#also I think he would get along very well with the goons :)

[greenglowinspooks]

(DCxDP) Drowning in formaldehyde (Pt. 1)

—

Tw: one instance of canon-typical violence (DC), vivisection mention

Will be crossposted to AO3 eventually

(Prologue) - (Pt. 2)

(Subscription post/masterlist)

—

Danny has been working for Mr. Cobblepot for over a month now.

The first few weeks he was in the Penguin’s company, he couldn’t do much of anything. Instead, Mr. Cobblepot made sure that he was well-rested and beginning to recover.

Danny cried a lot in the first week that he was there.

He cried when he ate for the first time in years; the GiW had kept him on IVs and a feeding tube, so they wouldn’t have to move him from his surgical table.

He cried when he was given his own room to stay in, when he was brought clothes to wear, when he was given a bodyguard to protect him.

He cried when Mr. Cobblepot’s doctors told him that the damage to his vocal chords was likely permanent, and that he would never sound the same again. That he would find it hard to speak at any volume above a whisper.

Apparently, he had a lot more damage to him than he had thought.

The doctors said that the scarring in his brain stem suggested his entire brain had been removed and had regrown. Danny couldn’t really disprove that, and it did line up with a pretty substantial gap in his memory, but if that was the case then why couldn’t his voice recover too?

The scarring and incredibly new tissue that showed up in scans of several other parts of his body suggested that the GiW had done the same thing with most of his organs, as well as a few limbs, and all of the fingers on his right hand.

Danny could remember that. He just didn’t want to.

Perhaps it was the feeling of pity that kept Mr. Cobblepot so understanding of Danny’s slow recovery. That didn’t really matter much, though; Danny’s energy was focused on keeping his place here, ensuring that Mr. Cobblepot didn’t decide he was no longer worth the effort.

As it turned out, there was an easy enough solution to that.

Danny was the only one who knew how to properly operate and modify the weapons and inventions stolen from the GiW.

And so, Danny had a niche he could occupy. He could be useful, useful enough that Mr. Cobblepot couldn’t get rid of him, even if he wanted to.

And, as it turns out, Danny remembered quite a lot of the theories he heard while he was on the cutting board.

As soon as he had enough muscle control of his arms to do so, he was working away at the machinery created by the GiW and his parents.

No, not his parents.

Doctors Madeleine and Jack Fenton.

Regardless of their creators, he was able to understand them quite intimately.

Maybe it was because the ectoplasm flowing through the weaponry was his own, maybe it was because he had nothing to listen to for three years other than the excited chatter of his vivisectionists as they cut him open. Maybe it was because they were both simple weaponry without a purpose.

Danny found working on the machines soothing in a way that nothing else was.

The smell of oil and grease, the sounds of mechanical clanking and metal joints squealing, the feeling of cold steel beneath his fingertips.

The first thing he did to the machines was replacing the paint, from shiny white to a matte black. That way, they were recognizable as his own modified creations.

It was only a bonus that he didn’t catch his reflection in the metal surfaces this way.

Still, his reflection was starting to become more familiar to him. It was still strangely off-putting to see, but his face was beginning to plump out from consistent eating, and his skin was beginning to lose its unhealthy pale tone, going back to a more natural pinkish color.

His eyes still looked devoid of life, but that could be ignored as long as he didn’t look at himself for too long.

Danny sighed, leaning back in his chair as he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. He was working on modifying the ectoblasters so that they could properly hit humans, as per Mr. Cobblepot’s orders.

He probably should feel some sort of moral conflict over it, but really, Danny couldn’t find it in him to care. Maybe it was some sort of deep internal flaw, or maybe it was because he knew that they wouldn’t be shot at anyone without blood on their hands. Either way, he didn’t have any qualms with what he was doing.

As Danny reconnected the circuitry within the gun, the indicator lights on the side of the muzzle blinked to life, a familiar neon green.

Danny would have to change that color too, he thought. Maybe red would be nice instead, or an icy blue?

He was pulled from his thoughts by the door to his temporary workshop opening. Danny looked up, and smiled when he saw that his bodyguard was the one standing in the doorway.

The man, known only as Derringer, was 6’2”, built like a tank, and known for his love of unusual firearms. He was also a big fan of card games, and had been teaching Danny how to play Blackjack during their meals.

He gently closed the door behind him, strolling into the workshop.

Danny hopped out of his seat, hugging the man tightly. Derringer laughed, patting Danny on the back as he clung to him like a koala.

“Good to see you too, kid,” the man said, his deep voice rumbling in his chest, “you just about done in here?”

Danny nodded, letting go of the bodyguard. He picked up the gun on the desk, handing it to Derringer, and pointed to the target resting in the far corner of the room.

Derringer glanced down at Danny, shrugging before aiming the gun.

He pulled the trigger, and a large scorch mark appeared in the center of the target.

Derringer whistled appreciatively, walking over to inspect the damage.

There was a deep dent in the center of the metal target, around an inch in diameter, and a large scorch mark surrounding it. The metal of the dent was white-hot, and the area around it was somewhat warped.

“That’s real nice, kid,” Derringer said, “don’t know how you do it.”

Danny grinned, baring his teeth at the man. He smiled back, ruffling his hair.

“The boss is gonna go forward with the Arkham raid soon, so long as your guns are ready,” he said, “he’s eager to try them out for real. You think you’re up to talking to him?”

“Yes,” Danny signed, nodding to the man.

“Good,” Derringer signed back.

Mr. Cobblepot, not wanting Danny to be limited in his speech by the damage to his vocal chords, had ensured that all of the people who interacted with him knew at least the basics of ASL.

When he wasn’t working on the ectoblasters, Danny was practicing his ASL with a dedicated tutor, or with Derringer, who learned the language when his mother had gone deaf.

“Can I eat first?” Danny signed, “I forgot to.”

“You forgot, or you didn’t want to leave your work?” Derringer asked, signing as he spoke, the corners of his eyes crinkled with amusement, “and yeah, the boss wants to talk to you in thirty minutes. You’ve got plenty of time before then.”

“Thank you,” Danny signed, “let’s go.”

“Hey, just a sec,” Derringer said. His face had dropped into something unusually serious.

Danny nodded, tilting his head as he signed a quick “what’s wrong?”

“You’re a good kid. Even after what you’ve been through, you’re…you’re a really sweet kid,” Derringer said, looking away. “But you…you can’t keep being sweet to everyone. You gotta act tough, alright?”

“Why?”

“You just…” Derringer sighed, combing a hand through his thick, curly hair, “a lot of the guys think that you’re too weak to be here. They’re calling you the Penguin’s pet project, and the problem is that they’re not really wrong. You gotta be scarier to survive, alright? Gotham’ll eat you alive if you don’t. Just make up a persona and roll with it.”

Danny nodded slowly, processing his words for a moment.

“Like a mask?”

Derringer laughed, a bittersweet smile on his face.

“Yeah, like a mask. Just don’t start fighting crime while you’re at it.”

“Okay,” Danny signed, his movements slow. “I can do that.”

“Good on you, kid,” Derringer said, ruffling his hair once more, “now let’s go get lunch.”

The two of them ate quickly, Danny’s mind on Derringer’s advice the entire time.

He was right, and Danny knew it. He’d seen the way that some of Mr. Cobblepot’s men had looked at him.

He wasn’t anywhere near big enough to pull off the looming intimidating look that Derringer did; his doctors back in Amity had told him that he would grow to be over six foot, but his time in the GiW seemed to have stunted his growth significantly. He was only around 5’6”, and it seemed that he was going to stay that way.

In the same way, he wasn’t nearly frightening looking enough to pull off the terrifying stares of the smaller individuals working under Mr. Cobblepot. He just couldn’t get the glare right; his face would always fall back to a blank, dead stare.

Though, maybe if he played into that…

A few minutes before they had to leave, Danny excused himself to go to the restroom. He stared into the mirror, looking into his cold, dead eyes, and let his face drop.

When he adjusted his stance, and kept his eyes a bit wider than usual, he looked downright unnerving.

Danny had already noticed that most of his mannerisms were…unusual, after his stay at the GiW base. Put simply, he had forgotten what it was like to be a human.

He had noticed that most of the people around him would avoid being in his presence, and had begun mirroring their body language as much as he could to seem more normal.

Maybe, though, it would be better for him not to.

He could lean into the whole thing. An unstable young adult, experimented on by the government for years.

Danny looked into the mirror, and wide, icy eyes stared back at him.

Danny left the restroom. Derringer turned to greet him, jolting when he did. After a moment, he nodded.

“That your new look?”

“Yes. Is it good?”

“Yeah. Freaky. Gonna take some getting used to, but yeah. Now,” he said, getting up from his spot at the break room table, “let’s go see the boss.”

Danny felt anxiety bubbling up in his chest, his entire body beginning to twitch. If Mr. Cobblepot didn’t approve of the weaponry, or if he thought they were underwhelming, would he be thrown out? Would he be tortured again, or killed?

Danny shivered when they came to a stop in front of the door to Mr. Cobblepot’s office. Failure wasn’t an option. He had to make sure this went well.

“You’ll do great, kid,” Derringer whispered, pushing the door open.

Mr. Cobblepot had been talking with a few other people, but their conversation died out when Danny and Derringer entered the room. Danny’s skin crawled.

“Ah, Danny! Just the person I wanted to see,” Mr. Cobblepot said, a large smile on his face, “Do you have one of your guns with you?”

“Yes,” Danny signed, nodding.

“Wonderful. I was just telling my associates here about your work. Do you mind giving a demonstration?”

“Where should I shoot? Do you have a target?”

Derringer was quick to translate. Mr. Cobblepot nodded, gesturing for a hired hand in the corner of the room to pull out a small wooden board, holding it up in the air.

Danny paled. He would definitely burn the man’s hands if he hit the target, even if he aimed for the furthest corner of the board.

Still, he was more terrified of disappointing Mr. Cobblepot than he was empathetic towards the man, so he drew a blaster from the holster on his leg and aimed carefully.

The blast hit the center of the board. The man holding it howled in pain, dropping the target and drawing his hand close to his chest. The nauseating smell of burning flesh filled the room.

Danny breathed shakily, in and out.

Mr. Cobblepot, for what it was worth, looked like he couldn’t possibly be happier. He and the others inspected the board on the ground closely, ignoring the hired hand as he ran out of the room, still cradling his damaged hand.

A large hole had been blown into the board, and a good portion of it had been incinerated.

“Look at that, ladies and gentlemen! I told you that Danny would deliver, and deliver he did! Imagine if that had been a person instead! Danny, what would you say would happen?”

Danny paused, trying to wince when he realized that the question wasn’t hypothetical, and Mr. Cobblepot actually wanted an answer.

“It would give them S-E-V-E-R-E burns,” Danny finger spelled the word that he didn’t know the proper sign for, “mostly S-U-R-F-A-C-E. It can’t P-E-I-R-C-E, because there is no bullet, just energy.”

Derringer translated for him.

Mr. Cobblepot frowned, and Danny frantically continued, “but it can be L-E-T-H-A-L! Burns on the head kill fast. Burns on the body make S-H-O-C-K, and kill. Strong I-M-P-A-C-T, too.”

“So they do still kill, just not instantly?”

“Yes,” Danny signed, “they’re fast. They hurt bad. Bad way to die, hurts a lot.”

“Well,” one of the other men in the room piped up, “I guess he’s not completely hopeless.”

“Of course he isn’t,” Mr. Cobblepot replied, fixing a terrifying glare onto the man, “it was my idea to bring him in, after all.”

“Danny,” Mr. Cobblepot said, turning his attention back to him, “we’re going to be collaborating with these fine individuals in the future. I’m going to need twenty guns ready for use in a week. You can handle that, can’t you?”

Danny nodded frantically.

“What kind?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Mr. Cobblepot said, waving his hand dismissively, “semi-automatic is preferable, but handguns and shotguns also work. Just make sure they work perfectly.”

The room was silent for a moment.

“Well, that’s all. You can leave now, and I’ll finish discussing the details with my associates.”

Danny nodded, signing him a quick “thank you, goodbye,” and slipped out of the room alongside Derringer.

They made their way back to Danny’s workshop in silence. Once they were inside, Derringer heaved a heavy sigh, running his fingers through his hair.

“You really think you can make that many guns that quickly, kid?”

“Yes,” Danny replied, “but I need your help.”

Derringer groaned, a smile on his face.

“Of course you’re putting me to work. I should’ve expected it. Now, what do you need me to do?”

