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zahri-melitor · 7 months

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The next Potted Fanon History is Robin II: JASON TODD.

Jason, 9-10: Willis Todd was abusive and goes to jail due to henching. Catherine Todd was addicted to drugs and dies from cancer. Jason ends up homeless. It is very tragic.

Jason, 12ish (extra angst edition): He may have done sexwork on the streets for food.

Jason, 12-13: found on the streets after jacking the tyres off the Batmobile.

Jason as Robin: Robin is Magic! The intelligent Robin! Extremely literary! A sweet innocent child! Cared about children and sex workers and those affected by drugs! Simultaneously, the only storyline anyone has ever heard of is Garzonas’ death.

Alternate Jason as Robin (less common): Jason always had an angry side. He was enraged by the hardships of the world and by people committing crimes against children and sex workers. Also the only storyline anyone has ever heard of is Garzonas’ death.

Jason around 14: goes on ski trip with Dick.

Optional Jason and the Titans: Jason meets the Titans as Dick’s brother. He may go on one or two missions with them. The entire and only point of this event is for Jason to encounter Roy and Kory. They are fairly close in age. Do NOT think about this too closely.

Jason, 15: A Death in the Family, Which hurts more, forehand or backhand, etc. Harley may be present for this. Harley may have tried to talk Joker out of this.

Jason, 15.5: digs himself out of his grave. USUALLY found immediately by Talia and dunked in a Lazarus Pit. Ra’s Al Ghul is extremely unhappy about this.

Jason, 16-18: PIT RAGE. World training trip sponsored by Talia. May spend time with Damian. Frequently killed his teachers for being bad people.

Jason, 18-21: returns to Gotham as Red Hood with a sportsbag full of mob boss heads and many guns. Moves immediately into Crime Alley and it becomes ‘his territory’. All the Bats avoid it. SLITS TIMS THROAT. This might just be from Jason stalking Tim or it might occur in Titans Tower. Face off with Bruce over killing the Joker, Bruce slits Jason’s throat.

Jason, Titans Tower: Jason goes to Titans Tower and beats Tim up. This is due to PIT RAGE as Tim is his REPLACEMENT. Exclusively calls Tim that.

Jason, 18-21: Following UTRH, Jason continues crime lording around Crime Alley. The small street children and sex workers all trust him. He has RULES and they WORK. Nobody sells drugs to children or hurts them. Anyone hurting a child sets off Jason’s berserk PIT RAGE. Torments Black Mask.

Jason, 18-21: At some point following UTRH, Jason (re)encounters Roy and Kory and forms the Outlaws. It may take place while travelling through the multiverse for unspecified reasons. (Basically this encounter replaces Jason’s 52 arc).

Jason, 20-21: When Bruce dies, Jason is in jail because someone (usually Bruce or Dick) locked him up for being a Crime Lord. Tim breaks him out and Jason has the first kind thought towards his Replacement ever. If we do Battle for the Cowl Jason argues that he should be Batman as he’s the only one who can clean up Gotham. His offer to have Tim as his Robin shows how much he now respects Tim. Alternatively, Batarang to the chest and trying to kill Tim again.

Jason, 20-21: Jason eventually realises that he has PIT RAGE that makes his eyes glow green. All the Bats and other heroes who encounter him understand how hard it must be to have been in a Lazarus Pit, because of the unstoppable and constant permanent rage afterwards. Jason manages to suppress this rage and he is a hero for it. He immediately feels intense guilt for hurting Tim as the Pit has made him do many things. However if he ever gets angry it returns. (Yes. He’s the Hulk).

Jason, 20-21: While Dick is Batman, Jason starts feeling more guilty and helping out occasionally. He may have Fond Memories of training with Damian in the League. He starts using rubber bullets in his guns when working with the Bats, or just shooting people in the knee. Everyone else thinks this is a reasonable non-lethal compromise. He has his own patrol route around Crime Alley that the Bats STILL do not enter without asking his permission.

Jason, 20-21: Apologises to Tim. This happens after rescuing Tim out of some peril. Tim immediately accepts the apology and they start hanging out together. They are now Best Brothers because Tim just can’t trust Dick anymore, but Jason apologised.

Jason, early mid 20s: On some space mission with the Outlaws, Jason acquires the All-Blades. These are magical glowy space swords that can only harm evil.

Jason, early mid 20s: after Bruce’s return he and Jason make their peace with each other as long as Jason does not kill. Jason is still mad Bruce won’t kill Joker for him. There are periods of angst about this.

Jason, currently: Jason is the Family Black Sheep but has agreed to not shoot people lethally in Gotham. He is invited to family events, but publicly he is Still Dead (TM). He may still be doing some Crime Lording on the side for money. He has not been back in jail. In the midweek, Jason can be found going shopping with Alfred for groceries, cooking with Alfred in the kitchen and discussing historical literature and Shakespeare.

Jason, currently: is either Best Friends with Roy or dating him. They are buddies who are rarely seen apart in superhero contexts. Lian (who is 7-8) thinks of Jason as her other father. He is close to Tim and they team up often in Gotham, unless he is alternately close to Damian or Steph. He’s the Other Big Brother of the Bats.

#potted bat fanon histories

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icespur · 5 months

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Akiren calling Akechi cute embarrassing pet names

1/3 edit: Uncensored

Two scenarios:

Platonic Rivals. So Akiren would be calling Akechi cute nicknames just to be a little shit.

Or Akeshu/ShuAke version. They are official boyfriends and they both have different views on public affection. Akechi would rather keep their relationship a secret, so no public affection (which is not unlike actual Japanese citizens).

Then you have Akiren,--- THIS TALL POLITE, SECRETLY UNHINGED HUNK OF A DETECTIVE IS MY LOVER. WE BECAME A COUPLE ON (Insert exact month, day, and time here), HE HAS BEEN MINE EVER SINCE. I AM AWARE HE'S A CELEBRITY AND YOU FANS CAN GUSH OVER HIM ALL YOU WANT BUT KNOW THAT HE IS TAKEN AND I TAKE GREAT PRIDE IN KNOWING I HAVE SEEN AND PASSIONATELY TOUCHED PARTS OF THIS MAN YOU CAN ONLY DREAM OF.

Akechi: (covering his beet red flustered face with his hands) “If we weren't currently an item and I didn't love you I would choke the life out of you right now.”

Couple Akeshu/ShuAke during a Palace or Mementos Shadow fight. Joker passes the baton to Crow. Crow gets in battle stance ready to tear the enemy to pieces when—-

Faintly in the background Joker enthusiastically cheers “FUCK ‘EM UP, BABE!”

This causes the mood to completely change. Crow’s manic expression drops instantly, replaced with blush.

The other Thieves are in the background, Ryuji the most confused “What did he just call him, what just happened???....”

Pet names abbreviated from name:

Akechi = Aki or Chi/Chi-Chi (What makes the “Chi-Chi” nickname even more hilarious is that's a babyish alternative word Japanese kids use to refer to their fathers. So it's a babyish version of “Papa”. Take Anya from Spy X Family English Sub for example)

Goro = Go-Go and Go-Chan

When in Metaverse Attire:

Goes for both Robin Hood & Loki/Black Mask form = Birdie

Specifically Loki/Black Mask Form =

Loki = Lulu, Lou, Kiki,

First time Akechi heard the above nicknames while in Black Mask form, he immediately locks eyes with Akiren and stares at him for a couple seconds, internally trying to talk himself out of sending the leader of the Phantom Thieves on an express trip to Velvet Room Purgatory. Ultimately fails and Kasumi and the rest of the Thieves have to physically restrain Akechi from murdering their leader.

In future instances, Akechi just responds by either tuning Joker out or “”CaLmLy”” correcting Joker that it's “Loki”. If Joker refuses to behave and continues, gentle route goes out the window and Akechi goes straight for the throat.

So basically referring to Black Mask Akechi by cute abbreviated nicknames is a speed run of “How fast can I get Akechi to lose his cool and try to kill me?”

The Thieves don't understand why Joker willingly puts himself in those deadly situations but Joker just weakly laughs, on the floor with probably a few fractured and broken bones. He just raises his arm up and forms a thumbs up, managing to wheeze out a “Worth It..”

(Abbreviated pet names in Romance scenario, Akechi wouldn't react by attempted murder, obviously. But just be incredibly flustered and embarrassed. The game for AkiRen in this case would be “How fast can I make my boyfriend a blushing mess?”. Especially since he seems to pull out the pet names at intentionally the worst times, when in public or mid-Metaverse battle)

#persona 5 royal #persona 5 #akiren #ren amamiya #akira kurusu #persona 5 joker #goro akechi #persona 5 crow #cute nicknames #pet names #akeshu #shuake #akeshu hc #funny

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cartierdreamx · 1 year

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Hacked into you (AU)

Hi! This is my first story that I’ve written in years, so sorry if it’s bad and also my first x reader. This is based on the gameplay of Watchdogs 2, my all-time favourite videogame!! Not everything will be 100% accurate, as I haven’t played in a while and the real game is so detailed and complex, and it’s so worth it to get! Anyways if any parts of the story is confusing because it is apart of the gameplay, like characters and organisations, search up Watchdogs 2 and whatever confuses you and the web should clarify it :), but I am also more than happy to help you out with it. The mapping of San Francisco and it’s other details in this story is also based on the Watchdogs 2 map that I played on, this can also be searched up!! Anyway, I hope you enjoy <3

Pairings: jenna ortega x fem! Reader

Warnings: swearing, light violence, slightly suggestive

*I plan to write smut in this story and it does have some dark themes like violence involved, the game itself was rated MA15+ where I am from (might be different depending which country you are in) so my fic will be 18+ because I am involving more adult themes, if you do choose to proceed, please keep that in mind*

Birthright – 1

Initiation time. Dedsec, notorious hacker group taking over the world, the world in your hands is a metaphorical saying but for them, it’s literal. One single camera gave access to you, us, the world. At first thought, they’re menacing, however, Dedsec takes on the Robin Hood cliché, take from the rich, give to the poor, except it was exposing big, major companies running with corruption like the blood in my veins. I never knew what I wanted, but this was so certain, almost as if my stars was aligned with their coding. But back to initiation, my face, my life, it’s still out there, but after tonight, my name is the past, just letters. My mission tonight, as the initiation ritual is to erase myself from the world, from databases, as if I’m a myth.

Blume, they’re always watching. Blume’s home system CTOS rules the world, it rules San Francisco, Dedsec’s mission is to take them down, take down Dusan Nemec. Ironically, I’m breaking in, well hacking into their security quarter, one button and I’m gone. My breathing is shallow, nervousness doesn’t know my name, it was never my weakness, any normal person would be shitting their pants right now, me? well, just hunger, hunger for everything, both physically and mentally, hunger to get this mission done successfully, hunger to join the group, hunger for food, the juices of a burger, although other juices linger my mind, hmph. They’re watching me, no, not Blume, but Dedsec, if Blume were watching me, which ironically, they’re watching everyone but me right now, I’d be serving time. Dedsec’s running basepoints, making sure I don’t die, of course, I’m only armed with a taser.

