"Ballad of Denim Boy and Grey Girl" - Steve Carlson
"Vampire Time" - Maisie Peters
"(I've Had) The Time of My Life" - Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes
"Hungry Eyes" - Eric Carmen
"Perfect" - Ed Sheeran
"Lover" - Taylor Swift
"Begged" - Olivia Rodrigo
"Afterglow" - Taylor Swift
"Like a Fool" - Keira Knightley
"Nothing Like Being in Love" - Maisie Peters
Full playlist here!
I imagined this as starting out with their getting together, songs that match their joined perspective. In the second half, it splits into their individual perspectives, first happy then sad, and we end on a very hurt Olivia's POV.
"Nothing Like Being in Love" feels like an epilogue or coda to me.
"(I've Had) The Time of My Life" and "Hungry Eyes" come from this post.
Selection of lyrics that form a little narrative behind the cut!
"Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo
I can't help but imagine what you say when you speak with me
And I'm too shy to say what I see when I dream of you
With a hand on my heart, I swore
Nobody's wanted somebody more
"Cruel Summer" by Taylor Swift
And it's new, the shape of your body
"Ballad of Denim Boy and Grey Girl" by Steve Carlson
'Cause they had faith in each other
Everything felt right
At a backyard party on a Saturday night
"Vampire Time" by Maisie Peters
I had to know what you're doing tonight
And what you're doing tomorrow
And the rest of your life
"(I've Had) The Time of My Life" by Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes
You're the one thing
I can't get enough of
So I'll tell you something
This could be love
"Hungry Eyes" by Eric Carmen
I need you to see
This love was meant to be
"Perfect" by Ed Sheeran
Well, I found a woman stronger than anyone I know
She shares my dreams, I hope that, someday, I'll share her home
"Lover" by Taylor Swift
We could leave the Christmas lights up 'til January
This is our place, we make the rules
Can I go where you go?
Can we always be this close?
"Begged" by Olivia Rodrigo
They say it's a virtue to not let good love slip away
I'm cool and forgiving, I'll take what you're giving
But nothing's quite enough, when I know that to get it, I begged
I'm overwhelmed, I'm underfed
"Afterglow" by Taylor Swift
I lived like an island, punished you with silence
Why'd I have to break what I love so much?
I'm the one who burned us down
But it's not what I meant
"Like a Fool" by Keira Knightley
And you have broken every promise that we made
And I have loved you anyway
And you have broken every single fucking rule
And I have loved you like a fool
"Nothing Like Being in Love" by Maisie Peters
I was the front line, you were retreating
Top of my lungs, I was calling you back
A million ceasefires bought a little more time
But time was done with us
There's nothing like being in love
And you were nothing like being in love
With somebody honest, somebody kind
Somebody always by my side
There's nothing like being in love
(An alternate version might have "Afterglow" as the final song, and we'd end on John's asking for forgiveness: "It's all me, just don't go / Meet me in the afterglow." But I don't know if this would necessarily be a 'happier' version.)
CHAPTER FOUR IS NOW POSTED! The ships are becoming more relevant now...
(Bob caught blushing...?)
Chapters: 4/?
Fandom: Thunderbolts (Movie 2025), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Yelena Belova & Thunderbolts Team Members, Yelena Belova & Robert "Bob" Reynolds, James "Bucky" Barnes & Yelena Belova & Robert "Bob" Reynolds & Alexei Shostakov & Ava Starr & John Walker, Ava Starr & John Walker, Ava Starr & Thunderbolts Team Members, Robert "Bob" Reynolds/John Walker (Marvel), Yelena Belova/Kate Bishop, Robert "Bob" Reynolds & Alexei Shostakov, Alexei Shostakov & John Walker, James "Bucky" Barnes & Yelena Belova & Robert "Bob" Reynolds & Alexei Shostakov & Ava Starr & John Walker & Sam Wilson, Thunderbolts Team Members & Sam Wilson (Marvel), James "Bucky" Barnes/Sam Wilson, Thunderbolts Team Members & John Walker (Marvel), Valentina Allegra de Fontaine & Robert "Bob" Reynolds, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine & Mel (Thunderbolts 2025), Kate Bishop & Thunderbolts Team Members
Characters: John Walker (Marvel), Robert "Bob" Reynolds (Marvel), Yelena Belova, Alexei Shostakov, Ava Starr, James "Bucky" Barnes, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, Mel (Thunderbolts 2025), Sam Wilson (Marvel)
Additional Tags: Found Family, Healing, Thunderbolts Team Members Live in the Watchtower | New Avengers Tower (Marvel)
Summary:
Starting from the ending of the movie, Thunderbolts* (The New Avengers), and hopefully reaching to the post(post) credits scene.
Covering the journeys of all the members afterwards, their healing, their coming to terms. Explanations for why they all ended up in the Watchtower, tidbits of them becoming a family, and healing — not fixing — their emotional (and physical) wounds.
Featuring the following ships (eventually):
SentryAgent (Bob Reynolds x John Walker)
SamBucky (Sam Wilson x Bucky Barnes)
Bishova (Kate Bishop x Yelena Belova)
MelVal (Mel(issa Gold) x Valentina Allegra De Fontaine) -- this is just toxic workplace yuri at its finest
