#Jason does this but in a way he moves his memorial further to doors every day a little

[prlssprfctn]

Desperately need petty Alfred, whose form of bullying Bruce for something is, like, moving all furniture in the cave on one inch. Just one. A barely noticeable difference, and yet, it is m a d d e n i n g.

Bruce, blindly trying to reach for the pen as he realises that they are slightly, slightly lefter than usual: (Slow processing)

Bruce, raising his head to the celling, desperate : ...What did I do this time?!

Jason, who was adopted recently, confused: Is he... talking to God?

Dick, snorting: Something like this.

Dick: So, there is a thing... When Alfred is mad—

Many years later, Bruce and Tim return to the Batcave and realise that all stuff there is moved on one inch. Bruce is confused, because he is very, very sure that he didn't fuck up anything recently. Meanwhile, Alfred is just glad that his newly brought back alive grandson found a very healthy way to punish his father for not killing Joker.

[invisibleanonymousmonsters]

Secret’s Out

Father of Mine – Part 1 and Part 2

Bruce was looking at his emails when Y/N arrived at the table.

She was breathing heavily and her hair was a bit messy, just further proving she had rushed to get there.

“I’m so sorry I’m late,” she huffed embarrassingly. “My shoot ran over and every one was moving so slowly.”

Bruce smiled. “Y/N. Relax.”

Then he stood up to greet her with a kiss on the cheek.

The two of them hadn’t seen each other in over a month. Y/N had been traveling for work constantly. And between the vigilante life and Wayne Enterprises, Bruce was running on 2 hours of sleep on the daily.

“I need a drink,” Y/N finally sighed after she got situated.

As if on cue, their waitress dropped Y/N’s favorite drink in front of her.

Y/N eyed Bruce with surprise.

He just shrugged.

Sometimes Y/N forgot how much her father noticed literally everything.

“Thank you,” she told the waitress.

“You’re overworking yourself,” Bruce said with a disapproving look.

She rolled her eyes. “Really? You’re not one to talk, Bruce.”

“You deserve a vacation. I’ll pay for it. Pick wherever you want. Bring Jason. Or some friends.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Bruce…”

It was a warning.

From the very start of their unconventional father-daughter relationship, Y/N had made it clear that she could not be bought. And Bruce spoiling her made her extremely uncomfortable. Even now, she still tried to at least split restaurant checks with him. Bruce always won those battles though.

“I’ll take a vacation when you do,” she finally countered.

That sure shut him up.

“Hey, I actually brought you something,” Y/N changed the subject as she reached for her bag.

A moment later, she lightly placed a manila folder onto the table.

Bruce’s brow furrowed as he reached for it.

As soon as he opened it, he froze.

“I had to clean out some stuff and put things into storage,” Y/N explained. “I found all my mom’s photos. I figured I could make copies of some childhood photos for you.”

Bruce’s silence made Y/N nervous.

“If you don’t want them, that’s totally fine.” She started to reach for the folder out of Bruce’s grip with awkward embarrassment. “It was stupid–”

But Bruce quickly pulled the folder closer to him and stopped her from taking the photos from him.

“Thank you,” he announced.

It made Y/N quickly sit back in her chair, caught off guard by his sincere reaction and how he’d immediately become protective of the photos.

Bruce awkwardly cleared his throat. “Thank you, Y/N.”

He repeated to make sure she understood how thankful he truly was. And Y/N suspected the throat clearing was to hide his emotions.

Now she watched as Bruce slowly went through every picture. He took in every detail with a soft smile.

These weren’t just photos. These were all of Y/N’s memories that Bruce missed, that he could never get back. And he was savoring all of them.

Then Bruce paused and was fully smiling now.

“What?” Y/N asked.

She didn’t know why all of this made her so nervous.

Bruce didn’t say anything as he lifted a photo and flipped it to show her.

It wasn’t from her childhood.

It was a black and white photo of Jason. A candid from when he had escorted her around the slums of Gotham for her most recent gallery show.

After months of thinking about it, Y/N finally had decided she wanted to frame it and hang it somewhere in her apartment. 

Y/N’s jaw dropped with embarrassment and she ripped it from his hands.

“I was developing some photos at the same time as I was making the copies. Must’ve gotten mixed up in those,” Y/N explained too quickly, unable to meet Bruce’s gaze.

It made Bruce happy to know that Y/N didn’t have the same inability to love someone and let people in like he did. It was a relief that she didn’t isolate herself from it like he had. If her mother was still alive, Bruce would thank her for it. But if Y/N’s mother were alive, he would’ve never known about Y/N in the first place.

Their entire dinner was spent with Bruce looking at the old photos. He had at least two questions for each one. Some of them Y/N didn’t remember being taken. But most of them came with stories or a loving memory.

Y/N talked for most of the meal. But that’s exactly what Bruce wanted.

Furthermore, Bruce had nothing of value to update her on. Batman business had consumed his life as of lately, and he had made a promise to never involve Y/N in any of it. And Jason seemed to be on the same page when it came to his other life as Red Hood. 

Both men seemed determined to keep her safe and away from it all. 

Two hours later, Bruce was paying the check and helping Y/N into her coat.

“I’ll give you a ride home,” he muttered as they started walking out.

Y/N had learned by now to give up on those small battles. Jason was the same way when it came to making sure she got home safely.

As they made their way to the exit, Y/N caught a few stares from other patrons who were still eating.

“Do you ever get used to it?” She asked her father in a low voice.

“Get used to what?” He asked, genuinely unaware of what she was getting at.

“People gawking at you.”

Bruce glanced around and unintentionally glared at anyone who was staring at Y/N.

“It’s good that I’m seen in public…for obvious reason,” he hinted in a quiet voice, obviously talking about needing the cover to continue his life as a masked vigilante.

Once they were outside, Alfred was already waiting at the curb with the Rolls-Royce. He greeted Y/N with a hug and a kiss to her cheek before opening the door for her and Bruce.

When they got to Y/N’s apartment building, she said her goodbyes to Alfred. And Bruce walked Y/N all the way up to her door.

Even though Y/N insisted it was overkill and she could get up the stairs on her own just fine, Bruce had seen too many terrible things in this forsaken city. He could think of thousands of things that could happen to Y/N between the car and her front door.

Once Y/N realized that Bruce’s paranoia came from experience, she stopped trying to stop his chivalry and overprotective ways. She finally understood that Bruce had seen things that would prevent her from ever sleeping again. So if walking Y/N to her door gave him a little peace of mind, she wasn’t going to take that away from him.

Y/N turned to Bruce when they reached her door. “Thanks again for dinner.”

“Of course. I’m glad we could spend some time together. Thank you again for the photos.”

Y/N didn’t realize that Bruce was about to hang every single one around Wayne Manor. 

She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and a hug. “Get home safe.”

——————

Y/N woke up wrapped strong arms, her body overheating slightly.

When she had come home from dinner last night, Jason had already left for patrol.

He hadn’t woken her up when he got back home, just proving how exhausted Y/N had been these past few weeks.

But it was the continuous buzzing vibrations of her phone that woke her up. When she brightened the screen, she saw that she had dozens of text messages and three missed called from Bruce.

“What the fuck,” Y/N whispered as she started opening them.

But they were all about the same thing.

Everyone had sent her similar articles from various gossip websites or news outlets.

BRUCE WAYNE’S NEW GIRLFRIEND IS FAMOUS PHOTOGRAPHER Y/F/N Y/L/N

BRUCE WAYNE’S FLAVOR OF THE WEEK

IS Y/F/N Y/L/N USING THE PRINCE OF GOTHAM TO FURTHER HER CAREER?

All of the headlines were joined with photos of Bruce and Y/N having dinner last night. Apparently other customers at the restaurant had snuck photos of Bruce greeting her with a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

Y/N could see how it would be misinterpreted as romantic and not familial or platonic. But it still made her sick to see the photos twisted in such a way.

Then there were paparazzi photos of them getting in a car together. Of course there were none of Bruce dropping her off and them going their separate ways. That would be just too convenient for the two of them. 

Y/N’s stomach dropped with panic.

“Fuck. Fuck. Fuck,” she gasped without realizing it.

Jason immediately woke up. “What is it?”

Y/N ignored him and called Bruce.

“I’m handling it,” was how Bruce answered her call.

“Handling it? How exactly?” She challenged. “We can deny the rumors all we want. But everyone is going to keep tabs on us now, and they’re going to see us together again.”

Jason grabbed his own phone.

One of his brothers must’ve sent him a similar article because he rubbed his face in annoyance, finally understanding the situation. 

Nothing like your girlfriend being rumored to have a relationship with her father, who was also your mentor and adoptive father. 

“Y/N, it will blow over. It always does,” Bruce tried to calm her down.

“So what happens when I get photographed with Jason? Huh? They’re going to just say I’m cheating on both of you with each other or some fucked up shit like that.”

Bruce was silent, because they both knew she was right.

Y/N glanced at Jason, who was already waiting for her gaze.

She took in a deep breath and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Maybe we should…Maybe we should just tell the truth.”

“You’ve never wanted that, Y/N.” Bruce tried to argue.

And he was right.

Y/N was terrified of being associated with the Wayne family. People would start believing she secretly built her career off of nepotism that no one was aware of. She also didn’t want that type of attention from the media and the upperclass of Gotham.

“I don’t think we have any other choice,” Y/N finally answered.

Jason reached for thigh and gripped it, trying to offer her some sort of comfort.

“Y/N, are you sure about this?” Bruce asked slowly.

“No. Not at all. But I’d rather not have the public think I’m dating my biological father.”

“OK,” Bruce sighed. “I’ll talk to my publicist today.”

“OK.” She bit her lip before adding. “Just…tell them the whole story.”

“Y/N, if you’re worried how it will make me look, don’t.”

“But I am worried about it, Bruce. They’re going to drag you for being an absent father. And none of that is true. They’re not gonna understand.”

“I’ll call you later with an update,” he told her softly before hanging up.

Y/N tossed her phone to the foot of the bed in frustration.

Jason watched as she buried her face in her hands.

“You OK?” He asked as he rubbed her back.

“No,” she answered honestly.

“Come here.” Jason pulled her into his chest.

There was no fight from her as he cuddled her tightly.

“This is a fucking nightmare,” she groaned into his shoulder.

“I know. But maybe it’s for the best,” he tried to reason with her.

“And what happens when they catch wind that I’m dating my father’s adoptive son? Huh?”

“We’re not actually related, Y/N.”

She pulled her face back so she could glare at him. “Yeah! We know that! But you do understand that people are going to see it that way, right? Like we’re gonna look like some fucked up incestual couple to them.”

“I don’t really care,” Jason finally told her.

“You don’t care?” She scoffed.

“No,” his answer and confidence didn’t waver. “I don’t give a fuck what people say about us, Y/N. If exposing the truth means we don’t have to think twice about going to events or even just going out to dinner, then I’m all for it. I’m sick of hiding our relationship.”

Y/N blinked. She never considered that their subtle relationship bothered him in any way. She was always a strangely private person, so it felt normal to her. But clearly Jason had been wanting to be a bit more public with their relationship.

“What if this changes everything?” Y/N whispered, not meeting his eyes.

Jason smirked at that and gripped her chin, lifting it up so she would look at him. “Some paparazzi and trash tabloids aren’t going to change how I feel about you, Y/N.”

Y/N laughed lightly at that.

“Maybe we should leave Gotham for a bit,” she offered. “Bruce won’t shut up about paying for a vacation for us.”

Jason nodded. “I think that sounds like a good idea. You’ve needed a break for awhile now.”

“Well…where do you wanna go?” Y/N asked.

“Doesn’t matter to me. As long as you’re there.”

She rolled her eyes and hit Jason in the face with a pillow. “God, you really are a sap.”

Y/N appreciated Jason always being able to make her feel better and feel supported. 

But even he couldn’t stop her from wondering...

What would life be like as a Wayne?

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

Father of Mine – Bonus Content

[mochegato]

Jasonette Protection Program

Chapter 2

Chapter 1

Marinette pulled her coat closer around her as she made her way from the bus stop to her apartment.  She had made the brilliant decision when she moved here not to get a car because… Gotham.  The likelihood that it would get damaged or destroyed in some kind of attack was ridiculously high.  The likelihood the bus would get blown up or taken over, while definitely still present, was significantly lower.

But today she was regretting that decision.  It meant she couldn’t isolate herself like she wanted to.  It meant she was exposed to anybody and everybody at the bus stop and on the bus and on the sidewalk and any one of them could have been the one to drug her.  She eyed the people around her as she walked. ��Okay, maybe not the woman who looked like she was in her 90’s and could barely walk… and dropped her knitting out of her bag.

Marinette rushed over to her and paused right before reaching her. She twirled around and scanned the faces around her.  She could feel somebody watching her.  She could feel their eyes scrutinizing her every move.  She studied the shadows and the windows, but couldn’t find anyone watching her.  She frowned slightly and shook her head.  She was getting paranoid.  She was seeing and feeling things that weren’t there.  

She sighed and turned back to the woman, crouching down to help her put her knitting back in her bag.  The woman smiled in appreciation, which Marinette returned with a shaky one of her own.  She walked the remaining few feet to her apartment building and took a cautious look up and down the dark street before turning into it.  She made sure she heard the click of the door latching before continuing up the stairs, not that it would do anything.  Logically she knew that, but her anxiety still demanded it.

She kept her eyes on the stairwell as she made her way up to her apartment on the top floor, eyes hyper vigilant for any movement, her ears hyper sensitive to any sounds from the stairs.  She got to her floor and paused for a few moments waiting to see if any sounds or movement indicated someone behind her.  She let out a relieved sigh when there was no noise and turned to her apartment before letting out a muffled screech.

Jason jumped, dropping his phone he had been scrolling on, in his rush to hold up his hands in a placating motion.  “Just me.  It’s okay. It’s just me.”  He watched her for a few seconds.  She was starting to breathe hard, her eyes were boring into him. “Although I just realized you may not remember me.  So this was actually an incredibly stupid plan.”  He took a few steps away from her door, his hands still held up to let her know he wasn’t a threat.

Marinette continued to stare at him for a few more seconds, forcing her breathing to slow.  “You… you’re Tim’s brother, right?  You… you were…” she squinted at him, “you were in my bedroom?”

Jason grimaced and looked down to the floor as he rubbed the back of his neck.  “Yeah… that doesn’t make me sound too good, does it?”

She eyed him suspiciously.  “What are you doing here?”  

He perked up slightly and gave her a small, reassuring smile. “I wanted to check on you and see how you’re doing today.  It can hit a day or a few days later sometimes.  And I’m a security expert.  I consult on it for people and companies.  I wanted to offer to check your security for you so you’d feel safe, at least when you’re at home.”  He turned to her door and knocked on the doorframe.  “I can already tell that you need better locks.  I could have broken in easily, but I didn’t think you would appreciate finding me in your apartment.”

She raised an eyebrow at him but let out a quiet chuckle and looked away after a few seconds.  “You would be right.”  She looked back up at him and tentatively walked over closer to her door.  “But, I don’t think I can afford to hire you.”

Jason waved off her concern.  “I wouldn’t let you.  I’d charge Tim for it.  He can afford it and he’s worried enough that I’m actually kind of surprised he hasn’t contacted me already, but I suppose that has something to do with him not wanting you to meet me in the first place.”

Marinette quirked her lips to the side and studied him.  The longer she watched and talked to him the more memories came back and the clearer they became.  She was slowly starting to get bits and pieces of the night before, not enough to create a coherent picture, just incredibly short scenes, a word here, a smile there.  Regardless of what she could remember though, this was Tim’s brother and although Tim didn’t want them to meet, he trusted him, not that she would ever be allowed to say that out loud to either of them.  

She finally nodded and pulled out her keys.  “Well, I can at least offer you dinner while you’re here. If you’d like.”  She gave him a small smile as she passed him into the apartment taking off her coat and dropping her bag on the small dining room table.

Jason raised his eyebrows in surprise.  After the way she had reacted when she saw him, he honestly didn’t think she would talk to him let alone let him into her apartment.  He was starting to understand how she could have gotten drugged so easily if she was that trusting.  But then again, Tim had said they all were being careful. Her even more so than the others. So why was she so trusting now?  “I would never turn down free food,” he said slowly.

He closed the door behind him with a quick glance at the inside part of the lock, confirming his original suspicions.  Standard issue, not particularly secure.  He could have picked it in all of three minutes when he was only eight.  He didn’t have to lean down to study the doorknob to know it was in worse condition. One good kick and the door would be wide open.  He sighed. If anyone wanted to get into her apartment, it wouldn’t take them very much effort.

He turned back to the apartment, letting his frown morph into a smile.  Her apartment was cozy and lived in and very much her.  There were touches of her everywhere along with some touches that he wouldn’t have expected.  He shook his head at the condition of the apartment.  It wasn’t terribly messy but it also wouldn’t count as anything close to clean.  He could see why she and Tim got along so well.  Neither could clean up after themselves to save their lives.  

There were bits of fabric and half completed sewing projects scattered around along with random pages of scientific reports.  He raised an eyebrow at that.  Odd combination.  His eyes caught on men’s shoes by the door.  He scrunched his forehead in confusion.  If she lived with someone, where were they?  Where were they last night?  Why hadn’t Tim mentioned him?  “You live with someone?  A boyfriend?”

Marinette looked up from the refrigerator.  “No.  Well, yes, but no.  I live with my best friend,” she explained quickly, “but he’s visiting friends this week.”

Jason nodded.  That was good at least.  She wasn’t living alone.  There was someone else with her usually.  That makes it less likely someone could just break in and attack her.  He moved over to the window and sighed again, more deeply this time.  It was worse than the door.  “No curtains. You should probably get some, preferably lined ones.  This lock is ancient too.  It wouldn’t take much to jimmy it.  We’ll get you new locks for your windows and your door.”

Marinette looked at him wide eyed as she set a bunch of grapes and a jug of filtered water from the refrigerator on the counter.  She hadn’t been expecting the locks to be that bad.  She knew it wasn’t amazing, but then again, she hadn’t really been too concerned about being specifically targeted here.  Nobody really knew who she was, or rather used to be.  She was just an average citizen here.  

She stared at the window for a few seconds, her head cocking to the side and her eyes unfocusing as her mind wandered through the possibilities of what could have happened and what still could.  She was no longer safe, not even in her own home.  But then again, she never really had been had she?  She had just thought she was.  She thought she was safer after they’d defeated Hawkmoth, but she’d just traded one danger for another.

Jason watched as her face morphed from one expression to another, her eyes distant.  Her face clearly displaying each and every emotion she was going through, no matter how flitting.  Jason could guess where her head went.  When her eyes started shimmering, he opened his mouth to bring her out of it when her phone rang.  She jerked back violently, knocking over the jug of water.  

She cursed as she tried to stop the jug’s descent only to knock it further away, further spreading the water.  She gave a defeated groan and grabbed a towel from a nearby drawer to start sopping up the water.  Jason jumped to grab a few more towels to help.  It took a few minutes, but they were finally able to clean up the water with a minimum of damage to papers left on the counter.  Luckily, none of Marinette’s sketches were on the island anymore but Adrien was definitely going to have to reprint some of his papers for research.

Marinette gave Jason an appreciative smile and threw the papers in recycling and the towels in the sink.  She let out a deep frustrated sigh as she leaned against the counter.  After a few seconds, she ran her hands through her hair and laughed.  Jason frowned at the sound.  It was short and mirthless and sounded utterly wrong coming from her.  He could see her starting to spin but didn’t know her well enough to know how to help.  God, he really hadn’t thought this through.

Jason very slowly started reaching for her so she could see his hands coming.  Shen she didn’t shy away, he set a hand on her arm to ground her.  She looked up into his eyes, panicked eyes meeting concerned eyes. They both jumped when her phone started ringing again.  They both chuckled quietly at their reactions.  

“Sorry…” she started but was cut off by another ring.  She shook her head at herself.  She hadn’t even noticed the original call had dropped.  She checked the caller id and smiled at the phone. “Hey Tim.”  She paused to listen to him.  “No, I’m fine.  I just… I knocked something over and was cleaning it.  Sorry for scaring you.”

She gave Jason an apologetic smile as she listened to Tim.  “I’m doing okay, I guess.  I think I’m just jumpy… and getting paranoid.  I could have sworn someone was watching me walk home, but when I looked nobody was around or rather nobody was paying attention to me.” She missed the slight grimace Jason shot toward the floor.  “No, thank you though.  Actually, your brother is here already.”  She smiled at Jason again and put Tim on speaker.  

“��that so.  That’s very thoughtful of him,” Tim quipped in a clipped tone.

“Yeah, he’s checking my locks,” Marinette continued, seemingly oblivious to the tension in his voice, or attributing it to his concern.  “Apparently my door and window locks are pretty bad,” Marinette frowned at the thought.

“Uh huh.  Well it’s just so great that he came over then,” Tim gritted out.

Marinette did a double take when Jason’s phone dinged repeatedly with an extended series of text notifications.  She blinked at it a few times before looking questioningly at Jason. He rolled his eyes and turned his phone off.  He met her eyes with a shrug and a wink as he sat at her island.

“Tell him I say hi and remind him he has plans with Bruce soon,” Tim continued tightly.

Jason huffed.  “Tell him to tell B, I'm not going on patrol until Demon Spawn calms down.  And tell him I’m sending him the bill for this.”  He motioned vaguely around them.

“Yeah, that’s fine,” Tim conceded easily before his voice turned harsh again, “And tell him…”

“You two do realize you can hear each other and you two both know you can hear each other and I know you can hear each other and I’m not an owl!” Marinette admonished them sharply.

The room was silent for a few seconds before Tim started chuckling.  “Sorry, Hermione.”

“Thank you, Harry.”  She nodded at the phone even though he couldn’t see her.

“Hey!  That makes me Ron?  What the fuck?” Jason objected raising up from his seat in offense.

“Oh come on, you’d look good with red hair,” Marinette teased him lightly.

“You better fucking not be Ron,” Tim growled.   “You’re more like Draco anyway,” he continued flippantly.

“Fuck you, Pretender,” Jason growled.

“Yeah, this is making me feel better,” Marinette sighed, leaning against the counter.

There was a guilty pause as the men took in her words.  “Sorry,” Jason finally spoke up after a while.

“What?”  Marinette gave him a curious look until realization set in.  “Oh!  No, I was serious.  You two remind me of my friends.  It feels comforting, normal.”

Tim waited a second before speaking up cautiously. “So… you’re okay for tonight?  You feel safe?”

Marinette smiled at the phone again.  “Yeah, Tim.  I’m okay.  Thanks for checking on me.”

“Of course.  Let me know if that changes.  I’ll be over in three minutes flat,” he promised.

Marinette grinned mischievously.  “Do I get a free pizza if you take longer?”

Tim huffed out a laugh.  “Absolutely.”

“Sweet.  I might test it just for that,” she teased him.  “Night, Tim.”

“Night.  And tell Jason to turn his phone back on before I do it for him.”

Marinette rolled her eyes.  “Still not an owl,” she singsonged before she hung up.  She looked over to Jason with a concerned smile. “Do you have to go?  It sounded like you already had plans?”

Jason waved her off and took the battery out of his phone before leaning against the counter near her.  “I have plenty of time.  Like I said, if I show up now De… Damian is going to attack me.” Marinette’s eyes widened in concern but Jason waved her off again.  “It’s fine. He isn’t as tough as he thinks he is. He wouldn’t be able to hurt me, but Bruce would yell at me for it and Dick would give me his disappointed in you lecture.  It’s better for everyone if I stay away for a few days.”  

He grinned and crossed his arms over his chest. “Tim just doesn’t want me stealing his friend away with my superior looks and charm.”

Marinette scowled lightly at him.  “Tim is very handsome and charming,” she insisted defensively.

Jason shot her a devilish smile.  “But not as much as me, right?”

Marinette scoffed at him and rolled her eyes.  “You certainly seem to think so.”  She rinsed some grapes and set them in a bowl between the two of them. “But he’s the only reason you’re here right now.  If you weren’t Tim’s brother and we hadn’t met last night when you were fairly respectful of me in my… state…”

“Fairly!?” Jason squawked.

“I’d have called, well, not the cops, but Tim, to take care of you,” she continued over him.  She grabbed a grape and chewed on it while she watched him appraisingly as she leaned back against the counter opposite him.  “Do you make a habit of stealing his friends?”

Jason shrugged and grabbed a few grapes.  “No, we generally move in different…” he searched for a nice way to phrase it, “circles.”

She hummed in response.  “And yet here you are, willingly entering in a circle with one of his friends.” She eyed him pointedly.  She quickly broke their eye contact to look down and cross her arms over her chest protectively.  “Thank you for breaking into this particular circle to help me out. Last night spooked me more than I want to admit.”

“Did you want to talk about it?  Or pretend like it never happened.  I can help with either,” Jason offered.

Marinette stared at the grapes for a while without talking. Jason was certain she was about to start spiraling again when she spoke up quietly.  “I was keeping an eye on my drinks.  I only took my eyes off of them when I was around people I trusted and we weren’t exactly close to other people for someone to just slip something in.”  She frowned and looked at nothing in particular. She poured herself a glass of water and held the rim of the glass against her lips without drinking it as she remembered the night before.  “I don’t know which scares me more, that someone was that good to get it in with all of us there or…”

“That one of the people you trust might be responsible,” Jason finished for her after a few seconds of silence.  When she looked up to meet her eyes, she looked so shaken and uncertain, he wanted to pull her into a tight, reassuring hug, but after the night before, he wasn’t sure a virtual stranger’s embrace would be the most reassuring.  He settled for moving to lean against the counter next to her so their arms were almost touching, but she still had her personal space.

“Yeah,” she said wrapping her arms around herself and rubbing her arms.  

“You think you were the intended victim?” he asked curiously.  He and Tim had already discussed the night and decided that she had to be, but he was curious what her thoughts were.  “You don’t think it was just opportunistic.  You think whoever was with targeting you.”

She shook her head and looked down, frowning at the floor.  She gripped her arms tighter.  “I don’t know.  I was never alone and I only drank with my friends at our own table away from other people.  I mean someone at the bar could have drugged it before it was brought over when the waitress brought drinks but…”

“How would they know who it would go to,” Jason finished again.  “Seems unlikely they’d risk the drug like that if they didn’t know who it would go to. If they didn’t have a plan to get the person out.”

Marinette looked up at him anxiously and nodded.  She studied him for a few more seconds before she shook herself out of her daze.  She looked up at him with a fake smile.  “So what are you feeling for dinner?  I can make some pasta.  I can do stir fry.  I can whip up a casserole.  What do you want?”

“I’ll be happy with whatever you feel like having tonight,” he assured her with a smile.

“I don’t… really… feel like eating,” she mumbled, looking away again. “This is more something for me to focus on instead of last night.”

Jason gave her a gentle smile and lowered himself to her level, trying to gain her attention.  “Look, I know you don’t know me but why don’t we order take out and we can watch a movie, or if you want to be alone, I can leave.”

“I don’t want to be alone,” she answered quickly, instantly looking over to him with a desperate look in her eyes.

Jason nodded slowly and gave her a gentle smile.  He rested his hands lightly on her arms to reassure her he was there and not going anywhere unless she wanted him to.  “That’s understandable.  I wouldn’t want to be either.  Do you want me to call Tim over?  I know you probably feel safer with him and when he can’t be here in three minutes, you get a pizza.”

She gave him a wan smile.  “No, I trust you.  And I’m not really feeling pizza right now.”

Jason smiled back.  “I want to joke and say that’s a terrible decision, but now doesn’t seem like the best time.” She gave him a deadpan look that made his grin widen.  “I’ll save that for later,” he finished with a wink. His expression quickly turned serious as he watched her.  “You should eat though.  What kind of food do you want to try?  There’s a good Indian restaurant around the corner.”

She looked away.  “I don’t want to order out.  I don’t want food that I…”

Jason nodded and moved closer again.  “Yeah, that’s reasonable.  Let’s make something together, yeah?  I saw some eggs and milk in your refrigerator and there’s bread on the counter.  How do you feel about breakfast for dinner?  French toast sound good?  I think you call it Lost Bread?  And how do you feel about Clueless?”

“The movie?” she asked confused.

“Yeah, adaptation of Jane Austen’s Emma.”

“Fan of Alicia Silverstone or Jane Austen?” she teased weakly.

“Both,” Jason answered with a wink.

Marinette snickered and nodded.  “That all sounds amazing.”  She moved away to start getting the pan and bowls out, watching him while he got the ingredients prepared.  “Thank you, Jason.  You have no idea how much this means to me.”

“No problem.  We’ll get things figured out so you can feel safe, or at least as safe as you can feel in Gotham,” he assured her, and himself.  They were going to find who drugged her and make her feel safe again.  Whoever it was messed with one of Tim’s friends, one of the few he really trusted, that means whoever it was messed with his family and nobody messed with their family.

Tags:

@jasonette-july-event @maribatserver @aespades @demonicbusiness @read-fantasy-to-escape-reality @jayjayspixiepop

[classic80sand90smovieloves2]

Meeting and Dating Jason Voorhees

(Not my gif)(Requested by @fandoms-are-my-friends-1321​)

(I’m sorry that the meeting part is so long but granted, the start of your relationship with a slasher is going to take a while.)

- You first met Jason when you were little and attending Camp Crystal Lake. You were a few years younger than him; and a girl, so you weren’t around him much, especially since his mother tried to keep him away from the other kids as much as she could.

- Even so, you would occasionally see him around the camp, specifically being bullied around the camp, and felt sorry for him. Anytime you saw him, you tried your best to be nice and make him feel welcome. You still remember how awful you felt upon hearing that he drowned. But you were young, years passed and you slowly forgot about him.

- When you were older, you bought a cabin near the lake, wanting to have a break from people. The whole week after you moved in, you felt like someone was watching you. You figured you were just paranoid since you were alone up there. Unbeknownst to you, you were being watched.

