#AOU | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

olsenmyolsen · 6 months

Text

You're Not Alone

master list

dark master list

Post Age of Ultron (WandaNat)

Summary: Wanda discovers a secret about The Black Widow after a mission.

Word Count: 4.5K

Content: Talks of Hydra, The Red Room, Feelings, Tramua and flashbacks.

Wanda was still learning a lot since moving to America and becoming an Avenger.

Much to the dismay of Clint Barton, she discovered how much more trashy American reality TV is compared to other countries. Choosing to watch two toxic people argue while shitfacrd was a late-night pleasure for Wanda.

She also found her niche of new sitcoms to enjoy. Ones like The Office and Parks and Rec. She tried Always Sunny, but Wanda COULD NOT get into it. That disappointed Maria Hill, who liked that one. But not as much as How I Met Your Mother.

Regardless, Malcom in the Middle was a new favorite for Wanda Maximoff.

She also found new oddities about her teammates. Like Sams love of naming his little gadgets. Steve's late-night ballroom dancing practices. Vision curiosity over his humanoid teeth and Thor's love of all things Pop-Tarts and sugary sweets before heading off-world.

Lastly, Wanda most recently discovered something about Natasha Romanoff that almost no one knew.

Natasha Romanoff had a tattoo.

Wanda couldn't believe it when she saw it. But then again, Wanda was never supposed to see it. She only happened to see it because a mission went wonky...

Since joining the team, Wanda had one goal in mind aside from the obvious for the greater good hero crap. Wanda wanted to eliminate Hydra and their bases.

Joining Hydra was a mistake. It gave her, her powers but at the cost of her young adult years. At the expense of her sanity. She lost herself and then her brother.

Now, she was slowly discovering who Wanda was. Who Wanda Maximoff wanted to be. One of the first things on that list was to take down Hydra.

So that's what led Steve, Sam, Wanda, and Natasha in route to the snowy mountains of France. It wasn't the first mission Wanda was cleared to go on. But it was the first time she was on with Natasha Romanoff.

The Black Widow.

To say Natasha intimidated the Sokovain would be an understatement. Wanda was frightened of Natasha. Even if Wanda could clearly use her powers to her advantage, she didn't want to do that anymore.

At least not to her teammates and friends.

Besides, the pair had barely spoken since the fall of Wanda's home country, but yet Natasha's red jacket still hung in Wanda's closet.

They shared the same floor and went to movie nights at the same time, but aside from a look over and a tight-lipped smile. Natasha never gave Wanda anything more.

Not even when Wanda gave everyone on the team a handwritten apology for her actions in the rise and fall of Ultron.

She never received anything back from Natasha.

And yet.

Natasha chose to sit next to Wanda on the flight to France.

Wanda smiled as the redhead looked over the younger woman. Wanda did the same as her eyes traveled over Natasha's face. She couldn't deny how beautiful the Widow was. Her green eyes and striking features were hard to look away from. But that's what benefitted Natasha when she was in the Red Room. Use any and everything to your advantage.

Natasha wasn't doing that now.

She was just being herself. She wanted to talk to Wanda.

So when she saw Wanda's eyes leave her lips and get visibly nervous, Natasha decided to speak up.

"Hi." She started. Simple enough.

"Hi." Wanda softly spoke back.

Natasha took a second before speaking.

"I want you to know that I know this isn't your first mission. But it's your first one with me since..." Wanda nodded as Natasha steadied herself. "I just want you to know that you can count on me to have your back." Wanda smiled at that. "I know you'll have mine." Natasha ended that with a reassuring nod and a look away before looking back when the witch spoke up.

"Thank you, Natasha."

"Of course."

With that, Natasha cleared her throat and started looking at her widow bites. Double-checking them. Even though they had been thoroughly looked over by the Widow herself before the team even left the compound.

Wanda didn't know what to say anyways. Everything that had just happened was shocking to her.

The most shocking part might have been when Natasha didn't leave when she got done with her gadgets; instead, she remained sat in her seat next to Wanda.

Wanda racked her brain, thinking of anything else to say, but nothing came out when she opened her mouth.

But finally, when she was about push the words "have you ever seen the Dick Van Dyke show?" through her lips, Steve called the team up to go over the mission one last time.

