#Also I love a good parallel between him and Bruce. Also when he stands in for Batman he’s already got one of the Batman main pokie partners

[loopyarts]

Young adult Robin Dick Grayson and his Umbreon partner.

[about-faces]

Saw a post from a Nightwing fan that was like “oh my god there’s someone out there who seriously would like to see Two-Face in the BatFam, WTF?! After what he did to Dick?! What the hell is wrong with you?!”

….

…

… Anyway, here’s why I think Harvey Dent should be in the BatFam.

For starters, I think it would be a wonderful way to incorporate Bruce’s long-standing love for Harvey in a situation where he gets to interact with a variety of young people who either have personal beefs with Harvey and/or have little sympathy/reason to care about him. We’ve already seen the potential of Harvey and Jason interacting and how fantastic that was for both characters.

I want to see Harvey (specifically a Harvey whose good side gets to be present and distinct, if not in complete control for the time being) interact with Dick, who hates him and—like some of his fans—completely disregards Harvey’s history of mental illness and internal struggles to overcome Scarvey. Extra points if they incorporate the Robin: Year One origin with Dick being beaten by Two-Face (which is not currently canon, btw), something that Harvey would never have done if he was in his right mind or even in control at the time. He was subsumed by his worst side to the point that Two-Face outright genuinely considered Harvey “dead,” but Dick neither knows nor cares about that, and I’d like to see that explored outside of a typical hero/villain environment.

I want to see Harvey interact with Damian and Cass, who each might have his own opinions about Bruce’s ongoing belief in someone’s inherent goodness, heroism, and worth, no matter how much blood is on one’s hands or how they were raised.

I want to see Cass and Steph both reckon with Harvey’s own history of abuse at a father’s hands, and how one tries to struggle against the cycles of violence. Is Harvey a victim of how he was raised, or is he a monster for not overcoming his trauma like they did? I want know if the compassion Cass extended to Clayface could also apply to Harvey. I want to know if either woman would have any empathy for Harvey, or condemn him as being reprehensible and irredeemable.

I want Babs to have a backstory where she, as a kid, knew and liked Harvey, and the two bonded over having alcoholic fathers, something which no one can understand if they haven’t experienced it.

I want to see if Duke has any feelings about a once-good man who was transformed into something he does not want to be, much in the way his own parents were victims of Gotham’s monsters.

I want Tim to better understand Harvey’s psyche, to see if he still thinks that Harvey is someone who “chooses” to become Two-Face again after every redemption attempt.

I want more interactions between Harvey and Jason, acknowledging them as twin symbols of Bruce’s failure who both became murderous mob bosses. How many orphans has Jason created? Why is Jason welcomed back in but not Harvey? Is it because Harvey nearly beat a Robin to death, just like Damian did with Tim? Is it okay to excuse/forgive a brainwashed child but not a severely mentally ill adult who had no control over his worst side? Why or why not?

I want to know which BatFam members would even notice all the ways that Bruce and Harvey are so similar, mirrors to each other with Harvey being the one who lost everything, including his own identity and sanity. I want to know what their takeaways would be, or if they’d even care. I want to know if any of them would realize that Bruce could easily fall like Harvey without the love and support they provide as a family, which Harvey lacks?

Remember A Lonely Place of Dying? Harvey without Gilda and Batman without Robin, both evenly matched in a mutually-suicidal death spiral, broken only when Tim emerged in Bruce’s life? Would Tim draw those parallels? Would any of them? Would it even matter?

Because not all of the BatFam can or should have empathy for Harvey. No family, not even the BatFam, should end every disagreement with Full-House-style hugs and apologies. Sometimes you just hate or don’t even care about other family members, and that’s fine! But I still want to see those relationships explored and hashed out within the context of family.

On top of it all, I want some acknowledgement that Harvey was Bruce’s first and only ally back in Batman: Year One before Gordon came around to Bruce’s side. That Harvey was the ONLY person in Gotham trying to fight against the forces of the mob and cops alike before Bruce returned and Jim rolled into town. That he, as Batman’s ally and the youngest DA in Gotham history, was the original Boy Wonder of Gotham City. That Bruce’s failure to save Harvey has hung over each and every one of his relationships and connections in the BatFam.

Finally, I want to see Harvey in the BatFam because I want to know that, no matter what you’ve done or become, there will still be some people out there who are holding out for you to come back. That you may not be forgiven by all or even most of them, but you’re still worthy of love. And even if/when Harvey loses his battle with himself again, I want some of the BatFam to react with sympathy, some having changed their perceptions about the man they only knew as Two-Face. That maybe, occasionally, the criminals they fight aren’t monsters but just broken people, lost to some combination of circumstance, upbringing, mental illness, and personal choices. I want to see them reckon with that. I think that would be important.

And okay yeah sure I’d also like to see Harvey take them all out for pizza and games at Chuck E Cheese’s or something like that. I just think that’d be neat.

Anyway. I hope that all makes more sense now for anyone still wondering. I’ll finish up with proof that Harvey being in the BatFam has actually been touched on in comics, from the gatefold cover of Hush (that’s Harvey, not Hush, with the bandages), DC Future State, and DC Bombsells.

So there’s a fuzzy sort of precedent for Harvey fitting in with the BatFam. I just hope someone at DC will eventually share my vision, even if some BatFam fans never will.

[havendance]

Helena Bertinelli/Barbara Gordon Role Swap AU

Helena is more or less your typical mob princess socialite. Pretty, a little frivolous, largely ignoring the family business. She’s working her way through an English degree she doesn’t know what she’ll do with and is largely bored with her life.

Things change when, on a whim, she goes to a costume party dressed as a female version of Batman, her father’s rival.

On the way home from the party, she runs into none other than Bruce Wayne in the middle of a kidnapping attempt.

Helena has enough self defense training to keep herself safe. Enough to give her enough confidence to do something.

Of course, Bruce Wayne is actually Batman, and the kidnapping was all part of one of his plans… One thing leads to another and it ends with Helena operating as Batgirl full time.

Helena has a good relationship with her family. She loves her dad. Her dad loves her. That core truth doesn’t change when she starts going out as Batgirl. Her dad doesn’t know that his daughter’s working with one of his greatest enemies and Helena intends to keep it that way.

Now, this could go any number of ways, but in the older comics (I’m not sure where the comics ages have their boundaries), it’s played for goofy dramatic irony. Isn’t it wild how father and daughter get along by day and are rivals by night?

Their relationship becomes more complex as comics grow grittier. Helena is torn between the love and family that the mafia offers and the moral depravity they operate with. She ultimately affirms the moral superiority of the works she does with Batman, but is still a little uneasy with the way it pits her against the people she loves. As she gets older and finishes a degree or two, Helena decides to step away from the night work, believing that she can do more good as a teacher. 

This decision ends in tragedy when a random terrorist attack by the Joker leaves her paralyzed from the waist down. She’s shot while protecting her students.

(I think that in this universe, the mafia should get to kill the joker in revenge, as a treat. Probably not before Jason dies though, because we’ve got to operate at least roughly parallel to canon.)

She struggles in the aftermath of her injury before ultimately becoming Oracle.

As Oracle, Helena’s connections to the mafia give her new sources of information, as well as new sources of conflict. She chafes against her father’s new protectiveness.

But let's switch our focus to Barbara Gordon.

The daughter of one of the few non corrupt cops in Gotham, Barbara becomes caught in the crossfire of the endless battle between the Batman and crime. An ordinary family dinner turns tragic when mob operatives attack, after Gordon because of his connection with Batman. It becomes a massacre. Barbara is the only survivor.

Fearing for her life, she goes into hiding, finding an old friend of her father’s to teach her how to defend herself. She learns to fight, to track, to kill, and becomes the Huntress.

The thing about this AU is that killing off Jim Gordon for Barbara’s character development has all sorts of fun repercussions. Batman is much more separate from the GCPD, for one. With his one ally dead, anyone remaining who sympathizes with him is cautious, unwilling to be the next caught in the crosshairs. The Gordon massacre is a message and a very effective one at that.

The fact that it is Gordon’s daughter who is the Huntress also has its own effects on the relationship between her and Batman. We’re reversing the Batman daddy issues here.

Batman views Barbara as a daughter figure. This is not reciprocated. He feels a duty to her as a result of his relationship with her father. She has little patience for his paternalistic attitude toward her and his attempts at redeeming her.

We will keep the Nightwing/Huntress one-night stand in this au because untenable love with DickBabs sounds like something that could be fun. 

Tim also hangs out with both Helena and Barbara, but we’re not getting into that here.

I’m starting to run out of page space in the notebook I’m writing this in, so we’re going to skip ahead to No Man’s Land.

Helena’s decision to remain in No Man's Land sparks one of the worst arguments she’s ever had with her dad. He doesn’t want her to stay. He says he should pull out with the rest of them. He says it's too dangerous. She refuses to be talked out of it, and as the bridges are blown, she can’t help being agonized over if she’ll ever see him again to make up.

Barbara’s decision to wear the bat symbol proves to be divisive between Oracle and Batman. The fact that it’s Gordon’s daughter, that this is someone Batman has been trying to redeem, leads her to see it as him grooming Barabara to replace who she was.

Batman is more willing to work with Barbara and, after the mess with Two Face, seems more willing to forgive her failure as well. Cassandra’s emergence and Helena pushing her forward as the next Batgirl is motivated in part by her relationship with the girl, and in part by a desire to wrest back control over her legacy.

Umm, eventually Helena and Barbara resolve their differences when Huntress enters her Birds of Prey era, which I haven’t read yet, so we’ll leave this one here for now.

[gerogerigaogaigar]

Blondie - Parallel Lines

The bubblegum pop of the 60 meets the punk rock edge of the 70s. Debbie Harry bridges the gap effortlessly with her energetic delivery. And the music somehow never doesn't sound punk even when they are deep into bubbly pop numbers or disco. There's a bit of polish compared to their debut, but Blondie really manage to stand out from the crowd by leveraging that against the rawer punk sound of the late 70s to create an essential piece of new wave music.

Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP

Eminem is one of the weirdest rappers out there. Well he was before they killed him and replaced him with an army recruitment robot. There are nested levels of kayfabe happening here that I wanna break down. Slim Shady is a character played by Eminem who is a character played by Marshall Mathers. The three personae all have very different opinions on their newfound success and the way the song's attitudes towards nearly everything veers wildly back and forth can be explained by this. Marshall Mathers is conflicted but ultimately unashamed of his work, Eminem is feeling a little ashamed of the character of slim shady and how that character has affected people, and Slim Shady is fucking insane. The interplay between these three makes Eminem's second album a lot more thoughtful and engaging than his first. Now you're gonna need an extremely high tolerance for homophobia and mysogyny because that is the bread and butter of his shock value, and he whips slurs around at an even higher rate that his first. But to me it is so incredibly extreme that there is no reality that is reflected by this music. Mathers' absolute mastery of the craft is also on display and ramped up. The Real Slim Shady has an insane flow that delivers rhymes with a pace that will give you whiplash. And of course how can we forget Stan? The song that somehow became the internet's phrase du jour for diehard fandom. It's impeccable how well Eminem delivers the lines in a way that evokes a letter without ever breaking the flow or rhyme scheme. His mastery of storytelling on Stan is on par, if not better than, Slick Rick himself. I don't know if I'll get any shit for saying this is a fantastic album slurs and all but like there's a little Slim Shady in all of us isn't there? Come indulge him a bit.

Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti

Yeah ok Physical Graffiti is an enjoyable album that sees Led Zeppelin playing around with long ass songs and some prog rock type stuff. The long ones like Kashmir and In The Light are really good, and I love the little folk dirty that is Bron-Yr-Aur. It runs too long though and honestly why are we fucking around with a bunch of Led Zeppelin albums on this list? Houses Of The Holy? Physical Graffiti? Just put Zeppelin IV on the list and call it a day.

Velvet Underground - s/t

I don't fucking understand this list. Are they really gonna put on every single Velvet Underground record? Why is this apparently the second best one? It's a good album don't get me wrong, but c'mon. The official Audrey ranking goes &Nico>White Light/White Heat>Loaded>Velvet Underground. And I don't even think the last two ought to make the top 500 list. This album is too soft and delicate with the only real standout track being the penultimate song an eight minute jam called The Murder Mystery. The rest is pleasant but samey. Easily Velvet Underground's weakest offering.

Bruce Springsteen - Born In The U.S.A.

What a weird but predictable turn of events that led this album to lead a double life. Upbeat pop melodies, a down home aesthetic, and an American flag on the album's cover drew in a crowd who would be fundamentally opposed to Springsteen's compassionate left wing beliefs if they had listened any farther than the chorus of the title track. The sessions that led to Born In The U.S.A. were the same ones that produced Nebraska and you can see it in some of the lyricism. A lot of sad stories about broken people just a little more well produced and with the E Street Band back in full force. Although a couple of tracks, I'm On Fire and My Hometown especially, sound like they could have just been off Nebraska.

[hood-ex]

Heya Emily!

*slides into your askbox with recs* I'm sorry I'm level 100 fangirl and tryna share the joy 😅

Grimm from Legends of the Dark Knight anthology. Issues #149-#153

If you haven't read it already 😃

Dick's been Robin for, like, two months in this story, so he's a little green but he's still so smart! Smarter than Rebirth Nightwing

Also. It's one of the few modern day Dickbin stories I like, where he's allowed to be a child and allowed to make mistakes and no one demonises him

Bruce is amazing here too. A mess, but, still, it's Bruce we're talking about so...uh...yeah!

This panel stands out to me:

Another is Nightwing/Magilla Gorilla. Again, if you haven't already read it 😅

During this content draught I've been combing through older comics and I'm going around reccing stuff to people I follow😭

Don't ask me why. Idk😅

Ahsvajai! Byeee!

I remember someone (maybe it was you?) who recommended the Grimm story to me before, and I did read it, but I forgot to respond to that ask because of life and all.

Part 5 of the story was definitely my favorite. Dick had a lot of good dialogue and moments in that issue. Also, the way he got stabbed out of nowhere was alskdja.

In particular, I loved it when he thought:

I didn’t understand why Bruce Wayne would want to take me in as his ward let alone why he’d want to make me his partner in crime-fighting. I mean, being an acrobat was one thing… but this? I was way out of my league. At least I thought I was. But we don’t always see ourselves the way others see us.

I think that was the first time I saw myself—if only for a moment—the way he saw me… saw not who I was… but who I could be with the right training, the right guidance. And let’s face it, when it came to teachers, I had the best.

And then Dick and Bruce had a great conversation as well:

Bruce: I’ll take care of Cyanide. You go after Herbert.

Dick: You mean… after all I did… turning my back on you… joining up with Mother Grimm, you still trust me?

Bruce: I never lost faith in you, Robin, only in my own ability to be the mentor you need. Get that shocked look off your face—even Batman can have a few doubts now and then.

Dick: But not any more, right?

Bruce: No, not anymore.

And then said stabby moment I mentioned earlier:

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #153

Oh, oh, oh. And how Dick, even with a stab wound, tried to save Mother Grimm and Cyanide from the rushing river. And how Bruce smiled at Dick and then they had a cute little moment:

Bruce: Now, let’s get that wound taken care of. I’d hate to lose the best partner I ever had.

Dick: I’m the only partner you ever had.

Bruce: All the more reason not to lose you.

Nightwing/Magilla Gorilla is one I actually have read before. There's one moment from it in particular that cycles through my mind every now and again:

Now I know this is more of a mentor/mentee parallel but... what if it was a comparison between fathers and their sons 😌.

Think about it 😌.

Because I have 😌.

[highly-important]

Marvelous Mrs Maisel and Authenticity

So, I’m really frustrated with where the show is going. Midge sold out a Black man who was in a position of power over her and then blamed him for the fallout when she was held accountable. And what frustrates me the most isn’t Midge’s lack of self-awareness, its the writers’ lack of self-awareness.

This is kind of my analysis of one of the themes of the show, but also how I think they’re managing it poorly and some of the things they’re getting wrong.

At first Midge must perform her comedy through Joel. Then she must perform her comedy in secret, but she must choose between the life she always wanted (and the life her parents wanted for her) and her new dream of being a comedian. She chooses comedian, which is her first major step towards authenticity.

A lot of Midge’s issues revolve around image. She is obsessed with her own image and outward appearance. She’s also seen by others as too pretty to be a comedian, or expected to tell certain types of jokes or behave certain ways because she’s a woman. But in the season 4 premier Midge gives a speech emphasizing her best performances are natural and honest expressions of her inner-self rather than pre-written housewife bits that play into her image. Midge is only going to be in the industry if she can do it authentically.

And this is a reflection of the types of comedy Midge loves or hates. She loves Lenny Bruce because he is an honest comedian, speaking truth to power even if it means facing consequences. And she mocks Sophie Lennon because her stage persona is so distant from her actual personality.

Sophie Lennon’s stint on Broadway was a test of her character that she failed. She wanted to do “real” acting, but ultimately was too full of fear and fell back to her old stage persona.

And something similar is happening (has happened?) with Shy Baldwin. His stage persona contradicts his secret personal life as a closeted gay man. Midge’s stand up act parallels what happens with her and Sophie Lennon: she draws attention to the contradictions between these performer’s stage personas and their real-life personalities.

But they’re not the same thing at all. What Midge did to Shy is terrible. Midge completely betrays his trust, putting his life and career at risk, just so that she doesn’t bomb a show. Unlike Sophie, Shy has to keep his public life separate from his private life, this level of authenticity is impossible for a man in his position.

So, I think Shy getting married as a PR stunt is meant to mirror the way Sophie blew her chance at Broadway- when given the opportunity to grow, both characters got scared and doubled down on the fake stage personas.

So if I had to guess, if I had to give this show more faith and good will than it deserves, I’d say the reason why Shy being secretly in love with Reggie was introduced as a plot is because Shy’s way of living authentically and truthfully isn’t his publicly coming out, its telling Reggie his romantic feelings towards him. And Midge is meant to push their story in that direction.

Do I have faith in that happening? No. And also, I kind of don’t care. I feel like MMM is in a hole it can’t dig its way out of anymore. I can’t get past her entitlement, or her ability to throw anyone under the bus for the sake of her own career, let alone Shy who just risked everything opening up to her.

This show keeps setting up parable moments without ever paying them off through even a shred of self-awareness. Without any commentary from the writers, they’re saying that white women have the right to behave this way.

I hate that Midge’s character won’t recognize that what she did is wrong, but more than that I hate that the show writers don't put her actions in any kind of context that suggests she should learn, grow, do different, do better.

MMM has always had a problem with revisionist history, how it displays race and queer sexuality, and how Black people have been used as props. (I mean, remember how Midge went from the tarmac scene to hitting a Black person’s taxicab with a tree branch? Just what is the message here.) At this point  I don’t expect ASP to write a gay or Black character with any realism, authenticity, or sensitivity.

