#Sam is Nightshade

[spacedace]

Oh hey here’s the lil prolog thing I wrote for my DP x DC Leverage AU. I’m gonna actually write more of one day I swear but for now have this opening bit and feel free to use it as a prompt if you want :D

-

The station went utterly quiet as they brought her in.

Room after room going as silent as the grave when the young woman in handcuffs stepped through the door. Chatter stopped. Bodies stilled. Heads turned. Eyes widened. It almost felt like everyone was too afraid to even breath as she walked by. Cops and crooks alike watching with fear and awe in equal measures as Jim Gordon led her past them to the interrogation room.

She didn’t give the gaping crowd any mind. Head tilted up at an angle, shoulders back, steps sure. The solid heals of her boots clicked upon the scuffed linoleum, echoing loud in the stifling quiet. Like a royal herald announcing her presence. She held herself like a queen, which was fitting Jim supposed. Until tonight, the only name anyone had to call her by was Queen.

The blood, unnervingly, only made her seem more regal.

Batman was already in the interrogation room when they arrived. Jim didn’t even have it in him to sigh at the broody bat looming in the corner. He knew he’d be there. There was no way he would miss the interrogation of someone they’d been chasing for so long. Especially not now considering…well.

Considering.

Jim largely ignored the vigilante in the corner as he moved through the familiar process of getting the young woman handcuffed in place to the table, starting the recording and rattling off the relevant details: date, time, the - many - charges the young woman had been arrested for. If he faltered over the victim’s name of the young woman’s most recent crime no one commented on it. In the corner, Batman watched and lurked. Nearly lost in the shadowy corner of the room while still being impossible to ignore.

They’d done this before. Good cop, bad vigilante. It was usually effective in getting the truth out of stubborn criminals.

Jim rather doubted it would work in this case.

“Please state your name for the record.” He said, only to be met with the same cool silence Queen had given everyone since her arrest. She shifted in her seat, not a nervous fidget but an easy, languid movement. Even the uncomfortable metal chair seemed like a throne when she was involved. Jim bit back a sigh. “We have your information. I’m asking as a courtesy.”

Queen tilted her head faintly, looking at him with something almost like amusement, one brow twitching slightly upward. “You’ll have to forgive my disbelief, Commissioner Gordon.” She said, polite as ever. “But I’m rather sure that you won’t find me in any system you run my fingerprints or face through.”

She was right about that. They’d tried a hundred times over the past few years she and her team had been operating in Gotham. Her face never appeared in any pictures or recordings - not even in her mugshot during processing, all that was visible was her red hair and a mess of corrupted visual data where her face should be. The most her fingerprints had ever led to where the other crimes they already knew she’d taken part in. Batman had done everything to try and circumvent whatever meta ability kept her from being recorded on film, had done even more to try and find her and her people in every system he and the Justice League had access to. Nothing. Jim had grumbled a few times about how Queen and her crew might as well be ghosts for all the proof that they existed officially.

Turned out, ghosts was exactly right.

“The Ghost Investigation Ward reached out to us two hours ago.” He said, leaning back in his own seat, watching her carefully. “I’ll repeat, Ms. Fenton, my asking is a courtesy.”

For the first time in the years he’d known her, Queen - real name Jasmine “Jazz” Fenton - looked scared. Beyond scared, even. Completely, and utterly terrified.

Her body went rigid, eyes growing wide, breath picking up as she sat up sharply. Any semblance of that calm, collected presence she always held even when she was at her most cornered and vulnerable vanished in an instant. He’d seen her breath in a cloud of Scarecrow’s Fear Toxin and laugh. Watched as Bane wrapped large hands around her throat and tilt her chin up to stare down at her attacker imperiously. A mobster pressed the barrel of a gun to her head and she’d smiled, coy and confidant and untouchable. Queen always, always was calm. Aggravatingly so, even. Utterly unshakable as she waltzed into every wild and insane situation carrying the undeniable air of one who was complete control of everything happening.

She hadn’t even looked scared when the Joker had held her hostage.

And now? Now all it had taken was those three words. Ghost Investigation Ward. A nonsense name for a government agency with a ridiculous purpose. And yet there the unshakable Queen sat, looking terrified out of her mind at the mere mention of them.

Not for the first time since he received that call, Jim Gordon felt uneasy.

