#i am not batman give me a billion

[tielt]

yes i do sometimes hear that im a barbie in a barbie world plastic is fantastic that i remember singing along with as a adolescent falsely thinking i was being a silly not barbie girl. i am batman.

#honestly the bit is fan service and we both know it #i am not batman give me a billion #look I need more faceroll trash so I can figure out a more casual approach

[startrekfangirl2233-writes]

‘Cause You’re a Sky Full of Stars (I’m Gonna Give You My Heart)

Part Two of Sometimes All You Need (A Getaway Car)

Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x Reader

Description: After your whirlwind meeting at the bar, you and Jake finally go on your first date.

Disclaimer: Insecurities on the part of Gorgeous Girl,

Warnings: afab!reader

Word Count: 4460

A/N: Hi! I'm back! This concept took over my brain and I had to write Jake and Gorgeous Girl's first date. Like the last installment, I listened to a song to get the creative juices flowing. So without further ado, this part is sponsored by Coldplay's A Sky Full of Stars and this picture of Glen Powell. Thanks to @bradshawsbaby for their service and for bringing that sinful image to my dash! Also I have a billion thanks to @roosterbruiser for proofreading and feedback as well!

AO3: Cross-posted here! My Masterlist

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You wake up slowly, with your mouth fuzzy and eyes screwed shut. Your limbs feel heavy as you sit up, wrapped in a cocoon of your blankets. After detangling yourself, you shuffle into your bathroom and mechanically go about your morning routine. The sun is dipping through the slits in your blinds as you traipse downstairs and wait zombie-like, mug in hand, in front of your coffee maker as it finishes brewing your coffee. The first sip of the rich and dark brew reminds you of the whiskey you’d shared with Jake the night before. Flashes of the night before whirl through your mind as you contemplate whether 10 AM on a Saturday is too early to text him. To let him know that you’re thinking about him. At the very least, you can see if he’s texted you back after all, right?

“Text me, gorgeous girl!” His parting words from the night before sound even sweeter, ricocheting through your mind in the stark morning light as you stand barefoot, in your pajamas and bedhead, on your kitchen tile. Your toes curl unbidden as you think of the look in those green, green eyes as you said goodnight. The thought of those eyes has you unlocking your phone and navigating to your messages. His contact makes you grin. A tipsy, man-drunk you had picked the right choice, leaving 🤠💚 after his name. While the three messages you’d sent the night before are cringy, you’re half expecting there to be no response from Jake at all. But there they are, received at 6:30 in the morning.

You gawp unflatteringly at the screen in your hand. Did he say he dreamed? Of you? It’s official. Jake Seresin is terrible for your mental clarity and your sanity. His messages are giving you whiplash outright. You’re haunting his dreams in one second, and he’s bantering with you about Batman in the next.

You’re not expecting any more responses from him. Anyone awake at 6 AM on a Saturday is sure to have a busy day planned. You, yourself, have plans to meet your best friend for brunch in the city.  So you knock back the remains of your coffee and head back upstairs to get ready.

You see Jake’s response when you’re collecting your things with sunglasses perched on your face nearly an hour later. You’re fully dressed in a graphic t-shirt, cut-offs, and sneakers for brunch.

Butterflies run rampant in your stomach as you hook your phone up to your convertible’s sound system and blast music on the way to the restaurant you’d decided on with your friend for brunch. You meet her there promptly at 11:30, greeting her with hugs and laughter. It isn’t until you’re at the table and each holding a drink, fresh-squeezed orange juice and coffee for you and a mimosa for her, that the Spanish Inquisition begins. Callie, now back in San Diego permanently, broaches the topic of your date with James. She’d been the chief architect of your Tinder profile and your biggest cheerleader as you agonized over what to wear the night before.

“Sorry, Cal,” you grin at her, “James sucked!” At her glare, you spill the whole tale. Her glare softens into a wince as you mention all the things James said about his ex and his mother. It’s when you mention Jake that something changes. 

“Jake?” she asks.

“Yeah,” you’re smiling that giddy fond grin again, unable to make eye contact.

“And he's in the Navy?”

“Yeah.”

“A Naval Aviator?”

“That’s what he said, Cal.” There is a pause as you digest what she’s getting at. “Wait. Callie! You’re a Naval Aviator. Do you know him?”

You grasp your friend’s hands as you plead for more information. She carefully extricates herself from your grip, rotating her wrists, and primly pushes her sunglasses up her nose. She’s letting you stew in your realization, the bitch. If only she weren’t your best friend since you were twelve. As much as you hate her need for suspense at the moment, you also know you wouldn’t trade her for anyone else in the world. So you sip on your juice and wait. It isn’t until the food is on the table that she responds to your frantic questions.

“I know a Jake, who is a Naval Aviator. But a knight in shining armor, he is not. If I had to describe him, I’d describe him as a complete and total dick.” She lifts her hand at your falling face, gesturing at you to stop whatever your face is doing. “Do you remember a couple of months ago when I was back on North Island for that secret detachment mission?”

“Yeah, Cal, I do.”

“And do you remember that one night when we met for dinner at that place with the pitchers of spicy margaritas and the mouth-watering tacos? I was venting about this complete and utter asshole, callsign Hangman, who persisted in leaving everyone behind?”

You nod.

“That’s him. He’s changed over the past few months since the squadron was permanently assigned to North Island. But I’m still worried about what he’ll do to you. He goes through girls like he does those damned toothpicks he always has in his mouth. Sweet and gorgeous girls who want forever aren’t really his thing.”  She’s serious now. There isn’t a hint of the laughter usually on her face. “But, I also know you. He’s your type. He has been since we were giggling about boys for the first time. I’m not going to stop you from going out with him. You deserve to have someone who makes you smile like you were earlier. This is just a warning, and I want you to know I have your back. I will beat him up if he makes you cry. I also expect to be named your Maid of Honor if this relationship goes that far.”

You smile tremulously at your best friend and rock, grateful to have her support even if she isn’t happy about you seeing him again. The both of you begin to scarf down your meals in companionable silence.

When there’s barely any food left on the plates, you pick up the conversation again. “Cal, I should probably mention that he asked me out to dinner this morning. He’s picking me up at 6 at my place. Would you please, please, please help me pick out something to wear?” you beg, now, batting your best puppy dog eyes at your friend.

“Sure,” she grumbles, finishing the last of her mimosa. “What did he say was the dress code?”

You pull out your phone and check your messages.

You hand Callie your phone, letting her scroll through your messages with Jake. Her eyebrows climb as she scrolls through the messages.

“It looks like he’s trying to impress you by doing something on the beach. What do you think about heading to that boutique downtown? The one where I found that gorgeous sparkly blazer you love so much?” She asks as you split the bill. Both of you get into your car and drive into the city with the summer breeze ruffling through your hair and the sun shining brightly.

It had taken three hours for you and Callie to decide on an outfit for your date. You’d tried on what felt like hundreds of sundresses before ultimately picking out a green flowy dress and strappy sandals. Cute and casual but not sloppy. It felt like no time had passed between when you headed home and now as you looked at yourself in the mirror. You touch up your makeup and pursed your lips to apply lipstick in the same burgundy shade as the night before.

The doorbell rings, and the butterflies in your stomach decide to swarm up your esophagus. You open the front door to see Jake standing in front of you, wearing a pair of aviators and clutching a bouquet in his hand. He hands the bouquet to you with a heart-stopping grin. The arrangement is gorgeous, dark red carnations interspersed with sprigs of white baby’s breath.

“Hi Jake,” you grin, bringing the bouquet to your nose, inhaling deeply to get a whiff of the flowers’ delicate fragrance. “Please, come in. Let me put these in water, and then I’m ready to go.”

Jake steps in, and you close the door behind him. He’s wearing a soft sage-colored Henley t-shirt rolled up his forearms, a pair of worn jeans, and cowboy boots. You can hear him stomping behind you as you walk into the kitchen and grab a vase from a shelf. There is something different about seeing Jake Seresin in your house. He’s carefully examining everything, from the pictures on the walls to the books on your shelves. You finish up with the flowers and stand next to him in front of the bookshelf. He’s got your worn copy of Pride and Prejudice in his hands.

“Have you ever read it?” you ask, curious.

“I have. It’s my twin sister’s favorite book.” His eyes are fond as he flips to the bookmark you left the last time you’d picked the book up, right at Darcy’s first confession of love to Elizabeth.

“My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you. In declaring myself thus I'm fully aware that I will be going expressly against the wishes of my family, my friends, and, I hardly need add, my own better judgement.” His voice is perfect. He manages to portray every emotion in Darcy’s voice while staring deep into your eyes. The moment stretches into something tender and heavy. You’re barely breathing, cataloging the flecks of gold and brown swimming in his eyes. You nearly kick yourself for breaking his gaze when you gently grab the book from his hands, close it, and set it on the shelf.

“Dinner?” you ask, grabbing the last of your things and putting them in your bag.

“Dinner,” Jake murmurs back, voice soft. He’s the perfect gentleman, pulling the front door open for you, waiting at the bottom of the stairs while you lock the door, and helping you into his behemoth of a truck.

The windows are down again, with the radio still tuned to the same country station. Instead of heading towards downtown San Diego, Jake points the truck north, driving up I-5.

“Where are we going?” you ask, enjoying the evening breeze as you cruise effortlessly on the roads.

“La Jolla. There is this amazing Italian restaurant on the beach. I thought we’d eat dinner there and then walk along the beach?” There’s a pause, and then, “But if you don’t like Italian, I’m sure we can find other restaurants in the area.” He sounds flustered.

You shouldn’t be feeling amused, yet you can’t keep the smile from your voice as you place your hand over his and say, “Italian is perfect.” You glance over at him, seeing that his aviators are once again snugly perched on his nose. You can see the light nervous blush coloring his golden cheeks. As much as you’d like to see how far his blush goes, you change the subject instead, asking, “How was your day?”

He seems too eager to respond, mentioning running in the morning, eating brunch, hanging out with some squadron members, and playing dogfight football on the beach. You’re not quite sure what dogfight football entails. Callie has mentioned it before too. When you ask Jake, his explanation, which involves two footballs and keeping score while defending your team from the opposing team's football, sets your head spinning. Keeping track of the rules for American Football is already too much. He’s scandalized, green eyes peering at you from over the rim of his aviators when you tell him as much. The rest of your trip to the restaurant is spent with him trying and failing to portray the football field verbally and describe plays to you. You’re smiling uncontrollably, regardless, when the truck pulls into a spot in front of the restaurant. As promised, the restaurant is on the beachfront. The sun is setting in blossoms of red and gold that transition to violet in front of your eyes.

“It’s a stunning view, isn’t it.” You startle at the sound of his voice, a little surprised to see the driver’s seat empty and Jake standing next to you in the open truck door. “Ready for dinner?”

“I’m famished,” you grin as you take his hand and hop out of the truck. You conclude that Jake draws attention everywhere you go, especially when you hear the giggling from the hostess and your waitress as she leads you to your table. Your waitress’ eyes goggle when Jake pulls out your chair for you before folding gracefully into his own across from you.

"What can I get you, sir?" she simpers, pressing her arms together to get Jake's eyes on her bosom.

"Darlin', do you know what you'd like to drink?" Jake asks you instead, ignoring the display from your waitress in its entirety.

"I'm not sure. I'd love to order a glass of wine." You waver, second-hand embarrassment for your waitress' peacocking melting into your tone.

"Can we have a couple of glasses of your house red, please?" Jake asks your waitress, once again keeping his tone polite and eyes on her face and not her over-exposed assets.

