#She got away from that and ran away to Gotham to hide out

[masquenoire]

Decompressed a bit today between chores and looking after the family! Kind of ooc but I couldn’t resist doing that aesthetic builder for my maybe one day OC if I ever get around to roleplaying on the regular again. Also please note, there is some body horror regarding teeth so please be aware of that before clicking ~

[bet-on-me-13]

Ellie wasn't born a Halfa

So! Jason just found something weird. Or rather. Someone.

A little girl, no more than 6 or 7, crying behind a dumpster in an alleyway. Now, as unfortunate as it is, this isn't that strange a sight in Gotham. Kids are always running away from home, getting lost, being left homeless after a mugging gone wrong, but this time was different.

Because the kid was glowing.

When he found her hiding behind the Dumpster, a medical gown being the only thing she had to protect herself from thr frigid Gotham Winter, he didn't hesitate to give her his Jacket and take her to his nearest safe house.

(Actually it took a little while to convince her to accept the Jacket, and even longer to get her to agree to being taken to his safe house, but they got there in the end.)

When he had finally gotten her set up in a side room of the Warehouse, with the most comfortable bed and thickest Blankets he could find, he tried asking what had happened.

"Daddy lied." She said. "He said he loved me, but then he made another kid and said he didn't care about me."

And, once again, it was unfortunately not that uncommon to see runaway kids from neglectful homes, but the way she said it raised some flags in his head.

"...and, how did you end up in Gotham?"

"I ran. He said I was a spare, and that scared me."

Well, that was even more horrible than he had anticipated. What kind of monster tells their kid that they're a spare?!

"And, I'm sorry if this is a touchy subject but why are you glowing?"

She just buried her face in the Blankets and shook her head.

"Alright then, that's fine. You can tell me when you're ready, or even not tell me at all, I'll accept either or".

For the next few weeks, Jason juggled running his newly created criminal empire and raking care of the kid. He still hadn't gotten a name out of her, but she said to call her "Dp" instead. 'It's the best I'm gonna get', he thought.

It was only after a few more weeks, right before he was about to begin his Plan of confronting Bruce about the Joker still being alive, that she approached him and agreed to tell him everything. He was actually really glad that she finally seemed to trust him enough to tell him.

"Okay Dp, you can start wherever you want."

"...well, I guess I should start with my name..." She started, "...or rather, my lack of one..."

"What?" Asked Jason in a soft voice.

"I, I don't have a name." She explained, "Daddy never gave me one. He just called me DP-2."

"...what do you mean by two?" Asked Jason.

"It-It's my Experiment Number." She said, stuttering a little, "I'm not a normal person, I'm a Clone. I was made to be daddy's perfect child, but I was just the test run. He said that I wasn't needed after he made DP-3, and that all I was good for was spare parts."

Jason felt his throat dry up. Dp was a Clone? Of who? Who made her? What right did that guy have to reject her?! Who in their right mind would make a Clone and then reject the Clone?! How dare he!

The Pits perked up

He felt the Pits rising a little, but managed to push them down. Dp needed support, not the Pits.

"It's Okay kid." He said, holding her had reassuringly. "It's perfectly okay to be different. I accept you as you are, and I'm sure as hell not gonna abandon you that easily. Or, ever really. You're stuck with me, whether you like it or not."

She giggled, and hugged him. A thoughtful look crossed her face, and she pulled away.

"There is one other thing...you know how I glow sometimes?" She asked.

The Pits felt a sense of dread

Jason felt like he wasn't going to like this. "Yeah?"

"Well, when I said I was meant to be a Clone, I never mentioned who of." She explained slowly. "He's a kid named Danny, and when he was 14, he had an accident where he died and came back as a Half Undead."

No...

Jason really wasn't liking where this was going.

"When Da-Vlad tried to make me, he realized that those powers couldn't be cloned..." She paused here, seemingly gathering the courage to continue. "...they needed to be added afterwards."

NO.

He didn't. He had better not have, for his own Fucking Sake, he had better not have done what Jason thinks he did.

"So one day, he took he down to the Lab, and he put me in a big machine." He voice broke a little. "He locked me in there, and then I think...that I died..."

...

For once, Jason felt completely in tune with the Pits. He was going to Kill that guy.

...

Sorry if this feels a little rushed, I kept going back to add or change parts of it.

Basically, Vlad realized that you can't Clone a Halfa. So, he made a workaround. He just stuck his first Viable Clone into a Portal, and let the machine Kill her. When he realized that it worked, he knew he had no use for Ellie anymore aside from spare parts.

And he told her as much, Vlad is a fucking asshole.

Ellie, of course, got scared and ran away. She ended up in Gotham, and was adopted by Jason right at the start of his Criminal Career.

When Jason finally hears about the rest of his kids' Backstory, he decides that Batman can wait his turn. He needs to go Kill that Vlad Bastard.

[demonic0angel]

(Prompt: Clockwork gave Danny, Jazz and Jason a mission: Capture the Four Perils and bring them back to Ghost Zone)

"Hundun, Qiongqi, Taowu, and Taotie," Jazz said as she, Danny and Jason were looking at the cave. "the Four Perils. These creatures were said to be the ghosts of the four ancient criminals namely Huandou, Gun, Gonggong, and Sanmiao. You may knows Sanmiao is identified with Chiyou, a bull warrior that rebels against the Jade Emperor."

"There was a guy named Gun?" Danny asked.

"Yes, but his name is just means big fish in Chinese..." Jazz explained.

"So what're these creatures actually looked like?" Jason asked.

"Hundun is a yellow winged creature of chaos with six legs and no face, Qiongqi is monstrous tiger with wings that eats people, Taowu a reckless and stubborn tiger-like creature with boar teeth and human-like face, and Taotie is gluttonous... sheep and boar hybrid?" Jazz replied. "That's all the informations Clockwork gave to me."

"Ok, so now we've to those catch these guys, right?"

(An odd choice of capture targets but aight lmao)

“Yep,” Danny said. “Easy peezy.”

“You’re going to jinx us,” Jazz scolded, and Danny obliged her worries by knocking on the cave wall in place of wood.

But it was too late.

They hadn’t even needed to look for the Qiongqi. The moment the three of them had stepped out of the cave with intentions to go into the city to continue their search, the tiger-like monster immediately swooped in and tried to eat their faces off.

“Oh! I forgot that it bites off the noses of noble and righteous people!” Jazz recalled, and Jason immediately grabbed her and pulled her down as the beast lunged at them.

“Thanks for the info, Princess, but we’re in the middle of something?! Stop getting distracted and catch the damn thing!”

So while Jazz and Jason were fighting off the Qiongqi, Danny ran off to capture the Taowu, which was trying in vain to fight the cars in the middle of a street, blocking an intersection with its body as people screamed and ran away from it. Seeming to think that the screams were cheers, the Taowu preened and was even more enthusiastic in trying to kill the cars as Danny dodged its chaotic moves to try and catch it.

The Taotie was slightly more difficult to find after the three of them struggled to capture the first two. It had been found inside of a restaurant, hiding within the freezer and eating everything in sight, even the metal walls. It took a few days before anyone found it and reported it.

Finally, the three of them only needed to find the Hundun. It took a long, long time, almost a week before they found the faceless creature helping the Joker in a new plan to torment everyone in Gotham. It was quickly solved with some ghostly technology, but by the end, Jason’s eye was twitching and Danny looked like he was about to wring the necks of anyone who was about to approach him.

Clockwork watched them with a small smile on his face as they all trudged up the steps to his lair.

“You found them?” He asked, his form shifting.

“If you weren’t Jazz and Danny’s grandpa, I’d tell you to fuck yourself,” Jason hissed as he tossed the special container that held all Four Perils to Clockwork. Clockwork caught it and chuckled.

“But you got to spend time with Jazz, right? It’s not all bad.”

Danny growled, crossing his arms, “It was bad for me. You’re on thin ice, old man.”

“Maybe next time, I’ll send you on a mission with—”

“SHUT!!”

[cutebat]

The Little Batgirl (Yandere Platonic Batfam x Child Reader)

Chapter 3 - A Piece of Candy

Warning: Yandere Themes, Manipulation, Overprotective Parent Behavior, Mentions of reader's backstory, Damian is still mean

(Anything that reader says in a bolded text means she’s in “thought of mind.”)

"Now, remember. If you see any suspicious behavior, don't hesitate to alert anyone. That includes me, Robin, Red Robin, or Spolier. Then, you can arrive at the warehouse quickly."

Y/N swinging across each building as she was supposed to listen to Bruce's long lectures about her position on tonight's mission.

However, at the same time, she was excited to start her first mission.

He tells her through his intercom as the young batgirl just rolls her eyes playfully as she lets out a pout.

"I know. I know. Don't worry, I have similar experiences. I got this!"

She reassures him before she lands on the rooftop of a random building.

As she was scouting for any criminal behaviors, she could hear a sound from the nearby trees.

She takes a peek before she sees a cat on the tree branch as an old lady, who seems to be its owner, trying to get it down.

"Batgirl. What is your status right now?"

She was too distracted that it made her leap off the rooftop and land onto the ground before she quickly ran into the park.

Then, she spots the cat on the tree before she launches herself up and grabbed onto the branch of the tree that made her push forward and swing on it.

She got on the branch and adjusted her position in case if she fell.

"Batgirl, I asked what your current status is. Why aren't you at the location?"

Bruce's voice could be heard again except a bit more louder and a bit harsh, but Y/N chose to ignore it as she slowly pulled up her hand towards the cat who hissed at her.

"It's okay... Everything's going to be okay... Just come to me, kitty..."

She whispers at it before she sees the feline slowly move towards her and leaps onto her shoulder.

Y/N lets out a sigh of relief and then jumps off the tree and lands in front of the old lady.

"Is... this yours?"

She asks as she shows the cat in her arms.

"Oh, yes! Biscuit!"

The old woman said in a relived tone as she took her cat back.

"Thank you so much, young lady. You know what, I think you deserve something."

She tells the young batgirl before she pulls out something from her pocket.

It was a small candy and the sight of it made Y/N's eyes widened a bit.

For strange reasons, she quickly takes the candy and took off running away from the old woman.

The old woman and her cat, Biscuit, looked so confused as they watched the young girl run off.

However, they just shrugged it off and continued their walk through the park.

As they were walking off, Y/N could only watch them walk deeper into the park as her eyes are filled with sorrow.

"L/N!"

The voice of Damian calls out that it made Y/N jolt and quickly hides the candy into her skirt pocket.

She sees him walking towards her with an irritated look.

"Do you know how much time you took to just do whatever you just did? Father and the others are still waiting for you as you're the only one whose not there!"

He scolds her as she just looks up at him before he lets out a heavy sigh.

"Forget it. Just... hurry it up!"

He commands her before he used his grappling hook and launches off.

"Geez... He's still rude as ever."

She thinks before she takes out the piece of candy that is wrapped in a delicate pink wrapper.

Then, she quickly put it back into her skirt pocket and used her grappling hook to launch into the location right after Damian.

~~~~~

The mission was thankfully a success despite Y/N's tardiness.

The team watched as the local Gotham police took the criminals away in their police cars while thinking them for their work.

As they were doing so, the young batgirl turned to see Bruce, in his Batman persona, in front of her with a stern look and his arms crossed.

"What was your reason for being late?"

He asks as he watches his new sidekick just squirming around.

"There was a cat. Stuck on the tree. I decided to quickly help the old lady with her cat."

She explains to him as her hands are on her yellow utility belt.

"It took you nearly eighteen minutes to get here when I told you to come here around twenty two minutes ago."

Bruce sharply tells her that made her jolt a bit.

The tone on his tongue made the other teammates look over.

"What do you think is going on?"

Stephanie, aka. Spoiler, whispers to Tim as he shrugs.

"She's just getting scolded by father. We all get that."

Damian tells him with his eyes narrowed down and his arms crossed.

Back to the dark knight and the little batgirl herself, he just continues to glare down at her before he lets out a heavy sigh.

"You know what, I was wrong. You promised me that you could not follow any simple rules and follow them according to time. Maybe I should provoke you from being in your new role as batgirl."

This made the young girl's eyes widen and the others turned their attentions to their mentor.

"Bruce... You don't mean that, do you?"

Tim asks as Damian was in disbelief of what he just heard.

"Yeah. That's a bit too far, don't you think?"

Stephaine chimes in.

Bruce continued to have a harsh look before he realized what he said when he saw small raindrops fall onto the concrete ground.

He stares into Y/N's eyes, which has tears in them as her lips are quivering.

The young girl refuses to listen to whatever he has to say as she wipes her tears away before she uses her grappling hook and launches herself off the spot.

Bruce and the others just stare at her go off into the night sky.

~~~~~

After that mission, Y/N was at the same park, sitting on the bench as she softly crying as her head was buried into the space of her crossed arms with her white bat-eared helemt was next to her.

Those words that Bruce said kept replaying in her head as she remembers how one of her old mentors would tell her after she failed a 'simple' training.

Then for some reason, she remembers something that she got from earlier, and she takes it out of her pocket.

It was the candy that the old lady gave her.

She was just staring down at the same wrapped up candy while sitting on the bench.

She was so focused on lightly stroking the candy wrapper that she didn't hear a pair of heavy footsteps walking towards her and sits down next to her.

"Is that a piece of candy?"

A deep but gentle tone that made Y/N look up to see Bruce with his mask off as he stares down at her with sorrow eyes.

Something in his eyes doesn't seem... right.

Y/N just looks away as she slowly nods.

"Yeah... I guess."

She responds with a shrug as she continues to stroke the wrapped up candy.

Bruce just continues to sit there as Y/N kept stroking the candy.

"Why don't you have your mask on? What if people see you?"

She asks as she finally looks up to see his face.

He just chuckles as he looks up at the sky.

"There's nobody at the park right now. I made sure of it."

She just nods slowly in response before she focuses her gaze back onto the candy.

Then, she feels herself getting close to Bruce as he pulls her into an embrace that seems so... comforting.

"You know I don't mean what I say, right? You also know that I would never have taken away your role this quickly."

He asks as he strokes her head.

Y/N just stayed in her spot, not knowing how to react.

This was the first time someone ever treated her like this after she did something wrong, or at least she thinks she did something wrong.

That's when Bruce speaks up once again except with a different tone.

"Do you forgive me?"

He asks finally as his grip around her grows a bit tighter.

For weird reason, she felt scared.

A bit too scared.

Even though she was being held in someone's arms that is supposed to be comforting and warm, she still feels the hint of fear inside her.

When Bruce felt this, he slowly moved away from her.

"I see. So, you don't forgive me."

He said as he looked away while his tone was laced with a mixture of sorrow and regret that made Y/N instantly look up at him.

"N-No, that's not what I-"

"It's okay, Y/N. I understand. After I saw my parents pass in front of me, I don't deserve it..."

This made the young batgirl's heart heavy as she looks up at him with sorrow eyes.

Before Bruce could stand up from the bench, he felt a pair of small arms wrapped around him.

He would've shown off his proud smirk, but he hid it when he looked down to see Y/N hugging him around his waist.

"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to make you upset."

She said as she shoved her head into his back, which made him smile softly despite his prideful feelings.

He just kneels down to her level and wrapped his arms around his little daughter.

"Don't worry about it. I should be the one apologizing to you. After all, I was the one who threatened you."

He said in a soft tone as he strokes her back.

As the two were sharing a hug, Y/N's expression slowly changed as her face showed a look of discomfort and suspicion.

"What are his motives exactly...?"

[whydoyoucare866]

Moonlight

PAIRINGS:

Titans!Jason todd x reader

SUMMARY:

Bruce has taken in Jason Todd as his youngest son and the new robin some months ago, Bruce’s goddaughter also came back to Gotham after being away for a year.

Some months after meeting Jason she starts a friends with benefits relationship with him, suddenly Jason has to move to the Titans tower and two weeks later Bruce sends her too, but, why is Jason ignoring her and acting like he doesn’t know her and why does it get worse when Rose Wilson arrives to the tower??

A/N: in this story Dick and Jason will not have such a big age gap as they do in the show, Dick will be 23 while Jason will be 19, but for the sake of the plot it will, also ignore that there’s already a dc character called moonlight, also the powers I made up for her make no sense at all but we’ll have to deal with it.