“Well, first, hold this…”

—

#dcxdp #dc x dp #dp x dc #dpxdc #dp x dc crossover #dc x dp fic #vengeful danny #villain danny #btw Derringer is named after a type of gun #dw he isn’t the focus forever #I just felt like Danny could use like. a single person who isn’t trying to manipulate him #also I think he would get along very well with the goons :) #aside from. yknow. the whole target thing HDJDNDND #also there IS a lore related reason that his vocal chords can’t recover but the rest of his body can #you just gotta wait to see what it is >:3 #anyways. Arkham time next chapter #Awwawaw

[stupid-sloot-headcanons]

can't stop thinking about someone comparing roman and darling's relationship to harley and joker's...roman would not respond well to that.

this would probably happen with a darling who loves him back. maybe you did hate him at first, maybe you have stockholm syndrome, but it doesn't matter. you're devoted to him now. you accept the affection he gives and the pain he inflicts.

and the thing is...his darling is not a well kept secret despite his efforts. you might be locked up in his penthouse 24/7, but it's impossible to hide you away from everyone.

his goons and staff know about you out of necessity. some of the more trusted ones are assigned to guard you when he's not around. they can all hear him fucking you, hear him making you scream almost every day.

maybe one of his goons makes an offhand comment about the boss getting his own little version of a harley. or maybe word gets out about you and another rogue slyly brings you up in a meeting and implies black mask and joker having something in common.

oh, he'd be seething. he'd hate it so fucking much.

Frrrr

I mean Roman and Joker are both very aware that what they're doing is wrong, they just don't care. But they differ in that Roman will never lay a hand on Darling outside of getting rough in bed (even when he gets that initial violent urge, he just throws furniture or beats someone else in the vicinity). If he's gonna punish them, he's making them watch while he brutalizes someone or leaving them confined until they beg to be let out. He's drugging them so they're too out of it to try running. He's keeping their family at arm's length and he's not above going after them if it means he can get what he wants. I say that he won't outright hit his Darling but he'll do pretty much everything else. Ffs this is the man who tortured a teenage girl to near death and who killed an entire wing of a hospital just to get access to his father.

Both of them DO view what they're feeling as love, but they have a very different and fucked up way of showing it. Joker DOES sometimes have a weird affection for Harley that he can't explain and doesn't like acknowledging, but it isn't love. In No Man's Land when she goes off on her own and is distant towards him, he actually finds himself wanting her around. I like versions of their relationship where Joker feels...something. Not love because he's incapable of it. But something that he can't really feel with anyone else.

Roman on the other hand does feel love, but he's a violent and angry mob boss who will prioritize himself over Darling's freedom and well-being 99% of the time. But he won't take any kind of comparisons to himself and Joker. For one, he keeps his girl safe and doesn't slap her around the way Joker does with his girlfriend-cum-sidekick. He doesn't string Darling along the way Joker does with Harley and her desire for a truly loving relationship.

Also Roman doesn't neglect Darling emotionally or sexually the way Joker does Harley. Like if Darling hopped on Roman's desk in lingerie and wanted to "ride her favorite Italian stallion", he would throw everything he was doing out the window. If she appeared naked out of a tub filled with pudding, he's gonna lick it all off and fuck her so much that the cleaning staff won't tell what's coom and what's vanilla.

Also even with a wooden lacquer mask melted to his face, he can still eat pussy better than Joker. Not a high bar to pass but still. He's the only one allowed to joke about Darling getting a splinter down there tho

#thots #.dc #.arkhamverse #yandere dc #yandere arkhamverse #.black mask #yandere black mask #.myshit

[julebirdie]

cinema

ft. dk batman/bruce wayne

reader is gn

not requested

disc. reader wears beaded bracelets (not rlly a disc), bruce is a total flirt, fourth wall is broken like two times, use of (y/n), reader likes horror movies

in all honesty, bruce had no idea why he was there, in front if that glass door. the sign above it read ‘g central films.’ it was a hole-in-the-wall store in the heart of gotham, most people passed by it without a second thought. so why didn’t he? what drew him here?

looking around for paparazzi—even though he disguised himself well enough— bruce pushed the door open and heard a bell ding above him. the store was very cluttered, film posters decorated the walls as semi-organized shelves held a wide array of movies, magazines, books, and merchandise.

“hi, sorry, i’ll be with you in a second!” a voice called out from a storage closet, and bruce took off the hood he was wearing, and took to strolling the shelves. he ran his fingers along the spines of the many medias present, feeling new and old items against his fingertips.

the sound of beaded bracelets clinking against each other was the largest indicator of someone’s presence, and an employee—who bruce could assume was also the owner— stood at the opening of the shelf-made hallway.

“holy shit-“ you gasped. when you came into work today, you expected many things. maybe scarecrow would break out of arkham and fear gas the city, or you’d be robbed by some goon, but having billionaire bruce wayne standing in your store was not on that list.

“i’m sorry- excuse my language- what can i help you with mr. wayne?” you asked.

“please, call me bruce.” he said, walking up to where you stood and stuck his hand out, inviting you to shake it—which you did.

“right, bruce, looking for anything in particular?” you inquired, letting your hand fall to your side as you fiddled with the hem of your shirt.

“to be completely honest with you, i didn’t come here with anything in mind,” bruce said, winking, “unless a cute store owner wants to recommend me something.”

your heart started to beat ridiculously fast, it wouldn’t have surprised you if bruce could hear it.

“erm- uh- do you have any genres you like? maybe we could start there?”

“hm, never really paid attention to film genres,” bruce shrugged. he absolutely did pay attention to them, but he’d be lying if he didn’t want to spend time with you, the cute movie enthusiast.

“right, um, i really like horror, uh, i have a few favorites if you wanna pick from them,” you mentally punched yourself for the constant nervous stuttering, though bruce found it very charming.

“sounds good to me, lead the way…”

“(y/n).”

“your name suits you.”

this flirting was gonna knock you off your feet.

you walked out from the shelf area and went behind the counter, digging in a box underneath. bruce stood in front, looking at the items in the glass display case that showcased the more expensive merchandise. whether it be an authentic autograph from cillian murphy (bruce wondered how you managed to get that,) a rare vinyl for a very popular band, or— bruce’s face heated up when he saw the batman-themed jewelry.

he was very flattered, can you tell?

“okay, here we are.” bruce snapped up from the items to see a small stack of horror movie cds propped in front of him. movies such as american psycho, scream, candyman, and the blair witch project caught his eye.

“anything catch your eye bruce? i can always find more if this isn’t up to your speed,” you said, tapping your fingers against the glass. bruce stared at the collection before picking up the cd for american psycho.

“i’ll go with this one,” he said.

“american psycho? alright, a lot of people think it’s garbage but i really like it— has anyone ever told you you look like christian bale?” you asked, picking up the rest of the cds before placing them where they were before.

“christian bale, hm. I definitely see a resemblance, is he your celebrity crush?” bruce teased, and you nearly dropped the cd as you were renting it out to him.

“pssh, no—i mean, not that you’re ugly you’re really handsome—uh, i mean—fuck-“ bruce laughed at the way you got when he teased you, it was adorable.

“right-heres your cd bruce,” you said, handing him the box with shaky hands. he took the box and gently lifted your hand to his lips, pressing a soft kiss against the back of it.

“i think i’ll be coming here more often,” bruce said, pulling up his hood and walking out the store, sending a smile your way before he blended in with the bustling crowd of gotham.

you pressed your cold hands to your face, trying to cool down. today was eventful, more than you could’ve ever expected. and, you wouldn’t complain if bruce stopped by again.

#fanfic #fanfiction #fluff #x female reader #x gender neutral reader #x male reader #nolanverse #bruce wayne x reader #bruce wayne x gn reader #bruce wayne x male reader #bruce wayne x fem!reader #batman universe #batman begins #christian bale #ayavia #ayawrites #batman x reader #dk bruce wayne #dk batman

[ewyaschild]

heyy! I saw you write for Spider *excited hand clapping* this boy deserve more love! Soooo i wanted to request something hehe! So i was thinking, we grew up together with Spider and the Sully kids (we're human), and always been close to Spider, and both kinda have a crush on eachother but never acted on it. everything's good and happy until the recoms arrive. we get kidnapped along with Spider, and during the time with quaritch and his squad, we grow closer, and feelings get more real and intence. and one day (maybe when they attack the metkayina village trying to find jake), it's kinda too much for both of us, and it leads to a kiss (or lots of kisses idk lol).

sorry it's a messy request lmao i'm just happy to see someone who writes for him <3 thanks in advance!

nonnie don't even apologize ur so real for this. i had something JUST like this in my drafts you don't even understand how hard i've been thinking about this for weeks! lowkey don't think this is my best work but i'm still gonna post it cs why not

🧾: fluff, mentions of quaritch lighting that one clan tf up, distressed spider

heart to heart • spider socorro

you've always had to be around spider, and it wasn't a problem at all. of course you'd banter and roughhouse with the sully kids growing up, but at the end of the day it was always you and him.

being able to have your mother on pandora with you was a huge privilege, or at least to spider. you were taught things he wasn't, felt things he couldn't, heard things he didn't. not all of which was parental but also scientific. your mother being a scientist on pandora led you into the same path.

spending most of your time in the base working on tech instead of outside playing with spider and the sully kids wasn't always a downside. you preferred it like this anyway, the oxygen mask bothered you.

spider was a sweet child; but stubborn and convincing. especially on days you didn't want to be outside he'd always found a way to drag you out to small ponds and little ditches with the sully kids to play and splash. he'd lead you out of the base after fastening your mask, swinging his hand into yours.

spider made you feel normal on a planet full of blue aliens. (literally)

it seems as though you and spider were attached by the hip. and when you weren't, he'd come back to the base before eclipse and bring you many pretty flowers and trinkets kiri had lent him for that very purpose. nobody made you smile like spider did. even on days he was feeling down about his father, or just lack of parental figure in general, you'd be there to comfort him and return those smiles to him.

though spider loved to drag you outside the comfort of your very very very uncomfortable lab chair, he learned to leave you alone with time. (not really) but one unfortunate day spider managed to get you back out into the woods of pandora.

he blames himself for your kidnapping. if he didn't take you with the sully kids, you wouldn't be in this situation.

sat in his cell, he thought and thought. were you being out through that brain torture device too? did you tell them where jake was? did they hurt you?

tears welled in his eyes as he couldn't even bare the thought of you being injured.

when you reunited, it was with a deep hug. "holy shit." spider whispers in your ear. "i'm so sorry- this is all my fault." you're quick to shut him up. "no spider, you didn't know this would happen." he shook his head in response. there was a stronger feeling between you two; a different type of normal tension. you always knew you deeply cared for spider, but feelings become uncertain every-time you feel his skin on yours. it becomes so much more intimate. lovingly.

a deep sigh erupts from your lips when the sound of quaritch and his goons talking. curiosity forces you to pull away from spider, both of your feet slowly moving towards the conversation. crouching down, you eavesdropped. the plan was to move location onto a ship and sail to find jake sully.

i'm only what seems like a year you reach a reef na'vi clan. you can only weep and watch in terror as quaritch and his team scorch an innocent tribe. not only does this horrify you, but spiders screams don't lessen the damage. the moment was pure evil. nobody deserves to be treated like this... all to find one man?

spider is silent as he's pulled back into the ship. you're still sat the window where you watched the recent tragedy unfold. your eyes follow spider as he sits down next to you, quick to put his head in his hands and take deep breaths. concern clouds your mind as there's nothing you can deep right in your head to say to spider. is a conversation even possible right now?

so many thoughts at once makes you slow to realize spiders eyes burning deep holes into your face. when yours meet his, there's an entire universe of tenderness in them. an immediate abundance of love hits you in the chest. his brown eyes remind you that actions speak louder than words. your hand slowly moves forward onto his shoulder, and in one move he's softly pushing you into him by your waist and finishing the effort with a kiss.

this continued even after you were panting and heaving your chest. he couldn't get enough of you, and you needed more. though the kissing eventually came to a halt, more sensual hugs and touches were looming. now your feelings weren't uncertain. you loved spider whether that was platonically or romantically, and there was no doubt he felt the same way.

that same evening ship you both fell asleep at the window.

#atwow x you #avatar #pandora #spider socorro x you #spider socorro x reader #spider socorro #miles socorro x reader #miles socorro #spider quaritch #miles spider socorro

[sureokyeahwhatever]

i finished vampire the masquerade bloodlines after chipping away at it for a couple weeks after work. Those first 2/3rds of the game are a genuine masterpiece, but man, that last third gets really, really weird and racist.

The thing is, is that I actually have very little to say about that first 2/3rds. It's just good. The design is great, it's well balanced, it's open ended, it has great characters. It's wonderful. This part of the game feels like a real, worthy successor to Deux Ex. There's just nothing more to say, I think.

...

And that's why I almost have a hard time believing it's written by the same people as the last bit. The whole game up to that point (up to just before chinatown) is pretty darn smartly written with some relatively cogent social commentary. The quality of the missions also takes a really, really steep dive in that section too (lots of run and gun hallways, lots of extremely buggy areas, shitty boss fights, etc. But that's honestly understandable because balancing the endgame of an ImSim is practically impossible). Idk, it feels like a totally different game. I could almost just forgive all of that though, if it weren't for the ungodly and seemingly genuine racism with regards to the east Asian vampires.