[youve-doomed-us-all-jerk]

man of steel watch 2023😁(long af reactions under the cut lmao copied from twitter)

fuck it you already know

still wonder what zacks plan was with the codex🤔🤔🤔was it just there to thematically be him carrying the kryptonian refugees or was there more

still crazy that zack in his unsubtle way made the villain colonizing eugenicists and people got mad at him for saying the appropriate response was killing them lol

minor thing but appreciate jor not saying anything when zod was pleading that lara abort the launch, just a look, he trusts her, feel like thats paralleled with clark and lois's relationship later, again minor but superman medias all about speeches so lmao

"his name is kal, son of el and he is beyond your reach"🥺

lara's theme is so good

the pan to his abs, zack knew the demographic he was reaching for

the worlds too big scene😭😭

if i saw a big breasted man run boobily across a lawn and steal some clothes i wouldnt snitch

he aint need to throw ross out the water like that but he uses words like dicksplash so he deserves it

😭😭😭(got nothing to say about the "maybe" scene, im tired lmao)

forgot how many emotional hits they roll out so early in the movie lmao

lmao remember when people said ludlow wouldnt try to fight clark cuz he was huge, cuz as we all know toxic masculinity definitely doesnt make men act stupid and vile lol anyway proud of clark for fucking up his truck sexual harassers deserve nothing

its her lois lane shes here

genuinely didn't know joe was clark for my first 3 views of this movie lmao

the flashlight to clarks laser eyes transition was cool(so was the pod landing in the farm transitioning to the boat crashing against a wave scene)

super buff sexy drifting doctor clark kent

fuck this nerd who sold lois out after she gave him info. zack was already laying the seeds of the media being dicks from this one blogger lmao

"and kal, that's my name "🥺

jor-el's power point presentation let's go

do remember someone in good faith(hopefully lol)saying jor was "glorifying" colonization when he spoke "fondly" of the era of expansion of krypton, and maybe fair though that could also be why he and lara chose not to escape with kal, the whole they were a part of the problem

genuinely fav supes suit I get the desire to have the ma kent suit but i cant see it anymore as anything other than him reassuring his loyalty to earth(america) to the gatekeepers, martha had a whole lifetime with him let him have one of the few connections to his culture he has

first flight😃😃😃😃

seeing this for the first time as a teen and finally understanding "you'll believe a man can fly"

no superhero media has done flying as good as this, not even bvs or zsjl theres just something about MoS's flying that makes my brain light up

don't forget lois lane figured out clarks identity(b4 he even went public) without luther or bruce's resources, smartest bestest investigator in dcu🗣🗣🗣

should they have had a younger actor play 18 yr old clark in the argument with jonathan in the car scene, maybe, though cavills teen angsty" i didnt say that!" and "you're not my dad !>:(" voice was p believable lmao

the way she drops the biggest story cuz her kindness is as big as her drive to get the truth, no wonder she's what inspires him

ngl recently heard laurence fishburne in moon girl and devil dino and the whiplash between his 2 performances lmao

seeing the butterfly trapped in the chain has new meaning now

soundtrack: *hits those mos piano notes* me everytime:

well maybe for a little bit⚰⚰⚰

you think swanwick was watching the your are not alone message and thought it was a cliche

the military people behind the glass watching these two flirt right in front of them

when he breaks the cuffs while standing up😛😏

"it did to me"

maybe love is real idk

the ship atmosphere thing was such a good way to foreshadow kryptonite lmao(yes did still take notes while my twitter was down lmao)

Jor-els fun informative power point presentation vs zod's very bad no good drug trip

clarks mind vision of himself is literally still a farmboy idk why people still think he isnt "connected to his humanity" in the iteration lmao

black suit but with no silver to symbolize pure darkness, death and to make him look the same as zod

though not to jump to zsjl but we know zack had to smuggle the black suit in with the metal padding and post color editing in that movie do wonder if he was gonna go with a totally different design if he had complete control, maybe capeless, pure metal for the silver and a beard? do also remember him teasing the long hair in one interview lmao

watching superman sink into a mountain of skulls really rewired my teenage brain since i only knew of him from pop culture at that point ngl

will say kinda funny that clark is clearly torn up about killing while lois was just blasting kryptonians blam blam🔫🔫🔫girl boss

the escaping the ship ost is so good😩why wasnt it on the official soundtrack, i know theres a good youtube ver of it but lmao

ok starting to think the jor colonization criticism wasn't in good faith cuz clark does kinda bring up the whole "do you agree with zod about wiping out humans???" thing lmao

clark saving lo in the escape pod scene got me tense af in the theater

"YOU THINK YOU CAN THREATEN MY MOTHER?!" still goes hard

do like when clark is a lil petty lmao "cranky cuz your momma didnt teach you to not be overstimulated hmm"

neat little quirk clark does in all of zacks movies, before he gets in a serious fight theres usually a shot of him clenching his fist lmao

nam-ek popped the pilot like a blueberry

faora's so cool

my man fighting for his life in this ihop in front of all his old friends too

flying really was his one advantage against these soldiers and he loses that when he fights zod too they really put him thru it on his first day😭

faora made him waste all his bullets, wait till he pulled out a knife and then pulls out a bigger one like

like to think zack having the military drone strike smallville is a parallel to when the US did it to the african village in BvS

yeah big floaty alien thing in the middle of the city may be a lil overdone now but half dont look as good as how zack did it back then

world engine sound design so sexy too😋

zacks cape porn👌🏽👌🏽👌🏽

oh god🥺best scene, yes am getting emotional, scene means a lot to me

also kinda weird when zack does invoke the moses allegory people arent like "he's literally saying supes is moses!" like they do with jeezy creezy and his imagery lmao he's literally looks like he's parting the sea here lmao

in the wider snyderverse am realizing theres more moses stuff you can connect to even if the timeline is wonky and its not 1:1, obviously darkseid is the pharaoh with his whole enslavement thing, him turning supes to his side could be interpreted as ramses and moses

in this way zod, who believes in kryptons removal of "free choice" like jor and lara said, is the guard moses kills when he sees him mistreating one of his people

and the destruction of the genesis chamber and the other kryptonians being sucked back into the phantom zone could be an allegory for when god killed the first borns of egypt, no moses expert tho so could be reaching lol but fun connections, tangent i know lmao

oh also rather than a race thing it becomes more that clarks "people" are the ones who believe in free will and choice while darkseid and zods dont lmao anyway

"krypton had its chance!" still to this day lives in my mind rent free

lmao love that lois and clark are just horny for each other no matter who is watching not the military not lois's coworkers or the other survivors

zod's monologue👨🏽‍🍳👌🏽

to this day idk if i can think of a cbm fight thats topped superman vs zod, just in like raw visceral action and the fact they actually have stakes in it

thinking about how i remember shannon telling zack "as long as my suit isnt cgi i dont wanna wear those pajamas" or something and zack said yeah and then it was lol

my superman hates and constantly destroys military drones

and welcome to the planet! Glad i watched this again after so long, definitely needed that, hopefully work lets up enough for me to watch the rest of the trilogy✌🏽

[marvelsbanner]

Help from a friend

summary: Tony and Bruce are stuck on a project- so Bruce calls up an old friend for some help. Aka Tony meeting Bruce’s pretty Doctor friend and being a shameless flirt.

pairing: Tony Stark/Iron Man x fem!reader

warnings: minor language, suggestive language, and innuendos

word count: ~1300

A/N: Reblogs, likes, and comments are always appreciated! <3 All mistakes are my own! This is split in two parts, part 2 will have smut but feel free to stop here if you’re not comfy with that.

**i don’t own marvel** **not my gif**

Bruce and Tony had been working on a project in the lab for a week now. They hadn’t told the team- Tony was keeping it a secret because he knew they wouldn’t be okay with it but he also knew that he was doing the right thing. A suit of armor around the world- his vision, his Ultron.

They had access to all the tech that they needed, two kids in a candy shop, but it wasn’t as simple as they were originally hoping it would be. Apparently, much to Tony’s dismay, having 7 PhD’s didn’t actually make you a master at everything science related. “Then what the hell was it for, Bruce? Just to look smart, like when I wear fake glasses for interviews?”

After getting close to a breakthrough and being shut down again for what seemed like the millionth time, the two men sagged down on the floor in frustration.

“I have a friend-“ Bruce began.

“A friend? Since uh- when” Tony interrupted.

“Acquaintance. Coworker? Whatever,” he held up his hands in mock surrender.

“Doctor y/l/n. This is her speciality, she might be able to help us get somewhere with this. I’ve done a few favors for her, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind returning one.” He said, running his hands roughly over his face.

“Yeah whatever, call your lady doctor friend, i’m ordering Indian, do you want Indian?” Tony rambled, standing up and stretching his back.

“On one condition,” Bruce shot back.

Tony looked up and raised an eyebrow, “Oh? And tell me what that might be, oh green one.”

“No funny business,” Bruce said, unamused.

“Oh don’t worry, i’ve been told i’m not very funny.” he shot back.

“Yeah, I know, i’m the one who told you that. Seriously, she holds a lot of respect among that group and if I bring her here just to have you trying to get in her pants with your god-awful pickup lines i’ll never be able to live it down. So just please, please promise me? You’ll keep it professional?” he pleaded to his friend.

Tony lifted up three fingers, “Scouts honor” he said with a wink before walking out of the lab.

-

The following morning Tony was already up and working in the lab, blaring his AC/DC music and drinking his first of what would be many cups of coffee that day when the sound of laughter roused him from his thoughts.

He lowered his music until it was almost off, moving his head to look towards the lab entrance and his eyes nearly popped out of his head.

Bruce and his Doctor friend, Doctor.. Doctor.. God he needed to pay more attention when Bruce was speaking- were walking through the door, laughing at some joke he missed.

She was gorgeous, dressed in heels that did WONDERS for legs with a button up blouse and a short skirt with her lab coat over top.

“Tony this is Doctor y/l/n. Doc, Tony.” Bruce introduced, gesturing between the two. Tony reached out to shake her hand enthusiastically, “Doc, good to have you. Wow, I wish Bruce looked as good as you did in a lab coat” he said with a wink.

Bruce shot him a look to kill while she only looked amused, “Funny, Bruce is usually the eye candy at the lab” she said, giving said doctor a teasing nudge with her elbow.

“Hah-hah. Well, go ahead and set up, Doc. We’ll show you what we’re working with so far.” Bruce said, moving aside to give her space and grabbing Tony by the elbow to drag him to the side, “Tony, you promised” he pleaded. “Well, yeah, that was before I knew she was hot so in my mind that contract is null and void” he replied, twisting out of Bruce’s grasp and waltzing over to where she was swiping through data.

“So, Doc- you’re awful young to be a Doctor, aren’t you? Seriously, you don’t look a day over 20.” He said, flashing his playboy smile.

