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just-aake · 5 months

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Boundless Devotion - Part X

Pairing: princess!Natasha Romanoff x fem!reader

Summary: MedievalAU. Natasha is the eldest princess of the Romanov Kingdom. As the time of her coronation approaches, she is suddenly forced to make a decision – either find herself a partner or her parents will choose one for her.

Warnings: slight angst, violence/abuse

Words: 6296

The once warm and bright morning sun has since disappeared behind looming gray clouds as a gentle breeze drifted through your open window, bringing a subtle coldness to your room.

Despite the gloomy skies and the promise of rain, you can imagine yourself enjoying this kind of ambiance, sitting in your window seat with a good book, accompanied by the soothing sounds of rainfall as you read.

That would have been a nice way to spend the remainder of the day — if it had been your choice.

At this point, you’ve gotten used to your father’s strict and outrageous behavior. Forcing you to stay in your room is arguably not the worst thing he’s done to you, so there's not much point in getting angry.

Besides, you have a certain someone who is already upset enough on your behalf.

“That insufferable tyrant of a man! He doesn't care about anyone but himself, always stalking around with that condescending attitude of his...”

Sitting at your desk, you glance up from your book to look at Wanda, who paces around angrily as she continues her rants of frustration about your father.

Seeing the familiar red mist emerging around her hands as she gets more heated, you decide to call out to her.

“Wanda, your powers are reacting to your emotions,” you remind her.

Thanks to Carol’s gift of the sorcery books, you and Wanda have learned more about her powers, such as how they work and the things she can do.

With enough time and practice, Wanda can eventually gain control of her powerful abilities without it causing too much of a strain on her.

In the meantime, however, as her powers grow stronger, they have recently been appearing more frequently and unexpectedly, especially during emotional moments like these.

Wanda looks down at her hands in confusion before sighing and dissipating the red mist with a wave of her hand. The red glow in her eyes also fades back to its original green color — a new effect of her powers that you both recently discovered.

Your expression twists down slightly in concern at the sight.

Hiding Wanda’s abilities from others, especially your father, will be more difficult if this continues, and your original plan to quickly find a partner so that you can take yourself and the twins away from him is not progressing as well as you hoped.

Then again, at the beginning of your search for a partner, you never expected to find yourself in a fake relationship with Natasha — the same relationship the princess had pointed out this morning as nearing its end, and you know she was right.

With Rumlow hopefully having given up on pursuing you after the way you treated him as well as Natasha’s encouragement for you to be with someone else, it reminded you to refocus on your original goal of finding a decent partner for yourself.

However, now this time, you have to deal with getting over your feelings for the red-haired princess as you continue your search.

You internally sigh at the difficulty of your situation.

Why did your feelings for Natasha have to be brought to the forefront of your heart after all this time?

It was simpler when the two of you just remained as friends, without all of the pretending complicating your relationship.

Unfortunately, you don’t have time to deal with your confusing feelings right now.

There is a more pressing matter.

Your eyes glance to Wanda in contemplation.

Maybe you should consider asking Kate about taking in Wanda for a bit to give yourself some time to review your plans.

Though, you already know Wanda would reject the idea since it would mean she has to leave your side.

You wipe away your worried expression when Wanda turns to you.

Placing her hands on her hips, she questions your calm attitude.

“I don’t understand how you’re not upset about this. He’s basically restricting your freedom.”

“Well, I still have you and Pietro,” you point out before shrugging. “Plus I was going to continue my research anyway, so it’s not like I’m going anywhere else today.”

Wanda huffs at your response, crossing her arms and looking away from you exasperatedly to glare at the wall.

With Wanda somewhat calmer, you return your attention to the book on your desk that you were previously reading.

Despite what you said earlier, instead of continuing your research, you were actually reading accounts detailing the previous war between the Romanov and Stark kingdoms again, specifically focusing on any sections about Captain James Barnes.

His backstory was compelling.

Despite a tragic accident resulting in the loss of his arm, Barnes still rose in rank to become the Captain of the Stark Kingdom where he served with loyalty for many years and was even a formidable force during the war.

Everything was going well for him — prestige, honor, strength. He was well-liked by all in the kingdom.

Then that one tragic event took everything away.

All the books depict the same conclusion after the war. Captain Barnes killed the Stark king, queen, and their newborn daughter in cold blood on their way home.

No further details are provided other than that.

Furrowing your brows, an uncomfortable feeling nags at you about the strangeness of the situation.

Why would anyone with his kind of reputation do something like that?

Your suspicion from your previous conversation with Queen Melina about the Black Widow operations emerges again concerning the captain.

Despite your father’s denial of any involvement in that tragedy, this connection could be a possible explanation for the animosity between the two of them earlier.

However, it doesn’t explain the mystery behind why this so-called stranger seems to recognize you or be so concerned about your life here.

A commotion outside your room interrupts your thoughts, and Pietro’s voice echoes from behind your door.

“Move! She’s not going to run out the moment you open the door!”

You laugh lightly at his words, turning to see the other twin slipping inside with an annoyed huff.

“Man, I hate these new guards,” Pietro comments as he shuts the door behind him.

His hair is slightly disheveled, probably from all the running, and tucked under his arm, he holds an elegantly wrapped box.

You make your way to him and reach up to fix his hair gently as you ask.

“Did you find out anything?”

Ducking away from your fussing, Pietro nods and replies, “I overheard some of the guards were taking him to the prison.”

Wanda comes up next to you, folding her arms as she joins the conversation.

“Are you two talking about that criminal?”

She turns to you in concern.

“Y/n, you shouldn’t go near him. He’s dangerous.”

You unconsciously rub your wrist at the memory of Barnes attempting to take you away while saying those confusing comments about you.

At Wanda's expectant expression, you shrug and try to explain to her.

“I know, it’s just…something that he said keeps bothering me.”

But now there’s no way for you to question him since he’s already taken away from the manor.

Your shoulders slump with a resigned sigh, “I just wanted to see if I could get a chance to know what he meant.”

The twins exchange a surprised glance at your words — it was rare that you expressed wanting to do something for yourself.

The two of them silently signal each other with their eyes to do something to distract your mind and cheer you up.

Pietro snaps his fingers as he remembers another piece of information.

“Oh! Princess Natasha and Yelena also came by the manor just now.”

Despite your attempt to push your feelings away for Natasha, you still can’t help but perk up at the mention of her name.

“So where are they now?” Wanda asks.

Pietro winces at the question before replying sadly.

“They were turned away by Lord Dreykov.”

Wanda huffs and throws her hands up in frustration.

“That man ruins everything!”

Your mouth turns down slightly in disappointment at the news, but you decide that this was probably for the best anyway. You haven’t had enough time to sort out your feelings for the princess yet.

If you were to see her again so soon, you’re not sure whether your heart would skip or break at the sight of her.

Noticing your still sullen expression, Wanda decides to try another approach, nudging your shoulder in a teasing manner.

“You know, with everything going on, you never told me how your 'date' with the princess went this morning,” she probes gently.

Startled at the sudden topic change, you huff lightly and give her an exasperated look.

“I told you it wasn’t a date. It was just a chance for Natasha to relax for a bit. This is a very stressful time for her.”’

Wanda rolls her eyes at your denial, turning to her brother for some backup before noticing the box at his side.

“What’s that?” she points.

Pietro smirks proudly as he offers the box to you.

“I snuck it away from some of the guards. Apparently, this was another gift from Princess Carol that they didn’t give to you,” he reveals.

Smiling in surprise at the information, you take the box, your fingers lightly running over the cursive letters of your name written in the familiar handwriting of the other princess.

Wanda raises an eyebrow at your reaction curiously before her eyes narrow suspiciously in a teasing manner.

“Wait, you spent a lot of time with her at the festival. Is there something happening between you and Princess Carol?”

Wanda gasps dramatically, her hand landing on your arm and shaking it lightly.

“Is that why nothing is happening with Princess Natasha? Your heart is torn between the two royals vying for your affection!”

Rolling your eyes at her teasing and pulling away from her excited grip, you move to place the box on your desk while replying over your shoulder in an attempt to clear all the misunderstandings.

“Nothing is happening with either of them,” you state firmly.

“Carol is just a friend, and Natasha…” you trail off sadly as you remember your earlier conversation with her.

With a soft sigh, you continue sadly, “Natasha doesn’t—”

Two gasps of surprise interrupt you, prompting you to turn around quickly toward the twins.

Both of them have expressions of shock and amazement on their faces, their gazes fixated on something across your room.

Confused, you turn to the cause of their reaction, only for your eyes to also widen in surprise at the sight.

Natasha is outside your opened window, her arms casually resting on your window sill, holding her up.

“Hey,” Natasha greets you normally with a tiny wave and a small grunt of exertion as she adjusts her grip on your window sill.

“Can I come in?” she asks casually.

“Ohmy—Natasha?!”

Hurrying over, you help in pulling her through the window, the both of you stumbling and falling to the ground.

With Natasha on top, she quickly braces one hand on the floor to catch herself, while her other hand covers your head protectively.

After ensuring that the two of you landed safely, Natasha leans her head down in exhaustion against your shoulder, chuckling softly.

“That was harder than I remember," she remarks jokingly.

At her words, you pull back from her embrace and begin to check on her with a small frown.

“I thought we agreed that you wouldn’t do that anymore,” you chastise her as your hands brush carefully across her face, examining her.

There were times in your childhood when Madam B wouldn’t let you go out to play until you finished the vast amount of studies that she assigned to you.

During those times, Natasha would sneak in through your window to spend time with you without anyone knowing.

That is, until one day she had gotten a small cut on her hand from the climb, and you had told her not to attempt it again.

“Well, Lord Dreykov wouldn’t let me in…,” Natasha catches your hand against her cheek, leaning gently into your touch.

Her eyes soften fondly as she looks at you before continuing, “…and I really needed to see you.”

You swallow nervously under her gaze — it is more intense than anything you’ve seen from her before.

You’re not sure of how to respond, her warm presence already dispelling the previous coldness in your room, distracting your mind.

An awkward cough from Pietro catches your attention, snapping you from your thoughts and reminding you of the others in the room.

Pulling your hand away slowly from under Natasha’s, you clear your throat slightly as you stand and compose yourself.

Wanda wears a sly smile as she raises her eyebrows at you, but you give her a firm look, silently signaling her to refrain from any teasing remarks before she has a chance.

Natasha stands up next to you and dusts herself before giving you a smirk.

“I thought I was the princess, so why are you the one who is locked away?” she teases gently.

You hold back your amused smile as you try to maintain your reprimanding expression, shaking your head at her.

“Natasha, you shouldn’t be here. If my father finds out…,” you begin.

Natasha frowns at the mention of him.

“Yeah, about that, why isn’t he letting you out?”

Wanda steps forward before you can reply.

“Because he’s a terrible person and he treats Y/n horri—”

“Wanda, that’s enough,” you cut her off with a meaningful stare.

Wanda presses her lips together in a pout but she listens to your words and doesn’t continue.

Natasha raises a brow and tilts her head questionably at you, her eyes glancing between you and Wanda in suspicion.

You let out a sigh and shake your head as you explain.

“He’s being temperamental and unreasonable right now…which is why I think it’s best if we get you out without him knowing,” you say while glancing at the door in thought about how to sneak the princess out.

Seeing your worried expression, Natasha takes your hand gently to get your attention, turning you back to face her.

“Hey, I don’t want to get you in trouble. I just wanted to make sure that you were okay.”

Her thumb caresses the back of your hand gently as she searches your eyes before asking seriously.

“Are you okay?”

You open your mouth, hesitating as you consider how to respond.

You know that Natasha isn’t supposed to be here, with Queen Melina having already told you the details about Natasha’s busy schedule for the next couple of days.

The last thing she needs is to be worried about something as trivial as you being confined to your room.

With a deep exhale, you reassure her with a small smile.

“I’m fine, Natasha.”

Natasha examines you closely for a moment, a doubtful look in her eyes. She eventually relents reluctantly when you give her a resolute nod.

Turning towards your window with a sigh, she offers, “I can sneak back down if you want me to go.”

Your eyes widen at the suggestion, and you grab her arm to pull her back to face you before she can move, giving her an incredulous look.

“You can't be serious,” you exclaim in disbelief.

When Natasha just blinks innocently at you in confusion, you give her a deadpan expression as you state firmly.

“You are not climbing down, Natasha.”

Before she can argue, the sound of your door handle turning causes you all to snap your attention to it in panic.

Pietro swiftly blocks the door, slamming it closed with his body.

“Open up!” the guard’s voice calls out from outside.

“Haven’t you heard of knocking?” Pietro shouts back before shrugging his shoulders and gesturing his hands at Natasha frantically.

Ignoring her small exclamation of surprise, you quickly usher Natasha into your closet, closing the door just in time as the guard shoves his way into your room.

