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masterwords · 5 months

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go the f*ck to sleep

Summary: JJ sees Hotch struggling with single parenthood and offers to help. Miraculously...he accepts.

Pairing: none

Words: 1.4k

Warnings: mentions of canon character deaths (haley & jj's sister), insomnia, grief, depression

Notes: I woke up this morning and had this image in my mind. It was written so fast and it's barely a fully fledged thought but...here you go. It's sad Hotch hours. And it isn't hotchgan! (I have a lot of that coming your way in the next week though, between several stories and several moodboards.) Merry Thursday!

*********

It wasn’t much. Hell, it was barely anything at all, she thought as she set the paper cup (extra hot americano, double shot) on Hotch’s desk. She held the card in her hands, hesitant. His office was cleaner than it had been in as long as she could remember, and it made her deeply uncomfortable. Like he was hiding something.

He’d always been an open book when it came to his work load. Case files and reports stacked on his desk, his email perpetually two away from being overflowing, the data on his phone complaining about the number of texts he wouldn’t delete. Just in case he needed them. (And he had needed plenty of them, so the end justified the means, so to speak.) So this new thing, this clean office, clean desk, organized email inbox...well she was a little concerned.

Everyone deals with grief differently and as she looked around at this office she barely recognized, JJ could see his grief written in every tidy corner, every neatly filed piece of paper. Maybe he was on top of it so he could be home with Jack, that was best case scenario, but what she thought might actually be happening was that he’d simply begun taking all of it home with him. That he was drowning in his apartment where no one could save him.

She looked at the card in her hand and thought about her parents grieving over her sister. How her father stopped talking to her for months, how her mother doubled down on the anger and the intensity. How she became a surrogate for what was lost but not in any helpful way. She could remember it all vividly while knowing there was a lot of that time she’d never really be able to access. She was older than Jack when her sister died, Jack would have even fewer memories when he was grown. He’d barely have a glowing faded ghost of a mom in his head, but he’d have a hardened father who can’t smile and can’t sleep that is tangible and be full of resentment. She knew that from experience.

That was enough to make her set the card down. She might be overstepping, she probably was, and he might just drink the coffee and toss the card in the garbage can (she knew he wouldn’t) but she had to try. Derek was still trying, still absorbing a lot of the work load, anything he could without stepping on Hotch’s toes but everyone else had gone back to business as usual. She couldn’t leave Derek to shoulder this burden on his own, she had to try to help.

She was in a meeting with Strauss and Garcia when he finally made his way to his office. The coffee, once piping hot, was cold and he stared at it long and hard for a minute in disbelief. It had already been a hellscape of a morning, putting out fires left and right...most of which weren’t even his fires...and the sight of the coffee there almost pushed him over some inexplicable ledge. He sat on the couch, but it looked and felt a lot more like falling, like collapsing, like his legs simply giving out.

If the coffee came close, the card did the real pushing.

“Hotch,

When I had Henry, everyone made jokes about finally really knowing what it was like to need coffee...well they weren’t kidding. I know Jack isn’t a newborn, but I have a feeling the sentiment will ring true still. So here’s to coffee, huh?

From one caffeine addict to another, if you ever need help with Jack, call anytime. Henry could use a big brother to show him the ropes.

JJ”

The tone of the card was light, casual, but the sincerity in it made his chest ache. The likelihood of him asking JJ to babysit Jack for him was slim, he thought she knew that when she wrote it, but all the same he was touched by the sentiment. And the coffee, once reheated, was exactly what he needed to pick himself up and finish the day on his own two feet. (Before collapsing into bed as soon as Jack was asleep only to toss and turn all night long again and again and again and again. Only to finally crawl out of bed at 3am after sleeping in rough ten minute intervals all night, dragging himself to his messy home office and watching the sun slowly creep through his closed blinds with tired eyes and piles of paperwork as high as his knees.)

When he did finally call JJ for help, he’d been at the sleepless night thing for three months and things were starting to feel filmy and unreal. He was at the end of his rope. Derek had been his lifeline in many ways, absorbing the work load when it got to be too much, but he didn’t know the first thing about kids so Hotch couldn’t ask him to babysit. It would be a disaster. Then he remembered JJ’s card, and it felt like his last line of defense. A hail mary. “Could you watch Jack for me for an hour or two?”

“You have a date?” she asked with a cheeky smile, pushing a spoonful of mashed potato into Henry’s waiting little mouth while holding the phone between her shoulder and her ear. Hotch let out the saddest laugh she thought she’d ever heard.

“Not exactly. I was hoping to try to take a nap.”

“Ahhh, yes. I hear you. If I didn’t have Will forcing me to take naps during the day…” she paused, biting into her lip. The queen of foot in mouth has done it again, she thought. “Well. Just give me a time and I’ll be there.”

He made a pot of coffee and showed her around, giving her the lay of the land like she’d never been inside before. Like she hadn’t gone in after Foyet, gone in with Derek and Emily and Dave, ducked beneath crime scene tape to check the place out, look through his intimate things. But it was different now, there was life here. Jack’s things were brightly colored and littered the place with tiny happy bombs. An Iron Man blanket laid on the couch, a splash of bright crimson against the dull grayish brown. Legos were in the carpet, crayons all over the table with play doh crumbs and the remnants of the toast Jack was still insisting he wasn’t done with from breakfast. “I’m sorry I haven’t picked up,” he muttered, and she laughed.

“Hotch, it’s fine. This is pretty clean for someone with a kid that age. Really.”

He glanced around and shrugged, shame clawing at him in spite of her words. He should have done more to pick the place up. It really was the least he could have done, she wasn’t even accepting money from him for her time.

“Are you sure you don’t mind?” he asked finally, glancing at Henry teetering on chubby little legs, brand new at the whole walking thing. He was invested in whatever it was that Jack was playing, he just had to get there first and that was slow going as a newly bipedal creature. Hotch glanced around and saw all of the choking hazards, the glass, the outlets not covered, the corners to bang his head on and the kitchen drawers easily opened to danger and death. His apartment wasn’t baby proofed because he never had Jack here at that age. He hadn’t thought this through. Not only that, but he noticed that Jack still had bright purple and green marker on his chin and forearms, remnants of his unsupervised tattoo session while Hotch was shaving one room away. He thought he'd gotten all of it washed off.

“Hotch...it’s okay. I’m going to sit here with them and they’ll play and that’s it. Maybe we’ll read a few stories, color a picture, rob a bank if we get really bored…”

“Thank you JJ.”

“ Wow. Not even a laugh huh?”

He smiled weakly. “I’m sorry. I haven’t really been sleeping.” Like that should explain it all. Judging by the look she gave him, it might have. The look on her face was compassionate, but he detected a little pity there too. He figured he deserved it. If he looked in the mirror he’d give himself the same pitying look.

"Do you need a bed time story?" she asked, cocking an eyebrow. His eyes went wide for a moment, his features finally giving way to a tired smile. A real one, unprovoked.

"No. Thank you though. Really."

"Alright then, go. I’ll try to keep them quiet. Thank you for the coffee. Get some sleep Hotch.”

#aaron hotchner #jennifer jareau #criminal minds #criminal minds fanfiction #it's platonic but all you jotchies out there can indulge if you want #i won't mind <3

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lumilasi · 3 months

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Fitting I post this on women's day I guess. I've had her on my to-do list for months, and finally I figured out her updated design. I also wanted to give her kind of a fun, playful sounding surname, and landed on Duffy. I think its Irish/Scottish? She's supposed to be from British isles anyway, or at least lives & works in Scotland currently.

More info below:

Name: Scarlet Duffy

Nicknames: Letty

Age: 25

Family: birth family unknown, honorary big brother figure Mihail Câine, kind of a surrogate parental figure Thalia Swanson

Friends: Harrow Araknos/Blackthorne (Soul eater & her boss) Aiden O'Kelley (their gardener) more tba

Love interest: none

Occupation: Housekeeper of the Blackthorne mansion/former pickpocket

Abilities:

Sneak 100: She's super sneaky, able to even creep up on Harrow and Mihail, both beings with hyperaware senses naturally. (Though there is debate if Mihail just let's her catch him off-guard)

Lockpicking/Pickpocketing: She's a true rogue thief if she wants to be

Street smarts: She generally knows how to survive in dangerous situations in urban settings, like how to de-escalate a fight, or when its the best to run, and generally how to defend yourself etc.

Angy Dog Brother Whistle: She can whistle in a manner that only Mihail (and dogs in general) can hear, which'll help lead him wherever she is.

Language skills: She has learned Romanian from Mihail, and also knows some Japanese given her boss' wife is Japanese.

Weaknesses:

She's kind of overtly impulsive and curious that can lead her to sticky situations. She sometimes takes Mihail's help for granted, and that has led to situations where she's almost gotten badly injured or worse when he wasn't able to show up. (Typically saved by either Thalia or Harrow)

She sometimes wishes she had magic powers too because of the previous situation described, and does feel frustrated when she can't get out of something on her own anymore, like she used to before getting involved with the world of mythical and magic.

Personality:

She is very upbeat, extroverted and curious young woman, who is always up for mischief and trickery. She loves to learn about the world of magic and mythical beings, eagerly listening to Harrow's stories from his youth and about his family. (whether she believes all of them is another matter entirely)

While Scarlet has a very friendly demeanor, she is very cautious and distrustful of new people at first, having lived a rough life as a child and a teen. Probably the only people she truly trusts at this point are her found family, and even among them the only person she has 100% faith in is Mihail.

She's the type of person who, due to her difficult earlier life, really wants to help any stranger kid who seems to be in trouble, which can sometimes lead to tricky situations.

Fun Facts

Out of all of Harrow's family members Scarlet has met, she likes little Hitomi, his granddaughter, the most as she can tell Hitomi is a troubled kid but is doing much better now, just like her. She can relate, and enjoys being able to be the big sister for once.

She was initially kind of scared of Mihail once she found out he had a human form, but after couple months of tension she concluded he had no ill intent in hiding this, and its just what the mythical folk do for their own safety.

She teases the absolute SHIT out of Aiden for crushing on her big brother.

Scarlet is a Demiromantic Lesbian

Her personal style is typically fairly simple plain clothing with some sort of statement piece, like the pink leather jacket/hoodie that Mihail got for her a while back. It does also always have a slightly girly vibe to it too, with laces or frilly bits.

Scarlet loves detective stories and murder mysteries

She really looks up to Thalia, who almost acts as her mother figure in a way. She does find Harrow cool too, but not as cool

Scarlet had a fancrush on Avane Faydream, the employee of her boss' son Jurou/Alistair, that visited them alongside the aforementioned man.

She also actually really liked Avane's boyfriend as he reminded her of her big brother Mihail, just much friendlier and sweeter by default. That, and she could tell Mihail and him had history, so she was naturally curious of Roman.

Scarlet loves singing Karaoke, and she's actually a pretty good singer, able to do some amazing duets with Mihail.

#artists on tumblr #oc illustration #oc reference #digital art #lumi's art scribbles #lumi's chaotic creations #Night city parlor #Scarlet Duffy #my oc #red hair

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gamesception · 10 months

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Sception reads Cass Cain #14

Batgirl (2000) #3 Story: Peterson & Puckett Art: Scott & Campanella

The tag line says Batgirl "meets META", and shows this dramatic fight with a dark skinned muscle man, like his name is Meta and he's a big deal, as though meeting him is important. Like Crime Boss Jr. in the previous issue, this guy is not, in fact, important, doesn't come back in the future, and iirc doesn't even have a name. "Meta" is just referring to the idea of 'metahumans' in general. As for what this issue is about, it's not as coherent and self contained as issue 2, since it's setting up for issue 4, but there is a central theme here.

Like issue 2 there's an opening set up before flashing back to the main action of the book. This time we have Bruce as a narrator, and he's clearly been deeply shaken by something, but we don't know what yet. He bluntly relates the general premise of the book in those narration boxes I'm always railing against - thankfully absent from most of the issue otherwise. A mob accountant stole a bunch of money and abandoned his former employers, and to keep them from coming after him hid evidence of their crimes in his daughter's bear. The mob have kidnapped his daughter - and the bear - to get him to hand over the evidence. If they realize they already have the evidence then the girl is dead.

We also get the theme of the issue - one that will be a recurring theme throughout Batgirl - that of fathers and daughters, and in particular how being a good person and being a good father, or at least one who genuinely cares about your child, aren't necessarily the same thing.

As I've mentioned in the past, there have been many takes on Batman over the years by any different creators. The batman of the time was particularly grim and unforgiving, especially of himself and his allies. It's not enough to save everyone who can be saved - anybody who is killed in his city is a personal failure - his failure, his subordinates failure. It's irrational, and honestly childish, but this is a version of batman who was broken by the murder of his parents and never really recovered from that emotionally, from the helplessness he felt, and so he feels compelled to control everything - himself, his surrogate family, his city. Every unnatural death reminds him of everything he can't control, and puts him back in the head of that helpless kid watching his parents die.

