#that's what happens when you hurt Harvey's kid brother

[thegrandharveyspecter]

Thank you for putting Rachel in her place during Mike's fake trial

"It was my pleasure. It's a shame it didn't get my kid brother to stay away from her, though."

[artists-ally]

I think Harvey would be thw type of person who makes love specially when he’s feeling sad. Like he needs comfort and to be as close to his s/o as possible, fingers intertwined and all that nice shit. How do you think reader would comfort him after he had a discussion with someone of his family?

{Oh, My Human Heart} Reader x Harvey Specter

So my mind went to [SEASON 8 EPISODE 5 SPOILER WARNING] where Harvey went up to Boston to defend his brother against his wife's divorce. That shit crushed my soul man, so this is based on that! Enjoy!! Title is a lyric from this song.

Word Count: 3,191

Warnings: fluff, hurt/comfort, angst, smut, Season 8 Episode 5 Spoilers

Summary: When Harvey returned home from visiting his brother unexpectedly, there is an obvious weight to his shoulders as he slumps inside. And it’s your mission to find out what it is and wipe it from his memory.

Tagging: @kjbg-fantasymoon (your request is next babes <3)

~~~~~~~

The door slammed. Hard. Concerningly hard. 

“Harvey?” You shouted out into the kitchen, taking off the towel from your shoulder and set it on the counter. No one responded. Worry coursed through you, and you grabbed the knife from the cutting board. Just in case. 

Your husband rounded the corner and you jumped, but let the fear drain from your held breath and set the knife down. “Jesus Harvy, you could’ve… hey, what are you doing back here?”

Harvey looked indecipherably pissed. He had hard creases in his face and his lips pressed in that flat line that meant someone was about to see that side of him that meant he was gonna raise hell. He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out, and he let his hands fall to his sides. 

“Okay, okay come sit, love,” You reached for him and guided him to the island. “Do you want to talk about it? A distraction? To be left the hell alone?”

That communication strategy had worked wonders when Harvey came home from a lethal case. All the details you knew about this one involved his brother and a divorce from his wife. It had already shattered Harvey’s heart to hear they were splitting up, but this was… this was rage. Raw fury. 

“I am going to open my mouth and let the floodgates go with it, and I just need you to try and make sense of it. Because for reasons only known by Jesus-fucking-Christ himself can this be possible.”

You just nodded, letting Harvey take some deep breaths. You noticed his hands were shaking. He was shaking. What the fuck happened in Boston?

“Marcus called me up there to represent him for his divorce,” Harvey started, thumbs in his eyes. “He told me that it was because she had an affair. I was ready to go kick down her door and take their kids away myself. Turns out, he lied to me. She was divorcing him because he started gambling again and he told Haley not to tell Katie.”

Your blood ran cold, all remorse leaving your body for Marcus. How could he fucking do that? 

“So, tell me this Yn. Why would my own god damn brother, who I spent my money on to build him a dream restaurant, lie to my fucking face? Not once. Not twice. Four times. Four opportunities he had to tell me and he waited till the last fucking second. I-I can’t even begin to describe how sick it makes me feel to have Haley be put in that position.”

“It is wildly unfair for her, and for their son,” you felt awful for them. They were the sweetest kids and didn’t deserve to have that weight on their shoulders. 

“I mean, was he not apart of the fucking family when mom did that to me? Did he suddenly just show up on our doorstep one night looking for a place to sleep like a stray cat? No, he didn’t. He’s my fucking brother. He was there when mom did it to me. And he saw what it did to our family. What it did to me. He was the one trying to fix our fucking fucked up family. To piece it together after the fall out and he expects me to do the same when he did the one thing worse than practically fucking cheating on her.”

“Harvey I think that's a little-”

“Now he’s destroying his own life. No, not even destroying, destroyed. He has ruined all chances of working things out between him and Katie and honestly, I can’t be fucking bothered to watch it crumble to the ground. And the worst part of it is he had the audacity to ask me to win this case. He doesn’t deserve to win let alone ask me. What a selfish, lying son of a bitch-”

“Harvey,” you placed a hand on his shoulder to keep him from walking away. He had been moving around animatedly, now up out of his seat and waving around. “Take a deep breath. Please.”

He did.

“Good,” You smiled softly. 

He took another. And another. “Sorry… just- sorry.”

“It’s okay,” You came and stood in front of him, hands flat on his chest. “Let’s go and get you changed and we can keep talking through it. If you’d like.”

Though Harvey’s eyes were harsh, that anger wasn’t directed at you. You’ve dealt with him like this on more than one occasion, and you’ve learned to recognize the difference. He didn’t dare look at you the way he is now.

After taking his hand and leading him up stairs, you took your time undressing him so he could be more comfortable. Once upon a time he had told you that the feeling of your hands on him could make him forget anything and everything. It was only in your best interest to do that for him now. To calm him so he could see the full picture.

Starting with his tie, you walked to the closet and hung it up in the empty space from where you picked it out this morning. Much the same with the jacket, tossing his still crisp white-shirt in the laundry. He handed you his belt and shoes, and while you put them away, he took off his dress pants and put on sweats by the time you came back. 

“Better?” You asked, placing his hands across your middle. 

He smiled, “Better.” 

Harvey was still sitting, but he rested his forehead against your stomach, just breathing. With calm hands you massaged his scalp and neck, his shoulders and arms. It was important to give Harvey his space at times like this, letting him speak when he wanted. Otherwise he’d just get defensive and shut down. That was not beneficial to either of you.

“I’m so fucking mad at Marcus, Yn.”

“I know, my love. I know,” You spoke softly, kissing the top of his head. “So am I.”

“I just don’t understand how he could do that after what mom did to me. I thought- I thought we were brothers again.” 

His voice cracked, and you could feel the first tear drops soak through your shirt and cool your skin. Your stomach clenched and dropped. You know Harvey and Marcus have been rocky for decades, but since he forgave his mom and started rebuilding their relationship, things naturally got better with Marcus. 

So much for all that hard work. And you had been so proud of him for taking those steps. And you knew the toll it took on him. Now it was all back at square one. 

“I am so sorry, Harvey.”

“What the fuck do I do?”

You paused for a long while. “I don’t know.”

When he looked up at you, eyes all red and bleary, you wanted to fly to Boston and smack Marcus yourself for putting Harvey right back where he was when he was sixteen. He may not have been the one asked to keep a secret this time, but he knows what it’s like to be in that situation. To feel so pinned and powerless. The looming decision of whether he should betray his mom or dad, a constant threat, and either outcome will ruin the family. 

“Are you up for listening to my ideas or do you still need to get things off your chest?” All you got was a shrug and a few spilled tears. “Okay, there’s no rush.”

“I just don’t know what to do, Yn. I have no fucking clue what I’m supposed to do. I want to beat him into the dirt the most. I want to hold Haley and tell her that none of this was ever her fault and she is not the one to blame. Goddamn do I want to hug Haley right now…”

You had to close your eyes. You didn’t want to see Harvey in this position, especially because you knew what this did to him. It stirred up all those memories and emotions from decades ago. Now they were all at the surface, controlling every one of his thoughts. And there isn’t a whole lot that you can do to get them to stop.

“I think you’re angry.”

“You’re goddamn right I’m angry,” Harvey huffed, making you let out a weak chuckle. 

“And I also think that I know you when you’re angry. And that you don’t think clearly when you are. So, how about we distract you for a while and then we get some sleep. Then, maybe in the morning, we lay it all out again and go over what we know. Look at all the facts and whatnot. Because, despite your very much warranted anger towards Marcus, he is still your brother. And family means more than anything to you, Harvey. I can’t let you spend the next thirty years in regret for not trying. You owe that to yourself. Not anyone else.”

“I don’t even know where to start with all this bullshit.”

“That’s where I come in,” You smiled, sitting in his lap with one leg on each side of his. “Look Harvey, you have every single right to be upset. I am pissed at Marcus for doing that to Haley. But I will not let this drive another cavern between you and him. The two of you have been through enough. He fucked up, and he knows it because you’re Harvey goddamn Specter and you told him he did. But you forgave him once. And you forgave your mom. It is worth a shot to hear him out, and I’m not saying it has to be right away either. Just eventually.”

Harvey’s brown eyes darted around your face, that tight line still on his lips. When you tilted your head and batted your lashes, he sighed out, nodding. “Okay, okay fine you’re right.”

“Of course I am,” your smile made him finally unclench the space between his brows. “It’s because I’m really good at knowing who you are, and knowing how to approach a situation. You’re good at being a kick-ass lawyer and I’m good at taming that kick-ass lawyer.” “You love it when I let that animal out of the cage,” he smirked, hands stroking down your thighs. 

“If you refer to yourself as an animal in a cage again I will walk out that door and spend the night at Donna’s.”

“Okay okay,” he grinned ear to ear, pressing kisses on your cheek, then down your neck. “I’m sorry for being so… hostile. Thank you, Yn. For calming me down.”

“You’re welcome, my love.”

“I don’t know what it is that you do, but you make it all disappear.”

“It’s my secret,” you whispered, kissing his lips. “And I won’t ever tell.”

“I bet I could make you tell me,” Harvey winked and grabbed around your waist, taking you with him when he leaned back. 

“Oh, is that a fact?” “No, but it is a challenge.” 

He tangled his hand in your hair, bringing your mouth to his. He tasted like whatever cheap whiskey he had on the plane and mint. You let your body form to his and didn’t mind the way his tongue found yours. Harvey’s hands were gentle as they peeled away the cardigan on your shoulders, tossing it away to be picked up later. 

He took his time, slowly stripping you and easing you on your back. You wrapped your legs around his waist and needed to have his mouth on yours again. He was such a good kisser. So thorough and precise with what he wanted to do to you. 

And he was always very thorough. 

Harvey placed kisses down your chest, down your stomach and to each hip.

“Babe-”

“Shh,” he hushed. “Just let me do what I want. You just lay back and look pretty. Fuck do you look pretty, my love.”

Your heart melted. Normally he had a wicked, dirty tongue but tonight was obviously different. He wanted something to focus on, and if that was going to be you, then so be it. You surely weren’t going to stop him from spreading your knees and tucking his head to your core. 

If Harvey could do one thing for the rest of his life, he’d sure have a hard time picking between you and the law. While he loved his work, your mind and body were two things even the high of winning couldn’t compare to. Harvey loved you. Ferociously. With every part of his body he loved you. 

His tongue circled your clit, and your hand went in his hair to keep him there. The laugh that tumbled from him was nothing short of star-seeing. One thing about Harvey is if you weren’t satisfied and thensome, neither was he. He loved making you cum on his tongue, loved how you tasted. 

It wasn’t long before you warned him you were close, and he just hummed into you, vibrations making you arch up off the bed, tugging equally as hard on his hair as you did the sheets beside you. 

“I will never get sick of making you feel good, Yn. I love that I am the one who gets to spend these moments with you.”

“Harvey,” you swooned, cupping his face to bring him back up so you could kiss him. Your scent was strong on his lips and made you only need him that much more. All it took was a few impatient grabs at his shirt to make him take it off so you could finally get your hands on that body of his. 

All that time in the boxing gym surely paid off. 

Harvey brough your knee up and pushed it flat on the bed, pulling the other one around his hip. He pushed in, chest to chest with you as he sat still for a few moments. 

“I love you so much, Yn,” Harvey whispered, thumb training down your cheek, your neck. He slid it all the way down your arm and laced your fingers together, kissing them as he pulled back. He wouldn’t leave your lips alone, not that you wanted that in the slightest. He was all soft words and pleas of desperation. Telling you how good you felt.

It was like your wedding night all over again. When the two of you met, it had been in a fury of hands and tongues. All fast because there wasn’t a second to waste when it finally happened. But on your big day, he laid you down, just like this, and worshiped you all night long. 

Every word from his mouth was just him telling you how much you meant to him, his body seconding that omission. He was so dedicated to you, to making you feel good. It was all long, smooth strokes of his body inside yours, the warmth of your combined breaths. Swallowing each other's noises of pleasure.

“I am so in love with you,” Harvey smiled. “I am so fucking in love with you.”

You couldn’t hide your smile if you tried. It wasn’t rare that Harvey was affectionate– per say– but this was an illusive moment. He wine and dined you whenever you asked, you were always his plus one anywhere in the world. But it was these small, yet enormous moments of intimacy that you cherished the most. This was a side of Harvey that took a very long time to bring to the surface. And he too realized the weight of just taking his time and being soft with you. 

“I love you too, Harvey,” you whispered against his face, his mouth now busy with the side of your neck. Harvey couldn’t keep his hips slow for long, and they snapped to yours. Air pushed out of your mouth and right into his ear, right where it drove him crazy to hear what he did to you. 

“Fuck, my love, if you keep making those sounds this isn’t exactly going to be how I-”

“Now it’s my turn to take care of you,” you responded, locking your ankles together behind his back.

A shiver ran through his shoulders and he dropped to his elbows, hips driving into you faster and faster. Harder. It didn’t take him long to reach his high, fucking you through it. His heart pounded underneath his skin so hard you could feel it. A slight sweat at the back of his head where hair met skin. 

When he lifted his head, his eyes looked less… weighted. He looked much more himself. Muc more like Harvey and a little less like Mr. Specter. 

You mentally patted yourself on the back. 

There wasn’t anything you could do to convince him to not drag you into the shower down the hall. The warmth of the water, the heaviness in your body only made his fingers on your scalp that much better. He kissed all over, giving your ass a loving smack when getting out before wrapping a big towel around the both of you. 

“Promise in the morning that we can do this all again and then I can make you a big breakfast?”

“Only if you promise that there will be sausage and bacon,” your eyes were droopy, but the smile reached them anyway. 

“Good thing Postmates will go to the grocery store nowadays,” Harvey slipped one of his shirts over your head, straightening it out over your body. “You look so adorable in my clothes.”

“I know, why do you think I wear them when you’re gone?” “You wear my clothes when I’m gone?” You pff’ed out some air, “Don’t act like you don’t notice the suspiciously large pile of your laundry in the hamper when you come back.”

“I don’t think you know how happy that makes me, Yn,” Harvey’s smile was nothing short of pure adoration. He was never short on pure adoration when it came to you. 

“Yes I do,” You smiled, wrapping your arms around his neck. “Why do you think I do it?”

“Because you know me. Really really well.”

“That I do.”

Harvey breathed out, shaking his head. “Thank you.”

“You don’t need to thank me for something anyone would do for their husband.”

“Well, in my experience, most wives aren’t nearly as observant or as dedicated as you are, Yn. And I want you to know how much I appreciate you and everything you help me through when I don’t know how to help myself.”

Your eyes melted, much like your heart when he hugged you. Nice and tight and just how you liked them. You always felt impossibly safe with him, and his hugs were impossibly your favorite thing in the world. 

Harvey would listen better in the morning. Especially after a good night's sleep. You just hope that all your efforts will lead him in the right direction. And that direction isn’t the clearest right now, and that’s okay. Both of you know it’s okay to not make a decision as big as something like this.

But you know Harvey will try. And that is all you can ask of him.

[specterllaw]

Mommy or Ma'am? - Mike Ross x Reader / Older Brother Harvey

Summary: After a hospital scare, Mike is put on babysitting duty, which quickly turns into a fun morning for you both

Warnings: SMUT, Switch! reader Switch! Mike

Harvey knew getting Jessica to hire you was a bad idea, he thought he could fully trust you though. You were twenty two it was your first real job, even it was just making copies for everybody in the office when needed.

I was going smoothly for awhile until Monday Morning rolled around, Y/n was on edge because not only did she have tests coming up but she also had sports, work, and helping her older brother Harvey keep his penthouse and office clean and neat. She felt like she was losing it, so whenever she was woken up at 6AM to go to the office she wanted to start crying, she hadn't even been to bed really, only falling asleep twenty minutes before Harvey even woke her up.

