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idontunderstandchemistry · 1 year

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Uncomfortable - Tim Drake (2/3)

Summary: [...] "Are you saying you are afraid of me?" "I wouldn't say afraid" Dick said, trying to sound casual "It's just the way you've been talking about everything these days. It makes everyone feel..." "Uncomfortable?" Tim asked, with a bitter grin, finally turning towards Dick "The probable consequences of what you all say and do to me make you uncomfortable, Dick?" [...] Extremely hurt Tim Drake living out of coffee and spite.

Wordcount: 930

Content Warnings: Angst; Deeply depressed Tim having deeply depressed people thoughts.

Notes: Sorry for the delay in posting, i feel like I'm almost selling my soul to finally get into college... Anyways, hope you're enjoying for now. Reblogs and likes are very much appreciated ❣️

Be careful and stay hydrated!

P.S.: Don't judge Timmy for being an asshole, specially about his "I'll simply close my eyes and ignore Cass" because, guess what, deeply tdepressed people ignore their loved ones quite oftenly.

Part 1 - Part 3

CHAPTER TWO - THE SOFA

Tim hated when Steph wasn’t around.

She and Cass were the only ones he wouldn’t ever deny to be in the presence. Steph knew her limits and always made sure to be whatever Tim needed her to be, and for that, he was very grateful. Cass too. Maybe it was part of her naturally silent nature. Tim could simply enjoy being silent alongside her, and, even if she tried to communicate with him through sign language, he could simply be an asshole and close his eyes, turn away or pretend he didn’t see.

He found himself being quite an asshole to them recently, and for that, he felt bad. Unfortunately, he couldn’t do anything about it. Tim simply hadn’t had the energy to try.

So he decided to spend more time alone. Good thing the Manor had more than enough rooms for him to hide. Obviously, he had to avoid the closets and the kitchen. Alfred somehow had a spider sense about them and appeared immediately after he felt in his bones that someone dared to get inside his beloved kitchen. So now he was seated in the sofá of one of the living rooms with his laptop, working on a case.

Everything was fine, until Bruce stealthy got inside the room and sat beside Tim, who pretended not to care.

Some years ago, he would be thrilled by his appearance - Bruce's emotional intelligence range was equal to a teaspoon, so when Tim was still little, every opportunity he had to try to win a piece of Bruce’s attention was unique. Tim could remember every frustrated bonding attempt he made towards Bruce.

He remembered how much he tried to break Bruce’s walls down and how everytime he got some success, Bruce was quick in building up some more. It took him some years to realise that no matter how much he tried, he would never be like Dick or Jason to Bruce. He wasn’t chosen by him, he didn’t try to be his father figure, Tim already had a father. His relationship with Bruce was purely professional.

Batman needs a Robin, and Tim was willingly going to do the job.

Just so all that he ever worked for was taken away from him by Mr. “I don't want to be THE Batman anymore” and given to an entitled brat who tried to kill him.

Tim could hear his teeth grinding against each other in anger. He hated this fucking family.

— Are you going to tell me what's going on, Tim? — Bruce asked, hearing his son’s jaw clench and his eyes stare at the screen in a cold peace.

— No, I am not — The young man said, slowly, feeling his guts filling with rage.

It was simply too convenient for Bruce to choose when he was able to care about the children he brought into his life and decided to call his children. Simply too convenient to choose when he was going to be an available father figure and when he was going to be distant, when he was going to suffocate you with his uneasy stare because of his inability of simply taking conclusions about what was in front of him. Best detective in the world my ass.

Bruce let out a deep sigh. He was tired.

— Tim, when you have a problem, you need to talk about it. We are your family, we want to help. — He said after some time.

— Well, it seems like my family gets “uncomfortable” when I talk about the problems, so I decided I simply won't talk about them at all — Tim answered, not caring about how bitter he sounded. He didn’t care that Bruce was tired. He didn’t care about any of that shit anymore — If I need help, I'll hire a therapist. I'm pretty sure I can afford It.

Bruce sighed again.

— I love you, Tim. Don't forget that.

Tim laughed bitterly, what scared Bruce. Once again, Tim found himself being an asshole. He had this particular laugh that freaked the whole family: a laugh mastered during the time when he was Joker Jr. He could see Bruce flinch in discomfort and his pupils filled with fear. They were afraid he was going to snap at any time. Good. They had reason enough to be afraid.

— You don't love me, Bruce — He simply said,closing the laptop angrily and getting up — Jason was dead, Dick was pissed and nobody else was stupid enough to try to get through your emotional walls. You had nobody else. You chose to keep me because you had nobody else. Batman needs a Robin and I were there to do the work, I got it. You don’t have to be a genius to know that.

— Tim, that's absolutely not true...

— I'm going to my chambers — Tim simply said.

— I am not done, Timothy!

— If you try to stop me, this will be the last time you'll ever see me around apart from patrol.I’m already emancipated, I’ll move out and Timothy Drake will never willingly cross paths with Bruce Wayne or any of his children again — The words came out of Tim's mouth like water from a tap. Absolutely fluid and cold. He had nothing else to lose, anyway, and he had already lived away from the Manor for many months before. He surely could do this again. Bruce couldn't say a thing. He was too shocked by his son's attitude — Do both of us a favour and stop pretending to care. We both know you don't.

Bruce was too shocked to even let out a sigh.

#timothy drake #tim drake angst #tim drake wayne #tim drake #red robin fanfic #red robin #batfamily angst #angst #i refuse to believe that bruce simply don't try to be a good parent #he is just a tired dad of six

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distort-opia · 8 months

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Hello! I hope you don't mind that I ask your opinion regarding other people's take on Bruce, because you are one of the people whose opinions about him I trust! 😄 I saw this post earlier (www(.)tumblr(.)com/mamawasatesttube/712242128960585728) and I do somewhat agree with it, but also I remember your reblogged post about multiple interpretations and contradictions, yet I am curious if this is something that, in your opinions, can coexist within one interpretation. (If you get what I mean. I hope it's not confusing) Thank you!

Hey, Anon! Thank you for the kind words, glad that the Blorbo that lives in my head resonates with you. I don't mind giving my thoughts on the subject, though with the note that it's simply as an exercise and not meant to be hostile; I found the post interesting too, and I'm answering with the intent of commentary.

My personal opinion is that OP's idea (at least in the post you sent me) of Good People, and Abusive Parent, and The Superhero Genre, is a bit black-and-white. If you think Good People would instantly condemn abuse, and that Abusive instantly means Bad, and whoever does not condemn Bad cannot be Good... yes, you would end up seeing these behaviors as contradictory, and incapable of coexisting. (Though I don't really agree that the premise of the Justice League is that they are Good People-- I would rather say they are people trying their best to Do Good. There's a distinction.)