He inspects the room critically before looking at you, standing with your back pressed against the closet door.

“I heard another voice,” he asserts, moving towards you in suspicion.

With his focus on you, Wanda silently steps up from behind him, her hands already enveloped in a red mist as she raises it next to the guard’s head.

She moves her fingers sharply, and the mist shoots towards his head, causing his eyes to glow red for a second.

The guard stops suddenly and shakes his head in confusion before looking around again.

“Never mind,” he says slowly. “It must have been from somewhere else.”

With that, he leaves the room and begins to walk away to investigate elsewhere.

Once he’s gone, Wanda falls to the ground with an exhausted exhale, and you and Pietro rush to her side quickly.

“How are you feeling? Are you okay?” you ask while checking her condition.

Wanda nods and raises her hand in a stopping gesture at your fussing before replying weakly.

“I’m fine. Just feeling a little tired.”

“That was amazing!” Pietro exclaims. “What did you do to him?”

“Yeah, what did you do?” Natasha comments as she steps out and looks at the three of you curiously.

The twins turn to you with wide eyes, expecting you to respond.

At Natasha’s questioning gaze, you wave your hand vaguely in the air, trying to come up with an explanation.

“Um…Wanda just has a special way with people,” you say with a slight wince at your pathetic answer.

Natasha squints at you suspiciously with a knowing expression, already aware that you’re hiding something, but she doesn’t press any further.

Wanda glances at her briefly before turning to you.

“You should take this chance to get the princess out before they come back.”

Seeing your conflicted expression as you try to examine Wanda again, Pietro rests his hand on your shoulder, stopping you, and gestures to the door with his head.

“Go, I’ll make sure she’s okay,” Pietro reassures you.

You hesitate, looking at Wanda once again, and she, in turn, gives you a reassuring nod.

With a resigned sigh, you stand and grab Natasha’s hand, pulling her along as the two of you move quietly through the manor.

After a moment of sneaking through the hallways, Natasha breaks the silence.

“About what Wanda said earlier, with your father—” Natasha starts.

“It’s nothing that you need to worry about,” you interrupt with a small reassuring smile over your shoulder before turning back around, not noticing Natasha’s frown at your words.

Deciding to change the subject before she can press further as you check around the corner, you decide to ask her something else you were curious about from the moment you saw her at your window.

“So what was the reason for this visit? I know you have that meeting today.”

Natasha rubs her neck nervously as she remembers her original purpose for coming to you.

“Um…this morning, after you left, I realized something.”

Your eyes widen in surprise, both at her words and at the sight of guards coming from around the corner toward your position.

Turning around, you quickly push Natasha into the nearby supply closet before she can continue and close the door, enclosing the two of you inside.

You hold your breath as you listen carefully until the sound of the footsteps passes by and eventually fades away before relaxing.

“I think they’re gone. We should be able to go now,” you exhale gently.

When Natasha doesn’t move or respond, you finally focus your eyes on her.

That’s when you realize the closeness between the two of you, standing in the small closet.

Moving your head slightly, your nose lightly brushes against hers as you examine your positions.

Natasha’s arm is propped next to your head, her hand pressing against the wall behind you, which is the only reason there is some distance between your bodies.

The small light coming in through the cracks lets you make out her face faintly in the dark.

Her eyes appear lost in thought and unfocused as she stares at your face, giving you that same intense look from earlier that made you lose your breath.

You feel a small exhale from her against your lips, making your heart speed up slightly.

“Natasha?” you whisper nervously against her when you feel her face begin to lean in closer.

Your voice seems to bring her out of her thoughts as she reels back in surprise.

Natasha clears her throat in response, looking away to the door.

“Y–yeah, let’s go.”

After leaving the storage closet, you and Natasha stand awkwardly in the hallway, with you trying to understand what just happened and her trying to compose herself.

With a determined breath, Natasha places her hand on your arm to turn you to her.

"Y/n, about this morning—"

Before she can finish, a figure comes rushing around the corner.

“Pietro?” you tilt your head curiously at his appearance.

He has a sheepish look on his face as he looks between the two of you awkwardly.

“Sorry, am I interrupting?” He gestures back towards his previous direction. “Wanda is resting already, and she said to go help you.”

You subtly take a tiny step from Natasha at his comment, not noticing her small pout at the action as you shake your head at him in response.

“No, it’s fine. We were hiding from some guards.”

Pietro nods in understanding.

“Yeah, they’re swarming the manor.”

Natasha sighs at the interruption, crossing her arms as she asks calmly.

“Is there a way to reach an exit without running into any more patrols?”

Pietro thinks for a minute before snapping his finger with a thought.

“There’s the old staff tunnels in the library that leads out to the gardens.”

At your agreement, the three of you make your way to the library where Pietro reveals a hidden door behind a banner in the far back, concealed by the cover of bookshelves.

Right as Pietro pries the door open, the sound of the library door bursts open, and your father’s voice booms in the space.

“Whoever’s in here, don’t bother hiding. You can’t escape.”

Pushing Natasha to Pietro, you whisper to him hurriedly.

“Take Natasha and go.”

“But—” he argues.

You give him a firm look that leaves no room for arguing.

Pietro frowns, but he relents and grabs Natasha’s arm.

She promptly brushes him off and takes your hand before you can leave, pulling you back to her.

“I’m not leaving you. This was my choice. I can take the responsibility,” Natasha insists.

Gently covering her hand with your own, you give her a small squeeze in appreciation and a bittersweet smile before slowly pulling your hand from her grip.

Your other hand moves up discreetly to her shoulder, and with a hard shove, you push her into the tunnels as Pietro closes the door behind them.

“Hey—” Natasha whispers harshly in surprise at your action.

“Pietro, please get her out safely,” you tell him through the small opening on the door.

He has a displeased look on his face, but he still nods determinedly at your request.

Footsteps come closer to your position as you re-cover the door with the banner.

“Come out now, or I’ll have you dragged out,” your father’s voice threatens.

With a deep breath, you step forward from the shadows.

Dreykov rolls his eyes at the sight of you and gestures for his guards to stand down.

As if returning to his original task, he hands one guard an envelope and dismisses him with a wave and order.

“Make sure this is delivered to the handler in the Stark kingdom. Quickly.”

The guard takes the envelope with a bow and turns to leave the room.

Furrowing your brows at his words, you eye the envelope suspiciously, the object giving you a bad feeling.

However, your attention is diverted when your father turns to face you again. His hands cross behind his back as he slowly steps closer menacingly.

“I believe I told you to stay in your room,” he says, his tone low in a displeased manner.

“I just came to get some books,” you lie smoothly.

Dreykov scoffs and gestures with his hand dismissively.

“Does that servant boy of yours no longer run to fetch you things anymore?”

You frown, and your hand clenches in anger at his words. That protective instinct over the twins washes over you, and you can’t help but correct him.

“His name is Pietro, and he’s not a servant.”

Dreykov eyes you critically in annoyance before shaking his head in disapproval.

“That is why you will always be weak, viewing those orphans as anything other than what they truly are — disposable tools.”

You know you shouldn’t push your luck, but his words cause you to remember your earlier suspicion about him and the old captain, and your accusation comes out before you can stop yourself.

“Was Captain Barnes also a tool for you?”

The room grows cold immediately at the silence that follows, and in response, you wrap your arms around yourself defensively, already missing the warmth of Natasha’s protective presence.

Dreykov's eyes narrow at you, as if trying to gauge your implication.

After a tense moment, he finally speaks up in an indifferent tone, issuing a command to his guard.

“Hold her.”

Your arms are restrained as he calmly steps closer to you.

You press your lips in a thin line in preparation, already knowing what comes next after such disrespectful behavior.

His hand hits you hard enough to knock your head harshly to the side, and you feel a small amount of blood drip from the corner of your lips.

Shaking the pain away, you return to your original position defiantly — his reaction already giving you the answer to your question.

At your expression, Dreykov sneers at you before hitting you again.

This time the impact was strong enough to knock you to the ground. Without giving you time to recover, he roughly grabs your hair to pull your head back to look up at him.

You press your mouth shut to prevent yourself from crying out in pain, not wanting to give him the satisfaction.

He presses his finger against your head in a mocking gesture.

“You would think your simple mind would learn already that I do not tolerate such disrespect in my presence.”

Letting go of your head with a dismissive throw, Dreykov turns around sharply and heads towards the door while gesturing to the guard.

“Take her back to her room and make sure she stays there this time.”

The door shuts behind Dreykov as the guard pulls you to your feet and tightens his grip on your arm.

Despite the throbbing pain on your cheeks from the impacts, you feel more relieved that Pietro was able to get Natasha away.

The guard moves to shove you back in the opposite direction towards the other exit.

However, his grip on you is suddenly removed, and you turn in surprise to see him now unconscious on the floor.