- Everything came to a head the second week that you were living there. It was late and you were walking home from the lake. A part of you knew that it was a stupid idea to have stayed out so long but you rationalized that no one was up there with you, you’d be alone and the most that would happen is you would run into an animal on the beaten path.

- A little ways into your walk, you could hear the sound of something nearing you. You ignored it for a while until you were sure that it was there and could hear that it had gotten very close. It sounded big, so like a rational person, without thinking, you began to run.

- At most you thought it was a wolf, maybe a bear, but your assumptions were proven false as you were gripped from behind and thrown to the forest floor. When you opened your eyes, you could see the person who had attacked you; a big man in a hockey mask.

- Letting out a shriek, you fought your way from him, managing to escape his grasp enough to take off running again. You could hear him following after you as you reached your home, slamming and locking the door behind you, though it did little to stop him.

- It seemed as though he struck down your door in seconds, pursuing you even further into the cabin until you reached the living room. You were backed against the wall as he raised his arm to slash at you, that was when he noticed the photos framed on the wall behind you.

- He froze, there was something so similar about the little girl in the pictures, obviously they were you, but who were you? In an instant, his memories came flooding back, the little girl at camp, the one person who was nice to him, his first and only crush as a child.

- You stood still, terrified to even move until his arm lowered and his other hand came up. You winced as it approached you, snapping your eyes shut until you noticed that he hadn’t touched you. Upon opening them again, you saw that he had tore a frame off the wall and was looking down at it. You thought that perhaps this was your chance and quietly spoke.

“That’s me. In the picture, I mean. I was seven there.” He didn’t look at you for a long while before he glanced in your direction, heaving a deep breath.

- A wave of fear coursed through you but he didn’t move any closer. Instead, he dropped the frame on a table nearby, hesitated for a moment, and then walked out of your home. You made sure he was gone before calling the police. They combed the area but could find nothing of the man. Inexplicably, your mind flashed back to your time at camp. The boy who drowned; he was never found either.

- Still shaken up, you went into town and stayed at an inn for the night. In the morning, you went to the library and searched through their archives, trying to find out more about the area in an attempt to figure out what had happened. 

- A part of you began to believe that the masked figure was Jason. He was the proper age, seemingly knew the area well, and his body was never found. It seemed like a ridiculous idea but was it completely implausible? 

- Having bought the cabin; and having nowhere else to go, you had to return home at some point. He was gone, right? So you made the trip back and tried to put the encounter out of your mind. Even so, every now and again you could swear that you saw him; always in your peripheral or in something's reflection. 

- A day or so later, you found that the tires on your car were slashed. The situation confused you, why would he slash your tires yet leave you completely unharmed. What was the point of keeping you alive if he wanted you dead, he didn’t seem like the type who wanted to scare you before he finished you off. Deep down, some part of you knows that; for whatever reason, he doesn’t want you to leave. 

- It was some time later that you encountered him again. You were swimming in the lake when you felt eyes on you. As you looked around, you could see him standing at the tree line. He just... stood there, saying nothing, still as could be. 

- Were you scared? Yes, but you were also curious. This whole charade had to end at some point, right? Why not now? Seeing that he was empty handed, you stood in the water and slowly made your way over to him. He let you approach him until you stopped just a few feet away on your own accord. 

“You’re Jason, aren't you?” You asked tentatively, quietly. He said nothing. “I thought you were dead. We all did. I saw you.... How?”

Still, there was no reply and for the first time, you remembered that he couldn’t speak. So you asked a simple question, one that he could answer without his voice and one that could potentially ease your nerves. “Do you want to kill me?”

- He didn’t reply at first, looking at you for a long moment. You could see his eyes locked on your face from behind his mask. Then, silently, he slowly shook his head. 

- You see him more after that; he doesn’t hide as much though he still keeps his distance. A part of you knows that you should probably be wary, try to escape or call the cops or something. But another part of you tells yourself that if he wanted to hurt you, he could have already, and he probably would be carrying a weapon with him.

- The only times that he actually got close to you was when you tried to go into town, he’d appear quietly behind you, your face level with his chest, blocking you from going anywhere until he made sure you only had your purse with you. He didn’t want you leaving him; escaping, he liked you too much.

- Over time, you’re feelings of empathy got the best of you. His mother; his one true friend, was dead, he was alone in the world and alive when he should have been dead himself; he had no one, nothing. So after debating with yourself about it all day, you made your way over to him when he appeared and invited him inside your home. 

- You supposed you were more lonely than you expected since; after a few minutes of hesitance and awkwardness, you began to talk to him... and then talk some more and more until finally you realized you were recounting half your life to the masked killer. Trailing off, you apologized and asked if he was hungry. 

- Over the next few months, you started to interact with him more and more. It was normal for the two of you to spend time together and soon enough, you genuinely begun to enjoy his company. 

- Your relationship will definitely be a slowburn; I mean, it is Jason we’re talking about. So it could be a full year before anything of value happens between you. And when something does happen, it happens slowly as well. 

- After some time, you realize that there’s more to your feelings for the man and though it may not be the greatest crush you’ve ever had, you can’t deny that it’s there. So you decide to confess. You tell him that you like him, a lot, and ask if there’s any way that the two of you can be together.

- In response, he stays very still for a long moment before reaching out, stroking your face and hair, and clumsily pulling you into his arms. 

- You don’t exactly have dates so you don’t really have a first date, and you’re not sure if your first kiss even counts. It’s a quiet night, the two of you are sat beside each other on your front porch and you have the inexplicable urge to kiss him, even though you know he won’t even let you see what's underneath his mask. 

- Not knowing what else to do, you lean over, place a gentle hand on the back of his head and press your lips to his mask. He stiffens but lets you and moves just a bit closer to you once you’ve pulled away. It’s certainly not the most conventional relationship you’ve ever been in but you can’t say that you regret being in it. 

- The two of you have gone out in public together like five whole times so pda is a difficult thing to explain. He occasionally holds on to you but more often than not he’ll make a quick escape as people start to show up around you.

- He tends to keep a bit of a distance between the two of you, mainly because he isn’t sure of what he should do with you. He’s never had a relationship before so this entire experience is new to him. 

- He’s so not used to human affection anymore. It’s been a very long time since he’s interacted with anyone so he’s going to have to learn how to accept it again. He goes still and cherishes every touch you give him though; for a while, he’s going to be internally panicking the entire time. 

- If the two of you are going to be together, you’ll have to be innocent(at least on the outside) and kind; someone his mother would approve of since; even in death, she’s still affecting his decisions.

- He tries to be very gentle with you, not wanting to hurt you in any way, especially on accident. You feel like a little china doll with the way he holds and touches you. 

- Jason has never been kissed …but he deserves to be!!! He lets you kiss his mask without hesitation but is apprehensive when letting you see what's underneath. He may yearn to kiss you but he isn’t sure if he should since he’s completely inexperienced and; in his eyes, physically grotesque. 

- You make him nervous. Jason’s never really had any friends besides his mother and he’s certainly never had female company that he’s found attractive(and that's actually liked him) so being around you has an effect on him. 

- He likes listening to you talk. You could be rambling about nothing at all and he’ll still want to hear it. Most of the time, you’ll assume he isn’t even listening but then he’ll look at you once you’ve stopped, nod his head at something, or let out a noise that's the equivalent of a laugh for him; and you’ll realize he’s actually been listening the entire time. 

- Learning how to communicate with him. 

- Going on weekly runs to get all the supplies that the two of you will need. 

- Patching him up when he gets injured. You know that he heals himself but you still feel the need to do something about it. 

- Even though he has a really high pain tolerance, you still wince for him every time he gets hurt. He finds it sort of touching that you care or at least show empathy towards him, it’s also amusing in a way. 

- Receiving little gifts. Flowers, rocks, feathers, …bones. He sometimes steals things from his victims that he thinks you’ll like. You don’t ask where he gets his “proper” gifts from. 

- He’s honestly a big fan of pets/animals and; weirdly enough, they love him too. Doesn’t matter if you have a dog, cat, bunny, bird, or hamster; he’ll like them and they’ll like him.

- You once gifted him a teddy bear, mainly as a joke, but he genuinely adores it. It stays in his little shack where he can hold it when he’s away from you.

- Under all that murder, he’s really just sweet boy. You’re respected, cared for, and loved at all times. 

- Would you not fawn over him? Would you not act like a doting, proud mother as he stands there menacingly? Would you not boast about him over the phone as he sits and eats at your kitchen table? Don’t lie to me. 

- Whenever you compliment him, he sort of just stares at you for a long moment before going back to what he was doing. He doesn’t know how to respond and hearing your praise makes him flustered.

- You’re gonna have to take care of him a little. While he can, in theory, take care of himself and live on his own; if you call consuming foraged berries, squirrels and lake water living, you’ll have to provide him with a few essential's if you want to see him thrive. He likes being looked after anyways; it reminds him of when he was little. 

- Either learning how to sew or buying him new clothes every week. He most likely tries to assure you that its fine but only having like 60 percent of a shirt doesn’t seem very fine to you.

- Cooking for him. Don’t worry if you’re a bad cook, Jason could literally eat dirt and find something good about it. He sets the table and offers to wash the dishes which is …quite the sight to see. 

- Catching him up on what’s been happening in the world. He died and was suddenly thrown into a whole new world so there’s certainly a few important things that he’s missed. 

- Getting bridal carried or literally held on his hip like a toddler. Tired after a walk through the woods? You’re immediately in his arms. Injured in the slightest? In his arms. Just want to be carried? Fine by him.

- You’ll never have to worry about struggling with something heavy ever again; this boy could pick up a house if he wanted to.

- Comparing hand sizes. He’s amazed at how small you are compared to him and how much softer your skin is. 

- Trailing behind him as he goes lumbering through the woods. He usually doesn’t really acknowledge your presence besides occasionally stopping to make sure you’re following or that you can catch up with his long strides; or physically stopping you so that you don’t get hurt on something. Having a companion is new to him but he does enjoy it.

- His mother taught him manners so while it may be a little funny seeing a hulking mass of a man gingerly knock before he enters your room or pull out your chair for you or wash his hands before dinner; it’s pretty commonplace for you.

- Campfires when it gets dark. 

- Tight yet careful hugs. 

- He’s enthralled by television. When he was little, him and his mother had a black and white tv with like three channels on it so seeing a full color tv amazes him. 

- Taking photos with him is kind of hilarious. You’ve certainly took a few over the years and while you have different poses or faces in each one, the only thing that changes about him is his clothes. He just stands or sits there stoically, his mask still on as you position yourself around him.

- What's better than cuddling with a big ass boy? He loves being able to cradle you in his arms and listen to the sound of your steady breathing. 

- Swaying together while listening to music. 

- You kissed his cheek the first time he showed you his face and he nearly cried. Emotionless killer Jason Voorhees isn’t nearly as emotionless as you think. 

- Jason; above all, wants to make you happy. He can’t stand the thought of you being upset or not having everything you’d like. He always tries his hardest to provide you with whatever he can to make your life better and happier. 

- He never really questions you. You’re just below his mother on people and things he should listen to. it may take you a few moments to truly convince him to do something but more often than not he’ll listen, unless he really doesn’t like the idea.

- Reassuring him that you really do love him. There’s no way he isn’t insecure after everything that he’s gone through so sometimes he just needs to hear you say it.

- There’s not many instances where he has the chance to get jealous but if there is one then I assure you: he gets jealous. Even so, he doesn’t quite understand the feeling. He just knows that you’re his and whoever it is that he’s jealous of better stay away. 

- He’s incredibly protective of you; overprotective to say the least. You’re everything to him and he’s not letting anything happen to you. 

- He tries to keep you as far away from his killing as he can. You’ll never see any bodies if he can help it.

- He feels nervous when letting you touch his machete yet... inexplicably turned on. Excuse him while he prays for himself.

- It’s sort of hard to fight with him but whenever he get’s mad, he’ll storm off and not return for a long time. He gives you the silent treatment for a little while but will ultimately forgive you fairly quickly. 

- He cant stand it if you’re angry with him; he’ll do whatever it takes to make things better. God forbid you get up to leave; he’ll physically stop you, pulling you into his arms and all but throwing you away from the door. He can’t exactly say he’s sorry so he’ll sink to his knees and hang his head in apology. 

- It’s definitely going to take a while for him to show you what he looks like without his mask on whether you already know or not. He still remembers what the other children at camp thought of him and he definitely doesn’t want you to be able to look at him for too long. 

- When he is comfortable enough to let you see, He’ll allow you to take it off while he sits incredibly still. It’s the ultimate show of trust for him so don’t think of it as nothing. 

- Obviously, he can’t speak so he conveys his love through his actions and perhaps the occasional sloppily written note. 

- Well he’s pretty much bound to live forever so expect a long and loving life with him. He’ll steal a ring from someone he comes across and; in both your eyes, you’ll be husband and wife. 

[imonthinice]

The Criminal Psychology Majors, Jason Todd x Fem!Reader Part 9/?

Word Count: 1.7k

Author’s Note: Y/N- Your Name, A/N - Any Name (Your Best Friend’s Name)

I am sorry. lmao.

Half of my links are glitched tf out fuck this shit, touched grass yesterday but that grind don’t fuckin stop babey

Warnings: Angst - Injury, Description of said injury, Mentions of Jason’s past, Swearing, Dark Themes, no beta bitch we die like Jason Todd

(Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3) (Part 4) (Part 5) (Part 6) (Part 7) (Part 8) (Part 9) (Part 10) (Part 11) (Part 12) (Part 13) (Part 14) (Part 15) (Part 16) (Part 17) (Part 18) (Part 19) (Part 20)

Jason clutched his right side as he gasped for a long breath of the cold, rainy air surrounding him. Everything hurt and he could barely move enough to text Dick that he was down. He would hold and add pressure to the stab wound sitting directly on his waist, but he could feel the blood seeping through the gaps in his fingers as he held it. His hands were covered by the blood and he was losing it fast.

He wasn’t going to walk this off by any means, he was going to need Dick to go get him and bring him back to the hospital wing of the Batcave because he couldn’t move and he felt his eyes drooping as he waiting and tried to keep his breathing in check, while Dick was scrambling to go get him.

There would be a few questions he would have to answer to Y/N. Not even just Y/N, to Lian, his Goddaughter, who he was planning on seeing in the morning since Y/N was going to a dance competition, or at least he thought she was.

But in that moment, so many memories flew back into his head, the hopelessness as he sat there for a few seconds, bleeding out after the explosion that Joker had set off on him. And then the minutes in the Lazarus Pit as he drowned himself back to life, the water filling his lungs as he cried and screamed. But no one came.

This time, however, Dick came.

Dick swooped his baby brother up and onto his back and he tried to run to the Batmobile as fast as he could, knowing time was of the essence for saving Jason’s life. Jason had broke off from Dick for a few seconds before this moment, and it was the only thing Dick was worried about. That Dick had said to come back to him, alive.

In the car, Dick put his hands on Jason's gaping wound, trying to press his hands into it as well to slow the bleeding, the Batmobile had the ability to drive itself, and Dick thanked whatever God was watching that it did. Jason was struggling for breath at this moment, and Dick was terrified.

“You’re going to be oaky, Jase. I swear. Please. Don’t die on me, it feels like yesterday that I got you back,” he leaned into Jason’s face, “Not again, please,” Dick begged and begged as he rushed Jason to Alfred, who was waiting to operate on Jason.

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

Y/N woke up as always, this time, without a text from Jason. She thought nothing of it, thinking he was safe in his house with his loving family. She went to go get coffee to kick start her day, and A/N wasn’t in the kitchen. She, still, thought nothing of it, since A/N’s lover was over the night before and she had to turn up her music to ignore the sounds coming from the other side of the house. She sent Jason a quick text,

Good morning, Jay. I hope you slept well.

And she returned to her room, coffee in hand, to write some quick little stories about  what she had placed in her journal. Not many of the ideas in there were able to be built off of, but she still tried her best with every idea she had, to see if it could be something more.

It normally never was, but it was always something she craved. The ideas of writing a book always enticed her, but she never thought she was talented enough to do so.

She heard her roommate’s door open and then the front door as A/N waved off her lover. It was a quiet Saturday morning, and Y/N loved that as she dove further and further into her work, immersing herself in the story of two lovers who were destined to meet after one moved to the hometown of the other to pursue criminal psychology.

She couldn’t get her mind off of Jason. They hadn’t even known each other for a week but she knew he was worth her time. A few hours passed by from when she sent the first text.

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

Dick held Jason’s hand as he was hooked up to many different machines, he could breathe on his own, but the IV and the blood bags were hard to keep Dick’s eyes off of. If only I had been watching a little closer, he thought.

Jason fumbled in his pain-induced sleep, moaning and groaning as he did so when he opened his eyes to find a worried, sleep-deprived and very rough-looking Dick at his bedside, to which, Dick collapsed on Jason in a hug.

“Thank God,” Dick breathed.

“What... what the fuck.... what the fuck happened?” Jason stuttered, like a blanket of sleep and drugs had limited his mobility and brain function.

“I don’t know, Jase. That’s what I was hoping you’d tell me, but then again, your blood alcohol level was suspicious.”

“I... I didn’t drink... drink that much.”

“No, you didn’t. But you did drink, who was with you?”

“I don’t... know.”

“I think you were roofied so they could get the upper hand on you. You almost died, Jase.”

“Come...c’mere,” Jason managed to say, and when Dick came to him, he moved on of his hands onto Dick’s cheek, “Big... big annoying... big little annoying brother.”

“Shhhhhh, little wing,” Dick comforted his little brother, “You weren’t supposed to grow that much taller than me,” he laughed, “Dickhead,” he laughed again, then sighed, and stepped back from Jason to pace back and forth, he was stressed, “I told Roy-”

“Will.”

“Will, sorry. I told Will that you won’t be able to see Lian today, he asked what happened, he might drop by.”

“He should... shouldn’t have to... see me this... this way,” Jason said, eyes pooling with tears, “No one... should.”

“Don’t know how we’re going to explain this to your little girlfriend.”

“Oh... Man... I like... I like her.”

“I know you do, and that’s an issue when you’re high as a kite in a hospital bed, bleeding out, Jase,” Dick tried to explain, “Especially when she doesn’t know you’re Red Hood, dumbass.”

“Oh,” he said.

“I know, Jase. If it was me and Barbara didn’t know, I wouldn’t know what to do,” he sighed, “Haven’t even met this girl,” he laughed.

“It’s... it’s only been... 5 days,” he stuttered.

“and 3 back-to-back, multiple hour, spanning days, worth of dates. You don’t do that with someone you don’t think should meet your family.”

“You’re... stubborn.”

“And you’re my brother. It doesn’t take blood to exhibit the same traits.”

“The meds... are... are wearing off.”

“Do you need more?”

“Not... yet,” he struggled with his words, “Phone?”

“I mean, yeah I can give you your phone,” Dick said as he went to go unplug and hand Jason his phone, realizing that Y/N had texted Jason he said, “Guess you have someone who wants to know where you are more than Will does.”

“Will cares,” Jason said as he took the phone and read Y/N’s text,

I guess it isn’t morning anymore, huh.

Well that’s on me for texting you at 6 in the morning after I know you’ve been working late.

And I’m going to see my Goddaughter today, so I’ve been sleeping in to preserve energy for her.

Can’t forget that she’s what, 1 year old? Girl must have a lot of energy.

Her name’s Lian, and yeah. She’s a ball of energy.

He said as Lian and her dad, Will, formerly known as Roy, walked into the hospital wing of the Batcave. The secret wasn’t hidden to the little girl yet because she couldn’t remember a lot. But, she sure did recognize her Uncle Jay when she screamed her name.

Will brought his daughter up and put her beside her Uncle, and she cuddled into him, he would hold her back.

“Hey... Will.”

“You look like shit, Jaybird.”

“I feel... feel like shit.”

“You’re also talking slow, bud.”

“Drugs... do that... Will.”

“At least you’re not dead, I have no idea how I’d cope or even explain that to Lian.”

“She... she has your... eyes.”

“She’s growing into my nose too.”

“Your nose... looks like shit... on your face.”

“Okay, dickhead. You’re bedridden but yeah, attack me like you used to, I’ll just pull the plug.”

“Lian... would hate you... you for that,” he groaned as he said it.

“Do you need more drugs? I can tell Dick,” Will asked.

“Yeah... I think-”

“Don’t worry about finishing that, Jaybird. I got you.”

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

The wet ground surrounding the house Y/N lived in was a representation of what she considered, the bad things, washing away from her life as she got to know Jason more. She wished they could talk more that day, but she did not want to take away time from him and his Goddaughter. Family matters a lot to Y/N, so a thought like that just seemed selfish for her to think when she knew that little girl needed him.

She didn’t think he got injured or anything from the Office, it was a safer place than the fuckin Wayne Manor hallways. She texted Artemis,

So, you’re Wally’s girlfriend, and Wally is Dick’s best friend? Am I hearing you right?

That’s basically the intertwine we have here, yes.

So once you’re in this family, you’re IN, huh?

Nervous?

Not a chance.

The thrill of flipping off pap hasn’t left you yet?

Does everyone know about that? And yes, it’s still massively fun to do.

Wally says Dick is the only one who doesn’t think its that funny.

Lame.

C’mon now, that’s my best friend, but yeah, that’s pretty fucking lame.

You’re the fun best friend, then. You see the fun in making a fool of the pap.

You know it.

Artemis knew of what happened on patrol between Jason and his unknown attacker. Dick had told Artemis to distract Y/N from wondering why Jason seemed drunk, if he seemed drunk. The extents they went to to hide the fact that they were the vigilantes protecting the city, they didn’t know if she was going to be able to keep the secret.

Jason would talk to her after that message,

That storm last night was terrible.

I wish that we were together when it happened. I hate lightning.

Well, you were in Cali.

Did I not tell you? My competition was cancelled because the entire country is fucked with weather.

Oh. That sucks.

Do you want to spend the night here?

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

Do you want to spend the night here?

Jason stared at that text for a while. He did, he wanted to spend the night with her, but he was in pain, hooked to machines, with obvious wounds and bandages. He couldn’t spend the night with her.

I can’t. I’m in Metropolis with Will and Lian. Can we reschedule?

Of course we can. As long as you make sure we actually get to spend the night together.

He asked Dick in that moment, “How... how long... long til I heal?”

“Depends. You’ll be okay-ish in 5 days, but in 7-10 we have to take out your stitches if you’ve been taking care of them,” he said.

“That... that long? Damn.”

[brianc521]

Late

- Better Late Than Never - {Part 1}  A/n: This is my first time posting only OG characters. I’d love some feedback, and truly appreciate the support. Meet, Jacob, Jason, Ellie, and Hadley! Thanks so much!

“Okay,” Jacob claps his hands together, “So her favorite movie is already in my Xbox.” He points to the gaming system in the storage compartment under the TV in the living room. “It just needs to be turned on after her play time. If you’re lucky she’ll fall asleep to the movie, might make bedtime easier, so I would suggest turning it on like a half hour before bedtime. Chicken nuggets for dinner, they’re already in the oven. They still have like 15 minutes or so, just give her a warning at 5 minutes so she can clean up her toys and wash her hands.” He nods, looking around to make sure he didn’t miss anything. “Oh!” He points to the green beans on the stove. “She needs to eat all of her green beans and cornbread to get a snack okay? I mean it, all of it.” 

“Dude, you literally do this every night. I know how to take care of my niece.” Jason rolls his eyes. 

“I just, it’s the Dad in me okay? I just have to go through the list to make sure her routine isn’t that much off with me gone for the night.” 

“I understand that. But we’ve done this long enough now that we have our routine. She’s playing with her Barbies right now, at 5 minutes before dinners ready we’ll both clean up her toys and wash up for dinner. We’ll use her Frozen plate that has the sauce spots so she can have ranch and barbecue without them touching. Then we’ll both do the dishes and clean up the kitchen so that way we can play fairy princess together before jammies and Monsters Inc. Ice cream when the movie starts, brush teeth and hair after ice cream and then we finish the movie after that. Bam she’s asleep by bedtime.” Jason ticks off his nightly routine with his niece by memory.

“Okay.” Jacob breathes a sigh of relief. “Okay, you’ve got it.” 

“Go, you’ll be late. The new girl starts tonight, so you know it’s gonna be crazy. Teri’s gonna have your ass if you aren’t there on time.” 

“I know.” Jacob nervously runs his fingers through his dirty blonde locks. He’s styled his hair up in a cute but messy manner. He’s just recently gotten it cut, way short on the sides but long on the top. It’s become really popular with his patrons at the bar. “Ellie! Come give Daddy a hug and kiss goodnight! I’ve gotta go to work now Baby.” He calls out. 

His four year old bundle of energy comes racing down the hall. The plastic tiara adorning her messy golden hair is falling halfway off her head. Her blue princess dress hangs off her right shoulder since the velcro has come undone on the back of the dress. Her white shirt underneath reads ‘To Cool for School’ with a cartoon monkey hanging off the O’s in ‘Cool’. 

“There’s my Gorgeous Girl.” He smiles, couching down to catch his daughter. He chuckles when she collides with his chest, her giggles spewing from her bright pink lips. He takes the opportunity to re velcro the back of her dress. “There, a Princess must always wear the best dress.” He pulls back, placing a kiss to her forehead. 

“No!” She huffs, flexing her shoulders and bringing her elbows together to pop the velcro back open again. “Dad, I can’t play with it velcroed, it’s too tight. I can’t move.” She explains, brows furrowed. 

“Time for a new dress already?” He sighs, tilting his head at his adorable girl. She looks at him with her bright blue eyes, dark lashes framing the doe eyed look. 

“No.” She shakes her head, nose scrunched. “This one fits just fine if I don’t velcro it.” She shrugs, as if that solution is the most obvious thing in the world.

“Well can I at least fix your tiara?” He asks with a small smile, trying not to show how his heart is breaking at her words.

She nods her head, making it droop that much further off the side of her head. He laughs softly, quickly catching the bejeweled plastic and righting it. He makes sure the small little comb like features on the ends brush into her hair. He’s learned that those are there to help hold it in place. 

“You’ll be here for breakfast? She asks softly, sparing a glance up at her Uncle Jason who’s burnt pancakes more times than not. 

“I always am.” He grins, leaning forward to kiss her nose. “Be good for Uncle Jason okay?” 

“Okay.” He nods, jumping, making her dress poof around her legs. “Have a good night at work Daddy!”

“I’ll try just for you.” He smiles, caressing her cheek. 

Jason stands behind them in the kitchen, arms crossed while he leans against the doorframe. He watches the interaction between the father daughter duo, like he does every night, and can’t help but be in awe. He’s never seen his twin brother so in love with something before. Watching Jacob’s infatuation with his daughter brought a whole new perspective of life over Jason. It truly was watching someone mature overnight. Something everyone thought would never happen to Jacob. 

“I love you.” Jacob whispers to Ellie, a soft smile on his face. 

“I love you too Daddy.” She whispers back, mirroring his smile. 

“Okay, I really have to go.” He stands, looking back to Jason. “I mean it with the green beans and cornbread.” 

“Yeah yeah, I got it.” Jason waves Jacob off.

“No more ‘Cool Uncle Jason’ who lets her have anything she wants. I’ll be checking the garbage in here, in the bathroom, outside, and the clever little spot you have on the side of the house.” Jacob raises an eyebrow at his brother. 

Jason’s eyes go wide, face blank now that he’s been caught dumping her uneaten food. 

“Okay, I got it. Go!” He pushes his brother into the garage. 

Jason and Ellie stand in the driveway waving at Jacob as he gets in his green 1995 Toyota Camry. How does the poor car still run? No one knows, but it was all Jacob could get when he traded his bike in. 

**

Teri is standing in the doorway that leads to the back break area when Jacob rushes in. If looks could kill, he’d be dead 80 times over by the look Teri is giving him. He’s 5 minutes late. He thought he’d have enough time to rush into the local Walmart before his shift, and he would’ve been on time if some group of 15 year old boys hadn’t been fucking around in the self checkout and slowed him up. 

“I know, I know, I’m sorry.” He acknowledges, putting his hands up in surrender as he rushes past his supervisor. 

“It’s 6:07.” She says, eyebrow raised, hands on her hips.

“It’s 7 minutes.” He sighs, stuffing his sweatshirt into his locker, leaving him in his black work shirt. It’s a tight cotton shirt that stretches nicely over his biceps. It makes it easy to extra tips with a simple flex to the right customer. Who says girls are the only ones wearing tight shirts to get tips?

“You’re training the newbie tonight Palmer, I needed you on time.” She says, with a harsh voice. He wishes that she’d stop calling him by his last name. The last person who did that was his football coach, and that just brings up a slew of bad memories. 

“I’m here Teri, I’m sorry I’m late.” 

“What was the hold up this time?” She asks, tilting her head as she waits for his next excuse. A man’s late a few times and now he’s got a reputation. He rolls his eyes before he turns to look at her. 

“Stopped by Walmart.” He answers lamely. 

“Palmer!” She hisses. “I can’t accept that answer!” She looks over her shoulder watching out for Fletcher, the owner, who’s still in his office with the door open. 

“I needed to get Ellie a new Princess dress okay?” He hisses back, watching her face soften. “The one I got her a few months ago is too tight and falling apart from how often she wears the damn thing. Before I left she was reassuring me that the one she has is fine as long as she doesn’t velcro it. Teri, that’s my baby girl, you know that. I can’t give her much right now, but the least I can do is take last nights tips and get her a new fucking dress.”

Teri’s eyes go wide when he spits the information out. She narrows her eyes, pointing at him as her hip juts out. “You were gonna put last night's tips towards an oil change on that piece of shit you drive that precious girl around in! We had a deal Jacob! You told me you’d get the oil change.” 

“Tonight's tips will go towards that.” He lies through his teeth, rushing to dump his phone and keys into his locker as well so he can get out of this conversation. 