You were stuck in the copier room, taking stacks of papers from different associates, and partners and just coping them over and over again. It was working smoothly until you dozed off coping papers and mixed up the order of them, now realizing you messed up very important documents your breathing started to shallow. You heart rate was speeding up and you started to feel dizzy and hot, holding onto the table next to the copier tightly you heard somebody's rushed footsteps approach you all before your eye sight went black. "Woah woah woah" Mike said taking in your unusual state holding you up quickly as your body went limp "Louis! Rachel!" He yelled trying to shake you lightly "C'mon Y/n, wake up" He whispered nervously, not knowing what was going on with you, as he saw Louis walking up to the door he took a breath of relief "Stay here with her, I'm gonna call an ambulance and go get Harvey" Mike said urgently, gently laying you on the ground, using his suit jacket as a cushion under your head, waiting until Louis knelt next to you to try and wake you before rushing through the firm "Donna! call 911! now" He said checking Harvey's office only to see it empty "Mike! Calm down what's going on?" Donna asked worried standing up and resting a hand on his chest "I walked in to get copies from y/n and as soon as I walked in, she fell to the ground- where's Harvey?" He asked quickly before rushing to Jessica's office seeing Harvey sitting in front of her desk. "What do you need, Ross? We're having a very important-" Mike cut Jessica off quickly, and rudely. "Y/n passed out, I don't what happened" He whispered, Harvey looked at Jessica and then Mike "Damnit" he huffed standing up quickly rushing to the copier room right as paramedics were coming up from the elevator and rushing to the same room as him.

Whenever you woke up seeing your room empty made your heart hurt, not even Mike showed up to check on you? What even happened? Right before you could decide on what happened you hear the door latch and in rushes Mike and Harvey fighting on who gets in the room first. "Y/n" Harvey sighed sitting on the side on your bed "Don't ever do whatever you did again" He demanded, thinking he was talking about you messing up the copies and files you started to tear up "I-I'm sorry" You whimpered, terrified you might get fired for all of this "For what? I mean..Whenever you feel worked up..come find me..I understand more than you know, y/n/n" he whispered running a hand over your hair to smooth it out "I get panic attacks too...instead of...blacking out..I puke"He whispered, you studied his face, that explained all the mornings before his trials he'd get sick. "Same goes for you then..come find me" You whispered to him grabbing his hand squeezing it "So what happened?" You added on tilting your head "Exhaustion, y/n" Harvey said sternly "Which means, you're taking the next two days off, to rest, recharge" He said turning his head as Mike coughed awkwardly. "Okay kid, I'll let you speak, but I swear if you try anything with my sister I will kill you" Harvey stated seriously and confidently "Okay okay" Mike grumbled raising his hands up in the air before taking Harvey's seat, Harvey taking a step out into the hallway to call Jessica.

"Mr. Ross" You mumbled, you still felt a little sleepy from whatever they gave you but you were desperate to wake up "Ms. Specter" He quipped back running his hands down his pants legs. "You okay, Mike?" You asked softly sitting up to rest a hand on his shoulder "Y/n..I like you" He whispered "More than a friend, more than a co-worker, and I wanna like you as my girlfriend..but I don't want your brother to kill you" Mike added on resting a hand on yours "How long have you felt like this Mike?" You whispered using your other hand to cup his cheek "Weeks.....You're just..so kind and sassy, and the way you give Harvey shit is just...the proud look you have on your face after you make him speechless is adorable" He rambled "I would have you make copies of random words I had typed up just to see you..that's what I was on my way to do whenever I came into the copier room and found you leaning on the table about to fall.." Mike rambled even farther before you giggled and kissed him deeply

"Can you not shut the hell up Mike?" You mumbled against his lips as he resting a hand on yours, jumping away whenever he heard the door open "Excuse me!" Harvey yelled looking at you both "Care to explain yourselves, children?" He asked crossing his arms like a mother.

You were surprised to see Harvey agree to let Mike stay over, he claimed it was just to 'help you sleep, like you claimed' but you felt like he preferred you not to be home. As you walked into your room you smiled as Mike who was already ready for bed, striped to nothing but his boxers, truth was you and Mike had slept together, a couple of times, you both had agreed it was strictly friends with benefits until just yesterday at the hospital. "Ready for me to help you sleep?" Mike quoted playfully "Yes sir" You giggled climbing onto the bed, straddling Mike's lap as you looked down at him "Ah ah, Princess needs to rest, let me do all the work, baby" he whispered before using his hips and body force to flip you two over to where he was hovering over you.

"Look. At. Me" Mike demanded, you were on your third orgasm now, Harvey was long gone at work now and Mike was spending the day inside of with you, specifically taking turns making each other cum, but now Mike had taken it into his own hands to make you forget your own name, and you were 10000% okay with that. You felt Mike's hand grab your chin forcefully having you look up "I said look at me." He growled as he kept grinding his hips, his dick still buried six and a half inches deep inside of you, you moaned loudly leaning your head further back into the pillows, biting your lip as you made eye contact with Mike, whining and moaning loudly again. You couldn't help it, between his shiny lips from going down on you, to the messy ass hair from you pulling on it, or making the sex drunk look with the lazy smirk as his face as he fucked you into oblivion. "F-Fuck Mike!" You whimpered as he spit forcefully down where his cock entered inside of you before rubbing your clit with two fingers. You couldn't take it, you wanted to scream but you knew your brother would get a noise complaint and he'd know what you two were doing, home alone.

"My slut can take it" Mike whispered in your ear as he wrapped a hand around your throat, squeezing tightly as he started to thrust his hips alot faster than he previously was "Fuck fuck fuck Mike!" You screamed trying to close your legs but Mike just held them back open, continuing the sweet abuse on your clit, you could feel yourself getting close to the breaking point of cumming again and you knew Mike didn't care. You gasped loudly arching your back as he started fucking you alot faster, the hand around your throat tightening and it just added to your pleasure. "Cum, slut" Mike growled, not letting his hips falter its pace as he watched you cum, the way your face scrunched up, or the way your pussy squeezed around his cock as tight as possible, or maybe it was the fact you were screaming his name while leaving scratch marks all down his back but whatever it was, he wanted to remember it forever. You started to whimper, his cock moving inside of you beginning to become way too much for you to handle "Hold on baby..Use your words, you know what to say to stop, Daddy's so close though" Mike panted as he kept fucking you, his little whimpers were enough to get you wet yet again, but this time it sparked an idea. Once Mike started to pull out you glared at him, giving him a look that says 'you'll regret that' "Keep fucking me, baby" You whispered grabbing his boxer waist band that was tugged down below his cock, using it to pull him back closer, and his cock back deeper inside of you "Keep fucking mommy" You moaned arching your back, Mike whined before rolling onto his back pulling you ontop of him "Fuck keep talking please, you're so fucking hot" He moaned grinding his hips up "So Mike Ross is also a bottom?" You gasped playfully before holding his hips down "In that case, hips down, slut" You demanded before starting to grind and bounce your hips slowly on his lap, moving his cock in and out of you at a slow pace, making Mike try and sit up quickly, once he realized that wasn't happening he attempted to try and speed up your pace by thrusting his hips up but you just grabbed his hair and tugged it back, using the opportunity to leave hickeys down his neck. "F-Fuck Ma'am" Mike whined sitting up holding you close to him before taking one of your nipples in his mouth, swiping his tongue over it along with gently nipping at it, all making you increase the speed you were going. Mike was a whining wiggling mess, desperate to fuck you again and get his pleasure, he hadn't been a bottom since high school when he fucked the popular girl so this was extremely extremely hot for him.

"You wanna fuck me, baby?" You whispered in his ear dragging your nails down his back "Yes. yes yes yes Mommy, ma'am, yes, whatever you want me to call you just please let me fuck you, I wanna make you cum again" He whined trying to move his hips up against you as you lifted your hips up so it was just the tip inside of you. "Then take whats yours, Mike.." You whispered before kissing him deeply, he flipped you again, fucking you alot more erratic and harder, slamming into your pussy like it was the last time he'd ever fuck anybody. "Fuck!" You both shouted, yours more of a moan while Mike's was a full whine. You gasped feeling him cum inside of you, something you weren't expecting considering he had a condom, you couldn't think too much about it as you felt that familiar knot in your stomach snap as you came for the fifth or sixth time that morning.

As Mike pulled out you watched him stare down in horror and shock "Y/n..The condom broke.." He mumbled looking towards you as you were laying down trying to catch your breath.

[star-bear-headcannons]

I was just reading your high school Headcanons (I totally agree btw, theatre kid Harvey with his big sisters has my whole heart 😭), and was wondering

What do you think the bachelor(ette)s were like as kids?

Bachelors

Alex: He was actually pretty quiet. He knew that talking made his dad mad and he didn't want his mom to get hurt so he just.... shut up. When his dad abandoned them, he found his love for gridball and became much more happy and energetic. He had a brief period where he shut down again when his mom died but his grandparents were able to reignite that spark.

Elliot: Another quiet kid but for different reasons. He just, didn't feel like it. Loved reading and very rarely left his room. Had the constitution of a poor Victorian child. The slightest bit of dust had him on the verge of death.

Harvey: He was also quiet and got bullied quite a bit because he was a nerd. He'd ramble on and on about his interests (planes) whenever he got the chance. Stopped getting bullied when his growth spurt hit because he had suddenly turned into a giant overnight.

Sam: You know how parents say the worst stuff happens when you aren't looking? Yeah, Jodi has no idea how he got this far in life. She'd look away for a millisecond and suddenly Sam's on the roof testing whether the red crayons taste better that the blue ones. He had negative survival instinct.

Sebastian: There were two Sebastians as a kid. The bubbly lovable one who ran around and spoke a lot. That was Robin and his birth dad's Sebastian. Then there was the moody, petulant brat Demetrius and Maru got. When his parents first brought Maru home, he tried to ship her back

Shane: Shane grew up poor. Like, borderline homeless poor. Other kids stayed away because he had ratty clothes and stank. They never bullied him because Shane knew how to throw a punch. Smart kid but never applied himself.

Bachelorettes

Abigail: She was really polite and sweet as a child, only becoming more rebellious as a teen. She just had one small problem. She ate EVERYTHING. If it could fit in her mouth, it was going in her mouth. Caroline had many, many trips to the ER to attest to it.

Emily: Hyper, hyper, hyper child. They had a no sweets policy in the house because if she manage to get her hands on a cookie, all hell broke loose. I think her personality would be closest to Bingo from Bluey.

Haley: Prissy little brat. It was her way or the highway. Everything had to be just so otherwise she'd throw giant temper tantrums. She can't get that toy. Screaming in the mall. We aren't having McDonalds for dinner. The world is ending! It went on even as she got older. She stopped after her mom filmed one of her tantrums and she saw how ridiculous she looked.

Leah: Tough kid. Had a couple of older brothers she would wrestle with. Was that one kid who growled at the other kid. Her personality could be summed up from that seen in LOK where Korra says, "I'm the Avatar now you better deal with it!"

Maru: Smart kid. Demetrius was always making her studying and Sebastian ignored her. She was pretty lonely. So she just made her own friends. Robots. Robin was always scared that she was missing out on her childhood and now that she's older, she somewhat agrees.

Penny: A lot like Shane. Ignored and left alone. Her clothes always smelled like smoke, and her mom was always drunk. She learned to be self reliant. Her mom was often late to pick her up so the school librarian would let her stay and read. Several CPS calls. A few foster homes

[ditzyredrobin]

Shrike Chapter 2

And the long awaited chapter 2! I am so sorry for the late posting—it’s been kind of a crazy couple of weeks. Good news! Chapter 3 is close to complete.

-

The night Batman and Nightwing were captured by Two-Face, Tim’s parents were on a dig in Northern Peru. Mayocumbe, if he remembered correctly. They were on a tour through South America, studying petroglyphs and other artifacts from ancient civilizations.

He never wanted to come between Batman and Robin, it wasn’t his place. Dick and Jason had been chosen, but Batman and Robin were two sides of the same coin (sorry, Harvey).

Without one, the other had a tendency to swing out of balance, they needed the other's gravity to stay in orbit and right now Bruce needed a Robin.

If Dick wasn’t going to do it, someone had too.

“I don’t know who you are,” Batman spat, forcibly striping him of his domino. “But you’re not my Robin. There is no more Robin!”

Tim stood there, holding up his hands, arms quivering because he had just held up a massive wooden beam for Batman and Nightwing to escape the wreckage of Two-Face’s house. He had just punched Two-Face and narrowly missed having his butt kicked and saved them.

“Batman, I only wanted to help because I care about you—I care about Robin.” Tim pleaded. “Bruce, please, listen to me.

“What did you say?” Uh-oh.

Tim swallowed hard around the tightness in his throat. Well, he didn’t mean to drop the “B” word just yet. “I know you’re Bruce Wayne and I know Nightwing is actually Dick Grayson. And…and I know what happened to Jason Todd.”

Bruce went rigid, a white line forming along his jaw. He didn’t know what he expected after revealing his idol's identities but Batman looking like he wanted to punch him wasn’t it.

Tim looked at Nightwing hanging weakly onto Bruce, but Nightwing wasn’t looking at him, in fact he seemed to be doing anything to avoid looking at the kid dressed up like his dead brother. Tim flushed and his eyes felt hot with embarrassment.

“Let’s go.” Batman snapped, jerking his head towards the only exit out of the rubble. “It’s not safe here for a civilian.”

A civilian. Right.

Tim followed Batman and Nightwing as they limped to meet Alfred who was waiting. “Sir, thank heavens Timothy helped free you.” He sounded relieved but frowned at the expression on Batman’s face. “Sir, you should have seen him confront Two-Face, you would have been proud. His instincts and acrobatic abilities are astounding-”

“What are you trying to do?” Bruce said, cutting him off. “What were you thinking, bringing him here? One boy has already died wearing that costume, I’m not taking that risk a third time.”

Alfred opened his mouth to speak but Tim beat him to it. “I never thought of becoming Robin. But with your training I can do it. Batman has to have a Robin.

“No.”

“But sir-”

“No, Alfred, and that’s final. Where is that written in stone? There’s no need for there to be a Robin-”

“Then is there for a Batman?” Alfred asked.

“That’s different and you know it.” Batman said sharply. “This isn’t something that is up for discussion.”

“Batman, please, it’s hard for me to say this—but since Jason died, everyone’s noticed how you’re…changed. I mean, how many times have you been hurt in these past few months?”

“So, for my sake, I should put some child in danger?”

“What? No, that not it-”

“This isn’t up for discussion.” Bruce said dismissing anything else he had to say--which was a lot “What I do is dangerous and I have no interest in discussing this further. Harvey is still free.”

Robin wasn’t just a uniform--It was a symbol, just as much as Batman, or Superman or the police. When one officer dies, another steps up to take his place because crime didn’t end, and justice could not be stopped. But, Bruce turned away.

“Sir, I really think-”

“Alfred, enough, take him home. We tracked Harvey here to his home. I don’t know where he’s gone but we don’t have much time. Nightwing, are you up for finding Harvey or do you need to go back with Alfred and the boy?”

Tim didn’t flinch. He definitely didn’t flinch.

Nightwing shook his head, again, very pointedly looking at anything, anyone, that wasn’t Tim red faced and dressed in Robin’s costume and Tim felt another little part of his soul shatter. Dick Grayson, his hero, his idol, his Robin couldn’t even look at him. “Do you really think I’d let you go this alone? I’m with you, Bruce.”

Batman grunted in response, turning to the Batmobile.

Alfred placed a reassuring hand on Tim’s shoulder, squeezing. “Before you go, I believe Timothy has something that may serve as some assistance on tracking down Mr Dent’s whereabouts.”

Right, the tracker.

Tim nodded slowly, watching for Bruce’s reaction. “I slipped a tracking beacon on him while we were fighting. You’ll just have to follow his signal.”

Bruce, for a long moment, looked like he was struggling to come up with a response, opening his mouth once, before closing it again. He frowned and sighed. “...Good job, Tim.”

At any other point in his life a good job from Batman of all people (seriously Batman), would have been a dream come true. I mean, it was Batman, the Dark Knight, savior of Gotham, but all he could do was look down at his green pixie boots, and try to not cry.

He wasn’t going to cry—he couldn’t cry.