I run my scout on my quad crasher, 4 blume guards, armed with pistols, my mind sculps a route like it’s my second nature to see the future. I jump over the ledge onto the metal platform below, I’m lucky my feet don’t attract the loud banging sound. The guard closest to me scouts the area I’m hidden in. One. Gone, not fatal but unconscious, my taser is wired to control their body where paralysis is their only control. The other guards run their area before alternating onto the next, I knew I had to take down all 4, or else it’ll raise alarm bells. Two. This time, my mele and my hands take over, my taser isn’t the only thing that can control, one blow to the head rendered him unconscious. I swiftly move around to the next area, closer to my area of entry, jumping any barricades that restrict me. Three. This time proved a bit harder, he let out a ‘HEY,’ and after a blow to the face, not enough to knock me down though, my heart beating proves I’m stronger than that, though a few loose baby hairs detach and fly loosely as my head knocks back. I manage to slick back my h/c into place, away from my face, the sweat helps to keep it in place. Intuition places the thought that the last guard is around the corner of the wall in a position where his knees are bent, gun in hand, safety off, ready to shoot, shoot me that is, threat eliminated. Four. Of course, I don’t let him, the ability of agility and flexibility allows me to slide across from him and tase his body to the ground before he could even blink.

“She’s good” Sitara scoffs, she means this in a positive way, her smirk is seen visible by the other members, watching from the van, but in true Dedsec fashion, the van’s location is unknown.

“I like her already” Wrench exclaims, whilst his mask displays a digital smiley face lit by from the white LEDs wired in his mask.

“Jenna?” Sitara leers at her.

Jenna’s doe eyes analyses the sight of y/n taking down 4 armed guards with ease, she tilts her head a few degrees to the right and smirks whilst letting out a soft huff from her nose.

“Mesmerised, she is, Tara”. Marcus says as he lets out a slight laugh.

“Evidently, Marcus.”

I bring out my phone, smartphone doesn’t do her justice, she’s engineered with certain abilities that allow me to hack through systems, coded with endless possibilities, my biggest accomplishment was creating her, she was a bitch to make though, nearly gave up. But I knew she wasn’t perfect, getting into Dedsec though, God she’ll be the holy grail, Dedsec’s apps and coding system is pristine, I could get into anywhere, anytime, no problem, but only when I’m successful, I’ll get the upgrade. Nevertheless, I was able to hack the door open, ironic, the biggest tech company but easy to hack doors, once I’m in, I wave to the cameras, I knew they’d be watching me, they as in Dedsec. But every camera I come across I knew I had to discard off. This stops Blume from seeing me but it also lets Dedsec know what stage of the mission I’m in, indicated by the room, or if I failed, indicated by a lack of heartbeat. I know not to rush, but I know how to be swift and still get the job done. However, this mission is time sensitive, there’s more guards than I can count limbs on my body, I knew it’d be a matter of time before they found out I’m in here, and that time? It’s now. Funny enough, it's when I’m in the stronghold, rows and levels of technology wired with intelligence and information so strong only corruption could hold it, though corruption is holding it. So, I could just find the big screen with everyone’s data and erase myself, but where’s the fun in that?

“SPREAD OUT AND SEARCH”

“SHE’S IN HERE SOMEWHERE, WHOEVER FINDS HER HER GETS A WEEK OFF, PAID”

“Shit” I whisper out, now that’s a problem, it’s one thing having countless guards come after me, but guards with a need to get the reward? I’m fucked, but I’m stronger, I’ve trained myself enough to get myself out of this situation. I place a virus into one part of the mainframe, causing lights in this section to turn off.

“SHE’S THERE”

I fight off three shooting guards, I won’t lie, this raises the hair on the back of my neck, the new section I’m in is begging for a virus, so in true Dedsec fashion, I let another one loose, which only causes more shooting, but that was a given, I find myself hiding instead of fighting. Now, I could easily pick up a gun and shoot too, but first mission, no fatalities, my taser, my hands, my mele, which consists of two billiard 8balls connected by a short rope. My destination is in my peripheral, one floor higher than me the door on the right, by now I’m sure backup has been called from other branches along with the cops, so now speed is a necessity. More guards come, but their bodies drop to the ground, they don’t learn. After placing another virus in another section, I’m finally in the room, I turn the screen on, and so many options floods the screen, it’s overwhelming, I plug in my phone to transfer data for Dedsec but then I find it, I find me, my profile, my data.

“y/n l/n.” Delete, hmph, I never liked that picture of me anyway, I laugh at the data they have on me, it’s all bullshit, they have me for petty crimes I didn’t commit, but I know they wont have me on crimes I did commit, this mission being one of them, a crime, but crime with moralities.

Now to find a way out, but first, one last virus. But unfortunately, this one does it for the system, alarms blaring, I’m sure the entire San Francisco heard it, and that’s saying something, considering we’re on a small island, treasure island under the bay bridge, now that’s going to attract more guards. “Fuck.”

“Watch her, she’s going to get caught” Marcus exclaims

“Jenna bring up the site blueprint for me, let’s see if we can meet her somewhere, if she makes it out” Sitara says

Jenna pulls up the map and they analyse it closely.

“Wrench drive here” Marcus tells him

He does.

Fuck, okay, I can do this, it’s lightwork, I say a little prayer, though I need a miracle to get out, I quickly scout the area so see my exit point. My luck increases and my survival percentage increases if I take the highest point out to the roof and climb my way down. Lucky for me, my planted virus took the lights.

“I WANT HER CAUGHT”

“Y/N, WE KNOW YOU ARE HERE, COME OUT AND YOU WON’T GET HURT”

Yes, yes, I will get hurt, if Dusan Nemec, the CTO of Blume even has five minutes with me, death will be a mercy. Lucky for me, their smartest guards are sleeping on the floor, courtesy of me, so I find it easy climbing my way to the top where I can kick down a vent. It’s hot, so hot I can see heat lines, to be fair the mainframe has a shit load of wires and energy and electricity surges through them, so heat is expected to radiate. Once I reach the top of the vent, I break this one down too, the fresh cool San Francisco breeze, accompanied by a crisp ocean scent, overruled by sea salt. I creep away to the side of the building where Blume’s guards doesn’t have their cars in a blockade, once my feet touch the floor, the recoil is enough to make me trip a little, I giggle a bit over it. Mission over, mission successful.

“Bag her.” Sitara says

Next thing I know, my eyesight is black, not pitch black, but enough darkness with hues of grains from the material of what they bagged me with.

About 20 minutes of driving later and muffled voices, filled with conversations and laughter, the van comes to a stop. The bag is still on my head, and as easy as it sounds, standing up was a challenge, the unfamiliar flooring and noises threw me off but two hands were helping me up, the feel and build felt masculine so I immediately assume it’s Wrench and Marcus. As I step out the voices, laughter and cheer illuminates the room and a piercing light shoots through the bag my head is in, the adrenaline is rushing in and my heart beat races, my breathing slows to calm myself down before they remove my bag, the calm before the storm.

“5”

Loud cheers.

“4”

More loud cheers.

“3”

Louder cheers

“2”

Here it goes.

“1”

My bag gets taken off and the lights blinds my eyes, I slowly open them, and blow my lose strands of hair out of my face, the screams and cheers pitch in and now are clear unlike the muffles I was hearing under the bag, and then when my eyes focus, that’s when I see her.

Beauty.

#jenna ortega #jenna ortega x reader #jenna ortega x y/n #jenna ortega x you #wednsday addams #wednesday #wednesday adams x reader #wednesday x reader

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haventdecidedyet · 9 months

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Robin Hood AU: Guy kills the Sheriff PT 2

This has loosened me up to do more writing than I have in ages and for that reason I'm going with it

2.2k words. Guy of Gisborne and Guy x Marian orientated. Allan A Dale shows up. Lots of fun.

(this is PT 1) (and PT 3) (wow it was cool finding out how to do that)

Guy could move about the settlement unstopped by the Saracen guards. He was headed towards the house of the Sheriff’s accomplice, a Saracen man who had been preparing to pose as Salah al-Din’s messenger, with the intention of regaining the Sheriff’s carriage and horses which were stowed there. He strode through the sandy streets, a tall black figure contrasting with the square white buildings. Leather was certainly too hot to be wearing in the Holy Land.

Guy slowed his pace as he noticed an agitated group of Saracens blocking the road ahead. He could vaguely hear them talking in their own language and considered slipping into a side alley to pass them by, but his interest was drawn by the atmosphere of impending conflict. His steps quietened on the gravelly road surface so his approach was unnoticed.

Within a second the group of Saracens became hectically dispersed and Guy could see the thrashing of swords and arms as some violence broke out. It seemed a group of men had ambushed and were fighting their way through. There were a fair few of them, all causing men to fly outwards and collapse in states of injury.

Guy was preparing to duck into a side alley when he saw a fast-flying arrow knock down the nearmost Saracen. That was when his suspicion grew that he had been right when he thought the cries he heard were English-sounding. Many men were good with a bow and arrow but there was still one who especially sprung to mind. This only further encouraged Guy to slip into hiding.

Robin Hood and the outlaws, having beaten down that group of Saracens, were progressing along the street, walled in by white, their weapons readied. Robin led them; Much, Little John, Will, Djaq and Allan were rallied behind, and they were all determined to pass through this Saracen settlement and reach the King’s camp. Before the Sheriff did, they hoped.

Robin observed men ahead and sent John and Allan to check for alternate routes out through clearer alleys while the rest of the group assessed if they could pass on the central road. Allan slipped between two high walls, listening carefully for movement. He ran as quickly as he could, trying to note the labyrinthine winding of the alleys and find a break onto the open desert landscape.

With unexpected speed a man shot out from the shaded arch of a doorway. Allan felt himself thrown roughly back against a wall, his feet scuffing in the sand, and his head thrown back to observe the bright, close sky as a sword touched his neck. In the second afterwards, Allan became aware of the identity of his attacker.

‘Sir Guy,’ he said, his voice shaking slightly despite his efforts to adopt a light tone.

‘You’re a bit late,’ Guy snarled, his sword firmly retaining its position. He had been surprised to think Robin Hood might be here – Robin Hood, supposedly dead – but once he had accustomed himself to such a possibility Guy wasn’t so surprised that Allan A Dale would be with him. Where else would Allan have gone, when he ducked out of the quest to kill the King? But Guy had assumed that Allan was killed as soon as he reached Nottingham.

‘Look,’ Allan said, ‘I’m not on your side anymore, Guy. But please let me go. Robin will come after me, I can tell you.’

‘Robin Hood is here,’ Guy said flatly. ‘And alive. How?’

‘Well, not to take the credit, but I did help him out of his tight spot in Nottingham.’

‘By betraying me,’ replied Guy contemptuously.

‘I’m not being funny, but, you could hardly have not expected it.’ Allan swallowed uncertainly, feeling the sword’s pressure on his throat. ‘I mean, I betrayed Robin in the first place, so what was stopping me betraying you as well–’ As Guy’s face became angered, he stopped.

‘I don’t care that you betrayed me,’ Guy said evenly, after an exhalation, ‘I only care that you, and Robin Hood, leave me alone now.’

Allan shifted uncomfortably, his back straining against the wall. He wondered how long it would take for the others to turn up and find him.