Natasha stands beside the unconscious body, breathing heavily at the figure in anger before looking up at you, a mixture of fury and concern in her eyes.

~~~~~~~ ⧗ ~~~~~~~

Soon after you disappear from view behind the hidden door, Pietro swiftly pulls Natasha further into the tunnels while she is still distracted in shock by your action.

Not too far along in their path, Natasha realizes what is happening and breaks away from his grip, turning around swiftly to return to your side.

However, Pietro is faster, rushing past her to block her path.

Natasha shoots him an intimidating look.

“Move, Pietro,” her voice is calm with an underlying warning tone.

“I can’t do that. Y/n told me to take you away,” Pietro responds determinedly.

“You would leave her behind like that?” Natasha exclaims.

Pietro’s expression twists down with a painful and regretful look at her words before returning her stare with a defiant expression.

“I don’t like it either, but this is what she asked me to do,” he argues.

“Even if it means you’re abandoning her,” Natasha accuses.

“I’m not abandoning her!” Pietro replies angrily. “You have no idea what Y/n has done for me and Wanda. I am doing what I can to not cause her any more trouble.”

Natasha opens her mouth to argue against letting you sacrifice yourself to take the blame for her actions when a loud echo of what distinctively sounds like a slap travels in the space, causing Natasha’s eyes to widen as she snaps her attention towards your direction, realizing what the sound implies.

Her body moves instantly towards you, but Pietro blocks her path again.

“Get out of my way,” Natasha warns dangerously, her patience thinning by the second. She doesn’t want to hurt him, but she will force her way through if she has to.

“Don’t go,” Pietro pleads, fear appearing in his eyes, though it was not caused by her.

He holds her back, pressing his hands against her shoulder before releasing a shaky breath and shaking his head as he reveals the truth.

“He’ll do worse if you help her.”

Natasha freezes as she snaps her attention to him.

“What did you just say?”

Pietro’s head falls to his chest in shame.

The memory of the first time Dreykov had hurt you after his return to the manor flashes in his mind, and how his attempt at helping you and doing what he thought was the right thing only ended up causing you more harm.

It took three days for you to recover from your injuries after that.

You never blame him, of course.

You never blame anyone.

Since then, he has never been able to get the courage to help you during those times, not that you ever let him. He could only stand back and watch helplessly.

Pietro flinches at the sound of the second hit, and his hands fall back to his side in defeat as he lets the princess rush past him back into the library.

At least, with this, he can let someone with more strength than him save you.

Natasha returns to the library and sees the guard pull you up from the ground roughly, and red instantly fills her vision.

In the next moment, the guard is swiftly subdued, unconscious on the floor.

Looking back up to you, Natasha sees your surprised expression, but she is more focused on the sight of the harsh redness on your cheek and the blood at the corner of your lips.

She instantly makes her way to you and cradles your face gently, inspecting you carefully with a concerned expression.

You wince away from her touch, grabbing her hand and pulling it away slightly.

“I’m fine, Natasha,” you murmur under your breath with a small sigh.

Natasha's eyes widen in disbelief and she shakes her head vehemently.

“No, you are not fine! He hit you!”

Her eyes instantly snap angrily to the door that your father just left out of.

Recognizing her expression, you quickly pull her into a tight embrace before she can charge after him.

She’s practically shaking with anger, but she doesn’t push you away.

You tighten your hold on her, pressing your head comfortingly into her neck, trying to calm her down.

“Don’t, Natasha,” you tell her firmly against her skin.

With her coronation so close, this is not the time for her to cause a scandal by attacking a noble like Dreykov.

Rubbing her back slowly in a soothing pattern, you whisper into her ear gently.

“I’m okay.”

Eventually, Natasha lets out a deep shaky breath against your shoulder before whispering to you in defeat.

“How long?”

When you don’t answer her, Natasha closes her eyes fiercely in realization and tightens her grip around you, as if trying to wrap you protectively in her arms.

Meanwhile, your eyes glance up at a movement behind Natasha, and you spot Pietro standing a small distance away, his gaze staring at the floor sadly and his body curled into himself in guilt.

You let out a knowing sigh at the familiar sight, already figuring out what is bothering the twin.

With a resigned breath, you extract yourself from Natasha’s embrace slowly before gripping her hand and pulling her back towards the staff tunnels.

“Come on, we can all talk after we get outside,” you remark softly.

As you pass Pietro, your other hand reaches out to grab his hand, and you give him a reassuring squeeze as you pull them both along.

The three of you make your way through the staff tunnels in silence and exit out of the manor and through the garden without any more incidents.

You make your way toward the side gates of the manor near the stables.

The entire time Natasha follows you without saying anything as she tries to process and piece together the new revelations.

It’s been a year since Dreykov has returned and remained in the kingdom.

During the year, you had avoided her enough that she did not see you as often to be able to notice anything unusual.

Her eyes glance at your hands clasped in hers, and it drifts up to your wrist as she remembers something from before.

Right as you reach the edge of the stables, Natasha stops moving altogether, causing you to stop and turn to her in question.

Her gaze remains fixed on your wrist for a moment before looking up into your eyes with a sad expression.

“The injury on your wrist from before, that wasn’t from an accident in the kitchen, was it?” Natasha asks in realization.

You don’t respond, but Natasha can already tell the answer from the look on your face.

With a resigned sigh, you turn to Pietro and ask him gently.

“Can you get a horse prepared to go?”

Pietro nods wordlessly in understanding and leaves the two of you alone for some privacy.

With a deep breath, you rub a comforting pattern on the back of her hand.

“Natasha, you don’t have to worr—“

“Stop saying that I don’t have to worry about you!”

Natasha closes her eyes briefly in frustration before looking at you.

“Why didn’t you tell me this was happening to you?”

You withdraw your hands from hers and wrap them around yourself defensively.

“I’m handling it, Natasha,” you tell her stubbornly. “You have more important matters to deal with in the kingdom than me. Not to mention your coronation is literally in a couple of days.”

With a huff of disbelief, Natasha holds your shoulders, shaking it slightly to make you understand.

“You are the most important thing that I care about right now.”

Natasha’s face shifts into an expression of pain.

“What kind of ruler can I be if I couldn’t even protect the person that I love?”

Your eyes widen slightly at the word, but you quickly brush away the feeling, remembering how emotional Natasha must be feeling at the moment.

Her instinctive protectiveness of her friends must have made that word slip out as meaning the friendly kind of love.

You place your hand atop hers and squeeze it comfortingly.

“You don’t need to do anything. I do have a plan to get away from him. It’s just taking some time,” you explain.

“Then come stay at the castle for the time being,” Natasha reasons. "He can't hurt you there."

“Natasha, I don’t think—”

“Please," Natasha brings your hands to her chest, giving you a pleading look as she rests her forehead against yours.

"Let me at least offer you that.”

You hesitate, but before you can respond, Pietro returns with two saddled horses in tow, causing you to give him a confused look.

“What's this?” you ask him, gesturing to the second horse.

Pietro gives you a small smile as he hands you the reins.

“You said you wanted a chance to get some answers. I think this is a good opportunity for you to go get it.”

You realize he is referring to earlier when you expressed your desire to get more answers from Captain Barnes.

"This is not really a good time," you remark.

Pietro nods in a gesture to Natasha.

“I’m sure the princess can get you access,” he states confidently.

"I'll go with you," Natasha agrees, not ready to leave you yet and determined to continue the previous conversation with you.

You glance at Natasha briefly, already guessing the reason for her quick agreement despite not knowing the complete situation, before giving Pietro an unsure look, but he rests his hand on your shoulder comfortingly.

“Wanda and I can cover for you until you return,” he insists.

Seeing his resolute resolve, you pull him into a hug, remembering how he was like in the library moments ago with that guilty expression that you recognize from before.

“You did good, Pietro. You always have,” you remind him.

He tightens the hug appreciatively in a silent response.

When you finally pull away, you ruffle his hair playfully, causing him to fix it back with a pout as you laugh lightly.

“I'll be back soon. Check on Wanda and keep each other safe until then, okay?”

He gives you his usual playful smirk as his finger taps the tip of your nose teasingly.

“Always.”

After he secures you onto your horse, he points to Natasha with a serious expression.

“You better take care of her,” he tells her in warning.

“Pietro!” you chastise his blunt tone with the princess.

Still, Natasha nods firmly in understanding before glancing at you.

“I will,” she promises.

~~~~~~~ ⧗ ~~~~~~~

Series Masterlist : Boundless Devotion

a/n: Thank you for reading! This was a hard chapter to condense, but I think this was the best that I could do.

Taglist: @lightwhoranoutoflight, @taliiiaasteria, @romanoffprentiss, @canvascoloredin, @silentwolfsstuff, @blacklightsposts, @arcturusseer, @presser24, @dvrkhcld, @jujuu23, @screechcat, @vivs46, @cd-4848, @youneversawmehereooooooo, @pancakefan7529, @confusedspaceotter, @natbelovasblog, @izzy-b09, @iamheartless, @mrsrushman, @fxckmiup, @natty-taffy, @2silverchain, @traveler-at-heart, @autorasexy, @natsxwife

#natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff x fem!reader #natasha romanoff imagine #natasha romanoff fanfic #natasha romanoff x you #black widow x reader #natasha x reader #natasha romanoff

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wandaxpietro · 3 months

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another ask because this is the only way I know how to contribute to the Maxicest/ScarletSilver fandom (wish i could do more but college is p a i n )

but imagine if Pietro and Wanda just came out and told everyone they're dating/in love (whether as a joke or if they're being serious or idk) I am willing to bet a majority of their friends/coworkers/acquaintances/enemies would either be like: "we knew lol" or "you haven't already???" or be supportive or neutral to their relationship.

But I'm wondering... how would Magneto react? How would Lorna react? How would Magda/Marya/Natalya and Django react? (if they were alive to see it) How would Vision or Crystal react?

Hell, how would Billy and Tommy react? And Luna too? (marvel pls bring her back :((( plsss)

i feel like in the current SW&QS comic run, there will probably be some in-universe comment/rumors that since are Pietro and Wanda are together again, that they are together.

(might ask more questions/thoughts/random blurbs later ://)

ah i think you're more charitable than i am... i don't think most people who know them would be okay with it. they all probably know to varying degrees -- especially their close friends -- it's the deniability that saves it for them, that makes them able to ignore all of it. the avengers (the ones that are close to them, that is) all know, all have seen the twins in weird situations, but they've gotten very very good at looking away. none of them want to know. i think they'd be highly uncomfortable if they came out with their relationship officially, because that'd mean they can no longer ignore it, y'know? i don't think most would start a fight about it or a confrontation or anything, but they'd get weird around the twins.

(on a side note, i think clint is one of the people who'd get actually angry for a while lol. that moment when you're bisexual and your two crushes are dating etc etc. also i think carol would ask wanda if she's alright, if pietro's forcing her into anything, which would make wanda really mad. janet i think is smart enough that she's realized for a long time they're in love & knows something like that isn't going on but she wouldn't be very comfortable, either. the one i think who's most likely to "accept" it is actually tony bcuz i think he genuinely wouldn't give a fuck lol)

that aside! now for the ones you actually asked about lol. ah it's difficult.

magneto - depends on when he'd find out. during brotherhood times, i don't think he'd care, because he didn't really care about them to begin with. once he finds out they're related, at the very beginning, i think he'd be appalled but there isn't anything he can do about it, since he's an absent father trying to reconnect and has no rights to his children. once they're in the family dance for a while, he's grown a bit demanding, esp towards pietro, if that makes sense? so i think he'd probably argue with them about it lol. i don't think he'd like it, not so much bcuz of personal disgust, but mostly bcuz of optics. but also bcuz he has a desire for his children to live normal, happy lives (as much as he has trouble showing them that normally lol) and i think he'd think that would interfere with that. he's also very good at ignoring it, however -- before he'd officially find out, ofc, but after, too. he just conveniently "forgets" it. maybe starts introducing both of them to other people. they hate it.

lorna - i think lorna knows. i think she's known for a long time and while she was disgusted by it at first (and also strangely jealous; she doesn't want either of them but they've always been so close and she never had that. she doesn't have a sibling that's primarily hers, if that makes sense) i think she came to terms with it over time, enough so that she'd be pretty alright with it if they went official.

i honestly don't know about magda, django, marya and natalya... i think magda would have a lot of compassion after everything they've been through, but would treat it as an unfortunate side-effect of all of the twins' trauma, if that makes sense? she loves them a lot, though. the rest of them i don't know. i can't see any of them liking it, but marya and django might just be happy they're both alive and happy, you know? i feel like natalya would want more for them, similarly to magneto, bcuz she doesn't quite get it. but no one does. so yknow.

so billy and tommy are their kids. we know this. i think tommy wouldn't care, tbh. i can't see him being fazed or disgusted by it, also i think he'd be happy to find out pietro is his dad. they already get along, and he doesn't have a lot of people who care about him, and who want to spend time with him (vision never did lol). idk about billy..... i think he dearly loves them both but i think he might just think wanda could do better (lol). i think he'd be vaguely uncomfortable, but pietro would never play dad if billy didn't want that, so i think they're fine-ish? he'd probably get used to it eventually even when he's not thrilled. idk if he'd ever see pietro as his dad. also i think he's also known for a long time but he hasn't gotten over it like lorna has.

as for luna....... honestly she's genuinely a weird kid. she can see people's emotions & i can't see her caring much about "human" taboos. she's from a royal family, and her aunt's husband is also her aunt's (distant) cousin. i think she'd be fine, lol. she can see the love between wanda & pietro -- and tho she probably didn't realize (or didn't want to; bcuz that'd make things complicated) that it was romantic, too, she'd be relatively fine, just happy that her father's happy. she's long since been over crystal and pietro's marriage, so that doesn't bother her, either.

#i'm sorry if this feels like a pessimistic view lol #but i genuinely can't see most of the people surrounding them as actually fully supportive #also i think wanda & pietro wouldn't ever officially come out as a couple. it's been a secret for a long time #and at some point it's not really a secret anymore -- w and p don't treat it as one anymore either -- but no one talks about it #it's like an open secret. people who want to can safely ignore it most of the time #but then they'll catch a clandestine moment and be reminded. lol.#anyway!#answered #i should probably start tagging these asks #scarletsilver #maxicest

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munchkinmarauder · 3 months

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My review of Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver

Overall I'll give it a generous 4/5 stars and I'm excited to see where this series takes up but I do have some gripes with it

Also lots of stuff from Orlando's AITP X-Men Monday interview pops up so check it out as we may have some hidden clues on what's next

Spoilers below

Overall a good set up issue with some fun moments. Some of my fears were exaggerated but some of those expected fears did mean I didn't enjoy the issue as much as I hoped. However I'm fault happy overall and keen for the rest of the series

The good-

- a series with the twins as coleads has been long overdue. I'm so happy to see it finally happen. Fun fact this is the first marvel series to be headlines by a sibling duo.- for the most part the twins dynamic and fight felt like a proper sibling fight. You could feel the weight of their long history and the multitude of things left unsaid and resentments.

- it's nice to see Wanda being the one clearly at fault for a fight between them for a change

- while the twins are little orange I appriciate the commitment to showcasing the twins as visible people of colour. It was long needed. I do think they (and Luna and Tommy should be more visibly brown). I also am enjoying the art and the use of the vibrant colours in general.

- I like the mystery being set up with why the twins are being targeted and the twist that while Magneto did write the letter he wasn't the one who sent it. I'm not as curious at the letter contents as I thought I would be. It seems he's being cruel because he's a dick to Pietro but let's see. I also really am excited to know why it's both twins and the combination of them together that has the giver upset. Lore and power upgrade for born twins? I hope so. Wanda being a universal threat is a given so I am way more curious about what they'll do with Pietro

- I think it was a good move to make a joke about is or isn't Magneto the bio dad at the start and shoot it down. I would love for the retcon to be undone I just don't think it has a place in this story about the bond between the twins. Magneto doesn't need to overshadow the series more than he has already for what it's worth I do think the comics are leading up to a Magnet fam reunion with most of its members appearing in major comics this year.

- it being acknowledged that Magneto was cruel to Pietro, killed him and treated the twins unequally. I have gripes with this I'll set out below but given how biased Orlando is towards Magneto this was good to see.

- the Luna, Tommy and Monet cameos made me so happy! I'm glad Orlando seems fond of Luna and I hope she and Monet join Tommy in helping Pietro. Even if the ladies are just cameos it's still a nice touch.- I liked the contrast where the fuming twins lash out with their powers. Wanda destroys her shop and Pietro is ranting but checking up on loved ones while he does so. They are each others ying and Yang.

