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#im going to put all my mini fics from here on ao3 so i dont loose them to read mores dying
findafight · 1 year
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You're back!!!!!
Yes!!! After eons of trying to get in contact with support I finally submitted a ticket for a bug on a temporary account I made to file an account terminated form that was never responded to, then when they replied to me there I was like ACTUALLY ID LIKE MY ORIGINAL ACCOUNT BACK PLEASE HELP and then they did.
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your-iron-lung · 6 days
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HIIIII!!!! I AM VERY EXCITED TO WRITE TO YOU, I HAVE BEEN WANTING TO DO THIS FOR A WHILE BUT I WASN’T SURE, but here I am. Hope you don’t mind. I know you from “Mixed up”, my absolutely favourite zosan fan fiction of all time. After reading everything on ao3 I just wanted to sincerely thank you with my whole heart. I’ve been going through bad shit and you have no idea how much your writing has helped me (even though I have definitely slept less because it was just SO GOOD I always had to “finish at least the chapter” lol). When I found out that you wouldn’t finish it I was a bit sad at first ngl, but when I noticed that you bothered to write some mini-chapters to end it I was the happiest person on this earth. Truthfully, thank you for helping me and keeping me company with your writing (also loves the little art you made about Zoro and Nami, they now proudly hang on my phone as wallpapers) I hope I will get the chance to read other books of yours! Have a nice day!
hello, friend!
sorry it took me a while to get to your message (i dont frequent tumblr very often; youd have better luck checkin in on me on twitter haha)
im so flattered that its your favourite zosan fic? out of all the amazing ones out there?? i put so much into that, and im glad that people, even now, find some kind of meaning in it. im glad it helped you, cause it certainly gave me a good place to be while writing it
i was also pretty sad to make the decision not to finish it- id worked on it for so long, put so much of myself into it, that it felt kind of unfulfilling but sometimes thats how life be
YOU HAVE THE ART ON YOUR PHONE? LOL awwww what the fuck thats so cute, youre too kind
i hope you keep reading my words (whenever i write them........as infrequently as i do)
thank you again for the touching message <3
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heathersgameoftag · 2 years
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OKAY mini update
my original book that ive been writing (eat your heart out) is VERY close to be done. some scenes need tweaking and then thats in on my end, it'll be handed to people to proofread once im satisfied with that. this meeaaaans that hopefully ill have more time to finish tag
I wanna make one thing clear again: ive cut out a lot of this arc. originally i was going to merge this arc and another together, but if i do that it'll take too long. dont be disheartened by that though, unkempt garden will likely have all the content tag is losing.
idk how many fics are left to write exactly, but its not many. i also think this arc works better as a final arc anyway - my motivation fizzled out around the end of the last arc, probably because it was the 'height' of the series, something i planned out right from the start when i drew that first drawing. i thought it would be fine winging it bc i do it with writing literally all the time, but when im no longer hyperfixated on something its hard.
so when i do finish, heres whats going to happen: my ao3, my discord and this blog will all be archived after i finish tag. it wont be the end; ive already got a blog for eat your heart out and unkempt garden will be getting one of its own. but TAG will be put to rest. i would love for people to follow me in my future writing projects with my original characters so lmk if you want me to link my other blogs here :)
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gnarf · 3 years
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Gnarf’s 2020
and what a fucking year that was... Anyways, let’s talk about the good things, shall we?
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I made it through 2020 alive and without going insane! Yay! So lets see what else I did. (This is a long post)
In the beginning of 2020 I said I won’t participate in many fests. Only three or something like that. Lets check how that went!
Fests Gnarf participated in: 9
@lockdownfest @lcdrarry @hd-wireless @hpfluff-fest @hd-hurtfest @hd-fan-fair @hd-erised @gameofdrarry in drarropoly @wireless-festive-minifest​
Haha yup, three. Sounds legit. I also wandered off to try if I can art! No worries, I gave that up :D Mad respect to all Artists, arting is exhausting and the progress is too slow for me.
If you really want to check out my attempts, here’s what made its way onto AO3:
Dont Blink! for LCDrarry, it includes the Angels from Doctor Who and was a pain in the arse.
If you knew... was made for H/D Wireless and has the armiest arm i ever saw, very proud of that one. Its also the last thing I made.
Home Sweet Home was also made for H/D Wireless, and the first bigger art piece I tried my hand on.
A muffled groan which is rather explicit and I entirely forgot about making it :D it has a ficlet going with it too.
(I think theres other Art stuff here with the tag #gnarf draws or something)
I reached my yearly goal of writing 100k words once again!
Fics and Ficlets I wrote this year: 20(ish)
Better Side of the Bed (Lock Down Fest, T, 2k)
It was all Malfoy's fault. Harry could be at the Burrow right now, but instead he was trapped in Malfoy's tiny flat. All because that dick couldn't stop bothering him about a stupid life debt he didn't even care about.
Doing What's Best (G, ~800 words)
Lucius looked down at the little bundle currently sleeping in Narcissa's arms and felt terror shoot through his body. A little boy, his hair so white it was nearly invisible. Born only a few hours ago, taking his first breath in the light of the rising sun. Narcissa had whispered a welcome, her eyes wet, her smile bigger than ever. But they both knew, even though temporarily safe, he really wasn't. Draco was born into a world ruled by war. If only it'd end soon.
I better be hallucinating this (T, 3.8k)
After the war Draco Malfoy is sentenced to Azkaban for a really long sentence. Apparently aiding in Dumbledore's death overrules any argument Harry could put up for him. After the trial, as the days pass by, Harry is more and more outraged at the sentence. He can't stop obsessing over the fact that Draco Malfoy saved his life and aided him during the war and is very much capable of redemption. Not to mention that Malfoy has always been a delicate git and would never survive Azkaban. After a few weeks obsessing Harry decides that Malfoy indeed can't remain unjustly in Azkaban and starts to plot a way to break him out of jail and hide him in Grimmauld Place. When Hermione finds out she's not amused. Ron is horrified. Draco still thinks he's hallucinating.
Keep Holding On (Wireless, M. 33.333) A collab with @maesterchill​ who surprised me with lovely art for it!
After the Battle of Hogwarts, Harry and Draco both fall into their own battles with their mental states. Draco is sent to Azkaban, and Harry turns to drinking, hoping to forget. Months later, Harry visits St Mungo’s new ward on the request of a friend, only to find Draco in a deep vegetative state. Not willing to give him up, Harry stays by his side, while simultaneously dealing with the Ministry's newest grand idea to make everything worse. Making new allies, and losing old ones along the way, will hopefully be worth it in the end.
Age is just a number (Fluff Fest, T, 1.5k)
Married for decades, their life is perfect. Until Harry gets a call and hears the following words: "Mr Potter, we caught your husband stealing ten large packs of King Sized condoms."
There was still hope (Hurt Fest, M, 3.1k)
Draco winced as pain shot through his leg with every step. This secret, back-alley laboratory had been his last chance, last hope, to find the potion. But nobody had it in stock, and there was no time left to brew it himself. Panic was slowly overtaking his entire mind as he crept out of the store and back to the nearest alley to Apparate back home. He already felt off, and it was still early in the day. Of course this thestral-shit had to happen to him, of all people. As if life wasn't bad enough for him already.
Desire (E, 1.7k)
"Auror Potter, what a pleasant surprise to meet you here. What can I do for you?" "Stop the show, Malfoy. There's no one around, and I'm not here as an Auror." Draco watched Potter move closer until they were nearly nose to nose, only the small counter of his shop kept Potter at distance. Potter's eyes were dark with something Draco couldn't exactly name, his face was flushed and the air surrounding him felt somehow static. Draco felt the urge to lean further over his counter, to drink in his sight, to touch the man on the other side—but he didn't.
Drarropoly 2020 currently holds 7 ficlets and is in a Series. The highest rating is Mature and its 3.2k in total at this point.
Let's not wait for France (Fan Fair, T, 17.7k)
All Harry had wanted from his Eighth year at Hogwarts was a little peace and a little privacy but, from the moment that he stepped onto Platform 9 3/4, it was obvious that nothing was ever going to be that easy. An accidental bond with Malfoy that resulted in them having to stay together at all times was the final straw. Things couldn't be worse. So much to a quiet year in Hogwarts.
Love letters for the oblivious (Mini Wireless, T, 716 words)
Draco had gotten the strangest letters all week long, which wasn't what anyone needed at Christmas. Especially not him. Either someone was taking the piss, or he had a very dumb and inefficient secret admirer. And Draco didn't know which would be worse.
Double-Booked (Mini Wireless, T, 2.1k)
Finally, peace and quiet, and— "Malfoy?!?" Or the one where Harry thought he could enjoy a quiet Christmas far from everyone, just to find out that the cabin he had booked already accommodated another guest.
The best Christmas he ever had (Mini WirelessT, 1.9k)
Christmas had never been less appealing to him than this year. That was until Arthur Weasley showed up at his door, dressed as Santa, inviting him to the Burrow.
Anon Fests to be added
Whoever made it to this point: yoooo! Friend! Lots of love to you! I also got tagged in many get to know me posts, plenty of love in my Inbox giving me love slaps left and right (honestly, im bruised, stop slapping me), amazing person awards, top 5 fics, and whatever you can think of.
To make up for not answering most of them because I’m a horrible person:
My favourite colour: purple My age: I’ll be 30 next year in April, I expect gifts, I don’t accept first borns My favourite trope: eight year My favourite animal: cat My favourite ice cream: Ben and Jerry’s Cookie Dough Here’s my writing Playlist, it’s the worst you’ll ever see, and yes, I use YouTube, I’m old.
Other things that happened in 2020 that made me happy:
I kicked out my mentally/emotionally abusive partner of 7 years in January
I kept my grandma alive through this *waves hand at world*
I was able to share my birthday cake with my family becaus I got to leave my first quarantine a few days before my birthday
I got to keep my job
I found a lot of lovely friends in this fandom, and got to keep them through this year
My cats are their usual little jerks and actually enjoyed me being at home due to the raging pandemic
I finally cut off my hair
I’m about to hit 3.5k followers here and I love you all
I’m also tagging everyone who sees this and wants to do something similiar! Show us what you did in 2020, the things you’re proud of, and the things you loved! Let’s spread some happy for the end of the year 💜🥰
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This Week in Gundam Wing 24-30 November 2019
Here’s this week’s roundup!
