#bruce fic

[red-headedwoman]

Another You, chapter 1

Alright tramp gang. This is chapter one of my first EVER Bruce fic. Now, couple things before we get started. I haven't written a fic for actual public consumption since before the pandemic. So please be nice to me. This particular chapter is rated PG-13 at most (mainly for language -- I swear a lot lol), but don't dare think that the whole thing will be -- this girl's specialty is fluff, smut, and more fluff and smut. And yes, the FMC is me. I am shameless as fuck.

It’s my day off, and I’ve promised my mom that I’d finally finish organizing my closet. Yeah, as usual, I’ve tried to get out of it, tried literally everything I can think of to get her to drop the subject, but she’s adamant. Granted, I don’t think I’ve actually seen my closet empty since my room was painted in 2004, but that’s what they’re for, isn’t it? To put shit in. I’ve already moved my record collection out of the way to give myself room to stand, and I’m bending down to pick up the old posters crumpled on the floor when I hit my head on the wall.

“Fuck!” I spit.

“You all right?” I hear my mother’s voice in the hallway outside my room.

I roll my eyes. “Yeah. Just bumped into something. Trying to get these posters out of here.”

As I bend over to pick them up again, something catches my eye. The impact of my head hitting the wall has caused the whole wall to literally start sliding open. To my utter shock, there’s a small space behind the closet that I never knew existed, in the wall between my room and my sister’s. Gently, I ease myself into the space.

It’s full of computers, with a large screen in the middle that turns on as I approach it. Welcome to the Time Jumper, the screen reads. 

Holy fucking shit, have I actually discovered a time machine in my own goddamn room?! If I didn’t know any better, I’d swear it was a prank. I reach out and touch the keyboard, and the screen changes. Please enter year and location. 

A million ideas begin to run through my mind. I have a goddamn time machine, I can go anywhere and anytime I want to, and it’s asking me to choose one?! Do I go back to the sixties and meet JFK? Or Pierre Trudeau? Or maybe experience Expo 67 for real? Or I could go to Regency times and be a society lady like in Bridgerton. The possibilities are literally infinite.

As I’m considering my options, my eyes wander back into the main part of my room and come to rest on my record collection. Sitting in front of the crate is my copy of Born to Run. I look at the all-too-familiar photo, Bruce Springsteen leaning on Clarence Clemons’ shoulder and smirking devilishly, his long fingers draped casually over Clarence’s arm, the leather jacket and ripped tank hanging off his skinny body. Goddammit, he’s too fucking hot, I think to myself for the millionth time that day.

It’s in that moment that I know exactly what I have to do. I shove the wall closed behind me and turn back to the big computer, and type:

Asbury Park, NJ, USA

1975

Within a second or two, I realize I'm no longer in my own cramped little closet in 2020s Connecticut. I seem to have materialized in the doorway of a very different closet — larger, filled with the kind of clothes I've seen in vintage shops, old family photos, movies and TV shows, and even in miniature form in American Girl doll catalogs. The bedroom it belongs to also looks straight out of an AG catalog, combined with my sister’s old apartment — floral wallpaper, shaggy red carpeting, a huge comfy bed with lots of pillows. The walls are covered with Beatles posters, one of John Lennon’s “war is over” placards, a map of Ireland on canvas printed with family names identical to the one my grandparents had hanging in their hallway in California when I was a kid, stickers and buttons galore — Kennedy in ‘68, McGovern in ‘72, several anti-Vietnam War, a few pro-Irish Nationalist — and a clipped-out newspaper photo tacked up underneath a Boston Bruins pennant that turns out to be that one photo of Bobby Orr flying through the air after scoring the winning goal for the Stanley Cup. A large window on another wall looks out on the ocean, with a small, private-looking strand of beach between the house and the water. For a second I'm confused, and a little worried. The occupant of this room is clearly a New England Irish girl like me, if not specifically Massachusetts. Did the time machine fuck up and send me to the Cape instead of the Jersey Shore? I'd specifically told it to send me to Asbury Park - has it not worked?

It's then that I notice that not only has my environment changed, but so have I. I'm no longer wearing my Taylor Swift shirt and pajama pants. In their place is a pink and blue knit bikini top, low-rise cutoff denim shorts, and sandals. My body itself also looks different - the time skip seems to have subtracted about 50lbs from my weight. My stomach is smaller, about what it was ten years ago, yet at the same time, my breasts look like they're definitely increased a cup size or two, and my ass is, to put it simply, insane. As I look at myself in the mirror, I see that my hair has stayed long, fluffy, and fiery red, and my eyes are still blue, albeit a deeper shade of blue.

What looks like an old-style paper driver's license is sticking out of a wallet on top of the dresser. I snatch it up. It is a license - a Massachusetts one, at that. When I look at it, my jaw drops. The photo on it is unmistakably me, but instead of my real information, it reads:

Kathleen Marie Kelly

Brookline, MA

DOB: 06-15-1952

The time machine created a whole new identity for me. I can’t believe it. I realize then that it likely provided the house too, and the décor, and everything. I look out the window a bit further, and there’s a beautiful blue-green convertible parked in the driveway. I smile to myself. This thing is more sophisticated than I thought. It had given me another Irish last name and a home base that I know well, and even my birthday had stayed the same — just 40 years prior to reality! A quick glance at a calendar hanging nearby tells me that I've landed in another June -- June 1975. I have enough sense in my head to know that the time machine wouldn't have just chosen any random day, and it certainly had the year right, which leads me to just one conclusion.

"Holy shit," I say to my equally stunned reflection in the mirror, taking another look at “my” ID and doing some quick math in my head. Now I know why my body looks like it did in 2015, larger breasts and red hair notwithstanding. "It's…it's my 23rd birthday!"

Even though it's clear that this new assumed identity explains almost everything I'm seeing in this room, one important question remains: where am I? I'm clearly not home, wherever that actually is - there's definitely no parts of Greater Boston that I know of with beach houses like this, not even in 1975. I have to figure out where I am before I do anything else.

Somehow, my body seems to know its way around the house, even though this is obviously my first time ever in it. It's cozy, classic 70s, wood paneling and shag carpeting, reminiscent of both my late grandparents’ house in California and the house we always stayed in on the Cape when I was little. There's something so inherently familiar about the aesthetic that it calms a good chunk of my nerves.

I finally find my answer in the form of the phone book in the kitchen. The cover clearly reads Monmouth and Ocean Counties. I breathe a sigh of relief, the rest of my nervousness evaporating. I've made it to the right time and the right place.

Thank fuck.

I head back into “my” bedroom and inspect myself in the mirror. A tube of red lipstick is sitting on the dresser, and I pick it up and swipe it across my lips. The shade of red is almost like something Taylor would wear, and I feel my confidence rising as I brush my hair and pick up a purse that’s sitting on the bed. Finally I grab the lipstick and “my” wallet before checking myself one more time. If it’s my birthday, and I’m this hot, nobody will be able to resist me — not even a future rock legend himself.

It only takes a few minutes to get into town. It’s like another world, familiar yet also so alien. The beach looks the same as Point Pleasant, further down the shore, did when I went in 2015, but dirtier, scuzzier, in a charming sort of way. The smell of salt air that I love so much is mixed with cigarette smoke and weed. It’s a world I’ve only ever seen in photos, read about, or pictured in my dreams.

I’m trying to figure out how on earth I’m going to find my way around this place. Not only am I in a town I’ve never been to, I’m also nearly fifty years out of my element. I lean up against a fence on the side of the boardwalk, gazing around, letting the wind play with my hair and curl around my body. It feels so good, I throw my head back and giggle, causing a group of guys nearby to take notice.

The guy at the head of the group turns around first, and my heart nearly drops all the way to my feet. It’s him. Bruce fucking Springsteen. Soon to be one of the most iconic rock stars in music history. And holy shit, is that Clarence behind him? Holy fuck, it’s the entire goddamn E Street Band!!!!! I’m trying to make a mental note of who I recognize, but my gaze keeps moving back to Bruce.

He's wearing jeans, a ripped tank top, and that same sloppy-Irish-bastard hat he's got on in several shots of the Born to Run photoshoot, tipped at a rakish angle on top of his wild curls. His face is decidedly scruffy, his big brown eyes have a playful sparkle in them, and his smile somehow seems to give both "wild devil" and "sheepish boy next door" at the same time. What's more, he has what has to be the fullest, most absurdly delicious-looking pair of lips I've ever seen on a man. He's still a skinny young thing, with no hint yet of the thick arms and ripped chest that will become iconic in the 80s, and that he still has in 2025. The only thing that seems to be the same is his insistence on wearing as little as humanly possible (easier to get away with on the beach than anywhere else, admittedly) and, of course, that fucking smile. God, it's even more irresistible than I could have imagined up close.

"Don't look now, Boss, but there's a really hot redhead checking you out over there," I hear one of the band say. I think it's Garry, but I'm standing so far away that it's hard to tell. It's only then that Bruce glances over in my direction, and I feel my stomach jump and my heart skip a few beats. He grins broadly and flashes me a cheeky wink, and I immediately and somewhat instinctively (exactly what instinct, I don't know) giggle delightedly in response.

The sound of my giggle seems to stop Bruce in his tracks. He turns back to the rest of the band and mutters something to them, and the others nod and smile before walking ahead without him. I see Clarence give him what I can only assume is a "good luck" pat on the shoulder before joining everyone else, leaving Bruce alone.

Finally free of distractions, Bruce walks up to me, that wild devil smile still lighting up his scruffy face, his eyes sparkling more than ever.

I speak first. "Hey there."

"Hey yourself, sunshine," he says in that familiar gravelly voice, warm and flirtatious. "Don't think I've ever seen you around here before. I’d definitely remember if I did."

"You haven't." There's a soft giggle in my voice as I respond. "I'm Katie. Katie Kelly. I'm from Boston. I'm down here for the summer.”

"Boston?!" Bruce chuckles, his laugh sending a happy little thrill through me, like a thousand little butterflies springing to life inside my body. "You're a little off course, aren't you, darlin’? Don't you Boston girls all hang out at Cape Cod or somethin' in the summer?"

I giggle again and roll my eyes. "First off, it's ON Cape Cod, not AT. And secondly, I used to go there. I got sick of it though. Cape guys are just... too preppy. Too full of themselves. If you're not 'somebody', or related to 'somebody’, they couldn't give a fuck about you. The Hamptons are the same way. I'm done with all that. I'm lookin' for somethin' a little…different. Wilder. I wanna have some fun." 

Bruce laughs. "You're sassy. I like that in a woman." He sits down on a bench next to where I'm standing. "Well, welcome to Jersey, baby. I'm Bruce."

"I know who you are," I say with another giggle. "I've got both of your albums.”

"Really now?" He looks pleased. "Got a favorite song, sugar?"

I toss my hair and consider the question. "Probably Rosalita," I answer. "I'unno why. Somethin' about it is just soooooo hot.” Yet another giggle. Am I just going to laugh whenever I speak to him? At least he doesn’t seem to mind. Every time I giggle, his eyes twinkle just a little more, and his smile brightens. He clearly loves the sound.

Bruce winks, and I feel my cheeks tinge pink. "How old are ya?"

