#but enjoy the ramble dami!!

[aviantrolls]

Oh Dami u already KNOW it’s Rin. I’ve had Rin since I was in middle school so like. [counts on my fingers] 2013/2014 Academic Year? 17/18 was Freshman Year of High School.

Rin has changed a lot! But he is my baby, and he is still somewhat of a self insert! However now, he’s just my most projected on OC and shares a lot of tiny little things with me. Son. Blorbo. Apple of my eye. My most prominent muse with a million AUs.

Rin started out as a silverblooded female troll, around 6/7 sweeps- about the age we meet the trolls in canon, who was kicking it with ‘her’ family line with a wandering group of limebloods. Eventually get kicked out from that group for some reason or another. Then Rin shifts to his more self-insert stage where ‘she’ was.. a limeblooded seadweller, but posed as a violet because uhhh Eridan. It was between Eridan, Sollux, and Karkat whenever it was self-ship time. Crazy times. After that, ‘she’ was just a very secluded limeblooded seadweller, whose lusus was a sea turtle! Kyrian came a little more into being here in the fact that Rin had journals from her, and SeaturtleMom vehemently enforced no quadrants because of what happened to Kyrian.

Around 2016 I change Rin up, and ‘she’ is just a limeblood, roughing it and trying to survive. ‘She’ was just as rowdy and stubborn once that cautiousness faded, and ‘she’ always wore a vest over a black button up and khaki shorts or pants with some boots. Soon after Rin becomes a he finally, as I had realized I was trans, so he had to match :). I met videndumsprint/Pox as my first person in the FTC, and I started a plot with their lime Zanrie! Rin’s lusus flipped from being a crow/raven to eventually became the CroboaMom we love today.

Between Zanrie and some other things, Rin also had various plots and whatnot with some friends before I got on tumblr for real. Will forever remember those ships- good times, although very ‘crack’-y or angsty.

Now, Rin has grown a lot and has a huge support network that I could never have imagined him having.

OOH i also remembered msparp lol. Rin started there, too, after middle school. Pre-tumblr was msparp days <3

hi guys, my mood hasnt been great today and so i want u guys to show me ur trolls <3 

today i would love to see… ur FIRST troll. this could either be your first troll ever, ur first troll that’s stuck around to present day, ur first troll on ur blog, or any other variation on ‘first’ u can think of

also tell me a little about them please and thank u, it will fix me

[cutiecorner]

♡ Regressor Damian Headcanons ♡

He will always be the littlest guy in the world to me and regression can happen at any age so. Baby dami rambles with cg alfred and bruce under the cut!!

He represses his regression hard at first

He's always done it, but he always immediately tries to train it out of himself. It doesn't work

When he lived with his mom he would go climb into her bed. She didn't mind and always allowed it

Initially that's as far as he'd allow himself to go with it, just being held by his mom. He felt small and safe with her, and that was enough

When he moved to the manor he didn't think the separation from his mom would be a big problem. He was wrong

He hated to admit it, but he was terribly homesick. Especially on nights he felt small he just wanted was his mommy, but he pushed it all down

Eventually it all became too much for him and he started crying in bed

Bruce and Alfred immediately noticed and came to help him - it was one of the first tender moments between the three of them

Bruce got to hold Damian, which he'd never done before

Despite all evidence to the contrary Bruce is a great cuddler, and he loves it. He's big and soft and safe. Damian immediately burrowed into him and refused to let go

Damian was always carried by his mom as a baby, so he still loves being carried. He clings to Bruce like a little koala

He'll just climb into people's laps at any given moment. Usually Alfred or Bruce, occasionally Dick.

In general very clingy while regressed, he doesn't like to be alone

Though he likes to have someone in his presence, he likes to play by himself. He gets upset when someone interrupts his intricate stories

He loves to draw and make art of course. Paint is his favorite medium, he loves to finger paint.

He does enjoy pacis, though it took him a while to warm up to them. They calm him down when he's upset.

He doesn't like a lot of cartoons, they're too loud and overstimulating. The few he does like are Kipper, Angelina Ballerina, and Little Bear

He has a few stuffed animals he holds very dear. He won't buy them for himself, they're all from various people in his life

He loves to bake cookies with alfred. More accurately watch alfred bake them, but he helps where he can (he loves to stir and eat some dough)

He also enjoys having tea. He refuses to call it a tea party but that's what it is. He brings his stuffed animals and pets and everyone gets a cup.

He adores his pets as always. He's always with at least one of them.

He does throw tantrums sometimes, usually when he frustrated. He usually ends up more upset then angry, he'll cry and need a moment to calm down. That's okay though, he never gets in trouble for expressing himself

He loves to be treated like a prince like his mother used to. He has trouble asking for it but he expects to be spoiled and waited on, and Alfred and Bruce are happy to oblige since he's usually so independent

[milky04moo]

Colds and Cuddles~ D.W

prompt:  ‘Sorry I have a clingy and feverish assassin on my lap. I’ll call you back when I’ve convinced him that a cold doesn't mean he’s dying’

word count: 679 

Damian was rarely ever ill but on the odd occasion he was ill his personality completely changed. He became dependent on others for once, going against what he was taught as a child. And so here you were on a gloomy Wednesday morning at the Wayne manor laying on the sofa with a very pale looking Damian clinging to your body. After a while of watching the tv and cuddling with Damian you really needed to pee. You tried to move out from under him but was only greeted with a soft uncharacteristic whine from Damian.

‘Dami I need to go to the bathroom’ you whispered to the sick boy as you pushed his raven hair from his pale forehead. He moved to look at you as he leaned into your touch, you stayed in that position for a while before he gave a big sigh and  finally moved from on top of you. 

‘I’ll be back in a sec’ you whispered to him and he hummed a response. 

You did your business and made your way back to the living room back to the sick boy who was now sitting with his blanket over his head staring blankly at the tv screen. You sat down next to him once again and he resumed his position laying with his head on your lap. You sat in comfortable silence watching the tv playing with Damian’s hair. It was bad to say you loved when Damian was sick, he was never this affectionate, sure he was affectionate normally but when he was sick he was clingy and loved the affection and attention you gave him. The two of you stayed in that position for a while watching the stupid cartoon rerun, one that you were pretty sure you had seen already today but you didn’t dare question it as Damian seemed to enjoy watching them and it was nice to see him be a normal teenager for once. After a while Damian’s head felt heavy and you looked down to see him sleeping in your lap, you smiled softly at the sight before you. The trained child assassin Damian Wayne, the kid who had been taught to not show weakness and to never let his guard down was sleeping soundly on your lap and it filled you with joy. 

Everything was peaceful until the ring of your phone broke the silence in the room. You picked it up seeing it was your best friend and you answered the phone.

‘Hey , what's up?’ you spoke quietly so as to not wake the boy in your lap. As your friend rambled on about whatever it was she was talking about you watched Damian sleep, not in a weird way but in admiration. That was until your friend asked you a question.

‘hey  (y/n) you still there?’ she asked from the other side of the phone.

You went to answer as Damian pulled his arms around your waist and nuzzled closer to your stomach. 

‘Sorry I have a clingy and feverish assassin on my lap. I’ll call you back when I’ve convinced him that a cold doesn't mean he’s dying’ you joked making your friend laugh.

‘He’s really that ill huh?’ she questioned jokingly

‘Yeah he hasn't moved from the couch all day and I’m being used as a heated blanket’ you answered.

‘I’ll let you get back to him, wouldn't want to take away his blanket’ she laughed and said her goodbyes. 

You hung up and chucked your phone on the side table, you turned back to the boy in your lap to see him smiling sleepily up at you and he leaned into your touch as you ran your hand through his hair once again. You leaned down to give him a peck on the lips and laid down next to him not worried about getting sick because you knew he would 100% take care of you. That's how Alfred and Bruce found you and Damian when they came to see if the two of you wanted supper, thankfully they left you like that but not before snapping a few pictures for the secret photo album Alfred was making.

[huntressofthesun]

Alright then, more non-tag ideas. The South Jersey accent.

Jason, Tim, Duke, Steph, and Bruce all say wuder. Babs says it when she’s like super rambley and into what she’s talking about but normally she tones it down; she talks to people from all over the world she can’t give herself away that easily. Dick, Damian, and Cass don’t have the accent at all but Dick can slip into it a bit if he needs to.

Batman says water and erases all other traits of his accent as to make himself less recognizable bc Bruce is just extra like that. Red Hood is the only hero who really leans into the accent, he sounds like one of those SJ moms with the super thick accent bc this time Jason is extra like that. Everyone else tries to keep it as mild and normal as possible, like it’s clear they’re from Gotham but people from outside of Jersey can still understand them.

Bruce and the rest of the batfam make a lot more sense when you remember they’re from Jersey. Like we’re just kinda like that.

But I also love the idea that Gotham is in South Jersey cause that’s my area and like, it makes even more sense. Yeah the Philly and New York adjacent areas have their own wild shit, but just thinking about the people I grew up around and how decades of people like them shaped Gotham into a city where Batman and his group of unruly children is normal, it totally fucking tracks.

(Although I can’t decide if it’s funnier to have Gotham be like slightly north of AC and Brigantine, which would explain a lot, or if it’s funnier down by Salem which is just hilarious to me. If that’s the case then Bludhaven is absolutely by AC and nobody can convince me otherwise.)

Like, the batkids having the pork roll/taylor ham debate? Does central jersey truly exist? Tim, Jay, and Cass going to the pine barrens over a long weekend to camp out in search of the jersey devil? (Dami was physically locked in the cave so he could not join them. They had to use the heavy duty chains. He almost escaped.)

Dick comes back after spending too much time with the titans and asks if anyone wants to go to the beach. You can see Jay’s soul leaving his body as he prepares to beat the jersey shore back into his shoobie brother with extreme prejudice. Bruce gets nostalgia in the spring for corn season in the fall. The cowtown rodeo, lucy the elephant, wildwood, cape may, the possibilities are endless y’all. Gimme more South Jersey Bats damnit.

[bunnvoid]

Afadsdafaadsadafafsfadadafsfsfaffafafadasffafafadsdafadsda THE DICK AND DAMIAN COMIC...I cant put it into words..........my crops have not just been watered, NAY, they are flourishing. Theyre entering beauty pageants. Theyre growing up excelling in several extracurriculars. Theyre graduating college. Theyre getting a job. Theyre getting married. Theyre picking up a fulfilling retirement hobby. Theyr-

SJHGSD im so glad to hear that you really enjoyed it jdjd

Goodness I really loved making it! The idea had been sitting in my head for a hot minute too. I so love the time when they were running around as batman and robin. Just the idea of taking it from in the inner thoughts of Dami when he was still getting comfortable.

Dunno the song felt like it takes an almost whimsical and nearly hopeful view of someone bringing in an outsider. The inner thoughts of the kid he really tried repress so he can 'rightfully take his place'.

im rambling incoherently at this point but in short THEM

[itsmespicaa]

"We’re the only ones left now.”

This issue...hit me pretty hard :’D I couldn’t even enjoy Shazam!Cass as much as I wanted to at first bc I was still shaken from Jason’s sudden death. Some people saw it coming, but I guess I was too hopeful and naive; thinking the three last Batkids would stay alive together till the end </3

(More of my rambling and headcanon below)

The words on the tombstone is a direct callback to how Jason wrote on Bruce, Dick and Tim’s tombstone. The tombstones Damian saw years ago, back when Jason was the one burying his family. And now...Damian and Cass bury him too.

This time, the sentiments are shared between Cass, Damian and Rose. I nearly cried so many times drawing this piece lol I stopped counting.

My personal headcanon is that the graves in Ivy’s garden can grow different flowers with specific symbolism depending on who’s visiting. We all know she hates having her plants messed with, so this is her way of beautifying the graves and tombstones.

Red roses for Rose bc...well. Passion, love, desire. She just lost her husband after all.

Red Hydrangea for the siblings, reflecting their heartfelt emotions, their gratitude and apology, their regrets. The thing is, Damian only found out that his only family left are alive not too long ago. And on another hand, Cass only had Jason for the longest time. I’d imagine it would hit her more than it would Damian ;-; gosh. That doesn’t mean it affects Dami any less tho.