Teri sighs, knowing that’s not the truth. “Let me talk to my brother in law. He’s got a little shop a few miles out of town. He might be willing to do some work off the clock for a case of beer or some of your family moonshine.” 

“No, Teri no.” He shakes his head. “I’m not using your family like that. I promise, tips from tonight go to the oil change.” He says as he clocks in.

“Yeah?” Teri challenges. “Then what money are you going to use on Monday to get groceries?” 

He sighs, looking down at his holey shoes. “I just wanted to get her a new dress Ter.” He shuts his eyes before looking up at her with a sad face. “She’s four and she already understands what living without means.” 

“Then let me talk to my brother in law. I want Ellie to have everything she wants. I want her to live the most amazing life, and to have the prettiest of Princess dresses. Just make sure you have a batch of moonshine handy and I’ll make the call. You then can hug me and thank me for it. But most importantly that car is getting a fucking oil change or I won’t schedule you until it does.” She threatens.

It’s an empty threat, they both know it. Teri would never not schedule him, this is the most secure job he could ever have. 

“Thanks Ter.” He sighs, nodding at her. It can be so defeating for him to be living this way. He wishes he could give his Gorgeous Girl everything she wants, without having to break bank to do so. 

“It’s now 6:12 and we’re still not on the floor. Get your shit together Palmer, it’s gonna be a long night.” 

With that Teri walks away from Jacob, head held high, heels ever higher. Jacob follows, looking like a kicked puppy on his way to more punishment. He stops by the sink to wash his hands before joining Teri and the new girl standing next to her. 

Looking at them is almost comical. Teri is very Joan Jett. She’s got dark jett black hair, teased and messed up. She’s never been caught dead in the bar in anything other than her lucky black leather pants. She usually pairs them with a dark blood red tank top, that shows off her very big and very fake boobs. She’s got a full sleeve of tattoos on her right arm. Her eyes are always lined thickly with her famous black liner, shadowed with a silver shimmer, and the look is finalized with the longest lashes known to man. 

The new girl? Polar opposite.

She stands out with her auburn hair. The neon in the lights makes it change color from how it reflects off. In one angle it’s gold, in another it’s bright red. Her hair is pulled back into a tight, professional ponytail on top of her head. Her bangs are clipped back in the middle of her head, she’s given them a little poof to add some height to her hair. She’s also in a tight black shirt like Jacob, but she’s modified hers. She’s cut the bottom, making it a crop top. Accompanied by blue jeans. They’re decorated with rhinestones on the back pockets, and they’re distressed looking. 

Either way Jacob can’t help the way he appreciates the look. They cup her ass quite nicely, and it takes him a minute to remember what being a gentleman means. He snaps back to reality when Teri calls his name. He looks up with pink, embarrassed cheeks. It was suddenly like he was back in high school again. 

“Palmer, this is Stevens.” Teri says, pointing to the new girl, whose back is still to him. 

“Ter, I think it might be easier is you said our first names?” He jokes, shaking his head at the fact that she’s so determined to call everyone by their last names. 

“Okay,” She rolls her eyes. “Jacob meet Hadley.” 

Hadley? He thinks to himself. Unique name, something he’s only heard once in his life. There was a girl he went to highschool with. One he had a major crush on. She was cute, very small compared to him. She always wore her hair down, as if she was hiding behind it. His favorite part about her was how she always had a book in her hands. He never saw her without one. She was quiet, smart, a little nerdy. He never really spoke to her, mainly because their circles never mixed. She never spared him a second glance, and he didn’t blame her. He knows now, and knew then that he was a douchebag in highschool. 

He walked around like he ruled the school, because, well he kind of did when it came to social status. He was all the cliches rolled into one. The quarterback, the bad boy, the cute blonde hair blue eyed boy, and a twin. Him and Jason were the kings of campus. Jason dated the head cheerleader, he dated all the others, at the same time. 

So he never ever blamed Hadley for not looking his way. She deserved so much better than him. 

“Jacob Palmer?” Hadley speaks up, snapping Jacob from his flashback. “That’s funny I went to high school with a kid named-” All words halt on her tongue when she finally turns to greet him. Her eyes go wide and her jaw drops a bite.

Jacob just about passes out. There standing in front of him, looking better than he remembered is the girl of his dreams.

“Hadley Stevens.” He breathes out.

[perseusjackson-jasongrace]

I Am Lost

Masterlist

do i still taste like war?

can you still feel the battles on my skin

stitched across my back

am i still rebuilding

bone by fragile bone?

-what does forgiveness taste like? (r.n.)

It has been three weeks since the end of the Giant war. Three weeks of trying to build some semblance of normal. Of burning flags and wiping tears. Of visiting the medical rooms and silently cursing the gods for their arrogance. Campers wandered around, lost dulled looks in their once bright eyes. The little ones, sheltered by wood nymphs and aging satyrs in that violent week, ran around tugging at each other, and causing small forms of chaos. It was a grace that they had been spared the horrors of war.

Percy Jackson was swinging from the hammock in his cabin, staring at the rolling waves that crashed to the beat of his heart. His mind was faraway, wandering through the clouds, looking for meaning amongst fallen leaves, trying to breathe life into fallen embers.

He thought about seeking out his girlfriend, but a knot formed tight and heavy in his chest. It was a new, unwelcome feeling. The first time he thought it was nerves— not surprising when it came to her. She had always made him a little gooey on the inside, like the thrill of a plunging drop, like something exciting, and unfamiliar. But then he had met her in front of the great hall and those nerves had grown into this unbearable weight, pressing down on his lungs.

She had looked at him and some fleeting shadow brushed past her eyes. It was less than a second, but he had caught it, felt it like ice in his veins. Fear.

He shrugged it off that first time but their interactions since had become choppy, robotic.

He spent more time between his cabin and the training room. Hours upon hours, twirling and stabbing Riptide into dummies. He had only been interrupted twice. Once when a gaggle of children came in to stare. He only noticed because they clapped after he sent a dummy flying across the room.

He had laughed at them and brought them closer so they could learn. Camp activities were not yet restored to the scheduled times so some of the children hadn't any training with the weapons. They gasped and giggled as he helped a little boy shoot a pretend arrow. As he helped little Alec with their wooden dagger.

The second time when a friend had leaned against the doorway, a corded arm held above their face to block the sun streaming in.

"Percy," The voice was low, raspy in it's softness.

He let it wash over him but didn't acknowledge it, instead rolling his shoulders and pounding at the punching bag once more. Sweat dripped down his forehead, catching on his cheekbones.

"Percy!"

He dropped his head back, letting the timbered roof see his smile.

"Need something Grace?"

"You need to take a break."

"I'm not tired. But thank you for the concern."

"Bullshit, you've been at it for two hours."

That startled him, eyes squinting as he checked the clock on the far side of the room. His gaze travelled across the beams and landed on concerned blue eyes.

"I didn't realize it had been that long."

The blonde moved into the room, "You are killing yourself."

He shrugged, pulling off the tape around his hands, "So what?"

Jason's eyes whipped to his, something like devastation on his princely face, "What do you mean?"

His smile was cruel, "Did you come here for any particular reason?"

The blonde made to step forward, but then thought better of it. "I've just come to tell you that we've been summoned to the dining hall and—" He paused, taking a deep breath as if to gather courage, "And to ask if I could join you tomorrow?"

"Here?" He frowned.

"Yes, I could do with some training. Ever since Hera wiped my memories, I've been struggling to refamiliarise myself with the strategies I learnt at SPQR. I was hoping you could teach me?"

He tilted his head, studying his friend, "Sure." He said after a moment, "But only if we can learn a little more about combining our power."

"Why would you want to do that?"

He shrugged, "Call it curiosity."

The Son of Jupiter seemed to think about it for a bit, weighing his options as if life were a sensitive scale. "Deal."

Now he swung from his hammock, striking match sticks against the wood posts, watching as they flared, burned, suffocated. The smoke, he thought, was pretty in its evanesce.

A knock at the door scraped his mind to the present. He debated not answering but where else would he be if not here. So he jumped down and strolled through the cabin.

"Annabeth, hey."

"Percy," She gave a tight-lipped smile, "Can we go for a walk?"

"Uh sure," He disappeared for a moment, grabbing a cap and Riptide from the table.

"So what's up?"

"Percy," She said his name like it exhausted her.

"Are you okay?" He frowned, lifting his hand to feel her forehead.

She sidestepped him, kicking at the ground in false distraction.

"I— we—" She took a deep breath, "Piper and I are going to New Rome for the rest of the summer. Reyna invited us and since we're the only two who haven't gotten the chance to explore, we figured now was a good time to start."

"Oh cool, when do we leave?"

She winced, looked up at him with those swirling grey eyes he had loved like adventure, like hope, like something new.

"No Percy not we. Me and, and Piper. Just us. I think we need some rest. Some time to just be safe and do what we want. We need a break."

"You want a break?" His lungs felt too small, heart stammering like a stick record, mind buried in quicksand.

"Yes," She said it with certainty. As if she had thought about it enough to remove even her own doubt.

"From Camp Half-Blood or from me?"

Her face looked stricken, like she hadn't considered it, like they were one and the same. Maybe they were.

"Both?" She was less certain now, fumbling on loose stones.

"Do you want to break up?" Words were cotton threads sown into his tongue.

"Yes, no, maybe, I don't know!" She cried.

"Annabeth," Anguish was a mercy.

"I think it's best if we go our separate ways, for now anyway."

"What do you mean separate ways?" His throat was adorned with a necklace of rope, "We have been on the same path since we were twelve. We have followed each other into and out of battle. Have taken daggers, swords, curses for each other. We have experienced firsts, seconds, life together."

Her tears were endless, but her expression was without doubt, "I love you. I think a part of me will always love you, but times are changing, and I have to learn who I am without worrying about how to keep myself safe. I have to live Percy. I have been surviving for too long."

He sunk to the grassy hill; his knees too weak to hold him.

"Maybe someday," She started softly, "Maybe someday we will find our way back."

He looked up at her, pain making her blurry, a silhouette, unrecognisable. "I am not lost."

She crouched down, until they were staring into each other. He knew she could see the words written in his eyes, as she always had. For all they struggled with their dyslexia she had always been able to read him like a cherished book.

"I will miss you Percy."

He didn't reply, didn't have the words even if he wanted to. She kissed his cheek, wiped a stray tear and left him on half-blood hill, her blonde curls ruffling in the lowly breeze.

 ***

A week later Percy was waking before the sun, nightmares and heartache refusing to evict from his body. He scrubbed a hand over his face and slid out of bed. If the day was to start now, without his choice he could at least decide what to do with it.

It was no surprise then that Jason Grace found him in his newfound second home, amongst the ratty dummies, slashing Riptide through their stuffed insides.

"Do you ever sleep?"

He snorted, not faltering as he pretended to dodge and then swiped his sword low.

"Who are you fighting for?"

The questions caught him off guard, stumbling to his knees. Jason was at his side in an instance, supple fingers wrapping under his arms to haul him up. They settled on the bench, backs against the wall, hands flexing and clenching. The quiet was so loud in his head, like a ringing that never stopped.

"I am fighting for myself." He finally exhaled.

"I am fighting because I have been doing it for so long, I do not know any other way."

The Son of Jupiter didn't say anything, didn't even look his way. Percy settled further into his position, content to lapse into silence. His turmoil had been his friend for these long years, and he has learnt its language.

"When I was with Lupa," Jason started, "She used to say a wolf who is separated from the pack is only alone if they do not howl. Mostly it was a lesson for the cubs, so they knew to call if they ever got lost. But I liked it because it reminded me that telling someone you are lost may not make you less lost but will make you less alone. Someone will find their way to you."

They did not speak again, happy to be silent companions.

The day passed by in a blur of preparation. It was already halfway through the summer and as they did each year the Half-Blood Feast would mark the occasion. Percy helped where he could, picking strawberries at the request of Juniper, and pulling his weight in the dining hall by scrubbing at the concrete slabs on which they ate.

By the time night fell his bones were creaking like hollowed stairs. But he was excited. If for nothing else but the sense of routine and joy this festival brought after such horrible events. He tugged on a plain blue t-shirt and a fresh pair of jeans. It did not count as dressing up, but it felt nice to put effort into something. Albeit his hair couldn't be tamed, wild curls sticking every which way.

"Percy," A knock sounded at his door.

With a final glance at his appearance he stepped out, taking a deep breath of ocean air.

His heart skipped a beat, skipped two. It wasn't beating at all. Beating too fast to feel. Jason Grace was leaning against a marbled column, a halo of sunshine around his head and a blue shirt making his eyes as bright as the cerulean skies.

"We're matching!"

"The camp store does not have much variety." He grinned, "Although I think I'm pulling it off much better than you Grace."

It was a lie of course, Jason looked ethereal.

"I have to agree," The blonde winked.

Percy laughed, rolling his eyes as they made their way to the dining hall.

"A pity we can't sit together," Jason frowned.

"Maybe Chiron will make an exception today, since it is a special occasion."

"We can ask, the worst he can do is say no."

Minutes later they were seated at the same table while everyone gathered together.

The feast was as glorious as it had always been. Food to feed nations, fill homes, warm bellies. The sounds of laughter were a balm to his soul. He turned to his dinner partner, to see him with a soft smile on his face, eyes bouncing from table to table.

"It's nice isn't it?" He muttered, "To see them happy."

"I don't have the words." Blonde hair fell into his eyes as he shook his head. "It has felt like an eternity since we were all together, under the same roof."

They looked at each other then, twin flames dancing in their eyes.

"What do you plan to do after the summer?"

"I want to finish school. Want to finish something that doesn't involve in my death, or that of my friends."

Jason nodded, "It would be nice wouldn't it, to feel not constantly in danger. Although around you that may be a little hard."

"What do you mean?" Percy narrowed his eyes.

"If you were a Disney prince, you'd be Prince Danger."

"You think I could be a Disney prince?" He scrunched his nose teasingly.

"I think you can be a lot of things." That smile was cheeky, wicked.

"Is this the part where you say, 'I can even be your boyfriend'?"

Jason's answering laugh was bright and beautiful.

When dinner was finished and campfire songs had been sung till their throats were raw, the crowd finally dispersed, heading back to cabins for the night. He lost his dinner mate at some point in the singing and his other friends had long since disappeared. He didn't quite feel like tucking himself into a cold bed only for sleep to abandon him. The Son of Poseidon shucked off his shoes, stepping onto the sun-warmed sand and let his feet sink into the world. He walked towards the ocean, along the shoreline; let the water wash over his bared skin.

"Jackson!" A call sounded from faraway.

He stopped, turning to see Jason running towards him and couldn't help the smile that pulled at his lips.

"Hey, I wondered where you ran off to?"

"Got pulled away by Nico. He wanted to talk."

"It's nice. That he has you." Percy had been relieved to learn Nico confided in someone. And a part of him had been shamefully grateful it wasn't him. He did not know, was almost one hundred percent certain he wasn't fit to be someone's confidant, or mentor, or whatever it was that he would have become to the younger demigod. He had proved that the big brother role was not for him and he would not disappoint Nico again, or Bianca.

"So," Jason knocked his shoulder lightly, "What's got you lost in thought?"

"Bold of you to assume I think."

The blonde shook his head in amusement, "Do you ever wonder what our lives would have been like if we weren't demigods?"

He snorted, "More often than is healthy. It's like an obnoxious alarm that goes off at the most inconvenient times. When I'm in battle, just before I fall asleep, when I see my mom after an age, when I saw New Rome, when i—" He glanced at his friend, wishing the moon was brighter so he could see those comforting blue eyes.

"When you what?"

He shook his head, "Doesn't matter."

The Son of Jupiter tugged at his arm, pulled them closer.

"Sometimes I wish I had met certain people in a coffee shop on a winter morning, or at school on the way to class, or just anywhere but in the middle of war and prophecies."

Their foreheads fell together, sharing icy air.

"Wouldn't that have been nice?" He breathed.

"Jason I can't do this right now. I—" He winced, "I loved her."

"But did you?" The blonde muttered, "Really?"

"Yes. I did." His voice was hard with the truth. "You do not get to discredit my love just because the relationship it bloomed in has ended." He pulled away, turning to face the sea.

"You're right." He stepped back, scratched at his neck, "You're right, and I'm sorry."

"Did you ever love Piper?"

"I thought I did. But I don't think I really know what love is."

"Maybe it changes," The Son of Poseidon whispered, "But with her it was adventure."

They sat down on the sand, uncaring of the waves that soaked through their clothes.

"What do you want it to be like next?"

"What do you mean?"

"If it changes, what do you want next?"

"It will feel like home."

[wordsfromthesol]

An Eye for an Eye

Author: @wordsfromthesol Taglist: @ghost-brocolli Pairing: Dick Grayson x Reader Summary: Slade is looking for revenge, and unfortunately his eyes are set on you. Warnings: All those usual things Word Count: 1.4k A/N: Requested by @riseofnightwing

It had been several years since the Titans had formed. The four…then five of you worked together like a well-oiled machine. Though you hadn’t been without your challenges. It got a little complicated when you and Dick started dating. And then again when Dick had a slight mental breakdown, but eventually his mind cleared, and he became Nightwing.

**

You were thankful when Wonder Girl joined the team. It was nice to finally have another girl to help you navigate the masculinity. The two of you quickly became best friends…which is why when you learned you were pregnant; she was the first one you told. Even if it had been a few months already.

“I mean Donna, what am I supposed to do? How can I bring a child into this life?”

“Well, what did Dick say?”

Your eyes fell to the floor, “I haven’t exactly told him yet…”

“Y/N  Y/M/N.”

“I just can’t find the words! It took me two months to gain the courage to tell you…I’m just not good with words.”

“Y/N, this isn’t something you can avoid. You need to tell him.”

You love Donna, and you know she was right…but you had been hoping for some better advice. Instead of going to find Dick, you headed to the training room instead. Unfortunately, you had only been in there an hour before Dick found you.

“Y/N, I’ve been looking everywhere for you. We need to talk about that last mission.”

“Well, you found me.” You said with a little more bite than necessary. Ever since you found out you had been pushing Dick further and further away. You just couldn’t handle looking into his unsuspecting eyes, yet every time you were close to telling him something always interrupted.

“And you’re in a great mood, I see.”

“Just trying to figure some things out.”

“Hmm…something involving me?”

“Well –”, and there you were cut off again Garth and Wally entered the room. You let out a sigh as your eyes trailed towards them. Dick quickly pulled you out of the room.

“Y/N, I don’t know what’s up with you, but you need to figure it out. I what were you thinking on that last mission?! You walked right into an obvious ambush. You’re just lucky Donna followed you.”

“Well I’m so sorry we can’t all be perfect little Dick Graysons!”

Dick rolled his eyes, “That is so not the point, and you know it. You could’ve gotten yourself and Donna killed. Then you come back here and completely avoid everyone for days?”

“There’s shit going on you don’t understand.”

“Maybe if you actually tried talking to me…you know your boyfriend for the past FOUR years…I would understand.”

Before you could try to explain you felt a familiar sickness creeping up in your esophagus. You ran out of the room, ensuring that the argument would soon become a much bigger one.

After the lovely pregnancy induced sickness subsided, you decided to go for a walk along the river. What you didn’t know a familiar enemy was stalking you, for days now. He was waiting for the right time to move…and you just gave him the perfect one.

**

It had been nearly half a day since you had spoken with Donna and she was beginning to worry…so she went off in search for Dick.

“Have you seen Y/N lately?”

“Nope.”

“What do you mean? Didn’t she come talk to you?”

“I guess you can call it that…”

“Well, how are you feeling about it?”

“Feeling? I’m fucking pissed off Donna. She’s going to get herself killed if she keeps acting like this.”

“Wait…” Donna paused, realizing Dick was still in the dark. “When was the last time you saw her?”

“I don’t know, about four hours ago I guess.”

“And she didn’t say where she was going?”

“Nope. In true Y/N fashion she ran off to avoid confrontation.”

“Wally!” Donna yelled for her teammate, who appeared before her as the last syllable escaped from her lips. “I need you to check the city for Y/N.”

“Why? Did something happen?” The speedster exchanged worried glances with Dick and Donna.

“I just have a bad feeling…and no one’s seen her in hours.”

Wally nodded in acknowledgement before taking off. Donna paced back and forth for several minutes, waiting on Wally’s return. Unfortunately, when he did, the news was not good.

“I couldn’t find her anywhere. Are you sure she didn’t leave the city?”

Donna sighed and looked up at Dick, “There’s something you should know.”

**

You woke up in a dark room, strapped to a table. The metal bands stretched across your collarbone, wrists, and ankles. Blinking rapidly, you waited for your eyes to adjust…though once you recognized the infamous orange and black armor you wished they hadn’t.

“Slade…what did I do to deserve this honor?”

“Recent developments have made you part of my revenge.”

“And those would be?”

“Oh don’t be coy…you’ve got a little birdie growing.”

Your eyes widened in astonishment, “Wh…how?”

Your captor just laughed as he strode out of the room, leaving you alone with your thoughts.

**

“WHY WOULDN’T SHE TELL ME?!”

“Somehow I think you already know that answer to that question. And you also know that is not the most important thing right now.”

“Where could she be?”

“We’ll find her. Everyone is looking. Wally, Barry, Kara, and Clark are searching around the world. Bruce and Tim are digging online. Even Jason is hassling his underground contacts. We’ll find her.”

“You don’t think…”

“Dick, she wouldn’t leave. But do you really think that’s worse than her being captured?”

“I don’t…I don’t know.”

Wally bursts through the door, “Dick. We found her. It’s Slade.”

Dick eyes widened with worry, “Where?”

**

“SLADE! It’s been hours, what do you what with me?!” The figure sauntered in the room.

“So impatient. Now is the waiting game. I intend to take from yours what he took from mine.”

“Which is exactly?”

“A child for a child, a family for a family.”

“Dick didn’t take your child or family from you. You did that on your own. Your own selfishness and stupidity took them.” Within seconds you felt a painful sting against your cheek.

“Insolent child! You know nothing!”

“Is your memory so fragile? I was there. I know everything!” Pain shot through your leg this time. Glancing down, you saw a huge gash across your thigh, and Slade was nowhere in sight.

You had begun to loose track of time, but soon you heard voices…voices that were not Slade. You decided to take the risk.

“I’m here!” You bellowed out in hopes that the voices where friends. Wally appeared before you in seconds.

“Y/N!”

“Wally, quick…get these things off of me. Slade’s here, it’s a trap.”

“We know. The others are on it.”

“He wants Dick.”

“Would’ve never guessed that one.” Wally rolled his eyes as he helped you up from the table. “My job is to get you safely out. You’re injured…oh and pregnant. Thanks for letting us all know.”

“Wally I –” you began but you quickly clasped his hand over your mouth. He picked you up and began to run, but the two of you were promptly thrown to the ground.

“You didn’t think I would just let you go?” Slade questioned. You slowly pushed yourself up from the ground.

“Oh, still navigating the trap I set, I assume. They’ll be alive, after all he needs to see this.”

“Y/N, run.” Wally sped towards Deathstroke as you attempted to make your way towards the exit. As you came upon the door, you stumbled into Dick.

“Get her out!” Donna cried as she launched herself forward to help Wally, Garth following closely behind.

**

You weren’t sure how you made it out, or how the others did. The next time you opened your eyes you were back in your room at Titans Tower, Dick drifting into sleep at your side.

“Dick…” You watched as his eyes fluttered open next to you and felt a slight pressure in your hand.

“It’s okay Y/N, I know.”

“But so does Slade…” Dick enveloped you in a tight hug.

“We’ll figure it out. I promise.”

[okaybutlikeimagine]

(tumblr won’t let me respond to asks directly so we’re screenshotting them till further notice  🤷)(i had the WHOLE THING typed out w/ the italics fixed into the ask and i copied it so i wouldn’t have to go through and put the italics again and then my DUMBASS SELF went to copy a fucking SHRUG EMOJI and now i have to put the italics in again. good thing i do all this stuff on a separate google doc bc i’m a moron and would have lost the whole thing just now. anyway)

Hi!!! I’m crying bc you fucking KNOW that Billy would get so fucking embarrassed!!

Bc Billy is prideful!! I’m telling you, that boy has some Leo in his chart or something bc if anyone so much as smiles at a joke at his expense, he gets defensive. And that’s not to say that he doesn’t banter back and forth with Robin, and that’s not to say that he and Steve don’t give insults that sound like endearments, and that’s not to say that he and Jonathan don’t rib each other amicably… but it’s different. Pride is a very different thing.

Bc Billy is legit like a little lion cub. (AKA every Leo i know, therefore Billy has Leo in his chart, don’t @ me) it’s an almost juvenile kind of attachment to pride. Like a baby lion cub who’s just getting their mane in but holds their head like they’ve got the biggest one in the pride, it’s a little childish (as much as he may not want to admit it).

And it’s really not Billy’s fault. That’s what he’ll tell you. That’s what he’ll tell anyone. It’s not his fault he’s a brat and he’ll shrug his shoulders and he’ll continue to be rude/bratty and for some people (Steve) it’s charming and for others (almost everyone else) it’s tolerable but for Jim…. It’s…. It’s upsetting. Jim doesn’t like to be seen as “controlling” or a “hardass” or whatever but he’s not sure how he can just ignore when Billy is being disrespectful. Even if it’s only slightly. bc like…. He feels like he needs to be a good dad and good dads make sure their kids grow up to be good people, right??? Which isn’t to say he thinks Billy is a bad person but he worries because, like every parent, his biggest fear is fucking up. He didn’t get a whole lot of practice with Sara. and after her death he couldn’t help but think of every time he slipped up. Every time his wife soothed his hair and said: “We have time to get it right.” every day that passed with Sara in the hospital where he realized she was wrong.

And i’m SO sorry for getting into that but I think that really influences how Hop parents now! The man was broken and then just…. Acquired a 12 year old. And then a 17 YEAR OLD?? Like… the man would be Confused as to how to proceed. And then THIS happens…

Bc Billy has mood swings. Billy is a teenager and also the human version of a bratty little cat that puffs his chest out and ruffles his own fur and may leave a few scratches but is ultimately harmless (esp now that he has a nice, loving family!!) and so they’re at the dinner table and the boys are talking about their grades and whatnot and Billy may be a little pouty. Because maybe Billy didn’t study as hard as he should have for his last history test. He just thinks history is so stupid. He’d rather read a book or do 100 math problems. What’s history gonna teach him?? He doesn’t need to know any more about plagues.

So he says that.

Jonathan’s talking about how well he did on his essay and Will is talking about how he did on his math test and Billy’s pushing carrots around when Joyce asks: “How’s school for you, Billy?”

“Just peachy keen.” he sneers down at his plate. Hop tuts harshly.

“Hey.” Hop chastises, only serving to make Billy’s blood boil more.

“What?”

“Calm down.”

“I’m plenty calm.” Billy snaps back, but it’s quiet. He shoves a sliced carrot in his mouth.

“Have you had any tests or anything lately?” Joyce asks calmly, in that motherly voice she always gives that makes Billy’s mind swirl a bit.

“Yup.”

“Billy-” Hop warns and it makes Billy sit straight up, but give a challenging look in Hop’s direction as he says, loudly:

“Yes, ma’am.”

Joyce stops asking, but she sends a look to Hop, who’s still caught in a staredown with Billy. Billy can’t see her look, but he wouldn’t understand it if he could, because it says: Hop, cut it out.

And the conversation shifts to significant others and then Joyce is smiling kindly at El and asking about her and Mike and maybe Hop is pouting but he’s not gonna draw attention to himself bc Joyce will just hit him like she always does when he’s pouting over their kids dating (specifically El). And Jonathan is smirking a bit into his dinner but Will is visibly uncomfortable as El gushes about Mike before complaining that he doesn’t come over enough and that she doesn’t go out enough and Billy gets irritated. Why should he and Will have to listen to this when they don’t want to??

And he mutters something, darkly. Something about Mike and El and “ungrateful little brats”.

And everyone hears. He only half means it, but they don’t really think that far.

And Hop shoots a look his way before chewing on a carrot rather aggressively.

“Somethin’ to say?”

Billy gives Hop a challenging stare, but he backs down as soon as he starts it.

“No sir.” He mutters harshly.

“Then behave.”

“How about you and Steve, sweetie?” It’s Joyce. Being sweet.

“Happy as can be.” It sounds bitter the way he says it because it is. They got in a fight today. A little one, but enough to make Billy taste something sour in his mouth when he thinks about it. He figures they’re gonna make up just fine tomorrow, no flowers or empty promises needed, just another heated conversation followed by a heated make out in the front seat of Billy’s Camaro. Maybe followed by a serious talk that’ll make Billy’s face heat up because he still can’t believe this boy has Billy wrapped around his finger so fucking tight.

“Yeah, well Officer Callahan says you and Harrington have-”

“You know his name.” Billy growls, resting his fork on the plate.

“Steve. You and Steve have been running around empty fields a lot lately.”

“And?” Billy’s vision is turning red. It’s tunneling a bit.

“And what’s that all about?”

“Don’t really wanna give you all the dirty details.” Billy shoves some meatloaf in his mouth. Hop’s looking at him like he’s a hassle and Billy’s proud of it.

“You guys shouldn’t be doing that. Someone’s gonna say something.”

“And?” Billy’s getting madder. He puts his fork down with a loud clang.

“And you’re gonna cause problems-”

“For you?” Billy seethes, leaning forward a bit, just willing Hop to say it.

“For yourselves.”

“Oh yeah?” Billy asks, leaning back in his chair, blood boiling hot. “Well what about the little twerps?”

Billy nods over to El, who makes a whining noise.

“Hey!” She calls, face pouting.

“What about them?”

"I just don't think it's very fair that it's safe for them and not us." Billy growls, gritting his teeth, eyebrows low.

"That's not true."

