#i started reading riddler year one finally

[knight-says-nanana]

An analysis on Ed’s comic childhood, how that impacted his OCD*, and how that translated to the Gotham TV show

Alternatively: GTV Ed’s Biography

*(and also how it very clearly gave him cptsd but they don’t explicitly Say that bc DC is full of cowards)

Normally I’d say comics don’t impact tv continuity, especially for a show like Gotham where so many things are changed, but the thing is? Cory Michael Smith specifically went out of his way to read the riddler comics when he accepted the role of Ed Nygma. He acted accordingly and did an amazing job trying to salvage the show’s poor writing. There are many tiny moments where he does things that reference Ed’s typical backstory despite the show, in all its 5 seasons, never bringing it up

Childhood wise there are typically two widely accepted routes

1 - his mom was around but neglectful and off her head with drugs n alcohol

2 - his mom left when he was a toddler due to not being able to handle his father anymore, which kinda kickstarted the abuse being focused onto Ed instead

I will be continuing this analysis with #2 because it is the most popular and explains his abandonment issues

Comic Based Childhood

So this guy basically grew up with Only his father. His father who is a dumbass, an alcoholic, blames Ed for his mother leaving, incredibly abusive physically, and couldn’t accept that 1) his kid is smarter than him or that 2) a kid so Weird cough traumatized and neurodivergent cough is anything but an idiot

A major sticking point was that he always thought Ed was lying, constantly, about everything. This will be important later.

And when Ed finally started going to school and getting A’s?? Yeah no Obviously he had to have been cheating so Mr Nashton just got More angry with him. Could Ed have dropped his grades on purpose to avoid this? Yeah. Did he? Absolutely not. Academic success was the one thing he could be proud of and the only thing that gave him any sort of praise or validation. He was clinging to it for dear life.

No matter the universe, this is a guy who craves attention.

There is difference between academic success and school life itself, because Ed is awkward n dorky n, especially at this point in time, anxious n quiet. So he didn’t have friends. In fact it’s usually written as either him having been bullied or being ignored entirely

The boy was not doing ok at all. So understandably he ran away as soon as possible and changed his name.

Now, this is the first point where Gotham’s canon ties into this in a Very interesting way

We know Ed’s official birth year from the ID card in the show. It’s canon. In season one he is 26. We know this. And it’s is insane for a few reasons!!

He is So Much Younger than his coworkers holy shit

Bullock is old enough to be his dad and he’s not nice, no wonder Ed doesn’t like him

He works in forensics. At 26. And he’s implied to have been working there a year or two before Jim joined the precinct.

Now, I had GENUINELY assumed that he was in his 30s like Jim. BECAUSE HE WORKS IN FORENSICS. But no he’s just actually a botched Spencer Reid because he’s 26 in season one.

A degree in forensic science takes 4 years.

If you want a masters it’s an extra 2 years.

Factoring in the time he would’ve needed to spend interning and working just to QUALIFY for a job at the GCPD???

If we assume he ran away n got into college at age 17 and got his bachelor's he’d be 21 by the time he graduated, 23 if he got his masters which of course he would, and then that leaves us only 3 or 1 year/s for internships and stuff before he joins the GCPD. What. What.

No wonder his apartment is so shitty!!! This is a man with hella student loans

But yeah! Hes only 26 and his 40 year old coworkers are bulling him for being weird. I’d hate my job too.

Bullock is 48 and I’m fully convinced he, like me, thinks Ed is at least 32 (Jim’s age) because. What.

So yeah that’s his general backstory, NOW the ways that plays into his mental state and how his actor managed to fit it into the show

So, you can reasonably assume he’s traumatized.

And!? There are so many subtle moments in the show where Cory acts his character accordingly for this. He flinches when people raise their voice, he’s visibly spooked when men in the GCPD get huffy (usually it’s Mr James Anger Issues Gordon). He’s skittish as a mouse. In the watermelon scene, when Gordon busts into the room, Ed immediately falls over himself to explain what he’s doing in there. The guy was terrified. Of James. Who’s never done a thing to him.

Beyond that? CPTSD -beyond the regular symptoms of flashbacks, triggers, and hyper awareness- also includes difficulty regulating emotions, feelings of shame/guilt, and trouble staying in relationships.

Ed Nygma is a damn textbook case. He has meltdowns, he falls into substances, he does ANYTHING but cope when he’s overwhelmed. He is constantly trying to prove he’s smart, there’s a gut deep shame when he doesn’t hold up to genius standards. And you’ve seen his relationships.

Basic info ab OCD: it’s an anxiety disorder and the two main things are obsessive compulsions and intrusive thoughts, both of which are present in Gotham but not handled nearly as well as they are in the comics

Compulsions first!

These tend to stem from subconscious thoughts and people won’t always know Why they have a compulsion but they’re generally a way of preventing a vague yet all consuming Bad Thing.

Now, with Ed one of his major sticking points in comics AND the show is he cannot tell blatant lies, especially not with yes/no answers.

This is part of why he compulsively leaves clues for absolutely everything and tries to be so vague when he is lying. He also jumps through hoops so that he won’t need to lie.

Lying = incredible all consuming dread and anxiety, so he just Doesn’t and uses his little hints and clues as a loophole. Very obviously from his father’s influence.

In the show this is shown multiple times but just for a few:

Lucious asking if Jim is at Ed’s house and when Ed tries to say no he seems almost forced to correct himself

The compulsive clue in “Tom’s” note, even when no one had asked him if he knew anything he still couldn’t keep it entirely to himself. The note is a loophole. Technically he told on himself. They just didn’t figure it out. (Well. Kristen kinda did but denying it aka lying sent him into an anxiety attack the moment she left. So.)

When Sofia Falcone was torturing him to find out where Oswald was, he told her. He just told her via a riddler he knew she didn’t understand! No need to lie!

In the car ride to the docks Oswald also calls him out directly by saying he’s so predictable because he’s driven by obsessive compulsion. This is the most the show acknowledges it.

Beyond his compulsions he’s got explicit intrusive thoughts regarding a few big things. (Should be noted that these tend to drive compulsions but not always.)

being viewed as stupid

Ergo his criminal history just being a big show to prove how smart he is. Again, his fathers influence.

being actually stupid

Not knowing things stresses him out So Bad and he takes it So Personally. He NEEDS to know everything. The world is a puzzle and he is Going to solve it.

Side note: That’s why I do LOVE that Gotham made him a forensics specialist!! He’s always had, to quote a DC podcast where he’s talking to Batgirl “-and you have that terrible all consuming pathology which comples you to find answers” “AnD i HaVe tHaT tErRiBlE aLL cOnsUmiNG PaThOLoGy wHiCh coMpELs mE tO FiNd AnSwErS- Yes.”

Biggest for last: being like his dad

This one is specifically fun because it was almost represented so well. ALMOST. His entire relationship with Kristen was downright molded by it, as shown in the file room anxiety attack. Yes that’s what I’m going to call it.

He is constantly fretting over being like Tom, even when he clearly isn’t because he is disgusted by Tom. No mysoginist is going to see someone with the same thoughts as gross. No guy who thinks women should be “put in their place” is going to have such a physical reaction to hearing that be said. No abusive pos is going to have that reaction at all. At least, not in the way that situation went down or in the way Ed’s afraid of being. We aren’t discussing emotional harm or Nygmobblepot today. But he frets anyway. And if we chose to interpret his riddler hallucination as a Really poor way of representing intrusive thoughts? Yeah. Yeah. His brain is making him panic about doing exactly what he hates so much.

*it should be noted that compulsions are often reinforced by intrusive thoughts. specific example: if he lies he will be saying something wrong, he can not be wrong, everyone is going to think he’s an idiot if he’s wrong. You can see how the two things connect. This applies to the majority of compilations in some way.

Now, a moment where I deviate from discussing what Did happened because I’ll forever mourn this particular writing fuck up:

His thing with Kristen could’ve been perfect. It could’ve been the best live action riddler origin to date. Because this is a guy with OCD who’s very traumatized and would have a strong personal reaction to finding out a friend is facing domestic abuse. That would make his relationships complicated too because of the thought loop it would create off the risk of “turning out to be the type of person he hates” or “what if I hurt her like I was hurt.” That would have been so compelling? AND? AND YKNOW WHAT? MY BIGGEST GRIPE? HIS FIRST PUSH INTO VIOLENT CRIME BEING STABBING AN ABUSER WOULD BE PERFECT. It would be on point. Exceptional foray into crime and murder. BUT THEY DIDNT PLAY IT LIKE THAT. No instead it’s highly tainted by “who gets the girl” and I just. N o. Ugh. They fumbled it!! They fumbled it So Hard. THEY MAKE HIM CREEPY AS FUCK TOWARDS KRISTEN. Like- physically blocking her into small spaces and imposing on her and talking over her when, if they HAD actually leaned into the OCD on purpose, he would probably be hyper aware of not doing.

[roblovedog]

harmless angel who is completely innocent

[nxtaliaistyping]

I don't know if you do poly scenes, but if so, could you do the riddler x reader x scarecrow? (the riddler and scarecrow put aside their differences to give their partner a very special birthday gift) (I love the way you write)

Scriddler making their gf’s birthday a special one

Authors note: thank you v much! And yes I do indeed write poly scenes (ngl I’ll write nearly anything). Their characterisations are very much inspired by @capr1pengu1n ‘s amazing two part series of threesome fics with Edward and Jonathan. [x] [x]

Nsfw 18+, fem reader, threesome obvs, fingering

“You bought her flowers?”

“Of course i did.” Edward snaps, rolling his eyes. “God haven’t you ever had a girlfriend before? Oh, scratch that, I know you haven’t.”

“Alright no need to get your panties in a twist.” Jonathan mumbles in return, ascending the final set of stairs before arriving at your apartment door. "Besides, I got her a gift. One besides flowers that'll die in a couple days."

Edward scoffs as he knocks on your door, casting a glance at the doctor. "You think I've only bought her flowers? I have another ace up my sleeve. Don't you know how much money I've acquired over the years?"

"Goddamn it will you stop talkin' like i'm broke-"

Both of their eyes snap to the door as you open it, smiling softly at seeing both of your boyfriends waiting for you. Edward, determined as ever to have all eyes on him, thrusts the flowers into your hands quickly before Jonathan can speak.

