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incorrectbatfam · 1 year

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Hello! While scrolling between random hurt/comfort fica I stumbled into a batfamily one and decided to give it a shot and now I am curious about this fandom! Never read any dc/marvel comic and watched maybe a couple of superhero movies so I have basically 0 knowledge about batman except that Robin is his apprentice but also apparently there's multiple Robins??

Can I have a general fandom/family introduction? I'm very confused but also really curious since I'm an avid found family enjoyer :)

What the heck is this fandom?

If you're reading this, you probably either a) want to get into comics but aren’t sure where to start or b) found yourself plopped in the middle and don't know what's going on.

DC Comics encompasses a wide range of characters and storylines with varying levels of popularity, and is home to some of the most iconic figures like Superman and Wonder Woman. What often happens in the DC and Marvel fandoms is that rather than trying to engage with everything, many fans will have a certain subset of content that they focus on. Sometimes it's a single character, sometimes it's a team like the Justice League, or sometimes it's a superhero family unit such as the Flash Family.

This blog primarily focuses on the batfamily, which is the group of characters that operate as Gotham City vigilantes centered around Batman. Some are legally/biologically related, some aren't. Generally speaking, the batfamily fandom is one of the larger subgroups within the DC fandom because so many of the comics revolve around these characters.

Who is Batman?

Are you living under a rock

Batman, AKA Bruce Wayne, begins with the infamous tragic origin where his parents were shot dead in an alleyway when he was 8, leaving him an orphan to be raised by his butler/surrogate father figure, Alfred Pennyworth. Once Bruce got a little older, he donned the costume to deal with criminals directly and bring justice to the city.

His civilian identity is Bruce Wayne, the (and I say this begrudgingly) billionaire CEO of his family's company, Wayne Enterprises. The company makes a little of everything and keeps Gotham afloat with job creation and philanthropy. Nothing unethical about one rich guy running an entire city.

His alter ego is Batman, and he uses his wit and extensive training to fight an array of both petty criminals as well as big-name villains like the Joker, the Riddler, Two-Face and more (collectively known as the Gotham Rogues gallery).

NOTE: some former villains, like Harley Quinn, have been rebranded as anti-heroes.

Batman operates out of a hidden cave (yes, a literal cave) under Wayne Manor known as the Batcave. This is where he keeps all sorts of high-tech paraphanalia, including his Batmobile, bat-plane, batarangs (bat boomerangs), and a powerful computer known as—you guessed it—the Batcomputer.

Batman's primary love interest is a former villain known as Catwoman, AKA Selina Kyle, who is a master thief. (Her backstory includes growing up with an abusive father and turning to stealing for survival.) She's since reformed and has been indicted into the Justice League. They're really cute if you don't think about how they're technically two furries who roleplay as cops and robbers.

NOTE: in an alternate timeline, Bruce dies as a child in that alley as Thomas Wayne becomes Batman while Martha Wayne becomes the Joker.

Okay, what about... Robin? Robins?

There's a lot to unpack here.

The OG Robin is Dick Grayson. Yes, we still call him Dick in the year 2022. He was a child acrobat who was part of a trio, The Flying Graysons, with his parents, John and Mary, in a traveling circus called Haly's Circus. Haly's stopped in Gotham, where a crime boss named Tony Zucco tried to get them to pay protection money. When Haly refused, Zucco sabotaged the trapezes and Dick's parents fell to their deaths. Bruce was at that show and because Orphans Unite or whatnot, he takes little Dick under his wing as a ward (not legally adopted at this point, Bruce is in his early to mid 20s). Dick joins Batman's crusade as the colorful pantsless sidekick known as Robin. As Robin, he also became the leader of what would eventually be a multigenerational superhero team known as the Teen Titans.

The second Robin is Jason Todd. He grew up in Gotham's notorious Crime Alley, where his mother, Catherine, was a substance user and his father, Willis, was an overall piece of garbage. After his father goes to jail and his mother dies of an overdose, Jason is essentially an orphan left to fend for himself on the streets. His run-in with Batman happens when he tries to steal to Batmobile tires to sell, and instead of getting punished, he gets adopted. Legally, this time. So while Dick is the oldest, Jason is Bruce's first kid. Jason takes on the Robin mantle and fights crime, yada yada. What he's well-known for is his death, where he set out to Ethiopia to find his biological mother, Sheila Haywood, and is killed by the Joker. Then Superman breaks reality and Jason comes back to life, spends some time with the League of Assassins, and gets rebranded as a crime lord/anti-hero with a hell of a grudge against Bruce for not avenging him.

While Jason was dead, we get our third Robin and the first one with pants: Tim Drake. Tim is actually Bruce's neighbor (the way rich people can be neighbors with spaced-out properties). He grew up with wealthy but neglectful parents, Janet and Jack Drake, who often left Tim home alone as a small child while they went on their archeology expeditions. Tim takes an interest in the Gotham vigilantes and sets out to follow them around and gather evidence to figure out who they are. Eventually, he deduces Bruce, Dick, and Jason's identities by some moves unique to the Flying Graysons. Then, Tim basically blackmails Bruce into letting him be Robin and has his own teenage superhero team called Young Justice. After the Robin title is taken away from him, he becomes Red Robin (yes, like the restaurant chain) and while everyone thinks Batman is dead during this time, Tim is the only one who believes otherwise. Also, his mom drinks poison, dad is killed by a boomerang, best friend is killed by an evil clone, other best friend is also killed by an evil clone, girlfriend dies (see below), assassins steal his spleen, and now he's bisexual and dating a boy who creates conspiracy theories.

NOTE: In an alternate timeline, Carrie Kelley becomes the third Robin.

Robin #4 is Stephanie Brown. She actually didn't become Robin until well into her vigilante career. She actually made a name for herself as Spoiler with the purpose of taking down her father, a D-list Gotham villain known as Cluemaster. Similar to everyone in this franchise, her childhood wasn't ideal as her father was always up to criminal activities and her mother worked a lot as well as (in some versions) used drugs. She later becomes the fifth Batgirl and then Robin before her death in the 2005 War Games comics, where she is killed when she seeks out a villain against Batman's orders. She then returns from the dead and goes back to being Spoiler. She also dated Tim and was a fairly long-running relationship before they broke up. She also had a teen pregnancy at one point (not by Tim) and had a daughter that she put up for adoption.

Robin #5 is Damian Wayne, the biological son of Bruce Wayne and Talia Al Ghul (daughter to Ra's Al Ghul, leader of a villainous organization known as the League of Assassins). Damian was raised in the League of Assassins for the first half of his childhood, where he was trained to be the heir to Ra's Al Ghul's empire. Talia brought him to Bruce when he was ~10 to refine his skills with Batman. However, that kind of goes awry when Bruce fakes his death and Damian is raised by Dick instead. Damian also becomes a Teen Titans leader as well as forms a friendship with Jon Kent, son of Superman (please read Super Sons, it's adorable). Damian is then killed by his oversized evil clone and is brought back to life on the planet Apokolips (no one stays dead istg).

Duke Thomas's relationship with the Robin mantle is a little more complicated. Duke first shows up as a really intelligent kid who solves one of the Riddler's puzzles. Later on, he becomes the leader (aided by Alfred Pennyworth) of a group of teenage vigilantes known as We Are Robin, who helped take care of Gotham crime while Batman was missing. His parents were, for a lack of a better term, disabled after one of the Joker's gas attacks (seriously, someone euthanize this clown). Bruce takes Duke under his wing and Duke rebrands himself as the Signal. He's unique from other Gotham heroes in a couple aspects: 1) he fights crime in the daytime instead of night and 2) he has photokinetic superpowers. (He's also dating one of the We Are Robins members, Izzy Ortiz.)

What about the others, like Batwoman and Batgirl?

Similar to Robin, Batgirl is a title held by multiple people. The first Batgirl was Bette Kane (who is now Flamebird), but the most well-known one was the second one, Barbara Gordon. Barbara (Babs for short) is the daughter of Gotham police commissioner Jim Gordon. Inspired by other Gotham heroes, she became Batgirl behind her parents' back and worked in tandem with Bruce and Dick, forming a relationship with Dick along the way. She became a quadriplegic after getting shot by the Joker but refused to step down from the field, instead using her intelligence and technological capabilities to surveil and provide intel under a new moniker, Oracle. She also has her own team, the Birds of Prey, which includes people like Huntress and Black Canary.

After Barbara, the next Batgirl is Cassandra Cain (who is also Bruce's only legal daughter in the main continuity). She is the daughter of David Cain and an assassin known as Lady Shiva. Cass was raised by David within the League of Assassins and trained to be a fighting machine, similar to Damian. She was raised in isolation without speech or literacy, but can read body language really well. Her first kill was when she was 8, and that traumatized her so much that she ran away, wandering around until eventually reaching Gotham and becoming both Bruce and Barbara's ward. She holds other titles like Black Bat along the way but is most known as Orphan. She also befriends Stephanie, had a short relationship with Superboy (Conner Kent) and, like half the people here, dies and comes back. Depending on who you talk to, some people keep her lack of speech, some have her speaking, and some prefer an in-between.

Stephanie was Batgirl after Cass. See above.

Kate Kane is Batwoman and Bruce Wayne's cousin. She grew up similarly wealthy in a high-level military family, often moving around as a child. Her twin sister and mother were killed in a terrorist attack in Belgium, leaving her father to raise her. She got into West Point military academy but was expelled in her final year after coming out as lesbian under the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy. After that, she spent a year on an island civilization before returning to Gotham. After Batman saved her from a mugging, Kate bought some equipment on the black market and trained herself to become Batwoman. Also, we as a fandom don't talk about her flamethrower gloves enough.

NOTE: in an alternate timeline, Carrie Kelley was also Batgirl and Batwoman.

Harper Row is Bluebird, and similar to Batwoman, she is a mostly independent Gotham hero who was inspired by Batman. Growing up, Harper often had to take care of things like household repairs and look after her younger brother, Cullen, because their father was abusive and didn't do anything for them. Eventually, she sought emancipation and got them out of there, but things still weren't easy. She went to college, but had to drop out and get a job in order to provide for her and her brother. She became Bluebird after Batman saved her and Cullen, engineering her own weapons like a giant taser. Fun fact: she's bi and her brother is gay.

This is still really confusing. Who's who right now?

