#Jonathan? stole the whole fucking show

[gayforjessmckenna]

Humble opinion but "The Names Of Our Family" is another addition into the "no skip album" Off Book club. Every single song is 🔥

[we-love-morioh-cho]

No bc why did Johnny just suffer non-stop for his entire fucking life - he was abused from a young age by his shitty dad, he saw his brother die and blamed himself for it, became disabled because of an extremely minor offense during a time period where being disabled was especially hard, was abandoned in an abusive hospital and disowned by his dad who should KILL HIMSELF, made a single (1) friend only to watch him die, had the chance to bring his friend back dangled in his face, the whole fucking ordeal with alt. Diego, fell in love and had 2 kids BUT THEN IMMEDIATELY his wife started to die, stole the corpse to heal her (going against his agreement with the only 2 people from the race he had left) but then his fucking son started to die instead, finally he died by getting his head crushed by a fucking boulder at the age of only 29????!!?!??!?!?!??!!

Like he just suffered constantly and never really won and never had the life he deserved but despite EVERYTHING he showed such remarkable resilience and KINDNESS throughout his life, he SAVED Lucy and his family and loved animals and hoped for things to get better despite it all and fought so hard and came so far and even missed and grieved for his ENEMIES because of how much the race meant to him and it was all destroyed at the end despite everything he did and his legacy continued on but they'll never know what we know and its been 100 years and he's been dead for so fucking long and has faded into an old folktale and all the characters from SBR are GONE and the world has moved on and time has passed and the inheritance of curses, burden and trauma through the bloodline and I miss Johnny so much and he unknowingly set in motion the curse of his descendants all to save his wife and then his son who he cherished despite being abused by his own father and how different would everything had been if he just received the love he deserved from his family and oh my god he's just like Jonathan and Jolyne and he acted out of pure love even if it went against everything he'd previously fought for because he is so incredibly human and even though he's gone and his descendants will never know him, his sacrifice and love and resilience persists through them and we know that but they can't and -

[honeysuckleharringtons]

Part Eight: Lukewarm ~ S. Harrington

Summary: Summary: (Then) Motherhood gets a whole lot more complicated for Reader when someone who she thought was gone for good shows up to meet her baby. — (Now) When Steve confides in Reader about his not-so-good relationship with his father, Reader reminds him that he's so much more than someone's opinion of him.

Pairing: Nurse!Steve Harrington x Fem!Byers!Reader

Word Count: 2,819

Content Warning: explicit language, infidelity/cheating (not by Reader or Steve), allusions to physical abuse, Lonnie is a creep and a douchebag, Steve's dad is an asshole, mentions of male genitalia as an insult, mentions of food, light mentions of medical stuff related to Steve's job, lmk if i missed anything!

Extra Notes: this is extremely late, more to come on that later!! but for now, i hope you all enjoy!

Originally Written: 01/31/2024 through 02/19/2024

honeysuckleharringtons' main masterlist can be found here!

'brew and me' series masterlist can be found here!

[ Then, March of 1988 ]

The first thing that you heard after waking up was the sound of your baby crying. The thing that followed was the screaming match coming from down the hall.

Let it be known, all families fight, even the Byers. But it was a rarity for Joyce's voice to be heard amongst the yelling, unless it was to break up the fight. Generally speaking, if there was an argument at the Byers house, it involved one or more of Joyce's children.

Which was why you found it so strange that hers was the first voice you registered. Jonathan's voice came next, a weird pang stinging in your heart as you thought about him spending his spring break at home arguing.

In an attempt to comfort the baby, you picked her up from her crib and held her close to your chest. Her colic was slowly getting better, however you couldn't say you blamed her for being fussy over the verbal war happening in the other end of the house.

“Come on, lovebug,” you whispered, leaving a kiss to the soft skin of your baby's head. “Let's go investigate.”

You were used to playing the role of the mediator, especially when it came to arguments involving your mother. Joyce was usually the mediator, but you often took her place when she herself was involved in the fight.

An exasperated sigh left your lips as you entered the living room, ready to find out who stole the last brownie or who left their shoes in the wrong spot. “What is going o-”

Lonnie.

Lonnie fucking Byers decided to show up after seven years of being gone. After seven years of saying, “Sayonara, kids. My new wife is more important than my children will ever be.”

“What is he doing here?” Right now, you wanted to use every curse word in the book, but for fear of passing that habit along to the baby someday, you'd been holding them in. What you really wanted to ask was, What the fuck is this asshole doing in our house?

Lonnie turned to you, a surprisingly gentle expression on his face. “Can I see her?”

The thought of him being anywhere near your baby appalled you. “What? N-No. No, you can't.”

He started to walk over to you, arms stretched out as if going in for a hug, a hug you certainly weren't accepting. “Let me see her for a minute.”

“No,” you repeated, with more finality than the first time. “You lost the right to do that whenever you walked out of here.”

He had the audacity to scoff. The noise grated on your nerves like nails on a chalkboard, and suddenly you had the urge to punch him in his scruffy, age-ridden face. “Is that what she's been telling you?”

Scratch that. You had the urge to rip off his scruffy, age-ridden face.

“Who are you kidding, Lonnie?” Disgust coated every word of Joyce's sentence. “Do you really think-”

“Shut up,” he simply said, and you could tell his command was bringing back all those old feelings of fear to your mother. Her eyes were going wide, she was taking a couple of fearful steps back. You hated it, and hated Lonnie even more for making her feel weak again. “I wanna hear what the kids have to say about this.”

Anger started to boil in your veins as you watched the way he was acting, standing there like he owned the place. The place that he left in the dust seven years ago. “First of all, do not talk to my mother—or any woman for that matter—that way.”

“Look at you.” His words were drawn out, poison coating every lengthy syllable. “Always thought you'd turn out like your brothers. Turns out you've got more balls than the two of them combined.”

Part of you wanted to argue, but the smarter part of you knew it was a waste of your breath. “Second of all, it doesn't matter what you think Mom's been telling us. We're not stupid.” And then, for a split second, the smarter part of you couldn't resist your vindictive part. “We have eyes, you know.”

“Well then,” Lonnie sneered, “what exactly did you see? Because from your dear old dad's point of view, it looked a whole lot like your mom trying to get some child support and her way.”

“Well, from your little girl's point of view,” venom dripped from your words like you were a vampire, “it looked a whole lot like you cheating on Mom behind her back.”

Joyce trembled, nearly falling over the couch as she attempted to sit on it. She knew he'd done it, it wasn't exactly something Lonnie did a good job of hiding. But knowing that her kids knew was like a knife to the gut—the one thing that proved her babies weren't quite babies anymore.

Lonnie scoffed, running a hand over his graying beard. “You don't know what the hell you're talking about.”

For once that night, a small wave of silence passed over the room. It felt as though time slowed while you considered your response, like the universe's way of letting you know it wasn't too late to back down. But you'd been backing down for your whole life when it came to him, and it was time you put an end to that.

“If I don't know what I'm talking about,” you paused, sucking in a blood-curdlingly cold breath, “then why do I have to live with the mental image of you undressing some fucking teenager when I came home from school one day?”

You hadn't looked up from where your eyes had met the floor at some point, but you knew from the pin-drop silence that Lonnie was as white as a sheet and Joyce was about three seconds away from killing him with her bare hands.

“Get out.” In all your eighteen years of life, you'd never heard your mother speak with such poison in her tone.

“This is ridiculous-”

“Get. Out.” In an instant, she was up on her feet, directing—or rather, dragging—Lonnie toward the door. Still, his six feet of barely-there muscle was stronger than her five feet and three inches as he pushed past her and strided over to you.

It took everything in you not to punch him in the face once he reached you. “This is ridiculous,” he repeated, almost sounding genuine. “I don't care about that shit. I just wanna see my damn grandbaby.”

Hell hath no fury like a Byers woman scorned, because every ounce of anger that filled your mother was multiplied tenfold when Lonnie used that word to describe your baby. Your baby.

“Jonathan, take the baby, please.”

You could practically hear the crease forming between his eyebrows. “What-”

“Just take the baby,” you insisted. Without another word, he took the crying bundle from your arms and held her close to his chest. You could barely hear him cooing at her over the sound of blood rushing in your ears.

Murder had never seriously crossed your mind, but when you were looking at Lonnie fucking Byers, you felt like Jack the Ripper. Still, you had a baby to take care of, so you did the next best, acceptable, and extremely satisfying thing.

“Let's get one thing straight,” you spat, hands meeting Lonnie’s chest and shoving him toward the door. “Her name is Mandy,” one push, “Marie,” another push, “Maldonado,” a third, “Because she will never be anything,” a final push, “of yours.”

And with that, you were slamming and locking the door in his face, an unparalleled wave of relief washing over every molecule of your body. Seven years of being left behind by your sad excuse for a father had finally come to a head, and the feeling of the outcome felt like exhaling again after holding your breath for as long as you could remember.

Jonathan walked over with the baby, placing her in your arms. He looked as though he wanted to address the month-old elephant in the room but was too afraid. Hell hath no fury like a Byers woman scorned, and he knew it all too well.

Joyce, on the opposite hand, had no shame in addressing the situation. “Is that really what you're naming her?” A couple of tears pricked the woman's eyes as she placed a hand on your back.

You nodded your head, a couple of hormonal tears slipping down your cheeks as you looked down at the little girl in your arms. It was amazing, you thought, just how much she'd grown in the past four weeks. But now you knew what people felt like when they said, She'll always be my little girl. Because she would. Mandy would always be that tiny bundle you met on Valentine's Day.

“Yeah,” you answered, the word sounding a little wet as it excited your chapped lips. You were slowly starting to remember what self care was like, but apparently lip balm had been left off your mental list.

As much as he'd never admit to it, Will did want to be a part of the family bonding moment happening across the room from where he stood, previously trying to go undetected by his father. “I think it's beautiful.”

The oldest of your brothers nodded in agreement, eyes still glued to your mini-me. “Will’s right. It's a perfect name for her.”

Tears fell in thick droplets down your cheeks, love and comfort rushing through you as your family—your real family, not some stupid man who thought DNA was equal to family—surrounded you in a well deserved group hug.

“I think so too,” the words came out in a whisper. You wondered if those cerulean eyes were already seeing just how much love this little family had for someone so small. Leaving a kiss to the tip of her nose, you met the baby with soft eyes and an even softer tone. “Mandy Marie, you are more loved than you will ever know.”

[ Now, January of 1992 ]

Placing the porcelain cup down in front of your favorite customer at his favorite table, you smiled anxiously. “Here is that gingerbread latte,” you said, the words coming out slightly shaky. “I attempted to make a gingerbread man, but I don't think he came out quite right. I-If it's too ugly, I can-”

“Byers,” Steve said, the word deep and groggy, no doubt from a lack of sleep. You weren't sure if you admired his line of work or wanted to convince him to change to a career that allowed him a full eight hours’ rest. “He looks fine. Buttons are a little crooked but it's not like I'm not about to guzzle down this whole thing anyway.”

He was trying to kid with you, you could tell he was. But trying was the operative word, not actually spitting out his usual banter. His tone was sharper than normal, though you weren't sure if it was directed at you or just an unpleasant coincidence. Whatever the case, you decided then that you didn't like Steve in a bad mood, and you'd do whatever you could to get him out of it.

“Are you okay?” You looked around to make sure your boss wasn't looking before sliding into the booth across from him.

When he finally looked up at you, he looked… tired. Older. Weary. Words you didn't like having to describe him with. Dark circles had settled under honey eyes, but despite his exhausted look, he still made your insides flutter with one small second of eye contact. “I'll be fine. Just… family stuff.”

You let out a long breath, holding back a laugh. “Oh, believe me, I could tell you a million stories about my family.” This time, you did laugh, if for no other reason than an attempt to lighten the mood.

Steve simply pressed a hand to his forehead, rubbing small circles by his eye. “It's just…” his voice trailed. You were left wondering if this man you didn't know outside the four walls of Brew and Me was about to reveal a deeper part of himself than what his favorite flavor of coffee was. “When I was born, my dad started a savings account for me to someday pay off my student loans. Now that I'm a semester out from getting my Practitioner's license, he's threatening to take the money back.”

“Huh,” you said simply. “You're a trust fund baby.”

His eyes narrowed on you sarcastically. “Is that really your main takeaway from all that?”

“Sorry, sorry,” you snickered. “It's just… You were a trust fund baby. Polos and knee high socks and country clubs and-”

“Y/N,” he stopped you, his tone nearly back to his normal, witty self.

Another snicker left you. “Okay, I'm sorry. I'll behave.” And after another silent moment, you whispered, “A trust fund baby.”

Ignoring your efforts to kid around, Steve continued on with his story, still furiously rubbing at that spot on his temple. “He's mad because I'm not following in his footsteps to become a lawyer. Hell, not even just his footsteps. My grandpa was a lawyer, my uncle is a lawyer, my cousin is a year away from taking the Bar exam. And then there's me.”

You swore you could see tears stinging behind those wire frames of his. “Surprisingly, I've been where you are. Wanting approval from your dad, just waiting and praying that something you do will finally be enough to get his blessing, so to speak.”

Something flickered across his face for a split second, something you couldn't quite identify.

“But that's when you have to ask yourself what it is that you want.” Tears pricked behind your eyes, but you wouldn't cry. Not here, not in front of him. “We are not our lineage. And we sure as hell aren't our parents.”

Neither of you said anything for a moment. Steve just sipped his latte, while you contemplated how much or how little to say about your paternal relationship. On one hand, it might've been useful for Steve to know he wasn't alone. On the other hand, if you said too much, you risked seeming insensitive—not to mention, there was the obvious: you weren't sure how many details Steve had earned from you just yet.

So, you went with what you told most everyone about your father. “My dad never cared about what was best for his kids. You don't have to let that be you too.”

You quickly scooted your way out of the booth, ready to get back to work so you could head home for the day as soon as possible. But just as you started to walk away, a firm hand wrapped around your wrist, his touch sending sparks right through you. “Hey,” he said, his tone gripping you as hard as his hand. “When you said I have to ask myself what it is that I want, I already know the answers.”

A smile pulled at your lips as you looked at him, astonished at how he was just as tall as you were, even while he was sitting down. “Oh, yeah?”

Steve gave you a small nod, removing his hand from you to push up his glasses. “I want to help people. In the ER, in free clinics.”

Something warm and fuzzy tingled in your belly and up your spine as you listened to his answer. Then, a crease formed between your brows as you noticed something off. “You said answers. Meaning you want more than one thing. That's technically only one,” you observed. “What's the second?”

“You.” Steve's hand reached for yours again, and you gladly let him take it. A calloused finger traced nonsensical shapes along the back of your hand, and your previous sparks multiplied tenfold. “I want to be with you.”

You stayed silent, honestly unsure how to respond to his admission. After a moment, he chuckled, almost in disbelief, running a hand over his hair. “That's crazy, isn't it? I'm certifiably insane, aren't I?”

With a shake of your head, you realized just how crazy you were for him too. You felt like a teenager in love, wanting to go home and gush to your diary about this handsome nurse that had stumbled his way into your life. “If you're crazy, I'm crazy,” you said with a shrug. “Only problem is you haven't won the game yet.”

Steve rolled his eyes, though you could tell from his expression, they might as well have been heart-shaped. “Believe me, Byers, I'm gonna win. And you're gonna be sorry you didn't say yes the first time I asked.”

A smirk pulled at the corners of your lips, your arms crossing in front of your chest as you looked over this man you'd fallen head over heels for. “I look forward to it, Doc.”

As always, I am posting this much later than it was intended to be. In my defense though, at least I have a good explanation this time?

So about a month ago, I was injured at work. And it took a toll on me both physically and mentally. I didn't want to write at all for a while. So it took me a very long time to crank this chapter out. Because of the mental toll it took on me, nothing ever really felt good enough to post either. It wasn't coming out the way I originally intended and I didn't want to put it out on the internet at all lol. But I finally got it finished and to a place where I think I'm genuinely happy with it.

I will (fingers crossed) have the next chapter out much more quickly than this one lol! But I have a couple of one shot fics unrelated to this series that I was able to write that I think you guys will enjoy too!!

-> taglist: @dungeons-are-too-cold @ducky-died-inside @awkotaco24 @liberhoe @princesseddie @corrodedseraphine @manuosorioh @esoltis280 @hazydespair @frostandflamesfanfic @insertcoolnameherethanks

[kishibedefender]

Fuck it I'm giving Jojo Characters Kpop Groups.

Jonathan Joestar - EXO

Fan of the classics, here for the vibes. He probably enjoys the more laidback songs, less of a Tempo girlie and more of a Heart Attack girlie. Artificial Love sent him into shock tho.

Joseph Joestar - NCT U

This man thinks Taeyong is the coolest thing since sliced bread. Full stop. He heard Baggy Jeans and it became his whole personality. And he DEF plays it around Caesar because Caesar hates it.

Jotaro Kujo - no

Kakyoin stans TWICE tho

Josuke Higashikata - NewJeans

This man loves girl groups. I just KNOW IT. New Jeans is his favorite, but this man has Twice, ITZY, Lightsum, STAYC, all the girlies. He was first in line to buy the MISAMO release.

Giorno Giovanna - SHINee

Bias is Key. Biaswrecker Taemin. This man 100% gets down to Replay after mafia meetings. If he had a Spotify wrapped I guarantee you that his top 5 would be classical music and SHINee.

Jolyne Kujo - ATEEZ

As an ATINY myself, she's gay. We're gay. And she 100% stans Yeosang.

Also her favorite ATEEZ song is Cyberpunk.

Johnny Joestar - BTS

Diehard. DIEHARD ARMY. This man took one look at Kim Namjoon and went "perfect I'll take 14 of them" and when he heard Run? Oh shit was overrrr.

Josuke Higashikata (8) - PSY

The safe choice, the right choice, he can't remember a lot of things but man can remember that he wants some new face.

Jodio Joestar - TWICE

Dragona showed him. He biases Tzuyu and stole a lightstick from a kpop store.

[prettyboyeddiemunson]

It's been years since you last stepped foot into Hawkins. Not intentionally, well....sort of. As soon as you graduated high school you left, the Welcome to Hawkins sign barely able to be seen in your rear view mirror. You went to university, only keeping up with your friends through letters and calls that slowly dwindled from weekly to holidays only.

It was bittersweet being back. You wondered how old everyone would look. Would the kids you babysat even remember you (you hoped you were their favorite). Was it finally finished, the Upside Down?

You cursed the Upside Down, because while it was its own special level of hell (Dante should have visited Hawkins), it created it's own hell for you. It tore you and your best friend apart.

Eddie Munson. Plans to graduate together, go to a big city for your university and his music career. Late nights sitting in the back of the van talking about everything and nothing. The way your pinkies would lightly touch each other before jerking away, that slowly turned into interlocking them. You craved to hold his whole hand.

But that didn't happen. Will Byers went missing and then Barb, and you helped look for them. You ran into Nancy and Jonathan in the woods, each of you yelling at the other for being in the woods "alone" (hey, you at least stole your neighbor's shot gun to defend yourself and left a note at your place incase you didn't come back). You weren't expecting a whole different world, just someone who lacked empathy and craved violence.

The first time was hard enough, suddenly having to explain to Eddie why you were friendly with the popular kids, even Steve fucking Harrington. The second time? That...that was torture. And it's what tore you apart.

Eddie has always been able to tell when you are lying, even if no one else can. It's the one thing you promised you wouldn't do to each other- lie. So when Eddie catches you limping post demodog bite? You claim it was a wolf. He knows it wasn't, but what else can he say? Then you disappear and show back up with Steve Harrington's face beat in? Nope no thats not okay!

It drew a wedge between you. You graduated and got out. You wanted nothing more to do with the Upside Down. Of course, having to deal with a simple mall fire as the media put it really solidified things. Being covered in bruises and cuts, even some ash, banging on Eddie's trailer that night. When he opened the door and you clung to him crying, and Eddie held you close.