He heard Bruce smack his hand to his forehead.

“Maybe i’m young, or maybe you’re just old” she retorted, not even looking up from the screen.

He turned to Bruce and dramatically fake swooned, mouthing “I’m in love” before turning his attention back to her and clearing his throat.

“I’m not that old I swear, the grays are just from stress.”

“The wrinkles too, I’m assuming?” She fires back with a raised brow. He heard Bruce try and fail to mask a laugh as a cough.

“Ouch, you wound me Doc. Truly, you wound me. You’re gonna send this old man into cardiac arrest. Bruce, what’s the time? I think I’m flatlining.” He called out dramatically.

“Oh god I killed Tony Stark, whatever am I to do?” She said with mock horror.

“Well, I think a suitable repayment would be allowing me to take you out to dinner.” Tony replied as Bruce groaned, slapping his forehead with his palm again.

“Wow smooth. Not even ten minutes in- I had a little more faith in you than that, Stark. Bruce, I owe you a twenty.” She said, shaking her head.

Tony whipped his head around to his friend with a scowl. “You bet on me? Oh come on Brucie that’s low, aren’t you supposed to be my best friend?”

Bruce had a smirk on his face as he replied, “I can be your best friend and acknowledge that you’re a pompous ass, sometimes. Most of the time, actually-“

“Yeah yeah I get it, I’m awful. I’m an awful friend that also let’s you sleep here, eat here, use my lab and all my tech- most of which I designed myself by the way,”

“Ladies, ladies, I hate to break up the lover’s quarrel, I really do, but I think I see where you were going wrong with the data” she interrupted, barely able to hide her amusement. The boys quickly composed themselves and went around to her side to listen to her findings. Tony spent more time staring at her moving lips and cleavage than listening to her, but he was able to get the gist of it.

-

9 hours. It took 9 hours for her to do what the two scientists had struggled to do for weeks. Tony didn’t know if he should feel stupid, impressed, or turned on- but he was currently a mixture of the three.

She had been incredible, she had a fiery attitude and mouth of sass that paralleled his own but she had knowledge to match Bruce. She moved with purpose, and he watched her at every opportunity he could- even earning an elbow from Bruce on two occasions for staring too long.

She helped them find where they were going wrong and helped them to recode the programs, and by the end of the night Ultron was set to start downloading and be finished within 48 hours.

“Oh don’t be too hard on yourselves, boys. Not all of us can be geniuses, some of us were just put on this Earth to look pretty.” she teased.

“Aw Brucie, did you hear that? She thinks we’re pretty.” Tony said sarcastically.

“Yeah well, she also called us idiots but you focus on whatever you please, Tony.” Bruce shook his head and turned to thank Doctor y/l/n before apologizing and excusing himself out to where Natasha and Steve were needing his help.

“So, man of iron. Tomorrow, pick me up at 7. Look nice, maybe trim some of those grays that are peaking out.” she said teasingly.

Tony had to stop himself from doing a double take. “7? And when exactly did I agree to doing anything at 7 tomorrow, doctor?” He replied, faking indifference.

“Well I still need to repay you for almost killing you with my attitude earlier. Don’t tell Bruce though, I’d never hear the end of it from him.” She grabbed her things and made her way to exit the lab when he called out “I don’t even know where you live”

“I’m sure you’ve got the tech to figure that out.” she replied, still looking straight ahead. She had reached the entranceway of the lab when she swiftly turned to say “You can pick the venue. Wear something nice.. or nothing at all. Your pick.” And with a wink, she was gone, leaving Tony gobsmacked with his jaw on the floor.

part 2

[stxleslyds]

It seems like you have a negative opinion on all non-Winick characterizations of Jason in the comics. But do you hate them all equally? Could you rank all non-Winick comic depictions of Jason from best to worst characterization? Or maybe give them a letter grade?

Hi friend! This is a bit funny to me because I really didn’t expect people to be so vocal about me being such an annoying person when it comes to Jason’s characterizations. I can’t promise that I won’t complain anymore but I will try to be kinder.

But I won’t start right now, because I really want to make this ranking, it will go from best to absolute worst! I bet you guys won’t know who is in the deepest circle in hell! Place your bets everyone!

This is the level that gives me joy! (Yup, I put a writer that only wrote ten pages of Jason content as the best, please don’t call me out on it).

Matthew Rosenberg: I love him and I love what he has done with Jason, I have only read ten pages of his work while writing Jason and he already has me hooked. Like I said in that one ask/post, I think he will make some amazing things with the Jason that we have now and I still believe that. Little shit and competent Jason Todd, I am glad you are here.

Peter Tomasi: This one is a little checky because his run is out of comics canon, but his Arkham Knight Jason Todd and the way he wrote his origin are absolutely stunning.

Marv Wolfman: His Robin Jason was really good and I am really glad that we had those comics in which we could see Jason in an environment that didn’t include Batman. I was like looking at what Jason could have been if he had stayed with the Titans’ instead of keep on being Robin in Gotham with Batman.

This is the level in which I can still like some things about the story even though in general I didn’t enjoy the book.

Joshua Williamson: Yeah, but he is only here because his story seemed interesting, my issue as I have said before is his subplot “romance” and the fact that he seems to be the kind of writer that wants to push the “Batfamily” dynamic. Otherwise, his Jason characterization when it came to him not liking working for the Magistrate was really good, sadly it was overshadowed by all the bad that I just really didn’t enjoy at all

Chip Zdarsky: Tyler (Blue Hood) and Jason working to rid Gotham of a drug really brought me back to the good old days. I also really liked seeing the parallels between Jason and his mom with Tyler and his own mother, it felt like a good way to start a connection and develop a Red Hood story. Sadly, the book as a whole was shit and it ended horribly but there were some interesting moments.

Now we are looking at the level where I just wonder: Why?

Paul Dini: Why? His Jason really did a 360, and I meant it, I really don’t know what the point of Jason taking the mantle of another dead Jason was. His Red Robin was just a Red Hood in a different suit and that was that. I understand that they wanted to kill him because he was an anomaly and all that but, he just really felt out of place in that event. This was the first warning: Jason Todd/Red Hood only works on a street-level, stop trying to make everyone dimension jump and all that DC.

Bruce Jones: Hey! I forgot about this guy in the last post! He sucks! And his arc in Nightwing is the epitome of the question: Why? I get it, DiDio wanted to kill Dick and then have Jason take over as Nightwing but Dick didn’t die at the end of Infinite Crisis, he was still alive there was no reason to have Jason dress up as Nightwing and going on a killing spree, also, the tentacles? Really? Annoying and weird.

Scott Snyder and Tim Seeley: I ask why but I know why. This was a desperate attempt to use Jason in stories because they couldn’t use Dick Grayson. It was also weird because being there only pushed him more towards the Bat-Clan even though he had his Outlaws team going on. It was just weird and they were also big on unnecessary “romances”.

This is the Skrull Jason level. Here I see, hear and feel no Jason Todd.

Grant Morrison: Grant needed a villain and all they could come up with was this weird as red-haired-pill-headed-Red Hood and DC said “sure, why not?”. There is no real way to find UtRH Jason in this version of Jason and that for me is a little bit better than still seeing the Jason that I loved in whatever this was.

Tony S. Daniel: This one sucks the most because it isn’t that Jason is unrecognizable its just that Jason is the exact opposite of who he would have become. Everything about this Jason seems to come from the Upside Down. Him saying that Gotham needs Batman so he will be Batman and he needs a Robin was the wildest take that I have seen about Jason. I have no other words for it.

Hell.

James Tynion IV: whoever invited this man to this party needs to understand that they made a big mistake. All Tynion did was overpower the living hell out of Jason for a fight that wasn’t big enough to become a Batman/Red Hood event. The fight was so lame and so stupid, if Jason had learned the ancient martial arts move in the All-Castle and the used that and the All-Blades to defeat Ra’s it would have been more than enough, but in New 52 writers really wanted to make Jason look like the most experienced and best at being a hero when Kory and Roy were standing next to him.

Scott Lobdell: He sucks, New 52 was just terrible, there was nothing that I liked from it, character assassination for everyone, nobody was treated well there. He wrote a self-insert version of Jason and it was noticeable because Jason was trash in New 52. Rebirth was better but that didn’t make things better for Jason because Lobdell started to fuel the “Jason was guilty for his own death” and “Jason was a reckless Robin” narratives and here we are today. Lobdell danced around his own stories, his characterization of Jason and he never gave a fulfilling ending to any of his arcs. Some characters we only saw once some others simply disappeared. Nothing ever truly started or ended when it came to his writing.

Ginnungagap.

Geoff Johns: to him all I will say is: comprate un bosque y perdete.

Thank you for the ask! I had fun doing this! I wish you have an excellent day!

[hollandorks]

OMGGGG chapter 23 is my favorite so far!!

i love bruce povs and this one is no exception. the rubbing of the chest AGAIN?? obsessed. bruce looking back on the footage and thinking that he should have done better?? poor baby is so critical of himself. they really are so similar; each only thinking about the other making it out alive 🥺

i love that he woke up during the night and saw her sleeping closer to him. i had hoped this would happen so THANK YOU lol

bruce changing the bandage mostly because he didn’t want y/n to see the blood and worry? he’s so whipped i love it 🥺 also i absolutely adore them both daydreaming about the same moment (her hand on his stomach when she’d been changing the bandages) that’s so *chef’s kiss* and this is why i love seeing both povs 🥰 also both of them reminding themselves that “she wasn’t his” and “he wasn’t hers” AHHHHHH like YOU BOTH WANT TO BE EACH OTHER’S THOUGH

the shower scene 💀💀 HAHA

the last line of bruce’s pov is so sad 🥲 like no brucie u deserve the kind of love you crave and she WANTS to be that love for you!!

i love the way the reader’s reactions to the nightmares was written! the fact that she snuck into his room and left before he woke up 4 nights is so 🥺 they both just care about each other so much 😭 her immediate reaction to bruce waking up and seeing her there being to just leave is so relatable lmaoo. their interaction during this scene makes me so soft. him placing her hand over his heart? GOODBYE that’s so precious. i love that he insisted she stay in the bed. i’m sure it’s going to help his peace of mind too and he’s probably relieved that this gives him an excuse to ask her to stay!

bruce grabbing the fire poker is SO funny to me. like funnier than it should be!! also i’m kinda obsessed with the way he always tells her “stay here” and she never does LOL but it’s cool because she’s a badass!! i also adore her thought process. like, just the consideration of how they got in and where they could be now is very satisfying to me for some reason. her almost hitting bruce with the screwdriver is giving me flashbacks to the fire poker incident LMAOO

bruce and alfred silently communicating before going to take care of the intruders is also so satisfying to me. i love the way you wrote it!! i also love her watching bruce fight (as bruce)! honestly i just really love the way this entire sequence is written!!