"I'm 23," I tell him. "Actually, today's my birthday. June 15."

"Well, happy birthday!" Bruce’s smile could light up Vegas. He gives those gorgeous lips a soft little lick. “Got any plans for tonight?" He winks again.

I shake my head, which is clearly the response he’d hoped for. "Nope. Just thought I'd chill out at the beach, I guess."

"You think I could join ya?" he asks.

"Ya know what?" Now it's my turn for a wild devil smile, paired with, of course, another giggle. "I think I'd love that."

[shreddedparchment]

The End of the World Pt.7

Thor, Rescue, and War Machine

Pairing: Thor x Reader

Word Count: 3,355

Masterpost

Warnings: None

A/N: Okay...I tried to hold off. I couldn’t. I kept thinking about the story and I had to get it out. Oh well. I had lots of fun writing this particular part as it had some action in it and I was listening to the remix of Another One Bites the Dust from Iron Man 2 when I was writing it. Hope you all like it! Don’t feel shy if you do. I love to hear from y’all. xoxo

Spending the night on a beach with Thor definitely has to be in your top five nights ever. Seeing as how things ended with “the snap” you feel a little guilty for feeling so happy. Its bursting from you. Unbidden and uncontrollable, as you land on the same balcony that you'd first seen Pepper in what you now know as the Rescue armor, you don’t protest as Thor leans down to steal another kiss. He slides his hand into your salt encrusted hair. You can still smell the ocean on his skin and its intoxicating.

You place your hands on either side of his face and return the affection and follow it up with one, two, three more pecks. With a sappy smile on his face, Thor takes your hand and leads you towards the atrium. You know that's not what it’s called but it’s the largest living space you’ve ever seen and it’s not exactly a living room since there are two meeting tables, a large display screen, and the kitchen there. So, it’ll do.

As you two get closer you can hear a muddle of voices talking in worried tones. Thor stops and looks at you, his previously relaxed brow now furrowed. You cling to his arm a little closer and follow him when he leads you into the atrium. At the second meeting table stands Rhodey, Pepper, Bruce, while Tony sits at the head of the table with his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. The sight of him makes your stomach churn a little but you force yourself to focus on the newest addition to the group.

She stands upright, her back at attention with her arms crossed over her chest.  You remember her with red hair from the few times you’d seen her on TV but the blonde isn’t bad. You can still remember the time she was questioned over Shield collapsing because of some Hydra thing or other. Again, before you knew Thor.

She looks severe, her own eyes narrowed at something at the center of the table.

“Natasha?” Thor recognizes her faster and releases you as he moves towards her. Natasha looks over at the sound of her name and her face breaks into a pleasant smile.

“Thor! Jeez, have you gotten bigger?” As they reach each other they exchange a brief hug.

“I thought you and Steve were helping the Black Panther in Wakanda?” Thor glances over his shoulder at you and turns back to Natasha, but holds his hand open back towards you.

You move forward and take it; a relief washes over you for some unknown reason.

“Oh, well Steve is still there. He sent me to help Pepper with her mission in Washington.” Pepper had already gone to Washington? “And who's this?” Natasha's voice is kind and polite.

“Y/N this is Natasha, who you might know as the Black Widow. Natasha, this is Y/N, my intended.” Thor says proudly looking down at you.

There are several reactions, all at once.

“What? Oh, my God. Wow.” Bruce says, he sounds happy.

“You did it, already?” Pepper asks excitedly.

Rhodey claps his hands twice. “Yeah, alright. It's about time something good happened.”

Tony's head shoots out of his hands as he turns his only slightly less drunken gaze on both you and Thor. He doesn’t say anything, and his expression is unreadable. You don’t have long to contemplate his look because Natasha suddenly hugs Thor and you.

“Congratulations, Thor, Y/N. I’m so happy for you. And it's,” She laughs a little as she looks at Thor and then back at you. “Nice to meet you.”

It is a little weird that she only just met you and you’re suddenly engaged to Thor, but she does seem genuinely happy for you both.

You can’t help but wiggle the ring on your finger as you smile like a fool at Thor in your own, now renewed excitement.

“Nice to meet you.” You say, also with a slight laugh.

“So, what were they hauling?” Rhodey probes. Suddenly, it's all business again. Pepper leans forward and opens a plain looking cardboard box. She pulls out only one of the many small tubes inside. She holds the glass vial gently with one hand, gently balancing it from one silver tipped end to the other. As it comes into the light you see that the vial is full of an almost opaque blue liquid. It’s almost as if it wants to be clear but can’t quite fully manage it. As Pepper angles it this way and that you notice an odd shimmer within the blue liquid. It looks like small veins of a bright orange substance. You lean in closer to see if you can get a better look at the lines but as you’re trying to get your look, you notice that Tony is still watching you and Thor, some strange emotion in his eyes.

“Is that Super Soldier Serum?” Bruce wonders. He takes a step away, his hands coming up to wipe at his shirt just underneath his chest where he leaves them nervously.

“Yes.” Natasha says, plainly, her voice hard as she stares at the vial Pepper holds.

“What’s that?” Rhodey says, leaning in towards the vial. “May I?” He holds out his hand for it and Pepper hands it over to him.

“How did you come by this?” Thor asks, looking straight at Pepper, his brow furrowed again. How can they all go into business mode so quickly? Lots of experience probably.

“We intercepted a shipment as it was being transferred between two shadow groups.” Pepper begins then leans with both hands on the table as she gives Thor her full attention. “We’re not sure who they are or who they even report to. With half the population gone it’s left lots of facilities open. People are getting into things that they never would have before. Our defenses are down and so is everyone else’s. These new groups are exploiting those weaknesses to their full extent. I can only assume what they were going to do with this stuff but after what Tony said about the other Super Soldiers in Siberia, I thought it would be best if we got these off the streets.”

Other Super Soldiers? There are more than just Captain America? “What other Super Soldiers?”

Thor looks at you and wraps one arm around your shoulders but before he can explain Bruce suddenly looks down and pulls a vibrating device out of his pocket. He looks at the screen for two seconds then looks up at Thor, his eyes wide and his mouth slightly open. “I think we found them.”

In the same moment both Bruce and Thor are racing down out of the atrium and down the hallway that leads to the lab. You watch Thor leave with a heavy heart and fidget with your ring again. The others give them a quick look as they race off but otherwise turn their faces back to the table.

“This looks modified.” Rhodey says as he passes the vial into Natasha’s open hand.

“I wouldn’t doubt it. Everyone seems to be trying to get this to work better.” She tilts her head to the side slightly as she considers the vial then hands it back to Pepper. “Quick fix.”

You glance over your shoulder towards the lab again, your heart dropping as you admit to yourself that you might have to say goodbye to Thor much sooner than you’d hoped.

“How many of these did you find?” Rhodey moves to pull the box closer but stops as Tony suddenly gets to his feet. You turn your gaze on him and catch him still watching you. His expression is more readable now. He’s serious, considering you it seems, and for a moment he even looks smug? The look vanishes quickly as he turns away from the table and wanders off into some random door that you hadn’t noticed before.

You’re not the only one watching him. “How long has he been like that?” Natasha asks.

“Too damn long.” Rhodey’s annoyance seeps into his tone making him sound bitter and angry.

“I didn’t count how many were in this box but it’s full. And we found seventeen other boxes just like this one.” Pepper sighs turning her gaze back on the vials. She places the one she took back in the box and then places her hands on her hips. “Whoever we took these from is going to want them back.”

“Yeah they are.” Rhodey agrees. “Maybe we should-”

You don’t get to hear what you should maybe do. There’s a small thud that draws everyone’s attention to the wall of windows that makes up the balcony that you’d walked in through.

“Everyone get down!” Natasha shouts, but before you can react a ball of heat explodes from the wall of glass. It shatters and the glass flies towards you as you fight against the blindness the bright and sudden flash has given you. The force of the explosion throws you onto the ground and you feel yourself hit one of the chairs on your way down. No way you didn’t break something.

As the smoke settles you hear a rush of feet over shattered glass around you but you still cannot see. You blink your eyes, trying to clear them, and look around at where you were sure Natasha, Rhodey, and Pepper had been standing.

“Y/N, are you okay?” Natasha’s voice comes from somewhere to your left but you’re winded and you can’t answer right away. You hear her grunt and then the sound of fists hitting flesh. “Pepper, there’s too many of them.”

“I got it!” Pepper cries out. You hear the unmistakable sound of her suit. You push yourself up into a sitting position, one hand nursing your right ribs, as your eyes finally begin to clear. There, where Pepper had been standing, is Rescue. Pepper disappears behind the mask of her suit and lifts off the ground. She flies, full speed at two men clad in dark clothes. They could be hoodies and ski masks, but they look sleeker. She vanishes through the now open wall, into the night sky taking a man in each hand. Natasha throws herself into her punches, hitting one, two, three black clad men after the other. She knees one in the stomach. Swipes the legs out from underneath the second. Punches the third in the face, once, twice, three times. As the first comes back and aims a hit she blocks it, throwing her weight into the block then goes for his stomach. He yells in his anger. He brings his other arm up and over to hit her hard over the head, but Natasha grabs his arm, side-steps the move, and brings the arm hard down on her knee. A sickening crack echoes around you as the man’s arm breaks. He falls to the ground. Natasha has no chance to catch her breath as the second and third men have recovered, and both charge her. Your eyes fly to Rhodey who is also fighting two men. He extends his arm and his shining silver and black armor fly towards him from down the hall. As the glove falls into place he lunges forward in a full body punch and hits one of the men. He goes flying. The rest of his suit arrives covering him head to toe. A well-aimed uppercut sends the second man into the ceiling and back down to the floor in a heap. As a third man rushes towards him he extends his arm in a fist. A small panel at his wrist slides up and to the side to reveal a small missile.

“No explosives in the house.” Natasha shouts as she ducks a punch and delivers one herself. “We’ve got civilians in here.”

It takes you a second to realize she means you. War Machine looks at you then opens his palm and sends a repulsor beam at the man instead. It hits him square on the chest and he flies through the open wall and off the balcony to the ground below. Natasha turns back to a new two men and lays one out with a hard kick to the face. She twirls around a punch and kicks hard at the back of the second man’s leg. He falls to his knees. She wraps her arms around his neck and squeezes until he stops moving then lets him drop. She moves towards the wall of glass as Rescue comes flying in and lands roughly on the floor. War Machine moves towards the two and they survey the men littering the floor. Five by Natasha, two by War Machine, one on the ground below the balcony, the two that Rescue had taken out. Under Rescue’s arm is the cardboard box that had been sitting on the table.

Her mask slides back revealing a slightly sweaty face. “There were six more outside, waiting about half a mile outside of the property. Some of them got away. My priority was the box but I don’t think they’ll be trying again.” She looks at the broken wall then her gaze falls on you.

“Y/N? Are you-”

A penetrating shout from the other side of the room cuts her off. “Y/N?!” Thor is a near blur as he races towards you and drops to his knees to get a look at you. “What the hell happened?” He demands as he looks to the others then back to you.

“Some guys broke in.” Natasha moves to your side as well and begins to check out your arms and legs then moves to poking at your sides.