In general I prefer a slightly more well adjusted take on Batman, but this is the Batman that Cass was created for, her issues are tailored to play off of his. Because she is exactly like him - equally unforgiving, of herself more than anyone else. Only we know her motivation is guilt, not revenge, which in turn implies that Bruce's motivation also isn't revenge, it's guilt. Survivor's guilt, but guilt all the same, and the poisoned root of his righteous fury isn't anger at the man who took his parents from him, but anger at his 8 year old self for not being able to stop it from happening.

And Barbara is having exactly none of it. Yes she gets frustrated with Cassandra, with her inability to connect with her and with Cass's apparent lack of interest in developing that ability, but she's also fiercely protective of Cass, and especially quick to protect her from Bruce. Because this Babs is older, and has known this Bruce for a long time now. She's aware of his bullshit, she knows how easy it is for his younger proteges to look up to and worship him, and she knows how much Cassandra already does. But she also how quick he is to turn on them for failing to meet the impossible standards that he holds himself to.

And, of course, the moment he's out of Bab's earshot, he tries to have this conversation with Cass anyway. And he just can't. But as readers we know he doesn't need to, that she already felt John's death as her own failure. Because they're the same.

So Bruce and Cass bust into the safe house in typical bat fashion, Bruce going to interrogate the boss over the girl's location while Cass is trusted to take out an entire room of armed goons by herself, which she does in a couple of cool panels, because, again, fights between Cass and normal goons are foregone conclusions so we don't need to waste a lot of panel time on them.

But then a different sort of goon shows up, and Cass is suddenly confused and out of her element. The panel there does a great job of showing her surprise. Also the panel before it is great too, the low angle to emphasize how big the guy is, the foreshortening with Cass's right elbow towards the viewer with the motion extending up through her left fist for the punch, making it feel fast and strong which then emphasizes the surprise at how the guy's no-sell reaction.

Also, wasn't this guy dark skinned on the cover? Introduced without a name, wearing generic clothes, apparently not worth keeping visual details consistent between the cover and interior, it's almost like this guy isn't actually important.

But he can casually punch holes in concrete pillars, and Bruce is suddenly concerned, recalling issue 1 and the 'no costumed criminals' rule, which in the real world was about the kind of stories Cass's creative team wanted to tell, but in universe is about the fact that Cass's body reading and martial arts skills that make regular human opponents non-threats to her don't necessarily apply to someone with superhuman physiology.

Babs isn't the only one with protective parent instincts, and Bruce swoops in to push "Meta" out the window.

The mob boss, not eager to join Meta on a trip out the window, gives the girl to Bruce, who passes her off to Cass and tells her to go while he stays to fight Meta, who has shaken off the two story drop and climbed back up.

Cass hides with the traumatized girl in an abandoned trolley car outside, and puts a hand on her forehead to try to calm her down, which sparks a memory of her own father...

David, covering 8 year old Cass's eyes with his big hand and timing her as she assembles a pistol blind. Look how proud he is of her time! Look how excited she is at his approval! Proud parent passing their skills on to their child in a happy father/daughter bonding activity, but contrasted and made upsetting and wrong by the gun in her hands, the guns and ammo all around them. This particular version of David Cain, the man who is simultaneously the proud affectionate Papa who Cass loved and a monstrous murderer grooming her for a life drenched in blood, is so important to Cass's character and motivations and relationships with others, particularly Bruce.

The memory is interrupted when Meta finds them, the bat symbol torn off of Bruce's costume in his fist implying bad things.

Cass gets far enough away to set the girl down, then turns back for the fight. And since, in theory at least, outcome of this fight isn't a foregone conclusion, it actually goes on for a few pages, with Cass hitting the guys neck over and over, the guy catching her cape and slamming her to the ground seemingly knocking her out.

It's a cool enough fight scene, but while the outcome may be in question in universe, as readers we know Cass isn't going to suffer her first outright loss in a fight to someone who isn't even important enough to have a name. So as he steps over Cass's seemingly unconscious body to go for the girl, she gets up behind him and kicks him in the neck a few more times, bringing him down even as she does finally pass out.

Bruce is alive, of course, and shows up after the fight is over. I love how worried he looks when he's checking to see if Cass is alive, only breaking into a big proud papa smile when he's sure she'll be ok.

Back at the bat cave, Bruce is in high spirits despite being pretty badly beat up. He started the night with doubts about Cassandra after her 'failure' to save John, but ends the day proud and impressed with her performance and fully satisfied of her commitment to save lives even against impossible odds. "She's just like me fr". He's almost forgotten the mob evidence in the bear - which he does hand to Alfred to repair so the girl can have it back. This Bruce has a lot of issues, but he's not without compassion for innocent children at least. Alfred's more concerned with patching up his own kid.

But why was Bruce looking all dejected in the issue's opening?

Just then Batman get's a mysterious message from an anonymous source. How exactly? Does Batman have an email address? Anyway, the message has a video, through a keyhole camera, showing a little girl who Bruce recognizes as Cass in a room with some strange men. Little looks back, as though smiling for a camera that she knows is there, before, well, we already know what's coming.

But it does come as a surprise to Bruce, and the comic ends on a cliffhanger.

"What will Bruce - specifically this version of Bruce who is still so damaged by his trauma, who is still so triggered by death and killing that he holds himself and his followers personally responsible when someone dies even if they had no way to prevent it - what will this Bruce do when he finds out Cass, the young protege that he most sees as a reflection of himself, has killed someone?" This question's been hanging over Cassandra basically since her introduction in No Man's Land. Honestly, if I had been in charge of this book, I'd have waited a bit longer before pulling this particular trigger.

They do find a way to drag out Bruce's response though, a way that many people found kind of dumb but that I though was a perfect fit for his character. But that we'll have to get into next time.

For the time being, though, yeah, we're building up a strong theme this issue around parenthood. Babs as the protective mother shielding Cass from Bruce, the unseen mob accountant father endangering his daughter by hiding the evidence with her, Bruce trying and failing to impart his morals and mindset to Cass through the wall of her linguistic impairment, flashback David Cain who unlike Babs and Bruce was able to easily and naturally connect to Cass without the need for words, proud papa Bruce after Cass's fight with Meta, all ending on a cliffhanger as present David Cain moves to drive a wedge between Cass and the surrogate father she's replaced him with.

It's a fitting and not at all uncommon theme for a new legacy hero's book to tackle - but it's handled with a lot of nuance here, and with the parallels that have been set up between Bruce and David as father figures for Cass the idea that they'll soon be butting heads over her directly is pretty exciting.

Otherwise, as usual for this team, I love the writing and art in this issue, the reliance of panel art over words to convey most of the story and especially emotional bits like the flashback, the expressiveness of the characters in Scott's style. Great issue all round, even if it doesn't stand on its own the way issue 2 did.

#batgirl #cassandra cain #sception reads cassandra cain

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scienter · 2 years

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Hey.I miss your TVD metas so much & keep going back to them from time to time because they remind me why I loved Steroline & Stefan,Caroline,Katherine as individual characters even though I somewhat hate Plecverse.I was just wondering instead of subjecting us to Damon's manpain over a coffin for 2 seasons straight, wouldn't it have been better if they had him and Bonnie raise the twins & they could have explored Bamon dynamics in that way while Candice was on maternity leave & after as well? Alaric would have been involved but he would have been more of a wokaholic absentee-parent type.Do you think it was safe to have Damon around the kids considering his mental unstability was at a peak as an after-effect of the PS?Also he had a history of killing a pregnant lady...ughh who am I even kidding?! As for Caroline,they could have had her engaged with someone like Liam before Stefan came back?I guess this is just me deperately trying to erase the whole Ca*aric sham engagement narrative and BE cheesefest that damaged Bonnie's character in my opinion.Even though the show gave us some cute scenes with the twins over the following season,I never really felt any connection with Caroline's maternal bond with them.It just seemed like she held onto them because a part of her knew S would screw up his life for Damon all over again and at least she would have someone with her.Caroline being manipulated into leaving Stefan behind for her daughters like that felt so forced that it reminded me of Rachel giving up on her job and settling down for Ross because of Emma.

Hey, Anon!

I think that it would have been best if Alaric had raised the twins himself. They’re his kids. He should take care of them. Caroline shouldn’t have taken care of them. Bonnie & Damon shouldn’t have taken care of them. Those kids were Ric’s responsibility and no one else’s. I never, ever liked how Ric used Caroline as a nanny / mother, especially after the writers used Caroline as an incubator in that non-consensual magical pregnancy / forced birth story. It’s a misogynistic storyline. I hated it then, and I hate it now. And like, you I never felt any connection to the Caroline being the surrogate /adopted mother to the twins. I never bought the whole Caroline-is-such-a-control-freak-and-Ric-is-so-inept-that-Caroline-is-compelled-to-raise-them-herself. Bullshit. Someone who feels entitled to decide how other people carry out their responsibilities is a control freak. Someone who takes on another else’s responsibilities because of fear that the other person is inept is a co-dependent pushover. Caroline was not a pushover. That entire storyline was bullshit.

However, the Ross & Rachel storyline is different because (1) Emma was actually Rachel’s baby, (2) Rachel actually had a romantic history with Ross & she was still in love with him, and (3) Rachel wasn’t in a relationship with someone else. None of those apply to Caroline or Ric. The Ca*aric storyline was just some lazy, last-minute panic writing.

I also hated how the writers made Stefan go on the run, in order to save Damon’s life because that story was already done in season 2 & 3. I don’t like it when writers repeat a plot over and over again because the story gets stale and boring. That’s one of my problems with season 7.

The storyline that I always wanted for Damon was having him deal with his existential crisis from season 2 when he admitted that he missed being human.

I actually do think that Damon was a compelling character, but the he was written inconsistently as the series went on. Damon’s character arc went downhill in season 4 when the writers started molding Damon’s character to the plot rather than molding the plot to Damon’s character (e.g., the cure storyline; making Defan’s issues all about Elena). I’d love it if Damon was the one who took the cure in season 4 and became human or at least have Damon tell Bonnie that he missed being human and have a story come out of that. I think there was a real missed opportunity there. Still, Bamon was great. Having Damon & Bonnie become BFFs was one of the smarter things the writers did on this show. They probably should have done it sooner like in season 4.

#asks #anon #tvd meta #anti calaric

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subpar-ghoulfriend · 3 years

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Let’s have a baby

yandere!EraserMicx PREGNANT!Reader

A terrible mix up leading to an accidental pregnancy? Or something more intentional? Either way now you were pregnant with (none other than the beloved power couple heroes) Eraserhead and Present Mic’s child. Time to discuss how co parenting is going to work.

TW: pregnancy, artificial insemination, yandere elements, mentions of stalking, alludes to potential custody battle

You had been avoiding the two men for the past week, which was challenging seeing as they managed to find your phone number, address, and place of work. Any time you blocked their calls they got a new number. Two Pro Heroes versus a twenty something civilian, it was only a matter of time until you were cornered.

Now the couple stood between you and your apartment. You had a long shift at your job as a pet groomer and just wanted to get some rest.

Present Mic was the first to speak. "Hey lil momma, we heard you had work today so we brought you some dinner. We thought we could talk over a nice meal."

You had no response. You were tired, both physically and emotionally. You had been put through the ringer ever since meeting them at your doctors office. It was a total Jane the Virgin situation. You went in for an assessment about some supposed ovarian cysts and unknowing left artificially inseminated. There was a supposed mix up, a digital glitch that somehow merged your chart with the surrogates - apparently your names were super similar. Two weeks later you were called back into the doctor's office and informed of what took place. And now you were in this living nightmare.

And the two heroes had nothing to do with the error. There was totally a surrogate. They hadn't paid off your provider. And why would they? You had never met them - although given their patrols they may have seen you once or twice...

They were tearful when they were informed of the mix up, they had been waiting patiently through the whole process and now everything was thrown in chaos. They offered to compensate you for your service which sent you into a blind rage. They just assumed you would carry a child, a child with half of your DNA, and then give YOUR baby away. Rationally you understood that they had planned to be be the only parents to the child, but that was with a professional surrogate who understood the process, who didn't want the child in their life, just happy to help out a loving couple. But that wasn't you, you grew up wanting to be a mom, and now they would take that from you.

What if they tried to legally take sole custody of the baby? Surely they had some pull in the judicial system. Besides, they were a solid couple with money, while you were alone with no family and working two jobs. The thought made you sick to your stomach.

You were shaking as you tried to push past them. Maybe they would just disappear if you ignored them, a girl could dream. But instead they tagged along inside. Albeit you weren’t fighting them on it, you knew this had to happen eventually.

Aizawa easily found the cluttered dining table in your small apartment. You flinched when the loud one tried to help you shrug off your backpack. Taking a seat on the couch you waited for them to start berating you.

"Come sit at the table, dinner is getting cold," Eraser spoke for the first time.

"I'll eat later, I'm not hungry."

"You may not be, but the baby needs to eat."

You glared, how dare they insinuate you didn't know what your child needed. If your body was hungry, you ate. If you were full the baby was full too.

But, you complied, not wanting to argue, "Fine, but I ate a snack not too long ago."

As you ate, Mic kept you company, picking at some left overs, they clearly ate before their visit. Aizawa was rummaging through your place but you managed to hold your tongue until he began throwing things out of your fridge.

"What are you doing?" You hissed, getting up out of your seat.

