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fleckcmscott · 11 months

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Pillow Talk

Summary: While Y/N spends some time away, she and Arthur find a way to play.

Words: 3,992

Warnings: Smut, Swearing

A/N: This story stems from a request made by @jokerownsmysoul. I really hope I got it right. 😂 Please enjoy, everyone! And thank you for reading! 💜

If you have any thoughts or questions, please comment, feel free to message me, or send me an ask. Requests for Arthur and WWH are open!

Y/N's happiness at attending the Atlantic Legal Society's conference had rubbed off on Arthur. Made her upcoming absence worth it.

Often he'd tag along, see the sights while she worked. Check out clubs, sign up for open mics where no one would ever see him again. Low-risk refinement. But this week's jobs were too good to pass up, and Amusement Mile's opening day meant lots of families and plenty of tips.

He could hold down the apartment. Hell, maybe he'd even enjoy it. Pour condensed milk over frozen strawberries, smoke as much as he wanted, catch a movie on Gothamvision. (When their rabbit ears had required aluminum foil to get a TV signal, he'd convinced her cable was a dire need.)

He wrapped an apple in a paper towel, tore a banana from the bunch, and stuck both in her purse. A breakfast that'd tide her over for the three-hour ride to Baltimore. Stirring milk into her coffee, he side-eyed the oven clock. When the java was halfway cold, he made his way to the bathroom.

Toes flexed in annoyance, Y/N grumbled around her toothbrush. "I can't believe I overslept."

"You'll get there," he said, and took the hairbrush from the shelf. "Here, let me." He drew horsehair bristles through her untamed mane.

"Thanks." The foam in her mouth made it sound more like fankhs. She spat into the sink, rinsed and spat again. "I don't want to buy another ticket."

A soft scowl crossed his brow. "You shouldn't've had to buy the first."

"Well, you know my boss. He didn't think it was necessary, which is silly with the WARN act being passed. That kind of ridiculousness makes me want Phil to come out of retirement." She hung her robe on the door hook and jogged to the bedroom, calling over her shoulder. "At least they're paying me!"

Minutes later Y/N emerged, frazzled around the edges but smart. She straightened a ruffle at her collar, tugged the corner of her blazer. She wore her age and era with pride. She guzzled her coffee like an engine on empty, poured herself another and skipped the dairy. "I'll regret this on the train."

They dashed to the elevator, vinyl suitcase in his grasp, her hand hooked at his elbow. As the steel doors parted, he made a show of holding them open with his foot. A beam to rival the rising sun crossed her face.

"Thank you, sir," she said, and curtsied. The gesture made him want to lift her, spin around. They were running late - and she'd still taken a spare second to be playful.

God, how he loved her.

At this early hour, only a handful of Gothamites rode the subway. A guy sat in a corner seat. Sixty, gray stubble, wearing a flat leather cap. His outstretched arm held a wrinkled centerfold. Ms. December, judging by the Santa Hat, the sole fabric in the photo. A familiar friend that must've been in his pocket for a while.

Y/N grasped the stanchion at the other end of the car. Arthur moved to stand behind her, a protective arm at her waist.

At every stop she inched towards him. Her round bottom nudged his thighs, her back grazed his chest. She smelled good, like the strawberries he'd eat tonight. He pressed his nose to the crown of her head, filled his veins with her scent.

A scarlet stripe bloomed from collarbone to temple, her ear a crimson shell. The corner of her mouth threatened to curl. Pink tongue darting to wet satin lips.

He squeezed her hip. "What is it?"

"It's nothing," she said. An obvious untruth given how her neck tightened.

Suspicion slanted his stare. But he let it lie. For now.

Wayne Central Station was a Beaux-Arts beauty smack dab in the middle of modernization and commercialization. And it had far too many flights of stairs. After the ups and downs of finding the right track, they landed on thirty-seven, the platform for the commuter line.

"You know," Y/N said, steps slowing to an amble. "I bet there are clown conferences. You could learn to juggle."

His days of working with other clowns were long behind him. But the suggestion was sweet, so he smiled. "My hands are already busy. You're a handful."

She stopped at a concrete column and riffled through her purse. "I'll call you when I check-in and give you the room number. There'll be a direct line." Then her riffling escalated to a frantic search. Patting her coat, the inner breast pocket. Checking her bag one more time. Taking advantage of her distraction, Arthur reached into his jacket. Anticipation tickled his shoulders into a shrug.

"Oh no," she said. "I could've sworn I put my ticket with my credit card."

He reached as if to tuck her hair back. Pulled a green card from behind her ear. "Is this it?" A relieved huff as she snatched her prize. She swatted his chest, wound her arms about his neck.

The squeal of metal on metal bounced off tile walls, announcing the oncoming train. A gust of wind whirled her silvery brown locks. Despite the mundanity of it all, the thousands of people about to step onto public transportation, the moment felt like a movie. A bona fide blockbuster. The ordinary suddenly extraordinary.

Fingers brushing his, she took her bag, speaking between kisses. "I love you. We'll talk soon."

~~~~~

The McKeldin Exhibition Center seemed a blunt, bulky building for the Atlantic Legal Society's twenty-fifth conference, a number Y/N would've considered celebratory. Four stories of concrete, cold steel, muscular exterior. A once modern design that now represented an idea of the future that, if the first five months of 1990 were to go by, wasn't bound to happen.

The registration attendants were friendly and professional. But Y/N wasn't a member of the guild, so she was directed to a line at the other end of a vast, airy hall. The additional hundred dollars she'd paid to attend included extra exercise. A gilded stripe ran along the top of her name tag, like she was a flake of gold to pan for, from which extract a membership fee.

Goodie bags contained the usual swag. A pen with the organization's logo, two legal pads, a folder to hold her notes. At the bottom were a blue stress ball and a gavel pinback button, which she'd pin on Sylvia back at the office. The young intern had received so little recognition in her short life that it'd thrill her.

White tablecloths and serving trays covered the tables in the reception area. Y/N maneuvered to a buffet to the right, snapped a napkin, two cheese and pepperoni skewers, and a paper cup of goldfish crackers. Munching away, she took the temperature of the room.

Lawyers and attorneys general, magistrates and judges swarmed, chatting and laughing, giving handshakes and back slaps. Legal secretaries and paralegals circled up to chat amongst themselves. Judging by overheard introductions, their origins stretched from the Eastern Seaboard all the way to Chicago.

Y/N recognized a former Gotham District Attorney, a lawyer from one of Shaw & Associates' satellite offices. The passing years had salt and peppered his hair, too. The city's newest criminal court judge was on the premises, one Henry Jake. An upset after an affair with one of his legal aides, his promotion from magistrate had been splashed on all the front pages.

He appeared eager to continue the scandal, proceeding to flirt in the way of men who like to wield their authority. A palm on the forearm here, an unwanted compliment there. It made Y/N want to chuck a stress ball at his head.

She stirred powdered creamer and irritation into a styrofoam cup of coffee, noted the restroom sign on the left wall. A woman in a floral shower curtain of a dress approached with tiny steps. Said she'd never been to a big city before, took a sip of Lipton and pushed her plastic glasses up the bridge of her nose.

"I'm Flossie Barteux, but all my friends call me Flo." The red stripe on her nametag denoted her as a fresh recruit.

"Nice to meet you, Flossie." Though maintaining distance, Y/N spoke with warmth. "I moved from the Ozarks to Gotham ten years ago. The lobby has some brochures. I think there's an aquarium on the waterfront, a couple museums, too. You should take advantage while you're in town." Then she gave a friendly nod and excused herself to the Industry Auditorium to sign up for presentations.

Whistleblower protections sounded interesting, considering past capers; she made a note to review Gotham's statutes for the next. Tips for wage and hour investigations filled an entire notebook. The presenter droned on in one agonizingly long sentence. It was impossible to keep up, even in shorthand. Y/N's fingers grew so fatigued she dropped her pen. It took several tries to regain the ability to make a fist.

When the conference broke for the evening, Flossie hopped in the same revolving door as Y/N and suggested dinner at a chain steakhouse across the street. A good number of attendees already stood in line.

To be honest, she could've used a break from the whole thing. But she didn't want to hurt the woman who sorely needed a work friend. She put their names on the waitlist and browsed chalkboard specials. Listened to Flossie's story of how going through probate for custody of her granddaughter had led her to the legal profession.

By the time Y/N stumbled back to her hotel, she could've dozed upright. At the bar, she ordered a variation on a Sidecar, a little number called Between the Sheets. She didn't ask for permission to take it to her room. She dropped a dollar bill in the tip jar and turned towards the lobby.

It was well equipped, a fax machine and pay phone in one corner, a stand with free chocolate chip cookies to the right. In the center of the far wall stood a bookshelf, flanked by overstuffed aqua chairs. A sign was propped on the coffee table: "Please read and return!" A set worthy of Donahue's photo studio.

She stepped onto the woven rug to browse the plethora of outdated bestsellers. Self-helps with mountains on the covers, charlatans offering poor financial advice. Children's books were piled haphazardly on the bottom shelf. And right in the middle was an entire row of romance novels, the ones in which every heroine's bosom heaved and bodice ripped. Ragged covers told the tale of how popular they were, spines split from overuse. As a pre-teen, Mabel had caught her reading a few. ("Why's your face red, Y/N? Are you sick?") Amused, Y/N took the one with the deepest seams.

Forbidden Seas was a terrible if fitting title, given the coverhunk's puffy shirt. He was alarmingly muscular, as though a bee had stung him, and he desperately needed an ice bag. Long, blonde tresses brushed the careening cleavage of the woman bent over his knee. Arthur's wiry frame held a hidden strength, cleaved her tightly whenever they danced, but that position would've ended with her on the floor.

Cackling, she returned the paperback to its place, betting the hunk would be at full mast by chapter four.

When she reached her room, she stretched her arms over her head, pushed herself to her tiptoes, released a short squeal. The conference center's folding chairs had next to no padding. Soreness nagged at her tailbone, a deep-seated throb ached her rear. She could really use a bath. She checked her watch. Arthur would be calling in about fifteen minutes. Luckily, the restroom had a phone.

Pantyhose rolled down her legs, a nail caught on the reinforced toe. The star-patterned vinyl floor was cold on her feet. A claw clip kept her hair off her shoulders, spare tendrils falling to her cheeks. Steam coated the mirror as the room filled with a pleasant heat. She dabbed away her mascara and eyeliner before it could streak. She sipped her cocktail, stepped into the bath. Gave her breasts a casual squeeze and sighed out the stress of the day.

The ringer rang right on the dot.

Voice as light as a game of I Spy, she said, "This isn't reception telling me to pipe down, is it?"

On the other end, Arthur's smile sucked his teeth. "No, it's just me."

"I'm glad it's just you."

The day had gone well, he told her. One of his gigs had cancelled, but that was all right. It let him get some work done around the apartment. He'd replaced the window shade that no longer rolled up, mopped the kitchen, sorted the drawers of his desk. He'd just tuned into a movie on TMC, a screwball comedy she'd deem too silly and dislike.

When he asked how the conference was going, she told him about Flossie, how she hoped the woman's eagerness to excel wouldn't result in her being suckered into membership upgrades. That the WARN act - while a step forward - put some guardrails on the mass layoffs that'd become the norm in the last decade but didn't prevent them. And the overeager judge she was happy to never have to face in court.

"You should teach a class on how to be a gentleman." She slunk deeper into the heat. "I'm learning a lot, but I'll be happy to be home."

"You're not missing much."

"I'm missing you."

"But you saw me this morning!" His protestations didn't fool her; he was pleased as punch. A hitched giggle, one of his many laughs she loved. "Me, too. I mean, I can't wait to see you. But don't worry. I'm fine. Talk to me more. Tell me about the hotel."

"We'll have to stay here someday. There's a bar with a player piano, and I'm having a cocktail in the bath."

"You- You're on the phone in the tub?" The sound of him puttering. A drink set on the coffee table, a middle-aged groan as he sat on the sofa. "There is one thing I can't get out of my head." Nervous tongue smacked his lips. "What were you thinking about on the subway?"

Mercury threatened to crack the thermometer. But still. She was reticent to go there. "I already told you. It was nothing."

"Come on. You were as red as my clown nose."

She pressed the cool glass to her sweaty forehead. The flight of fancy had been completely inappropriate, not to mention out of character. She knew exactly what telling him would lead to, the direction in which this conversation would race. Tacky and cheap, belonging to a $3.99 a minute hotline.

And yet. She was grateful to have a husband she could blush around, whom she could fantasize about, whom she wanted to fantasize about. Besides. It'd been a stretch since they'd last made love. Tacky and cheap might be just what the Doctor of Laughter ordered.

She let the cognac trickle down her throat. Knuckles dragged up and down her breastbone. Her forearm brushed her pebbled nipple. A drop from the faucet plopped.

"Do you want to continue this?" she asked, an eager if uncertain invitation.

"Yeah," he purred. That rasp, the one positive of his cigarette addiction. "But I'm- I'm not sure what's next."

Neither was she, not quite. The next steps felt at once natural and as if they belonged to an unread novel on a hotel bookshelf. But it was him, so it would turn out all right. They'd figured it out every time before. "Tell me what you're wearing," she said. "Or what you're thinking about. Whatever you want."

"I'm in my pajamas. Um. I found my old journal when I was cleaning. I hadn't read it for years - it has everything from when I met you. Anyway, I read what I wrote our first night together? I'd wanted to touch you so badly and-" He gave a throaty laugh. "And all I knew what to do was squeeze your breast too hard."

The recollection struck a match in all the right places. She'd wanted him, too, more than was smart after such a short acquaintanceship. There'd been something that'd set him apart immediately. Whenever he'd looked at her, her heart had skipped to a new but familiar beat. His good looks, his kindness. Passion and flair hiding beneath a surface shyness, a mask you could see through if you took an extra minute.

"You knew how to look at me. How to listen. How to be gentle." She caressed her hip absentmindedly, a movement that soon became deliberate. "And when not to be."

Her knee shifted to rest on the lip of the tub, opening herself to the warm water. "I wouldn't want you to be gentle now," she whispered, and tugged at the curls between her thighs.

"I wouldn't be." Ragged breaths tempted over three hundred miles. A muted moan that meant he was palming his shaft. Her own palm felt empty. How she hungered for him to be in her grasp. Then he asked, "What- What did you pack for bed?"

"The blue nightie you gave me. The one that ties at the neck." It was six years old but a perennial favorite for both. The approval that'd radiated from him when she'd modeled it flashed in her memory. Strokes blazed at the crease of her thigh. "I'll wear it tonight - unless you want me to sleep naked."

A husky chuckle before he pressed her. Again. "Tell me what you were thinking about on the train. I wanna know."

Fingertips dipped to where she ached for him. Lower to tease plush, squishy flesh, plump with desire. Her eyelids fluttered shut, returning to the occasions she'd pleasured herself in front of him, both when he was inside of her and out. Even on the occasions he wasn't able to get hard, he loved it, asked her to do it again. Holding her. Stealing her breath from her mouth. Covering her hand with his. His thumb taking over until she cried his name.

Fever rippling through her arteries, she tapped her slick nub, body throbbing with need. She cleared her throat. She thought she'd lost her ability to be bashful with Arthur. But dirty talk didn't come as naturally now that she was alone, not the way it did when it was foreplay. When she'd beg him to fuck her, plead for more, more, more.

Yet, she wasn't alone. Though he was afar, she was abuzz with his presence. Spreading joy and happiness to others, always entertaining his audience, he was the performer in the relationship. Tonight the performer became the audience, and she was putting on a show for one.

A show she'd drag out a bit longer. Make it worth his while. "I'm touching my clit, Arthur. Slow and soft, like your tongue. God, I wish it was your tongue. You feel so good."

He groaned. Her grip on the telephone tightened, knuckles gone white. "When we were on the train," she began. "I imagined you shushing me. Your breath was hot on my ear. I wanted you to put your hand on my skin, down my skirt." Her strokes halted while she laughed. "I don't know why. I wasn't even horny."

"You're horny now."

"All hot and bothered."

A grunt came through the copper wire, luring her along. Her foot pressed the tub's curved rim. Splashes of imagery knotted her belly. The play of light on his slender abdomen when he'd put on a shirt. How his biceps flexed when he'd wash his hair. The tightening of his brow the second he lost himself to euphoria. The musky weight of him on her tongue.

She rubbed herself a little harder. A steady, firm pace. "When I come I feel your cock at my back-"

"Keep talking."

"-and I have to bite my lip to keep from moaning, because I know you'll fuck me as soon as we walk through the door."

"Oh, fuck..."

Water licked at her labia with each flick of her wrist, awakening every nerve ending, cresting wave upon wave of sensation. She shoved the receiver under her jaw, lifted her shoulder to lock it in place. Cradled her breast, nipples just at the waterline Lapping, lapping, lapping. She circled the right with her middle finger, wishing her hand was as large as Arthur's, so that she could play with the left. Shivering, her knees drew together and upward, pelvis striving towards her wanton touch.

Splish, splash. Splish, splash.

A growl rumbled out of him. "I- I'm gonna come."

"Yes."

She was there. She was there. About to fly over the edge, her feet about to leap. Gasps caught in her throat. Half his name lost in a whimper. The peak of delight finally reached...

The phone tumbled off her shoulder and plunged into the water. Landed on the fiberglass. An unenthusiastic thud.

"Shit, shit-"

Locked in spasm, she watched air bubbles rise from the sunken plastic. It was hard to move mid-orgasm. Her legs weren't yet in the Jello stage. Hanging onto the towel bar, she stood on very shaky ankles.

She plucked the receiver from the water, shook it out over the tub. Yanked the drain and placed the handset on the rim. Fingers a blur, she dialed their home number on the bedside phone. How quickly had Arthur realized she wasn't on the line?

Had he heard any of the denouement?

Nine rings and Arthur answered, out of breath but with a laugh. "What happened?"

She covered her face. "I dropped the phone. It's ruined." It would be the one time she would pay a fee for damages.

"Oh. Well, I was just cleaning up."

The cord twined through her fingers. "Did you?"

"Yeah."

"Good. Me, too."

"I know. I heard half of it."

Giggling, she excused herself to dry off. Pulled the clip from her hair, retrieved her nightie from her bag. She crawled between cool sheets, fluffed her pillow, pressed Arthur to her ear.

"What'll you do tomorrow," he asked, scratching his cheek.

A Department of Labor inspector would give a presentation on the Severe Violators program, a list of closely monitored companies that violated labor laws like it was a talent and never lifted a finger to change their ways. The padding to their bottom lines was bigger than the fines. She'd chatted with the inspector during a break.

"ACE Chemicals being on the list isn't a surprise. But Wayne Steel?" A sharp inhale before she yawned the rest. "I hadn't even heard of them."

"You're tired.”

"No. Relaxed. Happy. But not tired." She curled up on her side, burrowed deeper into the blankets. "This bed is empty. I have no one to press up against." Another yawn betrayed her.

At her third, Arthur interrupted. "Y/N, go to sleep." A grin in his words, like he was about to call her cute. "You need your rest."

"And why is that?"

His voice lowered to the volume of secrets. "Because when you get back, I'm going to fuck you as soon as we walk through the door."

Her eyes went wide, then she burst out laughing. A wave of dizziness swept through her. She brought the heel of her hand to her forehead. "What time'll you wake up tomorrow?"

"Six, probably. Maybe 5:30?

"Let's have coffee together. I'll make a cup at 6:15."

He agreed before she'd completed the request, said how dearly he loved her. And, yes, to her consternation, called her cute. She kept the eyeroll out of her reply. "You're wonderful, too. Now take your own advice and get some sleep. No journaling until dawn. All right?"

"All right. Have a good night. And Y/N?"

She was already fading, his lilt her favorite lullaby. "Yeah?"

"Wear your blue nightie for coffee. I’ll be in my briefs."

