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#well worth the $5 for the Peter pictures alone
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happy Peter Tork Thursday to all the pictures of Peter in the ‘89/‘90 tour book
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to6ge · 11 months
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Hobie Brown x Gn!Reader
Pairing : Hobie Brown / Spider punk x Gender neutral!Reader
Cw : Nothing! This fanfiction is purely fluff :3
Summary : MJ and Peter goes out for a date, Peter requests Hobie to babysit Mayday! He doesnt wanna be alone so, you tagged along!
Gwen’s note : Some feminine traits Punctuations are intended to be improper. Anyways sorry to my sister because this is very bad but i tried my best :( ( part 2 here!! )
MAYDAY IS OLDER HERE! around 3 yrs old
Possible ATSV spoilers!
» Request from my sister !!
. . ୨୧ . .
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Mayday played with the web shooter and shot a web at Hobie’s face. You laughed hysterically, you thought this was funny, you laughed for a solid 20 seconds till you got cut off “Love, it ain’ that funny” he said pissed.
“I cant help it Hobie!” you were still laughing at that point but you eventually stopped. Mayday was crawling everywhere, you both had a difficult time trying to tame her, she was crawling around till you caught her. “Awh, May! Youre so cute.” you beamed happily. Hobie was just leaning on the doorframe looking at you. “Love, this child’s a handful.”
It hit 5’o clock in the evening when Mayday started crying for food. It was simple since she just needed to eat food, so you both prepared it and Hobie had to spoon feed her. It was so cute watching them both get along. Mayday seemed to like Hobie a lot! You took pictures without them noticing, you giggled when you saw him spoonfeeding Mayday.
Then finally, you and Hobie started to get hungry. You knew how to cook instant noodles, but the problem was, is there even instant noodles inside of Peter and MJ’s house?! “Hobie do you think there are cup noodles here?” you asked, a bit desperate for food. “I saw some down the kitchen counters, why? y’know how to make ’em? I must say my stomach is pretty empty as well,” He said, also a bit desperate for food!
“Great! Wait here and watch over Mayday. Ill go cook some cup noodles,” You beamed happily, skipping off to the kitchen.
After a while, you were finally done making those cup noodles. It took a while but they were worth the wait! You quickly rushed into the room they were in and Mayday was already tucked into her crib. It was just the two of you.
“Should we eat somewhere else or...?” you asked. “Yes, I think we should. We wouldnt want to wake up Mayday,” Hobie replied. You both went to the living room and took some blankets with you. Hobie turned on the TV and put on both of your favorite cartoon. You watched TV while eating.
Once both of you were done, you put on the blanket and rested your head on his shoulder. The moon shined behind the window, your face was lit with the rays of the moon and it was beautiful. It was 1.37AM when the cartoon show stopped. Then finally, you both finally slept in peace.
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Apologies, this fanfiction is badly written HAHAHA and its very short. So sorry if its unenjoyable, its short and I kinda ran out of ideas midway so yeah. This is like the very first fanfiction I wrote here.
Btw,, I will make a part 2 for this as a “day 2” of babysitting Mayday!!
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Skirts and Dresses Part 2
Part 2 is here. I hope you will like it! Part 1, Part 3, Part 4  and Part 5 To my Powerpuff Girls ! I love you all <3 Many Thanks to Gypsywoman13 for beta-readig!
@mayucerise @starkeraddictbaby
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Iron Dad Tony
Since the Widow had learned his secret and been so understanding, Peter became a bit less careful. While he used to only wear his old skirt when he was alone in the compound, now he would wear his new clothes when only one or two people were present or if Natasha decided they needed special training nights, which were girls nights where they would train and then watch action movies while making fun of the bad scripts and stunts. They would also paint each other's nails and do each other's hair. It was awesome.
As promised, Natasha burned his old skirt to ashes, but with his consent. Three days later, she gifted Peter a frame with a small piece of the skirt inside and it made Peter’s heart swell with love.
He could now say that his old skirt had been awful; it had too many colors and some nasty stains, but it still had been his first, so he had put the small memorabilia on his shelf.
--
Today, Peter, Mr. Stark, and Dr. Banner were the only ones present at the compound, so Peter put on a nice skirt that was full of colors, and that kind of looked like silk. It was one of Peter’s new favorites because it would swirl and flare when he walked.
After dancing around for a bit, and watching the effect in the mirror of his bedroom at the compound, Peter decided it was time to work on his assignment for next week.
Peter was fully engrossed in his work when his phone buzzed loudly.
>> Kid, I know you’re busy with your assignment, but I have an emergency here. Could you come by? - TS
Without even thinking about it, Peter rapidly answered
<< Sure Mr. Stark. Omw
With that sent Peter left his bedroom, not remembering in his rush that he was still wearing his new skirt.
--
When Peter entered the workshop of Mr. Stark, the billionaire briefly took his eyes away from the armor he was working on.
“Kid, you may want to change before coming closer. Motor oil is a bitch to take out of silk.” The comment was said offhandedly, as if Mr. Stark wasn’t talking to his mentee wearing a fucking skirt.
Peter felt his cheeks redden, realizing he had left his room in such a hurry that he hadn’t thought to change. He was startled when Mr. Stark started to talk again.
“Pete, it’s kind of an emergency here. Can you change and move on, please?” The urgency in his mentor’s voice got Peter to move, but not to change. “Pete, you’re going to stain the skirt, come on.” But Peter didn’t listen.
“What do you need me for, Mr. Stark?”
The older man sighed but started to explain.
For three hours the two men worked seamlessly like they always do. When the part of the armor they were working on was done, Mr. Stark silently led Peter to the sofa in the lab. He made Peter spin once, to look over the skirt before he let Peter sit on the couch next to him.
“So, Petey Pie. When did you start to wear skirts, and why did you never tell me?” Mr. Stark sounded calm and not disgusted; Peter did not really know what to think about it. “And this isn’t silk. What for the love of Tesla is that thing?”
Peter sighed. Were they all going to criticize the type of skirts he was wearing and not the fact he was wearing them?
“I-I started to wear one, uh, 4 years ago?” Peter felt his cheeks redden again and bowed his head to look at his hands, avoiding Mr. Stark’s gaze. “I found it--well... it was truly horrid, Natasha burned i-” Before he could finish his sentence, Mr. Stark cut him off with a frown.
“Wait, hold on, Underoos. Natasha knew before me?” The billionaire puts a hand on his chest; always one for dramatics. “Why? Wait, no, she’s a superspy. Did she guess?”
“She walked in on me,” Peter admitted. He felt rough fingers against his chin to lift his head up and force his eyes to meet his mentor.
“You know, when I was your age - a little younger maybe - I had a... well, Dad and--Dad called it a phase.” Peter knew his mentor had meant Dad and Obadiah Stane. It made Peter want to punch the guy. “For an entire month, I wore nothing but very short skirts.” Peter’s breath hitched at the confession, making Mr. Stark smirk. “To be honest, I only wore them to make my dad angry, but I still liked it, and those skirts made my ass look like sin. Well, everything makes my ass look like sin, but the skirts...they were really nice.”
“But, then, why did you stop? And why does no one know about that?” Peter asked with a small voice, still looking at his mentor even if the man had let go of his chin sometime before.
“I--They made me. If I am being honest, they paid a lot of people a lot of money to bury every piece of evidence from that month.” Mr. Stark frowned suddenly. “FRI, baby girl?”
“Yes, boss?” The AI answered.
“Do we still have pictures of that time?” There was a short silence before the AI starts to talk again.
“Yes boss, we do,” the mechanical voice sounded, amused.
“We should leak those one day.” Peter choked on nothing, making the older man wink at him. “Oh, and before I forget, FRI, call Thomas and tell him to bring skirts and dresses for my protegé.” FRIDAY didn’t answer, but Peter supposed she already was calling whoever Thomas was.
Mr. Stark stood, making a gesture at Peter to stay put, and went to a little room where he kept a small desk to do things that didn’t warrant going to his main office. He came back with a kraft envelope and sat back while he simply gave the envelope to Peter.
“I was supposed to give this to you on your Birthday, but I think there will be no better occasion than this one.” Peter watched the envelope dumbly, asking himself what was inside. “Open it up, kid.”
However, before Peter could move, FRIDAY started to talk again.
“Sir, Mr. Watson refuses to ‘clothe a man with a dress’.”
Tony lifted an eyebrow. “Fire him.” Peter opened his mouth to argue that there was no need to fire someone over him, but Mr. Stark continued. “Wait, was he insulting?”
“Yes, sir.” If she hadn’t been only code, Peter would have said FRIDAY was angry, but Peter was probably projecting.
“Ok, sue him and then fire him or the other way around. Let Legal take care of that. Shit, Pepper is going to kill me,” Mr. Stark muttered, standing up to start to pace.
“Mrs. Potts has not been using Mr. Watson’s services for some years, boss. Not after they had an argument about the place of women.” Peter saw his mentor getting angry at hearing that. “She has another tailor. His name is Richard Bernard and he comes highly recommended by Mrs. Potts. Should I call him?”
Mr. Stark huffed. “Yes, you do that. And FRIDAY? Next time someone treats my wife badly, tell me. While she can take care of herself, I refuse to continue to employ assholes. Tell her that.” Peter smiled softly at the ardor in his mentor’s demeanor. Mr. Stark breathed deeply and turned to Peter. “Now, kid, open the thing.” Mr. Stark made a wide gesture to the kraft envelope still on Peter’s lap.
Peter carefully pulled the tab and opened the envelope, taking the papers before looking up at Mr. Stark to make sure he could read them. Mr.Stark nodded, encouragingly, so Peter started to read and was startled at the content on the first paper. Peter frantically began to go through all of the papers, but they all said the same thing: Adoption.
When Peter looked up from the papers on his knees, it was to see Mr. Stark kneeling in front of him, watching Peter with a smile, and taking one of Peter’s hands inside his.
“We have known each other for years, and I would never hope for a better son than you, and for someone better to inherit Stark Industries when my time comes, Peter Parker.” Peter wanted to interrupt; wanted to tell the man that while Peter saw him as a dad too...that Peter would love nothing more on this earth than to be his son, but he was not worth it. He was only Peter, after all.
But Tony Stark knew him too well and just continued to talk, gently squeezing Peter’s hand. “You are smart, kind, and brave. I once told you that I wanted you to be better, and the truth is, you always were better. No, Peter, I may have changed the last decade or so, but at your age, I was nowhere as good as you. I would never have been a hero if I had received your powers. I am so proud of the man you have become, and I want to officially call you a son.”
“But--I know nothing about business,” Peter said lamely. It made Tony smile.
“Well, it’s not knowledge I was born with, you know. There are some classes you can take, and Pepper and I are ready to teach you everything we know. We would have done this sooner, but we wanted to give you until your 21st Birthday to be a normal kid.” Tony gently stroked Peter’s hand. “And before you ask, no, I do not care that you wear skirts or that you are bisexual. Yes, I know about that, I’ve seen how you watch the Soldier.” Peter wanted to deny it, but he really couldn’t because he currently had a very big and hopeless crush on one James Buchanan Barnes. “There is nothing--except going to work for Hammer Tech, and maybe SHIELD--that will change the way I see you. You are my kid, Peter Parker. Will you agree to be my son?”
And what could Peter say? He loved the man like a father and looked up to him. He even loved the horrible dad jokes Mr. Stark started to tell every now and then.
“It-it would be my honor, d-dad.” And Peter couldn’t take it anymore as he jumped into his mentor’s...no, his father’s arms.
And if both of them cried while hugging the other for a long time, it was no one’s business.
--
Richard Bernard made Peter the most awesome clothes, but Peter had to admit that while he loved them, (silk was such a pleasure on his sensitive skin) the ones he bought with Natasha were still his favorites.
Natasha looked at him like he was a moron, but did not comment. Peter was emotional, so sue him.
Pepper gifted Peter with some make-up, and with Natasha’s help, they taught him how to use it.
Now that Peter had more freedom to put on his dresses, skirts, lace, and silk, he discovered that he did not crave it as much as before. He even started to have fun with his other clothes, especially since Tony gifted him a great collection of graphic tees with all the best science puns.
It’s not as if he didn’t want to be pretty anymore, Peter did, but it’s not a desperate need anymore. Some days he wanted to look cute, and others, he wanted jeans and t-shirts.
Peter was very lucky.
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polaroid15 · 3 years
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With Great Power...
Chapter 5: With great power comes a lack of self-care
Summary: May gets sick and Peter works himself to the bone taking care of her. Turns out his powers don't prevent him from getting sick after all.
Read on Ao3 HERE
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May is sick. Peter is losing his mind.
He bites his nails down to stubs and holds back her hair when she pukes out everything he’s tried to feed her. He helps her into bed and sits by her door long after he hears her breathing even out.
He can’t sleep so he scrubs the bathroom clean. When that’s done he cleans the kitchen and does his laundry twice. He grabs a pillow and blanket and lays down by May’s door, assured by her heartbeat, and wakes her up at four in the morning to help her choke down two fever reducers.
By the time sunlight streams in through the windows, he feels dead on his feet.
It’s worth it though. May wakes up with a temperature three degrees lower than the last time he had checked it. She kisses his forehead and ruffles his hair before taking a shower. She eats the entire bowl of soup Peter gives her and falls asleep with her head on his shoulder while they watch a movie.
For the first time since she’d gotten sick two days ago, Peter feels like he can breathe. His eyes droop, then close, and he lets go. When he opens them again it’s dark and May is gone. There’s a blanket tucked securely around his waist.
“May?” he croaks, wincing at the pain in his throat. He fights with the blanket and falls in an uncoordinated heap on the ground. “May!”
“Peter?”
Feeling lightheaded in his relief, Peter follows her voice to her bedroom. From the light in the hallway he can see her peer up at him from a heavy mound of blankets. She’s okay. She’s fine. “It’s almost one in the morning,” she says.
“Sorry,” he says shakily, straightening himself on the doorway. “I woke up and you were gone-”
May’s eyes soften in understanding. She pats the empty space beside her. “Come here.”
Without hesitation, Peter listens. He crawls into bed and lays beside her. She rests a comforting hand on his forearm. “I’m feeling a lot better baby. Everything’s okay now.”
“Okay,” he echoes, a deep relief making his eyes water.
“Thanks for taking care of me.”
He turns his head to look at her, barely finding her eyes in the darkness. “You always take care of me.”
“We take care of each other.”
It doesn’t take long for either of them to fall asleep.
-----
When Peter wakes up again the room is bright and warm with sunlight. Soft rustling sharpens his awareness over to May’s vanity. She’s sitting at the seat, running her fingers through her jewelry and selecting a jade necklace. She notices him through the mirror as she clips it behind her neck. “Did I wake you? Sorry.”
“‘S okay,” he says, mind cloudy with sleep. “You goin’ to work?”
“Yeah baby. I can’t miss any more time.”
“Oh.” Peter blinks to try to clear his vision and frowns when the effort is unsuccessful. “You feel okay?”
“Well enough,” she assures. She stands with a smile and grabs her purse. “You get some rest today, alright? Promise?”
“Promise,” Peter says. “There’s- there’s a gatorade in the fridge. Take it with you.”
May makes her way to his side and ruffles his hair. Her smile falls into a frown. “You feel a little warm. Are you feeling okay? I thought you couldn’t get sick-”
“Just hot from the blankets,” he says, though the more he thinks about it-
“Okay. Call me if you need me.”
With one final look of measured worry, May turns and makes her way towards the kitchen. He hears the fridge open before the front door does and smiles.
The apartment is quiet.
So quiet-
The next time Peter opens his eyes his stomach twists violently. With a watering mouth, the only thought he can muster is uh-oh, before he’s scrambling over May’s sheets to get to the bathroom. He barely makes it, catching himself by his forearms before heaving over the bowl.
Just like May, it never seems to end. He shivers and sweats and wishes she were here to help him. When it finally eases he collapses back against the bathtub and doesn’t have the strength to flush the toilet.
God, he’s thirsty.
It’s the only thing to get him onto his knees. After days of lecturing May about the importance of fluids, Peter can’t be one to ignore his own advice. He reaches for the tap and misses it by a mile. His reflection swims dangerously in front of his eyes.
“Tha’s not good,” he slurs to himself.
And then his eyes roll back up into his head. He isn’t awake long enough to feel himself hit the floor.
------
“Damn kid and these damn grey hairs-”
Tony grumbles to himself all the way from his empty lab to his car, and then all the way to the Parker’s apartment. The kid had been scheduled to come over hours ago and had never showed. It was more than unusual in itself, let alone the seven missed calls and thirteen unanswered text messages.
He checks on Karen, but Peter hasn’t been in his suit in days.
He texts May, but she doesn’t respond either.
He tries valiantly to convince himself that it’s nothing, that there’s probably a very safe and healthy explanation as to why Peter is dodging him. It’s not like he’s the kid’s father, for God’s sake. But no matter how hard he had tried to work in the lab alone the kid’s absence had made him too sick to his stomach to stay focused.
So here he is. The seventh floor. He knocks loudly at Peter’s door and frowns at the silence. If Peter’s wearing his watch, he should be here.
He should be here.
He knocks again.
Again.
With a dry throat, he tries to call the kid one last time. When his enthusiastic voice fills Tony’s ear via voicemail he shoves it back in his pocket and spends the next five minutes picking their lock.
Thankfully, no one sees.
“Hello?” he calls when it opens. The apartment is dark. “Peter? Are you here?”
There’s no answer. Pushing aside the invasivity of it all, he steps into the Parker home and shuts the door behind him. “Pete?”
Tony flicks on the lights and doesn’t bother to take off his coat. He heads towards Peter room but is stopped in his tracks long before he can reach it.
Because the bathroom door is open. Because he sees Peter sprawled out lifelessly on his back halfway into the hall. The fear that overtakes him at the sight is enough to freeze him until he sees Peter’s chest moving up and down in short, labored breaths.
“Kid!”
Tony’s knees ache when he slams them down beside the boy. He grabs at Peter’s fever-hot face and slaps lightly at his cheeks. “Wake up Peter. Come on buddy. This isn’t a good look for you.”
Groaning, Peter opens his eyes to slits. He looks up at Tony as if he’s the angel that’s come to bring him up to the pearly white gates and shudders against a cold sweat. “Tony?”
A delirious laugh bubbles out from his chest. He smooths back Peter’s hair and tries to ignore how his heart skips a beat at the heat rolling off his skin. “It’s Tony now huh? After all this time and you choose now?”
Peter’s eyebrows draw together in confusion. He shakes his head. “Wha’s happ’n?”
“You passed out on the bathroom floor.”
“Wha- why‘re you here?”
“Because you passed out on the bathroom floor dummy.”
Peter whines, his face paling behind the red hue of his fever. “Feel sick.”
“I know buddy. I’m sorry. I’m here to help. Where’s May?”
Peter considers this for a long time. “Mm. She’s sick too. Went to- went to work.” As if answering leeches all his energy, Peter’s eyes close and his head lolls. Tony shakes him until their eyes meet again. “Christ kiddo. You’re scaring me. I thought you weren’t supposed to get sick.”
Eyes shining with tears, Peter’s frown grows. “Tony.”
“Okay, we gotta get you up. Can you sit up? When’s the last time you drank something?”
“Don’ know. Tried. Fell. Don’ feel good.”
“I know Petey. I’m so sorry. Let me help you-”
Peter cries out before he can finish. The last of the color drains from his face quite suddenly and he goes boneless against the linoleum. Tony feels for a pulse and nearly cries at how erratic it feels against his fingertips.
“FRI! Call- call an ambulance.”
-----
Hours later, Tony sits beside May in Peter’s hospital room. The smell of antiseptic is giving him a headache and he holds his head in his hands, willing for the nauseating anxiety to leave with the pain in his skull.
Peter is okay, he tells himself. He’s fine. Stop worrying.
After some light threatening, the ambulance had arrived at the Parker residence in record time. Tony could barely keep up with their hurried descent to the street and had lost time in the ambulance. He had followed Peter as far as he could and then slid down the wall when the boy had disappeared.
Someone had taken a picture of him on their phone camera. He was too exhausted to yell at them.
He had called May. She was at his side in a matter of minutes.
She still is. Tony spares her a sympathetic glance. She’s sitting with her head resting on Peter’s arm, a wad of crumpled tissues held tight in her fist. None of them had thought Peter could even get sick, that it was outside the realm of possibility.
Turns out, he definitely can.
May catches him staring and offers a watery smile. “Thanks for taking care of him Tony.”
“It was nothing.”
“He was fine when I left. I was nowhere near this bad. If you hadn’t shown up-” she chokes and looks away.
Feeling a similar tightness in his own throat, Tony coughs to clear it before responding. “He’s okay now. That’s what matters.”
May nods slowly, but guilt still clouds her features. “He didn’t really sleep when I was sick. He spent every second taking- taking care of me.” She pauses, her mouth hanging open in unspoken words. Then, “when Ben and I found out his parents had died we were terrified. I never thought I’d be able to love him as much as I do. I don’t know what I’d do without him Tony. I swear to God. I’d die if I lost him.”
That makes two of us, Tony thinks. “He’s a good kid.”
“Too good sometimes.”
With great power-
Tony sighs. He stares at Peter’s lax face and feels something swoop in his stomach. “What can I do to help?” he asks.
May smiles weakly and threads her fingers through Peter’s hair. “You’re everything to him,” she says quietly. “You’re his idol, his hero. You’re there for him, Tony. You show up. That’s all I can ask for. You’re already helping.”
Biting hard on his cheek keeps his expression neutral, but he can’t prevent the flush that spreads across his face. He hopes May doesn’t notice. “He has the whole world on his shoulders. I wish he didn’t.”
“He’s a teenage superhero,” she laughs, though without humour, and hangs onto him more tightly. “Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever said that out loud before. My nephew is a teenage superhero.”
Tony chuckles along, rubbing his hands over his temples. “He can stick to walls.”
“Why- why the hell do we let him do this?”
Humming a non-answer, Tony shrugs. May’s eyes soften. “Ben would’ve been proud of him,” she says in a whisper. “I think- I think that’s why he does it. And why I let him. Ben would be proud.”
With great power, comes great responsibility.
“You’re a good Aunt.”
“Mm. I certainly try.”
“He’s going to be okay.”
“I know.”
Slowly, between them, Peter stirs. He blinks up at the ceiling as May smooths his hair back. Tony tries to ignore the way his heart skips a beat, or how he leans forward in his chair. “You back with us baby?”
Peter’s mouth turns up in a loopy grin. He stares at the ceiling as if it’s spinning. “Woah. Wow. Dreamt I was- I was Spider-Man. ‘S so cool.”
They both laugh. Peter smiles too even though he clearly doesn’t understand the context of the humour. He looks at May and some clarity leaks into his eyes. “You ‘kay?” he asks.
“Yeah baby. I’m okay. All thanks to you.”
“Yay,” he breathes. His head swivels heavily in Tony’s direction and his smile widens, which obliterates that last of Tony’s resolve to stay as stoic as possible. He feels his eyes well with tears. “How ya feeling kiddo?”
“High.”
“Yeah I’ll bet.”
Peter yawns and sinks further into the mattress. As his eyes flutter he says, “tired. Larb you guys.”
I larb you too, kid. More than you know.
The chairs suck, but May and Tony don’t leave his side.
Not even for a second.
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internalsealpanic · 3 years
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Better Die Than Doubt
Summary:  You wince knowing he’s already noticed. You feel the tiniest bit more at ease as he approaches your booth but it didn’t stop your eyes from flickering and searching for something off in the environment. The creeping sense of being watched trails up your spine. You’re sure.
A/n: To no one’s shock, this entire fic was unplanned. I was possessed by the urge to make it (translation: I got the urge to write this and one of my enablers said do it).  This story should be treated more or less as a horror story. Nothing is being glorified here except how dorky Jason is. That being said,  PLEASE READ THE WARNINGS. This fic contains quite a few triggering things and I really don’t want you to be blindsided.  Also thanks to @knightfall05x for helping me write this whole thing. Thanks to @batarella (HOE) for action writing tips.
Warnings: graphic violence, stalking, emotional manipulation, unhealthy coping mechanisms, drugging, nongraphic description of rape, and rape aftermath 
masterlist
You press the heels of your palms into your eyes. You could practically feel the oncoming headache the way you could sense someone coming down the hall. This is what happens when you’re running on just 5 hours of restless sleep for the last few days. This headache was also not helped by the fact that this was your fifth coffee in the past 30 minutes. You probably should not be drinking this much caffeine this late but intelligent decisions weren’t exactly your strong suit this week. You rub the sides of your forehead feeling another wave of nausea. 
 You check the time again and groan.  It’s been one-and-a-half hours since your agreed upon time had lapsed and yet one Jason Peter Todd was nowhere to be seen. You curse, nerves edging, and mind fraying.  To be perfectly fair to him, he is a busy guy, vigilante, and all. You understood that fairly well- and this was sudden to say the least. You can’t really fault him for being a bit late but the long wait was ratcheting up your anxiety. Again, the coffee didn’t help but considering it was the only thing you could keep down since last night, you didn’t have much choice. 
 Last night. 
 Your stomach tumbled. You cup your hand over your mouth feeling your coffee traveling back up your esophagus. You let out a long exasperated breath, letting yourself sink into the booth. You look out the window, eyes flickering wildly searching for Jason. Your hands tighten around your mug. The feeling of being watched made you bristle. 
 Jason, well, Jason wasn’t hard to spot. The man was 6 feet 4 inches of pure muscle and leather. Having a handsome face and a ‘fuck you’ look in his eyes also helped.  In short, the man was hard to ignore. You wave weakly to him as he dismounts his bike, a gesture far too small for your usual bombastic self. Jason’s smarmy smile greets you as he returns the gesture with his gloved hand. The motion is slow and cautious, rickety in a way. You wince knowing he’s already noticed. You feel the tiniest bit more at ease as he approaches your booth but it didn’t stop your eyes from flickering and searching for something off in the environment. The creeping sense of being watched trails up your spine. You’re sure. 
 “Jesus, y/n, you look like Timbo” Jason chuckles sliding into the booth his green eyes shining with scrutiny. You look at him flatly not having enough energy to properly respond to his jab. He winces seeing your lack of reaction. “Rough night, huh?” He asks flagging down a waitress, who looked quite pleased to get away from her previous table.  