TWS: slow burn, angst, blood, canon violence, mentions of death, anxiety, jealousy, friends to friends with benefits to enemies to lovers?, maybe death of a main character (haven’t decided yet) change of plot

Keep in mind that English is not my first language, I also know nothing about guns, human anatomy or fighting in the language so I'm sorry if I make a lot of mistakes

Story Masterlist / Main Masterlist

Superman by Eminem was playing as the car Bruce sent to get you from the airport approached the gothic styled manor you hadn't seen in a year or so, the way everything looked the same brought you a sense of comfort, you knew Dick wasn’t Robin anymore, you were really close to Dick and he had told you all about how Bruce was a bad father and how he didn’t want to become him, you understood him, although you couldn’t help but feel bad for Bruce, you knew he was trying his best and he may not have been the best father, but he was a great godfather, it probably was because he wasn’t 100% responsible of you, he didn’t have to teach you about emotions, life, problems, or shit like that, he just had to spoil you and talk to you, so it was probably easier for him.

As you grew closer to the manor you noticed that Bruce and Alfred were already waiting for you by the door with some guy, he looked a little bit younger than you, but not too much, you couldn’t see him very well from the distance, but he seemed to be in casual clothes so you assumed he lived here, he was probably another stray that Bruce took in after Dick left so you paid it no mind. Eventually you arrived to the mansion and you could cry, it had been a year since you had last seen Bruce and Alfred, it had been a year since your dad had died, he was the only parent you ever knew, your mom wasn’t a deadbeat who abandoned you or anything like that, but she wasn’t “normal” she had special abilities (which you also have) that you didn’t know were special until you showed them to a boy in kindergarten and made him cry out of fear, at that moment you didn’t get why the boy had cried when you just tried to show him how your hands could glow, you then got a long talk from your mom about how most people don’t have the same abilities as you, therefore you have to keep them a secret, otherwise people would be scared or even worse it would put you at risk because there were bad people who wanted those abilities for themselves. You learned to take the talk seriously when your mom got killed by some scientist who wanted to have her powers and it was all thanks to not hiding them too well, leaving your dad and yourself on your own.

The sound of the car’s door opening pulled you out of your thoughts, and you immediately started getting off the car, you started walking towards the entrance of the Manor and all of the memories came flooding back making you emotional, you approached Bruce and just crashed into him with a hug, he became stiff, but he tried to comfort you as you cried in his arms, you hadn’t seen him ever since your dad had died, you had ran away from your problems and went to Europe for a year thinking it would help, but it didn’t, you were completely alone at Europe, at least here in Gotham you had Bruce and Dick and Alfred, you weren’t completely alone, but over there you were, and it just made you realize how much you missed and appreciated them.

When you calmed down, you moved on to Alfred who looked just as neat as always and also hugged him tight, after all Alfred reminded you of a loving grandfather and always gave you comfort, Alfred pulled away and excused himself to bake your favorite desserts, just like he always did whenever you were sad, it all felt so familiar that you felt comfort for the first time in a year. After hugging Bruce and Alfred and breaking down you realized there was still a boy who probably didn’t know who you were and had to witness you being a mess as his first impression of you, poor boy probably would be really uncomfortable after seeing a stranger come into his house and break down while he just stood there, the thought of it made you feel embarrassed making the atmosphere really awkward as you just stood staring at each other not knowing what to do, or say, Bruce took on the tense atmosphere and started introducing you to each other in hopes that the tension would fade away. You learned that his name was Jason Todd and he had just gotten taken in a year ago, some months after you left for Europe, Bruce also told you about how he found him and how he was now the new Robin, Jason have you a short nod as his way of saying hi and then Bruce started telling him about you, he told Jason about your abilities and how you were the vigilante known as moonlight which made Jason look excited, Bruce seeing Jason’s reaction told you how he was a fan of Robin and Moonlight and it sparked a bit of pride inside of you, but then made you feel embarrassed as you realized you had probably disappointed the boy by showing him how weak you actually were.

After the introductions finished, Alfred came out telling you all to get inside and to let you go to your room and accommodate, which you thanked him, You loved Bruce and Jason seemed nice, but you were exhausted after flying and you just wanted to get some rest, Alfred guided you to your room as if you hadn’t bern there a thousand times and insisted on carrying your luggage for you even though you said you could handle it.

“Here we are Miss (Y/N), you already know where Master Bruce’s and my rooms are in case you need anything, and if you ever need Master Jason his room is the one that’s right in front of yours in Master Dick’s old room .”

You thanked Alfred who excused himself and went to the kitchen and you decided you were too tired to unpack and that you would do it tomorrow, so you took the book you were reading and your headphones out of your bag and laid down to read a bit, you were really tired and after some pages your eyes started to get really heavy and you felt yourself drifting off to sleep.

taglist:

@fairyeoll @singitoutgirl26

[yall-batman-fanfic]

Along Came Jason | Jason Todd & Magician!Reader

Synopsis: Jason is Vivian’s boy. When they first met, Vivian instantly felt a connection to him, and when he died that connection was lost and broke her. But when the Red Hood returns, Vivian comes before the son she has lost and doesn’t know how to face the new him. He is waging war with Batman and Gotham criminals in his own way. A way far better and more effective than Batman’s.

When Jason came into their lives, it brought Vivian to a rollercoaster of emotions, and with reason. It was one thing to tell her about the BatMobile getting its tires stolen in Crime Alley; it’s another to come home with a kid who he picked up in the streets, who happens to have stolen the tires and put them back. And it’s a concerning story to find said kid tied up on the chair in the Batcave.

That was the surprise when Vivian came down with Bruce, who was trying to gradually give her the news, but when they came to the Batcave, all was thrown out of the window as Vivian saw the boy, frightened and struggling, and she told Bruce: “What the actual fuck?!” 

Bruce sighed. “I can explain.”

“No, no, no! There is nothing to explain!” Vivian ran to the boy and untied him. “You can’t just go out there and kidnap a boy to what? – what exactly are you planning on – no! Dick just left, and you think picking up a kid from the streets, like you just went out to buy cigarettes from the convenience store, is okay?!”

“He tried to steal the wheels from my car,” Batman said.

“I don’t care if he stole your freaking car – you can’t just pick up someone’s kid!” Vivian sighed.

“Correction, I actually stole it – didn’t try because the wheels were in my house before he caught me, so,” the kid spoke. He turned to Vivian. “I’m Jason, by the way, Jason Todd… I know you!”

Vivian raised a brow at him. “You do?”

“Yeah!” Jason then took out a torn piece of paper from his pocket. “You’re the lady from the book! That was a good read, by the way, really helpful in finding ways to go around Gotham. Who knew about those catacombs would be helpful.”

Vivian took the photo from his hand, very much confused. “Thanks and Flattered, and not really the whole purpose of the book – but very flattered that you used it as a map – I’m sorry, hi Jason,” she shook his hand. “I’m Vivian. Why do you have this in your pocket?”

Jason shrugged. “Nothing.”

Batman chuckled, catching the two’s attention, and surprising Jason. “I think you have a secret admirer, Viv.”

Jason blushed deeply and turned away. “No, I don’t.”

“Aren’t you cute,” Vivian giggled and handed him the photo back. 

“Looks like I got some competition, huh?” Batman said.

Jason’s attention snapped towards him and then to Vivian, and then back to him. “Are you two sleeping together?” He questioned them, startling the two adults.

Vivian waisted her ring finger where the diamond engagement ring was below the wedding ring band. “Married. Unfortunately,” she joked, which earned a disapproved hum from Batman. “So, yeah, we are sleeping together.”

“Viv.”

“Anyway,” Vivian sat on the ground before him. “Where are your parents, Jason?”

Jason frowned. “Dad died a while back. He owed some money from the Falcones, didn’t pay on time,” he shrugged.

“Oh god, I’m so sorry,” Vivian held his hands. “And your mom?”

“Never met her.”

“Oh.”

“But Dad said she got red hair… just like you.”

Oh. So, that’s what the photo was for. It pained Vivian to learn about this and she wasn’t sure what to say, she turned to Bruce and saw him looking at Jason, also unable to say anything with what they learned.

“How about… how about a guardian?” Vivian asked.

“He’s alone, Vivian,” Batman said. “He’s been hiding from social services. I won’t blame him. Gotham’s social services are not really. They’re not optimal.”

“Okay,” Vivian let out a breath. “Why don’t we head upstairs and Alfred can whip up some food, while he does that why don’t you get cleaned up? I’m sure we still got some of Dick’s old clothes – that would do for now.”

“Okay,” Jason said.

“Okay – do I smell,” she made Jason breathe out. “Are you smoking?”

Guiltily, Jason pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket which made Vivian sigh, again. Taking the pack, she told him to never touch these again and hid it in her pocket. She’s got to hand it to the kid though, he picks a good brand. 

After introducing the boy to Alfred and requesting dinner, Vivian brought Jason to one of the rooms that had a bathroom, and waited for him there. When he got out, wearing Dick’s old clothes – a red hoodie and sweatpants, and a pair of fluffy slippers (Jason didn’t appreciate the fluffy slippers), she accompanied him to the kitchen to eat. 

Leaving the boy with Alfred, Vivian went to the study where Bruce waited for her. He’s changed out of his Batman suit and to more casual, well as casual as he could be (the man was raised by a butler afterall, seems, tshirt and jeans wasn’t considered gentlemanly). 

“How is he?” Bruce asked.

“He’s eating now,” Vivian took the bottle of scotch from the table, which Bruce keeps just for her, and poured her a glass. “So, wanna give me the whole story?”

So, he did. Bruce told her how he found the Batmobile’s tires missing, and the boy climbing up the fire escape with them. He followed him to his apartment where he’s been living alone, hiding from social services, and even smoking. He hasn’t done a full research on Jason Todd, but Bruce already knew the kid’s profile based on what he saw there, and he knew if he left Jason, the boy who showed so much potential would just end up as a criminal running in Gotham. He couldn’t let that happen. So, he took him to the  cave, and when he saw the boy about to run away by trying to steal the Batmobile, Batman tied him up to the chair with his wires as he went to get Vivian.

“What now?” Vivian asked.

“I think it’s obvious.”

“Bruce.”

“Better he uses his skills as Robin, give him an outlet for it, than be whatever Crime Alley would make him to be. You know that’s where it starts.”

“And what about Dick? How are you going to break the news to him?” When Bruce remained silent, Vivian said, “He deserves to know, Bruce. He was your partner, he was Robin. If you don’t tell him soon he’ll just… whatever this is between you two won’t get any better.”

“I know. But Dick has a lot on his plate now, and with how he’s avoiding me. He won’t just pick up the phone.”

“Then use mine.”

“I don’t want him to be suspicious whenever you call him. I’ll tell him myself. I promise, Viv.”

Vivian drank the scotch in one gulp before saying, “I guess I should start clearing out the other room for him. And maybe call the lawyers for the paperwork and for Gotham Academy. And just because he’s Robin doesn’t mean he doesn’t get to live normally, got it?”

Bruce walked around the desk and brought Vivian to his arms and kissed her. “Your house, your rules, Mrs. Wayne,” he smirked.

“So, I guess we get to start over with another one, huh, Mr. Pryor,” she snickered. “I’m surprised he read one of my books, but a little concerned that he found the maps more interesting than the actual thesis,” Vivian went to the shelf and picked out the book that had that information. It was her third book, a thesis on Gotham’s myth on the Court of Owls. She was drawn to it when Bruce told her about the stories his father and mother would tell him about the secret organization built by Gotham’s rich and powerful. Her research brought her to an even darker side of Gotham, interviews with some families, and a run in with Killer Croc Luckily, Batman and Batgirl were there to save her, and she got a long lecture from Bruce. In her defense, she knew Croc was in Arkham but maybe he got out that day. 

“More reason why he’s special,” Bruce went to her side. “No kid would read a thesis.”

“We should get back to him, tell him the news,” Vivian hid the book on the shelf.

~*~

After telling the boy of the agreement they made, Jason played it off with a shrug and said, “okay, cool,” but inside the boy was over the moon to be out of that shithole of a house and be living in this big place. Best of all, he gets to meet the woman whose picture he ripped off the book cover and just believed was his mother for the longest time. It was easier to have something to believe in than have nothing at all. 

The first night he spent in Wayne Manor, Jason couldn’t sleep. He tossed and turned all night until morning. The next few nights were the same, he would mess up his bed, do exercises, read books that he gathered from Bruce’s collection and brought to his room, until he couldn’t take it anymore and decided to explore the place. The manor was big with lots of halls, twists and turns, and paintings that brought a chill down his spine, but when he came to the sitting room he saw more photos than paintings. 

Sure there was the painting of Thomas, Martha, and a young Bruce Wayne, and another which was of Bruce and Vivian. Jason thought it was a portrait of them for their wedding since Vivian held a bouquet of lilies, but she wasn’t wearing a white dress but a maroon dress with a square neckline, a necklace of pearls paired with pearl earrings, her red hair tied to a loose and lowered bun which let some of the strands frame her face. And standing beside her, closely, with an arm around her waist was Bruce Wayne. While Vivian’s eyes looked at the painter who made the piece, Bruce’s was at Vivian’s.

“That was made right after the honeymoon.”

Jason jumped at the sound of her voice. 

Standing by the archway of the sitting room, Vivian held a glass of milk and some biscuits on a plate. She wore a robe over her pajamas but Jason could see the Batman symbols prints on the hem of the sweatpants, and some fluffy slippers. The fluffy slippers had Superman’s symbols. 

“Alfred booked the painter before we could even have a say, he said it was his wedding gift to us. A formal portrait of the new Masters of Wayne Manor, rather a welcome to its new Mistress,” Vivian placed the glass and plate on the table, making sure to use the coaster. “He knew we’d say no to this so he already freed our schedules for the week so we could have the sessions with the painter. When the session started for the photos – for his reference – the photographer would keep asking Bruce to look at him. Over and over, he would say, ‘Mr. Wayne, look at here please,’

“I had to pinch him just so he’d stop staring and we’d get this over with. When he got the shots, he thanked us for the session and left. A couple of months later, he came back and revealed the portrait. And he told us that of all the photos he took for his reference, it was the shots of Bruce looking at me that spoke to him. He told us he wanted to make a portrait that wasn’t just showing the masters of the House of Wayne, but one that defines this generation of leaders, and you know what he said?”

“What?” Jason stood beside her, curious to hear.

“If he was asked by someone to explain love in a thousand ways, he’d show them that,” Vivian nodded at the direction of the portrait. “And it was bloody hard to get how Bruce’s gaze looked at me, he said. After that, Bruce gave him a check, as an appreciation for the work, and he gave us copies of the photos he took for his reference. Bruce has one in his office, and another at the cave. I also have one with me at my place of work.” 

“You look beautiful there,” said Jason, then he turned to her and corrected himself. “You are beautiful… I found your book in a restaurant. Someone was reading it. When they got up to use the restroom, I snatched it.”

Vivian raised a brow. “Just the book?”

Jason had a lopsided grin. “And the sandwich – and it was a good sandwich too.”

“Good to know,” she led him to the seat and offered him the snacks. 

“Alright, I also snatched their wallet, but only the cash!”

Vivian sighed loudly.

“But I did read the book, and when I saw your photo at the back… I don’t know. My dad’s just some loser who got drunk, took drugs, and gambled, but when he talks about my mom, all he’d say was she had red hair. Not a lot to start with. And you have red hair in your photo and in real life, and I just… I just wanted to believe that she wasn’t like my loser dad. Maybe she’s someone who is smart, who likes to read, and drinks coffee in those fancy coffee shops.”

“I’m flattered that you made this ideal version of your mom based on my author’s biography page. I just hope that I don’t disappoint you, Jason,” Vivian sighed. “One of the things what worries me is that you’d realize that I’m not the ideal version you made in your mind and decide that this isn’t working. I don’t want to let you down, kid.”

Jason drank his milk and said, “Believe me, Professor, I’ve been let down a lot – like, my whole life – and for the past few days I’ve been here, you haven’t. Not once. This Vivian is way better than the one I thought of.”

“Wow, either you got really low expectations or I’m just that great of a person,” Vivian jokes.

Jason laughed and said, “You’re a good person.”

“I saw you take some books from the library, specifically from the classics. And I can’t seem to find the copy of Emma anywhere,” Vivian rested her chin in her palm as she tried to stay awake for Jason.

“I borrowed some of them.”

“You like to read?”

Jason shrugged. “There’s nothing you can do outside – no matter what they say that there’s a million possibilities to do out there. I just hang out in the public library. Do you need it? The book? Bruce said I can borrow some if I wanted to.”