Her downcast face and Jake's smug, mischievous grin nearly have you laughing at the table as she walks away. Behind Jake, you can see a desperate powwow as your waitress, hostess, and other waitresses desperately try to get a game plan together to attract his attention.

"Sweets.”

“Doll.” 

“Gorgeous?!" You snap back to Jake and your table with a sheepish grin.

"Sorry," You’re grinning shyly as you respond, "our waitress, the hostess, and a few other waitresses all look like they're going to war behind you."

"War?" He drawls, eyes still looking right at you. "What exactly would they be going to war over?"

"You." You murmur, embarrassed to have brought it up. You continue at the sardonic tilt to his raised eyebrow, "They're going to wage war against me over you. I'm sure it's happened to you before. The waitstaff deciding that the girl you're having dinner with isn't as pretty as you deserve?"

There is an understanding look on his face now. You're unsure if you should say anything further, but save yourself the embarrassment and effort when your waitress returns with the wine. The next moments are full of Jake tasting the wine, deeming it acceptable, and your waitress pouring each of you a glass. You sip slowly at the rich, tart, sweet liquid and wait until your waitress has stepped away again.

This time, when Jake utters, "Gorgeous girl," in that Texan growl, your eyes are on him already. His hand is held upright, halfway across the table, fingers wiggling imperiously.

"Take my hand, beautiful?" You can't say no when asked like that and place your hand in his.

Satisfied, he continues, "I'm only going to say this once, so I hope you hear me and completely understand what I'm saying. Yes, it has happened before. But the waitstaff at a restaurant isn't who I'm having dinner with. When I'm out to dinner with a girl, all my attention is on her. I could care less if the sky is falling or elephants are roaming the restaurant and acting as the sommelier. My attention tonight is on you and only you." He punctuates that entire impassioned statement with a squeeze of your fingers.

You're flushed again, cheeks hot under his knowing gaze, and you evade his eyes by dipping your head to peer at your menu. Things are quiet as you order your entrée, something the menu says is lightly dressed in the house marinara sauce.

Once you're both alone at the table again, you murmur, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have assumed anything. Just chalk it up to my rampant insecurities. I really like you. And I’m trying not to sabotage this, but I guess I just did.”

“Hey, sweets. It’s alright. You’re only human. And gorgeous. If I have to tell you that every day, I will.” He’s smiling now, a tender sweet curl to his lips. 

"Jake? I realized today that our worlds intersect far more closely than I thought they did. And I need to tell you this before we go any further."

"What do you mean?" He murmurs back with his voice pitched low to accommodate the serene environment in the restaurant.

"I mean, that I had brunch with my best friend today. Her name is Callie, Callie Bassett. I've known her since I was twelve years old. As I'm sure you know, she's a Naval Aviator, too. Her callsign is Halo, and she's on your squadron." His shoulders tense, hunching towards his ears as you continue. "She told me that I should be careful with you, that you aren't the type to look for forever in a girl. And I like you. I really like you, more than I thought I would, and probably far too much for how long we've known one another. But I want to give you and me a shot. I just need to know you're looking for the same thing."

“Gorgeous girl,” his voice is husky and a bit scratchy as he responds to your plea, "I know it may not look like it to my squadron, but I am looking for forever. The Navy has kept me moving all over the country and the world for years. It never felt right to look for forever when I knew that at a drop of a hat I could be sent anywhere in the world. How could I leave somebody to go through a life we built, all alone with me a million miles away? So I stuck to girls who weren’t looking for anything serious. And as my career grew, so did my reputation as a womanizer. Now, no matter how I look, I keep finding girls looking for one night, not forever. At least, I hope, until I ran into you in that bar last night."

His eyes are unbearably soft and sad as he sips his wine. You tug his hand forward and press a kiss on his knuckles, nuzzling at his hand just a little.

“Jake, I can’t say I have any experience in moving around the world and not being able to put down roots. But for now, all I have to say is, I hope we can build something good between us,” you murmur back. His eyes shine at your words.

Your entrées come out in a cloud of sweet tomato, garlic, and basil. After the serious conversation you had just had, the rest of the night is light. You compliment the food, share bites of each other's entrees, and chat about work, your families, about everything you can think of, including the likelihood that Jake is Batman. He pays for your meals despite your protests, leading you out onto the beach hand in hand. You both take your shoes off and walk barefoot through the sand, continuing to chat lightly.

You're about a quarter of a mile from the restaurant when Jake pulls you to a halt, tugging on your hand and pulling you towards him. His hair is windswept, as is yours, and he's smiling. You're both smiling, honestly, and have been for much of the night.

"Can I kiss you?" He asks. He reels you further into his embrace at your nod until your hand is splayed over his heart. He slowly brushes your hair aside and tips your head up. He carefully brushes his nose against yours and waits, letting you feel the lightest brush of his lips. 

"Gonna kiss you now," he groans before capturing your mouth with his. You melt in his arms, eyes fluttering closed as his tongue presses insistently against the seam of your lips until you part them. Your head is wholly occupied with Jake; his hands on you, his mouth on yours, his tongue, the taste of the wine you’d shared, the heady scent of his cologne, and the feeling of his muscular body holding you impossibly close.

Your breathing is ragged when he finally pulls away. You're desperately sucking in deep breaths of air because you're sure you forgot to breathe mid-kiss, your mind chanting Jake, Jake, Jake in a worshiping manner. When you glance at him, his lips are spit slicked and bitten red. He looks fantastic, and you nearly haul him back down for another kiss. You hold yourself back, though. Public indecency charges wouldn't look good on either of your records. He seems to be deliberating the same thing if the look in his eyes as he subtly adjusts the front of his jeans says anything. 

But rather than act on your mutual desire, he grasps your hand securely in his and leads you back to the truck. He'd nursed a single glass of wine all night, so you let him drive. He helps you up into the passenger seat, though this time, you stop him before he can close the door and tug him into another kiss. This one is softer, more chaste than the one you'd shared on the beach. As he finally pulls away and takes his place in the driver’s seat, you feel it will be impossible to keep your hands off him. Clearly, he's just as affected when he curls his palm over your knee, fingers tracing circles over your kneecap unconsciously.

The I-5 is quiet, for once. The roads are busy but not congested as Jake takes the exits toward San Diego. Instead of taking you home, though, Jake drives you towards North Island. The guard at the base gates greets him cheerfully and lets the truck through. Rather than go onto the base proper, Jake pulls the truck onto a small gravel-lined inlet that lets out on a small, deserted beach. 

"In Texas," he starts, nostalgia deep in his tone, "when we're out in the land surrounding the ranch, you can see the stars for miles. Since I left, I've been searching for a spot to see them. So every time I'm at a new duty station, I search for the perfect star-gazing spot. This is the one I found on North Island. I was hoping you weren't tired of me yet and that you wanted to stargaze with me for a while before I took you home?" He’s smiling as he tucks a toothpick into his mouth.

You grin back at him, murmuring. "Do you know any constellations? I've always wanted to be able to look up at the night sky and point out something. I don't think I can even point out the North Star."

“I know a few. My older brothers taught us how to point out the big ones. Things look a little different here than when we were in Texas, but I can teach you a few. I will make sure you can identify the North Star.” His eyes shine as he peers up to the sky, “It’s the perfect night for stargazing, clear without a cloud in the sky.”

“Is this why you wanted me to wear something I wouldn’t worry about getting sand on?” you ask, grinning at the wonder in his eyes.

“Partially,” he hums, getting out of the truck, helping you out of your seat, and walking you to the tailgate. 

“This,” he’s grinning again, toothpick grasped between his teeth, “is what I wanted you to wear something comfortable for.” You wait as Jake unlatches the tailgate and hoists himself up into the bed of his truck. He pulls out a couple of blankets from a steel crate behind the cab, unfolding one for the two of you to sit on and the other to place over your laps. He then hops off the truck bed and holds his hand to you.

You’re smiling again, laughing at the child-like wonder on his face at the thought of seeing the stars. You step closer, by-passing his outstretched hand, pluck the toothpick out of his mouth, and curl a hand around the back of his neck. His eyes flutter close at the gentle caress. You pet the short, spiky hairs at the base of his neck before dragging your hand down his throat. His eyes stay closed until you work his dog tags out from where they’d been lying against his skin. The metal is smooth and skin-warm in your hand. His name, call sign, and blood type are embossed on them. But you hadn’t gone for his dog tags to examine them. Nope. You wrap the chain in your fingers and tug, pulling his mouth, now smirking, down to yours. You peck his smiling lips, smattering soft kisses across his face as he hefts you easily onto the tailgate, his biceps bulging as he lifts you with hardly any effort. His hands stay on your hips, thumbs rubbing slow circles over you as you gaze into each other’s eyes. 

“Stargazing, sweets.” At your confused moue, he continues, voice gravelly, “I brought you here to show you the stars, not kiss your lipstick off. Can I take your shoes off?” 

You nod, watching as he slides his hands down your legs, undoes the straps of each sandal, and pulls them off. He sets them on the tailgate and hauls himself into the truck bed beside you before toeing his boots off. Jake crawls into the truck bed, sitting with his back against the cab. You join him. He pulls you to sit between his legs, your back pressed against his chest. 

You tip your head and imperiously order him to show you some stars. His laugh vibrates through you from your position nestled against his chest. Looking at the stars with Jake is an enlightening experience. He knows where the constellations are, even in San Diego instead of Texas. He even tells you some of the various myths about the constellations. The highlight of star-gazing with Jake is when you see a shooting star streak across the sky. 

“Close your eyes, sweetheart.” He rumbles out, “Make a wish.”

Make a wish? That you can do. For more enchanting nights with Jake. For more days and nights to get to know Jake. For a chance to show your friends and family the sweet nerd you’d seen underneath the muscle, the boy with stars in his eyes. It’s a thought that sticks with you even as you fall asleep alone that night.

I DO NOT CONSENT TO HAVE MY WORK POSTED, TRANSLATED, OR PUBLISHED ON ANY SITES OTHER THAN HERE OR ON AO3 BY ME. IF YOU SEE MY WORKS ANYWHERE OTHER THAN HERE OR AO3, THEN THEY HAVE BEEN POSTED WITHOUT MY PERMISSION AND I WILL BE WORKING TO TAKE THEM DOWN.

Taglist:

@teacupsandtopgun 🚙 @jynxmirage 🚙 @cherrycola27 🚙 @desert-fern

Want to be added to the Taglist for this fic? Leave a comment on this masterlist or drop me a message in my inbox!

PLEASE INCLUDE YOUR AGE IN YOUR BIO. I DO NOT ACCEPT TAG-LIST REQUESTS FROM BLANK OR AGELESS BLOGS. THIS IS AS MUCH FOR MY SAFETY AND LEGALITY ON THE INTERNET AS WELL AS YOURS.

#star writes #jake hangman seresin x reader #jake seresin x reader #hangman x reader #jake hangman imagine #jake hangman seresin imagine #jake seresin imagine #reader insert #top gun hangman #hangman seresin #hangman fanfiction #sometimes all you need (a getaway car)

[pluckyredhead]

i really wanna know your ideal dc publishing cause seriously they could be doing so much and instead choose the absolute worst trashy choices

Lol thank you for indulging me, anon. I have thought about this EXTENSIVELY so sorry not sorry for the tusnami of opinions you have unleashed.

Before I get into the list, a few points to explain my approach:

ONGOINGS. I am a firm believer in the importance of ongoing series. There's nothing wrong with a miniseries but you can't get any forward momentum or character development with them because things keep getting reset to their baseline. Get really strong teams on your ongoings and let them develop their stories for years at a time. That's where all the legendary runs come from.

