#when it comes to ai i certainly Feel like an old man shaking a stick at computers

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

standing on a chair to avoid ai like its worlds scariest spider

#i feel like i should tag this with 'old man posting' or something #when it comes to ai i certainly Feel like an old man shaking a stick at computers #*mermaid man voice* EEEEEEVILLLLLLL #every time i see one of the people i follow use a character ai or whatever a single tear slides down my face #gonna dig a hole in the ground and live there #my dream of running away to live that recluse life in the mountain wilderness persists #absolutely unprompted #lately every day i wonder which side id take in a sci-fi movie about ai #having an existential crisis over it tbh #am i in the wrong.... am i in the right... is the situation far too nuanced for such binary absolutes.... whos to say

[lady-charinette]

Pro-Hero!Tamaki Amajiki X F!Reader (aged up characters)

Rated: NSFW

Tags: Body worship, Gentle Love Making, Rough sex, Biting, Oral Sex, Dirty Talk, Dom!Tamaki

Heart of a Lion

“Come on Amajiki, you need to have the heart of a lion, not a kitten!”

Nejire’s words had haunted him to this day, despite already working full time at Fatgum’s agency, Tamaki still felt like he was falling short behind the other pros.

Even if Fatgum always tried to…lecture him.

“Straighten up Amajiki! You’re one of our best horses!”

“I’m not a horse…”

“So, stand stall and proud and show ‘em what you got!”

Still, no matter how supportive his teammates and friends were, there were always heroes out there who thought little of him.

“That guy? Will he handle this on his own? What was Fatgum thinking hiring that kid? My five year old son looks tougher!”

“I wonder if his quirk’s as strong as people say, I guess you need to have a strong quirk to make up for that weak spirit.”

Tamaki’s thoughts spiraled deeper and deeper into a dark void, until a gentle hand began running a soothing path through his hair and the voice of an angel reached his ears. “Tama?”

Opening his eyes, the pro-hero glanced up at Y/N, his girlfriend of three years, and smiled wrily. She blinked down at him in concern. “What’s wrong? You look exhausted, dear.” her hand never stopped its ministration on his hair and Tamaki expelled a sigh of relief, body sagging deeper into the bed and the soft suppleness of her thighs.

“….I…I was just…” her other hand sought his own on his chest and squeezed gently, her eyes looking down at him meaningfully.

“It’s alright if you don’t wanna talk about it, you know.” she offered him that soft smile that never failed to breach his defenses and make him feel like what he really was, a skilled pro-hero and a good man.

He wished he could pocket her precious smile, so he would always have it with him when faced with doubts.

With a quickly spreading redness, Tamaki nuzzled his head closer to her stomach and thighs. “I…I just had a rough day. I was…I was made fun of on the field….”

The hand in his hair stopped and Tamaki froze, quickly wrapping his arms around his girlfriend’s middle to stop her from rising off their bed. “W-Wait, Y-Y/N!”

The look she fixated him with spelled of death and torture. “Who were those assholes, dear?” her smile was deceptively sweet, but he’d long since learned not to be fooled by its saccharine quality when the eyes just above spoke of ice and fire.

He shook his head, sitting up to lay his hands on her shoulders and calm her down. “It’s f-fine…They were pro’s I normally don’t work with.” he already knew, as soon as she’d wedge the truth out of Fatgum or Kirishima, there would be a news headline of a woman tearing down two hero agencies and beating up the pro’s who had coincidentally humiliated her boyfriend.

Quirkless.

She sighed, her hands moving to cup his cheeks softly. “No, it’s not fine Tamaki. You’re a pro just like them, I bet you’re even a much better one than them too! Don’t listen to such jerks, they’re just jealous of your talent and your looks and your sunshine personality!” she pouted cutely, a sight that made his heart skip a beat.

Tamaki tried to avert his gaze in fear of his heart bursting, but he couldn’t tear it away no matter how hard he tried.

Still, he relaxed at her words, his hands still resting on her shoulders beginning to rub them gently. The tightly coiled string in his stomach coming loose and relaxing. “M-My looks? S-Sun-Sunshine personality? But Mirio is-”

Y/N shook her head, thumbs affectionately rubbing his cheeks. “Mirio may be the most obvious sunny boy out there, but your beauty lies in its subtlety.”

Subtlety?

At his adorably confused look, his girlfriend smiled softly and giggled. “Mhm. Your sun comes out when you’re out there helping people and fighting off the bad guys, it comes out whenever you’re surrounded by your friends and smiling and laughing. And it comes out when you’re with me and we spend time together. You may be Suneater, but to me, you’ll always be the most beautiful sun out there!” she grinned sheepishly, a shy blush dusting her cheeks.

Tamaki’s face outdid the redness of the crabs he was known to eat before fights, it was even redder than the traffic lights. The indescribable urge to suddenly kiss his girlfriend senseless for saying all these beautiful things about him washed over him and his body shook, trying to suppress it desperately.

She noticed it, eyes glancing at his shaking arms. “Huh? Tama-”

His voice came out more breathless than he thought, an octave or two deeper that made the blush on her own cheeks darken. She rarely heard her boyfriend’s voice go lower than it already was. “W-…Wh-What about…my looks?”

He wasn’t looking at her anymore, but his girlfriend was clever.

The redness of his entire face and ears, the twitching of his whole body, the large hands on her shoulders massaging her gave her a very good idea what her previously innocent praises did to her precious boyfriend.

A small smile curved her lips but she quickly hid it when his intense stare bounced back to her.

Y/N pretended to think, tongue sticking out in thought, smiling internally when his ears looking as red as a clown’s nose. “Hmmm… your looks…let’s see…”

She shifted closer to her boyfriend, her thighs touching his and she noted the small jump with underlying glee. “Well, for starters. You have beautiful hair, dear.” her hand moved back into the messy mane, purposefully scratching her nails along his scalp and brushing it back from his face.

His cheeks glowed.

“Did I mention those cute ears?” she playfully but gently flicked one of the appendages, a startled yelp leaving his trembling lips. Tamaki crossed his legs tightly.

Y/N smiled. “And that adorable nose?” she leaned in to give it a quick peck and to nuzzle her own nose with his, a gesture of affectionate they often traded with each-other whenever her beloved was too shy for a kiss. She giggled, “And those beautiful, intense eyes that just lure me into a trance.” she batted her eyelashes at him and she saw the moment something clicked in her boyfriend’s brain when said eyes finally met her gaze head on.

He swallowed with difficulty, voice thick with an emotion that sent a thrill down her spine. “W-What else?” he squirmed on the spot and her smile widened.

Her finger ran over his lips but she refused to kiss him, only riling him up further. “Those soft sweet lips that always steal my breath.” she smiled adoringly and Tamaki’s gaze softened with affection.

She leaned in again, fingers caressing his face and jaw with a feathery touch. “That strong jaw of yours…” she felt it clench beneath her fingertips and resisted the urge to giggle. They moved lower, caressing his rapidly heating skin.

Her fingers moved over his neck, corded muscles shivering with strain, Adam’s apple bobbing. “Not to forget that neck of yours I have a weakness for…” she couldn’t fight off the grin when she traced his rapid pulse and Tamaki experienced a full body shiver.

She had to give her boyfriend credit, even after three years of being in a relationship, he still sometimes acted as if they were about to experience their first time. But now, his gaze was more focused, startlingly…intense and sharp.

Right at her.

Swallowing thickly, Y/N focused back on her mission. “Did I mention your broad shoulders?” her hands danced over the material of the black bodysuit he still wore from his hero costume, squeezing the iron hard muscles appreciatively. “So strong…” she caught herself, a blush blooming on her face, her hands slowly sliding down his arms, which twitched on her own shoulders still.

They almost had a death grip on her, but not painful, just the nervous, or excited, twitching of his hands. She hummed when her fingers ran over the hard bumps of muscle lining his toned arms, hidden beneath his suit. “Arms that could make any women turn and look twice.” she felt giddy at the nearly panicked look on his face and laughed. “They can look, but none of them can touch like I can.”

That certainly forced a more vocal reaction from him, a strained noise in the back of his throat, a small, short grunt.

His face was burning, throat working overtime and heart beating like a caged hummingbird, the sound of his own blood rushed in his ears that almost drowned out her voice. Almost, but her voice was too sweet to ignore, too entrancing to not fall into its honeyed charm.

Her eyes were knowing, but they turned to look at his torso instead, the definition of hard ridges and bumps outlined by the tight suit shooting heat down her stomach. “The muscles too…” she licked her lips when her fingers greedily ran along the sculpted pecs and abs of her beloved hero, trembling violently beneath her touch.

“Y-Y/N…” his tone was low, strained and if she had given it a second thought, could’ve been a warning.

Her eyes were alight with something mischievous when she spied the reaction she’d gotten from him, her hands running down his firm quivering thighs. “I always liked your legs too, nice and firm.” she flashed a feral smile when her hand dived down and squeezed the firm flesh of his ass, making Tamaki yelp and his face to erupt in a fresh wave of blazing redness. “Mhmm, definitely this too.”

Tamaki’s breath caught in his throat, now impatiently squirming in his spot at being touched that way again after so long. “Y-Y/N, you-you-”

She hummed, her hands moving dangerously close to the bulging tent on his pelvis. “Mhmm, how could I forget…” her hands danced around the area, refusing to touch him yet and Tamaki bit his lips and his hips bucked at the heat her touch sent through his body.

“Y/N….” his voice turned guttural, arms shaking from trying to restrain himself.

Something within him finally snapped when her hand cupped him firmly over the tight material of his bodysuit, his length straining painfully. “Your beautiful thick co-woah!”

Y/N’s eyes flew open when she was suddenly airborne, but giggled when her back met the soft mattress and her highly sensitive, overly worked up boyfriend towered over her with such intense, burning eyes that it made tingles erupt all over her body.

Even when he looked ready to eat her alive he was still patient and considerate to always ask. “Is it ok if-” she answered by pulling his face down to hers and it seemed like Tamaki’s last restraints finally snapped.

Strong arms wound around her immediately, nearly crushing her against his firm chest, erection pressed tightly against her clothed pelvis and the action made her mewl, his cock rubbing over her already leaking cunt.

His kiss was soft before it gained in intensity and her eyes nearly rolled back when he smashed his mouth against hers, stealing her breath and swallowing any moans she had as his hands shakily tried unbuttoning her flannel shirt.

Seeing his hand morph into something not human-like, she narrowed her eyes in warning. “Don’t. You. Dare.” the man above her swallowed, his quirk subsiding before his fingers continued their path down her torso. “You destroyed enough of my clothes that way! Do you know how many panties I-mpfh!”

Her boyfriend’s eagerness seemed to cloud his normal thoughts, he’d have been a cowering mess by now had he not been so turned on by her earlier teasing.

Even if it had been a game to reassure him, to maybe rile him up a bit, she’d meant every single world.

She released a sigh of relief when the first layer of clothes was stripped from both of them, Tamaki’s suit pushed down to his hips, naked skin now in full view to her hungry gaze.

She licked her lips and Tamaki caught the action, leaning back down to kiss her passionately again. Y/N moaned and tugged on his hair, leaning her head back to pant harshly and try to breathe. “T-Tama, you’re-you’re really eager today.” not that she minded, not at all. “Ohhh, dear, yes, just like that Tamaki…mmm…” she moaned when his large hands gently kneaded her breasts, her bra safely discarded onto the floor, thankfully remaining whole.

After the crab claw incident she’d banned him from eating seafood for a whole week.

Fatgum’s suspicious questioning of not eating their daily dose of takoyaki after work was only met by a very red faced stuttering Tamaki.

She squeaked when his fingers lightly pinched her nipple and her face flushed red all the way to her neck at the intense look he leveled her with. “How can I not be, with…with such a b-beautiful girlfriend…” he ran the flat of his tongue around her perked bud, before sucking on it, growling when her fingers tangled into his hair and pulled.

Tamaki tore himself away from her breasts and gave them a gentle, appreciative squeeze, before moving down over her stomach, squeezing the flesh almost possesively.

He suckled on the skin of her hips, leaving behind wet red marks, his fingers quickly worked to remove her pants, his eyes nearly rolling back into his head when her strong musk finally hit him.

Tamaki inhaled deeply, leaning close to her core and Y/N flushed in embarrassment, he didn’t think to-? “T-Tama? W-What are-ahh!” she gasped, body drawn taut and face half buried in the pillow when she felt her boyfriend bury his face against her soaking panties.

The clothing did little to curb his advances, his tongue dipping against the material almost insistently. “Off…” his voice sent shivers down her spine.

“T-Tamaki!” she jumped when he slipped her panties down her legs, discarding them somewhere behind them.

He leaned down and spread her legs, calloused hands roving over them appreciatively with a gentle, caring touch.

Then, he dived in.

Straight for his meal.

A choked cry filled the air and Y/N immediately fisted the bed sheets to keep herself grounded from the way her boyfriend’s tongue plunged into her messy cunt, fingers spreading her folds embarrassingly wide to shove the wet muscle in properly.

Y/N slapped a hand against her mouth, panting harshly into it and trying to tone down her moans. “T-Ta-Tamaaa-k-KI!” her voice squeaked when the tip of his tongue flicked at her clit, making her whole body jump at the sensitive touch.

Her boyfriend did it again, the tips of his ears glowing a bright red, but that didn’t stop him from eating her out like a starved man.

And finally, after her body stopped quaking and shaking violently on the soft mattress, her boyfriend rose from his comfortable perch between her legs, wiping his mouth clean with the back of his hand.

His fingers were still slick from her arousal and she covered her eyes when he licked them absentmindedly, as if forgetting to clean the spoon after eating ice-cream.

“How…h-how was that?” his voice was low, breathless, chest heaving with deep breaths.

She peeked up at him from between her fingers, face still red, but her lips curved into a satisfied smile. “That was great Tama!! I loved it!” she grinned cheekily, until she suddenly felt his hands settle on her thighs.

Her eyes shot to his face faster than the speed of light and she froze at the intense look he leveled her with. “R-Really?” she could see his previously shattered confidence slowly building back up and mentally gave herself a pat on the back.

Until his hands gently spread her legs apart. “Is…is this okay?” blushing to the roots of his hair, Tamaki swallowed thickly, his own arousal throbbing painfully in need.

Y/N wrapped her legs loosely around his hips, further opening herself up to him, her eyes hooded and dark when they leveled him with a look that could bring him to his knees if he hadn’t been already. “More than okay.”

He exhaled shakily, fingers trembling atop her warm skin and Y/N’s hands covered his shaky ones trying to unbuckle his belt. She smiled impishly at him. “Let me sweetie. Why don’t you…lie down?” at the hint of nervousness and doubt that came creeping back onto his face, she leaned in close to his ear, biting the pointed appendage gently. “Suneater.”

Her voice was molten honey and early mornings with laughter and cuddles, it was dripping with want and love.

All for him.

Just for him.

You aren’t the things they say you are.

Tamaki realized Y/N whispered the words herself, eyes focused on his meaningfully. Hands cupping his face affectionately.

The pro-hero fell silent, in awe at his girlfriend’s strength and unrivaled support and belief in him. It filled his chest with pride for being able to love and cherish someone like her and a sense of peace to know she was one wall that would never crumble, even if he himself crumbled.

Overwhelmed with his own feelings, he switched their position faster than she blinked.

His back met the bed and her weight settled on his thighs, hands working to undo his pants and underwear and push them down to free his length.

His gaze was adoring when he looked up at her. “I-I love you Y/N.” she’d only seen the man as confident as he was now on three instances.

When he was fighting villains, talking about his friends…

Or professing his love to her.

Fighting back the sting in her eyes, she leaned down to share a deep kiss with her boyfriend, their hips gently rocking against each-other.

It seemed like an eternity before Tamaki’s hand moved down to gently rub at her clit, causing her to jump and release a high pitched cry. “Oh-oh-oh-oh! T-Tama please!”

It wasn’t that it happened often, it wasn’t that she didn’t love the shy aspect of her boyfriend, but the look he gave her was definitely not that of her innocent shy Tamaki.

It was almost feral.

“Do…you want me Y/N?” she bit her lip, nearly hard enough to break the skin and she whimpered when he ran the tip of his weeping cock along her slick folds. “Where do you want me?”

Her boyfriend did a complete 180, the low guttural voice sending shivers down her spine, the thrill of knowing her good boy Tamaki was buried underneath that positively dominant male under her. “I-Inside Tama.” she would’ve covered her face in embarrassment at his intense look had it not been for her need.

“I-Inside?” his jaw clenched, fragile control already fraying at the seams as he rubbed at her sensitive flesh again. “…Here?”

She gripped his hips, fingers digging into the tough flesh, a groan leaving the depths of her throat. “Y-Yes Tamaki plea-ahh!”

It made her back arch like a bow when she felt her boyfriend’s thick cock stretch her walls, sharp pleasurable tingles shooting from her pelvis all the way up her back and arms.

It was exhilarating.

His harsh pants met her neck, hot breaths of air that made her dizzy with the strong thrusts into her core. She wrapped her arms around her boyfriend to anchor herself, trying to muffle her groans and shrieks into the pillow.

Tamaki leaned forward, lifting her legs up even more towards her torso and pushing deeper, to suckle on her neck. Y/N moaned loudly, nails clawing at his shoulders.

His low grunts and moans filled her ears and fueled her own impending orgasm, legs locking tightly around his trim hips before a particularly hard thrust made her see white behind closed eyes.

Y/N cried out, spasming and seizing up when her release washed over her, her boyfriend slowing his thrusts to near to non-existent bucks of the hips, just bucking between her shaking thighs gently.

Both adults panted, Tamaki still hard within her, the flutters and squeezes around his cock making him close his eyes.

They flew open when a soft hand met his heaving chest and Y/N’s glazed over eyes met his. Tamaki leaned down and captured her lips in a soft kiss, the complete opposite of their intensity before as he softly began rocking his hips back into her when she moved.

Y/N whimpered, still sensitive, but craving and wanting her boyfriend to finish. Tamaki ran his hands down her sides, gently squeezing the flesh of her breasts and cupping her face to kiss her lovingly.

His thrusts were deep and slow, drawing out the heat he felt that simmered just below his navel and her second orgasm.

This one was slow, less animalistic and more quiet. Tamaki’s long drawn out groan drowned out her own soft whimpers and cries of his name.

The couple shared a long kiss, their bodies slowly coming down from their highs.

Tamaki panted heavily, nuzzling into her neck and kissing the forming bruises apologetically, fingers gently gliding over the various bite marks.

Y/N giggled, a hoarse sound, before her hands lovingly stroked his messy hair.

Comfortable silence followed their afterglow, Tamaki gently removing himself to lay beside her and cradle her tenderly to his chest. She giggled, shaking her head at the plethora of emotions she could pull out of her shy boyfriend.

Tamaki’s own hand glided through her hair and down her back, grabbing the blanket to cover them from the cold air creeping over their sweaty skin. “So…are you still feeling inadequate?”

She laughed when she glanced at the bright red ears and cheeks of her boyfriend, who cleared his throat and ducked his head shyly, as if the events prior hadn’t even happened. “N-No…t-thanks to you.” his smile was soft and sweet, melting her heart.

Y/N nuzzled her nose with his, grinning. “You know Tamaki, if you’re ever feeling inadequate again, just tell me!” she winked and the action sent a shiver rushing down his spine. “Oh! I know, what about showing the other heroes how awesome you are if we do it in your office-”

Tamaki’s eyes widened in horror. “Y-Y/N n-not-not in the office!!” her shy boyfriend covered his face in embarrassment at the prospect.

There were Fatgum and Kirishima and all the other heroes. It would bring so much shame! He wouldn’t- he couldn’t-!

Laughter filled his ears and he felt Y/N’s arms wrap around his middle and her lips press a soft kiss to his forehead.

Bonus:

“What’s the matter, Suneater? I’m surprised you’re not in your chicken form from how well I can see those feathers ruffling!” one of the pro heroes shared a laugh with his colleague for the joke.

Tamaki, dressed in full hero costume and dusting himself off after a successful villain apprehension, glanced at them.

You aren’t the things they say you are.

You need to have the heart of a lion, not a kitten!

The pro’s laughed amongst themselves, until a sudden strong gust of wind knocked them off to the ground. “What the-!”

Wings larger than the size of Hawk’s own blocked the sun from sight, deep shadows falling on the pale faces of the two heroes, who looked up at the towering form of Suneater himself.

Tamaki’s wings spanned wide, taking up space for himself, sharp talons cracking the concrete beneath his feet. The black claws seemed larger than one of the pro hero’s hands and both men froze when Suneater spoke in a low tone, his sharp stare piercing right through them.

“Maybe you didn’t catch my hero name,” the two heroes were unable to tear their gaze away from the man glaring down at them, despite the shot of fear rushing down their spines. “But I’m Suneater and you’re in my way.”

#tamaki x reader #tamaki amajiki #tamaki amajiki smut #tamaki smut #bnha tamaki #smut #smut fic #bnha smut #mha smut #tamaki amajiki x reader #amajiki tamaki #aged up characters #boku no hero academia #my hero academia #mha fic #bnha fic

[gasolineghuleh]

Papa ii

The first of three chapters commissioned by @comehitherclawhammer of ii, iii, and Copia cumming a little too soon.

