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whispereons · 9 months

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Oracle!Reader Part 11

Masterlist - Part 1, Part 10, Part 12

As always this is your warning! This au is dark, violent and sad at times. It's imposter sagau which is already yandere and stuff. Blood, graphic description of violence is in it.

The flower pin was rough under your fingertips as it's stashed away into your bag. A keepsake for Kuan now that the chances of her body being found without life were higher. If not certain already.

"The meeting must have gone poorly to say the least. Treasure hoarders are greedy by nature, they must have spiked the price to insane heights."

Xingqiu pushes the chunks of metal off the road as he comments on his theory. Tracks are slowly revealed leading both ways of the path.

"Which way now? They probably kept the victims together so should we split up or stay together?" Chongyun asks as you all stand together looking at the split path.

Both paths had multiple footprints, but it was hard to tell which were from fighting or fleeing. Xingqiu opens the tracking and hunting book as he flips through it.

"There was a chapter on footprints, it can probably help us know which way to go. And hopefully how long ago too."

Nodding absentmindedly, you carefully step around the tracks and compare the amount of child-sized on the left to the ones on the right. There were at least twice as many on the left than the right.

"Hey Chongyun I think they went left; can you see if the smaller footprints fade out or turn around on the right path?"

"Sure" He's gone quickly and Xingqiu joins you in the left path as he compares the text in the book to what he's seeing.

"The small tracks are digging deeper at the front meaning they must have been running. If they were just fighting, there would have been more of a bump. It would be easier to tell if there was less blood, but our best bet seems to be the left path."

"The left leads deeper into Liyue to the Minlin region, right? That's good since the mountains are too tough to get off the path with that many children but the path leads to Jueyun Karst too."

"Should I even ask how you're so familiar with the Minlin region?"

"Do you really want a repeat of the event earlier?"

"You both better not be fighting again." Chongyun butts in as he jogs back. He's holding something in his hands and stretches them out revealing the item.

"The footprints there were all grown so you were right about it being left Y/N. I also found this Fatui insignia." The blue and gold design of a sergeant insignia was stained with dried blood and dirt.

"I believe there's a good chance that the treasure hoarders managed to escape with the hostages. That would explain why the fatui agent tried to settle a 'debt' with us before."

"Then let's not waste any time, if we don't hurry, they might try to get off the path." Picking up the pace you all follow the left path and keep quiet for any signs of the victims.

As you continue past the scenery and occasional animals your mind lingers on the possibility of them going off the path or not. They definitely could if they knew the area well enough, but something is nagging you that you're missing something.

If the deal went well, the hoarders would have used the cart to drive away. It's doubtful that they would go back to the harbor with their crime so recent but going on the right path wouldn't work either.

The right path would have led them past Wangshu Inn which was like a game over since Xiao isn't all that subtle. Or to Mingyun village which was where the Fatui would have left to. They would have met up in that village and fight there instead of here so that's out too. That leaves only the left path which leads straight to Jueyun Karst.

That would be a bad option but unlike Wangshu Inn that's surrounded by water, they could escape south to the ruins. So, the hoarders would be going left either way. So whatever way they planned on escaping is canceled due to the hostages. Why did you still feel like you were forgetting something?

Your hand tightens around the strap of your bag as the path gets rocky. Maybe if you reread the commission you could remember?

Not slowing down you dig the handbook out and read the commission list. Your eyes stop on the commission that stands out the most.

Full Speed Ahead - The path is needed for a transportation vehicle moving people. Make sure the path is clear within the time limit. Defeating enemies may be necessary.

The path needed is the bridge that leads into Jueyun Karst. The vehicle in the commission isn't specified nor the reason. Did they plan to cross that bridge before escaping through the bottom mountain?

Right now, it was the only idea of what direction they could be taking, you had to get to that bridge. Stuffing the handbook back into your bag, you start to speed up.

"I think I have an idea on where they went! We need to get to the bridge that leads to Jueyun Karst."

The look they shoot you is ignored as you draw closer to the bridge. Even still, they match your pace before you all slow down at the sight of the bridge.

The bridge had multiple slimes crowding it as it swayed at the weight. Wasn't this bridge a safety hazard? Those gaps are big enough that a whole person could slide out.

"I see a group on the other side!" Xingqiu says loudly over the sound of the bouncing slimes. You look where he's pointing and can see a rough group of six people.

Chongyun takes a step on the bridge but is instantly pushed back by the slimes. Frowning he speaks with the slightest hint of worry.

"We can't cross with all those slimes but if we fight them, the bridge might collapse. We would need to go all the way around and that would not only put those people in danger but let the hoarders get farther."

"Then let's think outside the box, who says fighting is our only option?" Grinning with confidence you push past the guys and step on the bridge.

Trying not to look down the bridge you grip the rope tightly and watch the slimes start to crowd you. Unlike with the geovishap hatchlings, you didn't plan to just stay still.

Three cryo slimes tackle your legs at the same time but miss as you dodge it. The slimes fall through the wide gaps giving you more leg room.

With that you begin to quickly pick up the 'safer' slimes like the hydro and geo slimes before chucking them off. You were careful not to let the pyro or electro slimes touch you and simple dodged them.

"What are you two doing standing there?! Come and help me already!"

Your words seem to snap them out of whatever daze they were in before they ran to join you. As vision holders their bodies had some natural resistance to the slime's elemental bodies. You witnessed Chongyun pick up two pyro slimes with ease as you kicked a dendron slime off. He didn't even get a single burn!

The number of slimes dwindled down quickly till there only a handful of hydro slimes. You expected them to try to run away or charge at you but instead they simply circled you before gurgling happily.

Throwing off one of the hydro slimes you finally looked down to see that all the slimes were safely at the bottom. You did have the maximum world level 8 so fall damage must not be enough to kill them.

In your confusion you picked up the next one and bluntly asked. "Do you guys enjoy being thrown off like this?"

It smiled with 'closed' eyes almost exactly like you would see in the game as the last two hydro slimes jumped around happily. You looked up at Chongyun and Xingqiu who gave you an equally confused stare.

Shit this might have been another creator perk. If the slimes don't enjoy being thrown by them, then the guys will start to suspect you again. That means precious time and energy wasted, Yiran can't afford that.

"Can you both check up on the group while I finish these slimes. Clearing this path was also one of my commissions."

Chongyun stops mid-grab before nodding. Xingqiu is unfortunately less cooperative.

"We helped you with your commission, surely you'll let us take some of the prize too."

"Aren't you all for justice and chivalry? It's very unrighteous of you to try and steal from the poor and needy." You respond with a shrug as the last slime gets happily thrown off.

It may come from the perk of being the creator but it's still a bit creepy how much they like being thrown off the bridge. But the slimes are also quite cute, so it's forgiven.

The whole creator cult thing was a different story.

"Well then shouldn't you-" "That's enough, the bridge is clear let's get going."

Cutting off Xingqiu you begin to lightly push him across the bridge. Although he does stop talking, he begins to lean even more on your hands.

Man was he heavy, the game didn't exactly give the best body portions. Xingqiu looked quite slim, but sword training gives muscles and Xingqiu is not exception.

He even had the nerve to take out a book and begin reading leaving you with the job of pushing him.

A nice little prank is schemed as you pushed him quietly to the end of the bridge where Chongyun was waiting for you both.

Chongyun turns in your direction and sighs tiredly at Xingqiu's antics. Xingqiu begins to close the book and you smile secretively. With a quick sidestep, your hands leave his back and he falls backward onto the bridge.

The teens begin to laugh as the adults control their laughter better. You smirk down at the annoyed Xingqiu as he moves his book off his face.

"Since I did the manual labor of pushing you all the way here, I'm sure you'll let me keep the full reward."

"Fuck you" You simply flip him off before turning to the elderly man and adults with a pleasant smile.

"Hello, which one of you had filed this bridge as a commission?" Money came first, you didn't want the commissioner to slip away. You didn't even have to worry about the time limit due to the amount of slimes you had to throw off.

"That would be me, thank you for your work." The elderly man hands you the bag of rewards. You turn around to where Chongyun was helping Xingqiu up.

"You did help so do you want a portion of the rewards?"

"I only accept the base fee for exorcism jobs. It was your idea that made it possible to cross so I don't need any mora." He shakes his head firmly and you nod in acceptance.

More mora for you after all! Pocketing the money, you ignore Xingqiu who's holding out his hand for some of the reward. He tsk'd at your action as Chongyun sighs tiredly at the conflict between you two.

"I do have another commission about a kidnapping case. A group of treasure hoarders kidnapped two adults, some teenagers, and children. We followed the path here, are you part of the group that were kidnapped?" You direct your question to the adults and teenagers as they begin to sigh in relief.

"Yes, but we're only part of the group." The first adult who looks to be an older woman speaks with tears of relief. "After we were taken, we got to a clearing of some sort in Guilt Plains and the Fatui were there. We tried to escape when they began to fight but we were caught."

"When we got to the bridge the slimes were starting to crowd it, so they tied us on the other end and crossed the bridge with the children and a few teenagers. Thankfully Mr. Dao untied us, and we helped him cross the bridge." The second adult a man who couldn't be older than 20 explained with a hoarse voice.

"There's no way we could defeat the hoarders to save the children and the bridge was overfilled with slimes. But not only did you clear the bridge, but you all seem strong enough to save the kids. Please save them, my son is still with them too." The woman clasps her hands with budding tears as she looks at you.

"The information you gave us is invaluable. I can assure you that we'll keep working on this case." Carefully picking your words, you do your best to comfort the mother. Her gaunt figure and poorly maintained features are a clear indicator of her poverty. She's not the first mother you've seen suffer like this in poverty.

"May the creator bless you with luck in all that you do." She whispers pressing her lips against her hands. Muttered prayers are carried by the wind as you begin climbing up the path with the quiet vision holders.

The mood in your group is somber from the earlier conversation. Leaves flutter in the air with the rising height and birds circle the mountain. After crossing a small wooden bridge, you all get to an archway with a blue tile roof, and a large bell hangs motionlessly above. Small statues of frogs litter the area seeming to watch you.

There were also mini stone statues of you too. Fancy clothes adorn the small statues with a matching hat. It was cute but it seemed to remind Chongyun and Xingqiu that you were all entering the adepti area.

They both hesitate at the gate with conflicted expressions. Neither of them have the sigil of permission and you sure as hell don't have one. They probably could enter while you were playing as it was under the creator's command but that didn't apply here.

Even still you grab their hands and drag them past the gate. "Why are you two standing there like idiots? There are children scared out of their mind with no clue on whether help is coming or not."

"This is the home of the adepti, without a sigil of permission we aren't allowed to enter less we face punishment." Xingqiu speaks but he still allows you to pull him.

"What's more important? The lives of innocent children or the privacy of beasts that are meant to protect the lives of people of Liyue which would include those children. If the adepti can't forgive our intrusion, then they are shameful to the creator. And the creator's will overpowers all others."

You release their hands and continue hiking. Both boys walk at your swift pace with a seemingly fond look. It seems that creator perk of them becoming inclined to you is starting to affect them.

After a while you all find a man sitting on a small structure with an axe by his side. The sun is already starting to creep down, but you need a break. Chongyun starts walking to the man but not before saying, "I'll ask him for any information. You aren't used to this terrain yet Y/N, rest up in the meantime."

Were you really that obvious? In embarrassment you pat away the dust and dirt from your clothes. The snicker from Xingqiu makes you glare at him with a flustered face.

"Quit laughing before I push you off this mountain." Your mumble only makes him laugh at you more. Fed up, you shoulder him making him stumble at the unexpected action.

Now annoyed he moves to shoulder you back, but Chongyun is already pulling you behind him.

"Xingqiu can you stop fighting with Y/N?"

"Chongyun it isn't good to misunderstand situations like these. They really started it this time."

"I have no clue what he's talking about. I was tired and started to lean on Xingqiu. It's not my fault he wasn't strong enough to hold up my weight."

Xingqiu chuckles in disbelief at your innocent words as Chongyun shakes his head. "Xingqiu, you can't really expect me to believe you. You do stuff like this all the time to me."

You stick your tongue out at Xingqiu over Chongyun's shoulder as he smiles sharply at you. He silently fumes as you grin mockingly at him.

"Now back to the mission, the man Pan Guan'er is a lumbar jack looking for his axe. He said that he only sat down to rest recently and hadn't seen anyone passing by. We should keep hiking up and maybe we'll find more clues."

Nodding you all keep hiking but again you feel that sense of unease. It seems you aren't the only one as Xingqiu starts questioning Chongyun as you all cross a pond.

"A lumbar jack in the adepti area? How strange. That job requires a lot of strength so what kind of build did he have?"

"He was more on the slender side with muscles on his legs being the most prominent." Chongyun recalls as he stares down at the floor.

Muscles on the legs rather than the arms? There's no way he's a lumbar jack. You turn around first and freeze at the sight of Pan and two treasure hoarders sneaking up.