“She could see the hard lines of Batman in the way he held himself. Feet planted. Fists clenched. Shoulders tight. For a split second, she blinked and could see the ghost of a cape and pointed ears in how he was standing.” i absolutely adore the way this is written. the ghost of a cape and pointed ears description is mmmm so good!!

i love them working in sync with one another 🥺 her countdown to 3 so that he’d know when to go too even though he wasn’t looking right at her��� just perfect. and i love his immediate asking her if she’s hurt. we love protective bruce wayne!

your cats are so cute!! their fur is so gorgeous and they look so fluffy 😍

and here is a song i listened to during this chapter: Afterglow by Taylor Swift (i had to include a taylor swift song hehe) certain lyrics remind me so much of them, especially the nightmares part of the chapter! but i mean… the lyric “tell me that it’s not my fault” literally is them!!

sorry if this ask was a bit incoherent! finals are still going on and my brain feels like mush at the moment!! i’m so excited for chapter 24!

🖤

***CH 23 SPOILERS***

You're welcome for that scene of him waking up and seeing her 😂 I'd thought of it but hadn't actually included it, then decided fuck it and wrote a whole POV for him!

So glad you love seeing the parallels between them and their POVs!! It makes me so happy people notice that stuff 🥺

I've said it before and I'll say it again--idiots to lovers!! They can't realize how much they love each other even though it's so fucking obvious 😂

Poor Bruce when the reader never listens to him. I hope he realizes that's how Alfred feels 😂 (I say as if I don't have the power to write it that way)

I really wanted to show Alfred & Bruce working together at some point and this situation became perfect for it! Might include more of that in the future, who knows

Ugh love when you guys point out specific quotes 🥺 I was so excited to be able to use that gif to go with that line about the ghost of the cape and mask!!

Also thanks, I love my fluffy cats 🥰 they're the best!! And way fluffier in person tbh.

Ugh that song is so cute!! Makes me think of a scene in a future chapter 👀 you'll see!

Good luck with finals bestie!! Hope you do well! ❤️

[dickgreyson]

dearest symeona

i’d like to join your little discussion and fill you in, since you were watching cat videos last year and seemed to miss everything. sounds like a much nicer time than i was having! because at the time i was being sent death threats and anti semitic hate for a holding a fairly uncontroversial opinion, or at least in the circles in which i run.

yes, i got upset seeing damian in a santa hat. because for the last few years, my dash every christmas is pretty jam packed full of christmas themed batfam posts and art. and as a jewish person, understanding that the creators of bruce and most of the batfam are jewish, i found this to be quite confusing and hurtful. and let’s just get this out of the way, bruce is jewish. dc has even published articles about this, and has confirmed it in a pussy way. but even without that, his mother, kate’s maternal aunt, is a jew. that means that bruce is a jew. unless he takes real concrete steps to renounce his faith and community, ethnically he’s still jewish. and he can be an atheist and STILL BE JEWISH. there are actually atheist rabbis, who just really love our culture and tradition, want to have a central role in the community, and guide other jews in a positive direction. and thats actually pretty wonderful. because again, judaism is just as much an ethnicity as it is a religion.

over the years, christians have written bruce as catholic and christian and atheist, and a broad range of other things. hell, in the 80s the phrase ‘caped crusader’ was coined by a christian writer, and i dont love hearing him referred to as that. i think it goes against the very core of why he was created as a jewish allegory. the same goes for people who believe superman is a jesus allegory - he isnt. he was written as a modern day moses parallel. also by jewish authors. he’s a jewish character to his core too. the author of the 1990whatever robin run even said he wanted tim to be jewish, and showed his mother in a jewish cemetery. its not as if intent isnt there.

comics as a whole were created by jewish people, to tell jewish stories to a wider audience. yes, there is some old official art of bruce and dick standing in front of a christmas tree. and that might maybe be because.... it was from the 40s. and i dont know if you noticed but in the 40s americans werent really fond of jews, and neither was the world at large. judging by the response of people in my inbox, they still arent. so these characters can still be jewish allegories, written by jewish people to convey jewish ideals and stories, in an antisemitic world. back then this lipservice needed to be paid in the name of assimilation, and i would have hoped today the need for this would have diminished. 

i hope thats enough context to introduce what happened last year, i was upset that it was all going to start again, and made it known. the artist even reached out to me, and listened to my point of view. because this actually, at the end of the day, isnt a huge deal. and im not sure why it grew, and why other people got involved, when the artist, urs, and i had sorted it out. it became a lightning rod for ‘free speech/art’ anti semitic crusaders.

what is a huge deal though is the hate and vitriol and racism and anti semitism that poured out of the people who associate with your side. Urs, my brave friend who vocally stood by me, received countless hateful messages about her being a survivor and a first nations american. i cant even count how many times i was called a kike.

so the real problem here wasnt the santa hat, it was that a jewish and native american person expressed unhappiness about something, and was met with a disgusting display of hate. thats the problem. that your side was so ready to resort to death threats and slurs. because someone expressed an opinion.

I believe that there is a difference between a person choosing to celebrate a holiday, and a non jewish artist drawing jewish/created by jewish people’s characters celebrating christian holidays. because the jewish person has a choice, but the character does not. at this point in time, there are very few practicing jewish and muslim characters in comics, and in media at large. so i dont think it’s appropriate to make everything christian and say no big deal. i think its more important to display diversity in faith and culture, even if dc is reticent because of cultural antisemitism at large.

when it comes to damian, i can’t speak to that with the same certainty and intensity as i can to the others, since im not muslim. but i do know that several writers have intended him to be muslim (again never committing in canon because comic fans are obviously not very progressive people), and muslim members of this fanbase have really connected with him. and i think showing art where he is muslim, and practices that in a loving and meaningful way, is way more significant and impactful than drawing him in a fucking santa hat.

it is actually very important for jewish people to conserve and practice our culture, and to be vocal about doing so. because people have tried to take it away from us time and time again. so to just brush this aside and say that ‘christmas is a coca cola ad so who cares’ (?) isnt good enough. because we were killed for practicing chanukah, so now its really important that we do. that we remember our tradition, and we pass it on. that we dont allow it to be wallpapered over in the name of assimilation.

all that needed to have happened was for someone to accept and admit that these are characters created by jewish people, to tell jewish stories, and act accordingly and respectfully.

so the problem, in the end, was that i was viciously and ruthlessly attacked for being a jewish woman with an opinion on something, and 10 months later deciding to get involved? i think thats a bad look babe xx

[withinycu-arch]

Since today is a headcanon type of day I guess. I’ve been thinking about Val Kilmer’s take on Batman and want to talk about it especially given Val Kilmer was Bob Kane’s favorite Batman. 

For years I never quite got why as Val always seemed a little stiff in the role to me. But having recently re-watched it I think I sorta get it now. The Batman/Bruce Wayne in Batman Forever is easily the most unambiguously good guy version of the character and the most human. 

He’s ethical, a little awkward, compassionate and strangely at peace with himself. A few scenes stand out for me in particular ass really highlighting the strength of this version of Bruce/Batman. 

The first is at the circus where the Graysons die. Two Face is holding the audience captive essentially demanding information about Batman convinced one of them is him. And Bruce immediately stands up and begins shouting he’s Batman, he just can’t be heard of the panic and noise in the audience. But that lack of hesitation when he sees someone in danger, a danger brought on because of what he does speaks volumes. 

It’s also telling that he feels what happens is his fault even saying ‘he killed them’ in one scene with Alfred in another of my favorite moments from the film. “Just like my parents. Its happening again... a monster comes out of the night, a scream, 2 shots.... I killed them.”

There are also several small moments peppered throughout such as him breaking down the door when he thinks Dr. Meridian is being attacked only to sheepishly realize she was only exercising. The way he’s questioned through out the film as too who he really is only to say he’s both.( ‘I'm Bruce Wayne and Batman, not because I have to, it because I choose to, I choose to be Batman Forever.’) His genuine congratulations to Edward Nygma when he becomes successful. 

The parallels between him and Dick Grayson throughout the film with Dick choosing not to be a killer, that it’s not who he is when he finally confronts Two-Face. 

It’s all very neat and I love it. 

[bigskydreaming]

hood-ex

i was like well he could just date some random dude who's an artist or something and then i was like oh wait. kyle. lmao. did dick and kyle ever have interactions when donna wasn't around? i mean i know dick found kyle's.. spirit? or whatever in jla. but any other major moments between them aren't coming to my brain

LOL, nope, Dick and Kyle have barely ever interacted ever. Just at Hal’s memorial and then the Obsidian Age, which was well after Kyle and Donna split......they never hung out with Dick when they were together, as he was....busy in Bludhaven. Like Donna and Kyle were together during that period when Roy was running the Titans and they had that weird lineup with Terra the Second and Impulse and Fake Supergirl and just....yeah. But point being like, that was basically right after Dick left the team and Kory left to return to Tamaran, so Dick was kinda deliberately avoiding most of the Titans at that time, as far as I’ve always viewed it.