"Mic and I will bring you groceries tomorrow. The food you have is barely safe for an adult, let alone a fetus."

"Are you kidding me? It's not like I'm chugging alcohol and living off Twinkies. Hey! I just bought those turkey slices. How is turkey bad?" You whined.

To make sure you wouldn't dig the food out trash he dumped it out of his container.

"Zashi, don't let me forget to empty the trash on our way out. Do you know how much salt is in deli meat? And there's no way you can drink any of this while you're pregnant." He gestures to the cans of soda.

As the frustration built you had to fight back tears. They couldn't come in to your home and start throwing out your things.

"Some of us don't make ridiculous money, I'm buying what I can afford and the doctor never had any problem with my health." You hissed.

Hizashi felt the tension thickening, "Hey hey hey, it's okay. Sho and I will go get you some good stuff. We just gotta watch out for you and baby."

And that was the end of your resolve, you stomped past the Hero and locked yourself in your bedroom. Finally tears began to drip down your cheeks.

Back in your kitchen Mic was chiding his boyfriend for being so tough on you.

"So I should just back down while she stuffs herself with junk food?"

Mic gave him a shrug, showing him a bottle on your counter, "At lest she's taking her prenatal vitamins?"

Grabbing the keys to your apartment Aizawa instructed Mic to wait with you while he got you better groceries. He would make copies of your keys on his was back.

You prayed they would leave soon. You were laying in your bed having cried yourself out. Barely into your second month of pregnancy. You still had to endure this for at least seven more months, but most likely much longer.

Next thing you knew you were opening your eyes and the clock read seven AM. By now your uninvited guests must be gone. Nervously you sat up, praying that you'd skip the morning sickness just once this week. You had always had a weak stomach and even the doctor was surprised you were already experiencing the symptom. Unfortunately the minute your feet touched the floor you knew what was coming. You sprinted to the restroom, not even checking to see if the duo had left.

God this was terrible, you didn't just hate throwing up, you were terrified of it. What if you started and never stopped? But it did come to an end. You wiped the water from your eyes and took a moment before standing from the floor. You screamed when a hand slid under your arm, helping you up. Another set of feet rushed to the bathroom.

" What's wrong?" Hizashi huffed as he skid to a stop.

You pulled arm free from Aizawa's grasp. "What are you two still doing here?"

You turned in the faucet to rinse your mouth. Trying to calm your stress, the nausea was trying to return.

Undeterred the scruff pulled your hair into a bun before rubbing your back. You debated returning to bed but that wouldn't get them out of your apartment. You told them you need to sit down, both of them nodding, still wearing their concerned expressions. They got you a glass of water before joining you on the couch. Stubborn men, you sat at the end of the couch so they couldn't both sit, but Mic decided to perch himself on the armrest.

He started petting your hair, "You feelin better little listener?" You nodded in response.

"I got you more food, let us know if your hungry."

You sighed in defeat, "I'm barely two months pregnant, I can fend for myself. What did you all want to talk about?"

You anxiously placed a hand on your stomach. Both men felt their hearts flutter recognizing your maternal instincts kicking in.

Aizawa let Mic begin, he was the more gentle of the two.

"Well, we figured we got off to a rough start. You got put in a tough situation. We shouldn't have assumed you didn't want a child so we're not mad at how you stormed out. But either way we expect to be in our baby's life. The two of us talked it over and we don't want to fight you if you want to be in their life too. So if you wanna be the mommy we're cool with it."

You could blame your reaction on your hormones for your response but you didn't, "Geez thank you so much for allowing me to be in MY child's life."

Aizawa placed a hand on the back of your neck, giving you a gentle massage. "Okay then, the three of us are gonna have a baby. That means you have to stop ignoring us. We can raise the baby together, without involving anyone else. But if we have to, we can always go the legal route for the baby's best interest."

He knew it was a low blow, but the couple needed you to stop fighting them. Your eyes snapped to his and you shook your head in protest.

"Okay then we're all the same page," Aizawa reassured you.

Mic cheered, "Now we can focus on the fun stuff."

"Hun," Eraserhead caught his attention. "There's still a few more important things to figure out. We don't want you going back to that doctor. They're incompetent. We scheduled you an appointment with another's clinic for next week. Okay?"

You couldn't find your voice after how easily he threatened to take your baby. So you just nodded. Half listening.

"Good. We also went ahead and programmed our numbers into your phone. We need to be able to check in with you."

"Okay, but I can't use my phone at one of my jobs."

"About that lil momma," Mic started. "You work a lot, which is totally bad ass, but we don't think you leave enough time to rest and take care of yourself."

You tried to protest but Aizawa cut you off, "You also shouldn't be working around so many animals. Even though we love animals, they can be unpredictable and one dog can trigger all the rest into a frenzy."

You were dumbfounded, "I've never heard of anything like that happening. One of my coworkers was pregnant last year, she worked until her maternity leave. Plus I need to be able to pay my bills. And don't offer to compensate me again."

"Why do you have to view it as compensation? We just want to take care of the mother of our child. Just think about it. Mic and I have to go take care of some business but we'll be back later this week."

---

Back at their home Hizashi was dramatically splayed on their bed.

"Babe why are you pouting?" Aizawa asked.

"Why can't we just bring her home already?"

Aizawa sympathized with his better half, but they needed to be methodical. He reminded Hizashi that they didn't need to cause her even more stress, especially so early into the pregnancy. If they played their cards right they would have their happy little family soon enough.

If they could ease you in to the relationship everything would be easier in the long run. They had been managing just fine until now, they could wait a few more months.

He joined Hizashi on the couch. Mic was comforting himself the way he usually did when he felt like this. He was scrolling through the countless photos they had collected since their chance encounter with you over a year ago.

#bnha yandere #yandere erasermic #yandere x reader #yandere present mic #yandere aizawa

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lacelynpage · 2 years

Note

How would they react when they found out you were gonna have twins?? I really appreciate your work and I hope this isn’t a weird request. ❤️

Having twins! ~ Sherlock Preferences

A/N: Okay... I took this one and maybe didn't do exactly what was asked. I try incredibly heard to make all of my preferences none gender specific so that anyone can read them. This preference was defiantly a challenge but I am totally up to it! Thank you so much for your request Darling, its not weird at all. I am glad that you enjoy my work and I hope you like what I did!!!! love you darling :)

Sherlock:

You both went to the ultrasound with your surrogate. You were absolutely ecstatic. Sherlock was just as enthused as you were but hid it well. He held your hand the whole time. Keeping you close. Your segregate was an incredibly sweet girl and you held her hand as they started. When the babies came on the screen you started to cry. You were having twins! The doctor did the rest of the check- up and said that everything looked good. You were on track to have two healthy babies. Sherlock was silent, barely saying anything until you were in the living room of 221b. He pulled you into the tightest hug and thanked you. He thanked you for being with him. For being who you were. For loving him. And for having a family with him.

John:

After getting through everything it took to adopt your kids, you and John were so excited to meet them. All that was left was for the agency to contact you. Once the two week of hellish waiting were up the agency called. There was a set of newborn twins who needed parents. Neither of you had really expected twins, when they had asked if you were willing to take twins originally you had said yes but didn't really expect it to happen. You both took a moment and just looked at each other…. Newborn twins. Of course you agreed! You rushed down to meet the social worker at the hospital. The whole way there you were both so excited. John however was a little scared. Twins were a big responsibility however the second he laid eyes on them he didn't care. A baby boy and a baby girl greeted you with big eyes and John cried tears of joy.

Mycroft:

The idea of having children scared Mycroft. He knew he wasn't the best with emotions and was worried he would mess up. However you assured him that he would be okay. You both did your research and picked out an adoption agency to work with. It was an arduous process but after some mandatory classes and so much paperwork even Mycroft was frustrated you got to meet your kids. A set of twins from Northern Irland, two little girls around seven years old. Mycroft fell in love instantly. He had fun showing them around their new home and the surrounding gardens. Having the twins let him relax a little. He didn't need to be so grown up with them and it was a surprising releaf. He nearly cried the first time they called him dad.

Greg:

When the surrogate showed you and Greg the first ultrasound, he laughed. When she said that it was twins he laughed harder. It was all wonderful. He had always wanted children so to get two kids at once was his dream. There was a smile stuck on his face for days. He was so excited. You both talked about names and how you needed to go out and get twice and much stuff now but either of you cared. You were going to be parents. Greg bought the surrogate bunches of little presents just like he got you and made sure she was happy. He was over the moon.

Moriarty:

It took so long but after months and months of anticipation your adaption paperwork went through and you and Jim adopted a set of twin boys from spain. It was a dream come true for both of you. You were worried at first, what if they didn't like you? What if you couldn't get them to fall asleep? What if everything went wrong and they got taken away. Jim made sure to hug you tightly from behind and reassure you that you would be a wonderful parent. The boys were one year old and the second he saw them Jim scooped them up and kissed their little heads. He was so happy to finally meet them and absolutely loved that they were twins. He had especially wanted twins. You both loved them so much. They were adorable and you couldn't wait to see who they would become.

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seasonsofeverlark · 3 years

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What A Deere

Author: @endlessnightlock

Prompt: Everlark meet at a summer fair/carnival. Romance blossoms. Any rating. [submitted by @jhsgf82]

Rating: T for a few swears

Author’s Note: Thanks to @jhsgf82 for giving this a glance over for me. Sorry it’s technically no longer Summer (eep!) but I hope you enjoy this bit of county fair silliness anyway. Word Count: 1712 words ________________

“Why did I agree to come along for this?” I mutter, keeping my voice low enough that Rye can’t hear me as we weave through the crowd of people heading the same direction we are‒toward the grandstands at the edge of the fairgrounds.

My brother doesn’t answer, but I didn’t expect him to. It was only a rhetorical question. I know why we’re here. In Podunk (not the village’s real name, just what I chose to call it the night we arrived), OH, there aren’t many good options for things to do over summer vacation.

It was either come to the county fair or stay in and watch one of the four channels Aunt Mallory and Uncle Dave pull in with their antenna.

Rye and I are staying with my aunt and uncle over summer break. Mom and Dad decided to go on the cross-country road trip they’ve always wanted to take, minus us boys. It hasn’t been bad staying with them so far‒they’re nice without hovering over us, trying to be surrogate parents. It’s been a small taste of freedom, even if things are a bit boring at times out in the country.

I don’t know if Rye and I picked the best night to come, though. There’s a crowd of people here, and while I don’t feel like we stick out like sore thumbs or anything‒it’s easy to throw on jeans and a t-shirt and fit in, as long as you’re wearing boots, that is‒I’m just surprised by the sheer number of people who turned out for tonight’s event.

I would have understood something like the rodeo or tractor pulls or even a monster truck show drawing them in. None of those is exactly my thing; I’m not a farm kid or anything, but that would’ve been better than tonight’s featured attraction.

The combine derby. That’s right, combines. You know, like Frank the Combine from Cars? Humongous pieces of machinery used to cut down corn and soybeans in the fall and then fill both sides of a two-lane road driving away as farmers drive their big asses home?

Combines. People around here pull them out of the scrapyard, half-rusted and falling apart, get them running just enough to drive around in circles in the infield, and proceed to bash the shit out of each other, so I’ve been told, until the last one is left standing.

Or is it running? The hell if I know what these hillbillies have planned for tonight.

God, I hope no one from home catches word of this.

“Gale said it’s cool,” Rye reminds me as we approach the grandstand box office. He’s fallen right in line with the locals. He’s always had more of an appetite for destruction, though. “Besides, what better do we have to do tonight?”

“Is he supposed to find us here?”

“Yeah‒said he would, anyway.”

Gale Hawthrone lives down the road from Dave and Mallory in a run-down farmhouse with his mom and three siblings. I think he has a lot to keep up with there‒he’s eighteen like Rye, but his dad’s not around. We don’t see Gale much, but he’s cool. The day after we arrived, he stopped by and invited Rye and me over to swim in their pond. We’ve been a few times when Uncle Dave doesn’t need our help with something.

“You want grandstands or pit passes?” The lady asks when we approach the ticket booth.

“Pit passes?” Rye asks, frowning. He glances over at me, but I just shrug. I have no idea what she means, either.

“You know, out on the field‒you get a seat closer to the action.” She huffs. “Must call it something different wherever you boys are from.”

You could say that. I’m about to tell the lady no thanks because I’m sure we can see enough from the bleachers for ten dollars less when a familiar hand lands on my shoulder.

“They want in the pits,” Gale answers for us. “Trust me.”

We pay our fifteen bucks each (me grudgingly) then, after putting on the paper wristbands, the ticket counter lady gave us, and follow Gale behind all the food vendors, along the length of the board fence blocking the infield from the eyes of those who haven’t paid to get in. “My uncle has one in the derby tonight,” he says, “so, we gotta sit close. I’ll never hear the end of it if I don’t.”

“He’s not afraid of getting hurt out there?” I ask, surprised. I certainly would, and I’m not a middle-aged man.

“Nah, it’s pretty safe. They have to modify the combines to be in it‒no heads allowed‒”

It’s only because of Dave that I know the head Gale refers to is the removable piece used to cut corn or soybeans off in the fields.