I really hope we get to see them mourn properly in one panel at least qwq but if not...at least I have this.

[theodorecanaryhood]

Batboys teaching reader to drive

Headcanon no one asked for but here we are! Batboys x female sister reader

Dick

Dick is the most patient

'Just breath and take your time' he'll say as you put into gear

You slowly pull out into the road and start driving

'Good clutch control, now go into second'

Dick is very patient even if you are a little annoying

You keep apologising for mistakes

Dick just smiles and reassures you you're doing fine

He takes control of the wheel a couple of times to put you in a straight line

'Watch out, this is a school zone' he says

Dick will make you laugh to take your mind off how nervous you are

He'll guide you to reverse bay park

He'll tell you good techniques to use

Dick will be firm if you did something that could get you into trouble or hurt

But he's proud when you pass your lesson

Jason

Being taught to drive by Jason scares you as he is not very patient

He surprises you with how calm he is

'Waych your speed, watch the turn signal but most importantly watch what is happening around you' he says

When you eventually get on the road, he keeps waving his hand as a signal for you to straighten up in the road

'Stop sign means stop y/n' he snaps, realising he's making you nervous he apologises

'Watch what is going on as well as the road' he reassures

Jason starts answering all your questions in detail

After your third attempt of reverse bay parking Jason starts getting a little annoyed

'It's not that hard' he says

'For you, this is my first time' you snark back at him

Jason tells you the best technique to do it and it works after two attempts

Jason apologises if he got a little impatient

When you keep stalling at a light he starts getting annoyed again

'Don't worry about the cars behind you, just focus on what you're doing' he says, you manage to get out onto the road again

Maybe Jason wasn't the most patient but what he taught you helped and you passed

Jason was proud, cocky. But proud

Tim

Tim is drunk with caffeine half of the time so you have no idea how he will manage to stay with it

But he does

He's also very patient so it helps

He can get sarcastic if it makes you laugh enough

He gets you on the road

Tells you little techniques and tricks

'You can't hack everything Tim' you comment

'You can if you're good at it' he smiles

He warns you about speed limits up ahead

He reminds you to use your turn signal

He helps you straighten up if needed

'You're going 20 in a 30 lane y/n, step on it a bit' he says calmly

You actually enjoy learning from Tim

Tim enjoys the time away from the house

Reverse bay parking was piss easy thanks to Tim's guidance

He talked you through the best way to do it before you did it

Tim was with you for your test and hugged you when you passed

Damien

Ok, not much here

Damien is 14

Can you take driving lessons from a 14 year old?

Nope

So instead, Damien is with you in the car for the first time after you pass

One of the boys above taught you

Damien criticises everything

'I can tell (batbro) taught you, his driving sucks' he says

'You know a better way?' You say, studying him

'I've been driving since I could walk'

'No one has Dami, you're a child' you laugh

Damien never threw you off at all, if anything him rambling about your skills at driving amused you

You'd only passed recently and him already having stuff to say made you chuckle

Damien eventually liked the ride with you, as you were calm and unfazed by what he was saying

Focusing on what was going on around you

'Can you take me to school tomorrow?' He asks you sweetly

You smile

'Of course'

Damien would use you as an uber all the time now

Bonus

Bruce

Your Dad isn't always the most patient

Hell his driving has given you nightmares

He was very responsible teaching you though, also very calm

Gave you tips

Helped you with questions

To be honest, your Dad could've probably done this on the side as he was pretty good at teaching you

'School zone, watch your speed' he would say as you slowed down

Bruce was probably the best choice as he had more experience

Of course you didn't learn in one of his expensive cars

You learnt in a run down Honda

You insisted

'Don't want to damage your wheels dad' you laughed

Bruce eased you into the reverse bay

He also eased you into learning about the different signals and signs to look out for

Bruce even made time to show you how to pump the gas

Bruce was grinning brightly when you passed on first attempt

[haneybun123]

Things Dreamcatcher Love About You!

masterlist

A/N: in celebration of Odd Eye! the girls outdid themselves ♡＾���＾♡

JiU / Kim Minji

- when you eat with her. She finds it very sweet and domestic. her with two of your favourite things: you and food.

- when you play with her hands. She thinks it’s an adorable habit and she WILL blush.

- when you trust her with your secrets. As a leader, she’s used to being trusted, so she loves that you do too.

SuA / Kim Bora

- when you play with her hair. She finds it very relaxing.

- when you go along with her jokes and sexual humour. She loves that you can laugh together. Having similar humour matters a lot to her.

- when you take photos and selfies with her. she loves having memories with you (you’re both each others lock screens)

Siyeon / Lee Siyeon

- when you listen to her rant/ramble. It means a lot to her that you’re willing to listen.

- when you relax together. She loves coming home to you, especially if it’s to cuddles. The fact you can spend time together doing nothing makes her so happy.

- when you can fangirl together over whatever it may be (probably marvel) but her heart may burst if she sees you fangirl over Dreamcatcher. Sharing the same interests matters so much to her.

Handong / Han Dong

- when you give her spontaneous kisses! it makes her feel very loved (and very shy).

- when you dance with her. it doesn’t have to be serious choreography, even if it’s slow dancing she’ll love it. she thinks you’re cute when you have fun with her.

- when you call her out of nowhere to check on her. the fact that she’s always on your mind makes her so happy.

Yoohyeon / Kim Yoohyeon

- if you play instruments or sing, she’d love to play with you. She loves music and loves that you do too!

- going shopping together for anything. Clothes, groceries, what have you. having fun with you and spending quality time together makes her really happy (◕▿◕✿)

- when you clown around with her. being an idiot together, taking stupid photos together. she doesn't think a relationship can be perfect if you can’t go crazy go stupid together.

Dami / Lee Yubin 

- when you can hang out together quietly without it being weird. she enjoys the quiet and loves if you feel the same.

- she loves playing games with you. she thinks downtime with you is the best way to spend the day.

- wearing each others clothes! she thinks you look so cute in her clothes (if you can’t fit don't worry it’ll just be funny)

Gahyeon / Lee Gahyeon

- when you care about her members and her music as much as she does. it makes her happy that you support her. 

- if you let her put makeup on you/ put makeup on her. she finds it really sweet and loves the intimacy.

- when you wait up for her. awake or asleep, she will blush like crazy then smother you in love. it is absolutely the cutest!

[anothertimdrakestan]

Robin vs Vodka Damian Wayne x Reader

Words: 1k

Requested? Yes! From a lovely anon!

“damian wayne x reader w/29?” (29. dumbass are you drunk???)

LINK TO PROMPTS  -> REQUESTS ARE STILL OPEN!

Underage drinking is not it chief don’t do it unless you’re a vigilante. Or dating one...

“Jason fucking Todd why is Damian drunk off his ass?” Dick glared at a sheepish Jason as the teen stumbled around the kitchen begging for his beloved. “I thought he needed the vodka for cooking or some shit, how am I supposed to know he’s gonna drink it?” Jason rolled his eyes but couldn’t help but laugh as a shitfaced Damian began facetiming his girlfriend. 

“Beloved there’s an emergency at the manor I need you” Damian yelled into his phone before hanging up with a grin. “DAMI NO” Dick scrambled for Damian’s phone while Jason snuck off into the BatCave. 

You sprinted into the manor trying to hold back tears, Damian sounded hurt on the phone, his voice was strained and sad, you knew he needed you for the emergency. Bursting into the manor you locked eyes with Damian who stumbled towards you, wrapping you in his sloppy embrace. His breath stank of alcohol as Dick stared at you. Peeling Damian off you only for him to try to bring you into a kiss you dodged and stared at him. “Dumbass are you drunk?” you asked him looked at Dick who was now staring at the floor. “So we don’t know why but Dami asked Todd for vodka and because he’s Jason he just gave it to him and we can’t find the bottle but clearly he drank a lot and he had his phone and he called you before I could stop him but now that you’re here he’s all yours, I mean he’s been pining for you the whole time apparently.” Dick rambled on before wishing you good luck and practically running out of the manor. 

“Oh god Damian really?” you tried to prop Damian up as he clung to you. “My dearest beloved lets go to the bedroom I wish to hold you” Damian kept trying to connect his lips to yours but the most he was getting was a peck, you did not want to encourage him. Cursing Damian for being significantly taller and heavier than you as you dragged him towards his bedroom while he tried to pepper your face with kisses. “Dami I love the love but can you please help me get you into your room?” you pleaded. 

After a struggle he was on his bed, face down on his pillow. You went back down to grab Dami water and medication for when he woke up. Thankful your parents were out of town for the weekend you decided it would be best to stay the night and make sure Damian didn’t die in his sleep. What you saw when you entered his room made you drop the glass of water straight into the carpet.

Damian had stripped himself down, leaving almost nothing to the imagination, and sat propped up with one arm on his bed. Clearly trying to give you a sultry smile he just looked like a sleepy four year old trying to smile. “Ah beloved I’ve been waiting for you” he slurred in what can only be described as a faux bat-voice. Knowing you now had blackmail for life you suppressed laughter trying to escape his hands as he reached for you, attempting to drag you into his arms.

“Come along beautiful I know you enjoy this, I can see your eyes roaming” he clicked his tongue at you. It was difficult ignoring how ripped he was, you’re eyes constantly got lost watching his muscles ripple as he reached for you. Realizing that even absolutely smashed Damian would still simp for you, you went for the fake cry. “Dami I’m so sad I just want you to hold me tonight is that okay?” your fake cry was weak, but Damian was weaker. Worry clouded his eyes, quickly forgetting any activities he had planned for the night. “Habibi I never want anything more than to hold you, come” he slipped under his sheets and invited you in. Quickly putting on the t-shirt he’d thrown off you joined him in bed. 

Drunk or not, Damian held you like you could break in his arms. For about 30 seconds he traced lazy circles on your back before he passed out. Once you knew he was out cold you went back to grab him more water. Slipping back into bed you drank in how adorable he looked, lightly snoring as he twitched in his sleep. You fell asleep watching his chest rise and fall, trying not to worry about the next morning. 

“Damian oh my god are you dead?” it had been 10 hours since you fell asleep, you figured it was the longest Damian had ever slept. Trying to lightly shake him to make sure he was breathing you heard a groan and sighed knowing he was in fact, alive. He slowly rolled over, eyes squeezed shut in visible pain. Offering him the water and medication you ran your fingers through his hair trying to comfort him. After swallowing the medication he grabbed your hips and dragged you into his embrace. “Sleep now or pet me” he mumbled as he held you to him. With a smile you laid with him for a couple hours longer until he eventually got up.

After he’d changed and thrown up a little bit he was almost entirely back to normal. Sitting with Damian as he sketched you brought up the question bugging you all night. “Dami can we talk?” he looked up at you nodding. “Well you’ve never drank before and all of a sudden last night you were shitfaced” you giggled remembering last nights events but shook that off and looked expectantly at Damian who was flushed with embarrassment. “Habibi I’ll tell you but you must swear you won’t tell a soul” ready to learn the terrifying reason that drove your boyfriend to alcohol you nodded. 

“I thought I was stronger than alcohol” he looked at you sincerely and you doubled over laughing. Only Damian Wayne takes on literal vodka as an adversary. “I’ve gotta be honest Dames, you lost” you snorted, almost reduced to tears imagining your boyfriend glaring at a bottle of Tito’s. Sheepishly he nodded, and you couldn’t stop laughing even as Dami glared at you. “One more babe, one more joke then I’ll be done,” reluctantly he nodded, knowing nothing was going to stop you. 