"Watch out!" One of the hoarders already has a crossbow about to shoot and you react quick enough to tackle both guys to the floor.

An arrow may have only done some damage while you played the game, but this was real life. You weren't sure if you could save either of them if they got hit in a vital spot. Let alone an organ like an eye.

The situation dawns on them as you all scramble up to avoid the attacks coming your way. A masked hoarder begins to load up another arrow as the biggest man charges with a hammer. Pan Guan'er slips a mask onto his face and readies a pair of throwing knives.

Chongyun defends you and Xingqiu from the hammer by blocking with his claymore. The heavy clang and subsequent swings of the hefty weapons in combat let you and Xingqiu go around and battle the others.

Xingqiu follows the crossbow hoarder as he backs away tactically from the agile boy. Your sickle is summoned, and your swing is electro-charged against Pan if that even was his name.

He dodges at the last minute and kicks your side making you bite back the groan. Knives slash at your clothes and are thrown at your neck as you dodge them all while being careful to avoid his legs.

You're unrelenting once you get an opening to attack. The blunt side of your sickle leaves bruises on his body as you cautiously leave shallow cuts. You can't let him die just yet.

The fight is so familiar that your body follows the movements easily. Reminiscent of all the street fights you participated while homeless. It's the jobs from your old boss that would get physical that seem to crowd your mind the most.

The fight is over before you know it with your sickle on his neck keeping him pinned down on the ground. Xingqiu climbs back up with a frustrated expression that softens at the sight of your victory.

"He fell off the cliff while I was chasing him. Who in their right mind backs up without checking?" He sighs as Chongyun comes over with blood staining the end of his pants.

"He lost too much blood and couldn't answer any questions I had. Hopefully, we get more luck with Pan." Pan gulps nervously at the sight of all three of you staring down at him.

"Why did you kidnap those people? What happened with the Fatui? But if you can't answer those questions then you better be able to answer where those children are now." The sickle presses against his neck harder letting a stream of blood trickle down.

"We heard that the Fatui needed people, so we agreed to kidnap some for them! The money they brought wasn't to the bosses liking so we fought. For some reason they retreated, and we took the people here to escape."

"And where are they now?" Pan avoids your eyes as he sweats. If he wasn't going to say more then you'll have to force it out of him. The loud crunch of bones breaking can be heard alongside Pan's screams.

Chongyun lifts his claymore and slams the dull side onto his leg mercilessly. It's surprising to see this sharp chilliness from him but it saves you the trouble.

Pan's arm swings up to hit your side, the knife glinting in his hand as he grunts angrily. "I'm gonna-! Hurk-"

His words are cut off as a sword stabs his arm back into the ground. The blood seeps through and spills onto the grass and pond as tears and snot dribble down his face.

Disgusting

What right does he have to cry? He's not the parent who's worried over their child with a dangerous fate. He's not the child stolen and at the mercy of adults with malicious intentions.

"We split up! I was staying here on Qingyun Peak to throw off any Fatui members that might come while the prisoners were taken to Mt. Hulao!" He sobs out and you draw your sickle back in disbelief.

Mt. Hulao? That was the mountain right across from here! You would have to climb down, cross the river, and then climb back up. They could go anywhere by then!

Shit, shit. What were you supposed to do?

Chongyun and Xingqiu seem just as conflicted as the draw their weapons away. Now free and bleeding, Pan begins to crawl away. Chongyun moves to detain him again, but you stop him with a hand on his shoulder.

"Leave him be, we got the information we needed. Besides, he'll bleed to death before he finds any help."

Xingqiu seems to be deep in thought as he stares off the cliff in the direction of Mt. Hulao. He talks with Chongyun about any possible paths to it as you stand a little farther on the side.

Warily you bring up the game screen and press the map quickly. You didn't have enough privacy or time to control one of your characters to save the children, but you could zoom in on the mountain through the map.

There you spot a flat area on Qingyun Peak facing Mt. Hulao. If you could climb higher, you could glide to the mountain saving loads of time and energy. You let that little flame of hope ignite and close the game window in a hurry.

"I have an idea, you both have gliders, right?" You ask with an excited smile as they nod in unison. Wordlessly they understand your plan and follow you up the mountain.

The path is littered with flat rocks and plants that your feet carelessly trample on. Trees, lamps, and archways are ignored as the sky starts to turn a soft shade of orange. Time is running out.

The clearing comes into view as the amber-imbued mountain stands proudly across. A huge stone circle is nearly consumed by the wildlife as you all walk to the edge.

Red ropes tied to the trees holding small signs are on your left and on the right is a strange device with two of your mini statues guarding it. A mechanical stone doll of yourself stands there with gold rings around the joints. Was that a pull-apart and put-back-together statue of yourself?

This was Moon Carver's Mountain, so it belongs to him. Maybe Cloud Retainer made it for him. You eye the path on the right that leads further up the mountain to his home. It was weird to think that even the high and mighty acting adepti worshipped you too.

The edge of the mountain makes your palms sweaty as you peek down. It's a long drop. Forcibly you activate the glider as Xingqiu and Chongyun stand next to you calmly.

"You look quite nervous Y/N, this must be your first time using one. Did you not get your license?" Too nervous to be annoyed you answer with a chuckle.

"Nope, but what the Millelith doesn't know, won't hurt them. Besides they're pretty crappy anyway." The soft breeze helps cool you down as you stare straight ahead.

"Just hold onto us if you're that nervous. If you're really scared, then I can just carry you." Xingqiu replies as he holds his arms out. It's teasingly in your eyes but he's very serious.

"Can't do that, I have to learn to glide by myself ya'know? But I will take you up on the first offer." You grab Xingqiu's right hand and turn to Chongyun.

His glare at Xingqiu softens when you look at him. Wordlessly with a shy look he holds his left hand out. Internally he's relieved that you didn't accept Xingqiu's offer to carry you. He knows him well enough to know that he was serious about that offer.

Hyping yourself up that this cliff wasn't as terrifying as you thought, you jumped off the cliff gripping their hands tightly. It's just like building parkour, it's just like building parkour. The chant is repeated as you keep your eyes closed from the wind.

"You can open your eyes now, Y/N." Chongyun's calm voice coaxes you as a playful voice continues. "Just don't flail around too much."

Slowly you open your eyes to the sight of the passing birds and Mt. Hulao slowly approaching. The wind is soft as it caresses your face while the wind pushes you all higher into the air.

"As long as neither of you let me go, then this will be a nice and easy flight." You direct your quip to Xingqiu. "And if someone does decide to be a dick then I'll let go of Chongyun and bring Xingqiu down with me."

"Real subtle Y/N."

"Aren't I always?"

"I have to thank the creator for keeping the wind in the direction we need. The faster we get to the mountain, the faster we can search for the kids. Plus, you two can stop fighting for at least 5 minutes."

"Y/N, do you see what kind of bad influence you are? Chongyun never acts this way."

"Don't blame me, it's not my fault he's sick of your antics."

Chongyun sighs softly as you and Xingqiu continue bickering until you all land on Mt. Hulao next to a chunk of amber. You mimic Xingqiu and Chongyun who mutter a prayer of thanks to the creator.

The orange-pinkish hue of the sky is now a soft purple as the amber seems to glow. You knock on the tall amber and listen to the hollowness of the mineral.

"Don't get distracted Y/N! We have to hurry or else they might get away." You jump at the sudden call and catch up with the duo. The cold air is starting to make you a bit cold as you follow the path.

"Isn't it a bit strange that there aren't any monsters here? I mean the adepti wouldn't bother killing elemental creatures or even any monsters unless they actively disturbed them."

"I think that's the answer," Chongyun responds quietly to Xingqiu's question as he points ahead.

Right at the edge of the giant hole in the middle of the mountain was a few bodies. No, a few corpses.

Treasure hoarders lay on the ground, against the wall, and even in the bushes with battered bodies. Claw marks, arrows, puncture wounds, and even arrows are inflicted on the bodies. The only explanation would be that a group of hilichurls attacked them.

Walking closer you touch the blood and let it drip off your finger. "It's cold but not dry. They were here not long ago; they must be up the mountain."

Walking up the mountain with the guys in tow you wipe the blood off on an amber chunk. As you all keep climbing, more and more bodies are found, thankfully none of them are of kids.

As the path turns to stone staircases amber chunks become more frequent. Xingqiu peers into one and bites his lip.

"The amber is also encasing some of the hoarders. That's usually the fate for anyone who climbs Mt. Hulao."

"We should leave them to the creator's mercy. They're either dead or going to die. Not to mention Mountain Shaper isn't known for his grace." Chongyun responds as you glance at the passing amber coldly.

Finally at the top of the mountain you stare at the big trees with burgundy leaves, Cor Lapis are rooted around the trunks. Yelling and crying can be heard as you climb the last few steps to finally see the situation.

Mountain Shaper stands in front of his cave in the usual form of a crane as he stares down at the only standing treasure hoarder. Multiple dead bodies lay in the shallow water as the water changed to red. The hoarder is yelling something but the soft cries on your left are the only thing you hear.

Yiran is kneeling in the water as she sobs clutching a boy's hand. His features so similar to the woman you met at the bridge. Yet the pink hue of the water and dull eyes make your heart clench at having to present her with his body.

"Mortal of treachery, you and your kin invaded my mountain seeking to hide your crime and escape with your lives. Let the amber of my mountain encase you till only dust remains!"

With a flap of his wings, the last hoarder is consumed by amber with a horrified expression clear. You stare in awe at the display of power as the amber crumbles into dust and scatters among the water.

Mountain Shaper turns his attention to your group with irritation. "Intruders left to right. At the very least you three have no scent of corruption and evil, I'm sure you came for the children. The others are on Mt. Aocang under Cloud Retainers care."

The mountain seems to rumble as he walks slowly towards you all with glowing red eyes. "Yet you all trespassed on my and Moon Carver's residence. Foolish and arrogant mortals you all are, your punishment will be swift and painless."

Your heart pounds in your chest as you promptly reply but not toward Mountain Shaper.

"Yiran! Your father Kuan is waiting for you at the city. He's been worried sick about you, he commissioned me to find and save you."

"Really?" She quietly replies, "Daddy sent you? I-I want to go home! I wanna see Daddy!" She sniffles before bursting into tears.

Mountain Shaper stands in front of you with narrowed eyes. "What caliber of schemes did you plan to follow through with such an action?"

"Do you or the other adepti plan to come to the city and find the people those children belong to yourself? How do you plan on calming down traumatized children?" He scoffs at your questions and glowers at you.

"The sole reason I have not imprisoned your form despite your conceited words is due to the scent of Teyvat that surrounds you. Your comrades will care for the children while we can investigate you."

He spreads his wing into Yiran's direction silently commanding the guys to care for her. Warily they move away from you and tend to Yiran trying to calm her down.

"Answer my questions and you and your team may live. Who are you masked trespasser and why does the scent of Teyvat surround you?"

It's strange, why doesn't he recognize you? They never accepted any gnosis so the corruption from Celestia should never have affected them. Nor would they ever forget the elemental worship due to their distaste for human culture, but wouldn't they remind Morax of it too?

The adepti are under Morax's command as they all fought under him. Plus, they must all have their own contracts with him. What if that was the reason? Maybe the corruption affected them on a subconscious level leading them to not realize how they were affected by the gnosis.

"I'm Y/N, and that scent is from my occupation. I'm the creator's oracle and as the creator's vast powers protect me, Teyvat protects me under the creator's orders."

Mocking laughter echoes around the area once you finish explaining. You already expected this reaction, what thousands of year-olds mystical beings would believe a mortal would be made into an oracle? Instead, you focus on Yiran's softening cries as she's comforted by the duo.

They seem to be instructing her to pray to you. Chongyun shows her a form as Xingqiu recites a prayer that goes unheard. It's something about protection, healing, and thankfulness. It almost makes you want to laugh if the situation wasn't so horrible.

"He protected me and now he's dead. It's all my fault, it's all my fault!" She breaks down again during the prayer as they continue trying to soothe her. This memory will stay with her forever, Kuan isn't going to get the same daughter back. If she wasn't traumatized by the kidnapping, this preteen's death will.

Doesn't make it any less fucked up that when something like this happens, everyone's first thought is to pray to you. That's probably why everyone is so fanatic about you. It happens on Earth with minor obsessive religions but here in Teyvat it's widespread.

"Interloper or rather Y/N the teller of falsehoods, the adepti as a group will decide whether you deserve to live in shame or die for your crimes." It's a shame that the fan won't work in this case but that never stopped you before.

"And what about my friends? You said that they may live if I answered, which I did, but I don't believe you're that generous. If anyone must face punishment for trespassing, it should be me as I dragged them along. They're not the ones who are receiving payment, I am."

It was the least you could do, they helped you a lot and they didn't deserve to die for your reckless decision. Even if you don't regret it.

