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piedpiperart · 9 months

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Can We Keep Him pt 2

Chapter one

Jason woke with a jolt, hearing knocking on his door. “Master Jason, it is nearly time for you to leave for school,”Alfred called,”I suggest you hurry if you want to have breakfast.” The teen groaned, about to get up when the memories from last night hit him. Jason’s eyes widened and he sat up with a jolt, not seeing the tiny raccoon kid in his bed. He tried hard not to panic, but hoped the kid didn’t go far. He noticed the fluffy blanket he’d wrapped the kid in was gone, and after doing a quick sweep of his room and looking under his bed he found a crack in the closet door that wasn’t there before. Jason usually kept the door closed, so he hoped the kid might’ve just gone exploring while he was asleep. He eased the sliding door open a bit more, sighing in relief when he saw the kid curled in a ball, tail clutched in his arms like a teddy bear. He’d made a sort of burrow in Jason’s laundry, which wasn’t the weirdest he supposed. Jason figured the kid liked smaller spaces to sleep in, which was understandable given how huge Jason’s room was.

When Jason had first moved in, he’d slept in the closet too, unused to the big fluffy queen size bed and worried about the other people living in the manor. Eventually, he’d gotten used to the big bed, but he understood a bit about the kid’s preferences now. Easing the door back to the small crack it was open to before, Jason heaved a breath. Now, he had to tell Alfred. There was no way he’d try keeping the kid in his room while he was at school, and no doubt Alfred would be able to help him figure out how to explain everything to Bruce. Sure, he knew he wouldn’t get in trouble for finding the kid and bringing him home, but might be given the disappointed look for waiting until morning to tell Alfred about it. Jason cursed, wishing he had a baby monitor or something before he left for the kitchen. His steps were quiet until he was sure he wouldn’t wake the baby, then he jogged down the hall and slid down the staircase railing, using his fuzzy socks to slide into the kitchen where Alfred was doing dishes. “Master Jason-” Alfred started, no doubt surprised that Jason wasn’t dressed for school yet, but Jason didn’t have time for that. “I snuck out yesterday and found a kid so I brought him home and gave him a bath and I didn’t want to wake you but now he’s asleep in the closet and I have to go to school, can you help me please?” Jason blurted. To Alfred’s credit, he barely blinked before gesturing for Jason to sit down. “Now, care to explain?” He asked, a tad softer but more serious than before. “I was exploring outside because I couldn’t sleep,”Jason began, sitting down with a huff. He was still worried about leaving the kid alone, but knew he owed Alfred an explanation before he met the kid. “I found some trash and went to throw it in the dumpster, but when I opened the lid something hissed at me. I thought it was a cat or maybe a raccoon got stuck in there or something so I turned on my flashlight to get a better look.” Jason paused, looking at Alfred’s calmly raised eyebrow. “I know that’s probably not smart but it wasn’t a raccoon or a cat, kind of. It was a little kid, maybe five or six?” Jason squinted, he wasn’t sure but the kid was so, so small. “He was eating trash, so I bribed him with food to get him out of the dumpster. I don’t think he knows words? He mostly just growled or hissed at me honestly.” Alfred seemed a bit less composed at that information, but Jason soldiered on,”So I got him into the house, gave him a bath and pajamas and wrapped him up in a blanket. When I woke up he was gone though, but I found him curled up in the closet with some blankets.” He finished. “Well, I must say,”Alfred hedged,”There is never a boring day in this house.” “So you’ll help?”Jason brightened, jumping out of his chair. Alfred made a noise much like a sigh before standing himself. “I’d like to meet the little one first, if that’s alright,”Alfred asked, and Jason nodded, leading the man to his room. Before long, the two of them were creeping into Jason’s room quietly. Jason eased the closet open wide enough for Alfred to catch a glimpse of the tiny raccoon child curled up, face pressed into his tail. To Alfred’s credit, he barely batted an eye, but Jason could see a fond smile on his face at the cute scene. “I do say, it might be easier on him if you stay home from school today, Master Jason,”Alfred whispered when Jason had closed the closet back up. The teen sighed in relief. As much as he enjoyed school, he didn’t want to leave the little guy alone. “Thanks Alfie,”Jason slumped. He followed Alfred back out into the hallway, but kept his door open in case the kid woke up. “What do we do now?” “For now, wait until he wakes up on his own,”Alfred started. “You said he was not responding to words?” “Yeah, I asked him questions but it didn’t seem like he knew what I was saying,”Jason frowned. “But he didn’t bite or scratch me, and he ate a lot of the snacks I had.” “I’ll keep something warm for when he wakes,”Alfred hummed. “But we do need to explain this to Master Bruce.” Jason grimaced. “It is a good thing that he left early for a board meeting and won’t be home until later,”Alfred added. “Perfect amount of time to get the child acclimated to myself and the manor.” “Thanks Alfie,”Jason grinned. Then he thought about what might happen when Bruce got home.”You think B will be able to find his family or something?” Alfred frowned, glancing back to the closet. “I doubt any family he has would care for him the way you have, considering where you found him,”Alfred said, then added,”I don’t doubt that Master Bruce would be hard pressed to care for him as well, should no other suitable options arise.” “Yes,”Jason fist-pumped. ”I’ve always wanted a little brother.”

Alfred merely smiled.

An hour and a half had passed before Alfred agreed to let Jason wake up the small child for some food. Jason hadn’t left the room the entire time, worried the little guy would run off and hide again. The whole time he’d been waiting he spent looking up raccoon facts on his phone. He was happy to note that most raccoons don’t get sick when they eat garbage foods and are able to get rid of most of the toxins in the garbage food during the digestion process. With any luck, the kid will be disease free, even from living in the wild most of his life. Carefully, he opened the closet door and sat down in the opening, not too close to the kid. “Hey little guy, it’s time to wake up,”Jason cooed softly. He had a cookie in his hand as a backup plan, and had convinced Alfred to stay in the kitchen until he brought him downstairs. “You’re gonna miss breakfast if you sleep all day,” He added, spotting the twitch of one of his fuzzy ears. “Good morning sleepyhead,”Jason called, brightening when he saw a sleepy blue eye peek out from behind a blanket. He held up the cookie to where the kid could see it, and held in a laugh when the sleepy boy reached for it, yawning into a stretch at the same time. Jason stayed where he was, letting the kid wake up a bit as he stretch a little more and crawled out of the blanket cave and onto Jason’s lap to get the cookie. He gave it to him, standing and lifting the small furry kid into his arms. The kid seemed too tired to protest, and just rested his head on Jason’s shoulder while nibbling at his snickerdoodle. The urge to take a picture of his cute little face was overwhelming, but Jason shook it off and made his way downstairs. “You’ll get to meet Alfred,”Jason continued, despite the fact that the kid didn’t know what he was saying,”He’s really nice, and knows how to cook all kinds of food,” Jason rambled. The kid, now done with his cookie, latched onto Jason’s shirt and glanced around the manor. His eyes seemed to catch on to photographs and plants around the halls.”You’ll love him, I promise,”He murmured, approaching the kitchen with a bit of dread. Jason kept his eyes on the toddler, but knew the moment Alfred came into view by the way the kid’s claws gripped his shirt, digging in far enough to prick his skin. He hid a wince and tried to reassure the kid, but he hissed towards the butler, curling closer to Jason. Alfred hummed, then to Jason’s confusion, he sat down on the floor criss cross and motioned for Jason to do the same. He shrugged mentally, and lowered to the ground. Letting go of the kid, Jason looked back to Alfred in confusion. “Let him get used to me first, Master Jason,”Alfred suggested, keeping calm when the kid sniffed and tried to climb out of Jason’s lap. Jason watched with trepidation as the kid explored, surprising the teen when he walked straight up to Alfred. The man stayed still, even when the kid leaned forward and sniffed his suit. He seemed very interested in one of the buttons, but before he could accidentally detach it, Alfred revealed a small bowl of apple slices he’d hidden behind his back. Jason grinned, standing up to come closer as he watched the kid sit in Alfred’s lap to eat a slice. “He likes you,” Jason cooed. Alfred gave a wry smile, scooping up the kid with one arm and holding the apple slices in the other. “I presume the young master likes anyone who gives him food,”Alfred said, albeit a bit sadly. He was no stranger to malnourished kids, that was for certain. He gave a good look at the kid, noting how he seemed to be of a healthy weight for a child, how to fix the knots in the child’s hair, and to get him some new clothes his size. The man wondered if he could send Jason and Bruce with a list. No doubt he could trust Jason with the list, but despite Bruce’s proficiency in most things, shopping was not one of them. Despite what his adopted son would protest, Alfred was counting on Jason to change Bruce’s mind about keeping the child. He’d suspected Jason was a bit lonely in the big house, and having another little one would make the manor seem livelier to the old man. It wasn’t as if they didn’t have the capabilities to care for him, especially considering his appearance. Alfred carried the toddler to the old wooden highchair he’d found in the attic earlier and sat him down. Jason took the seat next to him, keeping him in his seat with the apple slices Alfred passed to him while the man buckled him in. The kid just chirped at nothing in particular and crunched another slice. “I think he likes crunchy things better,”Jason hummed, accepting the plate of pancakes with a side of eggs and hashbrowns. It immediately caught the attention of the kid, and he sniffed the air towards Jason. To Jason’s surprise, Alfred sat a plate down in front of the kid too, albeit filled with less than Jasons and cut up into smaller bits. “So what do we do now? Is there a bat thing we could check to find his identity or something?” Jason commented. “Master Bruce will no doubt check when he arrives,”Alfred starts, “Why don’t you and I set up some things for the little one, hm? I’m sure we can scrounge up some of Master Bruce’s old clothes that should fit the young man.” “Really? You still have Bruce’s baby clothes?” Jason barked a laugh, catching the kids attention. The little guy was busy stuffing pancakes in his chubby cheeks. “Indeed. Now finish your breakfast, and we can go look through storage,”Alfred hummed. Jason didn’t need to be told twice, and scarfed down his food. He spent most of the meal looking over the kid. He was surprisingly tidy, despite eating with his hands. The kid seemed to like the crunch of the bacon best, but it was hard to tell since he ate everything. Jason kind of wondered if he ever stopped eating. Jason helped Alfred clean up the dishes, leaving the kid in the high chair a few feet away. “Shit-”Jason exclaimed when he turned around. Somehow the kid had gotten out of the high chair buckle and was standing up, looking ready to jump. His exclamation made Alfred turn, but he was rushing to the kid, who stopped trying to jump when he saw Jason approach. Big blue eyes chirped at him and Jason scooped him up in his arms. “Please don’t do that again,”He said, looking to see the unbuckled seat belt in the high chair. “You scared me nearly to death.” The kid chirped again, wiggling in Jason’s arms to try to get down. Nervously, Jason let him down, following close behind as he immediately took off to explore. “Uh Alfred?” Jason called, a bit panicky. “He’s doing no harm,”The man commented, “I recall raccoons and little boys being curious creatures. Perhaps you can find some toys or puzzles for him.” “Oh, I think there’s a few puzzles in the living room,”Jason muttered, following the kid to the hallway. He seemed to be heading to the front door, but Jason wasn’t sure. The little guy ducked under a side table, then scrambled to a cabinet. He had trouble pulling it open, but eventually got it open a crack. It was just extra blankets, and he stuck his hands in the drawer to feel the softness. Jason followed along when the kid changed course, taking a moment to look at a portrait in the foyer of a younger Bruce and his parents. Amused, he watched the kid reach up and try to open the hall closet. He stood up on his tippy toes to fiddle with the door handle. It took him a minute, but the kid managed to turn it to the left enough for it to click. Jason nearly laughed when an umbrella fell on the kid when the door opened. His tail shot out and he squeaked, running back to Jason while clutching his head. “Aw, did it get you?” Jason cooed, picking up the kid and cradling him to his chest. He pet the kid’s hair, avoiding the ears. “Wanna go see what Alfred’s up to?” Jason didn’t expect an answer anyway, and they made their way back to the kitchen. On the way, the little raccoon climbed up to Jason’s shoulder to pull his hair. It didn’t hurt so he let the kid do what he wanted. “Hey Alfie, ready to raid the storage?” Jason asked, head tilted towards the kid, who was still holding onto his hair. “Indeed,”Alfred said with a smile, and Jason had the sudden thought that he hadn’t ever seen the man smile so much in one day. “If you would follow me.” Jason had fun looking through the dust covered boxes. He and the tiny toddler parked themselves at a few opened boxes labeled clothes and started sorting through them. While Alfred dug up some sippy cups and a car seat, Jason busied himself with finding clothes that might actually fit the kid. He held up a shirt he thought would fit, only for the kid to push it back down into the box and climbed inside. Jason sighed, leaning on the box. “We really gotta get a name for you,”he said sadly. The kid sneezed, probably because of the dust they’d been disturbing. “How about a nickname?” Jason asked, bringing a cute little bear sweater out of the box the kid wasn’t sitting in. It seemed a bit too big, but he could grow into it, Jason thought. He added it to the pile anyways. “Baby raccoons are called kits, right?” Jason rambled, looking through clothes while the kid curled up in the musty box to take a nap. No doubt raccoon fur was going to stick to everything in there, he thought. But back to nicknames, he could think of a few. “Could call you Rascal, or Squirt, maybe Baby Bird since Dick calls me Little Wing sometimes. No, that’s too long.” Jason sighed. “I’ll figure it out eventually,”He said, reaching over to pet the kid’s hair. As much as the kid seemed to enjoy touch, Jason grimaced at the feel of all the knots he couldn’t get out of the kid’s hair. “Hey Alf,”Jason called softly. He waited until the man looked over to gesture to the kid.”Do you know anything about getting tangles out?” Alfred hummed, coming over to the two after setting a box down. He appraised Jason’s small pile of clothes with a nod before softening at the curled up kid in the box. “Yes, I’d be happy to help the young master,”Alfred said fondly. “Would you mind taking the two boxes downstairs for me? I believe I can locate some shoes for the lad in the meantime.” “Sure thing,”Jason said, and hopped to his feet. The boxes weren’t heavy, but big enough to need two trips. Glancing inside, he could see some sippy cups, baby spoons and plastic plates and bowls. He wondered if Bruce’s parents kept these for if Bruce ever had a baby. Jason grinned, hoping that little tidbit would sway Bruce into keeping the kid. He brought the box down in no time, and inspected the second box. Inside were a few parenting books, a stuffed animal elephant and frog, and some baby toys. Jason wasn’t sure how old they were supposed to be for, but he didn’t know the kid’s age either. He found one toy that the kid might have fun chewing on though. After dropping the boxes off near the living room, Jason came back to find the box empty and the kid snuggled in Alfred’s arm. With his other hand, he was organizing more clothes into another box to bring down. A small pair of blue velcro shoes were off to the side that were soon added to the box. “He asleep?” Jason asked, peering up at the kid. He had his tail wrapped to his front, holding on with his hands and pressing his face into it and Alfred’s chest. Alfred nodded, rocking back and forth a bit. “Perhaps we can convince the young one of a haircut when he wakes,”Alfred suggested. He then gestured to the box at his feet. “Would you be so kind as to take this box?” Jason nodded, picking it up with no trouble and following Alfred back down to the first floor. He then helped Alfred load the old clothes into the laundry, all while the kid slept cuddled in Alfred’s arms. They migrated to the kitchen then, where Alfred started on lunch. He passed the sleeping kid to Jason, who sat on one of the window couches with the kid curled in his lap and pulled out his phone. “Raccoons are like cats, but they’re more like dogs,”Jason read out. He’d started looking up raccoon facts to see if they might relate to the kid. He hoped it would be useful. “Actually, they’re more related to bears. They don’t hibernate exactly, but they have a few weeks where they sleep during winter.” “Raccoons have night vision, and the thing that cats have in their eyes that make them shine in the dark,”Jason explained. Absently, he pet the kid’s hair as he read aloud to Alfred. He was like a heater, warming Jason’s lap like a heated blanket. He wondered if this was what having a pet felt like. “They also don’t have great eyesight, and lack depth perception,”Jason frowned. He thought about how they could test that. Would the kid need glasses? Slowly, as Jason read out loud and the smells of lunch started to waft in the air, the kid stirred. Jason resisted the urge to coo at the way he yawned and stretched. The little guy stayed curled up a bit longer before catching a whiff of something from the kitchen. After that, he abandoned Jason pretty quickly. Jason huffed in amusement but followed the kid to find him practically glued to the man’s leg. He sat at one of the bar stools while the raccoon begged Alfred for food with the most adorable puppy eyes. Even Alfred wasn’t immune, and before long he’d handed Jason a handful of grapes and buckled the kid into the highchair next to him. Grinning, Jason busied himself with feeding the kid grapes while Alfred finished up. “I think he likes fruit a lot too,”Jason said absently, passing the kid another. He seemed content to stay in the high chair as long as he was being fed. It was good to know, considering they now knew he could get out of it without issues. “Or maybe he just really likes food,”Jason amended. “I imagine that once he has a stable source of food, he may not feel the need to eat as much or as often,”Alfred pointed out, and yeah, that made sense. Jason himself had taken a while to adapt to it after living on the streets. It made sense that the kid was still in survival mode. He wondered if the kid would want a food stash like the one Jason had in his room. “I think he might have food aggression too,”Jason said, passing a grape to the little black grabby hands. He was speaking from experience, and still felt a bit of panic everytime someone even tried to take a bite of his food. “So be careful not to take food away I guess.” “I suppose we can try a sort of barter system with him,”Alfred hummed. He brought over a plate of sandwich- chicken salad, Jason thought, and cut vegetables on the side- to the kid along with a sippy cup filled with water. The little guy brightened, forgetting about the few grapes Jason had left in favor of picking up a slice of sandwich. He sniffed it first, peeling back the bread and eating the inside, getting mayonnaise on his face and hands. “Thanks Alf,”Jason said when he set an identical plate down in front of the teen. Only there were some chips on the side as well as vegetables. Jason amused himself with looking up more raccoon facts while they ate, and watching the kid scarf down his food. In no time, he was turning his puppy eyes to Jason, who lasted a solid five seconds before he handed him the last of the grapes. And some carrot sticks. Alfred slid over some more vegetable sticks to the kid, who delighted in the crunch of the celery, carrots and cucumber. He didn’t seem to like the broccoli as much but still ate it. The kid growled a bit at Alfred when he wiped the kid’s face and hands with a wet washcloth, but didn’t bite or scratch him like Jason worried. After that, Jason was tasked with bringing the laundry out of the dryer and into the living room with the toddler while Alfred cleaned up. “I should have expected this,”Jason sighed, looking down at the kid basking in the warm clothes fresh out of the dryer. He shrugged, then picked up the basket filled with clothes and kid to bring to the couch. “Alright,”Jason grinned, “What do you wanna wear?” He didn’t get an answer, but managed to pull out a few things before the kid swiped at him for stealing his warmth. Holding up the little bear sweater he’d found earlier, Jason figured the kid might want to wear something warm. It wasn’t to cold outside yet, but winter was only a few months away. Jasonshivered, thinking of the kid alone outside during winter. Shaking his head, he brushed past the thought in favor of wrestling the kid out of the big t-shirt and into the sweater. He didn’t seem to mind, but didn’t like wearing the shorts as much. Jason couldn't really tell if it was a tail thing or a no pants thing in general, but the kid didn’t try to take them off. The socks, however, were taken off immediately, and Jason didn’t have the guts to fight him over it.