“-and they remove the glass from the cabs, so it won’t shatter and cut anyone. They wear helmets the entire time, too. Besides,” Gale grins, “my uncle doesn’t run the combine. My cousin does it for him.”

I shake my head, wondering what kind of guy Gale’s cousin is that he enjoys doing this sort of thing for entertainment. These people have to be the biggest hicks I’ve ever met in my life. But they’re fun, and I don’t feel like I have to worry about being anything but myself around them‒so, I guess they’re mostly alright. But hicks, definitely hicks.

I perk up pretty quickly, though, when we walk across the back end of the infield until we reach the small row of bleachers designated for those in the pits. The seats are mostly full, but there are trucks and SUVs backed in out here. Lots of guys our age mill around, and they all seem to know Gale.

I wonder which of them is his cousin. Even if he’s cool, Gale’s still kind of intimidating. I can just imagine what his derby boy cousin will be like if he’s anything like Gale.

But the guys aren’t the main attraction. And neither are the combines‒it’s the girls. There are lots and lots of cute girls our age hanging around, too. Funny how I no longer mind the extra ten dollars I spent to get in here.

I’m trying not to make it obvious I’m scoping everyone out when I catch sight of a petite, dark-haired girl determinedly weaving her way towards us. God, whoever she is, she’s pretty, even in jeans and boots and a dusty t-shirt. There’s something about the confidence she carries that makes it hard not to stare at her.

“Catnip,” Gale calls to the girl in greeting when she gets closer.

Catnip?

“Come meet the new guys,” he finishes. As soon as she reaches us, Rye sticks his hand out in that cocky way he has, saying something about her being the prettiest girl he’s had the pleasure of meeting since we got here. I’ve got to give her credit‒the girl (Catnip? That can’t be her name) rolls her eyes at my brother’s attempt at flirting.

“Easy there, Prince Charming,” she says, dropping his hand and wiping hers on her pant leg.

That settles it‒I have no idea who Catnip is, but I think I’m in love. Rye does think he’s Prince Charming, and he usually has the girls chasing after him to keep his ego inflated. This girl, immediately seeing through his bullshit? Wow.

I have to look at the ground to keep from laughing at her quick rebuttal. I like girls who know themselves and don’t put up with crap.

“Hey, I’m Peeta,” I say once her eyes land on me. Instead of sticking out my hand, I wave, trying not to come on too strong. She didn’t seem to like the immediate attempt to touch her my brother made. “Your name isn’t really Catnip, is it?” I ask because I can’t think of anything else to say. Also, I need to know my dream woman’s name.

“No,” she laughs, “it’s Katniss. Just ignore Gale‒he’s been calling me that since we were little.”

What an unusual name‒not that I can talk.

“So, you guys have been hanging out?” Katniss asks.

“Yeah, he rescued us from the heat at the beginning of summer,” I say. “We’ve been swimming a few times.”

“Oh, yeah. The pond. I haven’t been out at all this year.” Katniss smiles. “Maybe I need to squeeze a day in.”

Well, that would be amazing‒I need to make sure Gale invites us over if she does.

Speaking of Gale, I have to wonder how he and Katniss know each other; they must have been friends for a long time. I know they aren’t dating because Gale mentioned that he and his long-term girlfriend had just broken up when we met him.

“You should. Make time in your schedule, I mean. You know what they say‒all work and no play isn’t good for anyone.”

Katniss looks ready to answer me when a man approaches us. He looks a lot like Gale and Katniss, both somehow; like her, he’s not too tall, but he has a short black beard covering the lower half of his face. “You ready to get changed, Kat?” he asks. I think he’s her father.

“Sure, Dad,” she answers, then turns to me and smiles. “It was nice to meet you, Peeta. Maybe I’ll see you around after the derby?”

“That’d be awesome.” Ignoring the slight scowl crossing her dad’s face, I nod like an idiot. Is she interested in me, too?

“Great.”

As Katniss walks away with her father, I whip my head around to Gale. “Who is that?”

“That would be my cousin.”

Rye laughs. “The one who’s driving a combine in the derby?”

Gale grins, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “Yep. They run the John Deere parked at the end of the row. You’ll get to see her in action in about fifteen minutes. She’s going to kick everyone else’s ass. Just wait and see.”

No. Seriously? Katniss doing that? The question is, why is it kind of hot that she is? Suddenly being a hick doesn’t seem so bad at all.

“So, Gale,” I shove my brother out of the way with my elbow, ignoring his grunt of displeasure, “what’s the deal with Katniss?”

#everlark #everlark fanfiction #summer #summer 2021 #endlessnightlock #submission #prompt

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masterweaverx · 3 years

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RWBY Parents from Best to Worst

That’s right, everybody, I’m a-going to rank how terrible these people are to and for their kids! For the sake of covering as many parents as I can, I am defining ‘parent’ as either ‘legal guardian’ or ‘the one that gave birth to you’, and excluding relationships that are explicitly something else. That does mean that we’re going to miss out on some very important people, though, so before we begin, let’s have some Honorable Mentions!

Yang Xiao Long and Winter Schnee: Professional Momsisters

“That’s why big sisters come first, to protect the ones that come after.” I don’t know who said that to these two, if anybody actually did, but it’s a quote that most definitely applies to them. Not only would they take a bullet (or a sword, or a fireball) for their younger siblings, they took the time out to give them affection and training that they needed when their own parents weren’t quite doing the job. If I absolutely had to rank one of them as the better momsister, I’d say Yang, but that’s really only because Yang had less to deal with overall; a depressed single dad not being able to pull himself together just doesn’t stack up with an abusive powermonger, a self-loathing drunkard, and all the institutional bigotry and pressure of Atlas. Plus, you know, Winter went into the military for a bit. Still, pretty good track record considering!

Klein Sieben: Doing the work of seven good dads

Look, there is only one reason Klein wasn’t listed before the momsisters, and that reason is that he is technically the hired help (and could therefore become the fired help). He is, hands down, a better surrogate parent than Yang and Winter, providing guidance and care to all the Schneeblings and very effectively undoing the damage Jacques Gele (HE DOES NOT GET TO BE CALLED SCHNEE!) did to them. And he even helped out Willow! If he was allowed to do more, he would absolutely be My Real Dad of the year.

Qrow Branwen: “The only one that gets to be sad in this house is me!”

Qrow has a lot of flaws. Like, so so many flaws. As Yang said in a noncanon spinoff, he’s cool but not exactly a role model. Thing is, you don’t have to be a role model to be a good parent--you just have to make sure your kids (or nieces in this case) get good advice and the opportunity to grow into the best versions of themselves they can be. And when Qrow’s not beating himself up or drowning his sorrows, he’s actually very good at helping Yang and Ruby. Honestly the only reason he’s not on the actual list is because he’s technically not a parent.

Uncle Copper: Adopting a blind kid automatically makes you cool

So here we have a character that appeared in a single flashback in the novels, but from what we do know he was pretty likely to be a good guy. Like, raising a blind kid is hard enough; raising a blind kid in a desert after their actual parents got nommed by sand is so, so much more difficult. And yet, this guy said ‘If nobody else is going to adopt this kid I will!’ and by all measures he was a very caring and loving guy. Also, shout-out to the tribe, who took Fox in after Copper got killed by some maniac (and also killed said maniac). Fox has had a rough life, but it’s been filled with supportive people. Not everyone can say that.

Starr Sanzang: She put up with Sun

Sure, she’s only had one scene in one novel, but Starr showed patience and caring and... probably did a lot to make sure Sun stays as aggressively cheery and patient as he is. Plus she’s got a dojo in Vacuo now... okay, I’ll be honest, I don’t know nearly enough about her to really assess her. Still, as far as cousins go, Sun Wukong could do a lot worse. And there are the implications of their motifs to factor in...

Rhodes: If you’d done even just a little bit more--!

So, reasonably, what would you do when you see a little girl enslaved with a shock collar? Would you (A) get the girl out of there, (B) arrest the woman doing it, (C) try to get the girl therapy, or (D) all of the above? If you picked (E) secretly train the girl in swordplay so she can join a huntsman academy when she comes of age, then congratulations! You’ve given her hope! Good for you! And what if she snaps after five years of literal torture, kills her abuser, and then turns to you for comfort and/or approval? Welp, obviously she’s an irredeemable criminal and you have to bring her in, crushing all the faith she had in you and herself.

Seriously Rhodes, dropped the ball hard on that one. I’m only mentioning you because you had such a serious impact on Cinder’s development.

Brother Gods: Creating and destroying entire species

Like, okay. Look. These are the two that made humanity, so an argument could be made that they’re humanity’s parents. But, by the strict and arbitrary rules I have selected, they aren’t parents. And even if they were, they would be just the worst sort of parents possible. Darkbro is bad enough, what with viewing only strength as valuable and creating the Grimm and, you know, annihilating humanity that one time, but he’s at least honest and honorable. Not like the cryptic Lightbro, who doesn’t bother making sure people understand him, who doesn’t even keep his own promises to his brother... I get that they’re basically overpowered children. Yeah, they are. Still... kinda terrible.

So, now that that’s all done, let’s get to the actual list! After the break, so you don’t get stuck scrolling a lot. RWBY parents, from best to worst, are as follows:

23. Saphron and Terra Cotta-Arc: Two moms are better than none!

If I’m rating all the parents, and I am, then I have to acknowledge their flaws. And... these two don’t have any! Okay, fine, they used Adrian in a criminal scheme that one time (and that was literally just asking him to cry on command) and maybe Terra’s overworked and, to be fair, parenting a young kid is a lot different than parenting a teenager. But not only did they support their kid, they helped out all the kids that needed to room with them for a while! Saphron may also qualify as a momsister, depending on how well the Arcs managed their massive-numbered horde of kids. Look, the point is: Excellent parents. Bam.

22. Yatsuhashi's Parents: Their slipups weren’t their fault

When your kid can wipe your memories and you don’t know about it, you’re bound to get a few mistakes down the line. Luckily for everyone, after the whole incident with Hiyoko Yatsu came clean, and his parents made absolutely sure that he understood (A) that having such an ability was a big responsibility and (B) that even though he really screwed up he was NOT evil. Given the man that Yatsuhashi is now, I’m pretty confident in calling them great parents--even if they only appeared in a book flashback.

21. Coco's Dad: He exists!

That’s... honestly all I really know about him. He’s mentioned once in the books, and Coco has a few brothers. I’m kind of just assuming he’s a good parent from that, even if he didn’t figure out how to help Coco with her claustrophobia. So... yeah, shrug, Coco’s got a dad.

20: Ghira and Kali Belladonna: Actually marvelous people

Loving. Caring. Mentoring, protective. You may be asking why these two aren’t lower on the list, given that they are absolutely great for Blake, and I’ll have to admit that they only really made one slipup--letting Adam talk with Blake.

And okay, look. The thing about people like Adam is that they don’t start out showing their true colors. It’s always a slow, gentle broil. Blake was young and stupid, Adam was cute and edgy, and these parents want their daughter to be happy. So not twigging on what Adam really was--or at least not being able to properly convince Blake--that’s entirely understandable. And they did instill her with a strong enough moral code to leave when enough was enough, and they absolutely welcomed her back with open arms. Frankly, if the lower-listing parents didn’t exist, I would happily say they are the best parents in the show.

19. Pietro Polendina: He took Penny’s death flags

When you carve out part of your literal soul to bring your girl back from the dead, you get MAJOR parenting props. And even beyond that, Pietro is an absolutely caring and supportive father to everyone’s favorite bundle of sunshine. Even when she’s put in the rough position she was in, Pietro did his best to help her out. His one big flaw, though, is being overprotective and a bit presumptive. He does want Penny to live her best life, but he also can be just a touch too quick to say he knows what’s best for her. To his credit, when he’s called out on it, he does mend his ways. And he’s at least better then the GENERAL...

18. Salem and Ozma: Good parents, surprisingly!

Sure, Salem decided that world conquest was a good idea and wanted to put down anybody that wasn’t directly from her bloodline. Sure, she psychologically manipulated her husband when he had doubts. And, being fair, it’s highly likely that her four daughters were killed in the crossfire of her and Ozma’s little tuff. But! That was likely an accident, she’s been shown to still clearly mourn their passing, and before that point she absolutely loved and adored the girls. Ozma gets points for being a generally good person who fell in love with her before she became unstable and, honestly, was just trying to help his girls escape... and hey, he blames himself for their deaths. As does Salem.

Just because they’re kind of directly responsible for a LOT of Remnant’s woes doesn’t mean they aren’t good parents!

17. Will and Meg Scarlatina: Estranged but loving...

Yes, I know Rooster Teeth hasn’t officially confirmed that Bill is Will. I still believe though! Also it makes for a great picture, in any case.

Look, you can be the best and most loving parents ever--and from what we saw in the novels Will was definitely loving--but if you split up, your kid is going to get a little stressed. And hey, it’s not like these two were terrible people! Velvet’s just got a lot going on because of things entirely out of her control. Parents are people too, but sometimes the stress of one situation will leak out into another. Just... give people time to adapt.