But then he asked what happened. And you told him the truth. It really isn't too believable to say "hey I fought a creature from another dimension and also Russians at the mall". Hell, even talking about what happened with Will Byers makes very little logical sense. That NDA was a godsend for you, taking away the tricky part of navigating this conversation.

Except that night you told him. And he laughed in your face. The glare he had, the saccharine smile as he called you out for lying. The way his voice cracked when he said "you can't even tell me the truth? I thought we would be something, but if you don't even trust me"

Yeah. You hated the Upside Down. You hated that it drove a wedge between you. And you hated yourself just a bit, for never coming back.

You were sitting in your dorms listening to the radio when an aftershock of an earthquake hit. Breaking news later that day told of an earthquake tearing Hawkins apart, many missing and presumed dead. You called Eddie's line but it didn't connect. You called Dustin's, same thing. Only Steve Harrington's line connected, and he told you what happened. Someone called Vecna. But they actually defeated him, stood over his dead body and made sure ("its like those horror movies, you got to be sure the killer doesn't come back...we made sure").

But Eddie was gone. Missing. Presumed dead. And it broke your heart. That was three years ago. You hadn't talked to anyone since last hearing Max made a mostly full recovery (sadly, she never would get her sight back). Hopper apparently wasn't dead but...thats the last you heard. You wouldn't read any other letters. Any time Hawkins or the Upside Down came up in calls, you shut down. Everyone knew to avoid it.

To be back in the town being rebuilt...felt wrong without him. The fact the townsfolk knew nothing about what really happened? Crazy. And now you're home. But it isnt home. Eddie was home. You wish you had a chance to tell him. Wished you hadn't ran away. Wished you weren't such a coward.

And when you walk into the Buckley-Harrington house and see a familiar face with dark curly hair, you think your heart stops. And you think your wish may just come true

THIS IS SO GOOD WTF

AND THAT CLIFFHANGER OMG 😩😩😩

[andvys]

ANDY!! how are you? I just caught up with the last 2 chapters and they were amazing!!

“Uh, it’s your birthday present.”

oh??? 🤨 is that a bomb

He scratches the back of his neck, “uh well, apparently Ray is a fan of pocket knives,” he laughs. 

omg i remember in school when we were like 14 boys used to bring pocket knives with them and that was scary cause wtf

You weren’t good enough for that – he did not want to change for you. 

NOOO DONT THINK THAT BABY

“She is not you.”

steve... what the hell.

“She’s not the one that I want.”

ANOTHER STRIKE BACK TO BACK???

“I know,” he whispers, frowning at the ground, “I know, I’m sorry. I-I made a mistake and I will regret it for the rest of my life.”

the rest of your- BOY

“We both made mistakes.”

girl... i don't think you did tbh

“I was a fucking asshole, y/n. I was an asshole to you, every day of our relationship, I kept fucking up, over and over again and you tolerated it, you never left me. You never got mad at me, you never said anything rude, you never did anything bad, you were – fuck, you were perfect, you are perfect,” he holds your hand tighter.

yeahhhh she's way too good for you

“I’m sorry that I acted like I wasn’t interested in the things you loved doing. I’m sorry that I didn’t show you how much I really loved you. I’m sorry that I didn’t hold you enough, that I didn’t kiss you the way you should have been kissed, that I didn’t take care of you.” 

took him long enough 😭

This year he can’t even hug you.

BOOOOO

“I’ll throw it away later, huh?” She asks, mocking him. 

OH I'D BE PISSED TOO NANCY

Her eyes have strayed away from him just a few weeks after he left you for her. The moment Jonathan stepped into her life, her heart was no longer his, she gave it to her supposed new friend. 

OH SO YOURE BEING PLAYED LIKE YOU PLAYED Y/N AHAHAHHAA

It makes your stomach flip – you don’t know why. 

girl... calm your horses 🤨

“Uh, the store!” Robin says, sheepishly as she gives you a crooked grin. 

SHES SO ME 😭

“Oh my god, y/n!” Heather snorts, “stop joking about it or you’re actually getting them someday!” 

i would actually jump off a cliff if it happened to me 😭

Apparently you are pregnant with Eddie’s baby and living in his trailer. 

NOT THIS

The pregnancy rumor made you physically sick – it made you stand in front of the mirror, checking for signs that you had gained weight. You did not, it still made you feel nauseous and you had to cancel your dinner ‘date’ with your friends. 

OH NO BABY :(((

“You have no idea how much I wanna get rid of that title,” you laugh, “I’m ready to give that position up to Chrissy.” 

girl we don't have cheerleaders here, do you know what i would do to be a cheerleader?? 😭

Jonathan shrugs, refraining from rolling his eyes, “cause you’re the captain of the basketball team and she’s cheer captain.” 

CAN PRINCIPAL MAKE IT EVEN MORE AWKWARD

Jonathan huffs with a soft chuckle, “yeah, you look good but uh, Steve? You’re supposed to look into the camera,” he says awkwardly. 

PFFF THIS IS SO AWKWARD IM—

“That uh, that was our dream. I only wanted to go to college with you.”

bro really based his whole life on a high school girlfriend 😭 that's bravery

“I got a job at the ice cream parlor,” he clears his throat, “Scoops Ahoy.” 

YESSSSSS OMG WE'LL GET SAILOR STEVE (and Robin? 👀)

“The one I’m pregnant? The one where he sacrificed a lamb to get my undying love and devotion? The one where I cheated on Steve? Which one of them all?” 

NOT THE POOR LITTLE LAMB 💀 was it served with hot sause

“Y-You look amazing is what I’m trying to say,” Nancy says nervously. 

enemies to lover arc with Nancy? 🫨

“You’re a little oblivious, aren’t you?” 

A LITTLE

btw how did you like 1989 TV? 👀 honey anon

BESTIE HI!!!!

I’m doing okay!!! I’m excited for Christmas season! 🤭 how are you? 🩷

OMG NO!!! why would they bring pocket knives to school 😭 (i got one too but only because i’m afraid of men LMAO)

Nancy had a reason to be pissed but damn girl, you stole someone’s boyfriend 😩

Robin buying the store bought cake is so relatable. I love baking but the moment I gotta bake a cake for someone I always fail 💀

AND WE DONT HAVE CHEERLEADERS HERE AT SCHOOL EITHER!!! 😭💔 like you can join a cheer team as a hobby but there’s no cheer teams or sports team in general at the schools here. I would’ve definitely been a cheerleader too if we had that here 🥲

And the principal ships steve and reader 😌 he cried when they broke up 😪

You’re definitely getting Steve and Robin at scoops ahoy with they’re cute little sailor uniforms 🤭

Also enemies to lovers with Nancy? Imagine if that was the plan all along 🤭 Nancy’s song would be Mastermind then

I LOVE THE VAULT TRACKS!! I love all of them but especially Slut! and Say don’t go (but is it over now? too ugh) AND I KNOW PLACES THE GROWL IN THE SONG? I SCREAMED 😭😭 how did you like it? 🤭

[droughtofapathy]

"Welcome to the Theatre": Diary of a Broadway Baby

A Little Night Music in Concert

June 29, 2024 | Lincoln Center | David Geffen Hall | Evening | Concert | Limited Engagement | 2H 20M

All else aside, Jonathan Tunick's new orchestrations played by the 53-piece Orchestra of St. Luke’s were enchanting to listen to. There is a sublimeness to such a full symphony of instruments that we'll sadly never get on a Broadway stage again, owing to the sheer expense. But the tempo dragged, and the liberal cuts to the book muddied the story. And of course, rehearsal time is so limited for these special events. For what they had, it was a nice night.

And now it's time for me to be a bitch.

The casting for this concert was baffling from day one. The first mistake was casting an opera Diva and not an actress capable of musical theatre. Sondheim is meant for actresses who can sing, and vocal quality is far lower on the list than acting. While Susan Graham sounded lovely, her lush operettic voice is less suited to lyrics that require specific diction rather than soaring high notes. And she is just not up to acting this role. She is also 63, and while you all know I adore old broads, especially with greying hair, she would have made a better Mme. Armfeldt, at least in age, though again...not acting. She's fifteen years too old for Desiree. And Ron Raines as Frederick is about twenty too old for that. At least Raines did an admirable job of committing himself to the role and the acting. It mattered less that his strongest vocal days are past him. But their advanced ages unbalanced the whole narrative. The actress playing Anne was similarly too old, being in her late twenties, at least, though she did a fine job portraying youthful naivety. The girl cast as Fredericka was also a few too many years old, and her similar stature to Henrick made their interactions more charged than they should have been.

Marsha Mason did a better job than I think many expected, though not spectacular. Shuler Hensley as the Count was another odd casting choice, but he managed well enough. Cynthia Erivo as Petra on this final night did not live up to the hype. Perhaps because she fucked up the lyrics at the matinee and made the whole orchestra stop and start over, she seemed to be overcompensating tonight by relying too heavily on her script. She spent most of the song with her eyes trained on the pages, and did little to make it really pop. "The Miller's Son" is one of Sondheim's best, and I have seen it done many, many times. There's about 70/30 odds on whether it'll go well or not. This had to have been one of the least exciting renditions. It sounded beautiful, sure, but there was no euphoria for me. No delight at an actress nailing those tongue-twister lyrics. No joy and pride. Nothing memorable at all, not even a mistake.

What does fill me with some degree of pride is the fact that the strongest showings came from the two Asians in the cast. In a thankless role, Jin Ha was able to bring back "Silly People" (though it's clear why that song is cut because narratively it does the story no favors). Off-book, he performed the hell out of it. And Ruthie Ann Miles stole the show as Countess Charlotte. This is the role that you can really run away with, and boy did she ever. This dry rancor is her at her best. I adore her once again. (I had some...quibbles with her in Light in the Piazza, but that's neither here nor there anymore.)

In all, many mistakes and poor judgments from the producers deadened what could have been a night for the ages. Still, it was a night I don't regret. Though I wish I'd paid less.

Verdict: Well...I'm Glad I Saw It

A Note on Ratings

[starry-blue-echoes]

Vampire Jotato + vampire Speedwagon aus

For pre-part 3, I've seen a Jotaro & Speedwagon dynamic I really like in a time-travel fic, where Speedwagon's like 'youre a Joestar! Of course I'm your friendly uncle who cares for you!' while Jotaro's feelings are best summed up as 'You Don't Know Me and have not unlocked that level of familiarity, fuck off.'

Then Jotaro gets turned, and Speedwagon is there for him.

Talking about what it's like, promising to stand by him for immortality, telling him about how maybe blood for transfusions that either expires or isn't a needed type or whatever is still good for vampires to get him to eat, and it's kind of smothering because Speedwagon's love for the Joestars knows no chill, but.

Jotaro still doesn't get along with Speedwagon incredibly well, but Speedwagon Gets It. And that's incredibly valuable for him.

Y e s s s s s s s s s

There’s also the addition of how Jotaro now has someone else to think of when he thinks of “vampire”

Being a vampire can be Dio with his cruelty, his manipulations, the countless lives he stole. It can be an enemy who laughs and mocks while refusing the stay down, who sucked the blood from his grandfather before his eyes, slaughtered his friends and nearly killed his mother

But being a vampire can also be Speedwagon, his weird, annoying but affectionate uncle who will stand by you even when you don’t want him to. It can be a man with over-the-top hats with saw blades in them, who always took night watch because he never needed sleep, using the longevity to protect the ones he loves for the rest of their lives so they never again have to experience life threatening danger

It also helps that Jotaro now won’t be alone. No matter how many people grow old around him, Speedwagon is going to remain a constant. They’re both ageless, and Speedwagon will be able to help Jotaro deal with the emotions surrounding outliving loved ones, see: Erina

Of course, it’s not perfect. Speedwagon and Jotaro are technically different “kinds” of vampires, with Speedwagon being turned from the Mask and Jotaro having been turned by a Mask Vampire, but they make it work

Jotaro probably won’t hate himself or his new nature as much any more. He’ll probably be less starved as well, since Speedwagon will be able to help him eat. It’ll probably take a while, and he’s not eating as much as he should, but it’s better than nothing

If we’re throwing in TC&TK, Tonio…… is still going to SUCK to deal with. Jotaro would still miss his humanity and would still eat the food, just not as often. He’d probably still spiral for a good long while which neither Speedwagon or even his mom could console him from and it would take a good LONG while before he’s eating again.

And then if we take it a step further and do the whole Italy trip…. I’m not sure if Speedwagon would go to Italy or not. On one hand he might still have issues regarding the whole Dio Situation, but on the other I think he’d have the sense to seek therapy help. Plus, I don’t think he’d want to leave Jotaro by himself for any possibly long stretch of time. DOUBLE plus he could also see it as “The body may have been under Dio’s control but this is still Jonathan’s biological child”

At the very least, Giorno is now going to have a very nice vampiric uncle who shows him the ropes and dotes on him unapologetically and without hesitation

[gutz-radio]

Stranger things spoilers below:

This season sucked BALLS. I shouldn't be but yet I am still amazed at how the Duffer Balls manage to have literal gold in their hands and chose to shit on it. Eddie's death was lazy writing. It was poor and just a quick and cheap way to wash away the whole 'Satanic Cult' bullshit. Also what is it with leaving his fucking CORPSE in the Upside Down for christ's sake. You couldn't even bring his fucking corpse back?? Nah fuck that. Disrespect to Eddie and a waste of a fucking brilliant actor like Joseph Quinn. And if that didn't make me angry enough, let me proceed with the rest of the mountains of bullshit. 1. This constant flip flop between Stancy and Jancy. Honest to fucking god I hate love triangles enough as a trope itself but for god's fucking sake this is basically taking a SEMI TRUCK INTO STEVE AND NANCY'S GODDAMN DEVELOPMENT. Steve's whole shit was learning to move from Nancy and Nancy finding a better connection with Jonathan. Oh, and Jonathan was treated like SHIT by the Duffers this season. Him being a stoner makes no fucking sense it was pulled out of goddamn fucking nowhere. 2. Whatever they were trying to pull with Will's sexuality flopped harder than Chrissy's corpse on the floor of the Munson's trailer. Like I don't even like Byler but A. it was vague as shit and B. They really used him just to push the Mileven agenda. Good job on completely fucking up Duffers. Brilliant

3. THE WHOLE FUCKING BULLSHIT WITH DEMONISING BILLY FOR THE 483TH TIME GOD'S SAKE. My man is dead. He has been fucking skewered like a fucking kebab and never got to live his fucking life and better himself and get away from his shit garbage father. I accepted that at the end that he's not coming back, but by god the Duffers can't just let my man die in fucking peace. No, instead they have to drag him through the goddamn mud again with Max's bullshit speech that I hate with all my might. That he 'didn't deserve to be saved'. Nice message there, telling people who have been in Billy's shoes that because they have been abused and mistreated and lash out because VICTIM'S AREN'T FUCKING PERFECT THEY ARE PEOPLE WHO HAVE GONE THROUGH SHIT NO PERSON SHOULD EVER GO THROUGH, may or may not deserve a change for a better life. Billy SACRIFICED HIMSELF and became a fucking MARTYR over a memory of when he was happy and the smallest show of tenderness and caring from a child he DOESN'T EVEN KNOW that made him overpower a GODDAMN MIND CONTROLLING ELDRITCH ABOMINATION MONSTER AND SAVE EVERYONE. And the thanks he gets is the Duffers pissing on his grave. I will forever be fucking pissed at this writing and the Duffers should NEVER try write a character in an abusive situation again because by GOD they did it POORLY.

4. The sympathy bullshit for Brenner and Henry/Vecna/One. So you are telling me they made Brenner sympathetic with this "I oNlY wAnTeD tO hElP yOu" bullshit, and did this whole melancholy music scene. No fuck that. This man stole CHILDREN from their mothers and fried Terry Ives' brains to the point she can't have a normal fucking life and is stuck in a vegetable state for the rest of her life. He also abused these fucking kids and tortured them. FUCK HIM. And sympathy because of Henry/Vecna/One because of what Brenner did? saying he's not a monster? After he fucking killed INNOCENT KIDS and his own goddamn family? Getting his dad thrown into a mental asylum for a crime he didn't commit? Basically having an ideology that would involve fucking murdering all of humanity? And we had glimpses of sympathy through Eleven telling him he didn't need to do this? FUCK THAT TOO.

The ONLY redeeming things in this hellfire garbage shit show was

Lucas beating Jason

Jopper and the Russia stuff

Mike's speech to Eleven because I'm a sucker for Mileven

The smallest fizzle of hope that Robin might get a romantic interest

This season was executed poorly. It was so bad it made me miss the dumpster fire of Season 3. That's how bad it was. And I have no hope for Season 5, the only reason I'll watch it because I hate not knowing how a story ends, even if in the end it sucks ass and I'm left forever disappointed at how what once was a good story with a good plot and characters I adored and cared for became a complete fucking mess of fanservice, 80s pop culture references, lazy writing, and shitty horror for the sake of 'edge' and 'shock'.

I said it once and I'll say it again: Stanger Things should have ended in Season fucking TWO.

