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#Batman x basis
1970sgothfreak · 3 months
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“Not only was I specific about my only rule while I trained and raised you all….but you deliberately broke it knowing how I would react!” Bruce scolded, his voice harsh as he spun around to face his four sons, Jason had a look of emptiness in his eyes along with Damian, Tim looked tired and hungry and Dick….well Dick looked at peace but also…sad still.
He knew killing the joker wouldn’t bring you back yet…he felt relief knowing the man who killed you was dead but…at the same time, something in his heart felt wrong…why wasn’t Bruce happy they avenged his daughter’s murder, sure it broke the one rule he had but he had let Jason get away with the rule before, along with giving Damian a free pass on his birthday.
“Bruce, we avenged Y/n, so what if we broke the only rule you had, it wasn’t even a rule technically since you have let Damian and Jason get away with it so many times” He snapped back at his father wondering why this was suddenly a big issue.
“I am aware of that, but they had logical reasons….i need you to understand that with the kinds of threats we face there is going to be collateral damage-“
“OUR SISTER IS GONE BECAUSE OF HIM” Dick shouted interrupting his father , his voice cracking and his eyes welding up with tears, Bruce was shocked Dick had yelled, of course this wasn’t unusual because the two argued the most but still…hearing him yell out of no where while there was no argument shocked him a little.
“….was she collateral damage too..?” The eldest Wayne’s voice broke as a tear slipped out of his eye, he excused himself and left the cave leaving a tension so thick it was almost like jello….Jason followed after him along with Tim which left Bruce, Damian and Alfred alone.
Damian looked at his father but spoke not one word to him before following his brothers to comfort the eldest, Alfred simply looked at Bruce with what could be a mix of a disappointed look and a look of shame…it was hard to tell with Alfred, he walked up and looked down at Bruce.
“Master Bruce, I have known you for many years…never would I have thought I would have heard you insinuating that your daughter was collateral damage….” Was all he said before bowing and heading upstairs leaving Bruce alone, all the words said were hanging around his head and he sighed before looking over at the wall where his eyes met a photo….a photo of you and him….
You couldn’t have been older than 13 in the picture…and you had just become Robin….you looked so happy and in that moment he couldn’t believe he had called you collateral damage.
“I’m sorry…..”
He whispered, but he couldn’t tell what he was apologising for….
(Part 2 of the little one shot I did a while ago)
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flamingpudding · 6 months
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Fictober23 Prompt: 20 - "This better be good."
Fandom: DPxDC
Rating: T
Warnings: -
A green Vortex swirled in front of them and Constantine held his breath. This was not like any of the summonses he usually did. He looked over his shoulder at the others present, wondering if he could somehow bullshit his way out of this. But one thing was clear, whatever he had summoned was not one of his demons.
The Vortex continued to swirl before them, slowly greenish smoke started to rise out of him. Then suddenly a melody started to echo around them and Constantine felt like face palming.
"Uh… isn't this the Melody of This is Halloween?" The Flash asked aloud, exchanging glances with the others present.
"Constantine." Great Bats was getting grumpy, the JL Dark member thought, refusing to turn around to face any of the heroes. Ignoring them might make them stop questioning what was happening with this summon. It wasn't like there were any pressing situations, forcing this summon in hopes to prevent whatever interdimensional war Trigon was about to start. No, they hadn't forced him out and away from the curse he had been working on. Not like there were other members of the JL Dark, Constantine clearly knew the big bad Bat liked to work more with than him.
Humming resounded from the vortex now too, clearly depicting the chorus of the well known Halloween song, and John's eye twitched. The fuck kinda demon spirit did he summon now? Was whatever he summoned making fun of him just because that being got summoned in October? The rising smoke started to move, taking on a shape that appeared more humanoid as the humming started to become clearer though it sounded like it was filtered through static as it still sounded somewhat distorted.
"Shadow is the one hiding under your bed, teeth ground sharp and eyes glowing green! Spectra is the one hiding under your stairs, fingers like snakes and spiders in her hair."
The voice echoed sounding like a mix of static and white noise but became clearer the more or the green smoke escaped from the vortex. None of them really knew what was going on and Constantine was cursing up a storm in his mind. What the hell was happening right now, he just wanted to get the Spirit of Balance to help them out with Trigon? They were supposed to symbolize balance, surely they would have the easiest time to fix that imbalance the demon was about to wreck across dimensions.
"In this zone we call home, everyone hails to the ghost-like song! In this zone, don't we love it now? Clockworks' waiting for the next surprise!" The smoke was twirling around and moving like they were picking something up from inside the vortex, its shape still smokey but slowly Constantine was able to make out certain shapes of the head and arms as the voice continued to hum and then sing the static was more and more receding.
"Freakshow is the clown with the thermos to his face, sucked up in a flash and gone without a trace. I am the who when you call, 'Who's there?'. Dani is the wind blowing through your hair. Dan is the shadow on the moon at night, Frighty filling your dreams to the brim with fright!" The voice was now very clear, no interference, the smoke had fully formed a human-like body and appeared to be a white haired teen boy, though John noted, his summon was turned with his back to them appearing not to notice him or the heroes in the room and holding… Was that a Halloween party garland?
"This is Halloween, this is Hallo- who the fuck are you guys?" Mid lyrics the kid appeared to have turned around his arms raised like he was going to hang the garland of cut out pumpkins on a wall. White green eyes stared at them before the summoned eyes went to the garland in his hands that were then quickly hidden behind the teens back.
"Spirit of balance-"
"It's Ancient actually."
The spirit, ancient, cut in and Constantine hurried to correct his mistake. "Ancient of balance, we are the Justice League and have summoned you to seek your help…" Constantine started his usual spiel, ignoring Green Lantern's mutter of if that kid really was the spirit of balance as well as the judging looks and burning glare he felt on his back from Batman. He was not going over with them again about the fact that demon, spirits, ghost and the likes can look like whatever the fuck they wanted.
"Okay, stop!" The summoned teen held up a hand before John could continue. "I was in the middle of an important Halloween themed stabilization party preparation! To finally celebrate Dan after Dani pestered him for months! So this better be good, to get in the way of my first fight free weekend in years!"
"A war with demons is about to start." Constantine's head whipped around to glare at Batman, does he need to hold another course of how to properly communicate with interdimensional beings?
"That's Demon Realm Issues, not Ghost related. Could you humans stop mixing us up? I am not even from the same dimension as them and we have enough troubles with them breaching the Ghost Zone borders every month!" The summoned teen arched an eyebrow at them, crossing his arms and bringing that damned Halloween garland back into view again. They clearly didn't want to be here and if Constantine knew anything about unwilling summons then one wrong world could screw them all over right now.
"Trigon is the one starting it." Batman added and once more the JL Dark member sent the Dark knight a seething glare. That hypocrite put him through a lecture about hero behavior and cautions before, John would return the favor once the crisis was handled.
"Trigon?" His head whipped around to look at the suddenly very interested ancient of balance floating over to Batman.
"What did that big toddler do now?" It appeared like the Ancient was talking to themselves more than them as he crossed his arms completely forgetting about the wall decoration in his hands as they tilted their head in thoughts and started to ignore them. They were mumbling something John couldn't hear, for once he wished Superman was around so he could tell them with his super hearing.
"I have no idea who you guys are but, fine! I will help but only because Dan mentioned wanting to fight that overgrown toddler again. That's going to be his stabilizing day present! He can't complain this way that I got him something lame."
Constantine was about to sigh a breath of relief until he noticed the Ancient of Balance opening a good damn vortex and pulling out a snarling, red glowing eyed and blue flamed haired spirit by the neck. He paled then realizing that the being of balance just pulled the Spirit er Ancient of Wrath into their dimension. John then also noticed what appeared to be a little girl hanging like a koala of Wrath's back and then remembered a passage in the summoning text of the Spirit of Balance, he apparently had carelessly ignored.
Summoning Balance, Wrath and Mischief always stuck together. Sweating heavily, Constntine ignored any and all looks sent his way, because he was sure he might have just doomed their Dimension or at least plunged them into chaos for the time being.
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Platonic!Yandere Batman!Damian with new young robin!reader headcannons (extra points if you include uncle Jon and the league somehow)
Platonic! Yandere! Batman! Damian Wayne x Robin! Reader
Damian Wayne x reader. Yandere!Damian Wayne x reader/ Yandere Damian Wayne x Reader
Word count: 5604 words
TW: GN reader, Yandere, manipulation, adult Damian Wayne (based on Batman in Bethlehem), toxic family relations, obsession & Platonic yandere.
Okay, so I imagine that this all occurs at a time when Bruce has resigned and most of the others have moved on in some way, not only leaving Damian as the only one available and willing to take over the Batman cowl, but also making him impossibly alone. Desperate, abandoned and lonely. 
Dick is busy with his life in Blüdhaven, (either married to Barbara or Koriand’r, maybe even with a kid), working primarily as a detective for the Blüdhaven police force. He’s juggling a career, family and, obviously, his vigilante patrols at night, so the time left to visit Damian is minimal. 
Jason still occasionally patrols the streets at night, but he’s mostly out with Starfire and Roy, either playing uncle with Lian/Kori’s possible kid or doing Outlaws missions whenever Chesire/Jade Nguyen pulls herself together enough to take care of her daughter for a while. Jason is too busy getting his own life on track to even start worrying about Damian’s loneliness. 
Tim is probably still in Gotham, although he’s also busy. He’s building his own life as well, either with Bernard or some other girlfriend/boyfriend of his. He’s probably busy renovating an apartment close to the manor, on top of Wayne Enterprise work and vigilante obligations, giving him no free time to come visit for leisure time. Sure, Damian communicates with him over the comms on a daily basis, but it’s not really the same as speaking to someone face to face. Not to mention that shouting orders, descriptions and coordinates probably doesn’t count as a proper conversation.
Alfred is probably dead. I know everyone always jokes that he’s immortal, but even if he was, no one can deal with the Wayne family for more than a single lifetime. So, whether he clocked out naturally or simply, using his all-mighty Alfred powers, just decided to let his life seep out of him like air in a balloon. Alfred is gone.
In Alfed’s place, Bruce has stepped up as a type of off-brand Alfred. He’s retired his superhero alias, and now only has his CEO duties to focus on, which would’ve been a lot for most people, but this is Bruce and to him, it’s too little. So he has learned to cook, hires people to clean the house, make the beds etc. and has, (through observing the best dry cleaners he could possibly hire), learned to wash clothes, attempting to emulate Alfred as some type of coping mechanism for his absence. That doesn’t mean he has the same emotional intelligence as Alfred, it’s still Bruce we’re talking about, but he has the practicalities down. So yeah, Bruce has become an elderly man. But since he still is good old Bruce, that also means that his emotional availability is practically non-existent, made in no way better by the fact that he shut himself in even more after Alfred’s passing and most of his children flying away from the nest. Bruce longs for the old times, longs for the comforting presence of Alfred and the jolly sounds of younger people chit-chatting. Yet, no matter how much Damian might attempt to engage in longer conversations with Bruce, it’s not happening.
If you have a hard time imagining how Damian would look like Batman, think of Batman in Bethlehem. He has exchanged the unhandy cape for the much more practical coat, which not only gives him a more serious appearance but also proves to be a great weapon against the Gotham cold, as well as leaving much more room for gadgets, weapons and, just like his father, a secret compartment for treats. He is a much more menacing and unforgiving Batman compared to his father, never letting a goon get away. He is thorough to the point of near-perfection, which is damn impressive, but it’s also draining on Damian, both physically and emotionally. His father had a horde of Robins, Batgirls and the sporadic extra orphan to aid him in his pursuit for justice, all Damian has is Tim, and occasionally Jason, the latter of which is slowly coming to the realisation that sustaining the same muscle mass as a cow for decades takes a toll on your joints. 
So, even before Damian encounters you, he’s been in the search of someone to make the nightly patrolling of Gotham easier. Damian’s original intention hadn’t been to get a Robin. Actually, he considered “rescuing” an assassin from his mother’s army at the League of Assassins and reprogramming their mind through the various means that had been proven useful in war situations of the past… He did briefly consider asking Dick to contact M’gann for some “healthy” use of mind control. Yeah… Damian is not nearly as morally self-righteous as Bruce, another factor which has driven a wedge between the two.
However, then Damian met you. 
I can imagine that you had recently moved to Gotham, either with your family or alone. You’re probably no older than sixteen at the time of your and Damian's meeting, so if you’re moving to Gotham alone, you’re probably going to be at Gotham academy’s boarding school. But no matter what, you happen to be a huge Batman and, ostensibly, Robin fan. You have posters hung on your wall and photos of you dressing up as Robin when you were younger. It’s not quite Tim Drake-levels of fanboy/girl/person, but you are a bonafide fan.
So, as a fan, you enjoy looking out into the Gotham night, spotting either Red Robin or Batman pass in the air with the wires of their gliders shining in the moonlight. It gives you a sense of safety, knowing that the city has its protectors. Like any other fan, you can’t help but fantasise about how it’d feel to be one of them. How nice it must feel to have the wind hit your cheeks as you zoom through the night sky, and how cool you’d look in one of those fancy superhero suits. 
You have made multiple drawings throughout your youth of yourself as Robin or sometimes even your own made-up hero. You’ll prance around your room alone, listening to music, jumping from your desk chair to your bed to anywhere else with a flat surface, pretending that you’re a vigilante. Heck! I wouldn’t be surprised if you had begged your parents to send you to some type of martial arts as a kid. Begging, praying and practically kissing their feet until they oblige. That is, of course, if you didn’t have parents who had already sent you to karate/Jujitsu/you name it, before you yourself ever came up with that idea. 
I can imagine that the day you and Damian’s ways cross, it’s while he’s out as Batman. For some reason you’ve been left alone to go home/to the academy in the late evening hours, (a recipe for disaster in Gotham). Maybe you had to attend some school-arranged art show/science fair/literature competition and the teachers hadn’t coordinated a way for students to come home/your parents had forgotten that you were out for the night. Whatever it was, you were scared and alone, walking through the streets of Gotham at night. 
As will always happen in Gotham under such circumstances, a large shadowy man emerges from within one of Gotham’s many alleys. He’s neither quiet nor light on his feet, but he is big and the stench of piss, alcohol and decay attacks you before he even has the chance to. You might try to run, but his legs are longer than yours and he reaches you before you get anywhere. Huge grubby hands encase around your collar, heaving you up against a nearby brick wall, the rough texture cutting into the back of your head and back. You might try to use your martial arts knowledge to attempt to fend him off, and you may be successful. However, once you manage to make the man drop you, a swarm of similar-looking men emerge from the nearby alleys, alerted by the noise. They practically lick their lips at the sight of a young and defenceless school student, dumb enough to emerge after dark, it’s practically a Christmas gift for these degenerates. They surround you and you realise that you can’t fight them all, not at once. Your screams for help alert everyone in the neighbourhood, but none will come to your rescue, that’s just how Gotham functions. None…Except for Batman.
Damian hears your scream and within minutes the goons who attempted to attack you are on the floor, heads busted and limbs broken, some scramble away in fear, but end up with Damian’s grappling hook ripping a hole through their legs. The green-eyed Batman is surprisingly efficient, and it takes him no time to get you to safety, scoping you into his arms, as if you weighed less than a feather, and with his grappling hook, he flies through the air to the nearest rooftop. If you hadn’t been so traumatised and shocked by the near-death experience you just had, you might’ve been able to appreciate the experience of literally being saved by your idol. But alas you were, and the shaking of your limbs and rattling of your brain made you wholly unable to connect with reality. 
Damian is patient with you, his glowed hands trace your back as you slowly gather your breath, and once the worst shock is out of your body, he reaches into his breast pocket, where he pulls out a lolly, offering it to you. Now, one should never accept candy from a stranger, but when that stranger is Batman, you can be fairly certain it won’t be tampered with. As such, you accepted the candy with wide burning eyes. Your attempts at slowly peeling away the plastic were a hard-fought battle and Damian had to help you, slowly guiding your hand towards your mouth as you popped the candy into your mouth. The sweetness helped ground you a little, not to mention that it also helped you regain some of your lost powers.
When Damian reckons that you are mentally present again, he prompts you to tell him what happened. With trembling lips, you started to mutter out an answer, about how you had to walk alone because no one was there to get you home safely, how you’d fended one of the men off but then more just came, you almost let a sob slip, but manage to keep it in. Your emotional control and fighting spirit impress Damian, but more importantly, the utter imbecility of the adults in your life makes Damian feel a rage unlike any other.
Damian would take you home in his arms, barging through the front door of either your parents’ apartment or the front door of the academy. He ignores the protest of any adults attempting to stop him, even daring to roughly push them out of the way, as he carries you to your room, following your directions. Once he’s there, he’ll carefully put you on your bed and tug you in like a little kid, no matter your age at the time. He brushes your hair out of your face, (if you have any), and gently swipes your forehead with his thumb. This may seem like inappropriate behaviour for a stranger, but he’s Batman and you’re traumatised and still in shock. It’s his best attempt at calming you down.
Once you’re tugged in, he goes to your guardian, eyes burning with the fury of a thousand suns. He’ll scream his throat dry, reprimanding them for their carelessness, and if you’re living with your parents, he’ll threaten to call CPS on them. He’ll leave the building with a huff and a last warning of revenge should anything similar ever happen again.
It’s after this that Damian has a hard time letting go. He can’t help but constantly fear that you’re being mishandled in some way by your carers. He has nightmares of you in an alley, getting shot like his grandparents or worse… No! It’s so awful that he can’t even bear the thought. These tumultuous emotions will move him to the absolute edge, and to satiate his anxiety, even just a little, he’ll take to stalk look after you. He’ll follow your movements every free minute he has between working at Wayne Enterprises and patrolling the city as Batman, and if you have a bike or pair of shoes you often use, he’ll somehow manage to slip a tracker in there to follow your every move, even when he’s at work or out patrolling. “It’s just to keep them safe”, he’ll tell himself, justifying his actions. But really, whatever his intentions might’ve been in the beginning, they slowly morph into something darker, more possessive. Damian starts to wonder if he might not be a better parent and mentor to you than your real parents. They’re neglectful, he surmises. Either they were the ones who let you walk through Gotham at night, or they simply shipped you off to Gotham Academy, which clearly had no idea how to take care of its students.
Damian might force Bruce to attend his retelling of the night he met you, how he had to follow you around...to ensure your safety, of course! He twists the story and paints your parents as the most horrendous of people, totally disinterested in the well-being of their child, it makes Bruce pity you. Damian suggests that they take you, and make sure that you get a safer environment, with Damian adopting you, in a sense. Bruce isn’t entirely convinced of this, citing that they cannot just kidnap you from your home. However, when Damian mentions how you’re pretty much like Tim, except a better person in every regard, Bruce’s longing for nostalgia slowly creeps back through the cracks. His mind swirls with memories of little Dick, Jason, Tim and even Damian. When was the last time they had a kid, or at least a young person, in the house? It’s been so long that he barely remembers. The house is too big just for two adult men, they could really use someone to spice up the atmosphere. And as such, Bruce is on board… Not that Damian would’ve listened to him if he said otherwise.
  With the decision made that you will become the newest in a long line of adopted Waynes, Damian sets out to get you. He will attempt to make it look natural… like the way Bruce adopted Dick after his parents died… Yeah, wouldn’t it be a shame if all your aunts and uncles suddenly started having issues in their life leaving them incapable of ever taking care of themselves, let alone you if something happened to your parents? 
And wouldn’t it be even more of a shame if… let’s say, after pretty much all adults in your family either died, was run bankrupt or somehow ended up in jail… your parents finally die in a freak accident. Perhaps it’s a car crash due to someone having messed with its tailpipe? Or maybe they went to the cinema, only for the projector to hit them… and only them? It could even just be that while you’re out of the house/at the academy that they suddenly have a carbon monoxide slip in their home, making them silently sleep in the arms of the grim reaper. 
Whatever it is, your parents will mysteriously die, and with no one else in your family able to take you in, the Gotham police department is left at a standstill. If you came from another country than the US, they might talk about sending you back to an orphanage there… anything is better than Gotham… but if you’re American they’ll have no other choice than to start preparations to move you into one of the rat-infested shiteholes calling themselves Gotham orphanages.
Wherever you’re from, you don’t have to wait more than a day before someone unexpectedly shows up at the police station, just as the pitying policemen are trying to help you pack your last stuff into boxes, ready to be sent wherever you need to go. Multi-billionaire, Damian Wayne. Everyone at the station is suspicious about how the green-eyed Wayne heard about the sudden availability of an orphan without any family to go to, but he’s a Wayne, so they’re not surprised… They have a thing for adopting orphans after all. And that’s exactly what Damian proposes!
The broad-shouldered man will bow down to your level, reach out a hand, a gentle smile on his otherwise hardened features, and offer you to join him as his ward. With the horror stories you’ve heard of orphanages combined with the possibility of being adopted by a literal billionaire, you don’t hesitate to accept, albeit reluctantly. Whatever reservations the police may have is waved off by the thought that the Waynes have experience with orphans and they’ll be able to give you a life so much more engaging than anyone else ever possibly could. To most of them, this seems like the perfect ending to your otherwise sad story… If only they knew.
Any legal troubles with adopting you, or if any relative attempts to better themselves to be able to take over your care, will be solved with a wat of cash in someone corruptible’s hands and a slight threat of homicide. To anyone except Damian, the adoption went entirely smoothly and without a hitch.
Once you’re settled in with Damian and Bruce, you’ll come to realise that this life really isn’t all that you expected it to be.  The trauma of your parents’ deaths is still fresh, but Damian expects you to get over it within the first few weeks, he is after all, (in his mind at least), your new “dad/mentor”, you’re not alone…Not like he’s been for the past many years… So why can’t you just settle into your new life with vigour? Or at least not mope around most of the time! 
Bruce is more patient than Damian, he’ll let you open up to him, even if he’s bad with emotions. I can imagine that after the death of your parents, you might develop heavy night terrors, to which Bruce will attempt to calm you by sitting at your bedside until you fall asleep. If you feel especially anxious one night, Bruce will swear that he and Damian will protect you, no matter what. After a while, Damian will take over nightguard duty, realising that he needs to let you open up slowly… or at least not instantly…
Damian might start reading you bedtime stories, even if you’re technically too old for them. His voice is just so calming, its eclectic accent combined with clear brass undertones, both of which remind you of a certain hero… It makes you momentarily forget the fear and despair that came with the death of your parents, so, even if it’s a little infantilising, you appreciate Damian’s presence as you fall asleep, it makes you feel safe. 
If you’ll let him, Damian will trace calming circles on your back while reading, and if you ask him to, he’ll tell you stories from his childhood… the censored versions, he doesn’t want your delicate ears to get hurt by him explaining how he knew a million ways to kill a man before he even turned ten…
You will live a relatively comfortable life with Bruce and Damian for a while, getting introduced to the others whenever they find the time to drop by to meet the new member of the Wayne legacy, as well as getting acquainted with Jon Kent, who, (as Damian’s best friend), demands to be called uncle, despite you not even calling Damian dad… At least not yet. If all this attention on you makes you uncomfortable and feel like a zoo exhibition, Damian will immediately ban everyone except Jon and Tim from visiting for the next long while, even Dick. Tim kinda needs access to the manor for when he and Damian are doing patrol debriefings and Jon refused to not come around, besides he’s so disarming that you’ll probably get used to him quickly… whether or not you end up calling him uncle.
After a while, Damian might come to the conclusion that to truly bond with you he must give you an outlet for your frustrations… And he only knows one way that ever really worked for him… Becoming Robin.
One day, when you come home from school, Damian will command you to follow him in a tone which you had never heard him speak to you with before. It is hard, serious and foreboding, chills will spread up your back and through your fingers, a bad taste will invade the back of your throat and your breaths cut short… What did you do? Was Damian going to throw you back on the path of an orphanage kid? What had you done?
What you did not expect was for Damian to strut up to an old grandfather clock, turning the arrows on the white disk to exactly 10:47. Whether or not you’re the type of person to be easily surprised, there’s no way you wouldn’t be at least a little taken aback when the large clock swung back, revealing the entrance to what looked to be a cave.
You had no context to put it up against and as such your fear took over, making you slowly back away from the hole in the wall that had just been revealed. Damian’s weird behaviour doesn’t make the situation any better either. Really, for you, there’s no telling what’s going on.
Damian notices your hesitation and briefly takes offence until he senses your genuine fear.  “It’s nothing bad, I promise. It’s just a family secret that I trust you enough to know.” He’ll try to reassure you, whether it works or not doesn’t matter, as he picks you up like you weighed nothing and carries you down the metal steps… He doesn’t trust you to not fall and hurt yourself.
Once down in the cave, he’ll reveal to you that he’s Batman, the second one to bear the monicker. He’ll reveal the hero identities of all your “new uncles”, even Jon. All the information that he believes you could possibly need will be loaded onto you in a “brief” thirty minutes monologue. By the end of it, you’re floored… who wouldn’t be? This is probably the last thing anyone would ever consider when moving in with a new family. A bit of your fan behaviour might poke through, as you go from shocked to concerned to almost a little ecstatic… your favourite hero is your adopted father… Wow! The powers above really shone down on you after you had lost everything, huh?
But the pleasant surprises don’t stop there as Damian starts to describe how most Robins lost their birth parents somehow, (with him being the exception), and how most of them worked through this, (not really), by becoming vigilantes. You start to wonder and maybe even hope that he’ll offer the position to you, but multiple times have to remind yourself to stop dreaming, it would be unlikely, right? I mean, you might be able to fight, but not vigilante-level, right? Well… Damian disagrees, and he offers you to become his Robin. In all your star-struck wonder, you fail to see the possessive and obsessive glint in his eyes. You accept on the spot, feeling as if it’s a dream come true.
From then on, your days will be filled with nothing except school, family and Robin training, there’ll simply be no time for friends and going out doing your own thing, and Damian loves it! He believes you’re the safest when you’re within the manor or in his direct line of sight. Anywhere else is dangerous.
Damian will eventually start to suspect the safety of your school…The teachers probably don’t know how to defend you from rogues. Heck! Hey probably don’t even care for your safety! His mind ruminates on the topic for a while, until he decides to let you be homeschooled. He asks around to see if there’re any good private teachers whom he can trust, but there aren’t. None of the people he interviews ever fit his standards: One is too lax, the other too strict, one isn’t clever enough and a fourth doesn’t seem loyal enough. It’s next to impossible to fill out all the demands that the green-eyed Wayne sets up, but there’s one man whom Damian would trust with your education and safety. Bruce… If we’re all being honest, he’s probably a better teacher in all subjects than those who actually studied for the position. It’s actually Bruce’s own idea that he’ll be the one tutoring you, he can work for Wayne enterprises at home, and teach you at the same time, it’s great bonding, and Bruce enjoys your youthful presence so much. It’s a win-win situation for both men… Of course, this will also mean that you’ll become entirely isolated from anyone that isn’t Damian approved. Your social circles are suddenly limited to a bunch of adults, most of whom are vigilantes, hell-bent on keeping others safe… This has the added side-effect of depriving you of anyone who might support your suspicions, should you sound the alarm as Damian puts up more and more safety protocols to keep you out of harm's way.   
With no one else but the family, you become entirely submerged in the vigilante culture and social circles, as you train to become the new Robin. The only people you’ll see on a regular basis will be Damian, grandpa Bruce, uncle Jon and uncle Tim. Perhaps great uncle Clark will semi-regularly swing by with great aunt Lois, but that’s rare, Bruce usually goes to them. You may notice yourself becoming quite dependent on Damian and Bruce’s company and attempt to rebel, this doesn’t fly with Damian. He loves you, but he’s not the most patient of people. He will have no qualms about locking you in your room for hours or even days, only letting you out to do your Robin training.
It’ll take a long time for Damian to let you become a true Robin, he wants to be sure that you’ll be safe and have the skills to defend yourself fully. It wouldn’t even surprise me if you had already reached the age of 18 before you got to actually patrol the city, not that this would change anything, Damian would either pay someone to fake your birth certificate so that you were still his legal ward on paper or maybe just refuse to let you have any more freedom, even if you protest… at that point, he would have had years to manipulate you into being entirely loyal to the family and more specifically him, so I doubt that it’d be a real problem.
