#steve x okoye

[swan-of-sunrise]

Endgame (Chapter Nine-Part II)

Summary: The epic conclusion of the Battle of Earth sees (Y/N) and Steve doing whatever it takes to save the universe from Thanos once and for all.

Pairing: Steve Rogers X Reader

Word Count: 4.8k

Warnings/Disclaimers: Disclaimer for battle/combat violence  

A/N: And now we’ve arrived at the second half of the Battle of Earth! As many of you long-time readers know, I do my very best not to deviate from the films in this series and when I do change something, I have a justifiable reason for the change; that being said, there’s a small section of the battle that I’ve rewritten to better suit the story I’ve crafted thus far, and I thought I’d mention it here before you start reading so it doesn’t come as too much of a shock. Thank you for reading, I hope you all enjoy!

Chapter Nine (Part II) (Previous Chapter)

Although they’d successfully taken Thanos by surprise with the remarkable size and unprecedented ferocity of their forces, it seemed as though their slim advantage was beginning to wane; the Black Order had rallied their troops and regained control of the battlefield, summoning wave after wave of Chitauri, Sakaarians and Outriders from the Sanctuary II. The bodies of dead Asgardians, Wakandans, Ravagers and sorcerers lay strewn atop the smoking rubble and crumbling ruins populating the massive crater and the many still standing were struggling against the enemy’s onslaught. The grim sights surrounding (Y/N) only encouraged her on as she fought her way to Clint; she barely paid any attention to her attackers, efficiently disarming and defeating them with well-placed baton hits and piercing Widow Bites before continuing on.

When (Y/N) finally spotted Clint fighting only a handful of yards away and noticed the garrison of fighters heading his way, she urged herself to speed up and shouted into her comm, “Hey Sam, I could really use some help from Redwing right about now!”

An explosion forced Clint into a somersault and after expertly rolling onto his knees, he fired a stun disc at his Sakaarian opponent but quickly found himself surrounded by Chitauri soldiers and roaring Gorillas. Before they could swarm him, (Y/N) jumped down from a pile of crumbled concrete and attacked; she dodged and parried their blades and avoided their blaster fire as she slammed and jabbed her electrified batons into the unarmored sections of the aliens’ bodies, and just as both Chitauri Gorillas charged at her, Redwing swooped down from above and took them down with two projectile missiles to their throats.

(Y/N) flashed the stealth drone a small smile. “Thanks, Birdbrain.”  

“Don’t thank me, Booksmart, thank Redwing!”

She rolled her eyes at her best friend’s exclamation but relented. “…Thanks, Redwing.” Noting the shortness of Clint’s breath and the way he clutched the stitch in his side as he approached her, she sheathed her batons and held her empty hands out. “Give the gauntlet to me, Clint. I’ll make sure that it gets to Scott and Hope.”

Clint’s eyes flicked down to the red hourglass-shaped buckle affixed to her belt before meeting her gaze with a firm tenacity reminiscent of their mutual best friend. “Give ‘em hell, (Y/L/N).”

The archer handed over the sizable gauntlet and (Y/N) held it close to her chest as she sprinted through the horde; she ducked to avoid blaster fire and twirled away from swinging blades, firing Widow Bites at anyone who dared to try attacking her as she worked on getting the stones to the Quantum Tunnel across the vast battlefield. She only made it about fifty yards when a blurry figure plowed into her and knocked her onto the hard ground, only a heartbeat before a large double-bladed sword sliced through the air where she’d just been standing.

“Are you all right?” T’Challa asked as he tugged her to her feet, but her reply died in her throat the moment she looked across the clearing and saw the double-bladed sword return to Thanos’ hand.

The Mad Titan’s face was illuminated by a bloodthirsty smile and his gaze was transfixed on the gauntlet lying several feet from where they stood; he charged forward but was halted by the sudden appearance of Wanda Maximoff, who dropped down from above and landed in the space between them in a blinding burst of scarlet-hued energy. Her hands were still glowing and her body was tense with barely-contained rage as she snarled, “You took everything from me.”

“I don’t even know who you are,” Thanos scoffed.

“You will.”                                                                                                 

(Y/N) could hear the cold smile in Wanda’s voice and as she watched the younger woman levitate herself and two massive piles of wreckage into the air, she couldn’t help but wish that she’d make her revenge on Thanos just as painful as how it felt to destroy Vision for nothing. As Wanda and Thanos viciously battled one another, T’Challa hurriedly pulled (Y/N) along to where the gauntlet lay and scooped it up into his vibranium-clawed hands. “I’ll keep going, (Y/N)!”

T’Challa vanished into the ongoing fight with the gauntlet tucked under his arm while (Y/N) unsheathed her batons and ran over to assist the only human member of the Guardians of the Galaxy; he was pinned down by a small squadron of Chitauri and unable to return blaster fire as he crouched behind a wrecked S.H.I.E.L.D. Jeep to avoid being shot. (Y/N) attacked from behind, kicking the blaster out of one alien’s grasp and electrocuting it with her baton while taking down another with a Widow Bite to the neck. While she distracted the Chitauri attackers, the Guardian was able to fly over the Jeep using his rocket-boots and shoot down the rest of them for her.

“Hey, thanks for the help, She-Ra,” He huffed out in exhaustion and gave her a sort of salute with his blaster. “The name’s Peter Quill, by the way. You’re not…are you that bad-ass writer chick Thor was talking about when we rescued him from that shipwreck?”

“Mm-hmm, I’m (Y/N) (Y/L/N). It’s good to finally meet you; Rocket’s already told me a lot about you, actually.” Quill’s brow shot up in surprise at that, so she decided to elaborate. “He mostly talked a lot of shit, to be honest, but it wasn’t hard to see how much he missed you and the rest of the Guardians.”

While Quill absorbed her words, a crackling bolt of lightning illuminated the sky and struck one of the remaining hover tanks a hundred yards away, dissipating as Steve appeared and slammed the broken shield against its cannon. “Wait, is that seriously the Captain America?” He eagerly asked, watching the super-soldier single-handedly dismantle the hover tank with wide, almost childlike eyes. “You know, the ass-kicking super-soldier who took down Nazis in World War II? The-Star-Spangled-Man-With-A-Plan? That Captain America?”

“Yep, but I just usually call him my husband.” (Y/N) chuckled in amusement at the stunned expression written across Quill’s features. “You’ve seen Return of the Jedi, right?” He nodded mutely. “Well, Steve was frozen in 1945, sort of like Han Solo in the carbonite, only it was entirely accidental and he wasn’t discovered until 2012.”

Quill shook his head and sighed. “Man, you leave Earth for a couple of decades and look at all the cool shit that happens…”

Before she could reply, the battlefield around them began erupting with explosions and filled with the sounds of cannon fire as bright blaster beams shot down from the Sanctuary II above. Allies and enemies alike were blown back by the powerful force of the steady barrage and although sorcerers created wide orange protection shields overhead, there weren’t nearly enough of them to cover the entire battlefield and all their forces. Across the crater, the earth was crumbling away and water from the lake was beginning to flow down onto the battlefield, but Doctor Strange quickly used his magic to funnel the water into the air and held it back. Quill ignited his rocket boots and flew off to assist a nearby Dora Milaje battling a Sakaarian fighter and (Y/N) hurried towards the area where she’d last seen Steve, keeping a careful eye on the cannons firing down as she ran.

“(Y/N)!” Steve exclaimed, and his dirt and sweat-covered face filled with worry when his eyes scanned her appearance. “Shit, you’re bleeding, baby, are you okay?!”

She fastened her batons together into a staff and cautiously touched the oozing cut running along her collar, wincing a little at the sting but giving her concerned husband a small smile. “I-I’m fine, sweetheart-”

“Help! Somebody, help!”

They both looked over across the clearing to see Peter Parker struggling against a growing swarm of Outriders and gripping the gauntlet tight as he fought them off. “Hey, Queens!” Steve called out into his comm. “Heads up!” The super-soldier threw Mjolnir as hard as he could, and they breathed sighs of relief when the teenager shot a web and allowed the hammer to pull him out of danger. “We need to find a way to take out those cannons or else we won’t last much longer.”

(Y/N) slammed her staff into an attacking Chitauri soldier while Steve kicked a Sakaarian across the clearing. “Maybe if Tony, Pepper and Rhodes fly up and use their lasers to burn through the hull?”

“No can-do, Austen, even the three of us combined don’t have the power to get through that steel.”

“Well, what if we hijack one of those Chitauri cruisers and-?”

“Watch out!” Steve shouted and tackled (Y/N) to the ground just as the earth around them exploded under a powerful cannon blast; his muscular body covered hers and his arms cocooned her head, protecting her from the onslaught of dirt, rubble and debris raining onto them. While more and more cannons fired down onto the battlefield below, (Y/N)’s eyes squeezed shut and she buried her face in Steve’s neck, unable to think of a way to stop the unending barrage raining down on them.

All of a sudden, the cannon fire ceased and an unsettling silence descended over the battlefield. (Y/N) pulled away far enough to frantically search her husband’s gaze for any signs of injury and when she found none, her brow furrowed in confusion. “Why’d they stop firing?”

“I have no idea.” An equally-baffled Steve shrugged and helped her stand on shaky legs, and their questions only compounded when they saw the Sanctuary II swivel its cannons up and begin firing on something hidden within the dark clouds of smoke high above.

“What the hell is this?” Sam asked into the comms as he took to the skies nearby.

(Y/N) and Steve both watched in awe as a blinding light of thundering energy broke through the clouds and, entirely unaffected by the heavy barrage of cannon fire, flew straight through the Sanctuary II; Thanos’ enormous flagship imploded as the comet traveled a devastating path out the opposite end, the light briefly dimming to reveal Carol Danvers before she burst through the hull and out the top in a fiery blaze of cosmic energy. Grinning, (Y/N) watched the decimated Sanctuary II fall from the sky and crash into the lake, sending a powerful shockwave rippling across the entire crater. “She really knows how to make an entrance, doesn’t she?”

Steve lowered his broken shield and smiled. “Our cosmic friends seem to all share that trait.” He brought a hand up to his comm link. “Danvers, we need an assist here.”

“Sure, Cap, whatcha need?”

“We need to get the stones to the Quantum Tunnel across the crater and send them back to their original timelines before Thanos can rally his troops,” (Y/N) replied, squinting as she tried to make out where Peter was through all the piles of earth and debris littering the battlefield. “The tunnel’s inside of a brown van, and a teenager named Peter Parker has the gauntlet with him.”

“Ah, I see the kid. He’s at your eleven o’clock, about half a click away.”

The super-soldier nodded. “We’ll meet you there.” He squared his broad shoulders and turned to (Y/N) standing beside him. “You ready for this?”

She ignored the twinging cut along her collar, the dull ache settling into her arms and the blood dripping down the side of her face from a fresh scrape as she flashed him a confident grin. “I can do this all day.”

Steve smirked in amusement and together, the two of them ran through the battlefield to where Peter and the gauntlet were, the knowledge that they were one step closer to thwarting Thanos’ plans renewing their optimism and reigniting their burning defiance. They reached the rocky crevice that the teenager was hiding in just after a faintly-glowing Carol landed before him; he jerked in surprise but mustered up a nervous smile for the captain as he continued to clutch the tarnished Infinity Gauntlet in his arms. “Hi, I-I’m Peter Parker.”

“Hey, Peter Parker,” Carol’s lips curved into a smirk and she nodded down at the gauntlet. “You got something for me?”

“Y-Yeah.” Peter grabbed (Y/N)’s outstretched hand and allowed her to help him stand. Although the teenager was covered in bruises, sporting a bloody nose and looked visibly exhausted from the fierce battle, he stood on his own two feet as he handed the gauntlet over to Carol. “I don’t know how you’re gonna get it through all that.”

The four of them turned and stared out at the stampeding horde in the distance. The Children of Thanos lead the charge, followed by Chitauri ground troops and four bellowing Gorillas, Sakaarian soldiers and several packs of Outriders; in the clouded sky above them, three Leviathans slithered through the air alongside Chitauri-manned cruisers and half a dozen hover tanks were scattered in amongst the throng. It would’ve made for an intimidating sight if not for the small but formidable band of fighters that were assembling alongside them; Tony, Wanda and Sam gracefully descended from the sky while Thor appeared surrounded by tendrils of lightning as a clap of thunder shook the ground, Okoye twirled her spear in anticipation and Nebula – the real Nebula, not the 2014 version who infiltrated them and hijacked their Quantum Tunnel on Thanos’ behest – tightened her grip on her blaster’s hilt, and both Clint and Bruce wore matching looks of obstinacy on their faces as they stood beside the couple.

Looking around the group and realizing in a shocking instant that each of them had deep personal ties to Natasha Romanoff, (Y/N) exchanged a knowing glance with Steve and watched as he turned his attention back to Peter. “Don’t worry, kid. She’s got help.”

(Y/N) twirled her batons and fixed the approaching army with a vengeful stare. “This one’s for you, Nat.”

Thor’s booming battle cry accompanied their charge, each of them launching themselves into the fray to avenge Natasha and to end, once and for all, Thanos’ plans to destroy the entire universe. Tony, Thor and Sam took to the skies and each took on a Leviathan; the Asgardian called down a bolt of lightning to electrify the creature and sliced its head off, Sam fired missiles and his guns at another until it fell from the sky, and Tony flew straight into its mouth and blew it up from the inside. Wanda threw two swirling balls of scarlet energy at a hover tank, instantly exploding it and the blast decimated a sizable number of nearby Sakaarians. Okoye rammed her vibranium spear into Corvus Glaive’s chest and flipped him over her shoulder before throwing the spear at a cruiser speeding overhead. Nebula took out enemy after enemy with her precise blaster shots and brutal hand-to-hand combat skills. Bruce and Clint worked together to take down a Chitauri Gorilla, the scientist’s good fist and the archer’s razor-sharp katana making for a deadly combination. (Y/N) and Steve fought side-by-side – her electrified batons and Widow Bites and his hammer and broken shield working beautifully together – taking down Proxima Midnight with expert ease and fighting through a swarm of Chitauri soldiers.

While they battled the enemy, Carol flew through their hastily-formed blockade and the resulting explosion, flying faster and tightening her hold on the gauntlet once the van came into view. Thanos charged at the captain with his double-bladed sword raised high but Tony, Thor and Steve were faster; their repulsors and lightning blasted the Mad Titan down and away from Carol as she shot past him. Before any of them could react, Thanos rolled to his feet and threw his sword straight at the activated Quantum Tunnel, which was instantly decimated in a blinding explosion; the shockwave blew allies and enemies alike down to the ground and rolled across the entire battlefield.

(Y/N) was knocked off her feet and thrown into a pile of debris, the side of her head instantly erupting in pain and her vision blurring. Wincing, she brought a hand up to her temple and gently prodded the tender flesh, swallowing thickly when she lowered her hand and saw the blood coating her fingers; she blinked hard to try and clear her vision as darkened figures rushed by, but it wasn’t until she rolled over onto her knees that her eyes could finally begin to focus. Thor and Steve were both struggling against an enraged Thanos, with the Asgardian using Mjolnir and all his strength to force Stormbreaker’s cackling blade closer to the Mad Titan’s neck and Steve latching onto his back and pulling on the battle axe to aid Thor, but Thanos’ strength proved to be impossible for them to overcome; he sucker-punched Thor in the stomach and head-butted him away before flipping Steve over his shoulder and slammed his fist into his face.

The overwhelming horror of seeing her bloody and bruised husband lying motionless at Thanos’ feet was compounded the moment she realized that the tarnished gauntlet was less than a yard away from him. She staggered for her feet and after hastily scanning the ground for her batons, she reached down and withdrew one of Loki’s daggers from her boot before charging towards him; Bruce appeared and attempted to hold Thanos back, but he grabbed the scientist by his wounded arm and flung him into a pile of crumbling concrete, and then (Y/N) and Clint reached him at the same time. The archer swung his katana and managed to slice a sizable cut across Thanos’ exposed bicep while (Y/N) slid past them and reached for the gauntlet.

Just as (Y/N)’s fingers grazed the tarnished gauntlet, a large hand wrapped around her arm and hurled her aside; she slammed into the rocky ground and rolled several times before finally stopping several feet away from an unconscious Clint. A stinging pain erupted across her stomach when she first tried to move, making her grit her teeth and hold back an agonized groan as she flipped herself onto her side; the dagger she’d been gripping in her hand clattered onto the ground, its blade splattered with her own dark red blood, and she pressed a hand against the gash to stem the bleeding. Through the haze of pain, she looked across the clearing and watched Thanos and Carol grappling over the gauntlet, which the Mad Titan had already managed to put on. Despite the captain clearly having the upper-hand in the fight, all it took was Thanos snatching the purple Power Stone from the gauntlet and punching her across the battlefield for him to win and stand unopposed with his prize.

“No…” (Y/N)’s breathing was erratic and she attempted to push herself off the ground a second time as Thanos placed the Power Stone into its setting and bellowed, the cosmic energy of the six Infinity Stones coursing through his body; her vision blurred around the edges and she cried out when the movement tugged at her sizable wound, so all she could do was watch in horror as Thanos prepared to snap his fingers.

Out of nowhere, Tony rushed towards a distracted Thanos and grabbed hold of the glowing gauntlet, but his final act of desperation was foiled by Thanos kneeing him in the abdomen and backhanding him across the clearing. The billionaire lay sprawled on the ground and after adjusting the gauntlet on his hand, Thanos smiled coldly at him, unabashedly rejoicing in his imminent victory and their devastating loss. “I am…inevitable.”

Thanos’ fingers seemed to move in slow motion as (Y/N)’s eyes found Steve’s all the way across the clearing. Her husband was still disoriented from his failed attempt to kill Thanos, but the fear in his usually steadfast gaze told her that he understood exactly what was about to happen and that there was nothing any of them could do to stop it. I love you, Steve mouthed to her and (Y/N) gave her beloved super-soldier a teary smile before mouthing back, I love you, too.

The tell-tale metallic clink of the gauntlet’s two fingers connecting made (Y/N)’s heart jolt in her chest but after a long moment, her brow furrowed in confusion; there was an undoubtable snap, but nothing had happened. She followed Steve’s sudden awestruck gaze to see Tony kneeling across from Thanos, and her jaw dropped as nano-particles shifted the six Infinity Stones into place on his suit’s red and gold hand. The cosmic energy of the stones flowed throughout Tony’s body and left burning trails in its wake, putting immeasurable strain on him and shortening his breath, and while a shocked Thanos looked on, the billionaire smirked through his labored breaths and fearlessly addressed the Mad Titan. “And I…am…Iron Man.”

Tony snapped his fingers, and the world was engulfed in the brightest of light.

When the light faded away, (Y/N) watched in awe as Thanos’ formidable army began turning to ash all around her, just as her daughter and friends had five years earlier; Chitauri soldiers, Sakaarian troops and packs of Outriders all disintegrated into nothing while Leviathans, Gorillas and every single enemy transport crumbled away atom by atom and were scattered to the wind. We did it, she thought with a breathless laugh, we actually won.

“(Y/N)!” She turned her head to see Steve hurrying across the clearing, a panicked expression written across his features as he dropped to his knees beside her and firmly pressed a large hand against the oozing cut across her stomach. “It’s not deep, thank God, a tight bandage’ll stem the bleeding until we can get you to a medic. You’re gonna be all right, sunshine.” Her husband attempted to flash her a teasing smile, but the worry he still felt prevented his smile from reaching his eyes. “I thought I told you to stay safe.”

“In my defense, I didn’t plan on being chucked into the air like a baseball and landing on my own damn dagger,” (Y/N) chuckled but hissed in pain when Steve’s hand shifted over her wound. “Did we do it, sweetheart? Did we really win?”

Steve nodded. “We really won, sunshine. We’re gonna be with Carina again in no time.” The hand not applying pressure to her wound cupped her cheek and his thumb swiped a stray tear away before he pressed a soft, triumphant kiss onto her lips.

After Sam appeared and both men worked to secure a long strip of gauze around her waist, they helped her stand on unsteady legs and she took the opportunity to study their surroundings. Wounded Wakandans, Asgardians, Ravagers and sorcerers staggered to help one another stand and watched with obvious relief as Thanos’ army – including their dead and their wrecked equipment – all reduced to ash and slowly dissolved away, and faint rays of sunlight started to break through the smoke-filled sky above. Peter Quill hugged an elated Groot and then Rocket, who pretended to be annoyed but couldn’t quite hide the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, before pulling Nebula and the remaining Guardians into a group hug. T’Challa and Shuri embraced while Okoye fussed over a scratch on the princess’ bicep. Bucky helped Wanda to her feet and the pair immediately went to help Brunnhilde, Korg and Miek extract the Valkyrie’s whinnying but unharmed horse from beneath several sizable pieces of debris. Scott and Hope held each other tight as they kissed beside the smoldering remains of their Quantum Tunnel. Wong clapped Stephen on the back and helped his fellow Master of the Mystic Arts create a temporary dam using large chunks of concrete from the destroyed Avengers Facility. Everywhere she looked, (Y/N) saw her friends and allies coming together to celebrate their unbelievable triumph over Thanos and his universe-ending plan but just as Steve’s lips pressed a kiss onto her brow, a sharp gasp tore from her throat and her jaw dropped in outrage.

“Oh, son of a bitch!”

Both Steve and Sam’s heads snapped over to her and their hands hovered over her numerous wounds as their panicked eyes searched hers. “What is it, (Y/N), what’s wrong?!”

“Is the pain getting worse, Booksmart? Screw it, I’m gonna go find that smart-ass wizard-doctor guy and see if he can’t patch you up-”

“I’m fine, guys, but my baby isn’t!” Both men exchanged a perplexed glance and she rolled her eyes before pointing across the crater. “My baby’s wrecked!” Amongst a mound of twisted metal and crumbling rock lay the smoldering remains of (Y/N)’s yellow 1976 Volkswagen Bug, the car she’d owned and cherished for over fourteen years. As sad as the sight of its mangled and scorched frame made her feel, she couldn’t help but correlate its wrecked state with the state of the world post-Snap; bringing back millions of living creatures in the blink of an eye would undoubtedly throw the already unstable Earth into chaos but while it wouldn’t be easy, they’ll all find a way to rebuild so that they’re stronger than they ever were. “Oh, well…nothing lasts forever, does it?”

Instead of answering, Steve gently nudged her arm and nodded towards the opposite end of the clearing; Thanos looked on as his troops disappeared and the Black Order dissolved into nothing with an expression of numb acceptance on his face. His eyes flicked over to them and they stared back, a surge of satisfaction filling (Y/N) as she watched the Man Titan seat himself on block of concrete and lean heavily over his knees. Thanos slowly began to turn into ash and once his entire army was gone, he too was erased from existence.

The sound of metal collapsing caused the both of them to turn and (Y/N)’s heart dropped when her eyes landed on Tony. The billionaire was slumped against a pile of wreckage, his Iron Man armor broken and scorched while the right side of his body – where the brunt of the Infinity Stones’ energy had resided during his Snap – was entirely covered in blackened burns. She was aware of Steve’s arm tightening around her waist as he helped her cross the clearing to him and she could see Clint, Bruce and Thor beginning to gather in her peripheral vision, but all of her focus was on her dying friend; his labored breaths were the only sounds to fill the clearing, until the familiar thwip of a web reverberated through the space and Peter Parker swung down.

“Mr. Stark! Hey, Mr. Stark?” The teary-eyed teenager brushed past a somber Rhodes to kneel before Tony and his voice shook as he continued. “Can you hear me? I-It’s Peter. Hey, we won, Mr. Stark. We won. You did it, sir, you did it…” All Tony could do was stare unseeingly at Peter as he finally broke down into heaving sobs. “I’m sorry…Tony, I-I’m…”

The crowd surrounding Tony parted to allow Pepper through and with gentle hands, the older woman guided Peter to his feet and into (Y/N)’s open arms. Their eyes briefly met and an understanding passed between both women; having a romantic relationship with an Avenger wasn’t easy by any means, but the hardest part was living with the constant fear that someday, they’ll be a fight that they won’t return home from. Pepper Potts’ worst nightmare was unfolding right in front of them, and all (Y/N) could do was convey her deep empathy and condolences through a single, silent look. However, the look they shared seemed to give Pepper the strength to turn and kneel in front of her dying husband, and (Y/N) blinked away tears as she comforted the teenager sobbing into her shoulder.

Pepper rested a hand against his suit’s arc reactor and gave him a tearful smile. “Hey.”

“Hey, Pep…” Tony murmured back, the corner of his mouth barely twitching upwards as he rested his left hand on top of hers.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y.?”

“Life functions critical.”

Rhodes and Bruce bowed their heads in grief while silent tears rolled down Clint and Thor’s faces, and Steve’s shoulders shuddered with suppressed sobs as his hand squeezed (Y/N)’s tight. Tony’s eyes watered as he glanced away from Pepper, but she pursed her lips and shook her head. “Tony. Look at me.” His dark eyes flicked over to meet hers and she gave him a trembling but sincere smile. “We’re gonna be okay. You can rest now.”

The regretful look on Tony’s burned and bloody face seemed to melt away at Pepper’s words and for one brief moment, his expression was overcome with a peaceful calm. The moment quickly passed and as Tony took his final breath, his hand slipped away from his wife’s and his suit’s arc reactor flickered off for the last time. Pepper finally gave into her tears, bowing her head and crying while the rest of them mourned their fallen friend. Tony Stark, one of Earth’s best defenders and a selfless hero right to the very end, was gone, and as (Y/N) struggled to come to terms with the tragic loss of another friend, the sunbeams beginning to break through the thick clouds of smoke dimmed.

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

A/N: I cried while editing this, and I already know that I’ll cry the entire time I write the next chapter lol 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/5L6MERx3PIydW3FyNPqYvl?si=ad6c46de8e954c11

Chapter Ten

“Endgame” Masterlist

Tagging: @mrs-obrien​​​​​​​​​​ @lahoete​​​​​​​​​​ @awkward117 @cminr​​​​​​​​ @natdrunk​​ @momc95​​​​​​​​​​ @savedbystyle​​​​​​​​​​ @miraculouscloud @awkwardnesshabitat​​​​​​​​​​ @marinettepotterandplagg​​​​​​​​​​ @mangosandmimosas​​​​​​​​ @supersouthy @benakenalove​​​​​​​​​​ @brooke0297​​​​​​​​​​ @hufflepeople​​​​​​​​​​ @becausewelie​​​​​​​​​​ @outoftheregular​​​​​​​​​​ @junipermurdock​​​​​​​​​​ @ladydmalfoy​​​​​ @mads-weasley​​​​​​​​​​ @username23345 @crist1216​​​​​​​​​​ @capswife​​​​​​​​​​​ @lilmschild​​​​​​​​​​​ @avngrsinitiative​​​​​​​​​ @crowleysqueenofhell​​​​​​​​​​​ @y-napotat​​​​​​​​​​ @mary1raven​​​​​​​​​​​ @groovy-lady​​​​​​​​​​​ @ljej95​​​​​​ @innersublimefury​​​ @prettysbliss​​​

#stumblin' in #steve rogers x reader #captain america x reader #steve rogers #captain america #tony stark #iron man #thor odinson #clint barton #hawkeye #bruce banner #sam wilson #falcon #bucky barnes #the winter soldier #wanda maximoff #scarlet witch #t'challa #shuri #okoye #valkyrie #scott lang #ant man #peter parker #spiderman #war machine #carol danvers #captain marvel #guardians of the galaxy #thanos

[xenokattz]

First Lines Meme

nabbed from @beatrice-otter & @whetstonefires

Rules:  Share the first line of your last ten published works or as many as you are able to, and see if there are any patterns!