Canon sucks so here's what the fandom largely know them as:

Bruce is Batman. He might have some suit modifications or occasionally pilot a giant bat robot, but he's Batman

Dick is Nightwing. He took over as Batman for a short period of time, but after Bruce returned, he went back to being Nightwing we don't talk about Ric

Jason is Red Hood. That was actually the Joker's previous title but now Jason holds it

Tim is... usually Robin or Red Robin, it kinda depends on context. Canonically he's back to being Robin now, but a lot of us still refer to him as Red Robin

Damian is Robin. He had the alias Redbird at one point but everyone calls him Robin

Duke is the Signal. Again, there were some alias changes (like Lark) but he's the Signal around here

Stephanie is Spoiler, but again, it depends on context

Cassandra is usually referred to as Orphan, but you'll occasionally see Batgirl or Black Bat depending on who you talk to

Barbara was rehashed as Batgirl in recent canon but we all hate the disability erasure so you'll see a lot of us still call her Oracle

Harper is Bluebird. I don't recall her having any other titles. Her brother isn't a vigilante

Selina (yes, she's part of the batfamily) is Catwoman

Alfred is... Alfred. On the field he goes by Agent A and his previous spy career often comes in handy

This isn't the sum of it. There are a whole bunch of other bat characters (Bette Kane, Luke Fox, Jean-Paul Valley, Helena Bertinelli, Terry McGinnis, etc.) that I didn't get into here partly because I don't focus on them as much and partly because of space. I also didn't get into all the lore for characters I did explain, like Dick's police career or other teams/relationships. There are also some inconsistencies between different timelines and reboots.

I encourage you to explore beyond what I presented with other heroes and villains since I know Batman isn't for everyone. I also encourage you to explore the comics, talk to people, and figure out for yourself what characters or storylines best fit you. Don't be afraid to take your time, either. We've been here nearly a century. We're not going anywhere.

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sciderman · 5 months

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Hi Sci! You always have the best Peter Parker Takes™️, so I was hoping you could help me with something! I like a lot of things about Peter, but I find it so hard to reconcile the fact that he tends to be written as pro-police and politically moderate. I personally headcanon that he was more of a morally black-and-white hothead when he first started Spider-Manning, but as he grew older and wiser, he started understanding that everything tends to be shades of gray and thinking before swinging in with punches. Still, you’d think a kid who grew up poor in Queens would know better than to just go “ah you are stealing and therefore Bad” ya know?? I know these grievances are more with what the comics/film industry will publish, but still, my kingdom for some nuance!!

oh, bless you anon! god - the cop question is so interesting in superhero media, it really is - and, honestly, my take is kind of the opposite of yours. peter parker wasn't aligned with the cops in any way when he started. in fact, he kind of had a general distaste for cops because, you know, the cops kind of had it out for him.

never forget, peter being a bitchy little bitch boy to the cops is kind of his origin story.

when peter started he actually had very little respect for other heroes or law enforcement at all. he kind of just worried about himself, and his aunt may and that was all. he wasn't any sort of beacon of morality who was seeking to deliver justice or anything. he kind of just wanted to take photographs and make a buck. it took him a long time to start playing "hero" - and even when he did, law enforcement and him were generally not on the same side.

i think his first real positive relationship with someone on the side of the law was captain stacy - peter, obviously, respected him a lot and, you know, captain stacy died heroically.

still, spider-man's relationship with the law continues to be rocky at best - he's constantly being hunted by the law but also some individual cops kind of have a soft-spot for him and let him off the hook - sometimes he helps them, sometimes he's on the run - they love him, they love him not - kind of fluctuates. i think the spider-man comics are generally noncommital about the cop question and kind of just play whatever song will give peter parker the most drama. spider-man comics were are generally lighthearted about this sort of a thing.

i think it's not until a post 9/11 world where copaganda kind of became a lot more prevalent in superhero media and you suddenly started seeing all the heroes working with law enforcement. suddenly, i think, it became unquestionable - a hero had to respect the law, even if they were a vigilante. i think - especially with spider-man comics being set in new york - there was a desire to see these heroic figures working alongside "real life heroes" - so, i think all of the sentiment that peter is pro-cop came from a post-9/11 world, which - to be fair, with the first spider-man movie coming out when it did, it's no wonder that the public consensus on spider-man is that he'd be pro-cop.

andrew's spidey - andrew's spidey isn't full-on anti-police, but he doesn't exactly hold law enforcement in the highest respect

the movie itself isn't police-critical but peter is portrayed as your general "no respect for authority" kind of kid in tasm1 who's relationship with the law i guess shifts after captain stacy helps him and dies heroically. andrew and the cops are presumably bffs in tasm2 – he's kind of just totally beloved by the city in tasm2. i feel like tasm2 probably really severely under-explores spider-man. in fact, it feels like spider-man is barely in tasm2. he's barely a character. i think maybe that's where the tasm movies stumble, actually. those movies really aren't about spider-man at all. they're entirely about peter parker. and yes, there is a difference.

tom holland's spider-man is a cop. police don't really feature in his story, but he is one. funded by the elite class and basically tasked with looking after their property. hate that. gross.

i think it's why i hate seeing peter working with the avengers. the avengers are cops. he doesn't belong there. it's only a recent development where we started getting spider-man on team-rosters - he was always a solo guy who didn't really particularly want to play with others. he had his own stuff to deal with and it didn't matter to him hugely whether he was playing on the side of the law or not. he was dealing with his stuff.

personally i'm not about seeing a morally black-and-white peter parker. i don't think he's ever been that way and i still hate seeing him reduced to that - i think we see him painted as politically moderate because spider-man stories really aren't often about asking greater questions - i don't think it's the platform for it. peter is always too concerned with his own personal troubles to pursue any sort of activism - i think it's quite funny - as active as spider-man is, peter parker is generally an apathetic figure, and i think that makes him a certain degree of relatable. i think characters like gwen and mj and even aunt may are more politically active than peter parker is. peter's kind of too busy just trying to survive.

i love the thought of a peter parker that does punch first. i think that's his whole bag. he's not thoughtful. he's quick to anger. he actually isn't particularly thoughtful and doesn't always approach situations with some moral wisdom. sometimes he punches the wrong people. sometimes his anger is misguided. his energy is practically always going into the wrong places. he doesn't always know what's right and wrong. but he tries.

i'm so not into the stories that paint him as a moral beacon because - more often than not - he's doing it for himself. if he really did have unwavering respect for the law and his morals perfectly aligned with the cops, he wouldn't put the mask on. it's like, the whole point. a vigilante exists fundamentally by it's disobedience to the law. otherwise they'd be carrying a badge.

#sci talks movies #sci talks comics

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innytoes · 1 month

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so uhm... hitman au came up in a chat this morning...

👉👈 would you... would you happen to have more in that incredible mind of yours for us?

Can I just tell you I did NOT tag any of this damn au properly so I spent like an hour trying to find it before giving up and googling my own damn tumblr with HITMAN RAY. (Yes I did go back and tag it now, fuck the blog search function.)

Okay but once Ray knows about the ghosts Julie is like... wow he caved really easily about the whole keeping secrets thing. And Reggie is like: yeah well we know his secrets.

Julie: please tell me it's not something gross.

The boys: AAAAHMN

Alex: your dad is secretly into the Great British Bake Off.

But they find out a way to communicate with Ray and tell him his secret is safe. And somehow, maybe through Willie, people in the ghost community who were murdered by people and want revenge get in contact with Ray and suddenly he's like, hitman slash vigilante justice guy. And he's like: boys, I know you're trying to help but also I still need to afford the mortgage... OH MY GOD WHERE DID ALL THIS MONEY COME FROM.

Willie: Not Elon Musk's wallet, secret safe, safety deposit box, evil underground bunker, and couch cushions over the course of 2 months.

And Ray is like: eh, good enough. So anyway you said her husband was a cop and that's why it was never investigated???

#hitman ray #julie and the phantoms #willie finds the ghosts and helps them do Ghost Heists to get the money #or sometimes he and alex go on ghost heist dates #then Reggie communicates with Ray for them #it's a perfect side hustle #listen I'm not saying that Ray finds out a way to shoot ghosts and quietly takes care of Caleb for Julie and the boys #but I'm also NOT not saying that

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ficreadergirl · 2 months

Text

Welcome to my Sweetheart

Ep17

"What? Who? When?" Dick asked, clearly confused. You took a deep breath and started from the beginning, explaining what had happened at the club. As you told him about seeing Nightwing with Pierce, his expression grew increasingly serious. When you finished, he sat back in his chair and let out a long sigh. He ran a hand through his hair before looking at you.

"Why you didn't tell me before?" he asked, his voice tinged with disappointment.

"I just came here Dick. Also where were you?" you responded defensively. He was silent for a moment before answering.

"I was tracking down some leads. I had no idea what happened at his place and you were with him." he said with a frown on his face. "And why didn't you tell the cops about him?"

"What exactly cops could do against him?" you asked reasonably. "He's just some vigilante. They can't do anything about it."

Dick looked at you, his expression pained. "He's not just some vigilante."

You raised an eyebrow. "And what is he then?"

He sighed again, running his hand through his hair. "Look, I don't know exactly what he is but... didn't he save you from Pierce?"

"No Dick. He didn't save anyone. He just attacked him. And for what? Because he suspected him? That's not justice."

"Who wouldn't suspect him Y/n?" he asked, his voice edged with anger. "He's been in and out of jail. He's got a reputation."

"So does that mean we can just attack anyone we don't like?" you countered, feeling frustrated. "That's not how this works."

Dick stood up abruptly, pacing the room. "I can't believe you're defending him."

"I'm not--" you started to say, but he cut you off.

"Yes you are! You're defending a criminal, and I can't believe it." he shouted, his face flushed with anger. "I thought you knew better."

"Don't yell at me!" you snapped back. "Am I the one here defending a criminal? No! I'm just saying that--"

He stopped in front of you, his face only inches from yours. "You're defending him right now!" he hissed, his eyes blazing with anger. "And I can't--"

This time, it was your turn to cut him off by grabbing his face and kissing him passionately. You could feel his surprise as his lips parted under yours, but then he seemed to relax and kiss you back just as fiercely. His hands found their way to your hips, pulling you closer as your bodies pressed against each other until you pushed him back onto the desk.

"Are you jealous of me Dick?" you asked, breathless from the heat of the kiss. "Is that why you're angry about--"

Before you could finish the sentence, he cut you off by kissing you again, harder this time. You moaned into the kiss as he slipped a hand under your shirt, tracing circles around your bare skin. His other hand found its way under your panties, teasing your already wet folds.

"No Dick..." you gasped between kisses. "Stop it..." you whispered as he continued to touch you, his fingers moving faster, finding the rhythm that made you arch your back in pleasure.

With a growl, he flipped you over, pinning you to the desk. His mouth found your neck, sucking and nipping at the sensitive skin there as his fingers worked their magic.