"How noble of you falsifier. Those acolytes may live and bring those children back to their homes. I'll even wrap this body to be presented to whatever careless parent that let their child be taken."

Oh, hell no

"With all the disrespect I can muster, shut your damn trap. What right do you have to speak about careless parents? That boy's mom was taken alongside him, you have no idea what kind of sacrifices she may or may not have made for him! If we're going to speak about carelessness, why don't you explain why all you adepti thought it was right to fill Qiqi with enough adepti energy that it harmed her to such a horrible degree?"

The air went cold and amber rose around you in a cage-like form. He was furious but you were too.

"Oh, I will rejoice once your little story is exposed as the fabrication it is. I'll decide your punishment and seek out how you learned about this. I pray to the creator of all beings that your death will be as painful and long as when I was forced to incase that dying child in amber to prevent her destruction."

His condescending tone is paired with a fiery glare that you deliver right back. Chongyun carries Yiran who passed out from exhaustion. Xingqiu carries the now mummified body of the dead boy with a troubled look.

The heron stands in the middle of the pond and spreads both his wings. The pond alights with yellow and red forcing you to close your eyes.

When your eyes reopen, you find yourself in a different body of water. A small table in the middle, lily pads between the rocks in the water and the multiple eyes staring at you are a near comfort.

What a familiar scenery.

Chongyun and Xingqiu are surrounded by the rest of the missing kids as the stumble from the sudden teleportation. Hurt but thankfully unharmed, the children light up at the sight of the famailair Liyue figures.

Two cranes, a stag, and a very familiar goat-featured lady stand around you. You always wondered how Ganyu's hair stayed in a ponytail look without a hair tie.

"I regret to inform you all that this mortal has claimed to be the creator's oracle."

Shocked eyes are drawn to your imprisoned form with the exception of your teammates. The rising moon seems to shine on the water around you like a spotlight. Your face is neutral as your sharp smile hides in your heart.

Yet another situation where you'll make best with what you have. The more untrusting eyes, the more relief you'll feel when you trick them with convenient words painted under the guise of truth.

It has always been like this, and even if you're sick and tired, you'll still do it. At this point, it's the only thing that you trust. So, you'll keep spouting lies until even you believe them. Besides...

Lying always was your best skill.

I finished!!! There was so many obstacles! My house started going under construction so I took off work and spent this whole week moving stuff. Then moving it back, And then cleaning it. And then restocking it. You get the idea. The beginning of this chap is really rough due to me switching between moving and cleaning plus being a lil rusty. But I think I got back to the flow as it went on. Everything sort of worked out in the end but Y/N just can't catch a break. Now the whole kidnap case seemed maybe random to ya'll but how else was I supposed to bring Y/N into adepti territory? It's a fact that travelers are encased in amber or punished for going to Jueyun Karst. I just hope I fleshed it out enough that it was enjoyable. Oh and that scene with Pan Guan'er was inspired by the actual NPC that sits there. When you walk by, two treasure hoarders spawn behind you. I genuinely think that NPC is sus as hell. I also wanna direct anyone interested in what the mask could look like to this post. The wonderful @the-dumber-scaramouche made fanart of her version of Y/N! It's so beautiful! Taglist: @vvyeislazzy, @nikqi, @the-dumber-scaramouche, @etherisy, @yourlocalstranger123, @ra404, @iruiji, @goldenglow149, @haru-tofuu, @lsleepysimpl, @bebobeboben, @yuyuzi-ling, @amidst-the-tempest, @resident-cryptid, @mxd1zzy, @mochicurls21, @nervouseaglelover, @thedevioussmirk, @yumuramma, @kwqsla, @undecidingfate, @ehjane, @game-savvy, @akiramirae, @sielt, @fluffy-koalala, @formacoon, @sxftiebee, @khxii-i, @ursinaw, @chuuya-brainrot, @sweetbills, @kazuchaos, @snowfoxnix, @bluebelony, @conspicuous-mayonnaise, @pencil-of-ashes, @ghostlyintervention, @taiformaifoe, @sielt, @goaudduck, @carminerin, @maddysflowers, @zenith-of-all-zeniths, @crazydreamcat, @leafanonsforest, @grimreapersscythe, @leylanx, @undecidingfate, @sapphireknown, @help-whatdoimakemyusername, @zhonglisfruityass, @fluffy-koalala, @mer0n37, @victoria1676, @mochinessss, @sinnful-darling, @emilymikado

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just-my-latest-hyperfixation · 4 months

Text

The king's gift

Written for the @steddieholidaydrabbles, day 24

Prompt: Birthday

Rated: T

CW: veeery light dubcon if you squint really hard; mild blood and violence

Tags: Time Travel; Magic AU; Fantasy AU; Royal Eddie; Time traveller Steve

Notes: Continued from day 15

A bird is singing outside the window, a cheerful melody of trills and chirps celebrating the sunshine.

Steve is gonna murder it.

The sun, too, while he's at it.

Even with his lids shut, the light feels like someone is trying to wedge a dagger into the space behind his eyes. Each new note from the stupid bird pounds in his skull like the blow of a hammer.

Or the chime of a giant clock.

He groans and scrubs a hand over his face as fuzzy memories trickle into his mind. Snarling monsters with giant fangs and claws, chasing him through the ruins of an ancient castle. A crumbling throne covered in vines, silver sigils glowing all around it. The sound of the clock in his bones, in his blood, and then … silence.

“Fucking hell … weirdest dream I've ever had.”

“Don't blame you,” someone says, and wait, he knows that voice. It was in the dream, too. “Making the acquaintance of those charming critters will do that to a guy.”

Steve freezes.

Then, very slowly, he peers out from behind his hand.

There's a guy in the bed with him, a vaguely familiar guy with long dark curls and eyes to match. He's lounging against the headboard, a book in his lap, but when he catches Steve gawking at him, he marks the page and puts it down on the nightstand.

The very unfamiliar nightstand. Right next to the very unfamiliar bed they're in.

“Hey, pretty thing,” the guy smiles, and one hand, heavily adorned in silver rings, tenderly smoothes Steve’s hair from his forehead. “Feeling better?”

“The fuck?” Steve shoots upright. “Where the hell am I?”

Because the room, as it turns out, is as unfamiliar as the bed. It looks like something out of the period pieces his mom watches - ornate furniture and plush carpets, walls covered in velvet tapestries. Like some medieval king's castle, and …

… oh, no.

No fucking way.

“Careful now,” the guy chuckles good-naturedly and grabs him by the scruff of his shirt. “They did quite the number on you. My head mage patched you up, but you don't wanna overdo it.”

He makes to pull him back into the pillows, but Steve twists from his grip and jumps out of the bed, ignoring the wave of vertigo that comes with the movement.

“Woah woah, wait!” he stammers. “What the fuck do you mean? That was real? What the hell is even- What am I wearing?”

Because his jeans and tee are gone. Instead, he's in some sort of wide, billowy shirt. It flows around his form and ends somewhere around his very naked thighs. It has frills.

He isn’t wearing anything else.

“You were somewhat covered in blood, darling,” the man laughs. He languidly unfolds himself from the bed, one long limb at a time, and steps into Steve’s space. “Didn't wanna risk an infection. Also doesn’t befit my gift to run around like that, all dirtied and-”

“Excuse the fuck outta me?” Steve squawks. “Your what?”

Anger flares low in his gut and he takes a step backwards. The man just smiles easily and follows, and then, suddenly, warm calloused hands are cradling his cheeks.

“My gift, sweetheart,” he repeats, like that isn't something only a complete fucking lunatic would say. His thumbs idly stroke Steve’s cheekbones. “It's my birthday and the magic gave you to me, just like the oracle said it would. I've been waiting so long for you. Didn't expect you to be this gorgeous, but that's an added bonus, isn't it?”

They're close, very close, so close that some errant strands of curly hair are tickling Steve’s flushed cheeks. And somehow the guy is still getting closer, head tilted ever so slightly, plush pink lips parted just enough to-

Steve isn't a violent guy, usually, but … he's going through a lot right now and he's panicking, okay?

He doesn’t even consciously process what happens. Just knows that a stranger whose bed he woke up in and who just called him his fucking birthday gift is pulling him in for a kiss. One second later, his knuckles are hurting and said stranger is in a heap on the floor, wiping blood from his split lip.

“Pretty and feisty,” he mutters. When he lifts his gaze, his eyes are full of awe. “You really are perfect, aren't you?”

“What the fuck?” Steve blurts. Again. He's starting to lose count of how often it's been. “Who do you even think you are, you fucking weirdo?”

The guy cocks his head in confusion, but only for a second. Then, that infuriating dimpled grin slips back on. He's handsome, in a dangerous and rugged way, with his wild hair and bruised lip.

“Apologies, he rumbles. "Where are my manners?”

And then, without getting up off the ground, he reaches out and takes Steve’s hand in his. Steve watches, heart in his throat and eyes wide with confusion, how the guy bends into a dramatic bow and reverently kisses his own blood off his raw knuckles.

“The name is Edward. King Edward Munson of the Woodland Mountains. Also oh-so-aptly known as Edward the Banished, though my friends just call me Eddie. And you, my dear …”

He looks up at him, all glinting eyes under dark lashes and Steve needs to swallow against the lump clogging his throat.

“You're going to be the one who saves me.”

All my holiday drabbles

#steddie #steve harrington x eddie munson #steve x eddie #steddie brainrot #steddie fanfic #fanfiction writer #fanfiction #fanfic #my writing #steddie holiday drabbles #steddieholidaydrabbles #hype's holiday drabbles

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sass-squat · 1 year

Text

Part 6 of the Linked Universe Winged Au! After many requests this time around we've got our Veteran, Legend!

<<< Previous Next >>>

As always we have to start off with a bird fact, so did you know that male White-Winged Crossbills have unpigmented barbules that mask their red color and are what make them appear pink in the fall? However, as these barbules wear off, the bright red is able to show through leaving them a brilliant red in the spring and summer!

Anyways, I found this fact to be very interesting especially considering Legend's adventure throughout Oracle of Seasons. Just the mental image of his plumage slightly shifting with the constant changing of the seasons was very funny to me and I couldn't NOT make it canon. Plus, I enjoy making his life more difficult than it already is because I also headcanon that when he was younger, his wings were constantly stuck in a half molted state because white-winged crossbills usually molt in the fall. In other words, turns out messing around with seasons and time has consequences so he was a very scruffy, fluffy looking kid growing up.

As for how he looks and acts now, he has many similar characteristics and behaviors of a White-Winged Crossbill. For example, he is a very strong flier, and his unique way of flying has given him a very aggressive and abrupt fighting style both on the ground and in the air. His style of fighting is especially effective in forests with a lot of trees because it allows him to dart between foliage and foes alike.

While his flight and fighting styles were influenced by the sheer number of quests he has gone on as well as his young age when he began, other characteristics and behaviors of his were also influenced as well. For example, when he was still just a kid thrown into his first adventure where just about everything in the world was bigger than him, he learned to bristle and fluff his feathers to appear bigger and more threatening to enemies. While somewhat effective at the time, nowadays it means he still has the unconscious habit of doing it whenever he is irritated or embarrassed.

In addition to his tendency to "poof" when upset, he also has a habit of picking at and pulling out his own feathers when especially stressed. He picked up this habit mainly because of his constant molting as a child but then continued it as he was went on more and more adventures. Doing it is second nature to him now, but it's a bad habit he's actively trying to break by fiddling with his rings instead. It's also part of why he's so insistent about preening the others because helping them quite literally stops him from pulling out his own feathers.

Anyways! I could go on, but that's all for now folks! Thank you again for all your support and kind messages! I really treasure them and they are always the highlight of my day! As always, feel free to let me know who or what you would like to see next! Thank you all again!

Bonus Doodle Feat. Wind taking a photo of Wild taking a photo of Legend inspired by this masterpiece:

#my art #winged au #LUWAU #Linked Universe: Winged AU #linkeduniverse #linked universe #loz #legend of zelda #loz link #lu legend #I'm a failure #I swear I had this art done like 2 days ago but I'm illiterate and couldn't write to save my life #Anyways. Making Legend's life and childhood even more difficult than it already was is my passion #Did I basically give him the equivalent of bird acne with his constant molting??? Whoops.#also that lil tidbit about pulling out his own feathers is a real thing birds do when physically or emotionally distressed!#I really looked at Legend and went “this bad boy can hold so many suppressed trauma responses”#I also showed this to @breannasfluff a couple days ago and she said Legend looked like he was posing for a picture #So I had to draw a quick doodle to make it canon #I use my time and artistic talents for good I swear

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thepixelelf · 3 months

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do u know nct?? if so, jung jaehyun and cupid au?!!! if not then au where wonwoo is a regular dude and also the subject of a Prophecy against his best wishes? idk i hope these are fun!!!

