#but first everyone assumes Tim is feeling ill and probably has gone without sleep long enough to start hallucinating again

[the-witchhunter]

DP x DC 50's High School AU... Or is it?

Just imagine if you will, a very aesthetic 1950's high school setting. The Waynes live in the idyllic little town of Amity Park, going to Casper High, and living their lives.

Dick is the oldest son, off to college but still stopping by to visit, all letterman jacket and smiles. Jason, the bad boy greaser is trying to finish up his senior year of high school, a little late, but spending time in Juvie put his life on hold. He's trying his best, spending time working on his motorcycle and hanging with his study buddy, Jazz Fenton. Tim enjoying high school life with his family, studying hard and enjoying photography club. Gee, Tim's life sure is perfect

or is it?

Tim can't shake the feeling that something is wrong. Sometimes, he remembers something else. He has memories of his life here, and they must be real, his family is here, Jason, Bruce, Alfred, and even Dick when he's back from the Teen Titans college. Wait... Dick wasn't in college, was he? Wasn't he a cop in Blood Haven? Was he the local cop? That's right, Dick is the local cop, all sunshine and feeding his eternal sweet tooth with donuts. How could he forget that? He loved his family! Sure, there had been some rough spots, like when Jason died went to juvie, but they were together now, a real family.

But sometimes Tim has dreams, of another time, of another place. But they can't be true, can they? YES! No, That made no sense. Thinking about it made his head hurt.

Then there was the matter of the boy in his class, Danny Fenton. He kept catching him staring. Danny would just look at him funny. Sometimes he would say weird things. Tim would write him off as just an oddball, but sometimes what he said reminded him of his dreams.

Tim wasn't sure what it was, but something was up. He was going to find out what it was, and maybe, just maybe, Danny Fenton was the first step to solving this mystery

or

Tim wished for a more idyllic life and to get along with his brothers while on a mission in Amity Park. One reality warping genie ghost later and now they're stuck in something like a 1950's sitcom with altered memories.

#dp x dc #dp x dc crossover #dp x dc prompt #dpxdc #50's high school au #kind of #set it after jason made his return #but before damian because the ages work #literally everone besides Tim has aged since Damien has shown up #and this would make Jason at least still a teenager #so him being friends with jazz who is probably just 18 is a whole less creepy #Even I am unclear how much Danny actually knows #I suppose if you want to speedrun things he just remembers everything #but imagine them having to work together and try and figure things out #Going through Wayne manor's attic and finding some of Tim's photographs #His real photographs #mixed in amongst the fakes #and then them having to convince the rest of the bats one by one that something is wrong #but first everyone assumes Tim is feeling ill and probably has gone without sleep long enough to start hallucinating again

[cardentist]

I’ve seen people joking about how fucked up it is that jay leaked tim’s medical records for a while now, and it Is very funny, but I’ve also seen it presented as genuine criticism of him as a character. which aren’t Wrong necessarily, I’m not about to start excusing doxing people, but they never really examine it within the wider context of the situation. which not every post Has to do, it’s valuable to say “that was fucked up” and leave it at that, especially when talking about how that would’ve impacted tim specifically. but it gets problematic when it comes to meta making a value judgement for him as a person.

the short of it is, people Severely underestimate the effects of both the operator sickness and the mental toll of his experiences in general on jay’s mental health and how they influence his actions. yes it Was a shitty thing for jay to do, and his mental health being Not Great doesn’t change that his actions have consequences that affect other people, but some people look at it like it says something about jay’s morality and not his severe paranoia.

this is relevant because people don’t talk about the more visibly mentally ill and traumatized characters the same way. for instance, I’ve never seen anyone call out brian for being the one to dig up tim’s medical records in the first place, likely by stealing them from his house, and deliberately send them to jay in the most cryptic and disorienting way possible. which on the one hand I Get it, I don’t think we’ll be seeing a callout post for alex’s property damage any time soon, but it’s not only hypocritical (especially in this case when brian was Absolutely enabling and pushing jay to do exactly what he did) but it points to a larger problem of symptoms of jay’s mental health going unnoticed As symptoms because his poor mental health is less obvious.