"It's safe for everyone else but us!" He’s mad. He’s mad bc him and Steve have argued about this before. Argued about how there’s no real point in being together if they have to hide all the time. That one time when they saw Cindy and Jason being grossly affectionate in public and Billy grabbed Steve’s ass and Steve got mad. They fought for a few days and it ended with them laying in Hansen’s big empty field, on the outskirts of town, talking in dreamy, far away voices about how one day they’d move to California bc “It’s not like this there… trust me, babe. It’ll be so much better.”

Billy’s vision tunnels more. All he sees is Hop in different shades of red. He forgets where he is. He’s livid, thinking about El and Mike and Cindy and Jason and Tommy and Carol and Nancy and Jonathan and he’s going to scream. His heart is racing with disdain.

"You know it's still dangerous for El to go out." Hop warns.

"You know that's not what I meant."

"Look... kid-"

"I'm not a fucking kid." Billy growls, leaning forward even more.

"Language!" Hop’s voice is booming and Billy’s had about enough of this. He resents being told off like a kid.

"Sorry! Excuse the fuck out of me!" He’s snarling and Hop seems about as livid as Billy feels.

"Go to your room!"

"Fine!" Billy yells, shoving his chair back and standing up, turning to Joyce for the first time all dinner and seeing her eyes full of… concern. He doesn’t know how to feel about it. Something in his chest heaves at the sight. His eyes flick over to Jonathan and then to El and then to Will…. And then his chest tightens. He looks away just as quickly.

He thanks Joyce quietly for dinner, mumbling it a bit but he thinks the sentiment is clear enough. He drops his plate off next to the sink and storms off to his room, slamming the door with probably too much force but everything’s on his mind and he has the right to be a brat if he wants.

It’s just that he hates just sitting here with nothing to do but think about everything. He doesn’t even have his stereo to listen to music with bc he gave his to El until she can get a new one bc hers broke and her nightmares have been bad recently. Listening to music before bed calms her down. Billy didn’t say anything about his own nightmares or his own need for music before bed. He wishes he had now that he’s laying in bed, about ready to rip his sheets to shreds bc he’s boiling. He feels like a storm but, to any outsider, he looks like a toddler- red-faced from a tantrum and fidgeting and bubbling like a shaken up soda bottle.

He’s so mad he can’t even do anything. The minutes pass in sticky but frantic moments of anger and thoughts and memories and the only thing his body will let him do is just sit there. Lay in his bed and pull at his covers and fall into thoughts and think about Hop reprimanding him like that and how awful it was and how red and angry he looked and how he sent him to his room like a kid and… and how Joyce looked so worried…. And how that same look was in Jonathan’s eyes…. And Will’s…. That same worried, concerned look. They all three have the same eyes- Lonnie be damned. Those boys share their mother’s eyes and all of the emotion that goes within them and it makes… it makes Billy mad he’s mad about it he knows he’s mad and-

And…

And he calms down a bit. Calms down enough to do what Steve told him to do when he gets angry and stressed and doesn’t know what to do with himself. Because Steve’s family is “well-traveled” and Steve knows all these weird little things from all these cool different countries.

So Billy takes out his notebook and rips a couple pieces of paper out (bc he saves the fancy paper Steve gave him for when he’s actually trying) and does some origami. Bc Steve said it’d help him to do something with his hands and this is something he can do quietly, in his room, without being destructive. ”It’ll help, I promise!”

The hardest part is making a perfect square, bc it takes too much patience and usually Billy doesn’t have that. But he’s just doing this to calm down so he eyeballs it as he cuts the paper and starts to fold what he knows, which is either a heart or a crane. Those are the only 2 things Steve has taught him that he knows off hand w/o the instructions or Steve guiding him through it.

There’s more crumpled paper on the ground than folded paper on his desk but Steve had assured him that was more than okay. It’s kind of the point, he figures. Crumpling and ripping up the paper is almost as nice as folding it to make something, and it makes actually making something feel even better when it happens.

He’s sitting there, on his 3rd heart, when there’s a small knock on the door.

“Go away.” He calls, realizing that the paper he cut isn’t a perfect square bc the corners won’t match.

“It’s Will.”

Billy pauses a bit. He goes back to folding his paper, not caring about the corners bc it’s not bad enough to start over. He doesn’t say anything.

He hears the door open.

“Do you think ‘go away’ doesn’t mean you?”

“Does it?” Will asks, voice earnest. Billy looks up to see his face matches.

Billy sighs, the harsh feeling in his chest softens a bit at the boy in his doorway. He turns back to his folding.

“What do you want? And close the door.”

“I wanted to ask if you wanna come listen to records with me.” Will says, closing the door behind him.

“I don’t think they want me out there.” Billy folds his paper with his fingernail to make it sharp. It burns his thumb a bit.

“That’s not true.” Will says, taking a few steps closer. “Mom told Hop… Dad he shouldn’t have done that.”

And that makes Billy mad. He’s not even sure why. It’s a heat in his chest and his face that feels like anger and he messes up his fold and he’s just… he’s confused and he’s red and all he can think about is Will saying “mom”. Not “my mom” just “mom” and also “dad” like he’s theirs and Billy can’t understand it still and he smashes the paper into a ball in his hand-

“I don’t need your mom defending me.” Billy says harshly, spitting the words out like he hates them, chucking the paper on the ground. He’s too aware of the way Will flinches a bit at his harshness. He takes a deep breath.

“Uh... “ Will’s fidgeting. Billy feels bad. He sighs.

“I don’t have my stereo.” Billy leans back, running a tired hand down his face. “Ask Jonathan.”

“But I wanna listen to your music.” Will says quietly and Billy believes him. Will’s been getting interested in Alice Cooper and Led Zeppelin and all of the fun bands that actually perform. Steve gifted Billy a VHS performance of Led Zeppelin and Will seemed to like the lead singer quite a bit.

“Well I don’t wanna go out there, pipsqueak.” Billy rips out another piece of paper. It’s quiet for a second, Billy eyeballing another square to cut. It’s so quiet, Billy thinks Will has left.

He thinks wrong.

“Can I still hang out with you?”

Billy puts the scissors down, exhausted, and looks up at Will.

“Alright, what’s wrong?”

Will shrugs. “Nothing. I just…. Like it in here.”

Billy’s confused, but he almost believes him for a minute.

“I don’t have music for you.”

“I can grab a book to read.” The boy’s so earnest, Billy knows he’s not gonna shake him.

So he waves him away with a nod and Will’s out and back quicker than Billy can think about how weird it is that this boy would rather sit in his room in silence than do something fun. Will’s closing the door carefully, latching it quietly and moving over to sit on the bed.

Billy has crumpled up 2 more pieces of paper before Will begins to pry.

“Are you folding things again?”

“Uh huh.”

“What’s it called, again?”

“Origami.”

“Cool.” Will scoots on his knees to the edge of the bed so he can see what Billy’s doing. “Do you need any help?”

“I’m good.” Billy mutters, unconvincingly.

“I can cut the paper for you. I’m good at making squares.”

And so Will is sitting criss cross on the bed, cutting perfect square after perfect square, while Billy sits backwards on his desk chair with his arms folding on the back rest and mind racing a mile a minute. Will’s so quiet and calm, willingly coming in here just to spend time with Billy, helping him now and… and something sick fills Billy’s chest. The only thing he can hear are his words at the dinner table.

‘Hey-uh…” His voice sounds weird to his ears and his tongue feels thick but he’s got Will’s attention now so he needs to get it out. “Sorry.”

Will’s eyebrows scrunch up. “Sorry for what?”

For being a dick? For ruining your dinner? For ruining your family?

Billy shrugs.

“I dunno. Just… not being a good example.”

“Whaddya mean?” Will asks, handing over a handful of squares before working on some more.

Billy shrugs again. “I dunno kid I just… I’m not like Jonathan. I’m not… I’m not a good example for you. It’s embarrassing.”

“What’s embarrassing?”

“Getting told off like that in front of you guys.” Billy turns back around so he can start folding again. He needs to do something w/ his hands.

“I told you, mom told him he shouldn’t have done that.”

“But he was right-”

“No, you can be upset if you’re upset. It’s fine.”

Billy falters a bit. He wonders if Will is quoting Joyce. The small boy keeps speaking.

“You’re a good example,” Will’s voice says, and he sounds so sure that Billy believes him. “You’re just a different one. You show me to stand up for what I believe and… and that it’s okay to be… to like boys…”

Billy stops folding altogether. Will’s voice gets quieter.

“You’re a good example. It’s good to let things out when you feel them.”

Billy’s mind is racing. He’s folding without thinking about it. Because the only thing he can think about is how he got accepted into this family so quickly. How Hop took him in and Joyce accepted that like she was accepting a package at the door. She took him in like he was her own son and not some bratty problem child being dumped on her. And now Hop reprimands him without his fists and Joyce chastises Hop for being too harsh even though he’s… doing his job, whatever that entails and it’s… it’s too much sometimes. It’s too much to think about but Billy knows he wouldn’t give it away for the world bc every moment like this reminds him that every passing day is a day further away from the pain he grew up surrounded by. The pain now doesn’t even compare to the pain then. This is so different bc this pain is laced with care and love.

He’s made a crane before he realizes.

“I’m glad you’re my brother.” Will’s voice sounds so far away but it crashes over Billy like a wave.

Billy nearly crushes the crane in his hand from the words. He’s so shocked at them.

He turns and gives Will the crane, not looking the boy in the eye as he gathers up the paper and the scissors from the bed.

“I don’t need any more paper. Thanks.” Billy mumbles, dumping everything on his desk.

“You’re welcome. Is this for me?”

“Yup.” Billy shoves the paper in a drawer and tosses the scissors into his pencil cup.

“Thanks!” Will’s so excited about it. Billy’s heart is fluttering.

“Wanna listen to those records now?” Billy asks, hands on his hips, fingers fidgeting bc this is a lot and he just…. He needs music now. Whatever. He realizes he shouldn’t be so scared. There’s nothing to be scared about. Will beams up at him.

“Sure!” Will gets up and rushes to the door as Billy grabs a folded heart and follows the boy out, aiming to give it to Joyce by means of apology. He thinks briefly about giving one to Hop as well, but he figures a spoken apology and a light punch on the shoulder and a promise to listen should do just fine to get the man smiling again. Bc somehow- somewhat miraculously -it always does.

[hfvm]

Silence (Batmom x Batfamily)

Song: Ronan by Taylor Swift (I loved this song for a long time now and after re-reading a bunch of Batmom fics... I just had to do it. I had to change one line for it to fit.)

~*~

    The funeral took place on a cold and quiet day at the Gotham Cemetery. Only those who knew Jason and his other side were in witness and the ones that were left in the dark were told completely different things. 

     Weeks later, the Manor is completely silent. 

     After the raging and the moves, the constant shouts within the walls and grunts often confused with pain… it has completely turned silent. No one dared to say anything, no one knew what to say so they didn’t.

     Dick, his ward, his first son, who spent the better part of the weeks shouting hatred and damnation upon him and his failure of communication, has turned completely silent. Though nothing was as loud as the looks he sent his way. He was so used to him constantly shouting that he was the worst and that he should have “done more”.

     “What the hell, Bruce!” he had yelled at him, “You told me that you were going to be there for him! You told me that he’d be safe!”

     He does remember briefly telling him that on a rare day they were not at odds with each other. 

      Dick shoved him and he let him. He deserved it anyway. “Why didn’t you tell me?! Did you really hate me that much to not want me to attend my own brother’s funeral!”

     He doesn’t even remember when Dick had started thinking of Jason as his brother. Ever since he arrived, Dick has never said anything about wanting to spend time with him or even be in the same room with him. 

      What changed between them? Whatever it was, he wished he was there to witness it. To witness them bond like the brothers he and his wife intended them to be. 

     Alfred, his pseudo-father who spent weeks trying to be the light, the optimistic, and the one who is trying to pull things together, has resigned to allowing him to grieve properly in silence and in the way he wants to. 

     He would still say things like: “Master Bruce, would you like some tea?” or “Master Bruce, dinner is ready.” but other than that, nothing. It’s like they both reached an understanding that it’s best for now. 

     Usually, he wouldn’t be bothered with the looks and the lack of noise of any kind in the Manor. He would have preferred it, it gave him time and it gave him space. Two things that he desperately needs. 

     After Jason? His failure to save him from the hands of the clown constantly roared in his ears and at that point, he’s desperate for something that would make it shut up. And beating up criminals with such ferocity and more power than the average didn’t help. Nor did beating the Joker within an inch of his life didn’t help either. None of it helped. Jason is still dead, buried six feet underground. 

     That’s the reality of it. 

     The silence didn’t bother him, the cold looks his ward (his son) sent him didn’t bother him, the bloody suit almost did but it didn’t. Not for some time now. 

     No, it was the weeks of silence from the one he counted on the most that did. The one who he thought would continue to be the light in the dark days, would continue to bring smiles on their faces even when the reality has dawned on them. His wife, who has not spoken a word or a letter since the news came. Since he brought the dead body of their son back to the cave, back from Ethiopia. Where the Joker had tortured him within an inch (just like he did to him in that cell in Arkham) and blew him up before he could reach him. 

     His wife, who had only taken one look at the scarred body of the boy she had come to know as her son in the past months, fled the cave and retreated to the guest bedroom. Where she hadn’t come out since. The only time she came out was during the funeral, but even then she didn’t say anything until she was asked to give a speech in Jason’s name… didn’t even look anyone in the eye. After the service, back to the guest bedroom she goes. 

     “I’ll be in the room if you need me.”

     She doesn’t come out for food, Alfred brings it to her door. He’s relieved when he sees it gone every time, relieved that she’s still taking care of herself. 

     She’s been quiet, and that’s not her. His wife is loud, and cheerful, and full of ideas and ways to get people to smile and laugh like her. She’s the light that shines in the darkness of his life, their life. He’d say that she’s his sun, but she would tell you that she’s a moonlight. The one who still shines in the darkness of the night. 

     But she’s been dim and out, taking the shine of the manor with her. He wants to be there for her, but the locked door tells him that she wants to be alone. But it has been weeks, no sign of her, no word from her or even a single movement coming from her. 

     He likes the silence, but not when it came from the one who matters most. From the ones who matter most to him. It’s deafening and he’s desperate to stop it. 

     But he doesn’t know how, that’s the reality of it. It’s inevitable, maybe that’s why, after weeks of silence and nothing, he’s starting to accept that, maybe, that’s it. That’s the end. He finally managed to drive her away. To drive them all away with his failures.

     And maybe that’s why, after a full month of radio silence from her, he was surprised to hear the faint sound of a guitar strum. A strum that came from her guitar, the one he bought her as a gift when they first got together. He was deep in thought in his study, not doing any work but just there, sitting and head in his head when he heard it. 

     A faint strum of the guitar. That was enough to pull him out of it, he knew who it came from and he knew where it came from. On his feet in an instant, he practically tried to rip the mahogany door off its hinges in his haste of opening it. 

     He ran towards the music room, trying to catch her for the first time in a month, trying to be silent as possible. He doesn’t want to scare her off.

     When he gets there, it looks like he wasn’t the only one who heard it and wanted to reach the source as soon as possible. The sight of his ward and butler standing still in the doors leading to the music room and the sound that is coming from the inside made him want to pass out right there and then. He is exhausted, drained physically from trying to distract himself by going out for hours at a time, and emotionally from what’s been happening. 

     Dick and Alfred turn to the sound of him running, but they say nothing. None of them do. None of them make a sound. Even as Bruce walks toward the door, where they are, they make no noise, with silence that only a Bat can do. 

     Slowly and carefully, Bruce turns the handle and opens the door slightly. Not fully, just enough so they can hear the sound better. 

    He could cry when he hears the moment words come out of her mouth in song form. But he could sob when he hears the words itself.

     “I remember your bare feet down the hallway     I remember your little laugh”

    His fists clenched as he took it in. They didn’t need further explanation, they all know who it is about, who she’s talking about. No one said anything even then, not even looking at each other. All eyes and ears are focused, not wanting to miss anything. 

     “Race cars on the kitchen floor      Plastic dinosaurs, I love you to the moon and back”

     There’s a faint smile on his face when the memory hits him. When Jason, in his excitement of getting anything for the first time, initiated a race car contest and they ended up crashing in the kitchen where a busy Alfred was preparing something. 

     The mess and the loss of good food was worth it to see the smiles on his wife and the boy. 

     “I remember your blue eyes looking into mine like we had our own secret club       I remember you dancing before bed time then jumping on me waking me up”

     They used to do that a lot. 

     Whispering behind his back, giggling like they have a joke that only they understood. 

     “I can still feel you hold my hand      Little man, from even that moment I knew      You fought it hard like an army guy      Remember I leaned in and whispered to you”

     She used to tell him that Jason is more than a soldier, he’s a warrior. A warrior who fights hard for justice and the good of the people. 

     He can still remember the draft, the manuscript hidden in the cabinets, for a story that would have proven that.

     “Come on baby with me      We're gonna fly away from here”

     He hears Dick let out a shaky breath, but makes no mention of it. He already knows what’s going on in his brain even just by the look on his face. 

     (“You wanna know something, Jason?” 

     “What? What is it?” 

     “One day, you and me, when all of this is over, we’re going to fly away from here. Away from Gotham and away from the problems in this city.” 

     “Are we going to take the others?” 

     “Of course, Dick can fly with us as well and Bruce can just hang or whatever.”) 

     “You were my best year”

     He’s only been in the Manor for a year, but it’s been one of the best for her. The years with her children were the best for her, they are the best. They all know that. 

     (“What’s with the cake?”

     “It’s to celebrate your first year with us!”)

     Even with Dick moving away and choosing to leave, she would never regret the years she spent with him.

     (“Sorry, mom.”

     “Don’t worry, Dickie, I’m still going to be here when you come back.)

     “I remember the drive home when the blind hope       Turned to crying and screaming, "Why?"

     The night he brought him back. He wasn’t there to see her break down too. How could he? She locked the doors and forbade anyone from entering. Bruce, at the time, understood that she needed her space and some time to process the news (just like him) but now, he wishes that he should have been there for her more. 

     “Flowers piled up in the worst way      No one knows what to say about a beautiful boy who died”

     The silent funeral that followed. Silent because she was silent. 

     She loves flowers, absolutely adores them, the garden was a testament of that.          

     (“Bruce, you really need to do something about this garden. It’s beautiful and has a potential to be more and you’re not doing anything.” 

      “Alfred used to do it, but he got caught up with other things and I don’t really have time to do any of that.” 

     “Well then I’ll do it. Someone has to around here apparently.”) 

     But not in that way. 

     “And it's about to be Halloween     You could be anything you wanted if you were still here”

     He remembers a picture of an enthusiastic Jason wearing a miniature Batman costume on Halloween. He remembers her wearing a Batgirl costume at his insistence. He remembers himself wearing an uncomfortable Robin costume after much prompting. He remembers Dick coming home after weeks of radio silence, only to laugh at his face and join them for the first time.

    “I remember the last day when I kissed your face     I whispered in your ear”

     The last time she saw him. 

      She barely got to say anything, not even an ‘I love you’ before he left to his death. Before she allowed him to go to his death. Before she should have stopped him, but didn’t choosing to be supportive instead. 

     (“Go, Jason. Find your mom.” 

     “But--” 

     “It is alright, son. She’s your mother after all. Nothing wrong with wanting to find her.” She kisses him on the forehead, unbeknownst to her that it would be the last kiss she’d ever get to give him, “Be safe, honey.” 

     Jason flashes a smile that was so him, “Thanks, mom.”)

     She only got a kiss, but that wasn’t enough.

     “What if I'm standing in your closet trying to talk to you?      What if I kept the hand me downs you won't grow into?”

     They weren’t there to witness her leave the guest bedroom in the dead of the night, when everyone was asleep, silently roaming the large manor. They weren’t there to see her enter her son’s room, tears silently falling down. They weren’t there when she silently removed all of his clothes from his closet, only to fold them back up and return them to their place. 

     How could they? She was silent. Silent for the first time since they met. Silent since the day they got married, and the one was the welcome kind. This one is different. 

     “And what if I really thought some miracle would see us through?”

     Silently praying to herself, to Jason, for one more miracle. 

     (“Jaybird. If you decide to return, I’ll still be here waiting for you.” she says in the dead quiet of the night in the cemetery. Alone with just the tombstone and the fireflies to accompany her.)

     “But what if the miracle was even getting one moment with you”

     But wishing for one last moment with him. To do more than just a silent kiss on the forehead and a silent gesture for him to go and do what he feels is right. 

    She can’t stop the shaky breath that left her lips, a testament to how tired she is and how she just wants to rest, before continuing. 

     “Come on baby with me      We're gonna fly away from here      Come on baby with me      We're gonna fly away from here”

     He’s a Robin. They fly high and brave, but even their wings can be clipped. Bruce hates that. 

     “You were my best year”

      They heard her strum a few more times before it stopped completely. They don’t hear another word or sound from her lips, or even movement from the guitar itself. They look at each other, mentally asking one another if it’s over and if they should leave before she saw them standing there the entire time while she was pouring her heart out. In a song they weren’t sure she wanted them to hear. 

     Then suddenly, the door opens. The three of them step back in surprise. She steps into view, looking like nothing happened that affected the way she looked. She looks normal, almost. But they all knew that was not true. 

      They are all silent, no one moving or daring to do so. 

     Then, she steps forward, silently walking toward them. Without another word, she engulfs them in a hug, one that they returned instantaneously.

     “I’m sorry.” 

     It was the first thing she said in a month. The first thing they heard her say after a month of nothing. Her quiet whisper was the only sound heard in the quiet halls of the Manor. It echoed and could almost be a shout at that point. 

     After that, they were silent. And that was enough. They could be loud on another day, talk and shout about things unsaid. Work things out in the only way they knew how. Forgive and work through grief, together this time. 

     But for now, silently embracing one another on the floor of the Manor is enough. For now.

[yespleasetommyshelby]

When I was your man ~ Jay Halstead

Song imagine based on ‘when I was your man’ by Bruno Mars. ~ It’s super long, my apologies

‘Same bed but it feels just a little bit bigger now, our song on the radio but it don’t sound the same...’

Jay clenched his eyes shut moments after opening them, reaching out he felt the cold side of the bed, hoping it had all been a dream and that when he woke she’d be lying there in his old t-shirt hair sprawled across the pillow, but with no luck, she was really gone.

Trudging his way to the kitchen he switched on the radio as he waited for his coffee machine, the first song just happening to be the song that they shared their first kiss to that night in Molly’s, while celebrating Adam and Wendy’s engagement... What had gone so wrong?

“Jay talk to me! Please!” She begged watching as he opened yet another beer before strolling back over to the coach.

“There’s nothing to talk about.” Jay shrugged focusing back on the Hawks game on tv, not knowing just how badly he was hurting her.

“You was kidnapped Jay, beaten and tortured for hours before the team got to you, it’s been three weeks and you haven’t said a word about it, it isn’t healthy.” She said moving to stand opposite him, next to the tv that was slowly losing his attention.

“I’m fine! The team got to me in time, I’m okay!” He raised his voice, feeling his temper rising he clenched and unclenches his fists to try and stop the storm he could feel inside.

“No! You’re not fine, you’re not okay, sure the bruises have healed and you were cleared for work but you are not okay! You’re constantly mad about anything and everything, you only leave the apartment to go to work, you’ve barely been able to look at me since you got home! You are not okay Jay.” She said quietening down as she got to the end of her short speech, feeling the tears slip down her cheeks she hastily wiped them away before looking back at Jay, his attention still on the tv, although he was barely concentrating.

“You know what Y/N, we’re done. I don’t need you nagging at me to talk all the time, I’m fine.” He yelled standing up and finally looking at the worn out girl standing before him, the bags under her eyes and the tear stains lining her cheeks, feeling his anger dissolve instantly he slowly reached out towards her. “Y/N, I’m sorry ple-“

“You know what Jay, you were right, we’re done.” She shrugged dropping her arms down to her side before walking into their shared bedroom.

“I didn’t mean it like that, please don’t go.” Jay said quietly as he followed her to into the room, regret and guilt instantly making their way to his heart as she looked up at him with sparkling eyes and a sad smile.

“Jay, I’m done, I can’t deal with your mood swings anymore, just, make sure you talk to someone, okay?” She looked over at him as she lifted her duffel bag over her shoulder. “I’ll always love you Jay Halstead.” She whispered placing a chaste kiss on her love’s cheek before walking past him, out of the door and out of his life.

6 months, he thought to himself as he watched his cup fill up, the stench of coffee filling the space in an instant. 6 months without her smile, her laugh, her eyes, her touch, her, he missed everything about the girl who had managed to snatch his heart in an instant. The girl who knew just what to say on his rough days, who could always see through his lies, she could light up a room just by walking in but most of all he missed how much she loved him, how much they loved each other.

‘When our friends talk about you all it does is just tear me down, ‘cause my heart breaks a little when I hear your name...’

“Soo, guess who’s bringing a guest to Platt and Mouch’s wedding.” Kim grinned as she practically skipped over to Kevin’s desk, raising an eyebrow he silently told her to carry on, he’s always ready for some gossip. “Y/N is bringing an old friend from highschool.” She smiled before showing him the texts that she had shared with the girl the night before.

Jay could feel his heart split when he heard Kim, just hearing her name brought back the sharp pain of regret, there was a lot of things that Jay regretted in his life but none compared to the day he let her walk out. Now, not only was he going to have to face her at the wedding but he was going to have to stand and watch as she spent her night with a man, a man that wasn’t him, and that broke his heart just that little bit more.

‘I should’ve brought you flowers, and held your hand, should’ve have gave you all my hours, when I had the chance... Take you to every party ‘cause all you wanted to do was dance...”

She had missed the ceremony he had been checking every time the door opened, Kim had said it was something to do with work but she’d definitely be at the reception, she promised. As he sat out the back of the dance hall Jay couldn’t help the smile that came to his face as he thought about the memories that he and Y/N shared over the course of their year relationship, yet a tear escaped as his thoughts turned to all the little things he could’ve done to keep her.

“Look how pretty those are.” She grinned pressing her nose against the store window, flowers of every colour and arraignment filling her sights, a gleam in her eye that went unnoticed by the man standing behind her, nose stuck in his phone. “God, I love flowers.” She smiled over at him, quickly frowning as she noticed he wasn’t paying any attention. “Jay?”

“Yeah, real pretty.” He agreed, not really knowing what to, before starting to walk again. With a sigh she took one last look at the flowers and stepped away to follow him, making it no further than ten steps he stopped, he had to get to work, he always had to get to work.

“Hey baby.” She greeted him with a kiss as he walked through the door to their apartment, home after a long day chasing criminals and trying not to be shot at.

“Hi.” He muttered, quickly dumping his coat on the table in favour of picking out an ice cold beer from the fridge.

“So, Kim said that their having a karaoke night at Molly’s.” She said suggestively, moving closer. “You know we’ve never really been dancing before.” She mentioned, dropping a subtle hint that she wanted to go and dance, to let go of life’s stresses.

“Not tonight Y/N, I’ve had a long day.” He sighed walking away with his beer in hand, not realising the look of hurt on her face as she watched him go, she knew she was losing him.

“Hey! Look who decided to show up!” A voice from inside echoed catching Jay’s attention, she must be here, he thought to himself, she was the only one who wasn’t there yet.

‘Now my baby’s dancing, but she’s dancing with another man...’

“Hey guys!” She grinned as she rushed over pulling her friends in for a hug as she let go of her ‘dates’ arm, it had been an agreement with Trudy that she would bring a date to the wedding, even if Trudy had to set it up herself, which she did.

“Who’s your date?” Adam asked motioning over to the man who was looking around the crowd, not feeling as though he belonged with the crowd.

“That’s Jason, he’s Trudy’s nephew, apparently we both needed a date to keep her happy, so here we are.” She smiled thinking back to their agreement. “How are things?” She asked casually although Adam knew what she really meant, ‘How is he?’

“Broken.” He shrugged, eyes searching the room for the man he was referring to. “Things haven’t been the same since things ended Y/N, he misses you like crazy.” He told her watching as pain appeared in her eyes before she blinked and it vanished.

“I wasn’t first priority, Adam, I wasn’t even in his top ten priorities, there was always something more important or more urgent that needed his attention, I loved him Adam.” She said thinking back on their failed relationship, the squeak of a door opening caught her attention, looking over to see the man she’d been missing for the past few months walk in, still looking as perfect as ever but a slight twinkle missing from his eyes, his smile was no longer as bright as she’d remembered it to be. “I still love him Adam.”

As he walked back into the room the first thing that caught his attention was her, his eyes finding her like it was natural she was stood talking to Adam a small smile on her face, a smile that once would have been wide, bright, able to light up a whole room. Mentally preparing himself he started to walk over to them, but what he hadn’t prepared for was for her to be tapped on the shoulder and whisked away by some tall, dark and handsome man who spun her onto the dance floor.

“Hey man.” Adam spoke, tearing Jay’s attention away from the couple on the dance floor. “You good?”

“I lost her man, she should’ve been dancing with me.” He sighed watching as she smiled and laughed while being spun in a circle before falling back into her dates arms. “Now she’s dancing with another man.” His heart hurting as the words left his mouth, patting Adam on the shoulder he trudged his way past the couple towards the bar where he sat in his own pity party.

‘Although it hurts, I’ll be the first to say that, I was wrong... Oh I know it’s probably much too late, to try and apologise for my mistakes, but I just want you to know...’

Tired from the spinning Y/N handed her partner over to Kim and headed towards the bar in need of a drink, spotting Jay sitting on his own she sighed and decided it’s now or never, they need to talk, at the very least to get some closure.

“Hey.” She said quietly as she slid onto the stool beside him, thanking the bar tender as they handed her the drink she had ordered.

“Hi.” He said stunned, looking over at her he couldn’t believe that she was actually sat there talking to him, the past few months he had spent his time imagining what he would say if he had the chance, a chance to make things right. “I’m sorry.” He said smiling sadly at her for a brief second.

“Jay..” She trailed off not knowing what to say, the pain on his face making her heart feel like it was breaking all over again.