Like. Ok. If we're being VERY charitable and we just flatly forgive all of the misguided-though-not-malintentioned 2000s era attempts at humor-via-stereotype (dialogue options referencing "tentacles" directed at a young japanese woman; old chinese guys who are always loud and drunk; jingoistic WWII-surviving japanese soldier; Chinese businessman speaking in riddles and mentioning the I-Ching; so on and so on) the whole handling of the "chinese vampire" storyline is psychotically racist.

You first hear of these guys -- the Kuei-Jin, which I learn from the wiki is a portmanteau of the Mandarin word for ghost and a the Japanese word for person, which... ok. -- as being basically like animals. They slaughter who ever they see, lots of people in the bourgeois faction see them as a nuisance, the people in the anarchist faction see them as "invaders from the east," which already had me like "Jesus fucking Christ, maybe these anarchist guys aren't cool after all". But anyway, you go to Chinatown to talk to them and -- by my estimation -- they were basically the same as everyone else. They're protective of their territory, they're secretive, they're paranoid of outsiders... I mean, yeah, they're fucking vampires and apparently all the other vampires see them as sub-human, so yeah, I'd be paranoid and secretive around me too.

The thing is, is that you have this anarchist friend who you tell everything to -- Jack -- and I wanted to go tell him "hey, I don't think these guys are so bad. Maybe we misjudged them" or something like that. And there was a dialogue option along the lines of that, but when I said it, his response was something to the effect of "don't let them sweet talk you with their 'spiritual path' bullshit. That stuff ain't for /us/". Which, I heard and again, said "ah! Interesting writing decision! We're learning that Jack ALSO has flaws like everyone else! he's not just some perfectly cool, levelheaded badass -- he has unjustified prejudices just like everyone else!" So I continued the story under the assumption that, yes, while the surface level of the whole "Chinese vampire" thing was being handled in a really immature, racist way, and in-universe all the other factions seemed to see them as exactly that -- racist stereotypes of conniving, backstabbing Chinese mafia goons -- this was all setting up an interesting "let's all learn to put our cultural differences aside and defeat those rich assholes who want to rule LA"-style ending. This would not be the case.

There was a moment towards the end that I THOUGHT confirmed my suspicion. You are told by the leader of the bourgeois faction to convince the anarchist faction to ally with them so they can, together, take down the Kuei-Jin. Around this time you also are intercepted by the leader of the Kuei-Jin who straight up warns you "hey, that bourgeois guy set me up. He's about to set you up too. Be careful. I hope we can be friends in the future." So I get this information and go straight to the anarchist faction with the intention to say "Ok, bourgeois guys are obviously doing a power play. Now's the time to join with the Kuei-Jin and take them out. We'll settle our petty differences later." (Side note, yes, I understand they were recently at war, but war happens in these situations. The best way to prevent another war is actively making peace. Not by just constantly threatening to go BACK to war). But no such option was available. Instead, all the options were different variations on "Let's join with the bourgeois faction and kill those Chinese guys!" What? But I don't want to kill those guys! And I don't really trust either of these other factions either because the anarchists are racists and the bourgeois guys are, well, bourgeois guys.

So eventually the "ending-tron 3000" comes up in the form of a conversation with a taxi driver which, as far as ending-trons go, is pretty cute. If you decide to ally with the Kuei-Jin two things happen: one, everyone hates you because it's completely impossible to convince anyone that they are anything other than parasites, and two, they kill you in a cutscene and you die in the ocean, which, all things considered, is probably the worst possible way this whole story line could have been handled. There was an opportunity here to have an exceptionally interesting moment where you bring people together to fight in solidarity against those who seek to concentrate their power over the city and all it's inhabitants. There could have been an ending where you work together with the Kuei-Jin and the anarchists to get rid of the bourgeois faction, render the "anarchist" faction system redundant, and allow LA vampires to establish their own federated society where people can live where and how they please without the iron fist of some Ivory tower pretty boys telling everyone how to live their lives. You could establish a system of vampire democracy across LA, with all the benefits and negatives that it brings. Would LA then be crushed under the heel of the bourgeois faction coming in from other cities? Or would it be able to stand the test of time and serve as an example for other cities to rise up and do the same? There's some interesting stuff here, both politically and for individual characters as perhaps you have to work extra hard to get Jack and the rest of the anarchists to believe that the Kuei-Jin are, despite superficial differences, just vampires like they are and that they all share common interests.

Instead, the game goes hard in the other direction. It calls you an idiot for trusting those eastern invaders and basically says "you should have listened to everyone else when they were mumbling under their breath about how you can't trust those Kuei-Jin as far as you can throw them". i.e., you were an idiot for not being racist enough. Like, I can understand the general theme of "trust no one", since it permeates through the whole game, but to literally introduce a faction of "conniving foreigners" who everyone hates, and then to have that hate be perfectly justified just feels boring, hateful, and honestly like a waste of a third of what was otherwise a great, great game.

Anyway. The game is good. Great, even! It's really hard to make an ImSim, so even though the last third has some rough (ROUGH) design flaws and bugs, I'm happy to look past that. However, it's really easy to not just put Chinese people in your game and make them evil stereotypes that everyone rightfully hates, so that's harder to look past.

I would say the ideal way to experience the game is to marathon the first chapter up to downtown, play less and less frequently from downtown up until the end of hollywood or so, and gradually lose interest around the time that you're asked to go to Chinatown. I think if you did that, you'd end up remembering the game very fondly.

#vampire the masquerade #vampire the masquerade bloodlines #bloodlines #vtm bloodlines #vtm

[mabelstone]

Beloved

matt stone x reader

summary: chapter six of Professor Stone

word count: 3064

note: i tried to incorporate all of your ideas and my next post will be crediting you all! not super happy with the start but i hope the ending satisfies you as much as it did me 😌 next chap will be the final </3 hence why this was a longer one xx

also eric is eric stough (i know he's nothing like the character portrayed in this but go along with it) not cartman. i would like to make that VERY clear.

masterlist can be found here <3

Thankfully, figuring a way to make your taboo love affair work didn't involve having to drop calculus. You thanked your lucky stars for that one. You'd since had to relocate your... sessions though, as a few of your cocky classmates raised their suspicions in class.

It went a little something like:

"Alright, before you all finally get out of here, any further questions?" Your professor queried to the class, leaning carelessly against his desk as he always did. It was strange, his arrogance used to make you roll your eyes but now it caused your heart to squeeze painfully and your cheeks ache from smiling.

"Actually, yeah, I have a question." Someone from the back of the class spoke, sitting next to Trey and a few of their other friends, gaining the attention of most of the class. Your professor waited expectantly, unamused by the way Trey and his friends were suppressing laughter. "How come Y/N stays back after, like, every single class? It just seems a bit weird."

You felt your cheeks glow red as the eyes of your classmates turned to you instead, your heart rate beginning to pick up. Hushed murmurs rose throughout the room, your professor clearing his throat with arms folded across his chest. You quickly glanced over to him, but his eyes never moved from the boys at the back of the room. It was like power play for him, he was near impossible to crack. "Are you suggesting something? Because if you're going to be a smart ass in my class, you could at least have the balls to enlighten us."

You looked up at Matt with pleading eyes, praying he would just dismiss the class so you could all go home and forget about this. But then you remembered who was in charge here, and he was not looking at you. You sunk into your seat, overwhelmingly embarrassed as you heard Trey and his friends laughing. Your professor remaining uneasily calm as he approached the boys' table.

"Come on wise guy, tell me what your hypothesis is," he taunted, voice composed, almost condescending.

Another one of the males, Eric, spoke up in a similarly cocky tone, "well, we all think you're screwing her." The next part he said under his breath, making your heart sink and your stomach turn; "which is strange... we thought she was frigid 'cause she blue balled Trey a few times."

Just like that, Matt's fuse blew. "Everyone out, now." He commanded angrily, pupils blown, hands balled into fists. The class collected their things, piling out without hesitation. The boys from the back started packing up with shit-eating grins, evoking a very stern, "uh-uh. You three stay. You too, Y/N," from your professor.

You stayed in your seat, absolutely dumbfounded at what just happened. Trey looked just as embarrassed as you, not humoured by the situation anymore. He moved to sit in the chair next to you while Matt instructed his goons to move to the front as well.

"I'm so sorry, Y/N," Trey spoke hushed, sympathetically. He grabbed your hand in his own, rubbing his thumb over your soft skin as you sat frozen in disbelief. "I didn't know he was gonna say that, I'm-"

"Hands off her, Parker," your professor scolded, leaning his back against his desk with folded arms again. The four of you were lined up in front of him like high schoolers in detention, and you could tell Matt was secretly loving every moment of it.

"See, dude! He is fucking her," one of them snickered, the other (Dian was his name, maybe) joining in, throwing his hands up in defence.

"No shade, sir, everyone's thought about fucking her at least once." He continued, sizing you up with his eyes. You shifted uncomfortably in your seat, unable to make eye contact with anyone. Usually, you'd bite back, but when they were actually close to finding the truth - the truth that could get you expelled and your controversial love interest fired - you couldn't even think straight. "Trey's the only lucky one who's been close enough this year, at least. Oh, besides you, sir. But you don't mind sloppy seconds, right?"

He grabbed the cocky student's desk, ripping it out from in front of him and practically throwing it across the room. "You do not speak about her like that. And you definitely do not disrespect me like that," he shouted loud, veins bulging from his neck and forehead. "The next one of you to open your mouth will be sorry, and I promise that." Eric and Dian had stopped laughing at this point, realising they'd maybe taken it too far.

Matt straightened up, satisfied with the painful silence that filled the room now. He took a deep breath to compose himself, clearing his throat before continuing. "Apologise to her," he instructed, secretly humoured.

"I'm really so sorry, Y/N," Trey apologised immediately and Matt had to put all of his energy into not bursting out laughing. Instead he nodded to the next in line, Eric, with pursed lips and the perfect poker face.

"R-really?" Eric quirked with a raised brow, this whole situation feeling as degrading as Matt intended. "Um, sorry... Y/N."

"Again, like you mean it," your professor commanded, eyes dark, the faintest grin on his lips. He was loving this. It kind of turned you on.

"I'm sorry, Y/N," Eric mumbled, refusing to make eye contact like a child who just got scolded by his mother in front of his friends. Satisfied, Matt's eyes narrowed in on Dian.

"I have nothing to apologise for, dude," Dian scoffed, leaning back in his seat to get a good look at you. "Y/N, is he at least any good?"

Again, your face flushed the deepest red, eyes wide, that sick feeling hitting you like a truck once more. You nearly choked on nothing, eyes immediately begging for Matt to speak up.

"Well done," your professor started with a wide grin, yet there was nothing friendly about his tone. "You'll be hearing from the dean, and you will be removed from my class for sexual harassment. You'll have to retake this class, which isn't until next year. That is, if the dean doesn't expel you on the spot. And trust me, I will try my hardest to make that happen."

"I didn't sexually harass anyone, fuckwit," Dian bit back, even his friends were now shocked at his behaviour. Little did your professor know, he bumped a few lines before coming to class, his inflated ego clearly a result of that. "Besides, I'm graduating next month and final grades have been released."

"You clearly don't understand how any of this works," Matt laughed, all eyes in the room on him. "Next month, you will watch all of your friends graduate, while you are held back another year, or hopefully, kicked out of your degree."

"I'll just drop out then," Dian shrugged. The look on Matt's face made you want to rip his clothes off then and there and have your way with him.

"Good, that'll save me a lot of work, and save you a lot of time as you're clearly not gonna go far in life," Matt seethed, waving his hand dismissively. "Get out of here, better to not waste time or resources on dead heads." The three of them got up and left, Dian spewing a stream of curse words and insults to your professor, only making him laugh incredulously as Dian's friends dragged him out of the theatre.

Once they left, Matt walked over to your desk, kneeling before you. You still had a shocked look on your face, unable to fathom what the fuck all of that was. "You okay, doll?" He spoke gently, a stark contrast to the tone he barked just seconds ago. You just nodded, blinking up at him expressionless. "As long as you're with me, nobody will get away with that."

"We aren't together though, Matt." You sighed with a hint of sadness in your tone as you continued, "I graduate in a month. What happens then? I wont be able to just stay after class."

"I've been thinking about that," he started, taking your hands in his, solemn glazing his eyes as he paused before speaking again. "I want you to be mine. I want everyone to know you're off limits."

You smiled weakly at this, reaching a hand up to cup his face. His attitude had completely changed. It was gentle and sincere, holding your hands as if they'd smash into pieces with any more applied pressure. "I wanna be yours too," you agreed, slowly leaning forward until your lips hovered millimetres away from one another. He ran his thumb over your bottom lip, before pressing the warmest, sweetest kiss to your mouth, smiling into it.

"Come to my house," he offered against your lips. You pulled back for a moment, thinking it through. You looked up at him again, nodding sheepishly in agreement. You didn't know why the thought of being in his space made you so nervous. Maybe because it was all becoming too real?

You stayed back for a bit, listening to him talk to the dean on the phone, dramatising the altercation with Dian... he really wanted him expelled. He gave you a reassuring smile as he wrapped up the phone call, seemingly satisfied with himself. The way he smiled at you made your heart flutter. You hoped he felt it too.