chapter 3

#can we keep him #chapter 2 #raccoon tim drake #tim is a raccoon #jason todd #is a good brother #tim drake #jason is robin #Alfred Pennyworth #Alfred is just happy to have more kids to take care of #jason is a mother hen #he worries #tim is just there for food and snuggles

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dalegreenearts · 2 years

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The Zodiac Killer Cheat

I picked up a book on my kindle called The Zodiac Killer by W.L. Knightly because I was very interested in learning about the infamous search for the serial killer in California. I watched the dramatized movie with Mark Ruffalo and I was curious.

Too bad for me, it wasn’t a book about the killer, it’s a novel that has nothing to do with the Zodiac killings in California which I was anxious to read. That was my first disappointment. But I decided to give it a try.

It opens with the most heinous prologue I’ve ever read. A vivid description of a BDSM murder which nearly turned me off the book entirely. I think, any writer who opens a book like that only wants to get fewer readers rather than more. I agree with Alfred Hitchcock who didn’t show the murder in the movie Psycho. If you remember the movie, you don’t actually see the murder. You see hand holding a knife, a girl scream, the shadow of a hand stabbing her, a spurt of blood. But you don’t see what happened to her which is more frightening than seeing it.

The book is about a police officer named Derek Blake and his search for the killer who committed the murder in the prologue. So the world of the book is one filled with police. There’s a lot of talk about cock and balls and fucking. I think it’s meant to sound edgy but it sounds a little forced and unnatural.

They also based their entire book series on the zodiac but got the dates wrong for Gemini. Here’s a quote from the book.

“No, she was a Gemini, like me. See? May twenty-fifth.”

“You too, huh? When is your birthday?” He shifted on his feet and let loose a long breath.

“May fourteenth,” she smiled.

But May 14th is Taurus, not Gemini, a simple internet search would have corrected this.

I found the characters to be wooden, they’re either really really bad or really really good. We’re meant to hate Bay because he’s a contemptible pig. But I’d rather he had some good traits because we all do. With that aspect of his humanity missing, he reads like a caricature. I’d be more invested in the story if Tad had a humanizing characteristic, like he fed stray dogs or something. That way he wouldn’t be as bad as he seemed and I’d be more sympathetic with him, even if he’s the killer, I’d feel like maybe he didn’t deserve what he got.

Also, Derek, along with Bay and ten other men killed a young girl when they were kids so, as far as I’m concerned, they deserve everything they get. They tortured and killed an innocent girl. We learn that the Zodiac killer is after those 12 men and I say, meh, who cares if they die, they killed a young girl.

I also didn’t like the portrayal of the women. They only seem to be there to be objects of sexual desire for the men in the story with a strong bent towards keeping them subservient. But it’s not just the women who are unrealistic. All the characters in this book are beautiful which is difficult to relate to. They all have perfect perky breasts and tiny waists and long, flawless, tan legs. Most people aren’t beautiful and maybe, the writer could have given them flaw or two. Derek is described as gorgeous. His wife, Megan is a beauty queen. Lizzy, the FBI agent (who, I believe to be the real killer) is also beautiful. Derek fantasizes having an affair with her. He even says “he’d never felt connected this intensely to anyone in his life.” But there’s no chemistry between them and he’s only known her for a few days.

Derek and Lizzy have a weird relationship. I think their repartee is supposed to sound witty but it sounds labored, like it’s trying to sound witty. After knowing each other for only a few days, she’s asking him if he ever did anything kinky, saying “You totally seem like the finger up the butt type of guy.” And he answers “I’ve done a little anal.” It’s just so unrealistic and trying too hard.

Derek’s wife leaves him and I know he’s angry but most people would be conflicted, remembering the good times, the reasons they fell in love, the plans they made. Most people are in shock and spend time privately in grief for the relationship that was lost. But Derek doesn’t go through any of this which makes feel very little sympathy for him.

The only good dialogue is later in the book between Tad and Derek. They were talking, opening up about their participation in the murder they committed. It was refreshing. I don’t know why the writer left the good writing until so late in the book.

By the end of the book, I realized it’s a continuation which is a cheat. They said on the cover that it’s book #1 but they didn’t say it was part 1. I was so pissed I decided not to buy the second part at all or read anymore of this author’s work.

Apparently, W.L. Knightly is a pseudonym for two women who write the books together but their names are secret. It’s no wonder they keep their names secret, they don’t want to be connected to such bad writing.

Not recommended.

#zodiac killer #murder mystery #W.L. Knightly #books and novels #writers on tumblr #review

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dark-anxious-goddess · 3 years

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Winter in Gotham

Based off of this fic, by @catxsnow

Word Count: 1285

Notes: Hi! So this is a fic based off of the one linked above so please read it cause its amazing. This is my first fic so please go easy on me lol. This was my interpretation of how I think Bruce would react.

It was a normal December day in Gotham, crime running rampant and batman taking down criminals helping to make the city safe. Winter was in full swing with snow covering the ground. Upon a building were Batman and his team as if it weren’t close to freezing in the city. That is where the problem starts. A father and his children fighting crime in the middle of dead winter wearing basically spandex.

You were not a mother to any of his children, but you were Bruce Wayne’s current and longtime girlfriend. Later on, after months of dating, you stumbled upon her bleeding lover the night after a long fight with Poison Ivy. Soon in the wake of that moment, you came to Wayne manor to help whenever she could, including to be Bruce’s nurse and lodestar.

You were in the Batcave waiting for Bruce to come home, hopefully without injuries that would need stitches. After what seems like hours the sound of the Batmobile hits your ears. Bruce is the first one to greet you, he comes over to your anxious body at the computer and leans over to kiss you, and tells you that the patrol went smoothly. You call out to Damian to check and make sure that he didn’t get injured. Damian rolls his eye like he usually does when you check on him and he says that he’s fine.

All of Bruce’s kids had grown on you and you always made sure to check on all of them since you knew how Bruce was with affection. It was your way of letting the kids know that you truly loved their father and loved them along with Bruce. One of the things you did was help Alfred out a tad by sewing the suits after a night out fighting crime. Tonight, was one of those nights. Even though no one was hurt, Dick’s suit had a visible tear that you could fix up in minutes.

-Dick sweetie when you change give me your suit and I’ll sew it up for you so that you have it fixed for tomorrow's patrol.

Dick changed and handed over his suit to you.

-Thanks Y/N. I tried to stitch up my suit once and it was terrible.

-Oh. Alfred and I are both aware. That’s why I restitched them.

As you are about to start sewing you notice the thin material in your hands. Emphasis on thin. As you felt the material all you could think of was how cold it was in Gotham. It is a city in the Northeast after all. You got up and checked the other kid's suits and it hit you that all of the boy’s suits are thin. You thought to yourself, how on earth did they stay warm in these things. If you went outside you had to have layers on otherwise you would freeze and yet the boys are walking around all night in these? You decide to ask Bruce since he is their father so of course, he should know why the suits aren’t thicker or better insulated.

-Bruce... Bruce why are the boy's suits so thin?

-They need to be able to move freely. You’ve seen how flexible Dick is.

- Yes. But it’s winter in the north. They should be insulated and give the boys warmth.

-They’ve never had an issue with the cold.

- You are their father! You should know well enough that they don’t have to say that have an issue.

Dick is the first one to speak up.

-It’s not a problem really. We’re used to the cold and it made us better heroes.

- It is a problem, Dick. You are children and you shouldn’t have had to tell your father that you were cold while he was standing in a fully insulated bodysuit.

Bruce looks at his kids standing around him in their suits and starts to think back to patrols in the winter just to try to remember seeing any signs of them being cold. Sure, they took hot showers after they got back but that was normal for them. But maybe they took such hot showers to get warm…

-What about the girls? When you had their suits made did, they have insulation? or are they thin so that they could move around freely like the boys?

-The suits are all made out of the same polymer material. There aren’t any differences unless they specifically design then that way.

-Wow Bruce. So, all these years you really haven’t noticed that you’re letting your own kids freeze?

Bruce starts to think more while the panic starts to rise in him.

- I didn’t think they were cold. if I did, I would’ve changed their suits. I didn’t do it on purpose.

Bruce looks at you and sees the disappointment in your eyes. He looks at his kids and realizes that maybe he should have paid more attention. Everything starts to piece together like a puzzle before his own eyes. All the nights where after a night on patrol one of the kids would head to the showers and fog up the changing room. Or nights where Bruce would check on one of the kids and find them enveloped in blankets. They weren’t just cold. No, they were freezing. All because he never noticed the shivering or chattering of teeth next to him. How could he have been so neglectful… He was supposed to help these kids that’s why he agreed to train them as Robin so that they could be better than he was. Yet, he let them endure the brutal Gotham winters in spandex.

-I’m sorry. I should have realized that all of you were cold and I should have made sure that all of your suits were well insulated.

The kids all looked at him in surprise as they never thought their father never knew that they were cold.

Jason speaks first,

-You mean you didn’t know we were cold?

-No. Of course not. If I knew you were all cold, I would have done something. But I’m sorry that I didn’t know.

The kids all share looks. Some are in disbelief while others like Jason are still deciding if they trust that Bruce isn’t still testing them.

After some tense silence filled minutes you decide to restart the conversation.

-So, since you didn’t know that they were cold and since you do now. What are you going to do about it?

-Well, I will have all of their suits redesigned for winter weather that has better insulation. That way they have a cold-weather suit and a warmer weather suit.

-I think they should also have warmer capes so that they can use them as blankets like you do Bruce. And maybe they should also have weighted blankets waiting for them here when they finish patrol.

-Whatever they need to be warm they can have. Alfred will you order weighted blankets and hand warmers immediately. Along with whatever you see fit to have everyone staying warm.

-Of course, sir I will do that now.

The weighted blankets came in later that week along with hand warmers, packs of gloves, beanies, and all types of blankets that were available. After that night Bruce made sure that the kids were warm and not suffering in the cold. You of course paid extra attention to the kids to make sure they were okay and made sure that they would bundle up into little hero cocoons after patrol. But the kids were okay after that. At least when it came to being cold. Because we all know there are plenty of issues in this family…

Hope y'all liked it. Feel free to reblog too!

#bruce wayne x reader #bruce wayne #dick grayson #jason todd #damian wayne #tim drake #cassandra cain #stephanie brown #nightwing #red hood #red robin #robin #spoiler #dc #batfam #batgirl #black bat #orphan dc

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x-gotham-rogues · 4 years

Text

If Jonathan was to join the Batfamily, how would that work out?

Suddenly, I can’t stop thinking about this idea.

Also, a few thousand words of this post got deleted when I tried to save but my computer froze and decided to say goodbye to all that work. Hours upon hours, wasted. I feel like shit. Just a teensy bit.

Here’s to always writing on Google Docs before copy and pasting on tumblr from now on.

This stuff happens around Year One, so the Batfam is currently only Bruce, Dick and Alfred

Let’s just assume Jonathan gets kidnapped/forcibly adopted into the family by Bruce right before he got to kill anyone because I cannot recall whatever detailed prequel I had written for this idea

All I do remember is that there was some sort of emotional blackmail going on that kept Jonathan from running away and trying to kill someone again

Month by month, Bruce and Dick try to 1) chip at Jonathan’s walls, 2) make sure Jonathan doesn’t find out about them being Batman and Robin, and 3) make Jonathan healthy again because the man looks like he is going to crumble the second he gets poked

Because of the whole ‘forcing Jonathan to stay at Wayne Manor’, Jonathan’s obsession with fear never really gets developed all that much

Don’t get me wrong, it’s still there, he’s just not a crazy mad scientist anymore

BOOKS, however

Everyone, Jonathan Crane’s got a new drug, and it ain’t fear toxin

Wayne Manor’s library is far larger than Keeny Manor’s library

There are so many more subjects, so many more stories, so much more stuff Keeny Manor didn’t have because of the heavy superstition like Edgar Allan Poe, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Oscar Wilde, Shakespeare, etc.