‘Well, it’s alright you saying that, but Robin’s here to save the King, and so are we, and if you and that Sheriff are after him–’

‘We’re not. The King is safe, and for once Robin Hood played no part in that.’ Guy smiled at his own mocking. ‘You can go along to Hood and tell him if you like, and he’ll disbelieve you, but tell him this: the Sheriff of Nottingham is dead.’

‘What?’ Guy lowered his sword and let Allan stand up straight now. ‘How’s the Sheriff dead?’ Allan demanded incredulously.

‘I killed him,’ Guy smiled, with a tilt of his head. Allan wasn’t sure he could believe that, but he didn’t want to challenge Guy, even with his own sword at his side.

‘And the King?’ Allan questioned.

‘I don’t want to kill him.’

Allan struggled to comprehend this reversal in plan, but kept his mouth shut. He weighed his options; taking his leave politely, making a dash for it, striking Guy with his sword. Then a thought suddenly came to mind:

‘Where’s Marian?’

A change came over Guy’s posture then; he stiffened, and his sword lifted slightly. Allan misinterpreted this and became fearful that Marian too had been unexpectedly done away with, and he almost cried out.

‘She is safe,’ Guy said, before Allan could become excessively panicked, though his tone showed irritation. ‘She’s with me.’ With me did not make it clear that Marian was his wife-to-be rather than his prisoner.

‘And,’ Allan suggested carefully, ‘you won’t part with her?’

‘She won’t part with me, I don’t think,’ Guy said indignantly. He didn’t want to have to share what had passed between him and Marian and he didn’t like remembering that Allan had been somewhat in league with her. More significantly, he had misgivings about Robin Hood seeking Marian. He would not like Marian to discover that Robin was in fact alive; Guy feared her enthusiasm for him may wane. He feared he was only second best.

‘Guy, listen,’ Allan said, falling into a friendly, confidential manner of speaking. ‘If everything you say about the Sheriff and the King is true, then still, Robin loves Marian – he’d die for her – he came here to save her too – and he won’t leave without her.’

It was as Guy feared. Would he have to kill Robin Hood too, to have Marian? He had tried before. He had tried many times. But this time it scared him, because he knew Marian would not want him to.

Guy discarded these thoughts and quickly pointed his sword at Allan’s chest again. Allan raised his eyebrows and jumped back, putting his palms up.

‘Stay away from Marian. Stay away from me.’ Guy spoke menacingly. Then he shrugged theatrically: ‘Or I might just have to kill the lot of you. So go to the King, stay until you’re sure he’s safe, if that pleases you. And I will have no further quarrel with Robin Hood.’

Decided, Guy shoved Allan back in the direction he’d come, and Allan complied, taking off at a run with his hand on his sword hilt. He was confused, fearful and desperate to join Robin and the others. What would Robin think about the Sheriff being dead? They would have to make sure. And what about Marian? It was clear they couldn’t leave her in Gisborne’s possessive clutches, and they would have to risk their lives to take her by force.

Guy was shaken but continued on his initial mission. He needed to leave for England as soon as possible – ahead of Robin Hood. When he came to the right Saracen house, he barged in without announcing himself and made his orders for the carriage to be returned. The Saracen man asked if they were going out to meet the King already.

‘The Sheriff has no more business with the King, or with you,’ Guy said sharply. ‘You are no longer needed. Bring the carriage round to our lodgings, employ a driver, and you will be paid generously.’

‘But, Salah al-Din’s messenger, the insignia – it is all unneeded?’

Guy reassured him that it was so, on the Sheriff’s orders. There was to be no assassination.

Guy went outside to watch the horses being brought out of their stables and prepared. He was almost amused by his power. All the things he had controlled as the Sheriff’s right-hand man, he could continue to control without anyone knowing the Sheriff was gone. He had some apprehensions about returning to England. He could become Sheriff of Nottingham. But the Black Knights would still stand and Marian would not allow it. How could she expect Guy to overthrow Prince John?

Meanwhile, Robin Hood was planning on meeting the King, putting him on his guard, then seeking out Gisborne and Marian.

‘But what would make Gisborne kill the Sheriff?’ Much said as he walked beside Robin. The desert was open around them, but in the distance the white and red canvas of the King’s camp was visible.

‘Power, I suppose,’ Allan interjected. ‘He’s desperate for it. Wants to be the new Sheriff of Nottingham, I reckon.’

‘But Gisborne could have killed the Sheriff any time,’ Much said.

‘Not so easily,’ Robin replied, ‘among the guards of Nottingham. What I can’t make out is why Gisborne wouldn’t choose to kill the King too.’

‘Maybe Gisborne’s joined our fight,’ Djaq offered brightly, only half serious. ‘He’s started protecting the King and England.’

‘After trying to kill the King once before,’ Robin said, ‘that would be a change of heart.’

That night Marian came across Guy tearing through the Sheriff’s room on his knees, emptying chests, strewing gowns and clashing metals. She stood in the doorway for a second unnoticed, silently admiring his body in his suit of leather. Then he lifted his head without turning it, froze, before leaping up and brandishing his sword. Marian was taken aback, and seeing the unfeeling, ferocious look in his eye she felt her stomach drop.

‘It’s only me, Guy.’

His dark hair swept over his eyes and he blinked at her through it.

‘You shouldn’t be out of your room unattended, Marian,’ he said to her, sounding like his teeth were gritted. Marian felt sickened, disorientated; it was like he was looking at her as a prisoner again. There was no affection in his demeanour and the fond longing which had encouraged her to seek out his company faded within her.

‘I’m not a prisoner,’ she said coldly, ‘and I can look after myself.’

‘No.’ Guy sheathed his sword. His voice rose, became almost condescending, as he said, ‘There are dangerous men – criminals – around, and you are in an unfamiliar land, and you are still a vulnerable, beautiful woman. You don’t know how many men would take you and use you if they could.’

Marian did not like having her femininity used against her.

‘I’m not so defenceless, and you should know that, Guy.’

Guy sighed and came towards her. He gently put one arm around her waist, resting his gloveless hand on her lower back.

‘Allow me to protect you. For my sake at least.’ He glanced back over his shoulder at the mess of the room. He had been trying to gather anything to defend himself against Robin Hood; whether it be a weapon, or a valuable to bargain with. He couldn’t tell Marian how on edge he was with Hood at large. When she had appeared behind him he had feared she was some outlaw intruder.

Marian was surprised by the attraction she felt as Guy held her. Although she found his coddling irritating she was willing to forget it if he would pull her closer. But he seemed distracted and would not even look into her face. She lifted one hand so she could touch the hair which was fallen across his forehead. She carefully pushed it back and aside, stroking his brow with her fingertips. This was enough to make his eyes meet hers and their mildly aggressive look appeared to be directed towards her. It was a familiar situation. He had tried to kiss her from this position of fierce possessiveness before, though his lips themselves were always tentative. Marian watched his lips now.

Guy stepped back, breaking the stillness and shifting his hand to enclose Marian’s forearm.

‘I will take you back to your room. And you can stay there until I fetch you in the morning.’

He escorted her out with his hold on her arm. In her room, he loosened his hold, but then impulsively lifted her arm and bent to kiss the inside of her bare wrist. Guy did not anticipate the flame of longing which would be ignited just by indulging this impulse. He let his mouth linger on Marian’s skin, his head ducked. Rushed ideas of undressing her and staying the night crossed his mind. But the image of Robin Hood’s arrow piercing the Saracen’s body earlier that day pervaded. He would eliminate the threat of Robin’s proximity first, to make his victory greater.

Marian’s disappointment was strong as Guy gave her a strange lustful look and slipped out of the room. He locked the door behind him.

#bbc robin hood #robin hood bbc #guy of gisborne #sir guy of gisborne #marian of knighton #guy x marian #allan a dale #fanfic #fanfiction #my writing

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just-an-enby-lemon · 1 year

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If I could change something in DC would be to at least make an alternate reality were Steph is foil for Jason and Tim makes a parallel with Babs. These are the major changes because it would invove a lot of rewriting at parts.

Because the thing is. Based on the - honestly victim blaming - modern version of Robin Jason, Steph could be Bruce's sucess story. She is a bright hopefull girl in love with the idea of being a superhero but also a poor kid with a complicated and straight up abusive home life that gave her anger issues and complicated morals. She wants to help people and believes in justice but also sees murder as a possible solution and sees no problem in using excessive violence against does she belives deserve it. Defending a punitive way of justice, she is also very impulsive wich can put herself in danger often.

That means in my au verse I would write Bruce trying to convince Steph to get out and loudly disaproving her as he seing too much Jason in her and refusing to lose another kid. This is also the reason he is soo adamant in cutting connections and tells Tim he should keep his identity a secret (because yeah Tim didn't just dated Steph as Robin without being honest because he decided it, Bruce's anxiety decided it and starstruck kid went for it). But no matter what he does Stephanie keeps trying.

So when Tim's dad forces him to retire it is never implied Bruce chooses Steph as Tim's sucessor for petty reasons or to convince Tim to came back. He wants Tim back but he wants Tim to came back on his own terms and after figuring out his issues and he keeps contact with Tim the best he can because he is an adult and he takes the mature route. Instead he chooses Steph because after Tim he knows he can't go without a Robin and if she didn't stop at this point she won't and is better to guide her than to let she keep endangering herself. He still sees her as provisory Robin but also as a possible permanent member of his team.

Steph's reasons to accept also change. At this point Tim had broke things up with her because he was trying to cut his connections with his previous hero life and that meant she didn't took the mantle for petty jealousy but because she wanted the training and equipament Batman could take. She might not understand it perfectly and see it as a dream or as magic (just like baby Jason) but she also takes her hero work seriously and wants to be better.

A lot of their early relationship involves Bruce realizing that Steph isn't Tim and noticing how similar she is to Jason only to slowly notice that this isn't totaly the case either. Steph has a lot in common with Jason but she isn't Jason at all and unless he starts treating her like Steph things won't work out. And things start working. Bruce has to revisit and understand deeply his morals so he can actually truly guide Stephanie into understanding why he doesn't kill and deciding to be like him and to see redemption as possible. Steph run as Robin would be bigger and in the end would be Steph's family failing apart with her mom overdosing and her own feelings of inadequacy that get her. And just like Jason Bruce does one critical mistake. He wants to assure Stephanie that her and Tim (if he ever cames back) are part of his team now but ends up only passing the idea that he still sees her as provisory Robin so like Jason they fight and she does something impulsive (although I would make so it isn't Steph that caused the events of No Man's Land and change a bit how they got there) and trying to destroy Black Mask on her own. She fails. But this time Bruce actually can save her. This time he was able to save his kid, explain himself and change her views on murder. And if Tim healed Batman after Jason is Steph that heals Bruce and this does change his dinamic with Jason during Under the Red Hood with Buce really trying to correct his mistakes but also not as lost on trauma allowing him to see things clearer and Jason seing both Tim AND Steph as replacements. With Tim being replacement Robin and Steph being replacement Jason. And that goes to my biggest change that makes this an AU and not a thing I would ever do on a main line: Bruce adopts Steph and Tim is the kid that's basically Bruce's child but also has his own slowly improving home life and isn't really a Wayne. He goes back to being Robin with Steph as Spoiler and he and Bruce still have a close relationship but his dad never dies and instead the hinted and thorwed alway rebuilding of Tim's relationship with his bio dad with the help of his stepmom (and on this reality Bruce) keeps going.