[tibby]

If you have the time can you please please please recap season 4 of riverdale. I was going to binge it on Netflix but things happen and then I saw your post about the graduation episode and HAD to watch that happen and now I’m recommitted to the cause and need to know what happened while I was gone

sure. okay so the season sadly starts with the death of fred andrews in a very sentimental and moving episode that’s kind of seperate from the rest of the show so it’s not really until episode two that things kick off. the riverteens are kind of thriving in a parentless world because milf alice was kidnapped by a cult, dilf hiram and milf hermione are in prison, milf penelope is in hiding after killing a bunch of people, milf mary is kind of just There, milf gladys went back to toledo after her drug empire failed, god knows what milf sierra and gay kevin’s straight former cop dad are off doing, and dilf fp is the sheriff but because it’s fp he’s kind of bad at it. so the riverteens are horrified when their new principal mr honey expects them to be at school on time and disapproves of them throwing school dances because students keep getting murdered at them. cheryl, who an episode prior never wanted anyone in riverdale to celebrate the 4th of july ever again because of her brother’s death, considers this an act of oppression and throws a party at her house. however, as she is keeping her brother’s mummified corpse in the basement, she gets angry when reggie tries to sneak down there. meanwhile gay kevin is trying to make amends with betty for the time he tried to have her lobotomised because of the cult led by chad michael murray. betty uses this to her advantage to find out where the cult is, teaming up with her half brother, charles (not to be confused with chic, who was only PRETENDING to be charles back in season two). archie gets munroe, his prison buddy, to attend riverdale high, and reggie is weirdly jealous about it. archie discovers that this is because reggie is being abused by his father, so they smash in his car and apparently this solves everything. jughead starts attending stonewall prep, where he meets bret weston wallis, donna sweett, joan berkeley, and jonathan. he also reunites with moose, who disappeared in mid s3 after cheryl outed him to the whole school including his homophobic dad, and then his homophobic dad dressed up as the gargoyle to try and stop moose and gay kevin hooking up in the sex bunker they stole from dilton doiley after he killed himself, but it turns out that his homophobic dad was just angry HE never got to fuck gay kevin’s straight cop dad back in the day. it was this whole thing. anyway, moose is like “i’m going by my real name, marmaduke now, so people don’t find out about my dad” but everyone does anyway and so moose mysteriously disappears again. betty finds out where the cult is (after disarming a bomb attached to her sister polly using a bobby pin) and goes to rescue her mother. milf alice reveals that chad michael murray is using the cult money to build a rocket, and his wife/fake daughter evelyn is going to drive a bus full of cultists off a cliff. the day is saved! veronica finds out that her father’s real surname is luna and decides to start going by that as an act of rebellion because he keeps leaving the prison that he owns to fuck with her after she had him arrested. archie decides to turn his gym into a community centre with munroe’s help. cheryl, who, for unknown reasons, obtained custody of polly’s twins, immediately fires the nanny that toni hired because he said there were probably rats in the walls and went into the basement. cheryl goes to make sure that the nanny didn’t interfere with her brother’s mummified corpse, and toni walks in on her stitching him up. videotapes start arriving at the homes of the riverdale residents of said homes being filmed for hours. onto halloween! toni tells cheryl they can’t have a dead body in the horse and makes her rebury jason, at which point cheryl claims she is being haunted by a doll named julian, who is supposedly possessed by the spirit of her other brother that she ate in utero, but the haunting will stop if they unbury jason. toni agrees, but the doll continues to appear in weird places, and cheryl is forced to confess that while she WAS gaslighting her before, she isn’t right now. betty bonds with charles while receiving prank phone calls from polly, who is now in a mental institution. archie and munroe try to throw a halloween party at their community centre for the troubled youths but it’s interrupted by a drug dealing gang trying to start shit in the parking lot, thus giving archie a new enemy. reggie destroys mr honey’s office for the joke but mr honey catches him and is like “you do this because your dad hits you.” jughead uncovers mysteries surrounding strange disappearances of prep students known as “the stonewall four,” and donna drugs him so she and bretjoanjonathan can lock him in a coffin overnight as a bit. meanwhile, veronica burns a man alive in her basement. archie becomes a teen vigilante for the millionth time in the series, jughead and the other stonewall stags go into the running to be the ghostwriter for the baxter brothers franchise, veronica gets her mother out of prison but then finds out that her half sister, hermosa the PI, got their father out of prison, and he is now mayor again. betty and gay kevin start an fbi training course in which betty realises the serial killer gene is a real thing and she does have it, and remembers when she killed her childhood cat. jughead finds out that his grandfather who drunk himself to death but also abandoned fp but is also just some guy ACTUALLY wrote the baxter brothers franchise and is like “i have to reveal this!” so he takes it to his english teacher mr chipping but then mr chipping jumps out of a window before anything can come of it, and jughead is horrified when the stonewall stags have no reaction. cheryl is still convinced she is being haunted by a doll and things are further complicated when her extended family shows up. her uncle discovers jason’s body in the basement, threatens to send cheryl away, and is killed by toni. speaking of death, archie is still on his vigilante shit and asks hiram for help, at which point the near dead body of the gang leader, dodger shows up wrapped in carpet outside of the community centre. betty visits chic in prison to find out more about charles, and when chic threatens to reveal where milf alice buried the man she killed back in season two, charles and fp go to dig it up again and move it somewhere else. to get her family away from her and also in the spirit of thanksgiving, cheryl makes them think that they ate her uncle. dodger’s family show up at the community centre thanksgiving for revenge and there’s almost a shoot out, but thankfully the deep fryer explodes and chaos is avoided! milf mary later suggests the deep fryer exploding was archie’s dead dad’s ghost. betty and jughead spend the weekend at stonewall prep, where they play a homoerotic game of never have i ever with bret and donna. donna says that she and mr chipping were having an affair. now it’s time for the gang to go to therapy: archie gets diagnosed with gay but is also just suffering from an insane guilt complex, betty has mommy issues, veronica has daddy issues, cheryl is being gaslit but did NOT eat her brother in utero, jughead is just some guy. jughead finds out where his abusive alcoholic grandfather has been hiding out, and meanwhile his dad gets shot. veronica decides to fight back against her father by starting a rival rum business. polly rips off a nurse’s face and betty finds out that everyone in her family has a trigger word instilled in them by the cult, so she imagines herself going back in time to STOP her child self killing her cat to learn how to control it. cheryl uncovers her gaslighter by literally gassing her house, and it’s revealed that milf penelope was living in the walls and mad that cheryl had jason’s body. cheryl reburies jason and imprisons her mother in the sex bunker. archie’s uncle shows up, just in time for football season! the riverteens are playing stonewall prep, and reggie reveals that the preppies fight dirty, just in time for them to tonya harding munroe’s knees as he is their star player. archie’s uncle gives munroe steroids so he can play anyway, and riverdale loses but munroe gets a scholarship. cheryl feuds with her new cheerleading coach and locks her in her office so she has a panic attack. hiram threatens to sue veronica for stealing his rum recipe, so she teams up with cheryl (maple syrup queen) to create a new type. jughead joins the stonewall prep secret society, the quill and skull, and reveals that he watched a homeless man die. also, the cheerleading team performs cherry bomb. betty starts feuding with bret and decides to stand off against him in a quiz show, and although she wins, she is accused of cheating and is forced to give it up. she also wanted to use this to try and get into yale because apparently “cooper” is an uncommon name and people associate it with her serial killer father. veronica and cheryl enlist milf penelope and her former brothel in a hotel to run their underground rum dealership after hiram kept fucking shit up at veronica’s speakeasy. jughead is forced to come up with new stories for his baxter brother books, and so he writes about betty’s serial killer father (uh oh!) archie tries to restart his father’s construction company but his uncle’s shenanigans make it hard and gay kevin’s straight former cop dad has HAD IT. fangs is back from cult recovery, but gay kevin has gotten into non sexual tickle porn. toni and fangs get in on this they use this to blackmail nick st clair after he returns and understandably upsets cheryl, his would be rape victim. archie is attacked in the bathrooms at school because his uncle can’t mind his own business, but this plot was fucking boring so i don’t remember most of it. jughead and bret decided to duel, because of course, and betty uses this as a chance to investigate the preppies further. she finds out that bret films sex tapes and blackmailed moose with one, and also has one of her and jughead. she also finds a video suggesting donna lied about her affair with mr chipping. veronica goes to new york to visit katy keene, played by lucy hale of fantasy island fame, who tells her that her mother is dying. veronica returns home just in time to hear that hiram has a mysterious disease and decides to make amends. jughead is accused of plagiarism, meanwhile veronica realises her father thrives off war, and continues their rum battle. archie is now drinking at school and veronica accuses mr honey of being a fascist for having a problem with it. BUT. MOST IMPORTANTLY. ALL SEASON WE HAVE BEEN TEASED WITH DEADHEAD. AND IT IS FINALLY HAPPENING. IDES OF MARCH PARTY AT STONEWALL PREP. AND BETTY BASHES JUGHEAD’S HEAD IN WITH A ROCK. betty tries to prove that the stonewall stags did it instead but donna is an insane lesbian and thrives off gaslighting and fucking with her. because jughead died, betty gets his spot at yale. the core four are accused of murder but cleared of everything. jughead has a funeral, and bret’s attempt of proving jughead isn’t in the casket are thwarted by the sweet pea, the sweetest pea in the room. hiram shows up just to fire fp as sheriff. betty kisses archie to help with her grief, and veronica ends things with them both. but donna is not convinced, and goes around stalking betty, saying she watched her sex tape and knows that betty couldn’t last so long without sex with jughead. and she is right! because lo and behold, jughead is alive and hiding in the sex bunker, despite donna’s best attempts to catch them out. donna knows they’re up to something and implies she killed jonathan when bret doubts her. betty and archie are like “yeah we only dated for the bit :/” but their texting implies it was...more. betty and jughead return to stonewall and expose the preppies, but they decide not to interview jonathan because he “has food poisoning.” or he’s dead. their other teacher kills himself, and fp reunites with his abusive father. betty discovers that donna’s grandmother was one of the people killed for the rights to the baxter brothers/tracy true franchise, and the entire scheme was a complicated revenge plot by donna to get back at their teacher for killing her grandmother. betty blackmails her with this information so donna can’t have the tracy true contract, and everything is “wrapped up” just in time for gay kevin to announce he’s doing a variety show. gay kevin’s intentions of performing hedwig are destroyed when mr honey is like “no, this is inappropriate for high schoolers,” and so the riverteens decide to band together and have everyone perform hedwig songs as an act of protest. meanwhile, betty and jughead fight because jughead didn’t do his homework because he was too busy watching the stalker vhs tapes, and veronica and archie fight because he lied about her father working out at his gym, given that hiram has tried to kill him multiple times and doesn’t really care about his health. betty and archie use this as an opportunity to kiss during origin of love. the variety show is cancelled, but the core four and gay kevin perform midnight radio on the roof, and jughead watches a stalker vhs tape of someone in a betty mask killing someone in a jughead mask. tickle porn shenanigans continue, and gay kevin is threatened over cheating his original tickle porn handler out of money. mr honey then forces them to shut the website down. cheryl leaves the rum business after her mother is threatened because of goons that were mad at hiram. hiram decides to deal with this by going after said goons. archie writes a song for betty, they explore their relationship further, but she picks jughead over him even when he says he’ll dump veronica for her. jughead discovers that ethel watched his and betty’s sex tape, and he and charles uncover blue velvet video, which houses sexy films and snuff films, and jughead is like “oh this is connected to the whole vhs stalker thing.” cheryl is sent a video of someone dressed up as her father killing someone dressed up as her brother. the riverteens turn their focus to the fact that all of them except archie and jughead have been banned from prom for various reasons, and betty suggests they kill mr honey as punishment. jughead writes an elaborate murder fantasy about them doing so, and also kills off reggie and drives cheryl insane for the bit i guess. the riverteens conclude that mr honey was behind the vhs stalker tapes and have him fired, and he tells them they’re all deranged before going to teach at stonewall prep. the school secretary tells them all the wonderful things mr honey did for the school and hands jughead a recommendation letter he wrote him for college. jughead realises they fucked up and rewrites his story so mr honey lives, but uh oh! he and betty uncover a vhs tape of their fictional murder of mr honey, much like the others.

and that’s what you missed on riverdale!

[mysticmlynn3]

Pet Headcanons || Gotham Rogues

Just something for fun. :)

Jonathan Crane | Scarecrow

A black cat named Ichabod.

Ichabod came after Jonathan became Scarecrow. While working on new concoctions, a stray cat set paws inside the abandoned barn Jon resides in, it's never left the barn since so Jonathan lets it be. Jonathan soon grew a soft spot for Ichabod, and if anything happened to Ichabod he will dose everyone in the room with fear toxin and then dose himself.

Edward Nygma | The Riddler

A grey rat named Einstein.

Before 'The Riddler' and 'Enigma', Edward had a pet rat in his GCPD days, he took great care of Einstein for a long while. When Edward started his crime career, he knew he wouldn't be able to care for Einstein much longer, so he gave him to his trusted friend, Barbara Gordan. Einstein's still in great health, and Edward misses him.

Jervis Tetch | Mad Hatter

Two mices named Jaq and Gus.

Yes he named his mices after the mices from the Disney movie 'Cinderella', he thought it seemed fitting 😕. He's had plenty of mices before, but just as experiments, but Jaq and Gus were...special. He's working on a device that can make the mices "speak", just like in the Disney movie! This was out of Jervis's tired thoughts.

Harleen Quinzel | Harley Quinn

Two spotted hyenas

We all know Bud and Lou, but that's not going to stop me from rambling about them! Harley got them as a gift from Joker one birthday, (it was when they "dated" and Joker at the last minute stole hyenas from the local zoo.) and she was ecstatic!! It took a long while for the rogues to be comfortable with Harley's unusual pets, I mean who has hyenas as domesticated pets. But Harley takes great care of her Bud and Lou, much better than the zoo did.

Pamela Isley | Poison Ivy

A giant green snake.

That's right, she has a whole freaking snake in her greenhouse!! Sure she has her plants, but a snake, C'mon it's kinda cool. No one knows the origins of the snake, but some suspect she stole it from the zoo, I mean where else are you going to find a snake around Gotham?? She calls the snake her "Precious", and sometimes she feeds Precious humans if they're not any use to her experiments.

Selina Kyle | Catwoman

A black cat.

Mostly based off BTAS where Selina does have a cat named 'Isis'. She's had the cat for a long while, and she deeply cares about Isis more than anyone, kinda like Jonathan. I feel like Jonathan and Selina would bond more if they rambled about their black feline friends together, share wonderful memories and show off what their cats can do, and of course share a few laughs.

Jack Napier | The Joker

A goldfish.

It may not seem much, but it's easier to manage than hyenas or snakes, whatever the others have as strange pets. Sometimes he vents to the fish about his master plans and how Batman has been a real pain in the ass these past days, foiling his plans and sending him back to Arkham! He really thought they had something, can you believe it, Guppy??

Harvey Dent | Two Face

A golden retriever.

Before Two Face, Sunshine was his furry friend. He used to take her out for walks, play with her, and give her belly scratches on the floor. Duela and Gilda loved Sunshine, even Bruce Wayne! But after Two Face, he had to abandon Sunshine to Duela and Gilda. Sometimes Gilda wakes up to Sunshine laying at the front door, crying for Harvey, she really missed him. :(

Oswald Cobblepot | Penguin

Penguins...of course.

You can't call yourself 'The Penguin' if you don't have a dozen penguins roaming around your bar and harassing your fellow colleagues. He doesn't bother naming them, as they all look the same, and penguins don't need names like dogs do. The penguins love to harass The Dork Squad, pecking at Jon's mask, Ed's suit, and Jervis's hat, and Oswald laughs in hysterics when they all start cursing at the penguins to stop.

Eduardo Dorrance | Bane

A smol black chihuahua.

I'm a slut for tall threatening buff people with small ass pets that they're soft for, and one of them is Bane! As one who has a chihuahua as a pet, they are pretty fucking nasty, but Band loves his "Princess" regardless. Bane gives Princess smooches on the head, and in exchange Princess returns kisses, never failing to make Bane melt.

Waylon Jones | Killer Croc

A grey tabby kitten.

Like Bane, Waylon has a soft spot for small pets. One day at the sewers, a cardboard box was floating in the waters, and only Waylon paid attention to it when he heard meowing coming from the box. He quickly got the box from the waters, and that's when he met 'Skull Crusher'. She curls up into Waylon's arms when she wants sleep, and Waylon just goes 

If anything happened to Skull Crusher, he will eat everyone in this room and then kill himself, or eat himself, or find another person to eat.

Unfortunately for Victor, he doesn't have any pets of his own considering his living situation, but Oswald's penguins like him, and he likes them too.

[johannaquartet]

Re: “Rent is plagiarized and Jonathan Larson was BAD”

There’s this popular tiktok about the “Jonathan Larson stole from Sarah Schulman” thing and I think it ended up polluting the conversation about Rent, especially how it pertains to Larson. The guy who made it literally said “Jonathan Larson was a bad person who shouldn’t be celebrated,” and his defense for this was “he plagiarized People In Trouble and all the queer/POC characters in the show play second fiddle to the white guys.” It was also implied that he shouldn’t have written Rent because he was a white guy who didn’t have AIDS, but we’ll get into that later.

All of this feels like very bad faith criticism. No, the queer/BIPOC characters aren’t the best, but that’s in large part because the show came out in the 90s when representation was much less of a thing and there was less consciousness around telling the stories of the marginalized. This argument feels like a fancy-worded way of saying “Rent isn’t woke enough,” which is a criticism that gets lobbed at anything with any kind of representation in it. At a certain point you have to learn to acknowledge that something can be important even if it doesn’t live up to your exact individual standard.

As for whether or not it was “allowed” for a straight white man who didn’t have AIDS to write Rent…to be brief, success in the theatre industry is inextricably tied to whiteness, and sometimes stories about the marginalized have to be delivered from a privileged place in order to have any kind of future (think of West Side Story and Pacific Overtures.) That fucking sucks, like I cannot stress enough what a colossal injustice that is, but sometimes one has to work within the confines of the system in order to start opening doors. I am completely confident in saying that Rent would not have gotten off the ground at all, let alone have gone on to be one of the most important pieces of theatre in Broadway history, if it was written by anyone other than a straight white man.

And to be clear: I don’t like Rent! My renthead days are FAR behind me, in fact most of the time whenever it comes up in conversation I have to restrain myself from being too scathing. But as a literary criticism student, it’s important to me that criticism come from the right place and seek to make the right points. And that doesn’t seem to be the case here. Rent was an incredibly important piece of theatre. It is also Not Very Good, and it is not exempt from discussion about why it’s Not Very Good. That doesn’t mean Jonathan Larson was a malicious person. By all accounts, it seems like he was a well-meaning dude with unrecognized privileges who wrote something rife with flaws and died before he had the chance to learn from/revise them. You shouldn’t have to drag Larson’s name through the mud in order to be critical of Rent. There is PLENTY to be critical of already.

This whole thing feels reflective of the way we as a society now equate media quality to a judge of moral character. “If this thing is bad/has something in it that’s bad then the person who wrote it must also be bad, and if you like it too then that makes you bad and you deserve to die. I’m the good one, I’m the right one, I am the arbiter of un-problematic-ness.” You’re not going to get anywhere in life if you maintain that ideology. As a former fandom anti, I learned that the hard way.

[gayestnerdsinfiction]

Rivalry

requested by @micapearls (ed hearing jon full body laugh for the first time)

Ever since he first met Jonathan Crane, Edward has had an unshakable fixation on eliciting any type of emotional expression from the other man. To the untrained eye it would appear Jonathan was unable to experience any human emotions beyond displeasure and annoyance. Jonathan doesn’t cry, he doesn’t shout when they argue, he doesn’t allow any facial expression to inadvertently cross his stoic features. Over time, Edward has been able to get a better feel for the subtle cues that indicate his partner’s emotional state, but Jonathan still makes an effort to hold his feelings and opinions close to his chest. Edward wants so badly to break him of this habit. He’s lost count of the amount of meaningless arguments he’d blown out of proportion in the hopes of making Jonathan visibly angry. But perhaps that’s just trauma reenactment.

It was after one such failed attempt to goad Jonathan into an argument that Edward finally got what he was looking for. He had unsuccessfully tried to get a rise out of the other man, throwing out the cruelest, most spiteful things he could think of. Things he didn’t mean, things he doesn’t want Jonathan to think he meant. Unfortunately, this only resulted in Jonathan disappearing off into the lab, leaving Edward to sulk alone in the living room. He’s sitting on the couch, staring absently at the television when Jonathan finally reappears from the basement, his expression as austere and unreadable as ever.

“I’m having a drink,” the older man announces, breezing past Edward and into the kitchen. He removes a bottle of whiskey from the cabinet and holds it up for Edward to see. “Do you want one?”

Edward doesn’t particularly care for whiskey but he can recognize a peace offering when he sees one. He nods wordlessly, sliding to one end of the sofa to make room for Jonathan to sit if he wanted to.

Jonathan pours the two drinks, bringing them into the living room and handing one to Edward. He accepts. Takes a small sip, trying to ignore the unpleasant taste.

“What are you watching?” Jonathan asks as he sits down a respectful distance away from Edward.

“News,” he says. “I’m looking at it more than I’m really watching it.”

Jonathan studies the screen for a few moments, sipping his own drink steadily. “Turn up the volume,” he says abruptly.

Edward obliges, directing his own attention to the TV as well. The reporter onscreen is standing in front of the Gotham University campus. There are cop cars and officers crowded around the building, many of them with heavy tactical gear and weapons.

“Shit, I hope whatever this is doesn’t screw up the heist I had planned for next weekend,” Edward mutters as he puts his drink down on the table.

“…As you can see the police are behind me attempting to negotiate the release of the thirteen hostages currently being held on the University grounds.” The camera cuts away from the reporter to show a closer shot of the police officers at the scene. Edward can make out commissioner Gordon speaking into a walkie-talkie at the front of the group. Bullock stands beside him, looking generally burly and gruff but otherwise not contributing much. “The location and condition of the hostages is unclear; all we know is that those thirteen students and faculty members are trapped somewhere in the Joker’s sadistic maze. More updates on the way as we continue to document the most recent criminal exploits of Gotham’s most fearsome criminal.”

“Ouch,” Jonathan says dryly. “Seems unfair that I’m not the most fearsome criminal in this city but I suppose there’s no accounting for taste.”

Edward, in the meantime, is too busy trying to navigate the mixture of anger, surprise, and jealousy that has begun burning in his chest to even register Jonathan’s comment. “He—I feel like I’m having a stroke, I mean, did that reporter say what I think she said?” he splutters, standing up from the couch to gesticulate wildly at the screen.

“What’s your problem?” Jonathan asks. “Joker does something like this every week, you can’t be surprised at this point.”