But that's not how it works. Human beings are rife with contradiction. The thing is, Bruce doesn't see himself as abusive. The Family doesn't see him as abusive, since the narrative doesn't either. What's fascinating is that (despite the fact this is motivated by DC writers refusing to admit to Batman's flaws) this is a realistic depiction of a potentially abusive parent, and the justifications the people who love him come up with. Bruce's abusive patterns do not mean he hasn't been a good father too, they don't mean that he doesn't love his children, and his children know that. Hell, some of those behaviors happen because Bruce loves them, but has not learned healthy ways of expressing it-- which leads to a common way of thinking for abused individuals ("They hurt me because they love me"). Not only that, the Justice League has seen it too: Bruce caring about the Family, and being willing to lay down his life for them. They've seen much less of the bad stuff, and I will make the note that actually, there are Leaguers who have openly disliked and criticized Bruce because they disagree with his parenting methods, especially regarding Dick (like Green Arrow and the Flash). Even Clark has commented negatively on Bruce's behaviors regarding his kids, and has sometimes acted to counteract some of Bruce's harsher choices. So he does know how Bruce can be like, and he deals with it the way he best sees fit. Needless to say, Bruce doesn't exhibit manipulative tendencies towards Dick or Tim or the kids alone, but towards Clark and the League too. Bruce is quite good at making people believe what he himself needs to believe.

OP's post also makes it sound like Bruce and the League don't have conflicts, but before Clark and Bruce were friends, they fought and disagreed a lot. They still do. Bruce has had issues with multiple people in the League; the infamous JLA: Tower of Babel comes to mind, as one example of a significant conflict between Bruce and the League... Not even going into the fact that, as revealed during Identity Crisis, the League pretty much sanctioned for Batman to be mind wiped by Zatanna, because they knew Batman would never condone of what they had approved to do (brainwashing a villain against his will). If we're splitting hairs, is this something one would qualify as the actions of Good People?

My point is, applying rigid moral labels to these comic book characters... doesn't work. It'll never work. Not just because their world is so much more different than ours (for instance, in the real world, we'd consider it child abuse the second someone allowed kids in spandex to routinely risk their lives fighting criminals) and we suspend our disbelief in multiple ways, but also because these characters have a very long history, spanning decades. This lends itself to a lot of complexity. They've been written by so many people, with different ideas of right and wrong, and different agendas. Hence, you cannot truly go "Superheroes are universally Good, and if they don't abide by what we typically think is Good behavior, then they are Bad, and if they are Bad it all falls apart". Personally, I don't see the superhero genre as something that's supposed to model moral behavior, as something depicting characters we're supposed to always root for. No, they're more like the figures of Greek mythology. Flawed gods. We should be questioning their choices and learn from the very act of questioning itself; understand that no one and nothing is perfect, and that Good and Evil, as pure concepts, do not exist. They are constantly redefined and recreated by the people who believe in them.

#hope this helped Anon!#the summary is basically that yes. I think the way Bruce has been depicted CAN coexist in one interpretation #an interpretation of him as a deeply flawed person doing both good and bad... but always struggling to be better #which is what I am inspired by #asks #my meta #mention of abuse

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thefallenbibliophilequote · 3 years

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I Know Places

Loki x Reader

1989, chapter 12

"And everyone was watching"

Summary: It's hard to find the one, but even if you do find him it's always going to be a daily struggle to make it work. Can you even make it work after he broke your heart? The answer to that is complicated, but it all started when you found each other again in the stark tower- and that's where our story begins.

Word count: 5,106

Warnings: an intense game of Uno, angst, fluff, Odin, and one perfect punch. Not in that order.

A/N: we are so close to the end! Thank you @chrissquares for the beautiful dividers! And thank you so much for @nacho-bucky for beta reading this for me!

No one is allowed to repost my writing or steal or copy my work! Reblog on tumblr is fine.

Series masterlist

Song on Spotify and YouTube

His hands were on your waistline yet again when you woke up. It has been this way ever since Bruce cleared you from the med bay. Loki refused to leave your side. Every time as you fell asleep you felt the tingles of Loki's magic, helping you calm your mind and dream peacefully. Loki had told you all about what happened, so once he managed to get through your powers he took it upon himself to make sure you sleep safe and sound. You didn't remember your dreams, yet whenever you woke up you could not feel more at peace. It had been far too long without Loki for you- it always was.

You slowly cracked your eyes open through the daylight, coming face to face with the trickster god sound asleep. You couldn't help the smile that took over you- he looked so young, so innocent, here sleeping next to you with a soft light casting shadows on his long lashes. You brushed a strand of hair from his face and when he stirred you turned around and backed into his embrace.

"Good morning, darling."

"Good morning, Loki." You hid your head into the soft pillow loving how it now smelt of him, taking his hand that was draped over you and lacing your fingers with his, tightening his hold on you.

Opening your eyes you looked at the small blaze that stayed seated on your bedside drawer.

"Oh shoot, we forgot to put the candles out last night." You looked around the room where candles were still lit up, giving the room a warm light besides the illumination from outside.

"Leave it, darling. Let's go back to sleep." He kissed the side of your neck, grunting when you got out of the bed, leaving him in the warm sheets. "You don't need to put them out."

"It's dangerous, Loki, it'll take just a moment."

You went around the room and put out the small fires along the way, one by one. You got to your dresser and blew on the candle softly before stepping away, and then you noticed it didn't die out. You blew on it again and yet it only swayed.

"I can't put this one out." You tried again.

"Maybe it doesn't want to, just leave it be." Loki groaned as he stretched in bed. "Leave it lit."

You huffed and blew on it again with more force, and the fragile little flame burnt out, leaving the room lit only by the outside rising sun.

Satisfied with yourself, you went back to the bed, and fell on top of Loki with a giggle.

"Okay, now we can rest."

•

The walls were filled with hushed chatter as Thor passed the gold filled halls. He went through the familiar corridors with his head held up high until the guards pushed open the door for him and he entered the throne room.

"My son, what have you come here to inform me?" Odin looked down upon the golden haired prince as he walked towards the stairs of the Allfather.

"Well Father, I'm sure you will be glad to hear that we managed to find Y/N and she is all better now." Thor smiled at his father before continuing, "We also found the missing weapons, but I'm afraid there are some bad news as well…"

"Well, get on with it."

"We figured out who was responsible for the missing weapons- apparently it was Lady Iyllir, Father."

"What? How preposterous. You can't expect me to believe that! The lady and her family are very well respected, and the young lady is to marry your brother soon!"

"During the battle we saw her there- she was threatening Y/N and others. Loki had to take her down." Thor tried explaining to his father, but it was of no use. "I saw it."

"You saw it? Are you certain Loki didn't just act without thinking?" Odin questioned his son, Thor just nodded, remembering how Loki had looked at you when you laid motionless as they took you back from the warehouse.

"I have no doubt that he thought it though, what was done was necessary and just."

Odin only hummed, considering his son's claims.

"It ended as it should have, and besides- we got everything back!" Thor laughed lightly, smiling at his father but it didn't last long.

"Not everything."

•

"As much as I love having you back, kid, I will have Steve ground you to your room if you do what you're about to do!" Tony threatened you and you bit your lip to hide your smile. You looked to Natasha in front of you, and to Loki next to you, before laying the card on the center of the table.

"Take four, Uno." You let the smirk take over your face.

"Gosh-darn it- fucking hell-" Tony grumbled as he took cards from the pile.

"Come on Tony leave her alone, her cards were just better than yours." Steve chuckled and looked over at you.

"Yeah Tony, I won fair and square." Loki smirked besides you and put a hand around your waist.

"No, I don't trust it." Tony pointed at Loki and then at you. "You helped her cheat, didn't you?"