Now Tim is a parellel and a bit of a foil to Barbara. He is the kid with a lot of potencial specially mentally that choose to be a hero and has a family to come back to even if is complicated. Tim has to make his dad understand not only why he became Robin but why helping people is important to him - because while yes he sometimes goes really unhinged, almost villanous and if he ever becames a villan it will be terrible, Tim is also really heroic, the reason he became Robin, the reason he realized Batman needed one was because Batman was being too violent on criminals! Tim started by thinking that criminals, at least small time criminals and goons deserved more and of course of being afraid of a possible escalation and his first instinct was to try to make Dick be Robin. He didn't even consider himself until Dick implied the possibility and he realized that it was the only way to fix things. Tim is compasionated, he likes and wants to help people and he doesn't have a punitive view on crime, he has a bit of a black and white view on the rogues early on but he still believes in redemption, this is a tangent but it's because I need to say that because while I have nothing against villain Tim, I hate this wave of Tim is evil actually and he is only pretending to be a hero but he will show his true colors - why he can't just stop. But also learn with his dad to see it as more than his responsability of helping Bruce and consider his own life and choices instead of just following orders/risking it all. Basically slowly Jack (and Dana and Bruce) help Tim in his work-life balance.

But also he has other more interesting parallels with Barbara because I think they are very complementary. Tim being soo marked for his indecisiviness that on the Robin 100 special both short tales they choose to put about Tim is about how he has all this talent, all this endless possibility of being whatever he wants both as a hero and academically and he has no idea what this is. Tim cannonically picked all extra curriculars because he didn't knew how to choose than stoped doing all of them because he preffered just being Robin. His plans for the future are wait and find out. He follows Batman soo blindly at the start both because he needed more positive adult interactions and Bruce's praise and atention was it (Tim is the one with the biggest hero workship and Barbara was like that at his age as well) but also because it means he doesn't have to choose. A big contrast with Barbara who is super decided and knows exactally who she wants to be at all times (the uncertainty of the early days was a hit she really had when learning to accept her disability). And it shows because while they are both good detectives and master strategists Tim works with quick thought and a huge room for adaptability while Barbara thinks a lot and is adaptable because like Bruce she considers ever possible scenario. And we got to Tim is impulsive. He does think a lot over what he wants but if he wants to do something he might take a lot to actually do it but he impulsivally decided it and will now follow it after he convinces himself this is the best plan. Tim is the most stuborn motherfucker. And this is great when he is right (like Bruce not being dead) but it really sucks when he is wrong (like his destrust of Catwoman in Hush or he quitting because his dad asked). And I think actually making so Tim has to figure things with Jack and convince him about being Robin instead of just becaming an orphan reworking his whole life prefencially with Barbara's help so we can work it would help he grow so much and stop being the Robin the authors don't know what to do with.

Besides that I would explore more Duke's relationship with Bruce because I think it has soo much interesting bits and underutilized potential and would write a comic with Cass and Helena working together because I think it would be fascinating (and maybe also one about Harper and Harley as while I not the biggest fan of batfam Harley I do think that the fact both of them have an common enemy in Punchline interesting and also Kate and Montoya as Batgirl and Questiin having a team up... it's weird they don't team up, not because they are the two major lesbian characthers but because they are the two characthers with a past in law enforcement- military and police- who got disilusioned by realizing what this forces were all about and how it repressed people like them and other minorities and they should bond over it), also more Dick and Damian we do have a lot of this two brotherly bond, similaridades and differences but I just love them.

#batfamily #stephanie brown #spoiler #tim drake #red robin #barbara gordon #oracle #jason todd #red hood #bruce wayne #batmam

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vigilskeep · 1 year

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i will say the iron bull romance if you make the non recommended/unpopular decision in his personal quest is absolutely insane and you seem like the exact person to enjoy the fuckshit that goes on there. idk how that decision would fit with helena's character arc though so it might be worth saving bull for a different inquisitor. plus those robin hood/maid marian vibes with sera and trev are A++

it DOES compel me horribly but i do not think i have the heart to play the whole of a dai game that’s heading that way... also the main narrative draw for me w helena is the potential ‘if YOU’RE tal-vashoth and I’M ex-templar who’s flying the plane” in that i guess they both lose that conviction and presumably have to figure out what the hell to do without it? all that being said i do think even just the possibility existing of that alternate route gives the romance in general an incredible kind of flavour whether or not you’re doing it

i also think helena/sera is really good. it’s a fun dynamic for reasons i’ve said and i have a lot of love for sera. i just wonder if the romance writing is going to do enough for me and also i wonder if they’re too far apart with how helena has turned out in game because i can’t see her really ever getting the point of the friends of red jenny? but maybe when she’s inquisitor and she understands more the need for like relief of pressure... those are not dealbreakers just what i’m considering

#i dont need to make a decision immediately just having a thought process #im just violently seesawing between the two opinions rn #rlly appreciate everyones thoughts btw!!!#helena trevelyan

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thenightling · 11 months

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In regard to Henry Cavill bowing out of playing The Witcher and being replaced with Liam Hemsworth, I wish they would just swap him out and not say anything about the change but it looks like (par typical in Hollywood today) they're making the change part of the story.

I wish Hollywood would be brave enough to switch actors without explanation like they did in the 60s. (See Bewitched and Dark Shadows). But it's been the fashion these last few years that if a character's actor is replaced they make the change (somehow) part of the story.

In Sliders (1995-2000) they had Quinn replaced with an alternate universe version of himself. I fear this is what they may do here.

In Once Upon a Time (2010-2017) they initially didn't explain why Robin Hood was first played by Tom Ellis (Lucifer) in Season 2 and then another actor later. But in Season 4 they decided that the Tom Ellis version was him "under a glamour spell" which retroactively made no sense since the glamour spell was created via pendant and Rumplestiltskin had him strung up and shirtless. You would have seen the magical pendant. They really shouldn't have bothered trying to explain it with that one.

In Batwoman (2019-2022) they claimed Kate Kane was badly burnt in a plane crash and plastic surgery changed her appearance. Even though the new actress had a different voice and height and not just different face...

This version of explanation for the change I wouldn't mind too much but since the multiverse is a thing in the Witcher I suspect they might go the Slider route which was... honestly... kind of lame and ultimately killed the show as by the time it was over they only had one of the original cast members left.

#The Witcher #Witcher #Geralt of Rivia

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anna12o · 2 years

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Ok can we ghost of Christmas the billionaires? Please? Or does that only work on people with souls?

#random thoughts #Billionaires #jeff bezos #elon musk #donald trump #Mark Zuckerberg #Charles Dickens #A Christmas Carol #Ghost of Christmas Present #Ghost of Christmas Past #Ghost of Christmas Future #Alternative route: Robin Hood

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mochinek0 · 2 years

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2021:27-Escape

They should have expected it; Marinette had warned them it could happen, but while they were on a trip with Gotham Academy, the classes had been taken hostage by the Joker. Many people were able to escape and with Marinette's quick thinking and Damian's specialized training, the classes had been able to slip out the side doors.

When they heard the Joker begin to shout at his goons for letting everyoen escape, they quickly made their way up to the roof. It was easy to tell by the paint buckets, ladders, yellow chutes, and scaffolding that construction was being done to the roof. Marinette eased her way to the roof edge and looked over the side. The chute went all the way down to the ground. They could use it as a slide, but they would have to take turns. Who knows if it would be able to hold both of their combined weights. If all else failed, she would have to reveal her identity and get them both to safety. Damian moved to her side and seemed to be looking at the scaffolding at the rooftop.

Both heard the rooftop door swing open, loudly. Marinette looked over at Damian; she couldn't let him be hurt. After being Ladybug for so long, there was no way she was going to let her new frined get hurt. She grabbed Damian's hand and eased them towards the chute. Once they made their way in front of it, she put her plan into action.

"I'm sorry." Marinette whispered.

"What?" Damian whispered, confused.

Marinette quickly grabbed his collar and pulled him into a deep kiss. Damian wasn't sure what to think. He had met Marinette earlier in the week. The next thing he knew, he was pushed down the construction chute. It wasn't until he heard the gunshot overhead and a splatter of blood fell on his face, did he realize what happened.

Red Hood instantly grabbed onto Damian.

"No!" Damian shouted, "I have to go back!" fighting to get free.

"You're bleeding." Hood hissed.

"It's not mine!" the young Wayne shouted, "He shot her; she saved me!"

Red Hood couldn't believe what he was seeing. Damian was frantic in trying to get away to save a civilian.

"Look, we need to get you away from here." Hood explained, "Change and come back. You can still save her."

Red Hood and Damian rushed away from the building, only for it to explode. Glass rained down from the building as it began to go up in flames.

"NO!" Damian shouted, trying to rush back.

'Fuck!'

Hood quickly grabbed onto the young Robin from making a mistake. He held him around his chest and kept him against his frame. Off to the side, a portal opened up and spit out a girl with a high ponytail, dressed in red and white. They stilled as the red faded away and revealed Marinette. Her clothes were dirty and torn. There was blood on her head and some seeping through her clothes, on her arm.

"Marinette!" Damian cried, breaking free.

A red bug and small horse floated above the girl's small frame. They seemed hesitant on allowing them near her.

"It's okay." Red Hood spoke, "We protect Gotham."

The bug turned her eyes to Damian as he looked over her charge.

"Yes. Him, too." Hood stated.

She had seen how her master protected him and kept him safe. Two heroes stuck in civilian form, trying to save the other. How ironic.

"What about our girl?" the horse spoke.

"She's only knocked out." Damian sighed, picking her up.

"Give her to me." declared Batman, arriving on the scene, "Nightwing and Red Robin, look for alternate escape routes. The fire department is on their way. We'll look over the damage once they are finished, but I doubt he's in there. Oracle, I want green lights all the way to the hospital. Red Hood, you're with me."

Damian gently set her in his father's arms. Batman had never heard his son so panicked and distraught, over the comms. He would make sure she was well taken care of. A hero deserved only the best and it seemed they would have a lot to talk about once she woke up. She looked about his son's age and as far as he knew, Paris had no heroes.

"Damian," Batman spoke, "let's get you looked at."

"I'm fine." he declared, his eyes never leaving the girl's still frame, "She needs to be taken care of, immediately."

"She will be." Batman spoke, as they made their way to the media circus.

"Is there anything I can do?" Damian asked the floating creatures.

"Take her earring." the red one spoke.

"The glasses, too." the horse one declared.

Damian pocketed the frames into his jacket and pierced the earrings into his lobes.

"I could have just made them clip-ons." the red one stated, hovering close to his ears, making the bleeding stop.

"No matter." the young Wayne answered, as the continued their walk.

All of Gotham and the visiting class of Paris watched as Batman carried Marinette towards them. She was bleeding and her clothes were torn, burned and covered in what they could only assume was dirt and blood. Everyone held their breath, unsure of her fate.

"I need a stretcher." he demanded, making everyone sigh in relief.