He didn’t expect there to be a reward. Really, he didn’t know what he expected, but this wasn’t it. Never meet your idols, kids.

Nightwing and Batman took off in the Batmobile, Dick still not heeding him any attention, and Alfred walked him back to the dark green Rolls-Royce parked around the corner from the scene.

That night, Batman and Nightwing put Two-Face back in Arkham, and Tim learned two things:

2) Never meet your heroes

AND

1) Bat’s weren’t all they are chalked up to be.

So, waking up in the home of your once childhood idol, was not his definition of a good time.

[cordialcalliope]

this post contains spoilers for tma (specifically the very end of season 4 to season 5 beginnings (like episode 160+)) so if u r Not There Yet u should probably look Away

free my man gerard keay,,,,,,..,,, he did Not deserve to be stuck in a book like that .

EVERY time i think abt his ending and how he wound up there i either get unreasonably distressed or i start laughing uncontrollably because imagine u help some old lady who works for the Awful Horrors and Terrors That Be out for a bit and she strips part of ur flesh from ur body when you die to bind you into a book . and said book is From the things you’ve tried to get out of & away from all your life . man .

there is no such thing as justice in tma bc so Few people get what they deserve and the rest are just punished ridiculously for minor things . idk abt u but mike crew & jon absolutely did not deserve to end up in the situations they did . they were literally both Kids & one ended up having to sacrifice himself to a fear god to stay out of another’s clutches, while the other just wanted to read something. and that book he stumbled on was probably the reason he applied for a job at the institute, and, unbeknownst to him, was strung along by his boss for so long that he ended up unwillingly jumpstarting the apocalypse, forced into the role of the lynchpin in elias’s plans . all the archival staff from gertrude’s time & jon’s were given awful ends all because they were curious or scared or trusted someone they thought was safe . martin was just a Dude who needed a job, tim just wanted to know more abt the thing that stole his brother , who was just a nice guy that people liked. sasha literally had Nothing to do w the fears . but she died anyway . don’t even get me started on michael and fiona law and sarah carpenter (and emma harvey). or even the directors that elias (jonah) took over . gerard keay was a guy who was born to a fucked up lady who collected fucked up books & wanted to start her own lineage . gerard did Not deserve what happened to him, but then again, none of them rlly did . and That kind of Sucks . people are evil and things are evil by human standards and only do what they can to survive, unknowingly hurting & traumatizing masses . nobody deserved any of the ends they had ended up with but that did not stop them from happening . the concept of fairness is and has never been real & tma does a really good job of explaining & showing that for an audio drama i think . even if it is massively heartbreaking

[dissonancedance]

I started this as writing practice in preparation to continue my other project, but it's coming together into its own horrific little story so I'll keep posting it here and on AO3.

He wants to hold her. Use comforting her for an excuse to feel her chest quake with each sob and her hot, wet breath brush his skin as she weeps so enticingly. Get her used to the strangeness of her mean uncle caressing her. Let her interpret it as the love she’s always been so open and patient to receive from him. He wonders how her polite, quiet weeping will change when he starts to hurt her. 

CW: underage, incest, nonconsensual

Chapter 1: Death

“It’s so beautiful. My family goes every year. Just… idyllic.”

Harvey watches the couple seated at the table behind Rebecca as she speaks. The man is a bit too old and the girl is a bit too young for him to immediately identify their relationship.

“The lakes are just so peaceful, you know? My grandparents have a vacation house close to the water in Skaneateles.”

The man has money, that much he can tell. Enough money that he doesn't need to advertise it with anything obvious, only a very nicely custom tailored suit in current fashion. Harvey hasn't seen him before, though.

“That’s the area they call the ‘jewel of the lakes’ and that's absolutely the vibe. My brothers and sister bring their kids and they are such a blast, just, so adorable.”

The girl, though young and attractive, is not quite young and attractive enough to be a girlfriend or mistress. No wedding ring on either of them, so not a slowly aging trophy wife either.

“You should come. Just for a day, just to get out of the city.”

The man puts his hand on the girl's shoulder and leans in to tell her something that makes her laugh. His eyes crinkle at the edges as he chuckles along with her, more as though the sight of her enjoyment brings him happiness rather than finding his own joke funny. Their easy humor seems comfortable and familiar between them, no pretensions or pretending. Fond and casual, but certainly too intimate for them to be friendly coworkers. Envy crawls into Harvey’s thoughts. Envy not of either the girl or the man, but of the connection between the two. The ability to have that connection.

“And my family would just love to meet you, they're all super chill. What do you think?”

Harvey looks back at Rebecca's hopeful, nervous smile and says, “I think I don't want to be around children.”

The waiter arrives before she can produce a point to nullify this reason for his rejection and she shifts her attention to her dish for the waiter’s benefit. The moment the waiter leaves them, however, she picks up her fork and continues.

“We don't have to be around them, I mean, it's not like a kid-focused thing, you know?”

His phone vibrates in his pocket, but his hope for a distraction from this topic dies when he sees the Nebraska area code. He declines the call and sets the phone on the table.

“We can just go wine tasting with just my parents or just meet them for dinner.”

Just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just. Harvey blinks away the urge to display his annoyance. She has his answer, it just isn't the one she wanted.

“I just mean…” she starts.

The phone buzzes and lights up with that same number.

She tries to continue, “... we’ve been dating-”

Harvey picks up the phone. “Harvey Sullivan.”

“Harvey! It's Roscoe. How've you been?”

It's been four years since he’s gotten a call from his father's lawyer. The exact same jocular greeting before being told of his father's death.

“I’ve been good,” Harvey answers, watching in amusement as Rebecca somehow manages to inject passive aggressiveness into the way she's holding her fork, “but I have the feeling I'm about to be less good. What happened?”

“Straight to the point, huh?” Roscoe chuckles, the sound trailing off with a groan. “Well. It’s your mother. She, uh, she's passed. I'm sorry.”

“Oh.” Harvey tries to sound surprised. Part of him is; Nancy was only 49, just 17 years older than him. “When? How?”

“An hour ago. Tabby called for an ambulance when Nancy couldn't get out of the bathtub this morning. Had a stroke. Had a few more on the way to the hospital. She hung in there for a while, but, um… She's gone.”

“Jesus.”

“Yeah. I'm real sorry, Harv. This is such a shit way to find out.”

“No, no, thank you for calling to let me know, Roscoe. So, there's going to be a funeral I-”

“I'm handling all that. Looking at holding the service on Friday at Holy Light. Tabby’s gonna stay with me and Barb for now. Poor little girl is taking this hard.”

“Yeah. Well, alright. I should be able to take next Friday off.”

“If you can come any sooner, it would be a comfort to her.”

“To who?”

“To Tabby!"

“Oh, right. Tabitha. She knows you better though, I don't think there's much I can do for her.”

“I'm not blood. I know you're busy, you've got your own life. It would mean a lot to the kid to have her uncle here, that's all.”

“I’ll be there. Not likely before Friday. Maybe Thursday night.”

“Work on it, okay? Let me know because I have to get the paperwork in order.”

“I'll let you know.”

“Alright. Well, I've got a lot of phone calls to make.”

“Sure. Thanks for calling, Roscoe.”

“Oh! One more thing before I let you go, Harv. The place you're at now has two bedrooms, right?”

Harvey had almost forgotten the frequent non-sequiturs of his father’s old friend, but old habit kicks in and he answers without question, “That’s correct.”

“Okay, thought so, just wanted to make sure I had that right. I'll talk to you soon.”

“Right. Talk to you then.”

Harvey puts his phone back in his pocket and picks up his fork to resume eating.

Rebecca's souring mood seems to have shifted, her tone carrying a perhaps equally annoying concern as she gently asks, “You're going to a funeral next week?”

“Seems like it.”

“I hope it wasn't anyone you're close to.”

He drags a piece of duck through the sauce artfully drizzled along the rim of the plate. “No. Not really.”

“It's going to be out of town?”

The skin is wonderfully crispy, crackling as his teeth gnash through to the tender meat. “Yes.”

“Where?”

The glass of brunello does well to cut the fattiness from his palate. “Nebraska.”

She smiles. “Nebraska is… nice?”

The new potatoes don't look worth the additional carbs. He cuts into the duck again. 

“Well then…” She clears her throat, tries again, “Would you like some company while you’re there, just to keep you from getting bored?”

He glances at her as he pierces another chunk of flesh. There’s already an expectation of disappointment poorly concealed by her smile before he answers, “No.”

The girl at the table behind Rebecca lets out a jokingly scolding exclamation loud enough for him to hear what she says to the man.

“Dad!”

The envy that Harvey felt evaporates. However genuine that connection is, there's nothing as dull to him as fatherhood.

It's only 11:19 by the time Rebecca falls asleep. Harvey takes his clothes into the living room to avoid disturbing her as he dresses, but regardless of how quietly he leaves, she always wakes up at the sound of the door locking. He knows this because she will text him every time. Like clockwork, his phone vibrates as he’s waiting for the elevator.

When will I see you next?

He wonders if he should let her know how annoying this is. If he starts correcting her behavior, he won't stop. He puts his phone back in his pocket. Even if she could be made responsive to correction, she's not worth the work it will take to make her into something more than she is.

There's a chill in the breeze that hints of the approaching autumn. No longer needing to mind the state of his hair, he drives with the windows down, allowing the noise of the city to reach him. Laughter and shouting from the smoking crowd outside of a bar. Psytrance reverberating from a club, the murmuring cacophony from the line outside competing below it. An outlandishly adorned group walking to their next destination, joyously cackling and cursing at each other. 

The door to the lobby locks the noise outside behind him, sealing him in a silence interrupted by his footsteps echoing through the cavernous space. He rarely bothers turning on any lights in his apartment. Everything is always exactly how he's left it. He showers in the dark, not needing to see as he works his way down the line of different cleansers arranged on the shelf. 

His phone is bright even on the dimmest setting when he checks it. Only 12:29. No missed calls, no new messages. A notification from a fetish hookup app, but it's an event reminder. He could still go out. He could see if anyone he knows is available. He could call Judith, check if she's gotten her hands on any real coke yet. 

It's 1:30 when he decides to keep scrolling on his phone until he falls asleep. This works just as well as anything to keep himself from thinking about Home. 

The problem with flying to Nebraska is that no one wants to fly to Nebraska, so there are no Friday flights that will allow him to arrive on time. Harvey touches down in Omaha the night before, having left work early to make a flight out of LGA. It takes the Xanax too long to kick in, so he ends up pulling into the gravel lot behind Holy Light of the Gospel Baptist Church only twenty minutes ahead of the funeral. For all the money his parents had given to this church, it still looks like a shabbily-adapted McMansion someone had gutted and put a sign in front of.

The front doors are open, but the lights inside are still off. The morning sunlight pours through the open windows to provide enough for him to see the monstrosity of bouquets propped up around a casket raised in front of the pulpit and, oddly, a large creepy doll standing in prayer next to it. Its mouth moves. For a delirious moment, Harvey wonders if he brought the wrong pills before realizing that’s Tabitha. He walks along the wall, keeping to the darkness so as not to disturb her, stopping just a couple meters behind her.

His niece is still the puny, scrawny runt with unkempt brown hair constrained into two long stupid braids down to her tailbone. Harvey is not sure what 13-year-olds are supposed to look like these days, but she seems unusually small from what he recalls of his childhood classmates. The girls were all within at least a couple inches of 5 feet and fat had been accumulating on their chests for a year or more already. In that frumpy black dress, he can’t tell if she’s even approached the vicinity of puberty, but he’d guess not.

He steps closer to hear her soft, clear voice whispering, “That I may rise and stand, o’erthrow me and bend. Your force to break, blow, burn, and make me new…”

She stops as his shadow blocks the light pouring over her back and she turns around. This Tabitha is not the impish kewpie doll gremlin he remembers. Big dark doe eyes, fantastic bone structure, delicate chin, prominent cheekbones, small but shapely mouth, symmetrical features, flawless skin. A true gamine beauty still in the bud of its development, but striking despite being so young. Though she's attained this through nothing but the plain luck of genetic roulette and he has absolutely no stake in it, the warmth of pride in being her uncle touches him for the first time.

“Uncle Harvey…” she whispers in astonishment before her dazzling smile crumbles with a sob and she ducks her face into her hands.

Oh, right. Tabitha loved Nancy. Of course she did. She loves everyone, even her horrid grandmother.

He smiles, amused at this silly little creature, and asks, “Am I really that scary, Tabitha?”

She huffs out a short laugh. “I'm sorry, I'm… I'm so happy to see you.”

She sniffs, wipes her face with the handkerchief clutched in her fist, and looks up at him again with pain in her smile and tears shining in her now pink-rimmed eyes. Harvey’s lungs seize up, stunned at the thing he sees in her, invisible but present. This girl, this wide open, honest and artless sincerity shows him something he can't look away from. An intangible thing given an almost material existence from inside her. A nameless thing that calls him to somehow pull it through her and give it form. 

The passing curiosity he had of her sharpens into a predatory focus as a prickling shiver sets alight in his gut. The sensation, a sensation he’s rarely if ever felt so strongly for a person, is immediately chased with a terrifying realization that floods the strange unidentified wonder from him. He is… attracted to a child. This is not supposed to happen to him. 

He's still reeling from this unwelcome revelation, his stomach clenching and his brain on fire, when she asks, “Is it alright if I hug you?” 

No, do not touch her, keep your distance and fix this disgusting glitch. 

No, he responds, it's absurd to assume I am affected. It's nothing serious.

He forces himself to calm down. His arms open for her and she steps into them, hugging him around his hips and nuzzling her cheek against his abdomen. Her warmth seeps through his suit to erupt a wave of goosebumps across his skin. She feels even smaller than she looks. He's not sure how to hug someone who is two feet shorter, awkwardly pulling her tighter against him with his hands spanning her upper back. Judging by her shaky, tantalizing sigh that drives this depraved infection deeper, she doesn't seem to mind. He lets his hands slide down her back, his fingers curling around her ribcage, mapping the meager body hidden beneath that modest dress. It would be nothing to lift her up off her feet and embrace her properly, with her legs wrapped around him, her dress hiked up as he– 

He should have listened to himself. He's not a pedophile. He is the opposite of a pedophile, he hates kids. She’ll do something obnoxious soon that'll clear up this confusion. He'll become disgusted and annoyed with her as he should be. He disengages the hug and she takes his hand as they part, looking up at him again with such startlingly genuine emotion so nakedly displayed, he looks away in embarrassment as though he'd caught her in a private moment. 

“Do you want a moment alone together?” she asks, that dulcet voice intimately low, nearly a whisper.

His lungs seize up for a second time, the blood draining from his face in alarm at how immediately this new abomination within him was known to another. His mind rushes through everything that transpired in the last three minutes. Was it how he looked at her? Did he press her too flush against him? Did his fingers creep into any indecent territory? Panic rises as he can find nothing that would have given him away, no hint of behavior he should have avoided. It’s impossible that she could know the sick way he’s drawn so strongly to her.

And it really is impossible. She’s looking up at him innocently, awaiting his answer with effortless patience. It’s as impossible for Tabitha to know as it is impossible that Tabitha could be so forward and promiscuous to ask him with that intent. He realizes, with a cascade of relief, that she meant alone with his mother’s remains. He’s not disappointed. He won’t allow himself to ruminate on what he would have done to her if she’d meant anything else.

“No,” he answers.

“Do you want to say anything to her before everyone arrives?” she asks.

He tries to be annoyed, only able to put forth an affectation of it. “I’ll do what I want when I want to, kid. You don’t need to prompt me.”

“Okay,” she smiles briefly and releases him. The slide of her fingers gliding under his palm tingles and lingers. He closes his hand into a fist, willing the sweet venom of her touch away. There’s a chance, however unlikely, that he may have accidentally dosed himself with a slight amount of MDMA this morning. He hopes so. “I'm sorry this happened. I’m so sorry, uncle Harvey. I’ve been praying I would see you this year, but…” Her words cut off before she can finish and she ducks into her handkerchief again.