It takes some work, but you manage to extricate your stockinged foot out of your solid black pump without alerting the sharp and quick witted attention of the second Papa Emeritus, your dinner partner for the evening. About two bites into the main course of your meal is when you decide to make your move, inching your foot across the soft carpeted floor of the restaurant util you feel his pointed Italian leather shoe. His eyebrow arches as he points a fork at you.

“I told you to wait.” He shakes his head and returns to his meal, taking a sip of the wine at his side. When his eyes slip closed, enjoying the tastes, you strike. Your foot slides up his calf to rest on his lap, your toes pressing just gently against the soft curve of his balls nestled in his suit pants. “Ai! Sister! What did I say?”

“I don’t want to wait, Papa,” you say with a delicate smile on your lips. He frowns at you again and you waiver for a second, silently convincing yourself to go along with the plan. If it worked, you were bound to come into some money from that bet that Sister Catherine made… 

“What if I said to wait until the car, instead of the room?” he asks, enticing you with the promise of sex sooner rather than later. Still, you persist. You tilt your head from side to side and chew your lip, feigning thought.

“No,” you say simply. You scoot your chair a little closer to the table and move your foot along the rapidly hardening length of his shaft, caressing it with the arch of your foot as you would with your palm. “I think I would rather sink to my knees below this table, down onto this beautiful carpet and take you into my mouth. Get something good for dessert. Don’t you think that sounds magnificent, Papa?”

“You little she-devil,” he grumbles, stabbing at his food a little harder than necessary. You stick your tongue out at him and flex your toes, squeezing his cock slightly and laughing when he jumps in his seat. “At this rate, you’re going to wind up being punished and not getting what you want at all.” 

“I think I’ll still get what I want.” You lean forward, pressing your upper arms to either side of your chest to push your breasts out more, watching Papa’s eyes widen as they threaten to spill over the top of your bra. “You’ve said it yourself Papa— you can’t resist me when I’m ‘up to no good’. Would it really be such a bad thing to just give in and let me have what I want? Just this once?” 

“Yes,” he states flatly. You almost stop, then— the dull anger in eyes just enough to worry you about what may happen if you go through with your plan. But the chance to possibly take control of your bitter old man excites you more than the alternative, and you move your foot along him again. You barely notice it when his eyelids droop a little, but you certainly notice the low groan that leaves his lips when you continue your pushing and pulling. 

“How is everything my dears?” The waitress floats by your table with an armful of menus and silverware, giving both of you an appreciative look before turning her eyes to your plates. “Sir, is everything alright? You’ve barely touched the meat!” You stifle a laugh as you press your toes to the base of Papa’s cock, tossing him a quick wink and taking a sip of your wine as you manipulate him. 

“Yes, yes, it’s wonderful. My companion here has proved so interesting, I’ve forgotten to eat! The charms of a woman, si?” Papa turns to the waitress and gives her a conspiratorial wink and watches as her face flushes pink momentarily. 

“Well that’s just about the sweetest thing, my Lord. God in Heaven, a perfect gentleman. I’ll be right back with your check, okay?” The waitress shuffles away in a hurry, muttering to herself about how difficult it was to find a nice man nowadays.

“Oh, if only she knew how much of a gentle man you actually are, Papa.” You place some emphasis on the word gentle, and cock an eyebrow, knowing he understood your reference when he rolls his eyes at you. “How nice you treat me when we’re alone… Perhaps with the kiss of a leather glove, or the strike of a crop…” You trail off, bringing your other foot up now, caressing the other side of his cock. 

“Fuck,” he hisses, jolting in his seat at the sensation. “Sister, I’m warning you-”

“Warn away, Papa. What did you say to me once? I’m incredibly hard to discourage once an idea is in my head. Tenacious! That’s the word you said!” You snap and press harder with the arch of your feet, cupping his cock and rolling his balls with your stockinged toes. “I love to see an end to things… The big finale! The final—” Papa cuts you off with a hiss as he leans towards you, but you can tell it’s affecting him. 

“You think you can do this without something coming to you? Perhaps when we return, I show you what it feels like to be forced to cum when you—” He cuts himself off this time, one leather gloved hand flying to the edge of the table and gripping it tightly as he bites his lower lip. His hips thrust against you, and you can feel the pulse of his cock as he cums in his suit pants. 

“Perhaps you should, Papa,” you say, taking the last bite of your meal off of your fork daintily as you slide your feet back into your pumps. The waitress slides by once more and drops you a wink as she slides the checkbook over towards Papa. She floats away as quickly as she came, leaving you with the scent of floral perfume. 

“Perhaps, then, I shall.” Papa lowers his eyebrows sternly at you as he signs the bill with a flourish, standing and wrapping his robe around himself quickly. “Get to the car, Sister.” When you pass him, he slaps at your ass covertly and you hop a little bit, hurrying out to the car in an attempt to suppress your giggles. 

#lorraine writes #asks #hcs #fics #ns/fw #ghost bc #the band ghost #ghost #papa emeritus #papa emeritus ii #papa emeritus 2 #secondo

[wiypt-writes]

Stark Spangled Banner

Ch24: Like The Old Man Said…Together. Part 2- Walk It Off

Summary: The Avengers track Ultron and it’s a race against time before the AI can put his plan into action.

Pairing: Steve Rogers x OFC Katie Stark

Warnings: Bad language, Smut (NSFW) violence and crazy assed robots. Oh and “Something dramatic, I hope!”

A/N: This chapter now includes additional content! @angrybirdcr​ has done it again girrrrrl

Disclaimer: This is a pure work of fiction and classified as 18+. Please respect this and do not read if you are underage. I do not own any characters in this series bar Katie Stark and the other OCs. By reading beyond this point you understand and accept the terms of this disclaimer.

Chapter 24 Part 1

Stark Spangled Banner Masterlist // Main Masterlist

“Ultron knows we’re coming. Odds are we’ll be running into heavy fire, and that’s what we signed up for, but the people of Sokovia they didn’t. That’s why our priority is getting them out. All they want is to live their lives in peace, and that’s not going to happen today. But we can do our best to protect them and get the job done. We find out what Ultron’s been building. We find Romanoff. We clear the field and keep the fight between us. Ultron thinks we’re monsters, and that we’re what’s wrong with the world, but this isn’t just about beating him, it’s about whether he’s right.“

Steve certainly felt like he was right when he descended down the ramp and the first thing he saw was a huge mural of himself on a wall to his right. If he hadn’t been so concerned with the word, ‘fašista’ scrawled across it, he might have given some consideration to the fact the art work was pretty good. He looked at the painting, before turning and tossing his helmet back into the jet, almost hitting Katie as she walked down the ramp. Frowning she looked at him, spotted the paining and gave a sigh. She knew that would have upset him.

But whether they liked Captain America or not, the people of Sokovia were getting his help and that of the rest of the Avengers too. Thor and Bruce went underground to Strucker’s base to find Natasha and the Vibranium, Tony and Vision went off to locate where Ultron was and confront him so that Vision could do his part. The rest of them focussed on the evacuation, if this was going to end in a fight as it always did, then it was best to get the civilians out of the way as soon as possible. Steve dispatched Clint to a rooftop to oversee events from up there and Katie headed off with Wanda to the bridge that led out of the city. She could feel the younger girl’s panic even though she did well to try and hide it

"Do you see…the beauty of it? The inevitability. You rise, only to fall. You, Avengers, a meteor. My swift and terrible sword. And the earth will crack with the weight of your failure. Purge me from your computers, turn my own flesh against me. It means nothing. When the dust settles, the only thing living in this world will be metal.”

They seemed to be fighting forever, and Sokovia was getting higher and higher. Just as everything seemed lost and the group looked to be faced with an impossible decision after Tony pointed out that the only thing he could think about was blowing the city before the impact radius got too big. Steve was adamant he was not leaving the city with one civilian on it, when Katie smiled sadly and turned to him.

“I didn’t say we should leave.” She swallowed, and she could feel Natasha looking at her as well from where she stood on her right. Katie turned to Steve, as he looked down at her “There’s worse ways to go.” she said responding to his silent question, her chest heaving resigning herself to the fact that they might not make it out of this alive, surprised the thought didn’t frighten her more at that point.

“She’s right,” Natasha agreed, and Katie turned to look at her. She shrugged and nodded out at the clouds “Where else are we gonna get a view like this?”

“Glad you like the view, Romanoff.”  All three of them started at the very familiar voice that came through the coms. “It’s about to get a whole lot better.”

That’s when the helicarrier came right into view and Katie smiled, her eyes filing with emotion as she felt the relief swell in her chest.

“So this is your ‘something dramatic’?” She quipped and Fury gave a hum of confirmation.

“Nice, right? Pulled her out of mothballs with a couple of old friends. She’s dusty.” Nick Fury said nonchalantly. “But she’ll do.”

Katie looked round and noticed that Pietro had joined us, looking at the ship.

“Fury, you son of a bitch.” Steve spoke in almost a whisper while shaking his head.

Fury let out a whistle before responded to Steve teasingly. “Ohhh hooo, you kiss your mother with that mouth?”

Their fight led them to protecting the Vibranium Core that was situated in a church which was in the dead centre of the City and of course Ultron followed them. As The Avengers surrounded their precious charge, Thor yelled out to the AI.

“Is that best you can do?”

Ultron picked his hand up, and what seemed like a million robots began to advance towards them.

Katie groaned, and looked at Steve as he turned to look at Thor, annoyance all over his face. “You haddda ask.” He deadpanned, his Brooklyn accent coming out as it often did in these situations, and Thor at least had the decency to look sheepish.

“This is the best I can do.” Ultron continued on. “This is exactly what I wanted. All of you against all of me. How can you possibly hope to stop me?”

“Well, like the old man said,” Tony stated, and Steve turned to look at him over his shoulder, “together.”

Hulk then let out a loud roar as the swarm of robots attacked.

The robots began running into the church by the hundreds it seemed, but everyone was ready. Arrows, fists and Steve’s shield flew, repulsors, guns and shock sticks fired, speed and red tendrils of power ripped them apart from the inside, lighting flashed and the Hulk smashed. Eventually Ultron joined the fray and Vision flew at him. Ultron punched Vision into the wall but he retaliated by using the mind stone in his forehead to shoot at Ultron making him stagger back and out of the church.

Vision didn’t let up as Thor, Tony and Katie joined the android with lightening and repulsor beams respectively. The Starks surged their arms forward, unloading all the power they had in their suits and the 4 of them combined melted away the outer layer of Vibranium that covered Ultron, which was when they stopped. He could be taken out easily now.

“You know, with the benefit of hindsight – ” Ultron began to say but Hulk roared then punched him so hard he went flying across the city.

Hulk growled at the remaining robots who immediately turned and ran away.

“They’ll try to leave the city.” Thor called out.

“We can’t let them, not even one.” Tony spoke frantically, calling on their other eye in the sky. “Rhodey…”

“I’m on it!” He announced over the radio. “Oh no, I didn’t say you could leave…War Machine coming at you.” there was a pause as Vision flew in to help, phasing and ripping one of them apart “Ok, what?”

“We gotta move out.” Steve spoke as those of them left on the ground re-grouped. “Even I can tell the air is getting thin. You guys get to the boats. I’ll sweep for stragglers…”

“I’ll come with you.”  Katie said. For some reason she didn’t want to leave him, or more to the point him to leave her.  Steve looked at her, and he understood, he really did. If there was a chance they were getting separated he really didn’t want to take it but he wanted her on that carrier, away.

“You go and make sure everyone gets out. I’ll be right behind you, I promise.”

He’d never broken a promise to her yet, so she took a deep breath and nodded.

“What about the core?” Clint asked while turning to look at it.

“I’ll protect it.” Everyone turned to Wanda, giving her a worried look. “It’s my job.” She clarified nodding to Clint. Clint inclined his head towards her, before he turned to leave.

“Nat.” He said as Steve started to usher everyone bar Wanda out of the church. I threw one last glance over at Wanda before Katie turned to Steve.  

“Be careful.” “I always am.” He grinned.

“Liar.” She muttered watching him go, before she took off again, looking down at the devastation on the ground below. This was far worse than New York. Far worse than Washington. It was horrendous, and Katie wasn’t sure how the people of Sokovia would ever recover.

Clint skidded the car he had been driving to a halt by the lifeboats and Katie landed besides them. There was a roar and she glanced to her left, noticing the huge form of the Hulk throwing around debris of the various robots.

“We don’t have a lot of time.” Clint looked at Natasha meaningfully.

“So get your ass on a boat.” She shot back, jumping out of the car.

Clint and Katie then set off, ushering the last civilians around them onto the last boat as they went. Katie spotted Thor stood a little to her left, his head turned over to his right as Steve appeared from inside a building.

“Thor, I’m gonna need you back at the church.” Tony said over the coms.

Thor nodded despite the fact that he couldn’t see Tony and then looked at Steve, breathing heavily. "Is that the last of them?” He asked him.

“Yeah,” He answered instead, quickly looking around at the evacuations taking place, spotting Katie and Clint boarding the boat “Everyone else is on board the carriers.”

“You know, if this works, we maybe don’t walk away.” Tony mutterd quietly, cutting Katie out of the coms temporarily so as not to worry or upset her.

“Maybe not.” Thor agreed in a whisper.

At that point Clint sprinted back past them, but before either of them had time to follow him to help a hail of gunfire suddenly erupted where they standing. Steve held his shield up just in time and Thor dived to the side to avoid the bullets that had luckily been fired in a straight line between them all.

But it was Katie who noticed first what had happened. As the dust settled she saw Clint stood, with a little boy in his arms. He’d clearly tried to shield him from the bullets but it was Pietro that was standing there with bullet holes riddling his torso, the blood seeping through them.

“No.” She muttered her pleading growing more frantic as she flew over to where they were stood “No, no, no.”

“You didn’t see that coming?” The blonde man attempted to joke weakly then wobbled before falling face first and Katie caught him as she landed, just before he hit the ground. She laid him down gently and looked him over.

“FRIDAY, life signs.”

“Negative.” The AI’s voice was tinged with sadness.

Katie bowed her head slightly before my face plate slid back and she looked up at Clint. The pair of them exchanged a glance before Steve knelt down and closed Pietro’s eyes.

“I’ve got him.” He said gently, as he bent down and picked up Pietro as easily as if he was a small child. The three of them headed back to the airship, Clint with the little boy in his arms. Once on board, Steve lay Pietro down gently on the floor, where Katie sat by him, her suit making a clunk as she slid to the floor. Clint groaned as he lowered himself onto the row of seats behind her. Someone walked over to see if they needed any medical help but Clint waved him away.

“No, no I’m fine.” He groaned, lying down across a few seats, his hand resting on the metal shoulder of Katie’s suit. “Oh it’s been a long day…”

Steve stood on the rock for one final look round, he couldn’t see anyone. But then, with a lurch the city fell with huge force and he turned and gave a jump, grabbing onto the platform of the ship as the city fell.  He pulled himself up onto the deck and stood up to see, lightning flashing from the sky. As he watched, the city of Sokovia exploded from the inside out crumbling to pieces and raining down heavily into the ocean below.

He turned to see Katie was stood a few feet away, looking down.

“Tony? Thor? Wanda?”

When none of them replied she looked over Steve, biting her lip.

“They’ll be okay.” He nodded, although he wasn’t sure if he was trying to convince her or himself.

There was a slight lurch as the ship they were stood on docked with the hellicarrier and they turned to help Clint but he was already walking, carrying the body of Pietro with him. Katie jumped down onto the tarmac, deactivated her suit and made her way over to Maria Hill who was stood with another agent, directing them where to take the walking wounded, medics running onto the ships to deal with the more seriously injured in situ.

“You guys alright?” She asked as they walked over to her. Katie nodded and then spoke again into her coms. It was a relief to see Wanda’s red hair sat on the deck a few yards away from one of the ships, Vision having pulled her out of the city in time.

“Any news from the others?” Steve asked. Maria sighed.

“Natasha is on the bridge, Banner, I mean the Hulk, he got her out in time but…he went off in a jet after Ultron…I got nothing from Thor or Tony…”  

Katie turned to look out over the sky, the airborne dust making her cough slightly as she scanned the clouds, waiting for a sign or anything from her brother.

“He’ll be fine.” Steve dropped a hand onto her shoulder. “He always is.” “One day he won’t be.” She turned and looked up to face Steve

“Maybe, but that aint today…” A familiar voice rang in her ear and she let out a sigh of relief as her brother spoke. “Kiddo, put the beer on ice, I think we just won again.”

*****

Refugees crowded every corner of the flying base, sitting in the halls, huddling together, terrified. The dust in the air meant SHIELD couldn’t connect to their mainframe or satellites, and the internet-based translators were down. Every person on board who knew even a smattering of any Slavic language was being recruited into helping settle the homeless Sokovians.

Fury was meeting via telecon in one of the conference rooms with the Sokovian political leaders, who were not pleased at being dragged from their homes in Novi Grad in the wee hours of the morning only to then watch their nation destroyed. So with Fury busy, Steve and Katie had to tell Tony about Bruce.

That hadn’t been fun at all. Her brother had struggled back to the helicarrier, with barely enough power left to make the landing, Thor hot on his tail, soaked to the skin and staggering with a nasty head wound. Steve helped him inside where he was led to a medic bay and they had all retreated to the comms room where Nat was stood in a corner, staring at a blank screen.

“Where’s Bruce?” Tony demanded as soon as he got his helmet off. “We’ve got to figure out…” He trailed off, seeing the expression on Katie’s face. Then his eyes flashed across to Natasha. The woman hadn’t moved a muscle in ten minutes, standing in a corner and staring straight at the wall, back to the rest of the room.

“Tony.” Steve’s voice was heavy. “He’s taken off. We can’t reach him.” “And I don’t think he wants us to.” Katie added. She had barely finished her sentence before Tony bolted across the room to the computer banks, heedlessly shucking off bits of his armour as he went.

“No.” He shook his head, fingers flying across the keyboards. “No, I can find him. I can do this, I can bring him home.”

“It was cloaked.” Natasha’s voice was very even, with absolutely no inflection. She didn’t stop staring at her wall. “Your own cloaking devices. And SHIELD’s secret tracker was disabled in the fight.”

Tony’s hand slipped, hitting a bunch of things Steve was sure he hadn’t meant to. Swearing hopelessly, he stared blankly at the useless screens.

“Why?” He demanded, very quietly, the furious brokenness in his voice made my heart ache for him. “Why would he…?”

The unfinished question hung heavy in the dusty air. Steve was the one who answered.

“Because,” he said, swallowing. “When you’re in the air, and you’re carrying something that will destroy everything you love, that’s all you can do. You do go down, and you take it down with you.”

Tony’s hands curled into fists, anguish in his snarl. “This isn’t the same as your golden boy sacrifice play, Cap. No bombs on that Quinjet.”

“No, no bombs.” Steve gently squeezed Katie’s shoulder as he noticed she’d been about to chastise her brother for his venomous jibe, and he shook his head softly as he dragged his gloves back on over his bruised and bloody knuckles, flexing his hands. “Just himself,” he finished quietly.

“Veronica failed, Tone.” Katie said gently, understanding at once what Steve was getting at, Bruce’s actions suddenly making sense. “He didn’t want to come to Sokovia and I guess, well he didn’t want to risk hurting anyone again, and he saw a way out.”

Natasha turned on her heel and pushed past them, her eyes wet as she made for the door.

“Nat.” Katie turned to watch her go. She shook her head, signalling she wanted to be alone as she left. Katie looked up at Steve who hung his head sadly.

But there wasn’t time to think on it. Fury arrived at that moment, clearly pissed at something. He explained to the group that after the explosion that tore Ultron’s plans to shreds, he had been set to take the helicarrier to a refugee camp in a nearby country but the Sokovian officials had refused, insisting they be set back down in what was left of Novi Grad. Steve nodded and told Fury to do as they wanted.

“This wouldn’t have happened if it hadn’t been for us.” Steve’s jaw was set, and his arms folded. “We owe it to them Fury, like it or not.”

Fury hadn’t liked it, at all, but he didn’t have much say in the matter - not when Steve had that look on his face.

“This isn’t going to be nice.” Steve muttered as the pod had descended back to the ground.

“I know.” Katie said. “But we face it together, right?”

Together they strode off the pod, not really knowing where to start. Novi Grad was an absolute mess. Most of the city had been torn up by the roots, and the rim that was left hadn’t escaped unscathed either. Buildings had toppled from falling debris and the initial ground-shaking wrench. Water and electricity were out, phone lines were down, and the streets were clogged with cars and people. Children choked on the thick air as parents tied whatever cloth they could find around tiny mouths, trying to protect their lungs.

It was thankless, numbing work. Most of the civilians avoided them, casting wary glances out of the corner of their eyes. A few swore or spat, some cried, but after a while it began to get difficult as a particular group started to get violent, screaming as they threw things at the four Avengers. It didn’t cause much damage to the Nova or Iron Man suits, but the rocks soon started getting bigger. Katie heard a yell and turned to her left to see Steve stumbling forward, hand clamped over the back of his head. He fell to his knees and Katie moved over to him, dropping besides him.

