#me and my sister travelled on our own and were able to finally meet our internet friends which is the flaking best thing in the world | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

writingintheshadowsforever · 1 year

Text

Riri Williams x Reader Personal Space Heater

You grew up in California, and whenever it came time for a family vacation. Your parents always picked some sunny tropical paradise. You weren't used to dealing with any temperatures below sixty degrees, and snow was practically a myth to you.

Riri knew all of this prior to inviting you to spend Christmas with her and her mom. Usually you would go home for the holidays but your parents had finally been able to retire from their jobs. This year, and were currently traveling all around the world like they always wanted to. Initially, they did offer to send you, your older sister and brother plane tickets of your own. So all of you could fly over and meet them in Greece where they would be for the next week or so. But all of you turned down their offer, deciding it was best to just let them enjoy their journey together. Your parents always wished for alone time like this, and were only offering to be nice. That's the kind of parents they were, so you guys decided it was time to return the favor.

Your older sister decided to go home with her own boyfriend, who was eager for her to meet his family. He had met hers last year, and it was the same thing for Riri. Last year, all three of you had brought your significant others home, and this year, all of them wanted to do the same.

You thought Riri was being ridiculous when she forced you to go shopping for a whole new wardrobe.

"Babe, those thin hoodies and small ass coats aren't going to do any good in Chicago. You're going to freeze your ass off, " She told you.

"And we can't be having that now, can we?" You joked, shuffling through the jacket rack.

"No, we cannot." Riri mused her eyes, drifting lower and lower, admiring the view. Despite all her protests, you still chose to wear a pair of white jeans that were a little tight on you, and while she was worried. About you shivering to death in the pants due to the Boston cold air. She had to admit the jeans did your ass justice.

"Seriously, Riri, stop staring at my butt and come help me pick out an appropriate jacket. Our flight is leaving in a couple of hours, and we need to get there early to beat the crowd." You said, turning around to face her, knowing she was only half-listening to you.

Her eyes stayed glued to your backside until your body was fully turnt around. She looked back up, almost instantly giving you a grin despite the irritation on your face. "Alright, step aside. I got this, and stop worrying we're on good time right now. This store isn't even crowded. We'll be out in no time."

"Yeah but traffic is going to be a bitch" You reminded her.

Riri nodded her head in agreement, moving the jackets aside a little faster. So far, every time, she tried to let you pick out something you liked on your own. You completely failed the assignment while the clothing would no doubt be stylish and beautiful on you. The material was weak and nowhere near thick enough to for the Chicago winter. Not only did she not want to deal with your whining about being cold, but her mother would kill her if you showed up on her doorstep in insufficient clothing.

It took her about twenty minutes, but she was able to pick you out two strong winter coats, a few sweaters, and three pairs of pants. You had also found a pair of black snow boots and an oversized hoodie with your favorite band on it to add to the pile.

"Are you sure you don't want anything, babe?" You asked her as the cashier scanned the clothes.

"Naw mamas, I'm all good, unlike you. I'm actually prepared for the Chicago snow." Riri said, waving you off. It was the third time you offered to buy her something.

"I still think you're exaggerating about how bad it's going to be. I mean, if I can handle the cold weather of Massachusetts, then Chicago should be a breeze."

Riri let out a laugh. "Oh, and by handle, you mean you spend every waking moment locked up in your room with a five-hundred dollar space heater. That has enough power and range to keep the whole building warm."

"You say that like you don't crash in my dorm the second winter hits," you shot back.

It was funny because the same way you weren't really thinking about how cold it would be in Chicago. When you decided to go to MIT, you did no research about the weather in Massachusetts. Your first year when the cold temperatures hit your teachers had to threaten you with a failing grade to get you to attend classes in person. Your parents sent you back to school with the expensive space heater next semester. Riri did have one of her own, and while it did get the job done, yours worked wonders. When she walked into your dorm room, it felt as if you had an actual fireplace in your room with flames ignited. Of course, she crashed with you.

"Yes, I enjoy being as warm as possible, but unlike you, I still know what real cold is, and I'm going to enjoy watching you eat those words later on." Riri said, shaking her head.

You paid for the clothes and ended up buying her something after all. Riri spotted a Starbucks before the two of you reached the exit and wanted a hot chocolate along with two cake pops. No doubt there would be one in the airport, but you knew from experience the line would be stupid long. It was the last thing you wanted to have to deal with, so of course you got her what she wanted. Also, getting yourself a hot mocha with a chocolate chip cookie.

Riri ended up making the drive since you had to repack your bags with the new clothes. Traffic was heavy, but the two of you still managed to reach the airport about five hours early for the flight to Chicago, and while the lines were long. Both of you knew it could be much worse around this time. Once you and her were made through security and was fully processed for the flight. Riri fell asleep with her head resting on your shoulder.

You let her sleep for the entire wait time, knowing she had to be tired. The young genius woke up two hours early to finish packing for the both of you. Well, it was mainly your bags she had been worried about. Her snooping through your suitcases is how she came to the conclusion. You were completely unprepared for this trip to Chicago, and that's what really led to the shopping trip.

While you appreciated her concern and loved the way she was looking out for you. Deep down, you still weren't worried about the cold. How bad could it be?

Eight hours later, after one long flight with only a slight delay, your question had been answered, and you were regretting your decision to not change your clothes. Riri urged you to go in the bathroom and switch out of the tight jeans. One of the pair of pants that she picked out, but you stood your ground.

She didn't even try to hide the smirk on her face as your teeth chattered. While your the bottom half of your body shivered. You were smart enough to throw on the black wool coat with cotton padded on the inside.

"H-h-how ar-are we-we getting ta-ta-to your mom's? You stammered out the question.

"There are some Ubers down here come on," she told you, taking your hand into her gloved one. She could feel how frozen your hands were through the glove, and her eyes glanced down to see both of your hands bare. "Ma, where are the gloves I gave you?"

You looked away at the tone of anger in her voice. While she was probably taking joy in being right. The last thing Riri wanted was for you to be sick, which is why despite all the teasing she was doing. She made sure you had everything you would need to stay a little warm. "The gloves are in my bag. I didn't think I would need them, alright." You admitted falling back behind her as a cold gust of wind blew past.

You pressed your chest to her back and wrapped your free arm around her waist. Riri didn't protest at first, but then your freezing cold hand touched her bare stomach. She jumped a foot in the air with a shriek. A few people glanced at the two of you, and one guy shot her an apologetic look as his girl stood behind him with her hands stuffed in his pockets. If anyone knew her pain, it was him.

"Y/N, have you lost your damn mind?" She cried out, releasing her grip on your hand as she wiggled out of your hold.

"My hands are cold. I'm cold," you whined, wrapping your arms around your waist. Pressing your hands into your own jacket as tight as possible.

"Yeah, I get that, but what's wrong with my jacket pocket?" Riri asked, raising an eyebrow at you.

"Body heat is better," you said with a shrug.

"Bruh, you do that again, and I will revoke all your cuddling privileges," Riri threatened. Her hands held out in front of her to ward you off.

"Fine, fine, I'm sorry now will you please." You begged motioning for her to turn around with your head.

Riri raised a single finger at you with a stern look, warning you not to try anything funny. Nevertheless, she turned back around so you could resume hugging her from behind. This time, your hands slipped into her jacket pockets. The two of you finally made it to an Uber, and after putting the address into the GPS. He started the drive to her mom's house. The car ride was silent as you cuddled up to her in the backseat.

Riri paid attention to the route he was taking, not just for safety reasons, so she would know when the trip was almost complete. Halfway through, she dug in her bag, pulling out an extra pair of gloves. "Unless you want to see my mom strangle me to death, put these on."

You slipped the gloves on without argument, murmuring a quiet thank you.

A few minutes later, the driver pulled up to a two-story dark blue house with the edges of it painted white. There was a big porch leading to the front door with chairs set up on either side. There were Christmas lights lined up on the outside along with a few reindeer statues in the front yard.

"So much for waiting for me to put up the decorations," Riri grumbled under her breath. She opened the car door and got out waiting for you to follow before shutting it. The driver let the window to the passenger seat so you could pay him. Meanwhile, Riri got the luggage out of the trunk between the two of you. There were four suitcases with only one belonging to her. You packed a little more than she did, considering this was her home.

"So this is your last chance to back out if you're having any second thoughts." Riri said, fumbling with her fingers with her eyes directed at the snowy ground.

You could feel the nerves coming off her in giant waves, which surprised you. Up until this point, she had been nothing but calm about this whole thing. Heck, when you took her home last year to meet your parents. Riri handled it with ease. Nothing fazed her, not even when your siblings cornered her with if you hurt my baby sister conservation. That every other girlfriend you had in the past seemed to dread more than anything.

"You know I would grab your face and kiss you right now, but my hands are starting to freeze through these gloves. Come on, Ri, you know there's no such thing as second thoughts with me. At least not when it comes to you, I'm sure about everything when you're involved. Let's get inside before both of us freeze our asses off, " you told her.

She found herself releasing her deep breath she didn't even know she was holding in. At your reassurance, the nervous feeling in the pit of her stomach seemed faded away just like that. Riri lifted her head up to see you standing there shivering as snow fell from the sky. But you had a big grin on your face with your hand extended out for her to take. She did tugging you closer to her so she could press her cold lips to your own. In a heated kiss that would warm both of you up.

"Riri Williams, if you don't get in this house and bring that girl of yours in here with you. I'm going to come out there and drag both of you in here by the ear. It's below zero out there with a blizzard going on. Now is not the time for y'all to be out sucking face. This is not a Hallmark movie." A woman's voice yelled from the porch combined with the sound of a screen door flying open.

Riri pulled away as heat rose up on her cheeks due to embarrassment. You covered your mouth with both of your hands to muffle your laughter. "Sorry, Momma, we coming."

"Right now," her mother demanded and disappeared back into the house.

Riri let out a groan as you shook your head in amusement. "I'm so glad you find all of this to be so funny."

"Hey, you kissed me," you said before bursting into laughter bending over with your hands on your knees.

"Help me with the bags before she makes good on her threat," Riri snapped, smacking you on the shoulder. You straightened up a few seconds later to slide a duffel bag onto your shoulder and to take the handle of one of the rolling suitcases. Riri might have sounded frustrated, but you could see the humor in her eyes.

You followed her into the house and was presented with. A spacious and cozy living room on the back wall was the furniture consisting of. A large dark gray sectional sofa with a futon at the bottom and a recliner in the corner of the room. A big glass table was positioned in the center of the floor covered in little whatnots and two jars filled with candy on either side. On the other wall of the living room, there was fifty-five to sixty inch flatscreen TV with the Samsung logo on the front. It was resting on top of a big brown TV stand with a cabinet area at the bottom.

A cop drama was playing with the volume set pretty low, making background noise.

"Momma," Riri called out, setting the suitcases off to the side. She motioned for you to do the same as she headed towards a doorway. You dropped the duffel bag on the floor by the suitcases and hurried along right behind her.

The doorway led to a kitchen covered in white tiles floor with a brown dining room table with six chairs pushed in. The kitchen was a mix of modern and old schools with an island in the middle matching the brown table. A brown-skinned woman who had maybe an inch on Riri was at the kitchen sink with her back to both of you. She was dressed in a black shirt with some blue sweatpants and a pair of black bedroom shoes on her feet. A blue bandanna was tied on top of her head, but box braids spilled out of it, going down to her back.

"Riri, I hoped you took those shoes off at the door. No tracking in my kitchen." The woman said without turning around.

"Shit," Riri muttered, turning back around to go do just exactly that. She gripped you by the waist, moving you along as well. Both of you left your shoes by the door along with a set of others before making your way back to the kitchen. By now, her mom was done in the sink and was mixing some raw chicken in a bowl of seasoning.

Her mom paused her cooking to wipe her hands and come over to both of you. Immediately, Riri threw herself into her mother's arms, who wrapped her arms around her in bear hug. "It's good to have you home, my little genius."

"It's good to be home, momma," she replied, burying her face into her mother's neck. They stayed like that holding each other for a solid ten seconds. Before her mother's warm brown eyes settled on you standing in the doorway. You gave her a little wave with a small smile.

"Alright, come on, introduce me to your girlfriend. She's the first one you bought home in forever." Her mother said, pulling away.

Riri took a step back and took you by the hand to pull you forward. "Mom, this is y/n. we've been dating for about a year and a half. Y/N, this is my mom."

You held out your hand for her to shake "Mrs.Williams its so nice to finally - whoa, okay." You let out a small gasp of surprise as she knocked your hand away and pulled you into the same bear hug. She shared with her daughter just a minute ago. You were a little hesitant at first, but eventually, you did return the hug.

"Don't be shy sweetheart you're practically family at this point. My little girl hasn't ever brought someone home even when I would beg her to. The fact that you're here lets me know you're something special, honey, " She told you.

"Mom," Riri whined.

Her mother gave her a wink as she finally released you. "Why don't you two go get settled in. I'm cooking dinner for tonight, but there is some leftover lasagna in the fridge. If you don't want that, it's early in the day. I'm pretty sure Riri would love to take you out in the city. Just have some fun and enjoy yourselves. We can catch up at dinner."

You and Riri ended up going out into the city after eating some of the lasagna that did not disappoint. Despite the cold weather, you loved sightseeing the city of Chicago captivated by the beauty of Riri's home. Now that you were in the proper clothing, the cold wasn't as bad, and you were ready to take full advantage of the mountains of snow. You were like a little kid pulling Riri into a vacant parking lot to make snow angels, build a snowman, and do every other cliche activity. You witnessed people doing on TV during Christmas movies. Riri didn't mind one bit even though she grew up in this weather and had done these things a million times. Doing it with you made her feel like it was the first time.

The sun was getting ready to set as the sky started to turn a dark blue. By the time the two of you made it back to her house, Riri went into the house to wash up and attempt to get a quick nap in before dinner. Her mom was sitting in the recliner watching The Brothers and informed her. The food would be ready in about two more hours. You were still outside sitting on the front porch watching the snow fall.

It was when the winds started to pick up and get stronger with each breeze. You called it a night and went inside. Riri was in bed buried under the covers, and there was a small space heater going, making the room slightly warmer than the rest of the house. You shrugged out of your jacket, socks, and gloves before slipping into the bed with her. She let out a soft hum to greet you and turned her body around to face you.

"How you feeling, Ma?"

"Snow is freaking beautiful but got damn I'm freezing," you whispered through chattering teeth.

"I told you to come inside and watch the snow fall, but you never want to listen." Riri gloated, shaking her head with an amused smile that you could barely make out under the darkness of the duvet.

"Well, it's a good thing I have you to warm me up then, huh?" you commented. Riri wasn't sure of what you meant at first but found out a second later. When your feet pushed their way under her legs. You grinned as Riri let out an even louder shriek than the one from earlier. No doubt your toes were the coldest part of your body.

"Holy shit y/n" Riri shouted, attempting to scoot away, but you let out a whine stretching your legs out to follow her. You wrapped your arms around her waist to pull her back.

"Okay, okay, your feet can stay, but you got to chill," she complained, squirming in your arms. As your hands found her bare skin again. "You lucky I freaking love you because your ass should be on the floor for that little stunt."

"Come on, you're used to this. I'm not, which means you have to be my personal space heater."

"Man, you could've given me a heads up, at least."

You shook your head. "You would've said no."

"Damn right now come here let's get some sleep before the food is ready. I'm tired, and my mom will not tolerate us ditching dinner." Riri opened her arms, letting you settle in her embrace with your face buried in her chest.

"Oh yeah, I love you too, Ri,"

Riri gave you a quick squeeze indicating she heard you, and both of you fell into a blissful sleep.

#mcu imagine #riri williams x reader #riri williams imagine #marvel imagine

206 notes · View notes

andrigyn · 1 year

Text

Chapter One

Nesta Archeron accepted her life in the house of wind, focusing on her training and work in the library. She had friends, and her budding relationship with Cassian to keep her going. However, everything changed when the inner circle devises a plan to eliminate Beron and solidify their alliance with Eris Vanserra. Nesta must enter into a faux marriage proposal and travel to the Autumn Court in order to carry out the assassination.

Previous | Next

Link to AO3

Cassian hadn’t seen much of Rhys these days, not since Nesta’s intervention. There was simply too much on his plate now to justify regular visits down to the River House. In some ways, he did enjoy the isolation of the House of Wind. If he didn’t also have to share the space with Nesta Archeron, he may have been able to appreciate every moment of peace and solitude. The matter that weighed heaviest on his mind, the brewing Illyrian rebellion, was far away and easily forgotten. The only duty he was tasked with by his High Lord was managing the eldest Archeron sister. Well, perhaps manage wasn’t the right word. Help, guide, or train would have been better descriptions as far as Cassian was concerned.

When Rhys first asked him to take her on as a trainee, he jumped at the opportunity to get closer to her again. The relationship between them that blossomed during the war had withered away and died just as quickly as it began. The death knell had been on Solstice, when she threw his gift in the Sidra before stomping back to her shabby apartment. The fact that she opted to stew in her own filth instead of building any kind of life with him bruised Cassian’s ego, and knowing that she preferred the company of other males in Velaris was another blow. Tormenting her in the House and during training was a welcome outlet for that jealousy, as much as he was ashamed to admit it.