"Kid, you need to come with me." another paramedic spoke to Damian, attempting to guide him to another ambulence.

Damian slapped his arm away.

"Mr. Wayne-" the paramedic began.

"I will be seen at the hospital, but I am riding with her." Damian declared.

"Sir." the paramedic continued.

"She braved The Joker and made sure I escaped. The least I can do is repay the gesture and make sure she is treated well." the Wayne heir spoke, shocking everyone.

That petite girl had saved Bruce Wayne's son and helped him to escape. It was no wonder he wanted to make sure she was treated with only the best. Sure, he was dirty, a little bruised, and had tears in his clothes, but they could tell she kept him safe. Batman nodded to the paramedic and they stepped aside, allowing Damian into the same ambulence as Marinette.

Damian Wayne sat in a chair next to Marinette's bedside, holding her hand. Tikki, as he learned, was nestled next to her under the blanket and Kalki, had decided to remain at the manor. She loved the manor and he was told, Alfred was happily giving her sugar cubes to eat.

Marinette blinked her eyes awake and looked around. Damian was by her side, head on the bed, holding her hand. Hesitantly, she squeezed his hand. His head quickly shot up and he looked right at her. Before she could blink, she felt his lips on hers.

"You scared me, Angel." Damian whispered.

"Angel?" Mari questioned.

"You did save my life." he answered.

He could see the moment panic set in. She slowly reached up to her ears. He took her hand and kissed it, gently.

"I have them." the young Wayne spoke, turning his head so she could see he was wearing earrings, "Tikki is cuddled into your waist. She hasn't left your side; don't worry. Kalki is at my home, eating sugar. Right now, you need to rest and then we'll talk about you throwing your life away to save mine."

Marinette teared up and nodded, as she was lightly scolded.

"I do have to ask, why kiss me?" the Wayne heir questioned.

"Distraction." Marinette quickly declared, looking away.

"What else?" he asked.

Mari blushed, "You've been nice to me this whole trip." still looking away.

Damian tilted her face to look at him and got closer, "What else?" he pushed.

"I thought I was going to die. I figured I should at least kiss someone once in my life and you're my friend." she answered, honestly.

Damian leaned in and pressed his lips to hers again.

"Then, I'll keep kissing you so you remember to live on." he answered.

Marinette blushed, "I-I'd li-like that." and yawned.

Damian chuckled and eased back into his seat, "Rest. You need to get your strength back."

Almost instantly, Marinette had fallen back to sleep, this time with a smile on her face. Damian pulled out his phone and quickly called his father.

"She woke up for a few minutes, but she fell back to sleep." he stated.

He could hear his family sigh in relief.

"Thank you, Damian." Bruce spoke, "We'll notify her family. Keep us updated."

"I'm not going anywhere." he declared, hanging up the call.

"Marinette, is it true?" shouted Rose.

"Is what true?" Marinette yawned.

Rose showed Marinette her phone. Trending was #Daminette, #fairytaleromance #heroineofgotham. She clicked on the link and was taken to a video of the press hounding Damian Wayne.

"Is it true you are dating your rescuer?" someone shouted.

Damian Wayne stopped and looked at the cameras.

"I grew up with a strong female role model; a warrior for a mother. She taught me to never be weak. Weakness wasn't just about fear or feelings, it was about staying strong for others who may need you. Marinette isn't weak and I plan on reminding her of what she's worth, even if it takes the rest of our lives to do so." Damian Wayne declared, before walking away.

"Yes." Marinette blushed, "I woke up in a hospital room and he was already there. When I woke up, he kissed me and called me Angel."

"Awwww." the girls cooed.

"It was so scary to find out if you were okay." spoke Alix.

"Yeah." Kim declared, "We had to wait until Bustier told us anything and I think she had to hear from your parents."

"Damian stayed with me the whole time and he would give Bruce updates." Marinette answered, "Then, Bruce would call my parents and let them know."

"Bruce, huh?" Alya teased, "Getting close to your father-in-law already?"

Marinette blushed, "It's barely been a month!"

"Dudette, Wayne boy is saying forever already." Nino snickered

"What about you being a hero?" Ivan asked, changing the subject.

"I don't think I'm a hero." she smiled.

Adrien looked over Marinette from his seat. She still walked a bit slower then everyone, she had some bandages wrapped around her arms, and one in a sling. He knew better than anyone in that room that Marinette was a hero. Multimouse had been the best person they ever had on the team. She had braved a villain without a miraculous! She almost died to save someone else. He could have lost his best friend and there was no cure in Gotham. Adrien stood up, walked over to Mari, and hugged her as tight as he could, without injuring her further.

"Adrien?" Marinette questioned, confused.

She felt tears on her skin and hugged him back.

"I'm just glad your okay." he answered.

"Yeah. I'm okay." she smiled.

@maribat-calendar-events

PERMANENT TAGLIST: @animeweebgirl @animegirlweeb @abrx2002 @blueblossombliss @thepaceperson @alysrose-starchild @marveldcedits20 @09shell-sea09 @nickristus-dreamer @saltymiraculer @icerosecrystal @vixen-uchiha @a-star-with-a-human-name @meme991001 @fandom-trapped-03 @dood-space @moonlightstar64 @insane-fangirl-of-everything

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maxwell-grant · 3 years

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On Final Crisis: Secret Files, Grant Morrison describes Doc Fate as part of the Society of Super-Heroes, and says that amoung it's members is, sometimes, "the mysterious Bat-Man". Obviously, this Bat-Man haven't appeard in Multiversity. But how do you think this pulp version of Batman should be? It thought of him as Kirk Langstrom, the Man-Bat.

It being Kirk Langstrom could work. Maybe Bruce Wayne could exist in this world but he's not really Batman, maybe Batman's agent or secret identity or the source of Langstrom's money. I'm not particularly interested in Man-Bat as a character but the idea of him being this world's Bat-Man, or at least "a" Bat-Man, could be a good idea.

I find most versions of "Batman but he's pulp" to be generally really boring because they largely just go by the painfully standard route of "Batman but his outfit looks shabby and he's got a gun" and it often seems like it just amounts to a Batman that now kills and is less of a character than just an amalgam of pulp cliches (which is what Batman used to be before they created Robin and the iconic villains and the no-kill rule and started fleshing him out as a more unique character).

In fact I'm gonna just go ahead and stipulate that "Pulp" Batman should at least adhere to the main dude's policy of no guns. Whether he's killing or not, or how effectively he can manage himself, is up to debate, but let's get the obvious out of the way. Bill Finger described once that he envisioned Batman as combining traits from Douglas Fairbanks, Sherlock Holmes, The Shadow and Doc Savage, so we're gonna use these as some of the basis to work with.

Personally the best take on a Batman redesign schewing closer to pulp that I've ever seen would be "The Batman Investigations" by Imson on Deviantart, you can read more about it's respective designs there but I'll post it's idea for Batman below

Bruce Wayne was born with high sensitivity to sunlight, keeping him indoors most of the day, and forcing him to wear tinted glasses when not. When his parents were killed by a mugger, the blast from the gunfire damaged his hearing, forcing him to wear hearing aid from an early age.

Bruce had a knack for mechanics, and living off the remaining funds left by his parents, he developed a few surveillance gadgets for police use. While trying to market them for the local police, he was hired by commissioner Gordon as a freelance detective. As his involvement with the force continued, he got the nickname The Batman from his striking appearance.

As a hired gun, his role grew to take on undercover investigations. He could use his equipment to take the cases further than regular detectives could risk, and the police would turn a blind eye to these acts, provided Bruce denied any involvement with the police should he get caught.

His most useful gadget is his mechanic surveillance bird dubbed Robin, used to keep watch on suspects without gathering attention.

This one I think works particularly well for a take on Batman that's more centered around street-level detective work, and I mean actual detective work. A Batman who's strong, but not much of a fighter, and his hearing disability doesn't lend itself to superpowers, it's something he has to work around through allies and gadgets and quick-thinking once he starts getting further into trouble. More of a Sherlockian Batman who contends with the kind of darkness that doesn't come with a status quo to sort itself out.

Now, if we wanna go more along the route of gritty pulp Batman, a more traditional Batman who's actually gonna out there in the night suplexing crime into the sidewalk, what comes to my mind design-wise is something of a cross between Denis Medri's Rockability Batman and Francesco Francavilla's Batman 1972

A Batman who's not exactly wearing a skintight superhero outfit full of gadgets but instead a coat of surprises, who's only really got a mask and goggles to protect his identity and also protect his face. A Batman who's smart and can do detective work, but really he's going out there every night to get the shit kicked out of him until he figures out what he needs to know to solve the case, no police involved. Sort of closer to how Denny Colt or The Moon Man operate, more in the Robin Hood and Zorro molds. This one is also somewhat in line with Golden Age pre-Robin Batman where his main distinguishing feature as a character was how utterly reckless and prone to jumping into a fight he was even by usual comic book/pulp hero standards.

The third option I'm thinking of is to take Batman closer to the superhero he is but still mired in enough pulp ingredients remixed differently to be recognizably different from his ordinary self. So instead I'm thinking to play up respectively the parts of Batman that are The Shadow + Doc Savage, to create Dark Science Batman. This one I think is a better answer as to the question "What would a fusion between The Shadow and Doc Savage look like" than my initial response of a depowered Black Terror, and this Batman would be considerably more inhuman and grandiose in scope than the other two, this would be a Batman who could dominate Justice League meetings by force of personality and create moon bases and contend with dimension-warping supervillains and whatnot.

This one is inspired by a redesign by Arryn Diaz and Dan Schkade's Jack Kirby Batman:

“In a WORLD gone MAD, this lone DETECTO-SCIENTIST must operate OUTSIDE the laws of society in order to defend its FUTURE!! BEWARE — THE BAT-MAN!!!” - Alternate Universe Jack Kirby, 1972

So these are three different directions as to how I think you could do a "Pulp Batman" well, although maybe not necessarily operating by how Earth 20 works. DC already has a billion zillion Batmen as is so I'm sure all these may have already been done at some point in Batman's history.

Of course, realistically speaking if Batman was a long-running and successful pulp hero he could have gone through variations of these depending on the decade, or the country (see: the many global variations of characters attached to the name Fantomas or Zigomar), if not the same narrative arc outright. Pulp heroes are shapeshifters by nature.

#replies tag #dc comics #batman #pulp heroes #earth 20 #bruce wayne #kirk langstrom #dan schkade #francesco francavilla #arryn diaz #denis medri #imson

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kimberly-spirits13 · 3 years

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Kryptonite Promises (Request)

Pairing: Damian Wayne x reader

Synopsis: Under the control of Lex, the reader goes through a rampage of Metropolis, threatening to level everything in her path. The only thing that can save the city is a shard of kryptonite but no one knows if they're strong enough to carry out this plan.

Note: It's sad, I made an alternative ending that isn't amazing in any way but I'm hormonal and need a happy-ish ending lmao

Warnings: Mentions of death, breakdowns, over all angst

Word Count: 6849

Lex watched on the monitors of his screens as you rampaged through the city. It was the perfect plan for the perfectly wrong motive. You tore through people and buildings, knocking them off of their foundations and leveling the things around you. It was all glorious chaos, a chaos that from his cozy, high tech office away from all of this, he could control.

