#Jason ‘wait I gotta rule people now?’ Todd

[ghost-bxrd]

Everyone under the impression that Jason is just cruising the kingdoms with Red, but how about him actually ruling the lands Joker used to call his own… 👀

[the-witches-you-couldnt-burn]

It started with a whisper

I originally wrote ‘Like I did with you’ as a one-shot but people wanted a sequel. This turned out to be waaaaay longer than expected (4.7k word count). Inspired by Everybody Talks by Neon Trees. I hope you lot enjoy!

Ao3

(Also this is Mari’s new outfit, all credits go to the original artist)

————

Two teens stood upon the balcony of a large banquet hall, exposed to the midsummer night air. The sky was a lilac blanket that hung over the Parisian buildings, speckled with glowing stars. The moon, with it’s crescent smile, beamed down of the young couple.

Hey, baby, won't you look my way?

Marinette’s eyes were closed as she rested her head upon his shoulder, relaxing after the night’s rapid escalation. Tonight she had arrived at the ball with the intent to be there for her friends, but somehow she found herself within the arms of Gotham’s (and probably Paris’) Ice Prince. She had overheard his nickname from the Gotham students, one of which being Jon, who was in the middle of mocking the young Wayne. She had never considered that nickname as suitable; sure he was temperamental & had a tendency to snap, but icey to the core? No.

I can be your new addiction

Damian was calm. For the first time in his life he felt like he could take a breath. His exhale was carried off by a small gust of wind, the bush over hanging the stone railing rustled. With his inhale, the scent of Marinette’s perfume became present once more. Mixed with the crisp night’s air, her usual scent of pastries was mixed with what could only be described as ambrosia. His phone vibrated within his pocket, it was never on volume due to the potential risk it caused during his heroic activities.

“Shit.” Notifications covered his screen, multiple tweets, Instagrams and Tiktoks in which he had been tagged in. But the alert came from his family’s private messaging chat. The whole thread was a shit storm, Grayson and Todd’s messages were completely capitalised (he learnt years ago this meant ‘to yell’ in writing form) and both had multiple ‘keyboard spasms’. Drake, like the thorough detective he is, had combed through the images and videos, investigating their validity. His honorary sisters had replied with ‘awwwww’(s) and ‘Omg we MUST meet this girl! I need to know how she tamed the demon!’. He could practically hear Brown’s shrill voice from across the ocean.

Hey, baby, what you gotta say?

No reply from his father or Alfred. The two of them were the only semblance of ‘normal’ paternal figures he had within his life, after the sham of a relationship he had previously held with his grandfather. Their silence unnerved him.

Marinette had noticed his attention had shifted to his phone, her own mobile was buzzing away within her baby pink purse. Messages, notifications of account tagging and comments galore. A sigh left her lips when she saw her parents seemed to be none the wiser. Good, she didn’t need to deal with future adoration for ‘The boy who swept our daughter off of her feet’ (or something along those lines).

Her cheeks regained some of the warmth they held before as she thought of her parent’s reaction. Scrolling through her Twitter she saw her friends had posted multiple images of the night’s events, majority being her shared dance.

Chloé Bourgeois @TheBestBourgeois

what kind of Disney shit is this? (Insert video of two teens dancing around an mostly empty dance floor.)

Alix Kubdel @Sk8trGirl

Replying to @TheBestBourgeois

I KNOW RIGHT?! THEY WERE FUCKING FLOATING!!!

All you're giving me is fiction

She was thankful that they hadn’t tagged her but she hadn’t been spared by others in attendance. Her post thread had blown up, thousands had commented and even more had viewed the evidence. There was no way she would come out of this unscathed.

“Has anyone been on Twitter today?” The blonde of the family asked as she walked into the dining room. Her eyes focused on her scrolling screen, brows furrowed in confusion. “Actually has anyone seen what’s happening on any of our socials?”

It was early in the afternoon and the family had recently returned home after a straining stakeout. The Joker had broken out of Arkham and the Batfam had to deal with his minions. Dick’s arm was in a sling (sprained from a grapple gone wrong), Jason was icing his hand, Alfred was stitching Bruce’s chest wounds while Tim and the girls escaped without severe injuries. All were still recuperating and finally able to recharge.

Alfred always enforced a strict ‘no devices at the dinner table’ rule; no matter how urgent it was, it could wait until after sustenance was consumed. Tim strongly opposed this, but there was no arguing with Agent A. This all surmises that probably no one had seen the crap storm on social media.

I'm a sorry sucker and this happens all the time

Bruce sighed, bringing his free arm up to rub his eyes. Tilting his head back to look at Steph, “Who was it this time?” Barbara quickly took out her phone to see what Stephanie was talking about, all the while glancing accusingly at Dick and Jason. Both of whom held up their arms (or in Dick’s case arm), declaring their innocence.

“It wasn’t fucking me!”

“Jason! Language!” Dick shot a glare at Jason and was met with one in return. “It wasn’t me either.”

“Then who-“ Bruce started before being cut off by his most rambunctious daughter.

I found out that everybody talks

Stephanie with a squeal, exclaimed that it was Damian. Visions of what the Wayne brat could have done flashed through the heads of everyone in the room. He had been sent overseas before the quarantines and lockdowns hit. During Damian’s first month in France he had been forced into online schooling and then finally when he got to go to in-person classes he hated it. Described the class as a kindergarten with petty and vindictive toddlers.

Had he broken someone’s arm? Was that person of such importance that it had spread over multiple social media platforms? France’s government had announced on June 15th, that teens were now being inoculated so him having COVID-19 was doubtful. Had he insulted the wrong person? Had he taken over the government? He certainly had the potential.

Everybody talks, everybody talks

What they saw stunned them, even Steph as she watched it for the 7th time. Damian Wayne was dancing. But not only that, he was dancing with a girl.

It started with a whisper

“What is this shit?”

No one verbally objected to Jason’s outburst but he was sent a harsh glare from Alfred, Dick and Bruce. Their focus soon returned to the images and videos before them. Babs’ and Steph’s phones were returned to them as the others ran to grab their own devices. They all met back at the table, comparing the posts and comparing their notes.

I can hear the chitchat

“There’s no way this can be real.”

“Jesus Tim,” Barbara rolls her eyes, “have you seen the amount of posts there are? You’d be an idiot to think otherwise.”

Take me to your love shack

“I’m with Tim, how do we know this isn’t some skit. I mean, Demon Spawn almost looks normal. That’s a matter of concern.” He almost dry heaved when he agreed with Tim. Damian couldn’t be capable of naturally exuding that amount of humanity unless there was something in it for him.

Mamas always gotta backtrack

“I was just saying Babs, that we should check the credibility of these images. For all we know they could be gorilla glued together and trying to get unstuck.” Tim cringed at his own reasoning, he really needed to either sleep (probably not going to happen anytime soon) or find his favourite coffee brand (which had been one of the first to vanish after the covid hoarders appeared).

When everybody talks back

Dick was too busy freaking out and spam messaging the youngest Wayne, to defend Damian’s humanity. The family saw this and followed suit, wanting to get information from the source.

Chat name: Alfred supremacy

BigBird: AHHHHHH DAMIAN!

BigBird: YOU LOOK SO CUTE!!!

BigBird: HAIFJDNDNFI

LittleWing: WTF HAPPENED DEMON SPAWN YOU LOOK ALMOST HUMAN

Babs: who knew the city of love would influence the brat

Blondie: they are so cuteeeeeee!

Blondie: We HAVE to meet her!

Silent-but-deadly: agreed.

Timbo: YO DEMON

Timbo: Apparently the videos are legit

Timbo: are you being blackmailed?

And it just devolved into more chaos from there, fueled by the fact that they saw Damian’s ‘Blood Son’ account appear online before vanishing once more. Dick shrieked, “I FOUND HER ACCOUNT!”

The family gathered around the eldest son, peering over his shoulder to view his iPhone 12max screen. They saw a young girl’s Instagram account. It was locked but they could see her profile pic, the girl had black hair and looked to be if Asian decent. They compared it to the videos but it was hard to see due to the hall’s lighting and the minimised facial features of the pfp. Alfred suggested that they search up her username and see who has tagged her, some might have other photos of her.

After research for awhile, the family began to get frustrated with lack of results.

Hey honey you could be my drug

You could be my new prescription

“Come on!” Jason complained, “What kind of teenage girl doesn’t post her life online?” He ignored the girls glares and went back to researching. How had the account by the name of ‘mariiiiinette’ to managed to prevent the entire Wayne clan from accessing it? Damn Instagram privacy settings. He groaned, dragging a hand down his face, “We are fucking stupid. Why don’t we just use the Bat-computer? It would be so much fucking easier.”

“It shouldn’t be used for civilian issues-“

Too much could be an overdose

“The girl could be a meta for all we know! We aren’t safe until we know who she is.” Jason points a finger at Tim, his paranoia flared up and even though he would never admit it, Jason would do anything to protect each member of his family (although Bruce is still debatable).

All this trash talk make me itching

Barbara and Tim took their usual positions as Oracle and Red Robin (who had been banned from patrol due to lack of sleep). The rest of the Batfam stood behind them either with arms crossed or still failing at researching.

Oh my my shit

“The account is owned by a girl called Marinette Dupian-Cheng. She is French-Chinese and her parents own a popular bakery. Also if it wasn’t already obvious, she goes to Collège Françoise Dupont, aka Damian’s French school.” Tim begun informing his nosy family, “But this account has been inactive for the past 6 months, which is strange due to her frequent posting schedule before hand. It seems she probably has a second account and this is her old one.”

Everybody talks, everybody talks

“Not only that,” Barbara interrupted. “There are unopened messages from other accounts that accuse her of being a bully. There is a whole Facebook page about this girl and how she has been hurting her old friends, but neither side seems reliable. The so called victims seem to be twisting the truth but there is barely any information about Marinette so we can’t disprove it either.”

“Read out some of the messages.” Bruce took a cup of coffee from Alfred and sipped it.

The main screen of the bat computer displayed a Facebook group with the banner picture being a photo of Marinette. “They are mostly complaints expected of teen girls when there is a girl they don’t like; ‘Marinette is such a know-it-all’, ‘She is constantly insulting Lila’s intelligence’. They go on to talk about how Marinette was briefly expelled from the Collège before being reinstated by the principle for a reason unknown to them.”

Everybody talks too much

“Her school reports up until this year were good. The newest one states, ‘While Marinette is a wonderful and bright student, I encourage her to settle her disagreements outside of class. This seems to only be a recent occurrence and I implore her to go to the guidance council if she is in need of help.’” A beat of silence echoes through the cave, Tim sighed. “Jason’s meta theory could be correct. She could have just recently started exhibiting her abilities and using them to get what she wants.”

“Bruce what do you want to do?”

“We’re going to Paris.”

She opened her eyes to the blaring morning light that streamed through the blinds. Her lashes still painted with mascara that refused to leave. She felt a pang of sorrow when she was removing her makeup and dress last night, she never wanted the night to end. She shuffled down the stairs to the kitchen, covering her mouth when she yawned. She greeted her mother as she entered the kitchen to get breakfast.

She glanced at her phone and there was the chaos that was started hours ago and it was still occurring. It was the weekend, she wouldn’t need to deal with her classmates until Monday. But she would still have to survive her parent’s interrogation. Out of the corner of her eye she caught her mother smirking at her.

Everybody talks

“Nadja told me some interesting news about last night.” Marinette held her breath, glaring at the toaster, willing it to hurry up so she could escape. “Well,” Sabine patted her shoulder before rubbing Mari’s back. “I know you didn’t want to go but I hope you had fun.”

With that she exited the kitchen, probably going to help her father in the bakery. The ravenette stared after her, eye widened in shock, jumping when the toaster went off. Buttering her toast she went over the conversation, her brows furrowed in confusion. She had expected a ‘When do I get to meet the oh so famous prince?’ or ‘Should I be expecting a new guest sometime in the near future?’ or at least a ‘Who was that young man, Bǎozàng (宝藏 it means treasure)?’ But she said nothing.

A small smile was plastered upon her face as she changed and went down to help her parents in the bakery. Her father didn’t say anything either, he gave her a knowing smile before continuing to kneed the dough. She sat at the the store front as the cashier whilst her parents were busy making ‘Paris’s Finest Pastries’.

Her musings slowly faded as she was brought back to reality by badly hushed whispers. Two young preteens were by the bread roll casing near the door. She had seen them come in before with their parents, the girls went to the prestigious international school over in the 16th arrondissement. The one with purple hair kept whispering to the brunette, both ‘subtly’ glancing towards her. Using her enhanced hearing she listened in on their conversation.

“That’s her, I swear that’s her in the video.”

The blonde’s face soured likes she sucked on a lemon. “No, it wasn’t good lighting there is no way he would dance with someone like her.”

Everybody talks

Marinette had tough skin but their words had an impact, only a small one due to her defence mechanism of repressing emotions. She stopped listening and went back to drawing in her sketchpad, she was in desperate need of a new school outfit.

The two girls eventually came up to the counter, goods in hand. Marinette rung up and bagged their items (paper because save the turtles sksksk) in a tired daze. A phone was shoved into her face, her eyes barely adjusted to view the screen before the blonde spoke.

“Is this your instagram?” She asked in a tone so snobbish that it should be illegal from a person her age. Marinette finally was able to view the screen that was barely an inch from her face. Her old Instagram ‘mariiiiinette’ was displayed on screen, she hesitantly nodded, gaze flicking back to the two in front of her.

The blonde’s nose scrunched up and the purple goth girl squealed in delight. They soon after left the store, their conversation had devolved into ‘See! I told you’ and ‘Yeah, yeah. You were right.’

Walking to school on Monday, she had finally come down from cloud nine. She still rode the tail end of her high as she rushed along her path to her campus, she wasn’t going to be late but she sure wasn’t going to be early. She had spent the better part of the weekend designing and sewing a brand new outfit. Her new look was composed of a black cropped singlet (L'amour gagne hemmed into it and it’s straps), paired matching peach plaid cropped overshirt and a-line miniskirt. Her hair was down, ballet flats were worn and her makeup was the usual with the added edition of a rose gold eyeshadow.

Even though her face was covered in a black and gold mask, she looked hot.

She reached the campus and the whispers started again, people were still buzzing from Friday night. Her classmates, the majority of her grade and the younger years seemed to gossiping before class about the formal’s events. She couldn’t spot any of her friends or the two Gotham transfers, so she was stuck listening the the chitchat. Why couldn’t she have been late like usual?

Damian had a fowl disposition and it showed in multiple icey glares (and that was before he even reached the collège). His family had made their appearance known in Paris at 1am Sunday morning. He could have used his dorm to escape but his family didn’t have the word ‘privacy’ within their vocabulary. He didn’t want to have to pay for a lock replacement due to his brothers’ (most likely Todd with Drake & Grayson laughing at him) lock picking habit.

The Ice Prince was back with full force. He had just been... influenced by all the other couples. Yes he did respect Dupain-Cheng and he appreciated her company & pleasant conversations. He would struggle to hide a small smile at the memory of the dance, even if he denied himself the happiness of normality, he felt content when reminiscing.

“Ooo the Ice Prince is here, did he have a fight with his princess or something?” The voice seemed to mock him.

“The Disney Magic is gone. The demon is back.”

Everybody talks

At the second jeer he shot a glare at the perpetrator. Jon held his hands up in an ‘I surrender manner’, laughing as he joined Damian at his side. The two entered the school’s large foyer and looked to see if any of the classes were open yet. Sadly they weren’t, before he was wrong and the his class was plain torture but this was truely hell.

He saw Dupain-Cheng sitting alone on the stairs, drawing within her sketchpad. He wondered how a girl like her, who always seemed to be involved in other’s lives (for the better) was ignoring all of the comments about her. She felt his focus centre on her, eyes flicking up to meet his, she provided him with a small wave before continuing to draw.

Jon nudged him with an elbow to his ribs and dragged him off to the side, into the boy’s locker rooms. Jon scowled at the door, “It’s a mad house out there. You’ve heard what some people are saying right?”

“Why would I care about these imbeciles?”

Jon jabbed Damian in the chest, causing the demon to stumble. Green eyes darted from blue eyes to the tan finger. “You care when lies hurt people you care about.”

The day began to rapidly decline once the two dance partners took their seats, next to each other. They had both been placed up the back of the class and them sitting together hadn’t been a problem until now apparently. She wasn’t even safe when the teacher started their lecture, whispers and glances were cast towards them. Once the two got to biology it was better, Ms Mendeleiev was a strict teacher and was able to control the class.

Everybody talks

But the recess came. When the bell rang she slowly started packing up her equipment, Alix and Max (who she shared biology with) waited for her; she watched as the Ice Prince left through the door. She knew she didn’t need to be concerned about her friends joining in with the gossiping, if anything they would dispel people and tell them to ‘Mind their own fucking business’ because this whole situations is ridiculous, utterly ridiculous.

She did receive some slight teasing from Alix about being a Disney princess, but Marinette quipped back about the skater’s fairytale story being ‘Pinknette, the Geek and the Beast’. The three met up with the other two of their group, they had just come from geography. Kim was complaining that Argentina was a state in America.

“That’s Arkansas you idiot!” Chloe shrieked, lightly hitting his arm with her white handbag. Max held his head in his hand as he approached, how had his tutoring sessions failed so badly?

Chloe turned to Marinette, a smile forming from her glare. The blonde examined the designer’s clothing, nodding. “You look like you are about to have a hot girl summer.”

Marinette’s face burned, the tips of her ears coated in red. Alix chuckled and nudged her shoulder.

Everybody talks

“Look at her, she is so desperate for his attention that she probably copied those designs.”

“Why do you think he danced with her anyways? Maybe she has something on him? I mean, she forces him to sit next to her in class, who knows what else she has done.”

What. The. Fuck.

Chloe glowered towards Lila’s posy. “We have a fucking seating plan, those cretins-“ She made a motion to storm over but was caught by the ravenette, looking back to Mari, her rage decreased from a boil to a simmer.

“No Chlo. It’s fine, it’s not worth it.”

Everybody talks... back

The group walked out to the school’s front steps, it was a mad house... a mad courtyard? Students sitting on the stairs, on the grass and standing around mingling, all of them now were staring at her. She held her backpack close to her chest (she had swapped her signature coin-bag purse for the pastel pink bag), pretending its a shield. Her friends circled around her becoming an obstacle to prevent their stares. If people were afraid of a scowling Kim then they don’t know the scorn of Chloe or Alix’s bite. And Max, sweet quiet Max.... you better hope he doesn’t have blackmail on you (he probably does), he can dismantle your life with a single anonymous post.

Rushed footsteps approached them. The group was broken apart by a rude Wayne boy, he swept Mari away from the school and the gossip crowds within. Her four friends shouted at him and he kept walking, shooting a glare at them in response. He kept pushing Marinette forward with a hand placed on the small of her back, her backpack was now swung over his other shoulder.

They ended up in her favourite alcove. She had brought him here with the other Gotham transfers for a native’s tour of Paris. It had always been her safe place to be creative.

It started with a whisper (everybody talks, everybody talks)

“My apologises for our rushed departure but you seemed to want to get out of their anyhow.” His gruff tone danced through the silence, his head still peaking around the corner; watching for any unwelcome guests.

“Thank you.” She whispered, her voice almost being carried off by the gentle wind. A genuine smile illustrated upon her face.

“We weren’t able to converse after the events of the other night. I would like to formally apologise once more for my actions causing this adverse reaction. If I had kn-“

“You don’t need to apologise!” She squeaked, hiding her eyes behind her fisted hand. Her shoulders curled inwards as she tried to make herself seem as small as possible, a side effect of her common use of her secondary miraculous form: Multimouse.

“I chose to dance with you, you don’t need to apologise for my own actions.” He stared at her with confusion. He had taken the blame so she wouldn’t need to do so herself; but she had taken it anyways. He had given her an out. Why does she always take the blame, even for things out of her control?

“But if I hadn’t danced with you then you wouldn’t have been the focus of the entire school.”

Marinette stepped forward, her eyes hardened and blazing. “Damian Friday night I went there out of obligation to my friends, I didn’t want to be there. But dancing with you? That was the highlight of my week, probably my month too. I enjoyed our time together.” Her face softened, lips twitched downwards ever so slightly. “I don’t regret anything about that night, but do you?”

He was bad at comfort. Everyone in his family avoided him when they were in need, he plainly didn’t know what to do. She wasn’t visibly upset but he sensed that she is disappointed that he apparently didn’t share the same opinion of the night. The only thing he regretted about that night was letting Jon call him a coward, but then again if he didn’t he never would have danced with Dupa- Marinette.

He picked up her clenched hand, the tension in her body alleviated at his embrace. He remembered how Grayson would apologise to Kor’i or how his father interacted with Ms Kyle. He brought their hands up and placed a kiss upon her knuckles.

And that was when I kissed her (everybody talks, everybody talks)

“I do not regret anything either—“ he cleared his throat, “In fact, I’d appreciate if we would be able to interact more, especially outside of that cesspit.”

Was he...?

It didn’t matter.

She smiled the same dazzling smile she gave him at the dance. She nodded while laughing, “I’d love that.”