“Robin’s greatest foe, fermented grains”

[cattles-bians]

exes au part 12

post directory

obsetress: don’t ask why i had this thought because i couldn’t tell you but

obsetress: jamie wakes up in the middle of the night one night and is like “i... had a dream. about vi”

obsetress: and dani’s like “ok baby” and just nuzzles deeper into her pillow and jamie’s like

obsetress: “no, dani, a... a dream”

obsetress: and dani’s like “oh. oh” and is immediately wide awake and bright eyed

obsetress: and is like “was it any good?” and jamie is just. already flushed so red and flushed deeper and dani just hums

em: sighs wistfully

em: i also love that something compels jamie to tell dani Immediately

em: oh the perils of begrudgingly being friends w ur gfs ex

em: jamies like um. no see i can see all these different things my brain mashed together and WHY i had this dream and danis like ok but that wasn’t my question....

obsetress: jamie finally throws up her hands “of course it was”

em: jamie: And You Can’t Tell Vi She’ll Be Insufferable

obsetress: dani, very plainly, at brunch the next morning: so vi

obsetress: jamie looks like she’s going to have a heart attack and dani lets her sweat and then just smiles sweetly “i like those sunglasses. are they new?”

em: jamie what’s the problem (nothin. indigestion)

obsetress: dani very smug n thinks she’s very funny

obsetress: (she is a little funny)

em: one of jamies many ‘oh that’s why they dated’ moments

obsetress: “fookin sick, the both of ya”

em: idk why you had this thought but i’m GREATLY amused

obsetress: skskksksks right

obsetress: jamie explaining her dream to dani in great detail afterwards

obsetress: dani sitting there nodding and hmming “oh that sounds like her. no, she wouldn’t do that. now THAT she would be very good at, you’d like it”

em: i need a moment

em: jamie thinks the dark hides her massive fucken blush but it Doesn’t

em: dani can feel her heating up

obsetress: jamie “i don’t ask you to do this” dani “you’re not stopping me”

em: dani critiquing jamies sex dream is such a fucken funny concept sjdhdkhdkdhdkc

obsetress: RIGHT

obsetress: i’m dying

em: dani: oh no that’s OOC

obsetress: she wouldn’t have a riding crop jamie, it’s 2021, not 16—

em: jamie: it’s a wet dream do u really think it’s gonna have beta readers and a three act structure

em: dani hums

obsetress: dani: well did you enjoy it

obsetress: jamie: i— dani: did you?

obsetress: jamie mumbling yeah

em: jamies like i’m gonna interrogate dani next time, see how she feels- but she forgets dani is incapable of feeling shame

obsetress: like dani wouldn’t just launch into a ramble

---

em: viola

obsetress: fuck

obsetress: yeah

obsetress: to jamie, specifically,

em: to jamie specifically andhdjhdjd

em: once again ironic jamvi has turned, in my brain, into ‘yes and....’ jamvi

—-

obsetress:

obsetress: jamie sending this to viola n vi's like

obsetress: she doesn't get it because she's convinced her taste is immaculate

---

em: anyway this is ooc even for exes au but i keep thinking abt like. jamie tryna crack how old viola is (she cant be 34 im 30 it doesnt make sense) and going through her fb timeline like. 'aha! motivational quotes. gotta be late 30s' and danis either like

em: danis either like 'you have a notebook where you write down all the quotes you like baby' OR shes like haha ok thats fair (posts another motivational quote on her fb)

obsetress: god i love that so much

obsetress: both of those dani responses are

obsetress: honestly porque no los dos if we're already going ooc

obsetress: i do think the first bit "gotta crack it she can't be 34 i'm 30 it doesn't make sense" is in character fwiw

em: obviously i was inspired by ur post in the milf channel abt viola always saying shes 35

em: big brain

—-

obsetress: this is literally just. exes au rebecca

obsetress: down to the caption

obsetress: vi and rebecca patiently staging like full photoshoots for each other every time one of them wants a pic otp: i'm not high maintenance, you're just low effort

---

em: bold 2 say that we don’t think about jamie and vi tho

em: gotta keep some sorta. presentation of respectability

em: they absolutely couldn’t date tho

obsetress: lmao ikr

obsetress: yeah no they'd kill each other

obsetress: now just thinking of silly circumstances and um

obsetress: rebecca's out of town and dani's flying back from some iowa thing jamie couldn't get away for to go with

obsetress: and viola's like "oh, just stay at ours, it's closer and i'll get you a car"

obsetress: and just like

obsetress: imagining the two of them cohabitating at vi's for a night

em: jamie sneaking around at night tryna find the bathroom and runs straight into vi in a face mask and a dangerously low dressing gown Again

obsetress: the parallels to canon

obsetress: im giggling

obsetress: walks straight into her path

em: opens a door. sees something she doesn’t want to see. immediately turns and walks away

em: god the face mask would make her look like the lady in the lake

obsetress: yeah

obsetress: vi wants to go out to dinner, jamie's just like "i'm already getting up early to go to the airport, can't we just have an easy night in"

em: what did i say before. that thing abt if ur friends w damie you will inevitably walk in on them

obsetress: god yeah

em: flip of that.

obsetress: oh GOD

em: god they would argue about dinner

em: bicker about EVERYTHING

em: dani and rebecca both make the married couple joke

em: jamie goes pale

obsetress: wait sorry i just went back to tahirahs insta post and like

obsetress: katie parker commented and was like "i love these shots of you" and she was like "thanks luv " and i'm like

obsetress: why does this....... still track........... with exes au...............

em: perdy is always a little too flirty w vis paramours

obsetress: always! except dani for whatever reason

obsetress: she's just scared of dani

em: Please

obsetress: rebecca's like "i don't see what the problem is. she can do what she wants, but you trust me, don't you?" "of course i trust you" rebecca shrugs "that's it then, isn't it?"

obsetress: anyway vi huffs n crosses her arms n pouts a little bit and is like "well i don't want her to"

obsetress: rebecca is endeared and uses the opportunity to her advantage like the top leaning switch she is

em: dani rebecca parallels: always dtf

obsetress: perdi and vi fighting and vi's like "are you even gay? or do you just want what i have?" and perdi is like "does it matter?"

em: are you even gay perdi nahdkdhdkdhd

em: perdi is like you KNOW about jamie and viola crinkles her nose bc she forgot about that and she’s starting to respect jamie as a person

obsetress: djflakdkfjldkadjLDJFLSKDFJLSDKFJx

obsetress: i screeched

em: viola: you only MET jamie because i hired her for landscaping you fucking-

obsetress: just thinking about perdita watching jamie working on some property sweating in a tank top and Deciding

em: bringing out some lemonade etc

em: haha you look parched

obsetress: smiling widely, turning on the charm

obsetress: jamie is very attractive and very swoonworthy, but perdita 100% only goes for it because she refuses to let viola have one (1) thing

obsetress: and that extends to lesbianism

em: viola's like no this is normal right. siblings competing. rivalries etc and danis like uh i’m an only child and jamies like uh i raised my brother

em: they don’t know how to tell her sure it happens but it’s also extremely fucken weird vi

obsetress: jamie: you have to tell her dani: why do i have to tell her jamie: you tell her everything dani: i don't tell her–– ok, i tell her most things. i'm not sure i want to tell her this though jamie: why not dani: she's not... she's not gonna like it jamie: So You Might Be A People Pleaser,

em: jamie: i can’t tell her. she’s only just forgotten the perdi thing. what if she remembers i’ve

em: in depth character study of viola and perdi’s fucked up rivalry

em: violas like goddamn it do i have to fuck jamie to get even

obsetress: i––

em: she decides against it

em: jamie is none the wiser

obsetress: she Considers it tho

em: jamie would die on the spot if she knew

obsetress: weighs the pros and cons

obsetress: the best part is like

obsetress: this is all post-danvi and pre-damie right so when dani n jamie see rebecca and vi at that video store

obsetress: viola's like wait.

obsetress: wait

obsetress: dani ending up with the hot gardener her sister fucked because she has bizarre jealousy and possession issues is really just the cherry on top of a shit sundae

em: the funniest part of all our very tangled lore is like

em: none of it contradicts bc it’s even funnier when it’s Extremely Ugly And Messy

em: because lesbians are just... like that

---

obsetress: exes au au where viola did fuck jamie, the video rental shop scene is 100 times more awkward

em: don’t think about it don’t think about it dont

em: i am thinking about it

em: jamie has to deal with having been railed by all three of them instead of just the two

em: it feels very uneven to her bc rebeccas a doll, dani, u don’t understand, and ur only running into one ex,

obsetress: talk about the mortifying ordeal of being known

obsetress: "wait, that's your ex?" "yeah" "dani" "what" "dani" "what" jamie's voice is hushed but a lil pitchy and a lot panicky "i think i fucked your ex" "you think?" "i fucked your ex" "you fucked her or she fucked you? because i'm sorry, baby, but i really don't think––"

em: sorry, baby, but i really don’t think-

em: SCREAMED

obsetress: that might be my fave lil bit i've ever written adlfkjasdklf

em: dani being a little too interested in jamie getting railed is like. everything to me

obsetress: jamie's already big blushing

em: a little secret between hannah obsetress and em cowlesbian but i am So thinking abt it

em: patreon exclusive exes au au

[em edit: you can imagine how long this lasted]

obsetress: no one is happy about this situation except dani, who is delighted

em: after, jamie's like. what did u mean by u don’t think that...

em: puffs out her chest

em: i could have-

em: danis like yeah but i know u didn’t did u

obsetress: dani clayton ilu

em: danis like um

em: completely unprompted bc dani ‘finishes a conversation 5 hours later’ is really funny to me

em: danis like i did tho

em: jamies like can you DROP IT

em: she’s SMUG

em: she’s so pleased w herself

obsetress: in bed with the lights off jamie's pulling the sheets up and closing her eyes afterthought

obsetress: just a happy lil hum and an "i did, though"

obsetress: and jamie knows IMMEDIATELY what she's talking about

em: dani never lets jamie live it down

obsetress: never!

obsetress: they'll be washing dishes one day "hey baby?" "hmm" "you slept with a landlord"

em: oh um. flipping the whole ‘experienced jamie virginal dani’ trope everyone loves but

em: i love the idea of dani being like hey jamie did u ever- and jamies like (grumbles) does it matter

em: dani is mentally applying a gold star to her chart

obsetress: ksdljfskdfjlsdjflksdjaf

obsetress: the gold star

em: at this point dani is absolute just tryna tease jamie so she’s like oh well when- and jamies like ok i get it

em: jamie Pretends not to be a little interested

obsetress: meanwhile vi and rebecca very matter of factly swapped stories the first day they Realized

obsetress: vibecca swapping stories and their stories complimenting each other so well that they're like well. hmm

obsetress: glad those two found each other

em: two praise kinks u say

em: ok sorry one more thought i’m thinking abt like

em: jamie staying over (idk if this is before or during damie) and viola and perdi are having yet another spat on the phone and violas like

em: no you ALWAYS do this, whatever you think you’re doing with rebecca-‘ and she barely hears some muffled sorta ‘oh, sorry, remember jamie-

em: and jamies doing the maths. hmm

em: jamies like actually i refuse to examine this further. self care

em: brings it up with dani later and dani LOSES her shit laughing

em: haha jamie you got willoughby’ed

obsetress: SCREAMS

obsetress: you got willoughby'd

obsetress: how does one get willoughbyd asking for a friend

em: yeah same asking for a friend

obsetress: dani, gigglesnorting: wait, you hooked up with... with perdi?

obsetress: (dani hates perdita because viola hates perdita and it is a deep seated hatred she refuses to unlearn)

obsetress: a loyalty strange and enduring, despite it all

em: to be fair perdi is the Worst

em: all of these characters i love to make sympathetic and then perdi is where i draw the line akdhdkhd

em: it’s funnier if she’s awful

em: like a viola that never gets therapy

obsetress: lldjfkaskldfj god same

obsetress: it's too good

em: danis like wait hold on. lemme get a pen

em: makes a silly little chart

em: if the fandom tries to make jamie into a shane the l word character i will simply take that and make jamie mortified abt her uh. well! a pretty girl is nice to her and she forgets how to behave

em: jamie's like oh sure like u don’t have embarrassing flings- and danis like yeah but i don’t interact w them on a daily basis jamie

em: also i didn’t fuck perdi

obsetress: skskskflsdflks

obsetress: "you did fuck perdi though, right? because that just be embarrassing, jamie, if she had been the one who..."

em: skgsdjhdkdhdk

em: jamie grumbles something abt pillow princesses and dani like

em: CLAPS her hands in glee

obsetress: jlsdjflkJSDFKJSDFJ

obsetress: GOD

obsetress: she's immediately pulling out her phone to text vi

em: jamies like why would u message her sister that u freak n danis like oh no theyre very open with each other it’s uh. hmm. anyway

[jinmukangwrites]

Whumptober 2020 Day 8

Abandoned | Isolation

Ao3

Warnings: Depression, Panic Attacks, Claustrophobia, blink and you'll miss it Suicidal Thoughts.