Regardless, when he does bestow upon you the right to become Robin, it’ll be the end of a long road. He’ll invite everyone in your immediate social circle to come and celebrate, even some of Bruce’s old colleagues like Hal Gordan and Barry Allen might show up, it’s a big party and it’s all about you. Any fancy dresses or suits you want? it’s yours! The entire house will be decorated in your favourite colours and all your favourite food will be served! At the end of the evening, everyone will be gathered in one of the manor’s large living rooms, and Damian will present you with your very own Robin suit. You’ll be surprised to find that it’s a real-life replica of the ones you had drawn as a child. If you wonder how he got them, Damian will simply say he had found them in the rubbish the day you moved in and he had thought it a shame to throw them out… really he had stolen the drawing from you back when he was still stalking you, having collected the perfect materials throughout your years of training, it had sometimes been a struggle to find fabric that both matched your idea of the costume as well as being practical in a field setting, but he had managed it, and now you had the perfect costume, just the way you’d always wanted it.
Damian is overprotective of you the first many times that you’re out as Robin, to the point where he barely lets you fight, out of fear that you might get hurt. But slowly and with the reassurances of both Tim, Jon and Bruce, he’ll let you fight on your own. His eyes will still always find your form the second he hears a grunt coming from your direction, but he’ll let you handle it unless he deems the situation too dangerous… which he does quite often…
Life will be fine as long as you’re by his side, he’s your Batman and you’re his Robin, and Gotham is delighted by the return of the traffic-cone-themed sidekick. Bruce will look upon you and Damian fondly, and be reminded of good-old times when that was him and Dick, or the beginning of him and Jason… Back before it all got so complicated… which is ironic because the emotions involved in you and Damian’s Batman/Robin partnership are way more complicated, dark and obsessive than any of Bruce’s ever were.
You might wonder why Bruce never opposes Damian’s obvious yandere tendencies, but, in truth, Bruce refuses to see them. After all his sons, (except Damian), moved out, he got too old to be Batman, Alfred died and his entire life practically had to be narrowed down to Wayne Enterprises and occasional visits from his boys, (most of whom he was estranged from), Bruce had lost his spark, his reason to wake up in the morning. However, when you arrived, an entirely new chapter of his life opened up. He no longer felt like he was riding through the last fourth of his life without any meaning. No, with you there, he now had the responsibilities of a grandfather! He had someone to live for and to tell his near-endless anecdotes to! Your sudden appearance in his life saved him, and as such, he couldn’t even begin to let himself see the cracks in the happy facade he depended on to keep his life going. To him, you were all a happy and healthy family, three generations: Father, son and grandchild. And no one could take that away from him, he refused.
As you grow up, still living with Damian and Bruce, switching between the two identities of Robin and y/n, the wealthy socialite, adopted by Damian Wayne, you might start to consider whether you should create something of your own, instead of just living a life that Damian created for you. You might look at photos of the old Teen Titans and Young Justice, all hung throughout the halls of Wayne manor, and think to yourself, “maybe I could do something like that too”.
If you verbalise this idea to Damian, he’ll stop whatever he’s doing, his eyes widening with fear and rage. “You want to leave us?! After everything we’ve done for you?!” You can try your best to explain that you just want to become your own person, but Damian will hear non of it. He becomes frantic and angry, making you sit and listen to him rant about how dangerous it can be for a bunch of sidekicks, not even fully-fledged heroes, to just team up and battle it out. He’ll list to you all the most horrific incidents that happened in both Teen Titans and Young Justice, the people that got permanently, the people that got seriously maimed and those who died horrifically. At the end of his hours-long rant, he’d have instilled sufficient anxiety within you to turn you off to that idea.
After your suggestion, though, Damian might realise that you could be in need of a friend around your age. He doesn’t like the idea, a mix of both jealousy and the fear that they won’t protect you makes him reluctant to seek out some of the other sidekicks, but for you and your mental well-being, he’ll do anything. So he finds a sidekick, it could be Jon’s… actually, it’s most likely Jon’s sidekick, I can’t really see him trusting anyone else. But he’ll go up to them and practically demand that they befriend you. If they’re anything like Jon, and I can imagine that they are, they’ll accept with a big smile.
You may have a hard time befriending Jon’s sidekick, especially if your personalities aren’t compatible, however, they’re the only other person around your age you have, so you’ll have to make do. Eventually becoming best friends, even if you can’t stand them.
Any other need you could possibly have, Damian will always find a way to satiate it without ever giving you your freedom. It’ll be the most infuriating game of pulling rope, he’ll always give in to your demands, but in a way that just further cements your inability to escape him.
Damian will never let you go, not as long as he lives. If you try to get married… hah! No. Not happening. If you wanna go to university, he’ll hire tutors to come to your home. You’re never escaping and Damian isn’t coy about showing his possessiveness and platonic obsession with you. You’re his kid, even if you refuse. Really, you should have just stayed home that fateful night when you met, because now you’re stuck as Damian’s Robin, forever.
A/N: Yes, you can just ignore this, it's mostly for the user who sent in the request.
Thank you for this idea! I hope you like what I did with it!
I'm really sorry that these take so long to come out lately, but I have my final exams in a little over a month, (they start on the 1st of May), so I'm in a pretty tight spot for time recently, I'll obviously become more productive when they're all done, and I do also have another full one shot of Damian in the works. For the anon who requested this, I would just like to say, you had a wonderful idea, and I hope I did it justice, it didn't really go where I had originally intended it to, but I hope that this is what you might've preferred either way.
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jasntodds · 2 months
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Petrichor [17]
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Pairing: Jason Todd x Fem!Powered!Reader (little bit of fwb)
Words: 12,212
Chapter Warnings: Swearing, angst, little bit of hurt/comfort, blood, gunshot, canon violence, mention of Jason pushing a serial rapist from a building
Summary: ❝Pylades: I’ll take care of you. Orestes: It’s rotten work. Pylades: Not to me. Not if it’s you.❞
Gotham is home, not just for Jason but for you, too. And now that you’re both finally back home, together, you’re ready to see where this next chapter brings the two of you. He’s your best friend and you’re his. And you both might want a little something more with being back home, the place you both feel most comfortable. Surely, nothing could possibly go wrong now.
A/N: I can't believe we're almost done with season 3 and then we can move onto season 4 (I have a plan) lol You can add yourself to the tag list below, ask me to be tagged, or you can follow my library blog @jasntoddslibrary  and turn on notifications if you prefer that!! I love feedback, I swear it keeps me posting on a weekly basis 😭
series masterlist | masterlist | tag list
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You're still sitting on Jason's bed, eating a few of the granola bars he gave you and drinking water to gather the energy to make your way back to the manor. And for just this hour, it's peaceful. You're scrolling on your phone as it charges, just scrolling through Instagram and catching up on some things you've missed while also quickly scrolling away from whatever chaos about Gotham someone is posting. It's peaceful for once even when you know it won't be soon. It is nice. For right now.
But, then your phone starts vibrating before your scrolling is interrupted with a video taking up your entire screen. The screen is black for a few seconds before the Batman symbol appears on your screen as Crane's voice starts talking.
"Gotham City used to have a protector, a guardian angel." Crane's voice says as it switches to a red Titans symbol.
That's not good.
"But Batman abandoned Gotham and left Nightwing and his friends in his place." A screen showing every Titan, including Sam, shows up on the screen with "Titans wanted" at the bottom of the screen. Then it switches to a clip of Nightwing fighting. "And what has Nightwing done?" Crane asks as texts calling Nightwing a thief, liar, and a conman flash across the clip. "He's robbing you. Poisoning the very water you drink," The clip changes to one of Gar as a tiger, attacking someone. "The water you give your children. Nightwing is a criminal." The clip changes to one of Nightwing and Starfire blowing up one of the drum barrels that poisoned the water. "Protected by Gotham City Police. Only you can stop him. There will be a $50,000 reward paid to the person who brings him in. Dead or alive." The clip changes again to a clip of Gar changing into a tiger. "But take heart Gotham, a new hero will rise and you will know his name." The clip changes to Jason's Red Hood symbol with a picture of the helmet on top. "Red Hood."
"Oh fuck." You groan.
None of you can really catch a break for longer than five minutes. And you find yourself even more irritated that Crane had the audacity to think Jason would just go back to him after almost killing you. Crane really thinks you don't mean anything to each other and you swear that's his downfall, underestimating what you mean to each other. Because Crane doesn't know Jason isn't going to be on his side anymore. Though this video seems like it's going to complicate things.
It's been bad enough with Jason wanting Dick dead the last few weeks but now the entire city of Gotham is going to want him dead. Gothamites already aren't thrilled with the Titans and this going to push them over the edge. They're already upset Batman abandoned them after Robin was killed. It seems like the city didn't mean too much to Batman if he fucks off the second Robin is killed. Gotham has been absconded and Crane is going to use their distrust and distaste over the situation against the Titans.
You let out an annoyed huff before ripping your phone from the charger and grabbing another granola bar for the road. You have to get back to the manor before every citizen in Gotham decides to become a bounty hunter. You don't have your suit but you're thinking it might be safer to get the hell out of the city sooner rather than later.
When you get to the manor, it's empty. The manor has always had a way of seeming just a little too quiet. It's a big space with only a handful of people living in the halls at any given time. It didn't bother you much before, because Jason's voice tended to bounce off the walls, etch itself into the plaster. And with so many Titans around, it filled a bit of the silent void but today, as you walk in, it's quiet. The hairs on the back of your neck start to stand on end because, from your experience, quiet in a place that's not usually quiet, is bad. You grab a knife from your belt as you make your way, quietly into the Batcave.
With every step, you try to figure out why you're being so paranoid about this. It's the Batcave. No one outside of the Titans or Bruce would even be down here and the Titans are likely out trying to sort out the mess Crane just created for them. But, something in you grips your knife tighter as if it's some sort of sick reflex to always dread for the worst. Maybe that's growing to be a bit exhausting, too.
Your worry washes away as you enter the main area of the cave and see Dick standing in front of the Batcomputer with his arms crossed, his eyes glued to the monitor. You pocket your knife as you continue to walk closer to him, gaining his attention. A sense of relief pools at the bit of Dick's stomach to see you're alive and walking. It wasn't just Gar that was worried about what happened to you.
"Where the hell were you?" Dick questions, not skipping a beat.
"Walking." You shake your head, looking at the screens to see the other Titans fighting what seems to be civilians. "Given the broadcast Crane put out, do you really think it's such a good idea to have them fighting civilians?" You look up at Dick, a look of worry and sorrow washing over your tired features.
Dick gives you a harsh glare that softens the second his eyes meet yours. He shakes his head before looking back at the Batcomputer. You watch Kory fight someone and watch their body twist into positions it should not. The man gets up, foaming viciously from the mouth like a bad case of rabies.
"Kory." Dick warns.
"What the fuck did I miss?" You question as you scrunch your nose in disgust.
It has to be the water because the more you watch, it's as if this person is bending like a zombie from a movie or something. He won't stay down and he looks rabid but his bones are broken and it's as if he doesn't even notice. It almost reminds you of the Rage Virus from 28 Days Later, just without the blood.
Kory takes another hit to the man and this time he goes and stays down.
"A lot." Dick mutters. "Maybe it wasn't a good idea, me staying here."
"No, you got a fifty thousand dollar bounty on your head. It'd only make things worse." Kory says.
"I got another one." Gar says as a man with an axe starts to walk towards him and fight. "Oh, come on, Pal." Gar groans before he starts fighting this guy until he goes down.
"Looks like the worst of it is over." Dick says, not seeing any other civilians that look to be affected.
"Hold that thought." Kory says as more innocent civilians walk over but they all keep their distance from the Titans.
"Please, don't hurt us." A civilian yells.
"Shit." Dick mutters.
On the one hand, you're a little offended these people saw one video and immediately switched sides. But, on the other, Batman abandoned them and ever since Nightwing and the Titans showed up, Gotham has been more of a shitshow than usual. To some extent, you can kind of see why they're upset and distrusting of the Titans. It's also Crane who can manipulate most people. But you want to know where their sense of loyalty is. So many people just throw their loyalty to the side when one thing goes wrong. You think it's actually pretty sad.
"Everything's alright." Kory assures them.
"You're Titans, Nightwing's gang."
"No, we're not much of a gang, really. More like roommates." Gar says back, trying to make light of the situation the best he can.
"Just get the fuck out of here and leave us alone." Another civilian says.
"We're here to help." Conner says. "That video you saw, it's all lies."
"They're the reason the water's poisoned." A civilian yells.
"Kory, get em out of there." Dick states.
"He wants us to just leave?" Conner asks.
"I vote stay. Give them a good reminder of which side we're on." Blackfire says.
"If you stay, it'll only get worse." Dick says. "Get out. Now."
The Titans do as directed, leaving the people to themselves. You look up to Dick who just looks frustrated. It must be hard to make a call like that when he's been raised for years to always help. The people have always wanted his help. Now, they don't want anything to do with him or the Titans. The Titans became some sort of collateral damage in it. It can't be easy and you feel for him.
"So..." You clear your throat, breaking the silence. "You were right. He did plan to poison people but...he just outed that? And the GCPD also put out a warning anyway? So, most of the city isn't infected."
"Luckily. We just have bounties on our heads while we're dealing with this." Dick lets out a scoff. "Do you want to explain what the hell happened last night?" Dick looks back at you with the raise of his brows, a look you're kind of tired of receiving. It's always the look of disappointment that makes you feel guilty.
"Well...I just...I just wanted to make sure you weren't gonna attack Jason so I went. And then, uh, I ran into Tim who was following Jason." You explain, earning a look screaming 'told you so' from Dick. "Crane was there first though, picked up a gun, and then he shot us." You look to the floor, your heart still feeling like it's filled with lead at the thought of Tim lying on the ground. "And I told Jason to run when he showed up because I knew you'd blame him because you always do. Took some convincing but he listened and I said I'd talk to you. It was all Crane. Not Jason." You nod your head once. "Then...I just-just couldn't do so I left and walked around. I ended up at Jason's a couple hours ago."
Dick nods his head with understanding. As much as he would appreciate you listening to him every once in awhile, he's starting to accept that you're going to do what's best for you and Jason regardless on what he says. Some part of him might find some part of that at least admirable. At least someone here has some loyalty, even if it ends up hurting the Titans. Most of him is still annoyed though and really wants you to understand that what he does and says is for everyone's best interest. Jason included most of the time. But, he is glad you're okay.
"So Crane shot the both of you because you were there?" Dick asks for clarity.
"Basically. I think he really just wants me dead but Tim was there. Which, uh...h-how is-is he?" You ask, dodging Dick's face.
"I don't know." Dick answers honestly. "He had a pulse when the ambulance took him."
"Cool." You nod softly, knowing you'll need to find your way to the hospital or Excellent Gotham later to find out how he is. "So, um...Jason's still on our side, by the way."
"Are you sure?"
You nod. "Yeah, Crane shot me and tried to kill me." You offer a wide smile. "He's a dead man walking now." You offer a chuckle. "So, he's working with Crane now to try and find out what his next step is. Poisoning the water system can't be his only plan, especially with that video. Jason wasn't gone long enough to have shit to do with it so he's got something else planned and Jason's going to try and get it out of him by pretending to be on his side."
Dick pauses, squinting his eyes at you before he looks back to the monitor. He doesn't like it because he's not sure they can trust Jason. You can all you want. You haven't been Jason's target the last two weeks. But, if this works, at least they have someone on the inside.
"What makes you think Crane will believe Jason is still with him?" Dick asks. "If you've been someone Crane has wanted dead and Jason refused, why would that suddenly change?"
"Because Crane is an arrogant ass." You quip right back. "He already had that video ready to go. He knew Jason would come back to him regardless. Though, I think he might have thought I'd die and I didn't. But, with the video up, I think Crane thinks he still has Jason. Also, Jason is more than willing to convince him just to tear him down later. Revenge is great motivation." You nod your head with confidence.
"Right." Dick nods his head, looking a bit displeased with your last words. "Alright, fine." Dick agrees knowing having Jason not trying to kill them is a lot better than nothing. "Where does that leave you then? I need to know where you plan to stand with everything that's happening."
"Since Crane grouped me with you guys, I'm with you and yes, I will listen." You roll your eyes.
"Yeah, I've heard that before." Dick snarks back.
"Yeah." You laugh softly. "Well, I'm with you guys. Gotta be anyway. Gotta make Crane think me and Jason are on opposite sides." You shrug your good shoulder.
Dick nods softly. "Alright." He clears his throat. "You're gonna stick with Gar this time."
"Stick with Gar." You echo.
"Good." Dick nods his head, grabbing his jacket from the chair. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah." You nod your head quickly. "Uh...Jason helped. He, uh, he got the bullet out and everything so I'm good." You offer him a thumbs-up with a closed-mouth smile.
"Okay, good. I'm glad you're okay." Dick nods once. "I'm going to meet with Babs, the Titans are on their way back. Stay here until they get back and fill them in."
"Will do, Dickolas." You nod your head once, sucking in a breath before Dick shakes his head and heads out of the Batcave.
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When the Titans get back, you fill them in just as Dick asked you to. They aren't too happy about being pulled out from the streets but they also understand Dick's point of view of the situation. Everyone just hopes his meeting with Babs is to think of some sort of plan to get the city back. So, while you all wait for Dick to get back and tell you the next move, Gar shows you some of the things he's found about the Lazarus Pit including Bruce's notes about Ra's al Ghul. It doesn't say where the Pit is. It does say there are more but Bruce had sealed most of them off. That's all Gar really got so the two of you dive in to find out if you can find out how Ra's made it and what else it could be used for. It doesn't sit right with either of you that Jason was brought back to life using the Pit but no one even knows where it is or how it works or how it was created. So, you search as you wait.
When Dick comes back, he gathers everyone in the living room for a meeting. He stands in front of the main living area while everyone is scattered around, standing and waiting for what he has to say. Dick then explains that him and Babs think it's in everyone's best interest if the Titans turn themselves in. The room falls deadly silent with his words, everyone mostly looking at each other before looking back to Dick. According to Dick, it's for the best and it'll be just a show.
"So, we turn ourselves in and then what?" Gar asks.
"And then we post bail." Dick says. "Continue doing our work but in a less public way. Work in the shadows. Take the city back night by night. It's not gonna be easy and it's not gonna be fast but we can do it. If you have a better idea, please now's the time." Dick gestures a hand to the room before crossing his arms.
"They hate us." Gar says softly, voice etched in hints of defeat.
"They've been manipulated into hating us by Crane." Kory corrects.
"Y/n, Conner, Blackfire, what do you think?" Dick asks.
"It was brutal out there. I don't want to be looked at like that again." Conner says, his voice almost matching Gar's.
"Well, surrender isn't my thing. But I am used to people looking at me like I'm a monster so whatever you all decide on, I'm in." Blackfire states.
You hang your head and you think it's a horrible idea. You trust Babs, absolutely but there are parts of the GCPD that have been corrupt long before and long before her dad and long before Barnes. It doesn't matter how good someone's intentions are in the GCPD because there are always others within the PD who don't care about the greater good or what's good for even themselves. If anyone should know that, it should be the former detective. Does Dick really think him and Babs can just protect all of you? If people in the GCPD were corrupt before, they're going to be corrupt now. Crane got the entire city to hate all of you with one video, how do you all know Crane doesn't have eyes in the department?
"I think it's a bad idea." You say quietly.
"You weren't out there." Conner states.
"No, I know." You nod your head. "And I don't care if people look at me like that. They look anyway." You say softly, tugging your sleeve over your hands. "I just...we trust Babs but does Babs trust every single person in the department?" You look back at Dick.
"We won't be dealing with everyone. It'll be a select few to put on a show, make it seem legit." Dick explains. "You're just coming to our side. It's up to you if you want to go through with this."
You look to Gar and maybe it's against your better judgment but they are your friends, your family. You've done everything to protect Jason and it seems like that might be fixing itself now. Which means you need to fix your own relations with the Titans. And that, for you, means following Dick even if you think it's a bad idea. Plus, you really need to sell you being with the Titans, at least for Jason's own safety against Crane. You don't want him getting wind of Jason not actually being on his side.
"No, I'll do it." You nod your head, earning a quick look from Gar, surprised you agreed. "You just have to be sure this is going to be safe. I trust Babs. I don't trust any other person in that entire department."
"Why not?" Conner asks.
You look to Conner and you don't want to burst his bubble into trusting this plan. You will happily pop the bubble of police for him later. "Just don't." You keep it short.
"It'll be safe." Dick assures you.
"Alright then." You agree.
"Kory?" Dick asks.
"We've played it by the book so far and this is where it's led us. So, maybe you're right. Maybe we try a new way. I'm in." Kory says.
"Alright then, let's suit up." Dick states. "We go in together. As a team. As a family."
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While Dick was busy talking with the Titans about turning yourselves in, Jason is the one who started to panic with pure rage. After Jason's managed to convince Crane that they're still good and Jason agrees with him, Crane got word from one of his moles in the department. The commissioner is setting up for the Titans to be "arrested" and then let you all post bail. The commissioner is in on it but Crane was prepared for that. The commissioner has always had a hand in helping Batman and company. So, when Crane gets word, he sends Jason with a bag full of money to pay this mole off with several of the other cops who ride with him to take in the Titans. Override the commissioner. Bring the Titans to Crane.
If Crane gets the Titans, with everything in the Batcave, that's where Jason's worry comes in. The Titans still stand a good chance but if Crane gets all of these guys to go with him and given how unlucky the Titans have been lately, Jason is growing more and more concerned. If Crane has the Titans, the city goes to Hell. It will be destroyed. Jason doesn't know what else Caane is planning but he does know whatever it is, it's not for the greater good of the city. So, he does what Crane asks him, hoping he'll be able to call the Titans to call it off. Maybe Dick will say the others didn't want any part of it. Or maybe you will back out of it if you even agreed to it in the first place and then you and Jason can figure something out. So, once the deal is done and the plan is set into motion, Jason calls you.
But, as his own luck would have it, you don't answer. It rings and rings and then just goes to voicemail. His best guess? Dick has already set the plan into motion with all of you and you're preparing to turn yourselves in. You're going to side with Dick to make this whole thing believable even though Jason figures you're against this whole plan. You're too smart to fall for something like this. You'll go overprepared but you'll be the only one. So, Jason keeps calling, desperate to warn you and he tries Dick but that goes to voicemail, too. He tries Gar and nothing. None of you are answering your phones which leaves him two choices.
Keep trying until one of you picks up and hope for the best. Or, he can go to GCPD himself to try and warn you -- or help if he's too late.
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Once all of you are suited up and ready to go, Dick goes over the plan one more time just for extra clarity to make sure everyone is on the same page. All of you are going to pile into some SUVs, ride over, walk in, and then Babs will take it from there having you all be fake processed and the bail will be fake. Then, all of you get to go right back to the manor. In and out. It seems simple but no part of this has been simple. But, none of you argue. All of you nod along and once it's time, you pile into the SUVs just as Dick said.
You hop into the SUV with Gar, Conner, Blackfire, and Krypto while Kory and Dick take the other SUV. Krypto sits in between you and Gar in the back while Conner drives and Blackfire takes passenger. You find yourself watching the city pass by on the drive, your stomach twisting into knots. The last time you were arrested, you ended up with Jerry. This whole thing just seems like such a bad idea. And if it is and you have to fight back, that's even worse. That's just a bigger target on your backs if you can get out of there in one piece. There just had to be another way to win the city back. The city wasn't always on Batman's side.
"On Tamaran, it is called The Pit." Blackfire starts, pulling you from your thoughts. "It's dark. So dark, you cannot even see your hand." She explains, making you and Gar both look to your hands and then at each other.
Conner picks up her hand, intertwining his fingers with hers. "It isn't like that here." Conner says. "Right?" Conner looks in the rearview mirror for reassurance from Gar and you.
"Right." Gar starts. "I-it's totally not like that. It's gonna be fine." Gar offers a smile but you swear it's incredibly unconvincing. "Dick and Barabara have a plan. We're just going to go in and out. This is really just all for show." Gar explains, looking to you for reassurance. And now you just think he's trying to convince himself.
"Yeah, it's really not like that." You add in. It isn't like The Pit. It's not great and it sucks. There is a lot of unfairness and cruelty but it's not The Pit. And you think telling Blackfire everything about the corruption among the GCPD, probably won't help the situation. "I've been for real arrested once. It's not like The Pit." You explain, omitting every other detail.
"We'll be together the whole time. I've got you." Conner assures Blackfire with a calm but firm tone. "I promise." He glances over to her with a soft smile as you catch him squeeze her hand.
You smile softly because for all anyone knows, this isn't going to work out. Nothing has gone to plan but Conner still offers reassurance anyway and it's kind of sweet to watch. Gar offers a chuckle, catching the smile on your lips. It earns him a light shove with the roll of your eyes. It's just nice seeing the two of them unbothered by everything that's happening. It's maybe even a little cathartic in a weird way.
Within a few more minutes, both SUVs pull up to the back of the GCPD. There are snipers on the roof and several GCPD officers standing guard with full swat gear outside of the doors. This is supposed to be for show but you're really not buying it. This is a lot of people for something that's supposed to be fake.
Everyone starts to get out of their vehicles, you meeting up with Gar in the front of the SUV.
"You okay?" Gar whispers. "I mean, we trust Barbara." Gar nods his head, his brows raised as if looking for some form of reassurance from you. This isn't sitting right with him either.
"Yeah." You shake your head, eyeing one of the snipers on top of the roof. There are ten total and you start to think of an exit strategy to avoid them or take them out on your way if it comes to it. "If shit goes south, get out of here immediately. I'll be right behind you and stay close to the building until you reach the back alley. Less light and I didn't see snipers over there." You whisper back, pulling your attention right back to Gar.
Gar gulps, looking up at the roof where the guns are pointed right at you. "That wasn't reassuring." Gar almost whines as he looks back to you.
"Wasn't supposed to be." You shake your head, as you chew the inside of your cheek before you start walking. Gar follows right behind you until he's walking side-by-side.
The two of you fall in line right behind Kory and Dick while Conner, Blackfire, and Krypto follow Gar and you. As you all make your way to the entrance, every single person with a gun, trains their weapons on all of you. The Titans are the targets and these people are just waiting for the signal to start shooting. That's what it feels like. Being a vigilante is illegal, technically, but this is...a lot.
"This seems excessive." Kory states as all of you enter the building, passing by even more men with guns and swat gear.
"Barbara cleared it with me." Dick states. "It's all for show. They need to stand their ground." Dick states and you roll your eyes. Basically, they need to stroke cops' egos. What else is new?
"This is just optics, right?" Gar asks Dick, the growing pit in his stomach is starting to bubble. Gar doesn't normally second guess Dick's plans but tonight, he is. This seems wrong.
"Optics." Dick confirms calmly.
The Titans stand on the main level, looking up to the second floor where Babs and one of her right hands is standing beside her looking over the railing. There are cops on all sides of you and above you, covered in their swat gear with shields. Dick can say it's optics all he wants but you're getting a really bad feeling about this one. And then Blackfire bumps into you, making you and Gar turn around. One of the cops, used his shield to bump her and Conner used his superspeed to immediately be at Blackfire's side.
"Back off." Conner threatens, standing toe-to-toe with the cop that shoved her.
This is bad.
This is bad.
This is about to be really, really bad.
You look around as the cops start to slowly close in on all of you. This is not good. If this is optics and a show, they've done it. The show has been shown and it's time to get the hell out of here and finish the plan. There is no reason for them to be approaching the Titans. Not if they're on Barbara's side.
Dick sticks out of his hand, easing them away but it's not working. They're not going to listen to him. They just keep closing in with their shields and weapons pointed right at all of you. The Titans might not be here for a fight, but very clearly, the GCPD definitely is.
