#Bruce got so many secrets he’s keeping out reader for now :) | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

j0kers-light · 4 months ago

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hi bae, ik youve been going thru a rough patch i hope(in fact ik) you’ll bounce back harder.🫶🏻

i really wanted to make a request for a long long time now, no pressure write it whenever u feel like it i am just going to drop it here.

for me J has always been a Lana del rey song specially the ultra violence album, he’s shades of blue, he’s ultraviolenec, smts hes even brooklyn baby. Can you write something dark, like real dark where hes possessive, violent, exatcly like he was in TDK. Pulling stunts and dropping hints. maybe he kidnappes the reader or smt like that, he’s acting all crazy and violent but something inside him just makes him slip to a lil caring or loving side every now and then, which eventually leads to some serious SMUT 😏😏

the reader could be his enemy’s daughter(maybe even batman’s daughter lol i am going wild) he tortures her,loves her, takes care of her then tortures her a lil more but make no mistake the reader is a fireball she gives him that lil fight they have in her which makes J even more attached to her.

ik i am just blabbing and making no sense, but i hope ukwim. i am also attaching a link to my fav J edit ever which might give u an outline of what i am trying to say. maybe even add J’s POV.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CqyP1PdveA9/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

okay ill shut up now. feel better love you 🫶🏻

His Lighthouse: Broken Dolls (LedgerJoker x f!reader)

Broken Dolls - Oneshot

KEEP IN MIND THIS IS NOT A STORY UPDATE!

I feel ashamed that you had to wait so long for this request. Forgive me times a thousand @heathisbae !! I still love you and I got carried away with the word count. (10,500 words!!) I promise you that my blood, sweat, and tears went into this request. You should've let me stay in my enclosure. I LOVE DARK requests and I was in a dark and lonely place when I wrote this. The perfect mood for Broken Dolls.

Gather round children it’s time to go over some legal stuff. I usually do not care about trigger warnings. You are responsible for your own reading pleasure, BUT I’ll add a TW: List because yall gone need it. Chaos had a lil bit too much fun writing this one.. 👀😬

TW! Dark!Joker. rape, knife, blood, impact, choking, power play, dacryphilia, spitting, biting kinks, unprotected sex, overstimulation if you squint, degradation, no prep (foreplay is important kids) uhhhh�� I’m missing something. 🤔 It’s canon Joker people. He’s a walking trigger warning.

Just be careful if you decide to read this one. I know I went overboard but your mental health is always my top priority. Enjoy or not. It’s entirely up to you. Since its a dark request, I decided not to tag anyone except @heathisbae Read at your own risk 🖤✨

Your father made it virtually impossible for anyone to find out. By fate’s design, you looked nothing like the iconic figure you called “father”, and you were forever grateful for that.

Your skin complexion, eye, and hair color masked you from the surname that was your birthright. You were the rumored Wayne heiress that Gotham City whispered about. Many far and wide longed to meet you to strengthen their businesses by marriage, whereas others flat out questioned your conception.

Bruce Wayne had neither confirmed nor denied the mother of any of his children to the world. Not like he ever would. There were only a few secrets Bruce had left in this world: you being the most important one.

Your life would be in danger if anyone were to find out you were a Wayne or worse, the precious daughter of Batman.

Many were adopted into the bat family, but you were blood to Bruce. A last-ditch effort he made to secure his family’s legacy; He hired a surrogate.

Should Batman ever fall in combat, you could pick up the torch and continue the Wayne legacy.

At an early age you wanted to make your father proud and wisely decided not to follow in his footsteps moonlighting as a vigilante. The eldest boys, Dick and Jason, celebrated for days. They loved their half-sister and supported every decision you make, but they would’ve put their foot down should you have wished to don a bat suit.

Instead of violence, you dedicated your life to education. Only the best schools with full ride scholarships—your cv was lengthy as it was profound. You spoke multiple foreign languages, held many accreditations issued from all over the globe, and excelled at virtually every extra-curricular skill you could think of.

You were a hardworking, driven woman with a no-nonsense attitude. That much, you got from your mother.

You dominated any boardroom you entered, and your famous e/c eyes could make or break contracts with a single look. Now that was all your father’s genes. You gave the phrase, beauty and brains, a living breathing, mascot and Bruce couldn’t be prouder.

That unfortunately made you a target.

You shied away from public humanitarian appearances to avoid being recognized as a Wayne. Too many similarities with Bruce would make people curious. Instead, you worked behind a smokescreen and attended the many charities and sponsorship parties as a third-party spectator to oversee your work.

That way, you got to see your hard work being implemented into the community—far better results than your father’s monetary donations provided.

You took pride knowing your hard work was creating a change in Gotham City. With the safeguards Bruce and the boys had in place; it would take an actual genius to put the numerous clues together to uncover your identity. You could live in relative peace while still making a difference.

Sadly, your long forgotten surrogate mother would soon threaten life as you knew it.

Joker prided himself in being a vigilant man. Nothing, not even the smallest of details, went unnoticed by him and when it came to his best friend Batman, J took extra care to notice every little thing.

The level of surveillance Joker did on the dark knight bordered on obsession but in a way, he was. Joker strived to be twelve steps ahead of his arch-nemesis in order to maintain his freedom. Being shipped back to Arkham was not an option, so he took information gathering very seriously.

Joker knew that Batman was Bruce Wayne for years. He was surprised other Gotham villains or just the local law enforcement didn’t put the clues together. It was so obvious.

There was no point in telling the world Batman’s not so little secret, but when Joker studied the daily life of Bruce Wayne a bit further, now that was a blackmail gold mine. Having a one up on Bats just felt good and especially when Joker discovered the perfect weapon that would break the man once and for all.

You.

Tucked away and hidden in plain sight; Y/n Wayne, the perfect tool for Joker’s plans.

A father’s worst nightmare, seeing their child in distress, Joker looked forward to scaring Bruce with this latest prank. All he had to do was get close enough to steal you away, but Bruce kept you protected twenty-four seven. Smart man and Joker didn’t blame his bestie for being a protective father.

There were dangerous people out there who would dream of your demise if they knew the truth!

No, it was much easier to track down your mother and it was mere child’s play to make her talk. Joker thoroughly enjoyed extracting as much information from the woman before her untimely demise.

He found it was unfair that she was virtually defenseless while you had security tighter than most world leaders. It wasn’t fair in Joker’s book, so he set out to put your safeguards to the test.

And what achievement it was to outsmart Batman at his own game.

You should’ve known better. Dad drilled it into your brain time and time again to always be aware of your surroundings.

There was no such thing as a coincidence. Things happened for a reason, and it was up to you to detect any signs of danger at any given time.

The same could be said for that fateful night. You were feeling a bit overwhelmed by a journalist at a charity event. She kept asking probing questions—a few hitting too close for comfort about your identity.

How ironic that you attended every event the rumored Wayne heiress organized and knew so much about her personal affairs. What a coincidence how reporters asked you questions like you were the boss..

The curious woman would not leave you alone! Her mindless chitchat felt more like an interrogation by the minute. You feared your identity was compromised after one of her questions rang true, but she simply laughed it off and said that if you were indeed a Wayne, “You’d be way prettier.”

Whatever that meant.

Perhaps the comment hit hard since your longtime friend/rival, Lana, stole attention from the fund raiser with her scandalous outfit. The brunette reeked of new money and had an ego the size of Metropolis, demanding attention wherever she went.

Her appearance ruined your event for helping orphaned kids and turned it into a mini Met Gala. You had every right for storming out to scream into the back alley. She never failed at ruining things!

You were really letting your frustration be heard when a whistle nearby startled you.

“Listen to the pipes on that one.”

You quickly stopped screaming once you realized that you weren’t alone. A lone male was smoking in the same alley, and he locked eyes with you once he caught your attention.

They were an unnatural green that felt familiar however, you couldn’t place where you might’ve seen them before.

“By all means... don’t let me keep ya from your.. uhh temper tantrum.” He blew a long puff of smoke into the night air.

At first you were in shock, but that reaction soon turned into irritation. Just who did he think he was talking to you like that? “I am not having a tantrum thank you very much a-and... you can’t smoke here!”

He simply chuckled while taking another drag. You crossed your arms and tapped your heels on the concrete as you waited for a response. This guy was something else.

“Hello? Did you hear me?” You added.

“Yup.” He popped the letter p, “Loud n’ clear. Pretty sure this area is ah... employees only. Ya wouldn’t catch me smokin’ if ya weren’t out here being a brat, hm?”

He had a point, but you still scoffed at his choice of words. You had the idea of using your title as the boss of this event to get him fired; yet he would surely talk and by morning, Gotham City would know that you’re a Wayne. That was the last thing you wanted; however, it was worth the hassle if it got rid of him.

For now, all you could do was shake your head at this strange man breaking your employee’s no smoking rule. You personally selected all the staff for the event and your security team performed background checks on everyone to ensure your safety.

The gentlemen sitting before you did not jog your memory.

His presence made you uneasy and you took a step back, “Do I know you?”

He snorted, smoke emerging from his nostrils in comical puffs. “Uh no, but I knoooo~ooow you.”

The blood in your veins ran cold when the stranger stood up and stepped into the light. “Didn’t your dad tell ya not to talk to strangers Miss Wayne?” He said mockingly.

You took one look at The Joker’s grotesque scars and turned to run.

Joker grinned and let you have a running start although you didn’t get far. Your feet got caught in your dress fabric and made his job relatively easy. The two of you tumbled to the ground, Joker landing on your back, but that quickly changed with a sharp elbow to his nose.

You didn’t stick around to see if your hit landed, you just scrambled to your feet and tried to reach for the back door when a hand grabbing your ankle disrupted your sense of balance. One second you were upright, the next, you were on the ground seeing double vision.

Joker didn’t think you’d put up much of a fight. His research into you was limited, but he doubted that you had any of the fighting skills your father was notorious for.

Technically he was right. You had taken up self defense training from Jason and he reported that you sucked at it.

Despite your lack of skills and concussion, you weren’t going down without a fight. One of your nails scratched Joker’s elongated smile causing it to bleed and suddenly, he had enough of your little games.

You were making too much noise, and his window of opportunity to kidnap you was running out. If he didn’t move you soon, his plan would be ruined. You just had to make things difficult for him.

“Alrighty Y/n, time for a little nap. Shhhhh... shh easy now.” Joker dodged your wild punch to his face as he dug a syringe out of his pocket.

The sight of it made you panic and fight back harder but your scream of help was drowned out by a roar of applause from inside. The auction must’ve ended with a success. Joker pierced your skin and watched the milky white substance disappear into your system.

It was cold seeping into your veins as you still tried to fight back.

“Aht ahttttt don’t fight it. Let it happen.” Joker crooned into your ear; not like you could hear him. Your body felt so heavy, you lost function of your limbs so suddenly it was terrifying.

The Joker’s obnoxious laugh sounded miles away from you. When your eyelashes fluttered closed, Joker knew victory was his.

The environment that you woke up in was dark and cold.

Your limbs were still groggy with whatever The Joker had injected you with and after a few test stretches, you still had motion in them. Although it would do you no good. The distinctive sound of metal on metal gave away your current predicament.

You were chained to something.

You tried not to panic but you were unable to see anything a few inches in front of you much less see how far the chain allowed you to move. You felt something solid underneath you and concluded that it was some sort of mattress or padding. It was a small comfort while being confined in total darkness.

Wherever you were, The Joker was to blame, and you weren’t going to let him have this much power over you. You had to find a way out before he started his sick form of entertainment.

Every citizen of Gotham knew Joker’s M.O. You didn’t want to be tortured to death all for a laugh.

You waited until your eyes adjusted to the dim surroundings before exploring how much freedom you truly had.

You felt around in the darkness until your hands bumped into something solid. It was a surface with nothing that could help you escape on it, so you moved on. Minutes felt like hours as you stumbled through the dark, searching for anything useful. Just when you thought you were painting a clear picture of the room in your head, a door opened beside you.

The blinding light was nothing compared to the searing pain of the door hitting you square in the face or that of the trauma caused by falling to the ground.

The room was still spinning when your loudmouth got the better of you.

“What’s your f__king problem?!” You cried out. You feared that your nose was broken, it sure felt like it with the amount of blood you felt gushing out. The Joker didn’t seem phased by the display.

Instead, he stepped right over you and flicked on a light, blinding you in the process. “Errr let’s see... problems. MY problem.. Social injustice? Global warming…uhhh rush hour traffic?” Joker paused for dramatic effect and slowly turned to face you. You froze, feeling his emerald eyes rake over your form hungrily.

The unnatural hue seemed to suck you in the longer you stared. “You.” Joker purred.

“M-Me?” How were you a problem? He abducted you not the other way round!

You had never crossed paths with the Clown Prince of Crime until tonight. The two of you couldn’t be more worlds apart. You stayed nose deep in your humanitarian work and out of any trouble whereas The Joker was trouble personified.

The only thing that linked you to Joker was your father, yet you doubted the clown was smart enough to put all the puzzle pieces together to uncover that.

You prayed that this was all some sort of misunderstanding but judging how The Joker was staring, your hopes began to shatter one by one.

You instinctively shielded your body from the known threat and in doing so, your skin brushed against unknown material. The formal dress you originally wore for the evening was gone and replaced by a thin t-shirt and baggy men’s pants. The implications were not lost on you.

You turned to glare at the madman before you. “Who changed my clothes!?” If you were able to blush, you knew you’d be redder than a tomato.

This man obviously had no respect for women. He simply threw his head back and laughed, “The pleasure is allllllllllll mine.”

You failed at hiding your full body shudder and even worse, you were unable to silence yourself from talking trash. “Screw you.” You regretted saying it the moment you opened your mouth.

The room suddenly got quiet. Joker sauntered his way over to your mattress and crouched down so he could be eye level with you. He admired the fire burning within your e/c eyes for a time. Such a strong wielded fire, it was beautiful to behold. If Joker had his way, there would only be smoking embers after he had his fun. He would make sure of it.

The Joker always had an air of drama about him, and it took center stage as he spoke to you. “Ya wanna.. know something? You should be lucK-yyyy my boys didn’t change ya. They would’ve loved to uh.. what did ya say? Screw you.”

His choice of words held more meaning as he tried to brush a few strands of hair out of your face. You shut down that idea by chomping at his fingers the second they were within your reach.

You refused to sit around like some damsel in destress until dad or one of the boys came to rescue you. You would fight back even if it killed you.

To Joker, your little stunt was comical. You could rebel all you wanted; your antics would never compare to what he had in store for you.

He simply wagged his paint-stained fingers at you like a scolding parent and insulted you further. “Mm, feisty! I like thaT. But that’s no way to behave while you’re here. No noooo. No. You are a verry special guest, Y/n!”

Joker walked over to the table that you found earlier. You watched as he pulled out a tripod and took the time to set up a camera in your general direction. Once it was positioned to his liking, he mashed a button—and to your horror, a red light began to blink.

“Tada! May I present.... Y/n, my lead-ing lady in this uh.. short film of mine! The title you ask? Why it’s, How to Break Batman’s Little Girl 101!”

Joker’s words were like a sucker punch to your gut. They bounced off the thick walls of the room and echoed back in your eardrum's times a hundred. Your worst nightmare was happening right before your eyes. Not only did someone know who you were, but dad’s long kept secret was out—and his arch-nemesis of all people, knew about it.

You were blinking a mile a minute and Joker thought your lips flailing like a fish was oh so adorable. Kissable really but he shook that odd thought away.

He hyped up his performance so much, you weren’t sure if he was addressing you or the camera at this point.

“Oh come now, Y/n. Don’t act so sur-prised! I knew Bats’ secret for years now. We are friends ya know.... Mmm on second thought. Ya might wanna work on the security Batsy.. I just so happened to waltz in and steal your precious.... and might I add.... beau-ti-ful daughter away easy peasy. Did I mention she’s verrrry beautiful?”

You snapped out of your panic by Joker’s fingers grazing your cheek. Your response was instinctive by slapping his hand away. “Don’t touch me!”

Joker wasted no time reacting to your outburst. His gentle touch turned cruel and struck your face hard enough to turn it sideways right into the wall.

He quickly grabbed ahold of your jaw and yanked you back upright. You were forced to bear witness to his self-inflicted scars, all jagged and swollen up close. It was a permanent reminder just how insane this man truly was. Joker’s nails dug into your cheek and for a split second, you genuinely feared this man.

His green eyes were almost electric staring into your soul. “You’re mine now and I’ll touch ya however I want. Got thaT?”

Joker saw the insult queuing up in your brain and squeezed your face tighter in his grasp. You whined but still managed to part your lips to respond. “I’m not yours.” You growled.

A brief staring contest ensued. Green verses your e/c.

Joker admired your bravery; you questioned his sanity. He dressed the part of a gentleman with his three-piece suit and coattails (despite the outlandish colors) yet he was so far removed from the title. He was unpredictable in every sense of the word that you weren’t sure if you would survive a moment longer in his presence.

You were confident that someone would come save you, Joker thought you were too naïve to understand the gravity of your situation. In any case, he would have ample time to extinguish the fire blazing in your eyes before someone started searching for you.

He was so caught up crafting his mental plans, he didn’t notice the glint in your eye right before you bit his hand.

It hardly phased him and for your efforts you received a rough shove towards the ground. Thankfully the mattress softened the blow however you still had the strength to glare at The Joker in disdain.

“Let’s see how long that feisty streak of yours last hmm?” Joker chuckled under his breath and walked over to the door.

The sudden change in brightness blinded you again but this time you caught a glimpse of a bulky man guarding the door before he and Joker disappeared from sight.

Finally you were alone with your thoughts. The first thing you did was let out a shaky sigh and glance at the camera still recording you. The Joker didn’t turn it off and you concluded its sole purpose was to monitor you and collect material for the ransom cd your dad would receive.

You choked back a sob just thinking about dad. He would be beside himself knowing you were abducted. Finding out that his greatest enemy took you would be a low blow—one you hoped he would overcome in order to rescue you. Dick and Jason would steer the detective in the right direction but with every hour that passed, you knew dad would slowly lose his mind. He knew firsthand what Joker was capable of. Your nose throbbed bitterly as a harsh reminder.

There was nothing stopping the clown from killing you if he simply became bored.

If only you took dad’s words to heart and abided by his strict security measures. You had snuck away from your detail for a bit of privacy. Now you regretted that dumb decision. You were in Joker’s clutches with no chance of escape, and it was all your fault.

He chained you to a bedpost like some animal and now that there was light in the room, you could see it in its entirety.

It was a mini prison right down to the bare necessities. The Joker had every intention of keeping you here, cut off from Gotham City, most likely below ground to disrupt the bat tracker embedded in you since childhood.

You scratched at your wrist, praying that it miraculously still worked despite the odds. Surely your father, the world’s greatest detective, could locate his daughter with much less.

It was the only reassurance you had.

You were getting tired overthinking your predicament. There was nothing you could do at present, so with one last hesitant glance at the video recorder, you tried your best to get comfortable on the mattress and fall asleep.

That became your routine. Time held no value anymore.

Was it a few days? Weeks? Longer? How were you to know? You were confined to four concrete walls with no form of contact, save for the ever present blinking red light watching your every move.

You were forced to use the horrendous facilities they called a bathroom, and meals (which were surprisingly great) were brought to your room like clockwork while you were asleep.

You began to look forward to the tray that would magically appear on your table. It was the only connection to the outside world you had, and you didn’t take it for granted.

There was always a special treat on your dinner plate and it never failed at putting a smile on your face regardless of being a prisoner. You tried to keep a grip on your sanity with these small bouts of happiness, but it was obvious what angle Joker was playing at.

He was using isolation to mentally break you and it was working.

You thought being locked away all alone would be easy, but the constant silence was unbearable and before long you began to fear when Joker would return.

Not fearing him specifically, but of what you might do for a sliver of human interaction.

That visit came unexpectedly. You woke up from a nap sensing a presence inside your room. Sadly, you had embraced having hallucinations during your lengthy stay here, but this one felt a little too real.

Something didn’t feel right. “H-Hello?”

The door was still closed with the lights dimmed and there wasn’t a tray of food dropped by, so you glanced near the bathroom area on pure instincts. Nothing was inside the room except that camera that you loathed so much. Its constant flashing light both annoyed and comforted you. At least you weren’t completely alone.

You sighed to yourself and was about to fall back asleep when you felt something move behind you. Joker’s laugh blended in with your scream as you tried to scramble away.

You didn’t get far given that Joker dragged you back towards him.

The last thing you expected after waking up was a man lying in the same bed as you. It was a natural response to freak out, especially since it was The Joker pinning you to the mattress. “YOU SICK F__K! HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?”

You didn’t see the way Joker's eyes glazed over or the way his hands tightened around you before he grinned like a Cheshire cat. “Have I lost my… have I.. losT my mind?”

You tried to pry his hands off you, but Joker was just too strong as he continued to repeat your question over and over. His manic laughter was deafening in your ear. “Have I lost my mind, Y/n? Or have you?”

You looked up into pools of jade that glinted mockingly down at you. “What are you...?”

Joker cut you off by directing your gaze to the camera in the room. “Did ya forget I’ve been watching you this entire time doll? Talking to yourself, your uh... hopeless words of affirmation? Oh Dad will come, he’ll come save me! Hang in there, Y/n! You’re so braaaaaave and strong!”’

Joker’s imitation of your voice was cringeworthy as he repeated your own words out loud. He mocked your defiant spirit and hopes of escape as if it was a joke. Strangely enough, Joker’s tone softened, and he sounded sincere with his next angle of attack.

“You just don’t get iT. Daddy’s not coming Y/n. No one knows you’re missing, and nooo one cares either. It’s been a month now doll. If Daddy Bats really cared about his precious daughter, he would’ve rescued you by now don’tcha think?”

Joker was just messing with you. This was another tactic of his to break you down. He was a master of manipulation and his way with words was just as dangerous as his work with knives. His sole existence was to harm others and yet with your fragile state of mind, a part of you believed him.

You couldn’t believe that a month had passed with no one trying to find you. Was Joker telling the truth?

It was too absurd to believe. “N-No.... no dad cares about me. He wouldn't.... he wouldn’t give up..” You whispered. You didn’t know who you were trying to convince here, you or The Joker.

He must’ve seen the doubt starting to creep in for he pushed you a little further. “Are you sure, Y/n? He’s a uh, busy bat! Fighting crime always comes first, you know that better than anyyyyy one. He’s never had time for you...” Joker smiled, watching you blink back tears.

He enjoyed every minute of tearing down your defenses one lie at a time.

He leaned away and bit back a smile when you followed, seeking his contact. You were making this child’s play for him.

“Bats always sent ya away when you were younger. Never letting you err.. blossom to your fullest. He hid you away because you were a failure to him. A mistake. He never cared about you! But guess whaT?”

Joker waited until you looked up into his grassy green eyes. Were they always so expressive or was it your imagination that made them sparkle? It was the first source of human contact you had in who knows how long. You felt special to have The Joker staring at you the way he was.

The air in the room was filled with static energy as you waited for Joker’s next words. You craved validation, acceptance, and attention at a time like this. The Joker had starved you for far too long in isolation.

His hand raised up and softly caressed the side of your face and you missed how his eyes lingered on your lips longer than intended.

“I care Y/n.” He chuckled seeing you pout, “I mean iT! I’ve been so ah.. cruel to ya. I should’ve treated you better. You want me to treat ya better doll?”

Joker leaned forward and kissed both of your cheeks. The contact made you jump and blink up at him in shock. If he couldn’t hear your heart beating wildly, then he was deaf.

You soaked up his form of human contact like a sponge. How long had you been wasting away in this room?

Was it really a month like Joker had said? Right as Joker was leaning down to kiss you properly, you had a moment of clarity.

Who was to blame for you being trapped in here? Why were you here in the first place? The answer was right in front of you, buttering you up with sweet lies and fake affection. Joker was playing you like a fiddle, and you were weak enough to fall for it.

Not anymore.

The Joker was the enemy. He was full of lies. Dad would never abandon you so why were so inclined to believe this green haired clown? No amount of isolation, no form of torture, could break you to believe such. You couldn’t give up so easily. You were a Wayne. You were born a fighter.

Joker’s scarred lips ghosted against yours as you shoved him away. “You are nothing but a liar.”

You enjoyed his brief moment of shock before his eyes cooled into the hard emeralds that they were.

And just like that the act was over. One second you were in the comfort of Joker’s arms, the next you were tossed aside like trash and his true colors were revealed.

He towered over you like a titan as you tried to back away but there was simply nowhere to go. You were at Joker’s mercy, and he spared you none. Each kick to your body made you cry out for Joker to stop but he didn’t listen, rather he laughed and kicked harder.

You grabbed his ankle and begged him to stop but he jerked free and stomped on your wrist in retaliation. The audible crack was background noise to your earsplitting scream— yet it was all music to Joker’s ears.

He enjoyed the pain of others and yours was icing on the cake.

You sounded so pretty, so helpless and filled with anguish. He wanted to hear more. He was obsessed. How far could he push you until you gave under pressure?

Two knocks on the door stole Joker’s attention and his eyes watched as another person entered the room. Joker knew who it was. Anyone else wouldn’t dare enter while he had his fun.

Frost took one look at you sobbing on the floor before he focused his attention back on his boss. “We got trouble.”

Joker rolled his eyes at Frost for interrupting his fun although it was probably for the best. He didn’t want to break you just yet. Slow and steady won the race and he had all he time in the world to do so.

He might’ve went overboard today judging by how you visibly flinched when he moved in your direction, but he knew you’d bounce back defiant as ever. You had to.

“You’ll have to uhh, excuse me Y/n. It seems.. I’m needed elsewhere. Don’t. You. Move.” He patted your head and laughed all the way out the door.

The heavy sound of it closing did little to silence your tears.

The pain was nothing. You were more upset with yourself for not being stronger. Joker was destroying your fighting spirit in record time and you were powerless to stop him.

The bruises never faded, and it made sleeping even more difficult on your worn mattress.

Sure, Joker was considerate enough to cast your broken wrist, but it was a small gesture compared to the verbal and added physical abuse he bestowed upon you daily.

You became Joker’s personal punching bag and there was no end in sight to your suffering.

Each time the door opened, you were forced to endure Joker’s twisted mind games or his heavy hand. It didn’t matter that you were a woman, in his eyes you deserved every ounce of pain that he inflicted. And when he finally left you bleeding and holding back tears, your own thoughts tortured you some more.

Did father really abandon you? How was the world’s greatest detective, renowned for his state-of-the-art technology and gadgets, unable to locate his only daughter?

The days blended together and all the hope you originally had of being rescued, diminished.

The Joker enjoyed his daily visits with you but he could tell that it wasn’t enough. Your body was obviously battered yet your mind remained intact.

You still possessed a thread of hope that made you defiant to the end. You spat in Joker's face whenever he was in range, and you rolled your eyes at his half-hearted jokes about killing you.

“Then do it.” Your snide remarks often led to more beatings that did little to fulfill Joker’s goal.