To that end, I am proposing a list of 30 books, which is a little more than 7 per week, which is roughly what DC publishes now (not including things like Sandman, Looney Tunes, etc.). They can add on as many minis as they want but will need fewer since so many more characters are accounted for with ongoings.

I am a strong believer in backup features - more value for your dollar and double the amount of characters included - so you'll see a lot of those.

I tried to balance what I personally think would be the most holistic representation of the DCU with what I believe will sell, so you're still going to see a lot of Bats. It should be understood that books without Bats are not going to be treated like throwaways like they sometimes are now. They are going to get top tier creators with long, sustained runs, just like Bruce always gets.

It will not be a publishing slate of all straight white guys from the 30s-60s.

Books with an asterisk* mean they will be kid-friendly. Not exclusively for kids, but appealing and accessible to young readers, the way Young Justice and its members' books were in the 90s. They can still include ongoing plots and queer characters and serious topics! They just shouldn't be relentlessly grim.

OKAY THE BOOKS!

Super Books:

Superman*: The lead Superman title, with a backup featuring starring Jon.

Action Comics*: Focuses more on the Superfamily as a whole, though the plot can dovetail and cross over with the main Superman book. (This is basically what's happening now.) Backup feature rotates between Kon, John Henry, Natasha, Kenan, Lois, and Jimmy.

Supergirl*: Why did I give Kara her own book and not Kon or Jon? Because a) DC needs more female-led books and b) I want to. The primary audience for this book is women who watched the CW show, or girls who have outgrown TTGo! and DC Super Hero Girls, NOT ADULT MEN. (Optional: Kon or Natasha backup feature.)

Bat Books:

Batman: Like the Super books, this would be the central title and focus on Bruce. Backup feature can rotate between the nine billion Gotham characters who need a home.

Detective Comics: Focuses more on mysteries/the family. Another rotating backup feature. NOTE: These backup features CANNOT star a character with their own book (Bruce, Dick, Damian, Selina, or Harley).

Nightwing: Dick sells. ;)

Robin*: Starring Damian, Tim gets a team book further down.

Batwoman: Perhaps we could try letting a queer woman write this for once? Revolutionary, I know.

Catwoman: Because she fucking rules.

Harley Quinn: Because she fucking sells.

Birds of Prey: I prefer a classic Babs/Dinah/Helena lineup but I'm flexible.

Batgirls*: If it’s too messy to have Babs in BoP and this, take her out and add Harper.

Red Hood and the Outlaws: Imagine if this book was good! In my universe, it will be.

Solo Books:

Wonder Woman

Flash: This will star Wally. Optional backup rotates between Jay, Bart, Ace, and Avery. Barry can show up sometimes I guess.

Green Lantern: Starring Hal, John, or Kyle. Whoever is the lead CANNOT also be on the Justice League.

Green Lantern Corps: Okay yes technically this is a team book. Shhh. Guy should always be on this book since he does better in an ensemble. The plot should dovetail loosely with the main GL book with an annual crossover but you don't have to read both if you don't want to. I am flexible about how to fit all the Earth GLs in (including Simon and Jessica), whether that's backup features or just including them in the GLC ensemble, but all six should always have a publishing home. Jo should get as many prestige graphic novels as N. K. Jemisin and Jamal Campbell care to bless us with.

Aquaman: Jackson backup. Please let him go back to being Aqualad and stop making everyone grow up so fast.

Green Arrow: This book is currently perfect, no notes.

Blue Beetle*: Starring Jaime, though Ted may show up to be annoying if he would like. A Booster backup is permissible.

Vixen: If they have a Webtoon they should have a comic for $ too.

Zatanna: See above.

...I'm torn between Shazam!* or Stargirl* here. I feel like they both kind of fizzled? I guess it depends on which book gets the better pitch.

Team Books:

Justice League: I mostly don't care who is on this but if it's a bunch of white guys plus Wonder Woman and either John Stewart or Cyborg as tokens, AGAIN, DC gets shut down permanently. I don't make the rules.

Justice Society: This is also not allowed to be only old white guys. I know that's harder with the JSA. I don't care.

Titans: I'm going to be honest, I'm not convinced the OG/New Teen Titans can star in a decent book anymore, since they haven't done so in two decades. But I will give them one more try. They can call themselves the Outsiders instead if that helps.

Young Justice*: They also maybe need a new name because they are all legal adults, but this is Tim's book. I'm highly skeptical of success here as well but I think the right creative team could make something really soapy and New Adult and queer work. Please keep in mind that there are nine trillion characters in the DCU who are roughly Tim's age to draw from; the "Core Four" (ugh I hate that term so much) can all be members but they are not the only members. (Cassie cannot be the only girl and it cannot be all white.)

Teen Titans*: Damian's team! I vote for characters like Emiko, Ace, and Jackson here, but I'm flexible. THE AUDIENCE FOR THIS BOOK IS MIDDLE SCHOOLERS, NOT PEOPLE WHO GREW UP ON WOLFMAN/PEREZ. Jesus, DC.

Suicide Squad: I truly do not care about this book but we need to do something to appease the edgelords.

The New Gods: I'm thinking EPIC, I'm thinking KIRBY, I'm thinking SIMONSON. Everyone talks in a serif font and it should be impossible to explain out loud with human words. It's what Kirby would want.

So there it is, there's my pitch. Again, this doesn't cover minis (Elongated Man miniseries WHEN), event books, etc., but I think it gets most of the key players on the board!

(And yes, I know I left the Legion out. I'm sorry. But not very sorry. They can cameo in Kara's book.)

#comics #meta

[cricketsintheaudience]

Dan Mora’s Knight Terrors designs for batman, superman, and wonder woman came out and I have Thoughts as to what that might tell us for their individual stories !!!!!!!! if I’m right I am owed one billion dollar and to be president of dc thanks

wonder woman: okay admittedly this one is easiest. judging by the several Greek mythological aspects of her design (medusa hair, ares/battle helmet, harpy or other bird of prey appendages, etc.) and excessive weaponry, I’d combine those two to expect her fear will be becoming a machination of war and a tool manipulated to fulfill the myth that is her life and themyscira’s existence. her extensive training as a warrior could easily be used to slot her into the place of the next great hero of myth, slaughtering the gods’ enemies until she herself completes her purpose and dies a warrior’s death. the fear stems from the fact that despite that, she is an individual. her choices to mingle with man’s world and extend her horizon beyond the world of the gods, along with the conscious decision to become the humans’ champion rather than just the gods’, is proof of this. To lose this and be used by the powers that granted her incredible talents against the new life she’s fought to protect could likely be her greatest fear.

superman: death. the grim reaper aspects of the design (skull face, hooded cloak, withered and near skeletal limbs, halo-like spikes) scream that to me (see also: angel of death). specifically, the fact that he can so easily escape death while nearly everyone around him can’t. it could also potentially be the fear of what dying would even look like for clark—alone, in a world unrecognizable from the one he landed in, etc. as a rebuttal for his seeming lack of fear regarding it—but this is less likely to me. the fact that humans are so fragile, so short-lived, and yet so wildly and passionately important to him is an easy target for clark, hence why this character is giving “ghosts of christmas future” vibes that will force him to confront a world without those he loves. (think, mark!!! what will you have in 500 years????)

batman: this was harder than I thought, in part due to my bias against doing his parents’ deaths for the millionth time. though, the detail of the bat crawling out of bruce’s mouth gives me hope for something a little different, as weird as that sounds: I think a distinct fear of bruce’s is letting the identity of the bat consume him. the fact that the amorphous bat-monster-thing crawling out of him alludes to the alternate identity that’s been dormant inside of him finally emerging, leaving bruce behind as a hollow skin along with his humanity and ties to the dredges of his former life. he has fully become the bat—there’s no longer any room for bruce wayne within him anymore. It might as well be the incarnation of his fear and anger leaving the rest of him behind to gain a life of its own.

so yeah!! I’d absolutely love to hear some other takes, I may very well be wrong but I had so much fun trying to decode these designs and I’m super excited for knight terrors regardless!

#knight terrors #dc meta #superman #batman #wonder woman #bruce wayne #clark kent #diana prince #meta analysis #dc comics meta #cricket reads comics

[ggomos-maribat]

The Bird Who Cried Coffee

Tim stumbled across the road with jelly legs and staggering vision. He had made the mistake of picking up alcohol instead of coffee to 'give himself a buzz' and now, he was drunk out of his mind in the middle of the night, creeping in between corners in case one of his brothers on patrol (or Batman himself) found him in the city.

"Co—coffee?" He slurred, seeing a bright glowing light next to an alley. He stepped towards the place: a humble coffee shop, only the size of five and a half telephone booths. How come he'd never seen it before?

"Hello!" He hollered at the counter, hopping up a barstool. His mind was chanting: drunk, bad. Coffee good. Need coffee.

"Welcome to the Coffee Stall! We appear whenever and wherever you need us—oh." A girl—or at least Tim thought it was a girl—emerged from the back. She gaped at him.

"Where's your menu?" Tim pouted. "Do you have an iced latte with four shots of espresso and chocolate sprinkles?"

"Um, yeah I don't think that's what you need right now," the girl said, wiping her hand with a towel. She went away from the counter again and came back with a glass of water.

"That's not coffee." Tim was close to tears.

"No coffee for you right now," she reprimanded, with her ponytail swaying as she shook her head. "Drink that. You need to sober up tonight . . . and you can use some company."

"Are you trying to flirt with me, lady?"

She sighed. "Please just drink that."

Tim did as told, downing the water to wash away the ugly taste in his mouth. He asked for another glass, which she happily poured him.

"Look, how do I explain this?" The girl muttered. "We're a Coffee Stall that . . . we do sell coffee, but whenever there's a person in need, we also try to help them out. This place is run with magic, so we can't choose where we end up."

"And I'm only telling you this because you're so drunk. You probably won't remember this in the morning."

"I've got a great memory, thank you," Tim huffed, squinting at her nametag. "Marinara Sauce."

"It's Marinette," the coffee water server deadpanned.

"Marinette." He nodded, clasping the glass between his hands. "I don't need company, by the way, I already have a multi-billion dollar one of my own."

"Right. And your name?"

"Tim Duck."

"Tim Duck?"

"It's bad to give out your name to people you don't know." He examined his fingernails smugly. "So it's Tim Duck. Duck-Wine. Also known as the Gotham vigilante Red Robin."

Marinette winced. "Something tells me I'm not supposed to know that."

"It's a pretty well-kept secret."

She laughed, moving to the side to take out a box of cake from the refrigerator. Tim's mouth watered at the perfect-looking dessert that she was slicing. Thankfully, the slice she took was for him.

"You're in luck. I'm good at keeping secrets." She smiled enigmatically. "So what are you doing walking around in the City of Crime late at night while drunk?"

Tim groaned, stabbing his fork into the piece of cake. "I was tired! So much work to do and no breaks. I found this nice bottle and started drinking. Then I ended up here." He hiccuped. "Before you say anything, I can take care of myself. I once took down Scarecrow and his goons while running on 0.532 hours of sleep!"

"I'm sure you did."

"I did!" He said proudly. "I also found out Batman's identity when I was a kid and forced him to make me Robin!"

"Did you now?"

"Yup!" He said with a mouthful of cake. He asked for his third glass of water before he continued snacking on the chiffon goodness. "Where are you actually from, Marinette?"

"Paris," she replied.

"That is so far from here? How'd you get here?"