 You nod weakly, slowly as if the fact that it had been a rough couple of days had just sunk in. “Yeah,” you reply, your voice small and a little threadbare. You drum your fingers against your increasingly cold mug. The waitress sets a couple of warm mugs in front of you. Her soft smile makes you uneasy. You and Jason mutter a thanks as she tells you to wave her over if you need anything else. Her warm brown eyes boring into the stark purple bruise on your face. You shrink and smile sheepishly at her.
 “I’m fi-”
 “I am going to throw these sugar packets at you if you say you’re fine.”
 “Damn, ok, Mr.Kettle,” You laugh. His concern startles a genuine laugh out of you. You’re sincerely surprised how lively the sound that comes out of you is. “You know if you keep sounding like that, Jay, you’re gonna wreck the whole stone-cold badass thing you got going,”
 “Y/n..”
 You huff running your hand through your disheveled hair, trying in vain, to soothe your mind. What was the best way to put it? You swallowed, gathering your lapsing thoughts. “Sooo uh-” The collar of your shirt suddenly felt tight around your neck. “-I-” You breathe. “-I found around 4 or 5 of Blackmask’s boys and Deathstroke-No, I’m not shitting you- in my- my apartment for- well- the third time in the last two months, can I crash at your place? Just ‘til I find a new place. Oh and also how do I get rid of them?”
  He blinks as his brain takes its sweet fucking time digesting what you had just said.  He leans back groaning and running his hands over his face. He looks like he’d like to deck you if he wasn’t too busy being concerned for your welfare. You shrink again, feeling bad for springing it on him. The decision to leave out the gory details of your hectic week suddenly felt like the wisest choice but you had no doubt he’ll get it out of you at some point. 
 “I’ll skip the obvious ‘why did you wait three times before moving’ question because I feel like I’m probably going to get an aneurysm from your answer,”  Your reasoning wasn’t quite that stupid. You were mucking about Sionis’s operation. The fucker decided to branch out his little enterprise into your city and like hell, you were gonna leave well enough alone. After you had set fire to one of his warehouses, you thought that would explain the False Facers. But Deathstroke? Deathstroke was a mystery. You’ve also been mucking about his business but you two have always been civil if not friendly. Frenemies of sorts, you guessed. You’ve been encountering him a lot in the last few days. You had figured that Blackmask had hired him but considering he threw two men out of your apartment window last night, you’re not entirely sure.  You make an affronted noise that Jason elects to ignore. 
 “What did they do?”
 “Aside from necessitating a visit to IKEA?  Nothing.”
 “Did they take anything? Leave a message?”
 “Nope, nothing-” You furrow your brow trying to recall. You shake your head. “-They just made sure I knew they broke in.” You add, shrugging your shoulder. You wince at the movement. Your shoulder still aches from being hit with a bat. Jason’s shoulders shift, moving as if to reach out to you but stops himself. Instead, he continues with his line of questioning. “Sweetheart, there’s gotta be something missing.” 
 You frown, biting your cheek. Jason rests his chin on his hand, green eyes watching you and urging you to think back. It was either the weight of his gaze or the lack of sleep that was making it hard to recall. You close your eyes and catalog your belongings, analyzing the mental picture you have like a crime scene like how he taught you months ago, breaking it down into the smallest pieces of information and bringing it back into a bigger picture.  Still, nothing. Nothing of note was missing. You shake your head and shrug your uninjured shoulder. Jason glares at the immobile one. You shake your head silently telling him it wasn’t from last night which just made him clench his jaw. 
 “Evidence?”
 You shake your head.  He frowns baffled. 
 “Tech?”
 You shake your head again. 
 “Anything personal?” He asks jokingly. 
 “I-” A cold horror washes over you trailed by embarrassment. Your vibrator had been missing and so were a couple of your lingerie sets. You feel your stomach drop to the floor. “Oh god, Jay- I- Please, let me stay with you.” 
 “And have them steal my stuff?” He chuckles. 
 “Please, Jay, like you have anything worth stealing.” Jason frowns at you scrutinizing your face. You level him a glare but it was more in an effort to fight down a blush than anything venomous. Jason’s jaw unclenches and his face breaks into a shit-eating grin. “What color was it?”
 “Wha-”
 “Bzzzzzzzt ” 
 If you weren’t blushing before, you are now. Heat climbs up your spine. Your mouth felt dry. 
 “Well, what color was it, sweetheart?” Jason drawls, his voice dropping an octave. You shiver but bristle just as quickly. You bite your cheek and glare at him. “HA. HA. HA. Funny, Todd.”
 “Was it Red Hood Red?” Jason teases, winking and raising his cup of coffee to his lips. 
 “Nightwing blue” You deadpan. Jason coughed into his drink.  You preen with satisfaction. 
 “Does it make stupid puns while you go at it? ”
 “Yup,” You say, the ‘p’ popping. “That’s part of the appeal.” You joke smiling into your mug.  Jason snorts. “How is that supposed to be sexy?”
 You shrug, a sharper less tired smile cutting across your features. “Dunno man. Nightwing is pretty sexy if you ask me.” You wink.  
 Jason makes a fake gagging noise. Well, it seems fake with how theatrical the gesture is but with bats? You never could tell. You roll your eyes and giggle.  Jason’s shoulders loosen at your bubble of laughter, his face slipping into one of his sheepish smiles. “In all seriousness, y/n, you can stay at my place.”
 You smile at him, your usual fluorescent smile. 
Click
 Click
 Click
 A man from across the street watches you intently through the lens of a camera. 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Slade throws the photos across Roman’s desk, each glossy piece of paper containing a candid photo of you looking increasingly frayed and anxious.  
 Roman marvels at how your usually larger than life figure shrank into your puffy coat, how small and malleable and inexperienced you looked. He notes the panicked look in your eyes in every one of the photos and savors it. He couldn't wait to see it for himself. 
 In one photo, you're looking over your shoulder as you enter your office building. 
 In one, you’re tracing circles on a child’s hand with your thumb,  beaming brightly as you told some wild tale to distract the child. 
 In another, you're slumped in your desk chair as you think over a case looking absolutely exasperated but determined. 
 In yet another one, you're locking lips with a man, his hand trailing up your shirt. Roman made sure to give the man some swimming lessons a few weeks prior.  
 In the photo in Roman’s hand, you're at the emergency room looking like you haven't slept in 2 days. Your face was bruised and your clothes were torn in several places where Slade had managed to land a blow. Your delicate skin marred with cuts and trickling blood. Absolutely gorgeous.   
 He examines it closely. The photo was taken just a few hours ago. You look like you're going to cry but your shoulders and jaw are squared more frustrated than scared. There's a fire in your eyes that threatens to level the city. A thrill rides up his spine at the prospect of extinguishing it. 
 “This is why you wanted to throw my men out the window?”
 Slade hums. He shrugs and the edge of his lips curl into a smile. “It was the only way to convince the kid that we’re both after her-” His eye drifts to your face. Appraising but impassive. “The kid’s scared out of her mind and exhausted at this point.”
 Slade had a point. Roman had to give him that. It wouldn’t be obvious to the casual observer but it would be plain as day to anyone like Roman who had been studying you for a while. You weren’t quite as meticulous with your appearance as Roman thought you should be (He would work on that later) but the dishevelment in your appearance was obvious. The slight dip in your shoulders in place of the prim posture that you usually employed was a blatant indication of your weariness. And the falter in your smile, the flickering in your eyes, and the number of times you let yourself bite your cheek showed the cracks in your fearless image. 
 Who knew weeks upon weeks of chaos could weather Minos City’s own budding hero? 
 In the photo next to Roman’s hand, your laughing face is stark and lively against the drab atmosphere of the diner, bubbling laughter carving life into your exhausted features making you look more like the shining paragon your city has come to rely on. The man sitting in front of you is laughing too. The sharp edges of his grin softened by the fondness in his eyes. It was hard not to recognize him even with such a foreign expression plastered onto his face.  Roman crushes the photo in his hand. 
 “BUT NOW SHE’S WITH THAT SCUMBAG RED HOOD”
 “And she’s now with the Red Hood. In his secluded safe house. Weakened and far from help. Most likely thinking that she’s safe under his protection and blissfully unaware of the tracker I put in her arm.”
 “I see… It seems like you are worth the pay.”
 Slade made no effort in hiding his smug grin.  
 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 “Jay, I really am sorry about this.” You mumble for what seemed like the fifth time in the past half hour. 
 “I sincerely hope you’re apologizing for the fact that you neglected to tell me you had bruised ribs before getting on my bike and not the fact that you’re staying with me because two crazy assholes decided your place needed remodeling.” Jason exasperates, pinching the bridge of his nose. You feel kind of annoyed by the gesture but he did have a point especially with your city’s less than smooth roads. You were also pretty banged up. As it turns out, facing off against a bunch of goons plus a master assassin is not good for your health. You swore viciously under your breath. Now, you weren’t expecting Deathstroke to go easy on you despite your rapport but the guy really didn’t have to throw you around like a rag doll. Even with your power to adjust the odds, it was a miracle that you escaped intact. 
 “Well, Mr.Pot, you ride your bike all the time even with broken ribs.” You bite back. Jason rolls his eyes unaffected by the distilled venom in your voice.
  “Well, one of us is a stone-cold badass- ”
 “And the other is a sasquatch with a stick up his ass.” You sneer snatching the beer bottle from Jason. Your tone was far too fond and playful to have any actual bite. Jason chuckles at you and ruffles your hair before snatching it back and handing you a bottle of water.
 You huff taking the bottle from him and following him to the couch. He sits down on the couch patting the seat beside him. You plopped on to the couch, placing your sock feet on his lap. He grabs your ankles and throws your feet back at you. You just as quickly throw them back on and this time you do it with an absolutely delighted smirk on your face. “Rude,” He mumbles but doesn’t attempt to extricate you again. 
 “So Deathstroke, huh?” Jason starts, side-eyeing you over his beer. You adjust yourself to sit up a little straighter.
 “You mean the asshat who broke my favorite lamp last night?”
 “Who the hell has a favorite lamp?”
 “Me! And get to your point.”
 “Have you two- yanno?” Jason jokes, his eyebrows wiggling and hands gesturing vaguely. Your eyes grow wide and heat creeps up your neck and face. You scowl at Jason throwing a pillow at his face for good measure. He catches it with ease much to your frustration giving you his trademark triumphant grin. You kick at him with no real force. 
 “NO! What kind of soap opera shit is that?” You giggle into your drink. You would be lying if you said you hadn’t thought about it before. The guy was skilled and pretty witty.  You also had eyes and the man was handsome but something always felt strange about taking it further. You were civil but you kept your distance. 
 You pout at Jason again causing him to chuckle. “What? I’m just saying it’ll air out some tension~” He suggests winking. 
 “Oh my actual god, I hate you. I sincerely, truly hate you.” You laugh, kicking at his thigh. Jason makes an obviously fake hurt noise which draws out even more giggles out of you. Some tension in Jason’s shoulders releasing upon hearing the bubbly sounds. 
 “You speaking from experience, Jay?”
 Jason shakes his head and coughs. “Catwoman-” Cough. “Talia Al Ghul-” Cough. “Sorry, sweetheart, seems like I have a really bad cough this week.”  
 And that is how you spend the rest of the night questioning Bruce’s love life. 
“Food is in the fridge,” Jason says pointing to the said fridge which was sorely lacking magnets, sounding like a somewhat tired single parent. 
 “Do I look like I can keep anything down?”
 Jason snatches the water bottle you had abandoned on the side table next to the recliner. “With that big mouth of yours? Sure.” Jason teases lightly booping you on the nose with your water bottle. “Get some rest.”
 “Yes, mother” You sighed, burying yourself into the thick comforter he’d given you, crumpled water bottle in hand. He ruffles your hair. 
 “You know you’re safe here, right? ” The question startles you. You shift uncomfortably, pulling the comforter tightly around your shoulders. You shrug at him, not entirely certain how to answer. You know Jason’s safe house is, well, safe but you also thought your apartment was too. Your stomach twisted. 
 Jason squeezed your shoulder probably sensing the spiral of your thoughts. He smiles down at you, probably. It was hard to tell with the helmet.  
 “If you want, I can-”
 “No, Jay, I’ll be fine here. You can go on patrol. I’ll be fine. Promise.”
 The thing with Jason was that even when he was so big and bulky and hella intimidating, his empathy towards others had a bad habit of always shining through despite the layers of armor and sarcasm. You squeeze his hand, pressing little circles into his palm, and smile up at him. It was forced but it was the best you could do. Jason ruffles your hair again before letting go and making his way to the window. 
 “Get some sleep.”
 “Aye aye cap’n” You yawn settling into a slump on the couch. Jason can’t help but smile fondly at you.  You wave him a sleepy goodby before he sets off. 
You passed out on the couch, an old habit you never grew out of. You always slept on the couch when you felt uneasy. It may have been some sort of way to separate stress from your bedroom. It sure as shit wasn’t for safety reasons. Your equipment was dispersed throughout your apartment but your weapons were usually stowed away in your room. 
 You feel a hand running gently through your hair, smoothing away all your apprehension. 
 “Jay” You grouse, your hand halfheartedly swatting at the hand stroking your hair. You bury yourself further into the warmth of the comforter feeling the need to shrink away from the touch. You feel a soft prick on your neck.  
 Your eyes fly open.  
 Shit.
 The hand tangles in your hair. It throws you to the wall. The air is knocked out of your lungs. Your ribs scream. You scrabble to your feet. Your limbs fail you. They flail uselessly. Your breaths pick up. Your chest feels like it's caving. 
 "JAY" You shriek. “HELP.” A large hand grasps your throat. A rush of adrenaline kicks in. You thrash. You kick. Your hit lands. Another grasps your ankles. You scream. You swear viciously. Another grabs at your wrists. Something rough winds around your wrists and ankles. 
 The world tilts into an odd angle. Your head feels heavy so do your arms and your legs and everything. 
 "Jaaay" You slur, the air in your lungs becoming sluggish like everything else. "Jay" you sob again, knowing he wouldn't come. Not when he was so far away. 
 "Shut up you …..  bitch" You feel a swift kick to your stomach. It barely registers above the haze. 
 "Hey man-"
 "What? The …. man said we …… rough her up."
 "We can?"
 "Yeah, ……, said so"
 Your eyes blink, stupid, and uncomprehending.  Distantly, you hear yourself grunting and whimpering. You can feel their blows but your body is too far away, too inaccessible. It was strange to physically feel yourself drift away. 
.
.
.
 Roman traces the sun shaped scar radiating on your shoulder with a leather-clad hand. The one shot he’d managed to land on you the first time you’d stormed one of his warehouses. You were all cocksure and quick wit and boisterous laughter. You really had the devil’s own luck but it seems to have run out. Not that Roman’s got any complaints. Not when he’s got you laying at his feet,  tied up and vulnerable. 
 He crouches down, hand on his chin.  His eyes roam appreciatively over your sleeping form, appraising you like a premium cut of meat. You look pretty against the black silk sheets he’d chosen.  He sighs content with his prize. He traces the tip of his knife over your cheek, a dark purple bruise maring your features stark against the stainless surface of the blade. Slade really was quite careless when handling you. Not that Roman has any plans on being any gentler.  
 He lets his blade drift down, trailing down your neck down to the flimsy protection of your oversized shirt.  Your steady breaths falter. You keep your eyes shut trying to gather more information but it’s hard not to focus off the tip of the blade cold against your warm skin even as the blade cuts through the thin fabric of your shirt. A large hand grasps your face roughly. 
 “I know you're awake, baby-” You blanch still not opening your eyes. The grip on your jaw tightens. You grin like a madman. “It's rude to keep daddy waiting.” 
 “Sorry, Sionis, I was really hoping not to have to wake up  you’re ugly mug.” You sneer, voice thick and raspy with sleep but still full with your trademark confidence. Roman looks more amused than irritated.  Your body and mind are still at the cusp of sleep. You wriggle and almost cry out with joy when you feel them move. You mind the hand on your jaw and its tight grip. 
 “Baby, I won’t tell you a-” You spit in his face, cracking an eye open to see his reaction. A bloody grin spreads across your face like wildfire when you see the annoyance on his face. 
 “You’re going to regret that” He growls, wiping his face with a torn piece of your shirt. 
 “Oh please-” Something cracks across your jaw. 
 “The next time it’ll be the other end,” It takes a moment for your mind to catch on. You stare at the hilt of the blade for a moment before letting loose another smarmy grin. His violent reaction spurs you on. Yeah, you can definitely see why Jason thinks you’re going to age him twenty years. “Oh please, You like my face too much for that.”
 “You really wanna test that?”
 “Nope,” You say, spitting into his eye and landing a punch square in his face. You cackle like a madwoman when he goes down. You don’t bother hiding the delighted chirps that escape your chest. 
 Being petty, you give him a swift kick to the face before dashing towards the door.  You launch yourself, feeling like you can fly. The copper taste in your tongue almost feels sweet. 
 Your hand grasps the door when a hand tangles itself in your hair. 
 Roman throws you back onto the mattress, the springs digging into your back. You scratch and claw and thrash against the large hand wrapped around your throat. You snarl as Roman leans closer, his body pinning yours against the mattress, his weight immobilizing your fatigued limbs. A sweet-smelling cloth covers your mouth and nose, you gasp in surprise, inhaling the scent. Your mind is already sluggish by the time it catches on. 
 Your vision dims. 
 You feel hollowed out. 
 Your limbs fall away, arms drooping and pliant against the silk-covered mattress. The cloth feels too much against your skin. Vaguely, you feel horror prickling up your spine or maybe it was just the springs again. 
 Roman pulls away. You think you breathe a sigh of relief, feeling the weight of him lifted. He straddles your body, grinning down at you. Your mouth falls open to say something. You want to say that you curse him out or that you threaten him. The sound you make is small. Your tongue feels too heavy.  No, something is pressing it down, you think. 
 Above you, Roman is a towering colossus. You’re vaguely aware of the shifting of his hips. He removes his gloved hand from your mouth and caresses the side of your face with mock gentleness. His movements are sluggish and syrupy.  You make another noise when you realize to some degree of horror that isn’t. Your mind felt heavy and useless. 
 He snaps his fingers. The sound is dull like it's contending with water. A muffled set of steps approaches you. A man, you realize. You don't think you’ve noticed him before. His dark shape is messy and incomprehensible. A red dot flashes stark against his form. The mechanical sounds of a shutter drift in and out of your mind. You turn your head back to Roman at the sound of shifting fabric.
 Above you, Roman, already without his suit jacket, loosens his tie, eyes staring hungrily at you. The pit of your stomach feels painfully cold. You blink at him stupidly. He chuckles, grasping your chin to make sure you’re looking at him. You protest against his touch.
 “Don’t worry, baby, you’ll be the star of our little show like the filthy attention whore you really are. ” He laughs. It rumbles like thunder in your ears. 
 The world falls away. 
Click
Click
Click
.
.
.
.
.
One 
 Two
 .
.
.
.
One
 You feel a prick on your neck. 
 Hot breaths fan against your face. 
 Your body is too warm. 
 You don’t want to know why. 
 Twenty-five, you continue counting. 
 You feel fabric shift against you. 
 Something sharp digs itself into your flesh.  
 One 
 Two
 Three
 .
.
.
 Three?
 Something’s crushing your windpipe.
 Your body is aching. You’re not entirely sure whether it’s from use or disuse and by who. 
 “Good girl”
 Thirty
 .
.
.
 Twelve
 There’s something scraping against your flesh. 
 Is it a knife?
 Hot pants fan against your skin. 
 Teeth 
 Four
.
.
.
.
Fifty-six
 “Boss, I-.... going a …. bit too far?”
 Smack!
 “Do …. You…. to think?” 
 Two sixty-eight
 A hand strikes you. You think your jaw is broken. It hurts but then again everything hurts. All you can do is take it and whimper. 
 Tears sting against your face.  
  “That’s right. Just like that. Like that, you little whore.” 
 Your body is warm again. 
 You still don’t want to know. 
.
.
.
.
Two
 Two
 Two?
 You’ve counted two before. 
 You blink. 
 The haze of your mind lifts. 
 The coldness of the room seeps in your bones. You’re bare. You take stock of yourself, running your hands over your skin. Everything is still there. 
 Everything and a few other things. You let disgust and shame roll over you. A sob tears its way out of your chest. Your breath picks up. You feel your mind slipping. You press the heels of your palms into your eyes, calling your mind back and steadying yourself. 
 You take stock again. This time moving your limbs and jangling your joints.  They were weak but workable. You’re surprised to find yourself unbound aside from the collar around your neck. You suppose Roman’s confident in his drugs. How long have you been here? You press lightly against your neck, feeling the higher than normal pulsing of your artery. You shift yourself waking your legs up. 
 You stiffen, gooseflesh spreading over your skin as light filters into the room through the door. Your eyes snap shut, stinging from the sudden intrusion of light. The pulse beneath your fingers jackrabbits. You think you’ll keel over. 
 “Shhhhhh”
 All the strength in your veins floods out, leaving a feeling of cold horror in its place. You scream or you try.  Your body feels impossibly rigid. Roman stalks towards you, his footfalls slow and deliberate and too loud. Your heart jumps up to your throat with each step. You inch yourself away from him, drawing yourself up to make yourself feel bigger. He coos at how adorable you are, trying to look defiant. The mattress dips under his weight. Your mind begins to slip away from you again. The world falls away from you. You anchor it, digging your nails into your palms. He cups your face, thumb caressing your bottom lip. You glower at him and bite out something witty. He laughs amusement lighting up his features, the sound grates against your ears. 
 “Not gonna fight back?” He taunts, pressing his thumb down on your bottom lip. Your body recoils but then goes slack as he runs his hand up and down your side. Shame blankets you but the fear etched into you keeps you still. 
 Roman loosens his tie. 
 Your mind falls out of your reach. 
 “Such a good little slut.” He murmurs against your lips.
 NO
 You wanted to say. 
 Instead, your mind starts counting again even as you hear the rustle of fabric. 
 .
.
.
 BANG
 A gunshot rings through the thick atmosphere of the room. 
 Roman curses. 
 His men stampede. 
 Another round of shots fire. 
 Something- No, no.  Someone tears Roman off of you. 
 “Deathstroke?” You croak, your voice sounding foreign and absurdly brittle. 
 “Do you know anyone else walking around looking like this, kid?”
 “Ravager” You snark, lips twitching into a smile. He rolls his eyes underneath his mask. The familiarity of the exchange breathes life into your body. Roman’s hand grips your wrist with bruising intensity. Your breath catches. 
 No. No. No.
 The word loops in your head like a constant rat-tat. 
 Slade’s foot makes contact with Roman’s head, the force of it unnecessary but satisfactory. The sounds of bone-cracking fill the air. The man falls uselessly to the grimey floor. He shoots him with a couple of rounds for good measure, each shot instilling a pang of finality in the back of your mind. 
 You scrabble towards Slade, wide-eyed and shallow breathed.  You cling to Slade as he bundles your body in silken sheets.  He hoists you easily into his arms. You bury your face into the junction between his neck and shoulder, closing your eyes, the image of Roman’s bloody body on the floor pressed into your mind. You sob in relief. Your hands clasping onto Slade, white-knuckled and shaking.
  "I've got you, sweetheart," He rumbles, running his hand through your hair soothingly. The tight knots in your body, loosen. You whimper a quiet thank you. “I’ve got you.”
 You lift your head only to see Roman twitch. 
 Your breathing falters. 
 Fear pricks your spine. 
 Your mind falls away from you again. 
 Distantly, you feel Slade’s grip on you tightens. 
 Distantly, you hear him murmur something. 
 Everything is too far away. 
 Your eyes blink sluggishly. The world becomes dimmer with each blink. 
 .
.
.
.
 A warm spray of water drizzles down over your aching skin. Your open wounds sting but the warm water pooling around you soothes the aches of your bruised flesh. Your eyes focus on the soft off-white of the tile on the wall opposite you. You don’t let yourself about the thin, rusty red film swirling in the water. The air in the room is thick with steam and the scent of lavender. 
 The absence of grime on your skin makes you feel lighter and gauzy and immaterial. You felt naked and obscene like you had been taken apart and now someone was examining pieces of you. You almost miss it. 
 “Lean back” Slade grumbles as he lathers your hair with some lavender concoction the hotel provided. Your body follows automatically, eagerly, obediently. You tell yourself you’re just tired. You tell yourself nothing’s wrong with your response. You tell yourself you’re ok. You wince. The warm water around you shifts. You hear it splash against the tile. You flinch at how loud it sounds. You take a deep breath and lean into his touch. He’s handling you delicately as though you would fall apart any second. You might. 
 Blinking away tears, you watch his face, aware that by leaning back, you’d be giving him a good view of the hickies, bite marks, and knife wounds Roman ‘gifted’ you. There’s a slight twitch in the corners of his lips. He must be disgusted with you too. You want to sink into the hot water and let it burn you anew, but you don’t trust yourself not to drown.   
 You close your eyes as another spray of warm water pours over you. You melt into it hoping it’s enough to wash the last few days- weeks?- away. 
.
.
 Your hands grasp his face, pulling him towards you. His hands brace against the tub, keeping him from falling in with you. Your arms loop around his neck, your hot breath fanning against his lips. You press your lips against him, searching and wanting. For what exactly? Comfort? Safety? Stimulation? His lips press lightly against yours, not quite a kiss. Slade actually looks taken aback. 
 The rest of the world floods back in. You peel away, your eyes wide with terror. “Shit- I’m- Fuck! Fuck! Shit, Slade, I- I’m sorry. I- Shit! I didn’t-” Your breathing ratchets up, becoming shallower as the pulsating in your ears grow louder. There’s a tightness growing in your chest that makes you think your ribcage is about to implode. You cover your face with your hands not caring how it didn’t help your shallowing breaths. You can’t look at him. You just can’t. You know you’re disgusting. 
 Your body wants to come apart, dissolve, and if it can, evaporate. You can’t breathe. You curl into yourself, into the water. A hand grabs at your wrist. You flinch. The hand carefully pries your hand away, forcing you to uncurl. Slade’s other hand cups your face gently, guiding you to look him in the eye. The lack of disgust in his face rattles you.
 His thumb brushes against your lips making your stomach twist and your spine curl. He dips his head closer to yours. You kiss him eagerly. He lets out a pleased hum and smiles against your lips. Something cold licks at the bottom of your stomach but it’s overtaken by the need for connection, to fill in what had been hollowed out.   