The mission? Infiltrate the located Hydra Base. Save prisoners, if any. Capture the goons inside and try not to kill anyone. However, if it comes to it, do what you have to.

Steve made a better speech, but you get the jist.

When the wheels touched down, the group decided to split off. Through the coms, Wanda could hear Steve and Sam finding guys left and right. But that wasn't the case for her and Natasha.

Their side of the base was empty. Cells and rooms had been cleared out, long left abandoned. Dust and dirt had gathered. Flashbacks came to the front of Wanda's mind, but she pushed down the screaming and the trauma that came with it just in time for Natasha's thoughts to be loud.

Begging for Wanda to read them.

The Black Widow tried to focus on the mission, but for the last couple of months, Natasha had been silently struggling.

After mouthing off to Capitol Hill, Natasha came to Avengers Tower under Fury's orders. She stayed and made herself useful to the cause at hand, however, before and in between Ultron happening. Natasha had thought she found solace in someone after her and Maria split. But even after Natasha begged for them to go with her. It wouldn't work.

Nothing Natasha did worked.

So when a little witch made Natasha relive her nightmares, it didn't anger Natasha. It made her feel weak and small, like she deserved it.

So all this time when, Wanda felt like Natasha wasn't making an effort or ignoring her. Wanda technically wasn't wrong. It, however, wasn't because Natasha hated Wanda she was just dealing with her own shit.

"Natasha?" Wanda whispered when she noticed that the Widow wasn't walking next to her anymore. Instead, she was severely feet back looking into a cell.

Wanda walked back and saw what Natasha was staring at. A stuffed pink bear laid face down in the middle room. Covered in dirt and dried blood.

Wanda didn't say anything. She and Natasha had lived something similar. She just forced her eyes to pull away from the bear and look at Natasha, rubbing the left side of her ribs with her right hand, mumbling something to herself before remembering where she was, and what she was supposed to be doing. She cleared her throat and looked at Wanda.

"We should get moving."

Again, Natasha's thoughts were begging to be viewed, but Wanda ignored them and followed Natasha.

"Did you find it yet?" Sams voice came over coms. "We're almost at the drives now. If there's no one to save or take, prepare to evac in five." Natasha said as she and Wanda stopped before a room storing this base's secrets.

Wanda lit up the room with her magic before deeming it safe for Natasha to flick the switch on. "Is that new?" She asked when Wanda lowered her hands. "Steve, Vision, and I have been trying to come up with inventive ways to use my powers."

Natasha nodded as she put the thumb drive into the computer in the corner of the room.

"That's right," Natasha said. "I can see you lifting him from my window." That surprised Wanda. She had no idea Natasha had been watching them after team training ended. "You're doing good." Natasha offered a genuine smile to the Sokovian, who tried her best to hide the red on her cheeks.

Natasha noticed but didn't comment on it.

Instead, she turned to look at the files loading up on the monitor. Folders and folders full of information on this Hydra bases dealings.

What test they ran. Who they tested it on. What bodies were traded for and to whom.

It was all horrible.

Natasha's eyes watched each document and picture flick by her. The progress bar at the bottom of the screen was getting closer and closer to 100% when a picture of a young blonde girl flew by.

Natasha leaned forward.

No.. It couldn't be..

Wanda saw how Natasha's whole body language changed. She saw how her green eyes changed from focused to scared. Before Wanda could comment on it. A loud bang was heard from outside the door down the hall.

Instantly, Natasha rose to her feet, gun drawn. She looked over at Wanda with raised hands. Ready to fight. Natasha nodded to Wanda and then back to the computer and whispered. "Stay here. Make sure it gets to 100% and then take it with you to the quinjet. I'll be there."

Wanda felt like she should stop Natasha. Or that they should go together, but the words never left her mouth as Natasha rounded the doorframe, disappearing from sight.

As Wanda waited, Natasha quietly stalked her way to where the noise had came from. Her breathing was slow and calculated as she kept her gun in front of her. She listened for any voices or footsteps that might give away whoever was around. But no noise was made.

Natasha turned around and was about to head back when a woman wearing a grey Hydra outfit emerged from the shadows with a gun in their hand—firing two rounds at Natasha before they took off running.

