well
i joked about getting my eardrums blasted by godzilla but he really was that loud. as he should be
godzilla (design, abilities, etc)
SWEET JESUS THIS IS THE SCARIEST GODZILLA BY FAR
godzilla: [shows up in the first 10 minutes with blair witch shaky cam]
me: the filmmakers are not messing around they mean BUSINESS
the rampage on odo island was rightfully terrifying
i love his texture and face. the scrunkliness of heisei with the horrifying pain of shin
i think his head is a bit small for his body, like if it was 5% bigger it would be perfect
loved the visuals of his scales flaking off after getting bombed
the nuclear fallout when he used his atomic breath in tokyo was awe-inducing
great use of godzilla as a war allegory
i saw the movie in d-box so the shotgun-blast of heat ray was intense
also coolest godzilla death. sick decapitation
the plan to imprison him in bubbles and give him the bends felt a bit silly in the moment but highlighted how desperate everyone was for ANYTHING to work
really liked how godzilla was more like an animal or unstoppable force of nature without a clear motive
i mean the only emotion you could ascribe is probably RAGE
sidenote i did think it was a lil funny whenever an object was flung through the air from offscreen. there goes godzilla having another tantrum
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coolchulainn · 1 year
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Hey, so in your recent DRK art tags you mentioned German Sidguru being extremely different from the English, and I'm Intrigued, can you spare any details?
the thing is actually that german sidurgu isn't all that different from the english one, the german one is just (in my opinion) a way better execution of the same concept. fray and myste are completely different characters between languages so their english versions have their own appeal going for them but sidurgu is just The Better Sidurgu in german lol
the biggest point for me is that sidurgu is primarily driven by his trauma over having to watch his family be murdered as a child yeah? from which the german writers concluded that hey, I don't think this guy would be an asshole to myste actually (which is a name customarily given to orphans in the brume). he's still clearly not good with kids and struggling to keep his patience with myste, but he makes the effort to not be cruel to a child, because he's very aware of how much you can fuck up a child forever. it's just a so much more compassionate and nuanced take. his interactions with myste are more entertaining for it too, because instead of a gruff guy being mean to a child you have a gruff guy trying really really hard to not be mean to a child and then two quests later trying to pretend he's still sternly keeping an eye on this child and definitely doesn't have signed adoption papers in his back pocket.
another thing with sidurgu is that he claims to be fighting to protect rielle, but he's really just using her situation as an excuse to act on his violent hatred of the temple knights and lash out in response to his own issues, and doesn't actually listen to what rielle wants or needs. in german it's emphasised much more that he attached himself to rielle because she's effectively orphaned too and he recognised himself in that but it's precisely because her situation hits so close to home for him that he's getting caught up in his own desire to avenge what he lost and fails to see what he still has.
after rielle and the moogles rip into him for this he actually admits using the capital T trauma word that yeah, he's been so caught up in his own trauma that he failed to do right by her, because the german script isn't embarrassed to have the tall broody dark knight say he's traumatised and begin to heal from it. the real kicker on this part for me is that after this convo in english sidurgu is like, let's go back to ishgard, and in german he additionally says they can talk things over on the way back (because he does care for rielle and does want to do right by her and he's going to make active effort to listen to her), like it's such a small thing that makes such a big difference.
in english when it turns out the person hunting down rielle is her own mother, sidurgu gets mad at her for keeping this a secret when he and fray bled and died for her. in german he rages at her mother, because he's been so fucked up from having to grow up without his parents after they were violently taken from him that he can't even begin to comprehend a parent willingly withholding love from their child. when he initially spares rielle's mother he explicitly says it's because no child should have to watch their parents die, and rielle tells him to kill her anyway by saying it's her turn to get vengeance. it's the same general plotline but it feels much more internally consistent in german.
in the english 70 quest fray and sidurgu barely acknowledge each other. in german sidurgu calls fray by name, and fray says somewhat apologetically that they're just a painful memory from a corner of the wol's heart. sidurgu responds to this by throwing his sword at fray and saying "here, this way you can't complain the issue was a blunt weapon again", clearly referencing a memory he shared with fray because the memory of fray is just as important to him as the "real" thing was. when you ask sidurgu about fray after completing all the quests he wonders why you'd bring up fray of all people now, but then adds "fine, I do like remembering him". it's much more tangible that the two of them meant a lot to each other within the very few snapshots you get of their relationship.