#dp x dc #dc x dp #dpxdc #dp x dc fanfic #dp x dc writing prompt #jazz fenton #jim gordon #bruce wayne #leverage au #Jazz is the mastermind in this one #and has been having a great time up til this moment #everyone on the team has code names #Danny is Spaceman because of course it is lol #Sam is Nightshade #Tucker is Pharaoh #Ellie is Nomad #they're not actually shown here but I just wanted to share the codenames I came up for them lol

[transingthoseformers]

SG Earthspark: Maybe after Shockwave is met, after people have calmed down and introduced themselves, there's a small conversation about pronouns at some point? Because Shockwave is nonbinary (like Nightshade) but uses he/him, and i've noticed that even in writing forums' LGBTQA+ threads*, people seem to be really confused by the idea of off-the-binary people using the "gendered" pronouns he/him and she/her.

Maybe after Nightshade tells their pronouns, Shockwave says he's NB too, Nightshade asks about his use of he/him because they're a young child and they don't know everything, and Shockwave explains that pronouns aren't inherently gendered or something like that?

(I'm propably allowed to write this because i'm somewhere off the binary myself)

(*I've talked about my TFP humanformers/species swap fic on writing forums, without mentioning that it's actually a fanfic and about Tranfsformers because that'd just confuse things, and people questioned Shokufeh/Shockwave being an enby but using he/him)

No you're totally right that's a discussion that would be super fascinating (nightshade and Shockwave discussing their different experiences with being nonbinary) and yeah that's a serious thing (people having a specific image of what a nonbinary person is and being confused by nonbinary people who use he/him or she/her)

This feeds into my love of transformers and gender being not as binary with them as it seems, or even trinary as that's a rhythm i see people fall into of treating nonbinary as some solidified third gender rather than an umbrella term

#maccadam #transformers #gender #tfe nightshade #tfe shockwave #iicr we had a minor character who says their pronouns as she/they #and Sam (one of the GHOST workers) also goes by they/them #so nightshade isn't the only one off the binary here #and i admit he/him nonbinary Shockwave makes sense to me #basically yes #but also yes #i may have immediately looked for All The Terms Ever Ever when i first joined the community #gender is an amazing and diverse thing imo #sg earthspark

[evilhorse]

Captain America #190

#captain america #steve rogers #the falcon #falcon #sam wilson #deadly nightshade #nightshade #tilda johnson #robot assassin #fight #gil kane #marvel comics #comics #70s comics #bronze age comics

[cryxdraws]

Eeey Space King. Might tune it up or mess with the concept more in the future, but for now I’m done.

#danny phantom #ghost king au #space king au #cryxdraws #officially an ancient congrats dude #i wanna do a comic btw him and Nightshade #phantom looking all regal and such #and then there’s nightshade #a gremlin #with 0 fucks to give #to any authority #yah that guy can warp the fabric of space with his mind #but he’s also a major sap #with some serious memory problems cuz he keeps accidentally calling me sam #and trying to play it off like he didnt #like sure bud #(yes. all the plant puns) #on a side note Jazz’s ghost could be a direct foil to Spectra #but tuck’s really important in this story yet I haven’t decided on what his ghost even looks like :/ #electric core for sure #but what’s his obsession? #hmmm #maybe a foil to Technus? #should i lean into the furry thing #i think it’d be fun if he inherited duulaman’s lair #and he and phantom are royal bros heh #Val’s ghost is probably badass af #maybe hunting vlad down lmao #i imagine she’s a bounty hunter #potential for a serious rivalry btw her and skulker >:D

[doctorslippery]

#shazam #captain marvel #captain marvel jr #mary marvel #phantom lady #human bomb #doll man #uncle sam #firebrand #ray #black condor #nightshade #sarge steel #judomaster #blue beetle #peacemaker #captain atom #thunderbolt #question #wonder girl #fury #batgirl #huntress #supergirl #power girl #robin #batman #superman #lois lane #wonder woman

[nitpickrider]

Hmm I'mma leave this moment here for you Falcap shippers ob

#marvel #marvel comics #marvel universe #marvel heroes #superhero #comics #captain america #steve rogers #nightshade #tilda johnson #falcon #sam wilson

[merrymarvelite]

Cover of the Day: Captain America #190 (October, 1975) Art by Gil Kane and Joe Sinnott

#Marvel #Comics #Captain America #Falcon #Steve Rogers #Sam Wilson #Nightshade #Tilda Johnson #Robot Assassin

[blueskyscribe]

Okay, so I thought of two ways to rewrite the Sam and Nightshade scene to make it more interesting. But first I'd like to talk about why it didn't work for me.

