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swan-of-sunrise · 1 year

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A Spellbinding Wedding (Spellbinding-Verse Interlude)

Summary: (Y/N) and Loki’s big day has finally arrived, but will mischief and superhero shenanigans succeed in derailing the happiest day of their lives?

Pairing: Loki X Reader

Word Count: 10.9k

Warnings/Disclaimers: Almost 11k words of pure, tooth-rotting fluff lol

A/N: We’ve finally arrived at the wedding of Loki and the Cosmic Sorceress! If you haven't already, I recommend checking out the Spellbinding Playlist; I added a bunch of wedding/romantic songs I imagine they'd choose for their special day and they're all great, so go ahead and give it a listen!Thank you all so much for reading and for waiting like six months for this thing lol, and I hope that you enjoy!

A Spellbinding Wedding October 8th, 2016 Stark Mansion New York City, New York (Previous One-Shot)

“So, (Y/L/N), in just a few short hours you’re gonna be officially – pause for dramatic effect – off the market! Can you tell us what exactly’s going through the beautiful bride’s head right now?”

(Y/N) briefly paused her mascara application and pretended to ponder Clint’s overly-exaggerated question. “Whether or not it would be rude of me to drop that camcorder through a portal to Muspelheim and lock you in the basement until after the ceremony.”

The archer snickered before jumping up to sit on the dresser behind her and turning the camcorder around to directly address the camera. “As you can see, your mom gets a little cranky when she has to wake up early. Not sure if that’ll go away in the future or just get worse, so…either way, good luck with that, kiddos!”

“When you volunteered to film the ceremony and parts of the reception for us, I really should’ve questioned it more.” (Y/N) resumed applying her mascara while fighting back a smile. “At least any future children of ours will watch this, see just how ridiculous their Uncle Clint is and know that we weren’t exaggerating. Oh! Speaking of children, are Peter’s friends here yet? Tony was supposed to send Happy into Queens to pick them up an hour ago, but I haven’t heard anything about them since.”

“Yeah, they’re all hanging out in the old lab downstairs and Tony’s helping ‘em prep their sound equipment as we speak; you and Loki do know that there’s literally thousands of professional DJ’s living in New York you could’ve hired to run your wedding reception that aren’t sixteen and can actually drive themselves to their venues, right?”

“Says the friend of ours who practically begged to be the videographer even though he’s a professional archer by trade…” She mumbled under her breath, twisting the mascara wand back into its tube just as someone knocked on her suite’s door. “Come in!”

The door opened and Natasha popped her head into the room, her long red hair still wrapped in curlers, a clipboard in her hands and a comm link secured in her ear. The spy was taking her many duties as Matron of Honor very seriously, treating the day’s celebration as if it were a highly-classified mission and not a mid-sized wedding located at Tony’s family mansion; each of their teammates had been assigned specific duties and responsibilities and throughout the morning, Natasha regularly checked in with them to ensure that their tasks were going smoothly, which explained why she was shooting Clint the trademark glare she normally reserved for Hydra agents and invading aliens. “Last I checked, Barton, you’re supposed to be overseeing the florists in the garden and not raising the bride’s blood pressure right before the wedding.”

Clint jumped down from the dresser and raised his hands in surrender. “Okay, okay, no need to go all Black Widow on me, Tasha.” He crossed the room and pressed a chaste kiss onto (Y/N)’s cheek before winking at her through the vanity’s mirror. “I’ll see you at the altar, (Y/L/N)!”

Natasha gave the archer one final glare as he hurried out of the suite while whistling ‘Chapel of Love’ and shook her head when the door closed behind him. “I swear, I’m gonna have to start using my Widow Bites on these people if they don’t start being more helpful…” The spy turned her attention to (Y/N) and her concentrated frown morphed into a smile. “Aw (Y/N), you look stunning and you haven’t even put on your dress yet! I’m serious, it’s like you’re glowing or-” She cut herself off and held a hand up to her ear to listen to a voice in her comm. “Wait a sec, Bruce says that the caterers just arrived. Did you want me to get you anything before I check in on them?”

“Is it too early in the day for a glass of champagne?”

“Not if there’s a splash of orange juice in it,” Natasha answered with a mischievous grin. “I’ll be back before you know it!”

The door closed behind the spy and for the first time that morning, the room fell silent. (Y/N) sat back in her seat and let out a sigh of relief; she loved her friends and teammates dearly, of course, but all she wanted to do was prepare for the wedding in peace and with as little stress as possible. The wedding was slightly larger than they’d originally anticipated, with over a hundred guests from Midgard, Asgard and Alfheim all gathered together at one of Tony Stark’s family mansions in the heart of New York City, and with the ink still drying on the three realms’ fledgling peace treaties, handling the guests and ensuring that they remain peaceful would be a difficult task to carry out on a day already filled to the brim with difficult tasks. So far, her friends were doing an excellent job with ensuring that everything was running smoothly but after living the life of a superhero for over a year, she knew just how quickly a situation could shift from calm to catastrophic.

“I wonder of Loki’s feeling just as anxious about all this as I am,” (Y/N) murmured to herself, giving the photograph of her soon-to-be husband she’d tucked into the edge of her vanity’s mirror a smile before setting her sights on her un-styled hair, hoping that the intricate task would serve to distract her from the butterflies fluttering in her stomach.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Brother, what exactly is this gloopy green substance?”

“It’s an avocado and green tea mud mask.”

“…And why have we applied it to our faces?”

“It removes impurities from the skin while unclogging pores and absorbing excess oil.” Before Thor had a chance to ask another question, Loki brusquely continued. “Yes, it’s meant to relax you and no, you cannot eat it.”

Instead of becoming annoyed by Loki’s shortness, his brother chuckled. “In that case, these mud masks must be defective because you’re anything but relaxed, brother.” With a defeated sigh, Loki removed the cucumber slices resting on his eyelids and sat up, tossing the slices into the nearby trashcan and making his way into the suite’s bathroom to wash the half-dried mud mask off; he was halfway done when Thor entered and leaned against the door-frame, a look of concern visible even beneath his own thick mud mask. “Loki, are you all right? You haven’t been yourself all morning, and it’s beginning to worry me. You’re not having second thoughts about the wedding, are you?”

“No! No, of course not,” Loki emphatically shook his head. “I’ve been waiting for this day for quite a long time, believe me, but I…well, it’s an awfully significant life change, isn’t it? I know that what I’m feeling is only a natural reaction to such a change, of course, but a part of me can’t help but wonder if I’m even deserving of this life I’m about to embark on with (Y/N).”

His brother nodded in understanding. “I believe that Wilson refers to them as intrusive thoughts; unwelcome, involuntary thoughts with no basis in truth or fact that can manifest as a result of several forms of trauma.” When Loki raised his brows in surprise, Thor sighed and rolled his eyes in mild exasperation. “Believe it or not, brother, I do listen to what others say when they’re around me. The important point to be made is that they’re wrong; as your designated Best Man, it’s my duty to ease these irrational worries of yours and I believe that I have just the thing!”

Thor disappeared into the bedroom and quickly returned with an ornate bottle and two glasses, and Loki’s jaw nearly dropped at the sight of the familiar flagon. “That’s one of Asgard’s last remaining bottles of the great Hoder’s spiced mead. It’s to be drunk on the most special of occasions and only with the Allfather’s express permission…”

“I took a page out of your book and simply borrowed a bottle on my way out of the palace.” The older man grinned proudly at his uncharacteristic act of subterfuge and Loki couldn’t help but chuckle. “The Allfather might not agree, but my brother’s wedding and all the happiness it will surely bring him is a special occasion.”

As Loki’s throat burned and he fought back the sudden tears brought on by his brother’s support, he watched as Thor poured the amber-colored liquid out into the two glasses and pressed one into his hand, the corner of his mouth curving upwards while he raised the glass. “Well then, to happiness.”

“To happiness,” Thor echoed, and the two brothers clinked their glasses together before downing the spiced mead in one go. “Another!”

There was a gentle knock on the suite’s door and Frigga’s voice called out, “Loki? Thor?”

“Oh, Hel!”

Both men scrambled to hide the evidence of their treasonous transgression, shoving the spiced mead and glasses unceremoniously under the sink and rushing out of the bathroom to open the door for their mother; the Queen of Asgard was dressed spectacularly in a pale turquoise dress and matching wide-brimmed hat, looking just as elegant in Midgardian clothing as she always did on Asgard. Frigga was beaming as she stepped into the suite and reached up to hold Loki’s face between her hands. “Oh, I can hardly believe that my darling little one is getting married today, and to such a wonderful young woman as well! How are you feeling, Loki? Have you eaten anything at all?”

“I’m fine, Mother, just a little anxious.” Loki matched her infectious smile with one of his own. “After all, it’s not every day that three realms of the cosmos come together to celebrate a wedding.”

“You don’t have anything to worry about, because your brother and your friends are doing such an excellent job at keeping everything running smoothly.” Frigga gave them both a knowing look. “Perhaps another glass of Hoder’s spiced mead will soothe your nerves? Now, be a dear and make mine a double, please.”

Loki and Thor exchanged a wide-eyed look of surprise as their mother crossed the suite and began brushing the stray pieces of lint off their suit jackets hanging near the window, humming a cheerful tune to herself as she did.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pulling back to admire her handiwork, (Y/N) smiled brightly and twirled Cassie’s chair around to face her vanity’s mirror. “There, all finished! What do you think, Cassie?”

Their flower girl-slash-ring bearer squealed in joy and turned to her with the widest smile on her glittering face. “It’s so pretty! I love it!” She threw her arms around her middle and tightly hugged her. “Do I look like a fairy from Alf…Alf…?”

“Alfheim? I’m not sure, actually, I’ve never seen a fairy there before.” Shrugging, (Y/N) glanced over at Elora, who was preoccupied with unzipping the large garment bag containing her wedding dress. “Elora has, though! Haven’t you, Elora?”

The General of the Alfheimian Army looked up from her task with a small shudder. “Unfortunately. The little beasts possess needle-sharp teeth and use their woodland magic to mask their presence right before viciously attacking any who dare trespass into their domain.”

(Y/N)’s eyes widened in alarm but before she could chastise the Alfheimian for her bluntness, Cassie clapped her hands together and let out a delighted laugh. “That is so cool!”

A knock on her suite’s door drew (Y/N) away from Elora and Cassie’s animated discussion of the various magical beasts that lived on Alfheim, and she opened the door to reveal Sam and Bucky; both men were already dressed in their suits, minus their floral boutonnieres, but her calm demeanor vanished when she caught sight of the panicked expressions they were desperately trying to mask. “Okay, what’s wrong?”

“Wrong? Nothing’s wrong, doll-”

“Yeah, everything’s goin’ according to plan, (Y/L/N), promise-”

“Nat had us come up here to…um…”

“To see if you needed any help with…anything.”

She arched an unimpressed brow that almost instantly silenced both men. “Do I really have to ask you two again?”

“…Scott lost the wedding rings!” (Y/N)’s jaw dropped and Bucky let out an indignant noise as Sam raised his hands in surrender. “Sorry, Buck, but she’s got the same death glare my mom used to give me! Yeah, Scott put the rings down and now he can’t find them anywhere, and he can’t even use the ants to help ‘cause he didn’t bring his suit along.”

The super soldier hastily added, “Nat’s trying her best to jog his memory, but…well, you know Nat. I think she might end up making the poor guy faint before finding out where he might’ve lost the rings.”

“Okay, okay…” Rubbing her temples in an attempt to quell the rapidly-growing headache, (Y/N) took a steadying breath and forced herself to remain calm as she began formulating a plan. “All right, my hair and makeup’s already done, so let me find some slippers and we’ll go find Nat and Scott. I might be able to use my Alf Seidr to try and find them-” Both Sam and Bucky breathed a sigh of relief. “-But not a word of this to Loki, okay? The last thing he needs today is any added stress…”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Arching a curious brow, Loki examined the items laid out on the coffee table before glancing up at his teammates. “This is a Midgardian tradition? It seems a little silly that these random objects can determine the outcome of a marriage.”

“Yeah, it’s a good luck thing here on Earth, Lokes, like that old Saints jersey Sam wears during every football season.” Clint held up the camcorder and pointed the lens at Loki as he continued. “Your dad’s a pretty smart guy, kiddos, but don’t let that fool you; he once thought your mom was dying when she was only having a little brain freeze. Remember, Lokes?”

“Children, if you’ve ever wondered why your mother once attempted to hit your dear Uncle Clint over the head with a coffee-table book, then now you know,” Loki snickered as the archer flushed pink and rolled his eyes.

A reluctant smile played on Steve’s lips while he finished fastening his cuff-links across the suite. “I hate to say it, but Barton’s right about it being good luck here. ‘Something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue.’ Your mother gifted you a set of cloak clasps for today so that’s your ‘something old,’ your tuxedo counts as your ‘something new,’ Tony’s lending you one of his nicer Rolex watches for your ‘something borrowed,’ and your ‘something blue’ are the navy blue suspenders you’re wearing.”

Loki hummed in interest. “I suppose that a little extra luck wouldn’t go amiss…”

Just as he slipped the borrowed Rolex onto his wrist, a visibly panicked Thor burst into the suite and made a bee-line to Steve. “Captain Rogers, there’s an urgent matter that I must speak to you about!”

“If it’s that Tony wrote a borderline explicit speech to read at the reception, then we all know and Nat already took care of-”

“No, no, it’s not that, but we really should discuss this matter out in the hall-”

“What is it, Thor?” Loki asked, tilting his head in confusion as he took in his brother’s unusually pale face and arching a disapproving brow when he proceeded to badly explain away his concern. “Brother, surely you haven’t forgotten that I’m the God of Lies? Whatever it is, I’m sure that we’ll be able to handle it before the ceremony begins.”

Thor swallowed and anxiously bit his lip before blurting out, “A wizard is currently battling a space worm out on the lawn.”

“What?!” Loki, Steve and Clint all exclaimed in unison.

“It just appeared out of nowhere and started wreaking havoc across the grounds, but then a wizard stepped out of a portal and started fighting it! Stark and Rhodes are already on their way to help but it seems that the beast is indestructible!”

With his jaw clenched tight in mounting agitation, Loki stood from his seat and summoned his emerald-green magic. “Not if I have anything to say about it.” A shimmer of light enveloped his body and in the blink of an eye, his wedding attire morphed into his Asgardian battle armor and daggers appeared in his grasp. “The beast and this so-called wizard will soon regret the very moment they dared to step foot on this property.”

Steve shrugged off his tuxedo jacket and reached for the red, white and blue shield propped up beside one of the suite’s armchair. “Barton, keep the caterers and florists away from the lawn, and make sure the guests stay inside and away from the windows.”

“On it.”

“And not a word of this to (Y/N), all right?” All three men nodded in agreement and Loki’s grip tightened around the hilts of his daggers. “The last thing she needs today is any added stress…”

As the trio of men hurried outside, a part of Loki wondered if he’d been tricked into believing that a cosmic monster was in the process of battling a sorcerer and that it was all some sort of elaborate prank concocted by his brother and friends to ease his pre-wedding jitters. However, that spark of hope was quickly extinguished when Steve threw the back door open and was forced to jump back to avoid being struck by Rhodes’ flailing body falling from the sky.

“Oh, I’m definitely gonna feel that one for a couple of days,” Rhodes groaned in pain and allowed Steve to hoist his armor-clad body to his feet. “Either of you guys wanna tell me what an ugly-ass space worm is doing here in New York? ‘Cause it’s definitely not here to wish the bride and groom its best!”

The familiar sound of repulsor blasts intermingled with the booming roars caused all four men to turn and watch as Tony darted around the tentacles of an enormous pink creature and a dark-haired man wearing a burgundy cape conjured orange-hued magic to counter its vicious attacks. “Earth has second-rate sorcerers now, how delightful…” Loki rolled his eyes and turned to the others. “It’s an Abilisk, a cosmic creature that feeds off significantly-sized energy sources, and it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if that cheap magician down there summoned it here out of pure incompetency.”

“Let’s deal with the Abilisk first, brother, and then we’ll confront the wizard later!” With a burst of lightning, Thor flew off towards the enraged creature and attempted to slam Mjolnir against its skull, but he was quickly swatted aside by one of its flailing tentacles.

Loki and Steve exchanged a look with Rhodes before joining the battle; the Air Force colonel attempted to shoot it with one of his suit’s many guns but was unsuccessful due to the creature’s impenetrable hide and no matter how twisted its own tentacles became due to the super soldier’s impressive athleticism, the beast remained standing and overwhelmingly angry. After throwing a handful of emerald-green magic at a tentacle to stop it from slamming into Steve��s back, Loki looked over to see the bearded sorcerer performing a spell nearby. “Care to introduce yourself and explain why you’ve brought an Abilisk to my wedding?” He yelled over the creature’s deafening roars.

“My name’s Doctor Stephen Strange, I’m a Master of the Mystic Arts, the guardian of the New York Sanctum in Greenwich Village and I most certainly did not summon an Abilisk here!” The sorcerer shouted back as he threw two semi-circular protective shields at the Abilisk’s face, where they exploded on impact and disoriented the enraged creature further. “Someone here at this mansion opened an inter-dimensional portal and let this creature come through, and as soon I arrived to send it back, my sling-ring was stolen from me by an unchecked summoning spell!”

“Sling-ring?”

“Yes, it’s what allows me to channel the magic needed to open inter-dimensional portals between any two points within the universe and without it, I can’t send the Abilisk back to where it came from!”

Loki was quickly filled with a sneaking suspicion about the whereabouts of the sorcerer’s sling-ring, but he prayed to the Norns that he was wrong as he called out to the others, “Does anyone here have access to Romanoff’s comm link? I think she may be able to shed some much-needed light on the situation!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The air around (Y/N) crackled and hummed with magical energy as she used her Alf Seidr to sense her surroundings and a familiar tugging sensation in her stomach preceded a strange weight in her outstretched left hand. She opened her eyes and her excitement instantly turned to annoyance when she was met with the sight of yet another unfamiliar ring; the one resting on her open palm looked different from the rest, almost reminding her of a pair of brass knuckles but with strange etchings across its bronzed surface. “Well, this definitely isn’t what I’m seeking…” She tossed the object into the basket of other rings she’d inadvertently summoned while searching for the lost wedding rings and sighed. “Do any of you have any bright ideas?”

Scott, Natasha, Sam and Bucky all shook their heads from their spots across the laboratory, and the ex-convict was the first to speak. “I-I’m really, really sorry about this, (Y/N), I didn’t mean to-”

“It’s okay, Scott, I know you didn’t mean to lose the rings…” (Y/N) rubbed her temple in an effort to quell her raging stress-induced headache as she considered what to do next. “I’ll just have to try the spell again, then maybe it will-”

“Tony?” They all looked over to see a frowning Natasha listening to her comm link. “Okay, slow down, I can’t hear what you’re…wait, what wizard ring? Yeah, Scott lost the rings and (Y/N)’s been using her magic to try and find ‘em, but…” The spy’s eyes widened and her jaw dropped at whatever the billionaire was saying through the comm. “Oh shit.”

(Y/N) frowned. “What is it, Nat?”

Before Natasha could answer, the wall nearest to (Y/N) suddenly exploded and she had just enough time to summon a protective bubble of magic to encase them as chunks of stone and debris began raining down. The dust was beginning to settle when she flicked her wrists to remove the shield, her brows rising in surprise as she recognized her future brother-in-law extricating himself from the rubble. Thor’s blue eyes widened comically when he spotted her standing before him and he swallowed nervously before giving her a small wave. “H-Hello, Lady (Y/N). Shouldn’t you be off preparing for the ceremony?”

“What’s going on, Thor?”

“Nothing, nothing, just an intense arm-wrestling match with your delightful Alfheimian friends; for one so small, Myriani has quite the arm!”

“Thor.”

Natasha stepped forward and gestured towards the comm link in her ear. “According to Tony, there’s a giant space worm wreaking havoc on the lawn that you unintentionally summoned here with your Alf Seidr, and the only person who can get rid of it is a wizard-doctor who lives in Greenwich Village but you accidentally stole his magic ring.”

“God, just put me back in the damn ice…” Bucky groaned as he dropped his head into his vibranium hand.