Remember to give your content creators some love! And join in on the events at the bottom!
(Looking forward to all the Unorthodox Undercover Work Mini Bang entries going up this next week!)
~Mod Hel
Fanfiction/Snippets/AU Ideas:
@bobo-is-tha-bomb​
Encounters with Heero (Ch. 12 & 13) https://archiveofourown.org/works/21385951/chapters/51360610
F/M, Heero Yuy/Reader
Heero Yuy, Reader, Relena Peacecraft, Duo Maxwell, Hilde Schbeiker, Trowa Barton, Quatre Raberba Winner, Chang Wufei
Romance, Drama, Fluff, Friendship
This man oozed danger. Nonetheless you are attracted to him and you grow closer to him than anyone has ever before. Being nice to a stranger was what got it all started.
Burn to a Cinder (Ch. 7) https://archiveofourown.org/works/18781273/chapters/51374644
F/M, Zechs Merquise/Reader, Treize Khushrenada/Reader
Zechs Merquise, Treize Khushrenada, Lady Une, Mariemaia Khushrenada, Relena Peacecraft, Chang Wufei
Romance, Drama, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Violence, Reader-Insert
Your path had been laid out for you from an early age, allowing you to move into the higher circles of society and catch the attention of one of the most powerful men in the Earth Sphere. As Treize’s mistress, you watch his rise to power and the disastrous war breaking out on Earth and in Space, putting your loyalty to the test. You are torn between your duty to His Excellency, and your unquellable lust for one of the top soldiers under his command. And when he rises to power in Outer Space, there is nothing you can do but stand back and watch them tear each other apart. This is no game of hearts, but yours is at stake, and the consequences can be felt for years to come. Labeled as OZ’s whore, you struggle to find your way, only for things to fall apart around you again. But then there is still Zechs, and the undeniable way he makes you feel…
@doctormegalomania​
Your Body’s Poetry (Ch. 7) https://archiveofourown.org/works/20438891/chapters/48490382
Duo Maxwell/Heero Yuy, Trowa Barton/Quatre Raberba Winner, Chang Wufei/Original Female Character(s), Duo Maxwell/Hilde Schbeiker, Relena Peacecraft & Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell/Original Male Character(s)
Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell, Trowa Barton, Quatre Raberba Winner, Chang Wufei, Sally Po, Relena Peacecraft, Lucrezia Noin, Zechs Merquise, Hilde Schbeiker
Past Relationship(s), Slice of Life, Post-Break Up, Slow Burn, Developing Relationship, Implied/Referenced Domestic Violence
Long after the wars, long after peace is established the Gundam Pilots discover one immovable fact: Relationships are hard work.
@duointherain​
The Hidden Cherry (Ch. 1) https://duointherain.tumblr.com/post/189338568519/fic-the-hidden-cherry-1
Intersex Duo, disabled Heero
He closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead. Duo wanted to think that the stress in his voice made him sound like an asshole and that would motivate the person on the other side of the phone. The space he was in was small, like 3 meters by maybe 5. His cigarette lighter had given him enough light to see the space, but it was back in his pocket now.  “I need an analyst. It’s fucking Wednesday. There is an analyst in the office.”
@janaverse​
Stickies from Heero (Ch. 26) https://archiveofourown.org/works/19796581/chapters/51374212
Chapter 26: ‘circumnavigating the simple truth’ is now on AO3. It was nice to actually get another story written for this odd universe!
Duo reads Heero latest note and fallout ensues.
Rough https://janaverse.tumblr.com/post/189270598643/drabble-day-38-adult-themes-rough-heero-stood
drabble - day 38 - adult themes
Consider it done https://janaverse.tumblr.com/post/187883433878/consider-it-done
So this is the follow up to my short fic ‘something to consider’ which I posted about a week or so ago.  You can find it here:  https://janaverse.tumblr.com/post/187689757828/something-to-consider or here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20669474 in case you have not read it yet. this fic will make infinitely more sense if you have!
pairing: 1X2X1
warnings: unholy amounts of sap and lovey dovey stuff. please take this warning seriously! lol  this is THE sappiest thing i have ever written!
Heero had entered the house first, taking off his soaked shoes and leaving them out on the front porch beside the door. Duo had followed suit, noticeably shivering once inside the house, and headed toward their bedroom to get changed. Heero had only removed his jacket and hung it on the coat rack inside the front door; opting to start a fire before getting out of his wet clothes and into something dry.
@ransomedbard​
Clipped Wings (Ch. 3) https://archiveofourown.org/works/21360976/chapters/51500641
Duo Maxwell, Hilde Schbeiker
Preventer!Duo, Criminal!Hilde, 2+H, Adventure, Kidnapping, mild violence, Crime doesn't actually pay
Time has a funny way of turning history on its head. Two years after the Eve Wars, former rebel Duo Maxwell is now a member of the secretive anti-terrorism unit Preventers, while Hilde has been living on the wrong side of the law on Earth. When he makes a visit to attempt to salvage their strained friendship, he’ll uncover just how much their paths have diverged, and end up getting caught up in her life on the run from a gang that wants revenge.
Fanart/Gunpla/Photo Manips:
@animethingsandstuff​
https://animethingsandstuff.tumblr.com/post/189231234100/w-night-by-%E3%82%80%E3%81%86%E3%81%9F%E3%82%8D-posted-with-permission-please
The G-boys and posing... and flowers.
Photosets/Gifsets/Screenshots/Manga Pages:
@vegalume​
https://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/189361489995/i-immediately-thought-of-heero-but-this-could-be
Before leaving the house, Heero does...
Fandom Discourse:
@amberlyinviolet
https://janaverse.tumblr.com/post/189290275628/i-am-here-for-the-giving-of-the-happily-ever-after
@noirangetrois​, @janaverse​
About the struggles of all GW characters.
@incorrectgundamwingquotes​
https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189326495789/unpopular-opinion-despite-the-horrible
Unpopular Opinion: FT had good points.
https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189326409984/for-unpopular-opinion-not-on-the-series-itself
Unpopular Opinion: 1X2 is overrated.
https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189326308699/i-dont-know-if-this-is-actually-an-unpopular
Unpopular Opinion: EW was not that great.
@lifeaftermeteor​
https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/189380639699/life-after-meteor
LAM has a website now!
@ransomedbard​
https://ransomedbard.tumblr.com/post/189357520583/thank-you
Fandom loves you too!
@terrablaze514​
https://terrablaze514.tumblr.com/post/189258275567/wing-zero-episodes
Wing Zero Episodes (Who flew it better?)
My opinions on Wing Zero and the impact it plays. Borderline meta I guess, and excuse the occurrence of Trowa and Zechs muses.
Quotes:
@incorrectgundamwingquotes​
https://gwminorcharactersrpblog.tumblr.com/post/189313789527/quatre-why-is-your-back-all-scratched-up-trowa
Quatre & Trowa
With additions made by @gwminorcharactersrpblog​
https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189293229002/texting-duo-hello-duo-are-you
Duo & Trowa
https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189298062910/quatre-you-should-be-nicer-to-people-heero
Quatre, Heero, Duo, Trowa, & WuFei
https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189326315129/zechs-you-played-me-like-a-fiddle-duo-oh-no-i
Zechs & Duo
https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189333739266/duo-whyre-you-ignoring-relena-heero-im
Duo, Heero, & WuFei
https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189338458478/trowa-handing-duo-some-pills-here-take-four-of
Trowa & Duo
https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189342871815/heero-ill-worry-about-that-bridge-when-i-get-to
Heero & Quatre
https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189358288319/heero-dont-correct-me-wufei-dont-be-wrong
Heero & WuFei
https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189397723234/duo-uh-its-salt-wufei-thats-what-i
Duo & WuFei
https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189377500808/une-about-mariemaia-you-cant-give-her-that
Une & WuFei
Calendar Events:
@gundamzine​
Rhythm Generation: Shooting Stars, Celebrating 25 Years of Gundam Wing
Zine Content https://gundamzine.tumblr.com/post/186791784139/rhythm-generation-shooting-stars-is-an-unofficial
Pre-orders Open! https://gundamzine.tumblr.com/post/189370843928/gundamzine-pre-orders-are-open-rhythm Open until January 11th!
Q about Free Merch https://gundamzine.tumblr.com/post/189215831466/are-you-really-giving-free-merch-i-am-kinda
@gundam-wing-bingo​
Gundam Wing Bingo is here!
Come and sign up for a card here: https://gundam-wing-bingo.tumblr.com/post/185466400076/gundam-wing-bingo
@gwcocktailfriday​
Cocktail Fridays!
Post responses on Friday, during Happy Hour between 3 & 5 pm in your own timezone.
Here’s the prompt for Friday, December 6th! https://gwcocktailfriday.tumblr.com/post/189390586070/cocktail-friday-post-responses-on-friday-december
For those going to Pillowfort, find us here.
If anyone has ideas for prompts, PLEASE send them in! Our ask box is always open.
In need of Winter prompts!
@thisweekingundamevents​
Gundam Wing Holiday Gift Exchange 2019/2020
https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/188113410410/holiday-gift-exchange
Schedule: 5-11 January: Post your Gifts!
Holiday Exchange Q & A: https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/188824081840/some-holiday-exchange-q-a
Criteria and Schedule Reminder! https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/188943007445/holiday-gift-exchange-reminder
Gundam Wing Unorthodox Undercover Work Mini Bang
Posting starts today!
Here’s everything you need to know to post! https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/189346329635/gw-uuw-mb-posting-again-lol
For those artists who haven’t a story, if you finished your piece, feel free to post it up on tumblr. Remember to tag us and I’ll get you in the End of Event Roundup anyway! ^_^
Posting Dates: https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/189405682420/posting-dates-gwuuwmb
Note! There is also a Gundam Wing Discord Meet-up going on right now! See @lifeaftermeteor​ for details and a discord invite if you aren’t in it already!
