OK. "How are y'all so awesome?" Because, Dear Bee and Fellow Founders, you showed us the way to awesome. Like, as in, ROAD SIGN. "You want awesome? Come in and pull up a computer."

That said, some of us are more awesome than others. I can't gif, or pic spam, or even clip a friggin' photo into a comment. But MAN, I can look. :-)

All I can do, occasionally, is write. So here's an excerpt from a story, coming soon(ish) to a website near you -- what, in my head canon, might happen when Natasha tries to drag Clint for drinks at Pepper's invitation. Besides, it's almost Wednesday and this isn't finished. But anyway. Here it is. No pics just words.

“It’s not a soirée, Clint. It’s drinks among … a dozen or so friends. Okay, acquaintances. You’ll know most of the people there. You can even wear jeans. Even though, for the record, you do clean up nicely when you deign to put in the effort.”

If that was meant as enticement, it backfires rather spectacularly.

“A dozen or so? Great. Almost undiluted Tony Look-at-Me Stark. My favourite thing.”

“It’s just drinks. Two hours, tops.”

“Just drinks? People like us don’t do just drinks, Tasha. When we go to a function, it’s for a purpose. To take out a mark, or walk off with some useful intel. Or both. We … I … don’t just stand around with a glass of wine and make small talk.”

Coming out of Clint’s mouth, the word small talk sounds like something slimy, with retractable fangs and a frilly dress. He gives her a baleful blue-green stare, fuelled by twenty-four-karats worth of Barton pigheadedness.

Time to turn the screws.

“Fine. I’ll go alone. You stay here and feel sorry for yourself, and fletch some more arrows. I’ll tell Pepper my date developed a sudden case of shingles and hope Steve didn’t bring someone. Maybe we can get our picture on Twitter and start some rumours.”

Clint broods for a minute, looking for an out, wondering just how badly he should be searching for one given that she really seems to want this, for whatever reason. They’re supposed to be doing this couple thing now, right?

Talk about being compromised.

Natasha hasn’t moved; she is still staring at him, scanning his face for signs that he might crack. She can hold that kind of posture for hours, just like he can his bow.

Dammit.

Sometimes, Clint has learned, the only way to make a graceful exit is to punch something in the face and step over its body. He grits his teeth. Arrows. She mentioned arrows.

“Guess I could talk to Stark about some arrow designs I’ve been thinking about.”

He watches her relax a fraction out of the corner of his eyes.

“And if Steve and Fury want all of us to play nice together, I suppose I might as well use this thing to gather my own intel on Stark. So we both know what we’re getting into with him. Don’t really know the guy.”

If Natasha has noticed the ‘we’ that crept into this slightly rambling speech, she doesn’t give any sign of it. Instead, she gives him a small but genuine smile, the kind that very few people get to see. Somehow, she manages to keep any hint of triumph out of it. Take the victory, don’t stick around to gloat, go on to the next target.

“You know, Pepper asked me to pass the invite on to you, but she and Tony won’t actually know that you’re my date, unless Steve ratted us out, or Stark’s been nosing around. You’ll have the element of surprise on your side. Could be fun.”

And then, because she’s read on one of those magazines that flexibility deserves a reward and that positive reinforcement is a good thing, she goes up to him and gives him a long, deep kiss -- before moving in for the kill.

“Oh, I lied about the jeans, Barton. Wear black pants and the black Armani jacket I got you, you know, for that trafficking job in Hamburg? White or black t-shirt – I don’t care. You can pick.”

Clint just rolls his eyes.

“Who or what the hell is Armani?”

Edited 2013-01-01 19:11 (UTC)

And wouldn't he clean up nice ;) And still manage to be a dork :D

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OH CLINT. LET ME LOVE YOU FOR NOT KNOWING WHO THE HELL IS ARMANI. *bows* This has made me smile so so so damn MUCH. :D

OK. "How are y'all so awesome?" Because, Dear Bee and Fellow Founders, you showed us the way to awesome. Like, as in, ROAD SIGN. "You want awesome? Come in and pull up a computer."

THIS THISSITY THIS!!!

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workerbee73.livejournal.com - 2013-01-05 16:37 (UTC) - Expand

DON'T EVER YOU DARE RAIN ON YOUR OWN PARADE AGAIN, WOMAN! I might have to slap you! JEEZ!

OTher than that - AGREED! It's one thing to open a comm, it's another alltogether to make it a FRIKKIN HOT SPOT OF AWESOMENESS !!!! And to keep it going and to keep on the squee and ... well, all of this.

Now, off to read that writing you so graciously shared with us :P

wait, wait ... how is it that I think I've read this before? I am really confused ... or I have crazy realistic dreams or something ... creepy!

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purely-distel.livejournal.com - 2013-01-01 22:27 (UTC) - Expand

**wibbles**

**hugs you**

love the story. i love it when clint becomes nat's own personal ken doll. and you know he wouldn't do it for anyone else on earth but her. ;)

*boggles*

IKR????

still can't get over it.

Our 'ship is a freakin' yacht, and that yacht is freakin' BAD-ASS!!! :D

*high fives the entire bar*!!!

*high fives right back* and we're awesome at impromptu parties - EVEN ON THE DAY AFTER NEW YEARS EVE!