Nothing seemed to be working to ultimately break you, so he decided to try a different angle.

You woke up to the smell of food in the air. Your stomach growled in want, but the reset of your body hurt too much to move. You debated skipping eating all together in favor of rest however that choice was made for you.

“Sit up.”

His voice. The root of all of your problems. You didn’t have the strength to be bothered with him today.

Joker waited for you to move yet when you remained lying down, he became agitated. “I won’T re-peat myself doll.”

Your voice cracked with your response. “I can’t. It hurts.” You just wanted to be left alone, to hurt in peace but Joker controlled everything here. As if you had a choice to begin with.

“Lemme help you.”

Just hearing the offer gave you the strength to flip over to face him. Surely he was joking. He wanted to help you?! After all he did? Screw the consequences, you had to speak your mind.

“Help me? You want to help me? Okay then. Go away! Far… far away and leave me alone! Or even better! Let me go! What’s the point of keeping me here? What do you want from me?!”

During your speech you began to cry and Joker (for the first time in his life) felt guilty. Your timeless beauty was marred by cuts and bruises that he caused, and he couldn’t justify his actions for creating them.

Somewhere along the way Joker lost focus of the mission.

It was all a game— to get at Batman but along the way Joker saw how strong you truly were. Anything he tossed your way, you deflected it with ease. You never faltered, never lost hope. Even now as you lay weak and hungry, your eyes set him ablaze.

You had won, he just didn’t know at what.

Joker didn’t know what else to do with this failed experiment of his. One thing was certain, he wasn’t letting you go. There was something about you that he couldn’t put his finger on.

Your rant fizzled off as you stared at Joker.

There was an odd gleam in his eyes that you were wary of. He looked lost in thought and when he snapped to, you were shocked to see a genuine smile appear on his lips.

You feared what his thoughts could lead to.

To mask your fear, you rolled your eyes at his lack of an answer and reached for your dinner tray. Your groan of pain made Joker wince. Were you really in that much pain?

Without thinking, he smacked your hand away and stabbed a portion of food with the provided fork. The two of you stared at each other in silence waiting for the other to make a move.

“I can feed myself.” You grumbled.

Joker gave you an, ‘are you sure about that’ look and tapped the fork to your lips.

Just thinking about moving used up too much energy and your muscles begged for you to take him up on the offer. The Joker, Gotham City’s notorious criminal, wanted to feed you dinner; who were you to deny him?

You begrudgingly opened your mouth while looking away from his smug green eyes.

The act was so demoralizing, but you kept your cool while chewing in silence and opening your mouth for the next morsel.

Just to be cheeky, you closed your lips around the fork and refused to let go. Joker didn’t think it was funny but he entertained your bratty behavior nonetheless. He considered stabbing your tongue—but thought against it. There was no need to be violent.

He was trying a different angle to this whole hostage situation he created. Your defenses were down tonight and he would be a fool not to take advantage of them.

A quick glance to his right confirmed that the video camera was still recording. Perhaps it was time to send a message to daddy dearest and make some progress.

You were under the impression that Joker was taking pity on you with his nice guy act. He was patient, feeding you bites of food and not shoving it down your throat like he’d done in the past when you tried starving yourself.

He was being.. (dare you say it) nice. You should’ve known it was too good to be true.

He finished feeding you and you thought he was moving onto the slice of cake that was on the tray. You had been eyeing it since Joker uncovered it and you licked your lips thinking about the delectable treat.

It would have to wait. There was an ominous shift in the air that completely blindsided you.

Joker didn’t know what came over him. He didn’t have any plans when he entered your room tonight. It was supposed to be a simple food drop—nothing more, but the moment his eyes landed on you curled up on the mattress resting so beautifully, what left of his demented mind, checked out early.

This past month and a half was filled with harsh lessons and far too many close calls. Batman and his ban of birds did everything in their power to find you and they almost succeeded once or twice.

Thankfully Joker was smart enough to place you inside a shipping container so you could always be mobile and out of reach. You hardly noticed the frequent moves since he coordinated them during your sleeping hours. It also ensured your meals were always hot and fresh since they could just travel to wherever Joker deemed fit to your standards.

Everything was planned down to the smallest detail, everything except developing feelings for you.

Now that was out of Joker’s control.

Underneath the clown façade, Joker was still a man and you were absolutely stunning with your aristocratic beauty and educated mind.

Your fierce personality drew him in despite you being a means to an end. You were supposed to be a form of entertainment, a toy until Joker got bored and let Batman have his daughter back but over time, Joker became attached to you in an unhealthy way.

You were Joker’s property, his special secret hidden from the world to do with as he so pleased.

He stopped hitting you and allowed you time to heal due to some unknown form of guilt. More and more tasty desserts were included with your meals to make up for his abusive behavior, and unbeknownst to you, Joker watched you sleep every night.

There was something soothing watching you blissfully unaware of the monster in your bed. He could slit your throat in your sleep but he didn’t. No, that would be a waste.

Joker found it better to sleep beside you and hold you close. He knew you would freak out if you knew all the liberties that he took while you were asleep.

From tracing your major arteries with a knife to leaving lipstick marks all over your skin—his feelings for you were disturbing and perfectly justified in his opinion.

Joker didn’t want the traditional lovey dovey crap most couples shared because he wasn’t normal. He wanted to own, to control, to destroy you completely and then protect the broken pieces that remained.

There was no concept of love in Joker’s mind and there never would be. Seeing you so docile as he fed you was the breaking point. He got a taste of your submissive side and craved more.

Why couldn’t you just give in and break already? You brought this upon yourself. You forced Joker to do this.

He blocked out the sound of your cries and wrestled your arms down to onto the mattress. His only goal was to get you naked and when you began to struggle more, he took matters into his own hands.

Joker grabbed the army knife from his pocket and sliced your clothes off. One motion caught your skin and you howled as the sharp metal tore it open. Joker saw red bubble to the surface and dove down to lick you clean.

He didn’t like hearing your voice filled with pain. It distracted him from getting hard and after staring you in the eye, you quickly got the message. Keep quiet or else.

You tried not to make a sound louder than your whimpers. You didn’t want to provoke Joker’s wrath.

“Much better. So pretty.” Joker hummed to himself when you were laid bare beneath him although he frowned seeing tears staining your cheeks. “Shhhhhh, hey hey. Look at me... Behave and it won’t hurT.”

He watched your lip wobble as you remained quiet. Your wrists were being held down by Joker’s hand, leaving you powerless to squirm away and he loved the power scale tipping in his favor. Good. You would always be beneath him.

He struggled a bit to unzip his fly but managed to get his cock out without letting you go. A shame you were being bratty and didn’t prepare yourself for this. He really had to do everything around here.

Joker spat on his hand and worked it up and down his cock, groaning to himself at the feeling. His eyes roamed over his doll and admired your beauty mid stoke. You had curves in all the right places that begged to be fondled. He wanted to touch them, but if he let go of your hands, you would act out.

He could see the fire burning in your eyes. If he gave you an inch, you’d take a mile.

Yet it was criminal not to mark you up the way he wanted.

Joker sighed as he lined himself up with your pussy. You panicked and tried moving away from his tip tapping your opening with heavy slaps to no avail.

“Are ya gonna behave doll?”

He shifted his weight and applied more pressure on your healing broken wrist when you continued to rebel. The searing pain made you bite your lip and cease struggling altogether.

“Now. Are you gonna be a errr.. good doll for me n’ stay realllllllly still?” Joker sang.

Your lip curled back, ready to cuss him out, instead a loud scream took escaped your lips as Joker began to force his way inside your dry entrance.

It burned. It ached. He was tearing you apart and you shook your head in agony as it continued without end. You didn’t think about the consequences, you bucked your hips away from the unwanted invasion.

You knew you were in trouble the moment Joker said your name in warning.

“What. Did. I just say doll? Dumb b___h.”

Joker let go of your wrists to hold your hips instead. Once he found purchase, he began thrusting in and out of your pussy. His pleasure was your torment. Your silent tears spurred him on and he swatted your hands away that tried to push him off.

Nothing would stop him after he got a taste of you. He was an idiot for not taking you sooner.

“Haha, you’re grippin’ me soooooo tight doll. Ease up for me!” Joker groaned louder to drown out your pathetic pleas. He would not slow down; you were too perfect to stop now.

He noticed the camera in the corner and got an idea. “Are ya enjoying yourself, doll? Why don’tcha give the ah.. a-audience a good show? Go on. Tell him how you feel.”

You forgot all about the recorder in the room! Your sharp gasp was music to his ears. You tried to turn away, but Joker would have none of that. He grabbed your jaw and forcibly turned your face towards the lens. Your tears were a paid actor for his production.

“Ya see that Bats? ThaT, oh f__k... t-that is the face of your failure. She’s all mine and I’m gonna take ahaha.. verrry good care of her. All mine.. d__n it..” Joker choked back a moan and licked the tears from your face as he sped up his thrusts. If he kept this up, he would cum before the fun really started. Although he shouldn’t have to be the only one getting off.

With a smug grin, he snaked a hand down to rub messy circles on your clit.

The response was instantaneous. You threw your head back with a mewl on your tongue. He felt the result of his adventurous touch the same time you let out an unexpected moan. “Oh? Ya like that doll?” He mocked.

He laughed at you trying to deny deny deny but your body was speaking on your behalf.

You tightened around him and he felt the slick begin to coat his cock. He arched an eyebrow at the sudden turn of events. You really were enjoying this. He wondered...

He stroked your clit faster and was rewarded by another sweet moan gracing his ears. His doll made the prettiest sounds under distress. He could see the confusion dancing across your features.

“Ohhhhhh Bats! You have a naughty.. naughty girl! Enjoying my touch after begging me to stop just minutes ago? Ah.. mmm, it's okay doll! M-Moan louder. Enjoy ittt, I know I am. Mm, you feel better the uh wetter you become.”

Joker stopped mid thrust when you clenched down unexpectedly on him. Were you trying to crush him to death?

He wondered if you could feel him throbbing in your pussy. Your tiny fists were beating on his clothed chest but there was no point in pretending.

You were enjoying yourself and if he was correct to assume, you were getting close. You just needed a little push and Joker had just the thing.

“I knew you were secretly a whore. Only dirty sluts get off on being used like a toy. Hehe. It's a-always the quiet ones f__k!” Joker chuckled to himself followed by a shuddering groan. You were very close. He had to act fast.

Without warning he bit down hard on your shoulder. You moaned out before covering your mouth with your hand. It was too late; Joker already knew what kind of woman you were. He bit harder and rejoiced as blood bubbled up to the surface to coat his lips. Finally, he was marking you up the way you deserved.

He sped up his thrusts, laughing at the sloppy sound of wet skin on skin in the room. His cock happily slid in and out of your pussy now that you were horny.

You were shaking your head in denial even as your legs shivered on Joker’s shoulders. He licked the fresh bite mark clean before whispering in your ear.

“Let go Y/n. Shatter into a thousand tiny lit-tle pieces— and when you snap them back together, I'll be righT here to ruin you all over again. And again. And again. I will always break you just the way you need. The way you deserve. So go on. Do itttt. B-Break for me.... For us.”

Joker thought you were beautiful before, seeing you admit defeat and cum was a vision from heaven.

Your cheeks darkened in color as your lips parted like the sea to allow carnal bliss to fall from its depths. You twitched uncontrollably in Joker’s hold, and he was more than happy to pull you in close as you fell apart on his cock.

You rode the wave of pleasure and swept Joker along with the force. He was caught off guard by your tightening cunt and came with your name a whisper on his lips.

No drug could ever compare to the high you gave him.

He saw new sounds and heard colors that he couldn’t name. His breath came in short pants as he came down. Words failed him, his head was still too foggy to process the world around him.

What could one say after an orgasm that intense? He just came inside your quivering hole, and he already wanted to do it again.

He couldn’t find the energy to even think coherently! All he could do was flop down next to you and sort out his senses in the right categories.

His paint-stained hands wandered aimlessly and began playing with the ends of your hair, much to your horror. While Joker floated in post-coital bliss, you fell back to your harsh reality.

You let this monster have sex with you and even worse, you enjoyed it.

You felt dirty, cheap, a literal failure. You allowed The Joker to touch you, to make you feel good. You came from his ministrations. God, you could feel him softening inside your used pussy. Your inner thighs felt sticky, and you shuddered realizing that The Joker came inside you. The room began to spin as you spiraled into a panic attack.

What would dad think when he found out? What if you became pregnant with this monster’s child. You felt sick to your stomach and feeling Joker playing with your hair, as if nothing was wrong, tipped you over the edge.

“Don’t touch me!” You wailed. Your shout made Joker come to and instinctively hold you closer to his chest. He wasn’t quite sure what was going on inside your head, but you didn’t have to be so loud.

“Doll... I ahh uh, already touched ya.” He rubbed up and down your back despite you flinching from his touch.

You made eye contact with the video recorder in the corner and Joker curiously followed your gaze. Oh. That would explain your sour mood. You were smart and deduced what he would do with the footage. “Listen Y/n..”

A knock at the door interrupted Joker’s sentence. He didn’t move an inch as he granted whomever on the other side entry.

You tried maintaining your modesty but it was a useless effort. You were bare as the day you were born in Joker’s arms and he wasn’t letting you go.

Joker’s henchman walked in and struck a conversation with the clown, pretended as if you didn’t exist. You wanted to crawl into a hole and die you were so embarrassed.

You didn’t notice what was going on until Joker snapped his fingers in your face. “Huh?”

Joker rolled his eyes at your lack of awareness. He sat up straight and ran a hand through his disheveled hair. “I said..... take a bath while I’m gone. I uh.. took your chain off for ya.”

He pointed at your bare ankle that was in fact free of the heavy metal. You twisted your leg, feeling the freedom granted to you.

You wanted to thank Joker but he was already walking out the door with his henchman. And just like that, you were alone. The silence was unbearable as the full reality hit you full force.

You didn’t fight back. Why did you give in so easily? Why did you miss the warmth of Joker body against yours? Just what was wrong with you for craving his touch?

Screw taking a bath, you ran straight towards the toilet to empty your stomach.

Sleep did not come to you when your mind was abuzz with doubt.

You paced the room while biting your nails and reliving your time spent with Joker over and over. You were beyond restless thinking about your uncertain future. What would Joker do now that he got what he wanted?

Would you be killed off and discarded like trash? Would your family be given the chance to mourn your passing? Would they even know what became of you? There were too many questions and not enough answers. One thing was for certain, you refused to sit around and wait for your fate.

For some unknown reason Joker removed your chain. It was a sliver of hope that you planned on exploiting.

The heavy metal door loomed in the distance. Before it served as a reminder of how trapped you were; now it was a shining beacon of hope. Either coincidental or simply a miracle, Joker also took the elusive camera with him. Nothing was stopping you from running, and nothing was holding you back.

Joker had slashed your clothes to ribbons but the woolen blanket on the mattress was still intact for you to wrap around your body.

It left you feeling far too exposed, but you had no other option available. Once covered, you padded over to the door and turned the handle to freedom.

The hallway was dark and ominous before you.

You weren’t sure if you wanted to venture into the unknown. You looked at the barren cell you were forced to inhabit and back into the dark void, weighing the odds.

You took the first step, then another, and another until you were walking with haste—desperately searching for an exit.

Your heart was beating loudly in your ears as you stumbled across a door with light poking out underneath the frame. It was the only lead you had so far towards an exit. You slowly pushed it open and regretted it instantly.

The room full of men all stopped their various conversations to stare you caught like a deer in headlights in the doorway. You quite literally walked into a den of wolves.

“Well well. Look what we have here!” One guy catcalled.

They all leered at your body poorly wrapped up in a blanket. It was obvious your purpose here at their hideout. Free entertainment.

The door slammed shut behind you, trapping you again, only this time in far more hostile conditions. You berated yourself for leaving the safety of your cell if this was the cost. You could barely defend yourself against Joker. There were too many men here to even consider escaping.

You backtracked right into a broad chest and the male laughed at you already cowering in fear.

He roughly pulled your hair while another pair of hands ripped your blanket away to knead your breasts. Whistles and laughter broke out in the room at the sight. “The Boss been keepin’ this from us!? Look! She’s freshly used too!”

You screamed as fingers stabbed their way into your cunt and explored inside. Their hands weren't like Jokers. There was no pleasure to be gained here and unlike before, your body did not warm up to the stimuli.

You were in pain as they groped and fondled your body and despite Joker being the origin to all your problems, you cried out his name to save you.

Someone yanked your hair again before shattering all your hopes with a handful of words. “Ya think the boss is gonna help you? You are nuthin’ to him! Just a warm hole for him to use. And now it's our turn.”

You closed your eyes to block out the pain. The last of your fighting spirit faded away as a lone tear rolled down your cheek.

Frost and Joker were waking back towards your room when they heard the loud commotion coming from the common room.

It was well in the night and nothing of note should’ve excited the men to be so rowdy. Most of them should’ve been on patrols in the first place.

Frost merely shrugged his shoulders and followed his Boss.

Curiosity killed the cat, but Joker was not so simple minded. He knew something was wrong. He wasn't religious by any means, but he prayed that this didn’t involve you.

He barged into the common room ready to scold his men when his worst fears came to light.

Joker didn’t think, he simply acted until nothing else stood in his way to get to you. Frost could handle the aftermath of his rage—you were the only constant in Joker’s mind the second he opened the door and saw you in distress.

He left you just a few hours prior, safe and accounted for in your room. He left to prepare better accommodations to reflect your newfound status in his life. Joker took great care of his possessions, and you deserved better than being tucked away in some dingy shipping container. You didn’t belong on the floor like a cheap whore. No, you were worthy to be displayed, dressed up like the doll Joker wanted you to be.

Never did he imagine he would return to this.

He fought his way to your side and fell to his knees by your side. His green eyes were wide with an unknown emotion as they took in your battered form.

He didn’t want to touch and accidentally hurt you any further yet something about the thousand-yard stare in your eyes told him you were no longer here to feel anything at all. Joker knew how ruthless his men were, but this was barbaric.

He didn’t regret killing them after what they done. His only remorse was not making them suffer more before death.

Joker gathered you up in his arms and tried shaking you back into focus. “Y/n? Y/n, c'mon doll! Look at me.. s-say something!?” He pleaded.

You mumbled something inaudible and curled up into a ball.

Rage. Guilt and surprisingly shame. Joker’s mind was wild with this flood of new emotions.

He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t have a single cell of compassion in his body, yet the sight of his newest toy utterly broken (and not of his own doing) had him feeling remorseful.

“I... I don’T.. I...” Joker gathered his thoughts with a deep inhale.

Frost watched the intimate scene while kicking over a body. It was a bloody mess in here; however, that had to wait.

Frost could tell his Boss needed some assistance. “I’ll run a bath.” Frost said offhandedly.

It would point Joker in the right direction at least rather than rocking you back and forth on the floor to no avail. The comment snapped Joker out of his musing.

Emerald eyes roamed over your sleeping form. “Bath. Y-Yeah uh she needs a uh.. bath.”

He nodded to himself and slowly rose to his feet to carry you out of the common room. He passed up your old room in favor of his own that had more privacy. Not like it would matter. You had yet to speak.

This was not the outcome Joker had planned. Even after he washed you clean and tucked you into bed— he sat by your side contemplating his next move.

You were no longer the shiny doll he wanted on his shelf. His own men had ruined you. They took away your feisty demeanor and all conscience thought from you that made this game fun.

Joker tried to get you to speak, to react to anything, but you remained stagnant, blinking owlishly at the wall until sleep finally took you. Nothing of the defiant Y/n that Joker had grown to like remained.

You left him with no other alternative. He got what he wanted, and it was time to move on.

In three more days, it would mark your two-month long disappearance. Bruce would be a liar if he said he didn’t count the days if not the minutes that you were gone.

He blamed himself for your capture and the boys tried their hardest to steer him in the right direction and not spiral into depression. Bruce loved all his children, but you were his by blood. You held a special place in Bruce’s heart and as such, he spent every waking second trying to find you.

No expenses were spared, and any lead (no matter how small) were investigated. Joker was smart, but Bruce was smarter. He would find you.

Dick and Tim investigated a possible lead and discovered where you were originally being held. You still had a sweet tooth and your favorite bakery recognized your custom order being placed and tipped off Wayne Enterprises about the person who picked it up.

Unfortunately, The Joker moved you before Batman could arrive at the location but now they knew you were still alive. It strengthened their hopes in finding you safe and sound.

Numerous rescue attempts were thwarted in the following weeks, but they never gave up. There would be another lead, they would have another chance to save you.

All hope was not lost.

Their patience was rewarded the day the Batcomputer picked up a signal on your tracker. It was finally online for the first time in months. Everyone scrambled to assemble at the pinned location. Bruce was ready for a fight and mentally prepared himself to do anything necessary to get you back.

None of the boys were prepared to arrive at the back of your office building. It seemed to be a mistake, it had to be. Was Joker sending them on a wild goose chase? Bruce scanned the area but there was only one faint heat signature detected. His nerves were on edge, already assuming the worst.

Bruce’s heart stopped beating when he saw a body lying in the delivery drop-off/ loading area. He didn’t wait for the others to secure the area. His father instincts were in overdrive as he rushed to your side, calling out your name.

You were unresponsive with only a tattered blanket covering your shivering form. That’s when Bruce saw the bruises painting your body and the cast still present on your wrist. He didn’t want to believe that this battered woman was his spit-fire daughter.

You were a shell of your former self when Bruce finally roused you awake. The fire that once blazed intently within your e/c eyes was gone and it was evident what The Joker did to you.

“Bruce, look.” Dick said as he picked up something near your feet.

Scattered around your body was a deck of playing cards. On the joker card a note was written in red.

You can have her back Bats; I don’t like broken dolls.

176 notes · View notes

igotanidea · 1 year ago

Text

Bonding: Damian Wayne x sister!reader

Request: from the prompt list : 4: "Didn't know you liked being pinned to the ground this much

Warning: nothing, it;s just fun and fluff, most likely set in the WFA universe.

***

„What happened to you two?” Dick could barely hold back the terror in his voice upon watching his younger siblings. Jason however was not so considerate and straight forward started laughing at Y/N and Damian, the former with the nose swollen and red like a Rudolf and the latter with childish patches all over his forearms.

“Have you two escaped the circus? Sure as hell with such look you would fit there!” he let out a laugh so loud it captured the attention of no one else than Bruce, who became alerted in an instant. It wasn’t usual for Jason to be this happy and chuckling and it was …. suspicious.

Similar to Dick’s, his face dropped upon seeing his kids in such damaged state and just sighed deeply.

“What did you do?” he rubbed his forehead, looking up to the sky probably wondering what mistake did he make (well, the question should have been – what mistake didn’t he make?). Never before had he looked so fatherly, like when Y/N and Damian started their mischief.

Y/N was the middle child, younger than Dick and Jason, but older than Tim and Damian, but Bruce could swear that sometimes she acted like a literal five year old. Especially when any of her brothers started messing up with her things. Especially when Damian did. No one could ever tell what atrocities she could resort to when he grabbed something that wasn’t his.

“It was all his fault!” Y/N cried out, her voice muffled by the swollen nose and she sounded more like a wounded animal rather than a human being.

“I am beyond your level, Y/N and cannot be blamed for…..”

“SIT!” Bruce growled in desperation, but neither of his kids listened. If anything they started bantering even more.

“Not many parental successes on your account, right Bruce?” Jason mocked, but the oldest Wayne didn’t bother answering. Instead he grabbed Damian by the collar and yanked him back and in the air so his feet started dangling above the ground. Luckily Y/N was too tall to do that to her as well.

“This is derogatory” Damian crossed his arms and pouted, the funniest look of her brother making Y/N laugh loudly “put me down, father so I can kick her ass again and….”

“Again?” Bruce eyes focused on his youngest son “what do you mean, again?”

“Nothing!” Y/N chimed in, desperate to keep some kind of secret

“Oh, are you ashamed to admit you got beaten by me in the combat, dear sister?”

“Shut up you little rascal!” Y/N threw herself at him, but this time it was Dick who grabbed her and hold her back

“What did he do?” Grayson asked, knowing well enough how much of a menace Damian could be

“NOTHING!” the boy struggled against his father’s grip

“Who’s afraid to admit what now?!” Y/N smirked at him.

“Ok, that’s it” clearly it was Jason who lost patience first “talk or I’ll draw blood.”

“You wouldn’t dare.” His sister threw him a daring gaze

“Wanna try me, sis? You already got a swollen nose and I can bet that this guy you like…..”

“SHUT UP JASON!”

“wait, there’s a guy?” Bruce was confused “who is he? Why didn’t I met him? How much does he know about us?”

“Not the time, Bruce!”

“LET ME GO DICK!!”

“Sorry, sunshine can’t really do that. Unless you tell us what happened.”

“fine!” she hissed “fine! I’ll tell you!”

An hour ago

“DAMIAN WAYNE!” her voice echoed through the whole Wayne Manor and made the glassed windows shake. Honestly, how could no one in the family of vigilante hear that was beyond her. “you little piece of shit, where the hell are you!?”

“Have you called me sister?” Damian emerged from his room, looking nothing but innocent with the play-pretend smile. But Y/N knew better. She was fairly aware that he was skillful in using that Wayne gene trying to charm people. Too bad his eyes were glistening with mischief.

“You can’t play me, you demon.”

“Did something happened?” he titled his head in curiosity, observing his sister getting more and more angry. Oh, how entertaining it was to see her face get red, her fist clench. Fascinating how girl’s hormones worked.

But clearly, he underestimated Y/N. Yes, she was an emotional young woman surrounded by no less than four brothers, but she was also an adopted Wayne. And the realization of that fact made her calm down. Damian wanted her to get mad. Which meant he had some sort of plan.

“My little, sweet, wonderful, lovely brother.” She quickly changed the method of acting

“Huh?” Damian frowned, still not used to people acting nice towards him. This was…. unexpected. Y/N was clearly cunning and he had to be prepared.

“Tell me, did you happen to see my phone somewhere around?”

“No.” the answer was clearly too fast to be convincing.

“Really?” she smiled and looked over his shoulder inside his room. The perks of being taller and seeing more. “Then what is lying there on your desk?”

“That’s mine.”

“Damian…..” her voice became serious, her posture tensing “give it back to me. Now.”

“No.” he crossed arms, mimicking her position. Oh, they were both preparing for a fight, neither even beginning to consider the option of relenting. “does father know about your little crush?”

“YOU WERE READING MY TEXTS?!!?”

“Do you even realize in how much danger you put us because of your silly little….”

“AH!!” he did not get to finish the sentence when she went at him taking him by surprise. However, not enough of a surprise that he didn’t manage to step back. Instead of pining him to the ground she tripped and dashed into his room, immediately reaching towards the bed to grab her mobile, but Damian grabbed her arm and yanked her back.

“You little rascal!” she yelled, when they started a real Batman-style fight. “It’s mine!”

“it’s a violation of the rules!” he spat back “we’re not supposed to be in a relationship with civilians!”