"I don't know what you mean, Stark." Loki tilted his head a bit in a show of innocence, but Tony didn't have any of it. "Why would I interfere in the game?"

"You kids are in love, that gives you motive!"

"Perhaps, but alas you have no proof." You could feel him relax next to you as others laughed and some even threw cards around until you couldn't continue playing the game and instead you just talked about nothing in particular and ate snacks.

You looked around at all your friends with a small smile on your lips. It felt all too familiar and yet so foreign to you. You never thought you would have this, a family doesn't end in blood but it doesn't have to start there either. There, through the spies and geniuses, you found a place where you felt protected and happy- a safe haven. Maybe every bait and switch in the tapestry of your life was a work of art that was meant to bring you all the way here. It was almost perfect, you almost had everything you could wish for but you decided not to dwell on that now while Loki was smiling so openly and Steve was laughing alongside the group that gathered around you- surrounding you with warmth even December storms couldn't penetrate.

"Love," Loki called you in a quiet voice. You looked up at him. "What's going on in that pretty little head of yours?"

You almost winced at that, but you only shook your head.

"I'm just-" for luck of a better word, "home."

You stayed in the compound with the team for the weekend, the quiet outside and the trees helped all of you get some normalcy after everything that happened. You missed that.

It seemed like Loki understood you, he always did, as he kissed your forehead and brought you back to the conversation. It was almost weird seeing him exchanging non harmful snarky comments with Bucky, and somehow getting along with your newfound family, but you only took it with a smile, basking in the warm feeling as you caught Steve's eye and offered him a smile which he returned. You couldn't wish for anything better than this.

•

Loki has been called by Odin to a meeting, and so he reluctantly got out of your bed as daylight reached your window and was now walking into the palace. He was stopped in his tracks, however, by a shriek.

"You!" he turned to see Iyllir's mother pacing fast towards him with her husband trailing behind her. "You are a murderer, you killed our daughter and you dare walk here with pride? You are a disgusting vile frost giant-"

"If I were you, I would be careful with how you talk to your prince." He sharply replied. Loki didn't spare a thought about Iyllir's parents- or her demise at all, so it didn't occur to him that her parents would still be at the palace. "I understand your grief, I sincerely apologize for it, but your daughter was a traitor of Asgard and forced my hand. The deed was justified."

"You can say whatever you want, prince," Iyllir's father spat the word at him and he clenched his jaw, trying to keep his composure. "Our daughter only did it because of you! I heard the rumors, everyone knows about the Midgardian girl you chose over Iyllir! She was simply doing what had to be done to make you choose correctly!"

The yells started to draw the attention of the workers who were around the palace entrance, he could hear them whisper as they passed by. It's a scene that he is out here in clear sight with the mother and father of the girl he had killed.

"You are nothing but a cunning little fox, a pretend prince, thinking that a mortal could be with such a monster. Don't you know that their petty little lives are but a fraction of ours? Nothing can come out of it but you suffering- and I hope that you will suffer immensely." The once graceful lady was gritting her teeth now. "And as from what I know from Midgard, you can run but the hunters are always hunting for foxes like you."

Loki had had enough of it.

"If that is supposed to be a threat then it is a poor one," his voice was low now and he was satisfied with the way their eyes went wide and they took a step back when he took a step forward. "I suggest you leave Asgard, for good, before I show you what it is like to be hunted. You won't last long, I assure you of that, I will make sure you feel how insignificant you are that you think you can talk to me in such a way. Your daughter hurt the woman I love, and her death was quick but I promise it will not be the case with you if you even dare talk about my love in such a way."

He took pride at the fright in their eyes, the way they scrambled away into the nearest carriage.

Straightening his collar, his sharp glare silenced every whisper in the hallway as he made his way to Odin.

•

You stood in the kitchen, making a batch of pancakes when you saw Loki enter the kitchen. You walked to him with a smile.

"Loki! You're finally back, would you like some pancakes?" You leaned up to kiss him but you barely felt him return it. He seemed to be considering your offer for a bit too long, before he nodded.

"Of course, my love, I would love it." He smiled at you and it made you forget everything else, as well as the batch you had on the pan that was getting burned by the second. Loki scrunched his nose, "Why do I smell smoke?"

You spent the day with Loki, a lazy Saturday afternoon with your lover, a perfect day.

Loki didn't seem to talk much, he didn't have that usual spark in his eye that you always saw. But that was okay, you managed to bring it out of him, you always did.

Your lazy day got ruined when Natasha and Sam showed up at the entrance of the common room with a bucket full of filled out water balloons and a hefty amount of water guns.

"Grab your weapon of choice, Bucky started this so we are going hunting- and you are on our team."

You turned to Loki with a smile; maybe this will cheer him up.

"What do you say, trickster? Do you want to go hunting?" with a smirk Natasha threw a gun your way and Sam threw one towards Loki, as you got up you missed the ghostly look that crossed Loki's face.

Now, you were sure that Bucky and Steve started this as a friendly fight. But the two punks were now running away as the fight turned into a war.

"Come on now Y/N, won't you spare me?" Steve had a mischievous glint in his eyes that betrayed his words. You had him cornered as he had his hands held up at the loaded gun you were pointing at him. You disarmed him from his own water balloons.

"I'm sorry Cap, you started it." As you started spraying him with water he ducked to the side and grabbed water balloons.

"Run."

And run you did, you saw as others fought beside you, when you spotted Loki you grabbed his hand and took him with you. You sprayed water behind you when you tried to lose the ones who chased.

"Where are we running?"

"Come on, I know a place we won't be found!" you giggled when a balloon hit Loki and he glared at Steve who was right on your tail, grabbing your gun and aiming right at his face. At the shriek you heard you knew Loki hit his target.

You ran for the fences up ahead, yelling at Loki to jump right when you did.

"Love," he tried to keep up with you as you pulled him with you. "You have failed to tell me where we are going."

"You'll see! They can't track us here." you took a sharp turn when you reached the woods until you stopped in front of a big tree. You started climbing it and Loki followed until you got high enough that you saw above the other trees. There you decided to lean on the tree while sitting on a wide tree branch with Loki by your side.

Loki kissed the palm of your hand and no words were exchanged when you played with his hair and you watched the skies as they turned into a canvas of warmer shades of colours.

•

Days have passed as you went back to the tower and you found yourself waking up to a cold bed, and if Loki was there with you then he disappeared during the day with the same explanation, "I have a meeting in Asgard."

At what point does an explanation become an excuse?

One day you decided to distract yourself with cleaning your room, so you started with your dresser. Pulling out boxes of jewelry you went to open them and start sorting when you caught side of a green glimmer in the dead of the night just outside of your door and with sudden annoyance you threw the box you held back into the drawer then you closed it and got up from the floor.

"Hi love-" Loki started, smiling when he saw you again.

"Loki, tell me what's going on, you are gone so much lately!" He gave you a smile that you knew all too well.

"I told you-"

"No excuses! What's wrong up there in Asgard?" You sat on your bed and Loki stood in front of you, you tried to pull him to sit beside you but he didn't budge. You saw the resolve fall from his face and his sharp cheekbones only enhanced the somber look he had now.

"It seems that my brother has loose lips whenever he talks to my father, and some talks have spread."

"And what about it?" you tilted your head to the side and watched him as he tried to keep his composure; you saw the anger flash in his eyes but it wasn't directed at you.