As Cassian sauntered through the long halls of the River House, he smiled at the thought of her waiting for him. A quick meeting with Rhys, and he’d be able to return. He found the High Lord seated on a couch in the main living room. A fire blazed and crackled in the hearth, and he quickly rose to embrace his brother.

“It’s been too long,” Rhys said, clapping Cassian on the back.

“It has, though I’m sure you’ve been busy as well.”

“Take a seat,” Rhys said, gesturing towards a plush chair before sitting back down on the couch. Cassian obliged.

“I’ve asked you to meet with me out of the respect and love I have for you. There are some things though, hard decisions that must be made for the sake of this Court, that are beyond my control,” Rhys said. Cassian eyed him carefully.

“What are you talking about?”

“Nesta will be leaving the House for some time, in order to complete a mission.”

“What kind of mission? For how long?” Cassian asked. He wasn’t too keen on the idea of her being sent anywhere, not when she was finally starting to adjust to her new life. Rhys didn’t seem to care much about what she needed, not like he did. He understood what had to happen in order for the eldest sister to get better, and stability was imperative.

“Eris will be borrowing her. He has asked for our assistance to kill Beron, and she is best suited to the job. The plan is to send her under the pretense of an engagement, so that nobody suspects anything.”

Cassian’s brow lowered into a scowl. Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine his brother would suggest such a thing, especially when he knew what she meant to him. Rhys knew that he suspected they were mates. He knew that she was just starting to come around and give him a chance, but the High Lord only looked at his brother with a blank, icy expression. He didn’t care about any of that, no, his priority was the survival of this city. Beron was never trustworthy, but in the year following the war he had grown more unstable. They had reason to believe he was working with Koschei, planning to conquer lands outside of his borders.

“She isn’t ready for something like that, she’s only just begun training,” Cassian said. He tried to suppress the anger burning in his chest, but his words were still dripping with it. The male always had a temper, and Rhys knew how best to trigger it. Spending centuries together will do that, so he tried to keep a level head and provide reasons outside of his own emotional entanglement.

“She’s plenty ready, I think you just don’t want her to go.” Rhys chuckled.

Cassian gritted his teeth. “You’re right, but still, I urge you to reconsider, she has been making such good progress. She has friends now, she’s thriving with a stable routine and environment-”

“That’s enough, Cassian. I didn’t call you here to ask your opinion. I’ve already promised to send her, but don’t worry, it isn’t forever,” Rhys said.

“And if she refuses?”

“She won’t, just bring her by tomorrow morning and I’ll explain everything.”

Cassian slammed his hands on the table and stood up. He finally broke, and raised his voice. “You expect me to sit by as you send my mate to the Autumn Court of all places? No, I’ve held my tongue many times for you over the years, but I won’t do it this time.”

“First of all, you do not know that she is your mate. And if you were to flee, where would you go? If Eris does not become High Lord soon, we may very well have another war on our hands. Nowhere in Prythian will be safe, perhaps not even Velaris,” Rhys said. He couldn’t bring himself to look Cassian in the eye, choosing instead to direct his forlorn gaze to the fire. “This city is our legacy, you know.”

“Send Elain instead then.”

“No, she is far too soft, and her bond with Lucien would overcomplicate things. It must be Nesta.”

“Let me go too then, I could pretend to be her guard-”

It was Rhys’s turn to stand up and shout. “No, no, no, no, you aren’t listening to me,” he shouted, “I have considered the situation from every angle, and I do not take this matter lightly, if it were up to me, I would have ended the girl’s pathetic life by now, but for whatever reason she is important to Feyre, and to you, so I have restrained myself. Be grateful for that. Once this job is done, I’ll leave her to you and then you both can do whatever you wish. Whether she’s your mate or not, I don’t care.”

“I’ve known you to be callous, but you’ve gone too far. It’s only fair that you let me go to check in on Nesta if she’s to stay there long term,” Cassian said.

“Very well, if that’s what it takes for you to stop fighting me,” The High Lord’s words dripped with venom at the minor concession.

︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵

In Nesta’s former life as a human girl, she took advantage of every opportunity that being the daughter of a wealthy merchant afforded her. Invitations to lavish parties arrived by mail and ended up in a stack atop her mother’s desk, awaiting judgment. She took a keen interest in the social life of her first daughter, and began the search for her perfect match early. Before she fell ill, she knew best when it came to the who, what, and where of courting. To entertain too many suitors would have been disastrous for the family’s reputation, and the eldest child had the greatest duty towards protecting that reputation. Nesta’s time on the scene as a single lady would have also paved the way for Elain and Feyre, had things gone differently.

Nesta never fussed much over the specifics, choosing instead to surrender to her mother’s well laid plans. But following the inner circle’s direction required an unnatural kind of submission. By their own design, she wasn’t a full member of their court. She was sometimes included in a half-assed way, if only to appease Feyre. Rhysand gritted his teeth and barely tolerated the eldest sister’s presence, which is why she was shocked to hear that the High Lord wished to meet with her.

Cassian let her know over breakfast that morning training would have to be canceled so that she could go meet with Rhysand in the River House. The male didn’t have an answer when she prodded him for more of an explanation, and Azriel looked just as clueless as she was. She did notice that Cassian had been acting strangely, and after she heard him enter the House the previous night, he didn’t come by to knock on her door. Instead, he trudged to his own room without so much as a simple ‘hello’. So after the trio finished eating, Cassian flew her down to the River House.

︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵

“Well, here it is.” Cassian gestured to a dark wooden door.

“If the bastard plans on sending me back to the human lands after all, promise you’ll remember me fondly,” Nesta said with a meager smile. She twisted the brass knob and slipped inside before Cassian had a chance to respond, closing the door behind her.

The room was quite large for a study, as was the desk that sat in its center. Light poured in through the tall windows to illuminate the space. Its walls were painted a shade of blue that resembled the night sky, but not much of the wall was visible behind the numerous paintings and bookshelves. She scoffed, and thought it looked like a cluttered mess. Most unsettling of all was the High Lord of Night seated there, with his gaze fixed on her. Although most probably found them alluring, she thought those violet eyes were sinister and uncanny. She had never seen eyes that color, or features so handsome and polished. To Nesta, he wasn’t beautiful, he was so utterly inhuman. Beastly, even.

“Sit,” he said. His tone was so dispassionate that it made her feel as if she was intruding, even though the High Lord was the one who had interrupted her routine by inviting her here.

“Where is my sister? I thought she would be here.”

“She is occupied. Some of us have responsibilities outside of playing soldier all day. Now, I said sit.” He waved his hand in front of the seat again, so she obeyed this time. That snide remark was more like the Rhysand that she was familiar with, and knew how to respond to. Nesta cracked a wry smile.

“I pretend to be a soldier, Feyre pretends to be a ruler. Have you decided yet which role Elain shall play?”

“Keep my mate’s name out of your mouth. She and Elain are free to live as they please. You, however, haven’t earned that privilege. But that isn’t why I’ve called you here today.” he snapped.

“Get on with it then, what do you want from me?” Nesta asked. Her arms were crossed and she was making every effort to avoid eye contact with the male in front of her. She knew of his ability to shatter minds, although avoiding looking at him directly likely wouldn’t save her. That thought inspired a healthy level of fear, and suddenly the cluttered space started to feel more than just annoying. It was suffocating.

“Eris Vanserra came to me, asking for help to kill his father, so that he can become High Lord. Our assassin cannot be just anybody, we must send someone who Beron wouldn’t perceive as a threat, someone he would allow to stay in his court,” Rhysand drawled, “Ideally a female who would travel to Autumn under the pretense of an engagement.”

“Why should I help you? I don’t care about your petty alliances.”

Rhysand hunched over the desk and leaned in closer towards Nesta. She decided to meet his gaze, not wanting to appear as though she was backing down, even though she felt instantly uncomfortable with the male intruding on her personal space. This was a ridiculous plan that she wanted no part in, unless there was something to be gained by playing along.

“Because someone has to go, Nesta. If you refuse, then my only other option is to send Elain, and do what should have been done a long time ago with you.”

Asshole. She wanted to punch that smug look right off of his face. She wanted to dangle him off the window sill until he begged for mercy. The way he thought it was appropriate to use Elain as a bargaining chip threatened to make her lose her cool. Everything that she gleaned about the Autumn Court indicated that it was a treacherous place, somewhere that was somehow more undeserving of her sister’s warmth and kindness than Velaris.

“As tempting as it is to let you kill me so that I won’t ever have to see your face again, that will not be necessary. I’ll go, and once I return, I want my freedom.”

Rhysand scoffed. “You’re in no position to make demands. Be grateful I don’t shatter your mind right now and tell the others that you ran away.”

“Does Cassian know?” Nesta asked.

“Of course he does.” His curt reply cut like a knife. Nesta considered briefly what it meant that Cassian knew of this plan, and chose not to warn her. She wasn’t sure why she expected his loyalty. It was naive of her, but that didn’t make it hurt any less. How meaningful could the handful of nights they shared together be to a male who was over five hundred years old?

“Tell me what your plan is exactly, then,” Nesta said.

“We will hold a ball in the Hewn City in a few days time, where the engagement will be announced. After that you’ll go to Autumn, and follow Eris’s orders,” Rhysand explained. Nesta only nodded in reply.

“I am beyond grateful you’ve given me so much useful information. I’d hate to go into such a dangerous mission blind,” she said flippantly.

“You’re dismissed,” Rhysand said with a wave of his hand. Nesta rose from her seat. She didn’t look back at the High Lord as she opened the door to leave. Cassian was waiting for her, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. He perked up at the sight of her, but Nesta didn’t say a word. Her steely gaze seemed to say ‘Take me home now.’

︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵

Nesta did not say a word for the entire way back to the House. Cassian didn’t try to break the silence either, out of the guilt he felt for delivering her to that meeting, knowing full well what was in store for her. Once they were back inside the sitting room, she unleashed the anger that was seemingly brewing inside from the moment she stepped out of Rhys’s office.

“You knew about this, you knew and didn’t tell me,” Nesta spat. She pointed her index finger as close to the male’s face as she could reach. She may have been tall for a female, but Cassian was abnormally tall even for a Fae male.

“Nes, I- there was nothing I could do-” he said, struggling to get his words out.

“Bullshit!” she shouted.

“You don’t understand, just listen to me, I tried - “

“I don’t care, you’re pathetic. Just leave me alone,” she said before starting up the stairs. Cassian reached out and gripped her slender arm.

“You’re not listening,” he shouted.

“I don’t care to listen to your excuses, now let go of me,” she said.

The commotion downstairs must have reached Azriel, who was upstairs in his room, because Nesta heard his door swing open. Before too long, the male was standing at the top of the staircase, looking down at the scene below. It was quite the scene indeed, with both Nesta and Cassian yelling until they were red in the face. He was still tugging at her arm, trying to convince her to sit down and hear him out. But at the sight of the spymaster, he released her.

“What in the Cauldron’s name is going on here?” Azriel asked.

Now that she had an opening, Nesta raced up the stairs and past Azriel. They knew she had made it to her bedroom from the sound of her door closing and locking. Cassian tried to follow, but the shadowsinger stood in his way.

“Let her cool off for now,” he said.

“Fine,” Cassian said, rolling his eyes, “I have to go to Windhaven, I’ll be back in a few days.”

Those were the only words that he was able to summon. There was no reason to travel to Illyria, not a real reason anyway. It was simple enough to just tell Az that lie though, and get some space away from Nesta while she processed the news. She didn’t want to listen, or understand anyways. So if she wanted him to leave her alone, he would. The general wondered if Rhys was right about her, and she wasn’t worth the trouble. Perhaps she would feel right at home in Autumn, among those ruthless bastards.

No, he had to stop thinking that way. This was his mate, and for better or worse, once the bond snapped they would be tied together for eternity. Nesta was the female that the Cauldron chose specifically for him. It was his duty to stand by her, and protect her for the rest of their lives.

And he would, but only after a few days of alone time.

︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵

Tag List (if you want to be added lmk!): @tuzna-pesma-snova

#andy's writing #neris #nesta x eris #nesta archeron #pro nesta #pro nesta archeron #acotar #a swing in the dark

54 notes · View notes

aita-blorbos · 2 months

Note

(OC) AITA for trying to protect my people?

I (???, F) am a fundamentally deceased goddess. I had sacrificed myself to protect those who live in me, my hollow, my planet, the only physical form left of me after my death. It seems that I had been asleep for a while, but have been awoken once more by the plea of my people. Trouble had been brewing since my death, and so I had to wake up. However, I have been lost since and have been wandering in the form of a haze, traveling from area to area, from the lowest depths of the sea to the peaks of the ice cold mountains...

I'd barely found anything or anyone to help me retain a physical form to help my poor people... that is, until I thought of my (quite literal) fallen stars, my warriors who have been by my side until my own death. Surely one of them must still be wandering around. Their kind are strong. Resilient. One of them must have survived, no?

It took me a while, but I had finally stumbled upon one of them, working by the docks of a reforming town after the cataclysm of my death, whole in body but seemingly unable to remember who he had been, or what he was capable of.

Let us call him O (???, M). He was the youngest of my starlit warriors, a child when he and his older sister had crashed upon my earth, and one of the most that had been curious with civilization. He'd interact with people often, taught people often. I thought it was fitting for him to still be helping the common folk, even if he had not remembered what he'd been doing before our "deaths."

I was hesitant, and it took me months of observing O, seeing whether or not I should be meddling in his life, but it seems that my state of undeath had cause my former body to stir, causing power earthquakes and tsunamis to this small coastal town, as well as my status as a haze to slowly start spiral out of my control to become a poison to everyone, as my body and mind are in discordance.

O was the only one capable of saving this many people at once, and at the point that I saw him, there was this fire in his eyes. His determination. I knew I had the power to help him, perhaps not as far as to help him completely remember who he had been, but at least what he was capable of. So I did.

I took control of his body as soon as he jumped in to save the many people trapped under the rubble. I gave him his strength back. I gave him knowledge of my former teachings back. As long as he would not reject my presence, he would be able to help others as much as we both would please. It had hurt him in the process, but I did what I must.

We had made a deal, after I found out that I could communicate with him while he was alone. I thought he was going to reject my help because of how furious he had looked... but seemed that he did not care about enduring the pain, as long as the people were safe. He seemed lost, so I accepted this offer. I would help him recover and relearn his past and knowledge, as long as he kept his promise of continuing to keep the people safe...

Years pass, however, and I notice that he'd been making meaningful friendships and they did not like O needlessly sacrificing himself into danger while they were right there to help. O looked so lost, so before he could answer, I took over for him, because things were alright, and these helpless people would be even more powerless against the raging haze... right?

Then, things started to get...odd. Much more out of my control. I had no more control over that haze that they had started to call the miasma I had left long ago in favor of co-habiting in O's mind... O had also been listening to his friends more, taking care of his body more, which was good, because I fear that the oncoming dangers I foresee we will getting our hands on shall be more and more perilous.

Every time we are to meet in mind's eye, he asks me if there are any more of those like him, then asks me if it would be better to find them but then... wouldn't that be going against that promise long ago..? I hesitate. I couldn't answer him, what would happen to him if I were to leave...? Wouldn't he be too weak? However, upon more observance, I see his body outside of the mind's eye after a long while, due to never really having to. It seems... he chose to look older, he has visible scars on his body, he has visible cracks on his core... I look away, to his surroundings... There are now papers on the walls with childish scribbles, stacks and stacks of notes

...I never leave his mindscape, but I do stay quiet, I hide... I cannot face him... But then, he starts to ask me to leave. Not directly, no no, because he is gentle, that is all he is, even back then as a child. Again, I am no longer visible to him, but I am sure he knows I am still here. I still lend him my powers, after all.

He tells me that he can live as he is, he tells me that the pain I apparently make him go through is no longer worth it. What he knows now with his own experience is more than enough, he can protect himself and others… but… no, that can’t be right… he's still too young to know anything...

I check in with his life after that, fully controlling his body and shutting his mind out, just this night, to observe the world. He needs to rest, anyway. It seemed that he'd been adopting and rescuing and generally taking care of those lost to this new miasma threat, as well as these plans to move to this isolated area at the top of the region... and... I couldn't bear to look anymore. O has a life to live again.

I must realize that he is no longer lost, and his eyes are once again filled with life and purpose of his own choosing, just as I had remembered... And yet, here I am, an obstruction, because I insist that we continue tirelessly moving forward to save the people... but is it really tireless? I feel rather immense guilt about this. I am in full belief that his life and his destiny was meant for him to control... I did not realize I was dragging him along for my old desire to protect... I must respect him, I tell myself, I must respect his wishes and find another for my goal...

But… I cannot be wrong here. O is powerful… I no longer have my own body. He is the perfect vessel. I am so sorry, O, but I think I cannot fully detach myself from you as a host. My awakening was not meant to be for this long, but we both want the people to be safe, yes? I promise I will protect them... you will not fight me, would you? We have no choice but to face these perils, for your children, your fellow villagers, they will be safe after this... just one more to fight, and you can rest. Let me take over, you look so tired…

#aita #am i the asshole #unreality

8 notes · View notes

theia-eos · 2 years

Text

So how old are the different Branded, anyway?