He wants to hold her. Use comforting her for an excuse to feel her chest quake with each sob and her hot, wet breath brush his skin as she weeps so enticingly. Get her used to the strangeness of her mean uncle caressing her. Let her interpret it as the love she’s always been so open and patient to receive from him. He wonders how her polite, quiet weeping will change when he starts to hurt her. 

He moves to lean down and reach for her. He can have a little bit of this. Only enough to taste. She might not even know until the day comes that she looks back on how he made her feel and gives what he’s done a name. Violation. Molestation. Defilement. He could do worse. He wants to. Isn’t it enough that he shows this much restraint?

“Harvey! When did you get here? I gotta talk with you about your situation!”

He jerks upright at the raucous of Roscoe’s voice snapping him back into reality. A cold sweat instantly coats him from his scalp to his soles. It was only a daydream. He couldn’t do something like that, not to someone who can’t consent even if they asked for it. That’s not part of what he does. Of what he’s allowed.

“Hello to you too,” he says, only a tad more rudely than he’d normally back talk to the old man.

“Is that Roscoe I hear in there?” an even older man bellows from the entrance.

“Aw, shit,” Roscoe cusses, then winces and gestures vaguely to the illustration of Jesus hanging next to him. “Sorry! Shoot. One second, Milton! We’ll iron everything out later, Harv. Tabbycat, will you hand out the pamphlets? We might as well start letting people sit down. I’ll get the lights!”

[ziracona]

For the videogame ask game 5, 7, 9, 11 :D

5: Game(s) coming out that you’re looking forward to

Hmmmm I guess the next Dark Pictures game, because I really like Supermassive, and I’m enjoying the series! Someday they’ll make another main series Fallout game, and I’ll be excited for that. I’m excited for the new Spider-Man determinately—not playing until I hear if they did right by Harry Osborn, because he’s a blorbo of all time, but if so, I will be over the moon. Wolf Among Us 2, like most people, and I’ve heard if it succeeds, Batman the Telltale series season 3 will be next and I desperately need to help John and Harvey and see what happens, so that too.

7: A series you’ve lost interest in

Right now I’d have to say Dragon Age, if this question means in a moving forward way? Like I still Adore Origings through 2, but DAI was so fucking horrible in a lot of the pulls they made that I have -200 interest in Dread Wolf or any new DA game unless the devs like, un-become shitty people. I felt genuinely betrayed by a lot of stuff they did in DAI, and I’m still very hurt over it.

9: A game you played completely blind with no prior knowledge of and enjoyed/loved

Hmmmm Oxenfree I think I just snagged on a PS sale? OH The Council is a fantastic little mystery/suspense/eldritch horror game, and I love playing titles where the ends aren’t even all known because it’s so branching and so few people have played (this was also my experience with Oxenfree, bc I played around launch back when people thought there just was no good ending). I googled like ‘suggestions for decision based games’ and that’s how I found The Council, but I hardly thinks subgenre counts as prior knowledge. — oh I could also say Fallout 4. I knew nothing about Fallout at all, and got a PS4 to play Until Dawn as many times as it took to save Josh right after launch, having played once with my brother on his. I came home with my system after a shady Walmart parking lot Craigslist deal half an hour away where both I and the seller were sure we’d be murdered by each other, and when I got home my brother offered me his copy of FO4 for ten bucks (a month after release, back when it was a sixty dollar game), because he’d beaten it and only plays games once. I owned no games yet and wanted to try out the system, and happily agreed. I’d never played an open world game before. Or one where followers had an affinity system, or branching choices in the large scale way, so my mind was blown. I remember Piper stopping me (literally) to tell me she thought I was a little bit of a do-gooder, and being amazed the game was keeping track of my actions and she had comments on it. Core system memory there. It’ll always be a special game in my heart.

11: Do you prefer ‘blank slate’ main characters you make yourself or otherwise project onto, or characters with a set personality and backstory?

I like both! I guess I prefer a little backstory though? Because a game like FO4 where you can chose almost everything but you had a spouse, kid, and specific job, solid building blocks to rp with while getting a more complex personality. if I start a game like Skyrim where there’s a fuck ton of backstory I don’t know for the world, and NO history for me, I have no idea how to RP correctly. Because I don’t have the social and historical context. Like, DAO? Okay I get a quick background. Tabris. I love in a shitty Alienage, humans oppress us, I’m getting married, here’s an overview of my immediate social and political system. A+ — my personality and feelings are mine, but I have enough context for the world and my species and class that I can rp well. DAI? Idk we assume you played the rest of the series and tell you fuckall. I was a mage Vashoth. I got ‘your powers that would have made you a threat back home made you a successful mercenary. People are afraid of your species though.’ I’m there for some meeting?? That’s nothing. I started DAI before any other game, and had fucking 0 clue what anything to anyone was, and I couldn’t even give ‘I don’t know’ answers to make that work. Terrible game design. You can’t assume every player in your franchise played all 5 games before this. I know like 30 people who started Witcher in Witcher 3, and it did a great job of giving us not only world background, but specific past game facts too, so we /could/ start in 3. Anyway uh, I like minimal but enough context to rp well out the gate I guess? But it’s also fun to like, play a Telltale game be Lee Everett or Bruce Wayne. Like that’s cool too, idk which is more fun. Both fun for different reasons.

Ask game

[navalcriminalimagines]

Pairings: Rafael Barba x Reader, Harvey Specter x Reader

Part 1, Part 2

Baker - 3

December 1996

You froze when you heard his voice. Unable to move, you didn’t even turn your face to look at him. You knew that Harvey felt you tensing from the way he was looking at you. It felt like he could see what happened two months before, or at least, see that something did happened. But he didn’t pull away. Harvey kept his arm in place as he greeted Rafael with a hand gesture and a smile. You, on the other hand, briefly looked at the older man and let out a small ‘hey’.

God, was he growing a beard? Even in the second you looked at him, you saw the hair on his cheeks and chin. He mustn’t have shaved in a few days, and he looked even more handsome. He made him look even older and sexier.

Fuck, you couldn’t feel turn on right now. This situation was way too awkward.

“It’s been a while since you were here,” Rafael said to Harvey, trying to figure out what was going on.

“Yeah, Y/N and I had a rough time but it’s all good now.”

“It’ll be all good, if I say it’s all good.” AJ answered, finishing his beer.

“I’m not a child anymore, AJ.” You found your voice again. “I date who I want, when I want.”

“You two are—dating?” Rafael struggled to ask. The word ‘dating’ felt wrong in his throat since he was talking about you and Harvey.

“Yes. Very recent though.” Harvey said.

“Doesn’t change the fact that you, Harvey Specter, are coming upstairs with us.”

You had enough. AJ’s protectiveness was unbearable. You were tired of him treating you like a kid. “No, he’s not.” You stood up to face your brother. “I’m old enough to do what the hell I want. I don’t need your approval, dad’s and most certainly not Rafael’s.”

“One word.” AJ switched his gaze to Harvey. “Julie.”

Confused, you looked at Harvey. You knew who Julie was, she was a girl from school, the same age as you and Harvey. You also knew that AJ dated her older sister in high school, before he realized that girls weren’t his thing. As far as you knew, he and his ex-girlfriend stayed on good terms, they were probably still friends. “It’s different.” Harvey said, standing up too.

“Different? How many of them has it been, Specter?” AJ paused for effect but no one spoke. “You are not putting my sister on your hunting board.”

Before anyone could say something, your mother appeared in the basement. “We’re not having dinner in the basement, kids.” She said, “Rafi, Yelina is here.”

Fuck me, you thought. This night was going to be a real nightmare and you had to wake up at 3 in the morning to go to the bakery. Maybe you should have called it a night right now and ended this before it even started. But all you did was to follow everyone back in the living room.

“Is this serious?” Rafael whispered to your ear, as he was walking behind you. You felt his body heat, you even felt how tense he was. But you couldn’t answer his question since you reached the top floor and Yelina rushed to him. All you could do was to shoot him a glare.

Why did he have to come here tonight? And why did he bring Yelina? It felt like he was twisting the knife in and it just hurt. Honestly, you were thankful for Harvey’s presence. And whatever his little show was in the basement, a part of you was kinda glad that it made Rafael react. You didn’t know if it was jealousy - why would it be? - or just protection like your brother, but it did something to him. And if you had to go through a dinner with Yelina all over him, he’d have to go through with you and Harvey being what you’ve been since fourth grade: friends with no boundaries.

“Since y’all will have Christmas in your own families, we thought it would be nice to have this dinner in advance.” Your dad said as he was pouring scotch for him, AJ and Rafael. Your mother and Yelina had a glass of wine.

“Can Harvey and I have a beer?” You asked, and your parents looked at each other for a moment.

“Just one.” Your father said and you were already on your feet, grabbing two beers.

“Thanks,” Harvey softly smiled at him when you put the bottle in front of him.

“Why are you doing this?” You whispered in his ear as you wrapped an arm around his shoulder.

“Felt like you needed it.” He whispered back. “And maybe you’ll see that I can be boyfriend material.”

“Easy on the PDA, kiddos.” Your dad warned and you let go of Harvey. You didn’t care about provoking your brother, but with your father, it was a different story. After all, you were a daddy’s little girl from the minute you were born.

You were sitting between Harvey and your brother, across from Rafael and Yelina, while your parents were on each side of the table. The first half of dinner went okay, you tried to avoid looking at Rafael as much as possible, and luckily they weren’t talking about the wedding for now. There were lawyer talks - of course, when three of you were, and Harvey inspired to be one too -, they talked about Yelina’s job too - not that you cared one bit.

“What about you, Y/N?” Yelina asked, out of the blue. “Your brother said you didn’t know what you wanted to do.”

“Actually, this may have changed,” your father answered, looking at you with a smile and you felt that all eyes were on you.

“I’m thinking about going to baking school,” you said, taking a quick look at Rafael. “Culinary Institute of America,” you told everyone. “And to be sure that’s what I want to do, I’m starting at a bakery tomorrow. 4am, so after this, I’m off to bed.”

You felt your brother’s arms around your shoulders and he kissed your temple. “If that’s what you want to do, I have no doubt you’ll succeed,” he said, not letting you go. You looked at Rafael again and he was smiling big. You didn’t know what was going on in his mind, but you returned his smile anyway. He grabbed his glass, extending it to you. Taking the hint, you grabbed your beer - you managed to get a second one for you and Harvey - and clinked your bottle with his glass. “If you need a Guinea pig, I’m your man.” He said, without thinking.

“Easy,” Yelina spoke. “I don’t want you to get fat.”

“Treating yourself doesn’t mean you’re going to gain weight. Pastries aren’t just fat and sugar. Plus, a few pounds would suit Rafi.” You looked at him. “You’re skinny.” You said, showing your pinky finger for comparison. Rafael snorted with a smile and took another sip. At least, it got Yelina to shut up.

“The cake in the fridge—you made it?” AJ asked.

“Yup. This morning, with Harvey.”

“How about we eat it now?” Your mother offered. “You need to get up earlier.”

You went to the kitchen with her, taking the cake out of the fridge and getting some plates. A few seconds later, Rafael was entering the kitchen, dirty dishes in his hands. He put them in the sink before turning over to you and your mother. “Need a hand?” He offered. There was some last minute prep for the cake to be completely ready.

“I’m gonna get these plates to the table,” your mother said. “why don't you help Y/N with whatever she’s doing?” And she disappeared.

“I got it, you can go back there.”

“Harvey—is it serious? Since when have you been dating him?”

“I don’t think it’s any of your business. Not after—“

“You’re right. I’m sorry about—the kiss. It should’ve never happened. But since you’re dating him—we’re good?”

“Yup. Very good. I’m dating Harvey, you’re getting married in February. All good.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He just said.

You stopped what you were doing to look at him. “What?”

“Nothing.” He answered. “I’m glad you didn’t get any ideas because of—it.” He really was twisting the knife in.

“Why would I? It happens all the time, sticking your tongue in someone’s month for no reason. Especially when one is engaged. Doesn’t mean anything.” You couldn’t hold back the sarcasm. Luckily, the cake was entirely done, so you grabbed it and walked out of the kitchen.

Pissed off, it was easier for you to call it a night and leave them. Harvey briefly joined you upstairs to wish you good night, telling you that you were going to kill it at the bakery. Before he walked out of your bedroom, you grabbed his hand to make him spin around. He was facing you and you closed the distance, crashing your lips on his. It was awkward, you weren’t sure of what you were doing - and you knew you were doing it for the wrong reasons. He kissed you back for a short moment, before pulling away. “I’m dying to.” He said, his forehead pressed against yours. “But it’s happening for the wrong reasons right now. I want you to kiss me because you want to.”

“I do want to.” You blurted.

“But you want him more.” He whispered and you looked at the floor. He kissed your forehead and walked away, leaving with just your thoughts and inappropriate feelings.

* * * * *

You were loving working at the bakery. The chef you were working with was amazing, teaching you as much as possible, letting you do stuff a newbie probably shouldn’t be doing. “I find it hard to believe you started baking just two months ago.” He told you and you felt extremely proud.

The rhythm was exhausting. Waking up at 3 in the morning, sometimes even earlier, it wasn’t something you were used to. As soon as you got home in the afternoon, you immediately fell on your bed and napped. You didn’t see Harvey, or your brother or Rafael in a whole week. You were only focusing on work and you were thankful for it. You wanted to forget about this shitty situation.

You spent Christmas with your parents and your brother. It wasn’t anything fancy. Your mother made you all wear Christmas onesies like every year, and your boss offered you a cake you basically baked by yourself to eat with your family - you thought he would put it on sale, but you missed the decorations, so he explained that he couldn’t put it upfront. “You’re learning, don’t beat yourself up. You can’t do everything perfectly on your first try.” He said when he noticed your frustration.

On New Year’s Eve, you were going to your father’s - and your brother’s now - law firm’s party. You went every year. But it was different this time. AJ said he would bring a date. His homosexuality hasn’t been a secret in a long time for you, your family or his close friends, but you were surprised he was bringing someone to that party. He had been bullied in college because he liked men, and he didn’t want it to be repeated in his work place. “Mum convinced me to.” He told you, as he was using your bathroom to get ready. “I guess they are pros in being the boss’ son.” He joked, trying to tame his hair.

“You know that if I hear anything inappropriate, I’ll kick their asses like I used to kick yours.” You said, finishing your makeup. You don't wear makeup on daily basis, but you love doing it for special occasions. You were for pastel colors on your eyes with some eyeliner, and you planned on putting your favorite lipstick. Cherry color, the one Rafael said suits you.

You were wearing a long purple dress, revealing too much of your chest according to AJ's - not that you cared. High heels made you taller, you were almost at your brother's height.

“I let you. You were so tiny and desperate to win.” He defended himself.

“What about when I knocked you out so bad, you stayed on the floor for ten minutes?”

“Rafi helped you!” He exclaimed, “he was holding my arms! And you kicked me in the nuts!” You laughed at the memory. Everything was accurate and you remembered how AJ threatened you to drop you off in foster care and how Rafael told you he would take you with him if your brother ever did that.

“Speaking off Rafi,” here it goes. You took a deep breath, waiting for your brother to say whatever he had to. “He’ll be there tonight, without Yelina. She wants to celebrate with her friends. And since Harvey isn’t coming either, maybe you and Raf can be each other’s date.”

You looked at your brother through the mirror, with widen eyes. “What? Why would we do that?”

“Because he’ll look better with someone at his arm. He’s a lawyer, he’s going to network tonight.” He explained, like it was perfectly normal for you to be Rafael's date.

“Even if that someone is the boss’ seventeen years old daughter?”

“Especially with that someone. But for tonight, you’re officially eighteen.”

“I feel like you just tricked me.” You sighed, finding hard to concentrate on your makeup.

“Maybe I did. In my defense, I told Rafi to ask you himself, but he thought it was a bad idea.” His hair was finally done, he grabbed his cologne and put some on him, intoxicating the entire bathroom.

“He has a point.” You said, grabbing the cologne from his hand so he would stop spraying.

“Just do it, it’ll be good for his career, okay?”