- we're lucky the Wizard is a drama queen cause his snipers seem pretty competent and if they'd used regular bullets this series would be automatically over lol. I do also think the Wizards team called Pietro to upset him. Futher and not Wanda to ensure the twins wouldn't be able to contact each other.

The bad

- the writing for Wanda was better than Pietro. This feels more like a Wanda series so far but it's early days so let's see. Even though Wanda is the one initially in the wrong she seems to be treated more sympathetic by the narrative and of course she has more page time than her brother.

- Pietro's past appearances in SW made me a bit unsure about how Orlando will write Pietro, his takes in the comic themselves are quite superficially though he talks about Pietro very passionately in Interviews. Nothing really changed that opinion here.

- we didn't get enough of the twins interacting and this is supposed to be a series about their relationship. It would have been nice to have a little more of them getting along so the fight felt more impactful. An infinity comic with the two might have been a good idea.- I hate the Pietro fears Wanda thing Orlando introduced as well as the Pietro manipulated Wanda for HoM. I don't think Steve actually read that comic because Wanda herself in that comic said all her brother was doing was protecting her cause the X-Men and Avengers wanted to kill her and Magneto was willing to let them. Having Wanda say this was off-putting. Had it been purely in angry it would be somewhat forgivable but Orlando has expressed this sentiment in his other SW books

- Orlando's insistence on the adopted family angle and portraying Magneto as a complicated but good man who took the twins in with Wanda as the worshipful daddies girl and the victim blaming as Pietro was cold to him. That man was abusive to both his children. He would let them die for his cause and had abandoned them multiple times. Wanda pre retcon had many an issue and gripe with him. The twins are justified in their issues with him and no one should have to forgive their abusers. Magneto is a fascinating character and I loved the pre retcon dynamic with the twins as it was so tragic and full of irony and it only really works if theyre blood related. This painting of them as a happy chosen family is detrimental to all characters involved.

#pietro maximoff #wanda maximoff #quicksilver #maximoff twins #magnet family #monet st croix #tommy shepherd #Luna Maximoff #Darcy Lewis #scarlet witch & quicksilver (2024)#scarlet witch and quicksilver #quicksilver and the scarlet witch #Quicksilver #scarlet witch #magneto #erik lensherr

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scarlet--wiccan · 3 months

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How do you feel about Tommy being back in Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver - what do you hope for his interactions with Wanda and Pietro and his place in the story? Bonus: this might lead to his first interaction of significance with Vision 🤣

I'm pretty excited, any interactions between Pietro and Tommy are bound to be fun and I wonder if Tommy and Luna will ever meet. I do worry with all the extra characters involved and two villians (not to mention the Wizard's army) that this 4 issue series may be overstuffed and suffer from pacing issues. The advertised core of the story is the Maximoff twins relationships but depending on how early the fight is in issue 1 and the point at which they meet up again in issue 3 they might actually spend half the series separated (not keen about Wanda potentially spending more time with a former love interest than her own brother in a book which is heavily advertised to be about siblinghood and family).

Yeah, I'm actually a little nervous about the pacing. I really, truly, do enjoy Orlando's writing and the work he's done with these characters, but the pacing has been a consistent problem. To be fair, the short run of Scarlet Witch and unconventional structure of Darkhold weren't his fault-- those are editorial and publishing decisions-- but I felt like both titles were overstuffed and it caused him to elide or rush past moments that really needed more page time. The back half of Scarlet Witch #10 is low key sloppy, and it left me feeling kind of sour on the whole second arc of the series. I really hope SW&Q doesn't repeat that experience.

I'm kind of assuming that #2 and #3 are going to be more self-contained-- I don't think that Wanda, Vision, Tommy and Pietro are going to actually end up all in the same place. I hope that Tommy at least gets to see his mom, but I won't be surprised if he doesn't. Sorry to be a downer, but it's like you said-- we've got a lot stuffed into four issues, so we need to keep things moving fast. No pun intended.

Anyways, my main concern for Tommy is addressing the fallout of the Hellfire Gala and David's apparent death. Presumably, Tommy just got back to Earth and is going to be processing a whole lot of grief. Orlando collaborates regularly with Steve Foxe, so even if SW&Q doesn't spend a lot of time on this, I do expect there to be good continuity for Tommy's relationship and the time that he's been spending in outer space.

I do have a lot of ideas about what kind of dynamics Tommy should have with Wanda and Pietro, and ordinarily I would want to focus on developing those relationships-- him having a fun rivalry with Pietro and being able to connect with him about their unique mental and emotional wavelengths; him actually having a fulfilling parent-child relationship with Wanda for the first time in his life-- but I just don't feel like it would be right for Tommy to show up in a lighthearted mood right now. It sucks, because he already gets so little page time, but I don't want fun, sweet Tommy content. I want someone to actually take this character seriously, and I think right now, that means he's going to be in kind of a bad place, emotionally.

Who knows, maybe he'll be the one to push Wanda and Pietro-- but especially Wanda-- to do more in the fight against Orchis. I doubt it, since this is very much not an X-Men title, but it would a clever way to loop them back in.

#tommy shepherd #speed #scarlet witch & quicksilver (2024)

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imperiuswrecked · 8 months

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what do you think of lorna and erik's relationship, i always see fans talk about wanda and pietro's disastrous relationship to magneto but not much for lorna

I think their relationship needs to be explored more. Marvel never puts enough focus on Lorna even though she's one of their oldest x-men characters, and she's more of Magneto's heir than Wanda or Pietro because she has the same powerset as he does, her time in Genosha should be revisited and I just wish there was some direction for her because Marvel is missing out on a lot of potential. I feel like because she didn't interact with Magneto the same way the Twins did her relationship with him is different. After all, she didn't know about Erik until she was much older. The animated series, Wolverine and the X-Men makes Lorna out to be a daddy's girl, his princess daughter, who is meek and naïve, and I feel a lot of people try to use that for the comic version even though that doesn't work. While she was treated as a princess on Genosha she wasn't meek. She has a lot of strength, and anger. She was upset when she found out the truth about Magneto being her father. However I feel like Marvel is literally allergic to ever exploring more between them. Like so much of Lorna's character trauma is wrapped up in Genosha and the genocide of the mutants, but Marvel doesn't lean into that or her time with Magneto as much as I would like.

Lorna doesn't trust Magneto, and I don't think she ever will trust him fully, but also I feel like Magneto hasn't really done anything for any of his children to prove they can trust him. He has so many issues.

X-Men: Blue (2017) #10

At this point I feel that Lorna can carry a civil conversation with Magneto because her trauma is different than Pietro and Wanda's trauma. However it's like Erik is her estranged father she hadn't seen in years and they don't have a close relationship built on trust and love, it's more out of obligation. She sees him because he's her biological father, she doesn't always agree with him and there's this barrier between them that won't be bridged unless Marvel writers put the effort into their relationship and that would mean diving deep into who Lorna is as a character and her place in the x-men universe.

I really wish Marvel would commit to exploring the messy and emotional relationship the magnet family has with a focus on each of the kids and how they view Magneto, it would be really cool to have a comic series devoted to that, like I imagine Lorna, Wanda, and Pietro all have very complex feelings about Magneto, and I'd love to see that explored more and vice versa, how does Magneto view his children, etc. and for Luna and the Minimoffs to be included would be great.

#lorna dane #polaris #magneto #erik lensherr #magnet family #imp answers

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ssadumba55 · 2 years

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Pietro Maximoff and Spy! Reader Headcanons

Request: Hi, I've never requested something before so- I might be doing this wrong (super sorry if I am) if you could, could you do Pietro dating spy reader headcanons, maybe reader works with shield and goes on missions, idk it is 100% up to you :)

The two of you meet through the Avengers (duh!). You're not really affiliated with the Avengers but you are a close personal friend to both Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton (having met both during their time working for SHIELD), so you're often around just for the two of them

You hate the Maximoff twins when they first arrive at the Tower Tony has set up as home base for the time being. They reek of trouble and not only that, but they actively took place in trying to harm the team (who you've grown to care about). Just because they've had a change in heart, doesn't mean you have.

You avoid them at all costs. But even though it's a big tower, it's not that easy to avoid them especially since they both live there, having nowhere else to go.

Wanda is almost always with Vision, she doesn't actively seek out interaction with you or anyone else unless they seek it out with her first.

But Pietro is a whole different story. He likes to talk and he likes to be talked to. He doesn't understand that you're slightly uncomfortable by his presence and he talks to you as if he's known you all his life. At first, it's a little weird, but slowly over time, you become accustomed to it.

It takes a long time before you warm up enough to him to call him a friend and even longer still until the two of you are able to call each other partners, but he does a good job at breaking down your walls.

Once the two of you start dating, you spend a lot more time around the tower

You're both super mopey when the other is out on missions, even though you trust that the other will be careful, you still miss each other a lot

He is a bit of a freak when it comes to you getting hurt. Seriously, if you ever return from a mission injured, he is panicked beyond imagining. Bruce will tell him it's fine, you're fine, that it's nothing serious and he'll still panic and freak out. Paces the floor a lot.

He just doesn't like the idea of losing anyone else, not after losing his parents. You, Wanda and the Avengers are all he has now and the thought of losing his new family kills him.

Late night movie nights just the two of you, popcorn, cuddling on the couch.

He's like the best boyfriend. Whenever you need anything, he's gone in a flash and back with whatever it is you needed. He shouldn't really be using his powers for random household things like that, but he can't help himself. He wants to make you happy and he'd do anything to see you smile.

You guys are big on PDA, especially him. Hand holding, cuddling, the other Avengers pretend they don't notice.

Comforting him when he has nightmares about the night his parents died. You sometimes wonder if Wanda has nightmares just as bad as his, how lucky they are that they are now surrounded by people who love them and can help them through that

I don't know why but I feel like he would love giving you piggy back rides. Just a random silly thing the two of you do.

It's really funny to him that you're a spy, because you're such a sweet genuine person when it's just the two of you. He can't picture you shooting people or being ruthless at all.... that is until the two of you have missions together. Then he understands all too well.

Despite being affectionate in front of the Avengers, your relationship is actually top secret. Both of you have far too many enemies.

#marvel imagine #marvel x reader #marvel headcanons #pietro maximoff x reader #spy! reader #gender neutral imagine #gender neutral reader

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fountainpenguin · 10 months

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i would just like to say. you are a godsend for someone like me who hyperfixates on fop but really wants more worldbuilding. thank u so much for existing and writing this wonderful world! i love how much care and research you put into every little thing. you've inspired me a lot and helped me work on my own fop au, and put it in a place where i'm actually happy with it. i've always been interested in your interpretation of wanda's childhood + the fairy mafia, if you feel like elaborating.

This is so incredibly nice, thank you so much <3 That means the world to me. It feels good to be back digging my hands in the FOP soil after my long hiatus. Good luck to you as well! I wish you the best in worldbuilding for your AU.

There's a lot of backstory I like in the Fairywinkle family content, and I've dropped some hints about it in Origin of the Pixies. H.P.'s family (the Whimsifinados) are long-time rivals with the Fairywinkles (both violent business families pursuing money). After one of H.P.'s ancestors, Telford, was killed by the Fairywinkles, Telford's wife fled with their son and started a new life elsewhere in the cloudlands.

The Fairywinkles built their garbage business on top of the old Whimsifinado family home just to spite them. H.P. is LIVID about that to this day and would love to get "his family's property" back, but he's reluctant to fight Dusty [Big Daddy] Fairywinkle for it and kick off another round of warfare. H.P. lurks on the sidelines, occasionally trying to snip bits and pieces away from Big Daddy or just annoy him however he can. I say this because H.P. REALLY likes messing with the Fairywinkles (and Cosmo by extension) and he'd love to get his hooks in Poof.

Wanda and Wendy [Blonda] grew up in a wealthy home with their mom and dad (Not their biological mom, though they weren't aware of it). They grew up surrounded by crime but not understanding it until they were older.

Twins are frowned upon in Fairy culture, and identical twins in particular (Fairy World doesn't exactly look fondly on lookalikes; see also, the Anti-Fairies). As the firstborn twin, Wanda is due to inherit more from the family [You'll get to see more inheritance worldbuilding in the next Knots chapter] and she was roped into being a thief from a young age.

[More under the cut]

Wendy was relatively sheltered, not spoken about so much in public since she was the undesirable second-born twin- the face-stealer, the copycat. For big social gatherings, her family would treat her with make-up and magic to "give her her own face" so she didn't look like Wanda, actually.

As she got older, Wendy was actually pressured to dress and behave as a boy, which she did for most of her childhood and young teens- we saw her a few times in Origin of the Pixies where H.P. noticed that Big Daddy seemed to have "a perfect daughter and a son who didn't seem to know what he was doing." Big Daddy has a lot of fondness for Wanda. He's her "good girl" and he has a lot of sweet pet names for her. He considers her classy, pristine, skilled, and successful while his other daughter is just running around as a "failed actress."