16. Nicholas Schnee: The man, the legend, the titan!

Nicholas Schnee is the rockstar success story of Remnant. Some guy from Mantle put in all the work to make the SDC, and honestly from what little we know about him he was probably a great guy! But if we’re registering parental goodness, well... he wasn’t quite smart enough to warn Willow away from abusive gold diggers, and he’s not present when the story starts. So, yeah, even if he was a good parent otherwise--and I think he would be--he kinda... didn’t put in the work to prevent Willow breaking later. Still. Not deliberately terrible!

15. Li and An Ren: Don’t die in front of your kids, folks!

Seriously, it traumatizes them, especially if there’s a Grimm assault going on at the same time. Oh, double-especially if you reassure them that everything will be fine literally the second before the roof collapses on your head. And... well, okay, you couldn’t help your son and some random girl being the only survivors...

In all seriousness, that whole situation was absolutely out of their control. And before their deaths they were shown to be loving, wise, giving good advice to Lie Ren and helping him understand what the right thing to do was. Honestly, if they hadn’t died in front of him he’d be a lot better, mentally speaking. His trauma is not their fault. Plus Li went out distracting the big Grimm so Lie could run. No greater love hath man, indeed.

14. Summer Rose: Loving mother, ticking trauma bomb

When she was around, Summer Rose was probably the best mom Yang and Ruby could ask for. Sure, everyone could be exaggerating a little on how great a person she was--fond memories and grief can do that--but even taking that into account, she was probably a great and wonderful woman to be raised by. And hey, it turns out the reason she vanished was to go confront basically the Devil Herself so her kids wouldn’t have to live in a world where she existed! I can totally get the logic behind that.

And to be fair, “I’m going to do this on my own so nobody else suffers” is a pretty common character flaw among the RWBY cast. There are entire arcs where each character learns to overcome it. Still, wandering off on your lonesome without telling anyone was not the smartest move, Summer. Especially if you expected to die--which, you know, Devil Herself, high probability. And you know, if you had died, that would be bad enough, but now Ruby’s practically certain to have to fight your grimmified self. At least she figured out what happened to you before Salem decided to hammer in the trauma button, so she’ll be a little more ready, but... seriously.

13. The Arc Parents: Look, you try juggling eight kids!

To be fair, neither Arc parent has appeared on screen, but we can derive some of their traits from their kids. Jaune’s father said women like confident men. Jaune’s mother said strangers are friends you haven’t met yet. Jaune’s sister moved out of the house and (it’s implied) was happier for it. Jaune himself took his family’s ancestral weapon and ran off to Beacon to become a hero without any training whatsoever....

I get the impression that these two are not horrible parents, but they aren’t really stellar ones either. They slip up, don’t understand their children, give some really bad advice (as well as really good advice), and... look, it’s kind of middle of the road here. The Arcs could be wonderful people that just weren’t ready for the complexities of raising eight kids. I come from a big family myself, I know it can be stressful. And their kids turned out well anyway, so...

12. The Mother of Pyrrha Nikos: You taught your girl too well

Hero complexes are funny things. And Pyrrha Nikos... in retrospect, she was really hiding a lot of insecurities under that facade. Laying it all at this woman’s feet is unfair, I’ll admit, a lot of that came from being The Mistral Champion. But... with stories and fairy tales of heroes, it’s not hard to imagine a genuinely loving mother making sure her daughter knew right from wrong, always knew to act with mercy and protect the weak, and made her hardline into being a hero at the cost of her own... sense of self. It wouldn’t even be something either of them noticed, really. Good people can make bad choices sometimes.

11: Ilia's Parents: Oh god, can good people make bad choices...

So the idea of getting Ilia up to Atlas for a better life, that rocks (if you assume the propaganda to be true). And I’m certain her parents absolutely did what they did out of love. But what they did, you see, was tell Ilia to hide a very important part of herself from anybody who could find out, since it was likely she would be kicked out of the school she was in if people found out she was a faunus.

Which actually, did a lot of damage.

I mean look at Ilia now! She has trouble expressing herself until she explodes, she follows a crowd instead of her own morals, she broke down in tears when she finally did the right thing... Conceal Don’t Feel is never good advice, and these two went on and said ‘Honey, because of racism, you have to hide the fact you literally change color when you have emotions.’ Oh, and then they died offscreen--again, not their fault, but boy howdy did it give Ilia a complex.

10. Taiyang Xiao Long: Slumped at just the wrong time

Honestly, Tai as he is now is a wonderful dad. Supportive of his daughters in their time of need, able to lift their mood with a tasteless joke or two, frankly if we were assessing just how they were in the moment... I’d still be a little critical of his refusal to talk about the girls’ mothers, but hey, that’s minor. Compared to, you know...

Okay, so this needs serious addressing. Taiyang cannot be blamed for falling into a depressive slump. People can hurt, and need time to heal. That said, his depressive slump is at the root of Yang’s many issues, and frankly if she hadn’t had to pull herself together for Ruby she would be a major mess. It’s a bad situation all round, even if it’s not his fault.

9. Willow Schnee: “Kids, don’t wind up like me.”

Drowning her sorrows isn’t the best way to handle being stuck in an abusive marriage, but it was the best way Willow could think of. And, yeah, that really cut into her skills as a mom... but despite that, she did her darnedest to make sure her kids had what they needed to free themselves. Heck, once Jacques was out of the picture, she even pulled herself together and risked her life to save them! A broken women, to be sure, but not a shattered one.

8. Neptune's Mother: She exists!

Being fair, there’s not a lot to go on here. We know Neptune’s mother is a lawyer (insert evil lawyer joke), that their family are famous swimmers, and that his brother caused his hydrophobia by tossing him into the water. It does paint a bit of a picture, though, of everyone having expectations for Neptune that he was not able to live up to. Pretty poor parenting, if it’s true.

7. Nora Valkyrie's Mom: Come get your girl!

Literally the only factoid we have about Mama Valkyrie is that she abandoned her to the Grimm. We don’t know when this was, and it’s feasible it’s a case of ‘Oh No I Lost Track Of My Daughter In The Panic!’ But given we see young Nora scavenging for scraps of food... I’m not optimistic on her parenting skills.

6. Raven Branwen: "I wasn’t part of your life, how could I ruin it?”

Raven is just not a good mom at all. And, surprisingly, she seems to know it. Or that’s one interpretation of her character. The thing about Raven is that she plays her cards close to chest. We still don’t know why she left her daughter, and we only have inklings about the reasoning behind her behavior once they reunited. In the end, though... she did concede to Yang, she did apologize for something, and there’s a very deliberate indication that a lot of her behavior is a mask to both others and herself. So, terrible mother, for the moment, but self-aware.

5. Salem's Father: Explicitly noted as cruel

We get a bit more about Salem’s father from ‘Fairy Tales Of Remnant’, how he became possessive of the last remnant of his wife and locked her away in a tower. From what we know of him, that’s all he did--lock her away and not let her go. Still makes him a terrible dad. And with this, we transition firmly into the most definitively abusive parent figures. Everyone before this might have the excuse of not realizing what was going on or having their own damage, but now we’ve got parents actively deciding to make their kids’ lives worse.

4. Jacques Gelé: HE DOES NOT GET TO BE CALLED SCHNEE!

His children are property, to be manipulated and traded for the benefit of the company he married into, and any defiance is to be quelled instantly. He is manipulative, scheming, abusive, and frankly the worst sort of scumbag to ever wear a white suit. He does have the single redeeming quality of only leaning into the punishment if it benefits him; nobody would ever accuse the man of being needlessly cruel. His name is Jacques, and you will hate him... especially on the rare occasions he actually has a point.

3. The Marigolds: There’s no peppy tagline, they’re just mean

There’s not a picture of these jerks on the wiki, so you’ll have to make do with the woman that is no longer their daughter. See all that empty space around her? That’s about as close as they ever got. May spells out how much they hated her for having a heart, and how little they cared about her as a person, in one epic line. And even if they have other redeeming qualities (unlikely) we can tell they’d probably still be terrible parents because of how sleazy May’s cousin is. Honestly, for once I’m glad some characters don’t get pictures. They don’t deserve to be remembered. They aren’t even the cool kind of evil, they’re just... gross.

2. Marcus Black: Look if you train your kid to be a killer...

...you’re going to have to expect them to kill you. I mean, you basically ripped apart Mercury’s legs, man. He had to get cyberlegs. Also, you used your semblance to steal his. Which, given that semblances come from aura, and that aura is a manifestation of the soul, is kinda... that’s a deeply personal and intimate violation. Sure, you got your assassin kid. And can we talk about the fact that Marcus was an assassin? It’s not a pretty job. I guess I can see all the abuse--physical and mental--as a good way to train up another assassin, but... geeze, if that’s your goal, why did you use your own kid?! Why not hire some angsty teenager?! Yeah, no, Markus Black stood high on my list of parental monsters... and was only toppled by the arrival of one other.

1. Madame of the Glass Unicorn: She only appeared in one episode and she rocketed to the top of this list, that should tell you something

Let’s be clear here: What Madame did to Cinder is bad enough. It was literally slavery. Enforced by a shock collar. And because the collar looked like a necklace, she pulled it off in front of I don’t know how many clients. Granted, said clients were racists, why else would they be customers at a ‘We Do Not Serve Faunus’ hotel, but keeping her torture just out of the public eye very clearly shows both that she knew what she was doing was illegal and that she was clever enough to avoid detection.

Oh... and then there are her birth daughters.

With Cinder, she was abusive to a dangerous degree. With her daughters, she was permissive, not only allowing but encouraging them to bully their adoptive sister. The whole point of parenthood is to teach your children how to become the best version of themselves, but Madame didn’t even bother to instill a semblance of morality in these girls. She used them as extensions of her will, and they obliviously played along because that was all they knew.

You’d think the biggest monster on the show would be the Grimm woman, but no--it’s some random lady with a hotel.

#RWBY #Analysis #Ranking #I had the urge to make this #Feel free to disagree #Some of this is opinion-based

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atla-fandom-confessions · 3 years

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lmao please, kiyi is literally one of the worst aspects of the comics due to what she represents. it screams that azula is at fault for every relationship she ever had with anyone in her family and that she can be thrown away in a second because there’s a shiny new kid on the block who acts in similar mannerisms.

we don’t even need to get into how yikes the mental illness aspect of this all is because holy shit is this concept weird as fuck. getting rid of family members because you can’t deal with their issues and putting them into shitty institutions that make them worse, oh thats historically been a thing that’s happened to so many people and it’s honestly depressing when you read into it and the treatment they were given was just tortuous.

instead of a compelling narrative with the fire siblings that explores their messed up relationship which is what the search was supposed to be, we got whatever she is and zuko doesn’t need to care about azula anymore because there’s kiyi now. azula is solely at fault for their relationship at this point, not zuko or their parents, just her which the narrative heavily pushes you to think for.

the whole found family aspect of the gaang gets thrown out here with the comics as well. if zuko really needs some sort of surrogate sibling, aang is right there. the show pretty much points him out to be this person when zuko compares him to sister and in the crossroads of destiny where zuko needs to choose between azula or aang.

azula might as well find her own found family at this point in canon because none of these fucks ever cared about her and it’s shows which, yikes. it makes ursa end up looking worse which isn’t what’s needed because azula and ursa is complicated for other reasons, not because ursa never cared.

in a nutshell: highly disagree

#damn i think this gets longest anon award #atla #atla comics #anti kiyi #azula

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nefariouscryptid · 2 years

Text

Rita is a tragic case that I don’t talk about enough

Rita goes through something I like to fall “chronic guilt”. Where you “know” that things are your fault, the burden your mother feels caring for you is your fault, the way that you are is your fault, your dads resentment towards you and having to care for someone that isn’t actually his child is your fault.

From day one Rita knows she’s the product of surrogation, and that the fathers that requested her mother to surrogate for her died. And the pressure of being cared for a child that they did NOT plan on caring for was held over her head constantly. Not only did her mom do a “heroic” thing by going through the hardships of pregnancy for two other people, but now she has to care for a child she didn’t ask for or want. The absolute burden and grief of losing the life you had because you have to care for a child you didn’t want on top of your other ones, an idea shoved down Rita’s throat. That was the beginning of Rita’s chronic guilt.

Her father resented her because she was seen as a child that took up time from his actual kids. Think of how a bad step parent constantly goes on about how he shouldn’t help or care for his step kids because “they’re not his kids”. He wanted absolutely nothing to do with her and lashed out at her mother for becoming a surrogate in the first place, resulting in marital problems. Another placement of guilt.

Rita was a smart student that “outshone” her siblings, which if you’re a young child is going to result in feelings of jealously. This pinned Rita in the light of being someone constantly trying to steal the spotlight and someone who is trying to one up her siblings. So imagine you’re in a family where this person who isn’t even seen as a real part of the family is suddenly trying to outdo everyone in it, the result that’s going to come from that. That’s how her family views it.

So not only do you grow up knowing you weren’t wanted, that so many sacrifices have been made for you, you’re the factor in someone’s marital problems, that you caused your siblings grief, all of the above. That weighs in on you. And it’s not a constant pity party where you cry out “everything is my fault!” It’s an acceptance. You move through life having the fact that you were the cause of major problems in the family that didn’t even want you. It molds you.