“You don’t understand,” he snaps, ignoring the heat he can feel rising into his face and ears. “I was going to do a sadistic maze at the university. Me! That fucking clown stole my idea! I mean, am I the only person with any goddamn integrity in this vile city?” He collapses back onto the couch, throwing his arms up. “I had the whole thing planned out, all the pieces built and ready to be set up and he just swoops in with his dollar store makeup and awful dye job and ruins everything like he always does. I mean, do you know how hard it is to build a maze from scratch and make it appear with fully functional traps and people in it before the cops show up? It’s not easy, I’ll say that. And it’s not cheap either!”

Jonathan watches Edward’s hysterical monologue in silence, takes a few moments to digest the entirety of the rant, and then bursts out laughing.

Edward’s jaw drops. Usually when Jonathan laughs it’s little more than a sharp exhale or the hint of a smile. But this laugh is a loud, unrestrained cackle, so raspy in places it almost sounds like a wheeze. It’s the first time he’s ever seen his partner seem genuinely tickled by something and he can’t even enjoy it because it’s at his own expense. He can’t tell if he’s more shocked to see his partner’s entire body wracked with laughter, or more indignant that he’s being laughed at in the first place. He snaps his mouth shut, his face screwing up into a scowl. “It’s not funny.”

“It absolutely is. Your whole thing with the Joker is hilarious.”

“It is not! He’s completely destroying my reputation, my career in this town. I mean, now I can never do that heist I had planned because the Joker already did it and everyone’s already accusing me of ripping off his costume and gimmick. If I even mention that I had the same idea, then people are going to try and accuse me of stealing his fucking intellectual property too.” He gets up again, pacing almost frantically around the room. “It doesn’t even make sense for him to do something with a school, I mean, I’m the one whose whole aesthetic and MO has to do with knowledge and learning. He should go terrorize a fucking comedy club or something, leave the higher education to those of us whose brain cells haven’t been fried by a vat of acid.” He glares at Jonathan who is still doubled over with laughter. “Stop laughing at me, I’m serious.”

He raises a hand to cover his mouth, though it does nothing to soothe his amusement. “I’m sorry. But you have to admit, you sound ridiculous right now.”

“I fail to see how this is ridiculous.”

“You’re demanding artistic integrity from a man who dresses like a clown and kills people for fun.” Jonathan manages to stifle his laughter a bit, but Edward knows he’s never going to let him live this down. “Besides, neither of you went to college so I don’t see how you have more of a right to a university based maze heist than him.”

He rolls his eyes. Jonathan loves to point out that Edward never went to college because it’s the only real accomplishment he has that Edward couldn’t easily replicate. Just because Jonathan suffered through nine years of higher education that would have driven Edward into a murderous rage doesn’t mean he’s better than him. “A maze is a type of puzzle is it not? Last time I checked I was the prince of puzzles which, in my eyes, makes me more entitled to use mazes in my traps. I also think it makes me sound cooler. I mean, ‘clown prince of crime’? How pathetic is that.”

“They’re both pathetic,” Jonathan says. “I don’t know why people keep trying to call us princes like we’re not all broke psychopaths.”

“I’m not broke.”

“But you don’t deny being a psychopath?”

Edward continues to glower at the other man who is still fighting against a smile. “I can’t believe you’re not on my side right now.”

Jonathan shrugs. “I mean, you have to admit your costume color schemes are remarkably similar.”

“They are not! My preferred color scheme is green and purple, his is purple and green, okay, they’re distinctly different!”

“Edward,” he says, using that tone he always takes when Edward is acting irrational, “Don’t you think you’re taking this a bit too seriously?”

“Not in the slightest,” he insists, knowing that this is arguably a stupid thing to care about. “You’ll never know what it’s like to always play second fiddle to everyone’s favorite costumed criminal. At least people are scared of you. Everyone just thinks I’m some kind of joke thief.”

“Well, maybe you need to give them something to be scared of. Show them you mean business.”

“Oh yeah? And how do you propose I do that in a way that is both on brand and not derivative of the Joker’s own crime sprees?”

Jonathan’s smile changes, becoming less humorous and more devious. Edward can see the familiar gleam in his eye that indicates the Scarecrow’s mind is hard at work. There’s the Jonathan he’s used to. “I bet I could give you a few ideas,” he says slyly, finishing the rest of his drink in a single swallow. “If you don’t have any qualms about torturing people.”

Despite the fact that he’s still annoyed with Jonathan for making fun of him, Edward can’t help but flash a smile back at the other man. There’s just something about those clever, sinister eyes that always draw him right back in. “What did you have in mind?”

[batarella]

The Bullet: A Sequel to The Commander - Part 7 *FINALE* (Jason Todd x Reader)

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH THIS FUCKING FINALE I SWEAR. HOPE YOU GUYS ENJOY BECAUSE THIS IS THE MOST ACTION PACKED FINALE I’VE EVER WRITTEN.

WORDS: 14349 WARNINGS: FIREARMS, VIOLENCE, DEATH

MASTERLIST

THE BULLET MASTERLIST

-----

Strapped onto the wheel chair like a rabid circus freak, Y/N knew exactly where she was headed. She just didn’t know what for.

With her neck being held back she could only look at the bulbs of white fluorescent light that continually passed by her and couldn’t do so much as look at the ground. Plenty of guards were around her as well. She didn’t bother struggling, nor did she speak. But there were even more armed guards lining up, going to wherever she was going as well. All the way up to a white room.

A mission. Her first mission with the squad. Just delightful.

“Deadshot?” the guard near the door asked. When the ones carrying her wheelchair gave him her files, she was let in.

She was the last one to arrive. Because everyone had their eyes on her the moment she graced them with her presence.

The first one that caught Y/N’s eye was, of course, Amanda Waller. With the room littered with her goons and guards, the woman stood at the very front, against a blank wall with her hands behind her back and her eyebrow quirked up right at Y/N. Y/N squinted her eyes back at her, some sort of a decline to her superiority, and Waller looked amused.

Then when the guards parted to make way for her, she was brought to the very center of the room, where there were five rather familiar faces giggling and snarling at the newest member of the squad. The one at the center, Rick Flag, ordered his men to place Y/N on the leftmost side.

Those faces, the ones she’s seen more often than she wished she had. Some already knew her. Some hated her. And some simply didn’t care.

Harley Quinn. Of course, out of everyone else in the room, was the only one bubbling with laughter and other nonsense spurting out of her mouth. She was waving her legs around the wheelchair like a little girl would on a swing. And she was staring at her, laughing. “WE GOT A NEW GIRL ON THE SQUAD!!!” she bellowed out. “WHAT?! DEADSHOT’S NEICE. THAT’S NEPOTISM RIGHT THERE.” Y/N ignored her.

The one beside her was someone she didn’t know personally, someone she’s never even met. They said this guy came from Australia and robbed almost every bank there was. Captain Boomerang. He, too, was strapped to a chair, though he wasn’t as loud as Harley. Y/N saw him eye her head to toe while he bit his lip, and she shot Boomerang a knife-like scowl before his eyes got too comfortable.

The next one. Killer Frost. A beautiful woman with ice-white skin and the hair of an arctic fox. She didn’t give Y/N so much as a glance. Most probably because they had her stored in a coffin-like chamber with only a glass window where her head could be seen. On the inside, she could see the glass covered in frost, and the chamber looked cold to touch. She was calm, reserved. And looked on at Waller’s direction.

The creature beside Frost was the one she really wouldn’t want to mess with the most. The largest in the room, with blue skin and a body ten times the mass of any human being possibly could be. He had the head of a shark, eyes red like her optics. He even had a fin sticking out his back. and he was muzzled and strapped standing upright with five more guards around him. Y/N could hear him growl, wordless, and when she caught his eye, he snarled at her.

Finally, El Diablo. The quietest out of the bunch. His wheelchair looked just like hers, except his hands were completely covered by iron cylinders, probably filled with ice cold water. The man was covered in tattoos, and he didn’t have a shirt on. His face looked like a skull’s, which made the way he looked at everyone else look more menacing than his supposed behaved demeanor.

These were the dangerous people she’s stuck with, most probably for the rest of her life if all else fails and she’ll never be able to get out. The people that Floyd had worked with. And they were a few of the most maniacal villains there were in the whole country. She wished she could tell herself she didn’t belong. But she actually did. In fact, she had no business going about pretending to be better than all these people. When it came to how much blood they’ve shed, she probably wasn’t too far off from Harley. Maybe even more.  

Y/N was right where she truly belonged. Today, she is welcomed as the newest member of the Suicide Squad.

Waller stepped out to the front. “Y/N, your team. Let’s cut to the chase. We don’t have much time. Bring out the files.”

These files were then projected onto a holographic screen against the wall behind Waller. It was a photo of Scarecrow.

“Some of you probably have heard. Just yesterday, Dr. Jonathan Crane released his new toxin in the National Bank of Gotham.”

The screen started to show footage of what went on in the Bank.

“Our first mistake was thinking Scarecrow had launched the same kind of toxin as the last time, but as the surviving victims were brought out to the stations, they continued to showed the side effects of the toxin, including mania, hallucinations, homicidal tendencies, unnatural human strength, and even cannibalism. Even after being held for observations for more than twenty-four hours, they, unfortunately, could not be brought back.

“Which means that Crane had finally developed a fear toxin that causes permanent effects to anyone who does so much as inhale the gas…”

She heard guards shuffle and hold their guns tighter.

“I have a question!” Harley screamed, holding her hand up despite it being strapped to the chair.

“Flag. Muffle her.”

“Muffle me!? What do you-MMMMM!”

“As I was saying. The victims were forced to be euthanized when none of the doctors could bring them back. One hundred-twenty people died in the incident and the whole country is in a state of panic.”

“MMM MMM MMM?!” Harley asked.

“Yes. The whole country. Months ago, Dr. Crane had blackmailed the crime syndicate Carmine Falcone, who he instructed to forge buy outs of several other Gotham businessmen, stole almost all their money before hiring a certain hitman-“ she stared at Y/N. “-To assassinate them all one by one before his shortcomings are detected. That placed Falcone’s total net worth to be almost two hundred billion dollars. Or so we thought.

“After Falcone’s death, Crane had already taken all the money for himself and had used to build what might be the end to all of mankind. A new Cloudburst weapon. This time large enough to engulf the whole country in his new toxin, as well as a brand-new militia army of hundreds of men guarding his device. Mankind as we know it will be haunted with his obsession with fear and we will all be nothing but goddamn zombies.”

“MMMM!” Harley thrashed about in her chair, then she spat out her gag. “Yuck! That was disgusting! I was about to say that gag had a bug and it crawled down to my throat but it actually wasn’t that bad!”

“Harley!” Rick Flag screamed. Harley pouted and stuck out her tongue.

“And what is it you want us to do, Waller?” Boomerang asked with his heavy accent. “You want us to go there and possibly inhale this bloody toxin!?”

The screen turned to a helicopter’s sight. “Last night, we managed to tracked down a dome-shaped building in the deserted areas outside New Jersey with more than five hundred men guarding it inside and out. It is suspected that the weapon might be hidden somewhere in its center. Your job is to go there, eliminate Dr. Crane and his army, and destroy that weapon with whatever means necessary.

“And as for your concern, our teams have developed a mask for you all to wear. It has the filter to go against the toxin. We found it on one of the Arkham Knight Militia’s men and developed our own.”

Oh. Shit. That. She totally forgot. Man, how time flies.

“Let’s not waste anymore time. Flag. Take them to the airport and give them their gear.”

“Weeeeee!” Harley squealed as they started wheeling her out of the room.

Y/N had no idea where to start, if she even had a place to start.

Everything Waller mentioned, it could all be traced back to her. In so many ways. And she knew it. Everyone in the room probably knew it. It was only fair that she be involved in trying to correct it at all. She had no business complaining or thinking she should be somewhere else. This was Waller’s way, hell, this was the whole goddamn world’s way of handing to her what she truly deserved. And she was so tired of constantly being the cause of hurt and pain. So many mistakes, costing her everything she’s ever known to love. She really, truly belonged here. More than Harley. More than Killer Frost. More than anyone else in the squad.

Because without her even knowing, she’d been involved in this mess before any of Scarecrow’s plans were even thought of. With the militia, the Cloudburst, Falcone’s assassinations. In so many ways, none of this would have happened if not for her.

But did she even have the time to blame herself? When it would barely do her any good?

As Y/N was taken to the plane, beside the other members of the squad, she focused on the buzzing and Boomerang’s rants and Harley’s cackles. She even caught the eye of King Shark and didn’t budge.

Because of course, in a way, she was to blame. She knew Crane had something planned when he almost had her killed that one, terrible night trying to lessen the odds of her ruining his plan once more. And another one of her stupid mistakes was to completely forget about it.

They arrived a few hours later. On the military base somewhere in the interstate, even more soldiers and guards waited for them in the barren grounds surrounded by their tents.

She was the farthest behind, the last one to be wheeled out of the plane. When Rick Flag met them at the center where suitcases and crates were being brought out. He waited until most of the squad members had settled.

“Everyone. Stand your ground. Unlock them and give them their gear. If you idiots do so much as look at me differently, I will detonate the bombs.”

“We know the drill, mate,” Boomerang spat at him.

“I know. I was talking to the new girl.”

Y/N’s wheelchair stopped. Then, they were all released from their straps, from their chairs. Harley hopped up and stretched out her arms, then took out her clothes from the crates and her enormous hammer. Boomerang fixed his coat, then he had a single boomerang from his case. He threw it in the air, and a few seconds later, it came flying back.

Killer Frost, with the air suddenly becoming a little chillier when the chamber opened, walked out and grabbed her icy-blue suit. She didn’t have any more weapons. El Diablo was slow to move, but when the chains were unlocked, he got a single hoodie jacket and hid himself from everyone else.

King Shark, on the other hand, put up most of a fight. Terrified soldiers had their shields up when they released him from his confines and he roared directly at Flag’s face. Flag didn’t budge.

Y/N stood up from her chair, stretched her neck, then cracked her knuckles.

As an entire arsenal of guns was brought to her, she stared vacantly at her red and gray suit and the white mask at the bottom of the crate.

That wasn’t her. It didn’t call out to her anymore the way it did just a few days ago. It was a layer of skin laid over her flesh that wasn’t hers at all. She wasn’t Deadshot anymore.

She can't wear this suit.

Y/N eyed another crate nearby. It must have belonged to the other gunmen in their army.

She can make something out of these.

Nobody batted an eye when she started scavenging for parts.

Black body armor, covering her chest, shoulders, and knees. Dark pants covered in straps and holsters on her hips and thighs. Boots that went up to her knees, covered with the pads. And underneath the armor was a dark blue body suit, making her look completely different from her uncle’s red one. Her wrist gun, spray painted blue. And lastly, a black hood with a mask that covered her nose and mouth.

Around her neck was a small silver chain with the diamond ring through its loop. Y/N longingly stared into its crystal, looking back at everything Jason had promised her. How she believed them even when they weren’t so possible. How much she missed him.

She stuffed it under her suit and placed the hood over her head.

Already, she’d shed off that foreign skin. This was her. This was Y/N.

When everyone was ready, Flag came up to the crowd.

“No longer Deadshot, are you?”

“No,” she said.

“Then what do we call you?”

She simpered.

“The Bullet.”

-----

This had to be all theatrics. Not to mention completely unnecessary. Jason got off his motorcycle and parked it right outside the gate.

Somehow, they kept it. Even the fence. And it still had ‘Wayne Manor’ on its wrought iron bars even when the field behind it had been completely emptied out. The ruins and everything left behind after the manor exploded had been cleared out and demolished. Still, they chose not to do anything with the land, even when millionaires fought over it and maybe a few intruders with metal detectors breaking in to look for the Batcave.

Dick told him to meet him and the rest of the family there. He had no idea where, but when he stepped into the gate, Dick was there leaning against the vine-covered fence behind it. Jason wasn’t so sure how to greet him. the last time they saw each other, they were at each other’s throats. Literally. Now at their mercy, he wasn’t so sure what was the quickest way to let his pride down without looking too much of a desperate asshole.

“Uhm. Hi,” Dick said.

“Hey.”

They stared at the grass.

“Are Babs and Tim coming?”

“Yeah. They just got out of their honeymoon.”

“Oh yeah. Congratulations to them.”

“You can tell Tim when we get to them.”

Of course. Tim. The replacement. He can totally congratulate him on his wedding without it sounding too awkward.

“We talk here?”

Dick wrinkled his forehead and laughed. “You thought we were gonna plan this whole thing out on an empty field?”

“This place sure looks like one.”

He threw his head back. “Come on. Follow me.”

Hands in his pockets, he trailed behind Dick. All the way over to the center of the field where there wasn’t so much as a porta potty for them to go into.

Then Dick pulled out his watch, which wasn’t a watch at all, and started to press onto its buttons.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Jason sighed when the ground underneath them suddenly started to rumble.

“What? You thought the cave went out with the explosion, too? Bruce wouldn’t let it go to waste.”

Then the grass, which turned out to be fake, had split into a large, rectangular shaped ramp that slowly descended down onto the undergrounds for them to walk onto. When it stopped, Jason pressed on his nose. “I can't believe I didn’t know about this.”

“Come on.”

They started walking down. “Barbara’s the one in charge. She practically runs the place.”

“I can see that.”

When they reached below ground, the Batcave was exactly as they had left it. The last time he was here, he was with Y/N, the Commander. And although they’d changed its entryway, the Batmobile and the Batwing were still there, the computers were still up and running. How massive it was and how bats were still up on the rocky ceiling looking down on them with their beady little eyes. Jason and Dick walked down the driveway and he let his hand run onto the batmobile’s surface.

Barbara and Tim were at the computers. They turned to the two and the way they looked at Jason wasn’t something he particularly liked being stared at.

“Hey, Babs.”

Barbara was the first to smile at him. “Hi, Jason.”

Then when he looked at Tim, who didn’t share the same smile, he stopped himself from scratching an itch on his head.

“Hi… Tim…”

“Jason…” he coughed.

“Congratulations, by the way.”

“Thank you,” Babs said, then she reached out to Jason’s hand. He took it, for a while, then he pulled away.

“Sorry to hear about her,” Tim said.

“I know. But if you help me… and I thank you for helping me now… we can break her out.”

“Did you come up with a plan?” Dick asked him. Jason, arms crossed, turned over to the computer. Barbara had already gone ahead with looking up Scarecrow.

“If the squad is being sent out to deal with Crane, they might be going after that new weapon of his. We can go after them there and get her out before anyone sees.”

He stared at his hands. “I was hoping Babs could come up with some sort of devise that can disable the bomb in her neck.”

“Dick already told me. Don’t worry. I came up with something this morning.”

The three men followed behind her as she wheeled over to the table next to the keyboards.

“This,” she held out a device shaped like a thick pen. “If you can get her to settle down, you stick this thing to the back of her neck and it will send shocks right up to the nanite bomb. It should give it the voltage it needs to be disabled. It’s going to hurt. But it can save her.”

She was an angel. A literal angel. Just the thought of it gave him that little flutter of hope he definitely needed.

“Babs, I don’t know how to thank you…”

“Don’t worry about it. We’re here to help you.”

Two years ago, he had this woman kidnapped and sent to Crane, gave her the death scare of a lifetime and almost had Tim killed when Scarecrow had him captured.

It was too much. How none of their faces looked the least bit bothered. Dick held the pen and took off the needle cap, flinching, then he gave it to Jason.

Jason looked down on it, clearing his throat.

“I’m sorry…”

Dick, with his arms crossed, Tim leaning against the table, and Babs looking down at her hands, they all didn’t have much to say.

“I’m sorry for everything I did to you. All of you.”

“Jason…” Dick rubbed the back of his neck. “We used to be brothers-“

“No, I… I couldn’t. When this is over, I’ll be out of your way. And I owe you. All of you… But I shouldn’t stay…”

“You can. And you will. No matter how much you push yourself away… We’re here for you…”

Tim never looked up. But Jason knew, that if he were in his place right now, he’d be all over him with the ‘I told you so’s’ and the snide remarks. But the younger man was silent, didn’t even look at him the wrong way.