“Shit.” He mumbled as she heard Thor give a roar.

“Let me see.” Katie looked at him and Steve winced, shaking his head.

“I’m fine.” He got to her feet, hand still clutching at the back of his head.

Katie glanced up at Tony, who had completely lost his patience.

“Ungrateful brats,” he snapped loudly after the young hooligans who had immediately scarpered after Thor’s show of anger. “Look, why don’t you head back to the carrier, see what the next step is?”  Tony curled his gauntlet clad hand over Steve’s shoulder as his face plate retracted. Katie looked at her brother, thankful for his suggestion.

Steve shook his head, but even as she did so she saw him sway a little.

“Sweetheart, you’re bleeding.” She whispered gently, and he looked at his hand. “At least let’s clean you up.”

Steve didn’t want to go, but he gave into her as she whispered “Please.”

“Five minutes,” he relented at last, and allowed her to lead him away.

*****

As Katie shed her suit, Steve sat on a chair in one of the hellicarrier kitchens, one of the few rooms that wasn’t being used as a makeshift hospital or treatment bay. There were no spare medics so Katie grabbed some gauze, antiseptic and a couple of steri-strip bandages. He would heal pretty fast anyway.

“You know you should have had your helmet on.” She said gently, suddenly realising he hadn’t had it on for the entire time they had been in Sokovia having tossed it back on the jet when he saw the graffiti picture of himself when they first landed. He shrugged and didn’t reply, but he flinched hard when Katie lightly touched the lump at the back of his head.

“Sorry…” she said gently as he waved away her apology, head bent as she cleaned the blood off his hair.

“Doesn’t hurt as much as what they were calling me.” He mumbled, and Katie paused.

“Which was what? I didn’t hear them.”

“Fašista.” He shrugged. “Fascist.” His shoulders slumped and sudden angry tears stung at Katie’s eyes, but she blinked them back and swallowed the hot anger swelling in her throat. This was a man who had put his life on the line countless times to fight the very things that people were calling him. She leaned forward, slipping my arms around his neck, connecting them in front of his chest as she bent to lay her face against his cheek.

“At the risk of sounding like an old man, everybody’s so young these days,” Steve said at last as he turned his head to face her “Has it all been forgotten, or have I really become…?”

Katie cut him off, her eyes on his, faces inches apart. “They’ve forgotten,” she assured him firmly. “You know those people, they can’t begin to imagine how things were back then. I find it hard at times and that’s after you told me so much. We never lived through it, never knew what it was like. History books and lessons can only do so much, Love.”

Steve’s fingers laced between hers. “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it,” he whispered heavily.

"But that’s why there are people like us, people like you. You will always remember, and because you do, you help us do our best to keep the rest of them safe.”

She pressed a gentle kiss to his lips before she straightened up and continued to tend to the wound on his head. It wasn’t as deep as it had looked and was already starting to heal. She checked to make sure there were no fragments of the brick left behind and when she was satisfied she dropped the bloodied gauze into a bin and turned to face him.

"I shouldn’t have taken Banner.” He said, and Katie took a deep breath “I knew he was low, but he said he wanted to come, he wanted to help find Nat.”

“You can’t blame yourself for his choice,” Katie reminded him. “He’s a grown man…” Steve didn’t say anything more about it, instead he stood up and took a deep breath. “Come on, let’s go see what’s happening.”

*****

It took almost two days for relief services to arrive at Sokovia. Steve felt dirty, tired and desperate for a hot shower and his own bed and he wasn’t alone. None of The Avengers had changed in 2 days. All their extra equipment had gone on the missing Quinjet with Bruce, including the change of civilian clothing everyone tried to keep on hand. But their discomfort paled into insignificance when he glanced over at Wanda as they landed at the tower. Katie guided her up to the spare room, ensured she had what she needed and then instructed her if she needed anything else, all she had to do was ask Friday, who would contact her immediately. Wanda nodded and Katie left her to be a lone for a while.

When Katie got back to her floor Steve was already in the shower, and the bed had never looked so inviting, which was why she couldn’t wait to get into it. Stripping off her filthy cat suit and her underwear she walked into the bathroom which was filled with steam and stepped into the shower behind Steve, her hands straying round to the front of his chest and she pressed a kiss to the back of his shoulder, laying her head against his back. He didn’t flinch, he simply grasped her hands in his, pulling her closer and dipped his head slightly as she nuzzled into his shoulder, the grime from the last few days whirling down the plug hole as the water rained down on them. Without speaking, Katie grabbed his shampoo, and gently as she could massaged at his hair. Steve gave a soft moan, relishing at the feel of her nails on his scalp, happy to bliss out for a moment. He turned to face his future wife, tipping his head back to rinse his hair off and smiled tiredly as he dropped his head to kiss her softly.

“Turn round.” He said gently, and she did as she was told as his hands wound into her hair, repaying the favour. She leaned back into his touch, the intimate moment also serving as a perfect relaxer so much so that she didn’t object when things started to get a bit heated. This was always how things went with them both, they sought solace in one another, the physical relief of losing themselves with someone they loved was how they coped, how they stayed grounded, reminded themselves that they weren’t alone.

His hands travelled down her body, her back pressed to his chest as his fingers reached between her legs, finding her spot. She moaned, arching back into him as his other hand caressed her breast, his arousal pressing into the lower part of her back and she lazily rolled her head to catch his mouth. As the hot water cascaded down onto them he took her to the brink before he spun her round and lifted her easily, pressing her back onto the cool tiles. He thrust into her without warning and she groaned, her hands gripping his shoulders as he began to pump in and out, his head falling to her collar bone as he gave a soft nip. With each roll of his hips Katie felt her pleasure beginning to mount, soft moans falling from her lips as she dropped her head to his shoulder, the feeling in her stomach beginning to overwhelm her.

“Look at me, Doll” he said gently, and she opened her eyes, emerald gems locking onto his as he saw her mouth open, lips part in a soft cry as she came, a deeper groan bubbled over in her throat and her  head slid backwards. Steve would never get tired of seeing her like that, ever. It was the most arousing thing in the world to him. His pace began to quicken and he followed shortly, the tight bands in his stomach snapping as he pressed her harder against the wall as he rode out his release.

When they had finally finished in the shower the pair of them were almost dead on their feet. They dried off, Katie shucked on one of Steve’s T-shirts and clambered into bed with him. Neither had any idea what time of day it was but neither cared, the blackout blinds sent the room into darkness. Katie lay her head on Steve’s chest, his hand slid up the cotton of his shirt and he gently ran his fingers up and down her spine.

He managed to do it about twice before the pair of them were out for the count.

***** They both had nightmares that night. Katie woke first, gasping for air as she relived the moment on that rock where she had thought for one horrible moment they were done for, until Fury had shown up. After getting her a glass of water, Steve had held her until she’d fallen asleep, waked from a bad dream which, for some reason didn’t seem to take him anywhere near Sokovia. Instead, he was back at that moment he plunged into the ice.

And the dreams continued for them both for the next few nights. Katie’s were always the same, but Steve’s persistently catapulted back in time to various points during the war. It was unnerving for him but mostly, they were just that, bad dreams…until one night, for the first time he could remember, he suffered a full scale hallucinating night terror. 

Having actually managed to sleep soundly so far that evening, the first Katie knew something was wrong was when Steve was pinning her down against the mattress and shielding her from something.

“Steve.” She croaked gently, blinking the sleep from her eyes. He didn’t respond other than to simply flatten himself against her further, right arm curled around her head.

“Stay down,” he ordered firmly.

“What’s going on?” She asked softly, still coming round from the sleep he had roused her from.

“Air strike, men in the hall.”  He said, turning to her. "I’ll head for the door, cause a distraction. You get to the bathroom, get in the tub, cover your head.”

She listened intently, then realised what he had said. Air Strike. He must have been dreaming he was back in the war again. She let out a breath and relaxed, reaching up to take his face in her hands.

“Stevie, nobody’s there. Everything’s quiet.”

“You can’t hear them?” He looked at her frowning.

“Sweetheart, do you trust me?”

He nodded. “With my life, you know this Katie…”

“Baby, I promise you - there’s no air raid, nobody in the hall.”

For a moment, Steve just stared at her, his face wracked with confusion. Then, swallowing hard, he closed his eyes. After a moment he raised his head to look around before his face fell back on hers as her thumbs gently moved in long arcs down the sides of his face.

“Steve?”

With a shuddering breath, he pulled himself up, reaching for his shield by the bedroom door. Picking it up he listened for a moment before throwing the door open and he walked out into the hallway. Katie sat in bed listening to the sound of various other doors being opened and shut as he meticulously swept the whole of their floor, checking windows and closets until he ended up back in their room.

His back and chest were both glistening with sweat. He looked at her, his eyes wide before he went into the en-suite and she heard the tap running and the sound of water being splashed against what she assumed was his face. She gave him a few minutes before she followed him, where he was stood leaning forward, forehead pressed to the mirror, chest and shoulders heaving.

“Stevie…” she said gently, as she slipped both her arms round his waist, pressing a kiss to his bare, clammy shoulder. Her touch seemed to do the trick as he took one deep breath and turned to face her.

“Did I hurt you?” He asked his eyes looking at her as the palms of her hands spread across his lower back.

“Of course not.”

He wrapped his arms around her and she lay her head on his chest and felt his heartbeat as it gradually evened out. Neither of them spoke for a while.

“Your dreams, they’re getting worse.” Katie said gently.

“It’ll get better.” He finally managed. “You know it’s been bad before. It will fade after a while.”

Katie knew from experience that everyone dealt with traumatic experiences differently. For example, Tony suffered panic attacks and went completely off the rails post both his soiree in the Afghanistan cave and New York. She tended to take a lot of things as they came and worry about them for a while but after screaming and crying would then give herself a kick up the ass to either change things or deal with them. Steve’s worry seemed to manifest itself two fold. He would either be suffering from the inability to stay calm and therefore would exercise, pounding out frustrations on either the pavement or the punching bags. And then there was this, the nightmares. Normally Katie would wake with his jostling but if she didn’t, he would always shake her awake if he needed her, as that was the agreement they had. She would then help him back to sleep either by talking or they would engage in some other un-coventional means of therapy until both of them were spent and satiated enough to return to slumber.

Katie gently took his hand and led him out of the bathroom turning off the light. As they reached the bed he waited until she was in it, pulling the duvet up over her before snagging a pillow and turning to go.

"Where do you think you’re going?”

He shrugged. “Thought I’d camp out on the couch. I don’t want to keep you awake.”

“No way…” She said, throwing back the duvet “Come on.”

He sighed and climbed in as she opened her arms for him to settle his head on her chest, gently stroking his hair as he swallowed, his breathing steadying as her touch soothed him.

“Where were you this time?” she asked

“Azzano… I think.” He sighed “To be honest with you, I saw so many things, the dreams now…they all blur into one.”

“You wanna talk about it?” He took a deep breath. “It was just loud, and I was in a building and I couldn’t get out. It was so real. When I woke up I knew where I was. I knew who you were, but I just…I dunno…”

They lay in silence, Katie continually stroking his hair as he nuzzled into her closer. She kissed the top of his head and was pleased when about 10 minutes later she heard his breathing start to lower and his head became heavy. He had managed to drift off.

*****

The next night he woke with a start, but that was it. There was no walking or hallucinating, he merely woke from a bad dream and climbed out of bed for a glass of water. When he came back, there was no talking, but he sought solace in his girl in another way, his lips kissing her hard, his hands reaching out and roving over every bit of her body he could find and he fucked her, hard, losing himself completely. They lay afterwards, sweaty foreheads pressed together and Katie simply held him close as they both came round. Eventually he moved off, pulled her to him and they fell asleep, limbs tanged around one another, his hold tight.

The next few nights he was peaceful, and Katie was hopeful that the terrors had passed, but then, four nights after the first incident he broke his hand.

Captain America could put his fist through a two-by-four with nothing worse than slightly reddened knuckles - but Steve Rogers’ hand hadn’t been in a fist. Katie had woken to his hoarse cry of “Buck!!!”, in time to see his outstretched, fingers slamming straight through the plasterboard and into a metal stud in the wall as he flailed out of bed, reaching for a man who had fallen some seventy years earlier.

Katie scrambled over the bed like a shot as he was yelling out for Bucky again and again as he knelt among scattered pieces of plaster and wood, his left arm buried inside the wall up to the shoulder.

"Steve,” she tried, but he didn’t respond, eyes fixed in a thousand-yard stare, face crumpled with an agony that was more than physical, breath hitching and ragged. She felt the tears spring into her eyes and she was just about to ask FRIDAY to send Tony to help when she heard the door to their penthouse burst open and a few moments later Thor strode into the bedroom dressed in a pair of black sweatpants, hammer in his hand.

“I heard the Captain yell, and…” he trailed off as he took in the situation at a glance and then crouched next to Katie.

“He’s dreaming…” She said gently, “He’s dreaming about Bucky, his friend, falling…”

Thor frowned absently, brushing his fingers across the captain’s temples as though he was trying to work out a problem. Then abruptly, he rose and was gone, moving almost silently through the darkness.

Whilst he was gone, Katie managed to gently work Steve’s arm out of the wall. His broken hand lay twitching in her lap and she was horribly aware that they would need to set the bones before they healed wrong. Thankfully, Thor wasn’t gone long, and he was not alone when he returned, hand firm around Wanda’s shoulder. The girl’s eyes were wide and her hair was tangled - obviously she had been sleeping.

“Thor,” Katie began to protest as she glanced round at Steve. The last thing he would want would be to come back to reality in the middle of some kind of impromptu party.

Thor held up a hand, pausing her even as he turned his full attention to Wanda

“Do you see?” he asked gravely. “Do you understand now what The Vision told you?”

Trembling, Wanda shook her head even as she went to her knees beside Steve. He was still unresponsive, but his breathing was beginning to laboriously even out and Katie knew he was fighting for control. She started to sweep her hand up and down his back in long, firm strokes in the hope it would bring him back round.

Thor knelt too, sounding as though he were some kind of instructor. “When you allowed Stark’s fears to work against him,” he began patiently, “you found his weakness and dug deep.”

Wanda nodded slowly.

“Our Captain carries a grievous burden as well,” Thor continued, “He has been sorely wounded and works to heal, but your incautious workings have torn his memories open.”

“Thor…” Katie shook her head gently as a horror stricken look crossed Wanda’s face.

“I am sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t know. How can I fix it?”

For the first time, Thor hesitated. “My brother would have known,” he admitted in a low voice. “He had the skill, when it pleased him to use it.” He paused again, and then continued, hesitating slightly. “You must consider carefully, and proceed as seems good to you.”

Biting her lip, Wanda looked up at Katie, her stricken eyes locked onto hers.

“If you can, remind him where he is,“ Katie said gently. “Just bring him round?”

Hesitantly, uncertainly, Wanda pointed and curled her fingers before Steve’s face and closed her eyes. Tendrils of red light flickered from her hands to his temples, and Katie tensed involuntarily. For a moment, nothing happened. Then Steve’s eyes flew open, and his uninjured hand darted up faster than sight to lock around Wanda’s wrist, breaking the connection. She squeaked, startled, and froze.

“Steve…” Katie touched his arm causing him to flinch. It took him a second and then he seemed to realize where he was and what was going on. He let go of Wanda’s wrist, and looked around at Katie, then Thor hovering behind the young Sokovian, and finally the familiar surroundings of their bedroom. Eventually he looked back at Wanda for a long moment before nodding once.

"Thanks.”

A tear slid down her cheek. “I’m sorry,” she whispered hoarsely. “I tried to put everything back in place, but I don’t know how.”

“Can’t fix everything,” he assured her, with a twisted smile. His old Brooklyn accent came out very strong in this unguarded moment. “And I wouldn’t wantcha t’ try. There’s things in my head you shouldn’t ever hafta see.”

Wanda wrapped both her arms around herself. Her eyes still looked haunted. “He was like your brother, wasn’t he?” she quavered.

Steve bowed his head as Thor dropped a gentle arm round her shoulders.

“We have all lost brothers,” he rumbled, looking at her. “We know your pain. You do not face this alone.”

Katie could feel Steve was quivering, exhausted beyond words though he wouldn’t show it for the world, and all she wanted to do in that moment was to bind up his hand and then put him to bed. As she looked up to suggest to the others they might want to go she was surprised to see Wanda had squared her jaw with determination and she reached out once more.

“I can fix this, at least.”

Steve’s hurt hand suddenly glowed with red fire. He jumped, surprised, and then watched with fascination as the crooked fingers began re-align themselves. When the bones were straight again, the fire flickered out, and Wanda staggered to her feet to go, Thor right behind her.

“You ok for a moment?” Katie asked Steve and he nodded. She followed the two of them into the hall and gave a short groan as she saw the door that led to the stairs (which were never used) had been completely kicked off its hinges.

“Sorry.” Thor said, picking up the heavy door “I heard the screams and…well, I didn’t know what was going on.” “Just prop it up as best you can…I’ll let you out in the elevator.”

He propped it up, and dragged the sofa over towards it for good measure.

“I really am sorry…” Wanda whispered, tears in her eyes.

“I know, and so does he.” Katie said, giving her a hug. “He will be fine…” Her attention then turned to Thor as she gave the God a hug. “Thank you.” “Any time Little Stark.” He breathed into her hair, before the 2 of them stepped into the elevator.

Katie looked around, trying to think about how they could explain a broken door plus a hole in the wall to Tony, then she realised she didn’t care. She headed into the kitchen, rummaging through the first aid kit for an elastic bandage to keep his fingers straight and wrapped up safely whilst his fast healing worked its magic.

He was sat on the side of the bed when she re-entered the room, his injured hand cradled in his other.

“Here…” she said, and she gently took his hand as he surrendered to her ministrations.

“Is Wanda ok?” he asked gently.

“Yeah, but I’m more concerned about you.” she said, laying his hand down gently onto my lap. “Baby…” “I’m sorry.” He whispered softly, laying his head against hers.

“What for?” “This…for scaring you?” “Stop it.” She looked at him sternly “I love you, you idiot, I just want you to be ok.” “I will be…” he smiled softly, his lips catching hers “Given time.”

The next day, Katie dragged Steve out for a walk in Central Park, but first she spoke to Tony about the door and the wall. He was surprisingly sympathetic, and didn’t mention the issue to Steve once. By the time Steve and Katie returned home that afternoon both were fixed, the only evidence any repairs had taken place was the smell of fresh paint and plaster which lingered in the apartment for a few days. What thankfully didn’t linger further were Steve’s night terrors. Katie didn’t know what it was that Wanda did, but his bones healed straight and it seemed that his mind had healed somewhat straight too. Whilst he persisted with the odd bad dream, they were getting less and less frequent, and there was no repeat of the two hallucinations he had suffered which was a relief to her, as she knew with time and patience and rest, the dreams would stop as well.

**** Chapter 25

**Original Posting**

#stark spangled banner #steve rogers #Katie Stark #steve rogers fanfiction #steve rogers fic #steve rogers x ofc #steve rogers x original female character #steve rogers smut #chris evans #chris evans characters

[takadasaiko]

Houseguest: Chapter Six

FFN II AO3

Summary: Early morning meetings and broken bones don't mix well.

Chapter Six: Painkillers and Espresso

The sound of loud clanking and an even louder curse drew Steve to the kitchen the next morning rather than heading into the gym like he'd planned on doing. He found Tony Stark, half dressed in what looked like would eventually be a three piece suit, the missing cuff links leaving the sleeves hanging open around his wrists, and hopping awkwardly on his uninjured foot. He swiped for a pill bottle on the counter and dry swallowed one before looking over towards Steve. "Yeah, laugh it up. I know I look funny."

"You should probably see a doctor about your foot if it's hurting that bad this morning."

"He'll just tell me to stay off of it, and I don't have time. It's fine. Not even swollen, just sore." Toast popped up from the toaster and Tony grabbed the slice, taking a bite out of it plain. "You still planning on sticking around?"

Tony changed subjects about as fast as he talked, and sometimes it took Steve just a beat longer to keep up, all the while trying to make sure he hadn't missed something. "As long as you're not kicking me out."

"I thought we covered that last night…. Anyway, I'm heading into the office this morning. If you're game for tagging along I thought we could drop by the site after I'm done."

"You're going in to work?" Steve asked, and he was relatively certain his expression matched his tone.

"Yeah."

"You know you look like you lost a round in a side alley, right?"

Tony reached up, fingers brushing lightly against the visible cuts and bruises on his face. "They know who I am. It's fine. I have an R&D meeting."

Steve opened his mouth to argue, but shut it again. Trying to convince him was pointless and had proven to do more harm than good. He sighed. "You're not going to listen to me if I tell you you'll regret pushing yourself, are you?"

Tony hobbled his way over to the coffee pot that had signaled it was done and poured himself a mug of it to take on the go. "Look at that. You can teach an old man."

"Funny."

"Yep. How quick can you be ready?"

