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Time Warp AU - Preview

In a lot of ways, he didn’t want anything to change. He wanted them to still be best friends - only… when they were out on one of Pete’s quests for trash/treasure, or waiting in line for one of his, Tom’s, favourite smoothies, or even just hanging out and watching tv, it would be nice if they could hold hands as well.  When they go to watch the jets take off, it would be nice if they could lay in the grass together, close enough that their arms brushed against each other.  When Pete had those days where he flinched a lot or was just plain sad, or when he had those nightmares that make him sound like he was trying not to cry, it would be nice if Tom could hold him like he always wants to in those moments, and not let go until he felt better. He wants to promise him that he’d always be there, no matter what, and have Pete know that he actually meant it. He’d like it if Pete could do the same for him.

I'm really hoping to get this update out this weekend. I've been working on it so much in the background, it's just coming together in a jigsaw puzzle sorta manner haha.

In the meantime - I hope you like this snippet :)

#Time Warp AU #Icemav #tom iceman kazansky #pete maverick mitchell #preview #fanfic

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Apologies for not commenting sooner, I loved it so much on the first read I wanted to set aside some time to comment on it properly.

First of all, I adore this whole fic. I really do love this song for these two and this just makes it all the better!!

Tom breaks my heart. You can feel how in love he is with Mav, and how heartbroken he is that they won’t ever (at least, so far as he can see at the time of this fic) get to express it and experience it the same way as everybody else around them seems to.

And all the while, there’s this real sense of a ticking clock tormenting him. Either to the end of his time with the man he adores or to discovery and the end of everything they had both worked for (and after that, potentially, still his relationship with Mav). The poor guy really is so afraid and sad and conflicted, all because he’s so in love with ‘the wrong’ somebody, my heart just breaks for him.

That said, the end goes a long way to soothing that ache. I’m so glad that his mum, at the very least, supports him (particularly considering that a good number of his concerns was disappointing her and her expectations for his life (also I’m 100% with you on the head!canon Ice’s dad was a hard-arse)). And her immediately clocking his connection with Pete.

Which brings us to Pete.

They really are opposites of each other, aren’t they? Where Tom fits in the world, with the exception of his love for Pete (and is willing to make that exception because he loves Pete), Pete’s love for Tom is what helps him navigate a world he doesn’t necessarily fit into.

It says a lot to how much he cares for him that Ice is the one thing that can, maybe not curb - rather guide his nature so he’s not spending his entire life drag-racing Lady Luck to the finish line. Nobody else would stand a chance (Goose, maybe. But they were kindred souls. Goose was along for the ride).

I love how much you write Tom as both a guiding presence in Pete’s life, but also someone who supports and believes in him with all his heart, which just reads so true to their canon relationship. Tom believes in him so much, even when Pete questions himself and it’s so heartwarming. They’re so in love and so in each other’s corners.

Ahhh - suffice it to say, I adored this. Thank you so much for writing and sharing it :)

I found love

First cab off the rank for the icemav song series! I Found by Amber Run from @qedart. (Do y'all want these on ao3?)

cw: inexplicit period typical homophobia

--

I found love where it wasn’t supposed to be

Fear doesn’t set in for some years, despite how uncertain they were at first. No, Tom is never scared of his love for Maverick. But it’s only as his sister gets engaged and his cousin has a baby that he comes to a chilling realisation that he’s of the age where he needs to shed his bachelor personality and take a desk position, get married, and have kids. 

And he would love too, he’d love to do all those things. Except he can’t, not without killing his soul in the process.

Because he’d love to get married – to Maverick. He’d love to come home – to Maverick. He’d love to have kids – with Maverick. 

But he can’t marry Maverick. He can’t always come home to Maverick. He can’t have kids with Maverick. 

How unfortunate that the man so many people are convinced is cold and heartless has so much love, only for it to be forbidden. Denied. Disgraced. 

Love was meant to be for the daughter of an Admiral or a banker or someone. So long as she was a daughter. Love wasn’t meant to be found in his rival, his competitor, his wingman. His Maverick. 

Fear instils itself in him. It makes him hold his breath every time the topic of relationships comes up around his family, waiting for the questions. It’ll be harder to maintain the it’s hard to court from an aircraft carrier when he inevitably takes a desk position. Sooner or later his mother will want her son to have children, a daughter in law to talk wallpaper with. 

—

And i’ll use you as a makeshift gauge of how much to give and how much to take

Pete spent his entire life asking the universe questions and never waiting long enough for an answer. How long can he go before breaking into the turn? How much more can the air boss take? 

He’s spent his entire life pushing it, right on the edge of the envelope. Higher, faster. More often than not it’s worked out, somehow. But he fails, falls, just like everyone. Each time he seems to land into the grounder harder than before. Like the universe is sending him a message. 

Stop.

But he never listened, never paid attention. Didn’t take any hints from the universe on when to slow down. Not until Tom Kazansky showed up, an ever present speedometer that reminds him to break, to eat and sleep.

—-

Tom’s father dies when he’s thirty seven and it stops the questions for a while. A part of him feels guilt, or is regret, that his father never saw him  become a father. At the wake his mother takes by the hand into the garden and cups her hand on his cheek. 

She smiles up at him sadly, but hopeful. 

“Love that boy who sat in the back,” she whispers quietly. “You’re free now.” 

—

 Pete’s spent so long being told to give in, to relent to the pressure, the expectation. To slow down, follow orders, stay on the straight and narrow. He’s spent so long hearing it that sometimes he forgets to find the accelerator, to pour his all, to give his everything. 

Before the first dark star test flight Tom holds his hand through the fire repellent gloves on the long walk out to the flight line in the middle of the Mojave desert. 

“Nervous?”

He looks at Tom through his helmet. A view they’ll share in this exact spot more than once. 

“I’m about to ask an experimental aircraft to go Mach 5.”

Tom takes him by the shoulders and gets as close to Pete’s face shield as he dares. “I know so many people including myself have told you to slow down, to stop, to think, to change course. And something I’ve rarely told you is to hurry up.” Move your ass, get up here! I’m engaged with five. Repeat five. I’m in deep shit! “You are the only one who can push it up there the way you do.”

“But what if–”

“I want you to come home tonight. But Mav, I know you. I know you’ve been told to give in, give up all your life. It’s time for you to take. Push it, because you can.” 

#fic rec #icemav

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#time warp au #pete maverick mitchell #icemav #tom iceman kazansky

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I love the 1st panel where Pete is giving a side glance at Tom (oblivious of course) on his phone. Was this intentional?

Heya!!! Ahhh, I’m glad you liked that!

And yep, definitely intentional. The kid’s got feelings and is quietly starting to realise it.

#time warp au asks

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First off, I love all of your art and writing:

concerning the time-warp au:

do the same names ever get confusing? i'm sure Ice calls Mav "Pete" sometimes and vice versa. would it ever throw them all off or confuse them? Have the youngers ever thought of new names/nicknames? How are they referred to around the house?

On a separate note, do you think you'll delve into Tom's past in another comic? if you do, will he have the opportunity to share a parental/brotherly moment with Ice?

p.s. i commented a very similar note on your latest chapter on ao3, so feel free to respond wherever's easier!

Thank you so much for this ask! I’m glad that you’re enjoying the au (and my writing, it’s been so long, so thanks for that haha). 

Now, to your question: Oh I definitely think there’s been some mild confusion, but nothing crazy. Now, full disclosure, I was one of those people that used to have at least one or two other kids in the class with the same name as me, so I’m leaning into that experience for this (I actually share a desk with somebody who has the same name, so this is day to day thing now lol). Essentially yeah, you look up when it turns out you didn’t have to every now and then, but it’s not really a huge hassle or that tricky to navigate. 

I think they might have covered the ‘hey, so if you want to have a new identity and start fresh - now’s the perfect time’ point during the ‘so it looks like you’ll be sticking around’ talk. But Pete and Tom are stubborn little shits. 

Seriously, Mav coulda changed his name and saved himself a hell of a lot of hassle/harassment back in the day and he still stuck with it anyway - no way Pete’s changing it just to avoid a little confusion. And I feel like Tom’s got a bit of a ‘my mother gave me this name. I’m not just gonna drop it’ thing going on. So, like I said, stubborn. 