“Go ahead, I already finished that. Just rereading it. I’m glad to see someone who enjoys Austen.”

“Are you?”

“You can say that, but I’m more into the brooding type,” she winked at him. “Dostoyevski seems to fit the aesthetic, don’t you think?”

Jason laughed. “I get it. I haven’t read his works though.”

“But personally, I am a sucker for thriller-mysteries that have a bit of conspiracies and a killer chasing the main character.”

Jason gave her a knowing look, “Like Dan Brown books?”

“Exactly. You read that in my bio, didn't you?”

“What are you talking about? I'm a detective, I realized it when I saw you reading that really worn out Dan Brown book during breakfast, and there's a signed copy in the study too, then the puzzles displayed in your office are exactly like those from the movies.”

Vivian laughed lightly. “I guess you are a detective… Hey, promise me when you start being Robin you don't stop being this kid. Before you're Robin, you're Jason. Okay?”

“Yeah, I wouldn't want to be like a brooding old man, running around wearing a bat costume.”

“Exactly,” Vivian messed with his hair. When they heard the clock open up, Vivian and Jason shared a grin, and she placed a finger on her lips. That would be their little secret.

When Batman came to the sitting room, he saw both Vivian and Jason sitting with biscuits and a glass of milk. “I thought I heard someone here,” said Bruce as he removed the cowl.

Vivian held out her hand to him which Bruce took and leaned down to kiss her. “You came back early.”

“Gotham's quiet tonight.”

“Good. Jason couldn’t sleep, so we're just hanging out here.”

“Yes, sugar would help the kid sleep,” Batman pointed at the biscuits.

Jason snickered. “So, when can I start being Robin?”

“You train first and pass those tests, then we'll see.”

Jason huffed.

“I'd enjoy this while you can, Jay. Once you're Robin, you don't get these kinds of breaks,” Vivian commented.

“What’s cooler than Robin?!”

“A soft bed, a good book, and a stable job that offers good money.”

Jason scoffed. “Please, I've done that, I want some real action.”

Sighing, Vivian pulled the boy's hoodie down to mess with him, and while he was down and trying to get her off of him, Vivian turned to Bruce and kissed him deeply. She pulled away from him for a moment and whispered, “take care of him, okay?”

“I will,” said Batman and kissed her again.

“I can hear you both and it's disgusting!” Jason called out.

~*~

“Hey, little bird, come out!” Vivian called out in the cave. “These old geezers aren't getting any younger, you know!” 

The comment had Bruce hum in displeasure with her joke. Months after he came to Wayne Manor and was announced as the new member of the Wayne Household as Bruce and Vivian's adopted son, Jason passed all of his training and classes – hell, he even aced the Civil Service exam from Bruce which took Dick a couple of tries before doing it. His reaction when Vivian commended him for him was: “If you've been in the system, you'd know all of it.”

Now, here they are in the cave and Bruce has presented Jason with the Robin costume. He was ready. The boy was over the moon and ran to get changed, and he hasn't come out for a while now.

“Jason, if you don't come out now, I'm going on patrol without you!” Bruce called out in jest.

“Master Dick took hours, admiring himself in the mirror when he wore the costume for the first time,” Alfred commented.

Vivian laughed at the memory of seeing Dick doing poses in front of the mirror that day. “Alright, son, come on out!” Vivian went to look for him, but just as she was going to the changing station, Jason appeared, landing on the table in full costume. 

“Ha! I got you!” Jason grinned at her and then Batman.

“You would have if I didn't see you sneak behind the Bat Computer,” Bruce said.

“No, I got you. Admit it.”

“Come on, we need to get started on patrol,” Batman placed his cup of coffee on the table, and before he left, he pulled Vivian to a deep and loving kiss. They didn't stop even when they heard Jason made vomiting sounds in the background. “I'll be back, my love.”

“I know. Watch each other's backs. And Bruce, bring him home.”

“I will.”

“Come on, Ma, let go of him so we can go!” Jason groaned.

“Alright, alright!” Vivian turned to Jason and brought him to an embrace, in that embrace she drew a symbol on his back and whispered a prayer to the maiden,  mother, and crone to keep him safe. “Now, just because you’re Robin doesn't mean you get to skip school.”

“I know, I know!” Jason sighed. “I got to go, Ma!”

“Alright, little bird. Go kick ass.”

Releasing him from the hug, Jason ran to the Batmobile and jumped on the hood, and with a grin he said, “this is the best day of my life.”

~*~

The call came when she was still on campus. She has just finished a class. Maybe he waited until then, not wanting to disturb her. Maybe he should have waited until they got back from Gotham but he couldn't. Vivian should know and not get her hopes up with plans she had for Jason. 

They were so close, and Bruce knew it would hurt her more than him when he gives the news. 

What was it Alfred said about their relationship with the boys?

"Master Dick was ours, our boy. But Master Jason is her boy."

So when Bruce made the call, he was already in the car heading to Gotham University from the morgue.

"Vivian," he began.

"Hey! Are you both here? Maybe we can step out and have lunch together. The three of us. Jason and I were thinking about this place in Founder's Island -"

"Vivian," Bruce sobbed.

"Bruce? What's wrong?" 

Some of her students, still inside, wanting to stay a bit, turned to her in concern. Or maybe they can be the first ones in the gossip this time.

"Viv," he sobbed. "Jason... he's... Jason's... I wasn't fast enough, the Joker-"

"No, no, oh god no," Vivian fell on the floor, startling her students. Some ran towards her in concern. "No, god, Bruce, no... not Jason, please. Please no..."

"Professor!" One of her students tried to console her.

Bruce arrived at Gotham University and he ran to her classroom where students and teachers gathered. There he saw her on the ground inconsolable and being held by her mentor. When they saw Bruce, they stepped aside and let him hold her and mourne.

"Not my boy," Vivian cried. "No, please, not my boy. Please."

"He's gone, Vivian. I'm so sorry. Our boy is gone."

Vivian shook her head hoping it was not true. In her hands she clutched the necklace Jason gave her for mother's day. It had the photo of them both in one the pier, and then a separate one of Bruce. 

"Please, no..." Vivian cried. 

~*~

Vivian couldn't be in the Manor. Not after learning the truth about Jason, not after she saw the DNA results that Bruce ran in the computers between Jason's records and the blood sample he got from the Red Hood. When she came down the cave to see how he was, she froze at the sight of the tests being run – the photo of Jason and the stolen blood of Red Hood while in chase.

“Bruce, this is insane!” She argued but then the results came and showed that they were a match.

She didn't know how to react – glad that the boy she loved and taken in as a son was back from the dead or horrified that the boy she raised was now running around killing people in the streets. Unable to accept reality, Vivian ran out of the cave, Bruce's calls for her fell deaf ear. He did try to stop her but Vivian needed to get out of the manor that had memories of Jason in every corner, but whenever she saw the images of the boy smiling in those memories, it would be replaced by the Red Hood. She needed to get away.

She went to her condo that night and hid there for a few days. If she wasn't in her condo she would be in the faculty's office at the university. Which was where she saw him again.

"You shouldn't leave your drink there unattended.  You'll never know what creep would have slipped something in it. Especially that creep.”

He was talking about Justin, who just left earlier to head home after a late night of grading papers.

Vivian gasped as she stepped back in the room and came face to face with the Red Hood. Here she was face to face with the son she lost.

"Jason," she said in a whisper.

"I got you a new one. Black. Just how you like it." The Red Hood placed the cup on her table and threw away the one she left there. 

Vivian approached him but he took a step back. "Jason, please, " she almost cried. She reached for the necklace he gave her, the antique locket that had their photo when they went to the fair. Jason saw and reached towards her and opened the locket while the chain was still around her neck. “I never took it off.”

“It was the first Mother's Day gift I got anyone,” Jason thought out loud. “You meant everything to me. You and Bruce. You both were my first real family.”

“There was never a day I didn't think of you,” She took her son's hands. Removing the gloves she held them tight. “I miss you so much, my little bird. My boy,” she sobbed.

"Then why didn't you do anything? Both of you? If it was you, I would have killed him. I would have burned this city down just to look for him and kill him!"

"I almost did! God, I was so close, but Bruce... he..." 

"Be stopped you. Did he talk about his moral code? Did he say sweet things to you? Or did he distract you with his-"

"No! He talked to me as a husband and a mourning father." Vivian said. "I tried looking for you in the other realm. I went back. I tried reaching out but I can't find you. And since I couldn't find you, I thought of going to the man who took you from me... god, I... it.makes me sick even... I went inside his mind and I-" Vivian shook her head as the memories and the feeling of being in the Joker's mind came back. It made her sick. 

Jason saw the discomfort, and it broke his heart to know his mother killed herself for just a moment so she could look for him in the plains of the dead. He never wanted to hurt her. He never wanted her to hurt herself. He couldn't keep up the act. He removes his helmet and his domino mask. Vivian couldn't believe it, her boy, her Jason was there, and he had grown... and his eyes were filled with so much hatred and anger towards her and Bruce. Towards everyone.

Unable to contain it any longer, Vivian reached for her boy and Jason let her touch his cheek. He sighed as he felt the warmth of her magic. Just like Bruce, he enjoyed that kind of touch from her. Her way to comfort them. Jason held her hands and squeezed them.

"Was I... wasn't I enough that you can easily replace me?" He let out a cry. "Was I not..."

"You were more than enough! And Tim is not your replacement. No one can ever replace you. Do you understand? You were my boy. You are my boy. When Bruce told me what happened, I was so angry and sad. How could he take you from me? I wanted to kill him, god I almost did but I can't do it... I couldn't... and Bruce knew. Because if I hadn't stopped, I would have gone down that road and never come back."

Jason buried his face into her embrace, holding her tight. "You always had a gentle heart, Ma. And one that's stronger than Batman... and as much as I would have wanted him dead, I don't want you to do it. But him... he had every power to do it, but why?"

"Jason, please, come home. Please, just come home so we can talk about this. You don't have to do this, please. Please, come home, Jason. I miss you so much. You have no idea how much it broke me when I lost you."

"I know... but I can't. Not now... not until I finish this."

Vivian held him tight. "Can I hold you first? My little boy is all grown up."

Jason let the tears he's been holding back fall as he placed a kiss on his mother's forehead. "I love you, Ma. You know that, right?"

"I know."

Releasing her from the embrace, Jason pulled out something from his jacket. It was an antique. A ring made of gold all the way back to the Roman Empire. "You have no idea how hard it was to get that."

Vivian held the ring tight and placed a kiss on her son's cheek. “You spoil me too much, Jay. I told you not to spend your allowance with gifts for me.”

“What can I say? You gave me hope, even before you took me in,” Jason smiled sincerely. Putting back his mask and helmet, Jason took one last look at Vivian and went to the window, but before he jumped out he said to her, “I paid that creep car a visit. Don't worry, I didn't put a bomb in there. Just a little vandalism. Let's just say that a paint job is going to cost a fortune.” In the helmet, Jason grinned slyly as he remembered the large spray painting and scratches made by his knife on Kirk's car that says: I sleep with my students and a couple of cock doodles. He's still petty when needed.

~*~

"He came here. Didn't he?" Batman appeared in the faculty office hours after Red Hood appeared. Vivian was just about to pack up and leave then.

Vivian looked at him, and without hesitation, said,"yes."

"Why?" He walked up to her, towering over his wife, glaring at her. He's never been this angry at her. But Vivian held her ground and returned the glare. He saw the gold ring on the chain of her locket. A gift from Jason.

"Because he wanted to see his mother."

"Vivian."

"He's found the answers he needed from me. It's best if you both speak this time. In a way both of you understand. "

"And how is that?"

"War."

[yu-huuuu]

𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘬𝘰𝘮𝘪-𝘴𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘨𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘮— 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 1

[ 🌸 ] ...

characters: cassandra cain my girl nedds more love, okey 😭?;; some character mentions  

genre: bad comedy-

warnings: fem!reader, strong social anxiety disorder and many communication problems.

- - -

𝑺𝑼𝑴𝑴𝑨𝑹𝒀: 𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑎 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑜𝑛 𝑠𝑢𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑠𝑜𝑐𝑖𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑛𝑥𝑖𝑒𝑡𝑦 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑒𝑟, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑦 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔. 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑤ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑤𝑒 𝑚𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑑𝑜 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑡𝑎𝑙𝑘 𝑡𝑜 𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑠, 𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑦 𝑑𝑖𝑓𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑡𝑜 𝑑𝑜 𝑠𝑜.

- - -

Lmao let's say you're in the same classroom as Cass. 

You arrive at your classroom, you are new and you feel the gaze of the people who see you go by. 

Your legs shake with anxiety but you try to hide it as best you can. When you finally get to your desk is when you inwardly let out a sigh of relief.

And suddenly this unknown girl comes in, with beautiful Asian features, she just sits next to you without saying a word, which gives you incredible peace... until you feel her gaze on you. That's when you recognize her.

‘The locker girl’, you had seen her when you were leaving various things in your locker when you first arrived. She was putting some notebooks in her own locker when she looked at you, both of you had made eye contact, but you had gotten so anxious that you had just walked away as fast as your legs would carry you while still looking elegant.

You expected her to just ignore you and go about her business, you actually wanted to disappear, but you couldn't do that. Due to your good grades you had accidentally gotten your parents to decide to send you to the prestigious Gotham High which meant moving to another city, you really didn't want to go, but your parents argued that this would be a great opportunity for you to study in such a unique place. 

The quiet moment of recess was interrupted when people from your classroom crowded around your desk to buy you a meal. And It was a pity that due to your difficulty in communicating you could not say that you wanted to eat with these people. It seemed like reaching your goal of making 100 friends this year was going to be difficult.

 Seeing that you were alone, you asked yourself: “why can't I talk to people?” It was an innocent question, it really was. And you definitely didn't notice that the girl sitting next to you was standing right at the entrance of the classroom.

You almost passed out, luckily it didn't happen. So you ran to the other door that was in the corner.

 “Do you have trouble communicating with people?” It was the first thing out of her mouth, which in turn stopped you from your swift escape. 

You timidly turned to her, and tried to speak, but only incoherent and anxious sounds came out of your mouth. 

 "Y/N" spoke in a calm voice, stopping the soft sounds abruptly. She remembered your name, well, you wrote it in front of everyone when your teacher asked you to introduce yourself, even though it was actually still written… 

 It seemed that Cassandra was thinking of a way to communicate with you. 

Despite only spending a few classes together, Cassandra seemed as quiet as you, but the only difference was that she spoke when she needed to. She could communicate her desires, her thoughts… 

And then, you could barely think of what you wanted without a mental breakdown. 

 Oh- it seems that she already came up with something... Pointing with one of her delicate fingers, she spoke: "board" 

 you got the message 

 Grabbing the chalk, you began to write everything you felt. 

What came to torment you, how difficult primary school was, how difficult it was to communicate with people.

When you finished writing, Cassandra picked up the other piece of chalk. She had also started to write, but instead of writing something like what you wrote on the board, she wrote: "I would like to meet you"

The little Joy you felt in your chest was overwhelming. The first thing you wrote was that you liked cats, to which she replied that she liked ballet.

Little by little, the big board was filled with your conversation, with her likes and dislikes. You learned that Cassandra has seven siblings, that she loves her “grandpa's” cookies and loves the movies she watches with her sisters.

When you both got to the subject of the dreams that you two wanted to fulfill; Cassandra wrote that she wasn't so sure she had a definite dream, you on the other hand wrote that your dream was to have a hundred friends.

For a moment you thought she was going to make fun of it, after all it was a childish dream, such a childish wish. but she didn't, instead she wrote something that made your heart skip: "I'll help you with that."

No one.

No one told you that before, but looking into her eyes. Seeing her determination in her eyes.

You knew she was serious.

. - . - . - . - . - .

Cassandra was waiting for you by your locker when you arrived. When you finished grabbing some books that you needed, you both walked towards your classroom. 

 30 minutes were left before classes began. So you still had time.

You were going up the empty stairs when Cassandra stopped you.

“Yesterday, I was looking for ways how you could ask someone to be your friend…” Oh, so she looked for ways to help you. "You could start by saying, 'Do you want to be my friend?'. Do you want to try saying it?"

Talk. 

She was asking you to talk…-oK Ok ok calm down, calm down, you just have to say it.

Taking a soft breath, you began, “D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D—“  No, You can not.

Your body did not stop shaking, and your mind did not stop tormenting itself with many insecurities.