Thor looks at the unconscious men on the floor and glares in their direction before he brings his gaze back to you and exchanges his rage for worry.

“I’m going to go patrol the perimeter.” War Machine moves to the balcony then lifts off and flies off into the sky. Rescue moves towards your small group and places the box on the table again. “F.R.I.D.A.Y., call down to the hospital wing and get a doctor up here. And call security up here to collect these guys. Lock them up.”

“Calling now, Miss Potts.” A few seconds later. “The doc will be here in ten minutes. He was asleep.” A cool and slightly accented voice sounds from somewhere around you but you’re not sure where exactly it’s coming from.

“I’m going to go help James.” Pepper’s mask falls back into place and Rescue flies off from the balcony too. A moment later several men and women wearing dark blue uniforms rush in and in teams of two remove one intruder after the other.

Natasha finally reaches your right side and as she pokes at your ribs you gasp and flinch away from her touch. “Broken ribs maybe just fractured. We’ll have to get her x-rayed. What’s keeping that doctor?”

Natasha gets to her feet and hurries out of the atrium. As the last intruder is removed Thor scoops you up into his arms and carefully places you in the nearest chair. Even the slight jostling has your side burning. You try to keep as much of the pain from showing up on your face as you can. You don’t want him to see you like that.

“I’m so sorry, Y/N. I should not have left you here alone.” Thor’s voice is hard and full of regret. You reach up and place your hand on his cheek as he kneels beside you.

“You didn’t leave me alone, you left me with War Machine, Rescue, and freakin’ Black Widow. None of you could have predicted that someone would attack.” You look to the wall, now a gaping hole of shattered glass and broken supports. “I guess being here isn’t as safe as we thought?”

“I should have protected you.” Thor insists.

“Thor, you couldn’t have done anything differently.” You didn’t want him focusing on the attack, so you shift the focus to the only thing that might matter more than you. “What happened with Bruce? The scanner? Was it your people?”

Thor sighs. “It might be. I was coming to tell you that I’ll have to go but now…I don’t think I should. I’ll send Rocket and he’ll be able to lead my people here to Earth. He’s the smartest Captain I know, and he’s travelled space by ship much more than I have.”

“What? You can’t not go just because of this.” You gesture at the chaos around you.

“I will not leave you here. You are right, this place is not safe.”

You frown, unwilling to be the reason Thor is kept from his people. Not only does it bother you that you’re keeping him from his rightful place but the fact that it’s for something as stupid as possible broken ribs. “You’re not staying. You’re going.”

“How can I possibly-”

“I refuse to be a choice between you and your people. You’ve asked me to marry you and with that comes certain risks. I’m prepared to take them.” You keep your voice steady and manage to forget the pain as you focus on convincing him to go.

“I know but-”

“Unless you regret asking me to marry you? You think I can’t handle it?”

“What? No, never. I could never think that. I know how brave you are, but you shouldn’t have to deal with injuries or danger.”

“And yet, I will. Thor, go. Like I said the other day, I will be right here, waiting for you. I promise.” You reach out for his face and pull him in for a quick kiss. His hands find your shoulders and then cling to you as if he’s worried you’ll disappear. When you pull back, you lick your lips and sigh. “Please don’t make me the thing that holds you back.”

Thor sighs. “Alright.”

Relief washes over you. “When will you go?” Your relief disappears, replaced by nervous fear. You don’t want to be away from him.

“Immediately. The faster I go the faster I may return to you. I will not be gone long.” He promises. He pulls you in for another kiss, this one longer, stronger, and tender. He pulls away suddenly, leaving you wanting more. He moves towards the balcony and stops once he’s reached it to take a long look at you. He holds out his hand and storm breaker flies into it from where? You don’t know. As it touches his hand he’s suddenly bathed in bright blue and white electricity. It singes his regular clothes, replacing it with his black armor and red cape. His gaze on you is unbearable. His brow drawn down at the outer corners as he struggles with his decision. His blue eyes fill with more and more hesitation the longer he looks at you. His shoulders are tense and the muscles of his arms flex as he grips Stormbreaker’s handle tightly. He clenches his jaw, finally resolving to go. “Please stay safe for me.”

“I promise.” You give him a small smile for reassurance and hope that your own sadness at seeing him go is well hidden. He holds up Stormbreaker and in a flash of bright white rainbow light he’s gone. You’re alone now. Natasha has yet to return. You can hear the distant sounds of Rescue and War Machine flying around the facility. You look down at your arms and then slowly stand to look at yourself in the reflection of the surprisingly undamaged monitor. Your face is covered in small scratches from the glass, your arms and legs as well. Aside from the ache in your ribs, you feel your right leg also burning. This is what he saw when he looked at you? A damaged human, weak and frail. No wonder he didn’t want to leave.

Would he be focused on his mission? He would be wondering if you are safe. Distracted. A weakness. His hindrance. Anger bubbles up in your chest and your eyes shift to the cardboard box on the table.

@bionic-buckyb @mdgrdians @biawol @ulired @markusstraya

[talesofzero]

La Douleur Exquise - Ch. 5

AU; Chapter 5 - The Case of Blue

Manabu has a bad time with relationships.

~4k words

Bulge was the first to show up.

Kicking his feet up on his desk, Uncle Phantom crossed his arms, and stared down Bulge the same way my dad stared down me. My dad and uncle were more alike than they would ever admit.

“You can’t be alone with one of my boys without paying,” Uncle said. “And you can’t be alone with Manabu in particular unless you’re buying him for the night. This brothel has a reputation to uphold, Schwanhelt.”

Bulge threw his hands up with a huff of frustration. “Great skies, I’m not going to do anything, Harlock. The captain just sent me to check on Manabu. How insane would I have to be to try anything like that?”

Uncle’s head tilted slightly. “But you’d be interested if my brother weren’t breathing down your neck?”

Bulge’s face flooded pink, and he was left fumbling for a response. His brows raised, Uncle’s eye flicked to me. They’d been bickering for several minutes while I sat in the lounge chair across the room, kicking my feet in silence. I wasn’t sure why Bulge needed to be alone with me to talk. Maybe he was suspicious of Uncle. It didn’t matter. If my dad had sent him, I knew what he was going to say.

“Regardless,” Uncle said, cutting off Bulge’s stuttering. “I’m advertising Manabu as a virgin, and that gives him quite the price tag. It doesn’t look good if he’s off alone with other men.”

I wasn’t sure how Uncle managed to say things like that so straight-faced to clients, or Bulge for that matter, when he became a red-faced, blubbering mess when he’d interviewed me for the job.

It had been an entertaining evening though.

“So what are your thoughts on...toys?” he’d asked, one hand covering half of his face to avoid looking at me.

“I’m not sure. I’ve never really used one. I’d be interested. Dick has a bunch, doesn’t he?”

Uncle made a noise like a suffering whale. “We’ll worry about that later then. What about...group sex?”

I kicked my feet, smiling all the while. I’d never seen Uncle so stressed. I shouldn’t have found it so entertaining. “Sounds fine,” I said.

His other hand came up to cover the rest of his face. “W-would you be open to...double p-penetration?”

I broke into a grin. “I think you have to be pretty open for that.”

His face hit the desk’s surface as I burst into laughter. He remained there for a while, unmoving, until he dragged himself up and left the room. Susumu and Mamoru strode in to take his place at the computer, and the questions resumed with a professional ease. Susumu did end up having to shoo Mamoru out after he kept offering to teach me anything I didn’t know.

I didn’t see Uncle again until the next morning. He didn’t look like he’d slept very well.

I guess it was kind of weird for him. He’d visited often when Mamoru and I were growing up, but I hadn’t seen him at all for five years. Last he’d seen me before I came looking for a job, I was fifteen. He probably still thought of me like that sometimes. Dad still thought of me like a little, doe-eyed kid. Always had. Always would.

I wasn’t sure how Bulge saw me. He’d known me since I was pretty young, and Dad had partnered me with him on any dangerous missions. Dad had always trusted Bulge to look after me, so that must have been why he was here now.

“It’s not like you need to go around advertising that I had a quick talk with Manabu,” he hissed.

I hadn’t actually seen Bulge since I left the SDF. In fact, I hadn’t seen much of him since my last mission. Kind of weird that Dad would send him, but I guess this was his way of getting around me not wanting to see him. At least he was respecting my wish to some extent.

“Just talk to me with him in here,” I called, tired of their arguing. “I know it’s been a while, but I’m under lock and key, so you’ve got to deal with Uncle Phantom for now.”

Uncle shrugged to show how little remorse he felt.

My word must have been enough because the argument ended there. As he turned to me,  Bulge’s shoulders drooped. Every time his eyes met mine, he’d glance away. My stomach started tying itself in knots. He hadn’t said a word to me since he arrived, and it was becoming apparent that he was only doing this out of respect for my dad. He didn’t want to be here. He didn’t want to see me.

Still refusing to look at me, Bulge rubbed at the back of his neck. “Ah, your father just wanted me to check in on you. He wants you to know that you’re welcome to rejoin the SDF at any time.”

I was sure he’d watered down whatever lines Dad had given to him. “I’m under a contract,” I said. I’d had this conversation with Dad enough times. I didn’t need to have it with Bulge too. “But it’s nice to see you. I don’t get a lot of visitors, no clients or anything. You’re welcome to stop by anytime.”

Sure, having him as a visitor was fine, but I wouldn’t have minded having him as a client. Straight-laced as he was, it would never happen, but I’d always had a bit of a crush on Bulge. Anytime he came with Dad to visit when I was younger, I’d try to keep his attention the entire time.

But I had just as much of a chance to catch his eye now as I did back then. “I-I’ll do my best, Manabu,” he said. He was being so obvious about his discomfort with me that even Uncle was starting to look concerned. 

“Are you doing alright?” Bulge asked.

“I’m fine. How is everyone in the platoon doing?”

“Fair enough. Our missions have all gone well. Everyone’s fine. So,” He swallowed. “Are you doing alright with your… I mean, you seem to be handling yourself fine. I’m sorry. I guess this isn’t-”

“They’re fine, Bulge,” I said, tugging off my right glove to show him the prosthetic. I flexed the robotic joints a few times with ease. “I’ve gotten pretty used to it. Doesn’t bother me anymore.”

Looking down at my hand made him cringe, but he didn’t look away. “Sorry,” he murmured. I’m sorry. If I’d just…” He shook his head. “I need to get back in case we get called out. Take care, Manabu.”

He darted out the door without waiting for me to say goodbye in return. The sound of the door closing behind him seemed to rip all the strength from my body. My forehead dropped to my knees. “He’s all grossed out by me,” I groaned.

“I’m not sure what he is, but I don’t think that’s it,” Uncle said from somewhere nearby. His hand came to rest on my shoulder. “I think being cooped up with nothing to do is stressing you out a bit.”

“You should give me a client,” I muttered.

“I’m working on it. In the meantime, you’re welcome to invite over a friend or go out with the other boys on your off day. Didn’t you have that friend from the rehabilitation group you went to? You kept talking about him.”