Mav and Ice leaning a little more strictly into their callsigns is the work around that they’ve settled on though (and it was the primary way they addressed each other before all of this regardless, so not too much of a mental-transition). Is it fool-proof, no. But it gets the job done 90% of the time. 

Now, regarding Tom and his background, that’s absolutely part of the plan. Pete’s been a bit front and centre the last few updates but it’s definitely swinging Tom’s way soon, don’t worry about that. 

I hope that all made sense and thanks again for your ask(/and comment :D). I hope you enjoy what’s to come!! 

#time warp au asks

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For the Time Travel AU: life Pete and Tom ever make it to the skies, do they get new callsigns or will they somehow still end up at Maverick and Iceman respectively?

(I love your artwork btw, including the Mando stuff.)

First, thank you so much. I’m so glad that you’re liking the series and my other stuff :D

Now, regarding the callsigns - it’s so funny that you ask because this idea was bouncing around my head just the other day haha.

Full disclosure, I’ve got no idea at the moment. I’m not even sure if we’ll be following the kiddo’s that far down the line (but then again, this series started as a joke about Ice making a dig at Mav and being reminded of ‘the chomp’ and now we’re 14 parts in, so who knows?). 

That said, I definitely don’t think they’ll end up with Maverick and Iceman. By the time they’d be getting call-signs Mav and Ice are either still in the Navy or fairly recently retired, so they still sort of own that legacy. 

Now, for what they could end up with, I mean, the options are endless. 

Thing 1 and Thing 2 or Twiddledee and Twiddledum for the lols variation. 

For serious options:

I thought maybe Icarus could work for Pete. Probably intended as a warning or in a sorta mean-spirited ‘you’ll burn in some day’ way, but I feel Pete would take it as a challenge and run with it (‘So you’re recognising that I’m gonna fly higher than all of you? Good to get that out of the way early.’)

Tom I’m sort of torn between Angel and Duke.

Angel as a carry on from Ice’s ‘Guardian Angel’ status, because that’s one of those things that’s just consistent with those two.

Duke, doesn’t tie in quite as nicely, so follow me here haha. I was thinking Prince initially, as a kind of tie in to the COMPACFLT being perceived as his father/uncle/family, so he’s almost the heir to that legacy, but that just wasn’t really clicking. Duke however has the same connotations, while also being a bit of a nod/dig at Mav (depending on who’s involved in them getting these callsigns) and Tom’s relation to him as well (and also, perhaps, as a warning as well, because the kid is picking up some Maverick tendencies already. 2 or 3 years down the line who knows how much that influence has taken effect lol). Personally I think Tom would take it on with a huge amount of pride, even if it’s intended maliciously (especially if it was intended maliciously). Duke Mitchell is essentially family at that point. His reputation was dragged through the mud for doing the right thing at the wrong time/place. Both Mav and Pete suffered terribly because of that, and now people were still trying to use his name to shame or ridicule or warn people off. To hell with them. He’ll take that name, he’ll wear it like a badge of honour, and he’ll force people to respect it. 

Sooooo - long rambling response, sorry. To put it simply, I’ve got lots of thoughts and feelings but nothing’s concrete. Thanks for asking though!!! It was definitely good to get it all down into words. 

#time warp au asks

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Time Warp AU - #14 Well this update just didn't want to come together. But finally it's done (all 8K+ of it 😬) and I'm actually rather happy with how it turned out. So I hope you all enjoy this offering of Pete emotional H/C with a side of parental Icemav.

Honestly, Pete had never really got the big deal about birthdays. Sure, when he was little they seemed important. They’re supposed to, when you’re young. But he wasn’t a child anymore. 

He’d learned a long time ago that simply managing to make it through the year wasn’t exactly cause for celebration. A few rounds of people forgetting, ignoring, or scoffing at him for waiting for some kind of acknowledgment of the date had made it all very clear to him - nobody gives a damn about stuff like that, and you look pathetic if anybody catches on that you might. 

So he didn’t. Doesn’t. 

For the longest time now, the only real significance that that day held for him was as a marker of his being one year closer to independence. Living with Mav and Ice, even that didn’t provide the same spiteful satisfaction that it once had. 

These days, he didn’t count down the months until he was free of the people he found himself in the midst of. Quite the opposite really. Ice, Maverick, Tom, the Daggers, the uncles… they were good people. Good, kind, safe people - and they actually seemed to like Pete being around. 

Nothing lasts forever though, of course. He knew that. He was well aware that he was one big screw up away from blemishing whatever image they all had of him, one proper misstep from sending the whole house of cards he’d built around himself from falling to the ground in one way or another. And he was well overdue for one of those mistakes. Unfortunately, it was an inevitability. The sky is blue. Water is wet. Pete Mitchell messes up nice things. 

He tried not to let it bother him too much. 

It was better to just live in the moment, and at this particular moment he had far bigger concerns than inevitabilities or the fact that he was turning 17 in a week. The chief among them - Maverick was turning 60. 

Unlike Pete’s birthday, that was something significant. That was important. That was worthy of celebration. 

Up until this whole time-warp fiasco went down, Pete would have put money on him (any version of him) not making it past 30. 60 was double that! It demanded celebration, even if Mav himself had developed a habit of referring to the subject of his age merely as ‘the situation’.

So when Ice suggested a little lunchtime get-together by the Hard Deck the coming Saturday ‘for the birthday we’ve got coming up’, he agreed that it was a fantastic idea. 

“Penny’s got a barbecue there that we could use I’m pretty sure,” Tom chipped in over his cereal. 

“Nice. I’ll be there if there’s food,” Pete grinned as he made a bowl for himself. 

Tom rolled his eyes. 

“You were going to be there anyway, numb-skull.”

“Boys, please,” Ice sighed, before Pete could return fire. “I’ve not had my coffee yet, let’s just hold off on the bickering for a little while longer.”

Pete sniffed when Tom promptly shot him an exceedingly smug smirk. 

“I’d get drinking if I were you.”

“Pete.”

“Fine,” Pete huffed, before turning back to Ice. “The beach sounds great though. Want us to bring anything?”

“Just yourselves,” Ice replied, shaking his head. “Mav and I will sort out the logistics.”

And that was that. Party at the beach to celebrate Mav’s 60th, be there at 12. Sorted. 

The rest of the week went by like normal, for the most part. He was asked if he was excited about the party a bit more often than he expected he would be, but he figured it was just people making conversation. He and Tom spent most of Thursday trying to find the old man a fitting birthday present. 

“You’ve seen the hanger! How are we supposed to top that?!”

“I think we should probably start by setting our sights a little lower.”

In the end they decided to both go in on a new camera, figuring it was the most affordable of Mav’s hobbies to tap into. 

When the day itself eventually did roll around, Pete was up and out of bed by dawn. Not due to excitement, and not due to any additional birthday gestures like he’d been contemplating (a fry up was always a good start to the day, after all), no - due to Tom. 

“We’re going for a ride and you’re going to enjoy it,” he announced the second Pete woke (with a start, thanks to the other boy dropping his riding jacket and boots on top of him). “Up and at ‘em.” 

“But what about Mav’s-?”

“We’ll see him at the party, I’ve left a note,” Tom announced, grabbing the end of Pete’s quilt and dragging it out of the room with him. “Mush.”

“I hate you!”

“Hate me on the move. There is breakfast with our name on it somewhere.” 

“Ugh!” 

The ride, annoyingly, was fantastic. The roads were mostly clear, and riding with Tom was always a blast. Tom even bought him breakfast and a couple of pastries for after (“It’s your birthday, idiot. Of course I’m shouting”). It was… well, nice. Pete didn’t care about birthdays, he really didn’t, but even still… it was just nice. Sitting at the look out, munching on the food his best friend had bought for him, he found himself feeling genuinely content with life and how it was turning out. A year ago, he wouldn’t have been able to bring himself to even imagine that. It was a moment he resolved to savour. 

“You feel any different?” Tom asked, smirking as he dusted the icing sugar from his Pączki off his fingers. 

Pete scoffed at the question, rolling his eyes. 

“Oh yeah,” he replied, nodding seriously. “I feel like I’ve levelled up, you know? Way more mature now. I feel like I’ve really grown as a person.”

“And yet not an inch vertically? Life’s not fair, is it-?”

“Fuck you!”

Tom snickered, ducking out of the way of the hand Pete swung at the back of his head, before holding his own up in surrender. 

“Seriously though, happy birthday,” he said, shooting Pete a warm smile that made his stomach do that fluttering thing he’d noticed it doing more and more often lately. 