In the Tellius games, there are the beorc (humans) and laguz (shape-shifting animal people). They also have children that have both beorc and laguz blood sometimes (referred to as Branded or parentless in-game). The thing about laguz that I've discussed previously is that the laguz age significantly slower than beorc, so the Branded age more slowly than a beorc, but faster than the laguz their heritage comes from.

Ages, or at least approximate ages, are given for each of the beorc characters in the art books, but for the laguz and Branded, they are "Designed ages" or "Apparent Ages" and not actual ages. Janaff is 110, but designed to be around 30 for a hawk laguz. Some of the Branded we encounter in game have great plot-significance, so their ages are more important when considering the timeline of events within the world than the average laguz or beorc.

Obviously, spoilers below the cut.

Soren

The first Branded we meet is Soren. As we learn in the end of Radiant Dawn, after completing the 12 Labours of Hercules, Soren is the child of King Ashnard, beorc ruler of Daein, and Almedha, black-dragon princess of Goldoa.

Because Soren is born, Prince Rajaion, Almedha's older brother, disappears to try and rescue Almedha and Soren from Ashnard, but is ultimately tricked, trapped, and drugged, becoming a Feral One and being used as a wyvern mount by Ashnard for some number of years.

Kurthnaga: My sister’s name is Almedha. She was the wife of the late King Ashnard. Ike: Mad King Ashnard was married to a princess of Goldoa? Kurthnaga: My brother’s name was Rajaion. Ike: Rajaion? Wasn’t he the dragon that was warped and used by the Mad King? Wasn’t Ena supposed to marry him? Kurthnaga: Yes. That savage Ashnard held his own baby hostage…the baby born of my sister, Almedha. Then he took my brother, Rajaion…and warped him in order to use him as a mount like a common wyvern. Chapter 4-1, Radiant Dawn

Almedha: …What? How can you pretend like nothing happened!? You can’t! I know you hate me! You have to hate me! Go ahead, blame me for what happened! Insult me! Do anything, but you have to hate me! Ena: …I don’t hate you, Almedha. Rajaion made his decision. He gave his life to save you and his little nephew. Did you know that? He decided to sacrifice himself to protect you. I can’t blame you for what Rajaion decided to do. That would mean insulting my beloved for his sacrifice… For his nobility. Base Conversation Dragons: Chapter 4-F-1, Radiant Dawn

We also know that Rajaion disappears about 19 years before the end of Path of Radiance.

Ena: Yes. Rajaion is the most important thing in my…life… Some nineteen years ago, he said he wanted to broaden his knowledge and left Goldoa. He…never…returned… When I finally found him, it was too late. He had been so twisted that he was no longer able to recognize me. And yet…I wanted to be near him… With Nasir’s help, I, too, came to Daein… …Oh, Grandfather… Epilogue, Path of Radiance

But does Rajaion disappear before or after Soren was born? Ena says Rajaion left to travel the world, to broaden his knowledge, but we also know Almedha leaves Goldoa in protest of King Dheginsea's policy of absolute neutrality because she wants to fight in wars and then quickly meets Ashnard.

Nasir: King Dheginsea forbade the dragon tribe to use our transformation for the purpose of war. Almedha, you left because you did not agree with this policy, did you not? Almedha: That’s right. Nasir: Shortly after you left Goldoa, you met Ashnard in Daein and were united with him. However, your union begat a chain of tragedies. Did you know that the red dragon platoon which went in search of you was captured and turned into Feral Ones by King Ashnard? Base Conversation Dragons: Chapter 4-F-1, Radiant Dawn

I think it's much more likely that Almedha leaves Goldoa first, and then Rajaion leaves to look for her. According to Almedha's artbook profile (kindly translated by XKAN on Kantopia), it is only after Soren is born that Ashnard lays a trap for Rajaion, however, we can't be absolutely certain that Rajaion leaves Goldoa before or after Soren was born. However, we do know one thing for sure: Dheginsea leaves Almedha for dead because she gives birth to a Branded child, and that is what causes Rajaion to ultimately go on his own to rescue Almedha and Soren from Ashnard.

Gareth: It was the same in Lady Almedha’s case. When she lost her powers after giving birth to the Mad King’s son, King Dheginsea had no choice but to hide the truth from everyone. So he chose to hide Almedha from everyone. Better to deny her existence than be forced to explain long-hidden secrets. Nasir: In the process, he’d lost someone even more dear to him. Prince Rajaion. He deeply regretted his decision when he learned of the prince’s death. The only choice left for King Dheginsea was to remain stubbornly neutral in all wars on the continent. He hoped–in vain–to keep the goddess from waking up before the thousand years had elapsed. Base Conversation Ancient History: Chapter 4-F-4, Radiant Dawn

I also believe Almedha sent a request to her father for help, but that was denied because Almedha refers to being "betrayed" by her father, so not only would he deny her existence in Goldoa, but he would leave her for dead in Daein.

Almedha: Queen Elincia… Hmph. I didn’t think anyone in this merry band cared about me. Betrayed by my father, stripped of my power… ... You look so surprised. We had a falling out and ended up living separately… It happens rather a lot, I’m afraid. There was no love between Ashnard and me. There was a strong mutual attraction between us, eventually resulting in a child… But all I ever was to him was a source of power. Once I became pregnant, I was useless to him. Bereft of my strength, he found my presence nothing more than an irritating distraction. After Pelleas [Soren] was born, Ashnard became obsessed with the boy… But, once he realized Pelleas [Soren] had no special powers… Ashnard rejected him, and used him as bait in a cruel trap for my brother… Chapter 4-2, Radiant Dawn

The only other clue we get to Soren's age comes from his A support with Stefan, where he says that :

Stefan: You may have already started to notice. We age differently than the beorc. Of course, the specifics of it depend on the type of laguz blood that flows in your veins. Soren: I thought I was aging normally… Well, until about three years ago. Soren and Stefan: A Support, Path of Radiance

Since Soren is designed to look like he's 16, it's likely that he's a few years older than 16, especially since, in Radiant Dawn, he's designed to remain looking like he's 16 even 3 years later. (The bio blocks in the art books aren't supposed to be taken as hard fact, but were the design notes used when developing the game. The Path of Radiance profile says he's from Begnion, even though he's the prince of Daein, for example).

That said, we get one last piece of information from Almedha:

Almedha: I don’t know. The last time I saw Ashnard was long ago, more than twenty years. I’m afraid I don’t know many state secrets from after that point. Chapter 4-2, Radiant Dawn

So we know that by Radiant Dawn, Soren is likely older than 20 years old, since Rajaion went to save Almedha and Soren, and her profile says Ashnard hid her away when she went mad with grief, so if she hasn't seen him in over 20 years, then Soren was born and taken away from her over 20 years ago.

All this to say, I am personally of the opinion that:

Soren is born about 19 years before Path of Radiance (year 626)

Almedha sends a message back to her family in Goldoa to announce the pregnancy/birth

Rajaion is upset by his father refusing to acknowledge Almedha's existence anymore and leaves to "broaden his knowledge"

Ashnard finds out about Rajaion when Rajaion visits Almedha and Soren

By the time Soren is one or two years old, Ashnard realizes Soren doesn't have any special dragon powers and then decides to use Rajaion's love of Almedha/Soren to trap Rajaion

This would mean that Soren is about two years older than Ike. This does have some consequences. This would mean that:

In the year 630, when Soren is 4, he is sold to the sage in Gallia

In the year 632, when Soren is 6, the sage dies

In the year 634, when Soren is 8, Soren meets Ike (age 6)

Soren: When I was about four, a nearby sage came by and asked to take me in. [...] When the sage died two years later, I had acquired much magical skill. Perhaps too much for a child of my age… At any rate, once I had eaten all of the food in the sage's hovel, I left and walked for days to find help. Ike and Soren: A support; Path of Radiance

I say that Soren would meet Ike in the year 634, because Greil leaves Gallia with Ike and Mist about 10 years before the start of Path of Radiance, and as discussed in my Path of Radiance Timeline, the start of the game would occur in the year 644.

Caineghis: I feel your parents were carrying a dark secret. Someone was hunting them, I’m sure of it. Once, over ten years ago…and after your mother had been slain…Your father chose to leave Gallia. Chapter 8, Radiant Dawn

Although, feasibly, they could have meet in 633 as well, as Caineghis only says over 10 years ago Greil left and Elena was killed. But Mist was born in 630, so she can't have been younger than 3 when Elena died.

This does mean that Soren is alone, unable to talk and unable to feed himself, for approximately 1-2 years before he meets Ike. Making Soren 19 means that he noticed he stopped aging 3 years ago, around the time he is actually 16 and so, unfortunately, making him any younger to narrow that gap means that he would look younger than 16, the age he is designed by the developers to look.

We know Soren stays in the sage's home until there's no more food, and there likely is dried food for him to subsist on meagerly for a while, and we could also say that the sage dies at the end of the year 632 and Soren meets Ike at the beginning of the year 633/634 so there isn't 24 months of Soren staying in the sage's hovel and then starving at the edge of the village to contend with, only a little over 12 at most, but that's the only drawback of my personal opinion.

You could just say that Rajaion leaves to visit Almedha while she's pregnant 19 years ago, but Soren is born 18 years ago in the year 627, sold to the sage in the year 631, the sage died at the end of the year 633, and Soren meets Ike at the beginning of the year 634 and that isn't really so bad. But I don't think that, feasibly, it's possible to meet all the canon facts and have Soren be younger than 18 in Path of Radiance and 21 in Radiant Dawn.

I'm partial to Soren being older than Boyd's designed age of 18 in Path of Radiance and 21 in Radiant Dawn. So I like Soren being 19 in Path of Radiance, and 22 in Radiant Dawn, myself, but options are available. Much older or younger than my preference wouldn't really fit with all of the facts.

I'll reiterate the options:

My spin:

626 - Soren born

626 - Almedha sends a message to Goldoa

626 - Rajaion leaves Goldoa

628 - Ashnard traps Rajaion

628 - Soren (2) taken to Gallia

628 - Ike born

630 - Soren (4) sold to the sage in Gallia

632 - The sage dies, leaving Soren (6) alone

633 - Soren (7) meets Ike (5)/634 - Soren (8) meets Ike (6)

645 - Ike (17) and Soren (19) win Mad King's war

648 - Ike (20) and Soren (22) fight in Laguz-Alliance

Or:

626 - Almedha becomes pregnant

626 - Almedha sends a message to Goldoa

626 - Rajaion leaves Goldoa

627 - Soren born

628 - Ike born

628 - Ashnard traps Rajaion

628 - Soren (1) taken to Gallia

631 - Soren (4) sold to the sage in Gallia

633 - The sage dies, leaving Soren (6) alone

633 - Soren (6) meets Ike (5)/634 - Soren (7) meets Ike (6)

645 - Ike (17) and Soren (18) win Mad King's war

648 - Ike (20) and Soren (21) fight in Laguz-Alliance

Again, I like Soren being two years older, so that's the option I'm using when writing fics, but the other one fits within the facts of the games, so they're both technically viable. Whatever floats your headcanon boat.

Micaiah

Micaiah will be even more fun to guess at, because there is far less canon material to go off of.

We know that she met Sothe a little over 10 years before Radiant Dawn, and then she leaves him a little over 3 years before Radiant Dawn (or right before/just at the beginning of Path of Radiance)

Micaiah: …A long time. I met him when I was hiding out in the back alleys of Nevassa, over ten years ago. He was so skinny, but his gaze was so piercing… I wondered how such a young boy could look like that. One day, I noticed he was standing close to me, just watching. He continued like that for a few days. One day, I held out my hand. He was suspicious of me, but came over anyway. He looked like a scared animal. Then his little hand slipped into mine. It was shaking. His fingers were so thin and frail. I couldn’t let go after that. Base Conversation Micaiah: Chapter 4-F-2, Radiant Dawn

We know at about 10 years ago, they looked like this:

We know Sothe is about 7 at the time (he's designed to look 17 in Radiant Dawn), and that when Sothe was about 14, Micaiah thought she had been around him for as long as she could before Sothe noticed she hadn't aged much/at all in the 7 years that passed, so that's why she leaves him shortly before/at the beginning of Path of Radiance.

Micaiah: I thought I was reaching the limit of how long I could stay with him. He grew each and every day, but I remained the same… I didn’t want him to be harmed by the curse I lived with. Can you imagine how hard that would have been on him? Base Conversation Micaiah: Chapter 4-F-4, Radiant Dawn

We know that Micaiah was designed to look around 15 in Radiant Dawn, and in the art above when she meets Sothe, she doesn't look much younger than she does in game (although, if Sothe is 7ish, then Micaiah is very short for a girl around 15. In Radiant Dawn cutscenes, she doesn't seem to be that short compared to a Sothe who is 17ish, so idk what to make of that yet maybe the developers put her in a cloak there so they didn't have to think about it either).

We know that Sephiran Lehran knew about Micaiah at least between the years 624-625, when he meets Miasha for the first time. We know this because when Miasha talks to Lehran, she references her being able to force the Laguz Emancipation through, despite the senate, and this occurred in the year 624. However, she is killed by the senate in the year 625. Given the conversation, it's far likely closer to her death in the year 625.

Female voice: Oh, but I do. The senators will do their utmost to rally the people against me, as they did when I freed the laguz from slavery. But I will not be deterred. If I am to lead this nation, I cannot allow it to be corrupted by prejudice and hatred. I can put the life the goddess has given me to no greater good than this. Chapter 4-F-1, Radiant Dawn

We know Lehran knew of Micaiah's existence back then, but believed she was killed with Miasha, or shortly after Miasha, because of what he says when Micaiah fights him:

Micaiah: You… I’ve heard about you. Have we… met before? Sephiran: The Silver-Haired Maiden. It’s taken so long to finally meet you. If I had known you still lived, I.. I… No, it’s too late. This changes nothing. I cannot falter. Chapter 4-F-4, Radiant Dawn

This implies that: he knows she existed as Miasha's granddaughter; believes she had died; and if he had known she had survived, he wouldn't have sought the destruction of the world. (which means Lillia would still be alive and he wouldn't have helped Ashnard become king of Daein. Dope.)

Micaiah seems to have some kind recognition of Lehran, whether that's vague memories or heron powers, I don't know, I can't fathom a guess. However, we do know that Micaiah has no idea who she is, where she came from, and her earliest memories are of an old woman who took care of her in Daein

Micaiah: No. I know nothing of my parents. But just before she died, the old woman who raised me told me what the brand was and what it meant. This is proof that the blood of both beorc and laguz course through me. And so, I am anathema to both. She told me never to let anyone see it, and to be always on my guard. Chapter 1-F, Radiant Dawn

I am going to say it is highly unlikely, then, that Micaiah is any older than 3 in the year 625 when Miasha is assassinated. After that, Sephiran learns that Miasha is killed, her granddaughter is killed, and the herons are being blamed for Miasha's death. He goes to Serenes Forest during the Serenes Massacre, finds Lillia, the medallion, and brings both to Ashnard in a fit of insanity to end the world in his grief. Micaiah is somehow whisked away to Daein instead of being killed by the senate, which is the not the point of the post, so I won't be going on a tangential theory related to that.

Fitting in with the evidence, Micaiah could be born anywhere from during the years 622-624, meaning that she is anywhere from 24-26 years old in Radiant Dawn. Older than Soren, who'd have guessed?

My preference is for the younger side, 24 years old, as the Begnion public didn't seem to know Micaiah had been born/was gone/was an apostle. I feel like if she was a toddler at the time of Miasha's assassination, public knowledge of her name/existence would be more likely. Being born in the year 624 would also make her 14 in that picture where she meets Sothe, and if she's anything like Soren, that's about when her aging would start slowing down, perhaps a little earlier, leading to the paranoia that eventually drives her away from Sothe as she would begin noticing that she's not really aging like a beorc anymore shortly before (or after!) meeting Sothe. Since she's heron branded, I clock her aging about 4 years for every 1 year that passes, so 10 years later, she could easily look about 15 like she was designed to. You can pick 25 or 26 for sure, I think that would fit in as well. If you want to make Micaiah 27 or 23 in Radiant Dawn, I believe you would be stretching in-game facts just a little, but not breaking anything. I feel that any age beyond those, especially any younger, would be, however.

Zelgius

We know very little of Zelgius. We know he studied under Greil/Gawain when he was still known only as General Gawain, Rider of Daein.

We know Gawain and Elena flee Daein shortly after the Serenes Massacre. We know that when Lehran is touring Daein for some reason, Zelgius pulls Lehran aside and asks about a way to remove the mark.

Zelgius: Lord Sage, I-- I realized some years ago that I was aging more slowly than others do. ???: And you wish to conceal that fact, don't you? Is that why you rarely remove your armor, even when indoors? Zelgius: Yes…but this ruse will not last indefinitely. In a few years, I will be forced to leave this army's service. ???: And once again, you will be alone. Zelgius: I am accustomed to being alone. My only hesitation, is that…I will miss studying the sword under my commander, General Gawain. Chapter 4-F-2, Radiant Dawn

So we know that at that time, Gawain had not yet left Daein with Elena. We know that Zelgius has only more recently slowed his aging, which, puts him definitively above the 13-15 age mark (as that's about when Soren's aging slowed down, Zelgius is shown to be clever enough to break through Soren's, the master tactician's, plans, so Zelgius would probably notice his aging slowing down pretty quickly, within a year or two of it actually happening).