“what would you know about relationships?!” Y/N blocked his punch, turning around and tripping him up. “you were raised by freaking assassins!”

“How bad we don’t get to choose family, right?” he hissed, falling on his back on the ground but immediately getting up and attacking her again.

Y/N was good, skilled and intuitive, but Damian was smaller and maybe a bit faster and that’s why she did not see it coming when he glanced off the mattress and landed on her back, trying to tackle her to the ground

“GET OFF ME!” she yelled trying to untangle his arms from her neck

“Not a chance!”

They were struggling so hard that at one point this fight moved towards the corridor and with just one wrong step they started falling down the stairs, still doing their best to damage one another. Damian was pulling at Y/N hair, while she covered his eyes in an attempt to blind him. It took a few minutes of weltering, grunting and dapping before they ended up at the base of the stairs.

“Auch…..” they both moaned in unison, their bones and bones already bruised and damaged. It really did hurt.

“HAHA! I won!” Damian yelled as he realized that the position in which they landed allowed him to sit on top of her sister, his weight holding her down.

“Get off me you idiot…..” she whined trying to push him away, but not succeeding at all.

“Didn't know you liked being pinned to the ground this much, Y/N” Damian laughed at her poor, week attempt to get rid of him.

“AH!” she cried out again and started waving her hands at him, Damian instantly started the same and now they were laying on the floor, with him still on top of her, acting like toddlers and emitting battle cries.

“MASTER DAMIAN! MISS Y/N!”

Shit.

Alfred.

The butler just sighed deeply, too used to many very strange views and behaviors around the manor. Too many to care and ask questions.

“Please get up from the floor. Miss Y/N, your nose is bleeding and as for you, Master Damian you got bloody scratches all over your arms.”

“Sorry Alfred.” They followed every word Alfred said to them and stood beside him with their heads hanging low.

“Let’s patch you two up.” Alfred motioned them towards the living room, gathering medical supplied on the way.

Now.

“And he gave you a animal shaped patch!” Jason laughed so hard he had to grab his belly, almost rolling of the couch

“Didn’t you hear a word, Jace? He took her phone! She had every right to be angry and act irrational…” Dick took his sister’s site

“Hm.” Bruce grunted

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but good job on being stealthy” Jason chucked towards Damian “normally it would be Tim to try and do such thing.”

“Are you taking his side now?” Y/N’s eyes went wide “I can’t believe….. ah!” sudden outburst made her nose bleed even more and she held the nearby cloth tighter to the bruised part of her face. “mhmmmhmhm” she mumbled grumpily

“Hm” Bruce grunted again

“Aren’t you gonna say something?” Dick turned towards his father in a bit of shock. Normally Bruce would be the one to punish them both for disobeying the rules of the Manor but now he was just sitting on the couch, his mind wondering elsewhere.

“no.”

“What?!” four pair of surprised eyes landed on him in pure disbelief of how he acted.

“Wouldn’t make any difference. Another day another fight. Just…. apologize to each other. I’m going to the batcave. Dick, Jason come with me.”

“The hell I’m going to ….” Jason started but the look in Bruce eyes made him relent. And that was how Y/N and Damian ended up alone in the living room, sitting next to each other, eyes on the floor.

“Does it hurt much?” he asked

“Not much more than yesterday. I’ll be fine. “ she shrugged like nothing happened “Do you think they know?”

“About what? Our secret plan to make them all crazy and take over the manor?”

“Pretty much, yes.”

“Not sure. Might need some more observation on the matter.”

“So….. we do it again tomorrow?” she smirked

“Oh, absolutely” he smiled back at her, eyes sparkling. It was always fun to fight with her.

“Then can I have my phone back?”

“Sure, I’ve seen all there was to see. “

“I hate you, Damian.” Y/N grinned looking at him

“I hate you too, sis.” He replied with a smirk

And just like that, they bumped their fists. All was good between them.

****

Meanwhile, Tim was hidden in the batcave, glued to the computer, not realizing anything of the events happening upstairs. He only raised his head once he heard Bruce, Dick and Jason entering.

“Did they do it again?” he asked seeing Bruce’s harrowed face, being enough of an answer “Ha! Life never gets boring with those two troublemakers around!”

#damian wayne x reader #damian wayne x batsis #damian wayne x you #batfamily x batsis #batboys x batsis

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nanenna · 9 months ago

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Today I remembered that my favorite thing about having so many AUs is to pick up 2 AUs like Barbie dolls and clack their faces together while making smooching noises.

Behold my beloved DCxDP AU amalgamation monster: DeamonTwinAU and PhantomThiefAU (aka: Selina gives Danny a slutty slutty cat suit, good times)

The story vaguely goeth thusly: Danny is a halfa, the Balance, the Bridge Between Worlds, he is....... the Observants' glorified gofer. You see, there are a lot of cursed/enchanted/ghostly artefacts floating around loose in the living Realm and they need Danny to go retrieve them. Danny would rather not, but they just won't leave him alone about it. Can't a guy just live? At least let him poop in peace! Ancients! Fine, he'll do it if it'll get them to shut up. (Spoiler: it does, in fact, not get them to shut up.)

But you see, Danny has a secret: he was raised in an assassin ninja cult (at least for the early years) before getting adopted by the Fentons. Now the killing? Not a fan, no thanks, he's working on not increasing his kill count, thx. But the sneaking? He could use that. Sneaky ninjas are also good thieves, right? So he cobbles together a knock off League of Assassins outfit, buys a cheap portable lock picking set, and decides to make a game of how far can he get without using his powers (much. He's new at this okay?)

Batman is not having fun. There's some (possible?) League assassin running around stealing verified cursed/magical artefacts! Is Talia planning something? Is Ra's planning something? (Isn't he for real dead? Silly reader, no one is ever for real dead in DC.)

Robin is super frustrated. For all the same reasons Batman is but also because he just knows this new rogue is taunting him. Personally. Because he's Damian al Ghul Wayne and the whole world revolves around him, obviously. (And also because he once pointed at Robin and laughed before jumping out a window.)

Selina is intrigued. Who is this kid? How does he know what to go after? How does he keep evading the bats? Luckily she runs into him mid heist (fortunately they had different targets, she's intrigued but not enough to hand over her shinies to him) and oh he's adorable! She has to train him, it would drive Brucie up the wall. But then she sees his face and oh, she knows exactly who he is, even if he seems oblivious.

Because Danny? He's in Gotham for the ecto, for the Thomas Wayne full ride scholarship he managed to snag, and also because for some reason Gotham is full of so many cursed/ghost artefacts. (Lady Gotham is seething, she worked hard to collect all those curses! But this is her beloved dark knight's kid and she kinda wants him home. But she also doesn't want to give up her curses!) Back to the point: Danny doesn't care about ANY of the rich bougie people. The Waynes give out a lot of scholarships? Cool, that's nice and all. They probably also rub elbows with Vlad or Sam's parents. No thanks. Doesn't care. He's got better things to worry about.

Selina has got a plan though! She's gonna teach this boy how to thief properly, starting with better tools (including the slutty, slutty cat burglar outfit). She also knows that she can't let any of the Waynes (in or out of costume) meet Danny (out of costume). So does Lady Gotham. So does the universe apparently (or just Clockwork maybe), because all kinds of unlikely things keep happening to prevent it.

Danny is having so much fun though! He's learning new skills. Selina is giving him an allowance so he's not living off ramen and peanut butter sandwiches, he's doing well in school, he gets to stretch his ghost powers regularly to go above the smog cover and star gaze in peace. Everything's coming up Danny.

Selina decides it's time to flaunt her find in front of Brucie and makes Danny go to a gala as her date, she spends the entire time clinging to his arm and introducing him around to everyone. Including Bruce himself (who just so happens to have Damian in tow). Danny may not recognize Bruce, but he sure recognizes Damian, and Damian recognizes him if his utterly flabbergasted face is anything to go by. But Danny remembers what it was like living in the League. And so far as he knows Damian is still in it, he was the Demon Head's heir after all. Damian made sure of it.

Oh it. Is. ON! Now Danny is on a mission! A sibling rivalry mission! He is going to make Damian's/Robin's a living hell. Selina going on a heist that has no magical artefacts? Danny's there anyway, always have back up. That necklace in the museum has barely any powers and he wasn't even going to bother with it? Too bad, it's back on the list. He has no reason to be out at all but the bats are on patrol? Well so is Danny. Catch him if you can, suckers!

It's good for Danny, it's enrichment!

#dpxdc #dc x dp #dc comics #batman #danny phantom #nenna writes #just having fun playing with my legos #snap these two pieces together and see what we can build

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lazycats-stuff · 1 year ago

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Batfamily x teen!reader who’s like younger than Timmy but older than dami, and he’s also a vigilante and were one before being taken in by the family.

Anyways he has been with the family for a little while now and he’s close with every member, heck even he’s even close with the JL. But the batfamily doesn’t really know much about the reader’s past, and it’s a big deal if the world greatest detective doesn’t know ether.

So a mission goes wrong and the reader is hurt so they obviously have to remove some of their clothing to treat him and they are shocked when they find many scars on the reader’s body. They decide to ask them about it when he wakes up. Once the reader wakes up and sees his body wrapped in bandages, he panics and has a panic attack because he knows they know about his scars now. One of the family member comes in and calms him down, and once’s he’s calm, they ask about how he got these scars. The reader knows he can’t keep lying anymore so he reluctantly tells them. His backstory is like Damians and cass. His father has a clan of his own and he trained the reader from birth to be the best assassin in the world. His punishments and training were harsher than Damian’s even. But he ran away from all that when he was 10. By the time he finishes the rest of the family is there and heard everything, he just breaks down crying again and the whole family now comforts him, telling him he’s safe now. IM SORRY IF YOUR UNCOMFORTABLE BY THIS :(

Don't worry, I'm not uncomfortable by this. But my poor baby... Even harsher than Damian's training...

Summary: (Y/N)'s past is unknown, but a mission gone wrong reveals everything.

Warnings: mentions of very harsh punishments, scars, mission gone wrong, angst, fluff, the reader is just happy

Bruce loved his sons. That much was obvious and although he didn't show it with his words, he loved the with all his heart. But there was a slight issue.

(Y/N)'s past. The boy is in between Tim and Damian in age and also Bruce's favorite, according to Jason and Damian. Bruce had to repeat himself time and time again that he didn't have favorites.

He loved them all equally.

But there was a question about (Y/N)'s history. There was nothing on him. Bruce found him on the streets, just surviving. Bruce sensed that something was off about him, but not in a bad way.

Bruce could see it in (Y/N)'s eyes. He has been through something, but whenever he questioned it, (Y/N) outright denied it. No matter how Bruce approached it, he was always denied.

And if he decided to investigate?

There was nothing he could find. Absolutely nothing. It bugged him. He tried over the Batcomputer, he tried over the Justice League systems.

And he came up with nothing. It made him wonder, but he chuckled it up to being on the streets for a long time. But there are always something, there was always a paper trail. No matter what you are, a kid on the streets or something else.

Always.

But that didn't make Bruce love (Y/N) any less. And Bruce wasn't the only who thought about (Y/N)'s history. The other members wondered about his history too. Despite being here for a little while, he got close with everyone.

Even with Damian. That alone showed how important he was to them. Even the Justice League members were close with him. Every time one of them visited, they went to see him first.

No matter what. He got uncles and an aunt who were more than happy to hang out with him when he came with Bruce. Work and meeting be damned, their nephew is more important.

No matter who came, (Y/N) was the first priority.

To his siblings, to his father, to his grandfather and to his aunt and uncles. No matter what.

Every thing would come to a screeching halt during a Justice League mission. It was a mission to take over the carrier where the League of Light had meeting and by taking it down, they would have a shot at destroying the League of Light.

The brief for this mission was confidential and top secret. Batman was leading the meeting, clearly determined to get this carrier and the intel that it carried. Batman was leading the way with his sons and the others would hit from the sides.

If there is one person from the Justice League that you need to kill, that is Batman. They would land on the top of the carrier, going to the location with the Batwing.

It was going to be a very difficult mission. Bruce didn't sugarcoat it, it was going to be grueling. You never know what is going to be behind the corner of the carrier.

And more importantly, intel was the top priority.

" Alright. Does everyone understand what they need to do? " Bruce asked, looking at everyone in the room. Everyone nodded and they moved to their choppers or planes, depending where you were stationed.

The atmosfere was an excited, especially amongst the Batfamily members. But (Y/N) wasn't really that excited. There was a layer of fear. He... Knew just how much they were capable of. He was once hunted by them.

That was one of the reasons why he was in Gotham.

" Hey, you okay? " Damian asked, as they sat down at the back of the Batwing.

" Yeah, just... You know, there are nerves involved. It's not easy to fight the Light. " (Y/N) answered, trying to not make Damian worry. Damian looked at him for a few more seconds then sat down next to him.

He bumped his knee against (Y/N)'s, clearly not believing him. (Y/N) tilted his head, clearly telling him don't do it now. Damian let out a TTs and just leaned his head back.

(Y/N) leaned back too, closing his eyes.

What if he sees his father there? Or anybody from his past? Jason glanced at (Y/N), seeing his hands were clenched. Jason knew him good enough to know that this was reaction to fear.

He quietly nudged Tim's knee. Tim looked at him, then Jason shook his head towards (Y/N). Tim was also intrigued. Dick was now involved too, wondering what is happening. After being brothers for so long, they mastered the art of silent communication.

Tim subtly pointed at (Y/N)'s fist. Still clenched. Dick's brow raised. Why would (Y/N) be afraid? Sure, the Light is not easy to go up against. But they weren't afraid. (Y/N) had fought with a few members and he was good.

So what was the problem?

Even Damian noticed, also intrigued by (Y/N)'s reaction. The four brothers started talking with their eyes.

Is he connected to the Light?

Why in God's name is he afraid?

Does this have anything to do with his past?

Is the Light reason why he came to Gotham?

Maybe their answers could be answered today. Maybe.

They were on the carrier now. They knocked out a few guards and moved in. They didn't trigger the alarm yet, so this is good. Damian and (Y/N) moved together, watching each others back.

They moved slowly and quietly. They groaned quietly when the alarms started blaring. Damian let out a TTs, clearly annoyed now. They could hear the footsteps of the guards.

They got around the corner, stopping. They hid and just waited for the guards to come.

The guards were out like a light. They moved further in. Everything is supposed to be okay.

Well, Jason and explosives have to disagree. The carrier was now tilted on the right side and Damian and (Y/N) fell to the right.

" Hi everyone! So, a change of plans. I may or may have not destroyed an engine. " Jason said, making everyone groan over the comms.

" What did you do?! " (Y/N) asked, trying to stand up and steady himself.

" I was fighting back, okay? " Jason snapped back sarcastically.

" Oh my dear God. " (Y/N) said, clearly not impressed.

" Come on (Y/N). We have to go. " Damian said, moving on.

(Y/N) sighed, pulling up the schematics of the place. It took a long time for Bruce to find these schematics, but they were very helpful.

" Robin, get ready to hack. My guess is that it's under lock down. " (Y/N) said, moving faster. Damian and (Y/N) were near the central room. Damian got down on his knee, hacking into the terminal.

" Robin and I are ready to breach. " (Y/N) said into the comms.

" Good. Get as much intel as you can. " Batman said.

(Y/N) shut off the comms, swearing quietly as he heard guards coming.

" I will stall them. "

Damian nodded and (Y/N) dropped kicked a guard, knocking him out. The ship shook once more and an explosion started, knocking (Y/N) back. There was a hole in the floor, a huge one. (Y/N) could hear Damian screaming his name, but the explosion knocked him unconscious.

Bruce carried (Y/N) to the Batcave. It was a race against time. Alfred was notified and was ready to take him into the make shift OR. Bruce never felt so afraid and scared for (Y/N). After (Y/N) was taken care of, Bruce had to take care of Damian.

He knew that Damian was going to feel guilty. He knew it. He sent the other 3 to the showers.

" Damian. " Bruce started, kneeling down in front of Damian. " You are not guilty for what happened. You couldn't have known. Alright? " Bruce said, putting his hand at the back of Damian's neck and brought him into a hug.

Damian was pliant as Bruce brought him into a hug. Damian just nodded and pulled himself out after a few moments.

" I'm going to hit the showers. " Damian said, walking towards the showers.

Bruce stood up, looking at the make shift OR. He knew that Alfred was going to do everything in his power to make sure that (Y/N) fully recovers.

" Masters, I have some news... " Alfred said, solemn and dead serious.

Everyone was worried and on edge. Alfred sighed and tried to compose himself.

" I had to take a few few photos. I'm still shaken. " Alfred said, handing the photo to Bruce.

Bruce was confused and his heart fell down into his stomach. Scars... Scars all over his body. Stomach. Back. Arms. Legs. And they weren't fresh, but old. Who did this to him.

" We have to speak with him when he wakes up. " Bruce said, turning the photos over.

Jason walked out and Bruce knew he had to blow off some steam. The others were just silent.

They were going to over come this. They would help him.

After a few days, (Y/N) started waking up. He looked down and saw that his body was bandaged. Why was hi- Oh God. Oh nonononononono- His breath hitched and it got stuck in his throat. He couldn't breath. He heard beeping and a few moments later, he heard a few voices.

He saw Bruce's face and his voice. He gripped (Y/N)'s hand and (Y/N) gripped back.

" Tell me what you see. " Bruce said, gripping (Y/N)'s hand back a little bit tighter.

" You, Alfred, b-bandages.. " He was calmer, breathing more regular. Bruce knew that he wouldn't appreciate the hug and the close proximity.

" So, I guess you want to know about... This. " (Y/N) said, pointing at the bandages.

" We know you may not want to talk about it, but we want to help you." Bruce said, sitting down on the edge of the bed, still holding (Y/N)'s hand, but still giving him space.

(Y/N) took a deep breath and started. He told them about his father and his clan and how (Y/N) was trained as a weapon. He described the trainings and Damian was appalled by it.

Damian forced himself to stay calm.

And Jason wanted to punch something when he heard about the punishments. He forced himself to breath. This was about (Y/N).

Damian felt physically sick. Dick was pale and had to sit down. Tim was silent, trying to be calm, just like Jason.

The four of them just wanted to hug their brother.

" I ran at around 10 years old and ended up in Gotham. And the rest is history. " (Y/N) said, wiping his tears.

Bruce couldn't control his urge to hold (Y/N). He hugged him tightly and the others came in. They were pissed at the things and they reassured him that he is safe. They gave him their word that they would protect him.

If they ever saw his father, they will drag him to hell to meet his creator. No matter what Bruce said.

#bruce wayne x male reader #dc comics #dc x male reader #x male reader #batfamily #jason todd x male reader #batkids #batman x male reader #tim drake x male reader #dick grayson x male reader

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scoonsalicious · 8 months ago

Text

Unwanted: Chapter 4, Unwelcome - Pt. 2

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Avenger!Fem!Reader

Summary: When your FWB relationship with your best friend Bucky Barnes turns into something more, you couldn’t be happier. That is, however, until a new Avenger sets her sights on your super soldier and he inadvertently breaks your heart. You take on a mission you might not be prepared for to put some distance between the two of you and open yourself up to past traumas. Too bad the only one who can help you heal is the one person you can no longer trust.

Warnings: (For this part only; see Story Masterlist for general Warnings) Language, mentions of sex, hints of jealousy, some slight self-deprecation.

Word Count: 1.7k

Previously On...: Now that you and Bucky are officially FWB, you couldn't keep your hands off one another, which obviously meant having fantastic sex in your office.

A/N: And it's time to finally introduce our antagonist! Sort of! Although, I guess you could say the real antagonism is the angst and anxiety we meet along the way. Chapter 11 is coming along very nicely, hence a posting today. I hope you enjoy!

Banner By: The absolutely amazing @mrsbuckybarnes1917

Taglist: (Please let me know if you’d like to be added!) @jmeelee @cazellen @blackhawkfanatic @les-sel @marcswife21 @buckybarnessimpp @mrsbuckybarnes1917 @erelierraceala

"You're both so codependent," Nat said to the two of you one evening a few months later as you all sat gathered around in the common room after dinner. It was a rare occurrence where no one was away on a mission and everyone was Earth-side. The space was crowded, so naturally Bucky had offered you his lap, theoretically in order to open up some seating for everyone else. Aside from the two of you and Nat, there was Wanda and Vision, Steve and Sam, Clint, Thor, Tony and Pepper, Bruce, and Rhodey. Your perfectly imperfect found family. The only one who was missing was young Peter Parker, but it was a school night and Tony tried to make sure the kid had his priorities in order.

"No we're not," you and Bucky said in unison, which made everyone else either laugh or groan. You glanced up at him with a smile and then back to the others. "What can we say? We just really enjoy the benefits of our friendship."

Bucky let out a cough into his hand that sounded a lot like "Be cool, damn."

"How come you never volunteer to sit in my lap?" Steve asked with an exaggerated pout.

"Do you want me to get up, Star-Spangled Man?" you ribbed as you feigned moving out of Bucky's lap. "You can have him all to yourself." Bucky squeezed your waist in warning, holding you down against him. You knew that if you got up now, you'd be exposing everyone to the erection that had been rubbing against your backside all evening. Fortunately, Steve wasn't one to take such a joke very far.

"No, it's fine. I can tell when I've been replaced," he teased, though his smile didn't necessarily reach his eyes. You and Bucky weren't necessarily hiding the fact that you'd started having sex from everyone, but you sure as shit weren't shouting it from the rooftops. There would be far too many 'I told you so's or 'about damn time's for your liking, not to mention everyone asking 'what's the next step?,' so it was something you kept to yourselves. Besides, you both decided that the secret aspect of sneaking around made it so much fucking hotter.

"Good, you're all here," said Tony, breaking through the levity with a serious tone, "since we're all together for once, there's something we need to discuss."

All eyes turned to him. Usually, a serious Tony meant a global-threatening event, but things on the world-saving front had been fairly quiet recently, so you were all curious to see what he had to say.

"As you're no doubt well aware, because most of you aren't complete morons, there are more and more enhanced individuals coming out of the woodwork, and not all of them are identifying as friendlies. I know we've already got a great team here, but Fury thinks we could be better."

"Pretty strong opinion for a man who just sits around watching and talking," Clint offered from his position on the couch next to Nat where he was re-stringing one of his bows.

"Don't disagree, Barton," Tony continued, "but Fury's good graces and government approval are the reason we keep getting to do what we do. He wants us to expand."

"What, open up a West Coast Avengers second location?" Bruce asked with a laugh.

"He wants us to consider taking on some more members," Tony said. "Expand our capabilities. I was able to negotiate it down to one."

"Do we have a say in the matter, or has he already made the choice for us?" Natasha asked warily. Like you, the Avengers were the only real family she'd ever known, and like you, she was highly uncomfortable with the idea of allowing just anyone to join it.

"He's made some... suggestions," Tony said, holding up a stack of thick folders, "but the final decision is ours to make."

"Well, I say we stick with known quantities," Sam offered. "Like Tic-Tac. He proved himself in Berlin."

"Nah, Scott Lang's not a viable option," you interjected thoughtfully. "Maybe as a reserve or something, but not a full-blown member." At Sam's questioning look, you elaborated. "His daughter's young, and he doesn't have custody. He's not going to move across the country and leave her in San Francisco. Not for us, especially after being apart from her while he was in prison."

"Same's going to go for T'Challa," Nat agreed. "His priority is always going to be Wakanda, he won't give that up, nor should we expect him to."

"We could always invite my brother Loki to join us," said Thor with a grin. "He's quite skilled," he paused for a moment to think his statement through. "Though he is completely untrustworthy and could very well try to murder us all, so perhaps not. But what a humorous situation that would have made!" The eye rolls from around the room proved that, no, it would not have made a humorous situation at all.

"I wish Pietro were still here; he would be magnificent. A perfect addition," Wanda said wistfully, and you reached over to squeeze her hand. She'd done so much healing since her brother had died in the crossfire of the battle with Ultron, but you couldn't imagine the lingering pain losing a twin must keep her in. She gave you a grateful look as she returned your squeeze.

"Well, who else do we know that we'd actually trust enough to ask?" Rhodey posited. The ensuing silence spoke volumes.

"Natty, what about your sister?" you suggested. "You think Yelena would be interested? It wouldn't suck to have another trained Widow on the team. Plus, she makes me laugh, which, you know, absolutely crucial Avenger requirement."

Nat looked thoughtful. "I don't know if it would be her thing, but I could reach out; wouldn't hurt to ask. But I wouldn't get our hopes up; she's pretty dedicated to helping all the former Widows right now."

"Swell," said Tony with an eye roll, making a note on a piece of paper inside his folder. "That's one, maybe. But probably not."

"Well, what options did Fury send over?" Rhodey asked him.

Tony began handing out folders to everyone. Each page contained a brief bio of an enhanced individual Fury had vetted and thought might make a good addition to the team. He handed you a folder, then made to hand another to Bucky.

"I'll share with Pocket," he said.

"Of course you will," Tony said with a shake of his head. "You sharing your balls with her, too, Barnes?" You stuck your tongue out at him. "Nice, Pocket. The pinnacle of maturity," Tony muttered as he moved on toward Bruce.

"Not just your balls," you whispered into Bucky's ear, giving his cock a discreet squeeze. He did his best not to moan out loud at your touch.

"You are going to pay for that," he whispered, causing you to laugh.

"Why don't we take a look at these profiles?" Steve interjected with a cough, waving a folder in the air. Everyone began leafing through their packets. The room was silent, save for the shuffling of paper.

"Wait, here's someone we should definitely consider," Bucky said after a long moment, freezing everyone's attention. He held up a sheet of paper with a picture stapled to it.

You leaned over to get a better look and immediately felt an odd sensation deep inside as your eyes focused on the woman in question: Jade Carthage, code-named 'Vixen'. She had long black hair cascading down her back and vibrant emerald green eyes that, in your opinion, looked cold and calculating. She was absolutely stunning.

"Let's see..." you began reading out loud, "she's the only survivor of a secret Hydra super soldier facility. Looks like they gave her a relatively successful version of the serum, but she single-handedly destroyed their base before it could be replicated and defected to S.H.I.E.L.D. Damn; that's really impressive. Enhanced strength, regenerative capabilities, trained in various forms of martial arts..." While reading about her powers and skills, you couldn't help but feel a slight twinge of jealousy over your own lack of superhero abilities. It was a gentle though bitter reminder that, though you may be able to play in the Avengers' world, you'd never really be one of them.

"She seems..." Bucky said, almost reverently, letting the rest of his thought hang in the air. "We should definitely meet her." You weren't sure why, but the tone of his voice left your stomach feeling sour.

"Well, she certainly seems interesting," Tony said, perusing the profile, "but I'm not sure she'd be a good fit for the team; I'm not seeing anything unique she can bring us that we don't already have on tap, and I'd want to know why she was the base's sole survivor. What happened to the rest of the subjects? We'll have to look into her more closely before we consider inviting her."

"I think it would be a mistake not to at least meet her," Bucky said, his gaze still locked on Jade's picture. "You can't just walk out of a Hydra base, especially when they value you as an asset. She's got to be good at what she does."