I genuinely don't think I could characterize jung jaehyun if I tried... but I can do reluctant Normal Guy wonwoo!! I hope you like it :]

[mr chosen one] It's been three weeks and six days since Wonwoo met the most annoying person in the world. Three weeks and six days since Wonwoo's been able to relax. Three weeks and six days of your constant pestering.

You call yourself the oracle. Whatever the hell that means.

All Wonwoo knows is that you showed up at his workplace out of nowhere as the "social media manager". Why would a company that sells Tupperware need a social media manager? Wonwoo still doesn't know. He's pretty sure you just wormed your way in to complete your life's mission-- annoying the shit out of him.

The first day, you'd leaned into his cubicle and whispered, "Hey. You're Jeon Wonwoo, right?"

And when he hesitantly nodded, wondering how the hell you already knew his name since he was one hundred percent sure he'd have nothing to do with the company's social media, you beamed.

Smiled so bright he thought he might go blind, and said, "I knew I'd find you."

Ever since that first day, you've been telling him over and over again how he's supposed to save the world.

Step number 1: find the king -- whoever that is -- in the heart of the fire.

You haven't told him who the hell "the king" is because apparently, you don't even know. And the whole "heart of the fire" thing is fuzzy to you as well, even though you're the one who said that out loud in the first place.

Step number 2: behead the king.

Yeah. Sure.

"And where am I supposed to get the sword for that?" he asked you nonchalantly a week into your nonsense, his eyes not leaving the spreadsheet he was working on. "Amazon?"

You just shrugged. "You can get anything on Amazon."

Step number 3: bear the crown under the weight of stars.

Whatever that means.

"You can't just say no," you asserted two weeks in. "This is your fate."

"I'm good, thanks." Wonwoo poured himself a mediocre black coffee in the break room, where he'd gone in the hopes of avoiding you. He didn't offer you any.

You crossed your arms. "The world is at stake."

"If the whole world is about to explode, I'm pretty sure you've got the wrong guy."

Almost four weeks of this weirdness, and maybe Wonwoo should've gone to HR by now, but it sounds a little trivial, even to him.

Hey, HR, my coworker keeps telling me I'm part of a world-saving prophecy and is convinced I need to go on a journey. I want either for them to be fired, or a couple weeks off so I can go save the world. Thanks.

Yeah, no. Instead, Wonwoo just braces himself for another day of your pestering.

...Which doesn't happen.

At the halfway point of the first peaceful lunch break Wonwoo's had in weeks, he realizes he hasn't even caught a glimpse of you all morning. He revels in that feeling for a bit, almost embarrassingly gleeful to sit in silence and eat his cup-a-noodles.

Then the afternoon goes by, and you've still yet to meet your annoyance quota for the day.

Wonwoo is happy. Yes. This is good news.

You've finally gotten over your delusions, and he won't have to deal with you anymore.

He's poking his head in Seungkwan's cubicle before he realizes he's doing it.

"Oh, them?" Seungkwan says when Wonwoo asks about you. "They left. They told big boss man we had no reason to employ a social media manager in the first place and got themselves transferred to a sister company."

Wonwoo blinks. "What?"

"Shouldn't you already know? You guys were hanging out like every day."

After that, Wonwoo walks back to his desk in silence. Awkward silence.

Why doesn't he like the silence?

When he sits down, there's a yellow sticky note on his keyboard, which he swears wasn't there when he left.

He wouldn't recognize your handwriting, but he knows it has to be yours.

Fine. I'll behead the king myself.

Wonwoo pinches the note between his fingers, and he remembers the conversation he had with you just the day before.

"It sounds dangerous," he said, focusing on the photocopier in front of him.

"Oh, it will be." You were leaned against the doorjamb. Always close by. "You'll be dodging death at every curve in the road."

"Delightful. I think I'll sit this one out."

The note gets crumpled in Wonwoo's fist. He grabs his coat and takes swift steps toward the elevators.

"Where are you going?" Seungkwan calls out when he sees Wonwoo practically run past his cubicle.

Wonwoo presses the down button before he rethinks and moves to the doors to the stairwell. He yells back, "I have no idea!"

He really doesn't.

But you said all that stuff about fate-- if it's really meant to be him that saves the world...

His footsteps, in whichever direction, will take him to you. Through fate or whatever.

At least, he really, really hopes so.

#seventeen scenarios #seventeen imagines #seventeen x reader #wonwoo scenarios #wonwoo imagines #wonwoo x reader #jeon wonwoo scenarios #jeon wonwoo x reader #kpop imagines #kpop scenarios #svt scenarios #jeon wonwoo imagines #svt x reader #svt imagines

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cablecar-s · 18 days

Text

to love and self loathe

Note :

I also have an AO3 if you guys wanted to check it out 👉👈. It's just tlsl again (it's like two chapters ahead but I plan to post the rest of the chapters here too, just thought I would share it somewhere else :]).

Reblogs and likes help a lot as well! Enjoy reading!

Part 1

And Make It Double

Jason wasn't fond of going to the Batcave often. Hell he didn't like going to Wayne Manor at all. It only meant that he had to see the others. Even though he was able to reconcile with everyone, it didn't mean that it wasn't still awkward to interact with them all.

But whatever it was that he found in that alleyway couldn't be ignored. So, instead of heading to the batcave where he has to face everyone, he instead links his comms with Barbara.

"You there Oracle?" His voice, distorted from the voice modulator installed in his helmet called out.

"Oracle here, need something Red Hood?" Her voice called back.

A hint of a smile appeared on his lips, a bit of nostalgia and reminiscence washing over him for a moment.

"I have a bit of a problem here." Jason looked over at the knocked out men, strung together with the mysterious webs.

"Do you need backup?" She questioned.

He shook his head, though she couldn't see it. "No, just a concern if anything. Found a few guys strung together what seemed to be.. Spider webs? I don't fuckin' know."

It went quiet for a moment, Jason looking around, making sure no one was going to jump him.

"Found something." She hummed, earning Jason's attention. "Couldn't find anything spider related in Gotham, but there's a vigilante in New York that goes by Spider-Woman, could be that."

The second Robin's brows furrowed. "The hell is she doing in Gotham?"

"No clue, but reading through the latest news it says that she's been gone for a few months already, after defeating some guy named Green Goblin." Her eyes quickly skimmed through the article.

"Is she trouble?" He questions, his attention being pulled towards one of the men who were beginning to wake up.

"The Daily Bugle says she is.." She trailed. "Though from other sources people are calling her a hero. Lot of mixed opinions about her from New Yorkers. She's done nothing bad though."

Jason only hummed, taking his gun out before hitting the waking criminal in the back of his head with the butt of his gun, knocking the guy out once more.

"No crimes or anything? What about suspicious movements before her disappearance?" He asked further.

Barbara let out a small hum. "Nope. She had been terrorizing a few criminals who all had similar characteristics for some time, but that was in the beginning of her first appearance. And after she defeated the Green Goblin she disappeared after that night."

"Revenge." Jason thought out loud to himself, that was the only conclusion he could come to. "Think she came to Gotham to see if she could find the guy here?"

"Doubt it. It's been a few years already, I'm sure she's over it by now."

Jason also doubted that she was over it, he would know; he was dead set on revenge for seven years. A grimace appeared on his face, seeming to stare into nothingness, remembering how he was before he was barely able to reconcile with Bruce and the others.

"You still there Red Hood?" Barbara called out, breaking him out of his small trance.

"Uh, yeah, sorry, just thinking." He muttered. "Call GCPD over to pick these guys up. They're in one of the alleys on 41st street."

"On it."

Taking out his grappling hook, Jason flew off into the night, still linked with Barbara.

"What do you want to do with Spider-Woman?"

"Lets keep an eye out for her, we still don't know her motives for coming to Gotham." Jason swung from building to building, beginning to feel water droplets fall on his body, the rain of Gotham finally coming for the night.

"Alright, I'll notify the others about her now."

"Sounds good, thanks Oracle." He perched himself on one of the gargoyles that were built on one of the many buildings of Gotham, about to hang up til—

"Hey Jace." Barbara called out softly.

Oh god. Jason already knew what Barbara was going to ask him, it made his throat close up a bit, his heart rate beginning to pick up.

"Ye-ah?"

Of course his voice had to fucking crack.

"Will you be coming to the mansion to celebrate Damian's birthday next week?"

Jason stayed silent for a moment. Of course he was going to go, he had already bought the demon brat's present a few days ago, it was just a matter of gaining the confidence to step foot in Wayne Manor.

"Still there Jason?" She called out.

Crap he took too long.

"Oh, yeah. Yeah I'll– I'll be coming." He cleared his throat, his eyes scanning into the streets of Crime Alley.

"Okay, just double checking." He could hear the smile in her voice. "Everyone'll be excited to see you, don't sweat it." She assured him. "Need anything else before I go back to the others?"

He swallowed hard, trying to retain whatever cool he had left. "No, I'm fine."

"Alright, Oracle out."

Her voice crackled before leaving the line, which left Jason alone with his thoughts.

God he was so not ready for next week

---

The next night, Jason had kept a sharp eye out for this Spider-Woman Barbara had told him about. He'd done a bit of digging himself. He watched a few videos that a few civilians had taken of her. He studied her fighting style, what she looked like.

Of course, he tried to find out who this Spider-Woman was in the first place, but it seemed no one had any clues as to who she was.

It's fine though. It's not like Jason was actively searching as to who she was, he just needed to make sure she stayed out of his way, out of Gotham's business.

Swinging from building to building once more, Jason kept his eyes on the alleys and small streets before deciding to land on the roof of a building. His boots crunched under the gravel when landing, a more softer crunch sounding behind him.

"Todd." The young voice called out.

A voice he knew all too well.

"Demon bird." Jason greeted.

"I am told that you will be making it to the gathering." Damian stood next to his older brother, looking down at the city with him.

"If you mean your birthday party then yeah." The second Robin couldn't help but roll his eyes a bit. "Just not the big one B will be holding. Y'know, still dead and stuff."

The youngest Robin could only suck his teeth. "Not like you were needed there anyways." He muttered.

Jason glanced over at the pre-teen, a small smile on his lips as he brought his hand up to ruffle his hair. He could spot his tough guy act from miles away, he and Damian were two sides of the same coin after all.

"Sorry, someone's gotta keep Gotham safe while all the bats and birds are out partying for the night." He chuckled.

Damian only swatted at Jason's hand, grumbling to himself.

"I do not care if you come or not." He muttered.

Jason couldn't help but smile slightly at this, pulling his hand back.

"Whatever you say."

Damian opened his mouth, ready to make a retort, but he only sucked his teeth once more, his hand going up to his ear.

"Robin present."

There was a brief silence, the young Robin seeming to be listening to what was being said to him. "Understood." He muttered.

"I am needed at a warehouse." He looked up at his older brother who only nodded, seeming looking down at the streets.

"Alright. See you later." Jason's eyes were glued on a woman who seemed to be in a hurry, a few plastic bags hanging from her arms. From afar, he saw a few men stalking her a few feet away.

He began to make his way down to her, standing behind her in the shadows. She didn't seem to have noticed him just yet, seeming distracted with trying to take a picture of the Robin flying above her.

Though as she takes a step back and bumps into his chest, she slowly turned around, taking notice of the vigilante that towered over her.

Jason squinted his eyes behind his helmet as her phone let out a soft click and the flash had gone off.

His helmet scanned her body, a small box popping at the top right, showing him that her heart rate had slightly quickened, not surprising.

"You do know you make a pretty easy target with all those bags you're holding." He spoke, his voice distorted as usual.

"Good thing I was making my way home then." She chuckled nervously.

She had stared at where his eyes were supposed to be, only to then look away, her heart rate rising even more.

"I'll go with you then, unless you want them to take you instead." He nodded his head behind her, making her turn her head and see the men.

Jason took a step into the dim street lighting and stared straight at them, making the men quickly scatter, not wanting to be involved with the infamous Red Hood.

"Oh uh, no that won't be necessary." She let out another nervous laugh. "My apartment isn't that far from here and uh..." She glanced up at the Red Hood before quickly looking away, intimidated by his large build and towering body.

It was quiet, Jason staring her down. He couldn't lie she was acting a bit suspicious, though then again it could be her being frightened since it was Red Hood who was standing in front of her.

"You're not serious are you?" He finally spoke out. "Gotham's filled with criminals, and no offense, I'm sure you're capable of defending yourself, but you're a woman. You're better off with me walking you home." He crossed his arms, shifting his weight onto one leg.

He was right. Although she could handle a few thugs, she didn't bring her web shooters with her this time. If any of them decided to pull a gun on her, it was most likely over.

The secret vigilante stayed quiet, biting the inside of her cheek, trying to think of something else to say, just so she didn't have to interact anymore with the more scarier of vigilantes she's looked up.

"Uh well.." She cleared her throat, looking up at him, trying her best to calm her racing heart, her senses heightening from her anxiety.