But yeah honestly all my Dick/Kyle thoughts pretty much stem just from their very brief Obsidian Age interactions and then me going like, huh. I could see it. Its more based on just their characters in general, and the fact that I think they have such similar priorities and mindsets as to be more alike than different, but without being so similar that they’re in any way derivative of each other or like....immediate analogues. Like you think of either Dick or Kyle, you don’t immediately jump to the other because they don’t particular stand out as being interchangeable or anything, but when you dig a little into their characters you’re like, oh wow, they have a lot in common actually.

In particular I’ve always keyed into the slightly lonely nature of Kyle’s position as Torchbearer in the GL Corps. A nod to his time as the only GL left, and the fact that he resurrected the Guardians and restarted the Corps, essentially.....so he’s always stood a little apart from the rest of the GLs, even Hal and John and Guy who were still around in some way or another back when he was the solo GL. Its not that he’s not close with them, its just that he has a very unique experience among the GLs where for most of the Corps, they always had the support of the Corps behind them as they became more experienced as Green Lanterns. And the weight of what they all did as Green Lanterns and what people looked to them for, it was always spread among like....the whole Corps, whereas when Kyle was Green Lantern during his solo tenure, like, it all rested on him, there was no one else to look at or look to....all eyes were just on him. 

That pressure, that absence of anyone who can fully relate, its always made him stand slightly apart from the rest of the Lanterns, even now that the Corps is back, and its only been heightened by the fact that he continues to have very unique experiences. Like how he was the only one to ever master the full emotional spectrum on his own, without external additives, the unique way in which he became the White Lantern, the fact that he has such a different relationship with the Ion entity than even those others who’ve hosted it, etc. Also the fact that like, despite his reputation among the Lanterns and others, despite how highly he’s regarded by them, that doesn’t always translate into the camaraderie and support you’d think it would, and most of his most intense adventures or most emotional storylines still happen when he’s off completely by himself with no lifelines. Because as much as he matters to the Corps and is valued by them, there’s always this kinda disconnect that frequently translates into a lot of distance between them and him, both physical and emotional.

And I’ve always thought there are a lot of parallels to the way Dick often feels like he’s alone even when in a crowd. That unique kind of pressure that comes from being the FIRST Robin, the original leader of the Titans, the guy who so often has acted as a trailblazer that others followed but without fully being able to relate to that experience of being first, of not having anyone TO follow, to have to make it up entirely as he went and hope that he wasn’t screwing up too much because it wasn’t like he had any precedent to look to or others to compare himself, his triumphs and his failures to. The way so often the buck stops with him and there’s no one really to pass it off to even when its not actually his fault, its more just.....people feel a need, a want to blame someone, and there’s not really anyone else to look at in his stead there. The similarities in how he also has such a positive reputation overall, and is seemingly so valued and respected by his various communities, and yet despite this it doesn’t always translate into direct and tangible support, leaving him often actually being cut-off and isolated during some of his most emotionally intensive storylines.

I think they have a lot of insight they could lend each other stemming from their respective experiences with the weight of legacy, which parallels without being the same....because the angle, the perspective is different with them. Kyle struggled with the weight of having to carry the entire legacy of the Green Lantern Corps by himself and feeling the responsibility of not wanting to let his predecessors down. Dick struggles with the weight of having his legacy carried by so many others and feeling responsible for what they go through as a result of that. And then at the same time Dick also struggled with the weight of carrying Bruce’s legacy as Batman at different times, such as Knightfall/Prodigal and then when he was lost in time, and now Kyle struggles with the weight of his legacy as Ion being carried on by others and the legacy his existence as the Torchbearer is creating for after he’s gone.

Additionally, they both have abundant experience with feeling under a microscope, like their every action is being scrutinized and they’re constantly being compared to the larger than life figure they’re most directly linked to. For Dick its Batman, for Kyle its Hal. That thing where they’re simultaneously expected to BE the equal to Bruce or Hal, or even better than them, but also at the same time being not exactly blamed for Bruce’s and Hal’s mistakes, but treated as even though they had nothing to do with their actions, they might as well have, kinda? Constantly compared to Bruce and Hal and with people saying they would have done this or that instead, but also with people quick to act like Bruce and Hal are their personal cautionary tales and tell them how dangerously close they are to becoming them whenever they do something that even slightly parallels the older two. 

Also, they have this distance between themselves and Bruce and Hal....Dick because of the chasm between them during the early years of Nightwing and Kyle because Hal was basically a villain and then dead during his early years as Green Lantern.....but without anyone ever really factoring in that they’re not as joined at the hip to Bruce and Hal as people act like and they not only have nothing to do with the worst of their mistakes, but the older two weren’t always as involved in the younger two’s successes as people credit them as being. And that very niche feeling that only they can really relate to, where Dick and Kyle so often end up being Bruce and Hal’s biggest defenders, and how often this overwrites or gets in the way of Dick and Kyle ever getting to fully express valid resentments they have of how Bruce and Hal’s own actions and choices and reputations impact Dick and Kyle’s lives and actions and choices.

Plus I think they’d just be good for each other - Kyle actually does have the ability to relax and unwind with his art and other hobbies in ways Dick could definitely learn from and benefit from applying to his own life, and Dick has the gravitas and weight of history and experience that means he can really address in actionable ways that Kyle can truly internalize, like the longing Kyle has always had, despite his many accomplishments, to really feel like he isn’t just a hero by happenstance or mistake, that he really belongs among their number. Kyle was a diehard superhero fanboy before he ever got the ring, and you can’t tell me he didn’t have a crush on the first Robin when he debuted back when Kyle was probably in middle school (they’re actually pretty close in age, with everything lending itself to the idea that Kyle’s of a similar age with Dick and the original Titans). Likewise, you can’t tell me Dick has anything but respect for someone who manages to establish himself and his own reputation despite how easy it’d be to be overshadowed by his predecessors and their actions.

They both have extremely parallel storylines even in their particulars......both have been briefly killed then presumed dead and then isolated from their loved ones for a period for a ‘solo mission’ and then blamed for that upon their return, even though Dick wanted nothing to do with that mission and was forced into it by Bruce just like the same is true of Kyle who was backed into his by the Guardians. Both have struggled with suicidal ideation in the past, most notably in the aftermath of Blockbuster and then with Kyle, his subconscious literally created a nemesis for him named Oblivion, who wanted nothing other than his death, because Oblivion was literally Kyle’s own death wish made flesh and blood by Kyle’s willpower and leftover Ion energy. 

Both have nightmares of being hijacked by someone else’s will and used as their puppets, with Dick and his many times being brainwashed and Kyle and his time possessed by Parallax. Both have extremely complicated feelings about children that were never truly theirs, both have been the scapegoat for crimes they didn’t commit, both are wracked with guilt for things they choose to take responsibility for but only because nobody ever told them it wasn’t actually their fault. Both are rape survivors whose rapes were never taken seriously or treated like they matter, and both are desperate for the approval of loved ones and mentors who actually do approve of them very much, but just often struggle to show them that in the ways they really need in order to BELIEVE it.

I could go on, lol, but like, you get it. Don’t worry, you’re not forgetting about some super significant story between Dick and Kyle, it really was just me latching on to that one story from twenty years ago where Kyle’s like if we get out of this alive, I want a hug, and Dick’s like deal, and I was like SOLD. And then my brain manufactured all these other reasons why clearly they are soulmates, and thus you have the Good Ship Dick/Kyle, which I shall sail forever more, no matter if I am only ever a crew of one.

afsbjkfabhjkfaghjkfalhkfla

[thesassywitchofthenortheast]

Late Night, Date Night

A/N: I’ve had this like half finished for a while now, but I finally got the thought on how to finish it, so. Here we go! A little Dickkory fluff.

I hope you are al staying healthy and safe. I look forward to screaming about season 3 with you all very soon!

The vibrating of the table shakes Dick out of his fog, scrambling through mountains of papers to find the culprit. His phone is buried, he can’t even remember the last time he’d seen it - somewhere between going over the initial case report and finding the connection to a older cold case. He finds it just in time, hurriedly answering the call without checking the caller ID. 

“Well, look at that. You do know how a phone works, who knew.” Kory’s voice shakes him even farther out of his haze - her worried, yet incredibly annoyed tone bringing the real world back with full force.

“Fuck. Baby, I’m sorry.” He sits up in his desk chair, throwing his head back to look at the clock on the wall. 9:45 pm, a full three and a half hours past when he had promised to be home for their date. “I got sucked into this case and I lost track of time.” 

“Mhm.” 

“I really am sorry.” 

“I know. You said that last week too.” She sighs, loudly. His guilt of forgetting once again, made even worse by the tone in her voice. Kory was clearly heartbroken, another promise he had broken. 

“In my defense, last week wasn’t entirely my fault. Bruce had that Joker issue.” Dick know’s its a sorry excuse, but he says it anyway. Maybe if he can blame last week on Bruce, the pain of forgetting twice will subside. 

“True..” She takes a long pause, like she’s debating whether to start a fight - or simply let it go. Again. “Still, that’s two weeks in a row of you bailing on date night, Detective.” 

“It’s not like I want to -”

“You just get caught up and lose track of time.” She finishes his sentence, with an ease that makes his heart hurt. She knows him, too well. Knows his lines, his excuses, his reasons. Dick loves it, most days. The ease of knowing there is no reason to hide himself from her. That he can be open and love, fully, without fear or judgement.  “And to think I got all dressed up and pulled your favorite dress out of the closet.” 

“Oh, not the red one.” Dick leans back in his chair, eyes closing as he tries to picture her in the dress. 

“Yes, the red one.” 

“Damn it.” He sits up, taking a swig from the now very cold coffee on his desk. “If I swear on my life that I’ll be home by 10:30, will you keep it on?”

“See, if I said yes, then you’d get away with forgetting our date. Again. And we can’t have that.”

“Kory, you’re killing me.”

“I am well aware of that.”

There’s rustling on her end of the line, like she’s walking through a door - or taking of the dress which pains him in more ways than one. “It’s a good thing that you’re predictable, Grayson.” 