“Y/N listen, I am so sorry. I know I wasn’t the best boyfriend, shit, I wasn’t even a good one full stop and I know that now. I didn’t treat you even nearly as good as you should’ve been treated, I just wish it didn’t take me losing you for me to realise how special you are.” He said sadly, picking up his beer and taking a swig, trying to hide the pain he was feeling.

“Hey, don’t think like that, you was a great boyfriend, when you were around.” She said part-jokingly but mostly seriously and Jay knew that, he could always tell when she was serious, when she was lying, or just when she needed some time alone.

‘I hope he buys you flowers, I hope he holds your hand... Gives you all his hours, while he has the chance, takes you to every party ‘cause I remember how much you love to dance... Do all the things I should’ve done, when I was your man...’

“I know things didn’t work out with us and I regret it everyday, every night, everytime I close my eyes.” He said reaching over and taking her hand, feeling the warmth he’d been dying for the past 6 months, no idea that y/n had missed the feeling just as much, maybe even more. “But I hope he treats you better than I ever did, I hope that he gets your subtle hints about wanting flowers and isn’t so engrossed in his phone that he forgets by the time you pass the next stall.” He said thinking back to all the times he had noticed you looking at flower displays. “Make sure he holds your hand in public so everyone knows you’re his, and don’t let him get too caught up in work like I was, am, spend every hour you can with him. And I hope he takes you to every party he gets the chance to, Ive always regretted not taking you to dance because I remember just how much you love it.” He said smiling slightly, intwining their fingers.

“Jay..” she whispered staring down at their hands, her heart breaking all over again hearing him telling her that it’s okay if she moves on, and how lowly he thinks of himself because of this whole situation. “It wasn’t all bad, you made me the happiest person alive just by being mine, I don’t need every second of your time or flowers or even to go dancing, I just needed to know I was a priority, that I was important to you.” She said sadly looking down, feeling a warm hand cup her cheek she looked up to see Jay staring at her like she was the most beautiful thing in the world.

“You were the most important person in the world to me, hell, you still are y/n, just promise me he’ll treat you better than I ever did.” He said letting go of her hand, finishing his drink he stood up and started to walk away before a small hand grabbed onto his wrist and pulled slightly, holding him back.

“He’s gay Jay.” She said with a small smile. “We both had an agreement with Trudy that we’d bring a date to the wedding, I didn’t have any one to take and neither did he, so we made our own agreement, I’m still in love with you Jay Halstead and I don’t think I’ll ever not be.” She shrugged pulling him closer, so close she could smell his aftershave and see the small hairs above his lip.

“I love you y/n.” He said placing his hands on either side of her face, looking in her eyes for any sign of doubt.

“I love you too Jay Halstead.” She smiled bringing their lips together in perfect sync, both feeling more whole than they had felt since their relationship had ended.

“I promise you,” He began as he pulled away. “I will treat so much better this time.” He smiled slightly.

“I know you will.” She smiled, feeling as though her life was full again.

** I apologise for the ending, I had no idea where I was going with this one.. Anyhoes, feel free to send any requests :) **

[hobbitsnapes]

The Red Hoods Protègè chapter 9

Older Damian Wayne x ofc

(Photo made by my lovely friend @tyuuniverse)

Summary:Red hood has taken a young vigilante under his wing and subsequently changes Damians life forever. (I suck at summary’s)

A/N:Here it is guys. The reveal of who angel is. I’m so thankful for each and everyone of you who’s red this story, who’s liked it, shared it and who keep up with it. I love you all and can’t wait for you all to see what’s coming up after this. I’m gonna be honest and say, I was (who am I kidding I still am as I write this.) terrified. I never expected people to like this story. It’s not something you typically see and it’s not a character who’s written about often. But again, thank you. I’m hoping this reveal is up to par with what you’re hoping. I hope you like it. Again, thank you for giving me a start at writing and keeping me going with my stories.

“Do you have your taser gun?” Jason asks, as he watches her load up her pistol. “No, why?” “You didn’t bring it last time.” “Usually I don’t take it, why should I this time?” She asks as she looks at jason. Her head tilted slighting. Confused at why she should take it this time around. “This guy isn’t our usual psycho. His real name is Lazlo Valentin, commonly known as professor pyg. He had a schizophrenic breakdown and now wears a mask to resemble a pig. He was a scientist prior to his break. He’s an obsessive perfectionist who believes that all humans are broken and needing to be ‘fixed.’ His idea of perfection is turning people into what he calls them Dollotrons. He’ll kidnap a person, and with whatever he can find, preforms surgery and uses chemicals to make them mind controlled automatons. They feel no pain, and they never stop unless killed. I honestly would rather you sit this one out, not because you can’t handle it. But because of how sick this fucker is.”

At this point, Jason is looking her in the eyes with what could only be described as fear. “And I don’t want you going out alone with this bastard. God only knows what he’d do to you if he got to you.” Jason looks down at this, picks his final gun up and looks her in the eyes again. “Alright, but I need you to promise to be careful. He’s not big or strong or even that smart. But he’s sick enough to get to you.” “If I can handle gas Huffers laughing gas, then I think I can handle Mr. Piggy.” At this Jason laughs.

The crunch of the shards of metal and gravel send sounds throughout the top floor of the beauty parlor. That is until they reach a back door. Once they enter they hear a faint sound of music. The music growing louder the further they reach the basement.

The sound of O mio babbino caro playing along with a voice singing along to it. The voice off key and definitely male along with groans of pain and yells growing louder once they reach the basement door.

They reach a back metal door that leads them to a long staircase, the voices clear as day once they reach the bottom steps. The room wreaking of blood and stale rusty pipes.

They see through glass windows surrounding the makeshift operating room pyg standing over a metal operating bed. He’s singing along to the song along with snorting every few seconds. The closer they reach they see what looks to be a woman on the table with a doll mask covering her face. “You’re done here Valentin. Step away from the woman.” Her and Jason turning their heads to the voice behind them. Out from the shadows walks in Batman. Robin standing right behind him. “And you two. Get out of here. You’re not needed.” Batman says as he eyes her and Jason. “Oh no no no no. Pyg is not ready yet. Pyg must fix her. We are not ready. Pyg must make her perfect. Pyg can make all of us better.” “Okay that’s enough Mr. piggy. Now get the fuck back before I shoot you in between your eyes. Then we’ll see if you snort.” She says as she raises her gun at the deranged man. “He said leave!” Robin yells at her. “And you go fuck yourself bird boy! I’ll shoot you too! Now, I said GET BACK!” “Pyg not ready! Pyg is god! Pyg will fix you all! Now rise my Dollotron and show them how perfect you are!” The woman on the table sits up from the table. Her stitches tearing open when she stands to the ground. She isn’t even Phased by it as she swings at her. Angle dodges the hit and swings her foot up and into her face. The woman falling to the ground. Angel gets on top of her and hits her in the face again. The woman barley making a noise at the hit and punching her in the face. She climbs on top of her and tries choking her but before she can angel takes out her hunters knife and impales the woman in the gut. The woman letting out a cry from it as angel gets on top of her and rips her mask from her face. And as soon as she rips it from her face she's met with a horrifying discovery. “M-mom? No, it it can’t me. Y-you’re dead! YOU’RE DEAD!” She cries as she holds the lifeless woman’s face in her hands. Sobs wrecking her body at the horror of what she’s done. A hand pulling her away and into a strong chest. “It’s not her sweety, it’s not her.” She doesn’t hear what Jason says as she rips from his hold and runs to Pyg. (Trigger warning.stabbing)

“YOU DID THIS TO HER!” She screams as she impales him in the stomach with her knife. Ripping through his flesh as she tears it out from him and into him over and over as he screams out in pain. “YOU DID THIS!” She screams repeatedly. The sound of ruling flesh and cracking of bones along with cries of pain filling the already loud room. She stabs him one final time in the heart, his head dropping to the floor.His lifeless body laying in a heep. (End of trigger)

She’s ripped away again by Jason. “Stop! Stoop! He’s dead!” Jason yells as she fights out of his grip. She rips away from him, a hit landing her on her back. The impact knocking the wind from her lungs. She looks up to see robin standing above her. She stands back up and swings back to hit him but before she can, he grips her by the throat and slams her into the wall. His chest pressing so hard against her she can feel his heart through his suit. “DAMNIT! WHY DID YOU DO THAT!” Robin screams at her in her face. His grip on her throat tightening. “HE WAS KILLING PEOPLE AND TURNING THEM INTO MIND CONTROLLED ZOMBIES! ALL YOU FUCKING DO IS LOCK THESE PSYCHOS UP SO THEY CAN GET OUT AND KEEP DOING IT AGAIN! AT LEAST WE ARE GETTING RID OF THEM!” She screams, she takes her pistol and hits him over the head with it.

He stumbles back as he clutches his face.

She runs away from him towards the door. But before she can make it, a blade is thrown and strikes her shoulder blade. The searing pain of the sharp blade tearing into her flesh and scars. A blood curdling scream ripping out of her as she grips her shoulder. She falls to the ground as tears leak into her mask. The pain white hot and it takes over her body.

A hand is placed on her face and as she looks up, her eyes meeting Batman as he kneels to her. “Here let me help you.” “NO GET AWAY FROM ME!” She screams as she gets up away from him. She rips the blade from her shoulder, a scream tearing through her as she does this. She looks at robin with tears pooling through her mask and onto her face. Adrenaline Coursing through her as she runs out of the room.

Before Damian can move he’s tackled to the ground. Jason on top of him hitting him repeatedly. “DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT YOU'VE DONE! SHE WAS FINALLY BETTER AND YOU HAD TO GO FUCK IT UP!” Jason screams as he hits Damian repeatedly. He starts to chick him but is ripped off from Damian and into Bruces chest. Jason thrashing as he hits Bruce. “YOU DID THIS! YOU HURT MY DAUGHTER!” Daughter? Jason doesn’t- then a memory comes to him from a few weeks ago

Damian and her are walking through the park, his arm on her shoulder. They’re trying to collect all the toys that were used with Titus to put into her bag. They Grab the last plush bear and put it in the bag. “You know, you never told me much about your parents, can I ask what their names are?” She seems startled at the question, until she smiles and looks up at Damian. “Oh yeah sorry about that. My moms name is Julie, but she’s not around anymore. My dads name is Jason.”

‘It can’t be?’ Damian thinks. There’s no way it can be her. He runs out the door and sees a trail of blood, he follows the droplets to a broken window. He gets onto the roof and sees her about 5 buildings away. He runs from building to building, trying to keep up but staying behind her enough so she won’t see him.

She drops from a building and this causes him to panic. Why is he panicking? He can’t stand her, so why is the idea of her-he can’t think of that as a pain settles into his chest. He jumps from the same building onto the ground. The gravel meeting his shoes causing a large sound throughout the alleyway. She’s nowhere in sight and the blood trail is gone. He checks behind walls,Behind a dumpster but comes up with nothing. That is until he goes behind the next building and sees her mask on the ground. He grabs it and looks up, he’s met with a tall apartment building. He sees an open window and grapples to it.

He climbs through the window into what looks to be a bedroom. He hesitates to enter, that is until he sees her suit on the floor. The back of it having a patch of blood from the blade. He looks around in the dark room and again, she’s nowhere to be found. He goes to the door and opens it, he creeps into what looks to be the kitchen and sees a light from under a door. He hears water running and what appears to be crying.

He slowly opens the door and his worst thought was correct. There she sits in the bathtub, her knees brought to her chest as sobs wreck her body. Her back to him enough to see the blood trickling down from the water, but that’s not what got his attention. On both shoulder blades, deep red scars that have healed over cover them. The flesh healed but the scars still appear to be deep.

She turns her head at the noise and looks him in the eyes. Tears falling down her cheeks. “A-alexia?” She lets out a yell as she launches at him. Her nails scratching his face as she pushes him out of the room. “GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME!”

Damian stumbles back as she slams the door shut. He hears a noise a few feet away and looks up and sees Jason. “You, you’re her dad? You can’t be! You’re no fucking father! YOU CAN'T BE!” “So you’re the one she’s been going out with all this time. You’re the one who’s made her the happiest I’ve ever seen her. For weeks she’s come home with a smile on her face but never told me who it was. And for the record her name isn’t alexia.” “Then who the fuck is she jason!” “Her name is Saundra. And while she isn’t mine she is my daughter Damian. Just as I was the son to Bruce.” “You’re no father Jason. She’s not your daughter! She’s a psychotic murderer who belongs in Arkham! Along with you!” “Say what you want about me, that I’m a killer, that I’m psycho, that I belong behind bars or in a padded cell. But don’t you DARE call her that! Did she tell you what actually happened to her?” “No I didn’t.” Both men turn around seeing her. She’s wearing a long nightgown with her wet hair hanging in her eyes. Tears falling down her face. She takes in a deep breath, she shudders slightly. Her fingers fidgeting with her dress pockets. “My mom and dad, they loved me. They never wanted me to be sad or feel pain. They hid all of the bad things in the world away from me. They gave me love, along with anything I ever wanted. They always made sure I was protected. Well turns out my dad wasn’t always a nice guy.”Tears are falling freely down her face, she hiccups and wipes her eyes with the palm of her shaken hands. H-he grew up on the streets, committing Petty crimes to get by. That was until one day he was approached by a guy. The guy was looking to rally up a crew to rob a bank. They all wore masks and hid their identities from one another. The guy they were working for had a name. His name was. God, t-the joker. One by one each of the guys were killed. My dad got away from him and changed his name. He later met my mom and had me. Well joker ended up finding us. When I was 16 I never knew what pain, sadness, or anything bad was. My dad made both my mom and I pack up our bags and we fled to a home on the outskirts of Gotham. That night, I watched as my mother was beaten, stabbed screaming for help. My dad was beaten with metal bats repeatedly. I-I tried getting away but was hit over the h-head.” At this point she’s sobbing uncontrollably, shaking as her hands ball into fists at her sides. Her head hanging to the ground. A-and was taken to the ground by joker. My dad screamed at him. ‘Please, not my little angel.’ Those scars, I got from him. He slashed a Serrated knife into my flesh over and over until he reached the bone. When he was done he let out a maniacal laugh as I lay there screaming in pain as blood soaked my nightgown and the floor. He then bent down to my face and said ‘aww poor little angel lost her wings.’ Am I still a monster Damian? Or am I one of that sick fucks countless victims? I wasn’t the first or the last as he kills many more, that is unless he’s finally stopped. We could all be safer, happier, and kids won’t be ripped away from their family.” She looks up at Damian, his face cold as ice as he stares her down “You’re still nothing but a killer. Rather than doing what’s right you chose vengeance over justice. You’re just as bad as they are.” “AND WHAT WAS I BEFORE DAMIAN! When you didn’t know! You saw who I was and I showed you the girl I was before he killed my family and left me for dead! I bore my heart out for you but didn’t tell you because I didn’t think you’d understand what happened to me! THAT NIGHT YOU TOLD ME YOU HAD FEELINGS FOR ME!” She’s shaking as she screams at him. Her voice breaking towards the end from her songs and sore vocal cords. “And I could never be with someone who does the things you do.” At that Damian leaves.

As she hears him jump out the window she falls to the ground. Sobs taking her over. Jason grabbing her and holding her tight to his chest. “He-he kissed me dad. He made me feel like I mattered to him. Like i wasn’t just a monster.” She sobs into his chest. He rocks her back and forth and rubs the bottom of her back. “And what he said doesn’t matter. He’s a fucking prick. You do matter, in fact you’re the reason I keep going. If I didn’t have you..god I can’t even imagine. You’re my world bub.” “How did you know who he was? And why did you say you were once Bruce’s son? What haven’t you told me dad?” Jason bows his head down so as to not look her in the eyes. “I lied to you. There’s things I haven’t told you about my life. But, I only did it to protect you. I promise that.” “Tell me the truth dad. Please. I can’t handle anymore lies.” She grabs the side of his face as she says this. His eyes meeting her tear filled ones. “If I tell you. Please promise you’ll remember I did this because I wanted to protect you.” “I promise dad.”

As Jason lays there on the couch, he looks down at her as she sleeps soundly. Her stuffed bear clutched to her chest. He lazily runs his fingers through her hair. Her tears finally dry tracks on her face. As he looks at her peaceful face, he makes a promise to make those who hurt her pay.

Tags: @psychovigilantewrites @comic-nerd-dc @comic-brew

[gaymortagokat]

What Drew Did During the War   ArtofPadillaAZ

Chapters: 1/1

Fandom:

Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan,

The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence

Relationships: Silena Beauregard & Drew Tanaka, Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano/Drew Tanaka, Silena Beauregard & Clarisse la Rue, Will Solace & Drew Tanaka

Characters: Katie Gardner, Kayla Knowles, Drew Tanaka, Clarisse La Rue, Will Solace, Lacy (Percy Jackson), Valentina Diaz, Mitchell (Percy Jackson), Frank Zhang, Annabeth Chase (Percy Jackson), Percy Jackson, Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano, Nico di Angelo, Octavian (Percy Jackson), Piper McLean, Gaea (Percy Jackson), Leo Valdez, Jason Grace

Additional Tags: Blood, Blood and Injury, Violence, Slight canon diversion, Minor Character Death, Drew is a healer, she is actually good at it, Charmspeak (Percy Jackson), One Shot

Series: Part 3 of Shared Secrets

Summary:   Set during the final scenes of Blood Of Olympus, Drew serves as a medic under her estranged friend Will. She's a fast runner and manages to weave through the fighting with ease. She patches up injured and brings other runners supplies. When the fighting is over she has a moment with Reyna before returning to her cabin to clean up and sleep.

It's not directly related to the Shared Secrets series but is what I had in mind when I wrote it.

Drew knew a war was coming for days, weeks even. She remembered the battles the Ancient Romans fought from world history courses that briefly covered the Greco-Roman world, Egypt, and the Indus Valley. If Camp Jupiter was anything like the old Roman Empire there was going to be a lot of injuries, and not to mention Gaea was trying to kill them all. So Drew spent the last few weeks training. She wasn't a fighter, but she was a runner. She could run for a long time; during spring break, she had participated in a 10K and finished in just under 50 minutes (49:55 to be exact). Drew had done that run with zero extra weight except for the mp3 strapped to her arm. Drew has spent the last few weeks training to carry a backpack filled with anything she might need to stabilize an injured person long enough to get them to the Apollo Cabin or at the very least away from the fighting.

She ran different routes every day pushing herself to go further each time. She weighed down her backpack with rocks she picked up around camp and filled it until she could feel it's weight but left it light enough to not make her lean forward like she had to do with her school backpack. She had even used the weighted backpack to strengthen her arms and legs, and after about a week and a half she felt stronger. 

Each day got closer and closer to the fight against the Romans and Gaea and the day The Seven, Percy and Annabeth, Jason, two Romans, a tiny not so funny Latino who kept trying to flirt with her, and her slightly younger, daughter of a movie star sister, were supposed to save the world. The closer Drew got to that day the more determined she became to do a good job. She didn't want to lose another sibling and didn't know what she would do if she did.

The day before everything was supposed to fall apart Drew went to see an old friend, Will Solstice. They hadn't been particularly close the last few years, but she figured he would be expecting her. After all, he taught her basic first aid and how to use unconventional items as a tourniquet or splint (in return Drew taught him how to repair torn clothes and how to use a flat iron).

Drew found him taking inventory of all the medical supplies available in the med bay. "Hey, Hon, I need some supplies for tomorrow."

The curly haired blonde jumped and Drew snickered quietly. "Gods Drew. Learn to knock."

"Sorry, my schedule is a bit full."

"I'm sure you would have time if you cut a few minutes off your gossip time. You said you needed supplies for tomorrow?"

"Yes."

"I can't give you them, you know that. The day of anyone providing medical care receives a bag with prepackaged supplies."

"I know that. But you and I both know I'm the fastest runner you'll have tomorrow and many will decide to fight instead. You'll have extra bags."

"That better not have been Charmspeak, Drew."

"Oh please. Why would I use Charmspeak to convince you of the truth?" 

Will thought for a second, his bright eyes taking in her expression while his brain decided her level of honesty. "Alright," Will decided, "I'll give you supplies. Come on." Will motioned for her to follow him.

He led her to a shelf containing gauze and medical tape. "Open your bag. I'm just going to toss things in and we'll organize once I've got everything."

Drew listened and held open her bag. They moved along the shelves as Will tossed gauze, tape, liquid bandage, rulers, rope, Neosporin, pre cut cloth, medical stapler, extra staples, antiseptic wipes, containers of ambrosia (liquid and solid) and other medical salves. 

Will looked at the overflowing bag, "okay that's enough." He sat down where she was standing and Drew followed.

They organized the supplies, and as Will placed them in the bag he told her her instructions for the next day. 

"You probably won't need the Neosporin until after the fight- only use it on smaller cuts and burns after they've been clean. The gauze is for heavier bleeding, use the cloths for lighter stuff if necessary- '' Drew of course knew all of this but a final reminder was always helpful. "Rulers and cloths are for splints. Cloths are also for tourniquets. Stapler to reattach limbs- remember a bit of ambrosia with major injuries. Liquid bandage for smaller cuts also to be used after all the fighting and once a cut is cleaned. Hence the antiseptic cloths. If you need to give stitches always rinse off blood so you can see. I didn't give you any supplies to give stitches. I know you have things that will work. The salve you will probably use after as well. 

Tomorrow, I want you to handle the more major injuries. You see something. Just go to it. You can get to them faster than anyone and with major injuries and grave injuries every second makes a difference. Stabilized them then get them away from the fight. Do your best to get them to someone who can look after them. And please, Drew, have good bedside manner. A calm voice can do a lot to help people relax. And last but not least have a water bottle on you. You're going to be doing a lot of running. I don't need you passing out from dehydration."

"Alright. Thanks Doll. For the supplies." Drew stood to leave slipping on her backpack as she did so. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Good night, Drew."

"Night."

Drew exited the cabin and made her way to her own. She walked past Hephaestus and Ares kids as they rushed off in various directions to set up more defences along the camp's border. They have been doing that for days. Aries kids laid landmines near one of the predicted entrances the Romans would take while Hephaestus kids with some help from the Athena Cabin built and set up blockades at strategic points.

Drew twisted the knob to her cabin door feeling the cool metal on her palm and releasing a heavy sigh from deep in her chest as she pushed open the door. Inside the cabin were all her brother's and sisters- she slipped off her shoes and went to her bed. Her siblings were laying out their clothes for tomorrow. Drew followed her siblings lead and grabbed running shorts with a 6 inseam, a light sleeveless shirt, the most comfortable sports bra she owned, running socks that had a second layer at the toes and heel, had arch support and would rest above her ankles (every time she wore no show socks something went wrong on her run), and her favorite running shoes. Her favorite running shoes matched her shorts (turquoise and pink). They were her favorite brand because they consistently were breathable, comfortable, and beautiful. The first pair she ever wore were from Silena.

About four summers ago Silena arrived to camp a few days later than usual with a loosely wrapped box. When the two of them had a moment alone Silena smiled softly and handed Drew the box. "I'm sorry it's wrapped poorly. I was in a hurry."

"It's alright, Silena." Drew hooked a finger under the paper and pulled. When she opened the box she saw pink running shoes.

"They're trail running shoes. They'll work a thousand times better than your Vans."

"Thank you Silena. Can't wait to use them."

"I hope I got the size right."

Drew checked the inside tag. "You did."

"Do you wanna go on a run tomorrow morning?"

"Only if we go swimming after."

"I think we can."

Drew smiled at the memory. Since that summer Drew always came to camp with trail running shoes. She set her shoes and clothes on the foot of her bed and laid down. She closed her eyes listening to the occasional chatter of her siblings. They were quieter today, but Drew guessed that was what happened when people were preparing for war.

"Drew" -One of her brothers said carefully- "are you awake?"

She opened her eyes and sat up. "I am. What's wrong Hon?"

"What's going to happen tomorrow?" He asked. He was three years younger than Drew and had arrived at camp the last year. If it wasn't for the impending fight Drew would have considered him lucky for having never known anyone who has died in a demi-god related battle.

"Tomorrow most of the campers will be fighting. And when it's over many will have various injuries." Drew said simply.

"But what will it be like?"

"Loud. Lots of yelling. You'll hear cabin leaders giving orders, and you might get a bit disoriented."

"You're our cabin leader. Won't you be fighting?"

"No. I'll be pulling injured from the fighting."

"What does that mean for us?" Another sibling asked.

"I want you all in pairs at the minimum. Look after each other. If you want to fight I won't stop you. You'll partner up with another cabin if that's what you choose. If you don't want to fight you'll be treating the wounded. Pulling people out of the fighting and patching up wounds until they can be seen by any member of the Apollo Cabin. If that's what you want to do, look out for siblings and others doing that job. It's a solo job but do your best to know where others are. And when the fighting is over and everyone is in camp borders we all meet back here. No exceptions."

The siblings all nodded. No charmspeak was necessary for them to do what Drew wanted this time. 

"We all need sleep. If you're not done preparing for tomorrow you have five minutes then all lights are being turned off." Drew laid back down and closed her eyes once more. 

In the morning Drew started her day with stretches. There was no telling when her job would start and it was important to have her muscles warmed up unless she wanted to pull something after running for a short period of time. Once she was finished she met with her cabin for breakfast where she had something high in sugar and fulfilling.

The next several hours passed in anxious waiting. The Romans and the monsters standing behind them were closer to camp than they ever had been before, and the number of monsters had grown double what they were when Drew saw them last. Drew had snuck out of camp to see them days earlier. If they weren't intimidating then with their silhouettes outlined by the sun they sure are now when they could attack camp at any moment. 

Will gathered all his medics in the early evening and went over their job. Drew looked around at the group. There were a few of the youngest Apollo, Athena, Iris, and Demeter kids, and half of her cabin. Drew was the oldest having just turned 16 before summer began. She was also the tallest and the only one not wearing leg and thigh guards and arm guards since she found the metal to be restrictive.

Will finished speaking and everyone split up to head to different points where the battle was predicted to take place. Drew stayed behind to find out where Will was going to be.

"Drew. What's up?"

"Just wondering' where you'll be?"

"I'm on sabotage duty. We're going to try to take down as many catapults as possible. Just remember to go where you think you're needed, and here," Will pulled out what looked like a thin metal box and held it out to her.

Once it was in her hand she recognized it. A butterfly knife. Drew looked at him quizzically, "What do i need this for?"

"Just in case. I w-" yelling outside camp caught their attention. "I got to go. You need to head out too."

Drew nodded and they both ran off. Drew pushed past the Cave of the Oracle and Thalia's Tree towards the farm road. The closer she got the louder the fighting became. Just before the road was Camp Jupiter holding a line. Behind them was a line of monsters. They weren't moving. Just watching. A figure In front of them appeared to be the one giving the orders. He said something to the person next to him and disappeared into the army of monsters.  A scream nearby caught her attention and she ran towards it.

It was an eighteen-year-old from the Hephestus cabin he had been at camp since before Drew first arrived, and he had taken an arrow to the knee. Drew knelt at his side. "Hey," Drew said, putting a hand on his shoulder, "Hey, just breathe. I'm gonna get you out of here."

"Drew?"

"Yeah it's me-" Drew wanted to use his name knowing it would help him calm down, but she simply did not know what it was. "-Sweetheart. I have to get this arrow out of your leg then I'm going to heal you a bit and get you out of here."

She pulled out a container of cubed ambrosia, gauze and opened the butterfly knife. One hand held the shaft of the arrow while the other tried to snap off the arrow head. She could hear the wood creak as she tried to carefully remove the metal. It wasn't working. "Screw it," she muttered. She gripped the metal firmly and pulled hard. The arrow head broke off with a snap and the son of Hephestus groaned in pain.

"Sorry Hon. That was just the easy part. I need you to stay as still as you can." She placed a small piece of ambrosia in his hand and closed his hand. "Don't eat this til after the arrow is out."

He gave her a small nod. Drew pulls her hand straight up as fast as she could. Blood poured from the wound for a few seconds until the ambrosia took effect. The worst of the damage was healed. Drew wrapped his knee then put the ambrosia away. 

She held the knife in one hand and helped him to his feet. He was heavy. Drew adjusted the weight and began walking. Their first few steps were shaky and they had both nearly fallen, but they worked out s system. They walked at least forty feet away from the battle. Deciding it was a safe enough distance, Drew helped him sit down under a tree.

"Stay here. Someone from the Apollo Cabin will finish healing you."

"Thank you."

"Not a problem, Sweetheart. I've got to go, but you stay safe." Drew closed the knife and jogged off. 

It wasn't long before she saw another camper on the ground. A few others stood in front shielding them from further injury. Drew increased her speed. She dodged a few Romans and zipped around her fellow campers. 

She recognized this camper too. He was younger than her, and had been at camp maybe a year now. He dated a brother? Or a sister? Maybe it was both? Drew wasn't sure. 

"Drew, thank gods! You gotta help me."

"I plan on it." She looked closely at him, finding only a broken arm. "You got a broken arm. I'll set it. I don't recommend still fighting."

The splint was easy to make even with the unconventional supplies. The hardest part was focusing long enough to finish it. She was closer to the center of the fighting and the three peers protecting her and the younger boy were actively fighting Romans. Metal hit metal and rang in her ears uncomfortably. "Alright, you're done. I gotta go. Try not to break anything else."

They both stood and went their separate ways. Drew ran to the next person and the boy returned to fighting but moved further back. 

She finished setting a broken leg and was in the middle of pulling the girl to her feet when two of her siblings stopped her. 

"Drew, we can take her back. There's someone bleeding that way."

"Well why aren't you two heading over there?!"

"It's nearly a mile. We'll never make it." The ‘on time’ went unsaid.

"Alright. I left someone back there," she pointed the direction where she left the Hephestus kid. "It's away from the fighting."

"We'll take her there." Both her siblings took the girl from Drew, and as soon as Drew was free she began running. 

