brit_sorcerer:

Quinn started at the paper in his hand. Married. Apparently Alice and he got married while they were in Vegas. Funny. He didn't remember getting married. Then again he didn't remember much from that night. Just that they drank. A lot. There were some fuzzy memories of fantastic sex, but that was about it.

"Well." He looked at Alice. "Now what do we do, luv?"

nextgen_shield:

Agent Gamble noticed a power surge in one satellite and then it was gone. The connection to the satellite was broken and then another satellite had a power surge. A few moments later that one went offline. One by one the SHIELD satellites went offline and the world's big spy agency was blind in the sky.

Agent Gamble jumped up and hurried over to Commander Dugan.

Ten minutes later Col. Fury ordered his special ops team in for a briefing.

nextgen_holiday:

Mother love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible. ~Marion C. Garretty, quoted in A Little Spoonful of Chicken Soup for the Mother's Soul

anyastark:

Word about certain things spread fast in the cape community and Anya learned that Vernique and Svalin were getting married, in Asgard, and Svalin was expecting a baby. This of course meant one thing. There had to be a party to celebrate both things and Anya was the perfect one to throw it. Anya had known Vernique since forever and there had been many marathon shopping trips.

She sent invitations out to the female members of the X-Men, Champions, Avengers, West Coast Avengers, Defenders, X-Force, Alpha Flight, Excalibur, Fantastic Four, Sammy and Alice in SHIELD, Kelly and Melissa. It was also the first get together the Thunderbolts would be hosting.

The renovated firehouse in Cambridge was cleaned from top to bottom and supplies were laid in. Stephanie was given cart blanch on the menu and snacks. Anya and Molly went shopping for the drinks and for gifts for Vernique and Svalin. Since the crowd was very varied they got a wide selection of sodas, juices, beer and also picked up a lot of water. Anya even booked rooms at a nearby hotel just in case people didn't want to make the trip home that night. Anya had spoken to Irina and arranged for pick up of the various team members around the world.

Saturday rolled around and Anya was up at the crack of dawn double checking everything. Then she headed down to the lab until the first ladies arrived.

girlspy:

Vegas had been a fun break from normal hectic schedule that Alice had working for SHIELD. But a couple of days later, it was back to business.

Alice was in her room, working on writing up a report when she heard a knock on her door.

"Coming," she said, getting up from her desk to answer it. She smiled when she saw who was on the other side. "Hi Grandpa." She gave him a hug.

bornlucky:

Casey and Quinn had been talking about doing this type of thing for a while long before they even had plans for what they were going to do with the winning.

They were going to Vegas.

They had gotten one of the really nice suites at the Excalibur Hotel & Casino so that they would both have their own rooms in case they needed them for later.

They also had a couple thousand dollars each to get started. Casey wasn’t too worried about losing with his luck.

They also had some ideas for what they might do later after they did a lot of gambling.

They left a note for the rest of the team telling them they had gone to Vegas. They didn’t tell them in person since they might have tried to stop them but what could possibly have to them while they were in Vegas.

nextgen_parent:

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the first annual Maria Stark Foundation Charity Auction. I'm Alison Blaire and your host for tonight's festivities. Prepare yourselves for a night of fun to help a worthy cause. In just a few minutes many very handsome men will be brought out one by one for your chance to win a date with one of them.

Before we begin I would like to bring out Her Imperial Highness Anya Stark. Miss Stark helped arranged tonight's event and will give you a little more information on the charity organization tonight's proceeds will help."

Anya walked out on stage and smiled. "Thank you, Ms. Blaire. All of the proceeds from tonight's event will go directly to Doctors Without Borders or Médecins Sans Frontières. This organization was created in 1971 in France to benefit the citizens of the world. The organization is committed to bringing quality medical care to people caught in crisis regardless of race, religion, or political affiliation all across the globe. MSF operates independently of any political, military, or religious agendas.

I'm happy to announce on behalf of the Maria Stark Foundation, that all money collected here tonight will be matched dollar for dollar by the Maria Stark Foundation."

"Thank you Miss Stark and that is a very generous offer by the Maria Stark Foundation. Now it's time to begin. So open those wallets and let's bring out our first man." Anya left the stage and went to take her seat.

"First we have the son of Captain America Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff. James Romanov-Rogers is currently an Avenger and has recently moved to Seattle to lead the West Coast Avengers."

"Let's start the bidding at a hundred dollars."

girlspy:

This year, Alice decided that Sammy needed something "extra special" for her birthday. Yes, while guns were always the option, there were only so many years in a row that you could get your best friend a new gun for her birthday. It was repetitive. It was boring.