“Take the president Y/N. I command it of you.” He said into an intercom that was in your ear.

“As you command.” You replied into it locking your sites onto the white house.

It would only take a matter of minutes to get from Metropolis to Washington but that was something that wouldn’t impact your tirade. From down below those that took residence in the city looked as their greatest defender destroyed the one thing they had sought out to keep safe. And from below, the love of the defender watched for his opening to break his deepest promise.

Damian looked up at you from the ground and watched in horror as you blew through buildings and set aflame parks and gasoline lines. There was only one thing that could be done at this point. You were en-route to destroy the nation and take it for Lex. At the moment, everyone was incapacitated. Clark had wanted to do it and the large piece of Kryptonite that he was given with a suit that would protect him from the shard. Currently though, he was helping civilians and had dropped the green crystal. Damian knew what he had to do and was the only one that could.

He called for your name and watched you turn towards him with the anger and rage of something he’d never seen in your eyes. They were red from using your heat vision so much and red from the guilt from the only real piece of you left.

“Y/N stop what you’re doing! Please!” He begged.

“You dare stand in my way scum?” Faster than one could register you flew down grapping his neck in your hand.

He choked out, “Beloved you have to stop this.” “Please try.”

“She’s not listening to you Robin.” A voice came from your ear.

“Lex!” Damian spat, “Leave her alone. Take her out of this trance.”

“Or what, you can’t do anything. Y/N is on her way to kill the president. There’s nothing that anyone can do about it. Now, I must be leaving. I have an assassination and inauguration to attend to.”

The comm went out and you tightened your grip around Damian’s neck. All of what he feared was coming true. It was his worst nightmare come to life. The one thing that he promised would never happen to you. It was the one thing that you feared the most besides losing him. Though, now you’d lose each other.

“Beloved- I’m sorry, I made you a promise and I have to stand by it.” He whimpered, “I love you forever and always and no less till death and after.” “Please, let this all go.”

You didn’t respond. He cried out and launched the Kryptonite into your abdomen. The cries and sobs of those around you could be heard. Suddenly, you snapped out of your state of mind but it was too late. Around the cries of your father were heard and you saw your friends and then the damage of the city.

“Dami- Damian-.” You choked a sob, “I-I didn’t I didn’t mean-“ “It was him.”

“I know Y/N I know.” He said, tears running down his face, “I’m so so so sorry.” “I’m so sorry I love you, I’m so sorry. Please don’t leave me. I can’t be without you, please, I’m sorry.”

You couldn’t really move but you were shaking. The pain was unbearable and you had taken the kryptonite out of your stomach.

“it’s okay Damian. You’re going to be okay. I’m going to miss you but we’ll see each other again I know it. I love you, I’m sorry.” Your voice trailed off and life left your body.

“NO! NO, NO, NO! PLEASE!” Damian held your body and looked up and Clark and Bruce then back to you, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry I don’t want this. It should’ve been me not her, I’m sorry!”

Clark fell on his knees and took your limp hand into his. It was still warm but it wouldn’t be that way for long. Blood soaked his and Damian’s suits and tears soaked their faces.

“My sweet girl... my beautiful baby girl. Rest well and sleep.”

Damian visits your grave often. It’s the one place that he can come to rest as he did when you were around to comfort him after his long days. He lays on your grave or sits on it often bringing your favorite flowers or things that he found that remind him of you.

“I made you a promise and I kept it. Now keep yours and meet me again in another life my love.”

ALTERNATIVE ENDING CAUSE I’M DYING NOW

“Y/N stop what you’re doing! Please!” He begged.

“You dare stand in my way scum?” Faster than one could register you flew down grapping his neck in your hand.

He choked out, “Beloved you have to stop this.” “Please try.”

“She’s not listening to you Robin.” A voice came from your ear.

“Lex!” Damian spat, “Leave her alone. Take her out of this trance.”

“Beloved-“ “Damian listen to me and listen carefully.” Bruce’s voice came over the intercom, “You have to knock her out of this, she’s on a drug right now that is composed of red kryptonite.” “There’s a reverse drug that you can administer into her blood stream that will cancel it out. It’ll be painful but not deadly.” Bruce said, “Hood will shoot it to you so that you can give her the shot.”

“Understood.” Damian said.

“Good, Count 3, 2,1.”

Damian felt something lodge onto his belt and took it to see that it was a syringe. Without hesitation, he plunged it into your thigh and breathed again once you dropped him. You screamed out holding your head. Inside your mind was the sounds of Lex screaming at you and giving you commands, Damian screaming from below, the images of the wreckage that you did. The words of your father echoed in your head but loudest of all were the new commands of Lex. In blind rage, you sought out Lex, leaving the scene and going to where Batman had tracked his signal. Within seconds, you were there. Walking in behind you would have been liked walking through the past path of a tornado. You stormed inside of his office, tearing the doors open.

“LEX!” You yelled in rage.

Lex was standing in the corner where his seat was looking at you in terror.

“Now Y/N, this isn’t what you want now is it?” He asked shaking.

“This IS what I want! It has been what I wanted for so long and now, now I get it. This planet is better without you!” Gliding over to him, you picked him up by the throat.

“Stupid girl, if you kill me, everyone will see you as a murder.” “I control you, you’re not your own!”

You smirked still with voices and anger raging through your mind, “No one can see me as a murder after all you’ve done has been exposed. Batman linked your messages to me to all international leaders. I have full diplomatic immunity.”

The realization of this all was hitting Lex and he went pale. Suddenly the thing that you were so scared of seemed so small to you. It was empowering to see him like this. The thing that you had hated for so long was so weak and brittle it was almost like one single snap would take him. And that’s what you did. His neck was lose and turned the wrong way now. Damian came busting in and saw you on the floor clutching your head.

“Beloved!” he ran over to you and saw Lex on the ground, “oh thank goodness you’re okay I didn’t- I didn’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Damian?” You asked meekly, “What- What have I done?”

“It’s okay, it’s not your fault, it’s okay. The League got everyone out it’s alright now.”

“The Leauge had to be called in?” You asked starting to cry again now.

“It’s alright I promise.”

The recovery was long and hard. Lex was dead and more and more people in his circle were being captured and arrested. It was important that what happened never happens again. Clark was happy that his child was alive but you were never quite the same after that. The old you was lost and probably nowhere to be found but after this, it was a revelation and revolution of a new era for you.

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michelo-thedreamer · 2 years

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BLOG NUMBER FOUR

February 21, 2022

Though I have held the “Mara” story in mind for more than a year, I made the decision to capture her adventure in Flight from Egypt immediately before our current class’s beginning. The story’s possibility intrigued me for several reasons but, simultaneously, terrified me. If I created this tale in short story format, I faced the challenge of limiting a complex story within a finite number of pages. This challenge currently stands as the primary one.

Photo from Logan University

The second major challenge is gaining sufficient knowledge and information to reasonably capture the characters and circumstances of this tale. Acquiring that support required a commitment to research that was second only to the essay I wrote in the Fall of 2021. Eventually I concluded I should research the following categories:

· Geographical Setting,

· Regional Sociological Setting,

· Contemporary Political Setting,

· Character Inventories,

· Totalitarianism Evaluation,

· Persecution and Persecutors: Despotic Controls

· Emotional Inventory of Those Fleeing Homelands.

Geographical Setting

My story takes place in the State of Maine, a place I claimed residency in the early 1980s and one that I explored extensively. However, much of what I recall from that period is dated, requiring a “boning up” on current information. Based on percent of land area, Maine is the most forested state in our nation; hence, Mara’s flight from coastal Maine required a circuitous route if she was to successfully escape capture. Forrest preserves would thwart her at every turn.

Fortunately, a Maine friend of mine kindly lent a dog-eared and reasonably current copy of the DeLorme Maine Road Atlas: this publication allowed me to plot a backwoods escape route to a minor border crossing station into Canada. Calculating driving times remains a minor barrier to accuracy; however, since Mara had been driving many dirt roads, I abided by a 25-mph rule that appears to be a reasonable one.

Map from VisitMaine.com

Regional Sociological Setting

An alternate heading for this research category could be worded as “what makes a Mainer tick.” Having resided in the Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, and Southern American regions in addition to Maine, I have personally concluded that Mainers, by far, possess the most interesting personalities among them all. Fiercely independent as a group, Mainers have developed a reputation as a populace not responding kindly to orders or coercion. However, like all stereotypes, exceptions exist plentifully. In addition to the many stalwart people I knew, I also encountered those fully equipped with a petty sense of meanness and vendetta that astonished me. On rare occasions I was made aware of a strange variation of the “Robin Hood syndrome”, where theft, property destruction, and even harassment were tolerable if the victims were deemed too rich or insufficiently “Maine-like.”

As I suspected, my research established that, in general, crime rates are not low in Maine except for the southern coastal areas extending from Portsmouth, NH and northeasterly through Portland and fifty miles thereafter. Crime rates are highest inland from the coast and northward toward borders with Quebec and New Brunswick. Since an excessively idealistic perception of Maine exists out-of-state, some readers might find the story villain, Cab Kapinos, not believable. His believability and of those unnamed persons assisting him in Mara’s capture remains of concern to my writing mission.

Reading the regional crime stories in the Portland Press Herald’s “Courts and Cops” section has assisted me in better understanding the sociological variations in this region.

Contemporary Political Setting

Researching this category was among the easiest of all the categories. Having been a life-long student of history, I have watched the American political scene for years. Though I do not fully understand the why’s of our current political scene (who does?) I have scrutinized it with increasing alarm.

As Flight from Egypt is obviously speculative in nature, I have blended established facts with my personal political bias and exercised artistic license to the finishing touches of a work of fiction. The reader, however, should recall that similar occurrences darkened our world repeatedly within the past 100 years and, assuredly, within each of our lifetimes.

More of this thought line later in this post.

Character Inventories

The story villain, Cab Kapinos, was created through my review of later categories relative to support of despots and totalitarian regimes. I needed to understand the mind of a character willing to perform evil deeds in the name of a doctrinal expedience. In my opinion, similar characters have existed throughout American history, with or without a despot’s presence. Cab’s physical characteristics were simply the whim of my creative pen.

The characters of Mara and Joel Michaud continue to be of challenge to me, particularly with Mara as the main and most complex character. Both characters were formed from a composite of persons that I knew and still know in Maine. I was once asked when I resided in Maine whether Mainers really wore clothes from LL Bean. My sarcastic comment was, “Only at high mass on Sundays.” Yes, I envisioned Mara partially from my review of vintage LL Bean catalogs from the 1980s and 90s.

Mara, however, is a more complex person that a two-dimensional catalog page. She is not only on the run for her life, but she’s been on the run from her own being since adolescence. Mara does not know who she is. She is somewhat clueless concerning her strengths and life priorities.

Rather than delving into tedious psychological reviews, I decided to lean heavily, in spirit, on three characters from two well received American novels: Delores Claiborne from the novel of the same name by Steven King, and Jack Twist and Ennis del Mar, both characters from the story Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx. Each of the three characters, while not in the same sense as Mara, is on the run. Each of the three has an astonishingly limited understanding of themselves as human beings.

