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puppiesandnightlock · 3 months

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LINK: Goodbye Was Not Our End

Summary: Jon and Damian had made peace with the fact that they would never reconnect. Every little part of their childhood history, built up since preschool had come crashing down, both leaving hidden feelings unsaid. But now, five years later, they have the opportunity to fix everything that had gone wrong, and maybe, just maybe, they could make it something more.

Sometimes, all you need is a second chance.

set directly after A Robin's Song

The phone was taunting him.

It was dark green, a silver W on the back, and a clear case with a robin on it, and currently it was lying on the floor after being viciously thrown to the carpeted floor of Damian’s apartment.

Said person was pressed up against the bottom of his bed, mimicking a frightened cat, hair raised and all. Tears had dried quickly as the shock quickly overcame every other emotion in his mind.

The phone buzzed and he jumped, crouching down to poke at the tech and flip it over before drawing his hand back.

This could not be happening.

When everything had first occurred , he’d been plunged into the deepest, darkest canyon of his mind and emotions, no way out and no one to help him. He wallowed and oh, how he tried to drown himself in the abyss.

He’d begged no one and everyone for a second chance, a moment back, just one more glimpse of what their lives had once been. His nights had been filled with quiet sobs and fitful sleep, before eventually going numb.

Everyone around him tried to lift him up, help him out, save him from drowning. There was therapy and medication and the thing that was there when he finally, finally, finally had a grasp on the rope to be lifted out, was his family, his friends, and his music.

Slowly, busying his mind with the music, he built his life back up, starting something new for himself.

And now?

Now he felt like he was back where he started, the repressed memories and the joy and the excruciating heartbreak overwhelming him, all topped with a healthy dose of fear.

He shut his eyes, inhaling deeply. It was a conversation. He had wanted this conversation for so long, and had always dreamed of a moment where he could try and get back what he had missed for so long.

When he opened his eyes, he made a grab for the phone, immediately clicking on the message saying he had a new DM.

Written across the screen were the words “Hey, D. Missed you.”

He turned around and promptly screamed into his pillow. Something burst inside of him, something fearful and tentative, but at the same time hopeful.

So, so, hopeful.

He typed in a response, deleting it just as soon as it appeared.

What do you say in a situation like this?

An ‘i missed you too’ should suffice. He scanned the little box and deleted it. Too longing in the way his voice read it back to him

Should he just type back a hi? Maybe a familiar nickname? Was he still allowed to call him that?

Every little thing was put on trial and was thrown out, and before he knew it, fifteen minutes had passed.

He gave up, getting up to pace around his home in an attempt to shake the anxiety filling him.

Their cat, Alfred, jumped on the counter as Damian began to brew some tea, absent-mindedly running his fingers through the cat’s short fluff.

“What am I doing?” He murmured to him, voice softly mournful. “What are we doing?”

Alfred meowed at him, and Damian nodded wearily. “Wise advice, Alfred.”

He inhaled the steam from his tea, wrapping his hands around the mug and absorbing its warmth.

Damian retrieved his phone after a bit, clicking on a few messages he had missed with the friends he’d kept from high school, plus someone from the studio he grew close to as he had first started out in his career.

You Can’t Sit With Us (five people)

gotSkyhighdreams: My 2 gradrs hate me u guys [cleanup.img]

Turninurfuckinbooks: this is why i don’t allow paint around small gremlins.

Colinator: could never be me fr

unmatchdwittyandQUEEN: rip sky

flyROBINfly: hey you guys something happened

Damian took a screenshot of the dm and cropped it, watching their messages pile on top of each other on screen.

You Can’t Sit With Us (five people)

Turninurfuckinbooks: what did you do.

gotSkyhighdreams: did you kill someone

Colinator: if you did i’ll help hide the body if u need

unmatchdwittyandQUEEN: same just say the word an ill bring a shovel

flyROBINfly: do any of you watch my streams

Turninurfuckinbooks: not unless a compilation or an edit of u being stupid shows up

Colinator:same tbh

UunmatchdwittyandQUEEN: if the internet doesnt shut up abt a certain interview

gotSkyhighdreams: when im on my lunch break ye

flyROBINfly: first off akira colin you are both dead to me

Second do you guys remember jon

Damian winced as the phone began to blow up, practically jumping from his hands with the pings that began to blow up his phone. It was a rather stupid question but he asked it anyway.