You press closer to him than strictly necessary as you watch the news, chewing on your cheek.  He pulls you close, shifting you on to his lap. You don’t protest, eyes glued to the TV. 
 “Businessman, Roman Sionis, was found with several gunshot wounds to the stomach in one of his warehouses here in Minos City. He is now in stable condition. Authorities say...”
 Your jaw falls slack in mute horror. Your stomach tumbles to the floor.  You’re hyperventilating. Your teeth are digging into your cheek, you taste copper. Your mind spirals back into the room, back to the dirty mattress, back to Roman. 
 Strong arms wrap around you, stilling your trembling body against a broad chest. Your body relaxes a fraction. You curl into him, the buzz of nervous energy settling into a quieter panic. 
 “You’re safe with me, you know that don’t you, sweetheart?” Slade says tracing circles into your palm. You lean your head into his shoulder. You nod easing against him. “I’ll never let that monster anywhere near you.” He promises, pressing a kiss into your hair. A little sob wrenches free of your imploding chest. 
 Slade keeps his face buried in your hair even as you fall into a lull. It was the only way to hide the triumphant grin spreading across his face. 
 “Don’t worry, sweetheart, I’ll take good care of you.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A/n: Thanks for reading. There’s a follow up to this because I can’t cope with bad endings. I had to promise myself a good second part to make the ending horrifying. 
The writing process for this fic was basically:
Me: I have this horrifying idea!
My brain: Yes but what if we put a little dork Jason in it. 
Me: I guess that wouldn’t hurt. 
Me: Ok I have written nearly 2k of dorky Jason where’s the other parts?
Brain: Uh what other parts?
Me: *sighs and spends the next few days spamming @knightfall05x*
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@batarella, @anothertimdrakestan, @lucy-roo, @multifandomgirl-us, @idkmanicantenglish,@birdy-bat-writes,  @americasmarauders , @l-horizon11, @arestorationofbalance , @cloudie-skay, @wunderstell
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sassy-starker · 4 years
Text
Five Times Stark Industries Employees Saw Peter Parker
(And One Time They All Found Out Who He Was)
Word count: 9128
CW: none
Notes: I promised @tony-is-my-daddy that I would tag them in my fluff fic and that was literally almost 2 weeks ago so I’m really, really sorry. I got caught up with finals and everything, but, I finally present to you, A Self-Indulgent Fic Where Peter and Tony Act Sappy And Confuse Employees
1.
Peter couldn’t focus.  His eyes were bleary and his mind was wandering.  His attention was completely taken up by the hollowness in his chest.  The workshop felt all too empty and quiet, but he knew that background noise wouldn’t help.  He needed someone there.  He needed people— hell, even just a person— to be with him.  His mind felt distant, yet all too aware at the same time and it was driving him insane.  He hated the winter.  He hated seasonal affective disorder.  He hated this.
In a rash decision, before his brain could even think, Peter pulled out his Stark Phone and tapped into messages.  He tapped on his most recent contact and began to type.
Peter: hey, do you think i could go down to the intern labs and just work down there?
Peter: like the ones with the individual workspaces?
Peter: i need to be around people
Tony: Of course! I should be done with my meeting at about 5 so then we can go binge shitty rom-coms and cuddle and eat Chinese food
Tony: Pepper saw me on my phone. Gotta go
Peter: <3
Tony: <3
Peter, now with confirmation, gathered up what he was working on in his backpack and shoved his phone in his pocket before getting up and moving to the elevator.
“Where to, Peter?” FRIDAY asked him.
“Fifty-fourth floor please.”
The elevator moved relatively quickly down the floors, and it wasn’t long until it dinged and the doors opened, revealing rows and rows of worktables with interns scattered around and working on individual projects.  Peter knew that they moved on and off the floor, depending on whether they were working in groups with their department or solo.
People looked over to the unknown young man while he set his stuff down on a table.  He paid no mind, feeling comforted by having people around.  He always felt nice when he knew that he wasn’t all alone, that the world was still there and time was still moving on.  Just as he sat down, though, a lab director from some floor below them walked right up to the desk.
“I’m sorry. I don’t think you’re allowed to be here,” he said in a sickly sweet, obviously fake voice.
“Excuse me?” Peter asked politely, looking up to the man.
“This space is for interns and employees. You don’t appear to be either,” the man elaborated.
“No, I’m allowed to be here,” Peter shot back simply before looking away from the man and reaching for his bag to pull out his project materials.
“Who do you think you are?” the lab director interrogated. “I’ll get you kicked out of this building!”
“I’m Peter-” the young adult started, but was cut off by FRIDAY interrupting.
“No last names, Peter,” the AI warned. “We don’t want anything to happen to you.  I can assure that Peter is allowed to be here.”
Peter simply looked up and gave a shrug to the lab director before continuing to pull out the materials from his bag.  The man looked up to the ceiling fearfully before retreating back to his own workspace.
That was the first time they saw Peter.
2.
The next time Stark Industries employees saw Peter could only be described as chaotic.
The door to the stairs opened and somebody rushed out, weaving their way around people and workstations with practiced ease, all while laughing so hard that there were tears falling from their eyes.
Upon closer inspection, the employees realized that it was, in fact, the mysterious young man from only a week earlier.
Moments after Peter rushed in, the elevator dinged and the doors opened, and out ran the Tony Stark, covered in red and blue glitter. Not to mention that he looked furious, but not the type of furious where he was genuinely angry. It was more like that fond kind of furious, where you’re annoyed and upset, but can’t help but find the situation a bit funny and the person responsible is somebody you care about.
Tony ran out of the elevator, also weaving around his employees and their projects, obviously chasing the young man. By that point, though, the young man was laughing so hard that he had slowed down considerably. Thanks to that fact, Tony caught up and tackled him to the ground. All the employees were frozen in shock and just watching as their boss stood up and rubbed glitter off his skin to get it onto the man he was now standing above.
“No!” shouted the younger, getting up from his spot on the floor and giving the engineer a light shove. Both of them were still smiling and laughing about it though. “This is gonna take forever to wash off!”
“How do you think I feel?” Tony retorted, sprinkling some glitter into the other man’s curly hair. Once again, the younger man gave him a light push.
That’s when the two of them became acutely aware of the attention they had garnered.
“Sorry for disrupting your work,” Peter apologized to the crowd of employees sheepishly.
“We’ll send somebody to clean up the mess we made,” Tony told them, eyeing the trail of glitter he had left on the floor, “but get back to work.”
Hesitantly, they all began to go back to their workstations, but kept their eyes on the two men as they talked quietly and walked back to the elevator. Nobody said a word until the elevator doors had closed, obscuring their view of their boss and the mysterious man.
“Who the fuck is that kid?” Ashley questioned, turning to the coworkers she was in an experimenting group with.
“I have no idea,” Dylan answered, slowly tearing his eyes away from the elevator doors.
“He’s definitely a weird one,” Jenna piped up decisively. “I mean, have you ever even seen a picture of Tony Stark smiling that fondly?”
“And he talked back to him!” Dylan added on. “Like, holy shit, that kid shoved him and Stark only laughed!”
“I’ve seen a lot of strange things while working here,” Ashley told them, sparing a glance at the elevator, “but this is definitely one of the strangest.”
3.
“Please?” Peter begged.
“No,” Tony answered for what felt like the hundredth time. “Gossip spreads across the building quickly and basically every employee is already trying to figure out who you are! I don’t want them finding out and leaking it to the press!”
“But they already know, so what does it matter? It’s not like the rumors will go away if they just don’t see me again!” Peter argued, jumping up from where he was seated in order to stand in front of his boyfriend.
“The rumors will die down if they don’t see you again. They’ll eventually move onto talking about something else,” Tony replied, grabbing Peter’s hand and pulling him close. Peter embraced the man and the two just stood there for a few moments.
“I just want you to be safe,” Tony told him quietly.
“I’ll be fine,” Peter responded, pulling away but still holding onto his boyfriend’s hands. “All your employees sign NDA’s, so even if they did leak something to the press, which I doubt they would, legal would be on their ass and sue them for all they’re worth.”
Tony sighed, realizing that Peter had a good argument that he just couldn’t counter.
“Fine. You can come help me with the presentation.”
Peter pumped his fist in the air and let out a whoop in victory, causing Tony to roll his eyes fondly.
+++
When the employees working in R&D walked into the small auditorium on the 16th floor, they knew Tony Stark was going to be there, but they didn’t expect the infamous mystery man to be there.  On the stage, Peter was talking animatedly about something or other while Tony just listened, a fond smile on his face and his eyes sparkling.
The crowd walked in hesitantly, everybody’s eyes on the two men up front, who still hadn’t acknowledged them.  When everyone was seated and the clock struck the exact time the presentation was supposed to start, the two finally turned to them to get started.
“Hello, R&D department! I hope you’re all doing well!” Tony greeted with his press smile on. “You all know who I am, but I have somebody else here with me today.”
“What’s up? I’m Peter,” the younger man introduced himself, hitting the woah as he said his name.
“Did you just-” Tony started with a sigh before cutting himself off. “You and your fucking tiktok dances.”
“You say that as if you didn’t ask me to teach you the Renegade last week!”
“That was different! That was for the Stark Industries tiktok! I need to be relatable so I stay relevant!” Tony defended.
“And yet you still won’t let me teach you the dance to ‘Say So’ even though it’s iconic!” Peter shot back.
“You and I have different ideas of what counts as iconic,” Tony said dryly before turning back to the crowd of employees. 
“Anyway, today Peter and I will be telling you all about the new prosthetics line that your department will begin developing!”
Despite the importance of the presentation, the employees were only half listening as they were more focused on whispering about the mystery boy.
“Okay but what the actual fuck happened at the beginning of this?” Jenna asked quietly as she leaned over to her coworker on the right of her.
“No fucking clue. I can't believe this dude is just casually talking and joking around with Tony fucking Stark!” Dylan whispered in reply, not taking his eyes off the stage.
“And apparently he taught Stark how to do the Renegade. That’s fucking insane,” Ashley added from Jenna’s left.
The three turned their attention back to the two men on stage, finally listening to what they were saying again.
“Street smarts!” the younger man exclaimed, jumping in about something they were saying before.
“Stay alert out there,” both Peter and Tony quoted with large smiles. As if nothing happened, they jumped right back into the presentation.
“This is the weirdest fucking thing in the world,” Dylan declared quietly.
“I second that,” Ashley muttered.
“I third that,” Jenna added on without taking her eyes off the stage.
The presentation went on a bit longer, but it didn’t drag on.  It helped that the entire time the two men were joking around and making the employees progressively more and more confused.
Peter and Tony wrapped up the presentation soon enough and the R&D employees began to file out, most of them keeping their eyes on the two men talking quietly on stage.  Jenna, Ashley, and Dylan walked out together, some of the last to exit the auditorium, and the three made it to the elevator before Jenna realized she left her jacket behind.  She told her friends that she would catch up to them and way back to the now empty seats.  Not paying attention to the world around her, she looked for where she had sat and made her way through the row until she reached her seat and found her cardigan.
“See, I told you it would be okay,” said a voice from the stage.  Jenna turned around and saw Peter talking to Tony, the men standing close together.
“You know I just get worried,” the billionaire replied, his voice more sincere than Jenna could’ve ever imagined. “I just want to make sure you’re okay.”
“I can take care of myself, Tones. You don’t need to worry so much.”
Jenna felt like she was intruding on a private moment, so she started to make her way out of the rows of seats and back to the door as quickly and quietly as possible.
“Just because I don’t need to worry doesn’t mean I won’t. I care so much about you, Peter. You know I love you.”
Jenna froze in place, right at the end of the row of seats and about to step into the main aisle that led to the doors.  Against her better judgment, she found herself staring up at the two men on the stage, her gaze stuck on them.  She just couldn’t look away.
Peter and Tony were basically right up against each other.  They only were a couple inches apart with both their hands intertwined.  She couldn’t see it earlier, but, now that they were right next to each other, Jenna could tell that Peter was about half a foot shorter than Tony.  The younger man was looking up at the billionaire with a bright smile that was returned.  It was like nothing she could’ve ever imagined; a ball of sunshine and pop culture references right next to a man known to be scuffed up and rough around the edges.  It was like this boy brought out a completely different side of Stark.
“I love you too,” Peter replied softly before leaning up on the balls of his feet to give Tony a soft kiss on the lips.
Jenna, sucked in a breath of air harshly, the sound being enough to alert the men to her presence.  The two men stared at her with wide eyes for a moment and she stared right back.
“Shit.” Tony broke the silence of the room, his voice conveying the concern written across his face.  Peter put a hand on his forearm and schooled his features into a comforting look.  The man looked over at him and tried to take solace in his lover’s gentleness.
“I told you something was gonna go wrong,” the billionaire said with a mix of concern and fear on his face.
“We’re not getting into this argument again,” Peter responded decidedly, his tone making it sound final.
“I- I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize I was walking in on anything. I just came in because I forgot my jacket! I . . . please don’t fire me, Mister Stark,” Jenna stammered once she had broken out of her shocked stupor.
“He’s not going to fire you,” Peter reassured her with a kind tone.
“Well . . .” Tony said, but his tone was a bit humorous.
“You’re not gonna fire her because we decided we couldn’t wait until we got back to the penthouse to be all sappy.” Peter gave the man a stern look and it occurred to Jenna once again that this soft, delicate-appearing brunet clad in pastels had somehow reined in the man who had spent so many years being known as a playboy.
“I’m not going to fire you, but you can’t tell anybody, not even anyone within the company. If you do, my legal team can and will sue you for all you’re worth. Understood?” Tony had a dangerous edge to his voice, letting the girl know that he was completely serious. There was no way that this was an empty threat.
“Understood,” Jenna replied with a curt nod. “But I just have one question.”
“Shoot,” Peter told her.
“How old are you? Because . . . well, you look pretty young.”
Tony started laughing and Peter gave him an annoyed look.
“Stop laughing! You do this every time!” Peter exclaimed, lightly slapping his arm.
“Everybody thinks you’re, like, sixteen! You look barely old enough to have your license!” Tony shot back, his laughter dying down.
“I’m twenty-one,” he told Jenna. “I’m not underage, if you were wondering. Tony may be a bit of a mad scientist, but he doesn’t date people who are underage.”
“Okay, good. I was just worried for a second. Um, thank you for not firing me and I swear I won’t tell anybody. I should get going,” she rushed out with a relieved smile.  Without another word, she made her way out of the auditorium, holding her jacket close to her chest.
When she got back to her floor, Dylan and Ashley bombarded her with questions about what took her so long, but she just told them that it took her a second to find it.  Of course, they weren’t satisfied with that answer, but Jenna didn’t let anything slip.
That was the third time Stark Industries employees saw Peter.
4.
When Jenna walked into work the next morning, early as always, she found an envelope sitting on her designated area of her group desk, which separated into four sections for her project team to sit at. Across the front, it had her first name written out in a neat, cursive scrawl. She furrowed her brows as she looked at it, questions racing through her mind as she wondered who it could’ve been from.
Without another thought, she ripped it open and pulled out the contents. She unfolded the paper that was inside only to find a letter written in the same handwriting.
Dear Jenna,
I wanted to write you a letter, but realized that I never caught your name yesterday. I hope you don’t mind, but I asked FRIDAY who you were. Thinking back on it, that definitely makes me sound like a creep, so I apologize.
I wanted to thank you for not completely flipping out on Tony and I in the auditorium yesterday. I know that the whole thing was definitely crazy and it would’ve made sense if you freaked out. I also wanted to thank you for not immediately telling anybody. Seeing as no news stories have come out and nobody in the building has confronted Tony, I’m assuming you didn’t leak it, which is relieving.
I hope you’re doing well and if you need literally anything, just drop off a letter in the company mailroom in box 106.
As a thank you, there’s a Starbucks gift card also in the envelope! I wasn’t sure if you liked coffee, but seeing as you work in R&D and most of the employees in that department survive off coffee, I’m going to assume you do. Enjoy!
I’ll (hopefully) talk to you soon!
-Peter
P.S. Tony might not say it, but he’s also grateful that you haven’t leaked anything! I can promise that you’re good in his books :)
“What’s that?” Ashley asked, sneaking up behind Jenna and startling the woman.
“It’s nothing,” Jenna replied quickly while shoving the letter back into the envelope and cramming it into her bag. Ashley gave her a suspicious look but let it go, sitting down at her area of the group desk that was beside Jenna’s.
“I have a prediction!” Dylan announced as he entered the almost empty floor and waltzed over to Jenna and Ashley. He collapsed onto his stool and dumped his bag onto the floor beside him.
“This should be good,” Ashley muttered sarcastically, crossing her arms.
Jenna just looked away.
“So, we’ve established that it’s strange that nobody has ever heard of Peter and how, out of nowhere, he shows up!”
“Yeah, that’s kinda why we all think it’s weird,” Jenna shot at him, hoping that it covered up her panic.
“It’s also odd that he’s got a bit of a resemblance to Stark,” Dylan continued, decidedly ignoring her.
“I don’t see it,” Jenna interrupted once more, but the man didn’t stop.
“Maybe, just maybe, Peter is Stark’s son who he didn’t want in the spotlight until he was old enough to handle it!”
Ashley gasped while Jenna glanced away from them with a look of both panic and amusement. 
“Or Peter is Stark’s illegitimate child and he doesn’t want to have a scandal!” Ashley built on the theory with an excited smile and wide eyes.
“What do you think, Jenna?” Dylan asked, and both of Jenna’s teammates had their eyes on her.
“I think you two are full of bullshit,” Jenna told them, trying hard to keep her voice steady. “He’s probably just Stark’s intern. Maybe he’s a super genius or something.”
“Bor-ring!” Ashley replied with a roll of her eyes.
“Yeah, our theory is way better,” Dylan bragged, a bit of humor in his tone.
Jenna stayed oddly quiet for the rest of the morning.
+++
When lunch rolled around, Dylan and Ashley went off to the food court floor of the building, but Jenna decided that she wanted to make use of the Starbucks gift card she’d been given. When she opened the envelope back up to get it, she discovered that it was a two-hundred dollar gift card, which left her in shock for a few moments. Still, she shook herself out of it and went to go get a sandwich and a coffee.
After lunch, she found herself back with her teammates, working on their project, but sipping on a venti white chocolate mocha this time around. Around half an hour after they’d come back from lunch, the elevator doors opened to reveal Peter, wearing a sunny yellow sweater that matched the smile on his face. He walked out of the elevator and seemingly ignored all the eyes on him. He made his way over to a table working on prosthetics and began to help them out, the team there looking a bit surprised but extremely grateful for the assistance.
When Peter looked up and spotted Jenna, he gave her an even brighter smile, which she returned. She shook the coffee cup in her hand a little, bringing his attention to it, and he gave a silent chuckle. Jenna took a sip of her mocha and turned back to her project.
“What the fuck was that?” Ashley asked, drawing both of her teammates away from where they were designing arm prosthetics.
“What?” Dylan and Jenna replied in unison.
“That little interaction you just had with Peter,” the blonde woman elaborated, looking at Jenna accusingly.
“What interaction?” the man piped up before the brunette could respond.
“She and Peter made eye contact and smiled at each other and then Jenna held up her coffee cup and Peter chuckled!”
Dylan gave Ashley an incredulous look before shifting his gaze to Jenna.
“It was nothing,” Jenna defended with a level voice before getting back to work.
“Does this have something to do with the letter from this morning?”
“What letter?” Jenna and Dylan asked in unison.
Ashley sighed. “Jenna, come on, just tell me what’s going on? Is there something you know that we don’t?”
Before the brunette could even respond, Peter passed by their table.
“Hey, Jenna!” the young man greeted cheerily.
“Hey, Peter,” she responded, a smile on her face.
When he was gone, she went right back to her work, ignoring the looks from her teammates.
Jenna knew it was going to be a long rest of her day.
That was the fourth time Stark Industries employees saw Peter.
5.
By the next Friday, the questions from Dylan and Ashley had died down, but the suspicious glances were definitively not stopping, nor becoming anymore secretive. Luckily, though, Jenna was becoming better and better at ignoring the looks from her coworkers.
There were no more appearances from Peter, but Jenna had been enjoying exchanging letters with the brunet. The letters would sometimes be accompanied by pictures, mostly of Peter and Tony, and the woman had fun printing dumb pictures of her own and sending them back. The two would share funny stories and talk about themselves, though Peter still never shared his last name, but the brunette didn’t blame him for that; she knew he wanted to continue to keep himself on the down low. Tony would sometimes put in a few sentences on a letter, mostly a short quip about something his boyfriend wrote, and Jenna couldn’t help but find her boss’s dry wit rather humorous.
As the weekend approached once more, Jenna found herself feeling glad to get away from her teammates’ conspicuous looks and probing questions. When it reached midday, she was beyond happy to escape to the food court, rushing in order to get ahead of Ashley and Dylan. 
When she walked into the food court, she knew there was something going on. The chatter of the floor was quieter than normal, despite the normal amount of people being there. It was less conversation and more pointed whispers. When she followed where everybody’s eyes were looking, she discovered Peter sitting at one of the round tables on his own.
The young man had a couple slices of pizza on a plate in front of him, with one slice in his hand. He had wireless earbuds in and his phone was propped up using a pop socket attached to the back. It was obvious that he was watching some show or another.
Jenna simply shrugged and went to grab her own food, paying no mind to the whispered gossip spreading across the floor. She got a container of Chinese food from one of the stations and looked around to find a place to sit before realizing that she didn’t know where to go. She usually sat with her teammates, but she had been trying to escape them until she had to get back to work, which left her with nobody to eat lunch with.
In a strange and unusual burst of confidence, Jenna walked across the floor and toward Peter’s table, decidedly brushing off the eyes that followed her. She put her food down and sat in the chair across from her boss’s boyfriend, attempting to act casual as the quiet chatter toned down in order to hear what happened next.
Peter looked up when she sat down, seemingly confused that somebody was joining him at his table. When he saw that it was Jenna, however, he cracked a bright smile. He took out his earbuds and put them back into the carrying case before shutting off his phone and setting it face down on the table.
“Hey, Jenna!” His tone was bubbly, an air of familiarity to it. Just hearing him talk made Jenna feel calmer; the boy had a way of doing that.
“Hey, Peter,” she greeted back, less excitedly but still conveying that she was happy to see him again. “What’s up?”
“Not much! Tony’s in a meeting and I decided to come down here for lunch. I didn’t like how quiet it was.”
“I think you mentioned that once. That you don’t like being alone in spaces, I mean.” Jenna paid attention to every word in every letter she received from the young man. She felt like she connected to him in a way that she’d never connected to anybody before; it wasn’t like any friendship she had in the past.
“Yeah. It just feels nice to know that the world is still turning and I’m not completely alone.” He looked sad for a moment, eyes glazed over and distant. It was a somber kind of happiness, a mix of emotions that weren’t supposed to be mixed in case of an explosion, but not a loud one; it was more of a combustion, internal and quiet, soft and powerful. “But, anyways, what’ve you been up to?”
“Not much,” Jenna replied, trying to move on from the delicate moment. “Been working on the prototype for the prosthetics and I think it’s going well. There’s a few bits and pieces that me and my teammates have gotta work out before we send the design to our lab director, but I think we’ll get there soon.”
“That’s really cool! I honestly can’t wait for the prosthetics line to go into production! I think it's really gonna change the game since it’s gonna be a high tech line but also more affordable than the competitors!” Peter’s eyes were shining, the gleam replacing the far off look from only moments earlier.
“I’m excited for it too!” Jenna admitted. “I know it’s gonna help so many people and I can’t wait for it to go on the market!”
Peter opened his mouth to respond, but his phone buzzed before he could speak. He picked it up and read the notification, giving a small chuckle and typing out a response before looking up at Jenna.
“Was that . . .?” Jenna trailed off, unsure of how to finish the sentence but sure that the brunet caught her drift.
“Yeah,” Peter responded easily with a fond, but exasperated, look. “He finished his meeting and asked if I saved him some food from my lunch. I did, but I’m tempted to eat it myself and tell him to go get his own food.”
Jenna snorted.
“I’m not that mean, though, so I’m gonna take him the last two slices.” He slid his phone into his back pocket and his earbuds case into his front one before standing up and grabbing the plate with the two slices of pizza.
“I’ll see you later, Jenna!” he called as he walked away, heading towards the private elevator.
“See you, Peter!” With that, the woman went back to eating her lunch, as if nothing had happened at all.
When two people sat down at the table, Jenna looked up at them, only to find her two teammates, who had bewildered and suspicious looks on their faces. Dylan’s brow was furrowed and Ashley’s eyes were narrowed, the blonde obviously more dubious than him.
“What the actual fuck, Jenna?” she asked, voicing everybody’s thoughts.
“What?” the brunette replied as if she didn’t know.
“Don’t act all innocent! How are you so friendly with him?! This shit doesn’t add up!” Dylan nodded along to Ashley’s words. 
Jenna gave an exasperated sigh.
“Sorry, but that’s confidential information. NDA’s and all that, ya know?” She was trying everything she could to weasel her way out of it, but it was the first time she’d given her teammates a semi-straight answer, even if it wasn’t that revealing.
“Oh, come on, Jenna!” Dylan finally spoke up. “It can’t be anything that serious! Just tell us what’s going on?”
“I’m afraid that Ms. Locke is right, Mr. Hoffman. This is confidential information that Ms. Locke does not have the authority nor the necessity to reveal to you,” FRIDAY interrupted, garnering the attention of the people watching.
Jenna only shrugged under the intense gazes of her coworkers, but it still shut them up about it.
That was the fifth time Stark Industries employees saw Peter.
+1
It was relatively quiet for the next few weeks after the food court incident. While the suspicious glances remained, the questions had died down, though whispers still followed Jenna around as her coworkers spread rumors about how she knew Peter.
Speaking of the brunet, he hadn’t shown up since the incident, but he and Jenna had continued to exchange letters, becoming closer friends as time went on. The next time news about Peter came, it was only news for Jenna, as nobody else had any clue of how the young man was involved.
It had happened when Tony Stark had come to the R&D floor to talk to the employees there about the progress on the prosthetics line. Everybody had been trying extra hard to look busy as the man went around, all of them hoping to seem like they were valuable employees who actually did work.