"Appreciate it, sir. You too, bye-bye." He hung up with an exaggerated exhale, eyes wide, causing a small giggle to fall from your lips. "C'mere, bring your phone," he beckoned you over with his fingers, rolling back in his chair for you to sit in his lap. Once you did, you unlocked your phone and he took it from you, adding his number to your contacts. He made his contact name, "Matt ❤️," before laughing and erasing the heart. Once you took your phone back, you added the heart again, feeling him huff a soft breath against your neck.

"I want to shower before I come over, I better head off," you turned to face him, pressing a gentle kiss to his lips before standing up, being held back by a firm grip around your wrist.

"I'll walk you to your car," he offered, standing up as well as if to make the decision for you.

"Are you nuts?" You laughed, dismissing him with the shake of your head. "After that shit? I appreciate it, but I'm a big girl. I'll just see you later."

"No, fuck them." He retorted, grabbing his own belongings before turning off the lights. "For all anyone else knows, you're shaken up from the harassment, and would feel safer with a big, strong man with you."

"My knight in shining armour," you mocked with a faux swoon, earning an eye roll from your professor.

“Don’t push it,” he warned, turning off the lights in the hall before walking you out.

You didn’t speak much on the walk to your car, though a warm, secure feeling lingered in the space between you. You’d never been out of the theatre together and it felt almost domestic having him walk you to your car. It was pretty late as your class ended at 7pm; nearly everyone had left the campus, give or take a few.

“Text me, okay? I’ll be home in like, thirty minutes.” He opened your door for you, causing a pretty pink blush to paint across your cheeks. He was leaning one arm on the side of your car, head tilted down at you as you climbed in the front seat. He was wearing that black fitted button up that made your cervix beg to be assaulted. The contours of his face were illuminated under the single street light, his bicep bulging against the cotton confines of his shirt. You could've ripped his clothes off and taken him right then and there, but any chance of that happening was interrupted by a gentle tap of your car roof, and hushed words of, "see ya' later, pretty girl."

You went home, shaving every inch of your body, absolutely dousing yourself in perfume. You didn't have to put in work for uni - it was uni. This, however, was very different. This was your professors' home, the most intimate location you could possibly spend time together in. Hoping to seem nonchalant and disguise your anxiety, you threw on your prettiest sundress; a short lilac number with slightly frilled hemming. Your hair was in a simple half up half down style with minimal make up on. You thought you looked pretty. You hoped he would think the same.

The drive to Matt's place was quicker than you expected. Your heart was pounding so hard, you were worried you'd crack a rib. It was so bizarre to you that you were so nervous, despite the fact that you had slept with him more times than you could count on both hands. You raised a shaky fist to his large wooden front door, knocking twice. The door swung open almost immediately, and you were met with the gap-toothed smile you'd grown so fond of.

"Woah, you were just waiting by the door, huh?" You teased as he opened it for you, brazenly sizing you up with his eyes.

"It's not every night I get visitors this beautiful." He ushered you in to his home, which was beautiful and smelt so nice. "Hope you're hungry." You sat at the kitchen table that was set with two plates and two wine glasses. He'd prepared restaurant quality chicken and vegetables, and although quite a simple dish, it looked amazing, and the fact that he'd made it for you made you feel all fuzzy inside. You'd eat burnt toast if it meant you could share dinner with him.

A few glasses of wine in and you were all gooey inside. Everything was warm, everything made you happy.

"What?" He smiled, infatuated by the way your flushed cheeks accentuated your drunken smile, your sweet giggles the prettiest sound he'd heard all year.

"Nothin', just happy," you murmured, bringing the wine glass to your lips once again.

You were sitting beside one another on his couch, your legs entwined as he sat with his arms draped over the edge. He looked absolutely delectable; facial hair neatly grown out, short curls atop his head, wearing a navy blue t-shirt that hugged his muscles just right.

"I meant what I said earlier," he started, green eyes piercing your own, before continuing, "I want to be with you."

Your cheeks burned a deeper hue of red, this time not a result of your inebriation. "I wanna be with you too... but how? Can't you lose your job?"

"Not once you graduate," he shrugged nonchalantly, throwing back the remaining wine in his glass. "How long is that? Like, a month? I can wait."

You set your wine down on the coffee table across from you, moving to straddle him where he sat. His hands instinctively found your hips, your lips connecting gently, moving perfectly in sync. You moved your lips to his neck, gently sucking on the warm skin, marking him with dark purple prints of your lips. His warm fingers travelled up under your dress, already hooked into your underwear, urging you to remove the barrier between your flesh and his. You stood up, slipping them off as he unzipped his pants, sliding them down enough that he could free his already painfully hard cock.

You immediately climbed back onto him, feeling it occasionally bob against your heat. He'd had you riled up the whole time, and you'd clearly had the same effect on him. He spat on his fingers before gingerly spreading it over your entrance, allowing you to line yourself up and slowly sink down onto it. A lewd whimper escaped your flushed lips as you threw your head back, adjusting to the delicious stretch you felt. He let out a low groan of his own, his usual desperate, bruise producing touch replaced with the foreignly gentle guidance of your hips. Knees flat against the couch with your thighs clinging to either side of his, you pushed yourself up his length with your toes, sinking back down deeper this time. Your lips naturally found one another again, parting in invitation for his tongue. Your tongues wrestled in the most gentle manner, absolutely no haste in your actions. You took the time to explore each other, tasting every inch of your mouths as you shared soft breaths and satisfied moans. His hands trailed up your back, moving his lips to your collarbones where he placed soft kisses, tongue dragging along your warm skin. He reached his peak fast after you increased your pace, the warm wet feeling of your arousal sending him over the edge within minutes. The most holy sound you'd ever heard departed his lips as finished inside of you, his hooded eyes not leaving yours once.

He moved you onto your back in one swift motion, hiking your legs up over his shoulders as he knelt off the edge of the couch. He slipped two fingers into your sopping core with ease, languidly lapping at your sensitive clit. Your hands nestled in his hair, lightly raking through his curls as he pushed you closer and closer to the edge. His nose occasionally brushing the sensitive area as he so tenderly bought you to climax, your legs tensing around his face as a mirage of ecstasy washed over you. You mewled his name in the way he imagined an angel would, working you through your orgasm in a way you'd never experienced. You weren't sure you'd understood the term love making until now.

You wanted everyone to know how he made you feel, and he, the way you made him feel.

He pulled up his pants and climbed back onto the couch beside you, pulling your body flush against his, his pounding heart echoing in your ear as you caught your breath and came back to earth from cloud nine.

As you felt his heart rate slow against your cheek, he spoke up. "Stay the night. You can borrow some of my clothes."

You laughed to yourself before saying, "I hoped you'd ask. I packed clothes... they're in my car."

#matt stone #matt stone x reader #matt stone smut #professor!au #professor!matt stone

[randomprose]

beach goons

[ao3] - written for the satosho server weekly prompt: beach the problem is that Satoru likes looking at Shoko's boobs—but so do the perverts on the beach.

--

“What happened to your shirt?” Suguru asks on their way back from getting snacks. “The looks are getting annoying.”

“What, jealous?” Satoru smirks at him, baby blue eyes peering at him over the rims of his round sunglasses as he goes to town on his popsicle. He winks at a girl he catches staring before shrugging. “Had to relinquish it for the greater good.”

“What? Why?”

“I just said it’s for the greater good. Were you not listening?”

“Yeah, I heard you,” Suguru rolls his eyes, shifting the bags of chips in his arms. “Greater good? What the hell do you mean greater good?”

“Shoko,” Satoru mutters.

“Shoko?”

“Yeah, Shoko.”

Because she was the one with the brilliant idea to go to the beach and had the fantastic idea to wear a cheeky lavender two-piece bathing suit that’s attracting all sorts of attention because it compliments her eyes and hugs her ass just right and makes her boobs look so—

Satoru bites at his popsicle stick.

So, yeah. Like he said, ‘for the greater good’ indeed because if Satoru catches another pervert leering over at Shoko he is gonna Purple Hollow the shit outta this stupid beach and that’s just gonna be a whole thing with paperwork and shit and a meeting with the higher-ups and the clan elders and blah, blah, blah.

Point is, it’s gonna be a whole thing and it’s all going to be Shoko’s fault.

And that’s why Satoru decided to be a good friend and mitigate all that shit and not get them in trouble, for once, by making (forcing) Shoko wear his shirt over her bathing suit because of the stupid looks and also because, uhh, he…doesn’t want her to get cold? Yeah, that’s it. 

“Speaking of,” Satoru says when he realizes his shirt barely covers Shoko’s ass. “Give me your shirt too.” 

“What? No! Why?!”

“C’mon, Suguru! Be a pal!” Satoru shouts as he wrestles Suguru’s shirt off him. “Give it already before—oi! Shoko!” 

In the distance, right under the big beach umbrella they staked in the sand, Satoru’s eyes catch Shoko without his shirt on and using it to sit on instead.

“Oh, hey,” Shoko waves and smiles at them. “Did you get me my reds?”

Suguru shakes off Satoru’s hold on him and roughly shoves him aside. “Right here.” He waves the box of Marlboro as he walks over to her.

“Shoko, what the hell!” Satoru yells indignantly when he gets closer. “Why is my shirt on the ground?!”

“What? I don’t want sand to get on my ass.”

“That’s why Suguru is gonna give you his shirt!”

“No, I’m not!”

“Alright,” Shoko sighs, leaning forward on her knees. “What is this about, hm?”

Satoru’s eyes zero in on the display of cleavage in front of him and the way Shoko looks staring up at him like that. Fuck. Is it extra hot today or—

“Satoru doesn’t want other people looking at your tits and ass,” Suguru says easily, much to Shoko’s mild annoyance and Satoru’s embarrassment. God. He just loves stirring shit.

“Wha—” Satoru whirls on his friend. “That’s not—

“Ehh?” Shoko raises an eyebrow as she leans back on the sand. “That’s not very feminist of you, Gojo. Very sexist.” 

“Yeah, dude. We’re not in the Heian period anymore. Get with the program and join us in the 21st century, dipshit,” Suguru piles on even as his eyes narrow on the look the bypassing beachgoers are throwing Shoko. 

The fucking hypocrite, Satoru thinks. Why he oughta—

“Well, what can I expect from someone raised in a backward clan his whole life.” 

“Hey! That’s—Oi!” His eyes catch two guys eyeing Shoko and looking like they decided to be brave because they’re walking towards them even when Satoru and Suguru are right there .  “What are you looking at? Move along, you dicks!”

“Christ. Would you settle down, Gojo. Or I swear I’ll take my top off and flash the whole beach my tits.”

“You wouldn’t,” Satoru hisses

“Oh, won’t I?” Shoko challenges, pissed at his misplaced display of machismo.

“We’ll see your tits then too.”

“Okay? It’s not like I haven’t seen you guys naked before.” She’s their only medic and she does their physicals. The novelty of seeing them naked wore off after the third or fourth time. “Quid pro quo, no?”

There’s a staredown. Suguru stands between them, eagerly anticipating who will crack first—he knows it’s Satoru. He’s just waiting for Shoko’s next move. 

True enough, Shoko moves to remove her top and Satoru dives to stop her.

“Okay! Okay, fine! Do whatever you want just don’t—” Satoru holds Shoko’s arms down to her sides. “Don’t!”

“Listen, Gojo. You’re sweet, but I can handle myself.” She shakes him off and plucks his sunglasses from his face to put on hers. “Besides, you guys are here.”

Satoru’s face is red as a tomato. Suguru is snickering but he’s also looking away, cheeks dusted pink. 

Shoko thinks that Suguru doesn’t really care whether she keeps her top on or not. Their eyes meet. Suguru smirks at her and Shoko just rolls her eyes, biting back a smile. Pervert.

“Here. For finally piping down, I’ll let you put sunscreen on my back.” Shoko offers making Satoru sputter, face almost boiling red. “You don’t want? Fine. Suguru, can you—”

“No! I’ll do it!” Satoru snatches the bottle from her hand and proceeds to sit behind her.

‘You’re mean,’ Suguru mouths to her and Shoko just smirks, a cigarette already dangling from her lips as he moves to light it for her.

-

“Remember when you used to be all macho and shit and would try to cover me up when we went to the beach?” Shoko says, closing her book and leaning back on the towel under the beach umbrella they got propped up. “Whatever happened to that Gojo?”

“Realized he doesn’t have to use the Six Eyes when the goods are right there in front of him,” Satoru scoffs. “Wear whatever you want, babe. I can fight.”

“Pervert,” Shoko mutters, lightly elbowing him. “What? You couldn’t before?”

“You love me,” Satoru shoots back. “Of course I can. But now I can just do whatever I want too.”

“You say that like you’ve never just done whatever the hell you wanted anyway.”

“Eh.” Satoru shrugs as he continues to scroll on his phone and sip on his drink, content to just sit beside her in the afternoon sun and the sea breeze. “Besides, I’ve come to realize that those looks they throw your way are of appreciation. And also envy. To me, specifically. Because I got to bag the hottie they can only dream of grazing their pathetic eyes on. I especially love those looks.”