And that’s when he really felt like shit.

“We’re happy you came to us for help,” Babs said.

Jason hadn’t figured this part out when he reached for their help, but he knew something like this was about to happen. It was the entire reason why he didn’t want to. Because somehow, when it did, these guys won't hate him anymore, and he’ll end up hating himself instead.

Dick placed his hand on his shoulder. For a moment. Then when Jason’s body tensed, Dick pulled away.

“Now,” Babs went over to the computer. “Time to hack into the government.”

-----

The helicopter landed some distance away from the dome. The Bullet still had no idea why it was shaped that way. Just that it was new and humungous and completely littered with army men guarding every inch of it.

She, Harley, Boomerang, Killer Frost, King Shark, and El Diablo stepped out at the front lines, with Rick Flag right behind them, followed by their own army of men, though a number considerably less than what they were going up against. They had to be smart with this and break in.

They went into the forest, out on the fields. The dome was in a level ground lower than the lands around it, shaped in a circle, much like it was on a pit that was about two or three stories below ground. They crouched down on the bushes when they started reaching the edges of the pit and Flag looked out on his scopes.

“They’ve completely covered the perimeter.”

“Do we just attack?”

Flag put down his binoculars. “We are. To keep them distracted. When everyone’s backs are turned you six go in there and finish the job.”

“You say it like it’s so fucking easy,” Boomerang snarled. King Shark gritted his sharp teeth and growled staring at the armed men around the building.

A hand grenade. Right at one of the trees. It got their attention enough, especially when Flag started firing at the guards stationed just outside the entrance. Crowds of Scarecrow’s men, armed to the teeth, ran the outside grounds to go after Flag’s men. They drifted down the pit, outstretched their legs, and handled them at close range, while some stayed at the trees firing from afar.

The Squad, on the other hand, were all the way over to the other side. Almost all of them had ran off, except for two who stayed behind guarding the backside.

“Bullet,” Frost placed her frosted hand on her shoulder. It made her shiver. “You're up.”

The Bullet took out her sniper and shot down those two men almost at the same time. Then they slid down the side, King Shark rolling down with his immense weight. When another of Scarecrow’s men ran out the door, a boomerang landed on his head.

The door was locked. “I’ll take care of it,” Frost said. Boomerang scoffed, “Fucking metas.”

Holding out her hands, fumes of ice shot out from Frost’s palms and froze down the locks. King Shark kicked the iced hinges down, then the door fell to the ground.

“That was easy!” Harley skipped inside with her mallet over her shoulders. Diablo was still silent, still with his hands in his pockets.

“Don’t jinx it, Harls.”

It looked more like a warehouse by the entryway. And there was absolutely nothing inside save for a few cylinders and water tanks and a whole lot of pipes being guarded.

“We should probably sneak inside.”

“Sneak!?” Harley snorted at the Bullet. “Honey, we don’t do that here.”

King Shark growled at her, then he walked straight up to the center of the room.

“Intruder! Open fire!” the soldiers screamed.

“What is that thing!?”

“Just shoot!”

King Shark walked slowly towards those men, and the bullets just bounced off his incredibly thick skin. He held out his hand, stopped the bullets from reaching his face. Then when the soldiers had backed too much away and reached the wall, Shark grabbed them by the face and actually hurled them all the way across the room.

“Time to play!!!” Harley screamed, then she held out her mallet and started swinging it over at the guards.

Killer Frost had the ground frozen over, slipping the guards off balance, then shards of ice rose up from the ground to impale them. Boomerang had a more melee approach but had his trusty weapon to go around when he needed it.

The Bullet. The new, almighty Bullet. She pulled up her hood and mask and took out her AK.

She fired at the dozens of men going after her. Jumping on top of the cylinders, standing on the highest ground, she shot down anyone who came remotely close to her and had their bodies on the floor before they could even touch her feet. Over and over, she changed the magazines, took out more ammo. She let the gun take charge of her hands and head. A lot of the were swarming her, from different directions. Eventually too many of the soldiers were surrounding the pile of crates she stood on and the others started climbing up.

She couldn’t escape. Even if she were able to take them all down.

Until a raging fire shot out like a car-sized flame thrower and took out the guards that were climbing up. The water tank didn’t seem to have been damaged, but the men on it were burnt like a crisp, and they all started to run away. “Jump!” Diablo screamed.

She did, and she landed on the fire as well. She rolled on the floor to put it out before it got to her skin and Diablo helped her up. “Thank you.”

“Just go.”

She nodded, then with her pistol and wrist gun, went on to keep firing.  Frost had a wall of the men being stuck to the block of ice, some completely frozen inside it, then King Shark let out an animalistic shriek before he punched the glass, destroying it into shards and impaling everyone inside.

Harley, on the other hand, just went on spinning around with her mallet, screaming, manically laughing. The bitch was insane.

“A little help here!” Boomerang called out. He was being held back by two men while another was punching at his chest. The Bullet pointed her wrist gun and fired at his attacker.

Even more men were coming. From the doors to the inside.

“We have to keep moving!” The Bullet cried out to them. To the door where the reinforcements kept coming from, she kept firing as she backed away. The whole squad moved, onwards towards the door. Then when they’d all reached it, Frost froze over the door with more than five layers of ice.

There were sounds of bashing and hitting against the icy door, but it should be enough to hold them back. Before them was a long, seemingly endless hallway. It should probably be leading them to the inside of the dome, where the weapon is.

“Ahhh. The Suicide Squad…”

“WOAH WOAH WOAH where the hell is that comin’ from!?” Harley screamed.

The intercoms. Scarecrow was watching them. The Bullet put on her optics, now shining blue light, and looked around.

A camera. Right at the corner. She shot it with her wrist gun.

“And you have the Commander with you.”

“FUCKING SHUT UP!” The Bullet shot another camera hidden away.

“The Commander, huh,” Killer Frost looking at her head to toe. “You work with him before?”

“Shut up.”

“OH MY MOLLY,” Harley placed her hands on her mouth. “YOU'RE the Commander of the freakin’ Arkham Knight!! I remember you!”

“We should go-“

“I have so many questions. Huge fan. HUGE fan. Ya know she’s drove the first Cloudburst?”

Boomerang crossed his arms. “And they sent her to help us? The fuckin’ nerve of this scumbag coming up here actin’ all hero.”

“You watch your mouth, kangaroo.”

Diablo snorted and chuckled. Boomerang held out his weapon. “You want a piece of this?”

“A kid’s toy?”

“Don’t you fuckin-“

King Shark roared at the two with his mouth wide open for a good ten seconds and deafened their ears. The Bullet wiped his spit off her face and scoffed.

Frost led the way, all the way down its halls. When they reached a large gate, she froze it over once more and Shark beat it down with his fists and his foot.

They didn’t know they’d reach the center of the large dome. They thought they had more rooms to cover.

With the building so big, they thought it would have taken so much more time to reach the core.

But already, they were met with a cylindrical glass tank that was almost as thick as an entire building in itself, and it lit up the room in a menacing red light, all around. It was swirling, even boiling inside. And it shot all the way up to the roof, three stories high.

It was the fucking toxin.

The squad backed away.

Dozens of men surrounded them, all around the dimly lit room. And it was larger than any of them could have expected. It was circular, and there was only a suspended walkway that went all around the sides. There was a runway to the center, where there were controls. A man stood by them. A man with a rag on his head.  

All of them with their hands up.

Scarecrow’s voice was on the intercom, and it echoed all throughout the dome loud enough to rattle their eardrums.

“I assume this wasn’t what you’d expected?”

No. Not even a little. This wasn’t what they expected at all.

They didn’t expect to already reach the weapon.

Or rather. Stand on top of the weapon.

The weapon wasn’t a ray gun or a tank or even a satellite. It wasn’t something so small that it would have been easily taken down by a tank or even King Shark’s fist. Even when it was to engulf the whole of America in its toxin.

No. it was none of that.

The Bullet trailed her eyes down the numerous pipes going up and around the walls, through the floor and over to the room where they just came from, where even more of the toxin was stored in tanks and the pipes that went around it.

The Cloudburst wasn’t inside the dome.

The Cloudburst was the dome.

-----

It didn’t take too much time. It wasn’t the first time Barbara had to hack into the American Government. In fact, it was the easier to hack into than some people’s private accounts.

She went into Amanda Waller’s files.

“Here. Finally.”

Dick, Jason, and Tim stood behind her.

“It looks like they’ve already sent out the squad. Just a few hours ago.”

“Who are in the squad?”

The files on Task Force X. Babs took out the profiles on all their subjects.

Harley’s picture was first to come up. Her blonde hair and vicious eyes staring at the screen. “Harley Quinn, of course. We got Louise Lincoln, also known as Killer Frost.”

The boys watched on.

“El Diablo. Captain Boomerang. King Shark. Rick Flag’s being sent out there as well.”

Then she stopped scrolling when Y/N’s picture and profile came up.

Jason’s heart broke. It did every time he does so much as look at a photo of her. And with that one, a mug shot, the mug shot that was going around every news station in town, the brokenness in her face, the darkness in what used to be the brightness in her eyes, how much rage she had for everything around the world, he hitched his breath.

‘Y/FN Y/LN

Age: 23

Alias: The Bullet’

He smiled at her new name. A sad smile. The most painful kind.

He missed her so much.

Setting his head to the side so they couldn’t see the tear that had seeped out, Jason swallowed and shut his eyes.

“Jason…”

“I’m alright. Can you find out where they were headed?”

Babs smiled at him, then went back to her keyboard.

Zooming in on the helicopter footage on the dome, she traced its coordinates.

“Is that-“

“Scarecrow’s base? Most probably.”

“Jesus,” Jason sighed. “I used to work with that guy.”

“This is the weapon, alright. The sensors are through the roof. We should be heading out there.”

“Do we have a plan?”

“Not exactly. We’ll know when we get there,” Dick said.

“We have to hurry. Who knows when that mad man actually detonates his bomb?”

“How? It’s two hours away.”

“Man,” Dick pat his back. “You really have to get used to working with us now that we’ve got Bruce’s old toys.”

Of course.

What else could he have possibly thought? Get there on his bike?

The Batwing was staring right at their faces, almost taunting them with its silent growl. Dick, Tim, and Jason walked up to it side by side.

“You think he’ll be happy with that?” Jason said.

“Not at all. He even threatens to kill us if we get anywhere near the wheel-“

“Which is why I’m here to drive, Master Dick.”

No.

No.

It couldn’t be.

The sweet old butler, came up from behind the computers where there must have been a room for him to stay in, he held out a tray of four glasses of water for them to take. Setting it down on the table, he gave Jason the sincerest smile.

“I’ve missed you, dear boy.”

“Alfred.”

He wanted desperately to go up to him, give him the biggest bear hug until his bones crack, but Alfred held his hand up to him and just handed him his water.

“It’s better if we skip the ol’ reunion. We catch up after we’ve saved your girl.”

Everything was here. Everyone was here.

Clearly, it wasn’t the time to get emotional. And goddamn, he wasn’t the one to get emotional.

And all the more did they look like a family when the three boys suited up. Dick with his black and blue Nightwing suit and domino mask, Tim with his bo staff and red and yellow suit and cape. And Jason, with his hooded jacket and red visor.

Facing each other in a circle, Nightwing, Robin, and Red Hood took in how they were all now in one team, possibly for the rest of their career. No longer will they fight. No longer will they run.

Oracle smiled at the three. “You all look great together when you're not at each other’s throats.”

“You sure you won't let me drive, Alfred?” Robin said to the butler.

“I had specific instructions from Master Bruce that if you were to inherit the cave, no one was to drive the Batwing but me. You have until I die, Master Dick.”

“Awe. Even in his death, Bruce still doesn’t trust us.”

Laughing as they went in, Alfred had the Batwing soaring into the sky. Silently.

They were going to save her. Them. His family. The one he’d left. The one he thought he hated. The one he almost got killed.

He couldn’t possibly have done anything to deserve this.

With his visor up, he went up to Dick.

“Dick…” he choked.

His older brother turned to him, smiling. He knew what Jason was thinking.

And he didn’t let him speak to make things unnecessarily dramatic. He knew he had his brother back. Dick pulled him into a hug. A sweet, sincere hug that tore out every part of him that wasn’t already consumed by that string of humanity he once had left inside him.

“Thank you,” Jason said to him. Dick patted his back.

“We missed you, Jaybird…”

Jason closed his eyes.

When they pulled away, with Tim watching, he never actually got the change to get to know him. But one of these days, he will. And he’ll be a brother to him, too.

Jason nodded at him, smiling. Tim nodded back.

He never, ever would have thought they’d accept him like this, to help him like this.

And if Bruce were here, he’d have no idea what to tell him. But Jason did forgive him. He forgave him before he even knew he did. Maybe, if Bruce were anything like Dick and Tim, he would have accepted Jason back into his house. He would have helped him, as well.

He let himself think that. For his own sake. For his own peace.  

Not long after, they reached the site.

Nightwing, Robin, and Red Hood stood at the Batwing’s exit doors.

-----

Harley must have had the worst of issues for her to be laughing this off, whistling as she marveled over the room. “I have to admit, Ragdoll, you cer’ainly out did yourself than the last time! I remember when all it took was Ivy’s tree to get rid of your toxin!”

Boomerang scoffed. “A tree?!”

“Gag her.”

“Awe, come on! What is it with you people and the gaggi- MMMMMM!”

Held back by a dozen of Scarecrow’s gunmen, with so many of their guns pointed right at their heads, they stood on their knees, hands tied to their backs. They watched Scarecrow walk over to them from his place near the glass. He chuckled, that low, dark, breathy, and utterly disgusting laugh when he went over the squad.

“MMM! MMM? Mmm…” Harley said to him when he passed by her. All he did was glare. When he passed by Frost, he eyed her body and how icy smoke was coming out of her pores.

“Ya know, this ain’t personal. I’d totally be into this. But we got an explosive stuck to me spine here, mate, and I really just don’t want to die,” Boomerang said. Scarecrow ignored him and walked over to Diablo.

She looked over. Diablo had melted away the ropes on his wrists and no one even noticed. He stood still, watching Scarecrow, then the rag-headed man went over to the next one.

The Bullet. The only one who actually hated this man to the bloody core.

Scarecrow looked amused at the darkness of her glower. He leaned over, pulled down her hood and mask with his disgusting fingers before she flinched away.

“Lovely to see you once more, Commander.”

“Don’t fucking call me that.”

“I thought I left you for dead. Turns out you survived your own bullets. Perhaps you're not as good as you thought you are-“

“Go to hell-“

“This is hell, Commander. At least, it will be.” When he stood back, he eyed the creature next to her.

“An animal? They brought an animal to the squad?” Scarecrow laughed.

King Shark roared. The loudest, more nightmarish roar. Then he charged after him with his large mouth littered with almost three rows of teeth on each side. The guards pulled him back, shot a taser to his arm, but it didn’t do much damage.

Scarecrow backed off and immediately he was guarded by his men.

“Kill him.”

“No!” Killer Frost screamed, but even she was held back by three guards.

And it was the most cruel thing they’ve ever seen. The Bullet watched on, as her fellow squad member was shot with three tranquilizer darts. He fell to the ground, unconscious.

Then Scarecrow’s men took out a grenade.

Shit.

They stuffed it into King Shark’s mouth.

And the squad looked away when it detonated not even two seconds later.

His head was blown off. Much like it would have been if Flag had done it himself.

Five of them left.

Against an army of hundreds.

“Now. You all get to watch as the entire country slowly descends into their deepest, darkest nightmares…”

Scarecrow went over to the center, over to the controls where she saw a bright, beeping light coming from one of the screens. She didn’t have so much as an idea about how this was going to blow. Will the building be going along with it? Is everyone going to live through it?

She should know. She was the one who detonated the first Cloudburst.

They were two hours away from the city. And the government already had most of the people in the area evacuate to shelters underground. They didn’t have much else to hide.

The guards around them had masks as well. They were going to sit it through, fight even with the gas all around them.

She had no idea what was going to happen. But all she could do was sit and watch.

Scarecrow pressed the final button, and on the screen, it showed a minute’s countdown

The Bullet closed her eyes.

There was a heat coming to her wrists. Out of view from the guards. A little flame, floating about. It melted away the chains that were around their hands, and suddenly, she could move them around. She looked over at Diablo and thanked him with a nod. Harley and Boomerang were free as well. Frost, on the other hand, rejected that fire and instead froze over the chains herself. They could charge.

But the guards were too many. She couldn’t just attack.

Time was running out. There was nothing they could do.

But they can shield themselves. At the last second when the guards couldn’t react.

“This is… the Cloudburst!!!”

Three.

Two.

One.

BOOM!!!

“EVERYBODY, GET YOUR FUCKING MASKS!” Boomerang screamed. The five of them grabbed their filter masks from their suits and held it against their mouths. Everything was shaking, an explosion large enough to almost take down its walls, then the glass started to break. The gas was leaking on the inside.

Scarecrow didn’t move. He just stood there, amused, all the while his guards started to panic, panting and coughing and tearing the masks off their faces like it only hurt their skin. She ran out of the way before a guard fell to her body, clutching his throat, before he started screaming the ghostliest noises a human could possibly make.

Then their skins. No longer did they look remotely human. They looked like they were burnt out. Their whole body turning into scabs and burnt flesh. The toxin was eating them from the inside. And their eyes. She’s never seen the look on someone’s face like that when they were looking straight at their deepest, darkest fears. Not even when she’d imagine it.

No.

He couldn’t possibly-

No.

These men. These trained soldiers promised with almost million dollars each.

Scarecrow didn’t hire them here to defend the Cloudburst.

They were here to serve as victims for his horrible toxin that turned them into vicious, mindless zombies. And they looked exactly like they would have in their visions of fear, the ones you’d merely hallucinate with his old toxin. This time, they weren’t hallucinations. The nightmarish creatures of the dark, Scarecrow had turned the people’s fears into something real.

The squad, with their masks on, held tightly onto their weapons, watching the horror in front of them unfold.

One of the creatures ran after Harley, so she swung at it with her mallet, crushing his body against the wall. It didn’t even look like it had human bones that cracked when it was hit.

No. No. No.

Everyone started firing at the creatures coming after them. At their heads, at their animalistic mouths. Frost on one side, freezing the incoming animals into an ice block, and on the other, El Diablo, firing at them with an enormous raging fire. They had to get out of here. There was no possible way they could win this here. Not with the Cloudburst looking like it was about to break.

The Bullet fired at everything she could see. With her AK on one hand and her pistol on the other. But the seemingly endless array of lifeless minions came crawling and pouncing right at her. One of them scratched her arm. She hoped this fucking toxin didn’t work through cross contamination.

Scarecrow, he was still at the center, watching it all unfold.

Scarecrow.

Scarecrow.

Fucking Scarecrow.

The Bullet screamed out, even with her mask, then opened fire as she made her way into the center walkway. She ran to him and pushed everything out of her way, blowing their brains out, jumping onto the railing and running on top of it. She took out a grenade and threw it at a crowd.

Jonathan Crane caught her eye. And with the deathly look on her face, he lost his amusement.

Then the coward started to back away.

She growled and tore through everything, running after Crane. He didn’t have much else to go.

So in a split second, she fired at his leg. The Bullet could have easily fired at his head.

But she wanted him to die from a bullet right between his eyes, that were to look right into hers in the last few moments of his life.

Scarecrow was on the ground, crawling. The Bullet walked right up to him and grabbed him by the collar. Then she aggressively slammed him against the glass where his horrible red toxin was leaking out.

“You killed my son…”

“You did that yourself-“

“No,” she tightened her hand around his neck. “No, I didn’t.”

A pistol. Right against his head. She ends this now. His story ends now. His reign on earth. His madness. His nightmare.