Dedicated to @ckbookish! Hope you don't mind me tagging you 👉👈

-o-o-o-o-

"That's great, Dami! I'm happy for you."

Dick held the phone between his ear and shoulder, listening to Damian ramble on about an advanced theater class he got into because the teacher felt the current intermediate class he was in was wasting his potential. He carefully scrubbed the sides of the bowl he had just finished eating about five servings of pudding out of and set it off to the side. He wiped his hands then leaned against the counter, smiling. 

"Thank you, Richard," Damian said. His voice was just as stiff and careful as it always was, but Dick could hear the excitement and gratitude sprinkled in there. The kid was opening up. Expressing himself more and more every day in ways the place he came from had never allowed him to. Dick couldn't remember the last time Damian genuinely threatened anyone with violence, let alone threatened Tim. In fact, last he heard, Tim and Damian were going to go to the Gotham Zoo together next weekend. There was no real reason for them to. It was just to attempt at hanging out and Dick couldn't be more proud. 

"When will you be switching to the new class?" Dick asked. While he did, he began to migrate from the kitchen counter towards his bedroom door, careful to not trip on anything that was laying on the floor. Not for the first time this day, week, month, or year, Dick made a mental note to finally deep clean the place. "Like, is this a tomorrow thing or…?"

"At the end of the term, actually," Damian answered, his voice dropping ever so slightly. Dick hummed in sympathy. He sounded very excited about it, it must be agonizing for him to find out he needed to wait another few months for the first term to come to a close. 

"Well, I'm sure you'll have fun being the best in your current class until then," Dick joked, finally reaching the door to his bedroom and placing his hand on the door handle. Damian scoffed over the phone.

"I am not the best, unfortunately." Damian didn't sound that torn up about it, which was good. Admitting someone was better than you was good character growth. It proved that Damian was letting himself start from the bottom of something instead of immediately being at the top. "There is another girl, her name is Abigail. She has been taking classes since she was a toddler because her mother runs a local theater group."

"So she's as good at theater and you are with a sword," Dick confirmed and Damian hummed. 

Dick opened his door, mentally planning out the least tedious way to get undressed, in bed, and asleep as quickly as possible. First he needed to end the phone call, as much as he didn't want to. He started a new job tomorrow, so he needed to be rested. There was a swimming pool downtown that was looking for an assistant coach for the children's gymnastics classes they held there. Dick took up the job the moment he saw it. Or well, the moment he was no longer swinging past it as Nightwing and was back in civilian clothes. There was a good chance that he could work his way up to being a head instructor with his own classes, considering the woman who hired him didn't really seem the type to enjoy children very much. Dick gave it two months tops before she began to just not show up, making it so he was promoted. 

"I suppose so," Damian said, "she won't be moving up with me however. She has… friends in the lower class that she doesn't want to-"

Dick missed out on the rest, because the moment he stepped into his bedroom and closed the door behind him, his feet were knocked out from under him and his phone flung from his hand. Decades of experience made it so he was immediately able to go from zero to a hundred, allowing him to scramble up from the floor and throw a punch at the closest shadow like clockwork.

His fists met air. With wide eyes, he spun around his room, heart in his throat as he tried to figure out what had shoved him to the floor. 

Nothing. Absolutely nothing. All he could see was his messy room, his unmade bed, his open closet, and his closed window.

Suddenly, Dick heard a noise sound across his room from where he threw his phone. Dick rushed across his room and searched for his phone like he had been jolted by a bolt of electricity. He hated how confused and worried Damian's muffled demands sounded. 

"Richard! What happened?!"

There! Dick bent down and reached out his hand to grab the phone-

And then his hand went through the phone. 

Dick stared down at his empty hand and the phone that sat unmoving on the ground, everything going deathly still as he tried to… process what happened. If it was actually real. 

Okay. His nerves were just shot. He tried again, this time a little more slower and careful. He watched with disbelieving eyes as his hand once again just… went through the phone. It just laid there, undisturbed, like Dick wasn't… even there. 

Damian's voice rose in volume and Dick kneeled down, noting now how he was fully grounded on the floor; his shirts and other various objects around him phased through him like holograms. Okay, okay so something was definitely wrong. "Damian?" Dick asked, but Damian didn't say anything, just continued to shout for Dick to answer. 

"Damian!" Dick yelled louder, but Damian didn't say anything that counted as a reply. 

"Richard, if you don't answer me, I will fetch father!"

"Bruce might be a good idea there, Dami," Dick breathed, falling back onto his rear end and watching how he simply went through everything. He brought his hand back to his phone and purposely stuck it through, his fingernail soundlessly tapped the hidden floor beneath. 

Curious, Dick knocked on the wood, and when no noise reached his ears he hit it harder. 

Nothing. He can't touch anything and apparently he couldn't be heard. 

And suddenly, Dick was filled with the crippling realization that he had… no idea what to do now. He just sat there, listening to Damian panic until he eventually hung up to fetch Bruce. Dick sat there, running his fingers through everything he couldn't touch around him until he knew the entire space around him by heart. Dick sat there, and it took him… awhile to work up the energy to stand up and figure this out. But when he did, he forced himself to not let the confusion, horror, and fear stop him. He walked around the room first, looking for something that must have made him like this. There were no sigils that he could see, and if one was hidden under the things he had left on the floor, he wouldn't know because no matter how hard he focused or how many times he tried, he couldn't get anything to move. He went to sit down on his bed to think this through, but then his hand went straight through the mattress and he barely caught himself in time to avoid landing on his rear.

Thoroughly freaked out now, he ran through his dresser, heart pounding to the upbeat rhythm of his phone as Bruce began to call him. Dick didn't pick up the phone, he knew he wouldn't be able to. 

He couldn't touch anything. He couldn't. Touch. Anything. His feet would hit the ground and have no volume. His hands would slap against the wall but nothing would sound. He tried not to panic, but when he went to go out his door, it didn't move. He tugged on the door handle. It didn’t budge. Not a single millimeter. 

And okay. Okay he was beginning to panic now. He sprinted to the window and slammed his elbows against it, but it was like the glass was replaced with a transparent sheet of solid steel. 

Was this some sort of hallucination? Had whatever knocked him down drugged him somehow? Did he hit his head?

He was hyperventilating—this he knew for sure but suddenly he didn't know how to stop it—and without thinking he ran back to his door, banging his silent fists against the wood and tugging on the frozen in place handle. 

Oh gods. This was really happening wasn't it? Somehow, he had found himself unable to move anything. Unable to go anywhere. Unable to- to-

His knees gave out, causing him to slide down against the door and press his forehead against the unmovable force before him. He couldn't- he couldn't breathe. Somewhere, at the back of his head, a voice told him that he could breathe. He could take breaths right now and calm down. He could count five things he could see, four things he could touch, three things he could hear, two things he could smell, and one thing he could taste. He could calm down and think rationally and explore his situation a bit more calmly. But the moment he opened his eyes after not realizing he had them closed in the first place and saw his leg phasing through his empty trash can he knew he couldn't go anywhere from there without having a full blown mental breakdown. 

So he closed his eyes, tried making noise on the door once again, and tried to keep his breakdown to a minimum. 

Just hyperventilating. Just fading. 

"Help!" He shouted before he could really consider what good that would do. He was at the top floor of his building and the neighbors across from him weren't home until early in the morning thanks to the graveyard shift. No one will hear him… even if he could be heard. 

His phone began to ring again and Dick stuck his fist into his mouth and bit down on his knuckles to keep from screaming. 

He sat there—trying and failing to breathe, trying and failing to not cry—and continued to sit there until eventually, he found himself leaning against the door with half lidded and tearful eyes, staring at how his body continued to not touch a single thing.

He let his eyes fall shut one final time and let the stress and anxiety and confusion whisk him away into a very troubled slumber.

-o-o-o-o-

When he woke up he was immediately made aware that his current situation was, in fact, not a nightmare. 

And so much worse than what he could even predict. 

He awoke to him falling backwards, a crick in his neck and spine suddenly becoming undone as the door he was leaning against suddenly opened, hitting his head with a disquietingly silent bonk on the floor of his living room. For a hopeful, blissful moment he thought whatever happened before he passed the fuck out was all fake and he had just imagined the entire thing, but then he opened his eyes and lifted his head…

Just to see a pair of legs sticking out from the middle of his  intangible chest.

His breath hitched, his eyes flicking up to see a worried Bruce literally standing inside of him. The threat of hyperventilating once again became a very real thing as Bruce stepped past him, into the room, and started calling his name. 

"Bruce!" Dick shouted, scrambling up from the floor and running back into the room that had previously been his impenetrable prison. He instinctively tried to grab his shoulder, but ended up flinching back violently when his hand simply went through Bruce. He couldn't feel Bruce at all. None of the course fibers of his winter coat brushed against his touch receptors. "Bruce! I'm here!" He tried again, but surprise surprise, it didn't work.

"Is he there?" A new voice said, and Dick just managed to turn around in time to watch Damian walk into the room with wrinkles between his brow and bags under his eyes, shining black against his olive skin. Dick jumped away from Damian's path as he approached their father and watched with a frown as Bruce bent down and picked up his discarded phone.

Then, Dick's phone suddenly began to ring, causing Bruce to scowl. Frightened, confused, and curious, Dick slowly approached to read his phone's screen. 

It was close to 6am. Bruce must have driven here as quickly as he could after Damian probably took a few hours to panic to himself and work up the courage to tell Bruce that he thought something was wrong. Though, Dick didn't ponder over why they were here so early for very long. The number calling belonged to his new boss.

He was supposed to be at work thirty minutes ago.

"Shit," Dick breathed, stepping back as Bruce clicked the answer button on the phone and held it to his ear.

Immediately, there was the sound of the lead coach’s nasally voice. Coach Shah. Short, lean, toned, full of freckles, and rocking curly red hair. The woman who was definitely a phenomenal gymnast, but probably shouldn't be allowed to work closely with kids with her grumpy attitude. She didn't sound entirely upset from the muffled tones on the other side of the speaker. Maybe she was saving the angry for later, letting the passive aggressiveness of her annoyance at him for being late to his first day of work steadily drip into her tone. 

Bruce finally opened his mouth. "I'm sorry, but I'm not Mr Grayson."

Dick winced at the sound of her confused squawk. Bruce proceeded to explain that he was Dick's father, and that he couldn't find Dick anywhere. Bruce's frown slowly began to deepen as Coach Shah began to probably explain that Dick was her newest assistant and that she hadn't seen him. Shockingly, the phone call didn't end with Dick being immediately fired. Just with Bruce clicking the screen off and looking down at Damian with barely contained worry. 

"You said he just shouted then stopped responding?" Bruce clarified.

Damian nodded, looking at the phone still in Bruce's hand like it had threatened him. 

"Okay," Bruce sighed, brushing his free hand over his jaw. "Okay. Let's look for signs of struggle."

And this was how you could immediately tell that the Wayne family was nowhere close to normal. Normal families would call the police. 

The batfamily searched on their own, then only called the police later to keep up the civilian facade. 

Dick stepped slowly back, then flinched forward when his shoulders met the walls solidly. The feeling of any walls touching him while his feet stood through the things on the floor almost made him want to bend over and vomit. But thinking about vomiting also made him stress about what would happen then and what the sick would touch or if it would make any noise at all. It was repulsive and horrible to think about, so he found a tiny place of clear flooring that wasn't near any walls and folded his arms across his chest.

He watched Bruce and Damian comb through his room, looking for any signs that his disappearance wasn't on his own power. Dick hoped they found something. A reason for why he was a ghost in his own room. 

A solid thirty minutes passed before Bruce deemed Dick's bedroom clean. Evidence wise. Not literally. Dick was pretty sure his room was in an even bigger mess than what it had been before. He jerked out of the way of Bruce as he walked ignorantly past Dick towards the living room. Damian followed along, dragging his feet. 