"Well, it seems that my father is not pleased about everything that occurred."

"Of course he isn't, but I'm sure Thor made it better if anything!" you drew circles on his palms with your thumbs.

"No, he isn't pleased with what was taken from Asgard- he isn't pleased that a mortal has Asgardian powers," he clutched your hands in his when you started to let go. "He isn't pleased with you."

Now you were the crestfallen one. You tried not to get lost in your head.

"What does he want?" Loki knew you were trying to hide the fear that was sinking deep within you.

You adjusted the skirt of your dress, standing nervously in the middle of the room. You weren't really sure why you were feeling this anxious when you've seen Loki hundreds of times before, but now you knew why as you were straightening your dress you remembered that you bought it because of him- for him. The green of it reminded you of the shirt he often wears; when you complimented him he admitted to it being his favourite colour.

You hoped he would like it.

So yeah it was just another movie night with Loki, but it was the first one after you realized you were in love with him, after you actually let your feelings get inside your head and take over your actions.

The familiar gentle knock on the door startled you from the daze and you went to open the door to Loki.

There he stood in front of you in his green dress shirt- he always dressed like he was a royal going to a gala of some sort. And you loved it.

"Hi darling," Loki took a minute to look you over at the dress you wore. He had to tear his eyes away from your body to look into your eyes. "What are we watching this time?"

He smiled at you as he walked in and you willed yourself to act naturally- he was your best friend, nothing changed.

"I like the dress, you look marvelous in it." You decided to go to the kitchen to get some much needed water and snacks for the movie.

"Yes, thank you." You took pride at the steady voice you managed to voice out.

Loki stood there in the middle of the living room and admired the way your body looked as you wore his colours. He put his hand over the pocket of his pants, feeling the golden necklace he got you. In Asgard it would seem like courting- giving a lady a necklace such as this, but he hoped in Midgard it is regarded as something more casual. He wouldn't want to give away his own feelings that seemed to burst through. Loki knows he can be comfortable around you- you made him feel welcomed and loved. But this feeling is new to him, this feeling towards you was new as well.

He didn't know he was smiling until you walked up to him with a smile and his favourite snacks.

"Let's start!"

As the movie went on you felt more like yourself with him, the chemistry was still there just like he was still your best friend- your newfound feelings didn't change it and you were grateful for that.

"I could never be that," you said suddenly during the movie.

"What do you mean?" You had your legs curled under you as you sat on the couch next to Loki. You turned to him, setting your drink down.

"A hero." When he gave you a strange look you continued. "I know that magic doesn't exist, but everyone dream for it. And I know that everyone, me included, would want to enter that magical universe and get out of this mundane world- but in reality it is never what it seems like."

"But wouldn't you like magic?" Loki felt his heart drop at your words. "You love all of these movies and all of them have magic in them."

"I would love it! But think about it Loki, in reality it would be such a difficult life, even the characters there know it and we see it. So yeah I would love it, but I think it could never be peaceful and it would only end up hurting. So I can long for it, but I don't think I would like to have it," you explained and bit your lip before looking at him. "I'm happy right now."

You smiled at him and continued watching the movie. He decided it is probably better if he didn't give you the necklace tonight.

•

Whatever you imagined Asgard would be like after the countless stories Loki had told you- nothing could have prepared you for the extravagant sights of it. Golden arches and flush greenery everywhere you went. You knew Asgard was a place for the gods, it was a dreamland and yet still this was far from the capabilities of your mind.

The sights of it drew your attention from the reason you were coming here in the first place. That was until you felt Loki's hand squeeze your own, and you started to really notice your surroundings.

You heard the whispers of the Asgardian people as you passed by, standing between Thor and Loki. You saw the judgmental looks people sent your way when they saw Loki's hand was entwined with yours.

Then you saw the palace. If it were any other day, you could've pretended that you were there with Loki for a ball like the one you imagined so many times so long ago. But now you were filled with dread that you were certain you were going to throw up, and it wasn't because of the travel.

The travel was nice comparing to what you expected, a man named Heimdall greeted you and when you looked into his eyes you felt as if he could see through you, as if he knew everything about you. He was still nice to you, wishing you luck as you walked on the bridge towards the palace. You didn't know how he knew but you accepted the welcomed wish.

Loki and Thor were both quiet as you stepped through the guards and when you passed the gate chills went down your spine. You felt as if you were trapped in a box when they closed it behind you, like you just walked into a gilded cage.

You understood what Loki was always ranting to you about- it was stifling in here.

Loki guided you until the three of you reached dark yet golden doors that behind them you knew the Allfather sat. right before the doors opened you looked over at Loki and at the sight of his tense face and hollowed eyes you remembered it all: all the countless times Loki came home to you in distress and on the brink of crying, all those times you had to hold him until his mind finally let him sleep, all those times were you had to force Loki out of all the toxic self destructive thoughts that were planted in his head by his father.

You weren't as scared anymore when the doors opened and you walked forward, holding Loki's hand tightly.

You hated him from the minute you saw him. A king sat there on a throne, you didn't expect anything else but what caught your eye and fuelled your already blazing hatred were the stairs. The throne he was sitting on was placed on the top of a line of stairs that led up to him, letting him look down at anyone who entered the place. It disgusted you, but you had to keep your cool for now, for Loki.

You remembered everything that Loki and the team explained to you about what happened during all this time that the two of you were apart. And most of all you remembered your promise.

"Ah my children, you finally arrived." Odin said before looking at you. You refused to let him see your fear, so you straightened your back but still kept holding Loki's hand. "And are you the midgardian girl I have heard so much about, Y/N?"

You looked at Loki who squeezed your hand and gave you a small nod with a little smile.

"Yes, I am." You tucked your hair behind your ears before getting to what you really were here for. "I heard that you wanted to talk about my powers."

"Yes, my child. Come forward." He told you and you reluctantly let go of Loki's hand. Loki looked at his brother who seemed just as agitated as he was and that was already not a good sign. "I'm assuming you have been told already that by Loki's mistake you have received Asgardian powers. The kind of powers you have are of the ancient arts of Asgard."

"Okay, what about it? Loki protected me and I ended up getting these powers that I have learned to control over the years." you furrowed your brows at the information and tried to smile at your own claims, it had been difficult to process but you understood your powers better now.

"That is well, my child." Odin rested his hand on the armchair and leaned back with his staff. "But since these powers are Asgardian, a mortal should not have them. They shall be taken away from you."

"I beg your pardon?"

"What the fuck?" you and Loki spoke at the same time.

"Father, you cannot do this, she is more than worthy to carry these powers." Loki came forward to stand in front of you now, protective.

"I agree, Father the powers have chosen her. These types of ancient powers were supposed to kill a mere mortal but they didn't, that surely means something about her capabilities." Thor added and stepped forward too, putting a hand on your shoulder. You looked down as you got lost in thought before speaking up.

"How can you do it? Take my powers away, I mean." Loki turned to you but you kept your gaze on the floor.

"Well dear, I am the Allfather, ruler of Asgard and the 9 realms. I am capable of doing things you- a mere mortal, cannot comprehend. And about how I would go about it-"

"May I approach you, before you continue?" you then asked, and it took him a second to consider it before he nodded. What is the harm in a midgardian girl being by him? You shrugged Loki's hand off when he went to take your arm. He was downright scared by the look in your eyes.