She couldn’t hear the bullet fire out of her hand.

But she did feel the blood spatter when it entered Jonathan Crane’s skull. She heard the crack, and the impact against the glass. She saw the look on his eyes, staring right into her. Taunting her. Waiting for her to pull the trigger until it stayed that way until the worms eat up his body.

The Bullet threw the body on the floor.

She was never, ever going to kill another human being again. She made that promise. To Jason and his family.

But if she were to kill just one last time…

She wanted to make it count.

-----

“Holy…”

“Shit…”

“We were too late.”

“Or the squad failed…”

“No,” Red Hood choked. “No, they can't be dead.”

“They might still be alive. Get your masks on. Come on.”

They put on their masks, Red Hood’s under his visor. As they ran towards the enormous mushroom-shaped cloud of smoke that was spewing violently out of the dome. The ground was quaking enough to feel like it would eventually erupt. And if they were to stay, it might actually split open. They ran towards the center.

And before they could go down the pit. They saw them. Right when they stepped into the are completely engulfed in the horrible red toxin.

They saw the creatures.

In army uniforms of what used to be humans, the creatures were screaming, running and clawing their way around the grass and bushes like they were rabid wolves under a full moon. The bodies, or what used to be bodies, looked like undead carcasses that were walking on their hands and feet. When they caught sight of the three, they started going after them.

Someone grabbed Nightwing’s shoulder.

Rick fucking Flag. He had a mask on.

“You kids better stay away. This is our mission.”

“You really want your boss’s goddamn pride to get in the way of actually saving the world? We’re here to help!”

Flag fired at one of the monsters coming right for them.

“Scarecrow’s baited his own men and turned them into these fucking shitbags.”

“Then let us help,” Robin said. Red Hood, on the other hand, was already shooting at the creatures with his two pistols.

“Red Hood!”

“Oh, don’t give me that! These guys aren’t human!” He fired at one almost flying for his visor. “They never will be again even if we destroy this thing! So get your asses here and KILL THESE GUYS!”

Rick Flag had went on to shoot them with his AK. Nightwing and Robin stared at each other, holding onto their escrima sticks and bo staff.

Flag, despite his guns, didn’t see one of the zombie-like monsters that had grabbed him from behind. It started tearing at its face, claws sharper than a cat’s. Robin and Nightwing went over to get it off him, but it was too late.

Rick Flag’s mask had fallen off.

He stared at the two, with his eyes glowing red and bloodshot from how he was desperately trying to hold his breath. He started clutching at his throat, and his mouth looked like it was about to blow up.

Flag couldn’t handle it. He gasped for air.

Then he turned into one of them. Right in front of their eyes. Nightwing gripped on his escrima sticks.

Then he slammed it against Flag’s head, destroying what was left of his skull. The guilt started to eat him away, but Red Hood was right. He wasn’t human anymore.

“Come on,” Robin said.

Then they attacked everything that came their way. They had to go into the dome. Find the Squad. Hope for the best. But the creatures were running out of the doors like they were in need of air. Hundreds of them in a stampede going out into the field. The trees had cleared, blown off from the explosion. Everything was barren and had fallen under a thick red cloud of his fucking toxin.

Red Hood managed to run all the way to the center. He shot one that had wrestled Nightwing to the ground before he slid down the pit, hands and legs outstretched, and even then, he continued to fire. He reloaded his guns and started firing at the ones going out of the dome.

----

They couldn’t possibly take them all.

So as the Squad rushed down the hallways, out into the first level where it had gone complete barren and destroyed, El Diablo continued to shoot his flames from his hands at all the incoming creatures.

Finally, they reached the door and they all raced outside.

Frost barred the door with her ice, as much as she could, and the monsters were pounding themselves against it with their own bodies and heads. The Bullet, facing behind them, fired at the incoming creatures that must have been the reinforcements waiting to be called. Fuck, there were a lot of them.

Killer Frost couldn’t handle it and the creatures had broken her wall of ice. Unnatural strength. One of the side effects of the toxin. Harley screamed her battle cry and started swinging her mallet around. El Diablo with his flames. And Captain Boomerang with, well, his boomerang.

The Bullet, with her machine gun, fired at ten of the creatures in under a second. She flew in the air. She dodged their incoming attacks. She fired directly at their heads and took out more of them than anyone else with a gun. She fired relentlessly until their heads were blown off, their bodies exploding onto the floor.

She climbed on top of a nearby truck, dropped her carbine, then used her wrist gun and pistol to fire at everything that moved.

“WOOHOO! GO NEW GIRL!” Harley screamed. The Bullet smiled, then went on with her alternating shots until she’d taken down dozens of them.

Everything that moved. Everything that moved. Everything that-

A red hood. Red visor. Gray jacket. And a red bat symbol on his chest.

Oh God.

The asshole.

“Jason!!!”

Red Hood turned around.

A wave that had crashed on the shore, violent and forceful, a wave that tore through everything in its way. Every tree. Every bush. Every doubting thought. The Bullet jumped off the truck, ignored the sting up her knees. She ran to him. She ran to him so fast that two of the monsters smashed into each other when they were going after her. Red Hood recognized her and dropped everything he had on him and sprinted to her way.

The wave was there. A crashing, powerful wave. When they landed in each other’s arms so painfully tight she could have almost fallen over if she hadn’t already clung to him with all her might. All that was left of it.

Yes.

Yes…

Everything lit up. Everything was here again. He was everything. He will always be everything.

It was a miracle they lived through it. Red Hood, with his arms shaking as much as the ground was, buried himself into her and didn’t let go until they heard the world calling out to them, demanding that they give them their attention back. But even then, they held on. Not when they thought it could have been the last. Not after they’ve just been apart. Jason pulled away, raised his visor so she could look into his eyes. He wore a filter mask underneath. And if he could see her smile right then, she was sure he was grinning his face off as well. She could tell with the way his beautiful eyes crinkled up.

“I fucking love the suit-“

Then she held out her arm and shot one of the monsters coming for them.

“We should move.”

“Yeah.”

Side by side, having each other’s backs. She knew something felt wrong fighting with the squad. No, she didn’t belong there. She never fought as well as she possibly could when she was with her partner. Now the Bullet and Red Hood, they fired and shot at everything that came their way.

“Throw me!” She screamed at Red Hood. She run up to him, and he grabbed her legs. Red Hood flung her up at the air and she fired relentlessly at twenty creatures hidden behind the truck. She got to the ground.

Then the fucking Batwing flew in and started firing.

“Woah!” The Bullet yelled.

“How cool is our butler!?”

The monsters started running towards the Batwing, and their attentions were slowly taken away from Red Hood and Bullet. Alfred had them covered.

“We have to get that bomb off you.”

“Where’s Flag? He’ll blow up the bomb if he sees me-“

“He’s dead. He can't blow it up. But we still need to get that off of you before Waller does it herself-”

The Cloudburst dome exploded once again, this time a thicker cloud of smoke blew out of it like a bomb. They held onto the ground, eyes shut. Red Hood grabbed onto her and she swore by her life that she was never going to let go.

When it subsided, they stood back up. “Come on.”

The Bullet stared at him dumbfounded, then the Red Hood grabbed her wrist, pulled her to the back where they could find Nightwing.

“Dick!!!”

Nightwing saw them, slammed his sticks into the creature’s guts, then ran towards them.

“I found a chair at the back. She needs to sit down.”

They moved fast. Waller will find out Flag is dead and detonate all their bombs before they’ll have a chance at escaping.

So they put her into a chair, and she gripped onto the arm rests. The Bullet watched Red Hood give Nightwing a pen-shaped device that had a needle on its end. She swallowed. “Hey, hey…” Red Hood leaned in and held her face. “You're gonna be okay… Scream if you have to… It won't take too long.”

She wished she could see his face. It was the only way she could ever be comforted. But his touch was enough. She held his hand, squeezed it, then Nightwing held her neck.

“Ready.”

Alfred kept firing at all the creatures coming after them. They had a few good minutes.

Y/N screamed out into the air as the needle went into the back of her neck and electrified that one spot by her spine. She gripped onto the wood. She forced her eyes shut. She never felt so much pain from being tased down but with it came the relief feeling that bomb actually stop beeping in the inside of her flesh. The shocks were excruciatingly painful, and it made every agonizing second pass by as long as a minute would have taken. Red Hood turned his head away before the look on her face broke his heart even more.

But the moment it stopped, with her body up in light smokes, she felt everything inside her calm.

It was gone. The bomb was gone. She could actually feel it. Red Hood grabbed her and pulled her to a hug immediately.

“You're safe now…”

“I love you.”

“I love you…”

Robin suddenly jumped at them and took out three incoming creatures with his staff. “Come on guys, Alfred can't handle all this by himself!”

Nightwing. Robin. Red Hood. Bullet.

Like they were all made to fight by each other’s side.

Nightwing smashed his weapons against a monster’s head, threw its body up in the air with his knee, then the Bullet fired at it with her wrist gun all the way down to the ground. He helped her up, gain higher ground, then she fought at Nightwing’s side when he took out the ones coming for her back. Robin, with his bo staff, slammed one right at the gut and let it fly through the air until Red Hood slammed its torso with his elbow, before shooting it in the head.

Red Hood shot three with his pistols, but one of them grabbed him by the head. And man, was it inhumanely strong. Nightwing slammed his stick right through its skull, just inches away from Red Hood’s head. Red Hood elbowed it away, then shot it. The Bullet kept covering them, now with her machine gun. She fired at one going after Robin, at another that had Nightwing in a headlock, and another two that were about to surround Red Hood.

So many were coming to surround her. And as the boys fought them off, she fired at them relentlessly with her gun. She jumped to the ground and fired at them with her wrist gun.

The Batwing was above them, swerving around as it took out everything that stood their way.

The Bullet looked back out at the pit, where the squad was. “We have to help them!” she said.

“What?!” Red Hood screamed. “Are you insane?”

“They just want to live! We all want this nightmare to end! You can go back to being enemies after we’ve saved the world!”

The world. Of course. By now the gas should have dispersed out of the state. They had to move.

The Bullet shot off a creature coming for Harley. And another coming for Boomerang. The man was barely holding up. El Diablo, now a raging monster completely made of fire, tore through everything in its way and burnt down all the monsters to a bloody crisp. Frost was still holding up, doing whatever she could with her ice. And the look on her face when Nightwing came along and hit one of them in the head before it could grab her, she couldn’t describe it.

And it was that way for hours on end. The creatures kept on coming. The fires started raging. The Batwing had landed on the ground but kept its bullets spewing out of its guns in a frenzied attack against the hundreds that were still around them.

But somehow, the dome acted as some sort of beacon. Because there were more incoming. From far away. She had no idea if they were still Scarecrow’s men or if they were people from the countryside that weren’t so lucky…

As far as everybody knew, they were dead.

And they were all going after the dome like flies surrounding a light.

Frost had them in a block of ice, then Diablo fried them up like fish. Harley kept with her hammer and almost hit Nightwing in the head. “Harley!”

“Sorry, handsome! Kinda got used to aiming for your pretty head!”

Jason, standing with his back right up against the Y/N’s side. They shot at the creatures with their guns not knowing if their ammo was going to take it.

“Y/N! You think we’re gonna make this!?”

She shot down a foot, an arm, then eventually a head. Y/N screamed. “It’s not looking good but I sure fucking hope so!”

Red Hood grabbed her shoulder and turned her around, firing at one she didn’t see. Y/N got a circular lid off one of the manholes and flung it into three bodies.

“Y/N! MARRY ME!!!”

She could have been grabbed by the head if she didn’t hear it coming from behind. She held out her wrist gun and fired directly behind her.

“I THINK I’VE ALREADY ANSWERED THAT QUESTION!!!”

Y/N used Jason’s body to haul herself up, swinging her leg in a circle around her before she shot all of them on the ground. Jason grabbed a creature’s head with his bare hands and squished it into its bloody bits.

“NO. I MEAN MARRY ME. RIGHT NOW!!!!”

“WHAT?!”

Almost losing her arm, she slammed her fist against its head, throwing it to the grass and slamming her boot onto its face. Jason kept firing with his two guns, faster than he ever could have fired.

“IF WE’RE GONNA DIE, WE’RE DYING TOGETHER!!”

“WHAT?!?!”

Jason grabbed her arms, flung her around him so she could repeatedly kick them down before they got anywhere near them. She fired her wrist gun and cursed when she almost missed. He started handling them by hand, punching, swerving, kicking them down with his awfully strong thighs.

“YOU EVER SEEN PIRATES OF THE CARRIBEAN!?” He smashed drove his gun into a skull and kicked him off. “THE THIRD ONE???”

“JASON, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!!??”

Y/N pressed her back against Jason, and they didn’t stop firing.

“THEY GOT MARRIED IN THE MIDDLE OF A FIGHT. IT WAS FUCKING EPIC.”

“WE’RE GOING TO FUCKING DIE-“

“EXACTLY MY POINT. I WANT TO GET OUT OF THIS WITH YOU AS MY WIFE. DEAD OR ALIVE. I DON’T WANNA WASTE ANYMORE TIME.”

She leapt up in a backflip over Jason and they switched places.

“THIS NEVER WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF WALLER COULDN’T LEGALLY FORCE ME TO TESTIFY AGAINST YOU. I’M NOT ABOUT TO LET THAT HAPPEN AGAIN. IF ANYONE WANTS TO KEEP US APART, THEY’LL HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE FUCKING LAW!”

“JASON, YOU'RE INSANE!!!”

Five down in a single shot. Y/N kicked them down, grabbed her grappling gun, then shot it at a crate to haul it over to the monsters incoming. Jason went through the whole row of creatures climbing down the pit, and when he had the slightest window, he raised his visor.

“IS THAT A YES?!”

Y/N faced him. and Jason faced her.

It wasn’t even a fucking question. The beautiful asshole.

“YES!”

As they kept firing, Jason pressed on his communicator. “ALFRED!!!”

He tossed Y/N a communicator so they’d both be able to hear him. The butler was still in the batwing, needless to say still firing at all the monsters that have made a mountain coming after it hovering in the air.

“Yes, sir?”

“YOU STILL AN ORDAINED MINISTER?!”

He could hear Alfred sound confused.

“I do believe that is a lifelong thing-“

“MARRY US. RIGHT NOW!!!”

Alfred took out a bazooka gun on the Batwing, a new one no doubt. He didn’t remember Bruce having that when he was still alive, then stook out a crowd of twenty coming after him.

“I’m afraid I’m rather busy at the moment, Master Jason.”

“THEN MAKE IT QUICK. PLEASE, MARRY US!”

“TIM, YOU HEARING THIS?” Dick cried out into the comms. Everyone could hear it.

“I KNOW. IT’S FUCKING ROMANTIC.”

Alfred kept his calm. Then they heard a sigh.

“Alright. Do try not to get yourselves killed, Master Jason.”

“CAN DO!”

Y/N grabbed Jason’s arm, held onto him as tightly as she could, then they turned to meet each other’s eyes. Not after shooting a zombie coming for his back.

“Dearly beloved we are gathered here today…” Alfred fired another bazooka at the crowd. “To join this man, and this woman, in holy matrimony.”

Her wrist gun on a frenzy, she shot at the surrounding monsters and helped Jason kick one down with his knee. They stuck to each other’s backs, firing with their pistols.

“Jason Todd, Red Hood, do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?”

Jason’s pistol ran out of ammo, so Y/N threw him a magazine.

“I DO!!!”

She grabbed him, hurled him to the side so they’d switch places, then she started firing at a gun powder barrel she found and it immediately exploded.

“Y/FN Y/LN, Deadsh-“

“THE BULLET! I’M THE BULLET!”

Jason smiled at her with his eyes.

“Ah yes, I do apologize. Y/FN Y/LN, the Bullet, do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

Alfred fired at the creatures coming up to her just as she spoke. “I DO!”

Endless bullets, flying out of their hands, they fired at everything that came their way, protecting each other, shielding each other from harm’s way.

Alfred cleared his throat.

“Then with the power vested in me by the city of Gotham, I now pronounce you husband and wife.”

“DICK, COVER US!”

“I GOT YOU!” Dick screamed.

“You may now kiss the bride…”

Before they’d die. Before it all ends.

They only had a minute before their lungs would give out.

So they ran into each other’s arms, taking off their masks and held their breaths to the best capacity.

Jason grabbed Y/N’s face, pulling her to his lips. Then an explosion happened in the far-off distance that blew off almost everything around them in the air. All except them.

They were one. They were together. Forever. She was his. And he was hers. For as long as they both shall live.

“IS THIS A FUCKIN’ WEDDING?!” Boomerang screamed.

Harley smashed her hammer. “I LOVE WEDDINGS!!!”

Jason leaned down and kissed her despite his chest starting to twist. She grabbed the back of his neck, pushed him back as well. Never has a kiss been more powerful, more meaningful. As far as they knew, they were alone. They were themselves. They were together. And nothing, not even the world, was ever going to pull them apart ever again.

From their first kiss in the meeting room, to the one at the Batcave, to the kiss in her quarters that one rainy night, to the kiss they shared up on that bridge. Everything had boiled down to now. Finally. Finally.

They were fucking married.

They pulled away, stared at each other, and finally they could see the largest smiles on their faces. The places the masks back on and gasped to breathe.

“Shall we?”

“We shall…”

Not a lot more to cover. The fucking monsters were finally starting to run out. And they moved in a dance only they knew. On each other’s side. Never leaving.

They shot, kicked, slammed, tore through the lifeless bodies coming after them and she cried out as another bomb exploded that she threw from her hand. She fought with her fucking husband and man, did it sound like the most beautiful thing in the world.

Nightwing and Robin came up to them.

“CONGRATULATIONS!!!” they both screamed.

“THANK YOU!”

Then Y/N handed them both guns and they started firing at the creatures.

It worked so well.

Finally.

Twenty left. Then there were fifteen. Then another ten died.

Finally.

Gone. All of the monsters. Wiped out.

The Squad was intact. Thankfully, they smiled at the Bullet and they all gathered to the center.

“I can't believe this,” Nightwing said. “But thank you for having our backs.”

“Don’t get used to it, pretty boy, when we wake up tomorrow mornin’ I’m back to slicing your head off with a-“

“Okay,” Red Hood stopped them. “Now we have to figure out a way to stop this.” He pointed up at the beacon.

“Hood,” the Bullet gulped.

“Yes, wife?”

A few of them groaned at that. Red Hood ignored them.

But the Bullet, Y/N, she didn’t look to happy.

She was staring right up at the top of the pit, shivering.

Everyone looked back to what she was looking at.

No.

No…

It wasn’t possible.

Hundreds more. Hundreds of the creatures. From all over the city. Ones with long, blonde hair. Ones that were as tiny as a small child.

It had reached civilization.

No. they couldn’t possibly handle all of them.

Robin looked at Nightwing, whose look on his eyes definitely lost that glimmering enthusiasm that sparked the hope they needed to go on.

And Red Hood.

Well, he made the right choice marrying her.

Jason held Y/N’s hand, and she took it so tightly between her fingers.

The look on their eyes, watching each other, memorizing the looks on their eyes before they go on to their inevitable deaths.

They couldn’t even see each other’s faces.

Harley slumped to the ground. “Well, this is it, ladies and gents.”

Frost screamed in frustration, releasing a large block of ice and slamming it onto the pit.

The monsters had surrounded them now. All in a complete circle. Trapping them.

And they took their time watching them squirm like worms in a tank full of fish.

This is how they die.

Y/N tightened her grip on Jason’s hand when one of the monsters roared and they all started crawling down to the dome.

“T-Tim?”

Their communicators. It sounded like Barbara.

“Yeah?”

“I hope you weren’t saving that favor for anything special,” Oracle said.

“Favor?”

“You know. That favor with Bruce’s friends…”

“What do you mea-“

Like a lightning bolt striking a tree, their eyes shot up at the brightest flash of light.

A golden, glimmering lasso, coming down from something they hadn’t seen flying in the air. The lasso grabbed onto five of the incoming beings and hauled them up.