Needs a conflict.

Sam needs better characterization.

(I know Sam is a one-off character who isn't going to get five pages of backstory. But Stevie was a one-off character in this same episode, and we got a lot more from him. Even a mini character arc.)

Okay, let's go!

Scenario #1:

I think Sam needs to bring the conflict to the scene. And one way to do that would to have her be biased against Transformers--in a more aggro way than Stevie, like a foil to him.

(Sidenote, I thought Sam deciding that she could trust Nightshade because they're nonbinary--not because they saved her from a mugger--was extremely silly. Queer robots can be evil; trans Skywarp would squash you where you stand.)

So in this scenario, Sam is less mild mannered and more of a punk. Leather jacket covered with patches with studs all over it! Chains around her neck! Wild hair! T-shirt with the arms ripped off and "SHE / THEY" written on it in magic marker. The "SHE" starts with the Stussy S that we all drew in middle school.

Punk Sam actually tries to fight the guy mugging her, but Nightshade sees the mugger has a gun and swoops in to save her.

So Sam is on the roof with Nightshade, putting up her dukes and trash-talking to cover how scared she is of this giant robot.

Sam: You want some of this, you dirty 'Con? I'll punch you so hard you'll fly all the way back to your home planet!

Nightshade: Please don't, I fear you will injure your hand. And for your information I am not a Decepticon and I am on my home planet. Rude.

Sam: Oh please! Everyone knows all the flying robots are bad guys.

Nightshade (raises an eyebrow): That is a gross generalization. And why exactly did this 'bad guy' robot *puts their fingers on their chest with a flourish* prevent you from being grievously injured by a miscreant?

Sam (reluctantly lowers her fists): Eh, I could've handled him. Why do you talk like that? You swallow a dictionary, green bean?

Nightshade: If only one could absorb words so easily! No, I simply read a lot. Though it does mean my siblings don't always understand me . . .

Sam: Buddy, you and me both.

And then Sam and Nightshade bond, and it turns out Sam has three brothers, one of whom doesn't respect that she's nonbinary and keeps calling her "little lady" to taunt her. Nightshade is shocked by the thought of family being unsupportive, but consoles her and encourages her to focus on the support of her two other siblings, of her friends, and most importantly to have faith in herself. (Also they paraphrase Tarantulas during this part because we love a callback.)

Nightshade is thrilled to learn the word "nonbinary", and before Sam departs, she self-consciously asks Nightshade if they can give her a ride in their owl form.

Nightshade: *arches a brow* Are you sure you want a ride from an "evil" flying Transformer?

Sam: Whaaat? Who said that? Point me at 'em, I'll punch their lights out.

Nightshade: *chuckles and transforms* That won't be necessary.

So Nightshade drops off Sam in her neighborhood, and the twist is that Stevie is actually one of Sam's (supportive) brothers, and she spots him just as he finishes changing the graffiti to "Transformers are home", and she nods approvingly.

Scenario #2:

Non-punk Sam; she looks the same as in the show except her pins are mostly space related, and in addition to the "she/they" pin she has one that says "nonbinary." Sam is also going to provide the conflict in this scenario, but this time the conflict is internal, as we will see.

So Nightshade saves Sam from the mugger and hovers in midair with Sam in their hand, fifty feet above the ground. This version of Sam doesn't quietly freeze when she's scared, she flips out.

Sam: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!

Nightshade: It's all right, you're safe now. :D

Sam: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

Nightshade: Er, my name is Nightshade, my pronouns are--

Sam: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

Nightshade (more and more desperate to calm Sam down, sees a pin on Sam's bag): Oh, "nonbinary"! That's a computer language, is it not?

Sam (stops screaming with comedic abruptness): Um, no? It means people who aren't female or male.

Nightshade (delighted): Oh my . . . like me!

Sam: Whoa, really? Me too. I mean . . . *gestures towards pins* . . . obviously, ha ha.

Sam: . . . *looks at the ground, still far below*

Sam: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

Cut to a scene of the other Maltos, then cut back to Sam and Nightshade, who have now landed on a roof and are chatting comfortably. Sam is into astronomy and Nightshade, Science Nerd, is happy to learn new science facts.