Investigations Into Interoffice Relations: Man of Steel, 5 Times Jenny Shipped Lois & Clark AKA 5 Times Lois & Clark Didn't Say "I Love You." Slightly comedic, slightly dramatic, slightly smutty.

Everyone working at the Daily Planet went to Caffe Artigiano for their break.

A Flame in Two Cupped Hands: Man of Steel, coffee shop AU. Six years and two thousand coffee cups separated Lois and Clark's first real hello and last real good-bye.

Flirting with the new waiter at her usual café was quickly becoming a favourite past time for Lois.

Itch: Man of Steel, one-shot, < 5000 words which is practically a drabble for me

The back of Lois' brain itched.

Made It Rain: MCU, Taserhawk, another <5000, I guess I was trying to write weekly?

See, there was this woman...

Break Your Own Heart: MCU, Taserhawk, dramedy

Darcy never chose the wrong kind of guy for her boyfriends.

E Minus Too Few Hours: MCU, Captain Hill, Steve Rogers has a brilliant plan but Maria Hill begs to differ

With just enough time to nap before the mission, Maria slipped into the cot beside him.

Kay Nicte (Take off your clothes, let down your hair): MCU-BPWF, Nashuri, No Powers AU, proof that I can only make porn with plot

“Have you ever fucked up so badly you’re sure there’s no way to make it better?”

Kiss Me By the Fence Rails: MCU-BPWF, Nashuri, Attoye, Shuri wants Namor's help seducing her high school crush, Namor is gonna try to shoot his shot, Attuma & Okoye are just trying not to slap their idiot bosses. WIP.

"How do you feel about dates and sex with me?"

Beautifully Created: MCU-BPWF, Attoye, minor Nashuri, AU Canon divergence, Wakanda knew about Talokan when Namor made his ultimatum by the river. WIP.

He did not recognize her.

The Pearl I Carry in My Heart: MCU-BPWF, Nashuri, minor Attoye, post-canon enemies to friends to lovers, world-building, political, sci-fi monstrosity that ate my life for 8 months.

He planned it all, of course.

*~°~*~°~*~°~*

I fully expected all my first lines to be rambling run-on sentences. I'm pleasantly surprised that they're mostly short; dare I even say, punchy. 😜 4/10 starting sentences had under 6 words; the remaining had nary a single semi-colon.

6/10 did not immediately reveal the narrator.

Only 3/10 started with dialogue. It would be interesting to do the last sentence version of this because I'm sure I almost always end a scene with speech/dialogue.

Does anyone else see other patterns?

Soft, no-pressure tag to @pilesofpillows @gaal-dornick @umber-cinders @princess-of-gondor @dasphinxone

(look ma! I has friends!)

#nashuri #attoye #captain hill #taserhawk #clois #shuri x namor #okoye x attuma #lois x clark #maria hill x steve rogers #darcy x clint

[loelysian]

⠀  ࣪⠀⠀⊹ about — naifa she/her eighteen jewish writer

notice — i am 18 so if you are younger than 16, i will not follow back for my own level of comfort. thank you.

✯ masterlist

marvel:

marmoris — namor x reader

metanoia — moon knight system x isis!avatar reader

star wars:

n/a

game of thrones:

n/a

✯ links

ao3 (coming soon) pinterest

✯ requests — i do take requests from any of the tags i have here on my pinned. if you don't see a fandom you'd like me to write for, chances are i've probably forgotten. feel free to ask me about it! with requests, the more detail the better.

#namor x reader #namor x you #marvel #namor #star wars #din djarin x reader #din djarin x you #shuri x reader #steve rogers x reader #bucky barnes x reader #sam wilson x reason #peter parker x reader #nakia x reader #okoye x reader #wanda maximoff x reader #natasha romanoff x reader

[holylulusworld]

Deranged Marriage (1) - Let it go

Title: Deranged Marriage

Summary: Your father wants you to choose a husband. Your chosen one doesn’t like the idea one bit.

Pairing: Mobster!Bucky Barnes x fem!Reader

Characters: Ayo, Okoye, Jake Jensen, Steve Rogers

Warnings: arranged marriage, language, unwilling groom, angst, Bucky being an ass, sadnes, banter, tension

A/N: I got no self-control so this will have more than one part.

Deranged Marriage masterlist

“Why, not daddy,” you whine as your father refuses to let you leave the party. “I’m an adult, you know. I want to spend some quality time with my friends.”

“Sweetie, you are a grown woman and must stop acting like a teenager. I want you to finally choose a husband. I got a list including a complete background check.”

Your father points at one of his business partners. “How about him? Or Stark’s son. I heard he adopted yet another boy. Maybe he’s your age.”

“Daddy, no. All your business partners are old, and their sons are stupid frat boys. I want a good-looking, strong, sexy, and tough man.”

“Fine,” your father seems to be just done with your behavior today. “Choose whoever you want. I don’t care. Just let me check his background first.” He shoves his glasses back up his nose. “Or do you prefer a pretty lady, sweetie? I’m open-minded, Y/N.”

“Daddy,” you mutter as he chuckles. Your father doesn’t seem to care you are close to throwing a tantrum. “Gosh, this is so annoying. I don’t need a husband to rule your empire.”

“I’m sure of it, sweetie,” he wraps his arm around your shoulders, guiding you toward one of his newer business partners. “How about Rogers? He’s not too bad to look at.”

“He’s tall and attractive, but he only has eyes for that uptight British chick,” you sigh deeply. “You know that.”

“I don’t care. If I say he must marry you, he’ll do it.”

“And cheat on me,” you huff.

“Who else caught your attention, Y/N?” your father nudges your side. “You know I want you to be happy. But people are people. Especially in my line of work. You’ll need a strong man by your side.”

“I want—” you let your eyes wander. “I want…” you dip your head to glance at the man who caught your eyes months ago.

“Who, sweetie? I want you to tell me his or her name,” your father whispers so no one can spy on him. Even among his friends and partners spies and traitors are waiting for their chance.

“Barnes,” you point at James Buchanan Barnes. The cockiest and grumpiest of your father’s business partners. That man dared to ignore you for three years, and now, he’ll finally pay you attention.

“You want Barnes?” your father gasps. “You know he’s got quite the reputation. He’s not the kind of man settling for one woman, Y/N.”

“He’s tall, handsome, strong and I like his metal arm. It makes him imperfect but perfect at the same time. Like a poem without a rhyme or a painting missing a color,” you watch the brunette mobster push his neatly gelled hair back.

Bucky takes a large sip from his drink as he watches your father from across the room. He knows that his business partner is looking for a husband to take care of you. The mobster simply is not interested in your bratty ass.

“She’s staring your way, Buck,” Steve snickers. “Do you think she will choose you? I bet you’ll be putty in her hands.”

“Like hell,” Bucky grumbles. “I won’t marry. Not now. Not ever. He can keep his little brat. She’s the worst.”

Steve nods but watches his friend look your way again. “If you say so, Buck. I will get another drink and hide in the back before she finds me…”

“Barnes,” your father stalks toward your chosen husband. “We should talk about business. I know this is a party, but my girl chose you.”

“Chose me?” Bucky smirks in amusement. “What am I to her? One of the dogs you bought her only for her to lose them on of her shopping trips.”

“You know that I’m looking for someone to protect my daughter. She will take over my empire and will need a reliable and loyal man by her side.”

“No.”

You are fuming next to your father. James Buchanan Barnes dares to not even look at you. He once again ignores your whole existence.

“No?” you huff. “You should be honored I chose you. Men would kill to even get a smile from me.”

“They will kill themselves if you ever smile at them,” you gasp at his words. No one dared to talk to you like this before. “Don’t you get it, doll? No one likes you. You’re a spoiled brat without manners and you’re not my type.”

“Careful now, Barnes. I respected your father and we are partners. This doesn’t mean I let you talk like that to my daughter.”

“Sir, with all due respect, I won’t marry your daughter,” Bucky finally looks at you. “She is annoying, loud, and immature. Even her friends hate her.”

“My friends love me,” you fight back. “What do you know about my friends?” He laughs about your antics.

“I know that the girl you call your best friend since childhood is so afraid of what you will do to her family that she pretends to be your friend for almost fifteen years.”

“You’re lying. I hate you!”

“Oh, sweetness,” he takes a step toward you to look you up and down. “All of them are afraid of your father and his men. Did you ever think about how they will never say no? All of them always follow your lead.”

“No…” you step back, shaking your head. “I met Lavender at school. She wouldn’t lie. She’s my friend.”

You turn on your heels to run out of the ballroom, angrily wiping your tears off your cheeks. Bucky’s rejection and his words hit you hard.

“How dare he reject me. How dare he tell me lies about my friends!”

“He lied…he lied…” you pace back and forth while clutching a picture of you and Lavender to your chest. "She's my friend. All of them are…”

You sit on your bed, opening an old picture album. There are pictures of you and Lavender at the age of ten. You smile into the camera as your father just bought you another dog.

“She’s my friend,” closely looking at the picture you recognize for the first time that your friend doesn’t smile. There is something in her eyes you never saw before. Fear.

“No…no.”

You turn the pages, looking at all the pictures of you and your friends. “No…” You slam the album shut and fling it across the room. “She was a kid and a little intrigued by daddy and his men. I’m sure about it.”

For a moment you sit there in silence, remembering the day you met your best friend. She was new at your school. The only one not making a beeline around you.

Well, the other kids knew better than to get involved with a mafia boss’s daughter.

That day, someone wanted to mess with her and stole her backpack. She cried and you stepped in. One glare from you and the boy dropped the backpack and ran for his life. He didn’t have the guts to mess with you.

Lavender smiled and thanked you. She even hugged you, taking you by surprise. After school, you offered to drive her home. Or rather, your bodyguard drove her home.

You saw her father look at your bodyguard. It was written all over his face that he was scared of the man protecting you.

“What if…?” you whisper to yourself as you unlock your phone to look at more recent pictures. Lavender and you at her birthday party. You and your friends at a club. Lavender and her brother at a pool party. “She never smiles. None of them smiles.”

“Y/N, it’s me Okoye,” you sigh deeply as your bodyguard calls from outside your room. “Ayo is here too. Do you want to join us? Come on. Screw Barnes.”

“I’m a little tired.”

“What did he say, Y/N? Why are you hiding in your room?”

“It’s nothing. I got a terrible migraine and want to sleep. Don’t worry. Barnes can eat shit. I don’t care.”

“If you need me to kill him, give us a call.”

“Mr. James,” you nervously look at your best friend’s father. Barnes's words wouldn’t let you sleep. Now three days later you drove out of town to visit Lavender’s parents. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure…Y/N,” he stammers. “What can I do for you?”

“Lavender,” you lick your dry lips. “I—are you and your daughter afraid of my father? I need to know if Lavender became my friend out of fear.”

“No…” he chuckles nervously. “Why do you say such a thing? Lavender is your friend.”

“I see.”

You swallow audibly. Accepting the truth is the worst and most painful thing you’ll ever experience. “Thank you for your time. I hope you have a great day.”

“Wait…are you mad at Lavender? Did she do anything wrong?” the look in his eyes brings you to tears. Lavender’s father fears for his daughter’s life only because you came to visit them.

“Oh, no! I was just asking myself if we should take a break from our friendship. I’m quite busy with upcoming tasks and possible marriage. I hope Lavender won’t be mad.”

“What? No! She would never be mad at you. Lavender is your friend.”

“Of course, she is,” you nod in agreement. “A friend of mine will always be safe. Even if we cannot see each other for a long time. I’ll make sure of it.”

“Hi, Lavender,” you leave her a voicemail. You didn’t have it in you to face your friend, so you make it easier for you and her. “Listen, we were friends for so long but I kinda grew out of our friendship. We should give each other space. Uh-I mean you should spend more time with your family and your other friends. Stay safe and thank you for being a good friend.”

You end the call before she can hear you choke out a sob. “Another one,” you sigh deeply. Before you ended your friendship with Lavender, you called all of your friends.

Barnes was right. None of your so-called friends was a real friend. It didn’t take you long to find out that all of them are scared of your father and his men.

“What’s up, sweetness?” Jake pokes his head into your room. “What did you do with all the information I got for you?”

“Jensen, not now,” you throw your phone against the wall. “I’m not in the mood for one of your not-funny jokes.”

“Whoa, who fucked with you?” he asks. “Do you want me to send them a nice little virus?” Jake grins.

“No,” shaking your head you sigh deeply. “I just need a little me time.”

Jake silently closes your door. He is just another employee of your father. Not a friend nor an ally. You won’t make the mistake and trust anyone ever again.

“What are you doing?” you roll your eyes when your new nemesis, Bucky Barnes himself strolls toward you. “Oh, are you cold?”

He looks at the brazier, frowning as you throw pictures of your friends, trinkets, and plushies inside the fire.

“What do you want, Barnes?” he furrows his brows when you don’t even look at him. Usually, you’d hang on to his every word. “I’m kinda busy here.”

“I can see that.”

Bucky crouches down to look at the box you placed next to the brazier. It’s filled with all the memories you made with your friends. “Why are you burning that shit?”

“I’m cold,” you snap at him. “Can you leave me alone? Don’t you have a granny to rob or people to kill? Or whatever an important and all-grown man like you does.”

“Aw, are you having a little campfire on your own,” Bucky mocks you, but you don’t give a shit. “How about we get some marshmallows.”

“Fuck off.”

“Watch your tongue, my lovely bride,” he sneers as you finally look at him. “You made it. I got no other choice but to marry you. Your father made sure of it.”

“I don’t care anymore,” you crouch down to grab a handful of pictures to throw them into the fire. “Go and fuck some prissy little missy. You are not man enough for me anyways.”

“Not man enough?” he laughs darkly. “You wouldn’t survive our wedding night.”

“Because you are always dressed to kill?” you cock your head and look Bucky up and down. “Maybe you rejected me because you like your friend Steve more.”

“I can fuck whoever I want to. Men, women, both,” Bucky picks the box up and empties its inherits into the fire.

“What the fuck! That was my ritual. You cannot come here and ruin everything all over again. You’re such an asshole!”

“Well, no shit doll,” he growls back. “Remember, you asked for this. A little girl forcing a man like me into marriage; dumbest move ever.”

“FUCK YOU!”

“You wish I would, but I won’t,” Bucky snarls. “I will fuck my way through town while you will be waiting at home. You will be a nice little trophy wife, nothing else.”

“In your dreams,” pushing against Bucky’s chest you scream in frustration as he won’t budge. “My father will have your head if you dare to fuck with me.”

“He won’t,” he grins down at you while you slap his chest. “I agreed to become his new right-hand man to take over his empire one day.”

“No—I’ll take over his empire. I’m his legacy,” you stop hitting Bucky. “He can’t do this…he can’t. All my life I only did what he wanted. I never had real friends because they were afraid of him.”

You step away from Bucky, shaking in anger. “We will see, dollface…we will see…”

>> Part 2

Tags in reblog.

#Deranged Marriage #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes #mobster!bucky #mobster!bucky barnes x fem!reader #mafia #bucky barnes x female reader #angst #bucky barnes x you

[imtryingbuck]

Happy at last

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x fem!Reader

Summary: The team lose their friend (I’m bad at summaries sorry)

Word count: 751

Warnings: fluffy (my attempt at it anyway), mention of suicide. there’s a bit in the fic that is most definitely wrong by law but just go with it okay? Okay. the last chapter

A/N: I’m really sorry this is short. This weekend hasn’t been the greatest so…anyways sorry if it’s shit but I genuinely don’t have the energy to do anymore. I do hope you enjoy it though and thank you to everyone who’s commented, liked and reblogged each chapter it truly means the world🤍

Masterlist   Series Masterlist

It’s been three years since Y/n and Bucky left hand in hand for Wakanda. The first nine months they were there was pretty hectic. 

Shuri got her prepped and ready for the deprogramming, which didn’t take as long as Bucky’s. When she was clear of her trigger words that Bucky had read out, just like she read his all them years ago.

Steve let Bucky know that the President had been arrested for his role at Hydra, just after he was arrested he committed suicide. His name was still tarnished and the whole world knew what he had done.

Y/n made sure that his mistress, the mother of his unborn child, Alisha Grey and Baby Grey’s bodies were found and given a proper burial, right next to where her grave lays.

The new President gave Y/n a full pardon and gave her the Presidential Medal of Freedom medal. Stating on national television that Y/n L/n was never a traitor but a hero. A hero that had been saving people’s lives since she was 16 years old and that’s what she should be always known and remembered for. A hero.

The bosses and agents of SHIELD were all fired for what they did to her. Some were even arrested and sent to prison.

The warden of the Raft was arrested and sent to prison for endangering life that he was in charge of and for abuse and neglect, as well as profiting from assaults. He got 20 years.

Hydra had finally been shut down completely, all agents arrested and charged to with life imprisonment.

Y/n and Bucky’s relationship started. After she was given the all clear Bucky didn’t waste a single millisecond to kiss her. Kissing her like his life depended upon it right in front of T’Challa, Shuri, Nakia and Okoye - who all cheered and clapped.

When the time came for them to go back to their other home, Bucky tried to convince her to stay-

“Doll we have a life here, we’re safe”

“But… then that means we’ll have a normal life”

“And?”

“I-I don’t know how to live a life that’s normal Buck, all my life I’ve been trained to fight from one fight to the next…”

“I know, and my love you’re not alone. I’m right here with you. We’ll do it together I promise living a normal life scares me too but we can continue to be happy here”

She hesitated, what he was saying was true and she knew that. Though she did have to admit she took to farming rather quickly, naming all their goats after members of the team and the bull they had after Fury. She also did enjoy helping out on the markets, bouncing from stall to stall. Loved helping the children with schoolwork and keeping them busy by playing with them when their parents were busy or tired. She especially loved the day she delivered a beautiful baby girl - bless Bucky’s heart he had to hear about it every day for nearly two weeks, in full detail.

She loved the feeling of being free. Free from the pain and suffering she either saw or went through. Free from one order to the next. Free to finally be herself.

But even if she did love that feeling she was terrified off it, what she had told Bucky wasn’t wrong, all of her life the only thing she knew what to do was to fight and to survive.

Wakanda was her home from the minute she stepped foot in the country many years ago, and with Bucky by her side she knew everything was okay, right?

“Okay…”

“Okay?”

“Okay we can stay” Bucky picked her up and spun her around until he lost his footing making them fall to the ground, it didn’t stop him from placing kisses upon kisses to her face.

The team understood when Bucky and Y/n told them that they was retiring, nor was they surprised by the two’s relationship.

One by one the team followed suit and retired too, all being welcomed openly by King T’Challa and the people of Wakanda.

Each and everyone of them had found happiness.

It’s now the 9th of March 2026, time currently is 11:54pm, their whole family is waiting outside the couples home wincing at hearing Y/n’s screams. 

The clock strikes 12:01 and all is heard is the cries of a baby.

Bucky runs out a few minutes later with tears streaming down his face.

“It’s a boy!”

<Previous

Tags: @unaxv @learisa @vicmc624 @bethexo07 @doublebassallie @cyberficlya @elijahssuit @sapphirebarnes @wasffginc @ladyvenera @casa-boiardi @cjand10 @iloveceandsswithallmyheart @violetwinterwidow01 @avocadotoastwithegg

~ banner credit goes to @sweetpeapod ~

#marvel #bucky barnes #bucky barns x y/n #marvel fanfiction #bucky barnes x reader #marvel fic #bucky barnes x you #bucky x reader #bucky x y/n #bucky x you #Asset #Bucky Barnes Asset series #bucky barnes fluff #bucky and reader #bucky fic #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky fanfic #james barnes #james bucky buchanan barnes #james bucky barnes

[writing-house-of-m]

Endgame

Wanda Maximoff x Reader

Summary: The group talks about the fight against Thanos

A/N: Three for three! I hope this one makes up for the angst posted yesterday 😊 For those who care, here is the request. Comments, reblogs and likes are much appreciated!

Prompt: "That was the night I nearly lost you."

It is the end of another party. This time, one thrown in celebration of successfully defeating Thanos once and for all.

It didn't matter where you were hiding Vision from him, Thanos kept finding him. So, when a plan was formed to hide Vision in Wakanda, everyone was ready to make it the last stand. It was a good thing Strange and Wong were able to gather so many people.

Most of those who helped in the final battle were still here, dotted around in the lounge area.

Everyone was exchanging stories about their version of events. All of you were in agreement about being in awe when Carol destroyed a ship single handedly.

You wouldn't have believed Bucky when he spoke about the raccoon he was fighting alongside if you didn't see the creature with your own eyes. You along with Thor and Peter had to corroborate his story. Especially to Tony who was sceptical.

Okoye spoke about the relief she felt at seeing the King again after he was thrown across the field. King T'Challa commented, saying the experience was not one of his finest moments making everyone laugh.

There were no major casualties and no deaths so it felt easy to joke about such things. You can only imagine what it would have felt like to fail such a risky plan.

It was Wanda's turn to speak, "That was the night I nearly lost you," she says, looking at you and squeezing your knee as she leans more into your side.

You and Wanda had each other's backs the whole time, fighting alongside one another. You have always worked well together. Finishing off enemies for the other left and right.

"I left your side for like, a second," you scoff, cinching your eyebrows, everyone laughing and looking amused at the scene.

Knowing Wanda could hold her own you left her so you could help Scott who was covered with aliens, like an apple overthrown by ants. Because she didn't notice you leave, too busy 'kicking names and taking ass,' as Mantis put it, Wanda was worried you were hurt. That was until she heard you compare Scott to Godzilla through her comms.

"I know, but I thought you were hurt," Wanda pouts.

You smile at her antics and begin to lean in to kiss her saying she is being ridiculous but you are cut short with all the jeers you hear from everyone in the room.

"No one needs to see that, lovebirds," you hear Natasha's disgust, loud and clear.

The conversation swiftly moves on to Thor talking about his new axe, Stormbreaker, and all the things it can do. Your attention is turned to Wanda as his voice drones on in the background.

"Hey," you whisper to get Wanda to look at you. When her green eyes meet yours you think of how lucky you are to be able to call her yours.

"You know I'm never gonna die, right? I still need to marry you," you say quietly while grinning.

Wanda smacks your chest, her grin matching yours. Before her next action she quickly looks around the room. You don't have time to ask what she is doing because in the next second her lips are on yours but gone just as fast.

"That's all good and well but you have to propose first," she says, centimetres from your lips.

You want to rebuttal but your attention is sucked back into the discussion around you when Scott says your name, recounting his events on almost being drowned alive by 'smelly aliens'. Hope, who is sitting beside him, shakes her head giggling at his explanation.

Conversations and drinks keep flowing long into the night.

Steve makes a heartfelt speech about everyone doing a good job in keeping the people on this planet safe. He goes on to say everyone who showed up for the fight has given everyone on Earth and even life beyond the stars a chance to appreciate their loved ones and live another day.

You always wondered what the endgame of this superhero life would be for you. But it's this. You're holding it in your arms and are surrounded by it.

The next step in your life is to make Wanda your wife, which you will do as soon as you perfect the proposal you have been planning. Together you will build a real life together and your friends will be there to witness it all.

Resting your head against Wanda's, your mind drifts to a normal life filled with white picket fences, crying babies, school pick ups and drop offs, regular home cooked meals. The stress of PTA meetings, bake sales, sports tryouts, college options. It all has you smiling to yourself.

You can't wait.

#wanda maximoff #wanda maximoff x reader #wanda maximoff x y/n #wanda maximoff x you #wanda maximoff fanfic #wanda maximoff imagine #wanda maximoff marvel #wanda maximoff fluff #scarlet witch x reader #scarlet witch fanfic #scarlet witch imagine #scarlet witch fluff #marvel fanfic #marvel #mcu reader insert #self insert fanfiction #fic #1 year celebration #endgame tag

[questionableratatouille00]

Wԋαƚ Iϝ Iƚ’ʂ Uʂ?

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x GN!Reader

Summary: After an incident involving the Quantum Realm brings forth the Zombie Apocalypse, you are forced to comprise a team of survivors to reach Wakanda, the only human sanctuary left. But is the apocalypse really a great time to develop feelings for a Super Soldier?

Warnings: Themes of death, hurt/comfort, angst. Side/main character death?? (Not Bucky or Reader) Fire, violence. Let me know if I need to tag anything else!

Note: This very loosely follows the relative idea of the What If..? episode. Thank you to @buckylattes for sending me this idea!

---------------------------------------------

“This is day forty-nine since the apocalypse started. And Bucky and I may be the last survivors in the United States.”

-------------

The sound of the leaves crunching under your feet filled the warm and crisp air as you trudged through the forest. Occasionally, a gentle breeze would blow through the air, which felt quite nice in comparison to the autumn warmth.

"So..Steve and Tony got in some kind of fight?" Bruce stuttered out, breaking the silence.

"Yep." You confirmed.

"And..the Avengers broke up? Like One Direction?"

"Yep."

“And then got back together?”

“Uh-huh.”

"And there are zombies now?"

"Seems like it." You sighed.

“And the Avengers are zombies, too?”

“Dr. Banner.” Okoye chided.

“Sorry, sorry. It’s just—y’know, it’s—“

“Weird?” Peter Parker guessed, smiling softly. “Yeah. We know.”

You frowned at the kid’s statement. You, Bucky, and Peter were the only Avengers on Earth to not be affected. Or at least, to your knowledge.

“Go find the kid. We’re..we’re gonna need all the help we can get.” Tony had mumbled to you. Steve nodded, pursing his lips. 

“I’ll call Kate and Yelena,” Clint said, looking at Natasha. Wanda grasped Vision’s hand, looking up at him anxiously.