There was no guarantee she was going to make it on time. She had no idea what this person's injuries were like. She made her way through the fighting. She ran a few minutes and ended up in the area with little fighting. Looking ahead she spotted a group of 3 kneeling around something she couldn't see. Figuring it was the injured she was told about. She sped up, and Gods she hated being right.

There was blood. A lot of it. Coming from the arm. A sister's hands were covered in it. Her sister looked up at her, blue eyes filled with fear. "Drew, thank gods. You gotta help us. The bleeding has slowed, but we don't know what else to do."

Drew looked between the three trying to save the mystery campers life and noticed none of them were wearing a backpack. "Alright. One of you needs to move over."

Drew reached in her backpack and grabbed ambrosia, gasuse and medical tape. She handed the ambrosia to the person to her left and leaned over to press the gauze on the cut. "Did you give them some ambrosia?"

"Yeah."

Drew lifted her hands and checked the wound. "The bleeding has stopped but it's still open. Give them a little bit more." She looked at someone else. "There's antiseptic wipes in my bag. We have to clean off some of the blood if the tape is gonna stick."

They got the area around the stab wound cleaned and were taping down a new sheet of gauze when her sister said "What is that?"

They all followed her gaze and spotted monsters and dog headed men and Centaurs. They wore the symbol of Camp Jupiter, but it was obvious they weren't campers. They had moved closer to the Roman Campers line and had begun to attack them. Things were about to get a whole lot worse.  

"You three stay here. Protect them. I'll send someone over to help." She zipped up her backpack and left.

She ran straight towards the fighting. Camp Jupiter was getting hit from both sides. She looked around trying to find any one she knew. She spotted an orange shirt and moved towards it. They got knocked down, but not without taking a Roman with them. Drew stood between the two and assessed their injuries. The Camp Half-Blood camper had a dislocated or broken elbow, Drew wasn't really sure she would have to get a closer look, and the Roman had a deep laceration on his arm. She wasn't even sure if she should help him; they weren't exactly on the same side. She remembered the promise she made to herself and what the army of monsters have begun doing. She wouldn't let someone else lose a sibling if she could help it. She knelt at his side slipping off her backpack- "What the hell, Drew!" She reached for the liquid ambrosia and a cloth. "Why you helping him?"

Drew's eyes narrowed. She let a few drops of ambrosia drip onto the cut as she said, "If you haven't noticed, Someone told the monsters to begin attacking. The Roman's are fighting a war on two fronts, and if history has taught us anything they won't last long. It would be better if we worked together instead of trying to kill each other which Gaea wants to do to all of us." She found an antiseptic cloth and wiped away the blood to find that the cut was shallower than before. She put a few more drops of Ambrosia and watched as the laceration became more like  a papercut. "You're all healed now, Hon."

"Thanks."

Drew turned around and did her best to set the broken arm. "There's some campers back there," Drew pointed to the direction she came from, "they might need some help. A camper is down. Blood loss from a cut on their arm. I healed them enough to stop the bleeding but they can't fight anymore. Three others are there protecting them."

"There are three people, why do they need help?" The Roman asked like the concept was foreign to him. 

Drew popped the joint back in place and looked back at the Roman surprised he hadn't returned to the fighting. "Two of them are my siblings and we aren't exactly known for being good fighters." Her words confused him more.

"I'll go," the other boy said.

"You have a broken arm."

"It's alright. Clarisse made all of us learn how to fight with one arm and the other hand."

Drew nodded. "Try not to undo my work."

“I’ll go with him.” The Roman stated.

“Isn’t that technically desertion? A crime if I am remembering military law correctly.”

“The Praetors are missing, my camp is being attacked by monsters and fighting yours because orders are orders. When the Praetors come back just don’t tell them what I did.”

Drew nodded and together they helped the Ares kid to his feet, and Drew handed him his sword before moving on to the next person.

Drew was finishing the knot on the cloth bandage when an explosion caught her attention. She looked in the direction of the noise and saw a mix of dirt and smoke in the air. A second explosion went off a short distance away and Drew realized the cause. The landmines.

She ran as fast as she could twisting around campers, ducking swords and jumping over kicked out legs. A few times she dropped to the ground and slid a few feet. At the edge of the minefield she saw a small group of Greeks were the closest to her off to her left directly in front of her were Romans. A quick glance at the Greeks told her they have a medic with them. A few Romans tried to get closer to the group sitting on the ground. Drew yelled at them filling her voice with Charmspeak, "Everybody stop walking!" She called to the Greeks attempting to give medical aid to one of their friends, "Do you have enough supplies?"

"Could use some more ambrosia."

"Alright, I'll come to you." She looked back at the Romans finding a few of them had moved a few steps. "Hey! What did I tell you!" Drew yelled using Charmspeak once more, "stop walking!"

Drew looked at the ground between her and her peers finding circles where the ground had been disturbed. Those must be the mines. She plotted a path and carefully followed it. She handed one of the campers a few cubes of ambrosia and looked at the larger group of Romans. 

"What are the injuries over there?"

"Uh she's bleeding a lot from her leg and arm. It's bad."

Drew plotted the path she would take step by step. She couldn't take her time. A Roman created a space or her and she dropped to her knees and began to access the damage.

The girl had shrapnel in her legs and arms. The bleeding in her left leg was the most worrying. One of her brothers in arms appeared to have his fingers inside her leg pinching something closed. The leg looked torn apart everywhere metal armor wasn't. The girls pants have been ripped around her wounds to reveal her dark skin. She needed the metal shards removed from her arms and legs before she could be healed.

"What happens if you remove your fingers?"

"She'll bleed, a lot."

Drew nodded and broke off a piece of ambrosia and handed it to the only other person without bloody hands. "She needs to eat this. It will heal her a little bit. Hopefully enough to stop the bleeding but not enough to make her heal around the metal."

She pulled out gauze and the butterfly knife and laid them on the girl's stomach. She grabbed a few larger strips of cloth and medical tape and laid them out as well.

"Remove your fingers slowly."

Drew watched ready to reapply pressure to the girl's leg. The girl was still bleeding, not a dangerous amount. She cut a piece of gauze into a smaller square and placed it over the wound applying the slightest bit of pressure.

"Now we can pull out the metal." She looked at the girl, "we'll try to be quick. Do your best to stay as still as you can."

"We can help." A voice said from behind her. Drew turned and saw the Romans who were trying to get here earlier. Looks like they've figured out how to navigate the minefield.

One knelt down next to her and placed his hands on the injured teen's leg just above her ankle. The other held down her shoulders so they could remove the metal from her arms.

They all did the best they could to pull the metal out with their bare hands. It became more difficult as their hands became slick with blood. Drew found herself wiping her hands on her shirt. A large number of metal shards were impeded deep in the girl's skin; they had to make the cut larger in order to pinch the metal between their fingers and pull it out. The entire time the girl screamed and moaned in pain. She occasionally broke free and accidentally slapped or kicked someone (not that anyone could blame her). 

They had only been working a few minutes when they heard the armies of both camps and the army of monsters stop fighting. Drew looked over confused. She had heard no orders for them to do that. Campers were looking west at the setting sun that had turned the sky orange. Drew followed their gaze and spotted pegasi outlined by the orange sun. And on the lead pegasus was a figure. Drew could make out a cloak sparkling in the sunlight and what could be a long braid, and below the girl and the pegasi was a statue. It was a statue Drew had only ever seen in drawings in textbooks and documentaries. The Athena Parthenos. 

The statue was set down near Thalia's Tree and the girl on the pegasus, Guido, landed in the clearing behind the Greeks. She yelled that she was returning it in an act of peace. Her voice carried to even the person furthest away from her. She wanted the Romans to stand with the Greeks. 

A smaller darker figure ran up to join her. It was Nico Di Angelo. "Listen to her!" He yelled. "Reyna risked her life for all of you!"

It was out of character for Nico to speak in front of a large group of people let alone tell them what to do. Drew had to admit, it was very brave of him. "If you haven't noticed Gaea is rising. If-"

YOU WILL DIE. 

The voice shook the earth. Drew felt her chest tighten as the wind picked up. The ground felt stickier than it had been seconds earlier. Drew looked down and saw the bloody earth bubbling slightly. A bubble popped below her leg and she felt the bloody mixture stick to her leg and move as if it was trying to pull her down. Gaea was officially awake, and they were surrounded.

The Roman girl yelled, "CLOSE RANKS!" Everyone standing rushed to stand shoulder to shoulder with the nearest person.

Some pasty blond Drew recognized as the Roman who led the army to Camp pushed through his auxilia troops- the monsters Drew understood to be the ones everyone was concerned about. The ones that had the Romans fighting on two fronts.

Drew rushed to finish removing the metal from the girl and quickly bandaged her. “By camp over there. I’ve been leaving injured. Can you take her there?” Drew asked all the Romans knowing she was unable to carry the girl let alone drag her through a minefield without accidentally blowing them up.

“Yes.”

“Here’s an extra piece of ambrosia. You only need a tiny bit to heal. Too much and it will kill you.”

Drew heard the clopping of horse hooves and turned to look. There was a squad of Centaurs joining the fight. “Don’t look those dudes in the eye unless you want to fight them.” one of the other boys told her.

“You two take her to where the other injured are, we’ll try to create a space to reach the others.” One decided standing up.

“Who says you get to be the one to decide what we do?” A girl asked. 

“I’m the oldest.”

Drew knew the type of arguing. Siblings. “It doesn’t matter who does what job,” Drew snapped using a bit of charmspeak, “we can’t stay here long.”

“The Greek is right. Whatever we do we need to decide fast. I don’t wanna be in this minefield once it’s dark.”

They all stood to leave when Drew felt something warm hit her arm. She brushed her hand down her arm and found fresh blood on her hand. She looked at the person next to her and saw blood dripping down his hand. “Hey, wait. You’re bleeding.”

He looked at her and in the setting sun his helmet reflected the light. She looked past the reflective metal into his dark eyes. “I’m alright. I’ll take care of it later.”

“I can take care of it right now.”

“No, it’s alright.”

“Okay. You have the ambrosia I gave you. Take a small piece of it. It will at least stop your bleeding.”

He nodded and jogged to catch up with his fellow soldiers.

Drew stayed where she was and studied the battle infront of her. How was she going to slip into that and pull an injured person away from that. She looked for any space and thought she spotted a way in when an explosion nearby knocked her down. 

Disoriented, she looked around off to one side and spotted a very injured Two Headed man; there were more behind them as well as a few Dog-headed men. Both creatures had very little fashion sense. The Two Headed men seemed to be wearing whatever cloth they found that fit around them. They were poorly dressed and made Brooklyn’s homeless look like kings (at least the few Drew had met had tried to keep clean and wore outfits while nearly monochromatic at least had their entire bodies covered).

The other Two Headed men hadn’t seen her yet. She thought she could use this to her advantage and picked up a few rocks before she stood up. She faced them then looked behind her. If she did everything right she could clear the minefield without injury. 

She threw a rock at the Two Headed men, she had missed hitting them but captured their attention. She turned slightly and threw the rest of the rocks in the direction of the Dog-headed men and captured their attention as well as some Centaurs. A Centaur ran at her and she spun on her heel and ran. She ran on the sections of raised earth avoiding the pits. Explosions went off behind her hitting enemies with celestial bronze shards. One explosion was close enough to her that it knocked her flat on her stomach. Her face connected with her forearms. After a few moments she stood silently thanking the Ares Cabin for making the path she was on wide enough for a person twice her size to lay on it. An arrow blew past her head, and she yelped before sprinting. She ran towards Half-Blood Hill and darted around some trees pausing behind what she hoped was adequate cover. In her brief pause to catch her breath she felt a dull ache in her thigh. She twisted to look at the area and found the source of her pain- a piece of metal easily the size of her hand was embedded in her toned thigh. She heard the crunching of sticks and leaves nearby. She covered her mouth with a hand and pulled out the metal. One of the Dog-headed men spotted her and alerted the rest of his group. Drew dropped the metal and began running once more before any of the monsters could get close. 

She looped back around to the campers and spotted her brother who looked at her with wide eyes. A few other campers noticed her and created a space. Drew slipped in the army a few seconds later Dog-headed men slammed into Roman shields. Behind them were a few Two Headed men and a Centaur. 

Someone tapped Drew’s shoulder. She whirled around and faced a helmet-less Roman with freckles and copper hair. “You’re a medic, right?”

“Today.”

He made a motion for her to follow. “My brother is hurt bad. We pulled him to the center. There are other injured there. Reyna wants to get them out of here to somewhere safe.

Drew had no idea who Reyna was but nodded anyways. In the center was a larger open space where some injured were laying. There was only one medic tending to the six injured. She slipped off her backpack and pulled out both forms of ambrosia.

The Roman led her to where the other medic was and kneeled at the injured boy’s side. He had been hit on part of the face and upper arm. Drew swore if she looked close enough she would see the boy’s bone. 

She opened the cubed ambrosia and grabbed the most appropriate bite sized piece. “Make sure he eats this. It will help heal him.” She put the cubed ambrosia away and grabbed gauze. She passed some to the other medic and placed the rest on the boys shoulder and applied pressure. He had healed a lot but was still bleeding. Blood seeped through the layers of gauze soaking Drew’s hands. She increased the pressure. After some time she removed her hands. He was still bleeding. Drew grabbed the medical stapler to close the wound and watched his breathing. 

She patted his face, “Hey stay awake, Dear. You can’t fall asleep right now.” his breathing was slow and his eyes were half closed. “Wake up,” Drew said with Charmspeak. The boy’s eyes snapped open. “You’re alright. I’m going to close the wound. It might hurt a bit.”

She pinched the skin together and stapled it. Three staples and it was closed. The other medic looked at her like she was a genius. “There are a few others who could use that.” he told her. “Can I borrow that?”

“Yeah, here.”

She turned back to the injured boy. She opened the liquid ambrosia and pulled out the eye dropper. She released a few drops of the golden liquid over the now closed cut and watched as his bleeding had completely stopped. She moved her hand and released a few more drops over the cut on his face. Now she had to clean him up and cover the wounds. Salve and gauze went over his cuts. “Stay awake, okay. I need to go check on the others. I’ll be back shortly.”

She made her way to the other medic. “What have the other injuries been like?”

“Mostly the same. There’s a few broken bones. I don’t have anything to heal them with. We need to think about how we are going to move them.”

“I can do it. Keep the ones here stable and awake. I’ll go around and give them some ambrosia. The first boy is ready. He lost a lot of blood. We might not be able to move him.”

“I’m working my way back. I'll check on him.”

Drew nodded. She worked her way around the group of injured and passed out ambrosia. Those with broken bones were near completely healed and decided to stick around and help move the other injured. 

The first boy was standing with the support of the Roman medic. Drew traded places with them and handed him the bottle of liquid ambrosia. She instructed him on how to use it. 

With the help from a few fighters Drew walked the injured boy to the spot where she had been leaving injured just before the border of Camp Half-Blood. There were more injured than she remembered bringing. 

The fighters who had protected Drew and the boy helped her lay him down. They got him settled when a son of Apollo walked up to her. “Are the bandages his only injuries. From what I could tell. Do you have supplies here?”

“Some. Could use some more ambrosia.”

“There’s a few boxes in my backpack, feel free to take one.” she turned away from him and lowered herself to his height. She waited until she heard the backpack close before turning back to him. “There’s at least three more I’ll be bringing back here.”

“Alright. If you see any of my siblings send them here. I could use another set of hands.”

“Will do. See you in a bit, Hon.”

Drew rushed back to the fighting and saw that the combined camps managed to push their enemies back a few inches. It was easier for Drew and the others to make their way back to the center. She helped another person to their feet. It was hard to support this girl. She was at least a foot shorter than Drew. 

The Roman medic approached her before she left. “I’m out of supplies.”

Drew looked around for anyone wearing a backpack to call them over to help. When she didn’t find someone she did the next best thing: capturing the attention of a CHB camper. “Hey, I need you to find another medic. Someone wearing a backpack. We’re running low on supplies here.”

“I’m on it.” the camper ran off.

The ground began to shake. Softly at first then it was like a rug had been pulled out from other them. Campers fell to the ground, including Drew and the young teen she was supporting. Through all the chatter of people and surprised screams the voice of the girl who returned the Athena Parthenos boomed. “EVERYBODY UP!” Drew struggled to find her footing in the shaking dirt. She was about to fall again when someone’s arm wrapped around her, holding her inplace. The person walked around her and helped the girl up. Drew realized it was Clarisse- Silena’s former best friend whom she wanted nothing to do with. “Thanks.”

Clarisse gave her a small smile and nodded towards the girl. “Get her out of here.”

Drew returned to her previous position and took careful steps. Together they fought their way across the quaking earth step by step. The pair nearly collapsed steps away from their destination. One of the self appointed guards led them to an empty space. 

“Have you seen any of my siblings, Drew.”

Oh shit, I forgot I was supposed to find one of Apollo’s children. “No, not yet, Hon. I sent someone to find another person with a backpack the medic down there is out of supplies”

“Give them some of your gauze and cloths since you’re bringing people here.”

Drew noticed the grass wrapping itself around the fingers of the people laying down. “What is going on here?”

“The grass is trying to hold those who aren’t moving much down. I’ve been having people go around and cut it.”

“You're still good on supplies, Sweetheart?”

“For now.”

“I’ll be right back.”

Drew began to jog back when the earth shook violently once more. She stumbled but stayed upright. The ground split open in front of her. She jumped over the crack with ease and continued on. She made it back to the other injured campers and saw mostly new faces. The others have been moved by other campers. Drew remembered seeing them on her way back. 

“Drew! You’re here.” Lacy yelled.

“Sweetheart, you're the one they found?”

“Yes. I am running low on supplies.”

Drew opened her hiking backpack and pulled out an unopened box of gauze and a lump of cut cloth. “I have extras.” She handed the stack to Lacey. Then moved on to the Roman medic. “Hey, you’re out of supplies, right?”

“Yes.”

She placed a box of gauze in his hands. “I’m looking for an Apollo kid; have any come by. They need help at the makeshift field hospital. There’s only one medic there.”

“I’m an Apollo kid.”

“Any siblings nearby?”

“I’m sure I can find a few. You start patching people up and I’ll go look.” He handed back the gause.

“Alright.”

They parted ways. Drew knelt at someone's side and applied pressure to their arm. The bleeding was too much. Drew reached in her bag for a strip of cloth, tucked in under the person’s arm above the wound and tied it. She pulled it as tight as she could then knotted it. She needed to get them out of here and to a child of Apollo. She pulled them to their feet and put their good arm over her shoulder. She was going to hand them off to someone else to take them to the field hospital when the Roman came back with a few others.

“This is my brother and sister.”

“Great, we need to get this person to the field hospital. At least one of you need to come with me.”

“I’ll go.” The sister volunteered. “I’ll trade you places.”

Drew nodded. And transferred the nearly unconscious person to the other person. Drew led the two Romans to the field hospital. On the very edges of the campers line she spotted Katie. She put a hand on their arm and said, “I need your help, follow me.” 

“Drew, you’re back.”

“He’s got a deep cut on his arm. We need to take care of this immediately.” Roman said.

“Who’s this?”

“Roman daughter of Apollo. She’s gonna stay here and help.”

“What did you need me for, Drew.”

“The grass is starting to grow around people’s bodies. I figured you could do something.”

“I’ll try. I make no promises.”

Drew furrowed her brows. A sound captured her attention instinct told her it was Charmspeek, which was weird she hadn’t said anything. She looked at camp and saw what she thought were two floating figures in the deep orange sky. Then she realized where the Charmspeak came from; Piper. The Seven had returned. 

“The earthquakes stopped.” Katie noted.

Drew looked at one of the campers laying down. The grass that was once snugly around their fingers was now loose and made no effort to grow and retighten. Not only that, the wind had stopped howling. “Gaea’s asleep.”

“Does that mean we won?”

“No.” Drew said simply. “We still have work to do.”

“How much gauze do you have?”

“Few boxes I think.”

“Leave some of it here. I’ll be out soon.”

Drew nodded and handed over two boxes and a vial of liquid ambrosia. She only had two boxes of gauze left and 1 full bottle of ambrosia.

Drew ran back, dodging swings from Dog-headed men and Two Headed men. She pushed past the first few lines and nearly ran into Annabeth. They both stared at each other for a moment before looking away and continuing their tasks. 

Back at the center Drew knelt next to one of Clarisse’s siblings. They needed stitches, something that was too hard to give in near darkness. She grabbed the stapler from her bag and used it in place of staples. She applied a salve and moved on to the next person.

“Drew?” Will asked carefully.

“Yes, Hon?”

“Were running out of supplies here.”

“So is the field hospital.”

Will sighed. “Give them the rest of your gauze and ambrosia. And leave the cloth strips here. The other medics are on their way here anyone with gauze will give it to you to take to the field hospital. We’ll have some staplers here. I’ll have you take some as well.”

“Do I keep the half full bottle of ambrosia? I have a full one in my backpack.”

“Yes keep the half full bottle, a few cloth strips and rulers, and your stapler.” 

“Alright.” Drew removed all the bundles of cloth strips except one and handed them to Will along with most of the rulers.

More medics with backpacks arrived and handed over what little gauze and ambrosia they had left. Drew zipped the backpack closed. “Drew, before you come back here,” Will began, “Can you grab more cloth from camp. We’re gonna need it.”

Drew nodded. “I’ll grab what I can.”

“Hurry.”

Drew took off running. She dropped off the gauze and ambrosia and staplers. Before she left she told one of the Apollo kids that more would join them soon and Will was assigning new jobs.

In the distance she spotted the lights from cabins and ran to the nearest one. She tossed open the door. There was a pile of freshly cleaned sheets on a table. Thank the gods, the Demeter Cabin hadn’t changed their sheets yet. Drew opened her backpack and stuffed as many sheets as she could inside. She closed it as much as she could and ran back to the medics. 

Both camps had increased the ground they held in the minutes she was gone. She easily made her way back and began taking out the sheets. The people not helping the injured began to tear the sheets into strips. A small pile was created in seconds. Will handed her the entire thing. “Take this back to the field hospital. I’ll be going with you.” Will told her. Drew waited until Will had helped someone to their feet and was successfully supporting them. 

They moved as quickly as they could in the dark. Drew had the cloth strips bundled in one arm and the Celestial bronze butterfly knife in her other hand. The metal glowed in the near complete darkness and provided some extra light. Halfway to the field hospital an explosion went off in the minefield. Will and Drew looked that direction then at each other. “Go, I’ve got this.” 

Drew ran over and scanned the field. She couldn’t see anything that told her who or what set off the landmine. “Hey! We’re over here.” Drew turned to the sounds and spotted a group of campers in the middle of the field. Two Headed men were crossing the field towards them. Drew looked down at her feet then ahead a few feet. It was flat. She stepped forward. The spot where she would be taking her next step appeared to dip. She squatted and brought the knife closer to it. She was right so she looked to the space next to her. Clear. She repeated the process while the Two Headed men walked across the field setting off mines.

Dirt hit her as she moved closer to the group. An explosion close to her knocked her back. Fear rose in her chest. She did not want to get killed by a mine. She had ringing in her ears, an intense headache, and pain nearly all over her body. Carefully she rose to her feet and continued crossing the field placing more weight on her left leg. One of the campers grabbed her wrist and pulled her towards them. “You have to help us.” A higher pitched voice said. “She’s bleeding too much. I don’t know what to do.”

Drew knelt down and did her best to feel what was wrong. The ground beneath her was wet and sticky and she could feel what she thought could have been Jeans. She squinted  attempting to focus better on the figure in front of her. She looked up and saw the injured girl’s face. She was blinking slowly. Drew dragged her eyes down to the teens arms. She couldn’t see anything except a faint outline, but she reached out feeling for a hand and found it. It was ice cold. Winter’s in New York cold. Blood Loss. She pressed two fingers into their wrist and felt a weak pulse. Her eyes moved further down and began to panic. She was sitting where her legs should be.

She acted quickly and put tourniquets on what was left of the teens legs. She pulled as tight as she could. “One of you need to carry her. Follow me. Single file.” Drew stood and led them back the way she came. Silently praying she hadn’t mixed up her directions. 

Drew led the campers all the way to the field hospital as fast as she could while making sure they were keeping up. At the field hospital Drew turned to face them. She helped lay the girl on the ground then Drew registered the way the girl had moved when they laid her down and the glassiness in her eyes. Drew nearly burst into tears. The girl was dead. Drew stumbled back. Maybe if I had been faster- someone touched her shoulder. Drew slowly turned and came face to face with Will.

“It’s not the time, Drew. We can’t stop yet.”

“I promised I wouldn’t-”

“You did everything you could. Injuries like that are hard to heal in the middle of the day, let alone in the dark.”

“If I just noticed sooner.”

“I don’t think it would have made much difference. Come on. I need help bringing more people here.”

Drew took a deep breath and winced at the smell of blood and something charred. “Let’s go.”

Drew ran back steps in front of Will, picked up an injured person and walked them back. She turned around to head back and saw a pack of Dog-headed men in the distance. The camps had gone through over half of the army or monsters. This new group would extend the battle by a few minutes.

She rushed back and grabbed another person and brought them back. She repeated this a few times when a Roman Camper stopped her.

“Will said you’re the fastest runner.”

“What do you need.”

“We’re running low on ambrosia here. In our camp we might have the draught we use there, but camp is on the other side of the road about two miles from here. I don’t know if any of it is there. I wasn’t in charge of supplies, and I haven’t been able to find my brother who was.”

“Which tent will it be in?”

“It will be in the open there will be a canopy over it. It will look like a stack of crates. You’ll probably find it next to a larger tent. One of the biggest there. There may be a cart nearby. Bring as much as you can back.”

“What do you need?”

“The draught. It's labeled. And bandages.” He held out a flashlight. “You might need this.”

“Thanks. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Drew ran as fast as she could. If her speed was consistent with her other times it would be eight to ten minutes to run the two miles. Her feet hit the ground at a standard rhythm. She focused on her breathing and keeping her arms from crossing in front of her. She slid under the swing of a Two Headed man and quickly jumped to her feet and kept going

“Drew! Where are you going?” Annabeth yelled.

“I’ll be right back! Have to go get something!” Drew yelled back, not wasting a second to turn around.

The sounds of battle grew quieter. Drew could hear the pounding of footsteps behind her, some were heavier than others. She looked behind her and spotted Annabeth and Dog-headed men. Annabeth drew a sword that was the same color as the moon. Drew couldn’t stop even if she wanted to. She said she would be back as fast as she could and she knew Annabeth could handle herself; Drew on the other hand wouldn’t be able to last in a fight.

She faced forward and kept running. Her muscles performed movements she was familiar with. Drew looked down briefly watching the separation in her steps she looked up to see the remains of the Romans camp. She focused on taking wider steps. 

As she drew closer, smaller tents for sleeping were missing. Larger tents had been destroyed. The only thing still standing was a canopy type tent like the ones used at marathons over the water tables. Hopefully that’s the supplies.

Drew skid to a stop and turned on the flashlight. She shined the light towards the canopy and saw crates. The butterfly knife fit under the wooden lid and she lifted to pry the box open. The wood creaked then the lid came free. Peering inside she found bandages. She moved to another box and saw it was labeled ‘Draught’. She opened the box and found water bottles. 

There was no way Drew could fit more than one box of water bottles in her backpack. She looked around for a cart and found one roughly three times the size of a child’s red Radio Flyer wagon overturned feet away. She jogged over and exclaimed it. The wheels looked fine. She spun it to be sure. It turned without an issue. Drew held the flashlight between her teeth and reached under the cart and began lifting it.

The wooden cart was awkward to move. It wasn’t terribly heavy; she pushed it on the side. It came up to her chest. She crouched down once more and slowly rolled it on its wheels praying something wouldn’t break as she did so. It shook into place, but stayed together. Drew let out a sigh in relief. She placed her hands on the bar and pushed it to the pile of crates and began loading it when Annabeth arrived out of breath.

“I think- this is the- last time- I call you lazy.”

“Thanks. Help me load this cart with bandages and the boxes labeled ‘draught’.”

They finished packing the cart with two layers of boxes and pushed it. It was difficult to get moving. Drew and Annabeth had to lean into it to get the wheels rolling, but once it was moving steadily Drew started to speed up. Drew and Annabeth reached the perfect speed. Not too fast to knock anything off.

The battle was still going on when they arrived back. A few Two Headed men charged at them. Drew pushed the cart onto the dirt road and worked her way across while Annabeth kept the Two Headed men away. The ground was raised on the other side of the road and caught the wheels. Drew ran to the otherside of the cart and attempted to lift it while pulling it. The wheels popped up and Drew continued pulling until the other wheels were on the grass.

She was moving the cart once more. A few feet away from the field hospital Drew and Will caught each other's eyes. Will ran over to help her.

“You made it!”

“There’s still more supplies back there.”

“This is enough. The battle is almost over. Someone can go get the rest later.”

“The top boxes are all bandages. The bottom ones are draught.”

Will motioned to what little soldiers were still guarding the field hospital to come over. “Where are all the guards?”

“Many returned to the fighting; there aren't many monsters left. A few minutes more and the fighting will be over.” Will explained handing a box to a fellow camper. “Get this to Kayla.”

Drew handed a box of Draught to a Roman Camper. “Give this to the Roman medic. She said she was out.”

“Drew,” Will said, handing her bandages, “Get these to the medics in the fighting. They’re out.”

Drew opened her backpack and shoved them inside. “I can take a few more.”

Will shoved another handful in her backpack. Then a third and fourth. Finally he picked up the box and dumped it in. some fell on the ground. Drew didn’t bother to pick them up. She closed her backpack and ran to the center. 

Her brother Mitchell was the first person she saw. “Hey, where’s Lacy? Thought you two were together?”

“Drew!” He gave her a quick hug. “She went with Val to take Conner to the field hospital.”

Drew opened her backpack revealing the bandages. “Heard you were out of these down here.”