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yeoldontknow · 5 years
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I finally made my own tumblr and i feel pretty happy bcuz im finally letting others see my writing but i wanted to know what you did for your stories to like, “get out there?” Btw i LOVE your stories im a new fan of EXO and ur stories r amazing keep it up!!
hi there. welcome to tumblr! thats so exciting! i hope youre enjoying your time here! im going to preface everything i say by advising a few things. 
firstly that i dont consider myself an ‘out there’ blog. im exceptionally proud of the amount of followers i have, even though the number itself is different depending on perspective. to some, this number is remarkably small. to others, this number is enormous. and the amount of readership that occurs on my fics really doesnt match up the to the numbers the way you think it would. so when you say ‘out there’ just keep in mind this is really...dependent on so many factors and depends on your own personal definition of what that means. 
second, the things i list that were part of my experience may not work for you or match up to your experience. theres really no algorithm or formula anyone can give. so again, you can take all of this with a grain of salt. 
- make use of tags and tag appropriately. when youre starting from 0 (as everyone on this website does) the first and primary way you get any of your writing out to the public (beyond...posting it lmao) is tagging. only the first five tags show up in searches when youre tagging on tumblr, so keep that in mind when you consider how many networks (ill discuss those later) you want to join. keep your tags relevant to what youve written, things like ‘member smut’ or ‘member fluff’ usually draws in a crowd. when i first started hero, i was tagging with ‘chanyeol x reader’ and ‘chanyeol scenario’ and those pulled in a bunch of readers too (that was 2 years ago tho, so idk how much a scenario tag pulls in anymore) 
- post in multiple places. i have an AO3 and a tumblr. most writers cross post to ao3 and tumblr, but others also have an asian fan fics account or a wattpad account (this is usually to prevent people plagiarizing on there). but most writers i know (tbh i think all) post in at least two separate places. 
- join a network. networks are so great for getting your work out there when you dont have a lot of followers or are new and dont have a lot of readership. theres so many out there you can join - some are specific to band and others are multi-fandom and only require that you be writing for kpop. my recommendation is to join two or three, because these networks will always require you use their tag in the first five. this is because the only way they will find your work to reblog it is by searching it, so tagging for two main tags and two networks is a surefire way to get your writing to the right people.
- talk to other writers/blogs. send asks, play ask games with them, tag them in things you know they like (example, even if i dont follow you but you tag me in something related to chanyeol i will always respond). leave feedback on their work. reblog their work and tag it well - either with your keysmash reaction, your thoughts, or your feelings. whatever you give into the community will come back to you.
***HOWEVER, i will say that dont be discouraged if writers dont reply right away. sometimes tumblr eats asks, deletes messages, or doesnt let them show up until the person can get to a computer. furthermore, most writers on here have regular jobs or families, so the time theyre on tumblr is very limited. and even more than that, theres a big question of age. for me personally, if i can tell a person is quite young or under the age of 18, i am less likely to fully go back and forth in banter with them because i am considerably older than that and thats inappropriate. im just pointing this out because i dont want you sending messages and getting discouraged if someone doesnt reply. theres a lot of reasons someone might not reply, and it may have nothing to do with you or be relate to something within your control. 
- if youre a new writer, join a beta network. theres networks out there where people willingly volunteer to beta writing, and you can also apply to be a beta. this helps improve your writing, which will help draw more readers, and will also create a community/friendship around you and your beta team.
- make a masterlist, even if you only have 1 written item. masterlists help people new to your blog see what you have written, find it, and read it OR see what you want to write. example: if youre writing for exo and you have a list for the entire band, ill assume that at some point youll write for chanyeol even if you only have a link for jongdae. make a masterlist and link it in your bio for easy access.
ok so thats...bare minimum how you get your writing out and circulating and possibly generating a community for you to engage with. but its really important for me to say the following:
if you are walking into this with an expectation that you will soon receive recognition or feedback or a large amount of notes, please please restructure this. in my years on this site, i have seen so many writers come and go because they start writing solely for the notes or the feedback. thats not a sustainable goal and it will suck the pleasure out of writing really really quickly. its so easy to get discouraged if you dont think youre achieving some arbitrary number that tumblr itself messes with just by changing rules or guidelines or the way posts show up on a dash. 
instead, challenge yourself to write things that interest you or to write different things within your stories. things like ‘i want to write a fantasy’ ‘i want to write a 5 part mini series’ ‘i want to write an angsty drabble.’ when you approach writing from this perspective, it keeps you consistent and motivated with your goals. and it also, believe it or not, make your writing come from a genuine place of love rather than a place of wanting interaction. readers can tell when someone genuinely loves what they write and when someone is just checking boxes they think will bring in feedback. 
also - please know that getting your writing out there is very much a ‘rome wasnt built in a day’ kind of vibe. ive been on this website for 2 years and there have been months where my notes and follower count is barely moving, and others where i feel like i get 200 followers in a week or hundreds of notes on something id posted a year ago. you cannot predict how long it will take for people to see your work, the only thing you can predict is that it will take time. honestly, again ive been here for two years and im still a pretty small blog. theres no magic formula to this. 
i hope all this helps!
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Magic and Miracles and BEYOND Chapter 4
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Ok, so for those who don’t know I face cast Miracle Laurie as Hazel Stevens, Titus Drautos’ love interest (*cough* love of his life *cough*) and in the upper right hand corner is my face cast for Ada, @the-immortal-marshal ‘s OC, she gave me Ada’s particulars forever ago so now I’ve just finally face cast her. And we have TADA I finally found a face I liked for Charlotte Stevens. Hazel’s sister who is of African American and Chinese decent. And I am OBSESSED with Empresses in the Palace which is a six episode long mini series that USED to be on Netflix, you can find it on Amazon Prime video now. And there is a lot of symbolism from that show that I’ve taken and run wild with because in this fic Gilgamesh (who I have taken so many liberties with) is a Chinese drug lord who thinks of himself as an Emperor and calls Charlotte his Empress. And Cor is obsessed with taking him down (like he is in the canon-verse). 
Ok so you can read it here -> AO3 or below. Tumblr, be cool, keep it under a cut. 
Magic and Miracles and BEYOND
Chapter 4
“Ok, I stand corrected, this is my favorite house.” Selena announced as she came into the mansion in California wine country that was styled in a blend of Italianate, Spanish and Mediterranean. With it’s overall warm tones and clay tile roof. She fell head over heels in love with it.
“Knew it would be,” Ravus beamed.
“I want our house to be exactly like this.” Selena urged Ravus who chuckled.
“Yeah, I figured as much.” Ravus nodded in agreement, having figured that the moment they hit the road.
“Yeah, you can keep the house on the coast Luna, I love that location but I love and adore this house and the vineyards are just...spectacular. It’s so beautiful I think I’m gonna cry.” Selena teased herself as her eyes actually started to water which only got Ravus to pull her into his embrace and kiss the crown of her head.  
“Well Ravus did buy you that place up the coast so you’re only a stroll down the beach away.” Luna teased her.
“Yeah,” Selena sighed wistfully before she gave Ravus a quick peck on the lips before she had him really show her around.
“Holy shit!” Selena exclaimed when she saw the wine cellar.
“Yeah, this wine cellar alone is worth as much as the actual house I think.” Ravus speculated.
“It’s all dry isn’t it?” Selena asked in disappointment.
“Actually, no,” Ravus began as he hunted through the cellar. “Yes! This Darling, is ice wine. And it is exceptionally sweet.” Ravus said as he handed her a little mini bottle.
“Should we chill this first?” Selena asked as she looked it over.
“Yes, yes we should.” Ravus nodded as he used a special wine bottle carrier box to put in a half dozen bottles in, going through the rows picking out different ones before filling the box full and putting it down before getting another before he turned the corner and it was like it kept expanding, Ravus going through the bottles like anyone would go through a library to look at books.
“Does it ever end? I could get lost in here.” Selena teased as Ravus grinned but kept his eyes moving through all the labels.
“You could.” Ravus answered but only half teasing himself before his phone went off.
“Yeah?” Ravus answered.
“Where are you?” Luna asked.
“In the wine cellar?” Ravus answered.
“Where at in the wine cellar?” Luna asked.
“I’m at the Rieslings, just about to head into the Moscatos. I already handed Darling some ice wines.” Ravus answered.
“Ooh, could you get me my favorite please?” Luna requested.
“Sure, what does Jock Strap want?” Ravus asked.
“Oh he’s found the bar, he’s good.” Luna snorted a laugh.
“Well then get me my favorite.” Ravus insisted.
“Already gotten.” Luna reassured him.
“Thanks, when you guys figure out what to get for dinner call me back.” Ravus urged his sister.
“Yup.” Luna nodded.  
“That’s really kind of sad that the house is so big, you have to call each other on your phones to talk to each other.” Selena teased as she leaned up against a brick wall and gave him a giddy smile.
“Oh trust me, once we start our family, you’ll be happy it’s as big as it is, in fact I think you’ll love it down here because it’ll be the one part of the house where the kids won’t be allowed to play and you’ll have some nice ‘quiet mommy time’.” Ravus gently teased her with a look that had Selena wishing she could speed up time just to get to that and she just couldn’t help but pull him away from the wines to pull him flush with her to kiss him deeply.
“Can’t wait.” Selena purred when they broke for air and Ravus put the box down but only to allow him to pin her to the brick wall behind her before he picked her up so that her legs wrapped around his waist and her arms wrapped around his shoulders as he slipped her panties to the side since she was wearing a sundress as he unzipped his shorts and quickly entered her and moaned with her.
“I can, it’ll be worth the wait. I promise.” Ravus beamed at her.
“Aww,” Selena fawned.
Meanwhile Hazel and Titus were about to get ready to go to the store when Hazel checked her phone for the time before the screen went haywire for a moment as Titus’ phone did the same before both her phone and Titus’ phone turned themselves off and wouldn’t turn back on and Hazel inhaled sharply as her eyes went wide with terror because she knew what was going to happen next.