“Sure, 'cause dad is going to love seeing me being a fake date to your best friend.”

“It was his idea when I told him Yelina wasn’t coming.”

This was getting worse and worse by seconds. “You guys are the worst.”

“What’s wrong with you? A handsome man like Rafael is going to be your date.” He stopped by the doorway and looked at your dress again. "Don't you have a shawl or something to put on your shoulders?" Meaning: cover your skin.

You ignored his last comment. “Why isn’t he your date?”

“Because I already have one, that I really like. And mum and you better not play good cop, bad cop with Mike.”

“We would never!”

“Kyle!” He shouted as he left your bedroom. You did do that the first time you met his ex-boyfriend. Funny enough, you were the bad cop and your mother was the good cop. Maybe you should cut AJ some slacks when he’s being overprotective with you, because you are basically doing the same with him. Maybe it’s a trait of character you both had for your father.

As you finished doing your hair, you looked at yourself in the mirror and summed up. You were going to the Law Firm’s New Year Eve’s party. Harvey had plans with some other friends and Yelina didn’t want to come.

So now, you were supposed to act as Rafael’s date. Which was your father’s idea. Totally makes sense.

Or not. Nothing makes fucking sense.

[imkylotrash]

Daytime Secrets

Pairing: Sam Harvey x reader

Request: Reader and Sam are in a secret relationship just like him and Musa in the show, but Terra walks in on them by accident. Maybe reader is her friend and a small friend and sibling quarrel with a happy ending would be wonderful. Anonymous

Tagging: @grey-girl @intoanothermind @artsyle @baueoud @glowingatdawn @bitchwhytho @music-of-melody @shadowhuntyi

"We have to tell her at some point." He kisses you to shut you up and you don't have a single objection. God, his lips against yours is enough to empty your mind of any coherent thought.

"I have a million things I'd rather do with you than that." He kisses your jawline leaving a string of kisses up to your ear where he knows you have a soft spot.

"Sam," you whisper pulling at the edges of his shirt but you never make it further than that. The sound of something hitting the ground and shattering scares you both. You look for the source of the sound and that's when you spot her and the ruined flowerpot.

"Terra, I can explain," you start but you have no idea how to start. You've been secretly dating Sam for almost six months now and still, you've failed to tell your best friend who just so happens to be his sister as well.

"Terra," Sam says but he seems to have the same problem as you. It doesn't matter anyway. She storms out of the room without hearing the explanations none of you knows how to tell.

"This is not good. She looked really mad," you note hoping she'll give you a chance to explain. You're not even sure why you haven't told her yet. It started out a secret because it didn't involve feelings and you didn't want to have to explain to your best friend that you were sleeping with his brother for fun. But of course, you went and caught feelings for him and by then it was just really nice to have this little thing that was yours and Sam's.

"She'll come around. It's Terra. The woman can't be upset for longer than five minutes." Sam pulls you in for a hug but you still feel uneasy. She didn't look like this was just a five-minute fight, she looked betrayed. And you get it, you would hate it if she didn't tell you stuff like this.

"I have to go find her," you say hoping he'll understand. He can be calmer than you because it's his sister. You don't have that privilege.

"I'll help you look," Sam offers filling you with gratefulness. It doesn't take long to find her though. She's in her own room violently rearranging the plants which would almost look comical if it weren't for the fact that the only reason she's doing it is that she's upset with you.

"Can we talk to you?" you ask hesitantly not sure if you're ready to enter the lion's den.

"There's not really anything to talk about, is there? It's just another thing no one bothered to tell me." Ouch. You can't help but flinch at her words. You remember making a pinky promise when you were kids to never keep secrets and here you were keeping the biggest secret of them all.

"It's not like that, Terra. We were planning to tell you," Sam steps in, in an attempt to defuse the situation but it has the opposite effect.

"Sam, you don't want to go there. You promised!" You furrow your brows in confusion looking over at Sam.

"What promise?"

"It's nothi-" he starts but Terra cuts him off.

"He promised me that he'd never date you because I didn't want to risk our friendship for a fling." Terra points at him accusingly but you get her. You get being afraid of losing a friend because of a flirt but the thing is that you love Sam. It's a silly little flirt for you, it's so much more. It's the all-consuming love story that every teenager has and you don't want it to ever end.

"Terra, it's not just a little fling. We've been together for almost six months now. Maybe it started out that way but I really, really care about Sam." You don't want her to think you'd ever weigh your relationship with Sam higher than your friendship with her but you want both. You want Sam and Terra in your life and you're hoping she'll understand that one doesn't exclude the other.

"What if you break up? You'll hate seeing me because I remind you of him."

"Honestly, I often forget you're siblings. I promise that would not become a problem," you say with a smile hoping it'll lighten up the mood a little.

"I love Y/N, Terra. I'm not going to hurt her," Sam chips in taking your hand.

"In fact, I'll pinky promise right now that you and I will never stop being best friends no matter what happens between me and Sam." You hold out your free hand hoping she'll take it. You're also hoping she's forgotten the pinky promise about keeping secrets because it really is the only promise you've ever broken and you've made a lot of pinky promises.

"I mean I can't say no to a pinky promise," Terra mumbles holding out her own pinky. That day goes down in the history of your friendship as the day of the pinky promise and Terra never fails to remind you whenever you and Sam have even the slightest argument but you love it. And thankfully, you and Sam never break up so really Terra had nothing to worry about.

[thegrandharveyspecter]

Grumpy Lawyer, Sleepy Ant; a Harvey & Scott Drabble

Or; 5 times Harvey found Scott sleeping in an odd place, and 1 time it was normal

1. San Francisco Park Bench

Mike complained that Harvey had been working too much and he needed to do something else. So, Harvey took a flight down to San Francisco. He wasn't planning on meeting up with Scott; it just happened that way when Harvey was strolling through a park.

It was around 9:00PM, the sun was gone and the stars and moon were out. Scott Lang was laying on one of the benches, one arm hanging off the bench, the other draped over his eyes.

Harvey could've been gentle in waking Scott, like a normal human being, but Harvey wasn't normal and Scott shouldn't have been sleeping on a park bench.

Harvey kicked one of the bench's legs twice. Scott made a sort of straggled noise and jerked up. He would've fallen off had he not grabbed the back of the bench.

"What's happening?" Scott slurred, looking around in a daze. When his eyes landed on Harvey, he tilted his head. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you that," Harvey replied, dryly. "I thought you'd have more sense than to sleep outside on a park bench. You could be jumped any minute."

"Hey, if someone tried to attack me, I could defend myself easily," Scott said, stretching his arms above his head. "I don't always need my suit, you know. I can fight without it."

"I know, but it's still stupid sleeping outside on a bench," Harvey said. "Go home."

Scott got off the bench and smirked a little. "Be careful, Harv. It sounds like you care about my well-being."

Harvey rolled his eyes, turned Scott around and gave him a light push. "I don't. Now go home."

2. Subway Station

When someone called Harvey's office and told him that His Nuisance was sleeping in the subway station, Harvey thought for the hundredth time that he should get rid of Scott Lang. If the citizens of Seattle gave him a title like that, it meant too many people saw them together and assumed they were friends.

Harvey drove down to the subway station and wandered through the area. There weren't many people around but there was no sign of Scott. He started to wonder if it was just a prank call after a few minutes of nothing. It was when he was nearing a staircase that he saw Scott curled up like a cat under it.

Harvey kneeled and thought about how to wake him this time. He took his phone from his pocket and started searching for the alarm. He turned the volume up to 100 and pressed play.

The alarm blared obnoxiously loud, almost echoing. Scott shot upright and his head smacked against the bottom of the staircase. Harvey winced, thought Scott's helmet would've activated when he got up, but it didn't. Scott groaned and held his bleeding forehead.

"That hurt!" Scott whined. He turned and glared at Harvey. "What's the matter with you?!"

"That's what you get for sleeping under a staircase," Harvey said, unfazed by Scott's glare. "You're like a cat, curled under there."

Scott crawled out and Harvey stood with him. Scott continued to rub his forehead. He was going to have that headache for quite some time.

"Why were you sleeping under there?" Harvey asked.

"I was on a mission, I finished the mission, and then I took a nap," Scott said, still glaring. "It was nice until you came along. What if I got a concussion?"

"You're being dramatic."

"How did you even know where I was?" Scott asked, lowering his hand.

"Someone called the office and said they saw My Nuisance sleeping at the subway station, so I came looking."

Scott raised an eyebrow. "How did you know they were talking about me and not Mike?"

"Because everyone in Seattle calls Mike my kid brother or My Problem Child," Harvey said. "So when they said "Your Nuisance", I knew they were talking about you."

Scott was silent for a moment as he seemed to contemplate what that meant. Harvey could see the wheels turning and the lightbulb ding when Scott realized what being called Harvey's Nuisance meant.

"People here gave me a nickname for you, that means they think we're friends." Scott sounded too happy and his smile would've been contagious if Harvey was a normal person. "Are you still going to deny we're friends now?"

"We aren't friends."

Scott groaned loudly. "Come on! Stop being in denial!"

"Go home and sleep off that headache," Harvey said, waving him off. "Shoo."

"I have this headache because of you. You should at least give me a ride."

"Jesus...Fine."

3. Harvey's Pocket

Harvey, as it turned out, was not safe from Scott Lang for more than a few days before he pounced. Or rather, when he half popped out of Harvey's breast pocket and nearly gave him a heart attack. Apparently it wasn't the first time Scott slept in there.

"I use your pocket square as a blanket. What can I say? It's soft," Scott sighed in content. "You also work as a taxi this way, getting me to places I want or need to be."

Harvey grabbed one of Scott's tiny arms and pulled him out of his pocket. The little ant started squirming, but Harvey knew if he wanted to, Scott could grow back to proper size in a flash. He was just being indulgent.

"Listen, Knievel," Harvey said, scowling. "I'm not a taxi service and I'm not a bed."

"But you can be, Pops! You need to have more faith in your abilities." Scott's helmet was on, but Harvey knew for a fact he was smirking. Harvey shook him.

Scott shifted out of his grip and grew back to normal size. His helmet retracted and Harvey could officially see his smirk. He was much too satisfied. Freaking brat.

"Look at it this way. This is the first time you didn't have a heart attack when I grew back to normal size in front of you."

"No, you gave it to me when you popped out of my pocket," Harvey said. "Stop sleeping in weird places. And this is the last time you're sleeping in my pocket."

Scott flatly said, "No."

Harvey didn't know which he was saying no to, but he had the feeling it was the latter. Or both.

4. Bonsai Tree

Donna said that their house needed more greenery, so she sent Harvey out to the flower shop to buy some kind of plant. He didn't really know what to look for. He was still bad at that kind of thing.

While Harvey was roaming the flower shop, he thought of asking the cashier for some advice when he saw something odd in one of the bonsai trees.

Scott Lang was laying underneath the branches of the tree like he was actually outside. Why and how Scott could sleep anywhere was beyond Harvey. He grabbed a nearby garden spade and poked Scott's side.

"Why?!" Scott complained, turning on his side and glaring at Harvey. "I was dreaming about pirate ships and dragons!"

"If you want to nap under a tree, why don't you go outside?" Harvey asked, ignoring his whining.

"It's too hot outside right now. I figured I'd nap here for a while," Scott answered, casually. "People would've left me alone if they saw me sleeping here anyway. Unlike you!"

By this point, the cashier and customers in the flower shop were giving Harvey odd looks. Right now, it looked like he was just talking to a bonsai tree and not Scott.

"Get out, come on." Harvey offered his palm for Scott to hop on. He did so and scurried up Harvey's arm and onto his shoulder.

"Hey. Hey...LISTEN!" Scott yelled, waving his arms. "Get it? Because you said I'm like Navi?"

It took all of Harvey's willpower not to flick Scott off his shoulder. "I hate you."

"Yup!"

Harvey left the shop without any sort of plants and instead had Scott yammering his ear off.

5. Caboose

Harvey was scrolling through his phone while he waited for his coffee when he saw on the newsfeed that Ant-Man was found passed out in the back of a caboose. He didn't like the headline 'passed out' and wondered if Scott was actually injured, or if he was just napping like all the other times.

Harvey left the coffee shop and drove to the train station as fast as he could. When he got there, he wasn't surprised that there was a crowd of onlookers and some journalists. Harvey felt a sense of frustration building in his chest. Scott didn't need this kind of attention, especially if he really was injured.

He made his way to the caboose and pushed people to the side, easily ignoring complaints as he tugged them away, telling them to get away from Scott.

Harvey hopped into the caboose and walked over to where Scott lay on his side. His helmet was on, so Harvey couldn't make out any possible injuries there, but the rest of his body looked alright. It gave him some hope that Scott was okay.

"Wake up, Ant-kid," Harvey said, lightly rapping his knuckles against Scott's helmet. "Naptime's over. Wake up."

He knocked on Scott's helmet a couple more times until he finally shifted. Scott's helmet retracted. He had no injuries but he was sweating and ghost white. His eyes were glassy as he looked up at Harvey.

"Heeeey," Scott mumbled, his voice scratchy. "What's happenin'?"

"You passed out in a caboose," Harvey said, not quite sure if Scott finished a mission and got sick after. "Can you stand?"

Scott scowled at the idea but he nodded. Harvey gave him a helping hand and with some effort, they got Scott up on his feet. Harvey had to keep a hand on his shoulder to stop him from falling over.

The crowd only seemed to get bigger and Harvey was about ready to break a camera. He threatened as much when someone started snapping pictures.

Harvey said, "Get that camera out of here before I break it."

For some reason, Scott smiled.

+1. Harvey's Couch

It was a long, gloomy day. It was nonstop rain, thunder and lightning. Harvey had the house to himself tonight because Donna was back in New York to see her father. Normally, Harvey would think about a movie night with Mike, but he was too tired to deal with his Puppy Energy.

He was soaked when he got inside and just wanted a nice, hot shower. As he made his way through the house, he noticed a figure on the couch. At first he wondered if Mike somehow got here before he did as a surprise visit. He was proven wrong.

Scott Lang was curled up on the couch, head rested on one of the pillows. Harvey suspected that Scott shrunk and came in through the crack under the door or through the lock. He was in his normal clothes now, making himself at home.

This time, Harvey couldn't be bothered to wake him. Instead, he took the throw blanket from the back of the couch and draped it over Scott's body. He ruffled his hair a bit and left him sleeping in the living room.

[fishytrouble1]

Sidemen Meet Secret Family

VikkstarxReader Fanfiction

Summary: You and Vik had been married for around 3 years now and already had two little boys. But no-one except your relatives knew. What happens when Vik finally decides to introduce you both to the Sidemen. 

A/N - For this AU Vik never lived in the Sidemen house, but had his own apartment in London as well as a house on the outskirts of the city with the Reader

You and Vik had known each other since your childhoods in Sheffield. You had grown up next door to each other and were more or less joined at the hip. You knew from an early age that you loved this man with everything in your being but you waited until he felt the same.

It took a long time for Vik to realise exactly how he felt but you didn’t care if he ever realised it, just as long as he was a part of your life. You first officially got together at 14, you knew people would question if you knew exactly how you felt but again you didn’t care; neither of you did.

It was at 16 when you first said the 3 words you longed to both say and hear, but you both wanted to ensure you actually meant it. That night he said it first and you were surprised with just how nervous he was, but you returned the gesture and for the first time it lead to sex. 

Of course you were safe whenever you had it. But one drunken night, when you were both 18/19, you had forgotten to be safe and it resulted in a baby. It’s true that neither of you were exactly ready for a baby. However, nothing prepared either of for that first ultrasound of your baby. You couldn’t hide your smiles, knowing you were having a baby with your best friend and life partner.

About 6 months into the pregnancy Vik proposed and of course you said yes, you couldn’t imagine it playing out any different. Just before you had your baby, you and Vik bought a house that was completely secret from the sidemen, a group he was part of on YouTube; it was on the outskirts of the city about an hour away from Vik’s London apartment.