“Anyone know how to get in touch with Thor?” Steve looked up from his feet, arms crossed.

“That’s a negative, Captain Rogers.” Vision’s voice was smooth and neutral. “Mr. Odinson does not have a communication device to contact us.”

You gave Bucky’s right shoulder a friendly and comforting squeeze before you walked out of the room. You knew Peter’s address, you’d visited his apartment before with Tony. 

Before you knew it, Earth was basically gone. That was over a month ago. You’d quickly found fellow survivors and made somewhat of a team with them. Peter, Bucky, Okoye, some guy named Kurt, Sharon Carter, you, and John Walker. And now, Bruce Banner.

“We need to find a base,” Bucky said, just loud enough to be heard.

“Sergeant Barnes is correct.” Okoye agreed. “Nightfall is approaching.”

“Pete, where’s that camera thingy you recorded your video on?” You asked, looking back at him. He’d made a little movie on how to survive the apocalypse soon after you’d saved him from the hoard of zombies outside of his apartment. It was a cute video, though the circumstances weren’t exactly great, or even good. It would’ve made a good school project, though.

Part of it was about hygiene, and Bucky starred in that section, albeit unwillingly. Bucky hadn’t said anything, but you could see the discomfort on his face when Peter showed you all the finished product. Bucky had been in the shower, rotated in a way where you luckily couldn’t see anything. He’d been ambushed by Peter and Kurt, the latter being lifted off the ground by his own neck, which had Bucky’s metal fingers wrapped around it. In private, Bucky had hinted that he was uncomfortable with the clip, and you’d gone to talk to Peter about it without saying anything.

You’d explained to him that ambushing anybody, but especially a Super Soldier—particularly a traumatized one who also happened to be a veteran—in the shower was not cool. Peter had apologized profusely, going back and removing the clip. You’d asked him not to say anything to Bucky, knowing that Bucky wouldn’t have wanted attention to be brought to it.

You could tell by the way Bucky’s eyes flicked to you when Peter showed the clip to Bruce that he’d noticed.

“Oh—uh—here.” He said, pulling the small camera from a pocket before tossing it to you. You caught it with ease. The apocalypse was no place for a lack of hand-eye coordination. You tucked it in the front pocket of your backpack.

“Won’t that thing run out of battery?” Bruce questioned, and you chuckled. “No. Peter and Stark made it a while back. It runs on an extremely tiny arc reactor. I’ve been keeping logs of every day—sometimes twice a day—since two days after the apocalypse started. So..yeah.” Sometimes others would make them, but none were as detailed or formal as yours.

“Jesus Christ," Bruce mumbled out. "Oh. I just realized--I haven't properly met most of you. I'm Bruce." He stuttered, picking at his fingernails.

"John Walker, Captain America." The annoying blonde spoke up. You were surprised he hadn't already shoved that fact down Bruce's throat yet. Normally, he wouldn't shut his mouth.

"I'm sorry--what?" Bruce looked at you, brows furrowed, wanting to see if you were agreeing or not.

"Turns out the government really doesn't like their favorite child going against 117 countries. So they gave the title--and a non-vibranium dupe of the shield--to this asshole." You explained, rolling your eyes.

"Right.." Bruce processed. John looked like he was going to say something, before Bucky shot him a glare, silencing him.

"I'm Sharon Carter. Former SHIELD agent." Sharon introduced herself, and Bruce smiled at her. Peter, Okoye, Kurt, and even Bucky introduced themselves, but you mainly focused on choosing where to go.

For some reason, you ended up being the 'leader' of the group. Maybe it was because you found everybody, maybe it was because you were the one who'd been an official Avenger the longest.

"Where are we going?" Bruce questioned. He'd followed you and the rest of the group into the woods.

"Well, the end goal is Wakanda. Right now, we're somewhere in New York. Phones don't work, and we come across maps every so often. Unfortunately, it's not like people posted map-selling stands in the middle of forests. Public spaces aren't the best places to be anymore." You spun around to look at everyone, walking backward.

"Wakanda may be the last human sanctuary on Earth." Okoye filled him in. "Our force fields would prevent the..undead from ever reaching our people."

"You sure did pick an odd time to visit the States," Bruce noted.

"I swore an oath. My king disappeared along with the Avengers." She replied.

"Right." Bruce exhaled.

"There should be an old Avengers safehouse up ahead. We stayed there after that one mission in February last year." You nudged Bucky with your shoulder as he caught up to you. He nodded slightly, chewing on his bottom lip.

"You okay?" You lowered your voice, trying to at least make the conversation slightly private. He glanced at you, before giving you the smallest of shrugs.

"Come on, it should only be a little farther." You called over your shoulder, beginning to pick up the pace. The sun was going to set soon, and night was not a time to potentially fight zombies.

You breathed out a sigh of relief when you could finally see the safehouse in the distance. It was a cabin in the middle of the woods, which made it a great place to stay in an apocalypse, at least for a little while.

"There's two bedrooms, two bathrooms." You announced. You put the code into the tiny pad by the door, before stepping inside.

You let out a sigh as you set your backpack on the floor against the couch. Everyone else followed suit, John and Peter sitting on opposite ends of the old couch.

Deciding to raid the pantry and see what you had, you rubbed your hands on your face. You'd risked it and went to a grocery store a few days ago, all of you filling your bags with as many non-perishable food items as you could.

"Okay, there's peanut butter, canned corn, some dried fruit, rice, bottled water, some trail mix packs, and canned..pineapple." You listed off. "And then whatever we're carrying."

"You wanna go through it all?" Sharon asked, and you shrugged. "Not really. I'm fucking exhausted." You held your forehead in your hand, closing your eyes.

"I can do it if you want." She offered, and you nodded. "Okay. Thanks, Sharon. I'm going to shower." You told her, opening your eyes and lifting your head up.

"You should take one of the beds. No offense, but you look like you need it." She smiles slightly, and you groan. "Wow, thanks. And I'll be fine. One of you should take it."

"Y/n, take the damn bed. Share if you want. But you're sleeping in a bed tonight." She decides, and you're too tired to argue with her. You accept your defeat and sigh. "Fine."

"Wonderful. You and Bucky can share that room. Okoye and I will take the other one, and Peter can take the couch. Kurt, Bruce, and Walker will be fine on the carpet." She assured.

“How’s your leg?” She’d injured herself yesterday, falling from the roof of a one-story building.

“Hurts like a bitch, but I’ll be fine. And don’t try and distract me. Go shower.” She smiled at the end. It reminded you of Natasha, in a way. You missed Natasha dearly.

"Okay." You agreed finally, taking out any food you had in your bag before taking it to the bathroom with you. You had a few outfits, just enough for maybe three or four days, and then a pair of shorts and a tank top to sleep in. You could stretch that to a week and a half if you felt clean enough to not wash your clothes.

You showered quickly before getting dressed in your shorts and tank top, walking into a bedroom.

Bucky sat on the bed, messing with his dog tags. His hair was wet.

“How was your shower?” You attempted to strike up a conversation. He shrugged in response, clearly tired.

“Did Sharon finish seeing what food we have?”

“Yeah.” He bit his lip, looking down at his hands. “Do you think he’s alive?”

You nearly asked who ‘he’ was, but after a second you figured it out. “I..don’t know, Bucky. But Steve’s strong. You and I both know that.”

He nodded, but it was clear that he wasn’t convinced. You pulled back the covers of the bed, before laying down.

“C’mere.” You said, the only light in the room was the tiny lamp that barely worked. You made room for him in your arms. Though you and Bucky weren’t anything more than friends, you’d gotten used to sleeping like this. It helped a little, in more ways than one. It helped him with his nightmares, and it helped with your anxiety.

He rested his head against your chest, draping his right arm over you.

The two of you fell asleep like that, comfortable in each other’s embrace.

Until Bucky started mumbling something, waking you up. “What the hell..” You grumbled before you realized what was happening. Right before he started screaming himself awake, you shook him.

His eyes flew open and he gasped, gripping your shoulders tightly. You waited for him to realize that he was safe and that the ‘danger’ was gone. His eyes began to water, though he tried to blink away the tears.

“Hey, hey. It’s okay. You’re safe. Promise.” You reassured him. He let himself calm down, exhaling slowly.

“Good job. Do you..want to talk about it?”

He looked at you, unsure. “Not much to talk about.”

“I’ll always listen. You know that.”

“I wasn’t there for him.” He confessed, eyes watering again. “Steve. I didn’t..I couldn’t..” He reached for his face, wiping at his eyes.

“Bucky, none of that was your fault. None of this is your fault at all. You didn’t start the fucking apocalypse.” You began to rub soothing circles into his back.

“All I had to do was shoot.” He made eye contact with you. Your heart burned at the sight of his pink nose and teary eyes.

You didn’t really know what to say. In theory, you could say the perfect thing that comforts him immediately. But the truth is that whenever you’re actually in a situation like that, all of that stuff goes right out the window.

“Close your eyes. Okay? I know this stuff hurts, but you really do need rest.” Your mind went back to Natasha.

He nodded finally, closing his eyes. You did the same.

It was the smell of burning wood that woke you up.

You blinked yourself awake, eyes stinging from the smoke. You gasped, choking on air as you took in your surroundings. The room was on fire. You shook Bucky awake, and he took a second to register what was happening.

“Shit!” He exclaimed, kicking the blankets off the two of you.

Without thinking, he busted down the bedroom door, revealing the slightly less burning living room. Peter’s face was the first one you saw, and you raced to him. “We have to get out of here!” You screamed over the sound of rooms collapsing.

“There’s hordes of them out there!” He shouted back, clutching your arms.

“The Spider-Child is right!” Okoye called to you as she threw Sharon’s arm over her shoulder, supporting the blonde’s weight.

“Well, would you rather try and get out of here or would you like to burn to death?” John cut in. “I would rather not burn!” Kurt pointed out, and Bruce nodded beside him.

“Okay. Okay. Come on, we’re gonna bust through the side door. Are they surrounding the house?” You began to plan, though you were panicking on the inside.

“I don’t know. I only saw them from the front door.” Sharon wheezed.

“I hate those odds and I don’t think our chances are even decent, but there’s no other option. When I say go, race through that door!” You directed. Checking to make sure everybody was accounted for, you gave yourself a final nod of encouragement. John was able to get Sharon onto his back.

“Go!” You shrieked, making sure that you were the last one to bolt out.

“I see them!” Peter screamed.

“Doesn’t matter! Keep going!” Bucky commanded, but they were only getting closer.

The sound of something crashing against the forest floor made you gasp.

“They can knock trees over?!” Peter kept glancing over his shoulder.

“They are getting a bit close!” Kurt yelled out. You looked over your shoulder, seeing John struggling to run with Sharon on his back. You stopped, and when Bucky began to slow down to see why, you put your hand on his back, guiding him forward. “Go.” You told him, as you went to help John.

“You can’t carry me and I can’t run,” Sharon said darkly. “John, put me down.”

The crowds of zombies chasing you were only catching up.

“Sharon, we’re not leaving you.” Your voice raised in pitch, anxiety settling in.

“Sharon.” John panted. “Come on, we gotta keep going.” He tried to stabilize her, to keep her still against his back, but she managed to break his hold on her.

“Sharon—stop! Stop, Sharon, please!” You begged, your eyes watering up.

“I can’t lose another friend. Come on, don’t be like this.” John grabbed her wrist, but she pulled away.

“Take them all to Wakanda for me, okay?” She asked, giving you a soft smile.

“Sharon!” You cried out as John gripped your wrist, keeping you from chasing after her as she staggered into the horde of undead.

“We could’ve..that—she didn’t have to—“ You gasped, beginning to hyperventilate. “Yeah, I know, but we have to keep going.” John’s hand remained wrapped around your wrist. It felt too tight. It hurt.

“Let go of me.” You said as you sprinted with him.

“There’s only more of them!” Bruce stressed, and you wondered how he didn’t get whiplash from looking around between you all so fast.

“Go right!” Bucky took charge, and everyone obeyed. You kept pace with Bucky, knowing that he was running slower on purpose. The serum enhances his speed, so there was no reason he couldn’t have just bolted and gotten to safety. You admired his loyalty.

Everyone—minus you and Bucky—made it away from the main group of zombies before a large tree fell. It was burning. The only thing that you’d noticed was burning was the house.

“Zombie enhanced. Not good!” Bruce shouted.

“What do we do?” Peter tried to find a solution. You took a deep breath.

“Run!”

“What?” John, Okoye, Bruce, and Kurt all looked back at you and Bucky.

“We’ll find another way! We’ll find you!” Bucky agreed.

Peter shook his head, mouth opened slightly like he was about to protest. You hoped that this didn’t fuck him up too bad. He already had enough trauma.

“Come on!” Okoye filled in the role of ‘leader’. She was a general, after all. She was born for this.

You turned to Bucky, grabbing his arm and trying to find a way around the zombies. “Move! Move! Move!” Your voice went higher in pitch every time you said it. You wove through clusters of them, though you were still in your pajamas.

You ran through the woods, but it was still dark out. The moon was the only thing keeping you from not being able to see anything at all, and you were thankful.

“How fast can they go?” You shrieked as they began to pick up the pace.

“Y/n, go! I’ll hold them off!” Bucky began to slow down.

“What? No!”

“Just go!” He stopped suddenly, and you tumbled to the ground, trying to do the same.

“No! Not without you!” You howled, and he accepted his defeat, racing back towards you and grabbing you as you stood up.

Not without you. I love you.

Bucky and you ran through the dark woods, breathing heavily, palms sweating. You managed to trip over a tree root, pulling Bucky down with you. Just your luck, you managed to trip at the top of a hill, and you rolled down it with Bucky. Dirt and dead leaves crunched under you and scratched at your legs and arms, pine needles getting stuck in your hair and in Bucky’s.

“Fucking hell..” You groaned as you stopped rolling.

“This is not as pleasant as those fall candles said it would be.” Bucky breathed, and you laughed. You’d shown him some fall candles in a store you were raiding, one being Rolling in Leaves.

“Yeah. I agree.” You choked out.

“Come on, we gotta find..” He trailed off.

“They’re long gone, Buck. We’ll..just have to meet them in Wakanda.” You stood, helping him up.

“Don’t ever pull that shit again.” You said after a moment of walking. “What?” Bucky looked at you, not knowing what you were talking about. “That sacrifice bullshit.” You clarified. “Never fucking again.”

“Okay.” He said blankly.

“Promise me.”

“I promise.” He made direct eye contact with you as he said it.

“Good. We should find somewhere to stay for the night. I’m exhausted.”

The two of you walked for maybe an hour more or so before Bucky pointed something out in the distance. “There. Those are caves.”

You looked where he was pointing, and sure enough, they were caves.

Another hour later and you’d been able to sort through the bags and see what you had. Bucky had been smart and saved the bags from the fire.

“Why do you care? About..my life?” He broke the silence.

“Why would I not?” He shrugged in response. “Because you’re one of the only people I have left. And..I care about you, Bucky. A hell of a lot.”

“I care about you too.” He breathed, and it was clear he meant it. His gaze drifted down, towards your lips. He cleared his throat awkwardly, eyes shifting elsewhere.

“Bucky—“

“Kiss me.”

“I—what?”

“I want you..to kiss me.” The former Winter Soldier, one of the few Super Soldiers on the planet, wanted to kiss you. And who were you to say no? You felt the same way.

You leaned it at the same time, your lips against his, both of your hearts beating faster than they ever have before.

The kiss ended when you pressed your forehead to his. Bucky’s fingers tangled with yours, your knees pressed against his.

“If I have to be with anyone in this situation, I’m glad it’s you.” You whispered.

“Me too.”

“Wait a second. Can you check the front pocket of my bag and see if the little camera thing is in there?” You asked him, and he nodded, reaching over to open the front pocket of your backpack. He handed you the small device. Maybe it was weird to end a moment like that with asking for a camera, but you needed to be sure.

“Think it survived the fall?” He questioned.

“Let’s find out. If it does, maybe we can use the parts to make some kind of communication device. Maybe we can contact someone in Wakanda with it.” You pressed record. A small little light came on off the side of the camera, and you grinned. “It works.”

Now that you were recording, you realized that you might as well film your log.

“The safe house burned down. We got split up from the group. Sharon..Sharon’s gone.” You said grimly. “We have no contact with the rest of the group, and no way of knowing if they’re alive or not.” You spoke to the camera, eyes never really staying focused on one thing for more than a minute.

“This is day..forty-nine?” You glanced at Bucky, who was nodding. “Forty-nine. Day forty-nine since the apocalypse started. And Bucky and I may be the last survivors in the United States.”

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x reader angst #bucky x reader #bucky x you #bucky barnes fanfiction #marvel #mcu #bucky barnes x you #bucky x reader fluff #zombie apocolypse au

[shamelesslyshippingocxcanon]

Bucky x Reader: Wakanda

Let's face the fact that Wakanda Bucky is a dandere. He's soft and shy, and basically blushes if you talk to him

You'd be: A) This Wakandan person, whether native or adopted by SoMeOne, or B) You're this CIA agent who gets to tag along with Ross during the Wakanda-opens-up-to-the-world thing

cough cough that's the best thing to do with an OC shipped with Bucky cough cough

You're anyhow amazed at the place. It's not every day you see friendly rhinos, a black panther, a genius princess, and female warriors with Starbucks cups

I also headcanon that Okoye almost quit the Dora unless T'Challa made a Starbucks in Wakanda

And Bucky is on the list of amazing things

The first time he saw you, he was pretty sure he was hallucinating or something, you looked...different than the Wakandans he met

Shuri is the first one to catch one, you guys

"Oh! Y/n! Meet Bucky! He's this brainwashed ass-"

"Shuri!" He gets really flustered

"Y/n Y/n/l, work at CIA"

He vaguely might recall you from the area

"Pleased to meet you...Y/n"

He doesn't realize it's a crush till Steve and Natasha and Sam visit, they immediately start teasing (Nat and Sam) laughing randomly (Sam), and giving advice (Steve and Nat)

He shows up with small excuses like 'Um...Zazu the guy from the coffee shop said you missed the coffee break, and I got it for you' and 'Shuri said you have to go back to the lab...you want me to come with you?'

It's adorable

But one night you accidentally hear him while having a nightmare, you were walking outside peacefully. And you heard him, of course, you're a good person. So you went over and woke him up.

And of course, Bucky is god damned embarrassed, and he doesn't sleep with his arm and shirt on.

But you're more worried about him than the arm and the shirt, you ask him a bunch of questions

"Are you okay Bucky?"

"Yeah...I'm fine, I'm fine"

As you start to leave the blurts out if you could stay with him. Which makes you stop in your tracks. He curses himself for talking and tries to apologize.

But you accept to his surprise. Why wouldn't you?

He doesn't have to wake up all night. Best sleep ever, and you KINDA cuddle.

It would be an awesome moment to just...say you both really like each other

It slips away

But! He does come to you when he has nightmares, and you come to him with problems. Ending up spending so much time together.

He can't ask you out, not now, he's afraid of scaring you away, you're his whole world.

But you LOVE him, not like him.

Bucky and you start getting closer, hugs get a bit more common, and he actualy kisses you one time, on the forehead, a surprise for both

Shuri literally is going to die, she's gonna resort to stalking

"JUST KISS ALREADY YOU TWO!"

"But Shuri, we do."

"WAHTTT-"

"Platonically Shuri."

Also, headcanon that Ramonda adopted Bucky

At this point, every single person in Wakanda ships you two, even the goats seem determined to push you two tougher, literally.

"Which was this ass?"

"Uh...I think it's Rumlow...?"

"You named a goat after a HYDRA agent??"

"Rumlow was the first jerk I thought of."

Finally, he asked you out. T'Challa threw a massive party in the palace, Bucky steered away and bumped into you on the top floor of the palace you looked...amazing, as you always did though

So, he manages to get himself together before talking to you

He's still shy, and he's probably gonna ramble for a bit before getting to the point.

"I really like you- Actually...I think...I love you..."

Your brain takes a minute to process it, and he's already apologizing

"I mean, you really don't have to do anything, I just had to put it out there an-"

"It's okay. Cause...I love you too."

#bucky x reader #bucky fanfic #james bucky buchanan barnes #james bucky barnes #bucky barnes x reader #wakanda bucky #wakanda bucky x reader #bucky barnes #bucky fluff #y/n #bucky x reader headcanons #wakanda bucky headcanons

[missvelvetsstuff]

The Wrong One

Steve Rogers x Reader, Bucky Barnes x Reader

Summary: Reader meets Steve while hes on the run and stands by him thru thick or thin. Until he sees Peggy Carter again.

3. Wakanda

In Wakanda, Y/N was happy to finally meet Bucky, who Steve had told her so much about, not to mention he was her high school crush. She was quickly introduced to the Royal family before Steve gave her a quick kiss and disappeared with the rest of the heroes. Queen Ramonda was very gracious showing her to a room in the palace and giving her some clothes to change into after getting cleaned up.

Once she was cleaned up she waited in her room for, anything. Watching videos on her phone of Iron Man and some people she didn't recognize, fighting aliens. In NYC. Again.

She realized how serious this threat was and couldn't just sit in the room and wait. She wandered around trying to find any news of the fight before she heard a huge ruckus and ran towards it without thinking. By the time she saw the hole in the wall and went through it the room was empty, Windows smashed. She had a great view and could see the fight from above.

Y/N couldn't tell who, if anyone, was winning when the aliens suddenly withdrew, the fighting stopped and she breathed a sigh of relief until she saw people disappearing, turning to dust all over the battlefield.

Her heart seized and her legs folded under her until she hit the floor. "Steve" she whispered and broke into heart wrenching sobs until she felt like she ran out of tears.

Y/N wiped her face and crawled to a chair then pulled herself up. She looked around and couldn't see anyone, it was all too still. She went back to the hallway and turned in the direction she thought her room was, walking slowly with one hand on the wall. She kept moving until she ran into one of the Dora Milaje, who stopped and looked at her in confusion.

Y/N struggled to speak "Okoye, right? I, I'm with Steve Rogers."

The woman nodded so she continued

"I'm Y/N, I'm Captain America's girlfriend. Do, do you know if he's alright?"

The woman nodded "They are in the throne room. Follow me."

Y/N followed her, getting even more turned around, until they came to a pair of ornate double doors. The woman opened them and Y/N saw an ornately decorated room with a number of people. Some were crying, others arguing. Steve and Natasha were both staring out the window looking defeated.

"Steve!" She half shouted before running into his arms.

Steve pulled her to him so tight it was almost crushing and held in his sobs of relief. After a few minutes he pulled back and looked her over with eyes full of tears "You're still here! Oh god, you're ok, aren't you?" He wiped the tears off of her face and kissed her desperately.

When he pulled away he looked at her sadly "Bucky, Bucky, he's" and hugged her again, crying into her shoulder. "He's gone."

She held him close, rubbing his back gently, whispering words of encouragement that she knew were meaningless. So many people had simply disappeared, she didn't know how they would be ok but she swore she would find a way.

That night there was a ceremonial mourning dinner, hosted by Queen Ramonda. It was very somber, too many lost to be anything else. Most wakes include some laughter through the tears as those who were lost are remembered but with so many gone, no one in attendance was able to find any joy in their memories.

Steve barely ate and kept Y/N as close as possible, afraid that she might disappear as well. She did everything she could think of to get him to at least eat a little and didn't leave his side all night.

When they went to bed, Steve couldn't hold back, he needed her. Ripping her clothes off he pushed her into the wall of their room, touching and kissing her everywhere he could reach. Trying to convince himself that she was really there and that he hadn't lost her too. He went from soft and gentle to rougher and dominant, like he was trying to claim her, permanently imprint himself onto her.

In the morning, Steve was up and went for his run before Y/N even started to wake up. She heard her phone buzzing and groaned and rolled over without even trying to reach it. Her body felt like she had been hit by a truck, or a super soldier who was trying to work out some of his grief. She had bruises around her neck, on her upper arms, ass and thighs. Then there was the ache between her legs. That good, kinda sore, that got laid real good last night kinda sore. She wasn't complaining, she felt the weight of the loss and would do anything to help him.

As Y/N stretched and sat up, she realized her phone had buzzed, meaning someone tried to get in touch with her. Private caller and they didn't leave a message, she groaned "Not my problem."

Steve came back and joined her in the shower, fucking her against the wall. It stung and she didn't get off like usual but he cried on her shoulder when he first entered the shower and she couldn't tell him no.

They met everyone else at breakfast which was a huge buffet and even though there was a good sized group of people, few had any real appetite.

Natasha finished eating. "After we're done eating we need to get back to NY. There has to be some way to fix this. In the meantime people will need help dealing with our new reality and sociopaths still lurk."

She looked at Y/N "You're welcome to come stay at the compound, plenty of space. We'll be there to help you if there are any legal issues."

Y/N nodded. "That would be great, I don't have any family to look up or anywhere to stay."

Nat looked to Steve "I spoke with Ross, he's willing to talk pardons with the president and the Accords are trash."

Steve sighed "I suppose that's something. We can go home at least."

Chapter 4

#steve rogers x reader #steve rogers x you #steve rogers fanfiction #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes fanfiction #james bucky barnes x reader #james bucky barnes #bucky barnes x you #angst with a happy ending #the wrong one

[swan-of-sunrise]

Endgame (Chapter Nine-Part I)

Summary: The Avengers face off against a past iteration of Thanos and his army for the fate of the entire universe.

Pairing: Steve Rogers X Reader

Word Count: 3.7k

Warnings/Disclaimers: Disclaimer for battle/combat violence

A/N: And here we’ve finally reached the Battle of Earth! Thank you for reading, I hope you all enjoy!

Chapter Nine (Part I) (Previous Chapter)

In her eighth grade English class, (Y/N) was assigned to write a report on A Sound of Thunder, a science-fiction short story written by Ray Bradbury that revolved around the dangers of traveling through time and humanity’s arrogance for thinking it could control its overwhelming power. Bradbury’s famed short story struck fourteen-year old (Y/N) with two thoughts after finishing it: that she was definitely sticking to writing historical-fiction novels when she grew up, and that she would never dabble in time travel if the opportunity ever arose in her lifetime. She was reminded of her naïve teenage promise as she rocked Carina in her arms and listened to Stephen’s brief but concise run-down of the situation they now found themselves in.