“We are. There’s our pile of supplies.” he pointed at a stapler laying on the ground.

They removed the bandages from her backpack and Drew added her extra box of staples to the pile. She was about to head back to the field hospital when she spotted the mysterious girl with the cloak catch the person next to her as they fell. They had been stabbed. The girl stabbed the monster who injured her colleague in retaliation.

Drew rushed over and put an arm around the bleeding person’s waist and helped them stand. She looked in the girl's brown eyes and said “I got them from here.” the girl gave her a silent nod and returned to fighting. Drew walked the person around campers too engaged in a fight to step out of the way and towards the center and sat them down. They had been stabbed in the neck and shoulder and bleeding heavily. 

Drew slipped off their helmet and applied pressure to the side of their neck. “Hey, Hon,” Drew said calmly, noticing their panic, “I need you to calm down. I’m gonna get you patched up. Mitchell! Come here.”

“Yes, Drew?”

“There’s ambrosia in my backpack; Get it for me.”

“Here,”

“I can’t take it. You need to give them some.” Drew waited for her brother to give ambrosia then slowly removed her hands. They were still bleeding. “Shit. Give them a bit more.”

“But too much will-”

“I know, but they’re not chugging it.” Drew removed her hands once more finding the bleeding had stopped. She looked into the person’s eyes and smiled softly, “The bleeding has stopped. A bit more and you’ll be completely healed.”

“Thank you.”

“Not a problem, Dear.” She wiped her hands on her shirt and took the ambrosia from her brother. “Just a bit more of this and you should be good as new.” She dripped ambrosia on their neck and shoulder. The skin began to fuse back together. It wasn’t quite healed, so she added a bit more. “There. All done.”

“Thank you. I’m Jon.” 

Drew stood offering her and to help him up. “Drew.”

“I heard.”

It was weirdly quiet for a war. Drew looked around and spotted no monsters, just the glow of celestial bronze. The war was over. The mysterious girl appeared at Jon’s side. “You alright?” Drew’s eyes went wide at her voice; it sounded like how Belgium chocolate tastes.

“I am now, Praetor.”

“Come on, Let’s get the injured inside Camp Half-Blood’s border.” The girl began to lead Jon towards the field hospital. She turned and looked at Drew, “You coming?”

“Y-yeah.” She jogged to catch up.

The three of them arrived at the field hospital to find other campers preparing the most injured for transport via gurney. While a few others were helping injured walk to the Apollo cabin infirmary.

“Drew,” Will said. “We could use your help patching people up and getting them to infirmary. I’ve already sent people to get the rest of the supplies. Annabeth and Percy went with them.”

“Alright.”

Nico ran up to the Praetor, “Reyna, I talked to Dakota. He and Jason are taking a group to start setting up camp. I think Frank went with them.”

“Thanks for letting me know, Nico.”

Drew and Praetor Reyna went around tending to people's wounds and occasionally handing people new tasks (mostly Reyna). Reyna told her campers which of the injured to take back or where to head next, whether it was to Jason to help set up camp or to the supply crates the group led by Percy and Annabeth brought back to carry them into camp.

As injured were carried back to camp someone brought back stretchers. Drew helped load people on to them. Most of the people had been taken back to camp when Drew realized an Ares Camper she said needed to be taken back was still laying on a stretcher. She walked over to him and noticed he was asleep. She found the straps to the stretcher and strapped him in.

She lifted up one side and began pulling him back to camp centimeter by centimeter. “My gods,” she muttered, “What have you been eating.” Someone chuckled in front of her.

“Let me help.” Drew froze. She knew that voice; Praetor Reyna. Reyna picked up the other end of the stretcher and Drew realized, to her surprise, they were the same height.

“Of course,” she muttered, shaking her head.

“Used to being the tallest?”

“Yes. Having someone the same height sure makes this easier.”

“That, and you’re not pulling at least 200 pounds by yourself.”

“I would have made it to camp eventually.” This made Reyna laugh and Drew found herself wanting to make it happen again.

“Yeah, tomorrow morning.”

Drew chuckled. 

They fell into an awkward silence as they walked past the Temple of the Oracle. Drew looked at the Praetor’s forearm. She had a tattoo similar to the one Drew had seen on Jason months earlier. Reyna’s tattoo was a torch and sword, and the only reason Drew could see it was because it was glowing and pulsing like a slow heartbeat. The tattoo looked like burning coal, and Drew wondered if the girl's skin was actually burning. “Does it hurt?”

“Hmm?”

“Your tattoo. It’s glowing.” 

Reyna looked down then turned her wrist slightly as if she was trying to hide the tattoo. “It’s fine.”

“I think I have a salve in my bag for burns.”

“I don’t think that’s necessary at the moment.”

“Alright.”

“I should thank you.”

“For what?”

“I’ve heard a few stories from the Legion. You helped them before our camps were allies. It makes me believe lasting peace is possible.”

“Is that why you returned the Athena Parthenos?”

“Annabeth found it, but it could only be returned by a Roman.”

“Because the Romans stole it. Mortals history textbooks sometimes say it was destroyed during The Crusades after it was moved to Constantinople.”

“Yes. And every war between our camps since has been because of the theft.”

“We’re almost to the infirmary it’s past the lake and on the other side of the showers.”

Reyna nodded, and looked more tired than she had when they first started walking. Drew could still see the pulsing glow from her tattoo, but it had grown dimmer. 

Outside the cabins campers were standing around. Many had lost the adrenaline they had during the battle and were struggling to complete tasks. “Hey,” Drew said using her most commanding voice, “Wake up. I’m sure most of you have jobs to do.”

The campers who heard her looked at her quizzically. “Finish the task you started.” People returned to their tasks with new energy.

Reyna threw Drew a confused look, and Drew realized her Charmspeak may not have affected the Praetor. She chose not to press the topic not sure if it was an answer she wanted to hear.

They arrived at the Apollo Cabin. Campers moved out of their way and Piper and Kayla helped them move the still sleeping camper to an empty cot. 

Drew could see the Praetor’s tattoo better in the light. It was not black like Jason’s tattoo. She looked around at the other Roman campers and saw that their tattoos were also black. Her eyes went back to Reyna’s forearm. Her tattoo was dark red and the area surrounding it looked more like a sunburn the further from the tattoo Drew looked. It was like someone put a torch to her arm and attempted to trace over the tattoo. 

She looked at Piper then back at Reyna’s arm. If the Praetor was going to listen to anyone here it was probably her sister. Piper grabbed Reyna’s hand while Drew grabbed the salve she had in her backpack and handed it to Piper. “I’m going to our cabin. I told everyone we had to do a check in as soon as the battle was over.”

Piper nodded, “I’ll be there soon.”

Drew made her way back to her cabin. It was the first time she registered the ache in her shins, knees, shoulders and upper back as well as the coolness in her shoes and the weird squish they made with each step. Her head felt heavy and she could feel a slight pressure behind her eyes from tiredness.

Upon opening her cabin door she was hit with the smell of her sisters’ flowery perfume and acid like scent of her youngest brother's cologne. 

“Drew, you’re here.” multiple siblings said in unison.

“Hey, I don’t think we’re doing gossip time tonight.” Drew told them, slipping off her wet shoes. 

Her socked feet made an effort to stick to the cabin's wood floor as she crossed the room to the bathroom. She closed the door behind her. 

She turned on the sink and put her hands under the water. After a few moments the water turned pink. She grabbed a bar of soap not caring if it wasn’t hers and began to scrub her hand and forearms. The soap reached part of her arm and she hissed in pain. Quickly she rinsed off the soap and saw the reason for the stinging pain. Pieces of metal were in her arm, and now that she wiped off the dried blood and hit the metal, she was bleeding again.

Drew reached for a towel and patted her arms dry. She then grabbed a pair of tweezers and pulled a mix of Celestial bronze and regular metal from her arm and dropped it in the sink where the pieces made a little ‘tink’ upon hitting the porcelain. Once all the metal was out she turned on the water once more and held her arm under it until the water was nearly clear. She pat her arm dry once more then pulled off her shirt that suddenly felt very restrictive.

She tossed it in the sink and gave it a weird look. I don’t remember putting on a red shirt. The shirt had patches of scarlet red and some smaller patches of pink. Drew studied it for a second then looked in the mirror. The first thing she noticed was the color of her sports bra. Okay, I definitely know I didn’t put on a bra this dark. She took it off and grabbed the towel. She wet a section of it and began wiping her upper arms. She needed to get rid of this mix of something sticky on her skin and something dried on her skin pinching it.

This method wasn’t working too well. Upon realizing this she soaked the towel and dragged it over her skin. Cold water ran down her arms and chest cooling her down. She put down the towel and grabbed a second to pat herself dry.

She could feel this stickiness on her skin. She set the towel aside and picked up the wet one. She soaked it once more and was once again wiping down her skin. She dried her skin off once more. The towel was laid on one side of the counter and the wet cloths on the other. 

Drew searched through the bottles of soap on the counter looking for a face wash. Finding one she wet her face with closed eyes. Drew felt stinging on her cheek and forehead. Looking into the mirror she spotted the flash of metal. Using the tweezers she pulled out the shards then returned to washing her face. The water woke her up a bit helping her focus a bit better. 

Sitting on the edge of the toilet seat, Drew removed her reddish brown socks. It was more difficult than it should have been since they were wet and sticking to her skin. Once they were off Drew tossed them to the side and used the wet towel to wash her feet. 

Next, she soaked the towel she had used to dry herself and placed it over her lower legs. The towel was heavy on her legs and she could feel patches of stinging on her legs like she had razor burn. 

She rested her left heel on the counter and pulled out all the metal she could see. Her knees were caked in mud mixture that smelled like iron. She noticed a piece of metal poking through the mud and tried to pull it out. Her leg jerked and she hissed in pain once more. She would deal with it later. She went to put her right leg on the counter and felt a sharp ache in her thigh. “Son of a-”

She put her leg down and soaked the towel once more. She sat on the floor and wiggled her way out of the rest of her clothes. After the clothes had been kicked aside Drew began to carefully wiping away blood, mud and sweat. Once she was satisfied she began to remove all the metal she could leaving the larger pieces as they were too painful to remove on her own.

Reaching for her backpack without getting up hurt her thigh more than anything, but she was too tired and determined to care. She wanted to finish cleaning up so she could sleep. She dragged the backpack across the floor and opened it. Her fingers found the vial of ambrosia. Drew pulled it out of the bag, tossed the eyedropper aside and drank what little of the ambrosia was left. She felt the smaller scrapes heal. Then she grabbed the liquid bandage and the healing salve. 

She painted on the bandage on her smaller wounds then stood up carefully balancing on her left leg remembering she didn’t grab clean clothes. She held one of the towels in front of her and opened the door. “Hey, can one of you get me some clean clothes?”

“Yeah, Give me a second.” Valentina said.

“Thanks Dear.” Drew waited for her younger sister to return silently, adjusting her position to avoid falling over. 

Valentina returned with a pastel pink and purple robe. Drew took it with one hand as Valentina's eyes flicked down to her legs, “Do you need help?” she asked, voice filled with concern.

“No.” Drew said, quickly closing the door in the girl’s face.

Drew returned to her spot on the floor and yawned. She rubbed her eyes then unfolded the robe dropping a matching pair of boy shorts and a bralette. Inch by inch she put on the boy shorts trying to avoid every point of pain on her legs. The bra was easier to put on. 

The little bit of wakefulness she had was gone. She laid down, robe and pain forgotten and fell asleep.

Piper returned to her cabin after helping the rest of the seven, Reyna, and other cabin leaders locate the rest of the campers under their leadership. She knew her cabin mates had all returned. She wanted a shower like most campers did, but it was too late to argue over who got to shower first, so everyone seemed to collectively decide showers were closed for the night. 

Before returning to the Aphrodite Cabin she stopped at Canoe Lake deciding to rinse off the dirt and sweat. She decided she’d rather smell like the fishy lake than feel sticky the rest of the night.

Entering the cabin she found her siblings sitting on their beds quietly talking to each other. A few were whipping themselves down with makeup removing wipes and baby wipes. A glance around the room told her every one was there except one.

“Where’s Drew?”

“Piper, you're back.” Lacy said.

“We waited up for you.” Mitchell added.

“You didn’t have to.”

“I know.”

“Drew said we all had to check in. We figured it meant you too.”

“Where’s Drew?”

“Bathroom.” Valentina stated.

“She’s been in there since she got back.” Another sibling clarified. 

“How long has that been?”

“About an hour and a half.”

Piper made her way to the bathroom and knocked. “Drew, everyone made it back to the cabin alright. We’re gonna go to bed.”

No answer. Piper twisted the door knob finding it unlocked and pushed open the door. Drew was curled up on the floor in her underwear. Blood soaked towels were nearby. Piper stepped inside and saw Drew’s bloody shirt in the sink and the rest of her clothes near the towels. 

Piper knelt in front of her and gently shook her shoulder, “Drew, wake up.”

The Asian didn’t stir. 

Piper grabbed the girl's robe, put it on her and tied it closed. She looked out the door. A few of her siblings had gathered. 

“We can carry her.” Her twin fourteen-year-old brothers said. 

Piper nodded and stood up stepping back near the sink. The boys walked in and picked her up standing on either side of her. Piper noticed the cut on Drews leg. It was bleeding slightly. She followed her brothers out.

Lacy and Mitchell pulled back the blanket on Drew’s bed and the twins laid her on it. The white sheet began to turn pink. “Do any of you still have a stapler?”

“Yeah, I have mine, Piper.” Mitchell jogged to his bunk and grabbed it.

Piper and Lacy rolled Drew on her side revealing the gash. It was at least a few inches long. Piper pinched the skin together and Mitchell stapled it hoping his older sister wouldn’t wake up and yell at him.

A sister handed over what little bandages she had left and another fetched the salve from the bathroom. Piper bound Drew’s thigh and rolled her on her back. 

“Is all the blood in the bathroom hers?” a brother asked.

“No,” Piper said, “I would say much of it isn’t. If you want to go to bed you may. We’ll clean up tomorrow.”

As siblings returned to their bunks Piper, Lacy and Mitchell continued to patch up Drew. There wasn’t much to do. Drew had removed all the metal from her legs except for a few pieces. When they were done Piper left a bottle of draught for her with a note saying she didn’t need to worry about how much she drank since it wasn’t ambrosia.

Drew woke up to the sound of the cabin’s CD player playing a cabin favorite, Carly Rae Jepsen. She sat up slowly, her limbs feeling heavy. A few of her siblings were scrubbing the floor and she could see the light on in the bathroom.

“What’s going on?”

“You’re awake. You missed breakfast.”

“We’re just cleaning up the cabin.”

“I didn’t realize it was dirty.”

“You kinda left bloody footprints on the way to the bathroom last night. And some of us brought in mud. There’s the Roman’s water plus draught mixture on your nightstand. Piper said it doesn’t have the same deadly effects as ambrosia, so you can drink as much as you want.”

Drew pulled off her blanket and saw bandages wrapped around her thigh, both her knees and calves. Her eyes moved to her arms and found there was a bandage around one of them. “How-”

“You fell asleep in the bathroom. We brought you to bed and patched you up. Will was in here after breakfast to change your bandages.” Lacy explained.

Drew reached for the water bottle and twisted off the cap. She brought it to her lips. It tasted like regular water, but she could feel the soreness in her legs lessen. She put the bottle aside and carefully stood up. Her muscles felt weak, but she wasn’t shaking. Next she tried taking a few steps. They were slow, but she didn’t fall. Now all she had to do was get dressed.

By the time Drew got dressed (which would have gone faster if she had accepted her siblings help) it was time for lunch. She followed her siblings to the Mess Hall carrying the water bottle she had been taking sips from since she woke up. 

Lunch went as it usually did even with all the guests. Camp Jupiter separated by cabin willing to follow Camp Half-Blood’s rules about meals. When most were finished eating, Praetors Reyna and the only other one (Drew didn’t know much about him let alone his name) got up to speak to both camps. Drew noticed Reyna had the forearm where her tattoo was, wrapped. “Tomorrow morning,” Reyna began, “We Romans must return home. We appreciate your hospitality, especially since we almost killed you-”

“You almost got killed,” Annabeth corrected.

Reyna rolled her eyes. The corners of her mouth turned up slightly and she said, “Whatever, Chase.”

Campers burst into a collective “Ooooohh!” followed by laughter and playful shoving.

“Anyways,” the other Praetor said, “Reyna and I agree this marks a new era of friendship between the camps.”

Drew listened to the Praetors speak and the playful banter of others. Drew like to take it as a sign of their friendship sticking and their bond growing stronger. After all, Drew had learned the bonds between friends were often stronger and longer lasting than the bonds created from romantic love and hate, and she couldn’t wait to see what they could do with it.

[awhitehead17]

Memory Matters

Tim & Ra’s, Tim & Dick & Jason, Amnesia, Amnesiac Tim, Angst, confusion, Suspicions, Small bit of manipulation.

Summary: When Tim wakes up with no memory of his life, he has no idea on what to do or think until a man greets him and offers some guidance. From that very first meeting Tim knew something was off about him and he comes to learn that everything is not what it seems.

A/N: This is done for 'amnesia' on my Batfam bingo card and also developed from an ask I got a few weeks ago. This is part 1 of 2. 

Enjoy! :D

Waking up was strange.

He tried processing some of his thoughts as he takes in the unfamiliar ceiling above him and finds that nothing comes to mind. There were no thoughts but only the ones he’s thinking now. What was going on? What happened?

Initial panic starts spiralling inside of him once he realises that he can’t remember what happened. The panic gets worse when he realises he couldn’t remember anything. What was going on? Where was he? What happened?

He could feel his heart pounding inside of his chest and his breathing becoming quicker with each passing second. Why was it hard to breathe? What was going on? He couldn’t he breathe, why can’t he breathe?

In the back of his mind some thoughts filter through, ones that didn’t feel like his own. Control your breathing, in through the nose and out through the mouth. You need to calm down. Those thoughts seemed to be controlled and not panicked. They didn’t help much though because he kept panicking. He was now beginning to become light-headed, his heart was pounding and his chest felt tight. Why couldn’t he remember anything? What was going on?

 In through the nose and out through the mouth.

That thought came in his mind again and not knowing what else to do he listened to it. Breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth like it instructed. After a while he becomes thankful that he listened to the odd thought in his mind because soon enough he could breathe again, the tightness in his chest eases and his heart also slows down as his head clears.

Once he seemed to be in control, he pushes himself up into a sitting position and surveys his surroundings. He was currently on a plush bed with a thin blanket over him. In front of him was a wide rectangular room. A desk and chair were pushed against the adjacent wall where a small window was above it, a door was on the opposite side and on the wall opposite to the bed there was another door.

There wasn’t much else to take in, the walls were a cream yellow, the furniture was brown, and the bedding was a deep red colour. While sat on the bed he felt out of place, he was somewhere he couldn’t remember and surrounded by things he didn’t know. It felt wrong. He felt wrong and he couldn’t describe why. Though it wasn’t hard to guess that his memory problem was having an impact on his feelings.

He needs to find out more. He needs answers.

Staying on the bed wasn’t getting him anywhere so he decides to get up. Once on his feet he finds that he’s dressed in simple clothes, a plain red shirt and loose black pants with nothing on his feet. He moves gingerly about the room, peering at the furniture trying to pick up on anything that would tell him more. There were no pictures hung up in the room and there seemed to be nothing personal lying about which could give him some clues.

However, just as he was about to enter the door opposite the bed, the door to his right opens. It reveals a man in a long green and gold robe who strides into the room like he owns it. As the unknown man walks in he feels all of his hair stand on end and not knowing what else to do he quickly creates distance between them by standing on the opposite side of the bed.

A tense atmosphere develops within the room as they stare at one another, both silently observing the other. He can’t help but notice that no good feelings come from seeing this man. He felt like he knew him but again, it didn’t feel right, it felt wrong like something was off. He simply couldn’t remember what or why to justify those feelings.

“Nice to see you finally awake. How do you feel?” The man asks.

He swallows, “Where am I?”

The stranger doesn’t seem surprised by the question or his bluntness. “I understand that you may be confused, please allow me to explain.” He starts to slowly pace the room, sending glances at him with every few steps. “You were involved in an accident. There were… bad people after you, ones that wanted to hurt you. They nearly did but luckily I was nearby and got you away, unfortunately not without damage. From the accident you lost your memories. You’re here because it’s safe and because I want to help you.”

He blinks at the man as he explains. He’s lost his memories. Something bad happened and now he can’t remember anything because of it. What was so bad to cause something like that to happen? Who was after him and why? He had so many questions he wanted to ask but he found he couldn’t voice any of them. The man opposite him seems to understand his silence.

“It’s going to take time to recover. It’s undetermined if you’ll ever get your memories back, but know this: you are safe here. No one can hurt you anymore, I promise.”

He doesn’t know why, but those words send chills down his spine.

Somehow he finds his voice. “What’s my name?” He asks in the end. While he certainly wants to know the major stuff he also needs to know the little stuff, all the little details he no longer knows but feels like he really should. He can work his way up to the big stuff.

The man’s gaze pierces him, “Your name is Timothy Drake and I am Ra’s al Ghul.” He pauses and heads back towards the door he originally walked through. “Now come with me. We can talk and start getting you up to speed with things you would like to know.”

He hesitates, going with this man doesn’t sit right with him but what other choice does he have? He can’t remember anything and if this man can tell him the answers he needs, then why not?

In the end he cautiously walks towards him, his bare feet stepping on the thin carpet on the floor until he reaches the door, then together they exit the room and head down a corridor he unsurprisingly doesn’t know.

 Time seems to blend together after waking up with no memories for the first time. Tim plods through each day, trying to keep himself busy but most of all trying to learn who he was. Despite his amnesia he still remembers a lot of things, he still has those basic functions where he can read, write and name things. The only thing he seems to be missing is information about himself, his family, friends, basically his life.

It frustrates him that he can’t remember them, he really wants to but his mind is blank every time he tries to think about them. Ra’s doesn’t help in that regards either. The man doesn’t offer information to Tim about his personal life before the accident. He does, however, help Tim everywhere else he can. Ra’s teaches Tim about the world which he had forgotten, teaches him some history, how to cook, what types of nature there was, he even teaches him some self-defence and how to fight.

Even though the man comes across as friendly and helps him, Tim still gets an uneasy feeling every time he’s near Ra’s. Even though it’s been weeks since he first woke up, the feeling hasn’t gone away. It also doesn’t help that there’s a voice in the back of his mind telling him he should be getting out of there, that he should get as far away from Ra’s as far as possible.

Tim’s never listened to that voice because where would he go? He’s living in a place that’s in the middle of nowhere surrounded by nothing but vast emptiness. If he did leave he would be on his own with no hopes of having shelter, food, transport or anything! Also, if he did leave how would he start finding his family? How would he know where to go? He’s sure there was a way somehow but until he works out the solution, he’s stuck where he was for now.

It’s now, weeks after Tim first woke up, that something major happens. He and Ra’s were in what resembles a living room playing a game of chess when the window suddenly explodes into thousands of tiny pieces.

Tim startles so badly he actually falls off the sofa. There in front of him were two men, one was dressed like a bat who had a cowl over his head and the other wore black and blue spandex with a mask over half of his face. Next to him Ra’s stands up straight, whips out a sword from somewhere and stands defensively against the two attackers.

“Enough is enough Ra’s, let him go!” The black and blue man snarls. He bares his teeth and gets into a defensive position opposite them.

Ra’s looks over his shoulder and down at Tim, “Timothy, remember when you first woke and I told you that bad people wanted to hurt you?”

All Tim could do was nod in answer. His voice was caught in his throat as he stares at the two men in front of them. There was an unfamiliar tugging happening inside of him, there was something about them but Tim couldn’t put his finger on what it was. They seemed familiar but he doesn’t know how.

Ra’s authoritative voice breaks his thoughts, “It was these exact people who wanted you harm you. Go to your room and do not come out until I come and get you. Understand?”

Tim numbly nods again, still staring at the other two men with wide eyes. Before he could react further the black and blue man was shouting and rushing towards them, Ra’s meets him halfway and in a blink they were engaged in a fight. The man dressed like a bat soon joins them fighting.

Not knowing what else to do Tim flees and heads towards his bedroom, doing exactly what Ra’s told him to do. As he runs through the corridors the tugging feeling doesn’t go away, it only seems to intensify.

He knows those people, somehow he knows them, but Ra’s said they wanted to hurt him. Did he know them because they had been after him before he had amnesia? In the back of his mind something was screaming at him, telling hm to go back and fight, this is a chance to get free and to get away from Ra’s.

He ignores it and runs into his bedroom, slamming the door behind him as he passes through it. After shutting it, Tim slumps against the door with a heavy sigh. Who were those people and why did they seem familiar? That tugging feeling was still inside of him and it’s like an itch he can’t scratch, they mean something to him but what?

Tim doesn’t get to dwell on his thoughts for very long because suddenly there was a bang on the other side of the door. Tim yelps in surprise and darts away from the door just in time as it gets flung open. A different guy from the other two men enters his room. This man was dressed in a leather jacket, body armour, gun holsters, the guns he happened to be carrying and a red helmet. The third stranger looks around the room as if searching for something and pauses when he finds Tim standing a couple feet away staring at him.

Tim has no idea what to expect, but it certainly wasn’t the way the guy relaxes and puts his guns away. “Thank god. Right, we don’t have much time but the planes out back so let’s go.”

Before he could react, the helmet guy was turning around and exiting the room. Tim doesn’t follow as he’s completely frozen in place. A few moments later he reappears at the doorway, like he realised that Tim wasn’t following him.

“What the fuck Tim? Come on, let’s go, now’s not really the time to get lazy.”

Tim blinks at the man in bewilderment. He knows Tim’s name and just like with the other two, that tugging feeling inside of him was there. He knows this guy too but once again he can’t place who he was or why he felt familiar. Then again he may know his name because he was after him for bad reasons.

Tim’s lack of response seems to agitate the man because suddenly he was storming towards Tim and grabbing his wrist. “Alright replacement, let’s go. Enough of this shit.”

By the time Tim gets over himself he was being dragged down the hallway. After a few stumbling steps, Tim starts to fight back. “Hey! Let me go asshole!” He starts hitting the man’s wrist to try and loosen his grip, he kicks out towards his legs in hopes of gaining some advantage. The guy was huge in comparison to him, so Tim would have to get sneaky in order to break free.

“Ow hey! What the fuck? Tim!”

Tim twists out of the grip and uses some of the moves Ra’s had taught him to get away. Once free of the man’s grip he jumps backwards and creates some space between them. “Leave me alone, I have no idea who you are but I’m not going anywhere with you!”

The man falters at his words, “What? What the hell do you mean Tim?”

Tim goes to respond but doesn’t get the chance to. The man before him was speaking up again, muttering “oh shit” before turning around and running down the corridor.

“Timothy, are you alright.”

Tim looks over his shoulder to find Ra’s walking towards him with a concerned look on his face.

“I’m fine. I didn’t get hurt.”

His wrist was a little red from being grabbed but apart from that he was fine physically. Mentally, however, was another story.

 Ra’s refuses to give the answers he want. It’s been a couple days since the attack and Ra’s wouldn’t tell him anything. It was grating on Tim’s nerves. Not only was Ra’s suddenly being very secretive but the tugging feeling inside of him has not disappeared since those masked men attacked. Tim can’t explain how or why, but he knows those men somehow.

It doesn’t help that Ra’s is being secretive about the whole thing. He wouldn’t tell Tim anything about them or even why they attacked other than ‘they wanted to take you and harm you’. Ra’s had been secretive prior to the attack anyway, there were things he refused to tell Tim about regarding his memories (particularly anything personal such as family and friends) but now the man just seems on edge all the time and would not communicate with Tim like he had been before.

Tim had been wary of Ra’s before the attack, but now he was just downright suspicious of the man. Something was going on and it was something to do with those masked people Ra’s refused to tell him anything about.

Another few days had gone by by the time Ra’s finally approaches him. He was sat in his bedroom, minding his own business by thinking about the life he couldn’t remember, when the man walks in. Whilst he doesn’t say anything against the actions, Tim hates it when Ra’s walks in without an invitation, it makes him feel like he’s trapped in the one place he feels the most secure.

“Timothy,” Ra’s greets him.

Tim sits up straighter on his bed but doesn’t move to get up. “Ra’s. What can I do for you?”

“There are matters I need to attend to, which means I will be leaving for a few days.” The man informs him. “I have security surrounding the area just in case another attack occurs while I am away to help you feel safe, however once I return we will be leaving and staying at another residence. Please be prepared to leave as soon as I return.”

Before Tim could say anything the man leaves the room. Tim blinks at the now empty space feeling annoyed, so what, he doesn’t get a say in the matter? He’s just expected to drop everything and go with Ra’s? Of course he doesn’t have a lot to begin with but that wasn’t the point.

The way he treats Tim seems to be more like a prisoner or a slave that’s supposed to be nothing but obedient. He doesn’t know how long this behaviour had been going on for before he recognised it but it certainly adds to the list of reasons why he’s more suspicious of Ra’s than before.

Ra’s leaves that night and for the first time Tim finds that he’s on his own. Well he wasn’t technically on his own, there were others about but Tim wouldn’t interact with them so he may as well be on his own anyway. Instead of going to bed like he normally would Tim decides to explore.

With Ra’s away it means he has more leeway to explore the place he’s been living in since he woke up with amnesia. There were rooms which Ra’s wouldn’t allow him in, at first Tim had respected that, understood that it wasn’t his place but now he doesn’t give a fuck. These locked rooms just mean more secrets and Tim wants to know them.

He goes to one of the rooms and picks the lock with some tweezers he had found, this was something he didn’t even realise he could do but yet it felt so natural to do it. Tim walks into the room and closes the door behind him.