What is "some years ago?" I don't honestly know. Probably anywhere between 4-7 years ago, if I had to guess. Any more than that and we're getting to "a long time ago" or "a little under ten years ago."

Lehran also says this during that conversation, after discussing what Zelgius will do when he is forced to leave the Daein Army:

???: I have a task that I must accomplish. With you at my side, I would feel more confident of my success. Zelgius: If I join you, will I be redeemed? ???: I cannot say. At the very least, however, you will no longer be alone. And neither will I. Chapter 4-F-2, Radiant Dawn

This is almost pure speculation on my part, but my assumption would be that Lehran meets Zelgius around the time he was dropping Lillia off to Ashnard and helping Ashnard engineer the Blood Contract to create the Daein Plague of 626 that allowed Ashnard to become king. I think his plans to release the dark god and destroy the world are why Lehran cannot offer redemption to Zelgius, only non-judgmental company, and references having a task he has to accomplish.

The Prime Game Guide for Radiant Dawn states that shortly after Gawain left Daein, the plague started:

I don't know how canon that's supposed to be...but it was logistically probably around then. The Serenes Massacre occurred in the year 625, and the plague occurred in the year 626. Ike is born in the year 628, after Lillia died. Herons do poorly in captivity, Rafiel becomes sick and nearly dies after only six months being held captive, being treated poorly and nursed back to health by Hetzel. Elena probably tries to help Lillia like Hetzel helps Rafiel, but Lillia dies in captivity. After Lillia dies, Gawain and Elena left, so they probably left shortly before or at the beginning of the plague in the year 626, and then leave and settle into a new life in Gallia before having Ike.

So, my guess would be that Zelgius is about 17-25 years old when he spoke to Lehran in the year 625. So he could have been born anywhere from the year 600-608.

Based on my chart on the aging of Raven Branded, Zelgius's designed age of 26 would make him around 45 (also, Zelgius was born in Begnion and fled to Daein to escape the scrutiny of Begnion nobles for being Branded? I simply must work with this in a fan fiction sometime) during Radiant Dawn, meaning that he is born in the year 603, which makes him 22 in the year 625, which is good enough for me. I feel like anything within 5 years of that number would probably be fine, given how vague the conversations with young Zelgius were. I just feel like 17 is pushing the absolute lower limit of how young Zelgius could be during that conversation just based on how he looks at the time:

Stefan and Petrine

Hahahahahaha. There are no canon facts.

Stefan is designed to look about 29 in both Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn. He seems more travelled, seasoned, and jaded than the other Branded we meet, but that gives us nothing on his age and he says nothing much about his past that would give me anything to ground my answer in. Since he is the lion-Branded descendant of Soan, my aging chart would put Stefan appearing 29 at being 41-45, so born in the years 600-607. I will arbitrarily pick the year 605, and say he is 40 in Path of Radiance and 43 in Radiant Dawn. Wham Bam, thank you, Ma'am. Obviously, anywhere within, I don't know, 5 years of the range I gave could work, since we know nothing about when he was doing things before Path of Radiance.

Petrine is designed to be 33 in Path of Radiance. She has tiger laguz blood, so she could be anywhere from 53-58 according to my chart. She could have been born anywhere from 587-592. I will pick the year 590, and thus she will be 55. Anywhere within 10 years of my range could work, it's not like we know anything about her past.

Amy

Small girl of about 6. No one but Yune seems to realize she's Branded, so you know, she's probably 6 or so.

118 notes · View notes

paintedscales · 10 months

Text

a01 :: Family

A Soft™ Fic Prompt Meme

Wasn't sure if I wanted to focus on Nomin's past, or her future. So I found a way to combine them in a sense. Getting to explore more of her relationship with her sister, and some stuff shortly after the birth of her girls.

Dealing with a small bit of postpartum stuff. Nothing too graphic, minor blood mentions. Mostly fatigue, soreness, and itchiness mentioned and dealt with.

Word Count: 1,801

“You’re a lot less squeamish than I would have imagined,” spoke an auri woman who had been helping to wash and dispose of used, bloodied cloth. Her hair was a deep violet with some softer highlights that bordered on pink -- a complementary contrast to her emerald green skin. Like Nomin, her inky black scales were speckled with color, though hers were of an emerald green nature rather than a lapis blue.

“... I have seen my fair share of blood, Lady Bayarmaa,” Estinien respectfully replied, his tone indifferent as he cinched a burlap sack of refuse and set it off to the side for burning later. “Besides, ‘twould not be fair to Nomin nor your good self were I to leave these matters tended solely by you. It gladdens me that you and yours were able to come by on short notice, though. Ignorant as I am of the nature that comes after childbirth. By the Fury…even by the events that preceded it…”

A soft laugh fell from Bayarmaa’s lips as she cinched up her own burlap sack and set it aside. She walked toward the well pump, drawing water to wash her hands with soap. After she took care of herself, she then offered the pail and soap to Estinien. With some consideration, she replied, “even with my own child, there is much and more I’ve yet to learn or develop. I wouldn’t be where I am without the help of the other Sagahl. Nor would I be here without the aid and support of my husband, Kuzhuk.”

Bayarmaa raised her head to smile at Estinien, watching momentarily as he took to washing up. She then took in the sights of the immediate area, hands going to rest at her hips. She admired the flowers that were planted about the area, not to mention how fresh the air smelled and felt.

“You tell me that you’re gladdened by mine and my husband’s arrival, yet it is I that is gladdened to know my little sister has someone who cares for her in these moments of tiredness, ache, and restlessness.” Bayarmaa turned her relieved expression in Estinien’s direction. “Truly… I worried overmuch for her when I heard she left to travel the Steppe on her own from the Malaguld and the Sagahl that returned to us from the Jhungid. Many summers had come and gone, and often I wondered if I had lost yet another in some fashion.”

Estinien stayed silent for a time, only momentarily casting a lingering sidelong glance at Bayarmaa. She was one of his and Nomin’s daughter’s namesakes after all. Though he had not truly gotten a proper chance to meet her or speak with her at length, it seemed evident that the sisterly bond that both Nomin and Bayarmaa shared ran deep.

The barest twinge of envy tugged at him; for Estinien wondered if he and Hamignant would have shared a bond similar in that brief moment.

“Nomin spoke much of her time on the Steppe…once we had finally put our differences aside, that is…” Estinien admitted. “I think not a day went by that you and the family she made on the Steppe were not on her mind in what I remember of her back then.”

Estinien then looked back at Bayarmaa. “Though, as she told it, she said that the two of you enjoyed a reunion before your traditional Naadam. I expressed it poorly at the time, though I was glad for her to have that closure and reconnection.”

There was a moment’s consideration of whether or not Estinien wanted to bring up what he remembered of Nomin at the time. During most conversations, he would not have thought twice about it, but he kept his mouth shut for the time being, a silence blanketing the air around them. Perhaps that past would have been better left untouched for now.

Silence would have lingered between the two if the pause between both Bayarmaa and Estinien had not been cut short by a toddler running down the pathway from the cabin with a grin on his face and a laugh upon his lips. He came up and threw his body into Bayarmaa’s leg, clutching onto her with that same big grin on his face. The sight would have brought a gentle smile upon Estinien’s lips were it not for the next words out of the child’s mouth.

“Mama! Papa says that you should come back up inside! He said to come get you,” the boy of five summers had said, giggling. At the mention, Estinien looked back up toward the cabin and had been hasty about making his way back while Bayarmaa took a moment to acknowledge her son and give him some positive reinforcement before following suit. The only hope was that the situation was not serious.

Given that a child was sent to retrieve them, the hope was there.

The two were quick about making their way to the bedroom where Nomin had been resting more often than not since giving birth. It seemed that she was in between states of sleep and awake. As it was, Bayarmaa’s husband, Kuzhuk, had taken care of getting the twins changed and placed within their bassinets. When both Estinien and Bayarmaa arrived, he offered them a sheepish look.

“Apologies, I didn’t mean to have Ankhbayar alarm you both. I didn’t think it too serious,” Kuzhuk said. He glanced between both Bayarmaa and Estinien. He then addressed Estinien more directly: “Simply, Nomin has been scratching at her scales and vaguely complaining of aches in the moments she has been awake. I figured it would have been best to get my wife to take care of any discomforts.”

“Ah…well, I’m here,” Bayarmaa said, going over and grabbing the chair that had been brought into the bedroom for her to aid Nomin from the bedside if it was not too intensive. She waved a hand at Estinien briefly as her tone became a little more authoritative, “Estinien…where exactly does Nomin keep her scale oils? I’d like you to bring them to me if you would. And once you have them, you’ll help with the other side. Kuzhuk, if you would allow us privacy?”

“Of course, my Moon,” Kuzhuk replied with a shallow nod. He departed the room, playfully shooing and then chasing the young toddler that had been peeking his head in curiously to watch or eavesdrop.

Once the door had been closed, that was when Estinien had set to making his way into the bath chamber, fiddling with some of the woven boxes that contained anything that would have been related. Eventually, he returned with two bottles and a small tub of the oils that Bayarmaa requested. She wordlessly grabbed them and looked them over, reading the labels.

“Oh, thank the Dusk Mother… She actually labels things in Old Auri and Eorzean…” Bayarmaa sighed in relief, taking the larger bottle and uncapping it.

“Dusk Mother…has nothing to do with it…” Nomin tiredly replied, lifting a hand to scratch at her scales somewhat before her sister slapped her hand away. It seemed she was in a state of lucidity. For how long, however, was left for time to tell.

“Oh, quiet…” Bayarmaa said in jest, giving Nomin a slight smirk as she then grabbed the younger auri’s arm and gently started applying some of the oils around the edges of her scales and skin. She handed the bottle to Estinien and instructed him to start on the other side. All the while, she affectionately scolded her younger sister: “you have to remember not to scratch so much. It shan’t benefit you any if you’re to loosen your scales.”

A small ‘hmph’ came from Nomin as she shimmied herself to a more seated position. Both her arms at this point had been taken up by both her sister and her husband. Though part of her wished to use her arms, she could not deny how their ministrations felt soothing. Both in the fact that it alleviated her itches, and put some of her aches to rest.

“How have you been feeling? No shivers or chills since yesterday?” Bayarmaa asked, her tone going more serious as she worked the oils in.

Nomin gave a slight groan of protest, as she did not want to answer too many questions. However, she gave a sigh and sunk back into her pillows. Taking a moment, glancing at Estinien and then looking back in Bayarmaa’s direction, Nomin replied with, “... just tired and sore mostly…. I feel like even my worst battles haven’t worn me out so…. No shivers since yesterday, though.”

“I suppose that is rather telling,” Bayarmaa considered. She sighed silently in relief knowing that Nomin had not been experiencing any chills past the initial moments after delivery.

“... I’m happy, at least. Even if sometimes it might not seem like it…” Nomin said, closing her eyes and smiling to herself. She soaked in the feeling of her scales and skin being cared for, though she had enough clarity of mind in that moment to have been grateful for all that was around her.

“I’m glad to hear that.” A small smile found its way onto Bayarmaa’s face. “What has you happy?”

“I’m just happy to have my family here…” Nomin tiredly said. “Genuinely, I mean it. Would that I were more able to get up and show you, Kuzhuk, and Ankhbayar around the island without it being too stressful to my body.”

“Worry not,” Estinien spoke up. He had, likewise to Bayarmaa, moved up along Nomin’s arm to help apply and rub in more of her scale oil. “We shall have more than enough time to take care of such things at a later time. What matters most is making sure you and the girls are taken care of before any sightseeing or touring can even be considered.”

“Agreed. I’m here not just as your sister, but to also help you with everything that comes after giving birth,” Bayarmaa reassured Nomin. “Family is family, Nomin. And we’re here for you in this new chapter of your life, not to have a vacation nor venture into the area.”

The smile on Nomin’s face grew for a moment before her gaze settled on the ceiling. It faltered for a moment before she finally asked: “... do you think Esenaij would have been happy for us? From what I can remember…he would have been a shite uncle.”

Bayarmaa paused, taken aback by Nomin’s words. Her hands shook after a moment as she attempted to rein in her laughter. Though it seemed that Nomin shared in the amusement, because for as straight faced as she made her statement, it was a jest all the same.

“He would have been a shite uncle,” Bayarmaa concurred, a laugh falling from her lips.

#ffxiv #ffxiv writing #ffxiv oc #oc: nomin tal kheeriin #estinien varlineau #oc: bayarmaa sagahl #oc: kuzhuk oroq #oc: ankhbayar oroq #oc: esenaij sagahl #wolstinien #cinnamon ship #my writing #postpartum #don't be fooled by me focusing on children or childbirth #i know nothing #because unlike Nomin -- I have no intention of becoming child bearer or birther #so i'll admit to being mildly ignorant and that most of what i know comes from other mother stories instead of experience

7 notes · View notes

autumnslance · 11 months

Text

Forever in Our Hearts

OK, so Tataru's Grand Endeavor made us all deal with Werlyt stuff again. But the focus of the final leg of the chain, once the excitement of the mechs was done, was finally on the characters it should have always been on: Allie, and her siblings.

Below the cut!

So the first part is pretty rote; get to Terncliff to speak to Gaius as your contact in Werlyt's defense (my characters were not thrilled to be called his "sisters in arms" despite his turning around), and WoL finds a situation happening of course, and so what's a former legatus to do but rope the hero into the shenanigans.

I'm amused this is apparently the first time Gaius finally gets to interact with Nero since ARR, hearing the man was alive and part of the Ironworks only via rumor, and Nero seemed quite happy to leave that the case, until his mecha was the one that was stolen.

Short little rhythm game and a fast-paced mech battle cutscene later (that makes our WoL look like a damn cool pilot, though we don't get to input anything past the initial scene) and we've apprehended the culprit; a man so dedicated to Valens--and just as unhinged in his ideals--that he made himself into a face double for the dead man.

WoL never did meet or see Valens, mind. He was emphatically not our villain, we were there to handle the Weapons and the Quintet's dumb plan.

Anyway, Gaius is disgusted and unimpressed (especially given what he now knows of his once-beloved Emperor Solus) by the raving, and in his usual controlled and understated manner simply knocks the thief out and wraps matters up. Job done, let's get back to Tataru's business.

But the thief's appearance had quite the effect on Avilina and the orphaned boys the man bullied into showing him how to slip into the hanger. Seeing the face of their tormenter again was traumatizing; Gauis was able to gently talk to them, and praise their bravery in speaking up, at the start, but he doesn't want to upset them further. So asks WoL to reassure the children that Valens is truly gone for good.

And this is where the story turns into an actual epilogue for Sorrow of Werlyt.

The boys are relieved, and bring up Allie; she's been caring for them at the orphanage. They don't want her to know about these events--not because they're ashamed of their own actions made in fear, but because they know she'd been abused by Valens too, and don't want to upset her. Instead, they want to find a way to make her dream of a picture of her family come true.

The trouble is, of her family, only Gaius is left. Avilina has a plan though. Duremert, Leofard's grandfather from that leg of this chain, is the painter brought to the lookout. Gaius agrees because the boys want to do this for Allie's sake. Allie is doing it to humor them, though she looks sad standing alone by a seated Gaius.

Avilina then uses the memory core from the Diamond Weapon to create images of Alfonse, Milisandia, Ricon, and Rex standing behind/around their sister and foster father. While Gaius is also surprised, it's Allie that he and the other characters focus on, that the camera lingers on, and Allie that gets the last "Thank you" as the screen darkens out of cutscene mode.

The boys ask if they "made her dream come true." They sure did.

Another interesting aspect of Terncliff is to speak to the elderly man who acts as the town's info NPC, the one you can speak to for a little background of the town.

What can you tell me about Terncliff? Rueful Civilian: Being far to the south of Werlyt, perched atop the cliffs, there was never much reason for anyone to travel here. Being by the sea is all well and good, but we're simply too high above the water to benefit much from it. The gulls and terns don't seem to mind, though. Rueful Civilian: Most of the townsfolk are either Hyuran natives or Au Ra who found their way here over the years. They all lived side by side, peacefully enough, before the Garleans came and ruined everything. Rueful Civilian: After years of living under occupation, the youngsters banded together and kicked out those imperial bastards. But from what I hear, it was a group of orphans raised by a Garlean legatus who played a vital role in winning our independence. Alfonse, I think their leader was called… Rueful Civilian: So many young lives lost… I wish I could give my life to spare one of them, but it's too late now. The only thing any of us can do is make the most of the freedom we've been given.

The story being told is that it was the youths whose foolish but determined actions to thwart Valens's plans for the Weapons were instrumental in freeing Werlyt. We know at the end of the story their names were added to the memorial at the lookout point, but to have them be remembered as the main heroes of a story where WoL really only ever showed up to fight while all the actual story stuff happened to other people at other times and places, actually fits.

That lack of focus, and WoL's only tangential interactions with the Welryt cast--most of the custcenes weren't even Echo, they were "Meanwhiles" in places and around people the WoL never met--is a huge chunk of why Werlyt falls flat for me. Not to mention the unexamined imperialist biases in regards to the relationship of Gaius and his former officers with the people of Terncliff.