"Dick..." you moaned, helpless against the sensations coursing through your body. He smiled against your skin before leaning in to kiss you again, his tongue dancing with yours. You could feel the heat between your legs, the need for him to be inside of you growing stronger with every passing second.

"We're not doing this here Y/n." he whispered against your ear. "We're going to the closet."

You nodded, too lost in the haze of desire to protest. He helped you off the desk and guided you to the closet, where he pushed you against the door and kissed you again, his hands exploring your body.

"Dick..." you breathed, arching into his touch. "I hate you." you said before kissing him, your tongue tangling with his. He groaned into the kiss, his hands slipping under your shirt to cup your breasts. He nipped at your nipples through your bra, making you gasp.

"Do you?" he asked, his voice rough with desire. "Do you really hate me?"

It was your turn to groan as he pinched your nipples harder, rolling them between his fingers. "Yes. I hate you." you managed to get out before he kissed you again, his lips moving over your jaw and down your neck. "I hate you so much." you whispered as he unbuttoned your jeans, sliding them down your hips. You helped him push them off, stepping out of them. "Did you lock the door?"

"Yes. I did." he answered, his voice thick with desire. "I locked it."

"Good." you breathed, feeling the heat of his body as he pressed against you. You could feel him, hard and ready for you. You took off your shirt and bra, revealing your breasts to him. He groaned, cupping them in his hands as he lowered his head, taking one nipple into his mouth. You arched into him, moaning as pleasure shot through you. He moved to the other breast, sucking and teasing it until you were panting, your fingers tangled in his hair. Unexpectedly, he pulled back, his eyes locked on yours while he took off his clothes. You gulped as he stood there with his hard cock exposed. "Dick--"

"Shh Y/n." he said, cutting you off as he bent you over the desk. His hands held your hips, positioning you perfectly. He started to rub against you, teasing you mercilessly. You cried out, arching your back, desperate for him to be inside of you.

"Stop playing games." you whispered, your voice shaking with need.

"I'm not playing." he growled, pushing inside of you. You cried out, feeling him stretch you, filling you completely. He began to move, his thrusts steady and hard. You gripped the desk, feeling the pain and pleasure intertwine as he fucked you.

"I hate you." you moaned, feeling the words catch in your throat.

"Do you?" he asked as he picked up the pace, his hips slamming against yours. "Do you really hate me?"

You couldn't answer. You could only focus on the sensations he was creating inside of you, the way he was making you feel. You could feel your orgasm building, teetering on the edge.

"Do you?" he asked again, his voice rough and demanding.

"Yes." you gasped. "I hate you."

He groaned, his hips moving faster. "Then I should stop. Do you want me to stop?"

"No!" you cried out, your body arching into his. "Don't stop! Dick! Fuck me!"

He obeyed, slamming into you harder, faster. Your orgasm crashed over you in a wave of pleasure, your body shuddering as you came apart in his arms. He followed close behind, his thrusts growing rougher, his cries muffled against your neck as he came inside of you. You laid there for a moment, trying to catch your breath as he pulled out of you.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his voice still heavy with desire.

"Yes." you breathed. "I'm okay. In fact, I feel amazing." you said with a sigh, leaning back against him. "Thank you."

He seemed confused by your words. You smiled up at him. "Thank you for making me feel great mate." you said with a wink. "That was incredible."

"I... uhm... I'm glad you enjoyed it." he said, still sounding a bit unsure.

"Of course I enjoyed. It's a shame I almost forgot what you're capable of." you teased. "Maybe we should do this more often."

"What?" he asked, pulling back slightly. "You mean..."

"Well, I was thinking... maybe we should fuck more often. You know, staying as friends of course."

Other eps

#dick grayson x reader #dick grayson x you #dick grayson x y/n #dick grayson #nightwing x you #nightwing x reader #nightwing x y/n #nightwing

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hollow-keys · 1 month

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I think a lot of people don't get that superheroes don't often have the morality of online leftist. They will see Batman go guns bad. Donate to charity. No killing. And assume his anti killing rules are routed in leftist ideology.

This isn't true. He supports state sanctioned killing in many comics. He is anti-vigilante killing. And on occasion even against self defense killing.

In Batman #420 Bruce locks KG Beast in a storage room and leaves him there to either find a way to escape himself or die (not seeming to care which, honestly if I am remembering correctly leaning towards death) but in Batman #422 he condemns Judy Koslosky's self defense killing of a serial killer who had already killed her sister because she lured him into attempting to kill her by following him around and glaring at him. Both give the villains the opportunity to survive KG Beast has to escape and Karl just has to resist the temptation to try to murder a woman.

There is Batman: The Hill where he defends the GCPD killing a 14 year old with a gun as necessary but in Batman: Under the Hood he condemns the death of Captain Nazi. This isn't the most leftist character in the world. Leftists don't tend to be okay with cops killing kids but against killing Nazis. It tends to be the other way around. I read Batman: The Hill and I do think the cops used undue force and should have at least attempted deescalation in that situation.

There is a lot to say about the vague morals of the characters. Batman does a lot for charity but he definitely classist in a lot of his appearances. Characters can be complex and imperfect. Just because he cares about people in poverty doesn't mean he doesn't look down on them.

Also the whole 'violently beat people okay' and 'child sidekick okay' because genre convention while killing bad. It's like . . . killing is also present in superhero comics? Deadpool, Wolverine, Crimson Avenger, the Spectre . . . killing is also part of the genre. It has nuance to it. But heroes have killed at least on occasion since the very beginning.

Yes, you get it! People on here take "doesn't kill/believes in redemption" to be inherently proof of support of rehabilitative justice and leftism when... it isn't lol. I've yapped about superheroes and copaganda before here (I think it's a good post, I'm proud of it) so I'll try not to repeat myself too much but a conservative can believe in people's ability to change and not killing or whatever while still supporting the structures of the police and prisons, still believing that people should be arrested and serve time, even the rest of their lives. And that's what people don't get.

The word cop has been so twisted by this site that people use it to mean "anyone who judges me" or "anyone I don't like." It's used to describe individual behaviour the person has a problem with which ends up obfuscating the fact that a cop isn't defined by their personal ideology or what type of violence they commit, they're defined by the fact they commit violence to uphold the state's power. Their personal thoughts and opinions can make them worse, more violent and more oppressive, but personal opinions do not change what they are. Batman is a paramilitary state operative, not a radical leftist. I'm sorry.

And yeah the charity defense also misunderstands the point because conservatives donate to charity all the time. Charity is used by the rich to launder their reputations. They give a tiny fraction of their wealth back to the people so people don't question the rest of their wealth. Narratively, this works the same way so writers can go "See! He tries helping people via kindness but Gotham is innately corrupt and people just choose to be evil here so of course he has to dress up as a bat every night." Narratively, his charity exists so the writers can justify why he has to be Batman and to make him look better. If he really meant to help people with his money, he wouldn't be a billionaire anymore.

You're right about killing being present in the genre since since forever. Not as consistently as other things, but still present for sure. People defend violence they enjoy as "just part of the genre" but condemn violence they don't as bad and wrong.

I support hitting superheroes with the leftist beam but the fact of the matter is that most aren't in text and Batman even less so than others.

And you can dislike this. Batman is a character who's been through a million different incarnations and interpretations and you can latch on to more liberal, understanding incarnations or make up your own but you cannot defend main universe Bruce by pretending he's something he's not.

Thanks for the ask!

#bruce wayne #anti bruce wayne #<- using anti tags makes me feel silly sometimes but people yell at you if you don't and i do need something to organise my criticism under #dc comics #asks #📨

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thewidowsghost · 8 months

Text

Running Out of Time (Maggie Sawyer x Danver!Reader)

Main Masterlist

Anonymous asked:

hi if you still write for maggie sawyer, would write a fic about the episode Alex gets kidnapped but it's r instead of Alex thanks

"You don't have to hurt anyone," a police officer says into her phone. A line of police cars is lined up outside a bank. "No one is making you do this. You're choosing to do this. You and your friend chose to go into that bank. You chose to take those people hostage. But you know what? You can choose to put your guns down. You can choose to let those people go. You can choose not to hurt anyone."

"Look up!" a man yells. "Up in the sky!"

There is a sound of glass smashing and the crowd behind Detective Maggie Sawyer.

"Hey, not even Pretty Boy Floyd got to meet Supergirl," Kara Danvers says, hauling two of the goons out of the bank. "It'll be a fun story to tell your roommates in jail!"

Maggie walks up to Kara, tucking her phone into her back pocket. "Supergirl . . ." Maggie says and Kara rests her hands on her hips, exhaling sharply. "I almost had him . . . "

"And I got you over the finish line!" Kara says brightly. "And just in time for dinner. I'll see you later."

. . .

The smoke alarm beeps and (Y/n) Danvers waves a towel around. "Thanks," her older sister says, handing the delivery man a twenty.

"(Y/n), the first time I tried to microwave macaroni and cheese," Mon-El says, "they had to evacuate three city blocks."

(Y/n) glances amusedly at her older sister's boyfriend.

"That's an exaggeration, but Ihave seen less terrifying nuclearing explosions.

"Well, I like pizza better than paella anyway," Maggie says, opening a box of pepperoni, glancing affectionately at (Y/n).

"Yes, me too," (Y/n) agrees.

Kara opens a box of Hawaiian pizza. "I love ham and pineapple!"

"Thank you. It totally shouldn't work, but it totally does," Mon-El agrees with Kara. "How's my girlfriend, guys, huh?"

Kara chuckles. "What?"

"Bank robbers, zero," Mon-El talks through a mouthful of pizza. "Supergirl, two. What do you even need cops for in this city?" he chuckles.

A dangerous look lights in Maggie's eyes, and Alex and her girlfriend Lena exchange a glance.

"He's from a different planet," (Y/n) says, resting a hand on Maggie's knee. "He doesn't even know what he's saying."

"No, he's right," Maggie says, her eyes narrowing slightly. "Why bother trying to talk a guy down when Supergirl can just swoop right in and force him down?" she looks over at Kara. "Seventeen hours of 'What do you want, how can I help you?' good old-fashioned hostage negotiation wasted."

"You're not upset that I caught the bad guys and got everyone out safely, are you?" Kara chuckles, pushing her glasses back up onto her face. No, Kara didn't have to wear her glasses, everyone - even Lena knew because Alex did not want to start her relationship off with the Luthor on a lie.

"I would've gotten them to free the hostages," Maggie says.

"Maybe," Kara shrugs. "But they're in jail now, where they can't hurt anyone. That's all that matters."

Lena glances over at (Y/n), whose eyes had widened slightly.