Jenna’s team was the last that the billionaire came to, but as soon as he started talking to them, the brunette noticed something.
He had an engagement ring on.
The woman mentioned nothing, though she did freeze for a moment when she noticed it. Still, she pushed through and continued with the discussion about the progress they had been making.
When her boss later stepped away to answer a text, she quickly told her coworkers she had to use the restroom, rushing away and going down the hallway that Tony had gone down, which happened to lead to the bathrooms.
When she got there, she found him smiling down at his phone and typing quickly.
“Did you guys get . . .?” Jenna started, but trailed off at the end, startling the man a bit. He looked up at her, eyes a bit wide, but immediately recognized her. He looked confused at the question for a moment before realizing that her eyes were on his ring.
“Yeah, we did,” Tony answered, looking a bit sheepish as a blush painted his cheeks.
“How did it happen?” It was obvious that the girl was excited to find out.
“It’s actually pretty funny. I got down on one knee to propose and he looked so exasperated and I freaked out because I thought he was gonna break up with me or something. Instead, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring box. He was planning on proposing that night too.”
“That’s absolutely incredible!” Jenna told him excitedly, but still kept her voice quiet.
“When we told our friends, they all looked so unsurprised that something like that would happen for him and I.”
The two both laughed before the billionaire’s phone buzzed again.
“I’ve got a meeting in, like, five minutes, so I should probably go.”
The two said their goodbyes and he started to walk back out to the main area to head to the private elevator, but stopped and turned around before he could.
“Just do you know, you’re invited to the wedding.”
Without another word, he walked away, leaving Jenna standing there in shock. A million thoughts were racing through her head and her eyes were still trained on the end of the hallway where the man had disappeared from.
“I’m invited to the wedding,” she whispered to herself. Taking a moment, she shook herself out of it and began walking back to her team’s table to get back to work.
Before she could get there, though, Ashley rushed at her and grabbed her arm, pulling her back the way she came. The blonde pulled her into the women’s restroom and checked every stall to make sure they were empty before turning back to her coworker.
“What the fuck it this?!” She held up a letter and  Jenna immediately knew who it was from. She snatched it from her co worker's hand and skimmed through it, praying to Thor that it wasn’t one of the letters that explicitly mentioned Peter dating Tony. She then proceeded to thank Thor when she realized that it was one one of the notes that mentioned a relationship, but not outright who it was with.
“Okay, Peter and I have been talking through letters. So what?” she replied, attempting to keep her voice steady so it sounded like she wasn’t fazed by the whole thing.
“Are you fucking with me?! You’re friends with this mysterious dude who’s all buddy-buddy with Tony fucking Stark and you’re expecting me to just let that go?! You’re out of your mind!” Ashley was obviously worked up about the whole thing and the brunette didn’t know what to say, but, luckily, her coworker started talking again before she could get a word out.
“You’ve been so secretive these past couple months and it’s been annoying as all hell! You’re not telling me anything and it feels like I’m so disconnected from you! Just tell me what’s going on!”
“I can’t! I can’t tell you what’s going on! I’m sorry that I don’t wanna lose my fucking job just so you can know every aspect of my life! Just let it go and leave me and my letters alone!” Jenna blew up, which was something she didn’t do very often.
Unsurprisingly, Ashley looked taken aback, shock written across her face. Jenna immediately regretted it.
“I’m sorry,” she told her friend softly. “I just can’t tell you.”
Jenna turned around and left the bathroom, the letter in her grasp. As soon as she was out, she went to her lab director and asked if she could leave a little early, giving the excuse of feeling sick. Of course, her lab director was understanding as always and let her go. She quickly gathered her stuff, ignoring the looks from Ashley and Dylan, and hightailed it out of there.
+++
“Dylan!” the R&D lab director, Kelsey, called from her office.
The man shot up from his team’s table, where the silence was as dense as molasses and the tension was so thick that you could cut it with a knife.
“Yes?” Dylan asked as he made his way over and placed himself in the open doorway. The director stood up and handed him a couple files.
“I have to go to a meeting, but these files need to be turned in. Could you take them up to the boss’s office for me?”
“You- you want me to take these to Mr. Stark?” His voice was a bit shaky.
“It’s not that big of a deal. You go to floor 89, you find the office with his name on it, you knock on the door, you tell him that I sent you, you give him the files, and you leave. I promise it’s not as stressful as you think it is.” Kelsey’s tone was comforting, but it did little to ease his anxieties.
“Okay,” he muttered, turning around and heading towards the elevator.
When the doors opened and Dylan stepped in, he found himself alone in the elevator. The silence was filled up by his anxious thoughts about what could go wrong. He spent the entire ride up trying to take deep breaths and remember that it was a simple job; just go in, give him the files, and leave.
The elevator stopped and he stepped off onto the eerily quiet office floor. It seemed that nobody was there and it freaked him out; it felt like a horror movie. He crept along the halls until he made it to a door with his boss’s name on it. He raised his hand to knock until he heard voices coming from inside.
“I don’t get why it’s such a big deal.” That was Tony Stark’s voice, and Dylan recognized it immediately.
“It just is!” A voice replied. It took Dylan all of three seconds to realize that it was the mysterious Peter who seemed to show up at the most random of times.
Against his better judgment, Dylan peered through the semi-open blinds that covered the windows of the office. When he did so, he found Peter sitting on the edge of the desk and Tony a couple feet in front of him.
“It doesn’t seem like that hard of a decision. If you don’t like this guy, don’t invite him to the wedding! It’s so simple!” The billionaire looked confused at the dilemma at hand, though Dylan had no clue what they were talking about. He was getting married?
“But it’s not! I don’t want to invite him, but it would be rude if I didn’t!” Peter looked worked up about the whole thing, face slightly flushed and fiddling with his hands.
“It might be rude, but if you don’t want him there, then don’t invite him!”
“It’s not that simple.”
“Except that it is.”
“Maybe for you!” It wasn’t a yell, but it wasn’t quiet. Peter had stopped fiddling with his fingers and was now pulling slightly at his hair.
“What do you mean?” Tony spoke like he could accidentally shatter the young man in front of him if he wasn’t careful.
“I mean that you’re Tony Stark. You’re a famous billionaire that can do whatever you want. If you don’t want to invite somebody, you don’t invite them. You don’t care if it’s rude because you’re Tony fucking Stark and you can do anything you’d like. I’m not like that, I can’t just do whatever I want. I’m Peter Parker, an average guy from Queens, and I’ve always been just that. If I’m rude, there’s consequences and it can actually affect my life. I have to think things like this over, even if you see it as trivial.”
Tony paused for a moment, letting the words sink in.
“Except you’re not just some average guy. You’re Peter fucking Parker. You’re incredible. You’re gonna change the entire world. Maybe I don’t get these kinds of things because I was raised in such a different world than you, but all I want is for you to be happy. Whatever choice you make here, I’ll be fine with, but that isn’t what I care about. I care about you, because you’re the most amazing person on this planet. You’re Peter Parker, the man I fell in love with.”
Dylan’s jaw dropped as he finally found the closure he’d been seeking for months. He knew what Peter’s last name was, he knew what relationship he had to Tony Stark, he knew who Peter was. He had never expected this, though. He cringed as his mind went back to that theory he had about Peter being Tony’s son.
He watched as the two shared a short kiss and finally moved back in front of the door, feeling the need to give his boss the files, run back down to his floor, and tell his teammates everything.
Dylan knocked on the door and he could almost feel the two men inside freeze in shock. It only took a second before the door opened, though, and revealed Peter Parker standing there with Tony Stark slightly behind him, both of them looking worried.
“Uh, I’m from R&D and my lab director, Kelsey, asked me to deliver these files,” Dylan stuttered out, failing at his attempt to remain casual.
“Oh, uh, yeah, yeah, thanks,” Peter replied, seemingly relieved as he took the files.
“I, um, bye, I guess,” Dylan stammered before turning around and booking it out of there. He could feel the two men’s eyes on him as he left.
When Dylan got to the elevator, he pressed on the button a few times, praying for it to arrive faster, and jumped on the moment the doors had opened wide enough to get through. He then adamantly pressed the button for the R&D floor. The elevator ride down felt much longer than the one up.
When Dylan did get to his floor, he raced through the doors and to his teammates, grabbing each of them by the upper arm and dragging them into the men’s restroom. He checked every stall to make sure they were alone before locking the bathroom door and turning back to his teammates.
“You guys aren’t gonna believe this!” Dylan announced. “I found out some crazy shit!”
“Why am I here?” Jenna asked him in a deadpan voice. “Can I leave?”
“Jenna, you’ll actually wanna hear this! I found out who Peter is!”
Ashley and Jenna both froze, but for different reasons.
“You gotta tell us!” Ashley exclaimed excitedly.
“No, you better fucking not!” Jenna said over her.
“What?! Why?!” Dylan looked genuinely confused.
“Because we’re not supposed to know! It’s obvious he wants to keep his identity a secret! You can’t go around telling people! You need to tell him and Stark that you know so they can feel sure that his identity won’t get leaked!”
“God, you’re such a buzzkill, Jenna,” Ashley shot at her.
“No, I’m a good person.”
It made her teammates go silent, the words piercing through them like knives.
“If you wanna go and tell and lose your job, then go ahead, but I want no part of it.” Jenna turned around and started to leave.
“Do you know?” Dylan asked her, making the woman stop in her tracks.
“What?” Jenna slowly turned back to him.
“Do you know?” he repeated, voice cold and serious.
Jenna stayed silent for a few moments, mulling over what she could say.
“Not on purpose . . .”
“And you didn’t tell us?” Ashley questioned, betrayal written across her face.
“Sorry I respect their privacy!” It was obvious that she was very much not sorry.
“Wait . . . did you find out when you went back to get your jacket after the presentation?!” Dylan exclaimed, looking like he had put all the puzzle pieces together. When Jenna stayed quiet, he knew that he had gotten his answer. “Holy shit! What happened?! Did you, like, see them kiss or some shit?!”
“Kiss?!” Ashley shouted.
“Jesus Christ,” Jenna muttered, putting her head in her hands.
“No fucking way! They’re in a relationship?!”
“Yeah!”
“That’s it,” Jenna declared decisively and turned around.
“Where are you going?” Ashley asked her, bewilderment shining in her eyes.
“I’m going to go tell them that Dylan figured it out and that you know,” Jenna told the blonde, voice laced with venom.
Jenna unlocked the door and left, not letting her teammates get another word in, but the two followed her out and watched as she stormed past all her coworkers and to the elevator, disappearing as soon as the doors opened.
“I might lose my job,” Dylan muttered, eyes wide and trained on the now closed elevator doors.
“Is it true?” one of the other employees, Amelia, asked as she walked up to Dylan and Ashley.
“Is what true?” Ashley replied.
“That Peter and Stark are in a relationship? You guys were implying it in there, and you aren’t exactly good at being quiet.”
“I’m definitely gonna lose my job,” Dylan whispered, correcting his earlier statement.
“So it is true!” Eric, another employee, shouted.
Everybody started talking, the floor turning into a storm of chattering.
“We’re so fucked. We’re absolutely, completely, utterly fucked,” Ashley murmured, only loud enough so Dylan could hear, and the man only nodded in agreement.
The two slowly walked forwards, looking around at their gossiping coworkers as they made their way back to their desk. They looked completely horrified, and guilt was quickly eating away at Dylan.
Before they could sit down, the elevator doors opened and Jenna walked out with Tony and Peter in tow. Everybody stopped, staring at the three of them. Peter looked nervous and tears were glistening in his eyes, but Tony just looked furious, his expression mirroring Jenna’s.
“Okay, which of you knows?” Tony asked the room, his voice deadly calm. He didn’t yell or scream, but that steady tone was almost worse than him blowing up at them.
One employee raised their hand, and everybody else followed, the last people to put their hands up being Ashley and Dylan.
“All of you, go to the auditorium. Now. All the other employees will meet you there. Do not say a word of this to them before I get there to talk to them about it. Do I make myself clear?” 
If looks could kill, all of the R&D employees, minus Jenna, would be dead. All of them mumbled their confirmations or nodded and slowly shuffled off to the elevators, heading to the auditorium floor.
Ashley and Dylan had fallen into the back of the crowd and were the last to get onto an elevator, meaning they could see the floor before the door closed. The two watched as Tony turned back to Peter and Jenna, who were looking regretful and heartbroken respectfully. The last thing they saw before the elevator started moving was Peter beginning to cry and burying his face in Tony’s shoulder as the man embraced him and Jenna putting a comforting hand on his back.
By the time the R&D employees reached the auditorium and began to make their way into the seats, other employees were either already there or just getting there. There was chatter, a mix of people confused why they had been called there and those who knew praying that they wouldn’t be fired. The chatter seemed to die down a bit as everybody was seated, all of them waiting in anticipation for whatever was going to happen.
After a few minutes, the doors of one of the entrances to the auditorium, which had been closed, slammed open. Everybody turned, though plenty of them couldn’t see the doors, and watched as Tony Stark stormed down the aisle towards the stage, Jenna Locke behind him and looking slightly less, but still plenty, furious. The two made their way up the three stairs that led up to the stage.
All the employees gazed up at the two standing center stage, and they were glaring back at them with serious faces. After a moment of silence, Tony finally spoke.
“I’m sure the majority of you are wondering why I called everybody to the auditorium. Today, somebody found out something that they shouldn’t have about my private life and, instead of coming and talking to me about it in order to keep it confidential, they went and told somebody, and those people’s department overheard. That person who found out and told will be fired and the person who was first told and was complicit in revealing information about my life will be put on probation.”
In the back of the auditorium, Dylan and Ashley sank down in their seats.
“You may also be wondering why I have one of your coworkers up here with me today. If you weren’t already aware, this is Jenna Locke.”
Jenna gave the audience a curt nod.
“Jenna also found out about this information a couple months ago. Instead of telling anybody, she talked to us and promised to keep it to herself, and she has kept that promise. She was also the one who told me about the information leak.”
The employees, minus the R&D department, were on the edge of their seats, eager to find out the information but scared of their boss and what he could do to them if things got out.
“Seeing as nothing can seem to stay a secret here, I have elected to talk to you all about it. Keep in mind that what happened in terms of this information being revealed was a serious breach of confidentiality and disrespected not just my own privacy. Take this as a warning. If any of you are to tell anybody outside of this company about this, your employment will be terminated and my legal team will sue you to kingdom come. This is not a three strikes you’re out situation. Do not tell a soul about this. Keep in mind the fact that you all signed non-disclosure agreements when you took this job. This counts as a company secret, and you will treat it as one.”
Everybody seemed to nod or give a murmur of confirmation. It wasn’t much, but it appeared to satisfy the man.
“Moving on, I’m sure you’ve all either seen or heard about Peter. Only a select few of you know who he is, though without his consent, and others have seen us interact but never known who we are to each other. This information about our private lives was discovered and we have no choice but to let you all know in fear of rumors and gossip being spread around and taken outside the company. Everybody, please meet my fiancé, Peter Parker.”
The room was shocked into silence, the only sound being the clacking of Peter’s shoes as he softly walked out from the wings and to Tony’s side. None of the employees uttered even a sound as they looked up at the boy, whose eyes were still slightly red and puffy from when he had cried only ten minutes earlier.
“Hey, everybody. I’m Peter. You’ve all probably seen me around,” the young man introduced himself, voice only loud enough to hear. “Like Tony said, we weren’t planning on telling people yet, but we don’t get that choice anymore.”
They were still silent.
“Since this will be your only chance to do so, we’ll be answering questions about this,” Peter continued. Nobody spoke, until one person in the third row raised their hand and the young man motioned to them. “Yes, go ahead.”
“How, uh, how old are you?” the woman asked quietly, looking slightly concerned.
Peter sighed as Tony looked to him with a humorous smile.
“Don’t you fucking dare,” he told the billionaire, who didn’t have a chance to respond before Jenna started laughing a bit. “You too?! I can’t believe you would betray me like this! This happens every fucking time!”
The employee who asked furrowed her eyebrows, seemingly mirroring the confusion of the rest of the audience.
“I’m twenty-one,” Peter told her. “Tony likes to make fun of me because I look like I’m not old enough to drive. Jenna’s laughing because she asked the same question when she found out.”
The woman nodded along with the explanation and everybody went silent again before another person raised their hand and Peter pointed to them.
+++
Eight Months Later
“And this is your team!” Kelsey told the new employees excitedly. “Meet Jenna and Ashley! They’ve been here for a while and are definitely excited to show you the ropes!”
“It’s nice to meet you!” Jenna greeted. “What’s your name?”
“I’m River,” the new guy replied quietly, cheeks flushed.
“I’m glad to have you on the team, River!” Ashley exclaimed.
“I’ll leave you all to it!” Kelsey gave River one last smile and walked off to talk to some teams about their projects.
“We’re finishing up some last touches on the update to the prosthetics line,” Jenna explained to the new recruit as he sat down. He nodded along as she began to explain the project.
Jenna was cut off by the elevator doors opening and Peter walking onto the floor.
“Excuse me for a second,” the woman told her team before jumping up and running over to the brunet.
“Who’s that?” River asked Ashely as he watched Jenna excitedly embrace the man and begin to talk to him.
“Have you signed all your NDAs?”
River nodded.
“Peter!” Ashely called. “Come meet the new kid!”
Peter bounded over eagerly, a large smile on his face as he approached the two employees, Jenna trailing him.
“Uh, hi, I’m River.”
“Nice to meet you, River! I’m Peter Parker. It’s always great to see new faces around here!”
“It’s great to be here,” he replied awkwardly.
Peter nodded and was off again, going around to teams and helping with projects, but, more importantly, just talking to the employees in general.
“Is he a director or something? Everybody seems to know him,” River questioned his team.
“He’s even better than a director,” Ashley told him with a grin. “He’s Tony’s Stark’s fiancé.”
Shock painted itself across River’s face.
“There’s no way that’s real!”
Ashley and Jenna glanced at each other before turning back to River. They didn’t say anything else to him, which was unnerving to the new employee.
As if on cue, the elevator doors opened once more and the Tony Stark walked out, a small smile adorning his face. Peter worked up from where he was helping a team and flitted over to the man happily. The two shared a short kiss before Peter turned back a bit.
“We still on for lunch on Friday, Jenna?”
“Of course!”
Peter shot her a smile and the couple entered the elevator, talking quietly as they disappeared behind the metal doors.
“Okay, so maybe it is real.”
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@darkerstarker @dim-ships-johnlock @haylove5
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kyber-crystal · 4 years
Text
Set Up
Pairing: Steve Rogers x Reader
Words: ~3.3k
Summary: In which the Avengers are relentless in their attempts to get you and Steve together. If this means going great lengths such as sending you off on a mission-disguised romantic getaway to make you realize your feelings for one another, they’ll seize the chance at the very moment it’s presented to them.
Warnings: None. Just tooth-rotting fluff bc I’ve really been needing it ahaha
A/N: Set in an AU 2017 timeline in which they reunite a year after the whole Accords situation so that everyone’s happy :)
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"Rogers. Parasite. Stop watching Brooklyn Nine-Nine and get up, you need to get to the meeting room ASAP," Tony stated.
"Says the one who leeches off my granola bar supply," you grumbled as you shot him a death glare. "You've been doing this to me since I was a toddler. A helpless, two-year old against a 16 year-old demon always hungry for everyone's food but his own."
"Still holding the Full House cereal incident against me? Geez, woman, do you ever release your grudges against anyone," he sighed, rolling his eyes. "Now come on, let's go."
Exchanging a confused look with Steve, you stood up and followed Tony down the hallway to the meeting room, where Fury was with the rest of the team, waiting.
"Captain Rogers, Agent Y/N," Fury nodded curtly. "I presume you know what's going on?"
"No, sir."
"I need you two to track down a group of mercenaries in downtown Tokyo. You'll be flown out commercially so you can maintain a low profile. The whole process should take no longer than ten days," he explained as Natasha handed him the printed out flight details. "Further information will be given to you upon arrival."
"If it's just the two of us, then why is everyone here?" you pointed out.
"Barton and Maximoff will be checking in with you regularly; and if backup is necessary, I will fly one of them out to meet you. If you don't have any more questions, this meeting is now dismissed. You'll be departing late tonight so if I were you, I'd get to packing right about now."
...
Soon enough you were all packed and ready to go. Because you were too lazy to reach back into your suitcase and grab a sweatshirt, you took Steve's Dodgers hoodie and slipped it on, along with a pair of your favorite sweatpants.
"See you in ten days, okay?" Natasha pulled you in for a tight hug. "Make sure to keep Rogers company, it's a long flight. This is also the perfect opportunity to grow closer...literally."
"Oh shut up, Nat," you scoffed. "We're not...you know."
"Sure you aren't."
"Tony, why don't you get some good rest for once," you turned to your brother, "alright?"
"As long as you admit you're in love with Capsicle," he whispered into your ear.
"I can't admit what's not true."
"Yeah yeah, I can't understand bullshit."
"Tony."
"Y/N," he mocked. "Anyway. Have a safe trip, don't die, yada yada yada."
"Yeah yeah, got it."
A few more rounds of goodbyes later, you and Steve were in the elevator with your luggage, heading down to where Phil was waiting to drive you to the airport.
Your flight was scheduled to take off at 1:45 in the morning, and it was close to 11 p.m when you arrived.
"Your tickets, please," the lady asked as you were about to board the plane. You took them out from your purse and handed them over to her. "Thank you."
"How long's the flight again?"
"Uh...about 14 hours. Pretty long," you replied, as you walked down the aisles, looking at the overhead letters for your seat. "24A, 24B...there we go. Wait, have you been to Japan before?"
"No, I haven't."
"You're gonna love it. They have the best, I tell you, best ramen, and curry, hands down. When Nat, Wanda, and I went on our girls' vacation last spring we wouldn't stop eating for two days straight. I know we're tracking down cold-blooded killers and all, but, it won't hurt to let loose a little, you know?"
"Yeah, definitely," Steve couldn't help but smile at how happy you looked while speaking. "You gotta be our tour guide. I'm trusting you'll lead us to the best ramen hotspots?"
"Oh yeah, I will."
After putting your things into the overhead bins, you settled into your seats. The armrest between you could be lifted convert the seats into a double bed, you quickly found out.
Shortly after taking off you felt yourself grow rather tired. Noticing your sleepiness, Steve raised the armrest and pressed the button to make the seats recline backwards, your head immediately falling against his broad chest. He smiled again, brushing stray hairs away from your forehead before pulling the blanket over your bodies and falling asleep as well.
Little did either one of you know, you were being sent off to Japan for a completely different reason that had absolutely nothing to deal with tracking down mercenaries.
...
The smell of food wakes you up several hours later. You stretched your arms up and ran a hand through your hair as you sat up, adjusting your neck pillow.
"Hey uh, how long were we out for?" you asked, voice still thick with sleep. Steve was already awake, in the middle of watching a movie on his TV.
"4 hours. You knocked out for 5. It's time for lunch...or dinner?"
You tapped your screen a few times to pull up the map of your flight's route. "Right now it's 7:30 p.m. in Tokyo. We're arriving at 4:45 in the morning, so I'd say dinner."
"You sleep okay?"
"Hm? Yeah," you yawned, rubbing your eyes and adjusting the sleeves of Steve's hoodie. "You make a good pillow."
"No problem," he chuckled. You then turned to the flight attendant, who handed you your meals.
"Fancy," you nodded in approval as you passed Steve's tray over to him. "First class sure has its perks...oh yes, miso soup."
You binged your way through several episodes of Pretty Little Liars, I Love Lucy, and Star Wars: A New Hope together. Afterwards, you purchased Wi-Fi so you could update the team on your status.
CHATROOM - AVENGERS ASSEMBLE
Natasha: Morning, lovebirds. You guys in the air already?
You: Yeah, we're eating dinner right now. What time is it back home?
Tony: 6:45 a.m. Pulled an all-nighter binge-watching The Office.
Bucky: Totally worth losing an entire night's worth of good sleep.
Y/N: But I still don't get why we couldn't take the Quinjet?
Steve: ^
Rhodey: Do we tell them now, or wait until they land in Haneda?
Wanda: I'd say now.
Pietro: NO NO NO MAKE IT A SURPRISE
Steve: ...What's going on?
Tony: There's no mission.
Y/N: Wait, what? Then what are we going to Tokyo for?
Tony: I purchased a romantic ten-day vacation package so that you two will hopefully realize your feelings for each other along the way. Thank me later.
Y/N: SCREW YOU
Tony: Enjoy eating all the ramen you want!
Natasha: We're so good at matchmaking.
Thor: May I suggest a virtual high-five?
Peter: VIRTUAL HIGH-FIVE :))
Thor: :))
Y/N has left the chat.
Steve has left the chat.
Tony: They're gonna thank me when they see the penthouse I bought.
Tony has left the chat.
"Well, guess we're going on vacation. At least there's more opportunities to eating good food," Steve shrugged.
"Yup." You felt your heartbeat pick up speed at the thought of being alone with him, for ten days, in a country that was considered both futuristic and romantic at the same time. "Plenty of time to eat ramen and sushi."
Deep down, he was glad that there wasn't any mission. And so were you.
You took an hour-long catnap before waking up again and playing a few rounds of Uno with him, then stayed up for the rest of the flight. You both knew you'd regret doing so because of the 13-hour time difference between NYC and Tokyo, but you were too excited to care at that moment.
You were dazed and still slightly tired when you disembarked the aircraft, so you didn't have any energy to question how you and Steve ended up with your fingers intertwined. Besides, you liked the way it felt.
At close to 5 in the morning, Haneda International was relatively quiet and not too busy, so immigration didn't take long. You didn't have to worry about being bombarded by fans, aside from the occasional foreign fan recognizing you two and asking for a quick autograph or picture.
Since you wanted to explore the airport a bit before taking the train downtown, you looked around at the various shops.
Being a former spy alongside Natasha before joining the Avengers, you were fluent in multiple languages, including Japanese, Russian, French, Spanish, and German. And despite having developed the habit of always preparing for what was to come, you were completely shocked hearing a perfect Japanese sentence roll out of Steve's mouth as he spoke to the cashier.
You practically swooned at how smooth his voice sounded.
"Kore wa ikuradesu ka?" He gestured to one of the kokeshi dolls on display dressed in a sapphire colored kimono with cherry blossom embroidery. (How much is this?)