"uhhh- Y/N are you alright?"

Ah, it happened again. Your nerves could against you.

“Well then, I know someone who is very good at talking. Come on, we still have time." Taking the notebook and pencil, you wrote; "Okey"

. - . - . - . - . - .

Now you both were in front of Class 1-B. 

 Cass spoke as she opened the classroom door a little more, "The person I was talking about is my sister, her name is Stephanie– she has a great ability to talk to people. Although my big brother Dick is good at it too."

The few students that were inside didn't pay attention to you, they were too focused on talking among themselves. 

 The pretty long blonde hair of a girl who had her back turned was the first thing that caught your eye when you looked closely at the classroom.

.

..

...

[newbatmanfan19]

Heyyyy so this is a draft of a draft of a chapter for a fic I’m writing. I did my best to make it work as a one-shot but some context for those who want it: It’s an AU focused on Helena Bertinelli. In this fic, she is the biological child of Bruce and Selina, but was given up for adoption by Selina, Bruce does not know about this kid (in Selina’s defense, she didn’t know where he was at the time.) Helena’s adopted father is not particularly fond of her so he sent her away to Saint Mary’s School for Troubled Girls, which turned out to be doing dealings with the Joker. Joker knows who Helena is (people talk in Gotham) so he kidnapped her and told her who her bio-parents were. She was eventually rescued by Batman and Robin!Jason and returned home… only to be sent to Healing Trails Academy six months later. Soooo Helena burns the place down and takes a little girl named Christina with her… hopefully you see my vision for this.

Christina is basically an OC but technically very loosely based on the Italian reporter featured in the Huntress comics. Helena is also basically an OC in terms of personality but I try to infuse as many canon elements as possible. That being said, I am going for accuracy in my portrayal of the rest of the characters (well, fanon accuracy for some, selective canon accuracy for others) I’d love some feedback/constructive criticism or even just general suggestions if anyones interested! This is my first batfam fic and I have spent almost two years getting to know these characters to prepare to write this but there are so many characters to learn :=[

CW: mentions of child abuse (I think that’s all)

…

Meeting Catwoman

Helena hadn’t meant to go following in her biological mothers footsteps quite so closely, but when the need arose, she wasn’t sure what else to do. If it had just been her, maybe she could get by on petty thievery and her wits, but it wasn’t just her. She had Christina to provide for and try to raise, even if Helena was only three years her senior. At only thirteen, it wasn’t like she could go out and get a job. No one Helena thought was worth working for would give one to her. She wasn’t particularly fond of having to resort to crime, but at least she was working for herself and not some skeezy crime lord.

It started simple, nabbing a wallet off an unsuspecting business man or snatching whatever was sticking out of a senile old lady’s grocery bags. Helena quickly found she had inherited her mothers talent for pick-pocketing, and she couldn’t deny the thrill it gave her to do so, as much as she wanted to hate every second of it.

Then, things escalated. She started breaking into some of the nicer houses in Gotham to grab jewels and trinkets, and from there…

Well, she started stepping on Catwoman’s claws.

It was fully intentional, Helena could admit that to herself. She wanted the Cat’s attention. As long as she kept up the jewel heists, it was only a matter of time before she ran into her mother. Helena just hadn’t anticipated it happening quite so quickly. She only just got her suit together, courtesy of Christina.

The moment she got her hands on the absolutely enormous diamond sitting on a nice, velvety pillow, she felt a presence behind her.

“Now, just what do you plan on doing with that after you steal it?”

Helena froze. Even with her back turned, she knew exactly who was speaking to her. After all the scheming she did just to get her mother in the same room as her, she hadn’t quite planned on what to do when she actually got face-to-face with the woman.

She recovered, grabbing the diamond and slipping it into one of the many hiding places Christina had sewn into Helena’s suit. She was certainly crafty with a sewing machine, that one. Then, Helena turned to face her mother, for the very first time in her whole life.

Catwoman was a sight to behold, Helena decided. She practically oozed confidence and charisma, even just standing there. Hands on her hips, staring expectantly at the young girl in front of her. Helena noted that her suit was remarkably similar to Selina’s, an intentional choice by Christina, no doubt. She was glad they were in the masks, Helena knew from her mild stalking of her parents that she was the spitting image of Selina, one look at her unmasked face and the Cat would know.

“Sell it?” Helena hadn’t intended for her response to come out as a question, but to be fair she never really planned on doing anything with it. She would have probably ended up returning it eventually.

The jewels she stole from houses were a dime a dozen. Expensive, but nothing precious, easily taken by the pawn shop owners who didn’t ask questions. Even if they did, she could come up with a story. But this diamond was sitting in a museum under several layers of (really, easily cracked) security for a reason. It was recognizable, she’d need to do dealings with some shady people in order to get rid of it, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to do that.

“Oh yeah? Who to?” Catwoman’s smirk grew even wider, if that was possible.

“None of your business.”

Catwoman sighed at that. She looked Helena up and down, crossing her arms in front of her as she eyed the girl, and for a moment Helena worried she was going to try to do something like fight her for it. She didn’t.

Instead, she held out her hand, palm facing up. “Come on, hand it over. What else are you going to do with it?”

Helena scoffed, like she actually thought she would give up that easily.

“Finders keepers. I got here first.”

“What are you anyway? Robin’s new arch nemesis or something?”

“You ask a lot of questions.” Helena complained rather flatly. “I’m nobody's nothing. I’m just… a stray.”

“I can see that. Kids with parents don’t go running around committing grand larceny.” She sounded smug, so smug. What did she have to be so smug about?

I have parents. One of them is standing right in front of me.

Helena swallowed her protests and leveled a glare at the Cat instead. Catwoman narrowed her eyes at her and if Helena wondered if she was sizing her up before, she was sure of it now.

“You got someplace to go, kid?”

Helena scoffed even louder that time. How ironic. The woman who gave her up for adoption was now trying to take her in off the streets. Not that she could accept the offer, one look at Helena’s unmasked face and Selina would know exactly who she was. Bruce may be oblivious, but she had the advantage of actually knowing Helena existed in the first place. And if she knew who Helena was, well, she already got rid of her once.

“Do I look like I don’t have a place to go?”

“Maybe. You’re resourceful, I’ll give you that. Took down the security system before I even got here.” Catwoman started circling Helena, this time she was examining the suit, as opposed to the girl herself. “That suit is something, but you should really get some kevlar if you want in on the business. I know a guy.” She stopped once she was back in front of Helena. “You’re what? Twelve?”

“I’m almost fifteen!”

Okay, her birthday was 11 months away, so maybe not almost, but still.

Selina was satisfied with that answer, satisfied she got some information out of Helena.

“So is that what I’m supposed to call you? Stray?” For the first time in their conversation, Selina dropped the smirk and seemed genuine, showing some respect for the little thief.

“If you would be so kind.” Helena responded, trying to muster up some of her mothers charisma in her smile.

The sound of glass breaking echoed into the hall they were standing in, followed by the voice of Robin chastising Batman.

Uh-oh.

Helena was not prepared to be seeing both of her parents that night. Nor was she prepared to be captured by one of them.

“Aaand that’s my cue. Sorry, gotta blast. As ‘mistah J’ likes to say, the Bat spoils all the fun!” Helena adopted Harley’s thick Brooklyn accent as she mocked the nickname. “But I’ll get back to you on that armor thing. In exchange–” Helena slipped the diamond out of its pocket and tossed it to Catwoman. “Thanks!”

Really, it was more of a survival tactic than a show of good faith, Batman was far less likely to follow Helena if she didn’t keep the jewel. She grappled up to a nearby vent and made her escape, she’d be back out on the street in less than a minute, and soon after that, she’d be far, far away from the scene. If Catwoman chose to inform Batman of Helena’s presence, she’d be long gone by the time she got done explaining. Though Helena thought she probably wouldn’t, she’d be too busy flirting.

Helena was happy, meeting her mother had gone about as well as she could have hoped for. Maybe Catwoman would be willing to take Stray under her wing, show her the ropes. It was the closest thing to a mother-daughter relationship Helena thought she could hope for. Fantasies of them working together on heists filled her mind as she made her way back to the abandoned theater she lived in with Christina.

Christina had proved herself as a valuable asset in more ways than one. She found the abandoned theater and suggested they live in it back when they first escaped from Healing Trails. Helena thought it was creepy, but seeing as they didn’t have any other prospects, she agreed. Christina loved it, and that’s what mattered. Plus it had the sewing machine she ended up using for Helena’s suit, so it was a win-win. Helena thanked God for the younger girls theater background. That and her unrelenting nosiness that helped greatly in digging up information on Helena’s parents.

When Helena got back to the theater, she found Christina in the green room asleep on the mattress Helena had bought with the spoils from her last break-in. After changing out of the suit and into pajamas, she tried to slip in beside her without waking her, but Christina always woke up. She still had nightmares about the academy almost every night, and she would wake up at the drop of a feather.

“How did it go?” A small, groggy voice asked.

“Good, I’ll tell you about it tomorrow. Go back to sleep. I’m tired.” Helena yawned as she settled in next to her pseudo-sister.

“Can I see it?” Christina shimmied around so that she was facing Helena, the light coming in from the one tiny window in the room shined on her face, showing her little blue eyes and her freckles.

“I didn’t get the diamond.”

“I thought you said it went good.” Christina pouted slightly and Helena pushed a blonde hair out of her face.

“I met my mom.” She replied simply.

Christina lit up. “Really? Did she like you?”

“I think so, but that’s only because she doesn’t know who I am. Or maybe she just thought it was funny.” That time, it was Helena’s turn to pout.

“I don’t think that’s true, you know. There’s lots of reasons people give babies up for adoption. And if she’s really Catwoman, then maybe she gave you up to keep you safe.”

Helena wanted to believe Christina, she really did. But she was too young, her explanation sounding too… hopeful.

“Stellar job, that did.” She snorted. “If that's true, then all the more reason not to tell her who I am. If she gave me up to keep me safe, then she probably wouldn’t like what I’m doing right now very much.”

“You don’t even want to give her a chance? Maybe she misses you just as much as you miss her. Maybe she already knows who you are and that’s why she liked you!” Christina’s voice was practically pleading by that point. Helena understood, she was probably hoping that they’d both be taken in by Catwoman and be a proper family, complete with an actual parent.

“Maybe.” Helena conceded. “But I want to try to get to know her first. That way, if she doesn’t want me, then at least I got to spend time with her for a little while, yanno?”

“Yeah, I get it. But you really should try. You gotta give people a chance sometimes.” Christina yawned and turned back over onto her stomach. “Goodnight, Lena.”

“Sweet dreams.”

…

I hope you liked it ☺️ — I’ve been storyboarding for almost a year at this point (my timeline is air tight goddammit.) Also I did not come up with stray but I can’t find the OG post I saw about it!! If someone knows who originally came up with that idea please let me know so I can give creds!

[bats-and-birds-24]

Chapter 14: Tim Drake acquires Siblings

Chapter 14:

The atmosphere in the batplane was suffocating as Batman and Nightwing carefully ignored each other. Dick spent most of the ride fiddling around with his escrima sticks and looking through his utility belt. If asked, his excuse was that he was simply preparing for the upcoming fight at Nanda Parbat.

Bruce himself wasn’t faring much better, as beneath the gloves, he was white knuckling the steering wheel so hard he was pretty sure his hands were going to be numb by the time they reached their destination.

As the two descended beneath the clouds, a stunning view of the undying city came into view. Nanda Parbat in all her beauty glowed in the first light of day. The sight would have washed away all the pollution and filth of Gotham from one’s soul if Bruce and Dick weren’t the Dark Knight and the Gray Son of Gotham respectively.

Bruce eyed the training grounds as an easy location to park the plane, it wasn’t as though they were trying to hide their arrival. 

Dick got up as the ground came into clear view. Opening the batplane’s door, he somersaulted down for the fight ahead. Bruce grunted in disapproval, his firstborn was being too rash. He carefully piloted the batplane away from Dick and strode out, ready to face the entire league to save his sons, if need be.

In Jason’s Apartments:

Talia dismissed the messenger with a wave of her hand. It seems that Bruce has finally caught onto what was happening. She frowned, it took him longer than she expected, it seemed that Jason’s death really took a toll on him.

Jason and the rest of the children looked up at her in curiosity. Better to tell them now than later. In fact, better to show them than tell them.

She gestures to them to move to the balcony. Damian looked confused at the sight, while Cass merely looked on curiously, Tim actually looked excited, and Jason simply turned away and walked back inside. 

“Damian, I believe that it is time to meet your father.” Damian's head snapped back to her. Here? Now? He wasn’t even in any presentable attire, his loose training clothes stained with sweat. “Wait mother, let me go change!” He ran off to his own chambers. 

Tim gazed at the batplane, he could see the dark figures of Batman and Nightwing. A rush of joy and reassurance went to his head. They actually came for him. In his hindsight it seemed stupid to think that they wouldn't. He was Robin after all, who knows how much backlash Batman would get if he lost another Robin. The thought dampened his excitement. Tim shook his mind clear and jumped over the balcony railing, gracefully landing beside the two men in black.

Dick’s head snapped back to see who had managed to sneak up behind them when he saw Tim. His face immediately lit up. “Timmers! You’re just in time to see us beat up some assassins!” Tim looked up in alarm, “Wait no! This is all a misunderstanding!” 

Dick’s eyes widened and Bruce let out a sharp noise. It was too late, one of the assassins snapped out of the shock of having to face Batman himself, and swung at him. It missed as Bruce easily dodged, but the spell was broken and the fight began.

The next minute was one of pure chaos as weapons flashed and people blurred. The sound was deafening with the clashing of swords, and slicing of flesh. Tim could only watch in horror as his plan to reunite his family, the batfamily, was upended in mere seconds. 

The chaos came to an abrupt end as a familiar voice pierced through the din of battle; “ENOUGH!” 

Jason’s eyes flashed pit green as he took in the scene before him. It was bad enough that Bruce ruined his first life, but now here he was, trying to drag him away from what little peace he had managed to carve out for himself in between his resurrection and training. Jason waved away the other assassins and focused on the intruders. The lower ranked bowed and left, knowing that this matter was now out of their hands.

Bruce’s eyes widened. It couldn’t be. He felt his heart thump against his ribcage, his deepest dreams having come true, Jason was alive. And yet, something felt off. Looking into those eyes stained by the pit, he couldn’t see the fiery, optimistic Robin he had had by his side all those years ago. These were the eyes of a madman broken by his own expectations of the world.

Dick swallowed a lump down his throat, Bruce was right all along, he never should have doubted him. At least now that this whole mess is over, they can grab Tim and Jason and go back home and start being a family again. 

The thought is rudely cut short by the next few words out of Jason’s mouth.

“Why are you two here?” His hard gaze made the two feel ashamed, though for what, they did not yet know. 

“We’re here to bring you back home.” Dick was confused, shouldn’t Jason be happier that they were rescuing him from the league?

“Home, back home where the Joker still runs free? Don’t use the excuse that he’s in Arkham with me, I know for a fact how weak their security is.” Jason began to circle them, coming face to face with Bruce, “Home, where you still haven’t learned anything from my death and still use innocent children to cover for you in your nonsensical crusade against crime?”

“I’m not coming back home until I know that I can fix what you broke. I’m training under the league until then.”

Jason finished up his speech and turned to leave. “Wait! Son! Please hear me out!” Bruce pleaded, but those pleas fell on deaf ears as Jason simply walked back to his quarters.

Tim sighed as he looked upon Dick and Bruce’s faces, the despair evident in them. “Come one now, there is a lot to explain.”

The two vigilantes mutely followed him, not knowing what else to do.

[xxgoblin-dumplingxx]

Oh my— werewolf!jason is my new favourite thing!!!! Like- I can’t read any other Jason stuff without thinking about it I just—

!!!!!!!!

The howls made the hair stand up on the back of all their neck. Prodding a primal urge to run. To hide.

But. They were frozen in place, watching. Wide-eyed and trembling as the wolves in the distance ran through the grounds.

Bigger than wild wolves. Stronger. Smarter. Faster.

They watched from a distance as the wolves chased a herd of deer. Teeth tearing flesh with brutal efficiency. Beautiful and grotesque. Blood spattering onto the snow and over their fur.

And the howls started again. Haunting but not foreboding.

"What are you going to do, Father?" Damian asked.

"To start with, we need to find her family."

"Would Todd let her go?"