I turned my head to the side so he could see my smile. “Yeah, I could probably see if he’s free to visit. He’d get a kick out of that. I just… I do miss my platoon, and I know they’re busy, and it’s weird to meet someone at a brothel, but it’s like they want nothing to do with me anymore.”

Uncle took a seat at my side and patted my back. “Do you regret leaving?”

“Do you regret leaving your ship?” I asked.

He didn’t flinch. “Sometimes.”

Sitting up, I fell once again to lean against his shoulder. “Yeah,” I said. “Me too. But I don’t want to go back.”

“But do you want to be here?” he asked. “As much as I support anything that pisses off your father, you shouldn’t work here unless you really want to.”

“I do want to. I mean, I do also want to piss him off, but mostly I just wanted to get away from him. I wanted him to stop treating me like a baby, but it didn’t really work. I also do want to get laid, so it’s not just rebellion if that helps.”

He broke into a laugh that made his shoulders bounce along with my head resting on them. “Well, you’ve got more of a reason than I did at your age, so I guess that’s something. Go run along and get in touch with your friend and drink some tea or whatever it is you do.”

“I mostly just lie around bored.” But I stood and went to send an invitation. Anyone else might have found it odd to get an invite to a brothel, but he wouldn’t think twice about it.

Bruce appeared second.

He walked through the front door, frowning at everything, but he plopped down on the main sofa across from me. “Hey, Yuuki, your dad sent me,” he said, sounding less thrilled than Bulge to be there. At least he would look at me.

“So is this going to be like a bi-weekly thing?” I asked. Destiny station wasn’t too far away by the right trains, and Sirius often worked out of the nearby station, but it was still an out-of-the-way trip.

He shrugged. “Figured I’d come see this place. I hear about it all the time. It sure has that rich snob aesthetic going for it.”

“Yeah, it’s kind of all a front though. It’s just flashy for the clients.”

Bruce’s brows rose, but I wasn’t sure if he was impressed or irritated. Though I’d never learned to read him, guessing he was angry was the safer bet. We were actually assigned as partners when I joined Sirius, but by the higher-ups and not Dad. 

Dad liked Bruce from what I could tell, all claps on the shoulder and compliments to his impressive aim. But when it came to Bruce being my partner, Dad clammed up. He was always telling Bruce to keep an eye on me or sticking me with Bulge instead. I couldn’t blame Bruce for the way his lips would twitch toward a snarl every time Dad talked down to him because of me. It always pissed me off too.

“So what’s with your angry dog?” Bruce asked, cocking a thumb over his shoulder toward Daiba. “He’s been glaring at me since I came in.”

“Yeah, he does that,” I said. “He’s our bodyguard.”

“Awfully small for that, isn’t he?”

Daiba’s eyes were like a rabid dog’s. “Should I throw him out, Manabu? I can do it.”

As much as Bruce was asking for it, I shooed Daiba away. “It’s alright. I can handle it.”

Bruce stared on in some mix of surprise and confusion as Daiba slinked off with an actual growl. “He is your dog,” Bruce said.

“Yeah, we love him. So how’s work?”

“Fun,” he drawled. “The captain’s been moody since he came back from here, so we’ve all been trying not to piss him off.”

I huffed and stomped my foot before I realized how childish I looked. “Sorry, but I’m not going to talk to him again until he calms down.”

“I don’t blame you,” he said with a shrug. “You can’t control your dad. The only person who I’ve ever seen talk him down from anything was Kanna.”

“Oh yeah, Mom can be scary. She can shut him up with just a look.” Truthfully, she could do that to me too.

Bruce stretched his arms up and dropped them to rest across the back of the couch. Most first-time clients or visitors were stiff like they’d been frozen through, but he showed no signs of discomfort. Though when I thought about it, maybe this wasn’t his first time at a brothel.

“There was a whole message I was supposed to deliver, but I forgot most of it,” he said. “The gist was that your dad wants you to quit working here. I’m sure you’ve heard this before.”

My chin dropped into my palm. “I have.”

It seemed that was the end of it because he took to glancing around the room again. “So are there complementary snacks or something?”

“Only for paying customers.”

He blinked and stared at me for a moment. I still couldn’t read his expression. “Is that a come-on?” he asked,

It was my turn for my face to burn. There was no way to play it off with my reddened cheeks giving me away, but dammit if I wasn’t going to try. “I-if you want it to be.”

He snorted. “Please, you dad gives me a hard enough time as things are. I like my head attached, thank you.”

I couldn’t keep eye contact, but I couldn’t give up so easily. Flirting was half my job. “But wouldn’t it be fun to get back at my dad for all those times he’s pissed you off?”

I was not good at my job.

Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw him stand and walk up to me. “Getting back at someone by sleeping with their kid isn’t my style.” His fingers pressed up under my chin to tilt my face up toward his. Even as I drowned in the endless blue of his eyes, the fire in my face didn’t let up. His smirk had my heart hammering.  “Besides, you’re way above my pay grade.”

“Hey!” Daiba barked from whatever shadowy corner he’d crawled in to sulk. “No touching!”

Bruce jerked back and held his hands up in surrender. To keep myself from getting onto Daiba, I cut my teeth into my tongue.. He was right, after all. Bruce wasn’t allowed to get close if he didn’t pay first.  

“So is no one else available?” Bruce asked as he lowered his hands to shove them in his pockets.

“Everyone but Zero has a client,” I huffed. “And you wouldn’t be able to get with Zero.”

Bruce frowned. “Ouch.”

Coursing with disappointment, I fell over to lie along the couch. “Zero only accepts like one out of a hundred clients. Don’t feel bad. You should pick me instead. My dad doesn’t have to know.”

One of those rare, genuine smiles flashed across his face for an instant. My heart  missed a beat. “Sorry, Yuuki,” he said. “Your dad knows everything, and so does your brother.”

As though summoned by my wince at the idea of him, my brother showed up that Sunday.

“Manabu!” he greeted as he shoved past Daiba to get through the door. I was tackled in a hug while Daiba spat and growled. “You haven’t talked to me in ages!” Mamoru whined. “You don’t call or visit!”

The rest of the guys looked on from around the room as my breathing began to pick up. I focused on gasping for air to keep my vision from blurring. Uncle was nice enough to snap from the top of the stairs, “Hey, no touching!”

My brother’s mood changed like a flip of a switch. His eyes narrowed as he challenged our Uncle. “He’s my brother!”

Uncle was the wrong person to challenge to a glaring match. “I have enough brothers here to know better than to let them get handsy.”

With a scoff, Mamoru’s nose wrinkled in disgust, though his eyes darted away. “Your brother works here, Uncle Phantom.”

“And I don’t trust him either. Now hands off.”

Though he looked like he wanted to fight the floor he kept glaring at, Mamoru freed me from his death grip and the vice on my trilling heart let up.

“I have a friend coming over,” I said as I regained my breath. “You should have told me you were coming.”

“You’d have told me not to come,” he grumbled. “And what friend? You never invite me over.”

I couldn’t imagine why. “He’s my friend from rehabilitation. I know you’re just here because Dad told you to try to get me to quit and go back to the SDF, so you can go ahead and leave. Tell him I said no.”

Every time I tried to turn away, he stepped in front of me again. “What happened?” he demanded. “You used to follow me around like a duckling, used to say how we were going to get married. Why are you trying so hard to avoid me?”

My shoulders scrunched up by my ears, burning red with a blush. “I was a little kid! I’ve grown up since you joined the SPG! You can’t treat me the same as you did when I left just because we didn’t see each other much. I’m not ten anymore.”

“You don’t act much different,” he said. “Still get all rebellious when you don’t get your way. You don’t need to be here just to get back at Dad. This is crazy. Just come back with me. You don’t have to rejoin the SDF. Hell, you don’t have to see Dad. You can come live with me. I’ll take care of you.” His hands latched onto my shoulders, and he got that desperate look in his eyes, like a starving man. He’d been looking at me that way more and more every time I saw him. He was too damn protective. He’d always been that way.

That was Dad’s fault too.

“Take care of your brother,” he’d said to Mamoru after coming home to find me with a broken arm. I’d taken a tumble down one of the cliffs overlooking the mines, and my face was covered in scrapes. I’d never forget the way Dad’s eyes lit up with fear when he saw the ugly scabs across my cheek and chin.

“Keep an eye on him,” Dad said. “He’s a bit of a danger magnet.”

Mamoru took any command from Dad to heart, and so did I. “Stick with your brother, son,” he told me. “He’ll look after you.”

At first, I willingly trailed after him like an eager puppy. He’d extend a hand to me, and I’d take it to let him lead me wherever he wanted to go. I was content to let him carry me or to sleep next to him. The women in town thought it was adorable, cooed about how we were “little boyfriends.” I don’t think they realized we were related with how different we looked. It didn’t seem weird at the time, so we didn’t correct them.

But I grew out of that. 

Mamoru didn’t. 

I learned to sneak away on my own so he didn’t grab me and drag me off where we were supposed to go. I loved my brother, but until the day he left for the SPG, I was fighting to get out from under his shadow. Now, it seemed like he wanted to put me back in it.

Before I could wrench free of his grip, the other Mamoru - Kodai - ripped my brother’s hand off my shoulder. “Yuuki,” Kodai said with a dangerous sort of smile I’d never seen him wear. “Come here. Let me have a quick talk with you.”

“I have nothing to discuss with you,” Brother said. “Let go of me.”

“Well that’s too bad because I have so much to say to you. Come here.”

Despite Brother’s protests, no one said a word as Kodai dragged him off toward the laundry room. Uncle and Daiba pointedly looked away. Zero frowned at the book I doubted he was reading. Susumu was the only one looking at me. His eyes were sharp with the desire to say something. He stood and opened his mouth.

The sound of the giant front door slamming open stopped him. “Mana! I made it!” came the screech that could have only come from Ichiro. He stood in the open doorway with his hands on his hips and the smirk of a devil splayed across his face. His hair was fiery orange, his eyes redder than Susumu’s vest. I wasn’t sure if his eyes were naturally that color or if it was part of his augmentation. Actually, I didn’t know much about him, but he could cheer me up better than anyone. “How have you been!?” he demanded.

“Alright,” I answered with a laugh. “I think you almost gave everyone a heart attack.”

They all looked on with wide eyes as he kicked the door shut behind him. “Oh, hi!” He stuck up a hand in greeting. “I’m Ichiro Haya.”

They took turns muttering greetings along with their names. They needn’t have bothered. Ichiro couldn’t remember any name but his own. “Nice to meet you,” he said regardless. Without waiting for them to respond, he slid up to me, frays of his messy hair curling around his grin. “Wow, this place is nice, Mana. So you’re a whore? That’s neat.”

“Yeah, but I haven’t had any clients. I’m still touted as the virgin, but no one’s biting.”

He nodded as though deep in thought. “I could sleep with you if you want, but I’ve never done it either.”

I burst into a laugh, though he seemed dead serious. “That’s okay, Ichiro. I appreciate the offer, though.”

“Okay, but if there’s anyone you want to sleep with, let me know, and I’ll snag them for you.”

“That’s not really…” There was no point in arguing with him, so I gave up without a fight. “Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.”