~~~~~

Tag list (Let me know if you want to be added!): @harmonioussolve @ithinkimaperson @sweet-nothings04 @stephieraptorr @rommies @fallenstarsabyss @gruffle1 @another-day-in-chuckletown @hhandley80 @jokerownsmysoul @rafaelbottom @ralugraphics @iartsometimes @fleckficgirl

#arthur fleck #arthur fleck fanfic #arthur fleck smut #arthur fleck x reader #arthur x ofc #joker 2019 #arthur x female reader #watchwhathappens

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lessyandmina · 11 months

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Watch I’m with you on YouTube Music

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Imagine Gotham has a pride block party in June (which is right around the corner, BTW) and this song is playing. The gothamites would be waving their flags on this. I know I would!!! So Happy Pride Month, Gothamites!!!!💙💛🩷🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

#Youtube #gotham #gotham fox #gotham tv show #wayleska #bruce wayne #jeremiah valeska #gotham bruce wayne #gotham 514a #jerome valeska #five monroe

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echoquery · 4 years

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This city feeds on the souls who live within it: the innocent and the wicked.

GOTHAM (2014-2019)

#happy pride gothamites!!#gotham #gothamedit #dctv #dctvedit #dcedit #userstream #bbelcher #chewieblog #dcmultiverse #**#im not very pleased with this but i wanted to do something big for pride #also thanks tunglr for destroying the quality #mine:gotham #*1k #flashing /

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princeofgothammyass · 3 years

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I hate the fact that all my friends are gay I'm going to an ed sheeran to find some heterosexuals who'll pay me because it's pride month

#hey dick yeah you know since its pride month straight peoole have to pay gave people so you know my venmo right #kit im bi #ah fuck you #this happened so many times today #im done #gothamite #only in gotham rp #only in gotham #onlyingotham #dc rp #lgbt pride #pride month #queer #happy pride

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artxyra · 4 years

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The Secret Life of MDC | Part 3

Part 3 - Welcome to Gotham, now get out!

Part 1 | Part 2 |

Arriving in Gotham was just an absolutely massive mess, that quickly turned into a several page report for Marinette to send to the school board the moment she arrived in her temporary dorm at Gotham Academy.

Let recap back to the airport. When everyone got off the plane, Lila was quick to make up an excuse about Bruce Wayne sending her a private limo that she’ll be happy to bring the class along. Of course, Caline Bustier, absently believed the long-time liar telling her students to gather their belongings and for Lila to call the Waynes. It was as if she had completely forgotten the arrival procedures. Arriving in Gotham, proceed to find the bus driver, and meet up with the Gotham Academy Headmistress to retrieve the rest of the plans for the month. Marinette tried to tell Caline that what they were doing was against the procedure, something that she had to memorize for moments like this, only to be lectured about behavior the second she finished talking off to the side.

Then when they finally arrived at the school, Caline had the nerve to lecture her again about not informing her about the bus before being dragged off by the Gotham Academy headmistress, who clearly was not happy with the decisions made before they could even step foot onto the school grounds. Gotham is not a place to dilly dally unless you know the area or a native.

“Do you think, she’ll be fired after this?” Chloe asks while setting her things into the wardrobe as Marinette clicks the save button on her laptop.

“Maybe, no matter what happens, we’re here for a month regardless of the decisions the GA headmistress and Principal De La Fontaine decides in the coming days. All I know as the class president and temp. TA; my job is to help her overlook you guys.” Marinette sighs and closes the laptop's top before giving Chloe her full attention.

“I still can’t believe you graduated early. Though Adrien and I are grateful you managed to stay despite everything.” It was rare moments like these that made Marinette glad that she gave Chloe a second chance. Chloe had apologized one winter when she was freezing to death outside because her parent went on a tropical vacation on her request and decided to allow the staff to take a few days off. It was Sabine and Tom that took the former bully into their arms and made her feel loved, a love that she rarely receives from her parents. Since that day, Chloe takes pride in the honor of being Marinette’s sister just as Adrien did when they took him in also.

“I couldn’t leave you guys to perish in that class. Also, I just didn’t want to give Lie-la the satisfaction of winning.” Marinette says as her phones with the familiar sounds of “The Other Side” by Ruelle. Instantly, Marinette picks up the phone and smiles. “It’s Damian, he wants to go out tonight. Think I have time before—”

“Go, I’ll keep you from trouble, maybe even invite Adrien over if he isn’t doing the same with Jon.” Chloe pushes the noirette out of their room before closing the door behind the designer with a smirk on her lips.

As Marinette makes her way out of the dormitory, little did she know that Lila was just doing the same but for a different reason.

~*~

Damian Wayne @therealbloodheir I had a wonderful night with my beloved. I can’t wait for more nights like these. [Attached is an image of two hands intertwine with each other with the moon shining between them.]

Nette @GothamsFashionSense Replying to @therealbloodheir That sounds like a marriage proposal. Missing you too.

~*~

In the halls of Gotham Academy, conversations buzz around the single fact that Nette was back in Gotham for the first time in weeks. Groups of students gather around a single person, whose phone is out in the open, all gushing about theories on how the date went.

The same can be said for GA’s exchange students who crowd around Lila Rossi like she was the air.

“Gurl, spill, how was the date? You’re tending on twitter, again!” Alya squeals, gripping Lila’s arm.

“Oh you, it was truly romantic. Damiboo took me on this romantic dinner, but the first place we went to didn’t serve any vegetarian meals, and as you know I’m one but he’s not. We left and found another place that was just right.” Her high pitch voices drive a shiver down people spines, well anyone that is in clear hearing distance to the Italian teen's voice range.

“Do they truly believe that she’s Nette. Bitch please, we all know that Nette has dark hair from the back of the head photos on twitter.” A random student scoffs behind the trio.

The trio turns around looking at the person in a new light. The student had long braided blonde hair and wearing the GA uniform. “You’re not fooled? I was pretty sure that she would try and convert you the moment you step foot into the building.” It was Adrien that spoke first.

“I'm Allegra, besides me is Claude and Allen.” The student says shaking hands with Adrien before continuing with, “Anyone with brain cells can tell you that she is not Nette from @GothamsFashionSense.”

Allegra then takes the empty seat beside Marinette.

“Name’s Marinette, these dorks are Adrien and Chloe.” Marinette says, “About the brain cell thing, we’ve been saying that since she joined our class a few years back.”

“It ridiculous, utterly ridiculous, as to how they manage to hang on her every word. And one of them is a self-proclaim reporter. The bitch hasn’t reported anything remotely true since the liar had joined us and don't get me started on her early years.” Chloe places her two cents into the conversation.

This was the start of a blooming relationship.

Claude, Allegra, and Allen were quick to understand the environment that the Paris Trio was living in. An irresponsible, enabling teacher and a class full of idiots. With the Gotham Trio, the Paris Trio was able to understand how Gotham Academy works and learn the ins and outs of specific places. Despite the fact that Marinette vaguely knows just about much.

~*~

“So, how were your first three days at GA?” Dick Grayson asks as the Paris trio who are sitting on the couch inside the living room of Wayne Manor. "Is it about the same as it was when I went?"

“Dicky, I am this close to making heads roll.” Chloe’s fingers are teaching as a look of crazy twitches in her eyes.

“It wasn’t all that bad the first couple of days and then Lila tried to convince GA students that she was me by photoshopping our twitter photos. Other than that, I’m more worried about when Bustier announces that our class has been invited to the upcoming Wayne Gala. I’m already booked with mine and Chloe’s dresses along with Selina’s and Cass’s.” Marinette says, resting her head on Damian’s shoulder as their hands' interlock. Damian places a quick peck on her forehead.