She thought hard, looking at the man who stared at her, waiting for a reply from her. Her brain did it's hardest to rack something up, until she remembered all the news she's read about him.

Bingo.

"Wouldn't it be more dangerous if you were to walk with me?" She questioned, giving him an innocent smile.

He tilted his head a bit at this. "Is that so?"

The spider quickly nodded, her smile ever growing a tiny bit more larger at her quick thinking. "If you think about it, if people on the street were to see you walking me to my apartment wouldn't that technically endanger me even more? Since, y'know, you are the big bad Red Hood. I'm sure you have plenty of enemies that want your head."

Her hands moved around a bit as she talked, Jason only watching and listening to her ramble in slight amusement.

"And if they were to see you walking me home then they can only think that I'm some sort of weakness for you, which, I'm really not but hey they don't know." She chuckled, looking up at him.

Her long pause made the air almost seem a bit awkward for her, making her shift a bit. Letting out another laugh, she cleared her throat once more, straightening her posture a bit.

"So.. Thank you, truly. But I think I'll be just fine going home without an escort." She smiled, trying not to squirm under his gaze.

"Alright." He hummed, setting his hands on his waist.

She blinked, looking a bit baffled. "Really?" She sputtered, before quickly changing her expression, the tone of her voice changing as well. "I mean– Of course! It's only right that you—"

"I'll just watch you from the rooftops instead."

"I'm sorry?"

A distorted huff of amusement filled her ears as the two vigilantes stared at each other.

"You're right that me walking you home would only but yourself in more danger, but leaving you to go home by yourself also puts you at risk still, so," Jason grabbed his grapple from his utility belt.

"I'll escort you from afar."

Jason's amusement only rose as he watched the woman open and close her mouth, trying to form words or another excuse as to why he shouldn't do that.

Seeing as how she wasn't able to come up with anything else, a low and short chuckle left his mouth.

"Well lets get going then. The faster you start walking the faster you'll be out of danger." He pointed his grapple at a building, his finger beginning to press the trigger.

"You really don't—" But he was already flying into the air and back into the shadows.

She could only watch in disbelief, staring in the direction that he had flown off to. If she squinted hard enough, she could somewhat see his silhouette perched on a rooftop.

She strained to see him wave a hand at her, most likely motioning her to get back to her apartment. Letting out a small huff of irritation, she began to walk into the direction of her apartment, muttering under her breath.

It was total silence while walking back to her apartment. Although she would spot a few thugs eyeing her from alleys, once they heard the sound of a grapple and a shadow passing over them, they quickly minded their business, as if she wasn't there.

The woman was thankful to say the least, especially since she was able to get herself out of a situation that may have ended up in her having a brawl with the vigilante. Just looking at him made her entire body ache.

Even if that radioactive spider had increased all her senses and strength, she was sure that man could pummel her into the ground without having to do much.

Continuing to walk through the dimly lit streets, she soon made it to her apartment building, relief flooding in her body that she was finally home. Before entering the building, she looked over her shoulder, her eyes scanning the shadows, trying to see if she could spot the Red Hood.

Surprisingly, for a big guy who had a helmet that was completely red, he was good at hiding in the darkness.

Giving up in her search in finding him, she made her way inside, the warm air from the heater engulfing her body once entering.

Off in the distance, Jason watched as the woman made her way inside. With crossed arms, he watched all of the windows of the building, waiting patiently until he noticed one of them had lit up.

Letting out a short hum, he jumped off the roof, grappling to the next one and so forth, continuing his night patrol.

---

Jason quickly put his jacket on, not caring if his hair was still a bit wet. Grabbing his keys he had tossed onto the coffee table, he scooped his helmet into his arms before roughly shoving it onto his head. Slamming the door that led to the garage of his safe house, he pressed a simple button that made it creak and groan as it lifted itself off of the ground.

Getting on his bike, the two wheeler roared to life, the sounds echoing in the garage as he sped out, the doors slamming itself shut once Jason was out. Speeding through the streets, passing by cars at a speed too fast, Jason had hoped that he wouldn't be too late for the brat's formal birthday.

Jason wasn't fond of any of the parties that Bruce either attended or hosted. The room that it was being held in always reeked of tacky perfume and cologne, just like every person there trying to please Bruce.

A bunch of ass kissers that irritated Jason. He was sure Damian thought the same, so he thought making a small appearance would make it slightly better, even if it costed him drowning in old lady perfumes.

When he had made it to the Batcave and tried to sneak his way through the halls of the manor, he had a small run in with his favorite, and only, butler. After a small catch up, and a bit of coaxing from the butler, Jason ended up having to attend the party without his gun.

Taking a deep breath, Jason entered the ballroom having to squeeze his way through a few people in order to make himself comfortable in a corner.

With his back leaning against the wall, he crossed his arms and scanned the room before it landed on Damian; his cheeks were currently being pinched and pulled at by a few elderly ladies.

Jason couldn't help but slightly snort at the scene, amused at how deadly a glare Damian was giving them when they looked away from him.

"Jaybird!"

Jason's smile instantly disappeared at the resounding voice of his older brother. A bright smile on his face, he waved at the second Robin, having grabbed to champagne glasses on his way over to him.

People glanced at Dick, whispering to one another about the eldest, their eyes soon dragging over to Jason who shifted uncomfortably.

Just fucking great.

"I see you were able to make it." Dick grinned, lending out the other glass of alcohol to him. Jason only snatched it from him, letting out a small grumble while taking a small sip.

"And I'm starting to regret it." He grimaced.

The first Robin only chuckled at this, taking his own sip from his glass. "You see Damian yet?" He questioned, eyes staring out into the crowd to find the youngest.

"I was, but then I saw that he was a bit busy so I decided to leave him be." He hummed.

Once finding Damian, Dick couldn't help but snicker a bit now knowing what Jason meant. "He is the star of the show." He mused. "Hey, you don't think—"

BOOM!

"No one make any sudden moves! Or the brat gets it!"

part 1

next chapter ->

#dcu #dc universe #jason todd #batfamily #to love and self loathe #red hood #jason todd x reader #x reader #female reader #no y/n #barbara gordan #damian wayne #richard grayson #bruce wayne #slow burn #strangers to friends to lovers #spiderwoman reader

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bardinthezone · 13 days

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okay my mind is reeling from the latest episode i'm going to fucking explode this is one of the best episodes... period

so cecil's dad... left when cecil was born. For what reason, it's hard to tell. The narrative certainly seems to be setting it up as a concious choice, framing him as an absent father rather than just a dead one. The line "It’s not incomprehensible that two living, physical people could haunt each other." makes me really think the Gershwin-Palmer relationship was not a healthy one in any way.

But either way, he left, and maybe he died after he left, or maybe he left because he died.

But he's gone, and it broke their mother. She mourned him, she was forever haunted by him, haunted by the him she saw in Cecil. It completely ruined any semblance of relationship she had with her kids. As Cecil tells us in 182 (It Sticks With You), "Our mother wouldn’t speak to us. She would just walk and walk, much faster than we could. I think she wanted to lose us in the shadowy labyrinth of tall trees. [...] we always found our mom. She was at the same old tree, leaving flowers at the base of its giant trunk. And we would hike home. I don’t remember who the flowers were for. Maybe she never said."

That's as plain as it gets. She abandoned them, consumed in her grief and her anger. And, as we learn in Ghost Stories, she never recovered.

There's also the oracle element, however. And the Mirrors. That's weird, right? The prophecy that Cecil would die, and it would involve a mirror? Is this real? Is this an element of her mental deterioration? I can't say for certain. I hope it's not, I don't want cecil to die by murder.

And the trees. God, the trees. The trees are fucking everywhere and this isn't necessarily an unanswered question, more of a thematic element I want to draw more attention to.

Cause we have all the drawings of trees in 245, and we have 182.

But then there's episode 132, "Bedtime Story."

And this is a DOOZY. This is a story Cecil's mother used to tell him (Not Abby?) meaning that:

there were times she did managed to be somewhat motherly, although perhaps this was influenced by her weird oracular relationship with him

she told him. A bedtime story. About a little boy who felt neglected by his family, so he went out and dug into the mud and turned into A TREE.

I just want you to really take that in. This little boy felt neglected by his family, so he turned into a tree and eventually grew to abandon his humanity to the point where he could no longer recognize or comprehend the passing of his own family.

"And then my mother would pat my head and say: "Good night, Cecil. Good night." Or so I imagined. By then, I was long asleep." Cecil's mom... probably didn't do that. But he imagined she did.

I've lost the spoons to write out a shitton of analysis but I haven't seen anyone bring up Bedtime Story in reference to ep 246 and I think they really should

Also something something "What would be worse than death? Living long enough to stop being a human" "Oh Cecil is... way older than he knows isn't he...."

#i have so many feelings y'all #this is one of my favorite plot threads in the entire show #wtnv spoilers #wtnv 246 #wtnv #cecil gershwin palmer #abby palmer

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occasionallyprosie · 3 months

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A Thousand Ways

Chapter 1: "Sometimes you shouldn't just keep your head down"

Event Masterlist | Next>>

On a night in Legend's era, safe within the boundaries of an unnamed town, the veteran finds himself unstable but unable to sleep. He intended to just sleep off the concussion at best, or take a potion the next morning when they restocked on them at worse. He probably shouldn't have gone outside where he was easily seen while not at his best and without basically any of his items.

Febuwhump 2024 | Prompt 1: Helpless

Read on AO3

Warnings: torture

Legend had decided back on his first quest that he hated concussions. Over ten years later and on his... variably numbered quest (it could be the seventh if he combined the Oracles into a single one, it could be the sixth if he ignored Koholint too, or it could be the ninth if he individualized and counted every single vaguely adventure-like thing that happened), he still hated concussions.

Nonetheless, he powered through. It was a mild one anyways, he would be fine by morning probably, and if he wasn't then he'd buy an extra potion to drink.

They just arrived at a town in Legend's own era and kingdom, it was late and they had already decided to get supplies the next day after a good night's sleep in the inn. Legend didn't go to sleep though, despite the rather mild--he wasn't even nauseous really--concussion, he slipped out of the inn and found himself sitting out on a bench outside, watching the innkeepers wife's--Leanne's, he had visited the town before-- garden of flowers sway in the wind.

"Hey," someone sneered, "what's a brat like you doing out this late?"

He was literally an adult, but before he raised his head he saw armored boots.

A knight.

"Just getting some fresh air," he said, keeping his head down. "I don’t mean to bother."

Please don’t--

The boot swung up and he had plenty of time to dodge it, except he was trying not to be recognized so he took it. The steel boot hit his forehead and he let himself gasp, dropping his head lower.

"Look at me when I speak to you, brat!" They spat.

Legend grit his teeth, not responding in favor of keeping his head down. Maybe he should've dodged and just ran, that kick made his concussion much, much worse if only briefly. He couldn't think and suddenly, that nausea that hadn't been so bad, was very bad.

Instincts kicked in when the guard went in for another kick. Legend avoided it and quickly stood.

"You'll learn some resp--" the guard visibly recognized him when Legend met his eyes, forcing back the dizziness.

"You could've just walked away," Legend said coldly. "You just had to pick a fight with someone who you thought was a kid."

"You! Criminal!"

The outraged cry drew the attention of a nearby patrol of guards. Legend cursed, especially the fact that he'd left most of his items inside the inn. Four guards converged toward him, yelling and waking up the townsfolk while Legend bolted.

He didn't want nor should kill them, they needed a reality check sure, but death wasn't the answer here and he only had his medallions as an offense. No regular person would survive them, so instead Legend just ran.

To everyone's surprise, when he swerved into an alleyway unhindered, a patrol of guards were on the other side and startled when the patrol chasing him roared behind him. They quickly blocked off his escape, and with his head spinning, stomach lurching, and eyes refusing to focus--

A shield was slammed into his face and he was out cold.

Legend woke up in a painful daze, his whole body was sore, arms especially so, wrists in genuine pain and not just sore. His head felt like it was filled with cotton, yet simultaneously it felt empty with how his brain seemed to rattle in his skull. His magic was practically gone--

His magic was gone. He didn't feel the familiar weight of his medallions and pendants. He wasn't even wearing all his clothes! His red mail was gone, and his boots, leaving him just in his dark green under-tunic. His cap was gone as well and his hair was loose.

After assessing his own condition, Legend drew in enough focus despite the physical pain and magical exhaustion, and he tried to determine his situation.

He was in a cell, water audibly dripping down from the ceiling and down the walls. The ground was damp if anything. Stone lined the walls and floor, mortar on the walls but dirt in the floor. He was chained to the wall opposite of the (probably) iron cell door, the cuffs around his wrists had runes etched into it... the source of his magical exhaustion no doubt.

