#the resurrection of Ra's Al Ghul

[umbrellacam]

ok sorry I just have to yell about this real quick -

Nightwing (Vol. 2) #139 - The Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul, part 6 Dick: "I let you make the choice for yourself...because I knew you'd make the right one."

Dick didn't know shit, lmao!! "Because I knew you'd make the right one" my ass lol.

Let's rewind two minutes shall we:

Dick: "Tim... Listen... There are no easy answers... But you have the right to make the choice for yourself." || Dick (internal narration): "No-win. If I stop him, I don't trust him. If he goes through with it, I shouldn't have trusted him. C'mon, Tim..."

He doesn't know what choice Tim is going to make, whether his grief will overcome him and he'll take the Lazarus water or not, and has in fact been physically fighting Tim this entire issue to stop him by force. But ultimately he knows it's Tim's right to choose for himself, and decides to hope, and have faith in his brother.

And he has that faith rewarded, and reaffirms it afterward, despite the fact that he wasn't sure.

And paralleling that moment of "yes of course I knew you had it":

Red Robin (2009) #12 Dick: "How'd you know? How did you know I'd be there to save you?" || Tim: "You're my brother, Dick. You'll always be there for me."

TIM DIDN'T KNOW SHIIIIIIIIT HGKLJDKFLSD

At least not consciously! Being caught by Dick is certainly not something he planned for, as he seems to be trying to imply.

Again, rewind:

Tim (internal narration): "I did it. I saved the people he loved. I saved everything he worked so hard to build. No compromises. He won't say anything, he never does. But I know. I know that Bruce will be proud of me. Not a bad day." || Tim: (in the midst of pASSING TF OUT) || Dick: (swoops in and catches him)

Tim may not have actually known that Dick would be there. But that catch... A falling Tim being caught by Dick is a motif that occurs over and over and over across the years of their relationship. Why do I feel like there's a part of Tim, faint as he faded out, and much stronger when he woke up, that went, "Oh, it's Dick - of course if it was anyone, I knew it would be Dick"?

After their conflicts and miscommunications in this arc, after Tim sweeping back into town and explaining not a single thing as he races to thwart Ra's, despite Dick's frustrated pleas, after cutting Dick off with a simple, "Batman...trust me," and Dick's responding, "Of course"....

Tim feeling like he knew, even if he didn't know, or plan, or expect. Because that's his brother. And choosing to express that trust, after Dick chose to trust him...

Just. Dick and Tim. Verbally reaffirming their faith in each other, even after in-the-moment doubts. BROTHERS. My emotions.

[zahri-melitor]

Tim’s life slogan.

[frogaroundandfindout]

Terribly important to me (Nightwing Vol. 2 #139)

[heroesriseandfall]

What did the poor monks and caretakers of Nanda Parbat do to deserve everybody thinking Ra’s al Ghul owns the place when they specifically banned him from it?

This is where all the good vigilantes go for spiritual training and healing or whatever. When Ra’s came he tried to steal their holy water and destroy it. Free Nanda Parbat from the assassin stronghold allegations!

[sleepy-writes-stuff]

DP X DC WRITING PROMPT #20

(#) = Notes at the end of post

(*) = Other ideas relating to the prompt

✦

To Let Sleeping Dogs Lie

Jason stayed dead for about six months before he was resurrected. That left his spirit plenty of time to fully manifest in the ghost zone, but time flows a little weird in the Infinite Realms so it feels like he's been dead a lot longer.

Regardless, six months is enough time for him to make plenty of friends and enemies alike. Enough to fall head over heals for the white-haired boy named Danny who just so happens to also be his king. Enough time for Jason and Danny to finally confess their feelings for each other and form a relationship. Enough time for them to grow to adore each other down to their very cores. Enough time for Jason to become the King's consort and earn the title of Prince of the Infinite Realms.

Not enough time, however, when Jason's spirit is unwillingly dragged back to the broken husk of his body buried in a coffin six feet under. Not enough time when the sheer amount of trauma his body and mind suffered causes his memories of the afterlife to sift out like grains of sand through a colander, mindless in his continued existence and search for a man named Bruce that he only half recalls.

Not enough time for when his body is stolen and dunked into the foulist pools of ectoplasm to ever surface in the living world and he comes back with unbridled rage he only half understands. Where is he? Where was he? Why does green flood his vision? Something is missing but why can't he remember? He shouldn't be here. Why was he here?? (1)

Jason tries to navigate his way through the world he'd previously left behind and discovers what happened after his death. The Joker was still alive. Another child was running around in a traffic light costume in the dead of night. Bruce had replaced him, seeming to forget he ever existed and the consequences of training a child to be a vigilante. That just won't do. He cries. He rages. He plans.