Smiling himself and ducking his head, Pete shrugged. 

“Thanks,” he said. “It’s not really a big deal.”

“Well as somebody with a vested interest in your being born, I reckon it is,” Tom retorted, rolling his eyes. 

Pete scoffed, a teasing grin tugging at his lips as he folded his arms over his knees. 

“A vested interest, huh?”

“Don’t let it get to your head.”

“Nawww, you do like me,” Pete snickered. 

“You’re letting it get to your head.” 

“Is that why you brought me out here, to confess your undying love?” 

“In. your. dreams,” Tom scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Bringing you out here was my present to both you and Mav.” 

“How is me going to go for a ride and being bought breakfast a present for Maverick? 

“You going for a ride and being bought breakfast means both you and I are here, not at home. Which means Mav and Ice have the whole place to themselves, all morning. And there’s no chance of either of us overhearing anything and being scarred for life.” 

Pete blinked at that, before pulling a face at the thought of Mav’s birthday ride and announcing, utterly serious, “You’re the best friend a guy could ever ask for.”

“I know,” Tom drawled, before shrugging as he tucked the rubbish from his breakfast into his backpack. “And maybe I wanted to get in first with the birthday wishes.” 

“Always a competition with you, isn’t it?” Pete scoffed, ignoring the other boy’s derisive snort as he jumped back to his feet. “Race you back to the Hard Deck!” 

“Absolutely not!” Tom snapped, hurrying to his feet all the same as Pete bounded over to the bikes. “That flies entirely in the face of the contract!” 

“I laugh in the face of the contract!”

“Yes! That’s why it took so long to draft! Pete!” 

They didn’t end up racing back, much to Tom’s relief. As a result, by the time they pulled up, pretty much everybody had arrived at the beach. Bradely, Hangman, and Phoenix were still by the Bronco though, pulling the last of their stuff out the back.

“Ah, the birthday boy has arrived,” Hangman cried as they wandered over.

“Ha ha,” Pete scoffed, rolling his eyes before turning to Rooster. “Hey, can we dump our helmets and stuff in your car?”

“Sure, the back seat should be free,” he replied as he hefted the cooler from the trunk. “But really, happy birthday, Pete.”

“Ah, thanks?” Pete replied, a confused smile tugging at his lips as he stepped out of the way for Tom to stow his stuff away as well. That’s two times today. Weird. 

“What’s with the face?” Phoenix asked, laughing. “17 is a big deal.”

Pete laughed. 

“Yeah right,” he replied, stooping to grab one of the bags from their pile. “16’s supposed to be a big deal, and 18 definitely is. 17’s just there.”

“Agree to disagree. But, that raises a good question,” replied Jake, a mischievous grin spread across his face. “What sort of Sweet 16 fiasco are we competing with today?” 

Pete arched a brow at the question, but figured it made sense. Out of all the milestone birthdays, 16 was the only relevant one he and Mav had an overlap on. Though he wasn’t sure how much “I spent most of it in the ER with a broken arm’ would help with gauging the temperature for how this one was going.

Instead he just shrugged. 

“Nothing really special. I’m sure this’ll be way better.”

“That’s what we’re aiming for,” Jake replied with a grin, ruffling Pete’s hair (and then, far more amusingly, Tom’s), before leading the way over to the sand. 

Pete blinked as they drew closer. A lot of people had turned up. All of the daggers were here, pitching up chairs and umbrellas or tossing a football (actually, two footballs) around while almost all the uncles and even Viper milled about among them. Mav, Ice, Slider, and Penny were getting the barbecue started, chatting with Warlock and Cyclone (which was weird, but probably Ice’s doing). He even spotted Amelia and Theo slip out of the Hard Deck, deep in conversation with Hondo (about something nerdy and interesting no doubt) to join the group. 

“Damn, Mav sure invited a lot of people for someone who pulls faces whenever anybody utters the number 60 around him,” he laughed as he hefted the bag further up his shoulder. “Or are you all gatecrashing just to torment him?”

Jake snorted at that, rolling his eyes. 

“Nah. Though he is being a baby about it, so if we did it would be his own fault,” he replied. 

“He actually ordered us not to mention ‘the situation’ the other day,” Bradley scoffed, shaking his head.

“In fairness, Roo - you and Bagman were having a lot of fun at his expense,” said Phoenix as they all dropped their bags on the sand and set about making camp. She grinned at Pete and Tom. “There have been lots of fossil jokes. These two even smuggled a walker on base and swapped it with his lectern before debrief. He had to walk it to the side of the classroom.”

“Cruel,” Tom snickered from beside him. “Funny, but cruel.”

“You know it,” Jake cackled, dropping his bags down on the sand before stretching his arms over his head. “But nah, he’s opted out of a group celebration. Don’t know why. But I’m afraid that means you’re flying solo today, baby bro.”

Pete blinked again. 

“...I’m what?”

“You’ve got the spotlight pretty much to yourself today,” Bradley replied, shrugging like it was the simplest thing. “Apparently he’s got some day-trip planned with Ice tomorrow, so he’s sorted. That just leaves you with all of the attention. Reckon you can handle that?”

…Shit. 

Shit, shit shit - he had not prepared for this. He’d not expected this. What the hell even was this?! He’s turning 17. Who gives a shit?! Why the hell would all of these people come out here, some of them a hell of a long way, just for him?! They wouldn’t. Had they not been told it was just for him? Did Mav wriggle out of this at the last second and now he had 20+ people who’d pretty much written off half their weekend for no reason on his hands? 

“Pete, you alright?” Tom asked, shaking his shoulder, a worried expression on his face. 

Pete grimaced, before glancing around at the others and finding them all looking at him with concern. 

He pulled on a wide grin and laughed. 

“Me? Yeah, of course!” he replied cheerily, mind racing all the while. He needed a minute to himself. To come up with a plan. To fix this. 

Quickly turning back to the others, slapping his forehead as he did, he said, “You know what? I think I left my phone on my bike. Just gonna go grab that, can’t lose another one. Are you guys good here for a sec?”

“I mean, yeah,” Tom said slowly, frowning. 

“Great!” Pete cheered (perhaps a bit too overzealously, but whatever) before spinning around and, with a quick “Back in a moment!” taking off back up the beach. 

Right, step one, calm the hell down. He had to get a hold of himself and he had to do it now. 

Alright, it was a surprise. Alright, there were probably going to be some irritated people down there. So what? He could deal with irritated people. He could deal with people that actively wanted to kick his ass, irritated is nothing. Why the hell was he freaking out so much? Less than a year of being treated nicely and he’d gone completely soft, seriously?

He shook his head roughly. 

He was fine. This was fine. He’d make it work somehow. He just needed to stop acting like a baby and come up with a plan of action. 

He could direct attention back to Maverick. The old man can try and wriggle out of it all he likes but two can play this game. He’ll stick around for an hour, direct as much attention to Mav as possible, whip Jake and Bradely up into enough of a frenzy to keep the momentum going and then make a classy exit. Nobody will even remember he was here and they’ll forget all about this misunderstanding. That’s good. That’ll work. 

…Unless Mav launches a counter-attack. Which he would. 

Shit!

“Pete?” 

Pete whirled around and found Mav and Ice approaching, both looking concerned and not all that surprised to see him up here. Goddamnit, Tom, the snitch!!

“What’s going on, kiddo?” Mav asked, cocking his head to the side. 

“I mean, that’s a pretty good question man,” Pete replied, running a hand through his hair anxiously as he glanced down at the beach once more before turning his attention (and frustration) back to the older man. “I get that you’ve got some sort of three quarter life crisis going on about turning 60, but seriously, throwing me under the bus so you can avoid that is a dick move.” 

Mav, the bastard, looked more confused than chastened at the rebuke, exchanging a bemused glance with Ice. 

“You’re going to have to spell this one out for us, buddy.”

Pete groaned, folding his hands on top of his head. 

“First, explain it to me, guys,” he replied. “What was the plan? Trick everyone here by saying it’s a party for Mav and then hope people aren’t too put out when it turns out it was for the other Mitchell? Jeez guys, I mean, what the hell? Why the hell?! Nobody gives a damn it’s my birthday. I don’t give a damn it’s my birthday. Now it looks like I do, and now I get to look like the stupid little moron who needed people tricked here to pad things out!”