Jon is 1001% addicted

At times, Alfred would have to act like an annoyed parent because Jonathan is just so reluctant to stop reading

Like, where was all this absolute gold when he was a kid!?

Meals are very awkward because Jonathan doesn’t understand people at all, Dick’s still kind of doubtful of Jonathan, and Bruce is also just a tad bit paranoid

But also, whenever Jonathan eats Alfred’s cooking, his eyes light up because as a kid and teen he was fed slop from his great granny, and even as an adult he was rather poor and hardly ate because of his obsession with fear-based revenge, so he appreciates any bit of good food he gets

One morning when he explains to Dick that he’s never eaten bacon before, Dick laughs, takes a look at Jonathan’s face, realises he was being serious and practically drags Jonathan around the whole day eating junk food

Bruce was a bit disappointed at Dick but lets Jonathan finish his ice cream cone

At some point, Bruce decides that if wants to unlock Jonathan’s backstory, he’s going to have to do more research

With Bruce spending more time down at the Batcave doing research and Jonathan still holing up in the library, Dick’s bored as all Hell

That’s... not a good thing

He tries to rope Jonathan into some chaos, but Jonathan’s never been the type to cause mischief

Plus he’s too busy reading

Dick sees that he’s definitely not going to get anywhere trying to get this fully grown adult who might possibly be even older than Bruce to break some shit with him

So he sits down and plays a popular indie game his friends have been recommending to him; a certain game called ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’

(Yes, I am aware this doesn’t fit into the timeline, let a person have some fun)

Bruce couldn’t hear him down in the Batcave, but Jonathan hears Dick’s scream loud and clear

He runs to wherever Dick was playing the game and sees Dick just staring at the screen

Jonathan raises an eyebrow and asks what happened

“The... the power went out... I was so-! 5AM. IT WAS 5AM WHEN THE POWER WENT OUT. THERE WAS PROBABLY LIKE A MINUTE LEFT. I WAS SO CLOSE! ARGGGHHH!”

Gone was the shocked face, replaced with one of unadulterated rage

“Why is Night 4 so hard?! Can’t you have waited one minute Freddy? ONE!?”

Should he... leave? Was Richard talking to him?? What was he supposed to do???

Eventually, Alfred finds Jonathan awkwardly doing nothing and tells him he could go back to the library, but the game was a horror game and he thinks Jonathan may have an interest in it

Jonathan, worried for the sanity of the boy in front of him, agrees to watch him play

Dick tries to rage quit multiple times, but then Jonathan would try his hand at the game and Dick keeps telling him he’s doing something wrong and takes back the controller

In an unexpected turn of events, Jonathan gets super invested in the plot

Soon enough, both Dick and Jonathan are heatedly discussing FNAF’s possible canon, and Dick mentions that there’s more games

Upon this revelation, Jonathan half demands half pleads to play the others and so they do

Sister Location did have some triggers, but Dick helped Jon get through them

Bruce came up from the Batcave to find Dick and Jonathan shouting about someone named ‘Afton’

When Bruce asked about it, he fully expected it to be either one of Dick’s friends or maybe Jonathan’s old coworkers, boy was he wrong

He’s glad the two are getting along (easier to get Jonathan to open up), but now he has to deal with two horror nerds

Yes, Jonathan has converted Dick into a horror junkie

Yes, Dick has converted Jonathan into a game theorist

(I kind of want to give them a YouTube channel but that might be stretching it a bit)

Eventually, Jonathan tells them his entire tragic backstory, including details they didn’t already know, like great granny Keeny’s abuse other than starvation

When Dick privately asks Bruce why he decided to do this in the first place, Bruce confesses that during the first fight between Scarecrow and Batman + Robin, he felt like he and Jonathan were far too similar for his own liking and that seeing someone so similar to him nearly kill drives him just a bit crazy, so he needed to prove to himself that even if he goes down the wrong path he could reform

Jonathan hears this

He’s really mad at first, but just decides he doesn’t have the energy for it (honestly, mood, but relatable) and lets it go

Then simultaneously realises that these two people are Batman and Robin

And smacks himself mentally because just look at their body sizes, their entire dynamic, of-fucking-course they’re Batman and Robin

He doesn’t confront them for a while

But when he does and they ask him how he knows, he says, “You’re just really loud.”

Bruce gets worried about Jon lashing out and Dick is upset because he considers Jon a friend (aww)

But Jonathan just brushes it off like it’s nothing and explains that he’s glad they stopped him early into his criminal career, otherwise he might’ve gone down a road he couldn’t come back from

And that he was glad he got to stay with them and be considered their friend

Bruce gives this tiny smile, Alfred pats Jon on the back and Dick straight-up tackles him into a bone-crushing hug

So Jonathan is now officially in the Batfamily

Dick convinces Bruce to give Jon a costume and teach him to fight

So Gotham gets a new vigilante named Crow

Though his targets always seem to be those who harm children or those who use their money for corrupt purposes

Ending on a happy note! I don’t know what this is, to be honest, but if you did make it to the end, I hope you liked it!

#Jonathan Crane #Scarecrow #The Scarecrow #well not anymore #he's Crow now #Bruce Wayne #Batman #Dick Grayson #Robin #Alfred Pennyworth #Batfamily #what if headcanons #what if #imagine #AU #dc #Crow AU #batfam Jon

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finallyaniguana · 4 years

Text

Watch The Eyes: a tour of revelation [12]

[11] masterpost ao3 [13]

Dick was looking at his watch at quarter past eight, standing outside of the classes hotel. The bus was due to leave at 8:30 am for a tour of WE staring at 9:15 am. The manor was very quiet that morning. Usually Damian was up and ready to go talking to Alfred in the kitchen but he must have missed him.

Tim was business as usual though. Wandering zombie like towards the coffee pot. They had tried to get him to stop his incredible caffeine intake a few times and everytime they realized just how inventive and sneaky he could be. Taking it directly out of his hand may lead to all the files being remotely deleted off your phone. Or just plain being punched in the neck (he was aiming for your face but he can't see without that caffeine). He was very clever at getting what he wanted. No wonder Bruce trusted him to act as CEO despite his age.

But Dick was the most personable out of all of Bruce's children. So here he was ready to lead this tour rather than an actual WE tour guide. It was important to Bruce that they be directly involved with the class they were sponsoring rather than just being a distant benefactor.

Not that Dick minded. He loved to spend time at home with his family and if that meant leading some teenagers around for a fee days, so be it.

He could see Caline in the lobby of the hotel, obviously waiting on the students to be finished with their complementary breakfast. They started to arrive in the lobby one after another some looking more awake than others. The Italian girl he remembered from yesterday was hanging tightly to the arm of a bespectacled girl with curly auburn hair. He saw that she looked a little worried. She suddenly turned to the one clinging to her arm. She said something he couldn't hear and the girl released her. The girl turned and ran to the elevator, going up. About ten minutes later, she came back with a dark haired girl, looking a tad bit disheveled, but ready to go.

Satisfied that she had everyone, Mlle. Bustier waved an arm and directed the class outside. They all followed, the afformentioned girl reclaimed her position clinging to her friend, all but shoving the other out of the way.

Dick shook his head at the sight. He remembered high school.

Caline smiled at the sight of their tour guide waiting outside for them.

"Okay, Max, Alix, Kim, Lila, Nino, Adrien, Sabrina, Mylene, Chloe, Juleka, Ivan, Nathaniel, Rose, Alya and... oh, what happened to Marinette?" she frowned.

A few of the students looked around at each other. Clearly they didn't see her. The blond boy looked like he was about to go back in to look for her when she made her appearance.

"Right here Mlle. Bustier! Sorry, I dropped my purse in the lobby," she looked apologetic.

The teacher gave a small chuckle before finally facing Richard with a smile.

"That's everyone!"

"Great! Now if we can all get on the bus, we'll head over for our tour of Wayne Enterprises," he said.

The students boarded, some more excited than others. Rose was bouncing in her seat. She and Juleka sat behind Lila and Alya. Lila was taking this time to fill the sweet girl's head with more lies about her supposed influential soulmate. With continued glances over at Richard, she started her story.

"I was texting my dear Damian all night, so I'm so sorry if I fall asleep in the seat Alya!" Lila said sweetly.

"That's okay! I can't blame you for wanting to talk to your soulmate," Alya assured.

"He invited me over tonight for dinner! I can't wait to see him after all this time," she stared dreamily out the window.

Marinette tried to hide her gag. Luckily only Alix noticed who in turn had to hide her smirk behind her fist. Kim, sitting next to Alix, noticed and gave her a sharp poke to the side, which of course started a poke war. Marinette rolled her eyes at her friend's competitive nature.

"We may just have to forgo our deal to wait until we graduate. Thank you all for being so supportive of me," Lila started to tear up, despite her dry eyes.

"I can't believe you're soulmates with Damian Wayne!" Rose exclaimed.

That got Dick's attention. How would she have figured out his identity so quickly? He gave a small glance back at the girl who spoke. She was quite short with blonde hair and blue eyes. He gathered that Damian's soulmate had blue eyes. But this girl wasn't the one claiming the bond and she seemed pretty attached to the tall girl she was sitting next to. So Dick looked to the seat in front of her to the girl with the glasses and the one that was hanging on her. Neither of them had blue eyes. He turned back around, disappointed and hoping he wouldn't have to confront the girl about her extravagant lie.

'Would it be petty to call out a child?' he thought. 'She'll be joining Damian's year tomorrow. If I don't say anything, he definitely will. Oo, maybe I should intervene before he does?'

Dick ultimately decided to monitor quietly and unless she said something that put a bad light on anyone in his family, he wouldn't say anything. He frowned to himself.

Finally the bus arrived at WE, pulling up to the side walk. He led everyone inside and checked in at the main desk, collecting a pass that would allow him to show the children different and more exclusive wings of the building. He brought up a bright smile he first directed at the teacher, who returned his smile, before turning and facing the teenagers in front of him. Their chatter died out slowly.

"I hope you all wore comfortable shoes for walking. At the end of the tour you will be given a pass for a complementary lunch. Alright! Let's get started."

Before Richard could even take the first step of the tour, his phone started to ring. He pulled it out of his pocket and frowned. Eyes lighting up with recognition, he swiped to answer.

"Baby Bird?"

Marinette choked and whipped her head around to face the tour guide. She couldn't hear what "Baby Bird" was saying but Richard looked absolutely bewildered before starting to smile.

"Sure, but why not ask Alfred?- How you getting there?- Okay, I'll give them a call and let B know."

He shook his head as he put his phone back in his pocket.

"Sorry everyone! My little brother woke up late this morning. I'm going to give his school a call real quick."

He took a few steps away to make his call while Marinette strained to hear what he was saying over her pounding heart. When that failed she tried to read his lips. A skill she did not have.

'So they are brothers. Wait, no. Come on, Marinette. What is the chance of it being that easy?'

Marinette slumped down next to Adrien who tapped her shoulder, concerned.

She tried to give him a reassuring smile but she could tell it fell short. He gave her a suspicious smile in return.

Richard soon returned from his call and beckoned for them to follow him. From the lobby and ground floor, he told them about the history of the company. They got to learn a bit about Bruce Wayne's parents and the branches of the company they were a big part of or that were dedicated in their names. It was all very interesting and normally Mari would be listening with rapt attention. But she was distracted, paying too much attention to the speaker himself than the words he was saying.

Eventually she had to stop denying the obvious. She didn't spend more than fifteen minutes in Nightwing's company. But he was unmistakable. The easy way he moved, the tone and timbre of his voice. This man fought crime at night. Their tour guide midnights as a vigilante. When she came to that conclusion, she spent the rest of the tour looking anywhere but his face.

'Richard. Richard what?'

It seemed her new goal of the day was to figure that out.

By the time they got to the cafeteria for lunch, Marinette had learned practically nothing about the Wayne building or the company. Her classmates were filing in past their guide who was passing off little slips of blue paper. She internally cringed. As she passed by and gingerly took her paper from his hands he said,

"Show these to the cashier after getting your food. Okay, everyone! I'll be nearby if anyone has follow up questions. Don't hesitate to ask."

Adrien grabbed her shoulder lightly. She jumped and looked at her friend.

"Come on, let's go get something to eat. I know you missed breakfast," he smiled.

Her face flushed at the memory. Her phone decided enough was enough and died halfway through the night. So no alarm and Marinette did not have the forethought to schedule a wake up call the the front desk. So she slept straight through Mlle. Bustier knocking on everyone's doors due to her late night. It wasn't until Alya finally arrived, banging on the door that she actually became aware of her surroundings. She had to rush to get ready, barely having time to brush her hair. She had to tie up her hair on the bus. It was good that she had laid out her outfit the night before or she would have been in an even worse time crunch.

They made their way through the line, following Nino's footsteps, who was following Alya's steps in turn. Once they had turned in their lunch tickets and sat down Marinette started to look around for their teacher. She was hoping Mlle Bustier could tell her a bit more about Richard without being obvious. She finally spotted her over by the register, where she had just finished walking through the line. Marinette stood.

"Mari?"

She looked down at Adrien's questioning eyes. Giving him a weak smile, she patted his shoulder.

"I'll be right back."

Mlle. Bustier chose to sit at the edge of the room so she could keep an eye on as many of her kids as possible. She saw Marinette coming and she lifted her face to greet the class president.

"Yes, Marinette? Do you need something?" she asked pleasantly.

"I just have a quick question?"

"Was that a question?" Caline asked.

Marinette backpedaled and shook her head.

"No, no... that wasn't it."

"Okay, then what is it?"

"I was just wondering..." she trailed off, only continuing when the teacher raised an eyebrow at her deflective tone. "if you knew Monsieur Richard's last name?"

Blinking in confusion, she stared at the girl standing before her. Eventually she shook her head.

"I met him at the same time you did. You'll have to ask him."

Marinette cursed mentally. Looks like if she wanted answers she'd have to be direct. Something she was not good at. (Something her soulmate was very good at.)

"Well. Thank you anyway." she looked back at the far table she left Adrien at.

He waved.

She did not wave back.

Instead she continued scanning the room for Richard. He was seated a few tables away from Lila's little group. That was where Alya and Nino ended up as well, but her eyes just skipped over them in favor of the suspected vigilante.

A wave of calm confidence and what felt almost like anger came over her and she marched toward him. Lila noticed her walk and followed her gaze to the Wayne employee who was sitting next to a younger man, a laptop open in front of him. Her eyes narrowed imperceptibly.

When Marinette finally passed by, she loudly began to spin a new lie, or a continuation of an older lie. When the shorter girl kept walking, paying no attention to the liar, her eyes narrowed further. The girls sitting around her pleaded for her to keep talking so she did, putting Dupain-Cheng on the back burner.

Dick looked up, startled, when one of the girls from the tour group planted her feet right next to him at his table. Tim barely glanced over from his precious coffee.

He looked at her stony expression, kind of nervous. He had no idea what he did wrong.

"I have a question," she said in English.

Her voice did not match her expression. It was soft and he got the impression she rarely had negative things to say. The French accent certainly helped her case.

"Yes, Miss...?"

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng," she supplied.

Tim finally decided to start paying attention.

"The class president?" he asked blearily.

"Oui- I mean, yes."

Dick called back her attention with a head bob.

"What is your question?" he asked.

Tim leaned in a bit to hear over the din of the cafeteria. Her face steeled and her took a deep breath.