Rita wanted to make it up. Rita deeply wanted to make it all worth it, to get rid of that guilt. So she aimed for government positions. The highest and most praised job that one could get for the time, something to make her family proud. Something that would carry that burden off her shoulders and make her existence a little more worth it.

So she used her trauma to push herself forward, and desperately clung onto these reasons as to why she was ostracized the way she was, because the idea that none of this had to happen or was her fault was something that never even crossed her mind, and most people don’t take into account.

It all goes to hell after. More guilt piles up. She didn’t do enough to save her aunt, an aunt from a family that actually wanted her, her and her boyfriend lost their jobs, her family has undoubtedly disowned her, she’s on the run, her brother is grieving, and she has nothing to help them. Nothing to show, nothing to ease anything. Because once again, she’s just there. She’s tagging along with people who didn’t want her around and have indirectly caused more harm then good.

She never got to think about what she wanted as a child. Because from day one she was tasked to make her life worth it. She didn’t get to think what she wanted to do with her life, what goals she wanted to achieve, never got to live for herself. Over 30 years of her life was dedicated to others, because she was programmed to believe her life wasn’t hers. And that what she wanted was a burden, and her being alive wasn’t worth it. All she wanted was to be worth it.

Nothing she went through had to happen. She didn’t ask to be born, she wasn’t responsible for how people handled changes in their life style, she didn’t ask to be neglected, or try to out do anyone, and didn’t do anything wrong.

And as time went on she realizes she’s not stronger or wiser. She’s not the one who was going to fix her families issues, she’s just hurt. She gained nothing out of what she went through. No one does.

#alex banters #my ocs #rita durante

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avengerscompound · 4 years

Text

The Surrogate - Chapter 8

The Surrogate: A Clintasha Fanfic

Masterlist PREVIOUS //

Buy me a ☕ Character Pairing: Clint Barton x Natasha Romanoff x F!Reader

Word Count: 1789

Rating: E

Warnings: Pregnancy, talk of miscarriage, medical proceedures

Synopsis: A freak end of the world incident leads to meeting your two best friends, Clint Barton and Natasha Romanoff. While your friendship with the two Avengers is anything but conventional, they are your all-time favorite people. When you find out that Clint and Natasha want to start a family but have exhausted all their options, you realize your powerset might allow you to give them what they want. Having your best friends’ baby might seem like a good idea on paper, but when you are as close as you, Clint, and Natasha are, will doing something so intimate mean feelings get a little mixed up?

Chapter 8

Everyone had told you there was nothing to worry about. The embryo implantation was one of the easiest parts of the whole surrogacy process. No harder than a pap smear and there was nothing you needed to really worry about doing differently. You just had to wait and see if it worked. Yet, as you say in the chair with your feet in stirrups and the doctor crouched between your legs you were filled with intense anxiety.

It was strange really. Natasha seemed to have deployed the self-preservation technique of expecting the worst so she wouldn't be hurt when the worst happened. She'd gone in to have her eggs harvested saying there probably wouldn't be any. When she was told they were happy with the number they harvested, she decided that none would become viable embryos and when she was told they had at least five good looking embryos to implant, she decided that none of the three they were using would take. You assumed that if they did take she'd start saying there would be a miscarriage just to prepare herself for the potentially bad news.

Clint on the other hand seemed to be cheerily optimistic about it. You weren't sure if that was just his way of trying to balance Natasha out. He had his moments where he was so sure it was going to work that he'd start freaking out about the idea of being anyone's dad that seemed genuine. Otherwise, it did just seem like he was trying to get Natasha's head out of the dark cloud that was surrounding her.

You knew it was going to work. It had to. Everything made sense and this was going to happen and they were going to be parents and you were going to give that to them. You knew it was the truth, right down to your core. Yet, as you sat in the chair as vulnerable as you’ve ever been, you couldn’t help but think; what if you were wrong?

You clung to Natasha’s hand and she held it close to her chest as Clint stood with his arm wrapped around her waist, his eyes darting everywhere like he was trying not to look directly at your vag on display, as if he hadn’t been all up in it before.

“Okay,” the doctor said, pulling the catheter and then speculum out. “All done. You can get redressed. You don’t have to do anything special today. Take it easy but you shouldn’t just go home and get into bed. Get up. Walk around. Watch TV. Use the bathroom if you need to. Just no vigorous exercise.”

“Are you sure? There’s nothing we can do to increase the odds?” Clint asked.

She shook her head as she began to clean up. “Now it’s just a waiting game. But you’ll be back in two days for a blood test and we’ll know if it worked, so this stress of the unknown you’re all feeling will be over soon and you can hopefully have the stress of preparing for a baby instead.”

Clint laughed. “Yeah, that’s much better, isn’t it, Nat?”

Natasha forced a smile and you got up. “Make an appointment for two weeks for a blood test and when we know the result we’ll work out what appointment to make next.”

“Will, do,” Clint said. “Thanks, doc.”

I went and redressed and met Clint and Natasha out in the waiting room. “Alright?” Clint said.

“Yep,” you agreed.

“We made an appointment for two weeks,” Natasha said. The way she spoke was stiff and forced. Almost as if she was afraid that saying too much would cause the embryos to fail their implantation.

“Great,” you said, with a nod.

Clint slung his arm around your shoulders and pulled Natasha close. “Can I tell you both a secret?” He whispered conspiratorially as the three of you headed out to the hospital parking lot.

“What is it?” You asked.

“I hate being the together one,” he said. “Come on you two, let’s try not to think about it, and in two days we’ll know right?”

You nodded. “I just… I know this is going to work. This is what I do. But if I’m wrong, I don’t want to hurt either of you.”

“Oh, babe,” Clint sighed.

Natasha stopped walking and stepped in front of you, she looked directly into your eyes. The green of eyes seemed to pierce right into you. “If this doesn’t work, it’s not your fault. I’m not going to pretend it won’t hurt, because it will. But I will always be grateful that you even gave it a go. This is our only chance to have kids, and the fact you were willing to give it to us, however small it is, is the greatest gift anyone has ever given to me.”

By the time she had finished talking you were weeping. She pulled you into her arms and you buried your face in her neck. You felt an overwhelming urge to tell her you loved her but the fact you didn’t even know what that meant right now made you hold it back. Maybe it was just that you loved her because she was your best friend, but the more time you spent with her and Clint the more you felt it wasn’t just friends.

“Alright,” Clint said, rubbing both of your backs. “Let’s get easy-bake back home, we’ve got doctor's orders sloth happening. We don’t want to waste it.”

You spent the next couple of days taking it easy. You had taken the week off because of the doctor’s appointments taking up so much time. So you just caught up with tv shows and ate food that was probably very bad for you.

Two days later Clint and Natasha took you in for the blood test, and then you just went back to work as usual. Not that there was a lot going on. There were a few agents out in deep cover and Steve and Tony had some appearances to make. So for you, it was just honing your skills.

You were on the firing ranging trying to improve your accuracy with a handgun when you felt your phone vibrate. You flicked the safety on your gun and holstered it before answering. Unfortunately, the room was still full of the sound of gunfire and it wasn't until you got into the armory that you could hear the other person on the line.

“Shit, sorry,” you apologized. “Noisy room.”

The woman on the other end told you she was from the doctor's office and confirmed it was you as you bounce nervously from foot to foot and went about the procedure for locking your weapon back up while juggling your phone.

“We have the results of your pregnancy test,” the woman said.

“Yes,” you replied. “What…? Is it…? Am I…?”

“The results are positive,” she said. “Congratulations…”

The receptionist kept talking but you didn't hear anything past that point. It was all white noise as your excitement took you over and all you could think about was putting the god damned gun away so you could tell your best friends they were going to be parents.

“Sorry,” you said, quickly. “Sorry, what was that?”

“You were transferring your care to… Uh… The Avengers facility?” She repeated.

“Yes, right,” you said. “In-house.”

“Okay, well we’ll forward all the records on to them. You should have your first appointment in four weeks with an ultrasound. Then they'll go from there.”

“Thank you,” you babbled. “Yeah, thank you very much. I'll go speak to them.”

“You're very welcome,” she said. “Congratulations again.”

You disconnected the call and shoved your phone in your pocket as you hurriedly locked the gun back up and dashed out of the armory.

“FRIDAY,” you said as you sped out of the hallway and across the grounds. “Where are Natasha and Clint?”

“Agent Barton is training behind building C with Miss Bishop,” the AI replied. “And Agent Romanoff is in combat room three with Miss Maximoff.”

“Ah, shit,” you cursed, stopping dead in your tracks. They were in two different directions and if you went and collected Clint before you went to get Natasha, which would be the most logical thing to do, he'd just bug you for the results the whole way. “Tell them to come to the function room.”

You changed direction and headed to the main building. The top floor was a function room that was primarily where parties were held and contained a full bar. You took the elevator up and took out a bottle of champagne and hid it so it was sitting in the sink under a dish towel the foil already removed so you could easily pop the cork, and quickly poured yourself a drink that would look like a cocktail without being one using grenadine and orange juice.

You were sipping on the slightly too sweet drink when Natasha rushed into the room and stopped dead. Her eyes darted from your face to the drink in your hand and her face fell. Right away you regretted the ruse. “No, no, no,” you babbled, putting the glass down. Clint skidded into the room behind Natasha and stopped dead.

“What? What's going on? You got the results?” He asked looking around the room for some clue as to whether you were pregnant or not.

“I did,” you said, quickly trying to waylay the sadness that had struck Natasha so suddenly. “I am. Pregnant that is. You're going to be parents.”

“What?” Natasha said, blinking at you. “But the drink…?”

“It's orange juice and grenadine,” you said, getting out the champagne from the sink. “I got this out for the two of you to celebrate.”

“Oh my god!” Natasha exclaimed. “You little… I'm gonna kill you!”

“After the baby’s born right?” You asked as she and Clint approached you.

“Immediately after,” she said, wrapping her arms around you and pulling you close. Clint wrapped his arms around both of you and squeezed you both into a huge bearhug.

“Congratulations, guys,” you said, softly. “You're gonna be parents.”

“Thank you,” Natasha whispered.

The three of you stayed like that for what felt like an eternity before slowly pulling apart. Clint kept his hands on Natasha’s hips and you popped the cork on the champagne. “You guys should celebrate.”

Natasha looked up into Clint’s blue eyes and smiled. “Hey, Nat,” Clint said. “You're gonna be a mommy.”

Natasha made a soft sound and he leaned in and kissed her. You grabbed two glasses and poured the drink. Even though this was their moment and you planned to leave them to it, you couldn't remember ever feeling this happy before.

// NEXT

#natasha romanoff #clint barton #natasha romanoff x reader #clint barton x reader #clint barton x natasha romanoff #clint barton x natasha romanoff x reader #clintasha #clintasha x reader #black widow #hawkeye #black widow fanfic #hawkeye fanfic #fanfic #fanfiction #reader insert #pregnancy #the surrogate

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xsugarysweetsx · 4 years

Note

Could I possibly request a Toge x reader where they both really wanna have kids, but due to an illness the reader got when she was little, she is forever infertile? Maybe how they reacted when they got the news and then Toge comforting the reader? Please and thank you so very much😊😊😊

~Sam

-A/N; I made sure to put in just enough fluff to balance out the angst

Please enjoy~🍰

(Characters are aged up and are past the age of 18)

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

This couldn’t be happening. This was the 7th time this year that you tried. You and your husband have been wanting children for a while but nothing has seemed to work.

You kept track of your ovulation and tried every month before your period. But it was all for nothing. You’ve even added in some fertility pills to give an extra kick but nothing.

After much trying, many negative tests, and heartache you go to the doctor. You get there and both you and Toge were tested and awaiting the results. It was difficult for him to try and comfort you, even though you understood his improvisation of language.

He wanted to tell you it would be alright and he’d be there no matter the results. Instead he settled for holding your hand and letting you lean against him in the small office.

“Salmon...” he whispered

“I love you too..” the doctor then came in and sat back in his seat with documents.

“There is no easy way to say this...your husband is fine but Y/N unfortunately you have come back as infertile” he said with a sorry tone “from what we can tell this has been an issue from early in development. You have had a record of irregular periods and sometimes none at all. I’m very sorry for this to happen.”

You felt like your entire world had just fallen to bits. The one thing you both wanted so badly was now out of your reach. You couldn’t carry a child or even conceive one. You felt your heart complete shatter as tears well in your eyes

“Here’s some paperwork on other options you can read into. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions” he said giving you and Toge some privacy.

He couldn’t lie to himself he was also heartbroken but right now, you were devastated. He helped you out of your seat and wiped your tears. First things first, was to get you out of the doctors office and back home. On your way home you were quiet and kept your gaze down. Yet as soon as you stepped into the daffy of your home you crumble to bits.

Toge caught you before you could hit the ground and let you get everything out. Now here you sat on the floor with your husband grieving about your lost chance at having a child. Even Toge let a few tears slip from his eyes.

To have your own child had slipped from his grip as if it were sand. He could never be as broken as you were the at moment, he had to care for you.

And care he did, the next week was a heavy one. You just didn’t have it in you to get out of bed and get things done. Everything felt heavy. He hates to see you this way, he just wanted you to be happy, but he knew this would take some time.