Natasha used her quick reflexes to get up onto her feet and immediately started chasing after the person who just shot at her. "I got one running west," Natasha yelled in the coms. "Heading your way, Wanda."

Wanda's head shot up at learning that piece of information, and stood up from the computer to rush out the doorway. Without thinking about Wanda used her magic to stop the Hydra agent. Immobilizing their body, sending them crashing to the floor. The gun sliding away from their hand.

Natasha stopped next to the fallen body and bent down to turn the woman's body over. Natasha saw how the woman's eyes were red. Wanda had her under. "She's scared," Wanda spoke up for the woman.

That's why she ran. Natasha thought as she looked over the woman's blonde hair and at the features on that dawned her face.

Memories came to the front of her mind as her fingers itched to touch the side of her ribs again.

Natasha shook them away and swallowed before standing back up with a groan. The sharp pain rushed through her body as the adrenaline started coming down. Natasha winced and placed her hand on her side where the pain was coming from.

"You're bleeding."

Natasha looked into Wanda's concerned green eyes and didn't move as Wanda stepped closer to her. Walking right over the now incapacitated Hydra goon. Natasha wanted to take a step back away from Wanda but froze when Wanda's soft hands placed themselves on Natasha's body. Her hands gripped Natasha's hips as she bent down to take a closer look at the wound.

"It looks like the bullet just grazed you. Did you not feel it?" Wanda looked up at Natasha, who just shrugged. "I didn't even realize."

Wanda accepted the answer because she could start to see that pushing Natasha would push her away. So, instead, Wanda nodded to herself and raised her hand to Natasha's wound.

"I've been working on something.. Do you trust me?" Wanda asked the one person whom most people could never see Natasha trusting. "Yes," Natasha said without hesitation. Wanda hid a blush at that before continuing.

She raised her hand higher and brought it closer to Natasha's bleeding side. "It won't hurt."

Natasha watched as red wisps extended themselves from Wanda's hand and landed on the marking of the bullet. Before her eyes, Natasha watched as Wanda started patching the wound as if she were stitching her body. "Oh my.. Wanda..." Natasha couldn't believe it, and yet her wound was now sown shut with a red glow around it.

Wanda looked at what she did and smiled. She was proud of herself. So when she looked up, and saw Natasha smiling back down. Wanda smiled brighter. "That's amazing," Natasha said as Wanda stood up. Her hands were still on the Widow's body. "Thank you!" Natasha looked at Wanda with newfound respect and admiration.

And before she knew it, Natasha's eyes traveled from Wanda's green eyes to her pink lips. She started scanning every inch of the Sokovain's face in a new way.

Wanda wasn't sure if what she was seeing was actually happening, so it was best not to comment on it. However, she did notice that slight fall from Natasha's lips when Wanda removed her hands from her.

"When we get back, you'll have to get it checked out. My magic won't hold it forever... At least not that I know of." Wanda chuckled at that last part, making Natasha crack a laugh for the first time in a long time.

The nice eye-darting moment between the two had to come to an end when the prisoner groaned from the floor. They were still unconscious, thanks to Wanda. But needing to be moved.

"I'll check the hard drive if you want to..." Natasha didn't need to say anymore as Wanda effortlessly lifted the prisoner with her powers. Natasha smiled at the easy use of her powers and subconsciously rubbed the side of her ribs above the area where she had been shot once again—an action Wanda had picked up on.

Perhaps it was a nervous habit of Natasha's?

Maybe a tic?

Wanda didn't know, but when she saw Natasha do it again, she sat back down in the chair in front of the monitor. The screen sitting on an image of an experiment being ran on a young kid.

The progress bar below sitting at 100%.

Wanda watched as Natasha's body tensed, followed by her thoughts becoming louder and louder.

The flight went by quicker than Wanda thought it would.

She wanted to sit and talk with Natasha but couldn't when Natasha landed herself in the pilot seat. Wanda was sure she wouldn't have been if the Widow told the team about her getting shot, but Natasha didn't.

Instead, when Wanda and Natasha arrived with the unconscious Hydra goon, Steve and Sam had no idea that Natasha was in a fight. Something about the coms failing right after the download started. Steve asked Natasha if she was fine, and Wanda watched her teammate lie and put on a brave face.