"Unless they use the Supergirl defense," Maggie says, leaning forward.

"The what?" Kara asks.

"It's a think some criminals use to get their charges dropped," Lena offers.

Maggie nods. "It's a perfect storm for a defense attorney. Excessiveforce, evidence contaminated by debris, vigilante justice . . ." Maggie trails off, meeting Kara's gaze.

"'Vigilante justice?'" Kara echoes. "I stand for hope, and help, and compassion! I did what I had to do to get those people out of there."

"I think what Maggie's trying to say is that what you do is amazing when we're up against . . ." (Y/n) begins.

"A giant purple monster or a half-cyborg murderer, sure," Maggie interupts, and (Y/n)'s hand falls to Maggie's knee again. "But, most of the time, police work requires a more delicate touch."

"Delicate?" Kara echoes again.

"Yeah," Maggie replies. "You broke one guy's arm and you gave another one a concussion. And that was after you knocked in the roof of a National City landmark." (Y/n) stops trying to interrupt when Maggie scoffs, "And now, it has a big, Supergirl-sized hole in it."

"A thousand things could've happened from the time of your call to the hostages walking out," Kara says, glaring at Maggie from across the table. "Maybe, yeah, sure, I broke some walls, but I got everyone out of there safely, and that is a win."

"Well, you should've asked. But you never look before you leap," Maggie replies, a tight frown spreading across her lips.

"Because I can fly," Kara replies, leaning back in her chair.

"Okay," Maggie scoffs again, looking away. Maggie meets Lena's gaze, and Lena flashes her what seems to be a sisterly glare.

Mon-El clears his throat. "Well, as being something of a superhero myself, I can say that sometimes it's better to punch, than, than to talk."

(Y/n) lets out an inaudible groan, pressing her hand to her forehead, trying to quell her quickly growing headache.

"Sometimes," Kara throws her napkin on her empty plate, "talking is more hurtful than punching. Obviously, I've upset you, Maggie. I'm gonna go."

"No, Kara, don't do that . . ." (Y/n) says, Kara having stood up from the table.

"No, it's fine." Kara says, pushing (Y/n)'s comment aside. "Than/k you. Thanks for dinner."

(Y/n) gets up from the table to follow Kara, Mon-El in front of (Y/n).

"We're gonna go," Alex says, she and Lena also getting up from the table. Alex gives her youngest sister a hug before she and Lena Luthor leave (Y/n) and Maggie's apartment.

(Y/n) turns to face Maggie. "I know you're upset about earlier, but I really . . . " she pauses. "I just really want you and Kara to get along."

"Kara and I get along great," Maggie says, meeting (Y/n)'s tired gaze. "It's Supergirl that I sometimes have trouble with."

"Okay, just keep trying," (Y/n) takes a step forward. "Okay?"

"Okay, for you," Maggie replies. "Wait, where are you going?" she asks as (Y/n) strides towards the door.

"To catch up with Kara and tell her to try too," (Y/n) throws on her jacket. "But she's just as stubborn as you." (Y/n)'s (E/c) eyes gleam with affection for a moment.

. . .

"Kara. Hi," Maggie walks up to Kara at Catco.

"Maggie," Kara nods. "Is everything okay?" she asks, the two walking towards Kara's desk.

"Yeah, I was just looking for (Y/n)," Maggie replies, "wondering if she checked in with you."

"Didn't you crash at her place last night?" Kara asks Maggie.

"I did," Maggie replies, "but she left to catch up with you after you left. What, she didn't stay with you?"

"She never caught up with me," Kara answers, turning to look at Maggie with a concerned look on her face. "Maybe she went to the DEO?"

Maggie shakes her head, "Alex said she didn't check in last night or report this morning."

"Huh . . ." Kara's eyebrows knit and her phone rings. "Ah. Mystery solved," Kara shows Maggie her phone, which had (Y/n) as the caller ID. "(Y/n)?" Kara answers the phone.

"Hello, Kara Danvers," a man, definitely not (Y/n), answers.

"Who is this?" Kara asks, stopping in her tracks.

"Well, the real question is, who are you?" the man replies. "Everyone around you thinks you're just a mild-mannered reporter. But I know the truth."

"What do you want?" Kara questions.

"I have your sister," the man replies.

"You're lying," Kara says, terror spiking in her.

"I'm not," Kara's phone vibrates and she pulls her phone from her ear. Maggie comes to stand at Kara's shoulder. The two look down to see the image of the body of a motionless figure lying on the floor of what seems to be a glass box.

"A man named Peter Thompson is serving a life sentence in Albatross Bay Supermax. You will free him within the next thirty-six hours or your precious baby sister will die. And I know you can, because I know . . . You're Supergirl."

. . .

(Y/n) blinks dazedly, weakly raising her head.

Noticing her surroundings, (Y/n) pushes herself to her feet.

"Hello?" she calls.

Electricity buzzes around her, and (Y/n) presses her head to the glass of her enclosure, breathing heavily.

"I knew I recognized you from the elevator," she croaks. "I know who you are. The people that I work with, they will find me." (Y/n) glares up into the camera at the corner of the cell. "And when they do, you will be in a world of hurt." (Y/n) totters slightly on weak legs. "So, I am giving you one chance. Free me, now."

Fear spikes in (Y/n) when she looks around the container. Three of the walls and the floor are made of cinder blocks, the ceiling of a chain-length fence, and the front wall made of glass.

. . .

"So, this person who says they've kidnapped (Y/n)," J'oon says, everyone gathered in the main debriefing room of the DEO, "what did he say on the call."

"H-he said he would kill (Y/n)," Kara says, pacing back and forth in front of the round table, "if I didn't break PeterThompson out of Albatross Bay."

Maggie and Alex are leaning heavily against the table. Lena and Winn Schott are standing off to the side, talking in whispers.

"He said he knows Kara Danvers is Supergirl," Kara goes on, and Lena and Winn stop their conversation, their widened eyes falling on Kara. "He's targeting (Y/n) because she's my sister," Kara goes on.

"But why (Y/n)?" Alex questions, straightening herself. "He could've also chosen me. Why go for her?"

"I don't know," Kara replies, shaking her head.

"This might be stating the obvious here, but why don't we just spring Peter Thompson and bring (Y/n) home?" Mon-El questions.

"The DEO does not negotiate with terrorists," J'oon replies.

"But this is (Y/n)," Mon-El faces J'oon.

"If we do this once, we'll open the floodgates," J'oon argues, a pained look in his eyes. "Every bad guy will know Supergirl can be controlled."

"And even if we do what he wants, it doesn't guarantee he'll release her," Maggie says. It was the first time she'd spoken since she'd learned (Y/n) had been kidnapped. "She's his insurance."

"All right, people,let's get to work!" J'oon booms, and everyone scrambles around. He walks over to Winn, who had sat down at his computer. "Winn, any luck with Alex's subdermal tracker?" he questions.

"No," Winn shakes his head, "it's been offline since ten'o'clock last night." Winn shakes his head, furiously typing on his keyboard. Whoever took her must have found some way to power it down."

"Where are we triangulating the signal from the phone calls?" J'oon asks Lena.

"We're nowhere," Lena plops down into a spare computer. "The caller used four different arrays to scramble the signal." Her accent had thickened with her worry for the youngest Danvers.

"You guys listen, we gotta move," Winn turns around to address all the agents.

"All right, let's start with what we know," Alex says, rising from her chair.

J'oon nods, "If this guy knows you're Supergirl, we just that to our advantage."

"That's gotta be a short list," Mon-El says. "Who knows your secret?" he questions.

"Jeremiah, Eliza, Clark, Alex, Lois, Lucy, the DEO, James . . ." Kara trails off, trying to think of a few more. "Lillian Luthor," she glances unsteadily at Lena, but Lena meets her gaze steadily.

"Does Peter Thompson have ties with Cadmus?" Lena asks, coming to stand around the table.

"No, I already checked," Winn replies. "There's nothing."

"Then you're asking the wrong question," Maggie supplies, and the others look at her. "We don't know where (Y/n) was taken, we don't have a crime scene, we don't have any physical evidence. They've clearly been planning this for a while. Whoever took (Y/n) is a ghost who doesn't want to be found."

Kara's head rests in her hands. "Then what's the right question?" she questions.

"Who is Peter Thompson and what does he mean to our ghost?" Maggie says, and the others nod.

. . .

Maggie, Alex, Kara and J'oon walk into the prison.

"Mr. Thompson," J'oon flashes his FBI badge. "Hank Henshaw and Alex Danvers, FBI. This is Detective Sawyer from NCPD, and Ms. Danvers from CatCo Magazine."

"The feds, a pig, and a journo," Thompson says, looking between the three. "To what do I owe this confusing pleasure?" he asks.

Maggie throws a manilla folder on the table between Thompson and J'oon. "Your jacket's a thrilling read. Three home invasions, two DUIs, two counts of felony murder."

"You all didn't come down here just to flatter me, did you?" Thompson asks, meeting Maggie's brown eyes. Maggie takes a breath, "This morning, we got a call from an anonymous source, asking that you be released from prison."

"Someone wants me out of jail?" Thompson laughs. "Not used to that. People usually want to keep me behind bars."

"A life sentence can't be all that easy," Alex says, "being in here all by yourself."

"You ever keep in contact with anyone on the outside?" J'oon questions.

"Just last week," Thompson replies, "Mr. JC Penney sent me a letter. He said there was a sale on galoshes." Kara's eyes burn and she steps forward as Thompson continues. "It's just that I don't have anywhere to wear them."

Kara slams her fist onto the metal table, startling Maggie a little. "Enough!" she orders. "My sister's been kidnapped, and her life is on the line until we find out who wants you out of prison."

"Ms. Danvers ..." J'oon says warningly.

"So save us the sarcasm! Who is it? Who has her?"

"Calm down," Alex says, her voice equally as warning as J'oon's and she places a hand on her sister's arm.

"Who has my sister?" Kara yells, ignoring Alex and J'oon.

"I don't know," Thompson says, meeting Kara's furious gaze.

"You're lying," Kara says angrily, her eyes narrowing.

"He's not," J'oon says. "We're done here."

The officer pulls Thompson to his feet and leads the fugitive out of the interrogation room.

"Why'd you let him go?" Kara asks J'oon.

"Because I read his mind," the Martian answers. "He's telling the truth." J'oon gets up from the table.

"Losing control is not gonna help us find (Y/n) faster," Maggie tells the superhero. "It's only going to get her killed."

Kara stares at Maggie for a moment, and then her phone rings. "Winn," she says, sounding almost defeated.

"Hey, we got something," Lena's voice comes from the speaker.