Back on Titan in 2018, the doctor utilized the Time Stone to foresee all the futures in which they’d win against the Mad Titan but he was only able to find one, one where half the universe would stay Vanished for five years until Scott Lang emerged from the Quantum Realm and inspired their time heist. Stephen foresaw everything, from Thanos’ death at the hands of Thor to the switch that 2014 Nebula made with her future counterpart on her adoptive father’s orders, and (Y/N)’s heart sank into her stomach when he told them how 2014 Nebula hijacked their Quantum Tunnel and brought Thanos and his entire army to their own timeline while the Avengers were preoccupied with the Infinity Stones. We were all so shocked by Natasha’s death that we didn’t even realize it wasn’t our Nebula, she silently lamented, anxiously biting her lip as the doctor explained how Thanos’ ship launched a surprise blitz on the entire Avengers Facility just after Bruce snapped his fingers and how he was currently preparing to deploy his entire army.

“The gauntlet containing all six Infinity Stones is still buried beneath the wreckage of the compound, but Thanos will send his forces after it while he battles the Avengers,” Stephen called out over his shoulder, his attention split between filling them in and summoning more portals to gather warriors from all five Wakandan tribes.

“Then we don’t have a moment to waste.” T’Challa turned to Okoye with a resolute expression on his face. “General, gather your Doras and begin readying the tribal warriors for our imminent attack; I shall join you in a moment to assist.” The general bowed her head in respect before hurrying to follow her king’s orders, and T’Challa turned his attention to Shuri. “Shuri, ready our pilots and see to it that every available aircraft is armed and operational…and, you might want to change your clothing, little sister. You can’t fight a battle dressed as though you’re visiting an American shopping mall.” Shuri ignored her older brother’s light teasing and fist-bumped the air in delight as she sprinted through the original portal leading into the palace, and T’Challa’s small grin faltered when he met Ramonda’s eyes. “Mother, I-”

The Queen Mother held up a placating hand and smiled. “We’ll have plenty of time to talk later, sithandwa sam. You are both the King of Wakanda and the Black Panther, T’Challa, and now is the time to show Thanos why that is.”

Nodding once, T’Challa gave his mother a brief hug and sprinted off to the field beyond the forest, and Stephen cleared his throat to get their attention. “I have to portal back to Titan; wait for my signal to know when it’s time to attack.”

“Wait, what signal?” (Y/N) exchanged an exasperated look with Sam when Stephen vanished through another sparking orange portal without answering. “Every single time I’ve encountered that doctor, he’s pissed me off one way or another.” Carina blew a loud raspberry and (Y/N) winced a little. “Sorry, Cari, but swearing’s a hard habit to kick.” She glanced up at Ramonda. “Your highness, do you mind-?”

“I’ll protect her, (Y/N), as if she were my own child.” The Queen Mother placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. “Bast ukukhusela wena. May Bast protect you, and may she guide you to victory on the battlefield.”

(Y/N) smiled in gratitude at Ramonda and glanced back down at Carina; out of the corner of her eye, she saw the older woman gesture for the others to give them a moment alone but her daughter’s soft cooing regained her attention. “I know that’s only been about an hour since you last saw your daddy and I, but for us it’s felt like an entire lifetime. And I know that you’re probably getting pretty tired of your parents leaving you to go and fight against gods and un-dead warriors and genetically-enhanced aliens, but it’s something we’ve got to do. You’re going to grow up in a better, safer world, lemon drop, and we’ll both be right there with you. But first, Mommy needs to go and help Daddy save the world again.” She pressed a soft kiss onto her daughter’s forehead and smiled. “Love you, Cari, more than anything.”

Placing the infant back into the floating pram, (Y/N) handed Ramonda the uru bracelet and her overnight bag, pausing only to retrieve the weapons she’d packed away, and she watched as the Queen Mother escorted her daughter through the swirling orange portal they’d entered through and disappeared from view. She took a deep breath before turning around to face the others, who were all preoccupied with looking over their weapons for the impending battle except Groot; the tree-like creature was anxiously twiddling his branched fingers and when he realized that she was staring, he perked up and moved closer to her. “I am Groot?” (Y/N) frowned in confusion and Groot lowered his hand to gesture for something knee-height. “I am Groot.”

“Oh, are you asking about Rocket?” She grinned triumphantly when Groot’s eyes lit up and he clapped his hands together in excitement. “Rocket’s fine; he’s back in New York with my husband and friends, and we’ll be seeing him pretty soon. He’s missed you a lot, so he’ll be very happy to see you again.”

Groot nodded. “I am Groot.”

“Talking to trees now, Booksmart?” Sam chuckled as he walked up to her and good-humoredly bumped her shoulder with his. “Is there anything you can’t do?”

“Besides understanding what trees say back to me? Well, I spent five years trying my damnedest to find a best friend as wonderful as you, and I failed spectacularly because…well, there’s only one Sam Wilson, after all.”

Sam’s smirk of amusement softened into a tender smile and his arm moved to wrap around her shoulders in a partial hug, squeezing her tight and providing her a sense of reassurance she hadn’t quite felt since the day she’d lost him. Before either of them could speak, a familiar voice called out through their comm links. “All right, it’s almost show-time. How’s everything looking on your end?”

“Um, i-it’s looking good, Doc.” A bewildered Sam exchanged a look with them. “How exactly are you doing…whatever this is?”

“…How do you think, Mr. Wilson?”

“Magic,” (Y/N), Bucky and Wanda replied at the same time, and Sam rolled his eyes at them.

“I cast a communication spell on everyone’s – and I do mean everyone’s – comm links; they’re fully synchronized now and trust me, you’re gonna be grateful that they are in a few seconds.”

Wanda hummed thoughtfully at the doctor’s words. “Ominous sort of man, this Doctor Strange.” Her eyes began to glow as she summoned her scarlet-hued energy into the palms of her hands. “Now, isn’t it about time we pay Thanos and his army a little visit?”

“I was just thinking the same thing, Miss Maximoff. Oh, and just for the record, this is the signal.”

Muttering under his breath about Stephen Strange being a smart-ass, Sam took a deep breath and brought a hand up to his comm link. “Hey, Cap, you read me?” There was no reply and in her mind, (Y/N) prayed that it was only stunned silence and nothing more concerning. “Cap, it’s Sam. Can you hear me?” Past the trees and across the field where Wakanda’s forces had amassed, a new portal started forming into existence as Sam smiled to himself and added, “On your left.”

The portal expanded and (Y/N) watched T’Challa, Shuri and Okoye stride through to the other side; she reached behind her and unsheathed both of Natasha’s electrified batons from her uniform’s shoulder harness and twirled them around her hands once before tightening her hold on them. “After you, Birdbrain.”

“See you on the other side, Booksmart.” With a playful wink, Sam deployed his wings and sped off into the sky where he flew straight through the sparking portal.

More and more portals began to open as dozens of Wakandan Talon Fighters and Dragon Flyers took to the skies and another small portal burst into existence, this time directly in front of the foursome. Wanda wasted no time, her expression darkening with unreserved fury while she used her scarlet-hued powers to launch herself into the air fly through the portal; (Y/N), Bucky and Groot exchanged a silent look before following after her and as they took their first step onto the grounds of the Avengers Facility, she bit her lip to stifle her horrified gasp. The entire compound was gone, reduced to towering piles of ash, rubble and enormous pieces of debris; the sky above was darkened by thick black smoke and they stood in the center of a sizable crater, no doubt the result of Thanos’ surprise blitz attack on the Avengers Facility.

Thanos and his entire army stood at the opposite side of the crater. The Black Order, comprised of his so-called children, flanked either side of him and stretched out behind them were thousands of Chitauri troops, Sakaarian soldiers and snarling Outriders; the Sanctuary II hovered in the skies high above them, along with a dozen massive Leviathans and manned cruisers, while armed hover tanks and cybernetically-enhanced Chitauri Gorillas were scattered amongst their ground forces. It was an impressive army – infinitely larger than the ones present for the Battle of New York and the Battle of Wakanda combined – but all around (Y/N), a far more extraordinary assemblage was taking place.

Dozens of swirling orange portals were littered across their side of the crater and legions of heroes from across the galaxy poured out, ready to band together and face the greatest threat to their universe. Doctor Strange emerged from the nearest portal with Peter Parker and a trio who, judging by Groot’s enthusiastic reaction, were the Guardians of the Galaxy; T’Challa, Shuri and Okoye led the united army of Wakanda while M’Baku rallied his own Jabari warriors, their resounding chants of ‘Yibambe!’ echoing across the entire battlefield; Brunnhilde, dressed in her impressive Valkyrie armor and sitting astride a snow-white winged stallion, led her battalion of Asgardian Einherjar alongside Korg and Miek; Wong stood before a throng of sorcerers from Kamar-Taj, some brandishing bow-staffs and other weapons while others conjured orange magical shields; nearby, Hope Van Dyne seemed to appear from thin air and her eyes frantically searched their growing army for any sign of Scott; a sizable band of humans and aliens brandishing blasters emerged from another portal, and the flame-shaped patch on their jackets told (Y/N) that they were the faction of Ravagers allied to the Guardians; a figure donned in a silver-and-blue Iron Man suit landed hard on the jagged rock and raised their face-plate to reveal Pepper; a stunned Tony and a bloodied Thor, both dressed for battle in their respective armor, staggered to their feet and joined their ranks; a deafening rumble was followed by a super-sized Scott bursting out from beneath the smoldering ruins of the Avengers Facility, and the Giant-Man opened his fist to allow Bruce, Rhodes and Rocket to jump down. A rallying cry resounded throughout their troops and high above them all, Wakandan Talon Fighters and Dragon Flyers and Ravager spacecrafts hovered in midair as their pilots awaited their commands.

Finally tearing her eyes away from the inspiring assembly, (Y/N) looked out at the vast space between both armies to see Steve. The super-soldier stood alone, his Captain America uniform stained with blood and ash and his vibranium shield broken but still strapped to his arm, and the sight of her sweaty and blood-soaked husband brought tears to her eyes; Steve, understanding the overwhelming odds stacked against him, had selflessly and defiantly prepared to stand against Thanos and his entire army alone, knowingly sacrificing himself to try and keep the Mad Titan away from the Infinity Stones as long as he possibly could. When Steve’s reddened gaze finally found hers amongst the growing army, (Y/N) recognized the same fire in his eyes that she’d seen in his old photograph at the Smithsonian so long ago, and it was in that moment that she could feel herself falling in love with the super-soldier all over again.

In three long strides, Steve was standing before her, his ash-coated face was filled with apprehension and a hint of longing as his azure eyes searched hers. “Is Carina okay? Is she safe?”

“Carina’s fine, sweetheart, and she’s perfectly safe with Queen Ramonda,” (Y/N) quickly reassured him and smiled as he breathed a sigh of relief. “Now, let’s go get this son of a bitch and save the world again so we can finally be a family.”

The corner of Steve’s lips slowly curved up into a small smile. “Yes, ma’am.” They both turned to face Thanos and his imposing army, standing side-by-side as their friends, teammates and allies all lined up on either side of them and readied their weapons for battle. (Y/N)’s grip on the electrified batons tightened in anticipation and she spared a brief glance down at the red hourglass-shaped buckle fastened onto her belt; the sight of Natasha’s signature accessory calmed her nerves and imbued her with the strength she needed to stare head-on at the deadly horde across the crater. “Avengers!” Steve thrust his arm out and (Y/N)’s eyes widened in awe when Mjolnir flew straight into his open hand, and she made a mental note to ask him about the magical Asgardian weapon later as he commanded through gritted teeth, “Assemble.”

Thor’s bellowing battle cry was echoed by their vast army and they all charged forward as one, Steve leading the ground forces while Tony took to the sky and led their legion of flyers. Thanos leveled his double-edged sword in their direction and watched with cold indifference as his army charged past him, looking almost bored at the striking show of defiance before him, but his mild reaction only spurred them on. Both armies met at the center of the wide crater and clashed with a cacophony of sounds and with that, the Battle of Earth began.

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

Thanks to Doctor Strange, Wong and the fifteen minutes they’d spent frantically gathering forces from across the entire galaxy, Thanos’ army was fairly evenly matched by theirs; however, it quickly became apparent to both armies which one of them was the most impassioned. The Avengers, Wakandans, Asgardians, Guardians, Ravagers and the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj all fought with a fiery passion that was wholly unmatched by the determination of the Black Order and the forces they commanded. A super-sized Scott punched a Leviathan to the ground and swatted aside a Chitauri cruiser while Peter swung from his arm and webbed the gun of a hover tank. The trio of T’Challa, Shuri and Okoye fought a troop of Outriders and nearby, Brunnhilde flew down on her winged horse and slashed at a roaring Chitauri Gorilla while M’Baku impaled it with his spear. Bruce, who’s right arm was badly burned from the newly-created Infinity Gauntlet and hanging limp at his side, snatched an attacking cruiser out of the sky and threw its commander across the battlefield, and both Korg and one of the more enthusiastic Guardians took on Cull Obsidian together. Overhead, Tony and Pepper fired their repulsors at Sakaarian ships and directly below the husband and wife, (Y/N) and Steve fought alongside one another; it was a deadly dance – with (Y/N) jamming her electrified batons into attackers and kicking them away and Steve slamming Mjolnir into his opponents and summoning bolts of vivid-blue lightening from the sky – but it was one that the husband and wife performed seamlessly together.

“You know, your new look is really kind of doing it for me!” (Y/N) spared Steve an appreciative glance as she blocked a Chitauri soldier’s strike and finished it off by ramming a baton into its neck.

Steve chuckled, throwing the hammer at another Chitauri soldier and upper-cutting a Sakaarian with his broken shield. “Not too shabby for a kid from Brooklyn, huh?” He thrust his open hand out and his helmeted head cocked to the side in confusion when Stormbreaker flew into his hand instead.

“No, no, give me that!” Thor called out from across the small clearing and they both looked over to see the Asgardian waving Mjolnir above his head. “You get the little one!”

Both men exchanged weapons and as Thor flew off towards the nearest hover tank, (Y/N) flexed her extended wrist and watched a charging Outrider drop to the ground, entirely encased in red electricity emanating from the Widow Bite fused to its neck. “Hey, (Y/L/N), how much for the fancy bracelets?”

(Y/N) rolled her eyes and continued to fight without glancing over at the nearby raccoon. “They’re not for sale, Rocket.”

“What about the batons?”

Kneeling atop a sizable chunk of concrete, Bucky fired his gun and managed to spare (Y/N) a brief smile in between shots. “You’ve got some weird friends, doll.”

“Not exactly the adjective I’d use, Mr. Stares-A-Lot,” Sam interjected as he flew overhead. “I was thinking something like handsome, funny, or devilishly charming. Or hell, why not all three?”

“…Yeah, I stand by my original statement, Pigeon-Wings.”

Steve shook his head in mild exasperation and summoned a bolt of lightning to destroy a diving cruiser. “Your best friend and my best friend really need to learn how to get along.”

The two of them continued to fight alongside one another, careful not to accidentally become separated as they battled Sakaarian troops, Chitauri soldiers and snarling Outriders. (Y/N) was busy firing a deadly Widow Bite at a charging Outrider and Steve was disarming a Chitauri soldier when Clint’s panicked voice rang through their comm links. “Cap! What do you want me to do with this damn thing?”

(Y/N) kicked a defeated Sakaarian away and frantically scanned the chaotic battlefield around her, eyes widening when she finally spotted the archer sprinting through the pandemonium with the Infinity Gauntlet clutched tight in his arm. “Oh shit.”

“Get those stones as far away as possible!” Steve shouted into his comm, holding an Outrider at bay with his broken shield and summoning Mjolnir to finish it off before tossing its carcass aside.

“No!” Bruce batted the Outrider’s corpse away with his good arm and vehemently shook his head. “We need to get them back where they came from!”

Tony’s voice suddenly crackled through their comms as he blew up a hover tank nearby. “No way to get them back; Thanos destroyed the Quantum Tunnel.”

“Hold on!” In the distance, Scott shrank down and vanished from view before continuing. “That wasn’t our only time machine.”

The familiar notes of ‘La Cucaracha’ suddenly played throughout the battlefield and after exchanging matching looks of surprise, (Y/N) and Steve scaled a mound of debris to look out at the sprawling, wreckage-filled crater spread out before them. “Anyone see an ugly brown van out there?”

“Yes!” Brunnhilde’s voice replied through their comms. “But you’re not gonna like where it’s parked!”

Steve cursed under his breath and pointed with Mjolnir towards the far end of the crater; Scott’s van and their original Quantum Tunnel was located well behind enemy lines, completely surrounded by transport ships and hordes of Outriders, and the darkened sky above was populated by Chitauri-manned cruisers and Sakaarian gunships. (Y/N) frowned and her brow knit in worry as she considered their new mission; keeping the stones away from Thanos long enough for Scott to prepare the Quantum Tunnel and return them to their original timelines wouldn’t be easy, even with their impassioned forces to assist them, but certainly not impossible. All we have to do is hold onto our hope, (Y/N) thought with silent determination as she recalled the advice Natasha had given her in her final message.

“Scott, how long you need to get that thing working?”

“Um, maybe ten minutes.”

Steve’s jaw tightened with anticipation as he ordered, “Get it started, we’ll get the stones to you.”

“We’re on it, Cap.”

Recognizing Hope Van Dyne’s voice from S.H.I.E.L.D.’s old video logs from Pym Technologies, (Y/N) smiled thinly and secured her batons together before bringing a hand up to her comm link. “Good luck, you guys.”

Steve moved to stand in front of her, his expression filled with firm resolve as he leaned down to meet her gaze. “Clint’s never gonna get that gauntlet to the Quantum Tunnel by himself, and Scott and Hope can’t prep the van and clear the area at the same time.”

“Then I’ll go help Clint while you work on clearing the area.” Although wary of splitting up, (Y/N) knew that between the two of them, Steve was better equipped to take on the swarm surrounding the broken-down van while she could be of more use getting the gauntlet to Scott and Hope. Judging by the look in his azure eyes, Steve knew it too and after a wordless nod, he ducked down and captured her lips in a brief but bruising kiss that she was quick to return. “Stay safe, sweetheart,” (Y/N) breathlessly pleaded when they separated. “Whatever it takes.”

“You too, sunshine. Whatever it takes.” Her husband pressed another firm kiss onto her lips and took a reassuring breath before turning and sprinting off into the fray.

Taking a reassuring breath of her own, (Y/N) wrenched her connected batons apart and took off in the direction she’d last seen the archer, doing her best to ignore the foreboding feeling slowly taking shape in the pit of her stomach as she ran.

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

Xhosa Translations: Sithandwa sam-My darling Bast ukukhusela wena-May Bast protect you Yibambe!-Hold fast!

A/N: Stay tuned for next chapter’s thrilling conclusion to the Battle of Earth, and bring lots of tissues! 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/5L6MERx3PIydW3FyNPqYvl?si=ad6c46de8e954c11

Chapter Nine-Part II

“Endgame” Masterlist

Tagging: @mrs-obrien​​​​​​​​​ @lahoete​​​​​​​​​ @awkward117 @cminr​​​​​​​​ @natdrunk​​ @momc95​​​​​​​​​ @savedbystyle​​​​​​​​​ @miraculouscloud @awkwardnesshabitat​​​​​​​​​ @marinettepotterandplagg​​​​​​​​​ @mangosandmimosas​​​​​​​​ @supersouthy @benakenalove​​​​​​​​​ @brooke0297​​​​​​​​​ @hufflepeople​​​​​​​​​ @becausewelie​​​​​​​​​ @outoftheregular​​​​​​​​​ @junipermurdock​​​​​​​​​ @ladydmalfoy​​​​​ @mads-weasley​​​​​​​​​ @username23345 @crist1216​​​​​​​​​ @capswife​​​​​​​​​​ @lilmschild​​​​​​​​​​ @avngrsinitiative​​​​​​​​​ @crowleysqueenofhell​​​​​​​​​​ @y-napotat​​​​​​​​​ @mary1raven​​​​​​​​​​ @groovy-lady​​​​​​​​​​ @ljej95​​​​​ @innersublimefury​​ @prettysbliss​​

#stumblin' in #steve rogers x reader #captain america x reader #steve rogers #captain america #tony stark #iron man #thor odinson #clint barton #hawkeye #bruce banner #sam wilson #falcon #bucky barnes #the winter soldier #wanda maximoff #scarlet witch #t'challa #okoye #valkyrie #scott lang #ant man #peter parker #spiderman #war machine #carol danvers #captain marvel #guardians of the galaxy #thanos #marvel cinematic universe

[liyawritesss]

ɪ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ʟᴏᴠᴇᴅ ʏᴏᴜ ꜱɪɴᴄᴇ ᴡᴇ ᴡᴇʀᴇ ᴇɪɢʜᴛᴇᴇɴ ;; ᴘᴛ ɪᴠ

ʏᴏᴜ ᴍɪɢʜᴛ ᴡɪɴ ꜱᴏᴍᴇ, ʙᴜᴛ ʏᴏᴜ'ᴠᴇ ᴊᴜꜱᴛ ʟᴏꜱᴛ ᴏɴᴇ ;; ᴘᴛ ɪ

Characters: MCU!Shuri Udaku x Black!Masc!Reader

Type: Fic

Word Count: 13.3k

Synopsis: T’Challa’s first mission as an Avenger is to raid an American science facility for information on the whereabouts of an important Wakandan artifact, but it quickly turns into a rescue mission when he sees the horrors happening behind closed doors.

Warnings: cursing, allusions of racism, sexism, misogynoir, medical and scientific malpractices, inhuman experimentations, mentions of an extensive amount of surgeries done on reader, mentions of malnourishment,

A/N: This ones a long one, yall, so strap in and get your snacks cuz you’ll be sitting for a minute! This goes a little into detail about the extent of readers origins and the torture she endured as a lab experiment, so…black trauma there. Besides “lovely” all the other suggested songs are for the infiltration and fight scenes. Suggested songs to listen to: “Drip” by Cardi B & Migos, “HUMBLE” by Kendrick Lamar, “Snakes” by PVRIS & MIYAVI, “lovely” by billie eilish & khalid.

Tags: @inmyheadimobsessed @badass-dora-milaje @babyboiboyega @verachii @heartsforjojo @letitias-fav @kingstormpostsshit @shurismainbxtch @zayswriting @rxcently @nzia-writes @writingintheshadowsforever @hufflehans @kokichiis7 @xxmilli @typicalme111 @zestgodtj @generallysapphic @ziayamikaelson @shuriszn @yvxmpire @justariellove @n7cje

13 years ago. June 5th, 2012. Upstate New York

T’Challa is a man who has only ever been nervous a handful of times in his life.

The first time he remembers being ridden with anxiety - not the kind where one has small doubts of their abilities, or the kind where the feeling of diffidence is light, but the kind where literally every part of your being is struck with the blinding stiffness of apprehension - was during his initiation ceremony to become the Black Panther. The transferring of mantles from his father, T’Chaka, to him, was an event that was long discussed by the pair. It was a common occurrence since the days of the Great Bashenga, where the  Black Panther mantle was passed down from warrior to warrior with the blessing of Bast, the Great Panther Goddess. Having witnessed the ritual be performed by his father as a young child, and then the stripping ritual as a young adult, T’Challa witnessed the discomfort and pain his father endured, and could only imagine the terrors that would have been occurring in his mind at that time.

It was a painful ritual, one that tested the mind, body, and soul, in order to determine the worthiness of the mantle’s succession. If one failed, they could very much die. It was this very knowledge that made T’Challa nervous.

That same bubbling feeling blooms at the pit of his stomach as he sits across from Steve Rogers. Okoye and Aneka stand at either side of him clad in black with wide, thick gold necklaces adorning their necks, bold red lipstick and protective stances posed. He isn’t sure why, but the man has never not trusted his gut on his suspicions, and his gut was telling him that something was off. Maybe not in this very instance, but there was something T’Challa could not identify as the cause of this anxiousness pooling in his stomach. That alone made the feeling worse.

“Your Highness,” Steve greets. He sports a blue button up with khakis and brown boots, his blonde hair swept to the side in a professional look. ‘Very American’ as Okoye once said about the superhero.

“Captain,” T’Challa respondes, with a slight bow of his head in acknowledgement of the other man in front of him. The Crowned Prince is simple in his attire as he has always been - a thin, long sleeved shirt, dark green in color, paired with black pants and a pair of shoes Shuri had designed for him on the account of a lost bet between the two. The ring on his finger, passed down his father to him, adorns his left middle finger, and T’Challa takes to twisting the jewelry in circles in an attempt to ground himself.

“I apologize for the short notice,” Steve says, gesturing to the manilla file in his hand, “We just got word of this yesterday. Felt it would be appropriate to have you handle this.”

Steve slides the folder of files across the table to T’Challa, and the prince passes glances between the folder and Steve, before opening it and revealing its contents. “It sounded urgent.”

T’Challa likes to keep his words short and brief in settings like this. This affiliation of his with the Avengers is one of convenience. Whether or not Steve Rogers knew this was not a matter he could concern himself with, but if it is one thing T’Chaka has taught the crowned prince, it is that respect is given where credit is due. And Steve has saved countless lives in his time as hero, and T’Challa would give him that credit.

“We got word of this group called the Marine and Naval Research Support Corps, MNRSC for short,” T’Challa listens to the blonde man as he flips through the papers in the folder, scanning over the contents inside, “they’re a research group affiliated with the US Navy and Marine Corps, performing research on all things pertaining to the Marine and Navy, especially their battle strategies and combat data and statistics. But one of our retcon people caught wind of something on our radars that seemed…concerning, regarding their practices.”

“With all due respect, Captain,” T’Challa begins, “if it was something caught on your radar, should it not be handled by you and your team? Why contact me?”

“Because their practices include vibranium.”

As T’Challa turns to the next page, his eyes confirm Steve’s words as his eyes settle on a drafted image of an item, then shift over to the description on the side. It appears to be a statue of a feminine entity, and in the descriptions, it reads that this particular item was determined as a worship artifact of a particular water goddess of ancient Wakanda.

“Mami Wata,” T’Challa murmurs out, immediately recognizing the deity in question of which the statue is modeled after. Okoye and Aneka glance at each other from the corner of their eyes at this newfound information.

Mami Wata, otherwise referred to by Wakandan’s as Water Goddess, is the sovereign deity of the waters. She is a formidable deity, as T’Challa had learned much about the old pantheon of his country in his youth. The Water Goddess was known not only for her immense influence over waters and oceans, but also for sexuality and one's credence in their own sensual nature, healing in the cases of mental, physical, spiritual, and generational, and an unwavering sense of justice.

“This statue was found in a description of an encrypted message file that one of our retcon people were able to partially decode,” Steve begins again, “and it appears that this statue is made with vibranium in it. It isn’t clear as to why this group has it, or what they’re doing with it, but I figured you should be the first to know. This ball is in your court, Prince T’Challa.”

The brewing anxiety in the pit of his stomach just grew a little bit more.