Movie Poster - IMDb

Totalitarian Evaluation

As a student of the WW II era and the human-impacting horrors that era brought upon us, I have read many books and essays about totalitarianism. More often than not a despot acquires total power under national circumstances of crises, chaos, and abject stress. These factors were the contributors to Hitler’s rise to power and applies to the rise of Stalin, Pol Pot, Milosevic, and on. As a person who reveres the written works of philosopher and essayist Hannah Arendt, I have relied heavily on her work, The Origins of Totalitarianism (Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich, 1973). Hence, I completed much of my research in years past, though I recently read the following works to further hone my understanding:

· Death of Democracy, Benjamin Carter Hett, Henry Holt & Co., 2018,

· BBC Bitesize History Reviews: Hitler’s Rise to Power, 2022,

· �� Stalin, The Court of the Red Tsar, Simon S Montefiore, Vintage, 2005

Amazon.com

Persecution and Persecutors: Despotic Controls

Among the most fascinating aspects of totalitarian regimes are the whys of a cooperative populace. Why do some persecutors appear to thrive in the cruel circumstances of despotic controls? What manner of mentality finds success during times of duress and edict? How do the deputies of totalitarianism function?

My bible in this research continues to rest on Hannah Arendt’s classic work, Eichmann in Jerusalem, A Report on the Banality of Evil (Penguin Classics, 2006). Arendt was a double refuge from the German Nazi regime having fled from Germany initially and later from Paris where she had temporarily settled. She faced harsh criticism from fellow Jewish scholars by her portrayals of Nazi henchmen as unaccomplished dullards who chose to blind themselves to the evil they were perpetrating.

Other sources in my research included:

· Vigilantes, Brown Shirts, and the Attack on the Rule of Law, David M. Crane, The Jurist, 2020.

· Dictators and their Followers: A Theory of Dictatorship, Gustav Bychowski and Gustaw Bychowski, Bulletin of the Polish Institute of Arts and Science in America, 1943.

Emotional Inventory of Those Fleeing Homelands

Of all the categories I am examining during my research, this category has been the toughest for me. Given the charmed life I have lived, with adventure and opportunity, understanding the experiences and emotional damages dealt to those fleeing from persecution and their homelands is a nearly unattainable goal. I have little clue whether I would respond with the deliberate courage required to successfully transfer from a faltering life in one location to a reasonably acceptable one in a new land.

My research has shown that fear is the overriding motivator when flight appears necessary: fear of shelter loss, fear of bodily harm, fear for your friends and loved ones, fear of income loss, fear instilled by hunger, and fear of bodily harm. What astonishes me is the realization that those who cause this fear do so for rather simple reasons: the systematic perception that a set group of people are deemed instigators of others’ woes. Whether the persecuted people have been confirmed as instigators is of no concern to those charged with their oppression. Blind submission to edicts of hate is all that matters. As with Adolph Eichmann in 1961, even when faced with condemnation of their crimes, the perpetrators of torment continue to justify their actions.

The following have been helpful as sources of applicable information:

· The Displaced: Refugee Writers on Refugee Lives, Viet Than Nguyen, Abrams Press, 2018,

· Fleeing Persecution and Separation from Family, from Immigrants and Refugee Families, 2nd Edition, by Ballard, Dwanyen, Solheim, & Wieling, University of Minnesota Library Publishing,

· George Edel About the Stay in Paris, We Refugees Archive, 1947, and

· A Refugee Family Shares Experiences of Fleeing Persecution, Joyce Duriga, Chicago Catholic, 2017.

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rachelbethhines · 3 years

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Robin Hood and His Merry Band

list of characters for an original series I’m working on

Alan-a-Dale - the gloomy and cynical bard, the grumpy voice of reason who doesn’t give a fuck, wonders why he hangs out with these crazies, knows it’s cause they’re family to him but won’t admit it out loud, besties with Friar Tuck even though they never agree on anything, is clearly a bi disaster

The Archdeacon of Canterbury - The aging head cleric of the church of England. He supports King Richard but is becoming increasingly impotent because of his failing health. Still holds a lot of political power because of his title though.

The Azure Assassin - A deadly mercenary and rival to Robin Hood. Orphaned at a young age Azure had to steal to survive. She stowed away on a pirate ship at the age of ten and has spent the pass eight years studying fighting techniques the world over. They call her the Azure Assassin because her blue eyes are the last thing you’ll see before dying. She’s gained a modest fortune and fame as a spy and assassin, however she can never stay in one play too long due to her reputation getting out. Prince John has offered her a pardon and a place in high society if she brings in Robin Hood’s head. Shame she’s fallen in love with his brother Will Scarlet, as that complicates matters.

The Bishop of Hereford - Conservative asshole who supports Prince John’s rule and shares his beliefs on ‘bringing order to the kingdom’. Wants to usurp the Archdeacon as the head of the church. Is Friar Tuck’s and Sister Clara’s arch nemesis.

Dame Brianna DuBois - Also known as the The Black Knight, DuBois is loyal to the throne of England and whoever sits upon it. She’s Prince John’s personal bodyguard and unbeknownst to all a double agent for King Richard who is in hiding. However she is conflicted when her duty places her lover Yua in jeopardy. Yes, she’s totally a butch lesbian.

The Duke of Essex - Prince John’s adviser and right hand man. He only cares for power for power’s sake but is sneaky and conniving and willing to play the long game to get it. He prefers poison to swords, but is surprisingly good at hand to hand combat when cornered. Has a pet snake. It’s the only living thing that he loves.

Elenore of England - Prince John and King Richard’s sister and Maid Marian’s mother. She died when negotiations during a worker dispute turned violent. Unable to quell the people’s rage, she was stuck down during a riot. Richard, blaming himself for losing his temper and causing things to escalate has since tried to follow in her footsteps and become peacemaker. Prince John went the opposite route and blamed the ungrateful peasants (criminals in his mind) and resented Richard for even bothering to negotiating in the first place.

Friar Tuck - The jovial and optimistic heart of the team. He tries to keep everyone’s spirits up and believes that helping people is the ultimate expression of god’s love. Is a hopeless romantic and also very, very gay. He butts heads with more traditional leaders of the church often. He also has a not so secret crush on his best friend Alan.

Guy of Gisbourne - From pauper to nobleman, Guy is Robin’s opposite in everyway. He crawled up from the bottom rung by using and stepping on others and he’s always looking for the opportunity to climb the ranks. Don’t let his foppish ways fool you though, he is both a cunning and ruthless foe and isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty. His latest scheme however is to marry Maid Maiden and become next in line for the throne as Prince John has no other heirs save his ward.

King Richard - Good Richard the Lionhearted is no longer a bloodthirsty crusader in this alternate universe but a peacemaker. He wishes to end wars, not start them, however his more abrasive, uncouth, and impulsive nature can often clash with his loftier goals. Many feel the king would do better to stay at home and tend to domestic matters instead of concerning himself with the conflicts of other far off lands. At the start of the story he has disappeared on one of his diplomatic visits. In reality Prince John has stuck a deal with the king’s enemies and he is currently on the run.

Lady Tiffany - Little John’s little wife and the daughter of the Sherriff of Nottingham. She acts as the gang’s ‘man on the inside’ helping Robin Hood sneak in and out of places and feeding the team needed information. She’s stubborn and spoiled but also very kind hearted. She usually can get her father to give into her demands with just a pout and when that doesn’t work a full on tantum will do. She a woman who knows what she wants and what she wants is her man. Unfortunately daddy dreariest would never approve of their union and so Friar Tuck marries them in secret.

Little John - Robin’s best friend and right hand man. He’s a simple man who loves life’s simple pleasures, good food, good friends, and a good brawl from time to time. He adores his partner, Tiffany and would like nothing more than to marry her for real, in a real church, in front of the whole world. However their relationship must remained hidden from her father, the Sheriff, since the violent lawman would sooner see him hanged then have a thief for a son-in-law.

Lord Locksley - Robin’s and Will’s father. He is arrested for ‘not paying taxes’ but in reality it’s for supporting King Richard and secretly helping the displaced monarch. His arrest leads to Robin and Will becoming outlaws and the series kicks off two years later.

Maid Marian - Prince John’s ward and niece. Her mother died when she was young and her beloved uncle adopted her. Prince John is the only parent she’s ever known and she at first believes him to be a kind and just man. She’s completely oblivious of Prince’s John’s underhanded dealings and oppression of the poor and at first is skeptical of Robin Hood. However as the two grow closer, Marian learns how harsh the real world is and just how much her father figure has lied to her.

Miss Yua - Maid Marian’s lady-in-waiting and best friend. She’s the daughter of Sir Ivanhoe and longs to be a knight as well. She’s a stickler for rules and doesn’t trust Robin Hood and his gang of thieves. At first anyways, over time she too learns of Prince John’s cruelty and even becomes a victim of the tyrant’s schemes. Which puts her in direct conflict with her love, Brianna DuBois.

Much the Miller's Son - born as Midge the miller’s daughter, the young Much longs to be accepted as a boy. As such he’s ditched his dresses, cut his hair, and ran away to Sherwood Forrest in order to be free from society’s expectations. The rest of the merry band accepts Much for who he really is, but at only 13 won’t let him join their gang. He still winds up caught up in their misadventures anyways due to his refusal to listen to anybody, and his determination to get away from his overbearing mother.

Nurse Agnes - Maid Marian’s wet nurse and the closest thing to a mother that she has. Agnes believes in the ‘old ways’ and is very superstitious. She’s also very critical of royalty in general, but is smart enough not to say so out loud. She’s tried to raise Marian into a better person than Prince John, but eventually was dismissed once Marian had come of age. Since leaving the court Agnes has become the witch of the woods and a healer for the poor.

Prince John - The main antagonist. Prince John believes that he needs to bring order to the kingdom of England and feels like his brother King Richard has neglected his duties as ruler and placed the kingdom in danger. He'll do whatever it takes to protect the country including subjecting it’s undesirables.

Robin Hood - Leader of the Merry Band and archer extraordinaire, Robin Hood had to go on the lam when his father was arrest for ‘treason’. While his first priority was to keep his baby brother, Will, safe, the two of them met other outcasts in need over the years have built up an underwound network of rebels who fight against Prince John’s rule. Seemingly suave and cool at first, Robin is actually a bundle of nerves as he tries desperately to keep his friends and family safe...even if it’s mostly from themselves. His world is turned upside down though when he meets the lovely Maid Marian.

Sheriff of Nottingham - The spiteful and cruel sheriff tries to keep the small town of Nottingham under his thumb. He hates Robin Hood and his Merry Band with a passion and sees their continued exitance as a personal insult. The only thing that will deter him from his goal of putting those outlaws in their place is his devotion to his beloved daughters Tiffany. Who distracts him with her seemingly impulsive and shallow whims.

Sir Ivanhoe - A respected knight who once served under King Richard has returned home only to find that his king has not made the journey back as planned. He suspects that Prince John is up to no good, but is afraid to make any risky moves so long as his daughter Yua lives among the court. Her safety is the most important thing in the world to him.