"What?" Kara asks.

"I scanned the visitor logs for Peter Thompson," Winn's voice comes from the speaker this time, "over the past three years. They're pretty sparse, except for one name that keeps popping up."

"Who?" Kara asks.

"Doesn't matter, it's a fake name," Winn replies. "I pulled some security footage and, baby, I ran that facial recognition software. Thompson has a son."

"But we checked, he doesn't have any relations," Kara replies.

"Well, apparently, there's a lot of family drama," Winn says. "Thompson's name isn't even on the kid's birth certificate. And I only figured this out after I cross-checked the name with the court transcripts. The kid spoke at Thompson's sentencing, and his name is . . . Rick Malverne. He has a house an hour outside the city."

"Malverne. Why does that sound so familiar?" Kara says aloud and Alex stares at her sister.

"He went to high school with us," Alex snaps her fingers.

. . .

Kara lands outside a house and busts down the door. "(Y/n)! (Y/n)!" she yells as she runs through the house.

Sticking her head in one of the rooms, Kara sees a set of computer screens with (Y/n) projected on them.

"(Y/n). (Y/n)!" Kara says softly, walking up the screens. "(Y/n)!"

"She can't hear you, Kara," comes a voice and Kara turns around to see a blonde man standing in the doorway.

"Rick?" Kara asks in disbelief.

"Jeez, I haven't seen you since graduation," is Rick's reply. "You look great."

Kara's eyes blaze and she grabs Rick, lifting him off the ground. "Where's my sister?" she demands.

"You break my father out of prison yet?" Rick asks, his teeth clenched.

"You know I can't do that," Kara murmurs.

"Can't or won't?" Rick questions.

Kara throws Rick back into a wall with a grunt.

"Tell me where she is," Kara growls.

That's not how this works," Rick answers. "Now, why don't you try and play nice, Kara?" he asks. "You were always the nice one."

Kara sighs, a hardened look on her face.

"Just let me talk to her," Kara breathes, looking over her shoulder at her sister on the monitors.

"Well, if that gets you to play ball, then I'm happy to help," Rick says, sliding around Kara to type on the keyboard.

The monitor chimes.

"(Y/n)!" Kara croaks. "(Y/n)!"

"Kara, is that you?" (Y/n) calls. "Rick Malverne from Midvale, he kidnapped me!" (Y/n) places her hand on the glass, facing the camera.

"I know," Kara replies. "I'm with him right now. Are you okay? Where are you?"

"My tracker. Can you use my tracker?" (Y/n) asks, and Kara can hear the frantic tone of her sister's voice.

"It's not working. We don't know -" Rick cuts Kara off.

"Okay, that's enough of a reunion, I think," Rick says.

"No, wait," Kara says.

Rick sighs, "It's simple. She's told you she's okay. And now we trade my father for (Y/n)."

"Your father is a murderer," Kara retorts.

"Manslaughter-er," Rick corrects.

"Tell me where she is," Kara demands again.

"Tick, tock. Tick, tock."

Kara's eyes burn red from her building heat-vision and Rick leans closer, "oh, wow, it's even cooler up close. You hurt me, you'll never find her. And she'll die. Slowly."

. . .

"He looks normal," Winn says, watching as two DEO agents lead Rick Malverne into the interrogation room.

"He was nice in school," Kara says, crossing her arms.

"He used to carry (Y/n)'s bookbag," Alex agrees. Lena raises an eyebrow and Alex shrugs.

"Why is he doing this to her?" Kara wonders aloud.

"I tried reading his mind, but he seems to be blocking me somehow," J'oon says.

"Let me in there," Maggie turns to J'oon. "I can talk to him."

J'oon considers Maggie for a moment before he nods. "All right."

. . .

Maggie sits down in a chair across from Malverne, Kara and Alex framed in the doorway.

"Detective Sawyer," Malverne considers Maggie, leaning forward slightly. "And they say there's never a cop around when you need one."

"So you know me?" Maggie crosses her arms.

"Of course," Malverne smiles, leaning back in his chair. "I took a whole year planning this. Watching (Y/n). Preparing. I know everything.

"How did you know I was Supergirl?" Kara asks, crossing her arms.

"The day at the beach," Malverne replies, meeting Kara's eyes. "Before you started wearing glasses.

"Hey, Rick," a young Alex greets a young Rick Malverne, Kara and (Y/n) standing behind her. (Y/n) was gently explaining things to Kara in a low voice.

"A bunch of us are heading to Swan Beach after school," Rick says, resturing towards the direction of the nearby beach. "You and (Y/n) wanna come?" Rick smiles over at the two year younger (Y/n).

"Back then," Rick says, pulling Kara and Alex from the memory, "I had no idea that (Y/n) would end up playing for the other team, so to speak."

"You're new sister is kinda weird," Rick says, gesturing to a young Kara who was looking up at the sky with wide, amazed eyes. A young (Y/n) rests her hand on Kara's shoulder, looking amused.

"Then there was a crash," Malverne goes on.

Kara charges to a car, pulling a woman and a baby from the burning wreckage.

The rest of the kids run up the hill to see a young woman hugging Kara with one arm and cradling her baby with the other.

"And her older sister walked away without a scratch. People at school said it was adrenaline, but, uh . . . "

"But you didn't believe that," Maggie finishes, meeting Malverne's gaze steadily.

"I saw Kara Danvers do something amazing," Malverne glances over at Kara. "And it stayed with me. I knew Kara was living in National City, and then Supergirl showed up in National City . . ." he chuckles. "I put two and two together. I knew it was you."

"What happened to you?" Alex asks, leaning forward. "I remember when (Y/n) and Alex had the chicken pox, and I was eating lunch by myself. You came and sat with me.

Rick chuckles. "I was fourteen. And I didn't have the nice house or the perfect family you three had." Maggie stands up from her seat.

"You think we had it easy?" Kara asks, unfolding her arms. "You have no idea what either of my sisters sacrificed for me. Or what I was going through!"

Malverne straightens in his seat, fixing his eyes on Kara. "Why, because you had to hide your superpowers? I was hiding bruises! Do you know what it's like to have your mother tell you you're garbage every single night? A belt whenever you had the wrong opinion? And then I found a lifeline. A dad my mom kept from me. And he saved me from her and he moved away from Midvale. And even though he was already struggling, he always made sure there was food on the table and he got me enough money to go to college. And then three years ago, the state took him from me."

"Your father killed two people," Maggie says, leaning against a wall, her arms crossed. "He confessed."

"They had it coming," Malverne replies, leaning back in his seat. "And now I'm gonna rescue him just like he rescued me. Alex shifts uncomfortably, leaving the room without another word. "I can't believe we're still talking about me! You have twenty-four hours and eleven minutes." Kara stiffens as Rick continues, "Come on, Kara, show us some of that rah-rah Midvale Junior High Spirit." Malverne is yelling now. "Free my dad! Or your sister dies."

Kara growls, zooms over, flips the table, and pins Malverne to the wall.

"Oh, you use half this much gusto in springing my dad, you'll have your sister back for game night."

"Kara! We're done here!" Maggie's voice cracks.

Kara lets go of Malverne and the man drops to the ground. "Hey. You know what'll be fun?" he asks. Maggie frowns, an eyebrow raising as she steps back from the man. "Finding out which of the three of you loves her more. "Honestly, I wouldn't know where to place my bet," he sneers and Maggie swallows thickly.

Kara frowns at the man and after a minute, the three women go to leave the room, Maggie pausing for a second.

"Go Stallions," Malverne grins.

Both Kara and Maggie leave the room. "I'm giving him one more minute, then I'm going back in there," Kara says.

"No," Maggie replies.

Alex straightens from where she'd slumped against the doorframe.

"Let him sweat it a little. We got what we wanted," Maggie reasons.

"What?" Kara questions, looking down into Maggie's eyes. "All we know i show he knows my identity."

"We know that Rick's pinned his whole sense of self-worth on Peter Thompson," Maggie says. "Thompson is the key to getting (Y/n) back."

Kara's angry eyes seems to extinguish as she considers Maggie's words.

. . .

An hour or so later, Maggie leads Peter Thompson into Malverne's interrogation room.

"Ricky," Thompson says, walking towards his son.

"Dad," Malverne gets up from his seat.

Thompson pauses before moving to hug his son. "All that time inspiration, I imagined a day when . . . I could talk to you without a pane of glass between us."

"The DEO moved heaven and Earth to free this man," Maggie says. "We did what you wanted. Now, tell us where (Y/n) is."

"No. No, not until my father and I are far from here," Malverne says.

"You think we're stupid?" Maggie questions. "I showed you mine. Your turn."

"So you can toss us in Gitmo?" Thompson asks. "Not gonna happen."

Maggie shakes her head in disbelief.

"Maybe he gives you a piece. A little token of goodwill," Thompson adds. "You gotta give them something, Ricky. That's how it works. Just tell them where she is." Thompson narrows his eyes at his son.

"Well, you really nailed his essence, I'll give you that," Malverne says.

"What?" Maggie asks, stepping forward, her arms crossing.

"I mean, that thing . . ." Malverne says, studying his father's face. "He couldn't decide whether to hug me or not. That's vintage Dad." Malverne sits back down in his metal chair.

"What are you talking about?" Thompson asks, walking up to stand beside the table.

"My father would never be playing these games. He'd be wanting to get the hell away from here and making sure that he never went back to prison," his expression is one of anger. "I've been planning this for a year. Do you really think I didn't prepare for you," Malverne pauses, looking up at Thompson, "Martian?"

Thompson walks over to Maggie and shifts back into himself.

"You're down to twenty-three hours and fourteen minutes," Malverne says as he gazes a Maggie and J'oon. "And counting."

Maggie closes her eyes, pressing her index finger and thumb to the bridge of her nose.

. . .

(Y/n) looks around her containment module. Her eyes narrow as she looks up at the camera.

(Y/n) pulls off her jacket and belt. She climbs up, pulling the camera off the wall.

"Okay," she breathes, having taken apart the camera.

(Y/n) bites down on the end of her belt, snaps a card from her wallet, and pulling down the shoulder of her shirt. She whimpers as she digs the sharp end of the card into her shoulder. (Y/n)'s teeth bare down on the belt, her chest heaving as she finally pulls her tracker from out of her shoulder.

(Y/n) spits out the belt, her chest heaving. "That sucked," (Y/n) grumbles, blinking back her tears. She connects her tracker to the camera after pulling out a few wires.

. . .

"I just got a software update request from one of our trackers," an agent says, peering at the computer screen. "System's not recognizing the IP address."

"She's a little genius!" Winn says. Winn runs down the hall. "Guys! We found (Y/n). I found her."