And Alice was not a fan of repetitive and boring.

So, at around ten o'clock, when she was working in her office, Sammy would receive a very special present.

A Happy Birthday stripper-gram. The guy was conveniently dressed as an average, everyday S.H.I.E.L.D agent so Sammy wouldn't suspect that something was up until after they were behind closed doors.

Alice didn't want the surprise to be ruined, after all.

nextgen_holiday:

The beginning of a New Year, a time for new hopes, new experiences to come. A time to reflect on times past, remembering fond memories happily and trying to put less pleasant thoughts and experiences in the past.

It is a time of renewal, a time of rebirth. And for much of the world, it is a time of celebration. This is no less true for the super hero set as anyone else. If anything, they just have that much bigger of things to look forward to.

nextgen_holiday:

There's a piece of paper and a pen attached to a bulletin board. Across the top is written:

New Year's Resolutions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
+

Anonymous entries accepted.

nextgen_holiday:

Christmas. Yule. Saturnalia. Dies Natalis Solis Invicti. Many cultures have celebrated and still celebrate a winter festival. There have been many names for it over the millennia. No matter the name it is a time to come together and celebrate with feasts and gifts with friends and loved ones.

Each culture has a legendary figure who would deliver gifts to children during this time. In Russia and some Slavic cultures he is known as Ded Moroz, Grandfather Frost, and comes not on Christmas but on New Year’s along with his granddaughter Snegurochka, or ‘”Snow Maiden”. In the United Kingdom and other parts of Europe he is known as Father Christmas. In the Netherlands and Belgium he is known as Saint Nicholas or “Sinterklaas” and in France he is known as Père Noël. In the United States we know him as Santa Claus.

No matter the name or who is delivering gifts, it is the season of peace, joy and togetherness. It is the season for thinking about loved ones, friends and those less fortunate. It is a time to witness the goodness and generosity the human race is capable of. It is a time for peace on Earth and goodwill toward man.

girlspy:

Alice had been in London to talk to Del about possibly rejoining the team. Del was a good agent to have around in the field, and though the team worked pretty well together, they could use the extra set of hands. Del had told Alice that she would think on it, and offered to grab dinner with her, but Alice knew that she had quite a bit of work on her plate, so she said she'd take a raincheck.

Alice left Scotland Yard headquarters and made her way to the pub that Del had recommended. She walked up to the bar and sat down, ordering a beer.

anyastark:

Anya didn't have many traditions in her family, unless you counted being a bastard as one of them. The Avengers however did have a few time honored traditions that must be kept going. Sure saving the world from alien invasions, beating up the world level threats and other heroic things were some of those traditions, but not everything could be about beating up the bad guys. One such non-heroic thing was Rate the Hunk.

Each year the female Avengers got together and rated their fellow male Avengers. The new generation had eagerly picked up and kept this tradition going. However, they had expanded it a bit.

The day after Thanksgiving was a perfect day to avoid shopping crowds, take over the rec room, banish the males and look at pictures of them. Anya had run it last year and she took it upon herself to do it again this year. Invitations went out to fellow female heroes. Avengers, X-Women, Defenders, Champions and Thunderbolts all got invitations to come to New York to Rate the Hunk.

Food, drink and snacks were laid in. Signs were put up on the doors and electronic surveillance was set up to see if males dared to interrupt.

Anya settled in on one of the couches and queued up the stash of photos she had collected in the past year.

nextgen_holiday:

"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them." JFK

In America today is a day for being thankful for the things in people's lives. Today was a day to celebrate family, friends, prosperity and health with food, family and friends. It is a time to reflect on what is important us and to recognize the gratitude we hold for having those things in our lives.

electrified:

Del sifted through the mound of paperwork on her desk. As the S.H.I.E.L.D. liaison to Scotland Yard it meant she kept her eyes out for stuff that the agency couldn't handle or didn't want to and relaying the stuff that SHIELD was handing off. It also meant a mountain of paperwork that kept her at her desk more than in the field. She missed being out in the field and dealing with bad guys. It was one part of her job that she had loved. When did she get to be a paper pusher?

She found the folder she was looking for and opened it. The reports were ordinary enough, but something else in another file had made her wonder and she had to come back to this one to check. There was unusual activity out near Chearsley. Lorries rolling in and out at odd hours of the night and strangers in the small town speaking a few different languages. There was a report of a weird snake symbol seen briefly under the coat of one of the strangers.