"3500 yen," the lady replied, "Hatsubai-chū, 3000. Kōnyū shimasu ka?" (On sale, 3000. Would you like to buy it?)
"Hai, kōnyū shimasu." (Yes, I'd like to buy it.)
"Kanojo no tame ni?" (For her?)
"Hai." (Yes.)
She nodded, and Steve handed over several folded bills from his wallet after she finished bagging the item.
"Arigato, gokigen'yō," he thanked her. (Thank you, have a nice day)
"Anata modesu," she smiled warmly. (You too)
"Holy crap, you didn't tell me you were fluent in Japanese, Rogers," you gaped as you walked out of the store together. "When did you have the time to learn it?"
"Back during the Pearl Harbor bombing, Buck and I were sent off with the 107th to Hawaii. Figured it'd be useful if we learned a few phrases."
"Few?" you raised an eyebrow at him. "What you just did back there, that was not just a few phrases! That was fluency!"
"What can I say, I pick up on language quickly," he grinned, rubbing the back of his neck. He then handed you the bag with the doll inside. "Here, for you."
"You didn't have to—"
"Consider it my thank-you in advance for taking me to a good eatery," Steve explained.
After grabbing a quick breakfast of coffee and pastries, you took the elevator down to the train station.
You let out a sigh as you sat down, the cool air inside the train loosening the tension in your shoulders a bit. A short fifteen minutes later and you were back in one of your favorite cities in the world.
Steve took a picture of you as you were distracted from looking all around at the skyscrapers and people milling around, face lit up by all the bright and colorful signs, sending it to the chat.
Steve: Just arrived downtown. Got out of the airport half an hour ago.
Tony: Honeymooning Avengers, how cute
Sam: That's hot.
Steve: What time is it over there?
Wanda: We just finished eating lunch. You?
Steve: 7. Going to check into the penthouse. Talk to you guys later.
Wanda: Alright.
Sam: Have fun, lovebirdssssss
Steve has left the chat.
"So," he breathed out as he slipped his hand back into yours and you exited the station, "you ready to go check out where we're staying?"
"Yeah, definitely. You wanna take the subway again, or a taxi?"
"Subway. Actually..taxi. You sound nice when you speak in a foreign language."
"That's the only reason why you want to take a taxi?"
"Yeah, obviously," you scoffed. "I mean, why else?"
"Alright, if you insist," the super-soldier laughed.
A few minutes later, you'd called a taxi over and climbed into the backseat, strapping your seatbelts on.
"Ohayögozaimasu," (Good morning) the man greeted. "Ogenkidesuka?" (How are you) "Īdesu, anata wa?" Steve replied. (Good, and you?)
"Watashi mo jōzudesu. Doko ni ikitai?" (I am good, too. Where would you like to go?)
You looked at your phone, reading out the address of Tony's penthouse to the driver.
A few minutes passed in silence before he spoke up again. "Watashia wa anata-tachi o shitte imasu. Anata wa abenjãzudesu," the driver smiled, glancing at you two from the rearview mirror. (I know you two. You're the Avengers)
"Watashitachidesu," he returned his friendly grin. (We are!)
"Tōkyō ni kuru kikkake wa nanidesu ka?" (What made you come to Tokyo?)
"Chōdo kyūka no tame." (Just for vacation.)
"Nokori no taizai o o tanoshimi kudasai," he said as you were getting out of the car after paying. "Sayonara."
"Sayonara," you and Steve responded before closing the car door behind you.
"Wow," your jaw dropped as you took the elevator up, arriving at the top floor. "Tony actually bought...this...place?"
"Apparently," Steve shrugged, "we could come back and forth between here and the compound as often as we wanted."
The penthouse had a nice, dark aesthetic feel to it, with giant panoramic views of the entirety of Tokyo and modern furniture and spots of dimmed white lights in the ceiling to give off a relaxed vibe.
After unloading your things, you sat down at the giant couch together and decided to plan out the rest of your day.
"When CoCo Curry opens at 11, we can go eat there," you explained as you typed up the plan in a new note. "Tony also snagged us tickets to Tokyo Tower at 3 p.m, so we have a few hours to spare after lunch."
"We can explore the gardens,"  he suggested. "I know you love doing that. There's a botanical garden in Shinjuku we can go to."
"Oh, that one! I didn't have the chance to go last time, so that's perfect," you added 'Shinjuku Gardens' to your list.
Soon enough you had your entire day planned out, and were ready to head out once again.
CoCo Curry was a quaint, little restaurant that hit you with a wave of tantalizing scents as soon as you walked through the doors and sat down at the bar-style seating area where you could watch the chefs cook your food.
"Gonichiwa," you greeted the chef standing behind the counter.
"Gonichiwa," he smiled back. He asked for your orders, and since Steve wasn't sure what to get you had two orders of your favorite dish.
Besides another couple sitting a few seats away, the restaurant was empty so you got your food in under ten minutes. The steaming hot plates of curry rice were set in front of you, and you felt your mouth water as you inhaled the rich aroma.
"This is so good," Steve spoke in between bites. "I'm literally in love."
"Told you I knew my stuff."
You eventually finished eating, and after getting into a small argument with Steve over who would pay (He ended up winning). "It's payback for ordering me good eats," he explained.
"You said that when you bought me the kokeshi doll," you pointed out.
"Still."
This time you decided to go by foot instead of taking the taxi, as the gardens were only a half-hour or so walk from where you were.
"Right in the middle of cherry blossom season," you sighed as the sweet smell of cherries drifted through the air. "Perfect timing."
You walked around the entire place, stopping every so often to admire the various colorful plants or look up at the pastel pink cherry blossom trees, gravel crunching underfoot with each step you took.
The mid-April breeze lightly fanned your hair around your shoulders. Birds chirped out a delightful melody, flying around the cornflower-blue sky. It wasn't too hot or too cold, and that was one of the many things you loved about visiting Asia during the springtime; the weather was bearable, compared to New York City's below-freezing temperatures in winter. You vividly remembered visiting the botanical gardens in upstate New York on a school trip once, and from then on you'd grown attached.
In the centre of the garden was a large lake with flowering lily pads and on the other side of the bank stood a quaint little temple, with a wooden bridge across the middle so visitors could cross over and look at the koi below.
"It's beautiful here," Steve commented as you made your way down the sidewalk, "I wish they had places like this back home."
"Yeah it is, isn't it," you breathed out, unable to tear your eyes away from the lovely sights. "I could do this all day."
"Hey, that's my line," he joked. You chuckled quietly, slipping your hand into his. He laced your fingers together in response, and you felt the butterflies flutter around in your stomach again the longer he held on, and those butterflies turned into hummingbirds as you looked up to meet his piercing gaze.
You're not sure how long you stay like that, gazing into each others' eyes, but it's only when a little girl stops and asks to take a picture that you pull away.
"Captain America and Agent Y/N!" Judging by her looks, she seemed like she came from the US as well. "Can I get a picture with you guys?"
"Of course, sweetie," you smiled. You brushed off the weird feeling you got when your skin made contact with Steve's, and gestured for her to come closer.
Steve scooped the girl up into his arms as she held your hand, and the mother snapped a few quick pictures before he let her back down.
"Thank you!" she exclaimed before skipping away.
At 2:20 you decided to leave and head out to the Tokyo Tower early so you would be avoiding any possible long lines. You were up at the observation deck within twenty minutes.
"This is just....wow," you breathed out, in awe of the breathtaking view you got as you stared out the panoramic windows, the reflective walls casting thin rays of light onto your faces.
If you thought the view from your penthouse was nice, this was a hundred times better. You had almost nothing preventing you from being able to see the entire city in all directions. The sun was hanging high in the sky, the skyscrapers piercing the horizon like pins and needles.
Steve couldn't help but let his gaze linger on you, the way your face brightened up at the sight of Tokyo's stunning view, the way you laughed and smiled more than you ever did back home. It was a rare sight, and he wished he could see you in this state more often. Oh, the things he'd do to keep hearing your musical laugh and million-dollar smile.
...
The next day was jam-packed with activities. You took a two hour train ride down south to Osaka, exploring the cup noodles museum, shopping downtown in Dotonbori, and stuffing yourself with delicious pastries along the way. Before you headed back, you decided to stock up on groceries at the local market. 
You fell asleep almost as soon as your head hit the pillow that night, waking up to somehow finding yourself in Steve’s arms. You both woke up at the same time, confused as to how you had gotten yourselves into this position, but were too embarrassed and tired to ask. 
This time, you decided to stay within Tokyo, immersing yourselves in going to as many districts as you could and doing as much as possible. 
After a long day exploring the city, you were rather exhausted. With a cup of freshly brewed matcha in hand, you stayed quiet for a while as you soaked in the scenery, watching the city come alive late at night.
When Steve woke up from his nap a few hours later, he found you standing by the window. Smiling to himself, he got up, approaching you and wrapping his arms around your waist from behind, resting his chin atop your head.
"Hi," you greeted, setting your mug down on the coffee table besides you.
"Hey," he murmured into your ear. You closed your eyes and hummed quietly in response, letting your bodies rock back and forth to the rhythm of your steady heartbeats together.
"Watashi wa, anata o aishiteimasu," (I love you.)
A small smile tugged at the corners of your lips. "Watashi mo anata o aishitemasu, Cap." (I love you too, Cap.)
You stepped away so you could turn around to face him, and he pulled you back towards him and pressed his lips to yours.
He couldn't help but smile into the kiss, pulling you closer against him.
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yamithediaperdork · 3 years
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Busted, but it’s ok pt 1 (Powerpack story)
If there was anything better then getting the house to yourself on a Friday afternoon, Alex Powers didn't wanna know about it. with it being the summer Julie had taken Katie out for a girl's day, and Jack was hanging out with Franklin Richards over that Baxter building after his morning summer classes. Toss in Mom and Dad still at work and it meant that from 1pm till 5, Alex had the run of the house and was free to do whatever he wanted, after he did his chores. This worked out well for Alex as it went semi hand in hand with what he was planning on doing today anyways, mainly indulge in his love of being a widdle sissy baby. Humming a nursery theme as he stripped, Alex then tugged out a lock box from under his bed and noted with amusement that Jack had been trying to get into it again from the way the combo's were all messed up. "Heh, he'll never learn will he?" he giggled to himself. the lock box was a gift from Mister Parker, who had also included a DNA scan so that Jack could maybe get the numbers right, but if it wasn't Alex thumbing them in, it was useless. Clicking the box open, the young blond sissy rubbed his chin for a second, thinking over his choices. He didn't wanna use the locking panties he had today, there had been a super close call the last time and he'd had to pin himself to the roof for half a hour waiting for his dad to leave so he could go and get the key. The bonnet was also out, while it helped him look cute and he liked it, it was WAY too warm when he was doing chores and he ended up sweating like a pig. In the end he went with a light pink top with puffy shoulders that had a white lace trim on the bottom and on the sleeve, leaving his arms mostly bare for doing dishes and 3 of his princess diapers, noting that he was starting to get low and would have to get Mister Parker to order him some more. (Peter had found out about Alex's little fetish by mistake and had calmed the bawling boy down by offering to help him with it, as long as he was safe and private about it, hence the lock box.) Since he was planing on wetting himself Alex made sure to use a razor and slit slots in two of the diapers then after powdering himself up, he taped them on, making sure that the uncut diaper was on the outside. as a few finishing touches Alex took out a pink pacifier that was on a cord and put it around his neck, and then fished out a purple hair bow and clipped it in his hair before waddling over to the mirror to look at himself, mentally gushing over how bulky his diapies were. "mothers, lock up your sons~" He giggled as he posed in the mirror, striking a few poses and blowing a kiss to himself. He didn't really think about boys a lot despite what he had just said, but the outfit and the diapers had him being a little bit of a silly butt. Half prancing and half waddling, he set upon the first chore of the day, getting all the landry gathered up and starting a load, though he did pause long enough to grab his MP3 player and hooked it on his top, putting the headphones in and turning up the volume.
Jack and Franklin had been having fun, playing around the Baxter building for a hour before they MAYBE let a game of tag get a little bit carried away. Sure technically Mr.Richards lab was off limits but as jack tried to argue, boys will be boys, and he should get a better lock for the door if he wanted to keep them out. That was the argument that Jack had made for the pair, even as Franklin face palmed, apparently knowing it wasn't going to work. "And besides, it's not like that negative zone monster did THAT much damage, you and Mrs. Richards took it down with ease!" Jack finished up. "..I think you need to go home Jack." Was all the seething Reed had said, taking in the wreckage of his lab. "Well about that, my dad isn't suppose to pick me up till fiveish and sooo I'm gonna need a ride ho-" Jack started before Reed yelled at him to leave now. "I'm sorry about this, he gets really cranky about his lab getting wreaked despite it happening ALL the time." Franklin said, walking Jack out of the building. "If Uncle Ben or Johnny were home they'd drive you..as is Mom's gonna be working over time to keep my butt safe." "Eh, it's ok. I'll just remember this the next time he need the help for me." Jack said, all full of swagger. "...when exactly has he ever-" Franklin started to ask, but got cut off. "There's a first time for everything! anyways, good luck dealing with mister grumpy pants. I've got a ton of stupid homework to do anyways, gonna see if I can trick Alex into doing it for me again." Jack said and waved bye. Jack walked the first few blocks on foot, then when he was sure no was was looking he ducked into a alley and used his powers to lighten his mass and fly up into the air, deciding to take the quick way home. 'on the plus side, at least I know Alex will be doing all the chores, He always does when he's left alone, he's gonna make someone a good wife someday' Jack thought and laughed to himself, not knowing how close to the truth he might of been.
With the landry in the dryer, Alex had managed to tidy up his and jack's room, and then Julie and Katie's, taking the time to play with a few of her princess crowns before putting them back. He toyed with cleaning the living room and leaving the curtains open, always a little thrilling but decided to get the chore he least liked finally out of the way and headed for the kitchen inside to get the pile of dishes out of the way. It wasn't hard to tell this was Jack's chore normally as the pile had built up with Jack claiming they needed to 'soak' over and over. 'oh well, at least I'm coming up on the Abra block for my playlist.' Alex thought, starting the water and sorting the dishes out into piles.
Jack landed down in the back yard, no one noticing because of the tree line and resumed his normal mass. "heh, I think I'm getting faster!" he said to himself as he headed for the back door, opening it and walking in. he was about to announce that he was home when he heard a girly voice badly singing a old song and winced. No two ways about it, Alex was cleaning and had reached his Abra section of his play list. "Somebody needs to tell that boy he can NOT sing." Jack said, covering his ears. He almost let Alex just keep singing, it was clear he was in the kitchen and thus likely doing the dishes for Jack and he wasn't the type to look a gift horse in the mouth. Then Alex;s voice broke  and he squeaked out the next line and Jack decided it would almost be worth having to finish his own chore if it meant not having to listen to THAT anymore. Coming around the corner and looking into the Kitchen, he was about to shout and get his brothers attention, when he noticed just WHAT Alex was wearing. the sissy top would of been enough to make Jack laugh, but the massive pink and purple diapers really sold it, and really not helping things was the way Alex was shaking his butt back and forth. "You can dance, You can jive, Having the time of your life!" Alex was singing, eyes closed and holding a wooden mixing spoon up like it was a microphone. it would be till he was almost finished the main chorus that he'd opened his eyes. "Ooh, see that girl, Watch that scene, Digging the dancing qu- JACK!" Alex squeaked out. Jack of course couldn't let something like this go by and while the sissy had been singing, eyes closed, and turning around, he'd taken his cell phone out and had started to record. "T-Tell me your not taking pictures!" Alex whimpered, turning crimson in the face and dropping the spoon, tugging uselessly on the hem of his top, in a vain effort to cover the diapers. "Good news. I'm not." jack said, and Alex started to relax. "I'm making a video. wave hi to YouTube." in the silence that followed as Alex let out a soundless shriek, a hissing could be heard as the little sissy wet himself.
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And the Land is Dark
Pairing: Peter Parker/Tony Stark (Starker) Rating: Mature (M)  Notes: This is my fic for @twokinkybeans‘s Jar of Dirt challenge. The kink was outdoor sex - so we got camping and nakedness!  Warnings: outdoor sex, NSFW stuff, & the inevitable softness that comes with my work. Summary: 
Tony and Peter alternate picking vacation destinations for the summer & it’s Peter’s turn. When he brought up camping, Tony had his reservations. It turns out that fresh air and Peter Parker are the perfect combination. 
Read it on AO3 here
The most important thing for Tony in his relationship with Peter, was equality.
When they first met on MIT’s campus, Tony had no idea that Peter worked in his R&D department – it’d been a long time since he graced the actual Stark Industries building and couldn’t have possibly known the well-rounded, extremely attractive man worked FOR him.
They were in one of the alumni buildings, gathered with the last 30 years’ worth of MIT graduates celebrating something or another. The conversation didn’t veer close to anything professional – everyone knew what Tony did; breaching the topic only led to shop talk that he didn’t want to stomach more than absolutely necessary.
Finding out that Peter got his checks from his company didn’t change anything between them – it simply made Tony much more conscious of the power imbalance that could easily be made into an issue (and not necessarily from Peter himself). The age gap between them didn’t make him bat an eye, Tony preferred the men he dated to be somewhat younger. For both of their sakes, Tony made Peter’s desires to be independent his first priority.
That included, much to his dismay, vacation picking duties. Over the past 3 years they’d been together, Tony and Peter alternated who picked the destinations for the entirety of the summer. It was one of the only times of the year Tony didn’t have many obligations – he could carelessly spend it with Peter without feeling an ounce of guilt. He simply wished this was his year to pick.
Peter brought up the idea of taking a camping trip to start off their extended vacation around March. He showed Tony pictures of the Great Smoky Mountains for a few weeks before he finally told Peter he was game and would love camping in a secluded site on the banks of one of the streams running through the trail. Tony loved to camp and did a ton of it after he graduated from college and tried to sow his wild oats.
It quickly became apparent that Peter had never gone, however. Peter walked into REI with a determined grin that immediately turned panicked. His eyes got comically wide – Tony picking up on the overwhelmed feeling almost instantly. “It’s alright, Pete. We’ll start with the simple stuff and go from there. I’ve got your back,” Tony said softly, his arm wrapping around wide shoulders that were pinched together tightly. “Sleeping bags first.”
The rest of the adventure around the outdoor store was filled with Tony giving Peter a rundown on all of the different equipment while they picked it out. They settled for two huge sleeping bags, a 6-person tent, some campfire cooking utensils and a stove, and the little trinkets that Tony convinced them both they needed (because who didn’t need a waterproof match container?) Footing the bill didn’t feel bad at all, the smile on Peter’s face was more than worth it.
To really enjoy the camping experience, Peter convinced him that driving would be the best way to get to their mountain excursion – so, he talked Happy into letting him drive the man’s SUV in exchange for a couple extra weeks of vacation for him and Pepper. It was the easiest deal he ever made – but, Happy didn’t need to know that. They packed and repacked the car way more times than necessary before Peter deemed them ready to set out on the 12-hour drive.
Tony took the first driving shift; they set off around 3 in the morning to make the most out of the empty roads and lack of traffic. The espresso Peter made him before they left kept him wired for 5 hours straight – they watched the sun come up and sang to the playlist Peter put together when their StarkPhones actually got reception.
Peter took over after the second bathroom stop – Tony filled up the car and their coffee cups before they set out again. This time, the music stayed off; Tony put on his reading glasses and pulled out Fire & Blood, the book he’d been reading to Peter every night before they passed out for the last couple of weeks. It seemed juvenile, but it was soothing for them both. The story was compelling and got them through another big chunk of the drive.
Their next pit stop took a while. The closer they got to the mountains and the park they were staying in, the narrower the selection on food stops and grocery stores became. Tony caught Peter eyeing the McDonald’s they passed when they took the exit, which just so happened to be located right across the way from a local supermarket. The big coolers they got during their shopping adventure were empty and waiting to be filled with junk food meant to sustain 2 grown men for three days.
The sheer amount of packaged chips and cookies Tony watched Peter put into the cart made him laugh, his boyfriend at 26 still ate like a 10-year-old. The idea of letting go of the reins of his diet for the next few days quickly became a reality with every new and intriguing sweet Peter claimed tasted amazing. The plan was to hike around and enjoy the surroundings, anyway – that would require extra sustenance.
Getting the supplies situated and binging on McDonald’s took them another hour, both of them more than satisfied when they got back on the road to finish off the drive and finally get to their destination. As Tony drove, he talked about some of his own camping trips – the two of them laughing when he described the poison ivy he’d accidentally wiped his ass with. The view got better the closer they got and by the time they were pulling in to claim their camping spot, the sky was lit with a gorgeous sun surrounded by the most beautiful clouds.
A look of wonder passed across Peter’s face the further into the park they got. For the first time since Peter planned the trip, Tony realized that this was probably Peter’s first time ever seeing anything like this. Queens didn’t have a good view of the sky most of the time, let alone beautiful mountain passes and cotton-ball clouds. Reaching across the center console, Tony gripped Peter’s hand tightly. They shared a smile before Peter turned his attention back to the view out the window.
As far as first days went, Tony didn’t have anything to complain about. Watching Peter attempt to put the tent up before realizing that a single pull would do it provided entertainment Tony didn’t count on. The rosiness of Peter’s cheeks when he caught Tony looking at him making it even better. “You knew how easy that was, didn’t you?” Peter questioned, affection and annoyance battling for dominance on his face.
“I sure did. I thought it would be better to let you figure it out. How are you going to learn if I do everything for you?” Tony looked at him pointedly, the man more than familiar with the fact that Peter put learning and knowledge above all else. The eye roll he got was totally fair, and all the more adorable because of it.
They unpacked the campfire stove and all the accessories for it and put them into the tent – Tony could tell that Peter was already ready to start exploring. After getting changed, the pair set out for a long hike – they caught the sunset standing on a flat summit of the mountain closest to them. The best part of it all was the look of awe still clearly etched on Peter’s face – there were colors reflecting in his eyes that didn’t even exist in the confines of New York’s city limits.
Hand-in-hand, Tony used the last dredges of light to get them back to their campsite. Peter held the lantern for him while he started a fire when they got back – the idea of having warm food one they both were looking forward to becoming an actuality. He talked through the entire process as he did it – Peter listened carefully; his eyes wide as he watched every one of Tony’s movements carefully. When they eventually got the hot dogs on the skewers, Tony was exhausted and lulled into a relaxed state by the sound of Peter’s voice and the open quiet surrounding them.
Sleep came easy, Tony passed out on his back with Peter curled up against his side, and when they woke up the next morning, neither seemed to have moved at all throughout the night. Peter kissed him fully awake and promised a naked dip in the water after getting food in his belly. Tony worked his culinary magic and put together a pretty decent bacon and egg combination.
The rest of the day was spent walking along the water ways that connected to each other throughout the trail. Peter looked insanely adorable splashing through some of the deeper water. A couple of times, the waded into a stream that was not meant for humans to be in and Tony had to drag himself and the koala bear clinging to him out of the faster currents. It was one of the best days Tony could remember having in a while – sunburn and blisters on his feet included.
----
The next two days followed the same pattern – Peter picked out a spot he wanted to go explore and they spent all day doing so. Tony kept them fed and alive when Peter slipped and dislocated a finger – it seemed like a life or death situation in the moment, at least. It was a blast, soaking in the sun and simply enjoying being together. Their nights were spent curled up around the fire, both too exhausted to do much more than talk about the day’s adventure and exchange lazy kisses.
As the end of the trip creeped up on them, Peter finally let them be lazy. They drank beer and floated in the small stream in front of their campsite. Getting drunk before 1 in the afternoon was an absolute treat and led to the most exquisite nap under the tree they tied their hammock to. The past few days of excitement compounded and created a wave of fatigue that brought them under until the edges of the day were creeping in.
“Pete, wake up, baby. Let’s have some dinner and enjoy the stars one more time,” Tony mumbled sleepily, his eyes blinking awake only moments before. The sky was starting to turn that hazy pink and orange color – if they moved quick enough, they could eat their dinner under a crimson sky waiting eagerly to give way to clarity and brightness.
It took a few minutes for Peter to come around, Tony spending all of them peppering Peter’s skin with soft kisses and caressing the parts of him he could reach in their tangled-up position in the hammock. The sleep-lines on Peter’s face pulled a chuckle from Tony’s chest, his fingers tracing over them without hesitation. “Sleepy Pete is one of my favorites.” Giving him a quick kiss on the lips, Tony did his best not to kick Peter in the face as he climbed out of the ENO.
Hamburgers and beans by the fire as the sun set couldn’t be beat – Peter woke up with a ton of energy and obliterated all the food Tony put in front of him, a wide smile on his face while he did it. Completely satisfied, Tony relaxed into the chair that’d been his main source of back support for the past few days. Peter’s wandering hands landed in his lap a few minutes later, a familiar heat in his eyes.
“Want to sleep under the stars tonight?” Peter asked, his voice low, the timber of it an invitation for more than just sleeping under the night sky.
Without hesitation, Tony nodded his head, his fingers running down the length of Peter’s arm. “Sounds romantic,” he mumbled in response, the two of them sharing a soft laugh at the sarcasm that Tony couldn’t always help. Leaning over the arm of his chair, Tony invaded Peter’s space, his lips pressing against his boyfriend’s cheek. “The big sleeping bag right by the fire is probably our best bet.”
There wasn’t any rush in their movements. Peter climbed out of his chair a few minutes later and went about getting their trash into the big bag they’d been putting everything in. He would not so casually meet Tony’s eye overtop the fire, his smile getting sultrier as the seconds passed.
When Peter dragged the sleeping bag out and unzipped it, Tony couldn’t handle the waiting around anymore. He got up from his chair and took the handful of steps that separated him from the gorgeous man he got to call his own. Kicking off the moccasins he wore around their campsite, Tony grabbed Peter’s hand, pulling him down to the ground with him. Peter’s wide eyes had him laughing seconds before he pressed forward and captured slightly chapped lips in a warm kiss.
Despite it being June, the nights were a little chilly – so Tony took great care when stripping Peter down to nothing. Shoes came off first, then the first layer of shirts covering the naked skin of Peter’s chest. Tony took off a piece of his own clothing when something of Peter’s hit the ground. When they were shirtless and busy kissing each other breathless, Tony covered Peter with his upper body, the warmth between them more than enough to keep a chill at bay.