T’Challa closes the case file, his hand lying flat against the pale yellow folder. His father’s ring catches his attention, the intricate design on it is a reminder of his position as Wakanda’s Protector. Taking this case isn’t an option; it’s a requirement.

“Thank you for bringing this information to our attention,” T’Challa hums, as he hands the manilla folder to Okoye on his right, and he stands up from the table, “We will see that this artifact is returned to its rightful home.”

Steve raises at the same time as T’Challa, ready to bid the man farewell, as he outstretches his hand to the Wakandan royal for a farewell handshake, “I expect nothing less from you.”

Aneka and Okoye watch Steve’s movements intently, ready to pounce and guard if the American superhero dared to show ill intent in his movements. It is an expectation of Steve’s, one he finds himself unintentionally testing whenever meeting with the prince like this. 

T’Challa gestures for the women to return as they were, going to shake Steve’s hand and return the gesture of respect. The hand shake lasted for a moment too long, as T’Challa made it a point to seek out Steve’s blue irises, holding a firm gaze as he spoke his next words.

“I need not remind you, Captain,” T’Challa speaks in a low, firm voice, unwavering, “my efforts are on behalf of my country. And so I will approach this situation as such.”

There’s a glint in Steve’s eye, and T’Challa describes it as one of mutual understanding. Understanding, in the fact that this affiliation was strictly one of business. T’Challa has no intention of acting on behalf of the Avengers. His people are his first priority, and so he will first and foremost have the protection of his people in his mind.

“Of course, Prince.” Steve replies, with a tone that can’t be distinguished between sarcasm or light venom, but it is a tone shared by both, nonetheless. Their hands separate, T’Challa bows his head once more, and he turns to leave with Okoye and Aneka following him. Those blue irises staring into his back bring a knowing smile to T’Challa’s lips; a small, barely noticeable one, but it is there.

T’Challa, Okoye and Aneka leave the Avengers headquarters located in upstate New York. It is a considerably more peaceful location than the hustle and bustle of the city, and it is among the very few praises he gives the Avengers team. Along the trail leading up to the main entrance are three shiny black jeeps in a single file line. Okoye and Aneka direct the Crowned Prince to the jeep in the middle - the ones in the front and back of the line hold two additional Dora Milaje in each one. The Prince’s Guard is a small, elite team of the most skilled warriors the Dora Milaje have to offer - young, graceful, and deadly. Aneka is normally assigned to the KingsGuard, but T’Chaka was firm in shifting the second-in-command’s position, wanting the utmost protection for his son during his visit in America.

The trio slip into the middle jeep, alerting the other Dora to start their respective vehicles. The three jeeps then drive off down the trail and onto the road, heading back into the overwhelming city of Manhattan.

There is a series of beeps that emit from T’Challa’s wrist. The prince raises his hand up to expose the kimoyo beads on his wrist, pressing the small metallic ball, answering the incoming call from his father - King T’Chaka. The two greet each other warmly, as family should, and the prince chuckles as his father mumbles about his inexperience with the technological instrument created by his dearest daughter, Shuri.

A few years ago, it was decided that with T’Chaka’s old age restricting his ability to perform in the field, he would need to pass down the mantle of Black Panther to his son, T’Challa. It had been an event talked about amongst the two for a long time, stemming from the princes’ youth. T’Challa, once he was of age, would take on the mantle and perform the duties his father once did. Allowing T’Chaka to rule as King, and T’Challa be named Wakanda’s Protector, would not only alleviate tension from the older man’s shoulders, but would provide the young prince much needed experience as next in line for succession of the monarchy. It was a decision well celebrated and well commended by many.

The sight of T’Chaka’s face, alive and in good health, brings a little comfort to the prince, who is still experiencing the leaping feeling of anxiousness in his stomach.

“So, how did the meeting with that Captain America go?”

The King’s voice could be heard from T’Challa set of kimoyo beads, the monarch surprising the prince with a call the moment the trio were back on the road towards Manhattan. Okoye drove, Aneka sat in the front passenger seat, and T’Challa was left in the back seat.

“It was good, my King,” T’Challa replied, “we have the location of the lost Wakandan artifact - the statue of the Water Goddess. Okoye, Aneka and I will prepare for extraction within the next few days.” There’s a lingering sense of subordination in T’Challa’s tone, which causes the king to sigh.

“Son, speak comfortably with me,” T’Chaka says, “I am your father before I am your king.”

T’Challa has only ever wanted to make his father proud. The weight of being Crowned Prince was not an easy load to carry. The young man worked very hard in his youth, and still does, to prove himself worthy of his position in line for succession. The weight of the Black Panther mantle was not an easy load to carry, either. T’Challa was still new to this position, still wet behind the ears and eager to please and prove himself capable of handling such a vast and consequential role. So it was only expected that the prince, in all his well-hidden nervousness, is a little too formal, a little too respectful, especially when addressing his father. This is a behavior that T’Chaka has time and time told his son was unnecessary.

“Sorry, Baba,” T’Challa apologizes, though he knows it won’t be long before he will be lightly reprimanded for such behavior again, “but yes, the meeting went well. We are heading back to the hotel now to plan our next moves.”

“That is good.” The King commends. “Do not stress, my son. You will perform excellently, as you have always done.”

T’Chaka’s words bring a boyish grin to T’Challa’s lips, the looming anxiety calming slightly. “Debrief me now, T’Challa. What have you learned from the Captain?”

It is a moment of teaching; T’Chaka was a fan of the concept of hands-on learning and on-the-field experience. He took every opportunity he could to assist in T’Challa’s growing agency and confidence in his role. He understands his son is still quite nervous with his newfound responsibilities, and as a good father, he extends a helping hand when needed.

T’Challa retrieves the manilla folder with the case in question, placing it in his lap to open the file to relay the information to his father.

“The Captain’s retcon team decoded an encrypted message about a particular statue being used by a military scientific research group known as the Marine and Naval Research Support Corps - MNRSC.” T’Challa scans through the papers once more as he recites the information to his father. “The Captain claims he has no knowledge as to why this group has this artifact, or how they have obtained it.”

“And what do you think, T’Challa?”

The prince paused for a moment, taking to tracing his father’s ring in thought.

“Do I believe the Captain is ignorant to this group’s motives and operations? There is a possibility. He has no reason to trust me, and I him. I believe it is only our mutual respect that guided his motive in relaying this information to me.”

T’Chaka releases a hum of approval, of which urges T’Challa to continue with his words. “And this military group?”

“Amongst many things, the Water Goddess is viewed as a protector. Assuming these scientists understand the power the great Water Goddess possesses, and the requirements needed for worship, they may assume that this statue is a sort of gateway to accessing a form of protection for their men out on the waterfront.”

“You give these Americans too much credit, my son,” T’Chaka hums once more, and although there is no holographic video view of his father in front of him, T’Challa can hear the sarcastic smile in his father’s voice, “The Great Water Goddess bends to no one, mortal or otherwise. We would be doing this group a favor and sparing them of her wrath.”

“Indeed.”

T’Challa bids his father farewell as the jeep comes to a halt, and Okoye voices that the trio has arrived at the hotel of which they resided in for the time being. Stepping out of the jeep, T’Challa holds the case file close to his chest, as he walks side by side with his General and Lieutenant and behind him the four other Dora warriors dressed the same, and enter into the five star hotel. 

In his mind, T’Challa is already brewing a cinematic of how this mission is to play out, and he would be careful to make sure it was a success. No matter what.

2001. Africa’s North-East Coast - Atlantic Ocean.

The Marine & Naval Support Research Corps is a sub-organization of the main branches of the Navy and Marine factions of the US army. Established in the early 1940’s during the height of World War 2, the MNSRC was created with the sole purpose of assisting the US Marines and Navy. In analyzing the effectiveness of battle strategies and statistics of combat data, the MNSRC presents new innovations for the valuable men and women who serve as Marines and Navy seamen.

That is, of course, what the world sees. The MNSRC, a valuable and critical asset to the function of the US military, has skeletons in the closet like any other government organization. 

For years, the organization has been trying to find a solution to increasing the success rates of their battle strategies. Being at sea, the vast unknown that lurked beneath the blue waters was largely unpredictable, and in the current world they lived in, the officials of this group wanted to preserve their numbers as best as possible. The risk of deploying skilled men and women out into the field who would serve better as protection for the US Coasts, and then having them die at the hands of the vast sea of unknowns, was too great. From studying the ancient worlds and their gods to pushing the limits of their technological pursuits, the MNSRC was thought to have exhausted all of their options, driving the high ranking officials into a corner.

Until an opportunity presented itself.

After stopping to refuel on the north-eastern coast of Africa, Navy seamen who inhabited the USS Water-Bearer, the largest of the Navy vessels under the MNSRC command, started reporting that they were seeing apparitions on the shoreline. Some reports were miniscule, seemingly brushed off as common faux-visions from the peripheral of their eyes. Others, however, brought a sense of dread aboard the ship.

One notable report, that of a Seaman Officer Sailor William Bolton, recalled spotting a woman standing above the waters, gracefully gliding against the blue currents. Naked, with a serpent like creature adorning her shoulders, Sailor Bolton recalled not feeling fear or dread during this ‘coincidental’ spotting - instead, he said that it was if this female apparition was beckoning him into the waters. “I felt at ease,” the sailor recalled, “like I was returning home from a long night at sea. No bad feeling or nothin’.”

Comparing this account to others, who specifically recalled being stricken with an inexplicable amount of fear at the sight of this female apparition, the higher ranking officers aboard the USS Water-Bearer grew intrigued. Upon speaking with the nearby village inhabitants, the identity of this mysterious woman was soon revealed. A goddess of the waters, one who’s strong belief of justice would only become partial in the presence of a member of the Lost Tribe.

Without disclosing their hypothesis, S.O.Bolton was approached by his lieutenant with an opportunity of a lifetime. To ascend to the next rank of Petty Officer, Bolton would have his exam done out in the field - he would dive into the waters they were currently stationed in, and retrieve an artifact that was said to have been ‘carelessly tossed overboard by another petty officer unbecoming of his status.’

With the new opportunity for higher authority and better pay, William Bolton manned a solo submarine into the waters of north-east Africa, a picture and the description of the item in question pulled up on the monitor screen for the seaman to better identify what he was looking for within the murky waters. The captain, commanders, commander-lieutenants, and lieutenant officers watched from above on their aquatic radars, tracking Bolton’s movements.

The theory posed was that the deity mentioned by the village folk, who’s worship statue laid somewhere beneath the heavy waters by the goddess’s choice, could be exactly what they were looking for. Desperate and with all other options exhausted, the military officers and researchers prayed that this would be their answer.

S.O. Bolton returned to the surface with the said statue. He died exactly one week later.

The statue was quickly handed off to the research team, as the supposed apparition sightings got worse for the Navy seamen.  The research team were able to contain the statue and its supernatural properties within a high-vibrational glass chamber, while the most skilled researchers did their best to uncover the statues secrets.

A much more sinister plot was on the way. Once back in America, the researchers were in need of a test subject. Lab rats would not work for this kind of experiment. They needed a human. Just one. 

And that task was left up to a Dr. Connor Warden, the lead researcher in this project. Dr. Warden was a man of science, so much so that good morals and basic humanity were qualities he greatly lacked. Dr. Warden lived by the concept that minor sacrifices were necessary for the advancement of the masses. Though, his idea of ‘minor sacrifices’ was highly debatable.

It became more prevalent when he returned back to his vessel with a heavily pregnant woman, with no known identity and in desperate need for cash. Under Dr. Warden’s false pretenses, the woman would receive her payout - at the cost of her own life and her unborn child.

It would not be long before the woman went into labor, and despite the long running list of possible labor and birth complications the unknown woman could endure, which would ultimately lead to her death, Dr. Warden still approved the emergency cesarean section. The doctor was exceptionally close to having his plan be put into motion, and would not allow minor complications to disrupt his trajectory.

The doctor himself performed the C-Section, of which the unidentified woman died from, but Dr. Connor Warden did not feel remorse for his actions. In his eyes, this minor sacrifice was for the greater good of the protection of the country.

Project MA-WA could finally begin.

June 19th, 2012. Boston Harbor Islands.

“Ugh. The stench here is infuriating.”

Okoye’s slick comment causes T’Challa and Aneka to snicker as the three make their way into the check-in kiosk. She is right, however. There was a potent smell of alcohol and overpriced cologne that polluted the air. Complimentary of the fact that there was nothing but white men too stuck in their egos and too prideful of their professions, masking their insecurities with money and liquor and copious amounts of poorly chosen body fragrances.

“Play nice, General,” T’Challa reminded, “we will not be here longer than need be.”

Tonight’s plan was sure to go off without a hitch, T’Challa thought. The MNRSC was holding a party to celebrate the completion of their new innovation to protect Marines and Navy seamen, of which would not have been possible without the Wakandan artifact the trio were there to retrieve. 

T’Challa, Okoye, and Aneka, under disguises as MNRSC scientists, would infiltrate the party, locate the artifact on the bottom deck of the ship, and make their escape into the waters below, where the quinjet lay invisible and ready for extraction. It was, in hindsight, a fairly simple mission - Okoye and Aneka would keep up appearances while T’Challa did the difficult part of searching the ship’s bottom levels for the said statue. With the careful and meticulous planning of the three, nothing could go wrong.

“Okay, Dr. Gurira and Dr. Kasumba,” T’Challa hummed, addressing Aneka and Okoye by their respective undercover names, “are we ready to see what MNRSC has declared their newest innovation of military protection?”

“Of course, Dr. Boseman.” Aneka responded.

After swiping their key cards with their undercover identities’ information encoded within, the three were then welcomed onto the USS Water-Bearer by doting staff members who expressed their desire for them to enjoy the night. Once aboard the ship, the bright lights that contrasted against the night sky and the seemingly innocent chitter-chatter of people enveloped the three Wakandan natives, who immediately began scanning the area of the vessel to start their infiltration. T’Challa nodded for Okoye to trek to the left to the main deck of the ship, where a group that surrounded one of the researchers part of this infamous project was located. For Aneka, the prince gestured for her to head straight to the food bar, knowing that her easy going demeanor would attract the important people.

As for T’Challa, the prince found himself walking to the bar, the perfect place with an excellent view of the rest of the venue. He orders a glass of bourbon on the rocks, and starts his people-watching.

From the glasses that rested on the bridge of his nose, T’Challa is able to get a better view of the party guests. Another brilliant invention of his little sister, Shuri, who was all but eager to hand him the pair before he set out to America a few weeks prior. ‘They have facial recognition detectors,’ he remembers the eleven year old girl chirping proudly as she handed him the case, ‘so you can see bad guys from far away!’ The young child would receive his thanks tenfold when the prince returned from this mission, T’Challa decided.

Many of the scientists at the party were not core members of Project MA-WA, much less associated with the project at all. Of the vastness of the partygoers, he was only able to spot five - two had been talking with Okoye and Aneka each, and one that was approaching him now. The famed Dr. Connor Warden-

Wait, why is he approaching T’Challa?

“You must be fresh meat, aye?” The doctor chimes as he takes a seat next to the prince at the bar, ordering himself a two shots of vodka - no chasers - making himself comfortable. “New recruit?”

“Fresh off the training boat,” T’Challa joins, putting on his perfected American accent, reaching out a hand to the lead scientist, “Doctor Chadwick Boseman, sir.”

“Welcome aboard, Boseman!” Dr. Warden cheers, charisma shining through his pearly white teeth and his neatly ironed lab coat, though T’Challa can see from the information displayed on his glasses, that this man is far from friendly. His charisma is a double edged sword - entertaining and sinister.

“My superiors are fans of your work,” T’Challa lies, though it comes out as natural as the truth would, “and I have to say I follow right behind them. You’re known pretty well in this field.”

“Buttering me up ain’t gettin’ you nowhere, kid,” Dr. Warden chides, but T’Challa can tell that it all but fuels his ego, “but you’re superiors and you got taste. I’ve been working in this field a long time, and let me tell you, what we’re about to disclose tonight about Project MA-WA is going to be the height of American innovation!”

“Is that so?” T’Challa edges, taking a sup of his liquor while the scientist before him downs his shot of vodka with ease. “If I wasn’t eager to know before, I sure am now. I wouldn’t expect anything less from the best.”

“Ah, that's what I like to here!” Dr. Warden chuckles, T’Challa’s subordination further fueling the white man’s ego.

“Now that is an interesting piece of jewelry you got there,” Dr. Warden hums as he examines the panther claw necklace that adorns T’Challa’s neck and chest, the warm lighting reflecting off of the jewelry, making it stand out against his shirt. Another one of Shuri’s inventions, a prototype that she begged the man to try on specifically for this mission. It was supposed to help with the panther suit transformation efficiency - though, as Shuri explained, ‘Baba’s is old and tacky and ugly! Mine's so much better!’

“Ah, this thing,” T’Challa begins, coming up with a creative diversion on the spot, “this was a gift from my baby sister, Letitia. She’s really into panthers. They’re a pretty big deal where we come from.”

“You sure your sister isn’t a scientist too?” Dr. Warden asks, which makes T’Challa’s stomach tighten ever so slightly as the question reaches a bit too close to home. “She’s got a knack for design, and we always need more black women on the team, as the higher ups say. Faux diversity and what not.”

“Ah, no. Letitia is more of an….artsy person.” T’Challa hums in response, and there’s a moment of static sounding in his ears before Okoye’s voice is heard through his invisible ear comms. “Please let there be a time of which I can gut that man.” She grunts in disgust, and it takes everything in T’Challa not to verbally agree with the general.

“He insults the princess’s very intelligence,” Aneka sounds in his other ear, “as if she has not done more in her years than he. To be bested by an eleven year old would surely put his ego into ruins.”

It would indeed, and as much as the thought amuses T’Challa, he would have to entertain it later. 

“You know, you remind me of a recruit we used to have.” Dr. Warden says, though his words come out in a particular tone that T’Challa can’t quite pinpoint. 

“Really?” He replies, playing along. “I get that a lot. Guess I’m a universal soul or somethin’ like that…who was it, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Ah, I can’t remember the guy. Was a long time ago, though,” Dr. Warden responds, and T’Challa’s stomach begins to fill with a slight sense of dread as the older scientist continues to talk, “Wasn’t one of mine. He was a Navy seaman. Honestly, without his sacrifice, Project MA-WA wouldn’t even exist!”

“Sacrifice? He must have been a real supporter of your cause.”

“Supporter, I don’t know about that. Boy was just a new recruit for the few months he was on the Water-Bearer. We stopped at a port in North East Africa to refuel and the seamen started saying they were seeing things.”

T’Challa hums as he continues to nurse the drink in his hand, intrigued by this not-so-newfound information. “Seeing things? Hope you weren’t out at sea for too long for that to happen.”

“Not even. Spooked a couple of people with the reports we were getting. But the guy, ah…Bolton! Bolton was his name - said when he was seeing it, it wasn’t fear or anything compared to what his comrades felt. The again, it’s Africa, the boy was probably feeling at home, but that's besides the point-”

“He is definitely the type to enjoy hearing himself speak,” Aneka says in an exasperated tone, already tired of the story despite its vitality.

“Stay alert, my prince,” Okoye warned, “this is too easy. It could be a trap of his own. Take his words lightly, and remember your position.”

T’Challa hummed, it being a response to the General voicing her concerns in his left ear, acknowledging Aneka’s frustrations in his right, and gesturing for the man in front of him to continue.

“The lieutenant sent the boy into the ocean to retrieve an artifact the locals said had been hidden in the waters for years. We got it, kid died a week later. But minor sacrifices like those, they’re necessary for the advancement of the masses. Well, I’m sure I’m not telling you anything you haven’t heard from your own superiors.”

T’Challa didn’t like the way he not only brushed over the poor seamans death as if it were nothing to talk about, but also how he mentioned the concept of sacrificing for the majority. It wasn’t a concept he was unfamiliar with, but one he wished was as avoidable as it was acceptable. Dr. Warden’s overall indifference to the matter only furthered the aching in the prince's stomach. 

“But what we got on this ship right here,” Dr. Warden concluded, staring right into T’Challa’s eyes as if he was trying to pierce into his soul (and perhaps he was successful, because T’Challa started to hold his breath as his conversation with this scientist continued), “it’s gonna change everything. The only living prototype that would change the way we protect our military, our country, lies right beneath our feet. And you’re gonna be apart of the next generation of scientists who not only get to cultivate it, but watch it multiply.”

That right there made the lump in T’Challa’s throat thicken. And as he bid the older scientist farewell as he made his way to another group of people, probably to retell the same story again in a more chipper tone, the prince’s desire to retrieve this artifact and leave grew. Suddenly, the prince wasn’t too confident in his own plan.

“-alla? Prince T’Challa, can you hear us?”

Okoye’s concerned voice breaks T’Challa from his stiff inattention, bringing the prince to the sudden realization that there may be more to this extraction mission than what was originally left to believe.

“Aneka, Okoye, keep up appearances on the main deck,” T’Challa says firmly, a sudden eagerness stirring inside the man as he stands up from the bar stool, his drink finished, “I’m going to head below.”

“Are you sure, my prince?” Aneka sounds worried as well, the sinister words of the lead scientist making her own skin prickle, and if she’s affected, she knows for sure that T’Challa is as well. “Perhaps one of us should-”

“No.” T’Challa says firmly, leaving no room for argument. “The less, the better. And quite frankly, I do not have a good feeling about this extraction mission.”

Okoye, who’s frame is nearly covered by a few bodies belonging to MNRSC scientists, is able to make eye contact with T’Challa who sits across from her at the bar, as well as Aneka, who’s positioned herself along the ship railing, maintaining a fixed position and keeping an eye on the two Project MA-WA scientists who had come up to her. Although hesitant, they all shared a knowing look, understanding T’Challa’s standpoint. 

“We are here if you need us, my prince.”

And it’s all T’Challa needs to set out on his own. He maintains his cool, greeting people he passes by with a smile and a warm acknowledgement, under the guise of making his way to the bathroom. He pushes his glasses further up the bridge of his nose, and as he makes his way to the designated toilet, he takes mental note of the amount of security officers  that litter certain points of the hallway.

There are five that T’Challa notes on his way to the bathroom - three in the hall of the bathrooms, one for the mens, womens, and gender-neutral rooms, one that stands at the entrance of the hallway, and one that guards another unlabeled door at the end of the hallway. The prince slips into the mens room, the single bathroom providing him enough obscurity to enact the first part of the plan.

“Alright, dear sister,” the princes mumbles to himself as he taps one of the beads on his wrist to open up a holographic screen, revealing a map of the ship, highlighting the amount of security guards on each floor, “lets see how well this update of yours works.”

T’Challa taps on the five security guard images on the screen, and an option appears on the screen to corrupt their individual ear comms. The prince enacts this command, and after a moment of processing, a box appears on the holographic screen with a voice alternant. T’Challa saves his surprise for later, but an impressed smile makes its way onto his lips nevertheless. T’Challa begins to speak, and while his voice is heard within the bathroom walls, through the security guards’ comms it comes out as the voice of Dr. Conor Warden.

“Security needed on the main deck. We’ve got a potential stowaway.”

Within seconds, T’Challa hears a series of footsteps pass by the mens room’s door, and to make sure that there aren’t any remaining bodies left, he presses his ear to the door to listen intently. After a moment of silence, T’Challa carefully opens the door, peeks his head outside, before quickly making his way to the unlabeled door and entering inside, closing the door carefully behind him.

The hallway is dimly lit, due to the fact that there wasn’t supposed to be anyone past this point. T’Challa continues his descent into the ship, checking the map displayed from his wrist every now and then to make sure he was going the right way. He notices that the further he descends into the ship, the less security guards there seem to be. Despite the man ducking into dark corners and skillfully avoiding the lurking eyes of the security guards he does pass, there is an unsettling feeling in his stomach that urges the prince to tread lightly. He was beginning to agree with Okoye’s words - the leniency of security of such an important military project was fairly unusual. Part of him wants to believe that maybe the MNRSC really were so confident, they didn’t expect to have their sins catch up to them. But T’Challa knows better, which is why he has his suit on standby if things go awry.

T’Challa finally reaches the bottom level, and ironically, there is only one door within the hallway, and according to the map displayed from his kimoyo beads, that door leads to the laboratory where the Water Goddess statue was located. And guarding that door were four security personnel, much more military-equipped than the previous guards he was able to evade. T’Challa would have to try a new tactic to remove these guards from their posts.

Looking around his current surroundings, the prince spots an unnaturally placed, bright red bouncy ball a few feet away from him. Although confused on why exactly a child’s toy is on the ship of a high-ranking military research group, T’Challa disregards the thought for now and decides to use the toy to his own advantage.

The security guards are startled when the sound of the bouncy ball rings throughout the corridor, the appearance of the toy causing the four of them to look at each other quizzingly. One guard volunteers to check around the corner, and with his gun raised, he bounds around the corner, disappearing from the view of his comrades. The guard sees nothing, but as he lets his guard down, a black shadow from above takes advantage of his mistake.

There’s a scuffle and muffled grunts which catches the attention of the three other guards, and the three jump in unison as they see their comrade get thrown into the wall, unconscious, his gun sliding across the shiny floor, emptied.

Confused and cautious, the next two guards make their way to disappear around the corner. Once again, there are shared grunts and shouts, before the two receive the same fate as their previous comrade.

The last security guard, thoroughly frightened but bound by the code of his career, leaves his post to face the unknown that lurks behind the corner. His fright only increases when he sees nothing in the corridor, except for the red bouncy ball that had rolled its way back to its original position amidst the commotion. Sensing a presence behind him, the security guard goes to turn around, but is quickly knocked out before he has a chance to see who the perpetrator is.

With the current opposition defeat, T’Challa sighs, shaking the pain out of his knuckles from the amount of punches he had to deliver. He didn’t want to use his Black Panther strength, much less the suit prototype that lay dormant in the panther claw necklace around his neck, hoping to complete the mission without unnecessary force. He found out quickly that the wish to not use of his increased strength was not an option.

Stepping around the strewn bodies, T’Challa makes his way to the now unguarded door. He presses his kimoyo beads to the number lock system that replaces the handle, and after a series of beeps and flashing of random number combinations in red, there is a long beep and on the tiny screen there is a series of numbers that flash in green, signaling that the door was unlocked.

T’Challa pushes through the door gently, now putting himself on a timer to retrieve what he came for and leave before his actions and identity are discovered.

The sight of the room wasn’t impressive compared to the grand laboratory in Wakanda. The machines were mediocre in assembly, and the entire room felt dark and dank, the scenery reminiscent of an evil lair out of a comic book. The low hum of electricity echoes out through the empty room, and aside from that and the audible footsteps from T’Challa’s tip-toe walking pace, there was an unnerving, eerie silence that filled the room. 