"A very happy birthday my dear." he chirps happily, and as you gush over the flowers he casts a self satisfied smirk Jonathan's way.

Jon coughs a little, before giving you a half smile. "Yeah, happy birthday darlin'."

You invite them both in, your cheeks already burning a little at the attention as you go to place Edward's flowers in a vase. Thinking you can hear them bickering again from the other room, you laugh and sit between them both on the sofa.

"Maybe try not to launch at eachother, at least until I've had my cake?" you say with a grin.

"Anything for you my love." Edward croons at you, giving you a cheeky kiss beneath your earlobe. Jonathan huffs, curling his arm around your waist.

"Got y'a little somethin'"

You turn to look as Jonathan opens his coat jacket and retrieves something from the large inner pocket. He produces a crow's feather, presumably his own crow Ichabod's, that had been pressed.

"Figured cause y'like to read, it could be a bookmark or somethin'..." He sounds unsure as he speaks, almost like he's embarrassed, but you take it with a bright smile.

"Oh Jonathan...it's beautiful. That's so thoughtful, thank you!"

He hums a little at your praise, mumbling a quick 'don't mention it.' before you kiss him on the cheek. As you pull away, Edward laughs softly at the slight red imprint you've left on his cheek with lipstick.

You go to clean it, before Edward catches your wrist. "I say we leave it, it suits him."

Jonathan grumbles and starts to wipe at his cheek with his sleeve, as Edward dramatically clears his throat. "Now it's my turn."

He pulls out a small box from his pocket, an emerald green bow delicately wrapped around it. You take it gently, undoing the bow and shimmying the box open.

Inside was a beautiful ring, clearly expensive. It held an emerald in the centre, but had a small engraved bird on the inside. You couldnt stop the tears that slightly form in your eyes as you gaze upon such a thoughtful gift.

“Edward I…I don’t know what to say…”

He smiles, you’d even have called it a genuine smile, and brushes some stray hairs from your face.

“How about a thank you?” He teases, to which Jonathan scoffs.

“Thank you Edward.” You giggle, and he mimes a bow.

“You’re very welcome darling.”

You can’t help but flush at the attention, taking the ring out and slipping it on your finger. The gemstone sparkles in the low light of your room, and you hold it up to get a closer look.

“Didn’t know you’d done that…havin’ us both represented I mean.” Jonathan says, his eyes glancing between the ring and Edward.

“Yes well, she’s lucky enough to have two of Gotham’s brightest and baddest doting over her, so she might as well have a representation of that.”

“Baddest? Didn’t know you were capable of speaking in grammatically incoherent sentences.”

“I was clearly saying it in jest, I thought my tone was evident. God it’s like you’ve never socialized with anyone apart from that damn crow of yours.”

“Well i appreciate it.” You say, cutting them both off. Giggling, you give Edward a kiss on the cheek before doing the same to Jonathan, but the more narcissistic of the two pouts.

“I got you an expensive ring, and all I get is a kiss on the cheek?”

Rolling your eyes, you lean over and capture his lips in a kiss, one that he quickly deepens. His hand cups your jaw, tongue licking at your lower lip as you swallow the slight mint taste of his mouth.

Jonathan shuffles along to be nearer, bony fingers tracing up and down your arm. His eyes roam your form, taking in the pretty dress you'd put on for the occasion. As Edward pulls away to pepper kisses along your jawline, he speaks.

"Did you wear this just f'us?"

You nod softly, as the two men smirk at your devotion, your eagerness to please even on your birthday of all days. Jonathan runs his hands appreciatively around your waist, feeling the soft material.

With a soft groan, Edward makes his way to your neck, sucking a soft mark into your clear skin. Taking the opportunity, your lips are captured by Jonathan's own, tasting the coffee and cigarettes that always permeates his mouth. The clear contrast between the two men always gives you whiplash in the best possible way, the two villains being so similar and yet so different.

It takes all of Edward's willpower to not just yank you into his lap, but alas he's learning to share. His gloved hands move to the back of your dress, feeling the zip and dragging it down a little, causing you to gasp into Jonathan's mouth.

"Edward..." you giggle, which elicits a chuckle in return.

"What? I believe we both owe you a more...intimate present."

He punctuates his words by zipping it down more and more, until your back is exposed. Jonathan laughs and helps, dragging the straps down until your tits spill out.

"No bra?" Jonathan remarks, before grabbing them before Edward could seize the opportunity. You arch into his touch, moaning softly as he circles his thumbs around your now erect nipples.

Edward decides to go to shimmy you further out of your dress, pushing it down and down until it hung loosely around your ankles. Now you were left only in your panties, which had grown embarrassingly wet at both of your boyfriend’s ministrations.

“Oh you wanted this, didn’t you darling? Wanted us to come over and ravage you for your celebration.”

You bite your lip, not wanting to admit you had indeed thought about it. Instead you can only watch as Edward starts to trail his hand up your bare thigh.

“Not even gonna take the gloves off?” Jonathan remarks, to which Edward returns a shit-eating grin.

“Would you be a dear and take them off for me?”

“Keep dreaming.”

You huff, reaching to take them off before Edward gently slaps your hands away. Instead he brings one to your lips, eyeing you expectantly as you gently bite and tug it off, repeating the same motion with the other one. He hums in satisfaction, and reward you by bringing two fingers to your clothed clit and starting to rub slow circles.

At your moan, Jonathan pinches your nipples just to watch you squirm, laughing to himself. He soothes them a little before leaning down and taking one into his mouth, sucking. You arch your back, before Edward decides to pull down your underwear and leave you completely exposed for the two of them.

“So wet…” he remarks, rubbing a finger casually up and down your soaked folds, before bringing it away and letting your slick shine on his fingertip.

“God she’s drippin’” Jonathan says in agreement, bringing a long finger down to do the same, only he dips his into your entrance a little, causing you to buck into his touch.

“Now now, no need to get impatient.” Edward says with a sharp slap to your thigh. “We’ll give you what you need. We always do.”

Whimpering at the slight pain, you still your movements so Jonathan can slip his finger inside. He groans gently at how tight you feel around his digit, moving it in and out in an almost experimental way.

Edward takes over fondling your tits, using both hands to caress and grab at the soft flesh. Soft little noises escape you, so Jonathan seeks to have you make more, pushing a second finger in and crooking them.

A gasp can be heard from your parted lips, and Jonathan keeps moving his fingers in and out, pumping them in a steady rhythm. The slick noises fill all of your ears, and Edward grins at the salaciousness of the act.

“I suppose we shouldn’t be too mean. It is your special day.” He teases, reaching down and starting to play with your clit in time with Jonathan’s fingering.

You nod in agreement, really wanting to get permission to cum. And both men seem determined for that to happen, with Jonathan bringing his free hand up to tweak at your nipple, while Edward’s free hand braces around the back of your neck, keeping you still.

The sensations get too much, and soon enough your cumming around their fingers with a soft cry, soaking the both of them. Edward moans the loudest, leaning down to get a closer look at when Jonathan removes his fingers with a soft squelch.

At your hole fluttering, the narcissist can’t help but move forward and lap up your cum with his tongue. You moan loudly at the sensitive feeling, but Jonathan clamps a hand around your hip to keep you from wriggling away too much. Luckily Edward doesn’t overstimulate for long, achieving his fill of your taste before pulling away.

“Now, I think the man who got you the better present should have the honours of fucking you first.”

“Bullshit, I was the one fingerin’ her. Besides mine was thoughtful.”

“As was mine! Luxury isn’t always cold you know. Well, of course you don’t know that, you wouldn’t know luxury if it slapped you around the face and knocked the stupid mask off.”

You can’t help but laugh softly. Even on your birthday, the bickering never stops. But as you lament that they both had great presents for you, so you can’t decide which one to choose…a wicked grin crosses their faces.

“Well if y’’can’t choose, I suppose it’ll have to be both of us.”

[adhdnursegoat]

Hey I’m getting into reading smut for the riddler, do you have any recs? Writers or specific smut fics i don’t mind I’ll take anything. (Btw I love your writing)

OMG HELLO ANON!

Thank you so much! I'm sooo glad you enjoy my work. I appreciate your support and interaction!

I have several I'd love to tag!

First, here's a link to my ao3 bookmark page which is just chock full of riddler smut!

Second, here is my 'Best Of' list! I actually had so much fun making this and maybe other people will like it too!

? @caesariawritesstuff has written many lovely oneshots but her magnum opus is Cat & Mouse. Highly recommend it if you're looking for something current, punchy, intricate, well-written, well-thought-out, and just a straight joy to follow. Here is also a link to a collection of her oneshots: Conundrums, Queries, and Quandarys

? @finniestoncrane is one of the more prolific providers of some of the dirtiest, toe-curling, mouth watering smutty oneshots and drabbles for the riddler. They write for other characters but mostly him! >:D My particularly favorite piece by them is Appointment

? @capr1pengu1n has several pieces that I greatly enjoy! I am quite biased but their piece Corrupting the young with your uncivil tongue is my favorite. It was a request I made of them :3 also Twist the knife, like it's something to do is a gem!

? @decaying-words has a small, but delicious and, actually, sweet collection of works called Love Letters to the Riddler. They have not posted since earlier this year, and I hope to see more from them soon!

? @circledemptiness is finally on tumblr! After a two year hiatus, they have posted some new work with plans to do more! I do particularly enjoy their portfolio of all riddler. Check out Merciful!

This is not a definitive list, but these are the main ones I would start with!

Happy reading, my sweet lil goat~!

[homestuckredo]

Lots and LOTS have happened in the few days I haven't updated. But Hussie FINALLY took a day off so I have the chance to review in peace!!