"I told you already. Magic. We've been hopping from place to place." She pointed to the corkboard hung up on top of the flavoring pumps. Pictures forming a collage were pinned on the board. "We've been to Hawaii, Moscow, Taiwan, Italy and more. There's around one to five customers per location."

" 'We'?"

"Ah, this is my shift. We have other workers."

Tim hummed. "You're not the owner?"

"Technically I am, since I do the extra work and lead the team but I'd like to think that the owner is all this Miraculous magic and I'm just the manager."

Tim sipped his water again. Yes, none of what she said sounded strange at all.

---

"I swear, it was right here!"

"What was here?" Dick asked.

"The Coffee Stall!" Tim cried out. He took his phone out from his suit jacket and double-checked the location. The street looked exactly the same as he remembered last night, except for the absence of the shop.

He remembered what Marinette said. The shop changed locations depending on whoever needed it.

"What was supposed to be here, Tim?" Dick peeked at his phone.

"A magical coffee shop that appears for those in need and travels all around the world. They have really good cakes and it's run by this cute girl!" By his drunken stupidity, he failed to get her number or last name, so he only had her first name and a fuzzy memory of her beauty.

"Remind me to never let you near alcohol again." Dick patted his back.

"I told her I'm Red Robin."

"You what?!" 

On AO3

Permanent Taglist: @tinybrie @the-coffee-fandom

#maribat #timinette #timari #marinette dupain cheng x tim drake #meet cute #maribat fic #maribat fanfic #dc x mlb #mlb x dc #dc x miraculous #'coffee shop au' #I just wanted some Hotel Del Luna vibes but had no plot for it~

[fiberslut]

Apparently the multiverse is real

Chapter 2: The new it girl

Masterlist

previous | next

Pairing: the avengers x reader

Disclaimer: English is not my first language so you may find some funny words/sentences or broken grammar in here. I'll say sorry in advance but I've tried my best.

Summary: You accidentally travel to Marvel universe(not earth-616), but luckily you've got your phone with you. You may ask what do you mean luckily, just read this fiction.

Warning: mention of injuries, accident and death

"Yes, she is my daughter" Tony answers to one of the press

"If I may ask, where and who is her mother, sir?" One of the reporters raises a hand and asks

"I met her mother a long time ago, she's one of the scientists in my lab and tragically she died from an accident when there was the Attack in New York in 2012" Damn Tony is such a good liar, if he's not a billionaire already, I think he would go well in politic.

After that day that I had an agreement with Tony Stark. He managed all the paperwork, created my new identity, he made up about how I was a child prodigy like him, I got my (fake) master's in Physics and Engineering from MIT at the age of 16, after my (non-existent) mom died I moved back to live with him in New York. Now I live in Stark Tower with him and Pepper on the top floor. We didn't tell Pepper about who I really am, so now she's kinda mad at Tony that he had a daughter with another woman that she didn't know about.

As an exchange, he asked me the info about all of the strengths and weaknesses of his team members, The Avengers. He's doing the batman thing kinda stuff I just knew it. I didn't give him all of the info right now because I still need something left to negotiate with him, who knows, if he got all the info right now, he may cut me out of his life that easy, and I will be out there, no money, no clothes, nowhere to go again.

"So now she's going to live with you?" The press still asking Tony

"Yes and with Pepper of course" He answers apologetically while looking at Pepper

"So why do you want to make it official now, sir?"

"Because she is now the co-CEO of Stark Industries" And just like that, the press went WILD. But Tony couldn't care less. He walks out so I follow him. I guess he ran out of the script that he prepared.

Oh, and did I mention that I am now sharing a net worth, worth of $100 Billion. I gotta say that I kinda love my life here and maybe don't want to go back right now.

'Well, if I'm going to have a daughter, she's going to have everything as she wants, she's a Stark, you know?' I recall what Tony said when I asked him about co-CEO.

"You're going to be on the first page of every tabloid tomorrow honey" Pepper approaches me and gives me a reassuring grip.

"She can handle it, she's a Stark" Tony said and look at me with the look that only we can know what it means

"Yeah, dad's right, I'll be fine Pepper, you don't have to be worried about me at all, in fact, I think you two should go now before the restaurant skips your reservation"

"You know that I own the restaurant right?" Tony asks

"Yeah yeah just go already" I roll my eyes at him

"Are you sure you're gonna be alright, alone?" Pepper asks

"Yes, I'm fine, I'm planning on maxing out dad's card by shopping to kill my time anyway" I teasingly pull out a credit card that Tony gave me earlier and waving it in front of Tony.

Tony's about to say something but Pepper just grabs his arm and walks him to the helipad outside.

Aah, looks like it's time for me to explore the city.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tony did give me one of his cars and luckily he gave me Happy too. Cuz I don't think I can handle NY traffic alone.

Happy drove me to Soho and I did my shopping, I bought new clothes, bags, shoes, makeup, and toiletries.

I wonder if this universe has something called an influencer? I think I can be one. There're people looking at me and gossiping about me all the time that I go shopping. I thought the news would be out tomorrow but turned out some of the press did live interviews. So now everyone knows that I'm Tony Stark's daughter.

"Excuse me, can I have a photo with you?" One of the girls on the street asks me

"Oh okay.." I don't know what to say but I don't like to say no to people

And then all of the people around there start to ask me for photos until I can't feel my cheeks anymore. Luckily Happy was worried about why I go shopping for too long, so he came and rescued me from the crowd in time.

After that, I ask him to drive me to Queens because I really want to meet Spider-man, I'm planning on getting to know him and took some couple of selfies with him.

Going into Queens is impossible, there're long lines of traffic jams in every lane. I waited in the car for about 30 mins and couldn't wait any longer, so I told Happy to wait in the car, as I step out, I hear people scream, there's a cloud of smoke everywhere and then I see. There is a building in the corner that is on fire.

Maybe it was the fact that I know I'm in a comic book and I don't think I can die, all I think of right now is I need to help those people out of the building. So I run as fast as I could and surprisingly I arrive at the building in like 10 seconds, but it was 3 miles from my car, how did I get here so fast? Anyway, there's no time for that right now. I look up at the building and there he was, Spider-man, his right hand was swinging with his web while his left arm is holding a woman. He lands and drops her in front of me. Then he continues to go back inside the building, searching for more survivors. The woman that he saved, she looks at me and crying.

"Please help me, my baby's still inside that building. Please. Please" She's crying into my arm.

"Miss, You stay here ok? I'll go inside and look for your baby" I said and run inside the building. There's fire everywhere, on the floor from the ceiling. I run through every floor. And finally, I found a toddler, crying in his crib. I grab him, cover him with some wet cloth and run outside. As I reach the front door, I realized the ceiling is about to collapse, I know I'm not gonna make it. So I hug that little boy, curl myself, and bam! the ceilings collapse on me, but I don't feel pain. Yes, I can still feel the heat, but I think I must injure myself somewhere because of those ceilings. But no. All I can see are some little wounds that healing themselves.

I walk out the building in shock as everyone there staring at me. I hand the woman her baby. And I look at myself, discovering my new abilities.

"Woah, so you can heal yourself or something, that is so cool" I don't need to look up to know who is talking to me. It's Peter Parker aka Spider-man.

Taglist

@ayoelouise

@potatopfft

@welconme-notreally

@niccino-apino

#the avengers x you #the avengers x reader #tony stark x daughter #imagine #doctor strange x reader #steve rogers x reader #peter parker x reader #bucky barns x reader #spiderman x reader

[arionwind]

So I've been critical of Billionaire Bruce Wayne a lot in the past, but I am increasingly coming around. I think I've talked before about Mackenzee Scott and the difficulties with trying to give away that amount of money fast enough to outpace the interest and dividends and other ways it balloons on itself, but just in case, the gist of it is that there's a limit to what an individual can give to charity or gift to friends before taxes start mounting ever higher. At which point, yes you theoretically could give 18 billion or whatever to the federal government, if you were okay with most of that going to defense contractors and making the world a worse place. I am going to assume most of us are not.

Bruce Wayne has it worse though. Assuming roughly equivalent taxation schemes, his overtaxed charitable givings would likely still go to defense contractors. But it's DC. You can't convince me that, if you trace it back, most of them are owned by LexCorp. I cannot blame Brue for not wanting to fund Lex's latest plan to villify him, kill his boyfriend, and blow up South Dakota or whatever. So giving money beyond the legal to charity is out - Lex and the corrupt feds will have to do without his billions.

Now in the real world there's foreign tax dodges and money laundering schemes that one could maybe use to filter money to charities without the tax problem coming up. It's exhausting, suspicious, and not without its own notable overhead, and the people in charge of it who would profit are also not nice, but it exists, sort of. In the DC universe though? There's no way Penguin, the League of Assassins, Vandal Savage, or some other world-spanning sinister figure doesn't skim off the top of criminal funding methods like that. Not only would trying taint the reputation of Billionaire himbo Brue Wayne, it would go right back to funding Batman's enemies, just like the tax thing.

Which is why he keeps adopting new kids. And why Dick and all the rest have not stopped hearing him asking why he doesn't have great-grandkids yet. Do they have kids yet? No? Gotta get on that so Bruce can have great-grandkids. Just hear me out.

Individual giving limits are just that - by individual. Bruce Wayne can only give so much to charity each year before it starts going to Lex or the League too. But Dick Grayson can give just as much. So can Jason Todd. So can literally every other kid Gotham's Favourite Himbo has ever adopted . . . once they have it in their name.

Because that's the problem, see. He can't just gift that much to each of them to pass on in turn. As mentioned above, there's annual gift-giving limits on things like that he wants to avoid. So the solution is to set up a trust for each of his kids, using planned tax dodges the wealthy have encoded into the laws to keep their children solvent. After enough time, that trust can be made to just become theirs, free and clear, with minimal if any taxation, depending on how it is set up, and then the kid is a second front in Brucie's war on his own wealth.

Thing is, this process is slow and can only increase the giving by a factor of as many kids as he has. Hence the comical rate of adoption. Every single Batkid has a fancy trust designed to siphon money to where it needs to go and out of Bruce Wayne's funds, but you need way more kids than even he has to make that happen fast enough to make a dent in billions.

So he needs more kids. More adoptions. Adult adoptions. Grandkids. Great-grandkids. I guarantee at least once he has asked Clark to "feud" with Lois, break up with her, marry him long enough to get him and his line entrusted, then go back. Clark was not up for it. Barry was not up for it. Ollie thought it would be good for a laugh, but even Bruce isn't foolish enough to tie his fortunes to Queen's.

People think it's a joke when their "Welcome to the Justice League" info pamphlet warns them not be alarmed if Batman proposes to them - he isn't trying to seduce them, he just wants their kids for his collection. It isn't a joke. Batman wants your kids. No not that way, it's a tax dodge. No, not that kind of tax dodge, the good kind. It's okay to turn him down, though. He won't take it personally.

#dc #batman #essay #been a while since i used that tag

[bluejaysandblackbats]

You're Just Like Quicksand

Fandom: DC Comics, Batfam, Batman Beyond

Summary: Jason Todd is ready to go into semi-retirement after fifteen years working with troubled youth, but one case in particular forces him to confront the sins of his youth and painful memories from his past.

Chapters: 6/?

Characters: Jason Todd, Terry McGinnis, Warren McGinnis, Mary McGinnis, Matt McGinnis, Bruce Wayne, Original Character(s)

Relationship(s): TBA

Additional Tags: Protective Jason Todd, Good Sibling Jason Todd, Retired Jason Todd, Multiple POV, Hurt/Comfort, Parent-Child Relationships, Canon Divergent AU, Angst, Mourning Jason Todd

Chapter Six: Family Portrait (Terry McGinnis' POV)

I showered and changed into the pajamas Jason gave me. They were baggy, but they fit well enough. He sat in the living room, reading a book by the fireplace. I sat at the top of the stairs, watching him. “Terry, you can come downstairs whenever you’re through watching me,” Jason whispered. I stood up and looked over the stair rail.