"Easy. We're not here for a fight." Dick states, keeping his voice calm but stern as to not piss anyone off.
"Move in." One of the men up top states, demanding the entire room.
Everything falls into slow motion as you look up to him, the other Titans and Barbara doing the same. It's as if everything starts to crumble at your feet. You are severely outnumbered and outgunned. This was a bad idea and you knew it was. It shouldn't have been but no one can trust people outside Barbara. That's how it is and now you're all trapped in this mess.
The cops start to close in, shoving all of the Titans. They try to shove you into smaller sections in order to separate you but you stand in between Gar and Dick as your hands form into fists. Your eyes scan the room quickly and there are fewer men up top. You could get up there and escape pretty easily with the grappling hook.
"Stand down!" Barbara yells but they aren't listening. They don't work for her anymore.
"There." You whisper to Gar, looking up to the second floor. "When you get the chance, get up there."
"What?" Gar questions quickly.
"They'll be too distracted by what's happening on the floor. You can get up there easily as a tiger and I can follow you." You nod your head once at him, reaching for a knife from your utility belt as you prepare for your own opening the second things start to turn violent.
This isn't going to be peaceful. Gar sees the knife in your hand, your hand gripping it tightly and he wonders when you became so prepared for everything to go south. He wonders if it's just trauma build-up like a clogged artery preparing for a heart attack or if this is a Bruce thing or maybe even a Jason thing. You never came here with any form of optimism.
Conner holds some of them off while others start to crowd Gar and you. Dick is entirely covered in cops before he shoves them off of him but then a gunshot rings out through the GCPD, Conner stopping the bullet with his hand. You, Gar, and Kory look over just in time to see the cop fire a second bullet and this time, it hits Blackfire.
"No!" Kory yells.
And that's when all hell breaks loose. Conner starts attacking the cop that shot Blackfire while the other cops jump in to attack the rest of you. Three go for you but you're quicker than they are, already having your free hand glow at your side. They're covered in protective gear and with the shield, you know you're not going to make any good shots with a knife. Desperate times, desperate measures. So, you pocket the knife and your other hand glows before you shoot acid at one of the men and the shield starts to melt. The other men keep coming closer, you punching and kicking them before you touch them with your hands, the acid melting right through their uniforms as they let out blood-curdling screams. The fabric and plastic becomes burned into their skin, sending them to the ground in agonizing pain.
Once those men are down, you jump in to help Gar so he can transform. You distract them and fight them until Gar jumps from behind you and then in front of you, fully turned into a green tiger. You can feel the bullet wound slowing you down. It's aching and throbbing, taking more of your energy you could really use right about now. And you swear you can feel blood leaking from the wound and down your arm as you land a right hook to one of the cops. That's when you hear that same guy above you, telling his men to shoot Gar.
"You gotta get out of here." You urge, shooting a hand full of acid at another man and melting his shield.
But, it's too late, as Gar defends himself, a tranquilizer is shot right out at him and he lets out a growl in response. This is just like the tower. Outnumbered. Outgunned. Even with the other Titans, you don't stand a chance. You can hear the other Titans fighting, getting a glimpse of the fire coming from Kory and Dick and Conner fighting hard. All of you need to get out of here.
"Go!" You point to the top, right where the man is. "Go, I'll be right behind you." You hold off the other men, giving Gar time to jump to the second level and head towards the exit.
You follow him, shooting your grappling hook to the top. The man pulls out his gun just as you reach him. With your feet planted on the floor, you put your hands up, the throbbing the front of your head echoing like a beating drum. He cowered when Gar jumped up here. You are fully confident even with a bum shoulder you could wrestle that gun from him with ease.
"Put the gun down!" You hear Barbara yell and that's when his eyes dart to her for just a second, giving you the perfect opportunity.
You lunge forward, grabbing the gun and then his wrist, twisting his arm. You squeeze and turn, just as Jason had taught you in several of your training sessions and then he drops the gun. You grab it before he even has a chance and you turn the gun on him.
One pull of the trigger and he's dead. That's all it would take. And you're ready to do it. All of the fighting is happening below you and yeah, maybe this guy is just under Crane's shit. But, you're really sick of it. He's not high. He's not drugged. He didn't have to join Crane but he did and he just got Gar shot. It feels like minutes as you almost debate shooting him at point-blank range but it's been five seconds. Five seconds for Barbara to realize you might not back down. Five seconds for the shooter behind you to aim his own gun at your back, kickstarting the throbbing in the back of your head.
"Bluejay!" Barbara yells and you grit your teeth.
Fine.
You spin around, aiming the gun at the shooter's leg and shoot just once. It sends him to the ground and then you take off, not leaving the gun behind. You're real sick of people hurting the people you care about. He was going to shoot you on your way out anyway. Do or die. Kill or be killed.
You find Gar outside, limping as the tranquilizer is starting to take effect. He's not going to make it far and Sam needs to find somewhere for him to go. There has to be somewhere near here. And that's when she realizes...Gar isn't shot. Besides the tranquilizer. Sam looks up, not seeing a single sniper or cop on the roof and then she looks around the parking lot, not seeing anyone here either.
What the fuck?
That's weird given how many were here when the Titans arrived. That also cannot possibly be good. You roll your eyes and decide you both just need to get out of here and you'll find somewhere on the way. There's a tunnel entrance not far and you're pretty sure you and Gar can hide there until you think of a better place.
"Follow me, we're gonna go to the tunnels." You whisper to him as the two of you head for the alley that leads out to a side street.
The two of you run off to the alley, Gar slower than usual and your cape flowing behind you. Your shoulder is aching and you can feel the adrenaline wanting to crash. You're certain now that it's bleeding and your hand is shaking. Your entire arm is shaking. Gar isn't the only one who needs to take a breather.
The two of you exit through the alley and make your way on a sidewalk. You know if you take the sidewalk down to the intersection, you can cross over and head into an alley on that side of the street. The tunnel entrance will only be a block away and you'll be on the right side of the street.
But just as you and Gar go to walk past an alley right before the intersection, your head throbs from the side right before someone grabs your arm, yanking you into the alley. You fight back until the person spins you around and then you stop as relief comes over you.
"It's me. It's fine." Jason urges through the helmet just as Gar walks into the alley having seen you get grabbed by Jason.
"What the fuck are you doing here?" You spit back.
"You guys have to get the fuck off the streets. They'll be looking for you. Come with me." Jason urges you and Gar, trying to walk past but you and Gar block him.
"Answer me, Jason." Your eyes are narrowed at him and without seeing your mouth, Jason knows you're gritting your teeth behind the mask.
"I'll explain but let me get you guys somewhere safe first. You think those snipers just went on a fucking coffee run?" Jason quips back making you look to the Gar. Gar shakes his head and you let out a breath.
"You?" You ask, your eyes narrowing. How the fuck did he know to be there?
Jason nods. "Let's go before they show up." Jason's voice is stern and almost forceful as he walks past them.
Jason leads the two of you across the street and down a different alley. You exclusively take alleys and you're just relieved they clearly used a tranquilizer that wasn't as potent as the one CADMUS used. Gar is still slowing down but he's at least awake. But, you're still stuck trying to figure out how Jason knew and why he didn't do anything about it. You were all just attacked and you all could have been killed. He knew though. Pretending to be with Crane doesn't mean screwing the Titans over. You know there is probably an explanation but right now, you're pissed off and scared and in pain.
You reach an abandoned building and Jason opens the door in the back for the three of you. The three of you make your way upstairs and into a room with boarded-up windows. This place doesn't have any type of belongings but you're willing to bet Jason is hoarding the place. Jason would probably never not have a place to go after everything. Gar practically collapses on the floor before he starts to transform back into himself.
"Sleep it off. I'll wait until things calm down and I'll go looking for Dick and Kory, okay?" You crouch down to Gar as you put a hand on his shoulder.
"You okay?" Gar gets out with a labored breath.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Better at this now." You offer a nod and if Gar weren't so exhausted from the tranquilizer, he'd be worried about why you're suddenly better at it. Maybe Gotham does change people. It's something Dick warned the Titans about. Gotham eats people alive.
"Are you sure?" Gar's words start to slur together just a little.
"Yeah." You nod your head and offer him a soft smile. "Just...sleep, okay? I'll find you clothes, too."
Gar's face starts to burn. "Okay." Gar nods his head, plopping down on the floor as the tranquilizer finally kicks in entirely.
"Here." Jason offers a blanket of some sort and you use it to cover Gar before you get to your feet.
"He'll be out awhile." You say softly, a sadness coating your words.
There's almost a numbness that's coming with this territory. You wonder if this is how Bruce has done it for so long, maybe that's why Bruce is the way he is. His parents were killed in front of him and then...here he is. Batman, vengeance. Maybe in order for him to be Batman, he has to be numb to it, to the pain of what comes with being a hero. Maybe he's let some of that numbness leak into his personal life and that's why he was the way he was with Dick and why he tried to be better with Jason but still failed. You wonder if he just numbs it all in order to keep going. And maybe that's not entirely Bruce's fault. Because you don't want to be numb about everything.
The pain is the worst part but outside of pain, Bruce seems to push things away and maybe that's still how he can be Batman. Maybe it wasn't always like that but bad things happen. You don't want that. It's just, you're standing here with Jason and you're annoyed with him but you're not even that mad anymore. You're tired, your shoulder hurts but emotionally, the only thing you really feel right now is worry. Worry for Gar and the Titans. That's it. That doesn't feel too good either.
Jason nods his head before he looks to the floor. He looks back to the window and then to you, nodding his head toward the window. The two of you head over to the boarded window, taking a seat below it. Jason takes his helmet off, resting it beside him as he stretches his legs out in front of him. The white streak flops onto his forehead, you getting the slightest hit of a smile at the sight.
You follow his lead, taking your own mask off as you pull your legs to your chest. You rest your head against the boards, closing your eyes as you take in a breath. Jason watches you carefully, seeing a slight tremor in your hand of the shoulder that was shot as you rest your forearms on your knees. There's a mark near your temple that looks like it might be forming into a bruise. But, that's it. Jason doesn't see anything too bad. GCPD has never been very good at taking out vigilantes. It's not really their thing which Jason is thankful for. But, he really wishes he weren't too late.
It's not his fault. He's trying to work Crane and part of that is still doing his dirty work. He had no choice but the second he could, he tried his absolute hardest to warn the Titans. It just wasn't enough. It's another really hard pill to swallow. Working with Crane is his biggest mistake. Everything is a mess and that, that part is on him. He is desperate for it all just to come to an end.
"Oh, here." You mutter, pulling the gun from your utility belt. You hand it over with caution, Jason noticing the tremor worse as he takes the gun from you. Jason blinks at you and then at the gun, trying to find the right question. "Wrestled it from a piece of shit who caused this shit, shot the piece of shit that shot Gar, then I took it."
Jason shakes his head as his eyes close for a second, growing confused. Desperate times, desperate measures. He entirely understands how you ended up with the gun. That's not really the question he has now. It's you shooting someone. Your hands are shaking and your hands very rarely ever shake after a fight. It's one of the things Jason finds the most interesting. It's your steady hands before, during, and after heavy conflicts. He was like that, too and then Deathstroke happened but now they're shaking a lot. And something looks really wrong which could also just be what happened at the station. But, Jason wonders if it's the use of a gun. You always said you weren't a fan of using them.
"You shot someone?" Jason raises a brow at you as you read the disbelief on his face.
"I mean, yeah? You shoot people." You scoff, looking forward again. "I wrestled the gun away, had it aimed at the guy and Babs yelled at me. So, I turned and shot the guy who was about to shoot me who also shot Gar. Had it in my hand, might as well." You clear your throat, still dodging Jason's stare. "I didn't have a choice. He was gonna shoot me if I didn't do something." You state quietly as you chew the inside of your cheek.
It's really not the gun. The way you see it, it's really not that different than you throwing a knife at someone's head. It kills them all the same. It's not all that different than you throwing a knife at someone's leg. It wounds them all the same. It doesn't matter. It is just everything from the last two weeks. You really hate not having the choice to walk away. You might still pick the violent answer, but you'd like a choice. You would like a choice in the way your life goes.
"Alright." Jason nods his head before he shakes it. "Why the fuck did you take it with you?" Jason asks. You know these guns can be tracked. It's police issued.
"Fuck them." You state. "If I left it, they'd shoot me. So I took it to give to you to get rid of. Or I'll throw it in the Harbor out of spite."
"Right." Jason nods his head. "Shot someone? Using my R blades? Combat? Got a cape? You really are following in my footsteps, huh?" Jason offers you a teasing grin to try and lighten your mood, just a little bit. He just hates seeing you like this.
You narrow your eyes at him but Jason catches you starting to smirk. "You're really good at this." You roll your eyes. "Be stupid not to take notes. That's what you told me to do anyway."
Jason lets out a soft chuckle. "Can't believe you fucking listened."
"Yeah, it is a rarity." You quip before you look at him, lifting your head up. While this is nice discussing your own motives, you'd love to turn it around now. Jason knew to be there and when. That sounds like a problem. "You wanna tell me what the fuck?"
"Crane." Jason lets out a scoff. It's his turn to turn his attention forward. "Had me pay off one of the guys to turn on Babs, turn the whole department. Then, take all of you guys to him." Jason looks back at you, his face reading blatant annoyance.
"And you didn't warn me?" You shake your head in disbelief, the question coming out more as a demand -- an accusation.
"No! I tried! You, Dick, and Gar didn't answer!" Jason defends himself as he turns to face you. "I'd never let you walk in there if I had a choice. I tried. And when I got there, you were already inside. So, took out the snipers." Jason shrugs his shoulders. "The Titans against the GCPD?" Jason lets out a scoff. "I figured you'd all be fine inside but I didn't leave until I saw you and Gar. I was gonna go in to help when I heard the fighting but you and Gar walked out."
You nod your head before you pull out the burner and sure enough, you have three missed calls. That makes you feel a lot better. No part of you ever really believed Jason wouldn't at least try to warn you. You are relieved though, that even when things are messy as all hell, he still has your back. He always did but tonight just feels different.
"Took out?" You raise a brow.
"Knocked them out." Jason nods with a single nod.
"You know they're gonna tell Crane Red Hood got them, right?" You question, wondering how he plans to get himself out of it. And maybe you're a little relieved. You really hate him working with Crane still even if it was your idea.
"Thought of that." Jason says through a chuckle. "Wore a different mask, put on a different hoodie. They won't know any better. I was in and out anyway." Jason offers with confidence, clearly proud to do this work.
You shake your head but give Jason a gentle smile. "Well, thank you for risking it anyway. And for trying to warn us."
"Always." Jason nods his head right back, a toothy smile on display. It's a warm smile this time. "You alright, though?" Jason asks.
"Uh...yeah, I-I uh, I think I'm bleeding again." You state, looking to your shoulder and then back to him.
"Let me see." Jason states, gesturing his hand for you to lean forward.
You lean forward as Jason unzips your suit in the back and pulls down the shoulder part of your suit. Sure enough, the wound has bled through the gauze and there's blood everywhere he can see. Jason's heart jumps to his throat. It's been hours and the wound isn't that bad. For there to be this much blood in such a short amount of time, you had to be fighting like hell to get out of there. And you did it while looking out for Gar. And Jason gets a proud smile.
"What?" You raise a brow at him, wondering why the blood is making him smile.
"Trained you well." Jason states softly, confidence and pride etched into those three words.
"Shut up." You groan. "You would take credit for it." You let out a soft laugh.
"Well, if it weren't for me, you'd get your ass kicked." Jason quips right back. "So...you're welcome." Jason gives you a smirk.
Your eyes narrow before you roll them. "Yes, thank you so much. I would just be in so much distress if not for you. Please, where would I be?!" You fake a loud whine, the sarcasm spilling from your lips.
"Arrested." Jason answers plainly as he blinks at you.
You nod your head. "Fuck you." You shrug as you widen your eyes, earning a laugh from Jason.
"Oh, well in that case, I don't have to help you now. Ya know, if you don't need my help or anything." Jason sits back, his signature smirk crossing his face.
You let out a sigh, giving him a fake glare. "You won't let me bleed out." You state with confidence. "Where would you be without me? I'm the only one who plays your games." You offer him the same smirk.
Jason gives you a single nod. "Because I play yours." Jason quips.
"Which brings us back to you not letting me bleed out." You grin at him.
"You're really confident in that." Jason nods his head, knowing damn well you're not going to bleed out.
"I'm always confident in your abilities to not let something really bad happen to me." You say softly but there's a smirk on your face. It almost reads as a joke but Jason can tell by the sweetness in your voice and how quietly you said it that it's true. Even if you only said it out loud to mess with him.
Jason fake groans. "Alright. Fine." Jason says dramatically. "Guess I'll be fucking nice and help."
"You were going to anyway." You let out a soft laugh that makes Jason's stomach spin.
"Yeah..." Jason says softly, his smile turning soft as he scoots back over to you. "How many you take down anyways?" Jason asks as he pulls the gauze off.
"I lost count." You state. "There were a lot of them though. Uh, one of them shot Blackfire though. I think Kory was trying to get out with her. Dick and Conner were still fighting when we left though."
"I saw them follow you guys out." Jason assures you. "They're alright."
A surprised but kind smile starts to come to your lips. "Did you watch for them?" You ask.
Jason shrugs. "Saw you were alright and Gar, so maybe yeah. I just hung out a minute to make sure the others got out. Kory was with Blackfire and Dick was with Conner and Krypto. Blackfire was the only one who looked hurt." Jason explains as he grabs a gauze pad from his pockets.
"Didn't help though?"
"You know there's no fucking way in hell Kory would have let me." Jason quips back.
"Yeah...." You let out a sigh. "That's probably true." You nod as Jason sticks the gauze pad to the wound. "You just carrying first aid stuff now?"
"Just being prepared." Jason chuckles. "You should be proud." Jason nods up at you once the gauze is stuck and in place. "You should be okay. Here." Jason pulls another gauze pad out. "Just in case."
"Thanks, Jay." You take it, the shaking in your hands not as prominent now.
"You and me." Jason nods once at you with a soft smile before zipping her suit back up.
"You and me." You nod back before putting the gauze pad in your utility belt. "So...Crane has the department?" You clear your throat. It would be easier not to discuss that but you don't have that privilege.
"Yep." Jason shakes his head. "He's got more than that. The video, everyone is falling for his shit. He's gonna try to destroy Gotham." Jason states.
"How?" You ask.
"Taking over everyone and turning everyone against you guys for starters. I don't know what else he has planned. I know it's not fucking good though. He's losing it."
"Fantastic." You roll your eyes.
According to Bruce's file on Crane, this is what always happens. He has a plan and it works well at first but then he starts to crumble, spiral, and it all goes to shit. Crane does try to take people with him though and no one is left unscathed when Crane starts to fall off the deep end. You're getting the feeling this isn't going to end well.
"You, uh, you should probably head out then, right?" You ask cautiously. "Like, if someone sees you with us, leading us here or sees me leave after seeing you leave. That'll be a problem. You know Crane wants the city, so find out how."
Jason grits his teeth and he hates this. It was his idea to go to Crane in the first place and maybe this is just his penance for it. Being forced to work with him not that he wants to kill him. And he hates the idea of leaving you and Gar. The entire city is going to want you dead. The GCPD already tried to turn them in to Crane who would have killed you. You can handle yourselves but anything can happen out there. Worse things can happen though if he doesn't find out what Crane is doing and put a stop to it.
"Yeah." Jason answers shortly. "Alright, yeah." Jason nods his head with a sigh. "Use the burner though, let me know if you find anyone. I'll try to get into the traffic cameras and see if I can locate anyone for you and Gar to get to." Jason explains as he gets to his feet.
"Thanks, Jay." You offer him a soft smile. "We'll be fine." You assure him.
"Right." Jason nods his head, plucking his helmet from the floor. "If shit starts going south--"
"I'll call or text. I got it, Jay. We've been here plenty of times now. Look who's the one worrying now." You scrunch your nose at him, mostly to try and ease some of his worry and hide yours.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Jason lets out a scoff but the corners of his mouth tug up slightly. "Good luck." Jason nods once before he turns and heads out of the room, leaving you alone with an unconscious Gar.
You sit against the window for several hours, just looking through the slats of the window. The city is going to shit. Chaos is already starting to hit the streets. Fires and fights, you can see the few buildings across the street boarding up their windows. Maybe this is what Crane wanted. GCPD is with Crane and Gotham doesn't have any vigilantes to protect it. That's when you start to think how odd this whole thing is.
Bruce ran the city on fear. Fear of the Bat and how he could take down anyone, send them to Arkham but with the insurance policy of making it out alive. It was still fear that kept a lot of people from committing at least serious crimes and it did keep Gotham, at least, somewhat safer with certain things. Crane's entire obsession is with fear. He makes people live out their worst fears. It's what he does but now he's trying to control Gotham by turning everyone against the vigilantes which just makes them unafraid. You aren't sure what that has to do with anything or if it even matters but it's something you can't help but think about it. And you wonder what will happen if it works. What happens if he gets what he wants this time? Where does that leave the Titans? Gotham?
You've never been much of a team player. You've always done better alone or with one person. It's easier that way. You wonder if that's how it should be. You remember when you left the tower and Dick said you could be a Titan again. If you wanted to. But, the more you sit here and think about it, maybe you don't want to. There are too many moving pieces and even though it's not your responsibility, it's too much to have to worry about so many people all at once. And if Dick fucks up, they all die. That's a pretty big burden to carry and you aren't so sure you want that every single day. Maybe to help sometimes, yeah. But, maybe not every day and if Crane wins, this is Gotham. You'll fight tirelessly until it's not his anymore because this city doesn't belong to him. It doesn't belong to anyone like him.
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After a few more hours, the sun starts to come up, the gloomy clouds blocking most of the pretty oranges and pinks. You check your phone, only for there to be an x where the service bars are. You try to make a call to Dick but the service is unavailable. Fantastic. Your best guess is this has to do with whatever Crane has coming or the chaos that Gotham is under which means you and Gar are on your own until you're able to find the rest of the Titans. But you can't just sit here for right now.
You still need to grab some sort of food for you both and grab clothes for Gar so while the streets aren't as busy you decide now might be a good time to try and find supplies. The streets aren't as busy as they were earlier and nothing should be open yet. There's a convenience store not far so if you're quick, you could break in, grab what you and Gar need, and be back before anyone spots you. It shouldn't be too hard. So, you grab your mask and make your way to the door Jason let you through last night only to be caught completely off guard as the door swings open.
"Rachel?" You question as you pull your mask off.
Rachel blinks at you a few times before gaining a soft smile. "Hey." She didn't know you even got a suit.
"What the hell are you doing here?" You ask as you tug Rachel inside and close the door behind her.
"I don't know. I just had a feeling I needed to come back." Rachel states, somewhat ominously.
You've never been so relieved to see Rachel. Rachel is literally the daughter of a demon. Based on how Gotham is looking right about now, you might need that. So far, nothing else has worked and Rachel killed her dad. Not to mention, the Titans could really just use some more hands if you stand a chance against the entire population of Gotham City.
"Oh, yeah no we could use some fucking help right about now." You laugh softly.
"Yeah? What is going on?" Rachel looks around the abandoned building, taking notice in how rundown and cold it is. "It's kind of weird out there." Rachel states, remembering how Gotham was before when Dick brought them on the way to San Fransisco.
This is not that Gotham. There are fires in the streets now, people yelling, being more guarded than usual. It's every person for themselves and it's six in the morning. No one should even have enough energy for that now. But, word got out that the vigilantes are gone and the commissioner was arrested. People have really lost it since.
"You haven't talked to anyone right?" You question, remembering Rachel was unreachable to everyone meaning she probably needs a full recap.
"Right, I couldn't really talk to anyone while I was there." Rachel says with hesitance, starting to worry about where this might go.
"Awesome. Jason died." You spit out, ripping the bandaid off.
Rachel coughs. "He what?!"
"Yeah, Joker beat him to death with a crowbar. So, Bruce went and killed the Joker. Fast forward to all the Titans showing up, and surprise, Jason's alive again. Lazarus Pit." You spit it out before Rachel can even ask. "Only he's Red Hood now and he was addicted to a drug made by Jonathan Crane, Scarecrow. That made him fearless which was unpleasant, honestly. So, for the last two weeks, I've been trying to get him clean while he's been trying to kill Dick. And Dick's been trying to capture him. He's clean now and on our side but I got shot and Dick got shot and Gar just got tranquilized last night. Crane is trying to take over the city, he poisoned the water. We were almost all killed last night because of it. It's been a mess." You nod casually as you finish.
"Um..." Rachel tries to find the right words to even process any of that. "I missed a lot." Rachel nods.
"Oh, yeah, welcome to Gotham." You mutter as you lead Rachel up the stairs. "And now, apparently, cell towers are down because I can't get a call out. I have no idea where everyone else is. It's just Gar and me."
"Okay, wait. So, where is everyone else? And where is Jason?" Rachel questions. She could tell that all of the Titans weren't here but she didn't realize you and Gar would be on your own entirely.
"No idea. He's been trying to find out what Crane is planning. He's the only reason any of us got out alive last night. He took out the snipers. As for the Titans, I don't know." You say sadly, sucking in a deep breath. "We got separated and the city went to shit not long after."
"What a mess." Rachel says softly.
"Yeah. Donna?" You ask with hope. If Jason can be brought back, there has to be a way to bring back Wonder Girl.
Rachel shakes her head sadly. "Nope."
You let out a sigh of defeat. "I'm sorry. At least you tried though." You look over to her as you reach the room where Gar is still passed out. "More than what most people would do. There has to be a way though." You assure her.
"Yeah, maybe we should ask Jason how it all works." Rachel says only half joking.
"He doesn't know. I did ask." You let out a soft laugh. "He doesn't even know where it is." You let out a breath. "Anyway, we're hiding here until we figure out what to do and until Gar wakes up." You gesture to the room just as Gar starts to stir awake.
Gar's eyes land on the two of you as confusion wraps itself around him. The last thing he remembers is you and Jason being here. It's fuzzy but he remembers that. The person standing next to you is not Jason though. Jason doesn't normally wear all black. He blinks a few times, trying to get his vision to focus and once it does, he's certain something went wrong.
"Rachel?" Gar asks, eyes still partially closed with sleep while the two of you get closer. "Did I die again or are you really real?"
"Of course I'm real." Rachel says as the two of you crouch down.
"I found her." You state.
"I found you." Rachel looks back at you.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah same thing." You state. "How you feeling?"
"Tired." Gar chuckles. "How did you find her?"
"I could just feel you guys." Rachel states simply. "Your energy. I started at GCPD, ended up here." Rachel explains as she hands Gar his clothes.
The two of you stand up and turn around so Gar can change. You're definitely thankful Rachel was able to grab his clothes because that was one thing you were not confident you could grab. And he can't very well just be out there with a blanket.
"Did you find anyone else?" Gar asks as he gets dressed.
"No, I came here first." Rachel says.
"I actually didn't leave. I opened the door and Rachel was there but cell towers are down so I can't even reach out to try to find them." You roll your shoulders.
"So, now what?" Gar asks once he's fully clothed.
You and Rachel turn around, looking between each other.
"I have no idea." You answer with defeat.
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Meanwhile, Crane decides he's earned his right to Wayne Manor. With the Titans out of commission and in hiding, the manor is open. It's safe and it'll be the perfect place for Crane to call home now. It'll make it easier to run Gotham from the Manor, having access to not only the Batcave but everything within the Batcave. And of course, he decided to take Jason with him who's still not liking this whole getting along with him thing when the only thing he wants to do is put a bullet in his head right about now.
With the lines down, it's going to make it that much harder for him to even contact anyone. If Jason does find out what Crane is planning, how is he supposed to find Dick without Crane catching onto what he's doing? This whole plan is a mess and being back at the manor isn't making Jason feel any better. It feels wrong.
