MCU Wintershock Author Spotlight on sevenfoxes

Interviews by Fans
Title:	MCU Wintershock Author Spotlight on sevenfoxes
Interviewer:	MCU Wintershock
Interviewee:	sevenfoxes
Date(s):	March 27, 2015
Medium:	online
Fandom(s):	Marvel Cinematic Universe
External Links:	MCU Wintershock Author Spotlight on sevenfoxes, Archived version
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Part of a Series

See MCU Wintershock Spotlights.

Excerpts

"What about Wintershock as a pairing appeals to you?

For me, there’s a lot of appeal in crafting how these two connect. I think on the surface, there’s this belief that Bucky and Darcy would connect/be compatible because Darcy’s personality is similar to that of Bucky’s pre-WS: sarcastic, confident, sassy, take-no-shit. But for me, I think it’s more in how they view their world, their role in it, and the people around them.

Bucky and Darcy are both caretakers. They’re both devoutly loyal and see themselves as responsible for the well-being of those around them, in particular friends with self-sacrificing streaks. Bucky with Steve (and later the Howling Commandos) and Darcy with Jane & Selvig. As caretakers, I think they’re also self-sacrificing in a lot of ways that aren’t as apparent because of the gang they hang around with (Hi Steve, Thor & Jane!). I think writing their POV as they encounter a mirror of themselves is really interesting.

I also feel like given where they are in their lives (Darcy being relatively unmoored and finding herself while Bucky is healing and coming to terms who he is and what he’s done), this caretaking streak takes an interesting turn. How do they fit together? What do they see in one another? Caretakers often REALLY STRUGGLE when it comes to letting others take care of them, so I think there would be some serious clashes early on.

Also, they haven’t been written together a lot, and the Bucky/Darcy relationship is often secondary to Bucky/Steve and Steve/Darcy in OT3 fics. There’s a lot of space available for the growth and development of these two characters. That’s fun. It’s a blank slate to play with."

"How did you first encounter it? I honestly cannot remember. I feel like I probably read some OT3 fic before I read Bucky/Darcy. But mostly, I was reading a whole bunch of pairings when I first got into Marvel, so I think I just fell into it as I was reading other fic."

"Do you have any specific Wintershock headcanons? Are there any particular fic tropes you like concerning the pairing?

I have a few that aren’t hard and fast rules, but simply the way my brain chooses to see these two when I think about writing them. So I think it’s important to just say that I’m not saying this is THE WAY to write them (as I enjoy a number of takes on how they interact), but rather how I choose to think about them as I write them. I honestly believe that Darcy would not just jump into a relationship with a recovering Bucky. I think it’s a popular canon trope to have Darcy try to heal Bucky, and honestly, I don’t mind that trope at all. When I read it, I enjoy it a lot. There’s not many ways I DON’T like reading Bucky/Darcy. But when I think about writing Bucky and Darcy hooking up in fic where he is recovering post-TWS, I honestly believe that Darcy would have a lot of reservations. (This headcanon is completely different when I imagine a fully-healed Bucky.)

Darcy’s the type to fight for friends, but she’s also good at her job with Jane because she has a good sense of self-preservation. She’s a caretaker, but this guy is 1) a stranger and 2) potentially dangerous. And I think her natural instinct initially would to be to tread extremely carefully. I also feel like a lot of times, Darcy is written as being loud and in-your-face and bulldozing into Bucky’s life during recovering-from-WS phase, but weirdly, my brain wants to write this differently even though I enjoy reading this take on things. What I love most about Darcy and try to imbue her with is a real emotional intelligence. While Selvig and Jane are more academically gifted, Darcy excels at emotional intelligence, at reading people and figuring out what they need to flourish. She puts her own spin on it, but at Darcy’s core, the way she stands out is her ability to assess, adapt, and be what people need her to be.

I think, for me, that would be why she would be really quiet and unobtrusive when dealing with Bucky, and why they would connect in a world where he is still healing from his TWS experiences. She’d be one of the few people who would approach him from the perspective of WHAT DOES HE NEED without being so emotionally invested that it would taint the answer. Her caretaking would come from a purity of not needing anything from him in return (whereas I think Steve would really struggle with needing to know that Bucky’s okay - I think Darcy would be okay with him NOT being okay). She’d just be a quiet presence with no expectations or emotional baggage, and that would be appealing to Bucky whether he decides to recognize it or not."

"Of the stories that you’ve written concerning them, which one is your favorite and why?

I’d have to say the fallout. I wrote it because someone wanted some angsty Bucky/Darcy that flipped a few of common tropes about the two around. I’ve read a lot of traumatized!Bucky/Darcy where Darcy is instantly forgiving of any trespasses, and part of me really wanted to write a fic where the fallout of an incident between them was more serious and long-lasting. And where it was both of them pulling away and going, is this healthy? But still keeping that underlying affection between them. Pining is big for me.

That being said, I LOVED writing the ridiculous fake-dating trope in one of my don’t talk to strangers ficlets. Basically where they’re both sass-faces who secretly want to bone the shit out of each other, but each thinking the other isn’t interested and/or are too proud to admit it. There’s nothing better than a fully recovered Bucky giving Darcy a run for her money in the mouthy troublemaker department."

"What Wintershock fic by someone else would you recommend to others to read? What about this fic appeals to you?

My absolutely FAVOURITE fic is Sea Change by vintageprayers, which is Steve/Bucky/Darcy. I think it does an amazing job of balancing the angst with the levity that Darcy can provide. I’m a huge fan of offering context for actions, and vintageprayers does a great job of making her characters’ decisions understandable, even if we don’t agree with them. You understand why the characters think and act the way they do, and the rationality is tied back to fantastic takes on each of the characterizations. None of the drama feels contrived, or that decisions/actions are made with no regard to the characterizations in order push the plot. I also love the way she sets up the fic so the reader falls into immediately the aftermath of the event that drive the plot, with us learning more and more as the story evolves. This is one of the few fics I’ve read that balances the relationship between the three of them almost perfectly, which is shocking given that the fic really deals with what happens when the rug gets yanked out under one of the relationships. The way she builds the quiet backstory between Bucky and Darcy is just so goddamn beautiful. Basically? It’s great.

Actually, I’d just suggest reading everything by vintageprayers. I think she absolutely NAILS the characterizations of Darcy and Bucky in particular. Her take on Bucky/Darcy soulmates/soulmarks is easily my favourite: Gonna Make Your Life So Sweet.

I’ve also enjoyed easy ready willing overtime by lanyon for pure love of totallyfunctioning!Bucky. Oil-Stained Stars by JadeCharmer is a really lovely slice of domesticity which tugs at my heartstrings. And one more chain by Polexia Athrodite is great, because I am a TOTAL SUCKER for angst, and she writes Bucky/Darcy in the wake of the death of Steve deftly."