Sister Clara - The resident nerd of Sherwood Forrest and the brains of the team. Clara had joined a convent in order to receive an education and to study science, however her experiments were frowned upon by more traditional leaders of the church, like the Bishop of Hereford. She’s since renounced her monastic vows and has joined Robin Hood’s Merry Band in the pursuit of science! She’s allowed free rein on the sole condition that she doesn’t blow up the camp. She still manages to blow up the camp, at least once a month. Still her inventions are invaluable to the team and she’s absolutely feral with her chim-bombs.

The Trapper - A mysterious hermit who sometimes visits the local pub. He’ll often corner patrons with crazy drunken ramblings and loves to give Robin cryptic prophecies and disjoined ‘clues’ whenever they run into each other. (turns out this is an act and he’s really a spy for King Richard)

Will Scarlett - Robin’s younger brother. Will was 15 when they lost their father and now at 17 wants revenge. He’s a hothead and is constantly picking fights with everyone and anyone. While he is dismissive of Robin’s overprotectiveness, he both loves and admires his brother. Even tries to emulate him in some ways. He also would like to think of himself as a smooth talking clever con artist and ladies man but more often then not his temper gets the better of him. Like most teens he’s obsessed with the latest fashion tends and loves to wear fancy clothes (that he’s usually stolen) He’s favorite article of clothing is his impractical red feathered hat. He’s in love with Azure and is best friends with Much.

#robin hood #robin hood and his merry band

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considermewhelmed · 3 years

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Achilles Come Down by Gang of Youths- Tim Drake

TW: attempted su*c*de/su*c*dal thoughts, anxiety, depression.

a/n: hey remember in the Master when I said these would be short fics? Ha. Yeah. Me too. Good times.

Tag list: @river9noble

Master

“Achilles, Achilles, Achilles come down/Won’t you get up off, get up off the roof?/You’re scaring us and all of us/Some of us love you/Achilles it’s not much but there’s proof.”

“You may feel no purpose/Nor a point for existing/It’s all just conjecture and gloom/And there may not be meaning/So find one and seize it/Do not waste yourself on this roof/Hear those bells ring deep in the soul/Chiming away for a moment/Feel your breath course frankly below/And see life as a worthy opponent.”

Tim stood on the edge of the building, overlooking the city. His cape billowed lightly in the cool air, and he took a deep breath.

‘Red Robin, report.’ Barbra’s voice asked in his ear.

Tim remained silent, his eyes scanning the streets, but his mind far away.

‘Red Robin, report.’ She repeated.

‘Red Robin, are you okay?’

A new voice broke onto the comms.

Dick.

He had been thinking a lot. About Dick. And Damian. Bruce. Steph. Babs. Duke. Luke. Cass. Kate even. There were just… so many of them. So many. One less surely wouldn’t matter?

He imagined he wouldn’t get a huge memorial like the one for Jason in the batcave- he was choosing this, he did it himself, there was no honour in that. He didn’t mind though, he wasn’t sure he even cared to be remembered.

They barely remembered him alive, why would death help?

He wondered how long it would take them to forget him. The voice is the first thing you forget about a person, when was the last time he talked to them all?

‘Red Robin, where are you?’ Dick.

‘Is his comm offline?’ Steph.

‘No, it’s online. It should be working. Receiver and all.’ Barbra.

‘Red Robin?’ Dick.

He looked down. He’d survived some pretty unlikely things, but this was too much. Too high. There was no way his heart could take his fall, let alone the pavement below waiting for his body. It called his name, whispering the promises of sweet relief with every breeze, the streetlight spotlight marking his entrance to his final bow.

‘Can you get his tracker online?’ Dick.

‘Red Robin, come in.’ Bruce.

‘No. He’s bypassed the security.’ Barbra.

‘Really Drake?’ Damian. ‘Sneaking off during patrol?’

‘Red Robin, report.’ Bruce- and Tim imagined he sounded worried in the way only Batman could be.

‘Where was his route?’ Dick.

Tim tuned them out, but couldn’t bring himself to turn the comms off completely. He didn’t have the heart to be alone- he was selfish and desperate.

He shrugged off the cape, letting it fall to the rooftop, and quietly unclipped his utility belt. He wished he felt scared, or sad, or anything, but instead he just felt numb. Human instinct should be trying to get him back safely to the solid roof behind him, but instead he just swayed in the wind, as if even his own body was impartial to the decision.

He closed his eyes and sighed quietly, rolling his shoulders back, resigning to his fate. There was no use in fighting anymore.

That was it. He felt something. Tired.

Not just tired. Exhausted. Bone deep exhaustion, the kind of exhaustion that made even sleeping a chore. Tears gathered in his eyes, and with each drop his mask got looser and looser. He thought of something to say- some sort of goodbye. Not for them, but for him, for closure. His own eulogy. Last words, maybe?

Did he deserve last words when the villain he lost to was his own mind? Internal, eternal, and inevitable? It was a dance he’d been a part of for far too long and he was just tired.

“Hey Replacement.”

Tim expected his whole body to go rigid, for his instinct to take over, for any kind of fight to bubble up inside him, itching to get out. He and Jason reconciled, sure, but sometimes when he caught him off guard, Tim still had the same knee-jerk reaction.

Instead, his body just stood there, open and unarmed. It solidified his resolve- even his instincts knew it was over. The idea that Jason could easily shoot him, or push him off the roof didn’t scare him.

Why would it?

He could hear Jason’s quiet, heavy steps as the older boy approached.

‘Red Hood, status, have you found him?’

Dick’s voice came over the comms.

Tim didn’t look at Jason. There was a soft click.

“No, not yet. I’ll keep looking. Just cover my area Dickhead.” Jason said before the soft click happened again.

The two boys were quiet for a minute.

Behind him, Tim could hear the familiar whirring of the mechanics- mechanics he helped design -that indicated the removal of Jason’s Red Hood helmet. A thump after indicated Jason had opted to ditch it on the roof.

Normally, Tim would yell at him for being so careless with his equipment, especially since Tim worked hard on the last updates, but he couldn’t even find his voice.

He heard the clatter of weapons hitting the ground, and Jason stepped closer.

“Come on Timmy,” Jason said softly, and Tim’s chest tightened at the nickname. “You’re shaking. You gotta be freezing.”

It wasn’t until Jason said something that Tim realized he was vibrating. Even the air was unforgiving in Gotham, and somewhere between his decision to step on the ledge and the loss of his cape, it turned into an icy grip that cut through the thin material of his suit.

The wind stung his face where the tears had started to slip beneath his mask. His knees buckled and he sucked in a sharp breath of air.

“I can’t.” He choked out, his hand gripping at his chest. “I- I can’t move.”

‘Red Robin?’ Dick’s voice cut through the comms. ‘Come on buddy, where are you, I’ll come get you.’

Tim couldn’t hear him over the roar of his own blood in his ears, and took his comm out of his ear, throwing it off to the side.

It was then he caught sight of Jason, and was shocked by the lack of not only helmet, but mask as well. Jason’s eyes had a green shine to them- a side effect of the pit -and they were trained on Tim.

Jason held out his hand to Tim. “Take my hand baby bird.” He murmured.

“No,” Tim cried. “I want- I should- I have to- I’m going to fall Jason-”

“No.” Jason said sternly. “No you won’t.”

Tim inched closer to the ledge. “It doesn’t matter-”

“Of course it matters dipshit, you matter. I wouldn’t be here if you didn’t.”

Tim’s lip trembled and a sob tore from his throat as his knees gave out from under him and for a split second he was falling-

And the next he was wrapped in a tight hug.

Tim reached out instinctually and grabbed onto whatever he could hold, staying as close as possible to the smell of leather, gun polish and sweat, a surprisingly comforting combination.

Maybe it was just because it meant safety.

“I’ve got you baby bird,” Jason mumbled, and he could feel Jason bury his nose in Tim’s hair. “I’ve got you.”

“I’m sorry,” He sputtered through his tears. “I’m sorry, Jay, I’m sorry,” A whole new breakdown washed over him, and he couldn’t get a grip on his emotions.

“You have nothing to apologize for,” Jason scolded him lightly, and rubbed little circles on his back. “I’ve got you.”

“I was going to do it,” Tim cried.

“I know.” Jason whispered.

“They hate me. They’re going to hate me more!” Tim whimpered. “I can’t- I don’t want-”

“I know.” Jason repeated. “But no one hates you, Tim,” He promised. “Hell, even Barbra threatened to get out here to find you.”

Tim buried his face in Jason’s chest and just stayed there. “I’m nothing more than a placeholder,” He mumbled. “I’m a pretender. A replacement.” He sniffled. “I didn’t- I didn’t even want to be Robin. God. I wanted Dick to be Robin. Batman needs Robin.” He was close to hysterics, and god Jason still didn’t know what to do.

“Maybe,” Jason agreed. “But Bruce Wayne needs Tim Drake.” Jason said quietly. “I’m pretty sure the old man would be lost without you Timmy.”

Tim shook his head and Jason snorted. “You set up the system in the batcave, make sure the Wayne business is intact and running smoothly, you’ve updated all the security, you always make sure there’s coffee in the manor, and no one makes him smile with bad jokes like you do.”

Tim stayed quiet, and Jason alternated between rubbing his back and running his hand through Tim’s hair. The boys stood there for as long as Tim needed to and Jason realized how small Tim was because Jesus Christ this was just a kid in a costume and he just wanted to be loved.

“Can we go back to the Manor?” Jason murmured. “My bike’s not far.”

Tim didn’t move.

“We can watch a movie?” He suggested. “I’ll let you pick.”

“Why are you being so nice?” Tim mumbled.

“Well… I could punch you instead if you’d like. Not sure that’ll make you feel better though.” He offered, and was rewarded by the smallest, quietest laugh. “C’mon, we can raid the kitchen.”

“You aren’t going to make me talk?” Tim asked.

Jason shook his head, tightening his grip on him. “I’m not going to make you talk about anything you don’t want to baby bird.” He said softly. “But if you want to do that, I’m here for that too.”

Tim tightened his own grip and kept close- Jason was keeping him grounded and that’s all that mattered. “What was it like?” He whispered.

Jason was quiet for a long moment, and Tim regretted asking almost immediately.

“Long.” Jason decided. “Dark. Quiet.”

“Good quiet?”

“No.” Jason said softly. “Too quiet.”

“I’m sorry.” Tim whispered.

“Me too,” Jason mumbled. “You’re not alone Timbo. I’m right here, alright?”

Tim nodded and pulled away after a moment when he felt like he could stand on his own. Jason collected their things and handed Tim his mask, cape and belt, putting his own mask and helmet back on, clipping his holsters on.

The ride back was quiet- Tim’s comm must have busted when it hit the roof, and if Jason heard anything he wasn’t giving it away. Jason came up with some half-assed lie about what happened to Barbra and the other Bats over the comms, and immediately claimed the living room for him and Tim, heading upstairs.

Tim was asleep by the end of the opening credits, tucked safely into the side of his big brother.

Maybe Tim couldn’t fight the villain in his head on his own, but having someone like Jason Todd on your side certainly made it easier.

#thebatfamplaylist #tim drake #red robin #jason todd #red hood #batman #bruce wayne #dc #dc comics #dick grayson #nightwing #damian wayne #Robin #barbra gordon #oracle #sorry this is so sad

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