The room was once again oddly silent before Adrien let out a loud giggle.

The family turns to the model who was staring at his phone with the biggest smile on his face. Adrien was no doubt in a group chat with Luka and Jon about upcoming meetings and plans.

“What?” Adrien asks, looking up to the group of extended family members staring at him. They all quickly look away, some whistling while others mess with the person they are next to. “Seriously guys, what?” The whining in Adrien’s voice just made it harder for them to pretend to do something as they hold in a laugh.

“Nothing,” Marinette snickers as Damian brings to play with her hair by braiding strands of it. She always liked it when Damian messed with her hair, he sometimes does something nice, surprising everyone with his styling skills.

“Hey, Pixie-Pop and Pixie-Pop’s friends. When did you guys get in?” It’s Jason, to which majority had forgotten about even though Tim was a close second as he is hovering over a half-full cup of coffee trying to stay awake but isn’t with them in reality. Maybe Marinette should make her special concoction that would knock anyone out for quite some time.

“Hey Mari, can you make the switch?” Dick whispers in the designer’s ear. Marinette huffs agreeing to the older sibling’s request. Damian nearly groans as his girlfriend gets off his lap and walks into the kitchen.

Marinette comes out nearly ten minutes later with a steaming coffee mug in hand. She walks over to Tim and pushes his cup out of his hand and replaces it with hers. Tim, absently, takes a sip. Within seconds he is knocked out, cold.

“I’ll never not be amazed at how fast your drink can knock Tim out,” Dick says as he picks up Tim and exits the room. Marinette shrugs and takes her seat next to Damian.

“When does Cass get back from her trip?” It was Chloe who decided to break the silence between them.

“Before the gala, that’s for sure,” Jason answers as he pulls out the controllers for the game console. He gives Marinette a knowing look, who smirks with mischief in her eyes. He should know better than to play against Marinette.

~*~

It was times like this that made Marinette wish that the school board had investigated Mlle. Bustier years ago, like for example when the liar first tried to get her expelled in college. Yeah, that was such a long time ago.

Today was supposed to be an easy-going day, but for some reason, Lila managed to convince the teachers, Mlle. Bustier specifically, to allow the class to visit a nearby street mall. Mlle. Bustier, of course, agrees despite the GA teachers telling her that it was a bad idea to let the student go out unsupervised in a place they still don’t know much about. Caline laughs it off stating that they’ll be fine, and it’ll be just like walking down the streets in Paris. That added another dash to her inability to be a proper teacher.

Which brings us to the street mall. Lila was going into stores left and right proclaiming to be Damian Wayne’s girlfriend or stating that she is the niece of some high profile celebrity in hopes of getting free or discounted items. That doesn’t dwell well seeing as Gothamites are not as gullible as Parisians.

The Paris Trio along with the GA Trio watch the mess that she was drumming up from afar. Chloe had invited Allegra to join them which then extended to Claude and Allan who wanted to go for the arcade.

Lila even had the nerve to ask Adrien to join her and Alya shopping trips with the underlying message of making him pay. Once being denied on numerous occasions, Alya managed to steal Nino’s wallet in hopes of paying for all their stuff. Yeah, that didn't help their relationship status.

“Alya I told you that money wasn’t for you,” Nino screams into his girlfriend’s face as she tries to come up with an excuse. He was infuriated.

“Nino, baby, if you love me you would have just given me the money. Lila really needed those items for her date with Damian.”

“I don’t care about Lila’s need; she is not my responsibility. In fact, neither are you, Alya. You just spent the money I had saved up for this trip.” Nino had wanted to go into a DJ shop that sold the equipment he wanted and started saving the moment the trip was announced the year before.

“Stop bitching, it was only a couple hundred dollars.”

Oohs and side-eyes make up the crowd they were drawing. It was a free drama tv for them.

“Ooh what do we have here, a lovers quarrel? Now would be the perfect time to spring my new trap.” Suddenly, it was like time freezes.

~*~

Chloe B. @QueenBeeOfParis The best thing about my idiotic classmates is television drama. #savemefromthem

Tina @thepinkmistress I was finding my own business when this shit happens. [Attach is a video clip of a couple arguing and goons dress in green takes over the streets]

Tim Drake’s Bish @rachelcovefe The nerve of this group. Just finished my shift only to be told by some foreigner that she was @GothamsFashionSense like bish please I know you ain't her. #anotherdayingotham

Kimmy @kimmyontheblock Replying to@rachelcovefe OMG same but she then added in that she was Jagged Stone's niece. Um excuse you but we all know that it's @MDCfashion

Mari Needs Coffee @MarinetteMemes So the first relaxing day in Gotham ruined by the Riddler and Lie-la’s fanatics. Yup, so good to be back. #memescomingsoon #goodgrief #imabouttoheadout

Part 4 >>

Tag List: *View my Tagging System guidelines for how to to be properly tagged or removed.

Note: The SPECIFIC Tag list is officially closed. If you wanted to follow the story please mark the tag fic:The Secret Life of MDC.

#daminette #maribat #teacher assistant au #teacher assistant Marinette AU #ta marinette #fic:The Secret Life of MDC #ml x dc #mlb x dc #dc crossover #ml crossover #damimari

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incorrectbatfam · 4 years

Note

What would being a high schooler in Gotham be like?

You wake up to the sound of a limo driving past your house, an old man taking a small Middle Eastern boy to school. You brush your teeth and put on your vintage Gotham Knights jersey in hopes of impressing your crush in math class. You make yourself a bowl of cereal as your parents and siblings rush to get ready for work and school. You refill the dog’s bowl and feed the fish before you leave.

As you wait at the bus stop, you casually kick aside a batarang that someone left behind. And you curse the bus for being late again because the city can fund a bat signal but can’t fix a couple damn potholes. When the bus does arrive, the seats are almost all filled, so you’re stuck with the cracked leather one that has old gum stuck to it. Again. You put on your headphones and listen to your favorite song as the Wayne Enterprises building passes by in a haze, like most things on an unremarkable Tuesday. You daydream of what it’d be like to run somewhere else—Metropolis, Central City, perhaps Khandaq.

The bus jerks to a stop in front of your school and kids shove and shuffle to get out. The bus driver grumbles under his breath about hating his job. You don’t blame him. Some kid accidentally steps on the back of your heel as you enter Gotham High’s front doors.

You put your things in your locker. Your best friend frantically asks you for homework answers. They couldn’t concentrate last night because Nightwing and Killer Croc were duking it out on their block. You hand your friend the worksheet; they’d do the same for you too. “Just give it back before fourth period,” you say.

Your eyes lock with your crush’s in class as neither of you two listened to your science teacher’s monotonous lecture on the molecular composition of fear gas. You wish your crush was your lab partner, but instead you’re stuck with this girl named Stephanie, who ditches you halfway through the lab to call her boyfriend in the bathroom.

You take a nap in second period, because who even cares about classic literature anyway? Plus, you missed out on valuable sleep last night when your kid sister came to your room after having another Joker nightmare. The teacher bangs a book on your desk to wake you up. You keep your head ducked down while your classmates laugh at you. One of your friends shoots you a sympathetic smile from behind his copy of Hamlet.

You get your homework back during lunch, along with an “I owe you one” from your bestie. You push your maggot-infested school lunch away as you and the three or four other people at your table engage in typical conversation. Though, you have to admit, things got rather heated when asked to choose between a date with Red Robin or Spoiler. You don’t notice Stephanie Brown overhearing and looking offended when you chose Red Robin.

Third period after lunch is interrupted by a villain emergency drill. The teachers boredly go over what to do in case of the Riddler, Penguin, etc. Half the kids aren’t paying attention. You find these Gothamite maniacs more of a nuisance than objects of fear—they’re making you miss time on your favorite class to go over procedures.

You suppose the drill earlier is a good thing, because an actual villain crashes your fourth period class. The procedure tells you to leave all bags behind and head to the predetermined safe location, but like hell are you leaving your $1,200 laptop and your favorite Harry Potter book. So you take your stuff to the safe place and wait it out. You can hear the Batman’s gruff interactions with whoever the clown of this week is. But the person you like is visibly shaking from fear. You don’t blame them; they moved here from Coast City under a month ago.

So you awkwardly scoot across the hard floor and lay a comforting hand over theirs. You can’t speak, for the bad guy might hear and find you. But you swipe the tears away from their cheek with your thumb and look them in the eye. It’s a silent reassurance. They give you a soft smile. And boy, do you get lost in every feature. The way their hair perfectly frames their face, and irises swirling with color and quirks like tiny freckles or scars. For a moment, you forget about the battle raging outside.

The GCPD gives the all clear for people to come out. One wall off the school is missing, reduced to a pile of brick. Holes poke through the ceiling, letting that East Coast rain pour in. (The school district won’t be happy.) You notice you’re still holding your classmate’s hand. You awkwardly let go and blush nervously. Did the place suddenly get hot? And why are you so sweaty? You’re not even a hundred percent sure if you’re wearing deodorant. What if they find you gross and never want to see you again?

But your worries are quelled when they open up an umbrella and offer to share it with you. In the background, your friends give you encouraging smiles all around. You text your mom, telling her that you’re okay. Your dad leaves his job at the Gotham Gazette to pick you up. You and your crush trade numbers before you leave.

Your mom’s working late again on a Wayne Enterprises marketing project, so your dad whips up some chili to eat. When the rain lets up, you take your dog for a walk. Past Crime Alley, take a left at the graveyard, and stop by to say hi to your older brother working part-time at the arcade. It’s routine. Nothing spectacular.

At dinner, your sister talks on and on about her day at Gotham Academy. Her eyes sparkle with pride when she talks about the baking soda volcano she made, but dulls when she talks about this Damian boy who called her a “simpleminded imbecile” for it. You’re rightfully ticked off. No one can harass your sister but you. You actively remind yourself that, no, you can’t throw hands with a ten-year-old. But that spark is back when she talks about this Jon kid a little too much. Again, you can’t throw hands with children.

As you brush your teeth that night, your phone goes off. You almost choke on your toothpaste when you check the text. Your crush asks if you wanna go for ice cream sometime this week. You respond with a “yes” almost too quickly. Immediately after, you text your friends in a group chat with messages in all caps. The conversation quickly devolves into memes.

Your brother knocks on the bathroom door and tells you to get out. You quickly finish and let him use it—anyone who smells like nacho cheese needs it more than you do. You alternate between homework and texting until it’s time for bed. You crawl under the covers and turn off the lights, ignoring what sounds like the Red Hood’s gunshots. You fall asleep with a small smile on your face as pleasant dreams dance through your head.

Vigilantes and villains be damned. You have better things to do with your life.

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jasontoddiefor · 4 years

Text

Sunday Batfam Fanfic Recs!

Welcome to my second Sunday Batfam Fic Rec list!

Since the first list was such a success, I’ve decided to actually do this weekly! What is ‘this’ you ask?

Easy! Every Sunday I’ll recommend Batfam fanfics of a specific theme. The first week was Batman Beyond/Time Travel, then we had a Spooky Halloween Special and, finally, this week’s theme is…

Billionaire Batfam, Social Media & Galas!

If you want to, you can request a theme and I’ll try to find fanfictions for that!

Here’s my Batfam Fanfiction Rec Tag.

That being said, have fun reading 30 fanfictions and please leave these lovely authors a comment!

Title: #BayneIsCanon Summary: Gotham ships Batman and Bruce Wayne. He's not really sure how to feel about it. #trainwreck #bayne #scandal Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17226011

Title: #gotham is trending Summary: thghhhh: ahhhhh, i'm back in gotham. can't wait to get back to a supervillain attack every other day. i've missed this. [the city of gotham, it's vigilantes, and resident billionaires - as seen through social media] Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12331965

Title: (Dance) Lessons Summary: “STOP!” Cass shouted, suddenly appearing between them. “No talking. No fun.” she gave each one a glare. “Only… dancing.” Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13205775

Title: (that moment when) A Supehero Replies to You Summary: Dick Grayson, as any good millennial, is an avid fan of Buzzfeed: Unsolved. So, when Shane and Ryan discuss the death of Jason Todd, Dick can't help but laugh. Laugh, and then film the reactions of the batfamily when they find out....in costume. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18561994

Title: a hat fashioned from tin foil Summary: nightwang @karakurachou – 8 hours ago jason todd is alive and faked his death so he could become robin: a conspiracy theory thread. Batfam conspiracy theories meet social media. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14356020

Title: and it comes back again Summary: Bruce “I accidentally slipped and fell across the room, took out three tables and broke a desk with your body as I ACCIDENTALLY fell on you also you’re going to jail” Wayne takes his young protégé down the rewarding path of revenge. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14268537

Title: Brother Bear Summary: Dick slips a Disney reference into a speech, Tim only realizes because Jason sneaks into his own memorial gala to finish the quote. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21036350

Title: Bruce got Therapy instead Summary: “I’m twenty four and have yet to find a partner,” Bruce stated, not looking up from the paper. “While true, I hardly think that is a subject to worry over right now. Many people your age have yet to meet someone they desire to spend the rest of their life with.” “It’s...I don’t really have a problem with the fact that I haven’t met anyone.” A pause where Bruce took a contemplative sip of his coffee. Alfred patiently waited for the young man to say what was actually going through his mind. “Well, the Manor seems rather...empty, don’t you think?” He finally looked up to his butler. Alfred fully turned to Bruce, his free hand held behind his back. “I’m afraid I don’t understand what point you’re trying to make, sir.” “I’m thinking about adopting, Alf.” OR: A world in which Bruce Wayne got therapy instead of becoming Batman. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20634062

Title: Chase You Down Until You Love Me Summary: The Waynes make a sport of their high profile in the media during yet another boring gala. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4102315