She could kick this to M-I5, but she had a feeling they wouldn't get to it anytime in the current year. Del knew who she could call to do some recon under the radar. She picked up the phone and made arrangements for a meeting.

sammyfury:

Licking wounds and feeling good about ass kicking on a mission was one thing. The team needed something else besides combat to draw them in together. Sammy's calendar provided an excuse to cut loose a little.

Meet at the Slaughtered Lamb to celebrate Walker's and Tech's birthdays before the month is over. Food and drinks on me. ALL the drinks. C'mon guys, we need the downtime off the boat.

Sam

PS - ALL THE DRINKS

PPS - Yes, I'll bail us out if we get into trouble.

sammyfury:

A file was delivered to Sammy and included handwritten instructions from the head office. She read it over the day's unnumbered cup of coffee, then put out call for a meeting with the remaining team members. Each was requested to be ready to leave immediately. Tech, the newest member, was also included in the meeting call. Whether or not he would be useful on this particular mission was to be seen. He could end up staying on the helicarrier. The rest would go.

Hydra had been a very naughty villain group and they were going to get a closer look.

nextgen_holiday:

What Makes a Dad

God took the strength of a mountain,
The majesty of a tree,
The warmth of a summer sun,
The calm of a quiet sea,
The generous soul of nature,
The comforting arm of night,
The wisdom of the ages,
The power of the eagle's flight,
The joy of a morning in spring,
The faith of a mustard seed,
The patience of eternity,
The depth of a family need,
Then God combined these qualities,
When there was nothing more to add,
He knew His masterpiece was complete,
And so,

He called it ... Dad

girlspy:

Alice slowly came to. Her vision groggy, she blinked, glancing around as her senses slowly came to her. SHIELD med-bay. She'd been here a couple of times before, but never overnight. Alice tried to sit up, but couldn't as a sharp pain coursed through her body. The last thing she remembered was the fight with Gargantua...and getting her ass handed to her. Alice moaned, wondering how long she'd been out for.

nextgen_holiday:

Mothers are the place that we call home.
On them we rest our heads and close our eyes.
There's no one else who grants the same soft peace,
Happiness, contentment, sweet release,
Erasing nighttime tears with lullabies,
Restoring the bright sun that makes us bloom. - Anonymous

nextgen_parent:

Nick Fury walked out of his office and stopped near his assistant's desk. "Get the team in the ready room in ten minutes." Then he kept walking out of the office.

nightingalesong:

It doesn't take long Qamar long to unpack his things into his quarters. It's not like he's got a lot of things in the first place. Clothing, a couple school books, his laptop, and his costume. At least the... accessories for the costume won't get strange looks if people find them in his closet.

With everything packed away, he grabs his laptop, sits at his desk, and begins to work on his school work. It's not due for a few weeks yet, but when you're a superhero, you never know when your time will suddenly vanish due to alien kidnapping or what have you.

sammyfury:

Sammy was no stranger to the helicarrier. She'd had the run of S.H.I.E.L.D. directorate and the helicarriers all her life. She loved to stand on the flight deck in the dark. Dad would pace the deck when he was thinking about things. It was a habit she'd picked up early.

She had a lot to think over and some plotting to do.

sammyfury:

Sammy finished up the details for S.H.I.E.L.D.'s newest special ops team and called the first meeting aboard the helicarrier. This time Dad's office wasn't available or requested so there was no mistaking which Fury was in charge. Col. Fury would hear about the meeting soon enough. He might even show up to give his view on why he created the team.

For this meeting, all she wanted was to get the quarters assigned, equipment procured, questions answered and let everyone meet each other and find out why each of them were chosen for this team. Forget that she was a little anxious about it. Being a Fury in S.H.I.E.L.D. meant people watched to see you fail to live up to the Colonel's example. She had to be better just to be considered satisfactory, and temper it with patience and humor so she didn't drive everyone around her insane.

If this worked, she would definitely owe Uncle Steve a thank you for showing her how a powered team could be led without climbing a bell tower.

nextgen_parent:

Nick had been tossing the idea around in his brain for some time now and the recent events in New York had brought it back to the front of his mind. It was about time S.H.I.E.L.D. started taking a more active role in dealing with the powered set out there.

Nick had gone through some files and had selected a few candidates. Luckily some were already agents. Others he would have to go have a chat with.

"Get Sammy in here," he said over the intercom. "And round up agents Childress, Alice Dugan and Walker. I want to see them as well."