It was then Dick noticed Damian's hand wrap around the door’s handle. Pure terror shot through Dick's veins, which gave him just enough courage to quickly dart forward and purposely run through Damian into his living room before he was locked back in there again. He didn't know he was gasping and choking back horrified sobs until he felt the first tear tickle down his cheek and off his chin. 

And this all felt so real suddenly. Like not being able to touch Damian—one of the most important people in Dick's entire life—was what gave it the official stamp of reality.

Dick was a living, breathing, walking ghost. 

He couldn't touch anything. He couldn't be heard. He couldn't open doors or pick up phones or touch the shoulder of the man he had considered his father for longer than he had known his birth father. 

It was all he could do to stand and force himself to breath—but did he even need to keep doing that?—and let his tears silently fall. He watched Bruce and Damian sift through the rest of his apartment and finish empty handed. It was hours later when Bruce suggested going back to the cave and checking Dick's phone for any possible clues. So, after Bruce hid a few sensors around to warn them if Dick "came back", they went to the front door while Dick made sure to stick as close as he could without going through them. He wiped under his eyes as they approached Bruce's car, his heart stuttering when he realized he didn't even know if he could even sit in the car with them without phasing through the seats. He might have to walk back to Gotham. 

That would take… hours. 

And oh God, would he starve? Would he be slowly forced to thirst to death because he couldn't touch any of the substances he needed to live? 

Bruce opened the drivers door and Damian opened the passenger. Instead of thinking about the very real possibility that Dick probably had less than a few days left to live—if he was alive at all—Dick once again forced himself to go through Damian. 

Somehow, against all odds, Dick was able to touch the car. Except, when his knees went through Damian's lap to touch the cushioned chair and his hands shot through Bruce's shoulder to support himself jumping into the back of the car, the normally well padded leather was stony and unrecognizable to his touch. It didn't give under the pressure of his weight or grip. It didn't sink around his touch. It remained like cement. 

It felt like cement. 

Dick curled up in the back seat, his heart jumping madly when both the drivers and passenger doors closed. He suddenly felt like a trapped animal. He had no will here. He didn't even bother to try the door handle of the back seat, because he knew it wouldn't go anywhere. The doors wouldn't open for him. The walls wouldn't bend. He brought his knees up to his chest as Bruce drove onto the road and as Damian turned on the radio. 

And he… simply watched out the window and tried not to make too much noise that no one would hear anyway. 

-o-o-o-o-

Getting out of the car door was more adrenaline inducing than standing toe to toe with Killer Croc. It was a good thing Dick was so flexible and had decades of experience with flipping his way through life. Thanks to that, he managed to jump out of the car just in the nick of time.

Seeing the manor like this hit differently. He was barely aware of Bruce and Damian walking past him towards the front doors until he saw Alfred open those aforementioned doors. Dick had to sprint to get inside, and he tried his best to not flinch as the door shut behind him. He didn't succeed. 

Not that anybody saw. 

"Master Dick?" Alfred asked, and more a heart stopping moment Dick almost thought Alfred was talking to him. 

But then Bruce shook his head and began to shed his jacket. 

"No sign of him. His apartment was locked and there was no sign of forced entry."

Alfred frowned and Damian shoved past them all, his body moving with less confidence than it normally did. Dick watched him go, desperately wanting nothing more than to race after him and gather him into the world's bestest hug, but Bruce was heading to the cave with Alfred trailing along. Dick had to help in whatever way he could to push Bruce into finding out what happened. Damian… could wait. He'll have to wait. It wasn't like Dick could do anything for him if he decided to follow after the clearly upset teen anyway. 

"It's almost like he just vanished, Alfred," Bruce continued, his voice oddly wet. Dick's heart tied itself in a knot. "Into thin air."

"No one simply disappears into thin air," Alfred sniffed. "You will find him."

"Yeah," Bruce agreed, sounding unsure but determined at the same time. They walked into the study and Dick carefully followed them both into the cave through the narrow passage of grandfather clock. 

Bruce quickly got to work and Dick stood back, careful to not touch anything. Bruce started the search as he always did, by sifting through traffic cams around the scene of the crime. And since it was Dick's apartment, he also had access to the normal security measures Dick had installed. 

Hours passed and Dick soon found himself sinking to sit on the floor of the cave, watching as Bruce found nothing after nothing after nothing. 

Dick could relate. He certainly felt like nothing.

-o-o-o-o-

Dick couldn't thirst or starve. He found that out on day three of this entire mess, slinking around from open door to open door, doing nothing but breathing and existing. Well, existing to no one but himself. He hadn't even realized he wasn't starving or dehydrated until Tim, Cass, Jason, and Duke showed up three nights later for a quick family dinner. Dick was touched that Bruce called them, and even more touched that they all came. But, as much as he was touched, he was also jealous of the meal Alfred provided. Frustrated that he didn't exist enough to join. 

Bruce filled them all in on what little they knew on the situation and then they all spent the night patrolling Blüdhaven for clues. Dick didn't get into the Batmobile in time to follow along, so he spent the entire night trapped in the cave with Alfred's silent company. 

He spent the nights wandering the hallways and avoiding everything he could walk through. He'd walk and walk and walk until he'd sit down in the middle of the dining room floor, where the carpet was short and didn't stab him like the shaggy carpet of bedrooms did. Where the animals were least likely to unknowingly fall asleep inside of him. 

On the fifth day, he thought Alfred the Cat was watching him. He cried for hours later when he found the cat was just watching a fly. 

Days ticked on. Dick was reported missing to the police. Damian talked less and less, smiled less and less. The others went back to their lives with "keep me updated" being mumbled before they went. 

Dick continued to not exist. 

When the second week passed by, Dick found himself sneaking outside when Alfred went to get the mail. He didn't know why. Maybe it was because it was raining and he was wondering if he'd be able to feel that. 

He didn't. It just went through him and he ended up being trapped in the cold air outside, exploring the wet grounds and not making a single splash, until night came and Damian let Titus and Ace out for a quick potty break. 

By the time the third week came around, things really started to change. It seemed Bruce was constantly talking to people. The police, the Justice League, Dick's friends, everyone who were trying to track him down… and it killed Dick to stand back and watch, clutching his stomach as nothing turned up and Bruce kept coming up with nothing. Dick wished he could leave some sort of message. A way to tell Bruce that he was right there. Just invisible and silenced. But there. 

Dick would love to tell Bruce that he was right there. But at this point, Dick really began to wonder if he was really there at all. 

What if he was dead? Living people didn't go for three weeks without eating or drinking and remain alive. Alive people don't walk through furniture or get trapped simply by closed doors. 

But he couldn't tell Bruce. Which was why when the third week came up and Bruce once again ran into a dead end, he wasn't really all surprised to watch Bruce angrily hurtle his phone across the room and collapse into his chair with his hands in his hair, dangerously close to ripping the fine strands from his scalp. 

The longer Bruce sat there, the more Dick was sure Bruce had finally given up. Batman couldn't find him. It was the waiting game now. Sit and wait and hope. 

Dick left the room shortly after, his mind racing, loneliness running like a poison through his veins. He went to find Damian, but when he found the kid cuddled in a giant beanbag in the library, Alfred the Cat on his shoulder watching him draw carefully, he knew there wouldn't be anything here to reassure him that he'll be found. He walked around Damian anyway, bending down to look at what he was drawing. 

His heart clenched. It was a portrait of Dick. Damian was carefully working on the details of his top lip, shading each little bump and pore with incredible accuracy. 

Dick didn't look more at it. He left the library and roamed the halls, looking for an open door that he can sneak into and get some alone time. Just to calm down. Just to reassure himself that there was no way his family would leave him like this forever. 

That they haven't truly given up on him. That the whispered words of maybe he's dead and he's not coming back, is he haven't actually been said. 

He finally found a room with an open door and he immediately squeezed inside. The room was smaller, which made his anxiety climb ever so slightly, but it was also close to empty with a clear enough space for him to sit down and meditate without touching and going through anything. The door must have been opened by Damian. The kid had been searching out silent places to be alone quite often recently, sometimes forcing Bruce to search the halls, calling his name loudly until Damian finally revealed himself. 

Dick sat down and breathed.

Of course, it couldn't be so easy. His brain immediately recalled back to Bruce looking defeated. To Damian painstakingly crafting every detail of Dick's face with a pencil like he was worried he'd someday forget what Dick looked like. To Jason not having been over in way too long; reports in Blüdhaven of Red Hood being spotted on multiple occasions. To Tim who accidentally referred to Dick in the past tense a couple days ago and looked sick with himself the moment he realized what he said. To Cass who would somehow stroll the same halls as him when she's over until they pass by his bedroom door and she would stop and frown and walk away. To Duke who looked at his portraits Bruce had on the walls and look like he desperately wanted to understand something that he'd never actually be able to now.

They've all given up. He knew it was only a matter of time before there was an empty casket funeral. 

He wondered if he could make that a reality. Death. He didn't need to eat or drink. What if he just… stopped breathing? What if he clawed out his own throat with his nails? What if the next time Alfred opened a window to air out an old, unused room on the highest floor he just jumped out? 

Or would the world be so cruel as to keep him like this for the rest of eternity? Forced to watch as he's given up on, buried, and forgotten? He didn't want to die. Not like this. Not in name before body. 

And not for the first time since Dick inexplicably became a ghost, he felt his throat choke on the beginnings of a sob. 

He curled up a bit, trying to staunch it because he had quickly become annoyed with the sound of his own voice. Why could he still hear it when no one else could? It was awful. Like his words and noises we're all just in his head and he was only hearing what he thought he should hear. 

He gasped wetly, wiping under his eyes and trying to stop this all from happening again. He had already cried enough these last few weeks. He couldn't keep crying every time he felt alone. 

He bent in on himself further, his arms curling around his stomach in such a way that if he imagined hard enough they belonged to someone else and he was in another's calming embrace. It didn't work though. He knew he was alone. He couldn't pretend. 

He was so deep in this attack of utter turmoil and unhappiness that he didn't notice approaching footsteps until he heard the sound of creaking door hinges followed quickly by a click of a door latch. 

Dick looked up with blurry, panicked eyes. 

The door. The door was closed. 

"No," Dick breathed. "No no-" he scrambled to his feet, all the blood rushed from his head and combined with the terrible spike of horror to make him perfectly lightheaded as he stumbled to the door and wrapped his hands around the knob. It didn't budge. "NO!"

He spun around, barely aware of his already panting breaths and frantically searched the room for a hopefully open window. 

The window was closed. He didn't know why he even looked. 

"Fuck," he gasped, grabbing his chest as it constricted tightly. More tightly than what he had felt in a long time. It felt so painful that it was all he could do to turn and bang a closed fist on the door. He wondered if this was what a heart attack felt like. "HELP!"

He didn't know why he was calling out. Hitting the door like he thought it might make noise. 

No one would hear him. 

"ALFRED!" Dick screamed. "BR-" he was forced to stop mid-word on that one thanks to a heaving gasp that curled dangerously in-between his ribcage. He swallowed. Or tried to. "BRUCE!"

He kicked the door. Covered one hand over his mouth and tried to calm down. Tried to not think about the solid walls and the solid door and how he was powerless to leave this room. Why did he come in here in the first place?!

He couldn't calm down. All he could think about was how screwed he was. How hopeless everything was. He kept his hand on his mouth as his legs eventually gave out. He brought his knees to his chin and laid on his side atop the carpeted floor, babbling cries and names and pleas until his throat was raw and everything woozy. 

He didn't know how or when he finally passed out, only that he woke up to a still closed door and a still small room, and it took every ounce of his will power to not immediately cry again right then and there. He stayed curled up on the ground and closed his eyes, wrapping his arms around his stomach and tried to pretend that everything would work out. Eventually everything would be okay. 

He was wrong. 

It took two weeks for the door to open for Alfred's regular airing out of the rooms to reach the one he was trapped in. 

By then, he didn't even know if he should bother to stand up and walk out. 

Not when he was surely no longer alive. Not when he felt perfectly content just laying here being dead. 