I’d hated the rehabilitation, hated the prosthetics, hated the panic attacks that hit me anytime I felt closed in. But Ichiro was the ever-shining sun in my self-imposed night. While everyone else treated me like a fragile doll, he’d come up and slug me in the arm or demand I go with him to get lunch. It was easy to fall for him. I thought it was love for a while, but looking back, it was more like dependence.

Besides, I wasn’t sure Ichiro was the sort interested in romance. When my curiosity got the better of me and I asked him his preferences, he thought about it for a minute before shrugging. “I dunno,” he said. “I’ve never had sex, so I can’t write it off, but I don’t care much about it. I’ve never dated anyone either. I don’t really get it. Is it just like friendship but you hold hands or something? What’s the point?”

That pretty well threw my crush out the window.  

“So your arm and leg been treating you well?” he asked in the nonchalant manner Bulge couldn’t manage.

“Yeah, I hardly notice a difference anymore,” I lied. I had no room to complain to him. Most of his body was in-organic.

His voice lowered enough to hide our conversation from everyone nearby, though I was sure they were still listening. “Panic attacks still been hitting you?”

“Not so bad now,” I breathed more than said. “Mostly just nightmares.”

He nodded, though his brows were pinched. “I don’t know much about sex, but are you going to be okay if a guy pins you?”

“I don’t know.”

Harlock had asked the same thing. It was the first question out of his mouth during the interview, the only one he hadn’t stuttered on. I hoped I could handle it. My first client didn’t need to deal with me hyperventilating before they’d even gotten a scrap of clothing off.

But I couldn’t even sleep with blankets covering me. I’d dream I was back under all that weight, pain like razor wire cutting up my arm from the inside. I’d dream I was inhaling nothing but dirt and exhaling a steady stream of blood. My weak screams for help always woke me up.

I was desperate for contact after so long without it, but I was equally terrified of it. The moment I felt trapped, I went back to that last mission. I heard the screech of the beams collapsing and Bulge screaming my name.

Ichiro broke the rules by taking my hand in his. No one stopped him. “Don’t be hard on yourself,” he said. “I still have the nightmares and attacks too, but you’re strong, and it gets easier to handle.”

I wished my dad and brother would see it like that. I wished they would stop coddling me. All I needed was to hear that from them.

“You can do it, Mana,” Ichiro continued. “Don’t you worry. We’ll get you laid.”

Didn’t really need to hear that bit from them though.

[shreddedparchment]

The End of the World Pt.8

Thor?, Rocket, and the Serum

Pairing: Thor x Reader

Words: 2,876

Warnings: risky talk?, no Thor but very important for the story line, cute Rocket

Masterpost

A/N: So I feel like I do need to give you all a heads up seeing as this is a Thor x Reader fic. There is no Thor in this one. This is the first chapter that does not have him but it’s all within the story line, I promise. Hang in there! I had fun writing a slightly different side to Rocket in this one and didn’t expect to have as much fun putting him with Bruce as I did. I hope you like it! xoxo Always glad to hear from you. Enjoy!

The days immediately following Thor's departure were some of the toughest days you've faced since the world ended. That’s not saying much since almost nothing is worse than what happened. Still, it was tough not only dealing with your bed suddenly having a Thor shaped vacancy but getting around the facility was also difficult.

You woke up in the mornings with intense pain in your side and then you had to limp to the cane that Pepper had found for you so that you could make your way to the kitchen to eat. It turned out that the pain in your leg had been a fracture. If there was one thing that made it all okay, it was that Thor wasn’t around to see you struggle with your injuries. After his reluctance to leave, you were sure that he would have freaked out and probably carried you everywhere. The latter wasn’t such a bad thing, just unnecessary.

As you walk into the kitchen again you find Tony slumped in a stool by the counter. He turns to look at you with surprisingly clear eyes. He’s not drunk anymore and yet there’s that same look of contemplation from the night of the attack as he looks at you. He doesn’t say anything and neither do you.

He gets up and takes his transparent glass, with some type of green juice in it, with him. He disappears down the hall without another glance at you.

With him gone you move to the fruit bowl in the corner and take an orange. You stand there awkwardly, the orange given a squeeze as you stare at the empty kitchen.

You had never had a problem being alone before everyone disappeared. You’d craved solitude in some instances but now that you’ve found Thor again, being alone like this makes you feel so empty that you think you might cry. Unwilling to give in to these dark emotions you slowly find your way to the lab.

As you walk in you find Bruce and Rocket arguing at the tables full of equipment. Rocket is leaning over something protectively while Bruce tries to get a better look at whatever it is Rocket is hiding.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking but you can’t fuse that with an unstable Chitauri grenade. Where did you even get it, anyway?” You can tell Bruce is stressed by simply hearing his voice.

“That’s none of your business. I don’t ask you where you got your Hulk mutation formula, do I?” Rocket sounds more relaxed than he looks.

“You’ve asked me like, ten times!” Bruce almost growls.

“I don't remember that.” Rocket shakes his head then leans back and exposes his project to Bruce though you still cannot see it. You’re slow, at the moment, and barely reach the table when Bruce points at the space in front of Rocket.

“What’s that? That looks like some sort of power core.”

“What? This?” Rocket holds up a small glass tube that shines with a shiny yellow light. From this distance you can’t see what causes the glow. “It's just a battery.”

“That doesn’t look like any sort of battery I’ve ever seen. Do you have any idea what you could do with that grenade alone? You’re going to blow up my lab!”

“Only if I’m lucky.” Rocket jokes then brushes Bruce off. “Don’t worry, Doc, I know what I’m doing.”

You clear your throat and Bruce finally notices you. “Not possible.” He replies to Rocket before moving towards you, his hands clutching a screwdriver. “Please, just be careful.” He turns it over in his hands over and over again as he approaches. When he’s close enough he takes in your injuries with slightly narrowed eyes.

“Everything okay?” You peek over his shoulder at Rocket.

“Huh?” Bruce looks over his shoulder and then brings his gaze back to you. “Oh, yeah. I just wasn't expecting to have to host a talking raccoon who builds weapons of mass destruction.”

You smile because Rocket really is unique. You can see how having to keep an eye on him might be stressful for someone like Bruce.

“How are you feeling?” Bruce gestures at your leg. “Rhodey told me you fractured your leg?”

“And my ribs.” You nod. “I’m fine. Did they manage to lock up the rest of the serum?”

Bruce moves over towards his work station where the scanner looking for Thor's people is still running. You carefully sit yourself down, angling the chair so you can look at Bruce. You finally begin to peel and eat your orange.

“They did. Pepper and Nat went back out to see if they could trace the men that attacked that night.”

“That night, Pepper said something about Super Soldiers in Siberia, I thought Captain America was the only Super Soldier?”

“No. Steve wasn’t even the first one. Then there was Bucky after him. You probably know him as the Winter Soldier?”

“Oh.” You look down at your hands in surprise, chewing on an orange slice.

“But he's…he’s gone now. And the ones in Siberia. They’re also dead. We thought the serum was gone but if it’s out on the streets who knows what we're in for? It could mean big trouble.”

His dire expression raises questions in your mind suddenly. “I thought the serum just made you stronger?”

“No, not just stronger. It does that, but Cap says it does much more. It enhances the person you are. That’s why with the Cap, well he is who he is. If you’re evil at heart I guess it'll make it so that you look it too. Cap said that was why the Red Skull got all,” Bruce gestures at his face, a disgusted expression overtaking him. “those changes to his face.”

“The Red Skull?”

“Yeah he was the leader of Hydra way back in World War II.”

You allow his words to sink in. His explanation on the Super Soldiers was not what you had expected but it wasn’t far off.

“So, if one of those people out in the streets with the stolen serum were to take it, what exactly would you guys be looking at?”

“Well, if it’s anything like what happened to the Cap; increased endurance, zero fatigue, more strength, speed, intelligence, accelerated healing, and a being with an increased lifespan.” Bruce counts off each ability as he scribbles numbers on a pad from the scanner's screen. “Along with impossible to determine side effects.”

“Increased lifespan?” You can hear your voice rise slightly. “What do you mean? They’ll live longer?”

“Well, when the Cap was found in the ice he hadn’t aged a day. However, when he was analyzed they determined that he was indeed still aging but at a rate so slow that he'll no doubt, outlive all of us. Except maybe Thor. And…me…”

Bruce stops, distracted by his own words. You too are so consumed with his words and the picture it paints that you try to find something else to distract yourself with.

“Have there been any new possible coordinates?”

“What? Oh, a few. If he comes back empty handed, then I have a few more he might be able to try.”

You sigh heavily, not excited in the least to have Thor come back only to leave you again.

“I know it must be hard for you, to have him leave again?”

“Yeah, well, it can’t be helped. He’s the King of Asgard first. I think I wanna go home.” You sound like you suddenly realize this. That right at that moment, you want to be at home.

“Er, please don’t go because of what I said. Thor would prefer it if you stay here, where it’s safe, I’m sure. Plus, he'll kill me.” Thor would most definitely not kill him, but Bruce comes out from behind his workspace and stands nervously watching you from a few feet away.

“It's not really safe here though.” You give him a kind smile but begin to move towards the doors slowly. “At least not any safer than I would be in my own house. Besides, it'll be easier for him to come and go if I’m not here. I don’t want to be a distraction for him.”

“Well, at least let me ask Pepper to get someone to fly you there?”

“I'll take her.” Rocket’s voice is surprisingly close.

You freeze and slowly turn to look at him. Bruce's face brightens up. “Really? I mean, are you sure?” He says trying to look a little less excited.

“Oh, don’t sound so concerned. I know you would rather I wasn't in your lab. And anyway, I know where she lives. Come on, Trouble.” Rocket walks past you carrying a small metal box under his arm in the middle of which is the small glass tube you’d seen him with.

“Please, don’t lose her Rocket. Thor would be upset."

It takes you an hour to pack the few things you’d brought with you. Just clothes mostly. Somehow your things had found their way all around Thor's room.

When you board the ship in the large hangar, you don’t notice him at first, you see Tony watching you from the hangar's comm room. You stare, and he stares right back. Is he smirking?! Bastard! He’s happy you’re leaving?

Rocket gets his ship, the Benatar, going and you find a seat a little deeper and away from the cockpit than where you’d sat with Thor when he'd picked you up.

At first the two of you fly along in silence. You slowly get more comfortable. First, you lean back in your seat, mindful of your ribs as you do. You can’t help but wince. Second, you put your bag on the seat beside you, relief washes over you as the weight disappears. It was making your ribs burn. Third, you stretch out your leg, this also hurts. Finally, when you can no longer take the silence you clear your throat quickly.

“Why did you offer to bring me home?”

“I don’t know. Something to do?” Rocket shrugs his little shoulders but then shakes his head. “You’re Thor’s lady.”

You smile, the words sounding so sweet and very true on Rocket’s lips. Maybe it’s because you’d only ever heard him speak in anger or with sarcasm but truth was nice on his lips.

“I guess I wanted to make sure you get home safe. I knew from the tone of your voice and the stupid conversation the Doc was having with you that you weren’t going to change your mind so,”

You slowly get to your feet as your eyes find that Zune from before. You balance on your third leg and after making your way slowly to the music player you give Rocket a nervous glance.