“Titus, you either need to get to the car right now or you need to get into my bathroom and don’t come out unless I come in and get you.” Hazel immediately ordered and Titus blinked in surprise when he saw how terrified she suddenly looked.
“What are you talking about?” Titus asked.
“No time to explain, here.” Hazel decided for him before she seemed to pull a gun out from under her breakfast bar and put it into his hand and shoved him into the bathroom.
“Sit right here, don’t move, don’t make a sound and shoot anyone but me who tries to come in.” Hazel ordered, keeping her voice whisper quiet but the hiss to her voice put him on edge before Hazel quickly locked the bathroom and quickly ran to her door and pulled out another hand gun and watched through the keyhole as Charlotte and two body guards came walking purposefully down the hallway, each body guard taking up an end to the hall to leave Charlotte to approach Hazel’s door alone before she knocked her special knock.
“Please tell me you’ve come to say goodbye.” Hazel told her sister in Mandarin when she opened the door for her sister, her gun visible at her side as Charlotte came strutting into Hazel’s apartment as Hazel shut the door behind her as she warily watched her sister.
“I came with a warning.” Charlotte began and Hazel’s stomach dropped. “You should go out to dinner tonight.” Charlotte suggested.
“Where and with who?” Hazel’s eyes narrowed suspiciously.
“It doesn’t matter where but I think you’ll know with who.” Charlotte grinned as she laid a manila envelope on the counter.
“What part of ‘I never want to be involved’ is hard to understand?” Hazel bit out.
“It’s Heaven’s wish, either serve the warning or you can try to Witchhazel.” Charlotte returned coolly and Hazel’s jaw clenched. “Your choice.” Charlotte shrugged before she stood in front of Hazel with a challenging smirk before hugging her sister before Hazel begrudgingly returned it.
“Why can’t you both go back to Hong Kong? At least you’d be safer there.” Hazel asked as she hugged her sister tighter, always feeling like she was seeing her sister for the last time when her sister came to her like this.
“Soon.” Charlotte answered and Hazel knew that was the closest to a straight answer she could ever get from Charlotte.
“Ok.” Hazel whispered.
“Now tell Titus hi for me and to keep his nose out of our business.” Charlotte offered in English as she let go of her sister and left, snapping her fingers once she was in the hallway before both henchmen were back at her side as she left the building as Hazel blew out a shaky breath as her cheeks burned as she put the gun back into it’s hiding spot and went over to the manila envelope and opened it to find a tiny flash drive and found 50 thousand dollars with it. Hazel just huffed and shook her head. She took the money out and when she did, she found ‘Warhorn Lion’ written on a piece of yellow paper that almost looked and felt like tissue paper but was in fact a recreation of the paper used by Chinese Emperors to write edicts and orders on- on the inside of the envelope in Mandarin calligraphy and Hazel just closed her eyes and fought not to cry.  
“Shit.” Hazel hissed as she got gloves on and took it out and folded it carefully, damning her hands for shaking. At least it wasn’t Titus’ name. She put the paper and the flash drive into a new envelope and into her purse before she put the money into her lock box and once she was done she took her gloves off and threw them away before she knocked on the door to the bathroom off her bedroom where she had put Titus.
“It’s safe now Baby.” Hazel called out softly as she unlocked the door and opened it to find Titus still sitting in the same spot she left him in.
“What the fuck is going on?” Titus demanded as he stood up and stared at her incredulously.
“If I answered that, I’d have to kill you myself.” Hazel answered defeated-ly as she took her gun back to put it away.
“What kind of convoluted clandestine bullshit is that?!” Titus spat angrily as he followed her and took note of where it had come from in the first place, having sat right there before and not having the smallest clue it had been there the whole time.
“The kind of convoluted clandestine bullshit that will get you killed, moreover it’s the kind of convoluted clandestine bullshit that puts car bombs under cars and straps C4 to someone’s chest and tells them to walk into hospitals and schools with the power to bring anyone to their knees before it lops off their heads, that kind. The kind that already knows your name, where you work, your routines, the truck you drive and where you are at all times. The kind that’s kept a tail on me since I went to college, the kind that has already buried the last nosy boyfriend. So do yourself a favor if you want to live and let it go and never, ever breathe a word of this ever again. This is your one warning. The next time you bring this up, that sniper on that roof right over there will shoot you and I’ll have to change the carpet again because blood doesn’t come out from white carpet well.” Hazel snarled as she pointed her finger into his chest, the tip digging into his flesh hard every time she said the word ‘you’ as tears flowed freely from her eyes as her expression was a pleading one as Titus just stared in shock at her as he finally really sensed what kind of predicament and danger she must be in and all he wanted to do was make her feel safe again, he didn’t care if he had to set the world on fire to do it either. He knew Hazel was smart, brilliant even and as badass as the day was long but if his Hazel was this scared, she would only have every justification to be so.
“Ok.” Titus answered softly as finally nodded as he brought her in and hugged her tight and kissed the crown of her head.
“Obviously you don’t have a choice in this. If this is the way it has to be then it’s the way it has to be.” Titus offered as Hazel just broke down crying and bawled into his chest and when she was done, she pulled herself back together and kissed him so deeply it started their own familiar chain of events and once satisfied, they left and went about their day, Titus doing his best to act like nothing was wrong and that nothing had happened out of the usual.
“Hey you wanna meet up with Cor and Ada for dinner?” Hazel asked innocently as they were putting their groceries away.
“Yeah sure.” Titus nodded and texted Cor.
“Where to?” Titus asked Hazel.
“I don’t care, whatever they want is fine.” Hazel waived off. “Actually I could go for some rice noodles though, maybe Chinese? Japanese? Vietnamese? Thai? Something like that.” Hazel waived off.  
“The Mandarin?” Titus suggested, knowing that was her favorite Chinese restaurant, it was a bit upscale but very authentic and the whole menu was in Mandarin and English and he loved the way Hazel could order for them in nothing but Mandarin and get things that weren’t even on the menu.
“Perfect.” Hazel beamed and once at the restaurant, Cor was exceptionally happy and even giddy because he had gotten a break in the Gilgamesh case that day and Hazel was grateful that she wasn’t sitting right next to him but feared for Ada, knowing that Ada was in grave danger but was powerless to say anything to her directly. Hazel excused herself from the table and took her server aside as she went to the bathroom and gave her a hundred dollar bill if she put the envelope into Cor’s bill. Hazel having taken the envelope out with a tissue and put it into a folded napkin to hand to the server who thought it was some kind of practical joke before the owner, who had been watching over them, took the envelope and looked inside before their eyes went wide for a moment and made a quick phone call before they nodded and got a red envelope and wrote something out with a calligraphy pen and comped not just Cor and Ada’s meal but Titus and Hazel’s too.
“Mr. Leonis, could you please come with me?” The owner asked Cor as he came and pointed to the bill as if the card had gotten declined.
“Oh, that shouldn’t of...” Cor said as he got up and got his wallet out as he followed the owner to the cash register.
“Oh no, your card wasn’t declined, no your meal was taken care of already but I didn’t want to disturb your party by handing you this.” The owner said as he handed Leonis a red cash envelope typically given to newly weds at their wedding.
“What does this say?” Cor asked as he pointed to the writing on the envelope.
“It says ‘compliments of Emperor Gilgamesh’.” The owner answered.
“Fuck.” Cor breathed. “Is he here? Like right now?” Cor asked the owner.
“Of course not. Even if he was, you could not do anything Marshal.” The owner pointed out with a smug grin.
“I could have you arrested for aiding and abetting.” Cor threatened.
“Perhaps you should look at the flash drive first before you make any foolish threats.” The owner suggested sagely as Cor narrowed his eyes and got the flash drive and put it into his phone before picture after picture of Ada and Ada and himself came up on the screen before a new message came into his phone with a picture of himself, Ada and Titus in the cross-hairs from a scope while they were still there at the restaurant and Cor looked up and searched the room, trying to find the threats and the vantage points these pictures were taken from.
“It really would be quite rude to answer generosity with disrespect. Perhaps you should go home now.” The owner suggested. “And please do not think that my restaurant is unique in that his Majesty has reign here. There is no where any of you could ever go that he would not come for you.” The owner warned. “And if I may let you in on a secret. His Majesty is being lenient with you and has written your name in black. This is your warning that you have come too close. If you come any closer, he will write your name in white. White is the color of death in our culture. And it will be as if he would have written your death warrant.” The owner added and Cor gulped.
“Understood.” Cor nodded before he went back to the table and tried to casually get them all out of there as the owner came and thanked them for coming and invited them back as he handed Hazel a to go container of her favorite dumplings- raw so she could steam them herself when she got home and once back in Titus’ truck Hazel found a thick black card with what Gilgamesh liked to referred to her as written in gold ink along with a quick message of thanks.
“What does that say?” Titus asked as he noticed it.
“It says ‘thank you’ and my name.” Hazel answered honestly.
“I’ve never gotten a thank you for getting takeout from here.” Titus frowned.
“Well you’re not on first name basis and friends with the family.” Hazel tried to reason with a lop sided grin as Titus nodded in understanding.
“So that’s why our meal was free?” Titus asked.
“Yup.” Hazel nodded.
“So...I’m thinking we should take up a new hobby together.” Titus began.
“Which is?” Hazel asked curiously.
“Shooting. I’m already into hunting, I need to be a better shooter though.” Titus realized as he squeezed her hand a little tighter and gave her a gentle yet reassuring look and watched as Hazel’s grin grew into a full blown smile.
“That would be...amazing.” Hazel praised as she squeezed his hand back tightly and just fell in love with him a little more. Because usually right about now any guy would be running for the hills but instead, Titus was making plans to stay and try to help her.
“Wanna stay at my house tonight?” Titus asked.
“Hell yeah.” Hazel nodded as Titus then turned to head to his house since Hazel already had enough of her things to stay there for a few months straight already.
Once back at his house, Titus put her dumplings in the fridge before he turned to face her, wanting to tell her a thousand different things all at once as he had thought about her predicament all day.
“So, if I wanted my house as secure and defend-able as possible, how would I go about that?” Titus asked her before she grabbed the shopping list pad off of his fridge and a pen and handed them to him.