So Natasha flew the team back.

When they landed, Sam went to start a report on the mission while Wanda went with Steve to take the prisoner to holding. Natasha went to the medical unit to get her wound looked over.

At least, that's what Wanda thought.

To no surprise but Wandas, Natasha headed straight to her room. She locked the door and went to her bathroom. She opened a cabinet and pulled out her own med kit. She rested it on the counter as her nerves began to calm down. The pain worked its way through her soft and battered body as her suit was slowly peeled off, hitting the floor.

There, Natasha stood in her private bathroom, scanning over her semi-naked body. What's been done to it by others. What's been done is by her own hands. Scars and wounds healed but still leave a mark.

She brings her fingers up over her newest wound and lets the bit of undried blood drip onto her middle finger before she rubs it into her skin.

The red staining her.

Natasha brings her face up from her fingers to look back at the mirror. Natasha realizes just how close the bullet was. Had it been appropriately aimed and higher, it would've gone right through the middle of Natasha's first and only tattoo.

On the side of Natasha's ribs were two incredibly detailed fireflies. One was slightly bigger than the other.

"Look, forest stars!"

"Yeah! You know what? Those are actually part of the Lampyridae family. And the glow that you see, that comes from a chemical reaction called... bioluminescence... Come on time for dinner!"

"I want Mac and Cheese."

"Natasha..?"

Natasha, startled, jumped back and away from the shut bathroom door. Covering herself before, she immediately closed her eyes and got upset at her actions once she realized it was Wanda on the other side.

Had she not heard the witch enter her room?

"I was calling your name over and over, but you didn't hear me." The witch answered. "I came to check on you. I went to the medical wing and... and you never made it. So I knocked on your door before letting... myself.. in..." Wanda tried to laugh to cover the light criminal work she had done. Even then, she opened and closed her mouth, but before Natasha could do anything, Wanda asked: "Are you okay? Do you need help?"

Natasha stood with her bodysuit held in her right hand. A part of her was yelling at her to put it on and send Wanda away. Fix yourself up alone and get back to training. But there was the other half. The one who was exhausted and hurt. The one who needed help.

That voice won out.

"Wa-Wanda..." Natasha's voice was cracked before she cleared it. "Yes?" Wanda answered with a voice of surprise and concern. But then Natasha didn't speak. Instead, there was a click of the door as Natasha removed her hand from the lock. "Come in.." She quietly called out to the Sokovian, who now wore a set of grey sweats, gingerly placed her hand on the knob before turning it slowly, opening the door.

"Natasha..." Wanda hitched her breath as her eyes became focused on the woman standing before her. Only wearing a black sports bra and black shorts. Riddled with scars and bruising. A bullet wound below a black and white marking that Natashas was hiding with her hand.

Wanda took her gaze off Natasha's body and found her eyes. Taking a step forward, Natasha didn't look away from the younger woman. She didn't move. She kept her grip on her suit and waited. "Natasha?" Wanda spoke.

"Hmm?"

Wanda looked away from the Widow and picked up the Avengers-level first-aid kit. "Take a seat.." She gestured over to the edge of the counter. Natasha looked at the spot before nodding.

Cautious, she dropped the suit from her grip but kept her hand covering the tattoo.

Wanda caught onto it and wasn't sure what Natasha could possibly be hiding; after all, SHEILDS secrets had been public knowledge for the last year and a half. But Wanda wasn't going to bug her about. Right now, she just wanted to care for her teammate and friend.

So, as Wanda got closer to Natasha, Natasha sat straight up and lifted her arm up to give Wanda enough space to work. Wanda sent the older woman a flat smile and bent down slightly before starting to clean the grazed area of the bullet.

Natasha did her best not to wince or show much emotion as Wanda cleaned her up and tossed the bloodied pieces of tissues to the side. Wanda knew Natasha wouldn't, but still, she was in such close proximity to THE BLACK WIDOW, and yet she could tell something was wrong. "Natasha?" Wanda finally said when she went to stitch her up without using her powers.

"Yes?" Natasha brought her eyes to Wanda as her loud thoughts of a young blonde child slowed. "Are you okay?" Wanda asked the question that had been begging to be asked.