Throughout their youth - as per their family's request - Wanda and Wendy would use their status as identical twins to "always have an alibi." They would dress as each other (by which I mean Wendy would dress as Wanda) and they regularly swapped places so one of them could steal things from fancy parties or business meetings without being suspected. After all, Wanda was right here at dinner the whole time! Anyone who saw Wanda elsewhere must be imagining things.

Wendy did have a good relationship with their mom, by the way [Serena- we saw her in the 130 Prompt "Looking Back" where she's one of the school teachers]. Serena spent a lot of time with Wendy, helping her put on make-up disguises and such, or just spending time with her as mom and daughter.

Serena understood how much Wendy was struggling with her role, but Serena is also a Good Mob Wife who wasn't going to push back against her husband's instructions. She gave Wendy a lot of little treats growing up, like souvenirs and ice cream getaways with Mom. Unfortunately this caused a lot of tension with Wanda, leading us to that scene in "Blondas Have More Fun" where Wanda yells "Mom always liked you best."

Things were always tense for the twins, honestly. Wanda was partly blind to her firstborn twin privilege. She saw her life as having more responsibilities. Daddy's needs and expectations required her to spend a lot of time in boring meetings. She saw herself as needing to do hard work "for the family" while her sister got to play around.

A rift formed between the sisters as Wanda felt frustrated that Mom favored Wendy (giving her treats when Wanda was the hardworking sibling who always got the best grades and did all the extracurriculars) while Wendy felt like she was overlooked or mistreated by her family. Wendy couldn't even "be a girl" without criticism or requests to disguise herself. She had Mom, and sometimes that felt like the one and only thing she had, and she was defensive of her time with Mom and didn't want Wanda to take that away from her.

Wanda can play the piano and she likes writing novels, those are some things I want to highlight from her childhood. I envision Wanda as a little girl with ribbons in her hair who always wore a pretty sundress and was super polite at family parties. She fluttered around hosting tea parties for her toys, playing piano, crocheting with her mom, and doing Good Little Girl Things. She also totally played in the mud... This is Garbage Family, they did lots of Dirty Work too.

Wanda's upbringing is basically "gifted child from the upper class who is nice to others." She was that slightly popular elementary school girl who actually deserved to be popular because she was kind and fun to be around. She'd bring people cupcakes and she'd also build a treehouse with them.

Cosmo saw her from a distance sometimes, playing with her friends, but he's the grubby poor kid who would have been chased off if he got near (especially with his family in debt to the Fairywinkles). Growing up, Cosmo's experience with Wanda was that if you asked him if he knew her, he'd be like "Oh yeah, I know her." Same vibe as a kid who goes to your school but you never have any classes with them.

Wendy struggled a lot, never wanting to put in the effort to master a skill because "she'll never be as good at it as Wanda anyway." She didn't crave her parents' praise, but she did want to feel loved. She just necessarily want them to be "proud" of her but rather she envied kids from other families who seemed to have love freely given to them, and she wanted to have love given to her too. She's mediocre at a lot of things and never really found something to put her passion behind as a kid. She just kind of got pushed into doing things.

It wasn't until they were in high school that Wendy finally came out and said "I'm an identical twin and I'm proud to be me." The stealing schtick wouldn't work so well after that, and Wanda and Wendy were already starting to come to terms with the fact that they had been steered into that life and actually, maybe they DON'T want to pursue a life of crime, no thanks... Their upbringing is still threaded through them, but they don't play on the stage their Daddy does.

Anti-Cosmo runs into Wendy shortly after her coming out. In Frayed Knots, we see that Wendy has already taken on the name Blonda and is trying to become more of a bubbly "I'm going to take up space because I deserve to exist" person. She's still kind of shy, but she's in her "I deserve happiness" arc and that's what leads her to get so tangled up in Anti-Cosmo's charming, seemingly adventurous lifestyle.

Blonda's the type who looks at pirates and romanticizes them for their adventures, overlooking the crime aspect, ha ha. She does the same thing with Anti-Cosmo. Anti-Fairy migration season? You mean Fun Month-Long Road Trip With The Squad??

It was important to me that in Frayed Knots, we get to see Wanda and Blonda hanging out together. They're at boarding school and they're sisters. They care about each other, but their relationship is definitely on the rocks. Wanda still feels like she's the "smart one" who studies hard, does a lot of difficult favors for Daddy (like deliveries and paperwork), and goes unappreciated. Blonda still feels like Wanda has everything and that Wanda doesn't understand what she's been through, and/or that Wanda wants to take away her happiness. Life's rough.

[I talked more about Blonda in my "Blondas Have More Fun" analysis post HERE]

Blonda spent her childhood dressing up and playing roles, and so her acting career is very important to her as she's taking roles willingly instead of because she's forced into it. She craves that spotlight and luxury that she was denied as a childhood just for being the second-born twin. I have many feelings about Blonda and her relationship with the Fairywinkle family...

I do think Wanda is a nice person overall and it's not my intention to demonize her, but I do also think she's a little self-centered and blind to Blonda's struggles. She's a better mother than she is a sister, and she doesn't seem like she wants to try hard to fix the relationship between them (See also, the end of "Blondas Have More Fun" when Blonda is - tbh understandably - sad that her name was incorrectly called as the winner of a Zappy award and she didn't actually win, Wanda rubs it in her face in front of everyone).

I feel like Wanda would be friends with her sister if it was "easy..." she's just reluctant to look at herself and admit to some of her own harmful behaviors. She pushes responsibility for maintaining this sisterly bond on Blonda.

Wanda's the one who eloped. We know Wanda kept in contact with Big Daddy by writing letters, but she considers herself to have a poor relationship with Blonda (Not mentioning her to Timmy, possibly not even inviting her sister to her wedding or Poof's baby shower??) Wanda perceives Blonda as the troublemaker and expects Blonda to come to her pleading for forgiveness. Blonda doesn't want to because she feels like Wanda should apologize for the rift between them. It's a messy dynamic that I do think is interesting.

Anyway, those are some of my thoughts on the Fairywinkle family! Poof's relationship with his mom's side of the family is a focus of some 130 Prompts that are waiting in my buffer queue, so you'll see more of that soon! (Looks like late September and late October according to my schedule, so I guess it'll be a bit).

I also have a fic called "Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Pixies" which is for Poof what "You'll Never Know" was for Foop. I'm really excited to share that when it's the right time in the timeline for it; Poof and the Fairywinkle family are such a loaded concept.

#Fairly OddParents #FOP #FAIRIES!#ridwriting #130 Prompts #Purple hippie dragonfly #Dragonfly parents #Dragonfly grandpa #Dragonfly aunt #Long post #Origin of the Pixies #We're Pixies!#I'm wasp dad trash #Frayed Knots #The bat with the hat #asks #Anon #Nice words

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agentem · 2 years

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Emily rewatches "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness"

Just watched this for the first time since the theater on Disney+. I was unhappy with it when I first saw it. I really wanted it to be Wanda's story and it's not.

But if you actually pay attention to the dumb Stephen bits it does make more sense. Or at least it has more of an internal logic than I thought it did before.

I got, on the first viewing, that Stephen saw the star in the Book of Vishanti and intuited that America's powers were similar, so that is why she told America she had to fight Wanda. But I guess I hadn't extrapolated out as far as I did on the second viewing.

We're exploring various extremes of Strange along two measures that I guess are the most Strange-ish (Strange-y) which is his need to "hold the knife", as Christine says, and how that changes with the intervention of the Book if Vishanti or the Darkhold.

We open in the Gap Junction with our most Strangey Strange: Defender Strange. The movie defines Stranges by Christine's line that he always had to be the one holding the knife. So when I say he's the most Strangey, I mean he's the one who holds the knife the most, but has never encountered the book of Vishanti or the Darkhold (until now).

But what America (or if you are cynical, the story) needs in that moment is a Strange who WILL NOT use the knife, one who will let her use her powers. Because she is basically the human embodiment of the Book of Vishanti, which are supposed to be what you need at that moment. "It gives you what you need."

So she opens a portal and it takes her to what she needs, which is "our Strange." I refuse to call him 616.

Our Strange is at a wedding and Christine asks him if he's happy. This is important because it gives us two separate timelines diverging from this moment. One where America comes into his life and one where she doesn't. If she doesn't, apparently he gets the Darkhold and becomes Sinister Strange and ruins the universe. I don't like that it's not explained how he would get the Darkhold from Wanda.

Sinister Strange is more important that 838 Strange, who has lived in what appears to be a different timeline (again I am unclear about the difference between timelines and universes but it seems like 838 branches off WAY before Sinister Strange's timeline does, because the entire battle with Thanos went differently).

I'm not really sure what 838 is supposed to show our Strange, really. Because in theory, each time America opens a portal it is to the place you need to go. But all Strange seems to learn is that Incursions are bad, but he could've just went directly to Sinister Strange and learned that as well.

It could be to remind him, and us the audience, that Wanda doesn't have to be evil. That seems to be her universe where she is her "best self," where she gets what she needs and she never encounters the Darkhold.

The film keeps giving Wanda the line "I'm not a monster, I'm a mother" which is annoying because the MCU already had problems with that binary. But the intention is not quite the same as Whedon. It's more like Wanda doesn't see herself as a monster because she is a mother. Like that is defense to do anything. Strange asks her what happens to the twins' actual mother and she doesn't ever get the chance to respond. Wong asks her why she can't be happy knowing the kids are happy elsewhere and she throws him off the cliff.

838 Wanda is certainly the Wanda that our Wanda needs though. Because even though our Wanda takes her body, and throws her across a room, (and possibly wants her dead if our Wanda ever responded to the what happens to her question), that Wanda offers forgiveness to our Wanda and finally makes her realize (she stumbles over the word mother, and looks at 838 Wanda as if realizes she is the true mother?) that she has been corrupted by the Darkhold and her reasoning is flawed.

So it's possible 838 is the convenient, solving the plot problems dimension, I guess. Because it is also where Stephen makes peace with his relationship with Christine being over, instead of going home and using the Darkhold to get what he wants (and it's possible that is how Sinister Strange got the Darkhold, from Wanda in this instance? I think it would've been cooler if they made that clear.)

And then when America opens another portal in the Gap Junction, it finally takes them to where Stephen needs to go which is to the Darkhold where Sinister Strange has it.

But the universes don't fully square up along the want/need vs knife/no knife axis.

It might also imply that our Strange has to kill the two most extreme Stranges (Defender and Sinister) versions of himself to get what he "needs." And that is why Defender Strange's corpse and Sinister Strange's copy of the Darkhold (all Darkholds) are destroyed with Wanda.

And I'm not sure what it says about the incidents with Thanos and the Time Stone. I mean the existence of the film suggests things that "need" to happen do, which is a very complicated way of saying "because of reasons."

It also implies that when America saw that bee, her parents NEEDED to be sucked away from her and leave her an orphan and I'm not at all certain why that would be the case. Because she needs to be an orphan? That seems wrong.

At the end, Strange asks Wong if he is happy, and I'd love to see the movie examining his character along the multiverse. Like what is his central conflict? But we won't get it.

#doctor strange in the multiverse of madness #ds:mom #mom #spoilers #stephen strange #doctor strange #wanda maximoff #scarlet witch #america chavez #miss america #multiverse of madness #wong #benedict wong

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antimattercontainment · 11 months

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I know that you're my enemy (but I love you all the same) 👀👀👀👀

Ooh! That one was actually the first fic I ever posted on Ao3 (and is still technically in progress even though I haven't updated it in over a year 😬). It's for a 2009 cartoon called "Wolverine and the X-Men" that only got one season. In canon there was a Nightcrawler/Scarlet Witch star-crossed lovers thing going on, and since Nightcrawler is my favorite X-man I wanted to explore it more!

Summary: She couldn’t stop seeing the wonder in Kurt’s eyes when she’d taken him to the concert, or the joy at simply being able to walk outside. She couldn’t stop seeing the betrayal and disappointment in his eyes when he discovered the dark secrets beneath Genosha’s glittering facade. Now he had been returned to her. Now he was safe. But could he ever forgive her?

More in-depth explanation under the cut, as well as some snippets.

I don't know how familiar you are with common X-men storylines, but basically, Genosha is an island that Magneto nominally built as a sanctuary for mutants away from humans. Nightcrawler (aka Kurt) helped some other mutant refugees get there, then was offered the grand tour by Magneto's daughter (aka the Scarlet Witch, aka Wanda).

Kurt was a mutant who was born with extreme physical mutations (blue fur, solid yellow eyes, prehensile tail, a little bit like Quarry from TMNT 2003) that made it impossible to blend in with the general human population, so he grew up in a circus freakshow.