“Take notes.” Hazel grinned as Titus returned her grin and took them before Hazel began to go through the whole house and tell him exactly how to accomplish that and insisted that she pay for it all because it would be getting quite costly but it was investment in Titus’ well being and would help her sleep easier at night.
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antihero-writings · 5 years
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In Plain Sight –Pandora Hearts Fic for Phmonth18 Golden Trio Week – Day/Prompt 3: Friendship (Full fic)
Fic Title: In Plain Sight
Fic Synopsis: When Break hides Gilbert’s favorite Christmas ornament somewhere in the Rainsworth manor, the Golden Trio must spend the afternoon looking for it
Notes: I originally wrote this for the prompt “Ornaments” in an alphabetical Christmas prompt list my friends and I did last year. However, nobody got to read it last year, and since I didn’t get the chance to write anything for the first week of phmonth18, I wanted to at least post something, and decided this worked well for the Golden Trio! Especially since Christmas is fast approaching. I think it works best for the day 3 prompt: Friendship. I hope you like it! I had a lot of fun writing this, and am rather proud of how it turned out! I would really appreciate it if you left a comment to let me know if you enjoyed it!
I posted the entire thing here, but you can also read this on Ao3. It’s under the same title, by I_prefer_the_term_antihero
P.S. This is a repost of an old fic!
Fic:
“You’re the tallest, Gil, you should put the star on top!”
“Ooh! It looks yummy! Like a big cookie!”
“It’s not a cookie, Stupid Rabbit!”
It was a few days before Christmas, and the trio was at the Rainsworth manor. Finally, everything was ready for the holiday; a fire was dancing in its place, the stockings were all lined up on the mantle, and they had just put the finishing touches on the tree. The only one who hadn’t been informed about the festive season, was the sky outside; it had been raining for the past few weeks. There was a chill in the air, it was frosty, but snow hadn’t quite come yet. Still, they made the most of their time indoors.
“Perfect!” Oz exclaimed.
Oz Vessalius was the fifteen-year-old heir to the Vessalius dukedom, but after his escape from the Abyss that year, when he wasn’t off on adventures, and missions, he spent most of his time at the Rainsworth’s.
“It’s so pretty, Onii-chan!”
On account of the ten-year gap, Oz’s sister, Ada, was older than Oz now, but, no matter what, she would never stop seeing him as her older brother. She was on Christmas break from Lutwidge Academy, and more than happy to spend it at the Rainsworths, with her brother. She had, of course, brought her two cats—Snowdrop and Kitty—with her, (which Gilbert maintained a healthy distance from, due to his phobia of cats).
“The Rainsworths will have the best-decorated tree in town!”
Oscar, their uncle, was spending the afternoon with his niece and nephew too. He was a bearded, bespectacled man, with the same blonde hair and green eyes as the rest of his family. At the moment, he was sitting on one of the couches, with a cup what he called ‘tea’, but which the rest of them guessed probably had something stronger in it.
“I can’t take all the credit, Gil and Alice helped a little,” Oz joked.
“‘A little!’”
Gilbert was Oz’s servant; a dark-haired man, who often appeared cold and reserved, but who was rather sensitive, and a worrywart. He still sometimes acted as though they were only a year apart in age too, despite the fact that he was now ten years older than his master.
“Yeah, manservant!” Alice challenged, “More like we did all the work!”
“I was just teasing!”
“Well,” Sharon had a way of returning things to order with her calm and proper words, “you all did a wonderful job.”
Sharon was the heiress to the Rainsworth dukedom, and looked like a thirteen-year-old girl, though was really in her twenties or thirties—(they knew better than to ask her exact age). Her chestnut hair was usually tied back into a kind of half-ponytail, and, as always, she outmatched them all on style points; today it was with a dress of a wintery blue that looked as if she was trying to encourage the snow to fall. As per usual, she held a cup of tea in one hand—peppermint, she had informed them, for the Christmas season—and a pastry in the other. She was sitting at a small round table on the other side of the room, with Reim—duke Barma’s bespectacled, hard working, servant, who spent more time at the Rainsworth’s than anywhere else, with his two best friends—Sharon and Break.
“Well, I’m beat,” Alice stretched and yawned, “Seaweed-head, when are you going to make me some meat?”
Most Chains (creatures from the Abyss) didn’t look like Alice did; like a fourteen-year-old girl, with floor length brown hair, and an almost cat-like physique—(though it was a giant rabbit she often turned into). Also unlike other illegally contracted Chains, she did not have a thirst for human blood, although she did have a particular love for meat, as well as almost anything edible.
“I suppose I can make you something, now that we’ve finished,” Gil sighed.
“Oh? Have you now?” they turned to see Sharon’s servant, Xerxes Break, grinning as he poured himself another cup of tea. “Are you sure nothing’s…” he leaned back against the table, “missing?”
Break was a red-eyed, white-haired man, also much older than he looked. Even those close to him would say he was a bit of an acquired taste; his love for teasing, the creepy doll on his shoulder, and his general lack of regard for other people and their feelings, made it difficult for those subject to his mischiefs—such as Gilbert—to acquire any kind of affection for him.
Gilbert froze, turning his head slowly to the tree. His eyes immediately found the empty space where a certain ornament had been.
“Break!” he shouted, spinning back to him, “Must you do this every year?!”
“Let an old man have his fun.” Break grinned.
“I believe he must, Gilbert-sama,” Sharon answered Gilbert’s question, nonchalantly taking a sip of tea before continuing, “It has become something of a tradition.”
“I should have spent Christmas with he Nightrays this year,” Gilbert grumbled, reluctance in his motions as he began to pick up books, and other objects around the room, as if searching.
“You’re so mean,” Break chided playfully, then spoke a little more seriously, knowing Gilbert had no intentions of spending much time with his adoptive family, and real brother, “You’d rather spend Christmas with the sewer rat, than us?”
Gil gave him a death glare.
“Sorry…but what’s a tradition?” Oz asked, turning to Sharon and Break.
He wouldn’t admit it, but sometimes, especially with things like this, the ten-year gap could make Oz feel like an outsider.
“Every year Break takes Gilbert-sama’s favorite ornament,” Sharon explained, “And hides it somewhere in the manor.”
“Ooh! That sounds like fun!”
“It’s not fun, Oz!” Gilbert hollered at his master, “It’s a waste of a perfectly good afternoon! Not to mention annoying, and rude!”
Break laughed. Gil had yet to learn his outrageous reactions were what made this sort of thing so fun for the prankster.
“Don’t worry, Gil!” Ada bounded up to him, “I’ll help you look!”
Gilbert flushed, “T-Thank you.”
“What does it look like, Gil?” Ada asked.
He looked at Oz, then turned back to Ada, and explained it quietly enough that only she could hear.
She nodded, beaming, and began to look in a different part of the room.
“What’s the matter, Gil?”—Gil gasped as his master appeared suddenly at his other side—“You don’t want me to know what it is?” Oz’s laugh faded into a more puzzled expression when Gil averted his eyes, turning redder.
“It’s a secret, Onii-chan!” Ada answered for him, “You’ll see when we find it!”
He didn’t get the chance to ask anything more, because Alice broke in, having been observing all their interactions,
“Does…Does this mean I won’t get my meat?”
“Uh huh,” Gilbert sighed, “That’s exactly what it means.”
“No! I will not allow it!” Alice shook her head, and whirled around on Break, pointing at him in an accusatory manner, “Clown! Return Seaweed-head’s stupid ornament his instant!”
“It’s not stupid, Stupid Rabbit!”
“Aren’t you a spoilsport?” The Mad Hatter teased, then the doll on his shoulder, Emily, finished,
“Why should I listen to some dumb bunny?”
Alice growled, her hands clenching into fists. She spun to Gilbert, declaring as she ran up to him,
“Then I won’t rest until I find that ornament! With the great Alice-sama on your side, you cannot fail!”
“Sure you won’t just get in the way?”
She kicked him in the shin, then crossed her arms, “You’d be lost without me, Seaweed-head.”
“Don’t kick me, Stupid rabbit!” he rubbed his leg, “Now go look for it over there!” he stamped his injured foot back down and pointed to the opposite corner of the room, (to which she quickly ran, proceeding to tear her designated space apart in a matter of seconds.)
“Is this ornament really all that important, Gil? I mean, we have lots of—”
“Yes!” he answered before his master could finish, “it is!”
Oz sighed, knowing how attached his servant could get to things, “Alright. So…is us helping against the rules?” he asked, watching Alice destroy the room in search of it, Ada calmly remove things, and put them back where they were meant to go, and Gil as a mix of the two.
“Don’t you think we would have stopped them if it was, Oz-kun?”
Sharon shook her head, “It doesn’t matter who finds it, watching him search is the fun part.” Her mischievous side was showing; most of the time she was this prim and proper lady, but being close to Break had its effects.
“That’s right; the more people searching, the funnier it is when they can’t find it,” Break sang. “Though, tell me, Ojousama,” he turned to his mistress “are you merely saying that because you wagered he’d find it early—before 18:00?” he asked knowingly, sitting up on the table—(Reim gave him a look that could only be interpreted as: can-you act-any-less-like-a-servant?)
They turned to the clock—it was 15:00.
“Why do you want to know, Break?” his mistress asked with a tone of false interest, “Are you afraid your skills as a prankster have gone down with age?” she patted her mouth innocently with a napkin.
“What do you take me for, Ojousama?” he smirked, crossing his legs, narrowing his eyes at Gilbert, “He’ll need all the help he can get.”
Gilbert returned to him an even more murderous look.
“You… betted on this?”
“All part of the tradition, Oz-kun,” Break mentioned, stealing a mini pastry from Reim’s plate—(the incense was more than evident on Reim’s face, and probably why Break did it).
“It’s not money we wagered, though; If I win, Break has to swear off sweets over Christmas—as well as make me a lavish dessert full of those sweet things he can’t have. And if Break wins, I have to buy him an equally lavish amount of extra Christmas candy and sweets.”
“Nice! Break, I didn’t know you could bake!”
“He really can’t,” Sharon chuckled, “But it’s fun to see what he comes up with.”