Natasha wasn't sure what it was, but she easily could've lied to Wanda. She could've nodded, put on a brave face, and shut down any remaining questions, but when the green eyes of the Sokovian looked up at her, she broke. She closed her eyes and squeezed them tight as tears threatened to spill.

Wanda quickly put down the medicinal supplies in her hand and placed her hands on the shoulders of the redhead before they moved down to Natasha's side. Her hand sitting inches above the still-covered tattoo. "Tas-Natasha?"

Natasha shook her head and used her one free hand to wipe at her face. A tear slipped past her mouth as she opened to speak. "I'm tired." She spoke through her rough throat. Wanda nodded. She knew. "So tired."

Wanda rubbed her hands up and down Natasha's side. It seemed like it was still a safe thing to do, considering Natasha hadn't stopped her, and they were both enjoying the touch of each other on their skin.

Wanda was going to let the silence linger. She didn't know what to say to help Natasha that the Widow didn't know, and she was focusing really hard not to read her thoughts. But luckily for Wanda, Natasha very quietly looked up and said: "I miss her."

Wanda saw the soft sadness in the eyes of her friend and felt hurt. She didn't like seeing Natasha like this. It didn't feel right, and someone this pretty should never be sad.

"Who?" Wanda asked, genuinely curious.

"Yelena. My sister."

Natasha saw the confused look on the witches face, but instead of elaborating, Natasha leaned closer to Wanda and lifted her hand off of her tattoo. "Here." She placed her hands on top of Wanda. Moving one just in front of her forehead and the other hand, she moved down the side of her body.

The feeling of their fingers resting on top of one another sent a warmth wave throughout each woman as Natasha finally placed Wanda's hand on the tattoo.

"I got this a year after my deflection to SHIELD."

Wanda rubbed her thumb over the larger firefly before tracing her fingers over the delicate linework. The action making Natasha smile. "Do you know where she is?" Wanda gingerly asked when she took her eyes off the piece of art.

"No."

"Do you wish you did?"

Natasha didn't waste another thought on a lie. She answered truthfully while looking into Wanda's eyes.

"Yes."

Wanda's eyes stayed on Natashas before dropping to her lips and back up. "Can.. I..?" Wanda asked, awaiting consent before earning a nod. With that, Wanda lowered her hand and began looking into Natasba's mind. Looking at what Natasha wanted her to see.

A young blonde child and a girl with dyed blue hair. The two are playing in a backyard near a swing set. The younger girl is laughing and having fun before she falls over.

"Yelena," Natasha repeated her name. "My sister." Wanda smiles at the memory and then raises her hand up and leaves Natasha's mind. "Before she was taken. She didn't know..." When she opens her eyes, Natasha is looking at her. "Thank you for showing me that." Wanda once again looks down at Natasha's watery smile—her lips.

Natasha nods and notices the look on Wanda's face. "Wanda.." Natasha starts as her hands move to Wanda's waist, tugging her closer to her sitting on the bathroom counter.

"We shouldn't..." Wanda already knows what the older woman is thinking, but Natasha wants this. She needs this. It's been a while since she's felt the care from someone else. The touch of another. She also has shared something with Wanda that no one else knows.

So, as she pulls Wanda closer, Wanda knows that they shouldn't, but she can't say no. The words fail to get past her throat. She wants to feel the lips of the other on her... So she leans into Natasha, and the moment between them is soft. Slow and careful. But the sparks fly.

Something happens.

Natasha's hand moves around to Wanda's lower back, pulling her closer, causing Wanda to fall more into her without a fight as their lips collide again and again.

A whimper makes Natasha smile as she bites and pulls the witches bottom lip between her teeth. "You sound so good for me," Natasha whispers, earning another moan. "Natasha..." Wanda tries to speak again but fails when Natasha's right hand begins pulling at Wanda's grey sweatpants. "Shhh.. It's okay.. I want this.." Natasha reassures Wanda to only earn a shake of the head. The younger woman is doing her best to tell Natasha that she's...

"Tasha.." Wanda moans when Natasha's hand brushes past her bare pussy. "Come on. Tell me you want this, Wanda..." Wanda gasps and moans when a finger touches her clit. "Tasha, please..." Natasha smirks and kisses the lips of the scarlet woman with passion.