Genosha was really the first time he'd had the opportunity to just go out and be a normal person. So Kurt and Wanda were basically having fun and going on dates until he found out that Magneto was imprisoning anyone who caused trouble or disagreed with him—and that Wanda knew about it.

Kurt escaped back to the mainland (despite Wanda's best efforts) to try to warn the X-men, but he was intercepted, knocked unconscious, and brought back to Genosha to be imprisoned indefinitely, with Wanda as his jailor.

Kurt's presence forces Wanda to start reexamining her father's cause and his methods—to ask herself if the ends really do justify the means, and if the ends Magneto is working towards should be pursued at all. The part i'm chipping away at now is how Wanda's betrayal really reinforces Kurt's existing trust issues.

Wanda's trying to figure out if she's a person worthy of Kurt's love, and Kurt's grappling with the fact that he still cares for someone who hurt him so deeply, even though he tends to be "once bitten, twice shy".

My favorite part that I've posted so far actually doesn't have anything to do with Wanda and Kurt's relationship, but Wanda's relationship with her father and her twin brother Pietro, who has been banished to the mainland by Magneto to do his dirty work:

Unbidden, her thoughts turned to her brother Quicksilver. Pietro. It had been unthinkable, once, for him to be so far from her side. Some days, she still found herself turning to tell him a joke, or show him something that would make him laugh. It had been years since Father sent him to lead the Brotherhood, but the absence of him still ached. You mean years since Magneto cast him out , a traitorous thought whispered. She tried to tell herself that Father would call Pietro back soon. Maybe next year. Maybe after Trask and his Sentinels had been dealt with. Maybe after the X-men fell, or came to join them. Maybe… In her bones Wanda knew Father would never let him come home. Quicksilver had done too much of Magneto’s dirty work, still continued to do it in the desperate hope that this time, it will be enough. This time, he’ll be proud. This time, he’ll love me . But Genosha was a place for new beginnings. And Pietro — insolent, questioning, playful Pietro — didn’t fit his vision. Wanda couldn’t (wouldn’t) answer whether Magneto would go to war for [ordinary mutants], but she had known for a long time that he would never go to war for his son.

"Wolverine and the X-Men" sets up such an interesting situation with his three children. First there is Wanda, the Scarlet Witch, his loyal right hand and trusted general. Second (always second), there is Pietro, Quicksilver, his son who he sees as little more than a troublesome pawn. Then there is Lorna, Polaris, who is protected and sheltered and the only one treated like his actual child, probably because she is the only one who inherited Magneto's abilities. The different ways Magneto plays favorites with his kids makes me hate him so much more than the actual war crimes he commits.

My favorite part that I haven't posted yet would have to be this:

“Kurt, are you awake?” Wanda. Kurt didn’t even try to stop the animalistic hiss that crawled up his throat. “Are you alright?!” He should have known better. He should have known better. No one could be trusted until proven otherwise, and kindness was always suspect. How many times did that lesson have to come back to bite him before he finally learned it? “...Kurt?” Nightcrawler unfolded himself from his perch on the wall and started pacing around his new cage. He dragged his nails along the walls to feel for any seams or imperfections, but even the grid lines of light were perfectly smooth with the metal around them. The rasping screech his claws made on the metal set his teeth on edge, but it should make his feelings towards Wanda the Scarlet Witch abundantly clear.

Like, yeah Kurt will still be falling in love with her, but he's going to try to convince himself to hate her first.

#my fanfic #answered asks #wolverine and the x men #I know that you're my enemy (but I love you all the same)

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missmonsters2 · 4 years

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Between the Lines || IX

PAIRING: Steve Rogers & Fem!Reader (Platonic) / Natasha Romanoff x Fem!Reader / Wanda Maximoff x Fem!Reader / Natasha Romanoff x Fem!Reader x Wanda Maximoff

Summary: Vampire AU. Life has changed drastically since the 1600s. Things are always on the move, and you’ve been very careful to not get on SHIELDs radar. Living on the down-low owning a café, you’re content to live out a quiet existence. That is until the Avengers enter your life.

[Set after the New York Invasion, in CAWS, and goes up to AoU. Canon divergent after.]

Warnings: This series will contain smut(**), poly-relationship, and dark themes.

Note: Everyone last chapter: “I’m ready for Wanda to fucking ruin me.” LMAO SAME.

PART I || PART II || PART III || PART IV || PART V || PART VI || PART VII || PART VIII

PART IX of XX

Count: 4782

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Antique.

That was the best way Natasha could describe your place. You had more warm colors for your walls and older styled furniture that made her feel like she was transcending time.

They had just gotten back from visiting Allison, who was beyond ecstatic to see you and Natasha. Her mother seemed to be all better now, and no longer needed the extra care for Allison. The babysitter you had recommended last time seemed to be working just fine for them when her mother needed to pull extra shifts, but you still promised to visit Allison when you could.

"Your place is nice," Natasha smiles softly, and you turn your head around to smile back at her as you grab a cup from the cupboard.

"Really? David says I have the taste of an old person. To my defense, I am old," you snort.

Natasha chuckles, "I like it."

She feels a little excited because it looks like you're making coffee for her, and it feels like it's been such a long time since Natasha has had your coffee.

"Even though I've lived so long and have adapted, this style makes me feel more at home," you softly explain, and Natasha's eyes turn tender.

You finish brewing Natasha her coffee and bring it over to her. She takes a sip, sighing with bliss.

Grinning at her, you're about to say something else when your phone buzzes in your pocket. Pulling it out, you check to see that it's from David.

"We've got to head out," You tell the redhead. "David's got a lead for us."

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Your search didn't yield much more than what David could find, which was annoying. Luckily, you didn't end up having to use your gift and instead used compulsion to find information.

Natasha trailed along, watching you work but also making herself useful when she could.

Within two hours, you felt like you already found out what you could before heading back to shower and head off to the Stark tower again.

When you get there, you already see David talking with Steve and Maria.

"Fatalities?" You could hear Steve ask.

"Only when engaged," David says as he catches your eye when you enter the room. "Mostly guys left in a fugue state going on about old memories, worst fears, and something too fast to see."

"Maximoffs," Maria mutters, and you're curious about Wanda's powers. They seemed similar to Tatyana's, but you want to confirm if Wanda's powers had only come from the scepter.

"That makes sense that he would seek them out. They have something in common," Steve said as he saw you approaching. "Find anything?"

"No more than you did, apparently," you shrugged.

"Well," David says as he's looking at his tablet. "Nothing in common anymore." He flips the tablet and a picture of Strucker's dead body and the word 'PEACE' written in blood on the wall next to him.

"Lovely," Maria huffs.

You see Clint on the phone just a couple feet from you, and Steve notices him too.

"So, you're not coming home tonight even though you explicitly said you would," you here a feminine voice on the phone.

"That's a negative," Clint says.

"This better be your last one for a while, I don't care what your boss says," you hear the woman respond. In the background, you could also hear two kids screaming, 'Is that dad? Can I talk to dad! Dad!'

"I answer to you," Clint responds almost dutifully.

"...If you miss the birth of our child...I'll kill you..."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Barton," Steve interrupts, "We might have something."

"Gotta go," Clint says quickly before he hangs up and turns to face you all.

"Who was that?" Steve asks.

"Girlfriend," Clint's eyes travel to you and David because it was obvious he knew you had heard him.

Steve doesn't pay it any mind as he leads everyone back into the room. You and David lag behind because Clint is walking beside the two of you.

"Listen--"

"It's none of our business, Clint," you cut him off with a wave. "We didn't hear a thing."

Clint sighs and gives you a smile of thanks.

"Although, you should be more careful if you're trying to keep them a secret," David says as he tapped away on his tablet.

He then holds up his tablet to you and Clint, a photo dated two years ago of Clint and his family on a ride at Disneyland.

"This you?"

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You've known as a vampire, it's impossible to get headaches, but it doesn't stop you from feeling like you have one.

Everyone is getting ready to get out onto the Quinjet to take off to the next location to find Ulysses Klaue as you'll be likely to find Ultron and the twins there.

There isn't much for you to ever prepare for, so you laze around in the kitchen before Natasha strolls in, the first to finish.

"Hey, you," she smiles, and you walk over to her.

"Hey, yourself," you smile as you inspect her suit. "Got everything?"

"Hopefully," Natasha shrugs.

You know you'll most likely meet Wanda soon, and something inside you tells you it'll bring chaos.

Nothing ever truly feels like it's over, but you have Natasha.

You look at her with slow eyes.

Sometimes it feels wrong to be this happy with Natasha, to allow yourself that kind of privilege. But there are no words you could use to describe what Natasha is to you and how you crave her.

Natasha peers through her lashes, catching the look in your eyes. She walks backward, pulling you with her until she hits the counter before she hops herself up onto it. Pulling you closer by the collar of your shirt, you end up between her legs, your hands automatically around her waist while hers are around your neck.

"When you have that look on your face, it makes me want to just...eat you," Natasha licks her lip, and you can't help but laugh lightly as she traces her thumb over your bottom lip.

"You know how funny that sounds, right?" You smile.

Natasha merely smirks as she lowers her head to press her lips against yours in a soft kiss.

She tastes like remnants of peach candy, and you hum into her mouth. Licking her bottom lip, you hold her hips tighter.

Good.

She smells good.

Like vanilla and dry leaves.

You bite her bottom lip gently, appreciating the way she moans lightly. It seems to excite her more as her heart pounds in her chest. You pull away, lowering your head as the tip of your nose drags against her side of her neck.

You inhale as Natasha holds your neck a little tighter.

You could hear it, smell, the blood rushing through Natasha's veins.

It would be so easy.

Natasha would be delicious, you just know it. Her blood hits every part of your sensories, and she would feel so good.

Your teeth drag lightly where your tongue had been.

'You can't.'

The voice and words ring in your head loud and clear.

Immediately, you pull away, almost panting as you do.

Natasha calls your name, but you shake your head.

"I just need a moment," you tell her, taking in a deep breath.

You haven't felt this way in so long, you felt like a child experiencing bloodlust again.

It had been so easy throughout the years to control it, knowing the consequences if you did it.

Yet, having Natasha tested every limit you had again.

You never thought you would ever experiencing wanting to drink from someone again.

"I'm sorry," Natasha says hesitantly. She had been so caught up in the moment, and you felt so good.

For a moment...she...she wanted you to bite her.

You clear your throat as your head clears again.

"Don't apologize," you give her a tight smile, "I should have better control."

Natasha is about to say something else when you help her down from the counter.

"C'mon," you say as you pull her along, "we should head to the Quinjet."

And Natasha's words die on her tongue.

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"Don't compare me with Stark! He's a sickness!"

You all come in time just as Ultron has sliced off Klaue's arm as he rants about Tony.

"Ahh, junior," Tony appears with Thor and Steve behind him. "You're gonna break your old man's heart."

"If I have to," Ultron tilts his head.

"Daddy issues, am I right?" You lean over to David to say, but loud enough for everyone to hear.

"He's not a villain without one," David says back.

You hear a laugh disguised as a cough from Pietro. He smirks at you, and you give him a slight quirk of your lip back.

But then your eyes travel next to him.

It hits you in the gut.

A million flashbacks happen to you, and you feel like someone just knocked all the air out of your body, and you're breathless. It's like you're going through a spiral of vertigo until you look her in the eyes.

She looks like her.

You were prepared to see the similarities, but this was more than you had expected.

But you knew it was not Tatyana.

You blinked, eyes focusing on Wanda.

She was staring at you too, but she didn't seem sure of what to make of it.

"You two can still walk away from this," Steve's voice interrupts the two of you.

"Oh, we will," Wanda rips her gaze from you, tilting her head as she smirks sardonically at Steve.

"I know you've suffered," Steve acknowledges, and for a second, you see rage flash through Wanda's eyes because while Steve knows, he doesn't truly know what they've been through.

Ultron lets out a groan of disgust. "Captain America," he says with a certain tone to his voice. "God's righteous man, pretending you could live without a war."

"I can't physically throw up in my mouth, but..." Ultron tilts his head, looking at Steve.

Thor tries to urge Ultron to keep the peace, but Ultron obviously declines.

"What's the vibranium for?" Tony asks.

Ultron looks as giddy as he can. "I'm glad you asked since I wanted to take this time to reveal my evil plan!"

Suddenly, Iron Legion Bots break through the glass and start attacking.

You and David have split up, he's taken off after Pietro and you to find Wanda.

Taking out Klaue's men along the way, you keep walking in the direction you could hear her in.

Her footsteps were rather light, and she had a distinct smell of cinnamon and orange blossoms.

"Thor! Status!" Steve yelled into the earpiece.

"The girl tried to warp my mind. Take special care, I doubt a human could keep her at bay. Fortunately, I am mighty," Thor trailed off.

You knew immediately what was happening.

"Nat," you called worriedly.