He made sure to try and get you out of bed, that you ate something and that you showered. Sometimes he would run a bath for you both to soak in. There were still nights you would cry your sorrow and he was always there to hold you and comfort you as best as he could. Yet, he understood you both couldn’t stay on this for long.

He started to do his research on alternative ways to start your family. At first he thought of a surrogate but then again, you’d probably feel hurt seeing someone else carry the baby you wanted. Instead he brought up adoption, being able to give a child the life they deserve, with a family. He knew you wanted to go through the experience of pregnancy and birth but you also wanted a family.

He sat you down and you both had a good talk over it. He said you can even adopt a baby just a few months old if you’d like. He had a stale job and you were without a doubt, fit to be a mother. After some thinking you had agreed and he made an appointment to see some children for adoption.

Toge wanted it to be special so he asked his former classmates and teacher to help with a welcome home party. They helped decorate the nursery, and even bought some things for the baby. Walking into the orphanage it broke your heart to see children who weren’t wanted or lost parents.

Toge knew you had a big heart and if you could, you would take them all. The woman who worked at the orphanage lead you to a section with babies. She said you were free to look around in the rooms as you liked. A room with soft sunlight and a white crib called your attention first. Looking into the crib there was a baby girl.

“Ah this is Mei, poor thing was abandoned at the hospital the day she was born. Sweetest thing, she loves being held and loves to be around people.“ the woman said “You can pick her up if you’d like, she’s 3 months old so watch her head“

You hesitate at first but reach into the crib and carefully lift the small babe into your hold. She was so beautiful, soft black hair and beautiful brown eyes stare up at you. You felt something so...motherly, you wanted to see her smile, protect her. You wanted to show her the love her parents didn’t want to.

You wanted to adopt Mei.

AS for Toge, he watched you from the doorway. The way you held her and looked at her. She wasn’t your baby but he could tell you would treat her no different if she were your own child. He came to you and rests his head on your shoulder

“Kelp..“

“yeah, let’s take her“

You soon came home with a beautiful little girl to call your own. Everyone welcomed her with warm hearts and arms. You felt as much love for her that you would if you had a baby. You had felt happy to be able to be a mother, and Toge was happy to have a family with you. Now it was

Toge Inumaki, Y/N Inumaki, and Mei Inumaki

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

I hope this was okay!❤️

#inumaki toge #jujutsu kaisen inumaki #inumaki x reader #jujutsu kaisen x reader #jujutsu kaisen anime #anime #anime x reader #fanfiction

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sepublic · 3 years

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Reset Eda?

So @kprapture brought up the idea of Eda being de-aged back to her pre-curse self, the typical antics she’d get into with Luz… And how Lilith might consider the idea of making this reversal, this reset, permanent- So Eda could live the curse-free life she properly deserved, with a support network of a wiser Lilith, Luz and King, a Hexside that would let her study multiple tracks, etc. And this idea is just messing me up, because…

There are two ways to approach this. Option A, Reset Eda has no memories of her original life growing up, getting old from the curse, meeting Luz, etc. Option B, Reset Eda DOES retain those memories;

Option A would be messed-up, because it wouldn’t just kill the Eda we know… It’d effectively wipe her out of existence. If there’s an afterlife for the Boiling Isles, which there probably is since the Oracle Coven exists, and we’ve already seen at least one ghost in this show… Then, I don’t see Eda choosing this option on her deathbed, because then she’d never move on to the afterlife, maybe never get to see her parents, and then catch up with her loved ones when THEY inevitably die…

The thing about Eda, is- I think she doesn’t regret her life. She doesn’t regret the decisions she’s made, and ultimately she’s content where she’s ended up, especially since Luz and King are there. Having written about her in the past, I see Eda as someone who if given the chance to change it all, would have it remain the same; Yeah, her life isn’t ideal, but still. Eda owns what happened to her, she makes it her own, and I don’t think she’d want to let go of that, alongside her sense of identity…

Now, there ARE better ways to learn the things that Eda, ways that are less painful and torturous. Whatever Eda learned from the curse, she could’ve easily learned without it- It’s why she’s so adamant as a teacher towards protecting Luz from the traumas that Eda herself endured… Because Eda knows that Luz can learn just the same things she did, without having to go through that pointless pain. And maybe some lessons just aren’t worth it, but what’s done is done so you may as well make the most of the knowledge you got. That trauma isn’t going away… Except in this scenario, it could.

It’s kind of an ethical dilemma, and I could potentially imagine Eda maybe, just maybe, considering ‘sacrificing’ her entire existence up until this point, to pave the way for a better, happier Reset Eda… I’ve talked a lot about Eda being used to loss and trying to weaponize and make the most of it by turning into a sacrifice for the greater good, for someone else to benefit from her tragedies. Maybe Eda might see it this way- Giving up her life so some other kid, as this Reset Eda would be considered ‘different’ from her, can have a happy and better life…

But the thing is; Eda’s life is saving, she knows this, an entire crowd knows this and protested against Belos over this indisputable reality. She doesn’t have to die, just to ‘save’ a life that neither exists, nor is meant to… Eda can invest that energy into other kids who already exist, or are intended to be by their would-be parents, and she certainly doesn’t have to DIE just to make life better for them! Eda can even invest that energy into making herselfhappier, her own life better… Yes, her time on this world has unfortunately been shortened thanks to the curse, but it’s still there and remaining, and Eda DID have plenty of time with it that she ultimately made the most of.

I’ve written about it before, but I think that Eda would ultimately decide not to change a thing, she made it clear to Lilith that living as a wild witch would’ve happened even without the curse, and that was Eda’s intention as a child before she learned of the curse no less. And, I can see Reset Eda agreeing… Because if Reset Eda is presented with this reality, with Luz and King and Lilith explaining how she grows up with a curse, and the kind of life she lives… Well, we see how young Eda casually tosses aside the Coven System to her sister. She’s very much Go Big or Go Home, the kind of person who fully commits to her own actions and owns them, fully accepting what happens. I think Reset Eda would at least appreciate the perspective she’d get from her cursed life, and how it can be helpful towards vouching for that kind of thing to never exist for anyone else…

Now, Reset Eda might hesitate about getting cursed- But if it’s to save and retain herself in a sense, her own actions and accomplishments, a life she made for herself and was proud of? I think Reset Eda would shrug, and ask Lilith and the others to bring it on, to bring her back to the present- Because she’s impatient to get to that point, I imagine Reset Eda would ‘miss’ her life as Eda the Owl Lady, sister to Lilith, surrogate mother to Luz and King, creator of Owlbert, begrudging acquaintance of Hooty, etc.

Her cursed life wasn’t ideal, but there’s something good and irreplaceable to it, just as each and every person is unique in their own special way; And Reset Eda wouldn’t want to lose something that had existed and is at stake here, just for a life that never actually did. Even if her life was garbage, well- Eda is always someone who finds meaning and value from garbage, and even creates it when none is there, or disagrees with the purpose others originally intended anyway! She says how she feels about what she has in life, not others!

Reset Eda might agree with her older self about getting that better life for other kids, like Luz, because that’s what Eda DID work on doing, and she made some decent success at this no less! Of course, I can imagine some initial angst and dilemma, as Reset Eda isn’t as wise as our Eda- So it might take her longer to reach this conclusion, or she’d be a bit more hesitant. But then again, Young/Reset Eda openly defied the Coven System to the Emperor’s Coven own face, publically… So she seems both proud and unapologetic about her choices, to the point of fully owning the consequences and trouble that come with them- Just like our Eda. We don’t know the exact differences between Young Eda and our Eda, but we know that there are a lot of fundamental similarities in ideals.

Plus, I imagine that if Reset Eda were to be undone, and returned to the Eda we know… Well, she’d retain her memories of having been ‘reset’, as a young Eda who suddenly woke up surrounded by Luz and King and a much older Lilith, and got to know them and her own future before making the decision to keep it. It’d be sweet for Eda to reflect on what just happened and what she missed, to look at Luz and the others… And then smile and nod, remarking that she’s really missed this and definitely wouldn’t have given it up for anything. Besides, it’s not like she’d deprive Luz and the others of the Eda they know and love, she’s not going to do away with that Owl Lady, any time soon! Reset Eda would still ‘remain’, she just wouldn’t have lived out THAT life… In exchange for retaining her cursed one. Harsh, but she’s not losing anything that was ever actually, already there.

And Reset Eda, the one we meet after the initial reversal, she’d still exist, she’d still live on in our Eda… The only thing she’d have lost was the potential of that new life, but would she really give up her past one for that? Young Eda couldn’t bear being at the top of a system that hurt and oppressed others… And while she may be apprehensive about getting cursed, it’s not like she has to relive it, just bring back the effects, and restore her old self. Like I said, Young Eda already planned to be a wild witch; I think she’d be fine with a curse, if it meant saving her old life and self in the process, VS sacrificing it entirely just to have no curse…

…But, this gets us onto Option B; The idea of Reset Eda retaining her memories, in which case… She’s literally just OUR Eda, just with a heavy dosage of Youth Elixir and no curse. In which case, I can definitely see her being a lot more open to the idea… Maybe a bit hesitant, because she doesn’t want to outlive her sister, Lilith- But Lilith would definitely reassure Eda that the two will catch up in the afterlife anyway, when Eda herself has to inevitably kick the bucket, curse or no curse. I could see Eda having concerns about the logistics of being much younger, but in the end… I can legitimately imagine Eda accepting this option alongside the others. It’d be weird having the body of a very young kid with the mind of a fully-grown adult, and no doubt very awkward… It’d definitely make most romantic relationships a very touchy subject that’s probably to be avoided; But in the end, I think Eda’s already content with the familial bonds she has with the others.

Eda would hate to have her youth restored, and be cured of the curse while watching Lilith bear it on her own… But I could see Lilith reassuring her that she already lived plenty of years without the curse, anyway. And she still has a support network, her worst guilt and sins would be alleviated almost entirely… I think Lilith would be very much fine, because she’s going to grow old and die either way. This way, however, she has Eda the whole way through- Because if we’re being brutally honest, regular Eda is probably going to die of old age before Lilith. So to Lilith, having her little sister, happy and living a new and better life, while still retaining her old one… Having THAT Eda by her deathbed, that’s much better than being without Edalyn entirely.

Plus, maybe a youth-restored Eda could just… Douse an aging potion to match her biological age with her chronological one, if she really had reservations- Doing so would still leave out the curse, depending on how this reset works. And, who’s to say Eda won’t try to apply this spell to Lilith as well? Have them BOTH have their bodies reset but their memories and life retained… Of course, this option sounds extremely ideal, so I can see it not happening for this exact reason; As well as any other variation of Option B, for that matter.

Lilith, however… This is Lilith we’re talking about here. I’ve talked about how she may have already learned some lessons, and is likely bound to do so before this Reset option occurs. If it were Option B, it’d probably go on without too much of a hitch… But Option A? In a scenario where Reset Eda decides that she wants to go back to her old, cursed life? I can see Lilith not only disagreeing, but… Maybe becoming SO adamant, that she refuses to undo the reversal, at any cost! Because to her, Eda’s lost potential, the life she deserved but never got; It’s her worst sin by far. It’s her worst guilt that killed and ate her up from the inside for decades, and it’d be SO easy, so relieving to just let it go, to just undo it… While STILL making things right, right?

The thing about Lilith is that she’s willing to go lengths for Eda- Even go as far as threatening Eda’s own kid, Luz, just to cure her curse. Sure, she’d have made some character development by then and already has… But on the chance of actually curing Eda’s curse, AND saving her from all of that trauma and pain, getting her that life she never got- Something not even Belos could provide? That’s going to really complicate things, and I can see Lilith conveniently ignoring the reality that this option would kill our Eda, because… She really doesn’t want to dwell on the ethical dilemma of it all, she just wants an easy out and it’s so easy to relapse into this mistake, especially since it’s a much more understandable scenario for her.

But, again- Lilith has learned to respect Eda’s decisions, and if she really retains and applies her lessons, then she’ll do so, even in this case where it seems like she could have it all… Because she DOES love our Eda, the one who grew up cursed, she does do so unconditionally- So it WOULD hurt her to sacrifice that Eda for a new, reset one… And that’s something Lilith is going to have to acknowledge. That this isn’t just her own loss she has to factor in, it’s Luz and King’s and the others’… On top of Eda herself being deleted and not exactly wanting that. Could Lilith bear to kill her own sister? Obviously not… And it’d be a painful and begrudging realization, a frustrating one that Lilith would so badly want to ignore, to set aside…

But, she can’t- She knows it deep down, in her heart, and once it’s there, it’s there to stay, just like the curse… Once again, Lilith is going to have to be mature, because the LAST time she did something harmful to Eda, believing it was for her own good- It didn’t pan out. And the last time she harmed Eda just for her own selfish desires –the curse- that REALLY didn’t play out well… Lilith is no doubt going to be grappling with misguidance, a genuine desire to help Eda, her own selfish desire to alleviate her guilt, etc. She’s going to confuse how much of herself is doing this for Eda, or just for her own conscience… But when it becomes clear that Reset Eda wants to go back, Lilith is going to have to admit that once again, she’s being selfish and making Eda’s decisions for her.