"Please, what baby..." Wanda loves the kisses being planted by Natasha, but she has never done anything past this moment with someone. She's feeling lost, and the feeling of passion is morphing into nervousness. And she doesn't want to do this with Natasha when she knows and can feel the thoughts coming from Natasha.

Natasha is looking for an escape.

Wanda moans again in pleasure. "Please stop." She says, surprising Natasha. Immediately, Natasha pulls her hands out of Wanda's sweatpants, placing them on her sides taking her lips off of the Sokovian. Looking into her eyes with concern. "What- what's wrong?" Wanda bites her bottom lip before returning them to Natashas, still keeping her confused. "Wanda?" Natasha looks at her friend with soft eyes.

"I've never..." Wanda says, making Natasha feel guilty for pushing her. "Oh Wanda..." Natasha starts, but Wanda stops her again with a kiss, moving their bodies closer together. "Stop. I want to, but..." Wanda bites her lips again. "I don't want to be used." She takes a careful breath before saying: "You and I both know what that's like."

Natasha doesn't realize a tear has fallen from her face until Wanda drags a finger up her cheek. Wiping it away with tenderness. "I'm so-" "Don't." Wanda cups Natasha's chin. "It's okay." Natasha wants to yell at her that it's not, but all she does is collapse as Wanda runs her hand over the tattoo of a distant memory.

Wanda doesn't speak about what almost happened between them. Instead, she leaves Natasha on the bathroom counter as she brings her some clothes to rest in later tonight. She finishes wrapping the wound around Natasha before leading her out to her bed.

Both women are tired but don't let go of one another hand. Wanda smiles when Natasha asks her to stay.

They don't talk about what is new between them. But the two feel closer as Wanda keeps her hand on the tattoo, and with permission, she is allowed to relive the happiest memories from Natasha's childhood. A majority of them involving Yelena. Natasha thanked her as she laid in the Sokovian's arms.

In return, Wanda made her remember that she's not alone.

dividers by @/benkeibear

184 notes · View notes

phoenixyfriend · 1 year

Text

[squints at the MCU] Tony Stark has displayed more ability to weather interrogation and torture than Steve Rogers.

This is "(displayed more)(ability)," not "(displayed)(more ability)," to be clear.

(I know fiction’s depiction of torture is famously propagandafied, but in this case, it’s not about torture for information so much as physical traumas shown on screen.)

(Anyway, have a rant I did on discord the other day.)

It's not really so much about "resisted the urge to hand over information" as "survived a truly harrowing experience and still came out of it trying to do good."

Tony's very first movie involves getting repeatedly drowned while in constant pain from bomb injuries as a civilian contractor, and I… don't think I can remember anything even a little similar with Steve

I don't think he's ever been captured for long before breaking out? All his injuries are in active battle, not torture.

Like... Steve went through something horrible with the ice and losing Bucky, nobody can argue that. But I think it's very telling, sometimes, that movie Steve, especially 2012 movie Steve, is completely unaware of the absolute nightmare that Tony experienced in his solo movies.

I have so many feelings about Tony Stark being the epitome of "guy who was raised and manipulated into being a bad person by someone he trusted, and (after a horrible experience) attempts to be a better person, constantly and consistently, even if he sometimes fucks up in the execution."

And the way that some fics elide his experiences in cleaning up other people's messes (first Obadiah's, then Howard's) and how that doubtlessly compounded his many neuroses from fixing messes that he did actually create himself is just

I have a lot of feelings

And am also feeling a little bitter and salty about how Tony Stark's MCU incarnation reportedly took some inspo from Elon Musk... and a little petty and satisfied about just how drastically we've all be shown that Musk can never live up to the idea of 'billionaire with inherited wealth who actually, without hesitation, risks his own life to save millions' that he tried to use PR to achieve in the media with 'my electric cars are gonna save the world' stunts about things he didn't actually have a hand in inventing

I'm just reading some fics I really enjoyed when I was still in the YA fandom, and there was a reference to a line Steve said in the movies and I started thinking (again) about how frequently fans take lines from Steve or Sam about Tony as gospel, because they haven't seen Tony's movies, and the lines from the star spangled boys are contextually meant to show that they don't know jackshit about Tony or his life, because they are directly contradicted by multiple prior films.