"I don't know," Bruce admitted. It wasn't possible to keep you out of Gotham without Jason going with you. He got uncomfortable being more than a couple rooms away from you. If you were in another state, it would probably be a nightmare.

"Would she want to go?"

"I don't know," Bruce admitted again. It was only recently you'd been able to do anything. But- you were still afraid. Not unsurprisingly, he supposed. The only thing he knew for sure was when you were near Jason you were fine.

"They'd be a good asset to the mission-"

"A potentially deadly asset."

"They aren't mindless," Damian pointed out. "They could have killed anyone who stepped into their cell. And didn't. Todd growled a little- But-"

"Damian, they're not pets." "Of course not."

Bruce half turned to look down at his youngest, who was riveted to the spot. Watching the wolves that were playing in the snow. Chasing each other. And he shook his head. "Damian, you can't be a werewolf."

"Of course not. I don't like meat."

[purple-crusader]

Sorry for a slight delay, but the final day of Stephcass Week fic is up! This time more notes under the fic.

STEPHCASS WEEK Day 7: Monsters

Words: 1,000

@stephcassweek

Smoke and dust were everywhere. Even through the filters in her mask, Cass could barely see anything around the place. She pushed through the rubble that was left following the explosion of the building where she and her family faced the Joker.

Things went south when the clown began pushing on Red Hood, reminding him of the time he left him to die in that warehouse explosion. He spoke about how much he'd love to do that again. The vigilante could not stand that and fired at the villain, little did they knew it would cause the bombs planted around the place to go off. Cass' abilities protected her from sustaining major injuries. Her brothers' and father's probably did them too. There was one person on their team who did not have that type of protection.

Cass tried screaming, but who she was looking for did not answer. She looked under large pieces of walls, hearing her heart pumping in her ears, making her distracted. Different dark scenarios flashed through her head. She could not stand them. Finally, she heard a weak coughing from below herself. She ran off as fast as she could and finally saw her love laying on the ground. She was covered by the rubble from the breasts down, already suggesting lots of broken bones. She hoped it would only end at that.

She crouched before Stephanie's body and started lifting off various parts of the destroyed building, until she noticed what she dreaded the most. A sharp metal pipe going right through her abdomen. She lost a lot of blood, her face was all pale. She opened her eyes slowly and looked at Cassandra, reaching her hand to caress her cheek. Cass took off her mask and Steph's as well. She could not care less if any civilian saw them. Tears were flooding Cass face and she could barely say any word.

"H-hey..." Steph began weakly, "I-it's okay, baby, I..." A bloody cough made her pause, "It- 's fine..." Cass was even more of a crying mess right now.

"Stephanie... I- I will... call. Someone will... help." Her voice was so shaky. She didn't believe in what she said. Stephanie lost too much blood already and would lose even more if they tried to take her off the metal.

"Won't do-" Steph coughed up blood again, "That won't do any- anything." She wanted to look into Cassandra's eyes as much as she could before passing out. For good. Her sight began drifting away and Cassandra screamed, leaning closer to her face. Smelling her blood. Almost tasting it.

Bruce always advised against doing it and wanted to keep it a secret. He wasn't proud already of the fact that he pulled all of his children into this, but it was the only way to save them in some situations they went through in their vigilante lives. He could not live after losing them in the field.

Cassandra found herself in that exact situation. It was the only way to save her love, her partner, her Stephanie. In one quick move, she ripped the piece of fabric on Steph's neck. She was unconscious, but the pulse was still there. The dark-haired woman released her fangs and sunk them into her lover's flesh.

...

Cassandra finally woke up with a lazy yawn. She would happily stay in bed, as she still felt sore after last night's patrol. As she spinned around, reaching to the front with her hand, she felt someone's absence from their bed. Cass decided laying just so was no fun, if she couldn't hide her face in a cozy spot between a pair of breasts and got up.

She pulled a purple t-shirt on and headed towards the living room. The sun was just rising, as she saw through the big window in the center of the room, overlooking the Neo-Gotham from one of the highest buildings in the city. No wonder why she was still so sleepy, she would normally wake up in like two hours. She saw who she was looking for leaning against the window, just having a nightrobe on.

Cass placed her hands on her wife's hips from behind. The two women's eyes met and Cassandra saw a glint of light reflecting from the blonde woman's eye. Her hair were messy and stiff and she had bags under her eyes, both being a courtesy of a long and tiring patrol earlier in the night. For Cass, she was looking at the most beautiful woman ever.

Stephanie smiled and put her hands on Cassandra's cheeks, pulling her for a kiss. Their bodies got closer and Steph hopped into Cass' arms, both landing later on the couch in the middle of the room. The blonde began to laugh, to which her partner answered with the same. Steph, laying on top of Cass, cuddled her face into the other woman's neck and gave her lazy kisses. She reached the bite mark. Received from Bruce around, what, 40 years ago already? Time flies.

Her mind drifted to the feral night many decades ago when she almost left this world after that Joker explosion. Who knows, maybe in some other reality Cass was less sure what to do or she was too slow. But not her Cass, her wife. The woman she owed being alive today to.

Longetivity has it's minuses. It's harder to make friends among regular people, knowing that you will see their lives drifting away, while you barely get a wrinkle on your face in a decade. She had family though, people she could depend on in any situation, years spent together showing this definitely.

And she had Cassandra. No other person understood her like this woman. No other person understood this woman like Stephanie did. Their love would break any bounds, those of life and death too. Their wedding vow of spending their whole lives together had a different meaning in their situation.

Neither of them would want anything else from their life.

__________________________________________________

And here we are at the end 🥹

About the fic itself it is kinda pushing it with the "monster" angle, but I wanted to write something more low-key and kind of, culminative? Cathartic? To kind of underline it being the last day. Vampires were probably the most used motive among all of the works this year so I had to add something from myself too ^^

To summarize, it was so much fun participating in the whole event. Not only from the writing perspective, but also looking at all the amazing works made by other people. I'll be waiting for another round next year definitely. Will be sending prompts too!!

Anyway, I'm coming back to reblogging all the nice Stephcass works I see, but who knows, maybe I'll do some writing here along the way again <3

[iguessthisisanewobsession]

It Takes a Mob pt.6

Previous

First

“I still don’t get why Bill gets the kid. He didn’t even want him if the first place!”

Bill sighed he absentmindedly put a hand across the giggling mound on his front.

“Yeah yeah, you forget you’re a crackhead without an’ addiction. Can’t hide shit on you.”

Locking the door behind them, Bill checked that Danny could still breathe under the jacket Marv shoved over them.

Bill, quite frankly, felt like a child messing around in his father’s closet again.

The jacket was big on Marv, so Bill looked was drowning in the thing.

“You act like you aren’t happy that I’m the one doing the heavy lifting.”

Marv let out a guffaw from behind him,

“Heavy lifting? Bill, he’s a baby, weighs less than a handful of grapes.”

“Yeah, well how about we switch, and you say that after afterwards? I have a newfound respect for women.”

Danny poked his head out and seemed very entertained by the commute.

Happily babbling away an swiveling to and fro'.

‘Good instincts,’

Bill mused,

‘Keep them up kid. Watchful eyes, saves your guys and all that.’

The three thugs were walking together in a rough diagonal line with Bill in the center. It was casual enough not to draw attention but if needed they could have the kid covered. Maybe they were being a bit paranoid, but that pays in crime ally. The rest of the walk for what it was worth, was thankfully quiet.

Well, as quiet as Gotham could be. A couple of meagering drunks and some of the nosy ladies of the night withstanding.

A couple light jokes with the ladies and a look from the others got to the guys and they got were they needed to be without any fanfare.

No, problems only arose when they got to work.

It started at the door.

Danny was gently tucked away as they walked to the door.

“Hey fellas, I know we have no official dress code ‘round here but you’re pushing it with that dress.”

“Stan, if I wanted your opinion on my clothes I’d’ve asked ahead of time. Just check us in.”

Stan leaned against the door before dramatically lifting his clipboard.

“Alright, your names?”

“What?”

“What? Need a name to sign you in. Would hate to have all those hours to go unaccounted for.”

Oh, Bill hates Stan, pompous because got a job through daddy dearest. He would blame his upbringing, but Bill knew the Brat’s father. Gabe did his best with that one, just unfortunate that his kid took after his Ex-wife more often than not.

Any normal given night, this would be the moment that someone would have to descale the situation. Bill felt the urge to grab his knife in the back of his mind.

But this was no ordinary night. He was carrying something a lot squishier and more precious than his bruised ego at the moment.

“Bill.”

Was spat through gritted teeth. Stan clicked his tongue and shook his head.

“Don’t see a Bill here.”

“Man, just let Bill in, you know him! He’s been working here for two years!”

“Well, I’m just doing my job Marv, you don’t have to be so feisty.”

Bill released out a deep breath be for uttering,

“William. Overbeck. Junior.”

“Ahh! Yup! There you are Junior! Making’ your old man proud, right?”

“Listen here you tweaky little fuck- “

“Stanley? you better not be messing with Bill out there! If you need to learn a thing or two from a senior than I can gladly-“

“No madam! Right this way.”

Bill always had a soft spot for Ken’s Me-mah. He made sure to step aside as Ken ran too her voice.

“Me-maw!!”

“Hi sugar, you’ve been keeping’ out of trouble now?”

Ken was grinning like a mad man as held the elderly lady.

“Only the stuff I’m not given permission to do!”

“That’s my boy.”

“What are you doing in our neck of the woods this evening?”

Marv asked as she walked over to the others.

“Oh, you know how it is in the kitchen, all the hard things to carry I just thought I was best I didn’t bother trying. We got enough flour and rice to feed all of crime alley that needs to be unloaded. Bill, Marv, do you mind helping a weak old woman?”

“Hardly weak, Me-mah. Everybody knows you have just as much sway as a general around here.”

“And don’t you forget it sonny! Now you two, come! We got work to do for tomorrow and the night is young.”