Sam reached into the basket of rings and withdrew the odd-looking shape made of engraved brass. “I’m no expert on wizards, (Y/L/N), but this kinda looks like it could be magical to me.”

(Y/N) took the ring from Sam and with a wave of her hand, she transformed her silk robe and slippers into her Cosmic Sorceress uniform and marched through the hole in the laboratory wall. There was indeed a towering pink-skinned creature flailing its many tentacles as her friends and teammates fought their hardest against it; Tony and Rhodey were firing their suit’s repulsors and dodging its tentacles in the air while Steve, Loki and an odd-looking man wearing a red cloak tried all they could to draw the creature’s attention away from the mansion. Ignoring the guilt beginning to eat away at her, (Y/N) strode across the lawn and called out over the deafening roars, “Doctor, catch!”

The wizard-doctor looked over and raised his hand just in time to catch his ring, quickly slipping it into his fingers and rotating his hands in a circular motion to create a sparking orange portal directly beneath the creature; it released a final roar as it dropped down into the portal and disappeared, leaving the grounds of Stark Mansion silent. The stranger closed the portal he’d opened and breathed a sigh of relief before setting his sights on an embarrassed (Y/N). “Your royal highness, would you care to explain what’s going on and why you took my sling ring?”

(Y/N) fidgeted with her finger-less gloves and attempted to smile, but it appeared as more of a grimace. “First of all, I’m very sorry for all the trouble this has caused you, Doctor…”

“Strange. Doctor Stephen Strange, Master of the Mystic Arts and the guardian of the New York Sanctum.” They shook hands and she silently took note of the unique magical energy radiating from him. “You’re (Y/N) (Y/L/N), former trainee librarian turned Cosmic Sorceress, the Crown Princess of Alfheim, daughter of the Alfheimian Layeia Tilasdottir and the very-human David (Y/L/N), descendant of the esteemed Lady Astrid, designated representative between the Light Elves and the Nine Realms of the cosmos, and the Defender of the Realm of Alfheim.”

Taking a step back, (Y/N) arched a questioning brow and fought the sudden urge to summon her magic or even her sword. “For someone I’ve never met, you certainly know an awful lot about me.”

Doctor Strange shrugged. “I make it my business to keep an eye on beings that pose the largest threats to this world and I have to say, you’re quite high on my list.”

“Well, like I was saying, Doctor, all of this has a very simple if not embarrassing explanation-”

“(Y/N)!” They both turned to see Loki and their friends hurrying towards them; their tuxedos were covered in grass stains and an odd multicolored slime, and her fiancé’s emerald-green eyes were filled with worry as he gently held her shoulders and leaned down to meet her gaze. “Darling, are you all right? What happened?”

As the rest of their friends and even some of their guests began making their way across the lawn, (Y/N)’s embarrassment grew and she brought a hand up to partially hide her face. “Scott misplaced the rings and I thought I could use my magic to find them, but my anxiety must’ve led to me opening a portal and then the strength of my spell accidentally took Doctor Strange’s sling ring, and…well, you know the rest. I still have no idea why I wasn’t able to summon our rings; it’s almost as if something was blocking my magic…” Loki paled at her words and it was (Y/N)’s turn to be concerned. “Loki?”

“This situation, um…it may not entirely be your fault, darling.” Her fiancé chuckled awkwardly and rubbed his neck as he glanced over at where Scott, his girlfriend Hope Van Dyne and Cassie were all standing near Elora. “You see, I assumed that Lang might misplace the rings so before I started getting ready, I placed an enchantment on them and as an added precaution, I instructed Barton to give Lang an empty ring box and give the real ones to-”

“Hey, guys! Cassie had the rings the whole time!" Scott shouted and gave a giggling Cassie a celebratory fist-bump. “Either my little peanut’s becoming a better thief than her old man, or someone didn’t trust me with ‘em in the first place. Probably the second one, huh?”

With an incredulous laugh, (Y/N) allowed a chuckling Loki to pull her into his arms and shook her head in disbelief. “Does that mean we ruined our own wedding?”

“My dear, you both haven’t ruined a single thing,” Frigga reassured her as she walked up to them and gave her shoulder a comforting squeeze. “Your friends and guests are still here, all of them safe and unharmed, and the sun is shining brightly in the sky. Why shouldn’t your wedding continue as planned?”

A stern-looking Doctor Strange raised a hand and answered, “Because Miss (Y/L/N) here nearly caused the destruction of New York with her unchecked magic and a mass hysteria the likes of which hasn’t been seen since his invasion. Such an act, even one as accidental as you claim this one to be, cannot go unexamined and unpunished.”

(Y/N) bit her lip while Loki rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to counter his words, but his mother’s hand on his arm silenced him as she turned to Doctor Strange with a brilliant smile. “It’s very nice to meet you, Doctor Stephen Strange of Midgard; I am Frigga, the Queen of Asgard and mother to Loki and Thor. My dear future daughter-in-law has recently obtained an extraordinary amount of Alf Seidr that she’s still training to control and seeing as today’s her long-awaited wedding day, it’s quite understandable that her focus was shaken.” Frigga sympathetically rubbed (Y/N)’s back and took a moment to adjust her uniform’s purple-hued tiara before returning her attention to the sorcerer. “Now, I’m sure that a highly-skilled Master of the Mystic Arts such as yourself would be honored to utilize the Time Stone hanging around your neck and repair the damage caused by the creature, so as to ease Lady (Y/N)’s frazzled nerves and prevent any other unfortunate accidents from occurring.”

Doctor Strange blinked in surprise. “Um…”

“For your valiant defense of this realm, Asgard recognizes you as one of its trusted allies and speaking as the mother of the groom, I would personally be honored if you joined us for today’s celebration of Loki and Lady (Y/N)’s nuptials.”

“That’s, um…thank you, Queen Frigga, for extending an invitation to me…I-I’d be honored to attend…” The sorcerer’s cheeks flushed pink and he tried his hardest to avoid making eye-contact with the beautiful goddess in front of him. “I’ll start on the repairs right away…”

While a flushed Doctor Strange started using the power of the Time Stone to reverse the damages to their friends’ tuxedos first, (Y/N) turned to look between Frigga and Loki as her stunned expression morphed into a grin. “You really did inherit your Silvertongue from your mother, didn’t you?”

“So it would seem,” Loki replied and leaned down to press a kiss onto his mother’s cheek. “Thank you for intervening on our behalf, Mother.”

Frigga’s blue eyes twinkled with some mischief of her own as she gave them a conspiratorial wink. “Of course, little one. I was raised by witches who taught me many invaluable lessons, among which was that diplomacy and deceit are two sides of the very same coin.”

After the Queen of Asgard went to supervise the sorcerer as he repaired the lawn and floral arrangements surrounding the white gazebo that they’d soon exchange their vows within, (Y/N) spotted Clint filming the aftermath of the battle and giggled. “This’ll be a fun memory to share with our future children: How Mom and Dad’s magical shenanigans nearly wrecked their own wedding.”

Loki laughed. “After listening to Stark read me an online article chronicling several common wedding day horrors, ours was relatively tame by comparison.” He gave her forehead a lingering kiss before meeting her gaze with a tender smile. “Are you ready to get married, my love?”

“More than ready, sweetheart.” (Y/N) slipped her hand into her fiancé’s and swung their arms as they made their way into the mansion to finish getting ready for their wedding ceremony.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

An hour and over a dozen magical repairs later, Loki and Thor stood outside on the mansion’s veranda with Cassie Lang, keeping the flower girl-slash-ring bearer entertained and patiently waiting for (Y/N) and Natasha to finish their last-minute preparations so the ceremony could begin.

The guests were all seated and talking amongst themselves while they enjoyed the late afternoon sunlight breaking through the fluffy white clouds; the only people not seated in the rows of benches were General Elora – who would be officiating the ceremony, as it mainly drew from ancient Alfheimian customs – and Peter, MJ and Ned; the young woman graciously volunteered to play the guitar while they walked down the aisle, and her two best friends were keeping her company as she perched herself on a wooden stool beside the gazebo’s steps. Floral arrangements comprised of green and lavender Dahlias and branches of fern lined the aisle and hung gracefully off the ends of the sculpted wooden benches, while vines of green ivy and lilacs wrapped around the gazebo’s posts and railing. The interior of the gazebo was illuminated with dozens of twinkling fairy lights that were set to brighten as the sun started to set, and lanterns of battery-powered candles hung from each nearby bush and tree.

Embracing a mixture of Asgardian and Midgardian traditions, Loki was dressed in a tailored black tuxedo with an emerald-green cloak fastened to his jacket by the engraved golden clasps his mother gifted him, and he wore a floral crown of blooming laurels and leaves. On Asgard, one’s future spouse chose the flowers that best represented their intended and after much deliberation, (Y/N) picked the laurel for its many symbolic meanings; the laurel symbolized nobility, intelligence and an acknowledgement of the new phase he was entering by marrying her. Quite a flattering choice on her part, he thought with a reserved smile as he conjured another tiny burst of fireworks for Cassie’s amusement.

“Perhaps one day, young Cassie, my brother will show you how he can transform into any animal one could imagine,” Thor remarked to Cassie as he took a moment to readjust his green pocket-square.

The little girl’s eyes widened in amazement and she quickly turned to face Loki. “Can you turn into an ant?!”

Loki blinked in surprise as Thor stifled a chuckle behind his hand. “Um, well…now that you mention it, I haven’t actually tried.”

“Oh. I like ants. The ones that my daddy works with are really nice!”

Watching Cassie suddenly switch from talking about ants to twirling around in her soft green dress, a part of Loki hoped that his and (Y/N)’s future children shared the little girl’s quirky enthusiasm and unapologetic sense of wonder. The sound of the veranda’s glass door opening caused Loki to turn around and when he did, he was met with the jaw-dropping sight of his fiancée. (Y/N)’s off-white wedding dress – impeccably designed for her by Luke Jacobson – was relatively simplistic, with a fitted bust that cinched at the waist and flared out into a flowing skirt that reached the floor, but what elevated the entire look from simplistic to enchanting were its unique details; a lace overlay of hand-sewn floral designs was fastened onto the bust, branching out into fluttering sleeves that hung down to her biceps, and the only jewelry she wore besides her engagement ring was a delicate pair of pearl earrings she inherited from her late aunt. Her hair was arranged into one of her favorite styles and on the top of her head, she wore a floral crown comprised of white Camellia blooms; he’d picked them for her because they symbolized admiration, respect and everlasting love and devotion. A veil of lace-trimmed white chiffon was attached to the back of the floral crown, hanging gracefully down her back and barely brushing the floor. The finishing touch was the bouquet she was clutching in her hands; it was comprised of laurel, white Camellia blooms, lavender and lilac-colored roses and dusty green foliage.

“Darling…” Loki approached her almost reverently and stood before her with a dazed smile on his face. “I truly am the luckiest man in all the Nine Realms, to find myself marrying such an ethereal goddess as you.”

(Y/N) shyly ducked her head before reaching a hand up to straighten one of his cloak clasps. “You must be a mind-reader, then, because I was just thinking the same thing about you.”

His lips chastely caressed her knuckles as Natasha stepped onto the veranda with a small basket of multicolored flower petals and a small bouquet of her own; the Matron of Honor was dressed in a simple lilac-colored gown, with her long red curls pinned up in an elegant style by a single white Dahlia and glittering silver heels on her feet. “Save the kissing for later, lovebirds, we’ve got a wedding ceremony to begin.” Mindful of her gown, the spy bent down and held the basket out for Cassie to take. “Okay, Lang, just like we practiced.”

“I’m on it,” Cassie replied, toothily grinning and giving Natasha a thumbs-up before taking the basket from her and allowing the spy to quickly adjust (Y/N)’s veil.

“Are you two ready?” After Loki and (Y/N) nodded, Natasha held a hand up to her comm link and spoke lowly into it, “All right, kid, let’s do this thing.”

Across the way, MJ nodded and gestured for her friends to take their seats, spending a moment adjusting her guitar’s shoulder strap before beginning to softly play. The guests’ conversations started to dim down and with a nod of confirmation from the spy, Cassie walked across the lawn and started to slowly make her way down the aisle, scattering flower petals along the way while her father beamed with pride from his seat.

Thor leaned down to give (Y/N)’s forehead a chaste kiss and clapped a hand on Loki’s shoulder, his blue eyes sparkling with happiness as he allowed Natasha to loop her arm around his. “See you in a minute.”

Natasha winked at them and with that, the Best Man and the Matron of Honor began their walk down the aisle; when they ascended the gazebo’s steps and took their respective places, (Y/N) slipped her hand into Loki’s and he squeezed it tight as they crossed the lawn to stand at the end of the aisle. Once the guests all stood and turned to face them, Loki and (Y/N) exchanged a smile before starting down the aisle hand-in-hand; long before they knew it was Alfheimian tradition that the bride and groom walk themselves down the aisle on their wedding day, (Y/N) pointed out that since they’d both be entering into marriage with one another, it only made sense that they’d choose to walk down the aisle together.

While they slowly walked down the aisle as MJ played a gentle love ballad on her guitar, Loki looked out at their friends, teammates and colleagues standing amongst the guests to distract himself from the butterflies beginning to flutter around his stomach. Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Everett Ross and Doctor Helen Cho stood alongside everyone they invited from S.H.I.E.L.D., the director giving them both an approving nod as they passed by; Steven Grant – the quirky man they’d met while on vacation in Egypt and to whom (Y/N) was a devoted pen-pal – stood beside Layla El-Fouley, his alter Marc Spector’s stunning wife, and for the briefest moment, Loki could even see the skeletal figure of Khonshu lingering by one of the distant trees; their new and reluctant friend Doctor Stephen Strange, now dressed in a simple black tuxedo instead of his sorcerer’s robes, stood beside his fellow sorcerer Wong and attempted to not look as uncomfortable as he presumably felt amongst so many superheroes; Peter Parker and Ned Leeds were trying their hardest not to seem too excited to be sharing a row with Doctor Jane Foster and Darcy Lewis, and Loki could hear (Y/N) stifle a giggle when the eccentric woman winked and fired finger-guns at them; Scott Lang and Hope Van Dyne’s attention was caught between watching Loki and (Y/N) make their way down the aisle and keeping an eye on Cassie standing on the gazebo beside Thor, while Bucky and Sam both smiled widely at them as they passed; Bruce stood beside his cousin Jennifer Walters, who was already flirtatiously eyeing an embarrassed Rhodey standing across the aisle, while Pepper elbowed a snickering Tony; Steve and Clint stood at one of the front rows, the super soldier beaming with happiness and the archer filming their procession with his camcorder.

At the front of Loki’s side of the aisle stood their Asgardian and Alfheimian friends and family. Fandral winked at him and Sif grinned widely as Volstagg toasted them with the chocolate bar he was snacking on and even the ever-stoic Hogun gave them an atypical smile. Queen Amirah of Alfheim stood beside her guards, Hagen and Myriani, and the afternoon sunlight make her blue opal tiara sparkle almost as much as her smile, and at the end of the row stood Frigga, who was dabbing at her tear-filled eyes with a handkerchief as they walked past and ascended the gazebo’s steps.

Elora patiently waited for all the guests to take their seats to begin. “We are gathered here to witness the union of Crown Princess (Y/N) Layeiadottir (Y/L/N) of Alfheim and Midgard and Prince Loki of Asgard, two halves of the same shining soul, in blessed matrimony. Do both parties stand here of your own free will to acknowledge the eternal bond shared by the both of you?”

“We do,” Loki and (Y/N) replied in unison.

“Then you may face one another, join hands and recite your written vows.”

After (Y/N) handed her bouquet over to Natasha and placed her hands in Loki’s, she took a steadying breath before smiling up at him. “Loki. Through all the tears and all the struggles we’ve overcome together, a part of me always knew that we were destined to make it here. My heart was yours the moment I first looked into your beautiful eyes and as I look into them now, I can see every ounce of the passion and devotion I feel for you reflected in them. Sweetheart, you’re my greatest love and the brightest light in my life, and I promise to love and cherish you from here to eternity as your wife.”

Loki swallowed the lump in his throat and forced himself not to cry as he started speaking his own vows. “(Y/N). Not a day goes by where I don’t count myself the luckiest man in all the Nine Realms to have the love of someone as utterly magnificent as you. In the beginning of our romance, I feared that you were too good to be true, that I couldn’t possibly be deserving of someone so pure and loving as you are. But here we stand, surrounded by our friends and family, and I feel proud and incredibly blessed to become your husband. My darling, you’re my lover, my best friend and my eternal soulmate. All I am is yours, and here before our friends, our family and the Norns themselves, I vow to be until the end of time.”

(Y/N)’s eyes were filled with unshed tears and although Loki’s gaze never left hers, he could hear the sniffles and rustling of Kleenex packages amongst their guests. “(Y/N), do you take Loki to be your husband, to cherish in love and in friendship, in strength and in weakness, in success and disappointment, to love him faithfully today, tomorrow and forever?”

“I do,” (Y/N) vowed and smiled widely up at him.

“Loki, do you take (Y/N) to be your wife, to cherish in love and in friendship, in strength and in weakness, in success and disappointment, to love her faithfully today, tomorrow and forever?”

Loki solemnly nodded as he vowed, “I do.”

“And now, for the rings.”

Cassie nodded, handing one ring to Natasha and the other to Thor before giving her father an excited wave, causing a ripple of giggles through the rows of guests; the spy handed (Y/N) the ring and her eyes flicked between his and the thin band she held as she recited the ceremony’s next words. “I present to you this ring as a symbol of my devotion.” She slipped the band onto his ring finger to rest above his gold engagement ring. “My body, my soul and my everlasting love I share with you always and forever.”

Accepting the ring that his brother handed him, Loki gave (Y/N) another smile before reciting, “I present to you this ring as a symbol of my devotion.” He slipped the band onto her finger above her sparkling engagement ring. “My body, my soul and my everlasting love I share with you always and forever.”

“May these symbols of your devotion serve to always remind you of your everlasting bond.” Elora’s golden-colored eyes were slowly misting over as she spoke, no doubt wishing that (Y/N)’s late mother and father could be there to witness their only child be married. “And now, by the power vested in me by my rank as General of the Alfheimian Army, it is my honor to declare you both married. Go forth and live each day of your lives together to the fullest. You may seal this declaration with a kiss.”

Beaming with happiness, (Y/N) stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips against Loki’s in a brief but passionate kiss that he was quick to reciprocate. For one singular blissful moment, everything and everyone around them faded away and they stood alone on the gazebo, sharing a sweet and loving kiss that symbolized their long-awaited unification as husband and wife. The cheering and applause from their guests brought Loki back to reality sooner than he would’ve liked but after reminding himself that they’d have plenty of time to be alone later, he ended their kiss and gave his wife a mischievous smile before scooping her up in his arms and spinning around while she burst into joyous laughter.

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To say that the wedding reception was one of the liveliest parties (Y/N) had ever attended would be an understatement. From the moment they were declared husband and wife, she felt as through she’d been whisked straight into a dream that seemingly had no end to it; once they finished having their wedding photographs taken, they spent a half an hour by themselves in one of Stark Mansion’s many living rooms, enjoying several slices of pizza (and lots of kisses, of course) and taking time to relax for the first time that day while the guests filtered into the ballroom for the reception.

After (Y/N) and Loki snuck into the beautifully-decorated ballroom and made their rounds around the tables to greet their guests as they enjoyed their dinner, the trio of teenagers they’d allowed to be their DJ’s took their places behind their equipment and announced the bride and groom’s first dance as husband and wife; they both had fun watching their guests’ reactions when, instead of some sort of romantic waltz or ballad, they danced along to the fast-paced disco hit ‘You’re The First, The Last, My Everything,’ spinning and twirling so much around the dance floor that (Y/N) was thankful she’d removed her floral crown and veil and that Loki had dressed down to just his black tuxedo.

The guests took to the dance floor once dinner was cleared away and while Loki danced with Frigga, Thor asked (Y/N) for a dance. From there, (Y/N) danced with every member of the Avengers and their off-realm guests to a wide variety of music; she requested Big Band tunes for Steve and Bucky and slower songs for Bruce and the Warrior’s Three, while Tony, Clint and Sam happily danced along with her to some faster pop numbers. Natasha pulled her into a ladies-only group dance with Jane, Darcy, Helen and Maria, and after a brief dance with Everett Ross, (Y/N) had their trio of DJ’s pause the music so she could reveal her surprise for Loki.

