#souls writes

[soulsdontbreaktheybeeend]

Free and yet so trapped. Part 1

Summary: this takes place some time after the end of folie a deux. If you're wondering how that is possible... stay tuned and find out. :)

It's Arthur Fleck x y/n, or is it Joker x y/n? Hm. :)

I'm a bit rusty. So pls forgive me.

words: 1,528

____________

The stillness of the night accompanied you on your way home. The light from the street lamps shone faintly over the walls of the buildings. The wet streets reflected a blend of the lanterns, yellow-orange light combined with the red and green glow of the traffic lights.

The clacking of your boots on the worn asphalt of Gotham's sidewalks, the only sound to be heard. The rain from earlier in the evening had left puddles on the potholed streets of the city.

Your attention was focused on the few cars that were passing you. Attention that they were lacking. They would just drive through the puddles as you pass. They're not the ones who would get hit by a wave of dirty water from the road. They wouldn't have to rush home soaking wet for the remaining minutes. Crossing your arms, you hugged your coat closer to your body to provide you with more warmth and ward off the cold autumn wind.

You sniffled, as the cold, wet weather made your nose tickle.

As you turned the corner, a cab pulled up on your side of the street. Three doors opened.

There seemed to be a heated conversation going on, their voices grew louder as the three people got out of the car.

“And yet another day of this crap.”

You sighed as you saw them take up the entire sidewalk.

“It’s unbelievable!”

The cab drove off, you walked closer to them. Your eyes narrowed to slits, as if it made you realize more clearly that you knew these three people in passing.

As you got closer to them, you greeted them briefly with a hey, released your hand from your folded arms for a brief, casual wave, but kept walking. In the turmoil of the discussion, they didn't even acknowledge your voice nor the small movement of your hand. They had simply stepped aside to make space for a stranger on the sidewalk.

Their conversation continued and you picked up on their words. You became more aware as you had walked past and formed contexts. Now fully able to process the statements.

“That other psycho at Arkham should’ve done a better job.” He was referring to the stabbing. The others laughed and nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, they can't even pull that off. They're all a bunch of lowlifes.”

„I mean, this Joker guy is completely insane. Celebrates himself as this clown figure, then whines about it in court, wants nothing more to do with it and now he's changed his mind again? How many times is this guy going to do that? How many buildings is he going to burn down? They should have just let him bleed to death, instead of bringing him to the hospital.”

All three of them laughed.

Apparently there had been a new report on the car radio. About him. About new riots and havoc in the city.

___________

Arthur leaned against the facade of a building. The light from the street lamps failed to illuminate the narrow alley. Leaving it completely in the dark.

He took refuge in the silence and darkness. To just be. A few minutes to himself. Without the constant hustle and bustle, without the noise, without his followers and the chaos they brought with them. Even without her. Or especially without her?

Arthur became aware of the small group right at the start of the intense conversation. They pulled him out of his rest. In a way that couldn't have been worse. Every word hit him like a punch in the gut. The scars on his stomach itched.

He let the back of his head drop against the cold wall of the building.

He would have been more than willing to blow up the conversation. To tell them that things were completely different. Tell them the truth. But would they really care?

They wouldn’t.

He slumped to the ground.

His red suit jacket pushed up his back as it rubbed against the bricks of the building. A mixture of damp dust and grime rubbed into the soft fabric. His head hanging down, his gaze cast downwards, hands folded over his head in shame of the chaos he has to cause for one reason only.

To stay alive.

To shield himself from any more goddamn harm. Though it’s not a life. It’s surviving. Like it always has been for him. They only thing that had changed - he has men around him who protect him. One fear less, but more alone than ever.

At least alive.

It were moments like this, in which he wondered if it was really fair to be alive when all this was happening for it.

___________

“Yeah! And now all this crap is a burden on the whole city and its people."

As if the city wasn't eating itself with its corruption, you thought. You struggled to keep walking. Every further statement you heard slowed you down. Every step filled you with more and more anger. You could feel it creeping through your body. Building up.

“The amount of shit this guy fabricates just because he's an absolutely terrible comedian and had had a bad childhood.”

“Who says it's all true anyway...”

Your eyes widened in disbelief of what you just heard. You scoffed. Loudly.

“Oh for fucks sake.”, you mumbled and rolled your eyes in disbelief of what you were about to do.

“You weren't there when God distributed brains, minds and hearts, now were you?”, you turned.

You defended him. You were surprised at yourself for getting involved in a conversation that you have nothing to do with. It was unlike you and you couldn’t think of a time you’ve had ever done that before. Especially not when it had been such a stupid bullshit talk. And now you did that for Arthur Fleck.