Bill shifted awkwardly on his feet,

“Well, you see- “

“Don’t you start with me William! I still know your daddy’s number! Now get!”

~~~~~~~~

Bill and Marv stepped into the old kitchen single file. The smell of spices and heat of the oven filled the air.

Bringing out a large cutting board Me-mah gestured to Bill with a knife.

“So, before we begin, do you boys want to tell me what you dragged into my kitchen?”

‘Shit,’

The men shared a glance, and Bill raised a hand to try to come up with something plausible.

“Don’t you think about lying or running, we all know I’ll eventually find out. The only question is am I finding out by you or by word of mouth. Now off with the coat Bill, unless you’re finally eating right.”

Bill put down his finger.

Danny let out a sneeze.

Letting out a sigh Bill reached for the zipper on his front and gingerly pulled it down before handing it to Marv.

“Oh.”

Me-mah gasped,

“That’s not a puppy.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hoodlums: @reinluna,@confused-moose-child,@mimilikey,@emeraudesfateandfandoms, @dolfay, @boredomfarie @aconitewolfsbane , @withoutcontxt , @onyxlightdragon , @satanicrutialspecialist , @phoenixdemonqueen , @vixen-uchiha , @skulld3mort-1fan , @bytheoldwillowtree , @illusionwolfwriter24r8 , @thewondersoflebanon , @vipower001 , @autumnwulf , @alice-hazelwood , @fisticuffsatapplebees , @f4nd0m-fun , @markus209, @dolfay, @basilf1res , @jotaroslooseeyebrowhair , @skirter01 , @bun-fish , @ascetic-orange , @thegatorsgoose , @sunflowershine03 , @ladythugs , @firegirl108 , @glitchedchaos , @rangerhorsetug , @mimilikey, @booberrylizard ,, @lehana37 , @dragongoblet , @flamey-comet , @mandyne-1001 , @starscreamlover , @moonfirearc , @bae-graphomaniac , @mewzaque , @wolfeyedwitch , @demon-cat-goes-woof , @undead-essence , @jaguarthecat , @scythegal ,, @boo-ghosties ,

[dis0rderly-cl0wn-nerd]

Crack A Smile and Cut Your Mouth

Ledger!Joker Origin Story

Chapter Fifteen - Crack A Smile and Cut Your Mouth

Warnings: Violence, self harm, self mutilation, gore

Chapter Summary: After an extremely rough night, Jack finally snaps and makes a life altering decision.

Author's Note: This is it! We're at the home stretch! One more chapter to go! I apologize for the wait. I seriously overestimated how long this would take me. I think I may be experiencing a little burn out. Anyway, this is the moment we've all been expecting. Everything the past few chapters have been leading up to. I hope I did this justice.

Taglist: @alittlesmartcookie @furisodespirit @lightsabergirl

< Previous - Next >

His insomnia only got worse. Now there were nights where he would get no sleep whatsoever. 

He secluded himself even more than usual. All of his energy was depleted. He even stopped going on his nightly runs. He had no desire to go outside unless absolutely necessary. He felt comfortable and more at ease that way. At this point he was incredibly fragile. The slightest thing could trigger him. 

To put it simply, Jack was miserable. 

It was spring time now, nearing the end of March. Gotham was just as strange and bustling as usual. With the seasonal change came increased rain showers which did little to improve Jack’s state of mind. He hardly wanted to go out, much less in the rain.

Tonight he was feeling brave….and hungry. He needed food. That was his purpose for leaving.

Jack threw on some halfway decent clothes, not really caring what he looked like, and pocketed his wallet and keys as he went out the door.

He didn’t feel good at all. His head was killing him. He moved almost lethargically due to his lack of sleep. He’d barely made it down the stairs and already he wanted to go back.

Just focus on the task. You need something to eat and a few groceries. Once you get that, you can go back and lay down.

As he walked out of the building’s double doors and turned, Jack bumped into a woman passing by. She did nothing to hide her face when she saw his scar. A look of disgust and horror flashed across her eyes. Before Jack could apologize to her, she quickly grabbed her purse that she dropped and speed walked away from him. 

Jack stood stunned for a moment. He furrowed his brow and scowled. Bitch. 

Trying his best to ignore what just happened, he kept walking with a tired sigh. He didn’t have time to feel hurt over people he didn’t even know reacting to his hideous face. He survived a war. He could get over a few mean looks. What did they know?

The trip to the grocery store was short but irritating. Tons of people were there doing their weekend shopping. Jack cursed himself for always picking the worst times to go. He ran into even more people that were incredibly rude. 

What the hell was wrong with everyone today? They crowded around him in the aisles, invaded his space, jumped in front of him to grab things from the shelves, and of course stared at him. Everyone constantly stared. It was really starting to grate on his nerves. He wanted to scream.

Now that the shopping was over, Jack just had to get dinner. He chose the deli he frequented on nights he didn’t feel like cooking. When he was inside, he saw groups of people sitting down at the tables and a small line formed at the counter. He contemplated leaving but decided against it. It wasn’t that crowded and the food was good. It would be worth the wait.

A worker he’d never seen at the deli before was behind the counter. She had her dark hair in a messy bun and flippantly handled the customers. Her expression was bored and annoyed. When it was Jack’s turn, he stepped forward and she looked at him like someone would a piece of gum stuck to their shoe. 

“Uh, hi. Can I just get a turkey melt on white bread?” Jack said softly and fidgeted with the hem of his shirt, unable to keep eye contact with her.

The worker huffed and snapped her fingers. “Speak up, bud! Can’t understand all that mumbling. These fuckin’ druggies, man…”

“I’m sorry?”

“I said, whaddya want? I ain’t got all night, pal.”

Jack repeated his order and she wrote it down, eyeing him sharply. He stood perplexed off to the side as she made the sandwich.

She thinks I’m on drugs? Am I really in that bad of shape?

He would laugh if it wasn’t so pathetic. 

When she was done, the worker handed him the food and Jack gave her a 20. He walked away with a smirk before she could hand him his change. He could care less and you know what, she could have it. 

As he stepped outside of the deli, raindrops and a cool wind hit his face. The rain picked up a few moments later, drenching his clothes. 

“Lovely…” Jack muttered to himself and pulled his hood over his head. 

He started the walk back home, grocery bags and sandwich in hand. As he went further along, the rain started to lighten up. He shivered as the wind blew against his soaked clothes. Cold, wet, tired, and hungry, Jack just wanted to go home and curl up in bed.

The sound of a sharp whistle coming from an alleyway up ahead startled him out of his daze and made him jump. He scanned the area to see what made the noise. A group of three men were standing there ogling a young woman walking past. 

“Ooh, hey there, pretty thing. You lookin’ for a good time?” The leader of the trio said with a slimy smile that made Jack want to vomit. 

“Yeah, where ya going girl? Want some of this?” One of the others joined in.

Jack rolled his eyes. How fucking pathetic. He could tell the woman was incredibly uncomfortable. She didn’t say anything to the men but her disgusted expression said it all. 

The woman looked around trying to figure out what to do as the men laughed and jeered at her some more. It was then that she saw Jack. She visibly tensed. Their eyes met from afar and Jack gave her a sympathetic look. 

He patted his hip to show he was armed and motioned for her to go on. If the men tried to bother her, he would take care of it. The woman nodded and mouthed thank you before she turned and resumed her walk, going at a quicker pace this time. 

The men noticed her absence and mocked their disappointment. “Aw, where’d you go, sugar?” One called out.

Jack continued walking and passed the alleyway with caution, keeping his head down. To his dread, one of the men spoke to him. 

“Hey man, ya got a light?” He asked.

“Sorry, I ain’t got mine on me.” Jack said gruffly. 

That was a lie but he didn’t want to interact with these thugs anymore. He didn’t stop as he responded and tried to keep walking. Apparently they didn’t take the hint.

“Well, do you at least have any cash on ya?” 

Jack stopped and sighed, exasperated. “No, I don’t.” 

Another lie.

“Jeez man. Help a brother out. Ya know, I get the feeling you’re lying to us. Might just have to take it from you then.” 

Jack whipped around just as they sprung out and grabbed him roughly by his jacket. The leader shoved him up against the wall and smirked.

“Tonight is not the night, man…” Jack growled, sending them a venomous glare.

The man laughed. “Pfft. What’re you gonna do? Make my day, tough guy.”

Something inside Jack snapped. Without warning, he punched the guy in the nose and slammed his head against the brick wall repeatedly. His eyes gleamed with pure rage. He said nothing as he felt his body operate on autopilot. He had little control over himself. This wasn’t going to be just a few punches in self defense like last time. He’d had enough of guys like this. Scum was all they were. 

The man, now severely bloodied and barely conscious, threw a weak punch in Jack’s direction. Jack caught it and pummeled him into the ground, landing blow after blow. The man eventually passed out, bleeding from his nose and missing several teeth. 

The other two men, at first frozen in fear, looked horrified, but still tried to fight back. One lunged at him, but Jack drew his knife and stabbed him once in the shoulder and once in the leg. The man howled in pain. As he laid on the ground writhing, Jack kicked him in the stomach.

Utterly terrified, the remaining thug turned and tried to make a run for it, but Jack was too fast. He easily caught up with him and tackled him to the ground. He punched him in the jaw and slammed his head against the concrete until he blacked out.

Jack stood up, sweating and panting like he’d just ran a marathon. He wiped away the blood from his face and ran his fingers through his messy hair, slicking it back. He looked down at his bloody hands and gasped as he realized what he’d just done. He’d nearly killed them. 

Trembling, he scooped up his scattered belongings and got the hell out of there. As he ran from the bloody scene in a similar fashion to the fight he had many weeks ago, he didn’t feel much of anything. This time it wasn’t at all exciting. Sure they deserved it but he couldn’t believe he went that far. 

What was he becoming?

Seeing his bloody hands sent his mind reeling. It made him think of when he was kneeling in the sand, clutching his injured cheek and watching in horror at the amount of blood pooling in his hand. His thoughts began to spiral down that rabbit hole and his anxiety rose. He could hear explosions faintly in the distance but he knew they weren’t there. Another ptsd attack was coming on and at the worst possible time. 

Jack approached his apartment building and entered the lobby on weak, wobbly legs. He could barely focus on walking towards the stairs but he forced himself to keep going. He refused to have an episode out here.

Mrs. Vernon was at the front desk sorting through some papers. She looked up at the sound of his heavy footsteps and saw him panting and struggling to walk. Her eyebrows shot up in confusion.

“Jack?” She called out, concerned. 

Jack ignored her and trudged up the stairs, leaving a faint trail of watery blood as he went. With shaky hands, he unlocked his door and pushed it open. He collapsed to the floor once inside. The bags of groceries spilled out of his arms, sending the contents rolling on the floor.

The visions consumed him. 

“No…please...” He said weakly.

He was there again. That fateful day when everything changed. Facedown in the burning sand. In the back of a humvee screaming and choking on his own blood. 

Jack whimpered and curled in on himself. He covered his ears with his hands and rocked from side to side, trying to ride out the attack like he normally did, but this time it wasn’t going anywhere. The scene replayed in his head over and over again. It was suffocating.

When it finally subsided, he slowly uncurled himself from his protective position and sat upright. He regained control over himself and steadied his breathing. He assured himself he was okay over and over again but it did little to calm his racing mind. He moved into the bathroom to clean himself up.

After washing his bloody face and hands, Jack stared at himself in the mirror. A gaunt, scarred figure gazed back at him. All life had been drained from his eyes. He was a shell of a man. Broken and barely hanging on by a thread.

He wiped away the warm tears flowing down his cheeks with his sleeve and looked down, gripping the counter tightly. He couldn’t bear to look at himself. With a snarl of rage, he hurled his fist into the mirror, shattering it into hundreds of pieces. 

His breathing hitched and the streams of tears turned into hiccuping sobs. This was long overdue. All of his pent up emotions in the last two years were coming out at once. He sat down on the cold tiled floor and brought his knees to his chest as he sobbed.

Why was this happening to him? Why couldn’t things just get better? Would they ever? Or was he doomed to be stuck in this hole of constant pain and despair? Why did he even have to get to this point in the first place? Why why why? 

He should’ve been at home with his mother who shouldn’t have been killed, recovering from the war with her help and living a happy life. This was not supposed to happen to him. But fate had other plans. 

It made him beyond angry. He didn’t do anything to deserve this. Any chance he had at a normal life was cut short at the young age of 24. Now he was nearing 26 and everything seemed hopeless. It wasn’t fair. People his age were starting families already. They had it all together. Jack? He was nowhere close. He couldn’t even take care of himself right now, much less someone else.

Though, he had to admit that he had some fault in this. Why did he ever think he could handle things by himself? He should’ve listened and gotten some help. He recalled Davis’ words from the day before he left Afghanistan. He predicted Jack’s whole future.

Jack shook his head as more tears fell. No, what good would therapy ever do him? It would be a waste of time and money just for someone to tell him to ‘practice mindfulness’ or ‘be in touch with his feelings’. All that fluffy, sunshine and rainbows bullshit. Or even worse, to take the easy way out and drown everything out with mind numbing meds. He wouldn’t allow it.

Besides, society was not designed for guys like him to settle into after being taken out and thrust back in. It was nearly impossible. 

The state of the world infuriated him. Everyone had their established order and way of life. Everything had to be a certain way. Anything out of the norm, like him, was rejected and ridiculed. 

People only thought of themselves. They had no concern for others. It was cutthroat and brutal out there. Every man for himself. The weak were preyed upon. The innocent were slaughtered. The wicked, the rich, and the powerful prospered.

The overall evil of humanity was evident and more clear to him than ever before. He was all too familiar with it as he had grown up in harsh, violent conditions. Then the war had really opened his eyes. Now? He was seeing it in the people who were supposed to be the normal, upstanding, civilized ones. 

Jack had an epiphany. No longer would he sit by and watch. No longer would he lay down and take it. He could do something about it! He could get his revenge and get rid of the scum of the earth. He had the capabilities. He was a trained ex-soldier. This could finally give him a purpose. It was too perfect. 

But just how would he do it? Any old clown could start their own circle of organized crime and remain unnoticed. It happened everyday. He needed to stand out. To be different. He needed a persona. His message would be radical and shake the city to its core. 

Wait. Clown… That’s it!

Jack knew exactly what to do now. The wheels in his warped head began to turn and suddenly everything became clear. He’d be like the joker card. Unpredictable. Invincible. Leave them guessing. Upset their established order. He’d put on a mask, like the circus clowns. The world shouldn’t see his pain and despair, it should see him laughing as he burned it to the ground. 

He picked himself up from the floor and wiped his eyes. A determined and angry yet delirious look was etched onto his face. Any ounce of sanity that he had left had officially slipped away. 

What he was about to do was unthinkable and absurd. But to him, it made so much sense. The picture was incomplete. And you should never leave a job halfway finished. 

Jack fished his knife out of his pocket and flipped it open. He examined the blade and decided that it would do. He sighed and stared at his fractured reflection. He knew what must be done.

He held the knife at the corner of his mouth on the pristine, unmarred side of his face. He closed his eyes and titled his head back. In one quick upward movement, he sliced through his skin. 

The blast of pain was immense and hurt ten times worse than his previous scarring. A soft moan escaped his lips. His eyes brimmed with more tears. But Jack kept going. He hardly noticed the pain. It only existed in his subconscious. 

Using what was left of the mirror, he watched carefully as he sliced up and up and finally curved the knife back down once he reached his cheekbone. Jack felt a wave of dizziness wash over him. He put the knife down and gripped the countertop again, panting and grunting until the world stopped spinning.

The white porcelain sink was now splattered and stained with red globs of blood. Shards of glass from the mirror had fallen in and were now also dripping with his blood. His knuckles bled.

The dizziness soon started to fade out. Jack moved to the next step. The cut he had made was nothing but two flaps of skin. It was an almost comical sight. This would never heal right on its own. To obtain the desired effect, it needed some help. He grabbed a needle and synthetic thread from one of the drawers.

Slowly and painfully, he began to stitch up his own face. In and out he weaved the thread through skin and sinew. He reached the top curve of his newly extended smile, tied the thread, and cut off what was left.

“Perfect.” He murmured. His vision was coming to fruition. 

The room spun again and by now Jack was too dizzy to stand. The blood loss must’ve been getting to him. He plopped back down on the floor and buried his face in his hands. He cried all that was left to cry and eventually ran out of tears. 

He mourned his old life. He mourned Jack. It was all he knew. But it was time to move on. He was becoming a new man. He was being reborn. This was who he was now.

His quiet sobs morphed into laughter at the thought of it all. They would all see. Every last one of them. They wouldn't know what hit them. As he laughed hysterically, his body gave out. With the shock and blood loss, it could only handle so much. 

One last pained giggle could be heard before everything faded to black.

[lovelywritersgarden]

Hi! i wanted to request a batfam where the reader is the youngest batsibling (maybe 14-15) and is nervous to introduce their first bf or gf to her family. they are all really confused why she's so nervous until they meet readers partner and realise they're the child of one of the gotham villains. eventually they realise that readers partner isn't evil like their parent(s).

Azalea Isley

WC: 2405

SYNOPSIS: Your girlfriend comes from different circumstances. You just hope your adopted family will look past her not-so-perfect family and open their minds. Maybe a flower can survive in a batcave? heh. maybe it’s just wishful thinking.

Pairings: GN!Reader x OC, GN!Batsib!Reader x Batfamily

Azalea Isley, or Zales, as you call her, has been your girlfriend for one year, two months and six days. You met back when you were 13 while on patrol. You ran into her when looking for her mother, Pamela Isley, aka, Poison Ivy.

~

“Robin, search the North wing, S/N, take the South. I’m going to scout the middle. Ivy is tricky and has eyes everywhere. Stay vigilant and stay on comms.” Batman bluntly ordered.

After escaping Arkham Asylum, rumors of Ivy’s whereabouts were spreading like fire, er uh, forest fire. People were saying she had been spotted hiding out at her old workplace; The Gotham Botany Preserve. It’s abandoned now, but naturally, it was your job to investigate.

You discreetly made your way to the South wing, feet silently walking as you listened for any signs of Ivy’s presence. You made your way down the cathedral-like hallway. The cascading walls were covered in thick, dark green vines climbed up towards the ceiling, and weaved around the stained glass windows that lined the hall. A yellow hue of light came from the door that sat slightly ajar at the end of the hall. You saw a shadow fall over the crack in the door, so you pressed yourself against the wall and held your breath.