"Give me ten minutes?" He received a wave in response as Tony turned his attention to limping around the kitchen and getting ready. Steve hesitated only half a moment until he was sure the other man wasn't going to land in a heap on the floor before starting back to his room to get ready.

                                               _____________________

For all the strain that his body must have been under, Tony hid it exceptionally well. Steve wasn't sure if he should be impressed or concerned, but whichever it was it didn't change that he looked much sturdier on his feet by the time they were walking into the monstrosity of an office building that was, apparently, Stark Industries' Los Angeles headquarters. The plan was simple: the meeting shouldn't take more than a couple of hours and Steve would use that time to access the footage that could be salvaged from the newly destroyed Stark facility's security cameras as well as the video that Tony's Iron Man suit had recorded during the battle. All of that would be made available on Tony's secure systems in his office that he still kept, even if rarely used.

They met a man that Tony introduced as Happy Hogan at the door who gave Tony a once over before looking like he knew fussing over him would a losing battle. Instead Hogan - Tony and Pepper's personal security, he explained, and yes, he knew how useless it was to be Tony's security these days - led Steve through the lobby, past a giant portrait of a much older Howard Stark than Steve had ever gotten to know, and up the stairs.

The office was bare, a few boxes in the corner and a desk against a wall. There was nothing about the room that indicated that it was ever used at all, except for a computer on the desk that Hogan had to access for him. "Jarvis is linked up, so he should be able to find anything for you that you need."

"Thanks."

Hogan turned to leave, pausing just a few steps away before turning. "You know, when Pepper told me that Tony had a buddy come into town, didn't even cross my mind it could be you. I mean, he hated… uh…"

"Hated me," Steve prompted, not really wanting the confirmation, but the level of awkward radiating from Hogan after sticking his foot in his mouth was painful.

"Not you, necessarily." He glanced towards the door as if making sure Tony hadn't popped up without warning. "His old man used to talk about you all the time, from what he said. Drove him nuts. I guess I just wouldn't have thought you two would click with all of that."

"Well, clicking may be a little overstated, but I, uh… I don't know. He's certainly proved to be more than he looks like at first glance."

"It takes a while to get to know Tony. I've worked for him for over fifteen years. He's a good man."

"I'm starting to see that," Steve acknowledged softly. "He reminds me of his dad."

"I wouldn't tell him that."

Steve barked a laugh, shaking his head. "Yeah, I caught onto that. I feel like we both knew two different Howards. If I hadn't seen the name on the plaque I never would have recognized the portrait of Howard down there. The man I knew was -"

"Younger?"

"Full of life. A little wild. A lot wild," he corrected with another laugh. "And obnoxious. He always knew he was the smartest man in the room and wanted to make sure everybody else knew too." A fond smile tugged at his lips with the memories. "But his heart was in the right place."

"Sounds a lot like Tony," Hogan said, and Steve couldn't help but feel like he'd passed a test of some kind. "Have Jarvis buzz me if you need anything. Well, anything not techy. I'm not great with that."

"You and me both," Steve muttered, half to himself as the other man left him alone. "Okay, Jarvis, let's get started."

                                              _____________________

He didn't typically choose to take pain medication. There wasn't much he could do if he was unconscious when a doctor decided to dose him, but if it was his call, he tended to avoid the fog that the meds soaked his brain in. With the way he'd been limping around that morning, though, he knew he couldn't avoid taking something. If he tried to hop around to avoid putting pressure on his injured foot he felt it through every cracked rib and in his injured wrist when he reached out to catch himself each time that he inevitably lost balance and went tumbling to the side. That was no way to conduct an R&D meeting, so he'd dug through his medicine cabinet until he found a pill bottle that wasn't years out of date and had swallowed a half dose to take the edge off and get him through the day. It worked, and might have even worked as intended if he'd had more than half a piece of toast and a thermos of coffee for breakfast that morning.

Tony felt his head start to swim during the first presentation. Several of his lead engineers were pitching their project ideas to him so he could decide which ones he wanted to sign off on and which ones were dead before they left the gate. He sent an intern for a cup of black coffee by the second, thought he caught most of the third, but it was the fourth that he really started to fade on.

"Mr Stark?"

He blinked hard. Had his eyes been closed? Shit. They had, and they weren't focusing very well now. He blinked rapidly to clear them and the young engineer that was giving his presentation looked part nervous and part irritated. Tony wasn't quite sure which one was going to win out as he straightened in his chair and cleared his throat. "Huh? Right…. Sorry." He'd heard something. He knew he had. Something about a hologram, connecting to the brain…. No. Yes. The hippocampus. Memories. He leaned forward and massaged the bridge of his nose. "So you're wanting to tap into memories…"

"And project them, yes. The applications are limitless. With just the right touch, you could create an entire visible world just from someone's memories, project it, and -"

"Interesting. What was your name again?"

The man - likely the head of his team - looked like Tony had taken a physical swing at him for half a second before regaining his composure. "Beck. Quinton Beck."

"I like it, Beck. Put together your cost projections and -"

"I've got those," Beck cut him off.

"Fantastic. Get them to my secretary and we'll get started." He checked his watch. "Great session, guys. I have another meeting to get to. Anything we didn't cover just… I don't know, leave it on my desk or something." He needed more coffee. Maybe a few shots of espresso. In an energy drink. That sounded like a plan.

Thankfully no one fought him too hard on slipping out early. Tony made a beeline for the coffee cart that he'd had opened in the cafeteria years before, feeling every step from his battered foot up through his still-throbbing head. He ordered a large of the most caffeinated drink that they could make before slowly limping his way up to his office.

He found Steve Rogers with his gaze fixed on the computer screen. The blond looked up as he shuffled across the room, looking him up and down. "You okay?"

"I'll live," Tony answered. "Whatcha got?"

"JARVIS is running a few searches for me, but uh… I'm curious. What's this?"

He turned the screen around and Tony saw something that had absolutely nothing to do with the case they were working on. "Those are the plans for the rebuild of Stark Tower," he said slowly, uncertain how Steve had even managed to stumble into those plans. The man was far from tech savvy, which meant JARVIS had likely steered him in that direction while he waited on something else. He really needed to have a candid talk with his AI system about boundaries.

"These rooms have our names on them," Rogers prompted and Tony delayed the expected response by taking a long drink from his coffee cup. It wasn't like he could drain the whole thing, though. Eventually Cap would expect an answer.

Tony cleared his throat. "That's, uh… What I talked to you guys about. The remodel crew needed an answer so I told them just to go with it. I thought someone would, you know, say something about it. Guess they'll just be neat rooms now. It's fine. No harm."

Blond brows drew together. "What do you mean talked to us about?"

"At lunch after the whole… space invasion… thing. Or dinner. Whatever. Shawarma."

Cap stared at him for a long moment, his gaze becoming more and more confused. "Tony…. I have zero memory of you talking about, well, anything while we were eating."

"I went on for like, ten or fifteen minutes about it!"

"Nothing. Sorry."

"Seriously?"

"We were all exhausted, Tony. A few of us concussed."

"I guess that's fair…" He ran his hand through his dark hair, thinking back on the day. Yeah. He had a few gaping holes in his memory too. If anyone else had said anything while they were eating, he had no idea.

"So you designed… whole living spaces for us in the tower without even knowing if anybody would take you up on it?"

Tony ducked his head. "Yeah, it was stupid. The contractors needed an answer…."

"That's amazing, Tony."

"Huh?"

"You redesigned the entire tower for… us. Even if there isn't an us right now."

"Thought there might be again. Someday. I don't know, it was a dumb idea."

Cap snorted and Tony was having to fight the urge to find any excuse to run out the door. "It's a compliment. I don't know anybody else that would do that."

"We made a good team."

"We did." He could feel Cap's gaze on him and he finally met it. "We still do. It's a good idea."

Tony cleared his throat hard. "What'd you find about my thieves? Anything?"

"Not a lot that it looked like you didn't already have, according to JARVIS." Tony tilted his head in question. "Just some information about our Ms Mira. Should we forward that over to the police -?"

"Nah. They've likely got it all by now. JARVIS didn't find anything in any databases that they couldn't get their hands on."

"Exactly what kind of databases does JARVIS search?" Steve asked, his tone not quite accusatory, but Tony flashed him a charming grin nonetheless, turning for the door.

"All the useful ones. C'mon. I need another espresso and then we can head out. Apparently painkillers make you sleepy. Who knew?"

He paused when he didn't hear Cap follow immediately and found the blond man still seated as his desk, that icy blue gaze fixed on him. "We should at least touch base with the police. Aren't you already stepping on their toes? Captain Ito-"

Tony squared his shoulders a little, doing his best to suppress the grimace that threatened at the movement. "I gave Captain Ito his arrest that he wanted. The rest of it - the weapons that might come out of it - that's my business."

"Tony..."

"Not everything's an alien-invasion level threat, Cap, but if people could get hurt because of a breach in the company's… in my security set up, that's where Iron Man steps in. That's why I built the suit. If you're not comfortable with that, fine. It's my fight. I can get you a ride back to the house."

There was a long moment of silence and just as Tony was ready to call Happy to have him take Steve back to Malibu, the other man heaved a sigh and stood. "I'm not going to leave you without backup."

"I do just fine on my own every other day, Cap."

"But you don't have to. Not today. I told you I'd help and I will."

It wasn't exactly a glowing endorsement of his methods, but there was something to be said about Steve having his back anyway. If Tony wasn't careful, it was something that he could get used to.

"Okay," he murmured softly, pushing hard at the thoughts before they threatened to spill over into visible emotion, and he turned back to the door. "Waiting on you now, Stars and Stripes."

                                              _____________________

TBC

Notes: Funny story, about the time I was trying to figure out what kind of injuries I could give Tony without incapacitating him I dropped something on my foot and broke some of the tiny bones there. Apparently I just needed to vent some of my pain out through Tony :P

Also, anyone notice the up-and-coming (though very prissy) engineer on Tony's team?

Next Time: Tony pushes Captain Ito too far and Ito pushes back.

#MCU fanfiction #Tony Stark #Steve Rogers #Iron Man #Captain America #Happy Hogan #and a brief appearance from #Quinton Beck

[stillthewordgirl]

LOT/CC fic: In My Life

Sara Lance said goodbye to Leonard Snart nearly two years ago, before he sacrificed himself for his Earth-X self's future.

But goodbyes aren't always forever. And love doesn't always hurt. And, sometimes, even a crook and an assassin can get a happy ending.

*

This is for @larielromeniel​. <3

It's a sequel to "Did You Lose What Won't Return," and I highly suggest reading that first. We've planned a follow-up for a while, but life got in the way. (Who knows? There still might be more to come!) That story, I know, broke a lot of people’s hearts. I promise you, though, there’s nothing but happy CC endings (and beginnings) here. ;)

Many thanks to Pir8grl!

Read “Did You Lose What Won’t Return” here on AO3.

Read “In My Life” here on AO3.

*

Though I know I'll never lose affection For people and things that went before I know I'll often stop and think about them In my life, I'll love you more

-- “In My Life,” the Beatles

*

The Waverider looks the same.

Leonard stands there, in the empty lot the ship is parked in, and stares at it. It doesn’t seem like it should look the same. Nothing…nothing else is the same, after all. He self-consciously rubs his right hand up and down his left arm, noting that it, also, feels the same.

But it’s not.

“What’s the hold up, mate?” Leonard jerks forward as the trench-coated Brit pokes him in the shoulder, smirking as he turns to glare. “You’ve been gone a while, I get that, but I’d think you’d be running on board, not standing here staring.” The smirk modulates into a leer. “She’s on there, you know. Only one right now, with everyone else off on shore leave. You’ll have lots of privacy.”

He vaguely—very vaguely—remembers the man from before. From that interlude they tell him, now, was nearly two years ago. The span of hours his consciousness—his soul, they say—had surfaced, separate from the man called Leo.

The man who is now in possession of his…their…body, while Leonard…

He catches himself rubbing his arms again. Stops.

“She’s not expecting…me,” he mutters. “You really…you should have warned her.”

Those words do make the man—John Constantine—pause, an odd expression flitting over his face.

“Maybe,” he acknowledges, after a moment. “Maybe. But you heard Leo. Once the experiment worked…well, there was no good reason for waiting around and lots of reasons not to. Don’t you want to go home?”

Home. Leonard stares at the Waverider again, feeling totally at sea.

The man besides him sighs.

“Go on, mate,” he says, a little more gently. “Tear off the bandage. I remember how you kissed her, back when…well. You’ve got a second chance now. Take it, right?”

Leonard doesn’t move. “You said, though…there was someone…”

Constantine eyes him, pulling a cigarette out of nowhere and passing it back and forth between his hands.

“For Sara?” he says finally. “Yeah. After you…Leo…left. But that’s done now.” He winces a little. “Didn’t end well, really.”

It hurts. Of course, he didn’t want Sara to sit around pining, but… “So, what?” Leonard asks, knowing his voice is harsh. “I’m the consolation prize now?”

That gets a scowl. “Look,” the warlock says tersely, pointing the cig at him. “What and who you are now…it wasn’t without risk. To me, to…my counterpart…to Leo himself. A lot of people worked on this. You gonna throw it away? That’s up to you. But I think you owe it to all of us…and to yourself…to go talk to the woman on this ship. She deserves to know you’re back.”

“Kind of,” Leonard mutters despite himself, making a fist. Feeling the lack of scars on his palm.

“Kind of,” Constantine acknowledges. “In all the ways that matter, mate.” He sticks the cigarette in the corner of his mouth and shakes his head. “Well. Good luck. I’ll be back with the others in a few days. See you then.” He shrugs. “Or not.”

Despite how disconcerted Leonard is, and how irritating he finds the other man capable of being…well, he also didn’t think he’d be walking back on board this ship alone. “You’re not…”

Another flash of sympathy. “Mate, I think this is the kinda thing you need to do yourself.”

*

It’s not much of a surprise, really, that Leonard’s back on the Waverider only a moment when he hears a familiar voice lift to greet him.

“Mr. Snart,” Gideon says quietly, as he stops. “Leonard. Welcome back.”

He can’t help himself. “Is it back?” he asks her, knowing there’s a little bitterness there. “Really?”

The AI is quiet so long that he nearly starts walking again. But when Gideon speaks again, there’s enough irritation in her tone that Leonard’s taken aback.

“You ask me that, Mr. Snart?” she asks. “Me? Truly? Whether it is your…your shell…that matters or the spirit or soul inside? You know better than that.”

When she puts it like that… “I didn’t think of it that way,” Leonard admits, shrugging his shoulders uncomfortably. “It’s just…”

Gideon capitulates, tone gentling again. “…odd, I’m sure,” she acknowledges. “Especially as, yet again, you didn’t think you’d ever be returning here.”

“No. I didn’t.” They share a moment of quiet before the AI sighs.

“Captain Lance is in her office, Mr. Snart,” she tells him. “I have warned her there is a…a visitor…on the ship. What sort of visitor, well…”

“That’s up to me. Right.”

*

Gideon, having informed Sara that she has a visitor onboard, promptly refuses to say any more, other than that the person is not a security risk. Sara, irritated, nearly gets up to go investigate anyway, but eventually decides in a fit of pique that on the AI’s head (so to speak) be it. She stays in the office, going through Rip’s old papers, trying to decide which can be safely put in storage, which to digitalize, and which to keep in the file cabinets.

So, when there’s a hesitant step at the door, it takes her a moment to even glance up. Since they’re in Central City, it’s probably just a member of Team Flash. Maybe Iris, or Caitlin. Mick or Ray could have told them where the Waverider was parked.

Just about the last thing she expects to see is the tall, lean shape that pauses just inside the office, backlit just a little because Sara has the lights low, facing her but coming no farther.

Even now, her heart gives a single, painful “thump” at the sight, but her heart, Sara knows, is a liar. Leonard is gone, giving up his second chance so that Leo could live on with his Ray and his Freedom Fighters on Earth-X. He’s gone. And he won’t be back. She’s had nearly two years to come to grips with that, not to mention the time before that. After the Oculus.

“Leo?” she asks after a second, having hastily gathered up all those feelings and shoved them back in the mental box she keeps them in. “Are you OK? Is Ray…?”

The figure takes a step forward, and Sara gets to her feet, allowing one of her knives to slide from her sleeve into her hand. Sure, Gideon had said this…this person is OK, but Leo would have simply sauntered in, smiling at her, by now. And she remembers all too well the Legion Leonard who’d thrown things into such turmoil.

“Leo?” she asks again, tone tight. “Say something. What’s going on?”

Another step. And Sara blinks, as the figure’s face and eyes suddenly become more visible, as is the intent expression directed at her.

“Sara,” he says, voice low and uncertain. “I…”

The words trail off, but Sara is suddenly just as sure as she’d been back during the institution incident.

She’s looking at Leonard Snart, the one and only Earth-1 original.

*

Leonard, in the month or so he’s been “back,” has become quite steady on his feet. Certainly, they wouldn’t have let him go if he’d been as wobbly as he’d been at first.

But now, having subsided into a chair in the captain’s office…Sara’s office…on the Waverider, he feels every bit as shaky as he had when he’d first woken up in a new body, there on Earth-X, staring up at a face that was the twin to his own.

That was his own.

Sara, having made sure he’s steady enough in the chair, brings him a glass of water, but he doesn’t miss just how white her knuckles are as she hands it to him, nor how still her expression is. She sits down across from him, still silent, and watches as he takes a drink.

Leonard sighs. “I told them someone should warn you,” he says, staring down into the glass. “I know things were…”

Sara stirs, then. “Who’s ‘them?’” she interrupts, not without a thread of uncertainty.

“Leo,” Leonard informs her promptly. “Ray…his Ray. The Ray. That Constantine guy. The magician from Earth-X.” He glances upward. “And I’m told Gideon was in on it too.”

Sara follows his glance, but her expression is…well, murderous. Gideon must agree, to some extent, because she speaks up promptly, sounding a touch unsettled.

“Not…quite,” she says carefully. “I replicated and sent along some technology native to the Waverider, at Leo Snart’s request. He’d contacted Mr. Constantine and Mr. Rory,” she adds hastily at Sara’s continued silence. “And Mr. Constantine took it over with him on a visit. Neither I nor Mr. Rory know what became of the request.”

“Mick was in on it?” Leonard asks in surprise.

“Again, to some extent. He knew that Leo…”

But Sara holds up a hand then. “Just…before anything else,” she says, carefully looking elsewhere before letting her eyes dart over to Leonard. “I need…is it you? The real…”

She stops. Leonard hesitates. Is it? he thinks. Is it really him? But Gideon’s words from before stand, and he nods, meeting Sara’s eyes.

“Yeah,” he says. “It is.”

*

“How?!”

Sara just can’t help it. The single word explodes out of her, as she sits there and stares at this Leonard, who looks just the same and still somehow not, though she can’t put her finger on precisely how.

And this Leonard gives her a rueful smile. He puts down the water glass and puts his hands down on her desk, palms down, long fingers splayed, and stares at them.

“I’m...a clone, I guess you’d say,” he murmurs. “Product of Waverider tech and the Earth-X tech that helped create Red Tornado.” He glances up at her, eyes cautious. “And then...well, Constantine and their Zatanna went about, well, banging on doors in Leo’s head until they...woke me up. And they...shoved me in here.”

“He’s asleep,” Sara remembers Leo saying, all that time ago, after John had put Leonard’s reawakened soul back into hibernation inside their shared body. Leonard’s choice, that had been, well and truly, a sacrifice for his other self, but not without regrets...

“They didn’t ask?” she blurts out, thinking suddenly of how it’d felt to be pulled out of...wherever she’d been, after she’d died, and thrust back into a repaired body. “Are you OK?”

Leonard blinks and then looks...well, he looks gratified. Like no one else had asked that, expecting him to simply be grateful for all the trouble they’d gone through, grateful to be back. And to be honest, there are few people who get the other side of that better than Sara.

After a moment, he shrugs. “I’m...all right,” he says, watching her carefully. “They did ask, sort of, but I wasn’t very...coherent, at that point. And once they mentioned...”

He stops short, and Sara wonders...but only briefly, because he starts speaking again, glancing down at his hands. “I’m still getting used to it. Most of the muscle memory...it’s gone, and so are the scars.” His hands close into loose fists, and he turns them from side to side before looking back up at her.

“I’m younger,” Leonard admits. “Now. Physically, anyway. Closer to you. Lots of the damage taken over the years, it’s gone too."

And that’s good, that’s great, but...Sara nods, slowly. “But it was your damage,” she says, meeting his eyes. “And it’s weird without it.”

“Yeah.” The corner of his mouth ticks up, and for the first time, she sees him really relax, at least a little. “Shoulda known you’d get it.”

“You know I do, crook.” The nickname slips out before she can stop it, and Sara glances away, clearing her throat. “Why didn’t someone come with you?” she manages. “Help explain all this? That’s not much like Leo, honestly.”

Leonard makes a thoughtful noise. “He wanted to,” he admits. “But there was a bit of an uprising, some remnants of the Reich, I’m told. Leo said to assure you that they’ve got it, but they wanted me safely out of it for now.” His expression darkens. “Especially after they...put a lot of...work into me.”