T’Challa’s eyes first land on a glass container which contains the Water Goddess statue, submerged in an unidentifiable, clear liquid. Certain lines of the carving glow a bright blue, the vibranium laced into the wood strong and unyielding. However, upon further inspection, T’Challa notices that connected to the container are a series of wires, which trail down to a vitals monitor which sounds low beeps in evenly timed intervals. From the monitor, the prince’s eyes follow yet another set of wires, and T’Challa’s eyes widen in consternation at what he saw.

His feet carried him closer to a table, and on said table of which the monitor wires were connected to, was a young African American girl. She looked no older than his own sister, with kinky black hair done in two messy french braids, skin virtually drained of its melanin and leaving a ghostly brown pigment in its wake, and frail to the touch. She was unconscious, the child’s breath labored in her slumber, and T’Challa now understands the persistent pool of distress that had made itself home in his stomach for the past few weeks.

T’Challa is sick to his stomach. This was the newly completed project Dr. Connor Warden referenced. He recalls that sick doctor’s words of minor sacrifices and the slick comment on black women recruitment, lathered in every -ism the prince could think of. 

‘The only living prototype that would change the way we protect our military, our country, lies right beneath our feet.’

T’Challa’s hands wrap around the medical bed’s rails, his grip incredibly tight, surely leaving dents in the metal due to his enhanced strength.

‘And you’re gonna be apart of the next generation of scientists who not only get to cultivate it, but watch it multiply.’

“Prince T’Challa, have you made it to the lab yet?”

T’Challa doesn’t respond right away, although he knows Okoye would call for him again in mere seconds. He’s caught in a crossroad decision, and he’s back into a tighter corner when he hears the sounds of more soldiers approaching from the corridor.

This was not how this mission was supposed to go.

“T’Challa, are you there-?”

“Okoye, Aneka, listen to me closely,” T’Challa begins, and ass the voices of more security guards begins to grow louder, the prince dawns his Black Panther suit, the nanites emerging from the panther claw necklace adorning his chest and covering his entire body in sleek black, “there will be a change of plans.”

“T’Challa, are you alright? Should we assist you?” Aneka asks, but the prince all but ignores her as he quickly conjures up a plan of action.

“Things have just gotten a little more complicated. The artifact is not the only thing we have to worry about now.”

“My prince, what do you mean? What have you discovered-?”

“Return to the quinjet-” a loud banging sounds on the metal door - the security guards are trying to force their way in, and they’re nearly there, “-and wait by the rear of the ship for my signal-”

If Aneka or Okoye were spluttering protests, they fell on deaf ears, as T’Challa’s attention shot from the young girl to the now detached door, armed with security officers flooding the threshold and into the laboratory.

“-go. Now!”

In T’Challa’s attempt at blocking the young girl's body from an onslaught of bullets directed at him, he tipped the bed on its side, causing the girl to land onto the cold, hard floor, but at least the metal underside of the bed now shielded her from any harm. The prince, now fueled with an unbridled sense of rage, began to tear through the mass of military personnel sent to disarm him. His suit repelled the bullets, causing them to ricochet off of his person and into the nearby walls. A few bullets flew to the glass container housing the Water Goddess statue, causing glass shards, clear liquid, and the statue to fall to the floor.

T’Challa decides to use this to his advantage, back-trekking across the puddle and leading a few of the unsuspecting military officers right into the puddle created, slipping and falling hard on the concrete ground, discombobulating them. Two soldiers approached from his right, and T’Challa made quick work in disarming one, kicking one of them into a wall, and headbutting the other with the butt of the assault rifle of the previous soldier.

As soon as the second soldier fell, T’Challa’s kimoyo beads began to beep. Quickly flipping his wrist over, he all but groans as the caller ID reads the name of his beloved little sister.

T’Challa effortlessly punches an approaching officer, knocking him down with ease, as he begrudgingly answers the audio call, knowing that declining or ignoring wasn’t an option. T’Challa could not decline or ignore Shuri’s calls, a fault of his own due to his own love for his sister, and also because the young girl would find a way to simply hack into his beads and force him to answer anyway.

“Hi Big Brother!” Shuri’s chipper voice sounds in T’Challa’s ears, and if he weren’t in the midst of an onslaught of military soldiers charging at him, he would allow himself to smile at the innocent girl's greeting.

“Hi, Shuri,” T’Challa replies, trying his best to cover up his slightly heavy breathing, disguising his voice into a more carefree one, “Big Brother is kind of busy right now-”

“I know, I’m sorry, I know you are on an important mission-” the young princess apologizes, and for a moment T’Challa feels almost guilty, though he is reminded that such an emotion he cannot allow himself to feel right now. A soldier charges at him, and  T’Challa delivers a quick one-two to his opponent's chest, disarming him quickly and knocking him out with the same technique used on his previous victim, “-I just wanted to ask if my glasses were working for you?”

“Your glasses?” T’Challa hums, guarding himself from a soldier initiating close combat with him. 

“Oh, yes! Your glasses! They worked wonderfully, dear sister!” The panther superhero hurriedly replies, delivering a deep jab in the officer's gut with his knee, throwing him against a nearby wall and discarding him. “Aren’t I lucky to have such a genius sister who makes amazing technology for me?”

Shuri giggles with pride on the other end of his ear comms, and T’Challa’s chest swells with his own sense of pride, however, it is quickly short lived when a surprise perpetrator approaches the panther from behind, and slamming his back with a discarded sheet of metal. It knocks T’Challa to the ground, causing him to audibly grunt and wince from the impact.

“What was that? Are you hurt, T’Challa?”

The prince quickly brushes off his temporary pain, grabbing the ankle of his assaulter, dragging them to the ground with him, and as T’Challa takes hold of the soldiers collar, he makes quick work in replying to the clueless eleven year old on the other end of the line. “What? Me? Hurt? Never! The Black Panther never gets hurt!”

T’Challa slams the officer onto the ground, his head making harsh contact with the concrete floor, effectively knocking him unconscious as well. At this point the entire room is strewn with bodies, and whether they were simply unconscious are worse, wasn’t particularly on T’Challa’s mind. “Little Sister, I will call you back on my way home, Big Brother is still working.”

“Okay…” Shuri drawls out, and the older man could physically hear the pout his little sister is dawning right now, “call me later! So I can ask you about the suit!”

“Of course, Shuri. Gotta go now, behave yourself!” and with that, T’Challa quickly hangs up on the little girl, thankfully as the last remaining soldier foolishly charges at him. T’Challa doesn’t hesitate to sweep the soldier off their feet, snatch their assault rifle from their hands, and knock them out using the butt of the gun once more. Fatigued from his fight, but maintaining a calm composure for his surprise call, the panther discards the gun, turns on his heel, and retrieves the Water Goddess statue still lying on the ground, untouched during the scuffle.

Once retrieved, the prince turns to the overturned bed, and slowly approaches it. The closer he comes, the more clearly T’Challa hears what he deems to be sniffles. At first, his body stills, contemplating on what to do. There’s a short pause as T’Challa takes in his surroundings - and it is definitely not one to leave a child in. The prince moves closer, and peering over the side of the bed, he sees the same little girl, having regained her consciousness, curled into a tight ball, body racking with sobs and fright.  

Fuck, things really did just get very complicated.

“Hey,” T’Challa voices in the softest voice he can muster, but even then his voice causes the young girl to jump violently, scooting impossibly closer into the corner she’s holding herself up in. After a moment, the little girl raises her head slightly, one eye peeking from behind her knee, to see the large man clad in black hovering over her and her overturned bed. 

“I am not here to hurt you,” T’Challa begins, although he’s not sure if your young mind can comprehend such words. Others could have said the same, and turned on their word just as quickly as they were said, “I know you must be very scared right now. I would like to help you. Would you like that?’

Another moment passes before the little girl nods - it's a tight, curt shake of the head, filled with uncertainty, but there’s the tiniest glimmer of hope that shines in the eye T’Challa is able to see.

“Good,” the prince says, and with careful and slow movements, he reaches out his hand over the edge of the overturned bed, “take my hand, young one.”

There’s a looming hesitancy, but after several glances between T’Challa’s masked face and his gloved hand, the little girl slowly reaches out, and places her smaller hand into T’Challa’s larger one. In one swift movement, T’Challa pulls the girl onto his hip, and with the child and the statue in hand, he turns to the broken entrance of the laboratory.

Before he makes a move to leave, however, the prince looks down at the little girl clinging to him, and says, “You have to hold on to me extra tight now, young one. We are about to go really fast.”

The child nods, wrapping her arms around T’Challa’s neck tightly, her legs also tightening their grip on his hips, and once she is secure, T’Challa makes a mad sprint to the rear deck of the vessel, zooming up stairs and through doors and corridors. He calls on his ear comms for Okoye and Aneka to ready the position of the quinjet, and as he finally breaks onto the rear deck of the ship, fresh air filling his lungs and breezing past his form. T’Challa can practically taste freedom on the tip of his tongue. 

The prince approaches the railing, and peers downward into what the regular naked eye can see as water but there's a sharp and quick shimmer of electric blue that runs the shape of the familiar quinjet, letting him know that his ride home was just below. And as he goes to mount the banister, preparing to fall into the safety of the ship's opening, he is stopped by the same sinister voice that approached him at the bar earlier that evening.

“Are you really willing to risk everything for that thing?”

T’Challa refuses to turn around, for if he were to be face to face with that conniving doctor, the prince may not be able to contain his fury. He is unsure if his words are directed to the statue in his hand or the girl on his hip, but either case has T’Challa ready to tear this infamous Dr. Connor Warden apart.

“You can take her,” the doctor chuckles, his voice confident and lacking any sort of remorse, “you can hide her away or discard her, or keep her as your own; but wherever she goes, we will find her.”

Dr. Warden’s voice makes T’Challa’s being sick all over again, the way that he refers to this little girl who clings onto him for dear life, as an object of ‘innovation’. His bigoted words make much more sense - in fact, they shine in an even more sinister light than the Prince wants to acknowledge. His grip on the girl and the statue tighten.

“She is my creation. I will always find her.”

And for some reason, despite T’Challa knowing the risks of what he’s about to do, he smiles underneath his mask anyway.

“I would like to see you try.”

Dr. Warden’s lips curl into a smirk as well, recognizing loosely the voice of the man clad in black before him. He thinks he has the upper hand.

And with that, T’Challa mounts the railing, and with his faith placed in the Water Goddess and the Panther Goddess alike, he falls into the waters below.

June 20th, 2012. The Golden City, Wakanda.

T’Challa’s grip on the metal railing is all but a familiar one; tight and firm and the only barrier he has to keep his frustrations at bay.

He watches from an observation balcony as the more than skilled doctors of his country finish administering vital nutrients to the little girl he had saved mere hours before. At this moment she rests on a medical bed, but the prince had ordered she’d be reassigned to one of the guest chambers. Despite not disclosing the horrors he had witnessed in his extraction-turned-rescue mission, all it took was one look of his face, and there need be no more questions asked. There was a looming tension in the air around the Black Panther, but no palace or medical staff dared bring it into question, fearing that if they were to do so, the prince’s frustrations would unintentionally come out onto them.

Out of his peripheral vision, T’Challa sees one of the doctors he’s personally assigned to the young girl’s case. Doctor Umphilisi Wabantwana - Dr. Umphi, as she desired to be called - earned her degrees in many areas of childhood healthcare and development, and had even been the doula for Shuri when she was first born. They were not that far apart in age, the woman only having about five years on T’Challa, but one could not tell from her appearance. With radiant brown skin taken care of by daily use of shea butter (of which she always smelled of, no matter the time of day), and a smile that could cure any illness of the heart or mind, Dr. Umphi was as bright, youthful and energetic as a child herself, which was a good thing to have when working with children.

However, today, T’Challa was not greeted with the toothy smile that usually adorned Dr. Umphi’s face whenever the two met up. Solemness replaced the doctor’s usual warm and inviting demeanor, and it only made T’Challa more anxious about the news he was to receive.

“Dr. Umphi,” The prince greeted, straightening his stance and releasing his hold on the metal railing, opting to clasp them behind his back in an attempt to hide the fidgeting he was doing, “how are you?”

Dr. Umphi didn’t reply at first, as the clipboard in her hand held her attention until a few seconds after T’Challa finished his greeting. From her face alone, T’Challa could tell that the doctor was deep in thought, possibly debating on ways to disclose the information written on her clipboard.

It was a known fact that Dr. Umphi became very personal in her work. Dealing with children, it was hard not to get attached to the little ones that would leave her messy drawings and gift her stuffed animals to put on display in her office. For each child Dr. Umphi treated, for physical or mental reasons, she held a special place for them in her heart. And this child would be no different.

“To be quite honest with you, T’Challa,” Dr. Umphi begins, disregarding the use of his royal title as the two were in private, and she could do as such with the permission of the Wakandan royal, “I am shocked.”

T’Challa furrows his eyebrows, edging the doctor to continue. “Shocked that this child…that she is even alive.”

Dr. Umphi references her clipboard, pulling down the classes that rested at the crown of her head, of which was wrapped in a large, orange and green polka-dot headwrap, the excess of it being wrapped into a low bun at the back of her head. Hoop earrings dangled from her earlobes - a tribute to the African American fashion of the times that the doctor was becoming fond of.

“She is no older than eleven years, is severely under the recommended weight class of an average girl-” T’Challa unclasps his hands from behind him, instead choosing to cross them in front of his chest, one reaching across his body, the other arm’s elbow resting on the aforementioned arm, hand stroking his face as he listened on, “-mentally stunted from the result of inhumane captivity, and the amount of surgeries she’s endured - just where did you find this child?”

T’Challa heaves a sign, slowly closing his eyes only to reopen them again to Dr. Umphi’s own hazel irises, who all but begs with them to speak anything but the truth.

“On my mission to recover the missing Water Goddess statue…” the prince began, glancing down to the space below where you lay, unconscious, with other medical staff preparing to wheel you away into the designated aforementioned guest chamber, “she was there. Connected to it as if it were giving her life…”

“If she was connected to it in the manner you are describing, it is possible that was the case.” Dr. Umphi informs. “You were wise to bring her here. No American hospital could have treated her properly…”

“You mentioned surgeries?” T’Challa questioned, although it pained him to do so, the urge to know the extent of the torture you had endured overpowered his resolve. “Do you know how many?”

Dr. Umphi was silence, glancing down at her clipboard once more, but as she took her bottom lip in between her teeth and sucked in a deep breath, T’Challa knew she was hesitant to answer. “T-There wasn’t an exact number we could conclude, and given other circumstances-”

“Umphilisi.” T’Challa spoke firmly, his hand involuntarily closing into a fist. “How many?”

Dr. Umphi swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat, maintaining her gaze onto her clipboard to avoid the burning glare that T’Challa’s eye’s gave in her general direction. “One hundred…well over one hundred.”

The Black Panther had to restrain himself from releasing what could only be a sob, resulting in a sharp intake of air and his eyes glossing over in tears. He couldn’t even begin to imagine the horrors that child had faced, and what more she could have been subjected to if he had not been there to rescue her. Even if she was not the target of his mission.

“The amount of scar tissue and callus remnants concludes she had been experimented on…since her birth.”

T’Challa turns his body away from Dr. Umphi, hands rubbing down the length of his face and resting in a prayer position over his lips, eyes closed tight  and lips pulled into a tight line. The unbridled rage that coursed through his veins was vast and, scarily, unreadable.

“T’Challa,” Dr. Umphi calls to the man, who while he does not turn back to her, hums in acknowledgement of her call, “whatever the case may be, this child…she cannot return back.”

Of course T’Challa would never return the young girl back to whatever horrid people the MNRSC were. If he could, he would tear each member responsible for Project MA-WA limb from limb and have them endure the same torture they put that poor girl though tenfold.

Dr. Umphi rests a hand on T’Challa’s arm, pulling the man from his thoughts, his brown eyes clouded in fury.

“She cannot go back.”

Dr. Umphi’s words rang through the prince in a silent plea, piercing his bones so harshly that his clothes were not enough for the arctic-like chill that ran through his body. Though, deep down, T’Challa struggled with the fact that her return, despite the circumstances, wasn’t his call to make.

The ringing of his kimoyo beads reeled T’Challa into the present much more harshly than Dr. Umphi’s comforting touch, and as he had already been anticipating it, the prince excuses himself and retreats to a nearby meeting room to take the call privately.

He sets down the set of beads, and from it, a holographic version of Steve Rogers is emitted, and the blonde man is fuming, despite his efforts to not appear as such. T’Challa’s distress from earlier is shielded by a trained mask, one he would often sport around the american superhero. T’Challa’s seemingly nonchalant appearance only edges Steve on further.

“We had an agreement, T’Challa,” Steve begins, disregarding any form of greeting, his tone frustrated, “I give you information about the missing and misuse of vibranium and any artifacts, and you handle it-”

“Watch your tone with me, Captain,” T’Challa says through gritted teeth, his lips pulled into the same tight line that it was in earlier when speaking with Dr. Umphi, “and I do not recall falling back on such agreement. I handled what needed to be handled.”

“If you did, then why am I getting pop-up visits from MNRSC? Why are they saying something valuable was taken from them - something that wasn’t the statue we had agreed upon?”

T’Challa was silent. His gaze, although directed to Steve, was not on him, instead taking interest into the intricate lines of the mahogany table.

“T’Challa, what else did you take?” Steve presses. T’Challa releases a shallow breath, sucking his teeth.

“As I stated previously, I handled what needed to be handled. Nothing more, nothing less.”

Could that have been considered a lie? Within certain grounds, yes. Did T’Challa consider it a lie? Given the circumstances of the situation, he found no other way of deflecting Steve’s questions. Lying to the Avengers - especially given the agreement in place between the organization and T’Challa on behalf of Wakanda, was not a logical move on his part, but as the words slipped out of his mouth before the prince could catch them, and as reluctance began to settle into his bone, it was too late to take his words back. He would now have to speak carefully, but being back into a corner like this, T’Challa knew that the truth would be revealed all too soon for his liking.

“What are they saying went missing?”

Steve took a moment to respond, jaw flexing in annoyance at T’Challa’s behavior, but he does not speak on it. “An experiment of theirs. One apart of a Project MA-WA. The researcher wouldn’t spill anything else.”

T’Challa hums at himself with this newfound information, thinking that perhaps Steve was unaware of the truth behind Project MA-WA. Still, knowing the hero’s history, regardless of the many accomplishments he’s had, the prince cannot rule out Steve’s involvement just yet.

“What would make you think I acted outside of my boundaries, Captain?” T’Challa asks, crossing his arms in the same manner as he did when speaking to the doctor prior. “I am an honorable man. Have I not proven that much to you and your team?”

“This isn’t about honor, T’Challa,” Steve grunts, “whatever you took that wasn’t that statue, you need to return it. The repercussions are too great for this. There shouldn’t have been any incentive for you to operate out of orders like that; even if your honor was at play, even if-”

“-even for a child?”

Silence enveloped the room once more, as T’Challa stared and the blue holographic version of Steve, who had promptly shut his mouth from his ranting. There were many emotions that splayed themselves across Steve’s face - confusion, disbelief, shock, to name a few. But there was only one emotion written on T’Challa’s, one he did not want to admit was making a home inside of his bones, one that left a sense of heaviness in its wake whenever it would come crashing in waves.

T’Challa was enraged, and if anything, his eyes showed it very clearly.

“What’re you insinuating, T’Challa?”

“I insinuate nothing. I only ask you to take a moment and think, what could make a man so enraged as I am right now?”

Steve’s figure turned away from T’Challa, whether or not it was out of frustration, anger, or thought, the prince was unsure of, and couldn’t be bothered to care about.

“What would make a man such as yourself, enraged, if it is not the sight of your people, broken?”

Steve was caught in a corner, and T’Challa knew this. He could read the other’s body language, despite the holographic screen only showing the upper half of Steve’s waist. A light tremor ran through his arm, an indicator of his stress, and the darting of his eyes anywhere but on T’Challa was a sure sign of avoidance.

To some degree, Steve knew. And he sent T'Challa anyway. Steve Rogers - Captain America - set up the Black Panther. Yet, T’Challa can only thank Steve for doing so, for if he hadn’t, the prince would not have seen his true colors, and an innocent girl would have died within a short few days.

“That…is irrelevant,” Steve deflected, much to T’Challa’s chagrin, “it still stands that whatever you took, it needs to be returned-”

“-had you seen the horrors I saw…!” T’Challa grunts through gritted teeth. He takes a deep breath to calm his anger, threatening to spill over. “Had you seen what I had witnessed, I assure you your words would be different.”

T’Challa’s mask had cracked, and he cursed himself for allowing a man such as Steve Rogers see how easily he could get riled up when it came to a situation such as this. Nonetheless, the prince recomposes himself, returning his gaze to Steve, who at this point, is rubbing a hand down the length of his face, huffing an air of defeat.

“...or would they?”

T’Challa’s words spark another round of shock in the American superhero, and as Steve turns his body back to T’Challa in no doubt an attempt to defend himself, the prince beats him to it.

“I will say this one last time, and no more after.” T’Challa rests his open palms on the mahogany table, growing closer to the holographic screen as if he were face to face with Steve, so close that barely an inch of space was left between the prince and the soldier. 

“I handled what needed to be handled.”

The call ends abruptly at the sound of a knock at the door, the holographic screen shrinking back into T’Challa’s kimoyo beads, and for a moment, he is able to breathe. He hangs his head in miniscule relief, though as he has determined, it does not end long.

Regaining his composure, T’Challa straightens, fixes the jacket of his traditional kitenge suit, retrieves his kimoyo beads from the table, and turns to answer the door.

Okoye stands at the entrance, and her face tells T’Challa that he has yet another obstacle to face.

“Your father has requested your audience in the throne room, My Prince,” Okoye voices, her tone quiet yet firm, and it is an indicator that even she knows the storm that is about to take hold there.

T’Challa sports his mask again, despite having no time to rest, nodding towards Okoye as she escorts him to the room of which he has dreaded since his return.

T’Challa has a love-hate relationship with the throne room. He has experienced its overwhelming and enveloping walls many times before, as a child and as an adult. And yet with each stage in his life, the uncanny feeling of being swallowed by it has never faded. He remembers watching in admiration as his father ruled from the throne, firm yet compassionate, as his father had taught him, and how T’Chaka had taught  T’Challa. He remembers the childish gid that bubbled in his chest as he looked on from the balconies, imagining himself on the throne one day.

But to sit on a throne and be highly regarded did not make one a king, or queen, or royal. That much T’Challa had learned on his own, even before his father lectured him about the meanings of being king.

To be a king, there is no such thing as comfort. Such a concept is stripped from you the moment you dawn your crown, for if a king were to grow comfortable on his throne, then he would rule out of comfort, instead of vigor and dedication to his people.

T’Challa takes in a breath as he stands before the large double doors of the threshold, and he makes sure it is a deep one, unsure of when he would be able to breathe easily next.

The Dora that stand on either side of the door bang their spears on the floor, which in turn causes similar bangs to be heard from more Dora on the other side of the door. This was their signal that a presence was about to enter the throne room, and that all parties inside should direct their attention to the entrance to greet said presence. The doors creaked open, the blinding light from the sun shining through the large windows, cascading a short but prominent silhouette on the people in attendance.

Stepping inside, T’Challa takes note that this is no ordinary meeting. The leaders of each of Wakanda’s tribes - excluding the Jabari - sat in the half-circle formation, while T’Chaka sat atop his throne, and Queen Ramonda, his mother, sat on her own throne beside him.

T’Challa takes one look at his father as he steps to the center of the half-circle, and it all but causes the prince’s guilt to trigger.

“Prince T’Challa,” an announcer that stands to the left of T’Chaka exclaimed as an introduction, “son of King T’Chaka, grandson of King Azzurri, and Wakanda’s Protector, the Black Panther. You are hereby summoned today on the account of an abroad mission gone awry, resulting in the acquisition of an American scientific military research group’s experiment, and bringing them across borders and into Wakandan territory.”

T’Challa’s eyes fall closed as he takes in a sharper breath, preparing his defenses.

“You may now state your testimony.”

The prince opens his eyes again, and they lock onto T’Chaka’s, who is staring intently at his son. T’Challa is reminded that here, in this throne room, in front of the High Council, T’Chaka is his king before he is his father.

“I was sent on a mission in America to retrieve a lost artifact containing remnants of vibranium,” T’Challa begins, wringing his fingers with one another behind his back, “and as I went to retrieve the Water Goddess statue, I was met with a horrible sight. A young girl, no older than eleven years, strapped to a table with wires attached to her body. These same wires were connected to a glass containment, of which held the Water Goddess statue, and upon further inspection, I was led to believe that the statue provided a lifeline for this young girl. To take this statue would ultimately result in her…untimely death.”

T’Challa takes quick glances around to the faces of the council members, who revel at his recollection. He continues, “I was left with a difficult choice; allow the death of an innocent child whose only crime was said innocence…or rescue the child and the statue, bring her home for treatment, and deliberate on next steps. Given what I saw and…my own personal emotions, I chose the latter.”

There was a moment of silence that fell around the throne room, but even so, its thickness and density could be cut through with a knife.

As the council members shifted gazes to one another, the leader of the River Tribe stood to speak: “We are ever grateful for the return of the statue of our great Water Goddess, Mami Wata.” he spoke, voice thick with the River Tribe’s dialect mixed with the lisp developed from the lip plate in his mouth. “The Water Goddess manifests wealth and prosperity, of which our country has been privileged to receive for generations. Paired with this prince’s compassion and conviction, I see no harm in at least treating the young girl of whatever wounds and ailments may incapacitate her. Let us view this as the Water Goddess’s praise for our resilience, and continued prosperity will be our reward.”

The River Tribe leader took his seat after his statement, of which the Border Tribe leader stood promptly, and from his given stance, T’Challa knew he had a lot to say.

“You speak of wealth and prosperity, River Tribe, but let us not forget that the Water Goddess also brings with her the threat of destruction.” And it was his words that hit T’Challa deep. “Our country has thrived in secrecy for generations, and as long as it remains in secrecy, we shall continue to prosper. Though the prince’s heart may have been in the right place, it does not excuse the fact that he has inevitably put us all at risk! Bringing an unknown American girl, much less one that has been deemed a valuable experiment to America’s military, brings into light the fact that the scientific research group responsible for her creation will now attempt to infiltrate our country. If this young girl is as valuable as what has been made for it to seem, then they will stop at nothing to retrieve what was lost. The Border Tribe rejects any notion to keep the young girl within Wakandan custody.”