overall when put next to each other it just feels to me like the english script was scared of ruining the image of dark knight being so cool stomping around in your spiky armor with your bigass sword, while the german script says with its whole chest that dark knight is about traumatised people banding together to hopefully spare others some of the same pain. both scripts tell you that being a dark knight is about love, but english feels embarrassed to say it while the german quest is permeated with it at every point, in so many ways that if i wanted to list them all it'd be more efficient to just translate the whole thing directly. in being so focused on sidurgu's image of edgy brooding knight the english script ends up being way less compassionate to him.
ironically german sidurgu as a character more purposely cultivates his brooding edgy image as an extension of how much it means to him to be a dark knight, which leaves him open to other characters poking fun at him for it to humanize him and he's way funnier in german because of that. english rielle calls him a chocobo's arse and german rielle jokes that his short temper seems to be an occupational disease among dark knights. he feels more like a complete person rather than a character archetype because they actually let him have a full range of emotions. in english he loudly complains about having to help myste because idk its uncool for dark knights to actually help people or whatever. in german he says helping myste is all well and good but he's not exactly a good therapist so he really hopes some of the people they'll be trying to help have problems that can be solved with violence (and is openly excited when you encounter that girl who poisoned you at falcons nest and he realizes helping her will involve beating the shit out of her prison guard).
i'll be real i think the german team are just straight up better writers than the english team. I've been replaying the msq in german and it's a consistent pattern that the german script has more elegance, is more thematically consistent, and above all isn't afraid to let characters be motivated by emotion. i'm getting off track but you know how in castrum meridianum livia says she's going to kill you because gaius is hers and you can't have him? in german she's mad at you for killing her friend rihtahtyn (yknow, from cape westwind) and she's going to kill you and avenge him before you can take gaius from her too, which just makes way more sense as a character motivation without compromising her possessiveness. in english cid left the empire over moral disagreements in german he's additionally motivated by the complicated resentment he feels over losing his father to project meteor (which in english doesn't come up until three expansions later in bozja) and having gaius fill that paternal role for a while only to lose him to a mad search for power too. it just really doesn't compare. highly recommend anyone who can to start playing the game in a language other than english.
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wndaswife · 1 year
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Could you do nsfw alphabet with powerbottom emo wanda 🙏🏻
nsfw alphabet: emo!wanda maximoff
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wanda maximoff & fem!reader
word count: 2514
A = Aftercare (What they’re like after sex)
Along with the pleasure of having sex with you, Wanda loves finally having a love like the two of you have. She never mentions it for fear that it means she’s forgotten her twin brother, but the love she has with you is something she’s always wanted and never had. You’re home, somewhere to settle down, the woman she dreams of both day and night. Aftercare is important to her because loving you is something worth celebrating, and laying on your chest while you run your fingers through her hair and listen to her stories about her life before being an Avenger is always the perfect way to do it. She really does love you so much.
B = Body part (Their favourite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)
Wanda loves her eyes! She always has, which likely derived from the compliments she got as a child as green eyes were not a common Sokovian gene. Being complimented on them made her feel special and different from every other orphan in the war-torn country. Eventually, she just grew to love them. She loves outlining them in the darkest eyeliner she has, shadowing them with black eyeshadow and using mascara. Your favourite part of Wanda’s body is most definitely her hands. She has so much inner conflict with her hands, the site of where her magic expels from, causing so much damage with something as small as what feels like a snap of her fingers. She has so little control of her own body and she’s always had an uncomfortable relationship with her hands. But you love to kiss her fingers and play with them, especially the rings she wears, running across her knuckles with the pads of your fingers. You make her love what seems to her as the most unlovable parts of herself.
C = Cum (Anything to do with cum basically)
She gets so much joy from forcing your face between her thighs, allowing her cum to coat the lower half of your face. Wanda loves seeing you lick her juices from her inner thighs, so desperate to take in as much as her as possible. Along with the throb that forms between her thighs, there’s something that truly tugs at her heart to see someone she loves so enamoured with her.
D = Dirty Secret (Pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)
There’s a realistic deep black dildo of impressive size that Wanda hides in your shared room for when you leave for missions. She hugs your pillow close to her chest, inhaling your scent from it while she bounces on her dildo and imagines she’s riding you. It’s not a secret because she’s guilty or ashamed of it in any way, but masturbating to you is something Wanda just loves doing, and having you know about it would take away its thrill.
E = Experience (How experienced are they? Do they know what they’re doing?)