You went up the stairs towards the almighty Allfather and when you were on his level, he leaned forward in the chair awaiting what you had to say to him.

"While you are all that, I am Y/N, a human girl from earth and-" you smiled at him before taking your fist and colliding it with his cheek, making him throw his head back in the process. The look of fury didn't startle you when you met his gaze. "I'm sorry, but I made a promise a long time ago, Your Highness." You bowed your head and walked back down the stairs to Loki, who seemed to be at war between a prideful smile and fear for your safety.

"How dare you, you cannot do such a thing-" Odin stood up with his staff ready.

"Can't I?" you tilted your head at him as you stood next to Loki. "I didn't use my powers like I so easily could, because I didn't want to. So do continue what you said."

"Are you mad?" Loki whisper yelled in your ear.

"Quite possibly." You turned to kiss his cheek and found that hidden mischief in his eyes that you loved so.

"Father, please forgive her, I am certain the lady was just upset about the new information."

"Oh no I wholeheartedly meant that." Thor gave you an exasperated look before Odin dismissed him.

"Well as a matter of fact, extracting the powers away from you will involve a very deep process since the powers are so attached to you and your mind. Extracting those means also extracting all the memories of everything your powers have touched or affected- as well as their source."

You did not appreciate the satisfied look he had on when your own face fell as you took in his words. You couldn't be comforted by Loki who you knew would have detected a lie if Odin had uttered it as a form of revenge and pettiness.

You knew that there was no choice as far as Odin was concerned, but you knew Loki and you could feel his brilliant mind spinning around seeking a way out for you, he may have let Odin hurt him but hurting you is crossing a line no one will come back alive from.

So you did have a choice in fact, but given the opportunity you never thought you'd have, the answer wasn't hard to pick.

"Okay." You heard your own voice pick the path you will walk on, your voice was quiet but you knew they all heard you clearly.

"Y/N!" Loki turned to you and you did too. "You don't have to do this, don't think that because he says so I will let it happen when you don't want it!"

"I want it, Loki."

"You what?" he was taken aback- his eyes were studying you now, calculating an explanation.

"These powers Loki, they are not good."

"No, don't say that, don't let him convince you that something about yourself is bad- Norns, darling nothing about you in bad."

He cupped your cheek, trying to get you to understand. But he didn't understand what you were saying. Your eyes turned glossy with unshed tears.

"It's horrible, these powers are evil- I don't want them anymore." You searched his blue eyes but all you got was resistance."I felt them Loki, I felt them and they hurt. I want them gone, and now I have a way to do it."

"No, love can't you see? I've been trying to tell you this from the beginning- Your powers don't only cause harm. They can also heal and calm people down, they can do good- you are good."

"I've been there Loki- inside my mind, and all these powers are just dark. They hurt me, I don't want them anymore. I don't want it, they are staining me like blood on my hands- I don't want to carry this around anymore." You put your head in the crook of his neck, seeking comfort in his touch.

Loki froze in place at your words, they broke his heart because of the way you felt, but you also broke his heart because if you choose to lose your powers then…

Next thing you knew Loki moved away from you and walked out of the door before you could chase after him.

"Loki!"

•

Tags: @ayybtch @buckys-other-punk @chaoticpete @madcrazy50 @mishkatelwarriorgoddess @the-departed-potato @rogerrhqpsody @onceupona-happilyeverafter-love @percabethismyotp14

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boop-le-snoot · 3 years

Text

PARTY FAVOURS I CHAPTER 32

💖 first time reader click here 💖

Summary: Stephen Strange being a grown-up. Reader being a grown-up. Kind of. Revenge plot starts now - don't be like the mercenary, don't threaten reader's family. Avengers being good.. bros? Good found family idk. More smut + plot coming soon.

The silence hung awkwardly over us. Stephen wasn't the one to wax poetics, usually, and I wasn't in the mood to do anything but curl up somewhere warm, chug a bottle of liquor and fall asleep. Sleep is like death without the committment and after my little outburst, I inwardly prayed and begged for the ground to open up and swallow me whole. Instead, I was directed to sit and drink my tea by the sorcerer, who, by the way, was beginning to look like a kicked puppy.

It was starting to become unbearable. "I'm listening," I finally croaked out, shocked at how raspy my voice sounded. As if someone had forced me to choke on some nails - and I felt like it, too. My hands were shaking, all but spilling the hot tea onto them.

"Princess..." His mouth did the thing when he was worried, lips pursed, their corners upturned. "What we did was not... Right, you were drugged without your consent. I am sure Tony feels the same way."

My eyebrows rose, words bubbling up to the surface as I fought the urge to simply start calling Stephen some strong names. Had he been blind the whole time I flirted with him, had he not seen both me and Tony ogling him when we thought nobody could see? Every time I joked about the sexual tension between them - you know what they say, every joke has a little bit of truth in it.

Or maybe the sorcerer had used the incident as a convenient excuse for our little fuck-fest to be a one-time thing? I expected more, I won't lie, but I wouldn't put it above him. I knew all too well that some men tended to simply... Avoid.

I was angry, probably rightfully so, but it was not the time for me to comfort an adult man. My own life was going to shit, I had no mental energy to unburden his baseless guilt. It was selfish and it made me feel even more like shit, but it was as if someone had flipped a switch inside of me. I just didn't care about someone's heartbreak. I needed to solve another problem, a much bigger than a man that couldn't make up his mind.

I had to find that damn mercenary. It was the only real threat hanging over our heads; unlike any mission that I've seen the team go on before, they had thrown all the forces into catching the man that had gotten into their safe space, their home. That threatened to take what they thought as theirs. Long gone were the days of comfortable domesticity.

"Okay," I replied, nodding curtly. "I wanted it, if it helps any. I thought you were attractive the first day I saw you." I spoke bluntly, beginning to feel like myself more and more with each word that I spoke. "And again, no strings have to be attached. I'm sure Tony will understand it too, it's not his first rodeo."

Stephen's head shot up from where he was examining his clasped hands, to study me with furrowed brows. Cloaky moved where it was wrapped around me, attracting the sorcerer's attention - I, unfortunately, did not understand the Cloak's sign language and what it told Stephen remained a mystery to me. I was just delighted to be out of the cold and and wet clothes.

"I think you misunderstood me," Stephen eyed me with surprise. "I want more, but..." He trailed off, unsure. "I don't know. I'm surprised Banner hasn't gone green on me yet. I'm a doctor, I should have known..."

So, he was pulling a me and wallowing in pity. Is this really how pathetic I looked when I used to mope around the house earlier? No wonder my mother thinks I'm a baby. "Stephen, I'm really not in the mood to listen to bullshit. I wanted it, you wanted it, great, we can move on. Because with everything that has happened to me, I really have no energy to convince you I like you even while sober when you're sabotaging yourself." Sure, I might have ripped off the motivational speech from a self-help book my mother used to have laying around. My patience was wearing thinner with each second. "There, I said it. I like you, my boyfriends like you, you're welcome to the club if you decide to believe the fact that I am telling the truth." And if he wouldn't, well, I could get over it. I was planning to never act upon my feelings for both Tony and Bruce, it hadn't been as hard as I thought it would be. Especially with me being busy enough to just ignore the feelings.