A man you only knew from television. From police reports, excerpts from the news and above all from the court hearing that was broadcast on live television. Which was still a disgusting thing to do, you thought. You remember the judge admonished Fleck and reminded him that the courtroom is not a stage.

You remember even more vividly how you almost jumped off the sofa when you happened to see that clip about it on the news. What else could it be with all those cameras? You thought the judge was a total idiot. It made you feel infuriated. When you then saw how he stared wordlessly for what felt like an eternity directly into the filming live camera, you immediately realized. He's thinking the same damn thing. And he is so helpless and lost in this society.

It wasn't the first time, and particularly not the first time that day, that you’ve heard people talk about him like that. You grew sick of it because almost every human being in this city seemed to be blind. Everyone failed him. When all he needed was someone to really attentively listen to him.

And the ranting here on the street just broke the camel's back.

____________

„Who the fuck do you think you are, one of his-, wait.. y/n.. is… is that you?!“, one of the men realized as you slowly walked back over to them a few steps.

The woman also had something to say. “She's probably turned into another Harley Quinn knock-off.”, laughing hysterically.

“You are all so self-limited.”, you exploded. “Just because he’s had a terrible childhood blah blah.”, you imitated him with a stupid man like voice. “Are you even just a little bit aware of what this man had to endure? But no wait, I can answer that question myself.”, your facial expressions and gestures took the piss out of them. “No, you are not. Because everyone of you has got such a limited mind and are most concerned with yourselves.”

They didn't take you seriously, “Pff.. who cares man. All he can do is tell a lot of bad jokes. He's a total fool.”

„Yeah, and now that he’s got that freak bitch by his side, he thinks he’s the King of Gotham. They’re just losers wearing clown costumes.“

„Okay.“ You leave fast. Full of anger, but in loss of words. This whole argument drained you of whatever energy you had left.

____________

Arthur got pulled out of his negative gnawing thoughts, by your defending words. He released the firm grip of his hands on his head to search for the owner of the voice. He peered over, the streetlights shone a decent light on the three former cab passengers, but he couldn’t see the fourth person who was arguing with them, defending him, obscured by the corner of the building's wall.

He heard your shoes clacking on the asphalt. Arthur immediately felt the urge of his body wanting to follow you. The three others had a quick laugh about you and then went in the other direction.

Perfect, Arthur thought to himself. As he stood up from his crouch, he straightened his suit jacket and sneaked curiously to the end of the building to take a look around the corner.

Hoping you hadn't already turned the next corner.

____________

Part 2

[evidently-endless]

i think we should remind musicians they can absolutely make up little stories for their songs btw. it doesn’t have to be about them at all. you can invent a guy and put him in situations to music. time honoured tradition in fact.

[almondpiglet]

ppl were drawing mikus from all over so heres habesha miku and her lil twin sibs rin and len!!

[lenainwonderland]

- Vladimir Nabokov

[russenoire]

GO HARD OR GO HOME.

[erraticreflections]

[kookoofufu]

I love Oda but man is INSANE for not making the timeskip more relevant to the straw hats outside of power ups

Brook: Literally a rockstar??? There should have been a running gag where people ask Brook for his autograph at every island they visit! It would be so funny if some villains were starstruck fans trying to keep it together during a fight!

Sanji: It would have been great if the newkama recipes came up more than once. There could have been a gag where Sanji stops in the middle of a battle to literally cook a power up for the crew. Imagine this man dicing onions in Onigashima, force-feeding Zoro a stew during his fight with King

Robin: She worked under Dragon for two years, met Sabo and Koala and maybe Ivankov, she probably knows the Army's entire plan to take down the gov and yet it never comes up! Does she know about Kuma? Nika? The five elders? Does she secretly communicate with the Rev Army????

Zoro: I love the idea of Perona teaching Zoro about fashion. It wouldn't have plot relevance but imagine him busting out some fashion tips out of nowhere every so often.

I'd love to hear more ideas, the missed opportunities here haunt me.

Edit: link to ongoing collection of headcanons since some people only see the first four ideas

[existingillusion]

[corkinavoid]

DPxDC Dead Tired Coffeeshop Accident

For one reason or another, Danny is now living in Gotham and working in a coffeeshop. For one reason or another, Tim frequents the same coffeeshop.

Now, both of them are honest to god messes who treat sleep like a grave enemy. Meaning they both survive on coffee, spite, energy drinks, and their respective hyperfocuses.