“Pete,” Ice said slowly, holding his hands out like he was trying to calm down some wounded animal. Like Pete was being irrational about this. “You do know this party is for you, right?”

“Yes,” Pete replied with every ounce of patience he possessed. “I’m aware of that. That’s exactly my point”

“No. He means it was always intended to be just for you,” Mav weighed in. 

Pete sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose as he tried his very best to channel Ice and remain as diplomatic as he possibly could (it did not help, mind you, that Ice was joining in on this nonsense. But he tried nevertheless). 

“Look,” he said with forced calm, “I see what you’re trying to do, and it’s a nice thought. I appreciate that you guys care and want to make a fuss, I do. But you can’t just expect to trick people into writing off half their weekend for one thing, and then bait and switch with a discount offer at the last second. Wood and Wolf flew in from Texas for this, guys. Please. I’ll see if I can get the Daggers to lay off the fossil jokes, but- …what’s this?”

“Read it,” Ice replied, holding his phone out to Pete until he took it and did as he was told. 

Jake has named the group chat: Big Effing Deal Jake: First of all, how. dare. you? Nat: Seconded! Both for leaving us out and forcing me to agree with Bagman. Jake: Look what you’ve brought us too!!!  Nat: I feel physically sick.  Jake: Ditto. Bradley: Wow, you guys really are in sync today.  Nat: You take that back!!! Ice: Could somebody please explain what we’re being accused of here.  Jake: Betrayal!!!  Coyote: Dude - you’ve been hitting the expresso machine again, haven’t you? Mav: Guys. BOB: Rooster mentioned you are having a get together for Pete’s birthday on Saturday and we’re all handling the rejection differently. Fanboy: How could you, Mav? Mav: Well first, there’s no rejection for anybody to handle. We floated the idea of a beach party this morning and he seemed alright with it. So if you guys are free and want to come along, you’re more than welcome to.  Jake: Was that so hard?!!!! Mav: If you’d waited a few more hours I’d have invited you in person at work tomorrow. Jake: But Roo gets his invite right away??? :(  Ice: Rooster was over during the day, so yes, he heard first. Rooster: Remember how you were supposed to help me fix their gate today?  Jake: Nope. Poorly communicated on your part.  Jake: Moving swiftly on - we need times. And gift ideas. Nat: What a crappy brother. I got my present for him weeks ago.  Payback: Burn.  Payback: Also, same. Jake: You’re a pair of goody-goodies, I’m not surprised in the slightest.  Jake: Besides it doesn’t matter how early you got it. It’s how good it is. Nat: Got you beat there too Bagman.  Jake: Bullshit. Pete and I have a connection.  Payback: Is that what we’re calling you being a terrible influence now? Coyote: Just before these three properly kick off - is this a joint birthday bash? Or Pete-specific? Mav: Pete specific.  Mav: I’ve already got plans for mine.  Ice: And by that he means I have already made plans for him.  Ice: They’re on Sunday though, so we’ll be there regardless.  Mav: And people think I’m the competitive one. My point is, I’m covered, so don’t go worrying about that. Coyote: Roger that!  Fanboy: This is going to be great!! I can bake a cake if you like!!! Lil bro likes chocolate, right? Payback: Guys - take him up on the offer!  Phoenix: This! ^^^^^ Ice: That would be lovely, Fanboy, thank you. And yes, chocolate would be well received I expect.  Fanboy: Yeeeeeesssss!!  Mav: Right, we’re just going to leave you guys to this.  Rooster: Oh, actually, just before you go… Bradley’s added Sly-Guy, Chip_P, E!News, Full_M00ning…  Mav: Oh you little shit stirrer.  Sli-Guy: First of all, how dare you?! 

Pete blinked, utterly mystified, as he scrolled through the group chat (which seemed to go on for quite a bit) before eventually turning back to Ice and Mav. 

“I… I don’t understand,” he uttered. 

“Join the club, kiddo,” Mav replied, rubbing the back of his neck. 

“You helped plan this,” Ice pointed out, a baffled expression on his ordinarily nonplussed face. “I specifically asked you if you would like a party at the Hard Deck?” 

“I thought you were asking for my input for Mav’s party,” Pete muttered, his cheeks blazing with embarrassment as he realised just how stupid he apparently was. 

“The daggers have been talking to you about it all week?” Mav pointed out, equally confused. “Bob asked you what snacks you’d like him to bring.” 

“I thought they were coming to me because they couldn’t get anything out of you!” Pete snapped back hotly. 

Ice held up a hand, cutting that line of conversation off before it could get too heated. Taking a deep, exceedingly put upon breath, he sighed “Once again, it appears that this family’s outstanding communication skills have come back to bite us all in the ass.”

He turned back to Pete.  

“If it’s any consolation, it wasn’t meant to be a surprise party,” he said.

Pete scoffed softly, in spite of himself, but soon enough the begrudging amusement gave way to confusion once more. 

“I still don’t understand,” he said. “Why would all of them come out if they knew it was just for me?” 

“How’s it any different from them coming out for me?” Maverick asked with a frown.

Pete shrugged. 

“They’re your family,” he replied simply. “They’re supposed to show up for you.” 

“They’re your family too,” Maverick argued, his frown deepening. 

“You do know that, don’t you?” Ice said slowly, eyes narrowed suspiciously. 

“Yeah. Course,” Pete muttered, cutting a quick glance to the group in question. Nobody seemed to have noticed they were gone yet, thank goodness. Somehow Pete felt like he’d find himself even more outnumbered if they did. He had to bury this quick though, if he wanted to avoid that fate. 

Unfortunately, when he turned back to the oldtimers, Ice had his signature ‘so you’re just going to lie to my face now?’ expression in place. Never a good sign. Also almost never directed at Pete he realised with a dull pain. 

“You know, you pull that face every time this topic of conversation comes up.”

“What face?” 

“The ‘well if it makes them happy’ face,” Ice replied, folding his arms over his chest. “Be honest with us, Pete. What’s going on here?”

Pete shrunk back a little at that, feeling very much under a spotlight all of a sudden and not entirely sure why. 

“N-nothing. Nothing’s going on.”

“Well clearly something is. And just to be clear, do you honestly believe that we’d have all been fine throwing a party for Maverick and doing absolutely nothing for you?” the older man asked, arching a brow pointedly. 

“I… I mean… I… I’d get it,” Pete stuttered, heart pounding in his chest. What the hell was going on? What did he even do? He took a step back, giving into the instinct to at least be out of arm's length, only to knock into the back of Ice’s Jeep when he tried. Crap. He was trapped. And he was in trouble. And he didn’t know why. 

His alarm must have shown on his face too, because soon enough Ice was taking a step back himself, hands held up disarmingly. 

“Pete, I’m not angry with you,” he said, calmly and far gentler than before. “I’m sorry.”

Pete swallowed thickly, but nodded all the same as he tried to rein himself in, to calm down for goodness sake. He was being so damn stupid!!

“I just don’t understand,” Ice continued. “You know everybody here loves you, don’t you? We haven’t dropped the ball that much I hope.” 

Embarrassment and shame twisted sickeningly in the pit of Pete’s belly. Because he did know that. He knew how hard everybody had tried to make him and Tom feel welcome. And not just as novelty extensions of Mav and Ice either, but as their own, separate people. They’d all tried so hard to bring them into the family and make them feel like they belonged in it, Pete knew it. He saw it each day. For the most time, he felt it too, but there was just this part of him that wouldn’t allow him to accept it fully. Wouldn’t allow him to trust it. To trust them. 

“I’m sorry,” he uttered weakly, staring down at the tips of his boots. “I… I know it doesn’t make sense. It’s not anything you guys have done, or haven’t done. I know how much you’ve all tried to be welcoming. And you have, truly. I love it here… so much. But… but every time I try to… it’s just in the back of my mind I’m always… I…” 

He flinched sharply when something touched his arm, but it was just Ice reaching out to him. All of a sudden, that contact, that offer of reassurance was all he wanted. Sighing heavily he stepped forward and leaned against the old man’s chest, dragging in a deep, calming breath as Ice’s arms wrapped around him, squeezed him in a tight. 

“I love it here,” he uttered. “And everybody here… and I know they- you all care - about me and Tom. But I just know…” 

He sighed deeply. 