Especially with Luz and King to serve as pretty harsh reminders of what Lilith did, and force her to reflect on what she’s done in the past, to always remember that. Lilith is going to hate it, she’s going to hate herself the entire process through, and maybe feel even worse for letting this opportunity slip through her fingers… Having hope built up, only to be brought crashing down, harder than ever- But I imagine that once Lilith reunites with HER Eda, the one who grew old and cursed… She’s going to realize how much she missed her, and be glad she got her sister back. She might mourn the potential of Reset Eda, but that life never existed and wasn’t going to- And again, like Eda, Lilith can invest her energy and efforts into making lives better for other people… And Eda REALLY wants Luz to have it good, so…!

Still- Imagine Lilith being so desperate, so drawn to the idea of erasing and relieving her past mistakes, believing that she’s helping Eda that she… Legit has to fight Luz and Reset Eda over bringing back OUR Eda- And maybe during the fight, we get to see Reset Eda’s prowess as a child, leading to Lilith reminding her that doesn’t it feel good to have full, unrestricted access to magic? Isn’t Eda glad she has it now, surely doesn’t want to LOSE this, does she…? Kind of a callback to Agony of a Witch, how Lilith goads and taunts Eda about the curse, as if to smugly remind Eda why she should join the Emperor’s Coven to be cured.

Surely Eda has to see her point by now, obviously Eda can’t be in so much denial when the proof is right there in her face, because this fight makes it so obvious. In Agony of a Witch, the duel made it clear how much magic Eda has lost and is losing and it’s why she needs a cure- And now this time, the duel makes it clear to Reset Eda how much she has to lose, and what’s at stake for her. Either way, attention is drawn to Eda’s magical ability in that fight and how it’s doing, what she WILL lose should she not listen to Lilith, and how it must be preserved…

And that’ll make Reset Eda hesitate, because she knows that she’ll lose that magic if she goes down the cursed path… And that might cause the most reservations about her choice- Up until she sees Luz fighting alongside her, sees how proficient Luz is with Glyphs… And then Reset Eda realizes she still learned bile-magic as an adult, and got the chance to start with glyphs as well! She’s even got Owlbert, so Eda won’t be entirely bile-less… Reset Eda would realize she’d lose magic, but Luz would show her that she doesn’t have to completely give up magic, just one form of it. And, yeah- Ideally, Reset Eda could grow up with access to bile magic AND glyphs. But again, considering who’s at stake here… Reset Eda would see it as simply not worth it, especially when her own self seemed pretty pleased about the outcome- And our Eda is a lot older, wiser, and more experienced… Our Eda managed to live her own life, help people and inspire them in a lot of ways, and taught Luz!

Our Eda made Owlbert, established the Owl House, became reputed as an unstoppable criminal and one of the hottest witches around… I think Reset Eda would consider our Eda as someone worth looking up to, and emulating. It’s kind of funny- The idea of her looking to herself, the best version of herself, as a role model… Which I guess just echoes what the Oracle Sphere told Gus- That he’s always the best version of himself. Sometimes who you are and are bound to become is great enough as-is, and I think that’s a realization that Eda figured without any divination artifact… If Eda really is so sure of herself, then she can trust the decisions she’s made in the future- Especially since Reset Eda is already leaning heavily towards those beliefs herself!

And Lilith… if Lilith realized that she needed to listen to Eda and trust her, back when they were kids AND when they were older… Then she’s going to have to stop. Because Our Eda and Reset Eda are making it obvious what she’s choosing, and Lilith needs to recognize that while she shouldn’t avoid helping others- Disregarding what people choose for themselves because she thinks it’s best for them, is something that has only caused others and herself pain in the past… It’s something Lilith deliberately tried to avoid for years, even, when she insisted on protecting Eda from the Emperor’s Coven, until the allure of Belos’ cure and his threats got to her. Does Lilith want to erase her progress, her lessons? Obviously there were better ways to learn such wisdom than from cursing her own sister…

But in the end, what’s done is done. If her lessons and development truly stick, then she’ll finally learn to let go when she has every reason and desire, both selfish and altruistic, in the world not to. Because when she realizes she’s fighting her own sister again- Lilith is going to remember how Eda lost her magic because of this. She’s going to remember how much it breaks her heart to be at odds, that Reset Eda WILL hold this against her… And Lilith can’t just be content with losing her sister’s love under the hopes that Eda herself will fare better without her. Just like that fateful ‘duel’ when they were kids, Lilith will realize that she’s really only doing this for herself- And she’ll stop what she’s doing in remorse, because she can’t let history repeat itself in her attempts to undo it.

This would just leave an even stronger impact on Reset/Our Eda when it’s all over… And this kind of respect towards Eda’s autonomy, this final concession of her choices, will really show to Eda that Lilith now truly understands her after all this time, and I think Lilith will have a new future to look forward to with her sister because of this. Eda DOES want to be with her sister, just on her own proper terms… So maybe Lilith can properly provide this happiness for once, and continue to do so! Don’t take it away like last time… Because Eda also cares for Lilith as well and knows she’ll be happier this way, and THAT makes Eda happy in her own way! It’s not hopeless, either- Lilith is sharing the curse, and they’ll do it together as always… Lilith may have hurt Eda in her attempts to be together, but that doesn’t mean separating the two will make them any better or happier- Not when years of loneliness has indicated otherwise.

And I can just imagine Lilith and Luz having a heartfelt, teary goodbye to Reset Eda… Before she casually explains that she’ll still be around when she goes back to normal, she’s just giving up a life that never came back to be, to return to the one she always had! And as I said before… Reset Eda returns to normal, she opens her eyes, and proves that she remembered everything that happened then; And she appreciates how she can affirm her decisions in life, because when given the choice to undo them… Eda decided to keep going through with it, even knowing exactly what laid ahead of her- Maybe even precisely because of this, because look around her! That’s what she’s getting… Eda knows for sure that she wouldn’t change a thing, and it’ll just make her so much more proud and confident of who she is and what she does because of this!

#the owl house #toh #the owl house eda #edalyn clawthorne #toh eda #the owl house lilith #lilith clawthorne #au #speculation #meta

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hopesbarnes · 4 years

Text

Black Swan (1)

Summary: Y/N used to be a Russian spy under the code name Black Swan. But that was a lifetime ago, now she’s a part-time avenger, dance teacher, surrogate sister to Natasha Romanoff, and trainer to new Shield Agents. She’s come a long way from the days of killing targets and being tortured. But when someone from her past comes around will she be able to ignore her history anymore? Or will she end up falling in love with the only man her sister ever loved?

Warnings: None for this chapter

A/N: Here we go againn! This is a edited form of the story I had posted last year. Taglist is open, send an ask

“Bucky is going to be staying here,” Steve says at breakfast that morning. In the same nonchalant tone, he used to say “I’m going on a run’. Not the type of tone to use when announcing a dangerous assassin would be your roommate. You knew what he did wasn’t his fault, out of anyone, you understood this. But he killed without blinking, and his brain is scrambled like an egg. This didn’t make the most stable man, and it definitely didn’t make him safe to be around.

“Steve, is that really a good idea?” Natasha says before you could form the exact same question.

Natalia was your sister, you’ve known her your whole life. You’re not blood-related but related through things much stronger. The two of you were widows. A KGB experiment that stole girls and trained them to be merciless spies. They took your life away and killed anyone too weak to handle the stress. Natalia and you were the only known survivors. She took on the mantle of Black Widow upon graduation, and you took the mantle, Black Swan.

“They took out the programming, he’s not the Winter Soldier anymore,” Steve combats with. “He needs help, and I need to be the one to give it.” He turns and leaves the room after this statement, leaving you and Natasha with no room to debate this fact.

“This is not going to end well” you mumble under your breath, and Nat nods in agreement. Nothing about this screamed ‘good idea’. But then again, they did take in your sister and you.

After breakfast, you head to the gym with Nat for morning workouts. It was never a crazy exercise, just enough to start the day. You head towards the treadmill, and she speaks first.

“I remember him.” She admits softly. You knew the conversation was coming, but like hell did you want to avoid it. “Do you?” The ‘training’ you went through involved wiping, so there were spots in your memory that may never be filled. But James wasn’t one of those.

“Yeah, and I remember how you would talk nonstop about him,” you say teasingly. She throws her towel at you and the two of you break into giggles. A sound most people never dream of hearing from the two of you.

“I was naive then! We were kids,” she says. Kids that never should have gone through what they did.

“I never liked him,” you declare bluntly taking the goofy tone from the room. She exhales loudly.

“I know сестренка (sis). What time is it, don’t you have class today?” She says effectively changing the topic. A trademark of hers.

“It’s at 11, I have two hours and the building is 10 minutes away,” you tell her, even though she knows this information.

“I still don’t get why you teach all those испорченные дети (spoiled children)” she says.

“It’s my way of paying back to the society I guess. I might as well use my dancing skills for good for once.” She nods and you both continue running for a little while longer.

You arrive at the studio 15 minutes before class, which is more than enough to set up the barres and find the right CD for the lesson. The girls slowly start trickling in. It was your senior class so the girls are all teenagers. It’s Saturday which means the girls are here all day long. They stretched, ran through barre work, ate lunch, and then learned their choreography the rest of the time. They were part of a competition team, and put their all into dance. It was always refreshing to see such passion and reinvigorated your love for the sport. It may have lead you down a path that took everything, but it still held your heart.

“Alright girls, take off your street clothes. Barres mean leotards and tights only!” You say in an authoritative teacher voice and they all hurriedly shuffle to their assigned spots. You hit the music count “5,6,7,8-” and they begin their pliés.

Two hours later the class ends and the girls go to their lunch break in a flurry of laughs and gossip. You put the barres back against the wall and join the other teachers for lunch. You’ve been with the studio for close to 5 years now. At first, they were wary of hiring an ex KGB spy, part-time avenger. But there were few people as trained as you, and when word got out that you were teaching, tons of girls signed up for a class with ‘The Black Swan’. Luckily the novelty of your celebrity status wore off with the girls and they stopped asking a hundred questions about the avengers and your past. (They were still obsessed with Natalia though.)

Lunch passes and you’re joined in the room by the girls of your large group. It was the beginning of the season and you had just announced they would be dancing to “Cosmic Love” by Florence and the Machine. They were still giddy with excitement and constantly heard “Miss Y/N Look!” by excited girls showing new ways they could turn or fold in half. The dance would start with three of the girls extending their leg above their head and holding it. You told them the previous week that this week whoever could hold it longest would get to do it in the dance. The girls all got ready before you count down and let them bring their legs up. You hear them all egging each other on and it reminds you of when you were younger before the program.

All but three girls eventually drop their legs and you have to practically shout over their excited squeals. The rest of the time goes by quickly and you have the first part choreographed and the girls seem to have it memorized. You give them all homework to work on their turns and bid them goodbye for the day. Before you can leave two of the girls come up and ask you to choreograph their solos and you agree before shooing them to their parents.

You head back to your apartment in the compound upstate and shower. Your floor consisted of bedrooms for the Nat and you and a shared area in between. There were few people you could tolerate early in the morning and Nat was about the extent of it. You head to the common area upstairs, where everyone gathered.

“The old man give any more information on when he’s bringing him here?” You ask Nat in your native tongue. She’s stretching and watching television.

“Steve left today. Said they’ll be back Monday,” she replies from the straddle she’s sitting in on the floor. “How was the class?”

“Good, started choreographing the large group today. They’re all super excited and want better spots in the dance so they’re trying their best right now.” You smile thinking about the girls all trying to see how long they can hold their tilts. “Two of them asked me to do their solos for them, so I’m a little excited too,” You answer.

“Sometimes a part of me misses the tutus and tights. Then I remember what came with them.” She says in a wistful voice.

“You should come to class with me sometime if you want. I promise they’re not that vile,” you say. “Plus, they’ve been dying to meet you. It’s nothing like our lessons.”

She smiles and says “Maybe.” You join in her stretching and watch the show with her.

Later on, Bruce finds the pair of you chatting while sitting in splits.

“You do know that the body was not designed to bend that way?” he asks.

“It also wasn’t meant to turn big and green. But here we are.” Tasha quipped back. Bruce pointed as if he was going to refute that, but lowered his hand in defeat instead.

“You hear about the new addition? You ask.

“Bucky? Yeah, I never met him,” he says, “But at this point what’s another messed up person who could kill everyone!” He laughs.

“How much do you think he’ll remember?” Nat asks.

“Hard to say. Guess we’ll find out in time.” You and Natasha share a look but go back to talking with Bruce and hope for the best going forward.

Perm Taglist:

@brokenthelovely @inkedaztec @buckysmischief @hailmary-yramliah @poppunkdork @bythebloodofafangirl @gwenvrse @momobaby227 @winterprincess-sky @marvelousmrstark @starstruckpersonearthquake @katshrev

Black Swan Taglist:

@desimarie12 @puddinsqueen @fogfolk @creepylittlemarvelgirl @jennmurawski13

#marvel #bucky barnes #bucky x reader #natasha romanoff #captain america tws #black swan

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