jay’s perspective gets lost in hindsight (everyone loves tim and they Should), but to be frank he had every right to be suspicious of tim at that point in time. I go over more or less his entire twitter here (Link) for anyone unfamiliar, but I wanna put this in perspective

at this point jay has spent Years looking for someone who actively tried (and possibly succeeded) to murder his friends, who then held him at gunpoint after he tricked him into thinking he was on his side for months on end. jay didn’t suspect or Remember anything alex had done to him or around him or to anyone he knew before he started looking through the tapes. he’s been in a continuous life or death situation, both with a monster and with a person that he thought he could trust.

moreover, his relationship with totheark has always been uncertain. while totheark very clearly hates alex they’ve also been openly antagonistic with him for reasons he doesn’t have the context to understand. tim as masky has broken into his house, charged at him at mach speed, and featured in Several vaguely threatening videos directed at him. the most Prominent being entry ####, which had totheark threatening him overly and directly proceeded his apartment burning down. he’d have no reason to know or assume that it was alex when it happened and alex wouldn’t commit More arson until he was already dead. it would be stranger if jay Didn’t think that totheark burned his apartment down.

and the stalking, the literal constant stalking. in hindsight we as the audience know the mask boys were doing it to protect him, but it didn’t help his paranoia a single iota. jay’s first interaction with masky was him gargoyling in his house watching him sleep. jay hotel hopped because no matter where he was he didn’t feel safe, and he was proven Correct time and time again. when he’d spend too long in a hotel he’d wake up with his previously locked door wide open. after he’d slept. and when he sleeps in his car hoodie literally films him and posts it. and when he watches the tapes? hoodie and masky are always there following him when he’s with alex, and alex is more than capable of finding his hotel and room number to send him a package directly.

jay doesn’t feel safe at any point or with anyone. we See how paranoid he is around total strangers who just happen to be walking in the woods so of Course he’s going to be uncomfortable around tim after his experiences with masky. tim was right to be mad about the stalking and the lying, but that doesn’t change the fact that jay did what he had to for his own protection. he doesn’t know what tim’s mask state is or how much he does or doesn’t know, what he’s lying about and what he wants. alex spent months lying to him, had spent years lying to everyone around him. once that level of trust is broken it’s hard to go back, and in this case he genuinely had reasons to believe that tim could be dangerous.

and that’s just it, a lot of his earlier awkwardness and unfairness around tim is, yes, in part issues with empathy (jay reads as autistic harder than some canonical autistic characters I’ve seen). but it’s Also a traumatized person being filled with supernaturally charged paranoia trying to figure out if he’s Safe, if he’s being Lied to, if he’s about to be Hurt. it’s unfair in hindsight, but jay didn’t Have hindsight at the moment. (for instance, jay pointing out that tim was uncomfortable in the hospital despite not remembering what happened there. it is insensitive but it’s also pretty clearly jay trying to figure out if tim is lying about what he knows. he doesn’t know about tim’s childhood trauma at this point so it brings up the possibility of tim remembering what happened that night on tape.)

moreover, this is coming After jay lost 7 months of his life to traumatic memory loss, including the fact that he was almost Murdered. anything that wasn’t caught on tape is gone forever. most of his time on the set of marble hornets is gone forever (he didn’t even remember that alex’s mood had changed). and people have been breaking in to his stuff since the beginning. he can’t trust his own senses and he can’t trust that anything he tapes and doesn’t post won’t be stolen or broken or burned.

so when totheark leads him on a chase to find Secret Documents after making it clear that tim really has been lying to him after all he takes it, he films it, and he posts it. so he can keep himself safe, so he can trust that he won’t forget it, so he can move one step closer to saving someone whose death he feels responsible for.