Everybody talks

The two stay talking, hidden within their secret alcove for the rest of the day. She texted her parents to say she was with a friend and would be back later that night. Damian didn’t bother texting his family, Marinette knew he had to be back soon due to his dorm’s curfew.

The sun was setting at they walked back together, he did the gentlemanly thing and dropped her off at her bakery door. She could see her mother behind the register inconspicuously looking over at the two of them. Damian’s lips quirked upwards, she was satisfied with his kinda-smile.

He walked back, hands in pockets and a neutral expression upon his face instead of a scowl. He reached his door and took his keys, he found that it was already open. Damn.

His family was splayed out within his two roomed dorm. Todd and Drake were fighting over a place to sit on his bed, whilst his father sat at his desk, watching the commotion. The three of them turned to him as he enter the room, they were the only family members able to attend on short notice; Cain had a ballet audition, Gordon & Brown had concert tickets for tomorrow, Grayson had to take care of Mar’i while Kor’i was on Tamaran and Alfred stayed to ensure no one died during their night time activities.

“We need to talk Damian.” His father stood, leaning onto the desk chair. “The school called and said you had an unexcused absence for half the day. Where were you Damian?”

Damian stared into his father’s eyes. He was fifteen, almost an adult, but was treated like he was ten again.

“I was with a friend.”

“Probably the girl from the dance. Marinette, right?” Todd mocked him. Damian snapped his head in the direction of his bed, glaring at both his brothers.

“That’s what I want to talk about with you Damian. Now I don’t know her personally but from what we’ve discovered through our investigation we have some concerns. What’s happened Damian?”

The youngest Wayne’s glare shifted off of his brothers to the floor, and then finally to his father; his family sitting in wait for his answer. Straightening his posture, his shoulders clicked as he rolled then back. His statement’s tone was sure and steady, “Everybody talks father.”

Everybody talks... back

[squiddybeifong]

Can I ask for the batsiblings reaction to Damian pacing so much he wore a hole in the floor? Doesn't have to be a fics, maybe headcanons?

Sorry for the rather long wait. Kinda wanted to make this a fic

Here's the floor pacing fic

On Ao3 here

--

Alfred hadn’t outwardly reacted to Damian’s obvious lie as to why he had paced the floorboards uneven, but the butler absolutely took action for amending the tripping hazard in the boy’s room. With the floor repairman on the line and a measuring tape in hand nothing was amiss, of course.

Dick had already kept him up-to-date with the gossip about the two Titan birds, so Alfred hadn’t been surprised whatsoever. His position in the family meant that he’d watched the awkward budding romances of most everyone who’d called the Manor home. Damian being frustrated at his feelings for a teammate was nothing compared to a (very grown) Bruce being moody after Selina rebuffed his kiss while ‘on the clock’ or Dick’s increasingly creative attempts at sneaking around with Kori before the ‘no dating metahumans or aliens’ rule had been lifted. Honestly, watching the pun-laden flirting that Steph ladled out to both Tim and Cass on a near daily basis was more awkward than his youngest ward taking his repressed emotions out on the floors.

Unfortunately for Damian, the butler arranged for the floor repairman to show up during the day. Most notably, the repairman arrived at exactly the specified 1:35 p.m., not wanting to be late when called upon to fix anything belonging to Bruce Wayne.

Why Robin had believed that (like everyone else in Gotham) this worker would be fashionably late, he didn’t know. What Damian did know was that he hadn’t heard Grayson open the door. Nor had he heard his brother head up with Alfred and the repairman into his room. And he especially didn’t hear as Alfred slyly mentioned that he believed Dick’s gossip was coming to a head, if the worn path in the floor meant anything.

No, Damian heard none of it. Not when he was busy brushing BatCow and making sure that every square inch of the barn was properly ventilated so she couldn’t possibly overheat in the approaching summer weather. So when the youngest Bat stalked into the Manor, he’d been all but ambushed.

It didn’t take a detective to realize why he’d been pacing so much. Even without Alfred’s confirmation, it was unlike Damian to avoid going back to the Titans early if he could help it. Batman hadn’t looked up when Robin had elected to stay another week when they were in the BatCave, but his siblings sure had. And while Bruce didn’t outwardly ponder about how intense things had to be for Damian to go out of his way to avoid a certain someone, this new information had Dick positively enchanted at the prospect of his baby brother being in love.

“I’m not in love with Raven,” Damian hissed out.

Jason snickered as he reclined in his seat, his face full of mirth at the flustered crack in Damian’s voice. Cass was sitting upside down with her legs resting on the couch’s back, her smile wide as she took in her youngest brother’s irritated, embarrassed body language (nevermind the barest hint of an actual blush on his face when vehemently denying any feelings he had towards his fellow Titan).

Babs’ smile was wide and cheerful as she pointed out, “Who said anything about Raven?” Duke perked up from his spot next to Cass, immediately adding on, “Yeah, Dami. We thought you were just falling for her?”

Steph snorted, “Falling over those footprints in the floor, more like it.”

Tim laughed behind his gulp of his coffee, sleepily (and loudly) drawling out to the blonde, “A Robin and his Raven. Guess you can say they’re a real pair of lovebirds, huh?”

Damian glared at them all, fighting the urge to pinch between his eyes. Why were all the Bats at the Manor? Shouldn’t they be on patrol instead of bothering him?

Jason clicked his tongue and rested his arms on the table. He met Dick’s gaze, saw the way his older brother’s eyes brightened up with mischief and scratched at the streak of white in his hair. Deciding that messing with Damian was by far the most fun he’d have in the Manor that morning, Jason asked, “So, Lil’ D… What’re you gonna get your girlfriend? Can’t come back empty handed.”

“She’s not my--”

Babs interrupted him, nudging Tim with her elbow, “Do not tell me he wasn’t planning on getting her anything.”

Steph lazily rested on the chair’s edge. The blonde leaned over to rest against Jason’s shoulder, her fist pressed to her face. She gnawed on the inside of her cheek; it wasn’t likely she’d be much use for knowing how Raven would want to be wooed. She had heard of her but she had yet to actually meet Damian’s mystery crush, after all. She let out a hum, “What does Raven like? It’s gotta be something personal!”

Damian clicked his tongue as his siblings were suddenly oh so chatty at Spoiler’s suggestion, their unwanted ideas filling the room.

“What if he paints her something?”

“Doesn’t she like old books? Maybe one of those first editions that Alfred was thinking about donating last year?”

“Wait a sec-- Dick, isn’t she goth? B did get that set of obsidian jewelry at the last gala.”

“Hell, if we’re going that route I’m sure Selina has some nice rings somewhere--”

“Maybe something that isn’t stolen, Tim.”

“Just be honest with her.”

The room went quiet at Cass’ simple instruction. Still in her Orphan suit from her early morning patrols and reclining in her inverted spot on the couch, the brunette somehow kept a serious face as she stared at Damian upside down.

Seeing that no one was going to add-on to her suggestion, Cass blew some of her bangs out of her face and shrugged, “You like her for a reason.”

Brown eyes slyly glanced around the room, gratefully falling on Babs as she piped up, “Cass is right. I really don’t think Damian of all people would fall for someone who’s all about dating mind-games.”

Ignoring Damian’s exasperated lie of “I haven’t fallen for her!” in the background, Steph slumped down on the couch next to Duke. Her face was contemplative, “Then maybe we should invite her here?”

Dick let out an excited laugh the same time Tim clapped his hands and grinned at their resident computer whiz, “Babs could absolutely get her up to speed on patrolling Gotham for a bit, right?”

The redhead looked excited at the idea. Pushing her glasses further up her nose before they fell, Babs teasingly asked, “What is it about Gotham and bird-based superheroes?”

Duke shrugged, a hand cradling his chin in thought. “Not sure, but Dami obviously won’t confess if we’re not around to kick him into doing it.”

Jason clicked his tongue at the possibility of the youngest Bat listening to them and raised a brow Dick’s way, “Any chance at all that she’ll make the first move?”

Irritated at the topic, Damian turned on his heel and retreated to the kitchen. Ignoring the chorus of “C’mon, Dami” behind him (and planning on fighting Todd later for the childish boos that the antihero was aiming at his back), Robin set about grabbing some snacks for his pets when he heard two sets of footsteps approach.

He bit back a groan as Dick practically skipped into the room, Cass on his heels. “What now?”

Nightwing let out a laugh at his brother’s sneer, “You do know that we’re only trying to help, right?” He took a few pears from the fridge and handed them to Damian, knowing that they were BatCow’s favorite. Hearing as Cass opened the cabinet doors to find where the rawhide bones and cat treats were stored, Dick pressed on, “I know she already knows me but it might be easier introducing everyone as a segue into talking to her about other things…”

Cass let out a quiet snort at his suggestion. She shook her head and offered a better idea, “Alfred first.”

Dick tilted his head, nodding in agreement a moment later. He ignored the violent way Damian was cutting up the pears and said, “That’ll probably be for the best. Living with the Titans is one thing; we gotta ease her into our particular brand of madness.”

Tossing aside the stems and peeled off stickers, Damian sulked, “None of this is necessary.”

Cass hid her smile with her hand. Dick hummed out, “You don’t want your girlfriend to meet your family?”

“She won’t be my--” Damian couldn’t say the potential title just yet. He clicked his tongue, “Just because you all think I have feelings for her doesn’t mean she’ll reciprocate.”

The older two visibly paused at his words.

Her head tilting in concern, brown eyes studied Robin for a moment. Damian glared at Cass but she ignored him. Dick leaned against the wall, the worried furrow in his brow betraying his nonchalant stance. He spoke out the obvious, “Do you really think she’s not interested?”

“She thinks I’ve been avoiding her--”

Cass shrugged, “You have.”

Damian continued as if he hadn’t heard her, “--so I doubt any feelings she may have towards me are positive right now.”

Dick let out a hum, “You didn’t answer the question.”

Ophan’s suit somehow didn’t shine in the kitchen’s fluorescent light as she crossed her arms, “Yes or no?”

Damian bit the inside of his cheek. It was quiet in the kitchen for a moment as he thought over all the moments he and Raven had shared, the comfortable quiet pauses between crimefighting, training, and avoiding their teammates’ noise. She never seemed to dislike his company, but she was stoic enough that he could never tell if her heart leaped into her throat whenever she noticed that they were alone.

He suppressed a jump as Cass entered his personal space.

Olive eyes were reluctant as she poked his cheek. “You’re not stupid,” She figured it was progress when he didn’t try to swat her hand away, but she couldn’t keep the beam off her face at the boy’s blush. A hint of smugness crept into her voice, “So she is?”

“I don’t know.”

Cass looked to the Manor’s main entrance, knowing that in half a week’s time the entire structure would be full of lights, flowers and who knew what else B’s planners would bring. A spring gala with flowers and enough hidden corners for a pair to get lost in the crowd.

In other terms: the perfect setting for a first date.

She met Dick’s gaze and grinned at the knowing look on his face. His hair nearly fell out of its bun as he let out a whoop, wrapping an arm around Damian. Thoughts of finding Raven a gala-ready dress (and maybe a matching suit) in mind, Dick couldn’t keep the excitement out of his movements.

Ignoring the aggravated yet cautiously hopeful way Damian shrugged off his brother’s arm, Cass clasped her hands in front of her chest. “Only one way to find out.”

[purple-goo-writes]

Heavy Metal Angel

Chapter 1: Diamond Eyes

I am the shadow, and the smoke in your eyes I am the ghost, that hides in the night

Boom-lay boom-lay boom Boom-lay boom-lay boom Boom-lay boom-lay boom Boom-lay boom-lay boom

Jason was angry, that was a simple fact of life for him now. He was always angry. Ever since he had to dig himself out of his own grave and Talia threw him into the Lazarus Pits’ glowing green depths, it feels like all he will ever be is angry. He was angry at how he had died, how he hadn’t been saved, how he had been replaced so easily it seemed. How his da-no how Bruce hadn’t killed the clown to avenge him. Jason was so angry at his old life and the injustice that surrounded his death. 

Wait, wait a minute take a step back You gotta think twice before you react, so stay Stay a little while because the promise not kept is the road to exile Hey, what's the circumstance You'll never be great without taking a chance so Wait, you waited too long Had your hands in your pocket when you shoulda been gone

It was why he had accepted Talia’s offer to train under the League. Oh, he knew she planned to use him as a weapon against Batman, against the man who was more of a father then his biological one… Or at least he had thought Bruce was. So, he had allowed Talia to think she was using him to get back at Bruce, when in reality he was using her as well to get the resources he needed to take the Bat down. 

Boom-lay boom-lay boom One push is all you'll need Boom-lay boom-lay boom A fist-first philosophy Boom-lay boom-lay boom We watch with wounded eyes Boom-lay boom-lay boom So I hope you recognize

I'm on the front line Don't worry I'll be fine The story is just beginning I say goodbye to my weakness So long to the regret And now I see the world through diamond eyes

Except Jason wasn’t able to do it. Just thinking of his failure, feels Jason with boiling rage- a rage he isn’t sure is his own or the Pits’ twisted madness within him. Red Hood had Batman pinned down and ready for that final killing blow… Yet at the last second, Jason had hesitated and let the Bat go. 

Damn, damn it all down Took one to the chest without even a sound so What, what are you worth The things you love or the people you hurt Hey, it's like deja vu A suicidal maniac with nothing to lose So wait, it's the exception to the rule Every one of us is expendable

He couldn’t bring himself to kill his Father, a small part of him still considered Bruce family and still loved the man despite everything. Despite how much the man had failed him, the boy he claimed was his son!

Despite how much Jason has failed Bruce in return, how much he had failed the man who raised and treated him like a son.

Boom-lay boom-lay boom One push is all you'll need Boom-lay boom-lay boom A fist-first philosophy Boom-lay boom-lay boom We watch with wounded eyes Boom-lay boom-lay boom So I hope you recognize

I'm on the front line Don't worry I'll be fine The story is just beginning I say goodbye to my weakness So long to the regret And now I know that I'm alive I'm on the front line Don't worry I'll be fine The story is just beginning I say goodbye to my weakness So long to the regret And now I see the world through diamond eyes

So, he did the only thing he could think to do after that night. Red Hood took off his helmet and Jason Todd left the streets of Gotham one last time. Possibly for good. If he couldn’t kill the Bat and the Bat wouldn’t let him kill the Clown, then he was leaving as there was nothing left for him here. Nothing but a broken collection of spirits masquerading as a family and the bitter sweet memories of a loving father. 

Every night of my life I watch angels fall from the sky Every time that the sun still sets I pray they don't take mine

I'm on the front line Don't worry I'll be fine The story is just beginning I say goodbye to my weakness So long to regrets

Perhaps some time away will help him calm the rage that was constantly boiling inside him? Maybe he could find a new purpose in life beyond killing and trying to save an ungrateful city? Could he even be anyone other than Red Hood? 

Guess it was time to find out. 

I'm on the front line Don't worry I'll be fine The story is just beginning I say goodbye to my weakness So long to the regrets And now I know that I'm alive I'm on the front line Don't worry I'll be fine The story is just beginning I say goodbye to my weakness So long to the regret And now I see the world through diamond eyes I'm on the front line Don't worry I'll be fine The story is just beginning (the story is just beginning) I say goodbye to my weakness So long to the regret And now I see the world through diamond eyes

[sassycassie-s-writing]

My Favorite Smile

By: SassyShoulderAngel319

Fandom/Character(s): DC/BatFam - Jason Todd/Red Hood

Rating: PG-11/T- (this one has a couple ✨swear words✨ in it lol. I don’t usually write them out, but sometimes you just gotta say what you mean)

Original Idea: X (Obsessed with this channel right now)

Notes: (Masterlist)(By Character)(About Me) 2,182 words... it’s a longer one again. I casually wrote this in, like, two hours. @welovegroot @jason-redhood @jason-todd-squad

^^^^^

Holding his coffee and croissant, Jason looked around the crowded café for a place to sit. Every table was occupied by at least one person, and the rules of personal space in public said the couches were full, with one person sitting on either end.

His eyes fell on a table with a single occupant.

His heart stuttered to a stop. Wait… is that her? Damn, she looks good this time. He scoffed at himself. Who am I kidding? She looks good every time. Should I talk to her? Should I tell her? She didn’t believe me last time… and I don’t know if I can stand another lifetime without her… but last life we didn’t meet till I was almost fifty. I really wasn’t expecting to find her this early.

He straightened up and strode over to her table. “Excuse me, is it alright if I sit here? The café’s pretty crowded and the other tables are full.”

She looked up and Jason’s brain stopped working as she met his eyes. She was just as incredible as she always was. Thousands upon thousands of years, and he still never got over how beautiful she was. “Sure, go ahead,” she said with a smile before going back to her phone.

—

“I’m Jason, by the way,” the man said, sitting down.

I glanced back up and gave him my name in return.

He smiled. He had a handsome smile. Just looking at him… something tugged in the back of my mind. “That’s a pretty name,” he said.

My ears warmed and I looked away. “Thanks,” I muttered. I looked back at him. “Sorry if this sounds… weird—but have we met before?” I cringed but smiled. If we had…oh it’d be so embarrassing if I’d forgotten him. And a man as handsome as him—how could I have forgotten?

But a look of delight crossed his face, before being replaced by one of neutrality. “Not in this lifetime,” he replied.

“Kind of an odd way to word it,” I remarked before I could overthink whether that sounded really rude or not.

Jason’s ears turned red. “Well… yeah I guess so. Sorry.” He looked down at his coffee cup and croissant and chose to take a sip of his drink. After swallowing, he looked back up at me. “This is probably gonna sound really creepy, but please just hear me out for a few minutes. Do you believe in soulmates?”

I reached up and scratched an itch just behind my ear. “I mean… kind of? I think maybe they exist for some people, and other people could be matched equally well with multiple potential partners,” I said.

His shoulders slouched with a sigh of what might have been relief. “Thank goodness,” he said. He met my eyes. “Because… we’re soulmates. You and I. Sometimes—very rarely—two people are so destined to be together, that they’re reborn over and over to stay together throughout thousands of years’ worth of lifetimes. Sometimes we both remember, sometimes only one of us does. I don’t think there’s ever been a lifetime where neither of us remember. Besides the first, I guess. Back when we didn’t know we’d be reborn. We never look the same twice—different bodies, different backgrounds. But we always have the same soul.”

A reasonable person would have thought he was making up a really long, bad pickup line. But I stared at him with rapt attention. Like some missing puzzle piece I’d been looking for my entire life fell into place. It just sounded… right.

“How do we find each other, if we look different every time?”

He took a deep breath. “Well… when one or both of us remember, we can… kind of sense it? Kind of see it? Like, right now, I see you, but I also see every face of yours that I’ve seen across every lifetime.” He cleared his throat. “Sometimes we don’t. Find each other, I mean. The distance between where we’re born or the timing of our rebirths keep us apart. But there’s only been… three of those, if I remember right.” He laughed. “So glad you believed me this time. It would have sucked if you got a restraining order—because those are a thing now—and I had to spend this life without you.”

I leaned forward, shoving my phone in my pocket. “Tell me more,” I said.

“Where do you want me to start?”

“Um… I don’t know. The beginning? Our first life?”

He nodded. “Ancient Greece,” he said. “Like, really early in Ancient Greece’s history. The gods blessed us. Bound our souls for eternity. Your hair is actually the same color now as it was back then. Kind of a… nostalgic favorite of mine. You’re absolutely stunning every time I see you, but I have some favorites. You do too.”

I snickered. “Oh really? Like what?”

“Well… I always think you’re adorable with dimples or freckles. Green eyes are a favorite of mine too. And your current hair color is my favorite. There were also a few times where you were a little taller than me. Those were nice. You’re most comfortable to hug that way. But, without fail, every single lifetime I see your smile and I think, ‘That one. That one’s my new favorite.’” He chuckled. “As for you, you’ve told me that you like me best with brown eyes—even though you don’t like brown eyes normally. Um… you also like it when my hair is curly.” He gestured to his black hair, slightly curled, with two white curls arcing down the center of his forehead. “You told me… seven lifetimes ago? That you like me best with piercings and tattoos, but when I brought it up last lifetime you said even when I have them I still look like, and I quote, a ‘giant nerd.’”

We both laughed. Jason sighed and shook his head.

“Then again, you said that was your favorite during our pirate lifetime. And I can also say hot damn you looked good with tattoos and a big hat.”

I gasped out a laugh. “We were pirates?”

He laughed too. “Yeah. Well, you were. To start with, anyway. You and your crew were visiting my town and you, absolutely drunk, stumbled into my house. I was a carpenter that time. Thank the gods we both remembered that lifetime or I probably would have shot you. You spent half the night drunkenly blathering about how much you hated my hair when it was long the way it was and that you’d cut it off if I didn’t. The next morning, when you’d sobered up, you apologized. And I’d said it was fine. And… you asked me to come with you. I’ve spent dozens of lifetimes endlessly in love with you. So, like the lovesick fool I am and was, I said yes.

“It… was not a long lifetime. Pirates rarely made it to old age. We were both killed when a Royal Navy ship attacked us. I went down first. You told me in our next lifetime that you single-handedly killed half of that crew’s sailors in revenge even though you knew you’d see me again—because you’d been having so much fun that life and they ruined it. Eventually their captain killed you himself.” He took a bite of his croissant.