When you asked Vik why he hadn’t told the Sidemen about you or your baby, all he said was that he was worried how they would view him being a young dad. You could understand his apprehension as when you tell people how old you are and they see that you’re pregnant, you can see on their faces just how much they are judging you.

When your baby boy finally arrived you were ecstatic, of course you were concerned how Vik would juggle working and having to live an hour away as well as being a new dad, but credit to him he handled it like a pro. No matter what was going on he always managed to come home for at least two days a week sometimes more. Your little boy, Harvey, never had to worry about his dad being distant as he was there for all his firsts.

Just after Harvey��s first birthday, you found out you were pregnant once again. Now being a year old you tried to convince Vik to tell his friends but he was still worried. As during the year between babies, you ahd gone to a registration office and gotten married. Neither of you were keen on having a bug wedding so it made sense.

You didn’t push the matter but you were worried how he was going to continue hiding you all from them. You imagined one day he was going to slip up during a shoot and they would be more pissed that he hadn’t told them but that was not your concern. I mean after all you really wanted to meet them.

Anyways, 9 months later you had another baby boy, Oliver. You couldn’t be more thankful that you had three beautiful boys in your life. You couldn’t imagine it any other way.

It’s now been five years, Harvey was now 6 and Oliver was 5. The past few years ahd been a whirlwind for you and Vik. He had gotten bigger in the MInecraft scene and the Sidemen had made him a more well-known name in the UK. You couldn’t be prouder of his progress and achievements but no matter how famous he got, he always made time for you and your kids.

This weekend he had asked you to come to his apartment, which wasn’t an unusual occurrence but something about going this weekend had you on edge. You had messaged Vik that you were in the carpark of his building, you did this just in case he had any visitors. He had text you saying to come up, so you got both the boys out of the car and left your bags to come and get later.

“Mummy, are we seeing daddy?” Oliver asks, with a big smile. He was more of a daddy’s boy than a mummy’s one, but you didn’t mind.

“Yes, baby. We’re seeing daddy and we’re spending a whole weekend with him.” You reply causing your boys to jump up and down in excitement.

As you get to the door, you open it to let your two boys in. You hear them running and shouting, “DADDY!!!” as you hear your husband’s laughter as well. You shut the apartment door and make you way into the living area.

“Honey, I’m Ho...” You’re stopped as you see the six smiling faces staring at you. 

“Ummm....Hi” You wave awkwardly. You search for your husband to find him stood behind you with your two boys in his arms.

He puts them both down and they run to meet the boys on the couch. But you didn’t see much more as you had been stopped by seeing your husband. You embrace him with so much passion you knock him off of his feet causing you both to laugh. Your joined by two little bodies on top of you.

“Group Hug.” You hear as six more bodies pile on, all being careful not to hurt the two little boys in the mix.

After a few hours you had met and started to get to know the sidemen. You’re mid conversation when your husband grabs your hand and pulls you off to the kitchen leaving your two boys to bombard the guys with questions about his dad and everything about Youtube.

“Y/N I’m so happy I have no more secrets. I hope you’re okay I just sort of sprung this on you?” He asks.

“Vik, It’s fine. To be honest I was starting to wonder if I’d ever meet them.” You laugh.

“Thank you for sticking by me all these years, and for giving me those two beautiful boys over there.” He smiles.

“Yeah about that. How do you feel about adding a third to the mix.” You raise an eyebrown.

“Y/N do you mean we’re pregnant again?” You nod and say, “Yeah we’re already 3 and a half months in.” 

He laughs and hugs you. He rushes over to the boys and your children. He sits Oliver and Harvey down and explains to them that they’re going to be getting a baby brother or sister. They were both excited but what you couldn’t believe was the looks of surprise and joy on the Sidemen’s faces.

You were just glad that you no longer had to be careful about how you used social media, not that that was a bad thing per say. But you could now spend more time with your husband and as a family, which meant more to you than anything.

[specterllaw]

Y/n Specter - Mike Ross x Reader

summary: After Mike gets into a huge fight with y/n, he realizes he made his bed and must lie in it as y/n's older brother Harvey comes for revenge

Warnings: mentions of arguing, fist fighting

Two Weeks. Two weeks was how long Mike had been ignoring you. It wouldn't of hurt so bad if it weren't for the fact you saw him talking with Rachel every time you came in to have lunch with you older brother, Harvey. You two were close, but not close enough for him to really show feelings or affection towards you, and you were okay with that, he was a good listener and advice giver.

"I don't know what you want me to do! Y/n! It's all the damn time! I need to work!" Mike had screamed at you, you were shocked considering all you asked was if he was staying over at your place tonight or not. You took a gulp as tears welled up in your eyes watching Mike raise his eyebrows "Go." You took a step back as tears started to roll down your cheeks "I never thought when I met you, Sweet Mike Ross would turn into a newer more cruel version of Harvey" You whispered weakly backing away from his cubicle, before rushing back to your apartment, locking the door before going to bed where you'd stay for the next two weeks.

Harvey approached your apartment door, it had been almost two weeks since he last saw you for lunch and he was worried, nobody had seen you, not even Donna. He rolled his eyes at the thought of knocking and walked in "Y/n!" He called out into the dark apartment, he couldn't see anything. Feeling around in your apartment he found your curtains pulling them open to reveal the sunlight into your cluttered, messy bedroom. He turned around ready to continue his search before jumping nearly three feet off the ground followed by a high pitched squeal as he saw you now sitting up right on the bed. "Were you watching me the entire time!? Why didn't you answer me!? Why do you look like that!?" He screamed a hundred questions towards you. Harvey was worried, here his baby sister sat in a mess of her own clothes and blankets looking like a zombie. Your usual h/t hair was a complete mess, knots littered it everywhere, you had dark bags under your eyes, your skin was pale and you look like you hadn't seen the sun in days. "Harv..." You whispered looking at him, his face softened looking at you as he slowly walked to the side of your bed running a hand over your head trying to smooth your hair down. "I need my big brother Harv...not boss Harvey" You whispered quietly on the verge of tears "I'm here y/n/n" He whispered sitting next to you after clearing off a spot on the bed. "I've been seeing Mike Ross...Since he started at Pearson-Hardman...We got into a fight a couple weeks ago...now he's been talking to Rachel alot..I saw her car at his place when I went to see if we were okay.." You whispered taking in a shaky breath, Harvey huffed, he was pissed "You did the one thing I told you not to do!?" He asked loudly making you flinch and look at him before standing up hitting his chest "I quit! I quit! I want my brother back! Who would be there for me rather than yell at me for mistakes!" You whimpered trying to push him out of your room but he just hugged you "I'll handle Mike...Kids not gonna know what hit him..As for you..You're gonna shower...We're gonna get that hair fixed, get you back to the badass y/n I know, and then you and Donna will go for a girls day on me" He said resting his chin on your head, he lead you into your room then your bathroom before leaving you in there shutting the door on his way out.

After Harvey walked you out to the car with Donna, he was on his warpath, not stopping until he had Mike's head on a platter, metaphorically speaking of course. He stormed into his office after demanding Rachel send Mike to his office, he could tell by Rachel's face even she knew what was gonna happen was bad. Harvey watched as the little prick walked through the door, looking at him "Hey Harvey, I'm almost done convincing the Jesser's case on settling but Mrs. Jesser isn't wanting to-" Harvey cut Mike off "Cut the goddamn bullshit" He growled standing up glaring at Mike "What the fuck did you say to my sister?" Harvey snapped walking closer "I haven't done anything! My head's been in the case /You/ gave me for three weeks!" Mike argued back, Harvey grunted before taking a swing on Mike, feeling Harvey's fist connect with his jaw "I told you! Never to talk to Y/n Specter! I told you your first day. Shoot her down if you have to!" He yelled punching Mike every other word "But no! You had to take her out, wow her, then snap at her and treat her like she doesn't exist" He growled with such hatred he wanted to squeeze Mike's head until it popped "What!? I-I snapped at her yes after you threatened you'd fire me if I saw her any longer" Mike argued back before punching Harvey right on the nose. He staggered off of Mike leaning against his desk holding his nose as it started to pour blood, Mike could feel the blood seeping from his mouth, lips, under his eye, and his nose, and yet all he could think about was seeing you.

You didn't get home until around Eleven PM that night, you were startled by a Mike Ross sitting on your couch, a cold wash cloth draped over his face "Mike?..." You whispered, setting your bag down before taking a seat on the couch next to him, you slowly pulled the rag down gasping at his face. "Holy shit Mike" You whispered "Why didn't you go to a hospital?" You asked going to grab your first aid kit from the kitchen, when you got back you rushed to clean his wounds and bandage them. As you wiped his lip trying to get the last of the dried blood off you watched as he took in your appearance. "You told Harvey" He whispered looking at you, you sighed "i'm sorry..He was gonna find out.." You mumbled looking at him "Are we okay, Mike? You've been icing me out for days...what did I do?.." You whispered sadly, the relationship was perfect so why was it going down the drain right now? You felt his hand come up to cup your cheek, caressing his thumb over your cheekbone softly "Baby...You never did anything...Harvey..made this stupid threat...and I didn't want to risk never seeing you again even if it was just as friends in the office..so I backed off..but I realize I love you Y/n. I couldn't stop thinking about you" He ranted resting his forehead against yours, you sighed "So why were you always with Rachel?.." You whispered looking at him starting to lean away from his touch, remembering the betrayal you felt "I've talking to you through her.." He admitted looking down "So..all this time..thinking Rachel and I were actually talking about you..it was you talking about yourself?..I thought you were cheating asshole! You kept calling yourself the hottest man alive and so sweet you could eat and I thought it was Rachel!" You yelled slapping his chest, he laughed rolling his eyes hugging you tightly "I'm sorry! I was being honest! and I was trying to use like...girl power to make you forgive me..." He whispered, You giggled shaking your head pecking his lips repeatedly "You could use /your/ power to make me forgive you." You whispered grabbing his tie pulling him up to hover over you as you laid on the couch "Oh yea?" He whispered repeatedly as he pecked kisses all over your face and down your neck.

[arctickat2400]

Marcel <> Harry Styles

Lately, you and Harry have been over at the Styles residence and you’ve been seeing Harry’s little brother, Marcel, a bit down. Everyone's seen it. He’s always been this sweet, perky, cute, outgoing kid, but he’s been a little less Marcel recently.

You’ve asked Gemma and Anne about it, even Harry, but none of them knew of anything that was wrong. They’ve asked Marcel before if anything was wrong, but he just shrugged it off, becoming his normal Marcel-self.

Like Harry, you are protective of Marcel. He was always like a little brother to you, and you always had this strong family connection to him, like you always had to be there for him. When he gets hurt or when he’s sad, you’re always there for him, along with Harry.

You and Harry were out at lunch with Anne and Gemma, a few minutes before Anne had gotten the call.

“So, where to after this?” Gemma asked as everyone ate their lunch from your favorite cafe.

“Maybe we could go shopping.” You suggested, leaning back in your chair with Harry’s arm around your shoulders. Anne nodded in agreement when a faint buzzing was heard from around the table. Harry kissed the side of your head as Anne picked up her ringing phone.

“Hello?” Anne smiled into the phone. You sat there, looking down at your hands as Harry played with your fingers, leaning against his side.

“This is she.” Everyone heard Anne say. You and Harry began laughing at something random, your hands locked together now.

Well, I’ve called in concern of your son, Marcel. Gemma barely heard from next to her mom. Her face fell when she heard her younger brother's name.

“Wait, is he okay? What happened?” Anne questioned in panic, and both yours and Harry’s smiles fell when you heard her. Your attention shot towards Anne as you and Harry became worried.

“Okay, thank you. I’ll be there right away.” Anne said, hanging up the phone and quickly standing up, grabbing her jacket and bag from the back of her chair. Gemma, Harry and yourself stood up with her.

“Mom, what happened? Is Marcel okay?” Gemma asked, concerned.

“He got beat up at school.” Anne answered as you all started walking back to the car.

“What?!” Harry shouted with rage. “When I see that ass they call the principal, I’m gonna-” But, you didn’t let him finish.

“Harry!” You almost yelled, stopping him, setting your hands on his chest. His face was red with anger and his eyes were filled with protectiveness over his brother.

“Harry, it’ll be okay. Before you do anything that you’ll regret, let’s see what happened and we’ll deal with it together.” You tell Harry, staring into his eyes and trying to calm him down. Harry nodded in agreement slowly, then setting his hand on the back of your head, leaning down and pressing his lips to your forehead.

You walked the rest of the way to the car to see Anne and Gemma already inside. Harry opened the door for you as he jumped in beside you and y’all made your way to the Holmes Chapel School.

School was still in session when y’all got there, but you didn't care. You walked down the halls of the school like the protective family that you are towards the office. You saw Marcel sitting inside once you arrived as Anne, Harry and Gemma demanded to see the principal. You went to Marcel and his eyes lit up once he saw you. You knelt in front of him where he was sitting as you looked up at him.

“Hey, M. You doing okay?” You questioned sweetly and calmly, trying to comfort him. He nodded, rubbing the sadness out of his eyes. You gave him a sweet, sympathetic smile. You looked behind you to see the rest of the Styles’ in the principal's office. You gestured for Marcel to stand up as you took his hand and led him to them. He sat down next to Anne as she set her hand on his thigh, trying to comfort him like you had as you had gone to stand with Harry and Gemma. Harry placed his hand on the side of your head, bringing you towards him and placing a soft and sweet kiss to your head.

With Harry on your left, Gemma on your right and you in the middle, you three stood behind Anne and Marcel in front of the principal’s desk, your arms crossed over your chests, giving threatening, but protective sibling glares towards the principal. The Styles family, which included you, had always seemed like an intimidating family. But, that was just them being protective of the ones they love.

“I’m happy to see you all here today. It’s good to see that there’s a family here who cares about their loved ones.” Principal Harvey stated, but was soon interrupted by Harry.

“Come on. Get on with it. What’s going on?” Harry said, all seriousness in his tone and expression. You just rubbed Harry’s arm soothingly as he stared at Harvey intensely.

“Well, it seems as though Marcel has been having some problems with the students here.” Harvey started.

“Problems? Marcel? No, Marcel creates the opposite of problems. What do you mean problems?” Anne question, starting to get defensive.

“The students have started calling him names, picking on him, and began beating him up for the past few weeks and…” Harvey started, but was once again interrupted.

“And nothings been done about it? Why haven’t you done anything?” Gemma shouted as Harvey’s eyes shot to her.

“Marcel has said not to do anything about it…” Harvey answered, but Harry has had enough. He couldn’t bear to stand around when nothing has been done to fix what has been going on with his brother.

Harry’s face turned red, outraged and he rushed from his spot beside you to in front of Harvey.

“This is my brother we’re talking about! I don’t care if he told you not to do anything! This is assault and to my brother who has been getting hurt for weeks and yet nothings being done! Get off your ass and Do something or I will!” Harry yelled at the principal, threatening, getting all up in his face.

You looked quickly at Marcel and saw the fear in his face, tears beginning to brim his eyes. You looked back at Harry as you saw a threatening look in his face as he got closer to the principal, balling his shirt in Harry’s fist.

“Harry!” You, Gemma and Anne shouted to him as Anne stood up. You ran over to Harry from the other side of the desk and tried pulling him away.

“Harry, please,” You called to Harry, taking his hand in yours. Harry spotted you from the corner of his eye and tore himself away from Harvey.

Glaring back at the principal, Harry followed you away from him and to Anne and Marcel, who Anne was now comforting.

“You okay, Marcel?” Harry comforted his little brother, bringing him in for a hug as he and Anne stood up. Marcel nodded his head yes and Harry pulled away, allowing you to bring Marcel into your arms and give him a hug as well.

You all had enough as Gemma wrapped her arm around her brother and followed Anne out of the office. You followed behind them as Harry held the door open for the four of you. You were the last one out besides Harry as you turned to see Harry glaring back at the shocked principal again.

“Do something about this or I, myself, will pull my brother, your smartest, most brightest student, out of your school.” Harry threatened as he pulled you into his side, wrapping his arm around your waist and walked out of the office with the rest of the Styles’. Y’all walked out of the school, proud of the work you did protecting Marcel.