“How’d you know I was here?” I questioned. Jason grinned upward at me.

“I heard you breathing,” Jason chuckled, “What’s the matter, Terry?”

“Jason, you don’t get a little messed up during these riots?” I asked. I had to admit that I was scared. I hated the riots in Gotham because there was no way to see if it was a meta-problem or a gang problem. A meta problem sometimes meant we were shut in the house for days. He shook his head.

“It gives me an excuse to sit up all night. I’ll put a good dent in this series,” Jason replied, “Wanna borrow the first issue?”

I nodded, and Jason pulled the first book from a stack on his living room table. I curled up on his couch and started reading. “Jason, thanks for letting me help with dinner. I had fun,” I replied. Jason grinned.

“I had fun too, Terry… You know you can do this with your father at home too?” Jason suggested. I know he meant well, but things were still weird with my dad. He didn’t get me like Jason did. I nodded, but I didn’t answer him. “It helps… Common ground between parents and their kids has to start somewhere, Terry.”

Jason returned to his book, and I read until I couldn’t keep my eyes open anymore. I woke up, tucked into bed with the book on the bedside table. I could hear Jason’s voice in the hallway. “Hi—. No, it's not like that. I'm safe. The generator's fine… Do they feed you enough? Of course, I love you and miss you… Yeah, I know. I'm glad you called… No, I'm not mad that you called. I was shocked… Hey, no… Don't do that. I understand," Jason's voice bride, "Don't worry about it. I'll see you as soon as I'm freed up… No, I—. I wanted you to call. I love you too. A million times more… A billion. Night night."

Once he hung up, I stepped into the hall, where I witnessed Jason crying with his forehead against the wall. "Jason, I didn't mean to listen, but I couldn't sleep," I whimpered. Something about seeing him cry twisted my stomach in knots. "Jason, I—. Please don't cry." I tugged at his sleeve and pulled him into a hug.

"I shouldn't—. Sorry that I woke you up," Jason sniffed as he collected himself.

"What happened?" I asked.

"I got a call from someone I love dearly. It's hard when you haven't seen someone in a long time. Sometimes it hurts to hear the kids’ voices," Jason confessed. “Want some cocoa?”

I nodded and followed him to the kitchen. Jason took a serving platter out of the pantry and filled a small pot with all his ingredients faster than I could sit down. “Is Tim your little brother?” I asked.

Jason chuckled and nodded. “I’m the third of six kids. But if we were talking order of when we were adopted-slash-acquired… I was his second child. He never completely figured out the whole parenting thing, but I was close to him when I was young,” Jason replied.

“You were adopted?” I asked. “Did you—? Sorry, that’s rude.”

“No, it’s fine. I am adopted. Technically twice adopted, but I didn’t know that until I was fifteen. I lived with my biological father and the woman I knew as my mother until they both passed, then I was adopted, and three and a half years later, I found out my mom wasn’t my biological mom… My biological mom left the country,” Jason answered honestly, “I met my biological mom once… and it took me over twenty-five years to process that. And that’s why I stress the importance of you trying to bridge the gap between yourself and your pop. He loves you so much, and he wants to see you. Warren wants to understand you. Some kids never get that in their parents… Trust me.” Jason turned away from the pot and smiled at me.

“What was your bio mom like?” I asked.

Jason turned his back. “I don’t speak ill of the dead, but I can speak to how our meeting affected me. Out of all the neglect, verbal abuse, and exploitation I experienced as a kid… The day I met my biological mother left me scarred physically and mentally in ways that my wife —God rest her soul— couldn’t even understand. Speaking of that, have you ever thought of therapy?” Jason asked.

“There’s nothing wrong with—.”

“I’m not saying that. Everyone tends to need therapy from time to time… I didn’t think I needed it, but I started going because my kids went… and it changed me. Made me more gentle, kind, and patient. I had to stop a few years back because I hit a wall… But it helped a lot,” Jason replied, “It’s not always fun, but it’s worth it if you put in the work.”

“Like going to the gym?” I half-joked. Jason nodded.

“Exactly like that,” Jason replied.

“Well, I’ll try it whenever you go back,” I joked. I didn’t mean to be hurtful, but he winced. “Jason, I didn’t—.”

“No, you’re right. It’s hypocritical of me to think that you’d give therapy a go when I’m actively avoiding it,” Jason replied, “But you can’t go contingent on my successes or failures. I’m your mentor, but I won’t allow you to make decisions based on what I do. You’re not a follower, Terry.” He was stern but sincere.

I didn’t argue with him, and I wasn’t angry with him. “Terry, I don’t mean to be hard on you. I like you. You remind me of someone… And I don’t wanna see you follow somebody right into an early grave. You’re a good kid, and I know you can be great if you put your mind to it,” Jason explained as he poured my cocoa into a mug before messing up my hair.

“You really do care, don’t you?” I asked. Jason nodded.

“So much,” Jason replied, “I hate to say it, but you remind me of how much fun I used to have with my kids… Even when they were getting in trouble.” That made me even more curious about his family. How could I be anything like his kids or his family? “Mostly, you remind me of myself when I was a kid… But you know that already. That’s how I know you’ll be alright if you learn to make your own decisions. You don’t have to follow in anyone’s footsteps. You understand me?”

“Yeah,” I replied as I sipped the cocoa he made. It was rich and warm, and it filled me with comfort. It was the feeling I used to get when I had fever chills as a kid, and my dad wrapped me in blankets fresh from the dryer. It made me want my dad. I wanted him so badly I thought I'd cry.

#fic #batfam #batman beyond au #yjlq fic #Jason Todd #Terry McGinnis #Warren McGinnis #Mary McGinnis #Matt McGinnis #Bruce Wayne #Original Character(s) #Protective Jason Todd #Good Sibling Jason Todd #Retired Jason Todd #Multiple POV #Hurt/Comfort #Parent-Child Relationships #Canon Divergent AU #Angst #Mourning Jason Todd

[m4aiya]

He saved Millions and Billions of Mankind's and I am one of them.

When you ask a child if who is his or her favorite hero they will answer, either Batman, Superman, Thor, and whoever man they watch in movies whom they admire that much.

How about you? Maybe Ironman who saved the entire marvel universe in just one snap? Or Wonder Woman who'll fight for justice? Maybe your President because he's the one who leads your country? Or even one of your family members because you want to follow their path. Do not forget that we once lived in our life where we had a lot of heroes that we called, but for me, I have this one and only hero, wherein He saved me countless of times whenever I fall down, He saved me in a miry clay, in a pit of death and He keeps on saving not just me, but everybody that surrounds me.He's my redeemer. The one who paid my debt by His blood and saved our sins. Carried me through my darkest night, eased my pain with His comforting words. The nicest of nice, king of all kings, the creator of heaven and earth, a God whom I can call a friend, a father and my safest place whom I can run to whenever no one is around. Some people aren't aware that "someone" saved them from their sins and that "someone" is the reason why there is life they are living, that "someone" is crucified to pay the sins He doesn't committed. What God did a thousand or maybe billions of years ago gave us freedom to live our life. Maybe it's the time we should give back something good.

Probably if you know a certain people that go to church every sunday and serving God, we can often hear them say, "Imbag pay ta selpon kut maiggamam nga inaldaw, ngem iti bibliya mabilang mo pay ta imam ta maminsan mo lang nga masapol." (Unfortunately, you hold your phone almost everyday, but holding a bible can just be counted in your hand because you rarely use it.) We tend to say that we know God and we love Him yet we don't know what is His words really are. Sometimes, in order for us to be more closer to God we need His words, meaning to say we need to take time in reading our Bible, to know Him more, to know what He wants you to do, to know where path He wants us to take.

As Ephesians 2:4-5 says: [4] But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, (Nguni't ang Dios, palibhasa'y mayaman sa awa, dahil sa kaniyang malaking pagibig na kaniyang iniibig sa atin,) [5] Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) (Bagama't tayo'y mga patay dahil sa ating mga kasalanan, tayo'y binuhay na kalakip ni Cristo (sa pamamagitan ng biyaya kayo'y nangaligtas) Because of God being merciful and kind, He let his begotten son saved us by His grace and redeemed us, together with John 3:16, For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (Sapagka't gayon na lamang ang pagsinta ng Dios sa sanglibutan, na ibinigay niya ang kaniyang bugtong na Anak, upang ang sinomang sa kaniya'y sumampalataya ay huwag mapahamak, kundi magkaroon ng buhay na walang hanggan.)

Remember that "a hero doesn't need to wear cape to be truly called as a savior, but it's the braveness, courage with noble qualities are what makes you a hero."

[badclown]

♒ Thoughts on the fandom you're currently rping in?

I don't feel that I'm qualified to make any sort of statement on the fandom for a few reasons. First and foremost of these is that I write an extremely controversial character that many people (even those who love batman or detective comics) truly have a distaste for, to the point that they avoid joker in the rp world, and then I went and compounded that issue by idk like... a billion? by choosing to write that highly controversial character as a woman assigned female at birth.

Not only are female muses second fiddle in the rpc, but I literally get hate mail on a monthly basis on this blog for engaging in rule 63, which some rpers decided some years ago was transphobic (mind you this was after years and years of it being a common rp trend that trans rpers engaged in). Personally, I think if you don't like someone's blog you should just not follow them, but there is a serious issue in the rpc with gatekeeping and blog policing, so clearly that's not the case. I could go on about this practice, but the reason I bring it up is not to rant but rather to illuminate why I am not an ideal candidate to assess the dcrpc: I experience only a small fraction of it because most won't give me the time of day.

I will say that what I've heard from other people about it isn't great, but I don't like to make judgements based on hearsay.

I guess what really matters is that I'm in this fandom, and I'm fab as hell soooooo

#tnott #ASK / better than yahoo answers

[eumenidaes]

8+13!

8) what is something that gets to you that you wish wouldn’t?

What other people think about me. I wish other’s opinions on me didn’t matter to me, but they definitely do a lot

13) what can make you excessively angry?

Ok I am going to interpret this as something dumb that pisses me off. But every time one of those “Batman is evil actually because he beats up poor mentally ill people instead of using his money to improve Gotham” takes appears I get so pissed off. Like

1) Batman is not real. In fiction ethical billionaires can exist because, and I can’t stress this enough, they are not real

2) This take screams of only watching the Nolan movies/Batfleck and playing the Arkham games bcs these people seem to think he’s about to break someone’s spine for jaywalking when tbh he could not give a shit

3) That then leads to the point that most of the people he regularly fights are themselves independently wealthy. Like sorry he is beating up known poor people the Penguin and Black Mask

4) Bruce literally does give his money to help improve Gotham. The problem is that there are all those other rich people both super criminal and otherwise in Gotham who are actively working to counter all of his efforts to improve it. Bruce throwing 2 billion at a problem doesn’t mean shit if every other rich person in Gotham throws just as much or more back to make things worse. And that’s not even getting into how sometimes Gotham is cursed or otherwise supernatural made to be terrible forever

5) I do not think Bruce creating new affordable housing is gonna make the Joker stop blowing things up

6) Going off of that like. Yes the Riddler is mentally ill. Do you expect him to get a free pass to trap a bunch of people in a torture maze. Somebody should maybe try and stop him from doing that

7) People are just jealous of him bcs he’s prettier than they are 💔

Anyway, in conclusion fuck every one of those “Batman badly actually” takes. Do not speak on my husband if you don’t read comics

#asks #gxldandpurple #i could probably go off more about how people must leave bruce alone #but i am about to go to sleep lol #thank you for listening to me defending my husband #i love white knighting for the dark knight

[yeraskier]

can i ask for "friends kiss each other all the time, right?" 🌻

this was also requested by @clementinecrane

—

If one were to ask Jaskier what compelled him to do it, he wouldn't be able to give them a real answer.