This isn't Crane's home. Jason is pissed -- hurt by Bruce but maybe that doesn't mean letting Crane into the manor is a good idea. He's going to take over the place and make it his when he doesn't even belong here. But, Jason is also thinking of how he doesn't belong here either. Bruce abandoned him. This was never really Jason's home anyway. He tried to make it fit, tried to make it stick but it was never really him anyway. The fancy manor, the galas, events, press, money, just having a place to go home to that was safe. Even the training didn't feel like him. He loves it more than words but at the beginning, even that just felt like he was just trying to fill in the shoes that would always be the wrong size. But now, it feels worse. He feels more like he's trespassing. He's not supposed to be alive, let alone here with Crane. In another world, Jason thinks maybe he'd have ditched Crane after being brought back and he would have walked in to find Bruce. Maybe it would be different then.
But, it's not.
"So, this is what a billion dollars gets ya?" Crane asks, standing overlooking the living room. Crane makes his way down into the main living room, examining the curtains on his way down. "Interior designers the world over-exclaimed, meh." Crane shrugs with boredom before glancing to Jason who's still standing on the landing looking over the room. "Alright enough with the whole tortured hero stuff. Come on. We have reached the summit. It's time for us to enjoy the view. I think this calls for some spirits." Crane states as he takes his coat off, tossing it onto the couch before he grabs a bottle of alcohol.
Tortured hero? That's what he thinks the issue is here? Crane's gotten Jason to make a drug, get addicted to it, kill innocent people, turn on everyone who ever cared about him, Crane almost killed you, and is trying to tear down the city. Being this so-called tortured hero is not Jason's issue. Crane is arrogant and delusional. Jason can't tell if he's just doing it on purpose or if he believes any of the shit that leaves his mouth. Crane is selfish and cruel. Jason is kicking himself for not seeing it sooner. Crane doesn't care about anyone or anything besides himself. And Jason's just stuck here playing along.
"Look," Crane states as he uncorks the bottle. "Make a toast. To Batsy." Crane says, pouring himself a glass. "To beating them. To knowing them. To growing them." Crane says as he hands a glass to Jason. Jason takes it, not bothering to start the argument now. "We gotta redecorate." Crane says, looking around. "Starting with this." Crane says as he eyes the large painted portrait of the Wayne's hanging above the fireplace.
Crane pushes a chair in front of the fireplace, using it as a ladder to grab the painting. He places the painting down in front of the fireplace, kicking the chair out of the way. Then he grabs a knife from his pocket, eyeing the painting.
"Actually, you should do the honors." Crane turns around to face Jason, offering him the knife.
Jason walks around the couch, grabbing the knife from Crane before Crane walks to plop himself on the couch. Jason watches him before he looks back to the painting, questioning if he should actually listen to Crane on this one. It feels wrong but he is still really hurt.
"It's time to finally pay back your father for the gifts he's given you." Crane states with ease.
Jason stares at the painting and at first there's a guilt that comes over him. This is of Bruce and his parents. His parents are gone, it's not like this can be replaced. But, the more he stands here, the more he thinks about how badly he's been hurt by Bruce.
Bruce gave him magic by giving him Robin and then he just...ripped it away. He did what everyone always does. Promise him something and then take it away, take from him. He begged him not to give up on him and Bruce did anyway. Bruce gave up on him just like everyone else. He never bothered to try to understand him. Bruce just sent him to Leslie to fix him. And while Jason knows, he is the one that went after the Joker, Bruce didn't do anything about it.
He didn't even realize something was wrong or that something was going on. He should have noticed and he should have tried to help. Based on the context Jason has gotten from you, it does not sound like Bruce was worried and asked you to check on him. You figured it out. Not Bruce, the world's greatest detective. Jason was cooking Crane's drug and seeing Crane and Bruce never once figured it out. You did and while you're good at detective work, Bruce is supposed to be the best. But, when it comes to his own son, he just...failed? Jason swears it was on purpose because how else did he fucking miss it? How did he miss that Jason was struggling so badly? Jason doesn't scream from the rooftops that he needs help but he also makes it obvious in his own way and Bruce missed every single cry for help Jason has ever given him.
Bruce knows Jason's entire past, every piece of it and he will never understand. Jason pushed a serial rapist off a building and all Bruce did was get mad. He never bothered to care to understand Jason's point of view of the situation. Maybe that's just Jason breaking the rules, but it was Bruce's job to try to understand. Jason was just a kid. And he was brutally murdered and it's fine Bruce has a no-kill rule but the way Jason sees it, he should have killed the Joker because the Joker took Jason away from Burce. Jason is Bruce's son, he said so, and he picked him, and yet he's the one that feels left behind and abandoned and damaged. He was never good enough. He was always too much of a bother to try to understand. Bruce only ever wanted to fix him in the way Bruce wanted to fix everyone, make them just like him. But, that doesn't work for Jason and he doesn't think he'll ever be fixed and he's pissed and hurt because he hates feeling broken.
So, he pulls his arm back and starts slicing up the painting with everything in him.
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mikka-minns · 6 months
Text
Snowblind x Mk1 intros
(this is only part one, there Will probably be another)
The names in the parenthesis() are what the characters are refered to as in the intros themselves
Kinda messy
Also, there are some Ships implied, so beware. This is all just crack and headcanons, nothing serius
(this has been on my drafts for a month, so sorry i havent posted earlier)
@dinainwater @laismoura-art
Sb!Kuai Liang vs Sb!Hanzo
Kuai: Just like the old times, eh?
Hanzo: only this time,  you wont beat me
Hanzo: I hope i am worthy of this fight
Kuai: im still not used to these compliments
Kuai: i cannot understand how Someone can be so power-hungry
Hanzo: because you are the kindest of souls, Kuai Liang
Hanzo: You know, i actualy won our last fight
Kuai: no you didnt! I had you on chokehold with my legs-
Mk1!Bi han (sub zero) vs Sb!Kuai Liang (Kaui)
Sub zero: in your timeline, you are the lin kuei grandmaster?
Kuai: i was.
Sub zero: i can only hope my other self did better than i
Kuai: its not Just about our mistakes, but the ways we try and fix them
Sub zero: it is weird seeing my-
Kuai: younger brother be older than you? *chuckle* i understand
Sub zero: it is too late to make things right.
Kuai: only if you are truly heartless and i can see you arent
Kuai: even if they dont forgive you, you can all move forward
Sub zero: but is it together? Or did i doom our brotherhood?
Kuai: for the last time, Kenshi isnt a landowner!
Sub zero: all right! Cuz i am not paying double rent!
Sb!Kuai Liang (Kuai) vs mk1!Johnny Cage(Johnny)
Johnny: so who is this "Simone" chick Kenny keeps talking about?
Kuai: i dont think you understand. She is LITERALY a chicken
Johnny: so who is Kenny's other dad?
Kuai: i dont even know who is the first one?!
Johnny: alright, Rocky... or Batman?!
Kuai: You cant possibly make me choose!
Kuai: me? In a movie? You're as crazy as Johnny from my timeline
Johnny: If two of us cant convince you, then its you whose crazy
Johnny: dude, you are such a dil-
Kuai: do not finish that sentance, Johnathan
Johnny: holy shit, we are technicaly in-laws!
Kuai:*sigh* it could have been worse i guess
Johnny: never Thought a king of hell would be my sorta-father-in-law!
Mk1! Johnny Cage (Johnny) vs Sb!Hanzo
Hanzo: I just hope you're better than most of my in-laws
Johnny: so you and Kuai, huh?
Hanzo: what about us? We're on good terms
Hanzo: So you're the Johnny Cage Kuai told me about?
Johnny: first name basis? I think i see whats going on!
Kenshi: you seem like a good friend of my other self
Johnny: You are a king?! Awesome!
Hanzo: its not as fun as you may think.
Mk1!Johnny Cage(Johnny) vs Sb!Kenshi
Johnny: I dont know if you're old enough to know the truth
Johnny: so who is this "Simone"?
Kenshi: oooh! You gotta meet her, she's great!
Johnny: gee, Kenny, how come big Kano let you have two dads?
Kenshi: he... What?
Kenshi: how did you get ahold of Sento?
Johnny: it was easy. Keeping it was hard
Johnny: duuude, no way you never watched Rocky!
Kenshi: we dont have movies in the wastelands.
Mk1!Kenshi Kenshi vs Sb!Kenshi
Kenshi: You fight the black dragon on your own?
Sb!Kenshi: had Kuai not shown up, i wouldnt be here
Kenshi: your mentor sounds like a wise man
Sb!Kenshi : he threw a melon at me
Sb!Kenshi: You never chase chickens as training?
Kenshi: *chuckles* your mentor sounds like a fun guy
Sb!Kenshi: You dont know who Simone is?
Kenshi: i've never met anyone with that name in my life
Kenshi: hearing of the wastelands, i am gratefull for Liu Kang
Sb!Kenshi: realy? Well i think he could've done better
Scorpion: i can tell you and that scorpion arent brothers
Mk1!Kuai (scorpion) vs Sb!Kuai
Kuai: i think everyone can
Kuai: so in this timeline, you are scorpion?
Scorpion: i see even within my other selves i am different
Scorpion: what happend with your Bi han?
Kuai: retired. Kind of. He mostly just judges my tastes now
Scorpion: You area farmer? Just like Raiden!
Kuai: Raiden?
Kuai: You seem fond of your Raiden
Scorpion: he is a great ally and an even greater friend
Kenshi: Kuai still wont tell me what your promise was
Sb!Kenshi vs Sb!Hanzo
Hanzo: then i wont disrespect him by talking behind his back
Hanzo: I would never hurt Kuai Liang
Kenshi: i cant trust you on just your word
Kenshi: so what are you the king of?
Hanzo: hell, Neatherrealm, ga-
Kenshi: why does everyone think im Kuai's son?
Hanzo: You arent?!
Sb!Kenshi vs Sb!Kuai
Kenshi: i still havent thanked you for saving me
Kuai: there's nothing to thank me for
Kenshi: what is that promise about?
Kuai: nothing that concernes you, dont worry
Kuai: for the love of god, dont befriend anyone named Cage
Kenshi: why? He's such a cool guy!
Kuai: so, Johnny showed you some movies?
Kenshi: Yes aaand now i know where you got the ideas for our training
Kuai: you're lucky you cant see the terrible costumes in ninja mime
Kenshi: but it sounds so fun! What is mime?
Liu kang: im glad Hanzo and you are allies in your timeline
Kuai: You can call us cousins too, since you already started with that shit
Kuai: what the hell were you thinking?
Liu Kang: only of whats best for earthrealm
Shang: You aged so gracefully
MK1!Shang Tsung (Shang) vs Sb!Kuai
Kuai: say that again and you wont age at all
Shang: if that Hanzo ever brothers you, i can always help
Kuai: you are the only one bothering me. Back. Off!
Kuai: dont you dare come anywhere near Kenshi!
Shang: your mistrust wounds me, Kuai Liang
Kuai: If you dont shut up yourself, i'll make you!
Shang: coming from you, that doesnt sound bad at all
Smoke: what do you mean Hanzo isnt a kid?!
Mk1!Smoke and Sb!Kuai (these are some inside jokes i have with a couple of mutuals😉)
Kuai: have you never seen a child?!
Kuai: so do you only take old people as your students?
Smoke: HE TOLD ME HE WAS 15, OKAY?!
Smoke: How do we stop Bi han?
Kuai: my advice, pay his rent and spanish classes
Smoke: i bet i can guess your exact age!
Kuai: *sigh* of course you can
Smoke: ohhh, Who is Sareena? Your girlfriend?
Kuai: You trying to start a fight with both Bi hans?
Ashrah: You have no evil in your soul
Mk1!Ashrah and Sb!Kuai
Kuai: i am far from innocent
Ashrah: dont be so cruel on yourself
Ashrah: You are a great teacher
Kuai: i have a great student
(not himself as in other Kuai, but as himself himself)
Kuai: that is all i've ever known
Mk1!Shang tsung vs Sb!Hanzo
Hanzo: Im suprised Kuai hasnt broken all your bones
Shang: im suprised he didnt kill you already
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killerlookz · 2 years
Text
College! Edward Nashton ━ Headcanons (SFW and NSFW)
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a/n: i dunno why but i always have THE BIGGEST college! eddie brainrot... so here's some general/relationship headcanons. Sfw relationship hcs are x gn! reader, nsfw hcs are x f! reader. My apologies for the weird page breaks. had to get arround the annoying bulletpoint character limit somehow.
contents: contains 18+ content (smut) mdni!! also contains mentions of drugs, alcohol, and smoking
General Headcanons:
Edward didn't have much apprehension about going to college, he'd essentially been on his own his entire life only now he got three meals a day, and a decent bed to sleep on.
Also, this time around he's not completely alone, he has a couple of friends. two to be exact. they're a bit dorky, but so is he.
Eddie likes to skip class a lot, not in a lazy/slacker sort of way but just, he hates going to class, he's always hated school in general.
He knows enough to get by though, Edward is smart, especially when it comes to problem-solving, but he often doesn't have the energy to put any real time into his studies.
This is not a shocker, but he's not really a huge partier. Or a partier at all really. He doesn't like most of the people he goes to college with, why would he want to spend more time with them?
If we're to believe Edward's license in The Batman then he'd be going to college around 2003-2007... which is... wink...the prime emo music era.
Edward's not really into bands like fall out boy or panic! at the disco though, he tends to get a little stuck up when it comes to music and he finds them "too polished"
My Chemical Romance on the other hand? Oh, he could fuck it up to some mcr, hell yeah.
Gotham is in New Jersey... My Chemical Romance is from New Jersey, Eddie definitely at one point or another during My Chem's early 'Bullets' days found himself at one of their shows.
Actually Eddie really enjoys going to local shows. He doesn't really talk to anyone there, nor does he really dance, or mosh- he likes to just stand in the back and watch.
Edward enjoys seeing hardcore and screamo shows the most, he finds the vocal style insanely cathartic.
Sometimes he gets jealous watching the people who can just let loose and have a good time, but, he justifies it by saying standing there quietly is his idea of having a good time.
Eddie doesn't really drink at all. Maybe a beer on occasion, but never hard liquor or wine.
He does drops semi-frequently, a bad habit he picked up while in the orphanage. This is more so during his early days rather though, and he tries to wane off of them as he nears graduation.
He also smokes weed on a more frequent basis than he does drops. And despite his general awkwardness, he gets along pretty well with his plug, but he wouldn't consider the two of them friends.
His worst vice is smoking cigarettes, however. He'd picked up the habit while in the orphanage as well, and his nicotine addiction only worsened once he didn't have to sneak around with it anymore.
He enjoys menthol cigarettes the most because he's just a pretty big fan of mint in general, but he'll smoke just about any type of cigarette he can get his hands on.
Eddie for sure hates his roommate, he's loud, obnoxious, and rude-just the type of dude who'd bully him in high school. In fact, his roommate does bully him , despite being an adult. But, Edward isn't really surprised because guys like that usually never grow out of high school.
Sometimes when his roommate is out Edward will steal his papers, or erase/change his homework answers just to get back and fuck with him a little.
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SFW Relationship Headcanons:
You and Edward met while you were drunkenly stumbling back to your dorm after a night out. He'd been standing outside on that late night, smoking a cigarette, you vaguely recognized him from one of your classes, you'd always thought he was cute. With the alcohol still rampant in your system, you were suddenly craving a cigarette, so you went up to him and asked him to bum one.
The two of you talked all that night, he was genuinely really surprised you'd been so nice to him. You were attentive and sweet, he instantly developed a crush on you.
You became fast friends, the two of you often ditching your respective friend groups to see each other.
Eventually that friendship became a little something more after you'd without thinking, kissed him goodbye on the cheek one night after he walked you back to your dorm.
You apologized incessantly but soon found his lips on yours, and you kissed him right back.
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You're Edward's first-ever relationship, so he's pretty awkward and fumble-y a lot of the time. It's not that he's not comfortable around you, he's just never done this before.
But, boy, is that man head over heels in love with you. He just wants to spend every. single. hour of the day with you. His habit of skipping class only gets worse now that he's skipping his classes to see you when you have downtime.
You honestly end up having to have an intervention with him about it, because, his grades are starting to slip, and he's essentially just wasting the money he's been working for by not going to class.
Edward, reluctantly agrees to start going to class more, only because it'll make you happy though, not because he actually thinks there's any problem.
The two of you also go on little study dates in an attempt to help fix Edward's failing grades. You're not much of a tutor to him, rather just good company while he completes his mountains of missing assignments.
Edward does the best he can when it comes to dates, but, he's a broke college student, and so are you, so most of the time things aren't very extravagant.
He takes you to the movies a lot since it's pretty much within budget. It's become pretty much tradition to have bi-weekly movie dates, seeing almost every new movie that comes out. It's sweet, the two of you share snacks and hold hands during the movie, sometimes you'll push up the arm rests and snuggle into him, especially if the movie is late at night and you start to get sleepy.
He does however sometimes take more hours at work whenever he overhears you mention something you'd like so he can get the money and buy it for you.
Eddie is insanely overprotective, despite his slight stature. He's got a height advantage on most people, but that's about it. But if anyone even tried to lay a finger on you, he'd make his best attempt to beat them to a pulp.
It takes him a while, but, eventually, Edward gets pretty into PDA, not like full-on making out in public or anything, but holding hands, hugging, small kisses in public, etc... he loves it all. he absolutely adores showing you off.
One of his favorite past times is snuggling up with you while the two of you do a crossword puzzle, he likes to hold you from behind while you attempt the puzzle, he'll look over your shoulder and whisper hints in your ear, and absolutely smother you in kisses when you get an answer right.
Eddie also takes you to shows with him, he tries to keep you away from the pit because he's pretty overprotective, but, if you really want to mosh he doesn't really have any objections.
Usually though, the two of you will just stand in the small crowd together, him behind you, arms wrapped tight around you, his chin resting on the top of your head.
He's pretty scared to tell you about his childhood and waits a pretty long time to do so, he's worried you will somehow think less of him if you knew the conditions he grew up in. and he was, absolutely relieved when that was not the case at all.
One evening he spills everything to you, winding up a crying mess by the end of it. But he feels SO much better having gotten it off his chest, and he's so relieved when you don't judge him at all, and you're there with literally anything he needs, holding and comforting him throughout the entire story.
Eddie isn't really put off by anything you do (no "icks" for him) and the same vise-versa, Edward is so glad he's finally found someone he feels entirely comfortable and can just be himself with.
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NSFW Relationship Headcanons: 18+ content!!!
Not only are you Edward's first relationship, but you're also Edward's first time, he's definitely a virgin before the two of you meet.
He's pretty shy when it comes to sex, and it takes a pretty long time for the two of you to go all the way. Of course, you're very patient with him! You'd never want to pressure him into doing something he's not ready for.
He worries you may mistake his shyness around the subject as uneagerness, but that is NOT the case, he is very eager.
Being a 18-22 in college and all his sex drive is insanely high, you just breathing within a few feet of him gets him horny.
Until you two do go all the way through, Eddie enjoys doing pretty much everything but.
You'll place your hand on his thigh while the two of you are making out, and he'll start desperately trying to change his position, trying to move so he can get some friction against your hand.
You get the memo pretty quickly and start to feel him up through his jeans. You're not even in contact with his skin, but even between the two layers of fabric between your hand and him, he's an absolute mess, trying his best to suppress his loud moans into the kiss.
Eventually, and pretty quickly he's finishing in his pants, and god is he embarrassed. But you're quickly there to tell him there's no need to be embarrassed and that's literally just a natural response to being touched like that.
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Eventually Eddie warms up to you a little more, and you move onto handjobs, and blowjobs. He's definitely very nervous about you seeing his dick, due to the standards porn has created he's worried you may laugh at him and call him small. But, you quickly squash that fear by telling him he's just perfect, and you wouldn't want him any other way.
You're going to have to teach him the ways around your anatomy, sorry, but before you he definitely had no fucking clue wtf the clit is.
You don't mind though because he actually wants to learn how to please you. One night he bashfully asks if he could try fingering you and if you could help him out.
Of course you oblige, and you gently guide his fingers through your folds, telling him what to do where, and what you specifically like. He gets the hang of it pretty quickly, eventually, you're letting go of his hand as he does all the work himself. And before you know it your head is thrown back in absolute pleasure and you can't contain the moans that escape your mouth as he works his fingers in and out of you with his thumb gently circling your clit. It may take a little while to get there, but eventually, you're out of breath, cumming all over his fingers
The first few times he eats you out aren't great, he's not bad, just inexperienced. but, as with anything, he gets better with practice, and eventually it becomes one of his favorite things to do, and one of your favorite things to have done to you.
But, Eddie definitely prefers recieving oral rather than giving, not out of selfishness but, because he just feels a little insecure about his skills when it comes to it. Reciving on the other hand? Oh he's a mess, the first time you ever gave him a blowjob he was cumming down your throat the minute your tongue swirled around the head of his cock. (Though, he eventually does gain more stamina, and is able to last a lot longer)
You're just over 3 months into dating when you finally go all the way, and Eddie's a mess, he's so nervous but he wants you so bad, worse than he's wanted anything in his entire life.
The first time is very slow, and gentle, and just a little bit awkward. You're very careful with him, constantly asking and making sure he's alright. There's a lot, a lot of build-up/foreplay beforehand to ease into it.
You decide the best position is for you to be on top so you can guide him a little bit better. And it's really not bad at all, but Edward is so worked up from all the foreplay, and the nerves that he finishes in less than a minute.
He ends up crying, both out of sheer pleasure and embarrassment. But you assure him there's literally nothing to be embarrassed of, and that you're so glad you were able to make him feel that good.
Right after this was the first time either of you had ever said "i love you". as you were stroking edward's cheek, drying off one of his tears, telling him everything was okay, it kind of just slipped out of his mouth- and before he could even start to apologize, you say it right back.
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From that point on sex is pretty regular in your relationship. Being similar in age, you have a sex drive to match Edward's, so, the two of you are ready to go at it at any moment when you know you'll be totally alone for a while.
His favorite position is cowgirl, he loves it when you ride him, though, he also enjoys missionary, he's not huge on doggy style- he prefers to see your face, it makes sex feel more intimate.
He also (especially in the beginning) prefers to listen to music during sex, pure silence aside from the noises the two of you are making, sometimes tends to make him a bit nervous, he feels music tends to relieve some of his tension. (His favorite songs to do it to are Knife Prty by Deftones and Blue by A Perfect Circle)
Being in college and all he's pretty vanilla, which is obviously no problem at all. he's still pretty young, so, he's not really going to be into anything insanely kinky, or huge into experimenting, he's still just trying to find his footing with sex in general.
He does have things he does know he likes though. He loooves hickeys, the sensation of your teeth grazing his neck combined with your warm, soft lips sends him into an absolute daze!! he also just loves the pretty purple and red bruises you leave all over his neck, he loves being marked as yours, and he loves doing the same to you.
He also loves when you pull his hair, whether its while you're kissing, or he's eating you out, or during sex, it drives him wild, just that little action to let him know how good he's making you feel.
The same goes with scratching, he honestly encourages you to dig your nails into him, he doesn't mind the sting.
The most "extreme" thing he's ever done really, was taking some nude polaroids with you. he's got a couple (a lot) of you posing in various positions for him in a shoebox under his bed which he guards with his entire life (he'd obviously never, under any circumstance let those get out). he makes sure his roommate doesn't know that that shoebox even exists, and if he'd somehow know about it, it's strategically buried under so much junk he'd never find it.
Those pictures are 100% masturbation material for him, ever since dating he only jerks off to the thought of or pictures of you. porn has been absent in his life since you came into it.
You, of course, also have a couple of him, but he's not much of a photograph person, and doesn't really enjoy getting his picture taken. But, the ones you have you think are absolutely adorable.
Edward still masturbates relatively frequently, now that you're together, 2-3 times a week maybe, not as much as he used to which was usually at least once a day. He can't help it, sometimes he's in his dorm room late at night and you're not around, he has nothing else to turn to but his hand.
There's definitely a fair bit of phone sex/ mutual masturbation whenever you go home during winter/spring break. Edward's able to get off to the sound of your voice just as easily as he does when he's buried in you.
He honestly enjoys phone sex a lot, obviously he'd rather physically be inside you, but the sound of your sweet voice moaning some of the dirtiest words he's ever heard combined with the faint noises of you touching yourself make for a deadly combination in Edward's eyes.
Overall, sex with Eddie is mutually very fun. He's a very sweet partner who is just as concerned with your pleasure as he is his own.
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1K notes · View notes
ofsappho · 1 year
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treehouse 🔞 (also available on ao3)
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tags: smut, pregnancy, 🔞, mental illness, trauma, eventual happy ending
Dream of the Endless | Lord Morpheus x reader
It's a common story; you meet a tall, dark, and handsome man outside of a club and take him home that night. When he leaves, you don't think you'll ever see him again.
Now, what's less common is what happens a couple of weeks later, when you realize you're pregnant. But you only know his name, if that even is his real name: "Dream".
What exactly are you going to do now?
(title from the song Treehouse by Alex G) (originally posted on AO3)
You don’t usually do this kind of thing.
‘Thing’ here refers to venturing out of your apartment, alone, dressed to the nines and in search of trouble. The kind of thing that every other twenty-something you know does on a regular basis.
But it’s always been too hard for you to gather up the energy for such an effort. Depression can do that.
Tonight, though, you’re trying, even though you’re definitely the only person in this club without anyone else to accompany them.
The party feels like something out of that new Batman movie; bass reverberating through the soles of your sneakers and smoke curling through the air, heavy-fingered and tinged blood red from the colored lights.
You had choked down a panic attack on the walk from the train to the club, only making it down those few blocks of sidewalk by reminding yourself that you can leave whenever it stops being fun, over and over.
The ice in your drink is fully melted and in the whole hour you’ve wandered around, you’ve really only spoken to the very pretty bartender. She complimented your dress, and you would’ve complimented her eyes in return, but you’re aware that she was only being polite and doing her job.
Without much fanfare, you abandon your glass filled halfway with water and halfway with vodka sour next to all the other discarded glasses. This has officially stopped being fun, though whether or not it was ever fun to begin with is up for debate, and you take that as your cue to dip.
Once you’re outside, the cool air a pleasant balm on your sweat-sticky cheeks, you quickly snag a cigarette out of the carton in your purse. A raven watches you struggle to light it.
He’s a curious bird, calm as any human, and you win the staring contest between the two of you. When he cocks his head at the sound of your laughter, you swear he can practically understand you. You keep giggling as you crouch down and offer your shitty lighter to the raven. “Well? Are you gonna help me or just stand there making fun?”
“Matthew has always had a sense of humor.” At the sound of someone’s accented voice, as rich and deep as whiskey, you stand and turn to see a man looking at you and your new corvus buddy.
Oh fuck, he’s beautiful.
You go with beautiful as handsome is definitely the wrong word. The stranger is beautiful in a way that doesn’t quite seem humanly possible, like it breaks your brain a little bit to look at his brilliant eyes, to take in his high, sweeping cheekbones and plush mouth.
“The raven’s name is Matthew?”
“Yes.” You’re tempted to ask him if he, like, has a podcast or maybe records audiobooks. If he doesn’t, he should. He’d do super well.
Seriously. It’s catnip to you. The sound unfurls from his throat with a touch of rasp, but still purer and more resonant than any other voice you can recall.
You’re reminded of what priests say the voice of God sounds like. This is a very weird thing to come to mind when a random guy talks, especially as you aren’t really religious like that. He definitely could get a whole lot of people to do as he wished just by asking, you think. A God needs to have that quality. Or a cult leader.
You swallow down the heat inside that stokes hotter with every moment his bright gaze clings to your face, to the curve of your lips. His structured black coat fits across his proud shoulders well; it looks expensive and he appears to have an awfully good tailor.
You decide to go along with the bit. Bits are fun and talking to this man is exactly the kind of shenanigan you were hoping to stumble across. “That’s a good name. Did you give him that?”
He smiles knowingly. “He named himself.”
That’s funny. It makes sense; ravens are as clever as any person, the Internet says, so someone looking at one of those birds and feeling as though it named itself isn’t totally out of left field.