The story should have been more about them, and Gaius's part as the focus NPC meant it got mishandled, nor did WoL get to see or interact with the ways the Quintet and Gaius learned and grew and changed in that story, leaving it a bit hollow as a necessary new start. I still feel as a character his return to the cast was a bit wasted to leave him in optional side content and dropping his Shadowhunter plot entirely (he doesn't even consider Ascians when Avilina and the boys swear they saw Valens, and frankly it should have been Gaius's first guess).

But in this little coda to Werlyt's story, WoL gets to have a bit of fun piloting the G-Warrior again, and then the mecha story is followed up by giving Allie the focus that should have been on her and the others the entire time, even if all too briefly.

Returning to Terncliff afterwards, Avilina continues her work with the Ironworks, eschewing a uniform; Gaius reads on a bench at the lookout, and discusses plans for Werlyt's forces and trade with Ala Mhigo.

Allie stands at the rail looking over the water, and expresses a new wish:

Allie: One day, I hope to grow closer with the children─perhaps even become something akin to family. Do you think that could happen?

It's also perhaps worth noting, that though I waited in the daylight hours, I never did see the ghostly children that used to play and worry for their sister. It seems with these updates, they no longer haunt Terncliff.

#final fantasy xiv #Endwalker #patch 6.4 #The Dark Throne #Tataru's Grande Endeavor #Sorrow of Werlyt #Gaius Baelsar #Family #I stuck the painting on a retainer dunno that I'll ever use it #likely end up tossing it one of these days TBH #it's a quest item I can always get it back but uh #Avilina Horne #Allie Baelsar

16 notes · View notes

gsweunah · 2 years

Text

Shin Eunah - Let me tell you the story of one of our unfortunate residents who seems to be a HIGH SCHOOL LITERATURE TEACHER on the island. Fate has assigned this individual guidance from THE STAR REVERSED card. But they needn’t worry, their secrets are safe with me.

hi hello! my name is ej (she/her) and i’m bringing you the wild-child-turned-high-school-english-teacher shin eunah! below is a lil bit about her - i’m gonna fix up her pages this weekend so hopefully this will do for now! please like this or shoot me a message if you’d like to plot :) if you prefer to chat on dscrd you can ask me for my @ ! (cw for abandonment; mentions of cancer and death of a family member)

stats page / connections / pinterest / playlist

shin eunah’s mother was a hot mess. the kind of person who should, ideally, never be a mom. eunah was an oopsie and so was her little sibling and they were treated as such.

the whole island knew the situation - the family’s reputation wasn’t the best and gossip travels fast in smaller communities.

she was five when her mom finally gave up custody and fled to seoul. eunah and her sibling’s aunt took them in and she gave them every bit of love they could ever need or want.

shin minah owned a small, traditional tea shop where people could go for warm drinks and comfortable conversation. whereas minah’s sister was a town pariah, minah was a community pillar.

eunah loved her aunt to bits but as she got older she craved more attention. so she started acting out. by the time she was 15 many people had already formed the judgment that she was following in her mother’s footsteps.

parties, drinking, vandalizing, and trespassing all became normal things for eunah. in school she only really excelled in the two subjects she cared about at all - literature and art.

minah was Stressed. naturally. she tried to partake in things she knew eunah would like to convince her to stay home. eunah appreciated the efforts but there was just an ache in her to be seen and acknowledged by everybody, even if the attention wasn’t good attention.

this carried on until minah got sick. there was three months between diagnosis and her passing away and eunah suddenly had a failing tea shop and a little sibling on her hands at only 19 years old.

she had to give up the shop - it was sucking what little had been left to her and she and her sibling were barely able to make ends meet for a while. the gap she’d intended to take between high school and college (she never really intended to go to college tbh) didn’t happen. she went straight back to school, working odd jobs to survive.

she lost her friends, stopped going out except on fridays when she wasn’t working, and found herself quickly losing inspiration. no more writing, no more painting or pottery - she only had enough energy for school, work, and caregiving. that was it.

she got a job at tv high as a literature teacher and even though her sibling has since moved out and started their own life, she is still stuck. despite buying a mini kiln and potters wheel, she can’t seem to finish more than a mug or a plate once in a blue moon. it’s like the vivacity she used to have got snuffed out when her aunt died and she can’t seem to get it back.

despite her internal struggles she’s a pretty good teacher! she’ll show up for her students day or night because she’s a workaholic to ignore her problems and she knows how to get kids to listen.

there are still some carry overs from her old life - an old leather jacket she wears regularly, a pack of cigarettes always tucked away in her purse she’ll quit someday - she promises, nails always painted red or black.

personality:

outwardly she’s very warm and approachable! she is the type of person to swallow her misery - the only hints she’s unhappy are the smashed clay pots hidden away in her little workshop.

if something’s wrong she’ll say so. she doesn’t have the energy for games. does that lead to fights? occasionally. she tends to win (in her mind, at least)

a very happy drunk when she’s w friends and a very sad one when she’s alone

she still wants attention but doesn’t go out of her way to seek it out anymore

shameless tbh

plot ideas:

neighbors (maybe they catch her in a ‘frustration fit’ where she basically smashes all the pottery that doesn’t turn out right)

former students (she started teaching about fiveish years ago)

a little sibling (might be a wc depending on the cap)

coworkers

exes (either from adulthood or when she was a teenager)

ex friends (maybe they fell apart after her aunt died)

someone she’s clashed with - either over something stupid like a miscommunication or bad first impression or something more serious.

i’ll have more things up once i finish my plots page :)

#gsw:intro

17 notes · View notes

colleenmurphy · 1 year

Text

@aristobun

I've had a verse just kind of plop itself into my mind and Col's lighting a fire for me to 'at least tell you about it.' because evidently I've been lacking on actually posting what she's throwing at me. She very well may be drunk ( she's Irished her coffee ) and I'm stoned so here goes.

The ladies are raised in a tiny town on the coast. We're talking map dot tiny / Everybody knows everybody else's business type thing.

Jimmy and Harvey are the Sheriff and Deputy of aforementioned map dot town.

Eileen and her sister Minnie have a small tea room where the ladies are not so gainfully employed and trying to save for an apartment for college.

In addition to the tearoom they also work as deckhands for their fathers. They've taken to calling vessel formerly known as "The Painted Lady' 'Doom Schooner'.

Colleen's semi involved with Dave Sullivan, a deckhand and shipyard worker who's a little older. He's looking to buy out the Grey Gull Tavern and with Col's help turn it into the spot in town.

Bobby Shatford is *really* crushing hard on our girl Helene.

Four young kids that all have working knowledge of aquatic vessels and stick shifts may occasionally cause a little bit of a stir in their hometown.

Minnie Sheehan is a bit of a Free Spirit. She's also Dave's go to for weed. Once she put two and two together she gave him a small discount on the conditioner that he never let Col or Helene know. *plot twist: They occasionally do some Unknown Quality Control for her.

Minnie is actually Colleen's mother. Eileen & Jimmy adopted her after Minnie came back from one of her adventures with a small traveler in tow.

Jimmy passed the day after Colleen's 19th birthday. Passed in his sleep, just like that. She pushed her grief down and forged ahead. 'Life doesn't stop.' had always been Jimmy's motto. Col took it and twisted so that she never cried. She couldn't. Grief was love with no place to go and if she let it go she would drown.

Dave went missing on a fishing run trying to help his brother out of a debt. Both he and his brother were found four days later ( oddly enough the day after Col's 25th birthday ) Colleen was somehow able to let her wall down when she finally saw Sully sitting there, a little worse for wear in that hospital bed.

20 was always on Sully's lotto ticket after that and was always a sure bet. Later it became bittersweet when it was the reason he had a place in Newport Richey. He sent an anonymous check to the Grey Gull Tavern care of Colleen Murphy.

Helene went out one night with Joel Benson and ended up thankfully running into Bobby at the Lamplighter over on King's Point. Joel went missing that night but there's a story for later.

The autumn that Colleen turns 28 she honestly thought Sully was going to ask her to marry him but he hasn't. The moment's set but he chokes in front of everyone. He says that he can't ask her to live a life with a man that can't return her love and devotion.' They break up shortly after and he sets sail for foreign shores in the Bahamas. Colleen is left to run the Grey Gull by herself ( and thankfully with her family's help. )

Bobby is thinking of asking Helene to marry him he's just afraid of Harvey turning him down because Bobby's just a fisherman no matter that he owns three boats and is eyeing a spot on a Florida run in the winter season. If he could only see that Harvey approves of him.

Eileen remarried to a man named Buell Hastings-Rutherford, a very interesting lawyer who came from Boston. He has an older son named Wendell, or Win for short. He's a struggling author type. Colleen remembered him from her time at Pendleton University. They relocate to Toronto for Buell's new position at Kerwin College. The tearoom is left to Colleen who now has two businesses to run.

Minnie ends up relocating to 'somewhere greener and warmer', the Haight Ashbury district that Colleen was conceived in. She opens a rather successful tye-dye shop and meets Charles T. Wildbury. Charlie for short.

Harvey gifts Helene, Colleen and Bobby DNA ancestry kits for Christmas and an Irish chaos fest ensues as Colleen is matched with her father.

She somehow also stumbles into love on that trip to Galway.

#@aristobun #help the weed's made me creative and Colleen won't shut up

2 notes · View notes

patrixiajoi · 28 days

Text

My life during Semestral break

My whole Semestral break was so peaceful and at the same time it was productive; being productive during our semestral break really helps me a lot and it even helps me with my everyday routine. During our vacation, I spent most of my time in our house with my siblings and grandparents; it was also fun spending time with them. It was short period of time but memorable one. It is the time of giving break from acads and to yourself. Because almost all my time have been spent from school hour nor time for making assignments and projects even though I'm at home. I maximized those short vacation by helping in the house chores, like cleaning rooms, taking care of my siblings at the same time playing with them, cleaning all my rubber shoes since I love collecting it. I'm a bookworm also, because reading makes me feel like dreaming like something magical can happen. It yes, was indeed a time to rest in waking up early morning just to prepare for school.

School is fun but exhausting. Well I guess that's life! It's all about hard works, and hard works always pay of. There's no shortcuts. You need patience and consistent in all things in able for you to achieve all of your dreams. My goal to be on top and finish my studies. having a good education will lead you to success because school provides knowledge and intelligence for several people in the word cannot afford for their kids to go to school so it's important for us to learn how to read, write and communicate. Semestral break is indeed a time to forget all the problem that we have encountered specially in school, and time to have peaceful mind without thinking about assignments nor projects. During those times, I had enjoyed a lot because I can finally rest my brain even just for a week. And that was perfect! I had found time to be with my family specially my brother and sister since they're growing so fast. I like hanging out with them and I know they're too. My mom always tells me that time spent with family is worth every second. As you may know, I grew up that my mom was always away since she's an international flight attendant. Its hard to have an overseas Filipino worker mom but I do understand the situation, she's earning money for us so we can achieve our dream and so we can buy everything that we need or want. And one day I want to become like her, to be a flight attendant so I would be able to travel the world and learn different cultures and meet different people.

I also hang out with my friends. I went to their house or they went to ours so we could hangout even just a hour. Take the time to catch up on our upcoming lesson, when the semestral break is over and back to school, I would have advance knowledge in the topic on that subjects. I also like listening to music. It makes me calm, helps me sleep better and most of the time makes me productive. I and my siblings as well as my grandma and grandpa went to cemetery to visit my relatives like my grandpa, uncles and aunties who already passed away. It's sad that I wasn't able to meet them when they were still alive but mom says, grandpa was amazing and as well her brother and sisters. If I can bring back the time, I would like to meet them in person.

Students most likely of our age really crave for a vacation or break especially those who are really stressed and drained out during the school days. We are always expecting for vacation/break because we think that we need to have a break in academic. The keep saying millennials is far from Gen-Z in term of everything, like lifestyle, bonding, even using gadgets. That’s why sometimes I and mom have conflict. Good thing daddy is always to the rescue. My parents are strict; I have limited time using my phone. I could only go out of our house when I need to go to my classmate's house for a project but I still have a curfew. but I know it is for my own good. I know they’re just protecting me in this uncertain world and they only want the best for me. Going back to the topic, sembreak really helps us a lot it gives us a break in academic validation. I also hang out with my highschools friends like Kiesha, Chloe and Chrizia we played a lot like playing board games, codm and roblox then we bought Jollibee for our lunch then we went to xentro mall so we could have shopping. I can say that it was somehow fun.

I learned that our Sem break / vacations should be spent wisely. We have to use our time wise and we should be more productive so that we can do more things and be more organized. I was so happy when the DEPED order announced that we had a semestral break but before our semestral break I complied all the activities and quizzes that I missed. Vacation means a gentleness with ourselves, helps you relieve stress and boredom and gives us scenery, and help us to bring closer to people we love. As our vacation comes to an end I’m grateful for the moments I shared with family and friends. It’s always bittersweet but the memories last forever. It’s also a reminder to appreciate the moment and cherish the memories of past. For now, it time to focus again in my studies again. Like my mom always says, keep your eye on the goal. One day, I will fly soar high and waking up in different country. For now I just need to wake up and go to school and keep my focus intact.

1 note · View note

thedaveandkimmershow · 3 months

Text

Whenever we can't do something on vacation that my parents did no problem while traveling... it galls me.

For example, when our flight arrived at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam beginning of this month, we got off the flight, walked a bunch, then through several security checkpoints including passport control on the other side of which was baggage claim.

Whoops. Not baggage claim. Not ours, at least. You see ours was still a bit of a walk away so we walked and walked and walked until finally our baggage claim appeared, then our baggage conveyor appeared, then finally our bag appeared. So we grab the bag, start rolling it toward the exit where I imagine my cousins are gonna be.

Why?

Because this is my long-ago memory from when I was a kid with my parents and we started making our way out of baggage claim and I saw my aunt, my mom's older sister, waiting for us on the other side of the glass, waving at us.

There was always family waiting to meet us right there as far as my memory's concerned.

So then this last trip, thirty, forty years since I traveled with my parents, we exit baggage claim and there's no one there. Now, one or another of my cousins was gonna be there but I couldn't reach either of them on my cell phone either by message or voice so...

Dead in the water.

Here we are, a long, long, looooooooong way away from home, with no way to contact anyone.

One more time:

No way.

To contact.

Anyone.

And yeah. You bet it's moments like these when I'm like

HOW DID MY PARENTS DO THIS???

Seriously.

How did they do it without WiFi and data and airport apps and voice-to-voice and texting and messaging and laptops? How on earth did they do what we're doing now only without massive, hand-held computing power with real-time functionality?

You see, they always were able to do this. No sweat.

And here we were sitting around the airport outside the recently exited baggage claim waiting for someone to find us.

Waiting for someone.

To just.

Find us.

No joke. That was our plan.

By the way I'm always surprised at how hard we lean on tech. And I'm also always surprised by the fact that my parents didn't have any.

How did they do this?

It's galling.

Planning and foresight, I'm guessing, though. Not a single minute of improvising, of winging it. They made arrangements in advance and told their relatives what flight, time, and place. And when the time came, the flight landed, we all converged on the agreed-upon place with no doubt we would soon see each other.

Call it the analog way.

And it worked.

Dang it. It worked.

Every time.

So yeah. Moments when our own limitations and inadequacies our so obviously revealed...

Moments when we're just waiting to be found because we are profoundly out of contact with anyone...

These moments definitively, unequivocally remind me of all the hard work my parents put into making things like international travel...

Look.

Like a piece of cake.

☺️

0 notes

loiswolf · 9 months

Text

Day 56 July 26 Tehkummah - Lion’s Head 63kms

I’m not really at Lion’s Head, I’m 4kms back up the road at Ferndale. It’s not much of a place apart from a service station , a restaurant, and this motel.

Staying at the Kicking Mule yesterday was a real social event. As other people turned up they joined the group

I answered lots of questions and then Jeff got his guitar and we all sat in a circle around the fire and joined in when we knew the song.

I left at about 10:15 to go to bed in my wagon. The singing went on for quite some time and people had kept turning up because of a big ‘Vacancy’ sign Jeff had put up on the main road.

I was woken at 4:30 by a storm. The sound of very heavy rain on a covered wagon is enough to wake anyone. Unable to get back to sleep I eventually got out of bed at 6am and started getting ready to cycle to the ferry.

Breakfast was another social event but I finally left all my new friends at 8:30. The ferry didn’t leave South Baymouth until 11 but I had been frightened by tales of power happy ferry people not letting people on who were late. I also hadn’t made a booking. Cars have to be booked in but I figured Shirley and I would’nt have a problem. I got there early anyway. It was only 16km from Tehkummah.

Buying a ticket involved giving all my personal details for some reason. It wasn’t cheap either. The people in cars have to pay for the car then each passenger. I guess I got off easy.

I had time to browse to souvenir shops before we sailed. Two ladies, Cynthia and Grace ( sisters) had seen me cycling from time to time while they were travelling to different national parks to camp. They seemed to think I’d done pretty well and we agreed to meet up on the ferry to continue our conversation. They went back to their car and I went to talk to the other cyclists waiting to board. I had seen them from the bus a couple of days ago so I was able to find out where they’d come from.

The ferry ride went quickly, talking to Cynthia and Grace.

I didn’t take many photos today but here’s the lighthouse taken from the ferry.