“It’s just… self-preservation, I guess. I know it’s going to really hurt, so much, when I mess up.  I didn’t care, when it was just some other home I was stuck in longer than usual, but now… now it’s probably too late already. When I mess up and have to go-”

“Hey, who said anything about you going anywhere,” Ice said with a frown, holding him closer. “We told you, you have a place in this family for life. Nothing will change that.”

Pete sighed sadly, shaking his head where it was pressed to Ice’s sternum. They didn’t get it. They felt that way now, but it wouldn’t last. 

“No matter how hard you try, you’re going to end up alone.” 

Both Pete and Ice froze at that, before turning to face Maverick, who looked all the world like he’d just commented on the weather rather than putting one of Pete’s deepest, most painful fears to words. And he wasn’t done. 

“We’re going realise just how messed up you really are. How much damage has been done. How much of it can’t be undone. And, most importantly, how much of it you probably deserved. And sooner or later we’ll change our mind about you. It’s all well and good to say we’ll always want you in the family if we haven’t seen the full picture yet, because let’s face it, you’re on the good behaviour streak of a lifetime right now. But sooner or later, you’re going to mess up, because that’s what you do. And then we’ll see the real you. The screw up. The waste of space. The guy everybody else can see clearly. Eventually the rose-coloured glasses will come off and  we’ll really see you for what you are. We’ll get tired of trying to bring somebody into a family who doesn’t deserve to be in it and clearly is meant to be on their own. It’ll be better for everyone to just stop trying. We probably won’t kick you out, to be fair - but when you head off to college or the academy… the calls and emails will peter out. Tom will probably find his own people too, when he’s got other options. He’ll stop spending time with you too. It’ll probably be pretty amicable really. But everybody will just go on with their life and there will be no room for you in them. That will be that. Better to just accept it now, try not to get too attached to how things are, so when it happens, at least you won’t look like you were blindsided by it all. It’s a bit less pathetic if you at least saw it coming.” 

Pete’s stomach sunk so fast through the blacktop it felt like he was pulling negative G’s. Mav knew. Mav saw how this was going to play out just as clearly as he did. The first card in his little house was beginning to wobble. 

To his horror he felt his face beginning to heat up and his eyes beginning to sting. He dragged in a deep, shuddering breath, squeezing them shut tight. He wasn’t a baby. This wasn’t a surprise. He wasn’t going to start crying in the middle of the car park where everybody could see him like some child. 

He jumped as an arm wrapped around his shoulders and looked up to find Ice, holding him close again, and leading them to the space between his jeep and Bradley’s Bronco - more or less out of sight from the rest of the group.

“Sit down and take a few deep breaths for me, kiddo,” he murmured, manoeuvring Pete until he was sitting down on the gravel, back pressed against the rubber of the Bronco’s tyre. Biting his lip, he folded his arms tight over his chest, knees drawing up as Ice kneeled down beside him and wrapped an arm back around his shoulders, rubbing up and down his arm soothingly all the while.. “In and out. Just like that. What the hell, Mav?” 

“Just trying to work out what we’re dealing with here,” Maverick replied, sounding tired and sad now. “Pete, can you look at me?”

Pete really didn’t want to. This was all humiliating and painful enough without risking bursting into tears the second he made eye contact with the old man as well. But, at the same time, this was the reality of the situation, and closing his eyes and hiding from it wasn’t going to change anything either, except to make him look even more childish. So whether he wanted to or not, he didn’t have much of a choice. 

Clenching his jaw tight and breathing in deeply through his nose, he (as resolutely as he could manage) lifted his head and met Mav’s eye. He wasn’t expecting to be met with a sympathetic expression. How could Mav see him so clearly, and still look at him like that. 

“Does that about sum it up?” the old man asked, cocking his head to the side. “What’s going on in that head of yours.”

Scrubbing roughly at his face, Pete nodded his head. 

“M-more or less.” 

Mav hummed thoughtfully, pausing a moment, before smiling and sitting down properly across from them. 

“You know,” he said, leaning back on his hands. “The first time I met Carole, she scared that absolute crap out of me.” 

Pete blinked, confused at the strange turn their conversation had taken, but interested all the same. Mav wasn’t shy with talking about Goose or Carole, but he’d never heard that. 

A fond smile tugged at the edges of the old man’s mouth as he looked up wistfully at the sky. 

“People underestimated her. She was so loud and joyous all the time, most people figured she was probably a bit dim. But they had no idea. Sure she was smart enough, but her real strength was with people. She had this way of looking at a person, just looking at them, and seeing past all the bullshit.”

He shook his head. 

“The first shore leave after Goose and I became a team, Goose insisted that I come home with him. He hadn’t realised until we were literally docking that I didn’t have anywhere to go, so the second he put the pieces together it was, ‘Come on, you have to, Mav! It’ll be great. You can meet Carole. You guys will get on like a house on fire, I know it’. And I, for the life of me, couldn’t come up with a good enough excuse to convince him otherwise. I think I was a bit blindsided that he was offering to spend more time together at all.” 

He scoffed. 

“Either way, the pressure was dialled up to 11,” he drawled. “Not only would I have to stay on my best behaviour for even longer, to keep Goose on side - and I’d been on a 6 month streak at that point and felt the end looming. But I also had to become best friends with his wife, immediately. Otherwise he’d wonder how he got that one so wrong. Then he’d look closer, and he’d see everything he’d somehow missed about me before. See exactly where I was lacking. Me getting to keep the one person in the navy, hell, the one person in the world that gave a damn about me - depended on this month going well.”

Rubbing at his scratchy eyes, Pete leaned a little more into Ice’s side, before asking. “You managed to pull that off?”

“Hell no, I lasted less than a week,” Mav scoffed, shaking his head. “And it only lasted that long because Goose and Carole had the patience of saints.”

Pete frowned. That didn’t make sense. He might not know this story but he knew a hell of a lot of the others that came later. He knew Mav stayed friends with Goose, and Carole as well, for years after when this would have happened. How could it not have worked? How did he screw up that badly and still manage to keep them around? 

He shot Ice a confused glance, receiving a ‘just roll with it’ shrug in response. 

“Carole was living in this tiny town in the middle of nowhere Texas at the time. Her aunt needed help moving or something. Unfortunately that meant I had had about six hours of travelling to work myself up and come up with a game plan for how I was going to make it all work. Going in with a charm offensive wouldn’t have done it, Goose would feel like making moves on his wife, Carole would feel like I was a creep, and I’d be stuck with both of them feeling like that for a month. I couldn’t risk being myself, for reasons already discussed. So I decided on the red carpet treatment. From the second I got out of Goose’s truck to the second we got back in it to head back to the airport, Carole Bradshaw would be shown a level of respect and deference that no admiral had or has ever received from me. The queen of England could have come around and found it excessive. But it was the best I had.

“I addressed her as ma’am, I stood when she walked into the room or got up from the table, I tried to help out around the house as much as I possibly could. A big part of the plan was also trying to give her and Goose as much space and time to themselves as possible. I wasn’t supposed to be there, and the absolute last thing I wanted is for them to miss out on time together because Goose felt obliged to bring me along with him. On paper, I thought it worked. Be respectful and stay out of the way. Unfortunately, in practice it went more along the lines of me actively avoiding everybody like it was my job and, whenever I couldn’t, making the situation so awkward it was uncomfortable for everybody. And it was uncomfortable. My god. Goose and Carole, they tried so hard to get me to relax, come out of my shell, do the exact opposite of what I was trying to do essentially. It was not going well,” Mav laughed, rubbing the back of his neck and shaking his head at the memory. 

“Goose knew I was acting off, which was putting me even more on edge. And I knew I was quickly moving past that ‘meeting new people is awkward sometimes’ grace period straight into ‘this little twerp I’ve known for a few months has got a problem with the love of my life’ territory. So not ideal. And Carol… Carol knew from the beginning that I was putting up a front, which made settling around her pretty much impossible.”

Pete grimaced sympathetically at the thought of it all. 

“At least you stuck it out,” he muttered. “I would have just left at that point.”

“Oh, I did,” Mav replied without missing a beat. “About five days in everything finally bubbled over. Goose tried to coax me into telling him what was wrong for about the millionth time and… well, after days of constantly being on red alert, barely sleeping from the stress, just second guessing every single move or sound I made while knowing, in spite of trying my best, it was all going to hell - I sort of lost it on him. Told him he could take whatever friendship he thought we had and shove it where the sun don’t shine because I sure as hell didn’t need it or him. That I'd been on my own for over half my life and I didn’t need anybody, thank you very much, least of all some hapless, sheltered country-boy who clearly didn’t know what was good for him if it smacked him in the face. Then I grabbed my bag and went straight to the train station.”