Nightshade: . . . and so a moderate star such as our own sun can eventually expand into a much larger Red Giant? How wondrous! Oh, I must tell my siblings all this . . . *sighs* Yet I wonder if it will keep their interest.

Sam: *laughs* Science isn't everyone's thing, but there are lots of ways to enjoy the stars, you know? When I was little my parents and I would lie in the grass and look at the constellations.

Nightshade: The what?

Sam: Look, I'll show you *points* Trace a line between those four stars--

Nightshade: How?

Sam: *smiles* Just in your mind. They form a rectangle, right? Now look at that line of three stars beside it and imagine they're a handle. That's the Big Dipper. And the Little Dipper pours into it.

Nightshade: In my mind as well?

Sam: *laughs* Exactly. You have to use your imagination. Some people see them as something totally different, like bears or caribou, all kinds of things . . . and some constellations are even more abstract. Like check out Aries, the ram. *traces it in the sky* And over there, that's Tauros the bull. Those two stars are his horns, that one's his eye--

Nightshade: *gasps* Isn't a bull similar to a cow? Oh, I must show Tauros to my siblings! Praytell, are there any owls?

Sam: Not that you can see from here-- *phone buzzes as she receives a text* Hang on a sec . . . My mom's asking where I am.

Nightshade: Oh dear, I did not mean to make your family worry.

Sam: *finishes texting back* It's cool, I told her I'll be a little late 'cause I'm hanging with a friend.

Nightshade: *looks extremely flattered / pleased* I can give you a ride home, if you wish.

Sam: That would be great! Just one sec . . . *is removing the 'she/they' and 'nonbinary' pins from her bag and putting them in a side pocket*

Nightshade: Why are you removing your adornments?

Sam: Oh, uh, it's just . . . I don't want my parents to see, you know?

Nightshade: No, I do not. *clasps hands around knee, tilts head* Is it a surprise?

Sam: More like a secret.

Nightshade: They do not know you're nonbinary? *concerned* Would that upset them?

Sam: Oh, no. My parents are cool, they wouldn't be mad. It's just . . . *clasps her hands together, looks down at her lap* I don't know. I've always been 'their little girl' and I don't want to ruin that for them.

Nightshade: I don't understand. You are who you are. *remembers Tarantulas's words* And it is a gift to know yourself so young.

Sam: I think I know myself, but what if . . . *bites her lip* What if I tell my parents and then it turns out all their expectations were right and I was wrong? What if I disappoint them over nothing?

Nightshade: Perhaps they will not think that seeking the truth is nothing', or ''disappointing'? Regardless of what that truth turns out to be?

Sam: *sighs heavily* Sometimes it's just easier to be what you 'should' be. What people expect.

Nightshade: . . . *gazes at the sky* How beautiful are the stars.

Sam: Yeah . . .

Nightshade: Why, Sam! You were playing a joke on me, weren't you? There is an owl constellation.

Sam: *slight smile* Sorry N.S., not in this hemisphere.

Nightshade: I must correct you. I see it clearly. *traces stars with their finger* There is the wing . . . the eyes burning brightly . . . and another wing. Sentry, the Owl.

Sam: That's not a real constellation. You just . . . made it up.

Nightshade: What makes it less real than a crooked line that people call a ram or a rectangle they see as a bear? *deftly picks the she/they pin out of the side pocket* What makes this *puts their finger on 'she'* more real than this? *puts their finger on 'they'*

Sam: . . . *stares at the pin, then the stars, eyes wet*

Nightshade: *gently* The lines are not etched in the sky, but in our minds, are they not? And so what is to stop us from drawing our own? *after several moments* Ready to go home?

Sam: One sec. *takes the she/they and nonbinary pins and pins them back on their bag* Now I am.

#Earthspark #spoilers #Earthspark spoilers #Transformers #Sam #Nightshade #fanfiction #long post #I hope you enjoyed this #also lmk which of my little ficlets was your favorite #assuming you liked either of them ;)

[comicwaren]

From Captain America: Symbol of Truth #014, “Flight”

Art by Zé Carlos, Jesus Aburtov and Fer Sifuentes-Sujo

Written by Tochi Onyebuchi

#captain america: symbol of truth #captain america #sam wilson #jody casper #gideon wilson #misty knight #ayanda sisulu #nightshade #tilda johnson #falcon #joaquín torres #marvel #comics #marvel comics

[witchybluedeity]

WIP Wednesday

It’s been a hot minute since I posted much

But I thought I’d share since I am actually still writing and managed to remember that it’s Wednesday-

A tortured groan left Nightshade's voicebox at the reminder, the young scientist falling back to sit with their arms supporting them. "Do not even remind me. Do not get me wrong, Bumblebee is a wonderful mentor, and an excellent teacher. But the training he forces myself and my siblings to endure could make even the most patient of beings want to turn and walk away." They grinned when Sam burst out laughing, chuckling alongside her. "Do you wish to know what we've been doing?" 