You Can’t Sit With Us (five people)

Turninurfuckinbooks: do we remember jon he asks

Colinator: jon, who you ask me abt every six months without fail bc i have his instagram

unmatchdwittyandQUEEN: jon who is forever known as that bitch in my heart

gotSkyhighdreams: nono we don’t at all remember the drama of the year that brought us together and kickstarted ur career

Turninurfuckinbooks: who you still pine for but have mostly forgotten about so you say

flyROBINfly: there has been no pining fuck off

Colinator: swear jar

flyROBINfly: anyways [screenshot.img]

gotSkyhighdreams: R U SRS

Turninurfuckinbooks: TF????

Colinator: WHAT

unmatchdwittyandQUEEN: EXCUSE ME?!?!

flyROBINfly: what do i say???

Turninurfuckinbooks: block him

gotSkyhighdreams: say hi back??

Colinator: ask him for his insta so u can check urself

unmatchdwittyandQUEEN: block him

flyROBINfly: so so helpful, all of you

never mind i’ll deal with it

The responses were overwhelming, but he felt petty and ignored them, setting his phone down and picking up the cat, setting Alfred on his stomach as he leaned back on the couch of the apartment.

“I’ve waited for this moment a long time, Alfred.” he informed the cat. “So very long and every planned thing left my mind the moment I saw him again.”

“What do you suppose he’s done now? Heard he got married, maybe he has a kid.”

Alfred meowed at him and he nodded. “I suppose you’re right. What would I ever do without you?”

That was how Duke found him thirty minutes later, lying on the couch having an avid conversation with their cat.

He dropped his keys on the entrance table and his messenger bag hung on the coat rack, Damian sitting up.

“I am having a crisis.”

“When are you not?” Duke responded dryly.

“Sarcasm is unbecoming and quite frankly patronizing at this moment.” Damian sniffed, Alfred wiggling out of his grapes and stalking over to Duke, rubbing his fur all over his ankles.

“I’m assuming it has something to do with today’s stream, right?” Duke pulled out his phone, waving it at him.

The online articles were blowing up, as well as various platforms. “I thought I'd ask you first before clicking on this.”

The feelings returned, an anxious churning sensation swirling around him and creating a lump at the back of his throat, pressing down and making the tearful feeling rear its head.

“I…it's Jon.” He pulled up the message and held it out, watching the impact of the words settle on his brother’s faces, eyes moving across his screen multiple times.

“Kent? Jonathan Kent? Are you sure it’s him?” He squeaked.

Damian nodded, the initial shock and feelings having faded slightly, although the remaining ones were funneled into anxiety, leg bouncing rapidly and fingertips tapping out a familiar rhythm.

“Did you respond?” He shook his head and Duke made a pained noise.

“So, you've been waiting for this for five years and the thing you do is leave him on read?”

Damian looked horrified. “Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God, he must think I'm such an asshole.”

Duke winced. “Well, I mean, this is a very telling moment for the both of you, I'm sure he understands, just respond.”

“What do I say??” Damian agonized over the phone, draping himself on the couch, and Duke was about fifty percent certain that their younger siblings spirits had come to possess Damian with their dramatic natures.

“Just say Hi. A simple hello, how have you been?” Duke prompted, nudging him. “If he’s an asshole, you know the rest of us will beat his ass for you.”

“Swear jar.” Damian said half-heartedly.

“I’m an ADULT!”

Duke got up but not before nudging Damian on the shoulder “I’m going to go and do some work, and when I come back, I expect to see a message sent.”

“I am older than you.” Damian scowled.

“And when you act it, I'll acknowledge that.” Duke had a shit eating grin on his face. “Dames, you mothered all of us pretty well til you left the house, so feel free to act your age or whatever.”

Sighing, Damian stared at the familiar logo on his screen. Nothing elaborate, just a diamond S in blue, red and yellow. They’d made them when they were younger, Damain creating the R symbol that came to be well known.