Kara - who is standing with Mon-El, Alex, and Lena - turns to face Winn. "You did?" Kara asks frantically.

"We got a ping from her subdermal tracker," Winn explains. "She's not far!"

Kara runs over to the door where she finds Maggie sitting at the table across from Malverne.

"Maggie. Winn found (Y/n)," Kara says, and Maggie turns to look at Kara. Alex is framed in the doorway, her eyes wide with hope.

"What? How?" Maggie asks, getting up from her chair.

"I guess you underestimated my sister," Kara says, glaring at Malverne. "Let's go," Kara turns and marches towards the door.

Maggie pauses, turning to study Malverne.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Malverne says, his gaze flicking between the Danvers' sisters and Maggie.

"You're delusional," Kara turns to face Malverne. "The second we get back here with (Y/n), you're going to prison with your dad."

Malverne shrugs, looking at the table in front of him. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

Kara strides the room, but Alex and Maggie study Malverne.

Maggie and Alex runs out of the room. "Watch him," Maggie tells the guard as she runs past him after Kara. "Hey, stop," Maggie tells Kara. "Malverne still thinks he's in control," she tells her.

Kara turns, looking highly annoyed with Maggie at this point.

"He's not acting like someone who just lost," Alex adds. "He didn't even flinch. It's like he expected this."

"No, no, no, we are not listening to that psycho," Kara says, walking closer to the two. "Every minute we wait for matters."

"I - I want to get her as badly as you do," Maggie retorts, "but we can't punch our way out of this. We've got to get this right."

"If the shoe were on the other foot, (Y/n) would already be out the door. I'm not waiting," Kara argues.

"You're not the only one who cares about her!" Maggie says, her voice rising.

"I'm going!" Kara yells over her shoulder as she strides out of the DEO, Alex running after her.

Maggie swallows thickly and looks at the ground.

. . .

Alex and Kara smash through the roof of a warehouse, and (Y/n) hears the thump on the ground. Kara lets go of Alex's arm.

(Y/n) scrambles to her feet. "Kara! Alex!" she shouts.

"(Y/n)!" both the sisters yell.

"I'm down here!"

Kara runs over, pulling a sheet of metal off the floor.

(Y/n) hears the noise and looks around hopefully, but she doesn't see anyone coming to her aid.

All Kara and Alex see is a laptop and a countdown clock. The words, NOW YOU HAVE FOUR is spray-painted onto the wall.

"Four? What . . ." Kara asks, but there is a rapid beeping from the clock and the time now reads 4:00:00.

There is a grinding noise, and water begins spraying in from one of the pipes.

The twoolders Danvers' sisters watch, terrified as their sister looks frantically around.

(Y/n) grabs her jacket from the floor and presses it to the pipe, hoping to stop the flow of the water.

. . .

Kara and Alex march through the door of the interrogation room, Kara's fists balled. Alex sets the laptop on the table, opening it and turning it towards Malverne.

"Where is she?" Kara crosses her arms.

Malverne shrugs. "I told you not to go down there . . ."

"Tell us where she is," Alex slams a fist on the table.

"I gave you thirty-six hours to break my father out of prison," Malverne relaxes in his chair. "But you didn't listen. So now, that room is gonna fill up with water in less than four hours. I think it's time you got moving."

Kara's lip quivers. "Let me talk to (Y/n)."

Rick leans forward and presses a few of the keys and there is a beep.

Kara turns the laptop around and leans down to talk to her sister through the computer.

"(Y/n)," Kara says, her voice quavering.

"Kara! Alex! I sent out a signal, I thought you were coming," (Y/n) says, the water up to her waist now.

"He re-routed the IP address. He sent us somewhere else. Do you have any idea where you are?" Alex asks, her eyes wide with worry.

"I was unconscious. I could be hours away or I could be in the city," (Y/n) replies, a frown spreading across her face. "I don't know." Despite how far (Y/n) was away from the camera, both Kara and Alex can see the fear on their little sister's face.

Rick leans forward. "(Y/n), it's Rick. I don't want to hurt you. I keep on telling your sisters that. Tell them to get my father, and this can all be over. You can come home and get dry."

"No. Alex. Kara. No," (Y/n) says, pointing at the camera. "You do not give that terrorist what he wants. You cannot let yourselves be blackmailed. You cannot open yourselves up to that, ever. Do you understand me? You're both better than me." Again, despite her words, her widened eyes display her fear and worry.

Maggie enters the room and, seeing (Y/n) on the screen, runs over. "(Y/n)!"

"Maggie!" (Y/n) calls.

"I'm right here," Maggie replies, her tone softening.

"Maggie, I need to speak to you alone," (Y/n) says, and Maggie immediately grabs the laptop and walks out of the room, cradling the laptop to her chest for a moment.

"Honey, everyone here is working hard and we're going to find you," Maggie says and her voice cracks. She sits down on the floor, her back against a wall.

"The water is rising fast and there are things that I need to say," (Y/n) says, looking up into the camera, her eyes softening as though she really was meeting her girlfriend's gaze.

"No," Maggie's voice cracks. "Don't start talking like this is the end."

"I don't want it to be, but in the case that it is . . ."

"It's not!" Maggie cuts her girlfriend off. "You're a badass, Danvers. And you're gonna figure out a way to get yourself out of there or you're gonna hold on until I find you." Maggie's voice quavers.

"Maggie, listen to me, please," (Y/n) tries again.

"No," Maggie interrupts, tears welling in her eyes. "W-we just started t-this, you and me, and i-it's not g-going to end. Not today. Not for a long time. We just had our first Valentine's Day and I wanna do more with you. I-I want more firsts." (Y/n) looks up into the camera again and she doesn't worry about wiping her tears. "I want to have a first vacation. We haven't even argued about where we're gonna go yet or how to load the dishwasher. Or what to name our first dog. Do you want to get a dog? A cat? Both?" The tears are falling freely down both women's faces now.

(Y/n) smiles slightly. "Both? Let's name the dog Gertrude." Her eyes sparkle with amusement.

"See," Maggie smiles, her expression watery, "there's a lifetime of firsts that we're going to do together. So, you hold on, okay? Hold on until I get to you. Promise. Promise me!"

"I . . ." (Y/n) starts but the video cuts off.

"What?" Maggie says, typing furiously on the keyboard. "(Y/n)!" Maggie, frustrated, throws the laptop to the ground.

"What happened?" Kara runs over where Maggie is sitting.

This distraught woman stands up. "I t-told you not to rush in. Now you've made things worse."

"I did what I thought was right," Kara retorts.

Alex, Lena, Winn, and Mon-El run into the hallway.

"I should have been heard," Maggie goes on, not noticing that the others had appeared. "I should have been listened to. I'm her girlfriend."

"I'm her sister," Kara snarls in return.

"And you think that trumps me?" Maggie questions, taking a step forward. "That you know what's right for her. I . . . I got her to be herself, Kara. I-I have j-just as much to lose as you. You should've listened to me."

Maggie turns around and storms away.

. . .

There is a beep as Maggie enters Malverne's interrogation room.

Malverne straightens, studying Maggie closely.

Maggie sits down at the other side of the table, crossing her arms and resting her elbows on the table.

"Under two hours," Malverne says, leaning back in his chair. "The clock is ticking fast," he comments.

"I know," Maggie replies, leaning forward in her chair. "And if it ticks down completely, we both lose. And I don't think you want to lose."

A ghost of a smile spreads across Malverne's face, "Neither do you." Malverne pauses. "I was wrong about Kara," he says. "She's too much of a Girl Scout to do what needs to be done. I misjudged her. Alex," he shrugs, "she can't do anything with Kara in her way. I may have discounted you. You're a cop. You could just walk into that prison and break my father free if you wanted to. You care for her."

Maggie simply blinks.

"I've seen that," Malverne goes on.

"Stalking us," Maggie says, leaning forward a bit more.

"The way you look at her," Malverne says, his expression softening a little. "The way your hand touches her hand when you're walking down the street."

Maggie's eyes water and she bites her bottom lip and looks down at the tabletop.

"Love can make people do things that they don't normally do," Malverne goes on. "So please, help us bring home the people we love.

. . .

(Y/n) could no longer touch the floor of her containment module, as so much water had flooded into it.

(Y/n) holds her breath, diving to the bottom to grab her belt.

She lets out a strangled yell as she tries to close the valve with the belt.

Her chest heaving, (Y/n) resurfaces, greedily gulping in air.

Wrapping the belt around her hand, she dives down and punches at the glass, trying to get it to break.

Getting desperate, (Y/n) pulls off her cargo pants, leaving her in a long-sleeved shirt and a pair of boxers.

Resurfacing again, (Y/n) uses the space left to tie the legs of her pants and fills the other end with air.

(Y/n) puts the makeshift life-vest over her head.

. . .

"Please tell me you have something," Alex says, emotion surging over her.

"We've literally tried everything, all right?" Winn says, his hair disheveled from the continuous motion of running his hands through it. "I've checked family holdings, bank accounts, call logs from the prison . . . There's nothing."

Alex lets out a suppressed sob, resting her head in her hands.

"I'm gonna talk to Maggie and see if she's got anything else out of him.

Kara looks at the computer monitor projecting the camera looking into Malverne's room, but (Y/n) isn't there.

"Where . . . where's Maggie?" Kara asks, and Winn and Mon-El turn to look at the screen.

. . .

Maggie glances around the corner of the prison wall but stops when she hears the guard's keys jingling together. She waits until the guard walks through a set of double doors to moves. She strides up to one of the metal pipes and places a projector in front of a camera so that the guards watching the cameras wouldn't see what she is about to do.

Maggie jogs through the projection, her face set in determined lines.

She blows the lock on Peter Thompson's door. "What the hell are you doing?" Thompson asks as Maggie grabs his upper arm.

"Taking you to your son," Maggie's voice cracks.

Maggie lifts (Y/n)'s raygun and shoots two cameras as she makes her way through the prison.

"Nice gun," Thompson comments.

"It's my girlfriend's," Maggie says shortly, pushing Thompson forward.

"Maggie, you know (Y/n) wouldn't want you to do this," Kara says in her Supergirl uniform.

"All I care about is getting her back alive," Maggie says, her eyes burning. "You were right, sometimes words don't work."