“Oh, so I’m an accessory is that it?” Shoko goads, an eyebrow raised in faux annoyance.

“Hah! Don’t pretend you don’t enjoy parading me around, you little hypocrite.” Satoru turns to her and lets his eyes roam on the little baby blue number she had on, how the top pushes her tits together and the sexy way the wrap hugs her waist with a peek of her legs that went on for miles. God. Imagine hiding that. Teenager him was such an idiot. “I saw you smirking when we went to get ice cream and the ladies eyeing me turn away when you put your arm on my waist.”

Well, what can Shoko say? She has a bit of a possessive streak. Payback for all those years she’s had to watch girls slobber all over him.

“As long as you understand you’re the trophy in this relationship.”

#jjk #jujutsu kaisen #satosho #satoshoko #hs shoko's bikini matches her eyes #adult shoko's bikini matches satoru's eyes #either way he's crazy for her hehe #gojo satoru #shoko ieiri #ieiri shoko #writing #jjk fanfic #satoshoko fanfic

[cuddlyscribe]

For the Tekken requests if they're still open, may I request Kazuya with a loving and affectionate femdom reader. I love this man so much but also want to bite him 😈 SFW and NSFW, please and thank you!

[OMG this is... perfection 🥴 are you reading my thoughts?!?! cuz if this ain't me. keep those kaz requests coming because imma have a field day with this one. hope you enjoy!!]

SFW

The loving and affectionate part has this man completely dumbfounded. Not that you could tell from his facial expressions, but if you know Kazuya well enough you can tell when he's just like... Unable to compute. Mans is bluescreening right now.

At first he's not going to tell you how much he likes your hugs and kisses and every other show of affection. After all, it's not very becoming of a very serious CEO, master martial artist, devil man to show any sort of softness!

Until he realizes that he literally cannot help himself anyone and all that goes out the window. He knows that this is who you are and he loves it. At this point, if any of his G Corp goons so much as raise their head to look at you when you give him a bear hug he will Mishima god fist their heads in.

Also perhaps you don't realize the monster you've just created... Kazuya will now demand your affection by holding out his arms to you at every single opportunity. He will notice instantly when something's wrong because you haven't given him the proper amount of kisses yet (proper amount being "never enough.")

But in all seriousness, Kazuya really does appreciate how much you show that you love him, even if he doesn't say it out loud sometimes.

Growing up with the kind of father he did, it wasn't as if he was told "I love you" on a regular basis. And as much as he wouldn't have ever admitted before, it was something he knew that he always was missing.

You are simply a replacement for any sort of lost affection in the past, though. He adores and loves you as your own amazing person in the present that, frankly, he doesn't understand how he came to deserve.

spice under the cut~!

And I think it would be remiss to leave out the fact that your affection and proclivity for dominating also makes Kazuya's head spin. In a whole different delicious way...

Kazuya is definitely not used to being bossed around, and it makes him short circuit when you push him around and tell him what to do. It's almost like he's a deer in the headlights, though he goes along with exactly what you say.

I would go so far as to say that Kazuya has a degradation kink, though not a soul besides you will ever know about it. As someone with so much control in his life that he can make anything happen with a snap of his fingers while those around him praise his every choice, something in him clicks when you degrade him and throw him around like a rag doll.

When you're on top, he's in absolute bliss. He's so big but the fact that you can take him so easily and with the most devilish smirk on your face as you work him... He is seeing STARS.

Please leave marks all over him, he will be like putty in your hands. Kazuya lives for that little sting and the way you ease the pain with a kiss. And considering he always fights without his shirt, he is fully proud of all of those marks and makes no attempt to hide them.

You are also the only one who will ever get to hear Kazuya say "please." And if you play with him just right, he'll say it as many times as you want~

#tekken #tekken x y/n #tekken x you #tekken x reader #kazuya mishima #kazuya mishima x reader #kazuya mishima x you #kazuya mishima x y/n #kazuya Mishima smut #smuttyscribe

[frontierpodiatrist]

irt kieran & nemona

honestly thinking about it nemona and kieran are more similar than she is to carmine, in my opinion. sure carmine and nemona are both very into battles, but kieran is as well, he's just a lot more...serious about it. like in juxtaposition irt how they are in battle; carmine is pretty bossy and impatient, and also doesn't treat the player like her equal when battling together, she doesn't necessarily seem interested at all in having an "equal" or a rival (calling you her second-in-command and acting like you're more her goon LMAO), it's her way or the highway. she wants to kill./deal damage, or have fun, and is not really interested it seems in whether or not you're on par with her. she feels no particular way about it (positive like nemona, or negative like kieran). and while the other two, at least at first in kieran's case, encourage you when you use supereffective moves and whatnot, carmine berates you about it LOL

carmine is also in spite of her attitude pretty emotionally attuned to others, she's very sensitive and a worrier about kieran even though she comes across as abrasive and is often misinterpreted, she keeps things from him or pushes certain narratives in an attempt to protect him. nemona can neither tell/keep a lie, nor is she particularly emotionally sensitive (coughs) arven in area zero (coughs) which carmine would probably be like IF YOU OFFEND KIKI I HAVE TO END YOU about. kieran, similarly, does not seem entirely self-aware about the feelings of others around him mostly bc his own are so strong that they overshadow everything else. he's at least conscious of it unlike nemona, but he can't necessarily acknowledge it atm bc his own feelings are so intense

about their similarities, though, i find them kind of coin-flipped. they're both very pushy, but kieran is more subtle about it. like carmine is pretty pushy but at the same time she actually does know how to take a no, and without getting wildly offended or intense like the other two. and kieran/nemona straight up Will Not they both react very extremely to rejection; nemona straight up resorts to begging you and shrinking in on herself, and kieran at least in the latter half of the dlc gets varying degrees of upset about it, either lashing out or also shrinking in on himself. nemona needs an equal and wants a rival, and kieran also seems to sort of "need" one in the same sense even if his want for an equal comes from the opposite direction (feeling weak and wanting to catch up to you)

it's also like nemona and kieran nigh immediately are obsessed with you and look up to you and think you're da coolest. carmine getting along with you is more gradual and makes sense bc she's more well adjusted (she is closest to penny of the main three, imo). kieran like uber trusts you immediately which is also probs why u keeping that from him blows up so bad. he just instantly latched on. both him and nemona immediately put 100% investment in mc as soon as they lay eyes on them, immediately thinking you're strong/have potential/that you're their first friend, and someone they can open up to. the biggest difference is that nemona is independent, and kieran relies on carmine, and your presence throws off the balance of that dependency, giving him someone other than his sister to lean on and then immediately snatching that (and her) away

i feel like kieran and by extension carmine are pretty spoiled. not in a money/rich way like nemona, but emotionally. it's commented a few times by the villagers that they've very rowdy, and their grandparents seem very loving but not very strict, leading to this often acting-out behaviour. carmine will freely pick on kieran and she only really gets scolded for it once, but it happens a lot i'm sure that they fight, and there's never really any proper consequences for it. like kieran refuses dinner and holes up in his room and they don't nag him endlessly for it, just leaving him to his own devices. they're allowed to act up and their grandparents are pretty strict meanwhile i assume in nemona's case she was brought up on a pretty strict ruleset of how to behave given her background. in a way it makes an interesting juxtaposition to wonder how she might have turned out were this not the case and she was given significantly less guidance/structure. she's simultaneously left to her own devices but also given a rulebook, which is seemingly enough for her to keep it together

anyway just some #thoughts

#pokemon kieran #pokemon nemona #the teal mask spoilers #pokemon sv dlc #pokemon scarlet and violet #pokemon headcanons

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

I’ve just finished Cabin Pressure, and that was, to quote its character who also wrote the thing, brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. For the first few episodes, I thought it was quite a good sitcom, and would be gently amusing for thirteen hours. A few episodes in, I became attached enough to the show to not want to do anything except listen to it. From there I went through the rest of the 28 episodes (26 alphabet ones plus part 2 of Zurich plus a behind the scenes one at the end) quite quickly.

It usually annoys me when people describe any bit of comedy as being especially “British”, because I don’t think you can have a single category of humour to describe The Goon Show and The Thick of It and WILTY and Stewart Lee and Josie Long, to name a few things off the top of my head that are as different from each other as I can imagine. Last year I took my best friend to see Nish Kumar, and he didn’t like it, and I was surprised, and he said I shouldn’t be because I know he doesn’t like British comedy, and I said yes but he based that opinion entirely on seeing Monty Python’s Holy Grail as a kid, and he said well it’s all British comedy. And I said Nish Kumar hasn’t got anything in common with Monty Python (I say that not as a slight against Nish Kumar, if anything it’s a slight against Monty Python).

Having said that, Cabin Pressure immediately strikes me as the absolute epitome of British humour. I don’t like the idea of describing British humour as anything in particular, but if I had to describe it, I’d point to Cabin Pressure. Or maybe it’s just Radio Four humour. A radio show with a bunch of characters who are quite well drawn considering the small number of episodes, getting into sitcom trope-infused situations while being deadpan-ly sarcastic at each other and pronouncing everything perfectly and saying “brilliant” a lot. Peak British comedy. Peak Radio Four.

A lot of playing with class and status among the characters, not just two in opposition to each other but a bunch who are all at different levels, some cases of one person's class not matching up with their status, humour is mined from all these clashes. That's British as fuck. They all do that. Fawlty Towers and The Thick of It and Stewart Lee all do that.

It was so good. I liked how the plot got thicker as it went along, the characters better drawn out, they remembered and brought back little details rather than retconning anything inconvenient. I liked that the characters and relationships actually grew and changed. It had the perfect mix of comfortingly familiar sitcom tropes, with enough character complexity to feel original. Sharp dialogue that made sense for each character, so it didn't feel like the writers were just showing off their cleverness (obviously they were also doing that, but they justified it every time). I don’t watch/listen to fiction nearly as much as I used to, and it’s been some time since I’ve gotten this invested in fictional characters.

I think the alphabet theme might have been what kept any episode from feeling like filler, that there was a clear plan from the beginning for every episode to matter. They were all well written and well acted and if I were re-listening I could jump in to any part of any episode and enjoy it. The whole thing was a delight. Wonderful British humour that I'm definitely adding to the hard drive of comedy that I'm giving my dad for Christmas. I'm very glad I did that.

Having said that, for months now, Cabin Pressure has been sitting in the "comedy to listen to" folder on my phone, with the thought that I'd listen to it once I was done every other thing on my list, and when I finish that I'll start a new long-running thing. It's been months but I've finally finished all of it. What am I supposed to do with my life now?

[nicksolemnlyswears]

Hii there, I just want to share some toughts with someone who is equally delighted with Han as I am. Here I was rewatching Tokyo Drift since I have such a soft spot for this movie, specially Han in it, and I think besides his likeable cool and collected persona, there is a dark side of him that is often unnoticed by many, I mean, the man turned Tokyo into his own personal playground and laughted at the face of the Yakuza and playing it and Takashi like a violin, it requeries a HUGE amount of balls and boldness to do this (we can also credit that to the "all or nothing" posture/mentality as a reflex to Gisele's "death"), and he can also be very egoisticaly manipulative and keep secrets (lies), you can see by the way Takashi was so angry with him, bc he believed Han was his friend and he could trust him, he is a "chamaleon", and the fact that he decieved and lied about his death for all those years to Dom and the crew, yeah he had a legitimate reason to do it (protect his adoptive daughter) but still show he can do it even to the people that loves him, ALSO, lets not forget in the 6th movie when Giseles "dies", he gets so angry that he mauls the face of a goon untill he is bloody red and literally throws his entire body in the turbine of a plane, which shows that when if comes to the extreme that man can go WILD (even physically), and damn, it shows how rich his character can be and I wish he was more fully explored before, can you imagine an spin off from his Tokyo days or early years?! Ok, end of my rant 😅

i took your rant to another level. please enjoy my deep dive.

you are completely right. han does have a super dark side and i often fall victim of ignoring it. his character is structured in a way that both the people in the movies and the audience fall for his calm and collected persona.

if we go all the way back to the beginning han's character comes from the movie 'better luck tomorrow' where he's essentially a little thug from california who had a smoking problem and stole computer parts to sell. in the end of the movie he and his friends took part in killing a kid and end up burying him in a backyard.

that aside he was a teenager when this happens, shit happens when you are a teenager and usually you learn from it and move on. except next time we see han is in tokyo drift (with about 4 f&f movies that haven't been released). i think it's safe to say he did not move on from it but evolved.

now technically speaking this evolving happened because to adapt this character to the f&f franchise he had to be more likable and chill and not seem like an amateur in order for him to blend in with the toretto crew. in other words he had to have useful qualities and a 'heart of gold'. i'm pretty sure had he been the same as 'blt' he wouldn't have been as well received in the gang.

that gap of him evolving is hidden from us because of the time jump from 'blt' and the dominican republic (which is where he makes his first appearance chronologically). i'm guessing he kept being a thug, jumped from place to place, grew and learned his chameleon ways, (it would be so interesting to see if it's something he developed himself or if someone taught him) and committed a crime that made him run from the country.

it's like you said he's a chameleon and he does it too well. he gets along well with the toretto crew but he also had a whole lot of fun in tokyo with takashi and the yakusa. for fucks sake he owned a club.