With a deep breath, he typed back, staring at his screen and waiting for the little bubbles to pop up, showing Jon was typing back a response.

It had been three hours since he’d sent the message to Damian, the typing bubbles popping up and dying back down just as quickly. The jumpiness caught up to him, obsessively checking his phone and pacing up and down his hallway.

Kathy Brandon, someone he’d met his freshman year of college and quickly bonded with, had sent him links to people talking about both him and Damian followed by a demand for an explanation. Talking about it had calmed his nerves a bit, but he was still jumpy.

He’d gone out an hour after to pick up something, and had returned slightly more relaxed. He was attempting to edit the article he’d been assigned, procrastinating on his Chem homework, when finally, finally finally, a notification lit up his phone.

Jon_Kent

Hey, D

Missed you.

ROBIN_Offical

Hello, Jon.

You already know I share your sentiment.

How have you been? It’s been…awhile.

Jeez, looks like sometime in these past few years Damian had swallowed a dictionary. Or was he upset? A grudge was understandable, but the way he’d sounded on the video…

Jon knew both of them wanted to reconcile, even if this new way of communication was slightly off-putting.

Jon_Kent

I’ve been alright.

lots of ups and downs from the few years

what about you? How’s ur family?

ROBIN_Official

They are doing well, as am I.

Duke and I have been staying outside of Gotham U

stephanie often stays with us

Are you still in Metropolis?

Jon winced at the way the conversation was read out. It was stilted and awkward, even over text. There was nothing relatively interesting about this, unlike when they were younger, never an awkward moment left between them, never running out of things to talk about.

Jon_Kent

yup, still here

Gotham U, huh? Thats not too far from here

ROBIN_Official

no, not very

I’m glad I was able to talk to you again.

Damian’s heart was pounding as he hit send. The message could be received in a few ways, and he hoped he wasn’t being too forward too early into the stiff conversation.

Jon_Kent

me too damian

I wasnt lying, i have missed you

i feel like this is a conversation better held in person then over phone

ROBIN_Official is typing…

Jon chewed on his bottom lip, having moved from the table to the kitchen counter. He wanted to see him in person, see the change and the things time had eroded from the image in his memory. Surely, in person the conversation would flow more, bring an atmosphere much closer to the way they used to be.

ROBIN_Official

Would you like to meet sometime this week?

I will have to check my schedule but i believe i’m free this friday

Damian was lying. He knew for a fact he was free on Friday, hell, he worked from home most days and could get away with driving to Metropolis tomorrow if he wanted, but rushing headfirst into a situation that required time most of all was something he didn't want to do.

Jon_Kent

that sounds good for me!

theres a nice little cafe around my apartment

we can meet up there if you want?

ROBIN_Official

sounds good. Send me the address and i’ll see you then

It sounded much more like he was organizing an appointment, but that was fine. God, he said yes. Jon let out a breathy laugh, hand over his mouth and he read the words again and again.

Little footsteps pattered into the kitchen, and Jon set down his phone, looking down at a little girl with tanned skin, raven curls, and freckles.

“Daddy, hungry.”

He smiled softly, lifting her up and setting her on his hip. “How does mac ‘n cheese sound, princess?”

Damian sat up, the anxiety resurfacing with a topping of nerves churning in his stomach. He took a screenshot, sending it to his friends, before announcing to Alfred the cat,

“Well, this Friday, I'm going to see my estranged best friend, who I pined for uselessly for somewhere around four years, and who I most certainly no longer have feelings for. We’re going to talk it out like the adults we are, and everything will be fine. How has your day been?”

The cat’s judgemental stare and incredulous meow was the only response he got.

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thecomicsnexus · 5 months

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The hurrieder I go

THE ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #440

May 1988

By John Byrne, Jerry Ordway, Dennis Janke, Anthony Tollin, Albert DeGuzman, and Dave Gibbons.

Superman is excited for his upcoming date with Wonder Woman, and several other things happen.

SCORE: 10

This story was a good sample of what the super titles were under Mike Carlin. Not only Superman is a fleshed-out character, but also the other arcs in the book continue to evolve (and these particular plots would take two more years to reach their climax).