First off we have new rules for the captchalogue system, including a size limit to digify items AND the potential to increase the upper limit (hasn't happened yet, but the office card speaks volumes). John has also opened the massive tomb "Colonel Sassacre's Daunting Text of Magical Frivolity and Practical Japery"

and NOTHING useful for actually pranking someone of course (honestly disappointed there are no practical tips in this page). The picture in the middle looks a dead ringer for Mark Twain tho... idk if it is supposed to be Sassacre or just a collage of 1900's looking clownery and Twain's pic is public domain. I guess we'll see.... We also have a brandy new room to explore, complete with last years Dark Knight Joker on the piano. AND WE HAVE SOUND. OMG WE HAVE SOUND!! I think i've played the piano refrain a dozen times its so beautiful!! I'm starting to get the hang of Hussie's emotional whiplash between 4chan humor, niche commercials, and haunting, beautiful and poetic moments. Moments filled with niche media literacy, that he then lies about the source of. I have to look up so many quotes just to be sure who said it guys. So much homework!!! (>.<)

But is does lead into the best part of the updates. WE MADE IT OUTSIDE.

Not only that BUT we have a beautiful animated title page, complete with neverending wind-chimes and a haunting monologue of emptiness and the feeling of missing something unknown.

"The streets are empty. Wind skims the voids keeping neighbors apart, as if grazing the hollow of a cut reed, or say, a plundered mailbox. A familiar note is produced. It's the one Desolation plays to keep its instrument in tune. It is your thirteenth birthday, and as with all twelve preceding it, something feels missing from your life. The game presently eluding you is only the latest sleight of hand in the repertoire of an unseen riddler, one to engender a sense not of mirth, but of lack. His coarse schemes are those less of a prankster than a common pickpocket. His riddle is Absence itself. It is a mystery dispersing altogether, like the moon's faint reflection, with even one pebble of inquiry dropped in its black well. It is the most diabolical riddle of all. "Absence diminishes little passions and increases great ones, as wind extinguishes candles and fans a fire." -Walt Whitman Yes, you are certain Walt Whitman said that. One hundred percent positive. You have a feeling it's going to be a long day."

Francois de La Rochefoucauld said that... not Walt Whitman. I am starting to think John reads a LOT of classic literature and is not a great narrator. I am not an English Major OR Literature Major tho, so this means little to me in the grand scheme of plots and subtext. Moving on.

we have two packages found at last and a visible SBURB disc.... trapped with father who may or may not be baking yet ANOTHER cake. more small mysteries and conflict to hold onto XD Finally, as we go back inside... the cake did not hold as adhesive and our harlequin doll is now missing an arm. Tragedy. Throw it in the fire. PLEASE. Since this has been a lot of updates together I am afraid I have missed things and underplayed just how much were in the last 20 pages... so if you notice anything else let me know!! I wanna see it all!.

[caesariawritesstuff]

Frenemy

Summary: It's tough being on opposite sides of the law when it comes to Edward Nigma.

Content Warning: Fluff & Angst

Word Count: 1.3k

● Ao3 ● X ● Retrospring ● Read on Ao3 ●

There’s a beep in your ear as Oracle’s voice comes over your comm, “I think I finally tracked Nigma’s location. But he’s bouncing it off several cell towers. I’ve got Robin checking out the first, can you get to the second?”

You sighed. Not this again. With a shake of your head, you replied, “Yes. Give me the address.”

She spouted it off to you, but you were just barely registering her voice. Because instead, you felt a deep disappointment growing within you.

You’re not sure how it started, exactly. This strange frenemy-type of thing you had going on with Edward Nigma. Probably a year ago, when you were the first to arrive on the scene of one of his schemes. Back then, you’d been new to vigilantism, new to the role of Batgirl, which Oracle had honorarily given to you. You were still new to your training and not as on guard as you should’ve been – and that’s how you found yourself in the clutches of the Riddler.

He'd mocked you, forcing you to solve his riddles, using as bait until Batman arrived. But to his surprise, you’d managed to solve every single one. You’d watched as his smug smirk twisted into a sneer of humiliation and outrage. He’d thrown one of his usual tantrums, claiming you were cheating or getting outside help. You assured him you weren’t.

And maybe, deep down, you think he believed you.

With another heavy sigh, you grappled across Gotham’s rooftops as quickly as you could. The roar of sirens and alarm bells and nightlife rang throughout, a symphony of criminal chaos. Within minutes, you found yourself out of what appeared to be an abandon apartment building: the shudders were boarded shut, rust covered the metal doors. It looked as though it happened been lived in in quite some time, but you knew better; it was exactly the perfect hideout for the Riddler to hole up in. Inconspicuous and unnoticed. You quietly searched the windows and doors, looking for the perfect way in – but you finally found it: a small, electronic box that appeared to be an old power box. But instead, you flipped it open to reveal a screen. Staring back at you were the bright, green words: When you don't have me, you want me, but when you do have me, you want to give me away. What am I?

You smiled; that’s an easy one. Quickly you punched in the answer: Secret.

As expected, a hidden compartment within brick walls slid forward, revealing a secret passageway inside. You held your breath, keeping your guard up, as you followed the path in. Cobwebs hung from the ceiling and smell of dank mold clung to the air. Scrunching up your nose, you tried not to breathe as you followed the passage for several yards until you finally came to his hideout.

You spotted him sitting before an array of vast monitors and computers, all glowing bright green, enveloping him in their emerald glow. The top of his bowler hat peeked over the back of the chair he was in.

With a sigh, he spun around and faced you. “I should’ve expected you,” he said, annoyance lacing his tone. He leaned forward, resting his weight on his hands, which were rested on the top of his cane.

“Hoping I was someone else?” you asked.

The corner of his mouth quirked upward in a smirk, and you grinned back. It was strange, how this was what had become of your relationship. After all these months, time and time again, you’d somehow found yourself in this position with him. And even though you were on other sides of the law, you couldn’t help but find some enjoyment in your small interactions with him.

And there’d been plenty more than you expected.

He turned away, his focus back on the screens. “Go away, little Bat. You’re going to ruin my plans before they’ve even begun.”

You laughed lightly, wandering into the rest of the hideout. Your gaze focused on the screens, on each camera which was pointed somewhere important in Gotham. On one screen, you noticed Batman procuring himself one of Riddler’s trophies out of little green cage.

Edward snickered. “He got lucky with that one,” he said, but it was more to himself than to you.

“So,” you sighed. “What exactly are you planning this time? A giant robot? Hostages aboard a runaway train? Children dangling above a vat of acid?”

He paused his typing, glancing at you. “Perhaps.”

You snorted. “Come on Edward, don’t be in such a mood. I’m sorry I’ve ruined your plans.”

“Come back later, then. I have more important things to deal with.”

“Like outsmarting Batman? You know he’s going to come here and kick the crap out of you, like usual.” It wasn’t the first time you’d watched as Edward got his shit kicked in and dragged out a broken, beaten mess.

Sure, you were trained in hand-to-hand combat yourself. But Batman had a particular brand of violence that you didn’t follow through with.

Edward was quiet for a longer moment that usual. Perhaps he was ruminating over your words. You put your hands on your hips and waited for his reply. Admittedly, you weren’t ready to walk out. For some strange reason you couldn’t explain it…he fascinated you. Despite his criminal crusade, he was incredibly smart, and you valued that.

And that was how you found yourself in this strange predicament with him – somehow always enjoying each other’s company. At least, you thought he must’ve come to tolerate you, because he wasn’t kicking you out anymore.

Your gaze strayed back to the monitors, studying their placement, before you shifted your attention to the dozens of blueprints and plans laid out in a scattered mess across his desk, several which were stained with a neat ring of coffee. His hand immediately shot out, arms covering what he could.

“Ah, ah, ah,” he tutted with a click of his tongue. “These aren’t for your eyes, little Bat. It looks like you’re cheating to me. I knew your brain was the size of a peanut.” He rolled his eyes.

You barked out a laugh. “Right. Whatever you say.” A small smirk formed at the corner of your mouth, and you turned your attention back to the monitors. In one, Robin was just leaving the location Oracle had mentioned – which appeared to be booby-trapped, which he just narrowly escaped. Batman himself was solving another puzzle – also just missing a trap Riddler had programed to kill him as soon as he snatched up a trophy.

You held your breath as a chill crept down your spine. The sudden realization that you were sitting here with the Riddler, chatting with him as if you were friends – like always, it seemed fun at first. Harmless. Until the reality of the situation set in. That he was trying to kill the people you’d come to know and love.

Edward’s attention on the monitors, the scowl on his face as Batman continued to solve his riddles, didn’t budge. But unlike Batman, you weren’t about to go throwing fists.

“Ten minutes,” you said quietly. “I’m giving you a ten-minute head start.”

He paused, slowly turning to you. “Do you really think that’s wise?”

“Probably not.”

“See? I knew you were an idiot.” He chuckled lowly to himself, turning his attention back to the monitors, his fingers racing across the keyboard.

You walked out of the hideout and grappled onto a nearby rooftop, keeping a close eye. And within minutes, you watched him sneak out the hidden entrance. He smirked and tipped his hat to you, before sneaking away into the shadows. You reached down to your toolbelt and pushed a small tracking device, alerting the GCPD to your location. The minutes counted down like an eternity as you kept your eyes trained on the splash of green amongst the darkness.

And when those ten minutes were up, you followed.

[incorrectbatfam]

Castaway

Batfamily Week 2023 day 4: Deaging | Miscommunication | “I just crashed the Batmobile!”

Summary

When you leave a kid in charge of other kids, you still have a group of unsupervised kids.

In unrelated news, Alfred gets turned into an 8-year-old boy.

“Alfred, have you seen my jacket?”

“It’s in the dryer, Master Jason.”

“Alfred, I need you to fetch the Riddler case file.”

“On it, Master Bruce.”

“Alfred, can we have cookies after patrol?”

“As long as no one gets injured, Miss Cassandra.”

“Alfred, tell Damian to stop biting me!”

“Tell Timothy I claimed the shower first!”

“Leaving your towel in the sink isn’t claiming it.”

“Is too!”

“Alfred, where is my super suit?” Duke giggled. “Just kidding, I’ve always wanted to do that.”

Alfred groaned and rubbed the pulsing vein in his temple. He slapped the case file on Bruce’s desk, receiving half a grunt in return, before going to the kitchen to start those cookies. 

As he mixed the dough, he felt someone crouch under the sink, breathing against his leg.

“I’m sorry, Miss Stephanie, but you’ll have to wait until I’m done to lick the bowl.”

Stephanie silently pouted and sulked off. 