“What do you mean?”

“Turn around.” He does, at a speed that would rival Barry or Wally, and his breath catches.

Kory is there, a few rows of desks back, wearing the red dress and holding a bag of take out. “I had a feeling you’d forget so I called the front desk an hour ago and asked if you were still at the precinct.” She smiles and struts over to his desk, her stilettos clicking with every step, until she’s leaning against it as she places the food on top of the massive pile of papers. “So, I’ve brought myself and dinner to you. I’m forcing you to take a break and eat - and actually spend time with me.” She says the last part with a shadow of pain - as if she actually believes he’d ever avoid being alone with her.  

“Hey,” Dick moves to stand before her, cupping her cheek in his hand, “I love you. You know that, right?” Her nod of acknowledgment is small, but it’s there. “Don’t ever feel like I don’t want to be with you, okay? I don’t forget on purpose.”

“I know,” Kory’s voice is small, unsure. 

“There’s no where else I’d rather be.” He looks at her deeply, with all the love he has for her pouring into her vibrant green eyes. He kisses her briefly, before turning to the bag on the desk behind her. 

“That smells amazing.” Dick reaches to pull the takeaway boxes out of the paper bag. “How’d you manage to get Parallel 37 to do this? I thought they didn’t do take out?”

“They don’t,” She smiles, moving around him to sit in his chair.  “You’re not the only one with connections you know.” Kory crosses her legs in that way she does, a devilish grin on her face. 

He laughs, shaking his head. He could pester her to find out how and who, but it’s not worth it. Not while she’s sitting here, at his desk, with food, looking like she’s just been dropped straight from Heaven itself. 

Dick places his hands on either side of the chair and leans in close. “I really am sorry.” 

“I know.” Kory smiles again, leaning her forehead against his own. 

“I also really fucking love you in this dress.”She laughs jubilantly and he wastes no time in capturing her laughter in a kiss. It lasts perhaps a moment too long for their current setting, but he doesn’t really care. 

When he can finally muster the strength to pull away, Dick makes quick work of turning his desk into a functional dining table. As he hands her a tupperware of food, he makes a mental note to set an alarm on his phone for the next date night. He’ll be damned if he misses another moment with her like this. 

[zebrabaker]

Pain, Loss, and Recovery; Part 9

Here it is, as agreed! If anyone wants added to the taglist, please send an ask!  Remember, Patrons get early access, even Basic, which is only $5 a month, while VIP is $9 a month. I also made a ko-fi if you guys want to help me out!

PLEASE COMMENT

Marinette, after spending several minutes cooing over the motorcycle and the helmet he had presented her (it was pink with a cherry tree design on the sides, and custom made) she leapt into his arms again.

“Thank you, Dami. I needed this. Not the motorcycle, obviously, but the distraction.”

“Of course, malaki. I’m always here for you. We all are, from Alfred to Cass, we’re here for- oh no.” Damian blanched.

“Dami?” Marinette asked from his arms, craning her neck to look at him.

“We forgot to tell Cass.” He whipped out his phone, and groaned when he saw the screen. There was over a dozen missed calls from his youngest sister, and almost twenty texts.

“What? Oh, she’s probably so worried!” Marinette gasped. Damian frantically dialed, calling Jason to assess the damage.

“Demon Spawn, where the hell are you? You, Bruce, and Dick just up and disappeared, and took Alfred with you! No one has called us or even texted! Cas is flipping out!”

“Todd, shut up. We left for Paris. Tom and Sabine have…” He glanced at Marinette whose joy was gone, replaced with concern and sadness. “passed away. I’m just calling to tell you that we won’t be home for some time. Tell Cassandra, one of us will call with more information soon.”

“Demon Spawn, wait! You can’t ju –” Damian hung up and shoved his phone in his pocket, sighing. “Those back home have been informed of the basics. Now, I had Chloe bring a pair of your leggings, your sneakers, a leather jacket for each of us, and I brought my helmet. Want to take it out for a spin?” He gestured at the bike, and Marinette bounced in place.

“Yes!” She squealed, running back into the building.

X0X0X

They zoomed down the streets, bobbing and weaving through traffic. Marinette was pure grace on her bike, dancing between cars and trucks, guiding the motorcycle like it was second nature. He was sitting behind her, arms around her waist as she leaned into a turn. He leaned with her, taking the turn so sharp that they were almost parallel to the asphalt. They came to a stop in front of the bakery, and Marinette dropped the kick stand with an easy flick of her ankle. She reached back and tapped his knee, and he dismounted the bike, pulling off his helmet with the ease of practice. Marinette slid off the bike and removed her helmet, shaking out her hair, which was partially matted to her head with sweat. With the way the sun touched the horizon behind her, and how her hair shined in the light, she looked just like an angel. He felt his ears burn a bit, and he cleared his throat to grab her attention.

“Dami?” She asked, staring up at him. He coughed a bit, emotions clogging his throat. She looked at him who was so damaged and broken, with such trust, so much love, and all he could do was try to give her the world in exchange.

“You mentioned when we talked last week that a new fabric shop opened and you hadn’t had a chance to go yet. Would you want to go now? The SUV is parked in the garage, and I can park your bike while you change.”

“Really? That sounds fantastic, my knight. Let me run up to my room and change, I’ll be quick, promise!” She ran past him, froze, ran back, pecked him on the cheek, and ran off again. He chuckled, grabbing the handlebars of the motorcycle and carefully walking it back to the small garage behind the bakery.

After waiting almost twenty minutes, he began to worry. Marinette was picky with her outfits, but she never took more than fifteen minutes to get changed. Killing the engine, he stepped out of the car and made his way in through the back door. He was in the living room when he heard it. Muffled sobs, echoing from the ajar trap door to Marinette’s room. He bolted up the stairs, before freezing. His angel was sitting on the floor, still in her dress from the funeral. She was sobbing, no, bawling her heart out, clutching something to her chest.

“Malaki, mahbub, nur hayati, I’m here. Please, what has you so upset? All I want is to fix this, to see you whole once more. What’s wrong?” He dropped to his knees behind her, setting a hand on her shoulder. She couldn’t even seem to hear him, so lost in her pain. Damian gently scooped her into his arms, cradling her to his chest as he stood, walking over to her chaise. He may not be able to calm her down, but one of the many things Dick had taught him in the last seven years was that sometimes, crying was a good thing.

After far too long, her sobs abated. He stopped rocking back and forth (It had been an attempt to soothe her, okay? He wasn’t the best at emotions!) when he heard a few sniffles, and looked down to see his angel staring blankly at her knees, still curled into a tiny ball.

“Hey, malaki.” He murmured, hoping to catch her attention. Luckily, he succeeded. She blinked a few times, before looking up at him.

“I…I don’t know if I can do this.” She whispered after a few seconds of staring at him.

“Do what, my luck?” Finally caving to the urge, he shuffled his legs a little under her. She shifted herself to the side, curling up beside him so that she was in the fetal position with her head against his chest.

“I can’t be strong anymore. I’ve….” Taking a shuddering breath, she pressed on. “I’ve tried so hard to be strong, first against Chloe, then for all of Paris, then Lila and Paris at the same time, and I’ve been doing it for years. I’m tired, Damian. I’m so tired, and I can’t even rest yet.” She sounded so shattered, and something in his chest raged, raged at the fact that Marinette, his perfect, amazing, wonderful angel, had been made to face this alone, that she’d not been willing to turn to him for this. He swore, then and there, to make everyone who ever hurt her pay.

[youngdreamer3214]

Too Late

Disclaimer- I don't own anything.

Jason is former thief, Red X (because I like the thought of Jason being the anti-hero).

The story is set in the future.

It was drizzling ever so lightly, raindrops rested like dew on blades of grass and new washed leaves. Light winds were blowing and the day gave a comforting vibe. The huge glass dome built by Cyborg kept the rain out but gave the view of the beautiful scenery around them.

A hero formerly known as Robin, now Nightwing was adjusting his bow tie and fidgeting in his seat. "Dude, stop fidgeting, it is becoming annoying." Beastboy groaned from sitting right next to him. Nightwing sighed and stilled.

His unmasked eyes held sadness; he looked ahead and saw a handsome man, with broad shoulders and lean body standing in a black tuxedo and an amethyst bow tie and a white boutonniere. His sea green eyes complemented his tanned features. His jet black hair with a lock of white was combed back and the white of his hair made him look a little dangerous, he was Nightwing's adoptive brother, Jason.

A former thief and newly minted hero or for a better term- an ally of the heroes, all thanks to the bride.

Jason looked happy, a smile never leaving his face but his eyes also held a little bit of nervousness. Nightwing looked around and saw his mentor, but right now their father, Bruce Wayne also sitting in the front row with a content smile on his face, clearly happy for his son.

A few other members of the Justice league were also in attendance with all the Titan community present. Beastboy noticed his sad gaze and sighed "I know how you feel…but you know what happened…"

Nightwing sighed and nodded. After a couple of minutes the wedding band started to play and the bridesmaids walked with their respective escorts. Jinx and Bee were the bridesmaids sporting a mid thigh violet dress and a beautiful flower piece in their hair.

Soon after the maid of honor, Starfire walked in wearing the same dress but with different colored flowers in her hair, she was beaming, clearly happy for her best friend. They all took their respective positions near the end of the alter.

Jason and Nightwing's eyes were glued to the entrance; Jason looked happy and ecstatic with a tinge on nervousness in his eyes while Nightwing's eyes held regret. After a couple of moments the bride entered and everyone got up.

Raven looked absolutely stunning; she was wearing a beautiful white mermaid gown, which trailed after her as she walked, the dress was sleeveless and was covering her neck. Above her chest and till the beginning of her neck there was white lace. There was an intricate design decorating the gown. She was wearing emerald ear rings and her hair was curled and pulled up in a voluminous bun. A lock of hair was stylishly pulled out, which was framing her fore head. And a veil was drawn over her mid night blue hair. Lastly her face had a light blush on her cheeks and some make up to enhance her beautiful amethyst eyes. She was smiling brightly and that just made her look more beautiful.