It was certainly a lot to take in. But everything he said was so vivid… I wasn’t sure if it was my imagination coming up with the images or… memories that had merely been locked away somewhere deep inside. The sea. The deck of a ship. An octopus tattoo on my left forearm, tentacles reaching to the back of my hand, a similar one on his tanned, scarred neck. Curly auburn hair, a scruffy beard. Brown leather coat and blood under his nails. Pierced ear and eyebrow. A tattoo of a mermaid with a face and wild hair that I knew must have been mine on his right thigh as we found alone time together in my cabin—a pile of leather clothes in a heap on the floor, topped by a big hat with a big feather.

I met his eyes again. “Tell me about another one.”

He smiled. “Well… there was another time I was a soldier. You remembered. I didn’t. I passed through your town on my way to report for duty, and the weather got bad. Your family owned a tavern that doubled as an inn. So, that was where I stayed. You didn’t tell me. I fell in love with you anyway. You would tell me stories and sing for me and make me food in private. When the weather improved, I went off to war and, miraculously, I survived. Even though I spent most of my time that fight thinking about you. I came back to your inn and asked you to marry me. You said yes. We were married soon after. I had to leave a lot. Fighting battles I didn’t care about. Eventually, I came home injured and dying. You held my hand and promised you’d see me soon. I thought you meant heaven or just said it to comfort me. You never told me we were endlessly-reborn soulmates.

“When I was about fifteen my next lifetime, all my memories came back. We both remembered that time, actually. When we ran into each other again we got into such a big argument about you not telling me. Literally picked up right where we left off. Two twenty-year-olds bickering like the old married couple we were. The life after I don’t remember is always a bit of a wild ride as all my memories come back. I imagine it’s similar for you. It’ll be similar for you.”

He reached across the table and took my hand. I squeezed his fingers. Our hands fit together perfectly. I wondered why I’d told him I liked him best with brown eyes when his blue eyes were absolutely gorgeous. “So… what now?” I asked.

He made a face. “Beginnings are always hard when one of us doesn’t remember. Because I have thousands of years of love for you, and you don’t even know me.” His fingers tightened around mine. “I’d like to take you out on a date, if you’ll let me.”

“Does it count as a first date?”

He smiled. It was a sad smile. “It can. It does for this life.”

“Have we… ever had children? Together?”

Jason regarded me thoughtfully. “We have,” he said. “But our bloodlines never last long. Usually we’re lucky to get great-grandchildren. We’re blessed to be together forever, but our families die off quickly. You speculated once that it’s the blessing’s attempt to make sure we’re not reborn into our own bloodline.”

“So we have no living descendants.”

“No. It’d be a little weird if we did. Like ‘Hey, kiddo, you’re our great-great-great-grandson! I know we’re younger than you but trust us!’” Jason laughed.

I could get drunk on that laugh. “I’d… I’d like to go on that date.”

He looked elated—and relieved. “Me too. I’d like to get to know you again.” He glanced around the crowded café. “What do you say we get out of here and go somewhere quiet and I can tell you more stories about our lives? You’ve always been the far superior storyteller, but I learned from the best.”

I smiled. “Yeah. Let’s get out of here. I want to hear everything.”

He helped me to my feet. I gathered my jacket, cup, and phone. “Great. I can’t wait to tell you about the time I was a magician.”

I giggled. “My place or yours?”

“Mine. I have a memento from our most recent past life that I tracked down. I’d like you to have it.”

“What is it?”

Jason didn’t answer immediately. Just held my hand as we left the café. Gotham’s overcast autumn sky was chilly. “I… I want it to be a surprise but I’m also too excited to tell you.” He bit his lower lip, staring at me. “Gah. Fine. It’s your wedding ring. I found it at an antique shop not far from where our oldest niece lived. We didn’t have any kids, last life. We didn’t meet till I was forty-nine and you were forty-three. We both decided it was too late for kids. But I had a few nieces and nephews. Our oldest niece was in charge of our estate. We died in the eighties. But I found your ring. You can use it again, eventually, if you want. Or we can get you a new one.” His face reddened. “I don’t mean to presume. But I don’t know if I can live without you this lifetime after having you for such a short time last life.”

I squeezed his hand. “Let’s try that first date first. I feel this pull toward you I can’t explain, but we’ll build up to the soulmate thing. Okay?” I smiled at him.

—

Jason couldn’t help but stare at her. Those eyes, that stunning face. This one, he thought. This smile is my favorite.

[flying-nightwing]

Pink and Totalitarianism Always Go Hand in Hand

Here’s the promised crack fic. Disclaimer, this is terrible in every and any form, because it is meant to be that way. If you want quality, structure, a story that makes sense, this ain’t it chief. This is certified Crack. If you finish this and all you can say is something along the lines of “what the fuck”, my work here is done. (Besides, this isn’t edited to add to the overall crack vibe)

Enjoy and good luck, because it get worse and worse as it goes

Masterlist in bio // pinned post

Pairing: Jason Todd x Reader

Word count: 4626

Warnings: Mention of drugs, light non-graphic violence, language

Summary: You’re stuck in a world that does not make sense, alone and surrounded by secret police and spies that will report you to the government. One early morning, Jason appears in your living room. His arrival gives you an opportunity to get the hell out of there for good. 

You had taken a habit of sleeping lightly.

You, who had once cherished your sleep like it was the rarest gem in the world. Yet, you found out you had still severely underappreciated its importance in your life, something you realized only when it was gone. You missed it like an old friend who was gone to war and died on the front, leaving words forever unsaid. What would you do for just one more night in your bed, with your own pillows and that drool stain that just wouldn’t leave anymore, sleeping like a log until the late morning. Or just a nap, that even would be enough. But you were far from home now, and you didn’t have a lot of hope you’d ever come back. 

When you heard a loud thump in the living room, your eyes flew open and your muscles tensed. Pushing off the pink comforter and pulling on the equally pink robe that was draped over the wooden chair, you carefully made your way down the corridor and toward the sound. A man dressed in black and red, with a red helmet complementing his strange outfit was standing there, looking around like he was trying to understand what was going on. You plastered a smile on your face. 

“Hiya there” The corner of your mouth hurt from the strain of smiling so wide. “Can I help you?”

“Uh?” He looked up, and even through his helmet you could assume his eyes were wide with confusion. They wouldn’t get you this time, you’d make sure of it. He didn’t fool anyone. “Where am I?”

“Silly!” You laughed, waving your hand in a small dismissive gesture. “We’re in Happy Town, obviously!”

“Uh?” He repeated, already visibly exhausted. That one agent lasted longer than the last, you had to give him that. His confusion was credible and well played down to the last detail. “Listen, lady, I’m sorry I crashed your house but I need you to point me toward Metropolis”

“Metropolis? I haven’t heard of a city of that name” You didn’t drop the smile. The goddamn smile. “Although, you are quite illegal sir, black and red are prohibited colors”

“... What?” 

“I’m afraid you’ll need to change” You explained. “Luckily for you, I have spares in the bedroom. Come along”

“Wait, prohibited?” He repeated, and you nodded eagerly. A test, it’s always a test. “What colors aren’t prohibited then?”

“Well, pink, you silly goose!”

He stared at you for the longest time. “What the fuck”

You froze. Actual agents were not allowed to swear, under any circumstances. They were physically not able to, even. “What did you say?”

“I said what the fuck”

You let your smile drop and sighed in relief. “Oh thank fuck”

“Hey, stay with me” He waved a hand in your face. “What the fuck is going on? Where am I?”

“Okay, we don’t have a lot of time, but basically” You paused, looking around to make sure all of your curtains were closed. You found a way to disable your microphones, but you had only to sunrise before they turned back on again. It was less suspicious that way, when you could attribute the lack of sound to you sleeping. Besides, you couldn’t risk you saying incriminating things in your sleep. “We are in a side dimension called Happy Town, but things are sketchy here. I don’t know what they are hiding, but if you don’t stick to their gimmick to the letter, you’re going to reeducation camps and stuff. This is some serious brainwashing, and I’m talking worse than Scientology”

“Fuck” He swore, taking off his helmet. “How did I get here?”

“Some portal, I dropped in the same place you did” You spoke quickly, in a hushed tone. “I haven’t found a way out, obviously, but if you came from Earth too, I’m betting there’s something I missed”

“This is insane” 

“You tell me” You scoffed. “And you haven’t even seen how bonkers this place really is yet”

“Do I really have to wear pink?” He flinched, and your eyes widened.

“Yes, you do!” You replied. “They will have you under scrutinization as soon as you step out of this house. If you want to survive, you must follow the rules to the letter. They don’t fuck around, I tell ya. When I first appeared, all the neighbors moved away and were immediately replaced by other creepier neighbors. I swear they’re spies. They’re all spies!”

“Wait, how long have you been there?”

“I don’t know, years?” You guessed. Could have been any measure of time really, you couldn’t know for sure. “I have no idea how I got through their brainwashing sessions. Either I outsmarted them, or they have no idea what they’re doing. It’s better not to take any chance, though”

“This is fucked up” He sighed and sat on the couch. “Besides wearing pink, what do I have to do?”

“Oh boy, sit tight” You began pacing in front of him. You didn’t know him, but he was your best chance at getting the hell out of here. Your bed now seemed a little bit closer now, even though you knew you’d never sleep the same. “It’s not just the clothing that’s pink, it’s any fabric, by the way, because happy people like pink”

It was like he was now aware that every couch, chair, carpet, curtain in your house was actually pink. 

“You gotta smile, always. You gotta look like chuck-e-cheese on crack” You continued, pacing in front of him. “Talking of which, never, EVER eat pie. I don’t know what’s in it, but it messes with your brain. Always find an excuse or distraction to avoid eating it”

“I’m not--”

“Never allude to the microphones you might find, act like you’ve never seen them and have no idea they’re there” You added. “Also, tomorrow we’ll have to get you registered if we don’t want the secret police to storm the house. You’ll have to follow my lead or we’re both dead, got it?”

“Yeah but--”

“Don’t say anything incriminating during the day” You interrupted him again. “I tweaked the microphones so they’re scrambled from midnight to sunrise. But that’s it. Also, always assume anyone you talk to is a spy or a snitch. It’s the Stasi all over again here, you can’t trust anyone who you don’t hear swear, which is nobody”

“Wai wait” He stopped you as you opened your mouth to continue on. “Why?”

“Because the people from here cannot swear, happy people don’t swear, they smile and giggle” You felt your eye twitch as you recited the lines you were fed over and over again. “The people engineered here are not able to, only those they kidnapped from Earth. Bad news is, beside that, they are virtually non-differentiable from each other. And they all wear those stupid pink clothes, only the regular police wears a darked shade of magenta. Other than that, all the same”

Confusion and horror was evident on his face. He sat there, processing it all as your eyes fell on the clock. You had about ten minutes until the first rays of sun showed up and reactivated the mics. “There’s no way back?” He finally asked.

“Not that I know of yet” You wrapped your hands around yourself. “You know, I have been begging for help out of this hell hole. You might be the key. Anyway, we gotta change you into something non offensive before they find out you’re here”

You dragged him in the bedroom, leaving him at the threshold while you rummaged through the dresser. All those clothes had been there too when you popped in the house, as if they had known exactly what they were doing by bringing you here. However, it wasn’t clear whether or not they had planned for their new citizen to be you. Ad judging by the arsenal of weapons on the new guy, ir reinforced your theory that the actual selection was still experimental. You weren’t exactly the shut up and obey type, and you doubted he was either.

“What’s your name?” You asked as you pulled a pink cardigan out of a drawer. It occured to you that you might have to know what to call him. Polite people knew the name of their housemate. You grabbed a yet again pink pair of slacks and pushed the clothes in his hands.

“Uh, Jason” He replied, surprised at the sudden income of pink fabric. You threw him the socks, suspenders, bow tie, belt and dress shirt that was, you guessed it, the exact same color as the rest. He was covered in pink clothes like a coat hanger.

“(Y/N)”

“Hey, I’m not wearing that” He objected as he took a better look at the clothes. His face turned to disdain as he shook his head like he had drank bad milk. “Nope, no way”

“If you don’t wear pink, they’ll kill you” You said through your teeth.

“No, I’m not talking about the pink” He said, his expression unchanging. He pulled the cardigan and held it up. “This. This won’t do at all. I’m not wearing a fucking cardigan”

You stared at him, wide eyed. You didn’t have the time to deal with that, sunrise was a few minutes away!

“You will wear that cardigan or so help me” You said in a low, yet threatening voice. He recoiled. “Suck. It. Up.”

Wordlessly, he headed for the bathroom on the other side of the bedroom. He changed in two minutes, coming back awkwardly with his pile of dark clothes. You picked them from him and walked to that spot just beside your bed, and kneeled. You unscrewed the floor board, which was already loose, and you deposited the bundle, weapons and all, next to a very, very dusty blue jeans and burgundy coat. You hurried to replace everything like it hadn’t been touched and stood up again to face an all pink, visibly uncomfortable Jason. He was tying his bow, a displeased frown on his face. It made you wonder what was his life before. He changed rather quickly, and didn’t seem confused by the way bow ties worked.

“What now?”

“We gel your hair”

“No” His eyes widened. The wake up siren sounded outside, and like a reflex learned through violent lessons, your face pulled into a pained smile. You still made a zipping motion over your mouth, pointing to the bathroom. With a silent sigh, he complied.

---

His smile looked unnatural.

But again, so did yours probably. So did everyone’s. Smiling that much wasn’t natural for anyone or anything but perhaps a hyena. Or a clown. You walked arms in arms with him, waving at people sending you curious glances, their smiles unwavering. The government was already aware of this presence, either because they zapped him there or because they heard your made up meeting conversation through the microphones. 

“Okay, I see what you meant by everyone is a spy” He muttered through his teeth, making sure his lips weren’t moving. He was holding to his grin like it was a lifeline. And it was. 

“Right?” You replied in the same manner. “So don’t slip”

“I won’t”

“Well hello there!”

You jumped in surprise at the Mayor appearing in front of you, seemingly out of nowhere. You put your free hand on your heart and laughed. “Hi there, you startled me good!”

He laughed. Jason laughed. It all seemed forced. 

“I see we have an addition in Happy Town!” The mayor pointed to Jason, nodding in approval at his attire. “Where did you come from?”

His first test.

“I… Came from Earth!” He replied with enthusiasm. “Although I have to say, I looooove this place. It’s so… Happy!”

Well played, Jason. Well played.

“I am so glad to hear you say that” He placed a “friendly” pat on his shoulder, but he seemed satisfied. “What is your name, lad?”

“Dick Grayson, sir” 

You swallowed back your confusion at his words, but also at the hint of genuine smile that crossed his expression. Keep smiling.

“Well Mr. Grayson, welcome to Happy Town!” They shook hands. “I see Miss (Y/N) is already taking care of you, integrating you nicely in our community”

His gaze shifted to you as a silent warning behind those cold, smiling eyes. You had your fair history of problems with them, but they had every reason to think it was over now. Still, the warning lingered. But those pink assholes wouldn’t catch you this time.

“I’ll make sure he becomes one of us in no time!” You assured, giving a light nod to Jason.

“No doubt you’ll make an amazing couple” He tipped his pink hat and you noticed Jason held back a cough of surprise. “The daily play of the anthem is about to start, I must return to city hall. I’ll see you around!”

He waved. You waved. Jason waved. He walked away with a skip in his step like the happy jerk he was.

“Couple?” He said, coming back to your public mode of communicating. 

“Sorry, I should have warned you” You sighed internally.

“Sorry?”

“Yeah!” You wanted to burst out so bad. “What about it, Dick Grayson?”

“I wasn’t about to give them my real name” He defended, watching around for people noticing your hushed conversation. But everybody was preparing for the anthem, their attention directed to the morning messages man on the giant screens.

“So you gave that poor guy’s instead?”

“Poor? Nah. Relax, he can take care of himself” What you were sure was a chuckle escaped his lips. “Besides, he’s not even--”

“Ladies and Gentlemen, please rise for our national anthem”

You elbowed Jason and stood up straight, the sun hitting the side of your face. He mimicked your posture. The music started, and you could see faltering in the corner of your eye.

“Is this--”

“Yes”

“What the fuck”

“I know”

“Whyyyyyyy”

“Stay with me” You urged silently. You really didn’t know how or why Happy Town’s anthem came to be ‘Yeah!’ by Usher feat Lil Jon and Ludacris, but even if you did, now was not the ideal time or place to get into that kind of discussion. You suspected it had something to do with the exclamation mark after the ‘yeah’. But you could be wrong. You still didn’t understand the bigger picture however, since the lyrics clearly contained the word ‘not’ followed directly by ‘happy’ in the first verse, which made ‘not happy’. It was against the party line. 

“Okay, we stage a coup tonight” He decided as the song ended. “I don’t think I can do this another day”

----

Midnight came slowly.

After a day of mingling and presenting Jason as Dick Grayson and your future husband like the Mayor had most probably hinted at during your morning encounter, of slyly getting out of eating pie and avoiding the police, you were glad to finally breathe. 

“UUUUGH” Jason whined, plopping on the couch. “I can never look at the color pink the same way ever again. I’m sick of it, sick of it!”

“Get it together!” You snapped. “We need to plan our coup. We’ve got one shot for it, and if it fails we’re toast. I need my bed, Jason. MY BED”

“Alright, what do you have in mind?” He asked, taking a deep breath. “You know this place more than I do”

“I say tomorrow night, we quietly follow the police after their curfew patrol round” You began, biting the skin around your nails. “How good is your stealth?”

He looked at you blankly for a good ten seconds before he let out a small, ironic snort. “Above average, I’d say”

It was like he wanted you to ask why he’d think that, but you were too busy thinking about your plan. “Good, good” You nodded. “There must be some headquarters somewhere. All we have to do is get there, threaten them at gunpoint--Your guns are functional yes?”

“Obviously”

“--So they’ll zap us back to Earth. And if not, we shoot the mayor and take control of this hell”

“That escalated quickly,” He stated. “But what the hell, sure, I’m on board. Let’s go”

“Tomorrow the sun sets at 8:07. We’ll need to be changed and ready to go by then”

“Wait, tomorrow?” He sprung up in his seat, eyes wide. “No, no. I can’t take one more day of pink cardigans and pleasant conversations with spies!”

“DEAL WITH IT” You gestured wildly before calming down almost instantly. You didn’t need the neighbors to hear and report a fight. “Patrol is already over for today. Be smart about this”

“Fine” He sighed aggressively. “But if this flops, I’m taking everyone down with me. There won’t be an after tomorrow, I can fucking tell you”

“Yeah I won’t stop you”

“Good”

“Good.”

You stayed there in silence, unmoving for a moment. This was it. The moment you’ve been waiting for. Your liberation. Your bed was less than 24 hours a day if things went as planned, which you hoped it would. 

“I’ll… Sleep on the couch” He mumbled after a while, moving to lay down. YOur eyes widened.

“You can’t” You objected, knowing the government would find a way to find out the scam you were running through that detail. 

“Why not?”

“If the secret police comes for a surprise inspection and your side of the bed is cold, we’re kaputt” You explained. “We’re supposed to be at the very least fiancés, remember?”

“God fucking dammit” He swore, looking up at the sky like it would help him. Ha, you already tried that and it didn’t work.

---

The next day, as you prepared the decaf pot of coffee because happy people didn’t need caffeine to be happy, a knock sounded on your door. Jason was taking a shower in the bathroom, so you went and opened the door. Like you had predicted, two men in dark magenta stood at your doorstep with dangerous looking smiles. 

“Good morning ma’am” One greeted with a tip of his hat. “This is a surprise inspection, warranted by the new arrivant in your household, name Dick Grayson and title husband to be. May we come in?”

Your smile widened as you stepped aside, like you actually had a choice in the matter.

“Of course!” You exclaimed. “Coffee, officers?”

“We’ll have to politely decline, thank you” The other smiled as they came in and observed the clean state of the house. All houses were required to be neat and clean at all times. They looked around for something out of place, slowly but surely directing themselves to the bedroom at the end of the hall. You followed them a few paces away, ready to answer their question if they had some. It wasn’t your first surprise check. 

They finally reached the room, from where they could hear the shower running. Their gazes caught the neatly folded pink pile on the bed, then they surrounded it. They started to feel under the comforter and drapes, on the pillows, everywhere they could spot the presence or absence of another person. You called it, oh you so called it.

The shower stopped, and both officers shared a look. “Alright, everything is in order ma’am. Have a good breakfast and a good day!”

You escorted them to the door, threw them a thank you on the way and silently sighed once the door closed behind them. You returned to your coffee, and not long after, Jason emerged from the hallway all dressed in pink.

“Ooh, who were the gentlemen here?” He inquired cheerily, but you knew what it meant. 

“Some nice officers came to see if we were doing fine here!” You replied with equal cheer.

“Shucks, I missed them” He snapped his fingers, chuckling. “Next time perhaps”

“Of course!” The pep in your voice did not match your eye roll. Thank god there were no cameras. 

You finished breakfast and went to town once again, like you did everyday. You felt like everyone was staring at you even more than usual. Like they all knew what you planned for that night. You might have been slightly paranoid, but Jason’s calm demeanor was helping. He was good at that, like he had practiced for all of his life to deceive people.