Sara stares at him. “Leo didn’t say that.” It’s not a question, but... “Did he?”

He seems to shake himself, giving her another of those rueful smiles. “No. I guess I just...felt like a liability instead of a help, to them. Didn’t like it much.” He shrugs. “Your...Constantine came with me. From Earth-X. But he seemed to think I needed to do this myself.”

Sara snorts, an expression of exasperation that she knows she uses a lot when it comes to John. “Of course he did.”

They share a smirk, then, before apparently realizing yet again how awkward this all is. Leonard looks back down at his hands, and Sara looks too, realizing just how many tiny scars and lines have vanished.

“May I?” she murmurs, reaching out before she can stop herself.

After a breath, he nods, and Sara picks up his right hand gently, running her thumb across the palm, hearing his intake of breath. But it doesn’t seem to be an uncomfortable one, so she continues, gently stroking the long, nimble fingers, feeling the relative lack of callous and scar tissue.

Rebirth, she thinks. So like her own, in some ways. Another thing they have in common, now.

Eventually, Leonard clears his throat, and Sara glances up, realizing just how dark and intent his eyes are as they stare at her. Realizing she’s really, err, been making love to his hand, she drops it quickly, glancing away—and then gets up to cross the room again, pulling out two glasses and a bottle, one of the few remaining from Rip’s collection.

“Scotch?” she asks, staring down at the bottle, trying to calm her heart rate.

“Please.”

When Sara returns to the desk, she doesn’t bother sitting down behind it again. Instead, she hands Leonard his glass and then hooks another chair with her foot, pulling it over and near his own, taking that one. This time, when she sits down, they’re close, more on an even footing, knees almost brushing.

More than close enough to touch.

They both drink, and Sara hears him sigh again, though it seems to be a content sound. Blue eyes dart to hers over the top of his glass, and she sees that rueful smile again.

“I heard,” he murmurs. “About Rip. I’m sorry.”

Sara sighs. She holds her glass up then, in a clear toast, and he clinks his against it before they take another drink together, a tribute to the man who’d once owned the libation.

“He wasn’t perfect,” Sara says quietly, looking down into the amber liquid. “But...none of us are. And without him, we wouldn’t...well...I don’t know where I’d be.”

“Same.” Leonard takes another drink, glancing over at her. “Mick,” he says suddenly, and it’s not quite a non sequitur. “Mick’s OK?”

“He’s fine.” Sara smiles a little. “I think he’s off rambling around with Charlie right now. Charlie...now, she’s an interesting addition to the team. I...” She catches herself. “Well. There will be time. Later.” She looks over at Leonard, who looks slightly amused. More like himself, really, like the man she remembers and less like the unsettled and unsettling stranger who’d first appeared in the doorway.

Maybe that’s why she takes that particular plunge next.

“Well. So. Ah,” she says, carefully if somewhat nonsensically. “You remember...what do you remember?”

The blue eyes grow a little hooded as Leonard studies his scotch. Then he sighs.

“Everything,” he admits. “I think. At least from when I was...me. I remember my life, up to...to the Oculus.” He glances over at her, and Sara throttles back the memory of desperation and the realization of what was happening…what she couldn’t stop from happening. And a kiss.

“The Oculus,” Leonard repeats, still holding her gaze. Is it her imagination or did his eyes grow darker? “Then...waking up after the weirdest dream, and…seeing you.”

His voice trails off. And his eyes are definitely darker, warm and intent on her. And Sara remembers.

“You gonna make love to me, Leonard?" she’d murmured into his ear, running her fingers down his spine and feeling him sigh under her touch. "You better be a hell of a thief."

Oh. He remembers too, remembers their night together, the gift Leo had given them. Sara feels her face heat again, but she holds his gaze a long moment before clearing her throat. The office feels a little too warm, a bit too stuffy, and she remembers so very clearly the taste of his lips, the feel of his hands on her body, the way he’d said her name as…

Sara tosses back the remainder of her scotch, then drags in a deep breath. “I…” she starts hesitantly, gathering her courage—only to realize that Leonard’s looking away again. And when he looks back a moment later, his eyes that seem to have their walls up again, walls she hadn’t yet seen in this new version of him.

“Hey,” he says, looking away, voice quiet. “It’s OK. There’s no pressure. I get it; things have changed.” He closes his eyes as Sara blinks at him. “I can head into the city, look into getting some ID, maybe...”

But he shuts up as Sara, unwilling to let this confusion go another second—hey, she’s learned something in the past few years--snakes a hand behind his head, pulls him toward her, and kisses him. Hard.

It gets out of hand pretty much immediately, but they’re both OK with that.

*

By the time they come up for more than a breath of air, Sara is sitting in Leonard’s lap, arms wrapped around his neck, their foreheads still touching. Her shirt is completely unbuttoned, and the skirt she’d been wearing is rucked up around her waist. Leonard’s hands are, at the moment, still, high on her thighs…where his questing fingers had accidentally brushed against a (fortuitously sheathed) hidden knife, drawing a startled oath from him and a peal of laughter from Sara.

He’s still mostly clothed, though he’s pretty sure Sara has definite plans for remedying that. For the moment, though, they’re just breathing, watching each other, unwilling to let go but needing that momentary break for, well, oxygen purposes.

Leonard can’t deny a sense of gratitude that Sara hadn’t let him persist in what had, apparently, been quite a misconception. He pulls back just a little, far enough to look in her eyes, marveling.

“Oh,” he says, finding a real smirk for one of the first times since his…rebirth. “I guess you want me to stay?”

That gets another ripple of laughter. Sara closes her eyes, a slow smile spreading across her face before she opens them again.

“What was your first clue?” she teases back, but then shakes her head. “Why on Earth would you think I wanted you to leave?”

There’s a little pain in the question, and the last thing Leonard wants to do is exacerbate it. He hesitates a moment, then sighs.

“There was someone else,” he says finally, watching her. “For you. Constantine said so.” He takes a deep breath. “And I’m not...I’m not the same. It’s been a long time. And I haven’t been here. For you.”

It’s halting and not very eloquent, but Sara, he thinks, gets it. She nods slowly, still looking him in the eyes, but her hands holding him close don’t loosen at all. And when she speaks again, her words are just as thoughtful.

“There was,” Sara says quietly. “Someone. It didn’t work out. She...we wanted different things, ultimately.” She moves just a little, looking around at the room and the ship around them before glancing back at him. “The Waverider...it’s my home, Leonard. My home, my life, and my responsibility. It took me a little while to realize that, to know that I couldn’t be happy going back to a...a more normal life.”

There’s a question in the words, too, though maybe someone else wouldn’t have heard it. Leonard thinks about what Constantine had said before, studying him as he’d stared at the ship and tried to figure out what he was doing here.

“Don’t you want to go home?”

Maybe, he admits to himself, that smartass Brit is more perceptive than Leonard had given him credit for.

“Never had what I’d consider a normal life,” Leonard admits finally. “Don’t think I’d know what to do with one. But going back to...well, being the criminal king of Central City doesn’t have the same allure to it anymore, either.” He offers her a sly smile. “And I figure...maybe...that a team of troublemakers set on protecting the timeline might still need a hell of a thief.”

Sara’s answering smile makes his heart contract. “Definitely,” she whispers, shifting in a way that makes him catch his breath. “Very definitely. And someone who makes the captain...happy...is always a good idea.”

The room is warm. Very warm. Leonard clears his throat again, trying to clear his thoughts a little, moving his hands up and over her skirt and around to the small of her back.

“Happy, huh?” he murmurs, adjusting her a little and smirking at the sound she makes. “Just...happy?”

Sara’s eyes flicker closed. “Content,” she purrs. “Pleased. Satisfied.” Her eyes open a little, heavy-lidded in a way that makes Leonard lick his lips. “Euphoric.”

“Hmm. Hope I can live up to those lofty goals.” With barely a momentary tensing of muscles to warn her, Leonard stands, balancing Sara against him as she laughs and wraps her legs around his waist. “I think it just might be a good thing I’m a little younger now.”

Turning, he carries her to the doorway of the office, pausing only a moment before Sara steers him toward the captain’s quarters. While he’d once cased them for valuables during Rip’s tenure, that’d been a while ago—and Sara is doing her damnest to distract him now, kissing his jaw and neck as he tries to navigate.

“Younger, hmm?” she says playfully when he pauses. “Interesting. We should have some time, here…are you suggesting you might be up for a bit of a…marathon?”

Leonard’s startled into a chuckle. “Hey, you didn’t have any complaints about the older model before,” he objects, glancing over her shoulder as they approach the door.

Sara hums thoughtfully. Leonard looks down at her as she gently places a hand on the side of his face, noting the affection and emotion in her eyes along with a healthy helping of lust.

“I liked the older model,” she says quietly. “I like this one, too. Or perhaps I should say…I like the driver.”

Leonard carefully puts her down on her feet, there outside the door to her room, and sets his hands at her hips, feeling—just about for the first time--fully comfortable in this new body he’s inhabiting.

“So, you want to take me out for a test spin?” he asks suggestively, letting his hands drift a little south.

A smile tugs at Sara’s mouth. “I was thinking more like a lengthy road trip, perhaps.”

Leonard responds in the only way he can.

Gideon opens the door for them without comment.

*

At one point over the next few days, Sara asks Gideon to remind her when the time approaches for the team’s return. Just in case.

In all fairness, she figures, padding to the galley for a tray to take back to the room, she should be allowed to lose track of time for this, of all things. Right? It’s a miracle, really, Leonard’s return. And soon, she’s going to have to share him—in some ways, anyway. Not that that’s a bad thing—she can’t wait to see Mick’s reaction—but it’s still a thing.

To Sara’s great amusement, there’s already a tray waiting for her in the replicator when she arrives at the galley. She regards it a moment, studying the perfectly ripe strawberries, the chocolates, the cheese and sliced baguettes. There are even two glasses of what appears to be champagne, along with some glasses of spring water. The AI, it seems, might have a romantic streak.

“Thanks, Gideon,” she says, collecting it, turning to head back to the room. “Appreciate it.”

“You are welcome.” Gideon pauses, then says, tentatively “Are you…well, Captain Lance?’

Sara blinks, pausing. “Don’t I…seem well?”

“I keep an effort not to…listen in…on moments that should be private.” Gideon’s voice seems a little prim. “And frankly, that’s all there have been on this ship, lately.”

The laugh bubbles up before she can help it. “I suppose that’s true,” Sara admits, continuing on. “Yes, I’m well. And so is Leonard.” She can’t help the smile that lurks around her mouth then. “I think he just needs…refueling. And maybe a little rest.”

“As you say, Captain Lance.” Gideon’s tone is rather definitely amused now. “As a reminder, you have about 24 hours before the others return. Enjoy.”

“Oh, believe me. I intend to.”

*

They don’t get 24 hours, though. Later, Sara will figure it’s rather early the next morning when she hears voices in the hallways outside and Gideon’s resigned voice interrupting their sleep.

“Captain Lance,” she says regretfully. “You have visitors. And they seem to be…”

A familiar voice in the hall cuts in before she can finish. A very, very familiar voice.

“Captain Lance! Sara! Are you here?!”

Sara sits bolt upright, startled for a moment before the true identity of the voice’s owner gets through. Then she sighs, smiling a little, and reaches out to put a hand on the shoulder of the man who’s been sleeping besides her.

“Len,” she says quietly. “Wake up. I think someone wants to check on you.”

“Sara!” she hears again, worry clear in the tone.

A moment passes before her lover opens an eye. He doesn’t seem horribly enthused about the idea. “They had plenty of time to make sure all the parts worked before they sent me here,” he mutters after a moment. “What now?”

“I think we’ve had plenty of proof of that, too.” Snickering, Sara gets out of bed, reaching for a robe. “C’mon. I think we at least owe him some thanks and some reassurance, don’t you?”

Leonard growls, but he does follow her. Sara waits only a minute for him to grab a sheet and…arrange it…before she crosses the room and throws the door open.

Right in Leo Snart’s worried face.

“What?” she asks innocently, as he blinks at her. “Who on Earth are you looking for?”

Leo’s mouth drops open…and then, as Sara watches, he clearly sees Leonard approaching from behind her—presumably wearing nothing but his sheet.

“Yeah,” he says, just as innocently, reaching out to put a hand on Sara’s hip. “Who are you looking for?”

Leo’s mouth snaps shut. For once, he actually seems speechless.

Behind him, Ray Terrill closes his eyes, clearly trying to hold back laughter, and not very well. Opening them again, he nods in a friendly fashion to Leonard, who nods back.

“He was worried,” Terrill notes with amusement, glancing at his husband. “Things didn’t go at all the way he was planning. For once.”

Leonard shrugs. “Well, you know. Make the plan, execute the plan, expect the plan to go off the rails…”

His doppelganger recovers enough to glare at him, though amusement clearly shows through around the edges. “That’s an awful motto!” He shakes his head as Sara laughs, then gives Leonard a more even look.

“Ah,” he says with a sigh. “I see you made it here all right. As soon as we had things sorted, I meant to follow, but then we weren’t sure where you were…”

Sara eyes him. “You were worried?” She folds her arms. “I figured sending him off alone with John Constantine, of all people, was maybe a little…”

A voice rises again, then, from farther down the hall, and all four of the players in the little tableau roll their eyes.

“Do I hear my name being taken in vain?” Constantine asks, strolling down the hall with an unlit cigarette hanging from his lips. He spots and studies them all—especially Sara and Leonard in their state of dress, or lack thereof—and then smirks. “Ha.”

Leo sighs at him. “When I asked you to bring him to Earth-1,” he says, rubbing his face with a hand, “I meant to wait somewhere for us to help explain what was going on.” He points at the unrepentant warlock. “Not to abandon him here to fend for himself and then fuck off to a bar. But Zatanna said that’s precisely what you did.”

Sara decides she wants to know more about this Zatanna, but John merely grins around his cigarette.

“What’s all the fuss, anyway?” he asks, removing the cig and glancing around. “Clearly, things went…well.” He leers at Leonard, who looks evenly back, and then shrugs.

“They needed to deal with this on their own,” John continues in his world-weary tone. “The more people around, the more time they’d spend staring at each other and coming up with reasons why they shouldn’t just kiss and fall into bed.” He points at Sara. “Am I right?”

Sara opens her mouth. Closes it. And then sighs, thinking that John’s going to be even more insufferable for the foreseeable future. “Pretty much.”

Leo looks like he’d like to argue, but very obviously shakes it off. He gives John another piercing look, then glances back at Leonard and Sara. “Everything worked all right, I take it?”

He obviously means their relationship, but…Sara actually giggles as John guffaws next to her and Terrill sighs.

“Perfectly,” Leonard drawls back at him. There’s a light in his eyes as Sara glances up at him, and it gleams even brighter as he pulls her just a little closer to him. “I gotta say…thanks.”

Leo smiles in return, and while there’s something that makes them look more like, say, twins than the split souls (wow, that’s still a weird thought) they are, at that moment, the gleam is very much the same.

“Good,” he says softly. “Good.” He looks over at his Ray, smiling, then back. “You are so very welcome. Make the most of it, will you?”

Memory crashes in, suddenly, and Sara draws in a breath.

"This is a gift, Sara, the most precious gift I could ever have been given," she remembers that same voice saying. "And I swear to you I'll make the most of it."

And now, he’s given her, them, a precious gift in return.

Leonard may not remember that promise from before, but he’s not so unobservant as to be unaware of the undercurrent. “Promise,” he tells Leo in return, voice just as serious.

Sara eyes them a moment, then decides that’s enough seriousness for such an occasion. She looks back down at a (nonexistent) watch on her wrist, then back up at the men around her.

“Well, boys,” she says, in a bit of a drawl of her own. “We still have some time until the rest of my chaos crew gets back here. John notwithstanding.” She looks up, smirking at Leonard, as John makes a cheerfully obscene suggestion in the background. “Sorry, but I have more time to make the most of, right now.”

And with that, she grabs a handful of Leonard’s sheet in her hand, winking at them all before turning and hauling him back in the room with her. The door shuts behind them, and Leonard promptly turns her grip around on her, backing her against the bed while Sara laughs out loud.

He kisses her, then pulls back just a fraction, watching her, blue eyes dark. Different, but still so very much her crook.

“I love you, Sara Lance,” he murmurs.

Sara smiles up at him, as somewhere inside, something that’s been wounded and bleeding for years finally starts to heal. “And I love you too.”

#captaincanary #legends of tomorrow #larielromeniel #LOT fic #captain canary

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31 Days of CoAi Prompt Fill 29 of 31:

Shiho creating an antidote for injured, amnesiac Conan

When Shinichi woke up, the first thing he sees is gray. The first thing he hears is the beeping of the machines attached to him.  

He’s lying down on what he can only presume is a hospital bed, looking up at what he thinks would be white ceiling, but with only the lights from the patient monitor and ventilator, he just sees gray.

And then, he remembers. 

“Haibara..?”

He looks around and finds no one. 

“Haibara?”

He tries to sit up, but an intense pain in his head and stomach brings him back down on the bed. 

He doesn’t care. He tries again and sits up successfully this time, removing the ventilator mask from his face, the IV drip from his arm, and the sensors for the monitor from his chest.

“Haibara?!”

The flat tone of the machine mixes with the echoes of his grunts as he falls on the floor. He attempts to stand up again, but his legs give out, so instead he crawls, shouting, “Haibara! Where are you?!”

When the door finally opens and the lights turn on, the nurse that had been rushing over the moment they received an alert only finds the small body of a boy named Edogawa Conan face down on the floor in front of her, right hand stretched out as if it had been trying to reach for something right before he lost consciousness.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

When Shinichi woke up, the first thing he sees is white. The first thing he hears is the beeping of the machines attached to him.  

“What..? Where..?”

He looks to the left and he sees an old man, shock evident on his face. Shinichi immediately scoots to the side farther from the man, and asks, “Who..?” 

When the old man remains silent, his face showing a range emotions from shocked to confused to what he can only call anguished, he knows something is wrong—wrong with him. He can’t help the panic from showing in his voice as he asks, again, “Who are you?!” 

Suddenly intense headache prevents him from taking in his surroundings and he can only ask “Where am I?!” 

Still, right now, to Shinichi, there’s one thing on his mind more important than all the others. He shouts, “Haibara?!” He wills himself to look around the room, and with no traces of Haibara, an ugly feeling in his chest flares up.

His vision blacks out, on and off, and he rests his gaze upon the only other person in the room to quickly assess him. He hopes this old man is at least a neutral party, if not an ally. He can only ask him to go in his stead—for now, because he’ll go to her, sooner than soon, for sure—and his small hands crumple the hem of the old man’s shirt, as he manages to choke out “... Have to… protect… her...”

A short moment after Shinichi passes out, the old man regains his calm and wipes the sweat off the boy’s forehead, tucking him in before he presses the assistance button. He takes off his glasses for a moment before he rubs his eyes, and then the wrinkles on his brow, before he sends a quick message to the woman who had been with him watching over Shinichi just an hour ago.

He gets a reply not even a second after: Coming.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

When the boy woke up, the first thing he sees is white. The first thing he hears is the beeping of the machines attached to him, together with the quiet murmur of voices.  

“What..? Where..?”

The voices stop. He looks to the left and he sees an old man, a hopeful look on his face. Beside him is a woman with short permed brown locks, eyes staring straight into him, face devoid of any expression. They are both wearing lab coats, so he can only assume that they are his doctors, attending to him in what he thinks is a hospital room.

The boy tries to think of anything that can help him fill in the blanks in his current situation, but he finds nothing. His eyes widen, and he hears his heart beat quicker and quicker when he slowly realizes that he can’t remember any single thing. His breaths come shallower and shallower, and he attempts to look around the room for anything he can identify, anything that can trigger any memory, but before he can whip his head around for clues, a hand is placed lightly on his shoulder, and he hears a voice telling him, “Breathe.” 

He looks at the hand on his shoulder and traces it back to the body that owns it, and the source of the voice he had just heard—it’s the woman, that woman. Somehow, he calms down a bit, and he does as she said, he breathes.

He looks at her as he focuses on his breathing. There’s nothing familiar about her. Not her hair, not her face, not her eyes, not her voice. “You don’t remember anything,” she says. The certainty in her statement calms him further, and he can feel himself relaxing more and more. Even when he feels he doesn’t need to confirm her statement, he nods anyway, to let her know that he’s fine now.

Somehow, he knows that she understood his gesture perfectly. She lifts her hand off his shoulder, and the room is suddenly too cold for him. He’s still looking at her, though. He finds that she isn’t uncomfortable with his blatant staring, and he wonders if all amnesiacs react the same, which is why she’s used to it.

“Edogawa Conan,” she suddenly says, while still looking straight at him. To the boy, it doesn’t ring any bells.

“A-ah, right,” the old man speaks, and the boy remembers that there’s another person in the room. The old man continues, “Conan-kun, I’m Agasa Hiroshi, your neighbor and friend.”

The boy—his name is Edogawa Conan, apparently—looks at him and doesn’t make any expression of remembrance. The old man, Agasa, takes it as his cue to continue, “This here is Ai-k—ah! Shiho-kun, this is Shiho-kun. She’s a friend of yours, Conan-kun. She’s helped us a lot, and she’ll help you get better...”