The others seemed to agree with Bucky's assessment after reviewing Jade's sheet. The general consensus seemed to be in favor of inviting Jade in for a more in-depth interview and meet and greet before making further decisions. You weren't sure how you felt about it, but you kept your discomfort to yourself. After all, she could definitely be an asset to the team if they chose to make her an offer, and if she chose to accept, of course. Those were two big ifs that might amount to nothing.And really, when it came down to it, your opinion didn't matter. You weren't actually an Avenger. You were just... Avenger-adjacent. Shaking your head, you attempted to disperse the negative thought. It was a term you'd used to refer to yourself when you were feeling less than your friends, when you were being hard on yourself. You hadn't used it in a while, and you weren't about to let yourself spiral down the familiar path of self-loathing... at least, not just yet.

<- Previous Part / Next Part ->

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky barnes x y/n #bucky x you #bucky x reader #bucky fanfic #bucky barnes #bucky barnes fanfic #bucky x female reader #bucky barnes fic #bucky barnes fanfiction #james bucky buchanan barnes #james buchanan barnes #mcu bucky barnes #james barnes

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romanarose · 10 months ago

Text

Favorites of 2023

Hi! I've seen a lot people doing these so I thought I would too!

These are all sorts of Oscar Issac/Pedro Pascal fics that delighted me this year <3

I tried to keep it to one rec per author just because I have soooooo many friends with wonderful fics and blogs who deserve recognition

If yours didn't make it, NO FEAR you are still wonderful to me <3

Everything is labeled properly in the fic so be warned, many of this contains dark!

3 series that I couldn't stop thinking about

Hungry Hearts By @atinylittlepain: The Last of Us, A Bruce Springsteen themed Joel series? SHEEEEEEEESH

Yearling by @justagalwhowrites : The Last of Us, Jackson!Joel and a victim of prolonged sexual assault. If you know me, you know I love a traumatized reader healing with the power of love and friendship

The Fractured Moon by @melodygatesauthor : Moon Knight, NON CON, dark moon boys is always a slay but the way Marc is so tortured and Steven is so needy?!?!?!?! Mels characterization of Steven may or may not have influenced my Ben in ROF

Three fics that rewired my brain

On the Waterfront by @beefrobeefcal : Triple Frontier, Now, I've always loved a tubby man with a belly (who else had a crush on Samwise Gamgee in LOTR?) BUT DARK FRANKIE?!?!?!?! Turned it into a full obsession.

I can be your pretty girl by @walkintotheriveranddisappear : The Last of Us, Wow, I devoured every single chapter!!! I thinka bout it so much, ESPECIALLY that scene with Tommy... I've never looked at a pool ball the same way.

Dancing With Wolves by @hon3yboy : Moon Knight, Now, I'm not the biggest monster fucker out there, but this?!?!?!?! WEREWOLF MARC SPECTOR??? Unwell about it.

3 times men jerking off was hot

Caught by @toxicanonymity : The Last of Us, I've mentioned in the authors note for Keep Cry'n that this fic inspired it, it's one I go back to allllll the time

Take Care of me Tonight by @missdictatorme : Moon Knight, Jake is horny and lonely and jerks of..... reader helps, and makes our boy feel special <3

Pent Up by @ramblers-lets-get-ramblin : Narcos, Javi is... well... pent up, needs to let loose! and boy does he.

4 times it got gay bc something is wrong with me and I couldn't decide

Behind Enemy Lines by @astroboots : Triple Frontier, Y'all know how much I love this series, seeing as I wrote a fic for it XD but this chapter is something i always hold close <3

Captain of the team by @writefightandflightclub : Triple Frontier, MAAAAAANNNNN this fic is why I will never be the same as a person.

Trine by @my-secret-shame-but-fanfiction : Sucker Punch. Anyone who reader blue jones should be reading this. Incredible.

What if he never had to go? by @velocibeewords : Triple Frontier, The infamous series I read on my friend bachelorette weekend! So good I couldn't put it down, going so far as to read it at a casino XD Benny and Santi, my babies

3 times underused characters shined

Oxford Comma by @whatthefishh : The Two Faces of January, Tell me, how does someone take a character with almost no following and make a series so damn beloved by many??? Only Mona could.

My Ex's Tapes by @runa-falls : Lighteningface, Basil Stilt AND Jake Lockley??!?! God bless this mess hnnggggg

I'm Getting What's Mine by @winniethewife : The Card Counter, dub con, I think we as a society need more William Tell, and sensory deprivation to break down reader? Amazing.

3 times they talked dirty to me *trumpet noises*

Not a Survivalist Girl by @tightjeansjavi and @chaotic-mystery : The Last of Us, when they finally fuck??? HELLO?!?!! unreal

Only Daddy That'll Walk the Line by @millerscoffee : The Last of Us, Joel is so degrading and condescending in this I think about it so much it's fucking unreal.

Making Trouble by @juneknight : Moon Knight, The fic that completly fried the brains of the moon knight fandom. "You cried like I was killing you—except you were begging me not to stop" yeah. Yeah...

3 times there were three or more

The story of us by @pimosworld : Triple Frontier, This series has a special place in heart bc Priscilla said I influenced a lo of it with the characterizations and thats such a big honor. Priscilla Is so talented and I adore how she writes these guys... and the FishBen wins my heart

Eyes on Me by @cavillscurls : The Last of Us, Soft Joel? Tommy watches? AFTERCARE?!?!?! Y'all know how much I love aftercare.... I should read this again shouldn't I?

Run the Table by @katiexpunk : The Last of Us, MORE TOMMY JOEL THREESOME! MORE!!!! This one came out recently so its still fresh in my mind

3 Times I should NOT have been into that

No Soul to Sell @atticrissfinch : The Last of Us, NON CON V DARK, this is the fic that made me like... yeah I'm into piss. No doubt. It was so dark and hot ;-;

Plushies Series by @pedge-page The Last of Us, Haru knows how much I love this, and it was a toss up between this and their piss kink but seeing as I got that above.... plushes needs more love bc its so soft and domestic and horny <3

Plaything by @missannwinchester : The Last of Us, wow, I adored this fic… then I lost it!!!! Thank you to everyone who helped find it bc it’s one of my favs. I wanna be Joel’s lil doll he dresses up 🥺

3 times I said “this is underrated af”

No One But Me by @koshkamartell : The Last of Us, Are y'all tired of me talking about this fic yet? Koshka told me my series The Wrong Way inspired this so it's special to my heart <3

Safe by @criticallyacclaimedstranger and @apascalrascal : Triple Frontier, Cal has so many good Frankie one shots it was hard to pick, but this one is sooooo soft. We love Frankie being willing to listen and learn.

Through the Scope by @ssuperficialspacecadett : Triple Frontier, Y'all know I love a traumatized reader learning to heal, but his fic is fantastic bc it's a traumatized reader who has done a lot of the work already and is strong and brave as it is <3 Also, all 4 of the guys are her friends now which is the best way to have a fic

Thank you all soooooo much for all these amazing fics and for a great 2023! Well. Not so great, I had terrible time lol but y'all were my solace <3

If you feel so inclined, check out my best of year wrapped for both RomanaRose and Romana-after-dark

I'm not gonna say 2024 is my year, I leanred my lesson XD I am approaching 2024 with RESPECT. It will be the year it is.

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onmyyan · 1 year ago

Note

Okay so the idea one of the other asks had about a platonic to romantic relationship for neglected reader has me thinking again ( dangerous thing for 6 am I know)

For Bruce, the only way I see it working is if a neglected!reader isn’t their child at all. This requires a whole new concept to be introduced. Hear me out, a marriage of convenience. It makes investors happy to see the Wayne family having the added stability and reader attending events in Bruce’s stead let’s him do his work more efficiently. But even if it’s a loveless contract, the way they treat reader is cold- too cold. It’s like they’re a stranger in their own home, always out of the loop.

Reader may not have any Wayne family genetics to back up their intelligence but they’re no idiot. They know that there are secrets the whole bat family is keeping from them. And more importantly… with how often they roam the halls of the manor on their own they realize that it just doesn’t add up.

Rooms are simply too small for the length of the building and halls. Blueprints don’t match up when reader redecorates, Bruce just waving away their ask for permission and letting them do whatever- so long as they don’t touch his study. What does that mean? Only one thing.

Secret passages.

A neglected reader stumbling on the bat cave and realizing everything, but it doesn’t matter.

They didn’t sign up for this shit.

It was one thing being mistreated and avoided like the plague by every member of the bat family. To have peace making family meals be skipped over, for what reader now knows to be patrols and training. To have to take on not only the running of charity events in Bruce’s name, but deal with the snide remarks and comments of the nouveau riche about where their beloved fiancé might be. To have their name dragged through the mud by tabloids and reporters when Bruce’s escapes from events are seen as evidence of infidelity rather than him going to stop a bank robbery.

But to be sitting on top of a hidden fortress, or bat cave, of military grade weaponry and equipment? To be misused and left unaware by Bruce? Batman??? The guy who has more enemies apparently than Jason has bullets for his gun?

Yeah no, the money and stability isn’t worth it. It isn’t worth your life nor the dangers.

And damn, when Bruce realizes what he’s lost, it stings. More than he’d expect no doubt. He’s not naive enough to misread his own emotions, he knows he cares for his neglected fiancé or ex fiancé now… but how it came to be eludes him.

Maybe it’s because he’s a man of action rather than word. It makes him a piss poor father, many of the bat family seeing him more as a mentor than anything. So when he thinks back to how reader acted, playing their role as fiancé perfectly regardless of whatever impossible standard or task they had to complete. Wasting countless hours doing their best to be amiable with him at every turn just to shut out, the reality of it all was a bitter pill to swallow.

You tried with him, more than most have, more than most ever will. And look where that got you.

Your things all gone in a span of an afternoon, divorce papers or a waived contract and engagement ring left on his desk. Papers he can’t even remember signing, normally happy to sign and approve whatever budget you’d need just to get you out of his hair. And to think, not a soul knew where you were, not even Alfred.

Then he notices the alert from the bat cave

Security footage shows you wide eyed in the base, Bruce will probably remind himself as he suits up. It’ll be a liability for you to just run free he tries to say in his mind as his cape flutters in the night breeze.

He’s so used to working alone for so long that even now, with his expansive bat family, he still shoulders so many burdens alone- this one especially.

He did this, he needs to fix it. And he’ll start by finding you first and bringing you back home.

Let’s get it out of the way, assuming reader is part of the bat family by blood, Damian isn’t gonna be romantic in my mind. For the youngest Robin, it’s been a battle of wanting to fit in but also harshly rejecting those around him because the feeling of vulnerability is uncomfortable. He was raised by a ruthless assassin after all, as well as an admittedly less ruthless vigilante/hero. So it’s natural to reject a child of Bruce’s and write them off as annoying or scowl and curse at a fiancé reader trying to play nice with him. He didn’t need a half sibling or a mother. He already had a mother anyway. It’s only when either are gone that he realizes just how empty it is without their presence. The rest of the bat family had gotten used to their behavior and to some extent, so did the reader. The only difference is, reader kept trying to be nice while the rest shrugged off Damian’s abrasive personality and hardened heart as just a part of him. Like it would go away with enough patrols and training. Feeling colder than he’d like, all Damian wants to do is feel and see that warmth again, already out the door and taking to the streets to see if he can find them and make sure they still feel the same way once again.

Now… focusing more on a long lost neglected kid of Bruce’s-

Dick has a reputation for being the dependable one out of the bat family and it’s well earned. He works hard and sticks to his morals, but keeps it light and friendly when he can. Even out working in Bludhaven, he remains a contact for Damian and Barb to reach out whenever they need any help or advice.

A question for you though, just who do the dependable and the ones being leaned on depend on? Who do they lean on?

A younger Dick would have laughed and waved off such a question with a joke or witty comment. He was strong, capable, and in no need of saving he’d assure you.

But then reader leaves and it’s like the ground itself falls away beneath his feet.

Whether he can admit or not, he cares for the members of the bat family. Gotham may not be his home anymore, but he knows the people and streets. He cares for them, even from afar. Sure, the text he’d get from reader were mostly ignored and always left on read, but every once in a while when his worry would get too high or his mind would wander too far, he’d scroll through the logs, happy to see that everyone was okay.

But that subtle reassurance is gone. Even worse, Dick failed you. He failed the rest of the family too. They say hindsight is a bitch but for someone as empathetic and friendly as Dick it’s more like an oncoming train hitting him. He could have done so much to help the situation, called back, texted back. Hell, even a hallmark gift card could have been more preferable to the big wall between the two of you. It’s like his heart’s split in two, the hero running through flashes in his mind of when he and you were younger, every hesitant smile you gave, every face of discomfort on your features…

There’s so much he could have to prevented this. It’s like a mantra in Dick’s head on the way to Gotham, the dependable one of the bat family desperate to find the one he could lean on most once more.

Jason’s rift with Bruce is something that feels more like an endless chasm at times. One that you’ve tried to bridge over and over again with little success. Even if the intention was to see him, it’s almost laughable when it’s your disappearance that has the two working more together than they have in years.

He was definitely one of those who assumed your gifts of medicine and supplies at his doorstep were the work of Alfred, the vigilante never bothering to inquire otherwise until the day the whole truth spills out. And the truth has the man floored.

He’s not close with the others in the bat family as is, preferring to work alone with his own differing moral code than his mentor. It’s a rather insular and lonely path but one he’s happy to take. At least then he’ll get results, unlike Bruce. It’s when he comes back from a long, tough night of fighting to find not a single item or person at his doorstep that Jason truly feels the weight of reader being gone.

They’re a healing presence, one that makes- or made the rough road Jason is taking all the more bearable. Having reader gone just fuels a fire for them that Jason didn’t even know he had, a fire of love that has his resolve strengthening again.

Bruce could intent to take you back all he wants, but Jason Todd has never been the type to follow his vision. Instead he’s going to play along until you’re found. Then he’s going to carve his path to you, bloody or otherwise, and beg forgiveness he knows he doesn’t deserve. It’s not like he has much of a choice, the man’s hurt with an injury no ointment or medicine can heal. The only thing left that he could think of working, well, that’d be you.

Tim slid himself easily into the role of Robin. He chalks it up to his genius deductive abilities and spatial awareness. This makes it easy for Tim to look around a social situation and adapt, the same thing happening when he first enters the Wayne manor and sees how they treat the out of the loop reader.

Only a child would use the “everyone else did it card though”, and Tim isn’t a child anymore. He realizes what they did was fucked up and his mind is already racking for solutions the moment the guilt sets in.

He’s also no fool either. He can recognize the love in his heart like a cauldron of water, bubbling and on the verge of over flowing at the memories of your many acts of kindness. He also knows how much the others love you too. Some platonically, others romantically. Buts not about what they want or even what he wants, though it doesn’t take a super detective to figure that one out.

It’s about what you want, and with how kindly you treated everyone and how that kindness still lives in you, the answer is just as obvious to Tim, the cunning hero already weaving a wine web to ensnarl you in to take you back to your rightful place.

Home.

Barbs is surprisingly, or unsurprisingly, a stubborn one, you’d certainly have to be to survive what she’s been through. Though, it certainly didn’t help her relationship with you before you left since a persistent offense and stubborn defense rarely made for a good match with one another.

When she does realize her true feelings though, the hero is thankful for a chance at redemption. She’s already gotten her second lease on life and she was a fool if she’d ever let you slip through her fingers once more.

Stubbornness becomes less of a problem now that the hunt for you is on, traces of her days as Oracle coming back to light as Barbra takes every ounce of activity on the internet and processes it, combing through every search and text to see if she could find you.

While she turns Gotham into a temporary surveillance state, her sharp memory digs through what she could find in your room, desperately searching for where you could have thought of going.

She’ll find a solution to this, a perfect little bow to clean up this chapter in your relationship with her and have it pushed behind the two of you. That she’s certain of when she looks through social media for you.

After all, you’ve already lost to her stubbornness once, are you quite ready to do it again?

What a fantastic thing to wake up to fren!! This is so scrumptious,,,, I live omg...

Barbara low-key so scary I love it??? I feel like she'd be the one who finds you too, the very same stubbornness that pushed you away being the thing to pull you back in arms reach!!

Omg this got my brain wheels a'spinning and it be so fun if this reader just so happens to be childhood besties with one of Gotham's big bads, and they're the ones she goes to for comfort after the separation, while leaving the cold family was the best course of action, it still make you want to cry until you couldn't, (I'm specifically imagining the T.V. show Gotham's version of Oswald Cobblepot, I feel like he'd be such a good bestie like yeah he psychotic and quick to kill but if he likes you he a ride or die fr) plus I imagine you being close to anyone the family considers dangerous is just like throwing gasoline on a fire regarding their Yandere feelings, it would only drive them further off the deep end, even more desperate to have you back where you belonged

#yananswers #yandere batfamily #neglected reader #villain reader

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inkyquince · 29 days ago

Text

DAY 09: Town With A Dark Secret (Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, Tim Drake/ The Lost Boys)

Whose in on this secret?

content warning. Man. This thing became a drama piece accidentally. Descriptions of alienation from family, bad mental health and self destructive tendencies from the reader, group sex, lots of blood, murder of a character reader fucked once, Tim is kinda mean, Dick is manipulative and Jason has big emotions. Pseudo-incest and weird family dynamics. This is 6.8k btw.

The change in your brothers was gradual.

Ever since the Joker’s old fun land was torn down and rebuilt as an actual place to hang out and have fun, more and more people had gone up there. Your father had made sure to keep an alert out for it, certain that the madman would be back at some point, or at least one of his associates. He had spent so many nights there, and refused to let up, not until Alfred quietly called your eldest brother into town, citing the usual Bruce shenanigans for the emergency signal.

Dick went instead of him on the first night, just to scope it out, and came back early in the morning, slipping in just as dawn began to break, catching you poking through the fridge. He seemed much more energetic than he usually was when he got home late from patrol. Downright mischievous, you could say, especially since he made sure to scare you, poking your sides and making you smack your head against the fridge.

“Fuckin’ hell!”

“Not supposed to be digging around in Alfred’s domain.” He whispered conspiratorially before straightening up, shutting the door despite your grumblings.

“Why aren’t you back in Bludhaven?” You grumbled, not caring to hear an answer from the boy you grew up with.

He didn’t give one. Dick lingered at your shoulder, staring at you for a while before heading out, rubbing his eyes as he passed by one of the open windows.

Jason went out next. You missed him. When Dick mentioned that Jason was coming with him on patrol, you felt a tinge of annoyance. He hadn’t been back in so long to see any of you, except that stalking stint with Tim. Speaking of which, he rolled his eyes when you tried to share your feelings with him (the family therapist a.k.a Alfred had talked you into trying this after you and Tim had a rocky start to living together. It hadn’t worked so far), flatly saying that he didn’t see why you missed him so badly, when he didn’t seem to miss you at all.

That stung, you had to admit.

You had been around since before Dick had become the first Robin. Your brothers were him and Jason as far as you were concerned, having grown up with them, being close as anything. Tim hadn’t forgiven you for your chilly reception of him when he first came to the house, and you hadn’t forgiven him for what was him basically stalking and thinking he could replace Jason so easily. The two of you never seemed completely on the same wavelength, especially when it came to the sore subject of the Red Hood.

So you stomped away, suddenly feeling incredibly annoyed at all the Robins, now and the former. Your father didn’t want you to fight crime, even if you watched him train with the boys. It went from a dream to a very sore spot, as you knew you could never keep up with them now. You were all grown up and learning would take too long. The sting became harsher when Dick returned, whistling as he slipped in at dawn again, shooting a grin at you as you sipped your coffee.

“Hey, small fry.” He leaned over you, grabbing the pot and pouring himself his own cup, ignoring the fancy coffee machine that your father and Tim favored. “Is it me or are you getting up earlier? Morning people are an oppressive class, y’know.”

You snorted and pushed at his arm half heartedly. A few beats of silence passed, him drinking deeply while you tapped your fingernails against the ceramic.

“... How’s Jason?”

He immediately shot you a knowing grin, but decided to show you some mercy.

“Better these days.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“... Then why hasn’t he come around?” You finally asked.

Dick watched you for a moment, his oceanic eyes glinting in the small bit of sunlight seeping through the blinds.

“Missing him?”

You didn’t want to share that you were missing both of them. Dick had moved to Bludhaven, Jason wasn’t talking to the family except for Alfred and Nightwing. You felt abandoned in your own home, with a total stranger who was closer to your father than you were at this stage. You wanted your brothers back.

You thought, for just a moment, about telling him. Spilling your guts about the loneliness you faced, only having your university and Alfred to keep you feeling sane. You looked at his face, the smile lingering on his lip. You could ask to go with him. Ask to go see Jason with him. You could ask him anything, you loved him and…

For the first time you faltered. Maybe neither of the men you thought fondly of as brothers saw you the same.

“... Gonna go do the rest of my assignments.” You finally muttered, picking up your mug and brushing past him, blind to his frown.

The final barb was when Tim went out. With both of them. You flatly doubted that the stupid funfair needed that much scoping out to begin with, even less with all three of them. And what, suddenly Jason was talking to Tim?

A pain slowly started to expand in your lower abdomen as you watched them head down to the cave.

Despite being the one blood child of Bruce Wayne, of the Bat, despite you being the half sibling to Damien, who stood to inherit, despite the fact you had been here the longest, despite you having watched Robins come and go…

You were not a part of it. The life your father lived as his real self, and his sons, his real children. You were basically a part of his facade, to keep his shiny image of the settled down part-time Playboy Billionaire, giving his children, adopted and blood, the best life they could ever get.

You were more Alfred’s than his. And Alfred had his own family.

You didn’t even emerge when Dick and Tim came home, chatting among themselves, holing up in your room until you heard them disperse.

And so it continued. Going out at night, all at once, doing what they did, while you stayed home. Studied. Felt the pain in your stomach grow. Alfred asked if you were feeling alright, and you lied, feeling more and more like a stranger in your own home. You, like a stupid child, had relied on your brothers- the men you saw as them anyway- for your emotional needs. Stupid. Damien had shut himself away, so not even your own blood sibling was hanging out with you, even though you two got along well, better than you and Tim.

So, for the first time in your life… You started hanging out with other people.

You paid attention to the people in your class. And found out that plenty were dying to invite you to hang outs. Either because of your last name or because your credit card would never decline in your lifetime, but either way you didn’t care. You started coming home later and later, instead going to hang outs in different apartments, going to bars and clubs (including the infamous lounge where your father had stripped and danced against the huge penguin sculpture. The owner gave you a wide smile on your way out and cooed that you were such a doll compared to him), even finding your way to some of the places that your father had told you never to step foot in. You were pretty sure you saw Harvey Dent at one of the bars and nearly caved to peer pressure when your friends encouraged you to go up to him, he and your dad went back a long time. But then Roman Sionis showed up and your group slipped out quickly.

Didn’t mean that people weren’t taking note of the fact you were out and about now, shedding your reputation for a studious, angel of a Wayne. Vicky Vale stopped you outside of one bar, asking if Bruce’s gene for partying had finally kicked in for you. You had no memory of what happened next, not until Bruce made a rare early morning appearance, slapping down a magazine in front of you.

… Oh. You and Vick had made out. In front of several photographers.

“Care to explain?” His voice was measured, low. Like he was talking to a pickpocket he wanted to break the legs of.

“... She’s nice?” You tried, squinting up at him, your hangover still clinging to you.

He huffed softly. The bags under his eyes seemed more pronounced, his stubble darker.

“What’s going on with you?”

The laugh bubbled out before you could swallow it down. It danced over the silent atmosphere, sounding out of place, like an intruder in the room. Just like you were, like a stranger in your home these days.

“What?” You finally answered, a little breathless. It was thrilling. You talked so respectfully to him at all times, it felt exciting to show a back bone, show some teeth to your father. “Can’t relax amidst all my studies, father?”

He gave you a long look. You stared back… Did you even look like Bruce? You looked more like whoever his hook up was all that time ago, who died and practically left you like an asset to him. You probably would have seen more love from him if you only saw his name on a check for child support.

“Not like this.” He said finally. “Do whatever you want, but not like this. Be more private about it.”

“What? You’re the only one allowed to whore around as a playboy, spread a few bastards around?”

The silence was excruciating. Glorious. You wanted him to start shouting. To berate you. For the news to spread like wildfire through the house, to everyone who ever lived underneath this roof, to spread to friends of friends, that the good child, the child built for the facade of recovered playboy Bruce Wayne, had finally shattered the rose glass that encompassed you.

“... What’s going on with you?” His words were soft. His eyes were gentle. You hated it. He sounded just like when he comforted Dick just after he arrived. When Jason missed his mom. When Tim and you got into another disagreement and Bruce’s hand was on his shoulder, his words low. When Damien missed his old life. A part of you ripped open. Like a loose thread pulled too tight. “You can talk to me.”

“No, I can’t.”

The words escaped in a rush, but the rest of your sentence, the rest of your thoughts, the rest of your feelings plugged up. Like a stopper forced into an overfilled bottle.

Instead, you abandoned your breakfast, your favorite prepared by Alfred. You noticed he had been doing that more and more these days. You stood, leaving your cup behind, and walked out, brushing past Tim, who stood like a shadow in the doorway. He stared after you as you walked from the dining room, back up the stairs, to your room. Half of it was boxed up.

One of your new friends had a friend who had a cousin who had a friend who thought an apartment in central Gotham was perfect for you, a train ride away from your university and over two hours drive from the manor. Away from them. With your new best friends, whoever their names were. You liked the windows. You liked the way it was nearly at the top floor. You liked the way that is two a hop, skip, and a jump away from your new favorite hang out, the one you saw Two-Face at the first time.

Most of your stuff was already over there. You got new furniture. All the remaining boxes were stuff from your childhood. You had been struggling to decide whether to bring it with you, but now? Well, you’ll put it in the attic. Leave it there. It wasn’t like Jason’s old suit, still in the cave, preserved, or the posters of the Flying Graysons or the Grey Ghost. Your things weren’t worth keeping alive.

Your stomach was really hurting.

So, that night, you decided to break in your mattress with the help of someone who was a few years above you at university. You were pretty sure he was an offspring of the Falcone’s or the Maroni’s, you didn’t know. Or care.

The two of you watched Fatal Attraction and fucked everytime Alex and Dan did. Then his head was between your thighs for the final third of the movie. It was a good night. He invited you to go with your usual group of friends to the fun fair next week, when exams were finished. A jab of pain shot through your abdomen. That’s where it began. That was where it ended.

Fuck it. Why not?

It was hard to imagine it like it was before. A dump, the remnants of a fucked up psyche. Now it was blinding with colorful lights, the scent of candy floss and fried food. Even if there was a boarded up section where it led further into the mountain, probably too far gone to repair. Fal-Mar had his arm slung around your waist as your group went on rides, split food between you all, lost more games than won them. You won a few things, often presenting them to your date with a smirk. You overheard two of your friends whisper that his father was excited to hear he was stepping out with the oldest Wayne heir. No doubt some Italian somewhere was rubbing his hands together with glee.