You hope he elaborates on that, but the stranger doesn’t seem inclined to help you out there. But you don’t want the silence to settle much longer. It might drive him away, and you’d like him to stick around longer. Maybe get his number. “Well, I hope he knows it suits him. Hey. You think you could light this for me? You saw me try it with Matthew, but I don’t think he has enough claws to make it work.” You hold out the lighter with shaky fingers, nervousness fighting desire in your veins.
When he takes it from you, his skin brushes yours. It’s almost electric. “…of course.”
You’ve never felt attracted to someone so fast. The wanting hits you like an avalanche; a dream of his palms on your hips and red marks on your skin from his teeth pours through your mind.
The man cups his other hand over the flame as you lean in, at last lighting your neglected smoke. Your lungs fill with him, not tobacco smoke. His scent, sharp and comforting all at once, makes you just as woozy, just as lightheaded as the nicotine does. “Thank you, I, um, appreciate it. Do you have a name, too?”
“You may call me Dream.”
Your best friend would appreciate his excellent grammar. Clever of him to use ‘might’; if you were a Fae trying to get his real name, he’s answered in exactly the way someone trying to not get fairy abducted should. These are the kinds of tidbits that amuse you, even if you won’t ever use them. So you’ve spent your life hoarding random information like this, just for funsies.
“Your choice of words there is noted, ‘Dream’.” Your smile warms your voice and he steps in a little closer, close enough that you have to tilt your head up a bit to maintain eye contact. Like staring at an eclipse. That’s bad for your eyesight, you tell yourself. But you can’t look away.
His lashes are as black as his thick, undone hair, framing a lidded and darkening gaze.“Were you just leaving?”
Oh fuck yeah. “Um, yeah, not really my scene. Kinda boring, at least for me. It’s a shame; I was hoping to actually make getting out of the house tonight worth it, but. No dice.” You haven’t done this game in quite awhile, but you still remember the rules. A bit of a tease at the end, just to imply that you’re interested. What can you do? He makes you bold, bolder than normal. You want him to want you.
“Pity.” A pause stretches between you and you feel your heart sink into your stomach, your anxiety revving up again. What if he just walks away and leaves you here, embarrassed and in your head for believing someone like you could attract someone like him?
“Do you still wish to make getting out of the house tonight worth it?” Your words sound out of place in his mouth, too modern.
What’s that joke about how some actors in period dramas clearly look like they know what an iPhone is? Dream is apparently the opposite of that. He seems entirely above petty concerns like lamenting the lack of decent hookups.
The discordance has you stifling a giggle.
You dream some more about his hand tangling in your hair and his body covering yours, his knee between your thighs. And the fire, deep in your belly, burns brighter and brighter. “Depends on what we’re doing.”
When Dream smiles, it’s beautiful and uncanny. He looks like a predator, and you’ve stumbled right where he wants you. It’s hot. You’re good with that. “You know what.”
“…yes.”
You can’t really remember how you got back to your apartment - Dream has been far too busy pressing his mouth to yours, devouring the heady, saliva-slick kisses you’re freely offering up, for you to pay attention to something like that.
As soon as you’ve made it inside the front door, he pins you against the wall to wrap an elegant, long-fingered hand in your hair, tipping your face towards him so he can nip at your bottom lip with sharp teeth. “You are… exquisite,” He murmurs against your lips, pupils blown so large that his eyes look like galaxies with an endless black hole in the center, pulling you towards his gravity.
You grow wetter at the sound of the lust roughening up the edges of his polished voice, at the awe in his words. “Please,” you moan as he bites aching marks into the column of your throat that are sure to bruise purple and red tomorrow. You want them to bruise, you want to have something left behind after this hookup ends, proof he was there.
You’re not even sure how to articulate what exactly you’re begging for. That’s beyond what your mind is capable of right now, as his hand fists in your hair and tightens until it’s the perfect amount of slightly painful and you’re gasping, desperate for more. Your hands have twisted into the collar of his coat this whole time and you don’t let go. The feeling of the cloth rounds you and more than anything, you don’t want him to back away.
Dream seems to understand your pleading - he lathes the bruises with his tongue and you would do anything he wanted, as long as he would do that between your thighs. His other hand trails against the swell of your breast, gently caressing them through your thin dress. You arch into his touch, his fingers rolling over your nipple, plucking at it before palming your chest once more.
You’re greedy - you want even more. With a frustrated groan, you shove your dress off about as fast as you’re capable of doing so, getting tangled in the sleeves in your enthusiasm. A whine escapes your chest - seriously?
You’re so horny at this point that any fumbling delay like this might cause a meltdown, especially in front of someone as hot as Dream, but he simply smiles affectionately and untangles you, soothing your ruffled feathers with his calm, steady touch. The dress flutters to the ground in a heap. “Be still,” He admonishes you, before sucking in a sharp breath at the sight of your body bared to him. “Fuck.”
Your underwear is soaked through and it clings to your thighs as you shift, desperately trying to relieve the yearning need inside.
Dream seems transfixed by you, utterly enraptured by your full breasts and the dip of your waist, the soft curves of your hips. Those pretty, blinding eyes almost glow in the dim light of your living room lamp and as his fingers leave your hair to trail down your neck, a line down your clavicle, his touch relishing in the softness of your skin, you’ve never felt more desired.
Then, he meets your round, hungry eyes. “Do you want this?”
“Yes. Yes. Of course,” You pant. He’s moving too slow for you; you yank him towards you again, your mouth vicious as you kiss him. Dream’s still fully clothed, which seems a bit unfair, but there’s something about the intentional vulnerability of standing before him mostly-naked that you secretly enjoy. He has the upper hand at the moment, and you’re actually pretty okay with that.
Impatience and a bratty touch of mischief briefly win out over the urge to please him, to revel in his affections, so you quickly slip away from his grasp and flee towards your bedroom, with Dream hot on your trail.
Before you make it all the way to your bed, still unmade from earlier today, he catches you by your waist, wrapping his hand around your jaw tight enough to leave fingerprints so he can expose the side of your neck to the burn of his lips.
You fully expect him to toss you down on the bed and have his way with you, but Dream lowers you down carefully with one hand cradling the back of your head and his eyes fixed on your face, possession and lust blossoming in his terrifyingly beautiful smile
You need him.
He peels off his clothes quickly. Underneath all those dark, rich fabrics, his lean, muscle-bound torso gleams in the moonlight like a marble statue of some old god. You’ve always loved Ancient Greece and their perfectly-sculpted effigies.
Then Dream is on you again. He sinks to his knees before you and his position doesn’t feel like submission, not when you’ve fully surrendered to him. His mouth trails down your body and his hands can’t stop touching you; you gasp as you writhe in his steady embrace holding you still.
Your underwear gets discarded in some corner of your room - you’ll look for it later, when your hookup leaves.
He hooks one of your legs on his shoulder and buries his head between your thighs. He’s like, really good at eating you out. You’re sort of shocked, because you haven’t had great experiences with this, but his tongue traces your clit and the overwhelming pleasure from Dream’s touch forces a desperate cry out of you.
He chuckles against your pussy, now teasing intentionally as he traces around your clit, around your dripping core, before returning to his task. Dream carefully sinks two fingers inside of you and his groan at how your cunt flutters around his fingers vibrates through you. You’re so full already, the pressure pinching a little, and he’s careful, so careful when he starts to move in and out of you, sucking at your clit to soothe the ache from the stretch.
You’re moaning, and you can’t even breathe, can’t catch your breath; it’s so fucking good, and you feel the beginning of an orgasm coiling inside you already.
Any pain completely dissipates as Dream’s mouth indulges you, tastes you like he wants nothing more than to eat you out for the rest of time. Your body instinctively twitches away, hips trying to escape his touch. The pleasure burns through your body like a wildfire, and the intensity is almost too much, especially when the pads of his fingers find a sensitive spot inside your trembling, hypersensitive cunt. “Fuck, Dream, fuck-“
When he pulls away from you, his mouth is slick with your arousal, and you watch him lick it from his lips. “Did I not say to be still?” He speaks quietly, evenly, a contrast to the needy whines you make at the loss of contact.
But his fingers don’t let up. Dream keeps moving them inside of you, and it’s hard to find the capacity to answer him when he intentionally brushes against that delicate, tender place.
You’d do anything for him to keep going. Anything. “No, you did, I’m sorry, please, I’m sorry.”
He does nothing for a moment; even his fingers pause as you spasm around him. And just when you think he’s going to completely withdraw and punish you for not following his instructions, he absolves you. “Good girl.”
Dream braces his other arm against your hips so you can’t escape how he pleasures you, and even as your body jerks when he enters you again, picking up the pace and fucking you open, you can’t move away. He replaces his tongue on your clit with his thumb, pressing even circles into your sensitive flesh so he can watch your face twisted in ecstasy and the brilliant flush crawling up your tits towards your throat with hungry, star-bright eyes.
Dream needs you undone before him just much as you want him to take you apart.
You’re so wet that it’s obscene, his fingers dripping with you, and the sound your pussy makes with every movement is embarrassingly loud, almost as loud as your moans.
Your impending orgasm sparks back to life as he patiently builds you back up, your thighs trembling and eyes rolling at a particularly forceful thrust. When he fits another finger inside your soaked core, your eyes roll back in your head as you cry out in surprise. It’s too good, the pain and pleasure bringing you closer and closer to the edge.
Fuck, you can feel it, right there, feel it threatening to pull you under like a riptide, and each movement pushes the breath out of your lungs. It takes a minute to realize Dream is matching his thumb teasing your clit with his careful, gentle pushes against that spot inside your pussy. He knows your body so well for someone you’ve never met before, and in his capable, clever hands, you’re so close to coming apart.
He’s still looking at you, completely enraptured by your back arching off the end and your eyes hazy with lust. Dream takes your clit into his mouth once more, tongue flicking against you as he chases your orgasm.
“Thank you, oh my god, I’m gonna come,” You beg helplessly, writhing and squirming against him, your body wound up so tight that it hurts.
“That’s it. Give it to me.”
He commands, and you obey, coming around his fingers with a drawn-out cry. You’re coming, and it eats you alive, the fall flooding through you like lightning. Dream helps you through it, bearing down, so your pussy trembles through your orgasm on his firm, clever hands. You feel yourself gush around him, and he groans at the feeling of it, slowing his fingers pumping in and out of you without stopping altogether, eking out every last bit of your pleasure that he can.
And Dream instinctively knows when you’re done, when you can’t give him any more, so he finally withdraws and licks his fingers clean of your cum.
You can’t totally feel your legs, and you need to finally catch your breath, but you look at him, pleased and benevolent and still desirous of you, and you know you can go another round.
You prop yourself up on shaky arms to meet his filthy, messy kiss; the taste of your salty musk blooms on your tongue, and he wraps his arms around your sweaty, heated body. “Will you fuck me? Please? I want it,” You ask when you break the kiss. You’re a quick study, and Dream seems to like it when you tell him that you want him.
His eyes are almost completely black when he answers you. “Yes.” Dream’s tone is menacing and dark, and fuck, if you don’t drip on your blankets at the promise in his voice.
You like submitting to him, like how he handles your body like it’s his, and before he can push you down, you flip over and sink down on your knees, back arched and face pressed into the bed. “Like this?” You realize you’re asking for permission, which is something maybe you should’ve negotiated beforehand.
But you shouldn’t have worried; he’s very much on the same page. “Yes.”
You wait for him to shift behind you. You can’t see Dream, and the anticipation sends a thrill down your spine. You’re exposed and vulnerable in this position, and he could do anything.
His hands caress your ass, your thighs, your curves, lingering indulgently. It’s as if you’re precious, as if you’re the most holy thing he’s ever touched.
After pressing a single, sweet kiss on the base of your spine, Dream kneels behind you, and you can feel his hips against your ass. He seems intent on soothing the tension out of you, patiently stroking your heated skin until you melt at his touch.
And when you’re soft and pliant, he pushes in.
He’s pretty big, big enough that even after three fingers and an orgasm, you still feel a pinch as he thrusts deeper. You involuntarily make a soft noise of discomfort; you don’t want him to think you’re not enjoying this, to draw away from you. But Dream takes his time, gently opening you up on his dick as you start to relax.
When he finally seats himself inside you, that slight noise of discomfort turns into a deep, contented sigh. You’re so full, your pussy stretched comfortably to its limits, and you go slack against the sheets. Your cum from your last orgasm is soon matched by a new well of arousal from the feeling of his dick in you, heavy and hard and incredible.
And when he starts moving, your pillow muffles your loud moans. He fucks you slowly at first, mindful of how tight you are. It’s so caring, and it works; you enjoy the leisurely build-up much more. Before long, you’re aching for everything else he can give you.
He doesn’t have you entirely out of your mind yet, so you slot your hips back against his to meet his thrusts. And when you clench particularly hard around his cock, Dream also groans. “Alright,” he says with a hint of amusement. “You can have it.”
He fucks you in earnest now, one hand fisted in your hair and holding you down as he moves in you faster and faster, tears forming in your eyes from how ridiculously good it feels. With each push, he takes pieces of your higher functioning abilities with him, so all that’s left is your body responding to his touches, your mind drunk on his dick. Dream is addictive and so completely good at this; he hits just the right angle that torments you with pleasure.
“Holy shit, fuck, that feels-“ you cut yourself off with a long moan as his dick presses against your most sensitive places. But Dream is fed up with the pillow muffling your sounds. He wants to hear them, wants you to scream and moan and cry out as much as you want, and he draws you up off the bed by your hair as he keeps pounding into you.
Your shaky arms barely support you, but you manage.
Dream keeps moving as he hisses into your ear. You can barely focus on what he’s saying, not when he’s stretching you out with each furious push and forcing you closer to your second orgasm of the night. “I need to hear you. You’ll let me hear you,” He promises before biting at your throat, sucking in another mark on your skin where you’ll struggle to conceal it.
“Yes, yes, yes,” You chant. Anything. Anything he wants.
Dream keeps hold of your hair to arch your spine in such a way that every time he enters you, his cock thrusts against that tender bit inside, and your cunt spasms around him.
He wants to hear you. And you let him. Wailing with every brutal thrust, eyes rolling back in your head. God, you don’t want this to end, but you’re not sure you can take much more; he’s already maxed you to your limits with how good Dream can make you feel at once. You can hear his deep grunts as you start fucking yourself back on his dick.
Your clit aches at the lack of contact, and he gently lets you slump against the bed once more so he can slip his hand around your hips and gently play with the sensitive nub.
Your orgasm is back with a vengeance. You edge towards it so quickly that it takes you by surprise, encouraged and beckoned by his fingers moving on your clit in tandem with his cock ruining you. You keep waiting and waiting to go over the edge before realizing that Dream is gatekeeping you from it, cleverly changing up how he fucks you to stave off your orgasm. To torture you. If you were capable of thought, you’d tell Dream he’s being cruel and beg him to let you come.
But you’re cock-drunk and boneless under him, so you take what he gives you with a pained, longing moan. No more pushing back against him, no more pleading. You just lie there and take it, and there’s maybe some saliva dripping out of the corner of your slack mouth. Yikes -  hopefully, he doesn’t notice.
Dream can tell you’ve just about hit your limit. “Can I come inside you, sweet girl? Do you want me to?” You probably should’ve asked him about that before you started throwing down; maybe gotten out a condom or checked to see if he was clean.
But you’re on birth control, and really if he pulls out of you now, you think you might start crying for real. You want him to come inside you, to fill up your twitching cunt until he spills out of your spent body. Like. That’s hot as fuck. Suddenly, you need it as badly as you need to come.
“Yes, fuck, please.”
Dream begins fucking you in earnest again, and his fingers never let up between your legs. “Then I need you to come one more time. Do it for me.”
“I- I can’t-“
It’s just out of reach. Even though his cock feels incredible in you, even though your legs are quivering and tears run down your face from the pleasure he forces through your body, you can’t quite come. It’s driving you insane.
You get to the point where you stop making any noise at all, so twisted up in the sensations rushing through you that you don’t have the strength to do anything else besides tremble around him.
And then Dream tips you right over into it with a single, soft sentence, murmured into your ear. “I know you can.”
You come with a choked sound, blood rushing in your ears as you spill over around his dick. He rides you through it, fucking you through this orgasm that’s brutally wrecking you, that’s washed you clean of anything other than feeling Dream deep inside your quaking pussy.
He pounds into you once, then twice, before coming from the sensation of you fluttering around him. You feel his warmth fill you up inside, slick and silky. His cum spills a bit from your spent core when Dream finally pulls out.
He’s shaking, too, as he draws you into a tender embrace. You curl up into him on your side, body aching after it all. “You’re good at that. Like, really good.”
Dream smiles into your shoulder, where he has started pressing fond butterfly kisses into your sweaty, flushed skin. “And you are very good. You were very, very good for me, my dear.” You like being good for him. You have a praise kink in general, but being good for Dream somehow feels better, more meaningful, more special.
Just when you open your mouth to ask if he has any plans for the rest of the evening, he cuts you off with a voice undercut by regret and longing. “I cannot stay, unfortunately. My apologies; I don’t wish to leave you here so suddenly. But I have… to go.”
Oh.
You swallow down the quick flash of sadness.
You’re always a bit emotional after sex, and you like cuddling, but Dream doesn’t owe you any of that. He’s been nothing but polite and considerate, and you’ve just met him tonight. Even if you want him to stay, there’s no reason he should.
You know that the sadness and accompanying feelings of loss and inadequacy will soon build into something more substantial, messed up, and all-encompassing. And you’d rather not have Dream around when the dam breaks. He doesn’t have to do anything, and you have no right to make demands on his time.
You should get his phone number or something. But your phone is somewhere in the living room where you dropped your purse, and you really don’t feel like getting up.
Already your body is starting to crash now that the endorphins are gone, and you realize just how exhausted you are. A stroke of genius comes to mind. “It’s all good, don’t worry about it. You’ll leave your number for me? On the notepad by the door?”
“I- yes, I‘ll do that.” He looks at you for a long moment as if he wishes he could stay longer. Dream’s genuine remorse softens your heart. He’s a good guy, and it’s unfortunate that your time together had to be so short.
“I’ll see you around then,” You murmur quietly, asleep before you get to see him out.
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thediktatortot · 1 year
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I really implore fans of media (whatever media it is you enjoy) to understand why a story is told in the way it's told. Even bad stories have a structure and a meaning and if you know the basis of how stories are structured and how the characters fit into that structure, the more you're going to be able to understand the story and better enjoy the characters as a whole.
youtube
What is an Antagonist? An opponent, villain or Rival.
The Villain is a person whose intentions are morally corrupt or anti-human and most off deliberately harmful to those around them.
(ie. Thanos from Avengers, Billy and Stu from Scream, Henry from Stranger Things)
The Anti-Villain is a person who commits corrupt, unjust or morally wrong actions in the belief that they are doing the right thing.
(ie. Magneto from X-Men, Killmonger from Black Panther, Jason Carver from Stranger Things)
The False Antagonist is a person who's viewed by the audience or the characters as a antagonist, but through the story shows themselves to have been falsely labeled as an antagonist or a villain.
(ie. Severus Snape from Harry Potter, Alexei and Billy Hargrove from Stranger Things)
The Hidden Antagonist is a person who's intentions are not shown to be corrupt until later in the story, leading the audience and the characters into a false sense of security.
(ie. Senator Palpatine from Star Wars, Agatha Harkness from Wandavision, Ernesto de la Cruz from Coco)
The Inanimate Antagonist is a non-human force that can be anything from the weather to an illness or an object like a meteor or a car.
The Inner Antagonist is when the main character is their own Antagonist, fighting against themselves through the story.
(ie. Drug use, mental or physical illness, change in morals, desires vs needs)
The Hero Antagonist is a person who's intentions and morals are not corrupt, but they act against the Protagonist in the story.
(ie. The Roadrunner from Looney Tunes, Carl Hanratty from Catch Me If You Can, The Parents of Stranger Things)
No Antagonists is a type of story where there is no direct force working against the Protagonist. This can often be shown as someone living day to day life or there is an unclear singular force working against them.
Stories can often have and most often do, have multiple Antagonists. Some stories use these different types of forces to put even more pressure on a Protagonist and to give depth to the stories they are writing. Often times, nothing is cut and dry when it comes to a persons intentions in a piece of media, but knowing what sort of force they are within the story they are written in can help you understand the Protagonists journey on a even deeper level.
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What is a Protagonist? A lead character, hero or heroine of a narrative.
The Hero Protagonist is a person who's goals are often viewed as courageous, admirable or charitable in nature and often requires a sacrifice or change in order to achieve their goals.
(ie. Captain America from Avengers, Superman from DC Comics, Frodo Baggens from Lord Of The Rings)
The Anti Hero is a person who's actions or morals may be honorable or good, but their actions go against those morals due to necessity or irresponsibility but in the end the audience is rooting for them to win.
(ie. Deadpool from Marvel Comics, Batman from DC Comics, Kali from Stranger Things)
The Tragic Hero is a Hero Protagonist that throughout their journey are corrupted by either surrounding forces or by a fatal flaw within their own character, leading them to fall from the Hero status they once held.
(ie. Anakin Skywalker from Star Wars, Jason Todd from DC Comics)
The Passive Protagonist is a person who's actions are not the leading force of the story, the driving actions of their journey are controlled and moved by other characters and forces in the story.
(ie. Forrest Gump from Forrest Gump, Karl Childers from Sling Blade, Will Byers from Stranger Things)
The Villain Protagonist is a character who is still the focus of the story, but they are not necessarily being cheered to win. These types of characters are often a window into the darker side of life whether we sympathize with them in the end or not.
(ie. Dexter from Dexter, Gru from Despicable Me, Loki from Loki, Walter White from Breaking Bad)
The Protagonist itself does not automatically mean the character is a good person and it's important to remember that when reading or writing. A protagonist is simply the Main Character, the person who the story's focus is about and people themselves are deep and involved people with lives that are different from every other person around them even in small ways.
Understanding a characters role in their story is important for understanding the character on a base level.
I highly recommend watching other videos from that channel and other media analysis channels as the more you know on how to understand a story, the more you will get out of the stories you entertain yourself with or create.
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datcloudboi · 4 months
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List of Films Turning 10 Years Old in 2024
The Amazing Spider-Man 2
American Sniper
Annie (the remake starring Jamie Foxx)
As Above, So Below
The Babadook (we stan a gay icon)
Batman: Assault on Arkham (a direct continuation of the Batman: Arkham games)
Big Eyes
Big Hero 6
Birdman (won the Best Picture Oscar for this year)
The Book of Life
The Boxtrolls
Boyhood (filmed over the course of 12 years)
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Chef
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead
Dear White People (the basis for the TV series on Netflix, and made by the same guy)
Dracula Untold (this was Universal’s second attempt at launching the Dark Universe)
The Drop (a crime drama starring Tom Hardy)
Edge of Tomorrow/Live Die Repeat
The Equalizer
Exodus: Gods and Kings (a biblical epic directed by Ridley Scott)
The Expendables 3
The Fault in Our Stars
Foxcatcher
Fury (the war movie with Brad Pitt and Shia LaBeouf)
Get on Up (the James Brown biopic starring Chadwick Boseman)
Godzilla (the 1st film in the MonsterVerse)
Gone Girl
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1
The Guest
Hercules (the one starring The Rock)
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (did you guys know the working title for this movie was “The Hobbit: There and Back Again”?)
How to Train Your Dragon 2
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1
If I Stay
The Imitation Game (the movie where Benedict Cumberbatch plays Alan Turing)
Inherent Vice
Interstellar
The Interview (the movie that almost caused World War 3)
Into the Woods
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit
Jodorowsky's Dune (a documentary about the Dune movie that we never got)
Joe (one of Nic Cage's best movies)
John Wick (the 1st one)
Kill the Messenger
Left Behind (one of Nic Cage's worst movies)
The Lego Movie
Life After Beth
Lucy ((the “humans only use 10% of their brain” movie. Which has since been proven false. Source: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/do-people-only-use-10-percent-of-their-brains/ )
Maleficent
The Maze Runner
A Million Ways to Die in the Weset
Mr. Peabody and Sherman
Muppets Most Wanted
Need for Speed (Aaron Paul's first project after "Breaking Bad" ended)
Neighbors
Night of the Museum: Secret of the Tomb (the third one. Also one of Robin Williams’ last movies)
Nightcrawler
Noah (a biblical epic directed by Darren Aronofsky)
Non-Stop
The Nut Job
Obvious Child
Oculus (one of the 1st projects from Mike Flanagan)
Ouija
Paddington
Penguins of Madagascar
The Purge: Anarchy
The Raid 2
RoboCop (the reboot that was actually decent)
Selma
Sharknado 2
Sin City: A Dame to Kill For
Son of Batman
St. Vincent
The Taking of Deborah Logan
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (the one produced by Michael Bay. It’s also the one where the Turtles look like aliens)
The Theory of Everything (the movie where Eddie Redmayne plays Stephen Hawking)
Third Person
300: Rise of an Empire
Transformers: Age of Extinction
Tusk
22 Jump Street
Veronica Mars (the film continuation of the TV show)
A Walk Among the Tombstones
What If? (a rom-com starring Daniel Radcliffe)
What We Do in the Shadows (the film that was the basis for the TV show)
When Marnie Was There
Whiplash
X-Men: Days of Future Past
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tavtiers · 3 months
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god tier analysis with planets for a Prince of Rage who bottles up all his negative emotions until he explodes and destroys everything in his path?
The Prince of Rage [symbols: crown, tragedy mask]
The Prince class has its basis in Machiavelli’s The Prince. An example would be Prince Hamlet from the Shakespeare play.
The Rage aspect’s main theme is defiance. You can find its official description here.
A Prince of Rage is among those who alter faith in possibility. This is the “classpect group” they belong to. Members include: the Sylph, Maid, Bard, and Prince of Hope/Rage. These classes are all opposites or inverses of each other that alter the Hope/Rage dichotomy (faith in possibility). A description of classpect groupings can be found here.
The Prince of Rage actively destroys the Rage aspect. Active classes tell themselves what to do and do so for their own benefit. They are more likely to stand up for themselves, but more likely to be cruel. Princes and Bards destroy their aspect and everything it symbolizes, while using that same aspect as a weapon. In doing so, they leave their opposite aspect in their wake. Due to their actions, they come across as their opposite aspect. Simplified, the Prince of Rage is motivated by themselves to destroy defiance. In personality, they come across as the Hope aspect, seemingly defined by assurance.
On the subject of personality, the Prince of Rage wants to have control over things and hates complacency. Personality descriptions can be found here.
Their archetype is the Promised Revolutionary, defined by control and defiance. Archetypes are explained here.
Their opposite is the Bard of Hope, who passively destroys assurance.
Their inverse is the Sylph of Hope, who passively assists assurance.
A classpect or “god tier” is an individual’s best self. All classpects go through a journey from unrealized, to struggle, to realized. When a character is unrealized, they neutrally exist as their inverse. On their struggle, they will wildly flip back and forth between their inverse and true classpect. In their worst moments they will act as their inverse, in their best their true classpect. When realized, they will stabilize as their true classpect. They will still have room to grow, but will become happier, more successful people.
This means that the Prince of Rage begins life motivated by others to assist assurance. When their struggle arrives and they are at their worst, they will continue this behavior in negative extremes. However, when at their best, they will find purpose in instead destroying defiance for themselves. When realized, they will stabilize and continue to destroy the Rage aspect actively, in a positive way.
They share their archetype with the Bard of Blood, the Revolutionary Promised.
The Prince of Rage would quest on a planet similar to the Land of Hope [Opposite Aspect] and Rage [Aspect]. An example would be the Land of Carnivals and Chaos. An explanation of planet naming conventions can be found here.
A possible god, or denizen, to reign over their planet would be Ares (God of War). Other Rage aspect denizens can be found here.
When the Prince of Rage completes their planet quests and dies on their quest bed, they would rise to ascension on the wings of imps (symbols of the devil). A list of soul animals can be found here.