Meanwhile, the King of the Infinite Realms is apocalyptic over the fact that his lover was ripped from his arms, their kingdom, their home. He can sense Jason's torment like echoes in a cave. Can sense when his body enters the fringes of his territory when dunked into the toxic Lazarus waters created by the previous king. How dare they taint his lover's spirit with such filth?! Danny's core rears its head, chanting, growling to protect his soulmate.

Danny is beyond unhappy and he's about to make it everyone's problem.

✦

Notes:

(1) Jason forgets everything he experienced in the afterlife with Danny and is even more confused than he previously would have been when resurrected. Memories only come back to him in bits and pieces when he comes into contact with beings of the supernatural and Danny himself or possibly when he sleeps.

(*) I believe an interesting way to show the events and progression for this prompt would be to switch back and forth between the current events of Under the Red Hood/Phantom's anger and the days they spent together in the Infinite Realms before they were literally torn away from each other. Either as standalone info or through the dreams Jason has as he sleeps but doesn't remember when he wakes.

The events of Under the Red Hood still happen, there's just the question of where he even was for the six months that he was dead added into the equation. Dead on Main tossed in there for flair, because why not? Been seeing a lot of "Jason becomes Danny's Fright Knight" fics, but I wanna see one where they're literally just a royal couple who rule the Infinite Realms with a just and fair hand.

[aalghul]

ra’s is always written so poorly in any story where he considers tim as a successor or even finds him particularly valuable outside of batman.

[sarahreadstoomanycomics]

"You have nothing to apologize for. Nothing. I left you to make the choice for yourself....because I knew you'd make the right one" -Dick Grayson, Nightwing v2 #139

[bluejaysandblackbats]

Lily of the Valley

Fandom: DC Comics, Batfam

Summary: Jason Todd dies and comes back to life. As the League takes him in, he navigates his morality and family values over the years.

Chapters: 30/?

Characters: Jason Todd, Talia al Ghul, Ra’s al Ghul, Damian Wayne, Barbara Gordon, Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne, Sheila Haywood

Relationships: Jason Todd/Original Character(s)

Additional Tags: Immortal Jason Todd, League of Assassins Jason Todd, Protective Talia al Ghul, Good Parent Talia al Ghul, Jason Todd Needs a Hug, Good Sibling Jason Todd, Hurt/Comfort, Adopted Children, Resurrected Jason Todd

Chapter Thirty: Cream Wild Indigo

Two Christmases passed, bleeding into New Year’s, Mardi Gras, Easter, and the Fourth of July, and Jason still hadn’t left Houma or Josh. He kept telling himself he’d go home, but every time he thought to leave, he’d look at Josh, and his heart would ache so badly, he decided to stay behind. He’d taken things slowly, thinking that Josh’s effect would wane as his grief passed, but his affection for Josh only grew as time passed. One night, Jason woke up feeling oddly bold as he approached Josh’s bedroom door. He knocked, sheepishly standing outside, his gaze cast downward as he waited. Josh opened the door, wearing a pajama shirt and basketball shorts. He scratched his stomach, squinting at Jason in the dark. “Ça va?” Josh asked as he lifted Jason’s chin. “I forget you shy… You wanna come in here?” Jason nodded. “You wanna talk?” Jason shook his head. “You wanna do more than kiss?” Jason wasn’t sure how to answer, so he didn’t. “You wanna kiss me, though?” Jason nodded, staring into Josh’s eyes. 

Josh leaned in, and Jason closed his eyes, meeting Josh halfway as their lips touched. Jason placed a hand on his own stomach, acknowledging the difference and the butterflies that came with it. Josh was gentle, leaning back to see if Jason was willing to chase him… And Jason did more than just chase. He grabbed hold of Josh’s pajama shirt, pulling him close as their lips parted. “I love you,” Jason whispered as he took a breath. 

“I love you, too. Still want to come in?” Josh questioned. Jason nodded, taking Josh’s hand as he stepped past the threshold for the first time. They didn’t kiss again that night as Josh held the sheets up, allowing Jason to climb under them, sharing the warmth. They didn’t do anything except talk. 

“Peter’s my middle name,” Jason confessed. 

“Alright… I like when we go out dancin’. I pretend I don’t wanna dance, but I feel somethin’ special when you close to me like that,” Josh replied, his eyes squinting and eyebrows pulled together in a severe expression. Jason grinned. 