At this, Conan looks at the woman named Shiho, and she just looks at him back.

“... Shiho… Shiho-neechan..?” Calling her name doesn’t sound right, nor does calling her neechan... Had he really known this woman before?

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ran-neechan. Now this rolls off the tongue. As he talks about his day, something he must have done a number of times with Ran-neechan, since he just grows more and more comfortable the more he speaks with her, he feels his body relax—until he senses something is off.

He looks around, and Shiho-neechan is nowhere to be found.

His chest tightens, and he looks around. He doesn’t hear Ran asking him if he’s alright. 

He gets up, out of the chair and runs to the WC—she’s not there.

He runs outside, and he instantly spots her talking to two men he doesn’t know.

He doesn’t know how he feels. He’s relieved, he’s angry, he’s hurt—

Shiho turns and catches him looking and—he’s embarrassed. 

Then he remembers, he’s a kid, right? So it’s alright to act like this, right?

He runs up to her, as quick as his short legs can take him, and practically jumps up to her arms. He’s a bit giddy when he sees the incredulous look on her face as she opens her arms to catch him. When she catches him, he holds her tight and sneaks a peek at the men she had been talking to, his face wearing what he thinks is a pretty angelic smile to show them just how happy he is right now.

Still, somehow, this feels new. If Shiho-neechan and him were close, why does this feel new? Do they not hug? It wouldn’t be that she doesn’t like kids because she certainly does—she always dotes on Ayumi-chan. Him, too. After all, he’s the only one among the Detective Boys allowed in her lab. She makes him good food, and she gives him novels and books that are actually interesting and not those childish ones. She doesn’t make him feel like a kid when they’re talking, and she always looks out for him.

In any case, this feels right, so it’s probably just a piece of memory he lost. What a pity. He figures he can just do this more often from now on. She’s able to catch him perfectly anyway, and just on their first try!

When the men say their goodbyes to Shiho with an unreadable look on their faces, Shinichi resists the urge to stick his tongue out at them. Shiho turns to nod goodbye, though, so his face wouldn’t be in their view even if he did. 

When they leave, he asks Shiho right away, “Who are they?”

“You’re not a kid. Get down from me.”

Conan just tightens his hold on her more, as he says, “I am a kid! Who are they?”

“Did you tell Ran-san where you are going?”

“I’ll explain when we get back. Who are they?”

“My boyfriends.”

Shiho is able to peel off an unresponsive Conan off her arms and shoulders. She looks at his incomprehensible expression and chuckles. She taps his cheek just as she stands up, and says, “Just kidding. Wipe that expression of your face and let’s get back to Ran-san.”

Having snapped out of his shock from the feel of his neechan’s finger on his cheek, and then hearing her say what she had just said wasn’t true, Conan wails, “Hey, that’s not nice!”

Shiho just throws a smirk at him as she slowly starts walking. He catches up, and they walk side-by-side.

Like this, Shiho suddenly explains, “They’re your friends, actually.”

Ever the curious kid, Conan immediately asks, “Then why did they come for you and not for me?”

Shiho casts him a look, then turns back to look forward. She just says, “Because you don’t remember yet, but I do.”

“Well, I remember enough. I remember you. I remember the important parts just fine, so whoever and whatever that was must have been unimportant.”

He stops walking when he hears his neechan’s footsteps stop from beside him. He sees the unimpressed expression on his Shiho-neechan’s face so he immediately backtracks his words, “Or, it is important, and maybe I’ll remember if they actually talk to me instead, you know, so take me with you next time you talk to them, neechan!”

Shiho smiles a bit, and Conan catches the turned up corners of her mouth before she sets it back when she says, “Maybe.”

They get back to walking, slowly, in silence. Conan’s mind, though, is bombarded with thoughts. With a light shake of his head, and mouthing a silent “Whatever, I’m a kid!” he lifts his hand up... 

When Conan’s small hand reaches Shiho’s, she stops, again, a while. Conan, somehow, feels embarrassed, again, but he’s a kid and this is what kids do, right? He wills his blush to go away, and instead tightens his grip on Shiho’s hand.

Shiho lightly flicks his forehead, and he pouts at the silent admonition, but before he can let go completely, her fingers curl against his hands, and he hears her say quietly, “Just… not so tight.”

He looks at her and he can make out the faint pink on her cheeks and ears. He chipperly answers, “Ok!”

At the front of the restaurant, Ran is waiting for them, waving them over.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

“Neechan? What are you doing?”

Conan finds Shiho, her arm over her eyes, head angled up towards the ceiling while leaning back away from her computer. 

A bit worried that Shiho had fallen asleep on her chair, Conan approaches her silently, softly calling out, “Neechan?”

Shiho sighs, and replies without looking at him, “I’m awake, just tired.”

Conan, noticeably more chipper now, energetically offers the things he had brought in the lab as he proudly announces, “I brought coffee!”

Shiho couldn’t keep the smile from her voice when she lightly says, “Little kids shouldn’t drink coffee.”

Conan doesn’t miss a beat as he retorts, “I thought you said I wasn’t a kid?”

Shiho just chuckles, saying, “Well, you’re short.”

“Hey!”

Shiho finally turns to look at him, and he offers her one of the mugs, still pouting. She accepts it, and she tilts her head down a bit, seemingly appreciating the coffee and its aroma. Conan doesn’t miss the unfathomable smile that crosses her face, though.

She hasn’t even taken a sip when she starts to say, “Hey, Edogawa-kun—”

He cuts her off. “Why don’t you ever call me Conan, or Conan-kun?”

She looks at him in surprise, and they stare at each other. It annoys Conan that he can’t read her, because there’s definitely something there—is this another one of the pieces he lost from his accident? He hates it. He hates it a lot.

It takes her a moment to reply, and when she does, she does not look away. She quietly replies, “... Because that’s not you.”

Conan still doesn’t understand, but he gets the feeling that he’s so close to what it is that he wants answers to, so he prods further, “And I’m Edogawa-kun?”

She sighs, and, it’s clear that Shiho is uncomfortable with this line of questioning. She breaks their eye contact, and complains to her coffee, “Tantei-kun, would you listen to me for a bit?”

“No,” is Conan’s quick answer.

“... Eh?” Shiho couldn’t prevent a sound of surprise coming out of her, since she didn’t expect that he, of all people, wouldn’t want some answers, any kind of answer, out of her.

He explains, “You sound like you’re going to say something bad. Don’t do it.”

A wry smile comes from Shiho, and she says, “I’m not.”

The unease in his heart has yet to dissipate, and his instincts are rarely wrong. Conan just continues to stare at her.

Seeing that Conan doesn’t intend to let her continue, she continues in a singsong voice, “With you here, I wouldn’t dare do anything bad.”

Frustrated that his neechan doesn’t seem to take him seriously at all, hands clenched into fists, Conan just grits out his suspicion directly, “Are you leaving?”

Shiho looks up from her coffee, all traces of emotion wiped from her face. She looks at him looking at her—the way his eyes narrow a little, the way they shine, the way his lips press together in a straight line, the way his lower lip dips a little to let her know he’s biting it, the way his brows are knit together, the way his voice is solid, absolute, as if stating a fact, as if giving a command when he says, “Don’t leave me.”

Shiho places her coffee on her desk—and Conan’s expression sours more when he thinks she doesn’t feel the gravity of what he’d just said, that she can’t leave—and places her hands on his cheeks. Conan’s eyes widen a little at this, and he feels his cheeks burn, and he wants to will it to go away, but she’s looking at him and he wants to be able to read what she’s thinking, right now, and at every moment. In his lost memories, had he been able to? If he regains what he had lost, can he have this, too?

“Idiot,” she says as she squeezes his cheeks. “I was about to say, I’m done with the research. I can make you well again.”

She retracts her hands from his cheeks, and Conan feels lightheaded. He just says, “Oh.”

Shiho crosses her arms on her chest as she says, “No more headaches. No more sudden dizziness. No more shortness of breath.”

“That’s it?” That’s all you wanted to say? 

Shiho nods. “Yeah.”

Conan’s pulse is still racing. It takes him a moment to collect himself, and he assesses her, tries to trust her and her words, even when he has lingering doubts. He’s about to nod, to let the topic go, but in a moment of hesitation, he’s able to remind himself that he’s a kid so it doesn’t matter if he asks stupid questions. So, he doesn’t nod, and instead looks her straight in the eye and asks her, “You’re not leaving?”

She smiles. She only says, “Sticky kid.”

When she smiled, he relaxed. The relief is written all over his face even as he complains, grinning, “Shut up! Give me back my feelings!”

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

When Shinichi woke up, the first thing he sees is white. The first thing he hears is the beeping of the machines attached to him.  

“What..? Where..?”

He looks to the left and he sees Agasa-hakase, shock evident on his face. Shinichi makes an attempt to sit up as he asks, “Hakase..? Why am I here?” 

Hakase immediately gets up and hugs the woman beside him, saying, “Ai-kun, it worked..! Ai-kun, you did it!”

Shinichi doesn’t know her. 

Their eyes meet, and the small smile on her face disappears just for a flash before it’s back. 

When the professor releases her from his hug, she cuts off the professor before he can say anything more, saying “Miyano Shiho. One of your doctors. A friend of the professor.”

The professor bewilderedly looks between the two of them before a look of realization sinks in. Shinichi would have noticed, but he isn’t really focusing on anything else right now, other than the woman he doesn’t know right in front of him.

“I’ll be going now. If there’s anything, professor please call me.”

The professor just nods, slowly, silently.

Shinichi doesn’t know if he has anything to say except, “Thank you...”

When she left the room, somehow, there’s a discomfiting feeling at the back of his mind, down to his chest.

He’s just tired, maybe. 

#31 days of coai #coai #haibara ai #edogawa conan #detective conan #dcmk #x writes #x prompt fills

[ladyspaceradio]

Fire and Glass Chapter 7

Ao3 Link

Chapter 7: Title IX

“SIT!” The terrifying roar of one doctor Lexi T’Perro could be heard throughout the Tempest and had crew members desperately scrambling away from the medbay. No one wanted to be on the receiving end of the asari’s wrath.

Unfortunately the woman who was often the cause of said wrath had been attempting to sneak out of the medical themed torture chamber when the order was thrown at her. 

To say Lexi was fuming would be an understatement.

Yelping, Grace scrambled back into the room to plop harshly down onto the stool.

“Did you set yourself on fire?” Lexi frowned down at her like a mother scolding a child.

“Ah what? Who told you? Peebee-no she won’t come near you. Liam.” Grace hissed. Once this torment was over... she would have her revenge.

 “Ryder!” Lexi warned with a flick of her scanner.

 “I might have… been caught in a… backlash of an explosion” Lexi’s stern glare prompted her to finish with “… that I caused.” Grace gave her doctor a sheepish smile as Lexi growled.

 “Off now.”

 “Now?”

 “Ryder.”

 “Fine.” Grace grouched.

 She had been hoping that by the time Lexi roped her into a physical exam Jaal would be gone. It was a foolish thought considering he hadn’t detached from the Moshae’s side since she awoke, fervently lavishing the exhausted woman with all his adoration. It was almost sickening listen to him coo over her, asking if she was alright.

 No she wasn’t jealous!

 Just… miffed he hadn’t spoken to her since the shuttle. Hell, when he looked at her there was a ripple of anguish spreading across his features that made her feel all the more guilty.

 Not like I fell off on purpose.

 Pressing her lips into a thin line, focusing on not looking at the male who was not looking at her, Grace slipped off the sweat soaked tee she wore beneath her wetsuit and waited for Lexi’s reaction.

 Sure enough Lexi gasped, looking at the canvas of black, blue, purples welts splotched across her once uniformly tan skin.

 Under the cover of her bangs Grace chanced a look at Jaal. He was standing beside the Moshae but his attention had shifted to her grotesque display, clearly horrified and a little disgusted. He was expelling harsh puffs of air while staring at the discolored skin that covered the front and back of her torso.

 Heart dropping to her stomach, Grace slumped in her seat as Lexi circled her. Briefly touching the unmarred patch of skin as she did so.

 “Ow.” Grace said blandly as she looked down at her knees.

 It was a little game she played with Lexi. The doctor would poke and prod and Grace would go ‘ow.’ It didn’t matter if the places she was poked at didn’t hurt, Grace still produced the lackluster wounded noises.

 “By the Goddess look at your back.” Lexi probed her shoulder.

 “Ow.” Grace frowned as she sniffed the matted hair falling in front of her face. Wrinkling her nose, Grace pushed the greasy strands back into place. She smelled like a stinking pile of varren shit.

 “What happened to your ribs?!” There was now a hysterical note in her voice as she started poking at the black and blue swelled skin.

 “Ow.” Grace actually hissed as the asari’s fingers skimmed over the throbbing skin. “Got kicked by a kett.”

 Lexi sighed through her nose as she straightened. “SAM, report.”

 “Ryder has multiple contusions on her dorsal side. There is inflammation and swelling on her abdomen. A few lacerations on her arms. 3 broken bones in her right hand, consisting of a boxer's fracture a-

 The rest of the AI’s explanation was swallowed by Lexi’s pained noise as she swooped to the front of Grace, lifting her hand. Slowly the woman peeled away the glove to reveal the mess that lay twisted inside.

 “GRACE!” Lexi cried looking at the massive bleeding, internal swelling, and bone fragments sticking out of her skin.

 “It’s not that bad.” She croaked.

 It was that bad. The hand was nearly triple the size it should be, the skin that should have covered her knuckles had been peeled away, leaving a bloody wreck of bone and muscles exposed. There was also a small metacarpal bone shard jutting out into the open air.

 It was a nauseating sight to see.

 “W-what did you do?” Lexi gaped at the horridious sight.

 “Punched stuff.” Grace offered while flinching as Lexi felt around for more fractures.

 Straightening Lexi rubbed her temples while muttering under her breath about ‘Ryder’s death wish.’ and ‘she doesn’t get paid enough.’

 “Jaal can you hold her?”

 Head snapping in the direction of the two angara who had been silently observing her hissy fit, realization dawned and Grace started to shake her head as Jaal rose from the Moshae’s side.

 “Come on Lexi it-you are NOT sticking me with that!” Grace attempted to stand, only to be shoved back into her seat by two very strong hands. Her eyes glued to the three inch needle Lexi was prepping.

 Ryders weren’t scared of anything.

 But fucking NEEDLES!

 Grace jerked forward attempting to get out of the hold, but his hands were like shackles.

 “When I get out of here.” Grace hissed. “I’m hitting you.”

 Jaal’s return answer was to purr. A loud reverberating rumble that started deep in his chest. It reminded Grace of the big cats back home. The Moshae in the corner laughed lightly as she watched the pair.

 There was an expletive on the tip of her tongue till Lexi turned towards her with the silver piece of metal designed by hell to send good soldiers to their knees. Squealing in an undignified manner, Grace started to thrash in Jaal’s hands, almost succeeding in freeing herself until he changed his grip. She was suddenly airborne before being cradled against a hard chest. Her left hand was smooshed between their bodies as he anchored the broken one over his shoulder all while pressing her face into the material of his rofjinn. Taking her seat, one of his thighs pushed up, acting at a ledge to keep her in place as one leg was trapped between his thighs and the other hung by his hip.

 If Grace wasn’t panicking she would certainly be embarrassed that she was being held like a belligerent child.

 “Grace,” Lexi sighed exasperated. “Stop making this harder than it needs to be.”

 “Fuck. You.” She hissed against the shoulder her face was anchored against.

 The purring being produced by her jail keeper kicked up a notch as she struggled to escape him.

 Ryder pushed forward into Jaal’s chest, and despite her anxiety, the deep purr was affecting her. Her body loosened just before there was a decidedly bullshit jab in her wrist, just above her hand. Grace gave a wailing cry, jerking in his hold as he smothered her hysterical noises with a full body purr.

 Though it was only mere seconds the needle pierced her skin, to Grace it was an eternity. The muscles of her arm contracted as her hand twitched while a wet sounding wail emerged from her throat. Over the distressing noises and heart pounding fear Grace could hear Lexi grumbling as she patted Ryder’s head.

 “Can break bones, hunt down murderers, face new aliens without blinking and it’s needles she’s scared of.” The asaris shook her head while backing away from the pair.

 Jaal, who had taken the brunt of Grace’s hysterics was eying Lexi with a frown as he rocked in inconsolable woman in his arms. Lexi would have smiled if it weren’t for the fact that Grace seemed to be breathing harsher than necessary.

 Panic attack?

 “Grace,” Lexi stooped low the catch the gray eyes peering over blue fabric, her hand twitched again as she looked at Lexi. Sharp gasps escaped her lips as she jerked occasionally in the angara’s hold.

 “Breathe deep Grace, there are no more needles.” Lexi soothed as she ran her fingers through Grace’s hair.

 “Liar.” Grace choked out as she gulped in a large breath before holding it and exhaling slowly.

 As she started to calm, Grace noticed that while she partially dangled in the angara’s arms, he was rubbing her back as well as purring. She also happened to hear another weak, sputtering purr coming from the corner.

 Energy spent, she layed there against the big chest of the soothing angara watching Lexi work. The asari gave her hand a small poke, watching Grace's face for any sign of discomfort, but Grace felt nothing as she stared at her doctor with droopy eyes. As Lexi set her hand Grace let out a litany of ‘ow’s that had the asari sighing through her nose in annoyance.

 “You can let go of her now Jaal.” Lexi patted his shoulder. “We’ll be good from here.”

 The angara hesitated before relinquishing his hold on her and Grace was all too quick to jump out of his lap. She had become increasingly aware of his warm thigh pressing solidly against the junction of her legs and the way his large chest had vibrated against hers. If it hadn’t been for the blinding panic and the exhaustion that followed, Grace might have lost herself in the embrace.

 Jaal didn’t say anything as he stood and returned to the Moshae’s side.  Grace felt a painful twist in her gut as he again took his seat while Lexi grabbed material to wrap the wound. Bending down she scooped up the discarded shirt. Legs trembling from the ordeal, Grace flopped back onto the stool. The once lulling purr was now gone as silence descended upon the occupants.

 A silence that perhaps was more damning than any scolding Grace had ever received. It was almost as if they had returned to just before the night spent in the cavern.

 “There,” Lexi finished wrapping her hands in a medi-gel infused cast. “Now I’d like to run some blood tests on-.”

 “Noooo.” Grace whined as she slid further down her seat.

 “Why not let the kid rest, Lexi.” Drack came striding into the room, shooting Grace a significant look that had her perking up a bit. If anyone could save her from Lexi, it was the old man.

 “I need to make sure she’s okay.” Lexi turned to eye the veteran as he snorted.

 “Food Lexi,” Drack crossed his arms, he frowned at the angaran male before looking at the asari doctor. “Kid needs food, shower, and rest.”

 Lexi tapped her arm impatiently while her gaze jumped from Ryder back to Drack before sighing. “Fine.”

 A wide toothy grin appeared on Drack’s face as he ushered Grace from the door and away from the horror room. “Got some stew waiting for you in the kitchen Kid.”

“Drack,” Lexi called after the old krogan before he could take another step. “I haven’t seen you about those implants yet.”

 “Now Lexi-.” He didn’t get to finish speaking before the asari was pointing at the stool Ryder had abandoned. Whatever argument he had prepared to wage was lost to Lexi’s fierce glare. Giving Ryder one last push to the door he ambled over to the chair.

“Thank you.” Grace mouthed as she slipped out the room, away from all the occupants and the deafening silence. She had been more than happy to finally sit in the alone in the gallery. The day had been one hell of a demented rollercoaster.

 The kett facility had been the tip of the bullshit iceberg. After they had landed back at the resistance base with the Moshae in tow, it had been like fighting against the tide. Angara flocked all around, wanting to see the beloved woman. If it hadn’t been for Lexi and the Angara doctors Ryder didn’t think they would have made it out of the shuttle.

 Gaarul had adequately named her, the angara revered her like a hero which unsettled Grace as they all tried to thank her one by one. It didn’t help matters that Jaal had essentially left her to deal with it alone.

 Exhausted and in pain she eventually told them all, as kindly as possible, to shove off.

 Sighing into the booth, Grace reached for the steaming bowl of soup that had been prepared for her.

 Drack Nakmor, caretaker of all.

 The picture of Drack caring for baby Kesh popped into her mind as she awkwardly dipped her spoon into the brown liquid. It turns out not eating for more than 13 hours left Grace ravenous. If she had the two fully functioning hands, she might have picked up the bowl and gulped straight from the source, but Grace had to settle for awkward spoonfuls.

 The day was not done dicking with her yet, Jaal came into the room just as Grace dribbled some stew down the front of her shirt. She could only blame it on the fact she wasn’t naturally left handed and eating as such made her clumsy.

 It wasn’t nerves.

 He glanced only a moment in her direction before moving to the pantry, turning his back on her. Grace looked down at her steaming bowl of Drack surprise. Clenching the spoon in her hand, she took a deep breath.

 It’s now or never.