The characters that I have currently classpected as Princes of Rage are: Kurloz Makara from Homestuck [canon example], the Grand Highblood from Homestuck [canon example], Nicki Minaj from Ke$hastuck, Joker from Batman, BOB from Twin Peaks, Florianne de Chalons from Dragon Age, Eddie Blake from Watchmen, Gellert Grindelwald from Harry Potter, and Malcolm X.
If any of the links not connected to my blog break, the content can be found on my Google Drive.
Official Aspect Descriptions
Personality Descriptions
Aspect Denizens
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restwellsoon · 2 years
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Since I Ever Was Your Star
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Pairing: Jason Todd x F!Reader
Summary: The Red Hood has been terrorizing the Gotham underground for months, claiming to reveal himself once the time is right. It doesn’t bother you; you’re too focused on your promotion to Assistant Deputy Chief of the GCPD. Besides, you have other things to worry about, like your childhood friend Jason Todd coming back into town.
/ It was a kiss unlike your first one so many springs ago, where you bumped noses and clinked teeth. Instead it was a kiss that waited for years, never losing hope that there was still passion.
Cw: dubcon, alcohol consumption, humiliation, blackmail, slight yandere!/ mostly scumbag!Jason Todd, smut
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“And here we have our beloved Captain who’s worked tirelessly this past month to implement the GCPD’s latest program on neighborhood safety in this underserved district…”
You switched the news channel to something else, too embarrassed to hear your own voice. Besides, you experienced the news interview firsthand. You knew how it ended.
“The Red Hood’s actions have become bolder in the past few weeks, claiming to reveal his identity soon. Many speculate who might be under the red hood, ranging from–“
Shutting off the TV with the remote, you let out an exhausted sigh in the break room. The day was long but finally over. Another day closer to finding out if you’d get this promotion or not. Another day closer to reaching your dreams. The anticipation was wearing you thin, killing you slowly with dread. You had about a week until they gave you their answer.
Up against Thomas “Mack” Mackenzie for the promotion of Assistant Deputy Chief, you hoped that your sincerity and dedication to the department would outweigh whatever Mack had against you.
The man fit every citizen’s stereotype of the classic GCPD officer: a jaded individual too focused on getting his paycheck instead of helping his community. He was gruff when speaking to victims of crime, blaming them at times for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, finding any excuse to place them at fault instead of the city’s corrupt police department. You were certain he was corrupt in some way or somehow, though your only basis for this belief was in your disdain.
Despite this, the higher-ups loved his shit.
Though the same rank, he used his age and gender to belittle you. You worked hard to rank up to Captain III in the Organized Crime Control Bureau in under ten years. This feat didn’t impress him.
Mack had more experience due to how long he’s served. A man was more naturally adept at protecting. T safe
“Because you’re a woman,” he rationalized. “They’re trying to push an agenda nowadays. It doesn’t mean you’re any good. You just checked off all the boxes.”
You ignored his taunts and insults, suffering in silence to just get the job done and go. As stupid and hopeless as it was –Mack pointed this out whenever you mentioned it– you wanted to rank higher and use your influence to clean up Gotham. You truly believed that you could.
---
Changing out of your uniform in the locker rooms, you stepped out into the night, wrapping your wool cardigan around you tightly. It wasn’t safe to walk around Gotham City in a uniform, whether clocked in or not. But it also wasn’t safe to walk around the city as a woman either. You chose to dress out as the latter of the two, at least you felt cute this way. How many months had it been since your last date? You knew how to protect yourself anyway.
Glancing up at the archaic building that made up the police headquarters, you hoped you’d soon see a higher view. You worked so hard for this. You wanted it. You wouldn’t do anything toT stop you from your dreams.
The walk and train stop from HQ to your apartment was short, under 30 minutes if some villain hadn’t hijacked the tracks or used it in their grand scheme to get their ass beat by Batman and Robin.
Batman. The dark knight was a figure that showed up in the middle of your youth, vowing to be vengeance against the darkness of Gotham. You wondered if your life would have turned out any different if he had shown up sooner. You wondered if you and him would have had a better chance at life.
Though lost in your thoughts about childhood innocence, Batman and crime, you were still aware enough of your surroundings to know that there was a pair of footsteps behind you that followed you to your seat on the train.
Remaining calm, you tried to think of the situation rationally. It was a little after rush hour but the station was still packed with people. Humans were creatures of habit and today you decided to walk a different way. Maybe it was you who walked across the path of this stranger –a man, based on the weight of his steps.
You didn’t acknowledge him as two stops flew by, sitting together in silence. From what you could see in your peripherals, he was big both in size and height. A baseball cap that covered his features. A dark red hoodie. You felt his thigh press against yours, the denim worn against your bare skin. I shouldn’t wear a dresses on the train, you thought.
Three stops later and you were almost home. Gathering your bag, you stood up quickly to leave. You had misread the situation with the stranger. You were just two people trying to get on with your lives.
Nearly exiting the station, a calloused hand grabbed at your wrist. Years of training caused you to whip around quickly, but the sudden touch still surprised you. Fist balled up and ready to strike, you assessed the person who held you.
Baseball cap, dark red hoodie, jeans. It was the man on the train.
He tilted his head and the movement lifted the shadows that hid him. Dark hair, blue eyes and that stupid smile.
“J –Jason?”
“Told you I had a face you couldn’t never forget.”
Fist unclenched, you threw yourself onto him in a hug. It was true that you couldn’t forget his face. Though years had passed since you last saw him, you were relieved that time had treated well.
Jason had obviously grown since the last time you saw him. Adolescence has a way of changing you. He was easily a head taller than you. His shoulders were broad and strong, made obvious by the fact that you couldn’t wrap your arms around them like you used to. Right now you found your face buried into his chest instead. He smelled like expensive cologne.
“Where have you been?” You asked, pulling away to search his face for any clues.
Time had let him grow into his features. His face had filled out, cheek bones prominent and jaw defined, the faint shadow of freshly shaved facial hair. You felt yourself smile a little, remembering that tiny kid who so desperately wanted a pornstache.
“Around,” he shrugged as if he hadn’t been out of your life for over a decade, if not more.
Walking side-by-side, you unconsciously followed the route to your apartment. The old you would have cried at the thought of it, you and Jason finally having a warm safe place to rest your heads.
“It’s been years, Jason,” you pointed out, wanting more of an explanation.
The last you heard he was the ward of the infamous Bruce Wayne, sent away to study abroad in some European country shortly after being adopted. Though the Gotham paparazzi loved anything involving Bruce, they usually had nothing to say when it came to his children. You wondered if the billionaire paid them off to be silent.
You felt him snake his hand down to yours and give it a light squeeze, your childhood way of saying sorry. You squeezed back before lacing his hand in yours. You’re forgiven.
You thought about how your hands used to be the same size but now his dwarfed yours easily. They were still rough though, but hopefully from lifting weights and not picking locks like Jason used to.
“Came back to town to say hello my old man,” Jason said, not giving more answers. “…and to see my favorite girl,” he added with a grin.
“But how did you find me?”
Jason didn’t have you on any form of social media and you had cut ties with everyone else from your youth.
“Hard to ignore such a pretty face when it’s been blasted all over the news lately,” he said dryly.
You gave him a look. “Guess I was just at the right place at the right time. I was actually on my way to that one diner we used to dream about eating at.”
You knew the one. When you and Jason wandered the streets one hot summer night, you stumbled upon it. It wasn’t anything special, tucked on the corner of Seventh and Lemon, not far from where your current living space was. In fact, that was the whole reason you decided to move to that apartment complex. It was close to the diner of your dreams. It was a way to tell yourself that you made it.
Jason and you had walked too far from home that summer night, ending up on the better side of town. Though the diner was near-empty, a few families and a handful of college-aged lovers made the place seem absolutely glamourous to the two of you who had nothing but each other.
Knowing you couldn’t afford it then, the two of you opted to scrounge around in the dumpster for leftovers instead. Luckily a kind worker took pity upon you two when they saw you as they were about to throw the trash. They came back with two milkshakes, two burgers and a basket of fries. It was still one of the best meals you ever had. The two of you made a greasy-fingered pinky promise to come again as paying customers.
“Come with?” Jason asked, motioning towards the left. To the right was your home full of piled up leftovers in your fridge. You made the sensible the choice and declined. Years of going without it made you hate the thought of wasting food.
“Not tonight.” Jason made a mock face of offense, hand clutching at his heart from your rejection.
“What about this Sunday? There’s a bar down that way too.”
“On Sunday, it’s a date,” he stated, placing a chaste kiss upon your knuckles. Since when had he been so smooth?
“Sunday,” you confirmed, giving him a wave after exchanging phone numbers. You felt his eyes follow you as you reached the front door of your building.
---
You heard the name before, who hadn’t in the past eight months? Taking up the moniker of one of the Joker’s first names, the Red Hood was a pain in the GCPD’s ass, yours especially right now.
Watching as two Capos were handcuffed and dragged along to the cop cars, you gave a dirty look to the man in the red helmet before you. The Red Hood rarely worked with the GCPD though your goals and interactions often crossed. He was often antagonistic towards the department, shooting bullets that barely missed your officers. You knew he missed on purpose too. Lord knows how much paperwork you filled out every time an officer or detective had an encounter with him.
“A part of me wants to believe that you’re not actually this incompetent and that maybe you just want to see me in action, Captain,” his words came out in a robotic drawl.
“Would you like that, Cap? You’ve seen what I can do on the streets, but how about what I can do underneath the sheets?”
You ignored the Red Hood’s taunts, desensitized to the shit he was spewing from Mack’s watercooler talks.
“Always thought you were a badge bunny,” a gruff voice boomed behind the two of you, clearly having overheard. “But you tryna fuck ‘Hood too? What does that make you?”
Mack thought before his mouth pulled wide into a lascivious grin. “Crimefucker.”
He barked in laughter, doubling over to slap his knee. He thought he was so funny. You heard some other officers laugh before shutting up after the glare you gave them.
“Oh shut the fuck up, Mack. Do you really need another complaint sent to HR for sexual harassment?”
He scoffed.
“You’re right, I guess it doesn’t matter. Your wife already left you and took half your shit anyway.”
“And you,” you shoved a finger into the chest of the vigilante, careful to avoid the bat symbol that held a taser’s charge. “I don’t need your help. As far as your proposition goes, if your sexual performance is anything like your work, I’m not impressed with someone who shoots blanks.”
Stalking off, you walked to the detectives who were in charge of investigating this specific crime family. You didn’t need this type of humiliation right now. Sunday couldn’t come faster.
---
Jason slunk into his hideout in an abandoned bunker right below One Police Plaza. The poetic side of him loved the irony of a vigilante living below the very system he disrupted.
Setting his helmet down and kicking off his boots, Jason plopped onto his busted leather couch, thinking of his past two encounters with you. It really had been too long. The Lazarus Pit fucked with his mind, fucked with his memories. He hated himself for forgetting you, too driven by madness and revenge to recall the sweetness of your voice or your touch that would soothe.
He wasn’t the same Jason Todd you knew back then. He came back from the dead unwillingly, but he’d come back better just for you.
It took years of training to build up all the muscle, his growth enhanced by the effects of the Pit. Jason took his time to learn, practiced written word and how to write sonnets dedicated to your beauty. He acquired wealth, mostly through illegal means, but that was something you were used to.
Jason fantasized about seeing you again, showing up at your door as a cultured man. He’d sweep you away and you two would finally run away from Gotham.
But Jason came back as a sicker man with a worse desire for you.
At first he was torn about what he should do. You were probably happier without him, probably made it out of that shithole Alley. Who was he to waltz back into the life you made without him?
But the more selfish side won. The side that always wanted to possess you and keep you for himself. The side that begrudged you for moving on without him.
He was especially critical about your choice in career. He wondered if you were just as corrupt as the other assholes in the department. Or maybe you were just their little whore. Even though he didn’t know the details, Jason wanted to punish you for thinking you could move on from him.
Not all dark, it was a hopeful side too. A piece of him that believed that you loved him as much as he loved you. That you still would after all these years. That you still would when you learned what became of him. A part of him that believed that maybe once you were reunited, he’d have someone worth living for.
Jason thought back to that promise ring he made you, a shitty knot of sidewalk weeds. You smiled at him brightly and said you’d always be his star. A shining point to guide him in the darkness. A star in the universe to show the possibility of what you and he could be.
He sat up, strengthening his resolve. He would have you. It was written in the stars.
---
“For some reason, I thought you’d order a salad,” you said, before tipping back the long neck of your beer bottle into your mouth. This was your fourth one, having pounded the first three quickly, thinking you didn’t feel a change in headspace. You were wrong.
“Really?” Jason responded, light blue eyes never leaving your mouth. Unlike you, he was still sipping on his second beverage, nursing it as if it was the last beer on earth.
Speaking in a voice more sultry than you intended –you blamed it on the alcohol, “Jason, you’re fucking huge.”
His smile was smug, black hair darkening his eyes. “I thought you wouldn’t tell me that until later on tonight.”
Normally his teasing wouldn’t bother you, used to it from the years you had known him. His words didn’t hold much weight for you then. You didn’t think any boy could ever love you, especially when you towered over them like you did with Jason. But every night you spent together, huddled together for warmth during the cold Gotham winter, he told you. He meant every word too, he’d say.
“Well I told you right now and maybe I’ll tell you later too,” you hinted. Inebriation made you bold.
Unused to this side of you, Jason jumped at the chance, hastily throwing down some bills.
“Your place?”
---
“Home sweet home,” you said, ungracefully dropping your keys and purse by door. Jason picked them up and placed them on the counter after locking the door behind him.
“Home,” you said, turning around to look at him, some stupid smile on your face. You were drunk and you didn’t care about being secretive about your feelings towards the man. “Because you’re here with me.”
You could feel the heat from Jason’s cheeks –or maybe it was yours. “It’s a step up from that shitty youth center with the bunk beds.” You both crinkled your noses in disgust before laughing. Look at how far you had come since then.
Showing him the rest of your place, Jason took note of all the details. Your interior style was everything you wanted back then. He was happy that you got it but jealous that he wasn’t the one who provided it for you.
Once reaching your bedroom, he quickly eyed a set of shiny cuffs.
“Oh, what’s this?”
You stepped in front of him to obscure his view. It didn’t work. He could easily see over you.
“It’s for work,” you said hurriedly. “I’m a captain for the GCPD, ya know. Organized crime and vices.”
“Always thought you’d look hot in a uniform… Wait, what are you doing?”
What were you doing? It was habit for you to strip down to your underwear the moment you got home, the confines of the starch stiff uniform too constricting for your liking.
Normally you’d cover yourself and stammer up an excuse and an apology.  But it was Jason. And it had been so long since you’ve been with anyone and the thought of being with him excited you even more.
“What? You don’t want to cuddle?” You asked, stepping out of your dress and unhooking your bra, leaving you in your panties. They were lacy and showed off your body, chosen in the event that something might happen.
Jason smiled knowingly, “Hm, cuddling under the covers, huh?” He stripped himself down to his underwear.
You felt timid now that you were both under the covers. Jason’s strong arms dragged you across to his side of the bed, pulling you close to his chest. You weren’t sure of whose heart it was, but it was beating loudly and erratically.
“I really missed you, baby,” he said softly into your hair, ending his confession with a kiss.
“Missed you too, Jay,” you said back.
“Wanna feel how much I missed you?” He shifted his hips to grind into yours, something very stiff and girthy rubbing against you.
“Oh.”
Thinking that actions spoke louder than words, you tilted your head up to kiss him. It was open mouthed and wet, the faint flavor of alcohol on both your tongues. It was a kiss unlike your first one so many springs ago, where you bumped noses and clinked teeth. Instead it was a kiss that waited for years, never losing hope that there was still passion.
Hands felt hands and explored other parts of each other’s bodies, palms spread out to touch the most surface area. You and Jason couldn’t say how it started but you ended tangled up in each other’s longing.
Breathless, you both parted, staring into each other’s eyes. Jason moved slowly beneath you, his slow friction making you wet. Your inner thigh was pressed against his member. How could he stay sane when he was so impossibly hard?
Pulling his boxers down, his cock sprung out, giving you a gentle tap on the face due to his size. Jason smirked at your reaction, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape.
“Jason, you’re fucking huge.”
It was more of a moan than a compliment as you took him in your mouth. Jason closed his eyes and sighed at the feeling of being inside your mouth, rutting along to your pace. He had dreamed of this for so long.
Jason knew he was being a little too rough, a little too forceful. There were tears in your eyes and you gagged against length. But he wanted you to have all of him.
Your fingers tapped against his thighs and he decided to be nice, pulling out of you. There’d be more opportunities for you to practice your technique and he would make sure you practiced.
“You’re rough.” It was neither a compliment nor an accusation.
He didn’t give you an apology. Jason would have been rougher if you let him. He was holding back on the desire to dominate you and take you as he wanted.
“Can we use these?” He asked, referring to the handcuffs from earlier. The keys sat diagonal from the cuffs position. You nodded.
“You were always so tough back then,” he murmured, locking the cuffs with a metallic clink as he pressed your upper back down so your pussy was out on display.
“How does it feel to be so helpless now?”
Growing wet from his words, you bit your lip, unsure of how to express it. It was hot. Being in a position of power at work, you always had to be a hard ass, always had to be a bitch to prove your worth. Being tied up and at the mercy of Jason was a tempting change in pace from the usual power you displayed.
“A part of me wants to see that strength one more time. See that fire in your eyes. But this is good too,” Jason praised, fingertips outlining your southern set of lips against the damp fabric.
“It’s fucking hot seeing you so vulnerable.”
“Jason, please,” you begged, adding on to your helplessness. You wriggled your hips in hopes that it would tempt him. He drew away instead to enjoy the view.
Achingly long, he gave into you, dragging the lace down the length of your legs. He wasted no time with fingering you. From how the gleam of your lips looked in the bedroom light, Jason knew you were wet enough.
“Your cunt looks so pretty with my cock buried deep in it,” he noted. Jason watched as his engorged member sunk deeper in you, the squelches combing with your moans to create something lewd. He pulled out quickly with a wet pop, fingers moving fast to see how much he stretched you.
You heard the rustle of clothes and felt the bed shift as he grabbed something. You wished that he would stop whatever he was doing and continue to fuck you.
Jason snapped a picture with his phone, the mechanical click breaking you from your wants. You turned around, eyes wide.
“Did you just…?”
“What?” He asked innocently. “Didn’t you say that you’d always be my star?”
You felt the heat of embarrassment rise up from your chest and reach to your cheeks, both at the mentioning of your childhood love and the lewdness of your current position. He didn’t mean it in the context of your sweet innocent crush. If Jason posted this on the internet, you’d be his amateur porn star.
“Sorry babe, but I had to record it for the memories. You always knew I was the sentimental type.”
You stayed silent, not in acceptance but in uncertainty. You were drunk and horny. You didn’t want to argue about consent and pictures right now.
Slowly sliding himself back into your warmth, you whimpered at the sensation of being stretched once more. Jason was big and you loved how every inch of him seemed to press into you, creating friction with the slightest movement.
“How does it feel taking all this cock, baby?”
“Good.” You didn’t want to hear him talk, regardless of how deep, raspy and sexy he sounded right now. You just wanted to get fucked.
“Just good? Guess I need to try harder.”
“Gonna let you go now, but you gotta listen to what I say,” he said, keys already in the lock. A part of you didn’t like this new freedom. The thought of being at Jason’s mercy turned you on.
“Get on your back.”
In your new position, he pressed your legs back so that your knees dug into your chest. Jason had better access to you this way. He could go deeper and hit the spots you needed him to.
You squirmed under Jason’s gaze, feeling his focus on your center. It was embarrassing, really, how lewdly he was looking at you, as if you would be the last woman he would ever fuck.
Finally he dipped his cock in, head first only. He watched as his swollen tip prodded at your entrance, there but not quite. You whined in need below him. Jason would give you what you wanted.
“Say it,” he growled through ragged breaths, the snap of his hips erratic deciding to give you the entirety of his length. “Who’s making you feel good?”
“J –jay, it’s uh you,” you stuttered out. Jason was pounding into you roughly and it was difficult to think. It turned Jason on, hearing you stutter and watching as your brows furrowed trying to think. He wanted to fuck you stupid so you could only think of him.
“Play with that cute little clit of yours and tell me who’s gonna make you cum.”
You reached a hand down gingerly, following his command. Your hips jerked with each circle you rubbed your clit in, the sensation blending with Jason’s thrusts.
“You.”
“Wrong answer, baby. Guess you don’t want me to finish you off?”
You wracked your brain trying to think of what he wanted. You noticed he had his phone out again and wondered if he was recording.
“Jason, it’s you,” you said in-between thrust. Jason watched as the force of his pounding made your tits bounce, reaching over to pinch your nipple. You yelped.
“Jason Todd, you’re gonna make me fucking cum.” You cried out in the lewdest voice he ever heard.
You bit your lip as you touched your swollen bud more frantically, feeling yourself get closer to the end. Jason noticed it too and his thrusts were shallower but quick, the slap of skin being the only sound. Soon enough, you were seeing stars and shaking in pleasure.
He zoomed in on your face, eyes scrunched up from your tension. Slowly he moved the phone down, a pause on your heaving chest then down to your tender cunt, his cock still stretching you out. Jason pulled out slowly, relishing the image of his cum dripping out of your used pussy.
“I love you, Jason Todd,” you blurted out, eyes heavy now with sleep.
---
When you woke up in the morning, he was gone. You’ve never been fucked to sleep before.
As you popped some ibuprofen to ease your hangover, you slowly got yourself ready for work, being careful not to move too quickly in case you might throw up.
Should you text Jason about last night?
You were a bit worried about what Jason would do with the pictures and videos, praying to any god that would listen that he wouldn’t send them to the GCPD. But he was a good guy and he loved you, so why would he ever do that?
The thought of you in such a compromising position was humiliating and would end your entire career. You couldn’t help that the thoughts kept occupying your mind. Who would ever respect you after seeing you get railed and creampied? After seeing your face while you came?
You definitely wouldn’t be getting that promotion if this was leaked.
But it was far worse than you thought when you turned on the morning news.
The news clip showed a familiar face, his ice blue eyes glinting in the shadows. His dark hair blending in with them. To others he might look like a stranger. But you knew damn well who he was.
“My name is Jason Todd and I’m the Red Hood who’s been cutting into Gotham’s underbelly and showing the GCPD and Batman exactly what’s wrong with their war on crime.”
Fuck.
Turning off the news, you hurried to work. You’d deal with that later. Today you’d finally know if you got the promotion.
---
You were on the verge of crying as Commissioner Gordon told you the news of your promotion. You couldn’t wait to rub it in Mack’s face and pull rank on him whenever you could.
But as joyous as the occasion was, you hesitated knowing you couldn’t share this moment with Jason. He was the Red Hood.
You got a text from him a few minutes later. You weren’t sure if it was a coincidence.
Congrats on the promotion, babe. Love you.
It wasn’t.
Another text.
It was the clip where you told him that you loved him a little while after you came. Your legs were still spread and Jason’s cock was still inside you.
It would be a shame though, if Gordon and those pigs you associate with found out about your conflict in interest. Consider this assurance in the event that you squeal.
Sorry, babe, but you’re stuck with me. We’ll see how long I feel like letting you play this stupid game.
You turned off your phone, a sick feeling in your stomach.
Jason loved you, right? He wouldn’t actually send that video to Commissioner Gordon. He loved you. He loved you ever since you were kids. He’d only act in your best interest. He had to.
You felt sick at the realization.
Jason loved you, he really did.
But it wasn’t the sweet innocence of two kids who bonded over their shitty circumstances. It wasn’t the type of love that sought comfort in each other. A love that needed peace. No, it had somehow become the love that glowed under a malevolent star, ruled by a house of possession.
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alternis · 2 months
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okay it is kinda funny that the pushback against "Jason was the bad angry robin" has reached the point that I just saw somebody react to a tiktok skit about Batman 424 (the Felipe garzonas plotline) with "Jason would not do this he was the happy cheerful Robin, this would be something dick or damian would do"
like the fanon robin!Jason has gotten so far from "he was the angry robin" that people overcorrected and now like. genuinely don't know about that time he might have killed a dude rather than let him evade justice. ('might' being the key word here, i know it was left deliberately ambiguous, I have read 424 and 425)
anyway fandom is a vicious cycle of people saying "X character trait is exaggerated" until the collective forgets that the character trait had an actual basis in canon, and then other people turn around to be like "everybody forgets about X character trait" until the collective starts exaggerating it and erasing other traits, and then the entire cycle begins anew and we are all trapped forever on a seesaw of Takes. hold hands with me and we can both touch grass together
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Okay so I've been thinking of this post here for a while now:
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We all know this post is hilarious, but really how well would the Justice League handle the Cloudburst and the Arkham Knight's tank? Could they survive? Could they take out the tank? So as a little thought excersise I'd go through on a member by member basis and how well they'd handle it. Welcome to my unofficial dissertation.
(If you think I'm wrong or missing something I probably am but let me know, I'd love to hear other people's thoughts on this.)
SUPERMAN - MOST LIKELY
It's been consistent in most media that Superman is not affected by fear gas unless it's mixed with Kryptonite, however this is explicitly stated to be the most powerful version of Scarecrow's toxin, so for the sake of argument we'll say it will affect him, just slower than a human. Superman would have three practical options in that case: Use super breath to blow a path through the Cloudburst, hold his breath, or survey from above with X-ray vision to minimize contact with the gas.
WONDER WOMAN - VERY LIKELY
The Arkham Knight's Tank shouldn't be an issue to the Man of Steel; the shots would absolutely knock him back in a head-on approach but as soon as Superman makes it to the body of the tank it's all over.
Being an Amazon warrior and their princess, Diana's rigorous training has given her a strong mental fortitude, strong enough to at least once break through fear gas. (A/N: I haven't read much Wonder Woman and ultimately it's up to the writer but from my understanding this is what I've come to) Personally I think she's the most likely to last as long as Batman did in the cloud. If Wonder Woman can make it to the Batmobile (which seems to filter out the air from the Cloudburst) before the fear gas takes over her mind she'd be able to cross the first hurdle.
Based on the scenario I described, Wonder Woman could absolutely take out the Cloudburst tank using the Batmobile. But what about other methods, just for fun? In a one-on-one fight Wonder Woman could take out the tank, albeit just a bit slower than Superman. She likely wouldn't go for a head-on attack but could break through the shell of the tank with ease. Problem is this hypothetical only applies if you argue WW can handle the fear gas directly, which I do not think they would.
GREEN LANTERN (Hal, John, Guy, or Jessica) - SOLID CHANCE
If you don't think this Batman would trust Diana with the Batmobile, she still has the Invisible Jet but all things considered it wouldn't do much. The Cloudburst is so thick it disrupted even the Batmobile's sensors making any attempts to fire at the tank a literal shot in the dark. What's more is the jet doesn't have the precision anti-tank weaponry that the Batmobile has. According to Wikipedia the Invisible Jet (in Wonder Woman 1984) is based on a combination of the F-111 Aardvark and Panavia Tornado GR1, of the two the highest caliber of precision weapon is a 27mm revolver cannon, which comparably is a joke to the Batmobile's 60mm cannon needed to take out the heavy drones and tanks. Ultimately the jet would not be much help against the tank but it came to my mind so I had to discuss the potential of it.
THE FLASH - UNLIKELY
Green Lantern's weakness is Yellow due to being the color of fear (well actually it's because of a battle against Parallax but he is a physical manifestation of fear so...). Because of that it's unlikely that anything whichever Lantern constructs wouldn't even break through the cloudburst. I wasn't sure if there was ever an instance of a Lantern dealing with fear gas and somehow the ONLY instance I could find is Justice League: Doom where Hal was able to conquer the effects after learning it's an illusion. So if whichever Green Lantern would attempt to fight the Arkham Knight would need to be very experienced.
Assuming Green Lantern can enter the cloudburst without issue, the tank is a goddamn joke. They could create a high powered sniper rifle, their own batmobile, or literally a hand with a Tech Deck to grind the tank and smash it.