“You’re the first boy I ever loved. First boy I ever kissed,” Jason whispered. 

“I figured so… Your family don’t take light to that? Is that why you don’t write or call them?” Josh questioned. 

Jason shook his head. “No… It’s not like that. My mama, she’s had a few loves in her life. Not all of them were men,” Jason answered, “I just—. If I let them know where I am, they’ll ask me to come home… And I—. I wouldn’t hesitate. I’d go… But I know I’m not—. I’m not ready to go.”

“So, they don’t know you here?” Josh asked. Jason shook his head. “Why you leave?” 

“I’m adopted… It’s no secret. They took me in when I was eleven… My stepmother, who I believed was my birth mother died… And my mama took me into her home, taught me her way of doing things, and she gave me everything I could ever dream of and more. She offered me the best education available, all the books I could read, miles and miles of land to explore, and I ate. God, did I eat… It was a huge step up from the abandoned apartment I lived in alone… And my brother never saw me as anything but his brother. He used to sneak into the room to keep me company when I was sick…

“And my grandfather… I was so afraid of him for so long, but I know now that he wanted me to be strong. He had his way of doing things, and I can respect it now… But, I left home to meet my birth mother as soon as I learned her name. It didn’t work out, and I felt so guilty for leaving… Especially in the way things turned out… I couldn’t go home and look them in the eye after that,” Jason explained. Josh played with Jason’s long curls. 

“I know they miss you… You have a gentle way about you, so I know your little brother must miss you somethin’ awful,” Josh whispered. Jason frowned. “I didn’t—.”

“I missed his last three birthdays. He’s ten. He just turned ten a week and a half before my birthday, and I—. I’ve been with you for a year,” Jason whispered. 

“You should go see him… Buy him something nice,” Josh whispered. Jason closed his eyes, pretending to be tired. Josh kissed his forehead. “We won’t talk no more tonight.”

**

Jason didn’t sleep in Josh’s bed again for nearly two weeks. It took him that long to build up the courage to do what he wanted. He made love to Josh and afterward, he lay beside Josh, holding back tears. “Why you look so sad?” Josh questioned. “I knew you was leavin’... You have to see your folks.” 

“But I—. It might be a while before I see you again. I don’t want to leave you,” Jason whimpered. Josh smiled, not completely understanding the weight of Jason’s words. 

“I’m not goin’ nowhere. Family real important… I been tellin’ you to go home. Jason, you go home and you let them know somebody here love you… And when you come back, I’m gon’ show you how much I missed you,” Josh whispered as they shared a kiss. Jason’s tongue brushed Josh’s as tears rolled across his nose and down his right cheek. Josh pulled away and wiped Jason’s tears away. “Don’t you cry now, ma moitié.” 

Hearing Josh say that made Jason’s heart sick. He moaned in pain as he turned his face into the pillow. Josh rubbed Jason’s back. Jason “Do you promise to be careful until I get back? And take care of yourself? And—.” Jason took his necklace off and gave it to Josh. “Never take this off. Ever.” Jason kissed the jeweled charm that hung down to Josh’s chest. 

“Love charm?” Josh asked. Jason shook his head. 

“Protection,” Jason replied, “When I’m back in the United States, I’ll come for you.” 

“You don’t live in the US?” Josh questioned. Jason shook his head. 

“No, I grew up on an island. I’ll know you’re okay as long as you wear that charm,” Jason whispered. Josh nodded. And when Josh woke up, Jason was gone. The only evidence of his presence was the charm necklace and a letter. 

**

Jason arrived home after three days, dog tired and longing to hear Josh’s voice. He could still smell Josh’s cologne on his skin. It smelled like Houma on the jet. He trekked through the forest for half a day, taking the long way home. It was dark when he arrived, and he quietly explained to the guards that he didn’t want Ra’s, Talia, or Damian notified of his return. They let him through, and he crept toward Damian’s room. Damian tossed and turned, muttering in his sleep. Jason smiled, touching Damian’s little hand only to be met by a knife. Jason grabbed his wrist before Damian could hold the blade to his throat. “Di, is that any way to say hello?” Jason asked. Damian’s eyes widened as he stared at Jason. “I’ve missed you.”

“Gē, did Grandfather call you home?” Damian whispered. Jason shook his head.

“Why would he call me home?” Jason questioned as he held Damian’s face in his hands. He could see a darkness in Damian’s eyes that wasn’t there before, but his soul smelled so warm and sweet like an infant. “Oh, how I’ve missed you, Di—. Damian.” 