“I’ve got movement.” You whispered into your comm.

“I have eyes on Ivy.” Damian said. “Someone else must be here.”

“S/N, do not engage. We don’t know who or what that is. Fallback.”

“Okay. On my way to your location now.” Curiosity got the better of you and your actions contradicted your words. Bummer for Batman ig. You slowly pushed the door open and looked around. The abandoned greenhouse had been turned into a make-shift bedroom. Beautiful fully bloomed Bougainvillea spiraled down the pointed ceiling and sporadically grew against the green glass. Leaves littered the floor and petals fell as the door shook some of the vines. Honey yellow lanterns hung on the walls giving a golden warmth to the room, and a small bed was to your left, tucked away.

“Woah…” Your hands unconsciously dropped from their defensive form.

Letting your guard down, what a rookie mistake. Hard vines wrapped around your body and pulled you off the ground. You let out a yelp as your legs were pulled above your head and suspended you above the ground. The vines tied your arms against your sides and held your legs together, completely eliminating movement. You groaned as the blood rushed to your face.

‘Damn Batman would kick my ass if he found out that I disobeyed a direct order, AND got my ass kicked by some foliage while doing so. i kinda deserve this tbh.’ You thought.

Out of the shadows, stepped a young girl. She was about your age, roughly 5’ 6” and was beautiful. So beautiful that even the most thorough words on a page would be far too simple to describe the way she lit up a room. She had dark fuchsia hair that cascaded down her shoulders and fell to the middle of her back. Her green eyes and pale complexion matched that of her mother.

“Who are you? What do you want?” Her hands were shaking, as if they didn’t hold immense power. Still, she was scared of you. She wasn’t used to this by any means. She avoided conflict and violence as much as possible. Her mother hid her away, not that she wanted to leave. She was Rapunzel and wanted to stay Rapunzel. Though, her mother never lied to her about the horrors outside. Call it what you will, Stockholm syndrome, fear, truth, at the end of the day Azalea Isley didn’t like people.

But eh. Who cares? You had a smart mouth and beautiful women oftentimes made you run it as much as possible. You took a breath and began speaking calmly as to not startle her.

“My name is S/N. I am a hero. What’s your name?”

“You lie.” She spat. ‘oh’

“S/N is not a real name. Tell me the truth.” The vines tightened around you. You gasped out.

“I can’t tell you my name! Don’t your parents give you rules you can’t break? This is one of mine.” She contemplated your words.

“As you decide if I’m lying or not, could you loosen these? I'm dyin’ here.” She swallowed and reluctantly loosened the vines, but kept you hanging.

“I am Azalea.”

“Like the flower?” She gave you a pointed look. “Right. Sorry, dumb question.” Her face relaxed into a small smile.

“Momma says there’s no such thing as a dumb question. Only dumb people.”

“Ivy? Yeah, that’s fair. Will you let me down?”

“No.” She came closer to you and began feeling your face and hair.

“That’s fine.” You replied, your voice coming to a whisper.

“I have not met a person like you before, S/N. You’re very warm, and your face is turning pink.”

“That’s normal, don't worry.” Your eyes met hers with a stupid grin.

~

Since then, you have met in secret every couple of days, both of your parents staying somewhat oblivious to your secret romance. Today was the day you decided your ruse needed to come to light.

Ow.

Your teeth bit through the skin on your lip. The anxiety of the entire evening was eating you alive. Your knee bounced under the table your family sat around in silence and anticipation.

“So, Y/N.” Bruce began. “Any specific reason you wanted this family meeting?”

Your eyes shot up to meet your adoptive father. You took a breath and decided it was best to be as blunt as possible.

“I have a girlfriend.” You crossed your arms. Your brothers held onto the silence for another beat.

“Oh it’s about time.” Jason said. “We’ve been waiting for you to come clean for like a year.” Your chest released the tension it held, and your face lost its color.

“What?! You knew?” Your eyes widened. How much did they know?

“Yeah, we kind of figured, N/N.” Tim said. You quirked an eyebrow. He shrugged. “Sneaking out without notice is hard to do in a family like ours. But we also figured you’d tell us when you were ready.” You nodded. They still don’t know though. Or they’re just being really cool. Nah, the batfam? No way.

“I invited her over for dinner tonight. I want you guys to meet her.” You fiddled with a leather bracelet. “I want you to have an open mind when you meet her.”

“Of course we will.” Dick said, putting a comforting hand over yours. You averted your gaze from the group as he held your hand.

“She means a lot to me.” cliché

-

A few hours later, you were getting dressed. Zales didn’t have a phone, but you knew she was coming. You buttoned up your shirt and ran a hand over your face. Please go well. In all honesty, you knew it probably wouldn’t go well. But hey! What’s life without risk, eh?

The table was set and you made your way towards the foyer to meet Azalea.

She rang the doorbell, and diligent as ever, Alfred opened the door with a knowing smile to welcome her in.

“Hello Miss Azalea, and Welcome to Wayne Manor. We have been expecting you-“

“Zales!!” You ran around Alfred, enveloping your girlfriend in a hug. She laughed, and hugged you back.

She pulled away, but continued to hold your hand. She can feel your anxiety flowing off of you in waves. She turned back towards Alfred.

“Thank you so much, Mr. Pennyworth. I am sorry sweet Y/N here seems to get a bit too ahead of themselves sometimes.”

Alfred nodded, softly smiled and guided the two of you to the dining room. Azalea looked around at the grand manor. The wooden paneling that neatly lined up with the pristine carpet that was cleaned especially well in order to welcome a new guest courtesy of Alfred. <3 Talk about marrying into the right family.

“Allow me to fetch the others.” Alfred said before politely exiting.

She grabbed your hand.

“Regardless of what happens my love, it is all going to be okay.” You nodded.

As you reassured each other, a crash was heard from the other room. You cringed and the voices of your brother’s bickering rang out.

“Shut up replacement, outta my way before you get smacked the fuck up.” Jason began.

“You irk me.” Tim crossed his arms in a pout.

“Both of you, be quiet.” Bruce said, crossing the hallway to enter the room. As the five men looked up, you and Azalea stood. You gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.

“Hi.” Azalea said, riddled with nerves.

“Bruce, Dick, Jason, Tim, Damian,” You began, pointing each one out to her, “this is Azalea,”

“Isley, right?” Bruce said. His gaze hardened and his jaw clenched. The renowned Batman Glare™ didn’t make Azalea back down. She knew what she was getting herself into. So instead, she stood tall.

“Yes, Isley. My mother is Poison Ivy.” After another glaring standoff, Jason suddenly broke the silence with boisterous laughter.

“YES! This is so golden.” He reached a hand out to Zales. “Jason Todd, pleasure to meet you. I am the household headache.” Tension slightly died down in Azalea’s shoulders, she laughed and took his hand.

You loved Jason. He was an arrogant, loud, shoot-first-think-later person, but he was the most loyal person you knew. He always had your back, besides he’s seen his share of kids in bad environments. Hell he’s been there. He has no room to judge and never would.

Bruce continued to stand stoically. Dick smiled, and walked over.

“Hey! I am Dick Grayson, and don’t take whatever Bruce and Damian say personally, they’re always like that.” He put a hand on her shoulder. “Welcome!”

Dick was very motherly. He had his fair share of misfit kids in the teen titans, and Artemis stands to this day as one of his best friends. He has faith in people, and in you. Dick gave you a comforting pat on your shoulder.

“Three to go! Good luck, kid.” He walked past the two of you and sat down at the table next to Jason.

“Alright! Who’s next?” You clapped your hands together.

Tim looked around at the two most stubborn men in his family, or in the world, and then decided he should go next.

“Hey, I’m Tim.”

Tim’s reaction worried you to say the least. The uncertainty of how he would react made your stomach churn. At least you knew Bruce and Damian would be difficult. Tim, however, is usually open-minded. He is also protective. But above all else Tim wanted your happiness, besides, you’ve kicked his ass enough times for him to know not to worry about your safety. If you need help, you know where to go.

He took her hand and shook it. “You don’t need to worry about me. As long as you treat Y/N the way they deserve to be treated, then I'm no problem at all!”

Damian didn’t step forward when his time came.

“I don’t like criminals.”

“I am not a criminal.”

“By association, you are.”

“Oh shut up, Damian.” You snapped, coming to her defense. His eyes flew to meet yours, but he made no move in either direction. “Your mother is one of the most notorious assassins to ever exist, and your grandfather ran a league of them.” You crossed your arms. “You have no room to judge her about association.”

Damian huffed out of his nose and moved past the two of you with a resounding “Tch.”

Your eyes lit up and you spun around to your girlfriend.

“That was good for Damian!” You smiled excitedly. Damian might be a little rough around the edges, but he didn’t fight you. He is just looking out for you, and if you trust her, well, he still wouldn’t trust her, but he wouldn’t treat her as poorly as before. “Now! One more, the final boss.”

“Y/N.” He said.

“Bruce.”

“How long has she known our identities?”

“Like a year, and I only told her mine. She figured the rest on her own.” Eh. Mostly true.

He raised an eyebrow towards her.

“Hello.”

“Hi!!” She smiled.

“I don’t like your mother.”

“My mother doesn’t like you either, so it’s a good thing this doesn’t have anything to do with either of you.” She motioned between you.

Bruce hummed and moved forward. The three of you joined the boys at the table where dinner was served by the one, the only, the amazing, Alfred.

Dinner was awkward at the beginning, but whenever the conversation got moving it was easy. Your brothers liked her, it was Bruce who continued to be standoffish. However, he slowly, painfully slowly, warmed up to her throughout the night. Though it wasn't obvious to the naked eye, as Bruce’s kid, you saw his eyes soften every time you brought up a happy memory with her. She was making you happy, he knew that.

Dinner came to a close and the family was saying their goodbyes to Azalea. You stood by the door and hugged her.

“I’m so glad this went well.” You said, wrapping your arms around her. She kissed your cheek.

“Even if they didn’t like me, there wouldn’t be anyone’s opinion that could keep me from you.” You pulled apart, just as Bruce was coming down the stairs.

“Azalea. May I have a word in private before you leave?”

“Bruce I do-“

“It is okay my love. Yes sir.” Azalea motioned to the room over.

You sat on the stairs and tapped your foot, anxiously and impatiently. DAMMIT! So close to this going well. If he screws it up that would be major suckage.

When they returned, both had content smiles on their faces.

Azalea hugged you again.

“I will see you soon my love.” She then turned to Bruce. “Thank you for a wonderful evening, sir. It was a pleasure to meet your family.”

Bruce held up a hand.

“No need to thank me, the pleasure was all mine. Goodbye Azalea.”

She kissed your cheek.

“I love you.”

“Wh- I love you too- but what did you talk about?!”

Azalea laughed and cupped your face.

“Nothing much. Goodbye” She winked and walked out the door, a car pulling up outside.

“Bye I guess…” You held the door open for her, making sure she made it to her ride.

You turned to Bruce with an eyebrow raised.

He shrugged. “What? It’s my kid’s first relationship, I am not going to ignore that just because of their parents. Absolutely not.”

“Bruuuceeee, what did you say to her?” You groaned.

“I don’t remember.”

“Liar.”

He smiled and put a hand on your shoulder.

“Does she make you happy, Y/N?”

“Extremely.”

“Then I approve.”

“Thank you, Bruce.”

~ ❀~ ❀~ ❀~ ❀~ ❀~ ❀~ ❀~ ❀~ ❀~ ❀~ ❀~

A/N: tbh this was so fun to write. i ADORE botany (duh my username) and you gave me the perfect chance to use it in a fic! Great req btw i love the whole romeo-and-juliet-esc vibe of their relationship. Y/N and Azalea>>> fr flower power. thanks for the req! If you have anything else let me know!! <3 I’ve been out of town, but now that i’m back my writing can start back up! cant wait for more. Also mha fans should keep an eye out later this week!!

[miasalvatore1864]

In deep trouble

Jason was not a patient man, but when it comes to his daughter he’s very patient.

Being the four year old she is she wanted to explore more of Gotham, but Jason was against it.

Gotham could be peaceful sometimes.

Keyword sometimes.

Jason wanted his daughter to be safe, but just like him she liked to do her own thing.

The young father had to change his attitude towards things cause his daughter was taking on his attitude.

******************************************

Picking up his daughter in his car instead of his motorcycle was the safest.

When Journey saw him she ran to him hugging his legs until he bend down and took her into his arms. “Hey sweet girl how was school?” Jason asked moving curls away from her face. “I had fun daddy we had a pizza party.” the little girl said while they walked hand in hand to his car. “Really, did you eat all your pizza?” Jason asked buckling the little girl in her car seat. “Uh huh.” Journey said nodding her head.

Jason was happy to hear that his little girl had a good day at school.

When they got home the vigilante got dinner ready and helped his daughter with her homework.

After homework and dinner was finished Jason sent his daughter to get ready for bed.

He was on the phone with Bruce and the dark knight was telling him he was sending him out for a mission with Dick, and it’ll be three weeks in Russia.

Jason dreaded being away from Journey but the mission required their undivided attention.

Packing was always hard for the father but he also knew that his babygirl would be safe with Bruce and his other siblings.

Jason and Dick always made a great team and for this mission they needed to be a team.

Jason called Sam to let her know and the girl would be over but he told her that Journey would be over at the Wayne manor if she could check on Journey or even be there with Journey so she wouldn’t be scared he’ll appreciate it.

After hanging up Journey jumped on Jason’s back giggling while Jason just smiled and skillfully flipped her to his front kissing her all over her face and blowing raspberries on her tummy.

When they calmed down Jason sat his little girl next to him one hand in his lap the other held onto Journey’s hand watching her play with his fingers. “Journey baby I have to go tomorrow with Uncle Dickie for a work thing and I’ll be gone for three weeks.” Jason explained not wanting to tell her everything but also wanting to tell her the truth to a certain extent. “But I don’t want you to go bye-bye.” The little girl said tears falling down her face hiding her face into her father’s side. “It’s not for long sweetheart I’ll be back.” Jason said picking his crying daughter up moving her to his lap letting her cry into his chest while he rocked them back and forth whispering sweet nothings into her ear stroking her hair.

When the little girl calmed down he gently moved her away from his chest and wiped her face with his thumbs. “While I’m gone you’ll be staying with grandpa Bruce and great-grandpa Alfred at the Wayne manor and Sam is coming to stay with you so you don’t get scared or feel lonely.” Jason said gently. “But I want you daddy!” Journey said her little voice cracking with emotion that hurt Jason’s heart. “I know baby I’ll be back before you know it.” Jason said hating leaving his daughter but he knew he had to go not only to protect his daughter but to protect the world.

When Journey was asleep he placed her in his bed covering her with her blanket that she leaves in his room and then the duvet making sure she’s warm and comfortable.

He then went into Journey’s room cleaning her toys knowing he didn’t really need to pack clothes or toys for her cause they both had clothes at the Wayne manor for whenever they stayed over.

Jason then went to the kitchen and cleaned up making sure everything was cleaned and put in order.

He then went back to his room packed his Armor and weapons making sure he had everything ready for in the morning then he went to bed holding his daughter close to him.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

The next morning Jason carried a sleeping Journey to the car placing her in her car seat and driving over to the manor.

When they got there he saw that Sam’s car was already there.

Jason offered to pick her up but she kindly declined the offer.

During his absence, Jason knew knew his daughter might want to go somewhere fun he even gave Sam money for her and his little girl not wanting Sam to spend her hard earn money, which she tried to give it back to him saying that she loved spending time with Journey and she makes enough to spend but he didn’t have it any other way so she took it without saying another word.

Walking inside Jason saw that Bruce and Dick was waiting for him.

Jason just gave them a nod and went upstairs to his old room laying his daughter on the bed.

He then went downstairs to the cave to talk to Bruce and Dick. “So this a get in get out mission and Jason no killing.” Bruce said looking at his son seriously. “I can’t make any promises old man.” Jason said just as serious. “I hate to admit it but he’s right Bruce some people aren’t meant to be saved.” Dick said shocking both Jason and Bruce but both keep their faces emotionless.

Going back upstairs Jason saw that Journey was up playing watching Mickey Mouse with Sam. “Daddy!” excitedly yelled running to her father hugging him while Jason bent down taking his daughter into his arms. “How was your nap babygirl?” Jason asked. “It was good.” Journey said looking into her father’s eyes cupping his face in her tiny hands. “We’re here cause I have to go to work with uncle Dickie, and you’ll be here with Grandpa Bruce and great-Grandpa Alfred.” Jason explained seeing his daughter’s sad face. “How long will you be gone? I don’t want you to go bye-bye.” the little girl said sadly. “Three weeks.” Jason looking at his little one who looked at him sadly. “But that’s a long time.” the little girl said not wanting her daddy to be away for that long. “Not that long I promise I’ll be back before you know it.” Jason said kissing his daughter’s head putting her down.

While Jason was in the cave with Dick going over the mission Journey was upstairs packing somethings and decided to go along with her father and Uncle.

Journey had to time everything right.

Everyone had dinner around 6:30pm, they watched tv around 7:45pm till 8:15pm and the little girl was in bed around 9pm with her dad tucking her in. “I love you babygirl, be a good girl while I’m away and I promise to bring you something back.” Jason said while holding his daughter to his chest stroking her hair as he spoke softly. “Night night daddy.” Journey said snuggling into her dad’s chest. “Night night sweet girl.” Jason said kissing his daughter’s head.

Jason hated being away from his daughter it physically made him sick to his stomach and his heart hurt. But he knew by leaving on this mission he was protecting from the threat that was happening in Russia.

The little girl heard that her dad and uncle were leaving at midnight so she snuck on the bat-plane and hid quietly.

When she felt the plane moving she saw her uncle and dad dressed in their uniforms her dads looked different which kind of scared her but she knew her daddy from a mile away.

For 9.74 hour’s journey stayed hidden and quiet.

When they finally landed the little girl had to use the restroom and she needed a bath, so she went to the bathroom took care of her business and bathed quickly changing her clothes to something warmer.

As soon as she got out of the bathroom she bump into someone.

Looking up Journey saw her uncle.

The next morning Jason carried a sleeping Journey to the car placing her in her car seat and driving over to the manor.

When they got there he saw that Sam’s car was already there.

Jason offered to pick her up but she kindly declined the offer.

During his absence, Jason knew knew his daughter might want to go somewhere fun he even gave Sam money for her and his little girl not wanting Sam to spend her hard earn money, which she tried to give it back to him saying that she loved spending time with Journey and she makes enough to spend but he didn’t have it any other way so she took it without saying another word.

Walking inside Jason saw that Bruce and Dick was waiting for him.