He stopped to wipe a bead of sweat off his brow. And as timing would have it, Dick flipped over the island and flung an arm over Alfred’s shoulder.

“Heya Alfie! Ooh, you’re making cookies. Can you make me a really big one that I can call dibs on? As the oldest and awesomest, I think I should have that privilege. And if Babs asks, I can say I technically only had one cookie.”

“First, Master Dick, I told you no more kitchen gymnastics,” Alfred said. “Second, like the other dozen times you asked, my answer is no. You have to share.”

“Come on, just this once? Pretty please?” 

“If I give you a spoonful of dough will you stop asking?”

“Sure.”

Alfred scooped a spoonful of the chocolate chip dough and was just about to plop it in Dick’s cupped hands when he stopped.

“Did you wash your hands?”

“Whoops! One sec.” 

While Dick did that, Alfred turned and nearly had a heart attack.

“Miss Stephanie! Get off the refrigerator this instant!” 

Stephanie licked her lips, eyeing the dough.

“Oh, fine, you can both have one.” 

He gave Dick one dough ball. Stephanie opened her mouth and he reluctantly flung the other at her. She caught it and crawled back down like a spider. He didn’t even have a second to process that, however, as the phone rang.

“Wayne residence, may I ask who is calling?” He squeezed the phone between his ear and his shoulder as he rolled the dough onto the floured countertop. “I’m sorry, Mr. Drake is not available right now. Please call back during his office hours.”

He hung up. It rang again.

“I already told you—oh, sorry, Mr. Fox. I mistook you for someone else there.” He resumed his awkward phone-holding position as he rummaged around for the cookie cutters. “Yes, I can pass the message. We can place a rush order for those parts by tomorrow. Does that work?” Alfred stamped out the shapes. “Excellent, I’ll have Master Bruce follow up with you.”

He slammed the phone down and made a mental note to get a new one with caller ID. He arranged the cookies on the platter… 

Only to realize he forgot to preheat the oven. 

Sighing, he switched it on. While it slowly warmed up, he passed Lucius’s message along to Bruce, broke up a fight between Tim and Damian over a shampoo bottle, and scrubbed down all the mixing bowls. Then he put the trays in the oven, set the Robin Laid An Egg timer, and finally let out the breath he’d been holding. 

“Alfred!” someone called. 

He sighed softly. “I will be right there.” 

.

.

.

Read the rest on Ao3

@batfamilyweek

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3

[androidboy]

Hey I would earnestly love some DC recommendations! I'm a little out of my depth and I respect the wisdom of a comic shop employee.

I loved the whole Scott Snyder run of Batman, probably my favorite so far. I was recommended the Tynion IV run (by a cute guy at the Vault of Midnight shop in Detroit), liked what Fear State had to say. I recently finished reading the Catwoman (2011-2016) Vol. 5 - Race of Thieves graphic novel (found it in a LFL!), liked the narrative focus on gaslighting. Also, the Penguin is my favorite villain; I love the organized crime stories.

Also also with the utmost platonicism I must inform you that yeah, you are adorable. It makes total sense that you're breaking hearts all over the local comix community.

take my hand and let me lead you into the world off the tracks of main runs

recommendations that i have not personally read but are shop favorites and probably up your alley:

gotham city year one- written by tom king who’s one of the biggest writers in comics right now. story of the crime that sent gotham spiraling into the city of villains it became

catwoman lonely city- beautiful art and story by cliff chiang, gotham without batman has been cleaned up and a “reformed” selina kyle starts picking at the city’s old wounds

personal recommendations:

human target by tom king- very much a crime noir femme fatale whodunnit. a man whose career is being a body double for people in danger of being assassinated has finally taken a hit he can’t survive. 12 issue series, he has 12 days to figure out who killed him and whether or not it was him they were trying to kill

supergirl woman of tomorrow- beautiful beautiful story of supergirl deciding to accompany a girl on her revenge mission to track down and kill the man who killed her father and having to deal with witnessing the destruction he leaves behind on every planet he lands on

dark knights of steel- fun story about the justice league in a high fantasy setting. assassinations, questions about identity, royal politics and betrayals, harley quinn as an actual jester, batman as a knight with lil bat ears on his helmet

batman: one bad day- the riddler- not a FAVORITE per say but an interesting look at the riddler and how one bad day can push someone past the point of return and if batman can bend without breaking when a villain goes off script

stuck with recent releases and popular characters for this one, hopefully a couple of them sounds like something you can dive into

and thank youu 😘

[axolozzy]

had an insane dream about TUMBLR so i thought it was my obligation to share (warning for murder and horror movie like stuff i guess)

so there was this old tumblr creepy pasta that was really popular back in the day and it took place on a blog called “cortney’s blog” spelled exactly like that. it was weird because it was the only blog that had a space and apostrophe in the name.

the main antagonist was this tiny really ugly wrinkly pink creature that looked like a 3D puppet of that one shrimp character from smiling friends, and it’s name was The Numbler. iirc Cortney was i think the stereotypical popular high school girl but in secret she was the only one who could see and talk to The Numbler (or the only one The Numbler allowed to see and talk to it) and basically carried out murders for it. she had pale skin and long brown hair and wore a heavy metal band t shirt

(also like halfway through the dream, i realized it was a dream and thought i’d wanna write it down and post about it when i wake up LOL so the way i thought to remember The Numbler’s name was thinking about the word “mumble,” “number” and “the riddler” all combined into The Numbler. and it worked)

also it’s weird because the dream kinda kept going back and fourth from present days and flashbacks, so it’s kinda hard to get the timeline right. so i don’t know exactly how The Numbler started or came to be, because i didn’t see that far back yet before i woke up. i also don’t know how the dream ended either

anyway from what i can remember, the stuff put on cortney’s blog years and years ago was in the form of really well drawn webcomics that told the story of each murder Cortney committed, most of them involving her luring people away from their friends and murdering them. but people didn’t exactly know or think it was real because they were just comics. somehow, people caught on that the stuff the blog was posting was actually based on real murders taking place at the same time, but nobody could find the bodies or the person running the blog, so it was kinda just left as a creepypasta and forgotten about as time went on and it stopped posting.

and when i say forgotten about, like really forgotten about. nobody really knew it had existed unless you were on tumblr like a decade ago and saw the whole thing go down yourself, otherwise the posts became kinda lost to time and were never talked about.

years later, i was at my grandma’s house just kinda hanging out lol and i went upstairs to this really weird room we were never really allowed in. the room was dark and looked like a concrete basement and there were all sorts of writings on the walls that looked written out of dried blood or black paint. there was a giant rectangle slab in the middle that was basically a bed i think but it looked more like a tomb or coffin. apparently this was where cortney committed her last murder (which. apparently was my grandpa LOL???) and after that, her spirit became trapped in that room for years until the door was finally opened by ME. oops

now cortney’s spirit is loose and i’m freaking out and trying to find out soo much lore about her blog to find a way to stop this. i looked through all the cortney’s blog tumblr posts and read all the comics. it was a weird moment because suddenly, everyone on tumblr was coming across those posts again and reblogging them saying they were part of the tumblr greats and stuff. as i was binging the comics, i also reblogged them to show my mutuals because they were genuinely interesting and a good story and thought they’d like it. apparently there had also been a horror movie adaptation of cortney’s blog back in the day so i watched that movie to find out more.

the movie didn’t reveal much except i think it’s how i figured out where The Numbler was left. anyway during all of this, cortney’s blog had started posting AGAIN and people were really excited because they thought it returned for some kind of arg creepypasta and they didn’t think it was actually Real.

my time was limited to find The Numbler and destroy it before Cortney came back and killed me, so i began my search. here’s the part where it gets confusing and i feel ends very abruptly. i went outside by the woods that don’t exist irl and found three wooden crates that looked like they had been there a really long time. they were all weathered down and had plants growing around them and stuff.

anyway me and my friend (dunno who it was they kinda showed up outta nowhere) opened the crates and found some stuff. the first one had a red piece of yarn in it and and ohhh shit i think i forgot something else important. so! sometimes i get these weird lucid deja vu dreams where during the dream, i realize im dreaming and that i’ve actually had the same exact dream before! but that’s a lie, i’ve literally never had those dreams before but my brain made me think i did? so i knew some extra information that was just given to me at the start i think. that information was that The Numbler had more friends. there was a red piece of yarn that could take shape of a little stick man person and stuff. then there was a rag that was also a little guy idk. they were just little fucked up creatures that were part of the cortney’s blog lore and were The Numbler’s companions.

after The Numbler was abandoned all those years ago when Cortney’s spirit was trapped in my grandpa’s room, it and its friends were basically trapped in those crates and abandoned for years. my friend and i had now just opened them and saw the remains of those guys, now just the lifeless objects they were based on. the red yarn was just a piece of yarn and the wash cloth was just that. but The Numbler was nowhere to be seen. fuck

we ran back into the house after seeing a creepy fucking shadow man staring at us from across the lawn. it was creepy as hell and was now IN THE HOUSE CHASING US. this house was not my grandma’s anymore either it was just a random house i’ve never been in before, i think it was suppose to be my mystery friend’s house actually.

anyway i just stayed in the kitchen and my friend and their family were being chased by the shdadow man and allll of The Numbler’s friends. yep. they were back to life now, must’ve been playing a trick on us in those crates, and now they were like running in a circle around my friends doing some sort of weird ritual thing. all of a sudden they became humanoid and their personalities also reminded me of the starkid lords in black, both the weird monster forms and the human forms.

anyway i was hiding under a really small table and could see into the room were they were terrorizing my friends. i made eye contact with one of the creatures. shit

i was found, they all surrounded me, then i woke up. i have no idea what happened to The Numbler or Cortney but their friends were doing some sort of ritual on us and they probably completed it. Cortney probably continued her reign of terror and fed our bodies to The Numbler who knows. it was a crazyyy dream i hope u all found it entertaining :) now who wants to make The Numbler the new tumblr sexyman

[riddle-me-ri]

Well, the time has come, whoop. Way sooner than I expected it too!

Ri's 500 Follower Event

I've been mulling over different ideas/prompts for this event and its no doubt been inspired by many other events I've seen done in the past. I hope I don't copy too many but its bound to happen, especially if the prompt is *chef's kiss*

This is my first event so I'm not going to go super crazy and try not to overwhelm myself but I definitely also wanna make it special!