The mayor bothered you again after the daily play of the anthem, a song you were sure would elicit a violent reaction from you once you would be back in the real world. Then, you repeated the same daily routine you had had forever. Smile, avoid the pie, smile, talk with the neighbors-spies, smile, think about how life is amazing, smile.

Smile smile smile smile smile smile. 

Eurgh.

That night, the pleasant conversations contained codes to trump the microphones. Jason pretended to dance while you unscrewed the loose floorboard and carefully placed his clothes and weapons on the bed. You picked your old clothes, quietly dusting them off. They smelled weird but you were excited to wear something other than pepto bismol dyed fabric. Making sure the curtains were drawn, you proceeded to change. Jason looked ecstatic to finally be rid of his cardigan, while you took a moment to appreciate your black t-shirt and burgundy coat. While he had his red helmet, he handed you a domino mask from his pocket. You had no idea why he had that, but you took it anyway. It looked cool and rebel. You sneaked through the back door, avoiding the spots of light by either lamps outside your house and street posts. You watched the patrol casually making sure everyone was inside, keeping a good distance in between you and them at every time. They weren’t talking, but whistling some creepy tunes. You had to make a small hike through a hill when they entered a gated tunnel, but you ended up in front of a giant factory where workers dressed in grey buzzed around with crates. YOu gasped.

“Illegal” You muttered.

“What?”

You shook your head. They had gotten to you too much, it was time you left that god forsaken place. “Nevermind. How do we go through that barbed wire?”

He pulled out a medium sized pair of cutters from… You had no idea where, but he had them. You shrugged, gesturing to him to go ahead. In a blink, you were in. You sneaked inside without being seen, navigating the building with guesses and feelings. You finally ended up in the main production room, where crates of products were opened and emptied in a giant bassin. The stirred liquid was purple and smelled strange, but you knew it was to do no good. And right beside, there was the pie filling packaging. 

“I knew it!” You hissed under your breath. “They’re putting drugs in the pie! Can you see what it is? Cocaine? Heroin?

“Doesn’t seem like…” He leaned in. “Wait…”

“Al-- Allegra?” You managed to read the crate.”Never heard of it, but it must be terrible and dangerous”

Jason turned his head and stared at you. HIs helmet bore no expression, but you were sure he looked at you like you were dumb. Did he know what it was? “Are you kidding me?”

“No, why?”

“Allegra is--” He sighed. “It’s allergy medication. It’s… Not drugs per say”

“Uh?”

“God dammit--” He paused as something caught his eyes. It was sparkly, and unfit for this environment. From it emerged five armed guys dressed in earth clothes. They had a bag of white substance, which was tasted by the man who welcomed them. “Of fuck, THAT’s cocaine” 

You waited as they put some of it in a vial, which already had purple liquid. 

“Fuck, they mix it with allegra?” He cursed, mostly to himself. “What kind of fucking insane dimension did I step in?” 

“I told you”

“Okay, so those guys will have to leave eventually” Jason pointed at the visibly Earth humans. “We’ll make sure we catch it as well”

“But they have machine guns” You pointed out, not sure how his mind worked. 

“Wait for my signal” You knew he was grinning under that helmet. Before you could ask him how the fuck he would manage five armed guys, he jumped over the rail and started running toward them. You shut your eyes shut as gunshots went off, then opened them again when it was silent. There were bodies around, but Jason was still standing, wrestling with two guys. You watched for a few seconds when you noticed a pink figure sneakily approaching from behind, a frying pan in his hand.

The mayor!

You jumped over the rail too, but your landing was way less graceful than Jason’s. Actually, you were pretty sure you sprained your ankle. But still, you ran-limped to the man and jumped on his back before he could bonk Jason’s head with his weapon.

“ARRRRRGH”

He did not see you coming, as he lost balance at your attack. You crashed on the ground, where you managed to get on top and start hitting him. But apparently neither of you knew how to punch, so it was a rather pathetic looking fight. You swapped and slapped, pulled hair and scratched, until you got a hold of his pan and made a pancake of his face. 

“Take that you pink fucking nightmare” You spat as you stood up. You turned to Jason, whose shoulders were shaking with silent laughter.

“Wow uh” He covered it with a cough. “That sure was an interesting fight to watch”

“Keep mocking me, mister fucking assassin” You rolled your eyes. “I stopped him from bonking your head”

“Alright, alright, thank you”

“No problem” You replied. “Let’s get out of here”

You went and stood on the platform the dealers came through, then waited. But nothing happened.

“I think we need to activate it” He spoke up. That was logical.

You scanned the room for a panel control, and you believed you spotted it on the opposite wall. You grabbed your shoe to throw at it, before Jason held back your arm’s motion.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“Activating the portal” You furrowed your brows, pointing at the panel. A big red button on which was written ‘ON’ was glaring at you from the distance. Practical target.

“Don’t throw your shoe, that’s dumb” He snorted. “Let me”

Before you could argue, he cocked his gun and fired a bullet right on the button. A death sound resonated, but nevertheless sparks began to fly and not just from the ruined panel. The portal opened and swallowed you, sending you through flashes and weird colors until you were spat out in a dull, dark place that smelled bad. Jason seemed to have landed just fine, but you were another story. You pulled yourself up, whining at the pain in your ankle. 

“I didn’t expect to see you here”

A creepy, unknown voice made you both turn around. It was a pale man with an unnaturally stretched smile and bad taste in clothes, and right away it made you think the worst. You had been thrown in Dark!Happy Town. Without thinking, you let out a war cry and hurled your frying pan to the more evil version of the Mayor, knocking him out instantly.

What you didn’t expect though, was the roaring laughter from beside you. 

“Oh--Oh my god” He could barely talk. “I wished I filmed that”

“What? What’s happening?” You asked. Had he gone crazy? “Who’s that? We’re not back home are we?”

“Relax, we’re back” He took a deep breath, his shoulders still shaking. “You’ve just knocked out the most wanted criminal in Gotham city”

“WHAT?”

“Welcome back, (Y/N), welcome back”

[thorsthot]

♡thorsthot’s writing challenge♡ 5k edition

yooo! so the first time I did this, I was at 2.5k followers back in 2018. 2020 we at 5k baby!!! but no deadass, I'm very grateful, especially for the people who have still been here even when I'm being an asshole. 

I found it really fun when I first did this. I got to read fics that I normally would never read. Even though I don’t read fanfic now, I still want to show appreciation whenever I get the chance. And what better way than to host a writing challenge?? under the cut you’ll find the rules, and the various prompts to choose from!

Deadass, just have fun! (and lets hope this doesn’t flop lol) if there’s any questions, feel free to ask :) reblog this to boost, if you’d like

♡ rules ♡

gotta be following me - let me know if you’re posting from a side blog

YOU CAN WRITE FOR ANY CHARACTER IN MY GUIDELINES :)) - (It does not have to only be mcu characters but yes, you can write for Tony, Loki, Nat, Wanda, etc)

I suggest writing outside of the mcu; but it is your choice

no, you cannot write Peter Parker smut, idc whether or not he’s 18

if you're writing smut PLS BE 18+ baby 

also, no dark!fics, non-con, in*est, etc

two people per prompt so first come first serve - each person can have at most 2 prompts but it’s not required.

if you’d like to write more than one fic, you can!

word minimum is 700 words; there is no word or chapter maximum 

has to be a reader insert

♡ formatting + tags ♡

fics should include, a word count, warnings, and your prompt

if you’d like, you can add a summary (it’ll help me when making the masterlist)

for the love of all things holy, please, add the ‘read more’ function to the fics. 

must tag me in the fic + use the tag #thorsthotfive and #thorsthotchallenge (so that I can find it if it gets lost in my notifs!)

♡ how to + what happens when you enter ♡

send me a message or ask highlighting which prompt(s) you’re going to use and the character you’re writing about

for example; “movie dialogue #4 w/ wade wilson” or, “situational #7 w/ bucky”, etc

when you enter: you’ll get a reblog (likely more than one) + a paragraph of feedback that highlights what I love about what you wrote

you’ll also be on the special 5k writing challenge masterlist placed within my own masterlists.

send me a link as well, if I don’t reblog/notice the fic!

there's no deadline to enter, but there's a deadline to post

deadline - March 16st 2020

♡ prompts ♡

situational (au/trope) -

Oh No! There’s Only ONE Bed! 

Stranger In a Coffee Shop

‘Damsel in Distress’ 

Enemies to Lovers (@yournonlocalpoc w/ Jason Todd + d.4)

Friends to Lovers (@tonictransistor w/ Stephen Strange + md.4)

Soulmate AU (@the-wordsmiths-fabrications w/ Thor)

Fake Dating (@I-jus-wanna-writehappy w/ Arthur Curry + d.5)

Noir Detective AU

Apocalypse AU (@thortopia w/ Thor + d.6)

Wow! The Scary Man in the Woods is actually a Sweetheart (@pruemania w/ Thor)

Vampire AU

Bodyguard AU

Character Death

Monster/Alien Fuck Fest

dialogue - 

“Do you love him?” (@sidehowriting w/ Thor)

“You’re the love and light of my life and I can’t wait to spend eternity with you.”

“At least take me out to dinner first.”

“Will you stay awake with me? I can’t sleep.”(@yournonlocalpoc w/ Jason Todd + s.4)

“You trust me? Don’t you?” (@I-jus-wanna-writehappy w/ Arthur Curry + s.7)

“We’re gonna have a baby.” (@thortopia w/ Thor + s.6)

“Yes, my lord.”

“Do you believe in aliens?”

“It’s not what it looks like!”

“It’s all your fault.”

“I’ve never been scared a day in my life.”

“I don’t love you anymore.”

“Don’t argue with me today.”

“Do you ever shut up?”

movie dialogue - 

“It's fucking over, us, this is no joke. I don't think we should see each other any more.”

“Now take me to jail.”

“I didn’t want to get blood on your floor.”

“You met me at a very strange time in my life.” (@tonictransistor w/ Stephen Strange + md.4)

“What’s the last thing you remember?”

“How can you go through life pretending that you’re happy?” (@daydreams-and-shortattentionspan w/ Steve Rogers)

“But this is life. This isn’t a movie”

“They say it hurts less if it’s a surprise.”

“We make a good team. Right?”

“They’ll kill you for helping me.”

“I’ve been a bad, bad girl.”

“Now, you start opening up your personal life to me and tell me your husband/wife won't be home for hours.”

“Are we getting married tomorrow?”

“I gave you everything. You gave it all away.”

song prompts -

Candyman - Christina Aguilera

The Way - Ariana Grande ft. Mac Miller

Do U Dirty - Kehlani

One Night Only (Disco Ver.) - Dreamgirls Soundtrack

Gambit Rogue Delight - Sylar

Dance For You - Beyonce

Whore - In This Moment

Playing Games - Summer Walker ft. Bryson Tiller

You Know I’m No Good - Amy Winehouse (@daydreams-and-shortattentionspan w/ Bucky Barnes)

Cyber Sex - Doja Cat

Love Song - Lana Del Rey

Eyelids - PVRIS

Baby - Clean Bandit ft. Marina & Luis Fonsi

Ma Chérie - Palace Royale ft. Kellin Quinn

[elareine]

Misperceptions

Rating: Teen  Warnings: Swearing  Relationships: Dick Grayson/Damian Wayne, Tim Drake/Jason Todd (side), Dick Grayson & Jason Todd Tags: Brotherly Bonding, Future Fic, 5+1 Things, Pining, Misunderstandings, Jealousy, Fluff, Guilt, Family AO3: /21199679 Companion to Reasons to be jealous. 

Five times Dick was jealous of Tim and Jason’s relationship, and the one time he wasn’t.

One

Dick couldn’t tell you how he ended up here.

Jason didn’t even work with him all that often. They usually stuck to clearly demarcated lines in their cases. The last attempted homicide between them might’ve been a while back by now; that didn’t mean Dick was necessarily comfortable around him, and he refused to apologize for that.

This time, there had been no way to avoid cooperation. Considering everything, it had gone okay. Two human traffickers were behind bars that hadn’t been before, so Dick considered it a win. After the arrests, Jason had suggested a drink, and Dick, not wanting to reject him without reason, had taken him up on it. One or two beers, and then they’d head home.

One beer had turned into fruity cocktails had turned into tequila straight from the bottle. Maybe it was their competitive nature that wouldn’t allow them to back down when the other ordered something, maybe it was the stress of the past few days slash years, but Jason was basically spread all over the booth now, Dick comfortably nestled into the corner beside him, their shoulders touching as they passed the bottle back and forth.

“So, little wing, are you seeing anyone? Or is there a hot chick waiting for the Red Hood in every city by now?” he settled on. That was what a big brother was supposed to ask, right? Never mind that he had to look up at Jason as he said it. He’d never asked Damian that question—but that was a bad thought, and bad thoughts deserved tequila.

Dick took another sip.

“Nah.” Jason took the bottle from him and examined it critically. “Goddammit, Dick, are you trying to kill yourself? How much of this did you drink?”

He was one to talk, slurring as he was. Dick graciously overlooked that fact, insisting: “What do you mean, nah? There’s gotta be someone.”

“Well, yeah, Tim.”

Jason grimaced at his own words, though Dick wasn’t sure why. His head felt slow and fuzzy. “What does Tim have to do with this conversation?”

“I’m in love with him, dickhead.” Jason snorted. “Hah. Dickhead. That’s never not funny.”

Dick had heard that joke about a million times before; he was drunk enough to chuckle anyways.

“How long?” he asked when he’d calmed down. Kinda embarrassing, him not noticing his little brothers dating. Urgh. Phrasing it like that made it sound weird.

Jason shrugged. “Dunno. Years.”

Funny that he was so blasé about that. Dick had pegged him to be the type to remember anniversaries to the minute. Not like Tim really cared about that stuff, though, so it was probably fine.

Now that Dick thought about it, they were sweet to and about each other all the time. Fighting crime together counted as, like, a prime dating activity in vigilante circles. Dick remembered all the times Tim had mentioned he was grabbing breakfast or dinner with Jason.

And it made total sense. Tim was the main reason Jason had calmed down considerably in the killing department, and Jason had been loyal to Tim whatever happened, arguing his side every time, even with Damian. Dick didn’t know how he hadn’t noticed it before. They were so obviously a couple.

It was unfair, he thought mutinously. Jason and Tim had just seemed to click from the beginning. They were clearly made for each other.

“What the fuck are you talking about. Are you forgetting what I did when I first met him?”

Jason’s voice was both incredulous and ashamed, but Dick wasn’t paying any attention, his thoughts going down a path they had traveled, many times before. Only this time, he spoke them out loud. “You two are so… I just—I just want Damian to—”

And then, to his utter humiliation, Dick broke down in tears.

Fucking tequila.

He didn’t remember anything that happened after that. That was probably a blessing.

Two

Jason was in his late twenties now. It had been almost ten years since he’d returned to Gotham. Dick got drunk with him less than a week ago. Talking to him shouldn’t feel like making polite small talk with a stranger, but it did.

“Yeah, I tend to turn the heater up, too,” Jason was saying, sounding bored with himself. He’d been tapping away on his phone for most of the day. “Tim likes it a bit chilly, though, so I’m getting used to it.”

Dick didn’t take his eyes off the target as he sighed. If only the man would do anything more exciting than sit in an office all day. He mournfully remembered the Mafiosi of his youth, all of which would rather have been caught dead (and in many cases were) than sit in front of a computer all day.  

Jason’s phone buzzed again. His brother didn’t even bother to apologize before grabbing it to reply.

“Tim?” Dick finally asked, more to start the conversation again than because he had any doubts.

Jason hummed in agreement. “He needs important mission intel.”

Dick rolled his eyes. “He’s bored at work, isn’t he?”

“So am I.”

“Oh, excuse me, is my company that terrible?” Call him a hypocrite, Dick still felt insulted.

“No, but trying not to talk about the elephant in the room is. You know. Our little tequila evening.”

…Dick had really hoped they could just keep ignoring that. Jesus Christ, go right for the sore spot, won’t you, Jason? Dick had never regretted the bluntness his family was famous for more than at this moment. Well, there had been that time Steph had described ‘pegging’ to Damian after he, being twelve, had asked why Dick was walking so funny after visiting his then-girlfriend… and the time Bruce had given him The Talk again after noticing he was interested in boys… and the time Babs had—okay, maybe this wasn’t even top five, because there had also been that time where—

Jason’s voice interrupted that thought process, which was probably for the best. “I’m not gonna tell anyone.”

Dick searched his face. Jason looked calm, open, a little bit hopeful—as if he was willing Dick to trust his word.

“Okay, cards on the table, I don’t actually remember what I told you,” Dick finally admitted. “So, uh, please describe the elephant to me.”

Jason hesitated. “Oh. I could forget about it, too, if you like.”

“No,” Dick decided, though he did consider it. Still, he was curious now. And surely it couldn’t be that bad? He couldn’t have been drunk enough to— He couldn’t have been. “Tell me.”

Jason’s phone buzzed. This time, he ignored it, still looking strangely hesitant. “You told me that you’re in love with Damian.”

Dick stopped breathing.

Literally; the ringing in his ears grew louder and louder until he felt hands on his shoulders, shaking him. “Dick. Dick! It’s fine. You’re fine. No one else knows.”

Dick took a gulp of breath, then another, forcing out: “Don’t tell him.” Then: “Don’t tell Bruce.”

“Never,” Jason promised. “I wouldn’t do that to you.”

Dick wasn’t so sure about that, but—what choice did he have? Weirdly enough, it was that thought that calmed him down. There was nothing he could change about it now. All that was left was running damage control.

At least Jason had waited until they were alone to bring it up and hadn’t told anyone else. That had to count for something, hadn’t it?

“I haven’t—I never told anyone.” He’d barely admitted it to himself.

“I know.” Jason’s smile was sheepish, but there. “You, uh, made me promise the same thing about fifteen times already.”

Dick groaned, embarrassment finally setting in. “God, I’m so sorry. Fucking tequila.”

“Tell me about it. My head hurt for a whole two days after.”

The target chose that moment to move, and they both moved into instant alert—but it was only to the bathroom. Once the man was typing away at his desk again, they relaxed, and Jason finally answered Tim’s texts.

Then he leaned back on his hands casually and peered at Dick. “So. Damian, huh?”

Dick seriously considered ignoring him, but—it might feel… nice. To talk about it with someone. Even if it was Jason.

“Yeah. I know you two don’t—” Dick gestured with clasped hands.

“Hey, no, Damian and I, we’re good,” Jason reassured him. “Tried to kill each other a few times, laid down some ground rules about how to not insult people the other person cares about, and voila, no assassination threats in months now.”

Something in Dick wanted to protest. Damian was so much more than threats of violence, always had been, and it annoyed Dick to no end that people still held his upbringing against him.

Then he realized how ridiculous he would sound saying that to Jason of all people, and instead settled on: “So you just don’t talk about Bruce and Tim at all?”

Jason shrugged. “Pretty much.”

“Huh.” That sounded exhausting, but who was Dick to judge?

“Gotta say I’m a bit surprised, though. Didn’t think you’d go for him.”

Dick tensed, expecting any of the reasons he told himself at night—Damian was too young, too vulnerable, too much his brother—

Jason continued, grinning: “He’s not even a redhead.”

Dick threw his com at Jason’s head, but he was laughing.

Three

Dick unironically loved it whenever a group of bats gathered to work a case (or an Arkham breakout, as it might be.) Sure, there was a lot of bickering happening, but wasn’t that what family was about?

Honestly, it was even better without Bruce. Less tightly run, more fun. Seeing Damian in Bruce’s cowl instead was still weird, though. It wasn’t like Dick himself hadn’t donned it plenty of times. Hell, even Jason had done it once or twice, which had been one hell of a trip for everyone involved.

All of which was a good thing—Damian should have more than being Bruce’s mirror image. Dick was so proud of the way he’d grown into himself, had taken on his own vigilante identity.

However, it was a reminder that the child he had helped socialize, the Robin to his Batman, had, indeed, grown into a man. A man that didn’t smile often, to be sure; one that still liked to keep the world at bay, that trusted few, showed his heart to even fewer.

Something sharp dug into his side. “Earth to Nightwing, Earth to Nightwing.”

Dick started. Fuck. He’d been staring at Damian again, hadn’t he?

With a grateful smile, he elbowed Jason right back. “It’s called thinking, ever tried it?”

“Not your particular kind, no.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means that I occasionally suspect there are fluffy clouds moving behind these eyes and nothing more.”

“Aww, Little Hoodling,” Dick sang, sliding his arm around Jason in a deceptively friendly move, “one day, you’ll be a real boy, too.” Then he moved—or tried to.

It was like trying to flip a car.

Dick tried again. Sure, there was little leverage like this, but he’d been able to flip Damian (who wasn’t that much lighter than Jason, and just as tall) the other day without much effort; why was this so much more difficult?

But Jason didn’t move. “Bit heavier than you remembered, Nightwing?”

Dick made a show of sticking out his lower lip to cover how startled he was. Had it really been that long since he’d been roughhousing with Jason? He could swear it had been a thousand times, but… apparently not.

Dick couldn’t regret getting away from Bruce back then. It had been necessary. But he was glad they now had a chance to move on as a family.