I followed one of the other cyclist off the ferry and onto the one road leading out of Tobermory. I really should have stopped there to get some groceries but I hadn’t done my homework and planned ahead. Too much socialising!

The road was pretty boring . Almost straight and trees either side. I stopped at a rest area after about 20kms to find out too late there would be nowhere to buy fruit for breakfast tomorrow morning. I could have cycled to Lion’s Head but I would have been cycling back into a strong headwind and adding over 8kms onto the ride.

Nah, I just went to the service station across the road when I finally got here and bought some bread and a wrap for dinner. Breakfast will have to be bread and honey.

This motel was way too expensive but anything else cost far more.

It’s pretty average but at least it has wifi and I have my own bathroom. The TV is ancient but it has lots of channels.

There were cows out the back window.

0 notes

followthemuse · 1 year

Text

Ode to 2020

The year 2020 was a complete shitshow for the entire world. We had a global pandemic that almost destroyed the world. Everyone was stuck inside. Mothers, brothers, sisters, wives, husbands, fathers, grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles. . . everyone was dying. So many people lost their lives due to the virus.

What were you doing during lockdown? Were you learning to bake bread, or maybe learning how to paint? Were you binge watching Netflix, or Hulu, or maybe Disney+? Were you video chatting your parents every day, making sure they were still alive? Or, perhaps, you were on of the ones on the frontlines who was risking your life to make sure everyone else was safe and healthy.

I feel like my 2020 was a bit different. See, that January, I had gone through a pretty rough breakup, lost every single one of my friends, got diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder, and had started medication. I met someone that February, and traveled halfway across the country to meet him in person. This was all pre-pandemic.

While I was in Nebraska, we got hit with lockdown. I was stuck 1500 miles away from my family, because I felt unsafe to travel back home to Tennessee via public transportation. His family was nice enough to let me stay with them until lockdown ended.

While so many peoples' lives were being destroyed by the virus, I had new love blooming within a heart that I thought was broken for good. The relationship that I had gotten out of previously was toxic and borderline abusive, just like the one before that, and the one before that. This relationship was different though. It felt different.

During lockdown, we would lay in his bed and cuddle, or we would listen to music, or watch Harry Potter. With him, I didn't feel scared. I had finally found the person who understood everything about me and loved me for who I was, instead of trying to make me fit into a teeny tiny box.

I remember being in the basement bathroom, getting out of the shower, getting dressed, and he came down to check on me. I had been listening to music, and a song that we both liked came on. We spent the entire song, singing to each other and looking in each other's eyes.

I would call or video call my parents almost every single day, making sure they were safe, making sure my niece was safe, etc. I missed them so much, but I still didn't want to risk travelling. At this point, most public transportation was shut down due to safety concerns.

We would hang out with his family in the garage, all just having a good time. His family accepted me for who I was. They had absolutely no issue with the fact that I'm nonbinary, like most of the people I had encountered before. This was new, refreshing, and eye opening.

When it became safe to travel again, he and I both went back to my home state, and moved in together. We stayed at my parents' house for about a week, until my house was safe to move into again. After the previous breakup, it took me a long time to be able to stay in my own house because of all the memories from that relationship. But with him by my side, I could do anything.

It's 2023 now, and we've been together for a little over three years. He's asked me to marry him, and we had a handfasting ceremony with our old coven last year on Samhain, in the full moon. It was the most magical night of my life, and although there are some things that I would change about that night, I definitely would not change the man I was with. We're planning on getting legally married sometime in the next couple of years, with no concrete date set yet.

Throughout those three years, he has never left me while I was in a low place. There have hardly been any bad times. He is the sweetest man I've ever been with, and I am so thankful for this relationship. For once in my life, I feel safe with a significant other. I feel like I can be myself and not be judged. I feel like I can unmask. I feel free.

So. . . Thank you 2020 for bring my future husband and me together. If not for the lockdown, I'm not sure how the relationship would have progressed, especially with us being long distance. I feel as if the lockdown helped us bond in a way that wouldn't have happened otherwise.

Koty, if you read this, I love you so much and I'm really grateful that I have you in my life. You are the most amazing man that I have ever met. Thank you for being unapologetically you, and allowing me to be unapologetically me. Thank you for all of the stuff that you've introduced me to. Thank you for being there for me through the ups and downs, even though the downs can get really bad and really scary. Thank you for believing in me when no one else did.

#my writing #writing #writer #writers of tumblr #writeblr #2020 #reminiscing #pandemic #covid pandemic #lockdown

1 note · View note

rjmartin11 · 1 year

Text

The Dwellers

Prompt: For years, Aaron has dealt with his second life as a vampire. Living life with his second family, The McKnights, and complaining his worthiness of love from another. His sister, Maddie, told him of a prediction of a girl that could be his love. Nearly giving up on hope, Aaron saves a girl from a trio of muderous vampires and takes her home to heal. Is this the girl his sister Maddie predicted?

Aaron's Story

What am I? When you look at me, you may see a handsome guy around seventeen or eighteen years of age. You think, "This guy's got a big future ahead of him." When I look in the mirror, I don't know exactly what to see.

A monster, a devil, a demon of some sort! Some creature with bright golden eyes; lips as red as the nearest rose outside in your garden. An ice cold clamey touch, and skin as white as the wet paint in your guestroom down the hall.

This thing that craws in search for blood, but not on the mortal living. You think you got it hard? Why don't you switch places with me. I wasn't always this way. Oh no. I was human once until I got sick in 1915.

I was born in San Francisco, California in 1898. I don't remember much but what I have written down in my journals. My memories have tended to fade as time as past. So I can remember that part I was sure to jot it down.

I remember a beautiful brunette with the most wonderful pair of blue eyes. My biological mother. I wish I could remember her name. My eyes were once blue as the Caspian Sea. Not anymore. I can't just glimpse in the mirror and remember.

I have her diamond wedding ring hanging on a silver chain that's on my neck all the times. I never take it off. The only thing of her I have. She died in 1915. The same year I was supposed to die. She died weeks before I caught the disease.

When I finally got the red flu, I was ready to perish. I had nothing to live for in this world. All I loved was buried with my beloved mother. No living family. As I lay there dying, the doctor wasn't giving up on me that easily. I wanted this suffering pain to end and quickly. The doctor said that he could give me a quick and easy way to live young and forever.

At first, I thought he was speaking of heaven. Then I thought it was a fool's dream. Then I thought myself a fool because I said, "Yes, please help me."

There was a sharp burning pain in my neck like firey needles injecting deadly poison in the veins. I thought the red flu was fatal until I met Dr. Alec McKnight.

"What am I? What have you done to me?" I cried not even reconizing my own voice.

Alec turned me into a series generation vampire. I wanted to hate him, kill him! I had the strength but not the heart to vanquish him. For a new sensation taken over me. My taste had changed along with my appearance.

He wasn't the monster I believed these creatures to be. Alec taught me that all vampires were not the same. Most of us were able to fit in society. Alec brought me into his home as his family. Alec had a beautiful wife named Padmè. In life, Padmè had lost a lot like I had before my transformation. Padmè and Alec both considered me an adopted son. Over the years, I saw them both as my parents. Feeling the hole in my heart for parental love I desired. The parents I never knew I needed. Although I remembered the gorgeous blue eyed brunette, I saw Padmè as a second mother.

Years passed and our family became larger. Our next addition to the clan was Gwen, the strawberry blonde with an attitude to match her hair. Gwen was my first little sister. Then we got Jonathan. Gwen safes Jonathan for herself. At times, they reminded me of Padmè and Alec some what.

Last but not least, Madison and Montgomery. My two youngest siblings who came from somewhere up North to find our family. Madison is somewhat of a psychic. She seen in Augusta, Maine and they came to meet us. We've been family ever since.

Yes, Alec, Padmè, Gwen, Jonathan, Madison, Montgomery, and I. Come and go as we please. We've traveled all over the world. London, Paris, Russia, Milan, Egypt and everywhere in between. But we love to stay on the Pacific Coast of the United States in Northern Oregon.

We dwell in the woods, but come in town to shop for clothes or Madison will pitch a fit. If we shop in town, we more than likely would take Johnny's Hummer. Maddie, Montgomery, Gwen, Johnny, and I can fit in the hummer. No problem.

Other than the clothes, Maddie always trys to find a mate for me. Darling Maddie, forever the optimist. I try to tell her it's not that simple. That's why I don't go with her all the time to town. Padmè says that we all have someone out there for us. I just haven't found her yet.

Maddie claims that she has seen her. A beautiful brunette with milk chocolate eyes. If she is at all right, I'll be waiting for the chocolate brunette.

Today my siblings went to town without me. I decided to stay home with Padmè then go out for hunt. Maybe kill a lion or two. I always start hunting after dark.

I attacked a mountain Lion and a few deer, but nothing captured my attention more than the scent coming from beyond the trees. This fragrance so beautiful from anything I smelled before. The scent lingered in the air and impacted my lungs in such a way I was nearly overwhelmed. A scent this strong has to be from a human. No animal smells that delicious. I would never kill the person but I couldn't stay away I had to get a closer look.

Just the thought of being closer made me thirsty. The pain in my throat ached for satisfaction. As I was about to turn around to return home, this sharp scream came from beyond the trees along with the scent. It was a young girl. If she was in trouble I wasn't about to let her die.

I raced through the forest until I came upon this voice, a vampire's voice. Only a vampire's voice could sound so threatening and so pitched with a sugar melody. Kind but deadly. The girl wasn't dead just yet. I could her heartbeat. She was afraid.

"So? Where do we start dinner first?", the dark headed vampire said slyly.

"The neck looks satisfying master." And just as they were about to take a drink of innocent blood, "No!" I yelled as I leaped into attack mode. Hitting and clawing in each direction that the evil vampires came at me.

I guess I was a little too much for them. They run away and I believe I injured one. Before it was too late, I remembered the frightened brunette nearly lifeless on the ground.

I moved quickly to her aid. That scent. That intoxicating scent made my blood boil. I wanted this girl's blood so much. I haven't wanted human blood this much since I first transformed into a vampire. Her scent was something all new to me. It smelt like some sort of natural scent. Shea and Cocoa butter.

The vampires who nearly killed her, injured her pretty badly. They injected enough venom in her body to become paralyzed. Just enough to knock her unconscious until they were finished with her.

She was so beautiful. The reason they wanted her in the first place. I need to get her some help before she died from the venom. We were about ten miles away from the house. With my speed I could get her help and be home in less than five minutes. She shivered my touch as I cradled her like a newborn in my arms.

"Alec!" I cried. "Help!"

As fast as they ran I knew they thought I was the one hurt. I held the girl's lifeless body in my dead, cold arms.

"Aaronington, what have done?" said Padmè.

"I saved her. Please no one argue with me. We need to saved her. Venom is running through her veins." I said.

"Did you do this?" Alec asked in fear.

"No" I answered.

"Do you think you can save her?" Maddie asked.

"She can be saved" Alec said.

He put an I.V. in her arm with a cleasing saline and said that she needed her rest.

"When she awakens she needs to eat so she may become well again" Alec said.

"I'll go prepare the guestroom for our new human friend" Padmè said making her way up stairs. "Come Madison. Gwen. Let us prepare her room."

As everyone left the room, I found myself once again alone with my new human friend. It was nice to know that she was going to live. I was still solving the mystery of this girl. The beautiful creature lying in front of me. Lifeless but also gorgeous. Her face a pretty oval shape. Her hair was of course dark nearly auburn but not exactly. Her hair more dark brown, curly, and nearly down her shoulders. Her lips full. I'd say more than average. Her skin light brown. Her eyes were the true mystery. As if they were hiding from me.

"Alec, the venom is out of her system" I said.

"Bring her up!" Alec requested.

I placed her motionless body in my arms and gently carried her to the guestroom where she would be safe until she awakened.

#fanfiction #vampires #romance #Love

1 note · View note

cjsinkythoughts · 3 years

Text

The Conversation

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Avenger!Reader

Word Count: 7661 (Don’t come at me - you guys asked for it)

Warnings: !FATWS Spoilers!, Cursing, Fluff, Feelings, I Dunno What Else, This One’s Pretty Chill, Except The Ending, But You’ll See When You Get There

A/N: Here it is! I was hesitant about posting it because that means we’re getting closer to the end and I’m such a nostalgic bitch! I’m definitely gonna cry next week when the last episode comes out! Anyways, I’ve got a few things to talk about:

I think this is one of the most important chapters I’ve written and I’m excited to see your reactions to it. It is longer, but you guys asked for that, so you got it! Also, I’m loving the Asks, Comments, and Reblogs. I try to respond to all of them. I have work in a little bit, so I won’t be able to until after, but I’ll get back to you as soon as I can. Ask me anything; about my series, the show, any of the movies, personal stuff, I really don’t care. If you’re not comfortable, that’s totally fine! Every like means so much to me!

I know it’s not the end yet - we’ve got one more episode and a list of One Shots to get through - but there’s a definite feeling of this series coming to an end, and I just want to thank you all for the support and love you’ve been giving it! I’ve really enjoyed writing these characters and this story! It’s very, very special to me and I’m glad I’ve been able to share it with you lovely people!

On that note, be kind to yourselves and others! Thank you again for reading! Excuse any mistakes - this isn’t beta’d! Enjoy and stay tuned!

FATWS Masterlist

cjsinkythoughts Masterlist

!SPOILERS UNDER CUT! (Sorry for the gifs I just love them so much and he’s so pretty and this part is technically two parts so...you get four!)

“Louisiana.” Bucky hummed, looking around the airport.

You rolled your eyes. “You’re not gonna find anything interesting about Louisiana in here, doofus. Let’s call an Uber.”

“An Ooper? What the hell is an Ooper?”

You giggled, shaking your head and grabbing his hand and pulling him towards the luggage carousel. “Uber. It’s like…a taxi service. But there’s an app on your phone to get a driver instead of waiting for one on the street.”

“Oh.” He blinked, tilting his head. “That’s…helpful.”

You laughed again, stopping in front of Carousel 3, where your flight from New York was assigned. You went back to New York to grab a bag with clean clothes and other necessities, along with taking a real shower for once. It was nice to be back in the States, as much as you loved traveling. It’d been a crazy few weeks and you were ready to just relax.

“Do you think there were any problems with Sammy’s present?”

Bucky shook his head. “Nah. Especially considering they know who we are.”

You snickered at his slight grumble. They had had…problems at the other two airports - first the one in Sokovia then JFK in New York - considering Bucky’s entire arm was metal. It’d taken a full hour before they actually let you go, and by that time they had to give you a new plane because yours had left.

“Seriously. Who else has a fucking metal arm and has 1917 listed as their birth year on their Driver’s License?” You giggled again. That was also true. They thought he was messing with them. It wasn’t until you stepped in a few minutes after they asked Bucky to step to the side, seeing Bucky get frustrated, that they realized Bucky wasn’t pulling their legs.

“Well, we’re here now and that’s all that matters.”

He nodded in agreement, watching for your bags, his hand finding yours when he realized how many people there were. “Do you know where he lives? I didn’t even think about it.”

“Yeah, don’t worry. He invited me over once. I declined, but I saved the address.”

“He…invited you over?” Bucky frowned.

You gave him a look. “I’m sure he invited you, too. You just never checked his texts.”

He licked his lips, tilting his head. “Yeah, no, I know, but I mean…why didn’t you go? Weren’t you two just talking about how you wanted to meet his nephews the other day?”

“Yeah, but I had gotten a tip on Wanda at the time and I didn’t want to miss the chance that she was there. He told me it was fine. I still felt really bad. I could tell he was a bit disappointed. I think it was one of the boys’ birthdays. Or something. I don’t remember. Is that bad? Yeah, probably. I really should remember. Maybe I should keep track of birthdays on my calendar or something.”

“Doll.” You looked up to find him giving you a magnificent smile, teeth and all. “You’re rambling.”

“Oh. Am I? Sorry. I didn’t realize.”

He shook his head quickly, squeezing your hand. “Don’t apologize. It’s cute. I’m just not used to you talking so much. You kinda did on the phone sometimes.”

You shrugged, pushing down the heat crawling up your neck at his words. “I rambled a lot to Steve.”

“Oh.”

His face fell, making you scrunch your eyebrows up in confusion, nudging him slightly to grin at him. “It’s nice to have someone to ramble to again, though.” There was that smile again. You were stopped from saying anything more when you noticed some kids pointing and chattering excitedly at a gleaming silver box coming around the corner on the conveyor belt. “There it is.”

He looked over his shoulder, dropping your hand and stepping over to grab it, lifting it effortlessly. You didn’t know what was in it or how heavy it was, but you were sure it felt like a feather to him.

“Alright. Got our bag, sweetheart?” You lifted up the duffle in answer and he jerked his head towards the doors. “Let’s get outta here, then. Call that Booper or whatever.”

“U-B-E-R! Ub-er!” You threw your hands up, following him as he started walking towards the exit. “What’s so hard about it?!”

He just gave you a little smirk over his shoulder.

***************

Bucky kept asking the Uber driver questions about his job. The guy was super nice and patient the whole time, a thick southern accent lacing his answers. Southern hospitality was no joke and apparently had no limit as Bucky asked about his experiences, listening intently and telling him his own stories of taxi drivers in NYC.