“I might as well bring you myself and make sure Thor knows that you arrived in one piece when he gets back.”

The ship is suddenly filled with the rock piano beginning of ‘I Want You Back’ by the Jackson 5, then comes the guitar, bass, and the vocals.

“Hey, don’t touch that!” Rocket gripes. He’s not shouting at you, but he is annoyed with you. He presses a few buttons then rushes up from his seat behind the control console to the Zune in the wall. He shuts off the music quickly, and you can see that returned pain from before.

You move away from the Zune in the wall and sit down on the closest chair, not the one you’d first sat in. Your elbow hits a hard piece of plastic as you settle in and the cabin is suddenly filled with a strange array of beeps that remind you of your old Nintendo from when you were a kid. You pick up the portable gaming console and look the screen over as little figures race across it.

“Hey!” Rocket says again. “Don’t touch that either! Stop touching stuff.”

“I’m sorry.” You put the console down and shove your hands between your knees ignoring the protest from your fractured leg, as Rocket races over to pick up the screen and hold it close to his chest.

“Stop apologizing.” He grumbles. “What are you some sort of serial apologizer?”

“I-what?” You cock your head to the side in complete and utter confusion.

“I’ve been listening to you talk to the Avengers the past couple of days. You keep apologizing for everything. Stop it.” He demands and turns to walk towards the front of the cabin.

“I’m-” You stop as Rocket turns to frown at you. “What do you want me to do then?”

“I don’t know, why don’t you start kicking some ass and stop playing the weak little damsel in distress?”

Your heart stutters as you feel suddenly exposed. Has he read your mind? Is that one of his abilities? Does he have more than just the ability to be a sarcastic mess and build bombs? He’s pushed a button and you can’t really hide it, so you steer it in a direction that might be believable. You laugh without humor, finally bringing your eyes up to stare at his expecting expression.

“I’m not exactly on par with anyone that I’ve been in the company of the past couple of days. Everyone that I’ve met is stronger than me. Pepper, James, Bruce, Natasha, and you’re terrifying and obviously dangerous, otherwise Thor wouldn’t have tried to protect me when you got mad at me before.” Your thoughts drift to the moment you’d first noticed that Rocket was missing someone. He’d shouted at you not to call him a Raboon, though you’d clearly said Raccoon.

“What are you talking about? You’re the most dangerous person I know.” Rocket waves your statement off, his voice climbing and dropping in pitch as if what he says is truth and not just nonsense. You’re the one speaking nonsense.

“Rocket, I’m the only human with no power or skill among you. I could never hurt any of you.” Though you don’t regret that slap you gave Tony, you’re sure that it probably didn’t hurt him.

Rocket places the portable gaming console on a shelf hidden beneath a large monitor.

“You’re crazy, lady. You’ve got Thor wrapped around your little finger.” He turns and shows you his way tiny little finger and wiggles it in your direction. “You two share a bedroom. Just wait until he’s asleep and then sock him in the balls.”

You can’t help but smile and drift into thought as he returns to the Captain’s chair. He sighs heavily as he takes manual control back.

“Those things I touched, they belonged to people you lost.” You aren’t asking but Rocket nods once.

“Yeah, I lost ‘em. Whole damn lot of ‘em.” He gets very quiet as he speaks, you strain to hear him over the sounds of the ship. “I told Thor I had a lot to lose and…I did. I shouldn’ta left ‘em.” You can hear the guilt in his voice and it makes your own heart ache for his loss.

“I’m so sorry, Rocket. I wish that made some type of difference but it’s all I can offer.”

“Don’t worry about it. And don’t worry about me hurting you. You’re Thor’s lady. I ain’t gonna hurt ya.” Again, his words give you a strange sense of comfort. Was making this trip the right decision? It had to be.

When you arrive home, Rocket doesn’t stay. He promises to let Thor know that you’re okay, “despite the pirate limp.” He says with a smirk. You tell him goodbye and watch him until he’s long gone.

For the next week you pace your apartment, if pacing is what you can call it. You’re reliant on your cane so you walk when you can but sit when you can’t, which is a lot of the time. It’s nice to be back in your little one-bedroom apartment, though you glare at your kitchen sink every time you pass it since you never actually finished the dishes before you left with Thor. And now with your ribs and your leg, you can’t stand long enough to finish them. On the seventh day, after a long stretch of pacing as the sun begins to stream in through the large windows bathing your living room in warm and comforting sunlight, you slowly lower yourself onto the couch. You give your arms a long look, tracing several of the larger scratches. You look down at your legs, left exposed from wearing shorts, and trace the large cuts on those too. You look towards the windows, stare for several long minutes as you admire the way the beams of light refract through the glass, then look over at your bag. Still unpacked. Sitting with the zipper open on the table beside your sofa. You reach into the bag, close your hand around something, then rest it in the small space between your leg and the sofa’s arm.

You consider your closed fist for another minute and finally resolve yourself. You’re going to do it. You’ve thought it through for a whole week. Thor isn’t back yet. And you have no other options.

Slowly you open your fist and let your eyes finally gaze upon the small, and very stolen, glass vial of Super Soldier serum.

@bionic-buckyb, @mdgrdians, @biawol, @ulired, @markusstraya, @caramelsunrise

[multi-fandomwriting]

7 months (Bruce Banner x Reader)

I do not own these gifs, so credits to the owners!

Oh and I also want to say that English isn’t my native language, so sorry if there are any mistakes in this imagine.

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Requested by  ske072103

Prompt: Can you do a Avengers one shot. Bruce has been hiding out at your house since he left 7 months ago an one day you come home after one of Tony's parts and seen him in your couch,for him only to find out your pregnant with his baby. Lots of fluff thanks ;)

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After one of Tony’s long, exhausting party’s, you were finally home. You unlocked the door of your house and walked inside. Before you were pregnant, you really did enjoy Tony’s party’s. But now you were seven months pregnant and everything had changed. The support from the Avengers was incredibly amazing, but you missed the support of one guy. The father of your baby, Bruce Banner. Bruce left before he even knew that you were pregnant. You had tried to contact him, but you failed. You couldn’t believe it when you found out you were pregnant. How was it even possible? You still had no idea.

When you walked into the living room, someone was lying on your couch. You tried not to scream when you saw it was Bruce.

‘’Oh my God!’’ you gasped. Bruce sat straight immediately.

‘’What the hell are you doing in my house?’’ You shouted. Bruce looked helpless at you.

‘’Sorry- I still had the key and I.. I didn’t expect you to be home this early. Oh God, Y/N. I’m really sorry I didn’t want to scare you, I wanted to come over tomorrow but-‘’ his gaze was focused on your belly now. In a reflex your hand was rested on your belly.

‘’W-what?’’ he sputtered. ‘’Is that-‘’

‘’Yes. That’s yours,’’ you said, angry. Why didn’t he call you in this seven months he was gone? You felt so angry, but you knew it was not a good idea to be angry around Bruce.

‘’Oh my God. H-how?’’

‘’Believe me, If I knew I would tell you,’’ you said. For a moment both of you said nothing. Then you spoke. ‘’You could have called you know, I tried to contact you as soon as I found out!’’ You couldn’t help it, but you were shouting the last part of your sentence. His eyes were big and he walked over to you.

‘’I’m so sorry.. If I-‘’

‘’I don’t need your apologizes!’’ you snapped.

‘’Let me for God’s sake finish my sentences!’’ he shouted. You said nothing. You did not want to make him angry. Bruce took a deep breath and continued.

‘’Really, Y/N. I’m so sorry for leaving.. I just felt like the right thing to do. I couldn’t control myself. I didn’t want to hurt you,’’ he said.

‘’I guess it’s too late for that,’’ you whispered. He put his arms around you and you didn’t protest. You missed the feeling of his arms around you so much.

‘’I’m so, so, so sorry,’’ Bruce whispered as he hold you tight.

‘’Is it a boy or a girl?’’ You smiled a little at his words.

‘’I don’t know yet.’’ Bruce nodded.

‘’Please stay,’’ you said quietly after a while.

‘’I will, I promise. I love you,’’ Bruce said and you smiled, although he couldn’t see it. You knew there were a lot of things to fix, but it would be alright. 

‘’I love you too.’’

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I hope you liked it!

[talesofzero]

Destiny - Royals AU

Warfa was liveblogging GR, and she got to that part. You know, that part? Anyway, here’s a Bruce/Manabu story in my dumb new AU since I decided to make it more of an episodic thing between all the gay royal kids.  ~3300 words

When I was seven, a man broke into my room and tried to kill or kidnap me. I’m still not sure which it was. He stepped on one of the little metal trains I’d left all over the floor, even though Mom said to put them away. I woke when he slipped and slammed his back into more of the trains. When I yelled at him for breaking them, it wasn’t a guard that came in. It was my dad. That was the end of that man.

After a week of staying in my older brother’s room for safekeeping, Dad made me brush my hair and put on one of my nice blue shirts. “I won’t chance someone getting through our security again,” he said as I followed him to one of the small meeting rooms. “We got you a bodyguard. It’s just for until you’re old enough to properly defend yourself like your brother.”

The boy standing in the meeting room looked about brother’s age, maybe fourteen or fifteen and towering over me. He had such smooth-looking light-blond hair I wanted to reach up and touch it, but those eyes of his kept me hidden behind dad’s leg. They were blue like my shirt but narrowed so sharply I couldn’t meet their gaze for more than a second. “Manabu,” Dad said, placing his hand to my back to nudge me forward. “This is your bodyguard, Bruce James Speed. He’ll be taking care of you.”

Bruce knelt down in front of me as I continued cowering behind my father. “Your highness,” he greeted, his voice as dark as his eyes.

I didn’t know what to do. He seemed mad at me, but I didn’t know what I’d done wrong. Grabbing my dad’s shirt, I buried my face in it and cried.

Bruce never let me live that down.

“You looked scary,” I snapped as he laughed at his own story. “You could have at least smiled or something.” He loved telling it to the new staff. It made them less nervous around me, even though that was twelve years ago. I wasn’t some crybaby kid anymore, but Bruce set all their minds to think that.

“Bodyguards are supposed to look scary,” he said, waving his fork around. The new girl who’d brought our food was still giggling.

He could be such a pain in the ass.

I didn’t need him anymore. I’d gone through a half-dozen training courses and could get rid of any assassin that might want to bother me. The only thing that kept Bruce around was a deal we made years ago. The moment I could beat him in combat, he would consider me strong enough to be on my own. I’d yet to get anywhere close to taking him down. Hand-to-hand combat, fencing, gunplay – it didn’t matter. He beat me in anything and everything.

“I grew up a mercenary,” he told me every time I wound up on my back. “I’ve been fighting to save my own skin for longer than you’ve been breathing. You won’t beat me anytime soon with your fighting skills. Everything is too clean. You’ve never seen a real fight, and that’s why you need me.”

I didn’t need him. I swore I didn’t. Jabbing my fork into my eggs, I grumbled as he continued telling the new girl how harmless my family was. “The king is too soft for his own good. He might look scary, but there’s not a mean bone in his body. I’m still not convinced the queen is a real person. She’s too sweet. It’s that crown prince you have to watch out for.”