'you make choices and you don't look back' is his motto. that's something that someone who's fucked up many times in the past would say.

his chameleon persona is the reason he and gisele got along so well. they are the same. she uses her assets to win and get her way much like he does. in fast five and that other movie with shaw's brother we see gisele using her flirtiness to get info and han doesn't mind one bit because he understand. (not to mention it benefits him in f5 because of the $ in the other one to get his freedom back). which leads to my other point.

he is egotistical! he lives in a world where he needs to constantly watch out for himself and he takes it a step further by putting himself in dangerous situations. purposely! with most of the toretto missions he has something to gain. yes, those are his friends but most importantly they are partners in crime.

gisele and han. they loved each other. i'm not taking that away from them. it's completely reasonable for han to mourn her and beat the guy to death. but also he's so upset because he lost the other person that understood him in that deeper level. we don't know much about their relationship but if he was going to show his true colors to anyone, his whole self, it would've been gisele.

i agree with you that the reason he adapted that 'all or nothing' mentality was due to gisele's death. people react different to a loved ones death. it can explain this regression he did to more dangerous endeavors in tokyo drift. even though gisele didn't even exist in the creators mind. im taking creative liberty here to give han more depth lol.

while he did lie about his death lets not forget he let dom know he was alive with the postcard. i want to believe the whole elle deal kinda gave him a wake up call for all he did in tokyo. he remembered he once wanted to settle down with gisele and maybe taking care of elle made that dream a version of his reality. just because gisele is gone doesn't mean he can't slow down and take it easy.

bottom line, han is not the saint he appears to be. he's dangerous and impulsive and manipulative and egotistical. but it doesn't necessarily mean he's a bad guy. he also shows a lot of good qualities throughout the movies but i'm not getting into them or i'll be here forever.

han lue (seoul-oh) is one of the best well developed and interesting characters in F&F whether is was on purpose or not. i quite like there's mystery behind him.

they always say to watch out for the quiet ones and i agree.

#han lue #fast and furious #fast & furious #han seoul oh

[yvtro]

Very much feels like a lot of people are ignoring Jason’s foundation. Like I think it’s important to pay attention to the later Robin runs for him. Felipe is actually I think an interesting place to start w Jason because it shows a wealthy, connected, powerful man assaulting multiple women, getting away with it, mocking those victims, causing one to kill herself, and there’s nothing Batman or the police or Bruce himself can do about it. That’s what Jason sees and I don’t think the comics touched on it as much as they should but I think it’s pretty clear that a lot of Jason’s motivation comes from seeing that. How do you say “don’t kill, they’ll get there justice from the criminal justice system” when the powerful won’t. And I really don’t see how “don’t deal to children” and controlling the supply is like. Anti-poor people? He has a different stance on crime, esp things like drug crimes, than bruce, who isn’t even from Gotham and is a billionaire CEO who had one shitty day in crime alley that apparently defined his entire existence. If you wanna talk abt shitty characterizations given the background of the characters, it seems crazy to start w Jason and not Bruce, who thinks he knows best and doesn’t do what he can with his resources to fix Gotham.

okay, first of all: i talk about jason and not about bruce because jason is my favourite character. i have plenty of thoughts about bruce re: classism that i could talk about, if asked – but i don't spend much time writing about it, simply because it's not something that gives me a dopamine hit. but if you're curious about my thoughts on bruce – ask me, and i will talk. but since here you're focusing mostly on jason, i will explain my thought process a bit further.

i do think that felipe's storyline is extremely important when it comes to jason's development of his own moral code. but i also think that people forget that what jay focused in this situation was 1. the victim 2.as you said, the fact that the wealthy and connected can get away with their crimes. thus, i think the most reasonable course for jason would to become extremely wary of that power imbalance and the way it corrupts people. but what happens with jason in utrh is not that: jason might say that he is after people who will find their way out of prison easily, but in reality his killing seems completely indiscriminate. his moral code is made into a joke. post utrh there are issues where he kills random goons (the anarky/batcat wedding storyline, for example), blames lower class people for engaging with crime (batman urban legends, if i'm not wrong; "a thief will always be a thief" or something along these lines, said by a man who stole to survive as a kid no less).

i'm not against jason killing per se; if he was a robin hood kind of figure, traveling around and dealing with those in power, if he even became a sort of revolutionary, i would be delighted. but he doesn't become any of these things in his comics. what he does is assuming the power himself and becoming an authoritarian figure. and i think, re: drugs, for example: someone whose mother died of OD should be socially aware enough to know that policing drugs doesn't really help the communities any, right? what helps with drug abuse is healthcare and prevention work, not creating arbitrary laws and targeting dealers at the lowest level of a drug business ladder. "how is controlling the drug supply anti-poor people" well, do you think, realistically, people in the community would have any trust in the person who controls the drug supply?

so, tldr, i think it's specifically the positon of power that i have an issue with. it isolates him from the people, it makes their issues into an abstract that he no longer has ways of relating to. it alienates the victims further. and it strips jason off his sensitivity.

since you mentioned bruce, i will say it creates an ironic situation where there's a 1% character who has more compassion towards petty criminals than a person who comes from that background. jason's answer to bruce's attempt at fixing the system is strikingly similar in some ways because they both conform to regular, uncritical perception of crime, retribution and rehabilitation. they both still work within that system, it's just that jason is more unhinged about it. and i don't know, i think jay should be more aware of the ways society pressures people to commit crimes, but also about how acts that are labeled criminal often aren't even inherently immoral but rather target marginalised groups. but no, the way he's written is just: head empty. crime bad.

i will finish this answer here before i get deep into strain theory, but i hope it makes my stance on it more clear.

#please consider that willis wasnt originally some sort of a villain figure #he went into crime because he had no other choice #and this is also what jay did as a child when he stole to survive #and the newer comics literally make him target the same kind of people #make it make sense #it all boils down to the fact that he assumed the position of power instead of seeking to abolish it #jason todd #jay meta #dc comics

[orangelemonsstuff]

Mafia Goon!Sebek x Reader

credits to: @jackplushie for the silver bullet au :D (i love their aus so much♥️♥️)

author's note: i am new to writing so there might be mistakes but enjoy please do enjoy reading it :)

(ps i am also new to tumblr so i do not know how tags work and i am very sorry because I'm still trying to figure out on how everything works and i am getting better at it... i think)

•••

"Who do you think you are!?"

The lime haired man gripped your collar even tighter by replying him with the same neutral expression and the same reply you give out to all the rude costumers you've encounter

"a bartender of this bar you are stepping in."

the smell of a spilled drink was really unpleasant on your nose, the glass and bottles that are once organized are now tumbled and some are rolling on the floor

well at least you're glad none of the bottles or glasses were shattered or else Crowley will have your eyes pecked out

not that you are a clean freak no, but the mess he made in your just cleaned but not anymore counter is a quite of an eyesore.

there were no costumers at this time since you are 10 minutes about to close when this guy comes barging in and started to ask about a Malleus guy and of course you answered with same "i am not allowed to answer that." reply even though you do not know who he speaks off and it didn't turned out well

the tense silence kept going on for seconds until you decided to break it by struggling out fearing that the collar of your shirt might actually rip of how tight his grip is

"let go of me." you threatened the guy with a cold look on your eyes yet he seems unfazed and scoffed at you

"Hah! you don't scare me human, lowly humans like you are nothing less than faes like us in fact you should be scared of me for i am a servant of the great master, Malleus himself!!"

he proudly phrased as he pats his upwarded chest

you fixed your disheveled collar and straightened the rest of your shirt (you are probably going to need to iron this later or after you washed it since some stains are imprinted on it)

you are so confused of this Malleus he speaks off, is he a gang lord? drug lord? perhaps a mafia personell? well it seems that you haven't heard of him before, that means he's probably in either a very private high standing person or just not a famous one. but the word does sound familiar...

lost in thought you snapped back in reality as the lime haired guy raised his voice once again but even louder than before you could've sworn your ears were ringing

"HUMAN!! ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING!?"

"God why do you have to be so loud" you muttered not minding your tone of voice but of course it would only drown out in the other person's louder words which is just a ranting about Malleus.

Malleus this

Malleus that

everything on his sentence you hear right now is about Malleus. curious, you decided to pay attention on his ranting to find out more about this Malleus guy.

the Malleus person seems interesting enough for you to ignore the untidiness of your place (well its just a little clutter you can fix that later) and just place both of your elbows on the counter just to listen about him, you learned basic information about him by this other guy's loud sound off.

he continued a little more then abruptly stopped finally noticing your silence and curious demeanour towards him

have you been listening all along?

not even irritated or bored?

Well he's not surprised or anything after all you should be thanking him for telling you how great his master is

'you really are listening and being attentive huh...'

he feels your eyes still focused on him making him cough a bit and sweat a little with a flustered expression, oh boy he probably realized he talked alot and now he's being embarrassed of his own actions but not for his admiration for Malleus.

you smug-grinned at him for being embarrassed as you put your elbows down

he then fixed himself up and stood properly

"how foolish of me I forgot how to introduce myself properly, I am Sebek Zigvolt, Troop 189 of Diasomnia Clan!! it is my pleasure serving the great Malleus-sama!!"

well he seems interesting enough to get his name you guess

he stood expectantly as you turned your back and picked up the tablecloth to wipe the counter he messed with the liquid he spilled

"are you not going to tell me your name?"

you stopped for a moment

"do i have to?"

you continued wiping off the counter as he was fuming

oh no he's going to burst

and he's definitely going to be loud

you need to answer fast

"its-- it's Yuu, my name is Yuu, a Y with two U's"

before he could say anything you interrupted him by your quick glance and follow up reply

for Pete's sake that was a edge of a cliff answer but at least you answered as a consequence if you didn't you swear you would have bleeding ears because of how loud he is going to be.

he cleared his throat as his eyes watches your figure move around to continue wiping the counter that doesn't look like it still has a heap of anything dirty and yet you are not even stopping or looking at him and more focused at the cleaning as if it's the most interesting thing ever

"It is my pleasure to know your name Yuu, at least also my disbelief to know who keeps bothering my great mas-"

"do you need anything more sir?"

he gave you a glare noticing your bit irritated tone of voice that's asking for him to leave. well he's starting to get on your nerves now that you're realizing what he did earlier (he did try to threaten you by picking you up by the collar while you are inside of your counter)

baffled, he just stood there with a amused look while you picked up and settle the fallen glasses and bottles to rearrange them properly

"hmph, just so you know i will be back to check if you are planning to do something bad to Malleus and i will intend to do everything to stop it--"

"yeah sure buddy"

you interrupted still doing your chore as he fumingly stepped outside, grumbling to himself

remembering of his promise, you guess you just got to just watch out or get used on him and his...loud tune

•••

he's back again

like usual

well aside from his loud way of speaking he actually gets along with your some of your other customers (which is Ace, Deuce, Epel and Jack) and not only he is polite he is a bit helpful with information of who are your customers are so you can watch out for who's who

in exchange for information you need, he can ask you anything that you can at least answer. its like a quick game where you exchange questions and you answer what of what you know

if you are bored you would let him talk and pay attention, probably not getting to ignore him (not that you can because of how loud his voice is)

but his questions decided to be about your personal life time by time to one might say at least if they are not going to be berated by him by saying so

"Human!! do you always walk alone at night!? you do know it's very dangerous!"

"you look weak and frail, human... is there even someone who's going to protect you!?"

"Human! tell me where you live, i might need your address so i could come if something ever happens to you!!"

of course your information is just private as the Malleus he "speaks" of and he would never learn a single thing about you except the name you had on this bar which is "Yuu" or as he calls you "Human"

but sometimes you just want to ball out and tell him everything so he would shut up or just at least tone his voice down

he can be very aggressive whenever you turn the questions on him or give him a not-so-informative simple replies

overtime, like every other specific costumers you can also feel his eyes watching your very move intently and it does not look friendly (not that you ever get one)

but you can say one thing of what you guess is a kind of a look he is giving you

that is the look of every special costumer that comes in your bar very often

it's not a "you're a threat to someone important to me" glare.

it's a look of a man.

you are used to it since a plenty of your "special" patrons used to gawk at you that way yet, every time you had that goggling glance it's still a very uncomfortable thing they always do and it feels weird

a good thing he never tried to flirt with you in a (loud) verbal communication only you two sometimes have not like other costumers who would try to woo you in their sweet nothings

you got to this conclusion just of him being attracted to you because of him arriving in a late hour where almost some of the costumers are gone out and only a few were left

and you sure do hope that gaze and interest of his fades out as time goes by since you cannot handle more strange looks from your patrons

•••

#sebek x reader #sebek zigvolt x reader #silver bullet au #twst #yandere sebek x reader

[comicaurora]

Now Red, I gotta ask what the structuring work for this past arc was like. Like we know your main process is thinking through the arc in front of you then boarding in big batches and refining dialogue once you've done most of the art, but with all the moving parts and things to keep track of that you put in this Long Ass Section, I'm curious how you placed everything in your own head and what the process means for how you'll do your plot shuffling and arc structuring and such going foward?