The beauty of Batman guessing Superman's identity, and the priceless reaction he gets is what makes this issue memorable. I am not sure why Ordway was feeling nostalgic for Golden Age Batman here, but I think it's all fine.

Of course, in the same issue, Clark discovers that the scrap book that was sent to him by some anonymous source, and that Batman used to deduce he was Clark Kent, was his mom's (something we readers knew from the start, two years before).

Also as a funny note, it was revealed that despite Batman's efforts to hide his identity with lead, Superman already knew he was Bruce Wayne.

And if this wasn't enough, the issue ends with the date between Superman and Wonder Woman... although you can already imagine that the date wouldn't go well, as Superman started the night by kissing her.

Classic story coming up...

#comics #review #dc comics #modern age #1988 #superman #batman #wonder woman #the adventures of superman #jerry ordway #dave gibbons

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cantsayidont · 6 months

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January 1985. Oh dear. This miniseries … where even to begin. First, an important clarification: The Batman in question is the Golden Age Batman, who lived on Earth-2 and died in ADVENTURE COMICS #462; this isn't an Imaginary Story, although it does take place on a different parallel world than most other Bronze Age DC comics. As for the premise, it's spelled out in more detail on the splash page:

While obviously shocking, this premise may seem a bit less outlandish if you understand that it's riffing on a topical reference. About a year before this series was written, there was a much-publicized scandal involving the West German magazine STERN purchasing a series of purported diaries of Adolf Hitler (for a huge amount of money — 9.3 million marks), which turned out to be forgeries. This was international headline news, and so that whole mess was still in recent memory when this series was developed.

In this story, Roy and Dann Thomas take that inspiration in a rather different direction: The Batman diary is freely presented to the Daily Star, Clark Kent's paper, by an unimpeachable source, and Clark himself recognizes that the handwriting is Bruce Wayne's. So, the central question is not whether the diary is genuine, but why Batman would seek to posthumously slander his old comrades, and whether the JSA can prove their innocence. To add spice to the mix, the situation drives a wedge between Batman's daughter, Helena Wayne, and Bruce's former ward, Earth-2's Dick Grayson.

Unfortunately, this provocative premise becomes little more than a framing device for one of Roy Thomas's continuity-recapping exercises, giving the JSA a pretense to recount all of their adventures up to that point. In the pre-Internet age, this had some value (particularly thanks to the comprehensive annotations, which the 2015 trade paperback inexplicably omits), but most of it is not especially germane to the actual charges, and even moments like the Spectre threatening to cast the Earth into the sun don't spare it from feeling like a sitcom clip show. Worse, the whole plot hinges on Thomas having either misread or misremembered pivotal details of Bruce Wayne's appearances in the revived ALL-STAR COMICS in the '70s, so his eventual explanation contradicts what's actually in the stories he's referencing.

The finale (whose cover references ALL-STAR COMICS #35) has Dick Grayson discovering that the diary was Bruce's extremely convoluted attempt to alert the JSA to the return of one of their old enemies, the time-traveling would-be world conqueror Per Degaton. This makes no sense at all (there's no connection between the accusations in the diary and Per Degaton), so it's left to Helena Wayne to paper over the plot holes by explaining that her father had terminal cancer (implicitly some kind of brain tumor, though it's not specified) that made him irrational and paranoid in his final months. Ouch! The JSA doesn't exactly prove their innocence, although everyone claps and cheers about their testimony about all the cool things they've done, which is apparently good enough for Congress. Degaton's fate is cleverly handled and unexpectedly final, but it doesn't entirely make up for the plodding history lectures.

If you don't know anything about the JSA's pre-Crisis history, this is still a decent place to start, although it would be much more useful in that respect if the compilation had included the annotations. (The original versions had some errors, many of which Thomas subsequently corrected elsewhere, but I assume Thomas could have been persuaded to do a corrected list for the compilation.) However, don't expect it to be a good or even very coherent story.