T’Challa was thankful for the River Tribe’s support, as his connection to them has remained strong and faithful throughout the years. The Border Tribe, however, makes a valid and unavoidable point - T’Challa brought a child out of her home country, across country lines, and into Wakanda without proper clearance or permission. This action alone puts into jeopardy all that Wakanda has worked for, and for that, the prince would always be looked at twice for.

T’Chaka, who had remained quiet up until this point, made his presence known to the tribal leaders talking amongst themselves about the current situation. T’Chaka’s gaze had been unyielding to T’Challa’s, and the prince could only pray that what was to come from his father’s mouth, it was generous.

“T’Challa,” T’Chaka calls, “you have undoubtedly put us in a bind. Despite whatever angle we look at this situation, your actions have severely jeopardized our safety as a nation. And for that, you cannot go unpunished.”

T’Challa knew his father was speaking from a place as king, but it did nothing to cease the blooming guilt and displeasure that swelled in his chest. He had wanted to make his father proud, but in turn, his actions not only had him reprimanded his father as a king, but also within the presence of the tribal leaders. There was no doubt in his mind that T’Challa would now be seen differently in their eyes.

T’Challa would have accepted defeat right then and there, if it had not been for the queen’s interruption.

“Husband,” Ramonda’s voice echoes, stern yet warm, “may I speak?”

T’Challa watches the exchange between his mother and father. The level of respect each had for one another, even in the throne room where his father ruled the highest, was something he had also admired. The queen stood tall and unyielding; she wore a silver gown fitted to her figure, with an accompanying cape and a similar colored head piece. She looked ethereal in her traditional garb, nothing less to be expected of the Queen of Wakanda herself.

Ramonda descended the stairs of the elevated platform where her and T’Chaka’s thrones rested, bounding to her son as she spoke: “I provide a new perspective for you all, and urge you to listen intently to my words.”

T’Challa straightened himself as his mother grew closer to him, though her destination wasn’t to stand next to him, but rather circle him as she spoke, like a lioness circling her cub, protecting them from any outside predator who dared to jab at her child. Though this was her own tactic of interrogation as well, one that Ramonda had been using to drill T’Challa herself in the art of inquisition. As much as she was protecting her son, Ramonda was also challenging him herself in a way her husband, nor the tribal leaders, could.

“This young child is believed to have been sustaining herself due to the linkacture between her and the Water Goddess statue, correct?” Ramonda questions.

“Yes, my queen.”

“And as you were retrieving the statue, you noticed immediately the incapacitated nature of the child, correct?”

“Yes, my queen.”

“Would it be correct to assume that this child had already been undergoing inhumane tests in correlation with the statue, and in turn, her body extracting the vibranium into herself?”

T’Challa thought for a moment on his answer, but then soon replied, “Yes, my queen.”

Ramonda hums at the information she has gathered, all the while her circling has never stopped. Instead of T’Challa, however, her attention now turned to the few tribal leaders still doubtful in their own decisions.

“This is the perspective I propose to you all,” Ramonda declares, “it has just been said that the child is highly likely to contain vibranium within her own bloodstream, of which can be determined by our medical staff as we speak. Therefore, T’Challa’s options were to a) retrieve the artifact, and the leave the child to continue being experimented on, and in turn, still leaving the scientists access to vibranium, allowing them to carry on their experiments, b) spare the child, leave the artifact, and allow for the cycle to repeat itself, allow these scientists to perform these heinous acts on another child at an accelerated pace, or c) retrieve both the child and the artifact, ridding this scientific group of their only accesses to vibranium, and saving an innocent child’s life.”

T’Challa watches in awe as her words seem to sway the remaining tribal leaders. Ramonda is exactly what a queen should be, in his eyes - a voice of reason.

“And I ask you, tribal leaders, of these three options, given the testimony and evidence provided, what option would you choose?”

Ramonda leaves back to her seat next to T’Chaka, who, unlike the tribal leaders after Ramonda’s additional testimony, still looks onward to T’Challa with an air of hesitancy. With a newfound motivation, T’Challa clears his throat to speak once more.

“My king, you have taught me many concepts of what it means to be a true ruler,” T’Challa begins, catching hold of T’Chaka’s attention when referring their teaching moments together, “and one of the lessons you had bestowed upon me was the need to remain firm in your decision. And of all your teachings, I wish to implore this one at this moment.”

T’Challa’s hands fall from behind his back, instead he chooses to clasp them in front of him, no longer hiding.

“I remain firm in my decision to bring the young girl here. Perhaps I could have waited for proper clearance, however, I saw how urgent the situation was, and chose to act on what I believed was best. I hope that you, as well as the tribal leaders, can understand my position.

And for the first time since T’Challa has entered the throne room, he releases the breath he had been holding, knowing that despite everything else, he handled what needed to be handled.

#ihlysww18 #black reader #black tumblr #black marvel #marvel #marvel comics #marvel cinematic universe #mcu #marvel x reader #marvel x black!reader #mcu x reader #mcu x black!reader #black panther wakanda forever #black panther #black panther x reader #black panther x black!reader #shuri #shuri udaku #princess shuri #marvel shuri #black panther shuri #shuri black panther #shuri x reader #shuri x black!reader #shuri udaku x reader #princess shuri x reader #letitia wright #letitia #letitia wright shuri

[siancore]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 💜

Thanks for thinking of me @cobrafantasies

Strictly Professional | SamBucky | MCU | E | 9,465 words

Synopsis: Bucky Barnes is an adult film star. He has booked a job with his sometime-scene partner, Steve Rogers’ friend as a favour to Steve. He checks out some of Sam Wilson’s work and finds himself attracted to the other man. Will he be able to keep it strictly professional when they begin to film together?

Why I love it: It was all fun and heat and chemistry. I love writing Soft Slutty Sam.

The Boys of Summer | SamBucky | MCU | M | 84,227 words

Synopsis: Sam Wilson returns home to the small town he grew up in to complete his med school residency. He hasn’t been back for an extended amount of time since he left for college. While he only consistently kept in touch with childhood friend, Steve Rogers, he was keen to see the people he had grown up with. With the exception of Bucky Barnes. They had a falling out the summer before Sam left for college. What happened between them? Can they move past it now that they’re adults?

Why I love it: It's the best thing I have ever written. It's close to home. Touches on queerness; race; self-acceptance; letting go; coming home; family; friendship; and love.

Red Dirt Road | Richonne | The Walking Dead | M | 99,123 words

Synopsis: Teenager, Michonne, spends her summers in rural Georgia with her family. She meets fellow teen, Rick, down Old Route 3 and a surprising friendship blossoms.

Why I love it: I just loved the pace of the story. The way it reminded me of summer breezes and dirt sticking to the lotion on my skin. How everything felt new and exciting, but scary, too. Just loved writing this world.

Sous Couverture | Richonne | The Walking Dead | E | 133,261 words

Synopsis: Rick is a crime boss. Michonne is the agent who is tasked with bringing him in. Instead, she must work with him to bring down a larger criminal network. Can she keep her attraction to Rick from getting in the way of her doing her job?

Why I love it: I always wanted to write crime stories. SC was that story for me. It was a lot of fun to write these versions of Rick and Michonne. It was a lot of fun to talk to other shippers about this story. I started to make a lot of fandom friends because of this story. Then my mother passed away while I was writing SC and I sort of used it as a crutch to channel a lot of painful feelings. I was also able to lean on the fandom friends I made at that really shitty time. I know to read the story, you wouldn't think it, but it saved my life.

Under Her Watch | Attoye | Wakanda Forever | E | 6,572 words

Synopsis: Wakanda and Talokan are allies. Okoye, Wakanda's greatest warrior, is tasked with overseeing joint training exercises. She is also responsible for keeping an eye on the Talokanil warrior, Attuma. Without his express support, the alliance may fall apart. If he keeps looking at Okoye like that, she may fall apart.

Why I love it: It was the first multi-chapter fic I wrote for Okoye x Attuma. I love this pairing. The enemies-to-lovers potential is there. The chemistry is there. Okoye getting to let loose is something very important to me. I had a lot of fun writing this story.

#sambucky #richonne #attoye

[sunandsstars]

THE AVENGERS

Steve Rogers ‘Captain America’

Tony Stark ‘Iron Man’

Natasha Romanoff ‘Black Widow’

Clint Barton ‘Hawkeye’

Bruce Banner ‘Hulk’

Thor ‘God of Thunder’

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY

Peter Quill ‘Star-Lord’

Gamora

Mantis

Nebula

Adam Warlock

WAKANDA FOREVER

T’Challa ‘Black Panther’

Erik Killmonger ‘N’Jadaka’

Shuri

Nakia Shauku

Okoye ‘Midnight Angel’

M’Baku

Namor ‘K’uk’ulkan’

Namora

Attuma

SPIDER-VERSE

Miles Morales ‘1610’

Gwen Stacy ‘Ghost-Spider’

Peter B Parker

Miguel O’Hara ‘2099’

Hobie Brown ‘Spider-Punk’

Peter Parker ‘Spider-Noir’

ETERNALS

Ajak

Ikaris

Sersi

Thena

Druig

Makkari

Kingo

Gilgamesh

X-MEN

Charles Xavier ‘Professor X’

Raven Darkhölme ‘Mystique’

Erik Lehnsherr ‘Magneto’

James Howlett ‘Wolverine’

Jean Grey ‘Phoenix’

Scott Summers ‘Cyclops’

Ororo Munroe ‘Storm’

Peter Maximoff ‘Quicksilver’

EXTRAS

Loki ‘God of Mischief’

Valkyrie

Wanda Maximoff ‘Scarlett Witch’

Pietro Maximoff ‘Quicksilver’

Bucky Barnes ‘Winter Soldier’

Scott Lang ‘Ant-Man’

Stephen Strange ‘Doctor Strange’

Kate Bishop ‘Hawkeye’

Peter Parker ‘Spider-Man’

Yelena Belova ‘Crimson Widow’

#masterlist 🖊️ #marvel #eternals #x-men #avengers #guardians of the galaxy #superhero’s #x reader

[holylulusworld]

Deranged Marriage (4) – Sticks and stones break my bones

Summary: Your father wants you to choose a husband. Your chosen one doesn’t like the idea one bit.

Pairing: Mobster!Bucky Barnes x (Mafia daughter)! Reader

Characters: Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson, Clint Barton, Ayo, Okoye, Jake Jensen, Brock Rumlow

Warnings: arranged marriage, language, angst, strong/bratty reader, banter, hand around throat, sexual tension, idiots in love, implied smut/smutty dreams, blood, injuries, violence, fighting, attempted murder, getting shot

Deranged Marriage masterlist

<< Part 3

“Fuck, not that bad,” he groans in your ear. His hand still holds you down by the back of your neck when Bucky finally slips out of you. “At least you shut your mouth when you are full of cock.”

You weakly lift your head to watch Bucky put his pants back on. He kicks your dress out of his way while looking for his shoes. “Where are you going?”

“Aw, did you think I’ll stick around,” he laughs. “I wanted to get off and you were there. Don’t think your special.”

Holding back a sob you watch Bucky leave your room. He’s still laughing when he slams the door shut…

“Fuck, not,” you jolt up on your bed. “Why do I have to dream off that bastard? I hate him so much. I’ll kill that bastard sooner or later.”

Bucky left you alone at the library after Clint stormed into the room to drag him off you. You’re not sure the mobster would’ve left you alive if not for Clint.

You still feel his hand around your throat when you touch your tender skin.

 “Fucking asshole. I’m going to—”

“What are you doing?” you hear your father yell at someone. There’s a commotion outside your room. You can hear someone grunt, and a gunshot hitting your door. 

You immediately roll out of your bed to crawl toward your nightstand and get the gun hidden out. 

“Daddy,” you swallow thickly as more gunshots hit the wall and door. “Fuck. What do I do?”

You brace yourself and crawl toward your wardrobe. Your father, ever the prepared man, bought a bulletproof vest for you. 

“I’ve got this,” you grab the vest and hurriedly put it on. “I need to look for daddy.” 

Before you get up, you grab a pair of sneakers and put them on. If you must run, it’ll be easier with your shoes on.

You get up to sneak toward your door and try to calm your nerves.

All you can hear are gunshots, and men screaming at each other. One of them is your father. He calls someone bastard and fires a few rounds until you hear him grunt.

“Daddy, no!” you don’t think, just act.

You rip the door open and storm out of your room, running toward your father’s bedroom while dodging bullets left and right. 

Men scream at you, tell you to drop the gun. Others tell you to stay by their side.

 You cannot distinguish enemies from allies any longer.

You just run toward your father lying on the ground. “Daddy.”

“Sweetie, go to the panic room,” he pats your hand. “Hurry…they are going to.” He rasps. “Please, Y/N.”

“Fuck off,” you unlock your gun and fire two bullets at the next best enemy. “Stay away from me!!”

The man drops to the ground, not dead, but barely breathing. “Boss! Y/N” you recognize Sam’s voice. “Take your hands off her!”

Someone grabs your arm and tries to drag you away from your father, but you won’t have it.

You elbow the guy grabbing you, making him regret he put his hands on you as you twirl around to kick him in the chest.

“Take that! That’s Wilson style,” you growl and knee him in the groan.

“Y/N,” Sam runs toward you. He aims a gun at a guy behind you wanting to shoot your father, but you are faster. All the training with your father’s men wasn’t for nothing.

You twirl back around and blindly fire at the man, hitting him square in the chest.

 “Fuck, Y/N,” Clint grabs your father’s arms to drag him inside the bedroom. “Come in here.”

“Y/N! NO!” you don’t even feel the bullet hitting your arm as you fire your last bullets at the next guy wanting to kill your father. “HANDS OFF HER!”

Sam takes the man down with his shotgun. “Clint, panic room. Bring the boss and Y/N inside. Bruce! Where the fuck are you!”

You feel a little lightheaded when you hear more men storm into the mansion.

“Rogers, finally,” you hear Jensen grunt. “They almost shot my pretty face.”

“What about Y/F/N and Y/N?” Steve storms along the hallways with his men. “Shit, what happened here?”

“Barnes maybe?” Sam pants. “About damn time you showed up. I thought we are done for. They outnumbered us.”

“Breach of security,” Jensen points at the broken iPad in his hands. “I checked on the security. Someone shut it down.” He huffs. “I don’t know how, but whoever did it, they are damn good.”

“Maybe it was you,” Steve grunts. “And no, it wasn’t Barnes. He was with me not half an hour ago. It can’t be Bucky.”

“Guys, can you stop debating?” you cry. “Daddy is bleeding out. He got shot,” you press your hand to your father’s abdomen. “We need to get him to the hospital.”

“Fuck, Clint, Sam,” Brock stumbles along the hallways. He can barely walk but tries to tell Sam he saw someone make it out alive. Brock limps toward the men, handing them a broken phone. “The one getting away lost this. Maybe Jensen can check on it.”

He falls to his knees, grunting.

“Shit, Rumlow,” Sam mutters. “Get back up. Don’t die on me! You still owe me fifty bucks!”

“Everything is going to be okay,” you clutch your still bleeding arm, ignoring that the nurse tries to get you to follow her. “I don’t care if I bleed out. I’ll stay here until I know my father is still alive.”

“Miss, you are bleeding. We need to get the bullet out of your arm,” she tries to convince you.”

“Who the fuck are you?!” growling at the nurse you sneer. “I said, I’ll be waiting here until someone tells me about my father’s condition. So, fuck off!”

“You must excuse my fiancé,” you grit your teeth as Bucky Barnes and his entourage walk toward you, Steve and Sam. “She went through a lot tonight. I’ll talk to her. Just give us a moment.”

“What do you want here, Barnes?” you grimace as Bucky grabs your wrist to get a better look at your bleeding arm. “Let go of me.”

“Barnes, not now. We are not in the mood for your shit tonight,” Sam pats the gun he hides under his jacket. “No offense, but you are our number one suspect.”

“Me?” Bucky huffs. “Why?”

“Y/N embarrassed you in front of everyone you know,” Clint snarls. “You weren’t there to help us either. We called, and you didn’t answer.”

“I was busy fucking some bimbo,” he looks at you, still holding your wrist. “I had to get out all the pent-up tension.” Bucky drops his eyes to your exposed legs. You’re still in your panties and a shirt. “No fancy dress tonight?”

“Last warning,” pursing your lips you give Bucky your best bitchface, “if you don’t let go of me, I’ll cut your cock off.”

“Lovely as ever,” he dips his head to whisper in your ear. “You can play the big girl and bleed out. I don’t care. Just you know, if your father dies, I’ll get his empire and you’ll be a good girl.”

“I hate you.”

“That’s the spirit, doll,” Bucky pecks your cheek. “Now, come with me. Let the doctor get the bullet out and I promise to go easy on you for tonight.”

“Barnes, last warning,” Okoye steps in. “Y/N went through enough. She got shot. Her father got shot. She killed two men. It’s a bit much. Don’t you think?”

“You killed two men,” he smirks down at you. “Good girl. I hope you know it gets me rock-hard when a girl can handle a gun.”

“I can slit your throat too,” you retort. 

“None of this now,” Bucky finally releases your wrist only to wrap his arm around your waistline. “We will see a doctor now. I can’t have you bleeding out.”

“As if you care…”

“Careful, doc,” Bucky warns as you receive an anesthetic injection. “She’s my fiancé. Don’t damage her.”

“Ignore him,” you grumble. “He’s here to make sure that this night turns out even worse. As if getting shot isn’t worse enough.”

“Miss Y/N, I need to stitch the wound up. It won’t take long,” the doctor ignores Bucky and gets to work. “You got lucky. It’s only a graze wound.”

“She’ll live, huh?” it’s hard to ignore Bucky when he gets up to stand next to the doctor to watch him like a hawk. “Be careful.” You give the doctor an apologetic smile. “She’s mine to break.”

“Why don’t you fuck off and leave me alone? You don’t care if I’m dead or alive,” you snarl, making the doctor flinch. You can see the panic in his eyes. “Don’t worry, doc. He only wants to kill me. I told the truth about his limp dick and now he wants to murder me.”

“I—” the doctor chokes out. “I need to stitch this up. Please keep me out of this. I got a family.”

“Great, Barnes. Now you scared the doctor,” you huff. “Get lost or get fucked. Maybe find yourself a sexy nurse taking care of your dick.”

“Watch your tongue, doll,” Bucky grips your chin. “You are talking to your beloved fiancé.” He lowers himself to press a soft kiss on your lips. “I’ll be waiting outside. Don’t take too long, doc. I know when you try to put your hands on my girl…”

“He’s going to make it. You can go now, Barnes. We don’t need you here. Rogers will help us as long as Brock, Vis, and Stark are at the hospital,” Sam whispers as he watches you snuggle in your pillow. “They gave her the good stuff.”

“She finally shuts her mouth,” Bucky grins. “I should’ve asked the doctor to give me the pain meds.”

“Why do you bother?” Okoye steps inside the bedroom. “As Sam said, you can go now. We’ve got it handled.”

“I won’t leave,” your fiancé grunts. “I promised Y/F/N to take care of his daughter and empire. As long as he’s out cold, I’ll keep that promise. Whoever came for her father wanted to see Y/N dead too,” Bucky glances at Ayo and Okoye. “And they got help. Someone deactivated the cameras and alarm.”

“An insider,” Sam concludes.

“An insider,” Bucky confirms. “I don’t like it when someone wants to blame me. I hate that little brat, but I didn’t try to kill her or Y/F/N. I’ll stick around until we found them. Now leave me and my fiancé alone. I don’t trust anyone...”

>> Part 5

Tags in reblog.

#bucky barnes x reader #mobster!bucky barnes x fem!reader #mobster!bucky #bucky barnes x female reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky barnes #mafia au #Deranged Marriage (4) – Sticks and stones break my bones

[doasyoudesireandlive]

Found

Pairing: Natasha Romanoff x Steve Rogers (set in the beginning of endgame)

Summary: after five years of feeling lost, Natasha wants to be found.

word count: 450ish

warnings: angst, fluff, possessiveness, sad Nat, supportive Steve, happy ending.

authors note: This is my take on Jen (@late-to-the-party-81) Challenge Yourself - challenge! Thank you, Jen - I hope I did it justice!

(english is not my first language, so im sure there will be mistakes!)

Natasha looks at Nebula, Rocket, Okoye, Carol and Rhodes.

"All right. Uh well…This channel's always active. so, if anything goes sideways…anyone's making trouble where they shouldn't…comes through me."

Everyone nods in agreement and the video call ends, making the holographic figures disappear. 

Natasha slumps down in the chair, the sadness and the desperation washing over her. She, the expert assassin, felt lost at sea. Hopeless, abandoned, alone. 

Hiding her face in her hands, eyes welling up with tears. 

"You ok?" Steve's voice is soft and mellow. Natasha quickly straightens up and try to blink the tears away.

"You here to do laundry?" Natasha tries to sound mocking, but the tremble in her voice gives her away. 

"And to visit a friend" Steve walks towards her, sitting down in the opposite facing chair. 

They sit in comfortable silence for a few minutes. The only sound heard is their own breathing and the slight humming of electronics. 

"You know, you don't have to hide from me, Nat." Steves voice breaks the silence. Eyes blue as the summer sky meets Natashas green ones. 

"Yeah… I know" a faint smirk ghosts over Natashas lips. She clears her throat and looks down, hiding her sadness once again. 

A warm, big hand cups her cheek. Steve slowly tilts her head up, until they are facing each other completely. He's closer now, faces only inches apart. 

"Stop. Hiding. From. Me." The dominance and tenderness in his voice makes the redhead shiver. 

Reaching out her hand, she places it on his chest. 

"How could I ever hide? You always seem to find me" 

Natasha can feel Steve's heart speed up under the palm of her hand. Steve's eyes flicker back and forth between her eyes and her lips. 

Natashas eyes once again wells up with tears. "Please Steve, find me." 

The words are barely a whisper.

Steve wastes no time, crashing his lips against Natashas. There is no room for softness, or any kind of gentleness. It's raw. Two bleeding hearts, beating as one. 

For just one moment they forget. They forget about everything and everyone. Just for once, their only focus is each other. 

Steve takes Natasha into his arms, the gentle touch welcomed like rain in a draught. 

Pouring all his love into the kisses and touches, Steve wants Natasha to know. To know that he loves her. That she deserves better. That he wants her to be his. 

"Mine". 

Natasha pulls back, looking at Steve with shock in her eyes. Steve looks right back at her, pulling her back.

"Mine" - he's louder this time.

Natasha feels her heart beating fast, threatening to jump right out of her chest. 

Silence.

A breath. 

"Yours."

dividers by @saradika

moodboard/header by me.

taglist: @animnerd @late-to-the-party-81

#Challenge Yourself #Jen's 1k Challenge #tonje writes #natasha romanoff x steve rogers #fluff #angst

[secretswiftymarvelfan]

The Demigod From Asgard - Steve Rogers x Reader (Part 78)

Summary: Steve find a project to keep himself occupied

Word Count: 6.5k

Warnings: Angst! Language! Fluff!

Dividers by @firefly-graphics​

Series Masterlist / Masterlist

Chapter 78: Finding Scout

1 year since the snap

The last couple of weeks had been difficult for Steve. First, it had been JJ’s second birthday. A day that should have been full of joy, and Steve tried his hardest to make the day perfect for him. But he just felt sad and guilty that you weren’t there to celebrate it.

Steve had also been dreading today. The one-year Anniversary of the snap. Around the world, memorials were taking place to remember the fallen. Large bronze plaques being revealed around the world, the names of the fallen etched into the metal.

The atmosphere was sombre as Steve got himself and JJ ready for the day. Steve wearing his black funeral suit, JJ wearing a black polo shirt and trousers.

The compound was busy for the first time in years. All of the allies of the Avengers that remained all gathering to honour their fallen comrades. Once everyone had arrived Steve picked JJ up and made his way out.

“Mama!” JJ shouts as Steve lifted him up, pointing over to his teddy in the crib.

“Hm?” Steve hummed glancing over to where JJ was pointing “oh, yeah of course" he sighs walking over and picking up his teddy and passing it to JJ, who smiles brightly hugging the teddy tightly.

Steve headed outside to meet up with everyone. He takes a deep breath as he looks around at everyone who turned up. In one sense he was surprised by the vast number of people there, but he also knew that there should be more.

“Hey, Steve you alright?” A tired-looking Tony says slapping Steve on the shoulder.

“No, but that’s to be expected” Steve shrugs honestly “how are you? Morgan keeping you up?” Steve asks nodding over to Pepper who held the 3-month-old Morgan.

“Is it that obvious?” Tony chuckles weakly.

“Colic?” Steve asks knowingly.

“Yup, it is a son of a- gun?” Tony says censoring himself when JJ giggles in Steve’s arms.

“It gets easier I promise” Steve reassures him chuckling gently.

“How about you? The terrible two’s starting yet?” Tony asks tickling JJ’s stomach.

“a bit, but I’m sure it won’t be long, he’s already becoming a bit more stubborn,” Steve says making Tony laugh.

“Well considering who his parents are I’m not surprised” Tony smirks giving Steve a knowing look.

“Hey, they’re ready now,” Pepper says walking over to the two of them.

Steve and Tony share a look, nodding as Steve took a deep breath preparing himself. The three of them slowly walk over to the memorial.

Throughout the service, Steve remained silent. His sights set firmly on the patch of grass in front of him. Unable to bring himself to look at the memorial not wanting to see your name etched so permanently into the metal.

He hadn’t even realised that the service had ended until someone put their hand on his arm. He turned to see Okoye standing there with a sympathetic smile on her face.

“He’s gotten so big Captain Rogers,” she says nodding to JJ.

“Yeah, heavy too” Steve chuckles weakly as he readjusted JJ in his arms “and call me Steve please”

A small smile appears on her lips as she nods “of course, I won’t keep you long, I just wanted to give you this” she says passing him an envelope.

Steve frowns as he looks down at the envelope “what is it?” He asks.

“A favour fulfilled by T’Challa, it got a little lost in the chaos but we’ve secured it for you” Okoye explains making Steve even more confused.

He tried to work out what it could be, he’d asked T’Challa for so many favours he was struggling to single out just one.

He quickly opens up the envelope, his lips parting in surprise when he reads its contents. He nods swallowing the lump in his throat bringing his emotions back under control.

“Thank you Okoye,” Steve says clearing his throat.

“It’s our pleasure Steve, the kingdom of Wakanda wishes you well” Okoye nods before turning and walking away.

Steve nods looking down at the sheet of paper in his hands, taking a deep and shaky breath. He then glanced around spotting Nat standing a small distance away subtly watching him.

“Hey JJ, how do you feel about hanging out with Auntie Nat for a bit?” Steve asks looking down at JJ.

“NatNat!!” JJ exclaims excitedly, nodding his head.