The Flash still needs to breathe when he runs so he can't just dash in and punch a hole in the tank. His best solution to clear the path would be to form a tornado around Gotham in order to dissipate the cloud, but that's a serious risk to everyone left in the city, not to mention the collateral damage of scattering the Cloudburst across the sky. So no, I don't think Flash could get past the fear gas.
MARTIAN MANHUNTER - UNLIKELY
If you negate the gas itself it wouldn't be too hard for the Flash to destroy the tank. Dash around it so fast it starts to break apart, run around the Earth a couple of times and punch its weak points, all things considered the tank is the easy part.
As a side effect of watching his entire race dying, J'ohn J'onnz's has a crippling fear of fire. That doesn't even require fear gas to create, just a bit of gas and a match. While we have no real reference on if Scarecrow's fear toxin affects Martians, but it can then this fight is over before it even began.
Like most members with actual powers, the Arkham Knight's tank is simple enough to take down. Being as strong as Superman not to mention invisibility he could walk right up to the tank and destroy it before the Knight even knows what happens.
AQUAMAN - UNLIKELY
This was interesting to think about because I didn't actually know if Aquaman even has to breathe above water, but from a bit of research yes he does in fact breathe oxygen on land. This means the Cloudburst would affect him on land. What's more, the final appearance of Scarecrow in Batman: Arkham Asylum has him threatening to drop the chemical into the water, poisoning Gotham, meaning to some extent fear gas can travel through water. HOWEVER, the version of the gas in Batman: Arkham Knight was already dispersed into the form of a cloud, making it a lot harder to disperse into water. So hypothetically, Aquaman could create a torrent running through Gotham's streets as a shield against the cloudburst, but he could not leave the water.
Aquaman is incredibly strong, but not as strong as Superman or Wonder Woman. Given the hypothetical of needing to stay in a constant stream of water, any direct shot from the cannon would knock him loose and he'll have to face the fear gas. Putting this together, Arthur Curry would have to be fast and precise aiming to the tank's weakest points while moving very fast lest he get shot. While I considered Aquaman just hucking a whale at the tank could probably work, the streets of Gotham are not built for that kind of attack and would cause tens of millions in property damage, not to mention possible unnecessary casualties.
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This covers the founding members of the Justice League, but for fun I'll point out a few more members worth thinking about.
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CYBORG - While I don't think it's possible for him to make it through the Cloudburst, I would be remised if I don't acknowledge that he could hack the Batmobile in order to take out the tank.
PLASTIC MAN - I think Plastic Man might be the only member with a natural immunity to anything Scarecrow throws at him due to his entire biology being changed to plastic. That said, he poses no chance against the tank.
RED TORNADO - Since he's a robot, fear gas does nothing to Red Tornado. However the Cloudburst is powerful enough to damage electronics. Whether or not the weather will affect him would be up to the writer, but that fact might not even matter due to just being able to blow it all away.
The tank would absolutely devastate Red Tornado in a one-on-one fight meaning he'd have to move really fast with direct strikes to the weak points in order to defeat it.
DOCTOR FATE - This isn't even a contest he could just teleport the Arkham Knight and his tank to Hell.
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In doing this thought experiment I have come to realize that the plot of BMAK would be incredibly boring with any other hero because they'd decimate the Knight's militia in ten minutes. Furthermore, Batman is one of the only League members with enough willpower to brute-force fear gas, making him more or less the only one insane enough to take on this threat. So from all of this I think it is safe to say that he is in fact NOT stupid for not calling the Justice League. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.
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jasntodds · 1 month
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Petrichor [18]
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Pairing: Jason Todd x Fem!Powered!Reader (little bit of fwb)
Words: 9,775
Chapter Warnings: Swearing, angst, canon character death, blood, canon violence, mention of previous abuse, mention of drug use, mention of drug addiction, mention of canon gore, kind of a mention of alcoholism
Summary: ❝Pylades: I’ll take care of you. Orestes: It’s rotten work. Pylades: Not to me. Not if it’s you.❞
Gotham is home, not just for Jason but for you, too. And now that you’re both finally back home, together, you’re ready to see where this next chapter brings the two of you. He’s your best friend and you’re his. And you both might want a little something more with being back home, the place you both feel most comfortable. Surely, nothing could possibly go wrong now.
A/N: I can't believe I've had to type out canon character death 4 times for this series lol You can add yourself to the tag list below, ask me to be tagged, or you can follow my library blog @jasntoddslibrary  and turn on notifications if you prefer that!! I love feedback, I swear it keeps me posting on a weekly basis 😭
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You and Gar are seated on the floor facing each other while Rachel went out to get you some supplies. You're trying to wrap your head around how you're supposed to function around the city and take down Crane when the entire city wants your heads on spikes. The GCPD has always been weird about Batman but now they actually want all of the Titans taken down and with Crane behind it, that can't mean just throwing you all in cells and tossing away the key. You can't just go out and fight every civilian that hates you now. They're brainwashed because that's what Crane does and fighting people who have no clue what they're doing isn't going to help your situation. It feels more like you're all sitting ducks at this point.
"Doesn't it bother you?" Gar asks, breaking the silence between you, earning an eyebrow raise from you. "How Jason came back."
Your eyes narrow slightly, unsure how or why it would bother you. Him being alive is a good thing. "Why would it bother me?"
"I mean the Lazarus Pit." Gar states as he leans forward. "Like, he came back and that's just it? Some water somewhere is magic and can bring people back from the dead. That doesn't make sense."
You nod your head slowly, this is the same thing he told you at the manor when he showed you some of the books Bruce had on it. "Yeah, we went over that. It's because of Ra's which I think makes a lot of sense, honestly. It's still bothering you that much?"
"Yeah, like why doesn't anyone know where it is? Or what if they do but it's a secret. Bruce knew, right? Why didn't Bruce close it off like the others? Why did he keep the one in Gotham open?" Gar rambles off his questions.
Of all topics that's going to pick at Gar, this is it? The Lazarus Pit? You're bothered by it, too but not enough to be sitting here thinking about it when you're worried the Titans are going to be hunted for sport now. You've been separated and you're going to need each other but Gar doesn't seem bothered by it at all. Just the Lazarus Pit.
You blink at him a few times. "I've been trying to rationalize the decisions Bruce makes but I think that's more of a dead end than anything else. If anyone is going to have that answer outside of Bruce, it'd probably be Jason or Dick. But, they don't really get him either. I don't know." You shrug your shoulders. "Bruce is paranoid, maybe that's all there is to it. Couldn't explain why no one else knows..."
"Yeah, he's paranoid!" Gar groans. "So why leave it open?"
"No, I mean that's probably why. Or research." You let out a breath. "Maybe he's worried something will happen if he closes all of them off. Or he needs it to do more research. I don't know." You scoff. "I don't know how he feels about resurrection so maybe he wants to use it to help people or something I have no fucking idea, Gar. I think you'll drive yourself insane if you try to rationalize Bruce Wayne." You lean back on your hands, stretching out your legs.
"Maybe more people know about it." Gar says quietly. "If Crane knew..." Gar trails off as his eyes grow worried.
Without him finishing, you know exactly what he's thinking.
"Yeah, thought of that." You nod your head, your heart skipping a beat.
If Crane knew and his guy knew, more people know. They have to. Gotham is a big city so anyone can stumble upon it. People talk, it's what they do. It can't be that big of a secret. The question is who knows about it. If Crane knows, more Arkham inmates might know. More people who are crooked might know. There have been some really bad people who've been killed. If Jason can come back, so can they.
"We have to find it." Gar states.
"Why?" You ask flatly, tired of the circles you've been running.
"So we can do something about it." Gar says sternly.
"Like what?" Your voice raises.
Considering Crane is literally taking over the city, poisoning the water, and still might be wanting to distribute his drug, you think your hands a little bit full at the moment. Why go messing with something like a Lazarus Pit? That just sounds like a bad idea. Doing research into it is fine but the way you see it, it's probably best to leave well enough alone. Maybe you all should tackle one problem at a time and the Lazarus Pit doesn't seem to be a problem right now.
"I don't know! But maybe we can understand more about it and...use it for good. Or close it off so people like..." Gar's voice trails off as his eyes dodge yours. "The Joker don't get brought back."
"We should leave it alone." You urge, not missing a beat. "That's...that's Bruce and Ra's' business and Jason filled me in on the whole League Of Assassins and the Al Ghuls and I don't want to fuck with them."
"Since when are you on Bruce's side?" Gar scoffs in disbelief. The you he knows would love to do anything to get one over on Bruce, to show him up, prove he's wrong. Or just spite him in general. "He left. He left Dick to clean up his mess."
"I'm not on Buce's side." You grit your teeth. "I don't know why I have to be on anyone's side besides my own, by the way. Look, he's been doing the Batman shit a long fucking time and his methods don't always work but there has to be a reason the pit was left open." You pause for a few seconds before you shake your head. "It brought Jason back. It's not up to us to close it or do something with it."
The room falls silent with your final words. A lot of really bad people can be brought back and that is obviously a big concern. And you disagree with Bruce like you get paid for it but you know if that, of all things, was left open there is a reason for it. It brought Jason back. The way you see it, it can't be up to you and Gar to do anything about it. The Lazarus Pit isn't a battle and it's not up for Gar and you to make it into one. That's Bruce, Ra's' and Jason's business now.
"I got everything." Rachel states as she walks into the room, gaining Gar's and yours attention. The two of you get to your feet as Gar takes the bag from Rachel. "So, this happened last night? With the GCPD?" Rachel asks as Gar looks through the bag and pulls out a box of Cheeze Its.
"Yeah." You nod. "We, uh, we were set up. Dick and Babs had a plan to get the public off our backs but uh, Crane has basically the rest of the department on his payroll now so, uh, yeah." You nod your head as you look to the ground. Gar nudges you softly, offering you the bag. You look inside, seeing clothes. "Thank you." Your eyes widen at Rachel as you nod your head but before you can go to change, all of your phones start blaring an alarm.
The three of you pull out your phones, hoping this means cell towers are back up and running but you can never get so lucky. Instead, Jason wearing the Red Hood suit appears on your screens. Sam's heart falls to her feet. This is never good.
"Hello Gotham!" Jason cheers. "It's Red Hood coming to you live from the most exclusive spot in town: The Batcave. For too long, this city has been at the mercy of criminals and I'm not just talking about the Penguin and the Riddler and The Joker. I'm talking about the ones who pretend to help but only make things worse. First Batman and now the Titans. Hypocrites who feed off of your terror and pursuit of glory and they turn Gotham into a city of carnage. But it all comes to an end today. There's a new savior in town. First thing I'm going to do is burn the trash. You hear me, Nightwing? You're public enemy numero uno. But not for long, meet me at midnight. You know the place. It's time for us to finish this." Jason finishes before the screens go black.
You can feel the headache coming back. What the fuck?
"Okay, what the hell was that about?" Gar asks, looking to you.
Just last night Jason got you both to safety, took out the snipers. Gar might have been a bit out of it but he remembers that pretty vividly. Now, Jason is back with Crane?
"I literally have no fucking idea." You let out a groan, stuffing your phone back into the pocket of your suit.
"I thought he was on our side?" Rachel asks.
"Yeah." Gar raises his brows. "Isn't he supposed to be?"
"He is!" You immediately defend, desperately grabbing for an ounce of faith and reason Jason might have. "I don't know what he's doing. Maybe..." You pull in a breath, trying to figure out why he'd be acting like he's trying to target the Titans. If it were you, it'd be an act, a ploy to play both sides. "Maybe it's to meet up with Dick? I don't know. I mean, he has to make the public think he's with them and not us. He has to play along with Crane or he's dead again. And Crane clearly has access to the towers so it's not like Jason can just...call Dick. Crane might know." You nod your head, mostly just blurting out whatever bullshit you could come with on the spot.
"That's not reassuring." Gar remarks. "How do we know he's not working with Crane again?" Gar asks and he wants to hold onto hope that's not the case but after everything, even he's starting to be chiseled down into a calloused version of himself.
"We don't." You state, holding your head steady, careful not to waver. "We don't know. I don't think he would but it's always possible Crane drugged him again, I guess." You roll your eyes before you roll your shoulders. "Okay, I'm gonna go find Dick."
"No!" Gar protests. "They're going to try to kill you if you go out there. We need to stay hidden until we think of a plan."
"Yeah, I'm with Gar on this one." Rachel states, glancing between the two of you.
"I know this city like the back of my hand. I can find him and be fine." You argue back casually.
At this point, you aren't too afraid of what's out there. It can't possibly be any worse than anything you've experienced lately. You can change, go out as a civilian until you find them. It shouldn't take too long and if it does, you know where they'll be at midnight and you can go there. Someone has to find Dick before any of this gets any worse. And someone needs to find Jason to make sure he's not actually going to try and kill Dick again. You're volunteering, again.
"How are we supposed to find you again then?" Gar asks.
"I don't know." You shrug. "Rache's ESP or whatever?" Rachel offers a slight glare to you as you shrug and give her a grin. "That's kind of what it is." You mutter under your breath. "Whatever Rachel just used, use that. I'm gonna find Dick and if I can't, I know where they're gonna meet."
"Why do you know that?" Rachel asks.
"Because I know Jason and so does Dick. So I'm gonna go there if I have to." The casualness of your voice is not reassuring to Gar or Rachel.
"We're gonna try to find the Lazarus Pit then." Gar states, holding his head high as he crosses his arms.
"You're not gonna stop about that are you?" You ask slowly, giving Gar a slight glare.
"Nope." Gar offers you a smile right back which gets your rather cold exterior to crack just a little.
"Fine but can you promise not to mess with it...like don't take any water...liquid? From it, okay? Or have Rachel try to destroy it." You raise your brows at Rachel and then at Gar who starts to beam.
"Of course not." Gar nods his head once. "I just want to find it, learn more."
"Alright." You let out a sigh. "I'll change and head out. If we don't meet up and you don't hear from me before somehow, we'll meet back here at noon tomorrow, okay?"
"Sounds good." Rachel offers a soft smile. "Don't do anything stupid."
You let out a soft laugh. "Yeah, too late." You look back to Gar. "You guys don't do anything stupid." You smile cheekily at Gar before you turn on your heels. "Be careful!" You wave a hand as you leave the room.
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You start your search near the tunnel system, hoping Jason will be there at least but he's not. The reality is that if Jason doesn't want to be found, he won't be. That little bit of information about him has you starting to really worry. It's probably nothing. Jason is probably just with Crane, getting information and saving his own ass. But, there's this small part of you that does wonder if he's preparing to go after Dick again. As much as you don't want it to be true, a part of your trust in him is gone. It's been ripped and torn to unrecognizable shreds. It's as if he took that trust and ripped it apart, baring his teeth with anger like a rabid bear and it can't be mended from that. It's not how it works. There is no fixing it. Just gaining something new and you are not there yet. That leaves you questioning his motives even if the beating between your ribs is telling you his intentions are only pure.
Finding Dick is of no use either. You don't even know where he would go. At least with Jason, you know he likes the school around the block from the library but he doesn't care for that library. He prefers the one near the shelter that houses mostly kids. He has his favorite gargoyle. Finding Jason, when he wants to be found, is easy but Dick? You have no clue where he would even go. He probably has places to go but you aren't sure of any of them which leaves you mostly wandering around until it gets closer to midnight.
By then, it's time to change and meet them at the spot. If nothing else, Dick will be there and you'll be able to tell him where Gar and Rachel are.
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This is not how Jason wanted this to go. He wanted to meet up with Dick but with Crane having control of the entire city, he couldn't risk it. Too bad for Jason because Dick does not trust him. Dick has offered him no benefit of the doubt of this not turning into a fight and no part of Jason actually blames him even if he's mad. Of course, Dick doesn't trust him. Why would he? But Jason doesn't stop fighting him to try to explain anything and neither does Dick. Instead, the two of them fight, throwing punches and kicks. Dick uses the enigma sticks and Jason shoots at Dick a few times. It's turned into chaos.
Somehow the roles have flipped. Jason doesn't want to kill Dick but by the way Dick is fighting, Jason is scared Dick will fight him till the death and Jason doesn't want to die again...not yet. It leaves him with no choice. Fight harder, faster, better. Be better.
But Jason and Dick's attention is pulled away from each other.
"What the fuck are you idiots doing?!" You yell, fully suited up again and just walking up to see the chaos they're creating.
This does not look good. They shouldn't be fighting. If all Jason wanted to do was meet up with Dick, they shouldn't be fighting. Something went wrong and at this point, you aren't even sure who caused it this time. But by the way Dick snaps his attention back to Jason and smacks him with the stick, you almost wonder if it were Dick that started this.
Jason doesn't take it lightly, immediately stepping back into combat mode and firing a shot at him. You roll your eyes, pulling out your grappling hook and a knife. You aim the hook at Jason's feet and the knife at Dick before you fire and throw. The hook smacks Jason's feet, throwing his aim off while the knife's end hits Dick's arm with enough force to get him to drop his stick.
"Hello? What the fuck are you two morons doing?" You snap again.
"He started it!" Jason yells as he points at Dick like a child.
Dick snaps his attention back to Jason. "Me?!"
"You threatened to kill him again, Jason!" You yell at him. "Seriously, what the fuck is going on?!"
Jason spins to look over at you. You cannot believe he wanted to fight Dick again. Of all people, you have to know this is not what he came here to do tonight.
"I just wanted to fucking talk and he attacked me!" Jason points at Dick again.
"Gee, I wonder why Dick would attack someone who just threatened to kill him. It's a real brain teaser, Jay." You quip back but you roll your eyes and look over to Dick. "So...you gonna kill him now?"
"I saw him!" Dick defends as he points the stick at Jason once he picks it up. Are they both five? "At the PD." Dick clarifies. "He was on the roof when we came out. He was in on it!" Dick closes the distance between them and smacks him with the stick again.
Jason doesn't miss a beat in fighting back, not even bothering to explain that he was at GCPD to help. Of course, Jason isn't going to try to explain that now. You're just exhausted with these two. At some point, they need to learn how to communicate with words and you figure, maybe they can just fight it out for once. Maybe they need to just fight until they get tired. So, you cross your arms and decide you'll watch and try to intervene if it looks like they might actually kill each other.
Dick ends up disarming Jason entirely, sending him to the ground just as a crowd of civilians gather around to watch the show and that's when your stomach starts to sink. Jason will be fine but these people hate Dick. The fight turns into a violent hand-to-hand fight, the two of them throwing punches and kicks as hard as they can and going for the neck. Jason grabs Dick's neck, pushing him back but Dick grabs Jasn, throwing him over Dick's head and slamming him on his back onto the hard pavement. You wince at the sight and sound. Dick walks over and picks up one of Jason's guns before he goes back to Jason and stands right over him. Dick points the gun at Jason's head.
You're quick to run and stand over Jason. You look up at Dick. "Dude, put the gun down." You put your hands out in surrender, the gun aimed at your stomach. "You're not gonna kill him." Your voice doesn't waver even if you're not entirely sure if that's true anymore.
Would Dick kill him?
Jason doens't want to die. It feels wrong to be back. It feels wrong. Like he's stretching the universe too far and it's all going to snap back, straighten itself out and toss him back into the grave where he belongs. But today, at the hands of Dick Grayson? No. He is not dying tonight so he decides to taunt Dick. Even if Dick wants to kill him, he'll never do it. He'd never give Jason the satisfaction even if Dick were able to toss his morals to the side.
"I did this to you." Jason mutters.
"Shut the fuck up, so fucking help me." You look to the sky in annoyance.
"You did this to yourself." Dick points the gun past you, aiming at Jason again. You move to stand in front of the gun again.
You were just shot two days ago. As badly as it hurt and as bad as it still sucks now, you'll take the bullet if you need to. No one is dying tonight. You've all lost too many people already and this is over a miscommunication.
"Come on. Give me the fucking gun." You mutter. "You're not like us." You plead, locking eyes with Dick.
There's something about the way you say it that gains even Jason's attention. It's not pained or sympathetic, it's just honest. It's not remorseful even, just honest and candid. But it's sad with the smallest touch of desperation. It says everything Dick and Jason need to know about how you really feel about people killing other people.
Dick looks at the gun and back to you. He hands you the gun and you take it, removing the bullets immediately and tossing them before you bend down beside Jason to make sure he's okay. For a second, you really thought Dick just might pull the trigger.
"You okay?" You ask softly as Jason leans up on his forearms, his head and back throbbing from the impact.
Jason looks back at you, brows pinched tightly together but then he sees movement from the corner of his eye, grabbing his attention behind Dick. "Nightwing." Jason's voice is rough but stern, harsh. A warning. Jason's eyes widen with the slight nod of his head.
You follow his stare, seeing an innocent civilian aiming a gun at Dick. Dick's brows pull together but before he can turn around, the kid starts shooting. Lucky for Dick, the suit is bulletproof. The bullets bounce right off as Dick turns around. The gunfire comes to a stop as you and Jason watch from your spot behind him. The both of you start to worry, just a little because the suit might be bulletproof but the kid just needs one lucky shot for this to be catastrophic.
"Woah, easy. I'm not here to hurt you." Dick says, putting his hand out as he walks towards the kid.
You get to your feet first, offering Jason a hand up. Jason takes it but the two of you keep your eyes on the kid. Scared kid, a gun, a guy painted to be the enemy fighting the guy painted to be the hero. The air fills with dread, suffocating Jason with its bare hands tattooed with guilt and regret. It's his fault Dick is here. It's his fault he didn't just say what happened and what he wanted. None of these people should even be here. What is he supposed to do?
"Careful, put the gun down." Dick states.
Jason pulls out another gun, switching to new bullets. He's definitely not going to shoot a scared kid who thinks he's doing the right thing. But, he can shoot in that general direction, he can just use it as a threat if he needs to. He doesn't want to threaten the kid but if he has to he will. He did not come here to kill Dick, get Dick killed, or watch him die. Not tonight.
"What the hell are you doing?" You whisper to him.
"Being prepared." Jason mutters back.
Dick hears Jason and turns around to face him before he starts walking back toward you and Jason. Dick is on guard, feeling as if he can't trust Jason. The second his back is turned, Jason is reloading a gun. From Dick's perspective, Jason isn't done fighting and Jason poses more of a threat than the kid. So, he pulls out the enigma stick again.
Before Dick can reach you and Jason, the kid starts shooting again. Dick is blocking them but Jason pulls you behind him, blocking you from the few shots not even putting any thought into it. But, by the time the third shot rings across the stale air, it finally makes proper contact with Dick. The kid got lucky. The kid got lucky, sending the bullet into Dick's neck right above where his armor stops.
It's as if the entire scene falls into slow motion as you and Jason watch in horror as the blood spurt from Dick's neck. Jason's heart stops beating entirely as Dick's hand goes to his neck, trying to put pressure on the wound. Jason eyes the kid who doesn't even look surprised or sorry or fucking scared. He doesn't look scared. He should look scared.
Jason didn't feel scared killing all those people but if he weren't high, he would have at least felt something. There would have been some part of him that would have felt some sort of fear or remorse or pity or he would have had a thought questioning if it were the right thing to do. Is this really the last resort? He would have felt fucking something other than pride for a job well done. This kid does not look like any of those things. He looks like he just did something on a random Tuesday night. No remorse, no consequences. Just a thing he did.
What is the city turning into?
What has Jason turned this city into?
"I did it for you." The kid's wavered voice breaks the silence, shattering the slowed illusion.
Jason glances to Dick as he falls to the ground and then he looks back to the kid. This is not what he wanted. Crane, Jason, they convinced the public of this. That this was the right way. Jason may not have had a part in that video but it never would have been made if it weren't for him. The public is gonna get blood on their hands. This will clear up, somehow, someway, it will and now this innocent kid, has to deal with the death of someone on his own hands for someone who was masquerading around like a hero, like a savior.
"Red Hood." The kid states, this time the unsteadiness of his voice is gone. And then he starts chanting Jason's vigilante name, over and over and over again as the rest of the civilians join in.
You look at him with heartbreak before you run over to Dick, pushing him onto his back where you put your hand over the neck wound. How could this happen? Another person? Another fucking person? Dick was always right about Gotham. Maybe Bruce was right about Gotham.
Jason went into more detail about what Bruce said to him the day he took Robin away. Bruce had said something about how people lose themselves to the city. Maybe he was right. Maybe they go mad, maybe they turn into murderers, and maybe they die. But eventually, maybe everyone gets lost in the city of damaged hopes. And maybe Dick was right, too. This city takes and it changes people. It's as if this city needs the chaos of destruction in order to stay afloat and it waits in the shadows, just waiting for the perfect victim at the right time before it sinks its teeth into them. It bleeds them of all their good parts until there's nothing left. A perfect sacrifice for the city.
Maybe that's all Gotham is because Dick is bleeding out because some kid got fucking lucky with a gun.
Jason watches in horror and having everyone chant his name does not sound as good as he once thought it would. At one point, he thought having everyone cheer for him would feel good. He would be important but he just got his brother shot. Someone who has almost always just tried to help him. Jason has been out here trying to kill him and thanks to you, Dick was willing to trust Jason and give him a second chance but now he's just been shot and it's his fault. And he's going to die because of him.
Jason knows what it's like to die and it's fucking terrifying and painful. Tears brim his eyes and the crowd is still chanting and he sees your cheeks glistening in the low streetlights around you. He wanted to talk but when Dick attacked first, rightfully so, he just couldn't help it. He thought that it was over for him and maybe it didn't have to be. How the fuck did he get here again? He should have just surrendered. That's all he had to do but his ego and pride get in the fucking way. All he ever does is get in the way. Dick's gonna die and it's all his fault.
He wants to run, get out of here because it's all too much. Too loud, too heavy. Too much pressure. Everyone is cheering as if Jason pulled the trigger and killed the worst of the worst. They're brainwashed and Jason knows that better than anyone. Someone has to snap them out of it. It's too much but running and pushing has never done him much good.
"Get out here!" Jason yells over the crowd as the chanting slows down. Your attention, like the rest of the crowd, lands on him. "Go! Before I start fucking shooting." Jason aims the gun into the air, his arm steady and his eyes threatening.
"We're on your side!" One of the citizens announces.
"So do what I fucking say." Jason snips back. "Didn't ask for you fucking help here. Get out of here." Jason takes steps toward the crowd as they start to back away.
They grumble and mutter amongst themselves before they eventually disburse. Jason takes that as his cue to run up beside you, leaning over Dick. There's blood pooling out of his mouth as he gasps for air.
"I can't stop the bleeding." You state. "Think he hit the fucking artery."
"I got it." Jason mutters, slightly nudging you out of the way where he can replace your hands with his. You have had enough blood on your hands lately, this is on Jason.
Neither of you have ever seen Dick look scared or panicked. Surely, he feels it. He is human and normal, mostly. But, he's really good at hiding it. With Deathstroke, you didn't see the look of pure terror on his face when you were standing outside the window. You didn't see the look of horror and agony on his face as Jason was falling to his death. You didn't see it because Dick has always been good at making sure no one sees those emotions from him. He has to be strong, sturdy, and a little calloused in order for everyone else not to panic. If the leader looks panicked and scared, so will everyone else. If everyone is scared and panicked, mistakes are made and more people die. So, he hides it. Until now.
Dick can feel the blood loss taking over, making him light-headed. The blood loss and bullet wounds alone are making it harder to breathe. He knows how long he has, maybe minutes but nothing more. Not unless you or Jason can get some sort of help in the next few seconds. He's going to die and it is fucking terrifying. He isn't ready. He has too much left. Who is going to look after the Titans if he dies? Who's going to stop Crane? He has too much life to live, outside of the Titans to die tonight but he is helpless. There is no help and there is no hope. It's just him bleeding out in the middle of downtown Gotham.
"Get." Dick tries to pull in a breath. "Help."
You look around and you don't see a single person around. Your heart starts to break as the lump comes back to your throat. It destroyed you when Jason died and it destroyed you when your mom died. You're actually pretending like Tim survived just in case he didn't. You can't deal with it if he died, too. But, you look back at Dick and you're really scared he'll die.