You all sat in silence as you drove home, Anne and Gemma in the front seats, you, Harry and Marcel in the back. Marcel was on your right, Harry on your left and you in the middle as you looked to the side. Marcel looked sad as he stared at the window, waiting to arrive in the safety of his home.

When y’all bring Marcel home, you settle him down in the living room, everyone making their way in. Harry sat on one of the chairs as you sat on his lap, his arms snaking around your waist, your arms around his neck. Anne sat on the couch with Marcel and Gemma on the love seat.

“Marcel, what’s been going on?” Anne asked her youngest son, rubbing the back of his head comfortingly.

“The kids have just been picking on me. That’s all.” Marcel answered, looking down at his fidgeting hands, but that’s not the answer everyone's been looking for. Marcel looked up at Anne and saw her concerned face. He looked around the room and yours, Harry’s and Gemma’s concerned faces as well.

“Fine. It started with name calling, then they started getting physical, touching me and pushing me around. Then, they started beating me up, punching me to the ground and kicking me around. I thought it’d stop after a while, but it never did and I didn’t know what to do.” Marcel explained, staring back down at his hands.

“Why didn’t you tell us, little bro?” Gemma questioned, looking at him as she leant forward with her elbows on her knees.

“I didn't think it’d go on for that long. I didn’t know if I should tell anyone, so I didn’t. And I thought if I did tell someone, they would come back for me and I’d get even more hurt.” Marcel added innocently.

“So, that’s where all the bruises came from?” Harry asked Marcel, worriedly, becoming tense, and you could tell as his arms became just a bit tighter around you. You ran your fingers through Harry’s hair softly, letting him know it’s okay and to calm him down.

“You’ve seen them?” Marcel questioned, looking up at Harry with pleading eyes.

“I see a lot of things. I’m your brother, of course I’ve seen them.” Harry said to him. “And if anyone ever touches or even comes near you again, tell us, tell me and I will kick their asses for you.” Harry gave Marcel a brotherly smile.

“Mar Mar, whatever you go through, you can always tell us.” You told him with a sincere smile as he looked up at you.

“We’ll always be here for you because we’re your family and we love you, no matter what.” Anne told Marcel, bringing him into her motherly embrace.

“We love you, Marcel, and we hate to see you get hurt.” You told Marcel as you stood up along with Harry as you all gathered around Marcel and wrapped your arms around him.

“Thank you, guys. I love you too.” He told y’all and you could hear some sniffles come from him, but you knew that famous Marcellus smile was there along with happy tears.

You were abandoned, but this family brought you in. You loved this family and everyone in it, and you couldn’t have been blessed with a better one.

[frederickthegreat]

my thoughts on TUA season 2

(spoilers, obviously)

- opened with Klaus and Ben, my kings. Klaus’s hair looks so weird straightened while short 

- AWESOME opening soundtrack 

- seeing all their powers so controlled makes me wonder how they leveled up to that skill in the alternate timeline. like the only time we saw Klaus use the powers of other ghosts in the correct timeline was when two of them caught him falling out of the sky. however Diego did end up controlling bullets and Allison used her voice to technically kill one of the Swedes

- the homeless man screaming Allison’s name alongside Luther... funny shit

- big teddy bear Hazel

- Elliot was fucking awesome i think he was a great addition as a side character. rip tho :(

- honestly i don’t understand why Diego would WANT to save JFK. like it’s not that big of a deal. does he not understand what messing with the timeline can do??

- Lila... impeccable

- Sissy and Vanya... impeccable <3

- yeah and fuck u Carl

- ugh, Klaus’s beard. disgusting <3

- Ben and Klaus definitely act like they should be, given that they’ve been stuck with each other for over a decade. i’ve seen some people calling Klaus an asshole for not telling his siblings about Ben, which is completely understandable (cause he was an asshole), but I’m guessing it was because he was afraid? that sharing Ben with his siblings would mean that he would lose him to them, or his siblings would find him selfish, or they would ask something of him that he couldn’t give. if that makes sense

- that ghost bitch comment was funny tho 

- to the guy who called Klaus pretty boy at the bar: sir you don’t know what you’re getting into

- Raymond!! he’s such a sweetheart, i really liked him in the show. i’m really happy that Allison has found a bit of normalcy (as normal as the 1960s Civil Rights movement could be). it shows how passionate she is about what she believes in: even though she knows the movement is far from over, even back in 2019, she’s not gonna abandon it

- Allison staring at the moon every night: either thinking about Luther or how the moon blows them all up. maybe both

- of course Luther would be working for Jack Ruby

- awesome cinematography during the mental asylum escape 

- yeah it makes sense that the Handler would still be alive. she was a cool villain. although it would’ve been awesome to see how evil a fish could be

- Diego’s plan was pretty stupid. that’s my boy

- honestly they revealed how Klaus started a cult really well by having one of his followers find him at jail. Klaus, ever the musical aficionado, of course writes his scripture based off of pop songs

- Raymond and Klaus meeting!! that was cool to see how their paths connected

- Lila painting Elliot’s toenails green. ugh i love that crazy bitch

- i LOVE how they incorporated the umbrella man!! tbh i’ve always believed he was the one behind the assassination. Lee Harvey Oswald was framed 

- honestly a bit understandable that Luther was planning on killing Vanya? cause he had no idea who she is now, but them reuniting was actually really sweet. he’s grown up so much

- the Swedes and their cats.

- the Umbrella company building with the nuclear family mannequins... creepy, awesome shit

- baby pogo baby pogo baby pogo baby pogo

- shanked diego shanked diego shanked diego shanked diego

- did anyone else get vibes from Klaus’s episode opening that he was an escort to the old woman? like how he was being shown off at her arm or something and getting out of jail from a call from the governor. idk maybe the lady was just very taken with him, as anyone would be

- Elliot, our helpful king

- Allison and Klaus’s reunion was so sweet!! i’m so glad they got to interact so much more in this season 

- Ben getting Raymond out through a haunting... hilarious

- sweet intimate moment between Lila and Diego

- Ray meeting Luther was hilarious, but i do feel for the poor guy. i mean i’m not in love with my adoptive sister but still

- the sit-in was really well done and beautiful while terrible. the ‘riot’ that ensued was very appropriate for today’s setting 

- D-Dave

- honestly i was scared that Klaus was gonna be overly attracted to him or whatever, which would be weird cause he’s years younger than Klaus, but honestly, at the core he just wanted to save Dave’s life. even if it means never meeting him in a different timeline. he truly loved Dave. and that ptsd flashback was done so well

- i knew Lila wasn’t trustworthy but i didn’t REALLY expect that! 

- Vanya and Luther talking with each other, Luther admitting the apocalypse wasn’t all her fault. beautiful

- the Majestic 12 reminds me of the conspiracy theory that only a few families control basically everything in the world. the Majestic 12 may be based off of that, idk

- idk about everyone else but Klaus’s scorpion and the frog story made total sense to me! frogs ARE bitches

- the diner scene.... ugh. it really shows that the two of them did fall in love and they did stupid in love things, like talking about their family, about why Dave wanted to join, favorite colors, favorite foods, etc. however that’s seen later on when Dave visits the compound

- yes it’s very disheartening when Klaus is attacked, but honestly i think it had to happen, just like the riot had to happen. the 60s weren’t a fun time for lgbt people and poc. it was only going to be a matter of time before the show HAD to acknowledge the consequences of Klaus’s ‘flamboyancy’ in 1963 Texas. it doesn’t make it right or easy to see, but it’s realistic. 

- it also makes sense that Klaus fell off the wagon after experiencing something like that. yes we all would’ve liked him to stay sober, but sobriety and recovery aren’t linear. 

- Allison is so happy with Ray can we please drop this pseudo-incest plotline let’s MOVE ON 

- Texas Grace ! who is not actually Grace rip (i think? i was a bit confused lol)

- the scene with Harlan running off was really upsetting but we got to see those weird light particles that we saw in the first season

- Pogo Pogo Pogo Pogo

- Klaus being a dick to Ben again, as brothers do. i do feel bad for Ben though it must be sooo frustrating. that scene with him and Allison was really sweet and funny tho

- i just have to say that Luther and Diego are so fucking funny this season it’s awesome. like there are a LOT of good lines overall by everyone but they’re hilarious. “At least he didn’t shank my ass” “no bro, he shanked your heart”“Dads part of a sinister CABAL that’s plotting on killing the president.” “a caBAL?”“You two still a thing? *leans in* do we need to talk?” “No, she’s married.” “Woah dude... that’s rough.” and countless others

- the sibling reunion!! 

- Klaus really does get left out of everything tbh

- Ben :(

- sisters and Klaus!! that was so awesome to see. and Klaus’s hairpins, Vanya saying she’s gonna tell Sissy she loves her, their dance sequence, Klaus calling Allison out on that incest. beautiful

- the fucking Swedish cover of Hello was PERFECT i mean i was sad for the Swedes but it was hilarious. there were a couple beautiful shots of the boat on fire though

- god it must’ve been so traumatizing for Allison to be thrust into such a hostile place with no voice and no way to contact her family

-  idk about you guys but long live Team Zero

- calling Ben that he was becoming their father was a bit uncalled for 

- the fact that Klaus didn’t help Dave’s chances, and in fact escalated Dave’s own timeline.. his trembling hands... robert sheehan is an amazing actor

- the Black president bit lmaoo loved it

- the way Reginald spoke to Diego.. i’m gonna throw hands with an old man

- Klaus LITERALLY looked like he was having a seizure and they all just... played it off?? 

- poor, poor Carl. nah fuck him lol

- that bloody opening scene was awesome! and thank god Five got to say fuck. the fact that it was about a candy bar makes too much sense

- Robert Sheehan acting as Ben: amazing showstopping spectacular he’s so talented

- the whole multiple Fives and Luther bit was honestly really funny, and i immensely respect smaller Five over bigger Five. 

- yes Klaus, you survived a family of seven. you got this

- not sad about Carl dying one bit!

- Ben... that was such a beautiful scene. not just the content of the scene, but the cinematography. Ben fading away... Vanya hugging him... ugh. the main takeaway i had from that scene is that at the core of it all, Ben and Klaus love each other immensely. they have a weird, dysfunctional, fucked up relationship, where Klaus is an asshole and Ben definitely shouldn’t of possessed him without his consent, but they’re still brothers, and Ben forgives him. 

- oof Ben’s funeral was hard. also was it just me or did Klaus’s kid actor sound weird? like it sounded like Robert was dubbing his lines 

- all the siblings back together again!!!! Klaus going with Vanya to save Harlan!! Vanya telling him Ben forgives him and that it wasn’t Klaus’s fault Ben got stuck with him!! everyone in the car!!! be still my beating heart

- yeah didn’t see Lila having powers coming tbh. i really feel bad for her she’s had such a rough and traumatic life, especially with the Handler as her only parental figure

- the Swede brother and Five putting down their weapons: “enough.” the Swede wanted revenge for his brothers - an eye for an eye, but there was a mutual understanding between the two of them: they would do anything for their family. if the Swede hurts one of the Hargreeves, Five would never stop coming after him. i thought it was very beautiful 

- mmm Reggie’s foreshadowing coming into play. proud of u Five

- the ending was so beautiful. everyone got closure in some type of way. except now Klaus is alone with nothing but his dog tags :(

- EMO BEN HAHAHA WTFFF?? is Lila in the sparrow academy? why was Ben’s portrait over the mantle piece? did Five disappear?? is the sparrow academy just older versions of the siblings who stuck around?? so many questions

FINAL THOUGHTS

- Ellen Page’s acting consistently blows me away. she is amazing 

- beautiful cinematography, funny writing, pretty good acting. i didn’t like the soundtrack as much as i did the first season’s, but some of it wasn’t bad.

- i’m glad ben got peace, but i’m also glad justin min isn’t gone for good. his social media presence is too vital for us

- i swear to god if they keep treating klaus as a joke and don’t let him get any actual development like everyone else had (he barely got closure with Dave, he reconciled with Ben through a second party) next season, i’m gonna riot. PLEASE i want to learn more about his powers now that Ben is gone. what happened to seeing tons of ghosts when he’s sober??

- Luther and Diego were probably my favorite duo of the season, I’m so happy that they’ve reconciled and are bonding more. 

- just seeing Vanya grow and be happy was amazing 

all in all, really wonderful season. i probably liked it better than the first one. now it’s time to consume fanfiction and maybe finish my own (check out “god doesn’t want him and neither does the devil” on ao3!)

[danny-chase]

Hello! May I request the pneumonia square on your bthb card for Dick with Bruce taking care of him?

Thanks for the request!

Pneumonia - read on AO3

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Batman (Comics), Batman and Robin (Comics) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Bruce Wayne & Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne & Damian Wayne, Dick Grayson & Damian Wayne Characters: Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson, Damian Wayne Additional Tags: bruce wayne centric, Dick grayson centric, Sickfic, Pneumonia, Blood, Stitches, Dick Grayson is Batman, Damian Wayne is Robin, Bruce Wayne is Batman, Protective Bruce Wayne, Protective Damian Wayne, Sick/hurt Dick Grayson, mentions past passive suicidal attempt, Dick Grayson Needs a Hug, Bruce Wayne Needs a Hug, what a surprise they hug each other Series: Part 9 of Bad Things Happen Bingo Summary:

Bruce hasn't been sure where he stands in sons' lives after returning from the timestream, but a case of pneumonia provides an excuse to sort some things out.

Full story under cut

Bruce only meant to drop by briefly, hand off some papers, and be on his way. He wasn’t exactly sure what made him pause in front of the display case.

Well. That wasn’t exactly true. He did know. How could he not know by the way his eyes gravitated towards the hood on the back of the Robin suit’s cape. By the way his heart sank at the sight of it.

He still thought it unnecessary – a distraction in the fight – it could easily obscure vision. He would have never allowed his partners to wear one.

And that was the trouble, wasn’t it? Damian wasn’t his partner, the hood a visual reminder. Dick knew Damian’s abilities better than anyone, knew whether or not the hood was appropriate. He trusted Dick’s judgment – no – had to rely on it when it came to his youngest.

He’d considered stepping in at first, but it made sense to keep Dick and Damian as partners – they worked well together, provided results. Damian rarely got along with anyone else… and that was changing under Dick’s mentorship. Gotham was doing well, crime rates were dropping, and public approval had risen significantly. By all accounts, Batman and Robin were doing an excellent job.

It was an odd feeling, to be surpassed by your son, at wearing the mantle you created.

It was an odd feeling, to be surpassed by your son, in being loved by your youngest. To have missed out on so much, to have been dead a year and come back with things running (mostly) smoothly, as if the world hadn’t really needed him anyways. He couldn’t quite tell if it was humbling or humiliating when he heard whispers from officers of the new Batman being better than the old one.

But if there was one thing he was sure of, it was-

The walls of the bunker shook slightly, the floor trembling beneath his feet as the roar of an engine reverberated through the entrance tunnel. Swept out of his thoughts, he swiftly placed the stack of documents by the main computer and doubled back to his car.

He didn’t plan on being here long, wasn’t keen on talking – he had the computer back at the manor running narrowing down possible combinations for one of Riddler’s games – he’d already lingered much to long.

With that thought, he opened the door his of car, giving a brief nod of acknowledgement as Dick entered on his bike. Dick didn’t wave back – he always waved when he saw him – unless something was wrong – or maybe he hadn’t seen him – that was the logical answer –

But Bruce still found himself frozen in place, his pulse increasing, heart leaping into his throat as Dick got closer, his mind scrutinizing every detail he could see – the way Dick was hunched over too much – his posture was normally perfect, his left arm was wrapped around his middle – Bruce slammed his car door shut, jogging forward as Dick parked.

“What’s wrong?” He reached up, pulling off the damn cowl, revealing tired watery, reddish eyes. Dick blinked, frowning, his eyes adjusting to the light.