 “Hey,” She bit her lip briefly rolling it between her teeth before releasing it. “Jaal how are you doing?”

 “Should you not ask yourself that question?” He didn’t turn around as he pulled a tube of angara paste out.

 Extreme colds detected Pathfinder.

 Opening and closing her mouth, Grace stared at his back with an ugly mixture of frustration and aggravation and-for fucks sake her back hurt.

 Shifting Grace pulled a frown as she stared at the undersuit of the angara’s armored back. “You still mad about-.”

 “Yes.”

 Pursing her lips, Grace turned back to her cooling soup, not really feeling as hungry as she had before. Fingers tapped against the table before she sighed, putting the spoon down and pushing the food away. She doesn’t notice that the male was now watching her with a worried frown.

 Walking forward, he placed the paste on the table before looking down at Grace’s bent head.

 “Eat.” He commanded pushing the bowl back.

 “Not hungry.”

 “But you were before.”

 Lips peeled back, Grace flashed him a mean smile before saying. “That’s before you came in.”

 It was mean and childish, but Grace didn’t give a shit. She was tired, in pain and the throbbing behind her eyes was getting so much worse.

 I’m not fucking crying over being scolded.

 Jaal took her moodiness in stride as he tilted his head in contemplation before squatting down at her side. “Grace,” His eyes were imploring while his hand hovered over her thigh, as if to pat her. “Please eat.”

 She stared at him for a moment before suddenly reaching forward and cupping his face with her good hand, which was slightly dirty with food. The tingles speared at her skin, alighting a flame as always while tracing a path down her nerves and settling in her heart. There was something about him that just drew her in. Perhaps it was the general rawness in his eyes or the sincerity of his actions. Whatever it was Grace knew that if she didn’t do something she would start falling for him and hard.

 But all of her worrying for herself paled in comparison for what she saw in those familiar eyes. Nestled between the oceans was a deep layer of hurt that hid the transgressions of the day.

 “I’m sorry.” She whispered watching as his breath hitch and pupils widen. “I didn’t mean to worry you, and….I know that what we found in the-the base was bad.”

 “Jaal I know I’m not the Moshae or your um... people but I’m here if you need me.” There, that wasn’t so hard. Even if she did halt between each word.

 There was a odd cooing-keening noise he made before he abruptly shifted. Tentatively, he pulled her forward, practically out of her seat, and wrapped his arms gently around her form. The table pressed awkwardly into her ribs, thankfully not the side that took the hit, but even if it did she wouldn’t have complained because it felt so damn good being held.

 Cheek pressed against the smooth skin of his neck ridges, Grace could smell his spicy oils and the underlying musk of Jaal that reminded her of the forest after a storm. Earthy undertones of home. Tempted to bury her nose into the scent, she nuzzled her cheek against the pulsating  warmth, almost like a vein.

 Jaal’s face buried itself in the crook of her neck. Grace could feel his shuddered exhale as his arms tightened a fraction around her shoulders.

 Lifting a hand she patted his arm. “We’ll stop them, I promise.”

 The sweat dried tee was steadily getting wetter as Jaal cried earnestly into her shoulder. Grace didn’t know what to say or if there even were words she could say, so she started to hum him a popular lullaby under her breath as she gently rocked them both while rubbing between his shoulder blades.

 They stayed like this for several minutes until Grace’s back started twitching in pain and she had to shift back a bit. Despite the movement, Jaal stayed wrapped around her breathing deeply into her skin before slowly pulling back.

 “Feel better?” Grace smiled as she wiped away a lingering tear. His hand immediately reached up, wrapping around her wrist, a loose grip she could pull away from if she wanted to. Grace didn’t know if he was telling her to stop or not, but he didn’t pull her hand away.

 “You are so small.” He murmured absently as his thumb rubbed the underside of her wrist, across her pulse. The hand that encapsulated hers could wrap around it twice almost.

 “Small but fierce.” Grace joked as she felt a jolt of warmth. Her heart was dancing to a fluttering tango of emotions.

 “Small but fierce.” He agreed looking at her like she was a marvelous wonder.

 “How’s the Moshae?” The question escaped her lips as she founder herself glancing furtively below his nose.

 Don’t go there Grace.

 “She is resting once more.” Jaal supplied as he started studying her little limb. “Lexi asked me to leave while she sleeps.”

 “I imagine, she’s needs the rest.”

 Eyes focus he starts bending the digits of her fingers, testing the flexibility of them. “She has not told me much of the horrors she experienced.” He paused looking back up at Grace with the same intense focus. “She has been through a lot.”

 Sighing, Grace curled her fingers inward. “I’ll have to talk to her at some point.” It was not a conversation she was looking forward too.

 Jaal nods at this assessment before sighing.

 “It’s times like these I miss my family.” Grace could hear the deep yearning in his voice that made her heart twist. She was well aware of the sacrifice and risk he’d taken to come with her.

 He’ll be back with his own in no time.

 That caused a jab of pain to slice through her. Grace clamped down on the nagging feeling. She had enough on her plate, she didn’t need, or want, to develop a crush.

 “Are you close with your family?” She asked as she tugged her hand out of his grasp. The thumb sliding across her fluttering pulse was distracting. Once extracted she placed the tingling limb on her lap. There was still a ghost of his touch whispering across her skin.

 “Very much so…angara families are large.” Jaal smiled a little at this.

 “How big?”

 “I have 33 siblings.” Grace wheezed a little as she stared at his open expression. There was no mischief gleaming across his eyes, only a soft loving looking as he thought of his family. His ‘enormous as all hell’ family.

 “Wow,” She couldn’t imagine the galaxy handling thirty plus Ryders. “I have like one brother and that's it.”

 Jaal seemed to be yanked from his thoughts at her words. The soft look from earlier clouded over with sadness.

 There is was, the sad puppy look. “That must have been lonely.”

 Lonely. A word Grace had come to know all too well in her days as Pathfinder. She lost everything

 “Nah,” She gave him a small smile before looking over at the bowl of soup waiting to be consumed. Her throat constricted as she forced whispering words to pass through her vocal cords. “We are twins so….it’s like being cut from the same cloth. We did everything together.”

 A hand briefly touched her shoulder as she looked back at him.

 Gentle eyes urge her to tell him more. To cut open the wounds and let them heal. But she’s not ready. She might never be ready.

 “Where is he now?” He ask in a soft voice, almost as if he can since her vulnerability.

 “Here, in Heleus I mean...he’s….” She couldn’t seem to say it, so she just bit her lip instead, gaze returning to the table.

 As if sensing that this wasn’t a something she wanted to discuss, Jaal changed topics.

 “Are you close with your family?” Jaal echoed her earlier words.

 There was a moment when her heart stopped, before resuming a normal rhythm. Grace could feel SAM stir, but he remained silent.

 Swallowing she gives a breathy laugh. “I miss them.” She answers instead.

 Perhaps what Lexi had said held some truth, that she couldn’t handle the grief. But Grace covered it with the excuse that she didn’t want to unload on him anymore than what he already was dealing with.

 “Will you tell me about them?

 “Another time perhaps.” Grace inclined her head, keeping a pleasant smile upon her lips. “We can swap family stories.”

 “It would take a long time to cover all the stories.”

 “With over thirty siblings I would imagine so.” Grace gave him a real smile this time. “You probably could top anything I had.”

 “Nothing would be more pleasing to me then hearing about you and your family.”

 It should have been a sweet compliment, but it left a bitter tang of agony in her heart. Still, Grace flushed in mild embarrassment.

 “Thank you.”

 The morose mood broke when Grace giggled at his cheek, the one she had cupped earlier. “I got food on you.” She pointed out.

 Jaal frowns a moment, before swiping his thumb across the cheek she’s gestured too. Sure enough he swept away the juices from the stew.

 Suppressing a smile as she sees him sniff it, Grace wondered idly if he liked how it smelt and if he wanted some. Abruptly those thoughts came to a screeching halt as he looked up and caught her watching him.

 Eyes locked on hers, his tongue swept out licking the pad of his thumb clean. He swirled it deliberately around the tip of the digit, giving it one more flick before the purple appendage slowly disappeared back into his mouth.

 Grace wasn’t sure, but she might have let out a whimper at the sight of the dark purple tongue. Jaal huffed, his face suddenly very close, pupils expanding rapidly. A puff of breath fanned across her lips, and Grace shuddered, swaying forward just a bit. There was a fluttering in her stomach. A clench and release of muscles as he reached for her.

 “Grace-”

 “You are supposed to be eating.”

 Jumping, Grace swung her gaze towards Drack. The krogan was frowning something fierce, glaring at Jaal who was still leaning over her.

 “I was.” Grace smiled, trying to play off the tension building in the room. She shifted back just a bit, away from the angara to look at her self-imposed caretaker.

 “Finish the bowl, or I’m taking you back to Lexi Kid.”

 “Meanie.” She slumped a little in the booth and cast a side glance to Jaal who appeared to be frowning with the same intensity as Drack.

 Instead of moving away, he nudged her side. Looking at him in confusion, Grace realized he wanted her to scoot over. Wiggling a bit, she slid further into the booth to accommodate the male. Jaal’s legs’ didn’t quite fit beneath the table, so he ended up sitting with them stretched outside the booth while twisting his torso a bit to look at her.

 Drack, who had been watching the two of them, grumbled something under his breath as he walked towards the counter.

 “Want some bread kid?”

 “God yes.” Grace reached for her bowl only to have Jaal push it gently into her hands before handing her the spoon. “Thanks.”

 Jaal nodded as he brought the nutrient paste to his mouth.

 Drack slapped the loaf of bread a little too loudly against the counter before producing a large gleaming knife that seemed far too big to cut a small piece of bread. Eyebrows raises she watched as he began meticulously slicing up the loaf with apprehension. Jaal seemed completely at ease sitting next to her watching the old man cutting up the bread like he was peeling the meat from a pyjack.

 “Ryder,” SAM cut through the unnerving tension as he spoke over the comms. “Director Tann is on the comm, he wishes to speak with you.”

 Grace groaned, dropping her spoon into the nearly half filled bowl. “Bastard has the worst timing.”

 “He can wait.” Jaal spoke suddenly.

 “He’s right kid,” Drack put down the knife and handed her a piece of bread. “Take time to care for yourself.”

 Grace snorted accepting the piece of bread before dipping it into the stew, soaking up some of the meat juice. “Myself? I didn’t think I needed to be cared for?”

 “Why would you not need care?” Jaal asked as he twisted around more to look at her.

 She tilts her head a bit towards him. “Tann and Addison see a Pathfinder, nothing else.”

 “It’s not how we see you.” Jaal declared as Drack nodded in the background.

 “You’re human kid,” The krogan rumbled as he wiped down his shotgun, it probably wasn’t all that sanitary to have it in the kitchen, but Grace wasn’t going to say anything. “You’re squishy and need a lot of maintenance to stay alive. Hell, salarians have less requirements than you humans do.”

 “Meh,” Grace wiped more stew off her chin as she spilt more on herself than she got in her mouth.

 Jaal seemed to be pondering something as he stayed silent. Which is how the rest of her meal went before she slipped out with a thank you towards Drack and a smile for Jaal.

 There was hell to pay making Tann wait, and Grace couldn’t care less as she watched the Salarian huff and slander her with thinly veiled insults. She had been very tempted to ask SAM to cut the signal so she could go shower. But no, here she stood coated in sweat and dry blood that belonged to her and the dead, listening to a pompous asshole seeth at her audacity to put off talking to him so she could have a decent meal.

 “TANN!” Grace finally yell cutting off the salarians rant on how he had better things to do then wait for her. “Get to your damn point.”

 “Perhaps you should take a trail of patience, Ryder.” The director frowned. He didn’t take particularly well to being cut off.

 “You get your hand broken and stand around coated in blood then come talk to me about patience.”

 A very distinctive cough sounded below that had her narrowing her eyes further. It seemed Liam was hanging around.

 “Right,” Tann folded his hands looking at her disgruntled form with no small amount of disgust flashing across his big lizard eyes. “What you did on Voeld has shown your outstanding skills as a Pathfinder, why I could even say Alec couldn’t have done better.”

 Grace stiffened at her father's name, her lips peeling back in a small sneer. Tann either doesn’t notice or doesn’t care as he continues on.

 “But, you are our Pathfinder, Ryder, not the angara’s.” Tann reminded.

 Working her jaw, Grace counted backwards from ten before speaking again. “Stop tip-toeing and tell me what you want Tann.”

 “Outpost.” Tann spoke as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “We need more people out of cryo.”

 And there is was, the needs of the many. He’s wanting demands come to press upon her overburden shoulders.

 “You want me to settle Voeld.” Wasn’t really a question, she already knew their need for planets to settle. Voeld was a perfect candidate too. After all the time she put into it. All she had to do was get past the icy glacier of mount Evfra.

 “Not just Voeld Ryder.” Tann weaved his finger together giving her a slimy business man look. She knew where he would say next. “I’ve heard your reports on Aya.”

 “Most of that planet is molten lava and fire hurricanes.” Grace tries deflecting but she sees the gleam in Tann’s eye.

 “Not all of it Ryder. Aya is a paradise, perfect for colonization.”

 She hears it then, the chuffing noise of an annoyed angara.

 Well shit.

 Seemed Liam had a companion to eavesdrop with.

 “Aya is not an option.” Grace tilts her chin up, firming her tone as he opens his mouth to argue. “Aya. Is. Not. An. Option.”

 Tann narrows his eyes on her then. “I was mistaken Ryder.”

 She steels herself for the blow.

 “Your father would have done better.”

 Your father It’s like a chant that rings over and over again in her ears as she listens to Tann promising they will discuss this further when she’s on the Nexus again, before the line goes dead.

 “Your father would have done better.”

 “What hope do we have now that Alec is dead!....Now he’s gone and left you, his inexperienced daughter.”

 “Alec Ryder was the hope of the Initiative.”

 “Alec Ryder...your father...gone”.

 “FUCK!” She slams her hands onto the table before crying out at pain shoots down her arm.

 “Ryder,” Cora’s head poked around the railing as she peered at her from the ramp. “Are you okay?”

 “Just dandy.” Grace sniffed, wiping her nose across her forearm. Her eyes were starting to burn again. “I’m fine Cora, thanks for your concern.” Turning she started making her way down the opposite ramp.

 “Wait, Ryder!” The biotic called scrambling to catch up, though she doesn’t have far to go since Grace halted upon noticing half the crew gathered around the research station. All of them are looking at her with sympathetic looks. It pisses her off, she doesn't need their damn pity.

 “Alec Ryder was a good man, I hope you will prove to be half the person he was.”

 She was not Alec fucking Ryder. She never would be. But god damn it she wished they would stop comparing them.

 Turning towards Cora, Grace curled her hand into a fist. If the woman was about to give her a speech on how great her father was, Ryder wanted to prepare herself for the blows to her self esteem.

 “He’s wrong.” Harper states, her voice sounding even, firm. Conveying how true she held all these beliefs. “You have done far more than Alec would have accomplished.”

 “I-thank you Cora.” Grace shifted her feet suddenly feeling all to uncomfortable with the murmurs of conversation that followed Cora’s statement. Jaal stood behind the rest looking like a proud mother.

 “It’s true Ryder.” Cora straightened, placing her hands behind her in a parade rest stance. “You have done more than I think even Alec could accomplish.”

 “You have won the trust of my people.” Jaal points out, though Grace isn’t so sure of that yet.

 “Prodromos wouldn’t be here if not for you.” Liam piped in as he nudged Vetra.

 “Nexus wouldn’t be functioning half as well without you.” The turian nodded.

 “Tann’s an idiot.” Drack added finally as he lumbered to lean against the door.

 Grace was beat red now as her heart fluttered with joy. She couldn’t ask for a better crew than what she had now. “Thank you...really thank you. Half the things I’ve done wouldn’t have been possible without you.”

 It was their turn to smile sheepishly while avoiding direct eye contact.

 “Go shower.” Vetra hooted after a beat of silence. “You smell worse than a baked elcor pie.”

 Grace wrinkled her nose a bit before backing up. “Fine I’ll leave and take my stink with me.”

 “Oh thank the goddess.” Peebee suddenly chirped as she passed Ryder, having missed the whole ‘Alec’s better’ stunt Tann pulled. “I though Drack had taken another dump and forgot to flush again.”

 “Happened once.” Drack growled though there was no real fire behind the bite in his words.

 Laughing, Grace ducks out of the area before she’s roped into anything else that will put off her shower. At this point everyone of the ground unit had showered but her.

 Grabbing a change of clothes, something soft and large that wouldn’t bother her bruised skin, she hurries to the shower and strips.

Sighing beneath the heat of the spray, Grace sagged against the wall letting the abused muscles finally relax underneath hot water.

 The day’s events play in the back of her mind while rivets of warm water trickle down purpled skin. The horrors of that facility would haunt her for the rest of her days. What the kett are capable of was beyond any terror she had seen on Eden Prime. Even if it was a similar concept. Taking allies and making them enemies.

 They had to be stopped.

 In a few days they would be back at Aya, dropping the Moshea off and hopefully gaining access to vault. But there was one small voice in the back of her head that kept persisting on pointing something out.

 Jaal will be leaving too.

 It shouldn’t bother her like it did. But the long nights and days spent on Voeld had brought the two closer together.

 Worst yet was the fact that she had almost kissed him in the mess hall. Or let him kiss her if that had been the goal.

 Trembling, Grace traced her lips as the scene picked off where they were interrupted. He would have cupped the back of her head, anchoring an angle where he’d have complete access to her. Then he would lean forward and-

 Would it be a glancing kiss? Just a taste to provoke the desire for more? Or would he ravish her, stealing the very breath from her lungs. Were his lips soft, able to mold to hers as he pressed gentle kisses along the seams of her mouth? Or firm? As he demanded the pleasure he inspired in her while pressing seductive whispering touches against her mouth. Would he rub that pebbled tongue along her bottom lip, asking for permission or demanding it?

 What would his tongue feel like?

 There was a warmth that settled low into her gut as she pressed her legs together beneath the stream of water. It was bad she wanted to do more than just kiss the male that had so much power over emotions she would have rather left buried.

 “Come here sweetheart, I got something to show you.”

 Sucking in a sharp breath Grace startled at the memory. The soft cooing voice with underlying subvocals. Clenching her fist, she pressed forward to the wall as the empty feeling of being used resurfaced.

 Ryders weren’t made to love.

 Breathing out through her nose, Grace blindly grabbed for her loofah before she started scrubbing the grime from her skin with such vigor it left the pink patch of skin red. The truth was, Grace had a total of one romantic experience that left her cracked. It had started well enough but ended-

 Grace stood there, her shirt gripped tightly between clenched fist as she stares at her supposed boyfriend. Something warm is trickling down her legs but she doesn’t move to wipe it away, or cover her nakedness as Chufik sneers at her.

 “Come now Sweetheart.” He sounds condescending saying the term of endearment. “You honestly think anyone would want that.” A three finger hands waves in her general direction. “You were just a pity fuck.”

 Those had been the last words he had said to her after taking her virginity. Grace had been so stupid too. At fifteen had thought she was in love. But Chufik had been the furthest thing from loving. Not only had he pressured her into sex, but he had effectively destroyed who she was. He had taken something from her, something she struggled to to maintain nowadays. Her self worth, her value, her dignity. Little pieces that made her Grace Nova Ryder.

 Never again. Ryder had sworn she would never let anyone in like that again.

 When Jaal left she would not leave another piece of herself behind.

 Reaching for the Thessia Rose shampoo, Grace popped the top and squeezed a healthy dose into her palm. Humming in satisfaction as she lathered the soap through her thick hair and sighed as her nails ran over her scalp. Scrubbing the gunk from her hair, Grace was relieved to see the clumps of dry blood swirling down the drain. The gore she had been covered in was disgusting. "Ryder?" Screaming, Grace jumped to the corner, covering her lady bits as she tried to see who was intruding on her private time. Though she had a pretty darn good idea whose baritone voice called her name. It was confirmed as she squinted at the broad shoulder alien lingering in the stall door. "Jaal!"

The angara looked almost as shocked as she was. Perhaps it was her reaction, the fact she was screaming at him, and possibly thrown her loofah blindly at his direction. It had smacked his shoulder with a wet plop before hitting the ground. Whatever it was he had him frozen staring at her. Of course Grace was becoming a stuttering mess the longer he stood, gazing upon her nakedness. "What's going on!" Liam yells as he crashed into the room with a pistol in hand. "Oh my- LIAM!" Grace cried. Back pressed to the wall, Grace desperately hoped she could fuse with the metal surface. "Whoa, buddy!" Liam exclaims as he covered his eyes while reaching out to grasp the angaran's elbow.

 Jaal’s gaze never left her as he was slowly and very much reluctantly, pulled away at Liam’s insisting. Those those earth like eyes flickered up and down her from, taking in the expansive bare skin as he did so. "What's going on?" Drack rumbled as he came sauntering into the cramped room to see one Liam covering his eyes, Jaal hungrily devouring Grace with his eyes, and a naked Pathfinder shrieking at both of them to leave.

"Leave! Get out!" Grace yells as she pulls her 'Mommy' voice as Peebee calls it.