Damian hugged Jason. “You’re going to Gotham with me… Aren’t you?” Damian asked. “I’m leaving soon.”

“I’ll have to talk to Grandfather in the morning before I can answer that. I’ve been gone so long, I’m not sure what he’ll want from me now,” Jason answered, “You’ve gotten so big. I missed you every day that I was gone. You’ve never been far from my mind.” 

“Saru’s—. She’s—.” Jason nodded and frowned. “Why didn’t you come home when—?”

“I’ll explain it to you in a little while. Will you be up for a little while? I want to sleep in here with you… I’ll tell you about my new friend,” Jason answered. Damian nodded, letting Jason go. They had so much catching up to do. It felt like several lifetimes since they were last in that room together.

[avayarising]

So I’ve been reading The Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul (thanks @lynzine), and…

Ra’s wants a new body to transfer his consciousness to, and has captured Robin!Tim and Damian. He says he can use either:

But later, once Ra’s has taken over the body of his son, Dusan, the White Ghost, we see this:

For the transference to work, you need a blood relative.

How is Tim blood-related to Ra’s Al Ghul?

[heather-chandlers-weirder-cousin]

Shoutout to Damian for liking every animal except bats. Truly the kid with the worst luck in relatives

[nefarious-616-necromancer]

[zahri-melitor]

Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul:

- Robin Annual #7 gave me my very first “you little brat” (affectionate) moment with Damian so I guess I AM capable of having that emotion with him. This is helpful, going forward in this read.

- Tragically he then was intensely irritating in every other panel he appeared in afterwards, sorry Damian, you are SUCH a plot device here.

- Fascinated to encounter Nanda Parbat and now I need to read its previous appearances, because people are correct, the way it’s used in fic is NOT the same as what it actually is.

- I have a lot of strong feelings about the bit of Batman Annual #26 set in the Bungle Bungles, but it was actually reasonably decent Australian characterisation for once, aside from the fact they used an exotic pest that is NOT PRESENT in Australia. I could give you a shortlist to pick from listed by the DPI, DC, why worry me by suggesting we had something I didn’t know about. (Shoulda been immortal cane toads)

- The Dick & Tim content was as great and heart-wrenching as described. Aaaaaaaaaaahhhh. Kill me. The number of times Dick’s like “yeah we are about to fight a ridiculous number of ninjas, I’d do it for you” and Tim turning to fight beside Dick in this storyline is heartwarming.

- ANOTHER canonical terrible angsty Christmas for Tim? He never gets a break on Christmas does he? (Also thinking imprecations at ALL the writers who stepped Janet below Jack-Steph-Conner if Tim was running around talking about resurrecting dead loved ones AT CHRISTMAS, you missed a trick here)

TIM!!! (This is about the best bit of Janet content in the whole comic, we could have had it ALLLLL (massive angst), DC, if you remembered your history)

[frogaroundandfindout]

As Ra’s and Bruce fight, a monk is possessed by the goddess and tells Ra’s he is barred from Nanda Parbat forever. The bats take heed and go. (Detective Comics #839)

[heroesriseandfall]

I think Dick & Tim’s physical fights are underrated. Maybe people assume since they’re close and never hated each other they must not fight. Which, to be fair, they usually don’t, and they don’t try to kill each other.

But Dick especially has a long history of physically getting into fights with people he cares strongly about, and when Tim is about to follow through on a terrible idea, he is no exception to that. Tim apparently has no qualms about it either.

What’s especially enjoyable about it to me is they’ll fight for fun and then they’ll fight to stop each other from doing stuff that’s a bad idea (like, say, fixating on bringing back all your dead loved ones) and no matter what their brotherhood will survive it. <3

…Even if Tim cheats to win one of their fights by playing the “if you MEAN IT that we’re brothers you’ll let me do my bad idea” card. Then he comes home after and follows it up with “of COURSE I’d never make a plan to take you down in a fight, I would never have to!”

(It occurs to me that in A Lonely Place of Dying when they meet again, they instinctively fight each other before even looking. lol)

[hood-ex]

What? No. I'm not crying over the fact that Mario cupped Luigi's face and then pressed his forehead to Luigi's when they reunited. I'm not. Doing that. I'm

[5-7-9]

heard lady shiva’s mysterious hometown was protected by ra’s al ghul so now i got a crazy idea about making Sandra part of an endangered or seemingly extinct type of eastern Asian like Achang or Xiandao maybe

I also got a really crazy idea about making Ra’s Al Ghul knowing all these extinct languages in general, like Akkadian for example