It wasn’t until half of your group dispersed to the scare house that you saw them.

Dick. Jason. Tim. Standing by one of the games, chatting amongst each other, easily knocking down all the targets with the rickety BB gun they had chained to the stall. They were smiling. In their civilian clothes. Not on duty.

Together.

The pain ate your stomach whole. Your throat closed up completely.

They looked like they belonged together. They looked so similar they could be related. Add in Bruce and Damien, and it would look…

“Hey, you okay? You look kinda tired. Been on your feet too long?” Maroni or Falcone murmured against your ear, tilting your chin up with his knuckle.

You blinked at him, slowly, as if dazed. Instinctively, you pushed forward, pressing your lips against his, the warmth flooding back to your face. His tongue felt good too, stealing into your mouth and running along your teeth. Very good.

The two of you took a while to part, the boy sighing into your mouth as you did.

“You’re great, y’know that?” His hand squeezed your side and you slowly let the fair fall back into focus.

The fair, and your brothers.

Tim was looking at you. His hair was falling into his eyes, and he was leaning against the stall beam. And he was looking at you. You always had a hard time reading him. His mouth was in a straight line, his eyes were narrowed. His eyes were different. Maybe. You never looked into them much to begin with.

His hand flicked Jason’s elbow. Jason. Tall and built, his broad back to you. Tim jutted his chin in your direction. Jason turned.

So did you. Back to your date. He had nice eyes.

“I’m okay.” You finally let him know, a smile gracing your lips. That was rare these days.

“Yeah. Well,” He seemed to take a moment to recover from the kiss. It made you feel good. “You need a drink? A-”

A shadow fell over his face, metaphorically and physically. You turned.

Dick stood before you, his smile sharp but it looked more like he was gritting his teeth. Probably spotted your less than scrupulous last-name-having fuckfriend. Did he get broader? There was something different about him. His hair, jet black, was the same, curling around his ears. His skin was a bit paler, Gotham had cloudier weather than Bludhaven so that made sense. But there was something else…

“Hey, hey.” The swishing lights from the carousel sparkled in his eyes. “Haven’t seen you around in a while.”

“Shouldn’t you be back in Bludhaven already?” You flatly asked, searching deep within yourself and finding that you had no patience for this man. It felt like he was a stranger, ever since you stopped looking at him as warmly as you once did.

His eyes flicked quickly to your date, the boy’s grip tightening on your waist. You weren’t being subtle enough, but then again, who cared, you weren’t trained in that certain art. There was never a need.

“You’re going to hurt my feelings,” He put his hand over his chest, where his heart was. His smile twitched. “Decided to stick around for a little bit longer. The job will wait, y’know?”

“No, I don't really know. Have fun, Richard, alright?” You turned away from him, just to feel his hand reach out and grip your elbow.

“Wait a moment,” He pulled you back around to face him, but your date stepped forward, drawing you back. “Hey now. We’re family. Give us a moment?”

“I wanna go enjoy the rest of the fair.” You shook your head, arm slipping along Falcone-Maroni’s hip and giving it a squeeze.

“Don’t you want to come say hi? I thought you said you were missing Jason?”

That hurt. The pain spread up to your heart, twinging like it was a trapped nerve. You couldn’t stop your eyes drifting over his shoulder.

Tim. Jason. Jason looked better than the last time you saw him. His scar lifted the edge of his lips, showing a small flash of a tooth even with his mouth in a flat line. His streak of white. His eyes, permanent dark circles tattooed underneath them, but still bright. Bigger, far more built than you ever remembered him. Looking right back at you, frigid blue eyes. The warmth that used to be there was missing.

“Rather not. I’m out celebrating the end of exams with my friends.”

“Your exams? Well done! C’mon, you can brag to Tim-”

“You deaf?” Your date finally interrupted, drawing you closer to him.

Dick stared at him, his smile slipping just a fraction, but it felt jarring. Like your grip on a full mug fumbling for a moment. You spotted Jason straighten to his full height behind him.

“It’s fine.” You muttered to him before looking back. “Look, I don’t want to tag after you guys like some dumb kid anymore. I’m all grown up, Bruce doesn’t need to kick you guys into being babysitters ever again. Go enjoy yourself. See you when I see you.”

With that, you slipped your hand into your date’s and pulled him along, to the scare house where the rest of your group was shambling out, laughing among themselves, some shaking more than others.

You didn’t look back at the brothers.

You didn’t even see them again until your ensemble was heading towards the exit, a big teddy with a scarecrow design stitched to his face under your arm. You didn’t notice Tim, feeling warm from the kisses pressed against your neck, a hand pawing at your stomach under your shirt.

“Didn’t know you started rolling with the Fine’s.” He was leaning against the gate leading out, his fringe pushed back, out of his eyes.

Oh. Your date was related to the Broker. At least he wasn’t going to be shot out of nowhere.

You didn’t answer, rolling your eyes at him, instead choosing to give Mister Fine a smile as he murmured he was going to go piss and be right back. You fumbled with your cigarette pack, a habit picked up from a whats-her-face or whose-his-name, and lit one, taking a grateful, long draw. Tim had crept closer. You didn’t like that he moved so quietly.

“Haven’t seen you around the house.”

“You catch on quick, don’t you.” You replied, exhaling slowly, feeling the burn in your lungs. It distracted you from the aches.

Tim watched the cloud of smoke drift into nothing.

“Damien’s been missing you.”

“Liar.” You immediately shot back, starting to feel the stirrings of anger. “What do you want?”

He stared at you for a while, his blue eyes- blue, blue, all of them had blue eyes, just like your father, except Damien, thank god- simmering. This boy, this man, felt like a monument to everything that had been wrong, everything that felt ruined. You hated that seeing him made you feel unsettled, made you feel angry, made you want to lash out. It was unfair, he made you feel like a child.

He only came in after Dick and Jason were long gone. And after his arrival, came Damien. Who you loved. The boy fought against your father, against Tim, against Jason, against everyone, except you and Alfred. But even that ruined you. Because there was Bruce’s blood child, his heir, who was still young. And he was being trained. He was Robin.

A title you were never worthy enough for.

There were four sons more worthy than you. With more promise than you. The thought threatened to bring tears to your eyes.

Not in front of him.

You turned your head away from Tim, taking another deep draw. Let it burn, let it simmer, don’t let it boil over.

“Jason says your apartment is unsafe.” He finally said, words coming all at once in a hurried breath.

“...What?” You stared.

“Bad locks, or something.”

“Fucking…. What?” Your voice began to rise.

“Don’t shoot the messenger-” But you were already turning on your heel sharply and began to march over to the carpark. Jason and his bike were incredibly easy to notice.

You could hear Tim’s swift steps from behind you. Dick leaning against his own bike, less armored than Jason’s. A third one standing by. They all had their own bikes. Just another thing they got to learn on the job, while you doubted Bruce ever even helped you through the training wheels phase of a bicycle.

“Hey, assholes!” You shouted across the carpark, not drawing much attention.

It was Gotham, flinging raised insults were basically a greeting here. Both of them turned and you could swear you could hear Tim’s soft laugh, which just made you more angry.

“My place has bad locks?” You stopped in front of them, gripping your cigarette so tightly you crushed the filter. “Jason, are you fucking stalking me?”

“No.” His reply was curt, low. It wasn’t lost on you that this was your first proper conversation in years, and it was about… This. Everything felt like it was falling to pieces, the last vestiges of a dream you clung to like a stupid child. “Was just checking.”

“Checking? Fucking checking? Couldn’t you call, ask if I checked my locks? Instead of skulking around my place like some sort of creep?”

Jason’s scar lifted before the rest of his lips did. His smirk was mocking. Mean. Nothing like the smiles he shot you whenever he tried to do something he thought would impress you.

“Didn’t think you knew how to use a phone without Alfred dialing it for you.” He shrugged before eyeing the smoke curling around your hand. “Aren’t those too grown up for you?”

The rush of anger that burst through you didn’t even fully comprehend before you realized that you had thrown your cigarette at his face, the length of it colliding with his cheek before dropping to the gravel. A part of you felt relief that it didn’t burn him. Another part was angry it didn’t.

“Fuck off, Todd.” You curled your hands into fists before stuffing them into your jacket pockets.

Jason looked more surprised than anything else, his knuckle quickly lifting to touch where it hit him before dropping again.

“Hey, hey.” Dick stepped forward, crushing the lit end with his boot. His smile was easy, the peacekeeper in action. “Easy now. Play nice. Didn’t you say-”

“What, Grayson? You spill everything I ever tell you in confidence?” Your anger turned on him next. “You run off with your exclusive Bruce-loves-me-best club to giggle and kick your feet about being the most special boys ever? Fuck off.”

“Where’s this coming from?” Tim suddenly interjected, almost lazily.

“Stop it.” Dick’s voice was firm, stern. “C’mon. Take a ride with us.”

He reached out and cupped your elbow.

“Haven’t had a chat in ages,” He pulled you a bit closer. He still smiled the same. “Missed you.”

Even through the layer of your jacket, his touch felt warm. It reminded you of when you were younger, scared, and Dick would comfort you, wrapping his arms around your shoulders, usually after a horror movie. When Alfred was away and you missed him and he rested his chin on the top of your head. When you stayed up and he helped you through whatever homework you were struggling with, his fingers tapping against your forearm. It hit you so harshly, so suddenly, in a way that drained you of the suffocating anger that was perched under your tongue, that you had missed him. Bitterly, earnestly, you missed him.

You hesitated. Dick knew how to take advantage of an opening and slowly pulled you closer, into a half hug, his chin resting on your shoulder. You began to relax into it. Until your name was called. You froze up and pulled away from him, glancing back to see Mister Fine, watching you from where he left you. He waved you over.

Jason scowled, his scar pulling on his lip again to show his bared teeth. Tim watched the boy with a lack of interest, a small, amused smile playing on his mouth. You heard Dick exhale sharply behind you. You pulled away, leaving the warmth behind you and started to head over when a rougher, colder grip seized your elbow.

Jason pulled you back, frowning down at you.

“Leave him. Come.” His voice was gruff. Gravelly, like he had swallowed stones before each time he spoke.

You tried to shake him free but his grip was iron. Satisfied, Tim and Dick both got onto their bikes and wheeled out from the carpark. Jason stared down at you and pulled you closer as he himself swung his leg over the giant thing.

“On.” You could feel the rumble of his chest from where you were standing.

It felt like a demand, an order, and you awkwardly straddle the seat, legs feeling too far apart to be comfortable. It was an even tighter fit, trying to fit around Jason’s large frame. He reached behind himself and gripped your wrists, pulling them forward until you wrapped your arms around his middle, your fingers just about able to interlock. Since when had he gotten so… Bulky?

The engine growled to life, fiercer than the purr of the other two, and it too began to wheel slowly out of the car park.

“I guess-” Your date started.

“Fuck off.” Tim said flatly and you could hear Dick laugh.

“What, can't you even dream of keeping up?” He finally said, after a short bout of laughter. “Come on. Ride with us, if you can.”

“... I wouldn’t be able to beat your bike.” He sounded embarrassed. You couldn’t even see over Jason’s shoulder to look at him.

“Don’t have to beat us.” Never before had you heard Dick so malicious with his tone. “Just have to keep up.”

You felt the vibration of Jason’s chuckle against your hands.

Before you could even look at him, maybe make yourself feel some guilt after the nice time your date showed you, the four of you took off, the rumble of the motorbikes filling the night air. You could distantly hear the sound of another bike, the one that had driven you here in the first place, coming after you. You tucked your face into Jason’s back, feeling the wind whip around your face. The grip around his middle faltered for a moment and his own larger, gloved hand immediately gripped your fingers, squeezing them back together before settling back on the handle bars.

The smooth tarmac of the road gave way to sand, the spray arching up to hit your legs as the terrain changed, going off roading. The darkness had swallowed the world around you, nothing but the far off glow of the manors blinked any light into existence. You were somewhat certain that you were on the beach down from the fair, but you couldn’t even be sure.

You could feel the last of the warmth of the sun lingering on the horizon disappear, along with the last of the lights. The air was different now, older, and you got the same feeling as you did when you descended to the cave. You shut your eyes again. It was like a memory. Wanting to watch your father train and tripping down the stairs. Jason ran over to you. You remember fainting at the sight of your own blood trickling down from your knees. Woke up to Alfred gently pressing a warm mug against your fingers.

The roars eventually came to a slow stop, the vibrations below you ceasing. You opened your eyes again, feeling the bike tilt and rest. You were… In some sort of cave. It looked half sunken in, with a section of the roof collapsed. There was graffiti, all greens and purple but the walls were eroded too badly to make any of it out. The other three boys made their way in, throwing themselves down on different benches and old couches that looked like rats lived in them as a luxury. After a moment, you heard the sound of the last bike, Mister Fine getting off. His slow, even footsteps towards the rest of you. Waiting a moment, you let him arrive at your side and managed a lopsided smile at him. You cautiously made your way down, joining the vigilantes. There was cloth hanging from the ceiling, lights carelessly strung up.

“A section of Joker’s old hideout.” Tim finally said, watching your face. “Partially sunk all the way down here.”

You wrapped your coat tighter around yourself. Dick dusted off a section of what seemed to be a pillar, and motioned for you to sit. You did, gingerly watching the others as they stretched, shed their own jackets, as if the cold down here meant nothing to them. Dick’s foot rested against yours, slowly moving against it, nudging your ankle every now and then. He busied himself with a bag you hadn’t noticed, pulling out little take out cartons and passing them around. Intently pushed one directly into your hands, ignoring your little shake of your head, even doing the same for your date.

You took a bite of rice, chewing a bit. It was the usual place that you got takeouts from with Dick. It made your heart tighten. You looked up, into his eyes, and found warmth there. And something else. Something hungry. You almost didn’t hear the sound of food being spat out, at least not until you heard Jason and Tim’s laughter, breaking eye contact to look over. Mister Fine had tossed the noodles down, wiping at his mouth and gagging.

“Gross.” Tim seemed more amused than anything else. “Gross boyfriend you have.”

“Not their boyfriend.” Jason muttered, digging through his own carton as if it had personally insulted him.

The only person who didn’t seem to pick up on what he said was your date, spitting another piece of noodle out.

“Stalker.” The Red Robin faux- coughed in turn, only to be met with a glare.

Dick’s foot continued to slowly drag over yours. Pausing. Then shifting a bit further up, to your ankle. You ate a bit more, wondering quietly how they talked you into going with them, when they were just focused on heckling Mister Fine. Your brothers- No, these men were meaner than you had remembered them. Dick for not stepping in, as he usually would do to a bully. Jason always seemed rambunctious, but now he was downright mean spirited. Tim, while you never went out your way to get to… Know, exactly, but apparently he was spiteful as all hell.

But yet you couldn’t find it within yourself to stand up for him. It all faded to the background. Jason was near again. Dick was here. Tim was quiet.

You didn’t even really notice when Tim routed around for a big glass bottle, filled with something red and handed it to Jason, who slid it to Dick. He uncorked it and offered it to you with a charming smile.

“Heard you’re suddenly a drinker.”

You squinted at him.

“I’m just a bit hurt that you didn’t do it safely, with us to look out for you.” Dick continued and pressed it into your hand.

You were thirsty. You raised it slowly to your lips and took a sip. It was… Different.

“Go on.”

You weren’t sure who said it, but a warm haze swept over you like a slow tide. So you kept drinking. It was… Thick. Somehow warm. It was cloying and coppery but the more you drank, the better it tasted. You heard someone remark that you had shit friends, and echoes of laughter, rising up, up, up. Making you dizzier. Then something like a shout of pain, but at that point there was a pair of lips on your neck, moving up slowly, until they found the point where your pulse thrummed.

The bottle was pulled from your grasp. It shattered in the distance. Mister Mister wasn’t talking or gagging anymore, just making odd noises, like gurgles, but the teeth slowly digging into your skin made it all so hazy. Eventually it stopped, just as you felt the skin break, and blood pulse forth. The room tilted on its axis sharply. It was like getting your blood drawn, except your body knew it was too much all at once.

“There, good.” Dick murmured against your skin, dragging his tongue over the deep puncture marks before beginning to suck on the gashes again.

He was glad he ate earlier that evening. He’d have been in real danger of draining you if he hadn’t. Dick was also glad that you had such a handy snack with you. It kept Tim and Jason busy while he finally got some time with you again. He truly had missed you, even before you left the house, even before he returned and he was in Bludhaven. There was guilt in that craving to see you again, to ask for you to move out there with him. He knew how you saw him, your big heroic brother, the first Robin.

And he knew how he saw you. The little sibling that grew up more and more attractive in his eyes until you no longer resembled the child that mumbled a skittish hello on his first night, only to seek him out and hug him when you heard him crying.

He wasn’t blind to Jason. He wasn’t blind to Tim.

And as his brothers drained the little bastard that tagged along with you free of blood, he greedily tasted you. Tasted your very life blood that pumped through your veins, the very same that had started to sustain him ever since his first night on patrol to this very fair. Same for his brothers when he took them. Same will be for Damien.

And the same would have been for you. Silly thing. Dick parted from your neck, licking his bloodied lips and gave you a small pinch as retribution. Only to immediately drop a kiss to where he did it.

The sound of a body hitting the floor alerted him to the other two, finally fully sated.

Asking you to recall that night would have been cruel. You were full of blood, settling in your stomach, but also weak of it, with three different mouths having sunk their sharpened teeth into your flesh to drink deeply, hands trailing over your body. Jason had been the first to gently push your thighs apart to settle in between them. Pulled at your clothes until your thighs were on show and sunk his teeth, his monstrously large teeth, into the skin. You didn’t even kick at him, not with Tim using that moment to grip your chin, so tightly, so harshly.

He shook you a bit, anger in his movements before pressing his bloodied lips against yours. The kiss wasn’t gentle, it was fueled with years of spite, or not knowing how to make himself as beloved to you as the others were, especially since he was drawn to you instantly. It was unfair. Now, he could hold your head and kiss you and feel your tongue against his, the sire blood and the blood of his last meal mixing together.

Then he tasted your delicious moan as Jason found something tastier to bury his face in other than your thighs. He could hear Dick snicker softly, all the while undoing his belt to slip your hand inside his trousers. Tim, meanwhile, was still running on the high of kissing you. The stupid thing that drifted away from the only thing that had ever mattered and didn’t deign to shoot him a second glance, was now struggling to keep his tongue in your mouth, whining every time he almost pulled away.

You could remember something hot, big, slipping inside of you and Jason’s low groan, pressing his face against your stomach. Tim’s lips leaving your’s and something else replacing them, his cockhead slipping into your mouth greedily. Your hand made to pump Dick’s… Well.

You faded back out. Jason dug his fingernails into your naked sides, just hard enough for you to focus in, eyes meeting his. Fuck.

Being away from you had been torture. Everything had been torture. He felt like you two had been the closest of the entire family. You were closer in age than the others, you were as thick as thieves. The space between you two after he came back…

Jason dragged his fangs against your stomach, pressing all the way into you with a low groan. He had time now. More than enough time. A fuck ton of time. Now he has to focus on important things, like keeping from busting inside of you, just because he always had a stupid crush on his closest friend and they happen to feel so warm and wet and tight around him.

You’re not sure how time passes. Quickly then slowly. Quickly, Jason being the one to kiss you, Dick biting the back of your thigh, Tim pulling out of your mouth and painting your face with cum. Slowly. Tim between your thighs, carelessly digging out the cum tucked so deep inside, before pushing into you himself. Hissing against your ear that you couldn’t leave again, he wasn’t allowing it.

Dick made sure to press kisses against your mouth, finding interest to touch your chest, before enjoying himself handling you, playing with the spot you were most sensitive. Whispering that he wished all your firsts went to him instead of some shits who wouldn't have appreciated it. Made you whine out that you loved your big brother Dick before he let you cum.

Jason just… Sinking his fangs into your skin again and again, switching between drinking and littering you with hickeys. You were pretty sure you could see him mark out a J, but couldn’t be sure, too focused on the way his scarred upper lip looked pressing against your body.

Quick, in the way the cave was spinning and you slipped into a sleep. Slow, when you awoke, completely naked, to your father frowning down at you, arms crossed and eyebrow raised.

“I thought I told you boys to stay far away from both of my children when finding something to chew on.” His icy eyes dragged over to Dick, who was sluggishly waking, dried blood on his lips.

“You were taking too long.” Tim grumbled, his face buried in your neck.

“No,” Bruce ripped the blanket off of Tim and draped it over your naked form. “Damien is too young. And I wanted to… Fix things.”

“That would have taken… Let’s see, about 5 years.” Jason grumbled, yanking his cargo trousers back on. “Isn’t that how long it takes you to do most important things?”

Your father ignored him. Instead he crouched down in front of you, reaching over to brush some dried blood away from your mouth. You could smell some on him, from a deep gash slowly healing on his wrist. Smelled just like the bottle you drank from.

“Father?” You mumbled, dimly aware that Dick had started to drag the body of your date away, already starting to smell a little bit.

“Hush. Rest.” Bruce murmured. “Don’t worry. I’ll hold a grudge against them for this for a long time.”

MAIN EVENT POST

#hm shared by three part 2 after two years AND an update to halloween event? GOD #i refused to do obey me so enjoy the batboys #nsft #quincewrites #dc #dick grayson #jason todd #tim drake #inky halloween event

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devilfic · 2 years ago

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#✦✎: dc.

disclaimer: I do not consent to reposting of my work, credit given or not. if you’d like to share my work, please share direct links from my tumblr or my AO3. thank you!

likes, reblogs, and comments are always appreciated! ♡

✦: batman | battinson!bruce wayne

✎: series

where two are joined, relentlessly [completed] ↳ gotham city’s bound to discover it’s got a prized bachelor on its hands. selina kyle got it, you got it, and you’d quite like if it stopped there, thanks.

I. go, go, loverboy II. best-kept memories III. sick day IV. nameless V. ballroom blitz VI. favors for a friend VII. clean slate VIII. happy birthday, mr. wayne IX. from now on

right place, right time [ongoing] ↳ you took the hippocratic oath. you swore to help those in need. you didn’t sign up for a man crawling through your apartment window bleeding to death, but you’ve unfortunately seen worse.

I. right place, right time II. of niceties and awkward second meetings III. the tower IV. the hierophant V. curiosity killed the cat VI. do you trust me? VII. twenty-one questions VIII. whatever keeps you around vignette. strawberry candies IX. I'm the well they're gonna drag you down X. we don't fight fair

honeymoon [ongoing] ↳ in a gamble to retake his place as ceo of wayne enterprises, bruce wayne is strong-armed into an arranged marriage with you.

you finding out his secret identity is only one of his problems at the moment.

I. honeymoon II. marriage bed III. on the clock IV. sugar-coating V. sins of the mother

✎: one shots

got you ↳ the wayne family has a special kind of love language.

at the front steps ↳ eventually, the well will dry up. eventually, your patience will wear thin. eventually, you will leave him. of few things he was more certain. unfortunately, how much you loved him wasn’t one of them.

ghosts ↳ there’s a split second between dreaming and waking where the dream exists in the real world: the tender loss of a dream unrealized, and the relief of a nightmare severed. your nightmare is still clinging to you.

good grief ↳ you and batman have something special going on. obviously, people notice.

hard-knock life ↳ even with the riddler locked away in arkham, his followers manage to haunt bruce to this day. thankfully, you’re more than willing to help your fiancé tie up all his loose ends… even if they are a bit ridiculous. or four times the riddler’s followers make a threat on bruce’s life and the one time alfred shoots them for it.

nocturnal animal ↳ okay, maybe the caped crusader is a vampire. and maybe you just want to know what it would feel like for him to sink his teeth into you. it’s not weird.

I want us both to eat well ↳ “It’s so complicated staying alive sometimes.” — your friendship with the elusive vigilante is a special one in many ways.

✎: headcanons

bruce and reader’s mother/misc. headcanons [where two are joined, relentlessly universe]

love languages

bruce making a playlist for his partner

bruce with a gothic s/o

wedding headcanons with bruce wayne

sleeping headcanons with bruce wayne

✎: drabbles

bruce’s first family christmas with you and dick

reader with a villain mbti

dick finds out bruce is batman

bruce's diary [right place, right time]

bruce is a little stalker

✦: catwoman | selina kyle

✎: headcanons

jealous!selina kyle

✎: drabbles

secret admirer and roommate!selina

✦: the riddler | edward nashton

✎: series

boogeyman [hiatus] ↳ he is your shadow as much as you are his. one person, one reflection. you made a deal with the devil and this is the price you pay for redemption.

I. boogeyman II. no god in gotham

✎: one shots

first snow ↳ life wasn’t all pain, there was you. there was you.

✎: headcanons

young!edward nashton headcanons

#the batman masterlist #dc masterlist #the batman #dc #mjwrites

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shadowjax · 2 months ago

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The Dragon’s Blade

That Beach Episode A03

Natasha Romanoff x reader/oc Oneshot

Warnings: little angst, fluff, hurt/comfort

A/N: This has to be one of my longest fics haha.

*Shares are appreciated* 5k Words

“Pack your things, guys, I just got out of a meeting with Fury and persuaded him into giving us the day off.” Tony paraded into the lounge, Morgan following right behind, dressed like they were ready to go to a tropical island. With the clap of his hands, a video of the beach played on the TV.

“Hey.” Morgan shot Tony an annoyed look and crossed her arms.

“Ok. Ok. This little rascal did all the work with her puppy eyes.”

“Tony it’s almost noon, any place remotely tropical is hours away. Even by jet.” Bruce was seated on the couch, now annoyed his show had been turned off. He and Vison were in the middle of watching an old sitcom that Wanda had recommended.

“Which is why we’re staying overnight at a condo I just so happen to have bought years ago.”

“Love the idea but who will take care of the city while we are gone,” Steve commented, who was in the middle of a card game with Vision, Sam, and Bucky.

“None other than our junior counterparts, of course. C’mon, guys get packing, the jet leaves in two hours.” After scooping his child onto his shoulders, Tony exited the room, their laughter echoing throughout the hallway. Recently the tower had become a bit more crowded with all the newest recruits like Kate, Cassie, and Kamala.

“Ohhhhh, I love building sandcastles. Now that I think about it, you’ve never been to the beach have you.” Wanda stood beside you while the two of you cleaned up from making the group breakfast.

“No, I haven’t, it’s on my list of places to take Nat though so this works out. I hope it's too crowded with tourists but knowing Tony we’ll be on our own private sector...”

After temporarily scarring the newest recruits during your first encounter, you realized it was time to find a solution to heal the scars across your face. The main problem was that while the serum in your veins could heal new wounds, it couldn’t fix the scars from injuries you had before it was injected. Over the past several months, you have undergone a series of procedures with Dr. Lee to improve the appearance of the scars on your face. Although certain scars may still be visible, the once vivid pink marks have now blended more effectively with your natural skin tone. This has significantly reduced their prominence, resulting in a much less noticeable appearance overall.