Everything about her anatomy was breath taking; she was holding a blue and green bouquet of flowers while her big brother, Cyborg escorted her down the aisle.

Nightwing saw her wide smile and remembered the time when that smile was directed towards him and him only. And now it was for another man and the worst part was that, that man was his brother.

He saw her giving Cyborg a kiss on his cheek and then accepting Jason's out stretched hand and stood parallel to him, in front of the priest.

Nightwing zoned out and remembered his times with the empath. Them forming the team together in Jump City, him becoming her best friend, watching the sunrise together before everyone else woke up, sharing their fears with each other, their bond, saving her from Slade, learning the truth about her past, giving her hope, working with his nemesis at the end of the world, braving hell to find her and her hugging him in happiness.

And over the years they had only grown closer and had shared many moments together. When one day-

Robin had woken up early as usual and had headed to the roof. Every day without fail he and Raven had spent time together on the roof, talking about themselves or something that was disturbing them or sometimes they sat in comfortable silence just relishing each other's comforting presence.

Today as he opened the door, he was met with absence of the empath. This was weird; she always was the first one up and on the roof. He waited for a while but she didn't turn up, he panicked and headed towards her room, he knocked but was met with silence, and no other sound could be heard from the room.

His worry was increasing by the second, everyone else was still asleep. He tracked her communicator and found her on the edge of the Titan Island, sitting on a rock. He walked towards her and said calmly "Morning Rae."

Without turning around she said in her old monotone "Morning." He sat on a boulder near her and asked with concern "What's wrong Rae?"

She sighed sadly and said "What am I to you Richard?" this question caught him off guard and he looked at her with confusion and asked her "What does that mean? You are my best friend Raven."

She finally turned to look at him and said "Is that all I am to you after all this time and after all we have been through."

"What are you saying?" Raven took a deep breath and said "I like you Richard…a lot and more than a friend."

They were silent for a while, her confession hanging in the air between them. He looked at her and said "I can't believe it…and no matter what we cannot be in a relationship. It won't work out…this thing which we have between us is the only good thing in my life right now and I couldn't bear to lose this."

"You know what the sad part is." She said after a long pause, "That you won't even give it a chance."

He snapped out of his thoughts when the priest turned to Jason and said "Your vows."

Jason took Raven's hands in his and said with love radiating his entire being "Raven, I look at you and think that how can someone as beautiful, smart and compassionate as you could ever love me. You make me want to be a better person. I lived my life thinking that nobody wanted me…and then a few years ago I met you, you found my heart and I let you in…and that's where you'll stay. I vow to honor and defend you and yours above all others. I promise to love you faithfully, forsaking all others, through the good times and the bad, regardless of where life takes us. I will share in your joys and sorrows and comfort you in times of need. All that I have is yours and from this moment on I give you my heart, my love as I give you myself for as long as we both shall live."

A tear fell down from her eyes, and her smile just grew wider. Nightwing grimaced and prepared himself to listen to the girl of his dreams vow to love his brother forever.

The priest turned towards the empath and said "Raven, your vows."

Raven smiled warmly at the man in front of her and said "Jason, you make me feel loved and wanted. You are the most amazing person I have ever met. Every day with you is an adventure and I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you…I pledge to bring you solace in time of need, to be your comfort, your sanctuary and to be your family. I promise to cherish you and uphold your hopes and dreams, to honor and respect you, to laugh and cry with you. I vow to love you, unconditionally. I give you my heart, my love as I give you myself for as long as we both shall live."

Her vows brought a tear of happiness in Jason's eyes and sadness in Nightwing's.

The priest said to Jason "Do you Jason Todd take this woman, Raven Roth to be your lawfully wedded wife, in sickness and in health till death do you apart?"

Jason smiled widely and said without hesitation "I do,"

The priest then turned to the empath and said "Do you Raven Roth take this man, Jason Todd to be your lawfully wedded husband, in sickness and in health till death do you apart?"

This was it, the moment where Raven would be taken away from his forever. In a couple of second Nightwing flashbacked again, he thought back to the time after Raven's confession.

Robin had started to date random fan girls and had changed his alias to Nightwing, to erase the thought of Raven from his mind. Not knowing the pain that he was causing her, he did everything he could to get his mind off the empath.

After a half a year Raven brought Jason with her to the tower, so that the team could meet him. They had been dating for three months then and she looked happy and really in love.

The team except their fearless leader really liked him and he genuinely seemed in love with the dark beauty, Nightwing confronted Raven about it. She just shrugged and said simply "I moved on Richard…and maybe you were right we wouldn't have worked out anyway."

In that moment he realized what he had lost and said to her "I am sorry Rae, please give me a chance. We-"

Raven interrupted him and said "I tried to give it a chance, but you were too stubborn…and do you know how much you hurt me in these past few months when you started dating other girls…we are perhaps best at just remaining friends."

As he saw her walking away, he realized that in these past few months the time he spent getting her out of his mind; she had been doing the same. The only difference was that she had succeeded even with the pain he had caused her.

But he was now haunted by her confession and his feelings for her. In these past few months she had drawn away from him and towards another man.

"I do" Raven said lovingly and that snapped Nightwing out of his thoughts. Jason beamed at her. The priest smiled and said "Then by the power vested in me…I now pronounce you man and wife *he looked at Jason* you may kiss the bride."

Jason lifted her veil, showing her beautiful smiling face. He caressed her face lightly before giving her a loving kiss. Every one cheered and clapped, a few wiped the wedding tears away and hooted for the newlywed couple.

A tiny voice inside Nightwing's head said as he watched the couple embrace "Too late."

They pulled away with huge smiles on their faces and walked out of the hall hand in hand towards their reception party.

At the party, Raven was having her first dance with her new husband. They both were glowing and there was closeness about them, which wasn't there even when they were dating.

They stole kisses from each other in between, after their first dance. Raven was approached by her new father-in-law to dance with her while Jason danced with Selina, Bruce Wayne's long time partner.

Nightwing couldn't take this anymore, he chugged down the drink in his hand and went to the balcony silently, hoping to get some time away from the party.

He leaned by the railing, thinking that if he maybe would have realized his feelings sooner then he would have been the one getting married to her today. This would have been their party then and she would be his.

After a while the balcony doors opened, Richard's highly alert senses caught this and he turned around, hoping that it would be the dark beauty who sought him out.

He turned and saw the stoic expression of his adoptive father, Bruce. Richard sighed and turned around, looking at the city again. Bruce stepped beside him and said to the young hero "You made your choice Richard; you have to let her go."

Of course he would know about his feelings for the dark beauty, he was not called the world's greatest detective for nothing, realizing that there was no point in hiding he said "I can't help but think that if I had realized my feelings sooner then maybe-"

Bruce interrupted him and said "Don't plague your mind with ifs, what is done is done…you cannot change it. So be happy for the couple."

Nightwing turned around and looked at the party through the glass doors, Raven had just giggled over something Jason had said to her in her ear. She turned to look at her husband and gave him a kiss.

He surprised his mentor when she said "She is good for him…after everything that happened to him, he deserves someone as amazing as Raven." Bruce followed his gaze and smiled softly at the couple and said nodding "Yeah, she is. And she gets along with the family also. She did make him a better man."

With that they made their way back to the party, the couple was just about to cut their extravagant wedding cake. The cut the cake and fed each other a piece happily, later they all were seated for dinner.

Nightwing knew that he had to talk to Raven once at least in private. He found her near the bar talking happily to Jinx while Jason was talking to the boys. After a couple of minutes Jinx left and Nightwing took this chance to speak to the empath.

Raven looked at him and smiled politely, she offered him a glass of strawberry champagne and said "Hey Richard."

He took the glass from her and said "Rae, I need to ask you something."

Raven nodded and urged him to continue, he took a deep breath and said "Are you happy with him?" Raven was taken aback with this question; her empathetic abilities sensed his feelings. She sighed and said "I thought we were over this, it's been two years."

"Just answer it one last time." He pleaded.

"…I love him more than anything, he makes me happy. The happiest I have ever been." Richard tried to smile and said "Then that's all I want, you to be happy…even if it's not with me."

At that moment Jason came up to them and kissed Raven on the cheek lovingly, he slid his arm around her waist, pulling her close to him. Richard was filled with sadness but he masked it well and smiled at the couple.

"Mon amour, it's time for us to leave." Jason said with a warm smile to Raven. She returned his smile and nodded.

Jason then noticed his adoptive brother standing in front him and said "Hey Grayson, having fun?"

Nightwing just forced a smile at his brother. Raven excused herself and went away, the two brothers watched her leave, both filled with love for the young lady. The difference being that one was happy while the other was regretful.

"She is an amazing lady Jason…keep her happy." Nightwing said seriously to the man in front of him.

Jason looked at Nightwing and studied him carefully; he knew everything that happened between him and Raven. He turned to the hero and said seriously "I promise that I will keep her happy."

Nightwing nodded, after a few more minutes Raven emerged she was wearing a white cocktail dress. Jason smiled and walked up to her, he kissed her temple and whispered to his wife "Let's get out of here…I am sick of sharing you with others." And he kissed her temple.

With that the couple headed outside, towards their black limousine. Raven's arm was interlaced with Jason's as they walked, his eyes watching her with love and happiness. Jason opened the car door for her, before getting in Raven tossed her bouquet backwards.

Much to everyone's amusement Wally caught the bouquet, he looked nervous while his girlfriend, Jinx looked happy. They all laughed a little, Raven just waved at her friends and got in the car with her husband.

They all cheered and wished them.

"Have the nice moon of the honey friends." Starfire shouted. "Safe travels." Bruce waved. "Have fun." Cyborg and Beastboy cheered.

Only Nightwing was silent, his mind chanting only one thing as he watched the girl of his dreams drive off with another man, the man she loves towards their future. You are too late.