"Sometimes punching doesn't either," Kara counters. "She just came from your son. She was with him all day, trying to turn him," Thompson turns to look at Maggie, "make him understand. You know what kind of words your son's been using? Words like 'rescue' and 'love.' He says he wants to rescue you, like you rescued him," Kara steps forward, her arms crossed across her chest. But if he kills (Y/n) Danvers, he'll never be rescued. He'll have to live with that for the rest of his life. And that'll be his hell," Kara's voice softens. "Now, you've done a lot of bad things in your life, but you've done one thing you can be proud of. You were a father. A good one. You were there for your son during the toughest time of his life and that's what you need to do again now. If he kills her, you will have failed at the one good thing you've done with your life. Be a father now."

A timer beeps on Maggie's phone, and fear strikes through her. "She's out of time."

"Please, is there anywhere he would have taken her?" Kara asks.

"There's one place," Thompson says.

. . .

Maggie, Alex, and Kara open the garage door of the storage facility and they run in, Maggie freezing with horror at the sight of her girlfriend in the glass chamber.

Kara speeds over and puts a fist through the glass and all the water - as well as (Y/n) - flow through the hole in the glass.

(Y/n) coughs up water as she rolls onto her side.

"Thank God," Maggie says, pulling (Y/n)'s head into her lap. "She's okay. She's alright."

Maggie lifts (Y/n) head up as she chokes on the water, coughing it up. Maggie rests her chin on (Y/n)'s head, before pressing a few kisses to the same spot. (Y/n) grabs Maggie's hand and squeezes it weakly.

"You held on," Kara says, pressing her hands to her sister's pale cheeks; Alex grabs (Y/n)'s other hand,

"I-I h-eld on," (Y/n) stammers. Then she looks up into Maggie's eyes, which are soft with affection.

Maggie cradles (Y/n) head and presses her lips to her girlfriend's forehead.

. . .

The four women return to the DEO, (Y/n) asleep in the MedBay while Maggie stares out the window, relaxed by the soft patter of the rain and her girlfriend safe.

"Hey, you," (Y/n) says hoarsely and Maggie turns, relief evident on her face. "You okay?" she rasps.

A look of disbelief spreads across Maggie's face. "Am I okay?" (Y/n) asks softly, settling down in a chair and taking (Y/n)'s hands in her own, a look of tender affection on her face. "Are you kidding? That was really clever, with the whole Navy Seal thing with your pants. What was that?" Maggie smiles and (Y/n) laughs weakly.

"Well, I knew I just had to buy a couple of seconds," (Y/n) says, and a tear trails down her cheek. "I knew you were going to come."

Maggie' gaze softens.

"You didn't let me finish before, but I, um . . ." (Y/n) pauses.

"What?" Maggie murmurs.

"I just really have to say it now," (Y/n) continues.

"(Y/n) . . ."

"It's okay, it's okay," (Y/n) says as she sits up, Maggie shooting out a hand to help. Maggie tucks a strand of hair behind her ear and turns to gaze deeply into (Y/n)'s (E/c) eyes. "Those firsts that you talked about . . ." (Y/n) says, her voice a whisper because of how close her face is to Maggie's. Maggie nods, a soft smile on her face. "I want to have them all with you." (Y/n)'s eyes get watery. "I never want to stop having firsts with you. I love you, Maggie Sawyer.

"I love you, (Y/n) Danvers," Maggie murmurs, her eyes still watery.

Word Count: 7114 words

Taglist:

@procrastinatingsapphictrash

@makegoodchoices

@fanboy7794

@imtheflash

@theofficialzivadavid

#maggie sawyer x reader #maggie sawyer x danvers reader #maggie sawyer

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littledead-ridinghood · 1 year

Note

Yes sorry Ollie is a cop. He is a cop in the way nearly every DC hero is a cop and part of copaganda. We have multiple articles on how all super heroes are cops but that you can enjoy them and find catharsis anyway. Ollie gives people justice who are ignored by the system and Ollie is a cop are both true that's ok. You can look up super heroes and copaganda on youtube and find multiple nuanced videos.

okay, I wasn't going to respond to this at first, but this is my opinion on cops in the dc universe. It's not fully fleshed out yet, I feel, but I've been mulling it over in my head for months, and is something I've wanted to talk about for a while now.

Plainly speaking, I think cops who work with vigilantes are inherently bad cops. Vigilantism is illegal and when cops team up with vigilantes, they are adhering to their moral code rather than the law ie copaganda.

It's a play on dramatic irony where we as the audience know more than the characters in the story. We can see Detective Jim Gordan, for example, working with Batman (who were told is a good guy) because he knows the GCPD is corrupted and he can't trust his fellow officers. Therefore, because Batman is headlined as "the good guy" in these storylines that reflects on Jim Gordan making him, in turn, "a good guy." We're told to view him as such because Jim's morals are "clean," "see he also wants to clean up Gotham City, so he's partnering with the people who are actually trying to do that."

The problem is that in these instances, Gordan is adhering to his morals over the law where his morals are to protect the people where the law says to protect property. We can say that it's for the greater good, but that doesn't change the fact that it's illegal, argo, making him "dirty". And that is copaganda! Upholding Gordan for breaking the law because "he knows better than the institute" is literally some of the most common copaganda in media. It's right next to writing cops as if they're your friends so that people will instill trust in the institution (think B99).

Cops and vigilantes should inherently not get along because vigilantes would not exist if the system--if cops--worked. But the system doesn't work, so these individuals take justice into their own hands via criminal action. Now, we look at these heroes and say "yes, they're criminals on a legal basis, but we understand that morally speaking, they're doing good work." Jim Gordan doesn't have the luxury of that grayness. He can try to clean up Gotham, but once he starts doing so outside the law, he, himself, is also a criminal and an accomplice.

Personally, I don't think your moral compass should start and stop with the law because the law isn't always morally correct. Many laws throughout history have been created by those in power to stay in power. And if you can't recognize how the law can be used to impede on others' natural rights then you have an unholy amount of privilege. Having said that, most fiction where cops are allowed to uphold their morals over the law is written as them protecting the people (as stated with Jim) rather than the real-world equivalent where upholding "morals" is usually off-the-rail abuse of power. This is where cops use the excuse "I thought they had a gun!" and jump straight to brutality rather than assessing the situation and attempting to talk a person down. Because it's not actually about morals like portrayed on t.v. but, again, that idea that laws exist to keep the top on top.

I disagree with your statement: "[Ollie] is a cop in the way nearly every DC hero is a cop and part of copaganda." Maybe I'm splitting hairs here, but this is a very "a square is a rectangle, so a rectangle should also be a square" kind of argument.

I think characters can have instances of copaganda (any story that has cops in it is inherently copaganda, even if portrayed in the worst light possible, for the simple fact that cops are present) but, that doesn't make them a cop.

By saying Oliver is a cop, I presume you mean because he goes after criminals, which completely undermines what a cop is. That's like saying an attorney of law is a cop because they work in the legal system to prosecute the accused i.e. going after criminals. Cops exist to protect property, uphold the law (but they have no legal obligation to protect the public a la DeShaney vs. Winnebago(1989), Town of Castle Rock vs. Gonzales(2005) and re-enforced after Uvalde in spring '22), and was created to control weaker groups of people.

That's just not how Ollie's portrayed. Oliver is portrayed as an anti-fascist, social justice, cop-hating, criminal. He's literally juxtaposed with cops. Holding himself accountable in law is not an endorsement of the legal system but rather a stance in his morals that no one is above accountability which is how the law should work. You can say all of his writing, just by including cops, makes his comics copaganda, but that doesn't reflect on Ollie as a character endorsing the police nor does it "make him a cop". Copaganda reflects on cops as an institution and how writers want us to view them. Oliver is literally one of the characters whose stories actively revolve around him sticking up for those who are victimized by the police. You said it yourself, anon, "Nearly every DC hero is a cop." You just happened to pick one of the ones who falls into the small minority of non-cop abiding.

Furthermore, though I assume you mean Oliver metaphorically embodies what role cops fill, in the literal sense as well, your claim is fundamentally wrong because Oliver Queen has never been an actual cop before either. Someone who would fit your sentiment would be Dick Grayson who has been written in the role of an officer before (literal) as well as upholds the system as best he can (metaphorical).

The difference between Bruce, Oliver, and Dick in their inherent "all stories that have cops are" copaganda is that Dick and Bruce both constantly get aligned with cops by others including the police whereas the Police actively hunt Ollie down because they see him as a threat to their power. Ollie actively hates cops. Bruce and Dick (usually) actively don't. Ollie works against the Police whereas the other two work with the police so much so that, again, citizens relate their brutality to that of cops.

I was reading Hal and Ollie's road trip arc a good handful of months ago (of which is about the dichotomized relationship between Ollie "loud and proud leftist" Queen and Hal "before his rebellious phase" Jordan), and one of the issues was made up of two stories. The second one is of Hal and Ollie at odds over the best way to solve something via the authorities or good ol' fashion revolution, but I want to focus on the first half of the issue. It takes place in Gotham where Officer Bullocks literally commits an act of heavy Police Brutality against a gang of older teens and young adults who wronged him(they trashed his entire apartment) and he gets away with it because he "felt bad." It was horrifying to read; there was no accountability.

So I agree with you, there is a wild amount of copaganda in comic books both because of writers' political beliefs and views on the world (bullocks getting away with it because the writer thought it was fine) but also in the context of the stories. An example of in-story writing would be the first thing Jason ever said to Bruce in rebirth: "You want to beat up on a kid, go enlist in the G.C.P.D. like every other bully in this city." So in the context of the batman universe, Jason and people like Jason (i.e. the weak and vulnerable) do relate vigilantes to cops because they constantly see them working with each other. Dick Grayson was a cop for a period of time joining the Blud. police department because "those were the morals his father instilled in him." And I could go on and on about the faith comic characters constantly put in law and order.

Oliver holding himself accountable under the law, though, is not endorsing the system like Bruce and Dick do, he does not place his faith in law and order. That is him actively taking a stance saying he is not above the law. Where on most cases, Bruce does view himself as being above. And even when Bruce admits to going too far, he will never fess up to the public that he, Bruce Wayne, did it, whereas Ollie doesn't allow himself to hide behind his persona. A big difference between the two men is that Oliver being Green Arrow is very public knowledge and Bruce tries to hide his life as batman as best as he can. It all comes down to accountability.

Now, you sent this about Ollie, so why am I talking so much about him in relation to Bruce. That's because Ollie and Bruce are constantly being related to as the same, usually in the vein of "well, they're both hella rich with no powers who play dress up, right?" But this is a complete misunderstanding of Ollie's character (for one, he's not rich, or at least he's not supposed to be).

I think this constant water-downed view of Ollie is what allows people to project Bruce's less-than-iron beliefs onto Ollie.