They don't even talk, really, they just see each other from time to time: Tim knows the barista who looks like he's been dead for weeks is named Danny, and Danny knows how to make Tim's Death Wish with his eyes closed, but other than that, they are just strangers who largely don't care about each other.

That is, until one time after his patrol, Tim comes to the said coffeeshop in his Red Robin gear. He doesn't even think about it, he simply needs coffee. He comes to the counter. He orders. His voice is tired and emotionless. He just wants his coffee and maybe stare at a wall for a few hours until his brain reboots. Danny takes his order without even looking at him. He has been sitting and staring at a wall for a few hours, night shifts are literally killing him.

They are both so done.

Red Robin waits for his coffee. Danny makes it almost automatically, his mind elsewhere. The coffeeshop is empty, save for them two. It's four in the morning. Nothing feels real.

Danny sets the cup on the counter.

"One Death Wish for Tim," he says out of a habit, not fully registering they are alone, and he doesn't need to do that.

Tim takes the coffee without thinking, nods a silent 'thank you'. Brings the cup up to his mouth-

And notices a glove on his own hand.

He is in Red Robin get up.

He freezes and looks at the barista, who is cleaning the coffeemachine. Danny, noticing him looking, also looks back at him. Did he make the wrong order? He knows Tim's soul, he's seen it a lot, he couldn't have mistaken him for anyone else, but maybe he forgot to add syrup?..

There's a domino mask on Tim's face. A vigilante domino mask.

They stare at each other. No one moves. No one blinks. The sun is rising somewhere over the city.

Tim takes a sip of his coffee. Danny goes back to cleaning the coffeemachine.

They never speak of this again, but Tim becomes a regular here in both of his personas.

[ruhlare]

from "Our Heartbeats synchronize"

[mysticpolin]

[soulsdontbreaktheybeeend]

Free and yet so trapped. Part 2

Summary: this takes place some time after the end of folie a deux. If you're wondering how that is possible... stay tuned and find out. :)

It's Arthur Fleck x y/n, or is it Joker x y/n? Hm. :)

Part 1 <-

words: 1,506

But you had. You had already turned the next corner. There was no trace of anyone. Nevertheless, this fact made him feel a little relieved. He had left his place of refuge simply out of curiosity, without thinking about who might see him there.

His heart began to beat faster. Alone in a hiding place, in safety, yes, that was all right. But alone on the streets of Gotham. That was a different matter. It took him back to a time when he was safe from nothing and no one. And the red suit and make-up made no differences in these moments of being on his own for the most parts.

With observant eyes and ears, he walked briskly down the street to the next corner.

Click clack click clack click clack.

______________

You had your arms wrapped around yourself again. But this time not to shield you from the cold autumn wind. You felt warm enough from all the commotion. It was to keep your anger at bay. To contain it.

You found yourself walking faster. You longed for your home and the peacefulness and comfort it gave you. Your lips tense, pressed together. Which made your labored breathing more restricted. Your chest and shoulders heaved up and down. Nostrils fluttered, overwhelmed with the effort.

Just as you were about to cross the road, a car rounded the corner, preventing you from carrying on. Annoyed, you stopped. Arms still crossed. The car was driving so strangely slowly. "Oh my god, the gas pedal is the one on the right!" Cried the unnerved voice in your head, your knees shaking in agitation.

Almost home, you fumbled in your handbag for your keys. You didn't reach them straight away, your patience at its limit. You hung the bag on your right elbow, reached for the handle with your left hand to open it and finally you found with your eyes what your hands couldn't find on their own. Joy and misfortune at the same moment. Keys in your grasp, you stepped into the puddle of that one bloody pothole in the ground that has been there for years. For the first time ever.

___________

Arthur had hid behind the corner, while your mishap was happening to you. He struggled. Tried to talk himself into walking over to you. But what would he even say. His body eager to start walking, his mind stopping him from doing so. He looked down on him, touching his red suit jacket. Touching his painted face. His fingers touched his cheek, he brushes his lips. Make-up transferred to the tips of his fingers.

No.

You’d probably start to scream for help.

He’s the Joker.

So everyone assumes.

And then he got company. Or rather, you did?

____________

With your keys in your hand, you exhaled in exasperation, let your head fall back in your neck and questioned the universe as to what this is all about today. Wishing upon a shooting star, to wish for a version of yourself which would be less highly sensitive. No chance of seeing any stars at all in night sky. Which you then again felt grateful for, otherwise you’d lose and important part of who you are.