Break glared at her.
“So… is this how you bet every year?”
“Sometimes it’s different. But it’s usually something to the effect of giving Break a taste of his own medicine…Though I seem to recall one year, I wanted Break to do this dance I had heard of in a book, if he lost. I believe it was called ‘Futterwacken.’”
“That’s a weird name for a dance!” Oz laughed, “So? How did that go?
“I suppose it is,” she smiled, “That was one of the tamer punishments, but, when he did lose, he refused—rather blatantly.”
“Really?!” he turned to Break.
“How many times must I tell you? I have no talent for dancing.”
“Truly, as a servant of the Rainsworth Dukedom, it would be better fitting that you learned,” she shook her head, then turned back to Oz, “Anyway, after that, we thought the chance to take away his candy was rather enjoyable.”
“Aw, I want to join the bet!”
Gilbert looked affronted, but before he could speak, Oz continued, boyish excitement simmering in his tone,
“Say, what if, if Break loses, I get to eat his candy instead?!”
Sharon and Break glanced at each other.
“Let me ask you something, Oz-kun;” Break set down his tea, “Are you willing to risk the consequences of such a wager?”
“Ehh…consequences?”
“Why of course. I couldn’t give little Oz-kun the chance of stealing my candy without the proper torment in store if he lost.”
“Eh…” Oz knew just how mean Break could get, and that this could very well turn into a prank war that ended in actual blood, “I think I’ll pass.”
“I always said you were smarter than you looked,” the Mad Hatter picked up his tea again.
“Maybe you could join in by helping me look, instead of encouraging them, Oz!” Gilbert whirled on him.
“Aww, do I have to?” the fifteen-year-old groaned.
“Oz!”
Oz turned to the masterminds, as if silently asking for them to give him an excuse not to.
“Hey, Oz-kun is sharp,” Break began, then Emily added,
“Probably smarter than these three put together!”
—two of the aforementioned three gave him what can only be described as ‘fight-me’ faces, and Ada looked disheartened—Break took no notice, and finished,
“So that depends; whose side are you on?”
“Well,” Oz thought for a moment, then mused, grinning, “it would be fun to see Break trying to swear of candy!”
“Is that so?” Break’s eye narrowed.
“In any case, why isn’t Reim-san helping?” he shifted the focus. “You’re not the kind of person to sit back while others are in trouble”
Reim sighed, pushing his glasses up on his nose. “While that may be true, these two are often harsher with me, than others. If I help you, I have a feeling I shall pay for it in some way later,” he shot them an icy look, “dearly.”
“Whatever do you mean, Reim-san?” Sharon asked innocently. “We thought you enjoyed our company.”
“Yeah, it’s only because you’re our favorite, Reim-san,” Break gave a fake sappy voice.
“Then pick a new favorite!”
“That’s not how it works! You have a lifetime guarantee!”
“Sharon,” it was Ada who spoke. She had been focused on searching on the mantelpiece, and inside the stockings, “Why are there nine stockings?”
“What do you mean, Ada?” Oz asked, stepping over to her.
“Well, I was just thinking; there’s me, Onii-chan, Uncle, and Alice,”—Alice looked annoyed at Ada mentioning her name—“since we’re staying here for Christmas,” she pointed at each of the stockings in turn, “and these belong to Sharon-sama, Break, Duchess Rainsworth-sama, and Reim-san, right? But who does this last one belong to?” she held the bottom of the last one, careful not to pull it off the mantle.
They turned to Break and Sharon, who glanced at each other, their mischievous grins fading into more somber, reminiscent expressions.
“It was Break’s idea,” Sharon answered.
“Well, I can’t take all the credit—“
“It’s for my mother…That has become something of a tradition as well. We just thought it would be nice, to have something to remember her by during the Christmas season.”
The tone in the room quieted; the rest of them knew that Shelly was Sharon’s mother, who had died sometime after Oz’s coming of age ceremony.
“That’s…actually really sweet,” Oz noted, “Break, I’m surprised you thought of it!”
“You think you’re cute, don’t you? And you say that like I’m cruel.”
“Well…” Oz rubbed the back of his neck, smiling nervously, trying to formulate a non- insulting answer in his mind.
“I think what Oz is trying to say,” Reim started out gently, then finished harshly, “Is that it’s high time you realized you can be a jerk, Xerxes!”
“Well, I wouldn’t say jerk’…” Oz began.
“I would,” Gil mumbled.
“My…I cant believe that you all….” Break began softly, then Emily jeered,
“Just figured that out now!”
The anger was evident on all of their faces.
“Really, why are you all ganging up on me,” Break grinned, without a hint of hurt in his voice, “when you should be focusing on the task at hand?”
“Because it’s your fault we’re in this mess!” Gilbert shouted, then ran his hand frustratedly through his hair, observing the mess they had made of the room, before demanding, “Is it in this room?!”
“Given up already, have you?” Emily teased.
Gilbert clenched his hands into fists, biting back a retort.
“Did anyone see him leave the room?!”
Everyone looked at Gilbert blankly, or up at the ceiling, trying to think if they had, realizing they had no idea, and knew full well Sharon could have used Eques to transport him when their backs were turned anyways. Gilbert put his hands on his hips, sighing at their silence “Alright. We have a whole manor to look through, it’s best we move on from this room,” he paused, turning again to Break, with malice in his eyes, “Right?”
“Sure, kiddo!” Emily replied, and he gave the fakest grin yet.
Gilbert gritted his teeth, then shook his head, directing them,
“Let’s split up; Ada, you go down the left hall, Stupid Rabbit, you take the right. I’ll go downstairs.”
“I won’t let you down, Seaweed-Head!” Alice sped down the hall, not even searching, as if she had forgotten the task she’d been given.
Ada nodded, “Come on, Snowdrop, Kitty!” she called to her cats.
Oz sighed, “Alright, fine. I’ll help too.”
Gilbert smiled, about to thank him, when Oz added,
“But I expect to be rewarded for my troubles!”
His servant rolled his eyes.
“I kinda need to know what it looks like, though, don’t I, Gil? You seemed to want to keep it a secret earlier.”
“You’ll…um….You’ll know it when you see it,” Gilbert looked anywhere but at his master.
Oz sighed, putting his hands on his hips, “Really? That kinda makes things harder, you know.”
“Oh, not up to the challenge, are you Oz-kun?” Break goaded.
“No, no, I can do it! I just feel like we’re not addressing a key part of the puzzle here!”
With that Gilbert pulled him out of the room and into the search.
Gilbert was right; it did seem like a bit of a waste of an afternoon; exhausting wasn’t the only word that came to mind after rifling through each room one by one, with no clue as to where it might be. Especially because the feeling began growing in them that Gilbert was way too attached to things, as well as that Break was, indeed, a jerk. They didn’t know how much time had passed before they met up again in the hall, everyone hanging their heads in shame and disappointment.
“What should we do?” Ada asked quietly.
“We can’t let the clowny bastard win!” Alice slammed a fist into her other palm to emphasize her point.
“That’s right!” Gilbert agreed, “For years I had to put up with his constant teasing, it’s high time we got him back!”
“I don’t think losing the bet is really going to make him stop. I mean, he’s lost before, right?”
“You don’t have to be so blunt about it!” Gilbert complained.
“Sorry,” Oz shrugged.
In the moment of silence that followed, Ada’s cat started rubbing against Oz’s leg, as if trying to comfort him.
“What do you think, Snowdrop?” Oz asked jokingly, picking up his sister’s cat, (Gilbert eyed it, a whine developing in his throat, scooching away), “Do you have any idea where it is?”
Oz gasped.
“What is it, Onii-chan?”
Tied into the cat’s collar was a ribbon, attached to a little ornament. He pulled it free and placed the cat on the floor (it meowed and padded away).
The other three gasped in turn, leaning in to get a better look at it.
“That bastard!” Gilbert slammed his fist into the wall behind him. “He knew I wouldn’t go near your cats!”
“Yeah,” Oz laughed, “leave it to Break to take the cheap shot.”
“What are we waiting for?!” Alice demanded, “Didn’t I just say we can’t let the clowny bastard win!”
“You’re right!” the others said together, and bolted down the hall.
“We found it!” Oz held the ornament high, like a trophy, as they burst through the door.
At the same moment that he held up the evidence, the hour chimed.
They each glanced at each other, then at the clock, which read exactly 18:00.
“My, my, isn’t this an interesting turn of events?” Break remarked, stretching, “It looks like it’s a tie, Ojousama.”
“It would appear,” Sharon smiled “In that case, would you please excuse me for a moment?” she gathered her dress and hurried out of the room.
“So, which one of you found it?” Break asked, walking over to them.
“I did.”
The prankster smirked, “What did I tell you?” he ruffled Oz’s hair, “Oz-kun’s sharp.”
“So… what does that mean about your wagers?” Oz tried to put his hair right. “Since you tied?”
“Just a moment Oz-kun,” he put his hand on Oz’s head, his sleeve falling over his eyes, and looked over their heads
Sharon quickly did return, a little out of breath, holding a small package wrapped in a ribbon.
“Here you are, Break!” she held it out for him.
He took it from her and unwrapped it, opening the little red box to reveal that it was filled with the the candy she had promised.
“Just the thing I needed” he patted her head, unwrapping a piece and tossing it into his mouth. “Better luck next time, Ojousama,”
Oz and Alice stared at him, open-mouthed, dumbstruck that he had beat them.
“Now I suppose I should get started on that dessert of yours,” he waited until the proper moment to add.
“Please do.”
“Huh?” Oz and Alice asked simultaneously.
“Since we tied,” Sharon spoke, as they both turned to them, “we both win.”
“So…does that mean the clown still has to swear off candy?” Alice asked hopefully.
“No—Unfortunately,” Sharon added, glancing at her servant, who rolled his eyes, eating another piece, “We both get the rewards of the wager, but no one gets the punishment.”
“More in the Christmas spirit, wouldn’t you agree, Ojousama?” he said between candy crunches.
“Since when do you care about ‘Christmas spirit’?!” Gilbert demanded.