He surveys the room in curiosity, finding that there were multiple safes scattered around the room attached to the walls all at different heights, there was a large set of draws pushed into one corner of the room and finally in the centre of the room was a long metal table. Tim has no idea what this room could be used for. It was clean and not dusty but there wasn’t anything that stood out to him.

He goes over to the draws and experimentally tugs one and blinks in surprise when it opens up. Tim couldn’t help but snort, even without his memories he knows that this is just poor security. Whoever made this, probably Ra’s, didn’t think very hard about how to keep unwanted hands from wondering where they shouldn’t be. Either that, or he was too confident in his ability to stop something from entering.

The first draw has nothing in it. The second has several metal pieces in it, they were what Tim would call ninja stars but these were in the shape of a bat. He picks one up gently and weighs it in his hand, as he does a strange feeling washes over him. The metal pieces felt familiar, like he knows what they are and where they came from, though once again he just can’t remember the details. He puts it back and moves on.

The third draw has more of a variety of items which all seems to be communication gear. There were a few different earpieces, a walkie-talkie and a headset of sorts. What catches Tim’s eye was the little black box that was sat there. There were a couple different buttons on the side, it has a screen on the front which was dark but apart from it didn’t seem anything special. Tim pockets it, deciding that he can play with it later on.

Having had enough of the room, Tim closes the draw and exits the room, making sure to shut the door behind him. He can come back another time to try and work out a way into the safes around the room. He locks the door and moves onto the next room he’s not allowed in.

After searching through three rooms he’s not allowed in, Tim calls it a night. Even though Ra’s is gone and will be for a couple of days, Tim doesn’t want to push his luck. He can explore the rest tomorrow after some sleep.

Once he’s locked the third door he heads back to his bedroom. When he gets there he flops down onto the bed prepared to fall asleep in that position. Tim doesn’t though, because a couple seconds later he remembers the device he had pocketed from the first room.

He brings it back out and studies it. The device wasn’t much bigger than his palm, there were no obvious marks on it to say what it was nor where there any labels saying what the buttons were. Tim fiddles with it, clicks a couple buttons and tries to turn it on.

Tim spends five minutes trying to get it to work. When it doesn’t do anything he huffs in frustration, “Well this is just stupid. Unless it’s out of charge or something.”

Unknowing to him at the time, his voice is the thing that turns it on. Tim almost drops the device when the screen suddenly lights up, seconds later there was a symbol appearing on the screen in the shape of a bat. Tim frowns, what was it with all the bat shaped stuff? Was all this from that man dressed as a bat who attacked him days ago? Why did Ra’s have his stuff?

Tim fiddles with the device further but doesn’t get anywhere with it. All that happens was the bat symbol stays on the screen. In the end he gives up and decides to actually go to bed, deciding he can work out what it is in the morning.

When Tim wakes up the next morning the first thing he does is check the device. He’s a little disappointed to find that the same bat symbol as before was still on the screen. He puts it down and starts making a mental plan of what he’s going to do for that day as he gets ready.

His mental plan soon goes out the window 10 minutes later as he’s having breakfast. He was in the middle of eating his toast when he could hear commotion going on around the house. In an instant Tim’s alert. Could it be those masked men from the other day again? Could it be someone else? Hopefully the security Ra’s had set up do their job and stops them from getting to him.

Just in case, Tim grabs the nearest thing to him that he could use as a weapon which happened to be a butter knife. Not the most dangerous thing in the world but for now it’ll do.

Tim stays standing in the kitchen trying his hardest to listen to what was going on outside. There were shouts and what seemed to be gunfire but then it all suddenly stops and everything goes silent. Tim wasn’t sure what he was expecting but the front door opening and a familiar voice shouting in was not something he thought about.

“Tim? Tim you in here?” It shouts. As Tim hears the door close he moves from his spot and tucks himself behind the kitchen door in attempts to hide himself. Despite the voice seeming familiar he had no idea who it was.

“Timmy, come on buddy, we’re here.” Another voice speaks out. It was another voice that seemed so familiar yet Tim still couldn’t work out who it belonged to.

“Right, I’ll check the top floor and you scout down here. Yell if you find him, who knows what else has happened to him.”

Tim stops breathing as he hears footsteps heading towards the kitchen. He listens as the person moves about the living room before entering the kitchen to where Tim was hiding. He tightens his grip on the knife getting ready to attack when the person finally comes to view.

It was the black and blue man from the other day. It was the same attackers after all. The figure sweeps the room but as he turns around to leave his eyes catch Tim half hidden by the door. He freezes in place and holds his hands up, “Tim, I know your probably confused kiddo, but I promise I won’t hurt you.”

Tim swallows thickly. There were a mixture of things screaming at him right now, telling him to trust this figure in front of him, that he knows this person, how his words were the truth.

Not moving from his spot Tim glares at him, “What do you want? Who are you?”

“You sent an alert to us last night. Do you remember that? We were nearby ready to come and get you out of here. We’re sorry we didn’t the other day but Ra’s isn’t here right now meaning this is a perfect opportunity for us to go.”

Tim thinks about this, how did he send an alert? The only thing that would have…. his eyes go wide at the realisation. That device with the bat on it was some sort of signal.

He thinks over everything that’s recently happened. How secretive Ra’s has been since these people attacked the first time, how he wouldn’t tell Tim anything about his personal life or who his family were, how the device and bat shaped things were locked up.

“We know each other don’t we?” Tim asks tentatively. When the man smiles and nods Tim carries on. “You’re not going to hurt me then?”

The guy shakes his head, “Absolutely not. Tim… we’re family okay. I’m your brother and so is the other one who’s here with me. We’ve come to take you home.”

Despite Tim not knowing him, even he could pick out the hope in this man’s voice. This was his brother, he does have a family.

But what if he’s lying? He could just be saying that to get Tim to go with him.

“Tim, I know it’s hard to believe but please trust me here. Not only that, but back home we may have a way for you to get your memories back.”

Now that has certainly got Tim’s attention. If there was one thing Ra’s has not offered or even spoken about was getting Tim’s memories back. He just pushed the subject to the side, stating that it’ll only be a matter of time on whether he gets them back or not.

“If I go with you, what’s going to happen?” Tim questions him. There was no way he was going to go with them without not knowing what was going on. Even if the man tells him a load of bullshit, at least it’ll be something.

“We’ll take you home, get you looked at and try to get your memories back. From there I can’t say, it depends on the outcome of whether you get your memories back or not. But the most important thing is that you’ll be home.”

“And I’ll be away from Ra’s?”

“100% away from him.”

Tim swallows thickly and makes a decision. He loosens his grip on the knife and steps out from his hiding place. “Fine.”

If something goes wrong, which is highly likely, Tim will try and get out as soon as he can.

Things become a blur of events from there. They meet with another man, the one with the red helmet who was carrying a bag over his shoulder. The two masks have a quick quiet word while Tim gathers up some of his belongings. Afterwards they leave the house and drive a good 20 minutes away until they come across the plane.

Not having seen anything like this before (from what he can remember), Tim stares at everything. It felt so familiar yet so foreign. In the end he straps into one of the chairs and tries to ignore the looks the two men keep sending his way. Tim still didn’t know whether he could trust them or not, but all he could do now was wait as there was no turning back once they lift off into the air.

When they arrive at their destination Tim is hurried out of the plane and into some sort of cave. There were many floors to the place all with different equipment on them. Workout stuff, computers and monitors, vehicles, costumes, lots of different items… and was that a giant penny?

Tim gapes at everything, hating that again it all feels familiar but yet he doesn’t remember any of it.

“Well?”

The voice snaps Tim out of his staring. He looks ahead to find two men coming towards the trio. The black and blue man instantly steps forwards and addresses them, “We’ve got him and just as predicted Ra’s wasn’t there. The only problem is that he’s still amnesic. He didn’t recognise me and I had to convince him to come.”

The two new men look at him and Tim stares back, fighting the urge to shrink under their gazes. They were both large men who easily tower over him. One had black hair, was wearing a white button up and slacks, the other was green and wearing a blue cape. In the back of his mind Tim knew who these people were but unsurprisingly couldn’t place their names.

The black-haired man addresses him. “Tim, thank you for coming. I understand that it must be confusing but hopefully we can sort everything out.” He raises a hand to his friend, “This is J’onn. He may be able to help you recover your memories if you let him.”

Tim looks him over sceptically. He has a feeling there’s more to it and how he’s not going to like it, however if he wants his memories then he needs to do whatever it takes to get them back.

“How?” Tim questions. He still wants to know the details of course.

“I will have to enter your mind, young one. I can hopefully work out what has been the cause of your amnesia, whether it was a natural cause or forced. To do that, I need permission from you to enter your mind.”

Tim glances at everyone else to see them staring at him. He looks back at J’onn. “If you find the cause would you be able to fix it?”

He gives Tim an earnest look, “I will not lie to you but I cannot promise anything. If I can, I will do my best to fix the problem, however there is a possibility I will not be able to. I cannot say until I have look.”

Tim swallows. He doesn’t like the idea of someone poking around his mind, except he wants his memories back. He needs them back and if this is an opportunity to do so then he has to take it.

“Okay. I give you permission, do whatever you need to if it means getting my memory back.”

After that they make Tim lie down on a bed they have in a medical bay, J’onn stands at one end near his head while the others gather at his feet. Tim blinks up at the ceiling which was soon replaced with J’onn’s face. “I need you to relax and let me in. I will not do anything other than search through your mind for the cause of your memory loss.”

Tim nods his understanding, he takes a breath and lets it out, forcing himself to relax as J’onn places his hands by the sides of his head. Once he touches Tim’s head, Tim’s world goes dark.

[tempesrature]

The Case of the Murdered Witch Doctors | Chapter 5

Chapter: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 The Charm of Lost Things (Oneshot Follow-up) Creative Process Note Commissioned Art Piece

Pairing: Ride or Die | Ellie x Colt Summary:  “It is my belief, Watson, founded upon my experience, that the lowest and vilest alleys in London do not present a more dreadful record of sin than does the smiling and beautiful countryside.” - Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Novels and Stories, Volume I  Word Count: 2k+ Warnings: PG-16 @rodappreciationweek @lovehugsandcandy

~*~

Colt sighs and runs his hand through his hair as he tries to calm the stormy gold fliting across his eyes.

Ellie looks up from her projected notes and her gaze lands on Colt sitting next to her in the dim meeting room, the curtains drawn and covering the expansive windows from the strong sunlight. Somehow, she’s gotten better at reading his cues. Not that she was ever bad at reading cues, she learned from her father after all, but she seems to be especially attuned to Colt’s cues and body language more than ever. Despite his rather gruff and abrasive attitude, his eyes gives away most of his emotions.

“I can tell that you’re pissed you know,” Ellie teases as she bumps her knee against his.

Colt scoffs and turns to her with a frown. “Yeah? What gave it away? Is it the fact that I’m meeting with the person who murdered my pop or is it something else I didn’t catch?”

Ellie falters a little as she frowns and lays a gentle hand on his thigh. “You can leave if you want. I won’t force you to stay here if it’s too difficult for you.”

Colt scoffs at the idea as he takes her hand on his lap, squeezing it briefly, before he moves it away. “And leave you alone in a room with a murderer? Like hell I will.”

Ellie grins at him, seeing the soft flit of gold in his eyes, and she opens her mouth to tease him when the double doors open and Jason Shaw enters the room. A tall imposing man wearing a brown leather jacket and black jeans with brown hair and snake-like blue eyes.

Her body goes into high alert, her back straightening, as she stands up to greet him while Colt remains stubbornly seated.

“Oh I see,” Jason grins as he bares his fangs and makes his way to the chair across them. “Now I know why the new Kaneko wanted to have a meeting with me.”

Colt growls, his eyes narrowed and fangs bared at Jason.

“I’m Detective Ellie Wheeler,” Ellie interjects hurriedly, not wanting to cause a fight between them in the middle of the afternoon, as she reaches out to shake Jason’s hand. “I’m the lead investigator of the death of Ernesto and Malina Kilat who were murdered a month ago in their home.”

“Wheeler?” Jason raises an eyebrow as he takes Ellie’s hand and, instead of shaking it, brings it up his nose to sniff it. Ellie quickly pulls her hand away from his grasp. “I see. You’ve bought such an interesting pet to me Kaneko.”

“Just answer the damn questions Shaw so we can get out of here,” Colt practically spits out the words, his golden eyes darkening in a menace as Jason takes his seat in front of them.

Ellie wastes no time with her questions.

“First, I’d like to know how you were acquainted with the Kilats and what you regularly purchased from them.”

Jason tilts his head to the side, his face blank. “Who are the Kilats?”

Ellie scrunches her nose, trying to see if he’s playing dumb on purpose, but she answers him nonetheless. “An albularyo family, witch doctors from the Philippines.”

“Ah, I remember now,” Jason chuckles as he leans back on his chair, his eyes glinting with green. “Lovely family. You say they were murdered? How tragic.”

Colt reacts at the callousness of his tone but Ellie stops him by placing a hand on his thigh and squeezing tight.

“They were and with how the murder was conducted, our prime suspect happens to be a vampire. You were recorded as one of their frequent customers.”

“Hmm…oh yes,” Jason replies, almost bored at the hidden accusation in Ellie’s words. “Let’s see…I do remember purchasing some potions but I don’t really remember the name or purpose of them.”

Jason smiles pleasantly at Ellie and she looks back at him with a stony expression.

“Try your best to remember the name and purpose of the potions Mr. Shaw.”

Jason smiles amusingly. “Ahh…could it be perhaps the Fern Libation? Although I can’t be too sure since all I remember is the purple bottle.”

Ellie’s eyes widen for a moment as she feels Colt bump her knee from underneath the table. She immediately understands what he’s trying to tell her: Do not ask further questions about it.

Although the Fern Flower can be used without disastrous side-effects in small amounts (like the Fern Flower blunt), it can be dangerous and highly addictive in larger amounts. Fern Libation is the worse of them all since it uses a highly concentrated amount that can be deadly not only to magical creatures but mortals too. The Agency, specifically the Elves division, has been trying their best to crack down on it before it fully catches the attention of the mortal world.

It’s a dangerous territory to tread and Colt’s right, she shouldn’t ask questions about it. Especially when there have been quiet but insistent rumors that one of the biggest suppliers of Fern Libation happens to be the man currently sitting across from her.

But she’s stubborn, reckless and she wants the truth.

“Are you implying that the Kilats were producing Fern Libation?” She asks as she hears the deep sigh coming from Colt.

Jason grins as the edges of his eyes crinkle in amusement. “I’m not implying anything Detective. As I’ve said, I don’t remember much. Old age really does mess with your memory,” He lets out a brief laugh before his lips twitch into a smile. “But maybe you’ll like this answer more: I used to regularly feed on the wife.”

Ellie’s eyes widen as she glances to Colt who looks back at her with the same expression.

“…So you were having an affair with Mrs. Malina?” Ellie asks, her nose wrinkling in disgust.

“Affair?” Jason confirms, his eyes blinking at the word before realization dawns on his face. “Oh I suppose that is a good word to use for it but she was just someone I used for feeding.”

“Shaw, she was a magical creature. How can you even stomach the blood?” Colt says, his nose wrinkling in disgust at the memory of the taste. “Not to mention she’s what? Close to two hundred years old?”

Jason lets out a hearty laugh as his eyes dance in a bright green. “That’s the thing with younger vampires, so picky with the age and taste. After you live a few centuries, things like those don’t really matter anymore.”

Jason smirks as he leans forward. His eyes glinting in a green that seems animalistic, predatory, in the dim light of the room. The look he gives them almost traps them both on their seat and Colt sits straighter, his own eyes narrowing in a gold hue that edges on red, as Ellie moves one hand under the table to gather up a little of her magic in case a fight breaks out.

“Do you want to know why she was one of my favorites?” Jason asks, his voice cold and affectionate, as he continues. “When I feed on creatures, I get to live through the deepest and darkest parts of their memories. The ones they’ve tucked into the little corners of their mind. The Kilat wife saw the Spanish invasion of her country and witnessed the end of her lineage as the last witch doctor of her village. Every last one, killed and slaughtered right in front of her,” Jason licks his lips as his green eyes flick to Colt, his voice heavy and feral. “And what’s more delicious than the memory of seeing the end of your bloodline?”

Colt’s eyes widen before they narrow, anger boiling deep inside him that it heats up his skin. He opens his mouth, ready to throw out the very worst of his thoughts towards the man that murdered his father, when Ellie stands up and slams her hand on the table with a loud bang. The force of it sending crackles of blue sparks that reach the edges of the table and leave burn marks across the wooden surface.

“We’re done here,” Ellie speaks, her voice eerily calm in comparison to the deep and dark blues of her eyes. 

She pushes herself away from the table and Colt stands from his own seat, sending one last glare to the smiling Jason on the table.

“Oh by the way Detective,” Jason calls out as he leans back and balances his chair on two legs just as Ellie’s about to walk out of the door. “If you crosscheck the time of the murder to my whereabouts, you’ll see that I was in Europe for the entire month. You can pick up my travel itinerary from my assistant on your way out,” Jason sighs as his lips pull into a sad frown. “Also, I can’t see the memory if I don’t directly feed from the creature. It might not mean much but I truly do grieve for the lost of one of my favorite memories.”

“You’re right,” Ellie confirms as she looks at Jason with a hard glare. “It doesn’t mean much at all.”

She turns and exits the meeting room as Colt slams the door behind them with a loud bang.

~*~

“He’s not our murderer,” Colt concludes as they step out into the sun and out of the building.

“No,” Ellie sighs as she looks at the piece of paper in her hand that clearly places him in Paris during the time of the murder. She massages her forehead to push back the headache as she subtly uses magic to send the paper back to her office table. “He’s an absolute psychopath though.” 

Colt smirks as he bumps his shoulder against hers lightly. “Live long enough and they all turn out like that.”

Ellie chuckles wearily as she glances at him with a grateful smile. Colt returns her smile with his own before he looks up at the sky and squints a little at the sunlight blinding his eyes. He looks down at his wristwatch, notes the time left, and nods before he turns to Ellie.

“Wanna get out of here?”

Ellie furrows her eyebrows. “Where would we go?”

Colt smirks. “It’s a surprise, come on.”

Colt leads them to the Cavalieri and swings his leg on the bike. Ellie follows after him, reaching out to take the bike helmet he offers her, before she takes her place behind him. She hesitates only for a moment but she eventually wraps her arms around his waist before the bike takes off and weaves through LA traffic.

~*~

“Wow,” Ellie breathes out as she takes off her helmet and hops off of the bike, her eyes taking in the vast expanse of the blue sea over the cliff. “How did you find this place?”

Colt shrugs as he stands next to her, his hands deep in his pants. “My pop took me here when I was younger. He said that this is where you can catch the sun where it’s brightest, where it’s strongest.”

Colt closes his eyes as he soaks in the strong rays of the sun, almost as if he’s drawing strength from it. Ellie observes him quietly and seeing the way his face relax and the way his body loosens up helps to ease the scramble of thoughts in her own brain.

Ellie steps forward and leans over the edge, her eyes going wide at the height. “Ever jumped down there?”

Colt scoffs as he stands next to her and peers down the edge too. “Not if you want to be the next case file in the Agency. Do you see how big those rocks are?”

Ellie leans back to look at him. “That’s easy. A little levitation spell before the jump and a water spell to cushion your fall and you’ll be fine.”

Colt looks at her incredulously, a smile pulling on his lips. “Yeah because everyone is a genius witch like you.”

Ellie’s eyes widen before she smiles brilliantly. “A genius witch huh?”

Colt rolls his eyes but he can’t hide the smile anymore. “Yeah, yeah enjoy it while you can. I keep my compliments a maximum of three a month.”

“Sounds like I still have two more then,” Ellie grins.

Colt chuckles as he shakes his head at her, his eyes sparkling in a soft gold, and Ellie can’t help but feel…vulnerable under his eyes. She doesn’t hate the feeling but rather welcomes it. Even if it does make her feel like there’s a knot in her chest that she can’t unravel.

“Wanna see something cool?” She asks to try to distract herself from him.

“Sure,” Colt shrugs but the curiosity in his voice is unmistakable. “Show me.”

Ellie nods as she takes a step forward and faces the sea. She raises both of her hands, the blue sparks already dancing around her fingertips, and with a quick flick of her wrist her magic descends and lands on the waves below.

“Holy shit!” Colt exclaims as he takes a step forward, his eyes latching to a patch of the once blue ocean now sparkling and shining with a color of brilliant gold below them. “How the hell did you do that?”

“I learned how the ocean absorbs light to give it that blue color in mortal school. So if you use magic to mess around with the wavelength of the light you can pretty much change the colors to whatever you like,” Ellie says proudly as she looks at Colt with a big grin.

“Shit that’s amazing, Ellie. I’ve never seen a witch do that!”

Ellie blinks, her hold on her magic on the ocean disappearing as she regards him seriously. “You called me Ellie.”

“Yeah,” Colt says, suddenly aware that the name slipped out without his permission, and he doesn’t really know how to handle that, his tongue seemingly so loose and free when he’s in front of Ellie Wheeler. So he resorts to what he knows best, teasing. “Or do you like Miss Half a Witch more?”

“Definitely not,” Ellie laughs, her gaze holding his as she unconsciously leans in closer to him. “I like hearing you say my name.”

“Yeah?” Colt steps closer to her with a wide grin. “I know a way for you to hear it more.”

Ellie bites the bottom of her lip, his intentions definitely not lost on her. After all, they’ve be dancing around each other since they’ve met and it always ends with tension just bubbling on the surface. She knows, that if she accepts now, it won’t end with just a kiss.

A better part of her tells her that no, this is a bad idea. That sleeping with a vampire, a Primordial vampire, a Primordial vampire helping with the investigation, is number one on top ten things a good detective shouldn’t do.

And yet a part of her, the one that seems to call out to him so instinctually tells her that—one night can’t hurt, right?

Her eyes momentarily flick to the Cavalieri parked near them before she looks back at him. She licks her lips as her eyes dance with an excited and hungry blue.

“Show me then Colt.”

[pjoandaftg]

Chapter 4

It was two days before Halloween and Annabeth was one more jump scare away from punching someone. Honestly, who thought that it was a good idea to make a holiday of scaring the shit out of people. April fool's day was bad enough. Don't get her wrong though, she didn't hate the holiday itself, just the idiots who took it upon themselves to run around campus, dressed as the walking dead or killer clowns, jumping out at everyone who walks around a corner. She might actually enjoy it if she wasn't running on 3 hours of sleep and six cups of coffee. And what made it infinitely worse Piper and Percy have made a bet on how much times they can scare Annabeth and get it on camera. Percy was currently winning at 6-7. To say Piper was bitter was an understatement. She regretted ever introducing them to each other.

Speaking of the devil, Piper ran up to Annabeth. "Hey," she said falling into step beside her.

"Given up already or just not in the mood?" Annabeth asked in lieu of hello.

Piper laughed. "Oh, please. I'm no where near giving up. Still got two more days until its over babe, be prepared."

Annabeth groaned. They walked along and chatted about everything and anything back to Annabeth's apartment. Half way there they stopped in the coffee shop that Piper's blue eyed boy-crush worked. They got in line but before they could order Annabeth heard a voice shout.

"No, fucking way. I don't believe my eyes. Is that Piper Motherfucking McLean." Annabeth immediately went into defensive mode. She knew who Piper's father was and Piper was recognised quiet a lot, but she knew how much Piper hated it and how it sometimes got out of control. She looked over at Piper but instead of the usual annoyed/frustrated look she got when recognized she had a shit eating grin on her face.

She finally found the face that belonged to the voice. It was a small elfish looking boy, with a brown, mop of hair on his head. His skin was a dark colour and his mouth was quirked in a grin that meant trouble. Looking closely she realised that it was the smile Piper had when she first met her.

Piper squealed beside her and Annabeth was thankful for the basically empty café because they would most definitely be causing a scene right about now. Piper ran up to the boy and wrapped him in a bone crushing hug. When they separated, Piper gave a light punch on his arm that he overexaggerated about, a lot.

"Valdez? What are you doing here?" Piper asked.

"Getting coffee, obviously." He answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Not in the café, here, on campus, in New York?"

"Didn't you hear, Leo Valdez is a college student baby," he winked at Piper seductively, and at that she just rolled her eyes and snorted.

Annabeth was now next in line so she ordered her coffee from Piper's blue eyed boy.

"Do they know each other?" he asked nodding towards Piper and Leo.

"Clearly," Annabeth said. "Why do you know him?"

"He's my roommate, moved in about three weeks ago."

Before Annabeth could comment any further, Piper and Leo joined her at the counter.

"Annabeth meet my good old friend Leo Valdez."

Annabeth shook his calloused hand, "Annabeth Chase."

"Nice to meet ya," he said and then turned to blue eyes. "Jason, buddy, did you know Piper went to school here?"

Jason put his hands up mock salute. "I didn't know her name, just her face." He said and if Annabeth saw correctly, she thought she saw the tip of his ears turn a dark red. Interesting. Leo must have seen it because his smile turned into a teasing grin. 

"Well, she does have a pretty face, its easy to get distracted." and this time Jason was definitely blushing.

Annabeth laughed and checked her watch. "Shit," she muttered under her breath. She hadn't meant to stay here so long. "I have to go," she told Piper apologetically.

Piper waved her off, "No problem, I'll catch up with you later right?"

Annabeth nodded, said her goodbyes and then walked out the door. When she reached the apartment she just got there in time to run straight into Grover who was half way out the door, Juniper and Percy behind him. 

"Good I'm not too late," she said. Grover smiled at her and out down the bag in his hand and pulled Annabeth into an embrace. When they pulled apart Annabeth said, "be safe ok? And come back because I might kill Percy if you're not there to play referee." Grover snorted at that and Percy let out an amused huff that he tried to pass as annoyance.

"I need to go now, but try not to kill each other while I'm gone. Its only two weeks." Grover said picking back up his bag.

"No promises," Percy said which earned him a light slap on his arm from Annabeth.

They all hugged one more time and said their goodbyes until it was just Annabeth and Percy left. Percy looked at Annabeth, "Pizza?" he asked. Annabeth let out a sigh and a smile. Its like he read her mind. "Only if theirs pineapple," she said because she knew it would annoy him. As expected he made a gagging motion. "Gross," he said. "Absolutely not." But when he put in the order, Annabeth heard the half pineapple half pepperoni pizza he ordered.

 The next morning Annabeth was eating a bowl of cereal on the couch while watching the episode of 'Grey's Anatomy' she missed the night before when a loud banging came from the door. Annabeth sighed and put down her bowl to open the door and almost get knocked down by Piper trying to barge into her apartment.

"Tell me you have a Halloween costume," she said.

Annabeth just rolled her eyes and went back to her breakfast, "Why hello to you, please come in."

Now it was Piper who rolled her eyes. She plopped down onto the couch beside Annabeth, making some milk slosh out of the bowl. Annabeth sent a glare her way.

"So do you?" she asked.

"Do I what?" Annabeth asked.

"Have a Halloween costume?"

Annabeth snorted. "No why would I?"

"Because Leo told me about this party he's going to tonight and you get free drinks for the night if you have the best costume."

"You only want to go because Jason will be there," Annabeth deadpanned. Piper's cheeks flushed.

"That's not the only reason, just one of them," she mumbled.

"Fine, I'll go with you, but you owe me." Annabeth said pointing a strict finger at Piper. Piper just grinned, "Yes ma'am."

They sat and watched the rest of the episode before going to the store to buy Annabeth her costume. When they got to the store, Piper went browsing through costumes occasionally throwing one back at Annabeth, while Annabeth followed behind her uninterested, or so she pretended to be. As much as Annabeth hated the scary and spooky part of Halloween, she adored the dressing up, not that she'd ever tell Piper. She's never hear the end of it otherwise. But Annabeth had always loved the idea of being someone else for the night. Anybody she wanted.

She remembered when she was in 2nd grade and every girl dressed up as a Disney princess and every boy was either Spider-Man or batman. But not Annabeth, she had come dressed up as Amelia Earhart. She had loved it. All the others made fun of her and at the time she hated that costume and she had come home after school crying, giving out to her dad for not getting her a princess dress. But now, Annabeth realised that that was her favourite costume ever, simply because her dad helped her make it. That is only one of the few happy memories she has of her parents. 

Piper threw another costume at Annabeth, snapping her out of her daze. She shoved her towards the dressing room and after Annabeth tried on multiple outfits [a cowboy, a mummy and a carton of milk among her favourites] and modeled them for Piper who sat down and rated the costumes. They finally agreed on a Greek goddess costume that included a flowy, white dress with a slit going down the whole left leg. 

On the way out Piper picked up some golden glitter, essential for the costume she said, and a golden headpiece. They payed and went back to the apartment.

 Percy wasn't at the apartment as he had swim practise so the girls had the place to themselves. They connected music to the speaker, got out the costumes and their make up and got to setting up. Annabeth took a quick shower beforehand, Piper had one before coming over. When she came out she was only wearing her underwear which included a matching knickers and strapless bra, Piper was talking to someone and thinking she was on the phone, Annabeth walked to where she left Piper. Only Piper wasn't on the phone, she was talking to Percy. 

She stopped for a minute, frozen in place and that's when Percy saw her. He looked away almost immediately, but not before, Annabeth noticed, he quickly looked her from head to toe. Annabeth rushed back to her room to throw on her robe to the sound of Piper's amused cackle. When Annabeth returned she gave Percy a sheepish smile, in which he returned. There was an awkward silence but thank god for Piper, Annabeth thought, as Piper broke the tension with,

"You have any plans tonight?" she asked Percy.

He just shook his head, "nope," he said emphasizing the 'p ' sound.

It was then Annabeth noticed the mischievous glint in Piper's eyes. "Do you have a Halloween costume?" she asked.

Annabeth took it back take her back, she thought, she prayed, but she knew t was too late because Piper didn't miss a beat when Percy shook his head.

"Well then, I guess we have some shopping to so."