You might fight with him all the time and disagree with him usually, but you have a lot of respect for him. He saved your life more than once. You might not like his morals but you think he is a good person and he tries a lot harder than anyone else ever would. To help innocent people. To help you, no obligation, no transaction, no contingencies. He helps you because he just does. Just like with Rachel and Gar, and despite what Jason thinks, you think that's why he tried to help Jason, too. Just because. It shouldn't be Dick to die. The Titans need him. He's a really good leader, usually. It's almost shocking but he is. And everyone trusts him. The Titans will fall apart if he dies. They practically fell apart when Donna died but Dick would kill them. The Titans need him. You need him.
Jason glances over to you, knowing this is going to be bad. He's not going to make it and by the look of devastation in your eyes, he knows you feel it, too. And then the throbbing under Jason's hands comes to a slow halt.
"Dick?" Jason questions, looking back at him. "Hey, man, stay awake." Jason holds his voice steady, careful not to let it slip how much this is ripping him to shreds. "I can't feel his pulse." Jason says quietly, glancing back to you before he pulls his hand away, trying a different spot but he still feels nothing.
"Keep your hands on the wound." You mutter, moving to the opposite side before you place your hands on his chest and start chest compressions.
Jason watches you, trying to keep his hands steady on the wound but with every ump, Jason can feel blood coming from the wound, warming his hands. The tip of Jason's nose starts to feel like it's on fire while his eyes feel like someone's just thrown sand into them. This cannot be happening. Dick is otherwise dead and he's got you doing CPR, just as you did the night Jason died. And Jason can't peel his eyes away from you as some sort of self-torture because he thinks this is probably similar to how you looked that night.
The hood of your suit falling off of your head, resting lazily on your shoulders and moving with every compression. The way your hair is a complete mess. Tear-stained cheeks shining against any light that they catch. And blood soaking your skin. Jason wonders if this is the exact sight Babs walked in on. You must have felt so alone.
"Dick!" You and Jason hear Gar's voice from across the pavement, wet footsteps picking up their pace. "What happened?" Gar yells as him and Rachel get closer to the two of you.
"He was shot." Jason states as you don't miss a single beat.
"He's not breathing." You rush with heaving breath.
"Are you sure?" Gar asks with glossy eyes.
You stop, feeling for a pulse and there's still nothing. "Positive." You continue chest compressions, looking to Rachel who falls to her knees beside you.
"Is there anything you can do?" Gar asks, looking at Rachel.
You stop, sitting back on your toes, to see if Rachel can use her powers somehow to save him. It might not have worked on Donna but maybe it could work on Dick. He hasn't been dead long. Maybe that matters and Jason and Gar seem to have the same hope. Jason pulls away while Gar keeps his stance steady, almost holding his breath as Rachel tries her powers, a purple glow coming from her hands over Dick's neck. But nothing comes from it. Instead, the purple fades as Rachel lets out a cry.
"It's too late." Rachel sniffles, looking to Gar.
Gar lets out a scream as tears start to fall from your eyes. Jason's eyes stay trained on Dick, almost distant as he thinks the pain of it all has just chewed him to pieces. What are you gonna do?
You look to Rachel who looks like she might break into a million pieces right in front of you. Gar yells again as bats crowd the space above all of you. The four of you look up, watching the bats circle around all of you. Gar starts to have problems with his eyes as he rubs them only for his face to start turning green and then his hands start to change until his body follows. Suddenly, Gar is a bat, flying with the others above you.
"Gar?" Rachel asks.
You, Jason, and Rachel get to your feet as the bats circle closer and closer to Dick, Gar right in the mix of them. You all back away as the bats fly down to Dick and start to pick him up, all of them working together. They fly Dick high into the air before they start moving.
"What...the....fuck?" You look to Rachel as she'll have some sort of answer.
"That's new, right?" Jason looks to you who just nods.
"Come on." Rachel says, without missing a beat, grabbing some of Gar's clothes before she starts following the bats and Gar.
You and Jason exchanged a confused look before deciding to follow. You both have absolutely nothing left to lose at this point.
"I thought he couldn't turn into anything else?" You ask as the three of you run to keep up with the bats.
"He turned ito a snake once." Jason answers, not even thinking.
He was possessed at the time and the reason Gar turned into a snake in the first place but Gar talked about it a lot at first. Jason tried to help him transform again, several times with different methods. Getting him mad, scaring him, sparring harder with him, they tried everything but nothing ever worked. And then Gar stopped talking about it.
"Yeah, once but now he's a bat?" You question. "What the fuck?"
"Is that really what you're concerned about right now?" Rachel asks, her voice torn between amusement and worry.
"I mean..." You suck in a breath. "It's better than the alternative. I would prefer to focus on the weird shit than the sad shit."
Rachel gives you a subtle glare as you keep up your fast walk. It's not a long walk before you all reach the entrance of a building and Rachel is the only one who understands what's happening.
"They're taking him to the Lazarus Pit." Rachel says as Gar and the bats take Dick into the building.
"What?" Jason almost demands as his steps come to a hard stop. "You found it?"
"Yeah." Rachel mutters softly, turning around to see Jason not walking and you standing a few feet in front of him.
He can't go in there. It feels wrong. How do you know Dick would want that? Would he want it? If someone were to have asked Dick before he died if this is what he wanted, would he say yes? Would he agree to it without knowing the consequences of being brought back? Would he be okay with the constant feeling of being pulled back to the dark where the Grim Reaper waits with a smile?
But Jason looks at you and Rachel, the two who Dick has saved. It's not his place to argue it. Dick hasn't been dead long. Maybe he won't feel the way Jason does. Jason was dead a few days. Maybe it's different. Maybe the Pit has different effects the longer someone is dead so it's not his place. Jason hasn't been on good terms with Dick in a few weeks, he doesn't get a say. But, he can't go in. The pull is too strong and his bones feel like they might vibrate and shatter right through his skin. He can't do it.
"You coming, Jay?" You ask softly as you close the distance between you. You thought maybe he'd want to see the thing that brought him back. It is fascinating. And maybe he could be there if it works for Dick. Maybe help.
"No." Jason shakes his head. "I'm going to Crane." Jason spits it out without thinking as he watches the shock consume your face.
"Do you think that's really a good idea?" Rachel asks as a wince almost consumes her entire expression.
Jason takes a step towards you and nods his head at Rachel before looking back at you. "I gotta try to fucking help. Maybe I can get Crane to spill with Dick dead. He won't know about the Pit."
He has to do this. Maybe he can convince Crane to give up some form of information. If the Pit can bring Jason back, it can bring Dick back. He's going to wake up in a few hours and now it's Jason's job to get him some answers so they finally put this whole thing out of its misery. He owes Dick that much.
"Are you sure?" You ask, eyes scanning his face as if fully convinced this is just him avoiding something.
Jason nods softly. "Yeah, go with them. We'll meet later." Jason offers something that's not quite a smile.
You don't like the idea but...maybe Crane will think Nightwing's death is on Jason's hands. Maybe that'll be enough for Crane to actually trust Jason just enough to offer some sort of information to him. It's the right thing to do.
"Okay." You nod reluctantly. "Be careful, yeah?"
"Always." Jason gives you the subtle smirk he always does before he nods and runs off in the opposite direction.
The two of you go into the building, following the way Gar and the other bats took as you run to catch up. You get to an open room where a glowing pool of blue liquid sits right in the middle of the room. Gar and the other bats hover above it, holding Dick's lifeless body.
"Gar, now!" Rachel yells as the bats start to lower Dick into the water.
Once Dick is lowered, the bats fly around until Dick is completely submerged and then they disburse. Besides Gar. You and Rachel sit at the edge of Lazarus Pit, just watching as it starts to bubble. This whole thing is weird but you can't help but feel just a little bit of hope. If it worked for Jason, it should work for Dick.
"You're not allowed to leave anymore." You mutter, keeping your eyes on the Pit.
"What?" Rachel shakes her head in confusion.
"You're not allowed to leave. Everything went to shit and you show up, find me and Gar and then the damn pit. You can't leave, Titans need you." You nod your head quickly as Rachel smiles softly, looking back to the pit.
Gar transforms back to himself and starts getting dressed. Once he has his pants on, he walks to the edge of the pit, standing opposite you and Rachel. He's blinking dramatically, having a subtle sway to stance as he tries to get his equilibrium back to normal.
"He's gonna make it, right?" Gar asks, looking at you.
Gar isn't sure how you would know but you're the one who's had more conversations with Jason than anyone. Jason might not know a lot but something about asking you gives Gar hope. Maybe you do know the Pit works every single time. Gar hopes it works like that.
"I don't know." You shrug. "Uh...J-Jason just said, uh, that someone put him in it and then he was alive. So..." You nod your head. "I-I guess if that's all there is...yeah. Jason was dead for a few days so..." You pull in a shaky breath.
"I can't believe he actually died." Rachel states, her eyes on the pit. She says it mostly out of hope that whatever happened with Jason to bring him back, will bring Dick back.
You glance to her before you pull your knees to your chest. You know it's because Rachel is finding all of this out for the first time while everyone else has had a few weeks to digest the news and fumble their way through the aftermath. But, no one can believe Jason not only died but then came back. It's the way it's talked about, how it's said in passing and so casually that you almost wonder if they're all just...fine with it. At the end of the day, Jason died. He died. That was something that happened and he remembers it. As someone who was nearly beaten to death, you know that was haunting. Is haunting. You can't imagine what dying is actually like. And how terrified he probably still feels. But, everyone else is...it's as if that aspect of it, doesn't matter. To some extent, you get it. You understand because he became Red Hood and decided to kill Dick. You understand because they didn't see it. But, it irks you anyway.
"Sorry." Rachel says quietly. "I didn't mean anything by it. I just meant that it's kind of crazy. Jason was reckless but I didn't think he'd actually get killed." Rachel explains calmly.
"No, it's okay." You shake your head. "You're just getting the news of everything and then Dick is killed. I get it, don't worry about it."
"Are you okay?" Gar asks, his brows knitted together in their usual state of worry.
"I'm fine." You look up to him with one stern nod. "Been here a few times, right?" You quip bitterly.
"That's why I asked." Gar nods his head.
"Yeah, I'm good." You sniffle. "Are you guys okay? I mean...it's Dick." You look between Rachel and Gar as if feeling you have no right to grieve him as much as them.
You've been at odds with Dick most of the time over the last few weeks. It doesn't seem fair for you to absorb any space for grief. It should be given to Rachel and Gar.
"No." Gar answers. "What're we supposed to do without him?" Gar's voice nearly shatters.
"We don't have to think about that because if it worked for Jason, it'll work for Dick." Rachel states with ease and you're not sure who she's trying to convince.
"Yeah." Gar says shortly.
"I think we need to force the batboys into therapy after this. Group and individual until they learn how to have a conversation." You groan, trying not to focus on Dick actually dying and not coming back from this.
"We all need therapy." Gar mutters as he comes to sit on the other side of you.
The three of you fall silent, just watching the pit with no idea how long this is supposed to take or if you'll even know if it works or not. This is definitely the pit but none of you know the logistics of it. For all you know, this isn't going to work or it could take hours or days. So, you just fall into silence, mostly thinking of everything that's happened.
It's haunting and sets reality into stone of the work you all do. Of couse, it was real the day Donna died. Wonder Girl was killed. It was real then, too. But, it was an accident. And then it was real when Jason died. But, it was Jason who was killed by The Joker. That was different. This is Dick though. He's the leader and even when he's wrong, he still knows what to do. He was Robin. He's Nightwing. He's not supposed to die and he did anyway. And it was by some kid with a gun. It wasn't The Joker or Two Face or Deathstroke. It was just some kid. A kid Dick would have protected but everyone turned their backs on the Titans over Crane. And Dick was killed for it.
What are you all supposed to do if this doesn't work? Just go back to San Francisco like nothing happened? That doesn't seem possible. It'll just feel cold and lonely.
Between the three of you sitting here, he's saved your lives more times than you can count. He is the older and annoying brother none of you really asked for. It's losing another family member. But...it hits a little different this time. So, the air around you feels like it's carrying bricks and the guilt of the entire world.
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Jason, he's also still processing everything that's just happened. When he left to meet Dick, he knew he'd have to start talking immediately, given his own broadcast and conversation with Dick. But, then the flashbang went off and it's like it...triggered something in him where he just had to fight. He just had to. Something deep inside of him told him Dick would never let him explain why he did what he did. It's the immediate defensive mechanism and he knows it. But, he's on the way back to the manor and he's thinking that was just dumb. It was not giving Dick any bit of credit which Jason doesn't like to do on most days but he deserved this time. And now he's dead. He's dead and that's Jason's fault because that kid was defending him. Everything is his fault even when he is desperately clawing his way away from all of this. It follows him.
He told you that, months ago, it follows him like a curse and he has never been so sure of that. First it was his mom. He is not mad at her and he holds no resentment towards her but he wasn't enough for her. She chose those drugs every single day over him and he knows part of that was so she could function. That's how it started. It started so she could take care of him. If it weren't for him in the first place, his mom wouldn't have gotten addicted and then she'd still be here.
His dad was angry and desperate because he was just trying to provide for them. He was down and out and he was an ass and abusive but there was a point, before the alcohol, where he was trying. He was trying and if it weren't for Jason being an extra mouth to feed who needed other things, maybe his dad wouldn't have been so angry and desperate.
Had he never gone after Deathstroke, you wouldn't have been there. Had he never gone after Deathstroke, the Titans wouldn't have left and the tower wouldn't have been attacked or the Titans would have fought together. Gar wouldn't have been kidnapped and turned into a killer. Donna wouldn't have died.
You wouldn't been traumatized had he never went after the Joker. You wouldn't have been shot. Dick wouldn't have been shot and killed. Hank wouldn't have been killed. Everything that's happened has been following right on his heels like a rabid dog chasing him down a dead end alley. There is no escape. He is just stuck in this constant spiral of agony and causing everyone else around him the worst pain they will ever experience.
This is all his fault and there's nothing he can do anymore.
Even if the Pit works, will Dick remain the same? Or will he be as terrified and traumatized and stuck as Jason? Whatever side effects Dick gets from the Pit, that has to fall on Jason, too.
Jason reaches the Batcave, the cuts from Dick's punches still bleeding over his face. Crane is dragging his scythe on the floor, his face covered in fresh cuts. He's got this evil and eerie smile while there's a body on a table, cut open with his organs sticking out. This is the first time he's ever felt terrified of Crane. At the hospital, it wasn't Crane Jason was worried about it. It was who would call in. But this? This is Crane losing his damn mind on some, likely, innocent person and Jason thinks his days are definitely numbered with him. Everyone's days are numbered with him.
"Nightwing's dead." Jason states, his words flat and pained.
"Batman saved my toy." Crane says but it's only slightly enthusiastic, almost childlike as he holds up the scythe by the chain. Crane lets out a light chuckle as Jason just watches him closely, ready to move if Crane tries to pull anything. "A trinket of our courtship together. Who would have thought he was so...sentimental."
Jason's eyes narrow as he watches Crane. All of this...over his scythe? Jason knew he was insane but he's really pushing the envelope tonight.
"Did you hear me?" Jason questions but with no venom or snark. His chest is in so much agony, he doesn't think he can muster it at this second. "I said Nightwing is dead!" Jason gets himself to yell, growing frustrated.
"So?" Crane states. "Wasn't my monster." Crane states plainly but not in the way where his words feel light. This time there's something heavy and dark in his tone, running a chill up Jason's spine. The scythe drops to the floor, Crane still holding it by the chain. "He's your monster. What do you want? A cookie?" Crane offers a half-assed chuckle, mostly to himself.
A fire starts erupting through Jason's blood like an overdue volcano. He can't be serious. Getting clean, Jason realizes that so much of the shit Crane was spilling was just him manipulating him, making sure Jason had no one to run to besides Crane. But, there's some part of him that is still hurt and disgusted by the reaction. It was Crane's idea.
"You said that's what you wanted." Jason argues softly, taking just a few steps toward Crane. "When it was done, we would save Gotham my way." Jason's voice is small as the sense of betrayal kicks in.
He is only here to find out what Crane has planned and then he's gone. But, he can't help how badly it hurts. It would hurt anyway because he was manipulated into it. Turned against someone who has been looking out for him. But, Jason, as far as he knows, felt like Crane figured they were still on the same side. This doesn't feel that way. That's when Jason is realizing that's the point. Jason does the dirty work so Crane can be up at the top, hands clean and filled with the power Jason served him on a silver platter.
He knew that's all it was but maybe a part of him still believed otherwise and for the life of him, he has no idea why.
"Gotham will be saved." Crane starts his walk towards Jason, holding his scythe so it doesn't drag on the floor. "But first, it must be destroyed. As clever hopes expire, waves of fear and anger circulate over the bright and darken the lands of the earth." Crane explains as he uses the chain to sway the scythe back and forth while he paces in front of Jason.
"What the fuck kind of gibberish is that?" Jason quips back not even entirely sure if Crane is actually coherent.
"No," Crane says quickly, turning to face Jason. "No, not gibberish. No, it's the past come to life in the present." Crane pauses and Jason realizes how completely fucked he is. "An ode to the bat and his wee bird. When they stopped me, but they can't stop me now. No." Crane is looking away from Jason and Jason is starting to wonder if Crane is talking to him or just talking to himself or some third person Jason isn't aware of. "They can't stop me now...because." Crane shakes his head. "Because we will walk among them. The dead." Crane looks back at Jason and Jason hangs his head, something about him basically being the dead. "And the fallen city will be like...it'll be like a beacon. Very soon, very soon, Jason, very very soon they will die. Yes, they will die."
What the hell is this maniac even talking about?
"Who will die?" Jason asks cautiously.
"All of them!" Crane faces Jaosn as he screams, his entire face turning red. "All of them! Everybody." Crane looks to the floor and this is not how Jason wanted to fix Gotham. The answer isn't gutting the fucking the city. "You still stink of fear. After all that I've given you."
Jason's growing tired of Crane's babbling. It's not making any sense and he wants to get the fuck away from him before Crane tries to slice him in two like the other guy.
"You said I was gonna be a savior." Jason nods his head at him, a hint of disgust in his voice. "Is that your whole plan? Destroy the fucking city?"
"Is that not what it's been about?" Crane states almost whimsically.
"And how the fuck do you plan to do that?" Jason lets out a scoff but Crane just offers him a harsh glare as Jason sees his grip tighten on the chain.
Crane isn't going to tell him anything and even if he does, it'll likely be an incoherent mess like it has been the last few minutes. It was a waste of time, mostly. What Jason does know now is that he wants to destroy the entire city. There are a lot of ways to do that though and that's where he finds himself stuck. But, he can't stick around here. Not when there's no chance of getting a good answer.
"I won't help you destroy the city." Jason holds his stance, firm but calm.
"Well," Crane says with disappointment. "Perhaps you won't." Crane says before there's a pause and then he turns around quickly, throwing a scythe at Jason, still holding onto it by the chain.
Jason dodges just in time, moving quickly away from Crane. Crane follows right after him, swinging his scythe at him and just missing by a few inches. Jason keeps moving away and running, avoiding the blows each time. He does not want his head taken off tonight. That is not the plan. So, he dodges and once he sees the opportunity, he runs out of the Batcave as quickly as he can.
Crane has officially lost it which was only a matter of time before that happened. Jason was hoping they had a little bit more time but, if Crane is losing it, that means he'll be easier to take down. Once Crane starts losing his mind, he gets distracted, starts losing some of the quick thinking he's so proud of. But, Crane has something in place. It's the way he talked about it that tells Jason Crane won't need to do anything else. It's already in motion. So, now he needs to find at least you, Rachel, and Gar and maybe the four of you can figure it out. Maybe you've had some luck with the Lazarus Pit.
Jason hopes you've had luck with the Lazarus Pit.
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Tag List: @fairyofshampoo // @italiana-20 // @jasontoddsmentaldisorders // @purplerose291 // @lovelessamai  // @makaelaseresin // @lenidaslenchen // @mayfieldss  // @ghostkingblake // @im-done-with-this-im-out // @velvetskies // @lilylovelyxo // @cryinghotmess // @yesimwriting // @vivian-555 // @stainedstardom // @baebeepeach // @legend-o-zelda // @harleycao // @somehow-lovable-trash  // @xx-all-purpose-nerd-xx // @deyja-the-duck // @jasontoddslover //  @captainmarvels-blog // @totallynotkaibiased // @scarlovesyou // @whydoyoucare866 // @littlemeowmeow1000 // @ginger24880 // @urmomsgayforme5 // @septixtrash // @kplatzman // @killxz // @lovefks // @laurelthesimp // @strawberryforks
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arzuera · 1 year
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What inspires you to create the story?
Honestly? Everyone in the community! Everyone worked together to piece the ideas that are the basis of Robin's Egg. Someone just needed to be the glue to put them into a working fic and I thought I could do it well.
I had just gotten into the DP x DC fandom thanks to @impyssadobsessions with their art of Batman trying to shield Danny from the rain... then I found the Vacation Crashers fic and I was down the rabbit hole. I wanted to write something but was very out of touch with Danny Phantom since I haven't watched it since I was a kid and I only knew the basics regarding the DC universe.
So I was looking through the dp x dc tag to get an idea and the idea of Damian having to take care of Danny was so funny and cute! There was so much you could do with it while keeping within the boundaries of the characters. The sheer shenanigans that could ensue! Plus everyone was really excited for the idea so I thought I would give it a shot. Thinking that about....30-40 will be happy that someone decided to combine the ideas in the initial post.
I was not expecting for it to blow up as it did.
I posted chapters 1 and 2 within a day of each other because I was so excited and almost hit 10k hits in 3 days. Which broke me because I was floored by such a positive response. Robin's Egg had been my first real attempt at writing again after finishing my first long fic of 3 years that ended 3 years ago. I've written a few other things since but nothing this ambitious.
It astounds me how big Robin's Egg has grown. It is officially my biggest fic on Ao3 and it is truly amazing the amount of love it has been given. But it's true that YOU all are what inspire me.
I read ALL of the comments. Without fail. In chapter 2 I borrowed a line from one of the commentators (they are sourced in the notes) and it's basically the catalyst of why the Batfam call it an egg. Three chapters later in Pegguin Problems, Damian gets trapped in a pool that Danny froze over. That's because there were SEVERAL commenters who said it would be funny if he froze over a glass or a punch bowl while Damian was fighting one of his siblings. All I did was step the idea up a bit and set it up in a way that fits more with the narrative. There are a few other examples but these two are the ones I remember the most.
Since the basic idea of this fic was the collaboration of several ideas by lots of people, I view the entire fic as such. I'm just having fun putting all the ideas together and adding my own little twists and ideas to it for my own part. That's how I want it to keep going as well. If someone leaves a good comment or has a fun idea, I'll find a way to work it in. Though some have already guessed some of my own ideas that haven't happened yet (I will neither confirm nor deny said ideas).
So long wordy post short... This story was basically inspired by you all.
I'm just along for the ride.
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decepti-thots · 2 years
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You once asked your followers what did we think Mtmte sale numbers were during publication, and I don't know if I missed a follow-up to that, but what were the actual numbers? How well was Mtmte selling?
AH, thank you for reminding me!! I absolutely meant to post my thoughts and just. Blanked on doing it. brain good tm
So the reason I had asked that is that there's a whole thing about how a lot of folks in this fandom are not like, Comic People TM generally, and perceptions of how comics sell outside the industry/fanbase versus how they actually sell is a big thing. And I had a sneaking suspicion that a) a lot of people in MTMTE/LL fandom think the comic was much more successful than it actually was relative to other comics, and b) that comics period are much bigger sellers than they actually are. (Comics here meaning monthly Western releases.)
And I was right! People gave BONKERS numbers. People said they thought it sold at least 100,000 issues a month on a regular basis. Some people said literally millions. Someone said it 'wasn't that successful' so probably 'only' sold around 75,000.
To give some perspective on those figures, 100,000 is a lot for the best selling comic issue in the entire world that month to sell. If Batman or whatever hits 100k that month, it's probably a big hyped issue or something! One of the things that always astonishes people is that the MCU being the biggest film franchise in the world for like a fucking decade now has in no way changed this. X-Men movies make hundreds of millions. This does not translate into the comics selling significantly more than they used to. (If you want to know more, I highly HIGHLY recommend these two essays by Colin Spacetwinks that go over the historical causes in astonishing detail.)
All that out of the way, let's talk what MTMTE did do numbers wise. In a word: not great, dropping to Very Not Great by the end of LL. Let's cut this, it's gonna get long I think.
MTMTE settled down after its launch at like, around 11-15k shifting per issue month to month. This is... well, for a non big two comic publisher (so, not DC or Marvel), this is kind of average? Not in the sense that this is middling performance, because that's really not great numbers, but in the sense that most comics are not financially succesful period. At DC or Marvel that would be cancellation numbers for a lot of titles. At IDW, it was... well. Average! (Contrary to popular belief, their TF titles were not their biggest seller/license. That was, at that time, MLP by a factor of 2:1. The FiM boom was real.)
This is around on par with exRiD as well, by the way. TF comics just... sold around that much. Steadily, without any great drop off in sales over time once settled, but never really getting more. And the thing IDW spent its whole damn time with the TF license doing was trying and failing to fix this. Every soft reboot, the 2019 reboot, all of it was related to them trying to find a way to bring on and keep new readers to bring the numbers up. And it never, ever worked.
Which sounds surprising, right? MTMTE did bring on new readers. Lots of them. Why didn't the sales figures go up? Well, I have a theory. Which is that the people it brought on were not people who were into other comics and gave TF a go, but instead people for whom TF was not just a first Transformers experience, but their first time with Western comics too. Which matters because comics are sold in a way that is fucking insane that means a lot of the ways people read comics Just Don't Count. And that was especially true back in 2012, when the digital comics industry was much less developed than today.
The reason being: only preorders of individual issues are 'counted' by comics publishers traditionally when tallying up how a comic is performing, really. If you walk into a comic book shop a week after it came out and buy it off the shelf? Does very little for the comic. If you buy it in trades? Nowadays this isn't quite so true as graphic novels have become a much larger part of the market, but traditionally, that really did not help a comic series avoid ongoing cancellation at all. You had to pre-order from a comics retailer, because that dictated how many issues they would pre-order in for future issues, and that was used to judge what series were doing well. Nobody explains this to the average consumer who just wants to read a neat comic. IDW did no work explaining this to new readers. You only know this if you are a Comics Person TM. And a bunch of teen and early 20s new-to-comics people who found and loved MTMTE through word of mouth did not know this, I think! WHY WOULD YOU. THIS IS A TERRIBLE BUSINESS MODEL. (again, there are historical reasons for it; the essays linked explain it.)
This is why Lost Light and Optimus Prime and Til All Are One got the relaunches. An old comics industry standby is to try (and fail) to artificially pump up numbers by relaunching as a new #1 issue and pretend it's a new series to try and attract new readers. That was all editorial fiddling to make the numbers go up. And it failed. Miserably. LL's sales figures infamously fucking tanked compared to MTMTE's early days. It ended at more like 5k a month, which is insta-cancellation levels even for smaller publishers tbqh. I mean that's dire. There were a lot of factors that were at play there. A full analysis is beyond me tbh!
When people say it 'made no sense' to reboot in 2019 and 'cancel their most succesful TF comic(s)' about MTMTE/LL etc, it's just important to know that numbers wise, that is not what happened. Every single IDW TF comic got to cancellation sales numbers and that's what the hard reboot of IDW2 basically was. LL especially was performing atrociously by the standards of its industry (and yes, the comics industry has ludicrous business practices and it's basically impossible to perform well under any circumstances, but that's not the main point here). The cancellation wasn't out of the blue and it wasn't IDW killing off a high performing comic arbitrarily. It cancelled every TF comic performing badly at once; that just happened to be. Like. Every TF comic at the time. And I assume they turned it into a hard reboot because that was like, the one thing they hadn't tried yet.
This got really long, oooops jskhdkjg but. Yeah. Basically, the perception in fandom is often VERY skewed versus what actually happened.
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