“Better luck next year, I guess,” Oz tried to put a positive spin on it.
“Next year?!” Alice fumed, “I want to settle this now!” (Gilbert held Alice by the neck of her jacket.)
“Believe me,” Reim grunted, eyeing Break, “it’ll only end worse for you,”
“Who knows?” Break shrugged, “There may not be a next year, Oz-kun.”
Alice continued to seethe while the others glanced at each other, unsure of how to respond to such a statement.
“There you go again,” Reim scolded. “You can’t just mention something like that!”
Break dismissed him with a wave of his hand, chuckling to himself, and muttering something about his uptightness, as he made his way down the hall to the kitchens.
After Break left, Oz looked down at his hand, opening his fingers to reveal the little clay, painted oddity he was still holding. Alice came behind him and looked over his shoulder at it.
“What…is it?”
“You didn’t know what you were looking for?!” Gilbert questioned.
“Because you never told me, Seaweed-head!”
Gilbert looked away, clearly wanting to bite back, but without argument with which to do so.
Oz shook his head, staring at it. It was rather crudely made, ineptly painted. But he couldn’t mistake it for anything else—and Gil had been right, he did know it when he saw it.
Because he was the one who made it.
“I can’t believe you kept this, Gil.”
Gilbert looked away, nodding and turning red.
Now he understood why Gilbert was so intent on getting it back. This ornament had probably become a symbol to Gilbert—much like Shelly’s stocking on the mantelpiece was for Break and Sharon—for Oz himself. This ornament, through the years, had probably become tied to his faithful valet’s unending hope that his master would come back. Each year Break took it, as if teasing that perhaps he wouldn’t (and, maybe this was his roundabout way of him trying to prepare him for that), but Gilbert always got it back, as if displaying that he would never lose that hope.
“Oy! What is it?!” Alice demanded again, upset her ‘manservant’ wasn’t focusing all his attention on her.
“It’s a bird, Alice,” Oz answered simply.
“Really, how do you figure?”
“Yeah, it doesn’t look very good does it?” Oz laughed.
“Seaweed-head, why would a crappy ornament like this be your favorite?”
“Oy! You don’t see me criticizing your bad taste!”
“Bad taste?! I have impeccable taste! I eat meat every day!”
“That’s not what—”
“Its because I made it for him,” Oz answered her question quietly.
“You?” Alice laughed, slapping him on the back, “You have pretty poor skills, Oz.”
“Give me a break! I was a kid!”
Oscar laughed, walking up to them, “You’re still a kid, Oz. Yes…I can’t remember how old he was, but he made me, Ada, and Gilbert ornaments,” he laughed a little, putting his arm around Gilbert, “I remember how offended Gil was at his master making him a gift.”
“Yeah,” Oz laughed, they all looked up at Gil, who got steadily redder the more they spoke, “We had to force him to accept it.”
“Why are you surprised he kept his, Onii-chan?” Ada asked, “Uncle and I kept ours. They’re back at the Vessalius manor. But! we could bring them over here if you want!”
“That’s okay, I believe you! Still… Like Alice said, they don’t look very good.”
“But, like you said, you were the one who made them for us,” Oscar ruffled his nephew’s hair.
“What were the ornaments you made for them, Oz?” Alice asked.
“Well, I made Ada a little cat, and uncle Oscar a camera. I didn’t really know what Gil liked, so I just made him a bird. Funny, how your chain is Raven now.”
“How come you haven’t made me one, Manservant?!” Alice hit Oz on the head.
“Hey! I’ve been busy!” he rubbed the spot where she hit him.
“In any case,” Alice turned to Gilbert, jumping quickly to the next subject, “now you can make my meat, Seaweed-head!”
“Break’s using the kitchen, Stupid Rabbit!”
“Then let’s go to the market! I’m starving!”
Gilbert sighed into his hand, “Fine. Let me get my hat and coat.”
“Can I come with you guys?” Ada asked—Alice looked peeved, but Gil and Oz had already welcomed her.
“I’ll go check if Break needs anything!” Oz ran off towards the kitchen.
As Oz arrived, he saw that Break had changed out of his white coat and purple shirt into more casual closing—likely so he wouldn’t ruin his normal outfit. He had rolled up the sleeves, and was wearing a pink apron Gil sometimes wore when he cooked for them here, but which probably belonged to Sharon’s grandmother, or mother. He had already begun to make a mess of things; flour was all over the counter, chocolate was on the walls, somehow there were even ingredients in in his hair.
“You need some help?” Oz asked, half-jokingly.
Break looked up.
“Oz-kun,” he noted, then grinned, “You? Help me? Gotten bored of Gilbert-kun, and Alice-kun already?”
“Nah. I just wanted to know if you needed anything. We’re going to the store.”
Oz knew that Break could have asked for help from the staff, or Gilbert, but Sharon called him ‘Mr. One-Man-Show’ for a reason; sure, it might not taste or look all that good, but at least he would have made it himself.
“You really think I wouldn’t have come prepared?”
“But, if you won, you wouldn’t have to make—”
Oz gasped. Realizing something:
They both had bought the supplies ahead of time. Oz thought one of them would have to go to the store, depending on who won the bet, (perhaps dragging the other begrudgingly along), but they both had already bought the necessary ingredients. Which meant, either the food one of them bought would go to waste, or be used in some other way, or, regardless of who won or lost, they still intended to give each other the gifts.
“You already had the ingredients,” Oz thought out loud. “and Sharon-chan already had your candy…”
“So?”
“I would have thought one of you would have to go to the store, depending on who won.”
“What’s your point, Oz-kun?” Break pushed his hair back.
Oz shook his head, grinning like he now had some secret information. “Break, you really are a nice guy, aren’t you?”
Break put his hand on the table, turning to him, “Wipe that cheeky grin off your face before I do it for you.”
Oz put his hands behind his back, sauntering closer.
“Oh, nothing,” he whistled, “Just that, well, you do this every year, don’t you? Sharon likes to give you a taste of your own medicine if you lose, but you both use this an excuse to give each other extra gifts, don’t you? I bet it was your idea in the first place.”
“How do you know we weren’t planning to use the supplies in some other way?”
“Because you’re not considerate enough to let others use your stuff,” he grinned, “Didn’t you just say there would be punishment in store if I got your candy?”
“Well,” he smirked at Oz’s discovery, twirling the spoon in his hand, “‘nice’ would be stretching it. But maybe occasionally I’m not a complete ‘jerk.’”
Oz grinned. That was all the confirmation he needed.
As if he were brandishing a sword, Break flicked chocolate on Oz’s face with the spoon, “Now get out of here.”
Oz rolled his eyes.
“Good luck, Break!”
With that he exited the room, and ran to the front door to catch up with Gil, Ada, and Alice, who were gathered there, waiting for him.
“Break doesn’t need anything!” he called to them, “Let’s go!”
At first it may have seemed like a waste of time, but, in the end, Oz realized; an afternoon playing a game, learning that after ten years Gil had still cherished the small gift he had once been reluctant to accept, seeing how Sharon and Break found ways to bring each other joy, spending time with his friends, spending time with his real family, would never be a waste of an afternoon for him.
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inawickedlittletown · 5 years
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Walking The Wire (108/?)
Summary: Tony Stark always knew about Peter Parker. He didn’t know that Peter was going to get superpowers and become Spider-Man, but he always knew about Peter because Peter was his son.
This will span from pre-Iron Man up through the rest of the MCU (eventually including Infinity War) and will be for the most part canon compliant except where I’ve taken some liberties and interpreted canon a certain way.
Pairings: Pepper/Tony, Tony/Steve (endgame), Tony/Mary (past)
A/N: If you want me to tag you when I post new chapters let me know. This fic is also on AO3
I used Collider’s MCU timeline to stay canon and the title of this fic is an Imagine Dragons song that is just so fitting for Peter and Tony
@findmeinthestarss
Masterpost
Chapter One Hundred Seven
They never found out what had been going on with Loki and Thor because nothing came of their appearance and then disappearance because aside from a blip somewhere in Ireland that wasn’t necessarily them, there was nothing and while Tony waited for the other shoe to drop and something crazy to happen somewhere else in the world, nothing did.
“So, do you think he was just popping in for a visit and didn’t even think to stop by here?” Rhodey asked during a team meeting.
“I don’t know,” Tony said. “And there’s no way to contact him. I called up Jane and she -- well, apparently they broke up sometime before he left the last time and she didn’t have a way to contact him anyway which is sort of why they broke up.”
“But nothing’s happened right,” Sam said. “I mean, no random Asgardians have shown up so--”
“Not since then,” Tony said. “At least not that my satellites picked up anyway. But Coulson or Fury would have mentioned if they heard anything.”
Tony kept paying attention, but nothing outside of the usual happened. Ross’ announcement that Spider-Man was Tony’s son had been a small blip that most people didn’t pay attention to despite all the pictures that Ross had managed to get of Spider-Man coming and going from the tower. Mostly, he just sounded like a conspiracy theorist especially after Tony tweeted that his son was definitely not Spider-Man and that the theory had made Steve laugh. Still, he was sure some people did believe Ross’ story. It was also a concern that Ross was clearly keeping an eye on the tower.
There was a whole thing with the resurgence of AIM in the middle of August but it was such a disorganized mess that they didn’t get very far in even setting themselves up as a threat and Tony had them all rounded up and arrested in the course of an afternoon.
By the time that the summer was actually over, Tony was starting to relax on the Thor front. Peter on the other hand was a tad disappointed that he hadn’t gotten to meet the god yet. It turned out that next to Iron Man, Thor was Peter’s favorite.
“He’s an actual god,” Peter had said, “but also an alien. And just cool. He’s just so cool.”
Sam found the whole thing amusing. “Your kid has good taste at least,” he said, “if he had to crush on any of us.”
“It’s not a crush! I just -- he’s a god, Sam! And the lightning--” Peter trailed off as Sam laughed and Tony tried not to join in.
“He is seriously impressive,” Natasha said in Peter’s defense.
“Yes, exactly,” Peter said.