Okay, maybe some people would be a bit more worried about the dozens or so homicidal criminals heading their way disrupting any reconciliations. Dick never had been one of these people. Tim and Jason fought together like a well-oiled machine. As for him and Damian…

Well. They were the best, weren’t they?

Coming back to the cave, high on adrenaline and full of cravings for Alfred’s cookies, had always been one of the best parts of the job for Dick. Add in the all-too-rare opportunity to spend some quality time with Damian… the night, or morning, was looking up.

Jason, God bless him, headed right for the showers. Tim, however, lingered, looking ready to set up camp at his workstation.

“Why are you here and not in the shower?” Dick waved a hand in the direction Jason had disappeared to. It wasn’t meant to imply anything dirty, except it was.

“I need to write a mission report,” Tim protested, true to his little workaholic form. Dick would’ve expected that to lessen a bit now that he was getting some. Though now that he considered it, Jason was a workaholic, too.

“We can do that, right, little D?” Dick smiled at Damian, who grumbled but acquiesced. “Go ahead and have an early night, dude. You look beat.”

“Uh. Thanks.”

“Let’s get this over with,” Damian said, already sitting down and spreading maps on the table. Dick, not wanting to annoy him further when he’d basically forced Damian to stay for the rest of the night, made haste to join him.

When they’d gathered the full picture of the events of the night, he frowned. “What I can’t figure out is: Where did they get those supplies from? There does not seem to be a single origin point.”

“Hmm.” Damian was chewing on a pen again. It was adorable. “Flyover?”

“No planes detected.” Dick rechecked the flight radars.

“Plenty of people know how to hide from our equipment. You said it yourself: Someone paid a lot of money to stir up this much trouble.”

“We would’ve noticed the packages, though.”

Damian nodded, conceding the point. “Water?”

“The river is meant to be well-guarded…” Dick’s voice trailed off, and they both sighed at the same time.

“We should go over the guard postings; check for suspicious activity.”

Engrossed as he way with their discussion, Dick barely noticed Tim and Jason leaving, only calling a cursory ‘Take care!’ after them before Damian demanded his attention again. Eventually, they had to begin writing their reports, though, and Dick concentrated on his laptop to do so. The silence was comfortable, and time flew by.

Damian silently vanished at some point, returning some minutes later with a plate of cookies and two mugs full of steaming hot chocolate. It smelled heavenly.

Dick smiled up at him as he took the mug—his favorite superman one, he noted. “Thank you.”

Damian didn’t smile back, but there was a slant to his mouth that told Dick he was pleased. When the other sat down again, he did so right next to Dick on the bench, their thighs touching. “Show me the surveillance video again.”

“Of course.”

Dick was pretty sure Damian had it on his computer, but maybe not. Not like he was going to deny the opportunity to be this close to Damian. Bruce was away, after all. And even if he checked the surveillance footage from the cave, what was there to see? It wasn’t like he was doing anything untoward, Dick told himself. He just took a little more comfort from being close to Damian than he did when it was any of his other siblings, that was all.

Their heads were bent over the video for almost an hour; neither broke focus up until a new figure entered the cave.

“Morning, Duke.” Dick waved at the newcomer.

“Hi, guys. How was the breakout?”

“Fine. We handled it.” Damian seemed annoyed. Dick didn’t know why; he’d been fine until just now, and he and Duke usually got along well in their own way.

Duke seemed unfazed, merely looking around. “Where’re the reds?”

“They’re fine,” Dick reassured him. “Just headed out already.”

“Let me guess.” Duke’s voice was dry. “They’re feeding each other waffles.”

“I think it’s pancakes today.” Damian matched him in tone, and Dick chuckled.  

“Let them have some fun, eh? At least Tim gets fed this way.”

“Too. Much. Flirting.” Duke shook his head and moved to the back of the cave, presumably getting ready for his shift.

When Dick looked up, Damian was staring at him in a way Dick had never seen before. He felt himself flush, wanted to ask—but Duke returned with his uniform and a question about the new batarangs, Damian looked away, and the moment passed.

Four

“If he’s coming to Wayne functions now, we might as well make Jason officially a part of the family again.”

Dick did his best to smile at Tim reassuringly, unsure if this was Tim’s way of floating the idea of Jason being reintroduced to the public as his boyfriend. Playing it safe, he pointed out: “Bruce doesn’t know how to ask, and he thinks Jason will say no.”

“He might not.”

Of course he wouldn’t, not if Tim asked him to. Jason was so whipped. Dick wasn’t kidding himself: If Tim hadn’t been complaining for weeks about having to attend this event, Jason wouldn’t be here. He was even making nice with some socialites to give Tim a break, for God’sGod’s sake.

Dick let his gaze wander over to where he’d last spotted Jason and flinched when he saw that Damian had joined him.

Their youngest had been late; out on a call as Flamebird. Dick was sure it had been important and all that, but he didn’t think it warranted him being deprived of this sight for so long.

If Dick liked seeing him in the batsuit, Damian in formal wear was… The dramatic lines of Damian’s suit, a close approximation of the styles his maternal family favored, made him look like royalty.  

The people around him seemed to think so, too. There was a woman at Damian’s elbow, laughing and touching his shoulder whenever he spoke. The man across from him couldn’t tear his gaze away, either, visibly undressing Damian in his mind.

Dick kind of wanted to punch him. Or better, yet: Go over and show them that Damian was supposed to be his, mark him and dishevel him and have him look at no one else; let him do the same to show that Dick belonged to Damian in return.

His hands went to his own throat without any conscious input, pressing into bruises that weren’t there. For cover, he loosened his tie, clearing his throat as if to force himself to breathe normally.

When he dragged his thoughts back to his own conversation, he saw that Tim, too, was staring at the group with hunger in his face. For a second, he felt an unexpected kinship with his brother, the urge to share what was plaguing him growing strong—but no.

He just couldn’t.

“Well, you would know better than anyone else,” he absently pointed out the obvious instead.

“I know that if he keeps throwing Damian to the wolves like that, he won’t live long enough to answer Bruce.”

Dick laughed. “Aww, you know Damian only means his death threats 30% of the time these days. Still, I’ll go rescue him. Coming?”

Tim waved him off, and as Dick advanced on the group, he noticed Jason peeling off. Well, about time. Jason had left Tim’s side for a whole twenty minutes already, surely a new record. Dick had no idea how those two thought they were being subtle.

Even before he began to speak, he felt Damian looking at him.

All attention was welcome to Dick, but being the focus of Damian’s… It was like no one else existed to him but Dick, and Dick craved that feeling more than anything in the world. Damian, he knew, judged everything and everyone. Being regarded like that and still found worthy was headier than any wine.

Buoyed by the feeling, he turned his best smile at the group: “Excuse me, ladies, gentlemen, but I need to steal Damian away from you for a few minutes. Our host has been asking for him.”

Damian nodded gravely, turning to leave immediately. There was a fleeting touch to Dick’s elbow that spoke of thanks for extracting him from the situation.

He himself stayed for some minutes before making his own excuses, vaguely ambling back towards the buffet. It never hurt to look drunker than any of them would allow themselves to be at this kind of event.

The sound of laughter drew his eyes to the dance floor.

Jason and Tim were dancing. If Dick tilted his head at a thirty-two-degree angle and squinted just so, he could call it a quickstep. They looked ridiculous; two very-grown men, twirling each other like they were delicate princesses and giggling the entire time.

And yet.

There was a bitter taste in the back of his throat. He’s never been someone to hide his love. If Damian were his, he’d want to proclaim it openly and proudly, just like Jason and Tim were doing now.

They never could. Even if, by some miracle, Damian returned his feelings, they were siblings in the eyes of the world. There was no coming back from that.

“They’re making a spectacle of themselves.”

Dick shivered. He hadn’t noticed Damian coming up behind him. Now the warmth against his back and Damian’s low whisper against his ear were unmistakable.

Damian had grown so tall, almost towering over Dick; tall enough that he could rest his chin on the top of Dick’s head, and for one long moment Dick thought he might do precisely that, pull Dick into him by the hips and envelop him so fully—

But Damian cleared his throat and stepped back. Dick swayed on his feet, shame and arousal burning in his stomach in equal measure.

Immediately, Damian’s hand was on his elbow, steadying him with care most would not suspect him capable of. Dick leaned into it gratefully before he knew what he was doing.

Christ. He needed to get out of there.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m not feeling so well,” Dick blurted out, immediately wincing at how obvious a lie it was.

Incredibly, though, Damian let him get away with it. He merely looked over to Jason and Tim, and nodded as if he understood; though what it was he understood, Dick didn’t know. “Do you require assistance? I will call Pennyworth, let him know you are coming.”

Great, and now Dick felt terrible for making Damian worry.

“No, it’s fine.” He smiled, hoping it was convincing. “I just need to get some rest, I think.”

“Take the night off,” Damian ordered. “We will cover for you at the office.”

There was nothing for Dick to do but agree. Maybe a night off would help him get his shit together. Ever since he confided in Jason and found out about his relationship with Tim, his mood had gotten worse. A good night of sleep could only improve things.

Impossible as it was, he felt Damian’s gaze on him all the way home.

Five

“Damian is back,” Tim told them through the coms. “Everything is set up for tomorrow.”

“Alright. Get some sleep, babybird.”

Jason’s voice was so soft. Something in Dick ached, listening to it.

That was the one good thing to come out of this mess: being privileged to see this side of Jason. Dick had to admit to himself that he hadn’t let himself see it before.

Still, he wouldn’t be Jason’s older brother if he didn’t tease him: “Getting all sappy on me, are you?”

“Excuse me?”

The genuine confusion on Jason’s face was hilarious. “Babybird.”

“Oh, that.” Jason tried to shrug it off. “Just a nickname.”

“You’re so sweet.”

Jason grumbled to himself. “Watch yourself, or next time I’ll let you act the loving couple with Damian.”

Images rose unbidden in Dick’s mind. Damian smiling down at him, pulling him into his arms at the reception, pressing a kiss into his neck… And then later, Damian shirtless, looming over Dick, caging him in, looking for all the world as if he wanted to devour him…

Dick swallowed. Maybe Jason had a point.

They got ready for bed in comfortable silence. At least it wasn’t awkward being half-naked around the other anymore. Dick was pretty sure there was a gun taped underneath Jason’s nightstand, but at least he was polite enough to hide it.

They slid under the covers, though neither of them turned off the string of fairy lights that were probably supposed to add to the romantic atmosphere. As it was, lovers staying up all night was exactly the image they wanted to create, so it served their purpose.

Still neither of them slept, too alert to their surroundings. Dick was content to just lie here, maybe doze off a bit, until morning came.

Then Jason inhaled and rolled over to his side. “No, you know what, I’m gonna ask. Why are you not hitting on the brat again?”

Dumbfounded, Dick sputtered: “Because—reasons!”

“What reasons?”

Jason sounded genuinely curious, and it felt like the kind of thing you shared with your brother, or maybe, a friend. The thought lifted Dick up enough to finally voice the thoughts in his head every night.

“He’s a lot younger than me.”

“Always knew you would turn into a cougar,” Jason teased, but there was nothing mean about it. “Seriously, Damian knows his own mind. He’s not underage, or even close to it. Somehow I don’t think you were attracted to him when he was a teen.”

Dick thought of Damian as a particularly gangly teenager and grimaced. “No.”

“Let me guess—realized one day that he’s a man now and boom, there were all these feelings?”

Dick smiled at him. “Was it like that for you and Tim?”

“Not really. I always saw him as an equal, even when I shouldn’t have,” Jason admitted.

Dick sometimes forgot that Jason was only four years older than Tim. When he’d come back from the dead, he’d been a grown man to Dick (and, he suspected, Bruce,) not a nineteen-year-old. Trying to kill everyone and start a criminal empire did that to you.

“You both got over that, though.”

“Yeah, I guess we did.” Was that a blush spreading over Jason’s cheeks?

It was funny. For all that he was encouraging Dick to open up to him, Jason didn’t seem all that used to talking about his own feelings.

“Anyway,” Jason deflected, “I know you fucked people much older than you, so that’s not the only reason. Neither are the murderous in-laws, though they frankly should be. So what’s holding you back?”

“He’s my brother. I know Bruce wanted me to be his brother.”

Jason considered the point. “Are you actually morally concerned, or is it mostly about not wanting to fail in Bruce’s eyes?”

“The latter,” Dick admitted. It was difficult to explain. He considered both Jason and Tim his brothers, yet ne he wasn’t bothered by them dating at all. With Damian, there was a strong feeling of loyalty, similar to that of a family member, but the love itself had changed. And theirs was a peculiar family, anyway. Roy had often joked that dating another vigilante was a little incestuous because of how small a group they were. Maybe it was no wonder that shit was all getting mixed up in his head.

So that was… fine. Weird, but fine. Dick could rationalize that to himself. But failing Bruce? Even after all these years, all those arguments, the thought still made him physically recoil.

Jason pinched the bridge of his nose. “I cannot believe I am saying this, but: There’s nothing you could do that would make that man love you any less.”

And Dick could see that hurt to admit, the ‘unlike me’ unspoken but present, so he joked weakly: “Oh, please, we all know Duke’s his favorite.”

Jason looked grateful, but he persisted: “I mean it, though. Why do you regard Damian as more Bruce’s son than the rest of you? Don’t tell me it’s the blood thing, because we both know that’s utter bullshit.”

Dick didn’t have an answer for that.

“You know there’s an easy way to settle this, right?” Jason asks when Dick didn’t speak. Throwing the blanket off, he got up and rooted through his suitcase. Dick watched as he pulled out his laptop and declared: “We’ll just call Bruce.”

Dick sat up in alarm. “You’re going to bother Bruce in the middle of a JL mission to ask about—this?”

Jason shrugged, though he couldn’t fool Dick. His neck muscles were tense. “Damian’s gonna kill me tomorrow anyway; I have nothing to lose.”

“Why would Damian kill you?” Dick felt very lost.

“No reason, Dickiebird, no reason.”

Dick decided to ignore that, and Jason’s amused tone, to focus on the important thing here. “We can’t call Bruce. He’s on another planet, and anyway, there’s no need—”

“Look, you want me to talk to him? I could ask him.”

Dick couldn’t think of a single less subtle thing for them to do. Bruce would know Dick was listening right away, and if not, as soon as he checked their mission log when he returned.

Maybe that was Jason’s point, though. Was he really going to keep hiding this?

Dick took a deep breath. “I’ll call.”

When Jason slid the laptop over to him, he looked almost proud.

It seemed like ages until the connection was set up. Finally, Batman’s familiar cowl appeared on the screen.

“Nightwing,” Bruce’s voice was crackly with static, but the concern was audible. “What happened?”

“Nothing bad,” Dick reassured him. “I hope. Just. Do you have a sec?”

Bruce looked torn. Dick saw Jason twitch and guessed he was tempted to interfere, to tell Bruce this was important. Pity that neither of them could be sure if that would help or hinder.

In the end, Bruce nodded.

It was, perhaps, a good thing Bruce seemed to be pressed for time. There was no way for Dick to prevaricate; he had to come straight out with it: “I think I’m in love with Damian.”

And then he held his breath as he waited for Bruce to lecture him.  

Bruce didn’t miss a beat. “I trust you and have no reason to doubt your choice in partners. I trust Damian to know what he wants, too. Please don’t hold back on my account.” He paused. “Just… don’t tell me any details.”

It was a terrible joke, but Dick laughed nonetheless.

He couldn’t be sure, but there was a sound in the background that sounded like an explosion. Bruce looked away from the screen for a moment. “I have to go. Be safe.”

“Thank you,” Dick told him, sincerely.

Bruce shook his head. “Not for that.” The connection closed.

The room was quiet as Dick tried to digest the fact that one of his top ten fears (after, you know, everyone dying) had been laid to rest in the span of five minutes, just like that. What did you even say?

“That went better than expected,” he finally settled on. “Thank you.”

Jason shrugged. “Yeah, look, there are a few trauma points he can’t deal with it—” he pointed at himself, then shaped a gun with his fingers, “but he’s a detective. He knew and had plenty of time to chew it over. That speech was practiced to hell and back. You probably just released him from the misery of wondering how the fuck to bring it up with you.”

Dick chuckled. If it sounded a bit wet still, neither of them mentioned it.

“Also—I like the kid, I do,” Jason said, “but we’re all glad if he doesn’t end up with a civilian.”

It felt different, seeing Damian now that Dick was allowing himself to hope, to want. He had no idea if Damian would even be receptive, had never allowed himself to consider the notion before. When they all met in the cave after the mission had ended, Dick let himself smile at Damian openly, full of delight at being able to do so without wondering what would be caught on camera.

Damian didn’t smile back. He grabbed Dick by the arm, scowling, and told him: “We’re leaving.”

“What about the—” Jason began to ask, but Damian was already dragging Dick away.

Resistance seemed futile. He shot an apologetic glance at Jason, who waved him off, looking way too amused.

It was only when they were alone that Damian let go of Dick, glaring daggers at him and the world, but not speaking. Dick patiently waited him out. Damian would tell him what was eating him, or he wouldn’t. No prodding in the world would speed up the process.

“Why Todd,” Damian finally demanded to know.

Dick frowned. Apparently, Jason’s statement about him and Damian getting along hadn’t been truthful. Well, after all that Jason had done for him last night, and the weeks before that, he wasn’t going to just let Damian question his place. “He has proven himself an able and trustworthy partner on these missions.”

“I’m not talking about the mission,” Damian hissed.

“Then what—”

But now that he had begun, Damian wouldn’t stop talking. “I don’t understand. You were looking at me, and I thought maybe—finally—but then there was Todd, and I don’t want you to be in love with him. He’s going hurt you. What does he have that I don’t? Tell me and I will change it.”

Oh. Oh.

“Damian,” Dick couldn’t help but smile as he reached out to touch Damian’s arm, “I’m not in love with Jason. He’s with Tim.”

Dick hadn’t realized how tense Damian had been until that tension left him to be replaced with hope: “You’re not in love with Todd?”

“I’m not.”

Damian’s other hand rose to cover Dick’s. “Then—”

“Yes.” Dick knew his feelings must have been written all over his face. He didn’t care. “Yes.”

Damian made a sound like a sob and bend down to kiss him.

Dick’s plan: Test the waters. See if Damian was interested at all. Maybe start some slow romancing if there was hope.

Dick’s reality: He was swept away by the force of Damian’s kiss. It was unpracticed, to be sure, but there could be no doubts about the feelings behind it. Damian’s hand on his cheek spoke of devotion, his teeth on Dick’s lip of passion, and his eyes were on Dick’s the whole time, never once looking away.

It was being devoured, and Dick loved it.

And One Time He Wasn’t

Unsurprisingly, Dick didn’t get to do much work that day. Or the next. When they finally emerged from their rooms to debrief with Tim and Jason, he was feeling stiff and bruised in the best of ways. To his surprise, Damian pulled him close as they walked, his hand heavy on Dick’s hip. Dick melted into him, pulling him close in turn.

Now that he had it, Dick didn’t know how he could have denied the two of them this feeling for so long.

Thus tightly wound, they entered the cave—and stopped. It took a second for the image to sink in: Jason was sitting in Tim’s lap, their fingers linked in front of his stomach.

Like so many things with those two, it should’ve been funny—Tim was by no means tiny, but he was considerably smaller than Jason. Instead, it looked right.

Jason grinned at him. “So. We’re together now.”

Dick, still high on the events of the last day, said: “Oh, how nice.” Then: “Wait, you weren’t before?”

Tim groaned and hid his face in Jason’s back, only the red of his ears still visible. Jason, however, didn’t look embarrassed at all, just distinctly unimpressed. “Dick. Are you telling me these two geniuses thought the two of us were dating, while you thought I was already dating Tim?”

Dick blinked. “Tim thought that too?”

“That’s it,” Jason said, “I’m revoking your detective licenses. All of you.”

[mizmahlia]

I am damaged at best (like you’ve already figured out)

Summary: Between Bruce's insane training drills and his on-the-job experience, Jason could get out of just about any kind of restraint. Cuffs, rope, zip ties, packing twine, electrical cord- you name it. But after he’s rescued, it's proven to be much harder to break free from Slade's hold over him and he's not sure if he can get away this time.

He’s not sure if he even wants to, if returning to a team that hates him is his only option.

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This is the Titans version of Jason Todd. Post 2x05.

TW: Be warned- this chapter contains some heavy stuff such as suicidal ideation, mentions of physical and psychological torture, and other serious mental health concerns. If you've seen the episode, you've seen how emotionally wrecked and traumatized Jason is, so tread carefully.

AO3

Jason takes pride in his ability to hide how he really feels, only allowing the world to see what it wants to so he can go on pretending he’s fine. If acting the part of a scared child got food on the table, then that’s exactly what he did. In front of a social worker, it’s the kicked-puppy act. With teachers, it’s striking the balance between being a smartass and actually using the intelligence they both know he has.

With Bruce, it’s acknowledging he’s a bit of a troublemaker, while staying just this side of the brutality/justice line. As long as his homework is done and he follows the rules of the Batcave, he can patrol. He bullshitted his way through Bruce’s psychological exam, manipulating his answers enough to appear like he was being honest, but he really only said what he needed to pass it. If Bruce noticed, he never said anything.