it was not fair to tim, it wasn’t the Reasonable thing to do, but it was probably the Smart thing for someone in his position to do and it was certainly what he had to do to feel safe.

people Really need to contextualize the things that jay does in the context of his situation, his paranoia, and his mental illness. those things don’t Excuse his actions but they explain them and you really can’t understand his character without it

#marble hornets #mh #jay merrick #tim wright #brian thomas #meta #spoilers #long post #the most important thing about marble hornets is that no one is actually right about anything #tim makes judgement calls that Aren't always accurate because he's a human being and not an author stand in #it's good writing but it's also frustrating when people take him at face value as if he's the Most Correct #tim was right to be angry with jay but his perspective was biased and he was wrong to place the blame at jay's feet #and he Realized this #the situation was messy for everyone involved and no one was right and everyone was just trying to protect themselves

[bigfan-fanfic]

Smile for the Camera (Batdad!Reader Headcanon)

Requested by @yesthetrashbin for Batdad!Reader kidnapped by the Joker for an extended period of time and the fam’s reactions

Beware - the Joker lies ahead. Gosh, that fellow makes me nervous...

AAAH! So sorry, just startled by the sight of my first GIF ever! Thanks for that suggestion, anon!

It wasn’t your fault. You did everything right.

There were guards out the wazoo at that gala. Everyone was on lookout for the Joker

But no one expected a simple-looking, un-makeup-ed man with credentials naming him Joseph Kerr to sneak into the gala and set off a smoke bomb with green-tinged smoke

By the time Batman and the others evacuate, you are missing.

Bruce goes to Gordon immediately, suspecting the Joker.

The Batfamily looks for you, getting the League to help, but even Clark can’t see or hear your voice.

And then a day turns into a week, then a week and a half. And after 264 hours, Tim screams.

He’s been watching his news feed. In a breaking story where Vicki Vale warns the viewers that the video is graphic and disturbing, you are on screen, tied to a chair, semi-conscious

You look horrible. Joker seems to have been torturing you the entire time. Your face is almost unrecognizably cut up and bloody, and your non-dominant hand seems to have been crushed by Harley’s hammer.

“Hell-ooooooo, Gotham! It’s your favorite person here with Y/N Wayne, Gotham’s greatest benefactor. I tip my hat to you, sir!”

Joker does an inane little bow and pats your shoulder. You don’t react. Tim seethes with rage

“But we’re not here to shoot the breeze! Batsy, I know you’re watching. Meet me at midnight precisely, or Gotham City might not be so chummy with you anymore for letting this guy die! Be there, or be square!”

And the feed cuts to black as the Joker digs his hand into one of your wounds and you scream bloody murder.

Bruce

Nothing else matters but you right now.

The public “Bruce Wayne” hasn’t been seen in days, enough time for the tabloids to speculate that he’s been seen meeting with the Bat to try and get you back

Clark writes a piece about a fake but touching interview where Bruce Wayne claims he’s trying to keep the family positive and pleads for the return of his husband

He hasn’t shaved, has barely eaten, and is completely focused on finding you.

He sees the video and figures immediately where the Joker is, but he forces himself into cold calculations - he can’t mess this up, or the Joker will kill you.

He gets everyone he possibly can to help. Diana, Clark, Ollie, Dinah, and Barry all volunteer, with the others taking care of their respective cities while they assist.

When it finally comes time, Barry super-speeds, undoing the traps and binds set on you and getting you to a hospital. The others proceed to make short work of the Joker.

Bruce stays in the hospital with you at all times, constantly holding your good hand, snarling at anyone who dares to ask him to consider moving or leaving

He cries unashamedly when you wake up - he was so afraid of losing you.

He won’t be overprotective afterwards, because he knows that even the greatest level of preparation can’t prevent everything bad, but he does ask you to stay in the Manor for a while, until he feels better about being apart from you.

I said he won’t be overprotective - but

You definitely have multiple trackers on you from now on.