Y/N’s never seen her up close.

But goddamn, she was nothing like the pictures.

Wonder Woman slammed against the ground on her knee and her balled up fist, letting the soil ripple at her impact. She didn’t have on a mask, but it barely wrinkled her nose. Her striking beauty was made even more obvious when she smirked up at the four, standing up, then took out her shield and sword from her back. She winked at them.

The four were too dumbfounded to move. As victims exhausted or as fanboys and fangirls watching it all unfold right in front of their eyes. Boom tubes coming from different parts in the air, and out of those circles came the heroes they’ve looked up to their whole lives.

Superman tore through a whole row of that were crawling after them with his powerful laser vision, flying through the sky faster than any of Y/N’s bullets could speed through. He grabbed one by the head, flew up to the sky, then threw it against the ground so hard that dozens of others blew up along with it.

Green Lantern made his own machine gun with his ring. He fired at everything that came close to the dome.

The Flash couldn’t even be seen. All they could see was a buzzing red light, powering all around them in circles and taking down everything that was in his path.

Green Arrow started raining down more than five arrows at a time. Ones from above. Ones from the ground. Black Canary ran up from behind them and let out that famous ear-piercing scream that took out everything that was in front of her. Even the grass.

Aquaman came up with his trident, and with Mera following behind, she let a stream of water pierce through the air like shards and a fucking shark was in it eating the heads of everything the water passed through.

Hawkgirl held her mace up in front of her and let her wings force her through the hundreds in the crowd, smashing their brains out with a single hit.

Shazam slammed on the ground, with sparks coming out of his body, then he screamed at the sky and let the biggest lightning bolt they’ve ever seen clear out a whole patch of the land the beings were standing on.

Martian Manhunter transformed into his true alien form then grabbed the monsters with his bare hands, threw them out of the way, and stomped on them with his feet. Or what looked like feet.

Cyborg. Supergirl. Zatanna. Doctor Fate. Huntress. Hawkman. Vixen. The Atom.

They were all here.

They were all going to live.

The fucking Justice League had come to save them.

Never have they seen them all in action. To them, it might have just been another day. But to them? To Batman’s wards. It was everything they ever wished to become.

It was the best, most beautiful thing they could possibly see their whole lives.

Bruce. How much he would have loved this.

Then the ground started to shake once again. The Cloudburst. It let out another load of the toxin.

They had to destroy it now.

Alfred hovered the Batwing above them and opened up the entry way. He waved his hands for them to come in. Robin, Nightwing, Red Hood, and Bullet ran into the Batwing and took their masks off.

“We can't just run off.”

“We have to go help them.”

“Actually,” Alfred said. “I’ve taken instruction from Ms. Prince.”

“She wanted us to leave?”

“No.” Alfred lead them to the windows and the looked out.

Superman, Green Lantern, Cyborg, and Supergirl were all facing the top of the dome, firing their lasers at the concentrated spot at the center. The heart of the Cloudburst. The whole building had gone up in flames, but it continued to fire up in the toxin.

“The Batwing has one more rocket bomb in its ammunition. When the League has the Cloudburst’s core exposed, we only have one shot at firing right at its center, destroying the Cloudburst for good.”

“I’ll do it,” Dick said.

“No I will!” Tim cried.

“Who said it was your turn!?”

“Who said it was yours?!”

“This isn’t a fucking argument, this is the world’s fate in our hands!”

“Exactly, which means I get to fire the Batwing.”

“Well, who exactly has the best aim in this fucking ship-“

Every pair of eyes stopped wandering around. Then they turned to the woman they called the Bullet.

No.

Fucking no.

“I can't-“

“Y/N-“

“Jason, I can't do this-“

“You can.”

“I don’t trust myself-“

“You never miss-“

“Jason.”

She grabbed his hands that were holding her face, finally she could look up at his eyes and see his lips in a smile.

“The last time I handled a tank, it was the Cloudburst… and I missed.”

“It doesn’t matter. That wasn’t your fault. You have no idea how sorry I am for being upset at that, but I know you can do this. Besides, this isn’t a tank. This is the fucking Batwing.”

“Jay…”

“Please. You're the only one who can do this.”

“I’ve never handled anything like this before.”

“You. Can. Do this.”

Looking up at Jason’s eyes, she saw just how much hope he had for her. Then he leaned in and kissed her.

“Man, is he dramatic today,” Tim said.

“Shut up, they just got married.”

When Jason pulled away, the heaviness in Y/N’s chest had slowly started to fade.

Yeah. He was right.

Her husband was right.

She does have the best aim in the room.

Alfred gestured for her to take the seat at the cockpit.  And with Jason holding her hand, leading her to the front, she slowly took the front seat.

Everything was at her control. It didn’t look too intimidating. She pressed onto the buttons and breathed in. Really breathed in.

Breathe. Breathe.

Jason stood back, but not without squeezing her shoulder.

Breathe.

She opened her eyes.

Flying the Batwing over to the top of the dome, right alongside Superman and Supergirl with their lasers still pointing at the center. It won't be long now.

Everything looked brighter. Everything felt hotter. The center of the Cloudburst, at the dome that was once its protective shield.

Irony. She always thought it was what’s going to get her.

Driving the Cloudburst, using it to take down the Batmobile.

Now she was driving the Batwing to take down the Cloudburst.

Yes. Irony certainly did come out to bite her.

But it was in the fucking best way possible.

Doctor Fate and Zatanna had joined in and fired their magical beams at the same spot at the center. Slowly, after each second that passed, she could see its shield slowly start to fade away. A ball around the glass tank of the toxin collapsed. And finally, it was seconds away from its very heart exposed.

Breathe.

The Bullet turned on her optics.

Further. Closer. Brighter.

NOW.

The rocket shot through the Batwing’s bazooka and it came flying out into the air. She waited for that half a millisecond watching it fall to the very spot she aimed at.

Everyone flew out of the sky before it landed on the Cloudburst.

Then the entire dome exploded like a massive nuclear bomb tearing out into the sky with its violently flying debris. The Justice League and the Suicide Squad had cleared out, and with the explosion it took away all the remaining nightmare creatures, dissolving them into the air as nothing but ash.

Everything was loud. Everything was bright. They shielded their eyes away before it blinded them and hid as the dome continued to explode.

They were so high up in the air that they could see the stars up in space despite it already the morning.

And as the bombing sounds had faded…

So did the toxin.

The once red cloud that had covered the sky had dwindled away to its natural white. Everything fell down in beautiful pink ashes. The same ones from when Ivy destroyed the first Cloudburst. They looked up at the sky, and with tears down their faces, everyone leapt in joy and cheered when everything looked as peaceful as it once was.

On the ground where the dome used to be, a crater of soil was left behind. No more creatures. No more darkness. No more Scarecrow.

Everyone took off their domino masks and visors. Dick took Tim and they screamed in happiness, jumped in the air, hugged each other until it hurt like girls at a sleepover. They took Alfred in as well and gave him the biggest bear hug there was.

“DID YOU FUCKING SEE THAT, BABE!?” Tim said into his comms.

Babs was just as ecstatic as they were. “I’M SO PROUD OF ALL OF YOU!!”

“WE FUCKING SAVED THE WORLD!!!” Dick leapt for joy.

“I THOUGHT WE WERE GONNA DIE OUT THERE.”

“I KNOW. THEN FUCKING WONDER WOMAN CAME IN AND DESTROYED EVERYTHING I MEAN HOW CAN ANYONE GET AS AWESOME AS THAT?!”

“YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN THE LOOK ON YOUR FACE,” Tim screamed. “IT’S LIKE YOU SAW HER AT FUCKING COMIC CON.”

“ALFRED.” They pulled him in. “TELL ME. DID BRUCE EVER DO ANYTHING LIKE THAT IN HIS LIFE?!”

“Well, other than the ten times he’s defeated Darkseid over at outer space, no I don’t think he has.”

“ WE STILL WIN. WE FUCKING DID IT!!!”

“JASON, DID YOU SEE IT WHEN GREEN LANTER- Jason?!”

They looked around. Jason hadn’t joined them in their little celebration.

Jason and Y/N were over at the back, kissing for what seemed to have been the last ten minutes and completely ignoring everything that went on around them. She was holding his face, and he was hugging her waist. Didn’t even stop when Tim cleared his throat.

Dick, on the other hand, had went up to one of the compartments and had grabbed a bottle of champagne they had stored there for purposes like this.

“Can't believe we almost forgot. CONGRATULATIONS TO THE NEWLYWEDS !!!”

Everyone in the Batwing clapped for joy and the couple finally stopped kissing, turning their heads over to smile at them.

“THIS CALLS FOR A CELEBRATION!”

“CHAMPAGNE FOR EVERYONE.”

Jason thumbed her cheek. “You alright with our reception being held in the Batwing?”

Y/N shrugged. “I mean, I wanted to book a caterer, but-“

Jason pulled her face again and kissed her with their hearts light and their spirits so high up in the sky.

A future. She could see it. It was all flashing in front of her eyes now.

Finally, something good had happened out of the series of darkness.

They drank, cheered, partied in the Batwing while it went in a really slow autopilot on its way back to the cave. They hung out like any group of friends would have. Like any family would have.

Jason held her hand the whole time. And Y/N held it even tighter.

This was the end. And it was beautiful, peaceful, promising.

And above all else, it was fucking epic.

-----

EPILOGUE

As if the world hadn’t already stopped surprising them, they continued to go through that very same day bringing them almost to the brink of a heart attack.

When the grounds to the Batcave descended, when the Batwing parked itself in its spot, when its entryway folded down for them all to walk down to, everyone was still in their high, laughing, skipping when they walked down the ramp and out into the walkway.

“Babs!”

Barbara wheeled right towards them and Tim held her in his arms, pulling her up to his level so he could carry her. They all cheered.

“I can't believe you thought of calling the League!”

Babs laughed. “Obviously, you needed help.”

Everyone started talking at the same time, each of them telling Babs one side of the story and how it happened. Explaining in detail how Wonder Woman did this and how Aquaman did that. Even Y/N was so excited she couldn’t stop talking about how Green Arrow’s aim was something she’d admired for so long. A bubble of noise, happy noise. Kids being together.

Like no time even passed. They continued on and on about everything that happened.

Then Jason looked behind at the computers. He stopped talking. His smile faded away. His heart stopped. His whole body stopped.

Everyone saw the look on his face and turned to look at what he was seeing.

At first, he looked just about as regular as any tall man.

And if you hadn’t been expecting it, like practically everyone in the room didn’t, no one would believe it at first glance.

Black shirt. Basic jeans. A jacket over his shoulders. Hair so long it had gone down to his neck pushed back.

But it was him. So undeniably him.

“Oh my god…” Babs whispered.

Bruce Wayne smiled at all their faces. Jaws on the ground. Eyes so incredibly wideset. He didn’t look the least bit bothered.

He walked on over closer to them, hands in his pockets. He stood a few yards away so as to not startle them.

His children.

“Dick…” he greeted.

The eldest choked on his breath. “Bruce…”

Bruce looked over at the girl with fiery red hair.

“Barbara…”

“Oh. My. God.”

Bruce grinned, then he looked over at the man beside her.

“Tim…”

“You're alive…” Tim breathed.

Then when Bruce met Jason’s eyes, everyone parted to give him his way. Bruce started walking towards him, and Jason swallowed on his tongue.

He hadn’t prepared for this.

Not by a long shot.

He thought he was never, ever going to see him again.

He never thought he’d have the chance to make things right.

And now, he did.

Bruce stood in front of Jason.

“Welcome back…” Bruce said. “My son…”

Jason pulled him into a hug, much to Bruce’s surprise. Much to everyone’s surprise.

But he wanted to skip all the thinking and the doubts and the holding back to everything he’s ever wanted to say to him.

Jason forgave him. Already after two years. And it meant so much that Bruce had forgiven him too.

Bruce hugged him back.

Bruce never hugs anyone back.

But he patted Jason’s shoulder and held him as tightly as any father could possibly hold his son. Jason was crying. Hell, everyone in the room was crying. Even Alfred was shedding a tear. Everyone watched on as they fell into each other’s embrace longer than they’ve had with anyone else.

Eventually, Bruce had to pull away.

“I’m so sorry…” Jason cried.

Bruce held his shoulders.

“Jason…” he said. “You have no idea how proud I am of you…”

Jason realized he’s never heard those words before.

He hugged him again, just because he couldn’t hold it back anymore. Y/N dried her tears with her shirt and met Jason’s eyes from over Bruce’s shoulder.

“Bruce…” Jason pulled away. “There’s someone I’d like you to meet.”

Y/N stood straight up. She dusted off her suit. She straightened her neck.

“This is Y/N,” Jason said with his hand on her back. She stretched out her hand, and Bruce took it.

“I’ve heard of you. Your girlfriend-“

“Wife.”

Her smile was so beautiful when he said it.

“My wife.”

Bruce shot up his eyebrows. “I see. Well, it would have been better if we had a talk-“

“Don’t. Do that.”

“I’m kidding,” Bruce laughed.

Y/N cleared her throat. “Such a pleasure to meet you, sir.”

“Y/N… I know who you are and who you were…”

“Bruce…”

He nodded at Dick.

“You were the Commander of the militia army. You were Deadshot. You took over your uncle’s old jobs.”

“Bruce, you don’t have to-“

He didn’t even look at Jason’s direction.

“And you drove the Batwing today…”

Y/N was scared shitless shivering on her own two feet. It wasn’t because she was talking to Batman, someone she almost had killed. It was because she was talking to her freaking father in law.

Jason swallowed.

“And I also happen to know… that you worked with my sons like a perfectly trained team and singlehandedly saved thousands of lives…”

Everyone’s eyes lit up. Especially hers.

“What do we call you now?”

“The Bullet,” she swallowed. “I’m the Bullet.”

“Well, Y/N,” he smiled. “The Bullet.”

Then he stretched out his hand.

“Welcome to the family.”

 -----

MASTERLIST

THE BULLET MASTERLIST

-----

TAGLIST

@everyartistwas-firstanamateur

@sarcasmismyfirstlove

@damned-queen-of-gotham

@idkmanicantenglish

@wunderstell

@birdy-bat-writes

@get-loki

@everyday-imfangirling

@comic-nerd-dc

@multifandoms916

@icequeen208

@offendedfishnoises

@egdolan

@xemiefx

@arkhamtoddler

@elsenthal

@mythicbitchx

@supremehaunter

@lucy-roo

@roseangel013bf

@loxbbg

@reclusive-chicken-nugget

@l-inkage

@http-cherries

@shadowsndaisies

@river9noble

@zphilophobiaz

@annoylinglyaries

@knightfall05x

@flowersgirl02

@hyp-oh-critical

@satan-s-ass

[shleepys]

AYYYY I hope you all were safe over the holidays and continue to stay safe over these next few months! Right now my state is dealing with record high covid numbers and a bunch of snow, might be different for you guys but hey, even though we're kicking off the start of a new year we still have to be aware of what's been going on and continue to push through it. But yeah!

We can finally reveal for the @harringroveholidayexchange, so I hope you enjoy what I made for the amazing @catharrington! I don't know how everyone else is formatting theirs if they did fic and art but I'm going to put both here! 💕

- - - - -

Overlooked

prompt! - I’ve always loved the differences in the two boys while growing up, I imagine Steve having huge Christmas parties with champagne flutes and the works and Billy being invited and happy to spend time with Steve, he really is!, it’s just a lot he isn’t used to. All up to author interpretations: make as fluffy or angsty as you want ;)

summary! - Steve forgets they were supposed to hang out elsewhere while his parents threw their annual Christmas party and agrees to stay.

Luckily, Billy doesn’t mind!

The only problem is, they don’t get to hang out... and Billy starts to feel overlooked.

- - - - -

Billy couldn’t be more out of place.

Parties were his thing, don’t get that wrong. He could get drunk, smoke, fuck, do whatever and if Steve was with him, only then it was infinitely better. 

But this wasn’t a party. Not the party he knew. It felt more like a corporate gathering or a birthday for someone he didn’t know and he only ended up on the list because his boyfriend’s involved. Which wouldn’t be a problem if everyone around him wasn’t two to three times his age and he actually got to hang out with said boyfriend. 

But it’s fine. It’s been fine so far.

Crystal champagne flutes and ugly holiday sweaters just aren’t necessarily Billy’s forte. He can’t fathom how much Steve’s parents spent on this party alone and can only bet that it cost more than the monthly payment for the house on Cherry Road. Not that he has much resentment towards what Steve’s parents do with their money but it just seems… unnecessary. 

He takes a sip from his flute, rustling the jacket resting on his lap before leaning further into the sofa to try and wait this out despite already being here for what seems like hours. Billy gradually looks up again and stares into the other room where he can see Steve and his parents.

He can’t see their faces, but he can see Steve’s. Their backs are turned to him - Steve’s off to the side - they’re merely silhouettes so he can’t tell if his parents are just being gregarious or snobby. Then again, neither of them really talk about their parents so Billy has no clue.

Billy watches as a couple leaves, the discomfort continues to overrule Steve’s face as suddenly another appears and the cycle starts over again for what seems about the hundredth time. He huffs, kicking the shagged carpet beneath him before lowly cursing himself out. Should he have reminded him what they were going to do tonight? Or would Steve have rather stayed here? 

He can’t tell whether or not Steve’s just over some of the pretentious attitudes and comments he’s overheard in the past hour or that he’s trying to break the chain and get over to him so they can do something together. He could always get drunk and wait for Steve to get done, he knows where the brunette keeps a bottle of scotch that he stole from his dad’s liquor cabinet in the office. 

He blinks, lips sucked in to form a seal as he thinks. “Should I go home?” Billy whispers, soft and hurt. There’s not really a point in staying and maybe he can see if Jonathan has anything new to smoke. Deep, contemplative breath.

Billy stands up and discards his glass on the side table next to him before throwing on his coat and grabbing his scarf. Everything from then to going outside flashed by like a blur, nothing of importance really stricken in his mind other than colored sweaters and the sheen of champagne glasses hitting his eye. His breath is almost heavy as he opens the door and a wave of ice rushes over him. It bites at his nose, almost makes him want to itch it but he ventures out regardless. Billy slowly closes it behind him.

Billy sighed softly, eyes falling to the ground. It’s been snowing all day. Coming and going with the wind and dusting every road, house, and tree with freckles of white. Granted, everything was coated before it got too dark and hopefully, the roads weren’t iced over for any of the poor drunks inside. Steam rolled from his mouth as he exhaled before taking a deep breath. Billy threw the end of his scarf over his shoulder and looked out where his car should be, a somber smile passing his lips but twisting into a frown. Steve told him he could park where his family parks.

His feet felt like they were superglued to the deck, that, or like boulders had been tied to the ends of them. Billy bit his bottom lip and fidgeted with his coat pockets, sort of kicked the snow from under him.

He swallowed hastily, a lump bouncing in his throat as he looked out again. Couldn’t pinpoint the emotion to anything else but a pang of burning guilt. Maybe he should have just gone up to him, shouldn’t have made a big deal out of feeling left out, taken him away from his parents so they could go upstairs or leave.

Someone jerked open the sliding doors. Light poured from the inside, Billy twisted around to identify the backlit figure expecting a drunk only to find a breathless, seemingly worried Steve. Billy wanted to furrow his brows and walk off into the snow where he knew damn well Steve wouldn’t go into with house shoes on, but for some reason, he stayed put. Watches as Steve shuts the door behind him and rubs at his arm.

“What are you doing out here?”

Billy doesn’t respond.

Steve seems to catch on, and their eyes lock. 

There have been times when Billy goes outside during a party to catch his breath, maybe sneak around back to talk to Steve about one thing or another, maybe drunkenly make out and hope no one was watching or Tommy had their back. But they hadn’t been to a party for a long while, not since September. And, Billy doesn’t just bring his car keys with him to ‘catch his breath’.

Billy broke contact with a sharp ‘huh’. “Did you forget about me?"