Nothing like your whole crew seeing you butt naked to bring you all together.

The wonderful pleasure the hot shower had brought was now swirling down the drain. Grumbling beneath her breath, Grace took an extra minute to prepare herself for what was to come before exiting the shower.

 Unsurprising all the crewmembers were gathered around the conference. Most were there to observe.

 “Don’t you have things to do?” Grace asked as she walked up the ramp.

 “If you think for one second I’m missing this you're wrong.” Peebee giggles as she plopped down on one the couches.

 “Could you at least pretend to be busy?” Grace ran a hand through her wet hair, trying to detangle it since she hadn’t had time to brush it.

 Jaal was fidgeting by the time she looked his way. Multiple times he opened and closed his mouth. For a moment she wondered if anyone had talked to him about it or just left the angara guessing what he did wrong.

 Sighing Grace squared herself. It was time to jump past the cultural hurdles.

 “Look Jaal, you can’t just go walking into the bathroom while others are bathing.”

 Brow dipping low, he frowned at her while looking around at the Tempest crew who eagerly watched the exchange like a bad salarian drama.

 My whole life is a bad drama.

 “Your people do not bathe together?” He asked.

 Grace scrubbed a hand over her mouth. The alliance had kept strict regulation on diverse bathrooms, but the Tempest was a whole new playing field. Most the time she showered with Cora or Vetra or alone. Their had been a drafted shower schedule, men in the morning, girls in the evening, unless you were apart of the ground team time restrictions didn’t apply when your had kett guts in your hair.

 “Not always.” She finally answered. “Family members do and same sexs do and couples but generally friends don’t shower with friends.”

 Jaal is silent for a moment contemplating her words before speaking again. "Liam does not mind if I join him in the bathing quarters." "Liam is a male.” Grace explains a she points to the half dressed human in question. “And I'm sure you notice he has no problem walking around have nude." "It's educational for him!" Laim puffs his chest out, as if to prove his point. "You did it before he came aboard." Cora rolled her eyes, she had seen him shirtless enough times she didn’t even blust anymore. "Peebee doesn't mind,” Jaal adds then. He seems to be trying to grasp the rules of conduct. “she offers to bath with me frequently." All eyes swung to the rebellious asari who gave a sheepish smile. "Peebee has no shame." Grace gritted out. She would be speaking to a certain assri later about sexual harassment. "Hey!" She sounded aggrieved, but there was an upturning on her face that Grace knew meant the asari found this conversation funnier rather than insulting. "It’s true Peebs." Vetra pointed out. "You've made a proposition to the whole crew at least once." "You can't be serious." Grace groaned, that’s all she needed was Jaal going back to his people and spreading untrue truths about the Milk-way species. "Peebee, we're talking after this." "Aw good going Vetra, you got me in trouble." She pouted crossing her arm as she attempted to look offended. "You'll survive." The turian waved off her "I don't see what the big problem is here." Peebee uncrossed her arms as she looked suddenly too serious for this conversation.

 Uh oh.

"It's not like Ryder’s a virgin, right?" Silence. Everyone looked at Grace, their eyes wide with anticipation. Even Jaal seemed far to interested in this answer. "Seriously!” Grace floundered while a flush bloomed across her cheeks. “I'm not telling you my love life." "I'll be damned, our girls innocent." Gil’s cackling laughter could be heard below at the cargo bay entrance. "Gil!" Grace growled.

 “Not according to Temp-Tatious.” Liam was all to pleased to point this tid bit out.

 Grace felt the heat of her face double at the sudden knowledge that her crew has been listening to scandalous rumors involving her...and them. It seems the work of Tann’s lapdog reporters had made their way onto her ship.

 Curse you Calrus and Seriu.

 “Don’t you dare.” She hisses twisting around to look at the former HUSTL member.

 “Oh,” Suvi slides in seeming very tickled by the sudden conversation. “Have you heard the newest one?” Suvi might have looked like a pretty innocent woman but she was damn devious in Grace's opinion.

 “No-” Grace started but is cut off by Cora.

 “Can’t be me again is it? That was what five months ago? Think Liam was involved too.”

 “Oh ya,” Peebee grinned watching Grace shift in discomfort as she desperately tried to steer the conversation away from her sex life.  “Ryder was supposedly rocking your word when Liam came in and stole her-.”

 “Like a dashing hero.” Liam perked up. “And we ended up arguing who was a better lover in Vortex.”

 “The whole reenactment vid of that dispute was wonderful.” Peebee sighed. “Though the girl they got to do Cora made her sound a bit whinier than necessary.”

 “Oh my god.” Grace covered her face.

 “Then there was Vetra’s turn.” Suvi pointed out.

 “I got to bang Ryder and she got a ship.” The turian tapped her chin as if rethinking the whole thing.

 “But you fell in love and followed her across the stars.” Suvi sighed as if picturing the whole romantic series before her.

 “Please stop.” Grace tried as she avoided looking at Jaal who had a perplexed and shocked look on his face.

 “You’ve slept with your whole crew?” He asked.

 “NO!” Grace shot up from her slumped position.

 “Not yet she hasn’t.” Vetra laughed as Grace’s flush cheeks grew darker, the red color traveled down her neck.

 “Who’s the new lover?” Peebee asked like an excited dog nipping at a bone.

 Suvi’s lips curled into a devious smirk as she shot Jaal a significant look.

 “No.” Peebee gasped while the rest laughed.

 “But we haven’t mated.” Jaal looked even more confused at this news.

 “I’m dying.” Grace gasped. She had only wanted to straighten out the bathroom mess.

 “What’s the story?” Cora asked, looking far more invested than she should.

 “Apparently Ryder let it slip that the angara are great lovers, the greatest the galaxy has ever seen.”

 “We do make good lovers.” Jaal proclaimed in agreement after Liam had whispered something to him.

 Grace narrowed her eyes on the pair. It appeared the angara had been corralled into humiliating her. “I’m leaving, you’ve done it, I can’t stand to look at any of you!”

 Jaal’s eyes widen as he attempted to stop her. “But you have not explained why bathing together isn’t permitted.”

 Botttom lip jutting out, Grace looked at those innocent eyes and knew Liam had dug his claws into the angara. “I hate you all.”

 “Then why do you keep bedding us?”

 In response she just dropped her heat to the table grumbling about how they were the worst crew ever. This only elected chuckles from the people around her.

 It’s time to split.

 Taking a breath, Grace turned her attention on the angara who looked hopeful for an explanation.

 "Look Jaal you have to respect people's boundary lines. Most women shower alone, unless they seek out company. This applies to both sexes. I'm more comfortable showering alone.” Grace explained in a hurried breath. She had just about reached her limit on how much teasing she could take. “I understand,” Jaal nodded his head as if he finally grasped human reasoning. “though you should not feel ashamed of your body, you are very beautiful.”

 Grace sputtered while several of the crew laughed around the table.

 Jaal only looked more concerned. “I do not understand you.” He was gazing around the area with a pondering look. “Very well, I shall wait till you give me consent to bath with you then.”

 “Oh my god!” Grace covered her face, which was more than likely redder than a tomato at this point.

 The improv meeting ended shortly after that, with only a few lingering jabs at Grace’s overexaggerated sexlife. Lexi had grabbed her then, before she could slip away to her quarters to nurse her reputation.

 The Moshae had requested to talk to her.

 With a deep breath Grace stepped across the boundary of the medbay. Her earlier visit to the room resurfaced, causing her face to flush even more. Nothing says competent leader like weeping over needles.

 I’m so fucked.

 Immediately her eyes landed on the angaran woman laying in the far bed. Moshae Sjefa sat patiently for Grace to finish her trek to her side.

 “I know you are angry.” Grace blurted. The Moshae doesn’t say anything, just watching Ryder as she floundered around, rambling. “I mean I’d be too. Trapped in that hell hole only to leave it standing for others to experience what you’ve gone through. But I did what I thought was best.” She stopped taking a breath. “I do not regret my decision even if you do not approve. I could not give up hope. If there was any possibility of rescue I had to save them.”

 After her small rant, she stared down at the angara so many had told her was the wisest of them all. At the moment she didn’t see a wise woman, just another victim of kett cruelty. Another alien seeking justice for the wrongs that had been inflicted upon them.

 When she finally spoke her voice was soft, yet firm. The months spent in their clutches had not yet broken her spirit. “And what about the others that the Kett will take?”

 “You assume the Kett will get the chance.” Grace straightened. “Your people are not fools Moshae. They know the risks. And even if I had done as you asked and blown up that facility right there and then, they would take your people elsewhere.”

 Again the Moshae studied her, a look Jaal often gave Grace when he was trying to figure out if she was worthy. Those lingering looks were nearly nonexistent now.

 “Jaal told me what you did. He’s informed me the resistance is already planning a counter attack to take the facility.”

 Oh thank god.

 Sagging in relief, Ryder hesitantly took the seat next to the angara’s bed with a tentative smile. “I had hoped to be part of the attack but Anjik and Heckt have informed me where my priorities lay.”

 Tann had also had a bit of a conniption when she informed him of her intentions.

 “You do your people proud Pathfinder.”

 “Ryder...or Grace. I don’t prefer to go by my title unless it’s necessary.” She hated to be reminded that some of the initiative didn’t even recognized her as a person any more.

 “Of course.” The Moshae nodded. There was a small smile on her face now.

 “Did you know, Grace, that my people have a heightened sense of smell.” The Moshae  unthreaded her fingers before picking at the blanket tossed over her legs. She didn’t look all the comfortable lying upon the bed, but there were at least three pillows propped behind her back to take the curve of her back.

 It took a moment for Grace to grasp the odd topic change and the thousands of questions that cropped up. Did humans smell to them? Did she smell? Was this the angaran equivalent at subtly telling people to shove off?

 Clearing her throat, Grace shifted her feet, wondering where this was going. “I did not.”

 “It’s how we find mates, or spouses as your people say I believe. It’s called the culum mea, It means the souls bond. Some believe it is our reincarnated souls finding one another again. I find it very peculiar that your people do not have this sense.”

 “So….” She licks her lips, still unsure where this conversation is heading. “you're saying that the angara essentially have soulmates and they find them through scents?”

 “Soul-mates.” Moshea Sjefa hummed, testing the word. “Yes that is a term I would use. A permanent bond between two. We do not take this lightly Ryder.”

 Grace seemed extremely confused as to why this woman was telling her this, but she nodded and took the information to be filed away for later.

 “Okay.”

 Sjefa was staring at her expectantly, as if waiting for Grace to react to something. Glancing around the room she gave the woman a small sheepish smile. After an expansive amount of silence she finally chuckled.

 “You smell very odd to us.” Sjefa informed her.

 Grace wondered if she meant her or the general human species. “So I’ve heard. Maybe I should ask Jaal for some of his perfumes.”

 Moshae Sjefa stared at her a moment with a bemused grin, as if she had said something truly stupid. “Asking a male to wear his scent is asking to bond with him.”

 “Bond?”

 “Mate. Produce children-.”

 “Got it!” She squeaked while shifting in her seat.

 Laughing at her flaming face, the Moshae pats her hand. “No need to be afraid Dear….Though Sahuna has her work cut out for her.”

 “Who?”

 The Moshae doesn’t answer, merely smile as she hums beneath her breath.

 By the time Ryder stepped out of the room, her eyes were drooping with exhaustion. She was more than ready to hit they hay, even if it meant part of the night was plagued by nightmares.

 “Ryder, Liam is requesting your presence in the cargo bay.”

 “Really?” Grace glanced longingly at her bedroom door before sighing. “Is it important?” She asked.

 SAM was silent for a moment before speaking again. “He says it is.”

 “This had better be good.” With heavy feet she dragged herself to the cargo area. Of course Liam wasn’t in sight, meaning he was probably lounging on that stained couch.

 Thing needs a good steaming.

 “Alright Liam, what’s up-OH MY GOD!”

 The last thing Ryder expected coming into the storage turned media room was a naked angara.

 Very, very, naked.

 The scientist part of Grace woke up since the rest of her had decidedly shut down.

 He had an interesting chest. Grace wondered about the bone structure. Did they have acromion bones like humans did? What of the ribs? How where his organs organized? Did he have one heart or multiple?

 Jaal seemed to puff up at the sight of her as he slipped around the table.

 “Since I caught you off guard this morning I figured that the least I could do is show you-.”

 His words faded to the sound of the blood pumping through her ears. Her breath hitching with each inhale.

 ‘“...nothing to be ashamed…”

 Gaze dipped lower across the stomach. The ripple of muscles there looked human but-

 “..our forms are similar…”

 Lower still her gaze went, her breath left her lungs as she wheezed. Her eye snapped shut but she had already seen too much. Two thick columns of muscle and settled between those large muscular thighs was a rather sizeable and girthy violet shaft covered with delicate ridges that, like the back of his head, were a deep blue where they connected… and apparently those white speckles on his skin did in fact go everywhere.

 Holy. Shit.

 Grace made a few strangled noises as she stepped back, only for her ankle to catch something, sending her off balance.

 “Ryder?”

 “RYDER!”

 A sharp pain flared in the back of her head and for a moment she lost consciousness, as the next time her eyes open she’s nestled between Liam’s legs, being propped up.

 “Lexi’s on her way.” He informed her. Not that she was overly concerned with that fact considering Jaal was squatting before her, still naked.

 “Please put some pants on.” Grace wheezed, her eyes had been on level with the monster penis.

 “Does my nudity offend you?” Jaal seemed sad at the prospect. Oh great now he thought she found him ugly.

 I think distant cold Jaal might be an improvement at this point.

 “On the contrary Mr. Ama Darav, Ryder has a high level of-.”

 “Not a word Sam!” Grace yelped as she tried to scramble up, only to be forced back gently by a pair of hands.

 “Liam thinks you might have a concussion.” Jaal crooned, clearly feeling much better knowing her embarrassing secret. “It is best if you stay still.

 Liam was also losing his shit behind her. She could feel the laughter that racked his body, as he tried to cut off the sound.

 Grace elbowed him in the ribs. Hard.

 Wheezing, Liam tipped backwards, taking her with him.

 Jaal reached out to grab her.

 That was how a slack jawed Lexi found them. Grace smooshed between one shirtless Liam and a very large completely naked as the day he was born Jaal Ama Darav.

Notes:

Beta by @lunamkardas 

#mass effect jaal #jaal x ryder #jaal ama darav #jaal x f!ryder #jaal x sara #Mass Effect #Fire and Glass #Armor exchange

[glopratchet]

labs-mirro

Black and Yellow!!! We're forever Blammew! Eidolon finally runs out of patience and sends the mercs packing with a giant gust of wind The excessive force sends you sprawling backwards and knocks your helmet sideways before popping off your head A scrap of paper flutters around in the wind for a second The leader lets out one last defiant war cry against his oppressors and is nearly swept up into the sky Beetles, the lot of you!!! Even the wind has something to say Waking up in a warm liquid filled darkness is never fun Working out that you're curled up naked and cupping hollowed out eggs in your hands as they begin to hum ponderously is even less so The entire cavern once again brimming with a faint purple glow you shake your mane involuntarily before briefly examining the stone surrounding you You've cracked it! Hindsight is a wonderful thing and you can't but help poke a little fun at your simian ancestors painting on the wall You grimace and scrabble in the sandpaper tough cavern floor with your claws Once the grit clears, you examine your handiwork You crawl a little closer and are just able to detect a perfectly formed helm hiding in the outline now revealed Underneath a near identical one lies already uncovered "Only the 80 million Deldynans really thriving" is their propaganda that occasionally trickles through into the Norm town surrounding the dig site What bewilders you, is the lack of any other embryos or foetuses in the cavern Sure there were rows upon rows of the foetal tanks but they were all empty! Not a single soul has been bred yet! You allow yourself a rare grin as you once more scan the message hidden in the painted stone slab "fuse powered by an AI" No one has been able to even guess at it's final intention yet the sheer amount of information it already possesses is said to rival a good university library This decision to hide mirrored messages within the paintings would surely be above it's comprehension capabilities One of the many, many unanswered questions on your mind You've pondered for a bit but there's no reason to linger you suppose Imbued with far too much knowledge far too quickly Directed by an indecipherable goal Still, you're not going to rule out the possibility What is it that guides the actions of Mirror lab's A I? Is it yet another experimental leap in technology? Is it some form of god complex? Or strike out on your own? --- No The real question now is just how mirrors are even and why? You sit patiently clutching your little stone eggs There is no answer hidden for you in the mottled walls, instead you simply extend your perception out and across the cavern You might finally understand just what this place is for And what an egg lay beyond! Following along the wall into the forbidden zones automatic defenses, through the narrow "tunnel" that was dug out around it And possibly Just what YOU are for Wow Just wow You never realised just how vivid the parietal lobes really are looking from the inside! Like an artists advanced colour wheel, almost a third of your field of view is taken up by seemingly endless swirling fractals in every conceivable colour! No wonder aesthetically pleasing images and artistic endeavours came so naturally to you! It seems human beings weren't just nailed onto sticks as primitive signaling apes after all Though you still are in fact a stick nailed onto a human You really should tell someone about this! And what of that amazing question seemingly answered by the verse from "kinEMA" Specifically this line; "and why such breathtaking beauty must die" It seems clear to you now, that lead isotope Calcification detected in your system isn't just calcium ;;it's the same arthritic wear-and-tear you've seen in the elderly Though observing it in your own not-quite bones is somewhat daunting! || It's obviously just the fillings in your teeth Totally different isotope Obvious! There was no way these guys would allow a γ-decay photon-emitter in an artificial tooth or vertebrae But Pickernim's knee It sure looks like calcium ;;or at least like what you remember of x-rays of Calcium blood clots in Mrs Geesh, what were they feeding you back in 2nd grade? Man this is really getting convoluted It's no wonder they couldn't solve the riddle with such gross error in the base assumptions! Though maybe this should be odd to you but it really isn't at this point Not after seeing what you have inside your own head And how was it phrased again? Hm It's lost in the shadow of night near a waterlit buildings grandeur height, shadowed by columns and lit by lamps rise "Last of all to you we leave the hardest riddle of the three, to Find the tomb of shadows, unmarked and unseen, nor easy for catch fish to find, without a clue to its door Colour our passions, our dreams and our lives, reaching heights unseen by most eyes Yeah about the closest you're going to get to solving this one would be reading over the original finding, so maybe you should jot those down too Still though, it does help to keep your mind occupied You still don't really understand why you were singled out Though the question marks at the back of your mind are fairly a constant source of bother Why or even how this place is protected by such a huge vengeful spirit Though while meditating on your question you get an answer of sorts Its almost as if the whole cave is "speaking" to you Not literally of course But it feels like a strong thought formed from many voices compounded together, in different tones and pitches but all united in the same message "Soon dear Shadows, The wall will come down for you" Which sounds an awful lot like a pledge, or assurance of protection, bestowed upon you directly from Ra himself This sparks a bit of confidence within you even if you don't know what "the wall" means or what is going to "bring it down" Although You suppose that bringing it down could mean literally anything since whenever anything was mentioned in here it was always metaphorically So maybe "Bringing down the wall" could mean solving the final Riddle to you It's possible at least Hope sustains as long as it can, which in this case is all the way until your bright idea to head back to Dendrin's old temple through the caverns instead of walking all the way around through the well lit and crowded streets of the city proper You know you've said it before, but Superstition is a fickle mistress Walking unlit tunnels where the only sounds are dripping water or occasional rumbles far off in the darkness definitely sets the mood that something is about to go horribly wrong Most likely because it almost certainly is Nevertheless you trudge on and since you're there anyway you might as well try to think through the temple Layout again What would Dendrin want? The Old man said it was Unusual for Dendrin to try to kill someone so many times in a row like this, so maybe that's it? you should think about what is unique about the situation It isn't the killing that's the issue, its what you did before the killings Shadows Reputation (if it can be called that) inside and outside the capital is nearly non-existent Apart from your operatives, Your average Shadow Cell knows to keep a low profile, Despite Being well armed and trainedthe the average Half wit common thug perusing the brothels of Sheng Alley isn't going to know about them beyond rumors and stories told in hushed whispers And given how most of them end, you can see why The average YoDoc hasn't even heard of the Shadows yet, let alone fears them Even most Administration Soldiers Wouldn't believe their existence if it weren't for bright uniforms and loyalty to the same government that makes up most of their identity This image of elite soldiers means they keep separate from the common rabble and are known mostly by reputation only But all of that has now changed The average Shadow now has blood on their hands, Whereas before as far as the average person was concerned, they were pure boogeymen used to scare children The rumors of murders by your assassins have probably already begun but most people are to ignorant to make the connection between the two yet But they will soon as the story will spread from tavern to tavern and from there to the surrounding cities as people travel to and from work or the market Already you can hear those "Around the campfire" Passes me a drink friend we'll hear an old story from our friend Fergus sent to us from his travels ~We heard 'em too! scary stuff ~Aye and I bet he made it even more terrifying! ~he does have quite the imagination Ah the old story teller, Probably a older male with a moustache and beard, always loved them Probably even lived in one of those muskateer outfits when he was younger