When you got to Sam’s sister’s house, Bucky, being Bucky, tipped the driver half of what you paid for the ride, thanking him for his time and energy, before getting out.

“You’re so adorable, you know that?” You teased him as you stepped up the porch stairs and knocked on the door.

He rolled his eyes, a tint of pink dusting across his cheeks. “He was nice.”

You hummed at his defense, the smile never leaving your features. After a moment, Bucky raised his fist to knock again. “Jesus Christ! Don’t fucking knock their door down!” You grabbed his wrist and lowered it.

“Sorry. I forget sometimes.” Bucky informed you absentmindedly, tilting his head to peek in the window. “I don’t think anyone’s home.”

“They’re probably at the docks, then.”

Bucky raised an eyebrow. “The docks?”

You nodded, gesturing for him to follow you. “Yeah. They have a boat, remember? He talked about it last week.”

“Oh right. The one he’s trying to convince his sister not to sell.”

“Yeah.” You confirmed. “I’m pretty sure it’s that way. I don’t know how far, but we can call the Uber back-”

Bucky scrunched up his face and shook his head. “Nah. I don’t wanna bother him again. We can walk.”

You gave him an incredulous look. “It’s literally his job to drive people around.”

“Well, yeah, but what if he’s got other people to drive?”

You lifted his metal knuckles to your lips. “Trust me, Buck, I’m sure he’d rather drive you than anyone else.”

“Thank you?”

Swinging your now linked hands, you gave a firm nod, letting him know it was, in fact, a compliment. “You are so very welcome.”

The walk was a lot longer than you thought it was, and you ended up on Bucky’s back after he kept complaining about how you “shouldn’t be walking this long” and you were “injured” and you “needed rest’”. You’re not sure how a shoulder wound affected your ability to walk, but you relented and let him carry you the rest of the way to stop his whining.

“You forget, you did pull your thigh.”

“That was, like, three weeks ago! Yeesh!”

You finally got to the docks, which were bustling with people. Bucky set you down and raised an eyebrow which you shrugged in reply to, before heading over to where you spotted Sam with a few other older men.

“How do we get it off the truck?” You heard Sam ask, pointing to a large boat engine part in the bed of a beaten up truck. Scoffing as Bucky lifted it up without breaking a sweat, you leaned against the truck. Bucky grunted and set it down, looking at Sam.

“You’re welcome.” What a punk. “Just dropping this off.” Bucky lifted the case and set it where the engine was previously, Sam coming to stand on the opposite side of the truck as you. “You can sign for it and I’ll go.” You snorted, shaking your head, making Bucky shove your shoulder - the uninjured one - playfully. “I called in a favor from the Wakandans.”

Sam looked at you curiously. You shrugged and shook your head. “Don’t look at me, Sammy. He wouldn’t tell me what it is. He’s all hushy hushy about it until you say so.”

Before Sam could reply, there was a squeak and hissing over at the boat where steam was coming from a few pipes.

“Sam!” You knew that was Sarah from pictures Sam showed you. You stayed up by the truck, pulling yourself onto the bed while Sam tried fixing the pipe, Bucky butting in to show him how to do it properly.

“Why didn’t you use the metal arm?”

You saw Bucky lift up said metallic limb. “Well…I don’t always think of it immediately. I’m-I’m right handed.” Letting out a laugh, Bucky turned around and scowled teasingly at you. “And what’re you laughing at?!”

“Nothing!”

“Well then get your ass over here!”

You rolled your eyes, hopping down from the truck as Bucky asked if Sam wanted help with the boat. You leaned against a wooden post, grinning when Sam looked at you.

“I don’t have any plans.”

Sam gave a small smile, jerking his head back. “Yeah.”

You jumped down onto the boat to follow him, looking over your shoulder and stopping with an amused eyebrow raised as Bucky introduced himself to Sarah. “I’m Bucky.”

“Ah…Sarah.”

“Sarah.” Bucky repeated her name, before walking towards you, a grin still on his lips.

“Careful, Barnes. That playboy Steve warned me about is coming out.” You nudged him with a smirk, ignoring the feeling of your stomach dropping.

He rolled his eyes, kissing your head as he passed you and Sam to go where Sam was gesturing. “Don’t worry, Y/N. You’re still my doll.”

Sam raised an eyebrow, falling into step besides you and lowering his voice. “Conversation?”

“Hasn’t happened.” You informed him through clenched teeth as he groaned.

Sam gave you a list of chores that needed to be done to clean up the boat, giving you a quick tour and letting you know where all the tools needed where. You set to work immediately.

Sanding down, replacing old parts, cleaning, polishing and painting over the things that didn’t need replacing. They didn’t let you do any heavy lifting because of your stupid shoulder, but you were still able to help.

Sam had turned on some music for you to listen to, so you danced around the boat while cleaning. Turning your head when you felt a pair of eyes on you, you smiled when Bucky snapped his head back down to the wood he was sanding down.

“Gonna dance, Barnes?”

He looked back over, shaking his head. “Nah. I’m good watching you.”

Rolling your eyes, you got back to work, continuing to bop to the music, fully aware that he was watching you now.

A little while later, you were repainting the edges of the boat orange, when you looked over and noticed Bucky playing around with a paint scraper…sitting right on the edge that you had just finished repainting a few minutes ago.

“Buck!”

He looked over, eyebrows raised. “Yeah?”

You bit your lip, trying to hold back your mischievous grin. Shaking your head, you waved dismissively. “Never mind!”

He gave you a confused sort of pout, before shrugging and continuing to fidget with the tool. It wasn’t until later when he got up to help Sam tear the metal plating off the edge that it came to light with Sam chuckling and raising an eyebrow.

“Sit in something there, Barnes?”

“What?”

Bucky craned his neck back, eyes widening when he saw the orange paint on his ass, contrasting with his jeans. You let out a cackle and he whipped towards you, pointing at you accusingly, although the small uptick of his lips let you know he wasn’t really mad.

“Y/N!”

“No, no, no!” You laughed, sprinting across the deck, shrieking when he grabbed your waist and spun you around. You gasped when he grabbed a paint brush and painted an orange stripe right down the front of your shirt. “James!”

“Justice, sweetheart.” He breathed in your ear with a chuckle.

You shook your head, wiggling out of his hold. “This is a nice shirt!”

“You should’ve thought about that before.” He smirked, crossing his arms. Your eyes caught sight of Sam behind him, who raised an eyebrow and the bucket of paint he was holding. You nodded with a little giggle, making Bucky’s eyes narrow. “What’s so funny over there, do - holy shit!

You guffawed as orange paint dripped down his head, Sam standing innocently behind him with the now empty bucket behind his back. “Samuel!”

“Oops?”

“I’m gonna kill you!”

“Try me old man!”

“Fuck!

“Doll!”

“Oh my God!”

Paint, orange and white since those were the only cans they had out, flew across the deck, paint brushes being used like fencing swords.

You found out too late that wet paint was a little bit slippery and you slid on a huge puddle, sending you, not onto the ground below, but over the side of the edge into the water.

“Doll!”

“Cher, you good?!”

The three of you looked at each other, stunned for a moment, before bursting into fits of laughter and you nodded. “I’m good!”

The boys helped you get back up onto the dock, Sarah appearing with towels she conjured up out of thin air. “Let’s get you into dry clothes. Do you have-?”

“We’ve got some. We got a bag.” You told her with a grin, facing the guys. “You two should clean up some, too. Sammy, you’ve got a little something right there.” You pointed to your cheek, his own having a giant white splotch from his temple to his jaw. “And Buck?” You sniggered, gesturing to the whole of him. “You’ve got a lotta something right there.”

“Ha. Ha.” He looked down. His top was practically tiger print, drenched in orange with white here and there, and his ass still orange as well. His hair, which had been plastered to his forehead, was starting to dry now, and it only made you laugh some more thinking about what a pain it’d be to get it out. For him, at least.

“God. Can’t even have a relaxing day on the boat with you two.” Sam jested once you finished up and joined him and Bucky, who had just finished dumping out some water buckets. Bucky had changed his shirt and it looked like they tried wiping their faces, but Sam still had small lines of white down his face. “How ‘bout a couple of drinks? Surely you can’t ruin that too.”

“Ruin?” You gasped in mock offence. “Sammy! I just made the day more…interesting.”

Sam chuckled, ruffling Bucky’s hair, which still had orange streaks in it. “Let’s go get some beers.”

************

You chatted for a bit, mainly you and Sam with you asking how Sarah and the boys were while Bucky with your legs in his lap, just listening to you two and sipping at his bottle. You had his hand in your own lap, wiping it down with a rag due to the paint that got on it.

“You’re lucky this is vibranium, you know.” You commented off handedly. “If it was your other one, it’d definitely get stained.”

“And who’s fault is that?” Bucky shot back with a teasing grin.

“Sammy’s.”

Sam spluttered. “Wh-what?! You started it!” You laughed, shaking your head.

Falling into a comfortable silence with just the water and birds chirping as your soundtrack, you downed the rest of your drink, which Bucky took as finished. “Well,” you moved your legs to let him stand up. He leaned forwards to clink his bottle against Sam’s and you stood up and stretched. “Gotta catch our flight tomorrow. Get a hotel room for the night.” Sam gave you a look to which you rolled your eyes at as Bucky set down his bottle and grabbed his jacket. “Crash, you know?”

“So you’re just gonna set me up like that, huh?”

“Well I don’t wanna make it weird for your family.”

“Just stay here.” You laughed as Sam babbled on about how nice the people were here, grabbing the jacket Bucky handed to you. It was getting a bit chilly from the breeze on the water and the sun going down. Plus, that water was cold.

“But don’t flirt with my sister.”

You cackled at Bucky’s face, that turned serious, his head shaking. “No.”

“‘Cause if you do I’ll have Carlos cut you up and feed you to the fish.”

“Can’t hold back the dog, Wilson. It’s been stuck in a kennel too long.”

Bucky turned to you, grabbing your jaw and squishing your cheeks together. “You know what? You need to shush. You’ve been snippy all day.”

You just smiled as innocently as you could with your lips being held by his metal fingers. “You’re too fun to mess with.”

He pecked your nose. “As long as I’m the only one you’re messing with. I’ll be right back.” He let you go and spun around, maneuvering around the boat in a way only a trained assassin could do.

“Oh my God, please! Please just put me out of my fucking misery! You’re killing me, cher.”

“What?” You gaped at him.

“Don’t act innocent!” Sam huffed, giving you a pointed look. “If I have to watch you two make googly eyes at you one more fucking day with neither of you doing anything about it-”

You rolled your eyes. “Oh come on, Sammy-”

“Don’t ‘come on, Sammy’ me! And don’t come at me with that ‘he doesn’t like me back’ bullshit. If you think for a second that boy wouldn’t follow you to the depths of the fucking ocean, you’re blind as a bat, woman.”

You shrugged, pushing up the sleeves of Bucky’s too big jacket. “It just…hasn’t come up.”

He deadpanned, shaking his head and standing up. “That’s it. I’m done. You two are driving me insane. I’m gonna lock you in a room until you have the conversation that needs to be had the next time either of you does something stupid.”

“Yikes. That’s gonna be quick.” At his look, your smile dropped and you nodded. “Okay, okay. I’ll…I’ll bring it up later.”

“Tomorrow or nothing.”

“Sam-”

Sam tilted his head, brow creasing. “Is it still Steve? Is that what this is still about? Because he’s gone, and he’s been gone and you need to get over it-”

“No. It’s not…” You sighed. “It clicked the other day. When we were hanging out. Steve left and, yeah, I might always love him, but Bucky…God…I love Bucky, Sam.”

The man grinned proudly. “I’m glad to finally hear you admit it. So what’s the problem?”

“It’s still complicated, right? I mean…he’s his best friend and I’ve never dealt with stuff like this before and-”

Sam’s smile dropped and he groaned again. “Imma head out. I can’t take this. Dumbass and dumberass. I swear to God.” You sniggered a bit as he grumbled, walking towards the ramp to climb off the boat, just as Bucky reappeared.

“Hey-”

“Nope! Not right now, Barnes! I can’t handle it! I can’t!”

Bucky gave you a weird look. “What’d you do?”

You chuckled, shaking your head. “Nothing.”

“Well, c’mon, doll. Sarah said she’s gonna make gumbo for us, whatever that is.” He held out his hand as you walked over.

“You’re such a city boy.” You teased lightly, taking his hand and letting him help you pull you onto the dock. You shoved the sleeves of his jackets up again since they slipped from the first time. “Let’s go get some dinner. I’m starving.”

******************

“We have the couch and a mattress we can pull out, I just have to make Sam get it from the attic-”

“That’s alright. The couch is fine.” Bucky waved dismissively while you nodded in agreement.

Sarah raised an eyebrow at you two. “For both of you?”

You blinked, exchanging a look with Bucky, before shrugging and turning back to her. “Yeah.”

“Don’t fight it, Sarah.” Sam peeked out from the hall. “They’ve got a weird relationship.” You stuck your tongue out at the man while Bucky rolled his eyes, dropping your duffle bag by the couch. “How mature, Y/N.” Sam mimicked your action.

“Uhm…okay. Let me set up the couch for you then.”

Once everything was set up, you and Bucky thanking her for dinner - delicious and you’d never seen Bucky smile so much, the boys having kept him highly entertained throughout the meal - and for letting you crash, Sam and Sarah headed to their rooms, the boys already having been tucked in for the night.

“Are you gonna sleep on the floor?” You asked quietly, sitting down on the couch and doing the things for your night routine you didn’t already do in the bathroom.

“I think I’ll be okay.” He sat besides you. “I’ve been doing fine the past week or so.”

You smiled at him. “That’s good. Alright.” You stood up and stretched. “Let me just make sure everything’s in the bag and ready-”

You yelped when his arm wrapped around your waist, pulling you into his chest, shifting down to lay against the couch’s arm. “Do it in the morning.” He yawned, looking up at you tiredly. “I wanna go to sleep.”

“Then go to sleep, Buck. I’ll be right back.” He shook his head, his hold tightening as he sunk deeper into the couch.

“No. I fall asleep better with you.”

You rolled your eyes but grinned, settling down with your legs between his, your chin resting on his sternum so you could still look at him. He beamed, but you could see the exhaustion settling in, and he grabbed the blanket Sarah left over the back of the couch and draped it across your back, over both of your legs, before his arms crossed snugly under the covers at the small of your back.

“Dinner was nice tonight. I haven’t had a meal cooked like that in ages.” You hummed.

He nodded in agreement. “I think that’s the first time I’ve sat around a table with a family since the 40′s.”

You raised an eyebrow. “Did you like it?”

“Yeah...kinda makes me wish I had my own.”

“Your own what?”

“Family.”

You bit your lip, shyly avoiding his gaze. “You’re my family, Buck.”

A light kiss was pressed to your forehead, his fingers bringing your gaze back to his. “There’s no one else I’d rather have.” The room lapsed into silence again, the clock ticking on the wall, the low sound of crickets outside.

“You have really pretty eyes.” You mumbled, tilting your head slightly as you studied them. They always held so much emotion in them, especially in contrast to when you first met him as Soldat. They matched the water you fell in, and you wouldn’t mind falling over and over into them.

“Yeah, well, you’re just really pretty inside and out, so I think you’ve got me beat, doll.” He whispered back.

“You know who else is pretty? Sarah.”

He nodded with a hum. “That’s true. But I meant what I said. You’ll always be my doll.”

“So you’re not gonna ask her out?”

He gave you a weird look as you traced his sharp jawline absentmindedly. “Nah, sweetheart. It’s just…some harmless flirting. Except on Sam’s part.”

You gave a soft huff of laughter. “Yeah…he’s gonna strangle you. It is nice to see you like that, though. Flirty. Relaxed. Happy.”

“You make me happy, sweetheart.” He hummed, nosing your temple. “The road trip helped. I’m learning everything from you. Maybe not the flirting, but the carefree part.”

You blinked at him, finger stopping for a moment as you thought. “Oh…”

You felt his fingers dance up your spine, making you shiver slightly. “What I would give to know what’s goin’ on inside that pretty lil’ head’a yours, doll.”

“I just think it’s funny you’re learning how to be carefree from me…when I just started learning how to do it myself.”

“Oh yeah?”

You nodded, your finger continuing its path down his jaw. “I think it started with the goats.”

“The goats?”

You nodded again, resting your cheek on his chest, watching your finger move up from his chin. Once you got to the end of his jaw, you lightly scratched his scruff. “In Wakanda. Our goats.” You weren’t looking at him, so you didn’t see the way he physically melted at your words, his eyes going soft, his lips turning up slightly.

“Our goats, huh?”

But your tired brain wasn’t really processing what he said, instead focusing on the features your finger was now tracing - over his lips, up his nose. “You’re pretty too, Buck. Did you know that? Inside and out.”

He craned his neck to kiss your forehead. “Go to sleep, cuddle bug.”

Nodding, you nuzzled into his chest, finger feeling over the bumps and indents on the dog tags resting near your head. You tried going to sleep, but you kept shifting, your mind not shutting off.

“Hey, sleepyhead, I’m trying to, you know, sleep.”

“Sorry.” You apologized meekly. “I just…I dunno. I can’t.”

“Are you comfortable?” He peeked open and eye to look at you questioningly. You nodded. “Is it too hot? We can take the blanket off. I know I’m a walking furnace-”

You shook your head. “No. I don’t know why. I just can’t sleep.”