"What is your last name?"

He looked a bit reluctant to say, more surprised than anything else, but she did not waver.

"Grayson," he said at last.

Her expression tinged with surprise before she nodded.

"The eldest," was all she said before she thanked him with a sweetness that came out of nowhere and walking away.

"What was that about?" Tim asked around a sip of his coffee.

Dick gave a small shrug before looking down at his food. So she knew his name. He only hoped this revelation did not cause any waves of students suddenly excited to talk to him. He wasn't that worried about it. He was used to attention because of the Wayne influence. But the girl did not gravitate toward the big group of students a few tables down. Instead she walked further down, sitting next to the blond boy who looked at her expectantly. She waved him off.

"Almost reminded you of someone right up until the end, wouldn't you say?"

"What?" Dick looked at his younger brother.

Tim rolled his eyes and knocked back the rest of his drink.

"By the way, Damian's soulmate must be a great influence on him already."

"What makes you say that?"

"He said please. Twice."

Tim stared down at his empty cup. A few beats of silence passed and he smiled like someone just let him in on an inside joke. He stood up quickly and Dick jolted with surprise.

"I have an idea," Tim said before grabbing his laptop and heading out of the room.

Well okay then.

taglist: (CLOSED)

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#maribat #daminette

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itzagothamcitysiren · 4 years

Text

Welcome to the Family

hey everybody, how are we all doing? I’m sorry that it’s been a few days since I’ve posted but with everything going on in the world I haven’t been feeling up to anything lately. Everything going on in this country right now is just making me sad, disappointed and angry but I’m not here to talk politics or whatever you want to call it anymore. My personal accounts I have spoken out but this isn’t what this account is for so I won’t keep going. I’ll end it on that note and just say that I hope we’re all doing okay, being safe, doing the right thing, looking out for one another and speaking up.

You’re Taking Up a Fraction of My Mind pt.4

It had been a while since Nightwing had taken to swinging throughout the rooftops of Gotham. There was a part of him that missed it, but there was the part of him that didn’t. There was just something about being back in his home town that just made feel slightly off of his game. He didn’t want to admit it but he was out of shape, or more so out of step.

Truthfully, he was in the best shape of his life but he didn’t take to the streets of Jump City every night like he did during his formative years in Gotham. Jump City was relatively safe compared to Gotham. Of course they had their fair share of dangers with the random super villain here and there who was trying some end of the world or some get rich quick scheme, and also you had the occasional off world or inter-dimensional mission which was always fun. But, for the most part he’d be in bed by now or watching a movie in the common room with his teammates.

“Having trouble keeping up?” Jason, Gotham’s new Robin, taunted, landing on the rooftop of the G.C.P.D. a few minutes before Nightwing had. He had noted how Nightwing was a few paces behind the new Dynamic Duo and couldn’t help but feel smug. “Maybe you should hang up the tights again.”

“Look kid-,” Nightwing growled, pointing a finger at him.

“Enough.” Batman cut them off, not giving them a chance to further start their bickering.

He gave them a sharp glare through his cowl, daring them to make him regret allowing them to accompany him tonight. He knew the pair didn’t hit it off right away when they first met three years ago when Dick officially hung up the Robin costume and joined the Titans full time as Nightwing. Dick hadn’t taken too kindly to being replaced so quickly and especially by some street kid who had the audacity to try and steal the tires of the batmobile; Dick was always known for being, as Alfred put it, a ‘tad bit dramatic’.

He shared a few choice words with Bruce upon hearing about Jason through Alfred. Bruce couldn’t even face Dick himself to tell him about it, Dick still scoffed about it. After all the years of servitude and comradery, it meant nothing to Bruce. Dick couldn’t help but feel bitter about it, seeing him being teamed up with someone else in a new Robin costume. Yes, he gave up the mantle of Robin, wanting to grow out of Batman’s shadow and make a name for himself. But regardless of if he gave it up or not Dick Grayson was Robin, not Jason Todd.

Without another word coming from the two boys, Batman let out a low grumbled hum. His demeanor changed back from slightly agitated dad to the cold bat that lurked around Gotham City as night. Satisfied with their compliance, he made his way over to where Jim Gordon stood, next to the Batsignal that had been lit moment ago while the batfamily had been patrolling over Gotham.

“I see you have a guest tonight,” Gordon nodded from his spot next to the spotlight, nodding towards Nightwing. He hadn’t seen the kid in a couple of months now and sort of missed him; his bright attitude was a good balance to the Dark Knight’s more stoic one.

Batman let out another ‘hmm’ as response, sounding almost like a tired father with a pair of fighting toddlers. He nodded towards the signal, “What do you have?”

“Mail,” Gordon said reaching into his coat pocket pulling out an envelope addressed to the G.C.P.D. but the name above the address was addressed to Batman. He handed off the envelope, having already opened it and knew what was inside. “It wasn’t sealed, I took the liberty of having a peek.”

Batman took the envelope from Gordon, pulling out the contents carefully. Inside he found five playing cards; two kings, two jokers and a 2 of spades. He inspected the cards closely, his mind already going off into full work mode to figure out their purpose. Nightwing stood to Batman’s right, eying the playing cards over his shoulder. He felt like a kid again, catching himself saying the first that came to mind, as if trying to impress the older man.

“Joker?” Nightwing offered, causing the Batman to look at him as the he still pondered to himself.

Even though Nightwing hadn’t been in Gotham for a while but he still remembered how the Joker and a few of Gotham’s citizen’s gave him the title of the Clown Prince of Crime. It was pretty safe to assume with the whole two Joker card thing that it would belong to the clown, Nightwing thought. And since there was no prince card in a deck of cards, a king would suffice. It was obvious that the Joker had sent the envelope.

“Joker’s locked up in Arkham.” Gordon said with a hint of malice, knowing that he deserved the chair but for whatever reason the justice system in Gotham wouldn’t let that day come.

“So?” Robin cut in, with a roll of his eyes. He let out a disgruntled laugh, crossing his arms against him chest, a look of disbelief overlapped with amusement appearing on his face. “That means jack in this city. What just happened with Zsasz?”

“Robin.” Batman warned, his voice stern and sharp.

He turned back to look at Nightwing after Robin gave him an apologetic look. He flipped the cards over, looking at the backside of them. The king’s had the same address written on them, same as the joker’s. Batman recognized the addresses of those belonging to two different banks. Looking at his former protégé, he thought about his idea. It was a possibility. Joker did tend to make his stays at Arkham short in the past years.

But simple bank robberies weren’t something he just did anymore. He’d always been unstable but the clown had seemed to be turning more volatile in his deeds in recent years. Bruce still shook when thinking about it, somewhat still in disbelief that the Joker could stoop so low. It took everything in him to not break his one rule; he’d never been that close in breaking it until that day. It’d been almost a year since then and it still haunted Bruce that he was unable to stop him. The Joker had blown up a middle school in the Narrows and it was all just for a punchline.

“I’m just saying.” Robin raised his hands up in surrender, knocking Bruce out of his train of thought. He let a hand fall, there other than pointing to the cards Bruce held. “I don’t think it’s him.”

“Oh yeah? And please share with the class who you think sent it then?” Nightwing quipped, rolling his own eyes now even though his masks whited out his eyes. He ignored the side glance his former mentor gave him, still looking at Robin, who apparently knew better than him.

“I’d love to share actually,” Jason smirked, mimicking Nightwing’s stance. He didn’t like this guy one bit and didn’t appreciate how he was being talked down too. He deserved to be Robin just as much as he had. He was just as good as he was. “I think this looks like someone who we know has a thing for pairs. Not only are there two of the same type of cards, one’s literally a two. And I don’t know if you guys know anything about poker but it’s also a two-pair hand. It’s pretty obvious,”

Dick widened his eyes, gapping to himself as Jason spoke, looking back at the cards. He saw Batman bring his hand to rest on his chin, cogs clicking and turning in his head. Nightwing bit his tongue as Batman gave Robin a ‘good work’ nod. It was pretty obvious and Nightwing hated it. He’d just been shown up by some kid. He wanted to smack the smug look right off Robin’s face as Batman told Gordon that he’d keep him updated.

That had been their cue to head out, as Batman then put the cards in one of his utility belt pouches and reached for his grappling hook. Gordon watched as the batfamily turned to leave, grappling off into the city. Batman had landed them a few buildings away already dealing out a game plan. They’d split into two teams in order to stake out both addresses, unsure which one Two-Face would strike first. Dent had been laying low for the last couple of years and it was a little off putting that he’d want his comeback advertised to the Dark Knight before he could really pull it off.

Dick had wished Halley was here for he started to tune Bruce out the moment he revealed that Nightwing and Robin would be paired up together. He wanted to protest, he wanted to insist that Robin belonged with Batman and Nightwing would handle himself for a night alone in Gotham. But he didn’t do any of that, instead just kept clenching his jaw tightly and grinding his teeth together as Batman turned his back to them and took off towards the direction of the bank he assigned himself too.

Once they were alone, Nightwing looked at Robin who also had looked displeased with this arrangement. With a grunt, Nightwing leaped off the building, heading to the next rooftop, wanting to get this night over with. When they eventually reached their location, they set up shop on the office building across the street from one of the Gotham National Bank’s branches in the Bowery. They staked out the area, looking for signs to Two-Face.

Jason took it personally as they sat in complete silence. Halley had told him how talkative Grayson was and how doing missions with him was annoying sometimes, as the man just talked the entire time. Even with the couple of times they had hung out, like during the few times he’d come to visit and take Halley out for burgers, always giving Jason a pity invite, he noted how Dick Grayson just didn’t know how to stop talking.

He huffed, leaning against an air conditioning unit atop the roof, pulling out his cell phone from its hiding place within his suit. He checked the time and huffed again, the boredom fully setting in now. He took his attention away from the bank again, now scrolling through his phone, debating which game to play. Deciding to play draw something, he clicked on the app. He lazily drew a lion and sent it to Halley, the only person he ever played with. He downloaded the app on her phone a while ago and occasionally the two would play during commercial breaks when they watched TV.

He looked up from his phone as he waited for her to reply, checking to see if Dick caught him on his phone yet. He would never pull his phone out when he was with Bruce; hell, if Bruce knew he even brought his phone out on patrols he’d most likely be benched again but he just couldn’t stand here in silence with dickweed. He looked back down at his phone and away from the man he had been scorning when it vibrated. It wasn’t a notification for the game, instead, it was a text message from Halley.

Aren’t you on patrol?

Yea, he replied back, smirking as he continued to type. Bored and paired up with Dick. Who by the way is really living up to his name.

He tapped his fingers against the back of his phone as he saw that she was typing. He stole another quick glance up, making sure he wasn’t caught yet. He wouldn’t put it past Dick to go ratting on him to Bruce if he did.

Is everything okay?

What’s he doing?

Where’s Bruce?

I can talk to Dick for you…

He rolled his eyes as she rapidly texted him back, knowing that she was probably in a frenzy on her bed wondering what happened between them. He quickly typed back, not wanting her to stress as he started to regret saying anything to her about it in the first place. It’s cool, not a big deal. He’s just butthurt that I outsmarted him on a case we’re working on now.

“B know you have that on you?” Jason should’ve known he’d be caught but something in him didn’t seem to care as Dick’s voice rang out. “You lose that thing or get captured and someone gets their hands on it, you’re screwed. That’s incredibly ire-,”

“Irresponsible, yeah yeah,” Jason cut him off, waving him off with his hand before going back to read Halley’s response. He clicked his phone off, sliding it into his hidden pocket after finishing reading over her text. It was nothing important, just telling him to stay off his phone. He rolled his eyes, pushing off the ac unit and walked towards the edge of the building where Dick stood.

“I get this part of the job can be boring, but you need to stay on your toes. You need to-,” Dick slacked his shoulders, over the kid’s attitude as he was cut off once again.

“Yeah, yeah,” Jason snorted. “This isn’t my first rodeo, I’ve been doing this long enough.”

“Clearly not.” Dick shot back, kicking the foot he had resting on the ledge to stand facing Jason face to face. He towered over the boy, having a good couple of inches on him. He peered down at him almost threateningly.

“You made a good guess at the station, but you’re still sloppy. B’s told me about how you rush into things without thinking. You’re brash and dangerous. You’re going to get yourself hurt one of these day or worse; get someone else hurt.” Dick said, narrowing his eyes as he continued to lay it out onto the younger boy.

Dick eyed the boy take in his words. He reacted how Dick expected, immaturely, by rolling his eyes and letting out an over exaggerated groan. Dick stood firm though, not knowing what either Halley or even Bruce saw in this kid. “You’re also disrespectful. If I talked to B the way I’ve heard you talk to him, I’d have my suit permanently taken away from me quicker than Flash can put his on. You still have a lot to learn kid.”

“You know,” Jason started, scoffing and trying to bury Dick’s words deep. He didn’t want to show that Dick’s word’s had an impact on him but the former sidekick basically just laid out all of his insecurities right in front of him.

He knew Bruce wasn’t always pleased with him and his performance, but he thought he was getting better; Bruce told him in training today he was getting better. Jason was still thrown off by the compliment and only slightly gushing over it, and he was sure as hell not going to let Nightwing bring him back down. Taking a step forward, trying to assert himself, Jason jabbed a finger into Dick’s chest continuing, “I didn’t know what you’re problem with me was until the police station and now.” Jason pulled his finger back, letting his hands fall to fists at his sides. “You’re just jealous.”

“You think I’m jealous?” Nightwing almost laughed, loosening his stance wanting to get comfortable as the boy nodded in confirmation.

“No, I don’t think, I know you are.” Jason chuckled, knowing he could lay everything out just as neatly as Dick did for him. “You’re gone for months at a time; sure you come peek your head in every now and then to say hi but then you leave again. I think you realize you’re not needed here anymore and it eats you up inside.” Jason said with venom. “Gotham doesn’t need Nightwing and Batman doesn’t either. Batman and Gotham have me, Robin, not you. Hell, even Halley doesn’t need you anymore because she’s got me. You’re not needed anymore.”

“You don’t know anything about me or her, or Bruce. You think you do, but you don’t.” Dick spat, feeling heat begin to rise in his cheeks. This kid didn’t know a goddamned thing.

“Nah,” he smiled, taunting him now, feeling a nerve being struck in the older man as he mention Halley. “That’s where you’re wrong. You dumped her off here and have done the bare minimum to keep in contact with her. I’ve been there for her since you’ve left and it shows who she likes more and you can see that and it’s driving you crazy.”

“Look kid,” Dick said, letting the anger get to him. He reached out grabbing Robin by the neckline of his suit, lifting him up off the ground as he pulled him closer, almost until their faces were inches apart.

He was about to really drive it into him when the sound of tires squealing from below dragged his attention away. Still holding onto Robin, Nightwing craned his neck to look behind him and down to the street below. A van parked outside of the bank, the back door opening as a handful of guys filed out. The last one was their guy: Two-face. He jumped out of the back of the van as another pulled up next to him. He flipped his coin, Nightwing unsure as to why but assumed it wasn’t good as Two-face signaled for his now close to twenty guys to head to the doors of the bank.

“Two-Face is at our location,” Nightwing let go of Robin, calling in Batman on his comms. He waited for Bruce to reply, preparing to grapple across to the bank.

“Copy.” Batman’s voice cut through his ear piece. “I also have some of his men here. I’ll take care of them and head your way. Get Two-Face.”

“Got it,” Nightwing replied, turning to face Robin to quickly try and make a plan of attack together but snarled when he saw the boy already swinging across to the next building. This kid was going to get himself killed one day.