Title: Diversionary Tactic Summary: Jason, from his early days as Robin to his later days as Red Hood, has had a unique skill set. It ends up being weirdly useful and also possibly the grossest way to have a father-son relationship moment, but hey, that’s life. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12624390

Title: Favorite Parts Summary: There are things Cass loves about Wayne parties, and things she does not. What she loves most is seeing her Father act himself at those parties. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11195331

Title: Gala Night Summary: "What if I use the wrong fork at dinner?" "You won't" "But what if I do?" Bruce arched an eyebrow "Do you seriously think that none of the kids ever used the wrong fork?" [...] Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16397771

Title: Getting out of a Gala Summary: In a world where Bruce found Jason closer to nine and his fallout with Dick wasn't that bad, Jason gets forced to attend a gala. Luckily, or unluckily for him, he ends up getting out of it partway through. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15968498

Title: Gotham’s Top Ten Memes Summary: Every city has its pride and Gotham isn't different. We love our “dark and gloomy” architecture (meet us in the Batburgers parking lot Metropolis) and our Waynes, our vigilantes and most importantly: Our memes. So, without much further ado, we present you Gotham’s top ten memes. Gotham, the Waynes and the Bats through the eyes of social media. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19283281

Title: Happy Little Accidents Summary: Bruce and Lois have a quiet, friendly moment at a gala. Memories of their children make them laugh and cry a little. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21176123

Title: Mess with Them Summary: Selina Kyle is at the first gala event a young Jason Todd attends with Bruce. And she knows exactly what he's going through. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7559761

Title: Nightmare at the Gala Summary: When an amateur group of bad guys get their hands on fear toxin, they decide to use it on their next big game: the semi-annual Gotham Leaders Family Gala. And lo and behold, your favorite vigilante family just happens to be there too. But without their alter egos, they’re just another helpless rich family with easily kidnap-able kids. Will a frantic, fear toxin induced Bruce Wayne get his head together to save them? Or will he accidentally reveal his family’s biggest secret? Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14885828

Title: Of Smiles and Broken Things Summary: Tim's first gala isn't going as well as he had hoped, but at least the host is nice. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17899127

Title: Sorrowful and Immaculate Hearts Summary: A DC universe where moms are awesome and raise their kids right. Now with more melanin and queerness. Also, Gotham's in Michigan and Metropolis is in Connecticut. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. Fics are in chronological order but are all standalone. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/series/440926

Title: Stay a Child Summary: “Redo it,” Bruce orders. “Aw, come on!” Dick dares to pout — a thing that he uses often, and would work on anyone but Bruce and Alfred. Sometimes. Bruce gives him a look. “I’m not going to do it for you.” “I’m going to misdo it until you do,” Dick threatens. [Two times Dick went to a gala with Bruce and one time he didn’t.] Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15098102

Title: The Art of the Gala Summary: Barry is the one who usually goes to these things. Unfortunately for Hal, Barry got called in to Central for a case, so now Hal has to go to the Gala with Bruce. Bruce is just lucky Hal loves him so much. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17654852

Title: The Bat-Signal Smashing Charity Gala Summary: Spawned from the realization that them making Gordon physically destroy the Bat-Signal at the end of The Dark Knight is absurd and hilarious. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1867965

Title: The Bats Out of the Bag (At the Drop of a Tinfoil Hat) Summary: In which Tim is Bruce's secretary, there's a gala, and questions get answered. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18762865

Title: The Gotham’s Wayne Summary: dukeofthomas [We all know who the real QUEEN of the Manor is] The Gothamites are very invested in the Waynes. Very very interested. A journey through the Gotham's favorite family: the Waynes through Social Media. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13333119

Title: The Problem with Galas Summary: Galas are an issue, because something always goes wrong, and no one knows this better than Dick Grayson. (It's a bit of a problem, actually, but he can always depend on Bruce to get him out of trouble.) Link: https://archiveofourown.org/series/906501

Title: The Wayne Deal Summary: Bruce Wayne's parents made a deal, if you do something to make yourself noticed at a Gotham Gala- enough to impress the papers, then they will leave right away. Bruce passes this deal along to the children in his custody.Each one adds their own flair to it. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17641559

Title: three bars, one city Summary: The Wayne kids join Twitter. This is widely seen as a very bad move. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18172040

Title: Unattended Wards and their Unfortunate Guardians Summary: Roy and Dick are left alone for a couple hours at a gala. How much trouble could two boys possibly cause while unattended? Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14770661

Title: Wayne Family Tweets, aka Why Bruce Wayne's Hair Is Going Gray Summary: JTW @hottoddie oh okay u hold a totally acceptable grudge for a couple years and suddenly ur “”bitter”” Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17387441

Title: Wayne Gala Summary: Alfred teaches the boys how to dance. The girls go shopping for dresses. And it only took three hours into the party for all that effort go to waste. …But that's fine. They were Waynes. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11316591

#dc #dc comics #batman #batfam #bruce wayne #dick grayson #jason todd #Damian Wayne #Tim Drake #cassandra cain #duke thomas #Stephanie Brown #batfamrecs

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ellana-ravenwood · 5 years

Text

The Single Rider Line - Bruce Wayne x Reader

Have you ever been to an amusement park with friends or family, and you guys were an odd number ? Yeah ? Then you know how much it sucks. If you never did that, then here : most rides only have a number of seats that is even. So if you’re an odd number, there’s always one person alone...well a dream gave me an idea about this said single rider line, and a meeting with a certain Bruce Wayne. Hope you’ll like it :

________________________________________________

******

“Hey, are you following me ?”

He says with a charming smile, making your heart jump wildly in your chest.

Ugh.

This was SO ridiculous ! You always prided yourself in not being “that kind of girl” who was swooned by a handsome face and a flirty smile. And yet here you were, heart pounding like crazy, and feeling all flustered.

Ugh.

With an awkward smile, you answer :

“I’m not. If anything you’re the one following me, since it seems you’re always behind me in the queue...”

You could have slapped yourself for that stupidly coquettish tone you employed to say that. You meant to be a bit dry, so as to not encourage him to keep going...How the hell did things end up going out of your mouth in such a playful way ?! Godfuckingdammit.

His smooth and deep voice snapped you out of your mental flagellation :

“Aaah, good point. So...What if I am following you ?”

Normally, you would have snapped back a “Creepy” with a raised eyebrow, ignoring him afterward. This kind of flirting never worked on you. You always thought this sort of pick-up lines were the worst. Your mind was telling you to tell him just that and put an end to all this...but your heart answered :

“Well then I’d ask : why are you following me ?”

UGH !

In just a few encounters, that man managed to turn you into a complete moron who couldn’t think straight ! You kept going along with his flirting while you perfectly knew this wasn’t going anywhere ! Because he was known to flirt with...well with any women really !

You can’t believe you just asked him this, by the way...You’re not sure you want an answer. The fact you’re at the end of the line saves you, and before he could say something else, you quickly jump in the last empty seat of the ride’s wagon and you’re just so relieved when the rides starts...

At the end of it, you don’t wait and rush to the exit, not daring to face him after having asked him that, afraid of what he might answer. You were pretty sure your heart wasn’t ready for it.

************

The first time you saw him in the line, you recognized him instantly. Anyone from Gotham would, really. You actually saw quite a few people sneakily taking pictures of him, but it seemed no one dared to actually go and talk to him.

You don’t really blame them. Bruce Wayne was actually kind of an intimidating man. If you put aside the fact he was freakishly tall, his charisma was just enough for most people to not have the courage to approach him.

You were definitely one of those people.

You saw him a few times around the amusement park, while with your friends. All of you knew who he was and you all definitely stared a bit too much.

But none of you went up to him. Even more so since every single person you witnessed having the guts to actually talk to him were turned away politely, as he explained he was just having a nice day off with his family, pointing at the army of young teens that were with him. He wasn’t Bruce Wayne today, just a regular dad hanging out with his...like, dozen of kids.

Yep, there were absolutely no way any of you would go and casually start a conversation with him.

Strangely enough, he’s the one that started one with you ! And that kept coming back for more...

************

Today was the first day off you got in ages, and you and your friends planned an entire day at “Six Flags : Heroes’ Kingdom”. It was the biggest Six Flags in the USA, and just short of an hour from Gotham City, which meant that well over half the people going there were Gothamites.

You were one of them. And so was Bruce Wayne and his kids apparently.

You and two of your friends, Gabe and Alex, arrived early in the morning, excited like children. Your excitement wasn’t dampen by the fact you were an uneven number, which meant that on almost every ride, one of you would be on his or her own...Because you took that spot willingly !

You didn’t mind waiting in line alone. Actually, going in the “single rider line” allowed you to do rides way more times than your friends, which you kinda totally loved !

It was completely fine, because each time the rides were over, you’d join your friends again and spend a while walking around the park, enjoying each others company.

Plus you knew all your friends disliked being on their own, while you were ok with it. In fact, being in the single rider line allowed you to get some rest from your talkative friends. You loved them, but sometimes, you could get a bit tired of talking non-stop. The fact you were an uneven number kinda saved you a few times, in the end...Gave you some calming moments of just you and your thoughts. You were actually lost in a daydream when he talked to you first :

“Um excuse me miss ? The line moved forward quite a bit...”

You snapped out of your reverie, and were faced with THE Bruce Wayne ! Oh man, he was even handsomer in real than he was on TV and in magazines ! How was it possible ? Weren’t those pictures suppose to be touched up ? And wasn’t he suppose to wear make-up on TV to look better ?

You stared at him for a few seconds, until what he just said registered in your head. You turned around and, sure enough, the lined had moved of a few meters and was almost at the rides’ seat. You were holding everyone up.

“Oh, sorry. I was thinking about something haha. How weird is it that we have rides for existing superheroes right ? Like in Disney we have rides about Mickey and all but they’re fictional, while here ? The Batman ? The Green Lantern ? Superman vs Lex Luthor ? It’s so weird. I mean, we don’t have an “Obama” ride, or a ride for any of the ex-presidents, but we have one for Lex Luthor... ”

Ugh. Could’ve just said “sorry” and move on, he was clearly not waiting for you to explain why you didn’t follow the people in front of you ! And you were still holding up the queue !

The people behind him looked at you as if you were crazy and let out an exasperated sigh making you understand you really should get a move on. But him ? Oh he was actually smiling at you, as if you were the most captivating thing he ever saw.

You turned your back to him unable to withhold this strange look of his, and tried to ignore the feelings of his eyes fixed on you as you finally moved. A few minutes passed, and you were almost at the end of the line when he bend forwards a bit and said :

“I agree with you, by the way. It’s really weird that rides exist about actual people, no matter how odd those people are. Though I think I’d be very much interested in a Queen’s related ride.”

Uh ? “Queen” ? Like the band ? Why was he...oh. Oh right. He was pointing at the shirt you were wearing. Queen. One of your favorite band. Of course. You smiled awkwardly at him and said :

“I’m sure that’d be a fabulous ride. A roller coaster kinda like the “Rock’N’Roller coaster” of Disney, but instead of Aerosmith, Queen would be blasting. I’m all for a ride with images of them wearing women clothes flashing all around ! Oh...Which made me realize, I guess the rides here aren’t the only one themed on real people, since the one in Disney has Aerosmith...”

He chuckles a bit and your heart skip a beat. Was he mocking you, or thinking you were funny ? Were there actually a difference between the two ?

“Well I guess it’s more like “starring Aerosmith”, rather than about them right ? I believe only Six Flags, has this...hero theme. Based on real people. To be honest I’m surprised Luthor hasn’t sued the parks yet.”

“Doesn’t he own them ? I feel like he does. And it wouldn’t be that surprising that a megalomaniac like him has a ride design after himself. As if he’s proud that he fought against Superman once or twice...I’m not even sure he’s aware that makes him a villain in many people’s book !”

“Oh I think he knows, but he doesn’t really give a damn.”

“Kinda...admirable ? Daring to be himself ? Or totally creepy, given who he seems to be, pick one really.”

Once again, he chuckles and he’s about to say something..but it’s your turn to go fill an empty seat and, not wanting to hold up the queue again, you rush towards the place the park’s employee shows you and sit down.

You notice Bruce Wayne looking at you, as he passes next to you to go take an empty seat too a few row behind you, and amongst the excited chattering of people, you’re pretty sure you heard him say “Admirably creepy ?” or something like that as he passed you...Which made you smile stupidly.

You don’t dare turning around to look at him, that would also be “admirably creepy” right ? ...A shame really, maybe if you had, you would have seen him desperately trying to catch your eyes again, and staring at your (beautiful) back.

************

After this first encounter, you saw him a few more times. After the third “Single Rider Line”, he told you to call him “Bruce”, and you gave him your name too. He smiled and said it was a beautiful name...Such a typical flirty line. And yet it made you happy.

Each time you saw him, he magically ended up behind you (no seriously, a few times you were pretty sure he wasn’t there at first and then he just started to talk to you...it was almost disturbing ! Almost, because man was he actually a funny guy, and so. Damn. Handsome !).

You ended up talking about how coming to an amusement parks with an odd number of people sucked, because one always ended up alone...But also how neither of you actually minded that much being on your own.

Funny enough, you both appreciated the break it gave you from the people you came with. You from your talkative friends, and him from his energetic kids.

You discovered as well, that beyond your shared love of “Queen”, you had a lot in common. Starting with how you seemed to both overly enjoyed this shameless flirting you did in that infamous “Single rider line”...

You knew it was a bad idea, because he had quite a reputation of being the biggest womanizer of them all, but you just couldn’t stop yourself from answering his flirting. Because even if he saw you just as another woman to flirt with...well it was still kinda flattering.