But the thought of that door closing again and him having no power over it eventually managed to force him stumbling to his wobbly feet and walking out. 

He didn't know what to expect when he shuffled slowly deeper into the manor. More than a month has passed since his disappearance. Most people don't keep a whole lot of hope for a missing person to return after this long. By this time, people normally began to suggest funerals quietly between each other. 

It didn't take long to find the family. What shocked him though was that everyone was together in the living room, even Alfred who must have finished opening certain doors and windows to refresh the stale air inside the rooms they belong to and walked back quicker than Dick. A movie was playing, some Pixar movie Dick hadn't seen before because of his busy lifestyle. 

And for some reason, this hurt more than if he came in here to find them alone, mourning, depressed. 

They're all watching a movie together. Bruce on the recliner, Damian squeezed between him and the arm of the recliner even though there was more room in other places. Jason sprawled over the three cushioned sofa, his legs resting over Duke, Cass, and Tim like a makeshift blanket. Alfred had his own recliner to himself, reading a book to himself but occasionally glancing up towards the screen. Steph was there too, but she had made herself comfortable on the floor with the entity of the living room's decorative pillows.

They're all watching a movie together. 

Dick had been trying to get that to happen for months. And they're doing it now, when he's gone with no foreseeable way to get back. 

Dick slowly sank to the floor and watched them poke each other and whisper quips to each other and laugh at the funny bits with each other. 

Was this the life he was doomed to have for the rest of eternity? Chasing open doors and watching people move on from him? Do things simply in his memory? 

If he had tears left to cry, he would have shed them.

Instead, he just sat there and watched. 

-o-o-o-o-

Dick's funeral was four months later. The gossip channels and media said they have finally given up. Dick thought they held on for longer than most. 

He didn't attend his own funeral. He didn't want it to feel final. He didn't want the undeniable proof that they've stopped searching. He didn't want to see them cry for him. 

So he walked the manor grounds opposite of the family graveyard. He kicked his feet as he walked, pretending that his footsteps carried weight on the grass and that he was solid enough to disturb the smallest pebbles on the stone pathway. 

Maybe he was dead. Maybe this was hell. He didn't remember where he went, if he went anywhere, when Lex Luthor killed him, but maybe this was it. He didn't know what killed him or what happened to his body, but he was starting to become convinced that he really was simply a ghost, cursed to walk the world and watch people move on and live on without him. 

Half a year ago, that would have settled horribly into his gut. Now? He was numb. 

He continued to walk, to let his mind drift. Pretend he was alive for a little while longer before he returned to the manor and the services and dinners and receptions were over. Decide what to do now that his life was now officially over. 

He sighed and ignored the feeling that he's just as trapped out here in the manor grounds as he was in that room all those months ago. Ho continued to roam.

Though, the sound of a humming voice had him stopping in his tracks. 

No one should be over here. They all should be back at the funeral. Dick immediately focused on the noise, not even bothering to step carefully or approach cautiously. It wasn't like Dick could be seen or heard anyway. He just wanted to see who had snuck into these parts of the grounds while his literal funeral was going on. It was strange and horrible to think about, but come on? A little respect please? He hoped it wasn't some paparazzi. It meant that they'd somehow gotten through Bruce's security… which also meant that Bruce was more depressed about this than what Dick initially thought. He'd seen Bruce get low these past few months, but never low enough to sacrifice the safety of the people he provided shelter to. 

Dick walked towards the grove of trees that the humming was coming from and frowned when he eventually saw the back of a person strolling through the controlled nature. The man was taller than Dick—which wasn't a difficult achievement—and was wearing a simple brown-orange hoodie with dark blue jeans. His hair was dirty blonde and styled up like someone glued a giant ball of cotton to his scalp. Dick didn't recognize him, which instantly set off alarm bells inside his head. The open house reception should be over but the rest of the services were all reserved for close family and friends of Dick's. But this man… he couldn't be someone that was invited. 

Not for the first time, Dick felt the crippling weight of helplessness wash over him. This man could be dangerous, but Dick couldn't do a thing. He couldn't warn anyone. 

He could just watch it happen. 

Or… ignore it. 

He shook his head and sighed, stuffing his hands into the pockets of the same pair of sweats he'd been wearing since that fateful night half a year ago. He almost began to approach further, because even though he was helpless to change anything or warn anyone, he was still curious… but then the man turned around and Dick was stopped in his tracks. 

He didn't... He didn't have a face. 

Dick gaped and watched as the bumps in the man's face that must be cheekbones rose ever so slightly. 

"Oh!" The man said, even though he had no mouth. Dick had absolutely no idea where the sound came from. "You are here!" 

Dick turned around behind him, and saw nobody. Something fluttered in his chest. A hope he didn't dare grasp at even though… even though… the man could only be talking to him. 

"We lost track of you after the convergence. Most people stick around where they disappear!" 

"Are you…" Dick tried, his voice barely recognizable even to himself, "are you talking to me?" 

The limited features of the man's blank face softened. "Yes I am, Dick Grayson. You've been lost a long time."

And Dick… didn't know what to do. This entire time he's had absolutely no contact with anything in the world. He couldn't move anything, couldn't touch anything, couldn't speak or make himself known. This scene before him, one where his voice was heard and he was answered… it was so foreign. Unreal. Dick almost reached down to pinch himself. 

"But luckily," the man continued, "after a long time searching for you at your home city, we figured you must have found a way to your family. That or began to aimlessly wonder like others like you sometimes do."

"Like… me?" 

"Yes," the man nodded then took a step closer. Dick stood his ground as his thoughts ran circles in his brain. What was going on? "You're trapped within the folds of reality, Dick Grayson. It's not something that commonly happens, but something that can be catastrophic if we cannot find you immediately." He paused. "You are Nightwing in this world, are you not? You must understand how the universes work in odd ways."

Dick wanted to nod. Laugh. Cry. Step forward and see if he could touch the man. But he didn't. He just stood there as the man continued. 

"You see," the man said, bringing a hand up to his featureless chin, "what happened was that this universe brushed sides with another one. One that's almost exactly the same in every aspect to yours. Normally, when universes brush, they're so different that they reject each other and go on their merry way down the time stream. The problem was, that because these two universes were so similar, reality as we knew it, well, it got a little confused. It tried to sort out what belonged to what. It gets it wrong sometimes, which is why you're like this. In the universe you brushed with, Dick Grayson was dead. Everything else was exactly the same, but because you were dead and alive the universe decided to make you both. This is why you're stuck here. The universe can't remember if you should be living or dead."

Dick never pretended to understand the multiverse. It always seemed the rules were constantly changing. Shifting to accommodate spontaneous things. It seemed the only one who truly had a grasp on the entirety of the universe was Bart Allen, but the kid was shockingly tight lipped about most secrets of reality despite his superhero name of Impulse. 

And really, Dick didn't care how he ended up like this. All he could really think was how this man could see him. Was looking for him. Something was finally going to change. Whether he was supposed to be fully dead or fully alive... He didn't really care.

He couldn't stand around, trapped in his own intangible body, and do nothing for much longer. 

"So… what does this mean?" Dick asked. "What happens now?"

The man's face squished oddly, and Dick couldn't figure out what he was thinking at all. "What happens now is that we make things right. Return you to the universe you're supposed to be dead in, and keep you in the universe you're supposed to be alive. It will be painful, but don't worry, neither of you will remember a thing."

"Neither-?" 

Dick's question didn't get much further, because in an impossible blink of an eye, the man was right in front of Dick, hand pressing against the side of his head with his thumb pressed above the bridge of Dick's nose. Lightning shot through him, and his vision whited out. Everything became too much and so little at the same time. Hot and cold. Loud and silent. He might have screamed or he might have sighed.

Either way, the sensation didn't last for long. 

Soon he wasn't feeling anything at all.

-o-o-o-o-

Damian hated this. He knew death and sorrow unlike most others. He had seen men and women fall in so many ways it was impossible to list them all. He had seen the way a corpse would slowly rot, and stink, and collapse. He had seen bodies feasted upon by wolves and flies alike. 

He knew death. Yet, for a number of reasons, he just couldn't comprehend this one. 

Because Richard couldn't be dead. He couldn't be. He was simply missing. Nowhere to be found. 

He wasn't dead. 

Damian didn't understand why everyone else insisted on believing otherwise. Father had said that he's searched, and for some reason that meant if Batman couldn't find him then he must not be able to be found. No one besides Damian argued with him. Even Timothy didn't believe him.

He at least had the decency to look ashamed when Damian called him out on it. 

However, it seemed Damian's thoughts and feelings on the matter didn't, well, matter. Even though he was the last one to speak to Richard. Even though he knew for sure that Richard was somewhere alive out there, doing everything he could to get home. Damian swore he would continue to believe in that. No matter what. Even if these months turned into years. Even if Damian no longer remembered every detail of his face by thought alone. 

Father wouldn't let him skip out on the fake funeral though. 

Which was horrible for a massive amount of reasons. All of Richard's friends were here, sobbing and blabbering like children. The empty casket sat above a deep hole with flowers piled on top, and one by one someone would approach, say something emotional out loud or under their breath, then leave the flower in the mockery of Richard's life. 

Damian was glad that his immediate family went first. That way he could slink to the back of the crowd and hold Titus by the leash. Watch from afar. Plan for the millionth time on how he was going to fix this. 

That speedster… Wally West was in the middle of breaking down on top of the casket with large tears cascading down his cheeks when Damian felt a tug on the leash. Damian frowned and looked down at his normally perfectly behaved dog to see the animal trying to tug Damian towards the unoccupied grounds of the manor. Damian tugged Titus gently back, tutting at him under his breath. 

Except, Titus didn't stay at Damian's side for long. The animal took one wide eyed look at Damian before turning tail and sprinting. The leash was yanked out from Damian's hand, and it was all Damian could do to not shout in surprise or outrage. 

He nervously shot a look at the casket, where Donna Troy was now saying her goodbyes while West leaned onto her for support, making sure no one was watching him, then turned to chase after his disrespectful dog. 

It might be a fake funeral, but it was a funeral nonetheless. 

Damian ran after Titus, jumping over shrubbery and flowers like they were the gaps between rooftops, diving for the trailing leash whenever he got close enough. 

He never got close enough. 

Out of breath and covered in grass stains and twigs, Damian watched with glaring eyes as Titus took refuge in a carefully planned grove of trees. Thankfully, Damian saw the dog halt on the other side of a bush, bending his neck down to sniff at something. Probably a wild animal. Even though Damian could have sworn he trained Titus better than to chase rabbits or squirrels. 

Damian stuffed his hands in his suit pockets and began to stomp his way over. 

"Titus! Quit this misbehaving!" 

Titus looked up from what he was sniffing, whined, then bent back down. Completely ignoring Damian. 

What was going on with that dog? 

Damian walked around the clump of bushes and between the trees, extremely curious as to what was so important that Titus would disregard orders for it.

When Damian saw what Titus was bent over, Damian felt every single molecule of air leave his body like he had been sucker-punched in the stomach. 

"Richard?" Damian breathed. Double took. "Richard!" 

He sprinted forward and Titus quickly jumped out of the way. Horrified and terrified and shaking, Damian grabbed Richard's shoulders and turned him around, for he was laying face down on the ground. 

Richard groaned, but didn't open his eyes. Blood trickled down the corners of his lips and nose. His clothes were filthy. He looked like death. 

But he was alive.

Damian turned to his good, good dog. "Go! Get father! Hurry!"

Titus didn't have to be told twice. He barked then sprinted back to the forest. 

Damian turned back to Richard, running his hands across his body, taking in the loss of weight, the eye bags, the stains of mud all over his clothes. He shook his shoulders, trying to wake him up, but Richard remained asleep to the world. 

It took a second to realize he was crying. 

Thankfully, he was able to wipe them away when a confused and worried Bruce Wayne busted into the grove of trees along with the rest of the family and even a few of Richard's friends. Gasps and shouts filled the air, and Damian soon found himself pushed back as Dick was rushed to by the adults. 

The ambulance was called not long after. 

The drive to the hospital seemed like a dream. 

The wait felt like it took years, but Richard only took about three hours to wake up, severely starved and dehydrated and not a single memory of the past five months.