Below the read more tab are three different options AND rules for a drawing you guys can enter!

First and foremost these events options are open to all the characters I write for that are listed here, but if you need a refresher;

- General Riddler and Arkhamverse, BTAS, Gotham, Dano/Reevesverse, Telltale, Young Justice, Zero Year, Twojar, Gotham City Sirens, and DCAU Hush Riddler

- General Penguin and Arkhamverse, Farrell/Reevesverse, BTAS, TNBA, One Bad Day, Telltale, The Batman (2004), and Batman Unlimited Penguin

- General Mad Hatter and Arkhamverse, Gotham, BTAS, TNBA, Secret Six, Joker's Asylum, and Harley Quinn Animated Series (HQTAS) Mad Hatter

- General Scarecrow and Arkhamverse, Murphy/Nolanverse, BTAS, TNBA, Fear State, Year One, Masters of Fear, and Happy Halloween, Scooby-Doo Scarecrow

1. 500 Word Drabble Prompts

Choose a prompt and I will write a 500-ish word drabble around it. Some of these can be fluffy or NSFW just lemme know which you prefer or I will just go with which comes naturally lol

Breakfast in Bed

Sharing a Bath/Shower

First Date Night

Arkham Visit

2. Headcanons

How they would react to you being kidnapped

How they would react to you wearing their clothes

How they would react to you confessing your feelings

How they would react to you breaking up with them

3. Love Letters

Give me a character and describe your envisioned relationship with f/o and I'll write a letter to you from that character.

Be sure to tell me any nicknames, how you guys met, and your relationship status (i.e. is he admitting his feelings, is he missing you while away in arkham, etc). and/or if you want him to be helping and comforting you during a rough time.

The more descriptive the better!

FINALLY, one last thing, sorry I know this is getting long but I'm really excited for this part!

I really wanna try and give back in any way that I can, so I decided that I wanted to do a name draw!

Submit a request from THIS post with one of these options (either with your username or an anon nickname, like "dormy anon" "timid anon", etc that way it's easier to separate you all lol)

If your name is drawn you'll get the option of:

A 2k fanfic from me

A drawing of one of the Rogues or your DC OC (if you have one) by me

This event will be running from May 19th - June 2nd. All 500 requests will be answered before normal requests, and if you didn't get a chance to participate feel free to submit as a normal request!

That is all I've got for now. I know not incredibly unique or different but again, kinda wanna start off with something familiar since this is my first ever event type thingy!

Thank you guys so much again for 500 followers, I'm still absolutely floored from that fact every day and I hope this shows even a fraction of my appreciation!

Oh and if you don't wanna see any of the 500 Event stuff you can filter out the tag "ri 500"

[2-guns-b1tch]

Talk to Me

Arkham! Riddler x F!Reader

🔞Minor DNI!!!

TW: Thoughts about self harm

Masterlist

Chapter 2/ AO3

"So, Edward, I was informed that you've been leaving some ominous riddles on the walls of the asylum." You say, tapping the tip of the pen against your clipboard.

"One would have to be severely paranoid to read threats in harmless riddles, Doctor," Edward argues, his tone sounding humorous. "May I test you with one?"

He took a while. You expected your first session to be bombarded with riddles.

"Very well, you may."

"What is it that walks on four legs, then two legs, and finally three legs?"

That was... strangely easy. You remember reading "Oedipus the King" in high school and how this was the riddle the Sphinx makes to Oedipus when he arrives at Thebes.

"It's a human being. When it's a baby it crawls on four legs, as an adult it walks on two legs and in later years it uses a cane."

He laughs satisfied, as if you had done exactly what he wanted. "Good try, but the answer to all three is a baby. True, he crawls on all fours, but cut off its legs and it can only wiggle on two limbs. Give it a crutch, it can hobble around on three. You see?"

Nygma stares at you expectantly, probably waiting for a disgusted or frightened reaction. But you wouldn't give it to him.

Instead, you try to suppress a smile, but the corners of your lips curve upward. "That's not the traditional answer, but I think it works."

His cocky expression crumbles, turning into confusion, then into disappointment.

"I... I don't think you got it. Let me explain again." He starts, but you shake your head.

"I understood very well, Mr. Nygma."

"So you don't feel a discomfort? Or disgust? As far as I know, people have a certain empathy for babies."

"You're right, but from what I've read about you, there's no history of yours hurting a baby, not even against children, so I suppose this is just an attempt to scare me. And besides, I've heard worse things from men as I walked alone at night. Near them you are a gentleman, Edward."

His frustration is obvious, but at the same time a light blush covers his cheeks.

"Of course I'm a gentleman." He murmurs softly, more to himself than to you.

"Because of the complaints I decided to bring you this." You pull a book from your bag, sliding across the table in Edward's direction.

He raises an eyebrow. "A puzzle book?"

"Security has checked everything and allowed me to bring it to you. I assumed your behavior may be out of boredom. I have always considered that an idle brain is the devil’s workshop."

His gaze turns to you again. "This is so childish. I could solve all the puzzles in less than 30 minutes."

"Oh, well," you shrug your shoulders, placing your hand on the cover. "If you don't want it I can take it back."

Before you can do that Edward pulls the book to himself, placing it against his chest. "No, no. I'll keep it!"

You laugh softly, shaking your head at him. “Glad you liked the gift."

His shoulders relax and Edward puts the book on the table again. "It’s... acceptable. At least it's a more interesting mental exercise than anything here."

You also hand him a green crayon. "This is so you can write. I wanted to bring a pen, but security said you can't be near sharp objects."

He lifts the crayon in between his fingers, analyzing it. "I can work with this."

"When you're done let me know and I’ll bring you a new one. I can also bring other kinds of books that you like."

His eyes narrow. "You can’t buy my trust with gifts if that's what you’re thinking."

The paranoia was still there. You would have to work harder on it.

"Of course not. I just want you to redirect your interests to healthier activities."

He just hums as he traces the letters on the cover with his finger. You don't know what's going through his head, but you can almost see the gears turning in his mind, planning his next action.

"Riddle me this, Doctor. What has spine but has no bones?" He mutters to you.

You stare at it while your own mind works. "Is it a book?"

"Very well, Doctor. You're not as dumb as I thought, but this one was pretty easy," Edward chuckles. "Well, I suppose I can answer a question or two. Your gift was kind enough, after all."

"That would be great," you can't help but notice the almost compliment, maybe you were making progress. "Well, let's see..." You flip through your clipboard. "Do you have trouble sleeping, Edward?"

"Recently?"

"In general." You answer.

Edward leans against the chair with a chuckle followed by a sigh.

"Maybe. I think so."

The uncertainty in his answer catches your attention. Someone as sure of himself as Edward wouldn't hesitate with such a basic question.

"And why is that? Nightmares?"

"Sometimes." He shrugs, looking disinterested. Or at least pretending to be disinterested.

"Tell me more, what are your nightmares about?"

Edward rests his face on his hand, watching you back. "Did you know I have a photographic memory, Doctor?"

You freeze, the page half turned. "I wasn't aware of it."

"It seems like your files don't tell you everything about me, do they?" He laughs, finally being able to outsmart you. "Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night, feeling a hand around my neck, choking me" his hand closes around his throat, his fingers sinking into the skin. "Sometimes it's the feeling of a punch, the pain and the disorientation."

"I... I'm sorry, Edward. I didn't know." It's a nightmare, but instead of just the mind being terrified the body reacts and feels the pain of a memory.

"Look, I'm fine physically, there's nothing wrong. But sometimes things can get a little confused in the middle of the night."

You still don't understand why he's smirking. Maybe it's the satisfaction of getting a negative reaction out of you. Or to surprise you, even if it's at his expense.

"We could talk to the asylum psychiatrist, ask him to prescribe a sleeping pill."

"No! No, not even think about this. I don't want you drugging me and messing with my head."

"It doesn't have to be anything drastic. It could be just a few melatonin gummies, so you can sleep better." You try to argue, but Edward crosses his arms, a scowl on his face.

"Nope." He says, simply and directly.

"Okay," you sigh in defeat. "As your therapist I can't force you to take any medications, but the option will still be here if you change your mind."

He snortes, shaking his head slightly. "Don't wait for that, Doctor."

"I have a few more questions-" you start, but Edward interrupts you.

"Ah ah ah, Doctor," He waves his finger in the air. "It seems like our time is up."

You look at the clock on the wall, realizing that your session was over.

"I didn’t even noticed. Well, we'll leave the questions for the next session."

The guard comes in to take him away, but Edward stops for a moment, turning to face you.

“One last riddle if you allow me, Doctor. Stealthy as a shadow in the dead of night, Cunning but affectionate if given a bite. Never owned but often loved. In my sport considered cruel, But that's because you never know me at all. What am I?”

You stare at Edward. That same sparkle in his eye, the almost palpable anticipation, proud of the lost expression on his face. You don't know the answer, at least not yet.

"See you at the next session, Doctor." He says before walking out the door.

——

You finish putting the third package of sugar in your mug, mixing everything quickly with a spoon and making the smoke dance in the air.

The break room was like any other room in Arkham. It wasn't especially dirty or poorly maintained, but it also didn't convey the idea of comfort either.

You blow the smoke for a moment before bringing the mug to your lips. The bitter taste invades your tongue and you grimace. For some reason the coffee from the machine always came out with an unpleasant taste, but you needed the energy so you took another sip.

"Hi, sweetie."

You turn to face the owner of that voice, smiling at the sight of her.

"Hi, Harley.”

You hadn't been able to befriend any of the other doctors except for Harley. At first glance her blonde hair and cute little face made people think she was dumb, but she was far from it. Harley had a brilliant mind as well as a wicked sense of humor. Maybe the fact that you started in Arkham almost at the same time helped, but you loved her energy anyway.

"How's your day going?" Her red-painted lips stretch into a smile as she fills a mug of coffee for herself.

"I just had another session with Nygma, I think we're making progress."

"That's great! I heard he's not one of the easiests here," she takes a sip from her mug, grimacing similar to yours, "Is it my impression or does this coffee get worse everyday?"