Jason never thinks too much about the possibility Bruce saw right through his act, but chose not to do anything about it. If he spends too much time obsessing over that, he spirals down too far, and it takes a week or more for him to claw his way back up to the surface, on his way back to ‘barely-functioning’.

Slade, however, is different.

In the time he’s been down here, Jason’s insults and threats have had no effect. And since his escape attempt earlier, Slade tightened the restraints and tied him to a chair, so he had no way to gather any momentum to break free. He’s stuck until Slade moves him to another location, which seems likely at this point. Jason is out of his element and Bruce never prepared him for dealing with a situation like this. Being in uncharted territory, he goes back to what he knows, what he’s familiar with. 

He leans into the restraints, getting as close to Slade as possible.

“Fuck you, you pretentious asshole. Hey, look at me. I’m not scared of you.”

He gets no reaction from Slade as he simply stares back at Jason, holding a whetstone and his sword. He sits at the table to Jason’s left and begins sharpening the blade with long, slow strokes. He doesn’t say a word for a few minutes, leaving Jason in tense silence.

Jason isn’t sure if it’s the sleep deprivation, the throb of the wound in his thigh where his tracker was previously embedded, or the fact Slade hasn’t laid a hand on him since the phone call to Dick and the others hours ago. Granted, he's grateful for that because while he can certainly take a beating, Slade hits harder than most. But he can feel terror creeping into his head and down the back of his neck when he realizes he has no idea what’s going to happen. He listens to Slade begin to talk about Dick, picking up on the way rage bleeds into Slade’s voice as he does so, telling Jason he’s being used for bait.

When Slade stops talking and waits for a smartass retort from Jason, he gets nothing, and Jason knows he’s smiling behind the mask. Slade leaves the room and cuts the lights, leaving him in total darkness to think about the possibilities of what’s coming. Jason knows there’s a meeting at three a.m., but he has no way of knowing what time it is. It could be twenty minutes or five hours until the meet.

He can’t take the ‘wait and see’ approach that Dick is so fond of- he doesn’t have the time or patience. Bruce operates much the same way and it drives Jason crazy. The apple didn’t fall far from the tree where Dick and Bruce are concerned, but Jason knows he’s different. He’s the rotten, worm-filled apple on the diseased tree that’s on top of the burn pile.

After all- you gotta get rid of the disease before it spreads to the rest of the orchard.

That thought is pushed to the back of his mind along with everything else he can’t let himself dwell on right now.

After waiting a few minutes to see if Slade is coming back, he goes to work on the restraints. He pops his other thumb out of joint and tries to wriggle his hand out of his glove, but it won’t budge. The cuffs are loose enough to prevent a loss of circulation, but tight enough he can’t slide his hand out. Short of having someone actually amputate his thumb, he isn’t getting out of them.

He sighs in defeat and leans his head back against the rock wall behind him. The silence in the room is complete enough he swears he can hear his own heartbeat, and he starts tapping his boot on the floor. It’s the bass line to his favorite song, one he listens to when he needs a distraction from the dumpster fire his life has seemingly turned into.

The tapping gets faster as he realizes Batman isn’t coming this time, and neither is Dick. The Titans likely aren’t, either. Not like he expects they would- it’s not as if they like him all that much. He closes his eyes and sighs deeply. It appears there’s one thing he and Slade agree on.

He’s on his own.

Like he’s always been.

It shouldn’t comfort him, but it does. Just a little bit.

 --------------------------------------------------------

He doesn’t remember how he got to the top of a skyscraper or how Slade sedated him, but he sure as hell feels the backhanded slap as Slade tries to wake him up. He winces before spewing a string of colorful profanity, letting Slade know exactly what he thinks of him, before Slade slaps him again. There’s blood on his lip this time and Jason spits it to the floor, keenly aware Slade isn’t hitting as hard as he had previously. He says something Jason can’t hear over the wind and disappears back inside, leaving Jason alone with his thoughts again.

It’s a place he tries hard not to be, inside his own head. It’s a dark place full of blame and anger and guilt. And no matter what he does or how hard he tries to keep them at bay, the darkest of his thoughts always manage to bubble to the surface and threaten to pull him back under. It used to be his own voice, telling himself he’s nothing more than a harbinger of violence, bad luck and chaos- that the world is better off without him. And it’s hard to ignore the voice in your head telling you how much of a failure you are when the voice sounds just like you.

But now the voice sounds like Slade and it’s telling him all the same things, but with an added twist. Now he hears Slade’s voice telling him he made the mistake of trusting Dick and believing himself to be some kind of hero, when he’s nothing more than a punching bag- something for Slade to beat on and torture just to get someone else’s attention. A pleasant distraction.

He pleads with the voice to stop, to leave him alone, but his voice is lost on the wind and he continues to replay the awful things Slade said to him earlier.

“You’re Robin two-point-oh, and you’re just as replaceable as Dick was. Batman will find a third one, but this time, let’s hope he finds someone who can actually do the job.”

“How does it feel to know I’m only doing this to you to get someone else’s attention? To be used for spite?”

“Do any of them know how much you hate yourself? Do they even care?”

“I know Gotham is a fucked up city, but for it to have spit you out... that’s impressive.”

Before he realizes it, the tears are falling and his legs threaten to give out from under him. He shakes his head and tells himself to focus. But as he gets a hand free, the shutter opens and he sees Dick and Kori fighting with Slade, which sends his heart soaring.

They came. They’re here to save him.

Then Slade raises the hand with the detonator in it and presses the button. Dick screams and Jason drops, reaching out to grab the ledge. There’s a hand out the window and Dick’s panicked face appears, and for the briefest of moments, Dick has him. But their grip isn’t strong enough and Jason falls.

He has no choice but to look at Dick as he falls, the wind whipping through his hair and drowning out the sound of Dick’s scream. He knows he’s also screaming, but it’s an automatic thing- his body’s response to fear that he can’t control. But underneath the terror he feels, he senses relief, too.

It’s better this way, he thinks as the space grows between them. No more feeling alone, like he didn’t belong anywhere. No more having to pretend he was fine.

And no more having to fight Slade’s voice in his head.

--------------------------------------------------------

The first day back, he gets hugs from Hank and Dawn, with Hank giving him a high-five for talking shit to Deathstroke. Gar gives him the biggest hug known to man, apologizing repeatedly in Jason’s ear and telling him he’s glad they found him. Rachel’s reaction is hard to read, as is Donna’s, but Kori seems genuinely happy to see him.

Rose stands back and gives him a sarcastic salute, clapping her hands, but the smirk she wears softens enough to tell him she’s glad he’s back.

Dick hardly leaves his side and Jason has to tell him to give him some space, something he’s never had to say to anyone before.

It’s a nice feeling, for people to want him around.

But it doesn’t last.

It never does.

--------------------------------------------------------

A few days later and Jason begins to think Conner catching him was a mistake.

He can’t sleep. He doesn’t eat. And he can’t even carry on a conversation without losing grip on what’s real and what’s only in his head. He’s taken to pushing on his bruised ribs to remind him the pain is real and Slade’s voice isn’t. Most of his time is spent in front of the window in his room, replaying his fall over and over again.

After their impromptu dance “lesson”, Rose tells him he’s the only one worth talking to and that sparks something in Jason’s chest- hope that he was supposed to survive after all, that people really do care about him. It’s something he holds onto with everything he has. It’s the only thing he’s had to lean into, to fight for.

He’s starting to think he and Rose could be really good friends, or perhaps more down the line. The constant worry he’ll infect her with whatever curse he’s got is always present in the back of his mind, but when he hears her say he’s fucked up, but that she understands? Jason almost cries in relief. The smile he wears is genuine- the first one in a long time.

Then she finds the record, her brother’s record- a dead brother Jason doesn’t even know she had, and shit hits the fan. Once again, the fingers point to him first, just like Slade said they would.

Next it’s Rachel.

Then Hank, Dawn, and Donna.

His world begins to implode for what feels like the twelfth time in less than a week, and he doesn’t even bother trying to quiet Slade’s voice this time.

When he manages to speak loudly enough, the words tumble out before he even has the chance to consider how it sounds.

“You people are insane. I’d rather be with Deathstroke than you assholes. You think everything is my fault.”

In the midst of their arguing, Jason disappears and decides not to take the elevator. Lately, the only place that brings him any comfort at all is the roof. Being up that high might get rid of the awful feeling that he’s falling, and he wishes he would have thought of it sooner.

As he climbs the stairs, he rubs the red, raw skin at his wrists from the restraints. His thumbs are both bruised from when he dislocated them, and he absently wonders if that’s why he couldn’t grab Dick’s hand tight enough that night. In his attempts to free himself, he nearly died because he couldn’t hold on.

But he’s tired of holding on, and if what happened downstairs is any indication, he shouldn’t bother.

The sun is bright up on the roof and he knows he should feel warm on his skin, but he doesn’t. He hasn’t felt warm in forever, not really. There’s a moment of hesitation and he wonders if he should barricade the door so no one can get up here. In the end, he decides they probably don’t know he’s gone, anyway, or are glad he left.

He gets closer to the edge and looks down again at his wrists, running his fingers over the tender skin, one question he hasn’t been able to answer rushing to the forefront.

If he really got away from Slade, if the shackles really are gone, then why does he still feel so trapped?

[batboys-and-other-messes]

Phones and Panic (Jason Todd X Fem!Reader)

Requested: Yupp Request:  Hello! Can I request a Jason Todd x reader where the reader forgets her phone at home and goes out to do something meanwhile Jason is freaking out because she doesn’t answer her phone A/N: Thanks for the request! I honestly hope you like it. Word count: 1645 Warning(s): Sex mentioned, Cursing Tagged: @jason-todd-rh

[You wanna be tagged in my next piece? Just shoot me a message or ask!]

 -----

 At first, you thought your day would be uneventful.

That was until your friend suddenly showed up on your doorstep, basically kidnapping you for a lady’s night out. But it wasn’t the fancy kind. It started with messy food, movies, more food and ended with her leaving you behind to hook up with a taxi-driver.

Sometimes you asked yourself how you ended up with so many crazy people in your life. But who were you to judge? You dated a self-proclaimed “outlaw”. How much crazier could it get?

You had only noticed that you didn’t have your phone with you when your friend was gone, and you couldn’t call a cab, so you decided to walk home. It had been a long and busy day and you appreciated the evening breeze.

Gotham, as scary as it could be, sometimes even seemed to be somewhat peaceful.

You stopped on a quick Starbucks run before you walked down the street, watching the sunset as you saw a flash of red and black drop down next to you, scaring the living shit out of you.

“The Hell, Tim?!” you said as Red Robin raised his hands in defense.

“Are you okay?” he asked sheepishly.

“Yeah, you just scared me.”

“No, I mean... are you okay? In general?” Of course, the answer was obvious, you were alive and okay, but the question confused you nonetheless.

“Yeah? … Why?” you asked.

“Because Jason is currently raising hell as if you’ve been kidnapped and tortured collectively by the whole Gotham underground.” He said matter-of-factly and started typing something on his weird wrist-watch-thingy.

You stopped in the middle of taking a sip of your drink.

“What??”

“Yeah… He said you haven’t answered your phone all day and you were ‘nowhere to be found’. Bruce put him in time out because he threatened to shoot something up.” He looked at the position of the setting sun to guess how long ago this was. Thirty minutes? An hour? Maybe? What day was it?

“But he’s probably left the cave by now.”

“What? Then why are you so calm?? What the- Tim, could you please tell him that I’m okay and on the way home?”

“Already done.” He said and looked at your drink and you took an educated guess at where his next stop would be.

“Here” you handed him the spare coffee that was meant for your boyfriend, but Jason probably didn’t need the energy boost anymore. You both started walking towards your apartment as you knew that he would’ve followed you home anyways.

It seemed to be one of these weird rules in this family to make sure everybody got home safe.

“Wait, how many people are looking for me right now? Or… you know, were looking for me until now?” you asked, afraid of the answer as the teen just stared ahead for a moment.

“Dick, the Outlaws, Steph, and Cass.” He said. “And Alfred is in the cave monitoring.”

“And Bruce?” you asked, more interested to know who would search for you in case you were really in danger. Besides the fact that your boyfriend is apparently having a meltdown right now.

“He’s busy.”

“Figured”

“And the demon spawn has no soul, so he refused to.”

“Oh.”

“And we all knew that Jason was just over-reacting.”

“And yet here you are.”

His hand went up to scratch the back of his head. “To be honest I was just on a coffee run.”

You nodded, understandingly.

“Did he reply? “ you asked after a few seconds of silence. You honestly missed your phone by now.

“Just a bunch of gibberish.” He looked at his wrist and took a sip of the coffee.

“He’s probably mad.” You said and Red Robin nodded.

“Shouldn’t be so surprising considering its Jason we’re talking about.”

And with that you both fell into silence.

___ 

A few minutes later you stood in front of your apartment door, alone, keys in hand and ready to unlock the door when it swung open and a strong hand pulled you in, the door slamming shut behind you. Your back leaned against the closed door but not because of balance but purely out of lack of space as your boyfriend, Jason Todd, hovered above you in all his fully-geared-up-but-helmetless glory.

His hands caged you in and you eyed him like a deer caught in headlights.

About a hundred different emotions washed over his face from obvious worry to anger and frustration until he finally sighed and gave way to the most prominent emotion – Relief.

You simply stared at him as he hung his head, trying to get over the initial shock from the multiple heart and panic attacks you made him go through.

On the first look you could understand why people thought he was intimidating but right now he just looked like a sad puppy whose owner has just left and locked the door.

Slowly you lifted your cup, pointing the straw at his direction as an offering of peace accompanied by a hesitant smile on your part.

He lifted his head, the frown back at his face, as he practically glared through you.

You lowered the cup again out of eyesight.

Another second of silence passed.

"You are so grounded.” He finally spoke and even though his expression was as stoic as ever, the tension has been finally cut and you couldn’t help but smile in relief.

He wanted to yell, to rant and to tell you exactly how goddamn stupid your stupid actions on this stupid day where but he couldn’t. Not when you were safe at home. Not with your scared expression so fresh on his mind and especially not when you looked so damn innocent, standing there.

“I’m sorry.” You finally offered.

Despite the now lighter atmosphere, you couldn’t even start to imagine what he thought had happened to you. You knew he had witnessed horrible things in his life and probably even on this day and you never wanted to be part of any of these scenarios.

But at the end of the day, it was just a forgotten phone.

Right?

Suddenly, with a single sigh, he looked as if he had just lost seven years of his lifespan before he rested his forehead on your shoulder, defeated.

You defeated Red Hood.

“Hey.” You said softly, placing your free hand on his hair as you slowly started to run your fingers through it. “I’m sorry I worried you.” You said, lifting your cup again as an offering and you felt him take a sip through the straw.

Ha. You knew it.

“Tori made a surprise visit and we went to the movies. She was so hectic that I completely forgot to take my phone with me.” You tried to explain. You hoped that knowing how your day actually looked like would replace whatever images he had already constructed in his head.

“You are still grounded.” He said and you rolled your eyes.

“And how was your day?” you tried to steer the conversation away from the topic while you still stood caged against the door. Not that you minded that much.

“Oh, the usual. A few rapists broke out, a human trafficking ring settled in fucking Gotham and the woman I love was suddenly fucking gone.” He said bitterly and you knew he wouldn’t let you live that down anytime soon.

“The woman you love, huh? As in present tense?”

He pushed himself off the door to glare at you again as you immediately missed running your fingers through his hair.

“Watch it. You are on thin fucking ice right now.”

“Jason.” You said, ignoring the fact that he had just stolen you Starbucks cup as you continued to talk. “Look, I made a mistake and it was stupid. I should’ve known better.”

“Damn right, you should have!”

“All I am asking for is a chance to make it up to you.” You said, your voice hung in the air with a hint of… seduction? You couldn’t help the effect he had on you, standing so close. And truth be told, you wanted to replace his angst with something more... nice.

Jason squinted at your words. “I don’t know, (Y/N).” he said, taking a sip before continuing, his face still only inches away from yours. “You really did a number on me.”

“And I’m fully repentant.” you said.

“So, what are you suggesting?” he asked and you knew that he had already forgiven you.

“Make-up sex?” you answered, and his expression didn’t change.

“No.”

This genuinely surprised you.

“No?”

“I’m not your whore.” He said and it took every ounce of willpower for you not to laugh.

“I never said that.” You said, biting your bottom lip to keep yourself from giggling.

“I really don’t like your tone here.”

“Okay.” You said. “What are you suggesting then?” you asked and he looked pleased with this question.

“Make-up sex.” He answered.

“That’s exactly what I said.”

“Yeah. But I didn’t like the way you said it.”

“Jason.”

“(Y/N).”

You both stared at each other for a moment and you wondered how you possessed the willpower to not kiss him with his face so close to yours.

“So… Are we going to… you know?” you slowly said before he grabbed you and threw you casually over his shoulder like a very delicate duffel bag.

“Really?” you sighed, shaking your head with a smile and you only heard him chuckle and put down the drink before he carried you through the living room.

“Gotta make sure you don’t disappear again.”

“I won’t. I already said I’m fully repentant.” You said as you heard his guns hit the floor and the sound left you tingling in excitement before he threw you on the bed, kicking the bedroom door close behind him.

“We’re gonna see how true that is.”

[teen-titans-imagines]

East of Eden pt 9

Jason Todd & Daughter! Teenager! Reader

A/n: ANOTHER INTENSE PART. LET’S GOOOOOOO. BTW, this part was heavily influenced by the song Duet, which you can find on the playlist!! Thanks!

Comments are appreciated, and are key. Please comment. It helps with motivation and efficiency. Thank you!

—

Part One / Part Two  / Part Three / Part Four / Part Five / Part Six / Part Seven / Part Eight / Part Nine [Here] / Part Ten / Part Eleven [Final]

—

Genre: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Family, Drama, Action, Fluff Rated: Mature Warning: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Blood and Gore, Swearing, Graphic Depictions of Physical Abuse, Emotional Abuse, Emotional Manipulation, Graphic Injuries, Nightmares, PTSD, Trauma, Just read with caution please

—

Author: Teen-Titans-Imagines

—

Jason couldn’t remember the last time he had gotten this much exercise. His legs were burning, his sides were aching, and he was sure his stomach was churning. His breaths were coming out in small puffs, and Dick, the clear example of what it meant to not be apparently human, chuckled. 

“Come on, Jason. Don’t tell me you’re tired!” 

Damian scoffed in agreement. 

“I’ve climbed mountains without stairs and higher than this at four years old, Todd.” 

Jason snapped, glaring at the two. 

“I’m old, I’m hungry, and stressed. What more do you two want from me? A fucking gymnastics routine going up?”

Dick grinned, and Jason rolled his eyes. They should have just taken the jet up, and had Hasan drop them off. Tim didn’t seem to be doing any better than him, his sweat running down the side of his face in waves. Bruce, who was ahead of them all, gave them a stern look. 

“Stop bickering, you three. This isn’t going to be easy for any of us.” 

Damian rolled his eyes, and Jason huffed. Tim slipped slightly, and Jasons’ hand shot out to grab one of the red wings of the suit. 

“Are you alright, Tim?” 

Tim panted, and he mumbled. 

“I haven’t worked out this much since training...I guess I’m a little out of shape.” 

Jason hooked his arm between Tim’s legs while grabbing his arm, Tim gasping and protesting, before throwing the man over his shoulders in a firefighter hold. While the weight was a bit much for Jason, he wasn’t going to leave his own brother behind. Tim, though embarrassed, murmured as he relaxed. 

“Thanks, Jay.” 

Jason hummed as he looked on up at the stairs. 

“I got you, Tim.” 

Dick, who had fell behind after pausing for a bit, smiled softly at the sight. Damian, who had fallen in step with Dick, whispered softly. 

“(Y/n) made him soft.” 

Dick shook his head, patting Damian’s back. 

“No...she made him happy.” 

Dick began walking again, and Damian, shocked by Dick’s words, shook his head before rushing to catch up. 

-WITH READER-READERS POV-

A gentle shaking awoke you from your slumber, and upon opening your eyes, you spied the beautiful gaze of Na’ila, her comforting gaze upon you soft. 

“Wake up, my dear, it is time.”

Stretching, you noticed the water was still a bit warm. Slipping out, you found that your knees were weak, almost slipping to the ground hadn’t it been for Na’ila holding you. She chuckled and soothed as she sat you on the ledge of the tub. 

“Coming out of a spiritual bath is always weak on a person. Do not worry.” 

You nodded tiredly, rubbing the back of your neck as Na’ila instructed, holding up a long, white piece of cloth. 

“Arms up. I am going to be wrapping your chest.” 

“Why?”

You asked, voice hoarse and laced with sleep. Na’ila raised her eyebrow, smiling slightly as you raised your arms anyway. 

“This is for when your journey begins. You are not supposed to wear anything that might hold residual energy, for it could disrupt the purification process. Men would usually do this with nothing, but Nazeem didn’t want to go down that road, if you understand. He wants you to be as comfortable as possible. These cloths have been blessed, so they shouldn’t harm your journey.” 

As she finished wrapping your chest, the cloth covering your whole torso and belly, she slipped your legs through a skirt, fastening the leather cord tightly in the back so it would stay up. The skirt was long, a pristine white that was almost blinding, and covered your feet when you stood. With an arm within yours, Na’ila began to guide you. 