Before you, she had a few run-ins with women she met around Sokovia because of how often she and Pietro travelled. You were taken by surprise when you and Wanda had sex for the first time for she had little to no experience beforehand, and yet she knew how to control you, using you for pleasure the way she wanted. She’s always very eager when you show her new things, and she’s taken it upon herself to do plenty of research since she started dating you.
F = Favourite Position (This goes without saying. Will probably include a visual)
She favours sitting on your lap while arms are wrapped around each other, you thrusting your hips up into her as she holds onto you. She loves feeling so helpless yet so in control, and most of all, she loves having you close, the feeling of your sweaty bodies pushed up against each other.
G = Goofy (Are they more serious in the moment, or are they humorous, etc)
Wanda is one to be more serious during sex, but admires you so much when you’re able to make her laugh. Generally, she just loves how lighthearted you can be, and she loves laughing with you. To impress you, Wanda does try to be funny during sex too, but her humour often consists of poorly-matched puns and rhymes that sound completely unrelated because of her accent. But you laugh anyway because ironically, she’s funny when she’s painfully unfunny. Wanda feels great amounts of pride when she makes you laugh, which gets her pretty energetic.
H = Hair (How well groomed are they, does the carpet match the drapes, etc.)
Wanda doesn’t do much grooming down there because it’s never been something that she’s known very much about. But she’s always had to keep herself groomed because the lifestyle she lived with Pietro in Sokovia taught her how to survive. She didn’t have much control over very much else, so Wanda learned to care for herself. She’s pretty neat all over, but you don’t care if she trims or waxes or anything else. You’ve never brought it up, and it likely will come up at some point because the two of you have a very active sex life, but Wanda would likely be disinterested in waxing or anything similar, though she’d want to hear your opinions too.
I = Intimacy (How are they during the moment, romantic aspect…)
Not many people might guess it because of how withdrawn and monotone she sometimes seems to those who don’t know her, but Wanda is a huge romantic. She loves when you push her down and spank her ass purple, but she loves nothing more than when you tell her how much you love her when you’re kissing her breasts or taking her from behind. She holds her hand whenever she can during sex too.
J = Jack Off (Masturbation headcanon)
Wanda doesn’t usually masturbate without you, but sometimes it truly cannot be helped when you’re required on a mission and she’s back at the compound. For that reason and many others, she insists the two of you go on missions together or else either of you would refrain from going, and it rarely happens that you part because of missions. Typically, even if the slightest bit horny, Wanda takes your hand and forces it down her panties and gets you to help her orgasm at least twice. But when the two of you have time, Wanda prefers to have you eating her out.
K = Kink (One or more of their kinks)
Bondage is something that Wanda really likes, but on you especially. She loves using you when you’re incapacitated, tied up and blindfolded while she rides your face or your fingers. It fuels her with so much pride when you shiver at every one of her touches because of how helpless you are handcuffed or blindfolded or tied up to the bed. 
L = Location (Favourite places to do the do)
She likes places that are just for you and her only. Sex is a highly intimate act for Wanda, and although she can enjoy an orgasm in the gym showers, willing herself to be quiet while you finger her, her favourite place to have sex is in the bedroom. She loves where she can love you with everything in her, to have you all to herself and loving you in your own time and space. Thus, quality time is very important to her.
M = Motivation (What turns them on, gets them going)
Seeing you work out always gets Wanda turned on. She watches sometimes on the gym benches while you work out or train, squirming in her seat uncomfortably while you break a sweat and pant over a span of forty minutes or more. She likes to take you down onto your knees while you’re drenched in sweat and have you eat her out. The two of you have stopped training together after the last few times as every session has ended in Wanda sitting on your face or you holding her up while you fuck into her with a strap. Nothing ever gets done.
N = NO (Something they wouldn’t do, turn offs)
Wanda does not like anything with blood. She doesn’t like to hurt you too much, and along with personal preference, seeing blood does not turn Wanda on. In fact, it makes her uncomfortable and as she grew up in Sokovia all her life, purposely cutting you or making you bleed reminds her of nothing more than what she had been trying so long to leave- war and the death so stagnant around her it often seemed natural. It makes her wildly worried rather than turned on in any way.
O = Oral (Preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc)
Having you on her knees for her is one of Wanda’s greatest pleasures, but she also loves looking up and making eye contact with you while she eats you out. She loves how much control she can exert over you even while you stand above her and Wanda’s gotten down between your thighs for you.