Alfred

He’s been running on pure adrenaline this whole time

His first instinct in a crisis is to tell you how to serve as his second pair of hands, but he turns and remembers you aren’t there

He’s been trying to keep to your routine - making sure Damian and Tim sleep reasonably, keeping the peace between Jason and Bruce, helping Dick cope with life in general

Alfred’s got every hospital in Gotham standing by

He even considers calling in some old favors from his RAF days to have the Joker taken out

You and Bruce are like sons to him

And he no longer has any need for sleep when you are in danger

Afterwards he’s back to business

Although he does give you a warm “It’s good to have you back, sir”

He’s very formal

Because he wants to avoid triggering you with an emotional display

Because Alfred knows that you are the rock of the family, but he’s your rock

And he’ll be damned if you can’t depend on him for that.

If you are ever kidnapped again, he will call in those favors, hang Bruce’s “One Rule.”

Dick

Freaking out. To the point where he is unable to function

Bruce has been in mortal danger before, but the idea of losing you is unthinkable

He’s too distracted to assist in the search, so Bruce benches him.

Instead he’s tasked to look after Jason and Damian

He’s so worried, but he makes sure Damian sleeps

Even once lets the boy sleep in his bed

He makes sure Jason isn’t going to do anything rash

And he is merciless in his cheering-up tactics, taking a page out of your playbook

He constantly reassures them that you will be alright

That you need them to be good while you’re away

And that they will need to be on their best behavior when you get back

He’s so happy when you are saved.

He’s first to the hospital, and like Bruce, he refuses to leave your side.

Develops a bit of separation anxiety. He goes with you everywhere for the next several weeks.

One of the multiple trackers on you is his.

Jason

Filled with rage and fear.

Self-loathing, too. What if you get turned into something else like he did? What if they have to use a Lazarus Pit

He considers it, and he would do it

Anything other than letting you die

Dick keeps a tight watch on him

He knows he has to be a good person even when you aren’t there

He punches and fights hard, definitely maims, but doesn’t kill

Bruce benches him for your rescue

And he doesn’t want to disappoint you, so Jason allows it

He knows that he wouldn’t be able to stop himself killing the Joker.

When you’re back, he won’t know how to act.

He settles for hugging you often and being sarcastic a little less.

He’s just glad you’re safe, and back where you should be.

Tim

Probably handles it the best.

He’s been trawling through the Batcomputer’s data trying to find someplace where the Joker might be able to conceal you long-term

But the Joker doesn’t follow patterns, so this leads nowhere.

Tim basically shuts down his emotional side, focusing instead on cold hard facts, because if he didn’t, he might break

Tim might only show it when running on empty, but he loves and appreciates you as a parent every bit as much as the others. 

There are some truly unhealthy mixes of energy drinks and coffee made during this period. Tim has developed several twitches by the time you are found.

He’s not at the hospital because he’s practically comatose for a week, recovering from what appears to be a caffeine overdose.

Assumes it’s a dream when you’re released from the hospital

Breaks down crying when he learns it’s not, and nearly re-breaks your just-healed ribs hugging you

Is traumatized by the event, and will not leave you alone at a gala for months after.

Damian

Handles it the absolute worst.

He is lost without you there. He throws a massive anger fit, the aftermath of which includes swords embedded in walls with no possibility of removal.

Like Jason, Damian is benched too. Dick is given the job of watching over him, and the two share a moment when Damian allows himself to cry.

He cannot be alone, so he goes with Dick everywhere

When you wished he would act his age, you didn’t think it would be like this

He hasn’t felt this angry at someone since Talia tried to kill you.

He spends the first few days staring at pictures of all the stuff you’ve done together since he came to the Manor

And the next few days he spends watching the news carefully for anything involving the search for you.

He tries to focus by helping Alfred do the necessary chores - laundry, getting food.

He spends a lot of time with his animals, who can sense his pain and try to comfort him.