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batboysandgirls · 4 years

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Tim Drake x Reader - Explosions And Other Saturday Morning Activities - PART 4 - FINALE!

PART ONE HERE, PART TWO HERE, and PART THREE HERE! Title: Explosions And Other Saturday Morning Activities - PART 3 Pairing: Tim Drake x Reader Summary: You’ve made it out of Black Mask’s lair alive, and it’s time for you to have dinner with the batclan, including Bruce Wayne himself (who you still can hardly believe is Batman). After the dinner, you know you’ll have to decide to make your move with Tim... or let him go. But you’re not one to give up easily! Notes: Canon-typical descriptions of violence and injuries. Words: 5.4k Taglist: @silentwhispofhope, @ashfromthesol, @oh-no-my-ravioli, @katelynkargol, @rhymeswithrason, @grincheveryday, @ivysfaves, @hanliz2211

You awoke in a very nice bed that was not your own. You should be terrified, but the well of terror in your heart was empty. Now, you were just tired.

You slowly sat up. You were wearing a silk white nightgown, which might be the softest thing you’ve ever worn. You were also laying a king sized bed, which might be the first time you’ve ever had a king sized bed to yourself. It was a large bedroom, sparsely decorated. There was an empty desk, a mostly empty bookshelf, and a dresser. The dresser was against the far wall, and you could see your clothes folded and washed on top of it. To your left, there was a set of glass doors leading to a balcony. They let in an enormous amount of light, making the whole room bright. It almost seemed like a dream, although you were pretty sure you were awake.

Looking around, nothing had clicked for you as to where you were, but, somehow, you felt pretty safe. At this point, if someone was going to kill you, they probably would have succeeded.

You swung your legs over the size of the bed, and there was your phone on a side table. You almost reached to check your messages, but you didn’t. Instead, you walked out to the balcony. The wind blew gently, and you took in the view of beautiful gardens. You didn’t seem Gotham, and you couldn’t even hear it… had to be pretty far out from the city.

Huh. Maybe this was a dream. Or, since you were all in white, was it… no. No, no, no.

(You probably weren’t dead! You’d know! Right? You’d know if this was the afterlife… right?)

You turned back to the inside, and there was Tim standing in the doorway. OH! Thank goodness. Tim was here… okay, so this must be Wayne Manor. Pretty house, pretty gardens, way outside of the city proper. Made some sense. Still not sure how you got here, but that wasn’t much of a concern.

(You weren’t dead! Hooray!)

“Tim,” you said, your voice coming out a little soft and a little hoarse.

“How are you feeling? I was afraid you’d wake up confused about where you were.” He walked over next to you, and you smiled.

“I first thought this all might be a dream. Then, I thought I might be dead and this is what happens after.”

Tim raised his eyebrows, alarm on his face, and you laughed.

“But I saw you and thought—that’s right, Tim lives in a mansion outside of Gotham. I’m alive.” Tim looked like he was about to apologize, and you shook your head. “No, no. That’s just how my brain works. I assume you guys took me back with you after you stopped Black Mask?”

“Yeah. They were going to drop you at your apartment unconscious. You passed out from exhaustion and stress apparently. But I said you were my girlfriend, and they let me and Bruce take you home with us.”

“Do you think the police officers had read the Buzzfeed article?”

Tim smiled. “Well, one officer giggled as I explained so I think she might have.”

“Our accidental celebrity relationship coming in handy, for once.”

“For once.”

The conversation lulled, and you found yourself gazing at Tim unabashedly. He was looking out over the back gardens, thoughtfully. He was so handsome, it was really unfair. All you wanted to do was to have him hold you, to run your hand through his hair, to tell him how incredible he is. But it wasn’t really the time. And though you were pretty sure Tim did like you a tad, you weren’t sure if he was thinking of anything serious. Fate had drawn you together once, and you’d been tangled together since then.

You were hoping the Black Mask incident would be the last of your brushes with Gotham’s heroes and villains, but your heart ached a bit at the odds that meant this would be the last of your brushes with one Tim Drake. Would Tim really be interested in a random intern who had a few freakish experiences that drew you closer to him? Would he have any free time to dedicate to a girlfriend totally divorced from his duties helping run Wayne Enterprises and from crime fighting? Probably not…

For now, though, you took in Tim standing before you. You let that be enough.

Tim finally turned to you.

“Well, I know Alfred’s made an amazing brunch for you. You should eat something. Then, you can just relax until we have dinner tonight.”

Dinner. Right. Dinner where Bruce Wayne, Batman, which is still weird, will tell you not to reveal the whole Batfamily’s secret identities and probably terrify you in the process. You should be worrying about that. Instead, you’re caught on something else.

“Alfred?”

“Alfred is the family butler, but he’s more than just that. He is family.”

You nodded and slowly realized how hungry you were. “Does he, um. Does he make good pancakes?”

Tim grinned from ear to ear. “The best.”

✹ ✹

“Maybe I was wrong earlier,” you said, mouth full of chocolate chip pancake, “Maybe I did actually die and this is some sort of heaven.”

“Wait, you thought you died?” asked Dick Grayson, eldest Wayne child and also Nightwing. Of all the superhero identity matching you’d done in your head, that was a no brainer. The butts were basically identical.

“A death joke! She’ll fit right in,” Jason said. Jason Todd, second Wayne child, also the Red Hood. Just from this pancake brunch, he quickly was becoming your favorite after Tim.

(You weren’t sure what he meant by the death joke, but you smiled anyway. That seemed to make him even more on your side.)

The youngest child, Damian, didn’t say anything to you, other than a few displeased huffs. Odds were he was Robin.

Cassandra, who was around Tim’s age to your understanding, didn’t say much either to you, but her eyes and smiles were endlessly kind. You weren’t sure of her identity… maybe she was just a normal person. That would be lovely.

(Tim told you that Duke, another brother a couple years younger than him, was out “on patrol,” which meant that he was probably the Signal. The lone daytime bat. Wild.)

Bruce Wayne did not appear at brunch, but that was probably for the best. You needed to work up the emotional strength to face Batman’s scrutiny tonight.

Alfred was working on that by fueling you with pancakes and calling you “Miss _____.” You called him “Mr. Pennyworth,” and he kind of seemed offended by the formality—but you didn’t give in.

Tim was definitely watching you the whole meal, amused and a little pleased. It was nice to know someone was paying attention to you, and nicer still to be able to tell they liked what they saw. You regaled the group with a humorous retelling of the Wayne Tower accident, as well as some weird encounters you’d had as an intern.

After brunch, you returned to the room you’d been in, getting dressed in your somewhat tattered clothes from the previous evening. You looked in the mirror, a little disappointed.

No, it wasn’t any insecurity about your body. You thought you looked pretty good, generally speaking. It was just that you looked more put together in the nightgown these people provided than in your own clothes. There were a lot of holes and tears in the fabrics from the glass exploding onto you. You hadn’t gone ham on your outfit with a pair of scissors for fun, but it kinda seemed that way.

Someone knocked at the door. You poked your head out and saw Cassandra standing there, holding a box.

“Hello,” you said, poking your head out.

“Hi,” she said, before handing it over to you. “Alfred made these. Adjusted my old things. Should fit.”

“Oh! Thank you! Currently, my clothes are a bit, uh, compromised.”

Cass just smiled with a nod and vanished down the hall. You put on the clothes and were delighted they fit perfectly. Did Alfred take your measurements when you were brought to Wayne Manor? That was a little weird, but very helpful. It was just a simple black sweater and a pair of jeans. No holes or rips or tears! And you looked good. Perfect. You wanted to look nice for this dinner, so you could come across as professional. Someone to be trusted with the batfamily’s secret identities.

(Not for Tim. No, certainly not to look good for Tim. Mhmmm. Nope.)

You spent the following few hours getting a tour of the Manor from Tim, who did compliment your outfit, which was not notable or anything, and just hanging out with him and his siblings playing Scrabble. The tour was cool, and Tim only blanched once when you asked where they kept all the bat stuff.

(“Um, Bruce didn’t kill me for having you find out my identity, but if I showed you the Batcave, he’s definitely freak.”

“So it’s a cave? Must be under the house then. That’s pretty sweet.”

“...”

“Is that aspect a secret?”

“Just don’t tell him you know that.”)

As you walked the Manor and played in a Scrabble tournament with the Wayne children, your eyes kept meeting Tim’s. You would both look away, but it was never long before you found the other’s gaze again. It made your heart weirdly full but also made you weirdly nervous.

(This dinner is the last thing directly tying you to Tim. It’s why you got lunch and the whole dating rumor started. After Bruce Wayne gets his say with you, Tim doesn’t have a reason to reach out to you. You could reach out to him, start something more, but does he want that? That look when his bright blue eyes find yours… you hope it’s not wishful thinking to imagine he wants that.)

Duke showed up midway through the Scrabble tournament, but he got to join in.

“It’s round-robin style,” Tim explained as he spelled out l-u-n-a-r off your r-a-t-i-o, “You can join in with whoever finishes next.”

“Only Dick and I made jokes about the fact Robin is literally in the name of the playstyle, if you’d like to immediately hop on that train while you wait,” you added.

Duke laughed at that, and you definitely liked this kid, too. Honestly, other than Damian being a little stuffy, this strange hodge-podge superhero family was quite wonderful.

Tim and Jason won the tournament, tied for most wins. Then Damian, then you, then Duke, then Dick, and then Cass.

“Words are hard,” Cass concluded as you all packed up the boards, and you couldn’t agree more.

“Dinner is about to be served,” Alfred said, stopping in the doorway. “If you all would please head to the dining room.”

You felt yourself tense up a bit at that announcement, and, suddenly, Tim was right next to you. He put a hand on your shoulder and gave it a little squeeze.

“It’s going to be fine. Our secret identities are much less secret than Bruce wants, but there’s not much he can do about you knowing.”

(You felt more tense about this dinner being over and having no excuses to see Tim than the actual meal itself. But that’d be a bit odd to tell him that, probably.)

✹ ✹

Dinner began uncomfortably normally. After you and the rest of the batkids sat down, Bruce Wayne entered and sat at the head of the table. Everyone went quiet as he took his seat, and then he smiled at you.

“Hello, _____. It’s wonderful to finally meet you. How are you?”

This was not the “attempt to reveal our identities and we’ll make your life hell” angle you were expecting.

“I’m, um,” you said, “I’m quite well. I slept great here.”

“I’m glad. It’s been a stressful week, hasn’t it?”

You found yourself laughing a bit too loud and too long at that. When you realized everyone was staring at you—

(Facial expressions. Dick: “oh god, Bruce.” Jason: “lmao.” Tim: “BRUCE THAT IS THE UNDERSTATEMENT OF THE YEAR.” Cass: “The shirt really does look lovely.” Duke: “Don’t smile, it’s not that funny, don’t do it, Duke.” Damian: “Ugh.”)

—you closed your mouth.

“Um, yes. Very stressful. I’m honestly looking forward to doing intern-y stuff again, without my life being threatened.”

“Would you mind reminding me what your internship is like?”

So you began to explain your Wayne Enterprises internship to Bruce Wayne, which was very strange. He was paying attention as you explained, asking some questions here and there. Alfred brought out the first course, which was tomato and cheese soup, and, by the time everyone had finished it, you had exhaustively detailed your intern duties. You snuck a glance over at Tim as Alfred took away your soup bowl and placed down the main entrée, fettuccine alfredo with chicken. You were afraid he’d look bored or worried, but he had an easy smile on his face, almost like you were a good dream he was having. That made your heart flutter a bit.

You fiddled with your pasta a moment before looking up to Bruce.

“Mr. Wayne, are we going to talk about the whole Batman thing, or…?”

You could see Tim’s easy smile fade a bit, and the table instantly became a bit more tense. Bruce’s gaze was a little heavier now, and you held up your hands.

“Look, I don’t want to cause any problems. I do not want to get involved in what is your little family activity. I won’t tell anyone your secret identities. I’m not even sure of Cass’s alter ego, honestly, but the rest of you—my lips are sealed.

“I guess I was thinking this dinner was going to be you grilling me on how important it is to keep all this secret and threatening to, like, pull my life apart if I try to tell someone.

“And I’m glad you haven’t done that! Don’t get me wrong. But, uh. I was a little puzzled,” you finished.

Bruce Wayne put down his utensils. He didn’t look angry, but he did look firm.

“_____, I want to make it very clear that, while I expect you to keep our vigilantism a secret, I invited you to dinner primarily as thanks for your help at Wayne Tower. My only plan to mention keeping our identities a secret was to take you aside before you left, after dinner, and remind you of that. I would not threaten you or your life in any way.”

“Oh. Right...” was all you managed before looking sheepishly at your fettuccine. You felt like the limp noodles before you.)

“I understand why you thought that. The safety of my family is more important to me than any secret identity. We’ve lost people before in this line of work—”

(You tried not to think of being eleven years old and hearing Robin had died on the news. You tried not to remember being, what, fourteen, fifteen, and seeing the report that the female Robin seemed to have died in the huge gang wars. Most clearly, you tried to not see the footage of the current Robin, his body bloodied, impaled a year or two ago. Someone draping a blanket over him, and the reporter choking up on camera. You tried not to think of those images. You tried, and tried, and failed.)

“—and the most important thing to me in all of this is that Tim is alive because of you. And I might have lost that fight with Black Mask save Nightwing and Robin coming to help. We owe you a debt, as does Gotham.”

For the second time in the past twenty four hours, you felt tears well up in your eyes. You sniffed and wiped them away, chuckling a little to yourself.

“Can I ask you something, Mr. Wayne?”

“Anything.”

You looked at him, his eyes cool like steel. Set, determined. “Does it ever go away?” you asked.

“Does what go away?” Bruce didn’t even look confused or unimpressed at your remark, just ready to answer once he understood.

(You squeezed your hands together. You could feel the scars from that day at Wayne Tower. The superficial burns were not fully healed, they probably wouldn’t be for months. And after you’d have these swaths of skin on your hands that were wrinkled, lighter or darker than the rest of your hands. And you were going to see those scars every day. For the rest of your life.)

You hoped he would understand. “The fear. The weight. Of all of it. Of everything.”

“No. You can’t stop being afraid, and you can’t ignore the trauma and the pain you’ve experienced,” Bruce said. “But you can, and you will, heal. You’ll learn to not let fear rule you. To accept your past and your pain, to know how to think about it and feel about it without being sucked in.”

(You wondered how much he was speaking to your experience, and how much he was speaking for himself.)

“It’s not easy, it’s not linear. But you’ll get there. With people who care about you supporting you. And if you ever need anything, and I truly mean it, anything, you let us know. Because we will help you too.”

You weren’t sure when you started crying as he spoke, but you were also smiling.

“Thank you, Mr. Wayne,” you said, voice only a little hampered by the tears.

Bruce Wayne smiled at you. Batman smiled at you. “Call me Bruce.”

✹ ✹

You were thirteen years old. You were walking in the Downtown Plaza after getting pizza for dinner with some friends. The entrance to the Downtown metro stop was maybe two hundred yards away when a storefront across the street exploded, as did a couple other buildings around the Plaza. Oh. Oh no. A bunch of gunmen ran out from it, grabbing people. There was screaming and dust and smoke and you tripped on something and there’s a man grabbing your arm—

Someone takes your other arm, grabbing your hand, pulling you away from the man as a silver stick (?) came down hard on the man’s shoulder. You leapt back, a vice grip on the person who pulled you away. When you turned to see who it was, you almost jumped again.