“No, he likes everyone but you, Bruce,” I called from across the kitchen table. Bruce technically wasn’t supposed to eat at the same table as us, but he just did one day, and no one told him otherwise. Unless we were hosting some sort of formal event, he could do as he pleased. With his lack of a pedigree, he wasn’t even supposed to be eligible for the position of bodyguard, but Dad picked him for some reason. I stopped trying to figure out why years ago.

“I don’t know what I did to offend that brother of yours so much,” he said, eyes rolled up in thought. When he wasn’t looking my way, I often found myself staring at them. They were like the ocean before a storm, a dark, striking blue. I never could decide whether they were beautiful or ugly.

When they turned back my way, I blinked and shot my gaze to my food. “You got another letter from a suitor overnight,” he said. “Did you want to read it?”

I still wasn’t convinced going through my mail was a necessity for a bodyguard. The only people who sent letters were suitors so they could sign it and stamp it with the family seal, and he knew how I liked breaking the wax seals.

“Is it worth reading?” I asked.

“Only if you want to marry the king of a desert planet.”

I stuck out my tongue and shoved another forkful of eggs in my mouth.

Bruce smiled. “To be fair, he’s at least not ugly.”

I shook my head so fast wisps of hair brushed my face. “I don’t want to live anywhere but Destiny,” I sighed.

Bruce folded his arms across his chest, his expression plain. “I don’t blame you. Since this planet’s resources are nice enough to provide a hefty dowry, that’s probably the only reason they’re interested at all. Those are the sort of people I would avoid.”

I rested my chin against the tabletop, glaring at my juice glass. “Why couldn’t I at least get a suitor close to Destiny? Someone from this solar system.”

“Anyone who isn’t married is too young for you,” Bruce snorted.

I had a small mound of letters in my drawer. There had to be something worthwhile in that stack. When I ran my options through my head, I thought of the planets rather than the people. I wanted somewhere just like Destiny, beautiful and clean and filled with the sound of train whistles as they took off into the sky. I needed that sound to get to sleep. But none of the other big station hubs were looking for marriage. “I dunno,” I mumbled. “Arcadia seems nice.”

“You can’t marry Harlock,” Dad said as he strode in, wearing his formal clothes as always, even though I was still in my pajamas.

“Because Arcadia’s king is a pirate?” I asked through a yawn.

“No, because you have the same great-grandfather.” The new girl handed him a mug of coffee, and he sipped it as though he’d just mentioned the weather. Bruce stared wide-eyed, and I squinted in disbelief. “Family secret,” Dad added when he noticed our surprise. “Less a secret and more something we just try not to mention. It’s for the best people don’t think of me as the grandson of a pirate. I wouldn’t be surprised if Harlock Sr. forgot.”

“Can I just not get married?” I asked.

Dad shrugged. “If you don’t want to, you don’t have to, but it will be upsetting to the public. You know how much they love marriages. And you will mostly be cooped up here without anything to do. It’s not an easy decision.”

I already didn’t have anything to do. Princes were there to look pretty and eventually become king or marry another king or queen. Since I wasn’t the crown prince, my job was the latter. It made my head feel stuffed and achy to think about. I didn’t want to be shipped off to some faraway planet. I wanted to live on Destiny, maybe raise a family with someone. That just wasn’t how things worked for me.

“It’s a stupid thing to whine about, isn’t it?” I asked Bruce later, as we walked back from my daily studies.

“What?”

“Being a second prince. There are people out in the world who would kill for my position, but I’m just dragging my feet with the whole thing.”

He shrugged. “If something makes you upset or stresses you out, that’s just how you feel. Nothing wrong with that. You’re not the worst spoiled rich brat, and once you find someone to marry, I’m out of a job, so go ahead and drag your feet all you want.”

Every once in a while, he said the right thing. A smile eased across my lips, and I stared at the high overhead beams of the hall. They were transparent like blue-tinted glass but stronger than steel. Royal blue banners with our family crest hung from them. The crest showed a dog’s head, stars, a shield, and a train. It gave me a terrible idea.

My hand locked on Bruce’s wrist, and I dragged him into a run down the hall. “Come on!” I said. “Let’s pack bags for a couple nights.”

His eyes sharpened in disapproval, but that wasn’t enough to scare me anymore. “What for?” he demanded, though he kept up with my stride.

“I want to go ride a train. It’s been ages. Let’s go!” Excitement burned in my chest, my heartbeat aflutter. After I came back from this trip, I would make my decision, but I needed one final rush of freedom. I needed to ride the rails I’d grown up with, to hear the sound of a train’s whistle and feel the rumble of the wheels underneath.

“Which train?” Bruce spluttered, confusion weakening his attempt to be stern. “Which route? Where are we going? We have to plan these sort of things, Manabu!”

“I don’t care!” I laughed as I shoved through the door and into my room. “We’ll just pick one and disappear for a couple days.”

“This is a terrible idea,” Bruce hissed. His eyes went wide as I dragged a duffel bag out from under my bed and raced to my dresser. “It’s not safe, Manabu.”

I didn’t care what he said. I was going. “That’s why you’re coming. You are my bodyguard. Besides, if no one knows I’m going, no one will be ready to kill me.” I wasn’t sure what anyone might gain from killing me. Kidnapping me might earn them a ransom, but they would have to go through Bruce first.

He didn’t look excited, but he took over when I started to pack a bag for him. “This is a terrible idea,” he repeated. “Your father will kill me for letting you do this.”

“Everything will be fine,” I insisted. “Come on. Let’s go catch a good train.”

On our way out, I poked my head into my father’s study. “I’m leaving for a couple days,” I said in a breathless rush. “I’ve got Bruce with me, so everything’s fine. I love you. Bye.”

He barely had the time to look startled before I slammed the door and ran, my bag bouncing at my side. I heard him yell “What!?” from down the hall just as I burst through the front door.

Since he wasn’t confined to the palace, Bruce had a car. As he drove us to the station, he muttered about how Dad would have the little red thing impounded. “My poor baby,” he sighed.

“Did you say just this morning Dad doesn’t have a mean bone in his body?” I asked.

“Only until it comes to you or Mamoru. The moment he’s worried about either of you, he’s the scariest thing you’ve ever seen.”

He had a fair point. It was hard to deny when I’d seen him murder a man in front of me.

At the station, people stared and pointed in awe. It was honestly more embarrassing than anything. I just wanted my tickets. Even the lady at the window stuttered at the sight of me. As with everyone else, Bruce threw her a warning glare.

“Hello,” I said with a slight wave. I’d never done this before. “I want two tickets to a nice train that’s leaving sometime soon and preferably one that I can make a roundtrip with in about two or three days. Oh, and I’d like first class, but only because I want a bed. Is it okay if I go to the second class cars too? I just kind of want to wander around the train.”

Bruce smacked a hand to his face as the woman gave a slow nod before turning to her computer. “The 382 is leaving in fifteen minutes. It will reach Helios tomorrow afternoon, and you can take the 1209 to get back.”

“Perfect.” I smacked down my card with a grin. Bruce gave another sigh.

My favorite part of the station was the platform, always covered in trains of all shapes and colors. They seemed to breathe when they started or stopped. Bruce said I looked like a kid in a candy store staring at them. 

The 382 was a sleek little red train, and once I tossed my bag into my room, I raced through the passenger cars and dining car, down to the caboose.

“Manabu,” Bruce growled when he caught up. “You’re making my job difficult.”

“Your job has been easy for years,” I laughed, giddy with excitement. When I wandered back to the passenger car, the occupants stared at me with amusement or amazement. I just took a seat there. Bruce threw me a questioning glance as he dropped to my side.

“We could sit in our own car rather than with all these people,” he said.

“I want to sit here,” I said, and that was all there was to it.

I bounced in my seat as the wheels beneath ground to a start. “We’re moving, Bruce,” I giggled. “We’re moving.”

“Are you sure you’ve grown any since I first met you?” I could hear the smile in his voice, but I was too busy staring out the window to pay attention. We picked up speed as we rolled out of the station and into the orange sunset. It felt like we were flying before we even left the tracks.

When we did fly off the ramp, I glued myself to the window. The city below sparkled as residents turned on their lights for the night. But the palace sparkled because of that clear blue ore wrapped around its spires. It was far more beautiful from the outside.

“Look at the city, Bruce,” I breathed.

“I would, but your head is in the way.”

I was too entranced to care what he said. “I love this city. I love everything about it. I could stay up here and stare at it forever.”

Then he said something I’d never heard before, and time stopped around me. “You would have made a great king.”

Maybe I would have. Maybe, but this city wasn’t for me. It was my brother’s. 

“Maybe I can learn to love another city,” I murmured. The train whistle blew, starting time again. I soaked in as much as I could – the sights and sounds of everything. It was all perfect.

We climbed away from the city and into the stars. Their shine couldn’t compete, but they were still beautiful. I watched them as we drifted by, as if I was under some spell. Bruce broke me from it.

“Can we get dinner now?” he asked.

“Fine,” I gave in only because I was hungry too. But I stared out the window by our dining car table too. Bruce had to order for me.

“You know,” he said, “before the king introduced you to me, he said you were a fearless little kid. I thought he was lying, but then you always surprise me by pulling stunts like this. It’s no wonder you needed a bodyguard.”

I turned to tell him off only for those eyes of his to catch me. They were softer than usual but just as violently blue as ever. I couldn’t hold his gaze, returning to my window. A rush of heat warmed my cheeks.

I had a crush on him when I was little. Mom called it an “innocent little crush.” Dad said he supposed it was normal since Bruce was someone new and interesting. If Bruce knew, he never said anything. But that was a long time ago. Princes could not crush on commoners.

After dinner, we ordered a bottle of wine for the room, sipped it and watched the stars. “This tastes awful,” I said.

Bruce sat across from me, looking content with the drink. “I thought you might like it for this weird special occasion of yours.”

“No, it’s gross.” I continued drinking it anyway. My money paid for it after all.

Leaning my temple against the window, I stared out and rolled the list of suitor’s names through my head again. “Bruce,” I said over the rim of my glass. “I don’t want to marry someone I barely know. My first kiss will be at my own wedding. When I go back, I’ll have to decide on someone, but…” I gnawed my lip. “I want to stay out here forever. I don’t want to go back just to say goodbye.”

“You don’t have to get married, Manabu,” he said, his voice soft, almost pleading.

“But what good am I if I don’t? I can’t just sit around the castle living off my family’s wealth and watching Mamoru do all the work. At least on another planet I can be of use on the throne.”

Bruce’s hand appeared on mine, and my head jerked up to see him kneeling in front of me. His eyes swam with the storm in them. “Manabu,” he whispered, his voice close to breaking. “Please don’t leave. If you leave, I can’t go with you.”

My chest ached, but I forced a laugh against the pain. “Of course you can. Why wouldn’t you?”

“My contract is with your father. No noble would see fit to renew a contract with a commoner when they could use their own court. And I don’t know…” His hand trembled as he reached up, brushing the tips of his fingers against my cheek. “I don’t think I could see you with someone else, Manabu.”