At some point, I had grown attached to Stephen. Perhaps, if I and Tony hadn't decided to mess around with the sorcerer at the party, my feelings wouldn't have bloomed into anything more than physical attraction. Murphy's law had a particularly strong affinity on me, I noticed, because over and over I found myself falling head over heels for emotionally unavailable men. It worked out with Tony, which wasn't as surprising as one might expect, considering we're two halves of a whole idiot, but then Bruce also decided to pucker up - Stephen was bound to be the rock that I trip on.

Or not? Soft lips pressed against my forehead, beard hair softly tickling the tip of my nose. I was pressed against a solid chest, surrounded by warmth and comfort. "I'm sorry, I'm an idiot," Steph whispered, voice quivering.

"Well, it's not like this... Relationship... I've got going on is something commonplace," My arms wrapped around him, a deep sigh relaxing my body into his. "I'm sorry I yelled at you. It wasn't right."

Stephen chuckled, all but pulling me bodily into his lap. "Don't worry, Princess. I deserved it." As he spoke, the Cloak carefully unwrapped itself from me, drifting away with a parting pat on my back. "Now what happened with your parents?" Large palms pushed the hair out of my face, stormy blue eyes looking at me with worry.

"I should probably assemble all my significant others for this conversation," There was little enthusiasm in discussing the incident. I was an adult and had enough money to get by for a few months, at least until I could patent one of my inventions. I had plenty of knick-knacks that should be able to interest buyers, that much I knew, and while the legal side of the process was a blank slate to me, I knew I could be charismatic enough to have someone work it out for me.

"I don't think I'll be able to take Steve seriously when he says 'assemble', now," My third boyfriend chuckled, which - wow, I didn't have boyfriends and now I had three? Should I be considering opening a factory or something? Stephen adjusted his hold on me. "Let's go, I'll portal us in."

"My car's out there with all my stuff. I'll have to drive," I protested but made no move to get out of his lap.

"Tony is a billionaire, he can pay someone to retrieve it," Shrugging carelessly, he produced a golden circle of magic, the common room couch in plain sight at the other side of it. I heard voices and then Clint's head peaked through, a curiously tilted eyebrow morphing into full fledged face of confusion upon seeing the two of us.

Yikes. I had forgotten about the state of my dress and the bruise on my cheek. "Hey, bird. I need a drink," I said the first thing that popped into my mind, causing both Clint and Steph to laugh as the sorcerer carried me into the tower through the portal.

"I'm starting to think you go out there and look for trouble on purpose," The archer sighed, pulling out his phone and texting rapidly. Mine vibrated, too, once he was done, which meant he'd called for a family meeting. Blergh.

In no time, Tony appeared, dark circles under his eyes and yesterday's shirt on, towing a worried Bruce behind him. One after the other, the Avengers tickled in, looking restless and exhausted. Loki's frown was well on its way to becoming a full sneer.

"Talk, please," He requested, eyeing me with concern.

"Good news is I got our rogue wizard back," I poked Stephen in the chest. He was blushing. "Bad news is my mother threw me out and my father didn't pick up the phone, so technically I'm homeless and parent-less," I decided that spitting out straight facts was the easiest way to go about it. I mean, there was no good way to tell what I just told them.

The storm that I anticipated didn't appear. Just a lot of disappointed sighs all around, especially from Tony, who looked twenty years older after I'd confessed to the current state of my affairs. "You're not homeless, you live here," He pointed out, rubbing his face and muttering some very strong words under his nose. Particularly, the expressions involved my mother and various methods of fornication.

"We got your back, doll," Bucky nodded, coming over to wrap me in a gentle hug. He was like a brother from another mother to me at this point, kind and goofy and sensible. "I would propose to teaching that harpy a lesson but I think she's beyond it."

"Perhaps it's for the best," Loki mused suddenly. "If I recall correctly, your mother was against your career of choice, which is idiotic. Science is a noble and prospective path." The Asgardian, too, gave me a hug.

I wasn't crying! There were ninjas, in the vents, cutting onions! "Stop it guys, I'm gonna cry. I already look like shit!" The protest was silenced by Bruce's lips on mine, his tiny smile briefly covering my mouth with tenderness. After that, everybody somehow decided it was their job to try and make me cry; like a bad bitch, I resisted, but eventually broke and started sniffling when Tony began rambling about building me my own lab and Wanda offered to help me decorate my new apartment.

No matter how much my mind screamed at me to refuse, I forced that noise down. Fighting against myself, accepting help despite feeling unworthy of it - it was probably the hardest thing I've done in my whole life.

Bruce volunteered to carry my prone body to Tony's bedroom which was quickly becoming the master bedroom for the three of us - ever since the incident, both of my scientists stuck close to me whenever possible, aggressively cuddling me whenever they decided it was time to get some sleep. Which wasn't much these days, if I was being honest. Persuading Bruce to stay with me was a novelty - usually he didn't resist, but that time, I had to repeat myself multiple times that the team could handle business even without him being present.

I had my ulterior motives, of course. Tony and Stephen needed to talk. I only hoped their egos wouldn't clash without me to mediate - having two boyfriends start a fight wasn't something I wanted to experience. I had zero experience in those matters and had no idea how to manage all that. Are there handbooks for polyamorous relationships? I stuck a mental post-it note inside my brain to check it out.

I fell asleep with Bruce wrapped around me and woke up in the same position, having been too exhausted to move even in my sleep. Voices, rough and quiet, were the first thing I heard upon syncing my brain into a resemblance of a working order, instantly recognizing Stephen's deep baritone and Tony's teasing drawl.

"Expect either Reindeer Games or Kim Possible to come and terrify you," My engineer didn't sound particularly ecstatic. His voice came from somewhere around my feet; the hand wrapped around my ankle, thumb gently stroking the skin, must've been his.

"Duly noted," Stephen's reply was equally sarcastic, sounding a little closer. The warmth coming from my side was him. I could smell the faint spices that surrounded him, smell that I'd come to associate with the Sanctum.

Bruce snored away, not a care in the world.

My body, on the other hand, felt rested for what felt the first time in years. A pleasant ache in my muscles had me begrudgingly squirm out of Banner'd grasp, shamelessly pushing up into Stephen as I stretched with a juicy yawn. "What's poppin'?" I rubbed my eyes, finding the men awake looking at me with fond amusement.

"Just watching," Tony smiled, causing me to giggle at his accidental meme-ing. Was it even accidental? I refused to believe that a man well versed in IT was oblivious to meme culture.

Stephen, on the other hand... "We've discussed some things, wanted to talk to you too." His hand stroked my hair, face expression soft unlike anything I'd ever seen him have. "But you were sleeping. So cute."

Me, cute? There was a puddle of drool the size of a dollar bill on my pillow, I was pretty sure some of it had even gotten in Bruce's hair. Banner's sleep was quiet except for every five minutes when he'd let out a snore with a force somewhere between a Mack truck and a whale in mating season.

Cute, sure.

Bruce groaned, a tell-tale sign of him waking up. I met his eyes, brown, shiny, a narrow edge of green around his irises. Huh. Do I have three boyfriends or four?