Robin—the newest Robin, he’d only been spotted a few times—was holding your hand in his left hand, and a bo staff in his right. The man who’d been after you was collapsed on the ground in front of you, and Robin, without letting go of your hand, tied the guy’s hands. He collapsed the staff, stuck it on his belt, pulled out some kind of little cord which snapped around the guy’s wrists automatically. Woah.

“Hold on, I’m getting you out of here.” He put an arm around your waist, and grabbed a grapple gun from his belt. You had no idea how he could see, but suddenly you were flying through the cloud of smoke. Then, you burst out of the smoke and you landed on the edge of this dust cloud.

“T-thank you,” you managed to say. Robin grinned at you. He looked like he was almost having fun. You guessed that made sense—superheroes liking superheroing!

“No problem. You aren’t hurt, are you?”

“No, I’m—” you gasped as you saw a silhouette in the smoke, towering over Robin’s figure. “LOOK OUT, ROBIN!”

Robin heeded your warning just in time, ducking down as a man swung a metal bat right where his head had been. His reach was so wide it passed a few inches in front of your nose. You leapt back as the man stepped out of the smoke, and you watched as Robin managed to strike him with the bo staff. However, this guy was huge, must be close to seven feet tall, way bigger than the guy who grabbed you earlier. He grimaced a bit as he got hit, but it was going to take a lot to knock the guy out. The tight frown on Robin’s face seemed to confirm that was the case.

Since the giant man was occupied with Robin, you looked around behind you to see if there was anything you might be able to grab to defend yourself. Or… well, that seemed incredibly dangerous.

(But this all was pretty dangerous already, wasn’t it? What’s a little more?)

There was a shattered piece of concrete a few feet away. A piece of rebar from inside it had broken off. You grabbed it, and there was the man’s back, turned towards you. Well, shoot your shot.

You swung the stick right into the man’s groin, and, WOW, that man screamed. The metal bat clattered to the ground. Robin did some super fast jabs, and the guy collapsed.

“Oh my god,” you whispered. “I can’t believe I just did that.”

“I’m very grateful you did,” Robin said, “But I should go rescue other people.”

“Yeah, no—I mean, no, or when—you—that’s probably—uh, yes,” you struggled to get out. You cleared your throat and tried again. “Um, yes. You should.”

(Not that it really mattered, but GOODNESS, could your brain work for this once? So you don’t sound like an inarticulate rebar-wielding madwoman? Particularly in front of a very cool superhero? PLEASE!)

Robin smiled at you throughout your efforts to agree with him, taking his grapple gun out again.

“Wait,” you said, taking his hand once more, “I just—thank you.”

He gave your hand a friendly squeeze. “Of course. Thank you.” Then he let go and grappled off, waving to you as he re-entered the cloud of dust and vanished from your sight.

You felt a little star struck after all that, but you turned away from the cloud and started to walk home. Life goes on.

✹ ✹

It had been a week since the dinner, and you hadn’t spoken to Tim. He dropped you home after you finished eating, and you desperately wanted to ask him if he would like to go out sometime or if he wanted to get lunch with you again. Instead, you said “Thank you” as the two of you exchanged very intense eye contact. You didn’t see Tim at work, either, which was to be expected… Different floors and all.

(It didn’t stop a part of you from being disappointed.)

You had tried for an hour to go to sleep and failed. You mind was too awake. It was a relatively nice evening out, so, at one in the morning, you wrapped a blanket around your shoulders and went up to the roof of the intern housing. The roof door was always open, and you let out an impressed breath as you took in the view.

Old Gotham was one of the prettiest areas in the whole city. Wayne Tower, the Clocktower, the city cathedral, the GCPD headquarters… all within your sight. You pulled the blanket a little tighter. There was the distant wail of sirens, music from a club a few blocks away, but it still seemed quiet somehow.

(You knew why you were up here. You knew. Silly, stupid, and deeply sad.)

You didn’t see anybody, didn’t hear anybody distinctly.

(There was a part of you that thought, maybe, he’d happen to be swinging past your building, that Red Robin would stop as soon as he saw you. He’d rush up to you and hug you tight. It would be nice.)

You pulled out your phone. Opened your messages. Scrolled for a second to find who you were looking for. It was worth a try, right?

You This is random but

You If you happen to be near Old Gotham tonight, I’m on my apartment’s rooftop

You I’d say I was stargazing or something but we live in a city, and I’m just staring into space and thinking

You Couldn’t sleep

You So if you want a break and some company, I’m around

You watched your screen for a second, eager to see if you could see the little “Tim-Drake Wayne is typing…” message to pop up. It didn’t, not even after two minutes of staring as if you could will it into existence. You put your phone away and just looked out again. In many ways, Gotham was an objectively terrible place to live. Like, you know, your workplace exploding and being kidnapped. You’d always dreamt of moving away after college. To another city. Maybe Metropolis, New York City, Boston—somewhere. But moments like these, alone on a Gotham rooftop with the city’s lights all around you, made you want to stay. It was home, after all.

“Can I join in the art of staring into space?” a voice said from behind you. You turned around and couldn’t help the huge grin that spread across your face at the sight of Tim.

“Oh, certainly!” you said. Tim sat down next to you, removing his mask. He looked tired, weary.

“Long night?” you asked.

“Yup. Two burglaries, a mugging, and a bomb defusal. All in an evening’s work,” Tim said, rubbing his eyes. “You texted at the right time. I needed a break.”

“Are most nights like this?”

“No. Well, I don’t always patrol. Sometimes I sit in the cave and work on a case, or I go out but just look for evidence. That’s usually a little less hectic. But when I’m out stopping crime normally, today is pretty par for the course.”

“When do you sleep?” you asked, and you raised your eyebrows as he started to chuckle.

“Sleep is… not a thing I do with much regularity. I try to get four hours in between patrol and waking up. Sometimes, if I’m really exhausted, I take a nap later in the day. It depends.”

“That’s deeply concerning,” you said in response, and Tim shrugged.

“Yeah, I know. It’s on my to do list. ‘Get a normal sleep schedule.’”

“‘Save Gotham (ongoing),’ ‘Get a normal sleep schedule,’ ‘Run a multi-billion dollar corporation…’ What don’t you do, Tim?” you said with a smile. “My to do list is currently ‘My laundry’ and ‘Intern stuff.’”

“There is one thing I meant to do that I haven’t,” Tim replied. You waited for about ten seconds, and he didn’t elaborate. Um. Weird.

“Uh, what would that be?” you prompted. Tim looked… nervous? He was looking at you, and something in his gaze made the whole situation feel a little less goofy and a little more intimate.

“‘Kiss _____,’” he finally said. “That was the last thing.”

You smiled, and then you leaned in and kissed him. At first, you just gave him a quick kiss, pulling back to see his slightly surprised but delighted face. Then, he pulled you closer to him and you kissed again. And again. And again. You ran your fingers through his hair, and his hands traveled down your back to your waist. You were acutely aware of just how strong this boy was when your hands danced across his chest. He was wearing this armored suit and still. Like, damn. You could feel that muscle. The boy was as kind as he was smart as he was ripped, and he was making out with you.

(This was even better than your fantasies. Real life is better. Who knew?)

You weren’t sure how long the two of you sat there, letting out what could only be described as an enormous amount of romantic tension, but eventually, you stopped making out. You just leaned your head on Tim’s shoulder as he wrapped your blanket around him as well.

If you looked closely, you could see the sixth floor of Wayne Tower across the street, where you’d stumbled upon an unconscious Red Robin about two weeks ago. That day had ended with you both covered in dirt and blood leaning against each other. With the stars above and blanket around you both, you had to say you preferred this current arrangement.

“Hey, Tim.”

“Hey, _____.”

“I really, really like you.”

“I really, really like you too.”

✹ ✹

bzfd.it/TimWayneGF-proof-twitter PROOF! Tim Wayne IS Going Out With That Intern, And She Pulls No Punches

Despite repeated denials of a relationship, Tim Drake-Wayne, adopted son of Bruce Wayne and the crush of many young Gothamites, is definitely going out with Wayne Enterprises intern, _____ ______. In an amusing tweet, ______ confirmed their relationship.

_______ @_______ me: should I say something about the #timistaken now that we’re actually going out tim: why me: because I’ve had so many things I wanted to tweet that involve you but couldn’t bc we weren’t public tim: sure I guess tim: wait what are you going to tweet 4:29 PM • 7/26/__ 5K Retweets 20.2K Likes

But that’s old news now. What’s fun to watch is her interactions with Drake-Wayne on Twitter. Let’s just say she’s enjoying her newfound public presence.

_______ @_______ guys @timdrakewayne keeps a skateboard in his office at wayne enterprises and has used it to get across the street to get lunch four times this week 5:31 PM • 7/29/__ 7.1K Retweets 30.2K Likes __________ @_______ Replying to @_______ the cafe we eat lunch at is 180 feet away from wayne tower. he uses. the skateboard. EVERY 👏 SINGLE 👏 TIME 👏 5:31 PM • 7/29/__ 896 Retweets 10.2K Likes

_______ @_______ me, frantically googling this morning: “should I be worried or endeared when my boyfriend texts me the title of a book he thinks I’ll like at 3:06 am” 8:02 PM • 8/3/__ 1.1K Retweets 10.6K Likes __________ @_______ Replying to @_______ Both? Both. Both is good. 8:02 AM • 8/3/__ 302 Retweets 3.3K Likes

Tim Drake-Wayne @timdrakewayne I feel like twitter was a kinder place for me before my girlfriend started exposing me on main 11:03 AM • 8/5/__ 5.1K Retweets 32.6K Likes __________ @_______ Replying to @timdrakewayne @ me next time 11:15 AM • 8/5/__ 6.1K Retweets 15.8K Likes __________ @_______ Replying to @timdrakewayne also 11:15 AM • 8/5/__ 321 Retweets 5.2K Likes __________ @_______ Replying to @timdrakewayne I love you 11:15 AM • 8/5/__ 7.5K Retweets 16.8K Likes

They’ve got a great dynamic. The couple was spotted seeing the new Star Wars movie together last weekend, which gives this last Tweet quote tweeting _____’s reply of “I love you” an extra special meaning...

Tim Drake-Wayne @timdrakewayne I know @_______

__________ @_______ I love you

11:21 AM • 8/5/__ 3.4K Retweets 11.6K Likes

You chuckled at the article Emily had sent you. Buzzfeed was actually amusing for once. You had no idea how they wrote that article so fast. It was noon! The last tweets were from a half hour ago. Had to hand it to them for immediacy. You slurped the last noodle of your lunch. You were eating your at your desk today, some leftover pasta from the spaghetti dinner you’d cooked up for yourself yesterday. No lunch with Tim today, you were both too busy. Still, the banter on Twitter had more than made up for it.

Putting away your tupperware in your bag, you checked your phone before finishing your lunch break. You tapped the home button to see your alerts and smiled softly.

(Oh, how much you loved this boy.)

MESSAGES 11:22 AM Tim Drake-Wayne: I don’t know if you’ve seen my tweet

MESSAGES 11:22 AM Tim Drake-Wayne: but that was a jest because in all seriousness

MESSAGES 11:23 AM Tim Drake-Wayne: I love you

(THAT’S IT! The end. This is so long. I can’t thank you all enough for sticking with this fic, for all the support and lovely messages...!! I hope you’ve enjoyed this. If in the future you’d like to see more of my fics, feel free to follow me or maybe if you’d like to be on a general tag list for Tim fics of mine, reply or dm and I can do that too??? I’m new to reader inserts on here but people do seem to do that. I have an idea for a fic about Tim and a reader who becomes a vigilante… one that involves time travel shenanigans… and some Jason fics too… ANYWAY!! I RAMBLE!! Worse than the reader in this fic’s own thoughts. Thank you so, SO much for reading! All my love to you guys ♡ )

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thebluenebula · 4 years

Text

So todays my birthday so I figured I'd write a birthday fic for Ashleigh. I really enjoyed writing this. This take place about three to six months after she arrived, so she is much more comfortable around the Batfam.

Masterlist

The Day After (Coming Soon)

Birthday

I sat at the breakfast table, reading todays paper. I never really read them. I just skimmed through them until some picture or crazy headline caught my eye. Bruce sat across from me.

"So." He loudly said.

I looked up from the paper. "So?"

"Sunday."

"What about Sunday?"

"It's your birthday."

"Oh." I was genuinely shocked. It didn't feel like a year had passed. I guess when a lot happens, you don't notice the time go by.

"I was just wondering what you wanted to do for it?"

"I don't really want to do anything." I explained.

"Really?"

"Yup."

"No party?"

"Yep."

"You're only eighteen once Ashleigh."

"And I'm quite content not to celebrate it."

"Alright." Bruce looked a little disappointed. "How about a gift, what kinda gift do you want?"

"Gift." I looked at Bruce with genuine shock. "Bruce you've literally given me everything I could have ever needed in the last six months."

He grinned. "Thats my job."

"I dont need anything else."

"I know you don't need anything, but so you WANT anything?"

"How about my own house?" I joked.

"If you want one." Bruce replied, deadly serious.

"No." I quickly responded. "I'm not going to get kicked out am I?"

"Of course not."

I sighed with relief. I may be about to be eighteen but I'm in no way prepared to be on my own.

"If I was going to kick out any of my kids, don't you think Dick and Jason would already be gone."

"What's this about me getting kicked out?" Jay asked as he walked in.

"Don't worry Jay, I'm not kicking you out. Yet." Bruce assured him. "Just making a point."

"Wait," Jay leaned against the table. "I understand why your using me as an example, but why would you want to kick out Dick?"

Bruce shivered. "I have heard him say things I never wanted to hear any of my kids say."

"God." Jay yelled and slammed his head into his hands. "I'd repressed that memory."

"What happened?" I cautiously asked.

"Well there was this one time Dick and Wally were fu-" Jay began to explain.

Bruce elbowed him. "She does not need to know. No one needs to know."

I looked at the two curiously. I wonder what Dick and Wally got up to.

That night before I lay into bed, I looked at the photograph on my locker. Siobhan, Sean, and I. We all looked so happy. It felt odd, this would be the first year I'd have a birthday without Sean, and the first in years without Siobhan. I grabbed the photo and lay into bed.

That Friday I was lying on my floor, texting Cassie. "Artemis seems crazy."

"She can be, thats why her and Jay get on so well. So it's your birthday Sunday. 🎉🎉🎉" She text me.

For a moment I wondered how she knew, then I remembered that it was on my Pixtagram account. "Yup."

"You doing anything for it?"

"Not a thing."

"No party?"

I wish. "Not much of a party person."

"Dick or Steph will through you one regardless."

"Bruce made Dick promise not to and I don't think Steph even knows."

"Wait you didnt tell them its your birthday?"

"Nope. Only Bruce, Alfred, and Kate knows and I'd rather keep it that way."

"Okay, mind if I come around tommorow? We can just hang out or something to not celebrate you're birthday."

I giggled. "That'd be awesome."

"How's 12 sound?"

I yawned. "That'd be awesome. If it's alright, I'm going to go to bed."

"Goodnight Ashleigh. I'll text you in the morning."

"Night."

I was asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. Cassie text me the next morning and we confirmed are meet up. A little after one Cassie arrived. We got to togetehr with a couple of the other kids and played video games and chatted for hours. Cassie had to leave in a bit so the two of us headed up to my room.

I sat down on my swivel chair and Cassie plopped onto the bed. "So any idea what Bruce is getting you for your birthday?"

"Nothing, I think."

"Nothing?"

"Well he asked me what I wanted but I couldn't think of anything else I could want"

"Maybe you could ask for a car and give it to me." She joked.

"You can fly though."

"It would be a tad questionable if I FLEW to school."