And somehow, everything went back to normal. Richard was released from the hospital a few days later with a strict meal plan and physical therapy schedule. His memories didn't return, but sometimes Damian noticed things had changed in Richard since then.

Like his new and strange fear of small spaces and closed doors.

It didn't matter though. Damian was just… overjoyed that he was right and that Richard was still living a breathing, even if it seemed he had simply vanished and reappeared from thin air, with no trace of anything in-between. 

All that mattered was that the family was whole again. Richard was on the road of a full recovery. 

No one could ask for more. 

[miraculous786]

The Protector’s Past

Masterlist

"Your parents aren't home."

Marinette sighed in relief, leaning into Felix's chest. She chanced a quick glance to Damian on her computer chair nearby, only to see him refusing to make eye contact.

His fists were clenched. His jaw was tense. His teeth grit against each other in clear restraint.

From the side, Chat Noir commanded, "Plagg, Claws In," causing another blond in a striped shirt and grey jacket to be revealed in a flash of green light.

Adrien made his way over to the spotted chaise where his friends were situated, and proceeded to sit on it in silence - at least, until it lasted for far too long.

"...Are we going to address the elephant in the room, or...?"

Felix exhaled deeply at the question, and turned his head to Damain with narrowed eyes. "Would you like to tell us why you were in possession of a tranquilliser gun?"

The one he was holding close snapped her attention to the guilty teen. She began to ramble in a tone of disbelief, "'Tranquilliser gun'? W-What did you want to do with that? Kidnap us? Is that why you've been coming to the bakery so much?"

"No!"

Marinette flinched at his sudden exclamation, prompting toned arms to hug her even tighter.

"Sorry, Angel," he mumbled. "It's just, I...I assume that you've heard of the vigilantes that reside in the place I come from?"

"Yes. Gotham," Felix responded for her curtly.

"I'm, I'm one of them."

The dead quiet for a few seconds was broken by Adrien, who gasped, "Wait, you're Robin, aren't you? Oh my god, that's awesome! There's rumours that you're the scariest of them all - not counting Batman and Black Bat, of course."

Damian gained a scowl on his features. "How did you know that?"

The model didn't back down from the look sent his way, as he instead chose to reply brightly, "Well...your costume sort of gave it away. What, with the utility belt, cape, katana, dark colours..."

"'Dark colours'?" the female there snorted. "Please! All of the Robins look like traffic lights if you ask me."

"You're not wrong, Angel," Felix agreed, slightly smirking.

"I do not look like a traffic light!" the person of their teasing shouted. At the raised eyebrows he got, he coughed into his hand before carrying on calmly, "The colours are simply worn by all Robins as tradition."

"...That just made me realise how many there have been. Oh! Is it true that the first one moved to Blüdhaven and changed his name to-"

"Kitty."

"Oh, right. Uhhh, sorry."

Marinette shook her head in amusement, then spoke, "That still doesn't explain why you had a gun in the first place."

A few seconds passed with no noise, until Damian started hesitantly, "The vigilantes in Gotham, my family, we...we take small jobs in which the hirer wants a person dead. The one we kill has to be a villain - we don't kill innocents."

He tilted his head up to be met with the sight of three teens with wide eyes, and fought off the urge to sigh.

"Someone hired me to assassinate a civilian working with Hawk Moth. It just so happened that I had to go after you, Angel."

The designer reeled back. "M-Me? But, I-I fight Hawk Moth! I would never even dream of helping him!"

"I know," he was quick to assure, "And when I found out that you were the local heroine 'Ladybug', I figured that I had to confront my employer about the situation."

With a soft voice, she quizzed, "You didn't tell them my identity, did you?"

"No."

Marinette let out a sigh, burying her head into Felix's chest. The arms wrapped around her form pulled her in even closer.

Adrien gazed at all of his friends, before asking the question that everyone wanted the answer to. "Who hired you in the first place?"

Damian sent a worried look to the couple across from him, then admitted, "...Lila Rossi."

"What?" Felix growled in a low tone, making everyone in the bedroom glance to him in surprise. "How was that witch able to pull that off?"

"My guess is that she used the money from her mother's job. There was no one to stop her from hiring me as an assassin since her parents are never present."

"Angel, are you okay? You're shaking."

"I-I just, she tried to murder me? I knew she hated my guts, but enough to want me dead?" Marinette asked with watery eyes, glancing around at all of the males around.

Damian visibly softened, and made a prolonged period of eye contact with the one who was hugging her tight. Then, after sharing a nod with Felix, he made his way over to the chaise.

Two pairs of arms embraced her from both sides, provoking her to relax and let her tears flow silently. Adrien watched from the side, whilst clenching his fists in regret.

I knew I should have called Lila out all those months ago.

Just as he was about to open his mouth to speak, there was a faint thump from above - where the balcony of the house was. The model's emerald eyes wandered over to the hatch which lead to the place, where he spotted what appeared to be a circular black device on the trapdoor's see-through surface.

"Guys," he called, "I think we have a problem."

Damian whipped his head to Adrien, then to the direction where said blond was pointing. His eyes narrowed, and he slowly let go of his two companions before stalking over to the bed right below the exit.

He snarled, "If the both of you don't come in here right now, I will inform Alfred that you decided to sneak off to Paris when you're supposed to be in Gotham right now."

Marinette tilted her head in a questioning manner, whilst there was a moment of silence in the room. Then, ever so slowly, the hatch door opened, revealing two men in dark costumes with guilty expressions.

"Hey Baby Bird!" one greeted in a nervous chuckle. "Long time no see, how's everything been going?"

"Fine until you two decided to show up."

"Shut it, Demon Spawn, we didn't come here to ruin the cute little cuddle session. We came 'cause we were worried. What the hell were you doing at the top of the Eiffel Tower threatening some kids? You know B'll have a field day when he finds out, by the way."

"I was akumatized," the youngest Wayne deadpanned, as he allowed his brothers to enter down the ladder. "I didn't have control over what I did."

"'Akuma'-what?" Red Hood asked.

"Akumatized."

Nightwing gained a thoughtful look, then clicked his fingers. "Oh, wait! That was what the press were saying about you!"

"Press?" Marinette spoke, making the men turn their heads to her. She blushed, and held a hand out while introducing, "I'm Marinette, and these are Adrien and Felix."

She pointed to them accordingly.

"Red Hood, Pixie," Jason said, shaking her hand. "This Dickwad over here is Nightwing."

"Hi!"

"We flew over to Paris to check on Demon Spawn here after we saw him in that way better looking Robin suit at the top of the Eiffel Tower-"

"Hey!"

"-and when he was un-akumatized, or whatever, he changed back into his civilian form, which was recorded by the news crews in some helicopters. Now the press is having a field-day reporting on Damian Wayne over here turning evil."

The bluenette stayed silent for a couple of seconds. "Why would the press be so interested in Dami?"

Red Hood tilted his head to the boy, making him blush despite the fact that the vigilante had a helmet on. "He's the son of a millionaire in Gotham. We are too, but we're adopted. He's biologically related instead."

"...That's cool," Marinette shrugged. "Should we do something about the press?"

"Nah, the Replacement has it covered. He's doing damage control now. Oh, that reminds me, what happened to that Layla girl is great for you, Pixie."

"Do you mean Lila?" she elaborated with a furrowed brow. "Why? What happened?"

Adrien smirked from where he was, and called out, "Buginette? You might wanna see this."

She took a seat next to him on the chaise, then started to study what was shown on the phone he held out.

The screen projected Nadja Chamack with a microphone in hand, as she rattled on about recent news. However, what caught Marinette's attention wasn't the video playing in the background of the report, but instead what the headline was.

"Wait, Lila's been arrested?"

"Yep!" Adrien exclaimed. "C'mon, I wanna watch what happened. Is it okay if we do downstairs?"

"Y-Yeah, sure," she agreed in an apparent daze. "Guys, do you want to come too?"

"Hell yeah, I so wanna. Plus, it'll be fun to see what Timbers came up with to keep the press at bay," Jason enthused.

"Who's...?"

Dick replied for him, "Tim is Red Robin, another adopted brother of ours. He deals with the company that our Dad owns a lot of the time."

"Oh, right. Well, umm...Felix? Can you come with me to set up the TV?"

Said teen nodded, strolling over and wrapping an arm around her waist.

"I call dibs on getting the snacks!" Adrien gushed with a hand held in the air. "I've waited too long for this to happen, so I'm going to enjoy it!"

Marinette smiled, letting out a soft giggle. "Okay, just make sure not to eat all of the croissants."

"Mari, that was one time!"

"It still happened, Kitty."

~*~*~

@thestressmademedoit  @moonystars14 @northernbluetongue @luciferge @ranger-gothamite @toodaloo-kangaroo @freshbark @drama-queen-supreme @gwennex @captainmac6 @virgil-is-a-cutie @aurordraws @maribat-is-lifeblood @megawhitleycalderonpaganus @hauntedwintersweets @emo-elaine13 @bleeding-heart-romantic @write-for-your-life2 @palvine-of-the-alvins @schrodingers25 @mariae2900 @vivilakitty @thyladyanput @2sunchild2 @kittyanonymity @bee-wrecker @soupfilledboots @queenmj10 @i-will-be-your-ace @darkthunder1589​ 

[unmotivatedwrit3r]

⭐

Hello lovely anon! Thank you for indulging me!

I have to be honest, I wasn't sure exactly what I wanted to talk about but I figured there isn't much to explain about headcanons, and I love talking about my poly series (Citrine [@citrinesparkles] can attest to that; I ramble to her about it all the time oops), so I decided why not?

So the first fic in the series came to me when I was in class, which I explained in the author's note, and the cleaning day one was basically my excuse to describe the apartment, so I'll talk about the second fic.

Television and Pastries is one of those things I have absolutely no explanation for, other than the fact that I was binging Say Yes to the Dress YouTube videos, and that leaked into it just a tad.

But honestly, every time I think about that blurb, I remember it as two separate ones (one with Jon and reader, and the other with tired Dami) and them and always pleasantly surprised when I read it.

I actually don't know why Jon was the opening narration for that; i don't usually write my fics from their POV, but I do really like how it came out, so it worked I suppose.

And I would also like to say that I do have an entire spring semester schedule written out for all three, patrol days and board meetings, and Jon's Saturday visits to Metropolis all included. (And I may or may not be planning to write another one for the fall).

`

Thank you for asking!

`

And I do have a handful of other poly fics to be posted at some point hopefully, so I hope people are enjoying this series because it is my favorite thing ever.

[moonflowerlesbians]

How did you find your way into fandom stuff? Is bly your first one or have you been a part of different ones for awhile? I find it so hard personally to handle/interact with the social aspects of fandom and it seems so cool/ideal to be able to engage that way.

I started doing fandom stuff before I really knew what it was back in, like, 2014 I think? with once upon a time and some friends who also liked the show. I guess you could say that was my first fandom? it wasn't a really enjoyable experience. but the first one that I really enjoyed and engaged with was wynonna earp. basically, I just made a sideblog and started reblogging things and reading fic and keeping to myself, but the folks over there are (or used to be) really kind and friendly. I followed some of my favorite authors on here, rambled in their tags, and made good friends that way.

bly sort of fell into my lap accidentally. I watched and liked the show, obviously, and I didn't want to irk my wynonna earp followers with endless bly stuff, so I made this blog. I think I saw some people being like "I wish there was a list of fic authors and their tumblrs" and I figured, fuck it, I'll make one. ended up tagging a bunch of authors, joined the damie discord server, and damn if I don't really like the folks in this fandom. on tumblr, at least, it's small enough a community to be welcoming without being overwhelming and everyone is so genuinely supportive and on the same page about things.

the social aspect of fandom is really, really hard sometimes. don't get me started on twitter/instagram stans. they scare me. you hear stories about people stalking cast members and openly discussing stuff they didn't like with writers and it makes me cringe. it's really about learning boundaries. I generally stick to tumblr because it's so far removed from any of the people involved with the media I consume and it's generally an older, more mature bunch of fans, at least in this fandom. people who have been through this before and seen the consequences of being rabid fans and know better.

it's certainly a balancing act sometimes, and you do see stuff happen that's just such a violation, but if you find the right group of people, it can be a really enjoyable experience.