He doesn't know what drove the decision to kiss his best friend of three years out of the blue after he's spent three years successfully fighting the urge, and yet, here they are.

Jaskier's lips are on Geralt's, moving. Geralt's lips are on Jaskier's, not moving.

He realizes what he's doing a few seconds in but it's far too late, the damage has already been done.

Jaskier pulls away from his best friend like they've both just been set on fire.

Geralt blinks.

Jaskier blinks back. Then comes the inevitable train of random words to save his ass.

"Wow, I have no idea why I just did that." You were just sitting there, looking so very cute while rambling on about the new Batman movie. "I mean, it came out of nowhere, right?" It's not like I've been thinking about doing this since I've met you or anything. "That was so not expected, holy shit. I am very, very sorry. And I'd like us to forget that this ever happened. Can we do that?"

Geralt says nothing. He just blinks some more. Very helpful.

Jaskier chuckles. Very nervously.

"I mean, friends kiss each other all the time, right?" He offers. It’s stupid, he knows, but he has to say something.

And that's when his best friend decides to speak, "no."

He's been trying not to panic since he kissed Geralt, but now he's definitely panicking. Mentally, of course. He doesn't think outward panic would help the situation much right now.

"Unless they want to be more than friends," Geralt drawls, breaking through the pessimistic pit of doom that is Jaskier's current thoughts.

"What?"

"Friends don't kiss unless they want to be more than friends," Geralt clarifies, and at Jaskier's silence, he continues. "Is that what you want?"

And like a complete dumbass, all Jaskier can say is, "what?"

Geralt looks like he wants to roll his eyes. He doesn't. "To be more than friends, is that what you want?"

Yes, Jaskier’s brain supplies rather loudly. Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! A billion times yes!

What comes out is… absolutely nothing. Because Jaskier is too stunned to speak.

And then Geralt uses that voice and goes, "Julian."

Unsurprisingly, that's all it takes for Jaskier to come clean. "Yes! Okay? Yes, I want to be more than friends. It's all I've wanted for just about the entire duration of our friendship and I'm sorry, alright? I tried to ignore it and I've mostly succeeded but now I've gone ahead and kissed you and I've made things awkward with all my very intense feelings. You probably don't even want to be friends anymore—”

"I don't," Geralt tells him.

A part of saw that coming. Of course, he had hope that maybe three years of friendship would've been enough for Geralt to simply look past this minor discretion. He was wrong.

"Right… of course," he says, trying his best to not make it blatantly obvious that his heart is being ripped from his chest. Jaskier's ninety-five percent sure he fails. "I understand. I'll just—”

"Jaskier," Geralt utters. He sounds pitying and sad.

"It's alright, Geralt, really." It's not. He's losing his best friend and possible soulmate and the definite love of his life. It's not okay, he's not okay, but he'd be even less okay with Geralt feeling guilty for not wanting him back.

"What's okay?" His best friend questions.

"You not wanting me, it's alright. I completely understand and I—”

"Jaskier."

"...won't be a dick about any of this. I can accept it, I promise."

"Jaskier," Geralt says with more force.

"Geralt seriously, it's—”

Suddenly he's being pulled— no, yanked, closer to his best friend. They're so close they may as well be one.

"If you keep telling me it's okay, I will punch you in the gut." Geralt warns with narrowed eyes and a strong grip on Jaskier's bicep. "Now stop talking and kiss me."

"I… what?" Gods, he really needs to stop saying that.

"Shut up," Geralt takes one step forward, effectively ridding the distance between them, "and kiss me."

The final words send a light gust of air over Jaskier's lips like a seal to an invitation.

What else is he to do now?

Jaskier kisses Geralt, and this time, Geralt kisses back.

It’s the best kiss he’s ever had in all his years. All it took was three years of pining and a near heart attack, but here they are.

Jaskier’s learned today that friends do not kiss each other all the time, which is a bummer, really.

But he no longer has to worry about that, because his best friend is no longer just his friend.

Though, Geralt never was just a friend, was he?

After all, a definite soulmate and the definite love of his life could never be just a friend.

#i.... had no idea what to do with this one i'll be honest #i hope this is okay?? #modern au bc. yes #the witcher #geraskier #geralt of rivia #jaskier #my writing

[toastedkiwi]

Billionaire Bruce Wayne Tweeting

Summary: just a bunch of tweets that Bruce Wayne puts out (or the others who tweet from his account) and some bonus ones from other members of the batfam.

Pairing: Bruce Wayne x Wife!Reader

BruceWayne: what is my butler supposed to do with a pet cow that a kid brought home?

BruceWayne: @sia why did you write a song about chandeliers? You gave my kids too many stupid ideas

BruceWayne: Enjoyed hosting the annual Gotham Knights end of the season gala. The boys deserved it after such a big win against Metropolis! Suck it @clarkkent

BruceWayne: oooooo look at me i’m brucie wayne

BruceWayne: I have been hacked by my own children.

BruceWayne Liked & Retweeted: Y/nWayne: who thought it would be a good idea to let my husband run his own Twitter? He’s an old senile man who lives in a cave

BruceWayne: how can I be eating a cheeseburger wrong?

BruceWayne Liked: GraysonTheDetective: BRUCE WAYNE EATS A CHEESEBURGER WITH A FORK AND KNIFE! IVE DEALT WITH THIS MAN FOR TOO LONG!

TheWayneButler: do not eat tide pods. You should instead put them in with your load laundry.

NotDedJTodd: Bruce Wayne is not a dilf

Y/nWayne: Stop telling me my husband is a dilf, I already know he is

BruceWayne: what’s a dilf? @y/nwayne

BruceWayne: thank you all for attending tonight’s charity gala for Gotham’s Children’s Hospital! We raised over $10 million dollars and I and my wife will match it.

BruceWayne Liked & Retweeted: Y/nWayne: people ask me why we waited so long to get pregnant. Have you guys not seen how many kids we have?! I keep thinking our kids’ friends are also our kids and some of them are actual adults!

BruceWayne: I’ve built computers. I’ve run a billion dollar business. I’ve raised half of Gotham’s kids. But why the fuck can’t i build a crib?

BruceWayne: can I not be kidnapped today @thepenguin?

BruceWayne: @superman save me. Batman is gonna be awhile as well as his band of misfits.

BruceWayne: yes, I’m letting my seventeen year old run my company and no, he’s not my biological kid. He’s a genius.

BruceWayne: wtf is my wife eating? @y/nwayne

BruceWayne Liked: Y/nWayne: don’t eat the rich, seduce the rich, marry the rich, get knocked up by the rich, secure those bags, honey 💁‍♀️

BruceWayne: money does solve problems but @clarkkent @graysonthedetective @timdrake @therealbloodson @dukesurvives @caswayne @stephlives @notdedjtodd @y/nwayne @thejusticeleague are gonna make me broke

Y/nWayne replied: you better take my name off that post before something bad happens @brucewayne

BruceWayne: money does solve problems but @clarkkent @graysonthedetective @timdrake @therealbloodson @dukesurvives @caswayne @stephlives @notdedjtodd @thejusticeleague are gonna make me broke

BruceWayne Liked & Retweeted: ClarkKent: @brucewayne is a better billionaire than @tonystark

BruceWayne: Batman and @superman are not gods. They wear tights. No god wears tights.

BruceWayne: Batman is a furry

BruceWayne: I’m richer than everyone @forbes

BruceWayne: I have once again been hacked by my own kids. I’m disowning them. And I’m sorry about the last three tweets.

BruceWayne: where am I supposed to find strawberry and pickle ice cream at 3am? I’m rich but not that rich.

BruceWayne: I have been replaced by body pillows

BruceWayne: I don’t like baby showers

BruceWayne: it’s getting chummy in here.

BruceWayne: never thought I would lift up my wife’s hospital blanket to find that she sneezed out our baby. The nurses looked at me crazy when I held up the bloody thing to give to my wife.

BruceWayne: can my kids go hack @tonystark?

BruceWayne Liked & Retweeted: TonyStark: @brucewayne is better than me.

BruceWayne: my dumbass kids make me so proud sometimes.

#bruce wayne x fem!reader #bruce wayne x female reader #bruce wayne x y/n #bruce wayne x wife!reader #bruce wayne x you #bruce wayne x reader #bruce wayne x pregnant!reader #dad!bruce wayne x reader #bruce wayne fluff #bruce wayne #dccomics #dcmultiverse

[arty-shadow-morningstar]

Con Man's Daughter

Posting this because there isn't enough biodad! John Constantine content.

[Masterlist]

(Part 2)

-----

I feel like this should be a Damianette story or just platonic relationship after Jon got aged-up to seventeen and Damian wanted a friend his age but doesn’t want to admit it.

So basically there is this big bad in Gotham using magic that Batman was fighting at the time and enlisted John Constantine to help out.

John realizes that the villain is using a Miraculous.

“Oh. I think I know how he gets his powers. And lucky for you, Bats, I know an expert on this special brand of magic.”

And he did the smart thing and called up Marinette who at the time was already Guardian and was looking for other lost Miraculouses like in the Treasure Hunter AU I wrote.

He calls her at a really bad time. She was in the process of being chased by the guardians of the place. Monsters and evil spirits.

“Hello, Dad. What do you need and can you do it quickly?”

“Hey, sweetheart, it’s me. How is my little cupcake up to these days?”

“You called at a bad time.” Gunshots.

“WAS THAT A GUN I HEARD? WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU, YOUNG LADY?!”

“Somewhere in Japan. Getting a Miraculous. And why can’t you call me to check in on me and not ask me to help you with whatever mess you got yourself into.” More gunshots sounds and it was telling that Marinette was using a gun.

“Where did you get a gun? And don’t you have school?”

“It’s summer break. Don’t worry Maman and Papa know. Well, the fact that I am in Japan anyways.” Marinette sounded a little out of breath. Roaring and horrifying sounds at the other end. “Can we do this later?”

“As it happens, there is a villain going around Gotham with what I think is a Miraculous.”

Swears on the other end.

“Oi. Watch your fucking language, young lady.”

“How about a No and move the fuck back, old man. I am coming over right now.”

“Old man? I am not that old-” as a magic blue portal opens up in the Bat Cave.

And a red Chinese dragon comes out with someone riding it.

Its rider was a black-haired girl. She had a trench coat similar to Constantine's. I imagine her with a fedora. Like Carmen Sandiego style but not red. Sometimes red but only when she has to steal it from a museum or high security places and she leaves a name card with the name Carmen Sandiego. A sword strapped to her back and a dagger to her thigh.

She had a gun in her hand which she used to shoot the monsters as it was halfway through the portal and yelled out the spell to close it.

“Brilliant entrance but you are in lots of trouble, little lady. What were you thinking about going to another country unsupervised? And isn’t there still a butterfly problem in Paris?”

“One, I wasn’t unsupervised. I had Tikki, a billion years old being and a sort of god. Two.Well, it got boring trying to track Hawk-bitch down. And I found this legend about a guy with a Miraculous who disappeared in the temple and thought hey, more miraculous could mean another edge to defeating Moth-man.”