You laugh, shaking your head. "It’s especially bad today."

Her eyes roam the counter, stopping over your files. "Can I take a look?"

"Sure, go ahead." That didn't break the doctor-patient code since the most important notes about Edward were in your notepad.

Harley flips through the pages until her eyes widen with something. "Wow, that Riddler guy used to be a cutie." She says, casting na playful glance at you.

You almost spit out your coffee, "What are you talking about?"

"Look here!" She lifts the file and points to the mugshot of the first time Edward was arrested.

You saw that picture every time you read that file, but you never really stopped to study it. Maybe she was right. He had a strong jaw, broad shoulders, defined arms, and that same self-centered air in his eyes. Nowadays Edward was thinner and his face looked more tired, but he could still be considered... cute, as Harley said.

"And your sessions with the Joker, how are you doing?" You try to change the subject, leaning against the counter.

"Oh, I think we're evolving a lot. He has a fascinating mind, I've never met anyone like him."

You had no idea how Harley managed to be the Joker's therapist. As much as you thought everyone deserved a second chance, the Joker gave you goosebumps. Other patients there had a pattern to their crimes, a goal, but not him, the Joker just wanted chaos.

"I’m glad things are going well, Harley. We should go out to celebrate, what do you think?"

"Only if you pay." She nudges your arm with her elbow, making you both laugh.

——

The mechanical voice of the answering machine alerts you that you have four new messages as you start to remove your clothes from work.

You're vaguely aware, more focused on unbuttoning your lab coat than listening to the automated messages that companies send you trying to sell something you already have.

The last message ends and the next begins, a familiar voice sounding. "Hi, honey. It’s Mommy."

Your body moves before you can register what's going on, grabbing the phone and smashing the buttons to delete the message.

You're hunched over your little side table, your shoulders rising and falling with your every breath.

How... How did she get your number? There was no way for her to know. Oh God, what if she knew your address? Or worse, what if she tried to visit you?

You only realize how hard you're squeezing the edge of the table when your knuckles start to hurt. You finally let go, heading towards the bathroom in hurried steps.

You wish this could just be a bad dream. A really bad dream. The kind that make you wake up shaking and screaming in the middle of the night until you realize you were safe and it was just a nightmare.

But it all feels even more real when you turn on the sink and throw cold water on your face.

Your eyes meet your frightened reflection in the mirror. The drops of water covering your face mingle with the tears that begin to flow from your eyes.

Your arm starts to itch again, the sensation almost unbearable, as if insects are roaming your skin. You imagine digging your nails in there. It was so tempting. How relieving it would be to scratch your forearm until there was blood underneath your fingernails, until your skin was aching and you could only think about pain and nothing else.

A small meow pulls you out of your thoughts. You notice Meg on top of the toilet lid, tugging on your lab coat, an almost worried look on her hairy little face.

That's when you can’t take it anymore. You collapse to the ground, holding Meg against your chest as your tears flow uncontrollably. The poor thing tries to comfort you by licking your cheek as you sob.

For a moment it could have all gone downhill. It's scary to know that you were so close to giving in and ending all of your progress. You couldn't let that horrible woman have any effect on you. You wouldn't allow it.

"It's okay, Meg," you sniffle, stroking her head. "It's okay now."

For some reason Edward's words come back to you at this moment

"Stealthy as a shadow in the dead of the night," you hadn't even heard her enter the bathroom until she made herself noticed.

"Cunning but affectionate if given a bite. Never owned but often loved." Meg licks your hand, staring at you with those big dark pupils.

That was the answer. The answer to the riddle was cat!

Wait... How did Edward know you had a cat?

[true-blue-megamind]

MEGAMIND FAN THEORY: Where Did the Doom Syndicate Come From?

What better way to start the new year than with a new Megamind Fan Theory? Yes, I am finally back! And, yes, once again it is not on Thursday but, you know, at least it exists. So there’s that. We’ve all waited long enough so let’s jump straight in. Even though Megamind threatens to clone my most annoying in-laws and send them ALL to my house whenever I say it: SPOILER WARNING!

If you’re part of the Megamind fandom—and since you’re reading this I assume that’s fairly likely—you’ve probably already heard about the Doom Syndicate. After all, although these characters never appeared in the original movie, they can be seen in some of the earlier storyboards and several make appearances in the video games, not to mention populating a great many fanfictions. However, for those few who may be currently scratching their heads and wondering what in the world I’m babbling about, here’s a brief explanation:

The Doom Syndicate is a small affiliation of supervillains, each of whom possesses some sort of special ability. (Hot Flash has fire-based powers, The Conductor controls electricity, Psycho-Delic releases poisonous or mind-altering smokes, etc.) Despite these unusual talents, however, as far as we know all the members of the Doom Syndicate are more-or-less human. This notably differentiates them from Megamind, Metroman, and even Minion, all of whom have extraterrestrial origins.

That’s not really surprising. As the film Megamind was, in part, a spoof on existing superhero franchises, it seems that Metro City’s own Bad Guys’ Club was modeled after evil organizations appearing in comic books, such as DC’s Legion of Doom. (Even the Doom Syndicate’s name, as you can see, is lampooning their counterparts.) Why does that matter? Because many—although not all—members of these fictional villainous cabals are humans who gained extraordinary abilities through bio-engineering experiments, bizarre accidents, advanced technology, or even magic. (According to Comic Vine, Lex Luthor, Cheetah, Riddler, Scarecrow, Black Adam, Poison Ivy, and Bane are all examples.) As the Doom Syndicate was likely intended to be a somewhat less-serious caricature of this, it seems probable that they, too, began life as normal earthlings.

That brings up one important question: if members of the Doom Syndicate were originally ordinary humans, how did they come by their powers? There are two fan theories concerning this. The first is that, similar to the DC and Marvel universes, Megamind’s world boasts a wide variety of superheroes and supervillains. (I’ll be discussing that concept further in another post.) The second, however, is significantly darker.

To understand it, however, we must first examine a related fan theory. If you’ve read the previous blog article entitled The Warden, you know that many believe Megamind and Metroman may have been purposefully pushed into their respective roles of hero and villain from childhood. There is actually some very compelling evidence to support this in the film. Details from the brief school scene, such as the Warden himself appearing in a child’s drawing of a school bus, support the idea of these two aliens being essentially raised to their roles. Furthermore, Metroman’s own actions also offer a likely explanation for why. It’s obvious that, as a boy, he was something of a bully—he constantly picks on and even hurts the other young alien—but it’s just as clear that he loved praise. Fans believe that concerned adults around them knowingly drove Metroman toward heroism to prevent him from becoming a danger to society and similarly pushed Megamind into becoming his nemesis because the former-villain was more likely to survive the ordeal and because, quite frankly, few people cared what happened to him. That may sound horrible—indeed it is—but when compared with the possibility of having an overgrown superpowered bully wreaking havoc on the city, it’s not hard to see why influential people may have felt it to be the lesser evil. (Imagine if Titan had no Megamind to stop him.) Again, feel free to read The Warden for more about that.

That bring us to the specific Megamind fan theory in question. Many fans have taken that idea a step further, suggesting that the Doom Syndicate was created to keep Metroman busy whenever his main antagonist was behind bars. While this idea may seem odd at first, if we accept that Megamind and Metroman were pressured into assuming specific positions, as seems at least possible, then it becomes a logical hypothesis. People may have feared that their “hero,” if left with too much idle time on his hands, could fall back into his old brutish ways.

The idea is not without merit. As discussed in another Megamind Fan Theory post, Does Metroman Know He’s Alien, the city’s original hero differs in some ways from his obvious DC Comics counterpart: Superman. Clark Kent, the famed Man of Steel, had the benefit of being raised in a loving, hardworking farm family, complete with down-home virtues, but Wayne Smith, who later became Metroman, did not. Instead, the previous Defender of Metrocity seems to have spent his childhood as the entitled only son of an ultra-wealthy couple. This means that, while Clark Kent’s upbringing helped him to become genuinely good, Wayne Smith’s likely predisposed him to a certain amount of shallowness and arrogance. This is important because it indicates that the latter’s incentives for heroism were probably not selfless dedication to the good of those around him. So what did drive him? The aforementioned school scene strongly suggests that it was a love of popularity and public adulation. Indeed, this seems to be the case. Consider Metroman’s vaunting behavior at the opening of his museum along with his career change to wannabe rock star. Both display a notable desire for adoration and attention. Therefore it seems probable that that same desire was the driving force behind Wayne’s becoming a superhero and, as mentioned before, the school scene supports this.

So, once more, assuming that this predisposition was leveraged to push Metroman into heroism for the safety of society, it seems only logical that there might be some concern about what he might do during the brief periods when Megamind was not an active threat. After all, if the only thing making his role as Defender worthwhile was the local citizenry’s praise, then it would be necessary to keep that praise coming lest he become disenchanted. In order to do that, he would need to constantly be saving people or battling evil. That would, presumably, leave the city leaders with two choices: orchestrate situations that put their own voters in danger or provide other villains to fight whenever Megamind was behind bars.

This is one major reason why the fan theory has developed that the Doom Syndicate may have been created on purpose, but it’s not the only one. Another consideration is the simple fact that people willing to allow a baby to be raised in prison, under the care of dangerous convicts, would likely have few qualms about turning a few of those they viewed as “undesirables” into supervillains. That, in turn, brings us to a third potential reason. Near the beginning of the film, when the Warden visits Megamind’s jail cell, we can see that a guard is sitting at a bank of monitors displaying what appears to be brain scans and other invasive information about the blue man. In other words, it seems that, while incarcerated, Megamind may have been the subject of experiments. The question is: was he the only one? Is it possible that other inmates were subjected to different scientific procedures intended to give them superpowers and thus make them viable distractions for Metroman? Some fans say yes.

If this is the case, then it rather backfired. In some of the unused storyboards for the movie, we can see the Doom Syndicate deferring to Megamind, practically asking his permission to go on a crime spree after Metroman’s apparent demise, and it appears they may have even wanted him to be their leader. Given the film’s connections to existing comics, the idea is not that far fetched. Much like the Joker in Gotham, it seems that Megamind held a certain amount of sway over the other villains in Metro City. Like DC’s famous evil clown, he didn’t exactly rule the others—they didn’t actually work for him—but in the local supervillain hierarchy he was definitely the proverbial “top dog.” So, rather than creating several individual enemies for their hero to face, the powers of Metro City may have inadvertently created a dark organization. Alone any member of the Doom Syndicate would have been easy for Metroman to defeat; as a group, they could have been considerably more dangerous.