“Okay wow, it can't really get any worse now. At least I made it home safely.”

You had just turned the key in the lock when you felt a touch of a hand on your shoulder.

Your left hand immediately shot up in defense, as you turned around. Before you could properly focus on his face in the heat of the moment, all you could catch a glimpse of was a beige trench coat. You remembered it from earlier. He had put the trench coat on right after he got out of the cab. “y/n, sorry. It’s me.”, the culprit apologized.

“What the fuck, Jonathan!” Your face alone could have easily told him that as well. “You could’ve just said something instead of cree-”

Hold on a second. He doesn’t know where I live.

“Did you follow me here?” Your head turned slightly, eyes switching from shock to anger and lack of understanding.

___________

Arthur still hid behind the corner, had gulped at the moment you had confronted Jonathan about following you. In the end he had done so, too.

____________

“Yes, it’s no big deal, come on.”

Um..

You couldn't even process his words before he continued, “you.. you know, you left quite the impression on me earlier.” Wearing a grin on his face that let you in wonder of where he would go with this.

“So feisty.” His grin widened, “I wish I knew sooner this part of you existed.”

Your face froze and disgust was written all over it. Still, your energy was completely spent for today and you didn't feel like facing any more crap.

With the non existing rest of your strength and a calm voice, you pointed out, “look…”, you took a deep breath, “I'm not going to play your game. No matter what you think would happen to the two of us now in your wishful thinking. It's not going to happen. I'm tired, I’m exhausted and I just want to go to bed. All I can do for you is not to overestimate this situation here and forget about it. For both our sakes, Jonathan. Good night.” You turned your back on him to finally go inside.

You felt his body against your back. One of his hands reached around your waist to your hand on the key to stop you. On that move, your forehead bumped slightly against the door.

“GET OFF ME!” You fought. He attempted to say something but then you heard a second male voice.

__________

Arthur was suspicious from the start and had the feeling that this wasn't going to end well. He was impressed by the calmness with which you tried to get the situation under control. But when that didn't work, he couldn't stand to just watch it any longer. He had to take action.

He’s the Joker after all. So everyone assumes.

__________

“Tsk tsk…”, Jonathans grip on you loosened slightly at the sound. “Now that is no way to treat a woman, is it, Johnathan?” He let go of you with a jolt. You on the other hand weren't ready to move yet, just turned your head a little. Just so little that you could see red out of the corner of your eye.

Jonathan laughed, “oh look who’s here! We were just talking about you earlier. About what a joke you are!”

In disbelief, you slowly turned around to face your… what? Savior?

The so-called joke grinned mischievously as he looked Jonathan straight in the eye. His stare slowly shifted from him to his own right waist, where his hand held a pistol from under his red suit jacket.

Just letting him see the gun was enough. He was already off and running. From a safer distance, he shouted back, "you're crazy! You fucking psycho!”

You just stood there. Arms crossed again, for yet another reason tonight. It was beginning to feel like this night would never come to an end.

He had tucked his pistol back in his pocket. You took a very quick glance at him and looked away again in a heartbeat towards the direction Jonathan had run off in. The situation felt extremely awkward. What the hell was going on that night and why the hell did you feel like your heart beat faster. Stronger. You covered it with your right hand. Afraid that your altered heartbeat might be visible to the naked eye.

You began to realize what just had happened. The events of the night replayed in your head. You couldn’t help but… giggle. One hand covered half your face out of bashfulness.

You finally found the courage to look at him, “you know, it’s funny. About half an hour ago, I was speaking up for you and now… now you…” You couldn’t help but giggle more, “now you kind of really saved me, from whatever could have happened.” You shook your head in disbelief. In disbelief of what had happened, but also a little bit of how smitten you were by him, just standing there. You searched for his eyes to really convey how grateful you were and thanked him.

He had his left hand placed casually in the pocket of his pants, before he raked it through his hair. What looked like self-confidence was actually more out of nervousness. He felt anxious. Torn between keeping on a mask or… not.

“I’m Arthur.” He held out his right hand to you with eager eyes to learn your name.

Your gaze immediately turned to his hand. After a brief moment of hesitation, you felt your palm meet his. It felt like half an eternity before you remembered that it was your turn to mention your name. Your gaze turned upwards from your connected hands to his face. Your eyes met and so did your souls.

____________

Part 3

[mischievous-thunder]

Bonus:

[valtsv]

"why do you talk so much" i like to share things with people andd a wizard cursed me to use at least three words wherever one would suffice so just fucking deal with it alright

[lenainwonderland]

- Sylvia Plath