“Nothing.” He pulled back, refusing Bruce’s arm, dismounting the bike himself. The cape obscured whatever Dick was putting pressure on. Dick strode forward, his shoulder squared as he started up the stairs. He felt oddly small looking up at the stark silhouette – and he had to wonder – was this how his kids felt when staring up at his back?

And then Dick succumbed to a nasty coughing fit halfway up the stairs. Bruce bolted up beside him, offering an arm again, swiftly finding blood trickling from a deep gash on his side. Instinctively he tore off a piece of his shirt, pressing it to the wound. Dick looked at him judgmentally, speaking through coughs.

“If you – waited like -” He doubled over again, pausing their trip up the stairs. He put up a hand, as Bruce moved in to simply carry him up the rest of the way. “- m’ fine.” Dick sucked in a shallow breath and they continued on. “ – didn’t have to ruin your shirt. We have gauze.” He mumbled as they reached the top.

Bruce looked down at his shirt, then back at Dick, feeling like a dumbass, but nonetheless glad he hadn’t left him behind. “You would have fallen down the stairs.” He noted, before moving onto the more pressing matter. “Were you gassed? Poisoned? Dick, repo-”

“I’m-” Dick cut him off, only for Damian to drop from the rafters, dramatically landing a few feet away.

“He’s been ill.” He crossed his arms in annoyance, pouting in his pajama pants, wearing an oversized shirt he’d sworn he’d gotten for Dick years ago. “And insisted on benching me even though I am perfectly capable of-”

“Damian, you’re supposed to be in-” Dick stumbled over his own feet – another alarm going off in his mind – Dick was normally graceful. Bruce was tired of this – he made eye contact with Damian, nodding towards their medical closet.

“Grab gauze and a suturing kit.” He commanded, Damian scurrying off ahead. He slipped his free hand beneath Dick’s knees, scooping him up – rushing him the rest of the way to the table as Dick succumbed to a hacking fit. Memories from years ago bubbled in the back of his mind, from a time Dick was smaller, in a brightly colored costume, fading quickly in his arms after a run in with Harvey Dent.

He couldn’t call for Alfred this time. He was halfway across the world assisting Kate, spending well deserved time with his daughter.

Biting back the panic, he did his best to gently set him down, but Dick was heavier than he used to be, and he was a bit older himself. Bruce cringed as Dick hit the table with a bit of a thud – though it seemed Dick hardly noticed – but Damian hissed in disapproval.

“Sorry.” Dick murmured, once he caught his breath, sounding far away – as if standing on the other end of a tunnel. Bruce couldn’t tell if he was spacing out, or if Dick was simply quiet, either way, he ignored the interruption, holding out a hand.

Damian materialized beside him placing the kit in his hands before pressing clean gauze to Dick’s. Bruce yanked off the costume in tandem. Neither spoke as they worked like a well-oiled machine, Bruce sewing up the wound as Damian kept Dick still. He could fix this – it wasn’t like before – the cut wasn’t too bad, he had the skills – he just needed to focus.

Bruce fought to keep his hands steady, as he tied off the end. Dick stared aimlessly at the ceiling, beads of sweat forming on his forehead, rolling down the side of his face and dripping in his eyes. Damian kept him propped upright, from atop the other side of the table.

Dick paused to cough for a moment, Damian pounding his back with furious eyes, as if he was attacking the congestion himself. “Don’t tear the stiches.” Bruce chided, Damian glared, but lightened his taps. Bruce held Dick by the shoulders until he was ready to continue.

Moments later, the bandage was applied, and Bruce scanned for more injuries.

“That was it, I’m fine.” Dick muttered, though Bruce couldn’t tear his eyes away – he could feel the blood on his hands – drying at the edges, slimy under his latex gloves. Dick was too pale, too warm to the touch, too- “Quit looking at me like I died.” He grumbled exasperatedly, his voice painfully horse. The tone snapped Bruce out of his inspection. “I’m fine.”

He turned to Damian – because at least one of his kids was being honest. “How long has he been sick?” He turned, grabbing a thermometer off a shelf.

“Since last Monday.” He replied, critically scanning Dick as well, shifting his weight uncomfortably.

Dick scoffed at the remark, looking offended. “Liar, that was just allergies.” He reached up, moving to ruffle Damian’s hair – unsuccessful, Damian easily dodging the attempt.

“Obviously, it was more than just allergies, seeing as you’re still under the weather.” He rolled his eyes. “Likely something viral, the flu perhaps?”

Bruce gave Dick a pointed look, cocking an eyebrow. “You know better than to go out while sick.” That’s how people get killed, how Dick could have gotten killed, how he would have been left to bleed out on the floor if he hadn’t been there, how –

“I thought I’d turned the corner.” Dick’s tone was cool, but his eyes were laser focused on him – he had this way of looking at people, as if he was staring into your soul. “I felt fine when I left.”

“He was doing better earlier.” Damian begrudgingly mentioned, taking some small amount of pity on his brother. He gazed up quizzically, matching Dick’s expression. Bruce shifted his gaze between the two sets of searching eyes.

A moment passed in silence. The weight in his hand finally reminding him of his purpose, he stuck the ear thermometer in Dick’s ear.

“I can do the rest myself.” Dick noted, placing a hand atop the thermometer as well – which Bruce subsequently ignored.

“Mmm.” He noted, checking the temperature. “Almost hundred and three. And you felt fine enough to go out?” He asked, dropping notes of disbelief into his voice. Dick gazed back at him, unamused.

“I meant what I said. It was only supposed be a stakeout anyways.” Irritation was clear, despite his scratchy tone. Damian hoped off the table behind him. “You’ve gone out way worse than this!” Dick broke into raspy coughs, Bruce catching his shoulders.

“I’m going to prepare tea.” Damian muttered, dashing up the stairs, leaving him alone with the sound of Dick’s wheezing.

“Any other symptoms?” Bruce grabbed a stethoscope, snapping a pulse oximeter to Dick’s index finger. “Be honest.” He reminded, Dick avoiding his gaze.

“Bruce, you don’t seriously think I would have gone out if-”

“I know you know your limits.” He acknowledged. He also knew his family (and occasionally himself) liked pretending the limits weren’t there. He slipped the stethoscope against Dick’s chest, listening to his lungs. “Breath in.” Something crackled deep in his lungs. “Chest x-ray.” Bruce noted.

“Isn’t that a bit extreme?” If Bruce closed his eyes, he could pretend it was 9-year-old Dick, complaining about having to be swabbed for strep throat.

“If I’m right, no.” Dick unhappily mimicked his voice. Bruce cocked an eyebrow, giving him an unamused stare. “A list of symptoms would help.”

“I hate it when you’re like this – just tell me what you think.” Dick slid off the table. Bruce caught him by the shoulders, they were burning up. Dick shivered, shaking underneath his hands.

“I think you already know.” He slipped an arm under his son’s shoulders, slowly walking him towards the machine. “Shortness of breath, coughing, wheezing, fever, chills, recently viral illness. Chest pain likely.”

Dick groaned. “It’s just a cold.” Bruce pulled a blanket a nearby shelf, wrapping it around his shoulders. “I’ll be fine with a good night’s sleep. You don’t have to do this; I’ll go to Leslie’s tomorrow.”

“Dick.” He sighed exasperatedly. They could do the x-ray here or drive to the clinic at 2am.

“Don’t, Dick, me. You have stuff to do, thanks for stitching me up but I can handle myself, I thought you were supposed to-”

“Richard.” Dick paused for a moment. Bruce took it as an opportunity to half carry him the rest of the way to the machine. “I’ll take a culture when this is done and send it to Leslie. I don’t mind.”

Dick hesitated before responding. “Fine.”

A few aspirin, couple of tests, and a trip to Leslie’s later, Bruce found himself walking in through the front door of the penthouse, antibiotics in hand. He nearly tripped over Damian’s sneakers, scattered carelessly in the little mud room. Kicking of his own shoes, he moved the little sneakers to the shoe rack, struck for a moment by how small they were.

Making his way into the living room, he found Dick, half asleep on the caramel-colored couch. He clicked off the television, turning off some nature show, Dick’s attention pivoting to him.

“You came back?” He whispered, almost too quiet to hear, but surprise evident all the same – eyes widening, jaw dropping, before he caught himself and returned to a blank expression. Bruce nodded, passing him the medication before settling in a nearby armchair. Two empty mugs sat on the low table, rich aroma still lingering in the air (ginger if his nose was right), though Damian was nowhere to be seen.

His eyes lingered on the mugs – they were handmade, one in the Batman color scheme, the other matching the Robin costume. He’d taken a sculpting class with Dick years ago; they’d made similar ones together. Dick’s was likely in pieces, lost under the rubble of his old apartment, and Tim accidentally knocked his off a table years ago. He tore his eyes away – it made since for Dick to carry on the tradition with his Robin, he just… regretted never making another.

He watched as Dick fumbled with the container, his heart sinking at the uncoordinated attempts to twist off the lid. Bruce swiped it back, popping off the lid, and passing him a pill along with a bottle of water.

The surprise in Dick’s voice weighed on his mind – surely – Dick didn’t expect for him to leave him alone in such a state? Yes – he knew Dick was an adult – knew he could take care of himself – but Alfred wasn’t around if he took a turn for the worse, he couldn’t just leave that for Damian. Worry crept into the pit of his stomach, Alfred had been gone weeks, were there more illnesses Dick hadn’t been reporting? More injuries? Why? Because he didn’t think he would care? He didn’t want to burden Damian? He was too busy to-

“Bruce, quit brooding, I was just surprised you got back so fast.” Dick spoke slowly in carefully low tones, scooting back into a sitting position on the further end of the couch. Curling into a ball, he wrapped the blanket he’d grabbed early tighter, shivering under it. Internally, Bruce cringed at the sight before turning back to his thoughts.

“Hmm.” That wasn’t what Dick said, or why he was surprised. “You didn’t think I was coming back.” It came out more statement than question. Dick coughed lightly, avoiding a response. “I’d like to know why.”

Dick shrugged, too timed to be nonchalant. “You have casework to do.” He wouldn’t meet his gaze, busying himself pulling the blanket even tighter around his shoulders. “I’m an adult. I can handle being sick.”

“I know.” He hummed disbelievingly, his worry growing – Dick had a knack for lying – he really wasn’t feeling well if he was this easy to read. “You know I wouldn’t-”

“Don’t.” Dick warned, cutting him off with a glare. “If Alfred was here, you’d already be gone.” There was an edge of bitterness to his voice, a knowing look in his eyes.

“I…” <em>Haven’t visited in weeks because I feel strange around you and Damian,</em> his mind supplied helpfully.

“I know it hurts to see your…” Dick paused for a moment, catching his breath. “Family like this. Just don’t try to deny it, you disappear every time I get hurt.” <em>Or kick you me out,</em> went unsaid.

Bruce threw an arm over his eyes, taking a moment to lean back against the recliner. For so long, he’d been focused on just getting back to the present, getting back to his kids. But… coming back meant facing up to the times he’d been less than a good father… or older brother… whatever he and Dick had all those years ago.

He took a moment, examining a few memories, his behavior after the Two-Face case, the time Dick was shot in the shoulder, even how he’d acted the first few weeks Dick was at the manor – relentlessly pursuing justice rather than spend time with his ward. It was no secret to most he had regrets. He’d changed since then – never acted like that with Jason. Didn’t disappear after Tim’s father died. He’d changed, but he never –

“I’m sorry.” They stared at each other, speaking in tandem. Bruce’s jaw dropped as Dick continued.

“Look, I’m sorry I didn’t live up to your standards, I know I disappointed you tonight, I shouldn’t have brought the past up, you don’t have to stay-” His words came out hurriedly, rushed and pained.

“Dick.” Bruce hadn’t thought his heart could sink any lower, but somehow, it dropped to the bottom of his gut, his throat closing uncomfortably.

“I’m doing my best, I thought I’d be fine, I just really needed information tonight and I couldn’t go out tomorrow because I need to help Tim, and now I’m going to have to call in Steph, and Barbara’s gonna be upset, and Tim’ll be mad, and it’s Damian’s first week of school, I took him out of homeschool because you wanted him to go to Gotham Academy, but he hates it and he won’t go to bed on time, and I have a board meeting in the morning I’m not prepared for-”

“Richard.” Bruce tried to interrupt, but Dick was rambling, his hands shaking as he pressed one to his forehead, his voice growing frantic. Bruce moved to sit next to the mugs.

“-I know I’m letting you down, you came back to a mess and I’m still trying to get everything settled, and Jason’s still loose god knows where, and I can’t take three steps off this couch without feeling like I’m about to collapse and now I’m taking up your time too for nothing because I’m fine and I can handle this and you should just go back to your case because it’s more important and-”

“Richard John Grayson.” He squeezed Dick’s shoulder, waiting for him to meet his eyes. “I’m sorry.” Dick bit his lip, face flushed. Bruce froze, not sure where to go from here. He had more to say, but for some reason, he couldn’t speak. Dick blinked, tears forming in the corners of his eyes, and for a moment Bruce could pretend he was eight years old again – and just like that, he knew what to do.

Leaning forward, he wrapped Dick in a hug, gently patting his back (hopefully breaking some mucus loose). Alarm bells rang in his mind – Dick was warm – too warm, but he ignored them, just holding his son steady as his ragged breath went smooth.

“I’m sorry I didn’t stick around before, I know better now, and I’ll stay this time if you’ll let me.” He paused, gathering his thoughts, releasing Dick back against a stack of pillows. He dropped his elbows to his knees, letting his head drop into his hands. He could fix this.

“You’ve done better than I could have imagined, given the circumstances. Better than I did when I was your age.” He ran Dick’s words through his mind again. “I’ll stay until you’re well. I’ll talk to Tim and Barbara. I’ll figure out where Jason went. I’ll talk to Damian about school, though you might have better luck than me on that one-”

“You’re kidding me he listened to you perfectly earlier.” Dick muttered, tucking his chin between his knees.

“-only because we had a shared goal, and that goal was assisting you.” Bruce continued. “I’ll call Lucius, get him to reduce your hours. I-we can fix this. Just…” his voice caught in his throat. “Get well soon.” Dick, well he was right, it was painful to see him so worn out. It seemed… unnatural, seeing him sick, though he’d seen him ill plenty of times before.

Dick glanced at him, then dropped his gaze, fidgeting with the corner of a little throw blanket. “I’m being pathetic. Bruce. I’m sorry, I can handle this.” He looked back up, determination swimming in his bleary blue eyes. “You don’t need to stay.”

Bruce sighed exasperatedly. “I know. Do you remember the time I got mono? Back when you were a kid?” Dick thought for a moment before nodding.

“Alfred wouldn’t let you leave your room. We played Uno.” He noted.

“And Go-Fish, checkers, chess, and every other game we own. And Clark and Lucius covered for me for two months. And I hated staying put but playing games with you made time fly.” He leaned forward, slipping an arm around Dick, pulling him up again, and heading towards his room. “I’ll let you in on a secret. I would have cut the recovery time in half if I didn’t escape out the window two weeks in. Dick… you aren’t letting me down if you let me cover for you, consider it payback.”

Dick gasped dramatically, only to let out a few weak coughs. “You didn’t! …Actually, I already knew. Alfred and I picked you up after you got your ass kicked, remember?” He shook his head. “I know it’s stupid to go out sick, I saw you do it and I hated it I wouldn’t do that to Damian or you.” He paused, leaving them in uncomfortable silence. “Uh. No offense. Just… you believe me, right? I wouldn’t have gone out if I thought I wouldn’t come back.”

Bruce paused, giving Dick a long look. Memories of Superman’s panicked call coming over his comms, Dick rushing into nuclear wastelands without protection. They’d come a long way since then, Dick had come a long way in the year he’d been gone. “I believe you.”

Dick let out a long breath as they turned into his bedroom. “Okay.” Bruce propped pillows as Dick faceplanted into bed.

“Sleep well.” He murmured, throwing the comforter over him. Dick turned, shooting him a half smile, not making any moves towards the nice stack of pillows. He clicked on a humidifier on his way towards the door, shutting off the lights as he left. “I’m proud of you.”

As he closed the door, leaving it open just a crack, he heard a tired voice whisper “Thanks.”