He licked his lips thoughtfully, before cradling your head and guiding you back down to his chest. “Lay down, sweetheart. Relax.” He stroked your hair, moving his head down to rub circles in your back muscles, pressing down harder when he felt knots.

You hummed, your eyes closing. “That feels good.”

“Shshsh. Just go to sleep.” His lips pressed against your head once more, lingering a bit longer than they usually do, as you felt yourself drift off. You cuddled his side, throwing a leg over his waist, before nodding off, only barely hearing his words. “Attagirl. There we are.”

******************

“Doll?” You felt a shift underneath you and groaned, your eyes barely cracking open. “Hey, sleepyhead…it’s okay. I’m just gonna slip out from under ya, alright? Gonna go help Sammy with somethin’.”

You raised an eyebrow, letting him move you against the cushions as he sat up on the edge of the couch. “Sammy?”

“Yeah.” He bent over and kissed your cheek. You stretched out your limbs, about to rub your eyes, when he stopped you, kissing the inside of your wrists. “No. Not you, doll. Go back to sleep.”

“Bu’...’m gonna help.” You slurred out, looking at him with confused, squinty eyes.

He chuckled, shaking his head. “It’s okay. Rest. You can help when you wake up again. Okay?” You mumbled out an “okay”, bringing the covers up to your chin and snuggling deeper into the cushions. “There ya go, cuddle bug. Good girl.” There was another kiss, one to your temple this time, before you slipped back into unconsciousness.

******************

The next time you woke up was because of a clatter in the kitchen. You yawned and sat up, stretching, eyebrows furrowing when you realized Bucky wasn’t with you. It took you a moment to remember your conversation, which you half thought you dreamt.

“Boys!”

“Sorry!”

You chuckled at the shouts, rubbing your eyes. “I am so sorry!” Sarah apologized, looking over at you from the stove. Trying to make the boys breakfast before school. Do you want anything? Eggs? Cereal? Toast?”

“Uh, cereal’s fine.” You stretched out your back again, before throwing back the covers and standing up, a little shakily.

“You wouldn’t happen to know where Sam went, would you?”

You raised an eyebrow. “Uh, I think him and Bucky went to fix something on the boat. I don’t for sure, though.”

Sarah groaned. “He probably went to fix the stupid water pump which doens’t need fixing. Dumbass.”

You chuckled, padding over into the kitchen. “Yeah. I just work with him. I can’t imagine growing up with him.”

“Trust me; some days you want to throw him in a box and send him out to sea. Bowls are in that cupboard.”

You snickered, moving over to grab a bowl from the cupboard she pointed to. “That’s how I feel with Bucky. Sam is less often, but when those two get together…it’s a full zoo.”

She laughed at that, nodding as she got out the milk and a few boxes of cereal for you to choose from, handing you a spoon. “That I believe.”

“Thank you.”

“Of course.”

You started pouring your cereal, watching in slight amusement as she got the boys ready for school. “Bus is here! Get out the door! Bye! Love you! Make sure you take those extra lunches to-!”

“Yeah, mom! We know! Love you too!”

You gave a slight smirk as she huffed, looking around the kitchen at the pans and dishes left out. “Kids, huh?”

She gave you a smile. “Yeah. They’re a handful, but I wouldn’t trade them for anything. How about you? Any thoughts of kids?”

“Me?” Your eyes widened, nearly choking on your food. “Oh God no. Not right now, at least. I don’t even have a solid house right now. My life’s too off the walls for that.”

“And Bucky?”

You raised an eyebrow as she leaned on the counter. “Bucky? What about Bucky?”

“Does he want kids?”

“Uh…I dunno.” You shrugged, clearing your throat as you remembered your talk last night. “Kinda makes me wish I had my own.” You quickly pushed his words aside. “He hasn’t told me.”

“Wait, wait. You two…aren’t together then?”

You blinked, your eyes widening again. “Together? Me and Bucky? No…why? Did Sam say something?”

Her expression morphed into one of disbelief, crossing her arms. “Sam didn’t say anything. You guys did. Are you seriously expecting me to believe you aren’t together?”

“We’re not! I mean - he was flirting with you yesterday-”

“Right, okay. Honey, that’s flirting. And it’s harmless. The way he follows you like a puppy and you look at him like he hung the stars? That’s feelings. And that’s a lot more impactful than flirting.”

You frowned in contemplation. It was really that obvious? You were really that blind? This whole time? You knew Sam knew - but you just figured that’s because he’s been there since it started. And Sharon knew for the same reason. But Sarah? The woman you just met the day prior and had barely had a conversation with?

“It’s, uh…” You chewed on your cheek, swirling your cereal around. “It’s complicated.”

Sarah didn’t look impressed. “Do you like him?”

“I’m kinda in love with him-”

She shrugged, not letting you finish your bashful statement. “Then I don’t see what’s complicated about it.”

And that was that. She turned to clean up breakfast, leaving you alone with your thoughts.

You thought it was more complicated than that. I mean…you were in love with your best friend. Who left you. With the guy you had feelings for who just so happened to be your best friend/crush’s best friend. And now you were completely in love with your best friend’s best friend, but your best friend still had a piece of your heart.

But…you loved Bucky. And he was here. And Steve was not. And when you put it that way…you guess it wasn’t so complicated after all.

******************

You snickered as you walked up behind Sarah, the woman berating the men for not leaving the water pump along like she asked.

“Hi, Sarah.”

Sam shot Bucky a warning look, who grinned, but you were surprised to see Sarah ignore him, sending you a knowing glance instead, before turning back to Sam. “I told you specifically that the water pump was not the problem, and yet, here you are.”

“Yep, Samuel.”

You chuckled, Bucky shooting you a wink. “Yeah, Samuel.”

Sam narrowed his eyes at you, turning to Sarah. “In our defense, you were supposed to be done long before you woke up.”

You nearly facepalmed at his “defensive” and you were trying so hard to hold back laughing as she told Sam off, sending them away.

“I don’t wanna hear a peep from you.” Sam pointed at you, but that only made your chortles come out, and you didn’t even bother hiding them. “She’s a very mean person.”

“It’s tough love.”

You giggled as they started arguing, slipping an arm around their waists, their arms instinctually coming up to your shoulders.

“Oh my God. A prowess?”

“Yes, Y/N. A prowess.”

“You know, maybe if you someone let me help-”

“Hey, woah! You were tired! I let you sleep! I was being nice!”

“Too late now. I’ll be lucky if Sarah lets me within a hundred feet of it!”

“She got you so good, Sammy!”

“I agree with Buck for once! You’re too snippy right now! And c’mon man! Stop flirting with my sister!”

“It’s my natural charm.”

“Charm? What charm?”

“Ouch, doll! That one hurt!”

****************

“Okay.” You stepped out of the bathroom, walking over to the couch and setting the bag down on it. “I’ve got everything packed. We’ve got a little over an hour until we need to head out which gives you two time to go set something up for Sammy and maybe even a bit or training before we leave.”

Bucky frowned. “You’re not gonna come out?”

“I will in a bit. I just got a phone call I need to take.”

Sam narrowed his eyes. “Government call?”

You gave a mocking smile. “Can you guess what they want to talk about? It’s okay. I’ll survive. It’s only a phone call, so I can always hang up. Pretend I didn’t have good service. I do it all the time.”

“I’m sure you do.” Sam chuckled. “In that case, I’m gonna go grab some stuff and get the shield.” As he walked out, he made sure to mouth at you behind Bucky’s back ‘conversation’ making you swallow thickly. You were planning on talking to Bucky anyways, and with Sam’s insistence…

“Okay, so, I was thinking when we get back-”

“Can I talk to you?”

Bucky stopped digging through the bag, blinking at you in surprise at your sudden burst. “Uh…well, we already are, so yes.” He chuckled, straightening and crossing his arms.

“I wanna have the conversation.”

He was left stunned, once again, his mouth opening and closing and his weight shifting form one foot to the other. “Like…that conversation? R-right now? Are you sure?”

You winced at her nervousness. “Sorry, sorry. I know it’s kinda…I just…I need to talk about it. Now.”

“Okay, okay. No, that’s fine. Don’t apologize. I just wasn’t expecting it.” Bucky cleared his throat. “That’s all.”

“Okay…” You breathed with a small nod. You opened your mouth, but Bucky shook his head.

“I hafta say this first; I didn’t mean to hurt you by telling you about Steve. I-I dunno what I thought. That it’d give you closure or something. I dunno. But it hurt you and I’m sorry. That wasn’t my intention.”

“Buck-”

“I was jealous. And guilty. And mad. And upset. I still am. Kinda. I guess. I dunno.” Bucky shook his head, running his hand through his hair and all you could do was gape at him as he started confessing to you. “Remember when we danced? In Madripoor? Doll…I don’t wanna dance ever again if it’s not with you. I fucking love you, Y/N. And not in the way we’ve said it before. I’m in love with you. I have been for-for a while now. I just - you were Steve’s. Steve loved you and you loved Steve and that was that and I was just the broken childhood best friend. But Steve left and he told me to take care of you and I didn’t know what to do with that, because you still love Steve. I think. I dunno. And I didn’t want to break what we have because you’re all I have left of him. You and that stupid shield. You’re my family. My home. I really meant it when I told you that. And that’s why I couldn’t tell you. Because it means too much for me to break what we have because I fell in love with my best friend’s girl. You know?”

He looked at you with pleading eyes, begging you to understand, but your brain was still trying to process what he was telling you.

“Oh God…” He groaned. “And now I just told you everything and you’re looking at me like that wasn’t what you wanted to hear and now I’m thinking this wasn’t the conversation you were thinking it was going to be-”

You were moving across the room before you could stop yourself, pulling him by the teal Henley you knew was comfortable having worn it to bed before when you visited him in New York, and slanting your lips over his.

His breathing hitched and he froze, and for a hot second you thought you made everything worse, but then he was kissing you back and his hands were on your hips and he was pulling you closer and it felt so fucking good you didn’t want to pull back for air.

“Shut up.” You muttered when you finally did pull back, your forehead against his, your eyes clenched shut. “Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up.” You pulled back to look up at him, chests heaving against each other, your eyes prickling. “I’m not good at this. I’m not good at opening up. I only ever was good at it with Steve but Bucky…I’ve been doing it with you. This whole time and I didn’t even realize it until the conversation in the car.”

He reached up to cup your cheeks, wiping away the relieved tears that were falling from the weight you were finally getting off your chest.

“I love you. I’m in love with you. How could I not be? After all that time in Wakanda? I was never Steve’s girl, Bucky. I wanted to be. Dammit, did I wanna be, but I wasn’t. Not really. And he’s gone. But you’re not. And I don’t know why it took me so long to see that. That you’re the one in front of me. You’re the one who held me when I needed it once he left. You’re the one that would listen to my rambles that I’m just realizing was most of our phone calls. You’re not just the broken childhood friend. Don’t ever think that. I don’t pick up the phone at five in the morning after searching for a friend until two for just anyone. Even Steve’s best friend. And I’m such an idiot because I’ve been pushing away my feelings all these years for Steve and then I let them out with you at the wrong time, because I love Steve, Bucky, but I’m not in love with him. Not since I fell in love with you. And I know it doesn’t make sense, but Steve was the first one I cared about and that’s just how I feel and I can try to explain, but-”

His lips crashed onto yours again and you could taste the salty tears that were pouring down your cheeks, but you didn’t care. He was holding you and he was kissing you and it was even more perfect than you thought it’d be.

“You’re adorable when you ramble, but Jesus Christ, shuddup, doll.” He breathed. “Just tell me you love me. Tell me you love me just a fraction of how much I love you.”

You looked up into those ocean eyes, your own shining with earnest affection. “James Buchanan Barnes. I love you.”

“That’s all I need to know.” He murmured against your lips, holding your head against his, still wiping away your tears. It felt like with each one that fell, you felt lighter and lighter. Like they were taking away every fear and anxiety you held within you for the past six months.

“Alright! I was thinking we could just set up in these trees out here - holy shit! Is it done? Did you do it? Did I miss it? Has the conversation been had?”

Bucky chuckled as you giggled. “He has the worst timing.” The last two words were loud enough so Sam could hear, although the man heard the whole sentence.

“I’m gonna take that as a yes!” Sam cheered. “Halle-fucking-lujah! Finally! I was that close to locking you two in the attic.”

You shook your head at Sam’s personal celebration, drowning the rest of his words out as you looked at Bucky, who swept his thumb over your cheek catching one last tear, before pecking your lips.

“I finally get to kiss where I really want to.” He spoke softly, kissing your lips again. “Are you mine, doll?”

“I thought you said I’d always be your doll.” You answered cheekily. He grinned, kissing you again, pulling you against him by the hips.

“Okay, okay! That’s enough! We get it! You’re in love, finally, but I don’t wanna see it anymore! Now will you come help me with this shit?”

Bucky left one more lingering kiss on your lips, before you pushed him away reluctantly. “I’ll be right out.”

He nodded, moving over to help Sam carry the things he’d gathered.

You watched them put it all up from the window, gnawing on your cheek as you spun your phone in your hands. Coming to a decision, you tossed your phone in the duffle bag and walked out with it just as the boys finished.

“That was a quick phone call.” Sam raised an eyebrow.

You shrugged. “Didn’t call them. If they really need me, they’ll find me.”

Bucky grinned as you set the bag down under a tree, pecking your lips when you got close enough for him to grab by the waist to hold you against him. You rolled your eyes, shoving him playfully away and giggling as Sam let out a groan.

“Alright. Let’s see what you’ve got, Sammy.”

><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><

Bucky knew he needed the tough love talk Sam was giving him. He needed to hear it. Because, deep down, he had known it all along, he just refused to believe it. He tried doing it. Making amends. He knew he wasn’t though. And of course he knew immediately who that one person would be.

“And hey.” Bucky looked at him. “Let me tell you what. Telling my girl all that you told her? That’s a good start. I’m proud of you. Both of you. You’re already happier. I can see it in your eyes.”

Bucky chuckled, shaking his head as he thought of the gorgeous woman he nearly let slip through his fingers. He looked over to the house, where she was inside somewhere getting ready after suddenly deciding she needed to shower before they left. “I was stupid.”

“Yeah you were. You both were. I’m so relieved it’s over.” Sam nudged him. “Treat her right, Buck. She deserves it.”

“I know…I just hope I can.”

Sam shook his head. “Uh-uh. Don’t do that. You were just starting to use that cyborg brain of yours! She chose you. And before you say anything,” Sam cut Bucky off from speaking as he opened his mouth to object. “She chose you before Steve left. It just took her dumbass this long to realize it.”

Bucky nodded, a small smile on his face. “Yeah…okay…” Before he could say anything, the goddess herself stepped out, jogging over, looking absolutely amazing in her jeans and his t-shirt. “Good talk.”

Sam laughed at his quick ending of the conversation as she came up besides them. “Talking about me?” She asked cheekily, eyes shining. Bucky couldn’t help but take her under his arm, pecking her lips. Now that he could, he didn’t think he could stop. He was addicted to say the least.

Throwing Bucky a wink, Sam shrugged. “Just all the things that get on our nerves.”

“Ha ha.” She rolled her eyes. “We better get going.”

Bucky and Sam clapped hands. “You know Karli won’t quit.”

Bucky smiled. “Ah. You call us when you have a lead and we’ll be there.”

Y/N stepped forwards to give Sam a hug. “Anytime, Sammy.”

“Eh. Anytime between noon and midnight.” Bucky corrected. “Or noon and ten. Noon and five…you better just call at noon to be safe.”

Sam rolled his eyes. “Sure, sure.”

“Not necessarily as a team.” Bucky continued, grabbing the bag, getting Y/N back in her spot at his side under his arm.

“Nope!”

“We’re not that good.”

“Definitely not.”

“We’re professionals.”

“Definitely.”

“And, uh, we’re partners.”

Sam snapped, pointing at him. “Coworkers.”

“But we’re also a couple of guys with a couple mutual friends.”

“Ones now gone and you’re dating the other.”

“So we’re a couple of guys…with a badass to help out.”

“I can live with that.”

“Perfect.”

“Oh my God.” Y/N let out that laugh Bucky could never get enough of, shaking her head at the two of them. “You forgot dumbasses.”

Sam shook his head. “Nuh-uh. That’s your couple name.”

“Dumbasses?”

“Oh yeah.” The three of them came to a stop, Bucky and his girl - God he loved confirming it now - facing Sam. “Thanks for the help, guys. Meant a lot.”

Bucky patted his shoulder. “Of course.”

Y/N shot him a wink. “Until we meet again, Sammy.”

“Until then, cher.”

Bucky couldn’t stop his grin as she wrapped her arms around his waist, the two of them starting to walk to the main road where she already ordered an Uber. He looked down at her, kissing her lips for the nth time in the past hour.

“I wish I didn’t wait so long,” he told her seriously. “But I’d wait a thousands more centuries if it meant I get to call you mine.”

She giggled, shaking her head. “You’re such a sap! But…” she moved up to kiss him and his heart stuttered. He knew he had a goofy grin on when she pulled back, but he couldn’t help it. Especially when she laughed again. “I have to agree with you on that, Buckaroo.”

3K notes · View notes