“What? No! Why would you think that?” Steve shuddered, pulling his hands into his sleeves.

Billy looked back up with dagger-like eyes, “Because it seems an awfully lot like you did.”

“Well, I didn’t.”

He could bite back, the very opportunity hanging in front of his nose. But he didn’t. Instead, a familiar quiver caught his lip. Lingering feelings creeping up and forcing his hand to itch at his pocket. Billy shook his head, eyes falling to the ground. 

Steve frowned, aware of the events to follow. He’s known the other long enough to recognize the outline of Marlboros in any pocket. Deep down wishes there was some other habit Billy bid in, but that’s a matter of discussion that needs to be saved for later.

Eventually, the pack came out. Steve chewed on the inside of his cheek as he watched Billy, his lighter flaring until the end emitted a pale red before shakily tucking it away. He shook his head again slow and somber like. 

“I’m sorry.” Billy started, hands moving along with his words. “And it’s not that I don’t want to be here. You’re just,” he sighed, “busy.”

Steve’s lips sealed tightly at the comment. He saw the discomfort present in the other’s sentences, could feel guilt churn in the pit of his stomach. Thing is Steve wasn’t the slightest bit spiteful, he was pissed at himself for not taking action to check up on the other. Not considering bringing another friend with them in case something like this happened. He’s upset because they were supposed to do something together tonight besides this but he forgot and agreed to be here. Steve watched him take a drag, self-spite running through his veins. 

The corners of Steve’s eyes pinched, his throat tightening as he spoke, “No, I’m sorry! This sucks, this whole thing has sucked. I stressed myself out over decorating for the party and was so excited to hang out! I didn’t mean to agree but I forgot! And mom and dad keep introducing me to people. I- I wanted to spend time with you! I didn’t want to be here!” Steve took a step forward before shaky inhale. “This is my fault, this shouldn’t have happened.”

The next few seconds were the two boys staring at one another, each waiting on the other to say something. Billy was at a loss. Steve had a million thoughts streaming through his mind, hoping that the blonde wouldn’t just turn away and leave. 

Eventually, Billy glanced at the door, peering through to check if the blinds were shut as a faint smile appeared. Billy’s lips pressed against Steve’s before he could protest, his hand meeting to cup the brunette’s jaw and brush over the apple of his cheek with his calloused thumb and cigarette in the other. Steve’s tears wetted his cheeks, he didn’t mind it all that much. The shock melted into comfort as Steve cherished the kiss, pouted when Billy slowly pulled away from him. The slight tinge of champagne lingering on the other’s lips, the heat of their bodies giving them a little warmth.

Billy craned his head - albeit Steve was taller - until their foreheads met. 

“Don’t apologize. I get it.” Billy whispered. Steve gave a small, dismissive ‘huff’.

“My boyfriend should come before a stupid party. I should have told them otherwise.” 

Billy shook his head. “The party’s nice. You beat yourself up too much over this kind of stuff, I forget things too. Remember the creek?” 

Steve giggled, lips twisting into a smile. “In July when you were supposed to meet me there and didn’t show up? And I stayed there all night?”

Billy frowned as he thought into it, the bitter call at one in the morning that turned into a week of not talking to one another. It ended nicely though - if ‘nice’ was drunk car sex in the middle of the woods. There wasn’t much of an apology there but hey, they’re still trying to work on things and figure out how exactly relationships work because they aren’t exactly a sixty-year-old couple with forty years of experience behind the boy’s backs.

“I still owe you for that. Sorry.” His eyes fell to the deck as he pulled his head away, bumping his cigarette against his finger and watching the ash fall.

After Steve noticed the shift he got quiet, frowned, and eyes followed Billy’s to the wooden boards below. “Don’t apologize,” Steve echoed with a light smile. Gently Steve grabbed Billy’s scarf and drew him in for a slower, deeper kiss. 

People forget things, that’s human nature. And sometimes they can be a bit dumb about it too. But this was going to be the boy’s first Christmas, granted it wasn’t exactly Christmas yet, but it was important to them both. Spending time with a significant other on a holiday was amazing even if they can’t shout it out to everyone they know. 

These moments always have a sort of energy to them. When the boys share a wordless amalgamation of self-deprecating thoughts after ‘messing something up’ and those little habits come out to bite to express those thoughts oh so clearly.  It’s a ball of weird energy that shines in self-hate that the two have been working to eliminate and hey, they’ve gotten pretty far! But, it’s still there. Smiling in the corner of the boy’s minds. Ready to strike at any moment. It’s just a lot smaller now. 

Because again, don’t have the forty years and that’s perfectly valid even if the two don’t seem to realize it.

Billy leaned into the sweet kiss before Steve drew back. Billy chuckled and wrapped his arms around the other as he tucked his face into Steve’s neck. Steve shook again, this time cuddling up to the other and ravishing in the heat and short breaths coming out of them both.

“I wanna go inside,” Steve mumbled, rubbing at the other’s back.

Billy laughed and slowly pulled away to look at Steve. “Too cold?” 

“I’m in a sweater and sweatpants,” Steve pulled on his scarf again and toyed with the frayed ends. The grin Billy responded with brimmed with bliss, his hand roaming up and held the other’s with a firm hold,

“I’ll meet you inside.”

Steve had ventured back into the party while Billy snuffed his cigarette into the deck, eventually, the two found one another next to the food Steve’s parents had catered instead of cooking this year. Only thing that wasn’t in foil baking trays was the Christmas cookies that Billy had been dying to try ever since Steve brought them up at the beginning of December. Drinks clattered in group cheers from the surrounding areas, the smooth music now bearable. He never expected that a party this foreign to him would turn out for the better. Never thought he would feel… like a part of it? The crystal flutes, richies, and overall appeal still don’t rock with him, but with Steve, he has someone there for him. And that’s all Billy could ever ask for.

Thankfully, he didn’t feel like he was going to projectile vomit champagne anymore… the nausea sort of faded after Steve kissed him outside. Billy turned to Steve, noting the rosy shade still dancing on the apples of his cheeks from outside.

“Your sweater isn’t that ugly,” Billy emphasized, chewing on an ornament-shaped cookie.

Steve shook his head with an amused sigh, sweeping the crumbs from his shirt. “This isn’t that kind of party, if it was I would’ve had you help me make one.”

“Are you sure? Because I don’t think Karen from Fiance got the memo.” Billy pointed into the crowd at the woman in question. Her sweater took the cake for one of the ugliest, tensile hangs from her torso, lights strung all over, buttons on the brink of falling off. “You think she beats her kids over the head with a bible?” Steve rolled his eyes. Billy smirked at the little glare he’d received. “You should have pulled out your grandmother’s cat vests.” 

Steve gagged, eyes wide and ridden with disgust. “Keep talking and you’re going to make me throw up. I never want to see those again.” Billy snorts and Steve shoves him with a laugh, “It’s not funny!”

“But you’re laughing!” Billy remarks and lightly bumps him back returning the bubbling laughter.

A woman seems to overhear their laughs and spins around with the biggest and brightest grin Billy’s ever seen. It kind of startled him. Doesn’t know who she is, doesn’t care to know until he recognizes the cat vest and how familiar those brown, round doe eyes are. She runs up to them, curls bouncing on her shoulders as she approaches with a drink in hand. Mrs. Harrington gasped, grabbing onto Steve’s sweater with eyes darting between both boys, “Is this Billy?”

Steve smirks and rolls his eyes again. “Hi, Mom. I’m back Mom.” She lightly wacks him in the arm. “Yes! This is Billy.”

Her eyes lit up, dazzled with happiness as she stuck her attention on the blonde as he snuck another cookie in his mouth. “Steve talks about you all the time!”

“What? No, I don’t!” Steve’s eyebrows knit together as he tried to defend himself but deep down knew there was no hope, especially after Billy gave him that smug but appreciative little look as his mom went on her story-telling rampage. 

Billy laughs, almost in disbelief, “Really?”

“He talks about all of his friends, really. But, oh! When it comes to you he goes on and on and on, he really thinks you’re something.” Billy watched as the tips of Steve’s ears tinted themselves red and smirked. An interesting conversation for later. “I’m so upset that I haven’t been able to meet you until now! You two are always out or asleep by the time I get home.”

Billy’s brows quirked in an expression of sarcasm. “Well, thank you for not waking me up at two in the morning to introduce yourself.”

Mrs. Harrington chuckled, shaking her head before putting her hand on Steve’s shoulder. “I’m going to go get another drink. Oh, and Billy!” She paused and made eye contact, “If you want to come over for Christmas, you’re more than welcome too! Just tell Steve so I know.”

Billy’s brows flew upwards, blush rising and Steve picking it up instantly. She waved goodbye before walking around them and going off on her journey into another room. The boys stared again, each waiting on the other to say something until the brunette spoke up.

"She likes you," Steve muttered, ears still red as ever.

"You talk about me to her? I think that's cute."

He huffed. Had to stop himself from leaning against the other to hide his face. "Mom likes knowing what friends are up to."

Billy loosely smiled, slowly bumping into Steve with his hip before getting a light bump back. “You look a lot like her.” Steve shook his head.

“Not as much as my dad,” Steve turned to see if he was there and frowned when he didn’t see the other but slowly faded into a smile. “I don’t know where he is, he would have loved to meet you.”

The boys got quiet again.

Billy cleared his throat, his head tilted down as if to duck away to hide his blush and the movement didn’t go unnoticed by Steve. “About coming over for Christmas-” 

“I want you to.” He softly tugged on his jacket to get his attention. Eventually, Billy made eye contact, grinned with a chuckle following behind. Christmas with Steve? His caring boyfriend, twenty million cookies, a few possible presents, and… some loving parents? 

Billy couldn’t be happier.

[ilovefandoms102]

What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas

Pairing: Jonathan Daviss x Reader

Summary: You wake up married to the boy you’ve been in love with since you were 16...

Note: GUYS!!!!! So much has happened these past few weeks it’s been a whole mess! I have had homework coming out of my ass, so I hope this makes up for how long I haven’t posted! There is not enough content about this man and I love him so fucking much!!!

How ironic though that I was actually in Vegas when this story formulated in my brain?

Also FYI the parts in BOLD are flashbacks!

=====================================

I couldn’t tell you a time I hadn’t been in love with Jonathan Daviss…

We met through his father when I was 16. I was an aspiring young actress and his dad was my manager. 6 years later, JD and I were the best of friends. As the years went by, the harder I fell for him. We clicked in so many ways that it was hard to not be in love with him. 

I was over the moon when JD told me he had been casted on the show Outer Banks that would be appearing on Netflix. It was a huge opportunity and I couldn’t be more proud of my best friend. Luckily we still got to spend time together despite his busy schedule, introducing me to his coworkers who I had become extremely close with as well. 

Some of the cast and I got to take a trip to Las Vegas, the city that never sleeps. JD and I had just turned 21, meaning we didn’t have to miss out on the fun. A few drinks in, JD and I were attached at the hip. 

“I love you so much y/n!” JD shouted, flopping himself in my arms. He pulled his head back a little to lay a sound kiss on my lips, startling me slightly, but with how intoxicated I was it didn’t phase me. 

“You’re so cute J,” I giggled, taking another sip of my drink as I held close to JD. 

“We should get married, I think there’s a drive in next door.” He suggested, trailing small kisses down my cheek to my neck. 

“Let’s do it,” I grinned, moaning when he left a love bite right behind my ear.

=====================================

I groaned as the sunlight peaked in through the curtains, going to turn over, but I was stopped by a strong pair of arms trapping me against a warm body. I discovered that I was indeed naked next to an equally as naked JD. Memories of last night flashed through my brain, my eyes widened as I caught a sight of my left hand, and sure enough there was a very shiny ring perched on my ring finger. I managed to turn in his hold, smiling as I was met with his beautiful brown eyes. 

“Do you remember last night?” He asked, his deep voice sending tingles up my spine. 

“I think I remember the important parts.” I giggled, tracing the planes of his handsome face. 

=====================================

I had never felt so much pleasure, my brain could focus on nothing but the movement of JD’s hips slamming into mine. His hands held so tight to my hips that I knew they would be bruised, watching where we were connected as he thrusted at a rapid pace. One particular thrust hit that special spot inside of me, causing a yelp to leave my lips.

“Right there baby?” he panted, hitting that spot again and again.

“Yes, feels so good, fuck.” I whined, arching into him as my orgasm was just in reach.

He growled deeply, moving a hand to grip my throat. JD pinned my head to the pillow, ramming into that spot. My moan was cut off as he squeezed my neck, my toes curling as the coil was about to snap.

=====================================

“So, what happens now?” I whispered, our lips mere inches apart. 

JD moved to roll on top of me, smashing his mouth to mine. I pulled away breathlessly, beaming at the man who stole my heart. 

“Now, we fuck, and come to terms with our new married life.” JD smirked, moving to kiss down my neck. His hands moved up and down my naked body, my hands doing the same. 

“Wait, so you want this?” I asked, brows furrowing as he smiled. 

“I’ve been in love with you for-christ knows how long. I’ve always known I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” JD confessed. 

“I might cry.” I croaked, feeling my eyes start to well. This man who I’ve been in love with since I was 16, was now mine forever. 

“Nooo, my baby can’t cry.” He pouted, nuzzling his face in my neck to leave gentle kisses. 

“They’re happy tears babe.” I chuckled, wiping at my eyes before hugging around his neck tight. 

=====================================

“Mine,” he grunted, meeting his brown orbs to mine.

“J, oh fuck please.” I whimpered, my hands feeling up his back.

“My pretty baby, all mine.” he whispered, his lips brushing mine after every word.

“I’m-fuck-oh my god.” I groaned, not able to meet his eyes as they closed of their own accord.

“Gonna cum for me Mrs.Daviss?” he taunted, moving his hand from my throat to rub my clit in vigorous circles.

“Yes, yes baby.” I panted, moving my hips to meet his.

I came so hard my body convulsed against his, my muscles cramping from how I tensed. 

=====================================

“I love you,” he murmured in my ear, his thumbs caressing the sides of my breasts before brushing them over my already hardened nipples. 

I love you J,” I gasped, pulling his lips down to mine. 

I kissed him with as much passion and fervor I could manage while still subtly crying over our revelations. JD continued his play with my nipples, slowly caressing them before moving his lips down my neck. I sifted my fingers into his curls, feeling the soft tufts of hair as he moved lower. He took one of my nipples into his mouth, swirling his tongue before playfully biting it. I got a sudden burst of confidence and flipped us over, parking my ass right on his hardened member.

“I want to play,” I smirked, scratching softly down his abs.

“Go on then Mrs.Daviss.” he chuckled, moaning softly when I wiggled down his body.

I took his very large, very hard cock in my hands, twisting my wrists as I moved them up and down. 

“My husband, so hard for me aren’t you?” I taunted, rubbing my thumb on his tip.

“Yes baby, fuck.” he panted, his chest heaving as I moved my hands faster. 

“Do you want me to suck you off Mr.Daviss?” I asked, smiling sweetly at him.

“That’s so fucking hot, say it again.” he growled, grabbing under my jaw.

“Mr.Daviss,” I whispered, my clit throbbing as he growled low in his chest again.

“My Mrs, all mine.” he breathed, brushing his thumb over my lower lip. 

I scooted down between his legs, bending down to engulf his cock in my mouth. JD’s moan was like music to my ears, causing me to let out my own around him. He bucked his hips into my mouth, hand coming to take a fist full of my hair. I twirled my tongue around his member, pushing myself to touch my nose to his pubic bone.

“Fuck, I’m gonna cum.” he grunted, pushing my head up and down faster. 

I sucked him faster, moving to my absolute limits to make my husband lose it. He came in my mouth moments later, and I sucked every last bit of cum as I came off of him.

“Mmmm, you taste good handsome.” I panted, wiping at the sides of my mouth.

“I think it’s my turn to play now Mrs.Daviss,” he smiled, grabbing my hips to flip us back over. 

I giggled as he placed kisses all over my face, his hands moving to my lower regions. I gasped as his fingers ghosted over where I was soaking, slowly entering his fingers and moving them at a slow pace. I squirmed under him, moaning when his thumb came to roll my clit. His torturous pace was killing me, I wanted him to move faster, but was getting nowhere despite my pleas.

“Baby come on, more.” I begged, pouting as his head lifted to look in my eyes. 

“I’m gonna take my time my love,” he whispered, lips brushing over mine as he spoke.

“No J, I want to cum please.” I whined, his other hand laying a smack to my ass. I hissed since it was still sore from last night.

=====================================

“I love your ass so much Mrs.Daviss,” JD groaned, slapping my cheeks again. 

“I love your dick so much Mr.Daviss,” I whined as he thrusted into me from behind faster.

=====================================

JD’s head descended, taking a large lick up to playfully bite at my clit. My hands immediately went to his hair, trying to shove his head down where I wanted him. He fought against me and took his time tracing every detail and muscle of my lady parts, curling his fingers to find that spot that would send me sky high. 

“JD, baby please.” I groaned, shuffling my hips down the bed.

“What was that?” he asked, titling his head like he didn’t hear me.

“Mr.Daviss, please your Mrs wants to cum.” I whimpered, tugging on his hair.

“I’m taking my time Mrs.Daviss, I didn’t get to last night.” he quipped, going back to his new favorite meal as he slurped at me slowly.

“I didn’t tease you! Please J!” I pleaded, my chest heaving as tingles shot up my spine.

“You’re so beautiful when you beg Mrs.Daviss.” he moaned into me, a gasp flying from my lips as my hips bucked into his face.

“Right there baby,” I panted, his movements increasing just how I wanted them. 

My eyes closed as my head fell back to the bed, complete and total pleasure taking over all my senses. JD pounded his fingers into that special spot, my legs beginning to shake as I felt my high just in reach. He suckled my clit gently into his mouth, flicking it with his tongue. I honestly felt bad for our neighbors in the hotel from how much I screamed last night, and right now. I couldn’t help it, he made me feel so good, better than I had ever felt in my entire life. 

“So wet, and all for me?” he teased, sliding an arm over my hips to hold me in place.

“Mhmm, fuck.” I whispered, watching his back muscles move and flex as he ate me. 

I screeched as I came, his name flying from my lips like it was the only words I knew. He took his fingers out, stuffing them between my lips. I moaned around the digits, swirling my tongue to taste myself. I wasn’t expecting for him to thrust his cock into me so quickly, my eyes widening from the sensitivity that shot through my veins. My back arched into his chest, eyes rolling into the back of my head. JD removed his fingers, leaning down to kiss me hard.

“JD, too much.” I grunted, a strangled groan leaving my lips as he began to thrust at a steady pace.

“You’re gonna take what your husband gives you babygirl.” he growled, pushing his hips faster.

“I-I can’t,” I whimpered, my brain not being able to form proper thoughts from the intensity.

“I know you can my love, you came so much last night. Won’t you let me have another?” he whispered in my ear, biting gently on the lobe.

“Oh my god,” I moaned, the tip of his cock hit that spot, the spot that could send me over the edge in seconds.

“Give it to me.” he demanded, shifting so he could hold my hips to the bed and fuck harder into me. 

My legs immediately wrapped around his waist, toes curling, and fingernails scratching down his back. JD’s fingers dug into the already existing bruises on my hips, pleasing me more because I will have the reminder of today and last night for a while on my skin. 

“I love you Jonathan,” I whispered against his lips, panting as my orgasm was coming at full force.

“I love you so much Y/n, more than you’ll ever know.” he confessed, crushing his lips to mine as we both came hard.

His seed spilled into me, mixing with my cum as it dripped down the both of us. JD pushed his hips all the way to the hilt, burying his cum deep inside of me. My tongue played with his, our makeout continuing even after he gently pulled out of me. We rolled around on the bed, mildly groping the other while we made out. 

“Ready for more fun Mrs.Daviss?” he inquired, hands fondling my ass cheeks.

“You know it Mr.Daviss.” I giggled, squealing as he flipped us over again.

=====================================

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