“Which is why you had a crush on him,” Sam said matter of factly and Peter threw up his arms in the air and Tony knew that he had figured out he couldn’t really say much else to make a difference to the conversation. Mostly, though, Tony loved the level of ease that Peter had with the rest of The Avengers.
But when Peter’s birthday came around, Tony decided that they needed to go on a mini-vacation. Not to get away from anyone, but because Tony wanted to spend some time on his own with Peter away from wedding planning and everything else that was going on at the tower. They went to California because Peter had never been to the West Coast and because Peter had also been interested in seeing the rebuilt Malibu house. It was fun to show Peter around and take him to a few of Tony’s favorite spots. All in all, their vacation was a nice break from the usual. They got back after a couple of weeks away and right in time for Peter to get back to school and Tony to move forward with the new suit. Everything was ready and Tony just needed to have the housing unit put in his chest.
On the night before school was starting up again, Peter was leaning against Tony’s side. There was a movie on, but Tony had long given up on watching it because the plot had changed so drastically that the movie was downright silly and either way, Tony had gotten busy answering emails because Pepper couldn’t understand why Tony was delegating everything to do with SI for the next week or two. Tony still hadn’t told her that he was going to be putting in the housing unit for the nanotech in his chest. He and Shuri both agreed that it was the only way to make it as effective as Tony wanted it to be.
“Is it going to be a long operation?” Peter asked.
Tony looked down at him. “A few hours.”
“I don’t like that I’ll be in school and I won’t be here.”
The whole thing with Thor had really hastened Tony to get the device ready faster. He wanted to be prepared for the next time something happened and things would have been dire if Thor’s return had signaled the beginning of something being wrong. Sure, Tony had his other suits, but the nanotech one was going to be better than any other. Steve and Peter for their part thought that he knew best despite the risk that the surgery would bring him.
“You’ll be here plenty,” Tony assured him. “Nothing is going to go wrong. I have the best doctors on this and we have a good plan for how we’re handling this.”
“Dr. Cho is pretty great,” Peter said with a grin.
Tony wrapped his arm around Peter’s shoulders and pulled him closer. “So why did you want to watch this movie again?”
“Ned recommended it,” Peter muttered. “I don’t think I’ll be taking his advice on movies again any time soon.”
Tony laughed. “On that we can agree, kid.”
---
Steve didn’t argue with Tony once Tony decided that he needed to get the housing unit put into his chest. It was Tony’s body and Tony’s decision and while Steve did voice his questions and got Tony to think about the pros and cons, he left it up to Tony because Tony knew best when it came to his suits. The device was different than the arc reactor, anyway, in that it wasn’t working to keep Tony alive. Looking at the ring with the shrapnel that had almost killed Tony, reminded Steve of how much Tony had gone through and survived.
He was with Tony during the operation, holding his hand while Dr. Cho and her team worked on Tony with a combination of Dr. Cho’s tech and Shuri’s as well. It brought down the risk for the procedure considerably. When it was over a few hours later and the whole thing was successful, Steve let out a sigh of relief.
“Good,” he said.
The whole thing was taking place in the compound since the facility had a medical wing and Tony had gone ahead and added an operating room to it too. It meant that Tony was going to be staying at the compound for a few days even if that was more of a precaution than anything, but it was better for him to not have to travel to the tower while fresh out of his operation. Steve had insisted on being there so his anklet was off. The FBI had only checked in on them once since putting the anklets on and the only reason they showed up in the first place was that Sam’s had malfunctioned. It was lucky that they were all in the tower at the time, not that Fury had been sending them on a lot of missions lately. Things were on the quiet side.
“He’ll be asleep for a little longer,” Helen said. “We’ll move him somewhere comfortable. You can call Peter in, if you want.”
“I’ll go get him,” Steve said and leaned over to kiss Tony’s forehead first.
Helen smiled at him.
When he returned with Peter in tow, Tony had been moved into one of the rooms in the medical wing. Tony was still asleep, but he looked peaceful all tucked into bed.
“Everything went perfectly, Peter,” Helen said. “He’ll be awake in an hour or two. Myself or someone from my team will come check in.”
“I’m glad,” Peter said as Helen grabbed a few things and walked out of the room. “I was actually a little worried,” he admitted to Steve. “I just -- I’ve lost all the father figures in my life and he was doing this and I was worried.”
Peter walked to stand by Tony’s bed and Steve moved forward and placed a hand on his shoulder. “You dad rarely does anything that isn’t for a reason. And if he had suspected that this was any riskier than it needed to be he wouldn’t have done it because the last thing he wants is to leave you. Shuri and Helen worked this out and you know how smart they are.”
“I know,” Peter said and looked up at Steve. “I just couldn’t help it. And thanks for helping me get out of school today. Dad just kept saying how I didn’t need to be here.”
“Yeah, well, he hates that we fuss about him.”
---
Taking it easy was boring. At least, it wasn’t bed rest. Tony could move around and he could go to the workshop but he was limited by how long he could work and how much he could lift or really do which ultimately just made him grumpy. Steve was also hovering for most of his time in there and jumping in to do things for him which Tony had found endearing at first but then kind of frustrating. So, he was happy to be back to normal a month and a half later even if Steve still seemed a bit wary of him doing much. Pepper was worse. She had started to just show up to make sure he was okay every other day right after Tony moved back to the tower and she’d fussed and fussed over him after telling him off for putting the housing unit in his chest in the first place until Tony had enough.
“You know,” Steve said one afternoon, “it’s almost been a year since I came back.”
“It has,” Tony said. A full year. It had been more than a year since the whole fiasco with The Vulture too. They were lucky that there hadn’t been any big villain like that popping up since but even if there had been, Tony was confident that Peter would have been able to handle it.
Training with Steve and the team in general had made a huge difference to Peter’s capabilities as Spider-Man. Peter didn’t use the Iron Spider suit often, opting for his other suit over that one most of the time, but he had gotten so much better with his powers and just his physicality because he wasn’t just following his instincts which were often good, he was doing more. Strategizing and thinking his plans through and really knowing his strengths and weaknesses and using that knowledge to do things in the best way possible.
“And it hasn’t been all bad,” Steve said.
“Yeah,” Tony said. “I half expected you to get too bored to stay.”
“I’ve found that life can’t be boring when you’re in it. But, not just that, it makes a difference that we’re together. You’ve made this worth it and it’s just one more year, Tony.”
“We better hope nothing crazy happens before then,” Tony said. “I thought Thor coming back meant--”
Steve nodded. “I know. I know. I did too. I just wonder what the whole point of it was. He wouldn’t have shown up and left that quickly without there being some reason and I just don’t trust that Loki was with him. Wasn’t he supposed to be dead?”
“Yeah,” Steve said. “That’s what Thor said.”
“Jane was confused about that too. She seemed concerned -- but she hasn’t called which means she hasn’t found anything alarming. At least I have this thing now,” Tony said and tapped his chest. “It makes me feel a little better about any possible threats.”
It was Tony’s fear -- and had been since going through that wormhole -- that they’d be faced with something from outside their world again. Even if nothing came to pass, he wanted them to be prepared. After all, he’d seen what some of those aliens could do and create and it was only a matter of time before Earth became a target again. Loki being alive -- he’d been the one behind the attack in New York. Of course, helped by the stone in the scepter but nevertheless one of the reasons. Thor had said he was leaving to find out more about the stones and...and maybe it was what he was still trying to figure out. It worried Tony.
Chapter One Hundred Nine
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a-hundred-jewels · 2 years
Text
crime against cupcakes - ch2(of 2): cute girlfriends and also a ferret
Ao3 Chapter 1
Summary: literally just what the title says
Words: 400ish (tis short)
notes and fic under the cut (also note that this was originally published on ao3 about two weeks ago)
if you're here reading this, please take a moment to sign and share this petition to help free Marvin Guy and help him escape the death penalty by clicking here (or by copying this link: https://freemarvinguy.com/#petition). warning that the link contains discussion of racial profiling, and anti-Black violence. thank you for your help.
now, back to the author's notes.
I Have A Cold and felt like updating so here. if you want more batty/keiko adventures, lmk in the comments! i have some mini ideas and love these two, as well as the idea of them being cute and dating. im also obsessed with the idea of batty having a pet ferret, as you will discover in this chapter (or as you may have already discovered in my vampire au), and intend to include that in my fics whenever possible.
this chapter is dedicated to charli's cacti. live long and spiky lives, full of happiness and health.
enjoy this wee drabble and leave me lots comment bc im sick <3
Batty woke up to her phone playing “Chain Gang,” by Sam Cooke, which had been her morning alarm since fifth grade. She groaned as she reached out from under the duvet, her peaceful lie-in disturbed, and felt around for the traitorous phone, all the while cursing herself for not remembering to turn off the alarm last night. Today was Thursday, which meant no morning classes and no morning shifts at the music store, which meant Batty’s One Day A Week To Sleep In.
But, when Batty was awake, Batty was awake. She curled up under the blankets once more, scrolling through her notifications. Kristen Stewart had gotten engaged, according to Lydia, who got its news exclusively from Pride.com. Skye was trying to book a flight home for Thanksgiving. And… Keiko had uploaded a new baking video at five in the morning.
Batty sighed and opened up Keiko’s contact in her text history.
Battikins: Exactly how many hours did you sleep last night?
Knowing that Keiko liked to permanently keep her phone on Do Not Disturb, Batty was surprised when her girlfriend responded not two seconds later.
Keiko<3: starts with “z” and ends with “ero”
Battikins: GO TO SLEEP K
Keiko<3: I am a god of power and elegance, above such mortal toils as sleep
Keiko<3: also ginny’s bf stayed over last night and the 2 of them like to play zombie apocalypse video games in the wee hours of the morn
Across the room, Jolene the ferret started yapping in her crate.
Battikins: then come sleep over at mine. I dont have class until 1
Half an hour later, Batty and Keiko were lying side by side in Batty’s twin bed. It was a tight squeeze, but both girls were small, and Keiko slept like a log. Jolene lay on top of them, yawning tiny ferret yawns while Batty stroked her fur. Batty smiled to herself, and put earbuds in to watch Keiko’s new video.
It was a nice way to start the day.
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