“I’m glad to see the scars are healing, the doc sure knows what she’s doing. Speaking of beaches, in my opinion, they are a great place to propose to someone. Say a particular redhead.” Wanda’s eyebrows danced momentarily, causing you almost to drop a plate. “I know you’ve been thinking about it, I can see the pictures playing in your head. You practically project them!”

“Wanda I know you mean the best, but please. It’s only a thought.” When you were younger, there were numerous things you never imagined yourself doing. Reflecting on those times now, an uncomfortable pit seems to form in your stomach when you think back on the past.

“A thought you have entertained for 3 months and many hours throughout the day.” You glanced at the ring Vision had given Wanda when he proposed. It was well crafted and clearly, Vison spent a lot of time working on the perfect design for her. A while back, you had a conversation with him about how he chose the design and gem for the ring, knowing he was the only one capable of keeping such a secret.

Dr. Lee placed an arm around both you and Wanda’s shoulders, gently stepping in to join the conversation. “Believe me when I tell you, kid, there is nothing better than knowing you share a special bond with the one you love the most. Knowing only the two of you share this bond, to spend the rest of your lives as equals. Heck, I never thought I’d survive being a war nurse but here I am. Ring and all, with a beautiful woman I call wife.”

“I think both of you need a new murder show to binge rather than prodding into my life.” Your comment led to a smack on the back of your head from Lee. “Well, when the world isn’t inanimate danger, what does a married woman in her late thirties do with her time, especially when she has a stable, well-paying job?" The conversation quickly ended, knowing neither of them had a good comeback, leaving you last in the dining room though packing wasn’t a tedious task for you.

~~~~

“You’re already packed, for the both of us?” You walked into Nat’s room to find a small suitcase packed, a part of you wondered if she already had this packed because she was planning something as well. “I can’t tell if you already had a getaway planned, not that I am against it.”

“Well someone had to place the thought in Morgan’s head and I knew Fury would cave. Who can say no to her.” She was dressed in mid-thigh denim shorts paired with a white and light blue striped shirt, which had a turn-down collar and was tucked in at the front. The top was left slightly unbuttoned, revealing a hint of a black two-piece bathing suit underneath.

“My eyes are up here,” she teased with a playful smile. “You’re staring again—everything okay?” She took a seat on her bed, facing you as she gathered her hair and secured it into a half-ponytail.

“Nothing to worry about, I’m just admiring you.” You gently placed your hand in hers to guide her into a spin, then wrapped your arms around her from behind. Resting your head on her shoulder, you took in the pleasant scent of strawberries that surrounded her.

“Are you sure, you’re behaving clingy?” She placed her hands over yours and squeezed them.

“Do you think Clint and his family will be joining us?” Ever since the battle and his family returned, he immediately retired which was understandable. Never wanting to be away from them again. He and his family will make an appearance for any holiday events the team hosts together. When Kate first moved in to the Tower, Clint was there to help her adjust and train.

“No, he’s busy with the new livestock on the farm. Last I called he was talking about getting a couple of horses.” She squeezed your hands, “As much as I don’t want to move, we should get on the jet so we can get good seating.”

~~~

On the jet, you tried to catch up on some reading but ended up thinking about what Wanda and Lee said earlier. You could feel Wanda’s stare burning through your soul, knowing full well you were mentally projecting images aloud to her.

“I just realized something, you’ve never been to the beach right?” Nat leaned her head on your shoulder while pointing to the ocean below.

“Oi heads up kid.” Maria threw something that hit you in the head. Upon further investigation, it was a pair of blue shorts with sharks wearing sunglasses.

“They’re meant for the ocean so you won’t ruin your clothes,” Nat said in between her laughter.

“Ooo I almost forgot.” Maria tossed a matching 2 piece outfit on Nat’s lap. Wanda and Dr.Lee tried to hide their laughter while Nat threatened the three.

The jet landed near a giant condo located just a few miles away from the local tourist spot. It didn’t take long for people to start setting up and diving into the water. Thankfully, you had packed an extra black tank top, although you still felt somewhat exposed with so much of your skin exposed to the blazing sun. You hadn’t realized how pale you were until now. You weren't the biggest fan of sand, it made walking uncomfortable. It made your skin dry and got everywhere. Bits of water sprayed in the air after the waves crashed against the shore, the water was a clear blue.

You and Nat set up your area close to where the girls had settled, while the guys were already making a splash in the water. Some of them were sporting some matching flamingo floaties around their waists, reflecting one Pepper had Morgan wear when she went into the swimming. You applied a layer of sunscreen, the liquid was cold to the touch.

“Hey, once you’re done, be a dear and put some sunscreen on my back.” Nat removed her regular clothes, revealing a simple black two-piece swimsuit she was wearing underneath.

You tried not to stare too much, unable to handle your teammate's teasing about how “head over heels you were”. One of the guys had called you a “simp” before and still to this day you have no idea what it meant, whenever you asked they’d simply laugh in your face. Even the women laughed at your naivete. In all honestly she was beautiful no matter what time of the day, your heart felt like it would leap out of its chest.

“You’re gonna burn up easily with such pale skin. Let me help you with that.” Bruce transformed into the Hulk moments ago, his hand was big enough to wrap around your entire body and tossed you straight into the ocean. To say your friendship with him was strained would be an understatement. Ever since you and Nat started dating he had become distant, not that you two were ever close to begin with. Neither of you have common interests and with your pitiful social skills, neither of you talk.

“What-”

Your protest was cut short as you fell face-first into the water. Fortunately, he hadn’t thrown you too far into the deep end, and just as you found your footing, a massive wave crashed over you, sweeping you back toward the shore. You could hear the others laugh while you were recovering from the wave knocking you down. Before you were able to regroup with the others on the shore Morgan dragged you into whatever game she was playing with the others and as much as you wanted to kick Bruce’s ass, but were too distracted by whatever game you were being dragged into.

When the sun began to set, Morgan finally set you free. Thor had set up a small bonfire for everyone to gather around. He assisted Pepper in cooking hotdogs and hamburgers over the fire accompanied with some mead that Thor had brought. Maria and Dr.Lee passed around this coconut drink for those who couldn’t handle mead. You sat next to Nat who moved her seat a bit further away from the rest of the group.

“You’ve fought off some of Earth’s greatest enemies, yet are tiered out by a child.” She failed to hide her laughter. She stopped laughing when she turned to look at your condition. You were covered in sand, your hair was very disheveled, and there were dark lines underneath your eyes.

“Would you mind if we headed back to the house?”

Before sitting down you had begun to feel nauseous and the moment you sat down you felt a wave of exhaustion hit you. Maybe it was the spiked coconut drink mixed with the hours of sun, the stress of a proposal, or the sand when you were ready to go to bed. You held onto Nat for balance as the two of you left the beach. Some of your teammates are throwing a mischievous smile your way. You concluded that you hated sand. It makes your skin and hair dry, as well as rubbing in the wrong places under your beach attire. Thankfully Nat helped you out of your outfit while you waited for the bath water to warm. You noticed a difference between the skin that was hidden under your clothes. Once the bath salts dissolved the room began to smell like lilac. Your body melted the moment you were submerged in the water.

Nat sat on the side of the bath and started to wash your hair. You started to fall asleep while her fingers scrubbed the shampoo in your hair, causing you to lean more towards the side.

“I may need to get checked by the doctor eventually. I shouldn’t be this wiped out.” The serum in your body usually does a good job of keeping you healthy at all times.

“I think you just need a good night's sleep.” You started to doze off and the last thing you remember you were being dried off and being tucked into bed. You pleaded with her to return the gesture and help her relax before bed and she reassured you she would be alright. Once you were under the sheets you immediately fell asleep. Nat eventually joined you in bed, wrapping her arms tightly around you.

~~~

You awoke to a gentle light illuminating the room, turning your head to see the clock read 6 am. Vacation or not you knew people would be waking up soon. Luckily Nat was a heavy sleeper so slipping out of bed was easy. You tried to make breakfast, t r i e d. Your mind was a bit preoccupied with the lingering thoughts of marriage. Two nearly burned eggs, untoasted bread, and a few burn marks later you heard footsteps approaching. A bush of embarrassment began to trace your face.

“Soooooo, how’s my favorite birdie doing…making the future wife breakfast in bed I see.” Tony walked right past the mess and started to brew coffee.

“Not you too.” You searched the cabarets for utensils and a tray to carry everything on.

“Aaaa you’re having a wedding!” Morgan gasped and quickly ran over to you.

“Calm down sweetie, let the grownups wake up first.” Pepper followed suit and started searching the cabinets for plates as well.

You knelt to Morgan’s height, “I haven’t asked your aunt Nat anything yet so please keep this to yourself. You wouldn’t want to ruin the surprise now.” Pepper handed her daughter some plates and utensils to help set the table.

“I’m glad to see my baby bird leave the nest.” Tony turned you around to meet his level, even though he was the taller one.

“Since when was I ever in the nest?” You could feel your mind becoming more distracted by bird facts instead of the more important topic on hand. “I think I understand what you are trying to say.”

“First a social life, then a girlfriend, now a possible fiancé. It feels like yesterday we rescued you from HYDRA.” Pepper smacked him upside the head with a towel for the last comment.

“I’m sorry, possible.” You gesture with air quotes. Another worry to add to the pile.

“Hey hey, I see those gears turning. I’ll just take my coffee and go work on something.” Tony made a quick exit, leaving you with Pepper and Morgan.

“It’s alright to feel nervous, it’s a big step forward. I’m sure she’ll say yes. Also, you don’t need any grand gestures, it’s best to be honest and speak from the heart.” It wasn’t like you were planning on anything big anyway.

“You make Aunty Natty very happy, I know she’ll say yes.”

“I appreciate it guys. Now if you don’t mind. I need to go patch up my hands and…” you looked at the pathetic attempt at food you made, “get this upstairs.”

Feeling nervous means behind all that doubt, a strong part of you wants it. Right?

—

You quietly entered the shared room and found Nat stretching in bed. “Morning. I’m sorry the breakfast is not up to standards. I didn’t know how to use the toaster so I used the burner then my hands…” You set the tray aside on the bedside table and revealed your injured hands to her. A few blisters were beginning to form.

“And no one was in the kitchen to witness this?” The two of you made your way to the bathroom, Nat placed some clear gel on your blisters and warped a bandage over them. You sat on the countertop while she patched you up.

“Tony, Pepper, and Morgan walked in after the whole thing. She offered to help but I didn’t want to embarrass myself any further.” You were staring a bit too long, her tangled hair and loose pajamas caused your heart to race. Ever since the battle with Thanos, she’s been more relaxed now that there’s been a new team of heroes to take care of the world as well.

She appears much happier and healthier now. The stress from those five years had affected her both mentally and physically. Her hair is now fuller and more noticeable than ever, and she has chosen to keep it just below her shoulders. Maintaining proper sleep and a balanced diet was challenging at first, but over time, she came to understand their importance.

“You’re staring again.” You tried to turn your blushing face away but before you could she stopped you by placing a hand over your cheek. She gently rubbed over the scars by your mouth, your head nestling on her. “What’s been on your mind, I’ve noticed you have been spacing out more than usual.”

“The change in scenery has got me thinking. When I was still with HYDRA, I never thought I’d see the sun. Let alone find people who want me around for more than my skills. I thought I’d be alone until the day I die, like…” Your sobs cut off before you mentioned your sister's name, and guilt washed over. “I’m sorry. Does the guilt ever… go away?” Looking in the mirror became easier but every once in a while, you’d feel an overwhelming sense of guilt. Especially since you’ve let your hair grow out, you were sort of glad the scars would never completely fade.

“Take a deep breath with me.” The two of you closed your eyes and began the breathing technique Dr.Lee walked through with you. Your right hand fell onto hers which was still placed over your cheek and the other traced the marble countertop underneath you. Nat leaned in, her head resting on your chest and her shampoo filling your scent. Her hair was soft beneath your chin. She wrapped her free arm around your waist, pulling you in tightly while you calmed down. “You’ve escaped. You are no longer in that place.” she quietly repeated.

“Thanks.” was all you could say, your head resting on top of hers. After you both calmed down, you suggested finding a place for breakfast, admitting that she deserved better than your sad attempt at cooking earlier.

~~~~

You both spent the rest of the day exploring the local town and enjoying some more satisfying food. She was dressed in an adorable strawberry-red summer dress, featuring a pleated neckline that fell gracefully just above mid-thigh. Today, she had let her hair fall naturally, adding to the effortless charm of her outfit. You opted for a more understated look, wearing a simple navy button-up shirt adorned with sailboats, tucked neatly into a pair of black shorts.

You felt anxious about being in a public space, but thankfully, Nat was there to keep you steady. keep you grounded. As you ventured out, a few derogatory comments were hurled in Nat’s direction. You tried to brush them off and act like they didn’t affect you, even though inside you were seething. You wanted nothing more than to retaliate, to drive your sword into the spine of the man who had practically called you ugly. The insecurity gnawed at you, making you question if you were truly good enough for Nat. The idea of marrying her now feels like a cruel joke, something that could never actually come to pass. The emptiness in your stomach returned with a vengeance, an unsettling reminder of your self-doubt. Thankfully the situation took a turn for the better once Steve and Bucky approached you guys. You weren't able to ignore this lingering, snide remark about how Nat was with one of your friends instead of you, coming off as if they had gotten things wrong. Despite their departure, the sting of their words remained, casting a shadow over your day.

The two pulled you off to the side for a moment. “So Wanda and the doc filled us in on everything.” They both trapped you between them, an arm wrapped around each shoulder. “So for the wedding, can we be the flower guys?”

“Bucky, that isn’t why we pulled them aside.”

“Listen, Stevie, Tony didn’t include us, neither did Wanda nor Maria.”

“Ok is that all you guys wanted to talk about? Because I don’t know if that’s up to me.”

“No that’s not the reason, Buck. We just wanted to say we’re proud of you. I know we had a rough start but you have impressed me these last few years. On a related note, there’s this jewelry store down the block where you both can make custom rings together. Wanda mentioned you were having trouble picking one out.” The two left, off to do who knows what.

There was still an emptiness in your gut, when Nat placed a hand on your shoulder you ignored that feeling and focused all attention on her. The two of you continued to walk the streets hand in hand. A few hours of shopping later you gained enough courage to ask Nat to check out the jewelry store the guys recommended. The shop was run by a nice elderly couple who were more than happy to help you create a set of rings. You both explored a range of metals and finishes before making your choices, opting to engrave the date of your first date inside both rings. Nat decided on a delicate, thin circular band in rose gold with a polished finish, which beautifully highlighted its elegant simplicity. In contrast, you selected a slightly thicker tungsten band with a satin finish, giving it a more understated yet durable appeal.

Nat chatted away with the couple while you sat silently, which wasn’t uncommon. You were horrible at making small talk, as much as you like to think you have improved over the past few years. The normal topic about how the two of you met came up and from then on Nat told them an abridged version. She left out the part about the two of you working as “superheroes” and the fact that your job has nearly killed both of you. Instead of listening to the conversation, you found yourself watching Nat. Speaking so openly and freely about something she felt so deeply about, she was mesmerizing.

“And that’s how we ended up here, it’s sort of a spur-in-the-moment vacation. Although I am glad we were able to take a break, sometimes planning can be so time-consuming especially when our schedules keep us very busy.”

“You two seem like such a lovely pair, I’m so happy to have shared this moment with you two. Alright, the polish has been set, try them on.”

Both of you were given the other's rings, you slid the newly crafted rose gold band around Nat’s finger. Markings of old blisters, cuts, and burns scattered all over her hands from her years of battle. Her nails and the skin around her finally healed after the stress she was under during the 5-year blip. Her breath paused for a moment when you slid the band on her finger as if she was holding back a wave of emotion.

After setting the ring you placed a gentle kiss on her hand, your thumb running over the smooth ring. You weren’t sure how either of you kept your composure, she repeated your actions after placing your ring on. The moment was broken the moment another customer walked in, the bell knocking you out of your trance and back to reality. That worrying pit surfacing again.

“Natasha, won’t you be a dear and help an old woman out with this order?” The elderly woman led Nat to the back.

“I can see the gears turning.” The older man leaned on the counter, standing just a few feet away from your face. “The more you overthink, the more you are prolonging the question. I will not charge you anything if you pop the question tonight.”

“I…” His request felt so sudden, was it really that obvious? If so then there is no way Nat has no idea what is going on in your mind. If so then why hasn’t she brought it up?