THE TAG LIST IS NOW OPEN! @another-stark-sub @mostly-marvel-musings @vozit @littlegasps @pilloclock @shereadsinquiet @downeyreads @hermione-grangers-wife @individualistfem @sleep-i-ness @capbrie @lillsxd @agustdowney @dee-vn @justanotherblonde23 @fanngirl19 @persephonehemingway @softie-socks @schemefrenzy @letsby @romeo-the-cactus @jelly-fishy-babie @mikariell95 @gladiosamicitias

#party favours #bun writes #tony stark x y/n #bruce banner x y/n #stephen strange x y/n #tony stark x reader #bruce banner x reader #stephen strange x reader #tony stark x you #bruce banner x you #stephen strange x you

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jaykore · 5 years

Note

How Jason and Tim's relationship should be in your opinion? I don't know much about them but I wanted to ask this to you. Someone said they hate each other and I am just trying to find different opinions about it.

Oof… nonnie this is a loaded question.

This is the question that “launched a thousand ships” if youwill.

How do I answer this…. In short… They absolutely do not hateeach other, and people who are telling you that refuse to acknowledge the last8/9 years of DC comic canon. In fact, according to recent canon material, I’d go so far as to say that Tim is actually Jason’s FAVOURITE of the bat clan.

The longer answer is… under the cut.

Jason and Tim have an incredibly rocky history that beganextremely negatively. I don’t know how much you’ve read nonnie, but the ColesNotes version is that Jason was the second Robin, before Tim. He was murdered at the hands of the Joker and when he came back to life, he found that Bruce had “replaced” him with a new kiddo. Not just replacing him as “Robin” but in his life; like Jason, as a son, was easily replaceable. (At least that’s how Jay perceived it).

Jason was hurt, and angry, and personally, I don’t think he ever truly hated Tim. I think that Tim was the unfortunate target of all his rage, and in an effort to hurt Bruce he targeted and on occasion brutalized Tim. In the worst instance he corned him alone in Titans Tower and attacked him, leaving him bloody and on the verge of death. Jason’s mental health has never truly been explored by any comic writers, but it’s a “fanon headcanon” that part of Jason’s anger was due to what people call “pit rage”. In that they believe that the Lazarus pit that Jason was dunked in knocked some things loose and made him a little crazy. I believe… (and people can correct me if I’m wrong) that this may have been referenced in the comics somewhere; that the Lazarus Pit effects people in that way. And so… if you tend to be in the more “forgiving” group, you can see where Jason, who is already a troubled teen, dunked in a rage pit, and feeling like he’s been kicked to the curb, could go a little insane. Not that this is right by any means…

The interesting thing about Jason is, even though it appears he hates, or wants to hurt Tim, over time we see that there may actually be a grudging respect? Jason asks Tim to team up with him on occasion to help clean up Gotham’s underbelly. Tim declines, and Jason just pretty much accepts that’s how it is,or they fight and go their separate ways.

For Tim’s part, it appears that he never truly hated Jason. Tim even looked up to him at a point. When Jason came back they were both frustrated and hurt and angry and they’d fight… Jason viciously. But even after Jason is locked in jail by Dick, Tim STILL believes that there’s good in Jason, and finds a way to break him free. Jason also stabs Tim in the chest in Battle for the Cowl… and yet he still doesn’t hate him. Tim’s a saint lets be honest lmao.

Enter the retcon that everyone loves to hate. New52. In which DC revamped their canon and released a line of 52 new series in 2011. With it, many characters and their backstories were also changed, including… I bet you can guess… Jason and Tim’s! However… lots of people conveniently henpeck and/or ignore this canon all together, such as those telling you that Jason hates Tim and/or is his adopted brother. According to current canon… absolutely not true.

When they retconned everyone’s stories… Jason was the only kiddo officially adopted by Bruce Wayne. Dick Grayson was his “ward” but never his “son”, and Tim Drake’s parents are still very much alive. Tim is never adopted by Bruce, and in fact, never becomes “Robin”, therefore, he doesn’t “replace” Jason in the same way. It is heavily implied that Jason and Tim had issues when Jay came back from the dead, however… Tim has forgiven Jason and moved past that. Jason and Tim find an odd camaraderie in being the “black sheep” of the family, the Robins that “didn’t quite make the cut” if you will.

They often work together, side by side in titles like “Batman Eternal”. “Batman & Robin Eternal”, the “Robin Wars” and “Death of the Family” events… etc etc; Tim even makes cameos in Jason’s series, “Red Hood and the Outlaws” in which he tells Jason he’s forgiven him, and hopes that one day everyone else can move on too. They work together a bit in “Red Hood/Arsenal” as well.

So… in short. If you ignore the last decade of DC comic canon, you can probably say that Tim and Jason tolerate each other. Even then, I don’t think “hate” is the correct word. I think to say they “hate” is each other is oversimplifying and negating a lot of the complexities of both characters and their relationship overall.

If you follow canon… you’re an absolute liar to try and tell people that they “hate” each other. They simply DON’T. Not now anyway 😊

At the end of day, to each their own. I just wish that people would be honest with the facts.

So I hope that helps nonnie! And you go out there and form your own opinions! But in the meantime, I’ll leave you with some lovely collaborative canon JayTim content :D Because they like each other…

Last time I checked we don’t generally give people we hate fun nicknames, like “Timbers”.

NOTE BIEN! ***THE ONLY MEMBER OF THE BAT FAMILY THAT DOESN’T MAKE ME THROW UP A LITTLE WHEN I SEE HIM*** aka Jay’s FAVE of the famdamily lol

Or help people we hate….

We don’t generally flirt with people we hate either (ahem… yesmy shipper goggles are on)

Nor do we wanna fight bad guys with people we hate….? ButTim does…

*Tim and Jason ‘fought’ each other to throw the Joker off…

And Tim gives him sweet compliments… lmao

Lastly, in Rebirth, while they don’t work with/see each other asmuch as they did in the New52 runs, they’re still aware of/affected by eachother. In particular Jason, who still appreciates Tim, and when Tim “dies”, hasa hard time bringing himself to attend Tim’s funeral.

So yeah… I don’t…. see the hate… lol But I do see something else -eyebrow waggle- haha

#jaytim #jason todd #tim drake #red hood #red robin #Anonymous #long post #photo heavy #the longest post that ever posted #I am tired of people ignoring canon for their own agenda #reference #jaytim relationship #and anyone is welcome to politely correct me if I've misspoken as I'm working from memory #and you're allowed to disagree with me politely and message me privately if you want to chat more about this

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xxgwenstacyxx · 5 years

Text

Endgame Spoilers

Gambit Declined (Ao3 / FFN)

Summary: Tony offers to sacrifice his life in order to defeat Thanos. Nebula refuses.

The rainbows and sunshine, everybody-lives, nobody-dies alternative for Endgame.

Chapter 2

Tony wakes to the beautiful sound of Morgan's laughter and wonders if he's dreaming.

He hasn't expected to see his daughter again. He hasn't expected to wake up at all. Perhaps this is what comes afterwards, and Tony is only fooling himself into thinking his story could have come to any sort of happy ending.

There's a hand stroking through Tony's hair, and he wants to melt into the touch and never feel anything else besides this. He'd recognize Pepper anywhere.

"You're awake," she whispers, her voice carrying hope and relief that makes Tony feel guilty about not having woken up sooner. How long has he been sleeping? How much has he missed?