Trust me, when you get better, you’re gonna need to find him a puppy or some kind of baby animal to make him feel better.

When you wake up in the hospital, he has gone to get water for Dick and Bruce.  He may forever curse the ill timing, since he missed seeing you wake up

Damian will deny this, but he slept in yours and Bruce’s bed for the first few nights after you were cleared from the hospital, just to be sure that you’re still there.

Two of the trackers on you are Damian’s.

#male reader #batdad reader #batman x male reader #batfamily x male reader #batparent reader #batman headcanons #dc headcanons #headcanons

[intothestarkerverse]

Highway to Hell

The Best Laid Plans of Spider-Men

Summary:

To respect Endgame, I can tell you nothing but that this will take place post-Endgame and deal with my own cathartic way of working through it. For a more detailed and spoilery description, click to read the first chapter.

Read on AO3

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Spoilery Summary ~~~  Consumed by guilt over Tony's death, Peter devises a very ill conceived plan to bring Tony back to life...but he isn't prepared for his plan to work, or for the repercussions that follow.

My fault.

My fault.

My fault.

The words echo. I can’t escape them. When I close my eyes. When I try to sleep. Everywhere I look. Everything I see. Everything I hear. Every color. Every taste. Every smell. Everything reminds me.

My fault.

My fault.

My fault.

He did it for me. That’s what they said afterwords. Did they think it would make me feel better? Probably. They don’t understand, but I don’t expect them to. So many things I never said out loud to anybody. Things I felt. Things I wanted to do. Wanted to say. I should have. Secrets don’t do me any good now. Even rejection is better than never knowing.

You always think you have more time.

I should have stayed on the bus.

But I would have still been snapped. I would have still died. And Tony would have still come home to find me gone and done the same thing he did before. The same stupid, brave, beautiful, terrible, wonderful, awful thing he did.

My heart hurts.

Everything hurts.

Until one day, it stopped hurting because I realized it wasn’t over. Didn’t have to be, anyway.

I woke up from an uneasy sleep filled with the same guilty thoughts…but with a plan. Admittedly, it’s a stupid plan. If Tony was here he would probably do everything he could possibly think of to keep me from doing it. But…he isn’t there. There is no one to stop me, and I’m not gonna stop myself. So…guess it’s now or never, right?

There’s this really old Greek myth about a poet whose wife dies. He goes to hell to get her back, basically. It doesn’t end that well for him…but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad plan. I’m not a poet. I’m a scientist. STEM and the arts. Very different. We tackle problems differently. I’m not going to fall for the things that Orpheus fell for…and I’m going to get Tony back.

As soon as I figure out how you make a deal with the devil…

~ ~ ~

“There’s no such thing as the devil, Peter.”

He’s frustrated with me. I can tell by the tone of his voice and the way Cloaky is fluttering. Doctor Strange is pacing in front of my chair in the Sanctum. The Sanctum was my first stop after breakfast. I’m skipping school. I shouldn’t be, but some things are more important than education.

The doctor didn’t like my plan. I mean, I didn’t really expect him to? I told you, I know it’s a terrible plan. But still, I thought he might understand why I’m doing this and help me anyway. Take pity on the kid who loses everything and everyone he loves. Really, I kind of want to hang onto May’s legs like a toddler because I’m so afraid she’ll go next. Then I really WOULD be alone.

He stops pacing and turns on me.

Boy does he look worried. He scrubs a hand over his goatee. He presses his fingers to his closed eye lids. He sighs and and mutters a curse he doesn’t think I heard. But I did. He’s going to tell me to see a therapist. They always do. As if soft science is the answer to my problems. No offense to Sam, even though he’s kind of a jerk and the only cool thing about him are those wings, but I don’t really think therapy is going to help me at all. Only thing that can help me has cloven feet and horns. Well, assuming the devil looks like Tim Curry in that really old movie Legend. I sure hope not, cause that thing gave me nightmares when I saw it.

Last year.