Pete blinked owlishly at that, confused to say the least. 

“But I thought Goose was your best friend,” he said. 

“He was,” Mav replied. 

“Even after that?!” 

“I know, I was surprised too.” 

Pete frowned, puzzling it over as Mav laughed softly and shook his head.. 

“This being the tiny town it was, the train didn’t run very often, and I’d missed the one for that day - which was just the cherry on the top really. I figured I’d just spend the night on the platform. Didn’t want to risk missing the next one, and I was feeling pretty sorry for myself at the time so it seemed fitting. Which was exactly where Carole found me three hours later.”

Ice scoffed softly beside Pete, shaking his head with a fond smile of his own. 

“Mother Goose sent in the big guns then,” he drawled. 

“I honestly have no idea if Goose even knew,” Mav replied, smiling reminiscently himself. “I think she just figured she’d given us both enough time to sulk and decided enough was enough.” 

He chuckled, tilting his head back as he recalled the encounter. 

“She came over and sat down on the ground beside me,” he said, looking around them, the corner of his lips twitching a fraction higher. “Sorta like we are right now.”

Pete smiled weakly at that. 

“She sat with me for the longest time, didn’t say a word, just waited me out, until she could tell I was ready to actually listen to her. Then she took my hand and said, “You know what, honey? If you were half as rotten as you’re afraid you are, you wouldn’t care nearly as much as you do”.”

Pete ducked his head as, all at once, tears started welling up once again. God he wanted that to be true. With every fibre of his being he did. He bit his lip as he felt Ice pull him a little tighter against his side, and heard Mav scoot closer himself, reaching out and rubbing his arm himself. 

“Do you think she was right about that,” he uttered, voice crackling with the strain of keeping himself together. 

Mav smiled, squeezing Pete’s arm gently as he inclined his head. 

“Honestly, I always had my doubts,” he confessed. “But these days… I think she probably was.” 

Before he could stop them, a couple of the tears Pete had been battling against broke free and rolled down his cheeks. 

“Oh, buddy,” Mav sighed, reaching up to rub the moisture away. “I’m so sorry. Sometimes I forget how much all of that stuff hurt.” 

Pete leaned into the contact, the corner of his mouth twitching a little as he did so.

“Actually pretty good to hear that from my perspective,” he murmured, drawing soft scoffs from the oldtimers. 

Shaking his head fondly, Mav patted Pete’s arm one last time before folding them over his crossed legs. 

“I’m telling you this for two reasons,” he said, ducking his head to meet Pete’s eye once again. “First, and I really am sorry for this but, unfortunately, this is just one of those cards that you and I got dealt. This is something that you were always going to have to work through. Being on your own for so long, and getting told so many times and in so many ways that nobody wants you, and nobody will ever want you - it leaves a mark. That doesn’t mean you’re broken. It's just a hurdle that we get that some people don’t. Everyone’s got their own set. For us - it’s being very, very aware of just how much other people can hurt you, while at the same time knowing how much the alternative hurts too.”

Pete sighed softly, but nodded all the same. That point wasn’t exactly news to him, but it still sucked hearing it all the same. 

“And second,” Mav said, reaching out and brushing Pete’s hair back from his face with a small, reassuring smile. “Even though it doesn’t always feel like it, and that feeling will flare up from time to time unfortunately, some people really do stay.”

Pete lifted his head to look at the old man properly, something like hope fluttering weakly in the pit of his belly. 

“They stick by you as long as they possibly can, through more crap than you could possibly imagine. I know it’s hard to really let yourself believe that right now. I know it feels like the second you do it’ll all fall apart around you, like a house of cards. But that will fade with time and with evidence. You’re just going to have to trust me until then. You’re not meant to be alone. There’s nothing fundamentally wrong or bad about you. The people who are worth a damn, they stay - you just have to let them in in the first place.”

The older man leaned closer, whispering conspiratorially, “Just be careful, because once you do, it’s all bets off. I had one moment of weakness around Slider 36 years ago and now I’m stuck with him.” 

Pete laughed wetly at that, smiling back as Mav practically beamed at him. 

“I hope you’re right,” he uttered, rubbing again at his face. 

“I am,” Mav replied, nodding firmly. “And look, I’m not going to lie to you and promise forever. Nobody knows what’s around the corner. Hell, a tsunami could take us all out right now.” 

Pete scoffed softly, rolling his eyes as Maverick ruffled his hair teasingly. 

“But the stuff you’re worried about, the mistakes you’re worried about making, I’m sorry but they’re just not gonna cut it.” 

Ice nodded at that. 

“Unfortunately, to shake us at this point you’d have to do things that you’re simply not capable of. And they certainly wouldn’t be accidental.” 

Pete frowned slightly, glancing between the two of them. 

“...Could you give me a clue?” he asked. “You know, to be safe.”

Ice scoffed softly, before cocking his head to the side thoughtfully.

“Alright. We’re talking about doing things that would deliberately traumatise others. Not accidents, like a car crash or getting in a really bad fight, though we’d all rather you avoided that too. Stuff that’s just evil. Things specifically done to make somebody else feel afraid or humiliated or less than” Ice replied calmly, brow rising pointedly. “Do you feel that avoiding that sort of behaviour would be a struggle for you?”

“Fuck, no,” Pete replied, nose wrinkling at the thought of doing anything along those lines.

Ice  nodded. 

“There you go. There’s the bar,” he replied simply. “Anything above that? Worst case scenario, you’re the pain in the ass of the week. And that’s a title we’ve all held at one point or another.”

“Even you?”

“Unjustly,” he sniffed. 

“Ask Uncle Sli about it some time,” Mav replied without missing a beat, before turning back to Pete before Ice could retort. “Honestly kiddo, do you really think Bradely was an angel growing up?” 

“Well… yeah?”

“Think again,” Ice drawled. 

Mav hummed, nodding seriously. 

“Off the top of my head, there was that time he threw a party with his baseball team while we were out of town and trashed the house.”

“The bike he borrowed without asking, rode unlicensed, and totalled - on a dare.” 

“The kitchen he nearly burned down because ‘guys - you can’t pause online games, how many times do I have to tell you?’ and ‘I want bacon’ turned out to be a bad mix.”

“The spy-phase that ended with him trying to sneak onto a military base, ours that is, and then refusing to answer any questions or co-operate after getting caught.” 

“I maintain that that was mostly Hollywood’s fault for taking him to watch True Lies.” 

Pete blinked, stunned by the antics of, by far, one of the more mature ‘big brothers’ he had. 

Ice scoffed, rolling his eyes with a fond smile. 

“And we still love the kid. Did back then when it happened and through much less amusing run-ins too,” he said, before squeezing Pete a little tighter to his side. “So try not to worry so much. You’re a kid, you’re supposed to do stupid things. Mav does stupid things every other day and we still keep him around. And that’s these days. He was an absolute menace when I first met him. And six years older than you are now. You’re a dream in comparison.”

Mav huffed. 

“You are a delight,” he said, patting Pete on the shoulder, before shooting his husband a pointed look. “But I think some people are forgetting which one of us introduced himself by immediately talking shit.”

“We were competing and the fact that you still bring it up almost 40 years later just further emphasises what a sound psychological victory that introduction was for me.”

“I mean I wanted to kick your ass all the more afterwards, so I’m not sure how much of a victory it was.”

“Well you never did, so a big one I would say.”

“Bullshit I never did-!”

“Go-ddddddd,” Pete groaned, though he couldn’t help but grin at the bickering, which, in the span of 10 months, had somehow become the comforting soundtrack of home for him (which probably said a lot about Ice and Maverick, but who cares). “Wher’es Tom when you need him?”

“Our point,” Ice said pointedly, shooting Mav a look that said quite clearly ‘we’re supposed to be a united front, genius (also, you know I’m right), “Is that you’re going to make mistakes. Everybody does. You’re going to do stupid things, things that we don���t approve of. And, because we’re here to help you become the best person you can be, we’ll call you out on it. At one point or another, we’ll disagree, we’ll argue, feelings will probably get hurt, egos will get bruised. And then, we’re going to be here anyway. Because you’re a member of this family and that’s not going to change.” 