The door with the strange glow behind it came up to you, and Nazeem was waiting for you beside the door. He smiled and patted your shoulder gently. 

“Are you ready to begin your journey?” 

You shrugged, looking at the man tiredly. He chuckled and turned to Na’ila, saying while bowing his head. 

“Thank you for caring for her.”

Na’ila smiled and nodded. Nazeem announced, his hand waving before the door. 

“Behold, my dear, the road to your salvation.”

The door opened, and your eyes widened as light blinded you.

-WITH HASAN-

Hasan was freaking out. The batfamily was already halfway up the mountain, and he didn’t want to risk trying to climb up. What was he going to do? He couldn’t warn Nazeem at all, and if the batboys disrupted the process, it could very well mean the end of (Y/n)’s soul.

Pacing, Hasan ran a hand through his hair before taking a deep breath. Looking up at the sky, he called. 

“If you even think about smiting me, I’ll come up there and fight every last one of you! You hear me? I’m too old for any of this.”

Hasan raised his foot, his heart dropping, before placing it on the step. His breath left his lungs in a relieved puff, and Hasan lifted his other foot to place it on the next step. However, a shock went through him, and he yelped, falling backward.

“Oh, come on! Haven’t I done my part?”

Lightning shot down beside him and Hasan screamed in surprise, jumping back before stomping the ground. 

“By the Light, why the fuck not?! Why do they get to go but I can’t? This is bullshit!”

Thunder rolled, and Hasan pouted, crossing his arms as he stared at the staircase. 

“Fine. I didn’t even want to go anyway.”

As he turned to leave, a gust of wind pushed him back to the stairs, and a crack of thunder hit the sky, making Hasan widen his eyes as he was pushed to the stairs. Getting the memo, Hasan muttered before bounding up the stairs.

“You all need therapy. I didn’t sign up for old people fighting over who gets to go up the stairs and who doesn’t.”

-WITH JASON-

Jason panted as he placed Tim down, hands on his knees as he hunched over. Dick was rubbing his sore legs, and Damian was checking his weapons, making sure none had fallen off on their ascent to the top. Bruce turned to the boys, saying. 

“We’re at the top. Be quick about the break, I’m doing scans of the temple, and I’m not getting much.”

Jason asked, raising an eyebrow. 

“Are you saying that we came here for fucking nothing?”

Bruce shook his head, taking his cowl off with a deep frown. 

“No, I’m saying my equipment is malfunctioning. There seems to be something here preventing any of my thermal imaging to work.” 

Tim muttered, pressing buttons on his arm. 

“Same here. I guess we gotta search the old fashion way.”

Jason frowned deeply before they began to enter the courtyard. Followers of the Elder Temple were nowhere to be found, and Damian announced. 

“It’s quiet...I don’t like this.”

Jason nodded in agreement, before a voice caught their attention. Hasan, showing up on the staircase on the left, hunched over, panting. 

“Oh...my god. I am never...ever doing that again.”

He ran over and put his hands in front of the family, warning.

“You guys cannot go in there. (Y/n) has begun her journey to salvation. If you disrupt that, you could possibly destroy her soul. You cannot be in there. Not right now.”

Jason snapped, grabbing the man by the collar of his shirt, yanking him up to Jason’s level. 

“Listen, you fucking prick, and listen good. My daughter is in there, the daughter that you took from me. I’m not gonna let some god-kissing man thwart me from seeing my daughter. You’re going to stay out of my way, or I’m gonna put a fucking bullet in your head, you understand me?”

Hasan frowned and retaliated, holding Jason’s wrist. 

“Jason, I know she is your daughter, and I’m sorry that it came to this. If I could have healed her myself, I would have, but I do not have that capability. High Priest Nazeem has sensed a darkness within her that could mean the destruction of the world.”

Jason slowly lowered Hasan, his frown softening. 

“If you go in there and disrupt the process, any error could set that darkness off. Her soul will break, succumb to the darkness, and she will not be the same (Y/n) you once knew. I’m not trying to stop you because I don’t want you to see your daughter. I’m trying to stop you from being the ones to kill her.”

Jason felt anger roll through him, but he knew that Hasan was right. Why would Hasan lie to him? He had been truthful with him during their whole arrival, and he seemed to genuinely care about (Y/n). Stepping back, Jason shook his head. 

“I’m not leaving. I need to see her, Hasan. I can’t just fucking stay out here when I know my daughter is within reach.”

Hasan’s eyes saddened, and he held Jason by the shoulders. 

“Jason, I understand. If there was a way I could change the rules, I would. I am but a man, and cannot change the celestial rules.” 

“No, but I can.”

They all turned to spy Nazeem, his blind eyes soft. Hasan widened his eyes and whispered. 

“High Priest Nazeem...”

“My apprentice, it is lovely to see you again.”

They bowed at each other before Nazeem approached Jason.

“The heart of a man is strong, but the heart of a father has the strength of 10,000 gods and suns, my son. The gods know of your true intent, and have allowed you to come here. I cannot fight their judgement. You being here upon this ancient stone is for reason, not mistake.”

Nazeem then frowned. 

“But, that does not mean that what Hasan says is false. If you disrupt the process in anyway, there will be no telling what will happen. If you are to witness the trial, you must learn to keep your tongues still. All of you. Do you understand?”

Bruce immediately replied, nodding his head. 

“You have our word.”

Nazeem nodded before gesturing for them to follow. 

“Come. The journey has already begun, but it will be a lengthy process.”

Jason followed Nazeem, following him through the long corridor to a door with a strange glow beneath it. Nazeem turned to Jason, his blind eyes stern.

“Your tongue will be still from here on out. Do I have your word, Jason Todd?”

Jason widened his eyes, wondering how he knew his name, before nodding. 

“Yes, sir.”

“Good.”

Opening the door, Jason’s eyes widened as his breath left him.

-NO ONES POV-

The room was filled with the Followers of the Elder Temple, surrounding a large lagoon-like pool, the waters glowing as the followers chanted. Behind the pool, it opened up into huge archways, showing the cloudy skies as the sun shone through the windowless archways, almost seeming celestial in its own way. The light from the sun reflected off of the water, casting glows of gold across the room. 

In the middle of the pool floated a pod-like cocoon, (Y/n)’s form within the pod. Her eyes were closed, and her knees were brought to her chest, her arms holding them to her chest. Her hair floated around her, as if in water, and Jason briefly wondered if the cocoon was just water. As the boys piled into the room, Jason couldn’t take his eyes off his daughter. 

She looked peaceful, as if nothing had happened to her, and Jason wondered what Nazeem meant when he said she was going through a journey. Jason bit his lip, tears stinging his eyes. She was so close, literally just about thirty feet from him, and he couldn’t go over to hold her.

The girl twitched, her head shaking slightly, and Jason noticed her veins were glowing a soft gold, the water-like cocoon rippling. Hasan’s breath was lost to him, his eyes wide as he stared on, and Jason couldn’t help but inwardly chuckle. Glancing back at (Y/n), he wondered what was going on with her.

-READERS POV-

There was a brief moment of darkness, nothing feeling different, before a light shot through the dark, blinding you once more. When you uncovered your eyes, You widened them when you noticed you were at a table. Specifically, the dinner table at the apartment. 

Your father sat at one end, digging into his food as he read something on his phone. A voice caught your attention, and you felt tears prick your eyes.

“Jason, you know the rules! No phones at the table while dinner is in session!”

Your mother walked into the room, her beautiful (e/c) eyes amused. Jason perked up and awkwardly coughed, slipping his phone from the table. 

“Phone? What phone? I don’t see a phone here.”

She giggled before teasing.

“Right, so that’s why I just saw yours?”

Jason blushed and shook his head. 

“You didn’t see anything.”

You noticed that your arms were reaching for more food, and realized that this was a memory. Jason looked over at you, smiling brightly.

“I think she’s enjoying your turkey, Momma.”

Mom chuckled before sitting beside you, causing you to look at her. Her eyes were bright, amused by your five-year-old you’s antics.

“You like the food, babygirl?”

You nodded, your actions completely uncontrolled, and Mom laughed, nuzzling her nose with yours. 

“You’re so sweet.”

The scene rippled and changed, now changing to when you first went to school. Your mother was holding your hand as you sobbed, and your father knelt before you, his blue eyes soft. 

“It’s ok, baby girl. It’s only going to be for a couple hours!”

“I’m scared!”

 Mom chuckled before kneeling beside Jason, encouraging. 

“Your father is right. Plus, this is a great opportunity to make friends, baby girl!”

Looking between the two, you shook your head. 

“I don’t want to go. I wanna stay with you and Daddy.”

Your mother chuckled before running her hands through your hair. 

“It will be alright, sweetie. How about Daddy and I walk you in. Would you like that?”

You nodded, and your parents took their places on either side of you, holding your hands and swinging you back and forth to make you happy once again.

As the scene rippled, you could feel your heart twist slightly in yearn. The scene changed, and you noticed it was a memory from when you were much older. You were sitting against the door, listening to your parents fighting with a hollow heart.

“I don’t understand why you can’t just stay home and be a father!”

“What the fuck do you think I’m doing here, (M/n)? I’m fighting crime to keep her safe, not because I don’t want to be here!”

“Jason, she constantly wonders why you’re never home! What the fuck am I supposed to tell her? That her father is a vigilante of Gotham and doesn’t have time for her?”

“You know that’s not fucking true.”

Your mother’s voice raised, something shattering as she screamed.

“Yes it is! Jason, you missed the god-damn Father-Daughter dance! I had to be there for that! Do you know how many looks she got when parents noticed that it was just her and I the whole fucking night?!”

“That wasn’t my fucking fault, (M/n)! I was on a mission that I couldn’t get out of!”

“Exactly! Jason, you are choosing being Red Hood over being her god damn father!”

Your father screamed. 

“Stop making it seem like I don’t want to be with her, (M/n)! You know that I can’t give up being Red Hood! I’m doing this to keep her safe!”

“No you’re not. You’re doing it because you like the thrill of it.”

“Yeah, maybe I fucking do.”

It was quiet for a moment before your mother snapped.

“You have a week to start acting like a man and a father! If you don’t...if you don’t improve, then you are done. You are getting out of this house.”

“You can’t do that! I enjoy being both! You can’t take away the things that I love from me. That’s unfair!”

“Then find a way to do both! Because if you don’t, you’re fucking done and out of this house!”

Their voices faded as the scene did, and it jumped to when your mother had gotten sick.

Your mother coughed as she searched for a cup, her skin pale and eyes ringed in a sickening red. You were concerned as you sat at the table, munching on cereal as she swayed slightly.

“Mom, is everything ok?”

She sighed slightly, her head resting on her bicep as she grasped the ledge of the cupboard.

“Yes, dear. I’m fine. Just a bit tired, I suppose.”

Sweat ran down the side of her face, and her eyes fluttered before she collapsed, causing you to gasp and shoot out of your chair.

“Daddy! Mom just fainted! Dad!”

Your father ran in, his blue eyes searching and widening when they spied your mother on the floor. Quickly, he knelt beside her and tried to get her to wake up.

“Baby, can you hear me? Sweetheart, wake up!”

When she didn’t respond, your father turned to you.

“Call an ambulance. Make sure to do everything they say and answer their questions as quick as you can, alright?”

Crying, you nodded before grabbing the phone.

The scene faded, and you sighed. That was probably the hardest moment in your life, something that you hated reliving. Every single time you dreamed of that, you never failed to wake up in tears and wishing that your father had noticed her sickness sooner. That you had noticed it sooner.

You held your mother’s hand, sobbing as she smiled softly at you, her sunken face sweaty and paler than before.

“Don’t cry, baby girl. We’ll be alright.”

“No, mom...Mom please don’t go. I need you here with me. I can’t do anything without you.”

You mother chuckled as she caressed your face.

“My dear, you can do anything the world asks of you to do. You’re so strong...and you’re so kind. You can do this, my lovely girl. You can fight through this. I’ve seen you do it...and I know you.”

“But I can’t...I can’t do it without you, mom!”

Your mother smiled

“I’m not going anywhere. I’ll be with you...I’ll be the wind that blows in your ear...the trees you pass...the road you walk upon. I’ll be the rain...the sky...the sun that shines upon you and the moon that illuminates the night for you. I’ll be the stars in the night sky that twinkle down at you.”

You sobbed hard as she coughed, straining to stay awake for just a while longer.

“You...you have so much power and talent, baby girl. You are going to change the world one day, maybe even save it...and I promise I’ll be watching the whole time. I’m proud of you, baby.”

You cried into her chest, screaming in agony as she gently pet your hair.

“I love you, and I am so, so proud of the woman you are becoming...and the woman you will be.”

With that, her hand paused, and you knew. Within an instant, you knew. You didn’t even need to hear the monotone frequency of the heart monitor to know she was gone. Your father leaned over you, holding you to him as you sobbed.

Why.

Why were you being shown these memories? Why were you being shown all the things you had tried so hard to forget about? What was the purpose of this?

The pain was the only thing you could really feel. Punch after punch, taunt after taunt, it just seemed to never end.

“You’ve gotten quiet. You finally realizing that Daddy Dearest isn’t coming to save you?”

You growled and glared at the man, snarling out.

“I…still have..my faith.”

Black Mask grinned.

“You know, your determination to keep believing is quite admirable, if not amusing. Holding onto just that one little thread of hope, just hoping that your father will come and save you from your imminent death. It’s cute.”

You muttered.

“You want cute-”

You spat blood and saliva in his face, leaning back afterwards.

“-how’s that for cute, jackass?”

He growled and backhanded you, your face snapping to the side, a grunt leaving your lips as more blood rushed from your nose and busted lips.

“Insolent girl!”

You were trembling as you remembered; wishing it would end. What was the purpose of this?

“Why? Why are you showing me this? Stop. Stop!”

“I was…I was…scared…”

Jason squeezed your hand.

“…At one…point…I even…I even gave…in. I didn’t….I didn’t think you…were coming.”

You turned your head to him slowly, despite the pain, and smiled softly, Jason’s blue eyes filled with hot, fat tears.

“…but you…did. You saved…me…and I…love you. My hero.”

You chuckled a bit, but Jason was crying hard at your heartfelt words, holding your hand to his forehead as he sobbed. Jason whispered to you, holding your hand in a tight yet gentle grip.

“I love you so much, so, so much. I don’t deserve you.”

“You deserve…more than…this.”

You ran a hand through your hair as you watched, screaming in emotional agony. What was going wrong?

“Wow. I’ve…never flown before…and never been on a private jet before. Are you sure this is ok? I’m not that important.”

Hasan looked at you sadly throught he sunglasses, though you couldn’t see it.

“You have more worth than all the stars in the sky, Ms. Todd.”

You huffed before sinking down into your seat. Looking at him, you noticed he was wearing an earpiece and heard a voice counting down, presumably to when the cameras on the streets would turn back on.

“So, do you have people you know in high places that just give you these expensive things or are you really that rich?”

“I guess you could say I have friends in higher places.”

You nodded before sighing, crossing your arms. As your eyes turned to the streets, your mind began to wander again. Were you making the right choice?

You paused. Where was this going? What were they trying to show you? What was he trying to tell you?

His knife dragged across the skin of your rib cage, pressing in deep with a harsh bite like a vicious animal that hadn’t eaten for weeks. You whined out, biting your lip so hard that you could taste blood, and Black Mask cackled.

“And now here I am with his little bitch of a daughter. A fighting spirit reduced to nothing but a pile of shaking bones. Look at you. So pathetic and weak, quivering at my touch like a rabbit before the fox.”

He leaned down, hissing into your ear as he dragged his fingers down the length of your spine.

“Can you feel it? The sharp pain of knowing that no one else will believe you if you tell them of my presence? To you, I am real, but to them? The people outside? They can’t see a thing. They can’t help you, and that must be more painful than anything in the world.”

It was. The fact that nobody else could help you from this conscious nightmare was a killing factor to your mental health. While your body was starting to take its toll from the wounds Black Mask had inflicted on you, your mind was in another world. A darkened reality that you were beginning to think that you could never escape from.

Another memory ran through your mind, and you began to understand.

The lights disappeared, and the room became dim, save for the torches that seemed to never stop burning. Nazeem turned to you, and asked.

“Are you satisfied, or do you wish that you never knew?”

You shook your head.

“I am glad that I know. Now that I know what’s wrong, now I will be prepared for what is ahead of me.”

You were confident, and Nazeem smiled, resting his hands upon your shoulders.

“Your strong will and determination to persevere never fails to amaze me, my dear. I have a feeling that one day, when you perish, you will have a place among the gods. Come, we must start the preparations.”

You weren’t being shown these memories as punishment. No...these were reminders. Reminders of why you were here. Why you kept fighting. It wasn’t about salvation to you. It had never been about that. 

It had been about healing. About the want for everything to be better. It had been about your parents, specifically your father. This fight you were fighting...it wasn’t because you were stubborn and didn’t like to go down without a fight. It was about the fact that you were continuing on, no matter what happened. That you always braved the challenges you were put through. 

This wasn’t about salvation. This was about knowing who you were and why you were. This was about growth, about healing, about remembering why you were even here in the first place. 

And with that, you opened your eyes.

-

[PART TEN]

Permanent Tagging List/East Of Eden Tag List (these have honestly just turned into the permanent tag list laksdf;alksdf whoever was tagged for JUST east of eden, please tell me so I don’t mistakenly tag you in anything else I post): 

@amnahs9695 @cuddlysteven @voltaiire @shuris-wakanda @@euphoricgukk @prancingdestiel @frida-marie (it’s not letting me tag you) @rcbinwcrld @thatawesomenerdygirl @hi-this-is-my-blog (It’s not letting me tag you) @addicted-to-dc @crazyfreckledginger @jasonsredhoody @conspiracy-teen @an-all-write-life @maroongoon

[ellana-ravenwood]

Naked Birds - Tim Drake x Reader

Summary : You are Tim’s girlfriend, and today, you play some strip poker with the batboys...(Tim is a bit older than he is currently in the comics, like he’s around 19 or something).

for @gobydana, hope you’ll like it (I’m always stressed the people who requested things are gonna be like : “that’s shit”) : 

You can find my masterlist here : @ella-ravenwood-archives

__________________________________________________

It was a Saturday afternoon on a rainy day when everything happened, when you gain your boyfriend’s older brothers’ respect. And also embarrassed them more than they ever been embarrassed in their lives. 

Dick, Jason, Tim and you were spending some times altogether, getting to know each other, as in five years of relationship with Tim, you never really had time to hang out with his family (busy people). 

Bruce was at work, Alfred had a day off, and Damian was hanging out with some friends (which was so rare that no one dared to tell him to stay to spent the day with you guys). 

-No Jason, we  are NOT playing strip poker right now. 

-But I’m bored and a movie is...

-I said we’re not ! 

-Why nooooowwwt ? 

-Because it’s only you, Dick, (Y/N) and I, I don’t need to see my brothers naked. 

-And (Y/N) ?

-We’ve been together for five years, what, you think I never saw her naked ? 

-I never saw her naked. 

-Good.

Jason gives his brother an infuriating smile and, taking some soda cans while Tim takes a giant bowl of pop-corns, they go back to the living room where you and Dick are waiting. 

The eldest Wayne boy is sitting upside down on the couch while you’re on the floor, browsing their...very small movie collection. You turn to look at your boyfriend and his brother coming in, and, with an exasperated look, you say : 

-You guys are the sons of one of the richest man on Earth, and you own like...Five DVDs ? Three of which are the same copy of “The Sound of Music” for some reasons...I’m worried about you guys’ sanity. 

-Bruce loves that film. 

-Really ? 

-Oh yeah, he makes us watch it at least once a month. He’s Captain Von Trapp.

-Uh ? 

-...While watching it, he re-enacts the film. He’s always Captain Von Trapp. And he forces us to be other characters as well. 

You go to sit in between your boyfriend and Jason, and with a sly smile you ask him : 

-Who are you ? 

He blushes like crazy, already regretting talking about his father’s weird habit. 

-...No one. 

-Tim, babe, who are you ? I swear I’m not gonna laugh. 

A small silence. A bit awkward. He knows that if he doesn’t tell you, his brothers will, and that it’d be worst, so : 

-...one of the daughter. Depends which one on the day, but I’m most often Liesl. Sometimes I’m all of them... 

It took everything in you to not burst out in laughter at the thought of your boyfriend singing the girls’ parti of the movie, and, swallowing a chuckle, you look at him very seriously and say : 

-Such a big role. You must be proud. 

-You swore not to...

-Laugh. I never said anything about not mocking you.

-I like your girlfriend Timmy. 

You high five Jason, and you both snicker like idiots at Tim’s pouty face. 

-Oh come on love, turn that frown, upside down ! 

You singsong, pinching his cheeks in between your fingers. He pushes you away, but can’t hide the smile growing on his face. Jason makes a small sound of disgust as you and Tim kiss, and you expertly elbow him in the ribs. 

Dick rolls off the couch and asks : 

-So, what do you guys wanna watch ? (Y/N), you’re our guest, you choose ! 