Because you saw the woman he paraded at his arm. They were all absolutely gorgeous and talented people too ! So the fact he took an interest in you, amongst all the other people at the park that day...Flattering.

Even more so since there were definitely more than one woman and man trying to catch his attention, or trying to spark a conversation with him. He turned them all down, while he kept talking with you about wether “Brad Pitt” deserved his own ride or not...Your conversation often turned silly, and yet it was just so fun and natural !

It’s been a very long time, since you enjoyed talking with a “stranger” that much.

And for Bruce ? Well, he hadn’t had that much fun in a long time too. Hadn’t had a “normal” conversation with anyone in forever. It was nice, to not talk business, money or superheroes stuffs for once, and just converse about anything and everything !

************

Midday came too soon. By that time, you and Bruce “accidentally” ran into each other in that single rider line about a dozen times. And by then, you even started to kinda nod at each others when your group would encounter his randomly around the park !

You were sitting at a table, enjoying a burger and fries with your friends, when Alex exclaimed, a bit too excited :

“Ok (Y/N), don’t turn around and don’t freak out, but I think Bruce Wayne is totally staring at you !”

“Uh ? What ?!”

“I said don’t turn ar...oh here we go, now you’re going to...Oh wait, he’s smiling at you, why is he...Hey, do you have something to tell us, (Y/N) ?”

It was a stupid reflex, that made you turn around. How is it that when someone said “don’t turn around”, it was too tempting for you not to ? Unfortunately this time your eyes encountered Bruce Wayne’s, and his devastating smile made your heart beat wildly !

And of course, your friends picked up on it right away. Oh man. You would never hear the end of it !

“Why is Bruce Wayne smiling at you like an attention starved puppy ?”

Gabe asks, genuinely interested but with a slight snicker in his voice. And you’re suddenly even more embarrassed. You know them, they’re definitely going to tease you a bit about this. You try to deflect his question by answering with some wits and acting as if you didn’t understand, but the gaze Bruce gave you kinda fried your brain and you can only think of saying a weak :

“Puppies don’t smile. Even more so if they’re starved. I’d think they’d actually get quite desperate and not smile, if they were starving...”

“Well kinda exactly what I meant (Y/N).Plus I said “attention starved” not “starved starved”, you know exactly what I meant ! He looks really desperate to catch your attention !”

“Stop it Gabe ! He isn’t !”

You’re blushing now, and they start to feel a bit bad that they’re pressing you to say something you clearly don’t want to talk about. Out of the three of you, you were always the shyest. You were a good listener and problem solver, but didn’t particularly like talking about yourself that much...Alex says :

“Ok you don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to.”

You’re relieved...Only for a second though. Of course, they wouldn’t let it go that easily. Alex continues :

“But if you do want to talk about it...I’m really curious, and I’m sure Gabe is too. So if you decide, hypothetically, to explain to us how you two know each others, we’re all ears. Remember we’re your best friends, we tell you everything about us. We trust you.”

You roll your eyes at them. Ugh. How were you suppose to not tell them now ? Nasty “guilt-trippers”. You glare at them a bit, even if their fake innocent look want to make you smile, before saying :

“We met in the single rider line. You know, that line you guys don’t want to go to because you can’t bear to wait on your own...Truly, who are the attention starved puppies ?”

Silence. Totally ignoring your little tease, they both look at you, pressing you with their body langage to say more, but you don’t seem to want to and Alex, exasperated exclaims :

“Um, elaborate please ?! Doesn’t explain why he’s literally eating you up with his eyes right now !”

You roll your eyes once more at your friend’s typical exaggeration (though for once, he wasn’t actually exaggerating...) and say :

“There’s nothing much to say more ! We met a few times and talked a bit and that’s it ! Really guys, that’s it ! I don’t know why he’s looking at me now ok ? He’s probably not even looking anymore and talking with his kids so shush about it already.”

“Actually, he’s still looking at you and his kids are fighting over fries...He doesn’t even seem to notice them while I’m pretty sure that boy is choking that other boy for real ! And he’s now looking at you like a sad starving puppy.”

“Ok you have got to STOP with this puppy thing ! “Sad starving puppy”, what ? At least the “attention starved puppy” made sense ! And stop talking about Bruce Wayne ok ? Moving on !”

“But he’s really...”

“Eat your salad Gabe ! And you too Alex ! And shush !”

And oh when you’re like this, annoyed at them for trying to get you to talk about yourself, it’s impossible to keep talking to you. They missed their beats. There was a way to make you talk, and they took the wrong one that day. They were too excited and in a hurry to know, they should’ve taken their time...Now, you wouldn’t say anything more, they knew it.

And so they stuff their mouth aggressively with salad (to show you they’re not happy) and skulk for a bit, wishing that they could talk about you and Bruce Wayne some more, and about how he seemed to totally dig you !

Of course, both Gabe and Alex knew you very well. They knew you’d never believe them about that, you were too stubborn. They knew that in your head, a guy like Bruce Wayne couldn’t be interested in you. But they also both knew that look in Bruce Wayne’s eyes.

Definitely “starved puppy desperate for you to give him some food”.

************

Lunch was now over, and you all decided to take a little break from the roller coasters, pretty sure you might throw up if you went on a ride right away. You sat down on a patch of grass to relax a bit.

You were listening to Gabe and Alex blabbering about something when...Wait ? Why are they silent ? Gabe and Alex are usually never silent ? You look at them, worried.

“Guys ?”

Gabe starts first :

“I think there was something not very fresh in that salad.”

Alex continues :

“Agreed. My stomach is not happy right now...(Y/N), could you get us some water from the fountain over there ? Our bottles are empty...”

“Of course of course. Just stay there, lie down a bit if need be. I’ll get you some water.”

You rise to your feet and walk straight to the water fountain and...Oh those motherfuckers ! Stomach ache my ass !! How...How could they ? HOW DARED THEY ?!

You turned around, fury in your eyes, and stare daggers at them. They smile smugly at you and wave their hands at you in an infuriating way and...

“Ok, now I’m sure you’re the one following me !”

A silky voice tells you. You turn to it and...Yup. Sure enough it’s Bruce Wayne, drying his mouth with his sleeve as he just drunk from the water fountain. He managed to make that unrefined gesture look elegant...

Oh man. How did you even fall for such an easy trick ? Your “friends” must have seen Bruce and throw you directly into his arms...hrrrm, this trap !

“Ah no I’m uh...just...filling up water...I mean, filling up some bottles with water.”

He smiles at you and say :

“I can see.”

There’s a small silence, and none of you move. You don’t go to the fountain, and he doesn’t walk away. He seems to hesitate about something, and you’re just...Frozen in place, thinking about all the ways you’ll torture your friends when you’ll get your hands on them ! Finally, he speaks :

“So um, you didn’t leave me time to answer your question, last single rider’s line.”

Your heart skips multiple beats. “Your question”. Why was he following you, right ? You were still not ready to hear the answer, but there was nowhere to escape ! Fortunately, before he could continue, a kid that couldn’t be more than ten years old rushed toward him and said :

“Come on father, quick quick ! The line for the big drop thing is really small ! Let’s go ride it four times in a row !!”

The kid now pulls on his sleeve, and Bruce gives you an apologetic look. It seems he really wanted to tell you why he was “following” you...You’re almost disappointed.

Almost, because you totally forgot about your two sneaky friends ! Alex and Gabe arrives, holding their stomach as if they were about to die. Goddamn drama queens !

“Oh (Y/N), where is that water we neeeeeeeed ?”

“I actually think I’ll throw the water up...I think we should go home...”

“But, but it’s (Y/N)’s first day off in ages ! We can’t go home right after lunch like that, so early ! She was so happy about coming here...If only there was a way she could stay longer ! ”

Goddamn. Sneaky. BASTARDS !! You were glaring at them now, threatening them with your eyes, telling them they had to stop. And oh god you could see them looking at Bruce insistingly. Oh no, no no no no no, you knew they were trying to get him to jump in and...But it was too late.

“Um, excuse me but um...I couldn’t help but overhear your friends and um...If you really want to stay, you’re welcome to join us.”

You turn around to Bruce, and...Is he blushing ? Yes, yes he totally is !

The young boy who was dragging him away by the sleeve is looking at you curiously (albeit with a bit of hostility), and...Another one of his sons (?), the oldest one it seems, joined him and it looks like he’s kinda pushing him towards you, poking and nudging him in the back.

Your friends and the young man exchange a knowing look, smiling. And...You can’t fucking believe it. What is happening ?

They’re trying to force you and Bruce to talk, that’s what is happening. With a nervous laugh you say :

“Oh no I probably should like...Drive them back to Gotham. With those strong stomach aches they probably can’t d...”

“We’ll take a cab home ! You can take the car back. So really, you can stay with um...your new friends there, and then you can drive yourself home. You know, so it’s not too weird.”

You know exactly what Alex just implied there. Yes. Ok. Bruce giving you a ride home would be a bit too extra. But they just fixed this issue by leaving you the car and saying they’d take a cab. They give the final blow as Gabe says :

“We really feel too bad, we can’t ruin your only day off like that...Please, stay and enjoy yourself ! You were so happy to come, and you were going on all the ride on your own anyway so worst case scenario...”

Mother. Fuckers. You turn again to them and glare at them, mouthing the words “I’ll kill you” as they try to hide their smug smiles and act as if they’re in too much pain to speak any further.

And there it is, with a weak kiss on your cheek they leave you there, with godammn Bruce Wayne and his kids.

Why are you friend with those people again ? Sneaky bastards.

************

You changed your mind very quickly, and made a mental note that you need to thank Gabe and Alex when you’ll get home.

Sure, you highly disliked to be put on the spot so on the moment, you really hated them and their guts for forcing you to hang out with Bruce...But now ? Now you don’t regret it one bit.

You’re actually pretty thankful they just sacrificed their day out just so you could get to know Bruce a bit more. They obviously saw you had a crush on him...Damn, they knew you too well.

“Hi, I’m Dick ! This is my little brother Damian. And over there are Jason, Tim and Cassandra, my other siblings. Stephanie, long time family friend and Timmy’s girl. Barbara, my girl, also long time family friend. And finally, Duke. Who’s living with us at the moment because of...complicated matters. He’s kind of like a brother too, to be honest. Nice to meet you !”

Oddly enough, that young man, “Dick”, made you comfortable right away. It was probably because of his bright and friendly smile, and that spark in his eyes that made you want to instantly adopt him. You shook his hand and said :

“I’m (Y/N), sorry to um...impose myself.”

Dick laughs and says, the most welcoming smile on his face ever :

“Oh dad invited you ! You’re not imposing don’t worry ! The more the merrier right ?! Plus now, we’re an even number, so we can ride all together ! Also I’m pretty sure he talked about you so...”

“He...He talked about me ?”

Bruce seems to come back to life now, and his blush disappears in a matter of seconds. He smiles widely at you, and says :

“Well, of course I did. It’s not every day I meet an outstanding woman in the line of an amusement park ! I talked about you to reassure them that I didn’t mind that much to be a single rider haha”

You don’t even know what to say, as you didn’t expect him to react that way. You’re wariness about him being a womanizer comes surging back, but...his smile looks so genuine. You saw him on TV, you thought a few time it looked like he was forcing a smile or a laugh...or was this just wishful thinking ?

Dick looks at his father and seems a bit annoyed..Why ? He’s about to say something else but Bruce cuts him off saying :

“Well Damian really wants to do that...Drop thing, so let’s go while the line is still small !”

************

The reason Dick was glaring at his father was because he knows you really are an “outstanding woman”, given how big of a stupid smile his dad had when he came back from that single rider line the first time.

He didn’t talk about you though before the fifth time he volunteered to go on as a “single rider”, as they were an odd number. None of the kids argued, they could see him whenever they got out of a ride and they had too much fun fighting over who would ride with who between them without adding their dad !

Dick seemed to be the only one that noticed Bruce’s dreamy gaze (probably because he was the one that knew him for the longest, and because he was the only one who had him all to himself for quite a few years), and after annoying him with questions he finally got an answer...He had met an “outstanding woman”.

As far as he could remember, this was the first time his father seemed infatuated with someone he barely met. It was odd...And he definitely knew it.

Bruce kept saying how it was ridiculous and meant nothing, he was probably just tired and all. He would eventually get over it ! But he kept talking nonsense about Leonardo DiCaprio deserving his own ride more than Brad Pitt or something ?

As soon as Dick saw you, and the way his father smiled at you...He knew you weren’t “just a weird phase because he was tired”. He knew he wasn’t going to be able to forget about you come down the night.

His dad had crush before, of course. He wasn’t a total machine. He never once invited someone with him at a charity ball that he didn’t kind of like. Wether physically or mentally (or on rare occasions, both). But it was always very short lived. And he never looked at them the way he looked at you, a mere stranger !

The reason Dick was annoyed at his father right now, is because he knew he was going to try to make you think you were “just another woman” by giving you big compliments and charming smiles. He was annoyed because he saw the look he gave you, and was sad that he was trying to self-sabotage himself yet again...

************

Bruce’s kids and friends instantly make you feel comfortable and welcome. Well, maybe not his youngest, who keeps acting as if you’re not there. But for the most part, you’re having fun, and his kids are really sweet !

You and Bruce often end up riding together, but a few times you ended up with his other kids ! In fact, you’re pretty sure you rode with all of them but Damian. Pity, from the interaction that kid had with his siblings, he seemed way too cute and all, albeit a bit authoritative.

Oh well. You understood him. After all, he didn’t know you, and you kinda invited yourself so...

As if destiny heard your thoughts, Damian said, while you were going out of the same roller coaster after riding it four times :

"Oh come on let’s ride it one more time !”

“Damian, buddy, I don’t think any of our hearts can handle it...”