[thezestywalru]

Finally, the heart of ice shatters

Warning: angsty af

Damian Wayne was cold. He froze nearly everyone out, only letting a few people in the fortress that was his heart to see the cracks that had been there since he was younger. One of these people was Marinette Dupain-Cheng.

They were most definitely opposites in personality. Marinette was sweeter than confectioners sugar, while Damian barely showed the smallest hint of a smile.

They had met in Paris two years before, at age 15, when Marinette had fallen into him, consquently knocking them into the famed Andre’s cart. They’d blustered and blushed as belongings were sorted and blame was laid. He quickly paid the owner of the cart, briskly apologizing in immaculate French.

“Er, em, M-Marinette Dupain-Cheng.” The girl with the sweet blue eyes and doll-like face had extended her hand. Damian feigned ignorance at the time, and pretended he didn’t see the olive branch. Raising a carefully manicured eyebrow- he’d spent over an hour in the bathroom to get them just right- he had offered his arm to her, feeling the seam of the arm pressing into his skin.

“I do believe that you owe me a tour.... Miss Dupain Cheng, was it?” She had blushed again, biting the inside of her cheek and twisting her mouth. Damian checked his watch, noting the time and allotting two hours to spend walking around the city before he had to report back to the base.

Shocked, Damian had looked at the girl who took his arm, blushing madly. Was that all she did? She seemed to fluster easily. Appearing to gather her wits, Miss Dupain-Cheng has dragged him along-he pretended not to eventually enjoy her rambling monologues of what she has experienced at each landmark- and soon, the two hours were gone. Damian kissed her hand, taking malicious glee in the pretty flush that spread over her cheeks. They quickly exchanged contact information, with Marinette promising to be the first to reach out.

And so, the two friends kept in contact through the next two treacherous years. They both finally grew, Marinette peaking at 5’2” and Damian only 5 inches taller at 5’7”. They each made different and new friends, affecting each other in some large and some small ways.

Damian taught Marinette how to advocate for herself, as well as different martial arts that he had learned with the league. Marinette urged her friend to open up more to his siblings, helping Dick as Damian became more experienced with compassion and empathy.

Sure, they never revealed their identities to each other, but they were close nonetheless. Each would have trusted the other with their life.

Slowly but surely, Damian began to gain feelings for his friend. He wasn’t quite sure if Dick’s assumption about him having a crush on her was correct at first, but now he was certain. She was Marinette: bumbling, blushing, beautiful Marinette.

So, two days before her seventeenth birthday, Damian asked his father for permission to visit Paris. Bruce granted it, quite bewildered when all of his sons piled on- though Jason and Tim just wanted Damian out of the mansion, they really had no idea why he wanted to go. So Damian went, excitedly discussing with an oblivious Marinette her plans for her birthday.

Damian pulled up outside of her family’s bakery the day of, grinning larger than he had ever before. They’d videochatted before, but neither had visted Paris or Gotham since they’d met. He had brought a single red rose from a local market, putting up with the plump lady behind the counter pinching his cheek and calling him handsome. It didn’t matter, because he was finally going to tell her.

A crow gave a sorrowful cry above his head, but he ignored the warning. Picking off the thorns from the stem, he rolled the rose around in his fingers, finally gathering his courage- ‘shake it off. You’re a Wayne!’- and so, he entered the bakery. It was quite crowded, so he looked around for any clues as to how he could get upstairs. As he was peering around, a small woman who bore a startling resemblance to the girl who had won his heart tapped on his shoulder.

“Can I help you?”

“My apologizes, madame.” Damian apologized smoothly, nodding his head in a small bow. “I’m a friend of Marinette’s and I was hoping I could wish her a happy birthday.”

Marinette’s mother bit the inside of her cheek, just like her daughter had years before. Looking up the stairs, she twisted her mouth in indecision.

“How do you know her?” She asked finally, though she hesitated.

“I’m Damian. We’re.... pen pals.” She cocked her head.

“She’s never mentioned an American pen pal.” Damian should have taken that as a sign, but he was too excited. Sabine recognized the look in his eye and again, glanced up at the stairs. Turning back to the clearly enthusiastic young American, she gestured up the stairs and moved out of the way.

“Merci, Madame.” Damian quickly walked up the stairs, cradling the head of the rose like a flute of champagne. Finally, he reached the trapdoor that she had described so many times. Slowly, he pushed up against the door, hearing it creak as the old wood groaned at his touch.

“Papá!” He heard Marinette’s voice cry. “We’re busy!” He poked his head up with a grin that was as sharp as a knife.

“Happy b-“ Damian ceased moving, ceased loving, ceased living as he took in the scene before him. There was a boy next to her. No, not next to her. Almost on top. She had a hand in his blond hair, with swollen lips and wild eyes that seemed to accuse him of intruding in a private moment.

Clearly, the blond was Adrien Agreste, Marinette’s formerly unrequited love. Damian felt his heart shatter in his throat, his face turn white, and the pounding of blood filling his ears as he tuned everything out, so he threw the rose into her room and retreated. The trapdoor closed behind him.

“Who was that, Princess?” He heard the boy say.

“My friend Damian from America!” She sounded worried. Why? He wasn’t worth it.

“He can wait.” There was a small bit of giggling before they continued. Damian ran down the stairs, feeling the burn of tears pricking his eyes. Nodding sadly to her mother, he tore out of the shoppe.

As he walked back to his hotel, Damian tried not to blame himself. Of course she would choose Adrien. He was a model, able to commiserate about the hardships of the fashion world. Agreste was perfect for her- they would compliment each other well.

He was just a mess, a lowly demon, just like his brothers always said. How could he compare to Adrien Agreste, blond supermodel with a gorgeous Mediterranean tan and warmer green eyes than Damian could ever hope for.

Damian glanced behind him, not daring to hope that she was running behind him to accept his rose and his declaration of love. How could he have thought that a singular small rose would be more than what Adrien could give her? She deserved the world.

Entering the ‘Le Grand Paris’ elevator, he glumly picked his phone out of his pocket, looking for any messages he might have missed, but found an empty screen and message box.

He didn’t matter, he realised. He didn’t matter to the person who mattered to him. Inhaling deeply, Damian rebuilt his walls of eyes and snow, opening the contact of the person he quite possibly loved the most and deleting it.

When Damian left that elevator, he was broken once more. However, on the outside, he appeared indifferent except for a singular tear that glistened in his right eye.

———————————————————————

Marinette giggling to herself as she blushed, tracing a finger over the photo of her and Adrien in a heart. This had quite possibly been the best birthday ever.

Her class had organized a small celebration, during which Adrien had taken her aside and blessed her with her first real kiss. They had decided to come back to her room so he could give her his gift in person and they might have gotten a bit carried away.

On top of that, her American best friend, Damian, was in Paris as well! She decided then and there to call him to ask when they could meet. The rose landed on her keyboard as Tikki sat down on the lip of her laptop screen and glared at her holder.

“What?” Marinette dreamily giggled, thinking of three kids and a hamster.

“Do you know what that means?”

“What?”

“A red rose means love and passion.” Tikki’s voice was flat and toneless.

“Don’t be silly! He just wanted to wish me a happy birthday!” She sniffed the flowery aroma before she pushed it into the vase that contained the flowers that Adrien had given her only a few hours before. (The sunflowers classed horribly with the red rose)

Marinette eagerly selected Damian’s contact and pressed the dial image. It rang a few times before leaving her with the harsh and monotone voicemail.

“You’ve reached the cell phone of Damian Wayne. Please state your name and leave a brisk message at the tone.”

“Hey, Dami!” She called. “I’m so sorry! Adrien and I just got caught up with each other. My friends set up a birthday party for me and I was really excited because they’d been working on it for a while! It was a surprise party too.” She blushed at the thought.

“Anyway, I was wondering how long you’re in Paris and if you’d like to grab lunch tomorrow? Please let me know! Bye!”

Picking up the rose, Marinette waited for an hour for him to respond. No messages, no calls, nothing. Two hours passed and she began pulling the petals off the rose.

Three hours passed, so she began tearing the discarded petals to shreds. Why wasn’t he responding? Taking a needle from her kit, Marinette began to hack at the stem.

Four hours passed and she began to yawn, her eyes drooping. Marinette fell asleep in the desk chair, waiting for a call from a broken hearted boy that would never come.

Tags:

@ozmav @g-arya @maribat-archive @maribat-central @maribat @damianette-is-life @artxyra @frownyalfred @department-of-depression @justcourttee @izzybellepenguin @nobodyfamousposts

[foriland]

What is the darkest idea you’ve ever had for a fic (that you have or haven’t published yet already)

......... XDDDDD This is an interesting ask to get. Thank you so much, love!

Uh... so..... darkest. :P

Okay okay. We'll go that I have published first. Which I think is probably Reanimation? Although Of Flesh And Blood is arguably darkest due to the gore and cannibalism theme. But honestly, I feel like Reanimation just scores due to the premise and the detoriation of Jason's mind and will and the mental state. And it is borderline gorey anyway. And it is like.... 12k? of pure plotless bloody torture. But..... Flesh And Blood really toys with a messed up...... ultimatum. But the gore is kind of mild and..... Hard to say because they are a bit on different scales.

So yes. That I have posted, it would be either Reanimation or Of Flesh And Blood, although I am leaning on the former. And it is totally not because I like it better. Nope not at all.

As for one that I haven't posted..... uh well..... there are a few to go from.

One of them was this idea (one that I have written bits of scenes for) where the premise basically is...... I throw Jason to Joker for.... I think a year? Two years? I can't remember. It was a decently old idea and I haven't worked on it in a long while. But.... yes. I guess I can say that it is similar to Reanimation in a way? BUT. Jay doesn't die and get patched up ifhe nearly does and it is Joker instead which makes everything better. I actually like that one but it is..... a bit difficult and kinda very long. And it is just going to be pure pure blood and torture, which while I.... enjoy, it just isn't everyone's thing. Fun fact though, I funnily had drafted out a sequel for it without even coming close to finishing the fic itself. I be funny.

Another candidate is a quite very recent one I wrote (It is actually edited, I just haven't posted it). It is a Jason Damian (mostly Jason) whump with a healthy dallop of gore. Like... very gorey. If you have read Cupcakes from the MLP fandom, ..... yeah........ It is approximatedly somewhere there in the gore level. But since I will be posting that one in the future, I won't say too much. (But it really is just another of my plotless pain kill fics, so spoiler is not much of a thing). It wasn't supposed to be this way. It originally had Jason with Bruce or Dick's corpse and was supposed to be trashy and 1k or less. It somehow became 3k+ messed up thing of blood, gore, torture with a side of forced cannibalism. I have really strange head.

Oh! And I have one where Jason, post Batarang Incident, got rescued by Batman from the rubble and..... there will be slavery and no hugs or comfort. And Jason is also rendered mute due to the batarang. But the idea is vague and I only did one scene where I had this Bruce and Jason interaction (which was fun, because it hurts a whole lot) that I also used as lazy, and maybe temporary, world building opportunity. I am really struggling with the premise so I am also chucking that somewhere to stare at whenever I have an idea of what to do with it.

Mmmmmm...... Yeah. That might be all that I have ever put down semi-properly. Others are just baaic ideas or concepts, which, for all I know, might not turn out that dark. The winner? I have a feeling that it is the Jason dami gore one. It might end up even beating Reanimation. The Joker one would be a close runner up.

So..... yeah! As a whole, Imma go with either Reanimation or that to-be-posted Jason Dami gore. Probably is the latter though. I am now very tempted to post that. I might. Hmmmmmmmmmmmm...... I am caught in a bit of a pickle.

!!!!! This had been a ton of fun, Anon love. Thank you so much for asking! <3 Sorry if got too long and rambly. I'm kind of lacking sleep and I happen to enjoy answering this too much. But this is one of the lights of my day (yesterday??? I mean... I started typing his at eleven and now it is past midnight). Thank you lots!

Also, if anyone wants to know more about any of them, feel free to ask ^^