P = Pace (Are they fast and rough? Slow and sensual? etc.)
Wanda likes it rough. She loves how hard you pant when you fuck into her rapidly, she loves the bouncing of her breasts when you take her from behind, she loves abandoning all control of herself and letting you pleasure her. Slower sex isn’t something that’s never done however, because the two of you do like to vary things in the bedroom. Though it usually ends up turning into rougher sex anyways.
Q = Quickie (Their opinions on quickies rather than proper sex, how often, etc.)
She doesn’t mind them! Although she does prefer proper sex over anything else. After a certain amount of time, Wanda will insist you cancel any plans you have or drop anything you’re doing to take you into the bedroom and have you fuck her from behind. She can’t go very long surviving on quickies and nothing else.
R = Risk (Are they game to experiment, do they take risks, etc.)
Wanda likes to experiment, though risk isn’t a driving reason as to why she does it. She loves trying out new toys and new positions and is always willing to try out any kinks you bring up. As mentioned before, Wanda does her research to ensure anything done in the bedroom is done in an informed and respectful environment.
S = Stamina (How many rounds can they go for, how long do they last…)
Quantity is not as important to Wanda as quality is. She can be just as pleased getting fucked for twenty minutes as she is an hour long session. It’s not really an applicable question to ask how long Wanda can last because sex isn’t entirely about lasting to her as it is about the experience, kissing you softly and exploring each other, mapping out every sensitive pulse and inch of each other’s bodies.
T = Toy (Do they own toys? Do they use them? On a partner or themselves?)
Wanda owns many toys now, but never anything before she moved into the compound. Not only was there nowhere to buy sex toys where she lived in Sokovia, and even if there was, she wouldn’t have spent money on toys when she struggled daily with Pietro to find something as necessary as food. It was highly exciting for her to experiment with sex toys, and it still is. Personal favourites of hers include handcuffs and thick dildos that let you see how far she can be stretched out. Handcuffs she likes to use on you rather than herself.
U = Unfair (How much they like to tease)
She’s a huge tease, especially because you’re always so desperate to touch her and make her feel good. Wanda only has to keep you watching as she spreads her legs and runs a few fingers through her pussy for you to start begging her to let you touch her. She loves to see her little baby so needy for her, which is a huge part of why she always has a wonderful time having sex with you. It turns her off to see you even the slightest bit of disinterest, which hasn’t happened once thus far.
V = Volume (How loud they are, what sounds they make)
At first, Wanda wasn’t very vocal during sex, but once she realised how important it was for you to know that you were bringing her pleasure, she indulged in being loud. She was impressed by how much it improved your performance, too. Though Wanda’s usually the one receiving, it’s so important for her to know you’re enjoying yourself in the bedroom. She is not selfish at all when it comes to sex, though she is quite indulgent.
W = Wild Card (Get a random headcanon for the character of your choice)
One of Wanda’s weaknesses is spanking. You’re not one to be impatient, but sometimes your girlfriend can be so incredibly stubborn that you resort to pushing her against the nearest wall and pulling her skirt down before spanking her ass until it turns a deep red. She always wears a furious glare in her eyes when you finish, but you know how wet she gets when you spank her, and on the positive side she always gives in afterwards.
X = X-Ray (Let’s see what’s going on in those pants, picture or words)
Wanda’s wardrobe never had any pretty panties or bras, nothing matching nor flashy, instead always plain and conventional. Wanda always chose dark colours as she still does not. But after dating you, she found she wanted to look nice for you, wanted to dress up and have something for you to unwrap and admire when you took her clothes off. Now she likes to wear a lot of lace and lingerie, especially things with garters and harnesses, which also makes her feel incredibly sexy.
Y = Yearning (How high is their sex drive?)
Because of how little sexual experience Wanda’s previously had, meeting someone like you who’s so willing to please her whenever she needs it was nothing less than a dream. Wanda has a high sex drive. Nearly everything you do turns her on, whether it be socialising with the rest of the Avengers or fighting on missions. She considers herself very lucky to love someone so sexy.
Z = ZZZ (… how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)
You’re usually the one to fall asleep first, which always leaves Wanda to admire you while you sleep beside her. She traces her fingers down the bridge of your nose, the curve of your lips, the arches of your eyebrows. She is filled with so much love and admiration for you. Unlike what she had always been so accustomed to, not a single nightmare comes to her in her dreams ever since she’s shared a room with you while she’s cuddled into your chest, your arms draped around her body.
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