“Nonsense Todd ! We’re...um...-he looks awkwardly at you, as if suddenly unsure of what to say- we’re...tougher than this ?”

That was odd. How he suddenly caught himself from saying something...Oh well. Kids.

“I kinda agree with Jason man, I can’t take this anymore. I feel kinda sick...”

“Come on Thomas ! You’re not that weak ! Let’s go agaiiiin !! Father ?”

“Sorry chum, I’m...Done too.”

They all looked rather sick indeed. Well, you understand. You just went through the toughest roller coaster of the entire park four times in a row. Any normal people would get sick...Well it seemed you weren’t quite normal, because you were pretty sure you could go for another round.

“I...I can go with you if you want.”

You shyly say, and the boy turns to you, surprised. It’s the first time he actually takes notice of you. He seems to ponder your offer for a bit...

“Just go. We’ll wait there, I think we all need some rest...”

Dick says, and Damian turns suspicious eyes to you.

“REally ? You want to go again ? Can you go again ?”

You give him a smug smile and say :

“Oh kid, I could go several times more ! I bet you’ll crack before me !”

“Bold assumption...Alright, let’s go again ! And see who will stop first !”

You went to ride it once more. Then twice. Thrice. The fourth time, you told him you guys should make a face when it was time for the picture.

Strangely, he agreed right away, and Bruce loved that said picture so much, of his son being a “normal” boy, that he bought it.

The fifth time you started to feel a bit sick, but Damian was warming up to you and strangely, you really liked that fact.

“Come on miss (Y/L/N), let’s go agaiiiiiiiin !!”

The sixth time, you got out of the ride quite unsteady on your feet, but you still went that seventh time...11.

You went on that ride 11 times in a row.

You were about to tell the kid you couldn’t go one more time or you were pretty sure you’d died, when he turned to you and say :

“I...I don’t think I can go again...”

Thanks GOD ! But he seemed disappointed he had lost, and you suddenly felt the urge to hug that little boy with a sad face...You didn’t though. Something told you you’d ruin this little bond the intensive roller coaster riding created, if you went too fast and hugged him now.

So you smiled and said :

“I’ll tell you what, I’ll go join the other right now, and say you went one more time ok ? So they think you won...I actually don’t think I can go further either, and ending in a tie is no fun right ?”

He turns to you, and looks at you curiously...before smiling widely at you and nodding vigorously (which makes him almost fall on his ass, as the rollercoaster riding kinda mess a bit with his internal ear). There was a sort of very cute innocence, in the boy’s smile. You had the weird feeling that it was an emotion that he rarely showed, and felt oddly happy you managed to get it out of him.

************

After that, Damian started to want to go on ride with you, which surprised everyone. Even Bruce, who kept looking at you more and more intensely. You were definitely...Something else.

You impressed the hell out of Jason when you shot all the targets at the laser game ride (you didn’t dare to tell him it was definitely beginner’s luck).

Cassandra gave you a soda and said the words “Cola. For you.” which made her entire family stare at the two of you...She so rarely spoke !

Stephanie and Tim loved your nerdy talk, and were impressed with your knowledge of video games ! Somehow, you ended up promising to add them as friend on your PS4 and...you looked at Bruce a bit worried he might think you were a goddamn child though you weren’t much younger than him, but he only smiled fondly at you.

Duke and you bonded over your weird love for crosswords...You’re pretty sure you heard Tim said “nerd”, as you guys tried to make each other guess what you were saying by only using words’ definition crosswords style ! None of the rest of the family understood, as you and Duke laughed at jokes you made with those definitions of words that would form sentences once cracked...

Dick liked you instantly. He thought you had a kind smile and the way you seemed to fit in with the rest of his family felt natural. He barely knew you, but he really liked you. Barbara agreed, she had known Bruce for a long time too and never saw him act like that with anyone. She liked you too, almost as instantly as Dick did.

Another one that really liked you...As the day went on, Bruce realized he was completely screwed.

************

The end of the day drew near, and Bruce was faced with a dilemma. What was he suppose to do ? He couldn’t forget you, and the wonderful day he just had.

First the entire morning “accidentally” running into you in the single rider line (he actually always managed to stir his kids towards the rides he saw you going to...). Talking to you as if you two were old friends while you barely actually knew each others.

Conversation just ran so smoothly between you two. So smoothly in fact, that many times your conversation were abruptly stopped by the fact you had to get on the rides, and yet started again as if nothing the next line.

And then during lunch, how he couldn’t stop looking at you...

Finally, how you spend the afternoon with him and his family, and it seemed like you were a long time family friend. Seemed like you knew all of them since years. The feeling wasn’t just between you and him, but between you and his entire family.

And he had this odd hunch that if he just let you leave like that...He’d regret it forever.

He never felt that way. He never willingly wanted to invite someone into his crazy life. And the fact that it might be unfair to you, to drag you in said life, didn’t even occur to him, as he was completely blinded by how much he actually...Liked you.

He felt like you were his friend. He wanted to talk more to you.

And here rose the dilemma. Dilemma that was taken away by his youngest son, oddly enough :

“We should come back !”

He exclaimed enthusiastically. And then he turned to you, and in the most natural way ever he said :

“Would you want to come back with us ? We have a record to break on that rollercoaster ! More than eleven...I mean, twelve for me, twelve times in a row !”

You smiled, and said you’d love to break that record with him, and that’s what decided Bruce. You had to stay in their life. It was a deep gut wrenching feeling, that he couldn’t let you go...But what should he do then ?

“Cool ! Then you should like...Maybe give us your number or something ? So we can settle a date ?”

He couldn’t believe he didn’t think about it before. Yes of course. As simple as that. Ask for her number. Uh. You were really messing with his brain.

“Oh, of course Damian. Um...Here, one of my card.”

“Oh nice card ! ...You’re a writer ?!”

“Yeah, kinda I guess..Um. Well, it’s getting late and I have...many deadlines haha, I should um, get back. Don’t hesitate to call next time you’ll go to Six Flags !”

And with that, you wave at them. They wave at you. You all exchange a “nice to meet you”, and leave. Wearing the same stupid smile on your faces.

Damian stuffs the card with your number in his father’s pocket, and says :

“I LIKE her !”

Before merrily walking towards their own car...And Bruce cannot remember a time Damian looked that careless and happy ? All of that because you gave him attention and went on that ride with him, until you physically couldn’t anymore ?

“Yeah...Yeah me too...”

Bruce whispers, as he get in front of the wheel, listening to his kids talking about how awesome that day was. How glad they were that they went on that little family outing, and how cool you were...

************

You can’t stop thinking about Bruce. And his family. He has such cute kids ! They’re all so smart and sweet and funny !

You sigh. You hope they’ll call you so...an unknown number appears on your phone’s screen. Could it be ? No. Not so early. It’s probably some unknown solicitors ! You answer and...

“Um, hello, (Y/N) ?”

It’s definitely his voice. Definetely.

“Bruce ?”

“Ah, yes, yes it’s me. Um...So I’m calling because I um...”

“Yes ?”

“I realized I never told you.”

“Told me what ?”

“Why I was following you.”

“Oh right. Yes. That haha. Um...Why ?”

“Well um...I kinda liked to talk to you.”

“...Ye-yeah ?”

Your heart is pounding. You can’t stop smiling. His next words make you feel like you’re about to die of happiness :

“Yeah. And um...My son, Dick. He said um...Well he said that when you really like someone, you shouldn’t wait before calling them.”

************

It took years for you to become an official member of the “Batfamily”, but you eventually got there, after many hardships and...Day at Six flags.

It took years, but you eventually became the center piece of this family...And years later, the Six Flags near Gotham was still a prime location for the Wayne family’s vacation.

Every year, you would all go there for at least a day and forget about all your worry. Even if sometimes, a few fights would occur...You still remember that time they opened a new ride called “Robin”, and your sons fighting to know which one of them inspired it !

Yes. Every year, you’d go back, remembering that fateful day that changed all of your lives.

But this year was special...This year, was the first time your youngest son, Thomas, would go too. He was finally tall enough to go on all the rides, and overly excited about it !

And oh when he asked to get a “Green Lantern” cape, you knew it was going to be a great day, if only for your husbands disgruntled face as he paid for the cape, while the rest of the kids were laughing their asses off.

__________________________________________________

Um. Just a sucky story written very quickly during my lunch break. This ended up being much longer than the mini-fic I originally wanted to write, and ate most of my lunch (HAHA !) ^^'. I hope you still liked it...Um :/ ok. Yes. Voilà. I’ll spare you my usual speech about how insecure I am about this story, you know the drill. Bam. VOILA.

As usual, feedbacks and reblogs are more than welcomed. It always motivates me to write more, and also helps sharing my stories more broadly.

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timeturner-jay · 5 years

Text

A Logical Solution to Relationship Problems, as Presented by Robin

Fandom: Young Justice Rated: T (for some swearing) Characters: Artemis Crock, Dick Grayson Pairings: Background Spitfire, pre-Traught if you want to read it that way.

Summary: Artemis has a fight with Wally. Robin knows just the thing to cheer her up. (Gotham Gang bonding by doing Gotham Things together. I will die on this hill.) Canon compliant.

Artemis groaned and slumped against the wall, drawing her knees up to her chest and letting her phone slip out of her fingers, absently watching it land on the mattress with a light bounce.

She had the vague urge to punch something, and she eyed her pillow disdainfully; it wasn't a villain or her idiot of a boyfriend, but it would have to do.

In the end, slamming her fist into the soft material turned out to be less satisfying than she had anticipated – if anything, it only made her feel even more frustrated.

She opted for hugging it to her chest instead as she buried her face in the pillowcase and muttered half-hearted curses into it.

What a shitty night.

Wally was great. He was sweet, he was funny – and he was utterly clueless sometimes.

Artemis let out a huff and glared at her phone like the device was at fault for the fight that had sprung up between her and the speedster.

It had only been three months since that fateful New Year's Eve at the Watchtower. Her rational mind whispered that they were still figuring things out between themselves, and that misunderstandings were bound to happen. Her fist, however, said that it would very much like to punch someone's teeth in instead of worrying about technicalities.

She let her head drop back against the wall dramatically and buried her bare toes further into her comforter. God, this was so stupid. She was acting like a typical teenager in some romcom. This was almost as bad as Hello, Megan. Not that she'd ever say that to M'gann's face, but the Martian's favourite TV show contained exactly the kind of drama that Artemis didn't want in her life. Period.

Still though, her wounded pride stung.

She was itching to go out and do something, but this was Gotham. Batman didn't like other heroes in his city, and she had a reputation to uphold with her hero identity anyway. Artemis was supposed to be a Star City heroine. She couldn't just show up in Gotham City unannounced, or people would start asking questions.

Artemis was just considering the benefits of making the long trek down to the Zeta Tube when a polite knock on her window startled her so badly that she almost fell off her bed.

She was on the fifth floor.

What the fuck.

In one fluid movement, she dove forward, drew her pistol crossbow out from under her bed and trained it on the window, staring through the dirty glass pane with adrenaline-fuelled focus.

Robin grinned awkwardly and waved his free hand in a gesture of cheerful surrender.

Dropping her crossbow in a mixture of baffled surprise and bemused annoyance, Artemis got to her feet and made her way over to the window.

She pulled it open with a little more force than strictly necessary.

“What do you want?”, she asked drily.

Robin gave her a cheeky smile as he climbed all the way up and perched on her windowsill. “Aww, and I'm happy to see you too, Arty!”, he exclaimed.

He then sobered a little. “Actually, I've had a certain speedster whine to me about his relationship problems for the last four hours. He has now succeeded in eating himself into a chocolate-induced coma, so I wanted to check up on you. Wally was mostly feeling sorry for himself, but you-”, he gestured awkwardly, completely failing to underline his point in any meaningful way.

The vigilante huffed and started over. “I thought you might like someone to talk to too. I pride myself on being an impartial and very objective neutral party!”

Artemis felt oddly touched amidst her annoyance, but there was also something else that was very much bothering her.

“How the fuck do you even know where I live, Boy Wonder?”

His smile became sheepish.

“I've always known”, he admitted uncomfortably. “Detective, remember? Actually, Batman had me do surveillance on you for a few days before he offered you that spot on the Team. Sorry about that. The only thing that we knew back then was that Sportsmaster's daughter was running around the city in a costume, but we figured out pretty quickly that you were on our side.”

He coughed awkwardly.

“Bats didn't want you doing the hero-thing in Gotham, at least not unsupervised, so I suggested adding you to the Team instead. That way, you'd get some contacts in the Justice League, better equipment and better chances to help out where it counted. He thought it was a good idea, so he made the arrangements to meet you together with GA.”

Artemis just stared at him, struck dumb.

“Okay. I have no idea if I want to hit you or hug you right now”, she muttered darkly. “But Robin? That's creepy. Seriously, why must you ninja-types always pull weird shit like that?”

His grin regained some of its previous brightness, but the rest of his body language made it clear than he was definitely feeling at least somewhat embarrassed. “Yeah, I know. Sorry again. But I'm glad that I finally got to tell you. Playing dumb about the whole situation in front of you and the Team was really frustrating.”

He got up and hopped off the windowsill, landing inside her room in one annoyingly graceful movement.

“And don't worry. Your secrets are safe with me. I won't tell anyone that you're really a Gothamite, if you'd prefer your private life to stay private. Trust me, I get it.”

Artemis snorted. That, at least, she could easily believe. “No doubts there, Mr. Sunglasses-Indoors”, she teased and lightly boxed him on the shoulder.

He grinned up at her without a hint of remorse, bowing with a dramatic flourish. “I aim to please.”

As Robin straightened back up, she gave him a critical glance. “Thanks for the offer to talk, I guess”, she said, bending down to collect her crossbow off the floor. It wouldn't do to leave her weapons lying around.