“I’d like to start out by thanking you all for being here with us today,” (Y/N) began as she stood before the crowded ballroom. “As I’m sure some of you know, I had a difficult road to recovery after the Battle of Boston. Sam suggested that I take up playing the piano again as a form of musical therapy, but I was hesitant at first; you see, my aunt taught me to play when I was a child and I stopped when she died because I couldn’t enjoy the music without her. Loki…” Her voice momentarily caught in her throat at the unexpected emotions welling up within her, but spotting her husband standing amongst the crowd helped her to steady herself and keep going. “Loki stayed with me every single time I sat myself at the piano. With him by my side, I found the strength to enjoy the music again and slowly but surely, I started to heal. Loki’s always been there for me when I needed him the most, which is why I’d like to dedicate this next song to my new husband.”

Peter and MJ plugged in the last chord as (Y/N) sat down at the electric keyboard they’d set up for her, both teenagers ducking out of the way with a whispered “break a leg!” while she adjusted the microphone and straightened her posture; seeing the curious expression on Loki’s face and the eager anticipation filling his emerald-green eyes, (Y/N) gave him a smile and a little wink before she began to play.

“Sweet, wonderful you, you make me happy with the things you do. Oh, can it be so, this feeling follows me wherever I go. I never did believe in miracles, but I’ve a feeling it’s time to try…I never did believe in the ways of magic, but I’m beginning to wonder why…” A widening grin played on (Y/N)’s lips as the guests took to the dance floor and started to dance to the spirited Fleetwood Mac tune while she sang. “I never did believe in miracles, but I’ve a feeling it’s time to try…I never did believe in the ways of magic, but I’m beginning to wonder why…” While the guests continued to dance, Loki approached the electric keyboard she was seated at and watched her fingers fly across the keys with an unreadable expression on his face. “Don’t, don’t break the spell, it would be different and you know it will. You, you make loving fun, and I don’t have to tell you but you’re the only one. You, you make loving fun, it’s all I want to do…you, you make loving fun, it’s all I want to do…you, you make loving fun, it’s all I want to do…you, you make loving fun, it’s all I want to do…”

When the song finally came to an end, the crowd burst into applause and their three DJ’s were quick to select another pop song that kept everyone out on the dance floor. (Y/N) thanked the teenagers for their help and crossed the makeshift stage to where Loki stood but before she could say anything, his arms were around her and he was dipping her low as his lips captured hers in a reverent kiss; when they were finally forced to separate for air, her husband straightened them both up but kept his arms wound around her waist and gave her a tender grin. “That’s the first time I’ve ever heard you sing, darling, and you sang that beautiful song just for me. Rest assured, I’ll treasure that moment for the rest of my days.”

“Thanks to our archer-turned-videographer, you’ll be able to watch it over and over until you get sick of it,” (Y/N) chuckled as she glanced past Loki to see Clint filming Natasha and Thor reenacting the famous lift from Dirty Dancing to the amazement of the dancers nearest to them.

Loki’s fingers gently took hold of her chin and guided her to look at him, and his love-struck gaze remained trained on hers as he slowly shook his head. “Never, my love. Now, how about a slice of cake and some Asgardian mead?”

Everyone gathered to watch (Y/N) and Loki cut their three-tiered wedding cake with one of his intricate daggers and after they’d indulged in their dessert, four of their grinning and slightly-inebriated teammates took to the makeshift stage; Natasha and Clint’s cheeks were tinged red, Sam’s sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and his bow-tie was missing, and Tony couldn’t contain his giggles as he stepped up to one of the microphones.

“Hey, guys! Great party, huh?” The crowd cheered and Tony nodded in agreement. “Well, you better hold onto your hats ‘cause it’s about to get even greater!”

(Y/N), who was standing beside Loki and catching up with both Pepper and Helen, looked over at her husband with eyes widened in horror. “He’s not about to give a speech, is he?”

“Not if he doesn’t wanna spend tonight sleeping on the couch,” The CEO replied before taking another sip of her champagne. “Trust me, he and I already had a lengthy discussion about what constitutes as appropriate wedding reception behavior.”

“In my experience, Mr. Stark tends not to retain information told to him in less than three sentences or in any tone other than pleasant.” The world-renowned geneticist let out a long-suffering sigh and watched the four Avengers setting up several more microphone stands. “Hence why he’s permanently banned from my laboratory.”

While Pepper gave Helen an understanding nod, Loki wrapped an arm around (Y/N)’s shoulders and gave her a comforting squeeze. “I’m sure that whatever they’re planning will be very touching…also, Romanoff stole Stark’s intended speech and vaguely threatened bodily harm if he attempted to improvise one; he may be an impulsive Midgardian, but he knows better than to find himself at the mercy of the Black Widow.”

(Y/N) chuckled as the lighting dimmed and all of a sudden, a spotlight landed on the two of them. “You see, the four of us up here got together and decided we wanted to do somethin’ special for our two good friends here. Like (Y/L/N) here mentioned earlier, she used music to help her out during her recovery and she’d play for all of us in the tower; so, we got together and figured that it was time we were the ones to play something for her…or rather, sing something for her. Hit it, adolescent DJ’s!”

The teenagers began to play an instrumental track of Frankie Valli and the Four Season’s ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,’ and Loki offered her his hand. “Shall we?”

With a smile on her face, (Y/N) nodded and allowed her husband to lead her to the empty center of the dance floor, slow-dancing along to the song’s pleasant introduction and biting her lip to keep from giggling when Tony and Sam started singing and Natasha and Clint provided their back-up vocals. “You’re just too good to be true, can’t take my eyes off of you. You’d be like heaven to touch, I wanna hold you so much. At long last love has arrived, and I thank God I’m alive. You’re just too good to be true, can’t take my eyes off of you…”

“Did you tell them that I like this song?” (Y/N) suddenly asked, her eyes narrowing in suspicion as she examined Loki’s overly-cheerful face. “Because I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned to any of them that I like this song.”

Loki merely arched a brow and his emerald-green eyes sparkled with mischief. “Now, why would I do such an odd thing as that?”

“Pardon the way that I stare, there’s nothin’ else to compare. The sight of you leaves me weak, there are no words left to speak. But if you feel like I feel, please let me know that it’s real. You’re just too good to be true, can’t take my eyes off of you…”

As the small instrumental revved up for the chorus, (Y/N) was twirled around in tight circles and before she could question her husband further, his voice suddenly echoed throughout the ballroom and sang, “I love you, baby!” (Y/N) gasped in disbelief when she looked over at the makeshift stage to see Loki standing at one of the microphones, and she laughed when she realized that her dance partner was a clone created from Loki’s magic. “And if it’s quite alright I need you, baby, to warm the lonely night, I love you, baby, trust in me when I say…” Loki was grinning widely as he sang and when his eyes found (Y/N)’s, he gave her a sly wink. “Oh, pretty baby! Now that I’ve found you, stay, and let me love you, baby, let me love you!”

“You really are a trickster,” (Y/N) remarked to Loki’s smirking clone, who merely shrugged and continued to sway them across the dance floor.

“When our friendship first began, my darling (Y/N) took it upon herself to introduce me to all of Midgard’s greatest literary creations and being the dedicated bibliophile that she is, she more than succeeded.” The real Loki onstage smiled as he held onto the microphone. “Each and every novel and play she recommended provided me insight into her beautiful mind but when it came to watching the filmed adaptations of her favorite literary works, I was able to observe just how they affected her…which is how I know that (Y/N) adores the scene in a certain modern Shakespearean adaptation when the handsome lead surprises the heroine with a public show of affection.”

(Y/N) felt her face warm and a reluctant grin spread across her face as she glanced back at the clone she was dancing with. “10 Things I Hate About You was the first movie we watched together when I joined the Avengers. I…I can’t believe you remembered that…”

The clone leaned down and pressed a kiss onto her forehead while the real Loki onstage continued to sing. “I love you, baby! And if it’s quite alright I need you, baby, to warm the lonely night, I love you, baby, trust in me when I say…Oh, pretty baby! Don’t bring me down, I pray, oh pretty baby, now that I’ve found you, stay, oh pretty baby, trust in me when I say…”

When the song came to an end, the clone vanished in a shimmer of green magic and as the crowd clapped and cheered, an impressed-looking Darcy leaned towards (Y/N) and yelled over the din, “Geez, is there anything that guy can’t do?”

“If there is, then I’ve certainly never seen it!” (Y/N) chuckled and when Loki finally made his way through the crowd, she looped her arms around his waist and smiled up at him. “That was beautiful, sweetheart!”

“It was a challenge to keep our rehearsals a secret and I might’ve downed a shot or two of liquid courage beforehand, but I’m glad that you enjoyed it.” He pressed a kiss onto the tip of her nose and grinned when she laughed at the ticklish sensation. “You surprised me with a beautifully-performed song, and I surprised you with a slightly-less conventional performance; I suppose that great minds really do think alike.”

“Okay, here’s another oldie for all you oldies out there!” Ned Leeds’ amplified voice announced and the opening notes of The Village People’s ‘Y.M.C.A.’ filled the ballroom, causing the guests to eagerly take to the dance floor.

Nearby, Jane frowned and turned to Darcy standing beside her. “Wait, did that kid just call us old?”

“Join the club,” Both Steve and Bucky quipped as Natasha and Jennifer Walters dragged them past towards the center of the dance floor.

“Oh, I love this song!” (Y/N) grabbed Loki’s hands and started to sway along to the catchy beat. “It was in The Office, remember? It’s the song that plays towards the end of the Café Disco episode!”

“You’re right, but I’m still confused as to why a song about a worldwide youth organization inspires such a visceral reaction in Midgardians.” Loki studied the dancers around them in curious amusement. “And what about it has anything to do with weddings?”

She ducked under his arms and spun so that her back was pressed against his front, craning her neck so that she could meet his gaze with a grin. “It’s a catchy, cheesy song that has the easiest dance moves in the world to perform. Doesn’t that make it the perfect party song?”

Loki shrugged and spun her back out to face him. “Only if one has the perfect dance partner to go along with it.”

“Then I suppose we’re in luck,” (Y/N) quipped, pressing a kiss onto her husband’s knuckles before manipulating his arms along to the song’s iconic chorus and dissolving into a fit of giggles at the absurdity of the God of Mischief dancing along to ‘Y.M.C.A..’

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When the moon was high in the star-filled sky and the reception inside Stark Mansion was beginning to wind down, Loki and (Y/N) snuck off to the gazebo they were married in and swayed to the slow music playing in the distance, surrounded only by the beautiful flowers and twinkling fairy lights that decorated the structure. (Y/N)’s head rested on Loki’s shoulder and his eyes were closed as one of his hands held hers against his chest, directly over his heart.

“Do you think that we’ll see Doctor Strange again?”

Loki thoughtfully hummed and nodded. “I’m sure we will, but not for a long while; I believe that the superhero lifestyle unnerved the poor fellow and I doubt he wants to incite the anger of any of our friends. As long as you continue to train and master your abilities, there won’t be a reason for that second-rate sorcerer to bother you again.”

(Y/N) lifted her head so that she could meet his gaze, a single brow arched as her (Y/E/C) eyes sparkled with delight. “So, are you finally going to tell me where we’re going on our honeymoon?”

“And ruin the surprise I’ve spent two months meticulously planning? Where’s the fun in that?”

“Loki, I have to know what sort of clothes to pack!”

“Darling, I don’t imagine we’ll be wearing any for the majority of the honeymoon.” Loki’s teasing snickers quickly transitioned to laughter when (Y/N)’s fingers mercilessly tickled his neck in retaliation. “All right, all right, I surrender! On Monday, you and I will travel the Bifrost to Karapiro, New Zealand and spend ten days at Lakeview Lodge; we’ll have the opportunity to visit Rotorua, the Waitomo Caves and even take a tour of-”

“Hobbiton,” (Y/N) gasped and Loki’s grin widened as her face lit up with excitement. “We’re going to see where they filmed The Lord of the Rings movies?!” When he nodded, she flung her arms around his neck and nearly tackled him to the floor with the force of her embrace, but he was quick to catch her and hold her up against him while she laughed in delight. “I have the absolute best husband in the world!”

Loki’s heart leapt in his chest when she called him her husband and when she moved her hands to cradle his face, he tenderly smiled up at her and replied, “Well, the best wife in the world deserves everything I can offer her and more, does she not?”

(Y/N)’s expression softened into a look of loving adoration, and the feather-light touch of her thumbs caressing his cheekbones nearly made his eyes flutter closed in bliss. “You know, I think about that day we first met in the library from time to time. I replay the entire scene my mind – how I stumbled and how you were by my side in an instant to catch me, how our eyes locked and my breath was nearly taken away by the way you looked at me, how my heartbeat sped up when I realized how much I enjoyed having your arms around me – and when I do, I thank the universe for sending a mischievous and misunderstood trickster to steal my heart that day.”

“When I think of that fateful day, I find myself thanking the Norns for sending a kind and passionate lost princess to spellbind me, body and soul,” Loki huskily replied as his eyes stung with the prickling of tears. “And I pray that she’ll never set me free.”

(Y/N), her eyes sparkling with unshed tears of joy, gently shook her head and leaned forward to ghost her lips over his. “As long as the trickster holds her heart, she never ever will. So…” She held her hand up and stuck her little finger into the air with the hint of a playful grin on her face. “Pinky-Promise?”

Loki laughed and adjusted his hold on her so that he could wrap his little finger around hers. “Pinky-Promise.”

Their lips finally met in a passionate and unhurried kiss and Loki sighed at the heavenly sensation of (Y/N)’s fingers carding through his hair, holding his beautiful wife in a tight embrace and smiling through the love-filled kisses they exchanged beneath the gazebo’s twinkling lights.

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A/N: I honestly loved writing this and indulging in some of my own personal wedding dreams lol if anyone would like to see the different reference pics I used while designing the wedding, just shoot me a message and I’ll send ‘em to you! Thank you all so much for reading and commenting! I’ve created a Spotify playlist inspired by this series, and I’ll be updating it every time I upload a new chapter. Enjoy!

Spotify Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2wx8TZwpDN0l33tES3W3Nk?si=5fcb3ef04de544e7

Three’s Company (A Spellbinding-Verse Interlude)

“Spellbinding” Masterlist

Tagging: @nexiva @ravenclawbitch426 @cminr @confusedfandomwriter @momc95 @nickkie99 @austynparksandpizza @brooke0297 @a-laufeyson @outoftheregular @itscomplicatedx @0-artemis @vivloki @crowleysqueenofhell @groovy-lady @mostclevermiss

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fuwungi · 1 year

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Alright so! Here’s the updates on what’s been going on! I was going to put it under a read more/cut thing but I can’t seem to figure that out on mobile so just general tw for mental health talk, trauma, etc

This isn’t going to exactly be linear or anything either cuz my minds just been all over the place but I haven’t been doing good. Haven’t been for a while. I’ve been working on getting help for years now and im thankfully seeing my therapist on the 8th and hoping this one actually stays (cuz my last trauma therapist ghosted me). I got a psych evaluation before hand that took a bit and got diagnosed with severe ptsd and bpd and also paranoid schizophrenia. I never really took my mental health seriously or as seriously as I should becuz for years I was so used to hearing from family and etc that it’s nothing, im just over thinking, “everybody does that” but it’s clearly not the case.

Everything started getting much worse in January, my health started dipping again. I had someone I considered a close friend abandon me and hurt me. Eventually my job I had pretty much set me up to be fired, me and others have considered it’s due to the fact I disclosed my diagnosis cuz it didn’t take long after for me to be fired. And what I was fired for was literally doing exactly what one of the managers told me to do. The next day I had an ex friend blow up at me and trigger my paranoia severely. And after that my abuser outted me and tried to spread harmful lies and misinfo in an attempt to I guess have me run off the internet. A little while after the shop I was apprenticing at also dropped me for my diagnosis but not until the spent a couple weeks straight up ghosting me and ignoring me for hours when I came in (I would come in to practice and work and all of my stuff was moved without telling me, and I also still don’t have any of my stuff back, and nobody would say a word to me or even look at me hardly. And after hours of waiting o would just eventually go home, which was also frustrating cuz I would have the person I’m about to practice on with me waking too. I reached out with messages abt things but was always just left on read.)

All of this just made things worse. I haven’t been able to significantly leave my house for a couple months now ( I say that cuz I still hype myself up to do smaller things like run out to pick up my meds, etc. but if there’s a way around physically doing said thing like ordering groceries, etc I take that). Outside of that I was already having a hard time getting myself to be social or talk to anyone. I haven’t really been talking to anyone or very active since 2020 (which I’m still working on fixing cuz it’s not that I don’t want to talk or anything, I want to so badly, I just really feel like I’m unable to do it).

My psych also diagnosed(? Idk if that’s the right word) me with agoraphobia. Which also explained a lot and helped me realize some things that help me cope and navigate my way socially and in life (and kinnie stuff is one of the things that really helps with that).

So at the moment I’m just freelancing and trying my best to work on myself. After finishing the rest of my comm queue I’m thinking of taking a break from taking comms and just focusing on my own/personal art and school (going for botany and economic science).

If you’ve read through this all, thank you so much for listening. I hope this was worded okay/sounds okay. And I can’t thank the ppl who continue to support me enough.

#txt

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newsbites · 11 months

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News from Marseille, 4 July

RTM will close early on Tuesday.

2. After the looting, Marseille's city center is slowly recovering.

3. Road closures and tunnel disruptions are scheduled in Bouches-du-Rhône.

4. Starting from Monday, July 3, 2023, the La Joliette metro station will be undergoing construction. The platform towards Sainte-Marguerite Dromel will be closed until September 8th.

5. The results for the baccalauréat exams in the Aix-Marseille academy are now available online and posted in schools.

6. The quality of bathing waters in France can vary, with some regions, such as Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur, experiencing insufficient water quality due to the presence of pathogenic bacteria.

Occitanie and Corsica are highlighted as regions with excellent water quality, making them ideal destinations for beachgoers.

Certain areas, like Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Brittany, have beaches with insufficient water quality, but there are nearby alternatives with cleaner waters.