"I'm fine," she reassures you.

"David?" You called next.

"Still good," he grumbles. "Fast little bastard."

"Wait," David calls. "She's got Natasha and Steve in a hallucination."

You're about to turn around immediately to go back to Natasha, but David stops you.

"Don't," he warns. "Nat's still okay, just caught up in whatever she's seeing. If you want to put an end to it, catch the girl."

You grit your teeth but huff in agreement.

You stand along the empty hallway, breaking the wrist of a man who tries to charge at you. Flinging him over the railing, he lands on sacks of dirt and groans.

It seems you don't have to go to Wanda because you hear those light footsteps behind you, creeping up.

She stands behind you, unknowing you can hear her heart beating as she raises her hand, tendrils forming at her fingers.

You turn around abruptly, grabbing her wrist. Faced with Wanda's shock widened eyes, you quirk your lip at her.

"Cute," you tell her, "but it won't work on me."

"And why is that?" Wanda asks accent heavy in her voice that sounds so familiar to you.

"To control--compel, me to what you want, your will has to be stronger than mine," you tell her, pulling her closer by her wrist to show that even as close as she was, she couldn't use her mind control on you. "So? Do you still think you can play your little mind games on me?"

Maybe you had tugged too hard, but now Wanda was too close. Her eyes staring into yours as if she was searching for something. Lips slightly parted, you could feel her breath on you.

"Why?" Wanda murmurs as she tilts her head slightly at you.

"Why what?" You return.

"Why do you stare at me like that?" Wanda gets closer.

You should pull away. Disarm her, and go secure Pietro to finish the mission.

But it feels like there's an electric pulse in the air that seems to keep you rooted.

"Stare at you like what?" You husk.

Wanda licks her lips, drawings your eyes. "Stare at me like you want to save me."

"You're helping a homicidal robotic manic who wants to destroy the world," you quirk your brow at her. "I think that warrants needing to be saved or at least some sense beaten into you."

"He will save the world by putting an end of the Avengers," Wanda hisses. She draws forth the red wisps again in her other hand, holding it close to you. "Perhaps I can't 'play my little mind games' with you. But power is power."

Immediately, you feel Wanda's power surround your body before she uses it to force you through the window. You find yourself staring at the sky, blinking as you fall.

You swiftly turn around, positioning yourself upright as you land on the ground, creating a good-sized crater. There's a momentary crack in your ankles from the pressure and height you fell from, but as quick as it happens, it heals.

You look up, shards of glass falling around you, and you sigh.

It seems your suspicions were correct, that Wanda's powers were genuine. The feel of it was too raw and similar to Tatyana's.

And that made things complicated.

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"Hey, hey, look at me," you coo as you hold Natasha's face in your hands, turning her to look at you. Her eyes are unfocused, and honestly, it's a little challenging to get her to actually look at you.

You had arrived shortly back into the facility after hearing Clint saying they needed to move. Clint had been trying to shake Natasha out of it, but it wasn't working, and so you stepped in.

"I have no place in the world," Natasha mutters.

You had a pretty good guess about what she was seeing, and so did Clint.

"How do we get her out? Do we just have to wait?" Clint asked you.

"No," you say, stroking Natasha's cheek, tilting her face up as you look down into her eyes. "We overpower it."

Your pupils explode into liquid pools, swirling as you forced Natasha's to do the same. It would take a little longer, with Natasha not even being lucid.

"Look at me," you tell her softly. Natasha blinks. "Wherever you are, it's not real."

You start to see flickers of speckles in Natasha's eyes and lick your lips.

"Come back to me," you compel her softly but with a slight bite in your tone. "You have a place in the world. Here, as an Avengers, with Clint and everyone else." The fog is clearing from Natasha's mind, your eyes responding more to yours and your words.

"With me," you faintly say.

"Come back."

Life comes back to Natasha, her eyes no longer dull as she comes face to face with you. She's got a massive headache and slight nausea.

Natasha swallows as you still hold her face in your hands. She wants to say something, but Tony interrupts.

"Guys, I could really use some help. Maybe try the lullaby again?"

You look at Natasha, but she's in no shape to try to go against the Hulk.

"The rest of the team is down," Clint responds.

You look around to see David trying to get Steve out of his hallucination.

"David will handle things here. Get everyone back onto the jet. The twins and Ultron are probably long gone by now. I'm going to help Tony."

You look once more at Natasha, who lifts the corner of her mouth.

"Be careful," she tells you.

"Aren't I always?" Giving her a wink, you take off in a blur.

"Coordinates, Stark," you say into your earpiece.

"Getting my ass beat right now!" Tony groans.

"Coordinates, Stark, not status. I already know you're getting your ass beat," you smirk.

"Don't be a dick," he mutters, but you're unsure if that was to you or Banner. He tells you where to meet him, but it gets easier to figure out as you get closer, and you can hear glass and building being shattered, and Banner's roars along with civilian screams.

You pick up speed, reaching there as you stand a few feet away, and Tony spots you.

"What's the plan?" Tony asks.

"Get him away from the city. Damage's been done, but we should try to stop him from doing any more," you see Tony struggling to hold him down. His suit is bulked up, and you're sure he prepared this specifically for Banner.

"Where do we bring him?" Tony's punching Banner in the face, trying to get him to 'go to sleep.'

"Few miles from the Quinjet. There should be some open space."

"Alright," Tony says, having no other choice but to trust you.

He gets VERONICA to send in a new Hulkbuster arm, using it to suction in the Hulk's arm as they take to the skies. You start to run in the same direction they're going.

"Alright, what do we do after we get him in the area?" Tony's overworking the jets in his feet while the Hulk struggles to get the upper hand in the air.

"Can you trap him in his spot?"

"I have one extra set electric bars, but he dug a hole in the ground to escape it."

"Just set them in the ground, wide berth and electrodes on."

You enter into a clearing, and Tony drops Banner, breaking the ground as he lands.

Immediately, giant plates dig into the earth, surrounding Banner as he gets electrified. He screams, arching his back before he turns and snarls at you.

"You gonna try this compulsion thing?" Tony asks through his mask.

"Try being a keyword," you mutter, "I have a feeling he's not going to be receptive towards it."

"Is anyone receptive towards compulsion, really?" Tony grumbles.

"Yeah," you smirk, "humans."

You walk around the perimeter of the plates, and the Hulk turns his body as his eyes follow you.

"You're angry," you acknowledge. "She made you angry."

The Hulk only roars and glares at you, the surrounding area of his eyes were red.

You lock eyes, pupils expanding as you try to reel him in.

"But look around you, think if there's anything right now to be angry about," you say to him. His head moves side to side, but you can tell the Hulk is fighting it. "Are you really angry, or did she just tell you you're angry? Who are you outraged at? The civilians who've done nothing to you? Tony? Me?"

You kept circling, keeping your eyes locked on his.

"Yourself?" You asked, and when the Hulk lets out an enraged yowl, you know you've hit the spot.

"You need to calm down," you lick your lips. "Before you do something that will really make you angry with yourself."

The Hulk is huffing and puffing as he continues to stare at you, and you try to expand the compulsion stronger.

For a second, you think it's working. The Hulk is shaking his head, stumbling backward.

But as quick as that happens, suddenly he punches himself in the face, knocking himself out of your control before he lets out another bellowing scream.

He starts running even as the plates send out electric shocks, bombarding through one of them as it breaks.

"He's too ravaged for me to even try to influence him to calm down," you tell Tony quickly as you take off towards the Hulk.

"I think I got that," Tony has to move out of the way before the Hulk steamrolls him.

"New plan," you say, running towards Tony.

"What are you--" he starts to say, but you cut him off.

"Throw me onto his back!" You leap, forcing Tony to catch you as he spins around once before whipping you in the direction the Hulk took off in.

The speed propelled you straight towards him, he didn't even see it coming as he was approaching the Quinjet. Everyone had come outside, hearing his thundering footsteps as he ran in their direction.

You latched onto his back, wrapping your tiny arms the best you could around his neck with crushing force, almost enough to snap his windpipe.

He chokes, feet digging into the ground as he abruptly stopped. His hand comes up to your arm, and you only have a second before he forces you to release him via breaking your arm.

You open your mouth, teeth sharp as venom pooled to them before you dug it into his neck.

He was grumbling at you before, but he was definitely screaming at you now.

The sound of agonizing wails leaves his mouth as he falls to his knees. You let go of his neck.

Falling forward, the Hulk writhes in pain, and you could see the venom traveling in his veins as they turned a dark green on his skin. He was crawling as he groaned.

Soon, the venom overtook his system to the point Banner began to change back to a man. He lay there, moaning in pain as Tony came forward along with Clint, who threw a blanket over him.

"What did you do?" Tony asked, and David came out, blurring over to carry Bruce into the Quinjet.

"Forced him to change back," you mutter as you also got onto the Quinjet.

⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⋆⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷

David put Banner on a makeshift bed while Clint flew the Quinjet out of the area.

Bruce was thrusting off the table as he still writhed in pain while everyone else stood around.

"What's happening to him?" Steve asked. He was covered in dirt and grime, and he looked a little defeated.

"The venom is breaking his cells down," you say, eyes drifting to David, who nods, restraining Bruce down.

You could hear more questions being fired, but you didn't answer. You threw the blanket off of Bruce, and everyone could see his veins, dark and poisoned-looking.

Leaning over, you began to bite him various places until the discoloration in his veins began to disappear. The seizing slowed down in Bruce as he came to a restful stop, but beads of sweat ran down his forehead. He was still breathing heavily, and his eyes remained closed.

"He's going to have to sleep that off," you spitting out blood into a nearby bucket, and wiping your mouth. David hands you a bottle of water, which you use to rinse your mouth, spitting it out until your mouth was clear.

Natasha comes up to check on you, putting her hand on your back softly as you try to give her a smile that ends up being more of a grimace.

"What was that?" Tony asked as he inspected his friend.

"I told you," you say as Natasha gives you some gum. "Venom can be used in three ways. That was one of them."

"But what does it do," Tony emphasized.

The mint flavor spread throughout your mouth, and you were thankful for a change in taste. Lately, it's been getting harder to control your thirst.

"When venom is used to harm, it attacks the cells in your body. Specifically, it makes them explode. It's painful as it travels through your veins because it's basically shredding everything in its path as it moves. The more venom you inject, the faster the deterioration goes," you say.

"Why did you bite him again?" Steve asks.

"There's only one way to reverse it," you peer over to Bruce's sleeping form. "Only the venom of the vampire who inflicted it can undo it. I injected the healing venom to counteract it. He'll be fine, maybe just a couple scars, and feeling sore for a few days."

"We need to lay low while we can," David interrupts as he looks at his tablet.

"That's a great idea," you hear Maria chime in through the intercoms. "The new is loving you guys. No one else is. There's no official arrest warrant for Banner, but it's up in the air."

"Stark Relief Foundation?" Tony asks.

"Already on scene. How's everyone?" She replies.

"We took a hit, they're shaking it off right now," you mutter.

"Well, stay in stealth mode for now, and don't come back here," Maria warned, knowing it would be ugly.

"So, run and hide?" Tony seems displeased.

"Until we find Ultron, there are not many options on the table," Maria sighed, disconnecting after that.

Tony goes over to Clint, slapping his hand on Clint's shoulder. "Need to switch out?"

Clint shakes his head, "Nah, I'm good. If you wanna get some kip, now would be the time, we're still a couple hours out."

You look over to Clint, noticing the dark bags under his eyes, and for the first time, you see how tired he must be.

"A couple hours from where?" Tony asks.

"A safe house," Clint answers, looking at you and David, and you know immediately where he's taking you.

You turn to Natasha, and it seems she knows as well.

Taking the time to sit near the back, you hold your girlfriend in your arms, stroking the side of her arms. Natasha's worn, you can tell by the paleness in her skin, and she's upset.

You sit in silence for a good chunk of the time. As much as you hate it, the image of Wanda doesn't leave your mind. There was something that brewed deep within you, and you felt haunted.

It isn't until Natasha decides to speak and breaks your thoughts.

"I don't know what I would've done if you hadn't gotten me out of that hallucination," Natasha says quietly to avoid drawing the attention of the others, but now used with David unintentionally being able to listen.

"I wish I could've been there sooner," you say at the same level of quietness, but Natasha shakes her head.

"Sometimes," she starts, licking her dry lips, "it's so easy to live every day like that part of my life didn't happen. Even though it's my sole reason to do the things I do. I want to clear my ledger, but it's..."

"It's complicated," you finish for her when she drags.

It's silent for a few minutes as the two of you rest, you lean your head on top of Natasha's, breathing slowly as you try to comfort her.

"I had never thought about wanting kids," Natasha starts quietly again, and you hum softly in the back of your throat to tell her you're listening.