Metal clinked as he tugged the cuffs around his wrists, he didn't have a single inch of give, being cuffed directly to the wall itself. His magic was cut off, and his head spinning and throbbing and requiring far too much concentration to focus, Legend took far too long to come to a conclusion about his situation.

He had been captured, by knights no less, and he was completely trapped. He had no items, he'd never had the strength to even escape, and his magic had been drained before he could even try the... two things he'd been able to do in extremely extenuating circumstances to escape.

The cell door slammed open, Legend glared daggers at the knight who entered.

"Link, seems we finally caught you," they said, scowling and approaching him.

"I wa'--I was par-pardoned years ago," Legend snapped, his words attempting to slur, leading him to repeat himself clearly. "You have-- You have... no grounds for this arrest."

The knight drew closer. "Just because you tricked the queen doesn't mean you’re innocent. You'll pay for kidnapping her, and for the murder of dozens of good soldiers, especially Sergeant Alphon."

He snapped. He swung his leg up and nailed them in the face. Despite the height they had on him, his legs were just long enough and he was flexible enough to kick them.

"Get his name out of your mouth you bastard!" Legend fought against his chains, ignoring the pain and fuzziness. How dare this knight try and use his uncle against him?! How dare he?!

"Oh, you'll pay for that."

The knight punched his face, the back of his skull slammed against the iron panel behind him, a loud clang echoing through the room simultaneously followed by a hissed curse. His skull reverberated, pain exploding and seizing. A stabbing pain tore through his mind.

A second punch to his lower ribs had his legs giving out and his stomach to empty itself on the ground.

"Not so high and mighty now," the knight sneered. "You'll die in this cell, hero. Nice and slow, another day, another hour, another pain for all the men you killed."

Legend inhaled shakily, lips wet as he raised his head to glare.

"Do your worst," he growled. "I've survived worse."

He survived death itself, and returned with new items, new artifacts, new memories. He survived Ganon four times over, a lightning strike to the head, the near-death of his ancestor borderline erasing him from history.

Even if Legend did die here, it was the first... second time he could trust that someone else would finish the job. The other heroes would finish this quest and he didn't need to worry. He could die without regrets.

Turns out, dying slowly with a glimmer of hope to escape is far worse than being struck by lightning and drowning in a storm on the ocean.

The other heroes should've been able to find him, he'd gone with Twilight, or Wolfie, to track down the Traveler and Champion dozens of times, never through towns though. Yet they hadn't and Legend had determined not to rely on anyone, even the other heroes.

Though... it was hard not to cling to the hope of hearing blades clashing, or even just the creak of the door as one of them sneaks in. Not as his body refused to do the most simple of things, not while he could barely lift his head, not while he felt the cuffs that drained his magic very slowly chip away at his soul, eliminating any replenishment of his magic before it even formed. It was hard not to cling to any glimmer of hope of someone else saving him for once when his skin was torn, cut open, and his blood soaked the floors more than the water that dripped from above did. He told himself that he had to save himself, just like every other time he'd been pushed to the brink. He had a job to do and even if the other heroes could do it themselves, it was still his job to at least help. Yet as he hung from bleeding wrists, legs not strong enough to support him, he knew that even if he wasn't chained up, even if the cell door was wide open, he wasn't going to be able to walk out.

When the knights returned, jeering and joking with one another with the familiarity of brothers, Link drew in another breath.

He wasn't escaping. He survived death once, thanks to an ocean deity, but he was certain that he wasn't going to escape its hold a second time. Not as the knights pulled out something new--every day, it had been something new, or maybe every hour, he wasn't sure how long it had been--and discussed who got to use it first.

It was a flail, a handle of leather likely around wood but maybe steel, and multiple long ropes of frayed leather.

Link--Legend(they were still there, he wasn't alone again, the quest was still ongoing even if he died here) didn't have the energy to cry out as the cat o' nine tails was whipped across his face, tearing his lip, the bridge of his nose, his brow and cheek, his eyes sealed shut from the pain. He did flinch, he did whimper and gasp, but nothing more.

He didn't have the strength for more. Frayed leather struck across his chest, catching his collarbone and cutting a scabbed wound open. His throat was raw, had been for a while now with stomach acid burning the irritation of his screams. Even as he tried to scream, nothing more than a wheeze fell from bloodied lips.

He hoped they wouldn't be too upset with him leaving them to finish the fight. He almost wanted to laugh, it was a bit ironic... Of course he, the helpless bunny, would be killed in captivity. He, the veteran, would die on an adventure. He, the collector, would be left item-less at the end, after all you can't take anything to the afterlife.

It was ironic, because the adventuring veteran who collected items from across four countries, three worlds, and had killed Ganon four times... was still just a helpless bunny who couldn't defend himself when it mattered.

Soon enough, as his vision faded out, Legend fell.

Though with his magical stores empty and his soul having just been drained... he didn't even notice that his fall had been in the physical sense. Cuffs didn't matter when the goddess herself took matters into her own hands to displace her hero through time.

Next>>

#febuwhump 2024 #linked universe #lu legend #everyone else will show up in later chapters but they aren't featured here #legend linked universe #linked universe fanfic #whump #angst #torture #graphic violence #legend lu #ao3 fanfic #prosie writes #a thousand ways au

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multifanritz · 2 years

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Jason Todd head canons cuz @bruciemilf has pulled me into the cult and now I have to share years worth of ideas with yall

Uses big words. As a kid he went out his way to have a "word of the day." He kinda stopped when he came back. But when he joined the family again he used a big word in a petty argument with Tim

Tim: You don't even know what that means!

Jason: *gives full definition and synonyms*

Tim: *is shocked into silence*

So he starts doing it again

Jason is very protective of Bruce. Batman can get kidnapped and he'll be like "UGHHH I guess I'll help."

BRUCE gets called something mean online and he writes and entire essay. Half of it is swearing

He doesn't insult Duke. He's too green and doesn't want to hurt his feelings

He will LIGHTLY insult Cass. But only once a day. He knows she can destroy him with a just a few words

He and steph a crime alley besties

He jokes about his trauma obviously

Before he fully joined the family again, back when Tim was still robin, he gave Tim his number after a close call

"Call me if ur in trouble."

Jason gets a call from kidnappers cuz Tim gave them his number cuz he "didn't want to stress bruce out."

Yeah, Jason was... a bit mad

Only HE is allowed to kidnap baby birds

"Idk bruce, those men were gone by the time I got to Tim. Maybe someone threw them in a fire or smth idk."

His most locked up online file that is hidden behind oracle level firewalls is blackmail pics

Most of them r for dick probably

He doesn't have any for Barbara cuz he knows she would ruin him

I'll add more as time goes on lol

#headcanons #dc comics #batfamily #jason todd #red hood #bruce wayne #batman #batman headcanon #jason todd headcanon #batfam

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once-in-a-blood-moon · 21 days

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Obey Me Boys as Tarot/Oracle Decks I Own

Is this stupid? Yes. Am I doing it anyway? Absolutely.

To make a long story short, I have a problem and I compulsively buy tarot and oracle cards, so I have...quite a few. So, I was looking at them and thought, "which ones would fit the characters?" And now look where we are! :) I do have exactly fifteen decks and had planned originally to assign decks to the new side characters as well, but I, A. got tired and B. couldn't find one that fit Mephisto, so I just scrapped that idea altogether. Anyways, here's what literally nobody asked for!

Disclaimer! I did pick out cards that I thought matched the characters as well, based on both meaning and look. I'm not going into detail on all of the cards either...because I will ramble forever. I'm did my best to keep these as brief as possible!

Lucifer - Archangel Animal Oracle Deck

Okay, so this could've been a great deck for Simeon or Raphael, but out of what I had, this fit Lucifer the best! It ties back to his origins of being a seraphim. I did pick a card or two that have Archangel Micheal and Raphael in them, and they do fit Lucifer in needing to let others in and to not let pride get in the way of being dependent on others.

Mammon - The Illustrated Crystallary Oracle Deck

Mostly picked this one due to the fact that crystals can be expensive and high-dollar, which Mammon would be into and exploit (and he has). If not him, this one might've gone to Solomon, but I had a better one for him >:) I picked Mammon's cards based off his greed and his love for the MC...and which crystals would cost a pretty penny.

Leviathan - Mystical Manga Tarot Deck

My tried and true deck. It was either this one or my Skyrim tarot deck, so I went with this one. It felt more him to me. I picked the Seven of Cups, the Hanged Man, the Hermit, and the Nine of Swords for Levi. In some cases, the Seven of Cups gives me feelings of envy for choices that may seem out of reach or wanting it all when you have to pick and choose, so I went with it.

Satan - The Language of Flowers Oracle Deck

This is the best I had for Satan, but I feel like he'd be quite knowledgable on flower language. I had several other cards that I had in mind for him as well, namely Action - the Venus Fly Trap, but I wanted to keep the number of cards to four, so... Also, when I first started using this deck, it took a lot of warming up to, (it was shy...if you can believe that or not), which is how Satan is in both games, not shy just...needs to get used to people before opening up.

Asmodeus - Romantic Tarot Deck

This is the pairing that kicked off this idea. This deck is new, my mom gifted it to me for Easter! She's a sweetie. And I kept think about how Asmo would adore the art and vintage depictions in the cards. Since the cards aren't labeled, I picked the Lovers, the Two of Cups, the Empress, and the Three of Swords. Most of these are "romantic" in nature, or with the Empress, embodies confidence and embracing femininity. Three of Swords because of how dramatic and tragic love and can be, and I'm sure Asmo has had his fair share :(

Beelzebub - Moonology Manifestations Oracle Deck

This is my second Moonology deck, my other-half, if you will. (Another gift from my mom:)) I really don't have much to say about this deck for Beel, but I figured it would be fun to assign the twins with these decks. The cards were picked based on his feelings of guilt of his past from the Celestial War.

Belphegor - Moonology Oracle Deck

My first Moonology deck! I think this was the first oracle deck I ever got, so it has a special place in my heart. I obviously had to give this one to Belphie since his theme revolves around the moon and space. Notice in both Beel's and Belphie's I picked one Gemini card each, hehe...

Diavolo - Dragon Wisdom Oracle Deck

Considering Dia's demon form is draconic (dra-ICONIC! Heh, anyone?), this seemed right. I'm less familiar with this deck since it's not one of the primary ones I use, but it was fun to go through it again like it was new, lol. There was another card I almost picked for him, Initiation. But I thought these ones fit best.

Barbatos - Celtic Healing Oracle Deck

Once again, this is one of those scenarios where this was the best I had for Barb. There's a strange energy to these cards, mysterious and timeless almost, a little spooky. Kinda reminds me of him in some way. I'm the least familiar with this deck as it's relatively new and I haven't really used it yet, so apologies for lack of substance with this one.

Simeon - The Field Tarot

This was a gift from a friend of mine. It was theirs originally, but they so thoughtfully handed it down to me, and I use it quite a lot! This deck felt very mellow and light compared to my other ones. Very minimalist, so I thought it fit Simeon's vibe. To note: the Perspective card is this deck's Hanged Man. The Three of Cups reminded me of the og Purgatory Hall gang.

Solomon - Oceanic Tarot Deck

Based on his love for marine life and his...past with the ocean, how could I resist! Also, didn't mean for two of the cards I picked to be king and queen of the same suit, but I thought they fit his personality and way of living. The suit cards are pretty basic, featuring some marine life behind the pictures and whatnot without having too much imagery.

Luke - Tiny Tarot Deck

Come on...I had to. I put it in my hand so you could really get the perspective of how small it is. It's cute! I didn't pull any of the cards out since the box struggles to hold them in and I'm afraid of getting them everywhere, but they are your standard Rider-Waite-Smith deck! I probably would've picked the Sun or the Six of Cups for him, something along the lines of youth and vibrancy. (MY GOD, MY VEINS LOOK LIKE A STAR WTH?? I just noticed that, omg) Well...that's new...

#this is so pointless and random but i love it 😌#mediocre explanations? you got it!#obey me #obey me lucifer #obey me mammon #obey me leviathan #obey me satan #obey me asmodeus #obey me beelzebub #obey me belphegor #obey me diavolo #obey me barbatos #obey me simeon #obey me solomon #obey me luke #jo's thoughts

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lovestorygaming · 3 months

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Last night I had a dream where I was hanging out with Goofy in a bookstore. It was the only part of the dream I remember with perfect clarity.

"Well, what do you want to do now?" he asked.

"You mean right now, or long term?"

"Both! Hyuck!" The absolute joy in his smile was intoxicating. He grinned with all the certainty of a sunrise, certainty that the possibilities in the word 'both' were endless.

"I'm just trying to think about now," I said.

A serious, sad look came to his face, and the weight of understanding hung on his words.

"I know you've done some bad things. Things you're not proud of, ya know? And I know you think it's hard to forgive yourself for 'em. But everyone I've ever known who makes it through to self actualization, and I mean really makes it, made a choice to stop punishing themselves. You can't let the thing you've done control who you're going to be down the road. Hyuck!"