7. Extra lifeguards are being mobilised for the tourist season throughout the south and west of France.

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hetbigbang · 2 years

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3rd Check-In Non-Mandatory

Hello everyone, this is the third check-in for HetBang 2022! This is our last non-mandatory check-in, so it's a good idea to take a look at the check-in survey, to see how the rest of the mandatory check-ins will be handled. The survey will be open Friday, July 1st through Saturday, July 9th, and be closed Sunday morning, July 10th. This check-in is for authors only, so fanworkers, sit tight. The survey is to track story progress, but don’t stress out! Even if you haven’t started yet, please still fill out the survey, it really helps us know where everyone is at. The most important thing when filling out the survey is to make sure you use the same email address that was used in your sign-up, so that we can check you off. If you do not remember which email you used to sign-up, a copy of the Google Survey should have been sent to you when you signed up. If you still cannot find it, please contact us and we will check on our end! Check-In #3 Survey Survey open July 1st-9th. Fanworker sign-ups are still open until July 16th! We’re always in need of more Fanworkers, so if you can, promote HetBang anywhere you see fit! Rough Draft Submissions are now open! The last day to submit a rough draft is July 6th. Summaries will be posted July 8th, for fanworkers to peruse. We encourage everyone to keep writing during this process! If you’re wanting to opt-out of receiving an accompanying fanwork, feel free to use the check-in survey to let us know that! Please make sure to read the Rough Draft Submission Guidelines, to ensure your submission is formatted correctly. We’ve also got Summary Writing Tips, to help you write a summary to entice a fanworker! Rough Draft Submission Guidelines Summary Writing Tips Please feel free to use this post to talk about your projects, if you wish! We hope everyone is as excited as we are to see what you create! And don’t forget to check out our help comm,

het_banghelp! We’ve got a post for requesting and offering Beta and Cheerleading services! Here is our Activity Schedule, if you want to take part in our weekly motivation activities. The comm is members only, to allow everyone the freedom to share their ideas and frustration in private. Mods typically approve membership requests in 12-24 hours, if not faster. If you have any questions or concerns, here is the Page-A Mod Post. You can also contact the mods via email, [email protected], or by messaging LuciferxDamien or Jesterlady on the HetBang Discord server. from Het Big Bang https://ift.tt/ACmWlMk via IFTTT

#IFTTT #Het Big Bang #hbb2022

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evoldir · 2 years

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Fwd: Postdoc: NantesINRAE.EvolComparativeGenomicsTicks

Begin forwarded message: > From: [email protected] > Subject: Postdoc: NantesINRAE.EvolComparativeGenomicsTicks > Date: 11 June 2022 at 05:52:32 BST > To: [email protected] > > > Post-doctoral position (18 months) to work on the comparative and > evolutionary genomics of ticks. > > Starting date: September 1st, 2022. Applications are possible until > July, 8th, 2022, or until the position is filled. > > Context: Ticks are blood-feeding arthropods that represent a significant > health concern for humans and domestic animals due to the potential > transmission of bacterial pathogens and parasites. Emerging knowledge on > tick genomics (Gulia-Nuss et al. 2016, Nat. Comm., Jia et al. 2022, > Cell) is beginning to help understand the specifics of tick genomes and > the genetic bases for some of the unique history traits of ticks. In > this context, our group (INRAE, Nantes, France), through a partnership > with the Genoscope (CEA, Evry, France) has sequenced the genomes of four > species of the genus Ixodes, including Ixodes ricinus, which is a > widespread, wide host range, and potentially problematic species, being > the vector of Lyme disease in Europe. > > Project: > The post-doc will lead the comparative genomics studies of the four > genomes produced by our collaboration with Genoscope (the four annotated > genomes are already available), and also publicly available genomes > produced by other research groups. Its main mission will be to study the > evolutionary dynamics of tick genomes, with a focus on the genus Ixodes: > identification of gene expansions/contractions and association with > specific functions, patterns of gene order conservation, detection of > events of horizontal gene transfers, evaluation of evolutionary rates > and atypical patterns (positive selection). > In addition, depending on skills and time, a populational study of > genetic variation, at the genome (or exome) level, can be considered. > > Location: the position is available for 18 months starting from > September 2022, at the BIOEPAR lab in Nantes, in the TIBODI group, a > team of 5 searchers and 3 technicians working on ticks and tick-borne > diseases. Nantes is a vibrant city on the French west coast, known for > its quality of life. The post-doctoral searcher will work closely with > Claude Rispe (PI), while interactions will be pursued with the Genoscope > and with bioinformaticians of BIPAA (a platform that manages arthropod > genomes of agronomical importance, in Rennes). > > Candidate: > - PhD or previous post-doc in the field of comparative/evolutionary > genomics, > - Skills/experience in phylogenetic analyses, evolutionary rates, > evolution of gene repertoires, > - Skills in bioinformatics tools and scripting (bash, R, python or perl), > - Excellent abilities in data analyses, writing of scientific papers, > communication, teamwork. > > Monthly net salary: between 1905€ and 2346€, depending on experience > (duration of research time post-thesis). > > All applications must be sent by email to Claude Rispe > ([email protected]). Please include a CV, explain the motivations of > your application and your adequacy with the description of the position. > The names and email addresses of at least two referees are required. The > documents must be in pdf format, fused in a single file, and can be > written in French or English. > > > Claude Rispe, chercheur, responsable d'équipe TIBODI (tiques et maladies > associées) > > INRAE, Oniris, BIOEPAR, Nantes, France > > > Claude Rispe

#IFTTT #Email

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wipbigbang · 3 years

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2021 Schedule + FAQ

Schedule

All times are by 8:59pm PST. Convert time zones.

Sign-ups Begin- April 1st

Sign-ups Close- April 15th

Check In #1- April 22nd

Check In #2- May 15th

Snippets Due- June 1st

Art Claims Begin- June 17th

Check In #3- June 22nd

Check In #4- July 6th

Rough Drafts Due- July 15th

Posting Claims Begin- July 23rd

Posting Claims Ends- August 1st

Final Drafts/Art Due- August 7th

Posting Starts- August 8th

FAQ

What is the WIP Big Bang? Good question! This is a Big Bang with one goal in mind: to clean out your drafts folder. These are stories that were unfinished for whatever reason, that authors returned to and completed, and the art that goes with them!

Do I need a Livejournal/Dreamwidth/AO3/etc. account to participate? No! You don’t have to have an account on anything to participate, though you will need to have somewhere to post your finished work. Having one or more accounts will help for you to follow what is going on with the bang (we crosspost to Livejournal, Dreamwidth, Tumblr, and Twitter at the moment), but they are not required to participate. You can always leave comments anonymously or with an opensource ID.

Will I get emails about the bang? We do send out some emails, mostly for snippets and art claims and to ensure communication between authors and artists, but please do NOT rely on getting an email to remind you of due dates. We currently do not keep an updated email list of participants, so we only send individual emails as needed rather than mass emails.

However, email is the fastest way to communicate with the mods. If you have any questions or are having trouble communicating with your artist/author, please do email us! We will do our best to respond quickly.

Is there a minimum word count? 7,500 words, but the sky's the limit, right?

What do you mean by minimum word count to enter? This is a WIP Big Bang, therefore we ask you to have at least 500 words of your story drafted when you enter. It's okay if you have posted a few chapters of your fic already (you never know when the muse deserts you, after all), we just require you to refrain from posting more until posting begins here.

Is there anything not allowed? As long as you wrote it and you want to finish it, you're welcome to participate. Just bear in mind that original work is only allowed on AO3 if it has a fannish connection and might make it hard for artists to work with. But we'll make a dedicated post for that if there will be any.

What are 'Check Ins’? These are a way for us to see what you've been up to and for you to make sure you're still on track. It will give you a little nudge/reminder if you need it, but they are not compulsory.

What are the snippets requirements? In order to allow the artists to make art for the story they claimed, we require you to supply three snippets from your fic, between 500 – 1500 words each. The snippets will be sent to the artist after they have claimed your story. They're to help the artist match your story for artwork the best way he or she possibly can. It’s helpful to choose scenes or parts of scenes that you feel best represent your fic, but don’t feel like they have to be perfect to be submitted. Along with the snippets, we will send your artist the basic fic info and your email, so the two of you can collaborate more if you would both like.

What are the rough drafts requirements? For the rough drafts, stories should be at least 80% complete. You will not have to turn them in to us, just assure us that you are at that point. Anything less is at the discretion of the mods and those authors should speak to one of the mods asap.

What is, and do I need, a beta? A beta is basically a person who goes over your work to make sure that there are no spelling/grammatical errors and they can even be of assistance in helping you with story lines, etc. It is highly recommended that a beta looks over your work before posting. If you are having trouble finding a beta, try this post.

Where can I post my fic/art? Stories and art can be posted to your own personal journal, tumblr, ff-net, AO3, or wherever you like. For those of you with AO3 accounts, we will set up a collection that will go live on the day of the posting. Also, we've enabled moderated posting to the comm (Livejournal and Dreamwidth) for members. We will post a template for posting artwork and stories to the comm closer to the posting date.

If you don’t currently have an AO3 account but would like one, you can contact the mods for an invitation code to see if they have any available. You can also add yourself to the AO3 Invites Request queue.

How do I know when to post? Posting will be tiered; you'll each get your own posting date that you and your artist will decide on together. There will probably be four fics, plus art, posting per day between August 8th and September 30th. The post with date claims will go up on July 23rd and you'll have to choose your date by August 1st.

If you want to post your story in chapters on AO3 or your own blog (or wherever you usually post), you may do so starting August 1st. However, posting has to be finished by your chosen posting date to the comm. One of the things we're hoping to do with the posted dates is to give everybody on the comm a little bragging time in the spotlight. You know, "this story was incomplete for this long, but I finished this sucker." If you don't have time to post on your chosen posting date, you can queue up a post ahead of time and we can post it on the date you picked. Either way works for us. Art will be due on the chosen posting date to the comm.

Is there a minimum/maximum requirement for my art? There is no strict minimum, but we do ask artists to remember that the authors are writing a minimum of 7,500 words and your artwork should reflect that. You can do anything you like, including banners, wallpapers, icons, mixes, vids, gif sets, picspams, etc. Suggested guidelines for art are 500x500px (or equivalent of smaller pieces like banner + spacers, cover + icons, etc.) for traditional art, digital art, and manips; 2 minutes for vids; 10 songs + cover art for mixes; and 6 images for gif sets and picspams. We also ask that when you are in contact with the author, you work with them to see if there is anything specific they would like (i.e. a wallpaper, book cover, etc.). The art is your work, but having ideas doesn't hurt!

What are 'art claims'? The claims are when anonymous summaries of the story go up for artists to choose from. It is based on a 'first come, first served' basis and artists may choose up to three potential stories (in case their first choice is unavailable). If there are more stories than artists, there will be a second round of claims wherein artists may choose a second story to work with. And on until all stories are claimed for art.

If a fic up for claiming is rated explicit (R, NC-17, etc.), please only claim the story if you are over 18 years of age. Some authors may be uncomfortable working with underage artists on explicit works. We do not verify ages in any way for the bang, so this is solely on the honor system.

Can I get an extension? Community extensions may be given in the event that the majority of the authors/artists need one. They may also be given individually under certain circumstances, but this must be discussed with the mods and will only be a short extension for posting. If you are certain that you won’t be able to finish your story in time, please let us know by June 13th.

What do I do if I have problems or concerns about my author/artist? Sometimes authors and artists do not get along and this may cause problems with working together. If this happens to be the case with you, please email the mods and we will try to do what we can so that everyone has a chance to have fun at WIP Big Bang!

If you have not heard from your author/artist in some time after trying to contact them, you can reach out to us via email and we will try to get in touch with them for you.

Can I drop out? We have high hopes that everybody who signs up can actually finish the round and share in the joy of the reveal with us, but real life can unfortunately get in the way and we completely understand! If you feel like you just cannot finish in time and no amount of assistance from us can help you, just let us know by July 13th (if at all possible).

Is it possible to be banned? We do have a banned users list. We hope to use this to encourage participants who are having issues to communicate with the mods. We want to help you! The way the ban works is that participants, either authors and artists, will be banned for dropping out without notifying a mod. This means that anyone who has not posted or talked to a mod by the time the posting period ends will be banned. Dropping out is not in and of itself a banning offense, so please do not panic if you have to drop out! We understand that there are many reasons you may need to drop, and we want to work with you.

Bans will last one round or until the issue is resolved, whichever comes first. To resolve a ban, authors will have to finish and post the story they signed up with and artists will have to finish and post the art for the story they claimed. Three bans will result in a permanent ban from the bang.</lj-cut>

I have a question/concern that’s not mentioned here. If you need help, you can always contact a mod and we will do our best to make sure that you get your story/art finished. The best and fastest method of contact is through our email, [email protected].

#!2021 #!admin #faq #schedule #signal boost #wips #wip #writing #works in progress #big bang event #big bang #works in progress big bang #wipbb #wipbb2021

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finnsgrin · 3 years

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John Murphy - “Isn’t this what you wanted?”

John Murphy x reader

From my Wattpad: inanoncriminalwayy

GIF: mattsryan

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Word Count: 2,035

Published on: October 8th, 2020

TW: Drinking

Spoilers: None

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

♡Masterlist♡

John Murphy

Sulking wasn't the right word.

Alright, maybe it was.

You were a sulker. And, there's nothing wrong with a good pity party every once in a while. Sometimes you just really need to focus and reflect on yourself and your problems.

While every other delinquent was busy partying and getting drunk off of their asses from Montys moonshine, you stood alone at the entrance of the wall, loaded with a gun, eyes peeled for any sudden movement on the outside.

Unity Day on the Ark brought out the best in people. Here on the ground, it seemed to bring out the child in everyone.

"Jasper! What the hell are you doing?" You hissed at the tall and lanky boy who was wielding a thin stick and creating random patterns in the dirt with it.

The boy looked at you, blinked, and dropped the stick.

"I... I don't know." He slurred.

Now impatient, you threw one last glance over the fence, and figured it would be safe for a few minutes. You weren't gonna leave Jasper alone with a stick without someone who was coherent.

"Come on." You sighed, grabbing him gently by the wrist.

"Where are we going?" He asked, tripping over his own two feet.

"To Wonderland." You grumbled sarcastically.

As Jasper giddily clapped his hands together, you took note of the scene before you.

A roaring bonfire, moonshine by the gallons, handsy couples...

"(Y/N)! There you are!" Your boyfriend of two years, John Murphy, walked over to you with a cup of alchohol in each hand, and extended one to you.

"John, you know I don't drink." You gently reminded him, keeping a firm grip on Jasper as he tried to grab the drink for himself.

"Pbhhh. Take a break from babysitting Goggle Boy, and come dance with me." He shoved the metal cup in your face, moonshine splashing over the rim and onto your shirt.

"Damn it, John! This was my last clean shirt." You complained as you yanked Jasper back yet again.

Murphy scowled, his nose scrunching up to his green eyes.

"Who called the party police? Lossen up, (Y/N). No wonder you never got invited to anything on the Ark. You're boring." He scoffed and walked away, drinking as he did so.

Boring? You were so not boring! Sure, you kept to yourself and weren't one for confrontation, but you weren't boring.

Annoyance evident in your eyes, Jasper sobered up enough to realize that now wasn't the time to mess with you, and he followed you back to his and Montys shared tent where you took off his boots and tucked him into bed.

"(Y/N)?" His soft voice stopped you as you were about to leave.

"Yeah, Jasper?" You sighed, massaging your temples.

"I don't think you're boring." He yawned.

Your lips curled up at the kind words, and you patted him on the leg.

"Thanks, Jasper. Goodnight."

He mumbled something incoherent to your ears as you walked outside into the crisp air. You took a deep lungful of it and battled your thoughts.

John's words stung more than they should. Were you really boring? No... no, you were being safe. Responsible.

If no one else was going to watch the forest for approaching and violent Grounders, who else would?

Even Clarke was playing some drinking game with a few other delinquents.

Huffing to yourself, you began the short walk back to your stakeout spot where you stood alone in the cold.

On Unity Day on the Ark, you and Murphy used to spend it together.

Ever since you could remember, back to when you two were just kids, you and John would stand in the back of the crowd of the Unity Day Pagent, and sneak out to cause mischief. Once, you even snuck into the kitchen and shared a glass of apple juice.

Now? He was spilling moonshine on your last clean shirt.

You were almost to the wall, when they caught your eye.

Murphy and Fox, their bodies pressed close together, foreheads grazing as they laughed loudly and swayed to the beat of nonexistent music only the two of them could hear.

You swore your heart stopped, froze, and skipped a beat all at the same time.

Murphy whispered something in Foxs ear, and she giggled, slapping him playfully on his chest.

John Mbege tapped Murphy on the shoulder, and pointed to you.

Murphy whipped his head around, his eyes which were once mischievous and flirty, now wide and full of regret.

"(Y/N)!" You read his lips over the crowd of rowdy teens, and just shook your head.

He had just began to make his way to you, when someone started a conga line, disrupting his pathway.

Monty Green was walking solo, holding a cup of moonshine in his hands, on his way back to his tent, presumably.

"Give me that," You hissed as you snatched the cup from his hands, and gulped it, your eyes stinging.

"I am NOT boring. Just because I look out for us, and don't drink, doesn't make me boring, does it? I'M the responsible one here! Where the hell is Bellamy? Isn't he King of the camp? Remember our first few days on the ground, when he was just whoring it up with any living creature with boobs? Who was out there collecting water and building shelter? That's right. Me!"

The poor boy just blinked, unsure of what to say or do in this situation, so he just opened and closed his mouth, confused beyond belief.

Finally, he just shook his head, looked at the ground, and continued on his way.

You took another swig of the poison, and coughed.

Murphy wanted you to loosen up? Well two can play at that game.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Murphys POV

"(Y/N)!" Her name fell from my lips which were slightly chapped, and stinging from all of the drink I had consumed within the past couple of hours.

She just shook her head, turned to the side, and began to walk away.

"Damn it, (Y/N)!" I called once more, and took a step forward just as a giant conga line made it's way before me. When it had finally passed, she was gone.

"Fuck." I cursed, running my fingers through my hair.

Mbege slapped me on the back in a feeble attempt of comfort.

"She's water under the bridge, man. Weren't you just saying how boring she was?" Mbege sighed.

I tore away harshly from him, a scowl on my face.

"That's not what I meant! I don't even know why I said it. I don't even know why I was dancing with Fox. Damn it!" I brought my hands up to my face, and slapped myself on the forehead, hard.

But Mbege could have cared less. He just brought up his stupid drink to his stupid lips and smirked.

"She's just a stupid girl. There are plenty of sluts like her down here."

I grabbed him by his shirt, and pinned him up against the dropship, his drink spilling onto the dirt below our feet.

"Say that about her again." I seethed through clenched teeth.

He just blinked, eyes wide until I released him harshly and jogged away, both eyes on the lookout for the girl I loved.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

"I wish I had a harmonica, y'know? Like how in the old timey Western movies, people in jail would play a sad song on it." You slurred from the ground where you sat talking to Raven, who was busy making bullets.

She just chuckled, and shook her head.

"You're a hazard, (Y/N). You're not supposed to have any flammable liquids near this gunpowder, and you my friend, are a walking, talking, bottle of booze."

You laughed at her retort, and childishly stuck out your tounge.

"You said Murphy was dancing with another girl?" She held up a bullet to the dim lantern, and examined it.

"Fox. Don't remind me." You took another swig of moonshine, and sputtered.

"Well, just dance with another guy. That'll piss Murphy off to no end." Raven shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly.

It took a moment for her words to process themselves in your brain, and when they did, you gasped.

"Raven Reyes, you're a genius!" You hopped up quickly, stumbling back and catching yourself on the table which housed the dud bullets.

"I'm good, I'm good." You hiccuped, giving her a thumbs up.

"Just keep your hands off of Finn!" She laughed as you struggled with the opening of the tent flap.

Normally, everyone was mindful of the root that stuck out for the ground in front of the ammunition tent, but in your drunken state, you completely dismissed it, and tripped over it, spilling your drink on Murphy as he caught you in his arms.

"Where the hell have you been? I've been looking all over for you!" He hissed once he steadied you.

"Well, well, how the tables have turned." You smirked.

"What the hell are you talking about?" He gave you an incredulous look as you laughed.

"Not an hour ago, I was the responsible one getting my shirt soiled by moonshine. Did you get your Fox fix? Don't worry, I was just on my way to find someone to dance with. Don't wait up." You sneered, turning away from him.

Murphy grasped your wrist, and pulled you back to him.

"No, not happening. You are going straight to bed, and-."

"Isn't this what you wanted?"

You asked mournfully with tears in your bloodshot eyes.

Murphy blinked, emotion and confusion overtaking him.

"What?" He had the audacity to question you.

"I'm just loosening up, Murph. Like you said. Wouldn't want a boring girlfriend, would you?" You sniffed.

Murphy shook his head, taking a moment to access the severity of his words.

"Babe, no, I - I didn't mean that. I don't think you're boring." He took both of your hands into his, and frowned at how cold your fingers were.

"Then why did you say it? And why were you dancing with another girl?" You pressed.

His eyes met yours, and they were full of regret.

"Because I... I'm an idiot. I'm an insecure, stupid, jealous idiot who doesn't know how to communicate with my girlfriend. I was just so scared that some other responsible guy would end up talking to you, and you would realize how much of a doofus I am, and leave me, and I'm selfish and petty, and... I can't lose you, (Y/N). You are the best thing that has ever happened to me, and I sorry I'm not good at communicating, and for some reason I thought that dancing with another girl would make you jealous, and you would come over and talk to me, but I realize now that my words and actions have been thoughtless and - ."

"If I say I forgive you, will you shut up?" You interrupted.

Murphy, who had been speaking that whole rant in a single breath, took a deep breath and nodded his head.

Once he had regained his breath, he caressed your cheek.

"You aren't boring, (Y/N). You're responsible. And I love you for it." He blushed.

"You... love me?" You blinked, and prayed this wasn't all some drunken hallucination.