“Peter…” He squats down in front of the chair, hands braced on the arm rests at my left and right. Pinning me down. Making me listen to him. Maybe halfway resembling a hug?

C’mon, Doc, we’re not there yet.

I can feel something soft brush my fingers in my lap and I look down to see the scarlet cloth of Cloaky petting me reassuringly. Yeah, that’s not a good sign either. “I know what it’s like to lose someone close to you.” No shit Sherlock. Everybody’s lost somebody by the time they get to your age. But did your someone die saving the universe, and did he get himself into that position by trying to save you?

“I lost my sister when I was your age.”

That’s a no. I try really hard not to roll my eyes because that would be insensitive. I mean his sister did die, and that sucks, but hasn’t the doc ever heard of not comparing tragedies. Mine’s bigger anyway, dude.

“She was the person I cared about most in the world, and losing her was terrible. If someone had told me I could make a deal with the devil to get her back, I probably would have…but you can’t do that, Peter. No one can. Those are cautionary tales about making deals with people without understanding the terms. They’re not real. Heaven and hell are not real.”

“H..How do you know?” I hate how whiny my voice sounds. Strained like I’m holding back tears, and I’m totally not…because I can feel the wetness on my cheeks and I 100% know I’m already crying. So there. “Wizards aren’t supposed to be real either, but you’re real and you’re here. You have lots of magic books, right? So…so go look at them and find out what I have to do to get Tony back.”

“You can’t get him back, Peter.”

I stand up abruptly, knocking Doctor Strange backwards and away from me. Only Cloaky keeps him from falling to the floor. As it is, he’s kind of hovering in a weird seated position for a moment before Cloaky helps him to stand again. “You’re going to feel really dumb when I do, Doctor Strange. Really,really dumb.”

“Peter…”

I don’t care what he has to say. I really don’t. I don’t even care if he calls May. I know he doesn’t have her number, but he has Tony’s old number and Pepper definitely does…but I don’t care. I don’t care what any of them say or how stupid this idea may sound to any of them. I’m going to do it.

Trouble is…I don’t know who else to turn to.

Doctor Strange is the only wizard I know. Thor’s not really around. Not that I think he knows the devil either. Since he’s not REALLY a god. There are a few occult stores in Queens. I could go there, look at some books, buy some magic thinga-ma-jigs like they use in the movies, but…I don’t know. If things like that really work, you’d think there’d be a lot more deals with the devil going down, huh?

I end up walking. Hands in my pockets, head down, lost in thought. I need a plan B, but plan A wasn’t even really much of a plan so it’s not looking good.

I don’t know how long I’ve been walking. It’s pretty dark. There aren’t any people around. I think I walked most of the day? I don’t even recognize this part of the city, so that’s probably a bad sign. I’ve gotten really good at navigating the city since I started as Spider-Man, but I guess the city looks different from up there.

There’s a sound behind me, the rhythmic thud of footsteps.

Great.

Someone’s going to try to mug me.

I have web shooters on under my shirt. I can probably even activate that Ironspider suit before the guy gets any closer…but I doubt I even need a suit to stop a mugger.

And then it hits me.

I’ve never felt anything like it.

Spidey Sense always feels uncomfortable. Like static shock after you slid your socks on carpet or like the beginnings of a stress headache or like the burn of a sneeze before you sneeze all wrapped up into one. This time, it’s like all of those things have been multiplied by a hundred. I feel like my head is literally about to explode and everything in me is telling to run as fast and as far as I can away from those footsteps.

But I don’t.

I don’t because I’ve turned around to look in their direction and I’ve seen what’s coming.

Human sized. Not big. But still really fucking scary. Tim Curry in Legend. Bright red. Curved horns. Cloven hooves. His black eyes are staring straight at me and I’m frozen.

My last thought before he closes the last few yards that separate us is that Doctor Strange probably shouldn’t have quit his day job.

#starker #fixingwhatsbroken #endgamespoilersahead