"Point taken."

"Speaking of gifts," Cassie pulled a wrapped box out of her bag. "Since I won't see you tomorrow."

"Cassie you didn't have to."

"I wanted to."

I took the box from her. "Thank you. Do I open it now?"

"I'd prefer if you did." Cassie said. "You can't imagine the amount of thought you have to put into getting a gift for the child of a billionaire."

"I'm not picky." I explained, then pulled off the wrapping paper. A photo frame. A blue frame surrounded by little clouds and bats. "Cassie, its adorable."

She smiled. "The clouds were already there but i stuck the bats on cause... you know."

"Yeah, I know." I smiled. "I love it."

"Well I seen that you had that photo by your bedside and thought you might use this frame for another. Maybe you could put like a picture of everyone in in it or something.

"I don't have a picture of everyone in the house together. That'd be nice."

"That's it!" She exclaimed.

I jumped. "That's what?"

"Your birthday gift. Ask Bruce for a picture of you all together."

"I'd love that but I'd have to blow on a hell of a lot of candles for that wish to come through."

Cassie laugh was interupted by a ding from her phone. She checked the phone. "Diana's outside, I've got to go."

"I'll walk you out."

We headed down to the entrance. Cassie opened the door and prepared to leave. "I guess I'll see you again Ashleigh." She said as she stepped out the door.

"Cassie."

She stopped and turned. "Yes?"

"If you aren't busy tommorow... maybe you like to come around."

She smiled. "I'd love to."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I'll remember to bring those extra candles for the wish."

I laughed. "I'll need them."

"I won't forget." She promised. "I'll see you tommorow then."

"One other thing, when is your birthday?"

"Why?"

"So I can remember to get you that car."

She giggled and walked down the steps. I wonder if Bruce would actually let me buy her a car.

I got up early the next day and to my delight. No big deal seemed to be made of my birthday. Dick, Bruce, and Alfred wished me a Happy Birthday but that was it. Everyone else seemed clueless to it.

Around eleven Cassie arrived and her, Carrie, Harper, and I ended up in the den playing video games again.

About one Bruce dragged me out of the den. "What's up?" I asked him.

"Someones here to see you."

"Who?" I asked as we stepped out into the hall.

"Hey Ashleigh." Kate stood just inside the door. Arms open.

"Kate!" I hugged her. "I didn't know you were coming today."

"Thought I'd surprise you, considering it's your birthday." She ruffled my hair. "Happy Birthday, by the way."

"Thank you." I smiled. "How'd you know?"

"I always know."

"Bruce told you?"

She nodded. "Bruce told me."

"I felt it was necessary." Bruce added.

Kate held a box. "A little something."

"Thanks but you didn't have to."

"I know, Bruce said that. Which is why I distinctively ignored it."

Bruce scoffed. "I shouldn't be surprised."

Kate looked to Bruce then back to me. "I'll hold on to it for a little while."

"Sure." I looked to Bruce skeptically.

"Follow me." He said.

I followed Kate and Bruce towards the Dining room. "Where are we going?"

"I just want to say, that this was primarily Dicks idea." Bruce said.

Oh no. I already knew what this is. I put on a smile as we walked through the doors into the dining room. It was decorated to the nines with birthday banners and other colorful decorations. Sometimes I hate Dicks insistent to go over the top with everything.

"Happy Birthday!" Everyone yelled as I entered. I smiled at the large gathering of people. To say I was uncomfortable was an understatement. But just for a second. Before, when I had parties, it fwlt like a lot of the smiling faces were just that, smiling face, no genuine emotion behind them but not this time. This time the smiles held happiness, love. I could feel it

All the nervousness I should feel, melted away. I don't know of it was Kate's hand on my shoulder or the smiles of my family and Cassie.

I was quickly tugged to the table by Steph. In front of me sat a large chocolate cake. On it, there had to be about fifty candles. "I told you I wouldn't forget." Cassie smiled.

"Come on!" Dick shouted excitedly.

"Can't we just skip that part?" Jay moaned.

Dick ignored Jay's remark and burst into song. "Happy birthday to you!"

Dick was quickly joined by the others, even Jay mumblwd along. After the song was over, I blew out my candles. Downside of so many candles, took quite a few blows.

"So what'd you wish for?" Steph asked.

"She can't tell you, that ruins the wish." Dick said.

"I didn't wish for anything." I said. "I have everything I could ever need."

Damien scoffed. "Corny. You sound like Grayson."

Cassie nudged me. "Do it."

"Fine." I sighed. "I did wish for something."

"Anything." Bruce said.

"I wish for... a photo. Of all of us. Together."

"That's all?"

"That's all."

"That's doable." Bruce turned to the kids. Jay and Damien in particular. "Isn't it."

Jay sighed. "Just this once."

Damien scoffed. ""Yes, as Todd said."

"I shall get the camera." Alfred stated.

"No need I have one here." Steph said, handing a camera to Alfred. "I have been capturing every moment of this."

"At this point, I'm surprised you don't take pictures of us sleeping." Tim remarked.

"Maybe I do."

"I'm double checking the locks in my door tonight." Duke commented.

"I'll always find another way in."

"You are the creepiest blonde I've ever met." Jay said. "And thats not a low bar."

"But you love me for it."

Jay sighed. I turned to Alfred. "You're not going to be in the photo?" I asked.

"Someone must take the photo."

"I can take it Alfie." Cassie said.

"I will allow you to take this photo, Miss Sandsmark, on one condition."

"What's that?"

"Never refer to me as Alfie ever again."

"Fiiine." Cassie snagged the camera. "Now go join them."

"Okay," Bruce said. "Tallest to the back."

Dick, Kate, Bruce, Alfred, and Jay stood at the back in that order. Damien, Babs, me, Harper, Carrie, Duke, Steph, and Cass stood in front.

Dick picked up Damien. "Let me go Grayson!"

"Chill out." Dick said as he placed Damien on his shoulders. "Don't want you cut out of the photo.

"This will suffice." Damien huffed, pretending to be upset.

Steph turned to Cass. "Pleaaase."

"Sure." Cass lifted Steph onto her shoulder.

Bruce smiled at his children and place an arm around Alfred. I felt Kate place her hand on my shoulder.

"Say cheese." Cassie said.

"Cheeese!" We all shouted as Cassie snapped the picture.

We all walked over to her. "How's it look?"

She through an arm around my neck. "Smile."

I looked at the camera in surprise as Cassie snapped a picture. "What was that about?" I asked as Cassie let go of me.

She shrugged. "You needed a photo of us."

She handed me the camera. I looked at the photo of us. Cassie looked perfect but I had a look of absolutely confusion plastered on my face. I smiled and looked at the family picture. Everyone looked perfect in it. Even Damien and Jay were smiling. The camera was quickly passed around everyone as they looked at the photo.

Afterwards we cut the cake. I could tell by the way that Cass and Steph watched me as I took the first slice, that they had baked it. "Best cake ever." I said after I took a bite. The two girls had huge grins plastered across their faces. The cake was quickly devoured by everyone.

A pile of gifts sat on the table from each of the Batfamily. I figured I'd open them later and we went to play party games. For a moment I thought they be boring but the look on Tim's face when the donkey tail ended up pinned to his back, courtesy of Steph, proved me wrong.

Eventually we all lay up and watched some movies. By eleven everyone was clearly knackered. I could barely even keep my eyes open. Carrie was sound asleep against Bruce and most of the others weren't far behind. I was almost asleep when I felt a small weight on my shoulder.

Cassie looked half asleep as she leaned against me. Maybe she was asleep, just with her eyes open. I couldn't tell.

"Is she asleep?" I heard a voice ask from behind me.

I looked over my shoudler. Diana stood in the open doorway. "Diana." Bruce slid out gently from under Carrie and stood up. "I didn't hear you come in."

"I knocked. I assure you." She said. "No one answered, so I let myself in."

"Sorry, Miss Prince, I was preoccupied." Alfred stated.

I hadn't even noticed Alfred in the armchair in the corner. Jay was curled up beside him and appeared to be sound asleep.

"No worries Alfred."

"You've come to pick up Carrie. I assume." Bruce said.

"Yes. I'd leave her here but I promised her mother I'd bring her home tonight."

"Of course."

I shook Cassie. "Wake up."

She looked up at me groggily. "Huh?"

"Diana."

She sat up straight and looked to Diana. "Oh hey."

"Time to go."

Cassie stood up and stretched. "Sure, I'll juat grab my bag, i think it's in the kitchen." She turned back to me. "See yah Ash, and Happy Birthday."

I smiled. "See yah."

Cassie and Diana left and I looked back at the TV. I didn't recognise the movie that was on. I didn't even know who picked it. Slowly I drifted off to sleep on the couch.

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batmanmoviee-blog · 4 years

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Movie review: ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ a worthy end to Batman series

The closing chapter certainly changes up the pace after the first two films delivered a strong focus on organize crime. Gone are the Falcone and Maroni crime families. The terrorizing Bane (Tom Hardy) steps into replace them eight years after Harvey Dent’s death. Thanks to the Dent Act, many criminals are behind bars. Oh, does he ever! Bane has his eyes on destroying Gotham in a way that nobody could probably imagine. He wants to destroy the city not only from terror but from the inside out.

This isn’t to say that there’s not fallout remaining from The Dark Knight. Batman remains on the run. Bruce Wayne hasn’t been seen in a few years. Wayne Enterprises certainly doesn’t boast the profits the company used to bring in. While crime isn’t what it used to be, this doesn’t stop others from popping up every now and then. Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway) uses the Dent Day party at Wayne Manor to steal Martha Wayne’s pearls. Granted there’s an ulterior motive at play–Selina only does this to give Bruce Wayne’s prints to corporate rival John Daggett (Ben Mendelsohn). Meanwhile, Bane and company have set up shop in the city’s sewer system.

the dark knight rises full movie

In what is the longest film in the trilogy (and probably just a tad bit too long), there is a lot happening. Alfred Pennyworth (Michael Caine) resigns as the Wayne family’s longtime butler. Bruce Wayne turns over his company to a new CEO, Miranda Tate (Marion Cotillard). A rookie cop, John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is one of Gotham’s honest cops and also assists commissioner James Gordon (Gary Oldman) in trying to save the city. Everything comes to a climax in the film’s final hour. Bruce Wayne/Batman, Selina Kyle/Catwoman, and Commissioner Gordon team up to save the day. It doesn’t come easy but whatever it takes, right?

Let’s talk about the final few minutes of film. Everything certainly comes together with concluding stories. I like the way that it’s all spliced together and weaving in the various characters. We also get some hope when one assumes the worst had happened. I wouldn’t expect differently. Christian Bale also leaves his mark as Batman for an entire generation of movie goers. Looking back at the last 30 years of live-action Batman films, it’s hard to find someone that can top him. Listen, everyone manages to bring their own thing to the role but when you look at Bale, you really feel like you’re looking at Batman. Maybe its because of how he prepares but something about Bale’s performance elevates the material in a different way.

Politically speaking, Bane certainly represents a movement. His character is one who manages to lead Gotham’s residents to go against the government and the police. All the while, Bruce Wayne is sent into a prison and Commissioner Gordon is forced into keeping a low profile. In their absence, Bane terrorizes the city while Jonathan Crane (Cillian Murphy) is the jury and executioner. There’s a lot more that can be said here but I’m not about to dive into it.

Aesthetically, the solid work keeps coming in terms of design, cinematography, editing, and score. While James Newton Howard doesn’t return, Hans Zimmer keeps the spirit alive. Where other composers might find a way to [ay homage to Danny Elfman’s iconic Batman score, Zimmer doesn’t. He finds a way to make it his own. Perhaps the most disappointing part of the film is taking Chicago out of the equation and moving the bulk of Gotham to Pittsburgh. It may be a minor thing for some but as a viewer, we can easily tell the difference in the skyline and the city’s overall design. Christopher Nolan’s trilogy is one of the rare trilogies that manages to get it right. Such trilogies usually manage to come with a misfire along the way. This isn’t the case with this one as every film hits the right mark. The Dark Knight Rises caps off the trilogy with a high but bittersweet note.

DIRECTOR: Christopher Nolan SCREENWRITERS: Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan CAST: Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Morgan Freeman

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inappropriatefangirlneeds · 5 years

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Gotham s5ep1 “Year Zero” Personal Review

““It will come” “A thousand rounds of freshly minted nine millimeter stock” Warning spoilers below

Hello there Gotham. The scenery with Edward arming himself and the disturbed vinyl sound makes me remember everything why I love this show. Oh, Oswald all dolled up and with a knife, I love it even more!