More bickering and John grounding Marinette who was acting very nonchalant about it.

Okay, at this point, I should say that Batman and Robin are in the background trying to make some sense.

Batman is surprised to find out that Constantine has a daughter who is also involved in magic like her Father but an apparently more specialised kind called the Miraculous. He is a little miffed that he didn’t know about John having a daughter. He did consider it weird at first that she had a slight french accent unlike her father’s Liverpool accent although she pronounced some words like he does.

He also connected some dots that she is also the Parisian heroine, Lady Rouge who Wonder Woman introduced to the League a while back and had declined to join the Young Justice or Teen Titans until everything in Paris was resolved.

Damian on the other hand was suspicious of the new arrival and came to the same conclusion as his father about the daughter thing.

Batman after a few minutes, clears his throat.

The Constantines stop arguing.

“Bonjour. Batman. Robin. Pleasure to meet you. I am Mari Constantine and yes, I am this homeless looking man’s brilliant daughter.” “Hey”

“Well, Mari. Your father thinks you can help us with this new criminal turning Gotham upside down. Literally in some cases. He said that you might be able to help us.” Batman said as he pulled up zoomed in picture of the Miraculous.

Mari looks through the Miraculous grimoire and tells them all about it and power-ups, basically the most effective thing to defeat the guy is to get the Miraculous off them. Plus a spell that would make the Miraculous ineffective if casted within a certain radius of it.

“Thank you for the information, Mari. Constantine, let’s go.”

Mari made to follow them.

“You young lady are grounded and staying here.”

“I don’t need another supervillain using the Miraculous which are my responsibility as Guardian to retrieve them for their own misuse and wreaking havoc on the city. And what if there is an akuma in Paris? I can’t go there if I am grounded in the Batcave although it is a cool place to hang out.”

“You can portal back to Paris but you are not going to follow me. Understood?”

“yes. crystal”

“Good. After me and Batsy get the Miraculous, you can do your Guardian duties.”

Damian snickers. Until Batman cut his mood short, “You are staying behind too. Robin.”

“But Father, why? I am much more capable than Constantine.”

“Hey!” Both father and daughter.

Damian is staying behind too because of the Miraculous power or other reasons and keeps an eye on Mari.

Damian stays behind and there were some protests about mari mad about having a babysitter and Damian doesn’t want to be a babysitter. Despite the two of them being around the same age.

“I got an eye on you so no funny business.”

“Okay, Dad, I am not going to have sex with Robin.” Mari said with a shit- eating grin. Robin definitely didn’t blush.

“I hate you sometimes.”

“I love you too, Dad. Go save the world. Byee.”

John eyes her suspiciously because she is not one to give up that easily usually.

He casts a spell to watch her as they leave. and which she totally knew about.

“So...I have one question.”

“Tt, ask and don’t bother me anymore.”

“Is Batman Bruce Wayne?”

Damian looks up, totally caught off guard.

“I am going to take that as a yes.”

Puts sword at her neck. “How did you find out?!”

“Opened up Google Maps and saw that we are under Wayne Manor. Connected the dots. Also I already knew when Dad made a bet with me once to find out Batman’s secret identity but he never did confirm it for me. And can you please not tell your father about this? I don’t feel like being interrogated by the Bat in the future yet.”

“Father must know about this.”

“I saw you looking at Scarlet here. An animal lover then? You can give her some belly rubs. She deserves it after helping me outrun those monsters.”

His silence was brought. To pet a dragon.

One thing after another and he ends up bringing out his pets-Jerry the turkey, Goliath the dragon-bat, Titus- and her introducing him to her other pets like a hellhound, griffin and other mythical creatures who mostly roam free but come to her when she calls for them and also the kwamis, at least the ones who came with her.

After 30 mins have passed, “So Robin how do you feel about disobeying our fathers?”

“I am in.”

“Depends. Are we going after the (villain's name) ?”

“Yes.”

Awesome montage of them getting rid of the spell John casted and flying out of the Batcave on their respective giant flying pets to the villain’s base.

Meanwhile, their fathers are not doing so well and are trapped in a death trap. John can’t say the spell because the villain made him unable to talk.

“At least, the kids are staying put.”

Cut to Damian and Mari jumping off their pets and onto the roof. Taking out the guards posted there and going into the building all sneakily and also taking out the guards that come their way.

They dropped into the room where their fathers and the villain is.

“Why am I not surprised?”

Villain starts an evil monologue about his mastermind plan to which Damian cuts it short by trying to cut him down with his katana. Mari goes to deactivate the death trap.

They are evenly matched with Damian’s training and the Miraculous.

Mari steps in as Damian was about to be killed. Taps on the shoulder of the villain and when he turns around, gives an awesome right hook that knocks him out.

Takes away the Miraculous and curses him. Wiped the dude’s memories of it.

“When I said stay in the Batcave, I meant stay behind at the Batcave. What point of being grounded, don’t you understand?”

“You mean, Oh, Mari, light of my life, my wonderful daughter, thank you for saving my ass. You are the best.’ by that, right?”

-----

Mari and Damian exchanged numbers and email addresses.

As she was about to leave the Batcave, “It’s been nice meeting you, Mr. Wayne.” and leaves with a wink.

John ‘ungrounds’ her for the look on Batman’s face.

-----

After this, Marinette and Damian become friends who bitch and vent to each other about their alter egos and various villains of their respective cities. (In codes, just in case) They also share updates about their pets and love of drawings.

They have that type of friendship where they trade favors. Mari calls Damian to Paris sometimes to help out with the akuma of the day and Damian sometimes calls her in when Bruce doesn’t let him go investigate a case so he can sneak out by magical means or as back up for when his brothers were too annoying to deal with.

It’s summer break so no missing school.

John and Bruce are aware of their friendship and some of the shenanigans the pair gets into behind their back.

-----

-----

Right. how this all started...

John and Sabine first met when the latter was still in college somewhere in France. John was tracking down a demonic entity which was targeting Sabine for some reason and she was the next target.

John saved her life and exorcised the demon. There was a heat of the moment thing and they had a one-night stand. There were a few more flings and hook-ups after that night.

And nine months later, Marinette Cheryl Cheng-Constantine was born.

When Sabine first found out, she called John to come over and he thought that it was a call for another hook-up and was very surprised to find out that it was not and that he was going to be a father.

They both like each other but do not want to be in a relationship together so they both remained as friends and John agreed after some strong-arming at the very least to meet his daughter before he goes to do his job. And pay for child support. And help Sabine during her pregnancy.

Pregnant Sabine was someone you don’t want to mess with. And John has never met a demon or anyone scarier than her.

He was at first not into meeting his child and there was a self-pity party he threw himself with how the child was going to live a bad life because he was the dad and how he destroyed every good thing in his life.

That’s why he is going to meet the baby once and leave maybe a letter and the occasional birthday present and stay out of their life. Forever.

The day Marinette was born and it took one look into her eyes for the HellBlazer to fall under the spell and all of his plans to stay out of her life to burn away.

At first, he tried. He really tried but he couldn’t do it.

Lasted 4 months before he came back, wanting to place protection spells on her and sigils around the house to keep away the forces of Heaven and Hell and other entities so they won’t use her against him as a bargaining chip.

Sabine calls him to babysit. He could have refused and Sabine would have easily found a babysitter. He moans and whines about how he is a great mage and not a bloody babysitter. Sabine retorts that it is actually called parenting since he is Marinette’s father. He grumbles but in the end, agrees.

The great John Constantine is wrapped around the little girl’s finger.

He was around for some of Marinette’s firsts. Her first word was “John”.

It made him cry. He wasn’t a good man and he doesn’t deserve someone this precious. His daughter doesn’t deserve someone like him as a father but fate made it that way and what can you do about it.

After an exhausting week of doing the usual and coming back from Hell, he saw that Sabine had sent him a video. It was Marinette taking her first steps.

Chas swears that in all the years that he has known John Constantine he has never seen the man look so happy.

------

When Tom came into the picture, John was there to take care of a toddler Marinette while Tom and Sabine went on dates.

Insert John threatening a much bigger Tom while holding a baby Marinette with wide eyes and hugging a teddy bear with the same coat as John’s. (It was something Sabine brought on a whim and to tease John when he came around.)

Tom is supportive and treats Marinette like his own flesh and blood.

John resolved to leave for good now that Tom would be there to be a father figure for Marinette.

That plan fell into the drain the moment he was going to leave for what was supposed to be the last time before Sabine pulled him back and knocked some sense into him.

His face was a big giveaway. Sabine knows that despite his claims of being a terrible father for Marinette, he was a good one and damnit she was going to make sure that Marinette would get to know her actual father.

Tom later made an awkward talk with John about how he was not going to replace John’s role as Marinette’s father.

Marinette was the flower girl at Tom and Sabine’s wedding. John was there too.

During bedtime, John would read her stories and use his magic to make it come to life. Although he would feel a little drained afterwards, it was worth it to see her smile.

Sometimes he told stories about his tamer adventures. (After cutting out some of the inappropriate bits)

------

When Marinette was about 5 or 6, Sabine was out on an errand and Tom was at home with Mari and helping her with her homework. There was a crash downstairs at the bakery. Tom went down to check it out to find John lying on the ground.

With a weak cough, he said, “Close the door. Close it.” Before losing consciousness

Tom did before a man with pitch black eyes slammed against it.

Thankfully John had installed heavy wards around the bakery when it first opened.

They held against the demon on John’s tail. Tom brought John inside and unsure of what to do, grabbed a rolling pin on the counter.

The man outside started pounding on the glass door and every time his hands touched the door, light glowed outwards, showing the invisible magic barrier around the bakery. Sparks and steams fizzled with every pound.

Despite the reddening and burns of his hands, the not-human didn’t slow down.

“ʝօɦռ....ʏօʊ ӄռօա ȶɦǟȶ ɨȶ'ֆ օռʟʏ ǟ ʍǟȶȶɛʀ օʄ ȶɨʍɛ ɮɛʄօʀɛ ɨ ɮʀɛǟӄ ȶɦʀօʊɢɦ ȶɦɛֆɛ աǟʀɖֆ. օռƈɛ ɨ ɢɛȶ ʏօʊ,” He laughs, the sound sends chills down the large man’s spine, “ȶɦɛʀɛ ǟʀɛ ֆօ ʍǟռʏ ȶɦɨռɢֆ ɨ ɦǟʋɛ քʟǟռռɛɖ ʄօʀ ʏօʊ.”

Tom knew that Marinette’s father was a con man. Come on, Master and Practitioner of the Dark Arts and Occult. But he was a good father nonetheless despite all his flaws and Sabine liked him enough so that was good enough for him.

Before today, magic was just the sleight of hands and use of fancy tools to sell the illusions. Now, with a could-be-a-demon knocking on his door to get to the father of the girl he sees as his daughter, he’s not so sure.

“Tom? Qu'est-ce qui se passe? (What’s going on?)” A little voice came from the stairs, “Dad!” Marinette padded across the floor to the body of her passed out father.

She shook him awake and there were a few soft slaps to the face.

“Dad, what’s happened?”

John mumbles, “Demon…. possessing some rich guy….. Exorcism…. Doesn’t like me very much…Don’t worry...wards going to hold.”

John manages to stand before falling down and Tom catches him before he hits the floor. He has a concussion. Tom turns to Marinette, “Go, Hide and don’t come out until It’s safe.” which she did

Unfortunately, a while later, Sabine returns from her night out and the demon upon seeing Sabine. “ɛӼƈɛʟʟɛռȶ..”