"I'm not even really sure that I do or not, but then I get reminded that I can't either way."

You hold her bicep tighter, turning your head to press a kiss to her head.

"It's okay to mourn the loss of the choice," you murmur.

Natasha nudges herself closer to you, inhaling your scent as it eases her. The images don't quite go away. They linger in her mind, a wretched memory of everything she's endured.

"I suppose it's easier," Natasha mumbles. "It's one less thing to worry about, one less thing that would matter more than a mission. It makes everything easier, even killing."

"Don't do that," you admonish her gently. "While those things can be true, don't make yourself out to be a monster."

Natasha remains quiet, not the kind where she doesn't believe you, but the kind where she doesn't quite have the right words to say for once.

"You act like you don't already have things that would matter more than a mission, things that you don't worry about," you lift your other hand up, using your fingers to tilt her chin until she's facing you.

Your lips are so close, the warmth vibrating between the two of you.

"Because you already do, don't you?" You murmur. "Everyone on this ship is your family--I'm your family, just as you are mine."

PART X

#natasha romanoff x reader #Wanda maximoff x reader #natasha romanoff imagine #wanda maximoff imagine #wandanat x reader #natasha romanoff x you #wanda maximoff x you #black widow x reader #scarlet witch x reader #natasha x wanda #Natasha x reader x Wanda #avengers x reader #avengers imagine #avengers reader insert #marvel x reader #marvel reader insert #modern avengers au #mm: my fics #series: between the lines

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whitewolfmoving · 3 years

Text

Leather and Lace Part One

My Thoughts On You

Summary: Katt Barnes knows the one thing she never has to apologize for is her place in the world; her father taught her how to be strong, her brother taught her how to be stronger. When her boyfriend, John Walker attempts to decide who she gets to be, it becomes the last straw for their relationship. Not only does it break Katt's trust in him, but in her family and herself as well.

Prompt: "I hate you because I will have to wonder for the rest of my life why I wasn't good enough." || found on pinterest.

Warnings: swearing, arguing, breakup

Word Count: 2354

A/N: PART ONE IS HERE!!!!! Buckle up, shit's about to get real. After so much planning and time spent writing, it's finally here. I hope you like it. This series is a special one. Happy reading!

Spring in Brooklyn arrived quickly for Barnes' Garage; and with everyone preparing to travel during the summer, business picked up soon after that. The shop—owned and operated by the Barnes siblings, James and Katheryn, who took over after their father passed—ran just as smoothly now as it did then. A legacy left behind to his children, the White Wolves Motorcycle Club, George's one and only condition for keeping the family business was that the twins run them both together. So, with a 50/50 split of the shop and the Club between them, ask anyone between the Five Boroughs where the best mechanic was in the whole of New York City and they'd say, "Go see Bucky at Barnes' Garage in Brooklyn. You won't be disappointed." And no one ever was.

—

A light breeze rolled through the shop and ruffled Katt's hair. She stood up from where she'd been leaning over the rear end of a red Porsche 911 Turbo, stretched, and looked around for signs of the other mechanics. She pulled her phone from the back pocket of her shorts and checked the time—11:50 am—still a good ten minutes until they'd all break for lunch. The car had arrived some time around 8 o'clock, Bucky'd been meaning to get to it but he'd been swamped all morning and she figured helping him out was the least she could do. Katt had changed the timing chain, replaced the cover, and changed the oil in no time at all. All that she had left was the complimentary wash and detail before the client came to pick it up at 12:30. Katheryn Barnes was nothing if not quick and efficient.

"Yo, Katt! John's outside looking for ya," Steve called from the car next to her. He chuckled, noticing the ghost of a frown that pulled at the corner of her mouth.

Katt sighed, wishing she hadn't remembered to change the batteries in her hearing aids when she got to work that morning. Luckily, she'd stashed the dead ones in the pockets of her shorts. She quickly leaned back over the Porsche's engine, letting her hair fall down around her shoulders. With the dead battery cell in her fingers, Katt discreetly lifted her hand to the battery door on her left hearing aid and switched out the cells, then tucked the live one in her pocket. She repeated the action with her right hearing aid, and set to work rechecking that the timing cover was in place.

"Hey, Beautiful." A large hand settled gently on the small of Katt's back; she jumped, startled. Two hands then gripped her hips and pulled her from underneath the Porsche's trunk.

Katt turned a wild-eyed glare on the man behind her. She moved her hands quickly, with little regard for the fact that John would have no idea what she was saying to him. What the hell, JW? Are you trying to kill me?

John blinked, confused. He shook his head, unable to understand what Katt was saying. It was no secret around the shop that John Walker was dating James Barnes' twin sister, Katheryn. And it was no secret that Katheryn Barnes was Deaf. However, for some unknown reason, John Walker (more commonly known around the shop by his sign name JW, given by Katt) refused to learn sign.

The scowl on Katt's face grew the longer John stared at her like a deer caught in the headlights. She stomped her foot, frustrated. Why did you sneak up on me?

"I-I'm sorry. I don't…" he shook his head again, pulling his phone from his back pocket. He pulled up the speech-to-text app and quickly dictated a message, then flipped the screen around to show her. Didn't you hear me call out to you? Are you wearing your hearing aids today?

Katt let out an irritated squeal; she hated having this conversation with him. It was always the same damn thing. She glanced around the shop for her brother or Sawyer or Wanda, anyone who could help her get out of the current situation she was in. Luckily, Clint had been walking by and offered to help out.

Problem?

Can you interpret for him?

Sure.

Thank you.

Katt turned her attention back to John and took a deep breath. The expression on her face sobered as she thought of the best way to handle the situation given that they were standing in the middle of the shop; she didn't want to draw any more unnecessary attention to themselves than John already had, not that it would matter. As calmly as possible, Katt explained to her boyfriend what had caused her to startle at his presence.

"I don't want to have this discussion right now but since you're here, we will. Yes, I am wearing my hearing aids today. No, I didn't hear you call for me. That's why I was startled when you suddenly appeared behind me," Clint said, interpreting for John what Katt had signed to him. Already the blond could tell that he'd walked into a conversation he would have loved to hear about later on. No one at the shop approved of John's place in Katt's life; Bucky simply hated him for dating his sister, while Clint and Sawyer hated him for refusing to learn sign.

"If you're wearing them, why didn't you hear me?" John asked.

Katt continued her explanation, going so far as to remind John again that her hearing aids were a tool she chose, not a magical cure. She removed her left hearing aid, pointing out the blinking red light—the dead battery indicator.

Clint smirked. He could see the frustration bleeding through to Katt's signing, no matter how hard she tried to keep it at bay. "Just because I have them, doesn't mean I can hear. I'm still deaf. If you're approaching me from behind, you still have to let me know. You have to get my attention or tell someone around me who can let me know you're coming. My hearing aids are a tool, all they do is amplify what little ambient noise that I can still hear. And just because I want them, doesn't mean I need them. Today, my batteries are dead."

"I know. I know it's not perfect, okay? I'm sorry. Maybe keep spare batteries in your pocket or something. This is hard for me, too. I just want to be able to communicate with you."

Then learn to sign. If you truly want to be able to communicate with me, learn my language.

John frowned again. He could tell by the look on Katt's face that she was upset, but he didn't understand why. He looked at the other man helplessly when he didn't immediately jump to interpret what the young woman had said. "What'd she say?"

Don't ask him, ask me. And don't talk about me like I'm not here. I'm the one talking. He's the interpreter. He's here for you, not me. But Clint's deaf, too, or did you forget that? You don't give him near as much shit as you do me. Why is this such a problem for you?

Clint turned to Katt with a grin. Stirring up trouble was Clint Barton's forte, especially when it came to John Walker. Want me to interpret that?

Please, do.

"Don't ask him, ask me. And don't talk about me like I'm not here. I'm the one talking. He's the interpreter. He's here for you, not me. But Clint's deaf, too, or did you forget that? You don't give him near as much shit as you do me. Why is this such a problem for you?"

"Because I'm not sleeping with Clint, Katheryn!"

Thank you for interpreting. I can take it from here.

No problem. Later, Kitty.

As Clint walked away, Katt removed her right hearing aid and opened the battery door. She threw both of the dead cells on the shop floor, reached into her pocket for the new ones, and replaced them. She waited for the green light to appear on both hearing aids, then returned them to her ears.

Time always seemed to slow down in John's presence; he was always so blind to everything happening around them, but not Katt. No, she could see it all. She often wondered if maybe she were the problem, she tried to pretend she was for the sake of their relationship. Oftentimes, she was stuck pretending to be someone she wasn't to appease John for so long, that she forgot how it felt when they first met… when she thought he was it for her. God, how she hoped he wasn't.

"What did you just say?" Katt kept her gaze level with John's, her voice free of all emotion until she was absolutely certain she understood what he said correctly. She knew that sometimes their emotions got in the way, they didn't always read the situations properly; between the tension and the fighting, things became skewed. She didn't want to leave anything to chance because deep down, she needed him still.

"I'm not sleeping with Clint," he repeated. John stared back at Katt, swallowed down his own frustration and narrowed his gaze.

Katt didn't need to look around the shop to know that everyone had heard John's comment, she didn't need to look over her shoulder to know that her brother was standing behind her, she didn't need to look at the car next to her to know that Steve had focused his attention on John. She could feel everyone's eyes on them the moment he dared to raise his voice, she could feel Bucky's presence the moment the breath left her lungs. The world seemed a lot smaller when she was at the center of it.

She turned as she felt Bucky's hand settle on her back, protecting her the way he always did. She offered him a small smile, her warm brown eyes darkening with the swell of anger rising within her chest.

Want me to handle it?

Thanks but I got this.

Bucky nodded and stepped back, giving Katt room to breathe. He kept his dark blue eyes trained on John Walker's face, committing every detail to memory. Whatever Katt had to say was nothing compared to what he wanted to do to John after all was said and done.

"I'm going to stop you right there and offer a correction: were. You were sleeping with me. Because as of this moment, I'm not your girlfriend anymore. Who the hell do you think you are, John? What gives you the right to tell me how to live my life? It's my life. And you know what? I love being Deaf. I love my culture, my language, my friends. You couldn't even take two seconds to learn how to say please or thank you or yes or no! And I am done accepting that. "

"Now, hold on, Katt. You don't mean—"

"For once in your pathetic life, just shut up, John! Quit talking over me. Quit telling me how I feel or what I mean. You don't know what I mean because you never fucking listen! You don't get to tell me how to be Deaf; I decide that." Katt's anger bubbled. She took a step toward the man in front of her, only to be pulled back by Bucky's left hand on her upper arm. She shot him a glare at his unwelcome intervention; he only gestured forward for her to keep going.

Go on.

Katt returned her fiery scowl back on John's face. For a moment, she knew all she could think about was the bright blue of his eyes… how she'd fallen for them so easily, the realization hit her like a truck and she felt it deep inside her soul—she still needed him. "You know, I hate you. Because I will have to wonder for the rest of my life why I wasn't good enough. And that really fucking sucks. Go home, John. We're done."

—

The rest of the day flew by without incident.

After Katt left, Bucky and Steve escorted a humiliated John Walker from the premises with a promise to rearrange his face if he ever showed up looking for Katt again. Clint and Sawyer worked together to finish up the Porsche's complimentary wash and detailing in time to be picked up by its owner, and a hefty tip was left in the office for the mechanic who'd treated his prized possession with such tender love and care. They closed shop at 4 pm on the dot.

Sawyer sat in the office counting the cash drawer so she could make her last run to the bank when Bucky stopped in. The air around the usually calm, smooth-talking mechanic had been thick with tension ever since Katt's showdown with John Walker that morning.

How's your arm today?

Fine.

Sawyer knew Bucky's thoughts had been occupied with his sister from the moment the roar of her motorcycle could be felt throughout the garage; she'd sped off without looking back, without letting anyone know where she was headed. No one blamed Bucky for worrying.

She'll be fine, Buck. She always is.

I know, S. But you didn't see her face when she left. I sent Pietro out to look for her, he said he'll call when he finds her. It feels different this time. She… Bucky trailed off, dropping his hands to his lap. He took a seat in the office chair at his late father's desk. The faces in the photo behind the glass frame stared up at him; the last photo the three of them ever took together. The day Bucky and Katt patched into the MC. The smile on George's face said it all; nothing meant more to that man than family.

Sawyer lightly tapped Bucky's knee. She what, Bucky? What's wrong?

Bucky ran his thumb over the silhouette of his sister in the photo and looked up to meet Sawyer's eyes. She was completely broken. I don't think Katt knows who she is right now. I don't even know who she is right now and that's what scares me.

#Leather and Lace #Changes WC #Bucky Barnes fanfiction #Pietro Maximoff fanfiction #marvel au #biker au #marvel characters fafiction #marvel fic #mcu fic

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