“It’s just for appearances. We won’t really be together.” They weren’t the words I was supposed to say. I shouldn’t have let his palm settle against my cheek. I shouldn’t have let him stare up at me with those desperate, loving, beautiful eyes.

A long time ago I had a crush on him, an innocent little crush. It never went away. I reached out to him in return and held his face. I wanted to settle down on Destiny with a family, with him, but it was something I couldn’t have. My eyes blurred with tears. “I want to stay out here forever,” I whispered, my words trembling, “with you.”

The weight in his eyes grew, and he rose just enough to kiss me. It made my chest feel as though a hole was punched through it, but I couldn’t bring myself to pull away. I tangled my fingers in his hair, as silky as I’d always dreamed it would be. I breathed his air and lost myself in what I couldn’t have. His touch left my skin tingling and my body aching. Everything hurt just as it felt perfect.

He told me he loved me, and I cried because I loved him more than I could say, so I said I was sorry instead.

This world was cruel. I couldn’t have him, but he was right in front of me. And as long as we were out on that train, I would hold onto him and pretend he could be mine. No matter how much it hurt, it hurt even more to think of letting go.

[talesofzero]

Dec. Prompt 7 - Ice Skating

Anon gave me a couple of choices with this one, and I went with Bruce/Manabu because I don't write them enough, uughghhgh.

~1k words

It was either too late at night or too early in the morning when Bruce grabbed my shoulder and shook me awake. “There’s no one out at the lake now,” he said.

I dragged my face from the warmth of my pillow. Despite our heater’s best attempts, the dorms were chilled from the snow outside. Getting out of bed or a warm shower took more willpower than a hard day of training.

After a minute of groggily blinking myself back to the world of the living, Bruce’s words registered. The lake on Destiny Station’s grounds was a new attraction for all off duty SDF members since the onslaught of snow and freezing temperatures iced it over. Why Bruce took interest in it while I was trying to sleep, well, I didn’t really care. “Jeez, Bruce it’s-” I threw a glance at the clock, “-five in the morning. We can go to the lake in a few hours.”

He flicked on my lights, so bright I dropped my face back into the pillow with a hiss. Again, he shook my shoulder. “There will be people there in a few hours,” he said. “You were the one who wanted to go skating. I’m not going to make a fool out of myself in front of everyone, so this is the only time I’ll do it.”

“Don’t have any skates,” I growled, muffled by the pillow. I did want to go skating with him, but at a time when my eyes weren’t stinging from the early wake up call.

“I went through the trouble of borrowing some for us,” he said as he grabbed my arm and pulled me out of bed. “Get dressed. We’re going.”

I swung my feet under me before my face could meet the floor. This didn’t make sense. He was the one who’d refused to go skating, so I wasn’t sure why he was so adamant about it now. But I was already awake, so I pulled on my best winter clothes – white wool gloves and the navy jacket for cold assignments. I never bought any casual winter clothes, and neither did Bruce, so we matched.

Outside, the night’s snowfall left the ground pristine. Our crunching steps made the first tracks of the day. Bruce walked ahead, skates bouncing at his shoulders while I traced every footprint he left. The icy air felt like an unending slap, so it was hard to feel tired. The skyline was dotted with the lights of early risers, skyscrapers mirroring the fading stars. “It’s pretty out this early,” I said, hopping between Bruce’s footprints.

He glanced around for any sign of another soul and shrugged. “I guess.” He always was a barrel of fun.

The benches by the lake were covered in snow, so we brushed them clean before tugging on our borrowed skates. Bruce laced mine up so tight I wasn’t sure I had circulation. “Alright,” he sighed. “Let’s get this over with.”

When I first asked if we could go skating, he said he’d never set foot in skates before, and it was a terrible idea. I retorted that I’d never been skating either, so it probably was a terrible idea. I didn’t care. I would have fun with it anyway.

Bruce waddled to his feet, and I followed with my ankles wobbling under me. “This would have been better if we had people around to tell us what to do,” I said.

“If I’m going to fall on my face, I’m not going to do it in front of anyone,” he snapped. Once he managed to land both feet on the ice, he stood perfectly still, eyes locked on his feet in concentration. I placed one foot on the ice and pushed off with the other. My nice, two-second glide cut off when I plowed into him.

We both grabbed hold of each other’s clothes to keep upright, but we pulled each other down instead. Bruce landed on his butt, while I fell on my knees in his lap. The sheer irritation on his face was enough to leave me in a fit of giggles.

“I told you this was a bad idea,” he said.

I used his shoulder to steady myself as I stood. “We’ve haven’t even been at it a minute. Come on, we never had a good frozen pond on Tabito.”

Once I felt balanced, I offered him a hand, and he took it with another sigh. “You make my life difficult.”

“That’s because you’re a difficult person,” I said. “Don’t know how to have fun.” I tugged him up until my feet slipped out from under me. What breath didn’t leave my lungs from my back hitting the ice flew out when Bruce fell on top of me.

“Is this your idea of having fun?” he wheezed before rolling off of me. Neither of us made a move to get up, flat on our backs.

“Told you we should have gotten help,” I said, unable to hold back another laugh.

“How am I supposed to take you on some romantic skating date if we’re surrounded by people laughing at us for our inability to skate?” I looked over to find him pouting at the sky. I had a feeling this date idea came from someone else. He always stressed about finding something I’d like.

Behind the skyscrapers, the sky tinged pink with the sunrise. I reached over and grabbed his hand.  “See? A sunrise has to give you points for being romantic. And we haven’t fallen in yet, so that’s something.”

He sighed but held my hand in return. “How are we going to get off of here without falling again? I’m already sore.”

“We’re about two feet from the bank,” I said. “We can probably roll over there.”

But he didn’t move, and neither did I. With the frozen, sleepy morning and the night sky fading out, I felt so secluded just lying there with him. As I listened to him breathe and held his hand, I wondered how such a mess of a date could feel like the most romantic one he’d ever taken me on.

[talesofzero]

"Don’t fucking touch me." bruce/manabu...?

Everything hurts, and I am a huge sad baby for this pairing.

~1100 words

I didn’t know all the details, and I didn’t care about them. I did know that Bruce had gotten his ass kicked in some bar on Destiny, and he was trying so hard to keep his man pride that he was being a huge baby.

I would not stand for it.

“Bruce, I am going to come in!” I’d been beating on his door for the past five minutes, my knuckles clenched white around the handle of the first aid kit I’d stolen from Yuki.

“No you’re not!” Bruce yelled. “I am fine! I don’t need your help!”

According to David, who was sitting in our living room area with an amused grin, he was pretty well beat up and needed to go see Yuki. But he denied it all, and with the captain out, there was no one around he would listen to. So help me God, in a few minutes, he was going to learn to listen to me. “David, can you open his door for me?”

I looked over to see his grin widen. “Can do.” He began typing on the screen of his tablet, hacking into whatever system made the doors lock. I wasn’t sure how or why he knew how to do that sort of thing, but I thanked him for it as Bruce’s door slid open.

Bruce did not look happy. “Get out of here!” he spat. Without the door between us to muffle his voice, I realized his speech was somewhat slurred. I doubted that was due to the beating.

He did not look fine either. A ribbon of blood stemmed from a cut above one eye, while the other eye was beginning to swell. A nasty bruise adorned his jaw, while cuts littered his knuckles. At least he’d gotten a few swings in.

“You look worse than usual.” I was already irritated with him, and it wasn’t helping my bedside manners. “Now you’re going to sit still, and I’ll patch you up.”

I started to grab his hand, but he wrenched it away. “Don’t fucking touch me!”

I wanted to hit him. Apparently he was an angry drunk, and I wasn’t accustomed to dealing with drunks in general. No one in my family drank, and most of the drunks I had seen were having a good time. Then again, they weren’t beaten up. “You are going to let me help, or I will knock you out myself and carry you to Yuki. Those are your options.”

He glared at me, the lights of his alarm clock reflecting in his eyes. “No.”

Ignoring him, I sat down beside him on the bed and opened the plastic kit. “You sound just like my brother.”

It caught him of guard enough to stop the assault rising in his throat. He reeked of alcohol. “What?”

“My brother was in this fighting ring back home for fun. He called it training, but it was for fun.” He hissed as the antiseptic spray stung the cuts on his hands, but I gripped his wrist tight enough to keep him from pulling away. “And he’d come back all bruised up, but he didn’t want mom to worry, so he had all this make-up to hide it. Still, since he came back into our room in the middle of the night, I always knew about it, so I kept bandages and whatever medical supplies I could scrape together under my bed.” I wrapped his hand with a practiced ease. It had been a long time, but it was still a familiar action. “And he’d always throw this huge fit over me patching him up, but I’d do it anyway, because he was too dumb to do it himself.”

The anger had left my voice. I’d never told anyone about it before, and I’d almost forgotten. My movements slowed. I tore of the end of the gauze with my teeth as I finished one hand. He held the other up for me.

“Now tell me why you’re like this,” I demanded.

“It’s not important.”

I side-eyed him with a glare. “You got your ass kicked for a stupid reason?”

“…Yes.”

I hadn’t expected that, but it was enough to make me crack a smile. “Of course you would, Bruce,” I sighed.

“They were talking bad about the SDF, and so I decided to let them know I wouldn’t tolerate it,” he growled. He must have been on the bad side of town to hear something like that said in public. No one talked like that about us so close to Destiny Station. I understood being angry, but starting a fight was unreasonable.

“You were drunk, and you made a bad decision. Sticks and stones, Bruce.” I finished wrapping his hand and moved to examine his face. It was an ugly cut.

“That’s a stupid saying.” He winced as my thumb brushed the bruise.

“Looks like you got hit with a lot of rocks though,” I smiled. The ice pack crackled like a glow stick as I bent it to start the chemical reaction of fake ice. It seemed to be hurting him more than helping as I placed it to his swelling eye. “Now hold that down. I need to clean up this blood.”

“Did you ever fight?” he asked as I began to gently wipe the blood away.

“Hm?”

“In that fighting ring, like your brother.”

“Once. But…” I chewed my lip, my hands beginning to shake. “There was no one to patch me up after I lost, and Mom was so upset that I couldn’t go back again.”

His arm slipped behind me and pulled me to him. With his face buried in my hair, I could feel his words breathed against me. “You shouldn’t fight. It’s not like you.”

“But it’s my job, isn’t it?” I tried to smile around the tears, my lips shaking like my hands.

“No, your job is to protect. I’ll do the fighting for you.”

“Okay,” I sighed. “But you’re still an idiot for getting beaten up like this. If you do it again, I’m just going to make fun of you.”

He laughed as he pulled away. “I know. I was being stupid.”

“You were being a baby is what you were being,” I huffed, smacking a bandage to the cut on his forehead.

Probably because he was stupid and drunk, he leaned down and kissed me, lips dry and one split. It probably hurt him just a bit, so as a reward, I kissed back, even though he didn’t deserve it. He pulled away with a smile, as if he’d won somehow.

“Get that icepack back on your face,” I huffed. “Before that eye makes you too ugly to kiss.”

He just kept smiling, so much that he deserved to be hit again. I settled for poking at his bruise, enough to make him wince. But that smile stayed.