-Well, difficult choice. It’s either “Star Wars : The Phantom menace”, aka the worst Star Wars ever, “Harry Potter and the order of the Phoenix” which I’ve seen a thousand times, or The Sound of Music. 

You pick up the two other copies of the DVD and add : 

-Or the Sound of Music. And oh ! The Sound of Music. 

The brothers laugh. Tim wraps an arm around your shoulder, and squeeze you against him, kissing your forehead lovingly. He loved (love) you too damned much, he hope with all his heart, prayed to every Gods, that he’d never loose you...Lost in his thoughts, your boyfriend did not notice Jason’s sly smile at your decomposed features (for real though, if you knew, you’d have come with loads of your favorite movies in DVDs !), and therefor, didn’t react quick enough to shut him up : 

-I have another idea (Y/N). Do you know how to play...poker ? 

He looks at you smugly, and you feel Tim stiffening next to you. 

-If I know how to play poker ? Oh Timothy, your brother is a funny one. I was born to play poker, mate. 

-Is that so miss (Y/L/N) ? Timmy, your girl is getting cocky. 

-Cocky uh ? You’re on Todd, we’re playing poker ! Anything is better than “The Sound of Music” really...

-Never say that in front of Bruce haha. 

You and Jason stood up, and Dick was looking at his little brother, worried. Every single muscles of Tim’s body were flexed, and his jaw was clenched. He was looking straight in front of him, and it felt like he was going to crack in a million pieces under the pressure of his own strength. Carefully, dick got closer and laid a soothing hand on his shoulder, while you and Jason went to the living room table to set up the game. 

-Are you ok Tim ? You seem a bit...tense.

-Tense ? I’m going to play strip poker with my brothers and my girlfriend, why would I be tense ? It’s fine really, everything is totally fine. 

Tim managed to say between clenched teeth. And it hit Dick. Of course Jason would. He had to admit though, he wondered what your reaction would be once Jay would tell him the extra rule of the game...

******************

Your reaction surprised all of them. When Jason said that every time someone would lose, they had to take an article of clothing off, you just went : 

-HAHAHAHAHAHAHA Oh my God guys, get ready to end this nice little day naked hahahahaha. Naked little birds. Interesting. 

Under Tim’s jealous gaze, you wink mischievously at his brothers, and they felt themselves blush without being able to stop. 

-What do you mean “interesting” ?!

-Your bros are hot honey. 

-...WHAT ?! 

-You’re the hottest one though. 

You smile at his outraged face, and he’s about to say something...but the kiss you give him makes him forget everything. You knew him too well, you knew he couldn’t get mad at you when you were being affectionate. One hand in his hair, the other around his neck, his arms go to grab your waist and he deepens the kiss, you..

-Ahem. 

Dick. And Jason, as a matter of fact. You both turn to look at them, still in each other’s arms. 

-It’s getting a bit embarrassing right now...

You smile and pull away from Tim, he plants a last kiss on your cheek before you both go sit around the table. 

-Well, let’s start that game shall we ? 

******************

Stunned. That’s what they were, as Dick and Tim were down to only their pants and boxer, and Jason still only had his underwear (some brief he stole from Bruce, and his unmatched socks), while you still had all of your clothes on. All of it. 

Yep, stunned would pretty much describe really well their feelings. 

-And boom, I win again with...a pair of six ! 

-I KNEW YOU WERE BLUFFING ! 

-Yeah well, that’s the point of the game no ? Off with your socks Todd. Or your underwear, as you wish. 

You wink at him, and Tim glares at his brother, daring him to even try to get his underwear off.  

-They’re called “briefs”, Bruce wears them so...

-Are those Bruce’s ? 

-...Maybe...

-Oh my God Jason...really ? 

-I retract what I said earlier, I don’t like your girl Tim. 

-Good, cause I like her, so you can’t have her. 

Dick cannot stop his fit of laughter, and soon, all of you are struggling to breath as you giggle like children. Jason takes off his socks, and focus more than ever on the next game. 

*********************

-Oh, and look at that, naked little birds. Maybe not so little though if you gotta use both hands... 

Dick and Jason, their hands covering what they have between their thighs, are facing you, as red as tomatoes. Next to you, Tim smile slyly at them, forgetting his jealousy, standing proudly still in his boxers, as you are still...fully clothed. 

-Ok, alright, you had your fun, are you done now ? Can we like...put our clothes back on ? 

-Nope, that’s not how the game work...Run to your rooms naked, you’re not allowed to put those clothes back on. 

They look at each others, then back at you to make sure you’re serious and...oh, you’re very serious. You didn’t destroy them at poker to not even enjoy the view a little. Their muscled chests were already pretty nice...but when they hurriedly left the room...damn their back muscles, thighs and NICE BUTTS !! Tim’s hand pinching your side brought you back to real life.

-What ? It’s not because I already ordered my meal that I can’t look at the menu some more. 

You wink at him, and his scoff and little outraged expression make you laugh. 

-Besides, I enjoyed seeing them blush, and Jason’s smug face disappearing after the first game, more than “looking” at them.

-I gotta admit, their facial expressions were priceless. 

-Right ? 

Tim smiles fondly at you and take you close to him, pressing a searing kiss on your lips, just to make sure you remember that only him can make you feel that way...When you pull away, he says :

-I didn’t know you were that good at poker by the way, you amaze more and more every day. 

-Ttt, I cheated Tim. 

-What ?  

-I always cheat at poker, that’s why I’m so good at it. I count the cards, and when I shuffle them, I put some on up my sleeves. 

-Are you serious ? I didn’t see anything...

-Yup, serious as Hell. And that’s the point, for people not to realize I’m cheating. 

He looks at you, stunned again...and a bright smile spread across his face. You loved his smile. 

-Oh my, I love you so much (Y/N), you’re the most amazing woman I ever met. 

-I love you too Tim...You’re definitely in the top five most amazing men I ever met. 

-You think you’re funny don’t you ? 

-I think I’m hilarious. 

He laughs, genuinely laughs, and it’s so rare that you can’t help but kiss him. It’s so good to see him relax, and not stressed by his nightly activities (yes, you know...of course you know, you guessed pretty quickly, and anyway, he told you). His lips taste of coffee, and you remind yourself to be more careful and to watch his caffein intake with more attention. 

His father’s heavy steps make you two pull away from each other (with great regret). Enter a very confused Bruce. He’s showing somewhere behind himself with his thumbs and says, clearly troubled : 

-...Wh...Why were Dick and Jason running naked in the house ? 

Tim’s and your laugh answer him, and as you leave the room, the Batman finds himself completely clueless for the first time in years. Maybe watching “The Sound of Music” would help ? ...

FIN.

[sarcasmismyfirstlove]

TAG THINGY!!!!

 I was tagged by: @castiel-kenobi Rules: Answer these 85 statements and tag 20 people

THE LAST:


1. Drink: Water


2. Phone Call: My Best Friend


3. Text Message: Said hi to my best friend


4. Song You Listened To : Fire Meets Gasoline by Sia


5. Time You Cried: Yesterday


6. Dated Someone Twice: Nope


7. Kissed Someone and Regretted It: Never been kissed


8. Been cheated on: No


9. Lost Someone Special: No


10. Been Depressed: Currently


11. Gotten Drunk and Thrown Up: Nope

3 FAVORITE COLORS:


12. Black

13.  Blue

14. Red

IN THE LAST YEAR HAVE YOU:


15. Made new friends: 
Yes

16. Fallen out of Love: Fallen in? Yes. Out? Not yet

17. Laughed until you cried: Yes

18. Found out someone was talking about you: 
Yes

19. Met someone who changed you: 
Yes

20. Found out who your friends are: 
Definitely

21. Kissed someone on your Facebook List: Deleted my Facebook years ago

GENERAL


22. How many of your Facebook friends do you know in real life: Don't have a Facebook account

23. Do you have any pets: No


24. Do you want to change your name:
Nope

25. What did you do for your last birthday: Celebrated with my two best friends

26. What time did you wake up: 8:23 AM

27. What were you doing at midnight last night: Pinterest


28. Name something you can’t wait for: Live outside my birth country

29. When was the last time you saw your mom: A few seconds

30. What are you listening to right now:
The wooshing of a ceiling fan

31. Have you ever talked to a person named Tom: Nah.

32. Something that is getting on your nerves:
Right now, even a minor inconvenience

33. Most visited Website: Tumblr

34. Hair Color: Brown

35. Long or Short Hair: Short (ish)

36. Do you have a crush on someone:
Yes. He rejected me.

37. What do you like about yourself: My sarcasm, ability to joke about anything and other coping mechanisms.

38. Want Any Piercings: Nah


39. Blood Type: O+

40. Nickname:
Ghogia ( it's in my native language) {gho-gee-ya}

41. Relationship Status: Single as a depressed Pringle

42. Zodiac:
Virgo the Virgin

43. Pronouns: 
She/ her/ Your Highness

44. Favorite TV Show: Gotham, Game of Thrones, Supernatural, Stranger Things, Suits. Sherlock, Arrow, Hannibal, American Horror Story,

45. Tattoos: None. But want lots

46. Right or Left Handed:Right

47. Surgery:
Nope

48. Piercing: Ears

49. Sport: Hahaha. But I know how to play badminton and cricket.

50. Vacation: Nature or Historical.

51. Pair of Trainers: Not really. I have a pair of men's sandals (which I love and adore) and a pair of flip flops (chappals).

MORE GENERAL:


52. Eating: Lots of oily, spicy, tasty Indian food.

53. Drinking: A full bottle of water

54. I’m About To Watch: American Horror Story Season 1 finale.

55. Waiting For: Justice League and the standalone Red Hood movie and series. ( It's not too late to dream).

56. Want: Jason Todd, my crush as my boyfriend or my backstabbing friend dead. Any or all of them. I'm not greedy.

57. Get Married: Eventually. Jason's gotta meet me first.

58. Career: Criminal Psychologist or an established Author. Or a Ninja spy! I'd love that too.

WHICH IS BETTER:


59. Hugs or Kisses: Kisses

60. Lips or Eyes:
( ugh, you're killing my romantic soul here) Eyes.

61. Shorter or Taller:
Taller

62. Older or Younger:
Older

63. Nice Arms or Nice Stomach:Nice arms

64. Hookup or Relationship: Relationship


65. Troublemaker or Hesitant: Troublemaker

HAVE YOU EVER:


66. Kissed a Stranger: Never kissed anyone

67. Drank hard liquor:Yep. Neat scotch. Felt like a dragon and stopped right there

68. Lost glasses/contact lenses: Nope

69. Turned someone down: Nobody asked

70. Sex on First Date: ( literal tears)

71. Broken Someone’s Heart: As far as I know, nope.

72. Had Your Heart Broken: It's a pile of dust, tbh.

73. Been Arrested: nah

74. Cried When Someone Died: no

75. Fallen for a friend: nope

DO YOU BELIEVE IN:


76. Yourself: A bit.

77. Miracles:
Never happened to me but okay.

78. Love at first sight: Not really

79. Santa Claus:
Never have, never probably will

80. Kiss on First Date: I believe but he friend zoned me.

81. Angels: In Castiel We Believe! But, yeah.

OTHER:


82. Current Best Friend’s Name: Prachi and Pratima Talwar

83. Eye Color:
Brown

84. Favorite Movie: Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Dead Poets Society, Perks of Being A Wallflower, Pride and Prejudice (2005), Chak De India, Dulhe Raja, Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice, Wonder Woman, etc. I love almost all of the movies I watch.

85: Fav Actor:

Male: Shahrukh Khan, Sebastian Stan, Benedict Cumberbatch, JJ &M,

Female: Scarlett Johansson, Angelina Jolie, Gal Gadot, Deepika Padukone, Emma Watson,

I tag: @winterguardianswife @dc-comics-imagines @dc-hoe @writemarvelousthings @kei-ideas @jadedhillon @nerd--writing @jxsontxdds @brickwall035 @thesweetfandomlife @bamboozledimagines @gigglesforme @welcometothecity @emmakaylou

[autumnhobbit]

Tim attempts comforting Damian; Damian surprisingly accepts Or less angsty: The boys team up to get back at Dick and Jay; bonus- Duke as neutral party "Y'all are psychotic"

Anonymous said: Hey, what about Damian and Tim teaming up for something, and winning? Like at a prank war, monopoly, etc.?

Kinda combined these two because it worked. Enjoy. Maybe, cause I’m not quite sure about it. It’s been a looooooong time since I played Monopoly. :P

“You know, it’s kind of a shame, really,” Dick said, gathering up the shredded remnants of yet another board game.

“What is?” Damian asked sulkily, sitting with his chin resting on one fist, drumming the fingers of his other hand across the tabletop.

“Just how easy it is for Jay and me to own you guys at game night, is all. You barely show any interest.”

“Well why would we when Jay wins by smuggling extra Clue cards in and showing them on rumors to throw everyone else off while he figures out what’s actually in the envelope?!” Tim burst out, indignant.

Dick smirked, a mix of fond and mischievous. “Bit of a sore spot, there, Timmy?”

“Hell yes it is. Clue used to be my favorite board game.” Tim threw himself back into his seat, sulking as well.

“Well if it bothers you guys so much, why don’t you pick a new game for us to play? Something completely different from Clue, if you’d like. I promise I’ll talk to Jay about cheating.”

Tim shrugged. “Whatever.”

Damian rolled his eyes. “It’s none of my concern regardless.”

“Okay then.” Dick beamed. “I’ll be sure to get us some more junk food for next week. But I’ve gotta go get suited up. Have fun!” He mussed Damian’s hair before calling his goodbye over his shoulder.

Damian glanced subtly over his shoulder to make sure he was gone, and immediately scrambled out of his chair and ran over beside Tim’s. Tim pulled back a bit, wary.

“How are we going to do it?” Damian demanded heatedly.

“Do what?” Tim asked guardedly, trying to avoid tipping his chair backwards while simultaneously keeping a good few inches between himself and Damian.

“Beat them, of course! We have to find a game they’re not good at.” Damian insisted.

“Uh, why me?” Tim huffed.

Damian gave him an unimpressed glare. “Oh please. Even I know you want a chance for some payback for the Clue incident.”

Tim met the gaze, stone-faced, then finally sighed. “You’re right.”

He tipped his chair back down onto the floor, and Damian backed up a bit. “So where do we start?”

“Math games. Grayson is abysmal at math.” Damian said decisively. “Come along, Drake. I need you to drive me to the nearest mega-store.”

Tim sighed, and hopped off the stool. “Fine.” He walked off towards the door, Damian trailing after him. Duke, who had sat mostly unnoticed throughout the entire exchange as he worked through his bowl of Alfred’s weekly gumbo, blinked owlishly.

“What the….” he muttered, mystified. “This household, I swear.”

___

Damian half-kicked open the door to his room and marched in, arms full of a stack of board games which was taller than he was, which he promptly dumped onto the floor with a colossal crash. Tim winced slightly as he trailed in Damian’s wake, lightly shutting the door behind him.

“Alright, so we have Scrabble–”

“That’s an English game,” Tim interjected.

“But it has a lot of math for tallying the scores,” Damian said, waving a hand dismissively. “Where was I. Oh yes. Risk, Settlers of Catan, Monopoly–”

“I used to like Monopoly okay,” Tim said, sitting down cross-legged on the floor across from Damian, who was half-disappeared in the pile of boxes with only his legs sticking out. “My dad used to make me play it with real money as practice for when I took over the business someday.”

“Tt,” Damian muttered, pulling out of the pile and examining a box. “Mother had me purchase my own mansion when I was four. I negotiated the deal myself.”

“…Huh,” Tim said, biting his tongue on a remark of ‘such healthy upbringing, much amaze’; but then his brain caught up with him. “Wait…you own a mansion?”

“Yes,” Damian said, nonplussed, switching boxes.

“As in, you, personally.”

“Yes, I think I stated that the first time,” Damian rolled his eyes, dumping the box back in the pile and retrieving another one.

Tim blinked, speechless for a moment.

“It’s in the Italian Alps, and it’s something on the order of three hundred years old.” Damian informed Tim, after an exasperated silence on Damian’s part.

“…Ooookay. Well then.” Tim shook his head. “Back to board-game-ownage, I guess.”

“Tt. I never left the subject of board games,” Damian grumbled. “None of these seem overly-conducive towards teamwork or towards easy devastation of Grayson and Todd. Perhaps not Thomas, though,” he added as an afterthought.

“…Duke rarely ever plays, anyway.” Tim realized thoughtfully. “Though I can’t exactly blame him; what with how violent the post-game tangles can get.”

Damian wrinkled a brow thoughtfully. “Thomas likes Monopoly. We shall use that,” he decided.

“I’m not even going to ask how you know that,” Tim sighed. “Okay, so.”

Damian frowned as he read the back of the box. “It doesn’t seem like the format is very conducive to teaming up.”

Tim shrugged, pulling his phone from his pocket. “I think there is a way you can do it; but it’s kinda controversial. It’s not exactly in the rules, but not necessarily against them, for some reason.”

“Tt.”

“Ah, here we go. ‘Under official rules, can Players A and B operate under a united banner as if they are one player?’”

“…Well? Can they?” Damian asked impatiently.

“…Maybe?” Tim said, confused. “The author of this piece kinda makes it sound like you’ve committed a capital crime by breaking the rules. But unless Jay and Dick read this article, I wouldn’t think they’d know.”

The door opened, and Duke leaned in. “Uh, guys? I think Bruce wants us in the Cave for a mee–”

“Thomas!” Damian sprang up off the floor and grabbed Duke by the hand, dragging him inside. “Come assist us in defeating Grayson and Todd.”

“Uh,” Duke said eloquently, as Damian tugged him down so he was seated on the floor across from Tim. “What now?”

“Apparently we’re teaming up at Monopoly,” Tim said tiredly.

Duke arched an eyebrow. “I think that’s against the rules….”

“We are multibillionaires. We shall play Monopoly however we wish,” Damian declared. “Besides, is capitalism not your main bragging point in America?”

Duke glanced at Tim, who shrugged. “He’s got a point.”

“Tt. Of course I do.” Damian got down on his stomach on the floor, propping his chin on his fist. “So. How is Monopoly played?”

____

“I’m so happy you two agreed to give us another chance at game night!” Dick said brightly.

“I’m not,” Jason muttered dryly, from his corner of the table, where he was perched eating cheetos from a red solo cup.

Dick shot him an oddly parent-like glare, and then resumed his smile towards Damian. “So. What are we playing?”

“Monopoly,” Damian responded flatly, pulling the box up from under the table and slamming it down.

“Monopoly, eh?” Jason remarked, an eyebrow quirked. “Fascinating.”

“Indeed.” Damian seated himself regally. “Drake, would you like to be banker?”

“Why not,” Tim said tiredly, collapsing into a seat next to Damian. Damian pushed the box toward him, pointedly ignoring Dick’s beaming pride. Tim doled out the amounts of money to all the players–only the four of them, as Duke had begged off; lingering trauma from his first game night.

“All right. Grayson, you roll first,” Damian demanded.

Dick shrugged and grabbed the dice. “Okay.” He rolled. “Let’s see. St. James’ Place. I don’t have that card. How much is it?”

“$180,” Tim said, without looking up from arranging the cards.

“Okay then. I’ll buy it,” Dick said, and Tim proffered the deed, blank-faced. Dick took it.

“Your turn, Todd,” Damian said.

“Whatever.” Jason dropped his calf from where it was propped on top of his opposite knee, and leaned forward. He shook the dice, and threw them onto the table, then hopped along the board. “'Go to jail.’ Fuckdamnit.”

“Ah yes.” Damian rose. “That reminds me of the first of our improvements to the game.”

“Uh…what improvements?” Jason asked suspiciously, already drawn back quite a bit in his chair.

“I have prepared a cell,” Damian said proudly, walking to the other side of the room and pulling a chair surrounded by a makeshift fence made of chicken wire and three posts from the closet.

“Now wait just a damned sec–” Jason suddenly cut off his sentence at a look from Dick. “Fine,” he sighed defeatedly, getting up and stomping over to the chair. Damian pulled open the door of sorts with a smug look on his face, and Jason sat down on the chair and folded his arms across his chest, looking very much like he’d rather set the chair on fire. Damian pulled out a padlock and began applying it.

“Is that really—oh, fuck it.” Jason threw his head back dramatically. “The things I do for you people.”

“Now,” Damian said imperiously as he dusted his hands off and returned to the table. “Where were we?”

___

Three hours and one fistfight later, Damian and Tim’s business partnership had led to an enormous amount of brightly-colored profits, and Dick (bemusedly) and Jason (crankily) had surrendered. Dick had then gone to dig up a movie, while Jason had walked off, muttering something about going home and drinking.

“You see, Drake!” Damian said, satisfied, as he carefully folded the monopoly money and replaced it in the box. “Vengeance is ours.”

“Y'all are psychotic,” Duke said amiably from the breakfast nook, scribbling away at a sodoku puzzle. “Besides, you got played.”

Tim furrowed his brows. “What do you mean?”

“This whole thing was a ploy to make you two work together. Duh.” Duke didn’t look up. “Why else would Jason so easily consent to being locked up in chicken wire by an eleven-year-old?”

Tim and Damian slowly stared at each other.

“The Campaign For North Africa next time.” Damian said.

“Hell yes.” Tim replied.

(Ao3 link here.)