Is there any truth in this supposition? It’s hard to say for certain, but perhaps the upcoming series Megamind’s Guide to Defending Your City may offer some clarification. It will be interesting to find out. At any rate, having once been the Bad Guy other Bad Guys feared is likely going to give the Blue Defender some distinct advantages in dealing with the Doom Syndicate. He probably knows their methods and weaknesses already, and it’s possible they may be less-than-eager to face off with the former Master of All Villainy. I suppose we’ll find out in due time. In the meanwhile, that’s it for this latest Megamind Fan Theory! I hope you enjoyed it!

[glitchyrealities]

Rorschach Voyeurism

Carrey!Riddler x OFC

part 1/8

"when you were here before, couldn't look you in the eye"

see a03 for tags and full story

Prologue

Everyone knew Edward Nygma was obsessed with Bruce Wayne, if the pictures splattered all over his walls were any evidence. He didn’t advertise his fascination with the younger Katherine Wayne, but it was obvious to anyone who paid attention. Her dark eyes and ruby lips were permanent residents in his fantasies. He’d met her once, well, seen her. She was sitting cross-legged on the receptionist's desk after a Wayne Industries New Year’s Eve party with a bottle of champagne in her hand. That night he dreamed a world where he caught her eye and they’d shared the bottle. After New Years, she disappeared. No one heard from her, but she had been captured in plenty of photos. She never stopped in one place for long, walking runways across Europe and Asia. He’d read every article and clipped her pictures from each magazine, methodologically pinning them up in his apartment. 

“...beautiful.” Edward mutters to himself, standing in the grocery store checkout line and clutching a special edition with her face on the cover. 

“Mister, you gonna buy that?” An unimpressed college girl stands behind the register, her hair in a ponytail and a couple cigarettes in her front shirt pocket. Edward now notices that the line is clear, and must’ve been for a while while he was lost in thought. He flushes, and steps forward without a word, laying the magazine down on the conveyor belt with a pack of pens and a bag of ground coffee. He shoves his hands in his pockets as she scans the items, fumbling for his wallet. 

It’s cold and rainy when he reaches the door, the raindrops covering his glasses and immediately impeding his vision. He groans and sets the grocery bag down, wiping his glasses, just for them to be covered again as soon as he looks back towards the street. He starts to take them back off, before a warm body walks right into him. 

“Oh!” A feminine gasp comes from the body, “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine.” Edward says without looking up, still fiddling with the glasses. 

“No, really. Here, take my umbrella. You look like you need it more than I do.”

“Oh...thank you!” He says, surprised and finally moving to meet her eyes as she practically shoves the umbrella into his hands. 

“It’s no problem, sorry again.” The brunette rushes off into the crowd just as Edward recognizes her. He pushes through the crowd, desperately searching for one more look at her, but it’s no use, she’s gone. When he looks back down, he notices the umbrella in his hands. Specifically, the “K.W.” professionally embroidered on the corner in gold threading. He runs his thumb over it, his heart thumping in his chest. He tucks the umbrella under his coat and takes off down the street, bag in hand. 

*

Katherine is soaked when she walks through the door, slipping off her heeled boots and raincoat and piling them beside the entryway. 

“Hello?” She calls into the vast expanse of Wayne Manor, stockinged  feet padding across the hardwood. “Hm.” 

“Miss Katherine!”

She smiles, “Hi, Alfred.”

“Master Bruce will be home very late, but I can make up some coffee if you’d like to wait up?”

“No, no. I think I’ll just take a warm bath and go to bed.” She says, running her hand over the railing as she takes the first few steps up the staircase.

“Of course. Oh, and welcome home.” Alfred says with a gentle smile.

“Thanks, Alfred.” She mutters, heading up the stairs to take her shower.

Her room is just the way it was when she left. She was 23, fresh out of business school and getting signed for an international contract. It’s only been two years, but it seems like so much longer. The world has changed, she’s changed. She falls onto the bed with a gentle moan, wriggling into the goosedown and twisting around to grasp for something on her nightstand. Her fingers close around an oak frame and she brings the picture down from it’s place to rest it on the towel she has wrapped around her. Martha and Thomas Wayne, each with an arm around one of their young children. Bruce was seven in this picture, Katherine was two. She puts the picture back into its place and turns over in the bed with a sigh, staring out the open window. 

*

He pins the magazine cover to the wall, chewing on the inside of his lip, before turning back to his desk where the umbrella sits. He can’t fully believe it. She...touched him. He sits on the rickety twin bed. If he focuses on the memory, shutting his eyes and going back to that afternoon, he can almost feel her warmth against him and the brush of her hand against his. He’s frustrated with himself for not noticing who she was sooner, recognizing her voice, or at least looking up at her as soon as she bumped into him. But he didn’t, the opportunity was squandered, and yet she still gifted him with something of hers. It’s just an umbrella, but the sight of K.W. makes his heart skip a beat. He wants to see those initials everywhere. They fill his head. K.W. K.W. K.W. K.N. He opens his eyes with a start, blushing at the thought of K.N. engraved on her jewelry. The thought that there could be a universe where she belonged to him, on his arm and in his bed at night. He lets himself believe the fantasy long enough to drift into a peaceful sleep.

[hollowsart]

Somehow, trying to redesign Batman rogues is way more difficult than redesigning Spiderman rogues.

Somehow, they aren't inspiring many ideas for me, and much like a lot of dc content, the variations of the characters as a mainline fresh new take on everything is extremely limited in the creativity of variation to their genders and backstories that lead up to them becoming who/what they are. (Or it's left as a one-time one-off thing)

I think we could do with some more genderswaps and stuff, y'know? It would help inspire more creativity with the concepts of the characters. Give more substance to work with.

Some ideas/concepts for what I mean:

Joanna Crane, excluded from her field of research because her methods were too extreme and her research was becoming unethical and against all tules and regulations. Excluded due to being a woman in a field dominated by men within the corrupt city of Gotham.

Oswin Cobblepot, worked exceptionally hard despite her appearance to get where she is in life. Becoming powerful with an impressive influence in the underbelly of Gotham. All stemming from or origins in seeking insurance and protection for her high class club/bar after it had been wrecked one night by thugs. Ever since, she'd managed to firmly plant herself proudly in the underworld.

Arnona Wesker, always had a fascination with puppetry ever since she was little. Due to a sudden house fire when she was just a teen, she lost her collection of puppets.. well, all but 1 head. She salvaged it and kept it for later. Later never came, and her life progressed like a roller coaster of hills. At some point early in her adulthood, she started to hear a voice. It wasn't her own, and it always seemed to come from where she kept that dummy head. The dummy had become sentient.

Arlo Quinzel, talk show radio therapist and psychologist who received one too many prank calls from a bored Joker that ended in his career on the airways. He was highly influential, for better or for worse. Besides psychology, Arlo also enjoyed reading about classical theater and watching performances. An interest of his that had been forced out of him by his family, forcing him instead to go into a more "appropriate" and beneficial field of work. Safe to say, he finally got his wish to entertain through theater and the arts.. albeit twisted into something less playful.

Victoria Fries, a well-known cryogenicist who merely studied the effects of cryogenics on living things, trying to find a way to prevent the death of cells on the body when frozen. In a way, trying to slow down death and aging. Her experiments were done mostly on plants as any suggestions for small animals to help progress her research had always been denied.

Edlyn Nygma, the smartest student in all her schools growing up. She was the brightest despite her dark and dreary homelife. She worked extra hard to prove herself to her old-fashioned misogynistic father, and when that failed, she worked even harder to exceed him and escape the life she suffered through for years. After succeeding, her life hardly picked up. Being forced to work in a small publishing company that made riddle and joke books, the only place that wanted to accept her regardless of her qualifications. The years of monotony and lack of approval to her ideas finally made her crack, burning the place down after. Seeking now to challenge Gotham to prove her mind and self as something worth listening to. Becoming Gotham's anonymous "Riddler" and learning to use people's underestimations of her to her advantage.

Waylynn Jones, ..idk her story could be left alone from the original. Skin condition she was born with that disfigured her, or it was like some kind of genetic mutation that made her look more crocodilian than human, only getting worse as she grew up before finally reaching a point it wouldn't progress any further, leaving her looking big and monstrous.

Salem Kyle, his backstory can also remain pretty much the same as canon with minimal changes. Why change what works? Also I have no ideas for him tbh

Harper Dent, another than could be left the same as the main canon, just swapped around so they're a woman instead cuz we appreciate complex women 👍

[unrestrainedbalderdash]

Just wanted to say that your idea of the backstory being in puzzle pieces is so good I kindda wanna know how would you do a one-ahot backstory comic for Eddie.

Alright, I'm definitely not as good at writing as you are, but I'll give it a shot.

This is a bit long so I'm putting it under a read more

Also, some warnings for child abuse, physical abuse, school trauma, bullying and brief mentions of ableism

One of my ideas is that there could be 14 different scenes or memories that he looks back on, as a reference to the 14 pieces in Elgar's Enigma Variations because I just think he'd love them. Each section is a double page spread, with some being like typical comics with panels, and others being like single illustrations.

We could start with him being an adorable baby in his mum's arms, his dad standing next to her. Their body language seems happy, but there's something in the eyes that could hint that not all is well.

Edward is in school. These pages can be a montage, in the shapes of different jigsaw pieces. I'm probably projecting here, but I think maybe he could start off excelling academically, being top of the class, but finding himself too terrified to do anything less, his grades only starting to slip once he decides he's above grading systems of lower intellect. So anyway, the panels are of him getting good grades, but struggling a lot socially. There can be whispers amongst the students, rumours that he must be cheating.

Edward gets hit by his father. His mother tries to protect him but to no avail. Near the end, the panels dissolve into being a crossword with the words "moron" and "liar" over and over.

One of his teachers gives him a book of riddles. There is then another jigsaw montage thing of him reading it whenever he can: at break, at home, hiding it under the desk in class. He is getting very absorbed in it.