The dream changed, and he was gone.

I think I was visited by some kind of ancient oracle of wisdom who decided to take the guise of Goofy Fucking Goof.

#dream #disney #spiritual awakening #spirit #old gods #pagan

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bluejaysandblackbats · 1 month

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Eyes and Ears

Fandom: DC Comics, Batfam

Summary: An AU where Barbara finds Jason instead of Bruce.

Chapters: 3/?

Characters: Jason Todd, Barbara Gordon, Jim Gordon, Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne, Sheila Haywood, Original Character(s)

Relationship(s): Jason Todd/Original Character(s), Past Barbara Gordon/Dick Grayson

Additional Tags: Canon Divergent AU, Older SIbling Barbara Gordon, Jason Todd-centric, Barbara Gordon is Oracle, Jason Todd is NOT Robin, Jason Todd Has Issues, Jason Todd Has a Crush, Adopted Siblings

Chapter Three: Michigan Style

When Barbara and Jason got home, Jim was gone. He'd left a note saying that he would be back late. Jason and Barbara had dinner, and she went out as Batgirl. Jason tried to sleep, but he found himself tossing and turning. Jason rolled out of bed and went to the kitchen to make himself a cup of tea. He warmed the milk on the stove, and he read through one of his library books. Jim came in from work and locked eyes with Jason. "Oh, hey there. I wanted to talk to you..."

Jason's heart dropped into the pit of his stomach, and he swallowed hard. "You want me to leave?" Jason asked. Jim shook his head.

"No, I don't want you to leave, son... I just wanted to know if you knew where your birth certificate was," Jim replied. Jason shook his head. "Well, Jason... The thing is, I went looking for it, and I found it. Eleven-forty-nine p.m. in Gotham City Hospital—."

"Yeah," Jason interrupted to move Jim forward.

"What is your mother's name?" Jim asked.

"Catherine," Jason answered. Jim took a deep breath. "That's her name. I'm not lying," Jason raised his voice slightly, and Jim gestured for him to keep his volume down.

"No, I know you're not lying. I just wanted to make this easy on you... I just don't know how to put it. Jason, your mother's name is Sheila Haywood—."

"So what if she went by a different name? It doesn't mean—."

"I don't think you understand. Sheila Haywood is a different person, and that after a bit of digging, I found out that she has been missing since you were a baby," Jim whispered, "Jason... Look—."

Jason's head started to spin, and he turned the fire off on the stove and went back to his room to lie down. Jim turned the milk on and finished making the tea. He made two cups and knocked on Jason's door. "Jason, it's chamomile," Jim whispered. Jason took a shaky breath and wiped tears from his eyes. "I'm so sorry, son..."

"Catherine is my mom," Jason cried as he faced the wall. Jim crouched by Jason's bed and sat the mug down on Jason's nightstand.

"Yes, yes she is. Jason, nothing changes that... It's just that I wanted you to know because if I do find her—."

"Why do you think she disappeared?" Jason asked as he sat up and wiped his tears away. Jim waited for Jason to take a sip of his tea.

"I don't know," Jim whispered. Jason continued to sip his tea, and Jim wrung his hands. "Babs said you went to work with her. How was that?"

Jason shrugged. "What'd she say to you? How'd she make you let me stay here?" Jason asked. Jim smiled.

"She said that someone has to look out for you... You know she must see something special in you to fight for you like that," Jim answered him. "I want you to know that this can be your home too if you want it to be."

Jason set the mug on the nightstand and lay down facing Jim. "We'll see, Commissioner... We'll see," Jason mumbled.

"Goodnight," Jim murmured.

Jason drifted off to sleep only to be startled awake by Barbara. "Hush... Jason, shh," Barbara whispered. Jason clutched his chest and grimaced at her.

"What?" he mouthed angrily.

"I thought you were crying, so I came to wake you up. I'm sorry," Barbara apologized. Jason closed his eyes and sank back into his pillow. Barbara fixed his blankets and went back across the hall.

Jason slept until noon the next day, and when he woke up, he searched for Barbara but found Jim instead. "Babs is at work, so it's just you and me for right now," Jim explained. Jason's face went grim. "I was just about to sit and watch tv... D'you like action movies?"

Jason nodded. "I'm gonna go brush my teeth," Jason replied. Jim nodded. "Hey... If you find her, would it be okay for me to meet her?"

Jim nodded. "If I find Sheila, I wouldn't think to keep you from her," Jim replied. Jason grinned and turned back, and went to the bathroom. Jim went to the kitchen, boiled hot dogs, and put on a can of chili. He wasn't quite sure what to say to Jason, but he had to admit it did feel nice to have a child in the house.

Jason stepped out of the bathroom and met Jim in the kitchen. "Can I help?" Jason asked. Jim nodded.

"Wanna get the chips and put the sodas on the table?" Jim requested. "You look a lot like him."

"I know... Everyone says I look like him," Jason mumbled. He hated to hear it most of the time, but he had to admit it was nice for Jim to acknowledge that Jason had a family before he got there. "Why are you being so nice to me?"

"You're just a kid... And I know how easy it can be to get into trouble as a kid when there's no one to look after you," Jim explained. Jason cocked his head. "Don't look at me like that. I got in my fair share of trouble when I was your age." Jim chuckled, and Jason grinned. "What'd you say to Babs to get her to like you so much?"

"I don't know... I wish I did. She sort of tricked me into coming here, but I'm glad she did," Jason answered with a sweet-natured shrug.

Jim stirred the chili and shrugged in return. "Is the movie rated R?" Jason asked, a mischievous grin spreading across his face.

"PG-13," Jim held back his laugh as he made their chili dogs and put them on a platter. "Do you wanna get two plates for the table?"

Jason nodded and grabbed the plates, and set them down on the coffee table. Jim set the platter down and turned the movie on. Jason started eating, and Jim poured a few chips onto Jason's plate. "He's odd, isn't he?" Jim asked, and Jason giggled. They both started laughing. "Wanna finish off the chili?"

Jason nodded, and Jim got up and went to the kitchen. "Want me to pause the movie?" Jason asked. Jim shook his head, and Jason poured a few more chips onto their plates. Jim gave Jason a bowl of chili, and they went back to watching the movie.

When they were more than halfway through the movie, Jim got a call from Barbara. "Hey, Pumpkin," Jim greeted her.

"Is Jason okay?" Barbara asked. "I didn't want to wake him up again... Otherwise I would've taken him with me—."

"We're just watching a movie," Jim paused and glanced over at Jason. "It's Barbara. She wants to know if you're doing alright." Jason smiled at him.

"Tell her I'm having fun," Jason smiled. Jim grinned and nodded.

"He said he's having fun," Jim repeated for Barbara.

"That's good... Um, I'm sorry you had to watch him on your day off," she apologized.

"Don't worry about it. Jason's great," Jim reassured her. She let out a sigh of relief. "Don't worry. He's fine. Enjoy your lunch."

"Thanks, Dad. See you later," Barbara replied before hanging up. Jim looked over at Jason.

"Like it or not, I think you've got yourself a sister," Jim joked, "She was worried about you."

Jason looked up from his bowl of chili, and he wanted to say something, but he couldn't find the right words. "You said I was great," Jason whispered, "Is she worried that I'll get on your nerves?"

Jim shook his head. "No, I think she's worried that I'll get on your nerves. Or maybe she's afraid she'll come back, and you'll be old and boring like me," Jim joked. Jason snorted before letting out a laugh. "See, I told Babs I was funny." Jason shook his head.

"Just old," Jason joked, and Jim playfully nudged him.

They finished watching the movie, and Jason offered to do the dishes. Jim said no at first, but Jason insisted. While Jason cleaned up, Jim started preparing dinner.

"This is nice... I wasn't sure if I should say anything at first, but with Barbara being so busy sometimes, it's nice to have another kid in the house," Jim confessed. Jason frowned, and Jim thought that he'd said something wrong.

Jason wanted it to feel normal, but he knew how good new things could seem. He knew how horrible things could get once the newness faded, so he said nothing.

#fic #eyes and ears fic #batfam #Jason Todd #Barbara Gordon #Jim Gordon #Dick Grayson #Bruce Wayne #Sheila Haywood #Original Character(s)#Canon Divergent AU #Older SIbling Barbara Gordon #Jason Todd-centric #Barbara Gordon is Oracle #Jason Todd is NOT Robin #Jason Todd Has Issues #Jason Todd Has a Crush #Adopted Siblings

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soleminisanction · 1 year

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Like I mentioned on my previous post, there’s a particular aspect of how Steph got fired from being Robin that I find particularly interesting. (And based on your tags, @alvindraperzzz, you're going to enjoy this as well ;) )

So, just as a reminder, this is the deal that Stephanie and Bruce make when he agrees to let her be Robin:

"You're on probation. You don't learn any of the big secrets. And the first time you disobey my orders, is the precise moment you're out. No second chances."

Here's what makes this interesting: Tim also had a probationary period. It took place between 1989's "A Lonely Place of Dying" storyline and 1991's Robin miniseries, happening in scattered pieces across bits of Batman, Detective Comics, and other associated books.

Aside from changes in comm-tech between 1989 and 2003, there's only two major differences between Steph's probationary period and Tim's. First, Tim already knew the biggest of the Big Secrets, so he gets moments of interacting with Bruce and Alfred in civilian mode and even stays with them during school holidays. And second, Tim was not allowed his own costume and was forbidden from going out on patrol. Presumably, this second difference comes from a mix of Bruce's implied scheme to lure Tim back, Steph already having copious experience on the streets as Spoiler, and just general management of their differing personalities.

The important thing is, during this time, Tim was under the same restrictions as Steph: stay out of this fight, and if you disobey me you're gone. And there came a time, right at the end, where Batman wound up in a dangerous situation versus a supervillain (in this case, Scarecrow) and the would-be Robin chose to break the rules. What's interesting is the parallels and differences between the two scenes, and how, if you're paying attention, they're pretty consistent, despite their very different endings.

For one, in Tim's case, he's not initially on the scene, and he doesn't have contact with Bruce (like I said, 1980's comm-tech -- Oracle wasn't even a thing yet). This means that he isn't defying direct orders when he chooses to act. And he doesn't rush in himself right off the bat -- his first choice is actually to dial up Commissioner Gordon on the landline.

It's only after he runs out of ways to get a hold of Batman and warn him of the danger that he makes the decision to go out. And he does so very conscious of the fact that this is going to cost him Robin, in spite of the months of work he's put in.

Stephanie, on the other hand, is on the scene and has a direct line to Batman. She's chattering in his ear the whole time, to the point that he has to tell her to be quiet because she's distracting him. And when the fight gets going, he tells her repeatedly that he's doing fine, don't come in here, stay in the plane.

She lasts maybe fifteen seconds before abandoning her comms and diving in.

She doesn't wait or consider her options. She doesn't even give their deal so much as a passing thought. She simply assumes that she knows better than him and leaps in without thinking. Which mostly just demonstrates that a) she doesn't trust him which is bad when you're trying to form a partnership, and b) she can't be trusted to follow orders.

Also, frankly, she demonstrates poor judgement by completely misjudging the situation. Bruce does not need her help. Even injured, he's doing just fine. Stephanie rushing in is nothing but a distraction and, ultimately, what loses the fight.

Tim, on the other hand, judged the situation correctly. When he arrives on the scene, Batman (and innocent civilian Vicki Vale, not shown for space) is in trouble. He's been caught by Scarecrow and genuinely needs the back-up because he's being psychologically tortured.

Another parallel is that both Robins wind up in trouble as a result of coming to Batman's rescue. Which makes sense, they're teenagers versus adults with super-tech, training and horrible fear chemicals.

In Tim's case, he gets doused with fear gas (specifically "essence de trauma" because this was back when Scarecrow had specific strains of his stuff) which trapped Tim in an illusion of the very recent attack on his parents. Seriously, this is happening like, the day after they buried his mother.

But! He pulls himself out of it with the help of what might be hallucinations or might be the ghosts of Jason Todd and the Earth-1 Dick Grayson (it's never explained because this was the late 80s and nobody questions this stuff when half the creative staff is running on cocaine.) He then manages to turn the tables on Scarecrow and actually save the day.

Stephanie, on the other hand, gets herself caught.

Which, like I said, loses Batman the fight. And more importantly, it puts Steph's life in danger and she's not able to get herself free.

And it isn't like she doesn't have the opportunity, in-universe. This is where the scene ends, but Bruce recaps on the next page how Scarab, quote, "Left Robin tied up, but alive and uninjured" when she stole the Bat-plane to make her escape.

So, if you're a reasonable person, I hope you can see how there's already multiple strikes against Steph that don't really apply to Tim: she broke the rules thoughtlessly instead of with consideration, she defied direct orders instead of taking initiative on her own, and she completely misjudged the situation, putting herself in danger for no real reason and costing Batman the fight.