He chuckled, and tucked a stray strand of hair behind your ear.

"I do. And I'm sorry it took all of this for me to find the balls to say it." He smirked.

You pressed your lips to his, hints moonshine and young love dancing on your taste buds.

Fatigue overtaking you, you stumbled once more into him, and he steadied you again.

"Let's get you to bed." He scooped you up off of your feet, and carried you to your shared tent.

As he took off your boots and covered you with the thin blanket you both shared, you smiled to yourself and silently thanked Raven for her advice. If she had never persuaded you to go dance with someone, you probably would have never fallen into Murphy, and he would have never confessed his love to you.

What started off as a self loathing night, turned into a magical one.

♡Masterlist♡

#the100 the100imagines the100xreader xreader xreaderimagines cwthe100 the100cw johnmurphy johnmurphyimagines the100murphy the100johnmurphy th

8 notes · View notes

doubleattitude · 3 years

Text

NUVO Dance Convention, Houston, TX: RESULTS

High Scores by Age:

NUbie Solo

1st: Navy Forrest-’Imagine’

2nd: Harper Schwalb-’Do What I Do’

3rd: Haddie Templet-’Do What I Do’

4th: Rose Ramirez-’Into the Unknown’

4th: Lucia Ruiz-’Popular’

5th: Anika Argueta-’Hallelujah’

6th: Alegria Jilpas-’Pure Imagination’

7th: Sloane Harris-’Never Enough’

8th: Maria Rosales-’Despacito’

8th: MJ Mackey-’I Don’t Want To Show Off’

9th: Mackenzie Griffin-’Small World’

Mini Solo

1st: Alexis Alvarez-’Welcome Home’

2nd: Landry Silas-’Cheek to Cheek’

2nd: Winter Eberts-’Dreamlike’

2nd: Diana Kouznetsova-’It’s In His Kiss’

3rd: Kylie Lawrence-’Breathe In’

3rd: Naiya Abalos-’Forces’

3rd: Tessa Ohran-’Knock 1-2-3′

3rd: Ava Grace Olson-’Tides of Time’

3rd: Isabella Kouznetsova-’Trouble’

4th: Claire Hansen-’By The Roses’

4th: Joli Vernon-’Joy’

5th: Ava Morford-’17 Hours’

5th: Faith Crain-’Notes of the Nymph’

5th: Harper Hammes-’Tu Quieres Volver’

5th: Justin Nguyen-’You Caused It’

6th: Lyla Terry-’Rescue’

6th: Jenesis Jackson-’Single Ladies’

7th: Rory Frye-’Amen’

7th: Brynlee Fitzgerald-’Can’t Get It Out’

7th: Hadlee Heriford-’Unbroken’

8th: Camille Foreman-’Boogie Woogie’

8th: London Smith-’Feel My Love’

9th: Natalie Gerami-’Evil Twin’

9th: Neve Colyn-?

10th: Hadley Richard-’Applause’

10th: Ella Williamson-’Experience’

10th: Khloe Kramer-’Giants’

Junior Solo

1st: Colby Rich-’I Lie’

2nd: Maya Ordonez-’For All That’s Lost’

2nd: Nyah Jackson-’Slow Meadows’

2nd: Kynadi Crain-’So Close, So Far’

3rd: Brooke Toro-’As The Dust Settles’

3rd: Brooke Vorst-’Girl From Ipanema’

3rd: Kinley Bertrand-’Rock With You’

3rd: Stella Vince-’Steep Turn’

4th: Taylor Harrison-’Dawn Chorus’

4th: Beyli Shah-’Heavy Hand’

4th: Anya Inger-’Quiet Thoughts’

4th: Bella Fernandez-’She Was Running’

5th: Brooke Dubbs-’I Know’

5th: Kara Yuan-’Petite Fleur’

5th: Elyse Tompkins-’Power of Love’

5th: Ellie Randolph-’Swan Song’

5th: Baileigh McKenzie-’Take Me’

5th: Emma Fontenot-’The Gate’

6th: Jaelynn Gatchett-’A Place of Peace’

6th: Haiden Neuville-’Before You Go’

6th: Campbell Thurow-’Can’t Touch This’

6th: Elyse Armstrong-’Hard to Love’

7th: Lena Hirsch-’Forsaken’

7th: Jocelyn Nguyen-’I Am Not Myself’

8th: Maegan Abadie-’Infinite’

8th: Juliana Reyes-’She Leads’

8th: Ava Grace Craig-’Sophie’s Choice’

8th: Madelyn McCauley-’Weightless’

9th: Julia Jacob-’Emotional Conclusions’

9th: Keira Kingsmore-’Medora Variation’

9th: Ansley Harris-’The Absence of Time’

9th: Jisselle Garza-’Waiting Game’

10th: Va’Shira Newborne-’Heat’

10th: Ava Grace Gallagher-’The Greatest’

Teen Solo

1st: Mariella Saunders-’Until We Break’

2nd: Chloe Slone-’As The Dust Settles’

2nd: Kate Abernathy-’Doomed’

2nd: Gianna Garwacki-’Epiphany’

2nd: Brecklyn Brown-’Fall On Me’

2nd: Cambry Bethke-’Sacred Space’

3rd: Hudson Pletcher-’Forged Imitation’

3rd: Madison Morita-’Lily of the Valley’

3rd: Paroma Pillay-’You’re Gonna Be Okay’

4th: Sarah Linn-’Under the Skin’

4th: Audrey Berg-’Schim’

4th: Ellie Tostenrude-’Mirror of the Mind’

4th: Grace Lundbom-’Filter’

4th: Hallie Hanes-’Escalate’

5th: William Huguet-’Sinister Heart’

5th: Sofia Ulloa-’Rainy Days and Mondays’

5th: Trista Brackin-’Marathon’

5th: Laila McGuire-’Albatross’

6th: Isabella Ferrara-’The Choir’

6th: Kieran Holmes-’Hear The Bells’

6th: Camille Reynolds-’Breakout’

7th: Nicole Larson-’Absence of Light’

7th: Fayeth Tippett-’Initiate’

7th: Gracie Booth-’Nature of Life’

7th: Jenna Laurent-’Regenerative’

8th: Arden Peterson-’To This Day’

8th: Avery Pesson-’Make My Cry’

8th: Rylie Rios-’Lost Without You’

8th: Rhylan Robicheaux-’An Evening I Will Not Forget’

9th: Kendall Wenmohs-’Carry You’

9th: Braden Ward-’Drilling An Ocean’

9th: Tessa Horsley-’Reflections’

9th: Reagan Wright-’Unearth’

10th: Libby Jo Parsons-’Free’

10th: Mason Ward-’Stones’

10th: Trent Grappe-’White’

Senior Solo

1st: Sarah Bratby-’Paracosm’

1st: Onye Stevenson-’Sleep’

2nd: Sophia Seymour-’Broken’

2nd: Elizabeth Perry-’Still Standing’

2nd: Damaris Salazar-’Unraveling’

3rd: Charlee Fagan-’Veils’

3rd: Selena Hamilton-’Keep An Eye Out’

3rd: Morgan Manning-’Change Gonna Come’

4th: Natalie Wong-’Tributary’

4th: Jaycee Mya Piper-’Happiness’

4th: Madi Autry-’A Face I Used to Know’

5th: Olivia Abadie-’Drawn To You’

5th: Alexa Williams-’Lost’

5th: Lainey Myers-’You Are The Reason’

6th: Camry Blackhurst-’Airstrike’

6th: Amelia Bradford-’Weightless’

7th: Carissa Dowling-’Lonely’

7th: Kaylie Wood-’The Shift’

8th: Camryn Guarino-’Shout’

8th: Presley Gouge-’Shadow Self’

8th: Isabel Ulloa-’Rose In Flames’

8th: Nyla Staes-’Let Go’

9th: Taelynn Ritchie-’If You Could Do It Again’

9th: Hayden Folse-’Particles’

9th: Sarah Hladky-’Swim’

9th: McKenzie Shaffer-’Whispers’

10th: Caroline Cottrell-’Let Him Go’

10th: Sophia Burns-’Rewind’

10th: Madison Morris-’She Used To Be Mine’

NUbie Duo/Trio

1st: Main Street Dance-’Glow’

Mini Duo/Trio

1st: Project 21-’I Am The Cute One’

2nd: Machita Dance Company-’Let’s Do It’

3rd: The Dance Kollective-’Reflection’

Junior Duo/Trio

1st: The Dance Kollective-’Both of Us’

2nd: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Pace of Change’

3rd: Modern Conceptions of Dance-’Deuterium’

3rd: Artistic Dance Project-’Spies’

Teen Duo/Trio

1st: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’At Least For Now’

1st: Dance Institute-’Comme Les Anges Volent’

2nd: Main Street Dance-’Destinations’

2nd: The Dance Kollective-’Alter Ego’

3rd: The Dance Kollective-’Ascending’

3rd: Dance Du Coeur-’Hiding Place’

Senior Duo/Trio

1st: The Dance Kollective-’Exhumed’

1st: Artistic Soul Dance Company-’Sunder’

2nd: The Dance Kollective-’I Don’t Believe In Us’

3rd: The Movement Dance Academy-’Wild Love’

NUbie Group

1st: Machita Dance Company-’Land of 1000 Dances’

2nd: Dance Graphics-’Boogie Fever’

3rd: Main Street Dance-’Mom’

Mini Group

1st: Prodigy Dance and Performing Arts Centre-’We Love to Bebop’

2nd: Lancaster Dance Academy-’Want You Back’

3rd: Lancaster Dance Academy-’A Children’s Dream’

Junior Group

1st: The Dance Kollective-’Dreaming’

1st: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Give Me More’

2nd: The Dance Kollective-’Like Lovers Do’

2nd: Dance Du Coeur-’Scapegoat’

3rd: Dance Du Coeur-’Wind It Up!’

Teen Group

1st: The Dance Kollective-’Tap Is Life’

2nd: The Dance Kollective-’Killing Me Softly’

2nd: The Dance Kollective-’The Heaven Complex’

2nd: Dance Du Coeur-’Truth’

3rd: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Hymne a l’amour’

Senior Group

1st: The Dance Kollective-’Before I Go’

2nd: Artistic Dance Project-’Letting Go’

3rd: The Dance Kollective-’Give Me Love’

NUbie Line

1st: The Movement Dance Academy-’Crazy In Love’

2nd: Rios Dance-’Anaconda’

Mini Line

1st: Machita Dance Company-’In The Convent’

2nd: Dance Graphics-’Cover Girl’

3rd: Dance Graphics-’Like Jesus’

Junior Line

1st: The Dance Kollective-’Handful of Keys’

2nd: Artistic Dance Project-’Bright Horses’

2nd: Dance Du Coeur-’Small Hours’

3rd: The Movement Dance Academy-’War Child’

Teen Line

1st: Artistic Dance Project-’Greed’

2nd: Dance Du Coeur-’Leave Me My Name’

2nd: The Dance Kollective-’Sing It Back’

2nd: Dance Du Coeur-’Somewhere’

3rd: The Movement Dance Academy-’Trust Me Again’

NUbie Extended Line

1st: The Movement Dance Academy-’Strut’

Mini Extended Line

1st: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Blow, Gabriel, Blow’

2nd: Main Street Dance-’Bom Bom Bom’

Junior Extended Line

1st: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Reasonable Doubt’

2nd: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Knock On Wood’

3rd: The Movement Dance Academy-’Mean Girls’

Teen Extended Line

1st: Artistic Dance Project-’Can’t Pretend’

2nd: Dance De Coeur-’Takeoff’

3rd: The Dance Kollective-’Goliath’

3rd: Tari’s School of Dance-’The Hive’

Senior Extended Line

1st: Artistic Dance Project-’Knocking On Heavens Door’

2nd: Artistic Dance Project-’GO!’

Teen Production

1st: Dance Institute-’Valse Romantique’

2nd: Dance Graphics-’What’s Poppin’

3rd: Main Street Dance-’Work Me Down’

High Scores by Performance Division:

NUbie Jazz

1st: Machita Dance Company-’Land of 1000 Dances’ 2nd: The Movement Dance Academy-’Crazy In Love’ 2nd: Dance Graphics-’Boogie Fever’ 3rd: Main Street Dance-’Mom’

NUbie Hip-Hop

1st: The Movement Dance Academy-’Strut’ 2nd: Rios Dance-’Anaconda’

NUbie Lyrical

1st: Modern Conceptions of Dance-’Ashes’

Mini Jazz

1st: Lancaster Dance Academy-’Want You Back’ 2nd: Machita Dance Company-’Shake; 3rd: Dance Graphics-’Glamorous Life’

Mini Hip-Hop

1st: Avant Dance LLC-’Bad to the Bone’ 2nd: Main Street Dance-’Cruising Cuties’

Mini Tap

1st: Prodigy Dance and Performing Arts Centre-’We Love to Bebop’ 2nd: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Blow, Gabriel, Blow’ 3rd: Main Street Dance-’All Aboard’

Mini Contemporary

1st: Lancaster Dance Academy-’A Children’s Dream’ 2nd: Avant Dance LLC-’La Vie En Rose’ 3rd: Dance Institute-’And So It Begins’

Mini Lyrical

1st: Center Stage Performing Arts Studio-’Happiness’ 2nd: Lancaster Dance Academy-’Sparrow’ 3rd: Dance Graphics-’Salvation’

Mini Musical Theatre

1st: Machita Dance Company-’In The Convent’ 2nd: Dance Graphics-’It’s Party Time’ 3rd: Dance Graphics-’Stupid Cupid’

Junior Jazz

1st: Dance Du Coeur-’Wind It Up!’ 2nd: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Knock On Wood’ 3rd: Dance Graphics-’Tip Toe’

Junior Ballet

1st: Collective Dance Artistry-’Promenade’ 2nd: Artistic Dance Project-’Marco Polo’

Junior Tap

1st: The Dance Kollective-’Handful of Keys’ 2nd: Artistic Dance Project-’Finesse’ 3rd: Avant Dance LLC-’Seville’

Junior Contemporary

1st: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Give Me More’ 1st: The Dance Kollective-’Dreaming’ 2nd: Dance Du Coeur-’Scapegoat’ 3rd: The Movement Dance Academy-’Unraveling’

Junior Lyrical

1st: Artistic Dance Project-’Bright Horses’ 1st: Dance Du Coeur-’Small Hours’ 2nd: The Movement Dance Academy-’War Child’ 3rd: Dance Graphics-’The Light That Never Fails’

Junior Musical Theatre

1st: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Reasonable Doubt’ 2nd: The Movement Dance Academy-’Mean Girls’

Junior Specialty

1st: The Dance Kollective-’Like Lovers Do’ 2nd: Main Street Dance-’1977′ 3rd: Paloma Limas & Company-’My Way’

Teen Jazz

1st: Dance Du Coeur-’Last Dance’ 2nd: The Dance Kollective-’Bringing It Back’ 3rd: The Movement Dance Academy-’Vibeology’

Teen Ballet

1st: Dance Institute-’Valse Romantique’ 2nd: Dance Institute-’Amore Argentine’ 3rd: Collective Dance Artistry-’Sylvia’

Teen Hip-Hop

1st: Dance Graphics-’What’s Poppin’ 2nd: Tari’s School of Dance-’Fame and Fortune’ 3rd: Main Street Dance-’Pinky Ring’

Teen Tap

1st: The Dance Kollective-’Tap Is Life’ 2nd: The Dance Kollective-’Killing Me Softly’ 3rd: Palm Valley Gymnastics and Dance-’Juice’

Teen Contemporary

1st: Dance Du Coeur-’Truth’ 1st: Dance Du Coeur-’Leave Me My Name’ 2nd: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Hymne a l’amour’ 3rd: Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’The Path’

Teen Lyrical

1st: Dance Du Coeur-’Somewhere’ 2nd: The Dance Kollective-’Remember Her’ 3rd: Creative Dance Studio-’Memory’ 3rd: Artistic Dance Project-’Journey’

Teen Musical Theatre

1st: Modern Conceptions of Dance-’Don’t Rain On My Parade’ 2nd: Avant Dance LLC-’C’mon Everybody’

Teen Ballroom

1st: The Dance Kollective-’Boss’ 2nd: Rios Dance-’Azucar’

Teen Specialty

1st: Artistic Dance Project-’Greed’ 2nd: The Dance Kollective-’The Heaven Complex’ 2nd: The Dance Kollective-’Sing It Back’ 3rd: Collective Dance Artistry-’The One Who Goes Astray’

Senior Jazz

1st: Lancaster Dance Academy-’Gimmie Dat’ 2nd: Pivotal Academy of Dance-’Born This Way’

Senior Hip-Hop

1st: Artistic Dance Project-’GO!’

Senior Tap

1st: Artistic Dance Project-’I Wanna Dance’

Senior Contemporary

1st: The Dance Kollective-’Before I Go’ 2nd: Artistic Dance Project-’Mother’ 3rd: Main Street Dance-’9 Crimes’

Senior Lyrical

1st: Artistic Dance Project-’Letting Go’ 2nd: The Dance Kollective-’Give Me Love’ 3rd: Dance Graphics-’Let You Know’

Senior Specialty

1st: Artistic Dance Project-’Knocking On Heavens Door’ 2nd: Texas Academy of Dance Arts-’You Always Hurt The One You Love’

Best NU Groups:

NUbie

The Movement Dance Academy-’Crazy In Love’

Machita Dance Company-’Land of 1000 Dances’

Dance Graphics-’Boogie Fever’

Mini

Dance Graphics-’Salvation’

Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Blow, Gabriel, Blow’

Machita Dance Company-’In The Convent’

Center Stage Performing Arts Studio-’Happiness’

Lancaster Dance Academy-’Want You Back’

Prodigy Dance and Performing Arts Centre-’We Love to Bebop’

Junior

Dance Du Coeur-’Scapegoat’

Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Give Me More’

The Dance Kollective-’Dreaming’

Artistic Dance Project-’Bright Horses’

The Movement Dance Academy-’Unraveling’

Dance Du Coeur-’Small Hours’

Teen

Jean Leigh Academy of Dance-’Hymne a l’amour’

Artistic Dance Project-’Greed’

The Dance Kollective-’Tap Is Life’

Modern Conceptions of Dance-’Distortion’

Collective Dance Artistry-’The One Who Goes Astray’

Dance Du Coeur-’Somewhere’

Machita Dance Company-’Holding On’

Creative Dance Studio-’Memory’

Main Street Dance-’Crash Test Dummies’

Tari’s School of Dance-’The Hive’

Dance Institute-’Valse Romantique’

The Movement Dance Academy-’Trust Me Again’

Dance Graphics-’What’s Poppin’

Senior

Lancaster Dance Academy-’Humanity’

Texas Academy of Dance Arts-’Love Lost’

Main Street Dance-’9 Crimes’

The Dance Kollective-’Before I Go’

Artistic Dance Project-’Letting Go’

Studio Pick:

Dance Graphics-’What’s Poppin’

Lancaster Dance Academy-’Humanity’

Dance Institute-’Valse Romantique’

Artistic Dance Project-’Greed’

Collective Dance Artistry-’The One Who Goes Astray’

Avant Dance LLC-’Clap, Clap’

Modern Conceptions of Dance-’Distortion’

Dance Du Coeur-’Somewhere’

West Austin Dance Academy-’Missionary Man’

The Movement Dance Academy-’Trust Me Again’

The Dance Kollective-’Tap Is Life’

Main Street Dance-’Crash Test Dummies’

Machita Dance Company-’Holding On’

#nuvo #dance #houston #texas #2021

23 notes · View notes

magebastard · 3 years

Text

(ok thank you so much @possumsunshine for making this big fat wayhaven detective questionnaire i had FUN doing it)

QUICK READ OF YOUR DETECTIVE

Name: lane m. wheatley

Pronouns: she/they

Sexuality: bisexual

Love interest: mason

Best friend: unit bravo all of them

Main skill: people

Secondary skill: science

Main personality trait: genuine

Secondary personality trait: easygoing

Why did they join the Wayhaven PD?: wants to protect people

Relationship with Rebecca: bad so bad laughably bad

Relationship with Bobby: ex

Verda or Tina?: verda

Murphy bite?: neck

Murphy’s fate?: captured

Rescue LI or Rescue Sanja?: mason she panicked

GENERAL

Name: lane marshall wheatley

Nickname: detective (affectionate)

Birthday: december 8th

Age: 27

Pronouns: she/they

Sexuality: bisexual

Hair color: honey blonde

Eye color: dark brown

Height: 5’1

Piercings: a few holes in her ears and her septum but she very rarely wears the septum ring

Tattoos: a rat on her left thigh, a stick and poke that says dunkin donuts on the inside of her left ankle

Clothing Style: smart. blazers and slacks. very shiny loafers. big bulky wristwatch. christopher moltisanti from the sopranos.