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lar_laughs.livejournal.com - 2013-01-03 02:29 (UTC) - Expand

So I am little bit sad, but somehow I kept thinking about this. About all these amazing people here, sharing and actively enjoying each other and the characters they love.

You say you're shocked that there are so many members but ... come to think of it ... I am not, really. I've been around LJ since ... late 2004? Early 2005? Needless to say, I've lived through my fair share of ups and downs on this blog. I've waded through a lot of fan wars and other shenanigans here and I also saw LJ die, slowly. First, when DW was introduced, than more so when Tumblr joined the online world. And I was sad about it, really sad.

But there are still places on LJ that are alive and this one is, from the ones that I know, by far the best one. Why? Because the mods are committed. It really IS that simple. You have all things friday and unfinished fic wednesday and promptathons and challenges and secret santas and you CARE! You're here, amongst us "normal" folk, dancing away and squeeing and sharing and simply enjoying and OBVIOUSLY that is a feeling that you get the moment you step into this community. I definitely got it the moment I hit "send" on my introduction post. And it made me SO SO SO SOO HAPPY!

You made this community MORE than just a place where people like to see the same characters hook up. And that is what keeps us here, what makes us so committed that NONE of us dropped out of a fanfic challenge during the busiest time of the year, you remember to post merry christmas posts and new years shout outs.

We always say this is the best bar (and it's SO TRUE) but ... come on, we might get drunk and silly here, but this is a lot more than the most inviting, most comfortable living room I've ever been to, where everyone just huddles together, with big cushions and endless cups of tea.

And YOU guys, you mods and members of the first order, you MADE it into this place.

And I, for one, am bloody grateful that you did!

I will now stop this embarrassing love letter and crawl back into my little RPG world where I am currently playing demon-hunter-Clint that has just discovered that Tasha, the women he has adored since he is five years old, is a Demon ... YOLO! :P

I want to hug this and squeeze it and adopt it and keep it for always <3

I have to say though, my biggest smile came when you listed all things friday and unfinished fic wednesday and promptathons and challenges and secret santas as mod things because all things friday started as that, but the comm took it and ran with it and now lots of people volunteer to host it and host it brilliantly. The promptathon was supported by so many people, who then did crazy things like list everything and mark what was unfished, and who did incredible fills. Challenges are issued by everyone. The Secret Santa and unfinished fic wednesday was the result of others coming to us and saying, 'can we do this here?' and then organising the whole shindig.

That's the thing. 'Can we do this here?' Bee stocked the bar, the other three of us got up on the dance floor, we all love everyone who walks in through the door, but it's all of you that make this place. So long as you all keep wanting to be here, here we are.

PS. QC has made YOLO = You Obviously Love Owls to me and now I have demon-hunter Clint, demon Tasha, and a demon owl in my head. Just sayin' ;)

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workerbee73.livejournal.com - 2013-01-05 16:51 (UTC) - Expand

I'm not sure who our thousandth member is, but I wish there was a way to find out so we could throw them a party or something

*raises hand* I volunteer to leave and re-join so it can be me! ;-)

Edited 2013-01-01 23:15 (UTC)

lol, awesome. i haven't checked lately, but we may be over 1000 now.

but there's always the 1100th...

er..........occasional commenter here, sometime fic-writer (but most of it is still in the hammering-out stage), just wanted to raise my glass to all and sundry and wish everyone the bestest of new year's and tons more Clint/Natasha!

I'm familiar with the hammering-out stage *hands you some nails* Go for it!

And Happy New Year! :D

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lar_laughs.livejournal.com - 2013-01-03 02:28 (UTC) - Expand

Seriously? Seriously?! *stares and steals Bee's paper bag* Happy New Year indeed :D

Well, I don't know who 1000 is, but I don't really care, because every one of the one thousand and the one thousand and fifty-one are awesome. AWESOME ALL ROUND! So have some celebratory icons anyway:

Have I told you lately that you fricking rock?

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(http://s106.beta.photobucket.com/user/countess_rain/media/GIFs/littlegirl_zpsbdeacaf1.gif.html)

I LOVE THIS BAR... WHICH IS A TARDIS... AND HAS A BOOKMOBILE... AND IS NOW A CAMP, TOO!

This bar is a recipe for success. Yes, we have great mods who come up with fun things and are just generally cool people and have created this amazing place. But there also needs to be great members. We have 1000 of the coolest members of the planet. You can set up a great place to play but it's not really cool unless people come to play in it. A pile of blankets and pillows is just a pile of blankets and pillows UNTIL a little kid decides it's a fort or another decides it's a castle. Of course, then they fight over it and pretty soon it's caving in on them but that is an entirely different analogy for another time.

So, anyway, keep on being an awesome group. Make this a place that people want to come at least check out because they hear about how cool it is.

Don't just be like this:
(http://s106.beta.photobucket.com/user/countess_rain/media/GIFs/grumpyjeremy.gif.html)

But be like this:
(http://s106.beta.photobucket.com/user/countess_rain/media/GIFs/veronicagettingjiggy.gif.html)

Party on, Garth... er, wrong fandom. Let's try that again.

Party on, Clint!
(http://s106.beta.photobucket.com/user/countess_rain/media/GIFs/clintdancing.gif.html)

Party on, Natasha!
(http://s106.beta.photobucket.com/user/countess_rain/media/GIFs/scarlettscareyfacesuch_heights.gif.html)

This ...