"Hey Peps," he croaks, wincing at the harsh quality of his voice. He must have been out for a while. "Did we win? Did we... Did everybody..."

"Everybody's fine." Pepper takes his hand and smiles, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "You did it. You saved us."

"Not everybody," Tony mutters. He thinks of Natasha's sacrifice that made everything possible in the first place. He thinks of Vision, killed before the Snap had even happened. He thinks of everybody in the same position, killed as the result of Thanos' megalomania but not in the one event they managed to unmake.

Pepper's laugh startles Tony out of his thoughts. He stares at her, wondering if everything that happened is finally too much for her to handle.

"FRIDAY," she says, a smile tugging at her lips that feels misplaced considering their topic of conversation. "Show him.”

A screen flickers to life in front of them and Tony sets eyes on what has to be an old recording. Except it can't be. Natasha lies curled up underneath what looks like half a dozen blankets and Clint, both of them paying the running television in front of them no mind.

Sam sits nearby, lazily tapping on his phone. He can't be. Sam spent the last five year dusted, there can’t possibly be footage of him and Natasha – new hairdo and all – in the same room.

As Tony keeps watching, Vision enters the room through one of the walls. The others look up as he hovers nearby, perhaps asking some sort of question.

A lump forms in Tony's throat and he has trouble making his mouth form words. "How?" he croaks, pretending as though his voice didn't crack embarrassingly in the middle of it.

"They came back after Bruce used the Gauntlet. Not just those who died in the Snap, but everybody. Everybody who died at Thanos' hand. He did it." Pepper's smile dims. "Everybody except Natasha."

Natasha gave her life in exchange for the soul stone. It was impossible to bring back a life that had been given as a trade to receive the power in the first place.

On the screen, Natasha pushes Clint off of her and uncurls from her blanket cocoon long enough to accept one of the sandwiches Bruce carries in from the kitchen. Sam's lips move and Natasha laughs.

"But she's there," Tony mutters. "She's... she's right there. How...?" Tony's voice gives out again and he clears his throat. He winces at the motion. It feels like swallowing sandpaper.

Pepper pulls her hand out of Tony's hair and takes his hand instead. "Steve took the stones and returned them to their rightful places.” Her lips pull back into a smile. “Including the soul stone."

"He traded her back," Tony realizes, eyes widening in amazement. A soul for a soul.

Pepper's grip tightens around his hand. "It was so close, Tony." The smile slides off of Pepper's face and her eyes slip downwards. "You almost didn't make it. We came this close to losing you."

Pepper's tears spill over and drip onto the mattress. The sight of them make Tony feel like crying himself. "I'm here," he says, squeezing Pepper's hand as firmly as he manages. "I lived."

Barely so, from the sounds of it. Wielding the stones was agony beyond anything Tony ever felt before. He can't believe that he actually pulled through. He can't believe that he...

Tony shoots up in the bed. "Nebula!" Nebula was there with him. He was about to snap, and she... Nebula took part of the burden. Tony saw her lying beside him, half of her body melted away. Tony's voice becomes frantic. "Nebula. She was there. She was... her body was... Where is she? Pepper, you gotta tell me where–”

There's movement in the corner of his eye and Tony trails off.

Nebula sits on the ground at the other end of the room. Going by her wide eyed stare, she didn't realize that Tony had woken up until he raised his voice.

Next to her sits Morgan. "Dad's awake!" She leaps to her feet and, rather than run straight at Tony, grabs Nebula's hand (or rather two of her fingers) and tugs her along.

Tony grunts as she jumps into his lap and jostles his injuries. He waves off Pepper's alarmed, "Morgan! Be careful." and pulls her close with one of his arms. The other hangs limply at his side. Tony doesn’t care enough to investigate further. "Hey baby," he whispers, burying his nose in her hair and tightening his grip.

Nebula hovers close to the bed, shifting on her feet awkwardly. Tony gives her a once over and notes the basic, ugly prosthetics that now make up half of her body. They look as though somebody had thrown them together haphazardly – which, considering everything that needs to be done as cleanup after the battle, is probably the truth.

He promises himself to do something about it as soon as he's able to and pulls away from Morgan enough to grip his daughter’s shoulders and look into her eyes. He takes in the sight of her and pretends like his eyes aren't watering. "Were you two playing?"

"Nebula taught me a game," Morgan says with a dutiful nod.

"Did she?" Tony's smile widens. Considering Nebula quite possibly played a single game in all of her life, he has a pretty good idea which one it might be. "Do you think she'll teach me, too?"

Morgan considers this. "Maybe," she allows. "But later. We're not done yet."

"Don’t want your old man butting in, hmm? I’m hurt." Tony’s tone is definitely ruined by the smile he’s giving Nebula. She turns away – Tony is pretty sure he looks like he's on the verge of tears, and she never knew how to deal with something like that. It's fine. He'll take her aside later and thank her, properly.

He'll also take care of those awful prosthetics. Simply looking at them makes Tony wince in sympathy.

"Morgan," Pepper says, her voice pitched in an odd tone. "Do you want to tell him who else you’ve been playing games with?"

Tony realizes who Pepper is talking about seconds before the door barges open and Peter comes storming through.

"Mr. Stark – I mean Tony! FRIDAY told me that you woke up!"

There's a lump forming in Tony's throat and affection bubbling up in his chest. He already saw Peter alive and well, but the middle of a battle field isn't the sort of environment that allows for a heartfelt reunion.

The kid continues to talk, and Tony doesn't try to stop him. He doesn't know if he wants to stop him.

"It's been crazy around here! I still can't believe we've been gone for five years. And you have a daughter now!" He looks at Morgan with half incredulous, half starstruck eyes. Tony can relate to the sentiment. He feels the same every time he looks at her.

"She doesn't really look like you. Well, except the hair. Do children start to look more like their parents when they're older? She does kind of look like Pepper though."

"Kid," Tony says.

"A bit. Maybe? She's definitely got her nose. Did she get your brain instead?"

"Kid," Tony tries again, and he pretends not to see Pepper badly hiding a laugh beside him. Morgan is watching Peter intently as though he's a particularly interesting jigsaw puzzle.

"I know! I know! I'm sorry, I'm just excited. It's been so long, for you that is, it's only been days for me. I guess I'm just nervous. Five years is such a long time, so what if you don't– Oh. Oh, okay. Are we hugging again? We're hugging again. This is great. This is... definitely better without the suits."

Peter falls silent as Tony tightens his grip around him. He breathes out a shaky breath and allows himself to relax as Peter returns the embrace. He feels the kid clinging onto his shirt.

Something is missing, so Tony leans back far enough to sling his arm around Morgan and pulls her close on his other side. It's made difficult by the fact that his other arm remains stubborn and useless but Tony makes it work regardless. The mattress dips low as Pepper sits down beside them and continues carding her hand through Tony's hair like she had earlier.

Rhodey completes the picture when he walks in, pauses, and softly asks FRIDAY whether she's captured the moment on footage.

(She has.)

(Tony is making it his life goal to show it to everybody he knows, or doesn’t.)

A/N: One more part to go! Hope you enjoy!

#my writing #marvel #endgame #endgame spoilers #tony stark #nebula #peter parker #pepper potts #morgan stark #rhodey #gambit declined #fanfiction

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