Apartment Style: dark. but fully furnished by bulk trash day

STATS

Personality:

Charming | Intimidating

Impulsive | Cautious

Sarcastic | Genuine

Friendly | Stoic

Easygoing | Stubborn

Traits:

Heart | Mind

Optimist | Pessimist

Team Player | Independent

Skills:

Main Skill: people

Second Skill: science/technology

By the Book | Bend the Rules

KEY DECISIONS

Reason for joining the Wayhaven PD: wants to protect people

Murphy bite: Wrist | Neck | None

Murphy’s Fate: Captured | Escaped

Rescued: Love Interest | Sanja

ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP

Love Interest: mason

Why them?: ok time to be A Bit Much™️ but she immediately identifies herself in mason. like felix and nate are open and kind which she tries to embody, and adam respects her so long as she does her job which she understands and appreciates. she doesn’t understand or relate to any of them in a romantic sense. with mason she sees that ‘oh, he likes to hook up and flirt. he’s kind of grumpy but that’s fine i also pretty much exclusively only hook up and flirt. so that could happen.’

Bold, shy, or mixed?: bold

What were their first impressions of each other?: for lane, mason immediately pissed her off. she was very stressed out by the case and rebecca’s sudden appearance and adam’s attitude, so her patience was so thin and she just didn’t care about much beyond solving the mystery of the murder. she thought he might have seen her in a weak spot and pointedly ribbed her because of it so she was like “i literally just need to learn to ignore this man.”

for mason, it was a weird mixed bag, because he could pick up on lane’s reluctance to work with a team—especially rebecca’s team. with that impression in mind, he sees her cast all of her personal feelings aside for the sake of solving the case and protecting the town, and he relates to that instinct. other than that, he was generally annoyed that they had to work with her

What do they find attractive about each other, mentally or physically?: everything for sure but specifically their favorite features -

for lane: mason’s freckles and his long nose and hands. mentally, it’s his honesty and sense of humor

for mason: lane’s eyes, cheeks when she smiles, legs. mentally, it’s her open mindedness and protective nature

What do they do to spend time together?: they go on walks, lane tries to find mason’s favorite music, they watch movies, they go on long drives, they sit at the lighthouse, they watch sunsets together, they stare at the moon

What is their favorite memory together?: they make a lot! the first time they quietly sit together on the roof of the warehouse becomes especially important to them both over time

What are their love languages?: touch, quality time, lane is half in/half out on words of affirmation

How do they handle being apart from one another?: ok deep romance mason feels the brunt of hypersensitivity with also the ache of loss so he mostly sulks and sticks to his room. lane kind of walks around on autopilot. not really realizing it, but definitely experiencing heavy brain fog and going home and berating herself for being needy but also crying

Do they argue? How do they handle arguments and disagreements? How do they make up?: they don’t really argue! mason doesn’t really think not to speak his mind and lane is very communicative and easygoing. they bicker when one of them ends up in avoidable danger, but it usually ends with a quiet “i need you to stay safe.” something w that sentiment

What does their future look like?: traveling and a lake house. staying with unit bravo through thick and thin. lane turns when she’s 29, and they stay in wayhaven until she turns about 45 and eyebrows start to raise.

Anything else you’d like to share: they do get married. it’s a very small and very private ceremony that doesn’t really matter much to either of them but conceptually being husband and wife feels very funny and novel and also just makes sense

BEST FRIEND RELATIONSHIP

Best friend: i cannot choose but for this instance i will go with nate

Why them?: they talk a lot about literature and food and music and lane bids on antique furniture for nate because he doesn’t know how to use ebay. it’s a very precious friendship for them both

What were their first impressions of each other?: lane is weary of nate because he’s so charming that she worries that maybe he’s TOO confident. it passes when he gives that exasperated vibe off over felix being overtly outgoing in like a “oh he’s the parent” kind of way. he also has this comforting presence and she worries that he assumes she needs to be comforted. nate is weary of lane because while he’d never assume that someone is incapable at first glance, lane looks like a stiff wind would blow her over and that she hasn’t slept in a year. also his first genuine sight and impression of her is this tiny person taking a coffee pot apart piece by piece and grumbling very angrily to herself.

What do they do to spend time together?: nate purchases period piece luxury furniture and sometimes it is not in the best condition so lane and nate restore old furniture together. they debate about shakespeare and different genres of music. sometimes they play together. they swap recipes and while nate doesn’t gossip much, he always listens to station drama over tea/coffee.

Anything else you’d like to share: nate is the first person lane talks to about becoming a vampire. she knows he has his own reservations and she needs to hear them. also lane, nate and felix paint each other’s nails every few weeks. adam has an open invitation that he cashes in maybe twice a year.

OTHER RELATIONSHIPS (Feel free to go in depth!)

Relationship with Rebecca: bad! they are strangers to each other and also very sad reflections of one another. rebecca makes lane feel so small without even trying

Relationship with Rook: rook was as beloved in wayhaven as lane is now, if not more so. she hears about him in stories that every adult in town seem to know. he’s her hero and she’s always a bit devastated that she never got to know him. lane had a crisis of identity in her sophomore year of college and suddenly the stories she’d always heard felt like a calling to try to be good like rook. this ends up being why she declared her major in forensic science and started working towards becoming a detective like he was

Relationship with Bobby: it’s pretty much fine. neither of them were great when they were together and lane feels a bit bad now because she definitely used him. he did the same, for a few reasons. they’re okay now, but lane kind of feels kind of weird about the 8 months they dated.

Relationship with Verda: they are science best friends. they drink wine on the porch on summer nights, and lane babysits the kids when sol and eric need a night off

Relationship with Tina: very close. your best coworker friend who you start spending time with outside of work and then you realize that you are almost spending all of your time together with them actually. lane’s spent the last two years worth of holidays with the ponames

Relationship with the Mayor: not great! she’s very ‘by the book’ but always takes the chance to snark him. used to egg his house as a teen

Relationship with Capt. Sung: she sees him as a weird general manager at work and can be fine with small and idle chatting when they run into each other at town functions

Relationship with Haley: haley and lane hooked up a lot when lane and bobby broke up. they were band kids in high school together and it’s a very important friendship for lane

Relationship with Elidor: she is so comforted by this fae man. they talk science, they chat about personal dreams, huge hugs.

Relationship with Tapeesa/Vieno: lane has a friendly relationship with vieno! they call her buddy and she internally is like “i am! i am your buddy!”

Relationship with Unit Alpha: dunks on maaka for making fun of nate and adam. they’re pretty blunt and open and she likes that energy a lot

Relationship with the Maa-alused: a lot of guilt over them losing their home. lane gets the vibe that falk was flirting but she didn’t want to assume but also she was into it. devastated by the fact that she could have saved sanja if she hadn’t let her feelings cloud her sense of logic.

Do they have any other important relationships, past or present? (Relatives, friends, etc.?):

this is. a lot. (CW death and vehicular trauma) there was a boy who lane grew up with, who lived in the house across the street from her childhood home. by far, her best friend. they started dating freshman year of high school, and ended up in the same university, still together. lane was a comm major until her sophomore year and the two of them started a band in high school that became the band that lane was in for years.

in their sophomore yr of college, he proposed and lane said yes, of course, they had NO plan or any idea outside of the band of what they wanted to do for the rest of their lives. that same year, they ended up in a car crash and he did not make it. this is what triggered lane to kind of lose a lot of her sense of identity. she found comfort in stories about rook and decided that—with no direction, who would be better to emulate than her hero? her partner’s name was david, they were soulmates and ya she still misses him

other than that, the two other guys that were in the band who she has not seen since the funeral. i have this idea in my head of writing the scene where they visit and meet unti bravo which would be entirely for me and my own little rat brain

PERSONAL BIO

Describe their personality: very laid back and open/honest. easygoing

Strengths: very detail oriented, can spot the faintest whiff of a pattern and connect dots with sparse evidence. emotionally driven to the point that she pushes herself beyond her limits to do a job well. very technologically savvy

Weaknesses: emotionally driven lmao cannot separate herself from a case once she’s started, feels personally responsible for everyone she could not save. bottles up her anger until she has no choice but to deal w it via crying.

Where in the world is their Wayhaven?: somewhere on the east coast. near a wawa

What is their personal history?: lane is a town stray. she had her house with nannies and agency babysitters who weren’t invested in her emotional growth and well-being, so her defacto family is uh all of wayhaven. neighbors, mailmen, friends parents, shop owners. she connects as much as she can with everyone in town. she drifts a lot between them, and after the accident she realizes that she would do anything to protect these people

If they weren’t a detective, what would their dream job be?: if rook were never a detective, lane would have probably leaned less on stories of his heroism. she probably would have stuck closer to her friends and tried to commit to making music her full time job

Anything else you’d like to share: she picked up smoking very young and it’s genuinely surprising to people that she has never questioned why she does it or that she’s never had any intention of quitting ever

RANDOM FACTS

Zodiac sign: sagittarius

Hobbies: furniture restoration, making music, walking, cooking/baking

Likes: a funky little bass line, marlboro menthols, giving piggy back rides, painting walls, being a lab tech and assistant for verda, sitting on the kitchen counter in the middle of the night

Dislikes: arguing, loud noises, when it gets too hot outside, when it gets too cold outside, when she catches someone in a lie and they continue to deny it

Drink of choice: black coffee w a little cinnamon mixed in the grounds

Starbucks order: 6 shot latte w soy

Favorite food: grilled eggplant

Favorite color: this color is called black bean it’s this

Favorite music: not to be annoying but truly all of it there is something she can enjoy in every genre but early 2000’s rnb and hard core punk probably

Favorite genre (and favorite movie/book/etc): she loves a rom com but also thrillers. her favorite movies are muppets treasure island and ratatouille

Favorite season: spring!

Anything else you’d like to share: her car’s name is Hank

#c: lane wheatley #not gonna put this in tags because it is mostly for me #smoking cw #food cw #drink cw #twc #aaaaaa thank u again for making this #cw death mention #cw vehicular trauma #alcohol ment #why am i nervous about posting this lmao

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twitchstoleyourbagel · 3 years

Text

So I’m posting my fic here until my AO3 account gets approved :) this is my first fic, please enjoy!

EC - 8538

Gender - Female

Chapter 1

85 walked down the blinding white, lifeless halls of the Kaminoan cloning facility. Most if not all of the cadets who had passed her raised a brow or stared at her as they passed, and she didn’t blame them. A human female living in the same facility as a bunch of boys who had probably never seen a girl before would be an odd sight. 85 was an experimental clone, she had been told there was another experimental female but she never had the chance of meeting her.

There had been a few batches that the Kaminoans took creative liberty with but none survived. All but one anyways. Though she didn’t know if the squad had a name or not (she wasn’t told much) like most batches such as the Domino squad, or Hurricane squad, she did know that they had enhanced senses or something like that. One had good eyesight, the other was really big and apparently strong, one was smart and the other could feel things. She didn’t even know if those were the actual enhancements of the squad, she had only heard it from other cadets talking about them.

Finally she reached the training facility, apparently she was going to train with the Spirit squad today, hopefully she stays with this one. After so long of jumping around, training with different squads trying to see if she got along with any of them, this better be the last one. She quickly changed into her training gear and ran out to meet the clones. They turned to meet her and their eyes grew wide.

As expected. She internally sighed to herself.

“Hey guys, I’m EC - 8538, or you can just call me 85.” The girl with fluffy purple hair stuck her hand out for them to shake which instead they just stood there, glancing at one another. That was until one of the clones with longer, curly hair, stepped forward and shook it firmly.

“Pleasure to meet you, 85. I’m Hopper, that’s Quill, 77, and 24.” He gestured to himself and then pointed to the men behind him. They had to be 7th or 8th year cadets, Hopper was extremely professional and cut to the chase. 77 gave her an awkward wave and a lopsided smile, his messy hair fell down into his eyes and he reached up to fix it, not looking as happy as he did a second ago. And 24 nodded but kept quiet

Huh. He looks a little shy? Or just reserved?

She brought her hand back to her side and it twitched, soon her neck followed suit and she cursed under her breath. Damn Kaminoans and all their testing. Hopper raised a brow when her face scrunched up while her neck twitched.

“Hey she twitches!” 77 called out like they couldn’t all see. He received a smack in the arm by the brother standing next to him. “Ow.”

85 cleared her throat and rolled her neck, trying to shake it off. Hopper still looked at her as if waiting for an explanation and Quill had a concerned look on his face.

“It happens all the time, don’t worry it doesn’t affect my fighting if that’s what you guys are worried about.”

Quill glanced at Hopper and then back at the girl.

“Are you an experimental clone? Are you even a clone at all?”

She barked a Hah! At his question. It wasn’t a bad question, in fact his curiosity was to be expected. However she made a bet with herself on the way to the facility. The bet was if someone was gonna ask something along the lines of that question.

“Yeah, I am. I know there’s been a few batches before me but none made it. I know of one that is out on the field, I think there’s also another female clone who’s been dispatched with a squad but I never met her.” She frowned at the thought, staring at the ground thoughtfully.

The doors hissed and the trainer walked in. Joy. A tall, red, Togrutan male walked through the doors with his hands folded behind his back. Reese glared at them and they immediately snapped to attention, staring straight at the wall. 85 tried to hide the shudder that the trainer had sent down her spine as he walked by. She felt a twitch coming on from nervousness but tried her best to keep it down, however her hands did begin twitching.

“You are going to be doing a level 8 difficulty training exercise today. With a new.. addition to the team,” He flicked his eyes to 85. “I want to see how you 5 will work together as a team dynamic. EC - 8538 is an experimental clone, her particular… difference and skill I want to see today is her enhanced reflexes,”

Quill shot a quick glance at Hopper while the trainer wasn’t looking.

Kriff kriff kriff-

Her neck jerked to the left and her arms were brought up to her chest. Rule number one when a trainer is addressing you (especially one as strict as Reese) do not break attention. And that’s exactly what she did.

“Is there a problem, EC - 8538?” Reese snapped in her face. She tried her best not to flinch and get back to attention.

“No, Sir.” She stood straight, chin up, chest out, shoulders back, stomach in.

“Stay at attention when I address you. Am I clear?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“Now, as I was saying, you will be running a level 8 training course today, and if you do not pass, you will restart.”

Tension arose in the room after 85 was yelled at by Reese, it only escalated when he threatened to restart the simulation if they failed to complete it.

“Grab your guns. The test will begin momentarily.” With that, he turned on his heel and made his way to the top of the room where he could oversee the course.

Hopper glanced at her before picking up one of the training blasters provided and handed another one to Quill. She sighed and found one for herself. 77 came up behind her and placed a hand on her shoulder and nodded to her. What kind of nod it was supposed to be was unknown, but she liked to think it was a ‘you got this’ notion. She smiled at him before taking her place on the floor, waiting patiently for the rest to join her. Hopper stood next to her and the rest followed after him.

“Alright everyone, take your positions. 85, I want you with me.” He glanced around at the squad and then to her.

“Yes, Sirrrr.” She raced after him behind cover and the simulation began. The ultimate goal was to take the ‘capital’ preferably without losing a team member. Granted they would only be stunned but it still didn’t help much. Hopper peeked over the cover they were standing behind and landed a few shots on a B1 training battle droid, taking it down. Across the left to them, Quill yanked 77 down just in time for a blaster bolt to skim over his head. With wide eyes he nodded his thanks to his vod before peeking over again.

The girl stayed by Hopper through most of the simulation. After 30 minutes they had finally advanced to the capital, all they had to do was to take out the droids inside. Rushing into the building, a battle droid aimed and shot for her. A bolt skimmed right by her nose but due to her enhanced reflexes she had dodged it just in time, right after it had passed she raised her blaster and killed the droid.

“Nice work, 85!” Hopper praised through comms. Across the room she could see him take down two droids

“Yeah! Twitchy here is doing pretty good!” 77 chirped in her ear as he pushed 24 out of the way of what was going to be a direct hit.

Twitchy… I like it.

“Why thank you, gentlemen. Not so bad yourself.” If there was one thing she was certain about in life it was that she liked this squad. When she was first told she was training with the Spirit squad she had low hopes. Like the rest of the squads she had trained with, they had seen her differently, not as a sister but a freak.

“Man, they really weren’t joking when they said level 8!” Quill yelled while running from three droids, all firing at him. 85 whipped around and downed two of them, Hopper finishing the third one. He bent down to help his brother up from his hiding spot from the floor. “Thanks, vod.” With a nod, he ran off with Quill following close behind.

“Almost there, boys!” She ran down the hall and began to vault herself over the wall to reach the mark that ended the simulation. Sudden searing pain in her abdomen sent her crashing into the ground, her gun falling out of her hands. When she looked up to see what had hit her, a training commando droid was rushing towards her.

“Commandos!” She was able to choke out through the pain. It wasn’t as painful as a real blaster wound but man did it still hurt. Her neck jerked to the side and her legs seized up.

Not good, not good, not good-

77 came crashing through the course, shooting the commando droid with Hopper to his left, taking out any threats. Once the droid fell he rushed over to 85s side and tried to help her, but he wasn’t Quill. He didn’t know what to do in a medical situation! Nervously, he tried to hold her legs still and calm her down, which seemed to work a little. “C’mon, twitch. We’re almost there.”

She groaned and slowly sat up, after a few seconds she braced herself on 77 arms and stood up. He bent over and handed her the gun she dropped, giving her an encouraging smile. “Alright, let’s go! I don't wanna do this again!” They ran side by side, shooting droids and climbing over the obstacles. After a few more minutes of running and vaulting, the pole was in sight. All they had to do was show Reese that they had the pole and he would end the simulation. Sweat trickled down her forehead as she and 77 booked it for the finish, soon enough she could hear the rest of them following.

77 was the first to reach the pole and yanked it out of its place cheering in excitement, Hopper, Quill, 24, and 85 all gave each other pats on the back.

“Great job everybody!” Hopper praised everyone and playfully punched Quill's shoulder. He looked back with a smile but his focus remained on the girl, she had taken a blow from one of the blasters and it seemed to have a decent effect on her. The training simulation shut down and the squad was released to their barracks to change and head to the mess hall.

_______________________

85 slipped on her boots and hurried to catch up with her new squad. “Heeeyyyyy!” She raised her hand for a high five at 77 once she saw him in the hall, instead he just stood there. “... you’re supposed to hit my hand. It’s a high five?” If these boys didn’t know what a high five was, there might be a slight problem. He hesitantly tapped her hand with his and she smiled.

“Nice job back there! You got some good reflexes.” He began walking down the hall that led to the cafeteria.

“Thanks. That’s my ‘enhancement’ or whatever you wanna call it. I got freaky fast moves.” She wiggled her fingers. Before 77 could reply, the rest of Spirit Squad came up behind them. They walked through the doors to the cafeteria and got in line with their trays. 85 could practically feel the others' eyes on her but she tried her best to just ignore them and get her food. Once she filled her tray, she followed Hopper to an empty table and sat across from him. The rest followed, 77 sitting next to her while Quill and 24 sat on Hopper's side.

“Welcome to the squad, 85.” Hopper smiled at her, happy to have a new addition.

“Twitch.”

“What?”

“Twitch, my name is Twitch.”

It was at that moment she saw 77 grow the biggest smile she had ever seen on a person, he was pretty much grinning from ear to ear.

“Well, Twitch,” Hopper's cup rose in the air. “Welcome to the Spirit Squad.” They all raised their cups and clinked them together before taking a sip. Everyone was smiling, even the more shy, 24.

“It’s good to be her-“

“Well well well, if it isn’t the freak. How did a lab rat end up in a squad like this?” Another clone squad passed their table, taunting Twitch. They laughed at the clone's harsh words but were cut off when Twitch replied.