But now, we come to the difference that almost everyone overlooks, but I think is the real key to the whole thing: how each Robin behaves in the aftermath.

Because, see, Tim comes to Bruce immediately afterwards and owns up to everything.

I really like this scene because what Tim says here is very deliberate. He doesn't make excuses or try to deny anything. He simply explains himself and then apologizes, fully willing to accept the consequences of his actions.

It's a very mature thing to do. I couldn't have done it at 13. I'm not fully confident I could do it now, at 33. And in return, Bruce says this:

This is the story where Tim earns his wings. In the next two pages, he's given his costume and is officially made the new Robin. And it's because he demonstrates, through his actions in this story, that he understands both the weight of the legacy and the very real responsibility he's about to leap into.

Compare that to how it goes down with Steph.

Like I said in my previous post, despite Bruce saying she'd be out "the precise moment" she disobeyed him, Bruce doesn't fire her immediately after the Scarab incident. Instead, the story skips ahead by three weeks, until after Bruce has recovered from his injuries.

This is something he's shown consciously choosing to do, though he doesn't explain why. I like to think it's to give her time to consider her actions.

Note the difference in the way that Steph behaves: she shows up in her costume, with the standing assumption that they're going to go after Scarab. The only thing that she thinks would've prevented them from doing so is Batman's vision not healing.

She feels "guilty" about him being blinded, but that just demonstrates that she doesn't really understand the situation -- Batman was blinded while she was in the plane. Which implies that what she feels "guilty" about is not disobeying him sooner. The fact that she put herself in danger, the fact that she broke the rules, these things never cross her mind.

You'll note that she doesn't apologize either. Again, it's probably not deliberate, but "I feel so guilty, it was all my fault!" is not the same thing as "I'm sorry." The former is what you say when you're trying (consciously or not) to get the person you've wronged to comfort you. To tell you that it's okay, you didn't mean to do it, everybody messes up so don't feel bad. Which you'll note that Bruce does.

It's only after Steph does this, comes to him acting like nothing's wrong and they just had a little oopsie-daysie on the way to their next rip-roaring adventure, that Bruce finally drops the bomb.

Note the "direct order in the field" specification.

Stephanie only starts to admit that she did something wrong after she realizes she's going to be punished, and even then, she's not apologizing, and she's not owning up to her actions. She's making excuses, trying to wheedle out of the consequences of her own actions. And not once does she ever seem to internalize that she could have died.

And all of this is very in-keeping with her personality as established up to his point.

In short, while the two situations are very similar, Stephanie's actually demonstrates the exact opposite of Tim's: even after years of being Spoiler and multiple occasions where her own life, civilian lives, and the lives of people she supposedly cares for have been on the line, she's still treating this all as a game where the most important aspect of the outcome is how she feels about it. It's not just that she made "one mistake," this is part of a pattern for her, one that demonstrates very aptly that she does not understand the danger she's putting herself in, doesn't respect the guidance of the people who are trying to teach her, and frankly, has no interest in ever getting better, because she doesn't think she has a problem.

It can't be her fault, after all. She just made a little mistake! It's everyone else who're being unfair to her, holding her to rules and agreements she never meant to honor, and they'll all see as soon as she can prove them wrong...

And we all know where that leads.

Now, there are people who believe that this entire issue is simply unfair to Stephanie. And yeah, there's an entirely different discussion to be had about the out-of-universe decisions surrounding this story, the intention of the creators, etc. But I think everything that happens here in Robin #126 is as in-keeping for Steph's personality as the events of Batman #457 are for Tim. And I believe that, in both, Bruce's reasoning is fair and based on sound judgement, not sexism.

Still, they're very fun to compare. The nuances between the different relationships is very interesting.

#stephanie brown #tim drake #robin #batman #dc comics #meta #dc comics meta #robins #bat family #long post #my meta #man it was hard to end this one for some reason #I wish so hard I could see the world where Steph didn't die at the end of War Games #and the writers actually had to think about how she'd deal with the weight of what she did to people #it'd be even better if she didn't get hurt but Tim or Cass did #I should probably stop before I start writing fanfiction in the tags #still she could've been so interesting!! and instead they went with boring and 'I'm not like other girls! I'm QUIRKY!'#we could've had it aaaaaaaaaaaaall

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galkyrie · 2 years

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Inspired by this post and its notes (and by that I mean it refused to leave me alone until I wrote these scenes)

Jason tried not to make going to the ‘Cave a habit. No, he much preferred to conduct any Bat-related business in as close to neutral turf as possible, but-

Tim. Tim was in the ‘Cave, had been manning the comms for the group all night as he nursed a couple bruised ribs. Oracle was away on Birds’ business, so the responsibility of playing coordinator had fallen onto his lap while he recovered.

It made him easy to find, luckily. Jason wanted to have a chat with the little bird.

“Hey Babybird,” he tried to keep the thrilled, self-satisfied smugness out of his tone as he climbed off his bike and tugged off his helmet, but-

This was just too good.

The numbers- courtesy of the magic user and dimension-jumper they’d had to coordinate taking down last week- had appeared just as they’d managed to shove him back into the universe he’d come from. A parting gift in the form of a spell.

May you all see what you truly are.

It’d been ominous, but anytime a magic used opened their mouths was a pretty ominous fuckin’ moment in his book. And nothing had come of it, not really. Just these- numbers, hanging over their heads silently. Only seen by one another, and seemingly nonsensical.

Until tonight.

“Jason, what are you-” Tim turned in the leather computer chair in front of the set of monitors, mug of coffee in hand as he moved to greet him. He stopped, looked above his head with a furrowed brow. “Your number went up.” Jason couldn’t help the smirk that spread across his face as he ambled over to the platform, neither pausing nor bothering to give Timmy his space as he responded.

“Yeah, funny thing. I ran into someone I’ve been lookin’ for while goin’ about my business tonight- real scum of the earth type, yeah? He’d just gotten off on another rape charge on a technicality- it went about as well as you can guess.” He spun the helmet in his hands lazily before setting it to his side, leaning against the desk and grinning down at a stone-faced Red Robin. “Imagine my surprise when I got back from that little meetin’ to find my number’d gone up.”

If the cause was surprising news, Tim didn’t let on. “I see.” His tone is level, even. It meant nothing- gave nothing away, about how Drake was feeling.

“And it got me wonderin’, Prettybird,” Jason added, lips twitching in amusement as the nickname did not draw out the usual faint scowl on Tim’s lips. It was as good a tell as any that the neutrality in his features was an act. “Why your number is hovering around triple what I’ve got hanging over my head.”

He leaned over, taking full advantage of their comparative sizes and Tim’s seated position to loom, a taunting grin spread across his lips. “How’d’ya think Daddy Bats is gonna take to his perfect little soldier bein’ no better than his biggest failure?” He reached down, taking an errant lock of hair between his gloved fingers before adding, “bein’ three times worse?”

Tim looked up at him, glacial blue eyes taking in the triumphant grin on his face and finally emoted.

He laughed.

“I guess we’ll find out, won’t we Jay?” He took the moment of surprise- fully fuckin’ earned, because the little shit just laughed at him holding destroying his life over his head- to push back in the seat, rolling away enough to get standing. “When you tell him, that is. I’m assuming you are going to tell him, yes? That’s why you’re dangling this in my face first?”

Tim looked his way, head tilted in that studying-a-bug way of his that always made him feel both small and about to be skewered. Jason blinked his way, sure he was broadcasting just how off-kilter he currently was-

“I thought one of you would figure it out eventually, but- honestly my money was on Dick before you.” Tim gave him a grin, small and conspiratorial, seeming utterly amused by the truth coming out.

Jason was at a fuckin’ loss. “What’d you do, to get that number?”

“Oh no, that’s not how this is going to go.” Tim laughed again, shaking his head. “We’re not going to share stories, Jay. You didn’t come here to do that. And it wasn’t to warn me, tell me you were so sorry but you had no choice but to tell the others. You’re gloating. You came here,” and Tim stepped closer, that grin and gaze sharpening enough to cut, “to make me squirm.”

Tim stopped in front of him, just barely within reach as he regarded him. He wasn’t in the Red Robin uniform- opting instead for a loose hoodie hanging over the sleek black athletic wear used by most of them when running training exercises. He looked underprepared to fight him and unconcerned by the prospect, the combination of which managed to turn his looming back around on him.

“I’m afraid this isn’t going to get me there, Jason.” The cool condescension in his tone killed any quip he might’ve come up with for the innuendo in their tracks, making him sneer. “But go ahead,” Tim waved his hand, turning to gesture towards his helmet, “I’m sure everyone would love to hear it.”

“You’re bluffing.” He didn’t even sound positive to his own ears. He’d- this was not what he’d been expecting. He’d been thinking he might get denial, a fight, maybe. Not cold, calculated acceptance of the revelation and this...heel-turn.

Tim huffed another laugh, meeting his eyes again. “Feel free to call it, then. Do you think Bruce will even remember my number when he finds out what the one hanging over him means?”

“Do you really think he’ll believe you, when his whole idea of himself is at stake?” Fuck, Tim was right and that grin on his face did little to hide that he knew it. “Your word’s worth more than it used to be, Jay- but nobody’s is worth that much.”

Fuck. He’d have to prove it. “This isn’t over.” He promised, narrowing his eyes at the little bird.

“I wouldn’t dare assume otherwise.” Tim eyed him coolly, watching as he straightened and yanked his helmet off the desk.

“You know- I might be a fuckin’ asshole, Tim. But you’re ice cold.” And his judgement was probably less than meaningless to the man, considering he’d come here fully expecting to rub this in his face, but-

“So I’ve been told.” Tim shot back, sounding bored, “now do you mind plotting elsewhere? Some people didn’t abandon their patrols to play mind games and I have a job to get back to.” He gestured back to the computer, easing into the chair and returning to the monitors.

Jason stormed out, trying not to let the curveball that was this entire interaction get to him. Tim- seemingly adept at finding new ways to be infuriating when given any opportunity- was right about one thing. Bruce wasn’t going to believe him if he just told him.

He’d have to show him.

...

Tim made it until the roaring of Jason’s bike faded into the distance before his head was between his knees, forcing himself out of the instinctual hyperventilation he’d been trying to avoid since the moment Jason had told him why his number had gone up.

So- it was over. Tim’d killed people- a lot of people. He hadn’t- god he hoped his bluff had bought him some time, that he hadn’t just goaded Jason into finding Bruce in person and telling him.

Hope wasn’t enough and he didn’t have time to lose it now. He stood- probably too fast, since he was lurching to the side of the platform just to empty the contents of his stomach over the side. God, he’d- he’d killed people.

He wiped his mouth on his sleeve, grimaced at the acid clinging to his tongue before forcing himself to get it together.

The first thing he did was get onto the ‘Cave recording and delete any record of his conversation with Jay- the Hood’s would be a problem, probably having picked up the entirety of his act from its spot on the desk.

Jason could just go show that to Bruce. That brought down his possible time-table considerably.

Tim moved quickly after that, grabbing every bit of gear he thought he’d need to get out of Gotham and quickly divesting his motorcycle of every piece of tech that could be tracked.

It came out easily, considering he’d designed it with something like this in mind, someday.

And- sure, his idea hadn’t exactly been ‘turns out you’ve murdered a few hundred people’ that would be the final nail in the coffin, but-

Bruce had been vocally disappointed at him considering where to draw his own line with Boomerang, no killing required. Enough so that he’d planned a few exits, should the need arise.

Yeah, seemed like the need was there. He had to go, like, yesterday.

He kept his own readout tracking the rest of the Bats’ movements- Jason was sure to act if his control of the comms seemed amiss. Luckily he tended to keep things quiet on the group comm anyways, unless something big was going down.

Thank god it was a slow night. Outside of Jason, apparently, committing a murder.

Not that he could judge.

He got to one of his safehouses tucked away from anybody’s current route, logging into the Nest’s system from the pared down system inside. He set a countdown and activated subroutines that would be necessary for the rest of them to go on without him- and not find him, hopefully.

After that he bought bus, plane, and train tickets in every direction under every alias he could afford to burn.

He used none of them, abandoned his bike at the border of Chinatown and backtracked to execute the rest of his plan. He didn’t break down, not when he successfully crept through the marina to the small, solar-powered yacht he’d carefully kept off the books and got aboard. He didn’t fall apart, when he’d carefully slipped below deck and into the dimly lit space that was to serve as his home until he’d managed to put as much distance between himself and Gotham- and seven or eight of its residents in particular- as possible.

A buzzy, distant kind of calm washed over him as he carefully, purposefully changed once more into clothes more suited for sailing, and tested just how silent the electric motor was as he undocked and left Gotham’s tainted waters in the rearview.

#jaytim #galkyrie writes #ficlet idea #stealing the boat idea from canon because it rules

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