“It's two minutes past pumpkin time, sweetheart.” I was worried about BARBARA KEAN. The last season ended as if they would make her some horrible “someone got what feminism is about really wrong” character but there she is protecting women, looking stunning and being god damn reasonable! She´s doing good! She´s doing it on her own terms. Granted the men buying time thing seems a tad bit silly but could be quite entertaining, also pragmatism rules! “Honey, no one is asking you to forget what happened, but how do we protect the women who come in here every day looking for safety? We need this.” It was heart breaking and inspiring to hear her tell Tabitha “I need you too” This is how it should be, this is how you should do it. Also this just erased all my memory to all the wonky Barba and Ra´s al Ghul stuff. Please just don´t let her be all cray cray mad from now on. I really root for Oswalds ““Can we move past this? Say the whole Tabitha-Butch chapter is over?” approach. I could have done without all the BUTCH & TABITHA GALAVAN stuff. It just made barely any sense for Tabitha. It lessened the unexpected joy over finding out Tabs actually cared about Barbara. And while I always found it odd that OSWALD COBBLEPOT would neglect his revenge it feels stale at that point. And for me it gets even more cheapened if they have it circle on with Barbara trying to off Oswald. Things should come to an end or it makes something grave look like some soap opera relationship drama know. [Also why am I so suspicious about Tabs “don´t” line maybe being not only pure love and reason but a hint that she will somehow be back. Like oddly I don´t feel they would bring her back, but .. still suspicious!] “Gee. For a second there, I was worried.” Gee that was a good line. But I´m not really feeling it that SELINA KYLE would put the blame on Bruce like that. I get the pain, I get where she is and I get that there has to be some strain in between them because of this but I also feel like Selina would know, recognize and acknowledge that it is just Jeremiah who is to blame and no one else. Her saying something like that in that moment and state that she is in, perfectly reasonable but I so hope they won´t go further down that route once she´s healed (just have to assume that’s gonna happen) Sure it also seems to go hand in hand with her NO1. rule, that she just should have stuck to it and her going astray lead to her state and that Bruce is ultimately to blame which would send her on an even more solitary path than the one she has been on before, full of resentment for others BUT she´s always broken that rule, she´s always taken risk for others and not always has some profit from it, still she must have recognized to worth of that, I hope the writers won´t ignore that, like just to drive Bruce and Selina apart or something. The two of them had plenty of conflict, there is some things that Bruce actually did that Selina blames and resent him for, they do not need this as source of conflict. Also they already had her in a hospital and hopeless situation. Enough! But damn, those first few scenes. Camren Bicondova is such an amazing actress. This just broke my heart before I even got to know what situation she is in. Also damnit, I didn´t need the feelz of this plot line, I really didn´t please just let Selina be ok again soon! ALFRED PENNYWORTH seems to be out of his depth with everything, but hell who wouldn´t be. It seems they´ll keep pushing Bruce to be the one to call the tune, especially since Jim signing him in. That surgeon should just kiss Alfred, they should just let off some steam, clear the head, get rid of some tension and have Alfred build up something of his usual shine. Like I know it´s important for Bruce that someone watches Selina while he tries to fight for the medicine in the basement, and it´s great that he trusts Alfred with this but idk I feel like there´s still plenty of punches for him to throw in the right faces. “It's made him unassailable.” Can we talk about the shade in that line: “I mean, we have Penguin in City Hall, for God's sakes. He raided the armory and stockpiled weapons, then repurposed a factory to manufacture ammunition.” Jim´s voice was awesome when he delivered that. Like can you believe it, off all malady, we got penguin in the city hall, what a disgrace, I can´t believe it. But I´m glad OSWALD COBBLEPOT was clever to get things going well for him! Love that. He looks great too. But why the hell did he dress everyone around him so bland and boring??!!! Where is the previous style. Bring it back! Why is everyone looking so unhappy. >>> Oh no .. was this fashion foreshadowing. Apparently, Oswald dines well while letting everyone else starves. I feel Mr. Penn´s accusatory, disappointed and annoyed gaze. Also what is with all that politician like rhetoric? It´s bland, it´s boring. And it´s at odd times. Oswald has always been great with talk but now there´s something else happening and I don´t like it. I mean it´s great that he´s back on track with the self preservation thing , it suits him and it´s nice but he´s shown great concern for the people of Gotham and now he wouldn´t care at all that people starve in his workshop?! #notmypenguin I don´t buy it, and just because SELINA KYLE alone didn’t devastate me and I´m in that kind of mood I´m gonna read it into Oswald as well. After all I do think it makes more sense if I see Oswald being not quite in a dissimilar place than Selina is, or rather he is where I do think Selina could be if they give her back her agility (and hopefully a will to live) and just let her off without mental health treatment. Resentful, only being able to acknowledge the bad that has been done to them, desperately trying to keep themselves safe and especially keep themselves safe from others. I think it´s even telling that Selina can´t walk and they show Oswald getting a device for his leg just to be shot in it later. Oswald seems genuinely relieved and happy, the “feels good” carries joy. The device probably lessened the pain he has been in and moreover it grants him more mobility and agility, which in the current environment is more important than ever. However that cheery mood just lasts a tiny moment, it´s promptly followed by: put a knife on it . It´s pure survival. There´s some happy laughter about the new improvement but promptly Mr. Penn enters with more bad news and even worse something that basically challenges him and his leadership. Oswald just has to dismiss it. I feel like him talking so carelessly about the workers is not actually the lack of care but him being in a state where he just can´t acknowledge it. Something that he previously might have seen as something that needs to be tackled and resolved is now just a threat > Dismiss it! Same with the food. It´s not perfect, it´s not up to standard, it´s not what it should be > Overcooked, just get rid of it altogether. Not acceptable. Previous Oswald would have acknowledged a problem but would also have seen the other side and tried to utilize both but now he just can´t. Moreover his appearance is more on point than ever, meticulous even, and we get a scene with a makeup brush which certainly highlights this. > Everything has to be perfect, in place and under his control, he can´t tolerate anything else. He just can´t provide a target, and even if it´s smeared eyeliner. I think he´s strained, he´s scared, he´s terrified, he´s hurt. And it took a toll on him. It also explains the constant politician lingo, he just sees everything as a threat and he has to fire and try to disarm with the politician protocol. He can´t get to the core of a situation anymore it´s just politics of survival. Maybe even more in his head than it actually is. [Okay to be fair maybe I´m not taking into account the full situation, after all it is more than reasonable to fear for his life in his situation, even Tabitha aside, but it´s not like he hasn´t navigated through that before] [Also, I might just read nonsense into this because I´m sad and because I just don´t want Oswald to be a cookie cutter meaaaniie]

* Also how is everyone else just so great at acting. I´m shook. I thought, as usual with the time jump I´m just gonna be annoyed and really wondering how everyone got to the place where they are and why they suddenly liked someone or disliked them (*cough* Oswald n Babs what happened) but I´m just super emotional about how they all talk to each other. The scene with JIM GORDON & HARVEY BULLOCK & LUCIUS FOX discussing their situation was just so brilliant. (“And the truth?” “We're on our own.” “The truth is we have no idea what might happen. And our job is to keep ourselves and everyone else alive.” > so sell them hope) Respectful, open, aware of the situation, direct no sugar coating but mutual understanding. Same with the JIM & BRUCE SCENES. Feels like they really want to build them up to “Equals” pretty quickly. Even the scene with JIM & SCARECROW was brilliant. “I know what you're thinking, Captain. I have so few bullets. Do I spend one on him? Is it worth it? “I already know it's not.” But damnit the boy is worth everything. Although I find it really hard to see scarecrow as Jonathan Crane or see any connection between those, I guess it´s more convenient to just let that go and enjoy Scarecrow like he is. It´s great to have so many references of characters knowing what shit all the others are in as well. Tabitha/Barbara quickly call that Oswald is short on supply. It gives me an odd “we´re all in this together” vibe despite all of them still fighting each other. But as it seems they´re indeed going to team up. Another example of this was: “Sorry. Mouths to feed. And you know all about that, don't you?” I chuckled when OSWALD COBBLEPOT pulled that one on JIM GORDON. Despite having more guns, Oswald still went for the verbal manipulation, try to make Jim see him as basically doing the same just on another side, with other methods. Also can we talk about they paralleled them as well with the matter of TRUTH! “Truth is, I was never gonna make that deal. I need all those supplies.” “But if it was me, wouldn't I just admit it? I mean, it's not like I'm going to be arrested.” Oswald really didn´t have a reason to say that he didn´t shot the chopper down except for it being the truth. Jim really didn´t need to tell Oswald that his deal was just a ruse and never genuine, except for it being the truth. No matter the situation, no matter the circumstances those two do share some values! Apart from GOBBLEPOT subtext still going strong we´ve reached another HARVEY BULLOCK & JIM GORDON milestone. It´s their beginning 2.0. No matter what they´ve been trough, no matter how their relationship changed they are basically back to Season 1. In season one Jim held up his badge and announced everything has to be done the right way. Then Harvey Bullock scolded the boy scout and lectured him on Gotham´s ways. The right way doesn´t work in Gotham. Not we have Jim do the same, and Harvey sticking to his old role. “Three months ago, I would've lost my badge for that.” .. “You want rules for this game? I'll tell you. I'll make it simple, okay? You win or you die. Next time, shoot to kill.” * “Fine. Whatever.” Oh mood. * “Say it walking.” Oh Harvey, that´s a great one. * “I haven't been happy in ten years.” Oh shit what a mood again. * “Everything all right?” “No, but we're alive, so that's something.” Great line, and I kinda wish it was a mood. * Is the pilot okay? I´m worried. * “You´ve earned a place here” and then Bruce doing that tiny tiny tiiny nod … * Also Jim Gordon not regretting staying in Gotham “Hell no” holding up hope like that, although he might not even have it himself is wonderful. He really radiates the vibe that he got this as much as someone can in that situation. * Things I (and probably everyone else) just knew would happen 1. Tabitha: “He's gonna regret giving me this.” > Penn: Hey just letting you know quality suffered Oswald: Bullshit *fires shot* bullet doesn´t go the kind of boom it should > Another bullet does the same making the talk about regret echo in a mean but expected twist. 2. Gotham: A chopper will bring us the much needed supplies it´s gonna be great, it´s just gonna work once but it will work Chopper: Get shot down, what a surprise 3. Dumpster in an alley: Is there Audience: Ah Edward´s new bed *waits* Yes there he is. EDWARD NYGMA set up in a game against himself could develop really nice. And they had some great visuals in the scenes with him!

#gotham #gotham meta #oswald cobblepot #jim gordon #gotham s5ep1 Year Zero #boysout #mine Gotham full episode reviews

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ninallthatjazz · 6 years

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Review - Tanz der Vampire Wien, 26.05.2018

And here we are again – I returned from my short weekend trip to Vienna, where I finally had the pleasure to see Tanz at the Ronacher.

Since it’s been only a few days since I saw the German production, I thought I’d write another little review, maybe talk about some differences I have noticed between the shows.

Overall impression and theatre:

First big difference is of course the size and type of building.

While the musical dome in Köln is a huge hall, the Ronacher is a cute little theatre with beautiful balconies. I’m not sure if that was the reason, but the next thing I noticed was that the sound was much better here than in Köln. It was not as loud and it was well balanced with the vocals, so you could hear every word they sang perfectly.

I also quite liked the fact that the theatre was decorated on the outside with huge banners and the almost famous huge fangs, as well as the tiny bats on the ceiling of the foyer.

What really impressed me from the get-go was, apart from the music, the stunning visuals during the Overture. The whole animated part of the show was much more detailed and instead of playing the same clip of the castle back and forth, there was a pretty landscape and a cool 3-dimensional effect.

The only thing I could criticise is the microphone malfunction of Drew’s mic during Tanzsaal – seems gluing a maxi pad under his wig is not enough to stop his sweat from defeating the technicians XD

But since that’s no one’s fault (except global warming), it’s not something I blame on the production team.

Another huge plus is the fact that they had English subtitles playing for non-german speaking audience members!

The ensemble was just as incredible as the one in Köln was, their performances were energetic and you could tell they were really happy acting, singing and dancing their way through Transylvania.

I paid a bit more attention to them than to the ensemble in Köln because I knew some of them from Instagram, and it was fun to recognize some familiar faces. Filippo Strocchi and Abla Alaoui really stood out for me, and the former singing the nightmare solo was really incredible!

I also quite enjoyed the slightly altered ending, the reappearance of the Graf and the modern city background tied up some lose ends and make the finale more powerful and polished.

The costumes:

As predicted in the last Tanz review, I definitely prefer the Vienna costumes to the German ones. The intricate details on them, the sparkly stones on the Krolock cape and Sarah’s dress, but most of all the authenticity. Especially with the Ewigkeit costumes, they looked like real, century old dresses that people ascending from their graves might wear. There is one outfit I prefer in the German production though, and that is Herbert’s bathroom outfit. I love the big shirt with the huge sleeves that are perfect for dramatic gestures!

The Vienna outfit is still gorgeous of course, but it looks more like a modern-day silk pyjama.

The main cast:

Drew Sarich – Graf von Krolock

Ever since I discovered Tanz back in January, I have seen gifs and videos of Drewlock all over tumblr, and he was one of the main reasons I wanted to see the Vienna production live.

And damn, I was not disappointed.

From the aforementioned videos I knew that Drew was very good at the grafly holy trinity: walking, hands and cape swishing. He is a master of all three disciplines and it was so much fun seeing him in his element. He has an enormous presence, stalking through the aisle with a stone cold facial expression. I was having a dopey grin on my face when he walked by and felt like a mouse entranced by a snake – he could’ve bitten me and I would’ve let him 😉

His voice is almost as captive, from the first lines of Gott Ist Tot I was his. He has a way of making each line sound natural and unrehearsed, you can tell he is really trying to tell a story with all the resources he’s got. For example I love how in the moment before Sarah ‘interrupts’ him with her line “ich hör’ eine Stimme, die mich ruft” he inhales and almost starts to speak, only to be ‘startled’ by her voice and turning his head, as you would when hearing an unexpected sound. It’s details like this that make him my absolute favourite Krolock.

He also has a great comedic talent, the few moments where he interacts with the Professor and is supposed to relieve some tension were hilarious and full of funny details that are too many to list them all (a few of them made it to the memorable moments section further down though! 😉).

And of course, one of the most important aspect of the role (at least for me), is his ability to seduce not only Sarah (and Alfred), but also the audience. The Graf has to pull you in and ignite your desire to follow him into the darkness after all. And that is Drews specialty. His tone of voice, his elegant movements and his soft gestures all seem to be designed for this purpose alone. Until he is alone at the graveyard of course, then the mask crumbles and reveals deep longing and despair. We get small moments of that in ToFi as well, and it is incredible how layered Drews performance is. Add to that his inner battle against his vampiric nature and urges (like him baring his fangs every now and then only to try and get back the control, or his fast and aggressive movements only to slow down as if trying to calm his inner beast) and you have the perfect Graf.

Charles Kreische – Herbert von Krolock

Charles is an incredible Herbert. Herbert is one of my favourite roles in this show, and he fits it perfectly. He is playful and flirty with Alfred from the second he sees him, sends him interested looks from the first moment and obviously enjoys the attention unwillingly given by Alfred and very willingly given by the audience. Charles has an amazing voice, and while I loved his softer singing during Wenn Liebe In Dir Ist, I was blown away by his powerful vocals during Carpe Noctem. And what I also quite liked was the fact that even in the nightmare scene he had a few sassy moves that I have never seen any other Herbert do, which was a nice touch. (don’t get me started on what that means since the scene plays in Alfreds head, or we’ll still be here tomorrow :P).

The only thing that was a little bit disappointing was the fact that, due to Charles’ and Raphael’s non-existent height-difference, the dancing didn’t look as smooth and effortless as it did with Christian and Tom in the German production and it seemed much more rehearsed because of that.

But that’s no one’s fault and not due to a lack of talent on their part.

Raphael Groß – Alfred

I am completely in love with Raphi’s portrayal of Alfred. He is such a sweet, loveable guy which makes him a perfect contrast to the dangerous vampire Graf.

He is also very good at putting a lot of details into his performance, for example: he was breathing heavily and chattering with his teeth during He Ho He.

He had great chemistry with Charles as well as Diana, and normally I am not a huge fan of Für Sarah, but he made me aww 😊.

Diana Schnierer – Sarah Chagal

This was another perfectly cast role – Diana is a sweet girl and a great actress. She was very good at playing the naïve girl at first, then being torn between choosing the Graf and doing ‘the right thing’, only to succumb to his charm at the end of ToFi. You could tell that the feelings she had for Alfred during Nie Gesehn’ were pretty much gone in the bathroom scene after Bücher.

I loved her voice, it was beautiful and clear, just a tad frail at times during the belting parts of Die Roten Stiefel. But I can imagine that’s due to her youth and that her voice will only get stronger. She also has a light accent, which is very cute.

Sebastian Brandmeir – Professor Abronsius

Sebastian is a great Professor, there is not much to say about his solid performance.

After playing this role in multiple productions, Sebastian is definitely a pro and matches Victor Petersens talent. The only difference I noticed was that Victor managed to sing the fast parts of Wahrheit and Bücher with even more ease than Sebastian. But Sebastian’s comedic talent is just as great as Victors.

Nicolas Tenerani – Yoine Chagal

What I loved about Nicolas as Chagal was his little gestures and quirks – he made me laugh out loud with silly faces and movements a few times. Also a very good singer!

Memorable moments:

Alfred going in for the kiss when him and Sarah are picking up the sponge

The Graf putting his leg next to Sarah’s shoulder and taking her by the hand, lifting her from the bathtub during Einladung

Drewlock being farsighted and holding the Professors business card at arms length to read it

Graf smelling the sponge during Vor Dem Schloss and later taking in Sarahs scent during ToFi

While entrancing Alfred, Krolock puts his finger underneath his chin to lift his head and look into his eyes *swoon*

Drewlock holding Sarahs head at the end of ToFi and laying it on his chest/under his chin at first, only to then press his cheek against hers (I died)

Nightmare!Graf biting Sarah hanging upside down from the bed

The Graf picking his teeth after biting Sarah, before confronting Alfred and the Professor

Him being ‘scared’ when Alfred attacks him with the candelabra

After this show I also managed to wait at the stage door for a bit – I met a few lovely people, including Drew Sarich, Charles Kreische and Abla Alaoui. They were all super nice and it was lovely to talk to them!

That’s all for now, if you guys want I can do another review for the next Vienna show, just let me know if you are interested! <3

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