“You lookin’ for a smack in the face, shabuir?” She had turned around to fully face the clone and stare him directly in the eyes. No bullying today, she would not let these idiots ruin her good day. Out of the corner of her eye she could see the rest of her squad stiffen, they seemed shocked like this wasn’t a regular occurrence.

“Oh it talks!”

It? Oh you’re dead.

Anger bubbled up inside of her and she reached up and grabbed his wrist, twisting it backwards causing him to drop his tray and food. He broke free from her grip and if looks could kill, she would most definitely be dead right now. The squad behind him puffed up their chests, ready for a fight. While she really didn’t want to fight, she was having a nice lunch with her new squad, it was their fault they picked on her. She couldn’t help the way that she was. Her neck twitched to the left and she sighed when they started snickering,

Hopper stood up from the bench he was sitting on to speak. “Listen, Fellas. We don’t want any trouble, just go your own way please.” The clones looked at Twitch once more before walking over to their own table, still side eyeing them occasionally.

“Sorry guys, I didn’t mean to start trouble-”

“Why are you apologizing? They should be the ones asking for forgiveness, you don’t deserve that. No one does.” 77 placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to get his point across.

“Yeah, Twitch it’s okay. We’re not mad at you, but… does that happen often?” Hopper scooted back into his seat.

“Uhm…” She didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, it did happen a lot. So often she just accepted that it was normal. “Yeah… yeah pretty often, but I shouldn’t have grabbed him, I don’t know.”

“Well he deserved it.” 24 piped up. That was the first time Twitch had heard him speak, and it was defending her. “Next time anyone does that to you, you have every right to fight back.”

“Thanks guys.” She took a bite of the food that was on her plate, casting a glance at the table that the clone who mocked her moved to. One locked eyes with her for a second but quickly looked away, snickering to the table.

Yeah, you guys are real comedians.

77 slid his hand off her shoulder and continued to eat. Quill had that look on his face, one he had seen too many times, the one where he wanted to ask a question but was unsure of how to approach it. He very slightly motioned to Twitch, who was very focused on her food, all her spark had fizzled out. Oh if he could beat up those clones right then and there he would’ve, but he didn’t want to start a mess hall fight, those happened too often and he didn’t wanna get written up for misbehavior.

“So… if you don’t mind me asking,” Quill finally voiced his curiosity. “Why do you twitch? And wouldn’t it throw out your neck if you did it enough?”

“No, I don’t mind at all. You actually have a really good question there. I personally have no idea why I twitch, it could be the result of testing or just that I’m an experimental clone. It could just be a defect,” She shrugged. “My neck takes the brunt of it and it’s sore sometimes, some days worse than others. Apparently,” Twitch rested her elbow on the table, holding her fork. “I twitch a lot when I’m experiencing ‘extreme emotions’ at least that’s what the Kaminoans say, I’m not told much.”

“Oh…” He wasn’t exactly sure how to respond to that. “W-Well if you have a sore neck sometime I might be able to help.”

“Quill here has a dream of being a CMO so he takes whatever chance he gets to practice medical.. things.” 77 explained.

“Hey, that's not the right term!”

“Oh who cares.”

“Uh- I do??”

“Guys, guys. No bickering.” Twitch raised her hands to shush them before anything else could be said. “Quill, that would be awesome if you could help my neck sometime, it’s been giving me some problems lately.” His eyes lit up and he nodded.

Hopper sent a kind smile her way before he continued to eat his food.

Once they finished in the mess hall, Twitch was summoned to the medical bay. With a very heavy sigh, she waved bye to her squad and trudged down the cold halls reluctantly.

If you got this far, thank you! ♥️

#the bad batch #star wars #clone wars #oc story #star wars fanfiction #this is gonna be a bad batch fic #just wait #bad batch fic #Twitch_oc #clone ocs #bad batch oc #clone cadets

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betterthan777 · 5 years

Text

> End

>Pt. 1 >Pt. 2 >Pt. 3

You’re not far out now, several hundred meters and closing in fast, when you start to hear the shouting and screaming of your company through the comms. Before you can blurt out and demand clarification, your Gunner is rolled by the towering Monster of a vehicle that was antagonizing your Guard. F8’s Hand goes tumbling sideways from the force of the strike, turning over several times and tossing you violently against your X-shaped harness until your vehicle comes to a stop.

You force Luck to let you land on your tires.

She bends willingly and F8’s Hand lands, tires down.

It felt as though your head was attached by a single thread, that looking around happened at 1/8th the normal speed, but you worked through it and brought your systems back online while trying to figure out what happened. Your fingers are sluggish, having trouble with the toggles, but you persist. You had to. You barely notice as lightning cracks into the ground nearby, one bolt followed by two others, and once again you flirt with Luck to avoid the same fate as your former Guard.

The Truck that hit you, something that must’ve been a Monster Truck before everything went flipped turnways, was actively driving through your disorganized mobile Guard and crushing their Gunners under its impossibly large and heavily chained tires like they were tin cans. F8’s Hand roared back to life and you slammed your foot on the gas without a moment’s hesitation. While everything inside of you told you to push towards The Behemoth you ignored it, chasing instead after the Monster that was devastating your comrades. You’re not sure why you did this. This wasn’t like you.

A spray of turret fire, both automatic and Gatling, did nothing but mar the Monster’s shell as it wheeled and crushed. It fired tethers towards you, things you managed to avoid last-second by swerving and pulling your vehicle so hard that it raised up on two wheels before smashing back down into the filthy wet of the desert floor. Every time you tried to ride alongside it to blast out its windows or destroy its wheels, the Monster hurled death at you and tore into F8’s Hand like wet tissue paper.

You needed to rethink this, before all of the West Fleet were destroyed. You heard only 11 or 12 different voices now screaming over the comms.

There had been more than 40 when you started.

Watching this beast roll over your Guard was nauseating and upsetting, it filled you with a kind of anger that watching the criminals and debaucherers that frequented Lady’s Country die had never filled you with before. Maybe it was the weather, you think. Maybe it was the fact that it was the Skullshots doing this shit and not some just violence within your own walls. Whatever it was, you were fucking done with this Monster and the amount of death is was dealing. This had to end.

You turn the wheel hard as you round the plains and head directly towards the big-wheeled nightmare. It wasn’t even smoking, the damage it had to it was superficial at best and that really boiled your blood. “FALL BACK! DON’T ENGAGE THE MONSTER!” You hiss into your comms. “FOCUS ON RUMBLERS, FOCUS ON BEHEMOTH, LEAVE THE MONSTER TO ME!”

It was difficult, threading the needle to get beneath the Monster. Your Auto-turrets tried their best to shoot at the enemy vehicle but they did little damage to it. Chunks of metal, broken lights, nothing that left more than a mark on the rolling death machine. The sky lit up again and you knew you had to do it to em’-- You stole ALL the Lightning towards yourself.

You made it strike the vehicle driving above you.

The immediate explosion was breathtaking and would have been better if you weren’t caught in the crossfire. F8’s Hand was engulfed in the same plume of high-temperature flashbang that almost instantaneously burned out the truck’s insides and began to melt its frame. It bounced off of its wheels from the blast, the hollowed out skeleton of its flaming remains coming crashing to the desert floor and sputtering out at the pouring rain.

Inside of your cockpit was about 30 different alarm chimes and fire chewing through the leather and fabric therein. It was so hot that it felt like your eyes were going to boil out of your head, but you had to push onwards. The Behemoth was close and all you had to do was get there before you cooked. You’d done harder, right? Thankfully, the pain was all at terminal velocity, a phrase which here meant that it had peaked and there was no way that any of what you were feeling could get worse. You’re pretty sure you were screaming the entire time as your vehicle tore through the rain-soaked desert and directly towards the slow-crawling Behemoth in a streak of flame and smoke, but you weren’t sure. You’d ask your remaining guards later.

Consciousness was tenuous now. you can only vaguely understand that F8’s Hand crashed into the side of the Behemoth and that you’d crawled out of the wreckage onto the outside of the moving fortress. You’re only vaguely aware of tearing people from their harnesses and seeing glimpses of them before they’re swallowed up by the steady and unyielding treads of the Behemoth. The only constant is the pain you’re in, the continual burning and the synapses firing all at once to tell you that you were fucked up and needed to stop. You weren’t about to stop. You were too close to give up now, your shitty Human body just needed to hold out a little longer.

There was an idea to steal one of the guns from a person you were throwing off the Behemoth, and then you were inside of it within what felt like the same break between blinks. Questioning this was probably not a good thing to stop and do at the moment, so you let the blips of blackness cut the montage of your successful raid. You know you’re screaming now as you move because in the halls, reverberating into what’s left of your ears, you can hear yourself. This must look so fucking horrifying to the Skullshots you’re up against. That’s all that’s driving you right now, you think. Determination and the knowledge of how fucking badass this was.

There are more flashes of things happening around you, a punch (yours or someone else’s you’re not entirely sure), several gunshots, a stumbling of your body hitting the wall and an indeterminate amount of time before you’re back up on your feet and moving. At some point you enter the Control center, and then the next thing you see is the half-melted metal of your arm repeatedly smashing in the console of the Behemoth as well as the skull of, who you could only assume, had been the Captain of this bastard. You feel the movement of the Behemoth slow and stop, and then you fall forward against the console next to the several people you likely just murdered. Then there’s darkness and silence.

The next time you open your eyes, you’re kneeling outside in the rain. It hurts everywhere it touches but the coldness seeps through you, even through the stinging and burning of the raw and melted parts of your body that you couldn’t stomach to look at. You hear the oncoming screech of tires and see a flash of White, and then nothing.

Total Blackout.

--Pending Respawn...|

#}Dra88le #}8lackout #}Happenings #death//#burning//#fire//#severe injury//#unreality/

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swan-of-sunrise · 1 year

Text

"A Spellbinding Wedding" Sneak Peek

I'm working on a couple of other things right now so I'm not sure when this'll be out but in the meantime, here's a little sneak peek from the wedding one-shot of Loki and the Cosmic Sorceress for ya'll! 💖

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A Spellbinding Wedding October 8th, 2016 Stark Mansion New York City, New York

(Y/N) paused her mascara application and pretended to ponder Clint’s overly-exaggerated question. “Whether or not it would be rude of me to drop that camcorder through a portal to Muspelheim and lock you in the basement until after the ceremony.”

“Yeah, they’re all hanging out in the old lab downstairs and Tony’s helping them prep their sound equipment; you and Loki do know that there’s literally thousands of professional DJ’s you could’ve hired to run your wedding reception that aren’t sixteen and can actually drive themselves to their venues, right?”

“Says the friend of ours who practically begged to be the videographer even though he’s a professional archer…” She mumbled under her breath, twisting the mascara wand back into its tube just as someone knocked on her suite’s door. “Come in!”

The door opened and Natasha popped her head into the room, her long red hair still wrapped in curlers, a clipboard in her hands and a comm link secured in her ear. The spy was taking her many duties as Matron of Honor very seriously, treating the day’s celebration as if it were a highly-classified mission and not a fairly subdued wedding located at Tony’s family mansion; each of their teammates had been assigned specific duties and responsibilities and throughout the morning, Natasha checked in with them to ensure that their tasks were going smoothly, which explained why she was shooting Clint the trademark glare she normally reserved for Hydra agents. “Last I checked, Barton, you’re supposed to be overseeing the florists in the garden and not raising the bride’s blood pressure right before the wedding.”

Natasha gave the archer one final glare as he hurried out of the suite while whistling ‘Chapel of Love’ and shook her head when the door closed behind him. “I swear, I’m gonna have to start using my Widow Bites on these people if they don’t start being more helpful…” The spy turned her attention to (Y/N) and her concentrated frown morphed into a smile. “(Y/N), you look stunning and you haven’t even put on your dress yet! I’m serious, it’s like you’re glowing or-” She cut herself off and held a hand up to her ear to listen to a voice in her comm. “Bruce says that the caterers just arrived. Did you want me to get you anything before I check in on them?”

“Is it too early in the day for a glass of champagne?”

“Not if there’s a splash of orange juice in it,” Natasha answered with a mischievous grin.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So yeah, that's pretty much it! Are you guys looking forward to a magical and mischievous wedding? Let me know and don't forget to give the series masterlist and my main masterlist a like/reblog. I always update it after posting a new work! (And I wish @mostclevermiss and anyone else taking their finals this week lots of luck, I believe in you!)

Spellbinding Masterlist

Fanfiction Masterlist

#spellbinding #loki x reader #loki odinson x reader #loki laufeyson x reader #loki #loki odinson #loki laufeyson #clint barton #hawkeye #natasha romanoff #black widow #tony stark #iron man #marvel cinematic universe

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shootwinterfest · 6 years

Text

She sees you when you’re sleeping; she knows when you’re awake

From @t-ninjaa

Stop

Shaw stopped and looked around, scanning the area for any sign of trouble.

Nothing seemed amiss.

“You mind telling me what I’m looking for?”

Shaw mumbled

the Machine.

Wait

Number is approaching from east.

Shaw’s eyes darted up towards the direction indicated by the Machine. She spotted a familiar figure walking towards her.

“You,” Shaw growled, trying to hide the surprise in her voice.

“Me,” The figure replied, not at all hiding the smugness in her voice.

“Root, what are you doing he-“ Shaw was cut off unexpectedly when the hacker’s lips connected with her own.

Root’s lips were soft and warm. Shaw’s hands automatically reached out to pull her closer by the lapels of her pea coat so that she could deepen the kiss. Shaw silently cursed herself for being so weak - one kiss from Root and she’d lost all control. But it

had

been weeks since she had seen the hacker, and well...the body wants what the body wants.

As if she could read Shaw’s thoughts, Root grinned smugly into the kiss. “I knew you missed me,” she whispered when they moved apart.

Shaw huffed indignantly. “Why are you here, Root?” she asked, changing the subject.

“The Machine wanted me here,” Root replied, “in this exact spot.” She glanced above Shaw’s head and grinned.

Shaw looked up, following Root’s line of sight. She looked back at Root, unimpressed.

“You got the Machine to send me on this wild goose chase

just

so you can kiss me under the mistletoe? Isn’t that misappropriation of company resources?”

“Of course not, Sameen. I can’t get the Machine to do anything that she doesn’t want to do. Actually, I didn’t expect to see you here, either. But now that we’re here...” she leaned in for another kiss.

Shaw leaned backwards, out of Root’s reach, causing the hacker to pout.

“Wait wait wait. So you’re saying that the Machine is playing Cupid now? The all-seeing Machine - the ASI that was built to save lives - is now a glorified matchmaker?”

“Oh come on, Sam. You know just as much as I do that this match was already made long ago in that hotel room with me kneeling between your legs holding that hot iron above your skin. I’d be happy to perform a re-enactment of that day if it would help jog your memory...”

“And here I thought I’d actually get to shoot someone,” Shaw grumbled. She had been a bit on edge recently; her apartment building burned down because some idiot on the third floor left the stove on all night, so she had been sleeping at the subway for the last two weeks.

Root chuckled, but then stopped to listen intently as the Machine whispered in her implant.

“I understand,” Root nodded, confirming her instructions from the Machine. She turned to Shaw. “We have a new number.”

“An actual number, or is this more of the Machine trying to help you get in my pants?”

“Oh, Sameen. We both know I don’t need the Machine to get into your pants,” Root winked at Shaw. “She says this is a real number.”

“Well, what are you waiting for?” Shaw asked. “Lead the way.”

....

“I hate this time of year,” Shaw growled as she narrowly avoided being elbowed in the face by yet another last minute Christmas shopper. The hand tucked into her coat pocket tightened around the handle of her pistol. “Our number just

had

to be working at the mall around the busiest time of year, huh?”

Root smiled. “It’s not that bad, Sameen.”

“Easy for you to say. You’re a hundred feet taller than half the people here and you have the Machine in your ear telling you how to navigate around the crowd.”

Root beamed. “You could always take my hand. I’ll lead you through the crowd so you won’t get stepped on.”

“I’ll take my chances,” Shaw grumbled, stepping sideways to avoid getting shoulder checked by a man whizzing by.

“She says our number should be around the corner,” Root said, grabbing Shaw by the elbow and pulling her back as another frenzied Christmas shopper nearly barreled into her.

“What are we looking for here?” Shaw asked, yanking her elbow back with a frown.

“See that crowd of children up ahead?”

“Kinda hard to miss the screaming mass of mini humans.”

“Well, our number is right there, in the middle of that crowd. White beard, red suit, jolly laugh.”

Shaw looked at the target and then slowly turned her head to face Root, a scowl fixed on her face.

“You have got to be kidding me - our number is Santa Claus?”

Root grinned. “He sure is. Word is that he’s the most authentic Santa Claus out there.”

“So, why is he in trouble?” Shaw asked, “The other mall Santas are jealous and want to knock him off?”

“There’s been a hit put out on him by three guys who are notorious gangsters in the city. We need to find out why these guys want him dead. This one’s a team effort, Sam. The Machine arranged for Lionel to assist with extracting the number. Santa will be going on his break in ten minutes - we need to intercept him when he gets to the break room and replace him with Lionel while we get him to a safe place.”

“Great, so it’s Christmas Eve and we’re going to try and extract the most popular guy in the city and replace him with Fusco. I feel sorry for the kids who expected to see ‘the real Santa’ but are getting Fusco instead.”

“You know I can hear you right, Shaw?” Fusco’s voice came through the comms.

Shaw smirked. “Oops. Welcome to the party, Lionel. I hear you have some pretty big boots to fill.”

“The only reason I agreed to help out with this is because Lee is at his mother’s tonight...and I hear that this Santa Claus is the real thing. I gotta see for myself.”

“Why do people keep saying that? Santa doesn’t exist.” Shaw heard a loud gasp and looked down to see a little girl looking at her in wide-eyed horror. Her mother, who stood beside her, frowned at Shaw.

“She’s just kidding,” Root jumped in, “Santa really does exists, and he’s sitting right there,” she gestured to their number.

The girl slowly walked away, led by her mother, but not before shooting one last disappointed look at Shaw.

Root tried to stifle her chuckle.

“Alright, Dynamic Duo - it’s almost time for the switch,” Lionel said. “I’m headed to the break room now.”

“Roger that,” Shaw confirmed as she and Root made their way to the break room.

....

“Lionel, you need to stop adjusting your beard, or your cover will be blown before you even talk to the first kid,” Shaw said as Fusco fidgeted with the white piece of fluff on his face.

“Can’t help it; the thing is itchy as hell,” Fusco complained.

“He’s coming,” Root announced, relaying the message from the Machine.

Fusco gave one last exasperated tug at the fake beard before giving up.

The door to the break room opened, and their number stepped in. He really did look like Santa, with his white beard, rosy cheeks and twinkling eyes peering over tiny spectacles perched on the bridge of his nose. He paused when he spotted the three strangers in the break room - one of whom was wearing a cheap department store Santa suit.

“Don’t worry, Santa. We’re here to help. There are three men who are after you for some reason - the Flynn brothers - any idea why they might be targeting you?” Root asked.

“Oh, the Flynn brothers - Colin, Conor and Sean? It must be because I put them on the naughty list.”

“Ha ha,” Shaw deadpanned, “Very funny, gramps - what’s the

real

reason why you’re being targeted by these three?”

“It’s true, I’ve put them on my naughty list,” the jolly old man said, pulling out a notebook from his pocket. “Let’s see here,” he murmured, flipping the pages and scanning the contents. “Ah, here it is - Colin, Conor and Sean Flynn - all on the naughty list this year for smuggling the guns into the city on the evening of November 24th to be sold on the black market.”

“Wait - let me see that,” Shaw said, gesturing for Santa to hand over the notebook. He passed the notebook to her and she read over the notes scrawled across the page.

“Looks like they’re after you because you witnessed their shady business deal,” Shaw said, handing the notebook back to the number.

“These three are known arms dealers, but they’ve never been arrested because there has never been a witness around to testify on their crimes. At least none that lived to rat on them,” Root added.

Shaw turned to the number. “So, how is it that you happened to be around when they were selling the weapons?”

“Well I was dropping off presents at the nearby shelter in Hell’s Kitchen when I saw them. I went straight away to the police to report what I saw, but it appears that these three boys have informants within the precinct.”