Haaa jeez. Well, to start off, by the time I was beginning to board this section I had a few major beats I knew I was going to hit:

Zuurith sticks Kendal in jail (a comparatively late addition to the plot)

The gang witness a gladiator match

Erin accesses the Paladin archives and learns helpful information

Dainix is introduced

Tahraim and Caliban do their sneaky sneaky scheming

Falst and Alinua have a solo adventure sneaking out at night (the context for this adventure changed when I decided Kendal was going to be imprisoned)

Tess shows up (a comparatively late addition)

Dainix's crucible nature becomes an Issue during a gladiator match (the fact that he'd be fighting Kendal at the time was also a comparatively late addition)

Tynan attacks the city (believe it or not, there was a version of this arc where Tynan was not part of it)

SPOILERS

SPOILERS

In the original rough timeline I had them spending a few days in Zuurith, but I quickly realized a problem with that. With Kendal on the shelf and only Erin given any actual goals in the city, I was leaving the rest of the gang with nothing to do. Also, when I started boarding the dialogue, it occurred to me that Erin, despite his dedication and Cold Logic, would not be willing to leave Kendal in the mountain for more than a day, tops.

So that shrank the window I had to fill with shenanigans before Tynan showed up and all hell broke loose. Erin could spend it at the archive, Kendal could bond with Dainix before the big fight, and Falst and Alinua… had nothing to do.

And I could've left it at that and had them play Go Fish in the hotel room all day, but that felt like a wasted opportunity. If I put Falst in a notably hostile and unjust city and then just… left him alone, that risked turning the in-universe established fact of people being casually shitty to ferin into a tell-don't-show thing. The last thing I wanted was for it to seem like Falst was being oversensitive, that things weren't that bad or that he could've been hanging out in cities this whole time. Falst will always, always underplay the pain he's in. It was very important that I not shy away from showing the gross, bad side of his experience, because doing so could risk producing the opposite effect.

So originally Tess being chased by the guards was a total non-issue. They're barely a step up from faceless goons. But by shrinking the window and deciding to put some pressure on Falst, that gave me the idea of letting Tess encounter Falst along the way and increasing the heat on both of them. Originally I had Tess running around largely unattached, and since Erin was gonna be tucked up in the paladin archive the whole time, it was possible she literally wouldn't find him until the Tynan counter hit zero. That also felt like a wasted opportunity, but not a huge loss in the long run, so I wasn't playing with that just yet.

Getting Tess to meet them was easy. I'd always planned to have Falst try to break into the prison, although the addition of the minor skirmish between him and Alinua was a late-game concept I'm glad I could make work. In the very earliest concept for that sub-adventure, Kendal wasn't in prison, but Dainix was, and having seen him in a gladiator match earlier that day (a concept I quickly realized didn't work as planned because there was genuinely no way I could justify some of these good-hearted paragons sitting around watching something like that, and no amount of crankiness or surreptitious magical intervention to help out the underdog would counterbalance that implied complicity) Falst would've run off to break him out or pop a bunch of locks off random doors or otherwise cause hero-flavored mischief. In the process of sneaking out he would run into Alinua, who had independently had a similar idea but more in line of "I could tell they weren't healing up that one guy enough and I thought I could help." Then when they dramatically metal gear'd their way through the prison they'd arrive to find Kendal had also had the same idea and was already hanging out with Dainix. It was a funny bit, but the further along the story went the less it made sense and the more problems it raised, so I scrapped it and just used the "falst and alinua solo prison-break adventure" bit. As a bonus, the way it played out let me sort of bring Alinua's powers back down to earth after the show of power she'd displayed in Falst's intro arc - I wanted to make it clear that, while an absolute powerhouse, she was very dependent on certain environmental conditions to let her cut loose, and being stuck in the city left her pretty seriously nerfed.

Looping in Tess at that point was easy, since I could have her pop up wherever and she had a reason to interrupt them if she thought they could lead her to Erin. Having Caliban scare them off so they didn't interrupt their schemin' was another easy addition that helped tie everything together. Boom, connection made.

So I'd gotten everything sorted. Erin would have his day in the archive, Kendal and Dainix would have their knife-twisting gladiator match, Falst and Alinua had had their solo adventure and established that the city was kinda hostile. Tynan could intervene during the gladiator match and the heroes could converge on his location for the big final boss fight.

But then I decided Falst hadn't suffered enough yet, which is pretty typical of me, to be honest. I'd established that the guard pursuit of Tess was escalating over the course of the day, since they didn't know what kind of threat she posed and she was totally uninterested in explaining herself to them. So I decided this city needed a contingency plan for when a criminal or other target was too badass for regular guards. After all, prisoners were the number one source of gladiators, and good gladiators were badass. How were they capturing all these heavy hitters if they weren't even able to slow down Tess?

I'd done some behind-the-scenes worldbuilding of the internal bureaucracy and corruption of the prison-gladiator arrangement, and the fact I'd concluded was that Zuurith only cared about the prison, but the Arenamaster's dedication to "keeping the people entertained" had justified in his mind a slow escalation of measures involved in finding strong gladiators and pressuring them into putting on a show. It made sense, therefore, that there would be people who were not Zuurith's guards that the Arenamaster coordinated with to arrange the capture of more complicated or powerful targets. And who better to do that than trained warriors who'd already proven themselves capable of besting a wide variety of opponents?

Shrike was never intended to be a huge threat. Ultimately she's nothing more than a very skilled fighter with a comparatively quite weak stone-magic ability. If Alinua could cut loose or Tess was willing to fight seriously, Shrike would not be a problem for very long. But I'd conveniently trapped my heroes in a complex net of social expectations and a sense of personal responsibility that would prevent them from fighting back to their full potential. Now I knew what Alinua and Falst were gonna be doing before Tynan showed up: being hunted for sport. Hooray!

Somewhere along the line I concluded that I didn't want to just leave them running around aimlessly until Tynan showed up, so the best way to resolve this situation was for Erin to intervene - pretty much the only party member who had enough social and political power to actually shut Shrike down. That meant cutting his stay in the Archive short, but that was actually a nice bit of characterization - he hadn't really been looking morally great in this arc so far, so giving him a moment of unconditionally selfless sacrifice to bail out his friends was a nice touch. It also got the gang more coordinated in one place for the upcoming Tynan bossfight.

And then when Tynan did show up, oopsies! I had to split the party again. See, I'd realized somewhere along the line that Alinua's personal arc in this storyline had to end with her cracking the mountain open. I'd planted it too well to not pay that off. It also let me demonstrate another limit on her potentially utterly busted powerset by showing that Life does not do whatever she wants her to. So that meant I had to peel off Falst and Alinua for another little solo adventure.

In my original plan, the gang saving the city was not a direct factor. When I started boarding it, it became clear that that had been a very dumb oversight on my part. Kendal would be focused on saving the city by defeating Tynan, but everyone else would want to save the city in a more practical way. Falst and Alinua were covered, but it took me a hot minute to figure out what Erin would do - and it was nice to give him a nonstandard show of power to really highlight how much of a swiss army knife his powerset is.

And then I had to loop in Dainix, and I had to resolve the Arenamaster thing because leaving him as a loose end after all the nastiness he pulled wouldn't be narratively satisfying even if his empire was crumbling around him, and I resolved those two considerations pretty efficiently.

And that was basically the hard part over. I was finally getting everyone all in one place to fight Tynan, and that was going to be totally simple except for SPOILER and the SPOILER bit. What could go wrong??

#asks #behind the curtain #writing stuff

[starwalker03]

Did WMLP Dick’s time in the military affect how he currently views hero? Did it affect how he views militaries?

i mean I don't think it's gonna do much to change his view of heroes, cause that's pretty cemented. well. although.

actually.

It would probably put his head in a spin to see a real battlefield, the way a form of military works with its rankings and systems and the way everything works. And seeing all this destruction, the explosions, the everything, and how real it is. he's accustomed to this level of violence but there was always this strange... well he never realised what it was at the time but now seeing war he realises it was almost cheese. goofiness. stupidity.

there's always some elaborate plan, some ridiculous mess of who cares about what and why and what they're doing. their stupid personal rules about how they do it. But this, it's straightforward and simple. there's no silly rules or clues or a puzzle to solve, it's just one group of faceless people with guns and another group of faceless people with guns, and whoever is left wins. and along the way there's no time to care about who lives and who dies and why, there's no ulterior motive it's all just power and money and bigotry.

I think it changes his perspective of heroes. everything seems so stupid sometimes. he can't get himself to play along with these silly little characters with their neon jumpsuits and their stupid code names because he's been taken out of the immersion of it all, been yanked right out of the rules and regulations of heroes and he can't get his head back in and honestly he doesn't want to. he's a bit tired of... all of it. which goes hand in hand with his current feelings about being Deathstroke.

In regards to his feelings about militaries? I mean there's always a way someone perceives a military and that is never going to be quite 100% correct until you're actually in it.

He would have seen a lot of soldiers, beforehand, as the equivalent of goons. faceless canon fodder. and he's not entirely wrong because infantry does tend to be treated that way. but now he's fought alongside these people and also lead them as an officer, he can't ignore the fact that there's a person behind the camo. he knows what kind of training they get and what they know about the world and how much they don't and yet the people who do know these things are making decisions on their behalf.

I think he's very... disenfranchised.

#dc comics #fanfiction #dick grayson #young justice #with morality like a polynomial #wmlp #deathstroke

[cursedzucchini]

Like Bruce Wayne but stronger - chapter 1

So this is something really fucking dumb.

This is basically Bruce Wayne x oc, but the oc is basically Bruce Wayne but w more kids, more emotionally mature and with own set of problems. It's also pure crack, so..

Uh this is the first chapter i wrote and i made a poll if i should post this here, since i know I've been posting only dp x DC, but tbh it was dumb decision. Like the poll is right, this is my own account.

In this one, I'm going with duke being the last to be adopted, since I'm not familiar with Harper or other potential b's kids. Also the timeline is Jason is kinda ok w his fam rn, it's just sorta awkward, and everything is pretty ok.

Alright enjoy!!

Maybe Bruce would’ve enjoyed events like these more if he didn’t take his kids along.

Yes, he wouldn’t be thrilled to attend, but maybe it would still be more tolerable than a fight with Bane for example. Rich talentless assholes giving other rich talentless assholes awards for doing nothing, would never be on the top of his list of likes, but still better than getting the shit beaten out of him.

With his kids there though? He’d rather have emotionally open conversation than this hell.

“Hey, hey B, I think you might win this award!” Stephanie (and she wasn’t even his kid (legally. Emotionally though? That was a different story), and who even invited her?) whispered gleefully. Duke choked down his laughter, just as the rest of the gaggle unapologetically started laughing. Bruce could see the other guests glancing at them, disgust and curiosity mixing in their faces. He really wished he could take back his decision to extend the invitations to his whole family.

The moderator, with no knowledge of this torture going on, continued with his speech “…and even if none of the winners won’t be able to pick up their price, we will donate the money to charity. So please give a big round of applause for the Gotham's most unstable” he paused, to give the moment more suspense, and damn it, why did they have to change the categories this year? “Red Robin!”

Bruce really hated, that for a moment, he really thought it might be him. Jason (and wasn’t it surprise that even he turned up) was already teasing Tim, as the rest tried to quiet their laughter as to not catch even more attention than they already did. It didn’t help the host continued with several stories which only confirmed the audiences vote.

This year the Gotham’s Best decided to change some categories. That seemed like a great idea, especially when most of the categories were poking fun at the guests, right until his kids started pointing out how most of the categories about… unstable people would probably be won by Bruce if the truth about him was known.

It didn’t help the moderator was making it very easy to make fun of the guests. It was obvious he was there for the people watching from their homes and not to cater the rich how amazing they are.

At first Bruce wasn’t even complaining, his kids were happy, they were having good time… but after three hours of relentless bullying, he had enough.

“And now, for the last category of the evening!” the host’s words gave him the hope he almost lost. Maybe he could survive this with only few more insults and then finally go somewhere, where his children won’t reach him “And this one is going to be surprise even for me folks!” the moderator winked at the camera.

A woman in beautiful red dress walked across the podium to give the host an envelope. That unfortunately gave his children time to chat “You think it’s gonna be the biggest emo?”

“Nah I bet it’s gonna be the best rated goon in Gotham. I hope Bill’s gonna get that one”

“It’s gonna be who adopted the most children”

“Oh my god, what if it was—”

The host answered Bruce’s prayers and continued talking, his eyes glued to the envelope “Well, well, well, we are having a truly special category” he looked back at his audience, a special gleam in his eyes, reminding the billionaire way too much of his children’s “I know all of you are very tired, so without further ado; the last category of this year is-”

“Gotham’s Best Adopter with the highest count of adopted children!”