Edward is a teenager standing lonely at high school (middle school in the US but like Year 7 over here), with the silhouettes of people mocking him. The silhouettes can have crosswords inside, maybe with some insults (although realistically they would definitely be saying slurs and I wouldn't want to put ableist language in it so it would have to be toned down)

Edward's father destroys his book of riddles. He snaps at his father, who proceeds to beat him much more, berating him the worst yet.

Edward is growing up. The background is a jumbled assortment of jigsaw pieces in different colours. He looks miserable.

Edward is an adult now, and leaves home.

Edward is reading the newspaper. On one page is a crossword, full of words relating to Batman but also intellect, like "Genius", "Greatest" and "Detective" being connected to each other, "Hero", etc. On the other page is a picture of Batman. Perhaps Edward has annotated the newspaper article and drawn on it.

The Riddler finally meets Batman, and fights him. It is clear that he is in awe, even when he is defeated.

Edward is behind bars, looking miserable again.

Edward is out of prison, and meets Query and Echo

Query and Echo are now working with him, wearing themed spandex as well. He looks so happy to finally have friends who care about him, but then the police sirens come, and everything turns to blue, and all you can see is black lines of his face full of dread and fear of losing everything.

The last scene, as the Finale, is him looking at the future, sprinkling in a little bit of existential angst. He is in the front of the page, with jigsaw pieces in the background, all jumbled up, and showing different possible futures of him; we could see glimpses of him as an old man, and him wearing a crown, and him covered in blood dying. There are also some of him being happy, this is very important because we need hope and he deserves to be happy. Maybe he's posing like his mother was on the first page, holding his question mark staff like she was holding the baby, with the same look in his eyes as she had. Behind the Riddler, there are jigsaw pieces that are connected so they're in the shape of a question mark, and they could show his grave, conveniently cutting off the date of death on the headstone, with a flower or two laid on the grave because I think we need to show that someone does care about him. It could say "What am I?" at the bottom.

[princesspuresarahk]

The Batman Au: Riddler’s Reform

Chapter:1 Court and Freedom

Arkham Asylum at the private courtroom Edward G. Nygma was waiting for the judge's final verdict after analyzing Edward's case for following his treatment in rehab successful and good behavior being seen fit to reenter society and being proven innocent of the incident the accident of the Dean of Gotham University caused by his former colleague Julie Porter who and Chuck Gorman who was also charged for attempt murder of Edward and the Batman who discovered was cheating in dirty contracts tricking businesses to sell out their inventions in scams and hidden rules both were charged in the scandals. Removing it from Edward's criminal history “In light of additional information about matters regarding a stolen invention that came to light from the Batman, I am proud to say Mr. Nygma that you’ve been improving so much since you returned to finish your treatment in Arkham.” said a woman wearing a black Judge’s uniform with a white blouse underneath, she sat about on a judge’s stand looking down at Edward with her nameplate reading Janet Van Dorn.

“Your Honor, I’m pleased to say that Mr. Nygma has successfully passed all of his therapy sessions with me. His participation and openness in his… criminal history have helped to rid Mr. Nygma of the Riddler permanently. Which is why I’m pleased to declare Mr. Nygma as legally sane and fit to re-assimilate with society” said Dr. Christina Bartholomew, who wore a white lab coat with a light rose button-down blouse and grey jumper over it. The doctor was new to Arkham, she’d taken over the role of Head Psychologist of Arkham Asylum when Dr. Hugo Strange had himself become legally insane. Edward let out a sigh of relief tomorrow he’d be free and start a new beginning as he was being led to his private room where patients go for their final days before being released one of the guards came to him with a phone it was Kayla one of the guards who were friendly to him "you have a call Edward it's from a Miss Saddler.?" Edward knew who it was as he was given the phone and the guards left him in his room for privacy until he was done "Hello Scarlet" he called letting himself relax on his bed.

Meanwhile, over at Wayne Industries, Bruce Wayne was in his office and was looking over resumes on his computer. Lucius Fox was with Bruce as they were both planning a large corporate event, a hiring spree that would bring new employees to the company. This year, the company wanted to hire reformed cons as several departments needed new spots to be filled.

“Bruce, there’s one young man that I think will be an excellent fit for the company. He’s due to be released back into society Tomorrow. If I recall correctly, his name is… Edward Nygma… yeah that’s him” said Lucius as Bruce pulled up Edward’s file that contained everything from his academic history to his work credentials.

“I’m not sure about hiring him, Bruce. Despite the fact his academic history is phenomenal, his criminal history says otherwise” said Lucius as he continued to look over his file. Bruce had a good look at Edward’s file before getting up and walking towards the large window that overlooked all of Gotham.

“I believe that all people can change, I know deep down that Nygma wants to change too. Besides, I see Edward Nygma as having a successful future here at Wayne Tech. Lucius, see if you can bring him in for an interview. I’d like to meet him, and I know you would too judging by his credentials” said Bruce as he sat back down, and clicked on Nygma’s file to consider it for later.

“I know your Father would have made a similar decision in your shoes. He may no longer be with us, but his good spirit in conducting business honestly still resides in you Bruce” said Lucius as he and Bruce looked up at the large portrait of Dr. Thomas Wayne; who founded the company years ago.

“I believe that all people can change, I know deep down that Nygma wants to change too. Besides, I see Edward Nygma as having a successful future here at Wayne Tech. Lucius, see if you can bring him in for an interview. I’d like to meet him, and I know you would too judging by his credentials” said Bruce as he sat back down, and clicked on Nygma’s file to consider it for later.

“I know your Father would have made a similar decision in your shoes. He may no longer be with us, but his good spirit in conducting business honestly still resides in you Bruce” said Lucius as he and Bruce looked up at the large portrait of Dr. Thomas Wayne; who founded the company years ago.

The next morning Edward had woken early for release Kayla the kind guard gave him some clothes she found from Arkham's donation room though they were a bit worn in size as she only was able to find some jeans that were a bit snug around the hips, some underwear, a soft pink tank top and a Gotham Gator's hoodie that was worn and big but it will be comfortable for him some slip on sneakers that she was able to find where his size with her describing Edward having Cinderella feet though sadly couldn't find any socks for him but he said it was all right and surprising him more with her kindness gave him a bagel with cream cheese and a Irish coffee before wishing him good luck as he left Arkham's gates heading down to rendezvous his destination where his cousin Scarlet would pick him at 6:30 sharp after his trial it was agreed by him his family and lawyer that Edward is to stay at his cousin's for now which he didn't mind as Scarlet's place was outside of Gotham city limits on private property near it's forest and swamp area's once he made it to the stop he checked his watch it was 40 minutes until his cousin arrived so in the meantime he decided to enjoy his bagel and coffee while he waited making himself comfortable he let his mind wonder as he munched on his breakfast taking sips of his coffee (I wonder how Mum's doing?) He thought as he didn't have a phone he'll have to give her a call later. Suddenly he heard two familiar voices that made his skin chill “There he is!" OH NO! It was Joker and Penguin!!!

Meanwhile, in the Batcave, Batman and Robin were discussing Riddler’s release. Batman thought Riddler despite all his efforts to take over Gotham using puzzles and word games, Batman was open to the possibility that Riddler could reform and finally abandon his life of crime; a life Riddler turned to after sabotage and big business broke his reputation. “How can you trust Riddler? I don’t believe he’s on the level. Just wait Batman, Riddler is going to go back to being the bad guy. I say that we should keep an extra eye on him… just to be sure he’s really going to change” said Robin as he was practicing some twirling tricks with his yellow lightweight steel spear. Robin didn’t like to question his guardian’s judgment; Robin knew that evil was seldom to never capable of showing regret and remorse, just like Tony Zucco who took the lives of his parents years ago. “I believe everyone can change. Remember Dick, there are such things as bad people having some good in them; they can be redeemed, but only if they’re willing to commit. Besides, I hear Riddler is moving in with a family member outside of Gotham” said Batman solemnly. Batman didn’t want to admit it, but he wasn’t sure if Riddler was truly going to reform completely. Still, Batman thought it would be best at some point during their next few patrols that they take a look and see what Riddler was up to, these days as a free man.

40 minutes before Edward’s release “Hahahaha oh Penguin! It looks like you just can’t resist coming back to the loony bin! HAHAHaa!!!” cackled Joker as he watched two guards carting Penguin through Riddler’s floor towards the maximum security wing. Batgirl had stopped Penguin the previous night when he tried to steal some priceless Russian Fabrigé Eggs from the Gotham Metropolitan Art Museum; and, of course, Penguin was once again furious that his latest criminal escapade was thwarted by a teen girl dressed as a Bat.

But as they were about to put Penguin in his cell they apparently overheard one of the guards talking about Edward getting released both their faces frowning as they still held a grudge against that skinny riddled speaking trickster for trying to win the bet to take over Gotham as Joker had a sudden grin on his face " I think it's time we go settle the score with emo face .you in tubby?" Calling out to Penguin as he quickly got ready for a quick escape plan, quickly in his crazy joker way was able to knock out the guard and get the keys he and Penguin made their way out as Edward unknown to him that in 40 minutes would be in a wild chase of cat(s) and mouse for his life! “LOCK DOWN THE CELLS!!! CODE RED!!!” called one of the guards as he saw the dangerous altercation, one hurried into the office and activated a button which sounded the alarms and caused all the cell gates to close and lock instantaneously. Guards quickly sprang into action as they hurried after the escaped convicts, grabbing their nightsticks, stun guns, and binders to use if the troublemakers required them. Seeing how serious the situation was growing, Dr. Bartholomew hit an emergency panic button that alerted the GCPD to the scene.

Meanwhile down in the Batcave, Batman and Alfred were making some repairs to the Batmobile when the Batcave alert came up on their phones. 40 minutes later at the bus stop. Edward's body froze when they saw him as his instincts were screaming for fight or flight. choosing the 2nd option Edward ran before the two goons could react.

Chapter:2 the chase is on! Will Eddie be able to outran Joker and Penguin? will Batman and Robin be able to get to him before the goons do?

credit to Queenie aka https://theivylinerart.tumblr.com/ for being a part of this Fanfic.