“Dirty cops,” Fusco muttered, “I used to be one of ‘em. But that was a lifetime ago.”

“Oh, I know, Lionel. I’m glad you’ve chosen a better path for yourself now,” the old man said.

“Me too,” Fusco agreed, then paused. “Wait a minute, how do you know this? And how do you know my name?”

“Sorry, Lionel - no time for Q&A,” Root interrupted. “We have to get Santa out of here before the perpetrators realize that he’s left.”

Fusco pulled on his Christmas cap and headed toward the door. He opened the door and turned around. “This isn’t over yet; I still got a lotta questions,” he said before leaving.

“Alright, Root - where are we taking jolly old Saint Nick now?”

Root turned to the man. “We’ll be escorting you to the 8th precinct and handing you over to our good friend Detective Joss Carter. You can file a report with her, and she’ll take care of you until you can testify against the Flynns.”

“Ah yes, Detective Carter is one of the good ones.”

Shaw raised a quizzical eyebrow. “Right. Okay, Kris Kringle - let’s go,” she said, heading towards the exit.

“I’ll just have to get my bag,” the man said.

Shaw rolled her eyes. “Don’t tell me you have a sack full of gifts.”

“Close - but it’s only a satchel,” the man responded, holding up the bag. “It

full of gifts, though.”

“Whatever,” Shaw said, opening the door and leading the way out.

....

“He’s all yours, Joss,” Root said after they’ve escorted their number to the precinct.

“Ah, Detective Carter. It’s so nice to finally meet you in person!” the man exclaimed. “You are truly one of New York’s finest.”

“I’m sorry - do I know you?” Carter asked, perplexed.

“No, but I know you,” he said with a wide grin.

“Okay, that’s kinda creepy,” Shaw murmured to Root.

The bearded man pulled out two packages and an envelope from his satchel and turned to Shaw. “Sameen, this is for you,” he said, handing her one of the packages.

Shaw gingerly accepted the package when Root nodded to confirm that it was safe.

“And Root, this one is yours,” the man handed the other package and the envelope to Root. “I would have gotten you some ammo as well, but space is limited,” he shrugged apologetically, gesturing to his satchel.

Root and Shaw exchanged puzzled looks.

“Oh, I almost forgot - one more thing,” he pulled out his phone and started typing. “I’ve sent you coordinates for your next gift. Be sure to get there before midnight!”

“Okay, weirdo,” Shaw said.

“Wait wait wait,” Carter interrupted, “Did you just give guns to these two? In the presence of a police officer? Who

are

you?”

“Apparently he’s Santa Claus,” Shaw said sarcastically.

“That’s not gonna cut it. I’m gonna have to see some ID,” Carter prompted.

“Jocelyn, if you can believe that there is a Machine out there that can monitor everyday human interactions and predict imminent violence, then it’s not so farfetched to think that there’s someone out there watching and keeping checks and balances on good and bad deeds, is it?”

“Well I guess if you put it that way...” Carter mused.

The old man chuckled. “Now, Root and Sameen - I think you better follow those coordinates.”

Root shrugged. “Well, Joss, if we’re all done here, I guess Shaw and I have to get going.”

Carter smiled. “You ladies take care, I’ll take care of our jolly guest here.”

....

“Here we are,” Root said as they approached the coordinates that their number had provided.

They both looked up at the brownstone in front of them.

“What are we supposed to do now?” Shaw asked.

“She says to check the envelope,” Root said, reaching into her pocket and pulling out the envelope that the old man gave her earlier. She opened the letter and plucked out a set of keys.

Both of their phones buzzed; Shaw looked down at the screen on hers.

New apartment

. You’ll

have to

share.

Shaw rolled her eyes.

Root looked at Shaw and smiled. “Shall we?” she asked, jingling the keys in her hand.

Shaw shrugged and gestured for Root to go ahead.

They entered the brown stone and Shaw was pleased to find that it wasn’t decorated from floor to ceiling with cheesy Christmas decorations. The echo of their footsteps bounced off the empty walls and floors as they explored the new space.

They walked a bit further into the apartment and Root suddenly grabbed Shaw by the shoulders, spinning her around to face her.

“What the-“ Shaw looked up.

Turned out there was a piece of Christmas decoration in the house.

“Mistletoe,” Shaw muttered, rolling her eyes.

“Mistletoe,” Root repeated; a big grin on her face as she leaned in for a kiss.

#shootsecretsanta #person of interest #root x shaw

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mason-rust · 7 years

Text

Christmas Blaze - Secret Santa

Merry Christmas @writerdarkflamespyre! Sorry it’s so delayed, this ended up much longer than I intended it to be. In the spirit of Christmas traditions, I went with an Australian summer staple, the bush fire. CONTAINS COARSE LANGUAGE.

The Tracy family Christmas tree was a digital affair, cast above the living room table in green and tinseled glory. Virgil leant against the wall and, like every year, couldn’t help but notice that the computer generated fir needles were perfectly symmetrical. He had never commented on it because it didn’t seem to bother anyone else. John had whipped it up with Alan’s help, and between jobs had been glowing softly for the last month. Despite how it always disappointed Virgil with its regularity, the glow was a comforting one. Pushing off the wall, Virgil wandered through the dark room, until he was close enough to run his hand through the branches made of light. He stood there, feeling the light start to hurt his eyes and waiting for whatever had driven him out of bed at the devils hour to pass so he could go back to bed. Virgil walked around the tree a couple of times, but it lingered like a mouse scratching in the back of his head. Over the last few years it had become impossible to tell whether it was the professional mouse or the paranoid mouse. Eyes smarting from the bright tree in the dark room, Virgil turned away and started off towards his room, deciding that it was simply restlessness. He was almost at the door when the alert rang through the room, making him wince. It was the professional mouse after all.

The holiday period always had lots of work – usually stupid mistakes that led to hot air balloon disasters; capsized rowboats and all manner of holiday-related incidents. But it was the big ones that needed to be watched, and this one was a big one indeed. Virgil could feel it. Natural disasters that struck near Christmas promised mess: everyone in their homes, everyone at risk. He pulled up John, the Christmas tree dissolving into his brothers features, for a second making John look like a kind of demented Christmas spirit. Before John could even open his mouth, Scott barreled into the room, fully dressed. “What's the situation John?” “There's huge forest fire in the works, moving towards settlements. It's currently burning its way through the Blue Mountains, just outside Sydney.” “Severity?” “Extreme. Local authorities were handling it, but sudden warm winds have blown it out of control. They need us to try and stop it from reaching any populated areas.” “How fast?” “Get going.” Virgil didn't even have time to shiver as he sprinted towards the chute. Somewhere in the back of his head, he heard Scott shouting for Gordon to join Virgil in the ship. Then the painting turned and all he could hear was the whirring of machines and the rush of air.

His land in the cockpit seemed to rattle all the way through his bones, and Virgil noted that he was just a little too tired for this. Not enough to jeopardise anyone's safety but enough to watch. He was already strapped in by the time Gordon appeared, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes but clearly wide awake. “What's the plan.” “Usual. We'll take a dip and dump. If we need to do evac, the authorities will contact us but Scott will take care of most of it.” “Cool.” Gordon strapped in and Virgil initiated the launch sequence. Somehow it went both too fast and not fast enough. A fire right before Christmas was always a bad sign. Once Two was in the air, Virgil punched in the coordinates. The fire was in the Blue Mountains and was hardly the first one they’d helped out with in the area. “Australia again?” “It is a forest fire, and they’ve got an awful lot of forest.” “Awful lot’a bush you mean.” “That’s a terrible accent Gordon.” “Wanna hear my Russian?” “No.” “Are you sure?” “Yes.” Gordon treated Virgil to the accent anyway, and he couldn’t help but wonder where the hell Gordon had found his energy. Maybe, a little voice parroted at the back of his head, it’s because he sleeps. Virgil told it to shut up. “Hey Virgil, were you and Scott already up?” “I was. He seemed to be.” “I swear man, your sixth sense is freaky. You’re always up right before a big one.” “So is Scott.” “Yeah, but that's because he’s never down.” He couldn’t think of something to respond with, and the cabin fell silent but for the humming of the engines. “Hey Virgil, Why did the manager hire the marsupial?” Virgil cast his eyes to the heavens and offered a brief prayer. When he did speak he ground it out between his teeth. “Why?” “Because he was koala-fied. Get it?” “I’m not even going to respond to that.” “Hey Virgil, what music do kangaroos listen to?” “Do you just have a mental list of these for every country we go for?” “Yup. Imagine what I’d be capable of if I turned that to better uses.” “I tremble in fear.” “By the way, what music do kangaroos listen to?” “Just, please be quiet.”

They were almost at the destination, and Gordon had just run out of jokes when the communication line opened and John’s voice filled the cockpit. "Thunderbird 2? "Almost there John. Any evac? "Scott's handling that. I've entered the coordinates for the most pressing fire zones. "I'm inputting them into the system now The ships computer beeped to notify Virgil that the coordinates had been accepted. Virgil pulled them up and set off.

Forest fires were as terrifying as they were beautiful. It was a wild, dangerous kind of beauty, only from a distance. As the ship drew closer Virgil could see the fire shooting up the branches, devouring tree after tree faster than could almost be imagined. Sealed inside the cockpit of TB2, Virgil couldn't actually feel the heat on his skin, but he could imagine it. It wasn't the first time they'd been in fires, but this one certainly was looking like one of the largest. "I'm going to patch you through to the head firefighter, Thunderbird 2.” "Copy Thunderbird 5.” "International Rescue this is Jacob McCawley.” "Tell us where you need us Jacob.” "This is one bloody big bushfire. Our copters are doing their best but they need extinguishing help. There also needs to be some emergency evac." "That's me Jacob, Thunderbird 2 will pick up any extinguishing slack.” Scott's voice rang through the comm line, short and professional. Virgil started to peel away towards one of the nastier sections of fire. It was going to be a long, long night.

Virgil was on his 8th trip back from the water, 2 almost at its load capacity for water. They were making progress, but it was slow going. “Almost done there Scott?” “Still picking up some life signs, but at least people evacuate here. Remember California last year?” “I prefer not to. Hurry it up, John said that the wind’s picking up. Keep an open channel.” “FAB. I’ve got what looks like someone in a basement. Entering the dwelling now.” Virgil pulled Two around, one ear on Scott, the other listening to Jacob coordinate the fire-fighters. “God it’s smoky in here. I’m trying to find my way into the basement. John, scan the build-“ “Already done. The entrance is through the second door on your nine. Watch yourself Scott, you’ve got about 10 minutes before that fire overwhelms your location.” “I can feel that John.” Virgil started back towards the water when he heard an alarm through the comm channel. He instantly ran a scan of his systems, which came up blank. Before Virgil had the chance to ask John what was up, John was already speaking. “Scott, that fires right on top of you, get out now.” If you didn’t know John, then he would have sounded the same as he always did. But Virgil did, and he could hear the tension underlying the calm tone. “I’m aware of that John, but I can’t find anyone. Run the scans.” “It’s getting too hot, I can’t pick anything up.” “Maybe it never picked anything up.” Gordon frowned at the comms and Virgil couldn’t help but silently agree with his concern. He joined the conversation. “Just get out of there.” “Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck. John, that fires right on top of me, I’m going to have to stay in the house.” Adrenaline flooded Virgil’s system at those words. Despite his heart rate going through the roof, he somehow lost his voice as he listened to Scott and John. “Scott are you-“ “Yes, I’m sure, dammit.” “Stay away from the windows. If the heat gets too much-“ “Get outside into an area that’s already burnt. I know John.” Virgil desperately wanted to turn off the channel, his hands paralysed at the controls when they should be moving. Taking a deep breath, he shut his eyes for a moment before trying to banish the line to the corner of his mind. Instead Virgil put two back into motion and went back towards the fire.

Each minute was agony, the seconds ticking by as Virgil tried to ignore them and focus on his job. He knew that the front would probably pass in 15 minutes, and then Scott might be alright. If the heat hadn’t gotten to him. Another five minutes down, then there was a yelp through the channel. “Shit.” “Scott-“ He cut Virgil off before he even started speaking. “The fucking windows are gone. I’ve got embers inside the house.” “Scott get out of there.” “I’m trying, but I can’t fucking see anything.” There was a long pause on the line and more than one bang, probably as Scott walked into furniture. Virgil could hear the whine of wood and the rush of fire. “I’m outside, taking shelter, most of the front seems-“ The crack was explosively loud, and the silence that followed oppressively silent. “Scott?” Hissing filled the channel and Virgil resisted the urge to swing Thunderbird two around before he dumped his water. “Scott, come in.” If there was one sound that haunted Virgil, it was the sound of radio silence. He heard it in his nightmares, the vacuum of silence swallowing him up. Taking a breath deep into his lungs, Virgil opened his channel. “Scott, come in.” His voice sounded different to John’s, the carefully cultivated calm only a thin veneer over the panic in his chest. “Vitals aren’t showing, but that’s mechanical.” John’s voice was almost as mechanical as the read outs behind him. “John, keep trying to get him on the line. I’m going over.” “FAB.” Another counted breath, 3 in and 3 hold and 3 out, Virgil squashed the panic up into a box and went to work.

On the black soot and among the charcoaled wood, the blue of Scott’s uniform stood out like a torch. “It looks like he’s trapped John, not moving.” “Probably unconscious.” That or the other thing that Virgil knew he shouldn’t be thinking about. He pulled Two into hover, the fire front having pulled away. The trees were smoking, the air thick and almost tangible. Virgil could almost taste the smoke in his mouth, and he stood up from the controls. “Gordon, I’ll take the jaws down and pry him out. You’re in control.” “Oh yeah.” Virgil chose to ignore the edge underneath the humour, tucking it away at the back of his head for a later conversation. “Don’t break it Gordon.” “Don’t count on it Virgil. Off you go now.” “You’ve made me feel nervous Gordon.” “Shoo shoo.” But it had also made him feel slightly more relaxed. There was nothing like stress and nervousness to make a mission go haywire. Virgil headed down to the POD bay, grabbing the jaws as he did. Gordon’s voice over the comms was forcibly chipper. “Ready for deployment Virgil?” “FAB.”

Thanks to the whipping wind, the smoke was slightly clearer than it could have been after a fire. Virgil could feel the heat through his suit and, despite his helmet, his eyes smarted at the memory of smoke. The brown, singed grass crunched under his feet, and the black, scorched trees loomed over and around him. If he didn’t know better, Virgil would swear that it felt like they were watching him. He made his way towards the house. “Structure seems intact John. Looks like the verandah collapsed.” It had been wood, the verandah, and it hadn’t survived the flames. “I have a visual on Scott.” Virgil paced closer, carefully circling the broken beams. Scott was face down, not moving, with a support beam crossing his body. In a different place, it would have looked like he was sleeping, the beam just resting across him instead of crushing him. And Virgil had no doubt that it was crushing him. He started forwards, moving some of the smaller pieces out of his way, a piece of fence, a piece of the deck. Merely kindling for the fire. “John, are you reading any injuries?” There was a scene in the back of Virgil’s head, after an earthquake in Japan. A man lying under the concrete, limbs splayed to the sides. “I’ve got nothing on him. The heat must have fried his suit.” “Or the wood crushed it.” “Either way, be careful when you try and free him.” “I know.” When the concrete was lifted, the man had coughed, blood splattering across his chin. Virgil didn’t know if he died from the pieces of metal embedded in him. That part was out of their control, the bit afterwards. The clean-up. He shook the memory out from behind his eyes and pulled away another few pieces. There was just the large one, just the one that was the problem. Sometimes, the pressure didn’t kill them but the removal did. Virgil tested the beam, lifting it slightly to test its weight. It wasn’t too heavy, and Virgil kept a grip on it. For a moment, he considered asking John if he should do it, abdicate the decision. Shifting, he lifted it slightly more, and it came away easily. Scott groaned, shifting in the rubble. Virgil lifted the piece and moved it to the side just enough to see Scott fully. There was blood on the blue fabric, and Virgil moved over as quickly as he could. He wanted to turn Scott over, to shake him until he opened his eyes but instead he found his wrist and waited for a pulse. Still trying to breathe carefully, he moved his fingers around until he felt up. “I have a pulse.” There was an almost audible release over the comm line, and Virgil could imagine the expression on John’s face. Gordon laughed. “Tough fucker.” “Language.” John’s voice lacked any edge that might have given the command some weight. “Yes mum.” “I’m going to get Scott into 2. How are the fires going John?” “There’s still more to be done, but let’s see what Scott’s condition is.” “FAB.” There was a click as John dropped his channel and Gordon’s voice chirped over the line. “Anything you need Virgil?” “I’m going to steady him, and be ready to receive us.” It was an arduous process, trying to keep Scott’s neck and head straight while manhandling him onto the stretcher. Thankfully the thing had wheels because one person was not enough to move it where Gordon could retrieve it. As Virgil stood next to the stretcher, he looked up into the sky. He had barely noticed that the sun had risen, that the night had bled into day. It wasn’t a surprise, given that the smoke was so thick that the sun stared down like a large red eye. Virgil suppressed a shiver, something about the red ball and the looming, bare black trees more menacing than it had a right to be. He wasn’t a superstitious person, but somewhere deep inside his chest, Virgil hoped that it wasn’t an omen.

There was a long crack in the helmet, and Virgil carefully pulled it off, making sure Scott’s neck was straight. He patted down the sides, making sure that everything seemed in place. The blood was concerning, but there wasn’t a huge amount of it, and it didn’t seem to be growing. Virgil grabbed a pair of scissors and cut away the ruined uniform, careful not to pull it away to sharply. The cuts were relatively minor, and Vigil tidied them up as quickly as he could. Broken ribs were likely, and Virgil grabbed the scanner to make sure there was nothing poking into a lung. The scan came up clear, thankfully the ribs were more fractured than broken. There was nothing more unpleasant than very broken ribs, something Virgil could definitely attest to. Carefully swabbing everything up, Virgil tried not to fuss more than necessary. The main issue was only going to become apparent when Scott woke up, and that was a wait that Virgil was not looking forward to. He pulled up a chair and sat down next to Scott, staring through his brother. There was tiredness pushing at the inside of his eyelids, and suddenly Virgil felt every ache and pain in his body. He was exhausted, muscles and bones aching. Virgil had to chuckle to himself at the thoughts in his head, thoughts that belonged to someone at least 30. Wiping a hand down his face, Virgil leant over and opened the comms. “Gordon?” “How’s he going Virge?” Virgil almost felt like he needed to lie down thanks to Gordon’s driving, but he didn’t say anything. That was for later. “He’ll be fine, but won’t be too happy when he wakes up. Broken ribs, lacerations, smoke inhalation, plenty of bruising but nothing too serious.” “Great. I bags not being around him for the next three days.” “Unfortunately for you, it’s Christmas. So we’re going to all get a good dose of him.” “Just pump him full of painkillers. He’s great fun then.” “I don’t know if that’s what I’d call fun.” “It’s fun. Jacob says that the situation is under control, and if we need to go we can.” “I’ll just strap Scott in and get on the line Gordon.” “Don’t believe me? I’m offended.” Virgil stood and washed his hands before pulling his gloves back on. He patted Scott’s shoulder once and started towards the door. “I’m on my way up. I’ve had enough of your driving.” Gordon’s cackle almost echoed through the ship.

There were presents sitting on the table under the tree by the time Virgil stumbled into the living room. Scott was downstairs with Brains and a promise to keep a close eye. Gordon had passed out on top of his sheets, and Virgil was struggling not to do the same on the couch. He smelt of soot and sweat, and Virgil could barely keep a straight thought in his head now that the adrenaline and caffeine had worn off. The presents were neatly wrapped, labels stuck onto the sides. Walking over, he read through a couple, Alan’s handwriting scrawled across the paper. Virgil grinned to himself and looked up at the tree. There was something different about it. After a long second, he realised that small pixels of snow were drifting down around the branches. He watched them for a long time, little bits of white building up slowly on the green. Shaking his head to break the spell, Virgil used the wall to stumble up to bed. He was going to sleep like the dead.

#thunderbirds are go #rustwrites #secretsanta #thunderbirds #john tracy #virgil tracy #scott tracy

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