There are decades worth of canon where a core of Ollie's is the fact that he can't stand cops and doesn't believe the system that's used now can be saved, only mitigated as something better replaces it. He holds himself accountable for his actions as Green Arrow because he knows that just complaining isn't enough. He needs to step up as a leader and not just help overthrow a discriminatory institution but actually actively help rebuild it. Whereas Bruce actively believes the system can be saved. Most notable that comes to mind right now is the new Batman movie where Bruce, in his final monologue, just saw how the cops failed to protect Gotham from the riddler, but states how, just like the bat symbol is now established with hope, he now has hope that the police can do the right thing. He doesn't learn that the current system will never truly work and instead now believes that it could work (when we know it can't).

If you want to focus on copaganda in DC comics, Arrows just aren't going to be your strongest contestants. Because Copaganda does exist, but your best bet is going to lie within most bat-adjacent characters who literally try to uphold that system. Or you can look at lanterns whose stories not only are about literal space cops but have also deviated from Hal Jordan rebuilding his moral compass and calling out the guardians for their fascist tendencies to turning Guy Gardener, a man previously written as to be a notorious cop hater, into working in the Baltimore P.D. as an actual cop. Those groups have the basis for talking how police are glorified. Arrows just don't have that historical canon for a strong argument.

#comictary #ollie queen #oliver queen #tw police brutality #also interestingly enough I looked up a ton of articles and videos but funnily enough there weren't any on oliver #looking for him specifically actually juxtaposed him w other heroes and how his poltical activism and anti-cop rhetoric is non negotiable t #his character and is so heavily entwinned that he wouldn't be who is w/o those beliefs #hmmm #miscellaneous dc metas #digital mailbox

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terrence-silver · 11 months

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Hey hey! Been thinking of McCain lately... do you possibly have any headcons for Terry McCain x criminal!beloved? Would love to hear your thoughts on this!

---

― Yes, he will judge you. Of course he will judge you. He doesn't have an understanding or too much empathy for your particular lifestyle or your particular kind. He thinks it is wrong. That you're wrong. That the way you live is wrong. That you're endangering innocent civilians and people in law enforcement alike, one way or another, or at least that the people you associate with do, and that by extension, you bear part of the moral blame. That you should be apprehended, corrected and penalized, plain and simple. You're one of the many reasons this city is the way it is and the reason why his job is the way it is and if we're honest, yes, Terry McCain will be very much antagonistic and a full-on hard ass in the beginning. Just part of his overall personality, belief system and professional deformation. At best, he thinks you need rehabilitation within the system itself, behind bars, perhaps doing some sort of community work --- pretty much whatever the judge decides, and that's him being extremely kind. At worst? Well, at worst, he thinks that if the justice of said system fails (which, in his experience, it often does, unfortunately) and doesn't punish you the way he feels is due, that good old vigilantism can easily take its place and that he should just do it himself. As usually. Wouldn't be the first time for him.

― Now, it doesn't even matter what sort of criminal activity the subject of his fixation indulges in. Could be smaller thievery and pickpocketing around supermarkets to survive, vandalism, vagrancy, peddling narcotics, using said narcotics, sex work (and he does see this as a criminal offense), entanglement with the local mobs or flat out something larger, more serious that gets his attention much easier, but still, Terry will behave borderline paternalistic in a 'You live like this?' sort of way where he tries, at least tries to correct you and yes, it could come off passive aggressive to aggressive initially. He will not be a nice person to run into, let us be real for a second. He doesn't intend to be nice to you. He intends to set you straight and scare you into behaving properly. Be it by getting in your face, snarking you, threatening arrests, actually arresting, getting physical, taking you into custody overnight, writing you tickets, hitting you with fees; it really doesn't matter. This particular detective? He's doing too much. He's doing the job of an ordinary, day-to-day, commonplace streetcorner cop. Something that doesn't even pertain to his high function. So, why does he do it? Why is he on your case? Shouldn't he be after bigger crooks out there?

― Not even McCain himself knows why he does what he does, truth to tell. He thinks he's doing right by the streets of Chicago, the overall public peace and justice itself, with no task 'too small' for him due to him being humble about doing his work and doing it well (often by any means necessary), but truth of the matter, these are the beginnings of his obsession rearing their head, without him realizing or even wanting to admit to it. Whatever you're doing is a problem for the smalltime police, not a full blown detective, but he tells himself the police is overworked and overburdened and not always capable of doing the job it is meant to do so he has to step in. He has no choice, see. You've given him no choice. As such, he's always where you are. Always in your shadow. Always close by. Always seeping venom into your face. Always measuring your behavior. Warning you. Always there. If someone didn't know this man has a badge it would be easy to imagine him as a stalker, which is exactly what he is anyway. An possessive stalker at that. If the smalltime police he branded as 'overworked' actually steps in on your case he might actually step in himself, telling his own colleagues off, because you're his project. He'll deal with you himself. Nobody else will.

― Of course it is safe to say you've crawled inside of his brain and that even in his downtime he's thinking of you. Collecting files on you. Using and abusing his powers to amass intel. Making notes on you. Your associates. Pondering you even if he's otherwise engaged in a relationship with someone else. Pacing around his apartment in the dead of night just letting his intrusive thoughts run back to you, what you're doing right now. Right this very instant. Might just hit the streets to find you and track you down, feeling that this very moment, you could be up to no good, as always. Might just get into an altercation and save you if you're in trouble, justifying that he's still a good guy at the end of the day and that it is your own fault for living the life you do. If you lived correctly, this wouldn't be happening, or at least not as frequently. Now, what if he wasn't here to protect you? What do you think could've happened to you!? He's behaving less like a guy in law enforcement tackling a criminal and more like a concerned, albeit abjectly judgmental and difficult friend sharing some tough love to someone who has strayed. A worried parent, a worried, dare I say, loved one? His delivery isn't always mellow, but he feels his heart is in the right place.

― Of course his colleagues notice McCain has a fixation that just goes way beyond the professional and straight into the personal, and whether they call him out on it or not, he might just very much deny it or deny he's having the type of fixation they claim he's having all while still running amok whenever you're in question. At this point, he wants to rehabilitate you himself because he feels this is his cross to bear and nobody can bear it for him. He won't allow anyone else to bear it. Tries to have well meaning talks with you, one on one. Finds you address and breaks in to check on your dwelling situation. Tries to downright irritate and wear you down into listening to him for once because he knows better. Should he just cuff you, drive off with you and get you to listen like that, by force? Tries to fix your life for you because...he cares, damnit. Ensures you can't shake him off. The streets, lowlife dens, these lairs, hangouts and shady places are not fit for you. The company you keep isn't fit you, notwithstanding that his concern is peppered with jealousy because his company, he feels, is infinitely worthier. A good life is possible. Or a better life, for starters.

― Might start arresting all your ehm, compatriots out on the streets, one by one, if his beloved has any, to the point you'll be the only one left, totally isolated and cut off from the rest of them, with him, ironically, as your only support system and the only one you could possibly turn to. He's totally not envious, no. See? He's serious. Don't mess with him. He's not to be trifled with. Only reason he hasn't done it to you (yet) is because he thinks, no, he knows in fact, that you've potential. That you're better than them. There's a good heart somewhere in there. You don't need yet another police dossier besmirching your future, do you? What you need is an intervention. He'll offer you an intervention, sure, all while not being fully aware he needs an intervention too because he's fallen and he's fallen hard. Terry McCain has fallen for you to the point of bias, blindness and even starting to justify you in ways he wouldn't dream of doing before. Well, maybe you strayed down the path you did because of a bad childhood. Maybe the infrastructure is broken. You're disenfranchised. Urban poverty is rampant and offers little opportunities. The influence of corrupt people has corrupted you too.

― Fact is, yes, Terry McCain is in love to the point of complete and utter desperation, a moral crisis, an identity crisis and even righteous fury at your general circumstances, precisely because he cares for you so much and he's affected to the point of overemotional, unhinged rage at how you've been living before he's met you and after he has as well. What you must've gone through. What you allowed yourself to happen. What others around you allowed to happen to you. It is an extremely slowburn realization, but it is a realization nonetheless. He wants to scoop you up. Take you. Protect you. Look after you. Ensure you never go down a bad, dangerous or negative path again, not while he's alive and even if he's not. He wants to apprehend, put away and wreak havoc on every pimp, kingpin, trafficker, drug dealer, gang leader, gangster, mobster or handler who's ever used you for nefarious purposes out on the legal margins of society. Convinced you to do bad. Profited off of it. If Terry was your natural enemy before, he's not just a friend now, he's an advocate for your general well-being. Your saintly guardian. The thought of you not being safe or living a life that is dangerous sends to a dark, decrepit place where he could downright start killing just to ensure you're alright.

― He becomes gentle, yes. You're no longer a criminal or some common thug he can manhandle or push around in his eyes. Rather, you become someone who was seduced down a bad road. Someone groomed. Taken advantage of. Someone blackmailed. Someone whose situation offered them no way out. Someone in need of rescue. A victim. A victim he must avenge. He deals in absolutes. You're either the villain or you're the angel. His angel. No in-betweens. Just about adores you to the point he refuses to acknowledge any fault of yours and if he does, he finds ways to justify those as well. Delusional, much? Maybe. His vocabulary becomes infinitely more considerate and so do his actions towards you, at least. He ensures you're sheltered. Rehabilitated. Away from bad influences and in fact, away from all influences that isn't his own. He uses all the powers within his position to make sure you're taken care of and that he's right there taking care of you too, and in fact, that he's the main and only person taking care of you. Yes, his intentions are amorous. And yes, once this trial period is over, you're coming with him because he'll make you the honest person he knows you're capable of being. What choice is there? Do you want to go jail and do time? Hit the streets again? Terry McCain would never allow that.

― Ideally, whether beloved's criminal (or ex-criminal) or not, Terry imagines a very conventionally and traditionally idyllic life no matter how you slice it. Perhaps even more so if you had what would be deemed 'a worrying past'. To counter that, the future should be kinder, warmer, all the more normal to balance things out and redeem everything and yeah, he thinks that's a goal worth fighting for. Yes, he wants a Christmas Tree, he wants sappy, ugly sweaters and opening presents with you next to a roaring fireplace, he wants a home with you, he wants weekends at some cozy, crowded bar where he can sing and play for you, he wants to keep a pet or two with you, he wants you to never be in a dangerous position again, he wants to protect you, look after you, he wants your warm hands in his, sharing a coat out on a freezing pier mid-December somewhere, he wants autumnal, rain soaked walks and he wants you well and happy. Of course, forming a stable relationship with someone who has a police dossier might not go down that smoothly with his own colleagues and work associates but when he has Terry McCain, hotheaded and stubborn that he is, ever cared about what anyone thought?

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