Tony took his time taking off Peter’s pants. His lips lingered on a delectably long neck; the skin still red from their time in the sun. Tracing his name with his tongue, Tony marked a path down, down, down until he was settling between the v of Peter’s legs. His fingers worked the button open, Tony blowing a warm gust of air against the front of bright blue boxer-briefs as the zipper of tight jeans came down. The bulge pressing up against the tight fabric pulsed, Peter obviously very interested in what was about to happen.
Bypassing the area Peter wanted him to touch the most, Tony continued his journey to get Peter completely naked. Slim hips came up off the ground when he started to peel the jeans down Peter’s legs, the boxer briefs coming down with them. Tony ran just the tips of his fingers down the inside of spread thighs, the goosebumps pebbling across Peter’s skin a tangible reaction that never ceased to make Tony harder than a rock.
Too interested in Peter’s skin in the moonlight to worry about his own pants, Tony palmed Peter’s bare erection, the length pulsing into his touch. Groaning, he tightened his grip and started to slowly pump down to the base and back up again, his thumb swiping across the already leaking head. “You’re absolutely stunning like this,” Tony admitted, his eyes moving from the show his hand was making to Peter’s, the normal hazel a little darker, pupils completely overtaking most of the iris.
“You drive me crazy,” Peter moaned out, his bottom lip being pulled between his teeth as he tossed his head back.
Tony let his lips trail over the weepy head, his tongue poking out for a taste.
Fingers fisting into Tony’s hair had him taking more of Peter’s length in his mouth – his boyfriend groaning each time his lips tightened during the upstroke. Tony pressed the back of his head into Peter’s hand, the contact there spurring him on just as much as the cock sliding deeply into his throat. His own erection pressed messily against the seam of his pants, everything about Peter in that moment fanning the fire in his belly. Thrusting a hand down, Tony adjusted himself, a moan being choked out around the cock in his mouth.
Moving quickly, Tony got up onto his knees, his mouth still firmly working Peter’s cock over as he did. Shaky fingers got the button of his pants open, the immediate rush of relief pulling a groan from him again. Tony forced his eyes shut, his fingers pulling the zipper down and shoving his pants down just enough to free up his cock. Only then did he pull up and off Peter’s erection, his eyes finding the other’s while he shimmied the rest of the way out of the intrusive pieces of clothing.
Tony wrapped a hand around himself, a tight fist stroking up and down a few times just to relieve a bit of tension. “Fuck –“ he gasped out, Tony letting his chin drop to his chest. A huge gust of air left his mouth – it felt like physical pain, pulling his hand away from himself. Peter looked at him intensely, the tip of his pink tongue peeking out to wet his bottom lip. Unable to resist, Tony leaned over him, pressing their lips together briefly.
He didn’t allow himself too much time to luxuriate in the feel of Peter’s tongue against his own, though. His boyfriend was thrusting up against him, the sticky wetness of his cock dragging along the skin of Tony’s stomach. Settling into the gap of Peter’s thighs again, Tony used both hands to push his thighs further apart, everything deliciously on display for him.
Fingers of his right hand wrapped around the base of Peter’s cock, while Tony used his left hand to pull Peter’s ass cheeks apart. He let his tongue graze along the already fluttering hole, the move pulling a shout from the man above him. “Fuck – keep doing that,” Peter muttered mindlessly, the words broken apart by gasps and moans. Tony didn’t need to be told twice.
Redoubling his efforts, Tony gripped Peter tightly and let the pace of his hand match the swipes and thrusts of his tongue. Peter’s hands pawed at him uselessly, the hitch of his hips and the frequency of his breathing telling him just how close he actually was. “Cum for me, Pete.” Tony forced his head up, his lips and chin glossy from his own spit and the messy way he went down on Peter with abandon. It took a singular nod from Tony before Peter was coming, thick pearls of cum coating Tony’s fingers and the supple skin of Peter’s abdomen.
Tony didn’t give him any time to recover, he simply ran his fingers through the warm cum and used two of them to press against Peter’s entrance. They slipped in without much resistance – his tongue and the orgasm did a decent job relaxing Peter and his usually wound up body. He set a fast pace, the second Peter let him in, Tony was thrusting and pulling back with efficiency – doing just enough to make sure there wouldn’t be any pain.
Face red and cock pulsing, Tony replaced two fingers with three, his arm tired from the ruthless way he was simply taking. Peter didn’t seem to mind, though – his cock was already starting to harden against his stomach, the pulse of it making him clench around Tony’s fingers.
“I’m ready, I’m ready. Fuck me, Tony,” Peter’s words cut through whatever rational braincells were left. Tony pulled his fingers out and spat in his hand, the leftover cum and spit the perfect lubricant for a coupling like this – wild and carefree. He didn’t let his hand linger as he spread the fluids over his length, the mere touch made him want to explode. Tony had just enough left in the tank to heft Peter’s legs around his hips as he lined the tip of his cock against Peter’s hole and pressed forward, bringing them together as one.
His hands pressed into the sleeping bag up by Peter’s head, his fingers just shy of being able to play with the hair that haloed out. Bringing his bottom lip between his teeth, Tony went through the periodical table in his head to give Peter a second to adjust and to stave off the orgasm that was quickly approaching.
Peter took his own erection in his hand and started to stroke, the darkness in his eye reflecting the moon above perfectly. Pale skin seemed to glow in the depth of the darkness surrounding them, the hand Tony watched becoming iridescent the longer he stared. The movement was a nice distraction, but not enough to stop his hips from swiveling and pulling back, the press inside the only thing he wanted in that moment. Tony let his head hang between his shoulders, the force of his thrusts easier now that he wasn’t trying to hold himself up as much.
The clench around him drove him towards the edge before Tony could stop it from happening. Dropping down to his elbows, Tony trapped Peter’s hand between them to stop the rhythmic jerking over smooth skin. Each tug caused Peter’s hole to clamp down around him and it was pulling Tony to the precipice a lot quicker than he wanted. “You’re going to make me cum. You feel so fucking good,” Tony babbled, his nose moving over Peter’s cheek with every back and forth thrust.
Hands grabbed his face, Peter tugging until Tony shifted his attention to him. He couldn’t stop the roll of his hips, so he didn’t try – staving off obviously wasn’t going to happen. Peter looked at him with his mouth wide open and pupils blown, the sight of it almost enough to pull him over, the tantalizing squeeze and tug of their physicality be damned. Their lips brushed and for a moment, they shared panted breaths.
“Flip me over,” Peter mumbled when Tony tore away from the kiss, his heart pounding from the anaerobic thrusts of his hips and the astounding lack of oxygen. Clenching his eyes shut, Tony nodded. A miracle stopped his hips and allowed him to pull out – the two of them fumbling around for a minute before Tony was on his back and Peter was settling over him, his tight hole already surrounding Tony’s cock.
“Shit – I’m not going to last much longer, baby.” Tony looked up helplessly, his fingers wrapping around Peter’s hips tightly. “I’m so close – “
Peter smirked down at him, his hand wrapping around his cock before he started a ruthless pace with his hips. The strain of his rise and fall could be seen so plainly in the clench of heavily muscled thighs and the ripple of abs that were so warm and tight – it was fucking beautiful.
Throwing his head back, Tony felt the heat in his stomach hit the boiling point, his orgasm sweeping over him like wildfire. He planted his feet and thrust his hips up, the throbbing tip of his cock pressing against Peter’s prostate – the move enough to pull him right over the edge with Tony. A satisfied moan left Tony’s lips at the feeling of Peter’s cum coating his skin.
The brightness of the stars made Peter glow – the post-orgasmic haze swirled around his limbs, making him look like one of the stars in the sky himself. Smiling widely, Tony let his hands trail over the pale skin, the moonlight not conceding under his fingertips, no matter where he touched. In that instant, he knew he’d never be able to look at Peter the same – the ethereal nature surrounding him right now would forever be engrained in the back of his mind; Peter was beautiful all the time, but this took it to a new level.
Not able to stand the distance between them any longer, Tony wrapped his arms around Peter’s middle and pulled him down. Their lips met, the kiss a steady reminder of the never-ending thrum of love and affection that pulsed between them. Three years later and they were still rocking each other’s worlds.
The coolness of the air broke them apart a while later, the cum cooling on Tony’s chest starting to get a little too sticky for his liking. Groping around, Tony found his t-shirt and wiped his and Peter’s chests. When Peter got up, the situation was beyond help. “We’re going to have to get in the water,” Tony said nodding towards the steadily running stream they’d been “bathing” in all week.
Chilly air drove them into the flow – the coolness was inescapable, though; Tony’s skin immediately lit up with goosebumps. He worked quickly to get himself clean, the water icy the longer he stood nude in the elements. Peter didn’t seem to be moving, so Tony splashed some water over at him, a laugh leaving his lips.
A wash of water hitting him wasn’t all that surprising, Peter was never one to back down from any sort of challenge laid down in front of him, especially where Tony was concerned. Shaking his head, Tony retaliated, the wave hitting Peter starting an all-out war. By the time they were panting for breath, neither man could remember what the cold seeping in felt like. Peter wrapped his arms around Tony’s neck, his wet and naked torso pressing in to share body heat
“This was fun,” Peter said, his expression open. “Really fun. I didn’t know being away from everything could be so – nice.”
Filling in the rest of the space, Tony let his arms wrap around Peter’s hips. He tilted his head and stole a quick kiss. “You just have to be open to appreciating it, Petey.” Tony brushed their noses together before pressing in for another kiss.
Later, wrapped up together in the sleeping bag, Tony pressed his face into the back of Peter’s neck. He snuggled into the warmth there and let out a soft sigh. “Where are we headed next, anyway?” Tony asked, his body completely relaxed.
Peter grabbed his hand and kissed the back of it, the spread of a smile evident on his lips still pressed against Tony’s skin. “How do you feel about white-water rafting?”  
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for-ests · 4 years
Text
Lost In Your Light: Peter Parker x Reader (Part 5)
Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 
[ my masterlist ] word count: 4, 349
CHAPTER 5: THE FIRST TIME I SAW YOUR FACE
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As soon as Y/N arrived home, she ran into her bedroom and flipped open her laptop.
She had tried her best to remember everything Mrs. Anderson said but most of it had already started to fade away. Genetic... traits... magic?
Frantically typing away, she searched ‘Genetic healing traits’ but nothing on the first or second page had anything to do with that. Feeling slightly discouraged, Y/N tried a different approach. ‘Is it possible to heal someone by touch alone?’
The history bar claimed she had already searched that question before. She bit her lip with worry, and changed it to ‘proof of healing someone by touch alone’
The determined girl hit send and began to scroll through pages and pages worth of seemingly useless information, until one website caught her eye.
Ancient Norse carvings found in Central Norway that depict possible healing rituals
The title itself didn't exactly correlate to the question she was asking, but it was a place to start.
The Asguardians were powerful God-like human beings who most likely had her powers, but amplified to the extreme. It wouldn't be such a surprise if her... mutation... had something to do with them, right?
Her eyes widened. Could this have something to do with another species?
Y/N slumped forward on her desk and sighed. There were endless possibilities. Yet, there was no denying that research on Norse mythology and the Asguardians was a good place to start. And for some odd, indescribable reason, she was drawn towards it.
"Since wars and constant border disputes ravaged the way of life in the early century—Northern Europeans gradually began to gravitate towards spiritual growth. Their lives were filled with blood, killing, and an incredibly short life span. Due to the constant threat if death, early Norwegians highly valued healing and mendification rituals, spending hours and days on the inner channeling of power from the "higher aboves'' believing if they persisted long enough, the Gods would grant the person they were trying to save with new life.
This information is based on the newly excavated rock carvings pictured above, some found outside and inside Stykket. Scandinavian historian experts were able to decipher its meaning.
"New life will come to those that wait." Y/N breathed out the words. She scrolled through countless pictures of the mountainside cave, studying carvings and pictures of the old European rituals.
It didn't make sense, but at the same time, it did. The girl felt drawn to the carvings in the caves and the miraculous tales they told, connected through an invisible bond. 
Feeling somewhat excited, Y/N kept digging through articles after articles of related mythology and excavated Northern European ruins.
But after what seemed like hours of searching, one particular name caught her eye. 
It was a name that felt holy in itself, and as the words breathed from her lips, she froze. 
Eir, the goddess of healing.
"Eir blesses those who are worthy."
After processing the foreign language that had danced across her tongue, Y/N gasped. She had read straight from the picture. She could understand the old Germanic words without reading the translation underneath.
And that's when her hands started to glow. Her eyes widened in fear, unable to control the sudden surge of energy.
Y/N tried to command it to stop, but the senseless light persisted.
She couldn't feel the warmth like she usually could. She couldn't feel it trying to burst from her fingertips. It felt like nothing was there.
Eir.
The name flooded back into Y/N's mind. A cold chill ran down the back of her spine.
Shivering, the girl lunged forward and slammed her laptop shut. She crawled off her bed and paced the room back and forth.
What the hell was going on?
Her mind screamed, but she couldn't express the emotions she was feeling. This revelation was scary, but her heart wasn't even beating fast. She was calm, and unbothered. Could it be possible that she was psyching herself out? 
Y/N stared at the magnificent golden light, one that lit up the whole of her bedroom, sparkling against her eyes and the windows that overlooked the city.
Y/N sat back on her bed. Unsure of what to do. The light would fade eventually… right? 
She turned her hands over and noticed something that she hadn't noticed before.
Her veins were glowing.
Mrs. Anderson had mentioned it could be a genetic trait...
Y/N always knew she was part Scandinavian, it came from deeply rooted ties on her mother's side. She had celebrated it, especially from the recent emergence of Thor and other mythical beings. But her mother was dead. And that part of Y/N died with her.
Y/N suddenly felt solemn all over again. She didn’t have much communication with her mother's side of the family. She hadn’t spoken a word to any of them since the funeral. A funeral that seemed like ages ago, but also one that was as fresh as yesterday. 
Her father was 100% (Y/R), so this power manifesting inside of her was not a trait passed down by his relatives.
Feeling overwhelmed from the lack of valid answers, and desperate to take her mind off the situation at hand, Y/N glanced to the clock. It was midnight.
She sighed heavily. It was time to make her nightly rounds, even though she was incredibly tired and in need of sleep.
At the idea, the glowing ceased. 
Furrowing her eyebrows in concern, Y/N was confused if that was a good or a bad sign. Regardless, she quietly zipped up her jacket and slipped into her boots. She had a feeling tonight wouldn't be so action packed. It would be like most nights-- walking aimlessly through the streets and feeling nothing.
Nevertheless, she persisted and managed to sneak past her father's bedroom without him hearing. She was starting to become a pro at sneaking out.
At least it's for a good purpose... not for partying or drinking. If he ever finds out he should be proud of me.
Y/N stepped out into the street, shivering against the brisk winter breeze. Since it was a weeknight, there was not another soul in sight.
Her senses were static. They felt as cold as ever. An uncomfortable contrast from the warming, encouraging surprise she had witnessed before. 
The girl almost felt like turning back.
But minutes later, she found herself at the end of the street, heading towards the park.
Why do I come here almost every night?  No matter what, I always come back.
Y/N sighed, breath misting into the air. Her eyes drifted to the sky, and what she found was utterly disappointing.The city was so bright that she couldn't see the stars.
Her mood shifted temporarily as a car passed by.
The girl longed to escape the city. She longed to walk through a meadow and sit by a stream. Y/N wanted nothing more than to walk through a forest and inhale the scent of the evergreens. She was starting to grow sick of the constant routine, walking through the bleak concrete streets, shuffling mindlessly through the hallways, sitting at the same park, and longing for something more. Every single day and every single night. 
Sitting there like that, made her feel so little... so insignificant... so normal.
And Y/N knew she was far from it.
So why do I have to keep pretending I am?
She held her hands out in front of her and examined them for the hundredth time that day. They looked normal, they felt normal, so why weren't they?
Why was I given this power?
She felt tears welling in her eyes. Y/N didn't know how much longer she could take this.
She was alone. Nobody could help her, nobody could provide an explanation. She had been suffering through the motions her entire life, hoping for something that might never come.
Through her blurred vision, she focused on the lights across the bay. There was nothing special about them, but she had to focus on something. Nothing around here was special.
And as if it couldn’t get any worse, snow began to gradually fall around her. Y/N could see the crystallized snowflakes pattering across the water, she could see them glimmering in the lamplight.
But she stood still, unaware of how much time was passing. She felt numb.
I'm truly alone.
But that's when she heard the snow crunch under someone's feet.
Y/N whipped around.
It was Peter. Or Spider-Man. She felt like she couldn't call him Peter without knowing what he really looked like. A man in a red and blue suit didn't look like a Peter.
The girl just stared at him, unsure of what to say, and unsure if she wanted to stop the questions racing through her mind.
She had gotten too used to them.
"I had a hunch you were going to be around these parts." He finally said. "Though I'm not sure why you're just standing in the snow."
"Nobody needs my help tonight." She whispered, turning back to face the water.
Peter stepped alongside her, and didn't say anything. Y/N was guessing he felt the same way, since the streets were entirely empty.
"So why aren't you in bed?" He asked, trying to spark casual conversation. She couldn't tell what he was looking at from the shelter of his mask, or if he even noticed how distraught her expression was. 
"Didn't feel like it." The snowflakes began to catch in Y/N's hair. She frowned, wishing she had brought a hat.
Spider-Man was silent. Regardless if he wanted to console, it was nice to be in his company. His presence instantly repressed her negative thoughts and emotions. 
He stepped closer, but not too close. He glanced at her sideways, mask twisting in response with his expression. The girl rolled her eyes, she hated not knowing what he was thinking, or if he was even looking at her. 
"Why did you come find me?" Y/N whispered, his proximity causing her heart to skip a beat, even if she was staring directly into black fabric.
Peter shrugged. "I thought you might be in danger..."
"And...?" She questioned, knowing that couldn't be the only reason. His posture was tense and hesitant, a far contrast from the night before. Something was wrong.
Only for a brief moment was he able to hide the truth. 
Eyes scanning along the exterior of his suit, Y/N tried to find some sort of injury. She furrowed her eyebrows when she couldn't find anything.
"I was wondering if you could heal me again." He admitted, following her gaze. "But I was serious about the danger part."
The girl almost burst out with laughter, but bit her lip to keep herself from doing so. "Of course I would." She said evenly, though deep inside her nerves were stirring.
Peter said nothing.
"Well?" Y/N started to take off her gloves, shoving them inside her coat pocket. The winter air nipped against her skin, causing her to shiver again. 
She looked up to find Spider-Man staring right at her.
"Where is it?" The girl asked. "Why aren't you saying anything?"
"It's on my face." He swallowed.
"And that's a problem because?" She chuckled, knowing well enough why he was hesitant.
"Only a few people know who I really am." He said. "I need to be able to trust you."
"You can." Y/N replied quickly. "I have a secret too. You're the only person who knows what I can do."
"I am?" His voice sounded surprised. "How? You walk around the streets with only a hat on."
"I'm still working on that." She looked away in embarrassment. "What happened a few nights ago was the only incident I've been in. I don't go fighting crime like you, I'm quiet about it. I can lie my way out, unlike you."
"Unlike me?"
"That's besides the point." Y/N tittered, realizing she had instinctively moved closer to him. "You're going to need to take your mask off if you want me to help you."
"I-I know."
"There’s nothing to be worried about, I promise." She assured, knowing such a blanket statement was easier said than done. "We're in the same boat. A secret for a secret."
“You’re right.” His breath sounded shaky. 
Despite that, Spider-Man slowly reached up and slipped his mask off. He had tossed all doubts aside at her confident promise. 
Curly brown locks bounced as they were freed from the silky material, and Y/N's breath hitched when she finally saw the handsome face that was hiding underneath.
"W-wow..." She stammered. He was more attractive than she had anticipated, and frankly, it only caused the crush she had on him to grow stronger.
"What?" He looked confused.
"That looks like it hurts." The girl covered up her moment of reflection. She wouldn’t be caught dead swooning over the very person she needed to partner up with. There was no time for that… there couldn’t be any time for that. 
"It does, a lot." Peter agreed. He could barely see out his left eye, his eyelid so swollen that it was starting to force his eye shut completely. 
There was also a deep, bloodied gash that ran along his whole cheek and across his nose. His skin was discolored with bruises but she still thought he looked charmingly handsome. 
To Y/N, his injuries were a reminder of how selfless he was.
"As you can see I can't go to school looking like this." He whispered. "People would ask too many questions."
Peter could tell Y/N was studying him. He couldn't tell what she was thinking, but he felt her eyes graze over every part of his face.
"Come here." She whispered, holding her hand out. Her voice was gentle and alluring. Peter found himself obeying without a second thought.
Her soft, delicately feminine fingers brushed against the cut on his cheek. They were a warm beacon of light against the harsh waves of wind that swelled around them.
Y/N closed her eyes. The warmth grew intense as she channeled her power to mend the gash. She managed to keep the golden light at bay, but she felt the same surge of energy; one that was almost too hard to control.
The girl’s hidden emotions helped intensify her capabilities. Her fingers ran smoothly along his cheekbone, so smoothly that she felt the scar disappear. Y/N reached over and touched the tender skin along his left eye, taming the natural healing process to follow her own. 
Without trying to, she glanced from the injury to his eyes and witnessed her golden light dancing in them. Gazing further, distracted, she noticed they were an enchanting shade of amber brown. Wonder illuminated in them.
Could that wonder be... for her?
Y/N's hands fell to her sides. The injuries were gone.
"Thank you." Peter said.
"It's no problem, really." She shrugged, slipping her gloves back on. In truth, she didn't really need them since her hands never felt cold. Especially after she used her powers. But it was the one thing that still made her feel normal. 
It was a barrier against the uncertainty of her future. 
Y/N looked back up and met his eyes.
"You know..." She swayed back and forth on her heels, the snowing crunching underneath her weight. "You're handsome. Why do you keep your identity a secret?"
Peter blushed at her partial compliment. "I... um. I don't know. I guess I don't want people to hurt my family and friends. The reason I fight is to protect them, I don't need the fame that may come with it."
"I understand-"
"Why do you keep your power a secret? You could help so many others than just me." Peter continued, a gust of wind blowing his hair to the side. He began to slip his mask back over his face.
"I prefer you with it off." She smiled softly, avoiding the question.
Peter decided to not to pry. He considered the thought she might have a reason to not share her abilities with the world, one that he couldn't understand.
"Well Peter." Y/N said evenly. "I better get going now that nobody needs my help."
"Yeah... Do you have school tomorrow?" He asked.
"Yes. I'm a senior. Are you?"
Peter nodded. There was a moment of silence and she could tell he wanted to say something more.
Y/N waited, her eyes studying him intently. There was so much to look at when it came to Peter. She still couldn't believe she was gracing his face. The girl couldn't help but feel special to know she was one of the few to do so.
"Can I..." He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "Maybe have your number?"
Y/N stared at him in surprise. She couldn't tell what he wanted it for.
"For when I need you to... you know." He gestured, too embarrassed to admit his actual reasoning. 
She grinned as a plausible reason finally clicked through her mind. "And for when I need... you know. Help."
"Precisely." He chuckled, pressing a patch of suit on the side of his leg. A phone slid out on command, and he handed it to her, the contact app already opened.
"Did..." Y/N gasped in astonishment as she typed in her number. "Iron man totally made this suit for you, didn't he?"
"Yeah." He seemed proud. "He did."
They smiled at each other, but Y/N's soon faded. Her contentment was replaced with a solemn expression.
Would this be an appropriate time to ask him for help? If anyone has the connections it's Spider-man.
"Do..." She hesitated, handing him back the cell phone. "Do you think Mr. Stark would have any idea what's wrong with me?"
"Wrong?" His lips parted in confusion. "There's nothing wrong with you, Y/N."
Peter's voice was firm and commanding, and it almost persuaded her to think differently.
"I..." She faltered, stumbling along her words. "You're the only person I've met that has... extraordinary abilities. And we met by chance! It may be stupid, but I feel as if we met... for a reason?" Y/N started to twiddle her thumbs. Admitting her thoughts was embarrassing, especially to a superhero, someone who could actually help her.
His features softened at the sight of her so open and honest. It was almost as if she was unraveling herself for only him to see. It hadn't taken long for him to crack her shell. Perhaps it was because he had trusted Y/N, and she noticed it.
"I feel so alone, Peter. I've been trying to understand my powers, but there's nothing. I need someone to help me-"
"I will help you. All you had to do was ask." He interrupted, knowing she was going to persist trying to convince him of something he already agreed with.
The girl sighed in relief, the words dying in her throat.
"T-thank you... so much." She turned away. "I should get going. I'll... text you or something." She assured, trying to cover up her moment of weakness. Y/N didn't understand why asking for help bothered her so much.
But she needed a change. Though the power was hers, she couldn't do it alone.
"Be safe, Y/N." He called, debating whether or not he should follow her home. The last thing he wanted was for her to get hurt. Talking to Y/N was like a breath of fresh air, and Peter found himself growing particularly fond of her.
She looked over her shoulder one last time. "You too, Peter."
Her parting sentence was simple, yet effective. Peter loved the sound of her voice.
What is this feeling...?
He sighed. It was nothing like the petty little crushes he had for girls at school. This feeling was different, it was stronger; though he had only known her for a couple of days. Peter slipped his mask on as he watched her leave.
She was a mystery he couldn't wait to solve.
As he ran from the park, swinging from rooftop to rooftop, the image of her beautiful smile refused to fade from his memory.
Peter stood at the top of a skyscraper, the sound of harsh winds filling his ears. As he stared out at the city, everything finally seemed to make sense; only for a moment.
He meant what he had said. He would help Y/N in every way he could.
Tag list! 
@spn-assemble-seven​ @eridanuswave​ @fallisflame​ @used-avocado​ @pluckypete​ @vanillanestor​ @averyfosterthoughts​ @wherewecomealive​ @magicalturmoil @lust-for-pan​ @keep-bears-wild​ @selintugmen​ @undiadeestos​ @eridanuswave​ @unknownsolarsystems​ @ineedabifriend​ @silver-winter-wolf​ 
90 notes · View notes
creamofweep · 4 years
Text
First Words - Peter Parker
Peter Parker x Stark!reader
Actually there's barely any indication that Peter's like a romantic interest in this but like it's still cute as hell
Just pure good vibes and happiness
Nice and short :)
Okay so basically the whole thanos thing didn't happen and Tony and Pepper had Morgan anyway
I think about what Peter would have been like with a little baby Morgan all the time
I just really really love Morgan okay enjoy now
Word count: 1,239
"Say Peter! Peter! Come on say my name. Pe-ter. Peter." You watch Peter looking lovingly at your baby sister as he bounced her up and down on her feet on his lap.