The demon possessed Sabine and the previously possessed dude hit the sidewalk with a thud.

“ɨռȶɛʀɛֆȶɨռɢ....” The voice coming out of Sabine didn’t sound like her mother which scared Marinette a lot. “օքɛռ ȶɦɨֆ ɖօօʀ օʀ,”the demon pulled a knife out of thin air, ,“ȶɦɨֆ ɮօɖʏ ɢɛȶֆ ɨȶ.”

Tom hesitated until the demon put the knife on Sabine’s neck and put enough force for a thin line of blood to be shown.

He opens the door and the demon knocks him out. Stepping over his unconscious body and looking down on it, “ʄօʀ ȶɦǟȶ, ɨ ǟʍ ɢօɨռɢ ȶօ ʟɛȶ ʏօʊ ʟɨʋɛ ʊռȶɨʟ ɨ ǟʍ ɖօռɛ աɨȶɦ ʝօɦռ, օʄ ƈօʊʀֆɛ.” and cackles. The sound was so wrong and unnerving and little Marinette tried very hard for her sobs not to be heard.

Too bad the demon had super hearing. “Come out, my little blossom. Maman is home. Why don’t you come out and give me a hug?”

It sounded so much like her mother and she nearly believed that it was her mother and not some entity in control of her body.

But she knew better from John’s stories of dealing with demons and how they would use the voice of loved ones to lure them out and into a trap. (Definitely not something one should tell as a bedtime story but Marinette was very different and had an unconventional childhood with John Constantine as her father.)

Wait...she got struck with an idea but she wasn’t sure if it would work.

Before she could do anything, the door of the cabinet she was hiding in was opened and she was dragged out.

The demon lifted her a few feet above the ground by the collar of her dress.

It heard Marinette saying something. “աɦǟȶ ǟʀɛ ʏօʊ ֆǟʏɨռɢ ƈɦɨʟɖ, ֆքɛǟӄ ʟօʊɖɛʀ?”

“Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus, omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursio infernalis adversarii, omnis legio, omnis congregatio et secta diabolica.” Marinette was now screaming the words at the top of her lungs. She repeated the spell over and over again with fierce determination.

John, being his paranoid self, taught her the spell for an exorcism, just in case. Demons spared no one, not even a girl.

It screamed “NO….” as Sabine’s body contorted in strange angles before a dark shadow seemed to be dragged down into the ground. It made a desperate attempt to possess John before it was pulled away and disappeared. There was no sign that there was a demon attack.

After John woke up, he managed to piece together that his 5-years-old (Sorry 5 and a half) daughter sent a demon back to hell.

He was a very proud dad. (He was a tad worried about the consequences from this event and demons hold one hell of a grudge. He wanted his daughter to live a very safe and happy life. The bakery’s wards also need an upgrade.)

He also got the job of explaining what he actually did to Tom. And lots of reassuring.

Sabine, on one hand, was not happy that Marinette knew how to do magic. That is until John told her that he did it just in case so she can protect herself and later it was agreed that Marinette can learn some Magic spells and charms to better protect herself and when she is older, she can decide if she wants to continue or not.

----

(Part 2)

#bio!dad john constantine #maribat #damientte #damainette #platonic daminette #maybe? #minor swearing

[j3ssisam3ss]

This idea won’t leave me alone...

In short: A Dickinette/BioDad!Bruce/Enemies to Lovers fic featuring:

Marinette “If God gave me strength you’d all be dead” Dupain-Cheng

Dick “Don’t make me use my Batman voice” Grayson

Tim “Give me coffee or give me death” Drake-Wayne

Damian “I’ll gladly give you death” Al Ghul-Wayne

Jason “It’s not trauma it’s humor, quit looking at me like that” Todd.

I can’t write a Dickinette fic at the same time that I’m writing a BioDad!Dick fic. I just can’t. But this idea won’t get out of my brain, so here I am writing it down and hoping it’ll leave me alone after this.

Marinette finds out she’s Bruce Wayne’s biological daughter when she’s summoned to Gotham for the reading of his will.

Because apparently the universe can’t give her even a single month to deal with the fact that her boss was a secret supervillain. Or the fact that the partner that had betrayed her, attacked her, sexually assaulted her, repeatedly, was the same guy she’d spent years crushing on.

It’s fine though. She’s fine. She’s not fine. No trauma or trust issues here.

She’s expecting money from her absentee father, maybe a cool car or something. Instead, she’s made co-CEO of a multi-billion dollar company and co-guardian of two kids.

Because apparently her biological father was something of a serial adopter. Apparently, he had no interest in reaching out to her, but adopted four boys and served as a mentor or guardian to countless other kids. She’s not bitter about that. Really, she’s not. She is.

Nevertheless, dealing with things she didn’t sign up for is practically Marinette’s calling card by now, so she takes to running Wayne Enterprises and raising her siblings like a duck to the water. Half the WE employees jumped ship after Bruce’s death? Not a problem, she’ll bring in new hires and inspire cult-like loyalty with her professionalism and efficiency. Her kids charges (and the rest of the Wayne family) moonlight as Gotham’s vigilantes? We’ve all been there. She starts immediately on new suits - ones that will have some magical extra protection and won’t make her barf every time she looks at them. The dead sibling is actually alive and just as salty with Bruce and his family as she is? She’ll make friends with him and force a reconciliation sweeter than the macaroons she used to bribe him.

The only issue she can’t solve is one Richard John Grayson. As Bruce Wayne’s far too attractive eldest ward - not son, apparently that’s a sore spot - the executors of Bruce’s will have named him her partner in this whole kid-raising, business-running mess. Which would be fine, except for the fact that he seems to have made it his life’s mission to oppose anything and everything she suggests or does. Marinette is running a fashion empire, trying to teach centuries-old monks what the internet is, raising two kids, and leading a multinational corporation. She doesn’t have time for this nonsense. And yet it’s her problem.

And then Gotham decides that she and Dick are in love and everything gets so much worse. Is it too late to take the Miracle Box and fake her own death?

Dick, on the other hand, has spent the last six years trying to break out of the shadow of Batman and Bruce Wayne alike.

With Bruce’s death, it feels like he’s taken three steps forward and fifty backwards. He’s twenty-four. He’s a police officer, with hopes of becoming a detective. He’s not prepared to run a multi-billion dollar company. Not prepared to raise his siblings. Not prepared to abandon his identity as Nightwing to become the Caped Crusader.

And yet, he has to. Because Tim and Damian need him. Because family comes first. Because it would destroy his siblings to become Batman. It will destroy him too.

When the court introduces Marinette Dupain-Cheng as Bruce’s biological daughter and his partner in sibling-raising and company-wrangling, his immediate reaction is relief. Maybe now he can get a little sleep. Maybe Damian will actually listen to her and will have a semi-normal childhood. Maybe she’ll be able to convince Tim to ingest something other than coffee. Maybe he won’t have to completely give up being Nightwing. Maybe between him, Tim, and Marinette they’ll be able to convince the world that yes, two young adults and a kid can run a successful business. Maybe one day she’ll grace him with a date.

These dreams are brought to a screeching halt when Dick realizes: Marinette Dupain-Cheng has no understanding of what a partnership entails.

She speaks for both of them to the board, to the media, to the kids, without so much as asking his opinion. She makes decisions and changes and informs him when it’s too late to protest. When he tries to bring it up, she gives him an innocent look of confusion and changes the subject. It’s infuriating maddening frustrating. Somehow, he’s doing more work trying to keep up with her than when he was running WE by himself.

And that’s not even getting started on the secrets she’s keeping. Her personality is all sunshine in public, but at home she’s as cynical and distrustful as Bruce himself. He hears voices coming from her room when she claims to be asleep. She has too many skills that don’t match with her background or age. Skills like disarming a gunman before the security guards even realize he’s there. Like successfully running a multinational corporation with no prior experience. Like knowing exactly how to deal with the media, despite being raised as a baker’s daughter.

Dick is taking on the mantle of Batman, raising his siblings, trying to learn how to run a multi-billion dollar company, and making regular appearances as Nightwing. He doesn’t have time to deal with this drama. And yet it’s his problem.

And then Gotham decides that he and Marinette are in love and everything gets so much worse. Is it too late to dump Bruce’s body in the Lazarus Pits and force him to deal with this mess?

@maribatmarch-2k21

Maribat March - Day 23 - Enemies to Lovers

#maribat #fic ideas #dickinette #marinette is so done #cynical marinette #guardian marinette #dick grayson is batman #everyone is traumatized #just realized this works for MaribatMarch #MaribatMarch2021

[s-wordsmith]

"How can you say 'eat the rich' and 'there are no ethical billionaires' and still be a Batman fan?" Because Batman doesn't live in the real world.

I am going to argue that Bruce Wayne, given the world he lives in, is ethically a billionaire. I want to make it clear that I am not supporting actual, real world billionaires by doing so.

Okay here we go.

Is it ethical in the real world to pay your employees less than a living wage, regardless of minimum wage laws? No. I don't need to argue that one.

Is it ethical for Bruce Wayne to pay his employees less than minimum wage? No. For the same reasons. Any version of Batman that doesn't pay his employees a living wage is a bad version of Batman and should be shunned and mocked like Bezos and Musk and the rest. This is antithetical to the character as conceived and as generally portrayed. You cannot save a city while contributing to its problems. End of discussion.

Is it ethical in the real world to pay your employees a living wage but not much more? I understand this is a matter of debate for some; my position is no. If you are living in luxury, your employees should be paid enough to live *comfortably*--bare minimum. Not comfortably if they budget every last cent like it's their full-time job, actually comfortably. Without undue anxiety. (This includes healthcare and other concerns obviously.)

Is it ethical for Bruce Wayne to pay his employees a living wage but not much more? I think yes, and I will explain.

Gotham is a cesspit. It is laboring under actual curses and built above the eternal prison of an actual demon. There is literally something in the water. And every single official in the city of Gotham is most likely crooked in some way except Jim Gordon. Bruce Wayne is just about singlehandedly responsible for social welfare in the city of Gotham, not just by virtue of numbers but also by virtue of making sure the money actually goes to those in need, as opposed to the pocket of some city official or other. He's also the one person (before the Robins and Batgirls) protecting the innocent civilians of Gotham. He's quite possibly the only non-crooked mass employer in the city. He funds hospitals and free clinics, shelters and housing projects, libraries and community centers and rehabilitation programs for ex-cons (whom he will personally hire), food banks and soup kitchens and probably city food gardens, every program for the benefit of the city you can think of is funded either out of his own pocket or with funds he convinced others to give, either by his example as Bruce Wayne or pressure by Batman--neither of which (his influence as Bruce or his gear as Batman) is possible unless he's a billionaire.

Let me rephrase the question: is it ethical for Bruce Wayne to pay his employees a living wage but not much more when the two dollars an hour he's not paying one person may very well be the only thing keeping another alive? Or even that same person?

If you were living in Gotham and being paid a living wage plus a little bit extra (with benefits), would you rather a raise or Batman and Bruce Wayne's efforts to keep healthcare in this city alive and functioning? Which do you think would personally benefit you more?

Which do you think is better for the city as a whole?

So that's a condensed version of my argument for why Bruce Wayne needs to be a billionaire. I would like to add the addendum that comic book authors, like most of us, have difficulty conceiving of a billion dollars and therefore don't always portray it correctly. I do not have proof of anything I have said, I am just working from general knowledge of the Batman mythos, of which I am certainly no expert. I would love to hear anyone else's take.

#batman #batfam #dc #Bruce Wayne