Bruce took it all back, he wanted to die.

The whole room turned towards him and his gaggle, and he couldn’t help but wish he didn’t take all of his children. There weren’t any of the usual categories he won, and Gotham’s Best wasn’t Gotham’s Best without at least one award being won by him. He should’ve expected this.

Fuck.

His children obviously took this better than him, given their laughter and choked out ‘Tim how did you know-’. Bruce wished he could share their joy.

“Now, I understand we all have one particular person in mind who could win this one, but let’s not be too hasty in our judgement” the host continued, ignoring how most of the attention stayed on the Waynes “But more about this category! There were several conditions that had to be fulfilled in order to qualify” The moderator unknowingly gave Bruce hope. Maybe he was disqualified somehow…?

“First none of the children had to die by fault of the parent” the giggles quieted a little, only Jason kept laughing, even if little forcefully. He quickly signed ‘B still qualifies, didn’t die because of him’ and oh. He didn’t blame him for his death (even if it was his fault. He should have never make Jay the Robin. He should had-)

“Second of all, their criminal record can’t have a murder nor any other heavy crime in the time of taking care of the children” the host continued “and lastly all the children still have to be in contact with the parent!” his smile had become a little manic at this point, and Bruce was starting to worry about a potential rogue. He definitely had the love for drama (but so did he and his family, so maybe he was going to end up vigilante).

The moderator started eagerly opening the envelope “And I am sure all of us cant wait for the big reveal, and I do not plan on making you wait any longer” he took out a folded paper “Gotham’s Best Serial Adopter is…” his eyes hungrily took in the contents of the paper…

“The fuck is this bullshit?” the moderator was frowning. Bruce quickly shook of the surprise of someone swearing on live television and tried finding out what was wrong. The producers were waving at the host to continue talking, but he ignored them, instead turning the paper in his hands. When he didn’t find anything he looked at them, haughty frown on his face.

“I mean yeah sure, Brucie Wayne adopted few kids, but I know someone who adopted so many more”

What.

The crushing despair at him actually being the one who supposedly won, was quickly replaced by elation (maybe he didn’t win after all), which in turn was replaced by umbrage. Which he promptly locked inside his Box of Emotions we Do Not Touch. He was not feeling offended by someone insinuating someone adopted more children than he had. That would be absurd, childish and weird.

The producers, in a moment of Bruce’s weakness, managed to get on the stage and were now arguing. The hall started filling with whispers, which unfortunetly gave his children a chance to start talking “Y’all think this is B’s soulmate?” Dick asked innocently, which made the rest of the group start giggling uncontrollably.

Bruce tried to ignore them, but when Damian turned to him with a serious expression and asked him to not ‘unite with the other’ because he ‘did not need any more idiotic siblings’, he gave up and put his head in his hands. If this was any other situation he would laugh along with them, because Damian making jokes was so rare, but. But.

His moment of despair was interrupted by the host finally addressing the disbelieving crowd “It seems that the management forgot not only rich folks exist and didn’t check if there wasn’t anyone with more children. That being said, sorry Brucie, no award for you this year! Instead I will reveal the true winner in about a half hour, when the program will continue” he bowed and walked out of the stage, already taking out his phone and making a call.

Bruce almost didn’t remember to make a dumb happy go lucky smile and shrugging as if saying ‘well what can you do’ for the cameras, so lost in his own thoughts. The producers surprisingly approved of this change, which means the other ‘serial adopter’ had to have at least two more children than himself. Given there are some rumors about him adopting Stephanie and Damian not being his blood son and actually just being adopted, you could add another two, which means… they have to have at least nine children. He had not heard about anyone of the other guests adopting any children, meaning it has to be someone probably from middle or low class. Taking into account they had adopted at least nine children and given the average Gothamite living in the middle class makes enough money to take care of two children maximum without any very shady business.

But considering the moderator said they will be here in half an hour, they can’t live or work that far from here. The problem is, the place is surrounded by low class establishment and surprisingly close to Crime Alley. And while it is possible they don’t work or live close to this hall, it is highly unlikely. Though one of the rules was no heavy crime committed while children were under the care of the parent, thus, if we go with the theory of the parent being low class, making the amount of children they take care of at once, without being in any major criminal operation, one. Considering this, it is possible the person, who won the award, is very old, and having more time than Bruce to adopt children, making their victory only logi-

“Yo B are you seriously making theories on how did someone adopted more kids than you?” Jason started laughing when he saw his expression “My god, you actually are- why did no one told me these events were this hilarious?” Bruce couldn’t help the smile making his way on his face. He really wanted to continue being disgruntled, but Jay talked to him. Maybe this event wasn’t such a pain in the ass.

“He probably came to the conclusion the winner is a grandpa” no, wait, it still was. The boisterous laugher of the children reminded him of that. He grunted, already turning towards the podium, before realizing something.

Slowly turning towards his middle child, Bruce could see his other children also noticed the inconsistency. Good. “’Grandpa’?” he asked, already categorizing Tim’s panicked expression quickly forming into something more neutral, yet still nervous.

Tim coughed into his hand “I might have an idea on who it is, that’s all” he was trying his best not to make eye contact with any of them, failing on appearing unaffected by his family’s unnerving staring “Listen it’s just a guess, I’m probably wrong anyway” he tried waving them off unsuccessfully.

And just as Bruce was about to ask another question, the host returned “Thank you all so much for waiting! Now that everything is in order, let’s finish this!” his eyes were positively glowing, and damn, Bruce was going to have to check if he wasn’t a meta later “Now the Gotham’s Best serial adopter is…” the billionaire couldn’t help but lean closer, as if that would speed up the moderator “Poppy Meadows!”

A man was pushed onto the stage. He slowly made his way towards the host, who was grinning and clapping. He was also the only one, before Bruce and his children joined. That jolted the other guests into actions as they too clapped, although not very loudly. To be honest he couldn’t blame them this time. He also, illogically, expected someone he knew and not… a normal middle aged man (and didn’t that disprove half of his theories. He could be around Bruce’s age, maybe even younger).

(Bruce ignored his children’s comments about how ‘he looks like Bruce’s tired dad look personified omg’ and ‘yo he’s around b’s age, should we really be worried they join forces and become the ultimate dad??’)

The camera’s showed every hole in the well-worn gray sweater, every misplaced hair obviously hurriedly put into a half ponytail. Bruce was suspecting Meadows was sleeping, and was awoken just for this, which made him wonder why did he even showed up. His expression and body language clearly showed he didn’t want to be here, so why…

The host meanwhile vigorously shook his hand, ignoring the scowl on the man’s face “Congrats Pops, you deserve this” Bruce wasn’t sure if he misheard, but he was starting have some idea how this whole thing actually happened “Anyway, before you can receive you generous award, I’m going to have to ask you to make a speech” the moderator stressed, before giving the still scowling Poppy Meadows the microphone.

The man turned towards the audience, took one look, looked back at the host, back at the audience and sighed. It was a long sigh, one that Bruce could relate to on astronomical level. He only heard such a sound from extremely tired parents done dealing with their kids, and that coupled with the state of Meadows’ person, made him glad he was the one to win.

Before Bruce could continue in that train of thoughts the man started his speech “First of all” his voice was still hoarse from presumably sleeping, and the bilionare couldn’t help but think it had a surprisingly nice quality to it “I’d like to thank my kids, without which I wouldn’t be here. Literally, I mean” Meadows shrugged, nerves clearly showing in his body language “this is the, uhhh” he coughed, obviously trying to find a way how to not make this more awkward than it already was.

Suddenly (and Bruce could almost see the last fuck the man could give flying away), the man straightened his back and looked right into the camera in front of him “Second of all, Lilly, darling I swear to God, if you are watching this, I will find out, and there will be no dessert for the next week. It is, like, midnight, way past your bedtime” he spoke flatly, and Bruce recognized his tone as his own, when the children get too rowdy and there is nothing else to discuss, just… somehow more powerful.

Bruce could feel his kids stiffen when he started speaking, hell even he himself froze for a moment. If he wasn’t interested in meeting this man before, he definitely was now, if only to exchange parenting tips. And didn't that make him feel like an overworked mother seeing kindergarten teacher in action for the first time.

“The guys in the back also asked me to ask all of you to stop spamming their official accounts about the mistake, they know and they’re sorry” Meadows sounded marginally more bored now, before once again turning serious “Though that reminds me, Camilla mentioned new date for the Winter celebration, so please check the chat” or not? Bruce understood the man didn’t want to be here, but making plans on live television was… well, it was hilarious and his kids seemed to agree, as they were once again stifling laughter.

Meadows turned towards the moderator “What else am I supposed to mention?” the host answered with a grin and he rolled his eyes “Ugh, I am so glad for this opportunity, couldn’t be more honored, Bruce Wayne fist fight me in Denny’s parking lot for the title of The Dad, and Nathan, you’re uninvited on the next after tomorrow’s visit”

Bruce could only blink at that, because what the fuck is going on, before he was forced back to reality by the children’s laughter and the host arguing back? “Now wait a min Pop! Why not just uninvited me to tomorrow’s visit?” did that mean the moderator was one of Meadows’ adopted kids??? Well, it made sense, how he knew about him actually holding the record, but what are the chances of that happening? How many children did the man even adopt?

Nathan meanwhile widened his eyes in very effective puppy dog eyes, but Meadows seemed to be immune “Cuz you’re on cooking duty. And I’m planning on sleeping till 11 AM, and if there is a god, I will” he raised an eyebrow at his probably son.

The younger man could only gape “I mean fair, but also Pops” he whined and then laughed when the older man lightly punched his shoulder “Alright, alright. I guess this was enough of a speech” Nathan transformed into more professional persona (which seemingly disappeared after he saw Bruce’s name in the envelope) “Thank you so much for coming here on such a short notice Pop” he took out an envelope and pressed it into Meadows hands, before grinning impishly “Buy yourself a new sweater old man”

The older man snorted, before opening his arms for Nathan to hug him and- oh. Wasn’t that something Bruce was definitely jealous of. And it looked so natural too, almost as if he himself tried to hug his kids too, they’d let him. As if they wouldn’t be weirded out, asked him if he was okay, hug him but feel uncomfortable. He couldn’t help but hate Meadows a little. How was it so easy for him to hug his son?

“And that was everything for this year’s Gotham’s Best everyone! Thank you so much for watching and well, I guess I won’t see ya next year but one can hope” Nathan bowed, before putting a hand around the shorter man’s shoulder and walking of the stage.

Bruce couldn’t help but stare at the moment where Meadows and Nathan were, lost in his thoughts. That was of course interrupted by Dick patting his shoulder “Don’t worry B, we will love you even after you lose the fight in Denny’s parking lot”

“Actually I’m still deciding, depends on if he cooks better than you” Duke added, slapping lightly Jason’s shoulder after he commented that in that case he should already pack his bags, because no one cooks worse than B, but he did correct his statement “if he cooks better than Alfred”

Steph threw her arm around his shoulder “In that case you’re not deciding at all! No one cooks better than Alfred” she exclaimed dramatically. The group started laughing again, and Bruce couldn’t help but feel warm. He… he really loved them all so much.

“Ah, I’m not so sure about that. I tasted his cooking, and it’s really good” and what was with Tim and these statements. Once again everyone turned to look at the CEO. Tim, realizing he once again fucked up, tried to explain himself “Wait, wait, it’s not what you think- just as far as I know, two of Po- Mr. Meadows’ kids work at Wayne Enterprise and one of them was causing some problems, and one day and I called them to my office and-” he stopped himself to take a deep breath “basically they noticed I don’t eat that much, and Mr. Meadows found out somehow, and started making me lunches too?”

There was a moment of silence, everyone taking in the bomb Tim just dropped on them. It, of course, didn’t last long “Well, fuck old man, I guess you already lost Timmy” Jason let out disbelieving laugh and once again the gaggle descended into chaos.

Bruce knew it was a joke, and Meadows probably didn’t meant any harm. He did noticed Tim was looking healthier these past few weeks. And he also knew the other man wasn’t trying to steal his son away, or anything stupid like that.

…didn’t mean the billionaire couldn’t add a warning when he inevitably went to meet Poppy Meadows.

Poppy my beloved lmao. Anyway in this chapter we met/was mentioned (in age order) Camilla, Nathan, Elijah (forgot his name my bad), Kim and Lilith. Kim and Elijah were only mentioned tho. I love all of them and i would also die for them.

Today was shitty. Like fuck. And it's gonna be even worse if I'm not gonna post this cringe bc of my anxiety. Thank u all for voting on my previous poll. I'm also gonna log off, to destress a little

#batman #dc #jason todd #dick grayson #cass cain #damian wayne #tim drake #duke thomas #bruce wayne #bruce wayne x oc #batman x oc #oc #ocs #the tag for this is going to be #Bruce wayne but stronger #steph brown #stephanie brown #this pure crack lmao #batfam