"You have to tell me now!" Sam managed, calming to giggles. "It must be horrendous for you to be complaining about it!" 

There was a beat of silence, Nightshade grinning the whole time, before they finally broke it with "Scouting. Without gadgets!" 

The laughter from both human and Terran echoed slightly, Nightshade calming first and watching Sam with amusement as they tried to calm herself. "I mean, I understand the need to work without hand held tech, as they can be easily lost or damaged. But Hashtag's limitless internet, camera and ability to hack anything? And my own night vision, and enhanced vision? 'Nope, not allowed!'." Their grin widened when Sam only laughed harder, humming 'innocently'. "Is something I said funny?" 

#bc writes #earthspark #Transformers earthspark #nightshade #nightshade malto #sam (earthspark) #pride #wip wednesday #yes there's a headcanon in there #gold star to who sees it #and points it out

[disease]

SAM QUEALY // NIGHTSHADE [NIGHTSHADE EP, 2022]

#audio #sam quealy #dark electro #hyperpop #experimental #electro #nightshade EP #techno #electronic #music

[marvelousmrm]

Captain America and the Falcon #190 (Isabella/Robbins, Oct 1975). Steve and Sam liberate SHIELD from Nightshade’s clutches. She’s still alarmingly both hyper-sexualized and infantilized. Sam accepts that he has two sets of memories, but it seems like one identity should be provably false…?

#marvel #marvel 616 #captain america #steve rogers #sam wilson #the falcon #contessa valentina allegra de fontaine #nightshade #tony isabella #frank robbins

[evilhorse]

Captain America #164

#captain america #steve rogers #the falcon #falcon #sam wilson #werewolf #nightshade #deadly nightshade #queen of the werewolves #uh oh #john romita senior #marvel comics #comics #70s comics #bronze age comics #dat rack

[thepaintedlady00]

Character Spotlight: Sam Mayfield

I realized I never gave y'all our sweet Sam's introduction so here it is! 😊

Sam Mayfield was born and raised in New Jersey. His family was well off and so he had the golden start to life. Expensive schools, good grades, a loving home life, everything a kid could ever dream of. Then, his dad was killed in a classic store robbery when he was seventeen. That golden start quickly soured.

He and his mom moved into the city, in a tiny apartment across the street from a shitty bar and boxing ring. He got his GED and started working at a small diner to pay rent while his mom struggled with substance abuse. It was this very job that introduced him to a very sassy red head. The two didn't hit it off straight away. He was sweet and she was salty. They were polar opposites and yet he found her foul mouth and bruises endearing.

Months later they would become friends and eventually they would become lovers, but they remained opposites. Sam became Officer Mayfield and Lena remained herself, foul mouthed and salty. Sam wanted a house outside the city, a dog, kids, a garden and a white picket fence and Lena just didn't. And so, their torrid love affair ended but their friendship remained.

Sam is thoughtful and sweet. He's confident and strong. He's a good man and (in everyone's opinion) the only good cop in the city. He's shy and smart with a taste for simple food and good friends. An all around good, golden boy.

All pictures were found on Pinterest. The actors name is Lucas Till.

#fic: nightshade #sweetbitterstarz #character spotlight #sweetbitter ocs #Sam Mayfield #sweetbitter #sweetbitter fandom #sweetbitter fic #sweetbitter fanfiction #sweetbitter original characters #sweetbitter oc

[violetproxima]

Speaking of WereSam… Hi Nightshade!

#sam wilson #Steve Rogers #they are my otp #in the comics at least #nightshade

[nitpickrider]

The funny part is? Unlike most superheroes, Cap and Falcon are NOT motherless. Both of them knew and had good relationships with their mothers well into their young adult lives.

#marvel #marvel comics #marvel universe #marvel heroes #superhero #comics #nightshade #tilda johnson #falcon #sam wilson #captain america #steve rogers