“C'mon then” Steve smiled gently as he begins to walk towards Nat who closed the distance.

“You okay?” Nat asks him, giving JJ a warm smile.

“Yeah, do you mind watching him for a couple of hours, I need to sort a couple of things out,” Steve asks her, earning an arched brow in response.

“Okay, but are you sure you’re okay?” Nat asks as she takes JJ from him.

“Yeah I am, I promise, just need to check this out” Steve promises holding up the envelope.

“Good but call me if you need me okay,” Nat tells him firmly.

“I will I promise, thank you Nat” Steve smiles before looking at JJ “I’ll be back later bean, be good for Auntie Nat” he smiles kissing the top of JJ’s head.

“Say bye-bye JJ” Nat encourages lifting JJ’s hand and getting him to wave.

“Ba-Ba” JJ giggles doing his best to copy Nat.

“Bye-bye JJ” Steve chuckles, giving him a small wave before heading off towards the garage.

Climbing into his car, Steve placed the envelope down on the passenger seat. Letting out a deep sigh as he started the car and began the drive back towards the city, back towards the area he grew up in. Brooklyn.

It didn’t take him long to find the place he was after. He had already visited it a couple of times before, but that was years ago now back before the accords. Turning off the engine he grabbed the envelope and climbed out of the car.

He stood at the bottom of the path, eyes studying the beaten-up suburban house in front of him. It looked a lot worse than it did the last time he saw it. Like it too had been through a rough few years. Opening up the envelope he pulled out the deed Okoye had given him, this was his home now.

He remembered when he found it, advertised in the newspaper back at the start of 2016. Something about it stood out to him, so he decided to check it out. From the moment he first saw it, he knew this was going to be the house you and he would grow old in and raise a family in. It was perfect, it had 5 bedrooms, a large spacious lounge and kitchen, and a large garden perfect for kids to play in. He planned to purchase it, fix it up and surprise you with it. But the accords got in the way so he never got the chance.

The day he’d asked T’Challa to help him secure it for him was a distant memory. Of a time when he felt more optimistic about their time on the run, a time before JJ. He had completely forgotten about it as his life changed around him.

He tipped out the envelope the keys to the house falling into the palm of his hand. Taking a deep breath he made his way up the overgrown path and onto the front porch. He unlocked the door, pushing it open with a loud creak.

Stepping inside he looked around at the house, seeing the damage. But despite all of that he still sees it as the house for his family. He could picture JJ running down the stairs, through the kitchen and into the backyard. What stood out the most though was the fact he couldn’t picture you. And while he was sad that he couldn’t, he also saw it as a step to moving on, something you’d want him to do.

It was definitely a fixer-upper and a much bigger task than it was before. But Dr Raynor had told him to try and find something to direct his energy towards so maybe this was it. He’d fix up the house and it would be where he’d raise JJ, away from the life of being an Avenger.

Feeling a surge of purpose, Steve wanted to get started on this project almost immediately. He looked around the house finding all the areas that needed fixing first, as he moved around the house he found an old broom. He shrugged off his jacket and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt as he began sweeping, large piles of dust and leaves soon collecting around the house ready to be thrown away. Not that he had a bin bag to put them into though.

“Knock knock!” Steve heard someone call out through the house.

Frowning he made his way out of the kitchen towards the voice, spotting a short and stocky black woman standing in his front entrance. When she sees him she gives him a small smile, raising her hand in greeting.

“Hi sorry to barge in but I saw you arrive and I’ve been wondering whose house this has been for years now” she explains gesturing around the house “I’m Roberta by the way, I live next door” she smiles holding out her hand.

“Steve, you lived in this area long?” Steve asks shaking her hand.

“Only six months now, my house used to be my sister’s, I used to live in Florida but…” Roberta explains before trailing off at the end, a small awkward smile on her face.

“I’m sorry” Steve mutters looking down in shame.

“I’m guessing you’ve said that a lot the past year” Roberta comments making Steve glance back up “and I’m sure there’s been plenty of people that’s told you to stop” she adds knowingly.

Steve lets out a small huff of a laugh nodding his head “my therapist mostly” he confirms.

“well you should listen to them because we all lost someone, I’m sorry about your wife,” Roberta says stepping forward and putting a comforting hand on his arm.

“Thank you,” Steve says clearing his throat “did you lose anyone, besides your sister?” Steve asks after a moment.

“My neighbour and his niece down in Florida, you know you remind me of him, the weight of the world on your shoulders” Roberta sighs sadly as she looks up at Steve “you even kinda look like him, but he had dark brown hair and a beard, and a terrible taste in shirts” Roberta snorts shaking her head.

“well my dress sense was pretty bad when I first came out of the ice so we probably would have gotten along” Steve chuckles shrugging his shoulders and making Roberta smile.

“so you fixing this place up?” Roberta asks glancing around at the house.

“That’s the plan, hopefully, I can get enough of it done to move in with my son maybe in the next few months” Steve shrugs looking around.

“Have you done this sort of thing before?” Roberta asks raising a brow.

Steve shrugs tilting his head from side to side “no, but it can’t be that hard?” he says making Roberta laugh.

“It’s surprisingly hard if you don’t know what you’re doing,” Roberta says making Steve’s shoulders drop slightly “but it’s fine, my neighbour taught me a good deal about DIY so I can help” Roberta offers.

Steve smiles nodding his head in agreement “yeah that sounds great thank you so much”

“I look forward to working with you Rogers, and to meeting mini Rogers” she grins making Steve laugh as he shook her hand again.

With the help of Roberta within two months Steve had been able to get the house to a point where it was structurally sound once more. Doors and windows had been replaced, holes in the walls filled in, and flooring replaced. Steve’s next job was to go into the crawl space under the house to check the pipes and find which ones needed replacing.

As he pulled off the access cover and began to crawl in he began to curse, wishing he’d asked Nat to help out because it was far too tight in here. Bordering on claustrophobic, Steve was seriously concerned that he might actually get stuck.

He was about halfway in when he froze at the sound of growling. He glanced around in the direction it was coming in to see something hiding in the darkness. He slowly reached into his back pocket to pull out his flashlight, contemplating for a moment whether shining a bright light at it, whatever it was, was a good idea or not. He was fairly certain it couldn’t be anything too dangerous but it definitely sounded like it could claw his face off. His escape route was also compromised.

Curiosity got the better of him and he turned on his torch and shined it over at the creature in the corner. He let out a deep breath when he saw it was just a tiny little puppy cowering in fear. It looked so tiny, covered in mud and dirt. It probably hadn’t eaten in days.

“hey it's okay, I’m not gonna hurt you,” Steve says calmly but the puppy just barks and whines shuffling further away from Steve.

Steve sighed deciding to call for reinforcements. He crawled back out of the crawl space sitting back on his ankles as he grabbed his phone and dialled Roberta.

“Hey, Steve, you okay? You haven’t got a massive splinter again have you?” Roberta asks making Steve roll his eyes.

“No, but I do need your help, are you home right now?” Steve asks her glancing over at her house.

“yeah I am, where are you?” Roberta asks, Steve seeing her walk past her kitchen window.

“outside, look out your window,” Steve tells her, watching as she turns to look at him, Steve waving he she spotted him.

“Can you bring me some old towels and some chunks of meat or sausages or something,” Steve asks her, seeing her look over at him in confusion.

“uh yeah, sure I’ll see what I’ve got” She murmurs before hanging up.

Sliding his phone back into his pocket Steve looked back down at the crawl space to see the puppy had moved a little closer but not enough for Steve to grab it. He sits back up when he hears footsteps approaching.

“I didn’t have any sausages but I have beef jerky?” Roberta offers passing Steve the pack “are you gonna tell me what’s going on now?”

“a rescue mission” Steve states simply, gesturing for her to take a look.

Roberta frowns before getting down on her knees and looking into the crawl space, coos and awws escaping her mouth when she saw the puppy.

“Don’t worry pup, we’ll get you out,” she tells the puppy before sitting up “this might take a while” she warns Steve.

“that’s fine, I have time” he smiles breaking off a piece of jerky and tossing it towards the puppy.

Steve watches as the puppy hesitantly creeps forward, sniffing the piece of jerky on the floor before quickly eating it. Steve smiles as he continues to throw pieces of jerky in, slowly encouraging the puppy towards him. Once the puppy was close enough Steve just held out the jerky. The puppy eyed him cautiously, carefully sniffing the piece of meat in Steve’s hand before gently taking it from his hand.

Soon enough the puppy was out in the open allowing Steve to get a good look at it. He still wasn’t certain what breed of dog it was since it was covered in so much dirt, its fur all matted and gross. Thankfully the puppy was getting comfortable enough to let Steve gently stroke it.

“That’s it, good job, who’s a good boy” Steve smiled as he stroked the puppy’s head, its tail wagging at the praise.

“can you pass me the towel?” Steve whispers to Roberta, who quickly passes him the towel.

Steve lays the towel over his crossed legs, gently encouraging the pup into his lap with some more food. Once the pup was happily sat in his lap he wrapped it up in the towel, the pup whining slightly but soon relaxing as Steve picked it up and held it close.

“let's get this little guy to the vets,” Steve says, Roberta nodding in agreement.

Thankfully the local vets weren’t too busy and were able to see Steve and the puppy immediately. Once the pup was on the examination table Steve went to take a step back to allow the vet to work but the puppy whined so much that Steve had to stay close enough to reassure it.

“Okay so this guy isn’t in too bad of shape, a bit underweight and malnourished, he has got fleas but we can give you some treatment for that, I’d say he’s about 3 months old,” The vet says once he was finished.

“Good, so what are the next steps?” Steve asks crossing his arms.

“well we will clean him up and get rid of some of this matted fur, but from there it gets a little complicated” the vet sighs “rescue centres across the country are overrun at the moment and while this little guy will probably have no issue getting adopted they are struggling to take any new ones on”

Steve nods breathing out a deep sigh as he ran his hand over the puppy’s head. Between renovations on the house and looking after JJ, Steve wasn’t sure he had the space in his life for a puppy right now.

“My suggestion is that you look after this little guy in the meantime and once he’s back to full health you put him up for adoption privately” The vet suggests, Steve nodding his head gently.

“yeah that’s probably the best option, thank you for all the help” Steve sighs shaking the vet's hand.

“not a problem, follow me and we’ll get this little guy cleared up,” Vet says gesturing for Steve to follow him.

Steve spent the next half an hour with one of the nurses helping them clean up the puppy who would only whine if Steve left it alone. Soon enough all the dirt was gone, the matted fur brushed out, and flee treatment administered revealing a tiny ball of golden fluff.

“oh aren’t you the cutest golden retriever pup!” the nurse coos as they dry the puppy off.

Once they were done the vets then gave Steve the essentials he needed, a dog bed, lead and collar, food and a couple of bowls.

“thank you for all the help” Steve nods as he gets ready to take the puppy home.

“it's nothing, and just pop back in when you want to register him” the nurse smiles.

Steve shakes his head “oh no I’m not planning on keeping him permanently” he tells her.

The nurse lets out a small huff of a laugh “sure, I’ll see you soon Mr Rogers” she nods knowingly.

“you are so gonna end up adopting him officially” Roberta smirks as they head back out to the car.

“no I’m not I’m too busy with the house and an actual toddler to raise a puppy” Steve sighs as he climbs back in the car, the puppy curling up in his lap making Steve smile warmly down at it.

He did wish he could adopt this little guy and if his life was a little simpler then he would. He did already love the little guy though, which was a major problem.

When he got back to the compound that evening he found Nat and JJ in the common room playing with some of JJ’s toys. Nat glanced up when Steve walked in, her brows furrowing when she saw the puppy in his arms.

“you didn’t say you were getting a dog” She comments as he walked over.

“It wasn’t planned, found him under the house, I’m just looking after him until I find him a permanent place to live” Steve explains as he sits down, Nat giving him the same knowing look that both Roberta and the nurse gave him.

“You’re a terrible liar Steve” Nat smirks making Steve chuckle and shake his head.

“I don’t know Nat, it just seems like a big thing to take on right now” Steve sighs as looks down at the puppy in his arms.

“it is but you can do it, you can put the house off for a little bit and just focus on these two” Nat says nodding to JJ “I can see how happy the little guy makes you already, I think it might be good for you Steve”

Steve sighs nodding his head “yeah, maybe you’re right” he concedes.

“of course I’m right! So what are you gonna name him? Buddy?” Nat smiles stroking the puppy behind the ear.

Steve purses his lips in thought, his mind going back to the conversation he had with you in Berlin. He lets out a small chuckle glancing up at the sky, maybe this puppy was a gift from you, it was the specific breed Steve had asked for after all. Therefore it felt right that Steve named it in your honour.

“no, I think he should be called Scout” Steve smiles, picking the name you suggested all those years ago.

“Scout I like it” Nat nods in agreement “hey JJ, c’mere,” she says getting JJ to toddle over to them.

His eyes widen when he sees the puppy in Steve’s lap quickly dashing forward towards the puppy, Steve puts his hand out to calm him.

“whoa slow down bean, we need to be calm around him okay?” Steve says reaching out to manoeuvre JJ so he was sitting on the floor next to Steve, JJ nodding his head.

“JJ, this is Scout, he’s gonna be staying with us” Steve explains lifting Scout up so JJ could get a better look.

“out” JJ manages to say, pointing to Scout.

“yeah that’s right, now he’s really small like you so we have to be gentle with him,” Steve says setting Scout back in his lap before taking JJ’s hand and helping him gently stoke Scout’s fur.

JJ giggles bouncing excitedly at the sensation making a wide smile break out on Steve’s face. Steve decided at that moment that adopting Scout was one of the best decisions he’s ever made.

6 months since Steve first started working on the house and it was finally the day that he was officially moving in. The house wasn’t finished at all. But with the help of Roberta Steve had managed to get it to a point where they could move in and live there while Steve worked on finishing the rest of the house.

He was standing in his room packing up the last of his clothes when he heard a small sniffle behind him. He frowned turning around, he glanced over at the crib to see JJ still fast asleep, Scout also asleep in his bed at the foot of Steve’s bed. It was only when he glanced over at the door that he saw Nat standing there hugging herself tightly tears in the corners of her eyes.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Steve asks quietly as he put down the sweater he was holding and makes his way over.

“you’re really leaving?” she mutters her voice breaking.

Steve sighs sadly nodding his head, watching as she bit her lips turning her head away as she tried and failed to stop herself from crying.

“hey c’mere,” Steve sighs pulling her into a tight hug.

“I know when you told me 6 months ago that it was gonna be happening, but I just- I didn’t expect for the day to actually come and for you three to leave, it's gonna be so quiet here” Nat sighs wiping away her tears.

“I know and I’m sorry but you’ll have Bruce here, and you can always come to stay with us if you miss us, you might need to give me some warning because the guest rooms are all bare at the moment,” Steve says earning a weak chuckle from Nat.

“do you really have to go?” she asks.

“yeah, I can’t stay here Nat, there are too many memories and ghosts, going to therapy helped but I can’t move on fully if I’m constantly seeing her” Steve sighs shaking his head.

“I promised Y/N that we’d raise our kids somewhere away from the Avengers, give them a normal life, I need to keep that promise” he finishes.

Nat nods her head sniffling back her tears “I know, I understand, I really do, I just will really miss you guys”

“and we’ll miss you too, but like I said you can visit whenever you want, don’t even need to call ahead just turn up and we’ll be happy to have you” Steve smiles rubbing her arms as he looked down at her.

“Thanks Steve, just don’t burn the house down the first time you cook okay?” Nat jokes weakly making Steve chuckle.

“I won’t, I promise” Steve smiles, relieved to see a smile slowly working its way onto Nat’s face.

“But look we don’t have to go over tonight so why don’t I drop this last lot off and then tonight we can all hang out, order in some pizza and watch a movie together, I promise I won’t let JJ pick the movie” Steve smirks making Nat laugh nodding her head.

“yeah sounds good, thank you so much Steve” Nat smiles hugging Steve again.

Steve quickly finished up packing up the last of his stuff, JJ waking up just in time for Steve to leave him and Scout with Nat and Bruce before heading over to Brooklyn. After he dropped the last of the stuff off, he made the journey back to the compound. Grabbing some pizza on his way.

“I thought I’d help sweeten the deal” Steve smirks leaning over the back of the couch and holding the pizza boxes out in front of Nat.

“I don’t accept bribes” Nat smirks as she takes the boxes from him “is this one JJ’s?” she asks pointing to the smallest box.

“yeah, got all his veggies organised into a smiley face” Steve grins making Nat snort with laughter.

“I’ll go let Bruce know I’m back while you pick a movie, and nothing gory alright,” Steve says standing back up, pointing at Nat in mock warning.

“yes sir,” Nat smirks saluting him.

Steve laughed heading off to the labs to get Bruce, finding him sat at his computer tiredly.

“hey food’s here,” Steve says grabbing Bruce’s attention.

“Hm? Oh yeah sure, I’ll be right there” Bruce nods barely looking up from his computer.

“nope, c’mon it’s my last night here so we’re all having fun,” Steve says walking over and pulling Bruce’s chair away from the desk.

“And I need to know you’ll be looking out for Nat once I’m gone” Steve sighs putting his hands down on his hips.

Bruce sighs nodding his head as he turned around to face Steve “I will I promise” he promises as he stands up.

“Thanks Banner, maybe you two will be able to pick up where you guys left off,” Steve says shrugging his shoulders but Bruce shakes his head.

“I think that ship might have sailed” Bruce sighs taking off his glasses and slipping them into his shirt pocket.

“then maybe it's time you get a dingy and sail after it” Steve smirks putting his hand on Bruce’s shoulder making Bruce chuckle weakly.

“c’mon let's not keep Nat and JJ waiting” Steve smiles wrapping his arm around Bruce’s shoulders and leading him out of the labs.

Once in the common room, they all got comfortable, Steve sat on the floor with JJ on his lap while he helped him eat his pizza. While also simultaneously stopping JJ from giving too much food to Scout who was sitting by Steve’s feet patiently waiting for any scraps. Steve eventually caves and tosses him a couple of pieces of chicken off his own pizza.

As the movie played Steve smiled as JJ squealed with laughter whenever Shrek appeared on the screen. Steve spent a large majority of the movie glancing around the room, smiling when he saw Nat and Bruce smiling and completely relaxed. He knew that so many of the team were missing but it felt normal, just like their old movie nights.

He wasn’t sure why but he then glanced over his shoulder to the spot on the couch behind him. Taking a deep breath when he saw it was no longer empty, now being occupied by you. he watched as you smiled and laughed at the movie, you then looked down at him and smiled warmly at him a proud look on your face. Steve smiled gently back at you before looking away, back towards JJ pressing a gentle kiss to the top of the toddler's head.

Steve was starting to think moving out of the compound was a really bad idea. He didn’t realise how much help he’d been getting until he had to do everything all on his own. It had only been two weeks and he was starting to lose the plot. He had barely stopped, he was constantly cleaning or doing something with JJ or telling him not to pull Scout’s tail when they played.

Steve collapsed down on the couch with a heavy sigh, he wanted to curl up and nap like JJ was but there was a massive pile of laundry that he needed to sort. Groaning to himself he sat back up and began working through the pile, sorting out what needed ironing and what he could just fold. He then started pairing up all the socks cursing when he discovered there were barely any matching pairs, a mystery he couldn’t work out because he knows all his socks went in the machine perfectly fine.

He was about halfway through the pile when he frowned. It was quiet. It was never quiet. Quiet meant something was wrong. Glancing around he tried to spot Scout but couldn’t see him anywhere.

Steve quickly jumped up from the couch and started searching the house. Praying that he would find the pup before he got into too much trouble, or ate another pair of Steve’s trainers.

Of course, Scout was in the last place Steve checked, his ensuite. He nearly didn’t check it but then he heard rustling behind the door. Pushing open the door his eyes widened at the mess Scout had made. Toilet paper all over the floor ripped to shreds. Scout rolling around on the floor with toilet paper covering him.

“Scout! No! bad dog!” Steve scolded making Scout stop suddenly, standing up and looking like a mummified dog, in any other circumstance Steve would have found that hilarious but right now he was not impressed.

It only got worse when Steve stepped inside the bathroom, his foot instantly landing in a puddle which was disturbingly warm. Steve instantly recoiled peeling his soaked sock off his foot before chucking it in the bath.

“That better be the only present you left under all this toilet roll” Steve grimaces as he steps around the puddle reaching down to lift scout up.

He carries him through the house and back down the stairs, moving his head out of the way as Scout tried to lick his face.

“too late for apologies buddy,” Steve says as he opens up the back door, putting Scout down on the grass.

“This is where you pee and poop,” Steve says gesturing to the garden “that is where I pee and poop” Steve continues pointing back at the house.

“me” Steve reiterates “you,” he says pointing at the grass.

Scout however just sits in front of Steve tilting his head in confusion as he watches Steve.

“right are you gonna go or not?” Steve sighs putting his hands on his hips, but Scout makes no movement to do anything.

“right come on inside,” Steve says beckoning Scout back inside.

Steve makes his way back up the stairs, scout at his heels the entire way. Steve grabbed some cleaning supplies on his way before he makes a start clearing up Scout’s mess. As he worked Scout sat at the bathroom door watching him work, wagging his tail when Steve discovered it wasn’t just a puddle Scout had left him.

The evening Steve wasn’t sure why he thought he’d be able to cook a proper meal for him and JJ. Because of course it went horribly wrong, Scout barking, JJ screaming and crying as the fire alarm wailed, Steve opening up every window and waving a tea towel by the fire alarm to waft away the smoke cursing at his bad luck.

“Need a hand?” Roberta called out as she came in from the backdoor.

“yeah if you could calm JJ” Steve called back as he continued to waft the smoke away.

Finally, the smoke cleared and the alarm stopped, JJ’s crying reduced to small sniffles and Scout stopped barking. Steve sighed in defeat as he dumped the meal he was trying to make and subsequently cremated in the trash, slumping against the counter and rubbing his forehead tiredly.

“What happened?” Roberta asks him as she rubs JJ’s back soothingly.

“I was just trying to cook a proper meal for JJ, not something that you just heat from frozen, why I thought I could cook I don’t know” Steve sighed as he moved to sit down at the kitchen table.

“you can’t cook?” Roberta asks surprised.

Steve shook his head “no Y/N did all the cooking, I did the driving since she couldn’t drive, Nat did all the cooking while we were at the compound” he explained with a sigh.

“I don’t even know what went wrong I followed the recipe exactly” he scoffs shaking his head.

“Sometimes that’s the issue,” Roberta tells him making him huff in annoyance.

“so I’m destined to raise my son on microwave and frozen food?” he scoffs looking over at JJ who was curled up in Roberta’s arms sucking his thumb.

“no you’re not, look nobody is an expert at cooking off the bat, you learn as you go, work out all the kinks and nuances with your oven, and follow your instincts” Roberta reassures him.

“Look I’ll help, I’ve got some easy recipes that I can teach you that will work you in and then you can build on them, and I made some lasagne tonight so I’ll bring that over for us all to eat” she offers.

“thank you Roberta I can’t thank you enough” Steve sighs gratefully.

“It's nothing now you two have a little cuddle while I go grab it” Roberta smiles standing up and passing JJ over to Steve.

Steve smiled thankfully, wrapping his arms around JJ and letting him curl up in his arms. His tiny fist gripping onto Steve’s shirt tightly.

“I’m sorry bean, I didn’t mean to scare you” Steve apologises running his hand over JJ’s scruffy blond hair.

“you okay now? do you want scout?” Steve asks him wiping away the remaining tears on JJ’s cheeks.

“out” JJ sniffles, making Steve smile slightly.

“Scout, c’mere boy!” Steve whistles, the pup quickly trotting over to Steve who pats the space on his lap.

Scout jumps up onto Steve’s lap, Steve’s arms wrapped around both JJ and Scout to ensure neither of them fell. Once he was settled Scout turned to JJ and started licking his face, cleaning up all the tears and making JJ giggle. A smile appeared on Steve’s face as his son laughed and stroked Scout's soft fur.

Soon Roberta returned and started plating up the lasagne for the three of them, a nice small portion for JJ already cut up so he just had to feed himself with a spoon. As they ate Steve smiled gently as he watch JJ get more of his food around his mouth than in it.

“Someone is gonna need a bath after dinner” Roberta chuckles, Steve nodding his head in agreement.

“yeah, hopefully the excitement of this evening will mean I can get him to bed early and get on with everything else I need to do” Steve sighs as he pushes his food around his plate.

“there’s a pile of laundry the size of mount Everest in the living room that I had to abandon after someone left me a present in my bathroom” Steve continues glancing down at Scout who looked back up at Steve with a small whimper “yeah I’m still not happy about that pal”

“if you ever need help Steve don’t hesitate to ask, I know how hard it is being a single parent,” Roberta tells him gently.

Steve takes a deep breath before letting out a long sigh and nodding his head “yeah it is, I just didn’t realise how hard it would be, I had it so easy before and now it’s just me” Steve says leaning back in his chair.

“it’ll get easier don’t worry, you’ve only been living here a couple of weeks so give yourself some time to adjust okay, and you know you can drop JJ off at daycare for the afternoon to give you some time to do everything you need to do, work on the house” Roberta offers but Steve sighs shaking his head.

“I don’t know, I’d feel bad leaving him somewhere when I’m at home” Steve sighs looking over at JJ.

“Okay then I can look after him some afternoons or maybe he can go see Morgan, there’s options Steve you don’t have to work yourself to the bone,” Roberta tells him.

“would you be okay with that? Having him some afternoons?” Steve asks hesitantly.

“of course, I love the kid” Roberta smiles.

“Thank you that would really help, give me time to work and also know he’s just next door if there’s a problem” Steve smiles nodding his head gratefully.

“It's not a problem and if there’s anything else you need help with then just let me know,” Roberta tells him.

“you wouldn’t have a tip to stop socks disappearing would you? I’ve never had the problem before but now I keep losing them and I don’t have a single matching pair” Steve asks making Roberta laugh.

“they’ll be in the house somewhere, just keep the odd ones in a box or something and whenever you do a load of washing check to see if any of the matching pairs are there” Roberta laughs.

That evening once JJ was in bed, Steve finished sorting through all the laundry ready to start ironing tomorrow and he made his way up to bed, Scout at his heels. As soon as the bedroom door opens Steve expected Scout to run to the bathroom in the hunt for toilet roll but instead he scampers underneath Steve’s bed.

“hey what you doing under there?” Steve asks getting down on all fours to peek under the bed.

As he does so he spots Scout with one of his socks in his mouth, surrounded by a pile of socks.

“Well, that explains where they all went” Steve mutters in disbelief.

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