The three of you were in Morgan's nursery keeping the baby busy while your mom and dad took a break. Peter sat in the rocking chair with the child and you sat on the floor in front of them just watching. She was only a year old and was bashfully smiling back at him and giggling. The sight was cute but you were more amused at Peter's weak attempt at getting Morgan to speak.
"Oh come on, Pete. You know between us that she's gonna learn my name first. Isn't that right, Morgan? Say Y/N! Say Y/N!" You smirk confidently and take Morgan from him changing your voice from one of authority to a softer loving voice when you shifted your attention to her.
"No way. Peter's gonna be her first word. I can sense it. You know my Spidey senses are always right." He scoffs and rolls his eyes at you, rocking back in the chair.
"Peter! Be careful! You're setting a bad example for this young lady by lying to my face right in front of her!" You playfully cover Morgan's eyes which only confuses her and makes her giggle more.
"I tell ya what. If you make Y/N her first word, I'll wear that god awful florescent green and yellow spidey suit your dad got me for April fool's day for 2 weeks worth of my patrols." He confidently folds his arms and tips his chin up. The mischief in his eyes was nothing if not tempting.
"Sounds like a deal to me, Parker. How about we spice it up more though... If Peter is her first word, I'll let my mom show you all of the most embarrassing photos of me as a kid." You watched as his eyes lit up. You'd heard from your mother that Peter asked her for those pictures but being the wonderful mom she is, she denied him saying quote 'I can't do my own daughter dirty like that.'
"It is so on, Y/N," Peter says with excitement. Peter was usually quite reserved and gentle but when he was around you, he always ended up being rowdy and competitive. You know that adding such stakes to your little bet is bound to make him a thousand times more committed. Slightly worried for the outcome, you look at Morgan and try to telepathically remind her that family comes first.
-
Over the next week, you and Peter try to spend as much time alone with Morgan as possible.
You caught him learning the "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers" tongue twister with her on his lap. He slowed down every time he got back to the word "Peter" and said it very clearly, repeating it a few times.
He caught you reading her a bedtime story but changing every name to your own and putting extra emphasis on it.
You caught him speaking to her like a Pokemon by just saying his own name in different tones and cadences.
He caught you singing Mambo No.5 to her and dancing with her but changing every name to Y/N. Honestly, it made the song seem much more creepy than it already was.
At one point, you were both with her when your father came in.
"Oh hey guys. I'm gonna take Morgan with me while I go pick up something. You two have been spending so much time with her I've been feeling deprived," he says as he comes in and he scoops up his younger daughter in his arms.
"Hey Mr. Stark? What do you think her first word will be?"
Bold move Peter. Bold move.
"Well with you two around her so much, it'll probably end up being asshole or dickhead or some other insult," he laughs.
"Oh come on dad! We've been watching our language around her! Or at least I have I don't know about this guy..." You wave dismissively at Peter.
"I have been! I'd never want to corrupt my favorite Stark girl." He gently pokes at Morgan's cheek with and uses a baby voice before turning and giving you a sickly sweet smile.
"Hey!" You cry bringing your hand up to your chest to fake your shock. He simply shrugs. His cockiness annoyed you to no end but you had to admit, Morgan was also your favorite Stark girl. She was just too damn cute and you loved her with all your heart.
"Actually Mr. Stark, I was wondering... Do you think be first word is more likely to be Peter or Y/N?" Peter's usually never this confident around your dad. Must be that competitiveness that has him taking such bold strides.
Your dad narrows his eyes and looks between the two of you. You notice his grip on Morgan tighten.
"Are you actively trying to make her first word be one of your names?" He asks timidly like he doesn't really want to hear the answer. You and Peter don't say anything but just look at each other.
"Damn it you guys I thought you were better than that. Especially you Y/N! Your own baby sister! Unbelievable." He shakes his head and leaves the room disappointed.
You and Peter are silent for a moment feeling slightly ashamed and awkward until you hear your dad down the hall yell back, "for the record, my money's on Y/N! Family comes first!"
You burst into a laugh and stick your tongue out at Peter. He pouts and turns his back to you.
-
"Peeeeter. Say Peeeterr."
"Y/N! See? So fun to say! Y/N! Try it!"
Five days later, you and Peter both sat shoulder to shoulder on the couch with little Morgan sitting happily right where his and your thighs met.
The two of you weren't ready to give up on the bet. Your mom and dad had caught on to the fact that there was a bet going but didn't dare ask what the stakes were. They were getting sick of not being able to spend any time with Morgan though and were getting sick of you and Peter constantly repeating your own names. They thought it made you sound extremely narcissistic. Which it probably was.
"Would you guys just quit already?" Your mom huffed in the kitchen behind you two. You both ignored her and continued saying your name to Morgan as many fun ways as you could think of.
"Seriously guys just stop. I'm worried you'll become bad influences on her." You could practically hear your dad pulling out his hair. You didn't care though. You wanted to win. And apparently so did Peter.
"Pe-Ter! Peter!" He clapped out the syllables.
"Y/N!" You sang your name out sweetly.
"Peter!"
"Y/N."
"Peter."
"Y/N!"
"CUT THAT SHIT OUT I'M SICK OF IT." Your dad's raised voice shuts you both up quickly. You look at Morgan to find that the loud noise didn't make her want to cry and in fact she was still smiling.
"Shit!"
Morgan's first word.
Everyone but Morgan herself stopped in their tracks. You were all struck and speechless.
Shit was her first word.
"Uh Mr. Stark? I don't think you need to worry about me being a bad influence."
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strawberrysoup · 4 years
Text
Let’s Review || Chapter 5
Peter Parker knew that his big sister would do anything for him to be safe and happy. She’d given up everything for him twice over already and would do it again in a heartbeat. And that’s why, when the criminal mastermind Tony Stark started inextricably following him around, he didn’t say a word. Because he knew without a doubt Penny would do whatever she had to if it meant keeping Peter safe. He had to protect her, just like she always protected him. He never considered what would happen if Stark decided both Parker siblings were worth taking. Never considered who else in Stark’s inner circle would agree. He just wanted to protect her and yet somehow, they both ended up with needles in their necks.
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relationship: Steve Rogers/Original Female Character/Bucky Barnes, background Peter Parker/Tony Stark rating: Explicit warnings: Dark Steve Rogers, Dark Bucky Barnes, Dark Tony Stark, Dark Avengers, kidnapping, non-con/dub-con elements, underage Peter Parker, emotional and psychological abuse, very dark
Tony looked down at his cell as a text came in from Bucky, that they’d kept Penny busy for as long as they could but Steve had stuck his foot in it and she’d ran off. He definitely Didn’t Roll His Eyes but he did scoff, shoving his phone back in his pocket. It wasn’t a big deal necessarily, just meant their timeline was moved up a bit.
“Rhodey, we should be expecting Penny pretty soon,” he shouted from the Parker’s kitchen to where Rhodey was in Peter’s room, “the Winter Wizards chased her off and she’s probably going to be heading back.”
“Thought she wanted to get her nails done?” Rhodey called back curiously, examining a giant Lego spaceship on the dresser.
“Bucky thinks she’s probably freaked out enough to forgo her original plans, I guess they got a bit handsy.”
“Do you want me front and center or should I stay back?”
Tony hesitated in thought for several moments before sitting down at the kitchen table, arranging the laptop to angle the webcam for the best view of what was to come. Everybody back home would want to watch.
“Stay in the bedroom for now,” he gave a quick thumbs up to the camera before moving to look through the trunks that doubled as an end table and a coffee table near the couch.
Most of Penny’s belongings were in the trunks, several outfits and a few pairs of shoes. She didn’t own very much, just a couple of books on gardening and cooking and a pair of knitting needles but no yarn. A stack of what she probably considered important papers were at the bottom of one, her and Peter’s birth certificates and social security cards, the bill of sale for her car, the scholarship agreement for Peter’s school.
There was also a stack of printed pictures, none in frames, neatly tucked into a corner. They were of Peter and of their family, old photos of their parents and aunt and uncle and what looked like grandparents. He’d seen several of them before, saved on Penny’s Pinterest, but he left them out on the couch to make sure they’d be taken with them upon leaving the apartment. They wouldn’t need any of their clothes, but keepsakes would be important in the coming months. Both for comfort and as incentives for good behavior.
He was still digging through the trunk-slash-coffee-table when he heard the key turn in the lock of the front door. A quick, careful breath steeled his nerves and he sat down on the couch, casually crossing one leg over the other and began flipping through the pictures.
There was a change in the air the moment Penny realized something wasn’t right in her apartment. Tony got goosebumps, the anticipation running through him as he listened to her very quietly set down her purse and keys, creeping through the hallway towards the living room. She stopped in the doorway, a sharp inhale betraying that she’d seen him.
“Why don’t you come sit down with me sweetheart,” he called without looking over his shoulder, curious to see how jumpy she would be after her run in with the soldiers.
“How did you get in my apartment?”
“I’m willing to answer all of your questions if you come sit down.”
The hesitation was obvious, he imaged he could almost smell how scared she was, but in the end she came shuffling around the side of the couch. She stopped again, hovering for a moment before pulling one of the chairs away from the kitchen table and sitting down a fair distance away from him.
He snorted slightly but nodded, “I guess I didn’t specify that you had to sit by me, did I?”
Penny didn’t move a muscle in response, she was hardly breathing with how stiffly she sat. Tony sighed and stood up from the couch, one hand going into his pants pocket while the other still held the pictures.
“I got into your apartment by picking the lock,” he stated, answering her earlier question, “Even the new deadbolt you bought is pretty easy to pick, sweetheart. Although that security bar sitting next to the door would’ve been effective if I tried to break in while you were home. How much was it, $20? $30?”
A moment went buy before she realized he actually expected an answer and Penny inhaled rather sharply, “$50.”
“Ah, you must’ve splurged then, hm? I know an extra 50 bucks probably wasn’t easy to come by,” Tony deliberately looked around the sparse apartment, “but I know Peter’s safety is your top priority, right?”
“Always,” she sounded on the verge of tears and Tony smiled softly, crossing to stand directly in front of her.
“Take deep breaths, baby, we still need to talk,” he took her hands into his and pulled her up off of the chair, leading her to sit on the couch, “now, that’s more comfortable, isn’t it? Well, not by much. This is probably the most uncomfortable couch I’ve ever sat on. That’s why you make Peter sleep in the bed, right? Because the couch isn’t good enough for him.”
Penny didn’t answer, her pretty face was pale and frightened and Tony sat next to her gently so she didn’t startle too much. Her muscles tightened in response, especially when he dropped his arm around her shoulder and tugged her closer to his side. She was smaller than he remembered when he first saw her, smaller than she looked on the webcam footage. She fit perfectly under his arm and if she’d just relax a bit, she’d tuck right against his chest with her head under his chin.
“You know, Peter lied to me, when I first met him,” he stated quietly, turning his head just enough to brush his nose against her temple, “he told me that he didn’t have any family. No parents, no siblings, he lived on his own after his aunt died. When I saw that he actually did have a guardian, I was furious that he lived in such a shit hole.”
He hadn’t really thought it possible, but Penny stiffened up even more under his arm. It might’ve been anger or discomfort or sadness, he didn’t know, but he did know she bit down on her lip, hard, to stop from responding.
“I figured that anyone who made him live in a place like this must’ve been a monster. Who would let a kid live in this drug den? Did you know that the week I saw you for the first time, there had been 23 drug related police calls to this location? In just a week! Knowing my boy was—”
Penny broke away from his grasp swiftly and with more strength than he’d anticipated, launching herself off the couch to stand in front of him, “He’s not your boy! Peter isn’t your anything, you fucking pedophile—”
“I’m almost glad I won’t be the one teaching you your manners,” a low, dark chuckle escaped his lips and Tony stood up, causing Penny to stumble back several steps towards the window, “but only almost, baby, I promise. I think the freezer burned beef-cakes are going to take good care of you, but if they don’t I’m gonna steal you back in a heartbeat, I promise.”
“Get out of this apartment,” Penny thrust her arm out, showing her cellphone with 911 dialed but the call not yet placed, “I swear I’ll call the police if you don’t get out, I swear—”
“I’m actually positive that you would, if you didn’t already know that I have 99% of the NYPD on my payroll,” he reached out and plucked the phone from her hand gently, shutting it before turning it around in his hand curiously, “this is ancient, sweetheart.”
Penny’s back was nearly pressed against the wall beside the window but Tony continued to approach, his steps slow and methodical. The goal would be to herd her back towards the hallway, where Rhodey could approach from behind. It would be the best way to get her carefully drugged without too much of a struggle, but Tony was fully capable of subduing her by himself if necessary.
“You’re upset and I understand why, I just want you to understand that no harm is going to come to you or your brother,” Tony stopped a few paces away and put his hand back into his pocket, along with her phone, and gestured around with the other one, “all I wanted to begin with was to get Peter out of this hell hole, he deserves so much more, don’t you think? Peter deserves everything, doesn’t he?”
“P… Peter deserves to grow up, l-like a normal kid,” she stuttered after a moment, her feet shifting unconsciously away from the man in front of her, “he deserves to graduate high school a-and go to college and be whatever he wants, he deserves to live in p-peace, without being stalked or—”
“You’re not very good at manipulation, are you sweetheart?” Tony smiled, watching her gear up to run from him, “That’s okay, you don’t need to be. I know that all you want is for Peter to be safe and happy. You want him to have all of the opportunities you and the rest of your family didn’t get.”
“L-Look, you’re right, okay?” Penny once again found herself putting her hands out in front of her, palms out as she tried to discourage the man from coming any closer, “I just want Peter to be safe. I just want him to be h-happy. So please, please leave him alone. I would do… I would do anything if it meant you’d leave him alone. Please, Mr. Stark, please leave my brother alone. H-He has so much potential. He’s going to go on to do… to do amazing things. He’s so smart, he can do anything he wants. Please, tell me what I can do to make you go away? To leave him alone? Please.”
A small sigh escaped Tony’s lips as he reached out, grabbing her hands as he stepped closer and tugging her into his chest. Her muscles pulled so tight she started to shake. Three men in one day had laid their hands on her, had thought they had the right to touch her when she didn’t want them to. Tony’s grasp wasn’t as tight as Steve or Bucky’s had been, but it was somehow firmer. It was scarier, there was more potential for violence in this man’s arms.
“You’ve spent a pretty long time giving up everything for Peter. I looked into you, you know? I saw when you dropped out of high school because your aunt didn’t make enough to support you and Peter without your uncle. You had to settle for a GED so your brother wouldn’t go without. Started working dead end job after dead end job to support him. And then when your aunt died, you dropped your classes all over again, and picked up even more work. Everything you do is for him, huh?”
He rested a hand on the back of her head, making her lean her forehead against his shoulder and tugged out her hair tie. The waves of dark brown hair spilled down over her shoulders and brushed against his suit. He slipped his fingers into the dark locks, gently rubbing over her scalp and sighing. Penny felt so small, trembling against his chest.
“You’ve taken such good care of my baby boy, Penny,” he tilted her face back slightly with his thumb, making her meet his eyes, “you did such a good job, keeping him safe and happy for me. But now its my turn to keep him safe and happy, and I promise I’m going to do my best.”
“N.. No, please, no, listen to me,” Penny pushed against his chest in a panic, trying to twist out of his arms but only succeeding in twirling them both around, “Please leave Peter alone, please don’t take him from me, I need him, I love him, please—”
“You’re so precious baby, so sweet,” all of a sudden, his grip around her shoulders and on her face tightened, slowly and carefully forcing her to bend her neck to the side, “I’m not taking him from you, I’m taking both of you. Now stay still, sweetheart, take a deep breath.”
“No… No, no, no, please—”
Rhodey pressed himself against the young woman’s back, one arm coming around her torso to help Tony steady her attempts at thrashing. They had expected a fight, but Penny was surprisingly tough to hold. Maybe it was her adrenaline, the combination of thinking she’d gotten her wallet stolen, what happened with the Ancient Aliens at the coffee shop, the whole situation with Tony Stark overall.
Penny Parker had been gearing up for a fight for a solid month, whether she realized it was going to come to physical blows or not. A full fucking month of anticipation and fear and fury.
“No!”
Neither of them had expected Penny to drop her weight. Both ended up fumbling, trying not to let her hit the floor but in the process, she kicked her leg out and up, nailing Tony directly in the junk. Rhodey was suddenly left with all of her weight in one arm and shifted to the side to compensate, putting himself off balance only to have Penny suddenly regain her footing and force them back. They both fell into the trunk in front of the couch, Rhodey breaking Penny’s fall.
Both men were winded, left gasping, as Penny shot to her feet and went to jump over the couch. Rhodey just barely managed to reach out and grab her ankle, his grip slipping almost immediately but it was enough to keep her from landing on her feet on the other side. She hit the floor with a bang, having tipped head first over the couch. There was a low groan but they knew she wasn’t down for the count despite the fact that they couldn’t see her; she was crawling across the floor, towards the hallway that went to the front door.
“Penny,” Tony forced himself to move despite the almost nauseating pain, she’d kicked him hard enough he’d be sore for days, “don’t make this any harder, sweetheart.”
The brunette didn’t respond, instead focusing on using the wall to pull herself to her feet. She hadn’t locked the front door behind her when she walked in, if she could open the front door it was a straight shot to the stairs, she could run to her car, go pick up Peter—
Tony grabbed her tightly from behind and pressed her face first against the wall, one foot stabilizing his balance while the other locked around her own. Rhodey’s back was on fire from hitting the trunk dead on, but he quickly crossed the living room.
“Shhh, princess, calm down,” he used his own weight against Tony’s back, pressing both of them harder against the wall and almost completely immobilizing Penny, carefully forcing her head to the side once again.
She was screaming again but neither paid any mind, knowing that any calls to the police at this location would go unanswered for at least the next several hours. With careful, steady hands Rhodey adjusted the already prepared needle and slid it gently into Penny’s neck, her screams reaching a crescendo of terror and pain for several seconds before she began going limp.
“There you go now, baby,” Tony murmured quietly as Penny slumped heavily against the wall, “you go to sleep and when you wake up, everything will be better.”
Tony pressed a careful kiss against the top of her head and turned her to face him, sighing at the tears running down her face as she fought the drug coursing through her system. She’d put up a hell of a fight, had injured both of them in her escape attempts, but he couldn’t be mad. Poor thing was terrified of them, scared for her brother and herself. No amount of reassurance would do anything until she experienced her new life.
“You okay, Tones?” Rhodey couldn’t help but laugh slightly as his friend swept Penny up into his arms, reaching over to adjust her head against his shoulder, “she got you pretty hard there.”
“Let’s just say it’s a good thing I wasn’t planning on making any babies,” Tony snorted fondly, leaning down to brush his lips against her forehead, “she’s a fighter, Old Man 1&2 are gonna have their work cut out for them. Your back alright?”
“Gonna have some real fucking bruises,” he stretched his back with a groan and a wince before shaking his head, “little lady tried to take me out there. Naughty thing.”
A laugh escaped Tony and he nodded in agreement before adjusting her in his arms slightly, “let’s get her back to the tower, Peter won’t be home for several hours. She’s going to be pretty uncomfortable when she wakes up, we need to at least make sure she’s in a nice bed.”
“Surrounded by super soldiers?”
“Honestly I don’t know if I’ll be able to hold them off, so probably.”
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Before starting with the main topic of this episode I want to talk about my memory loss, I mean I have no memory problems thanks to sky daddy but lately I forget the things I am going to say, an example is that last night I had thought about talking about something in this podcast since I have been more active but today I forgot what I wanted to tell you and I am very sure that it was a very good topic of conversation but I forgot it, it happened to me when I was exercising, when I was doing exercises in my memory I was always looking for topics for the podcast for a reason but when I finished I forgot them and last night when I came up with the topic I thought about writing it down in notes just the main ideas but I thought "ohh I think my memory can remember it" but apparently not.
But today I wanted to talk about this movie The great gatsby, I want to say that I love this movie deeply, so much that I am about to start reading the book, I am going to read the book in English and I am very excited, it is the first time that I am going to read a book in English, well I have read school books or books that I had to read.
But well I haven't started reading the book yet but I have seen the movie so I am going to talk about things I liked, the plot, things I learned and opinions.
The movie is super well set in the 20's, it's so extravagant, it looks so glamorous, everything is so elegant, I'm talking about aesthetics, the pictures are beautiful, everything is like clockwork, everything works properly, you can tell it's an expensive movie because of all the props that the movie has.
The actors are also very talented you can recognize them Leonardo Dicaprio appears I don't need to say who he is because I'm sure most people know them (before I go on I want to say that I have a fat crush on Young Leo Dicaprio I mean I don't mind I would date him if I had the chance) also Tobey Maguire appears if you don't know the name he is the spider man the original is peter parker, also Carey Mulligan appears and she looks beautiful in the movie she looks so cute, delicate, she looks like a teddy bear, if you don't know her she has appeared in movies like pride and prejudice and she is nominated for best actress for the oscar for playing Cassandra Thomas in the movie Promising Young Woman (I want to make clear that at this moment I haven't watched that movie but I watched the trailer on tiktok and that movie looks very good) also other actors appear in the movie.
I am going to give you a summary of the movie
The movie is basically about a guy named Jay Gatsby who was poor and fell in love with a beautiful girl but as he had nothing to offer her he went away for 5 years and in those 5 years the girl named Daisy got married and Jay in those 5 years became a millionaire and when he came back the girl was already married but as fate would have it Daisy's cousin, Nick moves next to the house of the millionaire Gatsby.
 The way in which the film transmits the story of Gatsby is beautiful and a little tragic, because when in a movie we are shown a man who is deeply in love with his girl, in the film he says that all his fortune and everything he has is for her, it is for her, every detail was inspired by her and it is nice because he gives us to understand how special she is to him, the problem is that she is married.
This man is rich but he is rich because of his family not like Gatsby who is a new rich and from what I've seen in movies before there was some discrimination against the new rich, so in that movie they make those kind of comparisons about classy people and how he's just a thief because he couldn't have made his fortune so fast and stuff like that.
Daisy's husband's name is Tom Buchanan, he's a lout because he cheats on his wife to our beautiful and delicate Daisy.
I wanted to complain and say "but this bitch Daisy did this and this" and I was going to tell you spoilers about the movie but it's not worth it I'm just going to say something "Daisy i fucking hate you and i'm gonna come for you bitch".
I also wanted to tell you about the song that is in that movie is called "Young and Beautiful" by Lana del Rey, my god this song, THIS SONG, is like a taste of heaven, when I die I need this song to go in peace, 
Will you still love me
When I'm no longer beautiful?
Fuck yeah, 
I put this song on my Spotify playlist in case you don't recognize it the name of the playlist is "SK PLAYLIST" every time I talk about a song I put it on that playlist.
 but back to the subject, it's a song that you only dedicate to someone when you fall in love with their soul, their essence, because if there is something I learned is that it really only matters what you have in your heart, I don't mean the blood and the organ, I have seen all my life how people who are rotten are cheating and playing with other people and I don't want that for me I prefer to die alone than someone trying to cheat on me, I have very high expectations in love and I know that the universe is protecting me from people like that in my life and is putting only the right people in my life because I am not a station, I am not a life lesson, I am the damn destiny, I am the prize to be won.
Don't let anyone fail you in this respect because you are worth a lot, and you need to believe it so that other people will also believe it and realize that they are not playing with you.
Back on topic again this movie is beautiful, as I said before I am going to read the book so I will probably talk about the book later on in an episode or do some updates when I am talking about it. 
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leahxx129 · 4 years
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Tragedy of Butterflies (Peter Quill x Reader)
Hi there. Quick personal note: it appears that the personal thing I’m struggling with at the moment will go on for around another month, but I have lots of story ideas and will try to write & post some. 
As for the story... I feel like that Chris Pratt is the most underrated Chris from all the MCU Chrises, so I wanted to show a little love for him & one of his more famous character.
Summary: As a result of the Snap, Peter Quill dies in your arms and your heart shatters to pieces since you’ve been secretly in love with him for quite a while now. What happens 5 years later when everyone is brought back to the battle field, including some very unexpected people? 
Warnings: cursing 
Word count: 1.630-ish
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You have no idea how much time has passed since the wizards brought everyone to the field and the guy with the shield commenced the battle against Thanos, but you’re pretty sure about one thing - within the next couple of minutes you’re going to suffer an excruciating death.
The creature knocked you over in a blink of an eye, you never even saw it coming, and both of your machetes flew out of reach. You can brush one’s handle with your fingertips but it’s still a far stretch... You desperately try to take in a few punches, but the damn thing is clawing at you with a foaming mouth, wanting to tear your throat out like a freaking otherworldly Cujo, so the majority of your energy is invested in self-defense. Even through the beast’s grumble you can hear the battle screams and death rattle of warriors trying their best to defeat the other army and fail at it.
Your arms are getting numb and a strange mixture of calmness and serenity dazes your mind. Maybe death wouldn’t be the worst-case scenario. You’re tired and you’ve certainly done your fair share over the years… Then his face flashes before your eyes and you relinquish every single thought of surrender in an instant.
He always demanded everyone to call him Star-Lord, but to friends he was Quill and to you, only Peter. You can’t just go down like this, you owe putting up a real fight to him. That’s the least you could do since you were unable to save him the first time you all faced Thanos…
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You’ve known Peter since you were a little girl. You happened to be in the hospital when his mom died and followed him outside just to accidentally be snatched by Yondu as well...
He was nothing but a silly boy to you for a very long time – he would pull your hair, try to frighten you by telling ghost stories or play mean pranks on you... Then one day you suddenly realized he became so much more, and the mere fact that you had no clue how it happened scared the crap out of you.
Naturally, this escaped his notice, so every time he obtained a new notch in his belt, you died a little inside and swore an oath that you’d never be one of his conquests. An oath you broke not long after having sworn it... You fell so miserably in love with the man that you let yourself turn into his occasional bed warmer because even a relationship like that was more than nothing. At least that’s what you made yourself believe to help you sleep at night...