“And we’ll remind you of that however many times you need,” Mav replied, smiling warmly at him, before slapping his own knees and leaning back. “Now, how would you like to proceed from here? Are you alright breaking the Birthday Drought today or would you like to go home and we can just have a nice family dinner tonight. Which would you rather?”

Pete bit his lip, fiddling with a loose thread on the hem of his t-shirt. 

“I guess I… I wouldn’t mind staying,” he replied, his heart and stomach fluttering again at the thought of all these people, his family, turning up just for him. But this time, he found his emotions leaning more on the side of nervous excitement rather than all-consuming dread. “I mean, It’s been a minute.” 

“You’re sure?” Ice asked seriously, rubbing Pete’s back reassuringly. “Don’t feel like you have to if you don’t want to.” 

Pete ducked his head, a small smile spreading across his face as, for the first time since this whole miscommunication came to light, and before that really, something seemed to settle inside of him. Some knot of tension that had been there for so long that he’d just learned to live with it, seemed to ease just the littlest bit. He did not doubt, for a second, that if he decided to leave now, Ice and Mav (and Tom) would cover for him, would back him up and stand in his corner. Whether they needed to or not, and Pete suspected things would probably topple in the direction of ‘not’ because the others would understand.

Drawing in a deep, calming breath (like Ice had been teaching him) he lifted his head a smiled a little wide. 

“I want to,” he said. “Seriously, if I ever say no to chocolate cake I want you to assume that somebody’s stolen my face and is impersonating me.” 

“Mark that down for both of us,” Mav replied, nodding empathetically. 

“Noted,” Ice scoffed, smiling as the three of them got back to their feet. “In that case, we should probably get back. Tom said he’d try to keep them all in one place to give us a moment alone but the fact that he seems to have managed it is making me nervous.” 

Pete snickered as Mav shot him an amused grin, before they both followed Ice back to the beach. It turned out the old man may have been right to worry. 

“In my defence,” Tom drawled as he jogged over to meet them. “I didn’t expect them all to lose their minds.” 

Pete felt like that was a pretty accurate description for the mayhem they’d just walked into. Almost all the daggers and a few of the flyboys were shouting, waving their arms about, jabbing fingers in faces or, in Fanboy’s case, cackling rather manically. And those that weren’t seemed content to either enjoy the show or stoke the fires all the more. It was pandemonium. 

“What did you do?” Ice sighed as they drew closer. 

Tom shrugged. 

“I casually mentioned that Pete and I watched Die Hard for the first time, and asked what other Christmas movies we should watch. And, well...” 

“IT’S SET ON CHRISTMAS EVE, BAGMAN!!! HOW MUCH MORE OBVIOUS DO YOU NEED IT?!” 

“THAT’S ALL YOU’VE GOT! IT’S AN ACTION MOVIE-”

“ON CHRISTMAS EVE!” 

“OH MY GOD! SO WHAT?! SO WHAT?!!” 

“Well, it did distract them,” Ice replied, arching a brow as he took it all in. “They’re going to go full Lord of the Flies any moment now, but it worked.” 

Tom grinned, before slinging an arm around Pete’s shoulders and drawling, “Wanna make it worse?”

“You’ve been a terrible influence on him,” Ice sighed, shooting Mav a despairing glance as Pete laughed softly and shrugged. 

“Sure.”

Tom winked before calling over the noise, “Alright, maybe Die Hard can go one way or the other-”

“NO IT CAN’T,” Jake and Nat hollered in unison, before immediately shooting each other disgusted glares. 

“But surely we can all agree that Nightmare before Christmas-” 

And they were off again, with renewed vigour and with previous alliances suddenly shattered. 

Pete laughed as he took it all in. Tom’s arm around his shoulders; Mav and Ice squeezing his arm and ruffling his hair respectively as they walked by to try and reign in the chaos; Rooster and Hangman each elbowing their way through the crowd, hollering for him to back them up. 

The fears were still there, bubbling away beneath the surface. Pete felt that they probably always would. Allowing himself to stay this attached, to actually believe that maybe this time, just this once, things truly would turn out different… it was risky. Frankly it was downright dangerous. 

“Right, enough of this!!” Rooster hollered over the noise. “Let’s settle this properly.” 

“Agreed,” Jake replied, nodding firmly. “Dogfight football. I bags the babies.” 

“What?!” 

“You can’t take both of them!”

“Can. Did. Pete, Tom, come on.” 

Sometimes, the risks were worth taking. And, well, he’d always liked to think he was a little dangerous.

#icemav #pete maverick mitchell #tom iceman kazansky #time warp au #art

[qedart]

Time Warp AU - Preview

Weeks and a surprise freelance project later, I’m finally starting to wrap up the Pete Hurt/Comfort chapter we polled about a little while back (thanks for everybody who voted/commented btw). I’m hoping to have this up this week, but in the meantime, here’s a little sneak-peak: 

Tom snickered, ducking out of the way of the whack Pete swung at him before holding his hands up in surrender. 

“Seriously though, happy birthday,” he said, shooting Pete a warm smile that made his stomach do that fluttering thing he’d noticed it doing more and more often. 

Smiling himself, Pete shrugged. 

“Thanks,” he said. “It’s not really a big deal.”

“Well, as somebody with a vested interest in your being born, I reckon it is,” Tom retorted. 

Pete scoffed, a teasing grin tugging at his lips as he folded his arms over his knees. 

“A vested interest, huh?”

“Don’t let it get to your head.”

“Nawww, you do like me,” Pete snickered. 

“You’re letting it get to your head.” 

“Is that why you brought me out here, to confess your undying love?” 

“In. your. dreams,” Tom scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Bringing you out here was my present to both you and Mav.” 

“How is me going to go for a ride and getting bought breakfast a present for Maverick? 

“You going for a ride and getting bought breakfast means both you and I are here, not at home. Which means Mav and Ice have the whole place to themselves, all morning. And also means there’s no chance of either of us overhearing anything and being scarred for life.” 

Pete blinked at that, before pulling a face at the thought of Mav’s birthday ride and announcing, utterly serious, “You’re the best friend a guy could ever ask for.”

“I know.”

#icemav #both actual icemav and budding baby!icemav #pete maverick mitchell #tom iceman kazansky #Time Warp AU

[qedart]

Working on the next Time Warp update but have reached a bit of a fork in the road. Got some Pete hurt/comfort in the works - but for the comfort side of things, what are you more interested in seeing?

#icemav #pete maverick mitchell #tom iceman kazansky #time warp au #time warp au asks

[qedart]

Time Warp AU - #13

The boys are getting ready to start school. Where Pete has been to more schools than he can count, Tom has only ever gone to the one - so the prospect of it all is stressing him out waaaaaay more. Certainly more than anybody expected it would (including Tom).

After a particularly tense morning Pete decides to try and help out in his own way. That is, dragging Tom out to the watch planes take off with a side of scream therapy. It’s surprisingly effective. 

Naturally, the second I put a time estimation on the next update I promptly get sick for the first time in years and then pick up a tonne of freelance work to keep me busy. All done now though - hopefully I should have some more time for this fun stuff now :) 

#icemav #tom iceman kazansky #pete maverick mitchell #Time Warp AU #art #top gun

[qedart]

Omg I would love to see how little Tom and Pete are in gen z high school Ajdjajhfjshf

Regardless of it not being 70s high school I imagine Tom in this au would be very awkward (and Pete would get into so many fights)

Heya - Yep now I'm thinking about it more there's A LOT of potential for drama and shenanigans with these two in a modern high school!

And I absolutely agree, I feel like it would probably take Tom a little while to hit his stride. Pete's used to being the eternal new kid so that works in his favour, but further fights are inevitable 😅 

#time warp au asks

[qedart]

Hiiii I love your time warp au!!!!

I was curious cause u hinted it in another post- do u think tom is gonna develop some feelings for pete at some point, and do u have any thoughts about how far along it would take for our resident disaster to fall for our resident menace?

Sorry anon - I 100% agree with the nicknames 'resident disaster' and 'resident menace' for those two. But I just pictured Tom's outrage over it and had to draw something haha.

In regards to your question (glad you're enjoying the AU by the way) I can't give too much away but suffice it to say there will be some content covering this matter over the next week or so.

#time warp au asks

[qedart]

Dude, honestly. Your AU gives me life.