“She’s waiting for you, just open up to her and be honest. You’ll feel much better in the end.” His words lingered in your mind far longer than you wished.

~~~

Sometime while the sun was setting on the ocean the two of you were walking along the shoreline. The two of you hadn’t spoken since leaving the jewelry shop an hour ago. While some might find it unusual that you could spend an entire date with so little conversation, it spoke volumes about the deep connection you shared. It was a testament to the comfort and understanding between you, where words weren’t always necessary to feel close. One you had never experienced with another except for…

“So are you finally going to tell me what’s been on your mind the past few weeks? This isn’t your normal silence.” Both of you stopped walking and you turned to face Nat. There was no way you’d be able to hide from her any longer. You had grown tired of patience and dodging the question wasn’t helping you.

“I-” You were cut off by her phone ringing.

“Who is bothering me right now…” She took her phone from her pocket and glanced at the screen. Before she was able to decline or answer you snatched the phone from her hand. Not bothering to look at who was calling, and declined the call, she didn’t even look fazed by the action. Her eyes widened in surprise while suppressing the urge to laugh at the annoyed look on your face.

“There has been something else on my mind.” you took both her hands in yours, squeezing them. “It’s something Wanda and the doc have been pestering me about.” Your eyes fell to the ground, a wave sinking the two of you into the sand. All of a sudden you became irritated just standing still, your hands began to shake and your legs began to twitch. Nat opened her mouth to say something but let you continue. You found yourself using your thumbs to trace the back of her hands. “Umm. Marriage. So is that something- Would you like that- Umm.” What are you saying?! You quickly dropped your hands and took a step back from her, nervously tugging at the hair at the nape of your neck. “Marry me? Ahh, wait umm. Would you..” before you could dig a bigger hole for yourself Nat threw her arms around you, almost tackling you to the ground.

Once she gained her footing she pulled you in for a kiss, your hands resting on her waist while hers rested on your face. “I was wondering when you were going to ask me.” She cut you off before you could ask. “I’m a spy, there’s nothing you can hide from me. Plus Wanda isn’t the best at keeping secrets, she isn’t the quietest whisperer. And of course, I’ll marry you, detka.” Your foreheads resting on top of one another.

The tears in your eyes finally began to fall, in happiness of course. For each one that fell she kissed it away.

“I never thought I’d get here. After all the accomplishments and hardships. All of the sacrifices we made to get here.” You balled your right hand into a fist and made a circle gesture around your heart. “There is no one I’d rather walk forward with.” You took your hand and placed it over your beating heart.

“Do we really need to return to the condo tonight, I’d rather just stay here with you.”

“Speaking of the others, you know Steve and Bucky want to be flower pals right.” the two of you started to laugh at the thought of the guys throwing flowers down the aisle.

“As much as I want to see that, I think I’d prefer we do something small and leave the reception for all of our friends.” She kissed you again and you weren't complaining. “Don’t think you need to make yourself uncomfortable with a big ceremony just because I want one. Besides, I’m sure there is a place to get married right here if you want” She whispered that last part in your ear.

“Oh, thank the gods! I was so focused on the ring and asking you that I completely forgot there was a ceremony. And for the wedding, I’ll make sure to present you with a more traditional ring.”

“Hmmm. I don’t need a flashy ring, this one is so unique.” Your face was definitely flushed from all the kisses she showered on you.

“Yes, but I have the past three months researching, hand mining, and polishing many jewels, as well as burning my hands trying to bend metal. Plus I know you’d love nothing more than to flaunt a shiny new wedding ring to all the other women and men in the tower. Speaking of flaunting…” You craned your head to the side and shouted, “You guys can come out!” to the group who hid poorly behind a lifeguard stand.

Nat knelt down to scoop an energized Morgan into her arms, “I’m so excited for you, Aunty Natty can I see the ring?” The two of you showed the team the rings you two crafted just a few hours ago.

“Quite the craftsmanship, I’m impressed,” Thor commented. “The boy is finally becoming a man, or in your case… Bruce help me out here.”

“I’m happy for you guys. Really. I know things have been a bit awkward but the two of you make a great pair.” It was nice to see Bruce not act so cold towards you.

“You're going to look so gorgeous, I can give you the address of the store I went to!”

“So did you ask her about it?” Bucky didn’t finish his sentence because Steve pulled him away.

“A shame I missed out on all the fun.” Tony held his phone to Nat, Clint and his family were on the other line.

The crowd began to overwhelm you, causing your mind to drift. Thankfully, Nat noticed and announced that the two of you were calling it a night. The sense of emptiness you once felt was now filled with love, not only from Nat but from your entire team as well. You found yourself awake long after Nat had fallen asleep, nestled comfortably against your chest. As you lay there, listening to the gentle crash of the waves on the shore and breathing in the calming scent of strawberries, a deep sense of happiness washed over you.

Taglist: @rosea-reginae

#natasha romanoff x gender neutral reader #natasha romanoff fic #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff x you #natasha x you

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sugarlesswriting · 1 year ago

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I always knew that Gotham War was going to be stupid because Selina's plans of stealing from the rich has flaws and Bruce has his whole Zurr still lingering in his mindscape thing, but like goodness. So after I read the first two issues of the Gotham War event I'm wondering if I'm the only one who noticed this

Now this might just be me grasping at straws to try and make their ooc moments seem in character but why would Barbra correct herself? We know from Batman/Catwoman Gotham Wars Issue 1 that Bruce said that he turned off his comms, but did that include monitoring? Also, why would Bruce take out his suits monitoring but still keep the tracker in there? For plot relevance yes, it makes sense but this is delulu town and I'm making up excuses.

I feel like some readers are looking at the ooc moments and going well that doesn't make sense, which fair because girl same, but I got to this sentence and was like Oracle babe why did you correct yourself? Why did you feed intel to Jason knowing that he is working with Selina?

UNLESS

They know that they are being monitored. It's been weeks since Bruce got into his coma, right? (I refuse to say he was just sleeping because that's not how sleeping works) So what if something happened during that time that has them acting like this? Because I simply refuse that all of the batfam drank dumb bitch juice for breakfast 8 weeks straight. Again let us be delusional for a bit longer.

They know that whoever is working the bigger game here wants Batman to be alone, to be at his weakest, so they play that part.

Whoever is watching them now knows that Batman is going off the deep end, he can't be helped because who knows what he'll do next, and they are going to help Selina if she asks. This gives the unknown watcher the thought that he won't have backup when he needs it.

We already know that they're being watched by The Riddler

But I refuse to believe that they're being like that because of the Riddler, like he's good villain, don't get me wrong but it just seems too easy for it to be him.

Hell they aren't the only ones being watched I mean even the villains are being secretive

Of course the villains are going to be meeting each other in secret but we are indulging on the idea that even they know something bigger is in Gotham and watching their own every move. Could they be talking about Batman? Maybe. But they also could be talking about an unknown being.

I know this is just a theory that probably isn't true but I can't live through another Civil War 2 type of hero vs hero. I didn't like it when it was Avengers vs X-men, (even though Scott was in the right #Cyclopswasright), or the many times when heroes had to fight against each other to create sales. On a side note wouldn't it be funny if this just tanked? Like I'm not going to buy anymore because to me it's a waste of money.

Anyway, I know that they're doing this to go back to the status quo of Batman and Robin being the only heroes in Gotham and that the Joker (boring) is going to be back and it'll be like the good old days of the crime duo fighting together. I mean who can't wait to read the amazing villain known as Shush (She-Hush)? Joking aside I'm sure it'll be good but dear god that villain name.

Anyways the only good thing about Gotham War was this banger of a line.

I don't know which one wrote Batman's line, Howard or Zdarsky but it was the greatest thing that I read so far. 10/10 made me laugh and was able to foget how bad the premise to this whole war was.

#batman #Oracle #Jason Todd #Redhood #Tim Drake #Robin #Gotham Wars #aka Catwoman and Batmans divorce is now everyone else's problem #which so iconic of them #dc comics #nightwing #dick would have stopped this #tim would also have stopped this #cass would have bodied batman lets be real #sadly everyone got dumb and weak for the plot

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iguana-eyanna · 1 year ago

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From The Bird's Eye View Chapter 4

Pairing: Bruce Wayne x Reader

Summary: Although you achieved your dream of being a designer, you never considered meeting a man who's also a father.

Tim knelt near a broken-down car.

He looks around his terrain, seeing a few mobsters with guns walking around.

Tim has only been here for 10 minutes, not doubting that Bruce would be around soon.

He felt bad for leaving you like that. Tim didn't mean to hurt you, but he needed to see his dad. He stealthily moved around, trying to not make much noise here at the car dump.

Suddenly, he accidentally tripped over a discarded car exhaust on the ground, drawing attention to the guards around him. He hid behind a car, hoping that no one would see him. Footsteps come closer to him until they now stopped.

“Hey man, it’s probably some rat. Don’t waste your time.” A guard said out loud. The other man growled as he stepped away, making Tim relieved. He turned forward, almost screaming as a figure was now in front of him.

“Relax Tim, it’s me… Dick.”

Dick Grayson: the first son of you and Bruce. Tim has never met him until now

Tim relaxed as Dick took down his hand.

“What are you doing here? I thought you were in San Francisco.” Tim asked.

“I was doing a recon mission nearby. My sensor alerted me that my old bike was here. Thought you’d be Bruce but… here you are.”

Dick hasn’t been home in a few months. But you’ve been updating him about what’s been happening back at Gotham.

He feels bad that he hadn’t made it a point to introduce himself prior, but here they were, alone where the mafia was surrounding them.

More footsteps go up to them, and Dick dragged Tim away so they can be away from ear shot.

They found higher ground, and Dick was looking down at the terrain, hoping to find a better way to escape.

“You-You’re the first Robin.” Tim said in disbelief.

Dick chuckles, slightly turning his way to Tim.

“Haven’t heard people call me that in a while. But I go by Nightwing now.”

Tim nods his head as he joins Dick to overlook the ground.

“What are you doing here alone?” Dick asks.

“I’m saving my dad. He disappeared a few weeks ago and Bruce found out he’d be here tonight.”

Dick hears the glint of hope in Tim’s voice. He knows that feeling, he was like that hopeful kid that would be glued to Batman’s side.

He doesn’t want that for Tim.

“Does mom know that you’re here?” Dick asked, worried for you.

Tim doesn’t reply right away as he looked down.

“She pleaded not for me to go. I think I broke her heart when she saw me wearing this.” He says, motioning at how he’s wearing Jason’s old suit.

“She doesn’t want you to get hurt, Tim. She lost… she lost too much.”

Tim sits down, staring off at the distance.

“Why do I feel like she keeps so many secrets? It took her some time to talk about Jason for one, but I have no idea who she is before she met Bruce. How can I trust someone if I have not a single clue about what kind of person she is?”

Dick often questioned that himself when he first met his mom. She was happy, fun, caring… but looking at her closely made it seem she lived two lifetimes. She worried a lot, often looking over her shoulder when they go out.

But no matter what happened, she was always there for her two sons. Jason and Dick were equally loved and no one felt out of place or questioned her undying motherly love.

He was about to tell Tim that, but suddenly two cars came into view.

“Get up.” Dick whispered as they cowered behind so they wouldn’t be seen.

Tim peered over and saw that the two cars parked in front of each other.

The first car was sleek as the windows were tinted. The driver came out and opened the back door and out came Two Face who looked more intimidating than ever. He looks around his terrain suspiciously as he digs into his pocket, finding his coin.

The other car that was parked was a bit flashy, like someone hastily bought it. The driver got out, fixing his suit.

“Dad?” Tim said to himself.

“Two Face! Thank you for coming tonight. It means a lot.” Mr. Drake said.

“Really didn’t have a choice, but heard that you’re hiding from the GPD.” He said gruffly.

Mr. Drake scoffs lightly, throwing his hand carelessly.

“That’s just a little precaution. Shall we talk business?” He says, motioning one of his guys to grab the goods.

Tim looks away, looking down at his shoes.

“I don’t understand, why is he doing this? He could barely even kill a rat and he’s dealing with Two Face?” Tim asked.

“Well, what did he do before this?” Dick asked.

“He was a manager at a car manufacturing factory. They had multiple 3D printers, they create silicone casings to protect automobile parts for importing.”

Dick thinks as a thought came over his head.

“I’ve been investigating an illegal organization that tried to smuggle guns over state borders. The FBI couldn’t detect any metal in the boxes until they realize they used other substances to let the firearms go undetected, some were silicone.”

Tim shared his head.

“My dad’s a good person. He’d never do those things.” Tim said, starting to get hysteric.

Dick goes up to Tim, trying to ground him.

“Look Tim, we don’t know the definite truth right now. That’s the first step into investigations: observe before interfering. We stay low until the time is right, okay?”

Tim only nodded his head as Dick patted his shoulder in comfort. The two boys resume their watch at the men below them.

Mr. Drake brought out a wooden crate and pried it open with a tool. Two Face peered at the box, not looking impressed.

“I know what you’re thinking. It doesn’t look that impressive. But that’s the key! It looks like you’re just shipping car supplies and engines when in reality, it’s all the weapons you want to smuggle in and out of Gotham.”

Two Face peers down in the box, investigating if any of the merchandise looks anything suspicious.

“I need to ask you something, Drake. I know your history. I know you’ve been going through financial problems since your wife died with her medical bills. So why the change of career paths?”

Drake looked a bit unhinged but he gained his cool.

“You know how it is, Dent. One day you’re living the dream, the second later your life turns to shreds. This city spits you out once you show an ounce of weakness… and I’m done being stepped on.”

Tim remembers when his dad’s boss would give him problems since Tim’s mom was sick. He had to work extra shifts and wouldn’t be able to be with family. And when Tim’s mom died, his dad changed. He got let go of his job and started working as a bagger, even when he had a master’s degree in business. He got bitter and upset, but he’d never taken it out on Tim. Tim was his last reminder that he was still that loving father and devoted husband.

And now his father is here, dealing his life away to a corrupted attorney.

Two Face digs something inside his coat and gave it to Drake.

“As promised: new passport, insurance, and money to start a new life with your son.”

“What?” Tim said a bit too loud.

Everyone looks up as they heard Tim and raised their firearms.

“Someone’s here!” A goon said.

“Go around! No one gets in or out!” Two Face demanded.

Everyone spreads around on high alert. Dick and Tim are cornered, as any escape route they’d choose would kill them. There were footsteps that became louder towards their hiding spot. This was it. The guard was about to turn till suddenly, the lights went out.

“What the hell happened?”

“Who turned off the lights?”

Dick looks up and sees a shadow that glided down with his cape.

Two Face sees this too and made a fist.

“He’s here.” He whispered to himself.

There was a thud that everyone heard and directed their bullets to the sound. Then, there were screams. A guard tried running away, screaming out loud.

“It’s the bat!”

Dick takes this opportunity to grab Tim away from all of this.

“C’mon, I need to get you out of here.”

Tim tries to stop Dick but he was running too fast.

“I’m not leaving without my dad!” Tim yelled heading a different direction.

“Tim!” Dick yelled back but the young Drake boy was out of ear shot.

“Gotcha.” A man said out of the shadows, pointing his rifle at Nightwing.

Dick raised his hands up, not wanting to deal with this.

“Look buddy, right now’s not the time.”

“Well too bad, cause my boss would love knowing that I got-”

The guard didn’t even had time to finish his sentence as Batman swooped down, knowing him down.

Batman looks at his son with no emotion.

“You’re late.” Dick said.

“Something caught my attention.” Bruce replied, walking over to him.

“Where is he?” Bruce asks.

“He started running towards his dad, I’m afraid things will get ugly.” Dick said.

“We did show up uninvited.” Bruce replied as they heard more men come their way, getting in their stance to fight.

Meanwhile, Tim was running in the maze of rubble, avoiding the men that came in sight. Suddenly, he catches a glimpse of his dad who was fleeing the scene.

“Dad!”

Drake turns around, accidentally letting his packet fall to the ground and sees a young boy go up to him, hugging him tightly.

“T-Tim?” His dad asked, surprised.

Tim nods, relieved that he finally reunited with his father.

“I know you were trying to make ends meet after mom died, but this isn’t the right way.”

“Why are you wearing that and- where did you come from?” Mr. Drake asked, shocked.

“There’s no time to explain, we have to leave and I promise we could get help.”

Tim bends down and is about to retrieve his dad’s packet, but he saw the items contained.

It was all the things Two Face described: the money plates, an insurance card and one passport.

One passport.

“Son… let me explain.”

Tim looks at him, eyes stinging with tears.

“You’re leaving me?”

“It’s not like that, Tim. I was going to get you back one way or another.” He said, reaching out to his son, but Tim moved away.

“I was looking for you! I couldn’t sleep because I was trying to figure if you were hurt or worse I- I thought you left to protect me.”

Drake gets on his knees and placed his hands on his shoulders.

“Look Tim, I am so sorry that I left. You’re right… when mom died I was a wreck. Our insurance couldn’t cover all the payments from the hospital and my job was leading me nowhere. When I heard that people make triple the money than what I was doing, I had to try. But I knew I’d make enemies and the police was hot on my trail. Know that I was doing everything for us.”

Tim makes a fist in anger.

“If you did it for us, you should have stayed.”

Drake lets go of his son and stood up.

“So what, you’re going to arrest me?” He asked.

Tim couldn’t even reply. His father just committed a serious offense, and he’s really guilt-tripping his only son?

Drake got ahold of his packet and stared at his son.

“Come with me Tim, and we can leave this entire city behind. There’s nothing left for us here.”

This was it… Tim could finally be reunited with his father. What was left here for Tim?

He didn’t really have friends, he could still excel in another school-

And then he thought of you.

If he left now without saying goodbye, she’d be facing the same heartbreak as her late son. She cared for him, she made sure he wasn’t over-exerting himself when he was balancing his internship and school work, you… you cared for him.

“I can’t leave dad. I’m sorry.”

Drake looks down then back at his kid, not knowing what to say.

He turns around and runs away from Tim and tries to escape, leaving the young boy heartbroken. He feels a hand on his shoulder, turning around to see Bruce who pitied Tim.

Tim bursted into tears and hugged Bruce.

Bruce hugged Tim back, as if protecting him from all that has happened that night.

But then, a shot rang in the air.

Tim looked up and, frightened as it came from the direction his dad left. He left Bruce as his feet carried to where the gunshot happened.

“Tim!” Bruce called out, following him.

Tim ran and ran until he stopped in his tracks seeing his father lie still on the ground, eyes opened and still.

Standing over his body was Two Face, who had gun in his hand.

“What did you do?” Tim screamed.

Two face turned around, stunned that the young Robin had such hurt in his voice. The young boy knelt down on the ground where his father’s body was, trying to shake him to wake up but it was useless. Tim tried to charge at him but Nightwing came, holding Tim.

“We need to leave, you can’t stay here.” Nightwing demanded.

Tim tried yelling, thrashing his arms around but it was useless. The two ran away and all that Tim can feel is regret as he never had the chance to save his father from himself.

In just moments, Batman arrived as his face was emotionless.

“Here to end my suffering?” Two Face asks, not turning around as he already sensed who was there.

“No, but I’m wondering why you’ve targeted Drake.” Bruce says.

Two face chuckles, now turning to Bruce with his scarred side.

“I wasn’t supposed to come tonight. But Drake had the upper hand, said he knows all of my secrets from a source. He threatened to take away my-” Harvey gulps, as he almost said his daughter.

“He threatened to take away the only thing that mattered to me.”

Bruce jaw clenches, knowing that Two Face was mentioning you.

“You know what comes next, Dent.”

Two Face looks up to the sky, taking a deep breath.

“I’m done with fighting…” he murmured, throwing his gun towards the ground as he surrendered.

Soon, the whole crime scene was surrounded by police as Nightwing gave an anonymous tip that there was criminal activity. As they were about to march in to find any criminals, they stopped in their tracks as Batman was escorting Two Face to them.

Harvey Dent didn’t looked like any of the other convicts who looked angered or appeared like they failed. He just look tired, tired of the life that was forced into his hands.

After talking to the police, Bruce traveled back home alone as he knew Dick took Tim back to the manor. Once he arrived in the cave, Alfred rushed up to him in a hurry.

“Where is he?” Bruce asks.

“Upstairs, with the madame.” Alfred said quietly as Dick broke the news as he arrived with a hysteric Tim.

Bruce didn’t have time to change as he rushed to the living space, trying to find you. Once he arrives, he hears Tim’s cries and another voice that was trying to calm him. Bruce came closer and saw the back of you as you held Tim close to your chest as he was still shaking and crying.

You turned around slightly and made eye contact with Bruce. From your eyes, he could tell you were feeling so many things: remorse for Tim, anger that Bruce allowed him to go on this mission, and fear of your father.

But you broke your glance as you returned your attention to Tim, whose cries became quiet whimpers. Soon, he was sleeping in your lap as you softly brush his hair through your hands.

“Here’s some water for him when he wakes up.” Dick whispered as he placed a glass by your side.

“Thank you, Dick.” You softly replied, looking at your eldest son.

“It’s not a problem.” He replied.

“No I mean, thank you. For being there.”

Dick gives a small smile to you and kissed the top of your head.

“I’ll be staying for a few days to help out. Love you mom.” He said.

“Love you too, sweety.” You said as Dick made his way up into his old room.

You look down at Tim as he slightly shivered. You were trying to look for a blanket until Bruce was in front of you with one in his hand. He stood there still as if asking for permission. You nod your head as he laid the blanket over Tim and you.

You had a lot of things to say to Bruce and he shared the same thoughts.

Bruce was about to speak but you gave him a serious look.

“I don’t want to fight, Bruce. Tim's here, and he needs us more than ever. Can we… take one last pause? Just for tonight?”

Bruce nods and holds you close. You rest your head by his shoulder and rested your eyes, soon enveloped in sleep. Bruce made sure to not move and held you in his arms, wanting to protect you with his very being.

The day arrived when you and Bruce were at your appointment with Dinah. The drive was silent heading over as you and Bruce haven’t really spoken since that night. Both of your heads turn when you see Dinah giving both of you a comforting smile.

You went inside her office, as you both sat down on a couch that faced her chair. She sat down in front of you and laced her hands by her lap.

“It’s good to see you Bruce.” She says, as this was the first time Bruce ever stepped foot inside the Justice League Grief Center.

Bruce gives a courteous nod as he shifts in his seat, slightly feeling uncomfortable.

“As a reminder, I’m here to listen, observe, and asses if necessary. You’re in a safe place. So, who would be the first to answer some questions?”

You and Bruce look at each other and Bruce nods his head, agreeing to start.

“Okay, let’s start with something easy. What’s a fun day that you experienced with your family?”

“When I flew us to San Francisco and took the Titans out at the Bay Area. It was one of the rare times I didn’t really have to worry about my responsibilities as… you know.” Bruce said.

“Do you often worry about being a vigilante?” She asks.

“When I first started, no. It was easy to just get hurt one night and don’t think of the consequences later. But, I realized there’s more at risk when I started opening to the idea of being apart of a family again.”

“That’s a lot of pressure, wanting to protect your city but ensuring the safety of your loved ones. My next question is this: did you allow yourself to grieve when you lost your son?”

And that’s when Bruce didn’t answer right away.

He often thought that being Bruce Wayne was a role. He’d often be on autopilot at interviews or press, giving a logical and flamboyant answer in a matter of seconds.

But for some reason, he felt like he was sinking in quicksand.

“N-No.” He stuttered quietly.

“Why is that?”

The collar around his neck began to tighten. He tried stretching it out, but his breathing became thin. He opens his mouth to speak, but the words don’t come out. Out of nowhere, a comforting hand is on his knee. He turns and sees you. Your eyes were soft, as if reassuring him.

“I blame myself that he’s gone.”

A beat passes and he turns to you.

“I never should have left him alone. I didn’t expect that the Joker would be there. And when I got back to him… it was too late. And when I called you I- I felt like I took away your trust. I promised you I’d get him home safe and- I broke that promise.”

Bruce felt the unfamiliar tears threatening to fall.

“I’m so sorry. I’m so- sorry.” He whispered.

You felt tearing up too as you look at Bruce.

“I never blamed you Bruce… not once. You never forgave yourself and you decided to keep your distance. But Alfred needed you. Dick needed you. I needed you.” You said, your voice slightly cracking.

You look over at Dinah who’s also tearing up.

“I want to tell him.” You said to her. She nodded her head and she stepped out silently to give you two space.

“What’s going on?” Bruce asks, concerned.

You take a shaky breath as you nervously looked at Bruce.

“There’s something I haven’t been honest about. A week after Jason died… I - I started getting sick. I went to the doctors and they diagnosed me with early-stage ovarian cancer.”

Bruce sat there, still as a statue.

“I got treatment immediately, but they said that I may never have the chance to be pregnant in the future. I couldn’t - I couldn’t come to terms with it because I - I haven’t told anyone but Dinah because I’ve been trying… trying to piece back this family but I can’t do this alone anymore.”

Bruce closes the gap between you and holds you close to him.

You could hear him crying out loud, no longer able to hold back.

He knew how much you wanted to grow your family. He knew that you wanted to have a baby with him. And Bruce wanted that too.

“I should have been there for you.” He said, his touch around becoming tender.

More tears came down your face as you hold him tighter.

Soon, Bruce lets go and looks at you.

He softly brushes away the tears from your cheeks.

“I don’t deserve you or your forgiveness.”

“What are you talking about, Bruce? You do whatever it takes to save everyone around you. But I can never get through to you. I just feel like we still don’t trust each other and it’s dividing us.”

Bruce shakes his head up and down and holds your hands.

“You’re right. This ends now: the secrets, the holding back, everything. I want you to know that I trust you with my entire life. I love you. Please, give me one last chance to make things right.”

You hesitate for a moment, brushing the strands of hair that was in his face.

“I love you too, but we take things one step at a time. Okay? No more doing things alone. And no more secrets.”

Bruce nods his head as he kisses your temple.

“No more secrets.”

You two thanked Dinah for today and scheduled your next appointment with her. On the drive back to Gotham, you two intertwined your hands as Bruce drove, and you two shared loving gazes from time to time.

Soon, you arrive at a restaurant where you’ll be meeting Dick, Tim, and Alfred. Dick was leaving in two days so you wanted to spend much time with him, but he also wanted to know Tim better.

“Hey, mom.” Dick said getting up, greeting you and Bruce at the table.

“Hi, sweety.” You said, hugging him tightly.

“I think you’re due for a haircut soon.” Bruce lightly joked.

“I don't know, I think my new hairdo is fitting.” Dick teased.

“My dear, how was your appointment?” Alfred asked.

“It was… it was good. We talked a lot, but we’re taking it one day at a time.” You said, smiling back at Bruce.

Bruce takes your hand and kisses the back of it.

“Not that I mind, but I was wondering why we’re here. Alfred mentioned we’re celebrating something.” Tim asked.

You look over at Bruce, motioning him to continue.

“Well, we were wanting to wait till dessert. But, we wanted to give you something.” Bruce said, getting a small envelope and handing it to Tim.

The young boy opens it and doesn’t react yet.

He looks up to you guys with tears in his eyes.

“You want to be my foster parents?” He asks.

You turn to Tim, nodding your head yes.

“I know a lot has happened. But I want you to know this. The memories you made with your parents are still inside of you, don’t ever forget where you came from. I can’t imagine a life without you, Jason, or Dick. You three are always important to me, and I’d love if I could be someone who’s able to love as much as your parents.”

Tim wipes his tears and shakes his head vigorously.

“Yeah, I’d like that.” He said, getting out of his seat to hug you.

You give a tearful smile as you hold him tightly. Bruce is tearing up as well as Dick and Alfred.

You both let go and start to collect yourselves.

“Okay, enough crying. Let’s eat!” You said, making everyone laugh at the table.

Far from the restaurant, a young man looks over at the scene.

Anger and jealousy fuel him as he makes a fist.

“They moved on after how many days you passed.” Talia Al Ghul said, walking around him.

“You can strike them now I suppose. But if you are patient enough, you can exact rightful revenge.”

“Why did you want to bring me back?” The young man said.

Talia stops as she stares in the same direction he has.

“I offered the world to Bruce many years ago, powers that he had no idea existed. But his humanity stopped him since he met… her.” She gritted.

“Let’s remind him that his inner darkness is there, somewhere, and that he should embrace it.” She replied, giving a slight smirk.

“How do we start that?” The person asks.

She turns to the young before him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“It starts with you, Jason Todd. You shall remind Bruce of how he began his journey in the shadows.” She said, before walking away.

Jason looks at you all again, seeing how you moved on from him. He turns away as he starts his own journey, marking the night he became the Red Hood.

#bruce wayne #batfamily #batmom #dc #dick grayson #jason todd #tim drake #bruce wayne x reader #bruce wayne x you #batman #batman x reader #bruce wayne fanfic #bruce wayne imagine #dc batman #alfred pennyworth

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riddler-green · 2 years ago

Text

Amor, amor, amor.

Summary: Edward has been considered the office outcast, the weakest link in the chain, but, if he's as invisible as he thinks he is, why are you looking at him?

a/n: Hi! this is my first fic in English, sooo apologies for any spelling mistakes, enjoy!

Warning: this fic is heavily inspired by The Riddler: Year One #1, obsessive behavior on the part of the reader and Edward, foul language, love at first sight, maybe a little cheesy.

Words: 8,200.

What is it that makes us valuable in the eyes of others?

It may be money, values, beauty, or anything.

But in this world loneliness has affected you, since you were born your desires are handed to you on a silver platter, anything can be yours. And with the social circle, you live with it's easy to fall, to be a spoiled and arrogant person.

Jewelry, fancy clothes, and brand name shoes, all your life you got used to that, that your only concern was what color you would wear for your nails this week. Everything seemed to be simpler, your mind enclosed in a bubble of glitter and pink, after all, you considered that you had a perfect life.

Well, until you met Bruce Wayne.

It was a one-in-a-million coincidence that you two met, it's even stranger that the two of you hit it off somehow, a very unique duo, he gave you a new perspective on the world, of Gotham, as you walked him through all the years where he figured out who he is and what he wants to do for the future of the city.

He practically burst your ideals, it's like he punctured your bubble and you came out, you realized what he meant. Then he started making it more formal, making his outfit, his weapons, and tools, he even made a whole lair where he would do his operations.

How you are trustworthy and practically his only friend told you after several months of thinking about it, you accepted it regardless of the consequences that would come in Bruce's life. You remember that night, you hugged your friend until your arms ached for all the trust he gave you, his secret will be safe with you, even though inside you worried too much. But how could you refuse? if it's to keep his legacy as he said, you weren't going to stop him.

Since then you have stopped seeing Bruce as often as you used to.

And it all seems so bland, even if you turned to Gotham's rich little group of young adults, it wasn't enough, it was all drab and dreary. You could easily die of boredom.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

"Why don't you give work a chance, honey?" your father's voice is heard in the doorway of your room, bringing you back to reality, you stare at the fire in the fireplace. After so many introspections have made working not a condemnation for you, maybe in your spoiled past you would have thrown a tantrum for the simple fact of getting out of your comfort zone and working like any normal person, but now you lift your shoulders and just say "Okay".

"Great! They're hiring at KTMJ, just one call and you're done" You turn to see him pull out his phone "What if I want to get a job on my own?" The man shakes his head "You have to get experience first, my child! Besides I'll rest easy knowing you'll be in a safe environment" he exclaimed exasperated, maybe your parents were happy to have you working too.

You keep looking at him, he waits for an answer from you and you just stare at a fixed point on his face, do you need to work? The position you could fill is deserved by someone who is trying hard to get ahead, but you don't have many options anymore to get bored. "I understand father, I'll work as best I can" you reply looking back at the fire in the fireplace.

You hear him talking to someone you have no idea who it could be, but at the moment you just think that this new experience could be a good thing for you, you could stop depending on your family, you just hope to give a job worthy of the position they can give you.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

You adjust your clothes as you walk up the stairs of the KTMJ building, today is your first day and you want to make a good impression. As you enter you notice the variety of people arriving and leaving the building. It's a small office complex compared to other skyscrapers, but you still like the detail of the logo on the elevator, you appreciate it as you walk up from floor to floor.

To your surprise, when the elevator opened, a lively and cheerful atmosphere greeted you, you see helium balloons and streamers on the ceiling along with company anniversary decorations, you perceive a group of well-dressed people talking happily, one of them notices you and jumps out of his seat to approach you.

"Wow! But look who's here!" a man in a sharp suit greets you, he has a sharp face and dark brown eyes with spiky hair like porcupine quills, you greet him back "Hello! Good afternoon I'm-" before you speak he interrupts you "Oh! no need for formal introductions! Call me Zach and I've already been informed of your arrival" he laughs offering his hand for a handshake, you take it warily but do so anyway.

"Zach, nice to meet you, um-" you take a moment to speak "If you already know who I am, then could you tell me where I can talk to Mr.Stone?".

"I'd be honored! Come, I'll walk with you" he walks deftly between the cubicles of the office, Zach guides you to a staircase, and going up to the second floor you observe the view that gives the height, from here you can see almost the entire office, half of the people are talking and dancing with drinks in hand and the other working in their cubicles as if it were another work day.