She gazed at the well-worn fibreglass handle thoughtfully, trailing her finger along the loading mechanism. “But to be honest, this thing Baywatch and me were fighting about is kind of stupid. Talking about it would only make me feel even more annoyed, I think.”

She lifted her eyes, meeting Robin's gaze. “I'd rather let some steam off.”

Her growing grin was mirrored on his face.

Robin's voice was low and conspiratorial as he leaned forward, and his excited energy was contagious. “I know just the thing. Grab your gear.”

“You're insane.” The flat words were matched by Artemis' equally flat expression, but Robin only cackled. He was only further proving her point, as far as she was concerned. He always sounded absolutely bonkers when he did that.

The duo was standing on a bridge overlooking Gotham's impressive network of train tracks, and Artemis tightened her grip on the shaking railing as a freight train sped by beneath their feet, the vibrations prickling up her legs even through her combat boots.

“No, I'm serious”, she argued. “You're insane. Mad. Absolutely out of your mind!”

Robin's laugh only grew louder, and she gave him a sour glare. “Train surfing. There's no way in hell that I'm going train surfing with you. Train surfing isn't even a thing!”

“Sure it's a thing!”, Robin grinned, his voice still airy and breathless from all his stupid laughter. “Believe it or not, Batman is the one who invented it. ...Admittedly though, he probably wasn't expecting me to make a regular hobby out of it.”

Artemis let out another exaggerated groan, but quite frankly, the idea was starting to grow on her. This was absolutely stupid and idiotic. It was the most reckless thing she had ever heard of.

“What the hell”, she sighed, a slow grin growing on her face. “Let's do it.”

“I was hoping you'd say that”, Robin cackled and promptly pulled something out of one of his many hidden pockets.

It looked like two long, black strips of ...fabric? Artemis stared in puzzlement as Robin reached out to hand her one of the things.

She took it and turned it over in her hands, feeling the dense, soft material between her fingers. It felt almost like a-

“No.”

Her eyes met Robin's, and she got the vivid impression that he was winking at her from behind his mask.

“No. No way.”

He just shrugged and proceeded to tie his own blindfold around his head.

An incredulous laugh bubbled up in her chest, and Artemis doubled over, laughing more freely than she had in what felt like years. She felt light and almost dizzy with excited adrenaline.

“Train surfing! While blindfolded! You're a madman!”

Robin shot her a grin that was somehow still just as bright and dazzling, despite half his face being obscured by fabric.

The archer savoured her laughter for a few more moments as it faded away into breathless giggles, and she gripped the black fabric with renewed determination. The grin on her face was excited enough to rival Robin's own as she raised the blindfold up to her face.

“Fuck yeah. Let's go!”

The wind was whipping past her and her whole body felt alive with the intense vibrations that were racing up her legs from the shaking rooftop of the train.

It was surprisingly easy to stay upright – it wasn't her first time standing on a moving train of course, but all the other times, the Mission had been involved somehow; sometimes even to the point that they were battling on top of the speeding trailers.

She had never thought to associate the sensation with fun.

There was a sudden jolt and she stumbled, regaining her footing with a startled laugh that was echoed from where Robin was standing a few feet to her right.

The sounds of traffic approached rapidly and then faded again just as quickly. They must have just crossed one of the highway bridges, which meant they were well out of Gotham by now. She had no idea where they were even going, but she didn't care. The lack of direction suited her just fine tonight.

For a long time, it was just her, the wind and the train beneath her feet, her body intuitively feeling every curve and shift before it happened, moving to adjust for them without any conscious effort of her own.

The excitement that had been bubbling in her veins slowly faded, being replaced by a calm, warm assuredness that settled in her chest and spread through her whole body, leaving a happy tingling in its wake. A small, contented smile curled the corners of her mouth upwards.

She flung her arms wide, feeling the wind rush past her relaxed limbs. It caught her hair and sent her long ponytail streaming out behind her like a golden flag.

She felt so weightless.

It almost felt like she was flying.

The train gave another unexpected jolt, but this time, she just leaned into the wind further and greeted it with an elated cry, trusting her feet to keep her steady as she allowed herself to get lost in the feeling of utter and absolute freedom.

Her head felt clear for the first time in forever, free of all the things that had been tying her down.

There was just the moment, just this point in time.

She knew that the past would catch up to her again once this was over, and that worries for the future wouldn't be far off either, but for now, she was alive right here and now, and nothing else mattered.

Robin thought similarly, if his own delighted shout was anything to go by.

“By the way, Artemis!” His words barely even reached her, torn away by the wind the moment they left his mouth.

“At the speed we're moving, there should be a tunnel coming up very soon!”

As if to confirm his words, there was another jolt and the feeling of the train's vibrations suddenly changed.

Artemis guessed that they must have switched tracks. Damn, Robin was good.

His next shout sounded a lot more urgent. “Basically, DOWN!”

She was on her back almost as soon as the words left Robin's mouth, her hands blindly grasping for purchase on the smooth roof.

Barely a moment later, a solid wall of stale air hit her body, and suddenly, the train's noise was coming from everywhere at once, echoed back at her from within a much smaller space.

The vibrations, now shaking the whole length of her body, tickled her laughter out of her once more, and she didn't care how loud and breathless it was. Robin joined in a moment later, and their shared exhilaration filled up the darkness around them.

“Thanks for tonight”, Artemis said, and she really meant it.

She swayed slightly, her body still moving with the phantom sensations of a train that wasn't there anymore, and she shared a small smile with Robin, who was standing unfairly steadily compared to her.

They had switched trains eventually, boarding one that was heading back to Gotham, and it had taken them a while to make their way back to her decrepit apartment building.

It was probably close to sunrise now, but Artemis was far from tired. She didn't think that she'd be able to get much sleep with the remaining adrenaline that was still thrumming through her body.

Standing next to the familiar brick walls of her home now, she was almost sad that the night was ending. Still though, the calm happiness that had settled in her chest earlier wouldn't be shaken. She didn't think that she had felt this at peace in a long time.

What had she and Wally been fighting about again? It seemed so insignificant now.

She knew that her boyfriend wouldn't be getting up for a few more hours, but she would call him once he'd be getting ready for school.

She needed to apologise and set things right.

There were more important things than petty squabbles, and she certainly wouldn't allow them to get in the way of the people and things she loved.

“You know what? This was exactly what I needed.” She shot Robin a satisfied smirk, which he returned easily enough.

“Next time you go train surfing again, definitely give me a call.”

He grinned. “You got it! I knew you'd love it.”

And yeah, as much as she hated to admit it, she absolutely did. Robin definitely knew how to have a good time, she'd give him that.

“So, huh. Guess I'll be heading back upstairs now”, Artemis said, giving the dark Gotham sky a critical glance. It was as grey as it ever was, but dark enough that she could safely conclude that sunrise was still some ways off.

“Maybe we can both try to get at least a little sleep. We could probably use it.”

Robin gave her a wry nod and made an aborted motion to raise his hand in a cheeky wave, when suddenly, a bright yellow glare lit up the night sky.

Artemis blinked frantically, trying to clear her eyes as she turned them up towards the looming clouds again.

The Bat Symbol stood out in all its glory against the dark smog, and there was the distinct sound of sirens wailing in the distance.

Robin's raised hand dropped back to his side.

“Oh. Huh”, he said. “So much for sleep, I guess.”

He turned back towards Artemis, one of his trademark grins lighting up his face once again.

“Batman is out of town right now, actually. He wants me to keep an eye on things, but this seems like it might be big. Wanna come along? I don't think people will ask too many questions as long as they see you working together with me.”

Taking the invitation for what it was, Artemis answered him with one of her own smirks. “Oh yeah, I've got plenty of energy left. Just try to keep up, Boy Wonder.”

The warm, happy feeling within her chest only grew brighter as Artemis turned to disappear into the shadows of this dark, familiar city alongside her friend.

It felt like coming home.

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aenhanse · 6 years

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Happy Pride Month, Gothamites!

#gothamedit #gotham #transwayne #tusernia #poisonygma #hope you guys don't mind being tagged!#most of these are my personal hc's tbh #but i had a lot of fun doing this #also technically it's still may but i wanted to post this already sdghjds #dc #*#*gifs #*gotham #*100 #*500 #f: dc #tv: gotham #a

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sueboohscorner · 7 years

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Season 4 premiere of #Gotham is here! Review, Rate, Spoilers. Episode one "Pax Penguina"

Greetings and salutations my fellow Gothamites. Yes, it is that wonderful time of year once again; the time for a new season, new characters, and new hero in the making that the city of Gotham truly deserves. A Dark Knight. (See how I added the tagline there?)

A strange system of unionized crime, an exciting new club in town, a Riddler-sicle, some alleyway butt-kicking, and an answer to the question that has been buzzing around for three years: “What the heck happened to Jonathan Crane?”

Season four of Gotham, episode one. Here we go.

And right off the bat, (pun not intended at first, but now that I think about it, pun totally intended), we see a masked figure save a family from some thugs with some good old-fashioned fisticuffs. Who was that masked figure you might ask? Why, it’s Bruce Wayne (David Mazouz) dabbling in some vigilantism (and doing a pretty good job so far, I might add). After the skirmish, Bruce discovers that the thugs possessed a license with a very familiar umbrella-shaped stamp on it.

Elsewhere, without Bruce’s knowledge, Ra’s al Ghul (Alexander Siddig) observes Bruce’s escalades like a mentor watches a student or how a father watches his own son.

We then see a wedding in progress. Everyone’s having fun, they’re happy, the band pulls a proper Rick Rolling, and a good time is being had by all. But since this is Gotham City, the celebration is cut off, of course, by some hicks in masks and armed to the teeth. You know the drill, they demand cash, phones, jewelry, valuables and nobody gets hurt. You know how you do.

A whistle rings through the hall; almost like a signal. Everyone turns their heads to see…. Victor Zsasz (Anthony Carrigan)! Man, I’ve missed him!

He, in his own way, politely informed the gunmen that in order to commit a crime in Gotham, you gotta have a license; and the only way to get a license is to ask the Penguin and give him a good cut of the earnings. As long as you have those licenses, you can commit a crime without being arrested or persecuted by the police. The leader of the hicks, Merton (Michael Buscemi), says hell to the no on that offer. In return, Zsasz shoots his finger clean off, causing the hicks to run along. The bride and groom thank Victor for saving their wedding from the thugs….only to be bombarded by other thugs that do have a license.

What did you expect? It’s Gotham.

Meanwhile, in a creepy, dimly lit, congressional looking room, the new Mayor and commissioner of Gotham are having a meeting with the former mayor and now full-time Kingpin Oswald Cobblepot (Robin Lord Taylor). And, basically, since Penguin has organized and unionized crime, the crime rate has been cut by 57%. A historic low for the city of Gotham. Mayor Burke (Larry Pine) is all-in-all “thankful” for Penguin’s um…”contributions” to help keep the city safe, but he is still hesitant about the new licensed criminals’ system. With a somewhat calm exterior and a smile, Penguin insists on how exactly the hordes of criminals that once prowled the streets of Gotham…

First, he hunted them down, then he-

Okay, okay fine. Use your imagination. The point is: Oswald Cobblepot mad Gotham City safer. However, Gotham will ALWAYS have crime. And all that he’s asking from Mayor Burke is to have crime be put in the hands of professionals. A simple deal with simple terms….well, yeah, I mean, Penguin does get a sweet profit from it; but being the expert negotiator he is, Mayor Burke and the commissioner get a little percentage of the profits themselves.

Unionized crime, no press, no police interference, and a piece of the pie for everyone. God bless America.

We finally see Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie) make an appearance as he takes a visit to a bar for his coffee. Unfortunately, Jim stumbled upon a random thug robbing the bartender at gunpoint. Jim gets ready to do his GCPD thing when the thug tells him that he has a license…….needless to say, Jim Gordon does not give a single rat’s ass and arrests the fool. Ah, good old Jim. Good to be back.

At Wayne Manor, Alfred (Sean Pertwee) confronts Bruce about his late night activities. While Bruce informs Alfred that he intends to stop Penguin’s new crime syndicate. Such a busy boy Master B is.

Remember those hicks at the wedding? We see Merton and his partner Grady (Michael Maize) take a stroll down to Arkham Asylum to visit a certain patient. A certain patient that we have not seen in three years or so: Jonathan Crane (Charlie Tahan).

(It’s been so long!)

In his years of confinement, the effects of the fear toxin, created by his whack-a-doo father, are still well within Jonathan’s system; causing him to live with his mind being in a constant state of fear which had left Jonathan traumatized and with a self-made, imagined “Boogeyman” scarecrow-like being that haunts him. Merton and Grady bribe the Warden of Arkham (Damian Young) to let them take Jonathan Crane with them. They drag him out of his cell and close up to see a drawing that Jonathan had been scribbling on the floor almost obsessively.

They take Jonathan back to his home and uncover more of his father’s experimental drugs for the fear toxin. With the use of an actual scarecrow, Merton and Grady force Jonathan to make more of the toxin, which they have weaponized and use it to rob a bank on live television to show that Penguin a lesson.

While investigating the crime scene, Jim notices that the method the hick thugs used was very similar to Gerald Crane’s fear toxin and informs his partner in crime Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue). From this, they deduce that Merton must have forced Jonathan to reveal the fear toxin formula.

Jim and Harvey pay a visit to the Warden at Arkham Asylum, which wasn’t exactly very fruitful. So, they go to Grady’s apartment. Unfortunately for them, he and Merton were waiting for them. The head hick Merton explains that they want to send a message to Penguin about him and his licenses.

Elsewhere, we see Selina Kyle (Camren Bicondova) walking alone at night in an alley. Since this is Gotham, a bunch of muggers take notice and surround her.