I giggle and say out loud to the walls of my house how much I love it every time you post something new.

Seriously, it's brilliant.

Your characterization of baby Tom and baby Pete is amazing. And I love seeing how you build their relationships with the others.

Thank you so much for sharing such a lovely story with us.

Hey!! 

I’m so sorry for not replying earlier! This ask was just so lovely and made me so happy I wanted to sit and admire it for a bit before replying and suddenly over a week had gone by 😅

But seriously, thank you so much for this lovely message. I’m so glad that you like the AU and characterisations of the boys so far! Seriously, it’s so encouraging I can’t even say! 

The whole thing has just been such a joy to draw/write/ponder over - I’m glad that you’re enjoying it as well!! 

Again, thank you so much for this lovely ask. It absolutely made my week!! 

#asks

[qedart]

first, I love your AU. Are little Pete and Tom on summer break? will they be enrolling in school together? That should make for interesting dynamics.

Heya - 

Thanks for your ask! I’m so glad you’re enjoying the AU so far!! :) 

And this is a great question! 

At present it’s a combination of school being out for the summer and those two going through a bit of a crash-course to cover everything that may not have been included in the 70s/80s high school curriculum. 

But you’re right, it would be interesting and there’s definitely some potential for drama if they do get enrolled. I mean Pete’s already thrown down with at least 6 teenagers so far so he’s starting strong haha. 

I’ve not got any storylines in mind right this second but there’s absolutely potential for some to develop!

#time warp au asks

[qedart]

Time Warp AU - #12

I got this little scene stuck in my head and had to get it out before moving on to anything with a bit more plot. Just the boys actually behaving like normal teenagers for once (well, perhaps with a dash more danger than most teens go for) and pestering Ice for permission to get motorcycle licences (they assume Mav’s a shoe-in. They are mistaken. He’s by far the more hesitant of the two of them). 

It’s an opportunity for both Ice and Tom to flex their negotiation muscles. By the end of talks they’ve got a written agreement (signed by all parties and witnessed by an utterly bemused Cyclone) outlining that: 

Thomas Lev Kazansky (II) (hereinafter referred to as TK) and Pete Michael Mitchell (II) (hereinafter referred to as PM) will receive permission and blessing to get motorcycle permits/licences under the condition that: 

California Relevant state road rules will be abided by. 

Permit limitations will be followed until PM and TK are eligible for licence upgrade

Protective gear (read: helmet, gloves, jacket, boots as a minimum) to be worn at all times (Addition: Cpt Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell (I) will provide a good example by wearing a helmet and gloves at a bare minimum going forward). 

Motorcycles will be roadworthy upon purchase. (Note: PM’s confidence in his abilities to make them so will not suffice.)

Motorcycles will be appropriately maintained (with quarterly check-ups conducted by Cpt Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell (I) for the first 12 months or until satisfied with PM and TK’s skillset to carry on solo). 

Before first solo ride/s - PM and TK are to accompany Cpt Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell (I)  and Admiral Thomas ‘Iceman’ Kazansky on no less than six group rides to build up seat time and skillset in various conditions. 

Any accidents, minor or major, that occur will be reported to Cpt Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell (I)  and Admiral Thomas ‘Iceman’ Kazansky  (note: i: Cpt Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell (I)  and Admiral Thomas ‘Iceman’ Kazansky  acknowledge that accidents happen and are often a part of learning and promise not to overreact in the case of an honest mistake. ii: PM and TK agree that further instruction will be provided and accepted with minimal protest to avoid future accidents). 

…

It goes on for about 5 pages. (If the fighter-pilot thing doesn’t work out, Tom’s got a very bright future in law and/or politics it would seem). 

In other news, waaaay more research into California road law went into the background of this comic than was really necessary. (I would have had my bike soooooo many years earlier if I was born american 😭)

#icemav #tom iceman kazansky #pete maverick mitchell #Time Warp AU #art #top gun

[qedart]

Hey, I had a question about the time warp au.

So, Ice and Mav are together in this, right? So, do mini Kazansky and Mitchell know that? How do they feel about? I love love to see their reactions to finding out that's who they end up with.

Heya! 

Thanks for your question!! 

Yep, Ice and Mav are together in this AU, have been for a while, and both Tom and Pete know about it. 

I think they probably didn’t highlight it too much in the beginning, when they weren’t sure whether they’d be able to get Pete and Tom back to their own timeline. But that was more in a ‘the less information about “The Future™” they have the less potential damage it’ll cause’ sort of way rather than wanting to specifically keep their relationship under wraps. 

When it’s deemed too difficult/dangerous/potentially catastrophic to send them back though, and it’s decided that Mav and Ice would take them in, they cover that in the ‘welcome to our world, you’ll love it’ lecture they prepared for them. 

That said, I feel like they put particular emphasis on them still being their own people in an effort to let them develop their own bond without being influenced or feeling forced into anything. “Just because we ended up together doesn’t mean you guys are required to as well. You can form whatever relationship you want - don’t feel like there’s an expectation that you should feel a certain way about each other just because we do. We ended up together as the result of very specific circumstances that you don’t share and won’t be replicated, so you’re both still masters of your own fate.”

Tom struggles with it the most and initially sticks firmly to that train of thought. He makes it very, very clear to Pete that he didn’t see him in a remotely romantic way and they could maybe be friends but that was it and it took him a while not to be on high alert whenever Ice or Mav did anything that might ‘give them away’ (in his defence, in the space of one conversation he’d gone from being verrrrry deep in a very necessary closet to being inadvertently outed and confronted with a quite out and proud (and still accomplished and respected) version of himself - the kid had some adjusting to do). That sweeping declaration comes back to bite him when he actually does start developing some feelings for Pete later on, of course. 

Once he starts adjusting though, seeing Ice and Mav interact and be there for each other in a very healthy way is equally reassuring as it is nerve-wracking. He’d sort of quietly feared he’d either end up in some sham marriage or completely alone so being confronted with evidence to the contrary, even if it’s not a guarantee, helps build up his confidence a lot.

Pete’s considerably more go with the flow about it all but he sort of feels the same way about it. Watching Ice and Mav together is pretty comforting, even with the whole Tom aspect removed. He’d sort of hoped that one day he’d find his person and have a family and be happy like they are in movies - but it always felt like a bit of a pipe dream. So actually seeing it play out for at least one version of him is more reassuring for him than it is suffocating. 

Aaaaaand that was a far longer response than intended and I hope not too rambling. In short: yes they’re together, yes Pete and Tom know, and feelings are mixed but strongly leaning towards positive. 

#time warp au asks

[qedart]

Would goose manage to be in the time-travel AU? Do Tom and Pete time-travel before or after goose dies? Did Pete meet goose before the time-travel?

Heya - 

First, I’m going to apologise for a, no doubt, long-winded and convoluted response, but this is a really good question that I want to attempt to answer properly! 

Unfortunately, as much as I adore Goose and his and Mav’s friendship, his only presence in this AU is through Mav and follows his canon fate. 

The Pete and Tom that have jumped forward are both only around 16/17-ish. So they’ve not even joined the Navy yet and neither of them have met the Nick Bradshaw (or Ron Kerner for that matter) from their own time. (Which is a bit sad to think about because it means their Nick and Ron will never meet them either, but perhaps in that altered timeline Slider does become a pilot and Goose backseats for him instead (and lives a long happy life with Carol (and Slider? Slooserole?) who catches the cancer early… I digress)). 

Mav no doubt talks about him, and his pictures are still everywhere - but to this Pete his only real connection to Goose is through those stories and photos. 

In a way, Tom’s stepped into the role of being both this Pete’s Ice and Goose at the same time due to the mixture of nature (the Ice side of things) and nurture (due to how Ice and Mav are trying to raise them to be a little gentler and a little less guarded than they were at that age - so a bit more Goose-like). But it’s not really the same because they’re still got their whole ‘Pete and Tom’ thing going on at the same time. 

I just find it interesting how all of these little factors play into Pete and Tom, who are essentially exact replica’s of Mav and Ice right up until the second they jumped forward, becoming entirely seperate people in their own rights (and quickly too). And perhaps one of the most profound differences between Mav and Pete, is that connection with (and the loss of) Goose (and Carole). 

I hope this sort of makes sense, I feel I may have rambled a bit. Thanks for asking about this AU, it seriously made my day :D 

#time warp au asks