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wintersoldier2005 · 2 years

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anyway the fact that when i was a kid into superheroes the only people that looked like me and spoke my language in the media i consumed were the terrorists the heroes would fight. and now it's TEN WHOLE YEARS later and batman's fucking son is middle eastern! he's mena and yet instead of getting to be cutesy and fun like batman's other kids he has to always be fucking CORRUPT and EVIL and FIGHTING HIS DAD TO THE DEATH. when i was a kid i knew the fact that my people were always terrorists was propaganda because it was so cartoonish. but a kid reading comics today would not know that what they're reading is just as much propaganda and it makes me so goddamned sad

#robin vs batman thoughts. 😕 especially being a mena kid with anger problems growing up... just very sad pero estoy divagando #dc comics #batfam #damian wayne #i wrote an essay (NOBODY CARES ALERT!) for a class on race in the middle ages about how in medieval stories moorish armies were displayed #as embarrassingly weak and pathetic yet muslim characters as individuals were always overwhelmingly strong in order to inspire fear of #individual muslims in the christian population but to assure them that as a whole they would never be under harm and then i tied it to #modern examples.... dc comics count your fucking days i will be coming for your ass the next time i write about this #mena in comics

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batbabydaily · 8 months

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world's finest comics #2: the man who couldn't remember

#the bat offering robin to communicate with him about his behavior... modern bats could never #worlds finest comics 2 #dick grayson #robin #batman #linda page #golden age batman

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navree · 23 days

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Not sure if this has been mentioned anywhere else here but which are your favorite Jason Todd comic book runs?

Honestly, probably any of his stuff from when he was Robin in the 80s, I love Robin!Jason and he gets so frequently mischaracterized not just by the fandom but literally by modern writers within DC canon that someone needs to stick up for the little guy. I also include For The Man Who Has Everything in that because there's something very Good about little twelve year old Jason being the one who saves Batman from the Black Mercy, Superman from Mongol, and literally defeats Mongol in the process, I wish more people remembered that.

For Red Hood Jason, I hate to be a disappointment but I don't really keep up with modern DC because it pisses me off so egregiously (I tried guys, I did, but Gotham War is the last fucking straw, someone call me when they're sort of back to normal because what the fuck do you mean Bruce doesn't have a hand anymore???). So for Red Hood Jason, I tend to stick to Under the Red Hood, it's a solid story and has some great individual moments and I think it gives some solid characterization to a new iteration of Jason (that following stories immediately forgot but that's because DC didn't know what the fuck to do with Jason).

And for individual stories that have Jason in them, I wish I could remember the name and issue, but the book where Jason kidnaps Mia Dearden is great, I'm never not thinking about it, and Jason has a great moment during that whole arc where Kate Kane kills Clayface (I think it's Batman #951 or #967 but the number could be wrong, I just know that it's in the 900s). Also, it's not canon and I don't really care for the characterization or artwork, but Gotham Knights: Gilded City #5 had a moment about Jason that is simultaneously heartwrenching and also hysterically funny (both Jason and Tim are in trouble and Bruce is trying to figure out who to get to first and, upon being told by Alfred that Jason can handle himself and Tim is arguably in more danger, proceeds to ignore all of that and monologue about how he needs to go halfway around the world to get Jason because he's suffered too much already and he doesn't think either the family or he specifically could survive losing him again, which is very emotional but also sends me into fucking fits because he really just bowled over the fact that Jason could be fine and Tim might need him more without a second thought, it makes me so grateful my parents only had two kids and I'm the eldest so that I never had to witness the parenting of a middle child).

#personal #answered #anonymous #comic recommendations #ironically there's a reason for why when my mom asked for comic recs (long story) i gave her jed mackay's doctor strange run #even tho i'm much more emotionally invested in dc's characters #modern dr strange is enjoyable for me to read and modern batman Has Not Been #i would just like a character i have loved since age 7 to stop being written as an absolute shithead #just to appeal to a male power fantasy that does not jive at all with his established characterization #and to also stop being awful to his fucking children #the only good thing about That moment from gotham war is that someone actually stood up for jason #so grateful dick beat bruce into the ground for it i'm glad someone had jason's fucking back and was angry For him #and the harm done to him #but yeah read eighties jason he's a little baby and i love him so much #(also read detective comics 571 if you want to cry cry cry due to unintentional foreshadowing)

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