Also like... how often Steve's traumas get explored (in fic) in a way that Tony's just... don't? At most, his issues about Howard get explored, but that's it.

There's this moment in CACW that people take as Accurate and it infuriates me.

Tony Stark: [Back in the cell.] Just look. Because that is the fellow who was supposed to interrogate Barnes. [He shows a holographic image of Doctor Broussard.] Clearly, I made a mistake. Sam, I was wrong. Sam Wilson: That's a first.

Which, like... it's a bad movie. Obviously. But also

That line is immediately followed by Tony revealing that he's here to help the others and is sabotaging the security to make sure Ross can't take advantage, and yet fanfic still uses Sam's quote to promote anti-Tony agendas!

And 'Tony admits he fucked up' is. Like. Listen to me

Tony's first solo movie is fixing Obadiah's machinations. *

His second solo movie is fixing his Dad's fuckup.

His first team movie is fixing Thor's mistakes.

His third solo movie is fixing something that is only tangentially his fault.

It's not until AoU that the fuck-up is really his and his alone (well, not counting Bruce), and even then, even then, a massive portion of the blame is narratively laid at Wanda's feet!

And only then do we get this man, who has spent five movies seeing what happens when people don't take responsibility for their actions, or have anyone riding them to be ethical, who has criticized himself for neither having that oversight nor providing that oversight for people who snuck shit under his nose, that is when we get Tony weighing in on the side of "most countries on the planet are agreeing with this and it's for a reason, please work with me here, maybe we can get some of it rolled back to be less authoritarian and more reasonable."

* and removing himself from the military industrial complex he was raised and groomed to be in, but that's a system and not an individual act or a set 'villain'

Or as @firebirdeternal put it:

I would say that his first solo movie does have a large element of fixing his own mistakes too, it's just that his "mistake" was Trusting the Wrong Person and not taking personal responsibility for how his actions are affecting the world. (Which, he immediately does upon coming back from being captured? "We're going to immediately stop making weapons, because it's making the world worse" and then when Obadiah cuts him out of the company he goes "Oh. Okay no that didn't work, have to personally fix all this then.") and yeah it's just Tony have plenty of reasons to be on the side of "Someone needs to have oversight over this"

IM1 is such a good exploration of someone in privilege saying "this stops now" in a situation where they do have control because they have been confronted with their mistakes in a way that's unavoidable

It's also like, a great example of the fantasy of the Super Hero. Because Tony Stark, the businessman, even with all his wealth and knowledge, isn't able to stop the systemic harm being caused by His Own Company. One person isn't able to do that, even with the best of intentions. It isn't until he becomes something else, something more, a Super Hero, that he's able to make any kind of meaningful change on his own. Like IM1 is just a phenomenal movie. It understood it's subject material so incredibly well.

And people skip it and then take Steve and Sam at their word about Tony's strength of character and moral convictions and I scream.

THIS MAN FLEW A NUKE INTO A WORMHOLE WITH THE FULL EXPECTATION THAT HE WAS GOING TO DIE

Yeah, like, that Jump on the Grenade mentality is something that he and Steve actually literally share.

They both had 'jump on the explosive to save people' moments in their introductory movies.

I find so much more strength and inspiration in stories like Thor and Tony, where they are inherently fuck-ups and were shitty people and they are trying so damn hard to be better, which is more Tony than Thor really, but both of them and their first movies are just. I find that more inspiring than Steve or T'Challa or any other hero who was already a good person and just Became Great.

Tell me about the person who has to struggle to find that moral choice. Tell me about Natasha dragging herself from her oceans of blood and Tony fighting the government over whether they have the rights to use weapons he's created and about Thor having to reckon with his family's power being born of imperialistic ravaging of other cultures.

I want to hear about the people for whom being good is hard and a choice they don't have to make, but then they make it anyway.

Also I stand by "I am Iron Man. [infinity snap]" being the most amazing bookend the MCU could have done and probably the best part of the Endgame.

#Tony Stark #character analysis #phoenix talks #MCU #Iron Man Movies #Iron Man #Avengers #AoU #CACW #AEG #torture mention

620 notes · View notes