But guess what? Selina was hoping they would do that and then she pulled out that whip and when ALL KINDS of proto-Catwoman on them! One guy tries to get up and attack Selina from behind when Tabitha Galavan (Jessica Lucas) and knocks him right upside the head. This was a teaching moment for Tabitha to give to Selina. Never turn your back on a guy unless you know for sure that he’s down. And a lesson learned means pizza for Selina and Tabby.

After bringing a box of pepperoni-covered goodness back to their apartment, Tabitha and Selina see that Victor Zsasz has been waiting for them. Though he did not come with violent intentions, Victor did come with a request: that Tabitha and Selina should come over to Penguin, get a license, and let a lot of vicious and scaring bygones be vicious and scaring bygones. Selina full-heartedly agrees with the promise of more power, money, and a better place to live. Having her pride, Tabitha refuses.

At the not-yet-opened Iceberg Lounge, Oswald Cobblepot gives a statement to inaugurate his new club. A club to see and be seen. The conference of reporters inquire about the new licenses and crime in the city. Oswald gives a rousing statement about how Caesar Augustus once had a period of calm with rarely any violent acts of crime or aggression. He called it “Pax Romana”. Cobblepot goes on to state that without the GCPD getting in the way, this could possibly be known as his “Pax Penguina.”

Oswald then reveals his most “interesting” centerpiece: Edward Nygma, the Riddler himself (Corey Michael Smith) completely frozen solid.

(Eh, I’ve already made like a ton of ice puns….)

Making use of the advice that Bruce gave him, Jim Gordon marches into the club and informs Penguin that the gang of hicks (look, I know they probably have a better name than that, but once you watch the episode, you’d call them the same thing) are coming after Penguin with fear toxin. Jim’s threat and antagonizing goads Oswald into wanting to catch the gang of hicks for himself.

Opening night of the Iceberg Lounge is going splendidly. The sights, lights, sounds, music, the mingling, the top-drawer of Gotham’s society attending, and the apropos ice-themed décor makes it look like a gathering of Gatsbys. Bruce Wayne and Alfred Pennyworth are even in attending too. However, Bruce has more of a hidden agenda to be there than just to make an appearance as a Wayne. He means to uncover any information he can get about Penguin’s new licenses for legal crime. Bruce and Oswald have a conversation underlined with so much more that what is being said. Very Batman, I might add.

Without realizing it completely, Oswald reveals that he is working with a man that has a list of people with licenses. Bruce intends to make his move until he sees Selina Kyle from across the room.

Ignoring Bruce and focusing on her true intention, Selina talks to Victor Zsasz about agreeing to get a license. Victor implies that the deal was meant for her and her babysitter, Tabitha. Coincidentally, Tabitha shows up behind Selina and agrees to get a license from Penguin.

Meanwhile, the gang of hicks decide to attack Penguin at his inauguration. With Jonathan have made more of the fear toxin, they take the scarecrow, throw it in a closet and Jonathan along with it, locking the door.

In his fear-induced hallucination, Jonathan sees the scarecrow come to life once again and comes toward him. Trying with all of his might, with his primal screams of terror, and plead after plead to let him out of the closet, Jonathan is completely alone, completely trapped with his personal boogeyman.

Jonathan falls to the ground, cowering, whimpering, and shaking. His hallucination calls out to him, “Jonathan….Jonathan….Jonathan…

JONATHAN!”

Back at the Lounge, or more likely, outside the Lounge, Bruce meets up with Selina who is walking along the rooftop.

The conversation that commences between them, how can I put it? It’s probably one of the most Batman talking to Catwoman and Selina Kyle talking back to Bruce Wayne thing I have ever seen.

Bruce apologizes for snapping at Selina the way he did back at the hospital. Selina plays coy and insists that she can’t hear him unless he comes to the edge of the roof with her. Bruce walks along the ledge with no problem, which impresses Selina. The reunion of star-crossed vigilantes is interrupted by Alfred who informs Bruce that there is a situation building inside.

The gang of hicks, you know, as AMAZINGLY SUBTLE AS THEY ARE, managed to get caught by Penguin and Zsasz and are brought out in the party as an example of criminals without licenses. How if the GCPD and people like the hicks continue, no one is safe. Bruce steps up to Penguin and asks what he plans to do with those criminals. With a quick tilt of the head and a smile, Oswald insures that he has nothing to be concerned with regarding that particular subject.

This angers the already scorned Ivy Pepper (Maggie Geha) and she sneaks off to find the main power switch and shut the party down.

The sudden blackout causes people to panic and, using that panic to their advantage, the gang of hicks sprays Oswald Cobblepot with the fear toxin, causing him to hallucinate a monstrous version of Edward Nygma coming back to life.

Honestly, when I first saw the image of hallucination Edward, it kinda reminded me of those reptile-like people you see in those Believe It Or Not books.

With Jim, Bullock, Alfred, and Zsasz trying to find and fight the hicks, Grady manages to get away. A quivering and distraught Oswald is left grasping onto Jim Gordon, suffering the devastating effects of the fear toxin.

The next night, in full mask and overcoat, Bruce manages to get the list of other criminals with licenses. (Also, in a very Batman-like way). On a rooftop, Bruce accidentally comes upon a robbery in progress. As he leans in closer on the window overlooking the scene, the structure breaks and Bruce falls into the building. In a hurry, the burglars leave. Sirens can be seen and heard from the outside, leaving Bruce being caught without his mask.

Back at the Crane House, Grady to get more of the fear toxin from Jonathan. He goes to the closet and calls out for him, “Jonathan! Hey, Crane!”

Only a distorted voice answers back.

“Jonathan Crane isn’t here anymore.”

Grady adjusts his eyes to the horror, the creature inside the closet where Jonathan Crane once was. A hemp-like material stretched, wrapped, and sewed around him like skin. Spikes of straw seeping out of his body. Two dark circles with a glowing white hue stare straight at Grady.

“IT’S JUST THE SCARECROW!”

PHEW! There was a lot stuff going on in this premiere!

First off: it was a very well shot episode and a very, VERY well written episode. Even though, with some episodes, when Gotham puts so much in an episode, it does feel rushed and too busy. This episode did not. Yes, there was lot going on, but the pacing of both the dialogue and action was very well done.

THINGS I LIKED:

I think I can speak for the majority for the Gotham audience when I say,

“Yes! Victor Zsasz! Yes!”

Anthony Carrigan brings so much weight to a character in the Batman comics that isn’t very well known. I absolutely love Carrigan’s approach to Zsasz. His brand of crazy and psychotic reality is very evident in his speech, his movement; Do not misunderstand, the character of Zsasz in both Gotham and in the comics is as insane and threatening, but in Gotham, this Zsasz doesn’t need to go full crazy with his tally marks and constant need for liberation. Carrigan plays at Victor Zsasz’s madness like he had a mesh lid on it. He doesn’t just bombard the audience with crazy all the time, but now and again, the sadistic killer seeps through and you can tell that Anthony Carrigan is loving every minute of it and so are we.

I would like to see more scars on Zsasz, or have them continue some focus on the tally marks on his body like they did in the first season. I think it would be cool if we could intermittently see more and more tallies accumulate.

I love what they did with Jonathan Crane and I love what Charlie Tahan did with him too. Well done. And I’m not just saying this cause Scarecrow is one of my top ten favorite Batman villains. His transformation into the Scarecrow, I really liked too. His fear, his hallucination, his own boogeyman completely consumed what was left of Jonathan Crane. When he said “Jonathan Crane isn’t here anymore”, he actually means it. I have got to give major props to the writers for doing so much and doing it so well with Jonathan in just ONE episode. I can’t wait to see what Scarecrow has up his newly parchment sleeve.

It is so nice and refreshing to see Oswald Cobblepot go back to being a crime boss and back to being the Penguin. Creating a system of unionized crime that is legal in a way that actually makes sense, getting the Mayor of Gotham and the commissioner of the police department to agree to this system, take a part in it, and look the other way, stealing the Sirens’ Club and making it his infamous Iceberg Lounge, parading his defeat of the Riddler and making it seem like he’s helping a friend with a rare brain disease (freaking hilarious by the way. He just had that story teed up and ready to go), cutting down the crime rate by 57%, and doing all this while keeping a smile on his face and having an answer and response for anything that comes his way.

I also enjoyed his little moment of vulnerability as he had a private talk with himself and the green popsicle. “Which one of us is really frozen?” Quite the ponder.

Of course, seeing Bruce getting more comfortable in being a vigilante, but not quite Batman yet, is always a treat. I spazzed out like such a nerd during his talk with Jim Gordon and how he left the conversation before it was over. Just the whole conversation was such a Gordon/Batman moment.

I did like the conversation between Bruce and Selina. It was very coy and it had such undertone to it.

Basically any moment with Harvey Bullock is awesome.

THINGS I DID NOT LIKE:

If I had a dollar for every time Selina had the attitude of “You don’t know anything about me”, I could afford to go see IT in theaters as much as I damn well please.

Those hicks…….seriously?

As a member of the awesome group called Gotham Addicts, (look them up on Facebook and Twitter, they’re awesome) I asked some good friends of mine in that group to give their take on the episode. And boy, oh, boy, do they have thoughts. They have thoughts, opinions, likes, dislikes, and theories. Check out what these awesome peeps had to say about the episode and on things even I didn’t notice:

“Predictions for Penguin...I feel he will be the one to thaw out Ed. The fear gas will drive him to it to possibly make the scary Ed go away. He might free him. He's the only one who knows how; through Victor Freis. I also feel the fear gas will be used on Bruce, which will be leading to his "BAT" moment and making him Batman.

The show moved at a nice pace. Didn't even realize the time flew by. It left you wanting so much more. I love the fact they jumped right into the story. It didn't need a painful build up. It was good seeing Harvey be Harvey. He got to be heroic before, now he's back to himself and leaving all the rebel cop stuff to Gordon. It was great seeing Gordon, being the cop and not saving the world. I always enjoy the interactions between Gordon and Harvey.

As for the Penguin: It was good to see him return to his old gangster self at the end of season 3...But now he's a huge crime boss and in charge. This is the Penguin he was meant to be. The scene in the mayor's office was the perfect example of his cold calculating mind and his sheer powerful presence. They couldn't disagree. He made it impossible for them to do so...by his speech. God Bless America...and then the mayor smiled. Awesome scene.

The private moment with his trophy. Or Edward. That was deeper than most think. The “who is really frozen” comment and that look. You can see the warmth that still flickers in his cold heart. The sad sob story about why Ed was in ice and the way he played the heartstrings of his crowd. Damn he's so masterful at manipulating people. A gift. It’s simply a gift.

All the scenes between Penguin and Gordon were classic. Penguin is the hero Gotham NEEDS...Gordon is the Hero they WANT...The news reporters ate up every fact that Penguin threw at them and Gordon still held his ground. The tension between them is just amazing stuff. The ending where after the Penguin calls out the GCPD for being useless and HE was the only one that can save Gotham, then him being hit with the fear gas. Who does Penguin run to? Gordon to save him... just made the whole scene go off the chart when you think of how those in the crowd and readers of the news are feeling.

Even though I didn’t care for the cowboy criminals, I did love the reintroduction of Crane and then Scarecrow...that Warden, what a piece of work...still felt it was rushed compared to the other storylines. The battle of Gordon with the other cops and Harvey about doing the job they were hired to do. Felt like old times. Good times. It's refreshing to see the show get out of the freaks/virus theme and back to go old crime ridden city.”

- S. Howard

“As a fan of Gotham and Batman overall, I'm excited to see these characters finally developing into the Batman characters that we know and love. Bruce is on a mission to save Gotham while also giving this businesslike demeanor when talking to people such as Gordon or Penguin. Selina is bringing cat woman to life with the famous whip play and her cat like reflexes. As for surprised in the episode I was a bit shocked when Ivy betrayed Penguin in a small way and turned out the lights in the nightclub, giving the “Outlores” the advantage to attack Penguin. Although, now that I think about it, her actions were understandable. Penguin has been cold and calculating for the past six months and has probably been very snappy with her. The poor girl is only going to take so much of his abuse. As for Penguin himself, he has taken Gotham city by the throat and refuses to let go. The city is his giant playground with him issuing legal licenses for crime and all. I actually had an "awe" moment when he was standing in the Iceberg Lounge talking to Edward Nygma, who is still encased in ice. To me, that scene showed that he still misses Edward and the talks they used to share. I still have hopes that the two will make amends and be friends again.....or maybe more. Although, Penguin's going to have to get past that frightening image of Ed from the fear toxin. This season started off with a bang, and things are only going to get crazier from here. I'm buckling my seat belt and hanging on for dear life because this is going to be one hell of a ride!

It was just little things I noticed when I watched that scene again. First off, the smoke in the background was turning into question marks and the little question marks protruding from Edward's head. This obviously represents the Ed's obsession with riddles and puzzles. As the nightmare sequence progresses, you see that Edward's face becomes distorted and the background turns hazy.....almost like Oswald is gazing at him from underwater, leading back to the point when Edward shot Oswald and tossed him in the river. This could very well be Oswald's greatest fear because it was a point where closest to actually dying......had it not been for Ivy saving him later, and since his "resurrection," Edward's attempted to kill him multiple times and every time, Oswald has escaped.....sometimes within an inch of his life. I believe that nightmare sequence is showing us that Oswald's greatest fear is that Edward will eventually thaw out of the ice and will this time succeed in killing him.”

- Megan R.

Overall, I’d give this episode a 9.8 out of 10

Well, that was one heck of an episode. I don’t think I have much more to say except:

See you next time.

And as always, Stay weird Gotham.

#Gotham (TV series)#Gotham Recap #Gotham

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