His lips felt incredibly soft as he peppered your neck with featherlight kisses in the dark.
His fingertips almost made you catch on fire when they traced your skin under the covers.
And the way he whispered sweet nothings into your ears when nobody else was around brought you to the verge of losing your goddamn mind every single time.
You found him completely and utterly intoxicating. Peter was addictive like a drug. And you lived for the high.
For a short period of time it looked like as if he was beginning to return your feelings, but then Gamora showed up and shattered every illusion to a thousand pieces. You couldn’t blame her - it’s not like she demanded Peter to shower her with his attention. But you couldn’t blame Peter, either, because Gamora was close to perfection… so, all you did was blaming yourself and pretending to be happy for the slyest thief in the galaxy day after day.
Truth be told, every night when you closed your eyes you imagined how it would feel like if the Zehoberei woman just simply got out of the picture, but with God as your witness, you never wished for her departure to be this way. When Thanos revealed on the Titan that he’d murdered her, the confession broke Peter and seeing him like that broke you.
Then came the Snap.
Peter pulverized in your arms and you would have given everything in the entire galaxy to trade your life for his. Later on, you joined Rocket and you’ve been by his side ever since as he appeared to be the only one to share your grief and understand your pain, but more importantly, he was the only other remaining member of the guardians and being close to him reminded you of better times.
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Your fingers inch a bit closer to the machete’s handle but when you try to flick it in your direction the only thing you manage to do is just push it farther away.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake!” you yell as a generous amount of the monster’s saliva lands on your neck a second later. “Could this situation get any worse?”
The answer comes right away when the thing overpowers you and you feel a set of razor-sharp teeth sink into your shoulder. The scream ripping from your lungs makes your own blood run cold. You close your eyes and await the next – and probably the last - lash out but it never comes. Instead, you hear a gun shot and the beast collapses onto you. Realizing that you’re still alive and kicking, you push it off and freeze at the sight of your savior. He’s standing far away, face not visible, but you could recognize that stance anywhere.
“Peter?!” you scream his name and hope he heard it through all the turmoil.
The stranger touches the side of his mask to reveal the face you haven’t seen in the past five years but dreamt of every single night.
Not minding the shoulder wound you jump to your feet and start limping towards him, picking up the pace when you see him do the same. Within a couple of seconds, the distance is closed, and you fall into his arms, tears streaming down your face. The familiar minty scent invades your nostrils and you can feel his stubble tickle your face. It’s him. It’s really him. You hug him even tighter.
“Peter…” you lean away a few inches to be able to look into his eyes but before you can say anything, he crashes his lips onto yours, leaving you completely dumbfounded. You kiss him back, nevertheless.
“What was that for?” you ask after breaking apart, shielding your genuine curiosity with a small smile.
“I love you.” He breathes against your lips, panting heavily.
Your eyes widen.
“Okay, I must have a little monster saliva clogging my ears because what I heard was that you love me and that cannot be the real reason.”
He lets out a chuckle.
“I don’t know about the saliva sweetheart, but you heard me right.”
You eye him suspiciously.
“I don’t get it.”
His signature lopsided smile appears on his face, but his gaze radiates sadness. You remind him of what his mom used to tell him about the tragedy of butterflies. Their wings are exquisitely beautiful and yet they can’t see them, just as you can’t see your own beauty and worth.
“I’ve loved you for quite a while now, Y/N.” he caresses your cheek with his thumb. “When we became friends…uhm… with benefits… I-I thought it was better than nothing, so I went along. But deep inside I knew it was not enough for me. And I couldn’t imagine a galaxy where someone like you would seriously be interested in someone like me. So, when Gamora showed up I decided to move on and try to develop a healthy relationship with somebody else… so much for that, huh?”
“Oh, Peter…” you begin but he hushes you.
“Ssshh, okay, just let me finish please.” He takes a deep breath, obviously struggling to hold back tears. “I cared for her. I really did. But when I woke up in that strange place, do you know who’s name I was screaming for hours? Yours. I loved her but I’m in love with you. Promise you’ll never leave me, please.”
You open your mouth to respond but a series of gunshots rip through the air missing your head just by inches and one of Thanos’ mutant soldiers collapses behind your back.
“I’m really glad you two idiots have finally figured your shit out but we’re on a battlefield right now and I can’t keep on saving your asses while you’re having a heart-to-heart!”
Nebula’s familiar voice provides an explanation for the shots but when you both turn to her direction, she’s not alone. You can feel a knot form in your stomach.
“Gamora?” Peter asks incredulously.
“Who’s this guy?” the person in question turns to Nebula with a clueless facial expression.
“He was hitting on you in an attempt to forget how desperately in love he was with the girl he’s holding right now.”
Gamora’s eyebrows fly up.
“Wow… and the me in this dimension didn’t see through the situation? No wonder she’s dead.”
“This dimension? What’s going on? Is she from a different one?” you find your voice and address the question to Nebula.
“We don’t have time for this. I’ll tell everything after this is over... you know, on the off chance we survive...” She flashes a mechanic smile and disappears with her sister.
Peter is still staring at the place where they stood just seconds ago. You gently put your palm on the side of his face and make him look you in the eyes.
“I promise!” you vow and kiss him hungrily.
There are two things you’re hoping for at the moment - you want to survive this battle more than anything so you could be with Peter and you also pray that Gamora’s return won’t affect a single thing.
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afreakingdork · 3 years
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Jessica Jones Season 3 A.K.A. Morality
I genuinely believe that the writers of Jessica Jones season 3 have no idea what morality is supposed to mean or how it applies to basic situations. We can start on this, of course, with the friction between Trish and Jessica. The series starts with Jessica doing everything she can to keep ties severed with Trish, while Trish tries in vain to chase Jessica down like a puppy so they can ‘team-up’ like old-new times with Trish’s shiny new powers. Episode 2,  “ A.K.A You're Welcome,” paints a more full picture by showing Trish’s side of the conversation. Overall, the whole thing falls so flat for a variety of reasons. I can applaud Trish’s dedication to really honing her craft, but even this is something she tries to hold over Jessica. She offhandedly remarks that Jessica could train once in a while and hints often at her inferred superiority because she actually wants to be super, or she has the right attitude to be super, or she has the actual drive to be super. All of which, paired with Rachael Taylor’s insufferable acting, makes seeing Trish feel like nails on chalkboard every single time. Trish doesn’t understand that her store bought powers and being a hero aren’t something to play around with or have moral superiority about, but she refuses to listen to anyone or even reason. It’s mind boggling because while, we know Trish has always been jealous of Jessica’s power, she of all people should know about what Jessica has been through. They were sisters against the world their whole lives, Jessica doing her best to protect and support Trish from her mother’s abuse and Trish full well knowing Jessica is basically alone in this world, not to mention all the time and everything else that she lost to Kilgrave. Jessica is a wounded soul and her powers have everything to do with that, but all that just goes out the window because Trish wants powers and Trish thinks she knows better and the show is happy to say both Trish and Jess are equally bad. Even in the end when Trish finally realizes she is the bad guy, she has to go off the deep-end and then even further into the pool before the show will even let her admit it and then it gives no time for the weight of this statement to take affect and instead just moves on.
However, let’s move back to respective family histories, there’s a line that really enraged me in episode 5, “A.K.A I Wish,” where Gillian says “I'm sick of people throwing away friends and family like there's plenty more where that came from,” because Trish and Jessica won’t talk out their issues. There are some things that you can’t come back from with family and friends, especially when they aren’t willing to move their opinions on it. There are plenty more people that you can become friends with or even make your new family (it’s called found family and is huge especially in comic books) because it’s insanely toxic to stick with someone just because you’re related to them or have been friends for a long time. It’s really hard to play along with this sentiment, especially when in episode 6, “A.K.A Sorry Face,” you have Trish and her mom, Dorothy, really go head to head about Dorothy’s abuse towards Trish. Trish’s whole life has been shaped by her mother’s abuse. She never had a moment to think for herself because Dorothy was always controlling every second of it and it was the reason Trish has resorted to drug use and relapsed multiple times, but the moment Trish, justifiably so, tries to mention this her mother flips out and still has the gall to make it about herself. When Dorothy storms out you can see that from Trish’s weak attempts to roll back on it, again a completely justifiable comment, that the show thinks that Trish is in the wrong here. Sure, Dorothy’s points on Trish’s flippant attitude towards her own safety were, in my opinion, needed; Trish is heading down an insane path where all she can see is the glory of supering and can’t see how dangerous or miserable it is (which is crazy because she’s been Jessica’s sister basically their whole lives and seen all the horrific shit Jessica has had to go through, but I’ll get to that later). Good and bad aren’t so black and white, and this show refuses to play with that. Just because Dorothy and Trish have the most precariously stable relationship now, doesn’t mean Trish isn’t still allowed to be upset about the lifetime of verbal and physical abuse she’s had to endure. 
When you compare that matter to Trish telling Jessica that she needs to get over being upset that she shot her mom, it adds a whole new layer of ‘what the actual fuck?!’ to Trish that the story isn’t particularly interested in delving into. The story seemingly wants you to agree that both Jessica and Trish are equally at fault for what’s happening. Jessica is being too callous and gatekeeping Trish, while Trish is acting rogue and playing like being super is fun. It’s insane because we see Jessica already struggling with her mother’s influence. She was already destroying herself in season 2 because her mother was evil, but also she was the last vestige of her family who still happened to be alive. In her last moments, Alisa was going to turn herself in to the police and imparts on Jessica that being a hero is worth it. It’s almost comical looking back on it now, seeing how holier-than-thou Trish has become, and knowing that she shot Jessica’s mother in cold blood because she believes it was right. Sure, Jessica doesn’t seem to have told Trish the full details of her mother’s turn in those final moments. The show fails morality yet again, when even the question comes up in conversation between Jessica and Trish, Jessica only goes so far as to say ‘it was my mother.’ Jessica completely neglects to mention that her mother turned good in her last days after getting a taste of heroics and instead plays the ‘she was my family and you didn’t give me a choice in whether or not I should keep them’ card, that makes no sense to the total overarching argument to who is in the moral right. You can say that Jessica is a terrible negotiator when it comes to getting her point across verbally, and you’d be right, but that isn’t what the show is trying to illustrate and it’s beyond irritating.
This piss poor morality spread and infects other characters in season 3 also. We have the manifestation of morality with the introduction of Erik, who gets a physical response to evil. Nothing has bothered me more than when Malcolm scores a 3 on Erik’s bad-o-meter. Malcolm is grappling with the bad things he has done for Jeri because he thought he could justify it with the money and experience he would get now to fund him fighting for justice later, but even that wasn’t enough. Long before Erik pinged Malcolm as bad, Malcolm was already trying to atone for what he had done, physically might I add, he should have gone to the hospital for peeing blood after getting in a car accident to get a drunk driver off the streets. It makes Malcolm physically and mentally ill and he even takes time off work to consider his position and this is the moment that he pings a 3 (and, not to mention, Trish doesn’t ping at all)!? How can someone who feels guilt, knowns what he’s doing is wrong, and even takes a break to take a look at himself ping at all on the scale when Jessica is supposedly so good that she is anti-bad-dar for Erik and acts like aspirin for his bad guy headaches?! To add insult to injury, Malcolm cheats on Zaya with Berry because he’s... struggling with maybe becoming evil for some reason, but only long enough for him to immediately roll back and work as a double agent for Jeri so he can actually help Jessica put Sallinger away. Even that is short lived, when he just comes clean and quits to clear his conscience and starts to atone. It’s like the show realized that the tension between Malcolm and Zaya wasn’t enough of a morality issue and they had to have Malcolm do something extra bad to justify, again, that both parties are equally wrong in the matter. In the end though, they end up just reinforcing multiple times that Malcolm was the bad guy and Zaya never had an issue. Progression is a good thing, right?
Malcolm and Zaya are at each other on the ethics of lawyering, something that was handled much better in Daredevil and even that show had it’s faults, but nothing will enrage me more than Jeri’s line in episode 7, “A.K.A The Double Half-Wappinger,” of “...it is not our job to assess guilt or innocence.” While that is technically correct, there is a huge glaring problem with how the show is using it. The show is obsessed with the alleged portion of Sallinger’s guilt, in that he is so smart he leaves no evidence behind and is always multiple steps ahead of investigators trying to find a mistake on his trail. Only criminal defense attorneys do not decide if the client is innocent or guilty. While that is Jeri’s position as Sallinger’s attorney, this type of attorney's concern is whether there is sufficient evidence to prove that someone has committed a crime since the jury or judge will be the one’s actually deciding the verdict. The thing is, especially based on her past history with Jessica, is Jeri does have this information, albeit not as evidence, but she still tries to proceed as if Sallinger is still innocent until proven guilty. It’s a complete implosion of Jeri’s character when she already is grappling with everything falling apart with her ALS and Kith. It’s mind boggling to think this is the same Jeri who entrusted Jessica in episode 1, “A.K.A The Perfect Burger,” to take her life when she can no longer make the choice herself due to her illness. Jeri then goes on to declare war on superheroes, for what? Short term retainer of Sallinger could distinguish her firm from it’s accused ties to powered people, but long term she knows he is in truth a serial killer and having taken his case knowing so will destroy her firm a million times more than Peter Lyonne’s suicidal statement ever did. She feels like supers are undermining her as if Jessica is trying to take advantage of her ALS and make her look weak? This is a far cry from the Jeri Hogarth that was accused of murdering her first wife or the Jeri Hogarth that was ten steps ahead to blackmail her partners from trying to force her out of the firm she helped build and get her fair share. This isn’t the Jeri we love to hate, this is just hatred to put more pressure on Sallinger’s inane hatred of super people. She’s somehow, even though she never showed interest and expressively talked back to him when he was spouting his drivel, bought into the weaker man philosophy of supers having cheated to better positions in life and has, in her mind, made her whole existence of failures hinged on them trying to make her feel weak. An unfathomable turn for her character indeed, but this is a show that thinks that digging up dirt on someone and releasing it to try to get with their wife is equivalent at all to a man pushing his wife into an open marriage to cheat and skimming money out of their dead daughter’s non-profit foundation. Jeri should have told Kith no question. I don’t think she should have done it the way she did or for the reasons she did, but we are operating on a 20% bad scale vs. an 80% bad scale. Also, Peter Lyonne was such a shithead that he would rather kill himself and blame Jeri in the process than deal with a little jail time for being a fuckface. Crying that he should have had his chance to tell Kith like he was planning on it. Through Laurent they insinuate that the show absolutely makes Jeri out to be the monster in that situation. It honestly makes me think these writers need to take a course of morality or even just watch a few episodes of The Good Place so maybe they could have a real actual human opinion on what is good and bad. I’m worried about them.
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caffeinetheory · 4 years
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There’s Gotta Be A Reason
Follow up to Everything Stays requested, well they got me to consider it, @mystery-5-5
this is Jason’s point of view, and he may seem a little ooc for him but i wanted a softer take, hopefully it will make sense, also sorry for the long wait, i kept putting off finishing it ‘cause i want to hopefully make something that’ll stand with the original
(I ended up skipping the last verse because i wanted to focus on Jason not Mari also if this is all over the place sorry, I’ve been working on and off with it and it was longer then I meant to make and took way longer, oops )
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The bruises still lingered on his arms and the dried blood was still sticking to his skin. They were the only things Jason could feel at the moment, he was numb. Completely numb and barely knew his own name. Only one thing stayed in his mind untouched by the madness of the pit, loving bluebell eyes that seemed to hold the world to him and a soft voice drowned out by whatever had brought him back. 
There's gotta be a reason that I'm here on Earth
As memories slowly came back to him there was one constant, a girl. She was special to him, he knew that much but he couldn't place why for the life of him. Maybe she was the reason he was back, no that couldn’t be it. Talia made sure Jason knew he was theirs because he owed them from bringing him back.
But why was she the only thing he could remember, there has to be something. The distant memory of what must have been her laugh is sometimes the only thing keeping him sane.  Something in the back of his mind tells him he should hold back, but what was it?
Gotta be a reason for the dust and the dirt
Seeing the grave for the first time was jarring. He really did die didn’t he. Pain enveloped his mind as he tried to remember, but it hurt to much so he just let it go. There are more important matters at the moment anyway, like getting out from under their control. That was one thing he could never forget, he didn’t like being told what to do.
The changing of the seasons never changed my hurt
It must have been at least a year since he was brought back and he still under them. The plan was coming together, he’d run with their weapon. It was bad enough they were messing with his life but a CHILD! That wouldn’t stand. Another spring was coming, that was when he’d make his break. All that was left was to get the kid on board.
So what's it worth? What's it worth?
Saving Damian may have been a mistake, the kid was an absolute pain, but it felt like the right thing to do. Weird to think he could do the right thing but something told him that was what he should do.
Damian told him where to drop him off, a manor. It brought the pain in his head but he ran to the shadows before it could get worse. There was something important about the manor but it wasn’t the right time to figure it out.ashes of memories were becoming more frequent while he was in Gotham.
Worth another shot of whiskey and another sip of gin
Being passed out drunk was one of the only things keeping the pit’s madness under control, if you can even call it that. If he was drunk he couldn’t go out and fill the need to kill, be the Hood. Bottles littered the floor, the weapons he could run with strewn about on every surface there wasn’t a bottle. This wasn’t right but what else could he do, remembering hurt but something told him it would be worth the pain. 
Another drop of poison that is slowly sinking in
Was he ready though, that’s the question.
Downing the last of the whiskey in his shit apartment he made himself a drunken promise. This would change. Fight through the pain and go back to the manor, check on the kid, see if he can find out why it causes the pain that only happens when he is trying to remember the before.
If we're going down together, better take another hit
Dick was the one who found a lost Jason looking lost in the manor gardens. 
“Jay…”
“...Dickie”
The brothers broke down in each others arms. This started a practice between the two, every over day they would meet at a coffee shop and Dick would help him with his memories. It was slow and it hurt the older boy to see his little brother hurting so much but they made it work.
We won't be here forever, so let's make the best of it
It was a year and a half later he got to see Roy again. You couldn’t separate the for weeks afterwards. They helped one another, became a duo. What they did wasn’t exactly legal but when was being a vigilante ever legal. 
They were the fuck-ups but they worked. They did what they could to help when others wouldn’t. Roy helped with relapses and the intrusive thoughts, Jay could keep Roy grounded. Together they were the Outlaws, others would join them from time to time but it was something that was theirs.
Walking down to the burial ground
The day he finally saw his grave was a jarring one to say the least. It was the day everything finally fell into place. That laugh that could be heard when he was alone explained, the hard to control urge to mame clowns, and red crowbars making him uneasy. It all made sense, why that clown was still alive would always baffle him but that wasn’t his problem.
With a sad song in his brain
It also brought back the sweet voice in the back of his head. Always there but he could finally hear it again. Soft bliss like bells on a warm spring day. Pure comfort, he knew it went with the eyes, but no one could tell him who they belonged to. At first he thought it was Dick, but that wasn’t right, but who else had known him and been close to him?
General Cloud is an old man now
When he saw Bruce again with no masks in the way he didn’t know how to feel. There were a thousand questions going through his head, the loudest being why...why didn’t you do anything? At this point did it matter though, what’s done was done. It was clear he had gone through enough already, no wasn’t the time to stab an old wound… since when did I think about others like that?
But it feels like yesterday
Despite the open invitation to stay at the manor Jason avoided it as much as he could. The photos and halls bringing back what he assumed were memoires, memories hurt. It was a pain he wasn’t ready to quite fully face, that was until he saw the hidden frame. It's simple black outline was hard to miss in the library. It was with his favorite book, why his favorite book was a worn red leather bound book written entirely in French he wasn't sure but something told him it was more than what was contained on the yellowing pages. 
He was on the front lines, stranded on the beach
Memories from a gala not to long after he was adopted came flooding his head. Feeling lost because he was alone, Dick had classes and Jason was by himself in forein country. Baby pink and calm also flashed in his mind. There still wasn’t a clear face but she was real! He knew it! Walks throughout the city, along the Seine and thorough every back alley. She lead him to all her favorite places, showed him the lights that reminded him of the stars, showed him kindness when he felt alone. Was she the reason the madness wasn’t completely gripping him, but how could that be?
Crawling to his best friend, floating in the sea
Roy had found him thumbing through the yellowed pages seemingly lost in his own head. Roy saw the picture and things started to make sense, but for now he needed to take him back home. The next few weeks Jason wasn’t fully there, the memories were hitting him like a flood, sweeping him away. It was hard but he made himself swim, he pushed them back but not away. He still had a mission to attend to.
But he didn't make it, he still can't believe
Every Time he tried to remember now nothing new comes, he knows there is more. There has to be doesn’t there. This can’t be all, Jason Peter Todd knew there was more, what was the key to a lock he couldn’t find?
How arbitrary fate is, he says
Jason thought he had everything there was in his memories at this point, it had been at least 3 years since he died and more than a year since he was free from the League’s influence but her name always eluded him. The one time he tried to ask Dick they both got called away on something urgent and Dick would evade the question every time. Who was she and what had happened that her saying name was akin to saying the cursed words that would bring the devil himself to the living room?
There's gotta be a reason that I'm here on Earth
Something felt different as Red Hood took out the latest drug cartel with Arsenal, something he couldn’t put his finger on. It was a good different though, like something good was going to come his way soon. 
Gotta be a reason for the dust and the dirt
Visiting his grave still felt weird to Jason, but it was a place he could think clearly. No one bothered him there, it was just him and the old him. Something in the back of Jason’s head told him that the old him, old memories would finally be clear in the coming months. A single marigold laid on his grave as left, a small smile on his face as the gate closed behind him.
The changing of the seasons never changed my hurt
Spring came and went, so did most of the summer. Still nothing new has happened but Jason kept the positive thought in his head. He had made it this far, what was the point of giving up now. That didn’t mean tracing his scars to try and bring back more memories didn’t hurt when nothing came up, but at least Roy could always distract him.
So what's it worth? What's it worth?
Fall was about mid way through when Bruce had gotten a call from someone in the Watchtower, who he didn’t know but he could tell it wasn’t expected. Why would someone move to this godforsaken place, a Leaguer no less? Did they have a deathwish? 
Worth another shot of whiskey and another sip of gin
The anniversary of the Outlaws forming was quite the weekend bender, the whole family insisted he celebrated, kept him out of the area for some reason. Roy took him to Star City to get wasted, sure he was going clean but it was a special case, and maybe it hurt his family wanted him gone for awhile… he really thought that after all this time they didn’t see him as a problem kid anymore, that he had improved, at least he still had Roy by his side.
Another drop of poison that is slowly sinking in
The hangover the next day sucked ass, Roy and Jason could agree on that. But it got his mind off what his family didn’t want him to know about. 
If we're going down together, better take another hit
A few weeks later Jason got called to help with a case in Gotham. With everyone, which was weird with how they seemed to be trying to keep him from the city the last few weeks, but if his family needed him he would better. That’s what family was for after all wasn’t it?
We won't be here forever, so let's make the best of it
With Red Hood’s help the villain team up was taken care of quickly. Something told Jason to hang around for longer though, so he did. Taking up an old patrol route. The feeling came back, and for a reason he couldn’t explain it brought a smile to his lips.
There's gotta be a reason that I'm here on Earth
Jason had finished his patrol earlier than usual, he was one of the only ones out that night. He could hear voices from the living room, something told him he should go in but he couldn’t get himself too. What was this feeling? 
Then the voice that was always telling him how he mattered, how much they cared, the one that helped him, came through the ajar door like it was meant just for him. There was a sadness in it that made his heart break, she didn’t deserve to feel that sad. She was an angel and she deserves all the happiness in the world. 
Gotta be a reason for the dust and the dirt
Curiosity was getting the best of him, why was she here? As she talked about a chain he had an epiphany Marinette!!! Her name was Marinette, and with that everything fell into place. She was his light, his reason to fight even if he didn’t know it.
Something she said made him forget about the joy he felt, “I think that’s why I couldn’t let it be real, let him go… I always wanted to be by his side, with him through thick and thin.”
She still loved him? She didn’t know he was alive? How much pain had she been going through? He couldn’t catch his helmet before it hit the ground making everyone look his way, he was into much shock to care though, she was real and staring right to his soul. 
The changing of the seasons never changed my hurt
At first she was tense and ready to fight but Dick called his name and that was all it took for her to launch herself at him. Any punch he got her deserved...wait she was holding him like he would disappear if she let go. Tears were streaming down her cheeks and Mari just held him closer. Regaining his thoughts after the initial shock Jason returned the hug just as tight, “I’m here, I’m here and I’m not going anywhere,” he needed it just as much as she did. Lighty petting her hair as he helped calm her down, she was really in his arms again. 
How long had it been? Too long and she was there now, that's what mattered. He had a lot of time to make up for, and gosh darn he was going to.
So what's it worth? What's it worth?
They had both changed so much since they were in their teens but he could still see her beauty under all the scars, she maybe slightly worse for wear but she was still his Mari. the look she gave him looking into his eyes, he knew she could still she him in there, and even if she didn’t know it she was the reason. He had found his reason to live again. The calling was right, something good was going to happen eventually, and the wait was more than worth it.
Worth another shot of whiskey and another sip of gin
They spent the rest of the night together, talking and just being together. When Jason awoke with movement on his chest he was worried then seeing Mari he was at ease. She took his hand and lead him like a  puppy to the kitchen where they could eat breakfast. 
Eventually she had to go but they exchanged numbers and he was already planning a date. They had years of lost time to make up for and like hell he wouldn’t start as soon as he could. She was his light and he was going to keep that light close as much as he could.
Another drop of poison that is slowly sinking in
Seeing Mari sitting on the dock swinging her legs like when they would hang out in Paris brought a smile to Jason’s lips. She looked stunning in jeans and a red hoodie, a red that reminded him of his costume, she took off her headphones upon hearing him, a grin burst onto her lips when she saw him. She brought a warmth to his chest he never wanted to leave. Holding out a black helmet to the girl of his dreams she got on his bike holding him together then she needed to, Mari was having time time of her life as they speed down the docks at high speeds. She really was perfect.
If we're going down together, better take another hit
We won't be here forever, so let's make the best of it
When the night ended Jason made a promise to himself, and by the look in her baby blue eyes she did too, they would make this work. 
Life might be short but with you by my side it will all be worth it...
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Finally finished and I hope the wait was worth it <3
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