Jason just gave them a nod and went upstairs to his old room laying his daughter on the bed.

He then went downstairs to the cave to talk to Bruce and Dick. “So this a get in get out mission and Jason no killing.” Bruce said looking at his son seriously. “I can’t make any promises old man.” Jason said just as serious. “I hate to admit it but he’s right Bruce some people aren’t meant to be saved.” Dick said shocking both Jason and Bruce but both keep their faces emotionless.

Going back upstairs Jason saw that Journey was up playing watching Mickey Mouse with Sam. “Daddy!” excitedly yelled running to her father hugging him while Jason bent down taking his daughter into his arms. “How was your nap babygirl?” Jason asked. “It was good.” Journey said looking into her father’s eyes cupping his face in her tiny hands. “We’re here cause I have to go to work with uncle Dickie, and you’ll be here with Grandpa Bruce and great-Grandpa Alfred.” Jason explained seeing his daughter’s sad face. “How long will you be gone? I don’t want you to go bye-bye.” the little girl said sadly. “Three weeks.” Jason looking at his little one who looked at him sadly. “But that’s a long time.” the little girl said not wanting her daddy to be away for that long. “Not that long I promise I’ll be back before you know it.” Jason said kissing his daughter’s head putting her down.

While Jason was in the cave with Dick going over the mission Journey was upstairs packing somethings and decided to go along with her father and Uncle.

Journey had to time everything right.

Everyone had dinner around 6:30pm, they watched tv around 7:45pm till 8:15pm and the little girl was in bed around 9pm with her dad tucking her in. “I love you babygirl, be a good girl while I’m away and I promise to bring you something back.” Jason said while holding his daughter to his chest stroking her hair as he spoke softly. “Night night daddy.” Journey said snuggling into her dad’s chest. “Night night sweet girl.” Jason said kissing his daughter’s head.

Jason hated being away from his daughter it physically made him sick to his stomach and his heart hurt. But he knew by leaving on this mission he was protecting from the threat that was happening in Russia.

The little girl heard that her dad and uncle were leaving at midnight so she snuck on the bat-plane and hid quietly.

When she felt the plane moving she saw her uncle and dad dressed in their uniforms her dads looked different which kind of scared her but she knew her daddy from a mile away.

For 9.74 hour’s journey stayed hidden and quiet.

When they finally landed the little girl had to use the restroom and she needed a bath, so she went to the bathroom took care of her business and bathed quickly changing her clothes to something warmer.

As soon as she got out of the bathroom she bump into someone.

Looking up Journey saw her uncle.

(Dick Greyson):

“Journey Marie Todd what are you doing here?” Dick asked looking at his niece in shock. “Hey Uncle Dickie.” Journey said nervously. “Jason we have a situation you might want to come back to the plane.” Dick said over his comm. “on my way.” Jason said over his comm.

Dick knew his brother was going to be beyond upset.

Nightwing called Batman and told him the situation and he too was upset but was going to let his son deal with it.

Jason made it back to the plane taking his helmet off looking straight at his daughter. “Journey Marie Todd what are you doing here!” Jason yelled not wanting to lose his temper but his anger was at his peak seeing his daughter. “Hi daddy.” Journey said nervously. “What are you doing here Journey?!” Jason asked ignoring her nervous hi.

Journey stayed quiet not knowing what to say. “Journey Marie Todd I need you to talk before I lose my temper!” Jason said trying to stay calm. “I wanted to be with you.” the little girl said not understanding why her father and uncle looked so upset. “I told you that I’m coming back home in three weeks and now me and your uncle have to rush this mission so we can get you home!, not only did you put yourself at risk at getting hurt or worse, you put not only yourself in danger but you put us at risk and danger!” Jason yelled in anger.

Journey was crying scared never seeing her daddy act this way.

Jason saw the fear in his babygirl’s eyes and the tears falling down her face.

He picked her up holding her in his arms letting her cry in his chest. “I’m sorry for scaring you sweetheart but you can’t do this it’s dangerous, I don’t want anything happening to you. I can’t lose you.” Jason expressed.

Journey didn’t say anything she just hiccuped in her father’s chest.

Jason sat down on one of the seats with his daughter in his arms.

He placed his daughter in his lap patting her back. “Are you hungry sweetheart? have you eaten anything today?” Jason asked looking down at his daughter.

The little girl shook her head feeling her stomach growling.

Dick went to the small kitchen on the plane and grabbed his niece a snack and some juice handing it to his brother who handed it to the little girl.

After Journey was finished eating, and drinking her Juice she laid her head back on her father’s chest.

Dick walked over to the father/daughter duo. “I know you told Bruce. What did he say?” He said he’ll let you deal with it.” Dick said. “Well I’ll deal with it more when we get back to Gotham but right now we have to finish here earlier than expected then get home I’m ready to get home.” Jason said. “I’m with you on that, I miss my bed.” Dick said jokingly. “I’m sure you do.” Jason said smirking at his brother.

Journey stayed quiet not moving from her seat.

Jason noticed his daughter’s sitting quietly not daring to make a move. “Journey baby what’s the matter?” Jason asked looking at his daughter in concern.

The little girl didn’t say anything she just looked at her father then looked out the window. “Journey talk to me baby.” Jason said sitting next to his daughter. “You hate me.” Journey said sadly. “No sweetheart, I don’t hate you. I’ll never hate you. I love you more than anything.” Jason said taking his daughter’s hands in his. “I’m not angry anymore, I want you to know I love you more than anything and I know you hate when we’re away from each other and I do too babygirl but you sneaking here was very dangerous for you and it could have been worse if someone dangerous came aboard this plane, and me and your uncle wasn’t around. I don’t know what I’ll do if anything happened to you god forbid, that’s why I was so angry.” Jason said cupping his daughter’s face.

Journey was young but she understood the depth of everything her father was telling her.

She didn’t know what her dad and the rest of her family did, she just knew they worked together.

Looking into her father’s eyes she saw love and care. “I’m sorry daddy.” Journey said. “It’s ok baby and I’m sorry that I lost my temper and yelled at you. Don’t ever do this again I mean it Journey Marie Todd and when we get home I want you to give me your iPad, I’ll let you keep your phone cause you’ll need it going to school and your grounded for a week.” Jason said softly but firmly.

When they got back to Gotham and to the Bat-cave, Jason carried his sleeping daughter seeing Bruce and the rest of the Bat family along with Sam. “I’m so sorry Jason I should have been paying attention more. “It’s ok Sammy it’s not your fault I’m just glad she’s safe and we’re back home safely.” Jason said cupping Sam’s cheek bring her into his embrace.

Bruce walked up to his son’s awaiting their mission reports. “Mission reports.” Bruce said simply. “All good, no deaths reported.” Dick said simply. “Good. Glad the mission was successful.” Bruce said. “We’re gonna stay for awhile.” Jason said looking at Bruce. “That’s fine with me, this is your home to stay as long as you want.” Bruce said.

Jason room his daughter to her room waking her up for a bath, washing her hair and gut her dressed in her pajamas.

After his daughter was in bed and he had her iPad, Jason kissed Journey’s head then he went to his room to shower getting dressed in black sweatpants and a black T-shirt.

Seeing Sam sitting on his bed rubbing her hands nervously she looked up at him when he got out of his bathroom.

Jason sensed her nervousness and walked over to her and sat next to her taking her hands into his. “Jason I’m really sorry I looked away for a second and Journey was gone, if you don’t want to be together anymore or you want to fire me as her babysitter I’ll understand.” Sam said sadly. “Sammy I love you, I’m not gonna fire you. Journey can be sneaky but after this experience I know she’ll never do what she did ever again.” Jason said standing up putting his daughter’s iPad on her charger that he also took. “But-“ Sam started but Jason cut her off. “I’m not mad at either of you I’m just concerned about what happened, I’m just glad my daughter is safe and didn’t get hurt and same goes for you too.” Jason said cupping his girlfriend’s face with bath hands. “Journey and you mean the world to me and I was so scared I’ll lose that over this one small mistake, I honestly thought you’ll kill me for it.” Sam said her hands started shaking. “Sam I’ll never hurt you or let anyone hurt you, now if you were anyone else yes I would’ve killed you for sure but your my girlfriend and the love of my life I’ll never hurt you or let anyone hurt you. You had no idea what was going on in Journey’s head or knew she’ll sneak off, like I said she knows what she did wrong, she’s grounded for a week without her iPad and she the only reason why I’m allowing her to keep her phone is because she’ll need it for school.” Jason said simply. “Did you yell at her?” Sam asked looking at her boyfriend who looked at her in her eyes. “I did, I lost my temper, but I only yelled because what she did was extremely dangerous and I’m afraid that one day I’ll lose her because of what I do or did in the past.” Jason said for the first time telling someone his deepest fears.

Sam walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Jay Jay you’re not gonna lose her, I think anyone would be extremely crazy for messing with the daughter of Redhood and granddaughter of Batman.” Sam said while Jason wrapped his arms around her waist. “That would be crazy but it’s not impossible we all have our enemies.” Jason said. “Y’all are safe and back home that’s what matters the most.” Sam said leaning her head on Jason’s shoulder.

They soon went to bed falling asleep happy that they were safely back home and not in any hurt or danger.

-sorry it’s been so long but here it is 😉

-I’ll try to update whenever I can ☺️

-love you 3000! 💖

-stay blessed 🙏🏽 stay healthy 😷

-until next time ✌🏽

(Dick Greyson/ Nightwing (wanted him to match Jason dressed the black and red so found this picture on google).

[tanglepelt]

Run Ghost Run - 14

prev master ao3

John Talks to Lady Gotham. Jason talks to Bruce. They have varying levels of success.

John was over the bat.

He just walked in silence. Com clicking away. No response after no response. Yet the man stayed silent. Looming in the shadows. Hell. It was annoying.

Not to mention Gotham as a whole. How he despised this city. He was very over Gotham, this town really stunk. Curses ran a mock in this city. Death gets trapped and corrupted here.

Only reason they didn’t run amock was due to the city's resident ecto-being lady Gotham. She managed to either absorb those stuck or shoo them out to be others’ problems. Lady Gotham was obsessed with protecting this city.

By all right. Should be in the realm herself.

But no. She got bloody obsessed with Gotham, that was a pain ta realize. Claimed the bloody city as if it was her own. If he didn’t know any better, he’d say she was obsessed with the bats.

The bat.

He could live without him. You can only take so much of the brooding and the arguments about science vs magic. Why did the being have ta choose Gotham? Desperation despair, just why here of all places.

Bloody hell. She don’t even let other entities here. More than one odd fight here and there. Ghost disputes. Ain’t cause damage as she kept the lot from causing any.

She ain’t let squat through. So why come to Gotham of all places? Maybe this guy felt Lady Gotham's presence. Or maybe she reached out to him? Or just completely dumb luck?

Wherever the kid was Lady Gotham would know. Knowin' her got a deal out of it or something.

Granted. Gotham was the ideal place for these entities to hide. Factoring in he could be hiding out. The stench of Gotham would by the time he supposes. Wouldn’t be the first time something tried to hide out here.

 As much as the bat disliked the occult, his entire city was crawling with the stuff. Just had to get the kid hope he ain’t dead and go from there. Just had to stop the infinite realm from going all out.

Bloody hell. Yeas. This was just peachy.

“Where’s the kid?”

A grunt. That’s the response he got. He was typing away again. If the world wasn’t on the line he’d be amused. Of all the times for the cold shoulder. It sure wasn’t bloody today. Who knows what condition the entity would be in? Blood blossoms aren't a joke.

The US government. Well, they were a joke. God bless England, it ain’t condemning the world to an apocalypse. He didn’t want to think of the other possibilities they could do. Just had to mess with an entire dimension.

 Whoever had the supposed kid was still not responsive.

You’d think at a certain point he’d stop calling. Didn’t he have trackers on everyone or something? Like he’s a detective and all. Trackers just for him.

Hell, he couldn’t even sense any ego signature in the city, well minus Lady Gotham’s. Her ectoplasm was stretched all throughout the town. She was also directing her essence directed at him. Couldn’t feel jack cause of it.

Clearly, not a fan he was in her city.

If anything is here, he wouldn’t know.

Same ain’t true outside of Gotham. Before entering the city boundaries. He felt it, something coming this way. A newly formed ecto entity less than a year old, one beelining it.

It wasn’t a baby ancient or even a world ending in strength. Maybe a scout? That didn’t feel quite right either. Still too young to have any proper training. If it were possible, he’d say it was just forming a core. Which didn’t track.

Those things came premade. They pop into existence with them. No forming happens. A life moved on to the afterlife, not ready to give up or it's somehow too powerful for a normal afterlife. Instantly knew the rules for the realm.  Instantly knew their powers.

Then deal with the other beings. Fighting to learn their powers all to help the younger ones use them properly. This didn’t track.

That young of a being ain’t supposed to be out and about.

Well, whatever it was would be on Gotham’s doorstep soon.

Time was not their friend. When was it?

Lady Gotham decided to push more of her ectoplasm toward him. Great.

Bloody hell. He was gonna have to deal with Lady Gotham. The only way to find this entity. Hell. Maybe he’ll get lucky, and she’ll spill.

She didn’t like him, and he didn’t like her.

Having all your thoughts shared made it awfully tricky to get a loophole in any deal. Ugh. Oh well. He’d figure it out. If the bat was no help. He’d just go around the guy. Unless he finally got an answer.

Another failed call.

Screw it.

He wasn’t bound to the bat.

“I’m out. Follow my own hunch. Pester lady Gotham. She got ta be hiding him.”

Only a grunt. The guy must be stuck in his phone. Whoever had the kid aint talking? He won't waste time waiting. Best to go hunt down Lady Gotham. He knows her tricks and knows better than to make any deals. He should be able to get at least something out of her, joint feelings and all. Just had to use that to his advantage.

He’s done it before.

Now to deal with Lady Gotham. Great. Well… she agreed to meet with him. Even before he sent out a request to her. Her ecto signature hit him like a brick of walls. He allowed the void to take him.

What business do you have here John could feel her anger.

Let an ecto being here anytime recently.

Protectiveness hit him.

What business do you have with the prince?

Dread filled the channel between them.

F*ck

What business do you have with the prince?

Blood blossoms were injected into him. He needs help don’t he?

He Is with my favorite knight. Any human in possession of these blossoms will be dealt with. No more will be permitted within his presence. He is under my protection now.

Gotta be affecting him. If the kids a royal and I can’t feel it. It’s bad. Not even you could hide his signature alone.

There was some form of discomfort creeping in between them.

Kid needs help.

As long as you are working with Batman. You arrived with him. Unlike normal. I will not help. The deal I have stricken will remain unbroken. That holds the prince to remain under my protection. Until Gotham is unsafe he is suck. I shan’t lead my knight to him.

I’ll ditch the bat. That ain’t a problem.

Then we shall strike our own deal

****

The kid was out. No time like the present to deal with Bruce.

“What”. Bruce was lucky Jason could go outside via the window. He would not risk waking that kid up. Only reason he was willing to talk. Well. Willing was a strong word. He just needs information, to find out what is going on. Maybe get the kid's parents' name out of the conversation.

Purely for educational reasons, no other reason.

Wouldn’t know how much he’d get until he dealt with the man.

Bruce was just as stubborn as him.

Might as well make this as quick as he could.

“I just got that kid into a bed. Dealt with his injuries. Kids lucky he didn’t bleed out jumping off a roof. Might I remind you to avoid you guys? Whatever you need, make it quick.”?

“This is serio-“

“Kid was vivisected. Know that? Parents no less. If you have info about his health or well-being I’ll take it, show up here and we bounce. Kid and I quote specifically said no cops or those weird vigilantes. I’ll take my chances.”

“He was poisoned by something called blood blossoms; Constantine says they're deadly to ecto-entities.”

“You have a cure” Bruce better have some solutions or something. He will not let this kid die on him.

“Constantine said he’d have to look” Bruce’s voice was more frustrated than normal. Most of been trying to deal with this for a while.

The kid needed treatment and the blood blossom thing had to be a recent discovery. None of the attempts to contact him had been as separate as the last few.

“That ain’t gonna work, that kids running if someone shows up here. I’ve managed to get him some help by being his best option. We’re both guilty of crimes ya know.”

“He needs help you can’t give”.

“I’ve done more than your merry band. They scared him off a roof. That could have been fatal” from what he’d gathered. It was the “blood” son who caused that mess. Dick just got stuck with the blame.

“Danny is a teen who is terrified. Having someone come around ain’t gonna help.

That kid certainly won’t trust a drunk in a trench coat. He doesn’t even trust me; he just knows I ain’t turning him in. I only know what I know cause he accidentally spilled when I was patching the kid up. Not very tight-lipped when pretending he is fine.

I’ve barely managed to get him any medical treatment. It’s not a pretty sight. If that kid bolts and these stitches pop again, he very well could bleed out. Blood blossoms aside.

No way you’ll be able to convince him to go with you willingly nor let anyone near him. Couldn’t John just use his magic or whatnot to work just close by”?

“Hm”

“Did Constantine ditch the big bad bay?” Jason could find the humor in that even given the situation. So they had to figure out some way to get this handled.

Getting him to agree to let a British English man come over. That ain’t happening. Not like that. Not when the kid likely has some of his powers back.

But.

Maybe. Instead of a random British man, he could bring up an older British man. John would have to figure out lurking from a distance, he could lurk around while Alfred was in the apartment. Kid clocked him when he was on the roof. Couldn’t just have John show up to sneak about. What if he got sensed out as well?

Bruce and them were a no-go. Too public or too suspicious.

Use Alfred. Lie and say he knows a guy. Not a doctor just an older man who offered help. More luck with him then the drunk. Then he’d at least get better medical attention. He could handle this stuff with no problem. He was most certainly not on Alfred’s level.

“Just maybe I could convince him to let Agent A stop by.

Not ideal. But just maybe it could work. Have John show up at the same time. Let him feel around.

The ectoplasm in the vial seemed to help the kid out. Have one of the bats come and grab it. They can pass that off to John for now.

That’s the only way any of this will work. The kid has powers and all. For now, it’s my only offer.”

Crash bang

That was coming from inside the apartment. Oh no. It’s been like 8 minutes did he wake up? Did he hear any of this? Was it actually super hearing?

“What was tha-“

“Gotta go”

“Don’t-“ Jason hung up mid-sentence. He had to see what’s up. Maybe the kid just tried to leave again and failed. Knocked over the side table or something.

Getting back into the apartment Just in time to see Danny's panic and fear evident in his eye bolting. Once again going intangible right before his eyes. Backpack in hand.

F*ck.