"Here it is Miss, and welcome" he opens an office door and then smiles with perfect teeth. "Thank you" you reply and enter the office.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

Apparently, it's not enough for this office to celebrate the anniversary once, so when you come back the next day you find the same scenario, this time there's a lot more decoration and everyone is out of their cubicles.

Well, except for one.

You look at the back of the man sitting in his cubicle, absorbed in all the commotion and writing frantically on bead sheets.

Interesting, you think.

You'd like to approach him to ask what's got him sitting and working instead of partying with the others, but you'd rather give him his space, he may be working on something important.

You walk towards the stairs to get to your own office, Mr. stone offered it to you as a cordial gesture, after all, you are the daughter of the biggest partner of the company, and the favoritism is obvious, in a certain part, you dislike that you are given better treatment than the others.

"Well if it isn't my favorite girl!" you hear Zach shout moving closer to you, here we go again. "We just met Zach" you wave if you can call it that, unlocking the office door with a set of keys, the man in the blue suit stands to the side of you "Well that doesn't take away from the fact that you are" you open the door and Zach walks in behind you "You should come downstairs, there's a party going on right now!".

You turn on the light in the room "I'd rather stay here" you refuse and then sit down at your desk "I want to start working at once".

"Oh! Please! You'll have fun! Besides, Edward is already covering those bills" You stopped the express cleaning you do to your desk "Who is Edward?".

Zach Snorted "The bespectacled weirdo" speaks, adjusting his black tie. A red flag goes up on the flagpole in your mind "Oh, I think I saw him when I got here."

Once Zach arranges his tie the way he likes it and turns to look at you "Believe me tell you he's a very weird guy, but he's extremely good at the job, that's why he hasn't been fired yet" he revealed as if it wasn't a big deal.

Formulas some questions, why is he considered a weirdo? why is he still here?

"I find it interesting, I'd like to meet him" you reply curiously. "Well, there will be a time for that, now you have to meet the others" he comments and you sigh as he is right, the best thing would be to meet most people.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

You chatted with the group of friends of the man in the blue suit, who were drinking glasses of wine, and taking pictures to remember the party, they were nice to you. Zach, apparently the leader of the group is the one who talks most of the time, makes jokes, and tells anecdotes and in the end, everyone laughs at what he says. But you know perfectly well that kind of man like Zach, his leadership potential is good, but he lacks nobility, he even becomes quite egomaniacal with the comments of his recent promotion.

It's a good atmosphere, but for you, this is a waste of time.

"Hold on, I have some papers to serve" Zach informs walking away from the group, you notice the direction he's walking in and he stops at a cubicle. Curiosity prickles your skin, he must be talking to Edward, you unconsciously get up from your chair, one hand occupied by a plate of food, and head towards the same cubicle.

"You finish the Smelkison accounts?" you hear Zach's stoic voice directed at the person sitting at the desk. "Yes" speaks the man you can't see as Zach's stiff back prevents you from seeing him.

You walk faster until you reach the man in the blue suit "Hey! Hello!" you hold up a plate with the sandwich "I guess we haven't introduced ourselves..." you say finally looking at the face of the man in front of you, you stop talking slowly looking at every detail of him. Slightly tousled brown hair, a round face, smooth cheeks, and a normal build but you just can't look away, he catches your eye so much that you continue to stare in fascination as if you were appreciating a newly discovered work of art.

You look at Zach's face for a second. Is he blind? Can't he see the beauty of the man in front of his eyes?

On the other hand, the center of your attention doesn't respond to you, and thinks you're talking to someone else, causing you to get confused and decide to speak again "You're Edward, right?".

"He-hello" he stutters a little, forming a nervous smile, in response, you smile at his shyness. Zach looks at the interaction skeptically "Oh, my favorite snack" he takes the untouched plate in your hands and thanks you for instantly taking a bite, you frown slightly "Actually it was for Edward, a gift for helping with the...Smelkinson account?" you improvise an excuse.

Edward adjusts his glasses hiding his eyes from the reflection of the light "Thanks, but I'm not hungry". Your smile doesn't stop, on the contrary, it grows because of how adorable you find him "Wow, that's a pity, the food is delicious".

Edward doesn't respond to your comment, it's as if his voice stopped working in your presence, he looks down trying to concentrate on his work "I also finished other things like the Goodman divorce".

Zach stops eating his sandwich and puts it in one of the file cabinets "jeez, we don't need this until the end of the month" he speaks busily as you stand silently watching their interaction. "Sorry" apologized Edward in a low voice. "It's fine but let's keep this between us," says the man in the blue suit then turning to you "we need to get back".

"I'll catch up with you later" you reply, causing Zach to raise his eyebrow but he doesn't think twice before turning back to his entourage. You turn to look at Edward who is surprised that you caught him looking at you "Are you sure you don't want a snack?" you offer hoping he'll say yes.

He shakes his head, muttering a "No, thank you".

"Mmm, well, best of luck in your job, Edward" you wave goodbye and walk away from his cubicle, causing Edward to lower the papers he put halfway down his face to hide his nervousness.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

Luck is something he doesn't have, not even a hint of it, but he feels that something changed in his destiny when you looked at him for the first time, as you noticed him among so many people and that's almost a historical fact, someone who notices him and doesn't ignore him like everyone else.

He knows you, how can he not? If everyone talks about you, about your upper-class position that gets you to put in a better cubicle than him, you just starting to work, he's been here for five years and he's still at his simple desk while you rise to the top. It's unfair, totally unfair, and the strange thing about it all is that you don't repulse him.

You dress just like Zach's friends, in fancy and expensive clothes, and he watches as you approach the group with a serene face, after a few minutes you look in their direction, and instead of grimacing or telling someone that Edweird is looking at you funny, you simply smile at them and make a peace sign.

He is too surprised, he looks away to return to the accounts on the table, numbers are his safe place where he knows the result of operations. But social relations? He doesn't know about that area, that's why he's completely confused, why do you smile at him? why do you treat him well? It must be because you are kind or you are faking it to hide your cruel personality.

Kindness, he never thought that existed in Gotham, it's not every day you see a pretty, rich girl offering him snacks and being empathetic, so he's suspicious of any decent gesture that comes his way.

Edward sighs, the day will soon be over.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

You walk out of the KTMJ building as the dusk turns into a starless night, you slowly walk down the steps blowing on your hands, you shouldn't have forgotten your gloves. You see out of the corner of your eye Edward's brown hair on the bottom steps, and you can't help but want to talk to him.

"Goodbye Edward!" you yell at him and he turns around with a surprised face, you wave a hand as a goodbye with growing excitement, and he waves goodbye without saying anything to you, just slowly waving his hand as you do.

You consider it cute and even refreshing, a novel feeling arises in your whole being, you watch as he mingles through the dangerous streets of Gotham, perhaps on his way to the subway, and you worry about how dangerous the streets can be at this hour, next time you might take him home.

Wait, wait, wait, wait.

Are your cheeks hot? Does your heart race in his presence?

Oh, you should call Bruce.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

Zach arrives at your office with a couple of coffees from the nearest branch of the building, he greets you with a big smile and sits down in front of your desk handing you the coffee, you take a sip and quickly push away the paper cup with the hot coffee, you burn your tongue a little causing a disgusted look on your face. "Slow down" Zach chuckles and drank his hot coffee.

Jesus, how disgusting this guy is, someday he must realize that you have no interest in him, he keeps coming back to you to brag about his luxuries and cases he has solved alone. Maybe in other times, you would have been captivated by his neat appearance of a successful businessman, but being surrounded by people like that you ended up losing interest.

It's your second week here and you've only done basic things, but it's not all bad, the good thing is that from your office you can see Edward from your window. You don't care how creepy it sounds that you watch in your spare time a man who probably doesn't want anything to do with you.

"Look what I did" he hands you a folder, it was the Goodman case you heard about the second time you arrived, but you remember perfectly well that Edward worked on this case as well. "That's fantastic, all this research" you congratulate flipping through the accounts and papers with all the information "But, didn't Edward help you with this?".

At the mention of the other man his smile falters "Yeah, well, he did the numbers part, but I did everything else!". You close the folder, this job is Edward's, not his, no matter how assertively he lies, you won't fall into his trap.

"Tell them Edward helped you" you hand the folder back to him. "But-" he objects, however, he watches your serious face and it cowed him, he doesn't forget who you are "Okay."

He leaves your office and you wait a moment, when a few minutes pass you quickly walk over to the only window in the room to watch Edward for a while, but what you find is Zach talking to him, your blood boils every time he talks to the man with the clear glasses, are you the only one who realizes that the idiot Zach is taking advantage of Edward? maybe some people realize it because of how obvious it is, but no one does anything.

You will change that.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

"What?" Mindy, who you think is a female version of Zach, stopped looking at herself in her hand mirror to look directly at you. "I said," you clear your voice, "Do you know Edward Nashton?"

The woman rolls her eyes and turns back to her mirror "He's one of Zach's minions" she says applying red lipgloss. "Come on Mindy" you sit down next to her "you must know something more about him".

"Why so much interest, mmh?" she asks with a suspicious tone. You knew I'd ask you, are you willing to give up this intimate secret to the most gossipy woman in the office?

"I think he's handsome" you confess swallowing your distrust, with the crush you're suffering you need want to know everything about Edward.

Mindy starts laughing, however, when you don't follow her laughter, she instantly stops "Are you serious?". You shake your head in affirmation, Mindy's mouth drops open, totally taken off guard by the fact, "Wow, I mean, I didn't think that was your type”.

You set your sights on something other than Mindy, you get a little shy talking about these topics out loud "He's cute and very dedicated to his work."

"Well, if you say so" he keeps his mirror in his bag "Actually, Nashton is a very mysterious person, I mean, he hardly hangs out with anyone in the office, apparently he's really into crossword puzzles and that shit, all the time I see stuff like that wasted all over his desk."

Satisfied with the little she gave you, you point to her "Don't tell anyone what I told you" you just hope your secret isn't revealed before you try to move forward with Edward.

Your co-worker smiles "Relax!" she gets up from her chair "Your secret is safe with me!" she assures you before leaving the room.

You doubt it.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

Edward arrives at work at exactly 7 am when there is almost no one in the office, he likes to be early so he can be alone with his work, without the need to listen to Zach's irritating voice giving him folder after folder of new cases, however when he gets to his desk he finds something.

"1001 Sudokus to solve!"

He picks up the little book and looks at it with fascination, looking around for someone who might have left it there.

But he's alone... isn't he?.

He looks towards the stairs, on the second floor, and watches the shutters of one of the offices close quickly, if he remembers correctly, yours. Was it you? Did you give him this? He sits down at his desk and picks up his red pen to start the sudoku on the first page, while he solves it without difficulty he thinks of you.

He's skeptical, he can't help it, it must be a joke on you and Zach, it can't be a gift, it's a joke, just that, but as he finishes his first sudoku he imagines you leaving him this book with joy in your eyes, that he's not a joke on you.

He hears some footsteps from the iron steps, he turns up and finds you in front of him "Good morning Edward" you smile at him already close by in his cubicle. "Good morning" he reciprocates the greeting ducking his head, he had already seen too many pictures of you last night, but when he is next to you he just freezes.

"I heard you like crossword puzzles" you laugh "but I couldn't find one of those, so" you sit in a chair with desk casters near him "I chose Sudoku."

"You gave it to me?" he speak hesitantly filling in the boxes with numbers. "Yes!" you confess with unconscious enthusiasm.

"Why?" he didn't mean to sound so confused but he can't help it, that thorn in his head telling him that he doesn't deserve any of this too he wonders the same thing Why, why are you giving him a gift?

"Because I want to, someone should thank you for the cases Zach took, right?" you replied cheerfully even though you worry inside, doesn't he like the gift? Does he find it strange?

"What?" he abruptly stops solving his sudoku, he looks at you with utmost surprise, what did you just say? "Nothing" you quickly get up and walk away saying "have a nice day".

Edward stares at your figure as you climb the stairs again, that you're back to the top again, he should hate you, but he can't, nor does he want to. The gears in his head turn to come up with a workable answer, you're not like them, his smug superiors, he smiles slowly, he didn't get a chance to thank you for the gift. Edward thinks about what he should do, he could go upstairs and thank you directly but he also thinks that this situation needs to be cleared up once and for all.

He needs to know if you're playing him, if he trusts you even for a second, you'll probably show up laughing with Zach and his group over poor naive Edward who believed in you.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

Mr. Stone looks at you as if you grew another eye on your forehead, yes, your request was more than unexpected, he adjusted his glasses and keeps his usual gesture of seriousness "Are you sure?

You are sitting in front of his desk with a chair, and you notice the various newspaper pictures on the walls, you don't have time to read them and you focus on Mr. stone "More than sure, I don't deserve an office if I'm only given simple tasks" It wasn't enough to just watch Edward anymore, you want more, and being up there with the others, it just takes you away from him.

The man sighs "But you can't go down to the cubicles where the others are, Miss" Your smile disappears at his reply "Why not?".

Mr.stone leans back in his chair "Well, your father insisted on a better environment for you, and believe me the second floor is the best section for that".

"I'll tell my father that I chose to be downstairs, he doesn't have to worry about that" you see Mr.stone's tired face with clear signs of wear and tear, but he still tries to give you a good deal. "okay, we'll give you a new cubicle".

You give a little jump of joy inside you, and outwardly you smile determinedly "In fact, I know where I want to settle down."

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

"Hi Edward!" you drop your files into your new cubicle, a freshly cleaned desk just for you, your expression of joy is hard to hide, how did you not think of switching cubicles before?

Edward jumps at the noise, looks at you a little startled then asks "What are you doing?".

"I'll be your neighbor, isn't that wonderful?" you sit down in a desk chair, and put your post-it notes in one of the drawers naturally, while Edward continues to process what you said. "What happened to your office?" he asks again.

"Well, I decided it's better to work directly with others than to lock myself in four walls" that's not entirely a lie, but you know the reason you came down is beside you, anxiously waving his red pen.

"Makes sense" Edward opines further accepting the idea that you'll be by his side for quite some time, he's not ready yet. in the meantime you smile at him relieved, he thinks it's no wonder you sit specifically near him, another bullet dodged.

The two of them remain silent, which you don't mind, you suppose Edward must be quite introverted and that's why you don't force him to chat if he doesn't want to.

"The sudoku you gave me..." he started to speak but looked down at the papers on his desk "I liked it, thank you very much."

"Ah!" His thank you catches you off guard, your cheeks start to hurt as much as you smile "It's nothing! I hope it wasn't too hard for you."

Edward smiles back "I figured it all out in less than an hour, it was entertaining." You are surprised by what he said "Really?" Edward nods his head with an approving hum "That's brilliant" you reply delightedly.

"You think?" his cheeks heat up forming a slight flush, when was the last time someone complimented him? this feeling is so unfamiliar to him, it's simply scorching, but also addictive.

"Yeah!" you laugh as you slowly come up next to him to talk closer "I take to do one, like, a half hour and you finish the whole book!".

Edward chuckles, flashing his smile strange to others, but to you captivating "It's not that hard."

"How cool" you flatter him again, and you look at his face closely, how sometimes most of the time his glasses hide his eyes from the sun or the glare, you'd like to see those green eyes more, get lost in them and never go back, wouldn't that be wonderful?

Edward opens his mouth to speak again but a call stops him "Nashton!".

Your smile fades. Why does Zach have to butt in where he's not wanted?

Zach stopped in front of Edward's desk with some files in hand.

"Look at this" gives you a new folder, from the perspective of your view you see the title of the file -New Beginnings, animal rescue-.

"What happened to Goodman account that was here?" Edward questions receiving the folder giving Zach an indecipherable look.

"Oh, I decided to hand it over, after all, they're impressed with how fast we work" he informs holding up his hand with his thumb, you roll your eyes inquiringly.

Edward's face softens to a completely reflective one, still staring at Zach... <we>?

"So you told them that Edward did most of the work, right?" Zach is surprised to hear your voice, he didn't notice you when he came to give Edward the files, he turns in your direction and smiles with that fake face "Yes, I did."

You narrow your eyes in extreme distrust, he's most likely lying, but you'll give him the benefit of the doubt. "What are you doing here, by the way?" the suited man ignores Edward's glare at him.

"I moved my desk, I'll leave the office to give it to you" to Zach's eyes it seems like a nice act but the truth is it's a sign that you want him as far away from Edward and you as possible.

"Aw! You shouldn't have done that!" she replies in a cloying voice that makes you want to bust your eardrums if you hear it again.

"I insist, keep it."

Edward stays in the background of their conversation, ducking low enough not to turn around and watch you talk to Zach like he's your friend. "I need you to look at this file, it's something from upstairs, they need it urgently so they gave it to me" Zach informs him again, god, this job will kill Edward someday.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

You look at Edward again, and you think you might consider him your new hobby, however, you are worried that something is wrong with him. Another nice thing you find about him is that when it's time to work, he nimbly moves his hand and answers the boxes on the charts, he takes the time to look at each receipt for evidence and compares each bill to find a discrepancy. It's as if he's so focused on just that that everything else gets put on the back burner.

You can't get enough of seeing him like this, but it's getting late and you're practically alone in the office. You tap him on the shoulder and shake him gently and call out, "Edward?

Edward comes out of his trance, he looks around and finds the office about to close, but he also finds you there, right next to him "Yes?" he looks at you a bit dazed.

"It's late, let's go" you put on your coat for the cold and settle in your chair already standing up. Heeding you he gets up from his seat and puts on his coat and backpack "I didn't notice the time, did you also work late?

"I finished my work early" you declare walking towards the elevator, and Edward follows you "I was just waiting for you."

The elevator closes, you inhale the cold air, and you see Edward who similarly watches you and just smiles. "How long have you been here?" you start a conversation, averting your gaze at the speed of light, seeing the logo plastered on one of the walls of the elevator instead of Edward's smile that could blind you if you stare at it too long.

Edward adjusts his glasses "Five years" he replies somewhat embarrassed, at this point he knows you won't make fun of him, but he still has that thorn in his side.

"That's a lot" you reply "You deserve better".

"I don't think so," he says hiding his hands in his coat, "I'm not capable enough to be promoted."

"Edward please" you speak almost angrily, not at him, but at the people who made him feel this way "I've seen your notes and let me tell you they're great, you're talented."

Edward looks into your eyes, looking for some lie you can give him, if this were a dream, he doesn't want to wake up, he shyly pulls his hands out of his coat and gives himself a little pinch, he feels the pain, he's awake.

That's all I wanted to hear from someone, but now that he has you in front of him he doesn't know how to take it, no, don't fall for it Edward, it's a game of yours, everything you're saying must be a joke, after all, it's not the first time someone plays with his happiness.

Meanwhile, your head is burning for not knowing what to say, you have so many things to confess to Edward, the urgent need to tell him that he looks great in that plaid shirt, or that his hairstyle makes him look incredibly handsome, so many options but you decide to keep them to yourself.

The elevator goes down to the first floor when the doors open Edward gets out first almost running but you stop him "Edward, you're going to the subway right?".

"Yeah, are you going too?" he asks innocently and you almost say yes just to tag along, but you have a better idea.

"Oh no, I have a car" you look at the watch on your wrist "It's late enough and it might be dangerous, I can give you a ride home, if you want" you pose crossing your fingers internally, you hoped it wouldn't sound so weird your proposal.

Edward could pass out right there, this all sounds like a romantic movie I used to watch when the orphanage had a worn-out TV but it worked "I don't want to be a bother".

You gasp "Impossible!" you reach over and grab his arm "I would never think something like that."

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

All Edward thought as he looked at the streets of Gotham was that all is lost, desolate, and full of evil, he examined the people silently on their paths to the subway, as he blended into the crowd of god-forsaken people.

But now he's sitting in a beautiful carriage next to you.

The streets are still the same, and the people are still there, yet he rejoices in the privilege of not being on his way to the disastrous subway, that he doesn't have to put up with gangsters bothering office workers like him.

One thing is obvious, he hates your kind, he loathes them with all his being, all the while wondering if there is hope in this life, and it seems that fate has answered him.

Yes, there is hope, and it's you.

And he admits it in the depths of his being, the attention you give him scares him a little, it must be something normal for people to treat each other like that, with kindness and respect, but you make him feel special and that makes him not want to get away from you, he craves that attention little by little.

You look out of the corner of your eye at Edward who is contemplating the view from the passenger window, once again absorbed in his thoughts, what a cute thing to do, you did not regret it taking him home.

Once your father told you when you were little that someday a rich man would give you a great life and you wouldn't have to worry about anything else, that you wouldn't have to lift a finger for your husband to give you everything you want.

But now? You wanted nothing more than to give Edward that comfortable life. Oh, Edward had you wrapped around his finger and didn't know it.

"What are you thinking about?" Zach spoke to you sitting comfortably in his new office, next to another colleague whose name you don't know but they were chatting about trivial things, Edward was keeping busy doing his work and you didn't want to interrupt him, so now you are here.

"Edward should be promoted" you replied looking straight at him "I should mention it to Mr.stone".

The man in the blue suit laughs "Come on honey, Nashton doesn't have what it takes for this position".

"And you have what it takes?" you ask him with some distaste, you're not his honey.

"Uh, yes" he still laughs and the girl next to you laughs along with him "But well, I don't want to talk about him anymore, have you been to Paris?" he expertly changes the subject to which your companion replies.

Without answering his question you leave the office, but unexpectedly the office door opens unexpectedly.

A somewhat dejected and uneasy Edward enters the room so quickly that Zach is startled, shouting "Jesus!".

"Edward?" you speak to him and he turns to look at you and smiles softly, raises his hand in greeting, and turns to Zach.

"Uh, can I have a word?" Edward murmur to the man in the blue suit who reluctantly gets up and follows him toward the exit.

You sigh, Edward looks good in anything he wears "what are they talking about?" you say quietly.

"Who cares?" replies the other woman in the room.

"I care."

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

Walking down the stairs towards your desk, Zach runs in the opposite direction down the stairs past you and ignores you "I'm taking you upstairs with me, Rain Man!" he yells excitedly.

Oh, so he must mean Edward since he gave him that nickname recently. Back in your cubicle, you pick up a piece of paper from the floor and hand it to Edward, who has disorganized his desk.

"Did you find anything?" you put the paper on his desk, Edward nods his head with clear happiness, starting to tell you in detail about the discrepancy between accounts, and various financial terms confused you, but seeing him so cheerful talking numbers makes you so happy you just listen to him.

"You're so smart Edd," you said without filters in your mouth, you open your eyes in surprise realizing how you said it, in a gawking tone.

"Tha-thank you" he takes his red pen that has black ink in it and starts playing with it.

You sit stiffly clearing your throat to look more decent "I hope they notice your effort."

You and Edward stare at each other as if it were a staring contest, you both smile comfortably together, he squirms with happiness at the compliments you usually give him, and on the other hand, just the fact of making him smile delights you.

You hear a noise coming from the second floor, Zach energetically descends the stairs and Edward approaches him still maintaining his excitement.

"What did they say?" asks Edward without batting an eye, Zach grabs his shoulder with an unconvincing smile.

"He said it was probably nothing" the man in the suit informs and Edward's eyes widen in surprise "What? But-" he tries to speak but Zach stops him, "He said it was a mistake, but it was a good job! He even bought me lunch!" he starts to walk away to start walking up the stairs "Don't worry! I've got it from here, bud"

"But!-" Edward shouts but Zach no longer hears him, his serious countenance turned to disappointment, again he was ignored, standing there, static and beginning to darken his mind, a formulated hatred, screaming internally in his conscience for the time he invested in analyzing the account.

"Idiot" you whisper looking towards Zach's office, you have to do something to make them notice Edward's effort, you pick up your bag and walk over to the man still standing there "Let's get something to eat, Eddie"

He comes out of his trance and feels your arm touching his "Yes, let's go".

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

"So, what do you think?" Edward asks your opinion on his plan to talk to Mr.stone. "It won't work, trust me" you comment eating a French fry as you see Edward in front of you, the two of them standing in a booth at the nearest diner in the office, a place set in the eighties with a menu with plenty of burgers and sodas "He'll just tell you it's a mistake, but I know it's not".

Edward looks at you in confusion, eating his food and thinking that you are right about his could-be plan being in vain. But he doesn't know what to do to make his work stand out or at least get an explanation as to why his discovery was a mistake.

Clicking his tongue quickly, you noticed, this whole thing is fixed, if that investigation is done in depth there will be a danger for everyone involved, it was expected that Mr. stone dismissed the case without much thought.

This company could be up to dirty tricks and that's what you fear the most, is your father involved too? It's time for you to do your investigation.

"What goes up and doesn't come back down?" Edward asks shyly, it's like he's testing the waters with you.

"Is it a riddle?" you smile stopping eating to turn your attention to Edward who shrinks back in his seat "Don't you like them?" he says unsure, nodding you told him "Yes, but I'm not that good" you shift restlessly around in your seat, trying to hide how elated you are, it seems like the two of you are a couple on a date.

"Your age".

Your naive fantasies are distorted back to reality "what?".

"That's the answer to the riddle" he comments taking a bite of his food "They're not that hard, it's just a matter of thinking about it."

"You make it sound so simple" you laugh wiping your mouth with a napkin "I'd rather you tell me the answer."

When you are next to Edward, that self-critical part of him that puts him off disappears, you make him feel like he is normal, in that he doesn't have to hide his personality and you pay close attention to him when he talks about his crosswords, he is starting to enjoy your company, he has fallen, he is so weak to your charms, he takes a sip of his drink and nods his head, he will tell you the answer to every riddle he knows.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

It's two in the morning when the ringtone of your cell phone rings, you raise your arm lazily to reach it from your bedside table "Who is calling?" you ask with a sleepy voice, whoever it is you were going to hang up the call in less than a second if it wasn't because you heard Edward's voice calling your name frantically.

"Eddie? Eddie! what's wrong?" your eyes widen in alarm, leaving your tired mode to a worried one "Are you okay?".

"I saw them!" he shouts through the call, you pick up the sound of the rain and the city in the background "I saw them all!".

You get out of bed and put on a sleeping robe, still holding the phone to your ear, "Where are you?" you grab your car keys and head for the front door of your apartment.

"I...I" stop talking making you worry more "I'm outside the iceberg Longue!".

"I'm on my way, don't hang up please".

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

"Sorry " Edward muttered sitting on the floor, warming himself near the fireplace in your new apartment, like emancipation from your parent's house.

You take your time drying her hair with a towel and hum softly, you dreamt of this before, the two of you sitting there appreciating the warm fire and holding each other to feel the warmth of each other, but you didn't want things to happen this way, you have so many questions to ask, what happened, what did Edward see to put her in that state? You decide not to ask that for the moment.

"What are you apologizing for?" you whisper to him gently, not wanting to overwhelm him any more than he already is.

"I disturbed you in the middle of the night" she speaks softly cringing trying to dry herself more with the towel she has covering her entire body.

"Listen Eddie" you finish drying his hair and sit down next to him, the two of you on the floor near the fireplace for warmth, seeing his distressed face you reply "I would never think you were a bother, on the contrary, I'm so glad you called me."

Edward is still silent, the iceberg lounge event still haunts him, making his thoughts turn to mush and behave so shyly "Why are you doing this?" he asked sharply, he doesn't know whether to trust you anymore, he saw his boss talking to a criminal, you may even be in on it, he just wants some peace or else his mind would explode.

Their gazes meet, your cheeks get so hot you could be mistaken for having a fever, and you have an inexplicable fear of confessing your love for Edward, of telling him that you want to give him the whole world without it sounding like an exaggeration.

"I like you" you confess, expecting a negative reaction, but you only hear Edward's voice crack "really?".

"Yes," you let out a nervous laugh at how impressed he is "do I need to say that again?".

Of course, Edward is still not speaking and you take his hands "Edward Nashton" you move closer until your face is inches away from his "I like you".

"You..." he muttered closing his eyes and squeezing your hands, he's hurting, he's terrified of all of this, that it's not real, he's just telling the truth.

You repeated "I like you" to him, enduring the small pain he makes by squeezing your hands tightly.

He starts to cry, an impulse of such strong emotions he feels at the same time, a catharsis that makes his eyes blur and he just sobbed in front of you, no one had ever said such words to him that he feels it's all too good to be true, Edward doesn't feel worthy enough of your love.

But you just look at him anyway, letting him cry whatever he wants, knowing that he's not ready to say the same words to you yet, you don't mind wiping the small residue of tears on his cheeks "Do you want some water?" you offer in a calm voice, Edward shakes his head and says "Stay".

You pull him close to your body and they embrace, you can feel the warmth of his sturdy body and you notice that you prefer that warmth to the warmth of the fireplace.

You smelled Edward's chest as he kept hugging you, they were like that for so long that you forgot the minutes that passed.

You smile still crushing your face by his collarbone, there are so many things going through your mind, a total devotion that you want to give to Edward so he is safe and doesn't have to live in more danger, when you sniff his shirt you perceive the smell of the humidity caused by the rain, remembering the reason why he is here "What happened Eddie?" you talk to him with clear concern when he called you, he was very scared and you were afraid of what could have happened to him in those parts of the city.

Edward is silent and just keeps staring at the fire in the fireplace with a sign of fear, why even he can't process what he saw, Zach and Mr. stone at the entrance of the club along with a criminal who several days ago was on trial. He almost threw up in disgust, why are they there, what were they doing? You don't want to imagine all the things they did in that club, the image you had of the boss was shattered into a thousand pieces, the faces of those people merged with the mud puddles on the dirty floor, and on autopilot, you grabbed your cell phone and called you.

"Nothing," he says hoping it sounded convincing but it wasn't, you pull away from the embrace and look into his eyes, seeing through his glasses and you notice him bewildered, stunned.

"Tell me the truth."

Even so with the confession of love you gave him doubt, inside his being he has an immense terror of you making fun of him for how he took a simple shameless situation.

"Did they do something to you? " this time your meek voice was changed to an angry "Did they hurt you?" just the thought of someone touching a hair on his head makes you angry.

"No, no, no" he replied "Remember that case I told you about a few days ago?".

It takes you a few seconds to remember which case he was talking about " about the animal rescue?".

"Yes, I....." he gulps "I saw Zach and Mr.stone with one of the people involved."

You open your eyes full of surprise at Edward's statement, to this point it wasn't a crazy thing to happen "Shit."

"Yeah" he nods "Something's going on and it's not very good" he opines and you couldn't agree with him more, jeez, Edward just uncovered a sewer of fucking KMTJ corruption. "Damn" you curse still in shock. "Did they see you?" you ask.

"No, they didn't even notice me."

"Good" you snort "I also noticed something weird is going on" Edward hums with affirmation, he shudders at everything that happened in one night, he shouldn't have gone to that animal shelter.

"Hey, don't worry" you whisper touching her cheek "it's going to be okay".

Edward feels your warm palm, and closes his eyes softly absorbing all the affection you give him, he never thought he would have such genuine contact with another person, for the first time in his life, he feels he's not alone anymore. But that soft feeling starts to mix with something darker, he spent five years working for an idiot who only takes advantage of his talent. Something new emerges in him, but he doesn't know how to name it, it's only a matter of time before his mind becomes clear.

✧˖°. Thank you very much for reading. And again, an apologize for any errors! My ao3 ✧˖°.

#edward nashton x reader #the riddler x reader #dano riddler x reader #riddler x reader #sabra dios que hice

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